Blizzard conditions mounted Christmas Day and through the night, with snow accumulations of more than an inch per hour and high winds prompting the closure of Interstate 94 between Jamestown and the Montana border, and N.D. Highway 83 between Bismarck and Minot.

Travel advisories remained in effect for much of the state on Sunday night with near-zero visibility.

Bismarck Police issued a no travel advisory within the City of Bismarck until further notice, saying roads are impassible in areas throughout the city and stranded vehicles blocking the roadways are creating unsafe conditions for emergency personnel.

The highway closures exclude the Bismarck-Mandan and Dickinson metro areas.

Sgt. Ryan Duletski of the North Dakota Highway Patrol said a few drivers had slid into the ditch by early afternoon, but it appeared many holiday travelers had heeded storm warnings, staying home or adjusting their plans around the weather.

"It's either ice and sleet, or it's snow," he said. "It's not favorable for driving. Visibility will decrease when they travel open areas."

He characterized travel as light outside city limits on Sunday afternoon.

"Winds will accelerate to 40 to 50 mph Sunday evening into the overnight hours," said Adam Jones, a meteorologist for the Bismarck office of the National Weather Service. "Travel will be dicey just about everywhere. This will be dumping a considerable amount of snow in just 24 hours."

As of 7:30 p.m., Bismarck had received 4.6 inches of snow, according to meteorologist Bill Abeling at the Bismarck NWS office. Ice accumulation of up to a half-inch was reportedly causing power outages in the Jamestown and Verona areas, he said.

Included in the travel alert are Bismarck, Dickinson, Minot, Jamestown, Valley City, Devils Lake, Grand Forks and surrounding areas, according to the North Dakota Department of Transportation.

Two to 3 inches of snow were on the ground in northwest North Dakota near Williston early Sunday morning, with 8 inches more expected. As of 2 p.m., heavy snowfall had begun in Bismarck.

Abeling said Bismarck's blizzard conditions should end by noon Monday after dropping 12 to 18 inches. However, he expected patchy snow and winds of 20 to 30 mph to continue throughout most of the day.

The overnight low was forecast at 15 degrees, with wind chill of zero to 5 below. Monday's high is forecast for 17, with an overnight low of 2 below zero. Tuesday's high will be 21.

Motorists are asked to call 511 or monitor the state Transportation Department's roadmap online for updates.
Kidnapped teen rescued

According to reports, the victim, Jovica George, was walking along Chootoo Lane, El Socorro near the Muslim cemetery at about 3.25 pm on Saturday when he was approached by two men in a Tiida motor car. They reportedly bundled him inside the vehicle and sped away. Eyewitnesses to the incident reported the matter to officers of the Barataria Police Station, however searches for the abducted teen proved futile on Saturday.

Newsday understands that someone telephoned a relative and demanded a $300,000 ransom for Georges safe return. Officers from the AKU, acting on information received, went to a house in Laventille where they rescued the teenager.

No arrests were made and the boy was returned to his relatives who were anxiously praying for his safe return. Newsday understands that a relative of the teen was recently threatened by someone over a financial transaction.

Police believe the kidnapping was linked to that incident
Eleven arrested in anti-crime exercise

According to reports, officers cordorned off several areas in the city and detained the persons who were wanted for several robberies, outstanding warrants, and other serious crimes.

A search was carried out for the sale of illicit alcohol and drugs.

Several apartments in the plannings in east Port-of-Spain were also searched during the exercise. Officers focussed on searching for illicit arms and ammunition.
Court sits on Christmas Day

Espinosa was detained by Immigration officers on Wednesday last after it was allegedly discovered that he was in possession of falsified documents.

His attorney, Criston Williams, filed a writ of Habeas Corpus aimed at securing his release.

Presiding in the matter yesterday was Justice James Aboud who said,The state has the right, under the law, to detain persons, and those persons have the right to seek redress.

I felt that the liberty of this man is important enough, not just for him but for us as well. Aboud noted that these rights are available to all, at any time and at any day.

The court heard that Espinosa came to Trinidad to holiday with friends during the period September to December and sought an extension.

On December 21, when he went to San Fernando Port at Kings Wharf to return to his home, Immigration officers allegedly found that the extension for his stay was obtained fraudulently. He was detained at the Immigration Detention Centre waiting to be charged for the offence.

Williams wrote to the Immigration Department requesting an explanation as to why he was detained and not allowed to leave the country.

Yesterday, Immigration Officer Fareed Abraham told the court that investigators found the extension document to be fraudulent. Aboud, satisfied with the evidence provided, ordered that Espinosa continue to be detained at the Immigration Detention Centre.

While charges have not yet been laid, he is expected to be prosecuted by police officers for being in possession of fraudulent documents.

Williams commended Aboud for the courts adherence do duty, but Aboud cut him short saying, You are editorialising right now and I am sure that we all have Christmas cake to eat. The matter was adjourned to a date to be fixed in January
TT like Syria war zone

he said, adding, if these world reporters were here in Trinidad.

I tell you something, all these areas that are covered because of violence and crime they would be joke to what is happening in the killing fields of Trinidad and Tobago. And for those of you who love to say that crime is down, well crime is not down in Aleppo, Syria, it is not down in San Fernando or Port of Spain or Trinidad and Tobago, he said, and noted that by his reckoning.

over 1,000 families have been affected by the spiralling murder rate between 2015 and 2016. Our killing fields in Trinidad and Tobago is more vicious than the truck attack in Berlin, he said, adding.

too many families in our society will not celebrate Christmas this year and their sadness will go on into the new year. Teelucksingh was addressing a packed congregation during a Christmas worship service at Susamachar Presbyterian Church, Coffee Street, San Fernando yesterday. In his trademark candid approach.

Teelucksingh cited the song, Blue Christmas, as the unofficial anthem of these families who would be shedding tears amid pleas for justice which would remain unanswered as Trinidad and Tobago seems to be a land where so many cases go cold. Who are these families who know about the sad tear drops and the sad memories that come calling, 420 of them in 2015, about 450 in 2016 so far, family members who were murdered, he said, adding,  I want to remember and think about a mothers sadness. She lives in Barataria - her 15-year-old son was shot to death this month. Did you hear about the Penal truck driver? He has a family - the family missed him for 11 days and he was found dead near an oil well in the district with his body duct taped, wrapped in a tarpaulin and dumped. For 11 days they cried and 11 days they prayed. I want you to remember the grief of a son who witnessed the shooting death of his mother a few days ago, a mother who was weeping for her young son who was shot to death for his gold chain and the sad tear drops keep falling for that young lady in Port-of-Spain who was murdered in a warehouse. This is a land where nobody seems to care, he said, adding, and I want to appeal to all families in Trinidad and Tobago to spare a thought and say a prayer for the families that will not be having a merry Christmas. Teelucksingh also noted that the Holy Family of Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus were not without their problems but, instead of giving in to their problems, remained a family while dealing with their many challenges. I want you to bear this in mind. Dont think they were such a Godly family and they had no problems. That model family had problems just as any other family throughout the ages, he said, adding, do you know that Mary and Joseph and engagement problems? A real serious problem that they nearly break up. They sought the guidance of God and they worked it out and stayed together, and thats important. I want you to remember that lest you think that was a marriage made in heaven. I dont know about that one. But I will tell you something as far as my family and your family is concerned.

that family had problems. They dealt with their problems they prayed about their problems and I am sure they discussed it with other people, he said. Teelucksingh said the family had to remain the nations premium fortress against the many ills of society just as the Holy Family had managed to overcome the wicked devices of King Herod who had plotted to kill the new-born baby Jesus.
Jearlean to join gym after scratch bomb scare

John spent a quiet Christmas Day at her Cascade home yesterday, claiming that she was in a lot of joint pains and had only discovered yesterday that she had received cuts to her abdomen and other parts of her body from climbing walls with barbed wire.

She told Newsday she was still traumatised and shaken up over the incident but insists that she will not cower in fear and become a recluse as a result.

John said she will continue her life as normal but will take the necessary precautions for her own safety.

She noted that the police indicated that the incident was perpetrated by two persons throwing scratch bombs and not any hired gunmen.

However, she believes that the persons who carried out the act using scratch bombs should be found and brought to justice.

John said she was leaving the entire matter in the hands of police and believe that they would continue with the probe in a professional manner.

I am at home today just taking it easy, grateful to be alive but I want to reiterate that the police service should be highly commended for their sense of professionalism in how they treated me and my sister on Saturday, she said.

In July, John reported a threat to her life to officers of the Criminal Gang and Intelligence Unit.

While making the report she was informed by police that they were also in receipt of information that persons were threatening to cause her harm. She was advised to take necessary precautions, and to desist from jogging up the Lady Chancellor Hill, which she usually did.

On Saturday, at about 4 am, John and her sister Jacqueline, who is vacationing in Trinidad for the Christmas season, were jogging around the Savannah near Marli Street when they heard someone in a black SUV shout, Look them, look them.

Shoot, then heard several loud explosions.

John and her sister ran behind some trees and hid, ran across to Marli Street where they jumped two walls with barbed wire, knocking on doors and asking for help thinking they were being pursued by hired hit men. After climbing the walls, John and her sister reached Woodford Street where they contacted the St Clair Police.

They were interviewed by officers and returned to the scene of the incident where officers found traces of scratch bomb residue.

Officers also viewed camera footage which showed two men in an SUV throwing scratch bombs at John and her sister. The two suspects who carried out the act remained at large yesterday.

And Public Administration Minister Maxie Cuffie has reiterated the need for citizens to be even more vigilant about the purchase, sale and use of scratch bombs, following the attack on John and her sister.

In a release, Cuffie said he had read the report where the police confirmed that scratch bombs were thrown at two joggers. He said, this latest incident only further underscores the need for the campaign, but more so the need for us to be even more vigilant about the purchase, sale and use of scratch bombs. Cuffie said the police have committed to doing their part, and we as members of the public need to remember that we also have a part to play.
San Fernando welcomes two

But yesterday Ahay, of San Fernando, gave birth to a healthy baby boy at the San Fernando General Hospital and noted she was elated to have him arrive on such a wonderful day.

Ahay is a final-year student of Criminology at the College of Science, Technology and Applied Arts (COSTAATT).

Although she and the newborns father, Matthew Cooper, are yet to decide on the babys name, they said his middle name would be Mathias with a double-barrelled surname namely, Ahay-Cooper.

Mathias was the first newborn to be delivered yesterday at the hospital shortly after 2 am. He weighted 3.35 kilograms.

The baby was really due on January 4 but I came here on Wednesday.

There were no complications but it was not an easy delivery at all. She noted that staff members of the health institution were very efficient and commended them for helping her through the process.

They were all very nice. The childs father, a vehicle technician, noted that in his short 21 years living on this island, this is one of the gloomiest Christmas he has even seen in the country so far.

But having my son born on this day, it has brightened up my Christmas and the new year to come, Cooper said with a smile on his face.

The second child, also a male, to be delivered at the hospital came over three hours later at 5.49 am.

However officials did not divulge much information about the birth except to say that he was at the neo-natal wing and the mother did not wish to speak with media personnel at the time.

There were no other births up to yesterday afternoon.

Meanwhile at the Point Fortin Area Hospital, two mothers also gave birth yesterday.
Valencia police treat for children

the station was turned into a play centre. Police officers, in collaboration with Councillor for the area, Simone Gill, gave families in Valencia a Christmas treat.

Assistant Superintendent for the area, Mario Robain, said, The handing out of hampers was a gesture by all the officers at the station.

We needed to show the softer side of policing because we are looking at holistic policing. We wanted to meet some of the social needs of the community and bridge that gap between the police and the public.

We are looking at that support, not only at Christmas time, but throughout the year. According to Gill, although donations for the event, not in its third year, were less, those involved in hosting the event decided that the show must go on. Approximately 30 hampers were distributed and toys for 75 children were delivered.

Last year, toys for 800 were available.

Despite the drastic reduction in donations, Inspector Francis Harris applauded the corporate residents of Valencia.

He said, We wanted to do our part to uplift the community and assist them in making themselves marketable. We have seen the smiles on the faces of the persons who came
Permell says TCL directors must disclose share valuation

In a media release yesterday, Permell, cited an article in a daily newspaper in which it was reported that an independent director of TCL was attempting to defend the boards decision not to provide a price range to shareholders which the company considered to be a fair offer notwithstanding its rejection of the $4.50 per share takeover offer made by Mexican cement giant, Cemex .

Permell noted that the directors statement seemed to suggest that the board might be in possession of an official range of values for the companys shares, which by inference could only come from some sort of formal valuation process undertaken on the companys shares. If the preceding is correct, what this means is that by virtue of TCL being a publicly- listed company, directors might be either wittingly or unwittingly be in possession of material non-public information, he stated .

He pointed out that according to the Securities Act 2012, the term material non-public information means, in relation to securities of a reporting issuer, any material fact or material change that has not been published .

While material fact means, when used in relation to the affairs of an issuer or its securities, is a fact or a series of facts, the disclosure of which would be considered important to a reasonable investor in making an investment decision .

Accordingly, I am advised that information regarding the valuation of a companys shares, particularly in the context of a takeover offer, quite easily qualifies as material non-public information .

And as a consequence, it therefore follows that timely if not immediate disclosure is required, he stated .

Permell noted that material non-public information was required to be disclosed in a timely fashion to reduce or mitigate the risk of persons with access to the information from acting upon the said undisclosed information, usually to benefit of themselves, family and/or close associates. He also pointed out that according to Section 102 of the Act, a person connected to a reporting issuer (i.e. TCL as defined by the Act) who either directly or indirectly, communicates or otherwise discloses any material non-public information to any person prior to such information having been published contravenes section 101 and as such commits an offence pursuant to Section 102 and is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine of five million dollars and to imprisonment for seven years.
Sinanan brings Christmas cheer to Brasso residents

Sinanan made the promise following a tour where he assessed and examined on-going works being carried out by his ministry.

While Sinanan pledged the assistance of the Ministrys resources to repair damage caused by heavy rainfall and landslips, he also reinforced that, the Governments duty is to bring services and relief to the citizens in this area and will stop at nothing to make sure that everything is back to normal. Sinanan was accompanied on the tour by his wife who assisted him in spreading Christmas cheer to the community by distributing hampers and toys to residents and children.
Carrie Fisher stable post heart attack, says her mother

United States,Cinema/Showbiz,Hollywood, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Los Angeles, Dec 26 (IANS) "Star Wars" actress Carrie Fisher is now in a "stable condition" after she suffered a major heart attack on a flight to Los Angeles, says her mother Debbie Reynolds.

Reynolds tweeted the news of Fisher's condition on Sunday and said the family would share any updates.

She also thanked the public for its "prayers and good wishes", reports dailymail.co.uk.

Earlier in the day, Oscar winner Sally Field tweeted that she was thinking of the "Star Wars" actress with all her "heart and soul".

Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill of "Star Wars" fame are among many others who have expressed the hope that the 60-year-old Fisher recovers after being admitted to a Los Angeles hospital on Friday.

The 60-year-old suffered a heart attack on a London-to-Los Angeles flight. She was rushed to UCLA Medical Center by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics after the 11-hour flight touched down at Los Angeles International Airport.

--IANS

nv/rb/bg
BJP victimising AAP's Goa CM candidate: Kejriwal

Delhi,National,Politics,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of "victimising" AAP's Goa chief ministerial candidate Elvis Gomes.

"Elvis Gomes is known all over Goa for his honesty. (He is) being victimised by the BJP government," Kejriwal tweeted.

Kejriwal's remarks came after Gomes was summoned by the Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) of the Goa Police for his alleged involvement in a housing scam.

"People of Goa will give a befitting reply to the BJP" in the state assembly elections next year, Kejriwal said, adding "Goa will vote for honesty".

Gomes, a former Inspector General of Prisons, was last week declared AAP's Chief Ministerial candidate in the state.

On Friday, Gomes along with Nilkanth Halarnkar, a former Minister of Goa for Housing in the erstwhile Congress-NCP alliance government, was summoned to report before the ACB on Monday.

--IANS

vv/sar/vt
Display innovations to drive customer satisfaction in 2017: Lenovo

Karnataka,Business/Economy,Technology, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Bengaluru, Dec 26 (IANS) With numerous innovations being infused into the world of personal computers, display innovations will be a key feature that will drive customer satisfaction in 2017, leading tech company Lenovo predicted on Monday.

"The upcoming year will also see an abundance of convertible and detachable devices in the market as portability and versatility remain top of mind for PC users who are becoming more mobile at work and at home," the company said in a statement.

Analysts forecast PC-as-a-Service (PCaaS) will help PC vendors transform transactional sales into longer term and more profitable engagements by expanding their services portfolios bundled with PC sales.

The Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) gaming space is projected to explode as a trend in 2017.

"With over 50 different headsets already confirmed to be displayed at the "Consumer Electronics Show" (CES 2017) in Las Vegas next month, gaming systems are set to dominate the PC market," the statement added.

Internet of Things (IoT) will continue to leave an impression in 2017 as industry observers are already predicting "The Internet of Everything" to be a disruptive trend in technology for the year.

As far as the Indian PC market is concerned, Lenovo took the third spot with 17.5 per cent market share in the second quarter of 2016 and it grew by 27.3 per cent quarter on quarter over second quarter of 2016, International Data Corporation (IDC) said in November.

Tablet shipments in India grew 7.8 percent in the third quarter of 2016 owing to the preparation for the festive season.

"Lenovo stood at fourth place with 15.5 per cent sequential growth and Micromax retained its place in top five, although its shipments remained flattish over previous quarter and 39 per cent year-on-year drop," IDC said in a statement.

--IANS

vc/na/bg
Japan monitoring Chinese aircraft carrier in the Pacific

Japan,Defence/Security, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Tokyo, Dec 26 (IANS) The Japanese government said on Monday that it is keeping a close watch on the activities of Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning in the Western Pacific, and added that its military drills "show the expansion of capabilities of the Chinese naval forces".

Liaoning is part of a Chinese naval fleet that was spotted by the Japanese Self Defence Forces while sailing in the East China Sea, some 110 km northeast of the island of Miyako, Tokyo's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said at a press briefing.

This is the first time that Japanese troops have confirmed the presence of the Chinese carrier in the region, Suga said, adding that Tokyo "will continue monitoring the situation closely", Efe news reported.

China's first aircraft carrier Liaoning set sail Saturday for Western Pacific waters to carry out military manoeuvres in the region, Beijing's defence ministry said.

The drills come at a time of tensions in the Pacific, following a recent telephone conversation between US President-elect Donald Trump and Taiwanese President Tsai Ying-wen that sparked strong criticism from Beijing.

Japan and China are also embroiled in a dispute in this region over the sovereignty of the Senkaku islands (known as Diaoyu in China), a group of uninhabited islands administered by Tokyo but claimed by Beijing.

The exact location of the Chinese navy flagship's manoeuvres remains unknown, with the country's defence ministry only disclosing that they would take place in "distant waters" in what is one of the first incursions by Liaoning - commissioned in 2012 - in international waters.

The ship is of Soviet make and was purchased from Ukraine, then rebuilt, mainly for use in training and research missions, according to the defence ministry.

--IANS

ksk/bg
Zardari moots grand anti-government alliance

Pakistan,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Karachi, Dec 26 (IANS) Former President and Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari discussed the formation of an anti-government alliance with Pakistan Muslim League-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, the media reported on Monday.

During a meeting here on Sunday, both leaders also talked about PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's four demands to the government, said a report in the Nation daily.

"We will not let the democracy be hijacked," said Shujaat Hussain, as he stressed the need for a grand alliance of the opposition for the country.

Shujaat Hussain made an appeal to all opposition parties to unite on a one-point agenda for national cause. Praising the PPP, he said that it always made sacrifices for the democracy while its policy of reconciliation is appreciated by the whole world.

"Our reconciliation is with democracy, and not with PML-N," said Zardari.

The former President said that their hold will now be in the Punjab province.

Zardari, during a visit to Mazar-e-Quaid (Jinnah mausoleum) on Sunday, told reporters that he will reveal his future course of action and provide good news in his address on December 27.

He said that the situation for early elections will develop soon, and added that Lahore will be the hub of politics.

Zardari also confirmed his ties with Anwar Majeed, who is being investigated by law enforcement agencies after huge cache of arms was recovered from his house during a raid on Sunday.

"Yes, I have relations with Anwar Majeed. As for what happened with him and why it happened, ask the Interior Minister about it," the former President said.

Majeed's company Omni Group was also raided on Friday.

--IANS

soni/vt
Congress reiterates demand for Sahara diaries' probe

Delhi,National,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) The Congress party on Monday reiterated its demand for a thorough probe into the bribery allegations against all those named in the Sahara diaries including its own party members.

Substantiating Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi's allegations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi receiving kickbacks from the Sahara Group while he was the Gujarat Chief Minister, the party posted on Twitter the entries listing payments to several politicians that included Sheila Dikshit who is now the party's Uttar Pradesh chief ministerial candidate.

While rejecting the allegations, the former Delhi Chief Minister said she "did not recall anything" about the diary, asserting that she had "nothing to do" with any such diary.

According to the list which has several names including Modi's, Rs 1 crore in cash was given to Dikshit on September 23, 2013 in Delhi. She was in power until December 2013.

The Congress stressed on the need of the Prime Minister coming clean on the charges even at the cost of Dikshit.

"We are fully aware that several political parties and leaders primarily from the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) including Modi have been named in the documents.

"Whether any Congress leader is named or not, is not material. What is material is the Prime Minister's name is there," Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha told IANS.

"Modi is accused at the moment based on those documents and he should suo-motu call for an investigation," he said.

Asked if the party wanted the matter to be probed even at the cost of Dikshit, Jha said: "All the political parties, all the leaders featuring in the documents should be scrutinised starting from the Prime Minister".

"Rahul Gandhi has taken the bull by the horns and it doesn't matter which political party, which political leader's names are there.

"We need to establish whether there was corruption or not. Since Modi is the seniormost political executive in the country, he needs to subject himself to a thorough and neutral probe," said Jha.

Jha also questioned the government's silence on the issue.

"The issue is Modi is artfully ducking a very serious attack based on the documents which allege that certain money was paid to him.

"Why is the government silent? Is Modi suffering from guilt conscience that is why he is dodging it.

"If he is clean, then why is he scared? He should go after the political parties named in the list," added Jha.

--IANS

sid-and/ksk/bg
Court rejects Swamy plea seeking documents in National Herald case

Delhi,National,Immigration/Law/Rights, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) A court here on Monday dismissed the plea of BJP leader Subramanian Swamy seeking summoning of documents of Congress party and Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) related to the National Herald case.

Metropolitan Magistrate Lovleen rejected the plea in which Swamy sought the Congress party's balance sheet of 2010-2011 and other documents relating to Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) in the case, and listed the matter for a February 10 hearing.

The Delhi High Court on July 12 had quashed an order of a trial court summoning the same documents besides others relating to Herald House from the Finance, Urban Development, and Corporate Affairs Ministries, the Delhi Development Authority and the Registrar of Companies.

The High Court had observed that the order was passed without giving any notice or opportunity of hearing to the opposite side. It had also directed Swamy to move the trial court again with a similar plea.

Swamy had filed a complaint about "cheating" in the acquisition of AJL, which published the National Herald newspaper, by Young India, "a firm in which Sonia and Rahul Gandhi each own a 38 per cent stake".

Swamy had accused them of allegedly conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds by just paying Rs 50 lakh, through which Young Indian obtained the right to recover Rs 90.25 crore that the Associated Journals Ltd owed to the Congress.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi and her son and party Vice President Rahul Gandhi, party leaders Motilal Vora and Oscar Fernandes, Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda and Young Indian are accused in the case.

The Delhi High Court in December 2015 dismissed the plea of the Gandhis to quash the summons issued by the trial court on Swamy's complaint.

--IANS

akk/lok/sac
Designer pays tribute to Narendra Modi with jewellery line

Delhi,Cinema/Showbiz,Lifestyle/Fashion, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) Designer Musskan Aggarwal has come up with a jewellery line taking inspiration from Prime Minister Narendra Modi as she feels that he is the "super hero" of her generation.

"2016 belongs to Mr Modi. Right from taking India on international platforms to taking the most historical move to fight against Black Money, Mr Modi is super hero of our generation," the designer said in a statement.

"I decided to make customised range as salute to Mr Modi. With my new collection.... We really wish more and more power to him," she added.

With an impeccable eye for detail, Agarwaal with her label Kiwi by Musskan Agarwaal crafts each piece to appeal to the fashion aficionados.

Each of her collections consists of individually handcrafted rings or neckpieces be it in polka, semi precious or precious stones, pearls, emeralds, sapphires, topaz or rubies.

Her new collection inspired by Modi is available at her stores in Sainik Farms and Khan Market at Rs. 2000 onwards

--IANS

nv/bg
Manipur government not lifting blockade for political gains: BJP

Assam,National,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Guwahati, Dec 26 (IANS) BJP General Secretary Ram Madhav blamed the Manipur government for the ongoing blockade in the state and said the ruling Congress is playing politics with the lives of people.

Madhav said this while interacting with mediapersons on the sidelines of the Bharatiya Janata Party workers' meeting at Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra here on Monday. Home Minister Rajnath Singh was also a part of the meet.

"Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh is playing politics with the lives of people of the Manipur valley. The central government has extended all support and sent all the required security forces to clear the blockade on NH 2 and NH 53," he said.

"However, the Manipur chief minister is not acting with the narrow objective of gaining some votes in the forthcoming assembly elections," he added.

Manipur has been on the boil since the last few weeks due to the nearly two-month-old blockade of national highways called by the United Naga Council (UNC) opposing the government's decision to create seven new districts bifurcating some Naga dominated areas of the state.

"We have been asking the Manipur government to lift the blockade. Law and order is a state subject and so it is the state government's responsibility," he said.

Asked about any plan to impose President's Rule in the state, the senior BJP leader said: "Right now the focus is to push the state government to clear the blockade, which is causing severe trouble to the people."

--IANS

ah/pgh/bg
Mass graves with mutilated bodies found in Aleppo: Russia

Russian Federation,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Moscow, Dec 26 (IANS) Russia on Monday said mass graves with dozens of mutilated bodies, some shot in the head, had been found in the Syrian city of Aleppo.

Aleppo was announced to be liberated last week by the Syrian army, Efe news reported.

Russian military spokesman Igor Konashenkov said some bodies in the mass graves bore signs of savage torture.

Konashenkov said it was just the beginning of the discoveries being made.

--IANS

py/bg
Nepali Congress tables 4-point proposal to end deadlock

Nepal,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Kathmandu, Dec 26 (IANS) The Nepali Congress (NC), the largest party in Parliament, has come up with a four-point proposal to move the country out from the current political deadlock, the media reported on Monday.

Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba held a meeting with NC Parliamentary Party's office-bearers and Central Working Committee members and decided to further intensify talks with the ruling partners as well as the opposition to forge an agreement on its proposal.

The party proposed: Immediate finalising of the date for local body poll, endorsement of the election-related bills, resumption of the house proceedings, and giving a full shape to the Election Commission (EC).

According to a report in the Kathmandu Post, the party hoped that the road map would help the parties find a ground to break the existing political deadlock.

The main opposition Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist-Leninist (CPN-UML), which has obstructed the house since the registration of the Constitution amendment proposal on November 29, said that it was ready to let the house resume the business if political parties commit to endorsing the local poll related bill.

Likewise, three election-related bills are in the waiting for an approval at Parliament while posts for three commissioners at the EC are lying vacant.

"A delay in opening the house business will prolong transition," Nepali Congress General Secretary Shashanka Koirala said after the meeting.

Nepali Congress's senior leader Ramchandra Poudel also spoke of the need of taking the country towards election phase to find a way out to the existing political imbroglio.

--IANS

soni/vt
Russia finds fuselage of plane lost in the Black Sea

Russian Federation,Defence/Security, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Moscow, Dec 26 (IANS) Russian military divers have found parts of the fuselage of the plane carrying 92 occupants that crashed in the Black Sea shortly after taking off from Sochi airport, rescuers said on Monday.

The Tu-154 aircraft, bound for Syria, was carrying some military personnel, 64 members of the much-admired Russian Army Alexandrov choir and dance ensemble as well as nine journalists, Efe news reported.

"Preliminary data indicates that the wreckage is at a depth of 27 metres at a distance of one mile from the shore in the direction of the runway," Russian Emergencies Ministry said in a statement.

The fuselage, which could contain the mortal remains of those aboard the plane, was located 1.7 km off the Black Sea coast, the statement said.

Divers have so far found four fragments, one of them about four metres long, it said.

More than 3,500 persons, including 135 divers, have been involved in looking for the wreckage, with 45 boats, 32 aircraft and seven submersible craft deployed to assist in the search.

Russia's Federal Security Service (the FSB, formerly known as the KGB) said there was so far nothing to suggest the plane might have been brought down by a terror attack.

The plane refuelled at Sochi and was bound for the Khmeimim Air Base in Syria, where Russia has forces deployed.

--IANS

py/vt
Two members of 'Thak Thak' gang held

Delhi,National,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) Two members of a 'Thak Thak' gang, that lifts belongings from cars by misleading its occupants, have been arrested here, police said on Monday.

They were arrested on the charges of robbery and three kg gold bricks, stolen from a gold dealer, were recovered from them, police said.

Police said Somu, 22, a resident of Tigri and his juvenile associate were arrested late Sunday night during a raid at Madangir in South Delhi.

Both were arrested when they were planning to dispose off the stolen gold bricks. The kingpin of the gang is yet to be arrested, a senior police officer said.

"Somu told interrogators that 4-6 gang members on motorcycles used to target vehicles near traffic signals to get the car stopped on the side of the road. They panicked the vehicle drivers and owners on the pretext of oil leakage in their car," Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Vijay Kumar said.

"When the car occupant used to step out, the juvenile members of the gang lifted his bag and other costly articles," Kumar said.

Somu also told the police that sometimes the gang members hit the cars from the back side, punctured a tyre or threw some engine oil on the bonnet and radiator of car which resulted in fumes emanating from the engine to panic the victims, Kumar added.

The gang members than gathered at a designated place for distribution of booty but not in the evening due to incessant raids, he said.

Somu and other gang members on Friday robbed Rachit Gupta, an Uttarakhand based gold dealer when he had come to meet another gold dealer in Janakuri area in West Delhi, police said.

Gupta placed the bag containing three gold bricks on the rear seat of his car while returning to Uttarakhand.

When Gupta reached near Pankha road in Sagarpur, Somu and other gang members signalled Gupta about oil leakage from his car, the DCP said.

When Gupta stopped his car to check the car's engine, the gangsters lifted his gold bricks bag, he said.

--IANS

sp/pgh/bg
Molesters of woman passenger who had jump off bus arrested

West Bengal,National,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Kolkata, Dec 26 (IANS) The driver and conductor of a bus who tried to molest a woman passenger, forcing her to jump of the vehicle and get injured, in West Bengal's Cooch Behar district were arrested on Monday, police said.

"Bus driver Hafizul Rahman and conductor Mrinal Sarkar were arrested from Cooch Behar on Monday afternoon for allegedly trying to molest a woman passenger in their bus on Friday night. The two were on the run since the incident," said Cooch Behar's Superintendent of Police Anup Jaiswal.

According to police, the two accused blocked the bus door and tried to molest the woman passenger, taking advantage of an empty bus.

After managing to escape, the woman later lodged a complaint in Cooch Behar Kotwali Police Station.

"The victim is receiving treatment in Cooch Behar hospital. Her condition is stable now," the officer added.

--IANS

mgr/ssp/vd
Sheila denies payoff, Congress seeks Sahara diary probe to nail Modi (Third Lead)

Delhi,National,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) Notwithstanding its Uttar Pradesh chief ministerial candidate Sheila Dikshit's name featuring in the list, the Congress on Monday demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi come clean on the Sahara diaries bribery issue.

Besides the Congress, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the Janata Dal (United) and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) also demanded an impartial probe into the matter.

Among others, Modi's name allegedly featured in the diaries as a receiver of kickbacks from the Sahara Group while he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat for a decade.

While Dikshit has denied she had knowledge about any such diary, the Congress asserted that her denial does not dilute the corruption charges against Modi levelled by party's Vice President Rahul Gandhi, and called for scrutinising all the names in the list, including of its own party members.

Substantiating Gandhi's allegations against Modi, the Congress had posted on Twitter the entries in Sahara diaries listing payments to several politicians that included Dikshit, former Delhi Chief Minister.

Rejecting the allegations, Dikshit said she "does not recall anything" about the diary and asserted she has "nothing to do" with any such diary.

According to the list, Rs 1 crore in cash was given to Dikshit on September 23, 2013, in Delhi. She was the Delhi Chief Minister until December 2013.

But the Congress is insisting on the need for Modi to come clean.

"We are fully aware that several political parties and leaders, primarily from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), including Modi, have been named in the documents," Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha told IANS.

"Whether any Congress leader is named or not is not material. What is material is that the Prime Minister's name is there," he said.

"Modi is accused at the moment based on those documents and he should suo motu call for an investigation," he said.

Asked if the party wants the matter to be probed even at the cost of Dikshit, Jha said: "All the political parties, all the leaders featuring in the documents should be scrutinised, starting with the Prime Minister."

"We need to establish whether there was corruption or not. Since Modi is the senior most political executive in the country, he needs to subject himself to a thorough and neutral probe," said Jha, questioning the government's silence on the issue.

"If he (Modi) is clean, then why is he scared? He should go after the political parties named in the list," added Jha.

Later addressing the media, Congress leader and former Union Minister Jairam Ramesh said: "There are many names in the list, including that of Chief Ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. All the names should be investigated."

"If there is a name, there should be an inquiry. Some names may turn out to be wrong, some names may turn out to be right. Why is the government shying away from an impartial, independent inquiry," he asked.

While the BJP ridiculed Gandhi following Dikshit's denial, Congress leader P.C. Chacko said the existence of other names does not dilute the charges against Modi.

"Sheila Dikshit has said that she has no idea about the diaries, she hasn't said anything about Rahul Gandhi's allegations against Modi," said Chacko.

"This in any way does not dilute the charges against Modi, especially when there are sufficient evidences to substantiate those charges. That is why, we are demanding an impartial probe," he added.

Ridiculing the Congress, BJP leader Rita Bahuguna said the entire issue is aimed at diverting the public attention from the AgustaWestland scam.

"The Supreme Court has already said that there is no substantive evidence to sustain the charges, then where is the need for a probe," said Bahuguna, referring to Swaraj Abhiyan leader Prashant Bhushan approaching the apex court for a probe in the matter.

"Does the Congress think it to be bigger than the Supreme Court? This is nothing but a ploy to divert the attention from their scams," said Bahuguna about her former party.

BJP National Secretary Siddharth Nath Singh also slammed the allegations, saying the move is akin to "whipping a dead horse".

JD(U) leader K.C. Tyagi as well as Majeed Memon of the NCP advocated for probing all the names in the list.

and-sid/nir/vm
Where will money come for Shivaji statue, asks Raj Thackeray

Maharashtra,National,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Nashik (Maharashtra), Dec 26 (IANS) Barely two days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed the 'jal-pooja' for the proposed Shivaji Memorial in the Arabian Sea, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena President Raj Thackeray on Monday demanded to know how it will be financed.

Speaking to mediapersons here this afternoon, Thackeray said the state government has announced it will cost some Rs 3,600 crore for the grand memorial with a tall statue of the great Maratha warrior in the sea off the Mumbai shoreline.

"Where is the money for this going to come from? Do they have the money for the project? In the past, they have made many similar announcements, but funds never came," he said.

He suggested that instead, the money could be better utilised for the development and maintenance of the scores of forts and palaces in Maharashtra, many built during the reign of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. This had been a long-standing demand of the MNS.

Thackeray alleged that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis merely keeps making such announcements, but the money never comes.

He said so far many statues and memorials have come up but these alone don't bring "Shiv Shahi" and labelled a political stunt keeping in mind the upcoming civic elections in the state.

The proposed world-class memorial is expected to come up on a reclaimed islet of around 16 acres in the Arabian Sea, around 1.5 kms from the Marine Drive in south Mumbai.

The project is expected to boost tourism to the state besides giving it an iconic monument on the line of the Statue of Liberty in New York or Eiffel Tower in Paris.

--IANS

qn/vd/vm
Kidnapped Indian priest seeks help, government says efforts continue

Delhi,National,Religion,Terrorism,Diaspora,Diplomacy, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) With Father Thomas Uzhunnallil, the Indian priest who was kidnapped by Islamic State terrorists in Yemen earlier this year, appealing for help from the Indian government and Pope Francis, the External Affairs Ministry said on Monday that efforts continue to secure his release.

"Because I was working as a priest of the Christian religion, I was kidnapped in the month of March," Father Uzhunnallil said in a video released by his captors.

"Several months have gone by and my captors have made many contacts with the government of India to get me released," said the priest who has now a long white beard and looks fatigued.

"Honourable President and Prime Minister of India, I am sad that nothing has been done."

On March 4, the Salesian Order priest from Kerala was kidnapped after IS terrorists barged into a Missionaries of Charity care home in Aden of which he was the caretaker and shot dead many people, including four nuns, one of them from India.

"You are aware of the circumstances currently prevailing in Yemen where fighting is going on with no central authority in that country," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said following the release of the video.

"With regard to the safe release of Father Tom who was abducted some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard," he said.

In the video, Uzhunnallil said that there have been reports in the media that everything was being done to secure his release "but in reality nothing seems to have happened".

"I am very sad and depressed. I request also my fellow Christians in India, the bishops and priests, to do their might to help me get released," he appealed.

Addressing "fellow Christian people", he said that nothing has been done by Pope Francis and the Bishop of Abu Dhabi to get him released in spite of his captors making contact.

"If I were an European priest, I would have been taken more seriously by authorities and people and would have got me released," he said, claiming that since he was Indian, he was "perhaps am not considered of much value".

He referred to a French woman journalist who was kidnapped from Sanaa sometime back but was free today "because she is from France".

"Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all, to do your might to help to save my life".

Addressing Pope Francis, he appealed to the pontiff to "please take care of my life".

"I request also the other bishops all over the world to come to my help, to save my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating and I may need hospitilisation soon."

He also requested help from governments of different countries.

--IANS

ab/vd
Left parties to stay away from opposition meeting, media conference

West Bengal,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Kolkata, Dec 26 (IANS) The Left parties will stay away from the meeting and media conference of the opposition in New Delhi on December 27, CPI-M General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said here on Monday, citing absence of coordination.

"The Left parties have said 'we will not be there' as all 16 opposition parties who have been together in the protest against demonetisation are not attending the press conference and meeting tomorrow (Tuesday)," Yechury told media persons.

Noting he had held discussions with parties like the Nationalist Congress Party, Janata Dal-United and Rashtriya Janata Dal, he said: "All of them have told me they were neither consulted on the date for the meeting and media conference nor on the issues to be discussed."

"The proposal and the issues should have been first discussed with all opposition parties which should have been then taken to the action stage. It cannot be that somebody announces the date and time and everybody comes there," he said, describing the development as "unfortunate".

The Left parties' decision came on a day West Bengal Chief Minister and their bete noire Mamata Banerjee reached Delhi to take part in the meeting slated to be addressed by senior Congress leaders.

Yechury said the opposition parties were working unitedly in parliament and consultation is a must before the coordination can be extended outside.

He however dodged a query as to whether the Communist Party of India-Marxist and other Left parties were skipping the meet to avoid being seem in the same meeting with Banerjee.

He said the Left, the Trinamool Congress and foes like Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party opposed the government together on the floor of parliament.

However, he questioned why the chief ministers of other opposition ruled states should not attend the meeting when Banerjee is going to be present.

"When the Bengal Chief Minister is attending, why shouldn't chief ministers of Bihar, Tripura and Kerala and chief ministers of other opposition ruled states be present?" he wondered.

Noting Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked for a 50 day timeframe on demonetisation, Yechury said: "We will wait till the time period expires. Then we will call for nationwide protests."

--IANS

ssp/vd
Turkey sends 500 Special Forces troops to Syria

Turkey,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Ankara, Dec 26 (IANS) The Turkish military has sent 500 Special Forces soldiers to Syria to speed up its operations against the Islamic State (IS) terror organisation in the northern city of al-Bab, authorities said on Monday.

Yeni Safak, close to the Turkish government, said that the number of soldiers deployed around al-Bab amounted to about 1,100, Efe news reported.

The Free Syrian Army, Syria's main opposition group that fights alongside the Turkish troops in northern Syria, has also sent 1,400 fighters from Aleppo province, which has recently fallen into the hands of the Syrian regime army, to al-Bab.

The Turkish army entered northern Syria in mid-August to liberate numerous cities that were under the control of the IS group.

According to Yeni Safak, in addition to the 500 soldiers, Turkey has also sent several tanks and armoured vehicles to the Syrian city.

--IANS

ksk/vm
Rs 1,981 cr assistance for Polavaram irrigation project

Delhi,National,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti on Monday handed over a Rs 1,981 crore cheque to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu for the Polavaram irrigation project.

Bharti, in a function here, also presented a cheque worth Rs 3,274 crore (including Polavaram) for other irrigation projects in Gujarat and Maharashtra, an official statement.

The current year's liability of the Polavaram Project is Rs 2,981.54 crore of which Rs 1,981.54 crore has been released.

Polavaram Project, a multi-purpose irrigation project, has an assessed command area of 2.91 lakh hectares and power generation potential of 960 MW. It was declared a national project in 2014.

Speaking on the occasion, Bharti said that government has declared it as a national project and all future expenditure on it would be borne by the central government.

She said all irrigation projects under the central government's irrigation scheme --Prime Minister Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) and Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) including Polavaram would completed by the year 2019.

The minister said that the project will help in clearance of additional 80 lakh hct. agricultural land.

"It also has a provision for supply of 23.44 thousand Million Cubic Feet (TMC) water as drinking water supply to Vishakhapatnam city and other areas, as also industrial water supply to Vishakhapatnam Steel Plant. An inter basin transfer of 80 TMC water annually to Krishna River Basin is also envisaged," she said, according to a statement.

Bharti said 26 irrigation projects, most in drought prone districts of Maharashtra, would be completed by 2018.

The financial assistance was given in presence of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu.

--IANS

kd/pgh/vm
Several opposition parties to stay away from Congress presser

Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) Cracks seem to have appeared in the opposition's concerted campaign against demonetisation as several parties have pulled out of a joint press conference called by the Congress here on Tuesday over the contentious issue.

The Congress, however, said those not coming for the December 27 presser "will come in future".

Several important partners in the anti-demonetisation campaign, such as Janata Dal-United (JD-U), the Left, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Samajwadi Party (SP), on Monday refused to attend the joint press conference scheduled to be held at the Constitution Club here.

Apart from demonetisation, the Congress plans to corner Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Sahara diaries and Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation Ltd. But apparently, it did not share the agenda with other parties.

JD-U leader K.C. Tyagi told IANS: "We were not sounded out; we don't know what is the agenda of the press briefing; there is no common minimum programme. So how can we participate?"

Senior NCP leader D.P. Tripathi said although the "opposition is united over the wrong implementation" of the November 8 demonetisation, his party won't be going to the presser.

"Many parties are not coming; so we are not coming too," Tripathi said.

Communist Party of India Marxist (CPI-M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said at a press conference in Kolkata on Monday: "The Congress should know that in a combined effort, prior understanding and consultations are a must."

"Till now, there was coordination among different opposition parties' parliamentary groups. If you have to elevate it to the party level, you must do it with prior consultation," he added.

Samajwadi Party leader Naresh Agrawal said: "We have not decided... at least, I am not going. You may contact neta ji (Mulayam Singh Yadav) for more details," .

Several opposition parties were left red faced after a Congress delegation led by its Vice-President Rahul Gandhi went to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 16, the last day of the winter session of Parliament, without even informing them.

The entire opposition had tried to corner the government over the demonetisation issue and stalled Parliament proceedings for the entire session that began on November 16.

However, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), a coalition partner of JD-U in Bihar, confirmed participation.

Trinamool Congress leader Sukehndu Shekhar Roy said his party too is "most likely" to participate.

The opposition leaders likely to attend the presser will hold a meeting beforehand and discuss various issues, including the strategy to be adopted during the next Parliament session.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Monday said: "Whoever comes tomorrow (Tuesday), will come. Whoever doesn't, will come in future."

Regarding Yechury's remarks, Ramesh said: "Yechury has also local issues to contend with; but I am sure that ultimately he, being a mature national leader, will recognise that he has to walk on two legs -- one leg will fight local parties and other leg will fight national parties."

Asked if Sonia Gandhi will address the presser, Ramesh said" The "Congress leadership" will be present at the event.

"The biggest issue today is demonetisation. Second issue is the Prime Minister's corruption, which Rahul Gandhi has been talking about. In this, I will also add the GSPC issue, which involves a scam of Rs 6,000 crore.

"The ONGC (Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited) is bailing Modi out. The Comptroller and Auditor General has completely exposed Modi in the GSPC case when he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat. If that is not corruption, then what else is?" the Congress leader said.

In June, the Congress accused the Centre of arm-twisting India's largest petroleum company ONGC to buy what the party said was "scam-tainted" Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) in order to cover up its Rs 20,000 crore scam.

A Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report has accused the GSPC of squandering Rs 20,000 crore raised as loans from 15 public sector banks, the Congress said and accused Petroleum Minister Dharmemdra Pradhan of pressurising the officials to merge the GSPC with the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) to cover up the wrongdoings.

The opposition party alleged that the GSPC borrowed all the money at the behest of the then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi between 2005 to 2014.

--IANS

mak-sid/tsb/vm
Counterfeit new notes seized in Gujarat

Gujarat,National,Crime/Disaster/Accident,Business/Economy, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Rajkot, Dec 26 (IANS) Fake currency with the face value of Rs 26.10 lakh, in the new Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 denominations, were seized here on Monday and two persons arrested, police said.

"The city Crime Branch personnel intercepted a car and recovered fake currency notes of face value of Rs 26 lakh in Rs 2,000 denomination and another Rs 10,000 in Rs 500 denomination," said Rajkot Police Commissioner Anupam Singh Gehlot.

"The notes were kept inside the speaker box of the car they were travelling," he told reporters.

Police arrested Hriday Jagani and Lakshman Chauhan, both from Ahmedabad, for possession of the fake currency.

Gehlot said the police have also recovered a high-quality colour printing machine from the two arrested persons. "It seems the machine was used to print the currency notes," he added.

Police have identified the mastermind to be a person called Jignesh Shah, who they claim is a land broker from Ahmedabad. "Jignesh would find customers seeking to exchange their old currency notes and would order printing of notes after he struck a deal with them. They would exchange the new notes with their fake ones at 50 per cent discount. Thus they would have sold their Rs 26 lakh notes for Rs 13 lakh worth of original notes," the police commissioner said.

Police have launched a manhunt for Shah as they believe that the accused may have supplied several such notes after the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes announced on November 8.

Of the two arrested, Jagani worked as a printer and had good technical know-how of printing and cutting notes with perfection. "The key idea was to slip in 5-6 fake notes in a bundle of 100 original notes and put them in circulation gradually. Thus they would try and pass off their fake currency with original. They even had prepared tags and seal of State Bank of India to ensure their notes look genuine," Gehlot said.

"They would earn around Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 on supply of Rs 2 lakh," Gehlot said.

Giving details of currency seizure post demonetisation, he said that so far around Rs 2 crore worth of old notes and Rs 70 lakh of new notes had been seized from Rajkot alone.

--IANS

desai/vd
Congress leaves Sheila to fend for herself in Sahara payoff case?

Delhi,National,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) Congress's Uttar Pradesh Chief Ministerial candidate Sheila Dikshit seems to have been left by the party to fend for herself in the battle to prove her innocence in the Sahara diary case, where her name featured as an alleged receiver of kickbacks.

Although Dikshit has rejected the charges in no uncertain terms, sources in the party said she has to come clean herself on the allegations.

The Congress has demanded an "independent probe" into the "Sahara diaries", in which names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Ministers of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh and also Dikshit have figured.

Addressing the media, Congress leader and former Union Minister Jairam Ramesh said: "There are many names in the list, including that of the Chief Ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. All the names should be investigated."

"If there is a name, there should be an inquiry. Some names may turn out to be wrong, some names may turn out to be right. Why is the government shying away from an impartial, independent probe," he asked.

Rejecting the allegations, Dikshit said she "does not recall anything" about the diary and asserted she has "nothing to do" with it.

According to the list, Rs 1 crore in cash was given to Dikshit on September 23, 2013, in Delhi. She was the Delhi Chief Minister until December 2013.

A Congress leader said: "Her name is there in the list... This is for her to answer and reply."

Congress had tweeted the list, in which her name had figured. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi had accused Prime Minister Modi of taking Rs 40 crore in kickbacks from Sahara as Gujarat Chief Minister, based on the same list of entries.

Asked what would be Dikshit's role in view of reports of a possible alliance between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh, a Congress leader said: "I don't think an alliance is happening. Had there been an alliance, there would have been consultations and talks."

Another Congress leader, asked if it was a conspiracy to remove her as the CM candidate, said:

"If there was a conspiracy to remove her, why would we have selected her as the CM candidate in the first place? So far there have been no talks on alliance. She will be our CM candidate."

Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha told IANS that all names featuring in the documents should be scrutinised.

"Whether any Congress leader is named or not, is not material. What matters is that the Prime Minister's name is there," he said.

Asked if the party wants the matter to be probed even at the cost of Dikshit, Jha said: "All the political parties, all the leaders featuring in the documents should be scrutinised, starting with the Prime Minister."

--IANS

sid/nir/vd
Said what had to in Sahara diary case, says Sheila Dikshit

Delhi,National,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) Congress's Uttar Pradesh Chief Ministerial candidate Sheila Dikshit on Monday said that she had said what she had to in the Sahara diary case, and now it was for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to respond.

"I have said what I had to. The ball is in the court of the @PMOIndia and others now. Will he respond and come out clean? #SaharaBirlaDiaries," Dikshit tweeted on her official Twitter account.

The Congress has demanded an "independent probe" into the "Sahara diaries", in which names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Ministers of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh and also Dikshit have figured.

Rejecting the allegations, Dikshit had said she "does not recall anything" about the diary and asserted she has "nothing to do" with it.

According to the list, Rs 1 crore in cash was given to Dikshit on September 23, 2013, in Delhi. She was the Delhi Chief Minister until December 2013.

--IANS

sid/vd
Congress asks PM, Amit Shah to reveal links with Mahesh Shah

Delhi,National,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) Congress on Monday sought to know from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah what connections did they have with Gujarat businessman Mahesh Shah, who had declared Rs 13,860 crore of black money under the Income Declaration Scheme (IDS).

Income Tax department is considering criminal action against Shah and his CA Tehmul Sethna for the false declaration.

"First question we would like to ask who is Mahesh Shah and what connection does he have BJP leaders," said Congress leader Jairam Ramesh at a press briefing.

"Former Chief Minister of Gujarat Suresh Mehta of BJP had said that Mahesh Shah used to visit Modi when he was Gujarat CM quite often without any restrictions. He enjoyed a green channel to the corridors of power in Gujarat.

"Is Modi going to tell the people what is the truth behind Rs 13,860 crore. Is he doing any probe into it?" he asked.

Congress also demanded a probe into how within two days after demonetisation, Rs 500 crore was deposited in the Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank of which Amit Shah is the director.

The party also asked how cash worth Rs 10 crore in old currencies was found in a private car in Maharashtra in a case where state ministers Pankaja Munde, Subhash Deshmukh and MP Pritam Munde are allegedly linked.

"It is clear case of money laundering," said Ramesh and sought to know if all these cases are being investigated.

--IANS

sid/vd
When peace hopes gave way to despair in Assam, Nagaland (2016 in Retrospect)

Delhi,National,2016 In Retrospect,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS) Amid renewed incidents of violence, the year 2016 proved that peace in Nagaland and Assam will remain a distant dream until the government changes a general perception among militant groups -- including those favouring talks -- that it is not serious at reviving the stalled dialogue process in the insurgency-hit northeastern states.

The government had earlier opened talks with the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB)-Progressive and Ranjan Daimary factions, National Socialist Council of Nagaland's Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) and United Liberation Front of Assam (pro-talks). But its failure to make any headway led others to question the government's seriousness to resolve the issue.

Several militant groups, including those from neighbouring Manipur, came together under one umbrella and formed the United Liberation Front of Western South East Asia (UNLFW). The groups in the conglomerate are strictly against peace talks.

As despair replaced hope, violence surged and several militant groups in Assam and Nagaland -- dormant over the years -- regrouped and revived their activities. This included the killing of 14 people in an August attack in Assam by NDFB (Songibijit) faction.

The militant conglomerate in May killed six Indian soldiers in Manipur's Chandel. This was followed by the killing of four Manipur Police personnel on December 15.

The UNLFW has strong support from the NSCN-Khaplang -- a militant group that moved out of a 14-year-old ceasefire agreement with the government last year.

Though several attempts were made to persuade the group back into the truce talks, it made it clear that it did not have any faith in the Indian government's seriousness to solve the Naga issue.

"The government's attitude is so negative that it hurts the community and the cadres of the Naga groups. If we, after signing the accord, start confronting the security forces, we were told it is a violation of the accord. Then what about the apprehending of our cadres on false charges?" P. Tikhak, a senior militant leader, told IANS.

In between, several other factions of the NSCN such as the Reformation and Unification groups -- though having a ceasefire with the government -- started distancing itself from the Naga Peace Accord and mocked at its slow progress.

Tikhak, from the NSCN-Reformation, warned they were ready to go back to the jungles to carry on their strikes if the government was unable to solve the six-decade-old Naga conflict.

The Naga peace talks suffered a jolt in June when the chairman of NSCN-IM died after a prolonged illness leaving a vaccum in the political space seeking to push for peace in the state.

Assam also suffered revival of violence by the United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent -- led by Paresh Baruah. The group said it would join the talks only if "sovereignty of Assam" stays the main subject.

The ULFA-I was responsible for the kidnapping of 27-year old Kuldeep Moran -- nephew of a BJP legislator in Assam -- and demanded a ransom of Rs 1 crore. However, he was later released unharmed.

The group claimed responsibility for the killing of three soldiers in Tinsukia district on November 19. Similar incidents were witnessed in Arunachal Pradesh's Tirap district on the border with Assam.

As the year draws to a close, the NDFB-Progressive -- which is in peace talks with the government -- also started its mass agitation led by general secretary Gobinda Basumatary.

Basumatary believes the government "fooled" them to join the peace process by making a "false promise of statehood" for Bodo tribes.

(Rupesh Dutta can be contacted at Rupesh.d@ians.in)

--IANS

rup/sar/ky/sac
Tainted Congressman's entry causes rift in Goa BJP

Goa,National,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Panaji, Dec 26 (IANS) The Goa BJP's decision to welcome a tainted Congress legislator into its fold has brought to the surface a rift between the party's tallest state leaders, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and Union Minister of State for AYUSH Shripad Naik.

Less than a week after Pandurang Madkaikar resigned from the Congress and the assembly to join the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, Naik said on Monday that he was not consulted and the decision was "wrong".

"They informed me about this only after taking the decision. I had told them that it was a wrong decision," Naik told reporters.

Madkaikar joined the BJP last week in the presence of Parrikar, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar and state party President Vinay Tendulkar.

Parrikar claimed on Saturday that Naik was consulted before Madkaikar's induction.

Madkaikar is the second Congress state legislator to join the BJP over the past 10 days.

During a debate in the Goa assembly, Parrikar, as the Goa Chief Minister then, had accused the former Cumbharjua legislator of indulging in a land scam.

After Madkaikar's inclusion into the BJP on December 22, Parrikar claimed an inquiry has been ordered into the scam and action would be taken if the legislator was found guilty.

Madkaikar's entry into the BJP has also riled a section of the BJP leadership in Goa, which is one of the five states headed for polls early next year.

Naik claimed that he did not want to speak publicly of his discontent, but said he was forced to go on record after Parrikar told the media on Saturday that he had been consulted before the controversial induction.

"I did not go to the press because of party discipline... Consultation means asking for an opinion before a decision is made. This decision was already made by him (Parrikar) before I was told about it," Naik said.

The BJP, which got an unprecedented simple majority in the 2012 state assembly elections, now faces an uphill task in the next polls since its alliance with the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party is on the brink of breaking up and a new political party founded by rebel Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh leader Subhash Velingkar is taking the battle to the ruling party.

--IANS

maya/sar/vt
KFC launches first AI-enabled outlet in Beijing

China,Technology,Human Interest/Society, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

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Beijing, Dec 26 (IANS) Fast food restaurant chain Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) launched its first Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled cafe in Beijing, and said it plans to create more innovative and interesting dining experiences for customers.

With the cooperation of Baidu Inc, China's largest search engine, KFC started its first smart restaurant in the Financial Street area in Beijing on Friday, the People's Daily reported on Sunday.

At the cafe, customers are able to take pictures with a machine, which will recognise the diner's face, sex, age, mood and other features, then help to recommend suitable food and set meals and complete the ordering process.

"If the consumer visits the store again and takes a picture with the machine, it will be able to recognize his or her face and show the previous purchase history, remember the customer's dining habits, and help to place an order faster," said Wu Zhongqin, Deputy Director of the Institute of Deep Learning of Baidu Inc, which helped to develop the technology.

With another machine with an augmented reality, customers are able to interact with the machine, change facial expressions by shaking their heads in front of the machine, take photos, and save them to their phones.

In April, KFC also started its first Chinese smart restaurant in Shanghai. The outlet is equipped with intelligent robot ordering, debuting the use of artificial intelligence in the chain restaurants.

--IANS

ksk/vt

null
India now needs lower level of taxation, says Jaitley

Haryana,National,Business/Economy, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Faridabad, Dec 26 (IANS) Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said that India now needs to move to a lower level of taxation to be globally competitive.

"What you need is lower level of taxation, to provide services more competitive in nature. Competition is not domestic, it is global. This is one important change you will witness while you will be in service," Jaitley said.

Extraordinary high taxation rates in the past have led to higher tax aversions, the Finance Minister added.

He was addressing the officers at inauguration of professional training of 68th batch of Internal Revenue Service (IRS) (C&CE) Officers at the National Academy of Customs Excise and Narcotics here.

Emphasising that as the country needs to move to a tax-friendly environment, the Finance Minister said that the authorities need to be fair in interpreting the tax laws.

"Tax authorities are judged by the quality of what they write or what they decide. Level of fairness followed by tax authorities will define the quality of interpretation of tax laws by tax authorities. Voluntary compliance by citizens by payment of due taxes needs to be reciprocated by tax authorities by a tax-friendly administration," he added.

Officers should have a high-level of integrity, honesty, sincerity and do hard work with eagerness to learn new things, he said.

Jaitley said that payment of taxes is the basis of development of an economy.

"In Many economies while they develop, payment of taxes is part of citizens' duty," he said.

--IANS

mm/lok/vt
Cash crunch, digitisation impact northeast book fairs

Tripura,National,Art/Culture/Books,Business/Economy, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Agartala/Silchar, Dec 26 (IANS) Demonetisation of high value currency notes and digitisation of books evoked a mixed response at book fairs in northeast India.

The ongoing book fairs in Agartala in Tripura and Silchar in Assam are two significant annual events for the book lovers, publishers and sellers as well as writers.

Publishers and book sellers from Bangladesh, Kolkata, Delhi besides northeast states and other places took part in these fairs.

"Demonetisation has not affected the sale of books in the ongoing 12th Agartala 'Pustak Mela' (book fair) here," Tripura Publishers' Guild president Debananda Dam told IANS.

He said that like in previous years, the gathering at the book fair was good and sale of books almost satisfactory.

A total of 46 stalls of book sellers and publishers from Bangladesh, Kolkata, Delhi and various northeastern states, besides Tripura, were set up at the book fair organised by the Tripura Publishers' Guild.

Dam, who is associated with book publishing for more than four decades, said digitisation of books has not affected the selling and buying of books at the fair though the people are gradually becoming familiar with digital books and online reading and buying of books.

The guild chief said there would possibly be no effect of demonetisation and digitisation of books on 35th Agartala Book Fair organised by the Tripura government from February 11 next year.

In a sharp contrast, demonetisation of old Rs 500 and 1,000 notes and digitisation of books seem to have affected the sale of books at the ongoing Silchar Book Fair.

"Both digitisation of books and sudden withdrawal of high value currency notes, like other trade, also affected the books sales at the Silchar book fair," Gobinda Kangshabanik, a book seller, said.

He said that growing indifference towards book reading among youths was depressing.

"The tech savvy people opt for online versions of books. Moreover, collection of good books is also an important factor. Despite having a large number of books with varied subjects, the sales of books at the fair are absolutely disappointing," Kangshabanik said.

"Some crowds gathered only in the evening to enjoy the host of cultural programmes that take place at the book fair ground," he added.

The deserted look of the Silchar Book Fair has saddened the booksellers.

--IANS

sc/py/vt
It's been quite a year. And I make no predictions about the one to come. I do know that it will -- at least where we are -- start ou...
I used to be one of those parents who took a second look at their kids bags of candy theyd gotten Halloween night and think, Wait a minute. Is that a full-size Butterfingers bar? Why would a kid need that much candy in one serving? Id either then ask if they really wanted that item or I
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King Mohammed VI of Morocco won the 2016 Mandela Peace Prize awarded by the Paris-based Mandela Institute.

King Mohammed VI has been awarded the prize in recognition of his contribution to the building of a society of justice and peace between humans and nations, in addition to his efforts to promote the development of Africa through economic, security and cultural diplomacy, said the chairman of the Prizes jury Paul Kananura.

He added that King Mohammed VI was a distinguished leader in Africa where he has led lofty actions to promote development in Africa through economic, security, humanitarian, cultural and spiritual diplomacy.

In keeping with the spirit of Nelson Mandela, the Mandela Institute awards this prize to leading figures who make significant contributions to peace and development in Africa.

The Mandela Institute has previously awarded the Mandela Peace Prize to several African leaders, including Malis President Ibrahim Boubakar Keita, Nigers President Isoufou Mahamadou, Senegals President Macky Sall and Benins President Patrice Talon.

The Mandela Institute for Development Studies (MINDS) is a continental Think tank that seeks to address the short, medium, and long-term development challenges in Africa in a holistic and comprehensive manner.
The New York Times has recently decried in an editorial the restrictions imposed by the Algerian military regime on free speech and the ill-treatment reserved to journalists and media outlets that venture to voice opposition to the government.

The editorial, entitled Extinguishing Free Expression in Algeria, deplored the death on December 11 of Tamalt, an outspoken critic of the Algerian regime, who lost his life in Algeria after a hunger strike while in custody.

The paper notes that the regimes facade reforms have proven to be a chimera as the regime for years has been co-opting and suppressing descent through a combination of generous public subsidies and political repression.

The paper adds that oil-wealth generous handouts enabled Algeria to eschew the upheaval of the 2011 Arab Spring, but it has also stunted the oil-dependent countrys economic development and thwarted democratic aspirations.

In addition to Tamalt, other journalists such as Mehdi Benaissa, the chief executive of Algerias KBC news, and Ryad Hartouf, the producer of the channels current-affairs program, were given Six-month prison sentences on fabricated charges after they broadcast political satire that displeased the government.

The paper concludes that using oil rent to fend off contestation and buy social peace is unsustainable. The country remains almost entirely dependent on oil, and, as oil prices have declined, so has the governments ability to sustain the public handouts that have kept many quiet.

The death of the Algerian journalist who had been jailed for sharing a poem about the Algerian President on Facebook was denounced by several international human rights watchdogs, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. The two NGOs said the accusations against the journalist are typical of authoritarian states that violate freedom of expression and that Algerian authorities prosecution of Mohamed Tamalt symbolizes their determination to punish peaceful dissent.
Tunisians gathered in front of the parliament, during the weekend, to protest against the governments policies towards Tunisian nationals returning from fighting for jihadist groups.

The protesters urged authorities to adopt a no to freedom for terrorist groups by imprisoning them as well as not accepting them to return to the country. The countrys security forces joined their voice to the protest movement and called on the government to undertake exceptional measures to stop the return of Tunisian terrorists from hotbeds of unrest to the country because their arrival is worrying and could lead to the Somalisation of the country.

Interior Minister Hedi Majboub informed the parliament on Friday that around 800 Tunisians have already returned from fighting for extremist groups in other countries.

Tunisia has the highest number of citizens fighting for extremist groups but President Beji Caid Essebsi claimed that many of them want to return and we cant prevent a Tunisian from entering to his country. After he was criticized for this statement, he promised that we will not be indulgent with the terrorists.

The national union of the security forces warned that these fighters have received military training and have learnt to use all sorts of sophisticated weapons. Tunisians who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group or the al-Qaeda network have carried out fatal attacks in the country and abroad killing more than hundred people altogether.

Safety concerns in the country reached new levels after it was revealed that Tunisian national Anis Amri allegedly carried out the Monday Berlin Christmas market attack killing at least 12 people. Three people were arrested in Tunisia for their links with the assailant who was killed in Italy while on the run.

Tunisian authorities have admitted that there are terrorist cells in the country and efforts are ongoing to neutralize them. The countrys border with Algeria and Libya has been a safe haven for extremist groups.
Algerian internal security forces have been able to bust 30 terror and recruiting cells over the first ten months of 2016, reports say.

The work has been possible thanks to daily and permanent surveillance of websites used by terrorist groups to lure Algerians, local media echoroukonline.com reports.

According to Echorouk, security forces have been able to identify websites promoting terrorism as well as those used by the Islamic State group (IS) thanks to sophisticated technological systems developed by the police. The systems are capable of decoding messages.

Around 160 Algerians have been arrested nationwide through the surveillance operation.

The cells target youth in disadvantaged regions as well as illiterate youth and young exasperated women whom they convince to join IS militants in Iraq, Libya and Syria for sexual Jihad, the media reports.

Algeria has been relatively spared by the groups attacks. However early last month, the global terrorist group indicated that it was launching operations in the North African country.

IS came in the country following alignment of an off-shoot of al-Qaeda to the militant group in 2014.

In March the group attempted a suicide-bomb attack against a convoy of the Algerian army. The army claimed it killed the attacker.

Around 200 IS militants are reportedly present on Algerian soil.
The Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs has vigorously rejected as dangerous and irresponsible the statement made by the Secretary General of the Istiqlal Party on Mauritanias territorial integrity and renewed full respect for the Mauritanian borders as internationally recognized.

The Ministry said in a communique released on Monday that it followed with concern the polemics triggered by the dangerous and irresponsible remarks of the Istiqlal Party Secretary General concerning the borders and the territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania.

The Istiqlal Party Secretary General, hamid Chabat, had said during a trade union meeting on Saturday Mauritania had originally been part of Morocco, and these lands will remain Moroccan; all historians affirm this.

Mauritanias ruling Union for the Republic Party (UPR) rebuked Chabat for his remarks and called him to apologize.

The Moroccan Foreign Affairs Ministry said that it forcefully rejects these statements, which undermine relations with a sisterly neighboring country and evidence a deep misunderstanding of the orientations of Moroccan diplomacy, as drawn up by King Mohammed VI.

Moroccan diplomacy upholds neighborliness, solidarity and cooperation with sisterly Mauritania, the communique said.

Morocco officially declares its full respect for the Islamic Republic of Mauritanias borders as known and recognized by international law and for its territorial integrity, said the statement.

Morocco is confident that the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, its President, its Government and its people, will not give any importance to this type of remarks, which only harm the credibility of the person who uttered them, the communique added.

The Kingdom is driven by a sincere desire to boost its relations with Mauritania and to take them to the level of a strategic partnership, the Foreign Ministry went on to say, underscoring the strong historical links binding the two brotherly peoples and the mutual trust and respect marking the two countries relations. Unfortunately, the Istiqlal Party Secretary General, through this kind of statements that manifestly lack restraint and maturity, embraces the same logic adopted by the enemies of Moroccos territorial integrity who are fighting its legitimate return to its Institutional African family, deplored the Foreign Ministry.
Photo: Getty Images

New Yorks Sex Diaries series asks anonymous city dwellers to record a week in their sex lives  with comic, tragic, often sexy, and always revealing results. This week, a 28-year-old health technologist managing online dating and recent political sadness: single, East Williamsburg.

DAY ONE

5:45 p.m I am attending my first Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous meeting. This group of loose, lovelorn women appealed to me near the end of a toxic long-term relationship (which coincided with three last-minute encounters with men from dating apps and my inability to break up with anyone). Im going in with an open mind.

6:45 p.m. I opened my mind and it was beaten with boredom. The only thing on my mind during the meeting was how over relationships I am and how fully Ive come to embrace eroticism in these extreme times. I said I wouldnt sleep with anyone tonight, but political strife calls for acting on impulses.

10 p.m. I swipe my phone, scouring for a mate. This is my first time on Tinder and Im eight swipes in, until 

10:02 p.m. Its a match! A beautiful, seemingly self-aware Eurasian and I find common ground in our hopes for tonight.

10:30 p.m. This glossy, glowing human is a tall chef lounging in board shorts and watching some TV series on the rise of Australian politics. So, wanna get naked? he asks not long after Hi, how are you? We do, in fact, disrobe. Then he pulls me up onto his kitchen countertop, which I imagine has provided the surface for many great meals.

11:45 p.m. At this point, weve had sex twice in the kitchen and in three different positions on the couch. Now hes going to order some food and go to bed  and I am going to leave his somewhat dilapidated abode.

11:55 p.m. On the ride home, the vacancy of the visit hits me. There was no reference to the world around us and how we are settling into a new global order that is a resounding affront to human rights. Its not like I pontificate politics amid heaving petting and panting  I just want the comfort of knowing the man Im contorting my pelvic muscles for cares about our country and the world it inhabits.

DAY TWO

10 a.m. This big research grant I applied for just got rejected  after so many interviews and applications and preparations. The rejections says I lack self-skepticism, a term you wont find in any reputable dictionary.

9:30 p.m. Today I was morose, but nights always bring relief when I decompress with my roommate Toby. We get stoned like billy goats, which isnt a common idiom but something Toby says. The backstory is that billy goats climb on stones. Its one of those things that only really hits you when youre stoned and in the mood to have a loose mind.

11:45 p.m. Completely high on some hybrid strains, I go to the gym to sweat out the rejection-fueled rage. I listen to songs that make me feel good about myself, like Nobody But Me (Human Beinz), Telegram Sam (Gang of Four), and Bad As Me (Tom Waits), while scoping out everyone else. I put myself in a competition with the most attractive person in spandex.

After 11 miles on the elliptical, I feel tight and take some selfies in the locker room that I will never share with anyone because, selfies.

DAY THREE

12 p.m. My Airbnb guest Vishesh rolls two spliffs before he leaves to work his shift at the hospital for a billion hours. Toby joins us for a billy, and we review the news rolling in from all sides of the globe.

12:30 p.m. I hang my Hillary Clinton shirt on the wall so she will preside over my living room, at least.

10 p.m. Im feeling too despondent to target anyone on Tinder. Instead, I keep speculating on what I could have done differently to secure that grant.

11:30 p.m. Toby comes home with a six-pack. We get drunk and high, then rent Sausage Party  and wow, that movie really has an amazing take on sex and society. We stop drinking once both of us are sprawled out on the sectional. Then Toby grabs the middle of my leg and tells me to plant a kiss on his cheek, a request that quickly escalates to lips and napes and pecks and other places. Im surprised to find myself thoroughly enjoying this  its our first time hooking up.

What makes this scandalous is that he has a girlfriend in some Southern red state, where hell be moving back to in three days.

DAY FOUR

9:45 a.m. I wake up naked and alone in his bedroom and go downstairs to the living room to investigate. Toby eventually exits my bedroom, declaring a hangover. We get high, discuss nothing of last night, and all feels okay inside this East Williamsburg apartment.

10:30 a.m. I am 20 percent hungover. Mind-altering substances arent the emotional escape routes they were before the world managed to mangle itself into a warped satire. The only time my mind stops racing with the rapidly encroaching state of worldwide disarray is during great sex.

6:30 p.m. After putting in an appropriate amount of work, I download Bumble. I swipe plenty of men who dont match with me  then am matched with Tiras, the most comely human Ive ever seen on a screen. We talk about music videos, missiles, portmanteaus, artistic compromise, and vigilantism. We agree to meet somewhere late tonight.

10 p.m. I prepare myself for this date with peak excitement and preening. When I ask Toby about my outfit, he says I look great and to remember not to have sex on the first date. I responded that yeah, if it seems like boyfriend potential, then no. But otherwise, why not?

DAY FIVE

12:30 a.m. Tiras and I meet in an empty bar room painted red and black, with action figures on the ceiling, a pool table, and two listless bartenders. He is just as smooth-skinned and dazzling as his photographs. Shorter than I imagined, but that doesnt put me off. His meandering, mid-shoulder-length blond mane and soothing smile really compromise my ability to play it cool. I think I end up sounding like Im trying to compete with him, and its possible I say things about Kanye West that maybe people who like Kanye Wests music wouldnt appreciate. Having trouble getting a pulse on the night.

3 a.m. He leads the way to a club a few doors down, where a fog machine conceals the few other figures in the room. We get really close and start making out, our teeth bumping in eagerness.

4 a.m. Into his bed we go. He slides my A Little Nukie Never Hurt Anybody shirt off with one hand while his other unclasps my bra. Tiras is a person who understands the value of a long caress and well-punctuated series of kisses. Then I tell him maybe this is going too fast; he says we can slow down. We spoon, falling asleep after not much time at all.

8:30 a.m. Tiras touches my torso, so I stretch out to make sure he can reach all of my figure. I like myself so much more when Im naked alongside a guy with limbs that complement mine.

The sex is perfect, I get kisses and cuddles, and he has a real alarm clock that wakes him with NPR.

10:30 a.m. He takes a conference call from Berlin after his phone rings four times (meeting slipped his mind). From the bed, I watch him pace in his patterned boxer briefs while preparing two cups of frothy coffee and say to the people on the other line, I get the concept youre going for. Its just not original.

11:30 a.m. I leave his apartment wondering what I could have done to be cooler.

4 p.m. Spending the better part of my free time today reading poetry, highlighting my favorite passages on passion and disappointment, and writing my own self-indulgent drivel.

11 p.m. Saw Hamilton from a box seat with my sister and now I cant shake this feeling that our democracy is the Titanic and Hamilton is the band that wont quit this sinking ship. When I walk outside and get on the train, the world seems to scream, Show me you care about what happens to me! I feel hopeless, which makes me feel horny.

11:45 p.m. Toby and I put up some of his artwork around the apartment before he leaves forever. I recap my Tiras date and Toby says Tiras looks like the kind of guy whod only date super-cool chicks, but like superficially super-cool chicks. He meant it as a compliment, but it still makes me feel like I hit my cool peak at 27  like now that Im 28 Ill never have great sex again.

DAY SIX

10:30 a.m. Its been 24 hours since I woke up last and now I want to be a visitor in Tirass bed again, to level up our intimacy.

9 p.m. Work today was good. But this isnt my work diary; this is my sex diary.

9:05 p.m. Toby and I are unwinding with weed and chocolate milkshakes for our last night together. I appreciate that we got naked together just to see what would happen, which is the most charming way to interpret getting naked with someone.

11 p.m. Our final hours together are spent talking about a wide array of topics; one of which is lambasting men who say certain ski resorts are too easy. Those types are poorly endowed, says Toby. We also talk about cheating, deciding that it doesnt really exist if the partner doesnt know about it.

DAY SEVEN

1:10 a.m. Got a pile of unfortunate pieces of information coming at me from all sides: The news is a farce, my family is sick, my company is at risk, and Im sitting alone in the dark avoiding my problems and unexpectedly torn up over Tobys departure.

Theres no one to talk to in my living room, and Im remembering why it was so hard to be single. Its moments like this, isolated in some hopeless disappointment, when the only rescue comes in the form of raunch. Bad news makes me pine for pleasure.

3 a.m. High-level depression will not deflate my libido! My strategy to fulfill my sexual self when everything else sucks is compartmentalization. Everyone serves a set of purposes, and a well-balanced carnal-cardiovascular regimen is essential in maintaining mental and physical health in times of disarray.

11:30 p.m. This concludes my first day and night isolated from any male companionship. Even just this short time leaves me convinced theres no one left for me, that my sex life has died along with any capacity for romantic or platonic excitement. It sounds absurd; I know. But porn and vibrators alone are not going to get me through the Great Again Resistance.

Want to submit a sex diary? Email sexdiaries@nymag.com and tell us a little about yourself.
Najdrozsze i najtansze mieszkania na wynajem w Gdansku Jasieniu

Wynajem mieszkania w Gdansku Jasieniu wiaze sie z nizszym kosztem niz w centrum miasta. Najemcy moga rowniez liczyc na wyzszy standard wykonczenia wnetrz. Mi...
i heard mads mikkelson speaks 5

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he speaks 3 fluently

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thats still pretty impressive

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i can speak german, russian and english but i wanna learn more

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hey same combo, which was/were your mother tongue(s) jw?

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my mothers tongue are german and russian, my mom's family are volga germans and my dad is russian so I grew up with both



Edited at 2016-12-26 10:18 pm (UTC)

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i know ppl don't like natalie portman but other than english and hebrew she also apparently speaks quite good french/german/spanish/japanese apparently?

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very possible. she's married to a french guy though, so that's three languages at least for her.

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She actually speaks. She spoke on Japanese television and it was quite good.

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If she 'speaks' Japanese then so do I, being able to say a few lines l in basic conversation =/= being fluent.

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i do know she knows spanish bc when she was with gael she spoke with him in spanish

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She can speak French fairly proficiently, but not fluently.

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She does, at least a little bit. She even released a song in catalan.

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i thought because i know portuguese, french and now i'm learning spanish i would understand catalan better but no. i was watching a catalan tv show and i got so confused with the subtitles. it looks like a mix of spanish, french and some portuguese from portugal. idek

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I only speak russin/english but my sister speaks russian/english/uzbek/swedish



I wish I could speak Spanish...

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I really want to learn Spanish. I remember my dad forced me to choose German instead of Spanish. urgh.. While I took to German very easily, I just enjoy Spanish more.



Would love to know Portugese and Italian as well...



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also from kpop there are at least a few who speak korean/english and japanese, or chinese.

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Alfred Enoch also speaks English, Portuguese and Spanish.

But how is that an "ONTD Original"? We had a similar post not long ago.

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Alfie speaks portuguese, really?

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yes, he is half-brasilian.

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Yes, his mom is Brazilian.

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3 languages is nothing special imo (I speak Turkish, German & English)

I have to say that my English & German is a lot better than my Turkish in terms of vocabulary (which is pretty sad bc it's my 1st language and all that)

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I'd love to be able to speak turkish tbh. I only know the bare minimum.

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it's a beautiful language, especially because of its French and Farsi influences

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i yeah i think 3 really similar languages is meh

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For the USA it is- most typical Americans only speak English- so even TWO languages is a big deal here. Three is unicorn territory.





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Turkish is a gorgeous language, I need 2 get better with it again, time 2 dig out my Duman albums

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I've always heard that Europeans are generally fluent in at least two, but often three languages - their mother tongue, English and a third for studies.

Source: German students attending my university said they were required in gymnasium, but otherwise I don't really know how accurate this is.

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I think it's special, I only speak 1 :(

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IA with you. I speak Marathi, Hindi, English, French, and Spanish. But when I was studying abroad in France three summers ago (I had already been fluent in French for a decade), this guy in my program was raving to everyone about some Spaniard girl in the hostel we were all staying at, who spoke "English, French, AND Spanish". And I felt really bitter about that, because WTF, I speak all those plus two others. But I felt really out of place among my study abroad group generally and that aspect of my trip was rather miserable. But in my final week, I met a local and he became my lover and he appreciated my multilingualism so all's well that ends well, I suppose.

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Same.



Like three languages is common. Especially if two of them are either English and French/Spanish.

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Same, 3 languages (English + 1 local language + native language) is nbd where I'm from, people can hit 4 with incredible ease depending on where their parents are from+ what the local languages are around there.

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Same. I speak Danish, English and Polish fluently and then French, German and Swedish on a lower level.



Too bad about the French, since I had it for six years, but the last three of those years sucked because my teacher was so demotivating.

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I speak spanish and english pretty interchangeably but I also speak some French. I used to have great proficiency in French but I never speak it with anyone so it's harder now.



I'd love to learn a couple more tho

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As a Spanish speaker, can I ask you (and any others) how absolutely important it is that I roll my Rs? I have tried and practiced off and on for over 15 years and I just cannot do it. I have an underbite and fucked-up teeth and I think that's why. I'm just upset over it because I love the language but I figure what's the point in learning it if I can't do it correctly. (I know the knowledge is still important but I get depressed and feel like an idiot.)



As for other languages I've been idly trying to learn German and Norwegian. As a native English speaker the whole gendered language bit always throws me. I'll complain, but then remember at least there's rules and logic for other languages while English makes no fucking sense half the time. I admire anyone who even attempts to learn English.

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Ugh I used to be fluent in French and could speak conversational German (and a little bit of Spanish), but after years of only speaking English I've ended up a typical useless monoglot Brit. I can still follow French and German to a certain extent, but it takes forever to construct intelligible sentences myself and my pronunciation is awful. I just wish I had the money and time to travel because it's a lot easier to pick up again amongst native speakers.

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german, english, french and some dutch. forgot all my italian along the way sadly. "You just go across the river, different language, different culture, different food, different everything." that's what i love about living in the middle of europe tbh. you're never really far from another country. i love going into belgium and the netherlands on the weekends. or drive a few hours to france.

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As someone who speaks German I was wondering if you could answer a question I've had for a while. My family lived in Germany when I was younger, although on an American Military base, but in school my sister and I were being taught German. We never really learned much since we moved back to the US when I was in second grade and my sister in fifth. I really only retained counting to 100 and a couple kids songs.



Well one day a while back I was eating at a restaurant and a guy overheard my sister and I talking about living in Germany. He asked us if we spoke German and when we told him not really he said, "not even schmetterling?" But strangely enough that was one of the very few words I know. I've always been curious as to why he asked about that one specific word and why out of so few words I would remember that one.



Is there a double meaning or is it just the fact that it sounds funny? I can't imagine butterfly being that important to me to be ingrained in my head after 20 years.

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Nope no double meaning

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Well that's weird. Afaik there's no special meanig to schmetterling beyond it just meaning butterfly. Idk why anyone would think that that's a word that a non-german speaking person should definitely know.

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That's why I'm jealous of Europeans. That and y'all have functioning public transportation and meaningful health care that isn't tied in to employment and y'all don't have to jump through hoops if God forbid you're pregnant and don't want to be, and you have meaningful access to reproductive healthcare. But yeah, two hours from your house is a whole new country. But from Washington DC, you drive ten hours north and you're in upstate New York. It's a four hour FLIGHT to cross over into Mexico from the nation's capital. Acquiring a passport costs a pretty penny. And you get ten days TOTAL of personal leave from your job, and that's IF you have a well-paying job, which is the only way you can even dare to plan an overseas trip. Americans don't not travel out of small-mindedness. It's because there are very real barriers to international travel.

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Yeah, I love living in Europe and having easy access to other countries and cultures.

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I speak Spanish, English, French and I'm learning German. I need to practice them though, lol.

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i knew some girl who went to my college and majored in Portuguese and i always wondered what job prospects were available with that, but her cousin (who was my friend) told me that she spoke like 7 languages but Portuguese was her favorite. and now she works as like an international translator in some division of the government and she met some guy at her job who does the exact same thing so they travel together all the time for work. their insta is legit like those insta model type things



i speak spanish n english fluently bc my parents are central american, and i took a year and a half of italian in college so i'd say i'm proficient in italian. i have a lot of time on my hands rn since i'm in between getting a big girl job (just graduated) and working at a coffee shop, that i've been trying to learn how to speak greek through duolingo lmao

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how is duolingo? I've been thinking about trying to learn Spanish through it, but really maybe I should just take a continuing education class at the community college.

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It's a great way to get a grounding in the language you want to learn, but if you're serious about mastering it you'll need supplementary lessons

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i like duolingo but i think it's more of a refresher and homework than it is a lesson plan. i think it repeats the basics and you never really branch out of their limited vocabulary so you learn how to say certain phrases over and over that it becomes more repetition.



for greek i've been switching between that and literally googling "how to speak greek" on youtube bc i'm not down to spend cash

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I think you can work with duolingo. One of the most helpful features is that after every question you answer you can click the green bubble thing with the number in it and look at the conversation people are having about that word or phrase. People will ask for elaboration or why a certain word is used over another and people will answer and it really helps supplement and clarify. I know on desktop you can go in and translate articles and book passages and stuff too, or you could when I used to use Duo on my laptop.





imo it's good to also use spanishdict.com/grammar. Duo will teach you words and you can learn some grammar through trial and error and picking up on the patterns, but spanishdict imo is way more helpful with learning the grammar aspect.

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I finished duolingo Spanish and I feel like when I read something I can get the general gist of it, but I can't speak at all. I live in NYC so I signed up for cheap Spanish classes-- I started at beginner and basically know everything but now we are learning reflexive verbs so I think I'm finally learning lol. I also just bought a Rosetta Stone online subscription for myself for Hanukkah, which I think goes a little beyond duolingo. Idk I'm really motivated right now but it comes in waves. I wish I could figure out how to stay motivated, my goal is to know fluent Spanish by the time I have kids (aiming for 3ish years on that).

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I only speak English and French, currently learning Spanish but in a university setting, so I do need to some immersion work. But I love learning it. Also, I want to learn Italian.



I think my otherworldly problematic fave Monica Bellucci can speak three languages.

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I've always wondered how difficult it is to be multi-lingual, insomuch as how your mind processes the various languages coherently.

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the only problem i ever have is that when i read or listen to something in one of the languages that im fluent in i don't even register what language it is bc ofc you don't need to translate it in your head.

It's not really a problem though, sometimes I might show a text in one language to a friend and not realise it's in the wrong language for them to understand, bc like i might genuinely think it's english and it's actually french.



i know a guy though who went to a spanish exam and wrote all the answers in swedish and didn't realise it until he got the test back.

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Obv not fun for you, but I think that's so fascinating.

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I only speak spanish (first language) and some english. Once I was watching a movie in english and didn't notice the subtitles remained stuck in one line until someone pointed it out, I didn't realize I was understanding the language from hearing it and not from reading subtitles.

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That's the same for me. As a child I had to learn different languages because we moved around and I just don't notice in which language I hear things. I filter the information.

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Yeah, sometimes I start speaking Polish and not realise that I'm speaking to a British friend of vice versa.

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That literally only ever happens to me if I'm really drunk or tired, can't imagine randomly doing that.



I dated a Brit once and he'd always take me home to sleep when I started speaking to him in other languages, he said it was like i was speaking in tongues and I'd get so upset and annoyed because I didn't understand why he didn't understand me lol. I'd go through like 4 languages before it would even dawn on me that I wasn't speaking english. It feels sooo weird when it happens, very twilight-zoney.

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Since I've started up Spanish I've had some funny mess-ups bc for some reasons I like to mix my Danish prepositions/conjunctions into my French and Spanish (et & y & og get me everytime for some reason lmao).



I think it's mostly a matter of staying in practice? Living in Denmark has shifted my thinking towards that a lot, but if I were to move to France my mind would much more quickly leap to blurting out stuff in French.

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It's a real pain if you get to the level of academic writing, let me tell you that. Mostly because academic writing is about being very precise in expressing certain concepts and ideas but the very conception of them is also tied to the language in which you think them/write them. So speaking several languages opens up your mind but then when it comes to expressing yourself, it's limiting, unless you use a mix of languages (like it's not uncommon in English philosophical texts to use German words for specific concepts).



So, yeah. On an every day basis, it's annoying in conversation when you want to say something but the best way to say it would be to switch languages. It usually has to do with certain languages working better for certain domains (e.g. in my case conversations focusing on tech/internet stuff are more likely to feature English etc).

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The tricky part is actually not forgetting it lmao I feel like if you don't practice it as often is just slips away

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Learning a third language is easier than learning a second, and a fourth is easier than a third. New languages makes your brain process things more efficiently.

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It's different for different people. I personally have always taken to new languages easily. So much so that when speaking English, my accent changes depending on where I am. I have to work hard to keep a certain accent because my brain just automatically wants me to mimic what I hear.





I teach English at upper secondary school in Denmark and even a language like that which the students hear all the time and have had since they were in the 1st grade, can be really difficult for some. So some people just don't process that information as easily.

Usually they excel at mathematics and science instead (speaking of my students only).

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For those active in commodity investments, its clear that forecasting prices is more or less a guessing game. This is especially true for oil and particularly this year, which has seen extremely heightened market volatility. At one point, markets were swung by any word uttered by Saudi Arabias Oil Minister and his Russian counterpart, making it extremely difficult to glean with any degree of certainty where prices would head.

Traders such as Dennis Gartman, Andy Hall, and Pierre Andurand have been among the names everyone quotes when it comes to price expectations. This year, those who remained bullish on oil and were patient enough turned out to be the big winners. For the others, well, maybe the New Year will be better.

Pierre Andurand was among the biggest winners this year, with his hedge fund--Andurand Capital--posting returns of 15 percent. Andurand bet on a price recovery by the end of the year and is still more bullish for 2017, expecting crude to reach US$70 early on. This might prove to be too optimistic, but the fact remains that Andurand Capital, as the FT notes, is one of very few large funds that survived the last two years in oil.

This wasnt the fate of another fund, Blenheim Capital Management, run by investment vet Willem Kooyker. Blenheim doesnt focus exclusively on energy commodities but it suffered its fair share of problems thanks to the oil price crash from 2014. The fund has been posting declining returns for four of the last five years, with assets under management eventually dropping by 85 percent to US$1.5 billion. The reason, according to Bloomberg, is that the funds boss just couldnt predict the extent of the commodity crash.

Kooyker was not alone in this inability to estimate the worst that could happen. Dennis Gartman, a widely cited oil trader, went 180 degrees on his price forecast within two days around the OPEC agreement to cut production. As Zerohedge writes, a day before the historical November 30 meeting of the cartel in Vienna, Gartman went short on oil and a day after he admitted he was wrong, once the jump in oil prices was obvious. Related: Saudi Use Of Solar Could Boost Its Oil Exports

Going forward, however, Gartman is guardedly optimistic, forecasting that crude will remain around the US$55 mark for the next few years. Despite his missed call on oil at the time OPEC agreed the freeze, he argues that the freeze will not have any substantial effect on prices.

Another of the winners this year was Astenbeck Capital Managements Andrew Hall. Hall bet on a price rebound in oil and got it. Back in August, he told investors that prices would start rising from then on and turned out to be right, winning from the funds holdings in four independent energy companies: Occidental Petroleum, Pioneer Natural Resources, EOG Resources, and CME Group. However, all in all, the fund has been swinging between losses of as much as 35 percent and gains of 30 percent. Despite this, Hall believes crude could reach US$80 a barrel in the next 12 months.

Undoubtedly, optimism bloomed after OPECs deal, despite doubts that not every member of the group will comply with their new production quotas. In fact, according to Bloomberg, optimism among traders is the highest since mid-2014, when the crisis began. Still, its worth noting that if the level of compliance drops below 100 percent among OPEC and non-OPEC producers, these oil bulls will feel a severe burn.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Shakira performed for Pope Francis at the UN today (Friday), Shakira - Imagine (Live at the UN's General Assembly 2015) : The text a...
Tehran, Iranwhere female bureaucrats could walk the streets in Burkas, or

Moghidishu, Somaliawhere armed gangs might help UN bureaucrats to better understand what oppression actually feels like, or

Tripoli, Libyawhere the UN would have a wonderful opportunity to explore a failed state close up, or

Lagos, Nigeriawhere U.N. officials would be close to Boko Haram so that they might better understand "violent extremists" who traffic in child sex slaves, or

Gaza Citywhere the UN security council could pass still more anti-Israel resolutions as they experience the palestinians' inability to govern themselves, or

Caracas, Venezuelawhere UN officials can study the wonders of the socialist model as they stand in food lines and avoid violent mobs protesting a loss of economic and political freedom, or

Pyongyang, North Koreawhere UN officials could examine just how ineffective their sanctions really are, or

Cali, Mexico where UN officials can experience the wreckage wrought by the international drug cartels up-close and personal.

The limited good works of the United Nations don't outweigh the anti-Western tilt that has occurred over the past 50 years. It's bias, incompetence, corruption, and overall ineffectiveness are the sad results of a reasonable idea that went bad.The UN will never change. In fact, its advocacy for rogue regimes, its championing of perpetual pseudo-victims (i.e., the palestinians), its hypocritical organizations (e.g., the "Human Right's Council) that allow oppressive regimes (e.g., Libya or Iran) to go without sanction but imply that liberal democracies are international outlaws (e.g., the recent anti-Israel resolution), its bloated bureaucracy populated by do-nothing functionaries on perpetual vacation in The Big Apple, it's obvious corruption and inability to perform its role as "peacekeeper" are all an acknowledged part of its sordid history.When the U.N does something particularly egregious, I have thoughts of advocating that all U.S. funding should be pulled or of quitting the organization outright. But that would be a mistakenot because the UN is a beacon of hope in a troubled world. It isn't. In fact, more often than not, it's part of the problem, not part of the solution. But it's long past time that the United States change its relationship with the U.N.Here are a few suggestions: The U.S currently pays about $3 billion out of a $5.4 billion UN budget. That's more than 185 members countries combined. The taxpayers of the United States have no obligation to fund an organization that generally works against their interests, and to do it generously. Donald Trumpplease take note.Here are a few possibilities for the new location that would meet the needs of the current U.N. anti-Western mindset:There are so many wonderful site locations in the emerging world, it should leave U.N. officials breathless with anticipation for the move.The U.N. isgood at selectively holding accountable those countries that are out of favor, so why not demand accountability from the U.N? For example, as part of an incentive to stop Israel from crushing the Islamic terrorist organization, Hezballah, UN "peacekeepers" committed to stopping missiles from being smuggled into southern Lebanon. Why not establish a financial penalty, say $100,000 per missile that would be paid to the aggrieved party (i.e., Israel) for each missile that slips through due to the U.N.'s purposeful incompetence? There are thought to be 40,000 Iranian missiles that the U.N. has allowed to be smuggled into Lebanon? That would be ... what? $4 billion dollars in penalties paid to Israel. That's about 3/4 of the U.N.'s annual budget. I suspect it might get the attention of the corrupt, incompetent fools who were supposed to meet their obligation to Israel. Then again, maybe not.For those who believe that good intentions are far more important than actual results, the U.N. is a true winner. It exemplifies the idealistic notion that there really is "an international community" that will work together against those who want to do ill. Unfortunately, the real bad guys skate while those who do have good intentions and a liberal society under the rule of law tend to be demonized.It's time we change our relationship with the U.N. Consider my proposal as a starting point.
Tis the season for Milwaukee merriment and BMO Harris Bank is bringing you happy holiday stories all season long.

For my family, the holiday tradition of cutting down our own Christmas tree every year isnt about the actual tree. Were not real tree snobs. We dont do it out of some loftily held haughtiness about their superior freshness and authenticity. Nor do we derive any Ralph Waldo Emerson-esque, transcendentalist pleasure from bonding with nature and selecting the perfect one and wielding an axe and using our own hands and then getting sap on our own hands and later shedding genuine annoying pine needles all over the living room floor.

No, for my family, the holiday tradition of cutting down our own tree every year is about just that: the tradition of doing it. Its as Christmas as cookies and gift wrap. Its something we do together. Its our tradition. Ive never known a Christmas without a trip to a tree farm  even when I lived in Texas, my family visited for the holidays and made it a priority to find a local place to chop down a tree for my tiny apartment  and my sister hasn't either.

In fact, neither have my parents since they started dating nearly 40 years ago, save for one Christmas they spent in England. The first annual was in 1977, while living in Washington, D.C., my mom and dad  newly in love, according to sources with intimate knowledge of the relationship  ventured out to Virginia to chop down a Christmas tree, the first time doing so for both of them and their first one together. Since then, theyve felled festive timber every year, with the only break in the almost four-decade streak coming in 1983 when, while living in London without a car, they decided against just chopping down any old noble pine in the Royal Parks and ultimately went without one.

Recently, I asked my parents to describe the origin of the tradition. "It sounded romantic," my mom remembered of my outdoorsy dad taking her to the wintry woods to bring back their first Christmas tree. "Mom made me," my dad said, laughing.

I was born in 1988, and weve gone every year. My sister came along six years later, and we didnt stop. As babies, we were brought along in backpacks; as young kids, we wore the oversized puffy winter coats that made us look as wide as we were tall. Now were both in our 20s and the tradition has continued. Were not a Black Friday sort of family. After Thanksgiving, Mom picks a date for Christmas tree cutting that works for everyone  the earlier in December, the better, so as to beat the choppies-come-latelies and get prime selection  and when it comes time, we pile into the car and drive out to the farm.

Since 2004, weve gone to Rolling Hills Tree Farm in Waldo, which is about 45 miles straight north from Milwaukee. Its a long enough ride that we can even count the drive as spending quality family time together! Jon Bigler, the affable owner of Rolling Hills, has an excellent and expansive operation, along with some family members and employees, offering visitors a tractor ride out to the tree fields  organized by type, including Douglas and Fraser firs, various pine and spruce and others  an axe to saw down your choice, a ride back, a needle-shake and netting, free hot chocolate and plenty of cute ornaments and decorations on sale (this year, I got Freckles the Snowman).

Once were out there, we scour the fields with the singular focus and determination of a search-and-rescue mission, hunting for the perfect tree. Well actually, what usually happens is my sister and I throw snowballs at each other for a while until  thwack!  my dad, with Rollie Fingers-like accuracy and velocity, reminds us of the important task at hand. We wander through the lanes of trees, perusing and evaluating our options, taking into account height, shape, fullness and branch-and-needle coverage and making scientific-ish comments about whether or not it really looks like a Christmas tree.

Sometimes we find our perfect fit immediately; sometimes it takes 20-30 minutes. Most of the time, we take an analytical approach to choosing just the right tree until we start to feel very cold, at which point we pick the one were standing in front of.

For the most part, my dad cuts down the tree, but weve all taken our turns. My sister has gotten under that tree, my mom has been down there, sawing and laughing and sliding around on the snow. I remember when I first got to do it, sometime in high school, I felt manly and cool  if only Katie could see me chopping down this 7-foot tree with this rusty bow saw, I thought, shed surely go to Homecoming with me! It was one of those childhood rites of passage, a coming-of-age moment that was ephemeral and seemingly unimportant at the time, but, in hindsight, absolutely meaningful and happy.

Theres other warm nostalgia too, which around the holidays is pleasantly less wistful than sentimental  like bringing our old dog, Riley, who hopped merrily through the deep snow, and making goofy faces for pictures, including an accidental one where Im passionately holding the tree up and looking like Im enjoying its needly embrace a little bit too much.

Weve brought others into our tradition over the years, which is a wonderful way to recall people who have come and gone from our lives. There have been extended family members, friends and former girlfriends, some who celebrate Christmas and some who dont but still cherish the experience.

One of the micro-traditions within the tradition is that I always underdress, because I always think its going to be warmer than is it, because of a combination of under-planning and being an idiot. Annually, my family will remark on how Im not wearing a warm-enough jacket, or boots, or why dont I have gloves? To which I always reply, "Ill be fine," an inaccurate statement that is invariably followed by  about 45 minutes later  my borrowing someones hat and huddling on a haystack in the corner of the tractor, blowing on my hands.

Its a tradition thats become our favorite family tradition because its something that we do as a full family. We have other traditions, like decorating the tree (led by mom), Christmas brunch (eggs benedict, made by dad), exchanging ornaments (my sister gets an angel every year, I get a Santa, and my dad usually gives my mom a new one). But this is the one that we always do all together, no matter what. Its a tradition as old as my and my sisters ages combined. Its the one we know were doing every year, the one we look forward to.

Our personal situations, emotional stabilities, mental and spiritual outlooks may not always be the same or in sync; the newest electronics, fashions and other gifts we exchange may change. But we know one thing that wont.

Were going to pick out and cut down our own damn Christmas tree, every year, because its what we do. Its our family tradition, and I love it.

Happy holidays and a happier New Year, Milwaukee!
Trump has reversed 40 years of nuclear de-escalation by tweeting his "Let there be an arms race," as the New Start Treaty is still reducing nuclear warhead, the process of decreasing nuclear risk of war has been re-enforced by the Nuclear Modernization Act, which provides for new methods of delivery (such as the 80 billion for new bombers that can reach Moscow and Beijing) and ungrading existing weapons. The plan was introduced and passed by Republicans, by 44 to 36 Dems (for) with only 13 (7 Democrats) voting against. The plan is estimated to cost a trillion dollars, and it serves to end the de-escalation process and begin anew, an arms race that will embolden hardliners in Russia, China, and every other nuclear power, as well as Iran, which just got rid of its nuclear weapons insfrastructure and now is being threatened by Trump favorites like John Bolton (Bomb Iran), whom Trump describes as "a good man."

He was likely not chosen as Secy of State because of opposition in Congress, and some even think because of his mustache, which Trump does not think looks the part.

"I watched him yesterday, actually, and he was very good in defending me in some of my views, and very, very strong. And I've always liked John Bolton. Well, we are thinking about it, Hugh. I will say that. We are thinking about it ( ie choosing him as Secy of State)."

Trump has praised Bolton before, calling him "a tough cookie," who "knows what he's talking about" in August 2015 and praised him as "terrific."

John Bolton

(Image by Gage Skidmore) Details DMCA

Good ideas but bad mustache. Trump likes his ideas (Bomb Iran). Such bizarreness aside, the GOP voted months ago to ban the CBO from estimating the cost of this new escalation. Why? What do they fear? A public outcry? Questions about how will you pay for something that has no military justification (we can already blow up the entire planet 30 times)? Questions about how this will only provoke other nations to increase their nuclear capacity? Why would ignorance be preferred to a cost analysis? Here, I think, is why the GOP thinks knowing less is better: "Withholding information is the essence of tyranny. Control of the flow of information is the tool of the dictatorship." " Bruce Coville "."The leading student of business propaganda, Australian social scientist Alex Carey, argues persuasively that "the 20th century has been characterized by three developments of great political importance: the growth of democracy, the growth of corporate power, and the growth of corporate propaganda as a means of protecting corporate power against democracy."

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Dale Ruff Social Media Pages:

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From Truthdig

This Christmas I mourn the long, slow death of our democracy that led to the political ascendancy of Donald Trump. I fear the euphoria of those who have embraced the atavistic lust for violence and bigotry stoked by him. These nativist forces, part of the continuum of white vigilante violence directed against people of color and radical dissidents throughout American history, are once again being groomed as instruments of mass intimidation and perhaps terror. I know that our civil and political institutions, poisoned by neoliberalism and captured by the corporate state, have neither the will nor the ability to protect us. We are on our own. It won't be pleasant.

A week ago in New York I spoke with Ellen Schrecker, the country's foremost historian of McCarthyism and the author of "Many Are the Crimes: McCarthyism in America," "No Ivory Tower: McCarthyism & The Universities" and "The Lost Soul of Higher Education: Corporatization, the Assault on Academic Freedom, and the End of the American University."

"What am I seeing?" she asked about the nation's political and cultural condition. "Am I seeing a replay of the McCarthy era? To a large extent some of the parallels are stunning. You can look at a figure like [Sen. Joseph] McCarthy, who symbolized a much broader repressive movement. I would say Trump plays the same role today for what really is a right-wing reactionary movement that has taken over the American government."

"There are a number of fairly superficial comparisons we can make," Schrecker went on. "I think both McCarthy and Trump are somewhat abhorrent characters -- perhaps there's a little sociopath involved there. McCarthy was a genius at working the press. He understood how to get himself on the front pages. He knew the deadlines that specific reporters had. He knew how to feed them stories. I think the parallels there are pretty obvious. Trump is a genius with regard to the media."

The Wisconsin senator was, as Trump is now, very opportunistic, she said. McCarthy, a Democrat before he became a Republican, "was just a little bit late" in exploiting the Red Scare, Schrecker said, latching on to it in 1950, "by which time the Un-American Activities Committee had been hounding Hollywood."

Trump and his Christian fascist minions, sooner than most of us expect, will seek to shut down the small spaces left for free expression. Dissent will become difficult and sometimes dangerous. There will be an overt campaign of discrimination and hate crimes directed against a host of internal enemies, including undocumented workers, Muslims, African-Americans and dissidents.

The Christian right will be given a license to roll back women's rights, insert their magical thinking into school curriculums and terrorize Muslims and the GBLT community. The Trump administration will hand our Christian jihadists a platform to champion a repugnant religious chauvinism that fuses the symbols and language of the Christian religion with American capitalism, imperialism and white supremacy.

Repressive measures, I expect, will be implemented swiftly. Speed blinds a captive population to what is happening. Already anemic democratic traditions and institutions, including the legal system, the two major political parties and the press, will crumble under the assault. Trump will use the familiar tools that make possible the authoritarian state: mass incarceration, militarized police, crippling of the judicial system, demonization of opponents real and imagined, and obliteration of privacy and civil liberties, all foolishly promoted by the political elites on behalf of corporate power.

Schrecker said the rise of Trump has been in the making for four decades. Corporations funded and established institutions to close the cultural, social and political openings made in the 1960s, especially in universities, the press, labor and the arts. These corporate forces turned government into a destructive power. America was pillaged and cannibalized for profit. We now live in a de-industrialized wasteland. This scorched-earth assault created fertile ground for a demagogue.

The late Lewis Powell, a general counsel to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and later a Supreme Court justice, in 1971 wrote an eight-page memo outlining a campaign to counter what the document's title described as an "Attack on American Free Enterprise System." The memo established the Business Roundtable, which generated huge monetary resources and political clout to direct government policy and mold public opinion. The Powell report listed methods that corporations could use to silence those in "the college campus, the pulpit, the media, the intellectual and literary journals" who were hostile to corporate interests.

Powell called for the establishment of lavishly funded think tanks and conservative institutes. He proposed that ideological assaults against government regulation and environmental protection be directed at a mass audience. He advocated placing corporate-friendly academics and neoliberal economists in universities and banishing from the public sphere those who challenged unfettered corporate power -- especially Ralph Nader, whom Powell cited by name. Organizations were to be formed to monitor and pressure the media to report favorably on issues that furthered corporate interests. Pro-corporate judges were to be placed on the bench.

Academics were to be controlled by pressure from right-wing watch lists, co-opted university administrators and wealthy donors. Under the prolonged assault the universities, like the press, eventually became compliant, banal and monochromatic.

"He spelled out a need for an alternative to academic knowledge," Schrecker said of Powell. "He felt the academy had been undermined by the left. He wanted to establish an alternative source of expertise. What you're getting in the 1970s is the development of things like the American Enterprise Institute [in existence since 1938], The Heritage Foundation, a whole bunch of think tanks on the right who people in the media can go to and get expertise. But it's politically motivated."

"It was unbelievably successful," she said of the campaign. "It's pretty bad. What we're seeing today is an assault on knowledge. What came out of this are the culture wars of the late 1980s and 1990s which created a set of stereotypes of professors as deconstructionist, raging feminists who hate men, cross-dressers, and worse, who are out of touch with reality."

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Damascus

A friend who works in an office near AIPAC on Capitol Hill sent this adaptation of Nat King Coles, "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire." It was reportedly sung at some of this year's AIPAC and Zionist Lobby holiday receptions for Congressional staffers and lobbyists as well as at other seasonal events in Washington.

It goes and rhymes like this:

"Chestnuts roasting on an open flame.

Jack Frost nipping at your shoes.

Iran Sanctions coming back all the same .

As OFAC dresses up its FAQs"

He received it as part of a package of hoped for aggressive sanctions including cyber-attacks and enlarging OFAC's (Office of Foreign Assets Control) Special Designated Nationals (SDN) List as well as other previously undisclosed recommendations targeting Iran's leadership and vowing to collapse the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Known commonly as the Iran deal or Iran nuclear deal, preparations are intensifying to destroy the JCPOA and have been in the works since the November 8 US election results were known. Several recommendations were prepared by Israel's lobby to allies of the incoming Trump administration and delivered to Trumps transition team just days ago.



(Image by Wael al Hajj) Details DMCA



OFAC is expected to do its part after 1/20/2017 and last July's removed Iran sanctions may be re-imposed in addition to other new Iran sanctions ideas coming out of some anti-Iran Congressional offices. Opponents of the Boeing deal at AIPAC and in Congress have recently revived some of the earlier arguments used before last Septembers OFAC approval of a license for Boeing to sell $16 billion worth of aircraft to Iran. Capitol Hill opponents of the Iran nuclear deal are once more pointing out that the Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Iran Air in 2011 for using passenger and cargo planes to transport rockets and missiles to places such as Syria, sometimes disguised as medicine or spare parts. At other times, AIPAC claims, members of Iran's Revolutionary Guards took control of flights carrying sensitive cargo. Those restrictions were lifted as part of the JCPOA deal. Congress is also considering legislation that could stop Boeing's sales to Iran by barring the Export-Import Bank from financing planes and preventing the Treasury from authorizing U.S. bank transactions for a sale. The bill was approved in the House last month and is awaiting Senate action. AIPAC claims to have the required number of Senate votes lined up.

Staunch AIPAC supporter, Rep. Brad Sherman, (D-Calif) explained a while back at a hearing of the Financial Services Committee's trade panel. "When Iran comes forward with a plan to guarantee that these planes are not being used for terrorism or to support Assad then Congress could consider allowing the Boeing sale to go through. We're being asked to transfer planes to a company, Iran Air that has served as an air force for terrorism. And we're being told, oh, but just trust them, or just trust that we'll be able to do something if they violate."

One veteran foreign policy insider who liaises with Congress on the issue told the Free Beacon that "Literally no one on the Hill takes the Obama administration seriously when they talk about the Iran ransom," the source said. "Everyone knows the intelligence is politicized to hide the damage done by the president's diplomacy. There's a reason every Democrat in Congress voted for locking in Iran sanctions in the Iran Sanctions Act a few weeks ago. American lawmakers have had enough."

And OFAC is not without friends.

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This piece was reprinted by OpEd News with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source.

From Smirking Chimp



Union Protesters Outsmart Trump

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"The good wages that my father and grandfather fought to win are gone. I'm 20 years old, and I'm working at Waffle House, getting paid $2.35 an hour ... [W]e don't need empty promises about bringing back coal jobs. We need the jobs that actually exist in our towns to pay us wages high enough for us to afford basics we can live on." -- Nic Smith, Roanoke, Virginia

At Netroots Nation in 2014 I taped a conversation with economist Stephanie Kelton in which we discussed work in America. She made two interesting points about "bringing back manufacturing" to America.

"Junk Jobs" vs. "Junk Wages"

First, those manufacturing jobs aren't coming back, and they weren't great jobs (as jobs) to begin with. Imagine yourself working an auto assembly line all day. But they became good-paying jobs because of unions and union wages.

Second, there's a way for government to create a de facto living wage in the U.S. without reverting to the country as it existed in the 1950s -- make government the employer of last resort.

Click here to listen to the clip; start at about 5:30 for just this section. A short quote:

SK: If [FDR-style jobs programs] were created the right way, and you said, "Anybody who's ready, willing and able to work, or unable to find a job in the private sector -- or if you just don't like that job -- you can come and take this [government] job. We're going to create one for you at a living wage with these benefits ..." You create a package for the worker that then becomes the minimum, [which] everyone else has to provide ... or they're not going to get workers. That becomes the de facto minimum. " We're not going to let you starve in America.

My comment to her, just to make sure I had it right (emphasis added):

GP: I don't want this to go by without people getting what was said. ... You're saying that you don't really need to define a minimum wage, because the government sets a floor. ... [Then] anybody who wants a better job than the junk job they've got, can work for the government. That forces the private employers to compete with the government for workers, and that's a good thing for workers.

Her answer was yes, I have it right. Note the reference to "junk jobs." What's the answer to junk jobs in the absence of better ones? A living wage -- an end to "junk wages."

Unfortunately, Kelton's means to that end -- a presidential administration that would implement her "government as employer as last resort" plan -- isn't available under Trump, and frankly, would not have been available under any Democrat with the possible exception of Sanders, for whom Kelton worked in the Senate.

But the plan is still right. And the means to execute that plan under Trump -- a rebellion against Trump himself by Trump voters whose lives are not getting better -- is definitely available.

The Rebellion of Trump Voters

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From The Hill

When the new president is inaugurated and the new Congress arrives in January 2017, an epic battle over the future of healthcare in America will begin.

Republicans will side with insurers and Big Pharma to try to destroy ObamaCare, even while new customers are enrolling in large numbers, and privatize Medicare. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) will be fighting for consumers and renewing his battle to create a single-payer healthcare system that Democrats will call "Medicare for all."

The war against ObamaCare declared by Republicans will result in a mixed outcome in 2017. GOP leaders will learn that creating a replacement for ObamaCare will be much harder than they've admitted it to be. Whatever changes they succeed in making will increase healthcare costs for consumers and create an intense public backlash that will harm Republicans in the 2018 and 2020 elections.

Sanders, by contrast, has long been linear, clear and unequivocal in his support for America joining the community of democratic nations and creating, as virtually every free nation has done, a single-payer Medicare-for-all healthcare system.

The case for Medicare for all is well-stated on the website of Our Revolution, the Sanders-inspired organization that mobilizes progressives to battle for causes that improve the lot of poor and middle-income Americans.

On healthcare, Sanders is right, Republicans are wrong, and President Obama and 2016 Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton fell victim to the great curse of Democratic institutional insiders by supporting halfway measures that make healthcare better but include major flaws in the program.

ObamaCare did make things better. But when President Obama, at a time of large Democratic majorities in Congress, surrendered by forsaking the public option and abandoning plans to allow the importation of high-quality and low-cost Canadian pharmaceuticals, he guaranteed that drug prices and insurance premiums would rise beyond what was politically acceptable.

Clinton, who as first lady was a strong champion of dramatic healthcare reform, campaigned in 2016 by trying to have it both ways. She called for incremental new reforms and wrongly attacked the Sanders healthcare plan as undermining ObamaCare, because her ill-considered strategy was to run to serve Obama's third term rather than run as a candidate of change.

It is no coincidence that President-elect Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress, who have won the equivalent of a one-party Republican state in official Washington for now -- controlling the presidency and Congress -- appear to be equivocating and confused about how to wage their war against ObamaCare.

The latest GOP twist against ObamaCare is the ludicrous concept of "repeal now, replace later." This Republican move into the realm of banana republic healthcare policy reveals the great truth of the GOP problem: They want to destroy Obamacare but have no plan to replace it that will not punish Americans with rising healthcare costs.

That is a result they do not want voters to know about before the 2018 and 2020 elections.

Their strategy will fail.

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Reprinted from blackagendareport.com

The masks have come off, revealing the face of fascism among the Democrats. With War Fascism supreme in one party, and White Supremacist Fascism at the helm in the other (also warlike) party, it appears that "the winner of the 2016 election was the bipartisan, multi-ethnic War Party." The Left can't "game" this situation, or fool with the CIA. "For Black and brown folks and white progressives, there can be no alliance with either faction."

"The Democratic Party has been a wondrous vehicle for integration of Black America into the mainstream -- of fascism."

With their pell-mell rush to construct a martial, McCarthyite domestic order, the Deep State Democrats have mooted the debate over lesser evilism. The orchestrated hysteria against Russians and their domestic "agents" and "front groups" targets as an enemy of the bipartisan State anyone that questions the rationale for imperial warfare and the rule of the rich. The shock of Donald Trump's victory tore away the Democrats' masks, revealing the fascists beneath. When Wall Street's "core values" are threatened -- meaning, the right to move money and jobs across borders at will, and to forcibly extend corporate power throughout the globe -- civil liberties go out the window. Thus, all but a slim slither of the Wall Street-dominated Democrats now march in lock step with Republicans -- the main difference being that the Democratic ranks are racially integrated. In Democratic America, the fascists adhere to the rules of diversity.

The bill to fund intelligence agencies that passed the House on November 30 established "an executive branch interagency committee to counter active measures by the Russian Federation to exert covert influence over peoples and governments...through front groups, covert broadcasting, media manipulation, disinformation or forgeries, funding agents of influence, incitement, offensive counterintelligence, assassinations, or terrorist acts." Every category listed, except assassinations and terror, is actually a code word for political speech that can, and will, be used to target those engaged in "undermining faith in American democracy" -- such as Black Agenda Report and other left publications defamed as "fake news" outlets by the Washington Post. The bill passed overwhelmingly, with only six Republicans and 24 Democrats voting "nay." Of these dissenting lawmakers, only five are Black: Barbara Lee (CA), Karen Bass (CA), John Conyers (MI), Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ), and Yvette Clarke (NY).

Yes, the Democratic Party has been a wondrous vehicle for integration of Black America into the mainstream -- of fascism.

"When Wall Street's "core values" are threatened, civil liberties go out the window."

The clarion call of anti-Russianism has served to unify both parties of the rich in opposition to President-elect Donald Trump's campaign stance against rampant regime change and escalating war tensions with the Kremlin. House Republican leaders earlier this month signaled that they would oppose Trump's threat to impose heavy taxes on corporations that ship jobs overseas. And Trump's cabinet appointments, top-heavy with generals, scream everlasting belligerence -- with the exception of Rex Tillerson, the Exxon chief picked for secretary of state, whose corporate interests require peaceful engagement with Russia.

So, the winner of the 2016 election was the bipartisan, multi-ethnic War Party. The prospects for avoiding a nuclear holocaust now largely rest on Donald Trump's skills as a peacemaker and his personal disinclination to regime change: the slimmest thread imaginable.

Fascism moves on two tracks in the U.S.A. The corporate Democratic track moves on war. The Republican (White Man's Party) track moves on racially coded law and order. Both tracks overlap, and both parties are switch hitters. Sometimes they conflict but, for Black and brown folks and white progressives, there can be no alliance with either faction. There is no gaming these gangsters, no fooling around with the CIA, which has assumed the political point position in the anti-Russian/Trump crusade. As Black Lives Matter stated, after the votes were in:

"Because it is our duty to win, we will continue to fight. And today, like every day before it, we demand reparations, economic justice, a commitment to black futures and an end to the war on black people, in the United States and around the world.

"The work will be harder, but the work is the same."

The War Party Democrats and White Man's Party Republicans will both put Black Lives Matter activists in prison if these factions' "core values" -- the interconnected evils of war and white supremacy -- are deemed at risk. Donald Trump's supporters and surrogates said so, openly, during the campaign.

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By Allison Coleman

Last month, Portland-area voters approved Ballot Measure 26-178, which imposes a five-year property tax that will generate $80 million dollars for Metro to maintain parks owned by the agency.

On the surface, this seems like a wonderful thing; everyone likes parks, and they need to be maintained. However, local residents are already paying a Metro garbage tax of $2.50 per ton, originally intended for this very purpose.

In 2002 the Metro Council enacted a garbage tax to pay for the operating costs of parks. In 2004 the tax was raised from $1.50 per ton to $2.50 per ton. Between 2004 and 2015, this tax brought in $46.8 million dollars for Metro.

In 2006, Metro undedicated the tax, meaning it would still be collected but the money would be swept into the general fund for other purposes.

This year, the Metro Council claimed they needed the operating levy to maintain their parks, but they never told voters about the garbage tax.

Metro should do the honorable thing and repeal the garbage tax. Voters may not mind paying for parks, but there is no reason to tax them twice.

Allison Coleman is a Research Associate at Cascade Policy Institute, Oregons free market public policy research organization.
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Driver Ariel Jatton (L) and co-driver Gaston Daniel Scazzuso of Argentina pose inside their Acciona Eco Power ahead of the 2016 Dakar Rally on January 1, 2016

Spanish energy firm Acciona said Monday it will compete in the Dakar Rally next month in Latin America for the third straight year with the only electric vehicle of the gruelling off-road race.

"Next January in Asuncion (Paraguay) we will once again cross the starting line of the Dakar, and we will again be the only zero emissions vehicle," the company said in a statement.

"We compete in Dakar 2017 with an electric vehicle because we believe 100% in the potential of renewable energy," it added on the Facebook page of its Dakar Rally team.

Some 316 vehicles, including 83 cars and 146 motorbikes, are registered for the 39th Dakar Rally, which will be staged over nearly 9,000 kilometres (5,600 miles) from January 2-14 in Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay.

The race will set off from the Paraguayan capital of Asuncion, with race sporting director Marc Coma promising "the toughest edition in the history of South American rally-raiding".

Acciona entered its car in the 2015 Dakar Rally, making it the first zero-emissions vehicle to compete in the event, but it pulled out after just three days due to a navigation system malfunction.

The Team Acciona car, which features a lithium battery pack that is supplemented by solar panels, was disqualified from the 2016 Dakar Rally after it failed to make it to the start line for the 11th stage on time.

The map with the route of the 2017 Dakar Rally was revealed during a press conference in Paris on November 23, 2016

Founded in 1997, Madrid-based Acciona focuses on the development and management of renewable energy projects and infrastructure around the world.

It posted a net profit of 348 million euros ($364 million) during the first nine months of the year, more than double the 166 million euros it made during the same period last year.

 2016 AFP
Ironically named Whitefish, Montana seems to be a hotbed of American anti-Semitism. Blessed with a number of Jewish residents, as well as the mother of Richard Spencer, leader of the white supremacist National Policy Institute, this small town is suffering from Trumpism's open season on non-whites.

In response to an email from a local realtor, who happens to be jewish, asking Spencer's mother if she'd like to sell, bigots will march in Whitefish showing off their guns.





The ADL has this to say:

Andrew Anglin, the neo-Nazi who runs The Daily Stormer, a blatantly racist and anti-Semitic website, has ratcheted up his campaign of harassment against the Jewish community in and around Whitefish, Montana, including announcing an armed march in the town by white supremacists that he has scheduled for January.





Whitefish is the part-time home of Richard Spencer, a prominent spokesperson within the white supremacist alt right, and his parents. Spencer's mother claimed in a recent article that she was being harassed to sell her property in the town because of her son's views. As evidence, she made public emails between herself and a realtor, who happens to be Jewish, though Spencer's mother did not point this out.

On December 16, Anglin reacted to the article by encouraging his "troll army" of neo-Nazis and other white supremacists to contact Jews in the small town and oppose their "Jew agenda." Moreover, Anglin posted photos to his website of a number of Jewish residents of Whitefish, including a child, and superimposed a yellow Jewish star with the word "Jude" on the pictures.





Since the release of the emails, the realtor and her family have reportedly received numerous threats, as have other Jews in the town.





Though the reaction to Anglin's tactics has been overwhelmingly negative, the white supremacist has recently doubled down on his efforts to target them. On December 21, Anglin wrote an article for his site in which he threatened to post a list of business associates for the realtor and her family, as well as others associated with an anti-hate group in town. He encouraged his followers to demand that these associates cut their business ties with the realtor and those associated with the anti-hate group.

Anglin also encouraged his supporters to troll a Jewish journalist who wrote an article about the situation and a Jewish rabbi who encouraged people to send notes of sympathy to the harassment victims in Whitefish. The rabbi asked people to put a menorah in their window to show solidarity with the Jews of Whitefish.





In response, Anglin told his followers to put Nazi flags in their windows and to put the Nazi swastika on their cars, homes and businesses, though he has no real base of support in Whitefish. He also encouraged followers everywhere to send hateful messages to two anti-hate organizations targeted by Anglin's campaign.





On December 23, Anglin made good on his threat from two days earlier, posting names and contact information for a number of different businesses and organizations, labeling them "terror groups" and "terror-supporting businesses." Describing his harassment campaign as a "revolution," Anglin wrote that "when we win this, every single one of these Jews will think twice before coming after us and our families."

In this posting, he also declared that he was planning an "armed protest" in Whitefish in January, claiming that he would personally lead such a protest and would even be "busing in skinheads from the Bay Area." Anglin wrote that "my lawyer is telling me we can easily march throughtown carrying high-powered automatic rifles." Possession of automatic weapons is illegal under most circumstances, so he may have been referring to assault-style weapons.

Not only is Anglin harassing the Jewish community of Whitefish, he is at the same time exploiting the situation there to promote anti-Semitic conspiracy theories about Jewish power and control. He alleges that Jews have targeted white supremacists and anti-Semites but now he is somehow turning the tables on them.

Anglin has carried out anti-Semitic harassment campaigns before. In the spring of 2016, he encouraged people to troll Jewish journalists who were critical of Donald Trump during the Republican primary campaign. He also launched a harassment campaign in October 2014 against Jewish politician Luciana Berger, a British MP, after a white supremacist was arrested for harassing her.

Since Anglin launched his harassment campaign, ADL has been in regular contact with the victim families, as well as relevant law enforcement authorities and other public officials. We are helping community members in their efforts to have offensive photos removed and following up with our own law enforcement contacts at the FBI and the Department of Justice. We have also offered to provide guidance on online security. Our consistent message has been that the community's security is paramount, but it is also vitally important to fight back against the hate.
This is the "South Pillar" region of the star-forming region called the Carina Nebula. Like cracking open a watermelon and finding its seeds, the infrared telescope "busted open" this murky cloud to reveal star embryos tucked inside finger-like pillars of thick dust. Credit: NASA

After decades of fruitless scanning the skies for alien messages, scientists say it's time to try a basic rule of etiquette: Say "hello" first.

A new San Francisco-based organization called METI, or Messaging Extra Terrestrial Intelligence, plans to send signals to distant planets, rather than waiting for them to call Earth.

By the end of 2018, the project aims to send some conversation-starters via radio or laser signals to a rocky planet circling Proxima Centauri, the nearest star other than the sun, and then to more distant destinations, hundreds or thousands of light years away.

It would be the first effort to send powerful, repeated and intentional messages into space, targeting the same stars over months or years.

"If we want to start an exchange over the course of many generations, we want to learn and share information," said Douglas Vakoch, president of METI and former director of Interstellar Message Composition at the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute in Mountain View, Calif.,, known as SETI.

Founded last year, METI will host two workshops next year, one in Paris and the other in St. Louis. It also plans to start raising the $1 million needed annually to staff and build or borrow a powerful transmitter in a remote location.

Part of the mission will be to figure out how to craft the perfect message to say "Hello."

Like much else in science, the project has turned controversial. Some ask: If aliens are hostile, do we really want them to know where we are?

We shouldn't draw attention to ourselves, say science fiction writer David Brin and theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking.

"We have almost zero idea of whether aliens are likely to be dangerous," physicist Mark Buchanan wrote in journal Nature Physics.

Other experts say it's worth waiting until we're better conversationalists - and, then, use use well-established groups with international consultation.

"Babbling babies are not always appreciated during adult conversation," said Andrew Fraknoi, chair of the astronomy department at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills. "Listening and learning is how children become adults, and why not try that for a while?"

Others endorse the effort. "I'd be happy to see this done," said Seth Shostak, senior astronomer with the SETI Institute. "I think there's something to be learned, nothing to be feared, and at least the possibility of discovering something truly revolutionary: We have company nearby."

"By reflecting on how we can communicate what it means to be human to someone who is not human, we view ourselves differently," said METI treasurer Dalia Rawson, a former dancer with Ballet San Jose and now managing director of the Silicon Valley Ballet. "By looking at our bodies, our movements, and our dance through the eyes of an alien, we gain a renewed appreciation of what it means to be uniquely human."

There have been plenty of other efforts to connect with aliens, but they've come in fits and starts. There are no regulations for sending signals into space.

In the early 1970s, NASA's Pioneer 10 and 11 spacecraft carried a message in the form of a gold plaque, then a phonograph record (stylus included). SETI's Frank Drake beamed a radio message that could be assembled into a pictogram of images. More recently, we've sent arithmetic, concerts of Vivaldi and Gershwin, and the Beatles song "Across the Universe."

SETI and the $100 million Breakthrough Listen project at the University of California, Berkeley, funded by internet entrepreneur Yuri Milner, scans space in hope of finding some signature of alien technology.

"If everyone who can send a message decides only to receive messages, it will be a very quiet galaxy," Fraknoi said.

2016 The Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.)

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Natdanai Kongdee, third from right, is interviewed at the police headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, Dec 26, 2016. Police in Thailand have charged 19-year-old Kongdee in connection with a series of recent hacking attacks on government computers that were billed as a protest against a restrictive law governing internet use. (AP Photo/Tassanee Vejpongsa)

Police in Thailand on Monday charged a suspect with participating in recent hacking attacks on government computers that were billed as a protest against a restrictive law governing internet use.

Natdanai Kongdee, 19, was one of nine people arrested in connection with the attacks that blocked access to some websites and accessed non-public files, Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said.

Police said he was a low-level hacker rather than a leader and had confessed to participating in the attacks. They said he belonged to several online groups specializing in hacking activities.

Natdanai was present at Monday's news conference but did not speak. He was charged with gaining unauthorized access to police data, along with illegal possession of firearms and marijuana, allegedly found when police searched his house.

The legal status of the other people arrested was not explained.

Groups promoting the attacks say they are in protest of passage of revisions to Thailand's Computer Crime Act, which would restrict freedom of speech and facilitate targeting political dissidents. The new law would allow Thai authorities to intercept private communication and to censor websites without a court order.

In addition to the leaking of documents, government sites have been subject to distributed denial of service, or DDoS, attacks, where access is denied by overloading the online server with requests. A Facebook group encouraged a simple version of such attacks by suggesting people repeatedly reload them by pressing the F5 key.

"He (Natdanai) was naive to believe the (Facebook) group and hack into the system," Siripong Timula of the police's technology department said.

The Facebook group, with the name Citizens Against Single Gateway, earlier this month called for a "cyberwar."

Its name reflects activists' concerns about plans for a single gateway through which all international internet traffic would pass. The government claims such a system is necessary for national security, but opposition from many sectors has made the government evasive about whether it plans to implement a single gateway.

The group on Dec. 19 claimed responsibility for temporarily bringing down the Thai defense ministry's website.

Since then, it has claimed to have brought down websites for Thailand's military, customs department, police, foreign affairs ministry and additional government websites. Other hackers, operating as part of the informal activist network Anonymous, have been posting data they say is from government computers.

Police said Monday that their systems are still "well protected" and that the attacks constitute minor hacks.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said, "If we do not have any laws or write it down to make it clearer and if they continue to do this, what can we do?" Should hackers simply be allowed to poke into personal data, he asked reporters rhetorically.

"We've talked about it many times. Everything is passed. Talk about something else," said Prayuth, who is noted for his brusque manner of speaking.

 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Fake plastic ricetotally convincing by sight, but potentially lethal to eathas gone from urban legend to horrifying controversy in Nigeria, where a shipment of the stuff was intercepted and is undergoing tests. Is it plastic, or just really weird rice? Somehow everything's gotten murky and confusing.

Nigeria's food safety agency has denied claims by the health minister that it has cleared the reported "plastic" rice. A senior official at the National Agency For Food and Drugs (Nafdac) said the minister's Twitter statement "is not their position". Health Minister Isaac Adewole had tweeted that tests by the agency found "no evidence" of plastic material  [but Latgos Customs Chief] Mr Mamudu had said the rice was very sticky after it was boiled and "only God knows what would have happened" if people ate it. The BBC's Martin Patience in Lagos, who felt the rice, said it looked real but had a faint chemical odour.

Two and a half tons of "Best Tomato Rice" were seized and it's not clear if any has reached markets and stores. Tests should be complete in a few days.

"Whoever made it did a remarkable job," says the BBC's Martin Patience. "It feels like rice, the texture is amazing, but when you smell it, there's something not quite right."

I wonder if this is a symptom of the way commodities trading works. No-one doing the buying and selling ever gets near the goods, making the supply chain vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attackers adjacent to the source.

Commodities, Tealeaf!
Ekphrasis first began as a rhetorical form used by the ancient Greeks. Defined by Websters as a literary description of or commentary on a visual work of art, it remains one of the oldest forms of artistic analysis, dating back to Homers description of Achilles blacksmith god-created shield in The Illiad. This form of writing enabled writers to bring physical nuance to a thing that existed only in the imagination. Over the years, ekphrasis has evolved, allowing poets to capture both visual representation with words (useful in a time before images could easily be reproduced or transmitted) while, more recently, adding a more subjective, transformative element to the pictorial through word choice, perspective and allusion.

By bringing the literary to the visual, paintings and photos become reinterpreted and reimagined on the page, with the speakers tone or level of description adding irony or metaphor. Keats Ode to a Grecian Urn remains the most popular example of ekphrasis, with Audens Musee des Beaux Arts, a favorite for its ability to render Pieter Bruegel the Elders sixteenth-century masterpiece Landscape with the Fall of Icarus with a sense of poetic whimsy.

In more recent times, Larry Levis created powerful poems by using as inspirational source material a snapshot of the cemetery where Garcia Lorca is buried as well as Josef Koudelkas powerful Gypsies photo series, each of these images becoming imbued by both what Levis sees in them and how they intersect with the world he inhabits. Locally, Homestead poet Robert Gibb holds the ekphrastic mantle by finding fresh perspectives in the images shot by photojournalists including W. Eugene Smith and Teenie Harris, both of their black & whites memorializing the grittiness of an industrialized Pittsburgh no longer present.

Its in this vein that Pittsburgh Quarterly hopes to bring a renewed sense of how photography and poetry can play off one another, creating something more emotionally resonant. In this installment of PQ Poem, well be featuring three ekphrastic pieces by New Jersey-based up-and-comer Aaron Fischer paired with photographs by mid-20th century New York City crime/street photographer Arthur Weegee Felig that inspired Fischers thoughtfully imagistic and engaging writing. We hope you enjoy and look forward to bringing more features like these to our readers. Fred Shaw, Editor PQ Poem

Weegee: The Worlds Greatest Photographer.

Thats how he billed himself, when he wasnt Weegee the Famous. He was Arthur (Usher) Felig, the immigrant son of immigrant Jews who arrived in this county in 1909 and settled on Manhattans Lower East Sidethe neighborhood that provides the backdrop for the gritty photographs that make up his most important work.

That much at least is certain. Where he got the name Weegee is less so. He claims it was a variant of Ouija board, mirroring his uncanny ability to arrive on the scene of murders, stabbing, fires, suicides, and accidents before the cops and firemen. (He also claimed that his elbows itched when something was about to happen.)

He was restless, driven, ambitious, and consumed with the ideas of fame and success. He spent ten years driving around the Lower East Side at night and lived in a single room across from police headquarters. He also had a darkroom in the trunk of his car, so he could develop his photos almost immediately and rush them to editors at the tabloids and later to PM and Life magazines.

He was probably a geniusof both self-invention and photography. He was the first street photographer and arguably the first news photographer. He gave New Yorkers in the 30s and 40s a window into a city they didnt know existedbefore urban renewal, before Weegees beloved slums were leveled.

Weegee: On the Spot

The shot is classic Weegee: three cops

and a corpse in front of the Spot Bar and Grill,

the dead man mostly covered up with a tablecloth

so all we see is an arm flung out to break his fall,

the toes of his polished shoes, a pearl-gray fedora

resting on its crown that told the world its owner

was somebody, a sticky puddle of blood in the gutter

flecked with cigarette stubs and gum wrappers.

What Weegee wanted was to transform the jumble

of every day into the inevitable. In just a second

the coarse scumble of fog pierced by a few glimmers

of chrome will tatter and shift. One of the cops on

this cold corner will hawk and spit. Weegees waiting,

watching through the viewfinder. In just a second

everything will start flying apart, like stars in the Milky Way.

He trips the shutter.

Weegee: The Victim of a Motor Accident Lies by the Side of the West Side Highway in New York, Covered by a Sheet

How big the dead man looks in daylight,

under the skys gray scrim, a few stalled

clouds building a threadbare thunderhead

over what must be Jersey, and how unlike

Weegees more famous shots: a corpse

wedged in a doorway, dark as a funerary niche,

or propped against the palings of a church

like a drunk parishioner waiting for early mass.

Two cars blur by without casting shadows

in the gray light. The victim grips the steering wheel

in his fist, where Weegee posed itso much

for only photographing whats real.

The drivers other hand is half tangled in the sheet

tossed over him. We can see an argyle sock,

the scarred soles of the shoes he tied

that morning, getting dressed for work.

Weegee: Young Man Smoking a Cigarette After a Car Crash

Leaning over as if to kiss the blood

from his friends broken face, the boy holds

a cigarette between his smudged, blunt

fingers, offering it to the wound

that was his buddys mouth, the delicate

damaged head harbored by his other arm.

The side mirror recasts them in close-up,

so we almost miss the third whos joined them

at the drivers jagged windoweyes barely lit

by the flash, his face a dark moon

as if he wants to climb into the car, as if

he wants to savor fears taste and tang,

the bodys acrid flush of acid,

the chill beads of sweat pooled at the crotch.

Why Weegee

I didnt start with Weegee. In fact, I sometimes think Weegee chose me as much as I chose him.

I wanted to learn to write sonnets. I knew from working with other formspantoums and villanelles, saythat formal constraints could push me to discover a far more charged vocabulary than I could tap into otherwise.

And I didnt want to write about myself. I wanted to find a subject that was beyond the expected scope of the sonnet (though the more sonnets I read the more I realized nothing was out of bounds).

As melodramatic or unlikely as it sounds, I was leafing through my battered copy of Naked CityWeegees first and best bookwhen I came across a shot of a bakery truck driver killed in an accident. No one was looking at the driver, his whites rucked with blood or at the loaves of bread scattered in the street.

This was something I could write about, this grainy black-and-white world with its corpses shrouded in newsprint, its bloodied teenagers sharing a cigarette in a stolen car, a drunk sleeping under a funeral home canopythe two-bit nobodies that Weegee paid such tender attention to.

And the sonnets? If you look at Weegee: Young Man Smoking a Cigarette After a Car Crash, and allow for slant rhymes, you can see the sonnet structure that supports it.
FORT EDWARD  The dream becomes reality Jan. 10.

The $15 million remediation and construction project at 354 Broadway, which Fort Edward Supervisor Mitch Suprenant has referred to as a dream project, will come to fruition when the Golub Corp. opens its Market 32 supermarket at the former brownfield site.

Sometimes you have to go big or go home. We have had some crazy ideas, Suprenant said. It was a dream project, and I never knew the dream would come true.

Mona Golub, vice president of public relations and consumer services of Price Chopper, said the store would have an open house beginning at 5 p.m. Jan. 9, and donations from that event will be distributed to Fort Edward Youth Sports, the Fort Edward food pantry and the Fort Edward backpack food program.

We will match donations up to $2,500 for each, so this is a chance for people to help their community, said Golub, who noted the supermarket chain has been doing the pre-opening benefits for many, many years.

The benefit event, which has a $5 donation for admission, will include food samples, and once it is over, the market team will finish getting ready for opening, baking bread and putting out fresh meat and fish.

Well be ready to go the next morning, Golub said.

The store will employ about 140 people, with about 20 of them coming from other stores. Some of those being hired are already training at other Price Chopper stores.

Workers from Bast Hatfield Construction were able to complete the store, from the ground up, in less than seven months. Golub said the store likely could have opened before the holidays, but company officials felt pushing for an earlier opening would have put too much pressure on employees in other stores before the holidays.

We could have done it, but that would have been asking too much from our employees, she said. And we wanted more time for spit-and-polish.

The 42,000-square-foot store was built on a former brownfield site that was cleaned up by a coalition of public and private groups. It was the site of a former Grand Union supermarket.

More than 1,250 tons of contaminated soil were removed from the site.

The town bought the site for $1 from Washington County, which had acquired it for nonpayment of taxes. Fort Edward agreed to take on the cost of cleanup. David Kaplan, of New York City-based Kaplan Realty, and Bruce Ginsberg, of Ikon Realty in Albany, are developing the site and will lease the property to the Golub Corp.

Darlene DeVoe, a village trustee and the towns grant writer, estimated the site-preparation cost is about $1.9 million, not including construction of the supermarket itself.

The Fort Edward store is about half the size of the Price Chopper on Glen Street in Queensbury.

Its amazing how much we were able to fit into the small-style store, Golub said.

The store is the first Market 32 in New York state built from the ground up. The others in the state, including one in Wilton, have been converted from previous Price Chopper stores. There have been new Market 32 stores built in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

The company was founded in 1932, which is why the re-branded stores are called Market 32. The company has more than 130 stores in six states.

Golub officials have said the prices in the Fort Edward store would be the same as they are in the Price Choppers in Glens Falls and Queensbury.
Theres an old saying, You cant make an omelette without cracking a few eggs.

Likewise it could be said, You cant raise money for charity without twisting a few arms.

Peter Brock, owner Sams Diner on Dix Avenue in Glens Falls, accomplishes both with a smile.

Brock raised $24,012 this year in his annual Small Business Challenge campaign for Operation Santa Claus, exceeding his goal of $22,000 and setting a new record, Pete Cloutier, of Regional Radio Group announced.

Last year he raised $21,000.

Operation Santa Claus, a local charity, provides food and clothing for about 2,500 children at Christmas.

Ice in on Glen Lake

The ice is in on Glen Lake, lakefront resident Harold Bud Taylor said at the Dec. 20 EDC Warren County board meeting.

Taylor was responding to Queensbury Supervisor John Strough, who said he went kayaking on Glen Lake last Christmas, and was wondering if he would be able to do so again this year.

Its in  about five inches (deep), Taylor said.

Retirement

Queensbury Town Board members at the Dec. 19 meeting, had kind words for long-time town Planning Board member Paul Schonewolf, who is retiring from the board.

Big loss to the Planning Board right there  big loss, said 4th Ward Councilman William VanNess.

The board also congratulated Sue Hemingway, a clerk in the community development department, on reaching the 30-year mark in town employment.

Family concert

Musicians Rich Ortiz and Brian Chevalier team up for a fun-filled musical concert for families at 2 p.m. Wednesday in the community room at Crandall Public Library in Glens Falls.

The concert is open to the public free of charge.

Mark your calendar

The next Friends of Crandall Public Library book sale is Feb. 3-5 in the library basement.

Remind me to buy more poetry books this time.

Ive already read through the stack I bought at the October sale.

In the new year

A quotation from the Christmas message of King George VI of Great Britain still rings true today:

A new year is at hand. We cannot tell what it will bring. If it brings peace, how thankful we will be.

May we all find reasons to be thankful in 2017.
Opinion / Columnist



Here is a photo of Comrade Rosa Luxemburg, a hungry and angry revolutionary persona of our twentieth century!

Our Linda Masarira's twenty first century revolutionary: A sweet black beauty, peaceful and benign persona of our time. Linda is not hungry for a revolution at all but in her owns image self, a well-fed looking mum of five children, but got the wind that they can Tajamuka and get donor funding to boost her merger fiances at home! It is wholly questionable if Linda knows what a revolution is all about and those intellectual, national and personal responsibilities and sacrifices it entails!

Here is a revolutionary who has anger in his entire body language who can change the Zimbabwe regime: our Stern Zvorwadza. Stern has eloquent anger and hunger entranced in his body to effect regime change; it's visible and tangible in him! This is a leader of our time who can effect change; his body language speaks revolution of our time, in our time! Stern shows unheard-of form of heroism and self sacrifice, he is obstinate and has stamina to endure everything that goes with the revolutionary sacrifice! Did VC Mphoko pack his belongings in Sheraton Hotel when Stern Zvorwadza made his mark!

A French thinker and historian argue that revolutions are moments of explosive births: the delivery of something growing in the womb of the old regime! In our case the womb is that of Zanu PF! He says revolutions are born out of hope of better future and they strongly believe in transformations and they make immense sacrifices even putting their own lives on the line to create genuine democracy for the betterment majority people.A revolution is by definition a force, a fundamental change in political power struggles and it is supposed to take place in a short space of time whereby people have to be mobilized to revolt against the government and effect immediate change of current regime against the majority, a minority government despised as despotic and corrupt. There should be some fertile ground to evident discontentment for such a historical fact of life to take place, for such a ground breaking political change ever to take place. A revolution is always violent because the few ruling class (Zanu PF) that still enjoy the privileges of power will resist change violently. We have seen this in our streets of Harare happening not long ago this year 2016.A revolution occurs when the majority of the oppressed peoples collectively refuse to be oppressed any longer. Some social scientist Barrington Moore said the suffering of the masses and their conscious of the facts of injustices in their lives are not sufficient enough to ignite a full blown revolution like the one we saw in the Arab-Spring! But in Egypt especially, a revolt turned out into a revolution because the entire nation was united in the cause to bring change by whatever means. The Egyptian organisers of the revolution did a lot of ground work, through the social media, (Face-book, twitter, emails, social media platforms) to network and engage the entire nation, the objectives were clear to all citizens how they would use the social media to do massive intervention reconnecting large masses of ordinary people and those in the struggle to be mobilised to ensure success at all cost.In Zimbabwe the people still feel too weak to fight the regime of Zanu PF despite socio-economic hardships, ideological manipulation, political extra-juridical repression and unrestricted occasional violence. The people in Zimbabwe cannot effectively strike as they need permission from the Zanu PF government to do so, they cannot congregate, organise, demonstrate freely in the streets in large numbers. They have this informed fear in them that petrifies them to submission. The Zanu PF government is controlling material network communications and centralized repressive apparatus.In a genuine revolution like the one we have seen in orange revolution in Ukraine and in Arab countries, people do not need to seek permission from the very system they are to replace to demonstrate against it. (Can you imagine if Zipra and Zanla of 1975 until 1979 asked Smith Regime if they should go to Zambia and Mozambique to wage war of liberation, and ask Smith again since its Christmas they have to postpone their guerrilla fight to January 2017!) People organise and go to the street without the knowledge of the despotic government that they shall be mass demonstrations. It is for this reason that a revolution has to be for a short time but groundbreaking and effective. Ever for the moulds of Linda and her lot to be successful they needed to inform themselves, read about previous revolutions that have succeeded in history and emulate from them as to how to put an effective revolution and topple the despotic regime of Zanu PF.What groundwork did Linda Masarira et al undertake prior to the July 2016 demonstrations for the sitting-ins in the Africa Square to be effective enough to bring about regime-change and in a short space of time? Did they try to understand the fundamental weaknesses of Zanu PF and its government? Admittedly our government and its party are indeed at its weakest point if we had strategic young people on the ground to plan the revolt strategically: taking advantage of increasing paralysis in internal factional fightings and divisions and their inability to re-invent themselves, intertwined with self-destruction, high corruption levels, high mistrust inside the party, loss of faith in the way forward as the country is cash-strapped, serious socio-economic contradictions, irrational search for culprits: the west are to blame as they want regime-change and re-colonize Zimbabwe and our natural resources, and socio-economic ineptitude: 2 million jobs, Zim-assets! 15 billion US dollars was swindled out of the country behind the back of the entire government and the nation.The situation in Zimbabwe was indeed ripe for regime-change. The structural nature of the socio-economic conditions in Zimbabwe explain why there were quantitative/qualitative reasons enough to revolt in the way Tajamuka positioned themselves albeit not effect as there was no enough or adequate due diligence done to spark the revolt. Sadly, we did not have revolutionary strategists on the ground to effect powerful riots and demonstrations to a successful result: a result that would have brought about ground breaking changes in the country. A revolutionary is a hungry and a very angry persona.A revolutionary does not look or even pose as sweet and peaceful and benign as how we saw our Linda Masarira's photos be it in the Africa Square or in court. You need to compare Linda Masarira's photos and the photos of fallen heroine: Comrade Rosa Luxemburg of Germany, and then you will see the abject differences between a scientific revolution of the Luxemburg era and that of Masarira's Tajamuka we are seeing in our streets of Square Harare today.Any revolution anywhere in the world should be a replication of previous global revolutions irrespective of time and place. A comparative approach should be taken, research into how certain revolutionary choices were taken to achieve the desired goal: e. g. what kind of circumstances could lead to revolutionary leaders choosing sitting-ins in public places, street demonstrations, passive resistances, tactics, backroom deals with the army and political image makings to give some kind of active response to regime repression. A revolutionary process is dynamic and inventive but in its nature informed by other previous revolutionaries in history.Reasons why the short-lived Harare revolution failed!(1) The revolution that broke out in the streets of Harare was mostly confined to one town and never really spread to other towns and cities. The Diaspora electorate was excited about the revolutionary changes taking place at home in Zimbabwe, but were not prepared to sacrifice beyond that. Zanu PF quelled the discontent easily and brutally. Those that took part in the street protest are not in a position to risk it once more as they broke their limbs, the repression was diabolic cruel! Fundamental factors that contributed to the failure of #This Flag are a number of them! #This Flag, #Tajamuka was not a united force from the onset. Right in Square Harare they began to fight for the space: Africa-Square occupation and chased the other groups that wanted to do the 24 hours "sitting-ins. A revolution is all inclusive, everybody counts, it is a question of numbers rather than who do you like to be part of the revolution.The opposition parties were not happy about the young revolutionaries who were now usurping their political space and international recognition. As a result of this open jealousy of these young revolutionaries they paid lip-service to any demonstrations that took place. Mai Mujuru and Tendai Biti went to demonstrate but were safely barricaded in cars ready to run for their dear lives in case the riot police caught up with them.A revolution means absolute sacrifice that disregards your own life for the betterment of the rest of the population. Almost all opposition leaders were far from sacrificing that much in the July/August revolution: Be it Tsvangirai, Mujuru, Biti Ncube, Chamisa, Sipepa, Musewe and all those in opposition politics were just not prepared to Tajamuka in the streets to effect change! If at all they could have participated in giving qualified strategy and offer the revolution some sense of direction on the ground to give the new revolution a new face that would have had a strong impact on the fight to topple autocratic regime of Zanu PF(2) The spirit of co-operation among the young revolutionaries was absent. They never gave a collective drive, but seriously fragmented. They were all sorts of groups in #This Flag movement and not excluding reactionaries who infiltrated the movement. Pastor Mawarire never realised the potential he had to lead a revolution until he saw himself in USA of all places. You do not fight a crude, street-smart Zanu PF in the comforts of America!In hindsight, the opposition parties were relieved when Pastor Mawarire left the country for America. Their relevance to opposition politics was threatened by this young movement, Evan Mawarire as leader of the group who by all credits to him, an eloquent speaking, highly intelligent, and daring person, a persona leader to reckon with. He just missed the point at the right time of the revolution when he absconded for USA.(3) Lack of leadership and limited scope: when Pastor Mawarire left, that was also a major setback why the young Harare revolution failed. David Davison an eminent Historian opined that the origin and birth of a revolution was a gift of urban population. Our young Harare revolution started and stopped in Harare and was never felt much beyond the capital city. Some of it was staged in Mutare and Bulawayo by the MDC opposition party Thokozani Khupe who came out with a large number of Bulawayo women beating pot! It was a pot-revolt that never saw another of its stage in any other city.The Zimbabwean rural population were not mobilized at all. Again it is not going to be easy to mobilize a rural population because they do appear to have their own mindset of old traditions, customs and adherence to stagnant political old systems either of Ian Douglas Smith or Zanu PF, would rather remain worshiping what they know than embrace change: the young revolution. While the revolutionary ideas and objectives were sufficiently propagated in the city of Harare, the young revolution desperately failed to enlist the sympathy, support and co-operation of rural folk.(4) Mutual distrust between Shona and Ndebele ethnic groups led to the collapse of the young revolution too. It is an open secret how much these two ethnic groups distrust each other in every aspect of our social, political and economic interaction with each other. It is not easy and will not be easy for these two ethnic groups to unite together for one purpose of uprooting Zanu PF from power. The centuries of long hatred that is ingrained in the two groups led to political experienced Linda MASARIRA TO CLUMSLY SAYTHAT Ndebele people are cowards! Worse still she is not bothered about giving some formal apology about her resent sad utterances, just like Mugabe who does not see it to apologize for the Gugurahundi atrocities, just Mnangagwa who will never say sorry for labelling the people of Mathebeleland as cockroaches!It will take volumes of history books to explain the origins of Ndebele-Shona hatred of each other. When the Harare revolution started some sections of the Ndebele people never wanted to be part of it. Their reason was: what is the guarantee of our cake after the revolution; we got little or nothing after independence of 1980? Was it not the very Shona people who jubilated openly when Zanu unleashed the Fifth Brigade in most Mathebelelands and Midlands during the Gugurahundi atrocities? The fact is that the people of Mathebeleland never forgot how indifferent the overall people of Mashonalands were during the genocide atrocities of 1983 - 1987. The peoples of Mathebeleland do not forget and forgive one easily either.If the people of Mathebeleland are constantly told that they are not organic Zimbabweans, what will persuade them to go and demonstrate and possibly die in the streets of Bulawayo only to be deputies after the revolution and the obvious chronic marginalization of the region? It is for these very reasons that the region tacitly gave a wait-and-see attitude to the Harare revolution. It did not belong to them, it did not include them anyhow, there was no networking done with them to be inclusive in it. Rather it was expected of them to revolt against the government of Zanu PF spontaneously when the revolution in Harare took plaace: the people of Mathebeleland are fighters and destructive by nature anywhere: they think! The mutual feeling of distrust is deeply embedded in the psyche of all Zimbabweans of all ages.To conclude the long essay: to lead a revolution one must have made a careful study on how the processes of other previous revolutions and their dynamics were stage-managed and they succeeded. A revolution must be political-scientific and not sporadic chancing of Harare sitting-ins to gain cheap limelight from home and abroad. Regime change and regime transformation must be organised country-wide and nobody should own the revolution. One should also understand the consequences of staging such demonstrations and sitting-ins in Harare Square. A lot is to be desired in our short but painful Harare revolution. Admittedly it gave us some hope to dream albeit for a very time.




On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves. (Zechariah 12:3)





























Amid escalating fallout from the UN Security Council vote Friday that condemned Israels settlement activities, a furious Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was reported on Sunday night to be attempting to recruit the incoming Trump administration and the US Congress to block a feared bid by the outgoing Obama administration to have the Security Council approve principles for a Palestinian state.





They are spitting at us, Netanyahu has told colleagues behind closed doors, Channel 2 news reported. We will respond forcefully.





Netanyahu held a 40-minute meeting with US Ambassador Dan Shapiro on Sunday evening, having summoned the envoy to explain why the US abstained in the vote on Resolution 2334, enabling it to pass 14-0, rather than vetoing it. He had earlier summoned the envoys of the 12 nations with representatives in Israel that voted for the resolution for a dressing-down at the Foreign Ministry.





Underlining Israels determination to press ahead with building beyond the pre-1967 lines, the Jerusalem municipality will this week approve some new homes in Ramat Shlomo and Ramot, neighborhoods captured in 1967 and subsequently annexed by Israel as part of Jerusalem, Channel 2 news reported.





Netanyahu is now reaching out to the incoming Trump administration, which takes office on January 20, and to friends in Congress, in the hope of deterring what he sees as further potential Obama administration-led diplomatic action against Israel, the Channel 2 report said. His aim is for the Trump team to make plain that his administration will economically hurt those countries that voted against Israel in the UN and that do so in the future.





Netanyahus fear is that Secretary of State John Kerry will set out principles or parameters for a Palestinian state in a speech that he has said he will deliver in the next few days on his Middle East vision. The prime minister fears that, in its final days, the Obama administration will seek to have a resolution enshrining those parameters adopted by the UN Security Council, the report said.





France is to hold a conference on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on January 15, and Netanyahu expects that Kerry will attend, that the Middle East Quartet  the US, UN, Russia and EU  will coordinate their positions at that summit, and that they will then turn to the Security Council in the very last days of the Obama presidency, a Channel 10 report further suggested.

Such speculation was not confirmed by the Prime Ministers Office, but Netanyahu has made public his outrage at the Obama administration several times since Resolution 2334 was passed, claiming that the president initiated and helped draft the resolution behind Israels back. He has variously called the resolution skewed, shameful and ridiculous  in part because it brands Jerusalems Old City, including the Temple Mount and Western Wall, occupied Palestinian territory.









Lighting festive Hanukkah candles at the Western Wall on Sunday night, Netanyahu stressed that Israel cannot accept the UN resolution, and asked: How could they vote that [the Western Wall] is occupied territory? We were here much earlier.





Netanyahu also reportedly told his cabinet ministers at a meeting on Sunday morning to reduce to a minimum their engagement with all the countries that voted for the resolution and with which Israel has ties  China, Russia, France, the UK, Spain, Egypt, Angola, Ukraine, Uruguay, Japan, New Zealand and Senegal. They were told to minimize any visits to those countries, and that he would not receive visits from their foreign ministers. On Saturday, Netanyahu canceled this weeks scheduled visit to Israel of Ukraines prime minister.

Addressing the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem Sunday, Netanyahu reiterated his staunch opposition to Resolution 2334. We have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated its versions and insisted upon its passage, he said.











Samantha Power Watched Half Million Arabs Die Then Slammed Israel







All our Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, is missing is a fiddle. For the duration of the seemingly endless Syrian civil war, she has figuratively fiddled while that country burns. Now, with one foot out the door from a tenure that has all but obliterated her once formidable reputation as an anti-genocide activist, shes decided to kick Israel in the teeth.





What most amazes me about this past Fridays anti-Israel resolution that was cooked up by Barack Obama, John Kerry, Susan Rice, and Power is not that it took place. We have long known that the quartet had this in the works, and my organization, The World Values Network, even took out a full page ad against the proposed UN resolution a few months back.





Rather, the truly shocking part is that the most senior members of the American foreign policy team were pushing this resolution through while Aleppo burned.





Just imagine  there is a genocide going on for years in the Middle East in general and Syria in particular. It involves ISIS targeting Yazidis and Christians for extermination, and, in Syria, Shia Muslims joining Alawites to exterminate Sunnis. This is the classic definition of genocide where an ethnic group is target for annihilation.





The genocide reaches fever pitch in December 2016, just as the Obama administration, which hasnt lifted a finger to protect 500,000 Arabs from being slaughtered, is winding down. Aleppo is in the news daily, as the world watches the horrors of bombings of civilians amid incalculable loss of life.





And what was Samantha Power, the great anti-genocide campaigner, doing while Aleppo and its residents were being reduced to rubble? Why, scheming against Israel, of course!







Power should have resigned over Syria long ago. She decided instead to embrace the hypocrisy of having written a Pulitzer-prize winning book condemning previous American administrations who were bystanders to genocide, while becoming one herself. That was bad enough. What we know now is far worse. She ignored Aleppo as she focused instead on the condemning the Jewish state.



Earth to Samantha: 500,000 Arabs died in Syria. Do you really think the problem in the Middle East is Jews building extra bedrooms in communities in Beit-El?



You couldnt pass even one United Nations Security Council Resolution condemning Russia, Syria, and Iran for the slaughter in Syria. But you passed this motion condemning peace-loving Jews who live in the ancient Biblical lands of Judea and Samaria?



Power holds her unique position for speaking truth to the worlds powers, but once in power herself, she held her tongue while people are being murdered every day in the Middle East and North Africa. Shiites and Sunnis kill each other on a daily basis throughout the Middle East while thousands die in Sudan, Nigeria, Libya and Yemen. Under Samanthas watchful eye, hundreds of thousands of Syrians have died and become refugees.





Samantha could have followed the demands she made of members of earlier Administrations that were bystanders to genocide and resigned from this morally bankrupt administration long ago, and perhaps escaped with some semblance of her reputation intact. Alas, it is far too late now. As a former administration official, she will reap the financial benefits as a lecturer, pontificator and perhaps academic. But no serious person will take Samantha Power seriously again when she speaks about human rights. Her conduct has disqualified her from any such discussion, unless it is to explain how someone can be a bystander to genocide.














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READ MORE: TOR plans to refine 18M barrels of crude oil in 2017

The revelation was contained in the management accounts of BOST covering January to September 30, 2016, the newspaper added.

But at a joint press conference by the workers union of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) and the Bulk Oil and Storage and Transportation Company (BOST), the Chairman of the General Transport, Petroleum and Chemical Workers Union at TOR, John Elton Botwey, dismissed the report.

The Finder continues to publish palpable falsehood citing its dubious sources and concocted documents as propaganda tools to dent the reputation of these two profitable state agencies and its good management under the leadership of Kwame Awuah Darko, he said.

Mr Botwey added that BOST's business trading has never been in red since the company started trading, adding that its end of year profits will be declared soon.
Addressing journalists in Accra he said the inability to set aside funds for electoral purposes is one of the major reasons governments overspend in election years.

READ ALSO: Nana Addo confirms Alan Kyeremateng as Trade Minister

The point I made was that there was no dispensation for the fact that it was an election year compared to last year which wasnt an election year so the two budgets would be different.

May be the lesson will be for the country to make provision of an annual basis through the four years in meeting certain expenditures and setting aside some funds so that we do not load a single year on total expenditure for conducting an election, he added.

He said since election expenditure was financially intensive he had already forwarded his suggestion to the transition committee for consideration.

Terkper also said that the election fund if created will also help finance the district assembly elections that is held every two years.

May be that will be a better or an improvement to the way we finance our elections. And in between there is the district elections so at least we have two year cycle.

We need to plan around these things. This year we planned to do the releases for the election based on the calendar that was prepared right from the beginning of the year, beginning with capital expenditure like the equipment that we saw, he noted.

The 2016 elections is 35 times what it cost in Ghana 2004 according to figures from Ghana's previous elections.

In 2004, the elections cost 23.5 million cedis while the 2008 elections cost 138 million cedis.

But in 2012, it cost us 515 million cedis; representing a 377 million cedi rise from the 2008 elections which included a run-off.

In 2012, the increase from 138 million cedis to 515 million cedis represented an estimated 273% more money being used for the election.

Looking at figures available, the 2016 elections will cost the country 35 times what it cost us in 2004.
He was, however, admitted to bail in the sum of GH30,000.00 with four sureties to reappear on January 19.

Hollands counsel, Mr Andy Vortia, prayed the Court to admit his client to bail as an accused person was presumed innocent until he had been proven guilty by the Court.

The fact as narrated by the prosecutor was that the complainant was the victims mother, who lived with the victim at Latebiokoshie, while the accused lived at a suburb of Mataheko, known as One plus One.

According to the prosecutor, the victim was an apprentice, and she usually passed in front of the house of Holland to work.

On December 5, this year, at about 0700 hours, he said, the accused person saw the victim on her usual routine so he invited her into his room to offer her a parcel.

The Prosecution said Holland took advantage of the victim and had sex with her and warned her not tell anyone.

The following day, the prosecution said, in the evening after the close of work, the accused again lured the victim into his room and had sex with her.

The Prosecution said after the act, the accused person told the victim not to inform anyone else he would kill her.

Inspector Atimbire said the complainant got wind of the incident through a Good Samaritan so she reported the matter to the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit of the Odorkor Police Station.

The victim was given a Police medical form to seek medical attention and when the medical report was issued it confirmed that the victim had been abused sexually, he said.
The bloodshed occurred in Eringeti, a town 55 kilometres (35 miles) north of the regional hub Beni, a city hit by a series of attacks that have claimed more than 700 civilian lives according to regional official Amisi Kalonda, who blamed the latest strike on Ugandan rebels.

Kalonda said members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a group of rebels dominated by puritanical Ugandan Muslims and entrenched in the region for about two decades, stormed the town on Saturday afternoon.

"The ADF has yet again plunged the people of Eringeti and its surrounding areas into mourning," he told AFP, speaking from the North Kivu capital Goma.

"Yesterday, they killed 10 civilians. Twelve other bodies were found (Sunday) in the surrounding villages."

"The modus operandi is always the same," he said, adding that the victims were either killed with knives or machetes.

For the past two years the region around Beni has been afflicted by massacres that have killed hundreds of civilians, most of whom were hacked to death.

Congolese officials have blamed the attacks on the ADF but several expert reports have suggested that other groups, including elements within the Congolese army, took part in some killings.

Congolese army spokesman Mak Hazukay confirmed the attack, saying military forces had "killed four ADF rebels" but added that "the toll on the civilian side is very heavy".

Teddy Kataliki, the head of a prominent local civic group, also spoke of at least 22 victims. But a Catholic priest in the area said there had been 27 deaths and the toll could rise "if bodies are found in the forest" bordering the town.

'Toll likely to rise'

The priest said the Christmas midnight mass was held in the afternoon before nightfall for security reasons.

"Yesterday the bodies of 10 civilians were found and today another 12," Kataliki said, adding that this was a provisional toll.

"We don't understand this situation which continues to bereave the region of Beni."

Kataliki said another such attack was underway on Sunday evening in the town of Oicha, further south.

An army spokesman said troops were engaged in an operation in the area but refused to provide further details.

The priest however said, when contacted late Sunday, that the army "has pushed back the attackers".

When the Beni massacres kicked off in October 2014, the ADF was quickly branded the culprit by both DR Congo authorities and MONUSCO, the UN mission in DR Congo.

More than two years on, Congolese authorities and the UN have been unable to protect civilians and the ADF remains the only official explanation -- with the government insisting on a jihadist link to the killings.
Constable Edmund Kokovi was returning from duty on a passenger motor bike when he encountered the robbers who were from a robbery operations on a motor bike.

READ MORE: Two dead in gun battle in Tinga

Narrating how the incident happened to Accra-based Citi FM, the crime officer for the Upper West Regional Police Service, Supt. Alhaji Fuseini Musa Awenaba said the police officer flashed his torch light on the robbers to slow down because they were speeding.

"But instead of slowing down, the two motorbikes got ahead him and he got down to warn them. As soon as he got down one of suspects fired him from the bush because they saw that he was a Policeman," he narrated.

He continued: The person who picked him sensed danger so he turned and came back to the Police to alert his colleagues to go to his aid.

"But when they got there he was lying down in a pool of blood. They rushed him to the District hospital and he was confirmed dead.

READ MORE: Policeman crushed to death by alleged robbers

"As at now the body has been deposited at the Wa Regional Hospital mortuary for autopsy and preservation."
"But instead of slowing down, the two motorbikes got ahead him and he got down to warn them. As soon as he got down one of the suspects fired him from the bush because they saw that he was a Policeman," the crime officer for the Upper West Regional Police Service, Supt. Alhaji Fuseini Musa Awenaba narrated.

Kokovi was rushed to District Hospital in Wechiau where he died.

Supt. Awenaba says the police is hopeful the culprits of the heinous crime would be arrested soon although they have not yet had any solid information that could lead to their arrest.

We have left information around with people in the community. Maybe they might have seen such people during the night," he said.
Yet Sutti Kursakul, a middle-aged island native with a distinctive black moustache, claims he not only remembers the first moonlit party but organised it.

"I held the first full moon party in around 1988. It was a farewell to my Australian friend," Sutti told AFP as neon-clad tourists flowed in and out of his bar, vibing to house music.

Up to 30,000 people, mostly young western backpackers, descend on Haad Rin beach each month to guzzle buckets of booze, knock back drugs and jump through hoops of fire -- an increasingly perilous beachside activity as the evening's intoxication takes hold.

Now thumping electronic dance music has replaced the psy-trance beats of the 90s, while a cottage industry of neon clothing and body paint vendors has turned the beach into a one-stop shop for the party faithful.

And they keep on coming.

That is despite junta-run Thailand's political woes and the October death of beloved King Bhumibol Adulyadej, which was followed by a month-long "toning down" of the kingdom's normally wild nightlife.

Through a decade of military coups and curfews, Thailand's buoyant tourist industry has kept the economy afloat.

Thailand has already welcomed more than a record 30 million tourists in 2016.

They are expected to rake in more than $68.5 billion, a figure that will represent 17 percent of the economy.

Can't stop the rave

Over the years the full moon party has often been cast as a depraved, crime-ridden drug fest where foreigners trash their idyllic surroundings and take excessive risks.

"The western media is so negative," said Sharon Kahatai, an Israeli hostel owner who made the island his home nearly a decade ago.

"I think the full moon (party) is an amazing project. I don't know if there are other projects like that which bring young people, 18 to 22, from all around the world to be together."

Some old-school ravers say the notoriety and commercialism are changing the event for the worse.

But Sutti insists the spirit is the same.

"Nothing has changed about the full moon party -- just more people," he told AFP, stressing how the revellers bring crucial cash into the pockets of locals.

Thai tourism authorities want to lure wealthier visitors to the kingdom.

But hedonistic fixtures of Thailand's nightlife such as the full moon party appear safe.

Cyclical crackdowns on Thailand's freewheeling party scene never seem to stick and the beach rave shows no signs of slowing down.

"It's obviously popular with many people," said Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya, the public relations director of Tourism Authority of Thailand.

He said budget travellers still have an important role to play, despite efforts to develop Thailand as a luxury travel destination.

While backpackers may be short on cash, they have pull especially online.
Barrow "is confident that he has won an election and he is confident that there is no court on this earth that will deliver judgement to the contrary," opposition spokesman Halifa Sallah told reporters in the capital Banjul.

"We will not speculate on what the court will do ... What we are telling the Gambian people is: 'Focus your mind on the fact that president-elect Adama Barrow won an election and he will be inaugurated in January 19," he added.

Jammeh, who has been in power for 22 years, stunned observers by initially accepting his defeat in the December 1 vote by opposition candidate Barrow, but then flip-flopped a week later, rejecting the results and filing a court challenge.

His stance has stoked international concerns about the future of the tiny west African country, with the UN joining African leaders in calling for him to step down.

"Unless the court decides the case, there will be no inauguration (of Barrow) on the 19 January," Jammeh said in a lengthy television address this week, referring to his petition to the Supreme Court to overturn the election result.

According to Sallah, Jammeh's statement showed he had no intention to relinquish power in January.

He also recalled efforts by the west African bloc ECOWAS -- which have also come under fire by Jammeh -- to ensure a peaceful transition of power.

Leaders of ECOWAS -- including Senegal, which surrounds the landlocked country save its coastal border -- said at the weekend they would attend Barrow's inauguration and "take all necessary actions to enforce the results", without spelling out what those measures might be.
Accompanied by the vice president-elect, Dr Mahamadu Bawumia, to the 37 Military Hospital, Akufo-Addo said he was saddened by the incident, especially at the timing of it.

According to him, it should have been a time of rejoicing and merry-making and if you have the experience these people are having, it is very unfortunate.

Akufo-Addo said he came to express consolation and sympathy to the victims, adding that he felt awful when he heard the news.

So far, nine people had died from the disaster which occurred last week, the Ministry of Health has confirmed.

More than 40 victims of the explosion are currently on admission at various hospitals in Accra including the 37 Military hospital, Police hospital, La general hospital and the Korle-Bu teaching hospital.

Earlier, the president-elect in a series of the tweet, expressed deepest condolences to the families of the bereaved, and I wish the injured a speedy recovery.

He also called for the strict enforcement of and adherence to safety regulations.
He said: "I am aware of the many challenges that confronted Ghanaians this year. We should not see the economic difficulties of today as the blueprint of our tomorrow. There are brighter days ahead."

The president-elect also struck a reconciliatory tone, calling on Ghanaians to stay united.

"We should continue to stay united and focus on the things that can help us construct the road to a brighter future."

President-elect Akufo-Addo also praised the peaceful manner in which Ghanaians went about the December vote.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that apart from Matthew, Hamisu also killed a young student of the Umaru Musa Yar'Adua University, who was at the bank to withdraw money from an ATM and injured other people in the shooting spree.

It was gathered that the killer was thereafter, shot in the legs by other police officers attached to the bank before the angry mob descended on him and lynched him to death.

The incident, according to eyewitnesses, occurred when the two officers got into an argument which became heated leading to Hamisu shooting Matthew.

But another version of the incident had it that the quarrel between the two officers ensued following a discovery that the sergeant had been short-changing the corporal.

An eyewitness who identified himself as Prince Sam, Hamisu who was attached to MOPOL 47, Zaria, went wild and gunned down his colleague and two bank customers before he was killed by other policemen.

I was there when it all went down but I was afraid to take pictures of the incident with my phone. I woke up early that morning, made my way to the bank on Manchester Road, precisely where GT Bank was situated.

I got there but there was no money at the ATM. In fact, I went round the whole of Zaria but none of the ATMs was loaded with money.

I got to Diamond Bank roundabout and made my way to Zenith Bank. I got there but the crowd there was something else; so, as I was about leaving, two of the Mopols (anti-riot policemen) guarding the bank were arguing.

One of them asked the other to hand over his rifle to him or he would shoot him. Like a joke, the guy cocked his rifle. His name was Aliyu Hamisu while the other one was Joshua Matthew.

Both of them were sergeants attached to Mopol 47 Squadron, Zaria. So, Joshua handed over his rifle to Aliyu knowing that Aliyu had already cocked his rifle and anything could happen, while the rest of the Mopols were just looking in amazement.

The next thing I heard was lie down. At this moment, I knew something terrible was about to happen. So, I left the premises of the bank, started my vehicle and drove off immediately.

It was not up to 30 seconds when I heard a gunshot, and people started running for their dear lives. I parked my car to know what was going on, then I looked down towards Zenith Bank and saw two people lying dead on the ground, including Joshua.

The next thing I saw, was an Okada man dropped dead from his Okada, at that period I knew the war has started, as I was trying to get the clear picture of what really transpired to that ugly event, I saw the Aliyu with two AK47s shooting rapidly chanting Allahu akbar.

I quickly hid with others in one of the shops at PZ bus stop. Immediately news got to Zaria Area Command who mobilized men to the scene but before they could get there, one of the Mopols had already shot Aliyu in both legs.

He couldn't get up again as the rifles fell off his hands and I saw mobs gathered and started hitting him with so many objects they could lay their hands on.

Police later dispersed the crowd, took Aliyu to a hospital together with Joshua who was already dead before getting to the hospital and three other persons who they later confirmed dead on arrival due to multiple gunshots.
Inside Kano reports that the Islamic scholar, a resident of Kurna Babban Layi area of the state, had defied all entreaties from friends and family members to desist from handing over the teenage girl to his friend but he has refused.

This has prompted his relatives to call on the state Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje and the Emir of Kano, Mohammed Sanusi II, to intervene and abort the marriage billed to hold on Friday, December 30, 2016, just as the young girl insists she does not love the man.

The revelation was made public by a relative of the teenager, who said he is concerned the kind of life the girl would live if she is married off to a man who already has three wives and many grown up children.

The groom has three wives, many children, and grandchildren. We are appealing to Emir of Kano Muhammadu Sanusi and Governor of Kano to help intervene.
The child was rescued from a hotel in kastina, where he had been drugged with "cough mixture " before he was revived at the hospital by the police at about 3 am on Friday, says the police command

Salisu Agaisa, the police public relations officer in the state told reporters during the parade of Kamal and another suspect, Muhammed Abubakar Sadiq, on Friday evening, that both suspects, along with two other suspects, Abubakar Idris and Dabo Muhammed, said to be in Kaduna, conspired to kidnap the child for a ransom of N4m from Tundun

The suspects are also being accused of stealing a Peugeot 407 which they allegedly used in transporting the toddler.

Kamal said his intention was to sell the car for N700,000, that the toddler was just taken along to deviate attention from his main intention.
The story about his death was revealed by a Facebook user named Ajetunmobi Ridwan Olawale, supposedly a friend to the deceased.

According to Olawale, the deceased passed away on December 25, 2016. He was reported to have gotten married the previous day.

No information about his death circumstances was given by the user who wrote, Sad.Sad.Sad. This is quite a gigantic sad news. Auwal Sani got married on 24th December 2016 passed away 25th December 2016.

"He died together with his friend on his way back from Katsina where his wedding took place. May his gentle soul rest in peaceAmin.

ALSO READ: Friends mourn young graduate who died in car crash
According to reports, the suspect, who is only 22 years old reportedly killed Adeleke because he was keen about sending money to his girlfriend who lives in Cameroon.

SP Dolapo Badmos, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) confirmed this on Saturday, December 24, 2016.

The PPRO stated that the deceased was confirmed dead following her arrival at the St. Nicholas Hospital, Lagos.

She reportedly died from stab wounds inflicted with a knife.

ALSO READ: Steward who stabbed employer to death made a dance video celebrating her death

"A kitchen knife was found stuck into the left side of her chest. She was rushed to St. Nicholas Hospital on Lagos Island, where a doctor on duty confirmed her dead.

Some drug substance was found on the suspect and he has made confessional statements.

He said he wanted to send money to his girlfriend in Cameroon and that was how an argument ensued between him and the boss.

Investigation is still ongoing and he will be duly prosecuted."
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The most annoying aspect of the whole saga is Osondu telling Raphael to calculate all that he spent on Uzo so that he could pay him off.

Read his story here:

" My name is Raphael, a 36-year-old man. I am very bitter and I just want the world to know what my best friend, Osondu, did to me when he came home from Malaysia last December.

Would you believe that Osondu had the mind to snatch my wife, Uzoamaka, and took her to his base just because he felt he had more money and influence?

Though many people who know my story say I should rather blame my wife over the issue, I still feel that Osondu should share in the blame and I will never forgive them as long as I live.

Osondu and I were apprentices some years ago, and few months after our master settled us, he traveled out of the country to, according to him, seek greener pastures.

We were the best of friends and we kept in touch as he told me all he was going through first in South Africa before moving to India, China and later settled in Malaysia where he hit it big in some fraudulent stuff.

All through the years, he had been deported twice, sent to prison over some shady deals but he kept insisting he would make it.

I got married three years ago, to Uzo and though Osondu could not make it to the wedding, he sent me some money to support us and so, it was just natural he put up with me when he came home for the Christmas in 2015.

The first time he set eyes on my wife, Osondu kept telling me how lucky I was to get married to such a beautiful wife. All through his stay before traveling to the east to see his family, he kept showering praises and gifts on my wife.

I was happy that my best friend appreciated my wife, but little did I know that he was watering the ground to snatch her from me.

So, it was a huge shock for me when I came back to Lagos after being away for two weeks only to meet my house empty. When I asked my neighbours if anyone had seen my wife, I was told they thought we had traveled together.

I called her number but her phone was switched off. I was so worried after I called her family members and all of them told me they did not where she was.

I had to report a case of missing person to the police and their efforts as well proved abortive until a week later when she called me with a foreign number to tell me she is in Malaysia with Osondu.

Uzo had the nerves to tell me that she was in love with Osondu and had gone to Malaysia to be with him. I called Osondu to confirm and the idiot told me to take it as a man and that I did not have the wherewithal to take care of a woman like Uzoamaka.

He then said I should calculate all I spent on her and send the bills to him and he would pay me off. He must have settled her family members because when I reported to them, they said there was nothing they could do as Uzoamaka was an adult and knew what is right or wrong.

It is now one year since my best friend and wife dealt me a bitter blow and I am still yet to come to terms with this betrayal. I have even contemplated harming them spiritually but my family wants me to forget about the whole episode, saying Uzo was not meant for me.

Raphael.

The teaser for the day was:

How Nigeria voted:

I will get them arrested - 8%

I will let go, believing she was not my wife - 24%

I will battle them spiritually - 12%

I will move on with my life - 56%
Bindow made this commendation in Mubi at the closing ceremony of the state annual Quranic Recitation Competition on Monday.

Represented by the Commissioner of Information and Strategy, Bindow said the success at Sambisa was a cheering news to Nigerians, particularly the North Eastern people, who were worst hit by the Boko Haram insurgency.

He said The people of Adamawa and Mubi in particular, experienced the wicked acts of the insurgents before the recapture of Mubi by the military.

Today, things are normal in Mubi and that is why we are here to mark this major event.

We must give thanks to God and praise the Commander- in-Chief, President Muhammadu Buhari for his support of the military and other security agencies.

We must also play our role in complementing the efforts of the security agencies by being extra vigilant and providing useful security information.

It will be recalled that the Nigerian army has defeated Boko Haram in the Sambisa forest, one of the insurgents strongholds known as Zero Camp.

The governor lauded the organisers of the annual Quranic competition, saying that it would go a long way in promoting religious values and discipline among youths.

In his speech, the Emir of Mubi, Alhaji Abubakar Isa, urged the organisers to promote the culture of reading and skills acquisition, particularly for the Almajiri system to enable them become self reliant.

He said I want to thank the organisers for bringing this big and rewarding event to Mubi.

This event, that lasted 10 days has brought blessings to Mubi and I want to urge the people to take advantage of the moment to promote peace and unity, irrespective of tribe or religious differences.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that no fewer than 200 participants from the 21 Local Government Areas of Adamawa, participated in the competition.
This is contained in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Terver Akase, and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Makurdi.

It would be recalled that the Nigerian Government had on Dec. 25, 2016, announced the complete capture of Sambisa forest, the main enclave of Boko Haram members.

Ortom saluted the resilience and bravery of officers and men of the military in the final crushing of Boko Haram in Sambisa forest.

He said Our beloved gallant troops have once more demonstrated what they are known for; we are proud of them and we salute their determination and courage.

Ortom also congratulated President Muhammadu Buhari for the victory over the insurgents, explaining that the support given to the military in the fight against terrorism aided `Operation Lafiya Dole.

The support given to the armed forces by President Buhari is the main reason for the success of Operation Lafiya Dole which has led to the conquest of Sambisa forest, the main enclave of Boko Haram.

On behalf of the government and people of Benue State, I congratulate President Muhammadu Buhari for his commitment which has manifested in the defeat of Boko Haram in Sambisa forest.

This again points to the fact that the President is keeping to his promise to make all parts of the country safe again; he therefore deserves our commendation, Ortom stated.
The Boko Haram commander was reportedly caught in the Ikorodu area of Lagos on Saturday, December 24, after escaping from Sambisa Forest.

The Forest, which is Boko Harams stronghold, was captured by the Nigerian Army on Friday, December 23.

Details of the terrorist commanders arrest were given by Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai during the re-opening of two major roads in Borno state on Sunday, December 25.

You must maintain the momentum of the operation. We must pursue the terrorists wherever they are. We must not allow them to regroup, Buratai said.

ALSO READ: Troops crush last Boko Haram camp in Sambisa Forest
Again.

The Borno State Police command has confirmed that the terrorists detonated a bomb in the Kasuwan Shanu area of Borno State in the early hours of Monday.

Early reports suggest that the casualty figures were minimal--only the suicide bombers lost their lives, according to Police.

ALSO READ: Bomb blast hits Maiduguri cattle market

But that's another indication that Boko Haram hasn't gone away--won't go away just like that.

In his Christmas Day message to Nigerians, President Muhammadu Buhari said the terrorists have been chased out of their Sambisa Forest base and declared victory over the savages.

In the President's words: "I am delighted at, and most proud of the gallant troops of the Nigerian Army, on receipt of the long-awaited and most gratifying news of the final crushing of Boko Haram terrorists in their last enclave in Sambisa Forest.

"I want to use this opportunity to commend the determination, courage and resilience of troops of Operation Lafiya Dole at finally entering and crushing the remnants of the Boko Haram insurgents at Camp Zero, which is located deep within the heart of Sambisa Forest.

"I was told by the Chief of Army Staff that the Camp fell at about 1:35pm on Friday, December 22, and that the terrorists are on the run, and no longer have a place to hide. I urge you to maintain the tempo by pursuing them and bringing them to justice.

"Once more, congratulations to our troops and all who, in one way or the other, contributed to this most commendable and momentous effort. May the Almighty continue to be with you".

Are congratulations really in order at this time, seeing that Boko Haram is still capable of mounting attacks like we just heard?

Should we be declaring victory when we know Boko Haram is still capable of striking soft targets at will?

Where's the dreaded Shekau (who has been declared dead numerous times only to reappear in videos) or his body doubles?

Army Chief Tukur Buratai also says Boko Haram has been defeated.

The problem is that the Army declared Boko Haram defeated in February, August, November and December.

The Army has declared Boko Haram defeated every other month of the year, only for the terrorists to hit more soft targets the following week or month.

We understand that war is part psychological and part physical. Declaring victory over Boko Haram before they are actually defeated can help the troops win the war and undermine the resurgence of the terrorists.

A psychological blow can be just as devastating as a physical one. It's the Art of War 101.

But is it also possible that the military top brass and the Presidency are hasty with their victory celebrations? Is it possible that the APC--which has congratulated the President for defeating Boko Haram--is in a haste to score a political point?

Yes, Boko Haram has been sufficiently degraded as a fighting, rag-tag force.

Yes, under Buhari's leadership, Boko Haram has been dealt devastating blows--the kind of blows the Army under Goodluck Jonathan couldn't deliver because the top brass was stealing the money meant to arm the troops.

But until the entire North East is free from sporadic bombings every other month, it appears pretty premature to say we've won this war.

Until the folks in North Central and North East Nigeria can sleep with both eyes closed, we haven't really won this war in the truest sense.

Guerrilla wars can drag on for years. The real victory will be not to take our eyes off the ball at any stage of this war.

Until we've reconstructed the war torn North East in such a manner that folks in the region can return to their livelihoods without fear of being hit by bombs or bullets, we should tread carefully with this incessant victory declarations and celebrations.

Even Buhari famously said that until all the abducted Chibok Girls and other Boko Haram captives have regained their freedom, we shouldn't say we've won this war.
Director of Defence Information, Brig.-Gen. Rabe Abubakar gave the assurance on Sunday, December 25, following the December 23 capture of Boko Haram stronghold, Sambisa Forest by the Nigerian Army.

We should allow for calm in this operation, which is still ongoing. We have yet to come to point zero. We have taken over the heart and the centre of Sambisa, Abubakar told Punch.

The operation will culminate with Operation Rescue Finale which will end only when all the captives, including the Chibok girls have been rescued, and this would be soon.

There are things we want to keep to ourselves for now. Everyone should understand that now that Sambisa is under the control of the military, there will be more rescues. We cannot say what will jeopardize the rescue operations of the troops.

What we will do with Sambisa is still left with us. We have completely left that as a secret. It is our secret. People shouldnt preempt us, he added.

The sect, in October, released 21 of the girls following negotiations which were brokered by the Swiss government.

ALSO READ: FG, Boko Haram finalize negotiations for release of 2nd batch of Chibok girls
The violence in Kaduna South Senatorial District is unfortunate; in his search for solutions, the governor should widen his consultations and talk less; all stakeholders should be involved in the search for peace, Gaiya told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Jos on Sunday.

NAN reports that the Kaduna State Government has imposed a 24-hour curfew on three Local Governments  Jemaa, Kaura and Zango-Kataf , in its efforts to restore law and order.

On Dec. 19, youths, who claimed to be protesting against governments alleged non-challance to the killings, attacked the governor after a security meeting in Kafanchan, pelting vehicles in his convoy with stones, bottles and sticks.

Governor El-Rufai has traced the attacks to the post-election violence of 2011, and has also accused politicians of being behind the latest spate of violence, particularly the protests by youths in Kafanchan.

The governor, during a media chat in Kaduna, on Dec. 21, also disclosed that government had already discovered plans to recruit militants to attack the area.

But Gaiya, who represented Zango-Kataf/Jaba federal constituenccy in the House of Representatives from 2007 to 2015, told NAN that the governor must avoid flat assumptions and reach out more, so as to widen the process toward restoring peace to the crises-ridden area.

The governor has said that the violence has its roots in the post-election violence of 2011; he also says that politicians are organising the violence for unspecified political gains, and has further alleged that militants are being recruited.

As the governor, El-Rufai has lots of information at his dispossal, but hurling accusations and voicing pre-conceived conclusions could discourage people with ideas, from contributing to the peace efforts.

What is required is practical actions that will entail engaging everyone so as to end the violence once and for all.

Government should involve members of the National and State House of Assemblies, especially the senator, traditional rulers and religious leaders, in the negotiations.

The governor should table his findings and concerns with these groups and seek a way forward; all hands must be on deck because it is such collaboration that could give effect to the efforts, Gaiya said.

He also cautioned some of the the governors aides against worsening the violence through careless words and reckless utterances that could alienate a large segment of the population and breed distrust, hatred and mutual suspicion.

Gaiya regretted that farmers in the area had not been able to harvest their crops because of fear of attacks on their farms, while many had not been able to travel for Christmas because of the 24-hour curfew .

The entire area appears to be under siege; government must be able to intervene, restore normalcy and secure lives because that is the first responsibility of the state to the citizens, he counseled.

He also observed that the violence had affected the economy, friendship and general enterprise, and urged the presidency to step in so as to halt the persistent midnight attacks.

Gaiya, however, lauded governments plans to cite two army barracks in the area to provide a ready force that could always intervene in an event of any attack.

 In 2010, some elders met with then President Goodluck Jonathan and secured an approval for the citing of an army barrack in the area which has not been actualised, but I am happy that the idea is being rescusitated, he said.

The former law maker expressed surprise that no one had been apprehended over the attacks.
El-Rufai described the attack as inhumane and handiwork of forces of darkness.

In a statement by his Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr Samuela Aruwan in Kaduna on Sunday, El-Rufai empathised and condoled with families that lost their loved ones.

He urged security agencies to redouble their efforts, saying the attackers would know no peace as they would be chased to their hideouts and brought to justice.

The governor said while government and security agencies work to block all windows to ensure that citizens in the three local government areas and the entire state are protected, these forces of darkness will know no peace.

These forces of darkness that represent evil and inhumanity stroke again, killinginnocent citizens, burnt their houses and injured some and terrified many.

Government and security agencies will not be deterred; we will continue to be resilient, up and doing and courageous in tackling this unfortunate situation.

Their tactics are to create a chasm, divide people, breed hate and prejudice and plunge the state into chaos but we will triumph over these evil forces by the grace of Almighty God.

No amount of evil will change our deep commitment. We will continue to be firm, decisive and put lives of our citizenry and their wellbeing as our ultimate goal.

He stated that the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) had been directed to take inventory of those affected and provide relief materials to assist the victims.
This is coming on the heels of an attack on Goska village that left over 27 people dead and properties destroyed.

SKAG also wondered how the attackers could come to their village and have a field day, despite reports that 500 troops were deployed to their domain.

According to Daily Post, the spokesman of the group, Major Ephraim Kukazan (Rtd.) accused El-Rufai of having a hand in the attack.

Kukazan said We want to use this medium to call on the nation and the international community to be aware that a grand plan for genocide and total annihilation of Southern Kaduna people is going on right now. We are calling on the sons and daughters of Southern Kaduna to arise in prayers to the heavens until Gods hand is stretch against our enemies.

 While it is clear to us now that, despite the 500 troops said to have been detail to maintain peace in our area, our enemies were allow access to come and destroy our village, kill our people and loot our property, is evidence enough that, there was collaboration between the government and the security operatives else how can one explain what happen in Goska village?

Armed security men were deployed to Kafanchan to ensure safety, calmness and protection of lives and properties, but this community was left all through the night at the mercies of unarmed vigilantes who couldnt do anything with the enemy whose quiver is full of sophisticated weapons.

Lives were lost, we have recorded 27, properties burnt and looted. We are going to use all legitimate means to support and encourage our people. The government imposed 24hour curfew almost a week ago only for our enemies to be allowed to have a field day to attack us at the watch of these security operatives.

This evil was planned long ago, the government is aware of the plan, we have informed them both at the state and federal but nothing was done about it. When we raise to defend ourselves, the government send security operatives, not to maintain peace but to aid our enemies as the attack in Goska village now suggested.
A statement issued in Ado Ekiti on Sunday and signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr Idowu Adelusi, said the promotion cuts across workers in the local governments, teaching service and the core civil servants.

The statement said that the beneficiaries consisted mainly of those whose promotions were due since 2012, 2013 and 2014.

It said the governor had consequently ordered that letters of promotion be given the affected workers without further delay.

The statement, however, clarified that the promotion status still remained nominal, as the cash backing for the exercise would be effective only from March 2017.

It announced that all categories of workers in the state had been paid two months salaries in December, while Christmas bonus would be paid immediately after the Christmas holiday.

The statement quoted the governor as saying that, though, the state was currently grappling with economic challenges, it did not mean that deserving workers should not be recognised for hard work.

We wont deny our workers their dues and entitlements, economic recession or no economic recession, as leaders of the state, we must be fair to all and that is what we are doing

Our administration is resolute in giving the best to all Ekiti people, including those in the public service.

This month alone, we have paid two salaries, we are also paying Christmas bonus after the holiday
Buhari made the plea on Sunday, December 25, when he received some residents of the Federal Capital Territory for a Christmas visit at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

I want you to talk to people to be patient with the government. We are always thinking about our country and we are thinking about our people, the president said.

I assure you that the country and the people of the country are always uppermost in our minds. With our performance in the North-East, Nigerians know that this government is serious.

For our friends in the Niger Delta area, we will persuade them that they should please sit down with us and agree to manage our resources rather than think of fighting it out, he added.
In the message, the Governor said: While citizens who are not directly affected by the insurgency are planning to enjoy the long Christmas holiday, they should make out time to think about the severe trauma faced by over 1.5 million sons and daughters of Borno State.

They have been forced out of their communities to either become Internally Displaced Persons in camps, or live in strange places that include taking refuge outside Nigeria.

While felicitating with the Christians in Borno State, he also appealed to Nigerians to remember the internally displaced persons (IDPs). His words are quoted below:

"I, on behalf of Borno State Government, felicitate with my Christian brothers and sisters in Borno State at Christmas and pray for a peaceful and joyful celebration. I appeal to all citizens to use the festive reason to deeply reflect on the plight of fellow citizens who currently live outside their homes following vicious attacks by insurgents in many communities across our dear State.

These affected citizens, more than 1.5 million of them, internally displaced (within Nigeria) as well as those taking refuge in neighboring countries, are under severe trauma haven lost relations, children, sources of livelihood and forced to live outside their homes. Many of them have been turned from highly enterprising employers of labour, importers and exporters of goods and services to becoming jobless beggars that depend entirely on alms.

We should not only reflect on their conditions, comfort and support them but also pray and commit ourselves to the current efforts of Government to speedily reconstruct their communities with all essential social services put back and made functional; rehabilitation to give them new sources of livelihood and reintegrating them back to rebuilt communities.

The Borno State Government is determined to achieving these before the second quarter of 2016 in anticipation of full restoration of peace.

Shettima further urged the citizens to support his administration so as to ensure that the displaced persons return back to their homes.

In fact, the Government is already working aggressively in phases. All citizens have a duty to support sincere efforts towards these reconstruction works so that together we shall return our brothers and sisters to not just their ancestral homes but to remodeled and befitting homes that should be better than those destroyed.

I enjoin all citizens to be law abiding throughout the festive season and beyond. The State Government is active collaboration with security agencies, is doing everything humanly possible, to ensure a peaceful festive season. Said the Borno state Governor.
I am not interested in such things. It is a mere distraction, let me go and do my own work, anybody who comes after me if he wants to probe me let him probe me but for me I want to serve the people of this state, that is my focus, he said.

However, he added, but if anybody commits any crime, we have enough laws to take care of it.

The Governor-elect went further to vehemently deny the allegation that Governor Mimiko secretly supported him. Is that possible? That is not possible! If Governor Olusegun Mimiko wanted to work for me, he would have thrown in the towel immediately they said it was Jimoh Ibrahim that will be the candidate of the PDP. He was virtually living in Abuja until he got the judgment in favour of Mr. Eyitayo Jegede (SAN). Do you know how much he must have spent on his lawyers and they said he was working for me?

He continued, Mimiko was determined that he wanted his party to win and he put in everything he had. I dont know how many times that he flew private jets from Abuja to Akure. That gulped money, energy and time. Is that how to work for somebody in the opposition? I can also assure you that there was never a day he and I discussed on the telephone or anywhere that he should work for me.
The President said this on Sunday in Abuja in a statement to mark the Speakers 50th birthday anniversary.

The statement was signed by the presidents Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu.

He said the Speakers performance had reinforced his confidence in the countrys youth.

With Dogaras performance as Speaker, fears that the countrys younger politicians have been pushed into background are unfounded, he added.

He added that his administration would always encourage the younger generation.
Pastor Adeboye, who is the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), reportedly commended Fayose for his courage and willingness to defend his people.

According to Premium Times, the Ekiti APC Chairman, Jide Awe alleged that Fayose must have bribed the revered religious leader for him to make such comments.

Awe, in a statement also said the APC "was alarmed that a cleric of Mr. Adeboyes standing could praise Governor Fayose for his persistent insults and abuses on President Muhammadu Buhari, noting that the cleric should be seen as speaking for himself and his comment must not be seen as representing that of the entire members of the RCCG.

The spokesman of the PDP in Ekiti, Jackson Adebayo, described the APC leaders comment as political rascality and an example of the evil mindset of the party.

Adebayo also said Pastor Adeboye is a respected man of God. He is not a politician. He only said what he saw about Governor Fayose and the only Nigerians, who wont want to accept the fact that the governor has stoutly defended Ekiti people and the common people of Nigeria, are those in the APC.

He also added that The APC in Ekiti State has strong history of political intolerance such that anyone that is not with them must be condemned at all cost.

ALSO READ:7 major controversial religious moments of the yea

Pastor Enoch Adeboye made the comment about Governor Fayose when he visited Ekiti state for his ministrys annual Lets Go A Fishing program.
The governor made the comments on Friday, December 23, 2016, during a meeting of the Ogun APC in Abeokuta, the state capital.

If you want something, there are several ways of getting it, imagine people said that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu will finish him (me) in Lagos and I said, dont worry they dont know what they are saying, Amosun said according to Daily Trust.

I am from Ogun State, what will happen in another place I dont know and I dont talk about what I do not know. Asiwaju that you see, not money, he didnt give me any money, no, and I say it often that when I needed him, he stood by me.

I talk to him, despite all of those things people will want to say, I think they are afraid to write something about what we are doing and what we are not doing. The work we have done will pay significantly; it will be no campaign, our work, all of our leaders, those outside too, all of them will be there for us and we will win, he added.

Amosun was referring to rumours that he and other members of the party had betrayed Tinubu.

The supposed betrayal was said to have pushed the APC leader to begin to make moves to leave the party for a mega-party which he would create.

ALSO READ: I have no issue with Tinubu - Akeredolu
Tinubu expressed his delight in a statement issued on Sunday by his media office, praising the military for decimating the final stronghold of Boko Haram in Sambisa.

I congratulate the nation, President Buhari and the army for crushing Boko Haram in their last stronghold of Sambisa Forest. I congratulate the troops of Operation Lafiya Dole for their bravery and resilience. They have given the nation a most wonderful Christmas gift."

The APC chieftain urged Nigerians to continue to pray for the wellbeing of the soldiers, who have brought the country a wonderful Christmas gift by crushing Boko Haram.

I know the insurgents were engaged in their last desperate acts and merely clutching to their last straw. Now they have been put down. Terror will have no place in our land. The end is here."

He also encouraged the soldiers to consolidate on their victory by rescuing the remaining Chibok Girls and other captives in the custody of Boko Haram.

I commend the troops. I thank them again for their courage and bravery. Its time to finish the job and locate and liberate the remaining Chibok schoolgirls abducted from their school in 2014.

As we sink ourselves in the Christmas celebration, let us remember to pray for the troops. Let us remember that for them, there was no Christmas.

Let us also spare a thought for the Internally Displaced Persons. We must support them and give them hope.
Pastor Kumuyi said this on Sunday while speaking to newsmen when he hosted the Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, in his churchs December Convention.

We talk of the hours of recession, difficulty, distress and all that, but God is granting us His promises. We are not going to carry over our problems.

We pray and believe that the Lord will answer.

As you will see, as we get to the New Year, there is no carryover of our problems. God will give solutions to the problems of our lives, families, communities, the state and our nation.

Pastor Kumuyi claimed that God has listened to the cries of Nigerians and would favour the country in 2017.

On his part, the Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, enjoined all Christians to show support and love to their neighbours, adding that the state was poised to fighting unemployment among the youth.

We must go beyond religious demarcation and show ourselves that we are brothers and sisters. Let us love one another. We should extend hands of fellowship to our neighbours, the speaker said.

The four-day, nation-wide convention of the Deeper Life Bible Church which started on December 23, 2016 titled Power for the Present Hour, is expected to end on December 26, 2016.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Corporal Mathew Joshua discovered that Sergeant Aliyu Kamilu had been short-changing him regarding the stipends.

Joshua confronted the Sergeant regarding the issue and as they were arguing, Joshua opened fire, shooting the Sergeant in the stomach.

An eyewitness told NAN:

After shooting the sergeant, Joshua started shouting and shooting sporadically, which eventually led to the killing of a university student.

The eyewitness added that:

When the report of the incident reached their command in Zaria, a team of police officers was immediately mobilised to the area.

The policemen met their colleague with two rifles. They had no option than to systematically take position.

One of them succeeded in shooting Joshua on the leg, which gave people around the opportunity to descend on him with stones.

Corporal Joshua also died as a result. By the time all three were rushed to the hospital, they were all confirmed dead.

While sources at the Police headquarters said there was no case since both aggrieved parties died, nothing was said about the student.
To do so, it's looking to invest in Africa with a ride-hailing service and a production facility. Reuters reports that the automaker will set up the former in Rwanda and the latter will be in Kenya.

According to an Engadget report, this is not the first time Volkswagen is investing in ride-sharing. Earlier this year, the German automaker made a $300 million investment into European company Gett.

ALSO READ: German automakers consortium acquire Here maps for N611 billion

Rwanda also makes sense for Volkswagen because Uber has not set up shop there, and dominated the market, like it has in Kenya.

VW's plant in Kenya will start producing the Polo Vivo electric compact car - the first manufacturing it's done in Kenya since the 70's, and the company is also looking to start making cars in Algeria.
The Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) initially announced the death of five Burundian soldiers who had entered the country overnight on December 21, in the first known clash since the end of the Second Congo War in 2003.

"There were 10 deaths,"Major Dieudonne Kajibwami, told AFP on Monday following a previous statement that five bodies had been taken to Uvira, a lakeside town in the eastern South Kivu province.

"In their flight, they didn't manage to recover the five other bodies," added Kajibwami, the military spokesman in South Kivu, much of which lies across Lake Tanganyika from Burundi.

Questioned by AFP, the Burundian army declined to comment on the incident.

Burundian medical sources said that wounded soldiers were admitted on Thursday to the military hospital in the capital Bujumbura, which lies on the north shore of the lake, across from Uvira. The hospital also took in dead bodies, but the sources gave no number for the injured.

According to Kajibwami, Congolese soldiers opened fire on the Burundian troops when they crossed the border after midnight on Wednesday in pursuit of rebels from the ethnic Hutu National Forces of Liberation (FNL).

"Normally, there is cooperation between the two armies," another Congolese army officer told AFP, asking not to be named. He mentioned a tacit agreement between Bujumbura and Kinshasa to let Burundian soldiers act in pursuit of FNL rebels when they fall back after a raid into Burundi.

"The reason for this glitch" lay in the absence of the military commander of the sector and an ignorance among the soldiers of "the deal between the two sides," this officer added.

Congolese soldiers "opened fire because they have strict instructions at this moment of tension in the country," he said, six days after President Joseph Kabila defied his political foes by retaining power beyond his constitutional mandate.

Kinshasa has never acknowledged authorising a right of pursuit to Burundian soldiers.

The FNL established rear bases in Congo at the start of the Burundian civil war, a partly ethnic conflict that began in 1993 and ended in 2006. The rebels refused to sign the Arusha peace accord that led to an end of the bloodshed.
"I changed my mind," said Sanyang, a couple of days after longtime President Yahya Jammeh accepted defeat and seemed willing to leave office after 22 years.

"I was glad, very glad, because I had hoped that that man (would) get this," the 25-year-old added, referring to the unexpected election victory of self-made real estate developer Adama Barrow.

Weeks later, the elation Sanyang felt has turned to uncertainty over the vote's disputed outcome, while his life and those of thousands of other Gambians are left hanging in the balance.

A nation of fewer than two million people, The Gambia accounts for the highest number of migrants per capita of any nationality crossing the sands of the Sahara through Niger to Libya where they board rickety boats that ply the Mediterranean to Italy.

That a man like Barrow, who struggled financially before establishing himself as a businessman, could one day become Gambian president had lit a small flame of hope for the young in this poor west African country.

"There is a crisis in The Gambia, that's why everyone is taking the Back Way (migrant route)," Barrow told AFP earlier this month.

Combining study with grinding work as a security guard in London, Barrow has lived the migrant experience himself.

"You hear the name Europe, you think it's heaven. It's never like that," he said.

Jammeh however has taken a different line. "Anybody who wants to migrate, let them migrate," he said recently. "It's a matter of taste, migration is a choice, it's not because of poverty."

'All gone the Back Way'

On a bad day, Sanyang earns as little as 250 dalasis (about $6 / 5.6 euros). One recent day he was helping fishermen bring in their catch, and took home 1,000 dalasis -- a really good haul.

When he isn't helping on the boats, Sanyang breaks bricks at construction sites, or does whatever job he is told is available that morning in the neighbourhood, labouring until nightfall.

There was resignation in his voice as he admitted he was once again thinking of leaving, after it became clear Jammeh would not go without a fight. Desperate Gambians feel they have no time to waste.

"Decades before, Gambians were not travelling across Africa, but now you see kids aged 12, 13, 14 joining them," said student Mbembe Kuyateh, 25, after Friday prayers in the Westfield district on the outskirts of the capital, Banjul.

"Many of my friends left The Gambia. Some drowned in the Mediterranean Sea and some made it to Europe," Kuyateh said.

Others describe the villages upriver where there are almost no men aged between their late teens and early 40s.

"I couldn't believe it, they had all gone the Back Way," said one Banjul-based diplomat who passed through such a village on a recent trip.

'He wouldn't give up'

The scars left by the departed who never reached the shores of Italy are visible all around The Gambia.

Samba Mbengu, a mechanic, recalls the endless fights he had with his brother, Ali "Mille Franc" Mbengu, a rising star on the wrestling circuit who worked as a tailor by day.

"He insisted he wanted to travel and in order to convince him (to stay) I bought him a sewing machine, but even after all that he wouldn't give up," Mbengu recalled.

After months of arguing, Mbengu agreed to finance the trip, and stayed in close contact with his brother as he made his way through to Libya.

"I never anticipated I was going to spend this much money," he told AFP, refusing to give a precise figure but admitting it was more than 100,000 dalasis ($2,300).

"He called me telling me how much pressure they came under from the agents over there, and how sometimes they could be maltreated if the money isn't sent on time," Mbengu added.

One week in November, his brother's usual phone calls stopped.

Looking up at the ceiling of the tailor shop to compose himself, Mbengu recalled the moment one of his brother's fellow travellers told him Ali had drowned.

"It has traumatised us... that's all I can say," the mechanic added, looking away.

'Only me and God'

The first time he had readied himself to leave, Sanyang didn't even tell his closest family about his decision, describing the deep shame he felt at being the eldest son, the breadwinner, but unable to provide enough so his parents could stop working.

jpegMpeg4-1280x720"I don't like my mum crying, they don?t want you to go," he said. "We have no help, only me and God."

The Gambian economy has suffered several blows in the last three years, making life extremely hard for those without connections to the ruling party or family in Europe sending back remittances.

A 2013 drought was followed by the region's Ebola crisis, which despite never actually touching The Gambia itself scared off tourists who account for 20 percent of GDP.

Then a dispute over tariffs with Senegal, whose territory surrounds The Gambia, effectively cut the country off from supplies for months.

Sanyang believes that betting his life on a journey to Europe may still be worth it.
The massacre occurred early Christmas Day outside a house in the village of Puente del Rey, where the gunmen shot dead the six men and one woman, aged 24 to 54.

Three of the victims were police officers, a regional security ministry official said.

Guerrero is one of Mexico's states most affected by brutal drug gangs which frequently battle each other, as well as carrying out kidnappings and extortion.
The prisoner release is the first major sign of de-escalation between the nuclear-armed neighbours after months of high tension over the disputed Kashmir border.

We have released 220 Indian fishermen this morning, senior police officer Sada Hussain Zardari said.

He said the Indian fishermen were released as goodwill gesture.

A remaining 219 Indian fishermen would be released on Jan. 5, Zardari said.

While they are often immediately released, fishermen can often languish in jail for months or years when political ties between the two regional rivals are under strain.
If you want to see how Gov. Bruce Rauner's mind works, you should skim through the vast trove of e-mails from Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's private account that a Better Government Association lawsuit finally forced into public view last week.

For instance, back in September of 2011, Rauner was the chairman of the Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau. Legendary Springfield insider Jim Reilly was the Bureaus CEO at the time.

A state law designed to weaken labor union strength at the massive convention center had been tossed out by a federal judge, and Rauner was apparently arguing for "really kicking ass" with a "full court press" to ram new anti-union legislation through the General Assembly during the upcoming fall veto session. Reilly, however, was trying to negotiate an agreement with the unions. The reforms were first implemented when major convention center customers threatened to abandon Chicago over high costs.

Chairman Rauner told CEO Reilly on September 30, 2011 that calls from hotels and restaurants had "accelerated." The future governor explained the entities were worried that a "negotiated partial restoration" of the stricken legislation wouldn't be enough. And, Rauner claimed, "they believe decisive, unilateral action that demonstrates unions dont have their old clout is the only way."

Reilly did his very best to charm Rauner into submission. He started out by bluntly informing Rauner there was "no support in key quarters" for a legislative solution. Reilly and the mayor weren't passing up an opportunity, he explained, because "There is no opportunity to pass up. It is an illusion!"

"I know that you can say that maybe if we make a full court press we could force the issue," the experienced Springfield hand explained to the businessman Rauner, "but that is sort of like me saying that if we put enough money in some venture capital opportunity that looks good to me but you know just won't work, we might make a fortune."

Reilly also defended his and Mayor Emanuel's preference for talks. "We are not negotiating because it is easier or because the Mayor or me or anyone else involved lacks guts or doesn't understand what is at stake," he wrote. "We are negotiating because it is the best, perhaps the only, way to save the trade show industry in Chicago which, in my judgment, will come as close to collapsing or closer than it was in the spring of 2010 if we get through veto session with no resolution and have to wait until the appeal plays itself out sometime late this year or, more likely, sometime next spring."

Reilly then gave the compromise-averse Rauner a status update on the union talks. "In our negotiations, we are already home on the ability of exhibitors to do their own work in a booth of any size and which will be forever enshrined in state law free from legal challenge. No compromise here. This is huge!"

He also warned against another Rauner legislative idea, which he said couldn't be passed and even if it did, the law "would almost certainly be challenged setting off another year or so of uncertainty which the negotiations route seeks to avoid."

Reilly assured Rauner that if the negotiations succeeded he had no doubts that the convention center would be back to where it was before that federal judge tossed all those reforms out the window.

"You talk of 'really kicking ass' but, Bruce, we were really kicking ass back then and we can be doing again soon but I sincerely believe that negotiation is our only possible route," Reilly explained.

"I dont blame you for wanting a perfect world for the Chicago trade show industry. I would like that too but absolute perfection doesn't happen very often," Reilly wrote. "If it did, the world wouldnt need people like you and me to drag it along." A real charmer, that Reilly.

So, to sum up, a total hard line stance against negotiating with unions, a rigid demand for a "full court press" to pass a politically impossible and likely unconstitutional legislative action that "really kicks ass," and a refusal to accept any compromise solution short of what he believed was "absolute perfection."

Sound familiar?

Less than a month later, Reilly wrapped up his union negotiations. Crain's Chicago Business reported that the agreements "largely preserve work-rule changes enacted at the convention center last summer."

So, perhaps we could get out of this two-year impasse nightmare if the governor would just put Reilly on contract?

Nah. It'll never happen. The governor no longer has to listen to gray beards who could talk some reasonable sense into him.
SPRINGFIELD  Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and the Democratic-controlled General Assembly may not have approved a full years budget in 2016, but they did manage to agree on nearly 200 laws that go into effect when the new year begins.

Heres a look at 17 new Illinois laws for 2017:

1. Battling opioid and heroin addiction

Following up on landmark legislation from 2015, lawmakers passed two measures aimed addressing the states opioid and heroin addiction crisis. One allows drug court participants to use medication-based addiction treatments. The other requires licensed substance abuse programs to provide educational information on medication-based treatments and the use of anti-overdose drugs.

2. Declaring a state artifact

Illinois has a state animal (white-tailed deer), state bird (cardinal) and even a state pie (pumpkin), but it hasnt had an official state artifact until now. Welcome the pirogue, a type of wooden canoe made from a hollowed-out tree.

3. Prohibiting bath salts sales

It is now a Class 3 felony, publishable by a fine of up to $150,000, to sell or offer for sale synthetic stimulants commonly known as bath salts, among other nicknames. The state law, sponsored by Rep. Avery Bourne, R-Raymond, and Sen. Andy Manar, D-Bunker Hill, also lets local governments revoke the licenses of retailers who are convicted of violations.

4. Protecting workers online privacy

A 2013 law made Illinois the second state to prohibit employers or prospective employers from requiring employees or applicants to disclose usernames and passwords for social media accounts. A new law broadens that protection to any personal online account and prohibits employers from disciplining employees or declining to hire applicants for refusing to provide that information.

5. Allowing emergency personnel to inject epinephrine

All trained emergency medical technicians in Illinois will now be able to treat severe allergic reactions with epinephrine injected through a syringe rather than with costlier autoinjectors, better known as EpiPens. Sponsored by Sen. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, the law comes as the maker of the EpiPen is facing a public outcry and federal scrutiny over dramatic price increases.

6. Tracking down life insurance beneficiaries

Life insurances companies are now required to check Social Security records to identify policyholders who have died but whose benefits have gone unclaimed by their survivors. The law, which Democratic Illinois Treasurer Mike Frerichs backed, was a response to audits that identified more than $550 million in benefits that have gone unpaid since 2011.

7. Extending the statute of limitations for wrongful death lawsuits

Known collectively as Mollys Law, a pair of measures extends to five years from two years the statute of limitations for bringing wrongful death lawsuits when someone is the victim of violent intentional conduct and strengthens penalties for public bodies that violate the Illinois Freedom of Information Act. The law, sponsored by Rep. Terri Bryant, R-Murphysboro, is named for Molly Young, a 21-year-old who was fatally shot in 2012 in the apartment of her boyfriend, who was a Carbondale police dispatcher.

8. Requiring lawyers for minors in homicide investigations

Law enforcement officials are now barred from interrogating children younger than 15 without an attorney present when investigating homicides and certain sex crimes. The law previously applied to children younger than 13. The new law also simplifies the notice of rights that officers must read to all minors and expands the requirement for videotaping interrogations of minors.

9. Training cosmetologists to spot abuse

Licensed cosmetologists will now receive training to spot domestic and sexual abuse as part of their continuing education requirements. Illinois is believed to be the first state to pass such a law. While cosmetologist wont be required to report abuse, supporters say theyre in a good position to identify it and offer help to victims.

10. Repealing the tax on tampons

The so-called tampon tax is no more in Illinois. A new law exempts tampons, menstrual pads and menstrual cups from the 6.25 percent statewide sales tax, which applies to nonessential items like soft drinks, candy and grooming products.

11. Providing homes for retired police dogs

Police K-9 officers will have first crack at adopting their four-legged partners when the dogs retire. If the officer doesnt wish to adopt a dog, another officer or employee can, or the dog can be offered to a nonprofit organization or no-kill animal shelter.

12. Prohibiting low-wage noncompete agreements

Passed in response to Jimmy Johns having restaurant employees sign agreements barring them from taking jobs at other sandwich chains, the new law prohibits such agreements for workers who earn $13 an hour or less. Jimmy Johns settled a lawsuit with the Illinois attorney generals office by agreeing to stop using the agreements, which the company says it didnt enforce.

13. Creating flexibility for sick days

Illinois employers now will be required to let employees use up to half of their paid sick days to care for family members, including children, spouses, siblings, parents, parents-in-law, grandchildren, grandparents or stepparents.

14. Protecting against high lead levels

In the wake of the crisis over lead-contaminated water in Flint, Michigan, Illinois passed a law requiring property owners to address high lead levels before selling a building or renewing a lease. The law applies to residential buildings and child care facilities regulated by the states Lead Poisoning Prevention Act.

15. Requiring information on abortion

An update to the states Health Care Right of Conscience Act requires medical providers to give patients information on procedures such as abortion if patients request it, regardless of a providers religious objections. However, the law is facing a First Amendment challenge from a group of northern Illinois clinics.

16. Relaxing regulation for yoga schools

A new law clarifies that schools or programs that teach yoga or train yoga instructors arent required to obtain licenses from the Illinois Board of Higher Education. The law was passed in response to the board telling some yoga teacher training programs that they needed to be licensed as vocational schools.

17. Targeting catfish

A measure sponsored by Rep. Charlie Meier, R-Okawville, adds catfish to the list of fish that can be caught using pitchforks, underwater spear guns, or bows and arrows. That list already includes carp, buffalo, suckers, gar, bowfin, shad and drum.
SIOUX FALLS | Interstate 90 remains closed along the western half of South Dakota from the Wyoming border to Chamberlain. And the South Dakota Department of Transportation warms that travel will be extremely difficult across the state this morning.

The National Weather Service says blizzard conditions will continue across the plains of north and east of the Black Hills before improving later in the day. Blowing snow whipped by winds gusting into the mid-40 mph range are cutting visibility in eastern South Dakota, too.

The Rapid City Fire Department sent out its special tracked vehicle for the first time this season to help stranded motorists east of Rapid City.

The South Dakota Rural Electric Association says over 12,000 of its customers are without power, mostly in northeastern South Dakota.
Jerry Penry knows South Dakotans might be disappointed to hear that their tallest mountain is 11 feet shorter than they thought, but he can't help it.

When he learned that the popularly accepted elevation of Black Elk Peak (formerly known as Harney Peak) is based on surveys from the late 1890s, Penry, a professional surveyor from Nebraska, was compelled to undertake a new effort with modern technology.

Were living in an era of precise measurements, he said, and to have something out there that still relies upon something of an imprecise nature, its almost a disservice to the way we say that we can measure things.

In September, Penry and six team members spent two days of their own time and resources producing what might be the best-ever measurement of the elevation of Black Elk Peak.

The team determined that the highest natural point on the peak  excluding the stone-built fire lookout tower that sits atop it  is 7,231 feet above sea level. That is lower than the 7,242 feet listed on the bronze plaque at the summit, but still high enough to be the tallest mountain in the state. The team also determined that the highest man-made point on the peak  the tip of the lookout towers lightning rod  is 7,262 feet.

The effort had its beginnings in the curiosity of Black Hills photographer Paul Horsted of Custer, who has published a series of books pairing historical photographs of scenic and historic sites with his modern images of the same sites.

Horsted came across an article about Black Elk Peak by Black Hills pioneer Valentine McGillycuddy, who in 1875 made the first recorded summit of the mountain. Today, the spot where the lookout tower stands is considered the highest point on Black Elk Peak, but in McGillycuddys article, he said the highest point was a natural spire that stands about 100 yards south of the tower site.

Horsted wondered if McGillycuddy was right, and his quest for answers led him to Penry, a land surveyor from Denton, Neb., who spends much of his free time using surveying techniques to answer historical questions.

Penry began digging through historical surveying records and noticed that Black Elk Peaks published elevation had changed little since surveyors pegged it at 7,240 feet in the late 1890s.

So I knew that if it was still showing basically that elevation today, nobody had checked it, Penry said.

Further research failed to unearth any modern surveys of the peaks elevation. Penry grew excited about the opportunity to conduct a new survey with technological tools that were unavailable in the late 19th century.

In those days, Penry said, surveyors in the Black Hills used an elevation benchmark at a Deadwood railroad depot as the starting point to calculate peak elevations using vertical angles, triangulation and other aspects of trigonometry. The benchmark was set by railroad officials who recorded the rise and fall of elevation as they laid tracks across the country.

Later and more accurate surveying efforts revealed that the elevation of the Deadwood benchmark was about 4 feet lower than originally believed. As the elevation of the benchmark was adjusted upward over the ensuing decades, so was the elevation of Black Elk Peak, from 7,240 to 7,242 and, in some recent federal government publications, to 7,244 feet.

But there was another underlying problem all along, according to Penry, who researched the old surveying efforts and discovered that the 1890s estimate of 7,240 feet was erroneous. He does not know how the early surveyors produced the mistaken number, but he knows that when he calculated the elevation of the peak using the 1890s benchmark as his starting point, he arrived at 7,227 feet.

That number should have been the starting point for future adjustments to Black Elk Peaks elevation, but it wasnt.

They just kept applying their adjustments to the same wrong number, Penry said.

To set the record straight, Penry and Horsted set out for Black Elk Peak in September with a trove of tripods, GPS instruments, notebooks and other equipment. Other members of the team included Penrys wife, Jenny Stukel Penry; Horsteds wife, Camille Riner, and daughter, Anna Marie Riner; Kurt Luebke, a professional surveyor from Montana; and rock climber Daryl Stisser of Custer.

Over two days, the team collected data from atop and below the peak for their own analysis and for analysis by computers at the National Geodetic Survey.

Coincidentally, the expedition happened about a month after the U.S. Board on Geographic Names changed the name of the mountain from Harney Peak, which was inspired by the late Gen. William Harney, to Black Elk Peak, for the late Native American holy man Nicholas Black Elk.

Horsted's question about the true high point on the mountaintop was answered, although perhaps not definitively, when Penry determined that the spire south of the lookout tower is about 2 feet lower than the rock under the tower.

Horsted has taken to calling the spire McGillycuddy Peak and remains open to the possibility that it might have been the taller of the two points when Valentine McGillycuddy made his climb in 1875. Horsteds study of old photographs indicates that some of the spires rocks may have fallen or been pushed over since then, making it difficult to determine how high the spire once was.

The rock under the lookout tower also has been altered. It was blasted with dynamite to accommodate the first tower construction in the early 1900s, and Penry estimates that about 1 foot of rock was obliterated.

The past elevations of either point might never be known definitively, but Penry is confident that his new elevations are the most accurate ever established for the various points on Black Elk Peak. Even so, he does not plan to push for changes to signs, publications or websites where the peak's elevation is listed. Thats partly because Penry undertook the project only to satisfy his own curiosity, and partly because there is no formal process for requesting such changes.

Currently, the publications and websites of government agencies are maddeningly conflicting. The datasheets of the National Geodetic Survey, which seem to be the most official source, say Black Elks Peak elevation is 7,244 feet. But the U.S. Geological Surveys National Map says 7,191 feet, while the same agencys Geographic Names Information System says 7,211 feet. The Black Hills National Forest, which has Black Elk Peak within its boundaries, says 7,242 feet, as does Custer State Park, which contains a popular hiking trailhead that leads to the peak.

A change in the elevations published by the U.S. Geological Survey is anticipated as the agency carries out its ongoing 3D Elevation Program. The program collects high-quality light detection and ranging data, also known as lidar, from aircraft equipped with sensors to detect reflections from a pulsed laser beam. That effort, which is spreading across the nation in eight-year cycles, has not yet reached western South Dakota.

Anyone wanting more information about the Penry-led Black Elk Peak elevation survey can find it on his detailed website, penryfamily.com/harneypeak/main. It includes historical documents, modern and historical photographs, images of pencil-written field notes and more.

Like a scientist defending a theory, Penry said he welcomes efforts to duplicate or disprove his results. He is confident in his work, and he has an endorsement from David Doyle, the retired former chief geodetic surveyor for the National Geodetic Survey.

Doyle said Penry and the other members of his team are representative of the kind of exacting persistence that is often required of surveyors. The teams improvement on earlier surveys of Black Elk Peak is also reflective of the continuum of professional surveying, which grows ever more precise as technologies and techniques improve.

It's the allure of perfect accuracy that pushes sleuths such as Penry out into the field, Doyle said.

Its chasing the truth, if you will, and you may never actually get there," Doyle said. "But youre always in a quest to make it the best it can possibly be.
SPEARFISH | Angie Albonico was perusing the internet some months ago when she came upon a YouTube video detailing the plight of a young woman named Brittany, who was suffering from terminal brain cancer and sought to end her own life with dignity.

It really spoke to me and captured my heart, said Albonico, a 38-year-old married mother of three.

The video and further research alerted her to the fact that South Dakota does not allow assisted end-of-life measures. So now she's on a path to change state law.

Last Thursday, state Attorney General Marty Jackley released his 26-section, 13-page ballot explanation for Albonicos proposed law that, if passed by voters, would allow South Dakota doctors to prescribe drugs that terminally ill patients could take to end their own lives.

It should be my right and my doctors right to determine when that time should come, Albonico said of the initiated measure. If that happens to me, Id want to have that dignity to choose where Im at, what comfort level I want to be at, and who surrounds me. We do that for animals; we ought to be able to do that for ourselves.

This is not a choice I can make for you; this is a choice I can make for me.

Albonico said she recognized the hurdles that awaited her and supporters of the measure, patterned after Washington states end-of-life law. By next November, supporters of the Death with Dignity measure must gather petitions bearing the signatures of 13,871 registered state voters which, when certified, would place the initiated measure on the November 2018 ballot.

Its quite the process, Albonico said. It will take an army of compassionate South Dakota volunteers to get this measure passed, but if we pull together, we can get it done.

Although she said she had encountered some initial opposition to her proposal, more South Dakotans in the past week had voiced their support of the measure based on their personal experiences, according to Albonico.

Its important to note that with this law, doctors dont have to prescribe this if its against their beliefs and that this is not a measure to give people with psychological problems a way out, she said. This is a measure to give those with terminal illness and less than six months to live a way to die with dignity.

More information on the proposed end-of-life law may be found on state websites, as well as online at facebook.com/deathwithdignitysd.
WASHINGTON | It is one of the common questions of eighth-grade theology (which is generally more insightful and useful than post-doctoral theology): If God really exists, why doesn't he just show himself in some dramatic, undeniable way?

In response, the author and minister Frederick Buechner proposes a thought experiment. What if God were to rearrange the stars in such a fashion that they spell out "GOD IS" in the sky, maybe to the accompaniment of soaring celestial music? For some time, Buechner speculates, the houses of worship would overflow, wars would stop, and there would be "a good many tears of regret."

And then one night, as Buechner tells it, a child with a wad of bubble gum in his cheek (speaking French in Buechner's version) turns to his father and says "So what if God exists? What difference does that make?" Then the message and music would fade, "or maybe they would continue for centuries to come," says Buechner, "but it would no longer make any difference."

Many of us, having seen the shining words at one point or another in our lives  knowing in our bones that we once knew, beyond all the doubts of philosophy, that GOD IS  have eventually turned away with a shrug. We continue with the normal, instinctual tendencies and occupations of homo sapiens, summarized by the "Four F's"  fighting, fleeing, feeding and ... mating. We worry about finances, politics and our health, living as though our tiny lives on a small planet near an average sun in a galaxy of a hundred billion stars among 100 billion galaxies really matter to anyone. And we see only futility and cruelty in the countless lives shortened by disease or disaster, or afflicted by poverty or conflict.

We have every reason and right to question where God can be found in a world that offers no certainty written in the sky.

Where is God in the oppression of whole peoples by cruel and corrupt dictators who care nothing for the lives of the innocent? Or among more than 60 million refugees torn from their homes and forced to live as resented strangers?

Where is God in the cruel stigmas we apply to one another when it comes to AIDS, or out-of-wedlock births, or other matters of sexuality?

Where is God in the normal, often boring, occasionally squalid, preoccupations of everyday life? In the temptations and ambitions that can lead us away from our true purpose? In the anxiety and depression that stalk our days?

Where is God in the death of a friend? In being doubted by a friend? In being betrayed by a friend?

Where is God in our march toward death, either slow or fast, but always onward? When optimism becomes delusion, and hope finally fails, and we are left feeling forsaken by a silent God?

Where is God in the lowly places, in the denial of lodging to a pregnant woman, in the smell of hay and manure, in the pain of childbirth, in the smack on the bottom of an infant who begins to breathe and cry?

"Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord."

By any standard, this is an odd scenario for the entrance of divinity  to an occupied country, of disputed parentage, forced to flee as a refugee, living and working 30 years in silence, eventually betrayed by a friend, judicially tortured, and dying in utter abandonment. On a small planet, near an average star.

But this form of arrival does something important. It dusts off and reclaims every aspect of human experience and reorients our sense of low and high, weak and powerful. It is poverty given preference. It is the possibility of transcendence breaking in on any common day. It is the unexpected humility of God.

We cannot assume, of course, that this is real or true. But for countless millions who have accepted it, this story has divided B.C. and A.D. in their own lives. It has provided courage and comfort in the midst of the ordinary, the unjust and the unthinkable. It has given assurance that pain, while real, is not permanent. And it has kindled and sustained an unlikely hope  that love is somehow at the heart of all things.
For the past decade, the state of Montana has refused to comply with the federal REAL ID Act enacted in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.

For all those years, the Department of Homeland security has treated Montanas refusal to comply as a request for an extension of time to comply, thus avoiding sanctioning Montana as the REAL ID Act dictates. That grace period has ended, according to a letter DHS leaders sent Gov. Steve Bullock a few weeks ago: Beginning Jan. 30, Montana drivers licenses will no longer be accepted as identification for persons entering U.S. military bases, nuclear power plants and other federal facilities.

Montana has emphatically rejected the invasion of personal privacy by requiring sharing of private information with the federal government and other states, through the REAL ID Act, and I support that decision, said Tim Fox, the third Montana attorney general to defend the states rejection of the federal mandate. The 2007 Legislature voted unanimously for the state law that forbids Montana officials from complying with REAL ID.

However, Montana has made numerous improvements to the security of its drivers licenses and the process of issuing those licenses. Fox and Bullock argued that Montanas drivers licenses are secure even though they dont follow the letter of REAL ID.

The federal drivers license mandate was prompted by concern about the fact that four of the 9/11 bombers had obtained drivers licenses.

REAL ID needs to be revised to reflect the real security and privacy issues at stake. Montana isnt alone in this battle. Kentucky, Maine, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and South Carolina also have rejected REAL ID, and DHS has said their drivers licenses will be refused in the same locations as Montana licenses. Minnesota, Missouri and Washington already are under sanctions.
He is seated right in front of you, his electric smile, gymnastic wit and spirited candor often tumbling into a generous laugh. Warren Sapp is clearly and enthusiastically here. But the mood is different when the conversation turns to his August visit to the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, for the 2022 induction ceremonies, an annual tradition that reunites dozens of pro-football legends ...
Russias Supreme Court overrules acquittal for Far Eastern Guerilla gang members

MOSCOW, December 26 (RAPSI, Oleg Sivozhelezov)  The Supreme Court of Russia has overruled acquittal for five men in a criminal case of Far Eastern Guerillas, who were found innocent of several murders and robbery, RAPSI corrspondent reports from the courtroom on Monday.

This July, after a retrial, a jury found evidence presented by the prosecution not convincing and acquitted the defendants. The retrial was conducted with regard to the murder of four people, who were also robbed of valuables and drugs they had on them, in the Primorsky Krai.

The Supreme Courts board of judges for criminal cases repealed the Primorsky Krai Courts ruling after reviewing appeals filed by prosecutors and relatives of victims in this case. Several violations of litigation process were found: part of the jury did not disclose relevant information about themselves, while the lower court inappropriately dismissed some relevant evidence. Evidence included admittance of guilt by defendants made during interrogation conducted with violations. The case is set for retrial, no restrictive measures were ordered against former defendants who are currently free.

On July 28, defendants Alexey Nikitin and Vadim Kovtun were released in the courtroom while Alexander Kovtun, Vladimir Ilyutikov and Maksim Kirillov were kept in detention as they were to serve their time in relation to two other criminal cases.

The group gained notoriety after a series of assaults on civilians and law enforcement officers in 2010 left six dead.

The Far Eastern Guerilla gang was tracked down in a flat in the city of Ussuriysk in June 2011, and surrounded by law enforcement officials.

Two policemen were injured in a shootout with the gang members, two of whom committed suicide, according to the forensic medical examination.

On February 4, 2014, five of the defendants were found guilty by the jury of having participated in a criminal gang, while one was acquitted. Four gang members were convicted of killing police officers, and five were convicted of the murder of civilians.
Twelve gang members found guilty of siphoning $2 bln out of Russia

MOSCOW, December 26 (RAPSI)  Moscows Presnensky District Court on Monday found 12 members of a criminal group guilty of siphoning about 122.3 billion rubles ($2 billion) out of Russia, RAPSI correspondent reports from the courtroom.

A judge clarified that the defendants fee revenue from illegal banking activity was estimated at over 611 million rubles ($10 million). Initially, during pretrial investigation they were suspected of siphoning about 169 billion rubles ($2.8 billion) and getting a 846 million-ruble ($14 million) income.

Earlier, prosecutors asked the court to sentence alleged gang leaders, Sergey Magin and Vadim Rybalchenko, to 15 years in prison each.

Not one of the defendants pleaded guilty.

The gang which was comprised of over 400 men has been operating for over five years in different Russian regions, according to prosecutors. The funds were allegedly laundered through several commercial banks which were controlled by the gang and over 100 shell companies registered in Russia and abroad. The money ended up in banks in Baltic states and Cyprus, according to prosecutors.

Magin and Rybalchenko along with other defendants were arrested in 2013.
Russian court includes $40 mln debt owed by Carlo Pazolinis founder in creditors list

MOSCOW, December 26 (RAPSI)  The Moscow Commercial Court has ruled in favor of NPL. Invest Ltd. and included 2.4 billion rubles ($40 mln) of debt owed by Firma Anta company, the owner of Carlo Pazolini trademarks, in the creditors demand list, court documents read on Monday.

Initially this debt was owned by Sberbank but later it was transferred to NPL. Invest Ltd., a company registered in the British Virgin Islands. Earlier, the court granted a motion filed by ATB Bank to include 738.8 million rubles ($12 mln) of debt owed by Firma Anta in the list.

On August 9, the Moscow Commercial Court has granted a motion of Alfa Bank over introduction of supervision procedure against Firma Anta company.

Debt of the company to Alfa Bank is estimated at 862.5 million rubles ($13 million).

On August 3, UniCreditBank filed a claim with the Moscow Commercial Court seeking collection of 1.4 billion rubles ($21 million) from Firma Anta.

Earlier, Alfa-Bank, filed a lawsuit demanding to recover $11.01 million in debt from Carlo Pazolini Trade Limited, Carlo Pazolini Participations and Carlo Pazolini (Switzerland) SA under a loan agreement signed on December 10, 2012. Firma Anta is named as the third party in the case. The claim also includes demand to recover jointly from the companies EUR 8.4 million in debt. The court will consider the lawsuit on April 4 of 2017.

Moreover, Alfa Bank has lodged a bankruptcy claim against Firma Anta.

Carlo Pazolini trademark was created in 1991. There are more than 180 company stores on Russia, Italy, China, Greece, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova, according to the retailers website.
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RealChoice is a BlogSpot blog. You get whatever privacy you get when you post on a blog. As Blogmistress of RealChoice, I do not collect information on my users or those who post comments. I will delete spam and offensive comments, and thoroughly cooperate with law enforcement, as I did in the case of Ted "Operation Counterstrike" Schulman, if people make terroristic threats on my blog.



So fight nice, kids.


America must return to conservative principles of less government,reduced taxes, less spending and a balanced budget! Cut,cap and balance!
LOS ANGELES, Dec 26: Reality TV star Kim Kardashian has denied new claims that her marriage to rapper Kanye West is over.

The reality star faced speculation that her union is on the rocks once again, amid reports she ordered him to stay away from her mother Kris Jenners annual Christmas Eve party as she partied with her sisters without her wedding ring, reports dailymail.co.uk.

A spokesperson for Kim denied the report, saying: The story is false. Kanye was at the party.

A source had claimed to The Sun newspaper that she refused to let him come to her familys annual party on Christmas Eve despite the fact they have always attended as a couple. He went to watch a film with friends instead while she celebrated with her sisters.

On Friday they took North to see The Nutcracker but they barely spoke or interacted inside. The tensions were visible. Neither of them are in a happy place right now, the source added.

The claims come after the couple was spotted together earlier on Christmas Eve at the Los Angeles Ballet Companys performance of The Nutcracker. The pair were in good spirits as their daughter North was introduced to the dancers.
Guwahati (India), December 25 : Islamic State sympathiser and its Indian terror plotter Mohammad Mussa was planning an attack on Mother House in Kolkata targeting to UK, USA, Russia tourists.

Mussa, who was arrested by National Investigation Agency (NIA) from West Bengal's Burdwan railway station earlier this year.

A top official of NIA said that, the Bangladeshi national and one of the key member of radical Islamic militant outfit Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) was planning a major terror attack in the east Indian city targeting specially the UK, USA tourists and foreign nationals who working

with the charity home run by **Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity.

"The ISIS sympathiser want to kill the UK, USA, Russia and other European countries nationals as retaliation to the offensive against ISIS in Syria, Libya. He was regularly contacted several ISIS leaders to execute the plan," the top NIA official said.

Recently the Indian investigating agency had filed a chargesheet before a local court in Kolkata.

The documents revealed such major information about how ISIS planned to establish their footprints and spreading network in India.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)
Kathmandu, Nepal: The meeting of the Nepali Congress office bearer has resumed at the partys parliamentary party office in Singha Durbar on Monday to discuss the contemporary political situation of the country.

The Nepali Congress has called the office bearer meeting in a bid to make an official stand of the party over the major contentious issues including the constitution amendment bill registered in the parliament, elections and many others.

During the meeting on Sunday, party leaders had urged the leadership to announce poll dates and conduct local bodies elections within two months.

The Nepali Congress leaders have exerted pressure to the party leadership in the mean time when there is confusion over the structures of the local bodies to hole the elections.

Political parties shave vertically divided whether to hold the local body election in existing structures or in to be fixed structures. Nepali Congress has also not made any official stand over the issue.
Kathmandu, Nepal: At least one person killed and three others were injured in a road accident at Bhaltar of Baireni VDC-8 in Dhading district on Monday morning.

According to the police, the incident took place when Kathmandu-bound bus with registration number Lu 1 Kha 9587 coming from Chitwan collided with a truck with registration number Na 6 Kha 1110 coming from the opposite direction.

The identity of the deceased is yet too established. The injured persons have been rushed to hospitals for treatment. It is said that two persons are reported as critical in the accident.
Kathmandu, Nepal: An all-party meeting summoned by Speaker Onsari Gharti Magar ended inconclusively on Monday, thanks to the political parties for their respective stances.

At the meeting held at parliament building in New Baneshwor, Speaker Gharti urged the leaders of the major seven parties to end the obstruction at the parliament through the negotiations. Speaker Gharti had summoned the meeting in a bid to end the obstructions in the parliament.

Though the leaders agreed to hold further bilateral and multilateral meetings to end the house obstruction, no decision was made to end the obstruction in the parliament.

Different nine opposition parties including the main opposition CPN UML has been obstructing the meeting of the parliament on the name of protesting the constitution amendment bill registered in the parliament.

The leaders of the opposition parties had reiterated their stand that they would continue their obstructions in the parliament and the streets until and unless the government withdraws the constitution amendment bill.

In the meeting top leaders of Nepali Congress, CPN-UML, CPN (Maoist Center), Rastriya Prajatantra Party, Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum, Forum Loktantrik and Tarai Madhes Loktantrik Party were present.
The Diplomat

This week, Japan and Indonesia signed an agreement in Tokyo to establish a new bilateral maritime forum. The pact, signed by Indonesias coordinating minister for Luhut Pandjaitan and Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, is just the latest step both countries have taken to boost collaboration in the maritime realm. Given this, it is worth examining the context for it as well as its broader significance.

Japan and Indonesia are large, influential, and democratic maritime nations with a general interest in the maritime domain as well as a shared commitment to more specific principles like free and open seas. But recent developments as well as the priorities of both governments have also driven this greater maritime convergence. Broadly, President Joko Jokowi Widodo has sought to advance its idea of Indonesia as a global maritime fulcrum between the Pacific and Indian Oceans, with a five-pillared focus on maritime culture, infrastructure, diplomacy, defense, and resources (See:  The New U.S.-Indonesia Strategic Partnership ). Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has sought to boost Japans ties with Southeast Asian states such as Indonesia, including in the security realm amid shared concerns about Chinas maritime assertiveness in the East and South China Seas.

Although maritime cooperation is only one aspect of a complex relationship, it partly accounts for the greater investment in bilateral ties between both sides over the past two years. During Jokowis inaugural visit to Japan back in March 2015, his first overseas trip outside of Southeast Asia, the joint statement by both sides began with a separate section devoted to maritime cooperation, an indicator of its priority alongside much broader political, economic, people-to-people and regional and international collaboration. A few other inroads have occurred in the Japan-Indonesia relationship since then, including the holding of the inaugural 2+2 meeting back in December 2015 where items like defense equipment transfers were discussed.

Indonesia has also been supporting Japans efforts to engage on maritime issues with Southeast Asian states at the regional level. At the ASEAN-Japan Summit in the Lao capital of Vientiane in September, Jokowi cited the maritime realm as one of two priority sectors for further cooperation between the two sides. In November, Japanese Defense Minister Tomomi Inada unveiled Tokyos first ever region-wide defense initiative for ASEAN, which includes maritime security as a key area (See:  Japan Reveals First ASEAN Defense Initiative With Vientiane Vision ).

The idea of a Indonesia-Japan Maritime Forum (IJMF) itself is not new. In fact, it was one of the deliverables during Jokowis Japan visit in 2015, and both sides had agreed to establish it as soon as possible. At the time, the forum as outlined by the two countries covered several areas including maritime safety, marine industries, and maritime capacity-building. But Japanese and Indonesian officials admitted at the time that specifics would still have to be worked out.

With the inking of the memorandum of cooperation (MoC) on the Indonesia-Japan Maritime Forum between Pandjaitan and Kishida this week, that idea has finally become a reality. The areas covered under the IJMF include maritime safety, security, economy, infrastructure, education, and training. The forum itself, The Diplomat understands, will drive specific areas of collaboration that both sides will prioritize. From Indonesias perspective, this would include items previously discussed such as greater Japanese investment in oil and natural gas, help in boosting its fish industry, and more training for Indonesias newly-established coast guard (BAKAMLA) by its Japanese counterparts (See:  Indonesias Maritime Ambition: Can Jokowi Realize It? ). It will also cover Japanese involvement in economic projects across several Indonesian islands.

It is no coincidence that some of this economic and security cooperation will occur around the resource-rich Natuna Islands, located in the South China Sea northwest of Borneo. As I have pointed out previously, apart from the fact that Chinas nine-dash line overlaps with the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) around the Natunas, making it a flashpoint as evidenced by recent run-ins between Indonesian and Chinese vessels nearby this year, developing the resources there also makes sense for Jakarta for economic reasons (See:  The Natunas: Why is Indonesia Developing a Flashpoint? ).

Though the establishment of the IJMF stole the headlines, Indonesian and Japanese officials also discussed other agenda items in the bilateral relationship. Chief among these was economic cooperation around infrastructure, with the two countries discussing projects involving Japan such as the Patimban port and the Jakarta-Surabaya railway (following Tokyos devastating loss to Beijing for the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail project last year). Some of this is laying the groundwork for Abes expected visit to Indonesia next month, where much more will be unveiled.

The deepening maritime cooperation between Indonesia and Japan has been developing slowly and is sometimes not played up as much as it could be,. Thats due to various factors, including the Jokowi governments priority on continuing to maintain good ties with Beijing largely for economic reasons. Nonetheless, initiatives like the IJMF and the collaboration undergirding it make the growing convergence between the two sides clearer than ever.
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 Holiday pitch from NY Times editorial board for "Cutting Prison Sentences, and Costs" | Main | "Society must not forget those it incarcerates" 

Liliana Segura has this lengthy new Intercept commentary headlined "Obama's Clemency Problem  And Ours." I recommend the full piece and here are some excerpts:

President Obama broke his own remarkable clemency record [last week], granting an unprecedented 231 commutations and pardons in a single day. Headlines and tweets broadcast the historic tally; on the White House website, a bar graph tracks Obamas record to date, which has dramatically outpaced that of his predecessors. With a total of 1,176 recipients, the White House boasted, Obama has granted clemency more than the last 11 presidents combined.

The president certainly deserves credit for making clemency a priority before leaving office.... Those who make the cut are, as the White House put it this week, individuals deserving of a second chance. Many have been serving long mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent drug offenses, crimes for which they have shown remorse. Applications list courses completed, prison jobs maintained, records untarnished by disciplinary write-ups. Last spring, Obama highlighted a handful of men and women who have made the most of their second chances, describing their ability to leave prison, get a job, and piece their lives back together as extraordinary.

With his legacy and the politics of crime in mind, it makes sense that Obama would be cautious with his commutations, while amplifying the success stories. Yet theres something disingenuous in the now-familiar rhetoric peddled by the White House with every clemency announcement, which repeatedly tells us we are a nation of second chances. Even within the narrow scope of Obamas clemency initiative  and putting aside his treatment of immigrants and whistleblowers  this is wishful thinking at best. As Obama himself has written in his congratulatory letters to clemency recipients, thousands of individuals have applied for commutation, and only a fraction of these applications are approved. Before the latest round of pardons and commutations, Obama had rejected nearly 14,000 clemency applications....

[W]hen it comes to the presidents pardon power  the one place where Obama could directly address the problem  there are few signs of a transformation.

Instead, the White House has promoted a story about exceptionalism: The president has proven exceptionally merciful and the clemency recipients are uniquely deserving  even extraordinary. If the former is true, it is only because we have set the bar so low. As for the latter, it is certainly no small thing to survive  even thrive  while serving some of the harshest prison sentences in the world. But praising such men and women as exceptional diminishes the vast human potential that exists behind bars. As one clemency recipient told me last month, recalling an exchange with the former White House pardon attorney, I have a list of names of people I would like to see come home. But there are even more people who Ive never met. To give a list of names would exclude too many people....

On the same day activists published their letter exhorting Obama to expand his clemency efforts, the American Civil Liberties Union released a report titled False Hope: How Parole Systems Fail Youth Serving Extreme Sentences. Documenting how states routinely deny release to those eligible for parole, the ACLU offers numerous profiles of men and women sent to grow up (and in many cases, to die) in prison, whose efforts to prove their value as adults have been repeatedly rebuffed. The stories are all too familiar. They show how poverty, neglect, trauma, and mental illness factor into the lives of young people arrested for violent crimes. They also show how harshly we continue to punish such youth, first with decades in prison, and then with repeated refusals to grant parole, no matter how much they change in the years that follow  or how much evidence shows that older people age out of crime. People of color are seen as even less amenable to rehabilitation. Today, despite the wide rejection of the superpredator myth, state parole boards show very little mercy to people serving sentences that grew out of such racist hysteria.

As with Obamas clemency initiative, the problem is largely political: Nobody wants to be the person to free an individual who might go out and commit another crime, even if it has been decades since the original offense  and even if the sentence was disproportionate to begin with. Whats more, the ACLU notes, by focusing on the original crime, parole board members may never know about the success stories: people convicted of serious crimes who, once released, have become successful community leaders supporting themselves and their families, who grew up and moved beyond the worst thing they ever did.

One bright spot of Obamas clemency initiative has been in these very kinds of success stories  publicized in the press and by the White House itself. But in the absence of a deeper rethinking of what we consider a second chance, such anecdotes are no match for generations of fear mongering that has entrenched fear of violent criminals into our very psyche, even at times when crime has hit historic lows....

Just a few days after the ACLU report on parole, the Washington Post unveiled a front-page, four-part investigative series called Second Chance City, which examined a D.C. law called the Youth Rehabilitation Act. Passed in 1985, the law aimed to give judges discretion in handling juvenile cases  including by circumventing mandatory minimums  to allow deserving young people to avoid harsh punishment and, ultimately, expunge their record. The Post series raised alarm, finding dozens of cases where beneficiaries of the law had gone on to commit new, often violent offenses, and describing the crimes in dramatic detail....

Most counterproductive was the framing of the series, placed squarely as a counterpoint to efforts at prison reform on Capitol Hill. At a time when the Obama administration and Congress are working to ease mandatory minimum sentencing guidelines for non-violent offenses, in part because of concerns that such laws have unjustly imprisoned large numbers of African-Americans, the authors write, D.C. law enforcement officials are increasingly concerned about the number of repeat violent offenders on the streets.

The media should certainly scrutinize attempts at reform, pointing out where they fail. But the Post series was a reminder of how quickly we revert back to old narratives about crime, to convince ourselves that more imprisonment will keep us safe. With the real fights over prison reform happening at the state and local level  over things like the Youth Act  any efforts by the president were always going to be limited. But if the pendulum is to swing back toward a more punitive era, as many fear it will under Trump, Obama must do as much as he can now to preserve the legacy he has carved out.

But beyond Obama  and if we are to make a dent in mass incarceration  Americans must also begin to think much bigger than his administration ever did. We should refuse to let the same government that gave us mandatory minimums define what counts as a second chance. We must stop letting our leaders  whether the president or a parole board  divest their responsibility to remedy draconian punishments by placing the burden on people who never should have received them in the first place. Ending mass incarceration will require mercy, but fundamentally it is about justice. And the state has not even begun to account for its own mistakes.
 Fulsome (and incomplete) criticisms of Prez Obama's fulsome (and incomplete) clemency efforts | Main | The latest data from BJS on parole and probation populations throughout the United States 

The title of this post is the headline given to this new commentary authored by my colleague Steven Chanenson (who is also co-managing editor of the Federal Sentencing Reporter and a former chair of the Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing). Here are excerpts:

Prisons are usually hidden and often grim places. Supreme Court Justice William J. Brennan, Jr.'s observation nearly 30 years ago still rings true today: "Prisoners are persons whom most of us would rather not think about. Banished from everyday sight, they exist in a shadow world that only dimly enters our awareness." It should not and need not be that way.

Although there is a vigorous debate over when and to what extent they should be used, prisons are a key public safety tool. Whenever used, incarceration must be effective, safe, and humane. Prisoners are not popular, but how we treat our criminals is, in the words of Winston Churchill, "one of the most unfailing tests of the civilization of any country."

Society has a right and an obligation to protect itself, but it needs to do so while considering both the short- and the long-term consequences for all involved. Most prisoners eventually return to our communities. Last year, almost 20,000 people were released from the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. They are once again our neighbors across the commonwealth.

Thus, it is in everyone's interest for people who return from prison to come back better equipped to succeed than when they arrived there. If we want to slow the revolving door of incarceration and crime, we must provide meaningful access to treatment, training, and, yes, hope. We must hold the prisons accountable for meeting those goals, including through independent oversight. Both society and the inmates themselves deserve no less.

We must also celebrate the positive work done in prisons. One especially bright ray of hope was on display this month at the State Correctional Institution at Chester. The inmates and staff at the Chester prison partnered with other stakeholders to present a series of TEDx talks focused on the children of incarcerated parents.... Under the able leadership of Corrections Secretary John Wetzel, this was the fourth set of TEDx talks from a Pennsylvania prison. Like the earlier sessions, the discussions in Chester highlighted challenges faced and progress made by the speakers. While talking about the more than 81,000 Pennsylvania children who have a parent in a Pennsylvania prison, they provided a glimpse of some constructive energy that may eventually benefit those of us outside the prison walls....

Particularly during the holiday season, many of us think about the humanity of our fellow men and women. That is a sentiment we should nurture. We need to remember people in prison, how they are treated and what will happen to everyone when they return to our neighborhoods. There was a clear demonstration of hope  for safer communities and our collective humanity  at the State Correctional Institution at Chester. For that, we should all be thankful.
If diving into the frigid waters of Lake Michigan on New Years Day isnt quite your thing, but you still want to take part in an outdoor activity and be part of a longstanding Milwaukee tradition, then bundle yourself up and head on over to Veterans Park for the 30th Annual New Years Day Cool Fool Kite Festival.

Cool, of course, is an understatement. All signs indicate a quite frigid New Years Day and, although perhaps not quite to the level of the Polar Plunge, this is not an activity for un-hearty. The festival opens at 11 a.m., just before the Plunge at Bradford Beach and will last, per the organizers, until we can no longer stand the cold, probably around 5 p.m. In addition to the kites of the attendees, the giant kites of Yves Lafrorest, who owns one of the Midwests largest collection of giant kites, will be up and flying. Laforests kites  which include an enormous Teddy Bear and a 140-foot-long octopus  are familiar sights above the lakefront in the summertime.

The festival was founded in 1987 by Scott Fisher, a kite enthusiast who had then just opened the Gift of Wings kite shop in Veterans Park. I thought it might be fun to do something on New Years besides jumping into Lake Michigan, Fisher told Around MKE. The name came up because its usually really cold on New Years Day and, like the Polar Bears, we must be fools to be flying kites in that cold weather. Fisher says that kites will actually fly between in the cold air and advises that once you get a kite up to leave it up. Leave your kite tied to a tree and let it fly while you are warming up indoors. One year, he recalled, it was not the chill that put a damper on the kiting, but the snow. He said they had about 50 kites up in the air, but as the wet snow began to accumulate on them, they dropped from the sky, one by one. It was an amazing sight to watch.

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There will be hot food for sale, but all are encouraged to bring their own. Free hot chocolate and coffee be offered while supplies last. There will also be kites available for sale and on-site instruction from Brett Williams, aka The Kite Whisperer. A professional ice-carving team, The Quiet Ice Carvers, will also be at the festival, performing their feats of frozen artistry and offering ice carving lessons. The event is, as always, free and open to the whole family. If you plan to attend, DRESS WARM.

Click here for more information.
 Expand aAla Pierce and his dying niece

Elmer Henry Al Pierce had come to Milwaukee to see his niece. Pierce was a career criminal, not long out of the penitentiary after serving 12 years of a 20 year sentence for a series of robberies and auto thefts. Pierce had lived in Milwaukee until he was a young man and was familiar with the city, but had been boarding with a man named Roy Pankin and his family in Wheaton, Illinois since his release. To Patkin, he seemed like a decent man, quiet and polite. Pierce arrived in Milwaukee on January 7, 1947.

His niece was 27-year-old Virginia Szeremet. Pierce had been sending her gifts, $50 worth by his estimate, in an effort to win her favor. He had apparently developed romantic (if you want to call them that) feelings towards his sisters daughter. She seemed to know his intentions and wanted nothing of it. Already stung by her rejection, Pierce also suspected that she had been talking about him in an unflattering way. After Pierce got into the city, he called Szeremet, pretending to be her boyfriend. He asked her to meet him at 35th and Wells Streets. As she waited at the streetcar stop near her family home, Pierce emerged from the darkness and pressed a .38 caliber revolver against her ribs. Youre coming with me and Im going to get what I want, he told her.

Once on the trolley, Pierce and Szeremet argued quietly, drawing the attention of the other passengers. As the car ran east on Wells Street, Pierce ordered her to get off with him at the 35th Street stop. But as the car neared 37th Street, Szeremet bolted for the door. Pierce fired wildly, hitting Szeremet three times  once in the wrist and twice in the back. Two other passengers were also hit, but not badly injured. Szeremet died the next day.

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 Expand Szeremet in a hospital bed just after the shooting. She died within a day, but not before telling police about her Uncle.

Pierce leapt off the car and hid out in the basement of a nearby candy factory while one of the biggest manhunts in recent city history commenced. By the next morning, pictures of Pierce were splashed across all of the areas newspapers and authorities in Illinois were put on high alert. In the midst of all this, Al Pierce proceeded to engage in one of the most brash and baffling crime sprees Milwaukee had ever seen. The day after the murder, Pierce caught a taxi cab at South Kinnickinnic and Lincoln and asked to be taken to an address on South Packard Street. When the cab arrived, Pierce pulled out his .38. This is a stick-up, he told the driver, Im in trouble. I shot that girl last night and I need money to get out of town. The driver only had a dollar and a half on him, so Pierce tied him up and shoved him in the back seat. Donning the mans drivers cap, he drove to a Cudahy filling station, giving the details of his crime to the bound driver along the way. She was telling stories about me and I shut her mouth for good, Pierce said. At the filling station, Pierce dragged the driver inside, gun to his head. I shot that girl and I need money to get out of town, Pierce repeated to the attendant. He got $20 cash and fled before the police arrived.

Over the next two weeks, this odd scenario would be replayed again and again, both in Wisconsin and Illinois: Pierce committing a petty robbery while declaring who was and what he had done. By the end of the month, he was suspected of more than a half-dozen robberies. Police began getting so many tips on his whereabouts that they were overwhelmed, and additional robberies (those not connected to Pierce) went unsolved in the chaos. Late one night, a man pounded on the door of the Gueder family home on West Cherry Street. When the father answered the door, a disheveled-looking brute announced that he was Pierce and that he wanted coffee. The terrified man did as Pierce asked while his daughters secretly called the police. They arrested the man  who was not Pierce  and charged him with a drunk and disorderly. Evidently, the man figured all he needed to do to get his way was pretend to be the man the police couldnt catch.

On January 24, Pierce pulled a job that drew the attention of the FBI. Wanting to swap one stolen car for another, he pulled into a garage at 770 N. Jackson and stuck up the lone mechanic on duty, a man named Willie Green. When he couldnt get any cash out of him, his tied his hands and shoved him into the front seat of a car owned by the IRS Alcohol Tax Unit, which had been dropped off early that day for repairs. As he sped west on Wells Street, looking for a place to rob, Pierce pointed out an intersection. You remember 37th and Wells, Willie? he asked. Thats where I shot my niece.

After he settled on a Wauwatosa grocery store, Pierce tied Greens hands to the handle of the door and went inside, where he  once again  boasted of shooting his niece and demanded money. During the robbery, Green was able to free himself and ran to the nearest house to try to call for the police. But as he ran from door to door, no one would let him in. Green was African American and still dressed in his mechanics coveralls. Someone did eventually call the police, but only to report a maniac in his pajamas terrorizing the neighborhood. By the time the cops came, Pierce had slipped away once again. With a stolen government car now involved, believed to be headed for the state line, the FBI joined in on the hunt for Pierce.

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The next day, Pierce arrived back at the home of Roy Patkin, whom he was boarding with before the murder. He invited himself in for dinner and ate like a horse while he told of his crimes, including the murder of his niece, to Patkins terrified family. Before he left, he warned Patkin not to tell the police and threatened to return and murder the entire family if he did. While Pierce continued his crime spree in Chicago  including at least four armed robberies and the shooting of a cab driver  Patkin sent his family to stay with out-of-state friends. A few weeks later, Pierce called Patkin and asked if he could pick him up at the train station in Westchester. Pierce said that he had a big deal cooked up and that he wanted to include his friend in the action. Patkin agreed.

 Expand The Westchester Station

On February 19, as it neared 11 pm, Patkin stood tensely as the train pulled up to the Westchester Station. It came to a stop and one man stepped off. He was at first obscured by the shadows, but as he slowly walked into the light, his face became clear. Patkin saw him and tipped his cap.

Reach! Yelled a voice from the darkness. Pierce stood baffled for a moment while nine armed officers rushed forward from all sides. His hand darted to his belt as a spray of machine gun fire flashed across his torso. Three blasts from the gun split him open in a spray of gore. He was dead before he hit the ground. Patkin, certain Pierce meant to kill him, had tipped off the police. The nod of his cap was the sign that he had positively identified the man off the train. And so ended one of the most bizarre stories in the annals of Milwaukee crime. For all this troubles and all the bloodshed, Pierce had only $12 on him when he was killed.
Despite it's unusual name, Bulletproof Coffee will not make you faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive nor will it allow you to leap tall buildings in a single bound.

Instead, the coffee -- "supercharged" with grass-fed butter and coconut oil -- will reportedly boost the cognitive performances of it's drinkers.

Popular with both athletes and business executives, this "butter coffee" is gaining a cult audience with the caffeine fanatics at Le Mars, Iowa's Habitue Coffeehouse & Cakes to Remember.

Habitue's master brewer Tim Labreche will give us the "skinny" on this fat-infused coffee in Wednesday's Sioux City Journal food section.

As a way to get you revved up for that, here are some fun facts -- courtesy of FactRetriever.com -- about coffee.

If it's good for goats, it's good for you. Legend has it that coffee was discovered in the ninth century by an Ethiopian goat herder named Khaldi. Khladi noticed his usually lethargic goats seemed livelier after nibbling on some red berries on an evergreen tree. Khaldi brought the raw fruit from the coffee tree to a Muslim holy man who, in turn ,brewed it into a delicious beverage.

Just what the doctor ordered. Coffee was originally regarded as a wonder drug in Yemen and Arabia and was taken on the advice of a doctor.

Yup, that's billion with a 'b.' More than 500 billion cups of coffee are consumed each year, making it the world's most popular beverage.

We're number one! In case you were wondering, Americans are the world's leading coffee consumers. We drink about 450 million cups of coffee per day.

Here's a head-scratcher: Huh, we've had it backwards all along. Light roast coffee actually has more caffeine than dark roast coffee. That's because the longer coffee is roasted, the more caffeine is cooked from the bean.

Mark it on your calendar. In the United States, we celebrate National coffee Day on Sept. 29. In Costa Rica, it's Sept. 12 while the Japanese pay tribute to java on Oct. 1.

Not some average 'joe.' During World War II, American soldiers were known as G.I. Joes. Since soldiers drank a copious amount of coffee, coffee acquired the nickname "cup of joe."

The smell of success. The aroma of coffee is the second most recognizable odor in America. What's number one? The smell of burning wood.

A whale of a drink. Ever wondered where the name Starbucks came from? The popular coffeehouse chain was named after a character from Herman Melville's "Moby Dick."
In recent years, writer-producer-director John Ridley has been hailed for using his pointed storytelling abilities to spotlight edgy, uncomfortable topics ranging from the horrors of slavery (12 Years a Slave) to the explosive human drama of race and socioeconomic clashes in ABCs anthology series, American Crime.

The Oscar winners next endeavor is likely to be positioned beside those acclaimed projects as Ridley tackles an event that has long existed outside the comfort zone of Hollywood  the 1992 Los Angeles riots.

Ridley has joined forces with ABC News Lincoln Square Productions for Let It Fall: L.A 1982-1992, a two-hour documentary offering an in-depth examination of the civil unrest that devastated much of South Los Angeles after the acquittal of four Los Angeles police officers charged with using excessive force in the beating of African American motorist Rodney King.

The project, scheduled to air next spring on ABC, is pegged to the 25th anniversary of the unrest and will begin a decade before the riots, telling the stories of numerous people from diverse communities, including black, white, Latino, Korean and Japanese American residents caught up in the uproar.

The goal is to give the space to get the real details from people, and get beyond the images that everyone is so familiar with, said Ridley in a telephone interview. Were looking at the cascade effect of certain events, actions and situations that I think clearly led to an environment where something like the uprising could happen.

Among the interviewees are police commanders, patrolmen and members of city governments.

We will see people who have transcended and learned and grown from 25 years ago, and then there are some people who have not been able to turn the page, Ridley said. Revisiting the riots with those people was challenging, illuminating and heartbreaking.

Ridley won an Oscar for his 12 Years a Slave screenplay.
NEW YORK  It's the party of the year, for those who like to party, but what happens when your New Year's Eve dreams are too big for your bank?

There are lots of ways to cut corners and still have loads of fun. You need a little imagination, possibly some elbow grease and the willingness to compromise.

Among the first things to consider is budget. Have one and stick to it, said personal finance expert Rachel Cruze. Without a bottom line, she said, it's too easy to hop from shop to shop dropping $10 here and $20 there. And pay with cash to stay on track.

If the goal is to go out, look for places that aren't charging extra for special New Year's packages. Some venues may be hosting a big-ticket party in one spot and opening another area on the cheap.

In Temecula, California, for instance, the Pechanga Resort & Casino offers party packages for a set price but opens its Round Bar area for no cover and free valet parking. Drinks aren't free but there's a balloon and confetti drop at midnight.

As for fancy duds, party attire can be rented and trendy pieces are plentiful at lower prices. Or throw a no-pressure pajama party at home.

The key, overall, when trying to save your New Year's Eve bucks is to forget about the Joneses, Cruze said.

"Comparing yourself, and your New Year's plans, to others not only steals your joy but also your paycheck," she said.

For families, lots of towns host inexpensive "first night" gatherings.

West of Boston in MetroWest, for example, there's an outdoor event along a local rail trail. Families sponsor and tend to bonfires along the route, supplying marshmallows, chocolate and graham crackers for s'mores.

A railway tunnel along the trail is strung with lights and local Boy Scout troops provide hot cocoa and hot dogs as people of all ages walk, some draped in strings of Christmas lights.

Brad Nierenberg, who lives near Scranton, Pennsylvania, said he helped throw a bash at his church last year, ordering inexpensive party favors online and using as centerpieces wine bottles he spray painted gold and silver to hold similarly painted branches he collected in his backyard.

They skipped Champagne and went for ginger ale instead.

On the subject of spirits, not all less expensive Champagnes are swill. And there's always the prosecco or cava options. If you can't give up the idea of Champagne altogether and are hosting a party, do a punch instead of serving glassfuls.

Depending on your style, hosting doesn't have to cost a lot. Do "sweets and treats" rather than a full meal, go for a pot luck or get crafty with decorations you already own, said Sara Skirboll, a shopping and trends expert for the deals site RetailMeNot.

"Repurpose your Christmas tinsel and string lights," she said. "Tack up some tinsel and twinkly lights around main doorways within the party area or gift wrap a wall for a festive photo opp."

Andrea Woroch, a consumer and money-saving expert, said don't be afraid to ask guests to BYOB. Most of your friends ask what they can bring, anyway, so why not say bring your favorite drink, whether it's beer, wine or liquor with a mixer, she said.

"If you prefer to provide the booze, as many do, don't stock a full bar," Woroch suggests. "That will become incredibly pricey, especially since you can't predict what everyone will want to drink and how much of it they will consume."

Pick a signature cocktail to serve instead, along with beer and wine. For food, make it a dessert party or go with a burger bar rather than multiple dishes or passed trays. Try doing finger foods and a cookie swap to help save money.

Looking for a destination getaway to keep the party going?

Gregg Steiner in Sherman Oaks, California, and a bunch of friends rent a house in Northern California on Airbnb every year and save a fortune. The cost for a three-night stay amounts to about $100 per couple, he said. They share food, liquor and other costs among 10 to 20 people.

With the drive north and other expenses, costs amount to about $250 per couple, he said.

"It allows us all to be together in one big house instead of several expensive hotel rooms," Steiner said. "It's fun to be together."
* Tirell Wabasha, 35 years old. Wabasha is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs 190 pounds. He is wanted by the Iowa Department of Corrections for escape from custody. He escaped from the Residential Treatment Facility in Sioux City, where he was placed after being convicted of two counts of felony possession of drugs.
UPDATE: 8:34 a.m. -- MidAmerican Energy says its line and tree crews have made significant progress repairing storm damage in Sioux City and Cherokee areas since midnight, reducing number of customers without power to 218.

Crews continue to work this morning replacing broken poles toppled by high winds that exceeded 60 mph.

--------------------------------------

Our previous story

SIOUX CITY -- Winds gusting above 60 mph knocked out power to more than 4,300 customers in the Sioux City area Sunday night.

The dangerous winds capped off a rare weather day in Sioux City, which received record rainfall of more than an inch and what's believed to be its first thunder on Christmas Day.

In a tweet around 10:30 p.m., MidAmerican Energy reported significant storm damage in the Sioux City area. About 700 customers also were affected in the Le Mars area.

The state's largest utility said it was bringing in additional resources to repair the damage. Three line crews were en route from Des Moines and and a crew was dispatched from Council Bluffs to remove downed trees.

Work to restore power to all customers would stretch throughout the night into Monday morning, MidAmerican said in a tweet at about 11:30 p.m.

"Assuming no new incidents, we expect many customers to be on by 6 a.m. Some work will go until noon. Difficult work conditions," MidAmerican said in a Tweet at 11:36 p.m. Sunday.

As of 12:46 a.m. Monday, MidAmerican, on its website, listed 1,380 customers in Sioux City area as still without electricity. At one point earlier in the night, that number exceeded 4,300.

At 9:38 p.m., peak wind speeds hit 61 mph at Sioux Gateway Airport, the National Weather Service reported. Gusts peaked at 72 mph in Yankton, South Dakota, 58 mph in Moville, Iowa, 55 mph at LeMars and Vermillion, South Dakota and 54 in Sheldon, Iowa, according to the NWS.

Much of the tri-state region remained under a high wind warning until midnight. winds will settle into the 35 to 55 mph range from midnight to 6 a.m. Monday.

As winds died down, MidAmerican said it expected to have few new outages.

As of 6:05 pm, 1.05 inches of rain had fallen in Sioux City Sunday, almost double the previous record for Dec. 25 set in 2009.
DAKOTA DUNES  Whenever an opportunity comes around that allows Connie Terriques to expose her children to their Jewish faith, the mother of six does not hesitate to take advantage.

The exposure of Christmas in school is insane, she said Sunday.

Earlier this week when Dan Lederman invited her family to a Hanukkah party at his home in Dakota Dunes, Terriques was happy to bring her kids, who range in age from 1 to 12, to celebrate the Jewish tradition.

My oldest will have his Bar Mitzvah in August, so every opportunity I get for him to be around the Jewish community I go  its not a very big community around here, Terriques said.

Although Siouxland's Jewish community is small, Lederman said he has tried to make sure they are well represented. In the past, the former legislator has held public menorah lightings at the South Dakota State Capitol in Pierre and the Woodbury County Courthouse in Sioux City.

This year, he decided to host the lighting ceremony in conjunction with his annual Hanukkah party at his home after his friend, Rabbi Mendel Katzman of Omaha, who presided over the evening's festivities, suggested the event and offered his assistance.

Lederman sent out an email to his fellow members of Congregation Beth Shalom of Sioux City, and about 30 people came out to partake in the festivities.

Guests had an opportunity to spin the dreidel to win chocolate gelts  chocolate wrapped in foil to replicate a former type of coin currency  listen to holiday-themed music, and enjoy fried kosher treats such as traditional latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganyas (powdered-sugar-coated, jelly-filled doughnuts).

We celebrate with foods fried in oil to commemorate the miracle, said Shani Katzman, wife of Rabbi Katzman.

The miracle was the origin of Hanukkah, which began in the second century B.C. when a small band of people from Israel fought against the Greek-Syrian army to defend their religious beliefs. After successfully driving the opposing forces away, Israelites gathered in the Holy Temple in Jerusalem to rededicate it to God.

They cleaned up the mess and they found a little bit of oil and they wanted to light the menorah, but they only had a tiny bit and it would only be enough to last for one day, Shani Katzman said. Miraculously, the oil burned and burned and burned and burned for eight days until we were able to bring new oil.

Shani Katzman said that moment inspired the holiday, which started on the evening of Christmas Eve this year, but its meaning is deeper than commemorating a war victory.

It celebrates the idea that good will always triumph, that light will always overcome darkness, that good will overcome evil and that goodness will prevail forever and ever, even in the darkest of times, she said.

The Katzmans oversee the Nebraska chapter of Chabad-Lubavitch, an international outreach and education program aimed at people of the Jewish faith. Portions of their territory includes western Iowa and southeastern South Dakota. They also plan to visit Council Bluffs, Iowa; Lincoln, Nebraska; and Sioux Falls, South Dakota, before Hanukkah ends.

Rabbi Katzma noted that spreading Hanukkah Ruach  the Hebrew word for cheer  is important this time of year.

The idea is to really spread the spiritual energy that these seemingly simple candles might represent, but understanding that there is a godly or divine energy that comes through these candles that are lit with a blessing by order of the Almighty, he said.

We believe that this pierces any form of darkness, any form of challenge -- any form of adversity can just be blown away with the spirit of the candles that are shining as far and as broad as we can possibly reach.
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Juniper Networks, Inc. designs, develops, and sells network products and services worldwide. The company offers routing products, such as ACX series universal access routers to deploy high-bandwidth services; MX series Ethernet routers that function as a universal edge platform; PTX series packet transport routers; wide-area network SDN controllers; and session smart routers. It also provides switching products, including EX series Ethernet switches to address the access, aggregation, and core layer switching requirements of micro branch, branch office, and campus environments; QFX series of core, spine, and top-of-rack data center switches; and juniper access points, which provide Wi-Fi access and performance. In addition, the company offers security products comprising SRX series services gateways for the data center; Branch SRX family provides an integrated and next-generation firewall; virtual firewall that delivers various features of physical firewalls; and advanced malware protection, a cloud-based service and Juniper ATP. Further, it offers Junos OS, a network operating system; Contrail networking, which provides an open-source and standards-based platform for SDN; Mist AI-driven Wired, Wireless, and WAN assurance solutions to set and measure key metrics; Mist AI-driven Marvis Virtual Network Assistant, which identifies the root cause of issues; Juniper Paragon Automation, a modular portfolio of cloud-native software applications; and Juniper Apstra to automate the network lifecycle in a single system. Additionally, the company provides software-as-a-service, technical support, maintenance, and professional services, as well as education and training programs. It sells its products through direct sales, distributors, value-added resellers, and original equipment manufacturers to end-users in the cloud, service provider, and enterprise markets. The company was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California.
Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure, Gas Utilities and Infrastructure, and Commercial Renewables. The Electric Utilities and Infrastructure segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest; and uses coal, hydroelectric, natural gas, oil, renewable generation, and nuclear fuel to generate electricity. It also engages in the wholesale of electricity to municipalities, electric cooperative utilities, and load-serving entities. This segment serves approximately 8.2 million customers in 6 states in the Southeast and Midwest regions of the United States covering a service territory of approximately 91,000 square miles; and owns approximately 50,259 megawatts (MW) of generation capacity. The Gas Utilities and Infrastructure segment distributes natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and power generation natural gas customers; and owns, operates, and invests in pipeline transmission and natural gas storage facilities. It has approximately 1.6 million customers, including 1.1 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee, as well as 550,000 customers in southwestern Ohio and northern Kentucky. The Commercial Renewables segment acquires, owns, develops, builds, and operates wind and solar renewable generation projects, including nonregulated renewable energy and energy storage services to utilities, electric cooperatives, municipalities, and corporate customers. It has 23 wind, 178 solar, and 2 battery storage facilities, as well as 71 fuel cell locations with a capacity of 3,554 MW across 22 states. The company was formerly known as Duke Energy Holding Corp. and changed its name to Duke Energy Corporation in April 2005. The company was founded in 1904 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.
International Relations, Theory  December 26, 2016  Sungur Savran

To draw the net from the water together

while singing a song in unison,

to forge together the iron fine like lace,

to be able together to cultivate the land,

to be able to eat the honeyed figs together,

to be able to say: all together in everything,

save the cheek of the beloved Nazm Hikmet

From the poem The Legend of Sheikh Bedreddin (1936)

The press reports that during a visit to Western Thrace, where a sizeable Turkish minority lives, Alexis Tsipras, the Greek Prime Minister, evoked the name of Sheikh Bedreddin, praised him and said that he should be a source of inspiration for all of us today. So, who is this Muslim sheikh whom a nominally leftist Greek Prime Minister, avowedly atheist, recommends as a source of inspiration to all Greeks, irrespective of their religion? A most ticklish remark at first sight. We should be thankful to Tsipras for having raised the topic, hastening to add that he personally, given his record in office, is absolutely unfit for inspiration by the grand old man.



Sheikh Bedreddin (13591420) lived in the second half of the 14th and the first two decades of the 15th centuries, the latter period being one in which the fortunes of the rising Ottoman state came to a temporary halt under the impact of the Ankara war of 1402, in which the armies of Tamerlane, the Mongol nomadic emperor, routed the Ottomans. The next decade and a half saw civil war between the different contenders to the throne raging on the territory of the Ottoman state in Asia Minor and the Balkans. Bedreddins deeds of historic importance had this civil war as their background.

His life is a web of contradictions. He was both a fakih, i.e. a scholar of Islamic jurisprudence, one of the best ever even by

the admission of his ideological opponents, and a sufi, one who lives religion more according to its inner meaning than

according to outward rules. He spent long years in Cairo, the major learning centre of the epoch, and was converted to Sufism by a

certain Shikh Ahlati. He was never the same man again after that conversion. He visited Khorasan and Aleppo and finally returned home to Ottoman territory.

But make no mistake. Bedreddin, despite his Muslim credentials was half-Greek from his mothers side, allegedly converted to Islam

when she married Bedreddins Turkish father. Their son was born in Dimoteka (Greek: Didymoteicho) in 1359 and died in Serez (Greek: Serres) in 1420, both localities being Greek territory today, but were under

Ottoman rule back then. So it is a great shame that this great man of Greek descent as well as Turkish has not been sufficiently cherished

jointly by our two nations in a manner that befits his legacy. For he himself was not only a communist, but an internationalist as well.

A Communist Revolutionary

This, of course, is the pinnacle of the web of contradictions that form Bedreddins life. This man of high religious standing, who had been

given a hand by his sheikh, Ahlati, as the latter was dying and was therefore the sheikh of a religious order, was also a communist. He

and his disciples, among whom Borkluce Mustafa, an illiterate Turkish peasant from the Aegean region of Anatolia right across the

island of Chios and a Jewish convert, Torlak Kemal, from a region slightly more to the northeast, but still in the Aegean region,

defended common property in the means of production, land and farm buildings and beasts of burden and agricultural implements. Their

programme is sometimes misinterpreted as the distribution of land. No, it is common property, abolishing all private holdings.

The other aspect of their programme is internationalism. Of course, at that time different ethnic groups were more commonly identified by their respective religion. Bedreddin and his disciples stood for the unity and fraternity of all religions, Muslim, Christian and Jewish

alike. It is a well-established historical fact that Bedreddin, during one of his multiple visits to the Aegean region of Anatolia, crossed over, in company of Borkluce Mustafa, to the Greek island of Chios to have long talks with the local notables of the Orthodox

church there and with ordinary peasants, which no doubt was part of their preparations for an uprising. In fact, some evidence exists to

suggest that the influence of the Bedreddin movement extended all the way from Enez (Greek: Ainos) in continental Eastern Thrace (today part of Turkey) to Crete, evidence that is worthwhile to pursue by historians from both Greece and Turkey.

How is it that a theologian became a revolutionary internationalist communist? How, in particular, did his very advanced conception of common property emerge? And how did a religious order act like a revolutionary organization? I have explored all these questions in an

article published at the beginning of this year to commemorate the 600th anniversary of Bedreddins revolutionary uprising against the Ottoman state. I cannot go into the details of the answers to all these questions. Suffice it to say that Bedreddin was a materialist

in disguise, that common property in the means of production was not exceptional among the dervishes of the period, leading to the formation of farmsteads that functioned on what can only be depicted as communistic principles, and that religious orders were, as a rule,

class organizations.

6th Centenary of the Revolution of 1416

When that revolution erupted in 1416, it was far from being local as many jacqueries are. It extended across a vast geographical area from the Turkish Aegean and Chios all the way to Deliorman (Bulgarian: Ludogorie) in Bulgaria at present and Serez (Serres) in Greece, both in Western Thrace. There were three uprisings at least, with tentative evidence of other centres of insurrection. Borkluce and his ten thousand combatants, Turkish and Anatolian Greek landless peasants, Turkoman nomads and Greek islander seafarers, routed the Ottoman army twice before being defeated in the end at the hands of a huge army. Borkluce himself was crucified on the back of a camel, no doubt to

affront the synchretic nature of the religious faith of the Bedreddin order. The second insurrection was that led around Manisa by Torlak Kemal, which also ended in a debacle.

Perhaps the most massive participation was in the third insurrection, this one led by Bedreddin himself. He had been kept under forced residence in the Marmara region and, having eloped, he moved to Deliorman in what is Bulgarian territory today and roused the masses to

insurgency. The insurrection spread like wildfire. However, the more shaky allies within the revolutionary camp secretly made a pact with

the Sultan and betrayed the cause. Bedreddin was abducted and taken to the Sultans court where he was tried and convicted to death. He was hanged in the marketplace of Serez (Serres) on 18 December 1420.

This is the 600th anniversary of that great internationalist communist revolution. Obviously the revolution came before conditions were mature for communism. It was bound to fail, if not before taking power, then after it. However, that it should have erupted in a geography that

now harbours the two nations of Greece and Turkey is a great honour for us. We will strive on both sides of the Aegean to create the conditions of such an internationalist revolution once again within the framework this time of 21st century capitalism, much more favourable to the rise of the working class to power and the building of a classless society. 
SOCIEDAD ASIATICA

THE ASIAN SOCIETY

COMISION DIRECTIVA



THE DIRECTIVE BOARD



PRESIDENTE:

Liliana Garcia Daris



Universidad del Salvador.

Argentina

VICEPRESIDENTE:

Won-ho Kim

Universidad de Hankuk de Estudios Extranjeros.

Corea

SECRETARIO:

Luis Diaz Brougton



Universidad de Santiago, Chile



PROSECRETARIO:



Martha Barriga Tello

Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Peru



VOCALES:



Mauricio Martinez



Universidad de los Andes, Colombia



Juan Uriburu Quintana



Universidad de Chenchi, Taiwan

CONSEJEROS ACADEMICOS

ACADEMIC ADVISERS



ASH NARAIN, Roy,

Institute of Social Sciences, New Delhi.

India



GARCIA BAZAN, Francisco,



CONICET, Universidad Argentina John F. Kennedy



MATSUSHITA, Hiroshi,



Universidad de Kobe, Japon



MIEMBROS FUNDADORES



FOUNDING MEMBERS



ALBERT, Liliana



Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires, Argentina



ANTON PACHECO, Jose Antonio



Universidad de Sevilla, Espana



ANTONIJEVIC, Ingrid



Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Chile



BARRIGA TELLO, Martha



Universidad Nacional de San Marcos, Peru



BERGMAN, Sergio

Melton Institute de Jerusalem, Israel



BERTOLINI, Luis



Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires, Argentina



CABEZON, Jose



Universidad de Santa Barbara, Estados Unidos



CAGNI, Horacio



Universidad Catolica de La Plata, Argentina



CARRANZA, Francisco



Universidad de Dankook, Corea



CASTLETON, Barbara



Ohio State University of Athens



CASTRO, Jorge

Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires, Argentina



CHAOUL-REICH, Alejandro



Universidad de Texas, Estados Unidos



CHELMICKI, Hanna I.



Universidad del Salvador, Argentina



DIAZ BROUGHTON, Luis



Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Chile



FRANCO, Raul



Universidad del Salvador, Argentina



GADRE, Vasant



Universidad Jawaharlal Nehru, India



GARCIA DARIS, Liliana

Universidad del Salvador, Argentina

GLUCK, Carol



Universidad de Columbia. Estados Unidos

HOPKINS RODRIGUEZ, Eduardo



Pontificia Universidad Catolica del Peru



KIM, Wonho



Universidad Hankuk de Estudios Extranjeros, Corea



KO, Heysun



Univesidad de Dankook, Corea



LOPEZ DEL CARRIL, Luis Maria



Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires, Argentina



LUCO, Enrique



Universidad del Salvador



MARTINEZ, Mauricio



Universidad de Los Andes, Colombia



MASATERU, Ito



Universidad Nacional de Osaka, Japon



MATSUSHITA, Hiroshi



Universidad de Kobe, Japon



MINKOWICZ, Gabriel

Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires

MONETA, Carlos Juan



Universidad del Salvador, Argentina



MORROW, John Andrew



Minot State University, Dakota del Norte, USA



NGUYEN, Thiet Son



Academia de Ciencias Sociales de Vietnam, Vietnam

OVIEDO, Eduardo

CONICET. Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Argentina

PEREIRA, Ronan Alves

Universidad de Brasilia. Brasil

PEREYRA, Violeta



Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina

REMETE, Andrea

Universidad del Salvador, Argentina



RIMOLDI DE LADMAN, Eve



Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires, Argentina



ROMERO CASTILLA, Alfredo



Universidad Autonoma de Mexico, Mexico

TEDIN URIBURU, Virgilio



Universidad de Harvard, Estados Unidos

UEHARA, Alexander



Universidad de Sao Paulo. Brasil

URIBURU QUINTANA, Juan



Universidad de Chenchi, Taiwan



VITTOR, Luis Alberto



Universidad Argentina John F. Kennedy



XU, Shicheng



Academia China de Ciencias Sociales, Republica Popular China
The gravity of the existential threat we face from Islamic Jihad is truly of epic proportions. It is essentially a battle pitting free-civilized man against a totalitarian barbarian. What is at stake is the struggle for our very soul - namely who we are and what we represent. The lives that were sacrificed for individual rights and freedoms that we've come to cherish are being chiseled away from right under our noses by the stealth jihadists. And many of us are in denial and totally clueless.



The left's appeasement and pandering to evil is nothing new. What makes their utopian delusions so infuriating and unpardonable is that it is not only they who will have to pay the consequences, and deservedly, so, they are thwarting and undermining our best efforts at resistance and are thus dragging us down in the process as well.







By Peter Lancz,, the head of the Raoul Wallenberg World Campaign Against Racism.
I did the following piece for the new news and current affairs platform Gaon Connection a couple of days ago.

By Mayank Chhaya (Comment)

Special to Gaon Connection

Chicago, December 24: The U.S. abstention from a United Nations resolution against Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territories is the outgoing Obama Administrations way of sticking it to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

While the Obama Administration has cited Americas long-held policy on the Israeli settlements as well its consistency in supporting a two-state solution of the intractable dispute as a justification for its abstention, its barely hidden purpose is also to be a parting shot at Netanyahu personally.

It is an open secret that President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu have had an antagonistic relationship. However, that did not prevent the Obama Administration from signing a deal giving Israel $38 billion in military assistance over the next decade, the largest ever such package in U.S. history as recently as on September 15, 2016. At the time, Netanyahu thanked President Obama for the historic deal.

According to a Reuters video translation of Netanyahus reaction in Hebrew, he said, The deal illustrates a simple truth: the relationship between Israel and the United States is solid and powerful. It does not mean we dont have disputes now and then. But these are disputes you have between family, it does not affect whatsoever the great friendship between Israel and the United States, a friendship that this aid deal represents, that will strengthen Israels military force in the next decade.

Yet, barely three months later the same Netanyahu accused Obama of not only failing to protect Israel against this gang-up at the UN but even charged that the president colluded with it behind the scenes. So stung is the Israeli prime minister by Obamas decision not to veto the U.N. resolution like he had done once in 2011 but instead abstain that he has already bypassed the still active President Obama and reached out to President-elect Donald Trump, who is nearly a month away from being sworn in.

The resolution comes against the backdrop of somewhat fractious presidential transition from Obama to Trump on major foreign policy issues even as the two men have shown unexpected personal graciousness so far. It is unlikely that anyone in the Obama Administration would concede on the record or even off it that Washingtons abstention was, at least in part, prompted by the long lasting disaffection between the two leaders. The 14-0 vote against the Israeli settlements is in a sense Obamas last internationalist song since Trump has clearly indicated that he would pursue a US-centric foreign policy that rejects many past traditions.

Itching to begin putting his stamp on running the affairs in Washington and having failed to persuade Obama to veto the resolution, the president-elect tweeted on Friday, As to the U.N., things will be different after Jan. 20th. January 20, 2017 is when he is officially sworn as the 45th president. He followed up on Saturday with one more tweet saying, The big loss yesterday for Israel in the United Nations will make it much harder to negotiate peace. Too bad, but we will get it done anyway!

What riles Netanyahu is that the resolution, while toothless without follow-up resolutions, will remain on the record of the United Nations. The language used by the resolution is direct and strong. An official statement on the U.N. website said, The Security Council reaffirmed this afternoon that Israels establishment of settlements in Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, had no legal validity, constituting a flagrant violation under international law and a major obstacle to the vision of two States living side-by-side in peace and security, within internationally recognized borders.

Adopting resolution 2334 (2016) by 14 votes, with the United States abstaining, the Council reiterated its demand that Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem. It underlined that it would not recognize any changes to the 4 June 1967 lines, including with regard to Jerusalem, other than those agreed by the two sides through negotiations, it said.

The Council called for immediate steps to prevent all acts of violence against civilians, including acts of terror, as well as all acts of provocation and destruction. It further called for the strengthening of ongoing efforts to combat terrorism, including through existing security coordination, and to clearly condemn all acts of terrorism. The Council called on both sides to observe calm and restraint, and to refrain from provocative actions, incitement and inflammatory rhetoric in order to de-escalate the situation on the ground and rebuild trust and confidence, it said.

It was the inclusion of language against terrorism and incitement of violence that encouraged the U.S. not to veto the resolution but instead abstain from the vote. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power argued that the immediate adoption of a freeze on settlements could create confidence, adding that further settlement activities were not necessary for Israels security. Power pointed out that the continuing building of the settlements was putting a two-State solution at risk.

The issue of a deep rupture between Netanyahu and Obama is now a subject for historians because the latter is practically at the end of his eight years in office. The incoming Trump administration is widely expected to reverse Obamas approach to the historic conflict and likely to put Washingtons weight more explicitly behind Israel. The fact that the entire U.N. Security Council except America voted in favor of the resolution is unlikely to be a factor in Trumps immediate calculations even though in the long-term that will affect the way he deals with the problem.
Le Collectif Cheikh Yassine a organise un certain nombre dactivites et de festivites pour les enfants de Gaza sous le theme  La joie des enfants de Gaza pour lAid . Ces activites ont commence le premier jour de lAid et continue jusquau 4eme jour de lAid dans la bande de Gaza.



Plusieurs activites, ont ete organisees parmi lesquelles : des competitions recompensees par des prix, des jeux, des animations et des chants presentes par un groupe ainsi que des distributions de cadeaux et daides financieres.




Shaheed El-Hafed, Dec 25, 2016 (SPS) - The Saharawi community in Mauritania, including the martyr Ali Mayaras sector, organized Saturday a platform to express support and solidarity with the Saharawi political prisoners of Gdeim Izik who are due to appear Monday before a Moroccan court.

"This initiative is part of the international campaign to support Sahrawi political prisoners and call for their immediate and unconditional release," according to a press statement.

The Saharawi community also condemned the trial of these political prisoners, launching an appeal "urging all international human rights organizations to exert pressure against Morocco for the immediate release of Saharawi political prisoners.

It also called on the United Nations to set up a UN mechanism for the protection of human rights in the occupied part of Western Sahara. (SPS)

062/090/TRA
The essential component of totalitarian propaganda is artifice (het toepassen van kunstgrepen. svh) . The ruling elites, like celebritie...
The Android-based mod OS maker, Cynogen announced that by the end of this year it will cease all its operations. The company stated that due to lack of resources and a decrease in demand of a mod OS, they have decided to shut down the company. From the next year, there will be no further updates to the OS, no further security updates, and no more nightly builds.

The users which are currently relying on the companys OS, like OnePlus One users, will have to shift to its Open Source version. Cyanogen had tied up with manufacturers like WileyFox and OnePlus that lacked resources to build their own customised Android interface. However, later OnePlus introduced its own build of Android, named OxygenOS.

The other fact that resulted in halting the operations is the requirement or demand. The demand of a mod of Android OS was in its early phase when the Googles stock OS lacks features. But as the search engine giant is releasing its iterations, it has started including features that were only available with Cyanogen OS.

Thanks for all the support during this rough ride. Time for the next adventure   Stefanie Kondik (@cyanogen) December 1, 2016

Earlier this month, Cyanogen Inc revealed that it is closing their Seattle office. Earlier, this week, the company announced in a blog post that they are planning to merge their units into one office in Palo Alto, California. It is also offering their Seattle employees an option to shift to Palo Alto. Cyanogen has also noted in the post that the changes are to improve the communication and performance of the team which will now operate under one roof.

The announcement is not done yet, as the co-founder of the company, Steve Kondik is leaving the company. He is known for creating CyanogenMod. Kondik has published a Google+ post earlier this week, in which he stated some issues going on at the firm. The issues were mostly internal, and having to do with Kirt McMaster, the companys CEO at one time and now Executive Chairman. Kondik also blames McMaster for the failure.

In addition, the company stated that they have planned to rebrand their firm to deploy new working strategies. Embracing that spirit, we the community of developers, designers, device maintainers and translators have taken the steps necessary to produce a fork of the CM source code and pending patches. This is more than just a rebrand. This fork will return to the grassroots community effort that used to define CM while maintaining the professional quality and reliability you have come to expect more recently,  Cyanogen added in a blog post.

The CM team is forking it into LineageOS, which will allow the new venture to distance itself from any associations with Cyanogen and Cyanogen OS. Cyanogen discontinuing support for CM is not surprising, considering the exit of the last supporter of CM within Cyanogen, Steve Kondik, also known as Cyanogen.

CM has served the community well over its 8 long years. It has been our home, bringing together friends from all over the world to celebrate our joy of building and giving. Its apt then that on this Eve of a holiday we pay our respects. We will take pride in our Lineage as we move forward and continue to build on its legacy, it further added.
You will be astonished to see Western Europe at night from space, See Pic

NASA has shared a breathtaking night time image of Western Europe that was captured by the astronauts aboard the International Space Station. England is visible in the top right of the frame, Paris appearing as the bright city near the middle of the image and views of Belgium and the Netherlands occupying the middle-right of frame.

Bright yellow spots in the image are the major cities which look amazing when at night when seen from space. These astronauts aboard ISS are blessed to witness such an awe-inspiring view and they constantly share these images for star gazers and space enthusiasts to view it on Earth. The image of Western Europe became an instant hit and received several shares and retweets on different social media platforms.

It is here to mention these images were captured from International Space Station (ISS) that revolves around the earth at a distance just 400 kilometers, and at a speed of at 8 km/second. In other words, it revolves around the earth 15 times in a day. Since, it revolves at such a closer distance which makes it possible for people to see it from their naked eyes.

The ISS is the largest artificial satellite present in space which serves as a microgravity and space environment research laboratory in which crew members conduct experiments in biology, human biology, physics, astronomy, meteorology, and other fields. The station is suited for the testing of spacecraft systems and equipment required for missions to the Moon and Mars.

Recently, it was visible in India. The space station looks like an airplane or a very bright star moving across the sky, except it doesnt have flashing lights or change direction. It moves considerably faster than a typical airplane (airplanes generally fly at about 600 miles (965 km) per hour; the space station flies at 17,500 miles (28,000 km) per hour).

Meanwhile space enthusiasts can also see Internation Space Station from Earth. For ISS sightings users can visit ISS sighting web page and search their locations in the search bar. It will come up with the date and time at which you can view the ISS. However, if you are unable to find positive results at your location then it will show near places where you can view ISS.

How do I Spot The Station?

Time is when the sighting opportunity will begin in your local time zone. All sightings will occur within a few hours before or after sunrise or sunset. This is the optimum viewing period as the sun reflects off the space station and contrasts against the darker sky.

Visible is the maximum time period the space station is visible before crossing back below the horizon.

Max Height is measured in degrees (also known as elevation). It represents the height of the space station from the horizon in the night sky. The horizon is at zero degrees, and directly overhead is ninety degrees. If you hold your fist at arms length and place your fist resting on the horizon, the top will be about 10 degrees.

Appears is the location in the sky where the station will be visible first. This value, like maximum height, also is measured in degrees from the horizon. The letters represent compass directions  N is north, WNW is west by northwest, and so on.

Disappears represents where in the night sky the International Space Station will leave your field of view.

The space station looks like an airplane or a very bright star moving across the sky, except it doesnt have flashing lights or change direction. It will also be moving considerably faster than a typical airplane (airplanes generally fly at about 600 miles (965 km) per hour; the space station flies at 17,500 miles (28,000 km) per hour).
hidden

A dusty village on the outskirts of Ningde, a third-tier city in China's southeast, seems an unlikely place for the headquarters of a potential global leader in future automotive technology. Yet China's top-down industrial policy diktats - move up the value chain, clean up polluted urban skies, and shift to plug-in cars - have Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd (CATL) poised to go from hometown hero to national champion, and beyond.

China's answer to Japan's Panasonic Corp and South Korea's LG Chem Ltd has tripled its production capacity for lithium-ion car batteries in the past year to keep up with a surge in China's sales of electric cars. After a second major funding round completed in October, the company's value quadrupled to 80 billion yuan ($11.5 billion), CEO Huang Shilin said last week.

CATL, which hopes to list on Beijing's over-the-counter exchange as part of plans to raise at least another 30 billion yuan by 2020, could be a dominant force globally. It has already overtaken LG Chem in lithium-ion car battery output, and is chasing down Panasonic and Warren Buffett-backed BYD Co Ltd. CATL plans to grow its battery capacity sixfold by 2020 to 50 gigawatt hours, which could put it ahead of Tesla Motor Inc's gigafactory in Nevada.

"We continue to walk where the country guides us," Huang said. "We hope by 2020 we can achieve performance and price that lead the world." The company, founded just five years ago, is already pushing beyond China's borders, with offices in Sweden, Germany and France and plans to build a factory in Europe. Company representatives say that because of non-disclosure agreements they can only list BMW as a customer for now.

Despite the ambitious expansion, the emerging segment's dependence on government policy and rapidly evolving technology is not without risk. A123, a U.S. automotive battery maker, went from IPO to bust in just three years as battery costs remained stubbornly high and orders dried up. "People think we're a big successful company, but we think we're in jeopardy every day," marketing director Neill Yang said. "The market environment and technology changes so fast that if we don't follow the trend we could die in three months."

Building a Champion

To become a Chinese champion, a battery maker must first shed any foreign investment to be eligible for subsidies and other policy support, people in the industry say. Before he set up CATL, Robin Zeng had started Amperex Technology Ltd (ATL), a company now majority-owned by Japan's TDK. ATL initially had a 15 percent stake in CATL, but liquidated that holding last year, Yang said, when electric vehicle sales first started to take off. He declined to elaborate on the circumstances of that divestment.

TDK separated from CATL to focus on batteries for mobile consumer electronics, but still collects royalties on some intellectual property used by CATL, a spokesman for the Japanese company said. "The reason is strategic and confidential. ATL still keeps a close relationship with CATL," said a person familiar with the situation, who was not authorized to speak to the media.

ATL and CATL still share a Ningde campus, although the front gate and main office bear only the ATL name. Zeng, a Ningde local with a doctorate in chemistry, appears to be the remaining link between the two companies he founded. He declined an interview request.

Policy Support

While government support for electric cars has driven demand for components such as batteries, Beijing is also rolling out other policies that could benefit leading producers like CATL, by forcing smaller firms to consolidate or go out of business. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MITI) said last month it is considering a rule that would increase minimum production requirements for battery makers by around 40 times to 8 gigawatt hours.

Only BYD and CATL are roughly in line with that minimum, though Chinese media reports suggest Hefei Guoxuan High-Tech Power Energy Co Ltd and Tianjin Lishen Battery Joint-Stock Co Ltd may be close to or above that level by next year. Yang said subsidy support for batteries is fairly modest compared to those for producing electric vehicles, which totalled $4.5 billion last year alone.

CATL has been nominated as one of three battery makers - with Guoxuan and Lishen - for incentives under China's 13th Five-Year Plan, promising around $15 million if it can meet targets, Yang said. He noted, though, that a single production line costs $40 million. Among national 2020 targets: to halve battery costs to below 1 yuan ($0.144) per kilowatt hour, and improve energy density by two-thirds.

To get there, CATL is ramping up spending on research and development, where it employs more than 1,000 people with advanced science degrees. "The strength of their R&D investment is quite large," said Fu Yuwu, chief of the Society of Automotive Engineers of China, adding he hopes the company can become a global leader.

"They have such large scale and the support of China's huge market, all the more reason they should do a good job of internationalizing," he said.

Reuters
tech2 News Staff

A Google employee has filed a case before the California Superior Court alleging that the tech giant is restricting the rights of the employees, including the right to speak, the right to work and the right to whistle-blow. The lawsuit alleges that despite the company motto being "Dont Be Evil", the employee alleges that the confidentiality agreements, policies and practices by the government are illegal. Although Google is famous for the creed, Alphabet has changed the wording in their employee code of conduct to "do the right thing."

Google employees are not allowed to put on paper or discuss, even with other Google employees, about any illegal conduct or practices by the company, to prevent the use of the statements in case of a litigation. Google does not allow its employees to discuss details of their salaries and what kind of work they did for Google, after leaving the company. This makes it harder for Google employees to find subsequent employers. The employees cannot speak to the government, lawyers or the press about wrongdoings by Google.

Google employees cannot discuss with their friends or family about the performance of their superiors. Employees are not allowed to write a fiction novel about a person working at a tech company in Silicon Valley. Google continues to restrict the rights of even former employees, who are still party to the confidentiality agreements even after leaving the company. Google employees allegedly cannot use the skills, knowledge and experience acquired over the course of their employment with Google.

The suit is filed by an anonymous current employee of Google, identified by the placeholder name "John Doe", according to a report in Quartz. The employee alleges that Brian Katz, Googles Director of Global Investigations, Intelligence & Protective Services sent out a false email saying that a particular employee was fired from the company for leaking information to the press. Although the email does not mention Doe, Google employees have associated the email with Doe. The employee says that he was made a scapegoat by Google, to discourage other employees from leaking information.

The California Labour Code, does not allow confidentiality agreements to cover salaries. Google allegedly violates this law as employees are not allowed to discuss their salaries, the salaries of other employees, or help other employees get a better salary. Another violation of the California Labour Code is that Google prevents employees from speaking about the work conditions. Any potential violation by the company cannot be reported to law enforcement agents or to the government, another violation of the California Labour Code.

The laws protect employees who disclose trade secrets or confidential information in some specific cases. Employees are allowed to reveal confidential information and trade secrets to government employees or lawyers, as part of an investigation into potential wrongdoing by the company. In these circumstances, employees who disclose the information are protected from criminal or civil liabilities. However, Google does not disclose this information in its confidentiality agreement, and instead prevents employees from disclosing confidential information to anyone, including government officials and attorneys.

The lawsuit further alleges that the illegal confidentiality agreement has a very broad scope, and considers too many things as "confidential." Confidential information is defined by the company as any information about the company that is not known to the public. Employees have to agree that all the data they generate belongs to Google. Employers have to agree to face termination and lawsuits for leaking out confidential information.

The confidentiality agreement itself is confidential, so revealing that there are illegal clauses in the agreement is a violation of the agreement. The confidentiality agreement breaches the California Labour Code as confidentiality agreements cannot include causes that the company knows are illegal to enforce. The Californias Unfair Competition Law allows employees to report securities law violation to lawyers representing shareholders. Google's confidentiality agreement specifically disallows employees to provide any information or evidence to lawyers representing shareholders on potential securities law violations.

(Also Read: Google is the best employer for pay and benefits, reveals Glassdoor survey)

Employees are allowed to speak to the press by Google only after authorisation by corporate communications. Employees are discouraged from sharing details of their work, opinions or snippets of information related to Google, anywhere on the internet, even if the information is not confidential. Only employees authorised to share such information as a part of their jobs, are allowed to post information related to Google on the internet.

Information about how Google works, what it is working on, or future plans are all considered confidential information and cannot be disclosed publicly. The salary of the employee, who he works for, and their performance are all confidential. The highly restrictive confidential agreement means that even some of the information that is publicly known is considered confidential information within Google.

A vast majority of Google employees cannot talk about Google at all. Only some employees authorised to speak with the press, partners, or any employee outside Google. Additionally, authorised Google Employers can only mention the facts available on the social media accounts of the tech giant, or from the corporate blog Google maintains. Any speech or post that damages the reputation of Google can potentially lead to a termination of employment.

Workers cannot even raise concerns over illegal conduct at Google. The "You Said What?" training program discourages workers from posting any form of content that concludes or appears to conclude illegal activity by another employee. "Illegal", "negligent", "violates the law" and "liable" are some of the banned words and phrases, and Google goes so far as to say employees must avoid statements about Google that convey any legal meaning.

The employee further alleges that all these illegal provisions of the confidentiality agreement is aggressively enforced by the company. Google uses a range of tactics, including training programs, investigations, spies, confessions, warnings and threats. The Stop Leaks program encourages employees to report inadvertent leaks themselves, when someone they trusted with some information has betrayed that trust.

Any leaks on the internet can be instantly reported to the investigative team through a Stop Leaks Chrome extension. The program encourages employees to expose co-workers by filing "suspicious activity reports" on other employees. The program allegedly deters employees from asking questions or showing interest in another employee's project. The sleuths track down and investigate every report or leak.

The lawsuit further alleges that Google has "saving clauses" in its confidentiality agreement that is designed to reduce the liability of Google. A clause for example says nothing in the confidentiality agreement is intended to limit the rights of employees to discuss their working conditions and wages with co-workers, or report illegal activities to authorities. The intent of Google here is allegedly contradictory to the actual text in the confidentiality agreement.

Google employees are required to waive their right to seek a class-wide relief, which means that employees cannot get together and sue the company over the illegal practices. The employee, Doe wants to bring Google to book for enforcing a confidentiality agreement that it knows to be illegal, for restricting employees from talking about their jobs, for taking illegal steps to prevent whistleblowing, for various prohibitions that violate the labour code, and demands a Jury Trial.

The text of the lawsuit is available at web site of the legal representatives, Baker Curtis & Schwartz P.C.
tech2 News Staff

The competition between smartphone making companies is intensifying with each company pushing the prices as low as they can afford. Indian marketplace is pegged as the fastest growing smartphone market in the world as reported by The Economic Times. As the competition continues, more and more smartphone makers will exit the market in 2017, according to a report by Counterpoint Research.

According to the research most new smartphone makers in the country are unable to earn the minimum amount of revenue required to sustain themselves. This comes right after the report presents us some numbers where Samsung has grown 15.8 percent from September 2016, Lenovo along with its Moto brand has reported an increase of share by 50 percent from last month. Xiaomi, the popular Chinese smartphone maker, has also reported a tremendous growth of 41.7 percent from last month.

Coming to the numbers generated by major Indian smartphone makers, Micromax has dropped 16.7 percent from last month along with Intex not showing any signs of growth. Both the companies are at the bottom of the pool regarding smartphone share, both in Tier 1 cities as well as Tier 2 and three cities.

The report suggests that seven new smartphone companies will enter the market in 2017 as nine companies will exit the market. These figures are striking, especially when compared to 13 new companies coming in the market with five leaving in 2016.

The problem with Indian companies is the lack of revenue or volume, which in turn limits them from expanding their smartphone range. Another factor is that the top 15 companies in the Indian smartphone market contribute up to almost 90 percent of the market share.

The signs of exits can only be predicted by recent exit of Microsoft and Acer along with Phicomm from the Indian smartphone market. Another major factor is the slowed growth of the Indian smartphone market as smartphone makers follow consumer's decision not to move to smartphones from feature phones.
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German auto supplier Robert Bosch GmbH is expected to settle a lawsuit filed by U.S. owners related to the Volkswagen pollution scandal for more than $300 million, a source briefed on the matter said on Monday. Separately, a federal judge gave VW another day to complete a settlement over polluting 3.0-liter vehicles.

Diesel car owners sued Bosch in 2015 claiming the company helped design secret "defeat device" software that allowed VW to evade U.S. emissions rules. Bosch was a "knowing and active participant" in Volkswagen's decade-long scheme, the lawsuit claimed. A Bosch spokesman declined to comment. Bosch previously rejected claims made by U.S. owners as "wild and unfounded."

A spokesman for the prosecutor's office says it is still probing Stuttgart-based Bosch for its potential role in the emissions cheating scandal, pursuing an investigation against "unnamed persons. Reuters reported in 2015 that the U.S. Justice Department was also investigating Bosch's involvement.

Last April, Bosch said it had set aside 650 million euros for potential legal costs, including for a continuing investigation into the company's role in Volkswagen's emissions scandal. Reuters reported in November that the deal is expected to include a buyback offer for about 20,000 of the vehicles and fixes for the remainder. After intensive talks over the weekend, Volkswagen and lawyers for the owners were nearing a final deal on compensation for owners.

Bosch's expected settlement is crucial to Volkswagen reaching an anticipated final deal to resolve the fate of 80,000 polluting U.S. diesel 3.0 liter Porsche, Audi and VW vehicles, a person briefed on the matter said.

U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer at a brief court hearing in San Francisco on Monday said he was optimistic a "global resolution" of 3.0 liter issues would be completed by Tuesday, with talks ongoing in Washington.

Reuters reported Friday that Volkswagen's agreement with U.S. regulators includes the German automaker agreeing to pay more than $200 million to offset the excess diesel emissions for the 3.0 liter vehicles, on top of $2.7 billion it agreed to pay over three years in June for offset excess pollution from 475,000 polluting 2.0 liter vehicles.

The precise value of the entire 3.0 liter settlement was unclear because the costs will depend on how many owners opt for 'the buybacks, but it could be worth more than $1 billion, two sources briefed on the talks said. To date, Volkswagen has agreed to date to spend up to $16.5 billion in connection with the scandal, including payments to dealers, states, clean energy programs and attorneys for owners.

Reuters
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by Nikhil Pahwa

Theres something deeply worrying with where were going with digital, when the founder of Indias (self-proclaimed) largest fintech company stands up on a stage and, in a manner that resembles a rallying cry and all the passion that comes with it, calls it his companys pious mission to make India cashless.

The religiosity of that phrase  pious  invariably invokes thoughts of white mans burden, imperialism and conversion that comes with it. Lets call it digital mans burden, for the lack of a better phrase. What weve seen over the last few of years is this concerted push to convert people to digital: the visible aspect of it has been incentives: cashbacks, cheaper products, cheaper cab rides, free calling. The growth in commerce leads to growth in content, leads to growth in usage of the Internet. Its all good, because at least for the time being, it gives consumers choice. The growth that is now coming in, and is set to come in, is not through incentives but enforcement: people arent being given a choice.

Were seeing this digital conversion manifest itself in two ways, both related: firstly, the way Aadhaar is being made mandatory despite how its execution is impacting the poor, in violation of Supreme Court orders. Second, is the way delegitimisation of 86% of the currency in circulation is forcing people to switch to digital currency, despite it being more expensive for citizens, and our infrastructure being incapable of dealing with it. Theres a remarkable lack of empathy  from both the state and the opportunistic founders of companies, or their religious leaders seeding this pious mission  when the pain it causes people is being looked at as an inconvenience, a period of disruption. There is this bizarre, tech-startup mindset, that the government (or the RBI. Is there a difference?) is being agile with its notifications: that its put a plan out there, and based on quick feedback, is iterating. Unfortunately for them, economies arent software or products. People dont starve when Facebook doesnt upgrade its newsfeed. That entire move-fast-and-break-things philosophy cannot apply to the real world, when its people that can get hurt, and lives that get impacted. People have died.

Weve gone from technology giving people choice to technology robbing people of choice: the way technology is being implemented by our government today is an attack on freedom and choice.

Have you heard this phrase digital colonisation? The other side of this crusade is this demand for protection against competition for the same businesses, and it has come from the same sources: the fear of digital colonisation in case of Net Neutrality (not a rationale I was comfortable with, by the way), digital colonisation in Ola versus Uber, and in case of Software Patents. There arent many places where the phrase digital colonisation turns up online in the Indian context, but if youre in conversation with an iSpirt executive, the phrase invariably does come up, and it goes something like this: In a few years, our authentication will be using fingerprints on Google (Android) and Apple, and to retain Indias sovereignty, we have to ensure that that authentication is ours.

Colonisation is an emotional subject for us in this country, but when you point out that Google and Apple authentication are choices (not mandatory) and the citizen has little protection against the might of the sovereign state (as evidenced by demonetization, by the way), none against the theft or misuse of data, there isnt a cogent response.

The protectionist angle also came up when it was used to seek government support, as Flipkarts Sachin Bansal said: I think what we need to do is what at some level China did: [tell foreign players that] we need your capital, but we dont need your companies. Olas Bhavish Aggarwal followed it up by asking for protection against capital dumping. Both these companies benefited from having raised more capital than others, and did their own capital dumping, allowing their competition to bleed. Now that both are faced with competition which deeper pockets, they want protection. Lets not forget that Flipkart wanted FDI in inventory based ecommerce until they became a marketplace. Now they speak against it, in order to prevent Amazon from bringing its core business to India. Theres a reason why Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma can say that The Uber of India is Uber. The Google of India is Google. I can sign it on a wall that the PayPal of India will not be PayPal. Its because the company, which has a Payments Banks license, has a regulatory moat which not only protects it from Paypal, but also most of local competition. Payments Banks have another regulatory advantage: they can integrate UPI for payments while wallets are barred. They can raise money while wallets (for the time being), cant. Their regulatory future is certain, while that of wallets is not. Of course, this is possibly not of their choosing, but theyre making the most of this opportunity.

Technology has never been this political in India before, and the dog-eat-dog competition in tech becomes a battle between a beast and a pup when politics enters it.

In an interview a year ago, Nandan Nilekani said, India is going through a period of disruption, and it is up to individual players to take advantage. There is a window of a digital opportunity in India right now, to make multi-billion dollar businesses. When that opportunity goes to a chosen few who appear on stage on Startup India, Standup India, its reminiscent of when Russia privatised its factories, and the oligarchs took ownership of key industries to and built multi-billion dollar businesses out of it.

At a private meeting in Bangalore in earlier this year, a key member of a think tank shouted me down when I raised the issues of lack of privacy protection in the (then draft) Aadhaar Bill: You cant do anything about the Act. It will be passed before you know it, and nobody will be able to do anything about it. A couple of weeks later, thats what happened. They knew.

Its discomfiting how close the technology industry and government have gotten this year. Lets take iSpirt as an example: unlike most organisations, iSpirt benefits from proximity to TRAI Chairman RS Sharma  the Chairman served along with many iSpirt volunteers in Aadhaar, including Nandan Nilekani. They got early access to Ravi Shankar Prasad, who was pitched to for support for Indian product startup shortly after he became IT Minister in 2014, and Jayant Sinha, current Minister of State for Civil Aviation (previously, Finance), appears to be a regular at iSpirt events. They get meetings at the PMO. Flipkarts payments application was the first to use IndiaStack, which has been set up by iSpirt, and is being used by the National Payments Council of India for enabling UPI payments, but in a manner that is closed to others. As a think tank, iSpirt is doing an exceptional job of pitching to the government and non-government bodies such as the NPCI, which impacts payments.

It was something to celebrate when this government came into power, because it promised support for growth and Digital India. What Im worried about is that the direction being chosen doesnt appear to have been decided in a manner that is open and participatory, and theres a distinct attempt to ignore concerns of those who represent how it impacts people. That the government speaks against a right as fundamental as privacy, to protect a project that is a privacy nightmare, is worrying. That people are dying in queues, or are being deprived of their pensions because of authentication failure, is distressing. These are not inconveniences. Were heading down the wrong path if were compromising on rights in exchange for the growth.

This is a country low on resources, high on demand, always jostling for space. Life here is often like trying to get into a train at Mumbais Dadar Station at peak times: you get sucked in and have no control over whether youll get in. Unfortunately, Im idealistic, and I want there to be openness in the way that technology gets deployed; not in a manner that it is an attack on choice. There are questions to be asked about how policy is being made, and who knows that it is going the way it is? Whos defining the standards, the protocols, and under what circumstances are these choices being made? How does it impact citizens and why are civil society concerns being ignored? We need more openness and transparency, especially because  to invoke another religious metaphor  this push to become digital  has become a crusade.

Lastly, I know that we, as journalists, arent doing a good enough job of asking these questions (and more), and this is our failure as well; were all jostling for space and struggling for survival too.

The article originally appeared on Medianama. The author is the founder of Medianama, the co-founder of savetheinternet.in and tweets from the handle @nixxin.
Latham, Munro star as New Zealand crush Bangladesh by 77 runs in first ODI

A fabulous century from opener Tom Latham in a striking partnership with Colin Munro has fired New Zealand to an easy 77-run win over Bangladesh in the first ODI.



The duo took the Bangladesh bowling apart in a blistering 158-run partnership which powered the hosts to an imposing 341 for 7 after electing to bat at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch on Monday.



A superb spectacle of clean hitting was on display as the pair blasted 158 runs in just 17.5 overs to leave the tourists in a hunt for their record chase against the Black Caps.



Bangladesh batsmen then struggled to rotate the strike regularly in the steep chase and desperately looked for boundaries to score runs quickly on a pitch that offered little for the bowlers.



But going after the bowlers under the pressure of the huge target brought about their downfall as the Tigers ended up throwing their wickets away before folding for 264 in 44.5.



New Zealand now have 1-0 lead in the three-match series.



It was the way New Zealand paced their innings, even before Latham and Munro had taken charge, which helped them keep a firm hold on the match all through.



The 24-year-old Latham blasted 137 off 121 balls, bedecking his second ODI century with seven fours and four sixes.



Munro complemented his partner by hammering 87 off 61 with eight boundaries and four sixes.



Both the batsmen fell at the death when New Zealand suffered a mini-collapse. But the damage had already been done.



None of the Bangladesh bowlers were spared from the onslaught as even Shakib Al Hasan, whose three wickets included that of Munro, finished 3 for 69.



Skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza returned no wickets for 61 after conceding 18 runs from his last over.



Playing his first ODi after injury lay-off, Mustafizur Rahman bagged the prized scalp of Latham but his figures, too, read an expensive 2-62.



The other pacer Taskin Ahmed gave away 70 runs for his two wickets from nine overs.



The Tigers looked sharp in the field early on but as the match progressed, misfields and let offs crept in and then took over. To make matters worse, they spilled three catches including one from Latham on 112 when New Zealand were 267 for 4.



Bangladesh`s chase was filled with desperate swings of the willow from the beginning as the top order failed to lay down a strong base.



Opener Imrul Kayes (15) survived a drop catch in the second ball he faced. He then wasted a review opportunity on a caught behind decision coming off a wild pull shot.



Paceman James Neesham then piled misery on Bangladesh taking the next three wickets.



Soumya Sarkar (1) and Mahmudullah (0) fell cheaply in quick succession. A lofted shot sent back Tamim Iqbal (38). Bangladesh slipped to 81 for 4 in the 18th over.



Shakib (59) and Mushfiqur Rahim (42) then showed some grit.



The former clubbed Mitchell Santner for a boundary to take Bangladesh past 100 in the 23rd over as the already demanding asking rate had the batsmen on their toes.



Pick of the bowlers in the match for Bangladesh, Shakib played a run-a-ball knock to reach his 31st ODI half-century cracking five boundaries and two sixes.



He and Mushfiqur paired in Bangladeshs strongest resistance by scoring 63 runs for the fifth wicket.



When Shakib appeared to be pulling things back for Bangladesh in their unlikely chase, he got carried away and was picked out by a bouncer from Lockie Ferguson.



It was clear that bowlers were pulling their length short so often to force the batsmen to hole out the fielders posted around the outfield. But even after coming in at seven, Sabbir Rahman (16) followed the others by going for a slog.



Mushfiqur kept the chase going with Mosaddek Hossain, who played a number of solid shots and reached his maiden ODI half-century.



He struck an unbeaten 44-ball 50 cracking five fours and three sixes.



The runs were once again coming thick and fast, though the asking rate was well above 10 per over.



But Mushfiqur went for a quick single and pulled a hamstring while stretching for the non-strikers end.



He stood up and tried to walk it off, but eventually had to walk off retired hurt and that put paid to whatever faint hope Bangladesh had.



Asked to field first, Mashrafe and Mustafizur took the new ball duties and the youngster drew first blood by dismissing Martin Guptill (15) with a slower.



Kane Williamson then played himself in with Latham still finding his feet and looking harmless at the other end.



The Black Caps captain added 48 runs with Latham and had just begun to get in the groove when Taskin had him caught behind for 31.



Latham then stepped up and showed fine temperament to reach his fifty off 56 deliveries, hitting two boundaries and a six.



He steadily picked up pace by rotating the strike and running hard to convert singles into doubles with Neil Broom (22).



But Shakib then spun up two quick breaks to lead a fightback.



Broom (22) was dropped by Mahmudullah on 17, but the wily spinner got his man to break his 55-run third-wicket stand with Latham.



Neesham (12) soon walked back in similar fashion with one that spun the other way as the hosts slipped to 158 for 4 in the 29th over.



But Bangladeshs joy was brief as Latham and Munro took centrestage.



Munro began by slogging Mosaddek over long-on for a six and with a punishing drive to an overpitched delivery from Shakib.



After Mashrafe took the spinners off to bring himself and Mustafizur back into the attack, the duo watched the seamers for three overs, scoring five runs from overs 33 to 35.



They then switched gears again. With the bowlers struggling with accuracy, Latham focused on timing and placement while Munros knock was all about power-hitting.



They galloped away to bring 200 in the 37th over and then 250 in the 43rd with a slew of boundaries and sixes. Mustafizur, Shakib, Taskin and Mashrafe each received the treatment.



Lathams ton came off 100 deliveries through a cleanly hit six over deep midwicket while Munros half-century was from a six over cow corner off 44 balls. Taskin was at the receiving end on both occasions.



But they did not stop there, kept milking the runs and threatened to take the total past 350. But Shakib and Mustafizur came to Bangladesh`s rescue, albeit too late.



Taskin then went through the gates of Luke Ronchi (5) before Mitchell Santner (8) and Tim Southee (7) helped their team equal the highest total at the ground. --bdnews24.com




Turkey accuses IS of killing 30 civilians in Syria

Turkish Army tanks drive to the Syrian Turkish border town of Jarabulus on Sunday.

AFP, Istanbul :

The Turkish army on Monday accused Islamic State (IS) jihadists of killing at least 30 civilians seeking to flee the flashpoint Syrian town of Al-Bab which Ankara and its rebel allies have been seeking to capture for weeks.

The army said that the civilians were killed with mines and homemade bombs as they tried to make their way out of Al-Bab, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported, without giving further details.

Turkish forces and allied Syrian rebels have been seeking to take Al-Bab as a key part of un unprecedented four month campaign that began in late August.

But they have been facing tough opposition from the jihadists and suffered the highest casualties of the campaign so far in the fight for the town.

Turkey at the weekend deployed more tanks and artillery to the border and also as sent 500 elite commandos to Al-Bab in readiness for a final fight for the town, reports said. Thirty-six Turkish soldiers have died so far in the operation-dubbed Euphrates Shield-after another wounded soldier lost his life in hospital in Turkey overnight, reports said.

Sixteen Turkish soldiers were killed by IS in the battle for the town on Wednesday-Ankara's biggest loss so far since it launched its incursion.

A Britain-based monitoring group has accused Turkey of killing 88 civilians in air strikes on Al-Bab, including 21 children. However the army has unequivocally denied such claims.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at the weekend the battle for Al-Bab is nearly finished, reiterating Turkish forces would then head to Manbij, a former bastion of IS that is now under the control of US-backed, Kurdish-led militia.

Meanw Trkey on Sunday deployed more tanks and artillery to the border with war-torn Syria, where Ankara is pressing a campaign to capture an Islamic State group bastion, reports said.

Several tanks, military transport vehicles and at least 10 artillery units including cannons were sent to Oguzeli and Karkamis in southeastern Turkey, state news agency Anadolu reported.

The latest deployment came as Turkish forces tightened their grip around the IS bastion of Al-Bab in northern Syria, as Ankara-backed Syrian rebels and Turkish troops pressed a fierce assault to capture the town.

Sixteen Turkish soldiers were killed by IS in the battle for the flashpoint town Wednesday-Ankara's biggest loss so far since it launched its incursion into Syria in August. The Turkish army said it killed 12 IS jihadists Sunday near Al-Bab, though it was not possible to independently verify the claim.

A Britain-based monitoring group meanwhile said on Friday that at least 88 civilians had been killed in 24 hours of Turkish air strikes on Al-Bab, including 21 children.
Adoption of modern tech needed to increase sheep productivity

A view of a daylong training on \'Artificial insemination of sheep to increase the production for the farmers\' held in the conference room of Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation, Mymensingh.

Mahdi Hasan, BAU :

Experts and researchers on Monday emphasized the necessity of adoption of modern technologies to increase the productivity and popularity of sheep in Bangladesh.

They also said that sheep is an excellent source of income for the low-income family in Bangladesh which would be a way of poverty alleviation in the country.

They were addressing a daylong training on 'Artificial Insemination of sheep to increase the production for the farmers' was held in the conference room of Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) Mymensingh.

The training is aimed to conduct a field performance test of artificial insemination (AI), and multiple ovulation and embryo transfer (MOET) and to optimize the techniques at farm level in the country.

Prof Dr Mahmudul Islam, head of Surgery and Obstetrics department of Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU), was present as chief guest with District Livestock Officer (DLO) of Mymensingh Dr Md Aftab Hossain in the chair. Among others Deputy Director of BADC Md Khorshed Alam as special guest and coordinator of the training Prof Dr Farida Yeasmin Bari spoke.

A total 40 farmers from different upazilla of Mymensingh district participated in the training program.
The meeting of executive committee of Bangladesh Shop Owners\' Association, Chittagong Unit was held in the Port city on Saturday.
Mushfiq suffers hamstring injury

Mosaddek Hossain congratulates Tim Southee after New Zealand win by 77 runs against Bangladesh in 1st ODI at Christchurch on Monday.

Dependable batsman cum wicket keeper Mushfiqur Rahim suffered a strain in his left hamstring during the first ODI between Bangladesh and New Zealand match held on Monday at Hagley Oval, Christchurch.

When Mushfiq attempted to take a risky single in the 38th over, he had to put in the dive but fell awkwardly trying to clutch his leg. He was feeling uncomfortable on the crease and pointing to the dressing room with bat for medical attention. The Test skipper Mushfiq then hobbled off the field before he added 42 runs to his name.

Bangladesh suffered by 77 runs defeat chasing New Zealand's 341 runs in the first ODI of the three-match series. The second ODI will be played on December 29 at Nelson.




Will automation kill off development?

Duncan Green :

Is this time really different? That's the argument whenever people want to ignore the lessons of automation-headlinehistory (eg arguing that this particular financial bubble/commodity boom will never burst) and such claims usually merit a bucketload of scepticism. On the other hand (climate change, nuclear war) sometimes things really are different from everything that has gone before.

Which brings us to technology. Lots of musings are circulating about the rise of Artificial Intelligence, automation etc. Driverless cars will put millions of drivers out of work. Robots will kill off manufacturing jobs. Everything will change.

At the World Economic Forum, Klaus Schwab talks of 'the fourth industrial revolution'. The bible is the Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies, a 2014 book by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee. Even President Obama has caught the bug, in a recent profile in the New Yorker

'At some point, when the problem is not just Uber but driverless Uber, when radiologists are losing their jobs to A.I., then we're going to have to figure out how do we maintain a cohesive society and a cohesive democracy in which productivity and wealth generation are not automatically linked to how many hours you put in, where the links between production and distribution are broken.'

aiWhich all raises a whole series of questions - is it true? If so, is that a Good/Bad Thing and for whom? Much too substantial for a blog post, but here are a few thoughts and links.

Is it true? Ever since the Luddites, the machines have been about to take our jobs (see this 200 year timeline, c/o Ranil Dissayanake). Techno-optimists argue that the current concerns are just another loss of collective nerve - new jobs will emerge to fill the gaps created by technology. But beyond the lessons of history, I see no reason why this should inevitably be true, at least not with the wages and conditions people have become used to (or aspire to). The scale and pace of the changes described above do suggest this time may really be different - a lot of disruption and job displacement could take place, at a time when governments seem less willing/able to help people adjust and cope.

Is that a good thing or bad thing? If the jobs being lost are menial or demeaning, shouldn't we join those who are celebrating? Couldn't this be the start of a brave new world where everyone works for 12 hours a week and then enjoys their leisure? (After all, that was what we were being promised back in the 1970s - back in 1930 if you read Keynes - yet somehow it never arrived.) For automation to usher in an age of positive leisure, an awful lot of public action needs to take place - states need to educate their people, those people need to organize to ensure that the benefits of automation are fairly distributed.

Because the alternative is rising inequality, captured in the Obama quote. At the extreme, something akin to HG Wells 'The Time Machine' and numerous other scifi dystopias - a privileged techno elite ruling over a mass of surplus-to-requirement proles whose main role is as threat to elite power.

And what does all this have to do with development? A lot of the aid business doesn't seem to have the_revolutionnoticed these debates. It bangs away about the need for Industrial Policy and decent formal sector (preferably manufacturing) jobs - an essentially Fordist/Post World War Two agenda.

But there are a few interesting discussions. The ODI has started a fascinating piece of work on the implications of the gig economy for domestic workers in developing countries. Dani Rodrik argues that this is part of a wider story of 'premature de-Industrialization', and worries that the historic engine of development is running out of steam. IIED's Andy Norton argues that green growth could be the answer to Rodrik's dilemma. UNRISD has been gamely plugging away at researching one potential alternative - the 'social and solidarity economy'.

Automation's separation of paid labour from human wellbeing is also one argument for a Universal Basic Income, especially if paid for by taxing global public bads like carbon emissions. The UBI becomes the starting point, and the rest of the economy is laid on top of that. Would that address poverty? Possibly in the narrow income definition but not if we extend the definition to power, access and other dimensions. It certainly wouldn't address exclusion, or discrimination, violence, insecurity etc. If the UBI is only about rights to cash but no responsibilities, then we have something to learn from those who have been raised in a handout economy. Indigenous Australians called the dole 'sit down money' and hence developed the Community Development Employment Programme (basically welfare payments in recognition of what people contribute to the community, outside the formal market economy - eg caring for country, preserving traditions, etc).

What worries me more generally is the lack of politics. Lots of big picture, visionary, 'If I ruled the world' solutions, but what are the political conditions for bringing them about? The underlying story of the struggles of European Social Democracy is the decline of organized labour - and automation will further weaken that historical foundation for progressive ideas and policies. Attempts to rebuild progressive coalitions based on a 'rainbow' of different marginalized groups have had limited success to date. The danger is that, without a strong and coherent political voice, the future will be more HG Wells than UBI-supported leisured masses frolicking in the meadows.

(This is a conversational blog written and maintained by Duncan Green, strategic adviser for Oxfam GB and author of 'From Poverty to Power'. This personal reflection is not intended as a comprehensive statement of Oxfam's agreed policies).
RMG trader killed in city

Staff Reporter :

An apparel trader was allegedly killed by some unknown miscreants in his rented residence in the city's Malibagh on Monday afternoon.

The deceased was identified as Abdus Sattar, 45, a businessman of cloth and spinning. He was inhabitant of Malibagh area, and hailed from Sirajganj district, police said.

Shahjahanpur Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Shafiqul Islam, said, "A team of police recovered the body following information from the sixth floor at the house in Malibagh around 1:30pm area."

Sattar might have killed in rivalry with the other businessmen, the police official said.

A case has been filed with the police station in this connection, the OC said.

The body had been sent to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) morgue for an autopsy.
2 surrendered women put on 7-day remand

14-yr old Afif suffered bullet wounds, autopsy report: Ashkona flat used as militant den, office, says CID

Two alleged militant women who surrendered to police after Saturday\'s raid were placed on 7-day remand on Monday in connection with a case filed against them.

Staff Reporter :

A Dhaka Court on Monday placed the two women, who surrendered to police during the Saturday's raid, on a seven-day remand each in connection with a case filed over the militant hideout in the city's Ashkona.

They are Trisha Moni, wife of the militant outfit "Neo JMB" leader Maynul Musa, and Jebunnahar Shila, widow of Major (sacked) Jahid alias Murad.

Metropolitan Magistrate Meher Nigar Suchona passed the order when Inspector Saidur Rahman of the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police produced them before the court with a 10-day remand prayer for each.

In the remand prayer, Saidur, also the Investigation Officer (IO) of the case, claimed that the two women were active members of "Neo JMB" and they were involved in creating subversive activities.

They are needed to be remanded to find out other fugitives responsible for making an attempt to commit such offences, the IO said.

No lawyers for the two female militants were present at the court.

Trisha with her four month-old daughter and Jebunnahar with one and a half years old daughter surrendered during the anti-militant operation code-named "Ripple 24". They also deposited a 9mm pistol and six bullets during the surrender.

Earlier, Shahinur Islam, Sub-Inspector of the CTTC unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, filed the case with Dakkhin Khan Police Station on Sunday night under the Anti-Terrorism Act, said Tapan Chandra Saha, Officer-in-Charge of the police station.

Meanwhile, Afif Kaderi alias Ador, the 14-year-old boy who died in a police raid at a militant hideout in the city's Ashkona, suffered multiple bullet wounds, according to autopsy report.

"There were multiple bullet wounds in his body. One bullet has been taken out," Sohel Mahmud, Assistant Professor of Forensic Medicine Department at Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH), told The New Nation on Monday.

He said that they could not find splinters injuries or any other wounds caused by explosion on the body. "We have collected samples for DNA test and viscera," he said.

Police removed his body on Sunday and sent it to the DMCH amid initial reports that he may have exploded a suicide vest.

Earlier, Police fired shots and gas grenades as Afif did not surrender. Officials said Afif might have been killed in police firing around 2:30pm on Saturday.

Afif Kaderi, whose father Tanvir, a Neo-JMB leader, committed suicide during the September 10 raid on a militant hideout in Azimpur. He refused to surrender during the raid.

Besides, police on Monday said to have enough evidences that the ground floor flat in Ashkona of the city was used as a hideout and sometimes an office of the militants.

"We have found adequate evidences that the place was used as militant hideout and sometimes they used it as their office. The Crime Scene Unit of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) handed over the evidence to the Investigation Officer (IO) of the case," said Abdus Salam, Assistant Superintendent of Police of CID's Crime Scene unit.

The CID team collected evidence from the ground floor of the three-storey building where two militants were killed during the raid, he added.
11 kg gold seized at HSIA

Staff Reporter :

Customs Officials seized 100 unclaimed gold bars weighing around 11.6 kilograms worth around Tk six crore from a Qatar Airways flight at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on Monday morning.

However, no one was arrested in connection with the gold recovery, Customs Official said.

HM Ahsanul Kabir, Assistant Commissioner of Customs Intelligence and Investigation Department, said, "Acting on a tip-off that gold bars were being smuggled inside the plane, the Customs Officials searched the aircraft and found the 100 gold bars under a passenger seat around 11:00am.."

The gold bars have been seized from the Qatar Airways from Doha, the Customs Official said.

A case has been filed with the Airport Police Station, he said.
Philippines President Duterte face investigation over extra-judicial killings

THE New Nation reported on Friday citing BBC online news that Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte faces probe over his claims of extra-judicial killings. The country's independent Human Rights Commission has already initiated a move to investigate the claim by President Duterte that he had killed drug suspects while he was Mayor of Davao, a southern city. The Commission will also examine reports that death squads had killed several hundred people in that city when he was city Mayor.



Since he took over as President in May this year he has also launched a crackdown on 'drug dealers' in which death squads and vigilantes have killed over 6,000 people so far in some estimates. Their bodies were found lying in the streets mostly in the morning with a tag on their bodies branding them as criminals.



Mr. Duterte openly confessed to the BBC last week that he shot dead three men. Critics say he has encouraged killing squads to shoot suspected drug dealers and users on sight. He was Mayor of Davao for two decades. During that time he earned a reputation for harshly suppressing crimes and was accused of sponsoring death squads. He is in global headlines in recent past.



The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein on Tuesday said Mr. Duterte's claims "clearly constitute murder." He called on authorities to investigate. In fact preliminary investigation has already started. Meanwhile, Mr Duterte on Sunday threatened to blow the UN headquarters if the world body comes to interfere. He is already known for his bad mouth and use of slander words on many occasions against US President Barack Obama for his stance on human rights.



It is yet to be seen what will be the outcome of the investigation that the Philippines Human Rights Commission has started. But it can be said without doubt that the initiative itself is the primary victory of democracy and rule of law that many countries could not have dared against a sitting President. Mr. Duterte is a public representative and President but he has been blamed for killing. He may be facing the probe but we don't know whether or not he will be facing trial at a time when he is also enjoying support of the majority for his anti-crime drives.



Rule of law is the basis of democracy. It demands that law will take its own course. None will take law in his or her hands. Killing is a crime and can't go unpunished and more so by an elected representative now the President. We must say the strength of Philippines democracy will face new challenge if the move against the President continues.



It appears that the country is going to brace for a new dictator who has rehabilitated former dictators late President Ferdinand Marcos in the national war cemetery in Manila last month despite protest from other democratic forces.



Where democracy is not tolerated, inhuman killer like Philippines President Duterte rules over in dictatorial style. Duterte knows best to kill people and create terror in public life, but he does not know that governance is not a killing affair.



The people of Philippines are anxious and they know how to rise against worst dictators.
Highway police have to accept responsibility for deaths on highways

Life is cheap in Bangladesh so frequent deaths on highways are no longer shocking to the authority. But the people pay for safety and security. To normal beings nothing could be more painful than to know that last Sunday 14 persons were crushed to death under the wheels of buses and trucks who have no obligation to respect law or lives.



More deaths in road accidents is shocking the nation again as news reports said these people were killed and 19 others injured in six districts in the previous two days. The causes are the same old ones such as reckless driving in the highways and law enforcers' neglect to secure compliance of traffic rules by drivers.



Roads and Highways are generally known as death traps for people who have to commute on such roads. Nobody is there to explain what job the Highway police are performing. They appear after the accidents occur. Many will think Bangladesh is a country where saving of lives is not important. Police cases after the killing is just the ritual.



More foggy weather is expected soon as winter is deepening and the Ministry of Communication, particularly the Roads and Highways Department, must show some activities for making journey in highways safe from reckless bus and truck drivers in particular.



There is no doubt that continued road accidents only show the general condition of the lawlessness in our road transport sector and the lack of effective measures to reduce accidents is just unacceptable. Most important is the lack of visibility of the Highway police on the Highways to keep pressure on drivers to drive carefully.



There is no accountability of anybody among the public servants who are paid to serve and save the people. This cannot go on.






Netanyahu`s defiance of Security Council`s resolution is madness

Last Friday, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution that calls for a two-State solution based on the 1967 demarcation lines which clearly states that 'establishments of Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, has no legal validity'. Very true indeed, however, it was Israel's offensive way of response which is inexcusable.



Israel has summoned the ambassadors of UN Security Council member states that voted in favour of a resolution condemning its age long settlement sites. Such audacious response shown to UN Security Council states' collective opinion clearly expresses Israel's utter defiance of the world community.



Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not stop there, he accused Obama administration of carrying out "disgraceful anti-Israel maneuver".



Rather curiously, apart from the fourteen envoys, the US envoy was not, however, summoned, yet, the summoning of Security Council representatives evidently signals Israel's determination not to stop the illegal settlements in occupied territory of Palestine. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's branding of the resolution as 'a shameful blow to Israel' is a clear indication of his mounting arrogance too. Amazingly, equipped with American support and weaponry, it is now audaciously insulting America for abstaining from opposing the resolution against Israel. Not long before, he behaved offensively with President Obama. The million dollar question is -- how could the Jewish leader amass such strength, and that too at American cost? Or has the Americans knowingly created its own Frankenstein?



In an indirect way, to Israel's benefits, the resolution contains no sanctions then what was Netanyahu's actual problem to accept the two-state resolution based on 1967 plan? Nevertheless, the dirty truth behind Israel's enforced illegal settlements on Palestinian territory occupied by war is not unknown to Netanyahu, and he must admit the unlawful settlements in the Palestinian territory including in the East of Jerusalem.



Observing carefully, the Israeli PM's defiance has not been directed at the US only, but also against all UN Security Council members. Challenging the UN's majority opinion on illegal Jewish establishments once again proves -- the Jewish leadership is unwilling to a peaceful settlement of the Palestinian statehood.



The Jewish Frankenstein has steadily garnered strength for nearly fifty years and if now it doesn't pay heed to its wrong doings -- challenges the United States which has empowered it financially and militarily -- who is to be blamed? Prime Minister Netanyahu feels emboldened further by the election of Mr Trump as the next President of the United States. Both together may bring disaster both for the USA and Israel.



Prime Minister Netanyahu as a power-drunk egomaniac is a threat to Israel's best interests. He is a war monger and wants to show his military might -- no matter what the consequences are for Israel and the world. In the words of an analyst of New York Times "It does not take a lot to imagine an American move that could provoke violence on the ground." We add to confirm that such an American move shall make existence of Israel extremely precarious.


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Paris, TX (75460)

Today

Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 68F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 68F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph.
The sextoy market is growing quite rapidly in India right now.

Although it is not a big trend, it is a hot topic on the internet as it is secretly expanding its market.

In this article, we will focus on sextoy and introduce recommended sextoy for Indian beginners of sextoy by gender.

India, the birthplace of the Kama Sutra, is very strict about sex.

Also, premarital sex is basically not allowed. Therefore, there are many people who are sexually restricted.

But what happens when you continue to be sexually restricted?

Frustration may build up and you may end up taking your sexual stress out on your partner.

If you are able to adopt sextoy in a timely manner, you can get rid of those problems.

I want to have more exciting sex than Im having now.

I want more variation in masturbation

I want to get even stronger pleasure than I do on my own.

If you have any of these problems, please stay with me until the end.

What is sex toys for Indian?

Sextoy, as the name implies, is a toy used during sex and masturbation.

It is a generic term for vibrators, Egg-vibrators, Electric massagers, dildo, handcuffs and condoms.

They are used to make regular sex more exciting or to make masturbation more pleasurable.

Because sextoy is very stimulating, it can help you to get rid of the problems and frustrations of being in a rut of sex with your partner for a long time, or if you are unhappy with the lack of pleasure in sex with your partner.

The ability to satisfy your desires with movement, texture, and size, which cannot be done by a normal human being, can help you to be satisfied with sex and, as a result, improve your relationship with your partner.

It is also said to help improve sexual dysfunction (inability to get an erection or ejaculate) and difficulty in feeling during sex (insensitivity), which is attracting more attention than in the past.

In recent years, the demand for sextoy has increased due to the spread of smartphones and the Internet and the increasing number of people using online shopping.

Even those who are concerned about the appearance of sextoy (and find it difficult to purchase) can now easily obtain it by using mail order.

In the case of online shopping, most of the stores have taken steps to ensure that the contents of the products delivered to you are not revealed, so you can purchase them without your family members knowing.

Until a while ago, you had to go to the store where the adult goods were sold to buy them, so it was quite a hurdle to overcome.

Also, many people may have an image that sextoy is somehow embarrassing to own.

But nowadays, some of them are so stylish and cute that you cant believe they are sextoy at a glance.

More and more people are using them for travel and outdoor use because they are not too bulky and are suitable for carrying around.

Sextoy situation in India

Before introducing the recommended sextoy for Indians, lets talk about one of the sextoy situations in India in recent years.

In India, due to the high concentration of population, the following six cities have particularly high sales of sextoy in India.

Mumbai

Kolkata

Bangalore

Delhi

Chennai

Hyderabad

These cities account for roughly 70 percent of sextoy sales in India.

In the future, the percentage of sextoy use will gradually increase in other cities in India as well.

If you never talk about sextoy publicly, that girl in your neighborhood might be a sextoy user too.

If you are interested in sextoy, you dont have to suppress your desire for it.

What are Sextoys for beginner?

Among all sextoys, sextoy for beginners are vibrators, dildo, masturbators, Sex Lubricants, and condoms.

Sex Lubricants and condoms, which are familiar to people who have had sex, are also a great beginners sextoy.

I will explain the details of each toy later, but there are many sextoy products that are painful to use and can only be used after some anal expansion.

I assume that the Indian readers of this article are people who have not had much experience with sextoy.

If such people use professional sextoy suddenly, they are at risk of injury or trauma.

Therefore, to introduce sextoy, you need to start with a beginners version and gradually become familiar with it.

Advantages of using sextoy for Indians

There are three advantages of using sextoy for Indians

You can masturbate in a wide variety of ways.

Can have stimulating sex

Can develop new sexual zones

If you try to masturbate with your own fingers or hands, it tends to be a pattern.

However, with sextoy, you can easily masturbate in a variety of ways.

You will definitely be fascinated by the attraction of new stimulation.

Also, your daily sex life will be more exciting than ever.

There are many things in sextoy that are visually stimulating and give you a strong and intense feeling of pleasure.

This allows you to see your partners promiscuity in a way that you wouldnt normally see it.

When you are in a relationship, sex with your partner may become a pattern, but it can also eliminate these problems.

It can also lead to the development of new sexual zones (which is the training of sexual stimulation to allow you to feel orgasms).

For more information on the development of new sexual zones, see the following articles

[Women's Erogenous Zone]How to find and develop, 7 hidden sexual zones !![In India] In this issue, we will dissect the female erogenous zone! ..." Many of you may be like that. Men, in particular, shou...

Thus, the use of sextoy can only be a good thing for the men and women of India.

Sextoy for beginner men in India

So, lets continue with the recommended goods for Indian sextoy beginners.

For ease of understanding, we will introduce them by gender. Lets start with the men!

The following five goods are recommended for novice Indian sextoy men

Masturbator

Cock rings

Love Doll

Sex Lubricants

Toys for the prostate

Lets check each one in detail.

Masturbator

The masturbator is a sextoy for men that elaborately reproduces a womans vagina, mouth, and anus, and is one of the most popular sextoy products.

It is used by men to masturbate, and it is popular because it provides stronger stimulation and pleasure more easily than using hands.

Most are made of good quality silicone, and their softness is something that cannot be achieved with ones own hands.

They can provide stronger pleasure than a real womans vagina, so be careful not to overuse them. (You wont be able to have an orgasm in a womans vagina anymore.)

Again Male masturbators are a wonderful toy. I do not need any favourite timing, bothersome bargaining. You do not have to worry too much.

Revolutionize your masturbation time! ! !

Made in Japan is a wonderful kinky toy.#sextoysindia #SexToyIndia #Japanhttps://t.co/4k70QGzoTP pic.twitter.com/tRVdxTKPpa   SEXToys India PR  (@SextoysIndia) November 12, 2018

Some of them are disposable, while others can be washed and used over and over again, so its fun to buy a few to use depending on your mood.

If you want to know more about masturbator, please click here

Really pleasant male masturbation and how to do it Are you in a rut with your daily masturbation routine? I'm going to show you five ways men masturbate that you might ...

[For Beginners] How to choose and use a male masturbator without fail Gentlemen.Have you ever used a masturbator? The person who sees this article is probably the one who has not experien...

Cock Ring

A cock ring is literally a ring-shaped sextoy that is worn on a mans penis.

It maintains an erection by binding the penis with a ring of rubber and blocking blood flow.

It is sometimes used as an accessory to be worn on the penis, and may be made of metal or plastic as well as rubber.

In some cases, cock rings have parts or vibrators attached to them that stimulate the vagina, so they kill two birds with one stone, giving a woman pleasure while maintaining an erection.

Cock rings are also sometimes used to treat erectile dysfunction.

It can help with erectile dysfunction, where the penis doesnt get hard when you get an erection or doesnt last long when you try to insert it.

Men who are prone to breakage or who are unsure of the hardness and size of their erections can use a cock ring to increase the size of their penis and maintain an erection for a longer period of time.

Cock rings vary in price from around RS700 to over RS2000 with a vibrator function.

Some of them do not fit your penis, so you should check the size of the cock ring before you buy.

You should know the size of your partners or your own penis when it is erect.

[Penis enlargement] What is a cock ring? Types and usage Cock rings can make your penis bigger and harder. It also makes sex with women more fulfilling and increases your sat...

Love Doll

Love dolls, also known as Dutchwives, are dolls with the appearance of a woman who can experience simulated sex.

There are dolls that look like a woman, but they have no face and only have their breasts and lower torso cut off, and some dolls are so realistic that they can actually be mistaken for real women.

Some expensive dolls can cost more than 1 million yen, and the quality of the doll is easily influenced by the price.

The higher the price, the higher the quality of the doll will be, the closer it will be to the real woman, and the cheaper the doll will be, the less elaborate it will be, making it look like a real doll! Something is wrong! That is also true.

You cant go wrong if you choose a balance between price and taste.

There are stores that allow you to make custom-made love dolls, so you can create a girl of your choice.

You can make a girl of your choice. You can start with inexpensive love dolls at first, and once you get used to it, you can try custom-made love dolls.

If you want to know more about Love doll, please click here

Thorough explanation of the charm of sex dolls! Have you ever heard of sex dolls that are used primarily for pseudo-sex purposes? It is a doll that is quite close to...

Sex lubricants

Sex lubricants are used as a substitute for lubricating fluid during sex or as a lubricant for men to use masturbator rules.

It is not uncommon for women to have difficulty getting wet, depending on their physical condition, or to have difficulty getting wet due to their constitution.

Forcing the penis into the vagina at such times can cause painful intercourse.

There are various types of Sex Lubricants, some with a warming effect, some with a cooling effect, and some with a scent.

Changing the Sex Lubricant used during play is recommended as a good sex accent.

If you want to learn more about Sex Lubricants, click here.

What is sex lubricant?Explain the difference and usage of each ingredient The word "sex toy" may seem like a hurdle to overcome, but lotion is actually one of the most familiar sex toys. Many...

Toys for the Prostate

Another sextoy for men is prostate toys.

The most famous prostate toys include Enemagra, which was originally a prostate massager developed by an American urologist to treat an enlarged prostate line.

Modern prostate toys are imitations of Enemagra that have spread as sextoy for men.

Many people think of prostate toys as being used by gay men, but in fact they are often used by straight men.

What is the prostate?

The prostate is an organ found only in men. It is a walnut-sized organ located deep in the pelvis, just below the bladder, and its primary role is to protect and nourish sperm.

You cannot touch the prostate gland from outside the body, but you can touch it by inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus.

By inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus and touching the prostate and developing it, you can feel intense orgasms.

Orgasms felt in the prostate are mainly dry orgasms, which are orgasms that do not involve ejaculation. (You can also feel orgasms with ejaculation through prostate stimulation.)

The prostate is called the male G-spot, and dry orgasms can be much more intense than ejaculation.

Therefore, men who are able to develop a prostate can become addicted to the pleasure.

sextoy for beinner women in India

The following are the recommended goods for Indian women who are new to sextoy.

The following three are recommended for use by women who are new to sextoy.

Vibrator.

Dildo

Electric Masserger

Lets check out what each one is in detail.

If you want to check out womens toys, click here.

[BEST25]Sex Toys for Women in IndiaThat Can Help You Have an Orgasm There are many women who pretend to feel orgasm during sex. But don't worry, you don't have to pretend to feel orgasm...

Vibrators

A vibrator is a sextoy that vibrates with an Egg-Vibrator to provide stimulation and is often referred to simply as a vibrator.

Some vibrate as well as rotate, and there are many variations of sextoy.

It is quite a popular sextoy, and is well recognized by people who do not know much about sextoy.

Its usage is similar to that of a massager, but it is more compact and easier to carry than a massager, and many of them look as cute as a lipstick or a macaroon, so they are popular among women.

For a while, a famous influencer on twitter said, This is good! You may have heard of the topic of this article by introducing the recommended vibrators.

Vibrators are great for women to use on their own, but they are also recommended for men who have difficulty satisfying women with sex.

Since it is powered by electricity, it is far less tiring than moving your hands by yourself.

This makes it easier to satisfy a woman with sex because you can caress her for longer than usual.

Vibrators are mainly used on the female side, but they can also be used on men.

When used on men, they are used to attack the nipples and glans, and in both cases it is recommended to wear a condom for hygiene reasons.

Introducing how to use the vibrator, its purpose, and how to choose it! Vibrator uses the vibrations caused by the rotation of the motor to provide stimulation. It is one or two of the most...

Dildo

A dildo is a model sextoy made to mimic a male penis.

It can be made of silicone, elastomer (think of it as a material similar to PVC), metal or glass.

A dildo can be used by a man for his female partner during sex, or by a woman for masturbation to get pleasure from it.

They are mainly inserted into women, but some can be used in the male anus as well.

It is sometimes used synonymously with vibrators, but the vibrator is not the same thing as a vibrating device.

A model of a penis that does not vibrate is a dildo.

Some of them have suction cups that can be attached to the floor or wall so that you can enjoy realistic masturbation without using your hands.

For fun, there is a dildo made in the shape of your partners penis.

This one is also popular as a gift, and if youve been together for a long time and are having trouble finding a gift for your partner, you might want to pick one.

To learn more about dildo, please click here.

What is Dildo: Orgasms with Dildos for Men and Women A dildo is a model of a male organ that is used by women for masturbation and by men to stimulate the prostate gland. Th...

Electric Masserger

A Electric Masserger is a hand-held electric massager, also known as a handheld massager, and can usually be purchased at electronics stores.

It was originally designed to relieve stiff shoulders and back pain, so the hurdle of buying one in a physical store is quite low.

Many people may have seen or used it in some form or another, as it is often installed in leisure hotels.

Such a massager is highly recommended for beginners because it is easy for women to get pleasure from it when they use it during masturbation.

It is larger than Egg-Vibrator and vibrations are stronger than those of Egg-Vibrators and vibrators, so even just hitting the clitoris can give you a great deal of pleasure.

For those women who have never had an orgasm during sex with their man, the massager may be a good way to get a feel for what it feels like to have an orgasm.

It looks and feels like an electric massager, so you wont have to feel awkward if your roommate finds out.

If you are in a rut of having sex with your partner, if you want to feel an orgasm through masturbation, or if you are thinking of using a sextoy, why dont you try it from a simple massager?

To learn more about Electric Masserger, click here.

What is a massager? Introducing types, selection methods, and usage Originally, the Magic-wand vibrator and the massage machine were sold as a home massage machine used for the back and th...

How to choose a sextoy for Indian

Now that weve covered the different types of sextoy, heres how to choose one.

Especially if you are trying sextoy for the first time, pay attention to the following three points:  Does the size fit you (the partner)?

Does the size fit you (your partner)?

Is the environment able to produce sound without problems?

Price range

First of all, the choice of size is quite important.

Most sextoy are used against or inserted into the genitals, but the genitals are very delicate organs for both men and women.

For this reason, using an inappropriate size may cause damage.

Secondly, the environment should be able to produce sound without problems.

Some sextoys not only wear, but also rotate and vibrate. Its easier to get pleasure from something that moves than something that doesnt, but the fact that it moves means that the internal rotors make some noise.

If you live in a house with thin walls or if you have roommates, you may not be able to concentrate because of the noise, so it is best to choose one that is silent or has a low noise level.

Especially in India, where many people live with their families, it is very important that you dont have to worry about sound when you use it.

Finally, there is the price range.

The price range of sextoy ranges widely, from around RS500 at the cheapest to RS10,000 or more at the highest.

Its good to consider how much money you can afford and how much you want to buy.

Do you want your family to not find out about sextoy?

I live with my family and want to use sextoy without them finding out! If you are a man, you should buy a camouflage sextoy that does not look like a sextoy at first glance.

For men, there are many masturbators that do not look like a sextoy, and for women, there are vibrators that only look like cosmetics.

If you choose such a type, youll be safe in case your family members find out.

How to buy sextoys in India

The best way to purchase sextoy is through online shopping.

For more information on how to purchase sextoy, please see the article below.

Sextoy is one of them.

Therefore, you can easily get sextoy in India by using online shopping.

SexToysINDIA is a long established and stable sextoy store and you can have sextoy delivered to any place in India.

They also offer cash on delivery, so those who are worried about shopping with a credit card do not have to worry.

Of course, the latest security is in place, so your information will not be taken out when you use your credit card.

To begin with, many people may be concerned about whether they are legally allowed to purchase sextoy.

ikmAs it turns out, its not illegal.

Right now, it is not open to the public because the Indian adult market is still in the development stage, but it will gradually spread from now on.

Take advantage of sextoy and open the door to new pleasures and culture.

Cautions for Indians using sextoy

When using sextoy, keep the following three things in mind

Keep sex toys clean

Watch out for electrical leakage

Beware of the heat generated by the body while using a sex toy

As I mentioned earlier, many sextoy products are used for the delicate zone.

Therefore, it is most important to keep the sextoy itself clean. It is very important to keep the sextoy itself clean, because if a slight scratch is created by friction, bacteria can enter and breed there.

It is safe to wear a condom when using the masturbator, just in case.

In addition, many sextoy devices are powered by a power source, so if they are not waterproof, there is a possibility of electric shock or malfunction due to wetness.

Some may even develop heat during continuous use. If the fever becomes too much, you may get burned, so be careful.

If you get a fever during use, stop driving the sextoy immediately and refrain from using it.

You will enjoy sex more if you keep it safe and use it correctly.

Summary

What did you think?

In this article, we have introduced the recommended sextoy for the beginners of sextoy in India.

The sextoy market is growing rapidly in India and it will continue to grow steadily in the future.

As India is a rather closed-minded country, it can be difficult to be open about ones sexual habits and values.

However, being faithful to ones desires by properly dissolving ones sexual desire is very effective for ones physical and mental health.

If this is your first time to learn about sextoy, or if you are interested in using sextoy, why not give it a try?

Indian Sextoys for ur best! will introduce you to sextoy and other trivia about sextoy, sexuality, and sexuality for men and women.

I want to read more! If you think its a great idea, please bookmark it.
CARBONDALE  A low rumble shakes the shaft, the lights flicker and die as dust particles quickly fill the air.

Youre in the middle of an emergency, deep underground in a coal mine. Maybe its a collapse, or maybe its a fire. Or maybe its a medical emergency, and your stricken co-worker is in an area that is difficult to access. Any way you slice it, youre hoping that help  skilled, proficient help  is on the way.

A team of students in the Department of Mining and Mineral Resources Engineering at Southern Illinois University Carbondale is learning how to help in such a situation, and gaining knowledge that will help make them better mining engineers at the same time.

The Rescue Dawgs, SIUs mine rescue team, is part of a Registered Student Organization known as the Saluki Miners. It formed when mining engineering students became interested in learning more about mining safety and rescue, said Justin Bollini, a senior in mining engineering from Alton.

We decided that a mine rescue team would be the perfect blend of classroom knowledge and hands-on learning, Bollini said. Since we are a collegiate team we cannot be mobilized in the event of an emergency. But once a student graduates and joins a company or state mine rescue team, then they can be called to actual emergencies.

Our program trains students to be able to join a company or state team without the need to be trained by the state or company team from scratch, which can take up to two years, he said.

The Rescue Dawgs are believed to be the first collegiate mine rescue team in Illinois. The team began training at events last year, using the mine simulation and firefighting training center at Rend Lake College.

Since then, the team has spent time slowly acquiring equipment donated from local underground mines. Bollini said the professional miners and mining companies in the area have been strong supporters of the teams efforts.

Mining is a very tight-knit field and companies have been very helpful with supplying us with equipment in order to help us train, Bollini said. Mining companies are very interested in helping produce safety-oriented mining engineers here at SIU.

He hopes others will contribute as well.

We are always looking for monetary or equipment donors to help sponsor our team for trainings, contests and equipment, he said.

Being part of the team also means that once students such as Bollini graduate, they will have experience showing they are a safe, dependable applicant because of the health, safety and mine rescue experience they received at SIU.

Mining engineering students take safety very seriously and we all strive to learn as much as possible about safety practices, both in school and during internships, Bollini said. We believed that a mine rescue team would be a great hands-on way to learn about safety practices and emergency management focused on the mining field.

The 12 members of the team receive training in many areas that are critical to mine safety, Bollini said.

For instance, learning to take gas readings which test air quality levels underground, is a top team priority. Since gasses settle to different heights due to differences in specific gravities, students often relate what they learned in chemistry to gasses encountered in mines and their properties.

The team also works on finding different ways to re-establish ventilation in a mine, should it be lost due to an accident. Mine ventilation is a major subject in mining engineering, but being on the rescue team gives students an opportunity for practical application.

This is of paramount importance in underground mine rescue scenarios, Bollini said.

Students also are well-versed in mine environmental health and safety rules and regulations at both the state and federal levels. Such knowledge comes directly to bear in mine emergencies, Bollini said.

The list is endless on ways we tie in our classroom knowledge to the skills we learn and practice with the team, he said.

Bollini says team members strive to share their knowledge and skills with the public at every opportunity to demonstrate the care and professionalism within the mining industry.

Mining can be viewed negatively by the public and we hope to help show that mining is not only a safe and environmentally conscious field, but that the mining community is also a very good steward to the local economy. It supplies thousands of well-paying jobs to the Illinois economy.

This spring, seven members of the team will compete against mine rescue teams from other colleges and universities at the Eastern Collegiate Mine Rescue Contest at West Virginia University.
Initially formed by the hand of man, Lake Marion has evolved into a paradise for wildlife.

Lake Marion, South Carolinas largest lake, was formed in November 1941 during the construction of the Santee Dam as part of state-owned utility Santee Coopers Hydroelectric and Navigation Project.

The project was initiated under President Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal program during the Great Depression.

The reservoir was constructed to provide hydroelectric power to rural South Carolina and to provide needed jobs for the depression-ravaged state.

Covering about 110,600 acres, the lake is located within the coastal plain and is bordered by Orangeburg, Calhoun, Clarendon, Berkeley and Sumter counties. The lakes headwaters extend upstream almost to the confluence of the Wateree and Congaree rivers, where seasonally flooded, forested wetlands form the wildlife-rich Sparkleberry Swamp.

Lake Marion is fed by many tributaries, including Wyboo Creek and the Santee River, and also by numerous springs including Eutaw Springs. The lake is named for the American Revolutionary War General Francis Swamp Fox Marion. His former home of Pond Bluff was one of the properties flooded when the lake was created.

The completion of the project was moved ahead as the result of World War II, and Lake Marion Dam was closed before the clearing of Lake Marion was completed. As a result, thousands upon thousands of stumps, dead tree trunks and live cypress trees are found in the lake.

These have served as fish habitats for nearly all fish species, especially crappie, bream and catfish.

Native aquatic vegetation is also present along the gently-sloping shorelines and backwater sloughs, providing habitat for fish including largemouth bass, pickerel and bream.

The state fishing record for largemouth bass (16.2 pounds) was set at Lake Marion.

Other fish that abound in its waters are striped bass, white perch, white bass, shellcrackers and chain (Jack). Deer, foxes, squirrels, turtles, doves, turkeys, alligators and various species of ducks, hawks, eagles, egrets and ospreys also call Lake Marion home.

Public access is provided via several public boat ramps as well as at Santee State Park and Santee National Wildlife Refuge on the northern shore of the lake. Of the total 13,000 acres that make up Santee National Wildlife Refuge, only 4,400 acres are owned, with the remaining acreage being managed under a lease agreement with the South Carolina Public Service Authority (aka Santee Cooper). The refuge manages 10 conservation easements on private lands, totalling 458 acres, in Bamberg, Barnwell, Clarendon and Orangeburg counties.

Interstate 95 crosses Lake Marion near the town of Santee.
FLORENCE  Get ready to learn where your food and fiber comes from at the 2017 South Carolina AgriBiz and Farm Expo in the Florence Civic Center Jan. 11-12.

Hosted by leaders in the South Carolina agricultural industry, the expo is an event representing all aspects of agriculture both large and small. Admission is $5 per person. Children 10 and younger are admitted free with a parent. Tickets are available cash-only at Civic Center ticket booths. The Florence Civic Center is located at 3300 West Radio Drive.

Attractions at this fifth Expo include a farm show with a wide variety of equipment and farm products, coupled with educational components.

Education is a vital part of the South Carolina AgriBiz Expo, said Thomas Dobbins, director of the Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service. Several educational sessions that are designed to help South Carolina farmers be productive will be held during the Expo.

Clemson experts in organic crop production, agribusiness and marketing, vegetable production, food safety and hay production will be among the presenters.

The theme for this years educational sessions is Efficiency on Your Farm. Educational sessions during this years expo include several sessions slated for 9:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 11, in the concourse area of the Civic Center. They will cover how to recognize and maximize opportunities found on farms, the business basics of small farming operations, attracting and retaining customers, post-harvest handling and packaging of products from farm to fork and growing organic vegetable crops and cover crops.

S.C. AgriBiz Youth Day event will be from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday. This event is free, but registration is requested for planning purposes. Also on Wednesday, the FFA Statewide Tractor Operations and Safety CDE Contest will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. This event is for registered FFA participants, but everyone can attend.

Thursdays activities are scheduled begin at 9 a.m. in the Pee Dee Room. Thursdays events feature a vegetable production meeting and a discussion on the Food Safety Modernization Act. Attendees also will hear small farming success stories and other tips to help farmers create and maintain successful farming operations.

A Certified Animal Manure Managers class is scheduled for 12:30 to 2 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 12, in the Santee Room. The class is titled Impact of Fluctuating Fertilizer Prices on Manure Nutrient Value and will teach farmers how to improve efficiency by using litter on their crop land. Attendees will receive two hours of certification hours. For information about the CAMM class, contact Bryan Smith, CAMM program coordinator, at 864-984-2514, ext. 112, or wsmith@clemson.edu.

Other events taking place during the expo include a Food Truck Rodeo from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day and features vendors Its a Matter of Taste and The Donut Guy.

A Taste of South Carolina reception will be from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday Jan. 10, and will feature key agribusiness companies, leaders, award-winners and advocates associated with South Carolina agriculture. This reception is an invitation engagement with limited tickets available. To purchase a ticket, go to http://bit.ly/2i7S5Os.

South Carolina Commissioner of Agriculture Hugh Weathers will host a Breakfast with the Commissioner from 8 to 9 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 12, at the Expo. Admission is $25 for individuals and $250 for corporate tables. To register, go to http://bit.ly/2gUKx0C.

Year after year, this expo continues to be an exceptional event for showcasing all that South Carolina agriculture has to offer, Weatherman said. I encourage everyone to take advantage of this exciting opportunity to gain insight into the latest technological and agricultural innovations while networking with trade show exhibitors and other agribusiness leaders.

The Clemson University College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences will host a reception for CAFLS Tuesday, Jan. 10. For information, go to http://bit.ly/2hBfcnw. Other events scheduled to be held in conjunction with the Expo are the Florence Youth Leadership Class, a Waste Pesticide Collection class and Professional Development for Career Specialists. For information on these events, go to http://bit.ly/2hQpiS6.

For a full list of events, or for more information, go to http://scagribiz.com/expo/
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By Azernews

By Nigar Abbasova

Azerbaijani entrepreneurs will pay a visit to Iranian cities Tabriz and Ardabil on January 14-17 to expand relations between businesspeople of the two countries.

A number of visits with Iranian businessmen are planned to be held within the visit, which will be organized with the support of Azerbaijans National Confederation of Entrepreneurs.

Besides, Azerbaijani and Iranian businessmen will come together in Baku for a forum to be organized by Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Foundation (AZPROMO) on December 27.

The event will bring together Iranian entrepreneurs, engaged in the spheres of agriculture, food industry, light industry, pharmaceuticals, transport, logistics, tourism, ICT, construction, production of building materials, and auto spare parts. The forum is expected to contribute to trade, political, and economic collaboration between the countries.

The two countries are eager to develop their non-oil economy, integrate regional transport networks and boost mutually advantageous business projects. Azerbaijan is currently changing its economic policy, switching the focus from the reliance on energy resources to industry, production capacity, and developing its non-oil sector  particularly tourism, agriculture, IT, and transport.

Such spheres as agriculture, banking sector, pharmaceutics, as well as cooperation within the international North-South transport corridor are the main areas that the two states are focused on.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Iran amounted to $175 million in January-November 2016, with some $130.13 million accounting for import from Iran. Iranian companies have so far invested some $1.2 billion, while some $145 million fell to a share of the non-oil sector. Some 450 companies with Iranian capital are operating in Azerbaijan.
By Azertac

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and his wife Mehriban Aliyeva have today attended the inauguration of the second section of Gala-Pirallahi highway.

Chairman of Azeravtoyol OJSC Saleh Mammadov informed the head of state about the works done.

President Ilham Aliyev cut the ribbon symbolizing the opening of the highway.




By Azernews

By Gunay Camal

The recent assassination of the Russian Ambassador to Ankara surely affected Russian-Turkish relations, but not for the worst.

The brutal killing of Karlov, recorded as the tragedy in the country's diplomatic history, could not inflict a political damage on the Turkey-Russia relations, but boost the shattered confidence between the states.

As the murder took place against a background of a recovering Russia and Turkey relations, the perpetrators surely expected cold winds to blow between the two nations once again. But, to surprise of the perpetrators, Karlovs murder failed to derail the process of normalization of the ties between Russia-Turkey. In addition, Karlovs death is unlikely to derail the plans of regional players regarding Syria.

During his big press conference on December 23, Russian President Vladimir Putin described the murder of the countrys ambassador in Ankara as an assault on Russia and its ties with Turkey.

This was primarily an assault on Russia and Russian-Turkish relations. Frankly, I used to be skeptical about claims that our jet was shot down [in Syria in November 2015] without an order from Turkeys top leadership but rather by people who wanted to damage Russian-Turkish ties," Putin said at the annual press conference.

"But the attack on the ambassador by a special operations officer got me thinking: I feel now it is possible that destructive elements could have found their way into social structures, including the law enforcement and the army," he admitted. "Will this undermine the Russian-Turkish relationship? No, it wont because we realize the importance of Russian-Turkish ties and will make every effort to deepen them," Putin vowed.



The tragedy occurred just one week after the end of the operation on liberation of Aleppo, which became possible thanks to a deal between Russia and Turkey. President Vladimir Putin, called the killing a provocation aimed at sabotaging a rapprochement between Moscow and Ankara and attempts to resolve the conflict in Syria, while some in Ankara named it as backstab to Turkey.

Fatih Oke, the former press attache of Turkeys embassy in Washington, DC, earlier tweeted: The bullet to Ambassador Karlov does not only aim him. It aims also Turkish Russian relations. This statement indicated that there are a number of third parties interested in alienating Ankara and Moscow.

The motivation behind the killing remains unknown yet, but it was unable to change the course of events in Turkey, Russia or talks over resolution of the Syrian issue. The assassination of the Russian ambassador angered both sides but it allowed two nations unite in an anti-terror alliance.

Turkey and Russia have understood that they feel confident with each other on strategic issues, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on December 25, adding that both sides kept their words in the implementation of the Aleppo deal that provided a partial ceasefire and evacuation from the city.



Russia has kept its word in our efforts to implement a ceasefire, to provide humanitarian aid, to save these people [from Aleppo] and to expand the ceasefire to the whole of Syria. They kept their words until the end. It even urged those who violated [the deal]. Likewise, Turkey has also kept its words, he said.



Turkey and Russia have understood that they can trust each other, the minister said, reiterating that the killing of Karlov was planned and executed by the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETO) and described the assassination as treachery.
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Luxury real estate developer Damac Properties will be offering a brand new BMW or a similar luxury car - with the purchase of select luxury apartments, priced at Dh599,000 ($163,037) onwards, in the emirate this Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF).



The emirate's biggest retail extravaganza, DSF kicks off today (December 26) and will run till January 28.



Known for its big deals for discerning customers, Damac has been at the forefront of luxury real estate development in Dubai.



In addition to its promotions, the company stresses high appreciation potential and returns in the Dubai property market.



Announcing the promotion, Niall McLoughlin, senior vice president, Damac Properties said: "Were pleased to offer investors a unique opportunity to experience the pleasure of luxury with Damac and drive away in a BMW or another luxury car, when they invest in a property across select luxury developments in Dubai."



"From luxury apartments overlooking Dubai Canal to branded residences in Dubai Marina, this offer allows property buyers not only to live the luxury, but to drive it too," he stated.



As of September 30, Damac had delivered approximately 16,800 homes. It has a development portfolio of over 44,000 units at various stages of progress and planning, comprising over 13,000 hotel rooms, serviced apartments and hotel villas, which will be managed by its hospitality arm, Damac Hotels & Resorts.



"With the citys development still on the rise, theres no better time than now to invest in property that will show high appreciation in the years to come," remarked McLoughlin.



"With Dubais real estate returns averaging at 7-9 per cent, easily 2-3 per cent higher than its matured international counterparts like London, New York or Paris, the city becomes a more attractive investment destination. In prime areas, even a 10-12 per cent return isnt uncommon, he stated.



"The market value of Dubais real estate sector also receives a push from socio-economic factors such as continuous population growth, expanding job markets, rapid infrastructural development, increasing tourism and retail growth  leading to a boost in the desirability and profitability of real estate," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) organised a workshop for educational institutions to introduce the new categories and standards of the Conservation Award.



The 11th edition of the Conservation Award is being held under the theme Together for a Sustainable Future, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, Dubai Educational Zone, and the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA); and in partnership with Taqati, and Etihad Energy Services.



Dewa also announced the opening of registrations for the awards at the two-day workshop which was held in both Arabic and English.



It witnessed the participation of over 120 educational institutions from the government and private sectors in Dubai, including nurseries, kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, universities, colleges, special needs centres, and adult education centres.



The workshop began with the launch of the Conservation Award brochure. It also included the launch of the Preparation Plan for Electricity and Water Conservation, which provides comprehensive details on how to achieve efficient conservation within educational institutions.



The workshop provided details on how to register, terms, standards and conditions, and cash prizes for the winners in each category.



It also aimed to encourage the students, faculty, and management of educational institutions to enhance their participation in the award, and to contribute towards achieving its goals.



Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, the managing director and CEO, pointed out that Dewa collaborates with different sectors to achieve strategic goals related to the environmental stability of Dubai.



"We strive to instil the principles of conservation in students through initiatives and programmes targeting the educational sector," he noted.



"Through this workshop, we aim to enhance the role of the educational sector, to achieve environmental sustainability. This will ensure a bright future for generations to come," stated Al Tayer.



The workshop introduced participants to the new categories of the award, which include Distinguished Educational Institution, Distinguished Conservation Leader, Distinguished Conservation Team, and Distinguished Conservation Project.



Amal Koshak, the senior manager of the marketing communication department at Dewa, said: "The award witnessed positive development across all areas, reflecting the motto, Together for a Sustainable Future, as we reiterate the importance of partnership between us and the educational sector, to prepare future generations that are able to continue sustainable development and protect our natural resources."-TradeArabia News Service


The Emirates Development Bank (EDB) has approved an estimated budget of Dh750 million ($204 million) for 2017 to finance housing loans for UAE nationals, said a report.



The budget has allocated a similar amount for the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to help the private sector generate more job opportunities for citizens, said the state news agency Wam.



The decision was taken during the EDBs 10th board meeting in Abu Dhabi under the chairmanship of Obaid bin Humaid Al Tayer, Minister of State for Financial Affairs and chairman of EDB, on Decenber 25.



Comprising around 300,000 companies and accounting for 86 per cent of the workforce in the private sector, the SME segment plays a critical role in the UAE economy, stated the report.



''The EDB strives to deliver the Federal Government Vision 2021 by providing support, finance and innovative banking solutions to small and medium companies to help drive the UAEs transformation into a knowledge-based economy, and encourage innovation as well as research and development," said Al Tayer.



It also extends housing loans to citizens to secure adequate accommodation at affordable cost,'' he added.



EDB was founded in 2011 with an authorised capital of Dh10 billion ($2.7 billion) to help finance developmental, residential and industrial projects for citizens.-TradeArabia News Service
The UAE's Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT), a leading higher education institution in the region, has received accreditation from the prestigious US-based Accreditation Board for Engineering & Technology (ABET) for its Engineering Technology and Science programs.



The HCT's Engineering Technology Bachelor programs in the majors of Chemical, Civil, Electrical, Electronics, Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering have been accredited, in conjunction with the Engineering Technology Accreditation Commission (ETAC), said a statement.



Engineering is one of the HCT's most popular programs with 6,138 male and female students, or about 26 per cent of HCT's total student population, enrolled in the various majors this year.



Dr Abdullatif Al Shamsi, HCT vice chancellor, said the national and international accreditation of its academic programs is a vital component of the strategic goals under its five-year, transformative HCT 2.0 initiative. The ABET accreditation reflected HCT's strategic directions and aspirations in innovative teaching and learning, as well as being aligned to Abu Dhabi Vision 2030.



"With the ABET accreditation, HCT students, employers, and the society we serve can all be confident that our Engineering programs meet the quality standards that produce graduates prepared to enter a global workforce. We are very proud of this key academic achievement, which will build on the history of excellence at the Higher Colleges of Technology," Dr Abdullatif Al Shamsi said.



Dr Al Shamsi added that this international accreditation will reflect positively on the students by enhancing their confidence in their programmes of choice. "It will also benefit HCT alumni seeking employment in various UAE institutions, by increasing employment opportunities and boosting HCT's graduate employability percentage of 100 per cent by 2021," he said.



He expressed his appreciation for the HCT's faculty and staff's keenness to implement these programmes in accordance with the international standards.



Founded in 1988 with four colleges, the HCT has grown to be the UAE's largest higher educational institutions, gaining a well-respected reputation for innovative learning. Over 23,000 students attend 17 modern, technology-oriented men's and women's campuses throughout the UAE. HCT offers a wide range of English-taught programs in the fields of Applied Communications, Business, Computer Information Science, Education & General Studies, Engineering Technology & Science, Foundations, Health Sciences and Arabic & Emirati Studies. - TradeArabia News Service
Dubai Healthcare City (DHCC) has announced plans to launch the Emirates Reference Laboratory (ERL), under the directives of Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.



The laboratory, which is a key part of DHCC, will provide UAE and GCC patients with access to efficient, reliable and cost-effective pathology testing services, in addition to specialised services that are currently unavailable in the region, said a Wam new agency report.



Dr Ali Ridha Al Hashimi will oversee the establishment of the ERL. He currently holds the positions of administrative director of the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory (CVRL), director of pathology services at the Dubai Health Authority (DHA), director-general of Dubai Herbal & Treatment Centre (DHTC), and steering committee member of Dubai Equine Hospital (DEH).



Dr Al Hashimi will also appoint key team members and work closely with government and regulatory bodies to make the ERL facilities a reality.



"The Emirates Reference Laboratory is one of many projects that Dubai is implementing to improve quality and access to world-class healthcare, through the DHCC," said chairperson of Dubai Healthcare City Authority HRH Princess Haya bint Al Hussein.



"I am very grateful for the DHCC teams efforts in working towards those goals, and as we continue to work hand in hand, we will achieve great results, positioning Dubai as the healthcare destination of the Middle East. I am also confident that Dr Ali Ridhas passion for medical sciences is evident in his many accomplishments in the field, and his wealth of experience equips him with the skillset needed to oversee the laboratory and ensure that it operates at world-class standards," she added.



Through its operations the ERLs primary objective is to serve Dubai, the UAE and the GCCs needs for advanced medical testing, which, up until now, is currently being outsourced to laboratories in Europe, Asia and Australia. It will also play a key role in supporting professors from Mohamed Bin Rashid University Hospital (MBRUH) in their undertaking of advanced medical research, and in turn will provide a unique learning experience for MBRUH students.



The long-term goal of the ERL is to allow existing and future DHCC hospitals including MBRUH, Al Jalila Childrens Specialty Hospital and Dubai Bone and Joint Hospital to have specialised and advanced testing undertaken at ERL.
Boeing has announced that the Boeing-Mubadala Co-Op internship programme is on course to provide vital aerospace engineering expertise to bolster the UAEs ever-expanding aviation capabilities.



The Co-Op programme, sponsored by Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC), was launched by Boeing and Mubadala in 2015 to support the development of a sustainable aerospace industry in the UAE.



Six students have graduated from the programme to date and 10 Emirati students will join the programme in August 2017, said a statement.



On completion, this initiative will have equipped up to 40 students with critical skills and experience to boost the UAEs domestic aerospace industry, it said.



The internship is an experiential learning opportunity that exposes a select group of undergraduate engineering students from the UAE to exciting career options in the world of aerospace engineering.



Throughout the 18-week programme, the students participate in professional development activities designed to build their network and broaden their exposure to Boeing and aerospace engineering.



The students are also introduced to fabrication, manufacturing engineering, liaison engineering, and industrial engineering modules.



The Co-Op program sends the engineering students to various Boeing locations in the US, including Seattle, Salt Lake City and Charleston, which is home to the company's second 787 Dreamliner final assembly and delivery facility. The graduates are then offered a position at one of Mubadalas Aerospace and Engineering Services companies.



Dr Mohamed Yousif Baniyas, higher education executive director at ADEC, said that the joint cooperation with various national and international sectors would contribute to the development of national competency standards according to the best practices. The cooperation will also improve students academic and vocational performance and foster their skills to work in a global competitive environment.



He added that this joint internship programme, that is offered by The Boeing Company in collaboration with Mubadala, is considered one of the significant programmes that would contribute to the provision of qualified Emirati manpower capable to work in the aerospace sector, drive and sustain Abu Dhabis social and economic growth and achieve ADEC goals aiming to provide human capital necessary for meeting labour market requirements in Abu Dhabi.



Bernard Dunn, president of Boeing Middle East, North Africa and Turkey, said: The programme is actively developing expertise that will directly benefit the UAEs ambitions for a sustainable aerospace industry.



Our objective for the next three years is to provide as much experience to as many Emirati students as possible to support the UAEs objectives, he said.



Homaid Al Shimmari, chief executive officer, aerospace and engineering services, Mubadala, added: Its extremely rewarding to see the graduation of highly qualified Emiratis coming through the programme.



As we look ahead to a new year, its vital that we continue to work with strategic partners, like Boeing, who are deeply rooted in our national ambition to become a future aviation hub, to develop an evolving pipeline of domestic talent and skills. Training local youth is a priority to deliver on the UAEs plan to accomplish our footing in the sector, he concluded.  TradeArabia News Service
Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), one of the world's leading aluminium producers, recently honoured 33 employees, which included eight UAE nationals, for completing 25 years service at the UAE industrial giant.



Abdulla Kalban, managing director and CEO of EGA, hosted the event, said a statement from the company.



He joined the company as a graduate trainee in 1985 and marked 31 years with EGA this year, it said.



Dr Ali Al Zarouni, executive vice president, midstream and a member of EGAs top executive committee, was amongst those reaching the 25-year milestone this year, as was Tayeb Al Awadhi, senior vice president, it added.



Over half of EGAs 11-strong executive committee are UAE nationals who joined the company either as graduate trainees or shortly after graduating from university, said a statement.



In total, 603 employees have completed at least 25 years service at EGA.



More than 40 per cent of the top 250 positions at EGA are held by UAE nationals, it stated.



Kalban said: Performance in our industry is based on continuous technical and operational improvement, so our ability to retain key staff for the long-term is critical, whether they are UAE nationals or expats.



For local staff, this is also Emiratisation in action. Developing people to the highest level in our company has always been our approach, and I see the results of this every time I meet with my executives, he said.



Dr Al Zarouni joined the company as a graduate trainee in 1991 and was responsible for leading expansion and optimisation projects that have increased EGAs operating efficiencies and productivity. He also heads up EGAs technology development team, which has developed industry-leading technology that has been licensed internationally.



He said: Together at our company we have built a global industry leader, which is also the foundation and heart of a growing broader aluminium industry in the UAE.



EGA is delivering jobs, economic opportunity and wealth for our nation, and I think this is what keeps our people here for the long term, Al Zarouni concluded.  TradeArabia News Service


All 92 people on board a Russian military passenger plane are believed to have died after it crashed into the Black Sea en route to Syria on Sunday, according to media reports.



The 33-year-old Tu-154 jet, which had been serviced recently, was carrying soldiers, reporters and 64 members of the Red Army Choir who were to perform for Russian troops.



Debris and 11 bodies have been found, with no reports of survivors, said a BBC report.



The plane disappeared from radar two minutes after taking off from Sochi at 05:25 (02:25 GMT), heading for Latakia in Syria, the Black Sea resort where the plane had made a refuelling stop, the defence ministry said.



As of Sunday evening, the cause of the plane crash had yet to be determined. Though officials were saying terrorism was not seen as the likely cause, Russias special Investigative Committee, which opened a criminal inquiry, was considering all possibilities, according to a Washington Post report.



Of course, the entire spectrum and almost any possible causes.?.?. are being probed, but it is premature now to speak about this as a terrorist act, Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov told reporters in Sochi.



Maj Gen Igor Konashenkov, a military spokesman, told reporters in Moscow that no one survived after the aging Soviet-era jet, which had set out from Moscow.



The plane had not sent a distress signal. The pilot was first class, Konashenkov said.



In nationally televised comments, Russian President Vladimir Putin declared Monday a national day of mourning and said the cause of the crash would be carefully investigated.
The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) of the UAE has issued new fee regulation for use of frequency spectrum and wireless equipment in the UAE.



The new regulation will be effective from January 1.



The new regulation contains fee for radio services used in land, maritime, terrestrial and satellite, including mobile service, broadcasting, satellite, and services related to emergencies and disaster relief.



Engineer Majed Sultan Al Mesmar, acting director general of TRA, said: The ICT sector is considered main nerve of many other sectors, as it offers infrastructure and advanced technological solutions to provide all kinds of services to the society. The radiocommunication is considered one of the pillars through which vital services are provided to the institutions as well as the individuals. The radiocommunication depends on the frequency spectrum which is limited in nature.



"The TRA has updated the spectrum fees regulation which is considered one of the most important regulating tools of radiocommunication sector at the global level, with the aim of achieving maximum utilization of the frequency spectrum. The regulation has been updated using global standards and benchmarks, after conducting thorough market study and service analysis in the radiocommunication sector in the country," he said.



The new regulation will support the provision of new technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), smart cities, space services and ICT sector projects. It will also support the re-use of frequencies to provide new services and modern technologies, which would encourage innovation, creativity and investment in the ICT sector in the country, in line with the national strategic plans, said Al Mesmar. - TradeArabia News Service


Bahrain-based Mesk Holdings, a leading hospitality, F&B company, in collaboration with Fakhro Communications, has deployed communications solutions from Avaya to improve connectivity, increase staff efficiency and cut operating costs.



Founded in 2005, Mesk owns and operates a group of locally and internationally renowned dining establishments in prime locations throughout Bahrain. Mesk wanted to replace its existing PBX system with a centralized IP telephony system that would allow the company to provide customers with a single contact number that could reach any establishment, while also allowing it to better monitor quality of service and call volumes.



By deploying the Avaya solutions, Mesk has connected the head office with its different outlets, and enabled centralized voice mail and recording functions. Callers can reach any restaurant using the same number, while the company can monitor and record agents located in each branch. By doing so, resources in different branches can be easily shifted to help another when call volumes rise, reducing wait times and abandoned calls.



The company can also use is now business analytics to capture data and intelligence to address staff resourcing requirements, such as identifying peak periods in advance. The centralized system has also helped Mesk to cut implementation and support costs.



The system was rolled out by Fakhro Communications, part of the Abdulla Yousif Fakhro Group, one of the oldest and best-established group of companies in Bahrain. Deploying the solution across the head office and all branches took two months, in a phased implementation.



Jassim Rahma, IT manager, Mesk Holdings, said: Fakhro Communications proposed Avayas system as the solution to our previous problems  which have now been successfully addressed thanks to the partnerships true understanding of our unique requirements.



We wanted a unified system that would allow us to seamlessly connect our outlets while providing our customers with easier access to our restaurants over the phone. With the Avaya solutions in place, we have been able to streamline our business, which, in turn, is enabling us to deliver a better customer experience than ever before.



Sam Georges Sarraf, country manager  Bahrain, Avaya, said: Customer experience is key to success in all industry today, and organizations of all sizes need to provide the right levels of service. Our solutions enable businesses to deliver the personalized experience that makes the difference between successful interactions and lost customers. Avaya, in partnership with Fakhro Communications, is proud to provide Mesk with the solutions that have digitally enhanced their business.



Mohamed Hasan, director Business Development, Fakhro Communications, said: As the owner of a large number of dining establishments across the nation, Mesk needed a trusted partner who could travel alongside them and identify and address their business needs. Centralization and resource optimization will enable them to deliver superior customer experience.



Avayas communication and collaboration solutions are the perfect fit for Mesk, helping to ensure increased staff productivity and customer loyalty. We are excited to be a part of their growth and success as they expand further and will provide continued and consistent support.  TradeArabia News Service
The UAE has formed a Higher National Committee for the Year of Giving initiative, which would include five ministers as members and the secretaries-general of the Executive Council of the emirates or those who would be nominated from local governments in the UAE.



The committee was formed by Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to implement the directives of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan with regard to the Year of Giving initiative, said a Wam news agency report.



Sheikh Mohammed also directed the immediate implementation of the directives of the President through the development of a comprehensive framework for the Year of Giving, taking into account the creation of quality and sustainable shift in the private sectors partnership with the public sector.



The committee also aims to bring a shift in voluntary work to be supportive of the work done by the government staff in the country, enabling governmental work to benefit from the voluntary work of all the UAE citizens and residents via the provision of specialist voluntary services to the Emirati society.



Sheikh Mohammed also directed the committee to set up a working plan in partnership with all segments of the society and implement real initiatives for the benefit of the UAE society in the time to come, besides developing the UAE foreign aid in accordance with the best international practices and working to establish a permanent change of behaviour of the generations towards serving the homeland in a positive way as part of the UAE lifestyle.



The committee will include Mohammad bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs and The Future and chairman of the Higher National Committee for the Year of Giving; Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy; Reem bint Ibrahim Al Hashemi, Minister of State for International Co-operation; Najla bint Mohammed Al Awar, Minister of Community Development; Dr Sultan bin Ahmad Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of State (chairman of the board of directors of National Media Council); Ohood bint Khalfan Al Roumi, Minister of State for Happiness; Shamma bint Sohail Faris AlMazrui, Minister of State for Youth Affairs; Dr Ahmed Mubarak Al Mazroui, Secretary-General of the Executive Council of Abu Dhabi; Abdullah Abdul Rahman Al Shaibani, Secretary-General of the Executive Council of Dubai; Sultan Ali bin Butti Al Muhairi; Secretary-General of the Executive Council of Sharjah; Saeed Saif Al Matrooshi, Secretary-General of the Executive Council of Ajman; Dr. Mohammed Abdul Latif Khalifa; Secretary-General of the Executive Council of Ras al-Khaimah; Humaid Rashid Al Shamsi; Secretary-General of the Executive Council of Umm Al Qaiwain; Mohammed Saeed Al Dhanhani; Director of the Fujairah Amiri Diwan and Saeed Al Eter, Director-General of the Public Diplomacy Office at the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs and the Future, he will be the rapporteur of the committee.



"The committee will directly begin to set the main objectives of the Year of Giving based on the directives of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and the framework set by Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, as well as per the directives and remarks of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, which emphasise that everyones ideas, initiatives or work for promoting solidarity in the community would be a road map for all members of the committee during 2017," said Al Gergawi, chairman of the committee.



According to him, cabinet members have started setting up the guidelines, main factors and framework of the Year of Giving initiative based on which the operational teams will work while preparing for the first meeting of the committee at the beginning of the new year. Team members have also started designing a logo for the initiative, to be used by all local government and media organisations, he added.



Al Gergawi pointed out that work in the Year of Giving would be conducted through specialised executive groups, which would include a large number of government officials, businessmen from the private sector and others.



He also noted that after the committees first meeting, there would be a meeting with the media outlets to explain details and the targeted initiatives of the Year of Giving on the role of the private sector, in partnership with the government, to serve the community.
Dubai Airports recently welcomed Sichuan Airlines first direct flight from Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport to Dubai International (DXB).



The airline, which operates into DXBs Concourse D, offers travellers two weekly flights on Airbus A330. Sichuan Airlines joined DXBs list of 90 international airlines in September 2015 when the carrier launched flights between Chengdu and Dubai via Yinchuan Hedong International Airport.



A direct connection to Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport, which is a major international airport serving the capital of China's Sichuan province, is a significant addition to DXBs connectivity which spans 240 destinations across six continents.  TradeArabia News Service


The TransGriot is available for speaking engagements, college lectures, panel discussions, media interviews, conferences or Trans 101 education efforts for your school, business or professional organizations.



For local Houston area, Texas or national events, you can e-mail me at transgriot@yahoo.com



For events outside the Houston metro area, I ask that my travel and lodging expenses be covered.



This is separate from my speaking fee.



If you are interested in having me appear as a speaker or panelist, you can e-mail me with the date and details of your proposed event.

Please book as early as possible because my speaking and event calendar slots during the year rapidly fill up.
Have an event, trend or general energy happening youd like to see in the Energy Journal newsletter? Send it to Star-Tribune energy reporter Heather Richards at heather.richards@trib.com. Sign up for the newsletter at www.trib.com/energyjournal.

This week in numbers

Friday oil prices: West Texas Intermediate (WTI) $52.03, Brent (ICE) $55.26

Natural gas weekly averages: Henry Hub $3.48, Wyoming Pool $3.42, Opal $3.45

Coal streams

The Obama administration pushed through a regulation to protect waterways near coal mines. Local industry and Republican lawmakers were quick to condemn the rule.

The regulation has a long history that traces back to Appalachia, where mining efforts were polluting minor streams and brooks.

For Western industry, the rule just doesn't fit, some say.

Others see a political imposition by a retreating president to an already beleaguered industry.

Wind and gas

Every year the cost of renewable energy drops, and in 2016 wind generation reached a milestone. In many cases, developing wind farms is cheaper than natural gas development.

According to analysts, however, wind will continue to be a source that works best with other fuels like natural gas or coal.

Wind farms have spread to most states but still account for only 5 percent of the nation's electricity generation.

A few more dollars

Federal projections on oil prices for 2017 are lower than some in Wyoming hope. The EIA reports that WTI will average $49 a barrel in the first half of the year, climbing to about $54 in the latter half of 2017.

Wyoming producers are hoping for a bit higher, with a $55 to $60 price range providing stronger coverage of the cost to drill.

The projections from the EIA were recently updated following an OPEC deal to curb production.

Midwest coal plant closures

The challenges to coal are well understood in Wyoming. Most know that natural gas is competing for coal's market share and that continuing emissions rules may reduce coal's future appeal.

However, a spate of expected plant closures in the Midwest reveal how soon those challenges could arrive in full force.
So when they butt-stroked me to the head from an AK-47 and I was bleeding down the side of my face and they threw me back in the cell I could
Monthly vets ceremony Dec. 30

The Natrona County United Veterans Council and the staff of the Oregon Trail Wyoming State Veterans Cemetery conduct a monthly memorial service for those known Wyoming veterans who have died since our last memorial service which was held on November 30, when we honored 86 Wyoming veterans.

This months memorial service will be held at noon, Friday, Dec. 30, in the Tom Walsh Chapel at The Oregon Trail Veterans Cemetery. All are welcome to attend.

This memorial service is provided on behalf of a grateful state and nation as an expression of appreciation for the honorable and faithful service rendered by each of these veterans.

The veterans name, Wyoming community and branch of service is read at roll call. There is a rifle salute, taps, and the folding of a flag.

Creches at senior center

Central Wyoming Senior Services, 1831 E. 4th St., is once again featuring creches collected by Ruth Ann and Marv Mitich. These wonderful nativities were gathered in trips with the Civic Chorale and various personal trips in the United States and Europe. We hope you will enjoy their unique collection from December through January.

Casper Chronicles II arrives

Just in time for a stocking stuffer, the newly published Casper Chronicles II is available at the Historic Bishop Home, Wind City Books, Fort Caspar, from DAR members, and by internet at www.cadomafoundation.org.

Following in the spirit of the 1964 Casper Chronicles, the new volume is a series of biographical articles that document families who have been in Casper and Natrona County for the past 100 years, and still have descendants living here that are contributing to our community life. The new book is a joint venture between the Cadoma Foundation, owner of the Historic Bishop Home, and the Fort Caspar Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. The core of the book is possible because of the generosity of the Casper Journal in allowing these organization to republish the stories that were a part of a 2014 series of biographical articles on several of pioneer families that continue to be part of our community.

With the assistance of Rebecca Hunt, author of Natrona County, People Place and Time, the original group of articles was expanded to include additional families.

Casper Chronicles II will be available at Wind City Books, Fort Caspar, the Historic Bishop Home located at 818 East 2nd Street, or by internet at www.cadomafoundation.org. The cost is $15 plus tax, shipping, and handling if appropriate. For additional information, call 235-5277 or write info@cadomafoundation.org.

Masquerade Ball New Years Eve

Stage III Community Theatre presents a Masquerade Ball on New Years Eve at the Black Gold Grille, 1650 English Ave. Enjoy dinner and dancing for $30 per person, $45 per couple, or $15 per person for the dance only. The ticket includes dinner, dancing, raffles, midnight munchies, and two special numbers performed by the Keyhole Peepshow Cuties. Dinner is served from 7 to 9 p.m., dancing from 8 p.m. to midnight. Tickets are available at the Black Gold Grille.

New Years Eve senior dance

SwingSounds Band has scheduled a New Years Eve Senior Dance style dance at the Eagles Hall, 306 N. Durbin St., on Saturday, Dec. 31. Admission is $10 per person. Dance starts at 7:30 p.m., and lasts until 12:30 a.m. Usual potluck is changed somewhat to bring salads and desserts. Sandwiches and finger food will be provided. Party favors will be available. Join in on the festivities and welcome in the new year. Entry at north parking lot door, additional parking across the street and the entire parking lot located at A and Durbin streets. Reservations are not needed but calling 235-5130 and registering can give an estimated head count to prepare for the party.

Robbie Daniels  235-5130

Symphony Jan. 21

The WSO Presents: Signs of Life, An Evening of Strings and Woodwinds, to wake up your senses and warm your heart at 7:30 p.m., on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017.

January is a perfect time to join The Wyoming Symphony Orchestra for an exuberant chamber music concert designed to warm our spirits on a winters night. Woodwinds and strings highlight the evening, beginning with 20th century composer Russell Pecks lush and lively Signs of Life II. A native of Detroit, Peck grew up listening to both Mozart and Motown, and celebrates Americas unique musical traditions, in a jazzy allegro work that sparkles with modern flair.

Cherished classical favorites continue the evening, beginning with Mozarts soothing and popular Serenade in C Minor, performed by the WSOs superb wind section. The pace then quickly picks up with the Dance of the Furies, from Glucks Orfeo and Euridice, and we end the evening with Haydns famous Farewell Symphony.

Tickets are on sale for the remaining three concerts of the Wyoming Symphony Orchestras 67th season bundled in our discounted Pick 3 package. All concerts are on Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m., at the John F. Welsh Auditorium at NCHS. We also continue to offer the Family Pass; which gives access to dress rehearsals on the Saturday of each concert weekend starting at noon, $10 for the entire family.

Reserve your preferred seats by calling 266-1478 or in person at the office, 225 S. David St. However, the symphony office is closed the week between Christmas and New Years. Tickets are also available at Wind City Books, and Hill Music. Discounts are available for students and seniors (65+). Visit www.wyomingsymphony.org for more information.
Wyomings liquor laws stem from legislation passed in 1935 following the end of Prohibition two years earlier.

Over the past year opposition to the regulatory framework  which includes capping the number of liquor licenses cities and towns can issue based on their population  became more prominent than some observers say they have seen in years.

Casper City Council raised a fuss in July after being forced to choose one of six applicants for a new retail liquor license that the city was allowed to grant based on growth in population.

We shouldnt be in this position, council member Kenyne Humphrey lamented at the time.

Council member Shawn Johnson was harsher in his attack on the current laws.

What our state liquor laws do is crush creativity and entrepreneurial spirit, he said. You have to beg the government, and thats not the way it should be.

The frustration with Wyomings liquor laws exhibited during the July meeting appear to have made a serious impact on the city council.

At a September meeting, what was supposed to be a routine extension of an inactive liquor license became another venting session.

Were going to look into this issue, Mayor Daniel Sandoval said of why license holders were able to hold onto the permits for years without using them to run a bar.

Licenses are issued by the city for $1,500 but can go for as much as $300,000 on the secondary market.

Then in October the Wyoming Association of Municipalities asked the State Legislature to remove the population-based cap on licenses and allow the market conditions and local licensing authorities to determine how many licenses are granted.

The State of Wyoming has progressed in so many different ways; however, liquor laws have not kept pace, the association wrote in a report.

The combination of hostility from city council and WAMs proposal motivated liquor dealers to speak out. In December local bar owner Matt Galloway spoke to council on behalf of the Natrona County Liquor Dealers Association.

Galloway said that bars slim profit margins already made business difficult. If the Legislature allowed an unlimited number of licenses to be issued, Galloway said, current license owners would lose their six-figure investments.

Its incredibly difficult right now, he said. I cant even fathom what it would be if we opened this up.

The Legislature will take up several bills addressing liquor laws during their January session but so far none would remove the population-cap on licenses.

That means the debate over how many licenses a city or town in Wyoming should be allowed to issue may spill over into future years  whether city council and WAM maintain their insistence that the cap be lifted remains to be seen.
Many Casper homes did not receive newspapers Monday morning after the Casper Police Department told drivers to stay off the roads.

Trucks carrying newspapers to the rest of the state also could not leave Casper because of closed roads.

Carriers do everything they can to get out there, but sometimes its not an option, said Lee Ann James, circulation operations manager for the Star-Tribune. We appreciate your patience.

If weather and roads permit, anyone missing their Monday paper should receive it along with their Tuesday paper.

A winter storm hit most of Wyoming on Sunday dumping more than a foot in western mountains and 6 or more inches in central Wyoming, according to the National Weather Service.

Riverton saw its snowiest Christmas Day ever with nearly 8 inches of snow, surpassing the old record of 4 inches in 1943 and 1949, NWS reported.

Casper remains under a high wind warning through Tuesday night with gusts up to 50 mph forecast Monday and up to 70 mph forecast Tuesday.

Portions of Interstates 25, 80 and 90 were closed Monday morning as well as many state and U.S. highways. Interstate 90 had reopened as of Monday evening.

The Wyoming Department of Transportation advised no unnecessary travel on Caspers West Belt Loop as of Monday evening. WYDOT also closed Wyoming Boulevard to light, high-profile vehicles Monday evening.
Trump lieutenant Newt Gingrich has proposed an elegant solution for all the conflicts of interest swirling around the president-elect and his team of billionaires: Ignore the law.

President-elect Donald Trump, Gingrich said, should let those in his administration do as they wish with their personal fortunes and business interests and pardon them if they are found to have violated laws against using public office for personal enrichment. He could simply say, Look, I want them to be my advisers, I pardon them if anybody finds them to have behaved against the rules, period, Gingrich said on NPRs The Diane Rehm Show last Monday.

Drain the Swamp is so October.

In another NPR interview on Wednesday, Gingrich said Trumps swamp campaign theme had been relegated to the marshlands of history, asserting that he now says it was cute, but he doesnt want to use it anymore.

Trump, in a subsequent tweet, said he will continue to use the phrase. But former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, who just announced hes setting up a consulting firm that will profit from his proximity to the new president, told Fox News on Thursday that drain the swamp is probably somewhere down at the bottom of Trumps to-do list.

Clearly. The Trumps recently proposed to auction off access to Ivanka Trump (bidding had exceeded $72,000 in charitable contributions for coffee with the presidential daughter).

The General Services Administration has said Trump will be in violation of his lease agreement for the Trump International Hotel in Washington because the contract prohibits any U.S. elected official from participating in or benefiting from the lease. Trump needs to decide whether to try to oust the head of the IRS, which he says is auditing him. (The Trump Foundation recently admitted to the IRS that it violated federal rules against self-dealing).

Then theres the minor matter of the Constitution and its obscurely named emoluments clause, which forbids the receipt by a U.S. official of funds or gifts from foreign governments. Trump has business ties in hundreds of companies doing business in a score of foreign countries.

Trump could avoid this constitutional problem and other law-breaking by divesting himself of his business holdings, but he so far has announced no specific action. The billionaires and business leaders he has named to top posts present more conflicts and are subject to additional ethics laws.

Those laws arent a problem if the Trump administration follows the Gingrich plan of breaking them. But before the GOP was the Party of Donald Trump, it was the Party of Abraham Lincoln, who as a young lawyer in Illinois in 1838 warned that disregard for laws would leave the United States vulnerable to its own Caesar or Napoleon.

I know the American people are much attached to their government, Lincoln said. Yet, notwithstanding all this, if the laws be continually despised and disregarded ... the alienation of their affections from the government is the natural consequence.

Lincoln warned that the loss of the political religion of the rule of law would leave the country defenseless when an ambitious leader felt unconstrained by the founders framework and tried to create his own. Is it unreasonable then to expect, that some man possessed of the loftiest genius, coupled with ambition sufficient to push it to its utmost stretch, will at some time, spring up among us? Lincoln asked. And when such a one does, it will require the people to be united with each other, attached to the government and laws, and generally intelligent, to successfully frustrate his designs.

We have largely lost this attachment already. A recent Wall Street Journal-NBC News poll found that only 22 percent of Americans have confidence in the federal government.

Both parties contributed to the impression that public figures violate the laws they are meant to enforce. President Obama, continuing the practice of previous administrations, tested the boundaries of presidential power with his many executive orders and actions, particularly on immigration and health care. Bill Clinton made false statements under oath. Hillary Clinton, though undeserving of the lock her up! and crooked Hillary treatment, was careless with classified information and casual about transparency laws, and she often gave the impression that donors to her campaign and foundation were paying for access.

But this is an order of magnitude worse: an incoming president directly at odds with the Constitution, many of his top aides flouting federal laws against self-dealing  and a key adviser proposing brazen law-breaking. Where is Lincolns political religion when we need it?
We all have many connections and some relationships are better than others. None of the relationships we have are better than the ones we have with The Connectors.

There is a difference between people who are connected, and people who are connectors. Connected people attend lots of events, they know lots of people and can refer a lot of business. They are great to have in your network, but the connectors are better.

All connectors seem to know a lot of people, and a lot of people know them. A good connector knows exactly who to introduce you to as soon as you meet them. Connectors see potential strategic partnerships you never knew existed. The best connectors see opportunities most people do not. The connector knows how to convert those opportunities into something measurable.

Maybe it is a stream of referral business you are looking for, or an introduction to get past a gatekeeper? Looking for funding for a nonprofit, or a partner for a new business venture? No problem, almost anything is possible for the connector.

Connectors can introduce you to incredible referral sources, and can create amazing opportunities. The connector has the ability to impact your bottom line much more than most.

Good connectors are rare, so if you know one, be grateful and do everything you can to develop that relationship. Connectors love creating introductions and opportunities more than anything else. Making connections for others is what feeds them. If you appreciate their efforts, they will do more for you. If you help them achieve their goals, they will do more than you ever imagined.
Boys: Mason

Meaning: Transferred use of the surname, which originated in the early Middle Ages as an occupational name for a worker in stone.

Celebrity: Mason Cook

Girls: Charlotte

Meaning: Feminine diminutive of Charles, used in England since the 17th century. It was particularly popular in the 18th and 19th centuries, in part due to the influence of firstly Queen Charlotte (17441818), wife of George III, and secondly the novelist Charlotte Bronte (181655); it has again come to prominence since the 1980s, especially in England and Australia.

Celebrity: Charlotte Ross
PHOENIX  A state senator is trying again to make it easier for public officials to deny requests for records they believe are unduly burdensome or harassing.

The proposal by Sen. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, leaves in place existing requirements for records to be open to public inspection, and spells out that those who are denied access can sue and recover their legal fees.

But SB 1019 adds a requirement that the records sought must be identified with reasonable particularity.

Potentially more significant, it provides public officials with the ability to claim that the request for access to public records is unduly burdensome or harassing.

Kavanagh acknowledged that his legislation provides no definition for either term.

But the senator said that does not make it a flawed measure.

Just like when the personal privacy trumps the publics right to know is vague, he said. But we live with that and we allow judges to make that determination.

He said its a matter of common sense, saying some people take pleasure out of making the government do all this work and then not even showing up to look at it.

The measure traces its roots to problems in several rural areas.

Steven Moore, the Yuma city attorney, said last year that two individuals make 70 percent of all the public-records requests. One, Moore said, made 46 requests in 44 business days, even requesting copies of all his prior requests.

And Rep. David Stevens, R-Sierra Vista, made his own stab at changing the law after saying local officials were getting requests that take up to five days to research and fill, with some agencies having to hire additional staffers to comply.

Dan Barr, attorney for the First Amendment Coalition, said he understands the desire to deal with that kind of problem.

Everyone agrees in the extreme instance where you have some gadfly repeatedly making vague and large public-records requests  and in some cases not even picking up the records  at that point the public body can say We shouldnt have to comply with these requests anymore, he said.

But Barr said he reads existing law to already allow public agencies to get a court order for such extreme instances.

He said he fears that the proposed language could be abused.

It gives the public body a way to deny the request if they dont want to comply with the request from a reporter or a criminal defense attorney or a private investigator because they feel its harassing them, Barr said. He said that provides cover for officials who would rather not reveal information that could be controversial or embarrassing.

And once a public official raises the excuse of burdensome or harassing, it puts the burden on the person requesting the records to hire an attorney and go to court to get the documents.

Kavanagh said he understands the concerns and would consider any proposals to tighten up the language.

I would certainly not want to make harassing some policy position to be grounds for denial, he said.

In fact, if its a controversial policy (at the heart of the request), all the more reason to have public inspection.

Kavanagh shepherded legislation with the same language out of the Senate last year on a 22-7 vote, but ran into opposition in the House, where members voted 40-19 to kill the measure amid concerns it could be abused.
The Arizona Daily Stars Sportsmens Fund Send a Kid to Camp program raises money so children from low-income households and military families can attend overnight YMCA, Boy Scout and Girl Scout camps and Camp Tatiyee, for school-age children and older teens with special needs, at little or no cost to their families.

We spent $190,982 to send 644 children to camp this year. So far this year weve received 1,376 donations totaling $168,344.

Since 1947, the Arizona Daily Star Sportsmens Fund has helped pay for 38,551 children to go to camp. Were one of the oldest 501c(3) charities in Arizona. Your contribution qualifies for the Arizona tax credit of up to $800 for donations to qualifying charitable organizations.

Donations are welcome throughout the year.

Recent donations include:

Joseph Acker, $200.

Eva Andrews, $100.

Sara Boyd, $100.

Harry Brauer, $100.

Russell Case, $400.

Raymond and Anita Colony, $100.

Theresa Dellheim, $50.

Sherall and Patrick Donovan, $400.

Robert Downs, $200.

Marilyn Freeouf, $200.

Sally Gershon, $200.

Steven Gibson, $50.

Mr. and Mrs. James Gideon, $100.

Mary Gilliam, $200.

Robert Grainger, $100.

Sherry Graves, $25.

Christian Hansen, $100.

Susan Nehls, $400.

Linda Skinker, $100.

Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Truman Spangrud, $100.

Judi White, in memory of Vin and Helen Coxon, $200.

Wayne Wilkerson, $400.

Dale Windham, $100.

Two anonymous donations totaling $200.
The Pastry Party Bus rolled up to the Syrian Sweets Exchange to cheers.

Volunteers and a few hungry customers already in line clapped and waved at the school bus carrying about a dozen Syrian refugees and their platters of baked goodies.

A few of the bus riders laughed at the warm welcome. This was all for them.

For the second weekend in a row, Syrian women and their families had gathered at Grace St. Pauls Episcopal Church, 2331 E. Adams St., to sell treats from their kitchens.

Many had been baking for days, using recipes passed on to them by mothers and grandmothers, to share with the Tucson community.

Organized by members of Arizona Welcomes Refugees, a group started by state Sen. Steve Farley, the first Syrian Sweets Exchange on Sunday, Dec. 11, drew such a crowd that it sold out within the first hour, said Nour Jandali, a member of Tucsons Syrian community. Jandali moved to the U.S. from Syria about 23 years ago.

Melanie Cooley, an organizer of the event, guessed that anywhere between 300 and 400 customers came to the first bake sale.

Cooley estimated as many as 500 people showed up the second time around.

The next Saturday, they handed out about 375 pastry boxes. Thats not including all of the customers who shopped without a box.

One guy even brought his own Tupperware container.

Many came shopping for Christmas gifts or desserts for a holiday party.

The women took the first weeks success seriously. On the second weekend, they stuffed their tables with treats instead of bringing just a few platters.

A few extra women also joined the mix that week, bringing the total head count of bakers to about 20, Cooley said.

The attitude: You want food? We will bring you food, Cooley added.

And bring it they did.

Some of the women began gathering around 8 a.m. that Saturday at an apartment complex to board the Syrian Sweets Express  a school bus borrowed from the Islamic Center of Tucsons Al-Huda Islamic School. The bus made several pickups on the way to the church.

For some women, getting around can be a challenge if the family lacks a car or only the husband has a drivers license and is working.

Hence the bus.

As the event started and customers streamed between tables, some children wandered the area while others stayed close to their mothers, helping sell tables full of sweets, cups of Syrian coffee and more savory samplings.

Money changed hands and so did languages, with the women saying, Thank you and the customers learning the Arabic: Shukran.

Each family keeps 100 percent of the money earned, putting it toward bills that pile up or gifts for children.

The bake sale opened at 9:30 a.m. and finished two hours later. A line of people waited outside the tent until nearly 11 a.m.

Sarah Gzemski, a publicity and publications coordinator for the University of Arizonas Poetry Center, hit up the bake sale the first time with friends, but by the time they arrived, many of the sweets were gone.

The second weekend, Gzemski got up early and was one of the first in line.

It was amazing and full, she said the first bake sale. So many people came out. It was joyful and everyone was just enjoying their sweets.

For many of the women baking, the sales meant a chance to get out of the house and interact with the greater community and one another.

Im very happy to be here and working with the ladies from Syria to serve the community, said Ahed Al Asmi, a 26-year-old mom of three from Daraa, Syria, whose family has been in the U.S. for about three months.

Rania Kanawati, an organizer and Tucsonan who moved to the U.S. from Syria more than 20 years ago, translated.

Marwa Al Fandi, 27, is also from Daraa. Her family has been here for four months.

Baking for Tucson has kept her busy  a welcome distraction from recent events the previously besieged city of Aleppo, where many of these families still have connections.

People want to help Aleppo, Farley said at the bake sale. This is a very tangible way to help.

And for these women and their families, the community support at the bake sales overcame any sort of language barrier.

They were so happy because first of all, they see on TV that the U.S. does not want Syrians, Jandali said.

But then they see all of these Tucson people. ... They were telling people, We are glad we came to Tucson because they are welcoming here.

In the Middle East, Syria has a reputation for its sweets, Cooley said she has learned.

Not only has the bake sale given these women something to do, but now they have something to offer.

I was visiting with another one of my friends this week and she was talking about how meaningful it is for her to get to share Syrian culture and to get to share who they are, Cooley said.

Food is really integral to their culture and hospitality and the preparing of food, and they are quite passionate about it, so getting to share that with a new neighbor and connect with people through food and being able to actually offer something is really meaningful to them.

This is not the last time Tucson will have a chance to sample Syrian sweets, organizers said. An email subscription will keep interested people up-to-date on Syrian sweets in Tucson. This is only the start.

They dont need language for this, Farley said. When you cook the most delicious sweets ever, that speaks louder than any language.
Newspaper publishers sometimes go to extreme lengths to get out the news. Few were as determined as Angela Hutchinson Hammer who set up a print shop in an open corral to publish the Casa Grande Valley Dispatch.

Angie, as she was called, was already a seasoned publisher and considered this outdoor foray into printing a mere stopgap in her pursuit to bring all the news to the public.

1913 had been a hard year for Angie and her three sons, but when the first issue of the Casa Grande Valley Dispatch went to press on Jan. 1, 1914, she hoped her troubled times were over.

Born Nov. 30, 1870, Angie was the second of five daughters of William and Sarah Hutchinson. Her engineer father built and operated stamp mills in mining communities across the West.

In 1881 when he headed for work at the Silver King Mine in Arizona, Angie and three of her sisters were left behind in a Virginia City, Nevada, orphanage until the threat of Indian attacks abated in Arizona Territory.

The Hutchinson family moved to Phoenix in the late 1880s. Angie found work folding fliers for the Phoenix Republican newspaper, and eventually learned to set type. She graduated from Miss Clara A. Evans Teacher Training School and began teaching in Wickenburg in 1889.

In 1896, Angie married building contractor Joseph Hammer. Their son Louie was born in 1897, Bill arrived in 1899, and Marvin in 1902. By 1903, the marriage was over and she was left with $500 and three young boys to support. When the Wickenburg Miner newspaper came up for sale, she purchased it for $250.

Unfortunately, the Miners ancient printing press dated back to the 1830s and Angie soon realized the list of advertisers she had purchased, as well as roster of subscribers, was inflated with false figures.

Bartering with advertisers and subscribers by taking fruits and vegetables as payment for ads and copies of the paper, the Miner began to prosper. She bought out a competing paper, the News-Herald.

Angie contracted with small mining communities in the area to print a front page for each town, attached to the regular issue of the Wickenburg Miner. Her desert newspaper chain consisted of the Eagles Eye in Aguila, the Wenden News, the Swansea Times, and the Salome Sun.

Wickenburgs population hovered just over 500 around the time the town incorporated in 1909, and the 15 local saloons did a rollicking business. Angie backed the Womens Christian Temperance Union, encouraging voters to dry up their town. Her editorials were so outspoken against saloon owners that fights broke out between her supporters and bar patrons. She received threats to herself and her press.

The town voted the saloonkeepers out, setting Wickenburgs leading political figures against Angie. Fearing for her childrens safety, she hired a manager for the paper, took her sons to Phoenix, and opened Hammer & Sons Print Shop. But newspaper ink was in her blood.

In 1913, Angie moved her printing equipment to Casa Grande and went into partnership with Ted Healey to produce the Casa Grande Bulletin. On Sept. 11, 1913, the first issue of the Bulletin hit the streets. Angies money bought the paper stock and supplies, although any profits were split equally between her and Healey.

At the time, Casa Grande was torn between two factions proposing diverse water remedies for the agricultural area. Angie backed the Casa Grande Water Users Association that argued for construction of a dam at San Carlos, while Healey preferred pumping ground water or paying for water provided by canal companies. Each expected to use the Bulletin to support their cause. The partnership fell apart.

Angie learned that Healey planned to abscond with her printing equipment . Under cover of darkness, she and her boys hid the printing press in a horse barn, leaving behind the subscription list Healey claimed was worth $15,000 as payment for his half of the business. On that first day of 1914, the Casa Grande Valley Dispatch came to life in the open-air corral.

Three years later, a banker offered Angie a chance to buy the Bulletin as Healey was ready to sell. Using her printing machinery and equipment as collateral, she went into default when the economy turned sour during World War I. The banker told Angie women were not cut out for newspaper work.

Retaining her subscription list, she tried in vain to keep the Dispatch running by having it printed in Phoenix. But by spring 1918, she could no longer make a living with the paper and closed its doors.

Two years later, she started up the Dispatch again and the business flourished. In 1923, the Arizona Gazette lauded Angies paper as one of the most alert and readable of our contemporaries.

Angie sold the Dispatch in 1924 telling her readers she had enjoyed the work even though it took me through troubled times and to the threshold of disaster.

She bought the Messenger newspaper in Phoenix and established the Messenger Printing Co. with sons Bill and Marvin.

Angie had served as immigration commissioner for Pinal County since 1915, promoting Arizona tourism through her newspaper. She sat on the State Board of Social Security and Welfare from 1938 until 1943. She was also active in the Phoenix Business and Professional Womens Association, the Phoenix Pen Womens Association and the Phoenix Writers Club, although she confessed her happiest days were spent in the middle of a hot controversy as editor of a local newspaper.

In 1938, she turned over the Messenger Printing Co. to her two sons and returned to Casa Grande to care for her son Louies children after his wifes death. Angie died in Phoenix on April 9, 1952.

Born with a terrific zest for living and a love for her fellowman, Mrs. Hammer was ever ready to pick up the cause for the side she believed to be right, boasted the Arizona Daily Star upon her selection as the first woman elected to the Arizona Newspapers Association Hall of Fame in 1965. She was the embodiment of the pioneer woman.
The Republicans are waging war against the right to vote. Although there is no evidence, elections are denounced as fraudulent. They have slate of election denying candidates on ballots across the country. These candidates are great at identifying the problems facing our country, but not so 
Help India!

By Sharjeel Imam

Out of the first four caliphs of Islam, the third i.e Uthman was an Umayyad, a powerful Quraish tribe based in Mecca whose leaders converted to Islam only after being besieged and defeated by a powerful force led by Muhammad in 8 Hijri. Uthman had converted to Islam in Muhammads early Meccan phase, but the bulk of his tribe did not convert till the fall of Mecca. Hence the Umayyads led by Sufiyan were not a part of the initial Muslim community of Medina which was formed of two groups: muhajireen (literally migrants i.e. those who migrated from Mecca) and ansaar (literally helpers, i.e. those who hosted the migrants). The first four caliphs: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali are all muhajireen. Two observations are interesting: 1) we do not hear much about ansaar after Muhammads death in common discussions, and 2) Uthman was the only caliph from a very powerful anti-Islam clan, and was the first Caliph to be murdered by Muslims themselves.

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Who killed Uthman? is unanswered question at the heart of Islamic history, because what follows seems to have divided the early Muslims, and led to first civil war among the Arab Muslims. There are charges of nepotism, anger against the standardisation of Quran, but none of this can justify the murder of the caliph. Like always, there are Jewish conspiracy theories as well. We will not ex-plore this difficult dimension, because the historiography is too thin, and too late to be trusted. We return to the broader contours of the struggle which have left more traces. Muawiyah, the son of Sufiyan, who had also converted to Islam, was Uthmans cousin, and had by then established a powerful base in Damascus, which will emerge later as the first dynastic/imperial capital of Muslims under the Umayyads. Muawiyah demanded revenge as his Islamic right, and refused to submit to any Caliph who will not revenge Uthmans murder.

Meanwhile in Medina, Ali, cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, was elected as the new leader and commander of the faithful. Sensing the danger of living in a relatively undefended city, Ali moved to garrison town of Kufa in Iraq, and made it his headquarter, and asked Muawiyah to submit to him. Here starts the first civil war among Muslims when after having sensed power, the Umayyads rallied behind Muawiyah in Damascus, and their opponents gathered behind Ali and his supporters. The term shia e ali, ie the party of Ali, can be understood in this context. The civil war continued for five years, and ends with Alis murder, after which Muawiyah is the sole contender for the post of Caliph.

Alis murder is another Who killed Uthman? question in Islamic history. The historiography men-tions khawarij, a section of Alis followers who declared that his peace treaty with Muawiyah un-dermined his Caliphate, and he had no right to compromise the divine responsibility. In other words, an extremely paradoxical trust in Ali, to the extent that he himself was seen as eneymy when he seemed ready to give up his caliphate. There are many other dimensions to this story, but lets return to the broader contours. Alis murder and the end of his caliphate ensured the emergence of first dynasty of Islam: the Umayyads, a tribe which was neither ansaar nor muhajir.

Lets fast forward to the first transition of power among Umayyads: Muawiyah sought to give power to his son Yazid. There is a consensus among Muslims of all sects that there was a brewing rebel-lion against Muslims, and Hussain ibn Ali emerged as the face of this rebellion. He along with scores of followers was massacred at Karbala, while he was trying to reach Kufa, the old base of his fathers time. Both Sunnis, and Shias till date mourn the Karbala event, but we will come to that later. Hussains murder marks the first transfer of power among Umayyads internally, and hence is one of the most important symbols of early Islamic history. Yazid, ever since, has become a sym-bol of tyranny in many Islamic discourses.

Over the next century, the Umayyads ruled from Damascus, and the Shia leadership lived under persecution, and the surviving children of Muhammads family, or at least the Imam, the flag-bearer of resistance, was a dangerous figure for the Umayyad clan. The early Shias derived their moral superiority by the fact that its them who are surrounding and fighting for Muhammads descendants against the dangers of a usurper Umayyad empire. In a century, the Umayyads are brought down, and the Shias and the Abbasids play crucial role in their downfall. The Abbasids traced their lineage from Muhammads uncle, and were opposed to Umayyads as much as the Shias were. However, the Abbasids were later able to monopolise the power, and Shias were left once again in the opposition. However, under the Abbasids, and after the founding of Baghdad, it seems that Shia have gained strength, and are able to proselytise more, as they reach more areas of the empire. The vilification of first three Caliphs: Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman started in the later Baghdad phase, and challenges to the succession of Abu Bakr seems to have gained popularity as well. The idea of Imam as the absolute leader has developed in these two centuries where the early Shias were seen as one of the oppositions by the state, and is a very contextual development of a age when tribal identity was an important aspect of the struggle, and survival of opposition was seen as important. However, it should be noted that from a principled anti-Umayyad position, one can easily slide into a only children of Ali position, and end up questioning Umars or Abu Bakrs legitimacy. Consistency demands that opposition to one familys rule does should mean that we oppose every familys rule. All the Shias fall between these two extremes: anti-Umayyad, and only Alis children.

Let us come directly to the development of the Sunni sectarian identity in 3rd century Hijri. A Ab-basid Caliph, Mamoon, who also appears to be a brilliant thinker, declared that like other metaphors used in Quran like the face of Allah, or the hand of Allah, the term word of Allah (kalaam ullah) is also a metaphor, and should not been literally. This is the context of a once hotly debated issue of form versus content, or the sacredness of Arabic language in Islamic history. Any scholar who declared that Quran is word of God was to be removed from his official position, and could be arrested as well. This imposition by the state continued by till the reign of Mamuns grandson, who caved into resistance from the ulema, the scholarly class. Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the last great-est founder of a Sunni school of thought, emerges as the leader of this opposition movement de-claring that Quran is the word of God, and that the state has no business telling us what to believe and what not to believe. The identity which emerges is called ahl e sunnat wa jamaat i.e people of tradition and consensus, or in short: sunni.

Emerging in the Abbasid epoch, the Sunnis are confident about Alis and Hussains legitimacy, against the Umayyads, although, they do not accept the Shia concept of Imamate vested in Alis family, which has, in their eyes, become superfluous after the ousting of Umayyads. The Sunnis also believed in the legitimacy of Hadith collections which had by 3rd century hijri been formalised. Like the early Shias, who wavered between anti-Umayyad-ism to the supremacy of Alis family, the later Sunnis also range from anti-Umayyad-ism and pro-Ali posturing to the defence of any hereditary but popular Quraish (or Arab) ruling dynasties. In terms of political ideology, both Shias and Sunnis become defenders hereditary power, and both bemoan the war against Ali, and large sections of both mourn the Karbala massacre.

Let us now fast forward to modern times. The Hanafis, the largest Sunni school of jurisprudence, mourn the Karbala along with the Shias, and these two groups form the overwhelming majority of Muslims in the world. The founder of Hanafi school, Imam Abu Hanifa, was himself a student of an early Shia Imam, Imam Jafar. The Sunni villages in Bihar, for example, take out mourning proces-sions on 10th of Muharram with religious fervour every year. Both Barelvis and Deobandis, the two main Hanafi groups in Indian subcontinent, take similar stands on this issue, and the Barelvis outdo Deobandis in their love for ahl e bait i.e. people of (Muhammads) house. This would be the common theme running through most of the Sunnis and Shias. However, two dangerous trends, which have always been present, gain popularity in modern times.

In modern Iran, which emerges as the major Shia power in modern times, two extremes can be identified. Ahmad Kasravi, the famous Iranian historian who was murdered by Shia fundamental-ists, represents one extreme. Rejecting the Shia clergy was his starting point, but then he went on to reject the grounds of Imamate itself, and described the early battles as political struggle against Umayyad supremacy. On the other extreme was the clerical establishment of Shiism, who believe in Imamate of Alis successors, and some of them go to the extreme of rejecting Abu Bakr and Umar as well. The vilification and organised abuse against Abu Bakr and Umar follows from this. Apart from these two, stands Ali Shariati, who is often called the ideologue of the Iranian revolution, as he is the synthesis of these two extremes: he believed in Imamate in the specific context of anti imperial struggle, and sought to universalise this concept of Imamate for struggling and oppressed humans. He extracts justice and equality as the founding principles of Alis Shiism as opposed to the tyrannical and superstitious Shiism of the clergy. However, he was careful not to speak against the Abu Bakr and Umar, and even spoke favourably of them. Ali Shariati represents a compromise with the Sunnis inside the Shia framework. However, it must be remembered that not all trends in Iranian Shiism are as syncretic and as tolerant of Sunnis.

In modern Arabian peninsula, another extreme trend emerges, which rejects Shiism as un-Islamic. The importance of their re-reading is significant as their ruling classes control Mecca and Medina, and hold huge reserves of oil, and hence power and prestige across the Muslim world. In the di-verse range of Wahabbi rhetoric, the extreme point is the rejection of Alis caliphate itself, and a tacit justification of Hussains murder. The conspiracy theory that Shism was started by a Jew named Abdullah ibn Saba who declared that Ali was God himself has gained enough popularity by now, and is representative of this new trend, which seeks to simplify geo-political struggles into simple categories. Another claim that all the companioins of Muhammad had noble intentions, seeks to justify Muawiyahs rebellion against Alis caliphate for seizing power. Similarly, Zakir Naik calls Gods mercy on Yazid (he uses rahmatullah alaih) in order to further isolate Shia from the new Islam, the only Islam in their eyes. Here, the Sunni justification of popular monarchy is being used by the interested parties to defend the Saudi monarchy, against the ideological threat of democratic Islam emerging from Shia Iran. The effect of this rhetoric is slowly seeping through the Muslim world, and since such trends were always present, it has only strengthened them. The madrasahs and the mosques funded by Saudis are one channel, and the Indian or Pakistani professionals and labourers, who are more often than not suffer from inferiority complex vis a vis the rich and religious Arabs, working in the Gulf are another channel.

The geopolitical struggle is being once again caste into sectarian framework, and both the Shia and the Sunni extreme is harmful, and will have fatal consequences for the Muslim world.

[ Sharjeel Imam is Research Scholar in Deptment of CHS, JNU, New Delhi ]
Help India!

By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter

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Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir government has lifted the ban on publication of valley-based Kashmir Reader, close to three months after it was banned.

The decision was disclosed by Director Information, J&K Government, Shahid Iqbal to The Indian Express. He said that the newspaper had made a representation before the government seeking permission to resume the publication, following which the government reviewed the case and found no ground to further disallow the publication.

The senior information official have further said that a formal order on revoking the ban will be issued in a day or two.

The J&K government move comes after months of criticism received by news organization and associations across India and world. Almost every week after the newspaper ban on October 2, journalists in Kashmir marched and protested against the media censorship in city center Lal chowk.

The editors guild of Kashmir was also actively meeting and negotiating with the government on revoking the newspaper ban.

On Oct 2, about five Jammu and Kashmir police officials paid a visit to Kashmir Readers office in Srinagar along with an order issued of District Magistrate Srinagar which called for immediate ban on publishing the newspaper.

The newspaper, as per the government order, carried content which had a chance to incite acts of violence and disturb public peace and tranquility in whole J&K particularly in Srinagar district.

The DM had further threatened Kashmir Reader with forfeiting its printing press and other properties, in case of violation of the said order.

The banning of newspaper has already created a furore in Kashmir as well as all among the press freedom watchdogs who have condemned governments unprecedented move.
Help India!

By Faisal Fareed, TwoCircles.net

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Elections are truly a festival in India. More so, if they are conducted in Indias most populous state Uttar Pradesh. With each elections, the figures are rising in Hindi belt and the trend is again expected in 2017.

The last assembly elections in 2012 witnessed participation of 6,839 candidates contesting over 403 assembly seats, even though 5,760 candidates lost their deposits.

But what is equally interesting is that despite over 7.5 crore people casting their vote, the turnout was only 59.4%. The total electorate comprised of over 12 crore voters. It includes about 7 core males and over 5 crore females. Another 3,975 voters are listed as others.

A total of 222 political parties had fielded their candidates, but candidates from only 10 parties managed a win. Besides this, there were 1,691 independent candidates, but only six won.

Political parties hardly care about their vote share barring the few national and state parties who have high stakes. Surprisingly, most of the remaining parties polled less than one percent votes. Only 19 political parties could cross the barrier of one percent of polled votes on the seats they contested. If we extend it to total seats, most of the political parties did not poll even 0.05 percent votes.

A rather worrying trend is that while female participation was high, their representation was not at par. There were a total of 6,839 candidates, but only 420 females. Besides this there were 1,054 candidates from Scheduled Caste category while 163 females from SC community contested the polls.

For the 403 seats, 318 were from general while 85 were reserved for SC category. Uttar Pradesh has no seats reserved for Scheduled Tribe.

The 2012 assembly polls also reflects several important realities. For example, the communist movement is now dead and redundant in Uttar Pradesh. Both CPI and CPM, which are national level parties, failed to secure any positives from the elections. CPI fielded 51 candidates and all lost their deposits, while CPM fielded 17 candidates and 16 of them lost their deposits.

The grand old party Congress too had a bad misfortune in the assembly polls. It contested on 355, seats but its candidates lost deposits in 240 seats and the party won only 28 seats.

BJP, the party which is in power and claims to have highest number of members, too fared badly. It contested on 398 seats and won 47 but surprisingly its 229 candidates lost their deposits.

Even ruling Samajwadi Party which won 224 seats and contested on 401 seats too had forfeited its deposit on 53 seats.

BSP was the only one which contested on all 403 seats, won 80 and forfeited deposits on 51 seats.

Most of the constituencies 227 had more than 15 candidates. Another 161 seats to be precise had between 11-15 candidates while only 15 seats had 6-10 contestants. The maximum number of candidates for one seat was 34, while the minimum was seven on one seat.
Help India!

By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter

The Chadayamangalam police on Sunday filed a case against eleven persons, all of them associated with RSS, for assaulting teenagers for singing Christmas Carol songs in Kollam district.

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According to local media reports, one of the suspects, Jayakumar, questioned a group of teenagers what religion they belonged to while they arrived in his house as part of a Carol group. When they said they they belonged to Hindu and Muslim families, Jayakumar demanded to know why a non-Christian group was out singing Christmas carols.

Jayakumar shouted at us while he came to know there were no Christians in the group. He said that Christmas should be celebrated only by Christians and not people from other religions, said 16 year old Abdullah.

The group, however, left the house. But Jayakumar and a few of his relatives barged into the compound while they entered to next house and started beating the group.

While the group asked the teenagers to sing Hindu devotional songs, they refused to do.

According to Abdulla, the group kicked the teenagers on their chests. Abdulla alleged that they were all part of RSS, saying he has seen them organising Shakha meetings at the locality.

The attack continued while the victims were taken into hospital in a car.

The Chadayamangalam police have registered a case against Jayakumar and 10 others under the Juvenile Justice Act.
Help India!

By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter

A 7-member team of lawyers, journalists and human rights activists belonging to the Telangana Democratic Forum and other organisations have been arrested and handed over to the Chattisgarh Police.

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The team, December 25, 2016 was in the village of Dummagudam village of Bhadrachalam District of Telangana and were planning to visit Chhattisgarh to enquire into complaints of human rights violations suffered by Adivasis of Chhattisgarh at the hands of security forces. The seven members of the team: Balla Ravindranath, Advocate.High Court, AP and Telangana, Chikkudu Prabhaker, Advocate, Durga Prasad, Journalist Hyderabad, Duddu Prabhaker, President, AP Kula Nirmulana Poratta Samiti, Rajendra Prasad, Telangana Vidhyarthi Vedika, Nazeer, Telangana Vidhyarthi Vedika and Ramananda Lakshmay, were arrested and handed over to Chhattisgarh police at Kunta Police Station on the same day.

Earlier today, all the 7 persons were produced before the remanding Court in Sukma and remanded to custody under sections 8(1), (2) and (3) of the Chhattisgarh State Public Security Act. At the time of production before the remand court, the Chhattisgarh police is reported to have informed the court that the 7 persons were arrested in Chhattisgarh state.

Human rights organisation PUCL expressed shock at the brazen abuse of the law committed by both Telangana state police and the Chhattisgarh police. When they were arrested in Telangana by the Telangana police, the courts in Chattisgarh have no jurisdiction and they should have been produced before a Court in Telangana alonethe SC has clarified the law on numerous occasions, that if the persons shown as arrested will not escape or evade justice or threaten witnesses or destroy evidence, there is no reason to remand them to custody and they can be released and asked to appear as and when required. It should be noted that the arrested persons include a lawyers of the High Courts, journalists and others. So there was no need to remand them, if at all the police wanted to prosecute them, the organisation said in a press release.

The brazen disregard for the law has been reportedly compounded by the Chhattisgarh police reportedly misleading the remanding court in Sukma that the 7 persons

were arrested within Chhattisgarh state itself, the release added.

PUCL pointed out that the open abuse of the law by the Chhattisgarh police will have to be seen against the backdrop of the remarks passed recently by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) which remarked that the complaints about widespread abuse of law and unleashing of violence by security forces in Chhattisgarh cannot be ignored or taken lightly.

The NHRC had in fact summoned the Chief Secretary of Chhattisgarh government and the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Kalluri, who is accused of masterminding the repressive actions of the police, to appear before the Commission.

PUCL demands that the Chhattisgarh police immediately drops all charges against the 7 member team and release them from custody. PUCL also demands that the NHRC should immediately intervene in the issue, ascertain facts, especially the reported untruths about the arrest of the 7-member Fact Finding Team who were arrested in Telangana but claimed to have been arrested in Chhattisgarh, and to initiate criminal prosecution against the Police officials of both states, if they are found to have abused the law, the press release added.
The problem.

For as long as I can remember I have seen adverts on television depicting Africa as this desolate, filthy and desperate continent. If you have not seen these adverts, just turn on a television and you will not have to wait long. The governments of wealthy countries love to paint pictures of themselves as charitable and generous when it comes to the subject of the Aid given to Africa. The charitable rhetoric that has been fed to the western public over the years from these countries may have been a tad exaggerated. Some things just do not add up.

Am I the only one who has always wondered why little evidence was available for all of their years of work and why little can be shown for all of the aid? I am not saying that the development aid does not help, but surely all of the copious amounts of money that is sent to Africa should have had more of a visible impact? With all of the different charitable organisations plastering our screens with African children. Children with swollen tummies, covered with flies being recorded drinking the water that could kill them "with every sip"...since that is all that Africa is, right? You would have though that all of their work would have resulted in less of these adverts. Yet they are still very much being broadcasted.

Why?

How much?

Despite there being an estimated $134 billion every year that enters sub-Saharan Africa mainly through development aid, foreign investment and loans, a non-government organisation (NGO) based in the UK and Africa suggested that roughly $192 billion is taken out, mainly in profits made by foreign companies, tax dodging and the costs of adapting to climate change".

So if $134 billion enters the continent and $192 billion leaves the continent, then what of the $58 billion deficit?

The report continues, adding: "the British government has been widely praised for its charitable credentials in meetings its aid commitment; yet it simultaneously presides over the world's largest network of tax havens that enables the theft of billions from Africa each year".

If all of the financial and economic jargon throws you off, the bottom line is that Africa is being looted! But who do we point fingers at? Well, I am glad you asked. According to the report "the UK and other wealthy governments are at the heart of this theft".

Aid or theft?

The idea that this aid is actually benefiting the African countries "has facilitated a perverse reality in which the UK and other wealthy governments celebrate their generosity whilst simultaneously assisting their companies to drain Africa's resources". True, western countries do send $30 billion in development aid to Africa on average a year, but what affect does that really have if more than six times that amount leaves the continent and goes straight back to the same countries that are giving it?

Martin Drewry, director of Health Poverty Action and one of the NGOs involved in the report suggested that we "use more accurate language. It's sustained looting- the opposite of generous giving- and we should recognise that the City of London is at the heart of the global financial system that facilitates this". The report continues, adding that "if the rest of the world continues to raid Africa the same rate, $580 billion will be taken from the Africans people over the next ten years".

Whilst the adverts use emotional blackmail and emotive videos and pictures appealing to our humanity, western governments are taking a huge slice out of the African cake. It seems you truly can have your cake and eat it to- well, that is if you are a western country and do not care if the cake you are eating was taken out of the hand of a hungry child. Africa is being systematically robbed.
CenturyLink to Provide Unified Communications With U.S. Senate Contract

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By Michael Guta

Contributing Writer By Michael GutaContributing Writer

The U.S. Senate Sergeant at Arms is responsible for all Senate telecommunications and technology support services for U.S. Senate offices in Washington, D.C., as well as in the states. This means the agency has to ensure the technology that is going to be deployed meets strict regulatory standards as it applies to security and reliability. After meeting the standards, CenturyLink was awarded a three-year contract, with additional one-year options to supply the U.S. Senate state offices with a unified communications-as-a-service platform for hosted voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) services.





The three-year contract will be delivered at around $3.8 million per year, and if all the options are exercised by the government, the total amount will be close to $26 million. As part of the contract, CenturyLink (News - Alert) will provide VoIP services to more than 450 Senate offices in all 50 states along with the hardware, software, training and help desk support.

CenturyLink looks forward to providing U.S. Senate state offices with a modern, secure unified communications system that offers senators and their staff members more features and functionality, said CenturyLink Senior Vice President and General Manager of Federal Solutions Erich Sanchack. We're committed to providing innovative, cost-effective solutions that help agencies transform and modernize their legacy systems.

CenturyLink has experience in supplying government agencies with managed hosting, cybersecurity, cloud and IT services over its carrier-class network with the security and reliability they need to carry mission critical tasks. The company operates more than 55 data centers in North America, Europe and Asia, and it provides broadband, voice, video, data and managed services over a 250,000-route-mile U.S. fiber network and a 300,000-route-mile international transport network.

The Senate offices will have access to CenturyLink's unified communications platform, which has been developed with a range of applications and capabilities. It brings together IP telephony, presence, messaging, email, video conferencing, collaboration and more in an ecosystem that integrates multiple devices and platforms to deliver communications in real-time, anytime and anywhere.

The CenturyLink UC solution is delivered across one of the largest U.S. fiber footprints, which will ensure the Senate offices will be able to access their hosted VoIP services at all times.
Chinas highest legislative body rolled out a new Environment tax targeting companies that emit a variety of air pollutants, yet they declined to list carbon dioxide. The new law comes after 20 cities were left under a blanket of smoke and fog (smog) last week. The new law taxes any company that pollutes the air and water or contributes to noise pollution.

The National People's Congress (NPC) committee, which passed the law, will tax man-made emissions like sulfite and sulfur dioxide. Taxes start at $0.20 per unit and $0.17 per unit respectively.

For noise pollution, the new law can tax a manufacturer from $50 to $1,612. CO2, however, gets a free pass.

Smog chokes China cities for fourth day of 'airpocalypse', grounding flights and closing roads https://t.co/nkGQnXPlJ5 pic.twitter.com/REfYRiWV3V  ABC News (@abcnews) December 20, 2016

Reliance on coal

Despite Chinas ratifying and signing the Paris Climate Agreement, which calls for a reduction in CO2 emissions to slow climate change, the NPC has chosen to exclude CO2 from its list of known pollutants. For CO2 to be considered harmful, it would need to be at levels 125 times higher than todays levels. China relies heavily on coal to produce electricity for much of its population.

China Ramps Up Coal Power Capacity As UN Climate Talks Kick Off https://t.co/NeAHBSFzBk pic.twitter.com/PUJkmRbFQj  The Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) November 7, 2016

In the U.S., CO2 was classified a pollutant by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under its former head Lisa Jackson.

Once classified as an environmental hazard, the current EPA head Gina McCarthy could roll out regulations under the Clean Power Plan. All that could change with the nomination of Scott Pruitt to head the EPA.

Is CO2 a pollutant?

Though many scientists dispute CO2 is a pollutant, others consider it a major contributor to any increase in world temperatures; it is a colorless, odorless gas and is chemically non-reactive.

At 400 parts per million (PPM), CO2 makes up 0.04 percent of atmospheric gases.

CO2 would be lethal to human beings if it jumped to 15 percent, or 150,000 PPM. To cause noticeable breathing discomfort, the range is three to five percent. Historically, CO2 has been much higher than today's levels like during the Cambrian period (4,500-7,000 ppm).

China, it appears, is relying on science in determining the list of pollutants to be taxed.

China top emitter

Among the top emitters of greenhouse gases, China comes in at number one. The new law was precipitated after 20 cities in Northeast China went on high smog alerts, which forced the closure of factories and the removal of cars off the road. People were told to wear face masks and roads and schools were closed. Airports canceled flights. The smog alert also prompted renewed calls by Chinas President Xi Jinping to research clean energy sources and make factories burn cleaner.

In the U.S., the few remaining coal plants emit very few contaminants because they are outfitted with advanced scrubbers that remove the various pollutants now plaguing China.

Clean energy future

Japan is throwing millions into creating an all-hydrogen society and will be showcasing its hydrogen-powered training facilities at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. And Hyundai will unveil its suite of hydrogen-powered cars at the 2018 winter Olympics in South Koreas Alpine City. When hydrogen combusts, it emits oxygen and water vapor.

Chinas new environment tax law goes into effect on January 1, 2018.
BEIJING -- The chairpersons' meeting of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), China's top political advisory body, has proposed convening an annual session of the CPPCC National Committee in Beijing on March 3 next year.



It will be the fifth annual session of the 12th CPPCC National Committee. The draft proposal will be deliberated by the Standing Committee of the 12th CPPCC National Committee.



Top political advisor Yu Zhengsheng presided over the chairpersons' meeting.
Diplomatic relations between the Peoples Republic of China and the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe were restored in Beijing on Dec 26.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with his counterpart Urbino Botelho from Sao Tome and Principe in the capital and, after the meeting, they signed a joint communique restoring diplomatic ties.
Doctor Zhao Liang holds the 102-year-old woman patient in his arms and comforts her as she is given anesthesia. [Photo/WeChat]

Photos of a doctor holding a 102-year-old woman patient in his arms and comforting her as she is given anesthesia have gone viral on the internet.

The patient, born in 1914, fractured her bones when she fell down and was sent to the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province, on Dec 19.

Due to her age, the medical staff could not administer general anesthesia or make her lie on her side, said Dong Yingwei, the anesthetist. Eventually, the hospital decided to give her local anesthesia with her sitting on the operating table on Dec 23.

"The patient was feeling unsteady and was in pain," said Dong, "So I suggested to doctor Zhao Liang to hold her firmly as a support base, because he is strong."

Steady as a rock

The patient was feeling scared in the operation room and kept asking for her daily care worker for company, said Zhao.

As nonmedical staff members are not allowed in the operation room, Zhao said he calmed her by saying, "Don't be afraid, just relax, I am at your side", and "If you feel uncomfortable, let me know".

It was the first time that Zhao held a patient for anesthesia. "I had to keep myself absolutely steady," Zhao said, though he admitted that he felt pain in his arms after holding her for 20 minutes.

One for the textbooks

Administering anesthesia while the patient is sitting requires high professional skills. Even textbooks do not provide any guidance. Therefore, some young anesthetists were excited to "take photos to remember this moment and circulated them on their WeChat circle of friends", said Zhao.

The photos instantly became popular. Some internet users said they were moved by the scenario and praised the doctor.
File photo shows US President Barack Obama holds a press conference at the conclusion of the APEC Summit in Lima, Peru November 20, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

Signing into law the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017, outgoing United States President Barack Obama added further complexity and potentially explosive uncertainty to China-US relations.

The 2017 NDAA merits particular vigilance on Beijing's part because, for the first time in history, it includes a section on high-level military exchanges with Taiwan. Section 1284 of the act obligates the US Defense Secretary to carry out a program of exchanges with the island involving senior military officers and senior officials. This permits generals or flag officers of the US armed forces on active duty, as well as Pentagon officials above the level of assistant defense secretary, to visit the island.

On the surface, a stipulation like this may seem more symbolic than substantive. After all, on its own, sending higher-ranking officials and officers to the island does not change the nature of exchanges, as long as longstanding agreements, written and tacit alike, are observed.

However, at a deeper level this may be a dangerous time bomb for the recently volatile relationship between the US and the mainland, particularly when it is seen in the context of the upcoming change of guard at the White House.

And, as the 2017 NDAA has upgraded US military ties with Taiwan, it serves to reinforce the impression of independence seekers on the island that they can count on greater US protection for their anti-mainland stunts.

Since Donald Trump, the US president-elect, has displayed personal interest in playing the Taiwan card in dealing with Beijing, the 2017 NDAA will only amplify the likelihood of higher-profile military exchanges being exploited provocatively under the next US president.

Up to this point, Obama had been very rational about Beijing's sensitivity to the Taiwan issue and the significance of the one-China policy to relations with the mainland. Yet while calling on his successor to exercise prudence, the incumbent US president has laid a stepping stone for Trump's dangerous Taiwan game.

Trump's transition team has declared they will not enact immediate changes to the US' policies toward the mainland. But that will not prevent Taiwan from being used a bargaining chip in matters of substantial bilateral concern.

Beijing has reiterated its bottom line regarding Taiwan, which is good, but not enough. We all wish the relationship between the mainland and the US could stay on a healthy track. But it takes two to tango.

Given both the next US president's inclination to use Taiwan as his trump card, and Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen's eagerness to assume that role, Beijing must prepare contingency plans for all possibilities, the worst included.
US President-elect Donald Trump was known for talking tough about China on the campaign trail, such as slapping 45 percent punitive tariffs on Chinese exports and naming China a currency manipulator.

But he has named China-friendly Iowa Governor Terry Branstad, an old friend of President Xi Jinping, to be his ambassador to Beijing.

His senior adviser James Woolsey mentioned Trumps possible interest in joining the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and even the One Belt One Road initiative, things that President Barack Obamas administration did not show interest in despite criticism.

However, Trumps nomination on Wednesday of Peter Navarro to head the new White House National Trade Council should be a cause for concern.

Trumps transition team said Navarro is a visionary economist and will develop trade policies that shrink our trade deficit, expand our growth and help stop the exodus of jobs from our shores.

While it is still unclear what his relationship with the still-to-be-announced US trade representative will be, and with Wilbur Ross, the nominee for commerce secretary, a sensible businessman I interviewed and chatted with in New York years ago said Navarro is known as a big-time China hawk.

In August 2012, I criticized a documentary based on the 2011 book Death by China by Navarro and Greg Autry and called it hate speech about China.

I described his key points: China is bad in every respect. China is stealing American jobs, killing its babies with unsafe toys and its army is preparing to kill Americans.

In a country known for producing great movies, garbage such as Death by China, like Nazi propaganda from World War II, shouldnt even make it to the screen, I declared at the time.

The China-bashing by the conservative professor at the University of California-Irvine also includes his other books, such as The Coming China Wars (2008) and Crouching Tiger: What Chinas Militarism Means for the World (2015).

Readers who glimpsed the reviews on amazon.com will find that The Coming China Wars has been described as China-bashing at its worst and meant to terrify you and simplistic and exaggerating.

Crouching Tiger also portrays China as a military threat to the US in a biased and sensational way.

In a word, Navarro is hardly a visionary to me as the Trump team has described. He is clearly deaf and blind to the enormous win-win cooperation and potential of China-US relations, whether in trade and investment or in tackling regional and global challenges.

Trade is a form of cooperation, and the $550 billion worth of annual bilateral trade in 2015 has brought huge benefits to the people of both nations. But what Navarro and Trump have in common is to demonize trade, and especially the US trade deficit with China.

Such a feeling that the US trade deficit with China is in Chinas favor is both politicized and misleading.

For example, each iPhone that Apple sells in the US adds some $200 to the US-China trade deficit. This means that iPhone alone would add $6 billion to $8 billion to the bilateral trade deficit each year. That is, of course, ridiculous because China only makes less than $10 from each iPhone, according to various economists.

There is no doubt that China has been taken advantage of in such a relationship.

If the US lifts its outdated restrictions on high-tech exports to China, an export regime built in Cold War years, the bilateral trade deficits will shrink dramatically or even be reversed.

Writing last week in the Project Syndicate, Cornell University professor Eswar Prasad, an economist and currency expert, blasted Trumps accusation that China manipulates its currency as not supported by facts, and he described Trumps getting tough on China as a move that will hurt both economies.

Many scholars have warned about a devastating effect to the US, China and the world brought about by a possible trade war if Trump truly puts his tough words into action.

To many, Navarros appointment only adds to such concerns.

Contact the writer at chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his annual end-of-year news conference in Moscow, Russia, December 23, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

MOSCOW -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan talked about the Syria issue over phone on Sunday, the Kremlin said in a statement.

The two leaders exchanged views in details on the situation in Syria, the Kremlin said, adding that President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, who is currently on a working visit to Russia, also took part in the discussion.

The statement did not specify the content of their talks, but considering Putin's recent proposal to arrange a meeting between the Syrian opposition and the government at Kazakhstan's capital of Astana, their phone talk was probably about the preparation for the meeting.

In his earlier talks with Putin, Erdogan has agreed to work with Moscow on such a meeting.

In Sunday's phone talks, Erdogan also extended his condolences to Putin over the crash of a Russian military Tu-154 aircraft into the Black Sea earlier on Sunday, presumably killing all 92 people aboard.
Austria's President-elect Alexander Van der Bellen, Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon (L-R) arrive for a photo opportunity in Vienna, Austria, December 7, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

SEOUL -- Ban Ki-moon, outgoing UN Secretary General, whose second five-year term is set to end by the end of this year, reclaimed the top spot in recent South Korean presidential polls, local survey showed on Monday.

According to a survey of 2,528 voters nationwide conducted by local pollster Realmeter between Dec 19 and 23, support for Ban as the country's next leader was 23.3 percent, up 2.8 percentage points from the previous week.

His main support base was the North Gyeongsang province, a traditional home turf for impeached President Park Geun-hye and the ruling Saenuri Party, in which Ban garnered 35.8 percent in approval scores, up 9.3 percentage points from a week earlier.

As there is no competitive presidential contender found in the ruling bloc, Ban is seen as the last remaining hope for conservative voters.

Ban has not officially declared his run for president in his homeland, but local media outlets speculated that he had already indicated his candidacy in recent press conference with South Korean journalists in New York.

Since the scandal involving President Park erupted in late October, Ban's approval rating declined in tandem with growing fury over Park which resulted in the presidential impeachment on Dec 9.
As a Chinese company entering America's mature insurance market, China Taiping found its own niche - the growing number of Chinese companies that do business in the United States.

The Chinese state-owned financial and insurance group also found a partner - New York-based insurer C.V. Starr & Co, which is led by Maurice Greenberg, former chairman and CEO of American Insurance Group and an old friend of China who contributed to the development of the country's young insurance industry.

China Taiping and C.V. Starr teamed up to form a joint venture. With a majority stake, China Taiping Insurance Group Ltd is the holding company of the Delaware-registered Taiping-Starr Holding LLC.

"We have been planning to enter the US since 2014. Our expansion corresponds with China's 'going out' policy that has led to the boom of Chinese investment in the US," said Victor Li, president of Taiping-Starr. He was the CEO of Taiping's subsidiary in Singapore.

Founded in Shanghai in 1929, Taiping is the oldest insurance company in China. In 1956, Taiping and a few other Chinese insurance companies merged to become the People's Insurance Company of China (PICC), as a part of China's nationalization of the industry.

In 1998, when PICC was again split into four state-owned Chinese insurance companies, most of the overseas business became a part of Taiping. As a result, Taiping has an extensive international presence, with offices in Singapore, New Zealand, Indonesia, the United Kingdom, Holland, and now, the US.

The company, headquartered in Hong Kong, has 200,000 employees and 24 subsidiaries worldwide.

The Taiping-Starr joint venture received a thumbs-up from the Committee of Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). Li and his team of people from both companies now work at the C.V. Starr headquarters in Midtown Manhattan.

Chinese insurers have been mostly focusing on real estate investment in the US rather than the insurance business, and when they do look for insurance opportunities, it's usually through acquisitions.

China Oceanwide recently said it agreed to buy Virginia-based Genworth Financial, and Anbang Insurance was going to acquire Fidelity & Guaranty Life but later withdrew its application after failing to provide information requested by New York state.

China Taiping is the first Chinese insurer stepping into the US insurance market by starting a company.

"We eyed the opportunity of serving Chinese companies because we speak their language and understand their needs," Li said. "They know who we are, and they can trust us. Some have been our clients in China or elsewhere.

"And we can't ask for a better partner," he said. "Greenberg understands how things work in China and he likes China.

"The US insurance market is much more mature than ours. It's amazing that we can consult our Starr colleagues on things from quotations to legal compliance in different US states," Li said.

Taiping Asset Management, an offshore subsidiary of China Taiping, invested $229 million for an equity stake in a Manhattan luxury condo project, 111 Murray Street. The 792-foot-tall tower is scheduled for completion in 2018 and will include 157 condos over 58 stories, according to The Real Deal.

The Hong Kong-listed company reported total assets of $65.6 billion at the end of June. Total premiums for 2015 were $17.8 billion, an increase of 24 percent from 2014, while profit increased 56.9 percent to $817 million.

hezijiang@chinadailyusa.com
Cracks were visible in the Opposition unity ahead of Tuesdays meeting convened by Congress to ramp up attack on demonetisation and alleged personal corruption of the prime minister, with Left parties and the Janata Dal-United unlikely to attend it.

While the Left parties announced they are staying away, the JD-U also gave hints that it may follow suit. Congress is part of the JD-U-led Nitish Kumar government in Bihar.

There was no immediate word from the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party, while Nationalist Congress Party Tariq Anwar, who was to attend, is unable to come to Delhi as he had to cancel his plans due to his mothers death in Patna.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh downplayed the plans of several parties skipping the Opposition meeting that will be followed by a joint press conference. He also cited local and regional compulsions for some parties not to be together on the same platform.

Whoever comes tomorrow will come. Those who dont come tomorrow will come the next time. Those who will come, you will see tomorrow, said Ramesh striking a philosophical note.

He, however, dismissed suggestions that Tuesdays meeting was a tea party like the one in 1998 which ultimately led to the downfall of the Vajpayee government.

Ramesh said, The biggest issue today is demonetisation and the second issue is corruption by the prime minister, which will be the main issues before tomorrows meet.

On the eve of deliberations, Rahul Gandhi on Monday held a meeting of all Congress general secretaries and state Congress presidents at his residence to discuss the situation.

A senior party leader, who declined to be identified, likened Tuesdays parleys with that of the Shimla conclave in 2003 which saw Congress pitching for unity of secular forces to oust the then National Democratic Alliance government led by Vajpayee.

The meeting is seen as an attempt on the part of the Congress to paper over the cracks that developed when several opposition parties skipped the joint Opposition march to

Rashtrapati Bhawan on December 16 over demonetisation.

They were apparently annoyed over Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi meeting the prime minister earlier that day on the issue of farmers problems, especially in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.

We have decided to stay away from the press conference of opposition parties convened by the Congress because there has been no proper consultation and coordination among parties, Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Sitaram Yechury said in Kolkata on Tuesday.

West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, who has been vocal against demonetisation, will attend Tuesdays meeting, sources said.

She will attend the briefing at Constitution Club along with other Opposition leaders including representatives from Dravida Munnetra Kazagham and Rashtriya Janata Dal, sources added.

Yechury said, Most of the parties were neither consulted nor informed about what will be the agenda of the meeting. Several opposition parties have reservation about the way the meeting has been convened.

CPI National Secretary D Raja said there should have been more prior consultations on the date and agenda of the meeting of Opposition parties.

Lack of such prior consultation and discussion has caused difficulties. We could have got an opportunity to discuss within our parties and taking a position, he said, adding that all parties have already made their own plans.

JD-U spokesperson K C Tyagi said, The meeting has no agenda, not even a common minimum programme. It is unlikely to arrive at any conclusion.

He did not give a direct reply on whether his party will attend the exercise. Sources, however, said the Nitish Kumar-led party wont attend it. Tyagi noted that Mamata Banerjee-led TMC, which will attend the meeting, has a different view on demonetisation than other parties.

He also dismissed murmurs in Opposition camp over Nitish Kumars support to demonetisation, saying his party has been at the forefront of opposition unity and cited the example of Bihar assembly polls.

The Opposition meet is being held at a time when the Narendra Modi dispensation has completed half its term and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is going whole hog to capture key Uttar Pradesh, where assembly polls will take place in few months.

Congress is striving for uniting the Opposition on the issue of Rahul Gandhis charge of personal corruption against the prime minister and plans are afoot for a joint press conference by its President Sonia Gandhi and opposition leaders on December 27.
Terming demonetisation a 'yajna' where the poor and the labourers are "being sacrificed", Rahul Gandhi on Monday said though the prime minister has assured the problems due to note ban will end by December 30, the "economic lockdown" will continue to hurt people beyond that.

"Modiji has said the problems will end after December 30. But I can say with confidence that it will not be so. These hardships will continue for six-seven months and beyond," the Congress vice president said addressing a rally in Rajasthan's Barn.

He was referring to the prime minister's repeated assurance to the people that the problems due to note ban will begin to ease after the 50-day period.

In his nearly 40-minute speech, Rahul said the poor, the labourers and the middle class are being sacrificed in the demonetisation 'yajna' for the benefit of the "super-rich families" of the nation.

Modi had recently hailed the campaign as a 'yagna against corruption and black money.

Rahul also alleged that the Modi government at the Centre and the Raje government in the state have neither waived farmers' loan, nor compensated them for their damaged crops. He also alleged they have not reduced electricity tariffs. Consequently, 60 farmers have committed suicide in Rajasthan alone, the Congress vice president alleged.

"The note ban decision is not against corruption but is an economic lockdown. It is not against blackmoney but against the poor, farmers, labourers and women," he alleged.

"99 per cent of the people do not have black money and they were targeted by the demonetisation drive while on the other hand, there are 50 families who have lakhs and crores of rupees and that is black money," he said.

Stating that the Congress party wants to eradicate corruption and its leaders would support the National Democratic Alliance government against the menace, Gandhi alleged that the decision of demonetisation was "totally against the people of the country".

He said that only six per cent black money is stored in cash while the remaining is in the form or real estate and gold and is also stashed in Swiss bank accounts.

"In the last two-and-a-half years, Modi only worked to create a divide in the country and functioned only for the rich," he alleged.

Rahul alleged that the Modi government tried to "murder" the Land Acquisition Act, which benefits the farmers, and also attempted to stall other pro-poor steps like MNREGA started by the Congress.

He also alleged that the tribals were being exploited in Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. "The entire government is functioning of the rich. What Narendra Modi ji is doing at the Centre, the same is being done by the chief minister of Rajasthan.

"In Rajasthan, privatisation is going on. Power tariff was raised by 18 per cent. Have Modiji and the BJP government here taken any step for the poor. They have done nothing for the poor," he said.

He also asked as to why the government has not tabled in Parliament names of those holding Swiss bank accounts.

"How to exempt his friends from heavy loans is currently the sole problem of Narendra Modi who has currently adopted only one policy- 'snatch the money from the poor and nourish the rich'," he said.

Mocking Modi's appeal for cashless transition, the Congress vice president said, "PayTm means- 'Pay to Modi' as 5% commission on payments made through PayTm goes to the families of super rich."

Rahul again read out the dates with years and sum of the amount allegedly paid to Modi by Sahara and Birla when he was Gujarat chief minister. He said that in nine installments, Modi was allegedly paid Rs 40 corer in six months.

He asked the Prime Minister Modi to reply to his charges.

"You can mock me. But the public, the poor are asking the same questions on charges of corruption by you," he said.
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HCM CITY  Phu My Hung Development Corporation on Thursday announced that the third phase of sales of its Saigon South Residences would be advanced by one and a half months to January 15.

It will sell 270 apartments in the 29-storeyed tower E.

Some 60 per cent of the units will have two bedrooms and range from 60sq.m to 70sq.m. The remaining will be three-bedroom units measuring 87sq.m to 97sq.m.

Saigon South Residences is Phu My Hung Development Corporations first project outside its Phu My Hung City Centre.

The company explained that it did so to offer its regular quality to more customers at affordable prices. VNS
HA NOI  Viet Nam estimated to gain US$7.3 billion from the export value of wood and wooden products this year, a slight increase of 1 per cent year on year, reported the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Developments General Department of Forestry.

Nguyen Ba Ngai, deputy director of the general department, said this year, export value of forest products gained growth of 5-10 per cent depending on different products but the export value of wood and wooden products rose by 1 per cent against last year, reported Hai Quan (Customs) newspaper.

The slight growth was due to strong reduction in the export value of wooden chips compared with last year, or 61 per cent of the export value of wooden chips in 2015, he said.

Decrease in exports of wooden chips this year was due to a fall in demand for this product on the world market, especially China, said Ngai, adding that Vietnamese wooden chip products have faced competition with similar products from other countries such as Thailand, Australia and some African nations.

This year, Viet Nam promoted diversification of the export market to increase market shares on the world market, Ngai said. Especially, Viet Nam has completed negotiations on the Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (VPA/FLEGT) between Viet Nam and the European Union, opening many opportunities on market development in the future.

Lack of material

Experts also said Viet Nams wood processing industry would continue development in production and business over the coming years.

However, wood processing enterprises said the industry had fallen due to a lack of material for production.

Bui Nhu Viet, vice chairman of the Binh Duong Wood Association, said enterprises in the South were lacking material for production because in the past, many Chinese enterprises had come to purchase large volumes of wood.

Truong Mong Trinh, director of Moc Luc Wood Company, also said more and more foreign enterprises had purchased wooden material, leading to a lower supply of the material for local processing companies and a higher price for wood, from VN2-3 million per cubic metre to VN5 million at present.

o Xuan Lap, chairman of Binh inh Wood Association, said now, the price of rubber wood had increased by 20-25 per cent and there was strong competition for wood on the local market.

This put pressure of procuring enough wood for production on enterprises in HCM City, Binh Duong, ong Nai and Binh inh provinces, he said.

Local wood producers said the Government had solutions on avoiding the lack of material for wood processing but export tariff rates at present had not limited export activities for wood, especially exports to China, reported Cong Thuong newspaper.

To ensure sustainable supply of this material in the future, the local enterprises expect the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Viet Nam Wood and Forest Products Association to propose solutions to the Government on limiting exports of material for wood processing.

Especially, the enterprises proposed increasing export tariffs for timber and sawn timber to 20 per cent as one of the efficient solutions to limit exports of timber for processing wooden products.

Duong Phuong Thao, deputy head of the Import and Export Department from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said in the future, the State should control exports of wood while also creating favourable conditions for local enterprises to exploit wood in foreign countries.

That meant the Government would work with Viet Nams enterprises to grow trees for supplying wood in Cambodia and Laos as well as the governments of the two countries to import the material to Viet Nam, she said. - VNS
HA NOI  Trading is set to remain quiet with lower liquidity this week as investors tend to keep their accounts secure ahead of the year-end holiday.

Both local market indexes were volatile last week and ended lower than the previous one as investors avoid making risky decisions at the end of the year.

The benchmark VN Index closed Friday at 664.37 points, down 1.6 per cent from the previous week.

The HNX Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange fell 0.8 per cent week on week to finish Friday at 79.08 points. The northern market index has lost 1.5 per cent over the last two sessions.

Most of the sectors saw big declines from a week ago. The consumer industry index dropped 5.2 per cent after rising strongly before, driven by the brewer Sai Gon Beer, Alcohol and Beverage Corporation (SAB). The energy sector was the second worst declining business with a decrease of 2.8 per cent.

An average of nearly 152 million shares was traded each day, worth VND2.73 trillion (US$121.5 million). The figures were down 21.6 per cent in trading volume and 8.5 per cent in trading value compared to the previous week.

The stock market indexes would recover slightly but trading liquidity wouldremain very low, said Duong Van Chung, MB Securities Companys head of investment division.

"The year-end period is the time when financial services companies and listed firms operate perfunctorily to prepare for their annual reports, thus, investors will not be allowed more margin lending until the new year begins," he said.

In fact, market trading liquidity declined significantly by 30 per cent from the previous weeks average, said Nguyen Huu Binh, Vietnam Investment Securities Companys (IVS) head of market analysis division.

The money had flown out of the stock market to seek other opportunities in foreign currency trading as also firms that are preparing to list. Investors were not very active because stocks were not attractive enough, weighed down by the potential of year-end risks, he added.

Echoing such analsyses, Bui Nguyen Khoa, BIDV Securities Companys head for macroeconomic market operations, said capital flow was weak during this period because of concerns over foreign investment withdrawing from listed firms to seek chances in about-to-list companies, making domestic investors wanting to preserve their money.

Foreign investors recorded a net sales value of VND105.23 billion last week on the two local exchanges, focusing on large-cap stocks like Vingroup (VIC), dairy producer Vinamilk (VNM), Bank for Investment and Development of Viet Nam (BID) and VNDirect Securities Company (VND).

The stock market will not likely see any improvements as foreign investors continue to offload their ownership in local companies and the market itself lacks good business information to draw attention from domestic buyers, Khoa said.

Some analysts said the market was set to rise and it would be supported by performance reports of listed companies.

It will not be easy because the supply exceeds demand, thus the money will concentrate on industries with high prospects, said Nguyen Huu Binh, an analyst at IVS.

For example, steel company stocks would rise on their positive performances and tightened regulations on imported steel products, he said, adding that it would allow those companies to pay higher dividends.  VNS
BINH THUAN  As many as 150 domestic businesses are displaying various products at over 300 pavilions at an industry-agriculture-trade fair, which opened in the central province of Binh Thuan on December 24.

Most of the enterprises came from ong Nai, Binh inh, Ninh Thuan, Tay Ninh and Khanh Hoa provinces and HCM City.

Visitors to the fair can buy foods, processed foodstuff, garments and jewelry, as well as cosmetics, footwear, household utensils and electronic commodities, along with home decorations and ornamental plants.

A number of promotion programmes have been launched to help customers buy products at the best prices.

The trade fair, which will run until January 1 next year, offers an excellent opportunity for businesses to introduce new products and promote Vietnamese brand names.

It also enables participants to seek trade partners and expand markets.

Other activities include art exchanges and games.  VNS
HA NOI  State-owned groups and enterprises have brought back VN6.84 trillion (US$301 million) to the State coffer during their divestment process in 2016, according to the Finance Ministry.

State-owned economic groups and corporation withdrew investment worth VN450 billion in five sensitive fields, while other SOEs collected VN2.27 trillion. The remainder came from the sale of State capital in enterprises.

The ministry also reported that 56 SOEs received approval for their equitisation plans in the year. They had total capitalisation value of more than VN34 trillion ($1.5 billion), including VN24.4 trillion of State capital.

ang Quyet Tien, deputy director of the Ministrys Department of Corporate Finance, said State-owned economic groups, corporations and enterprises have actively implemented the scheme on SOEs restructuring in accordance with the Prime Ministers Decision No. 929/Q-TTg.

This was a positive development in the context that many new policies have been put into practice this year although businesses have struggled in the more competitive environment, Tien said.

He added there are regulations requiring equitised enterprises to list on the stock market and the Government has recently issued Decree No. 145, under which sanctions can be imposed on firms violating the rule.

According to the new rule, enterprises who do not register trading or listing of their shares within the prescribed time or delay this process will be fined from VN10 million to VN400 million depending on the duration of the delay.  VNS
HA NOI  Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Cao Quoc Hung has urged the Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex) to improve its value chain and operate more efficiently in 2017.

At a recent conference held to review Vinatexs business results in 2016, Hung said the group should promote research and development activities and apply technology in garment production to offer value-added products, at the same time ensuring that there are no negative effects on the environment.

Tran Quang Nghi, chairman of Vinatex, said the group would focus on expanding its market base next year and would keep a close watch on the global raw materials market in order to take advantage of the free trade agreements.

In 2017, Vinatex expects a rise of 12 per cent in export revenue, 15 per cent in industrial production and 6 per cent in profits.

The group made pre-tax profit of VN1.43 trillion (US$63.8 million) in 2016, a rise of 9 per cent over the previous year. Its industrial production value totalled VN37.7 trillion, which is 103 per cent over 2015, and its export value touched VN2.477 trillion, a 4 per cent rise. The incomes of Vinatexs employees averaged VN6.7 million per month, up by 8 per cent. This year, the group also invested in 41 projects, worth a total of VN5.5 trillion.

On December 23, the Ha Noi Stock Exchange approved Vinatex trading on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM) under the code VGT, making it the first state-owned group to be traded on UPCoM.

Vinatex has a charter capital of VN5 trillion, with the state holding 53.49 per cent stake.  VNS
Dr Truong Hoang Quy *

Acute Respiratory Tract Infection (ARTI) is the most common disease among the general population, especially among children younger than five. According to the US Centres for Disease Control (CDC), each child has six to eight episodes of respiratory infection annually, on average.

In Viet Nam, ARTI rates in cities are higher than in rural areas, likely the result of pollution. Although ARTI may occur any time of year, in Viet Nam the peak is in the fall or winter seasons.

RTIs are the leading cause of missed days of school or work. Furthermore, RTIs can also result in illness and mortality in children under five. Data from the World Health Organisation (WHO) shows that about 2 million children under five die of pneumonia every year, most in developing countries.

Most common in Viet Nam

Respiratory infections affect both the upper and lower respiratory tract. In Viet Nam, the most common upper respiratory tract infections are rhinitis (common cold), sinusitis, ear infections, acute pharyngitis or tonsillopharyngitis and epiglottitis. The most common lower respiratory infections are pneumonia and bronchiolitis

Main causes

In term of the etiology, the majority of upper respiratory infections are viral. The rhinoviruses account for 25-30 per cent, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSVs), parainfluenza and influenza, human metapneumo virus and adenovirus for 35 per cent. The causes of lower respiratory infections are viruses such as RSV and influenza, but they are also caused by bacteria, such as Streptococus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae or staphylococus aureus.

How to treat

Most upper respiratory infections can be treated at home, leading to recovery within one week or 10 days. However, about 25 per cent can lead to pneumonia and need to be treated in hospital.

Home care:

- Breastfeeding or solid feeding can be continued as usual;

- Drinking lots of water is encouraged;

- Cough medication should be used as needed.

When to see your doctor:

- Your child has difficulty breathing;

- Your child refuses to breast or bottle feed or cannot drink water;

- Your child has convulsions, is lethargic or irritable;

- Your child has a high fever that cannot be controlled;

- Your child is wheezing or coughing, bringing up yellow, green or grey mucus

- Your child is under 2 months old with a high fever or hypothermia.

How to avoid

- Hygiene: hand-washing is a mainstay for reducing the risk of contracting a URTI. All sick children and other people in the house must wash their hands frequently.

- Do not allow children to share drinks, cutlery or toys with others and ensure these items are cleaned after use.

- Encourage your child to cough or sneeze into tissue and throw it away immediately.

- Minimise contact with newborn babies or other sick children in the family.

- Children should stay home until the fever is gone and they feel well enough to go to school or child care.

- Immunisation: The 5 in 1 vaccine is very important in preventing common diseases in children such as Hib, pertussis or diphtheria. Conjugate pneumococcal vaccines (7 PCV and 9 PCV) are now available in Viet Nam, providing significant efficacy against invasive pneumococcal disease. For children over 6 months of age, influenza is also a good vaccine that can help avoid flu.

- Good nutrition such as exclusive breastfeeding for children under 4 months

- Avoidance of smoke and pollution.

- Keep clean house and furniture, as well as doors, windows, blankets, pillow, toys.

Common mistakes

- A common mistake Vietnamese parents make is using antibiotics bought at pharmacies, sometimes without knowing its name and without a doctors description. Some parents re-use old medication prescribed previously, thinking that when a child has a cough and fever, he has the same disease as last time.

- In Viet Nam, different generations live together in households and older relatives medicate children based on their own experience, without seeing a doctor. Some families use traditional medicines for children that can result in side effects, such as diarrhea. Some symptoms even deteriorate after using traditional medication.

- Fever is a good symptom of the bodys right against disease. However, some parents worry about that symptom and overdose their children on antipyresis medication.

In conclusion: the most common cause of respiratory infections are viruses. They usually require symptomatic home treatment, such as increasing fluid intake and taking medication for fever. Parents need to observe their child carefully and know the red flags that should send them to a doctor.  Family Medical Practice HCM City

* Dr Truong Hoang Quy joined FMP Vietnams medical staff in 2014, after receiving his masters degree in Public Health Nutrition from Queensland University of Technology, Australia. As the only Vietnamese doctor in FMP HCMCs Pediatric Team, he understands the Vietnamese culture and the needs of Vietnamese patients.

For more advice on medical topics, visit FMP Hanoi at 298 Kim Ma Street, Ba inh. Tel: (04) 3843 0748. E: hanoi@vietnammedicalpractice.com. FMPs downtown Ho Chi Minh City clinics are located at Diamond Plaza, 34 Le Duan, District 1 and at 95 Thao ien Street, District 2. Tel: (08) 38227848. E: hcmc@vietnammedicalpractice.com. FMP Danang is located at 96-98 Nguyen Van Linh Street, Hai Chau District, a Nang. Tel: (511) 3582 699. E: danang@vietnammedicalpractice.com
HCM CITY Veteran and young artists of the 5B Small Theatre will perform for free a historic play about late President Ho Chi Minh for students and migrant labourers in HCM City.

The play will be staged at local universities and export processing zones and industrial parks as part of activities to celebrate the New Year.

Dau Xua (The Leader) portrays the revolutionary career of the President, a communist and patriot who devoted his life to the countrys independence.

It highlights the works of the President in the 1950s and 60s.

Directed by Meritorious Artist Tran Minh Ngoc, Dau Xua has veteran actor Thanh ien playing the President, and several young actorsl like Quoc Trung, Kim Tung and Viet Hung.

"President Ho Chi Minh is in the hearts of Vietnamese people. Though Im experienced, I have worked several hours each day to perfect my performance. I dont want to make a mistake on stage, said Thanh ien, who has been a theater artiste for more than 40 years.

Through my performance, I have gained deeper insights into patriotism and have greater respect for national heroes and soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the country."

Dau Xua was first staged in 2011 in Ha Noi and left a very strong impression on audiences. It has been restaged several times by leading art troupes and theatres.

Director Ngoc and his troupe will begin their tour next month.

We want to entertain and educate young people through our art, he said. VNS
HA NOI  Viet Nam Television Film Centre (VFC)s Zippo, Mu Tat Va Em (Zippo, Mustard and You) won gold prize in the category of Television Film of the National Television Festival 2016.

The 36-episode film, directed by Meritorious Artist Trong Trinh and Tien Huy, stars young beloved actors and actresses such as Hong ang, Manh Truong, La Thanh Huyen and Nha Phuong.

The story is inspired by the relationships of young and successful people, and is also about friendship and family life.

The film won three prizes at the 2016 VTV Awards organised in September, the annual awards honouring performers in the fields of film, music, theatre and TV programmes, which have received positive responses from local audiences over the last year. The National Television Festival 2016 wrapped up in the northern province of Lao Cai with 27 gold awards, 56 prizes and 134 certificates of merit presented to the most outstanding works in nine categories at an awards ceremony held on December 24.

The jury board also presented two grand prizes to News Centre VTV24 of the Viet Nam Television for the entry The World is Flat or Not, and scriptwriter Chu Thu Hang for her script for the television film Nguyet Thuc (Eclipse).

Journalist Le Thanh Son from Lao Cai Province Television represented his team to receive the gold prize in the category of reportage for an entry mentioning the flooding and landslide situation in Lao Cai Province.

As people know, the mountainous province of Lao Cai suffered serious flooding and landslides, leading to many deaths and losses, he said.

Our reportage mentions the losses and difficulties the locals faced during the natural disasters. We also reflect how people help each other in times of difficulty.

I have attended many national television festivals but this is the first time I received a prize, so its very special to me. Through the festival, we have a chance to exchange and learn from colleagues.

Tran Binh Minh, general director of Viet Nam Television, the events organiser, said this festival saw an increase in both the quantity and quality of the entries, which touched upon many tough topics using both modern and creative approaches.

The four day-event attracted 105 production units with over 500 entries in nine categories including programmes for children, documentaries, reports, science and education programmes, talk shows, television programmes in ethnic languages, music shows, television films, and stage programmes.

Three conferences were also held as part of the event, discussing the role of communication in environmental and climate change work, graphics in producing television programmes, and promoting ethnic culture on television.

The festival is held annually by Viet Nam Television to honour the best television programmes of the year while providing a venue for producers and broadcast professionals nationwide to meet and exchange knowledge and skills.  VNS
Export turnover of fruits and vegetables has exceeded that of rice for the first time, Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong tells Viet Nam News in a year-end talk on agricultural restructuring

Can you list some of the important results after three years of implementating the agriculture restructuring programme?

Several initial important accomplishments can be mentioned.

First, production has neared world standards, for instance, in pig and poultry breeding, and in brackish water shrimp and tra fish.

For the first time, our vegetable and fruit export turnover reached $2.5 billion, higher than that of rice.

Many localities implementing agriculture restructuring have been able to demonstrate the benefits of focusing on their strengths like ong Thap Province in the Mekong Delta, Lam ong Province in the Central Highlands region and Ha Giang Province in the northern mountainous region. The restructuring process has benefited farmers in these provinces.

However we have to affirm that agriculture restructuring is a long-term process. We cannot do it in a few years.

Small-scale agriculture production with low productivity is still common in the country.

Market risks as well as the risk of natural disasters are huge. To address these risks as well as some fundamental shortcomings, we have to focus on measures to accelerate and expand large-scale production, while reducing small-scale production. Once we do this, agriculture restructuring would have been successful.

Some people say that agriculture restructuring should not focus just on food security, that farmers need to make a profit, too. What do you think?

They are absolutely right. The final goal of production is efficiency to improve life quality for producers, including farmers and people directly involved in production. Therefore we must select products in accordance with market demand.

The world population is seven billion, half of whom consume rice. Global rice supply is about 35 million tonnes, with a total value of approximately $12 billion. Many countries like Thailand, Cambodia, China and India have more advantages for rice production than Viet Nam.

The Party, National Assembly and Government have directed localities and farmers to use rice fields for other purposes so as to achieve greater efficiency and proper use of natural resources. The target is to have about 700,000 hectares of rice fields used for other purposes by 2025.

In the context of the countrys integration and increasingly competitive markets, what has the Ministry done, policy-wise, to help farmers and enterprises speed up changes in land use?

I have to affirm that our open market policy is very good and active, particularly since 2007, when we joined the World Trade Organisation. We have been proactive in our integration and have signed ten free trade agreements. We negotiated other free trade agreements at the highest level, like the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

2016 has been a very challenging year for the agriculture sector. Natural disasters have occurred throughout the year.

However, so far, total farm produce export turnover has reached US$31 billion, compared to $30.14 billion last year.

However, we must try harder. We must design solutions in accordance with integration for imported products to ensure legal competitiveness in the domestic market, then boost domestic production.

We also have yet to bring into full play the potential of dairy products, vegetables and fruits.

Following directions of the Government, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has worked closely with the Industry and Trade Ministry, localities and sectors to foster expansion of markets for local farm produce.

Weve worked with Australia and this country has agreed to import shrimps. When the Australian market opens, it will create a good foundation for Vietnamese farm produce to be exported to many hard markets in the world.

The Ministry is also working with the Tra Fish Association to continue the legal fight against markets that continuously place objections, like the US, a big importer of our seafood products.

As 2016 comes to a close, what message do you have for farmers and enterprises?

We can see 2016 as a very difficult year for agriculture, and therefore, for our farmers. They have had to suffer a historic cold wave in 14 northern provinces, causing huge production losses. During the first months of the year, the entire Mekong Delta, central, southern and Central Highlands regions faced the worst drought and saline intrusion. In the last few months, three storms, one after another, hit the central region, triggering repeated flooding.

In this situation, a new, constructive government established this year has gained the trust of farmers and enterprises. This is demonstrated by the establishment of new enterprises in the sector. Farmers and firms are both committed to building new rural areas and restructuring the sector.

Going into 2017 with more favourable weather conditions expected, along with our considerable efforts, we expect it will be a victorious year for the agriculture sector in general and farmers in particular. - VNS
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) receives Lao Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Sommad Pholsena in Ha Noi on Saturday.  VNA/VNS Photo Thong Nhat

HA NOI  Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has proposed that the Lao National Mekong Committee continue working with Viet Nam to monitor the practical impact of hydropower plants on the trans-boundary river and protect its environment.

Phuc made the proposal while receiving Lao Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Sommad Pholsena in Ha Noi on Saturday.

He expressed his hope that the Ministries of Natural Resources and Environment of Viet Nam and Laos would step up bilateral co-operation in the field of natural resources and environment as defined in a cooperative agreement between the two governments for the 2016-20 period, and build co-ordination blueprints.

For his part, Minister Sommad Pholsena said Laos would apply modern technologies in waste treatment and learn from Viet Nams experience to avoid environmental pollution during its development process.

He affirmed that the construction of hydropower plants on the Mekong River will strictly follow the Mekong River Commissions regulations and international law.

Laos pledges to use its water sources effectively and sustainably, he added.
The Red River Delta province of Hai Duong held a ceremony on Saturday to mark 20 years of its re-establishment and received an Independence Order first class for its outstanding achievements.  VNA/VNS Photo Trong uc

HAI DUONG  The Red River Delta province of Hai Duong held a ceremony on Saturday to mark 20 years of its re-establishment and received an Independence Order first class for its outstanding achievements.

National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, who is former Secretary of the provincial Party Committee, attended the event.

In his address, Secretary of the provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the provincial Peoples Council Nguyen Manh Hien said that on November 6, 1996, at its 10th session, the 9th National Assembly approved a resolution on separating and adjusting the border of some provinces, including Hai Hung. On January 1, 1997, Hai Duong and Hung Yen were officially re-established from the division of Hai Hung.

Over the past two decades, Hai Duong has achieved consistently higher economic growth than the national average, reaching 9.3 per cent between 1997 and 2016. The local economy is now 17.2 times bigger than it was 20 years ago.

The province is currently home to nearly 9,500 businesses with registered capital totaling VN72 trillion (almost US$3.2 billion), and 18 industrial parks with 10 of them already operational. About $7.2 billion has been poured into 325 FDI projects.

Hai Duongs budget collection is estimated at almost VN11 trillion ($483.3 million) this year, 26 times higher than in 1997. Per capita income approximates VN47 million (over $2,000), up 16 times. Meanwhile, the province has also continually recorded high growth in exports, which expanded by 28.8 per cent annually to nearly $5 billion in 2016, Hien said.

He noted his province has also performed well in cultural and social aspects, adding that Hai Duong is one of the leading localities in ensuring universal education and healthcare for people. It has about 8.2 doctors per 10,000 people, up 2.5 times from 1997.

While more than 30,000 jobs are created every year, the household poverty rate under new criteria has dropped to 6 per cent. Hai Duong has also paid attention to preserving and upholding cultural values, the official said.

At the ceremony, NA Chairwoman Ngan presented the Independence Order, first class, to Hai Duong province and applauded its efforts and contributions to Viet Nam s overall development.

Located in the northern key economic region, Hai Duong should capitalise on its potentials and advantages while optimising all resources to make breakthroughs, thereby ensuring rapid, comprehensive and sustainable development, she said.

The NA Chairwoman also told the provincial authorities to build a pure and strong political system in line with the Resolution of the 12th National Party Congress, and press on with Party reinforcement activities.

Ngan voiced her belief that with its tradition, accomplishments, experience and determination, Hai Duong will achieve even greater successes in the future.  VNS
HA NOI  Plans to scrap the minimum number of points required for university enrollment in Viet Nam has highschool students cheering, but teachers concerned.

Currently, the minimum score required to be considered for university enrollment is 14-15 points for the combination of three subjects in national high school exams. Three compulsory subjects in the exams include math, literature and a foreign language, and three subjects are optional, with students able to choose among physics, chemistry, history and biology.

After learning that the Ministry of Education and Training recently issued its draft 2017 university enrollment regulations that would cancel the minimum score requirement, Nguyen Thanh Mai, a high school student in Ha Noi, said she felt "like the 12-year burden of trying to pass the exams has been eased.

She studied very hard over the years, hoping to get into university in accordance with her parents expectations, Mai said.

But a high school teacher, who asked to remain anonymous, said that if the ministry removed the minimum score regulation, many students who could not get in until now would be accepted. This, plus parents desire for their children to have an academic education rather than a vocational one, would result in a generation of graduates who cannot find suitable jobs, she said.

Many would study simply for the sake of going to university, without a clear direction about their future career, she said.

The ministry should listen to more comments from education experts before making its final decision, she added.

Associate Professor o Van Dung, principal of the HCM City University of Technology and Education, told Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper that without the minimum score, the quality of candidates would be lower, as would that of the graduates.

Dung said a candidate failing to achieve the minimum score would have a hard time keeping up with university-level programmes. Those who do succeed might find themselves unemployed because they would fail to meet demands of recruiters, he said.

That, in turn, would increase unemployment and be a burden on society, he warned.

But Associate Professor Ho Thanh Phong, principal of Ho Chi Minh City International University, applauded the ministrys draft.

Removing the minimum score requirement was good because many universities had in any case started to enroll based on a candidates high school record instead of the minimum score, he said.

Deputy Minister Bui Van Ga told Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper that easing the enrollment criteria would create favourable conditions for schools to decide by themselves what score they require to enroll a candidate.

Setting a minimum score for all schools is not in keeping with the trend of multi-sector training, he said.

Answering questions related to the lower quality of candidates if minimum scores ar cancelled, Ga said the ministry had allowed universities to enroll students based on their high school record instead of the minimum score. Therefore, the minimum score no longer means much, he said.

Multi choices for candidates

The draft regulations would also allow candidates to apply to as many as universities as they want.

However, candidates would have to list their priorities in order, so that if they failed to get into their top choice university, they would be considered for the second option. Candidates found qualified for the second university would have to go there and their other options would be deleted.

This is aimed at ensuring there are no virtual applicants that could trigger chaos in the university enrollment system, the ministry said.

Until now, candidates were limited to applying to two universities.

About 880,000 high school graduates applied to universities in 2016. However, the quota was about 420,000, accounting for approximately 48 per cent.  VNS
The president of the Viet Nam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL), Bui Van Cuong, on Saturday visited and handed over financial aid worth VN500 million (US$22,000) to flood victims in the central province of Khanh Hoa.  Photo laodong.com.vn

KHANH HOA  The president of the Viet Nam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL), Bui Van Cuong, on Saturday visited and handed over financial aid worth VN500 million (US$22,000) to flood victims in the central province of Khanh Hoa.

Two families, four of whose relatives were killed in a Dec. 20 mountain landslide in Phuoc Loc Hamlet, Phuoc ong Commune, Nha Trang City received VN20 million ($890) each, while affected households were provided with VN5 million ($223) each.

As many as 70 flood-affected families in Phuoc ong Commune were presented gift packages, each worth VND1 million.

The VCGL also gave VN350 million ($15,370 ) donated by people across Viet Nam to the provincial Confederation of Labour to support other local residents in overcoming flood consequences.  VNS
HA NOI  Last week, Ha Noi municipal authorities asked the Standing Committee of the National Assembly to consider a number of special financial mechanisms for infrastructure development of the capital city, arguing that current budget constraints prevent it from responding to an urban planning and transportation "debacle".

Hoang Trung Hai, Secretary of the Municipal Party, said the city had completed the planning for eight metro lines with a total length of 300km, but there had been no progress on implementing the project since investors deem it unattractive.

Nguyen uc Chung, Chairman of the municipal Peoples Committee, requested that the sale of shares in state-owned enterprises  estimated at VN50 trillion (US$2.2 billion) in the next five years  be given to Ha Noi to invest in its development projects. He also requested that the city be given more autonomy in large-scale projects.

However, many experts are of the opinion that the paralysing traffic stress on the city has more to do with past and ongoing faults in urban planning and development, rather than lack of money.

Disregard for planning

According to Dr Pham Sy Liem, former Deputy Minister of Construction, budget is an essential condition for the development of infrastructure. However, in the case of Ha Noi, the lack of funding is not the root cause of the chaotic traffic situation in recent years.

Liem did not mince words, stating that the fault lies in insufficient oversight and poor management of key transportation projects over the past decade.

The case of the Trung HoaNhan Chinh urban area was cited as an example, since the number of high-rise buildings built there surpassed the limit allowed. Some apartment buildings were even built on lots designated specifically for parks and parking zones, which are already a scarcity in the sprawling city. In fact, Colonel ao Vinh Thang, Chief of Ha Nois traffic police department, recently said that newly approved parking spaces only met 10 per cent of the car parking demand.

Questionable adjustments made to urban planning, without taking into consideration infrastructure capacity, had led to massive traffic congestion in Trung HoaNhan Chinh urban area.

Nearby this urban area, more than 20 high-rise apartment blocs lined Vu Trong Phung Street, just 1km long and barely wide enough for two lanes, making congestion inevitable, Liem said.

Similarly, numerous apartment buildings in the Linh am urban area were two-three floors higher than permitted; one particular offender even exceeded the registered level by 10 floors to accommodate some 500 additional apartments. The fact that the investors could circumvent regulations this way was a clear indication of lax oversight, he said.

If supervision is carried out properly, such rampant construction and disorderly urban centres would not be allowed, he added.

Experts warned about the traffic snarls in the city a long time ago.

However, until 2015, Ha Noi municipal Peoples Committee still approved new planning in inner city districts, giving the green light to a number of 45 to 50-floor apartment buildings to accentuate the citys skyline.

Nguyen Trai or Giang Vo areas have for long been regarded as traffic bottlenecks as a result of a high population concentration and being on the path of many large-scale projects, such as the bus rapid transition (BRT) system or Cat LinhHa ong overhead railway, Liem said.

In an effort to ease congestion and infrastructure stress, city authorities drew up plans to move factories and manufacturers out to the suburbs. But the plans were undermined when authorities approved requests by development moguls to build urban complexes right on the reclaimed land lots in Giang Vo and Thanh Xuan areas  putting further strains on transportation infrastructure.

The authorities allowed numerous apartment buildings to squeeze themselves into the already cramped inner city areas, thats why even a generous budget will not help Ha Noi resolve the overcrowded and overloaded situation it is facing, Liem asserted.

In addition, many key transportation projects are running behind schedule, resulting in heightened traffic jams and incurring cost overruns of thousands of billions of ong.

These delays reflect the weak supervision capacity of the projects management boards, according to experts.

The BRT system, overhead railway, or subway, are all being implemented in Viet Nam for the first time. Therefore, if domestic supervisors prove to be wanting in qualifications, the citys authorities have to hire foreign supervisors in their place.

The hiring will certainly be expensive, but that is easily outweighed by the reduced risks of delays and cost overruns.

Building heights

Professor ang Hung Vo, former Minister of Natural Resources & Environment, echoed Pham Sy Liems opinion on the leading cause of current traffic chaos in the capital city, pinning the blame on poorly conceived planning modifications without relying on scientific research and assessments or taking into consideration the capacity of existing transportation infrastructure.

With the urbanisation at break-neck speed since the beginning of the millennium, Ha Noi authorities foresaw the risks of traffic overload and devised a number of viable urban plans  including parking spaces for the period 2003-2020, Vo said. But, the reality is that large swathes of land originally reserved for transportation projects were transformed into apartment buildings or shopping malls, instead, he added.

Regarding urban areas, Vo claimed most investors committed various violations, flouting original planning, especially by construction of more floors than permitted.

Recently, Ha Noi authorities issued new regulations on height management applied to buildings being constructed in the inner citys historic areas, including many high-rises in crowded residential areas with dense traffic.

Vo cautioned that if planning is devised haphazardly without taking into account the maximum load that infrastructure can sustain, it would be really difficult to deal with undesirable consequences down the road.

Luu Binh Nhuong, a member of the Standing Committee for Social Issues under the National Assembly, summed it up thus: The problem with Ha Noi is not lack of budget, but lack of vision on planning and management.  VNS
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) on a skills internship programme was signed on Saturday in Tokyo between Viet Nams Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and IM Japan  the Japanese international human resources training agency.  VNA/VNS Photo

TOKYO  A memorandum of understanding (MoU) on a skills internship programme was signed on Saturday in Tokyo between Viet Nams Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and IM Japan  the Japanese international human resources training agency.

The programme offers free-of-charge internship to candidates, IM Japans President Yanagisawa Kyoe told a Vietnam News Agency correspondent.

IM Japan will provide training support to those who are eligible to complete five-year internships in Japan to open their own companies, he added.

He also noted that those who perform well during the internship can receive a total of up to JPY5 million (about US$42,600).

Both sides also signed a letter of intent on the possible participation of Vietnamese technicians in the programme.

Currently, Viet Nam has nearly 200,000 unemployed university graduates, said Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs ao Ngoc Dung, adding that the letter of intent would be beneficial for both countries as it helps provide young Vietnamese workers for the Japanese market.

He also praised IM Japans effort in sending 3,000 Vietnamese to Japan to work.

It is an advantage as Vietnamese graduates possess skills, especially in the IT area, according to IM Japans President Yanagisawa Kyoe.

The agency would ask the Japanese government to loosen entry visa requirements for those people and strive to carry out the commitments in the MoU, he said.  VNS
HA NOI  The Ministry of Industry and Trade yesterday said it has received a resignation letter from Vu Quang Hai, Deputy General Director of Sai Gon Beer-Alcohol-Beverage Company (Sabeco).

On December 22, the ministry got a report from its State budget management unit about Hais resignation. He had submitted the letter to Sabecos board of directors informing them that he wished to resign from his position as a member of the board.

The ministry will direct the State budget management units response to Hais letter in accordance with the laws and the companys regulations.

The ministry has decided to ask Nguyen Thanh Nam, incumbent Sabeco Deputy General Director, to join the companys board of directors and be the representative of the companys State budget capital.

Hai, 29, is the son of Vu Huy Hoang, former Minister of Industry and Trade. In November, the Party Central Committee Secretariat ordered disciplinary action against Hoang on charges of nepotism. Hoang had appointed Hai as an inspector of Viet Nam National Tobacco Corporation, allowed him to join Sabecos board of directors and become its deputy general director.

The 63-year-old, a former member of the Party Central Committee, incorrectly directed and implemented regulations by presenting the Hero of Labour title to PetroVietnam Construction Corporation and rewarding third-class Labour Order to ang Vu Ngoan, rector of HCM City University of Food Industry.

He has also been accused of not keeping a close check on the ministrys units, allowing them to break rules related to personnel recruitment, evaluation and appointments.

As per the conclusions drawn by the Party Central Committees Inspection Commission, the party committee of the ministry was irresponsible and lax in its leadership and direction, violating a number of regulations, procedures and criteria in personnel work, resulting in serious consequences.  VNS
HA NOI  The tropical storm Nock-ten, with wind speed up to 150km per hour, is heading to the East Sea, the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting has said.

At 7am on Monday, the storm, located over the central region of the Philippines, was moving west at 20km per hour.

Nguyen uc Quang, deputy chief of office of National Steering Committee on Natural Disasters Prevention and Control, on Sunday relayed an urgent message to the coastal provinces from Quang Ninh to Ninh Thuan, ordering local administrations to monitor the storm and inform all offshore vessels so that they can anchor safely.

Local administrations have also been asked to mobilise all rescue forces to deal with emergencies, Quang said.

The forecasting centre has also warned of a cold spell in the northern and central regions starting Monday midnight. The minimum temperature will drop to 10-14 degree Celsius in mountainous and delta regions, the centre said.

There will also be torrential rains, with rainfall up to 300mm, in the central region between December 28 and January 2, because of the combination of the cold spell and weather disturbance triggered by the storm. Localities have been put on high alert for flooding, and Quang has tasked local authorities with evacuating residents who live in areas that have a high risk of floods. Officials have been asked to ensure the safety of reservoirs, he added.

The media, especially Vietnam News Agency, the Voice of Viet Nam and the Viet Nam Television, have been asked to do frequent updates of the storm, the cold spell and torrential rains so that people in the affected regions have access to the latest information.  VNS
HA NOI  Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh has ordered that phase 1 of sea pollution compensation disbursement must be complete before Tet.

He was speaking at the meeting of the Steering Committee with the focus on discussing measures to help stabilise livelihoods and production for people in the four provinces of the Central Region which were affected by the marine environmental incident earlier this year, the Government Office reported.

He also once again reaffirmed that Decision 1880/Q-TTg issued on September 29 is to cover all groups of people affected by the pollution  including seafood harvesting, aquatic breeding, salt production, coastal seafood business activities, fishing logistics, coastal tourism services and seafood stockpiling and purchase. Relevant authorities should refrain from proposing expansions to the list of affected groups unless ordered by the Government.

Chairmen of the peoples committees of the four affected provinces  Quang Binh, Ha Tinh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue  are required to give full attention to easing obstacles that inhibit the progress of paying compensation for local people in the first phase of the compensation to help them overcome initial hardship and get back on their feet, with Tet (Lunar New Year) being the deadline.

Upon receiving directives from the Prime Minister, based on best practices garnered through the first phrase, compensation money in the second phrase must be swiftly disbursed to ensure local production and peoples livelihoods return to normal.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE) is ordered to step up its efforts in informing the public that the sea environment has recovered and safety is ensured.

The Ministry of Health, together with MoNRE and Viet Nam Academy of Science and Technology, must immediately conduct scientific research to assess the quality and safety of deep-sea seafood resources within 20km of the coastline, and report to the Government.

Classify stored seafood by quality

On handling unsold seafood that have been contaminated and needed to be destroyed, Deputy Prime Minister asked the four provincial peoples committees to urgently pay compensation based on approved unit price volume, completed before December 25.

On the other hand, unsold seafood that is considered safe must be classified by quality: seafood that are safe for human consumption, and degraded seafood that can only be used in animal feed or be destroyed. Each category will be taken stock of and the chairmen of the four provinces are responsible for the inventory results.

Recommended compensation level for each category will be sent to the inter-sectoral task force helmed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade  which will also be assigned with the task of verifying the inventory results.

Deputy Prime Minister Binh also demanded that the Ministry of Information and Communication increases its information dissemination campaigns, ensuring wide coverage of the results of the compensation and support activities as well as the strict penalties levelled against the polluter - the steel plant Formosa corporation.

The Deputy Prime Minister assigned the Supreme Peoples Court, Peoples Procuracy, and the Supreme Court to issue directives and guidance to local procuracies to handle peoples complaints in line with existing laws and be willing to cooperate in cases of contingencies.

The mass fish deaths were first reported on April 6 when a large number of fish washed ashore in Ha Tinh Province. It soon spread to Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue provinces.

Serious pollution also affected over 260,000 people who earn their living by working at sea.

Late in June, Hung Nghiep Formosa Ha Tinh Steel Corporation accepted responsibility for the mass fish deaths and pledged to compensate over VN11.5 trillion ($500 million) to support local fishermen and to help recover the polluted marine environment.  VNS
HA NOI  The Ha Noi Health Department on Sunday night temporarily suspended all operations at Tri uc General Hospital after two patients reportedly died during surgery earlier in the day.

The first patient, a 37-year-old woman, was diagnosed with a tumour in her thyroid glands, and doctors from the hospital decided to conduct a surgery to remove the tumour.

At 8.15am, she was anaesthetised with an injection of Atropine 0.25mg, Midazolam 5mg, and Solu Medrol 40mg. Fifteen minutes later, she was injected with 100mg Diprivan and 30mg Esmeron. Within 30 seconds, she showed symptoms of anaphylactic shock and was rushed from Tri uc hospital to Bach Mai Hospital, but died later.

The second patient, a 34-year-old man, was getting surgery done to remove his tonsils, also died while being anaesthetised. At 8.40am, he was injected with Atropine 0.25mg, Midazolam 5mg and Solu Medrol 40mg. About 15 minutes later, he was injected with 120 mg Diprivan and 30 mg Esmeron. He also showed signs of anaphylactic shock within 30 seconds of the second injection and was rushed to Bach Mai Hospital, but he too died.

The local police have sealed the operating room for investigations.

The Ministry of Healths Medical Examination and Treatment Department this morning ordered Ha Noi health department to co-operate with the police and ascertain the responsibilities of all individuals who were part of the two fatal surgeries.

As per the initial investigations, the first surgery included surgeon Mai Van Vien, anaesthesiologist Chu uc Khanh, anaesthesia technician Mai Hop Loc and assistants Vu Thi Phuong Thao and Nguyen Thi Lien.

In the second surgery, those involved are surgeon Nguyen Thi Ngoc Dinh, anaesthesiologist o Thi Lien, anaesthesia technician Pham Thi Huong and assistants Le Thi Van Hong and Bui Thi Kim Oanh.

However, Pham Thi Huong and Bui Thi Kim Oanh were not named in the hospitals staff list.

Cao Hung Thai, deputy head of medical examination and treatment department, has asked the city health department to visit the deceased patients families.  VNS
ACAPULCO  An armed gang slaughtered seven people - including three police officers - at a family Christmas celebration in Mexicos violent southern state of Guerrero yesterday, police said.

The massacre occurred early Christmas Day outside a house in the village of Puente del Rey, where the gunmen shot dead the six men and one woman, aged 24 to 54.

Those killed were three brothers, their father, their uncle, and a man and a woman who were invited to the home.

Three of the victims were police officers, a regional security ministry official said.

Guerrero is one of Mexicos states most affected by brutal drug gangs which frequently battle each other, as well as carrying out kidnappings and extortion.

It recently earned international infamy as a region where 43 students in 2014 went missing, and were presumably murdered, at the hands of corrupt police working for criminals.AFP
VAN HORNE --- A man is in custody in connection with a Christmas Day shooting in Van Horne in Benton County.

Steele Lee Unkrich, 24, of Van Horne, faces charges of willful injury, intimidation with a dangerous weapon and going armed with intent, all felonies.

Benton County Sheriff Randy Forsyth said the incident was reported about 7:15 p.m. Sunday.

The victim was an unidentified 38-year-old Belle Plaine man who was taken to St. Luke's Hospital in Cedar Rapids after being shot. His condition was not available Monday.

Unkrich was arrested on Highway 30 in Tama County by Tama County authorities and the Iowa State Patrol. No further suspects are believed to be involved. Unkrich and the victim likely know each other, Forsyth said.

Unkrich was being held Monday in the Benton County Correction Facility on a $10,000 bond.
Astros throw group no-hitter at Phillies to tie Series at two games each
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by Claire Chambers

 If you've read any of my blog posts for 3 Quarks Daily or columns for Dawn's Books & Authors section, you may know me for my criticism of world literature. But as it's the holidays, I want to write about something more frivolous.

I have a confession to make: as well as being a lecturer in global literature, for the last five years I have also moonlighted as a

Zumba instructor.

Zumba, if you're unfamiliar with this high art form, is a dance fitness programme. Like all self-respecting cults, it has its own creation myth. Godhead and co-founder, Colombian Alberto 'Beto' Perez, began his career as an aerobics teacher in Florida. One day, the story goes, he arrived at his class only to realize he had forgotten his aerobics cassettes (yes, it was the 1990s). He improvised a class based on the Latin music tapes he had in the car, and the punters loved it. He then teamed up with two more pragmatic and business-minded Albertos  Alberto Perlman and Alberto Aghion  and Zumba Fitness was born.

A typical Zumba class is built around four main dance styles. Most people are familiar with Cuba's elegant, sexy Salsa. (Less well-known is its offshoot Salsa Choke, which originates in Beto's native Colombia and intermixes Cuban panache with the rhythms of Zumba's next core dance, Reggaeton.)

Perhaps best described as Latin hip-hop, Reggaeton hails from Puerto Rico. Its edgy, urban lyrics and beats have made their way across South America. Some of Reggaeton's most famous musicians, such as Daddy Yankee, Don Omar, and Pitbull, have an even wider following across the globe.

Merengue is the third style, which most people have heard of but may not be aware that this is a fast march from the Dominican Republic and other parts of the Caribbean. It has an even beat but can become very frenetic, with moves that have names like double hesitations, pretzels, and cradles.

Finally, Beto introduced his national dance, Cumbia, which sprang from the history of slavery. Cumbia was one of the musical styles featured on the soundtrack to the Netflix series Narcos, about Colombian drug dealer Pablo Escobar, and has a hypnotic 'oom-pa' beat. In one move, called the machete, dancers mimic the cutting of sugar-cane in the plantations, while in another known as 'sleepy leg' they emulate slaves with their ankles in chains carrying candlesticks in their hands. Cumbia has probably travelled the most easily of all the Zumba styles, with most Latin countries having adapted it and invented their own versions.

Zumba is not limited to these four dances. Salsa, Reggaeton, Merengue, and Cumbia simply form the core of the class, and many others are thrown in by the instructor, from Flamenco to Samba to Belly Dancing. As a specialist in South Asian literature in my day job, my signature is to include a dance from the Indian subcontinent in every class, whether it is to Bollywood classic 'Sheila ki Jawani', bhangra such as 'Tunak Tunak Tun' or 'Hadippa', 'Jugni Ji' by British-Punjabi music producer Dr Zeus. The inclusive nature of Zumba means that it embodies the kind of happy hybridity famously championed by postcolonial theorist Homi K. Bhabha.

Taking these diverse dance styles, most of which are traditionally performed with a partner, Zumba turns them in to a kind of high-energy line dancing (it's a lot better than it sounds, I promise!). The programme took off in the US in the early 2000s and went big in Europe around seven years ago. Other similar programmes such as Bokwa and FitSteps have tried to challenge Zumba's popularity, but Beto's following shows little sign of diminishment.

Zumba routines are based around songs with different speeds and levels of intensity, as compared with aerobics' more homogeneous four to the floor rhythm patterns. This ever-changing pace means that Zumba is a kind of interval training, a varied form of exercise which can trick the body into burning more calories than steadier rhythms. Additionally, Zumba's music should be uplifting and intricate, so that the time seems to pass very quickly and class members don't feel as though they're exercising. Finally, research suggests that Zumba  and dancing more broadly  is good for mental health. During the class, one has to think about one's feet and arms all the time, so there is no room for thoughts about work or other stresses, in what is a type of mindfulness.

Zumba attracts an international fan-base. At my Christmas Eve class at the University of Leeds, UK, there was a reduced crowd of 13 in attendance. Only one class member and I were white; the others were students from East and South Asia, or were Black or mixed-heritage. As well as hybrid music forms, then, Zumba apparently provides space for spontaneous conviviality. This space, Paul Gilroy explains, positively disrupts binary thought and the leaky barriers of race and absolute ethnicity that dominated imperialist discourse and persist today.

The dance programme is less pluralist in relation to gender. In Britain, it is dominated by women and, to a lesser extent, gay men. Many buttoned-up Britons seem to think it is simply unappealing to straight men. In less inhibited Italy, I hear, Zumba cuts across genders and sexualities in a way that is genuinely inclusive.

Zumba also has a ruthlessly commercial side. Under the slogan 'Zumba Love', the company will sell you anything from neon pants to a bumper sticker emblazoned with the ominous slogan, 'Zumba Changed My Wife'. One of the best articles to pick up on those aspects of the programme most ripe for satire is by a feminist anthropologist based at Princeton:

How am I, an outsider, to follow these wordless instructions, dictated by gestures as subtle and specific as a swift movement of the head, or even merely the eye, in the direction of the foot intended to kick? The instructor offers no answers, merely pelvic thrusts and the shrill cry of an arriba.

Zumba is emphatically uncool. It nonetheless conveys important truths about the world and its music, which can be useful to the postcolonial scholar. With profuse apologies to Frantz Fanon for wresting his words out of context, when dancing I often think of this sentence from The Wretched of the Earth: 'The circle of the dance is a permissive circle: it protects and permits.'

At the end of what has been a very difficult year 2016, I think world literature and Zumba dance can help us keep sane in a milieu that seems to be collectively going mad.

Happy holidays!
by Humera Afridi

Nekbakht Foundation Archive

Mommy it's Christmas, you have to put away your work! urged my nine-year old. And so I began clearing the dining table which had turned into an expansive workspace over the early winter weeks. As I gathered up my books, a sheet of paper slid out from a binder. I stared at it absently. A photocopy of an archival newspaper cutting from 1923, with publication title missing. The headline announced: Indian Mystic Here to Show America Path of Tolerance and Brotherhood.

I marveled at the headline. Kinship and the Path of Tolerancewhat better salve for our fraught present? I sensed a confluence of eras and histories, of time collapsing. A Father Christmas' message, if ever there was one, I mused, sitting back down at the table to study the article from 1923. And, indeed, as if conspiring to corroborate my thesis, a striking Christ-like image of Hazrat Inayat Khan floated off the pagecommanding features and a magnetic expression; tapering beard; mystical gaze piercing the distance. A strand of beads with a heart-and-wings pendant adorned his neck. The article's sub-headings revealed the contours of the story Inaya (sic) Khan, Hindu Poet and Philosopher, Bars Politics from Consideration; Humanitarianism is His Study; Says Greatest Need of America and of Whole World is Understanding a gift-giving message to be sure, emanating a spirt apropos of Christmas; an antidote to the climate of war and divisiveness in which we find ourselves.

I squinted my eyes to decipher the tiny newsprint, faded in parts, and stopped dead after the first half of the sentence. Inaya Khan, Hindu poet, philosopher and mystic, has entered America after a few days detention at Ellis Island A few days detention? I started over and reread the sentence. Yes, a few days' detention at Ellis Island. I'd read it correctly. More alarming than the shock of this initial piece of information is that the article carries on without the slightest reflection on the egregious incident and, undoubtedly, racist attitude that Hazrat Inayat Khan had endured at the hands of immigration at Ellis Island.

The opening sentence in its entirety proceeds thus: Inaya Khan, Hindu poet, philosopher and mystic has entered America after a few days detention at Ellis Island, to tell Americans how the path towards world tolerance and brotherhood is open and waiting for them to lead the way. A leader is all that is needed to take the path, he says, and America, by reason of present conditions, has been designated as that leader.

What is not articulated in the article says as much, if not more, than what is contained in it. This record of an Indian Sufi mystic's visit to America from Europe in 1923 speaks volumes, not just about that moment in history but about the present and the historic past. I am one who believes in signs. And this sheet of paper had chosen to make itself known by slipping out of the folder at a propitious time literally a day after the hateful and prejudiced National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS) targeting Muslims a strategy initiated by Bush as part of the war on terrorhad been dissolved. The dismantling of NSEERS is a long overdue and welcome development, but it doesn't do away with the reality that we have a President-elect whose election campaign emboldened overt displays of hate-mongering and has inspired racist and anti-Semitic attacks. A leading element in his bid for the White House was a plan to prevent non-US citizen Muslims from entering the US, or if allowed in, to place them under surveillance.

Reading this article, what struck me is that not a whole lot has changed in America in all these decades. In the sweep of time covered between this news report of 1923 and the America of 2016 and, more dramatically, between the news report and the arrival centuries ago of the first white colonizers on this land belonging to the indigenous tribes of North American, there is a consistent theme. Betrayal and a stripping away of rights and dignity and culture appear to be a hazing rite of passage in white America. (And as a corollary, the stoic reinvention and rehabilitation of the self, the self-mastery needed to overcome the abysmal conditions arising from the inequities and harshnesscoming out the other end of this initiatic fire, one might then earn the right to belong in America.)

The news article proceeds with a distorted logic that posits as normal the fact that on the one hand a great Eastern mystic visitor (sought out by Orientalists) is here to share his wisdom, while on the other it is quite acceptable to have him placed in detention as a first step towards entry into the country.

Inaya (sic) Khan, with his serene brown eyes and his calm restful voice, thinks and speaks in terms of humanity, begins the second paragraph. There is no bitterness about this man from India, the article continues. There is no disappointment in his eyes as he talks of humanity and its needs. And a few paragraphs later: This mystic from far off India walks about New York, makes his way through our hurried traffic and sees the rush and turmoil of our American life He is a figure that more than one in the passing crowd will stop to gaze after, not alone because of his unusual costume, but partly because of his serene look of contentment and happiness that shines from his eyes.

How can one fail to notice especially given that it's December and Christmasthe Christ-like stoicism of Inayat Khan, his serenity, his message of empathy and reconciliation? Inayat Khan's peaceful demeanor in 1923 belies the welcome' he received. The unconscionable lack of acknowledgement of what this venerable teacher experienced on arrival in the very land that he says holds the potential for exemplary leadership is, to me, shocking. I grazed the internet for information and managed to locate a short New York Times article from February 18, 1923 Admits Hindu Mystic with the sub-head Board of Inquiry announces Inaya (sic) Khan May Lecture Here. It turns out that after his arrival, Inayat Khan had been placed in detention because the quota of Hindus had been filled. He was granted entry after a hearing before a special board of inquiry. The Khan it was brought out had been in the United States in 1912 on a lecture tour. He also played the buena (sic) a native string instrument. In truth, Inayat Khan had been invited to give a series of lectures by the League for the Higher Life, and yet, despite that he was detained and had to have a special hearing.

Hazrat Inayat Khana celebrated classical musician in India and the grandson of Maula Baksh, the chief court musician of the ruler of Gujrat and founder of the famous music school in India, the Gayanshala first came to the West in 1910, on a music and lecture tour. His talks on the sacred principles underlying his music gained increasing popularity (in the years of the Great War, his audience found much comfort in his teachings), so much so that eventually his philosophical and spiritual teachings superseded his music. He was a Chishti Sufi, a disciple in the ancient spiritual lineage of Khwajah Moinuddin Chishti (114-1236), whose message of Love towards all, malice towards none formed the foundation of Inayat Khan's own teachings.

 I am not concerned with politics at all,' Inayat Khan states in the 1923 article. I am interested in the humanitarian side of the world. If the general attitude develops humanity will think and act better and the effect will be seen in politics as well as in education, social relations and religion.'

I wonder what Inayat Khan would say about today's America? The country that he perceived as having been designated a leader by the then present conditions.

***

My son strode over to the dining table in protest. Mom, why are you still sitting down? Catching sight of the article, he leaned over and stared intently at the saintly photo of the teacher.

On election night, he'd confided in a shaky voice, his face pale in the light of the streetlamps as we walked to a friend's house, that he was really scared that Trump would win. Don't worry, I said. There's no chance of that. But if he did, what are you scared of?

Mom, he'll ruin my childhood. He's going to build a wall. And he'll deport you because you were born in Pakistan.

We live in America. And America would never allow that. I said. That night I spoke from a place of confidence, convinced that Hillary would be our next president. I clasped his hands to reassure him.

I did not closely follow the shenanigans leading up to Election Day. I didn't need to. For months, the noise, bellowing and raucous, reverberated its crass tones everywhere. Filled with bombast, deception, and drama, the cacophony sawed into our dreams, into our very beings, unforgiving as razor-edged metal teeth. One could not get away from the spectacle even if one tried; its aura seemed to settle into the branches of trees lining the sidewalks.

The morning our world changed, my son took his guitar to school for a music share. He chose to play Metallica's Master of Puppets accompanied by a friend who sang the dark lyrics to a class of nine-year olds. Days later, he stayed up late writing a song. He titled it My Apocalypse. I asked him how things were at school recently. His class had been having intense community discussions pre- and post-election, moderated by the teachers. Aaah, we're all quieter and sadder now, he said, sounding like a wizened, old man.

The morning after the unthinkable happened, I walked the streets of New York like many denizens of the city in a fugue of depression. A heaving, sobbing grief entered me. Breathing was to feel trapped, as if in an earthquake, beneath slabs of the city's ancient bedrock. Strewn here and there on the sidewalks were mementos of the previous day, reminders of elation and hope, stickers announcing, I Voted. I felt betrayed. This was not my America. I felt betrayed as a woman, as a mother, as a Muslim, as a person of color, as a person who falls under the category of immigrant (though I never intentionally set out to live my life in this country).

A funny thing happens when you're broken open by sadness. A startling clarity settles in. In that bleeding rawness, you see the world through new eyes stripped down to a primeval, fundamental, visceral way of seeing. So broken open that epistemologies change, and solace comes only in the ability to be open hearted, to share, to reach across, to hold a stranger's hand, to embrace. I found myself fleeing towards light-filled places; bodies of joy and anger and song, they were my oxygen. Where there was kinesis there was hope, where there was action with intention and mindfulness, there was hope.

***

'The day humanity awakens to the need of brotherhood, he said, conditions will be better in all the affairs of the world. It matters not what religion man professes. This is not the time to advance any particular sect, church, or belief. We have too many sects. They are only the outer forms. The things that really matter are deeper.'

Hope was his greatest strength. Hazrat Inayat Khan would be the last to bemoan and dwell on the incident of his detention at Ellis Island, reaching as he did for the higher spheres and for elevated thoughts. In our time of war and conflict, fear and pessimismnot dissimilar from his era it feels right to remember Hazrat Inayat Khan and his message of spiritual liberty: an embracing universalism anchored in the spirit of unity.
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The Ministry of External Affairs (@MEAIndia) today deployed Twitter Indias live customer service resolution solution, Twitter Seva to help Indians here and abroad, tourists and business travelers with speedy resolution to their visa and passport queries. Twitter Seva will enable the MEA (@MEAIndia) to strengthen its primary relationship with Indian citizens by providing fast, efficient and real-time public service. This comprehensive global roll-out of Twitter Seva will enable timely, transparent and large scale response to citizen Tweets in real-time, thus, enhancing scalability and expediting the process of dealing with requests by Indian and global citizens. Embeddable Tweet: https://twitter.com/MEAIndia/status/812256171272744960 External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) with 6.8 million followers has been extremely active on Twitter to extend help and support to Indian and global citizens through her official Twitter account. With the deployment of Twitter Seva, the Ministry aims to establish a systematic and scalable process to use the public, live nature of Tweets to ensure public service redressal in the most effective manner. To boost the vision of the Government, GEN. (DR) V.K. SINGH (RETD), Minister of State for External Affairs today launched Twitter Seva to provide real-time service delivery and user interaction. The Seva service roll out will be supported by 198 Twitter accounts of Missions and High Commissions across the world and 29 Regional Passport Offices (RPOs) in India. Both Indians and non-Indians can simply Tweet with their query relevant MEA Twitter account  be it from a couple having trouble getting their child a passport, cry for help by migrant workers who have claims for unpaid wages, someone trying to get their relatives dead body home or simply a person seeking help with passport and visa documentation. The request will activate the concerned office nationally or across the world. Embeddable Tweet: https://twitter.com/ajairavikesavan/status/807806564497137664 Embeddable Tweet: https://twitter.com/adilrazakhan/status/807486825430401024 Embeddable Tweet: https://twitter.com/sandeep96462786/status/806060040943603716 Speaking at the launch, GEN. (DR) V.K. SINGH (RETD) said, Over time, Twitter has proved to be a powerful tool for communicating and exchanging information especially in times of need. Our action-reaction process has witnessed a real time boost. With the adoption of Twitter Seva today, our commitment to serve our people in India and across the globe in an enhanced, timely and transparent manner will take a new leap forward. Commenting on this partnership, Raheel Khursheed (@Raheelk), Head of News and Government Partnerships, Twitter India, said, We are happy that the Ministry of External Affairs is incorporating Twitter as a key platform for digital diplomacy. The Ministry has been doing incredible work responding to queries in various instances. By deploying Twitter Seva, which is a citizen-first approach, we will proudly witness the MEA take digital governance to the next level in India and around the world. Here is a snapshot of how the MEA (@MEAIndia) has been using Twitter for citizen engagement: Embeddable Tweet: https://twitter.com/listenmsaying/status/564289464491466752 Embeddable Tweet: https://twitter.com/Arpitkumarjain/status/702517956736110592 Embeddable Tweet: https://twitter.com/prashantkpradha/status/631290162828304384 Embeddable Tweet: https://twitter.com/SushmaSwaraj/status/766214255427264512 How does Twitter Seva work? Twitter Seva, Twitters customised live customer service delivery solution, is an effective mechanism to respond to public queries and grievances that helps process large volumes of Tweets, converts them into resolvable tickets, and assigns them to the relevant authority for real-time resolution. UP Police is a notable example of how a large public-service organisation smartly uses Twitter Seva solution. The UP Police is able to monitor citizen queries and customer service requests from Indians across the state to take quick action in a time-bound, accountable manner. The service is driving efficient and effective customer service as well as collation of real-time citizen feedback. Twitter has evolved as a utility tool for citizens as accounts offer services related to FIR complaint filing, query updates, and news updates from police officials and departments. Police officials keep updating users with issues relating to law and order. Twitter also serves as a medium to provide real-time advisories, alerts and general information to the public at large. The Seva ecosystem tracks more than 750,000 Tweets across 11 large government partners in two countries with more than 7,500 Twitter handles supporting the live delivery of services. As an India-first innovation, Twitter Seva is currently being used for citizen engagement by the Ministry of Commerce (@DIPPGOI), the Ministry of External Affairs (@MEAIndia), the Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia), the Department of Telecommunications (@Dot_India), Department of Posts, MTNL, BSNL under the Ministry of Communication, the UP Police (@Uppolice) as well as the Bengaluru Police (@BlrCityPolice). The other police departments that are set to adopt this Twitter innovation are the Delhi Police (@DelhiPolice), Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) and Hyderabad Police (@hydcitypolice). Internationally, Twitter Seva is in use at the Central Java province in Indonesia.
Congress MP Ashok Chavan has approached the Bombay High Court challenging a decision of Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao granting sanction to CBI to prosecute him in the Adarsh housing society scam.

In February this year, Governor Rao had granted sanction to the CBI to prosecute Chavan for offences under IPC sections 120 (b)(criminal conspiracy) and 420 (cheating and under various provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, in the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society case.

The CBI had accused the former state Chief Minister of approving additional floor space index for Adarsh society in return for two flats for his relatives. He was also charged with illegally approving, as the then Revenue Minister, allotment of 40 per cent of the flats to civilians.

Chavan, in his petition filed recently, challenged the sanction order and said it was arbitrary, illegal and unjust and passed without proper application of mind and with malafide intentions.

The petition, which came up for hearing on December 22, was then adjourned. It will now come up for hearing before a division bench of the high court on January 23, 2017.

Earlier, Chavan was forced to step down from the post of the Chief Minister in November 2010 after the allegations emerged against him.

While the CBI named him as an accused in its FIR, in December 2013 the then Governor K Sankaranarayanan had refused permission to it to prosecute Chavan in the scam, leaving the central probe agency with no choice but to close the case against him.

However, in March last year, the high court dismissed a plea made by Chavan, who is the sitting Lok Sabha MP from Nanded, seeking deletion of his name from the case, as the Governor had refused to grant sanction.

Following this, the CBI re-approached the Governor seeking sanction, which was granted in February this year.
Russia on Monday said mass graves with dozens of mutilated bodies, some shot in the head, had been found in the Syrian city of Aleppo.

Aleppo was announced to be liberated last week by the Syrian army, Efe news reported.

Russian military spokesman Igor Konashenkov said some bodies in the mass graves bore signs of savage torture.

Konashenkov said it was just the beginning of the discoveries being made.
Instead of constructing Shivaji Maharajs memorial the government must repair the forts constructed by him says Raj Thackeray.

MNS supremo Raj Thackeray criticised the BJP led state government for going ahead with the foundation stone laying ceremony of Chhatrapati Shivaji and instead asked them to first maintain the forts constructed by the Maratha warrior which are in dire straits. He said that it would have been a better tribute to Shivaji if the state government had given a facelift to the forts constructed by him and his birth place Shivneri instead of announcing a mega memorial just for the sake of luring voters. Thackeray said that Fadnavis government is only trying to garner publicity through these acts and has failed to fulfil the promises made by it to people. He said the governance wont improve by merely constructing Shivajis memorial.

How will state government construct Shivaji memorial when it has been facing severe cash crunch? They should instead focus on repairing forts constructed by Shivaji. The government is talking about constructing memorial for Shivaji but they have neglected his birthplace Shivneri. They could have instead given a facelift to the Maratha warriors birthplace, said Raj Thackeray.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid foundation stone for the memorial of Chhatrapati Shivaji on Saturday. The BJP has taken this step to attract voters ahead of the Brihanmumbai Muncipal Corporation (BMC) election. The 192-metre-tall statue of the iconic Maratha king is slated to cost Rs 3,600 crore.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis only make announcements about various developmental work but people are not happy with his governments functioning. Does the government have enough money to construct the memorial? They have taken this decision at a time the state government is reeling under a debt of Rs 3.79 lakh crores, he said.

Development doesnt happen merely by constructing memorials as a party needs to connect with voters and work for their welfare. The government also had announced to provide financial package for Mumbai but they are yet to disburse funds. They are only trying to mislead voters by carrying out the bhoomi pujan of Shiv Smarak, said the MNS chief.

By constructing the memorial of Shivaji, the BJP is trying to lure Marathi voters who are considered as the traditional vote bank of Shiv Sena. BJP is also trying to wrest the control of BMC from Sena. The memorial project has been facing stiff opposition from fisherfolk and environmentalists, who have alleged that it would affect marine life and ecology of the Arabian Sea.
PM Modi sidelined Uddhav Thackeray during the bhumi pujan ceremony of Chhatrapati Shivaji memorial but interacted with Sharad Pawar.

Even though BJP had invited Shiv Sena for foundation stone laying ceremony of Chhatrapati Shivaji memorial but hostilities between both the parties was visible during the function. Prime Minister Narendra Modi who inaugurated Maratha warrior kings memorial gave a cold shoulder to Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray. There was no interaction between both the leaders as Modi was seen cosying with NCP supremo Sharad Pawar. NCP had earlier provided outside support to the BJP while forming government in Maharashtra. Even though Modi had attacked NCP for indulging in corruption activities but he had later on praised Pawar for development work undertaken by his party. After the inauguration of memorial both Modi and Uddhav went to Bandra Kurla complex as the former delivered a speech about demonetisation and other issues. Even though he addressed the names of several leaders he failed to mention the name of Uddhav and his party.

The function lasted for two hours as many leaders addressed the gathering. However, here too Modi was keeping a safe distance from Uddhav. Thus Modi was sidelining Uddhav during the function. He didnt speak about the issues raised by the Sena president. On the other hand, he had spoken some words about Sharad Pawar and his long political career. After the end of the function Modi again met Pawar and interacted with him. Shiv Sena leaders are upset with Modi for giving more importance to Pawar and sidelining Uddhav.

Even though Shiv Sena is the alliance partner of the BJP led state government but the relations between both the parties had strained. After winning the state assembly polls BJP has been trying to play the role of big brother which has upset Sena. The saffron party also is keen to wrest the control of the Brihanmumbai Muncipal Corporation (BMC) currently ruled by Sena. The saffron party is likely to demand more seats for contesting the BMC election a move which may irk Sena.

Modi laid foundation stones of many key infrastructure projects, including the countrys longest sea bridge and two metro lines in the city, entailing investment of over Rs 1.06 lakh crore. Projects include 22.5km Mumbai Trans Harbour Link that will connect the citys eastern suburbs with the mainland across the harbour, via a 16.5km sea bridge and a viaduct.

Modi also laid the foundation stones of two new metro projects  the 23.5km DN Nagar-Bandra-Mankhurd Metro-2B corridor and the 32km Wadala-Ghatkopar-Thane-Kasarvadavli Metro-4 corridor  through a remote control at the event. PM Modi also inaugurated a new campus of National Institute of Securities Markets, SEBIs educational initiative at Raigad.
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(The following was written by my 95-year-old cousin, Edna Hitchins, who is now in a Presbyterian assisted-living facility in or near Marietta, Ga. Her mind remains as clear as a bell. Edna grew up in Chattanooga, but married early and left the area when Chickamauga Lake was still empty, and with tree stumps everywhere. She refers to her Uncle Sol, who was a building contractor here in town. Uncle Solly to my mom, he and Aunt Betty (Smith) Henry, were two of my moms favorite people.) I and my three siblings became orphans in 1926, and went to live with our beloved maternal grandparents and their daughter. My grandmother and aunt were pianists, and my grandfather played the "fiddle," so our ears were filled with live music daily. My aunt was also choir director and organist at our church. Many church gatherings were in our home where we gathered around the piano to sing.

Our halcyon childhood days changed abruptly in 1929 with the sudden death of our grandfather and the "Great Depression" that descended on the entire country. In October the stock market crashed, most of the banks failed, and millions of American families became destitute. My grieving grandmother tried to protect us from the extent of her anxiety, but we knew there was little hope that Santa would find our home on the approaching Christmas Eve.

Unlike the affluent years of the "roaring twenties," the depression brought out the human kindness in the American people. The national state of austerity developed a sense of being "my brother's keeper." Churches and many organizations and individuals began programs to meet the need for food and shelter. This was especially critical as cold weather and the Advent season and Christmas approached. And my grandmother had inherited "the faith of her pioneer fathers." Her Christian faith and love turned her concern toward the needs of others.

Soon hungry men, called "hoboes" began coming to our door. The main rail line ran close by. Men leaped from the train as it slowed to enter the city, fearing arrest if they reached the terminal. My hundred pound grandmother was fearless when Christian values were an issue. She never failed to invite any hungry man into her kitchen for hot coffee and a simple depression-era meal, such as beans and cornbread. To her, the hoboes were not law-breakers, but honest men looking for any work that would help feed their families.

On Christmas morning, our grandmother aroused us before daylight, telling us to hurry downstairs. At the foot of the steps we stopped and gazed in awe at a beautiful green tree in a room filled with the flickering light from many candles, clipped to the branches with tiny metal holders. Four stockings hung from the mantle, each bulging with an orange, an apple, nuts and candy. On each stocking was a name and a note with directions to look in a certain place. Then began the scampering of little feet up and down the stairs and into every room, as each note held a clue to find another note. The last note led each child to a final site where a small gift was waiting. After he merry chase, we were laughing and excited over our gift. That year my gift was the book, A Little Princess, wrapped in a pair of warm pajamas. We had not missed Santa Clause. We felt surrounded by love. We knew too that the greatest gift of all time is God's gift of His beloved Son, the tiny baby born in a stable.

Most of my ninety-four Christmases have dimmed in my memory, but the Great Depression Christmas of 1929 was too significant to be forgotten.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your gift of love and the message of salvation to the world through Your Son, Jesus. Thank You, too, for all the lives that have been dedicated through the centuries to passing your Word from generation to generation. Amen.

Edna Hitchins

Editor's Note:
December 26, 2016

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled Dec. 21 that the association and liberalization agreements between Morocco and the European Union do not apply to the territory of Western Sahara. Morocco has privileged access to the European market, as it exports agricultural and fishery products to the EU, including products from Western Sahara. The ECJs judgment is not only about trade, but has far-reaching political consequences.

The court considers Western Sahara to be a third party rather than a part of Morocco, which means that Western Sahara cannot be included in agreements between Morocco and the EU without the explicit consent of the Sahrawi population, said a source close to the ECJ. It is the first time that the European court has taken a stance on Moroccos sovereignty claim over Western Sahara. Mhamed Khaddad, a senior official from the Polisario Front, which is Western Saharas national liberation movement, told Al-Monitor that he was very satisfied by the clarity of the judgment, which highlights the Sahrawis right to self-determination.

Morocco annexed the former Spanish colony of Western Sahara in 1976 despite the International Court of Justices opinion that evidence was insufficient to prove Moroccan sovereignty claims over this territory. After 15 years of armed conflict, Morocco and the Polisario Front reached a cease-fire deal in 1991 on the grounds that Morocco would organize a referendum of self-determination in Western Sahara. Rabat has failed to do so ever since. Today, Morocco exploits the territorys resources, mainly phosphates, agricultural and fishery products.

The majority of Moroccan exports, including products from Western Sahara, go to the EU. The EU and Morocco signed an association agreement in 2000 and further deepened their trade relations with the 2012 liberalization agreement. The same year, the Polisario Front asked the ECJ to cancel the deal because the Sahrawi population was not consulted.

Through this court case, Polisario wanted to have the EU take a stance on Moroccos annexation of Western Sahara. Over the years, the EU has been turning a blind eye to Moroccan exports coming from this disputed territory. This has enabled Morocco to finance its occupation of Western Sahara, while giving the kingdom political legitimacy to do so, Polisario lawyer Gilles Devers told Al-Monitor.

Bodil Valero, a Swedish member of the European Parliament, told Al-Monitor that the issue of Western Sahara is a very political question among European member states. Whereas countries in the north support Western Sahara, France and Spain block everything. Morocco is also one of the EUs last partners in the Mediterranean for preventing migration and fighting terrorism.

In December 2015, the ECJ issued its first ruling in favor of the Polisario and partially canceled the 2012 trade deal. For Morocco, a red line was crossed, and Rabat temporarily froze diplomatic relations with the EU. Morocco considers Western Sahara to be part of the kingdom and has been lobbying international organizations to remove the issue of Western Sahara from the agenda. Siding with Morocco, the Council of the European Union appealed that ECJ decision with the support of the European Commission and five member states.

The ECJ's December 2016 judgment initially seemed confusing since it indicated that Polisarios demand to cancel the 2012 trade deal had been dismissed. This fueled the argument that the EU Council had won the case. But Erik Hagen, the chair of Western Sahara Resource Watch, told Al-Monitor, "It is hard to understand how this judgment can be interpreted in any way as a victory for the EU or Morocco. If the Polisarios demand was dismissed, it is because the ECJ concluded that Western Sahara is not part of Morocco and therefore not included in EU-Morocco deals. This is why the Polisario Front is said to be irrelevant to the case." Strangely enough, both the official Moroccan statement and the EU-Moroccan joint statement fail to mention this.

European institutions are now legally bound by the ECJ decision and have to implement the judgment. They have to make sure that products from Western Sahara are no longer exported into the EU under the EU-Morocco trade deal. There are easy steps that the EU can initially implement, said Manuel Devers, Polisario's legal counsel for relations with the EU. The EU has official lists of producers based in Western Sahara who are allowed to export into the EU. Their permit has to be revoked.

Devers said, As of today, private companies operating in Western Sahara have no right to do so without the consent of the Sahrawi population. The Polisario Front is inviting these companies to contact them in order to legalize their activities. The political and financial risk of investing in Western Sahara with only Moroccos permission has dramatically increased with the ECJ judgment. Polisario will make sure that the judgment is implemented if the EU institutions fail to do so, according to Devers.

The courts judgment is also an opportunity for the EU to engage directly with the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Devers said. Until today, they mostly dealt with Western Sahara through Morocco. Beyond the implementation of the courts judgment, Polisario also wants to make sure that other EU-Morocco deals stop applying to Western Sahara.

The 2006 fishing agreement between the EU and Morocco allows European vessels to fish in Western Saharas waters. Every year, the EU pays over 40 million euros ($42 million) to Morocco to be able to do so. The Polisario has already filed a complaint at the ECJ because this deal applies to Western Sahara, too, but is ready to negotiate with EU institutions should they be open for direct dialogue, Devers said.

On the diplomatic front, Morocco will be confronted with making important decisions in the coming weeks. It can choose to break off relations with the EU again. By isolating itself, the kingdom could damage its relations with a powerful ally and its most important export market. Or Rabat can decide to accept the judgment and strengthen economic cooperation between the EU and Morocco proper. In the meantime, Polisario will seek to put Sahrawis right to self-determination back on the agenda and now has yet another legal argument to do so.
December 22, 2016

RAMALLAH, West Bank  Sami Said Debebne, also known as Abu Abdullah, lit up the Christmas tree at his residence Dec. 16 in Sebastia village, Nablus governorate, in the northern West Bank. This came one day after he, his wife and their three children attended the Christmas tree lighting ceremony in the city of Nablus, nearly 15 kilometers (9 miles) away from his village.

Debebne, 50, works as a secretary at the Rujeib elementary school for boys in Nablus. His family is the only remaining Christian family in Sebastia village, where 3,500 people live and which is rich in ruins.

Debebne and his family are spending the holidays in his wifes birthplace, Zababdeh, where 3,000 Christians reside  two-thirds of its inhabitants. Zababdeh is 15 kilometers southeast of the city of Jenin, also in the northern West Bank. It is 45 kilometers from Nablus to Jenin.

Debebne is happy at Sebastia, where coexistence and strong social ties among the residents prevail. He told Al-Monitor, Although we are the only remaining Christian family in the village, we live in peace. We do not feel that there are any sectarian conflicts or discrimination between Muslims and Christians. He added, My children are students of public schools at the village; they learn the Islamic curriculum, just as my brother and I did before. The inhabitants of the village congratulate me on the holidays, and I do the same on the Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha holidays.

Debebnes parents have died and were buried at St. John the Baptist Church in the village. One of his brothers has been in Jordan since 1967, and the other one moved to Canada in 2000. His six sisters live with their families in different parts inside and outside of the West Bank. He is the only remaining member of the family in the village, and he opted to stay to preserve the familys house, land and good social ties with the rest of the villages inhabitants.

Debebne, who looks after the remains of St. John the Baptist Church, spends hours removing the dust, weeds and stones from its yard, and welcomes and guides visiting delegations. The church dates back to the Byzantine era, nearly 1,600 years ago," he said. It was reportedly built where the head of St. John the Baptist was chopped off. Yet, with time, only a few walls remained.

Debebnes story with this church began in 1987, when he returned to the village after he had ended his university studies in Jordan. The first intifada also was ignited that year. He said, Unidentified men broke the metal door to the room where St. John was beheaded, and stole the icons and images. I contacted the priest at St. Jacob Church in the city of Nablus, who told me to install a metal door and keep the keys. This is how I started looking after the church.

Debebne continued to look after the church and work with his brother in the car business. When the Al-Aqsa intifada broke out in 2000, his brother decided to move to Canada. Debebne continued to work in the car business alone until 2005 while taking care of the church.

In 2005, Debebne started working at the Education Ministry, which was another reason for him to stay in the village. He said, This is where our land and home are. This is where I was born and grew up. I have very good ties with the people here. They are the ones keeping me here.

He added, Over the last five years, the number of church visitors increased. Some of the delegations came to pray; others to learn about its history. He said that he has not obtained any sort of material assistance from the churches or Palestinian government parties.

Debebne said that some people are really annoying as they try to profit from selling  without permits  candles and souvenirs to visiting delegations, and that the room where St. John was beheaded has been without a door since April, as unknown men keep breaking it.

Although the Sebastia local council gave Debebne permission to look after the church, he said that there are unpleasant issues he and church visitors sometimes have to deal with; he said his way to the church is obstructed at times. He said there is only one person who causes him troubles, as this man and his children insist on disrespecting the sanctity of the place by making annoying noises during prayers. This occurs despite Debebne's having obtained from the Tourism Ministry a license establishing his right to be present at the church when delegations come. It should be noted that the church is located in Area C, which is under Israeli control.

Debebne demanded that the concerned parties in the Palestinian government, such as the Tourism Ministry, give him the right to protect the premises, given that the local councils permission is not enough  particularly since the church is located in Area C. He said he made a request to be moved from the Education Ministry to the Tourism Ministry, which requires a certificate of good conduct from the Palestinian security services. Yet one of the services hampered the process. He said, I have not received any assistance for the development of the premises. I want to protect and look after this place, to prevent the delegations from being harassed and bothered by the vendors.

Debebne wishes the Tourism Ministry would task him with official management of the premises. He stressed that the strong, tolerance-based social ties in Sebastia are what prompt him to stay in the village  a scene that totally contradicts the sectarian and confessional conflicts in parts of the Arab world.
December 26, 2016

When Turkey launched Operation Euphrates Shield on Aug. 24, two objectives were declared: to distance the Islamic State (IS) from the Turkish border, and to prevent the Kurds who had crossed to the west of the Euphrates River, despite Turkeys stated red lines, from connecting with Afrin.

Other goals that were not declared but could be read between the lines were to rescue the armed opposition groups supported by Turkey squeezed in Aleppo, to provide them with a protected zone and to prevent refugees in that zone from crossing into Turkey. Ankara was determined to block the Kurdish advances from east to west both in the south and in the north, then to enter al-Bab and put together an alternative force that might persuade the United States to terminate its partnership with the Kurds for the Raqqa operation.

But the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK)  which did not encounter strong IS resistance while capturing Jarablus, al-Rai and Dabik  began to sustain heavy casualties once it approached al-Bab.

A total of 38 TSK soldiers have been killed during the operation, including 16 on Dec. 21 alone. In addition, a video recording appeared last week on social media of two abducted Turkish soldiers being burned alive by IS. Turkish officials only said, We are investigating, while the government kept totally silent. All the government did was to curtail social media to prevent the discussion of the IS claim.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during his daily routine of delivering speeches and attending ceremonies, did not even mention the IS video. Finally a statement came from Defense Minister Fikri Isik, who said, "We are assessing the reports on our three missing soldiers in the hands of [IS]. Nothing else has been confirmed. The statement did not satisfy anyone.

The Turkish public is split by the tragic news. Some were frantically calling for total annihilation of the enemy, and some were asking, If the objective is to prevent a Kurdish corridor and push IS away from our border, why are we insisting on entering al-Bab?

Those who had supported the operation across the border despite warnings that Syria could become a quagmire were not expecting such a heavy toll. Compared with US and Russian casualties, Turkeys losses in Syria are too high. The United States, which has been conducting air operations in Syria since 2014 and providing advisory and training support with 300 soldiers to the Syrian Democratic Forces, has lost only one soldier. Russia, which fields 4,000 soldiers, has lost 23 since Sept. 30, 2015. But Turkey had 38 of its soldiers killed in four months of Operation Euphrates Shield, not including the two soldiers reported immolated.

There are occasional brief mentions of civilian casualties caused by the operation, but they go mostly unnoticed in a mood of extreme chauvinism, bravery and militarism. The TSK denied a report by the Syrian Human Rights Observatory that 250 civilians were killed by the Turkish operation. Turkish public opinion doesnt have a tradition of challenging what the TSK says. Incessant declarations by the TSK of how it is hitting IS helps cool down public anger over losses of soldiers. In a nutshell, there has not been heavy public pressure on the government to make changes to Operation Euphrates Shield.

To the contrary, two days after the video of the two soldiers burned alive appeared, Erdogan again said that Turkey is determined to continue with the operation: We have a thesis for a terror-free safe zone. If we cannot achieve that, then Gaziantep, Kilis and Urfa will always be under threat. What do they want? A new state in Syria. We will not allow the setting up of such a state. No doubt our martyrs hurt us, but for a land to be a country it needs martyrs.

The government is fortunate to have fully convinced the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) of the justification for Operation Euphrates Shield. While the country was trying to cope with the pains of news from Syria, CHP Chairman Kemal Kilicdaroglu uttered, If Turkey had launched that operation to ensure its future, it is then necessary to absorb certain agonies. MHP leader Devlet Bahceli declared that no matter the cost, Operation Euphrates Shield must continue.

While Turkish opposition circles were holding what they called the government's misguided Syria policies for Turkey's troubles, the prowess of Syrian opposition groups supported by Turkey were slowly being questioned. Ahmet Takan of the nationalist daily Yeni Cag claimed that the ground elements of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) were traitors. He wrote, According to plans, Turkish soldiers and about 400 FSA militants were to capture the strategic IS points. According to one officer wounded in the operation and now in hospital, after the first volley of fire from IS, most of the FSA elements deserted. Only about 40 of them stayed with our soldiers.

Although this particular claim could not be specifically confirmed, there is no doubt that what is called the FSA is a hodgepodge. To capture a strategic location of IS such as al-Bab or to secure a safe zone 40 kilometers by 90 kilometers (24 miles by 55 miles) by relying on such a motley crew is not an easy task. That is why as the operation deepens, the TSK is no longer a support force after the loss of 38 soldiers in four months, but in fact it is the primary combat force. Ankara was hoping to reinforce its friendly local forces with the experienced and dedicated fighters that were evacuated from Aleppo.

The recent declaration signed by Russia, Iran and Turkey in Moscow could affect the objectives and scope of Operation Euphrates Shield and Turkeys Syria policy. It is highly unlikely that Moscow will agree to a new Turkish strategy that will make life difficult for the Syrian army or weaken President Bashar al-Assads hands at the negotiation table.

As Russian President Vladimir Putin declared in his press briefing Dec. 23, if Russia, Iran, Turkey and Syria are to sit at the table at Astana next month, Operation Euphrates Shield is likely to conform to the new process.

Not many will be surprised if Ankara gets a green light for al-Bab. That will be a face-saving gesture in return for Turkeys cooperation in the Syrian armys recapture of Aleppo and for cutting off Turkeys military-logistics support for Syrian armed opposition groups. This will enable Turkey to boast that it has cleansed the area of IS but also blocked Kurdish ambition for a corridor. But the next step could be a demand for Turkey to hand over the areas cleansed of IS to the control of the Syrian army. After all, Putin  who is not expected to agree to a Turkish-inspired buffer zone  has enough cards in his hand to impose such a demand.
December 22, 2016

Following the selection of Rex Tillerson to be the next US secretary of state, one could, perhaps surprisingly, hear tones of disappointment in Jerusalem and Ramallah. Tillerson's nomination was vintage Donald Trump. After publishing a long list of likely Republican nominees that surprised nobody, he opted for a petrol industry billionaire with no background whatsoever in foreign affairs aside from making deals for ExxonMobil. In short, Trump chose a climate change cynic by definition and a business deal-maker. On top of this, Tillersons main claim to international fame is that he is among Russian President Vladimir Putins friends. If Putin did indeed interfere in the US elections, he got his reward.

Official Israel had hoped for a traditional, right-wing Republican friend of Israels current government and prime minister, like former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. A senior Israeli Foreign Ministry official in charge of US relations told Al-Monitor that publicly the ministry welcomes Tillerson's appointment. Israel trusts President-elect Trump and his administration to have a pro-Israel policy. On the other hand, the official said, Tillerson is practically an unknown. Figures in the governments most senior circles are somewhat nervous about the designated secretary of state's background.

Tillerson reminds veteran Israeli diplomats of the former secretary of state who recommended him to Trump  James Baker  who more than once gave the Yitzhak Shamir government the cold shoulder and pressured Israel into participating in the Madrid international peace conference in 1991. The official also said that Jerusalem feels uneasy about Tillersons close ties with Arab Gulf countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Yemen. His closeness to Moscow is also perceived as a bad omen, given Putin's traditional pro-Arab positions.

In the Palestinian Authority, the reaction was much grimmer. A senior PLO official close to President Mahmoud Abbas told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity that the whole Trump administration is an American extension of the Benjamin Netanyahu-Naftali Bennett right-wing government. He was particularly horrified by the nomination of David Friedman, an outspoken supporter of Israeli settlements and the annexation of the West Bank, as the next US ambassador to Israel.

It seems that the Trump administration is not concerned by a possible clash with the Arab world on the Palestinian issue, he noted. An American pro-settlement policy will be rebuked by the entire Arab world and the Arab League. At least this time, we do not have any false hopes for an imaginary peace process and will act accordingly.

Both sides are currently contemplating and preparing for Washington's new Middle East team. According to the Israeli senior official, the current Israeli ambassador to the United States, Ron Dermer, will hold talks with the secretary-designate in the near future, before his congressional confirmation hearing. It is Israels view that given the new administration's clearly right-wing nature and staunch pro-Israeli views, the secretary of state will not recommend policies that differ from the views expressed by Trump during the election campaign. Prime Minister Netanyahus team  in particular his confidant, the lawyer Yitzhak Molcho, the acting head of the National Security Council, Yaakov Nagel, and the head of Mossad, Yossi Cohen  intends to have close ties with Trumps White House team, the next US national security adviser, Michael Flynn, and Trumps domestic politics advisers.

Netanyahu intends to coordinate policies with Trump at their first Oval Office meeting, policies that will enable undisturbed Israeli settlement construction, mainly in the Jerusalem area, which will be high on Netanyahus meeting agenda, as it is key to the sustainability of his right-wing government. Concerning Iran, Netanyahu does not believe Trump and his secretary of state will disavow the nuclear agreement, but will instead enhance coordination with Israel on tighter joint monitoring of the deal's implementation and Irans backing of regional terror.

On the Palestinian side, there is a sense of despair about the Trump administration. The senior PLO official told Al-Monitor that Abbas is reaching out to the leaders of Saudi Arabia and Egypt to ask that they convey messages to the president-elect and his secretary of state-designate about the centrality of Palestinian statehood to the Arab world. The Palestinian leadership is most concerned about the time that will be wasted waiting for Trump to formulate a policy on Palestine and Israel. The year 2017 will mark the 50th year of the Israeli occupation, so Palestinians will be more desperate and demanding than ever, making it impossible to rule out an outbreak of greater violence, such as an armed intifada, the Palestinian official stressed.

Having said that, it is too early to know what the policies of Trump and Tillerson will look like in reality. Bringing Tillerson on board as secretary of state signals a cautious approach by the next administration. His nomination might indicate that the administration prefers to avoid taking too many risks with extremely pro-Israel positions and activities in light of interest in having good relations with Russian, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

Whatever Tillerson the deal-maker is planning for the region, and whether Trump has any interest in a regional deal, will depend in any case on the other regional actors. The US administration is unlikely to advance these issues unless encouraged by the parties or is indeed forced to react by greater violence.
Odenville police are searching for a missing woman with dementia.

The department posted on its Facebook page that Virginia Grass, 78, went missing sometime between 9 p.m. Sunday night and 7 a.m. Monday morning from 1227 Bucks Valley Road.

She was last seen wearing a black shirt and black pants.

Grass is described as being 5 feet and 9 inches tall with grey hair.

Anyone who has seen Grass or has any contact with her should call the St. Clair County Sheriff's Office at 205-629-3333.
Three separate accidents in Lee County left three people dead on Christmas day.

According to coroner Bill Harris, the first incident happened at 12:20 p.m. in Smiths Station after an ATV crashed on Lee Road 2006. When officials arrived on the scene, they found a 7-year-old girl unresponsive.

She was rushed to Midtown Medical Center in Columbus, where she was pronounced dead at 1:07 p.m.

Officials said the girl was riding on an ATV with a family member when she throttled the vehicle too hard. The two then lost control of the ATV and it left the roadway before striking a utility pole. The child was wearing a helmet, Harris said.

Because of the victim's age, the coroner is not releasing her name. Lee County sheriff's deputies are handling the case, and an autopsy will be performed under Alabama law.

In another incident, a 52-year-old woman died after a crash at the intersection of U.S. Highway 280 and Alabama Highway 147.

Harris said the incident happened at 7:14 p.m. Sunday, when Susan Debra Hammock was traveling west on Highway 280 and was attempting to turn onto Highway 147. Hammock turned in front of a pickup truck, which was towing a boat, and she was struck in the passenger side of her 2013 Toyota Corolla. Harris said Hammock, of Waverly, was killed instantly from a massive head injury and injuries from the blunt-force impact.

The victim was pronounced dead at the scene at 7:33 p.m. Hammock's three-year-old grandson was in a car seat in the back of the car, and was transported to a local hospital as a precaution. The child was later released without any injuries.

The driver of the pickup truck was not injured. Alabama State Troopers are handling that investigation.

The third crash, which happened just after midnight, left a 28-year-old man dead in Opelika, right in front of Storybrook Farms.

Selonzo Cantrell Jackson, of Opelika, was killed instantly from blunt force chest injuries when the car he was driving left the roadway at a high rate of speed, and then struck a tree. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 12:55 a.m. Monday morning, Harris said. Opelika Police are investigating the crash.
Despite the way it might sound, Madison County sheriff's Lt. Donny Shaw didn't attend the FBI National Academy to become a federal agent.

Lt. Donny Shaw, of the Madison County Sheriff's Office

"That's what people always seem to think, but it's not going to school to be an FBI agent. It's more like college for cops," said Shaw, who was one four Alabama law enforcement officers chosen to attend a session of the academy earlier this year. Representing 24 countries and 48 states, 232 students convened in Quantico, Virginia for the 10-week academy.

The students are supervisors at their law enforcement agencies, meaning they have risen through the ranks from being a deputy or officer to higher positions, such as sergeant or lieutenant.

Before attending the academy, the students chose from a variety of courses offered through the University of Virginia, which cover topics such as legal issues, media relations, stress management, public speaking for law enforcement and law enforcement's approach to counter terrorism. (Those are the ones Shaw chose, although several other options are available.)

"Even though the classes were very informative, I think the most important thing about the academy is the networking opportunities," said Shaw, a 23-year-veteran of the Sheriff's Office. "When we are looking at new policies, programs or other ideas for how to better serve the county, I have access to all of the people who attended and all of our counselors and staff on an email list. So, we can get advice and tips from them instead of having to rebuild the wheel for new ideas."

And, that's part of why the academy was created in 1935. The goal was to standardize law enforcement training and to promote interstate and international cooperation between agencies.

On weekdays at the academy, students attend classes, take tests and complete homework assignments. On Sundays, they work on research papers. They also are required to complete a physical training that culminates with culminates with a challenged called the Yellow Brick Road. The 6.1-mile course is designed by U.S. Marines.

After completing the Yellow Brick Road physical training course, FBI Academy attendees, like Lt. Donny Shaw, receive this brick.

Shaw said the experience made him a better servant for the people of Madison County.

Ideas he brought back for improving the Sheriff's Office include a more active presence on social media to inform the community about public safety issues in their neighborhoods and sharing a fitness plan with other deputies so they, too, can be better physically suited to work in the county.
As Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari announces defeat of armed group, people in displaced camps hope to return home.

Bama, Borno, Nigeria  Boka Kanima, 56, made a living as a farmer here in Nigerias northeast until Boko Haram fighters captured his village.

The village, located near Banki, a district 128km from the state capital Maiduguri, continues to be under the control of the armed group.

Five days after he fled the area to seek shelter in a refugee camp in Bama, a town controlled by the Nigerian military, Kanima told Al Jazeera: [Boko Haram] took all my belongings. They used to cane me every day for no reason.

Technically, we have won the war against Boko Haram by Muhammadu Buhari, the Nigerian president

If you do not follow their teachings, they slaughter you.

Boko Haram had occupied villages close to his own for about two years, but the group routinely extracts tributes of grain and livestock from farmers in areas they control.

Because of this Kanima was left without any means to sustain himself or his family and saw no other option but to join the ranks of 1.7 million Nigerian people internally displaced (IDP) by the insurgency and escape to Bama.

The government is now suggesting that an end to the ordeal is in sight for IDPs like Kanima.

On Saturday, President Muhammadu Buhari made an announcement after the army destroyed Boko Harams only remaining camp in the Sambisa Forest.

Technically, we have won the war against Boko Haram, he said.

The news came just in time to meet the governments promise of ending the rebellion before 2017.

This is not the first time the government has said that all known Boko Haram camps have been destroyed.

Since 2015, the Nigerian army has been forcing Boko Haram out of Bornos urban centres as part of the ongoing and bloody Operation Lafiya Dole, resulting in scores of military personnel being killed.

Nearly 15,000 civilian have been killed since 1999, when Boko Haram launched a campaign to establish an Islamic state.

Boko Haram still occupies large expanses of the countryside and are prolific in the marshlands around Lake Chad, according to a security official from one aid agency.

Fighters have also regrouped in neighbouring Cameroon, Chad and Niger.

OPINION: Is another Boko Haram in the making?

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Kyari Mohammed, an academic at Modibbo Adama University and a Boko Haram expert, said: The possibility of resurgence exists, if the areas around the shores of Lake Chad are not liberated from [Boko Haram].

Should the Multinational Joint Task Force up the ante, then there is definitely the possibility of an end to the conflict.

The government, though, is adamant the fighters are finished as an occupying force in Nigeria.

Deaths caused by Boko Haram have indeed fallen from about 6,000 last year to an estimated 1,000 this year, but suicide attacks and ambushes persist throughout the region.

On December 11, two girls between the ages of seven and eight walked into a market in Maiduguri and blew themselves up.

Both died along with another victim and 12 civilians were injured. There are reports of some more attacks since.

Aside from the violence, Nigerias northeast suffers from a plethora of problems brought on by the conflict.

The area is going through a severe food crisis with 4.4 million people going hungry and 2 million in need of urgent food aid, according to the UN World Food Programme (WFP).

Marc-Antoine Perouse de Montclos, an associate fellow at Chatham House, a London-based think-tank, says the problems causing the food crisis are not limited to the armed group.

The deadly combination of a lack of food imports to the northeast from neighbouring countries, combined with Boko Harams extortion of food from locals, leaves civilians with little hope of finding enough food, he says.

The army has closed the border with the Diffa region in neighbouring Niger  80 percent of food production from Diffa goes to Nigeria  Whats the possibility for [civilians] to survive? says De Montclos.

The loss of aid through corruption in the local or state governments is also a powerful factor. Only three out of every four trucks laden with food aid make it to their intended recipients, he says.

Improvement in governance is crucial to solving the food crisis and ensuring a lasting peace in Borno.

You cant promote resilience if the governments are not resilient, says De Montclos.

READ MORE: The women who love Boko Haram

The conflict and gnawing hunger have also had the effect of pushing 2.6 million out of their homes in the Lake Chad region to some of the poorest parts of Africa, and indeed, the world, dwarfing the refugee crisis in Europe.

Bama, where Boka Kanima took refuge, is itself emblematic of many of the problems relating to the displacement including the destruction of livelihoods and communities common to towns recaptured from Boko Haram.

Once home to just under 300,000 people, it was seized from Boko Haram in March 2015, but now the only signs of life are the patrolling pick-up trucks of the Nigerian armys 21st Brigade.

Continued displacement

Displacement has reduced the population to around 10,000 IDPs who live in a walled camp set up by the military. Many of the houses are destroyed and the only available food is from (WFP) handouts.

Kashimm Shettima, Bornos governor, has earmarked 13bn naira ($4.1m) for the rebuilding of communities in the state and has set a goal for many of the inhabitants of Bama to return to the town by May next year.

Kyari Mohammed, the academic, said: The post-Boko Haram rebuilding is even more daunting than defeating the insurgency.

He believes disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR), and dignified return of IDPs to their communities is crucial.

The military will also need to adapt to a newly recaptured Borno. Beyond the towns and cities, they will almost certainly encounter problems sifting those still aligned with Boko Haram from civilians.

Psychological damage

Another IDP in Bama who is 66 years old, and declined to be named, said: When the army comes to the village the Boko Haram [fighters] run into the crowd so you cant tell who they are.

The psychological damage endured by Borno residents will also remain.

Their teachings tell us we should kill our father or our mother, Boka Kanima said.

Even lions do not eat their own son  Its a madness, complete madness. [Boko Haram] are devils, not human beings.

But he is optimistic about the future. Now Im [in Bama], I am really excited, he said.

No sleepless nights. Its like moving from the hot sun into the shade.
How the West is wobbling under the pressures of its neoliberal and geopolitical overreach.

Twenty-five years ago, the United States emerged victorious at end of the Cold War. The Soviet Union imploded. European countries eagerly signed up to join a political union and common currency. NATO turned its eyes to the former Eastern Bloc countries to see which ones would join their alliance. The US vision of free trade and liberal democracy has become the hallmark of globalisation. It was a happy ending to half a century of conflict. Or so it seemed.

Now, pretty much all of a sudden, it all seems to have stalled  or worse, appears to be going in reverse. The Brexit referendum is clearly a turn away from a more open and united world, back towards nationalism. Primaries in France and the vote in Italy and Austria imply similar nationalist sentiments. Donald Trump placed anti-immigration, anti-free trade, and anti-globalisation rhetoric at the centre of his campaign, saying it all, and, of course, saying it louder than the rest.

All this, plus his adoration of Vladimir Putin, makes it look as if the grand ideals of the West have severely frayed and the fabric is unravelling before our eyes.

What went wrong? Is this the beginning of the end of the American century?

My first impulse is to pause, and to say dont jump to conclusions. Even if theyre the obvious conclusions.

The West has always fed on crisis and competition. Europe has renewed itself and expanded through incessant shock therapy. Britain never really wanted to be continental. An Italian government fell, well, thats what Italian governments do  65 governments in 70 years. The distinctions between French leaders are discernible primarily to the French. And the US reinvents itself as often as Hollywood.

Yet, the unease does not disappear. It seems there really is a deeper crisis. Witnessing the British, American and French vote first hand this year, I tell you, theres a deep feeling of anger, bitterness and even betrayal. Like Westerners have come to the end of the road; like theyre falling from the mountaintop. Even the winners seem rather angry much of the time.

Who couldve imagined it, let alone predicted it?

In fact, many did. I heard it said in many different ways in Moscow and Beijing, Budapest, Cairo, Sao Paolo and Nairobi. The righteous self-congratulation in Washington and London was seen as arrogance elsewhere in the world.

So why and where did the train come off the tracks?

It started happening right when everything else happened. In 1991. And the root causes can be found and summarised in two main factors.

Strategic arrogance

Flush with the conviction that the US was the worlds sole superpower, convinced that the end of history had come, that democracy and capitalism were finally recognised as the only viable and acceptable ideologies, victorious over all others and never to be superseded, the leadership wanted some grand event to demonstrate it, to show it off, to display the triumph to the rest of the world. Like the fall of the Berlin Wall, but bigger and with more fanfare.

In addition, theyd been developing, building, and stockpiling unlimited military supplies for decades. They were right there. Ready to be used. But the Soviet Union imploded from within and the weapons were becoming obsolete.

Enter Saddam Hussein, the pompous Iraqi leader, who, after an eight-year destructive war with Iran, decided to invade and annex Kuwait. His folly provided the West with the perfect alibi. No one was allowed to mess with oil-rich Gulf region under Americas watch.

Washington and London dismissed appeals for diplomacy. They organised an astonishing international coalition and in a matter of weeks deployed over half-a-million soldiers to the Gulf. After two months of air strikes and skirmishes, Saddams forces were driven out in two days. It was a profitable war, by all standards.

Despite all the carping and complaints, the West remains more powerful, prosperous and better synchronised than other areas of the world. by

But the war continued through other means, no-fly zones, sanctions and containment; even dual containment against both Iraq and Iran.

The US convened an international peace conference in the same year. Its goal was to establish a New Middle East Order with Israel at its centre, just like the West was becoming the centre of the New World Order. But the US wouldnt or couldnt get Israel to end its occupation of Palestine in return for peace. The violence continued as the conflict endured.

The bravado of the Wests total supremacy was shattered on 9/11. Osama bin Laden, who used the deployment of American troops in Saudi Arabia in 1991 as a rallying cry for al-Qaeda, hit the Great Satan in the heart killing many innocent people. Vulnerability. Confusion. Humiliation. Pessimism.

With Bin Laden still at large, with the goal of regime change in Afghanistan  not yet and never to be fully achieved  the US and Britain and the coalition of the willing launched a new war on Iraq. Unlike the previous war on Iraq, they didnt bother with a United Nations Security Council resolution to legalise it.

OPINION: America needs anger management

Instead of displaying Western dominance, it demonstrated the very severe limits of Western power. It cost trillions, killed thousands, left chaos, and achieved nothing. It morphed into the war on terror, which spread everywhere in the Islamic world.

The latest incarnation of the Wests strategic limitations revealed itself through its military action in Libya, inaction in Syria, and its total incompetence in dealing with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) over the past three years. All of which led to hundreds of thousands of deaths and millions of refugees, many of whom ended up on the shores of Europe.

Indeed, the world began to look more and more like a microcosm of Israels occupation of Palestine. On the one hand, a domineering and prosperous, yet increasingly xenophobic and insecure, powers, and on the other, war-ravaged, impoverished and revolting peripheries. Both moving towards political and theological extremes and engaging in asymmetrical conflict.

Economic arrogance

Those were the political misadventures. Next, the faults of unleashed capitalism decided to make a dramatic display of themselves. Just as the arms manufacturers and oil companies deformed foreign policy in the Middle East, the banks and the financial industry screwed the economy.

Eventually, the biggest banks in the West began to wobble. Then, they started to fall. The underlying problem was the same. Arrogance. The belief that the ideal was so perfect and so wonderful that anything done in the name of capitalism had to be right, by nature, and make everyone happy.

There was no need to restrain greed, crony capitalism, misrepresentation, or even fraud. The ever-increasing level of income inequality had to be the fault of the less equal, for having less discipline, less drive, and especially, less education, while the concentration of wealth in the hands of the gross and the greedy, had to be the just rewards of virtue; and moreover, everyone would understand that and approve. That turned out to be wrong on all counts  correct on none.

Instead of re-investing in their national economies and empowering their working classes to compete with the rising cheaper working and middle classes of Asia and Latin America, Western conglomerates have shown to be anything but patriotic. Indeed as their title underlines, these are multinationals that are always on the look for cheaper labour and tax shelters.

Americans wanted change! They wanted it so much they were willing, for the first time in their history, to do the unimaginable and elect a black president.

He promised change. He promised to change the mind-set that brought about the Iraq war and the financial crisis. But the commander-in-speech only achieved tweaks as the US continued to move away from democracy towards oligarchy. The too-big-to-fail banks became bigger and America is now back in Iraq.

Two scenarios

The next cry for change was the turn to populism. The election of Trump and his admiration for Putin should show, on the face of it, what an unproductive choice that will be. Similar developments are likely in France, come May elections.

But, despite all the carping and complaints, the West remains more powerful, prosperous and better synchronised than other areas of the world. Europe might be in crisis, and many of its peoples are changing their minds about their new European identities, but its premature to eulogise the EU.

One of two things will happen: Either there will be a reawakening and swing back of the pendulum to a refreshed and reinvented set of Western ideals.

Or the new leaders will batter the institutions that made their nations great, weaken the alliances, and lead the decline of the West and the post-Cold War world order.

Marwan Bishara is the senior political analyst at Al Jazeera. Follow him on Facebook.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
Jailed Ex-Gov. Blagojevich Is Waiting For Obama To Decide On Commutation Request

By Rachel Cromidas in News on Dec 26, 2016 5:14PM



Imprisoned for corruption four years ago, Illinois' ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich is now hoping President Barack Obama will commute his 14-year prison sentence.

Blagojevich petitioned for the presidential commutation last week, according to the Justice Department, and is awaiting a response from Obama's administration. It is typical for a president to offer pardons to and commute the sentences of federal prisoners during his time in office, and particularly at the end of his final term. In an historic announcement last week, Obama issued 78 pardons and commuted 153 prison sentencesthe most to ever be made in a single day.

Blagojevich's legal team has been working to get the disgraced former governor out of prison since he was sentenced on a corruption conviction in 2011. Blagojevich was convicted of trying to sell Obama's U.S. Senate seat when the former Illinois Senator was elected president in 2008. Earlier this year he requested his sentence be reduced from 14 years to five, but a judge denied that request at an August re-sentencing hearing, even though an appeals court had just thrown out some of Blagojevich's convictions.

It is noteworthy that Blagojevich did not ask for a presidential pardon outrightrather, a presidential commutation would involve the president reducing Blagojevich's sentence, but not eliminating it entirely or eliminating the conviction itself.

Earlier this week Blagojevich's legal team petitioned a U.S. appeals court for another sentencing hearing, on the grounds that he's been a model prisoner and should not be in prison for anothe reight years, according to the Tribune. Blagojevich is at a low=security federal prison in Colorado, where he formed a band with fellow inmates called the Jailhouse Rockers.
READ MORE: Israeli guard: Go from this land or I will kill you

Bethlehem, occupied West Bank  Abuses of power committed by Israels Civilian Security Coordinators (CSCs), civilian guards of the illegal settlements, continue to contribute to settlement expansion into Palestinian-owned land across the occupied West Bank, according to an Israeli rights group.

In following the behaviour of the CSC guards over a decade, rights group Yesh Din has come across reports of guards doling out death threats and chasing Palestinian farmers from their fields at gunpoint to prevent them from harvesting, among other violations.

When these [violations] are done systematically over the years, Palestinian farmers understand that its not useful to come to their own land located near what used to be settlement outskirts, said Eyal Hareuveni, a researcher at Yesh Din. And when done repeatedly again and again for a few years, the Palestinian gives up.

The unused space is then allocated for settlement expansion, according to Yesh Din lawyer Michal Pasovsky.

The minute these borders of the CSC [guarding zone] extend beyond municipality borders and Palestinians are afraid to go to their land, that gives the settlers an opportunity to build there, Pasovsky said.

When by Eyal

are done systematically over the years, Palestinian farmers understand that its not useful to come to their own land located near what used to be settlement outskirts. ]

Under Israeli military law, CSCs are settlers armed and trained by the military to protect their settlements on behalf of the army. While CSCs are given policing powers and work in coordination with army forces, they are appointed by fellow settlers and directly employed by settlements.

However, according to Yesh Dins chronology and analysis, the Israeli militarys declared goal of employing CSCs to protect Israeli civilians conceals a more important function the CSCs serve: expanding Israels borders.

Not only do they [CSCs] harass these Palestinian farmers, but they also seek to expand the areas under their control and annex as much of that land as possible, Pasovsky told Al Jazeera.

According to Yesh Din, the concept of a CSC was initially conceived by Zionist forces during the British Mandate, through a doctrine of regional defence that relied on civilians in frontline communities to fight in support of armed forces in demarcating the borders of the future state.

The regional defence approach was formalised by Israeli law in 1961 and later applied in illegal settlements in the West Bank  four years after Israel illegally occupied the area  through a military order stipulating that CSCs take position in the 12 settlements that had been constructed by 1971.

The 1971 order loosely defined CSC powers for protecting settlements and remains in effect today. A number of military orders have been issued since, specifying their exact policing powers and guarding zones.

The doctrine was used again during the late 1970s in Supreme Court rulings that enabled theft of Palestinian land for settlements, as well as in military orders defining the role that CSCs would play in their protection, according to the Yesh Din report

The Israeli authorities have continued to reference the doctrine ever since to justify the use of CSCs in illegal

settlements, which now number more than 220 and are home to well over a half-million settlers.





The Ministry of Defence, which gives money to settlements to pay CSC salaries, was not able to provide the current number of CSCs, nor was the Israeli army.

Yesh Din, for its part, argues that a major conflict of interest arises when law enforcement powers are granted to individuals who hold special interests  in this case those who represent interests of the settlement enterprise.

The granting of such sweeping powers to an interest group that openly and declaratively rejects the provisions of international law is indicative of the chaos that characterises the official Israeli attitude toward law enforcement in the West Bank, Hareuveni wrote in the Yesh Din report.

Simon Reynolds, a former legal advocate for the BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights, said that giving law enforcement powers to special interest groups by the Israeli military is part and parcel of the ongoing settlement expansion which is, and always has been, an Israeli national interest.

Settlement expansion represents a strategic interest which has been consistently and publicly stated by the highest echelons of Israeli government, while the impunity enjoyed by CSCs and other settlers contributes to the continued erosion of Palestinian safe space, Reynolds told Al Jazeera.

Yesh Dins documentation of violations carried out by CSCs  while fairly low in number  align with long-lived trends of settler violence leading to illegal expropriation of Palestinian land, in addition to near-daily demolition of Palestinian homes and structures, forced transfer, and implementation of military training zones on  or near  Palestinian land.

New outposts often created through such tactics are retroactively legalised, with nearly one third of outposts to be illegally established in the past two decades later okayed by the Israeli government.

The Israeli Knesset most recently passed a first reading of a bill that would retroactively legalise some 55 illegal outposts in the occupied West Bank, in what Peace Now said would constitute grand land robbery and another step towards annexation.

OPINION: Israels culpability in settler violence

Yesh Din reported that Israeli military orders issued in 2009 defined the exact parameters of CSCs guarding zones and designated  for the first time  the territorial borderlines of 35 unauthorised outposts, some of which were later legalised by the government. The 2009 orders also drew guarding zones around 40 outposts located outside settlement municipal boundaries.

Reynolds said CSC offences, as documented by Yesh Din, enjoy the tacit acceptance of the government by way of a culture of impunity. This impunity is demonstrated by Yesh Dins failed efforts to hold CSCs accountable for abuses of power.

The rights groups spokesperson, Gilad Grossman, said that out of 16 cases of CSC violation in 2014 that the group brought to the police or military, none led to indictments. In five other cases, Palestinians chose not to file complaints either out of fear of negative repercussions from the Israeli authorities or the CSC, or lack of confidence in the Israeli justice system.





Pasovsky told Al Jazeera that the while CSCs work on behalf of the army inside of guarding zones, the military considers the guard a civilian as soon as they exit these zones, subject instead to investigation by Israeli police and border police, who systematically ignore infractions against Palestinians.

If the military does choose to investigate a CSC for offences, the administrative investigation allowed by military law is problematic, Pasovsky said, fundamentally flawed in its ability to effectively investigate CSC violations because Palestinian complainants are excluded from the investigation process.

If we [Yesh Din] come forth with our information, theyre [the army] able to investigate it only with the security coordinator, Pasovsky said. Hareuveni told Al Jazeera that whenever Yesh Din has attempted to file complaints against CSC offences, the army always pushes away from holding the guard accountable, adding that there is no documentation showing that a CSC has ever been tried in a disciplinary manner by the army.

In response, the Israeli army said claims that the army turns a blind eye to CSC violations of the law were unfounded.

Whenever knowledge of a possible overstep of boundaries by a security coordinator reaches authorities, an inquiry is mounted, and when relevant, sanctions are levied, as part of the coordinators employment contract, an Israeli army spokesperson told Al Jazeera in a written statement.

READ MORE: Palestinians  Israel settlement expansion a war crime

The army added that the military commander  the direct supervisor of a CSC  takes further proactive measures in order to ensure security coordinators act within the limits of their authority and in accordance to the law.

Hareuveni rejected military claims of oversight of CSCs, citing the armys role in facilitating nearly five decades of settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

The army is part of this political system, Hareuveni told Al Jazeera. It doesnt play any kind of independent professional role, as many Israelis want to see. It supports the settlements, it supports the illegal outposts  it doesnt do anything meaningful about settlers violence or anything about settlers taking by force Palestinian private land, Hareuveni said.

While Yesh Din acknowledges that impunity towards CSC violations is systematic, Pasovsky hopes that documenting their violations through complaint processes to the military will place pressure on CSCs to stop transgressions.

They [CSCs] need to understand that theres someone watching, they cannot do whatever they want  if they are being called into a military office to discuss their actions, this for us is very important, Pasovsky said.
Palestinian farmer describes struggle to prevent Israeli settlers from taking over his fields and his livelihood.

READ MORE: Israels other army expanding illegal settlements

Burin, occupied West Bank  The olive harvest has come and gone in the occupied West Bank village of Burin, where Palestinian farmer Nimer Tirawi says he has carried out last-ditch efforts to prevent an Israeli guard from the neighbouring Yitzhar settlement from taking over his fields and devastating his livelihood.

Tirawi has been unable to complete his annual harvest for the past two years due to repeated death threats from the guard, he said. Last year, Tirawi said he was with his son on their farmland when the guard ran towards them.

He came with his weapon and said: Go from this land or I will kill you,' Tirawi told Al Jazeera. When Tirawi refused to leave, he said the guard left and returned shortly afterwards, along with some 20 settlers who began to physically assault him by hitting, kicking and throwing stones.

When he sees farmers going to their land, he comes and kicks them off. He doesn't want anyone in Burin to work or live from this land. by Nimer Tirawi, Palestinian farmer

Like the majority of farmland owned by Palestinians in Burin, Tirawis land lies in Area C, the 60 percent of the West Bank that is under full Israeli military and administrative control. Tirawi has documentation of land ownership, but can access it only on certain days pending approval from Israeli authorities.

Sitting in front of his home near a settler-only road that separates him from parts of his land, Tirawi explained the metamorphosis that Burin has gone through since Yitzhar was built in the early 1980s.

Initially established as an Israeli military base in 1983, Yitzhars outskirts have since become home to five illegal outposts. More than 2,500 dunams (2.5sq km) of land belonging to Burin residents have been confiscated by Israel for settlements, military bases and settler-only roads in the area.

Threats have led Tirawi to fear that his land, around four kilometres from Yitzhars Israeli-recognised municipal border, will eventually be appropriated for Israeli use too.

When [the guard] sees farmers going to their land, he comes and kicks them off. He doesnt want anyone in Burin to work or live from this land, Tirawi said.

READ MORE: Gaza farmers seek damages for Israels crop-spraying

Despite systematic impunity granted by Israels military and police to Israelis who execute attacks on Palestinians and their property, Israeli human rights organisation Yesh Din has been attempting to hold this guard accountable.

The guard in question, whose name Yesh Din could not disclose for legal reasons, is a Civilian Security Coordinator (CSC), appointed by fellow settlers to protect the settlement on behalf of the army. Yesh Din filed a complaint in December 2015 to General Adviser of Judea and Samaria (West Bank) Colonel Doron Ben-Barak on behalf of Tirawi and two other Burin residents who reported criminal offences by the guard during last years harvest.

Exchanges that took place in the ensuing months laid bare what the group argues is Israels systematic refusal to effectively investigate or prosecute CSC transgressions.

When lawyer Michal Pasovsky wrote to the general adviser that the guard named in Tirawis case  as an employee of the army  should undergo military investigation, advising officer Benny Winston asked that the farmers file complaints with the Israeli police.

While the commander in charge could conduct an investigation, the tools available to him were limited  compared to the tools available to the Israeli police, Winston wrote.

Pasovsky said that Palestinians who face criminal abuses by Israeli guards typically avoid filing complaints with police due to well-founded fears of further harassment by the guard, as well as the ineffectiveness of police investigations. Filing a police complaint was not necessary for a military investigation to take place, she added.

The final correspondence from the general advisers office in April stated that the investigation would be carried out. An Israeli army spokesperson later told Al Jazeera that the probe did not substantiate the claims, but rather refuted them.

The reason no further action was taken against the security coordinator is that the allegations were found to lack basis, the army spokesperson said.

Israeli researcher Eyal Hareuveni said that investigations allowed by military law into CSC actions  referred to as administrative investigations  are inadequate, as Palestinian complainants are absent from the process, which consists solely of a commander questioning a CSC guard about allegations against him.

No one really wants to investigate it seriously and Yesh Din knows that they are climbing on a wet wall, but they are still trying to do the legal dance, Hareuveni said.

Despite the failure to prompt disciplinary measures in the Burin case, Pasovsky said she hopes that the armys investigation will make [the guard] feel that someone is watching, that he cant do anything he wants.

Tirawis case underscores what Yesh Din says is state support for ideologically motivated offences carried out by settlers, who use violence to expand settlement borders.

Yitzhar, in particular, has a violent history. Israeli security forces in 2014 reported that a majority of some 100 perpetrators of price tag attacks  committed in response to actions by the Israeli government perceived to be against settler interests  were followers of Yitzhars Rabbi Yitzhak Ginsburg.

Ginsburg is the president of what University of North Carolina professor Motti Inbari refers to as the most extreme rabbinical institution in the West Bank, Od Yosef Chai Yeshiva, located inside of Yitzhar and headed by Ginsburgs former student, Yitzhak Shapira.

READ MORE: A fresh harvest for farmers in Gaza

Inbari told Al Jazeera that the dismantling of Israeli state institutions to make way for the implementation of a Jewish monarchy across the biblical land of Israel is integral to Ginsburgs theology, which has supported the use of violence to obtain these goals.

Former Yitzhar spokesperson and current settlement resident Ezri Tubi told Al Jazeera that the number of residents fully aligned with Ginsburgs teachings was small, and he rejected Yesh Dins claims that the guard in the Burin case carried out violations due to ideological motivations.

Im not saying these kind of things cant happen. They can happen, Tubi told Al Jazeera, noting that since settlers moved to Yitzhar in 1984, at least one attack has been perpetrated inside of the settlement by Palestinians who entered through adjacent fields.

I sleep with a pistol under my pillow  If a Palestinian gets too close to a settlement, it is considered a threat.







Tirawi, who said that he and other Burin farmers have no intentions to carry out attacks of any kind in or around Yitzhar, estimates a loss of some 5,000 olive trees over the past three years due to settler attacks on Palestinian farmland in the area, adding that some 20 families in the village have lost access to their land.

The slow removal of Burin farmers from fields surrounding Yitzhar through CSC-enabled violence reflects long-standing state support for the illegal takeover of land in the occupied territory through violence or threats against local Palestinians, in violation of international law, Palestinians say.

The aim of sending this guard here is to steal all of the land of Burin  The settlement is getting bigger every year, Tirawi said, as he motioned towards a portion of Yitzhar that he can see from his front yard.

Hareuveni said that the developments in Burin could be crucial to bringing a larger case that could have an effect on security coordinators all over the West Bank.
Activists say children among the injured after barrel bombs reportedly dropped on rebel-held Wadi Barada.

At least 14 civilians have been killed and several others wounded in a series of barrel-bomb attacks on rebel-held areas near Damascus, Al Jazeera has learnt.

Syrian government air strikes targeted the town of Wadi Barada, northwest of the capital, on Monday, injuring dozens of people, including several children, activists told Al Jazeera.

According to videos posted on social media by opposition groups, the Syrian government intensified its assault on the town.

The White Helmets, an all-volunteer rescue group, said a number of people were trapped under the rubble following the heavy bombardment.

Barrel bombs are crude, unguided explosive devices used by Syrian government forces that have been blamed for thousands of civilian deaths.

They are typically constructed from large oil drums and filled with explosives, nails and scrap metal.

Third day of offensive

Al Jazeeras Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from Gaziantep, on the Turkish side of the border with Syria, said the government was in the third day of an offensive against Jaish al-Islam, which controls Wadi Barada and is one of the most powerful groups battling President Bashar al-Assads forces.

On Friday, the Syrian army and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah launched an operation to retake Wadi Barada, after accusing the rebels of contaminating drinking water at a spring with diesel.

The Wadi Barada valley, a mountainous area near the Lebanese border, has been under siege since 2014 with food, water and electricity all in short supply.

In a separate development, Turkey has urged the US to step up its air strikes against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group operating in the town of al-Bab in northern Syria on the border with Turkey.

Turkey has been facing some fierce resistance around the town of al-Bab, which is the largest ISIL-held town north of Aleppo, Al Jazeeras Charles Stratford, reporting from Gazientep, said.

The Turkish government is now calling for more effort from US coalition air strikes on that border area.

The battle to retake al-Bab is part of a wider Turkish effort to clear its border area with Syria from ISIL control.

Over 215 residential areas, including Jarablus city in northern Syria, have been cleared of ISIL fighters, according to the Turkish military.

Displacement figures

The Syrian government took back previously rebel-held eastern Aleppo last week after an intense battle that led to the displacement of tens of thousands of civilians.

Many were also caught in the crossfire.

According to a statement from the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), 250 wounded Syrians hailing from Aleppo were transferred to hospitals in Turkey.

Only those severely injured were allowed to cross, while no civilians have passed the border, the statement read.

Of the 250, 35 have died while hospitalised, and 75 remain in critical condition.

Staffan de Mistura, the UN special envoy to Syria, estimated in April that more than 400,000 Syrians had been killed since 2011.

Forced disappearances

The Syrian civil war started as a largely unarmed uprising against Assad in March 2011, but quickly developed into a full-on armed conflict.

Calculating a precise death toll is difficult, partially owing to the forced disappearances of tens of thousands of Syrians whose fates remain unknown.

Almost 11 million Syrians  half the countrys pre-war population  have been displaced from their homes.

According to the latest report published by the Netherlands-based PAX aid group and the Washington-based Syria Institute, more than one million Syrians are believed to be trapped in at least 39 communities across the country.

However, the figures are likely to keep changing as Assads forces gain more ground .
Raid comes just hours after Doha-based media network airs documentary on looting of heavy weaponry by group.

Yemens Houthi fighters have stormed the closed Al Jazeera Network bureau in the capital Sanaa and stolen the remaining equipment.

Sundays raid came just hours after the Arabic channel broadcast a documentary film titled Stolen Weapons in Yemen, discussing the groups looting of arms.

Eyewitnesses said that two cars carrying more than 10 fighters raided the office and began looting what has been left of furniture, desks and TV screens, Saeed Thabit, head of Al Jazeeras office in Yemen, said in an Arabic statement on his Facebook page.

The film investigates how Houthi rebels managed to obtain heavy weaponry, where they store the arms, as well as the quantity and types of arms they have been using.





Two years ago, the office witnessed a similar attack in which the Al Jazeera team was assaulted and received death threats.

In 2015, Houthi fighters abducted an Al Jazeera broadcast engineer and a security guard in Sanaa.

The Arabian Peninsula country has been torn apart by conflict since 2014, when the Iran-allied Houthi fighters, in cooperation with troops loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, captured large expanses of the country, including the capital Sanaa.

Devastating toll

Saudi Arabia and its Gulf Arab allies began their military campaign in Yemen in March last year with the aim of preventing Houthi rebels and forces loyal to Saleh from taking control of the country.

The conflict has also taken a devastating toll on Yemens health system, which is on the verge of collapse, a recent UNICEF report says.

Humanitarian groups have struggled to deliver aid to large parts of the country owing to the fighting and air strikes, with the medical aid charity Doctors Without Borders calling the situation extremely challenging.

Several medical facilities have been damaged or destroyed.

The coalition has also imposed a sea blockade on Yemen and air strikes have led to a virtual lockdown of Sanaa.
Powerful typhoon passes over Manila after forcing more than 200,000 to spend Christmas Day in evacuation centres.

A powerful typhoon has killed at least four people in the Philippines before passing over the capital, Manila.

Typhoon Nock-Ten, known locally as Nina, made landfall on the eastern island province of Catanduanes on Christmas Day, moved westward on Monday, packing winds of up to 240 kilometres per hour and gusts of 290km/h, government forecasters said.

Tens of thousands of villagers were displaced as the typhoon cut power to five provinces at the height of the storm.

A farmer died in Quezon province and three other villagers, including a couple, were swept away by a flash flood in Albay province.

Officials in Albay, where more than 150,000 villagers were displaced by the typhoon, declared a state of calamity to allow faster disbursement of emergency funds.

More than 218,000 people had fled their homes, while 48 domestic and international flights were cancelled, the civil defence office said, as the unusually late typhoon marred Christmas celebrations.

Dragging its way over the heavily populated provinces of Batangas and Cavite, Nock-Ten was expected to exit over the South China Sea later on Monday.

The bustling metropolis of Manila, home to about 13 million people, was eerily quiet the day after Christmas with the usual holiday revellers staying indoors as heavy rains and winds lashed the city.

The civil defence office had warned that the capital could suffer heavy to intense rains, flash floods and severe winds, with rescue boats ready to be deployed in case the rivers overflow.

An average of 20 storms and typhoons strike the Philippines each year, killing hundreds of people.

Nock-Ten was not the first typhoon to hit the Philippines on Christmas Day but it was the strongest . The other two typhoons to hit the islands on Christmas Day were category-2 Typhoon Jean in 1947 and category-2 Typhoon Lee in 1981.

Mammoth tsunami-like waves devastated the city of Tacloban and nearby areas when super typhoon Haiyan struck the central Philippines in November 2013, leaving 7,350 people dead or missing.
Benjamin Netanyahu on the offensive after Security Council resolution calls immediate halt to all settlement activity.

For years, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israels prime minister, has been forced to walk a thin line.

Hardline conservatives within the country, and even within the governing coalition, want Netanyahu to dismiss the idea of a Palestinian state altogether. But much of the international community continues to push for a two-state solution.

Now, after last weeks UN vote on settlements, the pressure is ramping up on both ends, and Netanyahus political tightrope is now even thinner.

The Security Council resolution calls for Israel to immediately stop all settlement activity in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

Most significantly, the US refused to use its veto. Netanyahu has condemned the resolution and is already taking action against some countries who supported it.

He has also blamed US President Barack Obama specifically for allowing the vote to pass. So what now for the Israeli PM and his fragile government?

Presenter: Sami Zeidan

Guests:

Yossi Beilin, former Israeli minister of justice

Oded Revivi, chief foreign envoy for the YESHA Council, an organisation which oversees settlements

Yossi Mekelberg, professor of International Relations at Regents University, London
TechKnow explores how new voice technology that sounds ever more human becomes the ultimate gift to the voiceless.

The frustration of a synthetic voice is a reality for many who can only speak through computers. But now researchers are creating sounds that capture individual personalities and preserve a voice for those facing a cruel loss. For those in need, new voice technologies offer the sweet sounds of success.

Each of us has a unique voice, it makes us human. We make judgements about people based on their voice. So I feel like it's very important for people who don't speak and who don't have devices to talk to have that same ability to project who they are and to be known as people and not just robots that talk. by Rupal Patel, founder and CEO, VocaliD

Tens of millions of people cant speak or have limited speech. Two and a half million of them live in the United States alone. And of those 2.5 million, 40 percent use a standardised text-to-speech computer program to communicate  and they all sound alike.

VocaliD, a US-based technology company in Boston, Massachusetts is trying to change all of that.

What were doing at VocaliD is were taking a tiny sample of someones voice and hours of someone elses voice, and were trying to make it sound like the person we have a tiny sample from  thats the scientific challenge, says its founder and CEO, Rupal Patel, a speech scientist.

With thousands of English-speaking donors from around the world, Patel and Geoff Meltzner, the director of research and technology at VocaliD, are creating the voices.

Walking us through the voice creation process, Meltzner explains, when we speak, the air in our lungs, when we force it out, goes through our trachea and hits the larynx. In the larynx are our vocal chords and those vibrate, and from that, produces a sound and then that excites your vocal tract, your throat, your mouth, your nasal passage, and its shaped by your tongue, your lips.

Based on a small sample given by his 16-year-old client Sarah Young, who suffers from cerebral palsy and is unable to produce speech, what we do is separate the vocal tract part from her. We just grab what shes doing with her larynx and on the other end, we take the donor and we do the opposite. We toss whats going on in the vocal chords and keep whats going on with the tongue and lips, continues Meltzner.

Then, like an online dating service, the computer matches acoustical vocal patterns of the donor with the vocally-challenged recipient. A voice donor can give their voice by recording 3,500 sentences, which approximately takes four hours to capture all the possible sounds needed for speech.

Describing how she came up with building voices, speech scientist Patel, says it was in 2002; I was at a conference in Denmark, so I saw a little girl and a grown man having a conversation using different assistant devices but the exact same voice, so I looked around and saw it happening all around me.

Theres an artistry and psychology about creating a voice, Patel admits, every science has an art form to it, but in the case of making a custom voice, its not only about it being understandable, its also about: is it authentic? Does it resonate with the person using it, and do they feel like its them?

Nine-year-old Maeve Flack, through VocaliD technology, thinks having her own voice would be cool because, Ill sound like a kid.

While VocaliD technology is concerned with improving past conditions, what if you knew that you were going to lose your voice in the future? How would you preserve it?

A new text-to-speech program called My Own Voice helps those with degenerative diseases like 31-year-old journalist Angelina Fanous to capture the essence of their voice so their unique characteristics shine through.

Diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrigs disease, Fanous is preparing for the inevitable silence by recording the 1,500 sentences for My Own Voice, which will create her individual synthetic voice. Her motivation for banking her voice steps from her deep fears of sounding like a robot.

Your voice and how you communicate and the cadence in which you say sentences  I am going to completely lose that  so thats why I cant be excited about a robot voice, she says.
My wife subscribes to a magazine, the very sight of which turns my stomach. She believes that its beneficial to have this reading matter around so we can know how the non-deplorables think. But as a retired college professor, I know whatever is to be known on this subject.

The unpalatable piece of mail that arrives to my disgust each month is called New York , and it is cram full of PC cliches. The lead tirade is usually from Jonathan Chait, who lately has been railing against the plutocrat and Putin-look-alike who is about to enter the White House. Chait is particularly annoyed that Trump is trying to legitimate his power by claiming to represent workers. Presumably denizens of the West Village and Reverend Al would do it better.

A recent harangue in the magazine complained that the Obama years have been too soft in advancing a Counter-Culture agenda. Despite Obamas efforts to move the culture toward the left through political means, we supposedly still tolerate indiscriminate killings of black men and women by police officers, allow women to have their buttocks pinched at work and do not punish white men sufficiently for speaking abusively about the transgendered. From the most recent issue I discovered that the government should be restructuring the economy to fit the needs of the LGBT community. Im not sure what prescriptions the government should be following to please these grievance groups but I doubt their implementation would leave us with any recognizable economic freedoms.

Hoping to get my mind off this stuff, I watched on HBO a stylish thriller from the year 1980, Dressed to Kill, starring Michael Caine and Angie Dickinson. For those who havent seen it, a synopsis may be in order. This movie deals with the murder of an unhappily married socialite, who is killed by a slasher as she is leaving the apartment of a lover she picked up the same day. As the plot thickens, it becomes increasingly apparent that the murderer was Angie Dickinsons shrink, who is a conflicted and indeed psychotic bisexual. This bisexual is being torn apart as his male and female personalities clash. As the inner conflict intensifies, the killers female side drives him into murdering women to whom hes erotically attracted. The slasher also turns out to be a cross-dresser, a situation that is intended to make him/her look even more sinister.

Near the end of the movie a psychiatric colleague of the slasher discourses on the dangers of people who have trouble determining their gender identity. Needless to say, I couldnt imagine a psychiatrist or even an establishment conservative making such a speech today. The same movie features a police chief who casually refers to women as dames and treats them in what would now be considered a gravely sexist manner. This too would elicit cries of indignation in our enlightened age, unless of course the one using derogatory language about dames was a designated minority. Then it would be ok, perhaps comparable to a Muslim beating his wife. But the police chief in the movie was an Italo-American and portrayed on the whole as a likeable chap. Contrary to what I read in New York, the cultural Left has been stunningly successful in getting people to talk the way it wants. Chalk that up as a victory for the sensitivity-police.

This movie caused me to reflect on how profoundly society has been reshaped (no, I dont attribute this change to chance or spontaneity) since I was in college over fifty years ago. As later as 1980, when Ronald Reagan was elected president, a movie like Dressed to Kill sparked no controversy. It was not attacked by the LGBT community; nor were its actors blacklisted for denigrating an admirable gender choice. The idea that we should reconstruct our economy to please cross-dressers, the transgendered, or some other sexual outliers would have occasioned surprised amusement when I was still in my thirties or forties. Today it is a noteworthy topic of discussion; and the only way one is permitted to question the proposal is if one gushes with positive feeling toward the groups that were supposed to drool over.
The recent terror attack in Berlin has heightened concern within Germany and beyond over that countrys liberal immigration policies and soft policing of potential terrorists. It is not uncommon to hear Western and especially American pundits declare that German actions will be suicidal if not reversed. While such hyperbole is understandable, it also misrepresents the German national psyche and skews analysis accordingly. The Germans are not suicidal, but they are a fatalistic culture that is still trying to settle on a national ethos. How they resolve the current crisis with Islamic immigrants will probably be grand and defining, regardless of whether it results in a dramatic governmental reversal or a doubling down on current policies.

There is an important distinction between fatalism and being suicidal. The former describes an outlook in which ones fate is passively accepted, as opposed to the latter which actively seeks self-destruction. Europeans in general, and particularly Germans tend to be fatalistic to a degree that Americans find unusual and often unsettling. We marvel that millions of young men went over the top in World War I into almost certain death or injury. Sure eventually Americans did that too, but it was much less a matter of fatalism than misplaced optimism that sent them on the way.

Gunnery Sergeant Dan Daleys words to his Marines at Belleau Wood Cmon you sons-of-bitches do you want to live forever! shock even today because for most Americans the answer would probably be Yes indeed Sergeant I do -- or at least a long, long time. Daleys men went on not because they were fatalists but because he shamed them into it -- they were not cowards and wouldnt be seen that way.

George Patton put the American mindset more clearly yet: No dumb bastard ever won a war by going out and dying for his country. He won it by making some other dumb bastard die for his country.

The Germans dont think that way, then or now. A German soldier set off for war with the expectation, (held by his family as well) that he would not return. Such fatalism allowed the Germans to endure enormous losses in World War I and then be willing to have at it again twenty years later. Even the famously fatalistic Russians paled in comparison to the Germans at the start of World War II when millions of Soviet soldiers surrendered in the first months of fighting. Only when it became clear that surrender to the Nazis still meant death or slavery did Russian soldiers stiffen, and even then, often had to be brutally coerced into fighting by their commissars.

This attitude is reflected as well in modern German philosophers, a sober list if there ever was one: Hegel, Marx, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Spengler, Heidegger. A parade of inevitable dialectics, existential dread, and the death of Western civilization. Who wouldnt be fatalistic in such a culture?

German culture is one thing, a German national ethos another. The idea of the German Volk, a word with important connotations that means more than the sum of its parts (people, language, and culture) goes back at least two millennia. The idea of a German nation is much newer, and still unsettled.

Until 1870 there was no German nation. A late arrival to the idea of a united modern nation-state, the Germans suffered for it and have been trying to figure out what to do since. The first idea was to be like most of their chief rivals, an imperialistic, at least partly monarchal colonial power, as befitted Germanys military and industrial strength. But late to the stately party, the pickings were slim, with even small countries like Holland, Belgium, and Portugal getting bigger and better slices of the imperial pie.

German resentment over this was a major cause of World War I, which ended the imperial period. Without much delay, the Germans then did a 180 and tried their hand at liberal and libertine democracy with the Weimar government. That disaster led to National Socialism, a bizarre political and social experiment combining militarism, traditional imperialism, racism, socialism, crony capitalism, and dictatorship. This might have given a more experienced polity pause, but the Germans went all in for it, leading to an incredible national calamity -- virtually complete ruin and Germany once again divided.

Germanys fourth incarnation was of a federated, sober, hardworking, peaceful, and optimistic industrial powerhouse. Not by accident this sounds a lot like Western Germanys conqueror and eventual benevolent benefactor, the United States. Eastern Germany remained a police state, though under foreign Soviet domination.

Unification ended Germanys dependence on the United States and set the stage for yet another national incarnation. This time the Germans decided to be a progressive exemplar, at the forefront of cutting-edge environmentalism, open borders, and multiculturalism. In one fell swoop the Germans, with hardly a serious thought, gave up on nuclear power, a quarter of their electric generating capacity, in a public panic following the Fukushima disaster in Japan. They opened their borders to millions of Middle Eastern refugees, to demonstrate to the world their progressive multicultural bona fides. Ironically, and perhaps inevitably, this coincided with a sharp turn in German public opinion against Israel, both to assuage any guilt the newly virtuous Germans may have had for past crimes, and to establish themselves as the new light among nations.

Notice that in all cases, the Germans dont go into things half-heartedly. While individually Germans tend to be reserved and cautious, as a group they enjoy the grand gesture. There are then only two ways for the Germans to go should the countrys millions of Muslim residents continue to attack and disrupt the German state.

The most obvious solution (at least to an American mindset) would be to end open borders and aggressively police problematic non-assimilating immigrants. Many Germans now want this, particularly those supporting nationalistic anti-immigration parties largely based in the former East. Polls also show that up to two-thirds of Germans want an end to the open border policy. Should this group prevail, the German reversal would probably be sudden and dramatic as befits the German national way of doing things.

But dont be surprised if that doesnt happen. Germans -- including the current government -- who like the idea of being a progressive light among nations, are also presumably willing to fatalistically suffer the consequences of their endeavor should it come to that. German Chancellor Angela Merkel stood firm by her policy after previous attacks this summer. She is under great pressure now, but it remains to be seen whether she will back down. Should she maintain (or mostly maintain) current policy, the consequence would likely be a social and political disaster as a growing Muslim population infiltrated by violent and fanatical Islamists undermines the very foundations of the modern German state. In which case the Germans will again have to cast about for a new identity, perhaps an Islamic one.
Following a historic period of perseverance, Syrian rebels and their families were forced to evacuate eastern Aleppo after its liberation back in 2012. An unjust, intense war was launched upon Aleppo by Irans Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) and its proxy forces on the ground: Russia with its indiscriminate air strikes, and a lame-duck Syrian army of less than 20,000 deployable forces.

After more than 15 months continuous air raids and a long-lasting inhumane siege, Syrian rebels and civilians sealed an international agreement to depart Syrias once economic and cultural hub.

In the past few weeks widespread bombing campaigns continued relentlessly on civilian areas. No Aleppo hospital was spared. The IRGC and its foot-soldiers, numbering at the tens of thousands, spearheaded the military of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad in horrific mass executions of innocent people. The United Nations reported 82 individuals, including women and children, were murdered on the spot in the streets and in their homes. God knows how many more incidents have gone unreported.

The amazing perseverance shown by Aleppo locals for years now in the face of atrocious airstrikes and artillery shelling is unprecedented to say the least. Amidst all this, the silence and inaction seen from the West, especially the United States, will remain forever a source of shame.

Conflict of Interests

In the pro-Assad camp there are three decision-makers. First Russia, second Iran, and third the Syrian regime. The role played by Assad and his military in such scenes is next to nothing.

The West and Turkey became frantic for a ceasefire in Aleppo in the early days of the war due to the negative public opinion resulting from shocking crimes. They sought to have the rebels and remaining civilians transferred to other Syrian opposition controlled areas.

On December 13th, Washington and Moscow reached what can be described a ceasefire agreement. Intense negotiations between Turkey and Russia were started afterwards, resulting in an agreement between the Syrian opposition with Russia and Turkey to evacuate Aleppo. Practically, the parties involved in the talks were Aleppo representatives and Russia, hosted by Turkey. All necessary preparations were made to begin evacuating the city from the morning of Wednesday, December 14th.

However, Iran disrupted this agreement and the IRGC hindered the evacuation process. It was crystal clear Russia and Iran were pursuing different objectives and sets of interests. Iran sought not to have Aleppo evacuated but to exterminate all Syrian rebels and civilians.

Twenty-four hours later, pressure from the international community forced the implementation of the Russia-Syrian rebel agreement on December 15th. On the morning of that day the first convoy carrying the wounded exited Aleppo, only to face roadblocks imposed by Iran-backed forces and the Assad military.

Iran raised certain conditions for the evacuation. Russia later threatened to airstrike any party hindering the evacuation, an obvious warning to Iran. Tehran was forced to wind back under Moscow pressure.

As a result, the last phase of this war and the method chosen to evacuate Aleppo was a defeat for Iran and a victory for the Syrian opposition. Especially since the conflict of interest between Iran/Assad and Russia became crystal clear. Politically speaking, Iran has become a secondary party in Syria.

For Putin, a political settlement now makes sense. Staying involved in an ongoing insurgency does not. But for that, he needs the opposition -- which is fractured -- to accept a political outcome, and there is little prospect of that so long as Assad remains in power, as explained by Dennis Ross, who served as the Director of Policy Planning in the State Department under President George H. W. Bush, the special Middle East coordinator under President Bill Clinton, and was a special adviser for the Persian Gulf and Southwest Asia (which includes Iran) to the former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Is this the end?

The turn of events does not spell the end of the Syrian opposition. The opposition controls large swathes of Syria, with areas over ten times larger than Aleppo and millions of residents. Idlib Province has at a three million strong population; the western coast of the Euphrates in the Turkish border, recently liberated by the Free Syrian Army from Daesh (ISIS/ISIL); large portions of Deraa Province neighboring Jordan; a strategically important section in the north in Latakia Province on the Turkish border; large portions of areas in the Damascus vicinity and large portions in the Aleppo vicinity.

In contrast to Western mainstream media reporting, the Syrian opposition enjoys the capability to rise once again.

Despite all its differences, a comparison made to the Iran-Iraq War may help. In 1986, Iran made significant advances taking control over the Faw peninsula in southern Iraq. Western media and think-tanks all forecasted further advances by Iran and a defeat for Iraq. In 1988 Iran was forced into a U.N.-brokered ceasefire agreement.

Deep divisions between the Syrian nation and the Assad regime have reached the point of no return. Nearly 500,000 have been killed and more than half of the Syrian population displaced. The Syrian nation will never accept the continuation of this regime. Despite sporadic military advances, Assad has no place in Syrias future.

Where Iran stands in Syria

Iran will not be the final victor in Syria.

First -- For Iran, it is vital to maintain Assad in power. His fall will mark the end of Irans crusades in Syria. Even if the Syrian opposition becomes weaker, the overall crisis will continue while Assad remains in power. Assad is no longer acceptable in the international stage with an international consensus over his resort to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Second -- While Iran is financing and providing the ground forces, in this war, it no longer enjoys the first and final word. Russia calls the shots now with stark differences in interest, as seen in Aleppo.

Trumps America

U.S. President Barack Obamas weak foreign policy, especially the failed engagement with Iran, prolonged the Syrian crisis, allowed Tehran to take advantage, Russia to take the helm and America be sidelined.

Where will developments lead with Donald Trump in the White House? What will be the new U.S. foreign policy vis-a-vis Syria, Iran and the Middle East? How can we define Washingtons relationship with Moscow, and what practical measures will Trump take against Daesh (ISIS/ISIL)? Time will tell.

Good relations between the U.S. and Russia will at least not have a negative impact on the region, and this is good news for the Syrian opposition. Russia has weighable interests in Syria. However, what will Trump do with Iran? Considering Trumps harsh tone on Iran to this day, far more positive outcomes can be forecasted for the Syrian opposition.

Second, Trump and secretary of state nominee Rex Tillerson have the potential of eventually convincing Russia to provide concessions. This is not in Irans interests, as Tehran remembers Russia ditching Libyan the dictator Muammar Qaddafi.

Lesson learned in Syria

For 16 years America has failed to adopt a correct policy in the Middle East despite having huge opportunities to make significant changes. The 2003 war literally gift-wrapped Iraq to Iran, parallel to the highly flawed mentality of preferring Shiite fundamentalism to Sunni fundamentalism. This allowed Iran take full advantage of such failures and resulting voids.

Aleppo will be a short-lived success story for Iran. The tides are changing across the globe and Iran will no longer enjoy opportunities from West rapprochement. Understanding this very well, this is exactly why Tehran has resorted to such atrocities and sought to massacre all in Aleppo.

In contrast to how the U.S. handed Iraq in a silver plate to Iran, Russia never entered the Syria mayhem to hand it over to Iran. The roots of Aleppo remain in the hearts of all Syrians. As world powers, especially the U.S. and Russia review their future objectives, Iran will be the first and ultimate party to suffer.
A worker works on electric cars at a plant in Zouping county, Shandong province. The fast-growing new energy vehicle sector now faces the risk of overcapacity. [Photo/Xinhua]

China's fledging new energy vehicle sector is confronted with the risk of severe overcapacity as traditional automakers and fresh faces are rushing to exploit the segment that is believed to be the largest gold mine of the automotive industry.

On Tuesday, Wanxiang Group won the nod from the authorities for its plant in Zhejiang province, which will be able to produce 50,000 electric cars per year when completed.

The move made the giant auto parts supplier the sixth company approved to jump on the wagon of electric car making in China this year.

The six newcomers' annual capacity will reach a combined 1.13 million units per year around 2020.

The figure exceeds 2 million units when coupled with those from NextEV, Chehejia and LeEco, all dotcom companies.

Traditional automakers have even more ambitious plans. Public statistics show that the combined annual capacity of 13 major passenger carmakers including BYD, SAIC Motor and JAC Motor will exceed 4 million units by 2020.

That means China will be able to produce about 7 million new energy vehicles a year by the end of the decade, more than three times the goal the country has set: 2 million units sold annually in 2020.

The simple math shows plants with a combined capacity of around 5 million units will stand idle even if China manages to fulfill the ambitious target, and some suggest an even worse scenario as the goal would be difficult to achieve considering the sector's current performance.

China sold 400,000 new energy vehicles from January to November this year for year-on-year growth of 60 percent, according to statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.
The Washington Post needs a tutorial on writing sympathetic articles about Muslims who are deported from America and Europe. First, they shouldn't focus on stories of killers and drug dealers who are being deported, as this story about a handful of Afghans deported from Germany does.

Hakimi, 57, spent more than 20 years in Germany, where he married and raised two daughters, but his criminal record made him a high priority for the new return policy. He was once convicted of drug dealing there and was imprisoned for two years, then deported to Afghanistan. Yes, they accused me of selling drugs, but I served my time in prison, and I wanted to be with my family again, Hakimi said. He said one man slated for the same flight had killed someone but was allowed to stay at the last minute after a church said he had converted to Christianity and repented.

Sorry, not a sympathetic story.

Second tip: Don't report that forced deportations are driving Muslims to join al-Qaeda and the Taliban:

This is a real crisis for us, said Rohullah Hashimi, an official at the Afghan ministry responsible for refugees. Many Afghans sold everything before they left their country, and they have returned penniless. With no prospects, he said, they may try to reach Europe again or even join the insurgents.

The propagandists at the WaPo meant this to say that poverty and forced deportations will pressure them to join al-Qaeda. If only they wouldn't be deported, they would be responsible non-citizens. But the minute you deport them, you turn them into jihadis.

Sorry, I am not buying this, and I think most people reading this article get the real meaning. These people are being deported precisely because they are jihadi risks. Putting aside the additional crimes these particular deportees committed, every Muslim from the Middle East has the theoretical possibility of being swayed toward radical Islam. We have no idea who is and isn't susceptible. That's why they have to be deported. In attempting to make the opposite argument, the WaPo actually is inadvertently arguing in favor of deportations.

Poverty is not an excuse for joining radical Islam. Many Afghanis are poor but not members of the Taliban. If they want money, why don't they join the army and fight for their country? Why don't we ever hear stories about people returning to Afghanistan to fight for their country? Instead, Mr. Hashimi let the cat out of the bag.

To leftists who compare this to Jews fleeing the Holocaust: remember that Jews were not beheading people. They were being killed by Nazis. There was no concern that Jews would come into the country and behead people or engage in mass rapes in a train station or plow through a holiday market with a truck. Jews also didn't have any Jewish-majority countries to turn to; Muslims have 50. If Muslims want to flee violence, there are plenty of places they can go to practice sharia law, if their fellow Muslims will lend them a helping hand. And given their great interest in the plight of the Palestinians, I'm sure the needs of the Afghan, Syrian, and Iraqi refugees are not far from the minds of the people in the Muslim world...or are they?

Ed Straker is the senior writer at NewsMachete.com.
It's a fact that tapping into people's fears for the future is a far more potent fundraising weapon than appealing to the better angels of their nature.

That said, the unprecedented outpouring of hysteria on the left over the election of Donald Trump makes any previous appeal to the fears of ordinary voters by either party pale by comparison.

Since election day, we have seen liberal meltdowns all over the media as commentators try to outdo each other predicting Armageddon because of Trump's victory. The consequence of this is that many activists have heeded the call that there's an emergency of unprecedented proportions and the country can be saved only by giving cash to liberal organizations.

The Guardian:

From smaller local organizations to household names such as Planned Parenthood and the ACLU, nonprofit organizations across the US reported fundraising tallies many magnitudes higher than in previous years as they approached their end-of-year donation drives. This is always our big time of year, but this year its huge, said Loretta Prescott, development director for the Immigration Legal Advocacy Project in Maine. Instead of giving gifts, people are making donations to causes they believe in. Progressive causes in the US saw a spike in donations immediately after the election on 8 November from voters dismayed, outraged or even frightened by the outcome. In the weeks since, this wave of strategic giving has compounded. Planned Parenthood has received more than 300,000 donations in the six weeks since the election, 40 times its normal rate. Around half the donors were millennials and 70% had never given to the family planning organization before, a spokesman told the Guardian. Womens reproductive rights are considered under threat on many fronts from an incoming Trump administration. Vice president-elect Mike Pence has such a reputation for being anti-abortion that since the election, 82,000 of Planned Parenthoods donations have been from pro-choice supporters making gifts to them in his name. The ACLU donations web page crashed the day after the election as visitors increased by 7,000%, and in the next five days it raised more than $7m from 120,000 donors. Now it says it has raised almost $23m from more than 300,000 individual gifts in just online donations. Advocacy consulting group 270 Strategies  created in 2013 by veterans of Barack Obamas two presidential election campaigns and which specializes in advising progressive causes on grassroots organizing  said many of its hundreds of clients were reporting a surge in support. We work with gun safety groups, environmental groups, immigration and voting rights organizations, unions pushing for a higher minimum wage, supporters of public education and womens reproductive rights, and many are seeing an extraordinary uptick in support both by way of donations and volunteers, said Hari Sevugan, a director of 270 Strategies based in Chicago. A new website encourages people to make donations to liberal causes not just in honor of Trump or Pence, but for some of their wildly controversial senior staff and cabinet picks.

Exaggerating the fears of women and minorities is the left's stock in trade. For decades, liberals have managed to convince black Americans that electing a Republican will mean a return to the "Jim Crow" era of "separate but equal." You would think that most ordinary people wouldn't be taken in by this nonsense, but the fact is, the tactic works like a charm every time.

The attack on Trump and conservatives is even more preposterous when it comes to women's reproductive rights. While most Republicans hope Trump will name Supreme Court justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade, that act alone won't stop abortions. Since that famous court case, other decisions have solidified a woman's right to choose abortion, although a conservative court could restrict the practice significantly.

But the charge against Trump and conservatives that's most giggle-worthy is that the GOP will seek to ban oral contraceptives and other birth control methods. Only a tiny fraction of Republicans support that position, making the left's hysteria over the issue a matter of clear fundraising rather than any serious concern.

Filling the coffers of liberal organizations by ginning up hysteria over what Trump and the Republicans may or may not do is nothing new. But the scope of the effort and the passion of activists is unprecedented. Conservative groups should not sit on their laurels. They should try to match the opposition dollar for dollar.
Ahem: Isnt this a huge story?

Siobhan McFadyen of the UK Express reports:

POLICE in Belgium are probing the death of a high ranking NATO official after his body was discovered in his car with a gunshot wound to the head. According to reports, Yves Chandelon, the 62-year-old auditor general of NATO was found miles away from both his home and office.

His body was found in the Belgian town of Andenne, 62 miles away from his home in Lens on December 16. According to local newspaper reports Mr Chandelon was the registered keeper of three weapons however the gun found at the scene did not belong to him, it has been claimed. And more bizarrely it has been reported locally that the gun which killed him was found in the glovebox of the vehicle. Local news reports say Mr Chandelon's family are concerned about the circumstances of the case. They say initial suggestions that it was a possible suicide are incorrect. And it has been reported that the former director of The Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) Luxembourg had complained of getting strange telephone calls before he died and "felt threatened".

Clarice Feldman quips:

And after shooting myself I put the gun which is not mine in the glove compartment to keep everything nice and neat.

So what might a NATO auditor discover that would cause ruthless people to murder him?

Mr Chandelon was responsible for probing terror financing as part of his high ranking job.

One of the many sins attributed to Donald Trump is an inadequate appreciation for NATO. Hmm. Nothing to see here, move along?

Maybe thats why I have to learn about this via a British tabloid newspaper.
President Barack Obama promised a fundamental transformation for America and its role in the world. But as the inept community organizer prepares to leave office, it is becoming clear that his clumsy overreach is backfiring on multiple levels. The election of Donald Trump is but one example of the changes that lie ahead, sparked by backlash to Obamas policies.

One minor yet significant example of President Unintendedconsequences: drawing together Arabs and Jews in the Middle East. Yes, you read that correctly. The president who stabbed Israel in the back at the U.N. Friday (as Alan Dershowitz put it this morning on Fox & Friends) has actually paved the way for peace between Israel an the Arabs of the Middle East. By scaring Arab leaders in the Gulf (Saudi Arabia plus the emirates) with his deal to allow Iran nuclear arms, he has reminded the potentates that Israel is no threat to their power, while Iran openly lusts for control over their oil and their citizens, many of whom are Shiites.

Israel, as it happens, is believed to have excellent intelligences sources within Iran and has the technological sophistication to pull off Stuxnet and other sophisticated attacks on the mullahs, who have sworn to wipe Israel off the map.

So the enemy of their own mortal enemy Iran starts to look like an ally to the Gulf Arabs  so much so that the king of Bahrain actually hosted a Hanukkah party for Jews (the few local Bahraini Jews remaining, plus some visiting guests from France). Middle East analyst Tom Gross writes this morning:

This year, for the first time in four decades, Hannukah and Christmas coincide. And on Saturday evening the King of Bahrain, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, hosted a menorah (candle-lighting) ceremony. It was the second year in a row that he hosted a Hannukah event, but this year orthodox Jews and traditionally dressed Gulf Muslims danced joyfully together to Jewish songs. Many of the Jews were guests from France but local Bahraini Jews also joined the celebrations at the invitation of the king. You can watch a video here. Only four dozen Jews remain in Bahrain, which has a population of almost 1.5 million. 1,500 Jews lived in Bahrain until 1948 when, like Jews throughout the Arab world, most fled or left. One of remaining Jews, Houda Ezra Ebrahim Nonoo, is a female lawyer and former MP who became the first Jew and the first woman to serve as Bahraini Ambassador to the U.S., from 2008-2010.

Here is the remarkable video he sent:
The American left has learned how to disguise its intolerance of religion as acts as freedom. Two personal experiences led me to understand this.

Years ago, I went through customs at an airport in Saudi Arabia. I was shocked when the inspector, clad in his traditional Arabian garb, pulled an item of contraband from my luggage and accusingly showed it to me. It was a small paperback book that had on its cover an image of Buddha. I briefly objected as he confiscated it. Fortunately for me, a seasoned traveler nudged me and said, dont quarrel, or he will have you arrested. Being arrested in Saudi Arabia is a profoundly miserable experience, I am told. So I then smiled diplomatically and asked the inspector to toss it, which he did. He then allowed me to proceed on my way, a mercy not always offered to travelers.

I cannot describe the dark resentment I still have about that incident. We take for granted a freedom that is routinely denied in many nations.

When I was in Asia, I was on several occasions in close contact with Buddhists and adherents of other Eastern religions. While walking along a public sidewalk, I came upon a young lady blocking my path. She was standing at the foot of what I regard as an idol. Her hands were folded in prayer, and she repeatedly bowed at the waist toward it. I waited a few moments, wondering whether I should cross the street to go around her. She then finished her brief ceremony and went on her way. Unlike my experience in Arabia, I felt no sense of being oppressed. I know that Koreans and Japanese tolerate many religions. My act was not one of accommodating a false god, but of being courteous to my host nationals, and perhaps building bridges of mutual respect and understanding. I find this not the least bit inconsistent with my evangelical Christian faith.

Here in America, the American Civil Liberties Union brings lawsuits forcing the removal of displays of Christian (or in some cases, Jewish) religious symbols from the public square. Unlike in Saudi Arabia, no ones freedom is restricted by these symbols. As in Asia, no one is forced to bow before them. The courts have developed a bizarre interpretation of the Constitution so as to rule against religious freedom on the pretense of protecting it.

It is no coincidence that the very first item in the Bill of Rights concerns religious liberty. It says, Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.

Displaying a Nativity scene in a public park does not constitute making a law, nor does it require anyone to pay tithes to any such a thing as a Church of America. Nor does the First Amendment say we have freedom of religion except on public property.

Why should non-Christians be inconvenienced by such displays? They should, because it is a matter of history that our nation has very deep roots in its Christian heritage. These traditions should be respected by all. Our laws and traditions arise not from Buddhism or Islam, but from millennia of Judeo-Christian worship and thought. Attempts to excise that vital component of our national character do not expand anyones freedom; rather, they constitute religious oppression.

Arguments to the contrary are specious. Complaints that when I see a Christmas tree, I feel excluded have no more validity than would my demand for Koreans to stop inconveniencing me as I walk on their sidewalks. They are entitled to their traditions. Complaints from the left about such matters are the product of years of absurd psychobabble that have infected leftist thinking. They resemble the sort of complaint by illegal aliens who say the display of the American flag (in America) is insulting to their heritage. Nonsense.

Liberal thought police are no more interested in protecting religious liberties than was that customs inspector in Arabia. Unlike him, however, liberals insist that it is they, the liberals, who are the guardians of liberty, while they trample on ours.
What with all the liberal insanity weve witnessed among Hillary fans following her inept campaign and the resulting calamity for the Democrats, weve become a bit jaded as example after example of liberal silliness makes us shake our heads and wonder just how asinine they can get. Well, theyre going to have to get creative to top this story coming out of New Orleans.

Matt Vespa at Townhall is reporting that Sgt. Josh Collins of the Jefferson Parish (county) Sheriffs Department has been attending a class at Loyola University for six weeks now, always managing to change out of uniform prior to showing up on campus  until recently, that is, when he found himself running late and had no time to change. Collins entered the classroom in duty uniform and wearing his requisite sidearm, brutally and thoughtlessly invading the safe space of a special snowflake student, who immediately complained to the instructor, who appears to be a snowflake of graduate level.

So whats a sensitive instructor to do in such a situation? Ask the officer to confirm, perhaps with badge and ID, that he is in fact a sworn officer? Well, that would just make too much sense, so why not call in more of those oppressive police, of course, which is just what this degreed idiot attempted to do? The police dispatcher, displaying a level of common sense that precludes being a Loyola graduate, declined to send a police response. The instructor then called campus security, who (obviously not Loyola graduates, either) calmly suggested that the instructor confirm that the armed, uniformed student was in fact a police officer. Once this was done, the snowflakes were apparently comforted sufficiently for class to continue without further incident.

Sgt. Collins posted the silly incident on Facebook, where it went viral, forcing Loyola to issue a statement declaring the entire affair a misunderstanding.

No kidding...
Donald Trump will enter office in January with an unprecedented opportunity to immediately place his mark on the federal judiciary. According to the Washington Post, Trump will be able to fill more than 100 slots on the federal court at all levels, in addition to the vacant Supreme Court justice. Contrast that with the 54 vacancies President Obama faced when he took office in 2009.

Trump will have a Republican Senate eager to do his bidding  just as long as his nominees are conservative enough to pass muster.

The judiciary also is a top priority for McConnell, who stands ready to help the Trump White House identify candidates and grease the sometimes-laborious Senate confirmation process. The Trump administration and the Senate will be under pressure to quickly install judges in courts around the country where cases are severely backlogged because of long-vacant seats. There are 38 so-called judicial emergencies, according to the nonpartisan Judicial Conference, including in Texas, where seven seats have sat empty for more than one year. The Obama administration and the states two conservative Republican senators could not come to an agreement on nominees for the many openings. There is a real impact on real people, said W. Neil Eggleston, Obamas White House counsel. There are people and companies who are not having their cases heard because there are no judges around. The politics surrounding judicial vacancies are more poisonous than at any time in recent memory, as the Garland episode has shown, with Democrats and Republicans at loggerheads for much of the two years since McConnell took leadership of the Senate. [Supreme Court to begin new term short-handed as its ideological balance hinges on fall vote] Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (Vt.), the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, issued a 4,200-word statement this month saying that by blocking Garland, Republicans had committed the most outrageous act of obstruction and irresponsibility that he had seen in his 42 years in the Senate. Speaking more generally about circuit and district court vacancies, Leahy added: Despite the fact that there are dozens of qualified, consensus nominees pending on the Senate floor right now, we will finish this Congress having confirmed just 22 judicial nominees in two years. That is the lowest number since Harry Truman was president. As with many subjects, judicial nomination data can be subject to interpretation. Judicial vacancies ebb and flow somewhat randomly, considering judges serve lifetime appointments until they choose to retire or die. It is a challenge to make apples-to-apples comparisons at the end of a term because vacancies dont happen in the same regular basis as they do in the Senate or the White House, said Don Stewart, a spokesman for McConnell. To make an apples-to-apples comparison on a snapshot in time doesnt work.

Trump praised now deceased Supreme Court justice Scalia and says he will nominate judges in Scalia's mold. In truth, there probably aren't 100 Justice Scalias populating the federal judiciary. But there are plenty of candidates with solid conservative credentials who have a fealty to the Constitution and would be willing to hand down rulings consistent with constitutional principles.

Democrats will seek to obstruct most of the nominees, but Senator McConnell has already indicated that the nuclear option on judges is in play, where a simple majority of senators would suffice to seat any judge Trump nominates.

This is a unique opportunity for the president-elect, and conservatives will be watching carefully to see that Trump follows through on his promise to remake the federal courts.
Janet Napolitano, the president of the University of California  one of the nations largest higher education institutions  is heading for a showdown with Congress over her scofflaw stance toward immigration law:

[The University] will vigorously protect the privacy and civil rights of the undocumented members of the UC community and will direct its police departments not to undertake joint efforts with any government agencies to enforce federal immigration law.

Representative Dana Rohrbacher (R-Calif.) sent a letter to Napolitano warning her that there will be consequences for actively contravening federal law while depending on federal funding:

It may be prudent for you to consider that approximately 50% of the University of Californias research funding is supported by federal taxpayers dollars before pledging non-compliance with federal law.

This chart, from the University of California itself, reveals the degree of dependence on federal funding for research:

There are also Pell Grants and federal loans for students, which could be imperiled if the university persists in holding itself above federal law.

It is hard to see what would stop the escalation of this dispute into a crisis, perhaps resulting in drastic consequences for the university. Given the fact that the left has bullied all kinds of private institutions into compliance with its policies through the lever of federal funding, the cries of outrage over such a confrontation from the left will be easily countered.

The year 2017 is going to see a lot of outrage from the left.
Back in 2006, Mexico had a very contested election. It went on for days. There were massive demonstrations about the results. In fact, President-Elect Felipe Calderon had to be brought in through the back door to be sworn before stunned deputies. You cannot make this up. It did happen amid what the N.Y. Times headline called "catcalls"!

What would have been the reaction of Mexicans if a U.S. politicians (God forbid a former president) had made a video encouraging voters to go one way or another or calling the results illegitimate?

I know the answer. They would have screamed "intervention" and lots of other things. And they would have been right. No country should meddle in elections.

Now let's move to 2016 and all the charges that Russia elected Donald Trump.

First, it is interesting that the Democrats claim that Russia interfered in the election and then tell us Hillary Clinton won the popular vote. Are they saying the Russians intervened only in swing states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin?

Second, where is the Democrats' outrage about a former president of Mexico making a video before and after the election?

Former President Vicente Fox (a man I supported in 2000 as an agent of change) just released a video calling Mr. Trump illegitimate. It goes like this:

Vicente Fox, former President of Mexico, shares his take on President-elect Donald Trump, and his threat to U.S.-Mexico relations. He says Trump is an "illegitimate president" who "didn't win the general election." Presumably, Fox is referring to the popular vote when he says "general election." "He's got too many people against him and they have shown out on the street," Fox said. He continued: "But anyway, in Mexico, we can be rude also. We are strong now. We're going to defend our people wherever they are. Inside Mexico, or outside Mexico in the United States. We're not going to let this guy to offend them anymore. To offend the dignity, and to deny the enormous contribution they make to the U.S. economy."

Isn't that sweet? "El senor Presidente" Fox needs a class on constitutional law. Maybe he can take one from soon to be retired President Obama, who I understand taught such subjects years ago.

We honestly don't know just what Russia tried to do with respect to our elections. Let me add that I am not a fan of Mr. Putin and wouldn't put anything past him. Nevertheless, I doubt that anyone has the ability to fix election systems in 50 states. Even Putin can't do that.

At the end, Mr. Putin did not make a video, but Sr. Fox did. I would love to see one of the reporters ask Mrs. Clinton about Mexico's efforts to influence our election. It would also be a wonderful idea for one of Jorge Ramos's segments on Univision.

P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.
Nokia has been all over the news in the last couple of weeks, and the companys upcoming smartphones have just leaked yet again. If you take a look at the gallery down below, youll get to see two sketches, the first image allegedly shows off the Nokia D1, while the second one is supposed to represent the Nokia E1. The Nokia D1 and Nokia D1C have been popping up for quite some time, while the Nokia E1 surfaced quite recently for the first time.

As you can see, these two sketches are quite similar, the two phones look almost identical, but there is one important difference to note, the Nokia D1 has a front-facing fingerprint scanner, while the Nokia E1 does not. It is also worth noting that the Nokia D1 is a bit more curved on the sides. Both devices have identical back and overview (multitasking) buttons which are flanking the home key, but the home key on the Nokia E1 seems to be a regular capacitive circle, while the Nokia D1 has an oval-shaped home button which will double as a fingerprint scanner, though we still dont know whether youll be able to physically press this key, or will it be more of a capacitive home button like weve seen on the HTC 10 and OnePlus 3(T). Nokias branding seems to be placed in the upper right corner of both of these devices, and the leak mentions that the companys upcoming phones will land in both 5 and 5.5-inch variants, though were not sure whether that means that the Nokia D1 will land in two variants, or will the Nokia D1 sport a 5-inch display, and Nokia E1 a 5.5-inch panel, because the source is not entirely clear on the details. Previous leaks did say that the Nokia D1 could land in two variants, but well see.

As many of you know by now, HMD Global has the rights to manufacture Nokia-branded smartphones for the next 10 years, as the company purchased rights to the Nokia brand from Microsoft a while back. Foxconn will manufacture Nokia-branded devices, and HMD Global already confirmed that theyll focus on budget phones, and that they wont attempt to create their very own ecosystem on top of Android, but will rely on Googles pure Android experience, which essentially means we could see some apps added on top of Android, but dont expect a heavy skin to be included. First Nokia-branded smartphones are expected to land in the first quarter of 2017, perhaps even during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas in January, who knows.
Eleven people have been detained for fly-tipping more than 2,900 tonnes of garbage into two sections of the Yangtze River in east China's Jiangsu Province earlier this month.

Police in Jiangsu's neighboring Zhejiang Province said on Sunday that over 900 tonnes of household trash was dumped into the Nantong section of the river on Dec. 8 and over 2,000 tonnes into the Taicang section on the night of Dec. 17.

In the former case, environmental sanitation authorities in Zhejiang's Haining City signed a contract with a company in Tongxiang City of Zhejiang in September to dispose household garbage. In the latter case, the authorities' counterparts in Haiyan County of Zhejiang signed a contract with another Tongxiang company in May. However, the two companies subcontracted the trash.

Shanghai, to the southeast of Taicang City, also reported floating garbage in its waters.
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Photo taken on Dec. 23, 2016, shows the UN Security Council voting on a draft resolution urging an end to Israeli settlement activities in West Bank, at the UN headquarters in New York. The UN Security Council on Friday adopted a resolution urging an end to Israeli settlement activities in West Bank. [Photo/Xinhua]

The UN Security Council on Friday adopted a resolution urging Israel to cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory.

The 15-nation council reaffirms the Israeli settlement activities have "no legal validity" and constitute a flagrant violation under international law and a major obstacle to the achievement of a two-state solution between Palestine and Israel.

Fourteen council members voted in favor and the United States abstained.

The resolution demands that "Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, and that it fully respect all of its legal obligations in this regard."

Israel captured the West Bank, along with the Gaza Strip, in the 1967 Mideast War. About a decade later, right-wing Israelis started to establish settlements on these lands.

The U.S. sees the settlements, which are illegal by the international laws, as an obstacle to peace.

The Palestinians have vowed not to return to the negotiating table unless Israel freezes its settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the adoption of the resolution in a statement released by his spokesperson.

"The Secretary-General takes this opportunity to encourage Israeli and Palestinian leaders to work with the international community to create a conducive environment for a return to meaningful negotiations," it said.
The carrier confirmed in a statement that the aircraft was on the ramp at Mitiga when an unknown gunman fired in the vicinity of the aircraft. No casualties were reported and although the extent of the damage incurred was not specified, initial inspections suggested it could be "light/superficial".

The aircraft is expected to be out of service for "a few weeks.
The service came after Russia and Egypt signed a protocol for the resumption of cargo flights earlier this month.

Following the fatal bombing of a MetroJet A321-200 over the Sinai Peninsula in October 2015, Moscow banned EgyptAir and all other Egyptian carriers citing concerns about the North African state's aviation security protocols. Since then, Egypt has sought to overhaul its broad standing security oversight in a bid to lure back international tourist traffic to its Red Sea Riviera resorts.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday demanded the U.S. ambassador to provide "clarifications" after Washington abstained from a UN vote on the illegitimacy of the West Bank settlements.

A statement by the foreign ministry said Netanyahu summoned Ambassador Dan Shapiro for a meeting, which has yet to be scheduled.

In the morning, the ministry said that Netanyahu, who is also acting foreign minister, instructed the ministry to summon the envoys of the UN Security Council's member countries which have an embassy in Israel for a reprimand.

The list included the ambassadors or deputies of France, Britain, China, Russia, Spain, Japan, Egypt, Angola, Ukraine, and Uruguay.

The move was part of a "diplomatic and economic price" that Netanyahu vowed to exact from countries which supported the historic motion to end the Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

The vote, passed on Friday by a 14-0 majority, with the United States abstains, demands Israel to "immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem."

It states that the building of settlements by Israel has "no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law."

Israel reacted furiously, with Netanyahu lashing at President Barack Obama and accusing him of "a shameful ambush."

The White House rejected the accusations, saying it didn't promote the motion.

The proposal was put forward by New Zealand, Senegal, Venezuela, and Malaysia in the wake of the "Regulation Bill," a government-backed act to annex private Palestinian lands in the West Bank and legalize unsanctioned outposts.

About 500,000 Jewish settlers live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, lands that Israel seized in the 1967 Mideast War and has been controlling them ever since, despite international condemnations.
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China and Sao Tome and Principe resumed diplomatic relations in Beijing on Monday, after the west African nation cut "diplomatic ties" with Taiwan last week.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his counterpart in Sao Tome and Principe Urbino Botelho held talks at the Diaoyutai state guesthouse and signed a joint communique to resume the diplomatic relations.

Sao Tome and Principe, an island nation in the Gulf of Guinea and a former Portuguese colony, established diplomatic relations with China immediately after gaining independence in 1975 but switched to Taiwan in 1997.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan gave a speech at the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council session on December 26, highlighting the creation of a separate transport route for EAEU member states in Upper Lars.

As Armenpress was informed from the press service of the Armenian Presidents Office, Serzh Sargsyan gave a speech at the session.

Honorable Vladimir Vladimirovich, please, once again accept my condolences.

Our todays meeting is a good opportunity to sum up the 2 years of operation of the Eurasian Economic Union, to point out our achievements, which, in our opinion, are not few. I think we should also pay attention to problematic issues which hamper the perfect operation of our common economic area.

Of course, it would be desirable that those issues were discussed with the participation of all our partners, the Armenian President said.

Serzh Sargsyan presented his assessments over the Unions current trends. He positively assessed the fact that the reduction rate of bilateral trade turnover gradually mitigates. President Sargsyan also highlighted the positive dynamics in industrial and agricultural spheres, hoping that the decisions taken on the medicines and medical products market, the liberalization of 20 service sectors until year 2025, as well as the concept on the creation of a single gas and crude market will show their positive impact in a short or medium term prospect. The President of Armenia also pointed out some other successful trends but at the same time spoke about negative ones. The capacity of the Union in terms of reacting to social-economic challenges is still insufficiently utilized. As a result, the expectations of the business and citizens over the creation and operation of the Union, as well as the role of the Union in modernizing the economies and improving the lives of the citizens remains unimplemented, Serzh Sargsyan said, adding that legislative basis of the Union need further elaboration. Despite serious achievements, there are still numerous gaps, he said.

The Armenian President also noted that the Armenian side sees two directions for Union. The first one is the elimination of the remaining obstacles for the full liberalization of the four freedoms and the further integration within the Union. The second one is the maximally effective involvement of national economies in global trades. These two directions complement each other. It is apparent that without an effective cooperation within our Union, the positions of the Union will become weaker, he said, highlighting the adoption of the customs code in this context.

Referring to digital economy, President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan noted that the IT sector is a leading branch of economy in Armenia with much experience, which can be used for digitalization of economic branches when establishing the digital market of the Union.



I would like to specially refer to the importance of a coordinated transport systems. It is a key issue for Armenia to ensure an unhampered connection with the EAEU member states. In the light of absence of land border with any of the EAEU member states, our trade is carried out through the territory of Georgia, Upper Lars checkpoint. But unfortunately, conditioned by a number of factors such as weather conditions or bureaucratic procedures, the normal operation of that checkpoint is systematically hampered seriously harming our economic entities. In this context, we attach great importance to the creation of a separate transport route designed for the transport vehicles of the EAEU member states, which will significantly ease the process of transportations, Serzh Sargsyan stressed, adding that while choosing transport corridors or routes the priority should be given to those passing through the Member States.

Referring to the EAEUs international role, President Sargsyan mentioned with satisfaction that the interest to the Union rises. I would like to specially refer to EAEU-Iran cooperation. During the recent official visit of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Armenia, we discussed in detail the prospects of deepening trade and economic relations between Iran and the EAEU, including the issue of creating a free trade zone.



Particularly, the broad opportunities for a mutually beneficial cooperation were presented to the Iranian President.

The President of Iran showed interest in signing a temporary agreement that will lead to the creation of a free trade economic zone.

Armenia vigorously supports the negotiation process between the Eurasian Economic Commission and Iran aiming to reach the signing of the given agreement as soon as possible, Serzh Sargsyan said and presented some other details of Sargsyan-Rouhani talks.

I am convinced the EAEU has a promiosing future, which undoubtedly will serve the development of our economies and the welfare of our citizens, Serzh Sargsyan concluded.














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Some 870 Moroccans are fighting alongside jihadist groups in Middle East, local media reported on Monday.

Citing official statistics provided by the Morocco's Central Bureau of Judicial Investigations, the Moroccan daily Akhbar Al Yaoum said that the current number of Moroccan fighters represents 55 percent of the total number of those who left the country to join the ranks of jihadists groups in Syria and Iraq in 2012.

According the the same statistics, over 553 Moroccan fighters have been killed and 206 returned to the country since 2012.

The same source revealed that the number of Moroccans who joined the conflict zones in Syria, Iraq and Libya has significantly been reduced in the past few years.

In 2016, there were a total of three people who tried to join the Islamic State (IS) group in Libya and Syria, but were arrested.
By Dezan Shira & Associates

Editor: Harry Handley

Since the implementation of the Foreign Business Act of 1999, foreign businesses set up in a range of industries in Thailand must have a Thai majority shareholder. One line of business that is exempt from this is import/export trading. This exemption, along with developed infrastructure and a solid legal framework, have made Thailand a hub for cross-border traders. In 2015, US$212 billion of goods were exported from Thailand, the 22nd highest value in the world. Imports in the same year totaled US$177 billion, making Thailand the worlds 25th largest importer.

According to the World Bank, the time and cost of both importing and exporting in Thailand is significantly lower than the average for neighboring countries in the East Asia and Pacific region. In recent years, import/export procedures have been streamlined further through the implementation of the online e-Customs system. This electronic system provides a one-stop service for all stakeholders in cross-border trade. Procedures such as issuing licenses and paying duties and taxes have been made paperless and can be completed using the central e-Customs system.

Once a company has been set up in Thailand, including Value Added Tax (VAT) registration and corporate bank account establishment, the import and export processes can begin. This article will outline the procedures required when trading goods to and from Thailand.

RELATED: International Tax Planning Services from Dezan Shira & Associates

Importing

All goods imported into Thailand must be reported to the Customs department. The steps required to meet these legal requirements are outlined below.

Step 1  Register to use e-Customs system

As mentioned, the procedures for importing goods into Thailand have been centralized into the online e-Customs system. In order to register for the system, the importer (either as an individual or business entity) must already possess a digital certificate. The digital certificate is an electronic signature file used to confirm the identity and authenticity of the sender of electronic documents; it is essential for all companies in Thailand with any online operations, including import and export registration.

Once a digital certificate is in place, the importer may proceed to register for the e-Customs system. Companies can choose to either register with the system directly (i.e. at their own office) or through an agent. For the latter option, the agent will handle the registration. When registering to use the e-Customs system directly, the following tasks are required:

e-Customs software must be installed on the company IT system and digital certificates verified

The importer must register with Thai Customs at one of the following: the Registration and Customs Privileges Sub-Division; Customs Procedures and Valuation Standard Bureau; or the General Administration Division at each Customs office

The accuracy and readiness of message exchange with e-Customs system must be tested

Once tests are completed successfully, the Communication and IT Bureau will issue e-Customs registration ID, and the process is complete.

Step 2  Review controlled goods

Two separate checks need to be made before goods are imported: firstly, to identify if goods require an import permit, and secondly, to ascertain if goods are considered red line.

A range of goods require import permits issued by different agencies prior to their arrival. For example, used motor vehicles and motorcycles require a permit from the Department of Foreign Trade, while imports of medicines and food supplements require permission from the Food and Drug Administration of the Ministry of Health. A rundown of goods that require a permit can be found on the Customs Department website. The government is working to integrate the permit application process into the e-Customs system; currently, around half of Thailands government agencies allow electronic permit applications.

The second check required is to establish if the goods to be imported are classified as red line goods (as opposed to green line). Red line goods are those considered to be high risk or requiring extra certification and verification upon arrival, including foodstuffs, drinks, and plants. It is necessary to provide the following supporting documents when importing red line goods:

Bill of Lading (B/L) or Air Waybill

Invoice

Packing List

Import License (if required)

Certificates of origin

Other relevant documents (e.g. list of ingredients, technical standards certificates, etc.)

There is no definitive list of red line goods; the e-Customs system will inform the importer once the Import Declaration has been submitted (see Step 3). As such, it is important to ensure the correct paperwork is in place for all imports in order to be prepared for a shipment being flagged as red line.

Step 3  Submission and verification of declaration

Once all documentation is in order, an Import Declaration can be submitted to the e-Customs system along with an arrival report with the information of the carrying vessel. The e-Customs system will then check and verify the submission, identifying any discrepancies and specifying whether the shipment is green line or red line.

Step 4  Payment of duties and taxes

Thai Customs Tariff Decree B.E. 2530 states that goods imported or brought into, exported, or taken out of the Kingdom shall be chargeable with and liable to duty. A number of items are exempt from import duties; a list can be found on the Integrated Tariff Database.

For dutiable goods, payment can be made at the Customs Department of the port of entry or via the e-Payment section of the e-Customs system.

Step 5  Inspection and release of cargo

The final step before the cargo is released is an inspection. For green line goods, this is simply an online screening and will take only a few minutes. For red line goods, the supporting documents will have to be presented and the cargo physically examined by customs officials.

RELATED: The Guide to Singapores Import and Export Procedures

Exporting

All goods exported from Thailand require reporting to Customs and are subject to customs controls. Due to the automated nature of the e-Customs system, the export procedures are very similar to the outlined steps for importing goods.

Step 1  Register to use e-Customs system

If companies are both importing and exporting goods from Thailand, only one registration on the e-Customs system is needed. See above for the registration process.

Step 2  Review controlled goods

As with imports, checks need to be made for goods requiring an export permit and potential red line shipments.

Currently, around 50 goods categories require an export permit. These include goods such sugar and rice, which require a permit to maintain quality, and others including trees and seeds that require permits under other laws. The Customs Department website provides a detailed overview of restricted goods.

In terms of red line goods, extra documentation is required before the shipment can leave Thailand. The e-Customs system will flag red line goods at Step 3. The exporter should prepare the following:

Invoice

Export License (if required)

Other relevant documents (e.g. Food and Drug Administration approval, destination information, etc.)

Step 3  Submission and verification of declaration

The exporter should submit an Export Declaration, along with an invoice and cargo data to the e-Customs system. Again, provided no errors exist, the system will issue declaration and payment numbers and define whether the shipment is green or red line.

Step 4  Payment of duties and taxes

Not all goods require a duty to be paid. See the Integrated Tariff Database for the official list of duty-exempt goods.

Export duties can be paid by three methods: payment at Customs Department of port of exit; e-Payment via the e-Customs system; and payment at a bank.

Step 5  Inspection and release of cargo

The freight forwarder should send a cargo control report to the e-Customs system, which will automatically generate a report and alert the customs officials if the goods are green or red line. Green line goods are clear to proceed. As with imports, red line goods require a physical inspection and extra document checks before they can be cleared.

Finally, once the shipment arrives, it is the responsibility of the shipping company or agent to submit the manifest information to the e-Customs system.

Further support from Dezan Shira & Associates

The regulatory system in Thailand is fast-moving, with changes sometimes flying under the radar. It is important to keep abreast of the most up-to-date regulations in order to ensure the smooth running of operations. Specialists at Dezan Shira & Associates have years of experience supporting the establishment and growth of businesses in Thailand, and are well-placed to guide companies through the intricacies of the Thai regulatory system and help them leverage the many tariff incentives Thailand offers.
Picture of Shah Rukh dressed in a robe and receiving the award was shared on Twitter.

Shah Rukh will next be seen in 'Raees'.

Hyderabad: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan was today conferred honorary doctorate by the Maulana Azad National Urdu University here for contribution towards promotion of Urdu culture.

Chancellor Zafar Sareshwala conferred the 'honorius causa' (doctor of letters) on Khan and Rekhta Foundation founder Sanjiv Saraf at the sixth convocation of the university, for their contribution in the promotion of Urdu language and culture.

Expressing happiness on being conferred the honorary doctorate, Khan said the honour would make his (late) father happy as he was a freedom fighter and held Maulana Azad and also education in high esteem.

The actor said he would try to live up to the responsibility bestowed on him.

Before the starting of the programme, the organisers said that President Pranab Mukherjee, who was scheduled to attend the event as chief guest, could not do so due to unavoidable reasons.

The university was established here in 1998.

About 2,885 graduates and post-graduates and 276 MPhil and PhD scholars from various disciplines in regular courses have been awarded degrees. Besides, 44,235 graduates and post graduates from distance mode of learning have also been given degrees in absentia, a press release issued on the occasion said.
Saif has made up his mind to not leave his family behind.

Saif Ali Khan is on paternity leave until January. But the way the new daddy has planned his commitments, he wont lose sight of his newborn Taimur even after he resumes work. The actor will fly to Europe next month  with wife Kareena and baby Taimur in tow  to shoot a schedule of his film Chef.

A source confirmed that the star couple is already planning its first international trip as a family. Saif has made up his mind to not leave his family behind. He wants to ensure that they are all together at least the first few months, he said.

Directed by Raja Krishna Menon, Chef, which is a remake of Jon Favreaus Hollywood film of the same name, has been shot in Kerala, Goa and Amritsar so far and the team will be shooting the last schedule in Europe. Only 20 per cent of the films shoot is pending. The film is slated to hit the theatres on July 14, 2017.
Former IAF chief S P Tyagi was arrested in the chopper scam case and got bail on Monday.

New Delhi: Describing former IAF chief S P Tyagi as a "sound professional", Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha on Monday said he should not have been treated like a "common criminal".

Tyagi, arrested on December 9 in AgustaWestland chopper scam case, was on Monday granted bail by a special court in the national capital.

Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted the relief to Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs two lakh and one surety of like amount.

"You know, it is sub-judice so it won't be right for me to say anything. But, it is very unfortunate, I think for sure, that a person of his stature has been indicted by the CBI and other investigating agencies. He has been put under custody," Raha told NDTV.

He said the arrest "obviously" hurts the morale of the people of the armed forces.

"I can't say it doesn't dent our image or reputation. It definitely does and I am sure we will go by the law of the land. And the judicial process will be completed on the (basis of) evidence produced. I will be very happy if he can acquit himself because for the reason that he is the former chief," he said.

Talking about his personal rapport with Tyagi, Raha said he has worked under him.

"I have worked with him as well. So I knew him quite well. Professionally, he is very sound and it is very unfortunate that these accusations are there. It does dent our reputation. We are just hoping that the thing gets settled quickly this way or the other. Whatever is the decision of the court or the judicial process, we will go by that. We will accept it," he said.

Asked if he agreed that he should not have been kept with common criminals, Raha replied saying he agrees. "I don't know the exact evidences that the investigating agencies have but if they could treat him a little more respectfully I would be be very happy," he said.
ED will send its investigators to Malaysia to trace businessmen with Lodha links there.

New Delhi: The revelations by Kolkata-based businessman Parasmal Lodha about converting demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes, allegedly for a hefty commission, have led the Enforcement Directorate to probe his international links, particularly with hawala dealers. Sources claimed Lodhas interrogation has revealed that he planned to get in touch with his foreign contacts to turn the black money white. ED sources said a team was likely to be sent to Malaysia to probe Lodhas revelations further.

Sources said ED sleuths were trying to trace the identity of Lodhas associates or business links in Malaysia. The agency may send a team to Malaysia to get details about the individuals based there who have links with Lodha, a source said. The ED is also coordinating with its offices within the country to examine Lodhas other links, the sources said. During the initial interrogation Lodha said that after the demonetisation, he and his associates had converted demonetised currency of around Rs 25 crores into new currency notes for a commission of 15-20 per cent, a source said, adding that he had links with several hawala operators across the country.

The ED had on December 22 arrested Lodha, 62, after the recovery of a large amount of cash in new currency notes from a company that belonged to a Delhi-based advocate, Rohit Tandon, of T&T law firm, and J. Shekhar Reddy of Chennai. Delhi police officials seized Rs 14 crores, of which over Rs 2.2 crores was in brand-new Rs 2,000 notes, from the law firm owned by Tandon. Investigations by the ED revealed the new currency was allegedly arranged and sent by Lodha. He has alleged links with several hawala operators in the country, a source said. Reddy had been arrested by the CBI on Wednesday. Lodha also has interests in mining, finance, consultancy and firms that own restaurants. Lodha had first gained prominence after his aggressive takeover of Peerless General Finance and Investment Company Ltd in 1991.

An source in the investigation agency said: Large sums of money were transferred to foreign countries from India through the hawala route. This money was handed over to various businessmen. We shared this information with our officials in Chennai, who lodged a separate case of money-laundering. The names of two businessmen  Shekhar Reddy and one more  had cropped up in the investigation. Lodha helped Reddy to convert Rs 6 crores in old notes into new currency.
He has been instructed against getting in touch with the witnesses and also barred from leaving Delhi NCR.

New Delhi: Ex-IAF chief S P Tyagi, arrested on December 9 in AgustaWestland chopper scam case, was on Monday granted bail by a special court in Delhi.

Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted the relief to Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs two lakh and one surety of like amount.

The court, however, imposed certain conditions on the accused and asked him not to try to influence the witnesses and hamper the probe.

The bail applications of other two accused - Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan - are pending before the court which said it will decide both the pleas on January 4.

During the hearing of the bail plea, S P Tyagi's advocate Maneka Guruswamy had said that her client "could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".

She had claimed before the court that in the last four years since the FIR was registered, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.

Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".

"We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding that the matter has "tarnished country's name".

On the court's query whether the CBI had any material regarding S P Tyagi receiving money, the agency told the court that the former IAF chief had purchased several properties for which the sources of income were not disclosed by him and alleged that he had abused his official position.

Advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, counsel for Khaitan, had also countered CBI's argument, claiming that the agency was trying to sensationalise the matter and there was no allegation that his client had not joined the probe or tried to influence it.

Sanjeev Tyagi's counsel Manav Gupta also opposed CBI's contention saying there was no reason to claim that if granted the relief, his client would hamper the probe. The accused sought bail on the grounds that the evidence was documentary in nature and had already been seized by CBI and they have cooperated with the probe agency.

The court had on December 17 sent all the three accused to judicial custody till December 30.

71-year old Tyagi, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by the agency in connection with the case. The case relates to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime.

The accused have alleged that the "CBI was trying to extract the confession using force". The defence counsel had also claimed that there was no apprehension of them fleeing from justice or tampering with evidence.

The CBI had said it was a "very serious" and "a very high-profile" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as the "interest of the nation was compromised".

It had submitted that "one part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land."

Tyagi's counsel had earlier claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office (PMO) was also a part of it.
The NABARD has permitted a period of 15 years for completion of all the pending projects.

Maharashtra government has accepted NABARD's funding for 23 irrigation projects in the form of long-term loan. (Photo: PTI/Representational)

Mumbai: Maharashtra government has accepted NABARD's funding for 23 irrigation projects in the form of long-term loan.

The decision would bring in Rs 7,242.74 crore for the completion of irrigation projects, according to a Government Resolution released on Monday.

The Government Resolution further stated that National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) would charge an annual interest of 6 per cent over the loan.

As per the negotiations between the NABARD and state officials, the government would get a grace period of first three years from the commencement of the work. Hence, there will be no pressure of immediate payback of instalments for the three years.

"It is expected that the grace period would be used by the state government to expedite the procedures of pending permissions and start the pending works. This would enable the state to bring more area under irrigation and with more yield from farmers, a small amount on water tax can be collected. This amount is useful for payback of the loan instalment," a senior officer from state water resources department said.

The NABARD has permitted a period of 15 years for completion of all the pending projects. After the completion, there will be a period of 15 years for repayment of the loan amount, the GR stated.

Once the projects are completed, the state water resources department is asked to submit a 'completion certificate' to NABARD.
The court has now put up the matter on February 10 for pre-charge proceedings.

Swami had accused the Gandhis and others of conspiring to cheat and misappropriating funds.

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Monday dismissed BJP leader Subramanian Swamy's plea seeking certain documents from the Congress party and Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) in the National Herald case filed by him against Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and others.

Metropolitan Magistrate Lovleen rejected Swamy's application while giving him the last opportunity to submit the list of complainant witnesses in the case in which he has accused the Gandhis and others of conspiring to cheat and misappropriating funds by paying just Rs 50 lakh through which Young Indian Pvt Ltd (YI) obtained the right to recover Rs 90.25 crore which AJL owed to the Congress.

Besides Gandhis, other accused- Motilal Vora, Oscar Fernandes, Suman Dubey and Sam Pitroda- have denied the allegations levelled against them.

The court has now put up the matter on February 10 for pre-charge proceedings.
Chakraborty's term had started in April 2014, but till date he had neither asked any question nor participated in any debate.

New Delhi: Actor-turned politician Mithun Chaktaborty who was elected to the Rajya Sabha by Trinamool Congress(TMC), on Monday resigned from the Upper House citing health reasons.

He has submitted his resignation to Rajya Sabha Chairman, sources in TMC said.

Mithun, whose alleged involvement in Saradha scam made news last year, had attended the Upper House for three days only.

He has written to the Chairman that because of his health condition he is not been able to fulfil his duty in Rajya Sabha and that is why he is relinquishing his seat, sources added.

Members of the House had questioned earlier questioned Mithuns continued absence in the Rajya Sabha. Deputy Chairman P J Kurien in April said he had received a letter from Chakraborty stating that "he is unable to attend the sittings of the House during the current session on health grounds".

Chakraborty's term had started in April 2014, but till date he had neither asked any question nor participated in any debate.
MEA says rescue efforts on, govt in touch with Yemen.

New Delhi: After a video started doing the rounds showing abducted Indian Christian priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil  who was earlier kidnapped in Yemen by suspected ISIS militants  purportedly blaming the Indian government and the Vatican for alleged lack of action in securing his release, India on Monday said it was in regular touch with the Yemeni authorities and Saudi Arabia regarding the safe release of Father Tom Uzhunnalil.

The priest hails from Kerala and was abducted nearly nine months ago from war-torn Yemen. The video of him showed him pleading for help and it became viral.

You are aware of the circumstances currently prevailing in Yemen where fighting is going on with no central authority in that country. With regard to the safe release of Father Tom, who was abducted some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard, ministry of external affairs (MEA) spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

The priest purportedly said in the video that several months have gone by and my captors have made many contacts with the government of India to get me released. Honourable President and Prime Minister of India, I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in my regard. Reports have been in news that everything is being done to get me released quickly but in reality nothing seems to have happened. He added had he been a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously by authorities. I am from India and therefore, I, perhaps, am not considered as of much value. He also referred to a kidnapped French journalist, who was released and said this had happened because the journalist was from France.

Mr Uzhunnalil was abducted from the port city of Aden in March 4 by militant group ISIS.
JD(U) has also decided to join a joint press conference of the Opposition parties.

New Delhi: Facing criticism within the JD(U) for supporting demonetisation, Bihar chief minister and JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar has decided to hold a meeting with a section of noted economists in Patna to discuss the merits and demerits of the move.

Mr Kumar is also expected to also seek public opinion on the issue in a series of rallies he is likely to address across the state. After taking opinion from a cross-section of people, the party would come out with its stand on demonetisation after December 2, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to make a major announcement, a senior JD(U) leader told this newspaper.

Mr Kumar had initially supported the PMs decision to spike Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes saying in initial days, people may face some difficulties due but it will, by and large, benefit the country. It is my understanding that the countrys economy will benefit from the Centres decision, hence I welcome and support it, he had said. The Bihar CMs decision to review his stand apparently came after voices of dissent were heard among senior leaders of his party, including Rajya Sabha member Sharad Yadav, who had joined the Oppositions protests in Parliament on the issue. Mr Yadav also participated in a meeting with the President on the issue.

A few days ago, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav also decided to hold a rally on December 28 against demonetisation. He had said, Nitish Kumar has told me he will review the impact of the demonetisatiion after 50 days and will respond to the Centre accordingly.

The JD(U) has also decided to join a joint press conference of the Opposition parties, which would be held on December 27 at the Constitution Club. The move is being seen as an attempt to cobble together and form an anti-BJP front ahead of the crucial elections in five states.

However, the senior JD(U) leader said any coalition of the Opposition parties will be only on the basis of equal partnership, and that no party will take a leadership.

Facing criticism within the JD(U) for supporting demonetisation, Bihar chief minister and JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar has decided to hold a meeting with a section of noted economists in Patna to discuss the merits and demerits of the move.

Mr Kumar is also expected to also seek public opinion on the issue in a series of rallies he is likely to address across the state. After taking opinion from a cross-section of people, the party would come out with its stand on demonetisation after December 2, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to make a major announcement, a senior JD(U) leader told this newspaper.

Mr Kumar had initially supported the PMs decision to spike Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes saying in initial days, people may face some difficulties due but it will, by and large, benefit the country. It is my understanding that the countrys economy will benefit from the Centres decision, hence I welcome and support it, he had said. The Bihar CMs decision to review his stand apparently came after voices of dissent were heard among senior leaders of his party, including Rajya Sabha member Sharad Yadav, who had joined the Oppositions protests in Parliament on the issue. Mr Yadav also participated in a meeting with the President on the issue.

A few days ago, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav also decided to hold a rally on December 28 against demonetisation. He had said, Nitish Kumar has told me he will review the impact of the demonetisatiion after 50 days and will respond to the Centre accordingly.

The JD(U) has also decided to join a joint press conference of the Opposition parties, which would be held on December 27 at the Constitution Club. The move is being seen as an attempt to cobble together and form an anti-BJP front ahead of the crucial elections in five states.

However, the senior JD(U) leader said any coalition of the Opposition parties will be only on the basis of equal partnership, and that no party will take a leadership.
Jairam Ramesh tried to downplay the plans of several parties to skip the Oppn meeting that will be followed by a joint press conference.

CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury interact with media as the party leader Mohammed Salim(L) looks on, at party headquarters at Alimuddin street in Kolkata. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: The much-hyped united Opposition against demonetisation seems to have fallen apart soon after the Parliaments Winter Session ended. The JD(U) and the Left parties on Monday announced their decision to stay away from the Congress-led 16-party Opposition meeting on Tuesday, called to ramp up attack on demonetisation and alleged personal corruption of the Prime Minister.

With the SP and the BSP also likely to skip the meet, the only major Opposition leader to attend the meet will be Trinamul Congress supremo and West Bengal chief minister, Mamata Banerjee. She arrived in Delhi Monday evening.

The Left parties claimed that most of the Opposition blocks have neither been consulted nor informed about the agenda of the meeting. Most of the parties were neither consulted nor informed about what will be the agenda of the meeting. Several Opposition parties have reservation about the way the meeting has been convened, CPI-M general secretary Sitaram Yechury said.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh tried to downplay the plans of several parties to skip the Opposition meeting that will be followed by a joint press conference. He cited local and regional compulsions for some parties not to be seem together on the same platform.

Whoever comes tomorrow will come. Those who dont come tomorrow will come the next time. Those who will come, you will see tomorrow, Mr Ramesh said, striking a philosophical note.

He dismissed suggestions that Tuesdays meeting was a tea party like the one in 1998 which ultimately led to the downfall of the Vajpayee government. The biggest issue today is demonetisation and the second issue is corruption by the Prime Minister, which will be the main issues before tomorrows meet, he said.

The Opposition meet was apparently the brainchild of Congress president Sonia Gandhi to show that the unity among the Opposition was intact.

Cracks within the Opposition first surfaced when Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi led a Congress delegation to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to demand loan waivers for farmers. Both the SP and BSP were upset over the Congress unilateral move.

Besides the SP and the BSP, the JD(U) and the Left parties also skipped the December 16 Opposition march to meet the President, to protest against the hardships being faced by people following demonetisation.

While the SP, BSP and Left parties were not keen to follow the Congress for compulsions of state politics, JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar was not willing to share the platform with Ms Banerjee as both are vying to be the Oppositions face against Mr Modi during the 2019 general elections. The Congress is part of the JD(U)-led Nitish Kumar government in Bihar.

BSP chief Mayawati had led the protest against Mr Gandhi meeting the PM, arguing that it was an issue connected with Uttar Pradesh and the Congress vice-president had no right to appropriate it. The Samajwadi Party, her archrival in Uttar Pradesh, had supported her.

JD(U) leader K.C. Tyagi, who said that in principle his party was not against demonetisations, but the way it was being implemented. He also targeted Ms Banerjee. The West Bengal chief minister had called our leader a traitor during her rally in Patna. We respect her and expect the same kind of respect from her, Mr Tyagi told this newspaper.

Besides the Trinamul Congress, other parties likely to attend are the DMK, while the RJD may send its representative.
A miffed Shivpal Yadav said that the names of 175 candidates have already been finalised.

Lucknow: The ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) in Uttar Pradesh is heading towards a fresh crisis with sharp differences emerging between chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on one side and party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav and his brother Shivpal on the other.

On Monday, the contentious issue of ticket distribution again exposed the rift in the SP with state party chief Shivpal Yadav attacking chief minister Akhilesh Yadav over his reported parallel list of candidates which he submitted to his father on Sunday.

A miffed Shivpal Yadav said that the names of 175 candidates have already been finalised. The list of candidates for 175 seats by Shivpal Yadav has obviously not gone down well with Akhilesh who, according to party insiders, prepared his own list of candidates for all the 403 UP Assembly seats and sent it to his father.

His list doesnt include the names of about 40 senior leaders who are perceived to be close to his uncle Shivpal.

When asked about Akhilesh Yadavs list, Shivpal Yadav told this correspondent on Monday, The final decision will be taken by the party president and winnability will be the deciding factor.

Apart from the list of candidates, the two camps are also in disagreement over an alliance with the Congress for the forthcoming Assembly polls.

While Akhilesh Yadav has been aggressively pushing for the alliance so that the SP can get more than 300 seats, party president Mulayam Singh Yadav on Sunday night told some candidates that there would be no alliance and that they should start working in their constituencies.

Some of the candidates who met him included those who have been given party tickets in seats held by the Congress. He almost made it clear that there would be no alliance and the party will contest all 403 seats, a candidate said.

In another jolt to the chief minister, Mulayam Singh Yadav on Sunday appointed controversial minister Gayatri Prajapati as the partys national secretary. Ms Prajapati is said to be close to Mulayam Singh Yadavs younger son Prateek Yadav and is, therefore, disliked by the Akhilesh camp.

These decisions follow detailed deliberations Mulayam Singh Yadav had with party general secretary Amar Singh and state president Shivpal Yadav on Saturday. Prof. Ram Gopal Yadav and Akhilesh Yadav were not a part of these deliberations.

Akhilesh Yadav, in fact, met first-time MLAs at his residence on Saturday and promised to give them party tickets.

Akhilesh Yadav is now said to embarking on his campaign without informing the party of his route. He will be campaigning on seats where he has candidates of his choice, said an aide, while a senior party office bearer said that they had no information of the chief ministers programme.

The chief minister has not been visiting the party office lately and neither has Mr Shivpal Yadav met him for the past one month.

No one knows what is happening and the sense of unease in the party is growing. The candidates are in dilemma because they do not know what to do, said a party functionary.

A senior minister in the Akhilesh government admitted that the crisis in the party is raising its head again. A split seems imminent  we do not know whether it will happen before elections of after, he added.

Shivpal Yadav had earlier been sacked by the chief minister on charges of corruption but was later taken back into the state Cabinet.
Getting lost has never been so much fun!

This December 2016 photo provided by Steven J. Laudeman shows stuffed bear named Teddy that Eleanor Dewald, 8, lost lost flying from Dallas to Detroit Metropolitan Airport. (Photo: AP)

Romulus, Mich.: For Detroit airport employee Steven Laudeman, the mission this week was simple: No teddy bear left behind.

The Southwest Airlines ramp agent learned through social media that the 8-year-old daughter of an old friend lost her stuffed bear named Teddy after flying from Dallas to Detroit Metropolitan Airport. Eleanor Dewald's mother, Trish Dewald, put out the digital call after having no success with the airport's lost-and-found operation.

The Detroit Free Press and WDIV-TV report Laudeman retraced Eleanor's steps before his shift began Thursday and found the bear perched atop a garbage can.

He then took Teddy on an adventure - photographed for posterity - into a plane's cockpit and service vehicle. Teddy also posed with other stuffed animals in a shop.

The Dewalds were thrilled about Teddy's return and Laudeman's kindness.
Over 500 law students did not fulfil the minimum attendance requirement prescribed by the BCI for academic year 2015-16.

New Delhi: The Delhi high court has sought an explanation from the Bar Council of India for its alleged action in writing to the Delhi Universitys Law Faculty to relax attendance rules for over 500 students in the backdrop of the difficulties faced after demonetisation.

How can the Bar Council of India issue such a letter? How can you (BCI) ask the Delhi University to relax rules? Explain your act, a bench of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal said.

It also issued notice to the BCI, a statutory body that regulates the legal practice and legal education in India and the DU, while directing them to explain their stand. The courts direction came on a plea by S.N. Singh, former Dean of Faculty of Law, who said that attendance and promotion rules were flagrantly violated by the DU during the academic year 2015-16 and that no regard was given to the statutory rules in these matters.

Over 500 law students did not fulfil the minimum attendance requirement prescribed by the BCI for academic year 2015-16 but were allowed to take semester examinations on the basis of a letter dated December 17, 2016, sent by the BCI secretary to the university, asking it to consider the matter sympathetically for relaxation of attendance rules.

We request you to consider their matter sympathetically on the ground of their undertaking to fulfil the shortfall in their attendance in the next semester, failing which they should not be allowed to take the next semester exams, Mr Singh said in his plea.

He told the court that the BCI had no legal authority to send any communication to DU for relaxing the attendance requirements. The plea claimed that some of these LLB students did not attend even a single class but were allowed to take the exam.

Mr Singh asked the court to order cancellation of the ongoing semester examinations for students who did not fulfil minimum attendance requirement.

The petition has sought directions to call for the entire records pertaining to this case for academic years 2015-16 and 2016-17 and an enquiry into the alleged illegalities committed by the university by allegedly flouting attendance rules.
Project would enable commercial navigation of vessels with capacity of 1,500-2,000 tons.

JV has earlier worked on similar transport solutions for Governors Island in USA Navy Pier in Chicago and Buffalo Bayou in Texas.

Kolkata: Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), under the Union ministry of shipping, has entered into a joint venture with USA-based Thompson Design Group (TDG) and Infrastructure Architecture Lab of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to identify suitable locations for the construction of 18 ferry terminals in six cities of Allahabad, Varanasi, Patna, Munghyr, Kolkata and Haldia on NW-1. Ferrying passengers between different locations on National Waterway-1 (NW-1) is going to get a much-needed boost once the ferry terminals are constructed.

The union government is developing NW-1 under the Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP) with technical and financial assistance of the World Bank at an estimated cost of Rs 5,369 crore. The project would enable commercial navigation of vessels with capacity of 1,500-2,000 tons.

The consultants will prepare Detailed Project Report (DPR) and tender documents for the 18 terminals. They will carry out technical and financial feasibility of the ferry services at the six locations and will also identify the best locations within the specific regulatory, planning and investment framework of the cities, a top IWAI official said.

This JV has earlier worked on similar transport solutions for Governors Island in USA Navy Pier in Chicago and Buffalo Bayou in Texas.

Phase-I of JMVP covers the Haldia-Varanasi stretch. The project includes development of fairway, multi-modal terminals at Varanasi, Haldia, and Sahebganj, strengthening of river navigation system, conservancy works, modern River Information System (RIS), Digital Global Positioning System (DGPS), night navigation facilities, modern methods of channel marking, construction of a new state of the art navigational lock at Farakka etc.

The development of NW-1 is part of the governments renewed push to tap the possibilities of transportation of cargo through inland waterways, which comes with the inherent advantage of helping decongest the clogged road and rail networks along with being cost-effective and environment-friendly, the IWAI official added.
According to Mahajan, the least possible use of hard cash for transactions of smaller amounts is the need of the hour to curb black money.

The Congress is all set to counter the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with the hoarding that it is putting up in the city.

Mumbai: The Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP) youth wing, in a bid to deal with the flak it has been receiving from the common man over demonetisation, has asked every volunteer to approach 10 people and teach them how to operate smartphones in order to make cashless transactions.

Poonam Mahajan, the national president of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), the partys youth wing, issued a statement about demonetistion, stating, For nationalists, its currency exchange. For black money hoarders, its note ban. Ms Mahajan is also the Member of Parliament from Mumbai North Central. The programme, named Digital Kranti for Good Governance, is a nationwide event, and was launched on December 25.

A statement released by Ms Mahajan read, On the occasion of the birthday of former Prime Minister Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the BJYM is conducting a nationwide programme Digital Kranti for Good Governance. During this programme, BJYM volunteers will educate and train common people around them about the use of mobile banking for transactions of smaller amounts. Each volunteer will educate at least 10 people.

In this programme, people will be taught the use of mobile banking in day-to-day chores. According to Ms Mahajan, the least possible use of hard cash for transactions of smaller amounts is the need of the hour to curb black money. A senior leader from the party claimed that, for a long time, people had been claiming that the BJP workers were missing during the whole demonetisation hullabaloo and this was an attempt to show that the party is on the field too.

Congress keeping track of time:

The Congress is all set to counter the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with the hoarding that it is putting up in the city. The hoarding is a countdown to December 30, the last day for exchanging old currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000. The Congress claims that situation wont change after December 30 and demonetisation had impacted the common man negatively.
The party had planned to reverse the direction of its election symbol from right to left, instead of the present left to right.

Mumbai: The election commission (EC) has granted permission to Raj Thackerays Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) to change its party symbol ahead of the civic polls in February 2017. Earlier, in November, the party had planned to reverse the direction of its election symbol from right to left, instead of the present left to right, and had sought permission from the EC to do so.

The initial symbol selected by the party was of a railway engine running from a right to left direction. The direction of the symbol was then reversed, and sources said party bigwigs noticed a fall in their performances once this was done. Hence, the MNS decided to shift back to the original direction of the symbol. While the party received permission last week, the MNS has already begun using the altered symbol at many political rallies in Pune and Mumbai. Sources from the party believe that the decision was made for superstitious reasons, in a bid to revive the partys diminishing fortune ahead of the civic body elections in 2017.

Sandeep Deshpande, a leader of the MNS in the BMC, said, I have no idea why the party decided to change the symbol. While the election commission just gave us permissionto change the symbol, the party has been using the new symbol in election rallies.

The MNS first contested state elections in 2009 and won 13 assembly seats. It also won 28 seats during the civic body polls of 2012. Following this, it changed the direction of its symbol. But the partys popularity diminished massively, and it won only one seat in the 2014 assembly election.
According to community members, the protest will be as huge as the maratha andolan.

Mumbai: After the successful bhoomi pujan of Shiv Smarak on Sunday, the Koli community has planned to organise a silent protest against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. According to community members, the protest will be as huge as the maratha andolan. The protest will be led by the youth of the community who will be reaching Mumbai for a meeting, scheduled Sunday night.

Mahesh Tandel, the president of Maharashtra Machhimar Sanghatana (MMS), stated that the protest would not get over easily, as assumed by the government. Mr Tandel said, We had put forth our demands to the chief minister, after he had called us to discuss the matter. If the demands arent met, then the coming week will see us protesting in large numbers.

Damodar Tandel, president of Akhil Maharashtra Machhimar Kruti Samiti, was one of the nearly 200 fishermen from Cuffe Parade who were detained by the police. Mr Tandel alleged that they were all put into three police vans and taken to Versova, Ghatkopar and Chembur police stations. They were stuffed in a small room with other criminals and received ill treatment. According to the fishermen, they held a meeting on Sunday evening to discuss further steps.

Mr Tandel told The Asian Age, All our further protests will be carried out by the youth of our community. This youth is coming to the city from all over the state, and they will plan the protest in a massive manner. Although their protests will be silent, we will come out with fixed plans. The community is against the project, as its livelihood is likely to be disturbed due to destruction of marine life. The matter is currently with the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in which the respondents have been asked to reply by January 31, 2017.
Tells farmers hell talk to CM to prevent grabbing for super expressway.

Mumbai: Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray has said he would meet chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to ensure that farmers land will not be grabbed for the Mumbai-Nagpur Expressway, which is the latters dream project.

The 800-kilometre-long expressway will pass through Ghoti, Amravati and Aurangabad and the project is expected to cut travel time to around 10 hours from the current 18 hours. The estimated cost of the project is Rs 30,000 crore and is going to be called the Communication Super Expressway as it will connect the financial capital of the country with Nagpur.

Farmers from Shahapur area, through which the expressway will pass, met Mr Thackeray and requested him to look into the matter. While giving them assurances, Mr Thackeray stated that their fertile land would not be used for any purpose other than agriculture. Shiva Sena had raised allegations in the assembly that a few government officials had forcefully acquired land along the proposed expressway. As discussed in the assembly earlier this month, the chief minister has already ordered an inquiry into the matter.

While speaking to the farmers on Sunday, the Shiv Sena chief said, Even if we are in thegovernment, the party is with farmers. Farmers feel that their lands are being taken away. I will meet the chief minister to resolve the issue.

Many government officials have acquired plots of land even before the project had begun. Farmers have made allegations that the plan for the expressway was leaked and hence the officials grabbed the lands on the same route. I have raised the issue in the assembly and demanded an inquiry, said Shiv Sena MLA Pratap Sarnaik.
BJP MP Kirit Somaiya now claims that the boat operators allowed alcohol to be served on it.

Mumbai: Three people dying in a boat mishap at Powai lake on Friday night has once again led to questions being raised about how things function at the lake. Local MP Kirit Somaiya has now alleged that the operators of the boat allowed a party, which involved alcohol being served, to be thrown on the vessel.

Mr Somaiya has written letters to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) as well as the police asking them to look into the matter. His letter read, For the last few years, I have been pursuing the above mentioned (Powai lake) issue. One more tragedy took place there when three youngsters died. The angling association and boating operators allowed a party on the boat where drinks were served and allowed illegal commercial boating. The functioning of the angling association is non-transparent. The so-called contract is nothing but a fraud. Ten years ago, due to my initiative, an enquiry had taken place and a suspension was ordered. In the present instance, too, the local police and local BMC official took the incident very lightly.

The MPs letter further read, I would request you to immediately initiate criminal action against all the concerned  the boating operators, angling association and the negligent hydraulic department officials of the BMC. All the boats should be seized immediately. The BMC and police must coordinate and stop peoples lives being played around with in this manner.

The angling association, however, has refused these allegations. Gordon Rodrigues from Maharashtra State Angling Association (MSSA) said, The consumption of liquor is anyway not permitted in the premises of MSAA, let alone be permitted on the boat. Therefore, it is illegal to consume liquor when one is on the boat.

Meanwhile, the Powai police is investigating how the victims and their friends entered the lake late in the evening.
Mr Thackeray continued his tirade saying that the state government was just flaunting the memorial.

Mumbai: Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray has criticised the state government for construction of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj memorial in the Arabian Sea, off the Mumbai coast.

Mr Thackeray said that instead of spending thousands of crores of rupees on the Shivaji memorial, the state government should have repaired the Maratha warrior kings forts. Shivshahi or good governance will not come only by constructing a statue of Shivaji Maharaj in the sea, he said.

Mr Thackeray continued his tirade saying that the state government was just flaunting the memorial, but actually had no money to construct the same.

Mr Thackeray told reporters that the state government was misguiding the people of Maharashtra and questioned as to where the money was that was earlier promised by the BJP-led government for the development of Mumbai. He said that his party had done a lot of development work in Nashik and, therefore, he would be in Nashik for the next two to three days.

Ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday performed bhoomi pujan of the Shivaji memorial, to be constructed on a 16-hectare-long rock in the Arabian Sea off the Mumbai coastline, the Congress and NCP have been criticising the state government. The latest to jump into the fray are Mr Thackeray and activist Karishma Upadhyay, who has filed an online petition against the upcoming memorial.

This is tax payers money and I am sure we would all like this money to be spent on something better, such as education, infrastructure, and food anything but a statue that is of no use to anyone. This is not what Shivaji would have wanted and I am sure we can find other ways to honour him, Ms Upadhyay said on the website change.org. She further stated that apart from a waste of money, the statue was going to be terrible for the environment, for the traffic situation in south Mumbai, and a security nightmare.
Tijns family learned only last week that a course of chemotherapy had failed to reduce the size of his cancer.

Dutch 3FM DJs Domien Verschuuren (left) and Frank van der Lende perform with 6-year-old Tijn Kolsteren. They raised $2.6 million at the House of Glass of Serious Request in Breda, Netherlands on Saturday. (Photo: AFP)

The Hague: A terminally ill six-year-old Dutch boy, who hoped to raise a few hundred euros by daring people to paint their nails, has raised more than 2.5 million euros.

Tijn Kolsteren, who was diagnosed with brain cancer in May, launched the appeal only three days ago, but it fired the imagination of the public. The charity drive ended on Saturday and raised over $ 2.6 million.

With his nail-painting dare he wanted to help children suffering from pneumonia, the Dutch public newscaster NOS reported. It was an enormous success  from DJ Armin van Buuren to Prime Minister Mark Rutte and many other famous celebrities had their nails painted, it said. Paint your nails, make a donation and then challenge three of your friends to do the same, dared the donation page, which invited participants to share their pictures on social media using the hashtag #lakaan (meaning the polish is on).

The appeal is part of a traditional event in The Netherlands where radio DJs lock themselves away for several days without food or drink to raise money. This year, proceeds are going to the Red Cross. Rutte joined the DJs late on Saturday and opted for a deep blue for his own nails. Tijns family learned only last week that a course of chemotherapy had failed to reduce the size of his cancer.

Despite this bad news, we wanted to do something for children who wont maybe even make it to six, his father Gerrit told the NOS. We came up with the idea together: Tijn had already painted his nails with a friend and liked it. I wanted to do something similar to the Ice Bucket challenge and men painting their nails is a bit taboo, he added, referring to the internet craze that raised millions.
The veteran musician had been recuperating since June after a heart attack but died after he was taken into hospital in Marbella.

London: The guitarist of English rock band Status Quo Rick Parfitt died on December 4 in a Spanish hospital. He was 68.

The veteran musician had been recuperating since June after a heart attack but died after he was taken into hospital in Marbella due to complications with a pre-existing shoulder injury and a severe infection, reports the Daily Mail. His son, Rick Jr, paid his own emotional tribute on social media, tweeting, I cannot describe the sadness I feel right now. To many he was a rockstar, to me he was simply Dad, and I loved him hugely. RIP Pappa Parf.

One of the most celebrated live performances of Parfitts career came at Live Aid on July 13 1985, when he opened the historic 16-hour concert with the band in a 15-minute slot at the original Wembley Stadium which was broadcast globally.
First Lady answers boy calling NORAD Tracks Santa programme.

In this file photo First lady Michelle Obama with television and radio host Ryan Seacrest read Twas the Night Before Christmas during a holiday event at Childrens National Health System in Washington. (Photo: AP)

Honolulu: For most people, a Christmas Eve phone call with the first lady of the US is an unexpected surprise. But Austin was holding out for someone else. I want to hear Santa talk, said Austin, one of a handful of kids who called the NORAD Tracks Santa programme on Saturday and found Michelle Obama on the other end of the line.

Santa couldnt get to the phone, the first lady patiently explained, because hes delivering all the gifts 3 million as of late morning in Honolulu, where President Barack Obama and his family are on vacation. There was a bittersweet note this year as the first lady carried out her annual Christmas ritual for the final time, taking calls from kids who wanted to know exactly how much progress Santa had made on his journey.

Itll be up to the next first lady, Melania Trump, to decide next year whether to continue the tradition. But Austin had another concern in mind: Would Santa know where to go?

Im going to move to another house, said Austin, joined by three other kids in North Carolina. No matter, Mrs Obama replied. Hes going to be able to find you no matter where you go, she said, according to a transcript released by the White House.

Thats the special thing about Santa. The First Lady spent roughly a half-hour taking calls before joining her husband, daughters Sasha and Malia and family friends for lunch at Side Street Inn, whose greasy food and low-key atmosphere is popular among Hawaii locals and tourists alike.

Then the family drove to Breakout Waikiki, a live action experience where visitors are trapped in a room and must work together to break out. But before the family fun, there was a geography lesson as the first lady updated children about Santas most recent locales on his gift-giving voyage: Sardinia, Malta and Hungary, to name a few. If there was a lesson for the first lady, it was a crash course in the latest hot-item gifts.

A girl named Kirsten told Mrs Obama she wanted a drone from Santa. Joshua wanted a Hot Wheels garage, while Aiden wanted a hoverboard. But it was Adilyn whose gift seemed to catch Michelle. Im getting a hedgehog tomorrow, Adilyn said.
Theres almost no way to know if theyve accurately recorded individual votes  or if anyone tampered with the count.

Allentown: Jill Steins bid to recount votes in Pennsylvania was in trouble even before a federal judge shot it down December 12. Thats because the Green Party candidates effort stood little chance of detecting potential fraud or error in the vote  there was basically nothing to recount.

Pennsylvania is one of 11 states where the majority of voters use antiquated machines that store votes electronically, without printed ballots or other paper-based backups that could be used to double-check the balloting. Theres almost no way to know if theyve accurately recorded individual votes  or if anyone tampered with the count.

More than 80 per cent of Pennsylvanians who voted November 8 cast their ballots on such machines, according to VotePA, a non-profit seeking their replacement.

VotePAs Marybeth Kuznik described the proposed recount this way: You go to the computer and you say, OK, computer, you counted this a week-and-a-half ago. Were you right the first time?

These paperless digital voting machines, used by roughly 1 in 5 US voters last month, present one of the most glaring dangers to the security of the rickety, under-funded US election system.

Like many electronic voting machines, they are vulnerable to hacking. But other machines typically leave a paper trail that could be manually checked. The paperless digital machines open the door to potential election rigging that might not ever be detected.

Their prevalence also magnifies other risks in the election system, simply because error or fraud is harder to catch when vote counts cant be verified. And like other voting machines adopted since the 2000 election, the paperless systems are nearing the end of their useful life  yet there is no comprehensive plan to replace them.

If I were going to hack this election, I would go for the paperless machines because they are so hard to check, said Barbara Simons, the co-author of Broken Ballots, a study of flawed US voting technology.

Ms Stein described her recount effort as a way to ensure that the 2016 election wasnt tainted by hacking or fraud. Theres no evidence of either so far  a fact federal judge Paul Diamond cited prominently in his decision halting the Pennsylvania recount.

The US voting system  a loosely regulated, locally managed patchwork of more than 3,000 jurisdictions overseen by the states  employs more than two dozen types of machinery from 15 manufacturers. Elections officials across the nation say they take great care to secure their machines from tampering. They are locked away when not in use and sealed to prevent tampering.

Most voting machines in the US are at or near the end of their expected lifespans . Forty-three states use machines more than a decade old.
He wants to spread cheer to celebrate his grandmother Kim Jong-suk who was born on Christmas eve in 1919.

Celebrating Christmas took a new meaning in North Korea this year as Dictator Kim Jon-un banned the festival. (Photo: AP)

Pyongyang: Celebrating Christmas took a new meaning in North Korea this year as Dictator Kim Jon-un banned the festival and instead, wanted to spread cheer to celebrate his grandmother Kim Jong-suk who was born on Christmas eve in 1919.

According to a report in The New York Post, Jong-suk was the wife of North Koreas first dictator Kim II-sung. She was also the mother of former leader Kim Jong-ils mother, an anti-Japanese guerrilla and a Communist activist.

By visiting her tomb, it is said that many pay homage to the Sacred mother of the revolution, who died under mysterious circumstances in 1949.

However, this is not the first time Kim Jongs has expressed an aversion for the festival. As per the report, the autocrat had flipped out in 2014, when he discovered that South Korea planned to erect a huge Christmas tree along the border. However, the tree was never put up due to threats of an all-out war.

Despite his hatred for Christmas trees, they can be found in the capital of Pyongyang  especially in upscale shops and restaurants  but are largely stripped of religious symbols.

The report also mentioned that Pyongyang used to have more Christians than any other city in Korea and even had a seated Catholic Bishop. However, things changed by the early 1950s, when authorities curbed all Christian activities in the country.

Also, human rights groups estimate around 50,000 to 70,000 Christians are in jails that have been likened to concentration camps, merely for their faith.
Jesus was born rejected by some and regarded by many others with indifference, says Pope.

Pope Francis kisses a figurine of baby Jesus as he celebrates a mass on Christmas Eve, marking the birth of Jesus Christ, in the Vatican. (Photo: AFP)

Vatican City: Pope Francis said on Saturday that Christmas had been taken hostage by dazzling materialism that puts God in the shadows and blinds many to the needs of the hungry, the migrants and the war weary.

Pope Francis, leading the worlds 1.2 billion Roman Catholics into Christmas for the fourth time since his election in 2013, said in his Christmas Eve homily that a world often obsessed with gifts, feasting and self-centeredness needed more humility.

If we want to celebrate Christmas authentically, we need to contemplate this sign: the fragile simplicity of a small newborn, the meekness of where he lies, the tender affection of the swaddling clothes. God is there, the Pope said at St. Peters Basilica.

At the solemn but joyous service, attended by some 10,000 people as well as dozens of cardinals and bishops, Pope Francis said the many in the wealthy world had to be reminded that the message of Christmas was humility, simplicity and mystery.

Jesus was born rejected by some and regarded by many others with indifference, he said.

Today also the same indifference can exist, when Christmas becomes a feast where the protagonists are ourselves, rather than Jesus; when the lights of commerce cast the light of God into the shadows; when we are concerned for gifts, but cold toward those who are marginalized.

He then added in unscripted remarks: This worldliness has taken Christmas hostage. It needs to be freed.

Francis, who has made defence of the poor a trademark of his papacy, said the infant Jesus should remind everyone of those suffering today, particularly children.

Let us allow ourselves to be challenged by the children who are not allowed to be born, by those who cry because no one satiates their hunger, by those who do have not toys in their hands, but rather weapons.
Majeeds company Omni Group was raided and some weapons were recovered there.

Karachi: Paramilitary rangers has booked a close aide of former President Asif Ali Zardari under the anti-terrorism law, as the Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairman returned to the country, ending his 18- month-long self imposed exile.

A first information report was registered against businessman Anwar Majeed at the Saddar police station Saturday night under Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, said Dawn.

Law-enforcement agencies conducted a raid at the residence of Anwar Majeed, who is still at large, in the Defence Housing Authority (DHA) area on Sunday. Mr Majeeds company Omni Group was raided on Friday and some weapons were recovered there.

However, spokesman for the chief ministers house denied the Sunday raid, saying Mr Majeed did not have a house in Phase 8 DHA, as claimed. He also denied reports that Salman Khawaja, the head of the Omni Group, had been arrested.

Political analysts see the raids, just hours after Mr Zardaris return on Friday, as a message by the establishment to the leader to stay out of politics.

Other close aides of Zardari, including an influential former petroleum minister and businessman Dr Asim Hussain, are already languishing in jails facing charges of corruption and aiding terrorism.

The Rangers decision to carry out the raids on the same day as Mr Zardari arrived... shows that the powerful lobbies are not keen to have him in the country, political analyst Nigar Jafri said.

However, Mr Zardari was calm when he visited the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah on Sunday to pay homage to the founder of Pakistan on his birthday.

He accepted that he had links with Anwar Majeed and said interior minister Chauhdry Nisar Ali Khan should be questioned about Mr Majeed.

Yes, I have relations with Anwar Majeed. As for what happened with him and why it happened, ask the interior minister about it, he said.

Mr Zardari also said that he was in contact with Dr Asim Hussain and his counsels and expressed hope that he would receive justice.

I have said before, these charges are political victimisation, he added.

On his Pakistan visit, Mr Zardari said that he was undergoing medical treatment in Dubai and London, and had travelled to Pakistan after getting permission from doctors.

He said that he would reveal his further course of action and provide good news in his address on December 27.

Interestingly, Mr Zardaris return to Karachi was not celebrated as a big occasion by the PPP as everyone expected. Instead of going from the airport to his son Bilawal Bhutto Zardaris house in a motorcade, the former President and his close aides preferred to fly from the airport by a helicopter, prompting speculations that there were security threats to his life.
Chinese media has reported that the aircraft carrier was headed for the Pacific on exercise for the first time.

Taipei: Taiwan said on Monday that it was closely monitoring the movements of Chinas sole aircraft carrier and five other warships, which earlier passed south of the island on an exercise held amid worsening cross-strait relations.

The Liaoning and five escorts sailed 20 nautical miles outside Taiwans air defence identification zone in the Bashi Channel between Taiwan and the Philippines on Sunday, the defence ministry said.

The ships continued sailing southwest after passing 90 nautical miles to the south of Taiwans southernmost point Eluanbi on Monday morning. They later travelled to the southeast of the Dongsha Islands in the South China Sea, the ministry added.

The military has been on guard and fully monitoring the Liaoning. We urge the public to rest assured, it said.

Taiwanese media said an unspecified number of F-16 fighter jets and warships were deployed in Taiwans ADIZ to closely watch the Chinese warships. The ministry declined to comment.

Japans defence ministry said earlier that eight Chinese vessels, including the carrier and three destroyers, were spotted by one of its ships in the central part of the East China Sea on Saturday afternoon.

Chinese media has reported that the aircraft carrier was headed for the Pacific on exercise for the first time.

The Navy drills are seen as a show of strength by Beijing at a time of rising tensions with Taiwan and the United States following a protocol-breaking telephone conversation between Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and US President-elect Donald Trump.

It was the latest in a series of recent exercises staged by China, after its military aircraft passed near Taiwan on December 10 for the second time in a month.

Taiwans defence minister Feng Shih-kuan has called the timing of Chinas air exercises a coincidence, but warned the island still faced a military threat.

China views self-ruling Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting unification, by force if necessary, even though the two sides split in 1949 after a civil war.
The rebel withdrawal from east Aleppo last week marked Assads biggest victory since Syrias crisis began in 2011.

The Syrian President, along with his wife, an orphanage in Abbey on Sunday. (Photo: Facebook)

Beirut: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has visited a Christian orphanage near the capital Damascus on Christmas Day.

Photographs posted on the Syrian presidencys Facebook page showed the president along with his wife, Asma, standing with nuns and orphans in the Damascus suburb of Sednaya.

In the northern city of Aleppo, Christians celebrated Christmas for the first time in four years with the countrys largest city now under full control of government forces.

The rebel withdrawal from east Aleppo last week marked Assads biggest victory since Syrias crisis began in 2011.

Christians, one of the largest religious minorities at about 10% of Syrias pre-war 23 million-strong population, have tried to stay on the sidelines of the conflict. However, the oppositions increasingly outspoken Islamism has kept many leaning toward Assads government.
by Stefano Caprio

The founder of Christian Russia experienced the mission to Russia for decades, showing the greatness of persecuted Christians in the West. A prophet of ecumenism, he worked so that Eastern spirituality enriched that of the West.

Rome (AsiaNews)  Father Romano Scalfi lived almost a century (1923-2016), representing for all of us a point of reference and a very special spiritual guide.

He became a priest after the Second World War, which had radically altered political and cultural balance of centuries, leaving the world in a permanent conflict between different systems and worldviews.

It was a world of atheists against Christians, although in reality, things were not so simple (many believers remained among atheists, and good Christians rapidly became more atheistic than the atheists), and the Catholic Church of Pope Pius XII called all the faithful, especially priests, to a great crusade against the enemies of the faith.

Like many others, Father Romano responded with enthusiasm. In fact, the postwar years saw a huge wave of priestly and missionary vocations, youth driven by the idea of spiritually rebuilding a destroyed world from hatred and violence.

Father Scalfis land of birth, the Trentino, was one of the most generous, and many of those young people devoted themselves to the most daring and risky mission, in the countries dominated by "communist devil", in Russia and Eastern Europe.

Like him, many priests spent those years at the Russicum College and the Pontifical Oriental Institute, especially men from the former territories of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, to which the Trentino once belonged, and which had united Christians of the East and West for centuries.

After graduation, Father Romano tried the romantic path of the "mission to Russia," but after a few attempts, he was denied this possibility: the Iron Curtain had become impenetrable.

Along with other missionaries from the Russicum, he tried other ways, finding a completely different solution: not aimed at Russia and East, but addressed to the faithful of Italy and the West. If he could not go to Russia, he could bring Russia to his land. With others (like Father Pietro Modesto and Father Nilo Cadonna), he founded the Christian Russia Study Centre, and devoted himself to spreading the Russo-Byzantine spirituality in the Latin world.

After so many centuries of mistrust, from Father Romano Scalfi, and a few other pioneers of the ecumenical mission, the West learnt to love icons, the Byzantine liturgy, the mystique of Dostoevsky and the philosophy of Soloviev and Berdyaev, and many other treasures of Russia and eastern Christendom.

With a solemn monastic white beard, and the heavenly eyes of a man of God, he became the starets of the West for many young people, a teacher of faith and life, who loved those faraway and defended the persecuted, a passionate reader of the Church Fathers, and a voice for the "Church of Silence" in Europe, who published underground testimonies.

We do not know what impact Father Scalfi had on the collapse of the Soviet Union's atheist regime (certainly quite a lot), but he had the joy of seeing his dream realised. Young people trained by him went off to Russia as missionaries and explorers of a world he so loved and desired. He himself went back to Russia to give his smile and wisdom.

At the end of his long life, Father Romano was able to contemplate both Russias religious revival and the beginning of new fears for the future of the globalised world, to which he will dedicate his heartfelt intercession from heaven, confident that our Lord will listen to his voice, now singing in heaven the hymns of the Church in union with all the saints.
In today's Angelus, Pope Francis said that martyrdom "continues to be present in the history of the Church, from Stephen to this day." For him, "The world hates Christians for the same reason it hated Jesus." The pontiff calls for closeness with "our tears" to those who now suffer martyrdom. [T]odays martyrs are more numerous than those of the first centuries with the same cruelty. A moment of silent prayer was held for the victims of the Russian plane crash in the Black Sea.

Vatican City (AsiaNews)  Pope Francis spoke to pilgrims in St Peters Square in his Angelus address, the day after Christmas, which the Church dedicates to the first Christian martyr, Saint Stephen.

As was the case in latters time, "Today too the Church, to bear witness to light and truth, is experiencing severe persecution in different places, up to the supreme test of martyrdom. How many of our brothers and sisters in faith suffer abuse, violence, and are hated because of Jesus," noted the pope.

"I tell you one thing, he said, todays martyrs are more numerous than those of the first centuries. When we read the story of the early centuries here in Rome, we read about so much cruelty toward Christians. I say there is the same cruelty today and more against Christians."

"Today, he added, let us think about them and be close to them with our affection, our prayer and our tears. Yesterday, Christmas Day, Iraqs persecuted Christians celebrated in their destroyed cathedral. This is an example of fidelity to the Gospel.

Yet, Despite trials and dangers, they bear witness with courage that they belong to Christ and they live the Gospel, dedicated to the last, the forgotten, doing good to everyone without distinction, bearing witness to charity in truth."

"Martyrdom, Francis said, continues to be present in the history of the Church, from Stephen to this day." Indeed, "The world, the pope explained, hates Christians for the same reason it hated Jesus because He brought the light of God and the world prefers darkness to hide its wicked deeds. For this reason, the mindset of the Gospel and that of the world are in opposition. To follow Jesus means to follow his light, which came on the night of Bethlehem, and abandon the darkness of the world."

"Let us remember that Jesus himself prayed to the Father to protect us from the evil spirit of the world".

"The protomartyr Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, was stoned because he confessed his faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The only begotten Son who comes into the world to invite every believer to choose the path of light and life. This is the profound meaning of his coming among us: loving the Lord and obeying his voice, the deacon Stephen chose Christ, [who is] Life and Light for every man. By choosing the truth, he became at the same time the victim of the mystery of evil present in the world. But Christ has conquered!"

"In making room within our heart for the Son of God who gives himself to us at Christmas, let us renew the joyous and courageous willingness to follow him faithfully as the only guide, persevering in living according to the mindset of the Gospel and refusing the mindset of the rulers of this world.

To the Virgin Mary, Mother of God and Queen of Martyrs, we raise our prayer, so that she can always guide and sustain us in our journey of following Jesus Christ, whom we contemplate in the grotto of the nativity scene cave and who is the faithful witness of God the Father. "

After the Marian prayer, before the greetings, the pontiff mentioned the tragedy of the Russian plane that crashed yesterday in the Black Sea and called for a moment of silent prayer.

The victims, the pope noted, included members of the Russian Armed Forces choir and its orchestra, which performed once at the Vatican, on the 26th anniversary of the pontificate of Saint John Paul II.
By Joanne Orlando, Researcher: Technology and Learning, Western Sydney University

Shutterstock/Michal Staniewski

You might think its cute to snap a photo of your toddler running around in a playground or having a temper tantrum, and then posting it on social media. But did you ever think it might be a mistake, or even illegal?

The French government earlier this year warned parents to stop posting images of their children on social media networks.

Under Frances rigorous privacy laws, parents could face penalties of up to a year in prison and a fine of 45,000 (A$64,500) if convicted of publicising intimate details of their children without their consent.

This new legality is powerful food for thought for parenting in the Facebook era. As adults, we often express dissatisfaction at the ways young people post their lives online. But if we turn the mirror on ourselves, do we as parents actually have the right to make our family photos public? If so, which ones?

Sharing pictures

Part of the issue is our tendency for over-sharing. A recent study by Nominet, which handles the UKs .uk domain name registry, found that parents post nearly 200 photos of their under fives online every year.

This means that a child will feature in around 1,000 online photos before their fifth birthday. Weve even got to the point where if you dont upload photos of our baby, others question whether you are a committed parent.

This new norm means that many children will have a powerful digital identity created by someone else. This process can be likened to the manufacturing of celebrity identities, where parents can potentially shape the public persona of their child in any way they want: child genius, disobedient, fashionista, fussy eater and so on.

How do you think your own mum or dad might shape your online identity? Do you think it would be an accurate portrayal of who you are?

There is also the issue of Likes and comments on those photos. Without realising it, are we choosing to upload posts about our kids that we hope will get the most audience attention? If so, how is this skewing the identity we are shaping for them?

The web never forgets

We often tell our kids that once something is on the internet it is there forever, and this is a core concern for kids. Research shows that parents often havent considered the potential reach and the longevity of the digital information that theyre sharing about their child.

Your child wont have much control over where that home video of her having an embarrassing first singing lesson ends up or who sees it.

And for this generation of kids, the publicising of their lives can start even before they are born when parents broadcast photos to all their friends and their friends friends of the antenatal scan.

Parents actions are generally not maliciously intended. In fact, they actually often see they are exposing something personal about their own life in such posts rather than that of their child.

Theres also benefit from such sharing. Posts about your child bed-wetting might help a friend find solutions, or boost their patience for dealing with a similar issue with their own child. Many parents find this community of support important.

Given the relative youth of social media, its hard to say exactly how growing up online could affect childrens privacy, safety and security. But social media has also been around long enough now (Facebook is now 14 years old) that its important to seriously consider the issue.

Its time to question how individuals (both children and adults) should manage boundaries around sharing personal information, and how they can control information that is shared about them.

Posting embarrassing photos of others on Facebook without consent is definitely tricky territory, but what constitutes embarrassing is slightly different for everyone, which makes this new issue even more of a minefield.

Get the kids involved

The answer of how to approach this new-found issue might be to listen to what kids have to say about it. Recent research from the University of Michigan asked children and parents to describe the rules they thought families should follow related to technology.

Adults tend to think of these rules around how much time kids spend on screen, but about three times more children than parents thought there should be rules about what parents share and dont share on social media. Many kids said parents should not post anything about them on online without asking them.

Both children and parents considered positive images, events and news more appropriate to share than negative ones. An image of the child playing on the swings at the park is a lot less likely to resurface than a YouTube video of them having a tantrum because their breakfast is not in their favourite bowl.

If youre a parent looking for advice or sympathy about a behavioural problem, then a community approach is still very helpful, just dont post an image and your childs name as part of the post. This will help to limit the searchability and reach of it.

Asking your childrens consent is also part of the issue and part of the solution. Asking if your child likes the photos of them and whether you can put it up online can be a very quick and respectful conversation. It also sets up a great approach to your kids understanding digital etiquette.

Parents sharing photos of their kids online isnt only about digital identity. Its also about our obsession with taking photos of our kids, particularly when they shine (or dont shine) in their respective activities.

This can make kids feel pressured to perform to help mum and dad get the right snap to share. What the children really want to see is you taking notice of them and acknowledging that they and their actions are important.

Joanne Orlando does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond the academic appointment above.

Originally published in The Conversation.
Officials in Northern Australia hope that more young people from countries across the world will visit the region in 2017 on working holiday visas and point out that recent changes will allow them to stay longer if they wish.This part of Australia has suffered from a lack of visitors and seasonal workers due to many people wanting to visit Sydney, Melbourne and New South Wales but officials point out that is has many different things to offer and should be experienced during a stay in the country. Visa changes mean that work and holiday visa holders who undertake three months' work in Northern Australia in tourism and hospitality or agriculture, forestry and fishing will be eligible to apply for a second work and holiday visa.Currently 16 countries qualify for the working holidaymaker, or backpacker as it is often known, visa programme which means that those under the age of 35 can work while travelling around Australia.The fact that under the new arrangements visa holders can work longer has been widely welcomed by employers in the region. Tom Quealy, manager of the Coral Beach Lodge in Port Douglas explained that until now he would have to train staff only to see them leave after a short time but now the business can benefit from retaining them for longer.'Restaurants will be able to produce better food and waiting staff will be of much higher quality because you're going to have quality hospitality staff who want to get that second year visa and they know they can work here for 12 months. It really is an everyone wins scenario. It's not just a benefit to the backpackers but for all our local businesses,' he added.Employers in the north point out that there is plenty of work, high demand for skilled and un-skilled workers and job opportunities, and it means that a working holiday in the region gives young people the opportunity to experience a lifestyle that's very different from the rest of Australia and the world.Opportunities include work as a chef, waiter or waitress, picking mangoes or melons, working in bars, teaching or nursing and for those who are more adventurous cattle mustering or domestic duties on an outback cattle station.'Tourism and agriculture are key industries for Northern Australia and they often require more workers in their peak seasons. These changes will entice more young people to experience Northern Australia and support these vital sectors,' said Immigration Minister Peter Dutton.'These changes will provide an incentive for these young mobile visa holders to visit and work in Northern Australia as part of their 12 month visa. The spending by these visa holders while they stay in Northern Australia will also provide important economic benefits,' he added.Matt Canavan, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, hopes that 2017 will be the year that Australia's attractiveness as a top destination for backpackers is cemented.The changes apply to work undertaken in Northern Australia broadly including all of the Northern Territory and those parts of Western Australia and Queensland above the Tropic of Capricorn.
From a post a few weeks back from a Migration Agent.



If you marry before the sc. 300 visa is granted



If, after a sc. 300 application is made but before it is decided, the couple change their plans and marry outside Australia:



In most situations, once the couple has notified the department of their marriage, and provided the marriage is valid for visa purposes , the sc. 300 applicant is taken to have also applied for a sc. 309/100 Partner visa.



In these cases, no additional first instalment VAC is payable; the amount paid for the first instalment VAC for the sc. 300 visa is taken to be payment of the first instalment VAC for the sc. 100 visa.



The applicant should withdraw, in writing, the sc. 300 application or the visa will be refused. Refusal of the sc.300 visa does not affect continued processing of the sc. 309/100 application.



Individual processing centres have their own procedures, but I would assume that you wan't lose your place in the queue. You do not have to re-submit documentation already provided.



Keep in mind that you must now satisfy much tougher criteria and that they will assess the application against the evidence you provided at the time (apart from the marriage certificate of course). You can add additional evidence, but to satisfy "time-of application" requirements, it must be related to the period before the original application was lodged.





__________________

Nick van Voorst

Registered Migration Agent 0640648



AUSVISA



Get the APP:

Apple:AUS VISA

Android: AUS VISA
Honda to bring back City ZX moniker; to be launched in January 2017

Update: Honda City facelift to launch in India on February 14, 2017

Honda is all set to launch the refreshed City sedan in our market. The first set of images of the updated sedan have surfaced online.

As reported earlier, the 2017 City gets styling tweaks and equipment additions similar to the Thai-spec car.

Honda has updated the Citys front to a more family look, with a Civic-like nose and chin along with a chrome band running across the grille and spilling over the headlights on both sides. The headlights' shape has been mildly tweaked and now houses LED daytime running lamps. The front bumper has been restyled as well, with more promient divisions for the front air dam and fog lamp housings.

For India, Honda will bring back the City ZX name for the 2017 car, which is likely to come with LED headlamps as well. Moving on to the back, the bumper sees changes and the tail-lamps get LED inserts that mimic Hondas latest design language seen on the Civic and the all-new CR-V. In addition, the City gets more chrome bits on the boot lid along with an integrated spoiler with a centre-mounted wide LED stop light.

The side profile of the updated City remains the same, with larger 16-inch alloys instead of the 15-inch ones on the current model. The new City for India will also ride 10mm higher, thanks to slight tweaks to the suspension to help make the ride a bit smoother. The refreshed City will use the same set of engines that run in India  a 1.5-litre petrol and a 1.5-litre diesel.

On the inside, it will get an all-new infotainment system with Android Auto and a mobile mirroring app. This system is being co-developed with Blaupunkt and will also feature Indian accent-based voice guidance for the navigation system. The top-spec versions will get six airbags as standard, along with leather seats and a soft touch dashboard.

Overall, this mid-cycle update will make the City more competitive to the likes of the heavily updated Skoda Rapid, Maruti Ciaz, Hyundai Verna and the Volkswagen Vento sedans.

Image source
The luxury brand will offer three models initially; first dealership to be set up in Mumbai.

Toyotas luxury brand, Lexus is finally coming to India, and will make its entry with three models. Official launch date for the Lexus range in India is likely to be March 24, 2017. Bookings for the cars have commenced, but deliveries will start only thereafter. The first Lexus dealership will be set up in Mumbai and will be operational before the official launch early next year.

The first 'Lexus Boutique' will most likely be at the Taj Santacruz Hotel, located right next to Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (Domestic Terminal). The first models to be launched will be the RX450h and LX450d SUVs and the ES300h sedan. Initially, all three models will be fully imported from Japan via the CBU route. The carmaker is currently gearing up for local assembly in India, but that will commence later.



The Lexus line-up in India will come with all options that are available in the Japanese-spec models. However, the first batch of India-spec cars will miss out on the navigation system as India maps are difficult to configure on imports.

Lexus RX450h SUV

The Lexus RX-series is a popular Lexus model globally. Currently in its fourth generation, this SUV will come to India in the RX450h guise. The Lexus RX450h will be powered by a 3.5-litre, V6 petrol motor coupled to Toyotas Hybrid system, similar to the one in the Prius, mated to an e-CVT gearbox. The combined output will be 308hp. In international markets, the SUV rivals the likes of the Audi Q5 and the BMW X3. Sources tell us that this SUV will be priced above its rivals since it will be sold as a fully imported unit. India-spec models will get 18-inch alloy wheels, instead of the 20-incher available internationally, which according to sources, will help improve the ride quality when driving on our roads.

Lexus ES300h sedan

The ES300h is based on the Camry sedan. It will be Lexus entry-ticket model in India. Like its RX cousin, it will also come to India in a hybrid guise. The sedan is aimed at drivers and chauffeur-driven owners looking for a relaxed and comfortable commute, and not for those seeking a sporty driving experience. It shares most of its underpinnings with the Camry hybrid, including its 2.5-litre petrol engine and the electric motor assist mated to the same CVT gearbox. Sources tell us that this is likely to be one of the first models to go in for local assembly in India, thanks to its shared platform with the Camry that is locally assembled here. This also means that the locally built ES300h will see a dip in pricing thanks to the FAME scheme.

Lexus LX450d/Lexus LX570 SUV

The LX SUV is the brands flagship model globally. Based on the mighty Toyota Land Cruiser, the Lexus LX for international markets is available with two engine options. The petrol-powered LX570 comes with a 5.7-litre V8 engine good for 383hp and 546Nm of torque, while the diesel-powered LX450d gets a twin-turbo 4.5-litre V8 diesel engine good for 269hp and a massive 650Nm of torque. Both engines are available on the Toyota Land Cruiser meant for international markets.

Company sources tell us that the Lexus LX450d will be offered as a five-seater initially, with a seven-seat petrol variant joining the line-up by October 2017. The LX series of SUVs rival the likes of the Range Rover, Audi Q7 and the Mercedes GL.

Pricing

Despite not being present in the Indian market, Lexus is still a relatively well-known brand amongst Indian luxury car buyers. The manufacturer aims to cash in on Lexus premium image and will price its models at the higher end of their respective segments.



Tentative ex-showroom prices for the Lexus range in India are as follows:

Lexus RX450h SUV: Rs 1.17 crore

Lexus LX450d SUV: Rs 2 crore

Lexus LX570 SUV: Rs 2.15 crore

Lexus ES300h sedan: Rs 75 lakh

Service centres

Toyota also plans to make service and the ownership experience a strong differentiator with Lexus. The manufacturer will offer multiple service and warranty schemes to provide customers with the same peace of mind associated with the brand.

Dealerships

The first set of dealerships in India will be in Mumbai, Delhi, Gurgaon and Bengaluru. These will be operational by March 2017 when the brand launches in India. The second set of dealerships will be in Chandigarh, Cochin and Chennai and will be operational towards the end of 2017.
The dual in its name might be misleading, chiefly because there are five modes the exhaust can operate in. Thanks to butterfly valves integrated into the mufflers, the 2017 Camaro ZL1 can sing the song of V8 people in the following styles of chant: Auto, Stealth, Tour, Sport, as well as Track mode.Auto is exactly what the label reads, whereas Stealth was designed for the sorry soul whose next door neighbor is an elderly gentleman fascinated by the Toyota Prius gas mileage, not the all-out assault on the ears produced by a 6.2-liter LT4 V8. Tour can be described as pleasantly sonorous. As for Sport, rumor has it Chevrolet designed this mode to scare the wildlife to death. Track mode, meanwhile, makes the ZL1 as raucous as an AC/DC concert.Lesser Camaro models (i.e. those animated by the LT1 V8 and LGX V6 ) are also available with dual-mode exhaust, albeit at a price: $895. Unfortunately no, the 2.0-liter LTG is turbocharged excitement in a small package, but the golden bowtie doesnt offer this option in conjunction with the four-cylinder.Similarly to the ZL1, SS and V6-powered Camaro models equipped with NPP (a.k.a. dual-mode exhaust system) feature a vacuum pump, twin valves in the mufflers, and a menu that lets the owner choose how loud he likes his car to be. Those who believe that the Camaro ZL1 in Track mode is still too quiet, I have two things to say to you. One: youre mad. Two: racing headers, racing cats, muffler delete. Speaking of the aftermarket, Borlas systems sound nice.On that note, heres Saabkyle04 demonstrating how beastly the ZL1 is.
A DUI charge can stick to someones record forever, and it might affect employment, among other things. However, DUI charges can happen from other reasons besides substance abuse. A man from California claims that he was mistakenly accused of a DUI , and is now attempting to absolve his name.It all happened on August 5, 2015, when a Solano County district attorney charged Mr. Joseph Schwab with a misdemeanor for driving under the influence of a drug.The defendant has contested the charge, and he has a rather compelling piece of evidence in his favor. Earlier that year, he was pulled over by a representative of the California Department of Alcoholic beverage control, which proceeded to do a breathalyzer test because Schwab cut off the unmarked vehicle driven by the agent.The said agent stated that the driver in question was operating the vehicle erratically, which prompted her to pull over the automobile to check the sobriety of the person behind the wheel. Evidently, coffee does not make people drive as if they were under the influence of alcohol or drugs , so the DUI charge is not fitting here if all the facts presented by the defendants legal counselor are correct.Testing revealed a 0.00% blood alcohol level, according to the attorney of the accused. From there, Mr. Schwab was booked into the county jail, where a sample of his blood was drawn. The said sample revealed a single foreign substance in his system - caffeine. The tests for drugs, which ranged from THC to cocaine, opiates, and painkillers, came back negative.After the sample was retested, the same results came back. In spite of these findings, the driver was still charged with driving under the influence. As the defendant explained to The Guardian , nobody believed his innocence until he displayed his test results.With those results in hand, he hopes to dismiss the driving under the influence charges from his record, and clear his name of any wrongdoing.
The famous brand from the Czech Republic still makes vehicles, but it is currently specialized in trucks . The company's possible passenger models would be constructed on a modern platform, but with a retro-styled body. Among the models discussed are the revivals of the T87 and the Tatraplan, which is known as the T600 by the history books.Unlike other brands that have stopped making cars despite their legacy, Tatra still exists as a company, and it has the tools needed to build vehicles. Another advantage of this automaker is that it still owns the intellectual property rights to its old designs, which would have been a significant problem for anyone else interested in building cars that look like old Tatra models.It is worth noting that Tatras current line of products does not have anything close to a passenger vehicle, which might lead to the need for an external collaboration. In spite of the problem of obtaining a modern passenger car platform, which would be required to allow the company to sell new cars on a global scale, Tatra still has a shot at the automotive market if it focuses on small volumes.The USA has approved new legislation that allows limited volume manufacturing of classic models from scratch, and selling them to the same regime of a new automobile. The said bill is named  Low Volume Vehicle Manufacturers Act , and it was proposed in 2015.According to Digital Trends , the Tatra company will make a final decision regarding the possibility of relaunching their passenger cars on the market during 2017.However, it is important to remember that the sources quoted by the publication that first announced this possibility were described as company insiders, which are not the most reliable sources in the realm of journalism. While some do provide genuine insight on some matters, others just stir the water with baseless claims.
Merchants Fleet Managements Dan Hannan and Tracy DuRocher (center) pose with some of the 2016 Fleet Visionary Awards winners, including (l-r) Nikith Rajendran, Dave Mansfield, Amy McAdams, Jane Manca (on behalf of Nick Richardson), Jeff Moody (behind Manca), and Sharjeel Wattoo. Photo: Jim Park

If theres one quality the most unites fleet professionals  no matter their position in the company hierarchy  is that they are willing to take a stand and make a difference.

While their motivation is often simply a job well done, many fleet profesionals contribute for years before they are recognized by their peers in the fleet industry.

With the launch of the Fleet Visionary Awards, which was presented at the 2016 Fleet Technology Expo in Schaumburg, Ill., in October, fleet professionals at the beginning of their fleet careers are being recognized for the new viewpoints and contributions theyre bringing to the table.

To be eligible, the 20 honorees had to have 10 years or fewer experience working in a fleet position at any level at the time of their nomination. The award celebrates new voices in fleet management, in particular, individuals who have brought a new perspective to running a commercial fleet, resulting in a fleet that is more operationally efficient, cost effective, safer, or any combination of these.

As the following profiles of the 20 honorees  including the Fleet Visionary of the Year  show, there are many exciting new voices in todays fleet industry who will undoubtedly be the leaders of tomorrow.

2016 Fleet Visionary Honorees

Dave Adams

Fleet Manager, ACRT, 6 years in fleet

Dave Adams has brought a whole new perspective and vision to managing the ACRT fleet that has proven to be more operationally efficient, cost effective, and safer by introducing new ideas, planning efficiencies and utilizing newer technologies. He has been able to fully embrace all the unique requirements of the fleet, and has implemented new concepts and processes that have provided significant operational savings to the administration of the fleet as well as reduced the overall cost of the fleet to the organization. He has also championed and implemented newer technologies that have made the vehicles safer to operate.

Banny Allison

Fleet Services Manager, AmeriPride Services/Canadian Linen and Uniform Service, 5 years in fleet

After successfully completely tasks in other areas for the company, Banny Allison was asked to support the companys fleet program in March 2011. In five years has taken a fleet of about 1,800 vehicles that was over budget on both fuel and maintenance, , to a cost-effective operation, implementing a company mandate to reduce CO2 emissions, making the AmeriPride fleet one of the Top 50 Green Fleets in the Country according to Automotive Fleets sister publication, Heavy Duty Trucking magazine. Another key aspect of Allisons fleet contribution is a safety first perspective. This includes everything from increased safety-related features and components on all vehicles to better telematics, DQ file, and preventive maintenance service accuracy checks. Allison also streamlined the fleets IFTA reporting and revised the companys fleet policies.

Cindy Douglas

Fleet Manager, Tuff Shed, 5 years in fleet

Cindy Douglas use and application of fleet technology and optimization of Tuff Sheds fleet have allowed her to make updates and changes to the fleet all while producing overall savings for the organization. Simultaneously, she works very closely with all of the fleets vendors and partners to ensure that decisions are made to benefit all parties. Douglas has an unending drive to ensure that things are done well and correctly and never settles for good enough.

Robert Douglass

VP Support Services, Willbros Group, Inc., 2 years in fleet

Robert Douglass ability to translate data from a wide range of sources into actionable objectives has enabled him to impact organizations positively with measurable, deliverable results. Douglass has implemented many test groups within his organization to try new technologies and processes. The smaller test groups allow him to make changes and improvements quickly, trialing them before launching the new program/process to the entire organization.

Erin Gilchrist

Director of Fleet Operations, Safelite AutoGlass, 9 years in fleet

Erin Gilchrist has been instrumental in leading the companys vision of a long-term innovation and sustainability strategy with the companys fleet of more than 8,500 vehicles. In 2015, Gilchrist and her team were able to drive programs and processes that reduced the fleet cost per mobile customer served by $1.5 million in overall operating cost. She introduced telematics to Safelite in 2013, which saved the company $3.2 million in 2015 alone (for a total of $7.1 million to date).

Monica Gregerson

Fleet/Operations Manager, Haynes Mechanical Systems, 5 years in fleet

When Monica Gregerson came on board as fleet/operations manager, Haynes was in the middle of swapping out GPS devices on 60 current vehicles and adding 30 additional devices to new vehicles. Not only has she handled the technical side of this transition as far as getting the devices installed and registered, but also has worked to optimize fleet efficiency over the past year, utilizing the GPS system to its fullest in order to ensure the fleet is being as efficient as possible.

Scott Lauer

Associate Director, North American Fleet Administration, Merck 9 years in fleet

Among his many achievements since joining Merck, Scott Lauer successfully managed the integration of the Schering-Plough and Merck fleets. He documented savings of $7.5 million in 2009, $14.3 million in 2010, $3 million in 2011, and $9 million in 2012/2013 related to a rigorous application of the TCO model and accelerated vehicle replacements, which took advantage of resale gains. He implemented a comprehensive safety program, resulting in a significant reduction in accidents and zero driver fatalities.

Dave Mansfield

Manager Vendor Management, CDK Global, 2 years in fleet

Without any prior fleet knowledge, Dave Mansfield was given leadership of managing the CDK fleet after the spinoff from ADP. Mansfield has proven to be a quick study, and was determined to run a productive fleet, maintain driver satisfaction, and achieve cost savings  all while learning the intricacies of the fleet industry. Mansfield quickly partnered with his account team to evaluate fleet operations and brainstorm ideas for cost savings and process improvements while maintaining driver productivity.

Amy McAdams, CAFM

Project and Client Services Manager, ABM, 6 years in fleet

When Amy McAdams, CAFM, started at ABM, she inherited a decentralized fleet with no consistent policy, selector, or compliance. Instead of maintaining the fleet as it was, McAdams challenged the status quo and developed a vision to transform the fleet to best-in-class. She quickly got to work by spearheading many important initiatives focused on standardization and compliance all specific to vehicle application.

Syed Asad Ali Naqvi

Sr. Executive Facilities and Equipment South, Warid Telecom, 2 years in fleet

Syed Asad Ali Naqvi lives his professional life by the motto: Say naught the struggle naught availeth. Naqvi has played an important role in revamping the processes of the Warid Telecom South Fleet, which consists of about 52 vehicles serving different departments of the organization. When he took over the position of the South Fleet, Naqvi identified grey areas, and implement appropriate staff trainings. Among his initiatives was the implementation of feedback and fuel monitoring systems to improve quality, manual vehicle allocation was shifted to automated systems, and new 3S vendors were introduced, which have resulted in a cost effective and quick repair/maintenance of vehicles.

Nikith Rajendran

Director Fleet Operations, Solar City, 3 years in fleet

Nikith Rajendran was appointed as the fleet manager of a rapidly growing startup in early 2013 having no prior fleet experience. The organization had a very aggressive growth target and fleet was a very critical component of the organization. Solar Citys fleet has grown from 1,100 vehicles to over 4,500 since 2013. Rajendran initiated a vehicle optimization project with the goal of analyzing vehicle payloads and redesigning the vehicles interior layouts. He also implemented a comprehensive fleet safety program.

Nicholas Richardson

Director Global Fleet Operations, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, 1 year in fleet

Less than a year ago, Nick Richardson began his journey to transform various aspects of Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)s Global Fleet Program, consisting of 25,000 company vehicles. With a goal of improved operational performance, Richardson developed strong partnerships with key business managers, support leaders, and suppliers. By leveraging these partnerships, Richardsons team has driven significant policy changes, contributing to an 11% cost savings opportunity.

Dave Rush

Senior Manager EHS & Fleet, R.J. Reynolds, 4 years in fleet

Dave Rush has spent more than 35 years working at R.J. Reynolds, serving as the companys fleet manager for four years. Wanting to ensure his fleet was operating as efficiently as possible, while achieving driver satisfaction, he connected with colleagues in several regions. He negotiated a deal that ultimately replaced R.J. Reynolds fleet with newer vehicles, complete with higher standard options. He then shortcycled the fleets vehicles with its previous OEM with ones from its new one, replacing over 2,000 vehicles with a credit of $2.2 million in lease adjustments. Maintenance savings alone were over $1.8 million for the year, and R.J. Reynolds total fleet cost was down 37.6% in CY-2015 compared to CY-2014.

Abe Stephenson

Fleet & Administration Manager, DISH, 9 years in fleet

In 2014, Abe Stephenson achieved the lowest cost per mile and lowest cost per job, to date, exceeding 2014 corporate cost per mile goals by $1.3 million. He worked extensively with all levels of field employees and executives to develop upfitting packages for new Euro vans and 4x4 service capsule prototypes, which resulted in considerable impacts to productivity, comfort, safety, and ergonomics for fleet technicians and warehouse staff and significant reductions in fuel usage and emissions. He reduced average accident repair downtime by three days while also reducing average accident repair cost.

Robb Wagner

Sr. Mgr., Sales Operations & CRM, Smith & Nephew, 2 years in fleet

When Healthpoint was acquired by Smith & Nephew, Robb Wagner had a challenge. Healthpoint utilized a leasing program and Smith & Nephew operated a fixed and variable rate (FAVR) reimbursement program managed by a third party. Faced with combining the two programs, Wagner was able to see the benefits of both, and wanted to retain the positive attributes of each program. By presenting the facts and evidence, he was able to prove the best course of action for driver satisfaction, total cost management and fleet integration and control. As a result, he helped the company save money while offering the drivers a choice to help keep them happy and productive.

Mike Ward

Fleet Manager, Strike, 9 years in fleet

As the fleet manager at Strike, Mike Ward has never allowed for the status quo. Ward is always looking for new ways to drive cost out of his fleet and takes a multi-pronged approach to achieve this. To ensure that his fleet is optimized Ward; maximizes upfit configurations, requires fit of vehicles to the jobs they are performing, and keeps a close eye towards the safety of his employees and their vehicles. He utilizes technology to monitor his fleet and ensures that changes are having a positive effect and keeps open communications with the field to ensure the numbers are telling the entire story.

Sharjeel Anwer Wattoo

Senior Professional Fleet Management & Organizational Support Services, Oman Telecommunication Company, 10 years in fleet

Sharjeel Anwer Wattoo has played a key role in the complete revamp of the Omantel fleet that includes overall restructuring of 500-plus old/obsolete and rental vehicles, replacing them with new vehicles, which feature advanced safety features and are in line with Wattoos own initiative for a green fleet. Among the initiatives he instituted are fleet policymaking; asset write-off; and obsolete policy drafting; implementation of ISO standard processes, a fleet management system, and state-of-the-art vehicle tracking system; in addition to the complete revamp of fleet where he added 500-plus new vehicles for Omantel.

Ralf Wessel

Manager Global Security, Global Fleet and Corporate Facilities, AGCO Corp.,10 years in fleet

Ralf Wessel has standardized operations across AGCOs global fleet of 2,100 vehicles in 24 countries. The primary function of the fleet throughout the world is supporting sales and service functions. In light of his background in law enforcement, he has developed an extensive and rigorous safety program that is designed to keep drivers safe and limit exposure to the company. The fleet policy is updated annually. The employees must take and pass an interactive test in order to be allowed to drive.

Brian Wielgosz

Mgr. Fleet and Travel Operations, Sanofi, 10 years in fleet

Brian Wielgosz helps Sanofi drivers be safe and keeps fleet costs down by focusing on data and mobility. A new pilot feature Contact Us allows drivers to have access to immediate contact numbers based on the category of help they need directly from their mobile phone. In 2015, he successfully reduced Sanofis total fleet spend by more than 25% from 2014. Other successes under Wielgoszs leadership include: fuel savings driven by a 28% reduction in cost per gallon and a 3% improvement in fuel economy, an 18% decrease in maintenance cost per mile, and increased depreciation expense due to execution of the accelerated replacement strategy.

2016 Fleet Visionary of the Year

Jeff Moody

Fleet Analyst, Centuri Construction Group, 3 years in fleet

In his three years in the fleet industry with Centuri Construction Group, 2016 Fleet Visionary of the Year Jeff Moody has used his prior background in safety to become instrumental in the creation of complex scoring metrics that have resulted in simple reporting that is clear and concise, driving continuous improvement of on-road driver behaviors, including increasing seat belt usage to 98%, decreasing hard braking and hard acceleration events per 1,000 miles traveled by 79% and 80% respectively, and decreasing speeding over 80 mph violations per 1,000 miles by 83%. Moody has also been instrumental in the creation of various analytical tools that have had a significant impact on purchasing decisions, identifying trends within the fleet, and total cost of ownership.

Moodys background in safety has informed his role in Centuris fleet. Among his accomplishments in the area of safety he spent a year as a safety auditor for Centuris Phoenix-area operation. While working there he was mainly responsible for safety and quality checks of everything that happens on a jobsite, from set up to the processes involved with putting gas pipeline in the ground. Presaging the contributions he has made in his role with Centuris fleet, he developed tools that made job/audit tracking easier for auditors and safety managers, including deficiency tracking by foreman/supervisor and computerized auditor schedule for better record keeping. He was also responsible for leading training in a variety of safety related fields, including driver safety training.
The Afghan air forces only female pilot has asked for asylum in the U.S., saying its too dangerous for her to return to her own country. Capt. Niloofar Rahmani finished a type course on C-130s with the U.S. Air Force last Thursday and promptly requested to stay in the U.S. She had been training in the U.S. for more than a year. I would love to fly for my countrythat is what I always wanted to do, Rahmani told The Wall Street Journal in an interview from Little Rock Air Force Base in Arkansas, where she did the Hercules course. But Im scared for my life. She said shed like to continue flying for the Air Force or become an airline pilot.

Although she was celebrated in the media, there were many in Afghanistan who didnt like what she represented and there were threats made against her, even from within her own family. Rahmani defied specific orders from the Afghan air force against trying to leave the country after overseas training but her U.S. lawyer Kimberly Motley said she had no choice. There are great concerns for her safety if she returns. The threats she has received have been well documented, she said. Unfortunately, some of her superiors within the Afghan military have failed in their duty to protect her. As a Muslim, she faces additional hurdles in fleeing to the U.S. in light of President-elect Donald Trumps repeated promises to freeze Muslim immigration to the U.S.
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) will not enter into an alliance with other political forces ahead of next years parliamentary elections, a leader of the party allied to President Serzh Sarkisian said on Monday.

Dashnaktsutyun will go it alone, Aghvan Vartanian, who heads the Dashnaktsutyun faction in the Armenian parliament, told journalists.

Vartanian did not rule out the possibility of Dashnaktsutyun striking a new power-sharing deal with Sarkisian and the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) after the elections scheduled for April. He said that will depend on the outcome of the vote.

The party, which is particularly influential in Armenias worldwide Diaspora, already cut such a deal with Sarkisian in February, receiving three ministerial portfolios as a result.

Our agreement [with Sarkisian] is open-ended, Vartanian stressed when asked about his partys continued presence in government. If the results of the parliamentary elections allow that  we have a huge circle of issues which we can solve.

He also noted in that regard that neither he nor other Dashnaktsutyun leaders are holding pre-elections negotiations at the moment.

One of those leaders, Armen Rustamian, expressed confidence earlier this month that if Dashnaktsutyun participates in the upcoming elections on its own, it will pass the 5 percent vote threshold for being represented in the next National Assembly. The party holds five seats in Armenias current 131-member parliament.
Minister for Local Government Davit Lokian defended on Monday the Armenian governments decision to merge hundreds of small villages into larger communities over the objections of many local residents.

The government began enforcing the mergers early this year, saying that they will improve governance in the affected communities and make budgetary spending on them more efficient. It also promised that Armenias Western donor supporting the process will provide them with financial aid.

The government met with strong resistance from local government officials and ordinary residents in some of those villages. The latter believe that their administrative unification with neighboring villages will only make the consolidated local governments less accountable and responsive to them.

In Lokians words, some 140 villages have been incorporated into 18 bigger communities to date. More than a hundred others will undergo similar mergers in the coming months, he told reporters.

The minister attributed the resulting protests to a lack of popular awareness of the benefits of the process. In particular, he said, many villagers wrongly think that the consolidation will reduce the number of public sector jobs in their communities. Lokian insisted that there have been no job losses there.

Yervand Yeganian, who was until recently the former mayor of Voskepar, a village in the northern Lori province merged with several neighboring communities, disputed that claim, however. Yeganian claimed that at least one-third of the local government employees in the area have been laid off.

We were predicting job losses, he told RFE/RLs Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). The minister and government experts were claiming the opposite. We have been proved right.

Both Yeganian and Narek Sahakian, who has run the nearby village of Baghanis, also accused the central government of not delivering on economic aid and infrastructure improvements promised to their communities. The promises remain promises, said Sahakian.
26 December 2016 11:03 (UTC+04:00)

The Armenian armed units shattered ceasefire with Azerbaijan a total of 38 times throughout the day, Azerbaijan`s Defense Ministry reported on December 26.

The Armenian armed forces, stationed in Armenias Paravakar village in Ijevan district, subjected to fire the positions of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces located in nameless hills in Gazakh district.

The ceasefire was also violated in Goyarkh, Chilaburt village in Tartar district, Shuraabad village in Aghdam district, Kuropatkino village in Khojavand district, Horadiz village in Fuzuli district, Mehdili village in Jabrayil district, as well as nameless hills in Goygol, Goranboy, Tartar, Khojavand and Fuzuli districts.

Azerbaijan and Armenia for over two decades have been locked in conflict, which emerged over Armenian territorial claims. Since the 1990s war, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions.

The UN Security Council has adopted four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal, but they have not been enforced to this day.

The OSCE Minsk Group, the activities of which have become known as the Minsk Process, works to find a peaceful solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict for over two decades, but in vain.

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26 December 2016 17:12 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

The economy of Armenia remains troubled, the population is growing tired of its politicians, and the popular dissatisfaction is increasing.

Corruption is still one of the biggest problems of Armenia, while it ironically feeds interests of the oligarchs, business leaders, and top officials, who dominate the economy.

The so-called fight against corruption declared by the Sargsyan regime has brought no result so far. The reason is that the criminal clan, which in fact rules the country, controls almost all areas of the economy.

Today the ruling clan holds huge illegal capital accumulated through the large-scale corruption. Therefore, even if the real fight against corruption begins in Armenia, the first to be punished would be the representatives of the government.

The countrys state budget lacks tens of billions, the national debt already exceeds 50 percent of the countrys GDP, while foreign investment is close to zero. Moreover, the Armenian Finance Ministry forecasts the country's external debt to approach to $6 billion in the near future.

Another flagrant fact is that the Armenian government constantly borrows money from other countries and finance institutions for fighting against corruption, which in fact is just imitation.

The situation is so blatant that even the U.S., which is very lenient towards Yerevan, openly talks about the need to take specific steps for the improvement of the business atmosphere and eradication of the corruption in the country.

In early December, U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Richard Mills named Yerevan the conditions following which Armenia can hope for the assistance of the United States. In particular, the Ambassador focused on the fight against corruption, and noted that words must be followed by actions.

In truth, expectations from the anti-corruption council were bigger than the situation actually is, he said. While talking with the Prime Minister, I noted that the work of this structure needs to be somehow intensified.

Thus, Armenia gets alarm from abroad that the governments fight against corruption does not work. Many sectors of the countrys economy paralyzed as they dont receive money from the corrupt government. Ultimately, ordinary Armenian people become the victim of such wrong economic policy.

The attitude of the Armenian authorities to their population is utterly clear  while the country is in a deep economic crisis, they care only about money they can barrow. The interests of the nation are ignored as always.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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26 December 2016 11:45 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

Belarus has determined the number of traffic permits to be issued for cargo vehicles from Azerbaijan in 2017, increasing the figure from 800 (in 2016) up to 1,200.

The Transport and Communications Ministry of Belarus has issued permissions for carriers of some 45 countries, increasing the quota for such countries as Kyrgyzstan (from 1,000 to 1,500), Moldova (7,000  7,500), Mongolia (250-350), while Turkish transporters will get some 3,000 permissions.

The decision will come into force starting January 1, 2017. The number of permits for the passage of foreign vehicles across Belarus in determined on a yearly basis, while the figure may be adjusted during the year in the case of necessity.

The bulk of additional permits are planned to be applied to Euro-4 and Euro-5 vehicles, the fleet of which has significantly increased in Belarus and now accounts for over half of all vehicles involved in international road transport.

The increase in cargo transportation is expected to bring a progress in the trade and economic cooperation between the countries.

Azerbaijan and Belarus signed a protocol on international roads and cargo transportation in September 2015. The document covered a number of issues, including international road links, their prospects, and development, use of permission documents in cargo transportation, exchange of permissions for international road transportation.

The trade turnover between the countries amounted to $ 33.5 million in January-May 2016, some 16.3 percent more than in the same period of 2015. The countries have an ambitious intention to increase the volume of trade turnover up to $700 million in 2017, while the figure is nearly twofold higher than the index recorded in the most favorable year ($330.8 million in 2014).

The main exports of Belarus from Azerbaijan include products of wood, mechanical engineering, foodstuffs, medications, ferrous metals and glassware. Azerbaijan's exports comprise oil products, hydrocarbons, juices, agricultural products, aluminum goods.

Currently, the two countries enjoy high level ties in various fields and closely cooperate within international organizations. Belarus opened an embassy in Azerbaijan in February 2006, Azerbaijan opened its embassy in Belarus in August 2006.

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Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

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26 December 2016 12:17 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

Azerbaijani entrepreneurs will pay a visit to Iranian cities Tabriz and Ardabil on January 14-17 to expand relations between businesspeople of the two countries.

A number of visits with Iranian businessmen are planned to be held within the visit, which will be organized with the support of Azerbaijans National Confederation of Entrepreneurs.

Besides, Azerbaijani and Iranian businessmen will come together in Baku for a forum to be organized by Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Foundation (AZPROMO) on December 27.

The event will bring together Iranian entrepreneurs, engaged in the spheres of agriculture, food industry, light industry, pharmaceuticals, transport, logistics, tourism, ICT, construction, production of building materials, and auto spare parts. The forum is expected to contribute to trade, political, and economic collaboration between the countries.

The two countries are eager to develop their non-oil economy, integrate regional transport networks and boost mutually advantageous business projects. Azerbaijan is currently changing its economic policy, switching the focus from the reliance on energy resources to industry, production capacity, and developing its non-oil sector  particularly tourism, agriculture, IT, and transport.

Such spheres as agriculture, banking sector, pharmaceutics, as well as cooperation within the international North-South transport corridor are the main areas that the two states are focused on.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Iran amounted to $175 million in January-November 2016, with some $130.13 million accounting for import from Iran. Iranian companies have so far invested some $2.6 billion, while some $145 million fell to a share of the non-oil sector. Some 450 companies with Iranian capital are operating in Azerbaijan.

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Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

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26 December 2016 14:36 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

Azerbaijans State Committee on Property Issues will hold another auction for privatization of state objects and enterprises on January 24, 2017.

The auction will put on sale 60 state properties, including 20 joint stock companies, 17 small enterprises and facilities, 17 non-residential areas and six vehicles.

These state objects are located both in Baku and regions of the country. Their activities cover the areas of repair, industry, public nutrition, food, agriculture, transport, construction, production, etc.

The most expensive objects and the enterprises to be put for the auction are a silk factory in Zagatala ($317,000), a shop in Sumgayit ($243,000) and the Shamkir branch of Chinar factory on manufacture of refrigerators ($167,000).

The third stage of privatization in Azerbaijan started in the framework of the presidential decree dated May 19, 2016. Under the decree, the acceleration of the state property privatization process has been defined as an important direction of the economic policy.

The portal for privatization  privatization.az, launched in July 2016, reflects all necessary information about the facilities, their addresses, location, and even initial cost and aims at facilitation of the process. The website is available in two languages - Azerbaijani and English. Why Azerbaijan is special section available on the website explains the reasons and advantages of investing in the country.

The privatization process is designed to attract both foreign and local investors, as well as improve the business environment of Azerbaijan.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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26 December 2016 15:10 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

Azerbaijans Taxes Ministry provided detailed information on the imposition of Value Added Tax (VAT) on participants of online lotteries, competitions, games and similar events carried out on the Internet, as well as on purchasers of online services.

The recently approved changes to the Tax Code of the country, in particular to Articles 168.1.5, 169.1, and 169.3 regulate the imposition of tax on online services.

The tax will be charged in the country of stay of individuals participating in online competitions and purchasing operations. Exceptions are a purchase of airline tickets and reservation of rooms in hotels by means of online services.

If the user of services is a taxpayer, he/she should calculate the amount, while the sum may be compensated after being paid into the state budget. If the participant is not a VAT-payer, the authorized bank deducts VAT from the paid sum, while money is not compensable.

For instance, if Azerbaijani citizen will make a stake worth the sum, which is equivalent to 100 manats in William Hill bookmaker, the bank will withhold some 15.25 manats, and the sum will be transferred to the state budget.

VAT is deemed to be of the most important sources of income of the state budget. The system of VAT in Azerbaijan is similar to that existing in most European VAT systems with tax being imposed on the supply of most of goods and services and on the import of goods.

The standard VAT rate in the country stands at 18 percent.

VAT payers are entitled to compensate the amount of VAT paid on purchases (Input VAT) which exceeds the VAT received from their taxable supplies (Output VAT). Registered VAT payers are required to submit VAT returns and to pay VAT dues on a monthly basis by the 20th day of the following month.

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Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

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26 December 2016 17:34 (UTC+04:00)

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and his spouse Mehriban Aliyeva attended the inauguration of the second section of Gala-Pirallahi highway on December 26, Azertac reported.

Chairman of Azeravtoyol OJSC Saleh Mammadov informed the head of state about the works done.

President Aliyev cut the ribbon symbolizing the opening of the highway.

Later, President Aliyev and Mehriban Aliyeva familiarized themselves with the conditions of Ali Isazade Street in Bina settlement after reconstruction.

Mammadov informed the head of state about the reconstruction works in the street. The President cut the ribbon symbolizing the opening of the street.

President Aliyev and his spouse also attended the opening of a new park in front of Baku Convention Center.

The head of state cut the ribbon symbolizing the inauguration of the park.

President Aliyev and Mehriban Aliyeva viewed the park.

Later, President Aliyev and Mehriban Aliyeva viewed works done in Baku White City.

The head of state and his wife were informed of works carried out under Baku White City project.

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26 December 2016 13:57 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

Azerbaijan is our strategic partner, friend and a true example of tolerance and multiculturalism, said Avigdor Lieberman, Israeli Defense Minister.

The minister made the remark as he answered a question by Milli.az during a press conference organized for reporters of various media outlets at Knesset last week.

The minister highlighted that the local Jewish community of Azerbaijan actively participates in social, political and cultural processes in the country, and is surrounded by constant attention and care of the state.

Representatives of the Jewish community in Azerbaijan say that there is no anti-Semitism in the country, they have never faced such phenomena there, they say they live in Azerbaijan in an atmosphere of brotherhood and friendship for centuries, he said. This shows that Azerbaijan can teach a lesson of multiculturalism and tolerance to most countries in the world.

Being a Muslim majority country, Azerbaijan is a home to a large Jewish community. The countrys north region of Guba is home to Azerbaijan's largest community of Mountain Jews, who live in Krasnaya Sloboda (Red Town).

Lieberman, speaking about the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, said that, along being a strategic partner and friendly country, Azerbaijan is brotherly country for Israel.

The official position of Israel is very specific: We have always supported and will support the territorial integrity and inviolability of borders of Azerbaijan.

The minister further stressed that the occupied territories of Azerbaijan must be liberated until the last square centimeter. We want the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to be resolved through peaceful negotiations, and we hope that the conflict existing for many years will be resolved.

Azerbaijan and Armenia for over two decades have been locked in conflict, which emerged over Armenian territorial claims. Since the 1990s war, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions. The UN Security Council has adopted four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal, but they have not been enforced to this day.

Lieberman went on to say that the trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Israel exceeds $5 billion, and the scale of trade is expanding.

He noted that Israel is interested in expanding and developing cooperation in the sphere of military-technical cooperation. Relationship with Azerbaijan is very important for us, the minister noted.

Azerbaijan is one of the few Muslim countries, which has deep political, diplomatic and economic ties with Israel. In this context, Azerbaijan plays a special role for Israel.

The two countries cooperate not only in trade and economic sphere (Israel imports Azerbaijani oil through the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline) but also had broad interaction in military and military-technical spheres.

Lieberman also spoke about appeals on recognition of the so-called Armenian genocide by Knesset.

Israel did not and does not recognize the claims of Armenians. We are aware of the mass deaths, including Armenians in 1915 in Ottoman Turkey, but our country did not recognize the so-called Armenian genocide, he said, adding that the position of individual Israeli politicians on this issue does not reflect the official position of Israel.

Armenia claims that up to 1.5 million people were killed by Ottoman forces during World War I, in what it calls an act of 'genocide'. But modern Turkey has always rejected the term genocide, putting the toll at 500,000 and blaming the deaths on starvation and unrest in the broader context of the war.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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26 December 2016 14:48 (UTC+04:00)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has congratulated Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on his birthday anniversary.

The message reads:

Dear President, dear brother,

On behalf of the people of Turkey and on my own behalf, I extend my most sincere congratulations to you on the occasion of your birthday.

It is with great happiness that I follow the strengthening, day by day, of our friendly and brotherly relations, which is driven by the values of common language, religion, history and culture under your wise leadership.

Taking this pleasant opportunity, I wish Your Excellency and your esteemed family robust health, happiness, and the friendly and brotherly people of Azerbaijan peace, prosperity and joyful days.

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26 December 2016 18:06 (UTC+04:00)

Azerbaijans First Lady, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva attended the opening of a 120-apartment residential building for graduates of orphanages in Masazir, Baku on December 26, Azertac reported.

The first such building, which had 120 apartments, was inaugurated by Mehriban Aliyeva in December, 2014.

Mrs. Aliyeva was informed that all apartments in the building had been repaired and supplied with furniture and necessary equipment.

Later, Mrs. Aliyeva cut the ribbon symbolizing the inauguration of the building.

Azerbaijans First Lady met with girls who received the new apartments. They thanked Mrs. Aliyeva for her support.

Mrs. Aliyeva congratulated them on receiving new apartments and upcoming holidays.

She also laid a foundation stone for another 13-storey building.

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26 December 2016 16:14 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

Russia, one of the biggest non-OPEC producers, expects a rise in the countrys oil export in 2017. Russias deputy energy minister Kirill Molodtsov told reporters that a "slight" increase is expected next year.

Russia's oil exports are forecasted to rise by almost 5 percent this year to some 253.5 million tons, 4.8 percent more than in 2015.

Molodsov said that capabilities of the country allow to increase exports, further underlining that much will depend on the execution and implementation of the first since 2001 deal between OPEC and non-OPEC states to cut production.

The official added that oil refining in Russia in 2017 could be reduced by another 2.5 percent to 270 million tons, through better oil refining efficiency, and cuts in heavy oil refining.

While the success of the oil deal still remains very fragile and vulnerable to comments and data coming from global producers, state-controlled Rosneft, which accounts for over 40 percent of Russian oil production, earlier stated that the plans of the company for next year allow it to be flexible with production volumes.

Russia's top oil producer formed its plan on the basis of the actual long-term development program and took into account Russia's fiscal law and a possibility of carrying out a maneuver with the production volumes to boost sales efficiency in the first half 2017.

Under the oil deal, Russia is expected to bear the brunt of reductions falling to a share of non-cartel members (558,000 bpd, the largest contribution by non-OPEC ever), cutting its production by almost 300,000.

The reduction is planned to be implemented in a gradual manner. By late March 2017, the country would be producing 200,000 bpd less than its October 2016 level of 11.247 million bpd, the highest production figure of the country so far, and the output would fall to 10.947 million bpd after six months.

OPEC and non-OPEC producers, participating in the agreement account for some 55 percent of global oil production. The pledged joint reduction of the countries, standing at approximately 1.8 million bpd accounts for nearly 2 percent of global oil supply. The largest contribution of some 486,000 bpd is expected to come from the top exporter and OPECs de facto leader Saudi Arabia.

Oil markets are currently closed for Christmas holiday, while on their last close the prices saw a slight increase with Brent trading at $55.16 per barrel and WTI at $53. With oil prices jumping between $27 and $56 this year, the commitment of producers to the output deal remains crucial for reaching a relative balance and stability.

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Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

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26 December 2016 11:35 (UTC+04:00)

Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov signed a decree to address issues related to the upcoming chairmanship of Turkmenistan at the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) in 2017-2019, the Turkmen government reported.

Speaking from the standpoint of broad international cooperation in the environmental field, neutral Turkmenistan is implementing large-scale projects and is taking active steps to develop balanced solutions to topical issues of regional and global agenda, attaching great importance to issues of saving the Aral Sea, as well as the improvement of social and environmental conditions in its basin, the Turkmen State News Agency reported.

The IFAS was established in 1993 to support scientific and practical research and organize financing social and economic and environmental programs in the region aimed at improving environmental situation of Aral Sea region.

The Aral Sea, in Central Asia, used to be the fourth largest lake in the world, after the Caspian Sea, and Lakes Superior and Victoria. Now barely 10% of it is left.

This must be one of the most dramatic alterations of the Earths surface for centuries.

The two biggest rivers of Central Asia used to feed the Aral Sea: one - the Syr Darya - from the north; the other - the Amu Darya - from the south. The Soviet government decided in the 1960s to divert those rivers so that they could irrigate the desert region surrounding the Sea in order to favor agriculture rather than supply the Aral Sea basin

What had been one sea, divided first into two separate salty lakes, the Large Aral to the south, about half of it in Uzbekistan, and the Small Aral to the North, in Kazakhstan, BBC reported.

The Large Aral then split into eastern and western basins. In October 2014, the eastern sea disappeared, leaving just the Small Aral and the western basin.

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26 December 2016 17:29 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

Moscow and Astana have exchanged views on a number of issues as Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin met on the sidelines of the 20th Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on December 26.

The heads of states discussed a wide range of topics, including key spheres of bilateral cooperation and development of integration processes within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), as well as a number of regional and global issues.

Kazakhstan is an active participant of integration processes, which have a favorable impact on all member states of the EEU, Putin said during the meeting.

Following the talks, the two countries signed a concept of cooperation at the Baikonur complex. The document was signed by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and Kazakhstans First Deputy Prime Minister Askar Mamin.

Besides, the two countries introduced changes to the agreement on the status of the city of Baikonur, the establishment and status of its executive bodies, dated December 23, 1995. The protocol was signed by Russias Roscosmos State Corporation General Director Igor Komarov and Kazakhstans Minister of Defense and Aerospace Industry Beibut Atamkulov.

The new agreement will allow Kazakhstan and Russia to successfully develop cooperation in the space sphere, Nazarbayev said during his meeting with Putin.

"We are about to adopt a new eight-year road map to be effective until 2025, there are also plans for a new rocket This will be the special feature of bilateral cooperation at Baikonur which will pave the way for further activities," Nazarbayev said.

The Baikonur Cosmodrome is an international facility in Kazakhstan for operating Russian and multinational space programs. Russia has leased the Baikonur space center until 2050.

Moreover, the Kazakh leader confirmed that Kazakhstan will create the necessary conditions to organize negotiations on Syria between Russia, Turkey and Iran.

The Kazakh president said he shared the proposal with Turkish and Iranian counterparts, Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Hassan Rouhani, on the phone Sunday. "They all agree, we will create all the conditions for them to work and meet," he said.

The sides also visited the laboratories of BIOCAD pharmaceutical plant as well as got acquainted with the production technology and product samples at the Diakont plant in St. Petersburg.

During his Saint Petersburg visit, Nazarbayev also will take part in a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council and a meeting of the CSTO Collective Security Council.

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Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

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On Saturday, Beijing had announced that it has instructed all companies, especially the coal industry, to adhere to the UN Security Council resolution in dealing with North Korea after the US accused the country for not properly enforcing the sanctions.

The UN imposed a new set of sanctions on North Korea last month, slashing the country's annual coal exports to China by $700 million effective next year to ensure that North Korea would not have access to hard currency that would be used for its nuclear program. The sanctions were adopted after three months of deliberation after the fifth nuclear test of Pyongyang on September 9th.

The US has continuously stated that China is not properly enforcing the UN sanctions on North Korea, but China - who remains to be North Korea's top trade and diplomatic partner - denies this.

According to the statement of the Chinese commerce ministry, the involved companies should pay close attention to the UN sanctions and restrictions to "avoid unnecessary losses."

The statement also said, "Understand the United Nations circular about North Korean coal exports, make preparations in advance and rationally arrange imports to avoid unnecessary losses."

The commerce ministry had also said that China has always enforced the UN sanctions to the letter and the same strict imposition of the sanctions will be done with the new resolution.

China had even stressed their disappointment over the US, Japan, and South Korea regarding their continous pressure on Beijing to reign in Pyongyang and force it to stop its nuclear program. The country had also said that they cannot do this alone with an editorial posted in Global Times stressing that all parties should assume their respective responsibilities regarding the crisis and not just drop everything to China.

The US-drafted resolution also bans the purchase of North Korean copper, nickel, silver and zinc.
Thought of going to the Palace Museum in Beijing but you cannot make the journey for a variety of reasons?

A branch of the Palace Museum will be built in Hong Kong and opened to the public in 2022. The branch or annex of the famous museum will allow Hong Kong residents and tourists to view some of China's most treasured artifacts housed in the Forbidden City.

The Palace Museum and Hong Kong authorities have signed the memorandum of cooperation on the Hong Kong Palace Museum in Beijing on Friday.

The location of the annex will be built in an area around 10,000 square meters in West Kowloon Cultural District. The annex museum will also have its very own permanent exhibitions on the culture and history of the Palace Museum and imperial life.
Donald Trump is bucking protocol for a president-elect in more ways than one.



Trump is bucking president-elect protocol



President-elect issuing statements on trade, terrorism, contracts



Political historian says it could be risky

Even though his inauguration is weeks away, he is already making statements that are usually reserved for a sitting commander-in-chief.

Presidents-elect are expected to make headlines with their cabinet picks, but Trump has been going a lot further, issuing statements on trade with China, talking about renegotiating government contracts and calling the recent attacks in Europe terrorism even before investigators or the White House have confirmed it.

Sean Spicer, Trump's press secretary, said, "If the president-elect wants to get things done, he's going to get things done."

One of the latest examples is when Trump tweeted: "The United States must greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability."

The United States must greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability until such time as the world comes to its senses regarding nukes  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 22, 2016

His tweet prompted a swift outcry from nuclear weapons opponents and a strong reply from Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Today the Russian Federation is stronger than any potential aggressor. If someone accelerates and speeds up the arms race, it's not us," responded Putin.

A co-host of "Morning Joe" said Trump told her off camera, "Let it be an arms race. We will outmatch them at every pass, and outlast them all," in response to Putin's remark.

Spicer said Trump means that he's not going to sit back and let another country act.

"He needs to send a clear and concise message, which he's done, that he is going to be a president that defends America's interests and defends the American people," Spicer said.

At the United Nations, the president-elect urged the White House to veto a resolution to stop Israeli settlements.

When the administration abstained and the measure passed, a frustrated tweet quickly followed: "Things will be different after Jan. 20th."

As to the U.N., things will be different after Jan. 20th.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2016

Political historians note outgoing and incoming presidents often clash, but rarely so openly, which could be risky.

"If you hear two different voices especially from people with two different perspectives, countries overseas or interests here in the United States might not know exactly what's going on," historian and Princeton University professor Julian Zelizer said.

"The White House hasn't really pushed back against this publicly a whole lot, realizing that Donald Trump's power politically is growing every day. But they did say there's only one president at the time, and at least for now, it's still Barack Obama."
As Christmas miracles go, the rescue workers in Coconino County Arizona think theyve just seen a pretty good one in the rocky wilderness not too far from the Grand Canyon. Thats because they were able to track Karen Klein, a missing Pennsylvania mom and university professor, through snow to a cabin where she had taken refuge after hiking 26 miles looking for help for her family. It began when the Kleins vehicle got stuck on a forest road after they found State Route 67 to the Canyons North Rim closed for the winter but sought an alternate way to reach their destination.

GOOGLE MAPS WRONG

Google Maps shows theres a way  but its impassable, said Jim Driscoll a Coconino cop adding. This is a problem weve had numerous times. After Ms Klein struck out looking for help, however, her husband, Eric Klein, and their 10-year-old son, had been able to climb to a high point and find a cellphone signal. He was able to call for help and was rescued Friday. Rescue personnel said it a Christmas miracle that searchers found the family stuck at separate locations. Our guys are ecstatic. This is a save, said Driscoll. We were able to get a family back together for Christmas. It could have gone very bad very, very easily.
Golden Pass Products received a permit from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission this week for its proposed $10 billion liquefied natural gas project from their Sabine Pass terminal.

The company is authorized "to site, construct, and operate the proposed project located in Jefferson County, Texas," as described in the application and "subject to the environmental conditions" in the order, which include wetlands mitigation, the authorization order said.

The project would include three liquefaction trains, gas treatment facilities, a self-generation power plant and expansion of the company's current pipeline system.

Golden Pass said in a news release in July that the project "is expected to generate about 3,800 jobs" in the United States during 25 years of operations, with more than 200 permanent jobs at the Sabine Pass site, in addition to "thousands of direct and indirect jobs" during construction.

Total capacity of the facility would be 15.6 million metric tons of LNG per year.

"Following a decision on investment, the project would invest approximately $10 billion over five years to build liquefaction facilities to supply the project's global customers," the release said. Liquefaction of natural gas makes it easier and cheaper to transport to international buyers.

State Rep. Dade Phelan, who represents parts of Jefferson County, including Sabine Pass, praised the company's local outreach and involvement throughout the process.

"They've really sold the project locally," he said, including covering the application fees to pre-qualify vendors to work at the site.

More than 150 vendors were pre-screened through the company's Local Business Initiative to be given "priority consideration" for sub-contracting work, the company said in April.

"That's something that we always want around here, they've gone beyond the pale reaching out to local labor," he said.

FERC wrote in the order that "no local landowners or communities have filed adverse comments."

The order states that the project must be "made available for service within five years."

Because the expansions would be on or adjacent to existing import terminals and pipeline rights of way, "the environmental impacts of the Export Terminal Project are not expected to be significant and can be further mitigated with appropriate measures."

An Environmental Impact Study released in July reported that while the projects would impact about 388 acres of wetland, the company plans to create about twice as much new wetland within the J.D. Murphree Wildlife Management Area.

Golden Pass, jointly owned by Exxon Mobil and Qatar Petroleum, has sought federal approval for the projects since 2013.

The project still needs approval from the Department of Energy to export to non-Free Trade Agreement nations.

The company's final investment decision is expected after receiving the final approval.

LTeitz@BeaumontEnterprise.com

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Star Wars legend Carrie Fisher suffered a massive heart attack Friday on a plane from London to Los Angeles, prompting people on board to administer CPR, but she is now stable, according to media reports.

TMZ.com reports Fisher, known for portraying Princess Leia in the Star Wars franchise, was on the flight when she went into cardiac arrest.

RELATED: Celebrities greet delighted S.A. kids at dramatic Star Wars movie event

The gossip website said the medical episode occurred about 15 minutes prior to the plane landing in L.A., with a flight attendant asking if there were any medical personnel on board.

An EMT who was sitting in the back of the plane came up to first class and reportedly helped save her life, the website reports.

The plane landed shortly after noon and she was quickly rushed to UCLA, according to TMZ. The Los Angeles Times reported Fisher was transported in critical condition. A more recent update from the Associated Press said Fisher was in stable condition. The brother, Todd Fisher, said the actress was 'out of emergency' and had been stabilized and was receiving care in an intensive care unit.

RELATED: Festive 'Star Wars' fan salutes the dark side, builds Death Star out of gingerbread

Her Facebook and Twitter accounts have not released any statements regarding her condition.

In 2015, Fisher reprised her role as Princess (now General) Leia in Star Wars: Episode VII  The Force Awakens, alongside other veterans to the franchise, Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford.

RELATED: Photos: San Antonio gathers for the Wookiee Walk ahead of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'

Fisher also will star in the next installment of the Star Wars franchise, which is being helmed by Looper director Rian Johnson. That film is scheduled for release on Dec. 15, 2017.

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Rod Williams resigned as president of Shreveport, La.-based University Health, KTAL reports.

Here are three things to know about Mr. Williams' resignation.

1. Mr. Williams served as president at University Health for two years. He is leaving the position to pursue other interests, according to a hospital statement to KTAL.



2. University Health is searching for a permanent CEO and CFO.

3. He stepped into his position amid large budget cuts to the School of Medicine operating at the University Health complex. A tumultuous relationship between the medical school and Biomedical Research Foundation  a private partner operating University Health  was also ongoing when Mr. Williams became president, KTBS reports.
WATERTOWN  A light mist blankets the blacktop in front of Piggly Wiggly here as Gracie Jagler jumps out of her parents minivan and heads inside.

Its already dark on this Tuesday in late November  just before supper time  and the store is buzzing with the slamming of shopping carts and the beeping of checkout counters.

Gracie stops with her mom and dad at the stores front counter to collect their payout  $260 in cash this week  and then the three haul a cardboard box to the stores pet supplies aisle to stock five shelves that the store reserves for Gracies Doggie Delights, her familys new business.

Gracie fills the shelves with dozens of shiny, square plastic containers festooned with white stickers showing a young girl with blonde hair and a little, grey miniature schnauzer. Thats Gracie, and the dog is hers, too  Frodo.

At 19, Gracie Jagler, with the help of her parents, has turned a lifelong affinity for her familys dogs into a robust business that has made thousands of dollars for the young entrepreneur, who has Down syndrome.

Tuesdays trip to her hometown supermarket is one of 370 orders she helped fill in November. John Jagler, a Republican member of the state Assembly, and her mother, Heidi Jagler, a registered nurse, are Gracies business partners. Her 16-year-old brother helps sometimes, too, her dad says.

The money part, she doesnt quite realize, but she does know shes helping dogs, said John Jagler. So, every night before she goes to bed, we look at her photos on (the business) Facebook (page) of all the dogs that have been mailed (treats).

Gracie and her parents take freeze-dried meat like chicken, turkey and lamb hearts and beef livers (the best seller) that are all processed without additives and sell them to customers at Watertowns Piggly Wiggly but also across the country through online orders.

The business Facebook page is bursting with photos from customers and their G-Dogs, or what Gracie calls her customers. And the Watertown post office sees the family every day.

On that Tuesday in late November, Gracie and her parents hit the post office just before it closed to mail more than a dozen packages to places like Fort Atkinson, Chicago and Johnson Creek.

Less than a year after starting Gracies Doggie Delights, the business has outgrown the family dining room with demand.

Responsibility, pride, stability

John Jagler said building the business with Gracie  which began earlier this year  has taught his daughter responsibility and a sense of pride, and it helped to answer a question he said he and his wife worried for years would be tough to answer: How would Gracie provide for herself as she gets older?

I remember when Gracie was born and Heidi and I were like, whats the future going to be? There were all kinds of questions, he said.

There were still plenty of questions surrounding Gracies future until about a year ago, when Gracie was still in high school  and bored.

When she got to be 19, she decided she was just done with school, Jagler said.

Nah, Gracie Jagler chimes in, flipping her hand dismissively as she sits on the floor of her Watertown home and fills an order for Madisons Bad Dog Frida  42 packages of beef liver and turkey heart treats.

Jagler said his daughters cognitive abilities are considered in the middle, which means she cannot live on her own and has limited verbal skills but is able to learn and do more than others with Down syndrome who also cannot live alone.

The rest of her two years (of school) would have been vocational stuff anyway so I was like, forget it. It was a struggle every morning. She wasnt getting anything out of it, John Jagler said. A lot of her school day was a lot of sitting and waiting. ... It just wasnt working.

But the pool of jobs Gracie could replace school with werent appealing to her father.

Like unloading boxes at Kwik Trip at 5 in the morning when shipments come in, he gave as an example. There wasnt much that I saw.

So Jagler turned to a meat processing, catering and deli business owner in town that he had done some marketing for in the past. Glenn Roberts, owner of Glenns Market, sells his own freeze-dried dog treats and supplies other dog treat vendors.

Roberts offered to let Gracie work for him  filling dog treat orders  but that job offer quickly sparked an idea.

And for about two hours, thats what I was thinking, John Jagler said. Then I just, I dont know, I thought, Wait a minute. I can do this better than Glenn can. 

Jagler asked Roberts if he could, instead, buy some dog treats at wholesale prices to sell on their own. Roberts also provided containers and a scale to help the business begin.

Ive never seen anything like it, Roberts said at his market on West Main Street in Watertown. Ive never seen anyone be as successful as quickly as they were.

Making connections

Gracies Doggie Delights has grown from a Facebook page and a website to a dog treat business that has shelf space in pet stores in several cities in Wisconsin and in two stores in Illinois, including Chicago. The business has thousands of online customers, too.

Jagler said ultimately, the goal is to partner with Watertown High School  where Gracie attended until recently  and develop a program that would allow students in the schools vocational program to work for the business.

As soon as we get a location  we outgrew our dining room; now were in the basement  or if we just cant keep up, they were talking about using her as part of the vocational program and have her be a boss, John Jagler said. That would be ideal.

The neatest part about the business is connecting with families who also have a child with disabilities, he said.

Its happened a bunch of times, he said. Well get a post (on Facebook) and someone will say Heres my two dogs and heres my stepson who is 16 and has Down syndrome. 

New parents of children with Down syndrome, too, have connected with the Jaglers, he said.

Theres these families who say, this is great, I wish we could tap into our childs passion when they get older, Jagler said. That has just been so cool.
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Britain should be "more self-confident" about its prospects outside the European Union, a former governor of the Bank of England has said.

Lord King acknowledged that Brexit will bring "great political difficulties", but said that there would also be "many opportunities" economically for the UK striking out on its own.

The crossbench peer - who led the Bank as Sir Mervyn King from 2003-13 - said the UK should leave the European single market and warned there were "real question marks" over whether it should seek to remain in the customs union, which might constrain its opportunities to forge new trade deals.

His comments came as it was reported that the billionaire businessman chosen by US President-Elect Donald Trump as his new trade chief has said that Brexit represents a "God-given opportunity" for other countries to take business away from the UK.

Wilbur Ross, the US commerce secretary designate, said Britain was facing a "period of confusion" following the vote to leave the EU and that it was "inevitable" there would be "relocations", according to The Times.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Lord King said it was too early to judge the economic impact of Brexit, despite data since the June 23 referendum being more positive than some economists had predicted.

He said: "I think the challenges we face mean it's not a bed of roses - no-one should pretend that - but equally it is not the end of the world and there are some real opportunities that arise from the fact of Brexit we might take.

"There are many opportunities and I think we should look at it in a much more self-confident way than either side is approaching it at present.

"Being out of what is a pretty unsuccessful European Union - particularly in the economic sense - gives us opportunities as well as obviously great political difficulties."

Lord King said it made no sense for the UK to seek to join Norway as a non-EU member of the single market, which would allow free access for businesses but probably mean accepting freedom of movement of EU citizens.

And he raised doubts over the merits of remaining within the customs union, which would allow Britain to trade goods without border tariffs, like Turkey, but restrict its ability to strike its own trade deals.

A Turkey-style arrangement would make it "more difficult to take advantage of those opportunities," said Lord King.

"I don't think it makes sense for us to pretend we should remain in the single market and I think there are real question marks about whether it makes sense to remain in the customs union. Clearly if we do that we cannot make our own trade deals with other countries."

Lord King said the Government should outline its policies on immigration "sooner rather than later", arguing that it would be a "mistake" to make them part of the withdrawal negotiations which will be triggered when Theresa May invokes Article 50 of the EU treaties next year.

Mr Ross will be responsible for negotiating a free trade deal with the UK and his reported comments will raise concerns the incoming US administration will seek to exploit Britain's isolation following Brexit.

His remarks were said to have been made to an audience of Cypriot financiers in the days following last June's referendum vote - before he had been appointed to Mr Trump's cabinet.

"I recommend that Cyprus should adopt and immediately announce even more liberal financial service policies than it already has so that it can try to take advantage of the inevitable relocations that will occur during the period of confusion," he is quoted as saying.

He is said to have added that the UK's withdrawal from the EU was a "God-given opportunity" for financial rivals of the City of London, naming Frankfurt and Dublin in particular.

Labour said his comments, should be a "salutary warning" that other countries were ready to take advantage of the UK's vulnerability post-Brexit.

Shadow international trade secretary Barry Gardiner told The Times: "Wilbur Ross's comments are a stark reminder that the trade deals Britain will agree in future will not depend on goodwill from our partners, but on their own shrewd political and economic calculations.

"Theresa May's government has failed to articulate a coherent vision of what kind of economy Brexit Britain will be. This makes us weak and vulnerable in the eyes of others."

But a Government spokesman sought to play down the report saying: "We will build a relationship with the new administration based on substance not rumour."

Meanwhile, Lord King defended his Bank of England successor Mark Carney against charges that he has been too "political" in warning about the possible economic consequences of leaving the EU.

Mr Carney had been put in an "almost impossible position" but had remained within the Bank of England's remit to outline the possible path of economic growth in the short term should Britain vote to leave the EU, he said.

Lord King said Mr Carney had been put in an "almost impossible" position during the Brexit referendum but said he did not think that controversy over his actions would have a long-term impact on the Bank's independence.

"I think Mr Carney was put in an almost impossible position by the extreme views of the Remain and Leave camps, both of which exaggerated the benefits or costs of leaving the EU," said Lord King.

"He couldn't easily be seen to distance himself substantially from the Government and he tried very hard to stay out of the politics of it - and indeed he did that.

"I don't think it has any long-lasting implication for the independence of the Bank."

Asked whether Brexit would be good for the UK economy, Lord King told Today: "We do not actually know what is going to happen over the next year, and I think it would be premature for anyone to make any judgment."

Spelling out the areas where Britain could exercise new freedoms outside the EU, he added: "We could totally redesign our subsidies to agriculture and we have a chance to create a new relationship with the Republic of Ireland to deal with Northern Ireland."

On immigration, he said: "It seems to me inevitable that the British Government needs to set out - and sooner rather than later - our own immigration policy.

"Most countries in the world have an immigration policy, but we can't have one effectively as a result of our membership of the EU.

"I think the result of the referendum made it pretty clear that people wanted our ability to control immigration. That doesn't mean to say 'No immigration' - far from it. It does mean to say that the UK controls its own immigration.

"That is not negotiable and it can't be negotiable. It would be a big mistake to put it into the basket of things that we would negotiate about with our former partners in the EU."

Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage said: "Wise words from the former Bank of England boss Lord King. The UK can thrive outside the single market."

A former member of the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee said Lord King's intervention was "political" and should be ignored.

David Blanchflower told LBC radio: "I don't think Mervyn King is a credible source on this.

"If you look back, there are three huge mistakes he made. First, he was the governor of the Bank of England who never spotted that Northern Rock was going to fail. He was in charge when the biggest recession in 300 years came. The RBS failed in September 2008 and he had no idea that was happening.

"In 2010, he advised the government that austerity ought to be really good for growth, and that turned out to be a disaster.

"I don't think he is a credible source on any of that and we shouldn't believe in what he says in terms of his forecasts."

Prof Blanchflower said that Mr Ross's comments "don't augur well for the future", when the UK will need to find new trade deals outside the EU.

He said: "There is great uncertainty coming. Firms have no idea what is coming, and in that circumstance, they are going to hold back on investment and hiring."

And he added: "We have no idea what is coming. It is a considerable worry. My expectation is - and virtually every economist now thinks - that the economy is going to slow pretty fast as the uncertainty rises."
Local social workers are approaching caseload tipping point, Health Minister Michelle O'Neill has been warned.

Almost 90% staff are routinely working unpaid hours, while half report vacancies in their teams.

Alliance MLA Stewart Dickson demanded an official audit to gauge the extent of the problem after accusing the minister of failing in her duties.

His attack came after a workload survey report from the Northern Ireland Association of Social Workers concluded 88% of its members regularly worked unpaid hours.

The Health Minister said: "Social work, like many other services in the HSC (health and social care sector), has seen an increase in demand over the past number of years."

She noted health trusts had employed an extra 375 social workers - an 11% increase - between 2011 and 2016 and stressed there was no shortage of qualified people to fill the vacant posts.

"Employers should be seeking to fill vacancies in a timely way," Ms O'Neill added.

"The HSC Board has been working with the trusts and the Business Services Organisation in an effort to speed up the process of recruitment to vacant posts, which has had some success."

The minister also urged employers to undertake an audit to establish the number of unpaid hours worked staff and the number of vacancies.

"It is unacceptable if staff are working excessive hours, and it is important that employers exercise a duty of care to their staff," Ms O'Neill explained.

But Mr Dickson said: "The minister has thrown up more questions than it answers. She has not given clarity on how she will address the issues.

"The minister highlighted that an audit is yet to be undertaken. Without the audit, we have no clear idea of the number of unpaid hours currently being worked.

"The minister admitted there is no clear idea of the scale of the problem. There is a worrying lack of grasp on the scale of the situation, which will only get worse."
A schoolboy who almost died from a brain infection spent Christmas fighting a rare genetic condition in hospital.

Patrick Irvine from Drumbo, Co Antrim, was born with dystonia - a movement disorder that causes muscle spasms and contractions.

The 13-year-old has already spent two months in the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children and endured two operations as he battles an infection.

Patrick's mum Geraldine has barely left his side during this time and had to celebrate Christmas Day with him in hospital.

"Patrick is more susceptible to infections but he has been very well over the years, really," said Geraldine (48). "But then he was in the hospital for six weeks over the summer and then home for about five weeks before he was brought back in, and we've been here for eight weeks now."

Referring to Patrick's dystonia, she said: "The condition was picked up after he was born; I suppose we realised there was something wrong when he wasn't reaching his milestones from about three months onwards. Initially, we were told it was cerebral palsy and then eventually we were told it was dystonia."

Geraldine has spent every night at the children's hospital while Patrick has fought for his life after suffering a brain infection. At one stage, he was admitted to the intensive care unit, where doctors feared the worst.

"He was in ICU for 12 days and it was touch and go," continued Geraldine.

"He went through surgery on his brain to remove some of the infection from his brain on the Tuesday and by the Friday he needed to go back into theatre again.

"They told us they didn't expect him to make it through, but he did because of all of their brilliant work.

"It has been scary, especially the surgery, because we didn't know if he would come back from the theatre, if he would come around or how it would affect him.

"He was on so many monitors in ICU but the staff are so positive and supportive that it really kept us going."

Patrick's condition has improved dramatically - but he is waiting for an MRI scan to decide whether he needs further surgery.

He spent Christmas Day in Paul Ward - where children with complex needs are treated - with parents Paul and Geraldine, and sisters 10-year-old Annie and seven-year-old Maggie.

"We had hoped he would be well enough to get home for Christmas, but he's definitely better than he was when he was in ICU," said Geraldine.

"The staff know Patrick's sisters very well and are so good to us and the girls will also visit other family on Christmas Day. I have slept here every night since Patrick was admitted, so I have been doing my shopping online and hopefully I will get out for a few hours before the big day.

"I am just so grateful for everything the staff in the hospital have done for us, from the cleaners to the consultants - they're all incredible."
Naomi Campbell from Dundonald with husband Gavin with their new arrival yet to be named

Claire Davidson and James McHenry from Belfast with baby Olivia at the Ulster Hospital

Laura Fisher from Portrush with baby Beau and dad Christopher Dunbar at the Causeway Hospital

New mums from all over Northern Ireland were cradling their little festive bundles of joy yesterday.

More than 20 babies were delivered to women in maternity wards across the province, with a little boy delivered in Craigavon Hospital just after midnight  becoming the first baby of Christmas Day at 0.51am.

In Belfast, the Royal Victoria Hospital, got off to a slightly later start than usual, with a set of twin boys making their appearance at 9.54am and 9.56am.

The little girl  who was delivered earlier than expected  weighed just 6lb 5oz.

At the Ulster Hospital, Claire Davidson and partner James McHenry from Belfast welcomed their baby Olivia into the world.

The 8lb 2oz girl was a few days early, but happy first time mum Claire said: Shes lovely  and shes doing really well.

At Antrim Area Hospital, Tracey Miller (31) from Castledawson had a quick turnaround.

She went into the hospital at 3am on Christmas morning , and by 6pm she was heading home with new baby Ruby in her arms.

The little girl  born weighing 7lb 8oz at 8.10am on Christmas morning is Traceys second child  and her first daughter.

At the Ulster Hospital in Dundonald, Naomi Campbells baby daughter was born at 2.03am.

Dundonald woman Naomi and husband Gavin have not yet decided on a name for the little girl, who is their third child. Sounding very tired but also extremely happy, Naomi said that she had slightly mixed emotions about spending Christmas time in the hospital.

Its wonderful to have my lovely new daughter  but at the same time Id like to be at home with my other two children Justin and Kayleigh for Christmas, she said.
Photos of Red Arrows and RNLI rescue demonstration taken by Donna Rowley

Photos of Red Arrows and RNLI rescue demonstration taken by Donna Rowley

A Newtownards woman is celebrating after two of her photographs were shortlisted in an international competition.

Donna Rowley is the only British or Irish contestant to be named in the Air & Space Magazine/Smithsonian Annual Photographic Contest.

Two of her shots, both taken at Portrush Airshow, were singled out. They are the only images in the contest to feature any aircraft or vehicle of the RAF, The Irish Coastguard or the RNLI.

One features four Red Arrows planes flying in close formation with their distinctive trails of red, white and blue smoke.

The second shows a person being winched from an RNLI boat to a helicopter, both appearing to be moving at speed.

Ms Rowley told the Belfast Telegraph that she was thrilled to have been shortlisted.

"I have had an interest in aviation photography for years and have spent many hours and countless pounds travelling to try to catch the best photos in the best locations," she added.

"It makes me very proud to see my photos in such amazing company on the Air & Space Magazine/Smithsonian website.

"The first photograph is my all-time favourite shot, and shows the Red Arrows performing their iconic manoeuvre, the gypo break. I have titled this Symmetry.

"I am a lifelong fan of the team and I have tried for years to get this exact shot, but was always out in my timing by a fraction of a second, or I wasn't in the right place on the display line to get them closing together.

"It finally all came together last year while in the Silver Wings Chalet at the Portrush Airshow.

"The second shot, Rescue, is of the Irish Coastguard helicopter performing a rescue demonstration with the Portrush RNLI lifeboat. I have long supported the RNLI and have total respect for what the crews do to keep us all safe when in and around the water.

"It was fantastic to be able to see such a dynamic and skilled demonstration happen in front of me at this year's Portrush Airshow."

The public vote is open until January 31, and all the photographs can be found at http://www.airspacemag.com/photocontest/detail/military/
A man arrested over a paramilitary-style attack on a 16-year-old boy was released unconditionally.

The 42-year-old was arrested at an address in west Belfast on Friday evening.

He was being questioned in connection with the shooting at Aitnamona Crescent on December 18.

A 16-year-old was taken to hospital after being shot in both legs.

On Saturday police said the man had been released unconditionally.

Speaking to UTV earlier in the week, the teenagers family said that he is now in hiding after being told he must leave the country.

His grandfather also revealed harrowing details of the attack on the teenager.

He described how the teen had been ordered to come to a green patch in the middle of a housing estate last Sunday evening.

He was lying on his stomach when he was shot in both legs, and was found by chance by a pensioner who heard him moaning in pain.

His grandfather quickly found out what had happened and rushed to help him.

He said: It broke my heart to see a child, 16 years old, getting shot.

The teenager is now out of hospital but has suffered injuries which are potentially life-changing, according to his family.
Soldiers who have revealed what they are missing this Christmas on Facebook

Soldiers who have revealed what they are missing this Christmas on Facebook

Hundreds of Royal Irish Regiment soldiers spent Christmas thousands of miles from home in the Afghan capital of Kabul.

They are just over a month into a deployment, providing protection for those tasked with training, advising and assisting the Afghan government, police and army, as part of a wider mission alongside NATO allies.

In a festive video posted on the Royal Irish Facebook page, some of the soldiers detailed what they were missing most this Christmas time.

Most cited family and friends, while others said they would miss their Christmas dinner and seeing their children open their presents.

However, the soldiers enjoyed a traditional Christmas dinner served to them by their officers.

Captain Wes Brown told the Belfast Telegraph that this was the first Christmas away from home for some of the younger soldiers in the bustling and unfamiliar city of Kabul.

"The Rangers were treated to a traditional Christmas dinner served up by the officers - just as would usually take place in the lead-up to Christmas in barracks," he explained.

"The rest of the day involved some sport, some films, and a 'pub' quizably organised by the battalion's padre.

"Of course, there was no beer to be had, and the soldiers remained acutely aware that their day could be interrupted at any point to respond to an incident taking place in the city.

"The soldiers have missed a few home comforts, of course, whether that's spending the day with family and friends, enjoying the food and drink, or getting out into town to enjoy the craic during the festive period.

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"To make things look a bit more familiar the soldiers have thrown up plenty of decorations around the place, and have hung up some optimistic stockings here and there.

"The Rangers can now look forward to spending New Year's Eve in the city - where there will be Royal Irish pipers ringing in the bells all across town."

Former Royal Irish Captain and now UUP MLA, Doug Beattie, who holds the Military Cross, said spending Christmas away from home was always challenging. "At Christmas time you always want to be around family, so it is always a little bit sad to be away from them," he said.

"But one of the things which I think is interesting is that those people you are away with become your family in many ways. Certainly the guys who are in Kabul over Christmas will all gather together, support each other and have fun, but you can't replace being with your wife, or other loved ones, and children."

Mr Beattie spent Christmas 2006 and also 2010 in Helmand province.

He recalled: "In 2006 I remember going to get our Christmas dinner, and the Royal Marines were all wearing little black dresses. They all brought them with them because they knew they would be spending Christmas away, and they all put these dresses on just to give everyone a laugh.

"But 2010 was a more miserable affair because I was in an isolated checkpoint. When you have got time on your hands it gives you time to think.

"They will be hoping they get either a parcel or the ability to make a phone call or email home. You carve out your own little Christmas when you are overseas, but nothing can replace being with the people you love."
Elephant tusk and carved ivory, as campaigners said the internet had turned into a huge supermarket for trade in illegal animal products (WWF/PA)

Illegal ivory, alligator and crocodile heads were among the items seized by customs tackling the banned trade of endangered animals this year.

Revenue said its officers made seven seizures with most of them spotted in suspicious packages posted into the country.

In one instance a foot-long piece of ivory was discovered in unaccompanied luggage at Dublin Airport.

And in a stop-and-search a woman was found to be entirely innocent when asked to explain moose antlers she was carrying through the airport but failed to declare at customs.

She was allowed to continue on her journey home after revealing they had been bought legally in Savannah, Georgia, and that the animal is not threatened by extinction.

Mark Newman, from Revenue Customs Prohibitions and Restrictions section in Dublin Castle, said the internet had turned into a huge supermarket for trade in illegal animal products.

"There's certainly the element of having something that is taboo. But when it came to the detections that we made, like the alligator heads, we didn't see any connections with black magic or voodoo," he said.

"It's more for the decorative or ornamental side of things, or the fantasy."

Elsewhere, a parcel of eight alligator heads was intercepted in An Post's mail sorting centre in Portlaoise after being posted from the US.

Other seizures included a wallet made from the skin of the critically endangered Siamese crocodile which had been sent to Ireland from Thailand.

There were also five conch shells being brought in from the Bahamas, three pieces of coral and one piece of hippo tusk ivory which was also found in Dublin Airport.

Customs said the illegal products were all confiscated under laws governing the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

Species controlled by the convention can only be moved in and out of Ireland with special licences granted by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

Mr Newman added: "We don't really see the large-scale trafficking of material listed under Cites laws into Ireland. It's not as if we are not a hub for it.

"But the advice that we would give is that people should contact authorities to see if they have something that would need a licence, an export licence.

"Something might look attractive to buy but there could be major restrictions and ultimately people could find themselves facing a prosecution."
home Tech AMD Ryzen release date, news: leaked reviews shows AMD chip better than Intel i7-6900K, i7-7700K

AMD is keeping up with the tight competition among chipsets and graphics processing units (GPUs). After announcing their powerful Zen Chips, which is now called AMD Ryzen, it seems like there is a brewing competition with Intel's upcoming Kaby Lake processor.

AMD Ryzen was the talk of the town ever since the company boasted its SenseMI technology, which is installed with 16 threads and 8 cores. A leaked review has appeared in several tech websites to show that AMD'z next-generation chip can beat what Intel has.

The recent review shows that the AMD Ryzen has a clock base of 3.15 GHz, which can be boosted to 3.3 GHz. However, AMD has stated that the chip can further reach the 3.4 GHz clock speed, with more headroom for overclocking purposes, according to TweakTown.

Also, benchmark results have been shown to compare AMD Ryzen with Intel's own i7-6900K. Data shows that the AMD chip did not perform as good as Intel's $1000 processor, though it should be noted that the results are based on unoptimized programs.

On the other hand, AMY Ryzen has gain positive reviews in terms of its power consumption since it can only take up 93 watts of power, which is a huge difference from FX-8370's 138 watts and 96 watts of 6900K.

Another review was spotted comparing AMD Ryzen to Intel's i7-7700K that only has 4 cores and 8 threads. As seen from the Cinebench R15 benchmark test, the AMD zen chips have achieved 1,188 points from central processing unit (CPU) rendering test while Intel's processor only had 966 points.

Fritz Chess benchmark test also showed that AMD Ryzen wins their test with 36.86 score points against Intel i7-7700K's 35.52. The latter also gave out 17,049-kilo nodes per second while Ryzen gave 17,693.

As for the price, AMD Ryzen is forecasted to be more affordable than Intel's i7-6900K at about $800 the most. There is also a rumor that AMD will have a Ryzen desktop version, which may be announced in early 2017.
Undated handout photo issued by the Metropolitan Police of Isabel Gayther who has failed to turn up at her family's home on Christmas Day, sparking concerns for her safety. PA

A university student has failed to turn up at her family's home on Christmas Day, sparking concerns for her safety.

Isabel Gayther, 21, who lives in halls of residence on Goodwood Road in New Cross, south east London, has not been seen or heard from since around 11.30am on Christmas Eve.

The Metropolitan Police said her disappearance is "extremely out of character" and that her family are extremely concerned for her safety and wellbeing.

Isabel is known to frequent places popular with students in the New Cross and Deptford areas and has family in Oxford.

She is described as white, with olive skin and long dark hair, is of a slim build and was last seen wearing a dark-coloured dress.

Police said it is believed she has her phone with her, but that it is unreachable and that it is not known if she has access to money or transport.

Anyone who has seen Isabel or who knows of her whereabouts should call police on 101.
A woman weeps as she holds flowers at the home stage building of the Alexandrov Ensemble in Moscow

Russia is observing a day of mourning today after a plane crashed into the Black Sea killing 92 people, including members of a well-known military choir.

There was no indication anyone survived the crash of the Tu-154, which belonged to the Defence Ministry and was taking the Alexandrov Ensemble to a holiday concert at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria's coastal province of Latakia.

Crews reportedly found 10 bodies and ships, helicopters and drones were searching the area for more.

A total of 84 passengers and eight crew members were on the plane when it disappeared from radars two minutes after taking off in good weather from Sochi.

Emergency crews found fragments less than one mile from shore. There was no immediate word on the cause.

Viktor Ozerov, head of the defence affairs committee at the upper house of the Russian parliament, said the crash could have been caused by a technical malfunction or a crew error, but he believes it could not have been terrorism because the plane was operated by the military.

The passenger list released by the Defence Ministry included 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, among them its leader, Valery Khalilov. The ensemble is the official choir of the Russian military and also includes a band and a dance company.

Nine Russian journalists, including a TV crew from Channel One, were also among the passengers, as was charity worker and humanitarian activist Elizaveta Glinka.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu was personally co-ordinating the rescue efforts, and President Vladimir Putin has received official reports.

Syrian President Bashar Assad has sent his condolences to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"To our great regret, we received the news about the crash of Russia's Tu-154. Our friends were on board, friends who were planning to share with us and the people of Aleppo the joy of the victory and holidays," Assad said in a telegram.

The Tu-154 is a Soviet-built three-engine airliner designed in the late 1960s. More than 1,000 have been built, and they have been used extensively by carriers in Russia and worldwide.

In recent years, Russian airlines have replaced their Tu-154s with more modern planes, but the military and some other government agencies in Russia have continued to use them.

While noisy and fuel-guzzling by modern standards, the plane has been popular with crews that appreciate its manoeuvrability and ruggedness. "It's an excellent plane, which has proven its reliability during decades of service," veteran pilot Oleg Smirnov said in televised remarks.

The plane that crashed was built in 1983, and underwent repairs in 2014, according to the Defence Ministry.

In April 2010, a Tu-154 carrying Polish president Lech Kaczynski and 95 others crashed while trying to land in bad weather at a sporadically-used military airport in Smolensk in western Russia, killing everyone on board.
A Syrian army soldier places a Syrian national flag during a battle with rebel fighters east of Aleppo (AP)

Russian troops have discovered mass graves in Aleppo with bodies showing signs of torture and mutilation, said the Russian Defence Ministry.

The Russians "found mass graves of several dozens of Syrians who suffered atrocious torture and massacre," said ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov.

He said some of the bodies have been mutilated and some had gunshot wounds.

The Russian Air Force has helped Syrian president Bashar Assad to capture Syria's largest city after weeks of a siege. Russia has since dispatched military police to the city.

Maj Gen Konashenkov also criticised the opposition rebels, who controlled eastern Aleppo before they were pushed out earlier this month, for laying multiple booby traps and mines across town, endangering the civilian population.

AP
The Christmas period is a time for families to be together, but there are too many people in Northern Ireland who find this season particularly difficult.

These are the families of the victims of violence for whom the memories are still painful, and they have to deal with the continuing grief as best they can.

Today we carry a story of courageous Joanne McGibbon whose husband Michael was brutally gunned down by dissident republicans last April, and bled to death in her arms in an alleyway near their home in Ardoyne.

This Christmas, Joanne delighted and surprised her four children with news of a dream family trip to Florida as a well-deserved break from the trauma of the past year.

They set off for Florida today and we wish them well. However, our thoughts also turn to the many other victims of violence from all sides of the community.

The failure of the Stormont politicians to deal properly with concerns raised by these people is a running sore, so long after the hopeful developments arising from the Belfast Agreement.

For years there have been promises that something will be done to achieve justice for the victims, and to help them draw a line under the past.

Sadly, however, this issue drags on, and so far there are no convincing signs that this will be dealt with satisfactorily, despite all the talk and the initiatives of recent years.

This is bad enough for the more recent victims of violence and their families, but there seems little hope of settlement for the older victims, many of whom have been dying off while still seeking justice.

For a long time this newspaper has campaigned on behalf of this group within our community.

Surely it is within the capabilities of Stormont and their associated agencies to deal with this troublesome issue so that it can be settled once and for all?

As we move through the Christmas period and begin to look towards the New Year, we will be making happy memories for our families.

However, this is also the proper time to turn our thoughts to those for whom this part of the year is always particularly painful.

Is it too much to hope that by this time next year, a framework will be set in place so victims can at last achieve justice and peace of mind?

It is the very least that they deserve.
It is now over four years since the publication of the Leveson Report, that lengthy tome which followed months of public hearings at the Royal Courts of Justice.

A great deal of water has passed under the bridge since then, but wrangling over Levesons legacy  and for that matter the inquirys future  remains bitter.

As any regulation wonk will recall, the Inquiry was announced in the summer of 2011 in response to revelations about the extent of phone-hacking by journalists at the News of the World  and particularly the discovery that the voicemail of murdered teenager Milly Dowler had been targeted. The inquirys aim was to investigate the culture, practises and ethics of the press, examining in particular contacts between press and police and potential changes to the regulatory landscape.

News of the World had ceased to exist even before the inquiry was announced. The Press Complaints Commission, my former employer, closed in 2013 and a new voluntary organisation, the Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) took its place. Some publications including The Independent, The Guardian and Financial Times, decided not to sign up to Ipso and instead operate their own, in-house, complaints-handling mechanisms.

Leveson had concluded that self-regulation of the press remained preferable to rules imposed and policed by the state. But he argued that a new regulator would need to be backed by a modicum of statute (something of a contradiction in terms) to ensure it had real teeth. He also suggested that it should oversee a system of arbitration which would in principle provide cheap access to justice for claimants and  since it would be cheaper than a court action  be less burdensome for publishers.

Parliaments response to Levesons proposals was to use the archaic tool of a Royal Charter to establish a Recognition Panel, which would in turn grant formal approval to any regulator meeting a set of criteria taken from the Leveson Report. To encourage membership of any such regulator an addendum was made to the 2013 Crime & Courts Act which, if triggered, would mean any news publisher not signed up to a recognised regulator would face picking up the entire bill (for both parties) of any legal proceedings brought against it  even if the publisher won. This provision, Section 40 of the Act, is now the subject of a Government consultation.

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OK, I get it; were in the midst of Christmas jollity and all this sounds like an esoteric debate about technicalities of the law. Yet in truth, the potential imposition of such punitive legal costs raises fundamental questions about press freedom in this country and about the future ability of journalists to hold the powerful to account. Its enough to make one splutter over the turkey leftovers.

The reason why the issue of Section 40 is now so crucial is that an alternative regulator has emerged and gained a seal of approval from the state-backed Recognition Panel. Called Impress, it is funded largely by charities set up by Max Mosley, the former Formula 1 boss and long-term critic of tabloid newspapers. It currently has no members from among the UKs major publishers, print or digital. It appears not to have handled any complaints against the thirty or so publications it regulates.

Nevertheless, if the Government decides to implement Section 40, any publisher which does not sign up to Impress will be in an utterly invidious position, forced to pay vast sums to defend unmerited legal complaints, or more likely cave in to demands for unwarranted retractions or apologies in order to avoid prohibitive court costs. This would affect any member of Ipso and any title which operates an internal complaints system. In other words all national newspapers, the vast majority of the regional press and any online news site which has a base in the UK (not only The Indy but also Buzzfeed, Huffington Post UK and countless more).

Websites run by broadcasters other than the BBC might also be captured since Ofcoms remit does not cover large swathes of online content produced by those it regulates. Section 40 would sanction legal punishment on the basis of a publishers identity, not its behaviour, thereby flying in the face of natural justice.

The truth is, for most news publishers, journalism is not a hugely profitable business. For a great many, a raft of unmerited legal actions for which they must nonetheless pay the bill, could spell the end. Alternatively, the affected media will simply stop publishing any story that could possibly be regarded as negative about an identifiable individual or company.

In the year of fake news few might feel like shedding a tear for journalistic special pleading. Yet polarised as the media is, there is almost unanimity on this subject: the implementation of Section 40 would be a disaster for press freedom in the UK. Much better for this iniquitous provision to be repealed.
Once again, Dr Munjed Farid Al Qutob (Write Back, December 23) bravely defends Islam from the simplistic statements by hard-Right nationalists that every Muslim is a potential extremist just waiting for the opportune moment to attack innocent Western citizens.

These type of xenophobic utterances are no more true now than when I lived in England in the 1970s and was subjected to the National Front's 'Paddy' theory, dictating that every Irish person was either a covert IRA operative or a sympathiser.

DR KEVIN MCCARTHY

Kinsale, Co Cork
Arlene Foster's future as Northern Ireland's First Minister has been plunged into doubt by the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scandal at Stormont. The extent of her culpability has yet to be established clearly, but she was Enterprise, Trade and Investment Minister in 2012 when her department introduced a scheme that may eventually overspend by 400m, or even, the Ulster Unionists suggest, cost the Executive 660m in funding from the Treasury.

Understandably, in the wake of the BBC's explosive interviews with Mrs Foster and her successor at DETI, Jonathan Bell, attention focused on how much the First Minister knew about RHI's flaws. However, the controversy illuminates a culture of entitlement to taxpayers' money that pervades government in Northern Ireland and extends far deeper than the DUP, or the Executive Office.

RHI's failure hinged on an absence of basic cost controls, that would have prevented people from profiting by burning extra fuel. Curiously, though, the rest of the scheme was copied more or less directly from legislation in Great Britain that did include these vital constraints.

A number of explanations for that omission have been suggested, ranging from the low uptake of RHI in the rest of the UK to the prevalence of oil rather than gas boilers in Northern Ireland. These factors may not have been as influential as the fact that, when the scheme was introduced, officials and politicians at Stormont thought - wrongly - that its costs would be paid for by the UK Government, rather than coming from Northern Ireland's block grant.

The RHI's original "regulatory impact assessment" - which Mrs Foster signed - envisaged a scheme delivered within a budget agreed by the Treasury, up to 2015. After that, it said, "additional funding will need to be negotiated" with Westminster.

Perhaps the key question around the heating scandal is not whether ministerial incompetence caused a foreseeable overspend, but whether politicians, or civil servants, were relaxed about the scheme encouraging possible profiteering, so long as they thought London would pick up the bill. At an Assembly committee meeting back in February, a DETI official described potential RHI funding from the Treasury as "what you might say was free money".

Of course, his statement was quite wrong, because UK taxpayers, including taxpayers in Northern Ireland, were paying for the scheme, but it revealed an attitude to public spending at Stormont that seems all too common. Politics here is excessively focused on maximising the amount of cash transferred from London to Belfast and then, usually, wrangling about how it will be divided between the two main perceived communities here.

The RHI scheme certainly threatens to blow colossal amounts of money, but you could argue that the overall sums are almost insignificant compared to some of the ongoing waste that's taken for granted in Northern Ireland.

The 400m 'cash for ash' overspend is calculated over 20 years, which would average out at 20m per year. That's not small change, but it's dwarfed by the 833m that Ulster University estimates we spend annually on maintaining a divided society, with segregated schools, housing and other public services. The accountancy giant Deloitte puts that figure at closer to 1.5 billion each year.

Welfare reform caused particular political controversy in Northern Ireland, because benefits are commonly viewed not as a way of supporting people in difficulties, but rather as a vital stimulus to our economy. Westminster pays for welfare, so, until the Government started to levy punishing fines to reflect our more expensive system, politicians here often seemed to encourage dependency, instead of tackling its causes. In other words, they viewed the ballooning bill for benefits as "free money".

As a result of this mentality, the cost of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) in Northern Ireland, which was already by far the highest in the UK, has risen by 25% in the last five years, topping 1 billion for 2015/16, and social security payments are approaching 6 billion. That's before the incalculable social and economic costs of parking people on welfare are taken into account. More people of working age in Northern Ireland are "economically inactive" than in the rest of the UK. Another table we regularly top is the record of MPs' expenses at Westminster. The DUP's Jim Shannon and Ian Paisley are particularly high spenders, but Sinn Fein's policy of abstaining from the House of Commons doesn't prevent its representatives from claiming hundreds of thousands of pounds of public money, too. Critics have challenged the propriety of expenses claimed by Northern Irish politicians at Westminster and Stormont on a number of occasions.

Sometimes, it's suggested that the parties find clever ways to divert the money they claim, to fund political activities, or community organisations. In 2014, the BBC's Spotlight programme revealed that Sinn Fein was paying rent for its offices to three "cultural societies". Sir Alistair Graham, the former chairman of a Westminster standards watchdog, said he feared that the payments were "a way of channelling public money to political parties".

Questions were raised previously about rent payments, substantially above the market rate, paid by the DUP to a company that owned its Ballymena Advice Centre, whose sole director was also one of the party's local councillors.

No wrongdoing was proven in those cases, and it's unlikely that the heating scheme will prove to involve legal wrongdoing, either.

It would be misleading to view the RHI episode in isolation, though. It's certainly not the first scandal to plunge Stormont into controversy and, arguably, it's not even the most serious. After all, just one year ago, the crisis filling column inches around Christmas was prompted by a murder linked to the IRA.

The heating debacle is a symptom of Stormont's broader attitude to public money, particularly when it comes directly from Westminster. A public inquiry, or resignations, may help to hold someone accountable, but they won't make the larger problem disappear. Our entire devolved system of government will remain rooted in an addiction to spending as much taxpayers' money as our politicians can reasonably winkle out of the Treasury at Westminster.

While the focus of Northern Ireland politics remains on maximising public spending, rather than generating cash for the economy locally through enterprise and combating segregation in our society, bad government will continue, with the likelihood of more controversies and more overspend to come.

That attitude is not exclusive to the DUP, though it may be more surprising when unionists are cavalier about UK taxpayers' money.

It is an attitude ingrained - to a greater, or lesser, extent - in all the political parties at Stormont.
International Press Freedom Award honorees Oscar Martinez and Malini Subramaniam appear at the awards ceremony in New York, Nov. 22, 2016.

The year 2016 has proved memorable for Malini Subramaniam, an Indian journalist who recently won a prestigious award for reporting on a Maoist insurgency in the state of Chhattisgarh.

Its by far been the unforgettable year of my life for reasons both good and bad, Subramaniam, 52, told BenarNews.

The year started with police detaining the freelance reporter until she agreed to leave Chhattisgarh for good in February, and it culminated with her being honored last month with the International Press Freedom Award  handed out annually by the U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

The Maoist or Naxalite insurgency, which was born in 1969 as a left-wing uprising among the peasantry, is an armed struggle against what its supporters call illegal exploitation by successive governments of the tribal and peasant population in the resource-rich forests of central and eastern India.

While several journalists, including Subramaniam, who have exposed police brutality against the tribal population, have faced expulsion from Chhattisgarh, at least four reporters have allegedly been jailed over the past year or so on what critics have described as made-up charges.

Those insisting upon freedom of the press and either arrested with trumped up charges or forced to leave the region, said Subramanian, who now lives in the south Indian city of Hyderabad.

The crackdown on journalists, she said, was to ensure that anti-government news did not attract national and international attention.

The arrests and hounding of journalists and their defenders has given way to a climate of fear that risks turning parts of Chhattisgarh into a media black hole, according to CPJs Sumit Galhotra.

But police deny this accusation.

The ground situation is very different from what is reported. People sitting far away from here are totally unaware of the ground reality, a senior police official in the state, requesting anonymity, told BenarNews.

He alleged that Subramaniam was a Maoist, which is why she was asked to leave the state.

She is a Naxalite. The fact that she has received an international award does not mean anything, he said.

In a telephonic interview with BenarNews, Subramanian spoke at length about her work in the insurgency-stricken region.

BenarNews: Tell us about your journey as a media professional.

Malini Subramaniam: I have put in two decades of work in the development sector and three years as a humanitarian worker  all of which contributed to my reporting from a peoples perspective.

I focus on the human rights abuse in the Bastar region of Chhattisgarh State primarily for an Indian news portal called Scroll.in. My work reflects not just the violence in the region, but also the effects of the violence on both the Adivasis (tribals) and non-Adivasis living in Maoist-affected regions, and how they cope.

BN: How did you and your family cope with all the negativity?

MS: It was obviously unnerving. Initially we thought the vicious campaign against me would eventually die down. After all, we live in the worlds largest democracy. Everyone need not like what I write but I have every right to put forth by findings.

But as I continued to report, the campaign by the civil vigilante groups only worsened with attacks aimed at forcing me to leave the state. The police colluded with these groups. It was shocking.

My husband was understanding but feared for our safety. My two daughters too were aghast but encouraged me. As the campaign against me and the others working in Bastar intensified with the administration and police failing or rather deliberately refusing to provide protection or even assurance, alarm bells began ringing in our heads.

Physical attacks appeared imminent as were fears of arrest as they began pressurizing those close to us to testify against me.

BN: What is the situation in Chhattisgarh today?

MS: The situation is pretty grim and serious. Extra-judicial killings or fake encounters continue, as do forced surrenders and fake arrests.

The state is a haven of human rights abuse. Even going to the market to buy things needed for daily usage is a huge risk as many are picked up by the police when they go shopping.

Threats from the Maoists have also increased as more and more people are being coerced to surrender.

BN: Will the International Press Freedom Award be of any help to you in your work in Chhattisgarh?

MS: The award  is recognition of my reportage in the region in the face of difficulties  threats, harassment and eventual expulsion. I accepted this honor on behalf of all Indian journalists who have faced or continue to face similar or worse situations.

I am not sure if this award will be of any help to journalists attempting to expose police brutality in Maoist belts of India. But I hope the government wakes up and takes notice that the world is watching what its doing in these regions.
home World Archbishop of Canterbury says he saw God's glory among persecuted Christians

The Archbishop of Canterbury called on people who wish to see the glory of God to reflect on the suffering of persecuted Christians.

In his Christmas message at Canterbury Cathedral, the Most Rev. Justin Welby noted that the year 2016 was "awash and fear and division" and said that people have put their trust in the wrong things. He pointed out that progress has not resulted in economic justice and glory.

The archbishop said that he found evidence of God's glory in oppressed believers. He spoke about people whose lives have been changed by God.

"Let me tell you about a bomb-injured woman in Pakistan, bereft of her youngest child in the blast, who said, 'One thing we know, Jesus really is the Good Shepherd,'" he narrated.

"And a lonely elderly woman in London, and a trafficked teenager in Watford, both of whom spoke recently at a carol service - they have seen the glory of God in Jesus and he has brought transformation to their lives," the archbishop continued.

He concluded his message by pointing out that God's glory can only be found in Jesus Christ.

"How then do we find glory? The only place and person who can bring glory to us is the child of Bethlehem who became the victim on the cross," he said, according to Christian Today.

Meanwhile, former UKIP leader Nigel Farage has urged his Twitter followers to ignore the all of the "negative" messages from the archbishop.

Welby did not mention any specific event in his Christmas message, but he spoke about uncertainty and division at a year when the British unexpectedly voted in favor of Brexit. Welby's previous comments about Brexit has been perceived by eurosceptics as critical.

The archbishop has previously criticized Farage for saying that the sexual assaults committed by migrants were the "nuclear bomb" of the EU referendum. He accused the former UKIP leader of pandering to the fears and prejudices of the people, which gave them an excuse for racism.

Welby has allowed a Syrian refugee family to stay in the grounds of Lambeth Palace while also defending people who fear migration. He said that it was "outrageous" to label people who are concerned about the impact of immigration as racist, and he contended that there was "genuine fear" about the impact on housing, jobs, and the National Health Service.
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home US Immigration Reform news update 2016: USCIS increases application fees for first time in 6 years

The immigration fees go up for the first time in six years, which means that it is now more expensive to apply for U.S. naturalization.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said in a statement that they are applying a "weighted average" price hike of 21 percent that will be used to cover the costs of avoiding fraud cases and all-around processing.

Applications filed after Dec. 23 will be subject to this new pricing. CNBC says that with the price increase, immigrants seeking citizenship applications will find it extra difficult than it already is.

However, USCIS director Leon RodrAguez argues that they know full well the effect that the price hike will incur, which is why it took a long time for them to actually implement the price increase.

Either way, USCIS says that it actually took into account immigrants with limited resources but are still seeking U.S. naturalization.

Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Peter Boogaard told CNBC that USCIS will also offer "a reduced filing fee for certain naturalization applicants with limited means."

He did emphasize that the increase in the fees was much-needed nevertheless. "These changes are now necessary to ensure USCIS can continue to serve its customers effectively," he said.

Pace University professor and immigrant attorney Glenn Martin Miller still believes that the price increase will be "a burden for a family of two" although this often results in a surge in applications as they would want to apply before the costs get even higher.

For William Stock, president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the USCIS would want to first deal with the backlog of applications, which he believes will worsen with the price increase.

He said that "Adjudication backlogs are more than just an inconvenience, they have serious repercussions" for applicants, adding that a lot of people "want to become citizens as soon as possible."
Mother of a journalist in Turkey questioned by police: Why did you let your son be a journalist?

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When we look at what is going on in Turkey now, we see that we actually owe an apology to the people of the region (southeastern Turkey) for the 90s. Nowadays, through our experiences, we have been coming down to an understanding of what it means to be labeled as a criminal or a terrorist while being persecuted at the same time. And, we now understand how devastating it could be to not be able to share news or receive them and to be left alone.

As we have been waking up to each new day with a new kind of a nightmare, we have also been witnessing how journalism is considered a crime. Not only the media but social media is also under pressure. Banning people from criticizing the government and blocking or slowing down the internet are normal; yet, people reporting and making comments are downtrodden. And, middle of the night or early morning operations are at place in full-speed.

Yesterday (December 25), our team members in BirGun Mahir Kanaat, editor of Diken news portal Tunca Ogreten, and chief editor of DIHA Omer Celik and journalist Metin Yoksu were taken into custody.

What a great illusion it is to think that truth and questions fade away or evaporate when those who speak out, question, and criticize are taken into custody

***

Questions posed by people are one of the best clues for understanding a particular society. Police officer who raided the house of Omer Celik  just as all other journalists had got their houses raided  in the middle of the night asked Celiks mother: Why did you let your son to become a journalist?

Considering all that has been gone through, this shouldnt shock us, actually. That question, in fact, goes as: How could your son dare to write the truth?

***

Questions are one of the most significant indicators of the stage that a society has reached.

Once upon a time, a dictator was talking in a country, praising democracy, human rights, unity, equality, and economy. Also talking about progressions, the dictator gets applauded crazily. Looking at the crowd after finishing the speech, the dictator asks them: Has anybody got a question?

One person steps forth and tries to get an answer: My name is Socrates. Weve been fired from our jobs. And, we cant get our rights. My whole family is hungry If weve got the best of everything, why are we under these conditions?

In the same country, not a long time late, the same dictator speaks to the people: We are living in equality, democracy, solidarity, and with human rights. Weve got the best of everything. After the loud applauses, the last question comes: Has anybody got a question?

A man comes forth breaking through the crowd and nearing the platform. He asks: He was my friend; we cant hear any word of him. Where is Socrates?

***

 What a great illusion it is to think that truth and questions fade away or evaporate when those who speak out, question, and criticize are taken into custody. Questions actually explain the situation. They might not come with the answers right away but eventually lead us to truth.

Source: http://www.birgun.net/haber-detay/oglunu-niye-gazeteci-yaptin-140831.html
home World Prince Charles warns that Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East are being neglected

Prince Charles has said that the persecution of Christians and other religious minorities is an urgent problem, but it is not getting enough attention from the international community.

In a pre-recorded message on BBC Radio 4's "Thought for the Day," the Prince recounted his meeting with a Jesuit priest from Syria who told him about the struggles of Christians that he was forced to leave behind in the war-torn country. The priest told him that it could be possible that no Christians would be left in Iraq within five years.

"Clearly for such people religious freedom is a daily stark choice between life and death. The scale of religious persecution around the world is not widely appreciated, nor is it limited to Christians in the troubled regions of the Middle East," said the Prince of Wales, according to Catholic Herald.

Charles also noted that other religious minorities are being persecuted in different countries around the world as well.

"A recent report suggests that attacks are increasing on Yazidis, Jews, Ahmadis, Baha'is and many other minority faiths, and in some countries even more insidious forms of religious extremism have recently surfaced which aim to eliminate all types of religious diversity," he said.

He also pointed to a report from the U.N. which stated that 5.8 million more people have abandoned their homes in 2015 than the previous year, bringing the annual total to 65.3 million. He likened the widespread violence and religious intolerance to the "dark days of the 1930s," when his parents' generation fought against the attempts to exterminate the Jews in Europe.

The prince's message was welcomed by Iraqi church leaders in Britain, but they said that Western governments must take action to protect religious minorities.

Charles has previously spoken about the threats faced by Christians in the Middle East. He has met with Christian leaders from the Middle East and made a donation to the charity organization Aid to the Church in Need, which provides support for Christians in Iraq and Syria.

The prince has expressed his plans to change his title from "Defender of the Faith" to "Defender of Faith" as a gesture to non-Christian religions. The title was granted by the Pope to Henry VIII for defending the teachings of the Catholic Church.
Extra Weight Gain Affects Your DNA Wellness oi-Lekhaka

The extra kilos you gain during the holidays would not only show up on your hips but could also affect your DNA, leading to changes in the expression of inflammatory genes, results of a large-scale international study suggest.

The scientists examined the blood samples of over 10,000 women and men from Europe, a large proportion of whom were inhabitants of London of Indian ancestry, who according to the authors are at high risk for obesity and metabolic diseases.

The study, published in the journal Nature, showed that a high BMI (body mass index) leads to epigenetic changes at nearly 200 loci of the genome -- with effects on gene expression.

"In particular, significant changes were found in the expression of genes responsible for lipid metabolism and substrate transport, but inflammation-related gene loci were also affected," said group leader Harald Grallert from Helmholtz Zentrum Munchen - German Research Centre for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.

While our genes do not change in the course of life, our lifestyle can directly influence their surroundings.

Scientists spoke here of the epigenome, which refers to everything that happens on or around the genes.

Up to now there has not been much research on how the epigenome is altered as a result of being overweight.

"This issue is particularly relevant because an estimated one and a half billion people throughout the world are overweight," first author Simone Wahl of the Research Unit Molecular Epidemiology (AME) at Helmholtz Zentrum Munchen, noted.

From the data, the team was also able to identify epigenetic markers that could predict the risk of Type-2 diabetes.

"Our results allow new insights into which signaling pathways are influenced by obesity", said Christian Gieger, head of the AME.

"We hope that this will lead to new strategies for predicting and possibly preventing Type-2 diabetes and other consequences of being overweight," Gieger said.

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Agile Cigar Reviews replace what we termed Assessment Updates. The concept is the same, but the name is different. Agile Cigar Reviews use a lightweight, shorter format. These will never take the place of our comprehensive reviews. They are only used on blends we have previously assessed. This might be a blend we are re-scoring or providing a score for a first time. It might be a blend we are looking at in a different size. Today we look at the Flor de las Antillas Maduro Petit Robusto by My Father Cigars. This is a cigar we have previously assessed in the Torpedo size back in May, 2016.

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Maduro

Binder: Nicaraguan

Filler: Nicaraguan

Country of Origin: Nicaragua (My Father Cigars SA)

Petit Robusto: 4 1/2 x 50

As the name indicates, the Flor de las Antillas Maduro is a maduro version of My Father Cigars Flor de las Antillas brand. It is a cigar that was originally released as a limited production shop exclusive to New Hampshire retailer Federal Cigar. It was in 2015 when Federal Cigar received a Petit Robusto offering of the Flor de las Antillas Maduro as a part of a series cigars to commemorate its 94th anniversary. In 2016, Federal Cigar received the Flor de las Antillas Maduro Torpedo to commemorate its 95th anniversary. A few months later, My Father Cigars brought the Flor de las Antillas Maduro to the 2016 IPCPR Trade Show and announced it was taking the line national. Today we take a look at the national release edition of the Flor de las Antillas Maduro Petit Robusto.

Flor de las Antillas is a brand that My Father Cigars launched back in 2012. It was released in the form of a sun-grown wrapped Nicaraguan puro. Since then, it has arguably become the most successful cigar in the history of My Father Cigars.

The Flor de las Antillas Maduro features an Ecuadorian Habano Maduro wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and filler. The national release of the Flor de las Antillas Maduro has five sizes  all box-pressed. The Petit Robusto and Torpedo, the two vitolas released for Federal Cigar return for the national release in the same sizes. One change with the national release is that the Flor de las Antillas Maduro receives a secondary band.

The tasting notes of the Flor de las Antillas Maduro Petit Robusto include cocoa, leather, earth, berry, and white pepper. Early on, I found the chocolate notes to be more prominent and to a lesser extent there was some sweetness from the berry notes. The second half of the notes saw the leather notes and white pepper become more prominent. At the same time, the berry and chocolate notes diminished and toward the latter stage of the smoke had all but dissipated.

The flavors of the Flor de las Antillas Maduro Petit Robusto started out medium-bodied and by the second half became medium to full-bodied. Strength-wise, I found the Petit Robusto started out medium, but by the last third moved to medium to full-bodied.

When I first smoked the Torpedo edition of the Flor de las Antillas Maduro, I found it to be a cigar best smoked undistracted as it allows one to really pick up the nuances of the blend. I found the same case with the Flor de las Antillas Maduro Petit Robusto. At the same time, I dont think this blend eclipses its Sun Grown counterpart. Still its a cigar I could recommend to an experienced cigar enthusiast or a novice looking to smoke something fuller. As for myself, I found it worthy of a fiver.

Summary

Key Flavors: Chocolate, Leather, White Pepper, Berry

Burn: Excellent

Draw: Excellent

Complexity: Medium

Strength: Medium (1st 2/3), Medium to Full (Last Third)

Body: Medium (1st Half), Medium to Full (Second Half)

Finish: Excellent

Rating

Assessment: 3.0-The Fiver

Score: 89

References

Previous Assessment: Flor de las Antillas Maduro Box Pressed Torpedo by My Father Cigars

News: My Father Cigars Takes Flor de Las Antillas Maduro National

Price: $7,40

Source: Purchased

Stogie Geeks Podcast: Episode 187

Stogie Feed: Flor de las Antillas Maduro Box Pressed Torpedo by My Father Cigars

Brand Reference: My Father

Photo Credit: Cigar Coop
For more than ten years, David Cameron was the dominant figure in British politics and for six of those, prime minister. He had won a majority in 2015, and the Labour Party had selected an opponent both far too left-wing and far too incompetent to be a real threat. Yet little more than a year after his election victory, there he was, standing with his wife outside 10 Downing Street, announcing his resignation. A few weeks later, Theresa May had taken over, and Cameron left Parliament altogether. What happened?

The story starts in 1972in fact, before then, as successive postwar British governments concluded that something had to be done to address the countrys relative economic decline. One obvious move would be to join the European Economic Community so as to be able to trade more freely with Britains continental neighbors. After several stumbles and blocks, in 1972, Tory prime minister Edward Heath finally took the country into the common market. And the cure worked. Or, at least, it didnt not work. After a few years, the British economy began to pick up. It eventually grew faster than Frances and Germanys.

There are all sorts of arguments about why this happened. Was this extra growth due to membership? The economic reforms put in place by Margaret Thatcher clearly contributed, but even if they were the only reason for improvement, it can certainly be said that the European community didnt prevent them. The least that can be said of membership is that it was consistent with faster economic growth.

Yet, right from the beginning, there was a problem with British membership. During the debates on whether to join and whether, in a 1975 referendum, to remain a member, the government reassured the public that the country would retain its independence. Loss of sovereignty would be limited because the community was primarily economic and, as a member, Britain could veto anything against its national interest. Yes, there were dreamers who wanted a United States of Europe, but we would be able to stop such a highly impractical plan. It turned out not to be so simple. Our veto was weaker than we had anticipated, and the dreamers more persistent and successful.

By 2016, the common market had become the European Union, boasting its own anthem, flag, passport, and parliament; its own foreign policy, trade policy, and president; and its own court and legal commitment to ever-closer union. The U.K. had managed to stay out of the Euro and out of the border-free area, which meant that it didnt have to allow entry to foreign, non-E.U. nationals just because they were in Europe. However, it was still subject to the E.U. policy of free movement of people. Any European citizen could come to the U.K. and claim benefits, essentially on the same basis as U.K. nationals.

Almost everyone on the center-right of British politics became a Eurosceptic. That is, they believed that the creation of a European state was both possible and dangerous. A hard, ultimately successful, fight was waged to keep the country out of the Euro. The idea that Britain should leave the E.U. was a minority position, at least among mainstream politicians. But the pressure for a referendum grew. When Europe created a constitution, Prime Minister Tony Blair thought the pressure sufficiently great that he promised a referendum on ratification. Then, safely re-elected, he withdrew the offer, arguing that the constitution was dead after the French rejected it, and that the Lisbon Treaty that replaced it was not the same thing (it basically was). Nick Clegg of the Liberal Democrats also thought the pressure for a referendum significant enough that he began calling for an in-out vote. When he got into power in the coalition in 2010, however, he never mentioned his offer again.

Cameron was in a different position. On his right flank was UKIP, a populist right-wing party concentrating on the E.U. and immigration. More important still, his own MPs had committed themselves to a referendumand wanted it. It became obvious to Cameron that eventually a vote would happen and that, after Lisbon, the vote would have to be an in-out referendum, since there were no new treaties to vote on. He believed that if he didnt hold it now, someone else would, and probably someone who wanted to leave the E.U., whichEurosceptic though he wasCameron didnt.

Given the E.U.s ambitions and failings, and the way he felt about it, why did Cameron want to remain? The first and most important reason was economic. If Britain left the E.U., it would almost certainly face not just tariff barriers, but also non-tariff ones. It would become much less attractive to inward investors looking to sell to the continent. The British financial-services industry, in particular, would be badly damaged.

Those who wanted to leave argued that Britains E.U. allies would keep trading on favorable terms, because it was good for them, too. Cameron thought this naive. The E.U. wouldnt concede to Britain as a departing member what it refused to concede had it stayed. In particular, the E.U. wouldnt let the U.K. limit free movement but remain in the single market. If it let one country do that, wouldnt everyone try for the same deal?

Yes, the E.U. would be worse off if Britain left and there was no trade deal in place, but it would only be damaging itself when selling to one country. Britain, on the other hand, would be damaging itself with 27 countries. The E.U. said this to Cameron. He believed them.

Diplomatically, Britain might also be harmed, cut off from its continental allies. And would the United States any longer see the U.K. as one of its bridges to Europe? Finally, Cameron worried that Brexit would harm Europe. It might lead either to the breakup of the E.U., or, more likely, to a more protectionist Europe. So he decided to seek reforms of the E.U. and put a reform package to the British people.

It was a reasonable calculation. But it ended in failure and in his resignation. Cameron had believed that the E.U. would have to make changes to accommodate the single currency crisis and that British changes would be subsumed in this bigger reform. This would make it easier to get a better, more radical change. In particular, he hoped that he might get serious changes to the policy on free movement of people.

Camerons hopes were dashed. He obtained essentially marginal (even if worthwhile) changes, and he wasnt able to use the reform package as a central part of his appeal in the referendum. He ended up arguing that the economic cost of leaving would be calamitous. Against this, the Leave campaign saidthat he was just speculating. Leaving would mean winning back controlof immigration and of the constitution. Without such control, how could Britain feel secure? And who knows who might become a member next, with rights of migration. Turkey? In any case, the U.K. could better spend the money it was giving to the E.U. on health care.

Given the popularity of these different arguments, it may be that the 48 percent scored by the Remain campaign was actually quite a respectable performance. Yet, to look purely at these arguments may be to miss the point. The country was deeply split between those who felt themselves connected to the global economy and gainers from it, and those who didnt. You might think of Britain as two countriesRemainia and Leavia. The former are younger, wealthier, and more educated; the latter have often left school at 16, hold worse jobs, or are retired.

The result produces a tension. Britain can thrive outside the E.U. if it uses its new control to become a freer, less regulated, and more open economy. That is certainly the hope of many of the free-market liberals who supported Brexit. Yet, many more of the voters that produced the result live in Leavia. They want greater protections for the country and their livelihoods. This makes Brexit hard to navigateand not just Brexit. This is a broader challenge. Capitalism has been exceptionally successful economically and, thus, politically. It has underpinned liberty and progress. What happens if people conclude that it isnt working for them?

Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images


A CNTVphoto.

BEIJING (PTI): China's first aircraft carrier has carried out exercises in the Yellow Sea, amid increasing tensions between Beijing and Washington over Taiwan and the disputed South China Sea.



A naval formation consisting of aircraft carrier Liaoning, several destroyers and frigates was on training and testing missions last week, state-run Xinhua news agency reported Saturday, quoting military officials.



The activities involved several J-15 carrier-borne jets and helicopters. J-15 is the new fighter jet being developed by China to operate from the deck of the carrier.



On Friday, several J-15 took off from the Liaoning, carrying out assignments including air refuelling and air confrontation in the Yellow Sea. The training was guided by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy Commander Wu Shengli.



The training "strengthened the synergy among different vessels in the formation and refined its overall capability," he said.



The training and tests were normal arrangements in accordance with annual plan made by the Navy.



Since it was commissioned in 2012, the Liaoning has been carrying out the training and tests steadily.



Prior to the latest training and tests, the formation held a live ammunition drill in the Bohai Sea, the coastal waters between China and the Korean peninsula.



China is publicising the exercises as it had heated exchanges with US President-elect Donald Trump over One-China policy after his unprecedented phone call with the Taiwanese President following which Beijing lodged a diplomatic protest.



Trump followed it up questioning the One-China policy that has been in practice for decades.



The exchanges were followed by China seizing a US unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) operated by an American survey ship in the disputed South China Sea, leading to protests from Washington and criticism from Trump.



China later returned it, saying its navy found this unidentified device and examined in a professional manner to verify it to prevent from causing harm to freedom of navigation.



On December 16, the carrier, a refitted vessel acquired from Ukraine and commissioned in 2012, conducted its maiden live fire drills on a massive scale along with a host of naval ships, aircraft and submarines.



Earlier reports said the aircraft carrier would be deployed in the disputed South China Sea when it is ready.



China has become more assertive over the South China Sea after an international tribunal struck down its claim over almost all of the area.



The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have counter claims over the South China Sea.



Besides Liaoning, China is currently building two more aircraft carriers.






DEHRADUN (PTI): Lt General Santosh Kumar Upadhya has been appointed as the new commandant of prestigious Indian Military Academy (IMA).



A decorated soldier, Lt General S K Upadhya is an alumni of National Defence Academy (NDA) and IMA.



In 1981, he was commissioned to the 13th Battalion of the Garhwal Rifles.



During a career spanning over three decades he has served in various capacities in military operational services in Sri Lanka, North East India, Jammu & Kashmir and Punjab, according to a press release issued by IMA.



He is a recipient of Sena Medal (Distinguished), Vishisht Seva Medal, Chief of Army Staff Commendation Card and GOC-in-C Commendation Card.



Apart from commanding his Battalion, a Brigade and a Division, he has held varied staff and instructional positions besides serving twice with the United Nations in Rwanda and Cote D'lvoire.






WASHINGTON (PTI): US President Barack Obama has signed into law the US$ 618 billion defence budget for 2017, which enhances security cooperation with India and conditions nearly half of the funding to Pakistan on a certification that it is taking demonstrable steps against the Haqqani network.



Currently vacationing in Hawaii, Obama signed the National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA) 2017 on December 23. The act asks Defence Secretary and Secretary of State to take steps necessary to recognise India as America's "major defence partner".



A summary of the bill released by Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee Senator John McCain said NDAA-2017 "enhances security cooperation" between the US and India.



It also asks the administration to designate an individual within the executive branch who has experience in defence acquisition and technology to reinforce and ensure, through inter-agency policy coordination, the success of the Framework for the US-India Defence Relationship; and to help resolve remaining issues impeding US-India defence trade, security cooperation, and co-production and co-development opportunities.



The NDAA, which among other things creates a US$ 1.2 billion Counter-ISIL Fund, imposes four conditions on Pakistan to be eligible for US$ 400 million of the US$ 900 million of the coalition support fund (CSF).



The US Defence Secretary needs to certify to the Congress that Pakistan continues to conduct military operations that are contributing to significantly disrupting the safe haven and freedom of movement of the Haqqani network in Pakistan and that Islamabad has taken steps to demonstrate its commitment to prevent the Haqqani network from using any of its territory as a safe haven.



Early this year, US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter refused to give a similar certification to Pakistan due to which it was not given US$ 300 million under coalition support fund.



In his signing statement, Obama did not mention to any of these provisions of the bill, but he did express disappointment over certain other provisions in NDAA-2017.



He said: "I remain deeply concerned about the Congress's use of the National Defence Authorisation Act to impose extensive organisational changes on the Department of Defence, disregarding the advice of the Department's senior civilian and uniformed leaders.



"The extensive changes in the bill are rushed, the consequences poorly understood, and they come at a particularly inappropriate time as we undertake a transition between administrations. These changes not only impose additional administrative burdens on the Department of Defence and make it less agile, but they also create additional bureaucracies and operational restrictions that generate inefficiencies at a time when we need to be more efficient."


Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 26/12/2016 (2138 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Filipino colleagues at a Brandon grocery store have made a Christmas tradition of their own.

They might as well, considering they feel like members of the same family.

Weve become like grandmothers or grandparents to their newborn kids, marvelled Ingrid Sian of the camaraderie between the approximately 50 Filipinos employed at the citys Superstore.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun Ingrid Sian speaks at a Christmas party for Superstores Filipino employees at West End Community Centre on Sunday. She said there were about five Filipino employees when she started at the grocery store in 2008 and now there are approximately 50 working.

Since we dont have our families from the Philippines here, we spend our Christmas with them, she added. Its like were a family.

Dozens of Filipinos have found employment at the citys Superstore, often through a referral from other members of the local Filipino community. For many, working at Superstore is their first job in Canada.

It helps that Sian, the meat manager, and her husband Nevi, the produce manager, are both Filipinos in charge of two departments. They have a say in who gets hired, and they know Filipinos are often up for the job.

We know how they work, theyre very hard-working.

When she started at Superstore in 2008, there were only about five Filipinos working, a total that has steadily increased as more Filipinos settle in the Wheat City.

These employees brought their families to a potluck feast on Sunday afternoon at the West End Community Centre. The guests played games and took part in a gift exchange.

Nevi said only one day really made sense for a Christmas party.

Because everybody isnt working on Christmas Day, so everybody can come, he said, laughing.

By hiring Filipinos, Nevi said he is honoured to give people new to Canada a helping hand.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun Nico Dupit, 8, left, and Jaizzen Caceres, right, play a game of rock, paper, scissors to compete for the final spot in a game of musical chairs during Sundays party.

When we got here, I was nothing, I had nothing, he said about when his family arrived in 2007. So I want to help them.

Bringing the stores Filipinos together for a Christmas party was the idea of Virgenia Tagay, a produce clerk. She said this was the second consecutive year this get-together has happened.

Its a good way to get to know each other, she said, not only in our jobs and our work, but our lives after work.

 ifroese@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @ianfroese
In secret, behind locked gates, our Nation's Oldest City dumped a landfill in a lake (Old City Reservoir), while emitting sewage in our rivers and salt marsh. Organized citizens exposed and defeated pollution, racism and cronyism. We elected a new Mayor. We're transforming our City -- advanced citizenship. Ask questions. Make disclosures. Demand answers. Be involved. Expect democracy. Report and expose corruption. Smile! Help enact a St. Augustine National Park and Seashore. We shall overcome!
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 26/12/2016 (2138 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Judy Harder didnt expect this knock on her door on Christmas Day.

Greeting her was a familiar face, a neighbour at the Kin Village seniors apartment complex in Brandon, and a stranger, Sandy Walter.

They came bearing a tray and paper bag, brimming with a hot turkey meal and a heaping of trimmings.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun Santa Claus poses for a photo with Gabriela Tolosa, 4, and her older brother Jonatan, 10, at the Westman and Area Traditional Christmas Dinner at the Victoria Inns Grand Salon on Sunday.

Harder beamed with delight.

She planned to place an order for one of the 3,500 free meals prepared for this years Westman and Area Traditional Christmas Dinner, but never got around to it.

Thanks to a thoughtful friend, she got that meal on Sunday.

I didnt really have anything, she told a visitor, and the food tastes so good.

For six hours on Christmas day, some 400 volunteers teamed up for what is one of Brandons most ambitious charitable ventures every year.

Approximately 1,500 meals were set to be delivered and another 2,000 meals served at Victoria Inns Grand Salon. The dinner was open to anyone who walked in.

The annual feast started humbly in 1985, when Rocky Addison, his family and friends served 30 people at a church he owned in downtown Brandon.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun Judy Harder happily opens her door at Kin Village in Brandon to find a free meal, courtesy of Westman and Area Traditional Christmas Dinner and volunteer Sandy Walter, left.

In the decades that followed, the supper has outgrown the church, the Prairie Oasis Senior Centre and the Keystone Centre before settling in a hotel ballroom.

The appreciation the guests show is what brings so many volunteers back, explained board chair Terry Browett.

Just seeing the fellowship and all the people that come every year, it means a lot to these people, he said.

It matters, too, to the men and women serving the hot dishes, driving around the city to make deliveries or labouring in the kitchen.

Ive got three kids and this is where they want to be now. The gifts arent as important to them  they want to be here at the dinner, he said.

Once you do it a couple times, you just get hooked into to seeing how happy everyone is.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun A beaming Minjia Cheng, 9, has another Christmas gift to unwrap. A present was set aside for each child after they had their meal at the Westman and Area Traditional Christmas Dinner at the Victoria Inns Grand Salon on Sunday.

The dinners main purpose is to ensure everybody has some company on Christmas Day.

That is the motto that drives Joan Reid, a 79-year-old who lives on her own after her husband passed away.

I enjoy sharing my time to make their Christmas a bit more comfortable, she said.

On cranberry duty, Reid arrived at 8:30 a.m. and expected to remain until the last meal was eaten before 6 p.m.

My feet are sore, but other than that Im OK, she said midway through her shift.

Its good to help people.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun Ricardo Soriano holds his five-month-old toddler Ethan as they wait in line to enter the ballroom for the Westman and Area Traditional Christmas Dinner.

Although nurturing a community for those without remains the dinners intention, many families, especially recent immigrants, have made attending the Traditional Christmas Dinner a highlight of their holiday.

Ricardo Soriano, originally from El Salvador, visited the Traditional Christmas Dinner for the first time on Sunday, alongside his five-month-old son Ethan.

Hes excited and Im happy to be here with him.

Darla Langston said it was her children, keen to peel potatoes on Dec. 25, who got her started volunteering maybe a dozen years ago.

Now those children are young adults who couldnt be home for Christmas, and their parents are volunteering in their stead.

I just dont believe anybody should be home alone on Christmas, she said.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun Morgan Ashcroft helps his son Case, 7, place a slice of ham on a plate during the Westman and Area Traditional Christmas Dinner.

Organizers prepared 40 litres of gravy to pour over 1,200 pounds of turkey and 1,000 pounds of potatoes. There were also hundreds of loaves of bread and many pounds of vegetables and coleslaw set aside.

 ifroese@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @ianfroese
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A peak pilot association has warned of the serious consequences of pointing beams at aircraft after a laser was fired at a Virgin flight attempting to land at Canberra Airport.

A Canberra Airport spokeswoman said the Sydney-Canberra flight was landing at about 9.30pm last Wednesday when the pilot reported an interference caused by a laser beam about 13 kilometres south of the capital.

The plane was landing at Canberra Airport on Wednesday when the laser was fired. Credit:Jay Cronan

She said no one was injured and the incident did not cause any technical issues.

Airservices Australia confirmed air traffic controllers alerted police to the laser attack, which is believed to have stemmed from around Lake Jerrabomberra.
Pokemon Go trumped the president-elect of the United States when it came to the topics Canberrans Googled in the past 12 months.

Google Trends offers the interested two metrics for most searched terms: top and rising. Top tracks the most popular topics, while rising reveals related topics with the biggest search increase.

Canberrans Googled Pokemon Go in increasing numbers in 2016. Credit:Brendan Thorne

Pokemon Go, a location-based mobile phone game, recorded the highest increase in search frequency for the ACT.

The virtual reality game invites players to catch Pokemon "in the real world" and was hugely popular upon its release in July.
Police are investigating a hit and run in Spence on Saturday December 17, which left a man with non-life-threatening injuries.

The incident occurred a week after a 13-year-old girl was seriously injured when a car hit her and then fled the scene without stopping in the nearby suburb of Florey.

About 11.30pm on December 17, a vehicle allegedly crashed into a man walking through the intersection of Owen Dixon Drive and Clarey Crescent in the Belconnen suburb, and then drove off.

Police say two people nearby heard the incident and helped the man, before the ACT Ambulance Service attended and treated him for non-life-threatening injuries.

"ACT Policing's Collision Investigation and Reconstruction Team is investigating and urge the driver of the vehicle to come forward by calling ACT Policing on 131-444 or attending any ACT Police Station," an ACT Policing statement read.
If the much discussed departure of Corey Bernardi and Geroge Christensen from the Liberal Party comes to pass in the New Year, the edifice of Malcolm Turnbull's authority and leadership will crumble further. The government's already limited ability to pass legislation will be further compromised, and any hopes it may leave a legacy of meaningful economic reform will be extinguished.

While Mr Turnbull will be blamed by Tony Abbott and Eric Abetz for failing to prevent the split, there may be a silver lining to the departure of Messrs Bernardi and Christensen. The Prime Minister would be rid of two backbenchers who never miss an opportunity to run him or his policies down, regardless of the impression of disunity that this conveys to voters. And though both might try to extract concessions from the Coaliton, it's unlikely they they'd switch their support to Labor if rebuffed.

The more intriguing aspect of this pending betrayal is just how successful it might be in catching the wave of enthusiasm for political conservatives that's swept the US and Europe in the past two or three years. The Palmer United Party's success in 2013 (and of Pauline Hanson's One Nation in 2016) suggests a sizable segment of the Australian electorate yearns for plain-spoken politicians, too, whether they hail from the centre or the centre-right. Indeed, anyone who noisily stands apart from the major parties, but does so reasonably articulately, now has a sporting chance of gaining sufficient votes to qualify for public funding, if not of getting into Parliament.

Senator Bernardi's talent for having his voice heard is not in doubt, though his appeal may derive more from the media's fixation with political conflict and division than for the novelty of his pronouncements. His are standard conservative/libertarian values: a belief in "traditional values" and limited government, a dislike of the political trendy left, and a desire to restore commonsense and "make Australia great again".
Despite not knowing exactly what he was photographing, Texan tourist Dan Logsdon couldn't help but snap pictures of this sweet echidna waddling along Shelly Beach near Manly on Friday.

Canberra woman Susan Parsons and friend Gillian Richmond explained the monotreme to their American friend over lunch the same day.

Tourists delighted in a visit from an echidna on Shelly Beach near Manly on Friday. Credit:Dan Logsdon

"He said 'What was this thing I've seen?'," Ms Parsons said.

"When he found out it was something quite unusual he was thrilled to bits then wanted to know more about it."
These preserved specimens of night parrot are more than 100 years old and are still used to study the bird's physiology. Credit:Michael Kearney "A budgerigar, if you keep it in your house at room temperature, wouldn't need to drink much water if at all, because they're getting all the water they need from the little bit of water in dry seed," he said. "Birds can get away with drinking very little water, but when it gets hot, they have to evaporate water to cool, just like humans do." Pullen Pullen reserve in western Queensland is home to one of the two known populations of night parrot. Credit:Annette Ruzicka The problem was, as it always is when studying the night parrot, the populations hidden in the Queensland outback were too small to conduct invasive research on the birds.

"We got to do some measurements on the bird, but what I mostly did was assume they had a physiology like the budgerigar," Dr Kearney said. The night parrot in its usual habitat, a spinifex nest Credit:Justin McManus "I made them into a fat budgie in a sense, the budgerigar is very well studied and so we basically took aspects of them that were known and scaled them up. "I also went to the museum in Victoria and very carefully measured characteristics of the feathers of the three very old specimens from the late 1800s." Pullen Pullen reserve in western Queensland. Credit:Annette Ruzicka

It is thought predators are the big concern for the night parrot but, controlling the numbers may not matter if the place they live is uninhabitable through degradation of climate. "Based on history of temperatures at the site, there will be hot days that they really will need to get a drink, even if they are able to find succulent foods," he said. "One other thing we measured with the night parrot in their habitat was the temperature in the bushes they hide in, spinifex. While they are quite shady, the temperatures the bushes get up to in the big bushes get to well over 45 degrees. "Once the air temperature gets above 38 to 40 degrees the water loss goes really fast. It doesn't take much of a shift above 40 or so degrees to really ramp up the water loss." This means only a few degrees change in the air temperature, as is expected over the next 50 years with climate change, will have a big impact on the bird's drinking habits.

With the need to find water sources comes a vulnerability to predators that stake out the waterholes. "It was actually quite shocking to recompute what we've calculated for the last 20 years and project that to 2070. It really made it dangerously hot for the birds at the site," Dr Kearney said. "It was a bit depressing to make that calculation, but one thing that we don't know is to what extent they will go down into even more buffered places like down little burrows, which may exist under the spinifex." Dr Kearney's research suggests the parrot may move lower into the ground, in burrows and caves that are common in the landscape, unfortunately for the bird, that is also where predators such as cats and foxes hide. Population control of the introduced predators such as cats and foxes is already in place and may need to be more targeted in the future.
A 60-year-old grandfather from Grafton has drowned after attempting to save two girls who were caught in a rip at a beach north of Coffs Harbour.

News Corp reported the tragedy occurred when the man went to the rescue of his granddaughters who were caught in a flash rip, 25 metres north of the flags at Wooli Beach at 1.15pm on Monday.

Two lifeguards from the Australian Lifeguard Service saw them in difficult and assisted. The children were pulled to safety, but the man was pulled from the water "in cardiac arrest," according to paramedic Rick Knox.

The lifeguards performed CPR and a defibrillator used.
A young girl has died while her twin brother remains in hospital in critical condition after having been pulled from a backyard pool in northwest Sydney last week, according to NSW police.

Toddlers Robbi and Charli Manago, 23 months old, were found unconscious in the pool of their home on Charbel Place, Kellyville Ridge about 7pm on December 20.

The twins, pictured last Christmas, were found unconscious in a pool in Kellyville Ridge. Credit:Facebook

Neighbours performed CPR on the siblings until police and NSW Ambulance paramedics arrived at the house. Two rescue helicopters landed at a nearby park and were on standby to fly the children to hospital.

The twins were rushed to The Children's Hospital at Westmead in separate ambulances with police escorts, where their parents, Fleur and Robert, stayed at their bedsides.
A Queensland team is among five finalists in a US contest to find ways to fight "dead zones" in bodies of water.

The team from AgDNA, a Brisbane-based agricultural data company, is the only non-US group competing for the $US1 million ($A1.4 million) prize.

Fertiliser that finds its way into large bodies of water can cause "dead zones" where there's not enough oxygen to support life.

The contest aims to find ways to counter areas where water holds too little oxygen to support life. There are hundreds of such areas worldwide.

The contest is aimed at finding ways to keep fertiliser in the ground, so it doesn't get into rivers. Waterways carry the nutrients to lakes or coastal areas, where they feed blooms of one-celled plants and animals. Those die, fall to the bottom and decompose, using up oxygen from the bottom up.
The alleged drunk driver who hit a nine-year-old boy in Brisbane's south on Sunday is still being questioned by police.

Investigations into the crash by the Forensic Crash Unit are continuing, and the boy remains in a critical condition at Lady Cilento Children's Hospital.

It was understood the boy was walking with his family, looking at Christmas lights, before the crash occurred about 7.20pm on Christmas night.

Police said the 24-year-old driver failed to negotiate a turn in Springwood, crashing into a parked car and then hitting the boy.
Two men have been charged after the shooting of two men on the Gold Coast on Monday afternoon.

Two men were taken to hospital with non-life threatening gunshot wounds after police were called to an addresss at Old Wharf Road, Pimpama, about 5.15pm following reports a man had been shot.

Two men have been charged after two men were shot on the Gold Coast. Credit:Glenn Hunt

According to the Queensland Ambulance Service, a 24-year-old man was taken to Gold Coast University Hospital in a stable conditions with injuries to his face and chest, and a 58-year-old man was taken to the Princess Alexandra Hospital with injuries to the chest and groin.

Police allege there was a fight between the men and another two men and a woman at the Old Wharf Road address.
The reviews are in, and for the first time, has not awarded recommended ratings for MacBooks.

The latest batch of MacBook Pro laptops exhibited "battery life results (that) were highly inconsistent from one trial to the next," the magazine said in a review published last week.

Apple's 2016 MacBook Pro line-up: Two 13-inch models and a 15-inch. Consumer Reports found all three lacking in the battery department.

Some consumers have griped about battery life in the three new models that went on sale last month, and Consumer Reports' trials bear that out: the longevity of the batteries lasted anywhere from 3.75 hours to 19.5 hours.

"Battery life is an important attribute for a laptop, and it it represents a significant portion of our overall score," reviewer Jerry Beilinson wrote. "After factoring together our complete test results, Consumer Reports finds that all three MacBook Pro laptops fail to meet our standards for recommended models."
Helicopter patrols have been monitoring Victoria's south-west coast and one beach has been closed after more than 30 sharks were spotted in the area.

A Life Saving Victoria helicopter sighted 12 sharks west of Anglesea and up to 20 sharks at nearby Fairhaven on Christmas Day.

The sharks ranged between 1.5 metres and 3.5 metres long.
Residents of an apartment block on Hoddle Street were evacuated by firefighters after a two-storey brick building caught fire in suspicious circumstances late on Christmas night.

Firefighters rushed to evacuate the residents, responding within five minutes after calls to report the blaze around 11.30pm on Sunday.

A firefighter investigates the Hoddle Street structure on Christmas night. Credit:Patrick Herve

Twenty people were evacuated with some residents assisted out by firefighters in breathing apparatus.

It took crews 35 minutes to get the blaze, which was contained to a single unit, under control.
Jerusalem: For years, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has played a double act, competing domestically with his right-wing rivals in backing the settlement project all over the Israeli-occupied West Bank while professing support for a two-state solution with the Palestinians.

Now, with the stinging United Nations Security Council resolution on Friday condemning Israeli settlement construction as lacking any legal validity, Israeli politicians and analysts on the right, the left and in the political centre say Netanyahu's game may soon be up.

The Israeli right, feeling empowered by the advent of the Trump administration, which is expected to be more sympathetic to Israeli's current policies, is pushing Netanyahu to abandon the idea of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, long considered the only viable solution to the conflict.

Naftali Bennett, the leader of the pro-settlement Jewish Home party in Netanyahu's governing coalition, with whom the prime minister and his Likud Party compete for votes, is goading him to take on more extreme positions like annexing parts of the West Bank, adding to a sense in Israel that the real Netanyahu may have to stand up and decide which side he is on.
Sheriff

Dec. 23

3:24 a.m. - North of Eighth Street, Mark A. Harsh, of Columbus, jailed for DUI.

1:33 p.m. - In the 4000 block of Highway 30, Christine Cerny, of Schuyler, cited for failing to yield.

Dec. 24

12:15 a.m. - At 23rd Street and 10th Avenue, traffic accident. Eulalia Juarez-Diego, of Schuyler, cited for careless driving.

2:34 p.m. - At 233rd Street and 370th Avenue, Chance Lienemann, of Grand Island, cited for speeding.

4:36 p.m. - At 18th Avenue and 83rd Street, Antonio Magana, of Columbus, jailed on driving under suspension, cited for possession of less than one ounce of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.

10:16 p.m. - At 23rd Street and Sixth Avenue, Herbert C. Fajardo-Carrillo, of Schuyler, cited for speeding.

Dec. 25

7:33 p.m. - In Monroe, theft of $48.61-worth of gas.

11:07 p.m. - In Leigh, one-vehicle ATV accident. Driver transported by Leigh rescue to Columbus Community Hospital.

Fire

Dec. 23

1:35 p.m. - In the 4000 block of East 23rd Street, traffic accident. One patient transported.

5:29 p.m. - In the 100 block of 13th Avenue, medical.

7:22 p.m. - In the 1500 block of 14th Avenue, traffic accident. One patient transported.

Dec. 24

8:58 a.m. - In the 1200 block of 30th Avenue, medical.

9:20 a.m. - In the 2600 block of Ninth Street, medical.

11:14 a.m. - In the 1300 block of Eighth Street, medical, no transport.

8:16 p.m. - In the 3300 block of 28th Street, medical.

Dec. 25

6:27 p.m. - In the 1300 block of Eighth Street, medical.

7:17 p.m. - In the 600 block of 23rd Street, alarm activation.
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Gertrude O'Leary was a popular woman in Bristol, known as a hard worker running a pub before a shop in the Stokes Croft area of the city.

So when the 66-year-old failed to open up her Thomas Street off-licence on June 30, 1949, one of her customers immediately knew something was wrong.

Fred Dibble had popped in for a few bottles of beer, but began to grow concerned. He immediately noticed, unusually, the door to the off-licence yard and her living quarters were both open.

Mr Dibble popped his head around the door asking: "Gert, are you there?".

But there was no reply. Sensing something was wrong he rang the police.

And when the officers arrived, they found the former landlady of The Bell in Hillgrove Street dead on the floor - having been hit over the head with a beer flagon and strangled with a cord.

Police described the scene as a "shambles". Papers had been thrown out of ransacked drawers and scattered around her body.

(Image: Bristol Evening Post archive)

The post mortem examination found that Miss O'Leary, who was known for supporting animal charities, had died from shock.

And gone from Miss O'Leary's home were a few of her prize possessions  including a nine carrat gold watch and pendant.

Hours after Detective Superintendent Phillips had been promoted to that position; he assembled a team of detectives and began investigating the brutal murder of the well-liked shop keeper.

House-to-house inquiries threw up lines of inquiry for the detectives and several clues to Miss O'Leary's killer. But nearly 70 years later, it is a murder mystery that still hasn't been solved.

The Bristol Evening Post reported at the time how police had a big break when blood stained flannel trousers and a shirt were discovered at a workingmen's boarding house not too far from the crime scene - but that did not help detectives.

What they managed to piece together was that Roman Catholic Miss O'Leary, who played the piano where she worshiped at St Mary's Church, was last seen alive by her friend Mabel Long. She had visited at around 2.30pm on the day Miss O'Leary was killed.

(Image: Western Daily Press archive)

In nearby Dalton Square, Mrs Metcalfe had looked out of her window and saw her elderly neighbour, Mrs Brown, talking to someone described as "disreputable looking man" at the time.

Concerned for Mrs Brown she shouted out of her window and was told the man was looking for lodgings.

The women directed him to Stokes Croft  and thought nothing more of the conversation until they heard of Miss O'Leary's violent end.

Another of Miss O'Leary's neighbours, Elizabeth Sealey, reported hearing a "stifling scream" at around 3pm the day of the murder. She also described a man wearing a trilby hat leaving the off-licence afterwards.

And Mrs Metcalfe's description of the "disreputable looking man" also had him wearing an old-looking trilby hat. She said the stranger was aged around 45, about 5ft 3in, slim and wearing a dirty mackintosh, old grey trousers and the hat.

Despite a large scale investigation by police - which even saw detectives from Scotland Yard drawn in - the mystery of the man in the trilby was never solved and to this day it is unclear who he was.

But as police knocked on more doors, more reports of "suspicious strangers" came in.

Pat Fowler, another Dalton Square resident, said she had been in the shop a few days before the murder when a man was in there.

Miss Fowler said Miss O'Leary, who had run a pub with her sister up until 1940, seemed nervous of him and said she 'did not like the look of him". He was also described as "shabbily dressed".

(Image: Western Daily Press archive)

Whether he was the same man as the one wearing a trilby still isn't clear and the mystery man, or men, remain unknown.

The only other big lead for police came when a man drinking in a cafe in North Somerset was said to be discussing the murder just hours after it had happened - before it was known about publicly.

He told others in the tea shop he had been outside when the murder happened, but police never managed to track him and it just proved to be another dead end in the enquiry.

But police must have thought they had a breakthrough at one point as months after the killing, a waiter in Torquay, Devon, was arrested on suspicion of her murder.

But he managed to prove he was working at the time of the killing and sued the police for 50 for wrongful arrest at the time.

So nearly 67 years later  and with the killer probably no longer alive  there was never any justice for Miss O'Leary.

And the man with the trilby hat may well have gotten away with murder.

But the brutal attack and burglary at the off-licence have not been forgotten and the case is still listed as an ongoing unsolved murder on Avon and Somerset police's books.

Anyone with information about this inquiry or any of Bristol's unsolved murders can contact Detective Sergeant Pete Frake in the Major Crime Review Team on 101.
World Series collides with TNF: Both feature Philly, Houston teams

Thursday will mark the seventh time a World Series game and NFL game involving teams from the same two cities will play on the same day.
Yardley Friends Meeting at 65 N. Main Street in Yardley will host the documentary Organic Roots on Friday, November 18 at 7 p.m. Join director Al Johnson for a showing of this film followed by a discussion of the last 50 years of this movement. Organic foods are part of our life today and a tool in our concern for...
FBI has 'credible information' about 'broad threat' to NJ synagogues

Law enforcement agencies as well as synagogues across the state increased security and patrols Thursday, after alerts from the FBI.
LINCOLN  Online retailer Amazon plans to start collecting sales taxes on purchases in Nebraska on Jan. 1, the company announced Friday.

The decision could generate millions of dollars in additional tax revenue for the state, although precise estimates aren't yet available.

State Tax Commissioner Tony Fulton said the announcement will help ensure Nebraska consumers comply with existing laws. Consumers already are legally required to report and pay the tax through their annual tax returns, but few ever do.

Fulton said Amazon's move is "exhibiting responsible corporate citizenship" and creating a chance to educate Nebraska residents about the law.

"The tax is owed. So their announcement will just help Nebraskans to comply with the existing law," Fulton said.

Fulton said the Nebraska Department of Revenue will work on an estimate to see how much revenue the collections might generate.

The news follows a similar announcement by Amazon in Iowa, as more states push to collect taxes on internet purchases. Under current law, Internet retailers are not required to collect sales taxes on purchases from a state unless they have a physical presence in that state, such as a retail store or warehouse.

The policy bothers brick-and-mortar retailers, who say it creates unfair competition because they're required to collect the tax.
George Michael, the creamy-voiced English songwriter who sold tens of millions of albums in the duo Wham! and on his own, died on Sunday at his home in Goring in Oxfordshire, England. He was 53.
After the likes of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi and JNU, mobile wallet player is now in talks with the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A) for digital payments on campus, as part of its 'cashless campus' program.

The move comes at a time when the premier B-school has also announced its own plans to become a cashless campus. has been upping the ante on both the institutional tie-up as well as small retail front.
When Ratan Tata retired as chairman of Tata Sons Ltd in 2012, he proposed a change in the laws governing the relationship between India's largest conglomerate and its key shareholder, according to sources familiar with the situation.
Having fulfilled the commitment of returning land to the farmers of Singur, the West Bengal government is planning to auction the metal scrap and car sheds of Tata Motors lying at the stackyard in Singur, Hooghly.
German automaker will recall 1,93,611 cars in China over a defect in their airbags, a quality watchdog in Beijing said on Monday.

About 1,68,861 imported cars manufactured between December 9, 2005 and December 23, 2011 as well as 2,4,750 sedans made between July 12, 2005 and December 31, 2011 will be recalled from August 1, 2017, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said.

When the driver and front passenger airbags of the affected vehicles inflate, the gas generators inside may become damaged and cause flying debris, posing safety risks to passengers, the statement said.

has promised to replace the defective parts free of charge, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
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OMAHA  The death penalty has again been voted the top Nebraska story of the year by newspaper and broadcast members of The Associated Press and AP staffers.

Nebraska voters reinstated the death penalty on Nov. 8 when they overturned the Legislature's decision last year to abolish capital punishment. The Legislature's action topped the AP list for 2015.

Critics of capital punishment say it's unlikely the state soon will execute any of the 10 men on death row. The state has had difficulty obtaining the drugs necessary, and any procedural changes contemplated likely will face legal challenges.

Here's a look at the other top-10 stories:

Sam Foltz

Nebraska punter Sam Foltz was killed along with former Michigan State punter Mike Sadler in a single-vehicle crash in Wisconsin on July 23. Nebraska opponents memorialized Foltz each game, home and away, and the Cornhuskers' senior day included his parents and a touching video tribute.

Cabela's sale

Cabela's announced in October that it will sell itself to rival outdoor gear seller Bass Pro for $4.5 billion. The deal is expected to close sometime next year, but it's not yet clear how many jobs will be lost in Cabela's hometown of Sidney, where the company employs about 2,000 people.

Toddler death

A 2-year-old western Omaha boy was killed when he was attacked by an alligator in Florida. The animal snatched Lane Graves as he waded in shallow water at a Disney resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, on June 14.

Prison problems

Despite new steps toward improvement, Nebraska's system continued to struggle with overcrowding, staffing shortages and a persistent lack of mental health and treatment services for inmates. Director Scott Frakes announced he will request a $15.6 million budget increase to reduce worker shortages and turnover when lawmakers convene next year.

Beatrice 6

Six people wrongfully convicted in the 1985 rape and killing of a Beatrice woman were awarded $28.1 million. Gage County has since appealed the award as officials scrambled for ways to pay it. Bankruptcy has been mentioned among the possibilities.

Sex scandal

Finishing seventh in the voting was the cybersex scandal involving state Sen. Bill Kintner. He paid a $1,000 fine levied by the state accountability board but refused to resign after admitting having cybersex on a state computer with a woman who later tried to blackmail him. The married, outspoken lawmaker vowed to stay in office despite pressure from Gov. Pete Ricketts, threats of impeachment and public ridicule by Sen. Ernie Chambers.

Electoral shake-up

Nearly half a dozen incumbents lost their seats, an outcome that surprised many longtime observers around the Capitol. Five sitting senators who faced challengers were defeated in the Nov. 8 general election, and one appointed state senator lost her seat in the May primary. Ricketts played a more active role in the races than his predecessors, donating tens of thousands of dollars of his own money to candidates.

Tourism commission

A blistering state audit found questionable spending and a lack of oversight within the Nebraska Tourism Commission. Kathy McKillip, the agency's director, was suspended with pay after auditors reported problems that included the commission running $4.4 million over budget in three years with an advertising firm's contract. McKillip was eventually fired.

Budget woes

The budget woes facing the Legislature and governor finished 10th on the list. Ricketts ordered agencies to restrict their spending as state revenue fell short of expectations. Ricketts and lawmakers will face a nearly $1 billion projected shortfall for the budget they're required to balance in next year's session.
Kolkata-based Infinity Group is set to build a Rs 4,000-crore Education City in Bhutan, and has formed a joint venture with Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Limited for this.

At 8,000 ft above sea level, this might well be the first project at such an elevation.

The 1,000-acre project plot is placed between capital Thimphu and Paro, where the countrys lone airport is located. The land acquisition is complete and the work should start in sometime. We have formed a 50:50 JV with ILFS for the same and the whole project would see an investment of around Rs 4,000 crore, Ravindra Chamaria, group chairman, told Business Standard.

It is also in talks with the leading universities of the UK, US and Australia, who have shown interest to set up their campuses in the world's youngest democracy.

"The talks are on with these institutions at various levels with some world renowned universities. But the details are yet to be worked out to announce those names, he said adding that the 600-year independent school of UK ?Durham School?which entered India on Thursday is likely to set up campus there.

This would be a real boost and one of the big investments to be made in Bhutan, which is leaving no stone unturned to attract foreign investment. The country has been keen to rope in investors especially after a survey was carried out by the World Bank in 2011, called the investment climate assessment not very 'investment friendly' and that access to finance was one major constraint.

The World Bank survey pointed out lack of infrastructure as a major reason for poor performance in the investments despite scoring on political stability. Bhutan's foreign direct investment flow was only $120m in 2010, according to the report.

Chamaria pointed out that the funds required for the mega project have come from internal accrual and there was no plan for private equity placement to feed the expansion needs.
American fast-food chains have become an unlikely source of female employment and empowerment in India, a country where traditionally most women are kept from working outside the home.
Rising spot prices of liquefied natural gas (LNG) could spoil the party for Petronet LNG, which has been a favourite of the Street after delivering healthy volumes in the September quarter. That spot LNG prices are trading closer to two-year high levels could weigh on LNG demand in India, say analysts. This, in turn, could impact Petronets volumes as well as financial performance going ahead. Rising LNG prices reduces its competitiveness versus other fuels such as naphtha. In fact, high prices have already started hitting consumption demand. LNG consumption from the power sector, for instance, declined 41 per cent on a month-on-month basis in October.
Six persons have been arrested for allegedly stealing 38 from a shipment of 140 and replacing those with tiles in southeast Delhi's Okhla area, police said today.

Sandeep Sharma, manager of a cargo company, told police that on December 5, a total of 140 were loaded in a vehicle from Okhla for transportation to the firm's warehouse in Gurgaon, Romil Baaniya, DCP(southeast), said.

"On checking, 38 were found stolen and those were replaced with tiles affixed in an iron cabinet," the officer said.

During investigation police suspected insider role in the theft and questioned Aadesh Kumar, the driver of the vehicle.

"During interrogation, he confessed to his involvement in the crime and was arrested. He also led police to four of his accomplices," Baaniya said.

Aadesh Kumar, Shailender Kumar, Subodh Rai, Mithun Kumar and Sanoj Kumar were arrested, while the sixth accused Jayesh Nanji Desai was arrested from Mumbai today, the officer said, adding 28 laptops with chargers were recovered along with 12 sets of stone tiles.

It was also revealed that another accomplice, Jayesh Patel had come to Delhi from Mumbai a few days back and it was then the plan to steal the laptops was hatched, he said.

According to their plan, Mithun Kumar and Shailender Kumar, who worked in the cargo company, loaded the laptop boxes in the vehicle driven by Aadesh Kumar. Mithun Kumar put a dummy seal on the back door. Later, Aadesh parked his vehicle in a backlane near the warehouse.

They removed the seal from the door and stole 38 laptops and chargers replacing those with tiles affixed in an iron cabinet. After the incident, Jayesh took 10 laptops with him and left for Mumbai the next day, the police officer said.
Former Indian Air Force chief , , accused of receiving kickbacks in AgustaWestland helicopter deal, was granted bail on Monday in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam case.

Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted the relief to Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh and one surety of like amount.



The court, however, imposed certain conditions on the accused and asked him not to try to influence the witnesses and hamper the probe.



The bail applications of other two accused - Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan - are pending before the court which said it will decide both the pleas on January 4.



During the hearing of the bail plea, SP Tyagi's advocate Maneka Guruswamy had said that her client "could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".



She had claimed before the court that in the last four years since the FIR was registered, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.



Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".



"We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding that the matter has "tarnished country's name".



On the court's query whether the CBI had any material regarding receiving money, the agency told the court that the former IAF chief had purchased several properties for which the sources of income were not disclosed by him and alleged that he had abused his official position.



Advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, counsel for Khaitan, had also countered CBI's argument, claiming that the agency was trying to sensationalise the matter and there was no allegation that his client had not joined the probe or tried to influence it.



Sanjeev Tyagi's counsel Manav Gupta also opposed CBI's contention saying there was no reason to claim that if granted the relief, his client would hamper the probe.



The accused sought bail on the grounds that the evidence was documentary in nature and had already been seized by CBI and they have cooperated with the probe agency.



The court had on December 17 sent all the three accused to judicial custody till December 30.



71-year old Tyagi, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by the agency in connection with the case. The case relates to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime.



The accused have alleged that the "CBI was trying to extract the confession using force". The defence counsel had also claimed that there was no apprehension of them fleeing from justice or tampering with evidence.



The CBI had said it was a "very serious" and "a very high-profile" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as the "interest of the nation was compromised".



It had submitted that "one part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land."



Tyagi's counsel had earlier claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office (PMO) was also a part of it.
Pakistan on Sunday released 220 Indian fishermen held for allegedly violating territorial waters, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted counterpart Nawaz Sharif on his birthday, goodwill gestures that came despite strained ties over cross-border terror incidents.

Modi took to Twitter to greet Sharif, a year after he made an unscheduled stopover in Lahore to meet the Pakistani leader on his birthday.

Pakistan responded by releasing the 220 fishermen lodged in Malir jail in Karachi, in what may seem a reciprocal gesture notwithstanding the severe chill in ties after a year of violence, tension and mistrust.

The fishermen were released in a "goodwill" gesture, Jail superintendent Hassan Sehto said.

They were arrested for allegedly entering Pakistan's territorial waters illegally and fishing, Sehto said.

"We have released 220 Indian fishermen today and they will be handed over to Indian officials at Wagah border.

"The interior ministry ordered the release of the 220 fishermen while 219 are still in our custody," Sehto said.

The fishermen boarded a train to Lahore and are expected to cross the border on Monday, he added.

The development comes amid strain in ties between the two countries after Pakistan-based terrorists attacked an Indian army base in Uri in September.

Pakistan and India frequently arrest each others' fishermen for violating the territorial boundary. They spent months and sometimes years in jails before being repatriated.

Last week, the Pakistan fishermen forum claimed that Indian maritime authorities had picked up dozens of Pakistani fishermen from inside Pakistan's territorial waters near the Gujarat coastline and taken them away, though the government has not responded to the claim so far.
At least 40 pilgrims were injured, three of them seriously, in a stampede at the Sabarimala temple on Sunday night after a barricade gave way in the huge rush, authorities said.

State Devasom Minister Kadakampally Surendran said that the situation has been brought under control.

"All the medical attention is being given to the injured and the situation is fully under control," Surendran told reporters at the temple.

According to the temple authorities, with Monday being a key day in the two-month-long Sabarimala festival, there was an unprecedented rush of devotees on Sunday and the incident occurred when the sanctum santorum of the temple was opened late Sunday evening.

To control the crowd, police had set up barricades but on account of the huge rush, the barricade broke and caused a stampede, in which the pilgrims got injured.

The temple authorities swung into action and the injured were moved to the local hospital while the three who suffered serious injuries have been moved to the Kottayam Medical College hospital.
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2016 can be summed up as a year when the Law Ministry came under constant fire of outgoing Chief Justice of India TS Thakur for rising vacancies in the higher judiciary even as its efforts to finalise a document to guide appointments in high courts and the Supreme Court failed to get finalised.

On its part, the ministry appointed 126 judges this year, the highest number in the past several years.

On April 24, those present at the inauguration of the Chief Ministers-Chief Justices conference were shocked to see Justice Thakur in tears in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The CJI lamented government's "inaction" in raising the number of judges from 21,000 to 40,000 to handle mounting cases, saying, "you cannot shift the entire burden on the judiciary".

"Nothing moves", an unusually emotional Thakur said, recalling a 1987 Law Commission recommendation to increase the number of judges from then 10 judges per 10 lakh people to 50.

Days after Justice Thakur had quoted the Law Commission recommendation on judge-population ratio, the then Law Minister DV Sadananda Gowda said the report was not based on scientific data.

At the conference, it was decided that an extraordinary provision of the Constitution would be used to appoint retired high court judges in high courts to help bring down rising pendency of cases.

But days after the Law Ministry approved the minutes of the conference, it told a Parliamentary committee that there is no mechanism in place to deal with complaints against retired judges.

As of now, names of 18 retired judges from six high courts for re-appointment are pending with the government.

Another major point of confrontation was the decision of the government to return the names of 43 candidates for appointment as high court judges to the Supreme Court collegium.

Out of the 43 names, the collegium reiterated the names of 37, deferred three proposals while three other names are still with it.

On November 18, the Supreme Court had informed the government that it had reiterated every one of the 43 names that was sent back by the government to the collegium for re-consideration.

But Minister of State for Law PP Chaudhary told the Lok Sabha in a written reply that the collegium has reiterated its recommendation for 37 candidates only.

The main sticking point between the government and the judiciary remained the finalisation of memorandum of procedure -- a document which will guide future appointment of judges to the Supreme Court and the 24 high courts.

While the Supreme Court collegium rejected the first draft, the second draft sent to it in August is still pending. A decision is now expected after Jagdish Singh Khehar takes over as the CJI on January 4.

The decision of the government to refer the controversial uniform civil code matter to the Law Commission to see whether it can be implemented is another issue which kept the Law Ministry in the limelight.

Amid voices of protest and support, the Law Commission sought views of the public on the common code and triple talaq. Till December 22, it had received over 40,000 responses.
Over Rs 35 lakh cash in new Rs 2,000 notes and 2.5 kg gold have been seized from six persons at Panvel near Mumbai, police said on Sunday.

Acting on a tip-off, Navi Mumbai police on Saturday night nabbed the six from Adesh circle in Panvel, a senior police officer said.

A vehicle carrying six persons was intercepted. During the checking, two of the occupants, Devram Solanki and Kumaram Choudhury, were found in possession of over Rs 35 lakh cash in Rs 2,000 notes, he said.

The duo, both residents of Navi Mumbai, claimed that they run a general store and the money belongs to them, the official added.

The other four, Nanaji Matkare, Raghunath Mohite, Santosh Pawar and Suryakant Kande, were carrying gold biscuits weighing 2.5 kg, he said, adding they are residents of Pune and claimed to be working for jewellery stores.

All the six persons have been handed over to the income tax department for further investigation, he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday congratulated Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) scientists for successful test-firing of the Agni-V missile, and said the new system will add "tremendous strength" to India's strategic defence.
The Congress party on Monday reiterated its demand for a thorough probe into the bribery allegations against all those named in the including its own party members.

Substantiating Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi's allegations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi receiving kickbacks from the Sahara Group while he was the Gujarat Chief Minister, the party posted on Twitter the entries listing payments to several politicians that included Sheila Dikshit who is now the party's Uttar Pradesh chief ministerial candidate.

While rejecting the allegations, the former Delhi Chief Minister said she "did not recall anything" about the diary, asserting that she had "nothing to do" with any such diary.

According to the list which has several names including Modi's, Rs 1 crore in cash was given to Dikshit on September 23, 2013 in Delhi. She was in power until December 2013.

The Congress stressed on the need of the Prime Minister coming clean on the charges even at the cost of Dikshit.

"We are fully aware that several political parties and leaders primarily from the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) including Modi have been named in the documents.

"Whether any Congress leader is named or not, is not material. What is material is the Prime Minister's name is there," Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha told IANS.

"Modi is accused at the moment based on those documents and he should suo-motu call for an investigation," he said.

Asked if the party wanted the matter to be probed even at the cost of Dikshit, Jha said: "All the political parties, all the leaders featuring in the documents should be scrutinised starting from the Prime Minister".

"Rahul Gandhi has taken the bull by the horns and it doesn't matter which political party, which political leader's names are there.

"We need to establish whether there was corruption or not. Since Modi is the seniormost political executive in the country, he needs to subject himself to a thorough and neutral probe," said Jha.

Jha also questioned the government's silence on the issue.

"The issue is Modi is artfully ducking a very serious attack based on the documents which allege that certain money was paid to him.

"Why is the government silent? Is Modi suffering from guilt conscience that is why he is dodging it.

"If he is clean, then why is he scared? He should go after the political parties named in the list," added Jha.
After looking to buy land in other countries, Maldives is making a last-ditch effort to avoid its citizens becoming climate refugees. It is importing sand. In this endeavour to tackle the effects of global warming, none other than Bangladesh is playing Good Samaritan. Both countries are planning to sign a deal within four months to ship sand to the Maldives. The island nation faces a real threat of being inundated if the sea level rises by even one metre.

We have received a proposal from the Maldives government regarding this. They want to import soil from our country in defence against rising sea levels. A joint committee of both countries is looking into it and we may seal a deal in the next three to four months, confirmed Muhammad Faruk Khan, the Bangladesh commerce minister, who was in Kolkata last week.

Maldives, a chain of 1,200 islands and coral atolls about 500 miles from the tip of India, may disappear if the present pace of global warming continues unabated. According to a United Nations forecast, sea levels are likely to rise by up to 59 cm by 2100 due to global warming. The archipelago is one of the lowest countries on the planet, with an average land level of 1.5 metres above sea level.

Dredging of rivers is a necessity for Bangladesh, as a huge amount of sediment is naturally deposited from the Himalayas. The quantity of these sediments is around 1 billion cubic metres, which is why our rivers are losing their navigability. We are more than happy if the deal works out, because it will be beneficial for a brotherly nation, Khan added.

Bangladesh is planning to start a huge river project worth over BDT 1,000 crore (Rs 638 crore) to dredge all major rivers, which will bring up huge quantities of sand in the near future. To start this project, we have zeroed in on a place near Mongla port on the Posur river, he said.

Earlier this year, Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed had expressed interest in importing sand and earth from Bangladesh. The country, with a population of over 396,000, also had plans to buy a new homeland overseas as an insurance policy against climate change.

We do not want to leave the Maldives, but we also do not want to be climate refugees living in tents for decades. Sri Lanka and India are our targets because they have similar cultures, cuisines and climates. Australia is also being considered because of the amount of unoccupied land available, Nasheed had reportedly said. The countrys government recently held the worlds first Cabinet meeting underwater to highlight the danger faced by global warming.

We have not decided on the financial aspects of the deal. However, Maldives should pay the minimal amount. Meanwhile, we dont think that this dredging is going to have any impact on the Bangladesh environment, Khan said.

Though Maldives already has sand import deals with countries like India, it was only used for construction. If the Bangladesh deal works out, it may be for the first time that imported sand might be used to shore up a nation threatened by global warming.
Leading industrial houses on Monday praised the government, saying 72 per cent of the memorandums of understanding (MoUs) signed at the last Vibrant Summit had been implemented or were being executed.
All individuals in families whose total income is below Rs 5 lakh will be covered under a cashless scheme in Assam. Called Atal Amrit Abhiyan, the plan was launched on Sunday to coincide with the 92nd birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee.
The tax simplification committee, chaired by Justice R V Easwar, is likely to touch upon restoration of standard deduction, reviewing of exemption limits and medical reimbursements for personal income tax in their report.
Majority of deposits in banks was held by the household sector at 61.5% as on March 31, 2016, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said on Monday.

This was followed by the government sector which accounted for 12.8% of total deposits. The private corporate sector came next with a contribution of 10.8%.

Total deposits as on March 31, 2016 was Rs 98,41,290 crore, as against Rs 89,72,710 crore till March 2015.

"A majority (63.8%) of the deposits was term deposits. The combined share of current and savings deposits, however, increased from 34.9% in 2015 to 36.2% in 2016," the said.

More than half (51.5%) of the total deposits was raised by metropolitan branches followed by urban branches (22.8%) and semi-urban branches (15.4%).

While term deposits dominated the total deposits in these branches, savings deposits dominated in rural branches.

Public sector banks continued to maintain the largest share (70.6%) in total deposits. Private sector banks had a share of 21.6% in total deposits.

Further, seven states/ Union Territories  Maharashtra, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Gujarat comprised around 66% of total deposits of banks in India as on March 31, 2016.

Maharashtra alone contributed around 23% of the total deposits.
The common link between most of the seizures of new currency notes across India has been an errant bank manager often willing to help out select clients by providing them with new notes beyond the conversion limit set by the government. Rogue bank managers across India have also helped influential and wealthy people convert their undeclared wealth into new currency. This even as millions of honest Indians stand in serpentine queues only to be turned away by banks claiming to have run out of cash. The involvement of bank managers came to the fore during raids on Chennai-based miner Shekhar Reddy, Delhi-based lawyer Rohit Tandon and Kolkata-based businessman Paras Lodha. The Enforcement Directorate has also found out that four banks had allegedly helped legalise Rs 150 crore in unaccounted money across the country.
As we know, Griff may or may not be a right-on activist but he certainly has some seedy-looking friends who are all going to a gig. Peter h...
The dairy industry says there are issues in taking up the governments exhortation to market far more of from indigenous breeds. While dairy cooperatives say they are gearing up to try, private companies in the segment point to the low output of home breeds.
Market regulator has forwarded complaints against QNET and Vihaan Direct Selling India (VDSIL) Pvt for alleged multi-level marketing activities to state government authorities in Karnataka.

QNET and its Indian franchisee Vihaan Direct Selling have been accused of duping investors by offering to sell magnetic discs, herbal products and holiday schemes allegedly through fraudulent practices.

They have also been accused of using the banned binary pyramid business model for its multi-level marketing schemes to lure investors.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) said its Bengaluru local office is regularly receiving complaints against activities carried on by QNET and Vihaan Direct Selling.

In a message to investors, the regulator has advised victims of QNET and the VDSIL to file their complaints with respective state governments or local police authorities for addressing their complaints.

" has noted that activities of QNET and VDSIL against which complaints are being received are akin to MLM activities and therefore, the same are being forwarded to state government and the Economic Offences Wing (EOW), Karnataka, having jurisdiction to implement provisions of Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978 governing MLM activities in the nature of Money Circulation Schemes, for further action as they deem fit," it said.

The Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act empowers respective state governments and local police authorities to take action against MLM activities in the nature of money circulation schemes carried out in their territorial jurisdiction.

Asked about Sebi's move, QNET told PTI that "vested interests have been writing to just to create an impression of wrong-doing. We were approached by Sebi and have clarified our business model to Sebi".

"The Government of India has recently issued guidelines governing direct or network marketing and our business is fully covered by it and is, therefore, fully legitimate. We are awaiting adoption of these guidelines by state governments," the company said.

The company claimed that it does not have any investment schemes and said that "activities of QNET and its associates do not violate any provisions of the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act and rules made thereunder".

"We would like to mention here that Sebi clearly does not see a role to play in these complaints and is directing the complainants to approach the jurisdictional police to address these," the company said.

QNET said it has been under investigation based on a false complaint. The investigations have been on for the past three years and till date no chargesheet has been filed.
The countrys largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), is in talks with Microsoft to utilise technology that will enable digital banking in rural areas with little access to telecom networks.
Centre releases special stamp on freedom fighter Shri Gaya Prasad Katiyar" and a set of eight Commemorative Postage Stamps on Personalities Series: Bihar" & a stamp on Hardayal Municipal Heritage Public Library"

Department of Posts, Ministry of Communications has brought out a Special Cover on freedom fighter Shri Gaya Prasad Katiyar and a set of eight Commemorative Postage Stamps on Personalities Series: Bihar & a stamp on Hardayal Municipal Heritage Public Library.

A special cover on Shri Gaya Prasad Katiyar was released by Smt Anupriya Patel, Honble Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare and Commemorative Postage Stamps on Personalities Series: Bihar and Hardayal Municipal Heritage Public Library were released on 26th December, 2016.

The Department has commemorated great deeds and achievements of following eight personalities of Bihar by releasing stamps on them:

1. Dr. Sachchidananda Sinha

2. Karpoori Thakur

3. Dashrath Manjhi

4. Vidyapati

5. Kailashpati Mishra

6. Kunwar Singh

7. Phanishwar Nath Renu

8. Sri Krishna Sinha

Hardayal Municipal Public Library is situated in the heart of Chandni Chowk and is one of the very few oldest buildings that have been able to withstand the onslaught of modern times. The library was set up in 1862. It has a unique collection of more than 1,70,000 books in Hindi, English, Urdu, Arabic, Persian and Sanskrit. This is one of the few Libraries in the world with a collection of at least 8,000 rare books.

Gaya Prasad Katiyar was one of the most dedicated soldiers of Indias freedom struggle.

Gaya Prasad Katiyar was born at Jagadishpur (UP). He joined Hindustan Socialist Republican Association in 1925 and got connected with Chandra Shekhar Azad and Bhagat Singh. Later he participated on Lahore Conspiracy Case and was arrested from Saharanpur in 1929. He joined the hunger strike at Lahore Jail with his co prisoners. Later he was transported to Cellular jail in Andaman and again he participated on hunger strike there. He was repatriated in 1937 but again arrested and transported to cellular jail from where he was released in 1946.
Delegation of All Manipur Working Journalists Union call on Dr. Jitendra Singh

A delegation of All Manipur Working Journalists Union (AMWJU) led by its President Shri Wangkhemcha Shamjai called on Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh here today and discussed the prevailing situation of unrest in the State of Manipur.

In a memorandum submitted to Dr Jitendra Singh, the Manipur journalists expressed concern over the hardship faced by the people of the State as a result of the ongoing economic blockade imposed on the States National Highways by the United Naga Council (UNC).

The delegation also took up some of their issues directly related to Media functioning, for which they sought the Ministers intervention. According to them, the media houses had been badly hit as a result of the UNC blockade leading to acute shortage of newsprint and other related material like printing plates, etc.

In addition, they alleged that the movement of reporters to collect has got hampered due to fuel shortage.
Finance Minister: There is a need for move towards a mindset of voluntary compliance and payment of legitimate taxes should be considered as part of the process and nobody should think that tax evasion is acceptable; Payment of due tax is a responsibility of every citizen; Coordination between the Central and the State administration is important for smooth transition of GST regime so that the taxpayer of the country does not suffer.

The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that there is an urgent need for change in mindset and India has to move towards a mindset of voluntary compliance. He said that the payment of legitimate taxes should be considered as part of the process and nobody should think that tax evasion is acceptable. The Finance Minister further said that the payment of due tax is a responsibility of every citizen. The Finance Minister was delivering the Inaugural Address after inaugurating the Professional Training Course of 68th Batch of IRS (C&CE) Officer Trainees at National Academy of Customs, Excise and Narcotics (NACEN) in Faridabad (Haryana) today. Addressing the young IRS Officers, the Finance Minister inspired them to be hardworking and efficient while ensuring integrity and credibility in their careers. The Finance Minister expressed his faith in the probationers to be able to carry-out the onerous task of smooth rolling-out and administering the new indirect tax administration system i.e. Goods and Services Tax (GST). Shri Jaitley impressed upon the gathering the importance of coordination between the Central and the State administrations in smooth transition from the old to the new Indirect Tax regime so that the taxpayer of the country does not suffer. The Finance Minister also reminded the officers that the economy of the country is undergoing major changes and that shall continue to challenge them to be capable officers at every stage of their career. The Finance Minster stressed on the Culture of Correctness and Fairness that every officer should follow in their work as Revenue Officers. He also wished NACEN well in the construction of the new Training Campus and Academy in Palasamudram, Hindupur, Andhra Pradesh. He concluded his address by motivating the officer trainees to train well and become officers who can lead this country into economic glory. Along with the Union Minister of Finance, Shri Arun Jaitley, Chairman of Central Board of Excise and Customs(CBEC), Mr. Najib Shah, Members of the Central Board of Excise and Customs  Smt. Vanaja Sarna, Shri Ram Tirth and Shri S Ramesh also graced the occasion with their presence. The function was also attended by senior district authorities including the Municipal Commissioner of Faridabad, Ms. Sonal Goel.

Earlier, the event commenced with traditional lighting of the lamp and presentation of a sapling to the Union Finance Minister.

In his Welcome Address, the Director General of NACEN, Shri P. K. Dash spoke about the history of NACEN and introduced the 68th Batch to the gathering. The strength of 68th Batch of IRS(C&CE) is 186 officer trainees, consisting of 32 female officers and 154 male officers, including 5 Bhutanese Officers. The average age of the batch is 28, with the youngest probationer being 23 years old. The batch consists of 50 per cent engineers, 16 per cent Doctors, 11 per cent MBAs, 3 per cent Law graduates, 2.2 per cent PhD awardees, 11 per cent Masters and 4.9 per cent Bachelors degree holders. The Director General also thanked the Finance Minister for backing NACENs efforts to develop a new state-of-the-art world class academy at Palasamudram, Andhra Pradesh.

The Chairman, CBEC, Mr. Najib Shah in his address talked about the content and process of training that the IRS (C&CE) probationers undergo while at NACEN. He also stressed on the importance of the IRS(C&CE) Officers in guarding the economic frontiers of the country as well as facilitating the trade for which CBEC has taken lot of initiatives in the recent past.

The event concluded with a Vote of Thanks by the Associate Course Director of NACEN.
Foundation Stone Laying Ceremony of new Regional Institute of Education at Nellore

Ministry of Human Resource Development is opening a new Regional Institute of Education at Nellore (Andhra Pradesh). Its foundation-stone will be laid on December 27 jointly by Shri. Prakash Javadekar, the Union HRD Minister and Shri. M. Venkaiah Naidu, the Union Urban Development Minister. Many prominent dignitaries shall also grace the occasion. Presently NCERT, an apex body of Government of India on School Education, has five RIEs in the country at Ajmer, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Mysore and Shillong. The opening of the new RIE at Nellore will be give an impetus to the strengthening of School Education and Teacher Education in the region and benefit not only Andhra Pradesh but also the adjoining States of Telegana, Tamil Nadu, Pudduchery etc.

The opening of the RIE fulfills the long-standing demand of the region. The new institution at Nellore shall offer teacher education programmes like B. Sc/BA B. Ed, M. Ed, Ph. D etc. will undertake research and development of Resource Materials on school and teacher education, help capacity building of Teachers and Teacher Educators, strengthen implementation of Government of India Schemes like SSA, RMSA, ICT in schools, and strengthen linkages among State Education Agencies besides addressing educational needs of the States.

The opening of the RIE at Nellore has been possible because of the keen interest shown by the Government of Andhra Pradesh by offering land free of cost for the institute. Union Minister for Urban Development Sri Venkaiah Naidu had taken the initiative and requested the Government of Andhra Pradesh for the necessary land. The State Government allotted 50 acres of land free of cost on the National Highway at Kanupuru Bit-II, near NH-16 Venkatachalm Mandal, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh.
1. The Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan (PMSMA)

Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan (PMSMA) is aimed at reducing maternal and infant mortality rates through safe pregnancies and safe deliveries. The national programme will provide special free antenatal care to about 3 crore pregnant women across the country in order to detect and prevent high risk pregnancies. The nationwide programme will provide fixed day assured, comprehensive and quality antenatal care to pregnant women on the 9th of every month. Pregnant women can now avail of a special antenatal check-up in their second or third trimesters at Government health facilities provided by gynecology specialists/ physicians with support from private sector doctors to supplement the efforts of the Government sector. These services including ultrasound, blood and urine tests will be provided in addition to the routine antenatal check-ups at the identified health facility/outreach in both rural and urban areas. One of the aims is to identify and follow-up on high risk pregnancies in order to reduce MMR and IMR.

2. MAA-Mothers Absolute Affection

A nationwide programme launched in an attempt to bring undiluted focus on promotion of breastfeeding and provision of counselling services for supporting breastfeeding through health systems. The programme has been named MAA to signify the support a lactating mother requires from family members and at health facilities to breastfeed successfully. The chief components of the MAA Programme are Community awareness generation, Strengthening inter personal communication through ASHA, Skilled support for breastfeeding at delivery points in public health facilities, and monitoring and award/recognition.

3. Introduction of new vaccines

a) Rota virus vaccine: In order to prevent the morbidity and mortality in children due to rotavirus, Rotavirus vaccine was introduced in Universal Immunization Programme in a four states initially i.e. Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh in April 2016 as recommended by the Expert Committee constituted for the same.

b) Adult JE vaccine: Japanese Encephalitis vaccination was expanded in adult population of districts with high disease burden of adult JE. Recently, 21 high burden districts from Assam, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal have been identified for adult JE vaccination. Adult JE vaccination campaign activity has been completed in 3 districts of Assam (Darrang, Nagaon and Sonitpur) and selected blocks of 3 districts (Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar) of West Bengal and campaign is ongoing in selected blocks of 6 districts of Uttar Pradesh.

4. Mission Indradhanush

 Second phase of MI continued in Jan 2016 in 352 districts. Phase III was implemented from April to July 2016 in 216 districts of the country.

 During all the three phases, (as on 1st August 2016, 2.08 crore children have been vaccinated of which 54.5 lakh children have been fully immunized. In addition, 55.4 lakh pregnant women were vaccinated against tetanus toxoid.

 According to Integrated Child Health and Immunization Survey 2016, full immunization coverage has increased by about 5-7% after the launch of mission Indradhanush.

5. Family Planning

 Expanding basket of choices: Three new methods have been introduced in the National Family Planning program:

 Injectable Contraceptive DMPA (Antara)  a 3-monthly injection

 Centchroman pill (Chhaya)  a non-hormonal once a week pill

 Progesterone-only pills (POP)  for lactating mothers

 Improved Contraceptive Packaging: The packaging for Condoms, Oral contraceptive pills (OCP) and Emergency Contraceptive Pills (ECP) has now been redesigned and improved so as to increase the demand for these commodities.

 New Family Planning Media Campaign: A 360 degree holistic Family Planning campaign with a new logo has been launched with Shri Amitabh Bachchan as the brand ambassador.

6. Intensified Diarrhoea Control Fortnight (IDCF)

The Intensified Diarrhoea Control Fortnight (IDCF) was observed from 11th to 23rd July across the country. The importance of this activity is that ORS will be available in the household when needed at the time of diarrhea. ORS corners which were operational at health facilities continuously demonstrated the way to prepare the ORS mixture. These corners also administer ORS and Zinc to children who are in need of these during diarrhoea. With a sharpened focus on demand generation, an important component of the IDCF is IEC activities that shall not only create awareness but also generate demand. Intensified community awareness campaigns on hygiene and promotion of ORS and Zinc therapy were conducted at the state, district and village levels. There are about 10 crore children below five years of age across the country. During last year, due to the interventions carried out as part of IDCF, about 6.3 crore children were reached out to. This year in order to expand the cover of this fortnight; the target was to cover all the under-5 children. 21 lakh children could be prevented from hospitalisation and death due to Diarrhoea last year. More than 5 lakh schools participated in the IDCF campaign and more than 3.5 lakh ORS corners were set up in the country.

7. National Deworming Day (NDD)

The National Deworming Day, a flagship initiative of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, was observed on 10 February 2016. It is the largest ever single-day public health campaign in the world targeting approximately 27 crore children aged 1-19 year throughout the country at risk of parasitic worm infection, through the platform of schools and anganwadi centres. The target population includes 8 crore and 19 crore children in the age group of 1-5 and 6-19 years respectively across 561 districts of the country. Over 900,000 education and health workers administered Albendazole tablet to crores of children in schools and anganwadis across India yesterday. 137 districts in 14 States have been excluded from the deworming initiative this year as they have already covered during Mass Drug Administration in Lyphatic Filarsis program of the Health Ministry.

8. Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI)

LASI is the largest study on older population in the country. The International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai in collaboration with Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and University of Southern California (USC), USA is undertaking the The Longitudinal Ageing Study in India under the aegis of the Ministry of Union Health and Family Welfare. LASI is jointly funded by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the United States National Institute on Ageing, and the United Nations Population Fund-India.

As no sufficiently broad nationally representative dataset on older population is currently available in India, comprehensive new scientific data are needed to conduct analyses of health, economic and social challenges based on population ageing and to formulate mid- and long-term policies and programmes to address these and other challenges presented by population ageing. LASI will contribute greatly to the newly launched the National Programme for Health Care for the Elderly (NPHCE) and the social and economic security programmes planned to be initiated by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE). LASI will help in expanding the scope of health and social security policy and programmes for older population.

9. Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme

Under the Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme, support is being provided to all States for provision of free dialysis services for poor. Guidelines for dialysis services in District Hospitals in PPP mode have been shared with States/UTs on 27 April, 2016. The Guidelines contain model Request for Proposal (RFP). As per the guidelines, the private partner is envisaged to provide medical human resource, dialysis machines along 9 Schemes of Department of Health & Family Welfare with Reverse Osmosis (RO) water plant infrastructure, dialyzer and consumables, while the space, power, and water supply within District Hospitals would be provided by the State Government. All States/UTs were requested to incorporate proposals for roll out of National Dialysis Programme in Programme Implementation Plans (PIPs) for 2016-17. Approval has been accorded to all States for implementing the Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme.

10. Centre for Integrative Medicine and Research (CIMR) at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS)

The Center for Integrative Medicine and Research is a pioneering initiative by AIIMS, New Delhi in the quest for convergence of contemporary medicine with Indias ancient and traditional medical practices. It has been envisioned as a state of the art research center where top experts from various disciplines of contemporary medicine will collaborate with Yoga and Ayurveda specialists, both for disease treatment, and for preventive healthcare. The Center will seek scientific validation of our ancient medicine systems with a focus on Yoga. It has been designed as a perfect platform for rigorous research to establish the efficacy of our traditional methods of healing, which in turn should pave the way for their greater international scientific acceptability.

11. I.T. Initiatives

a) Swasth Bharat Mobile application - Swasth Bharat Mobile Application to empower the citizens to find reliable and relevant health information. The application provides detailed information regarding healthy lifestyle, disease conditions (A-Z), symptoms, treatment options, first aid and public health alerts. The application Swasth Bharat Mobile Application is an Android based mobile application, which can be installed on any device with Android OS version 2.3 or above. The application will be launched soon for other popular platforms.

b) ANM Online application (ANMOL)-ANMOL is a tablet-based application that allows ANMs to enter and updated data for beneficiaries of their jurisdiction. This will ensure more prompt entry and updation of data as well as improve the data quality since the data will be entered at source by providers of health services themselves. Since the Application is Aadhaar-enabled, it will help in authentication of the records of field workers and beneficiaries.

c) E-RaktKosh initiative- It is an integrated Blood Bank Management Information System that has been conceptualized and developed after multiple consultations with all stakeholders. This web-based mechanism interconnects all the Blood Banks of the State into a single network. The Integrated Blood Bank MIS refers the acquisition, validation, storage and circulation of various live data and information electronically regarding blood donation and transfusion service. Such system is able to assemble heterogeneous data into legible reports to support decision making from effective donor screening to optimal blood dissemination in the field.

d) India Fights Dengue- Launched in 2016, this App empowers the community members how to contribute towards prevention of Dengue.

e) Kilkari, which means a babys gurgle, delivers free, weekly, time-appropriate 72 audio messages about pregnancy, child birth and child care directly to families mobile phones from the second trimester of pregnancy until the child is one year old. Kilkari has been launched in Jharkhand, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and High Priority Districts (HPDs) of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan in the first phase.

f) Mobile Academy is a free audio training course designed to expand and refresh the knowledge base of Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) and improve their communication skills. Mobile Academy offers ASHAs a training opportunity via their mobile phones which is both cost-effective and efficient. It reduces the need to travel  sometimes great distances  and provides them the flexibility they need to learn at their own pace and at times they find convenient. Mobile Academy is being launched in Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand.

g) M-Cessation aims at reaching out to those willing to quit tobacco use and support them towards successful quitting through text messages sent via mobile phones. When offered along with traditional services, M-Cessation has been found to be cost-effective in comparison to traditional options for cessation support. This is first time in the world that such a two way service is being provided as part of any mHealth initiative.

h) National Health Portal (NHP) was launched to provide healthcare related information to the citizens of India and to serve as a single point of access for consolidated health information.

i) Online Registration System (ORS): Online Registration System (ORS) is a framework to link various hospitals across the country for Aadhaar based online registration and appointment system, where counter based OPD registration and appointment system through Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) has been digitalized. The Portal facilitates online appointments with various departments of different hospitals using eKYC data of Aadhaar number, if patient's mobile number is registered with UIDAI.

j) National e-Health Authority (NeHA) will be an integrated health information system. It will help avoid problems arising out of uncoordinated induction of IT systems in hospitals and public health systems. It will also enforce the laws and regulations relating to the privacy and security of patients' health information and records. There would be a provision of Electronic Health Records (EHR) of patients.

k) M-Diabetes initiative was launched to harnesses the power and potential of the vast mobile telephony network. With a missed call to 011-22901701 the caller can get more information on Diabetes and how to prevent and manage it. One can also log on to www.mdiabetes.nhp.gov.in for more information.

12. DISEASE CONTROL

(a) Tuberculosis

 500 Cartridge Based Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (CBNAAT) machines inducted in the TB programme. The CBNAAT is a revolutionary rapid molecular test which detects Mycobacterium tuberculosis and rifampicin drug resistance, simultaneously. This test is fully automated and provides results within two hours. It is a highly sensitive diagnostic tool and can be used in remote and rural areas without sophisticated infrastructure or specialized training. Until 2015, 121 CBNAAT sites are functional in the country largely providing decentralized testing for detection of DR TB. With the availability of these additional 500 machines, access to rapid quality assured diagnosis of DR TB and TB will be ensured in all the districts of India either directly or through a linkage by specimen transport mechanism. Additionally, the programme will be able to use this highly sensitive state-of-art technology for diagnosis of TB among key populations like children, PLHIV and extra pulmonary TB patients.

 Bedaquiline was launched as part of the RNTCP. The drug is a new anti-TB drug for treatment of MDR-TB. This new class of drug is a diarylquinoline that specifically targets Mycobacterial ATP synthase, an enzyme essential for supply of energy to Mycobacterium tuberculosis and most other mycobacteria. This drug is indicated for use in the treatment of drug-resistant TB. Bedaquiline has been introduced at six identified tertiary care centres across India. These sites have advanced facilities for laboratory testing and intensive care for patients. Bedaquiline will be given to multi-drug resistant TB patients with resistance to either all fluoroquinolone and/or all second line injectables and extensive drug resistant TB.

(b) HIV/AIDS control

Third line ART programme for People Living with HIV launched - The life-saving third line ART costs nearly Rs. 1.18 lakh per patient per year. Providing these free would not only safe lives but improve socioeconomic conditions of the patients. This initiative brings Indias ART programme at par with programmes in the developed countries.

(c) Control of Communicable diseases (Malaria, Dengue, Chikungunya, Kala-Azar)

1. The National Framework for Malaria Elimination (NFME) was launched on 11th February 2016. Preventive measures by source reduction, engineering methods, use of Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLIN), Indoor Residual Spray (IRS), repellents, early case detection, complete treatment are part of the strategy.

2. The Ministry provided Technical Guidelines to the States for prevention and control including vector control and also uploaded these guidelines on National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCP) website www.nvbdcp.gov.in.

3. Focused IEC/BCC activities were carried out at National and State level with media mix strategies focusing on source reduction and personal protective measures. A user friendly Dengue App India Fights Dengue has been launched on 7th April, 2016.

4. National Dengue Day was observed on 16th May 2016 throughout the country. Strategy and Plan of action for Effective Community Participation for Prevention and Control of Dengue has been shared with the States/UTs uploaded on the NVBDCP website.

5. Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) were involved in source reduction activities (emptying containers to prevent breeding of vector mosquitoes) for Dengue prevention and control. The Ministry also provided funds to the States/UTs for prevention and control of Vector Borne Diseases including Dengue to implement the public health measures.

6. Also Kala-azar is targeted for elimination by 2017 and Lymphatic Filariasis by 2020 and as of now eliminated in 502 out of 625 endemic blocks (80%) in Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh.

(d) Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs)

The programme aims at providing early diagnosis and management of common NCDs, build capacity at various levels of health care facilities for prevention, diagnosis and treatment of common NCDs.

Under national programme for prevention and control of cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and stroke (NPCDCS), 356 district NCD cells and 356 district NCD clinics have been established.

103 cardiac care units, 71 day care centres and 1871 CHC level NCD clinics have been setup.

The tertiary care cancer centers (TCCC) scheme, 20 state cancer institutes (SCI) and 50 TCCCS envisaged

So far five (10) TCCC and six (10) SCI have been supported with financial assistance under the scheme.

AYUSH facilities and methodologies and yoga integrated with NPCDCS services

Scientific study commissioned to document impact of yoga on diabetes (S-VYASA University and HLL).

13. BIG THRUST TO HOSPITALS

(a) Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY)

The PMSSY envisages creation of tertiary healthcare capacity in medical education, research and clinical care, in the underserved areas of the country. It aims at correcting regional imbalances in the availability of affordable/reliable tertiary healthcare services and also augmenting facilities for quality medical education in the country.

1. DPR in r/o all the 39 GMCs under Phase III have been approved. Standard Tender Document for civil work and Standard Contract Agreement for Project Management and Supervision Consultancy services, have been approved. MoU between Executing Agencies i.e HSCC (I) and HITES and MoHFW has been signed. MoU between CPWD and MoHFW has also been signed.

2. Tenders for 38 GMCs have since been floated by concerned Executing agencies.

3. Tender for civil work has been awarded in respect of 33 GMCs

4. Out of 19 State Governments, MoU with 12 State Governments have been signed by MoHFW.

5. Project Funds amounting to Rs 398.6695 crore for civil works have been released to Executing Agencies

6. Foundation stone has been laid by Honble HFM in r/o Assam Medical College, Dibrugarh, Assam, Guwahati Medical College, Guwahati, Assam, Government TD Medical College, Alappuzha, Kerala, Gajra Raja Medical College, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, Shyam Shaha Medical College, Rewa, Baba Raghav das Medical College, Gorakhpur and Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Medical College, Jabalpur. Foundation stone for LLRM Medical College, Meerut and MLB Medical College Jhansi and MLN Medical College Allahabad.

7. Work Committee to review the progress of execution of up-gradation work under Phase III has been constituted

8. Cabinet approved establishment of new AIIMS at Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh under Phase-IV of PMSSY

9. Cabinet approved establishment of new AIIMS at Bathinda in Punjab under Phase-V of PMSSY

10. Cabinet approved up-gradation of 13 Government Medical Colleges under Phase-IV of PMSSY

14. Medical Education

(a) Grant-in-aid of Rs.400.00 crore has been released to 12 States under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Establishment of New Medical Colleges attached with District/ Referral Hospitals.

(b) Grant-in-aid of Rs.10.00 crore has been released to 4 States for 4 Government Medical Colleges under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Central Assistance to Government Medical Colleges under the scheme for strengthening and up-gradation of State Government Medical Colleges for increase in PG seats.

(c) Letter of Permission issued for the establishment of 07 new Medical colleges (total 1050 MBBS seats) for the academic session 2016-17.

(d) Letter of Permission issued to the 2 existing Medical Colleges for increasing of 100 MBBS seats for the academic session 2016-17.

(e) Renewal of permission issued to 07 existing Medical Colleges for the academic session 2016-17 (700 seats)

(f) Letter of Permission issued for the Recognition of 12 Medical Colleges.

(g) Time Schedule for completion of admission of BDS courses for the academic session 2016-17 has been extended up to 7th October, 2016-17, to facilitate filling up of BDS seats in the country.

(h) The orders for allocation of 236 MBBS and 38 BDS Central Pool seats for the year 2016-17 to various beneficiary States/UTs/Government Departments have been issued.

(i) 98 PG medical Courses were recognized under IMC Act, 1956.

(j) 9 MDS courses and 6 BDS degrees were recognised under the Dentists Act, 1948.

(k) Letter of Permission issued for establishment of 17 new Medical Colleges for the academic session 2016-17. Of these 12 are in the Government and 5 in the private sector. The intake capacity will increase by 2150 MBBS seats.

(l) Letter of Permission issued to 08 Medical Colleges for increase of 595 MBBS seats for the academic session 2016-17.

(m) Letter of Permission issued for increase of 40 Super-Speciality seats for the academic session 2016-17.

(n) In pursuance of Rule 6(i) of Rules and Regulations of the National Board of Examinations, Governing Body of National Board of Examinations has been constituted.

(o) Grant-in-aid of Rs.445.00 crore has been released to 17 States/UT under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Establishment of New Medical Colleges attached with District/ Referral Hospitals.

(p) Grant-in-aid of Rs.110.00 crore has been released to 8 States for 22 Government Medical Colleges under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Upgradation of existing State Government/Central Government Medical College to increase MBBS seats in the country.

(q) National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (NEET)

Honble Supreme Court vide its orders dated 28th April, 2016 and 9th May, 2016 in Writ Petition No.261/2016 filed by Sankalp Charitable Trust and others, had directed that NEET [UG] shall come into effect immediately. Purpose of the Ordinances is to provide a firm constitutional status to the concept of Uniform Entrance Examination for all undergraduate and post graduate admissions in Medical/Dental Colleges while providing a relaxation to the State Governments in relation to only UG admissions for this year [2016-17] in view of their difficulties.

The National Eligibility cum Entrance test, NEET-UG for admissions to all medical and dental colleges in the country will be conducted in 6 regional languages besides Hindi and English next year. A direction to this effect was sent to CBSE on 8th December and preparations have already begun for holding the exam.

NEET-UG was organized efficiently by CBSE in 2016. Extensive preparations are being made by CBSE to conduct the examination in 2017 on the basis of parameters which have already been conveyed to them. Consultations with States/UTs would be undertaken again in future before NEET-UG is conducted in future years, i.e., 2018 onwards.

15. National Health Protection Scheme (NHPS)

The Government of India has proposed to launch a new improved health care Scheme viz. National Health Protection Scheme which is under finalization that envisages health cover of up to Rs. 1.0 lakh per family for poor and economically weak families. For senior citizens of aged 60 years and above in this category there is an additional top-up package up to Rs. 30,000. The senior citizen component has been implemented w.e.f. 01.04.2016.

16. Organ Transplant

Government of India has launched National Organ Transplant Programme for carrying out the activities as per Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994 training of manpower and promotion of organ donation from deceased persons. Under the said programme, an apex level organization, National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) has been set-up at Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi for National networking, National Registry, to provide an online system for procurement and distribution of Organs & Tissues and to promote Deceased Organ and Tissue Donation

 Government has taken various steps to simplify organ donation law/rules and procedures such as Website of National Organ & Tissue Transplant Organisation (www.notto.nic.in) provides updated information and online facility for registering pledges for organ donation.

 A 24x7 call centre with toll free helpline number (1800114770) has been established for providing information on organ donation and coordinating matters relating to retrieval and allocation of organs recovered from cadaver donors.

 National Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplant Registry (NOTTR) have been launched. NOTTO has launched National Registry for maintaining National Waiting list of patients who require organs/ tissue.

 The networking of transplant and/or retrieval hospitals has been started initially in Delhi and NCR. Five regional level organizations called Regional Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (ROTTO) have been identified in the States of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Assam, West Bengal and UT of Chandigarh for networking and coordinating procurement and distribution of organs. Operational Guidelines for National Organ transplant Programme has been released.

 Policy and criteria for organ allocation in case of Kidney, Liver, Heart & Lung and Cornea have been approved. Standard Operating Procedures for various vital organs has been approved and uploaded on NOTTO website.

 More than 1 lakh pledges for organ donation received.

17. Seventh Session of the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC):

India successfully organized the seventh session of the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, in November 2016. During the conference, parties renewed their commitment to the Convention, both as a public health treaty and as a Goal under Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, particularly Goal 3, to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. To promote better implementation of the Convention, they stressed the importance of continued research and study by WHO and other stakeholders into the social and economic determinants of tobacco use in all its forms and other products promoting tobacco use as well as the strategies for their control.

Shri C K Mishra, Health Secretary has been chosen as the President of the COP Bureau for the next two years.

18. 6th BRICS Health Ministers Meet

The BRICS countries, represented by the Ministers of Health of the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Russian Federation, Republic of India, People's Republic of China and Republic of South Africa, met in New Delhi on 16 December 2016 at the Sixth BRICS Health Ministers Meeting. The Ministers acknowledged the renewed commitment to health by the BRICS leaders as expressed in the Goa Declaration of October 2016, noted the progress made since the first BRICS Summit and resolved to continue cooperation in the sphere of health through the Technical Working Groups and the "BRICS Framework for Collaboration on Strategic Projects in Health".

The Ministers welcomed the recommendations made in the BRICS workshop on drugs and medical devices in Goa, India in November 2016, including the need for concluding a Memorandum of Understanding on regulatory collaboration with a view to improving the regulatory standards, certification and systems for medical products. They agreed to constitute a working group, to work on strengthening regulatory systems, sharing of information, appropriate regulatory approaches in case of international and national health emergencies and provide recommendations for the promotion of research and development of innovative medical products (drugs, vaccines and medical technologies). The Ministers adopted the BRICS TB Cooperation Plan and supported the recommendations made by the BRICS workshop on HIV and Tuberculosis, held in Ahmedabad, India in November 2016, including the need for the suggested political, technical and financial actions to address the public health challenges of TB and HIV among BRICS countries. They agreed to set up a BRICS network on TB Research and creation of a research and development consortium on TB, HIV and Malaria. The Ministers agreed to support the Global Ministerial Conference on the fight against TB to be held in Moscow in 2017 and the UN High-Level Meeting on TB at United Nations Headquarters in 2018.

19. Biomedical Equipment Management and Maintenance Program (BMMP):

A massive exercise to map the inventory of all bio-medical equipment was undertaken in the year 2016 including their functionality status. The mapping was successfully completed in 29 States resulting in 7,56,750 numbers of equipment in 29,115 health facilities costing approximately Rs 4564 cr being identified. Equipment in range of 13% to 34% was found to be dysfunctional across states. Cost of dysfunctional equipment is Rs. 1015.74 Cr. The Ministry also prepared comprehensive guidelines along with RFP on Biomedical Equipment Management and Maintenance Program (BMMP), linked with uptime of equipment. Under BMMP, support is being provided to the State governments to outsource medical equipment maintenance comprehensively for all the equipment across all the facilities. Subsequent to inventory mapping, RFPs/tenders were rolled out to award maintenance contract for the respective states.

As a result, eleven States namely Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Rajasthan, Mizoram, Chandigarh, Maharashtra, Sikkim, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Jharkhand and Puducherry have outsourced the maintenance. Three states (Tripura, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh) have completed the tendering process and are in the program implementation stage. Five states namely Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Gujarat have released the RFP and are in the process of finalizing the tenders. Other states are yet to issue the RFP. For 12 States where work orders have been issued, the dysfunctional equipment costing Rs 378.11 cr became functional in 4 months of work order. There has been a reduction in dysfunctionality rate of about 25% with downtime of 3-4 months to about 5% with maximum downtime of 7 days.
Last Hurdle for Ken Betwa link over Uma Bharti presents cheque worth 3274 crore for Polavaram and Irrigation Projects Gujarat and Maharashtra

Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Sushri Uma Bharti today announced that last hurdle for Ken Betwa river link project is over. Addressing a function in New Delhi today the Minister said wild life board has cleared the project and after deciding its funding pattern the formal construction work will start. The Minister handed over a cheque of Rs. 1981 crore issued by NABARD to the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh Shri N Chandrababu Naidu for Polavaram irrigation project. Speaking on the occasion she said government has declared it as a national project and all future expenditure on it will be borne by the centre. The Minister said all irrigation projects under PMKSY and AIBP including Polavaram will completed by the year 2019. This will help in irrigating additional 80 Lakh hct. agricultural land. Sushri Bharti also handed over a cheque of Rs. 830 crore issued by NABARD to irrigation Minister of Maharashtra Shri Gireesh Dattatreya Mahajan and a cheque of Rs. 463 crore to the Deputy Chief Minister and Irrigation Minister of Gujarat Shri Nitin Bhai Patel as financial assistance for various irrigation projects. The Minister said 26 irrigation projects of Maharashtra will be completed by the year 2018. Most of these are in drought prone districts of the State.

Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitely, Union Urban Development Minister Shri M Venkaiah Naidu, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh Shri N Chandrababu Naidu and Union Minister for State Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Shri Vijay Goel also spoke on the occasion.

The issues related to implementation of projects under PMKSY-AIBP including prioritization of projects were deliberated in the Committee headed by Shri Brijmohan Agrawal, Minister (Water Resources) of Chhattisgarh. As per the information supplied by concerned States to the Committee, 99 projects were identified for completion upto 2019-20. 23 projects (Priority-I) have been identified to be completed by 2016-17 and another 31 projects (Priority-II) have been identified to be completed by 2017-18. The balance 45 projects (Priority-III) have been identified to be completed by December 2019.

Total funds required for completion of all the 99 identified projects have been estimated at Rs.77595 crore (Rs.48546 crore for project works and Rs.29049 crore for CAD works) with estimated Central Assistance of Rs.31342 crore.

The Finance Minister in his budget speech during 2016 has announced for creation of dedicated Long Term Irrigation Fund (LTIF) in NABARD with an initial corpus of about Rs. 20,000 crore and an amount of Rs.12517 crore has been provided as budgetary resources and market borrowings during 2016-17.

Keeping in view of the budgetary constraints, it was decided to borrow Central share/Assistance (CA) from NABARD as per year-wise requirements which could be paid back in 15 years time keeping a grace period of 3 years. Further, the proposal envisages that the State Governments, if required, may borrow funds from NABARD for the State Share.

Polavaram Project (also known as Indira Sagar (Polavaram) Project is a multi-purpose project with an assessed Cultural Command Area of 2.91 lakh hectares and power generation potential of 960 Mega Watt(MW) . It also has a provision for supply of 23.44 thousand Million Cubic Feet (TMC) water as drinking water supply to Vishakhapatnam city and other areas, as also industrial water supply to Vishakhapatnam Steel Plant. An inter basin transfer of 80 TMC water annually to Krishna River Basin is also envisaged.

The project was accorded investment clearance by the Planning Commission for Rs 10151.04 cr (at 2005-06 price level) in 2009. The current cost at 2010-11 level is Rs.16010.45 crore. The project was under construction with Central Assistance under Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme (AIBP). An expenditure of Rs 5135.87 crore has been incurred upto 31.03.2014 including Central Assistance of Rs 562.469 crore provided under AIBP.

After declaration of the Polavaram project as National Project in the Year 2014, Rs 950 crore has already been released to Polavaram Project Authority till date. To meet the balance expected current years liability of Rs 2981.54 crore as reported by the State Government, arrangement of funds from NABARD has been made. Out of above balance expected current years liability of Rs 2981.54 crore an amount of Rs. 1981.54 crore was released today.

Samir/jk
Exports record a positive growth

Government E-Marketplace (GeM) launched in August, 2016 and becomes fully functional by October, 2016.

The WTO's Trade Facilitation Agreement in Goods ratified

1st BRICS Trade Fair organised in India from October 12-14, 2016

Vision and Mission

The long-term vision of the Department is to make India a major player in the world trade by 2020 and assume a role of leadership in the international trade organizations commensurate with Indias growing importance. DOCs goal is to increase Indias exports of merchandise and services from the present level of 465.9 billion USD (2013-14) to approximately 900 billion USD by 2019-20 and raise Indias share in world exports from present 2% to 3.5%.

Strategic Initiatives and Priorities

Diversification of export product basket

Diversification into non-traditional markets and conclusion of ongoing FTA negotiations and initiating new FTAs

Strengthening export related infrastructure

Enhancing credit flows for exports at lower cost

Reducing Transaction Costs

Diversification of Services exports

Building up a Brand Image of India

Support to Plantation Sector

Protection to sensitive domestic industries

Improved export performance

 After negative growth for 18 successive months since December 2014, export recorded positive growth in June 2016.

 September, October and November 2016 saw positive growth in exports. Export from April to November 2016 is valued at US $ 174.9 billion against US $ 174.7 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2015.

 With falling international crude prices and import of gold recording a significant decline, trade deficit had been in single digits for all successive months starting from January 2016.

Government E-Marketplace (GeM)  was launched in August, 2016 and became fully functional by October, 2016.Presently more than 4000 products in 86 categories and hiring of transport service are available on GeM POC portal. More than 1600 product sellers and service providers and about 1500 Government officials are currently are registered on GeM. Transactions for more than Rs45 Crore have already been processed on GeM. Purchases done through GeM so far, have indicated a reduction in prices to the tune of 10-20%, and in some cases even upto 56%. GeM is a tool to promote Maximum Governance Minimum Government, Make in India, Ease of Doing Business and Digital India. By providing timely payment to vendors GeM not only ensures competitive rates but also encourages small business units/individuals to do business with government organizations.

Trade Facilitation Agreement

 The WTO's Trade Facilitation Agreement represents an important milestone by creating an international framework for reducing trade costs. The Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) contains provisions for expediting the movement, release and clearance of goods, including goods in transit. It also sets out measures for effective co-operation between customs and other appropriate authorities on trade facilitation and customs compliance issues. These objectives are in consonance with Indias Ease of Doing Business initiative.

 As part of Special & Differential Treatment, Developing Countries and least Developed Countries (LDCs) has to categorise all the provisions under Category A, B or C. Category A commitments are those commitments which the notifying Country has to fulfil at the time TFA comes into force. Category B are those commitments for which notifying Country can ask for a transition time and for the implementation of category C commitments Developing and LDCs are entitled to get Technical assistance.

 After the approval from Cabinet in February 2016, India Notified its category A commitments to WTO under the (TFA) in March, 2016 and later on ratified it in April, 2016. Approximately 70% of the total provisions given under TFA has been notified as category A. India has not categorised any provisions under category C.

 The Cabinet has also approved the setting up of a National Committee on Trade Facilitation(NCTF) to facilitate both domestic coordination and implementation of the provisions under the Chairpersonship of Cabinet Secretary.

Signing of MOU with GSTN on data sharing

 DGFT on Oct 27, 2016 signed an MOU with the Goods and Services Network (GSTN) for sharing of foreign exchange realisation and Import Export code data. This will strengthen processing of export transactions of taxpayers under GST, increase transparency and reduce human interface.

 DGFT has signed MOUs with 14 state governments 2 central government agencies and GSTN for sharing of the data. At the state level, Commercial Tax Departments of 14 states have signed MoU with DGFT for receiving e-BRC data for VAT refund purposes. These are: (i) Maharashtra, (ii) Delhi, (iii) Andhra Pradesh,(iv) Odisha, (v) Chhattisgarh, (vi) Haryana, (vii) Tamil Nadu, (viii) Karnataka, (ix) Gujarat, (x) Uttar Pradesh, (xi) Madhya Pradesh, (xii) Kerala, (xiii) Goa, (xiv) Bihar.

 In addition, Ministry of Finance, Enforcement Directorate, Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority and GSTN have signed MoU.

Increased Trade Interaction

o India organized the 1st BRICS Trade Fair from October 12-14, 2016 at India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.

o There were 397 exhibitors in the BRICS Trade Fair with participation from 14,612 business representatives.

o A number of key sectors such as agriculture and agro processing, auto and auto components, chemicals, green energy, handicrafts, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, high technology, ICT, infrastructure, leather, machine tools, mining and textiles and apparel were represented in the Fair.

o There were 1,601 Business to Business (B2B) meetings held during the BRICS Trade Fair.

o The BRICS Business Forum was also held on the sidelines of the BRICS Trade Fair that discussed pertinent topics like green energy, infrastructure development and finance etc.

 Signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of India and the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation on expansion of Bilateral Trade and Economic Cooperation (15.10.2016).

 Proposed Agreement on Trade, Commerce and Transit between India and Bhutan signed on 12.11.2016.

 7th session of India-Greece JEC convened in New Delhi on 23.11.2016. Agreed Minutes of JEC signed by CS & Mr. George Katrougalos, Alternate Minister for Foreign Affairs, Hellenic Republic on 23.11.2016. Deliberations of JEC reflected and reaffirmed cordial relations between two countries.

RCEP under active negotiation. The 15th round was held in October, 2016 at Tianjin, China and 16th RCEP round in December, 2016 at Tangerang, Indonesia. There was an intersessional ministerial held on 03.11.2016 at Cebu, Philippines, wherein, positions on goods, services and investment were clearly articulated by participating countries.

INNOPROM - 2016

INNOPROM is the largest Industrial Trade Fair in Russia held annually in Yekaterinburg. India participated in INNOPROM 2016 held on 11-14 July, 2016 as a Partner Country, with 117 Indian Companies. The States of Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Jharkhand also participated in the event along with various Ministries / Departments / Public Sector Undertakings of Central Government such as Department of Heavy Industry, Department of Electronics & IT, Ministry of Tourism, National Institute of Design, NTPC, NHPC, NEEPCO and Power Grid Corporation. The Trade Fair was attended by around 700 exhibitors from 95 countries. Participation in INNOPROM 2016 provided opportunities for direct interaction with the global and Russian producers, awareness of best-in-class new manufacturing technologies, international and inter-industrial networking, etc.

. Board of Trade  re-constituted on 23rd March, 2016

 First meeting held on 6th April, 2016. Participation by various Members of the Board and some special invitees, comprising senior officials from Government and representatives of certain sectors of trade and industry.

 Exporters were asked to provide inputs and suggestions on possible trade policy interventions, the institutional framework and possibilities for enhancing trade competitiveness.

. Global Exhibition on Services (GES)

 Two editions held in April, 2015 and in April, 2016.

 Department of Commerce organizes GES, in association with Services Export Promotion Council (SEPC) and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

 Provides a platform to all the participants from the services industry and other related industry to interact with, and explore new business avenues.

Standard Conclaves  held in 2014, 2015 and 2016

 Government is committed to transforming India into a manufacturing and exporting hub. This is possible only if Indias products are of world class standard.

 Department of Commerce in collaboration with trade bodies and knowledge partners organizes National Standards Conclave every year.

 Eight Standards Conclaves (three national and five regional) have been already held to generate awareness.

 Objective of these Standard Conclaves is to find out gaps in Indias preparedness in this matter to address critical issues related to quality control and the vision of zero defect zero effect state of art manufacturing in India.

Building the India Brand

A long term branding strategy has been conceptualised to enable India to hold its own in a highly competitive global environment and to ensure that Brand India? becomes synonymous with high quality. Further, a programme to promote the branding and commercialisation of products registered as Geographical Indications and to promote their exports will be initiated within one year of this policy coming into force.

Institutional Mechanisms for Trade Promotion

The schemes for trade promotion under the Department of Commerce, namely, the Market Access Initiative (MAI) Scheme and the Market Development Assistance Scheme will continue. Efforts will be made to support the development of infrastructure for holding conventions in all major tier 1 and tier 2 States. A major convention-cum-exhibition centre will be developed at Pragati Maidan in Delhi replacing the present infrastructure. Export Promotion Councils are being strengthened, both in terms of technical capabilities and management structures.

MJPS
If you had the feeling that global in 2016 operated on something of a fault line, youre not alone. Month after month, the world was rocked by unexpected yet momentous events: terror attacks in Nice and Brussels, Brexit and the rise of Trump, to name just a few.
Egypt's general prosecutor's office ordered the arrest of an news producer for allegedly broadcasting "false news".

The prosecution on Sunday accused Mahmoud Hussein Gomaa of inciting hatred against state institutions and broadcasting false news with the aim of providing an adulterated version of events in Egypt, Efe news reported.

" holds Egyptian authorities responsible for the safety of Hussein and is calling for his immediate release," the Qatar-based network said.

Hussein was on a holiday when he was arrested on Friday along with his two brothers by Homeland security officials.

Al-Jazeera said that the three had been taken to an unknown place.

The Egyptian Interior Ministry arrested Hussein three days after being interrogated for 15 hours at Cairo's airport over allegations of spreading false news, documentaries and media reports, as well as posting them online in exchange for large sums of money, according to authorities.

Al-Jazeera has been working in Egypt due to the tense relationship between Doha and Cairo, as Qatar was one of the main supporters of the former Islamist leader of the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Morsi.
Chilean authorities ordered coastal evacuations on Sunday following a powerful Christmas Day earthquake offshore the south of the country that triggered tsunami alerts.

The quake registered 7.7 on the Moment Magnitude scale according to seismologists at the US Geological Survey. Chile's ONEMI national emergencies office ONEMI put it at 7.6.

The epicentre was on the southern part of Chiloe island, in a zone of several national parks.

The closest population centre was Castro, a town on the island of 40,000 inhabitants. Chile's capital Santiago was around 1,000 kilometers from the epicenter.

"The earthquake hit us as we were having breakfast and we immediately ran out of the house because of fears of a tsunami," one man who took his family to high ground told Chilean television.

Chilean media tweeted images of roads that had been cracked by the force of the quake. In some cases, part of the bitumen was cleaved away.

There were no immediate reports of casualties, though electricity was cut to some communities. Telephone and internet continued to work.

The quake struck as Chileans were were their families celebrating Christmas. All shops were closed.

ONEMI and the USGS both issued a tsunami alert. Chilean officials called for coastal areas nearby to be evacuated.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, said in a bulletin that "hazardous tsunamic waves are forecast for some coasts."



The quake had a depth of 15 kilometers according to the PTWC.

is in a quake-prone region, lying on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire of frequent seismic activity. As a result, buildings are usually built to resist swaying.

The last big quake to shake was on September 16, 2015, when an 8.3 temblor followed by a tsunami hit the north of the country, killing 15 people. A coastal evacuation order had limited the number of casualties.

In 2010 another quake measuring 8.8, also followed by a tsunami, struck the centre and south of the country, killing more than 500 people.
George Michael, the creamy-voiced English songwriter who sold tens of millions of albums as a member of the duo Wham! and on his own, was found dead on Sunday at his home in Goring in Oxfordshire, England. He was 53.
Major Saudi Arabian newspaper al-Eqtisadiah retracted a report on Sunday that said state oil giant IPO-ARMO.SE planned to sell 49 per cent of its shares over the next 10 years.
In the past few weeks, the Islamic State has sustained a string of military defeats: ousted from its refuge on the Libyan coast, struggling to maintain its hold on the Iraqi city of Mosul, and losing ground in Syria. Yet as the deadly truck attack on a Christmas market in Berlin made clear, those losses do not diminish the groups extraordinary power to inspire terrorist mayhem around the world, and may even help fuel it.
Divis Laboratories continued to trade under pressure falling to its 28-month low at Rs 745, down 14% on the BSE in early morning trade. The stock was trading at its lowest level since August 2014.
The benchmark Nifty on Monday dropped to its lowest level in seven months as foreign investors intensified their selling over concerns of higher taxes on share trading. The sell-off was triggered after Prime Minister Narendra Modi hinted at raising taxes in the capital .
In an effort to help improve the quality of life of the poor and empower them, the Believers Church Diocese of Agartala organized a gift distribution program here for them that included blankets and income-generating items.

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar was the chief guest. The others present included the Chief Executive Member of the Tripura Tribal Area Autonomous District Council, Radha Charan Debbarma and Bishop Anil Kumar Debbarma.

Addressing the gathering, Sarkar appreciated the effort of the church in helping the needy sections of the state, but simultaneously, without naming the BJP and other Hindutva preaching entities, expressed his concern over a section trying to destroy the secular image of our country.

Sarkar said, "Today a power in our country has started saying that all Indians have to come under one religion that is Hinduism. But in our country there are 17 to 18 crore Muslims, 4 to 4.5 crore Christians, 3 crore Buddhists, 2 to 2.5 crore Sikhs and people of many other religions. So, what will be their fate? The section who are propagating that all Indians have to be Hindu, according to them, around 2000 to 2500 years back, other than Hinduism, there was no other religion in the world. This is not correct. They are twisting history and propagating that people from other faiths in our country were once all Hindus and were converted. Hence, we want to reconvert them - 'Ghar Wapasi' and if they want to stay in India they have to get converted to Hindu. If they deny, then they will not be able to live in India and can go to Pakistan, Afghanistan, Middle East or Jerusalem. What are they saying? They are failing to solve fundamental problems in people's daily life and so trying to break the unity of the poor people by dividing them along lines of religion, caste and creed. This is a crime against our Constitution, it is anti-democratic and against humanity."

Sarkar also took part in the distribution of tricycle rickshaw, bicycle, sewing machines and blankets among the people.

During the gift distribution ceremony, rickshaw pullers received tricycle rickshaw, housewives got sewing machines, fifty school going girls were given a bicycle each so that they could cover the long distance from their homes to their schools and winter blankets were given to 100 poor families.

The recipients, a large section of whom were non-Christians, expressed happiness over the state government's largesse.

Ratna Debnath, a Hindu housewife, said, "I got a sewing machine from the church and am very happy. Now, I shall be able earn something with this."

Sunil Banik said, "I can now ride this rickshaw to earn for my big family. I am very happy."

Rubina Debbarma, a tribal girl student, said, "I have to walk a long distance to go to school, but now I shall be going to school in this cycle and which will reduce my problems."

Believers Church, a Christian denomination is Biblical and evangelical in faith, for the first time has organised such a gift distribution programme during Christmas in Agartala and with the aim to help the poor section of people so that they can live a better life.

Giving gifts during any festival is a tradition, but during Christmas as mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew started with 'The Magi', also referred to as the three Wise Men or Kings, who visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Emphasizing the significance of the Agni 5 missile which was launched today, defence experts decribed this fifth series of the missile as a major weapons system with significant deterrent value.

"It is an intermediate range missile. Its range is approximately about 5000 to 5500 kilometres. It has payload capability of about 1500 kgs," Brigadier (retired) S.K. Chatterjee told ANI.

Further highlighting its significance for the Indian armed force, he said, "It is a major weapon system. If we need deterrence from China and Pakistan, then Agni 5 will help to destroy their premium targets."

Wing Commander (Retd.) P Bakshi also hailed the launch of the missilie and said: "Though we lack in defence, but we have achieved a lot in missile technology. I would like to thank A.P.J. Abdul Kalam for his effort. Agni 5 is a strategic missile that can destroy targets in China in a range of approximately 5000 to 5500 kilometres. It has deterrent value against rival countries."

Former army chief General (Retired) Deepak Kapoor said it is a feather in the cap of India's strategic capabilities.

"Since we have to be prepared for the 'Two Front War', this test strengthens our bid towards such capabilities," he added.

India on Monday test launched its indigenously developed intercontinental surface-to-surface nuclear capable ballistic missile 'Agni,5' from the Wheeler Island off the Odisha coast.

Unlike other missiles of the Agni series, 'Agni-5' is the most advanced having some new technologies incorporated with it in terms of navigation and guidance, warhead and engine.

The indigenously-developed surface-to-surface missile, Agni-5, is capable of striking a target more than 5,000 km.

It is about 17-metre long, two-metre wide and has launch weight of around 50 tonnes.

The missile can carry a nuclear warhead of more than one tonne.

It is the fourth developmental and second canisterised trial of the long range missile.

While the first test was conducted on April 19, 2012, the second test was carried out on September 15, 2013, and the third on January 31, 2015 from the same base.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday taunted the ongoing feud between Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and his bete noire uncle Shivpal Yadav, saying the first family of the should resolve the 'mahabharat' and focus on law and order, corruption and lack of administration in the politically crucial state.

BJP spokesperson Nalin Kohli also used the occasion to take a jibe at reports suggesting the possibility of a 'mahagathbandhan' in the run-up to 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls.

"However, in the first family of the of Uttar Pradesh a 'mahabharat' is already on for quite some time. Now, it appears that there are multiple lists - one by the uncle, one by the nephew who is the Chief Minister and there are all sorts of disputes. They should resolve that," Kohli said.

"As far as the people of Uttar Pradesh are concerned, they are obviously going to vote on the track record of the . The substantial issues are law and order, corruption and the lack of administration," he added.

The tussle in Uttar Pradesh's ruling family reignited on Sunday after Akhilesh drew up his own list of poll candidates and submitted it to Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, bypassing his uncle and state president Shivpal Yadav.

The Chief Minister's surprise move angered Shivpal, who is officially in-charge of ticket distribution in consultation with the party president.

Shivpal tweeted that ticket distribution would be decided by "victory potential".

"The party will not tolerate any indiscipline that might hurt the party's image," he tweeted.

According to sources, Akhilesh while reviewing the list of candidates for 403 assembly seats expressed concern over the party giving 181 tickets to 'tainted' persons.

This is not the first time that Akhilesh and his uncle have clashed over tickets distribution. The Chief Minister, who is of the view that his image and record is party's strength, had earlier this month expressed displeasure over the decision to field don-turned politicians Atiq Ahmed and Mukhtar Ansari's brother Sibaqtullah Ansari for upcoming elections.

The Ansari brothers belong to Quami Ekta Dal, which recently merged with the party despite opposition from Akhilesh.

Mulayam has so far made all attempts to engineer a truce between his son and brother, but seat allotment has remained a thorny issue in the Samajwadi Party.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will on Monday launch an initiative 'Transform Maharashtra' at IIT Bombay's 'Mood Indigo' festival.

Under it, the chief minister will address issues related to youth in governance.

The initiative will seek participation from over two lakh students from across 500 colleges.

It aims to provide an opportunity to college students to put their heads together and come up with policy and/or programme level solutions to 11 critical challenges being faced by Maharashtra at present.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Nearly 4,000 British primary school children enrolled for weekly one on one maths sessions with Indian and Sri Lankan tutors. Third Space Learning, the company providing the lessons is targeting pupils struggling with maths - particularly from underprivileged backgrounds. The platform will become one of the first using artificial intelligence (AI) software to monitor, and ideally improve, teaching.

The company with scientists at University College London (UCL), has analysed around thousands of hours of audio and written data from its tutorials, to identify what makes a good teacher and a successful lesson.

Tom Hooper, the company's CEO, said: "We're looking to optimise lessons based on the knowledge we gain. We've recorded every lesson that we've ever done. By using the data, we've been trying to introduce AI to augment the teaching".

Initially, 300 tutors will receive real-time, automated interventions from the teaching software when it detects that a lesson may be going off-course. Pupils have a 45-minute session with the same tutor each week, communicating through a headset and a shared whiteboard.

The lessons are tailor-made to the individual, including visual rewards linked to the child's interests. In addition to the raw audio data, each lesson has various success metrics attached: how many problems completed, how useful the pupil found the session, how the tutor rated it. Using machine learning algorithms to sift through the dataset, the UCL team has started to look for patterns.

Early analysis found that when tutors speak too quickly, the pupil is more likely to lose interest. Leaving sufficient time for the child to respond or to pose questions was found to be a factor in the lesson's success, according to Hooper.

These observations are likely to form the basis of the initial prompts that the tutors will receive, probably in the form of messages flashing up on their screen. "We're going to be drip-feeding it in in relatively simple ways to start with," said Hooper.

As the evolves, the interventions could become more sophisticated and the software might play a more active role in teaching, raising questions about the extent to which intelligent software could replace human teachers.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Pakistan Railway Minister Khuwaja Saad Rafique has asked political parties to refrain themselves from criticising the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), saying the project should not be the subject of controversy.

Coming down heavily on the political leaders seeking a greater part in the CPEC, Rafique said government authorities will never be able to complete this project if everyone expects roads to pass through their areas.

"CPEC is a harbinger of hope for Pakistan. However, many countries, including some of our neighbours, are working against it," the Dawn quoted Rafique as saying.

"Our enemies don't want Pakistan to progress and stand on its feet because it has the potential to be among the wealthiest countries," he said.

The minister said the CPEC will turn into "another Kalabagh Dam" if leaders continued to sabotage the project.

Rafique, during his speech, suggested Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari to learn something from his party's political history.

Asserting that the 2018 elections will be fought based solely on performance, he said the PPP should show some performance instead of raising political slogans.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A general body meeting of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), which was postponed after party chief M. Karunanidhi was hospitalised, has now been rescheduled for January 4.

The 92-year-old leader, who was readmitted to Kauvery Hospital on December 15 with breathing difficulties due to throat and lung infection, has undergone tracheostomy to optimise breathing.

In a press release, the hospital's Executive Director, Dr. S. Aravindan, said Karunanidhi had recovered fully and the antibiotic course for the breathing difficulty was over.

The release also said he needs the tracheostomy tube for few more weeks, and medical and nursing care would be provided by the hospital.

Earlier, Karunanidhi was admitted to the hospital on December 1 for optimisation of nutrition and hydration and he returned home on December 7. During this time, doctors performed tracheostomy on him.

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Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati on Monday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Centre with the help of Enforcement Directorate, Income Tax (IT) Department and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is building pressure on Samajwadi Party boss Mulayam Singh Yadav to form an alliance with the Congress for next year's assembly polls.

Mayawati told the media here that Prime Minister Modi also made false promises like Mulayam and said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won't be victorious in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls.

"It is being said that Congress and Samajwadi Party will form an alliance. The final call will be taken when it is realised that BJP will benefit from the alliance. Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance will materialise only after final approval from the BJP," Mayawati said.

"Like Mulayam Singh, Prime Minister Modi has made many false promises just before the elections. Despite all these, they are not going to get success in Uttar Pradesh. The BJP was weak when the BSP was in power and it is strong when the Samajwadi Party is in Uttar Pradesh. This proves they have been colluding," she added.

Asserting that not even one-fourth of the promises made by the BJP during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections have been fulfilled till date, the BSP chief said the people are frustrated with the saffron party as a result of which the Amit Shah-led party has realised that they stand no chances in Uttar Pradesh.

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister also reached out to the Muslim community, saying they must be careful so that the BJP is not successful in desperate attempt to conquer the throne of Lucknow.

"In order to tilt the situation in its favour, the BJP included some selfish people on its side and did a lot of advertisement," she added.

Mayawati alleged that demonetisation is an inappropriate decision to benefit the rich and said that the BJP has now realised that this drive has become a bone of contention.

"90 percent of the people have not overcome the obstacles post demonetisation. The people will teach them a lesson," she added.

Asserting that the BSP has always worked with honesty and in a transparent manner for welfare of the people of Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati alleged that the Samajwadi Party, BJP and Congress have several records to their credit of causing, supporting and not stopping communal riots.

"The Samajwadi Party Government ran bulldozer over the houses of over one lakh communal riots victims' house. The party is known for supporting 'gundaraj' and their record with communal peace is not good either," she added.

Escalating her attack, Mayawati further stated that the Samajwadi Party cannot make the next government in Uttar Pradesh even by joining hands with the Congress, as the feud between the Yadav family will not let them regain power in the state.

"The Samajwadi Party is at the verge of breaking in two camps, which can push Muslim votes towards the BJP. The Bahujan Samaj Party is the only party, which can stop the BJP from coming to power in Uttar Pradesh," she added.

Uttar Pradesh will go to polls next year and there have been reports of the Congress and Samajwadi Party mulling over forming an alliance ahead of the elections.

The BJP is pinning its hopes on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity to win maximum number of seats in the upcoming polls.

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The Chinese Navy is reportedly planning a training exercise in the Pacific that would for the first time include its sole aircraft carrier.

If done, this move is likely to ratchet up regional tensions.

The duration of the drill and the route of the flotilla are not yet known.

But, the Soviet-made carrier is based in the north-eastern city of Dalian, suggesting the fleet would enter the Pacific through a disputed island chain between Taiwan and Japan.

"A Chinese navy formation, including the aircraft carrier Liaoning, headed towards the West Pacific on Saturday for scheduled blue-water training," Xinhua reported on Saturday, citing China's navy spokesperson Liang Yang.

According to media reports, Japan's Defence Ministry confirmed eight Chinese vessels, including the carrier and three destroyers, being spotted by one of its ships in the central part of the East China Sea on Saturday afternoon.

The Chinese Navy drills are seen as a show of strength at a time of rising tensions with Taiwan and the United States.

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The Janata Dal (United) on Monday said there is no common agenda in the meeting called by the Congress Party to unitedly oppose the government's demonetisation drive and hence they have not yet decided on their presence in the same.

"Common agenda should be there for the meeting of opposition. In this meeting, there is no such provision of common agenda. So, we will take a call on whether to attend it," said JD (U) leader K.C. Tyagi.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi has invited opposition parties across the board for a big show of strength on Tuesday to take on the government post the November 8 demonetisation drive.

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Tom Latham scored a quick-fire century before bowlers came to fore as New Zealand registered a 77-run win over Bangladesh in their opening ODI of the three-match series at the Hagley Oval here on Monday.

Opting to bat first, Latham smashed seven boundaries and four sixes in his blistering 137-run knock off 121 balls besides sharing a solid 158-run partnership with Colin Munro (87) for the fifth wicket to guide his side to a respectable total of 341-7.

Skipper Kane Williamson and Neil Broom contributed 31 and 22, respectively in their side's innings.

In reply, Bangladesh slumped to 81 for four after 18 overs before all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, who scalped three for 69 in New Zealand's innings, struck an aggressive 59 and Mosaddek Hossain notched up his first ODI half-century with 50 not out.

Wicketkeeper-batsman then Mushfiqur Rahim added significant 42 runs before he was retired hurt with a hamstring injury.

However, Neesham took 3-36 as New Zealand held Bangladesh to 264-9 to maintain its unbeaten record in ODIs against them Down Under.

Lockie Ferguson also scalped three wickets while Tim Southee added two wickets to his account. Mitchell Santner chipped in with a wicket.

The Williamson-led side , who have now taken 1-0 lead in the three-match series, will now lock horns with Bangladesh at Saxton Oval in nelson on December 29.

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The judicial custody of Khalistan Liberation Force terrorist (KLF) Harminder Singh Mintoo, who escaped from Punjab's Nabha Jail along with five others, has been extended till January 9.

Mintoo has been in custody since November 29, a day after he was nabbed from New Delhi railway station.

The self-styled KLF chief has reportedly told his interrogators about the KLF's expansion plans with the help of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence.

Days before the Nabha jailbreak, he had his last Skype chat with his Pakistan handler Harmeet, a KLF militant who managed to flee to Pakistan, and is living in a safe house under protection of the ISI at Dera Chall village in Lahore.

The ISI had reported plans to restart militancy in Punjab through the KLF under the leadership of Mintoo, who has bases in countries like Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand.

Germany and U.K. based KLF sympathisers were also sending money to Mintoo through Western Union Money Transfer.

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Location-based disruptive Mobile technology backed and offline discovery platform NowFloats has announced the appointment of Rajeev Goyal as the company's VP of Growth and Strategic Projects.

The company also announced hiring of Mukesh Lohar as their Head for India and Asia Emerging Markets; where he would be chiefly responsible for creating and managing streams for NowFloats.

Mukesh Lohar comes with 15 years of rich experience in setting up SMB and SaaS businesses, pre-sales and strategy working with multiple companies such as Knowlarity Cloud Telephony, Tata Communications Ltd. and Bharti Airtel, and has several awards in his name, including the much coveted ProClub and Blue Ribbon award.

He is passionate about everything that has got to do with Cloud, SaaS, mCommerce, digital and mobile marketing. He is an alumni of IILM and IIM, Lucknow GMPE dropout.

Rajeev will assume the responsibility of growing the discovery platform's through the use of empirical and scalable methodology. He will be also be leading the company's Digital Desh drive.

It is an initiative by NowFloats which aims to unravel exactly how the Tier II, III and even four cities are using technology innovatively in their everyday life. This is an anti-survey of sorts because it is a quest to document the real stories behind those numbers of increasing internet users in India.

He brings with him over 17 years of experience across Digital Search Marketing, Ecommerce, Online Grocery, Payment Solutions, SME Financing, Consumer Internet and VAS in organizations across verticals, including, Vodafone, Ericsson, Videocon, Spice and Askme.

He is adept at running large teams and deliver on key organizational goals such as revenue, scale and operational efficiency. During his seven year stint with Vodafone, he led the company's VAS Vertical (Including Internet (3G/2G Business).

"Roping in Rajeev is an important strategic decision on our part. He strongly believes in growing exponentially rather than incrementally and his role at NowFloats will evolve with time. His philosophy is that when one works in a startup environment, one's Key Result Areas is everything that one is capable of doing, and not limited to a "role". This will define how he contributes to NowFloats in the coming times," said co-founder and CEO NowFloats, Jasminder Singh Gulati.

"Rajeev's experience includes handling expansions and rollouts, GTM, operations, CLM, backend, CRM, loyalty programs, call-center management, customer service, seller/merchant acquisition, merchant on-boarding, content, telco alliances, product pricing and packaging, taxonomy, quality, audits, sales management, consumer internet, VAS etc, and we will be able to viably leverage such myriad expertise at NowFloats," added Gulati.

"In addition to managing the end to end business lifecycle, Mukesh will be responsible for helping the company in strategic acquisitions and funding, creating International Business and Channel sales verticals and managing our 28 sales offices across India and other offices that we will be setting up over the coming months," said Mukesh Lohar.

"I am extremely elated to join NowFloats. Businesses face many hurdles to get an effective digital presence, which includes investing time and effort in creating an impactful website, content freshness, updating of business relevant content in real time, online discovery, generating potential leads and subsequent conversion," said VP Growth and Strategic Projects NowFloats, Rajeev Goyal.

NowFloats extensively uses Artificial Intelligence, Machine learning, NLP and big data analysis to help clients update their business website and also enables them to optimize their website for localized discovery by potential consumers.

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Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has directed a nuclear threat to Israel in response to a fake news which reported that his Israeli counterpart Avigdor Lieberman is threatening to destroy Islamabad with a nuclear attack.

Following the false report Asif tweeted, "Israeli def min threatens nuclear retaliation presuming pak role in Syria against Daesh. Israel forgets Pakistan is a Nuclear state too."

The fake story, titled "Israeli Defense Minister: If Pakistan send ground troops to Syria on any pretext, we will destroy this country with a nuclear attack," was published in awdnews.com, reports the Express Tribune.

Also, the report attributed the false statement to a former minister, Moshe Yaalon.

This was not the first time fake news was published on the website.

Earlier, the website had published an article with the headline, "Clinton is staging a military coup against Trump."

The Israeli Defence Ministry responded on Twitter to clarify the report was false.

"The statement attributed to fmr Def Min Yaalon re Pakistan was never said," the Ministry wrote in the post directed at Asif.

In a second post it said, "Reports referred to by the Pakistani Def Min are entirely false.

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Former President and Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Co-Chairman Asif Zardari has said that his party will not demand for an early polls as constitutional time for election is at the end of current regime's tenure.

Zardari confessed of having ties with Anwar Majeed but did not spoke on the cases registered against him.

"We have ties with Anwar Majeed, whose is being investigated by law-enforcement agencies there is no denial on it," Daily Times quoted, Zardari, as saying.

He was speaking to media after praying at the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

Zardari said discussions on the party's four demands will be held after December 27.

He said many PPP opponents are upset with his arrival to the country.

"As Pakistani we have to follow the golden rules of Quaid-e-Azam," he said. "We have work under the guidelines of Father of the Nation for the development of our country.

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President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday expressed grief over the death of the people who lost their lives in Russian military aircraft crash.

"Heartfelt condolences on the loss of lives in the crash of a Russian military aircraft in the Black Sea," President Mukherjee tweeted.

A Russian military aircraft Tu-154, carrying 92 people on board crashed in the Black Sea yesterday.

There were 84 passengers and eight crew members on board.

The first body from the crashed airplane was found six kilometres from Sochi coastline in the Black Sea yesterday.

The aircraft Tu-154 that departed from Sochi at 5.20 a.m. local time disappeared from radars about 20 minutes after takeoff.

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Congress Vice-President will on Monday address a public gathering in Baran district of Rajasthan.

His visit is said to be a part of the Congress' nationwide campaign against the Bharatiya Janata Party government's decisions including demonetisation.

This will be Gandhi's second visit to the state this year.

Escalating the attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation, Gandhi had on Saturday accused him of dividing the country between the rich and the poor and dubbed the move as "firebombing" on cash economy and farmers and labourers.

Addressing a public rally in Himachal Pradesh' Dharamsala, the Gandhi scion said the Prime Minister with his demonetisation move has removed the "hat" of Himachal Pradesh as it has hit hard the state's horticulture, agriculture and tourism sectors.

Gandhi said the colour of a banknote is decided by whether it is in the hands of the honest or the dishonest.

Gandhi also accused Prime Minister Modi of snatching away land of tribal people in Himachal Pradesh the same way BJP governments in Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh had done.
A South Korean special prosecutor's team on Monday raided the home of former presidential chief of staff, Kim Ki-choon, to find evidence on his suspected involvement in the political scandal surrounding impeached president Park Geun-hye.

Local media reports showed that the independent counsel team's investigators stormed the home of Kim Ki-choon, who served as chief secretary to President Park between August 2013 to February 2015, to secure computer hard disks, diaries and mobile phones, reports Xinhua.

The team's deputy spokesman Hong Jung-seok confirmed the reports.

Kim is seen as one of key suspects in unraveling the scandal involving President Park and her longtime confidante Choi Soon-sil, as he is one of the closest aides to the impeached president.

Under the Park's presidency, Kim is suspected of having deeply engaged in the highest-level, presidential decision-making process as Park's chief secretary, including the illegalities surrounding the scandal.

The special prosecutor team searched Kim's home on suspicion that he ordered the vice culture minister in October 2014 to fire six senior culture ministry officials, abusing his power.

Investigators also raided the residences and offices of the culture ministry officials, including Culture Minister Cho Yoon-sun.

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Sindh Government's Rs1.5 billion project to build a high-security prison for those convicted or being tried in high-profile terrorism cases has still not been started due to the delay in transfer of the land acquired for it to the prisons department.

The high-security prison was to be built to keep terrorism suspects and convicts, who are currently, kept in separate enclosures in general prisons.

An official cited the departmental red tape to be the reason for the delay in transfer of the land to the prison authorities.

"The government lands have been reserved for new prisons in Jamshoro and four other districts under the directives of the Sindh chief minister but the same has not been transferred or allotted to the jail department by the land utilisation department despite repeated requests," the Dawn quoted a recent communication sent by the prison officials to the competent authority.

The plan to build a high-security detention facility was made after a jailbreak plot was foiled in Karachi two years ago.

The provincial government had promised to complete the project soon with heavy funding but has not even settled the land issue so far.

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While the world is enjoying this festive season celebrating Christmas and New Year there are expectant children worldwide hoping for presents from Santa Claus for their good behavior, Kaspersky Lab has revealed which countries' children are the worst culprits for risky online behavior over the last 12 months.

Based on global statistics for its Parental Control module, the research shows that the most attempts to visit dangerous websites by an underage user were recorded in Israel (775), followed by the UK (460), the US (352), Sweden (345) and Canada (302).

The research covers the year from December 2015 to November 2016, and includes data gathered from Kaspersky Lab security solutions for Windows and Mac OS X with the Parental Control module enabled. The statistics are based on the number of attempted visits the module records to sites that fall under the seven preconfigured categories deemed most dangerous for kids by Kaspersky Lab experts. The statistics are presented as the number of attempts per user per year.

The results of the research show that children from Japan are most likely to try and visit sites categorized as 'Adult content' (39 attempts) and 'Software, audio, video' (104) the latter category includes sites with unlicensed content.

It turns out that young Italians are most interested in gambling (3.6 attempts), while youngsters in Portugal were the most frequent visitors to sites with explicit language (60). Israeli kids showed most interest in alcohol, tobacco and/or narcotics (687 attempts per user) and weapons (3.8), while most attempts to visit violent content sites (1.8) were made by children in the US.

In fairness, it should be noted that not all these attempts are deliberate; for example, children can end up on these sites by accidently clicking a banner or a link shared by someone else. Meanwhile, another study conducted by Kaspersky Lab in 2016 and covering 3,780 families in seven countries found that, by their own admission, young Russians and Americans were more likely than other kids to hide evidence of potentially dangerous online activity from their parents, as well as use content that was inappropriate for children.

"Knowledge is power, as the saying goes, and this is especially true for parents who today have to protect their children from undesirable and sometimes dangerous information in both the real and virtual worlds," comments AltafHalde, Managing Director, South Asia at Kaspersky Lab."A mom or a dad cannot always be next to their kid to prevent a casual encounter with, say, pornographic content or sites promoting drug use. That's why specialized IT solutions are so important in warning parents and helping to prevent children from visiting this type of content."

Categories of websites which can be blocked by the Parental Control module in Kaspersky Lab's solutions are: Adult content; Alcohol, tobacco, narcotics; Computer games; E-commerce; Explicit language; Gambling, lotteries, sweepstakes; HTTP query redirection; Internet communication media; Job searches; News media; Religions, religious associations; Software, audio, video; Violence; Weapons, explosives, pyrotechnics.

The statistics presented in this press release includes seven categories: Adult content; Alcohol, tobacco, narcotics; Explicit language; Gambling, lotteries, sweepstakes; Software, audio, video; Violence; Weapons, explosives, pyrotechnics.

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CII-Triveni Water Institute, CII's Center of Excellence on Water and the Water Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Israel, entered into Memorandum of Understanding, during the 9th India-Israel Forum. The MoU was signed by Mr Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII, and Prof Joseph Klafter, President, Tel Aviv University.

The MoU enhances cooperation of the two countries on planning, designing, and implementing new and innovative tools and technologies that improve management of water in India. It identifies opportunities and geographical areas where WRC-TAU and CII-TWI will pool expertise and derive workable, scalable solutions in the water sector in India, for the benefit of the community at large. This includes technology, management, policy reforms and advance tools and techniques.

It covers various sectors namely, irrigation, industry, domestic water use, wastewater management, municipal sewage recycle, improving water use efficiency, training and capacity building, and most importantly implementing of strategies in drought prone areas of India. CII-Triveni Water Institute and Water Research Center, TAU together will work towards improving the water scenario across several states and regions of India.

Prof Klafter, TAU, mentioned that learnings from Israel, customized and applied to water sector in India will further strengthen the bilateral ties between the two countries.

Political will and scientific considerations will lead to successful applications. In situ treatment technologies will also have a key role to play on a decentralized basis.

Mr Nikhil Sawhney, Member, Advisory Board, CII-Triveni Water Institute, and Managing Director, Triveni Turbine, mentioned that models of Public Private Partnerships, Awareness Generation, Policy reforms and Pricing that were applied and helped convert a desert country like Israel into Water surplus country will be further studied for adoption in India. The MoU would help advancing these.

Mr Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII, said that the MoU opens doors to new state-of-the-art techniques and technologies that will be customized and implemented. He mentioned that combination of Intelligent Policy, Advanced Technology, and Stakeholder Participation will certainly bring about the much desired change in the sector. CII's WATSCAN, Water Scanning Tool, will be used and further strengthened for selection, and implementation of Water management strategies in the country.

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Co-operatives have been directed to ensure the opening of 100% accounts of milk producers/farmers by 30th January 2017

Consequent upon the Governments decisions of demonetization, certain unintended impacts have been observed especially in the sectors thriving upon sheer cash transactions. In this regards, non-availability of funds to the co-operative banks for making payments to Milk producers/farmers by dairy co-operative against the milk supplied by then came to the notice of the government. GCMMF/Amul has been specifically directed to ensure 100% milk producers accounts to be opened by 30th December, 2016. Similarly, other co-operatives have been directed to ensure the opening of 100% accounts of milk producers/farmers by 30th January, 2017.

Specific instructions have been issued to all the agencies such as National Dairy Development Board, Mother Dairy, Delhi Milk Scheme and all state Dairy co-operative federations for ensuring direct payment to milk producers bank account at the earliest. Low penetration of nationalized banks and co-operative bank accounts in rural areas need adequate financial support with appropriate safe guards.

Responding promptly to the prevailing situation of reported payment problems, Shri Radha Mohan Singh has regularly reviewed and directed to take appropriate action to aliviate the problems. Meeting with Mother Dairy, Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Fed (GCMMF) /Amul, Delhi Milk Scheme and like co-operative is taken at regular intervals.

In order to take stock of the prevailing situation, Secretary , Animal Husbandry Dairying and Fisheries, Shri Devendra Chaudhry has accordingly convened a series of meetings and initiated actions for streamlining the payment system to Milk producers and even sale of milk to consumers through cashless transactions primarily.

It is to be noted that there are 1.70 lakh Dairy Co-operative Societies (DCS) at village level having 1.6 crore milk producers affiliated with 218 milk unions. About 850 lakh litres per day Milk is procured including from private dairies. However, the value of milk procured from DCS is to the tune of rupees 120 crore per day. For weekly and 10 days payment cycle the substantive amount is to be disbursed to lakhs of milk producers spread over varied geographical areas.

Using the window of opportunity opened by the demonetization decision, it is high time to accelerate the opening of bank accounts of all those unbanked milk producers to make it cashless and digital sooner than later. Eventually, transparency saving habits, financial enclosure etc. would be benefiting milk producer in multiple ways.

The situation of easing the payment to milk producers is being reviewed and monitored periodically by the Government.

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In order to mitigate the problems of farmers and those engaged in allied activities like poultry farming and horticulture, arising out of the demonetization, the ASSOCHAM has suggested issuance of Transferrable Receipts (TRs) by agencies like the Food Corporation of India (FCI), National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) and other Central and state entities against procurement of the farm produce.

In the first place, the government should instruct FCI and other central agencies like NAFED to procure a whole lot of farm produce and issue the farmers/growers TRs which should be then honoured at all the farm related stores. These TRs can become some kind of Paytm tools and be then aggregated by one nodal agency; preferably FCI, the ASSOCHAM said.

It said with the help of the state governments, the TRs should be allowed to trade without much hassles, maybe upto a limit of Rs 50,000. Since these instruments are to be originated at the FCI level, it would be easy for the Central Government to guard against its misuse for exchange of scrapped money.

In any case, most of the scrapped notes have returned into the banking system and now the problem largely relates to shortage of new currency.

Likewise, the TRs can also be issued by some agencies like Tea Board, Fisheries boards, Jute Boards and Rubber Boards and then some of the retail chains can be roped in for honouring the same. It would also work on the model of Sodexo lunch coupons , said ASSOCHAM Secretary General Mr D S Rawat.

He said with most of the products being decanlised , even state owned companies like the State Trading Corporation should join the FCI in this operation, while the MMTC which had remained engaged in fertilizer imports can be useful in reaching out to farmers directly or through cooperative stores for supply of urea or other nutrients in exchange of the TRs.

We urge the Prime Minister's Office, the Agriculture Ministry, the Finance Ministry, Commerce Ministry and the Reserve Bank of India to work on this model in a matter of few days, along with the state agencies, the chamber said.

It said some of the marginal farmers and growers of horticulture produce are facing the problem of selling their produce with the unscrupulous elements taking advantage of the situation. Extra ordinary situation demands extra-ordinary solutions; so this model of TRs should be tried so that the farm distress is mitigated and wide support is forthcoming for the bigger war against black money and corruption, Mr Rawat said.

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Key benchmark indices drifted lower in early trade led by slide in banking stocks. At 9:25 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 182.35 points or 0.7% to 25,858.35. The Nifty 50 index was currently down 54.40 points or 0.68% at 7,931.35.

In side indices, the BSE Mid-Cap index was currently down 1.12%. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently down 0.86%. The fall in both these indices was higher than the Sensex's decline in percentage terms.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was weak. On the BSE, 1,132 shares fell and 308 shares rose. A total of 54 shares were unchanged.

Overseas, Asian stocks were trading on a mixed note in light trading after Christmas with most other Asian markets closed. Markets in Hong Kong, Australia, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and the US are closed today, 26 December 2016 in observance of Christmas holiday.

US stocks ended a thinly traded session on Friday, 23 December 2016 with slight gains boosted by healthcare companies.

Back home, Cipla (down 2.66%), Axis Bank (down 1.89%) and Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone (down 1.79%) were the major losers from the Sensex pack.

Among stock specific action, ONGC fell 1.04%. The company announced that its board on Friday, 23 December 2016, considered the proposal and approved acquisition of the entire 80% participating interest (PI) of Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) along with operatorship rights,at a purchase consideration of $995.26 million for Deen Dayai West Field in Krishna Godavari (KG) Basin offshore. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 23 December 2016.

ONGC and GSPC were engaged in discussions on a potential transaction for purchase by ONGC of GSPC's stake and operatorship in NELPIII block in KG Basin offshore.

ONGC shall also pay part consideration of $200 million to GSPC towards future consideration for six discoveries other than Deen Dayai West Field, which will be adjusted upon valuation of the these discoveries subsequent to approval of their Field Development Plans by DGH/Management Committee of the block.

Yes Bank fell 1.38%. Yes Bank announced that it has placed Rs 3000 crore of Basel III compliant Additional Tier-1 (AT1) bonds through private placement against the base issue size of Rs 2100 crore. The bonds will be listed on the BSE and its proceeds will qualify for Basel III Tier-I capital. The bonds carry a coupon rate of 9.5% per annum. The bonds have been rated as CARE AA (Stable Outlook) by CARE Ratings and IND AA (Stable Outlook) by India Ratings & Research (A Fitch Group Company). The announcement was made on Saturday, 24 December 2016.

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Key benchmark indices continued to trade with weakness in early afternoon trade. At 12:18 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 255.46 points or 0.98% to 25,785.24. The Nifty 50 index was currently down 84.10 points or 1.05% at 7,901.65. The Sensex was currently trading below the psychological 26,000 mark, after sliding below that level at the onset of the day's trading session. Market sentiment was impacted after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday, 24 December 2016, hinted at increase in taxes on income from stock market.

After opening lower, the key benchmark indices lost ground quickly on the first trading day of the week, as market reacted to statements made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday, 24 December 2016, hinting at increase in taxes on income from stock markets. However, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley clarified on Sunday, 25 December 2016 stating that media reports of Modi's speech are erroneous, adding further that the government has no plans to introduce long-term capital gains tax on share transactions. The key benchmark indices continued to trade with weakness in absence of positive cues. The Sensex slumped 286.96 points or 1.1% at the day's low of 25,753.74 in morning trade, its lowest level since 21 November 2016. The index fell 32.13 points or 0.12% at the day's high of 26,008.57 at the onset of the session. The Nifty lost 91.95 points or 1.15% at the day's low of 7,893.80 in morning trade, its lowest level since 25 May 2016. The index fell 15.70 points or 0.2% at the day's high of 7,970.05 at the onset of the session.

In side indices, the BSE Mid-Cap index was currently down 1.96%. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently down 1.65%. The fall in both these indices was higher than the Sensex's decline in percentage terms.

The broad market depicted weakness and showed more than four losers against every gainer on BSE. 1,857 shares fell and 462 shares rose while a total of 110 shares were unchanged.

Among sector specific activity, pharma shares declined. Cipla (down 4.04%), Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (down 2.73%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (down 1.33%), Alkem Laboratories (down 3.17%), GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals (down 1.41%), Aurobindo Pharma (down 3.41%), Wockhardt (down 2.52%), Cadila Healthcare (down 0.61%) and Lupin (down 0.02%) edged lower. Dr Reddy's Laboratories (up 0.06%) rose.

Panacea Biotec rose 5.03% after the company announced launch of Tetravalent Vaccine Easyfour-TT for active primary immunization and booster dose against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP) and Haemophilus Influenza Type B (Hib).The announcement was made during trading hours today, 26 December 2016.

Easyfour-TT is a sterile and uniform suspension, manufactured using CDAP technology with WHO pre-qualified antigens which ensures good quality, high immurogenicity and less reactogenicity.

Auto stocks fell. Tata Motors (down 2.11%), Maruti Suzuki India (down 0.24%), Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) (down 1.69%), Eicher Motors (down 2.01%), Bajaj Auto (down 1.27%), Hero MotoCorp (down 1.93%) and TVS Motor Company (down 1.01%) and Ashok Leyland (down 0.9%) declined.

Welspun Enterprises (WEL) rose 3.56% after the company announced that the board of directors of the company has approved sale of its entire investment of 6.04 crore equity shares, representing 15.49% stake, in the paid up equity share capital of Welspun Energy. As against its investment of Rs 91.10 crore, the stake is proposed to be sold to Welshop Trading, for a consideration of approximately Rs 290 crore plus contingent consideration, thereby implying more than three times returns to the company on its investment. The announcement was made on Saturday, 24 December 2016.

In addition to buying out WEL's stake, Welshop Trading, part of Welspun Group, has agreed to buy out the stake of other shareholders in Welspun Energy at equivalent consideration. Post sale of its renewable business, WEL's 15.49% minority stake in Welspun Energy does not contribute to the consolidated results of the company. In order to unlock value for the company, the board of WEL authorised the monetization of this stake, subject to shareholders' approval.

Overseas, Asian stocks were trading on a mixed note in light trading after Christmas with most other Asian markets closed. Markets in Hong Kong, Australia, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and the US are closed today, 26 December 2016 in observance of Christmas holiday.

US stocks ended a thinly traded session on Friday, 23 December 2016 with slight gains boosted by healthcare companies. In the latest economic data, new home sales rose 5.2% in November, advancing to their second-highest pace since early 2008. Separately, the final December reading on consumer sentiment rose, the latest sign of postelection optimism.

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Yes Bank announced that it has placed Rs 3000 crore of Basel III compliant Additional Tier-1 (AT1) bonds through private placement against the base issue size of Rs 2100 crore. The bonds will be listed on the BSE and its proceeds will qualify for Basel III Tier-I capital. The bonds carry a coupon rate of 9.5% per annum. The bonds have been rated as CARE AA (Stable Outlook) by CARE Ratings and IND AA (Stable Outlook) by India Ratings & Research (A Fitch Group Company). The announcement was made on Saturday, 24 December 2016.

ONGC announced that its board on Friday, 23 December 2016, considered the proposal and approved acquisition of the entire 80% participating interest (PI) of Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) along with operatorship rights,at a purchase consideration of $995.26 million for Deen Dayai West Field in Krishna Godavari (KG) Basin offshore. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 23 December 2016.

ONGC and GSPC were engaged in discussions on a potential transaction for purchase by ONGC of GSPC's stake and operatorship in NELPIII block in KG Basin offshore.

ONGC shall also pay part consideration of $200 million to GSPC towards future consideration for six discoveries other than Deen Dayai West Field, which will be adjusted upon valuation of the these discoveries subsequent to approval of their Field Development Plans by DGH/Management Committee of the block.

The transaction would be documented by signing a farm-in agreement with GSPC. Requisite approval from the Government will be sought by GSPC in accordance with provisions of production sharing contract of the block.

JK Tyre & Industries announced that a meeting of its board of directors will be held on 28 December 2016, for considering raising of funds through various means. The funds shall be raised via issue of securities, convertible/non-convertible, with or without warrant by way of public and/or private offerings and/or qualified institutions placement or any combination thereof, subject to such approvals as may be required. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 23 December 2016.

Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers (RCF) announced that it has issued commercial paper (CP) for Rs 150 crore on 23 December 2016, in favour of HDFC Bank, having maturity date as 23 March 2017. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 23 December 2016.

Apar Industries announced that a meeting of its board of directors is scheduled to be held on 6 January 2017, to consider buyback of the fully paid-up equity shares of the company. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 23 December 2016.

Trent announced that Brickwork Ratings has upgraded the rating for the non-convertible debentures (NCDs) amounting to Rs 75 crore issued by the company from BWR AA to BWR AA+. The outlook was maintained stable. Instruments with this rating are considered to have a high degree of safety regarding timely servicing of financial obligations. Such instruments carry very low credit risk. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 23 December 2016.

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Actor Prithviraj, one of the leading stars of Malayalam cinema, believes the life of a star is under constant pressure and scrutiny. He says a star's life is not as easy-going as the general perception goes.

"I do agree when a star asks for a cup of coffee or lunch of his choice, it will be brought to him. But, there's constant pressure -- not the kind to succeed -- but when you're a busy actor you don't have a day off," Prithviraj told IANS.

Having been acting for over a decade, he says he can't call in sick whenever he feels like.

"Even when I'm on a vacation, I want to shut out thoughts about cinema but I can't. When you're the lead actor, you share so much responsibility of the project, so you can't wake up one day and decide you won't work today," he said.

"If you're working in an IT company, you can call in sick. There's no sick leave in cinema," he added.

Awaiting the release of Malayalam horror-drama "Ezra", Prithviraj is currently shooting for "Tiyaan".

--IANS

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The year 2016 brought back nightmarish memories of past wars for thousands of border residents in the Jammu region whose lives remained on the edge because of myriad ceasefire violations by Pakistan.

After India carried out surgical strikes across the Line of Control (LoC) on September 29, Pakistani troops have violated the truce 110 times with impunity by resorting to indiscriminate shelling and firing on the international border in the Jammu, Kathua and Samba districts.

Twenty-six Indian soldiers and paramilitary troopers have been killed in Pakistani shelling and firing during the last three months in the Jammu region.

The LoC in Poonch and Rajouri districts has been no exception to Pakistan's attempts to de-stabilise the relationship between the two countries.

The army and the Border Security Force (BSF) guarding the LoC and the international border in the Jammu region have effectively retaliated the Pakistani Army's indiscriminate targeting of military and civilian facilities.

Yet, the brunt of these hostilities has been borne by thousands of villagers living close to the international border and the LoC.

While seven civilians were killed and over four dozen injured in Pakistani shelling on civilian areas, homes were also damaged, crops destroyed and cattle killed in border villages.

Hundreds of villagers migrated out of their homes and took temporary shelter in panchayats, community halls, schools and religious places away from the line of fire during 2016.

Such migrations became a norm each time guns roared.

Schools remained closed and villages appeared haunted during the intense shelling and firing in R.S.Pura, Hira Nagar, Samba, Suchetgarh and half a dozen other sectors of the international border in 2016.

Locals said in the affected areas, except for a formal declaration of war, what was happening was reminiscent of the 1965 and 1971 conflicts between India and Pakistan.

People living in these areas have been equally bitter about the state and the central governments for not coming to their help.

"We were promised small pieces of land away from the border to build dwellings to avoid being caught in the cross fire," Jagdish Kumar, 57, a resident of Suchetgarh sector, told IANS.

"There was a lot of official talk about building concrete bunkers to shelter families during shelling from across the border. Nothing concrete was done to protect us. Governments changed at the Centre and in the state, but our lot did not change," Jagdish Kumar lamented.

Visit any other affected area and the people's refrain remains the same. They are also bitter about politicians visiting their areas during border tensions.

"Politicians of both ruling parties and the opposition come to deliver speeches each time the borders are hot. They promise us the sky and after things settle down, these promises are forgotten," rued Sunil Kumar, 46, a resident of the R.S.Pura sector in Jammu district.

Two main occupations of border residents are agriculture and rearing cattle. Ironically, these two have taken the worst beating due to shelling and firing from across the border.

Dozens of cattle perished due to shells fired by Pakistan Rangers in Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts this year as heavy losses were suffered by farmers because of their failure to harvest ripe crops on time during this period.

Given the increase in terror attacks carried out by non-state actors in Nagrota, Uri and elsewhere in Jammu and during 2016, thousands of border residents in the Jammu region can only pray for peace between the two countries in 2017.

"The relations between the two countries have touched such a low this year that one can only hope for a miracle to silence the guns in the coming year," said Bodhraj Sharma, 65, who lives in Kathua district.

Looking for miracles has always been the only hope for these hapless border villagers for the last many years. Unfortunately for these innocent people, miracles do not happen as routine in the lives of human beings.

(This is a part of a series of articles from IANS that look back at the year that was. Sheikh Qayoom can be contacted at sheikh.abdul@ians.in)

--IANS

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Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay has refused to take his enhanced salary, and announced he would donate the additional Nu 50,000 (Rs.50,000) from his revised monthly salary to charity.

While presenting the state of the nation report to parliament Thursday, the prime minister said many people have criticised the salary for members of parliament and cabinet ministers.

"I'll not defend the increase or argue whether it's too high or not," he said. "However, on the prime minister's salary, I also agree that it's too high."

"Our country can't afford it and my conscience will not be able to accept it," Tobgay said.

The prime minister would only accept the salary equivalent to that received by the cabinet ministers, and the additional monthly amount of Nu 50,000 would be donated to charity organisations at the end of his five-year term, Bhutan's national newspaper Kuensel reported Friday.

"There's no motive, I'm just driven by the understanding that the PM's salary was too high," Tobgay told Kuensel.

On one hand, the government was trying austerity measures and on the other, the prime minister cannot accept such a big salary, he said.

"Several members, both in the opposition and the ruling party, said that I have to take it. But I said I couldn't accept this and if the PM must get more then give him Nu 1 more, just as a token, which wasn't accepted as well," he said.

--Indo-Asian news Service

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British councils conduced mass covert surveillance on citizens over the course of five years for crimes ranging from dog fouling to pigeon feeding, the media reported.

The councils were authorised to carry out more than 55,000 days of covert surveillance during which spying was conducted with secret listening devices, cameras and private detectives, according to a report in the Guardian on Sunday.

A huge freedom of information request from the Liberal Democrats showed that 186 of the 283 councils had used the government's Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa) to gather evidence in covert surveillance.

A total of 2,800 separate surveillance operations took place during that time, lasting up to 90 days each.

Among the detailed examples provided were Midlothian council monitoring dog barking and Allerdale borough council investigating who was guilty of feeding pigeons.

In Wolverhampton city, the authorities used covert surveillance to check on the sale of dangerous toys and car clocking -- adjusting the mileage on a car's odometre.

Slough used Ripa to aid an investigation into an illegal puppy farm whereas Westminster used it to crack down on the selling of fireworks to children.

The freedom of information request also revealed a number of examples of councils using Ripa as a way of checking up on benefit claimants.

The Lancaster city council used the act, in 2012, for "targeted dog fouling enforcement" in two hotspots over 11 days.

However, a British governement spokeswoman said that the law had since changed and Ripa could only now be used if criminal activity was suspected.

Critics said that Ripa was purportedly intended only to be used when absolutely necessary to protect British citizens from extreme threats such as terrorism, not for petty crimes, the Guardian noted.

Brian Paddick, the Liberal Democrats peer who represents the party on home affairs, said: "It is absurd that local authorities are using measures primarily intended for combating terrorism for issues as trivial as a dog barking. Spying on the public should be a last resort not an everyday tool."

However, a Home Office spokesperson said that Ripa was "an important tool that local authorities can use to address the issues that affect many people's lives".

The spokespeson said that local authorities should only use it when it is "both necessary and proportionate to do so".

Paddick said that the new Investigatory Powers Act, which will take in Ripa powers alongside a raft of new measures, would restrict the ability of local authorities to monitor people's communications.

But he also said it would give "mass surveillance powers to a huge number of government bodies".

The new Investigatory Powers Act faced difficulties after the EU's highest court ruled last week that "general and indiscriminate retention" of emails and electronic communications was illegal.

--IANS

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Demonetisation of high value currency notes and digitisation of books evoked a mixed response at book fairs in northeast India.

The ongoing book fairs in Agartala in Tripura and Silchar in Assam are two significant annual events for the book lovers, publishers and sellers as well as writers.

Publishers and book sellers from Bangladesh, Kolkata, Delhi besides northeast states and other places took part in these fairs.

"Demonetisation has not affected the sale of books in the ongoing 12th Agartala 'Pustak Mela' (book fair) here," Tripura Publishers' Guild president Debananda Dam told IANS.

He said that like in previous years, the gathering at the book fair was good and sale of books almost satisfactory.

A total of 46 stalls of book sellers and publishers from Bangladesh, Kolkata, Delhi and various northeastern states, besides Tripura, were set up at the book fair organised by the Tripura Publishers' Guild.

Dam, who is associated with book publishing for more than four decades, said digitisation of books has not affected the selling and buying of books at the fair though the people are gradually becoming familiar with digital books and online reading and buying of books.

The guild chief said there would possibly be no effect of demonetisation and digitisation of books on 35th Agartala Book Fair organised by the Tripura government from February 11 next year.

In a sharp contrast, demonetisation of old Rs 500 and 1,000 notes and digitisation of books seem to have affected the sale of books at the ongoing Silchar Book Fair.

"Both digitisation of books and sudden withdrawal of high value currency notes, like other trade, also affected the books sales at the Silchar book fair," Gobinda Kangshabanik, a book seller, said.

He said that growing indifference towards book reading among youths was depressing.

"The tech savvy people opt for online versions of books. Moreover, collection of good books is also an important factor. Despite having a large number of books with varied subjects, the sales of books at the fair are absolutely disappointing," Kangshabanik said.

"Some crowds gathered only in the evening to enjoy the host of cultural programmes that take place at the book fair ground," he added.

The deserted look of the Silchar Book Fair has saddened the booksellers.

--IANS

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A court here on Monday expressed astonishment over the Central Bureau of Investigations' (CBI) failure in finding out the bribe amount paid to former IAF chief S.P. Tyagi Agusta in the Westland VVIP helicopter deal after a three year, nine month investigation.

"During arguments, CBI failed to state as to how much cash was paid to the accused (Tyagi) and when it was paid," Special Judge Arvind Kumar said while allowing Tyagi's bail application.

Tyagi - the first chief of any wing of the armed forces to be arrested in the country - and the others were allegedly involved in irregularities in the procurement of 12 AW-101 VVIP helicopters from Britain-based AgustaWestland.

"Admittedly, the CBI has seized the documents regarding properties in the year 2013 and more than three years and nine months have passed but could not conduct investigation in this regard as the CBI has mentioned in arrest memo of accused that properties of accused are to be linked with illegal gratification," the court said.

"The correctness or otherwise of the allegations as to whether the accused (Tyagi) has taken the kickbacks and in what manner he was connected with the same can only be looked into during the course of trial," it said.

An FIR was registered against the accused on March 12, 2013 under various charges dealing with criminal conspiracy, cheating and under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The CBI alleges that Tyagi and the other accused had received bribes from AgustaWestland helping the manufacturer to win the $556.262 million contract to purchase the helicopters for the Communication Squadron of Indian Air Force to carry the President, Prime Minister and other VVIPs.

The accused had allegedly hatched conspiracy to reduce the service ceiling of the helicopters from 6,000 meters to 4,500 meters to make AgustaWestland eligible for the contract.

The company was favoured by accused persons against illegal gratification accepted through different companies in the name of consultancy services, the agency said.

Three cousins of Tyagi including Sanjeev Tyagi who is undergoing judicial custody entered into a consultancy contact with Tunisia-based Gordian Services Sarl in 2004, the CBI said while opposing the bail plea.

The CBI claimed that Tyagi brothers received 1,26,000 euros after May 2004 and 200,000 euros after February 2005 in the form of consultancy fee from Gordian Services.

It added that Tyagi also received some amount in cash from Guido Ralph Haschke and Carlo Valentino Ferdinando Gerosa, who were linked with Gordian Services.

It was alleged that Bruno Spagnatini of Agusta Westland started paying kickbacks to Haschke and Gerosa under the guise of several consultancy contracts between Agusta Westland and Gordian Services.

Later on, money was transferred to India through different companies and accused a Delhi-based lawyer Gautam Khaitan, who is undergoing judicial custody, played a vital role in facilitating transfer of illegal gratification to India, the CBI said.

Tyagi, who headed the Indian Air Force from 2004 to 2007, has denied the charges saying that deal was executed after his tenure.

The order on the bail plea of other two accused -- Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and Khaitan -- will be delivered on January 4, 2017.

--IANS

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successfully tested its newest twin-engine radar-evading, fifth generation stealth fighter, local media reported on Monday, citing sources in the aviation industry. The FC-31 Gyrfalcon can carry 8 tons of weapons and is said to be worth around $70 million.

The revamped version of what was previously known as the J-31 made its debut flight in the northeastern city of Shenyang on Friday, the state-owned Daily reported.

The trailblazing aircraft was the brainchild of Shenyang Aircraft Corp, part of the Aviation Industry Corporation of (AVIC).

According to AVIC, the FC-31 has a maximum take-off weight of 28 metric tons, a flight radius of 1,250 km, and a top speed of Mach 1.8 or 1.8 times the speed of sound.

The aircraft can easily carry 8 tons of weapons, holding six missiles in its internal weapons bay, plus six more under its wings.

Sergey Kornev, head of Russia's Air Force Equipment Export Department, earlier told RIA Novosti the J-31 will fly on Russian aircraft engines RD-93.

A publicity officer at AVIC, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed the flight test to the China Daily.

The FC-31 first came under the spotlight in 2012 when the first prototype managed to stay airborne for as long as 11 minutes during a test.

The new fighter boasts a number of improvements over the previous one, experts say.

"Compared with the first FC-31, there are a lot of improvements on the second prototype. Changes were made to the airframe, wings and vertical tails, which make it leaner, lighter and more maneuverable," Wu Peixin, an aviation industry observer in Beijing, told the newspaper.

The only fifth-generation fighter jet currently available on the market is the US Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, a single-engine combat aircraft designed to perform ground attack and air defence missions.

According to Lockheed Martin, it is the "world's most advanced" multi-role fighter, boasting "unmatched capabilities" to military forces around the world.
A mere four days before the deadline of December 30, by when the pains of customers are supposed to allay -- as Prime Minister Narendra Modi said -- bankers seemed to nurse no hopes of any comfort and expected long queues to slither into the new year and into the months that follow.

"The rush is still there and there's no hope of any respite. How can there be any when the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) is providing only 20-30 per cent of total cash required at the banks?" All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) General Secretary C.H. Venkatachalam told IANS.

"The situation has not improved much. We had written to even RBI Governor Urjit Patel, apprising him of the situation. But then this is India, you cannot expect a swift reply from anyone. There's no transperancy," he said.

Venkatachalam expressed his anger also at the sorry state of bank employees who are being targets of disillusioned customers' wrath for no fault of theirs.

He blamed RBI for eroding customers' confidence in the institution of banks by not coming up with any satisfactory answers for the instances of new currency being seized all over the country, while none of this is reaching the legitimate candidates.

"Why doesn't RBI give an answer for the currency leakage? The customer is naive; he sees the news in the paper or TV and thinks it's the doing of the bank officials, that the money is being siphoned off by them. It disillusions him further," Venkatachalam said writing-off the motive of eradicating black money too as a red herring.

He was seconded, in part, by a bank official from a HDFC branch in Noida, who said that money accorded to banks is just as little as before, however, the rush has attenuated.

"The crowd of customers is not as massive as before; partly because of the ATMs, some of which have finally found some cash," Samiksha Sandle, Manager, HDFC branch Noida Sector-16 told IANS.

Despite this time being the holiday season, the bank officials have been persuaded to not go on leave, she said.

"As an emergency measure, we have not approved any long leave for our employees," Sandle added.
Four persons, including a tourist guide, have been arrested here on charges of sexually assaulting a US tourist here earlier this year, police said on Monday. Meanwhile the DCW sought a status report from police and asked why it was not informed when the victim's statement was recorded.

Aniruddha Singh, a Nepal-based tourist guide, Omprakash, Maqsood and Vivek were arrested from different cities during raids conducted by Delhi Police on separate occasions, police said.

"On the complaint of a Delhi-based NGO, we contacted the victim and filed a case on the basis of her statement. During our inquiry, we conducted several raids in Delhi and other cities and arrested four persons," Joint Commissioner of Police Dependra Pathak told IANS.

Pathak said that a case was registered just two hours after the victim gave a statement through email. "We investigated the case professionally and recorded the victim's statement last week when she arrived in Delhi from America," he said.

Among the other accused, Omprakash was a driver, Maqsood a helper and Vivek a bellboy at the hotel where the crime occurred. Police initially identified Vivek by the duty register of room service as he was first to enter the victim's room on the day of crime, police said.

As per her complaint, the 30-year-old American tourist was gang-raped at a luxury hotel in first week of April this year.

Delhi Police had registered an FIR early this month on the complaint of the woman as External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj intervened in the matter.

Pathak said that the accused have denied the charge but police will seek their custody from court for further interrogation. A test identification parade may also be held if necessary.

Meanwhile the victim's advocate Mritunjay, who had earlier said that both he and his client were unhappy with the status of the probe, told IANS that he was still "not happy" with police's efforts.

"There is a delay in arrests even as the accused were identified by police in the initial days (after the complaint). The accused persons should have been arrested earlier. There were five accused as per my client's statement in the case and the fifth one is moving free now," he said.

Meanwhile the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) asked why police did not inform its Rape Crisis Cell when they recorded the victim's statements on December 20.

"Such instances defame India. Confidence of women in police decreases. Police should have obeyed directions of High Court and called DCW counsellor," DCW chief Swati Maliwal tweeted.

In a notice sent to Deputy Commissioner of Police of New Delhi district, Maliwal said that the commission got to know, through news reports, that the victim has found the investigation process of the case unsatisfactory.

The victim had filed a police complaint with the help of a NGO early December, saying the give accused drugged her and sexually assaulted her for two days and also made an MMS.

--IANS

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As the southern film industry continues to be ruled by stars and hit filmmakers, a wave of new generation movie makers -- including first-timers as well as those with a film or two to their credit -- caught the attention of audience and critics alike with their work in 2016.

Vijay Kumar: His impressive Tamil directorial debut "Uriyadi" sent chills down the spines of the audience for its raw and extremely violent portrayal of action. He still managed to win hearts because the action in the film was well justified. Even though the film didn't make a killing at the box-office, it hasn't been forgotten unlike a bevy of southern releases this year. Made with absolutely no commercial compromise, the film is about caste-based politics and how the lives of a few students change forever when they cross paths with a politician.

Johnpaul George: Malayalam drama "Guppy" was well received for its interesting take on human relationships, though it is addressed in an unconventional manner. It was aided by a sturdy screenplay that never gave in to commercial trappings. Johnpaul George made a solid debut as a director and proves that he is here to stay.

Arun Kumar: In Tamil actioner "Sethupathi", director Arun Kumar showed his khaki-clad hero Vijay Sethupathi in his coolest avatar till date. While being a regular police drama, the film stood out because of its treatment and for giving us heartwarming familial moments to celebrate. This was Arun's second film and he displayed great maturity and finesse in the way he handled the story.

Ravikanth Perepu: Ravikanth's Telugu thriller "Kshanam" came as a whiff of fresh air and it succeeded in reaching out to audience beyond Telugu filmdom. Until the last minute, it gave the audience an edge-of-the-seat experience and it achieved it with the help of a few highly underrated actors. The film was raved for its tight screenplay and suspense which it managed to maintain till the end.

Lakshmy Ramakrishnan: Her slice-of-life drama "Ammani", about free-spirited women, was extremely well-received because of its uncomplicated approach to filmmaking, where it's all about writing a solid script. There's so much about life the film teaches us, in ways we never get tired of watching. Though this is her third directorial venture, Lakshmy deserves to be credited because she's getting better with each film and her work leaves an impact, every single time.

Tharun Bhascker Dhaassyam: Like it or not, you will fall in love with Tharun's highly successful and instantly likable Telugu debut "Pellichoopulu", which showed us that even a simple story, when told with conviction and passion, can strike a chord among audiences of all sections. Amidst all the romance and laugh-aloud humour, the film makes a gentle, intelligent case for women empowerment.

Rajeev Ravi: Cinematographer-turned-filmmaker Rajeev Ravi, in his third directorial "Kammatipaadam", throws the spotlight on a slum in Kerala, and captures it very realistically in this Malayalam crime saga about urbanisation at the expense of dalits. Dulquer Salmaan delivers a cracker of a performance in what could be termed as a role of a lifetime.

Hemanth Rao: Engineer-turned-filmmaker Hemanth's Kannada directorial debut "Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu" will steal your heart. With its extremely competent cast and stimulating music, the film works beautifully because of its writing and well-etched characters. Veteran actor Anant Nag is a treat to watch as plays an older character suffering from Alzheimer's, and he played his part with ease.

(Haricharan Pudipeddi can be contacted at haricharan.p@ians.in)

--IANS

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India on Thursday offered to assist Myanmar in the area of public healthcare and provide support in boosting agricultural production.

The offer was made by Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at the India Myanmar Business Conclave held at Myanmarese capital Yangon, according to an Indian commerce ministry statement in New Delhi.

"India can cooperate in boosting productivity by providing technology and agri equipment," Sitharaman said at the conclave.

Pharmaceutical sector is another area where India can engage actively specially for public healthcare, she added.

Sitharaman also identified textiles, IT and automobiles as the industries where the two countries can work together.

"Sitharaman congratulated Myanmar for landslide victory by the National League for Democracy led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in the elections held in November 2015," the statement said, adding she "acknowledged the calibrated and pragmatic stand of the (Myanmar) Government towards a peaceful and orderly assumption of power".

Leading businesspersons from Myanmar as well as many ministers attended the conclave.

Sitharaman later held bilateral meetings with Myanmar's Minister for Construction Win Khaing, Minister for Commerce Than Myint, and Minister for Industry Khin Maung Cho, the statement said.

Issues related to long-term engagement on procurement of pulses, easy access to Indian pharma products and pharma companies, Indian investment in infrastructure, capacity enhancement and upgrading border infrastructure, were discussed between the two sides, it added.

Sitharaman conveyed India's commitment to Myanmar's development, including road and connectivity, as well as border projects such as border 'haats' and Integrated Check Posts.

"The transition from barter trade to normal trade with effect from December 1, 2015 was a step forward to boost trade. Similarly, a liberal access was available for services including a visa fee waiver for Myanmar applicants applying for Indian Business and Employment visas," she said.

The minister also invited Myanmar to hold roadshows in Indian cities to showcase opportunities for Indian businesses.

Sitharaman is leading a high-level CEO delegation to Myanmar May 18-20 as part of India's "Act East" policy.

The delegation includes Naushad Forbes, president of industry chamber CII, Rakesh Mittal of Bharti Enterprises, Shobana Kamineni of Apollo Hospitals, Arundhati Bhattacharya of State Bank of India, and Madhu Kannan of Tata Sons, among others.

India-Myanmar bilateral trade was valued at around $2 billion in 2014-15.

--IANS

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Actress Nayanthara's upcoming Tamil thriller "Kolayuthir Kaalam", which will be directed by Chakri Toleti, is to be shot on 8K resolution, making it one of the first Indian films to use the technology.

8K, a successor of 4K, is the highest ultra high definition (UHD) resolution in digital television and film restoration and is 16 times detailed than any current resolution.

"Getting ready to shoot 'Kolayuthir Kaalam' with my new EPIC-W camera. One of the first Indian films shot at 8K resolution," Toleti wrote on his Twitter page on Monday.

Tipped to be an invasion thriller, the film is said to be loosely based on Hollywood's recent indie hit, "Rush".

The film will be jointly produced by Vashu Bhagnani, Deepshikha Deshmukh and Yuvan Shankar Raja, who will also double up as the composer.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Cracks seem to have appeared in the opposition's concerted campaign against demonetisation as several parties have pulled out of a joint press conference called by the Congress here on Tuesday over the contentious issue.

Many important partners of the anti-demonetisation campaign, such as Janata Dal-United (JD-U), the Left, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Samajwadi Party (SP), on Monday refused to attend the joint press conference scheduled to be held at the Constitution Club here.

Communist Party of India Marxist (CPI-M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said at a press conference here on Monday: "The Congress should know that in a combined effort, prior understanding and consultations are a must."

"Till now, there was coordination among different opposition parties' parliamentary groups. If you have to elevate it to the party level, you must do it with prior consultation," he added.

JD-U leader K.C. Tyagi told IANS: "We were not sounded out; we don't know what is the agenda of the press briefing; there is no common minimum programme. So how can we participate?"

Senior NCP leader D.P. Tripathi said although the "opposition is united over the wrong implementation" of the November 8 demonetisation, his party won't be going to the presser.

"Many parties are not coming; so we are not coming too," Tripathi said.

The Samajwadi Party, too, was undecided on the issue.

"We have not decided... at least, I am not going. You may contact neta ji (Mulayam Singh Yadav) for more details," SP leader Naresh Agrawal told IANS.

However, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), a coalition partner of JD-U in Bihar, confirmed participation.

Trinamool Congress leader Sukehndu Shekhar Roy said his party is "most likely" to participate.

Several opposition parties were left red faced after a Congress delegation led by its Vice-President Rahul Gandhi went to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 16, the last day of the winter session of Parliament, without even informing them.

The entire opposition had tried to corner the government over the demonetisation issue and stalled Parliament proceedings for the entire session that began on November 16.

A few days back, the Congress reached out to several opposition parties to rally support once again over the issue. However, not all parties seem convinced with the Congress initiative this time around.

--IANS

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Mass graves with dozens of bodies of civilians subjected to brutal torture have been discovered in Aleppo neighbourhoods left by militants, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Monday.

Many of the corpses were found with missing body parts, and most had gunshot wounds to the head, according to a statement by Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Major-General Igor Konashenkov.

"The completion of a uniquely large-scale humanitarian operation by the Russian Centre for Reconciliation in Aleppo will destroy many of the myths that have been fed to the world by western politicians," Konashenkov said in a statement.

"The results of only an initial survey of Aleppo neighbourhoods abandoned by the so-called 'opposition' will shock many."

In addition to the massacres on militant-held territory, the area had been extensively mined: streets, cars, the entrances to buildings and even children's toys had been booby-trapped.

In one small area, three tanks, two cannons, two multiple rocket launchers and numerous homemade mortars were found.

Seven huge warehouses filled with ammunition and supplies were also discovered, Konashenkov said.

On December 23, Russian Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu said all militants had been driven away from Aleppo. This came shortly after the Syrian Army declared the entire city free from anti-government armed groups.

The Russian military was involved in minesweeping the liberated areas and providing humanitarian aid to returning residents. On Friday, a Russian military police battalion arrived to help maintain security.

--IANS

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Russia on Monday said mass graves with dozens of mutilated bodies, some shot in the head, had been found in the Syrian city of Aleppo.

Aleppo was announced to be liberated last week by the Syrian army, Efe news reported.

Russian military spokesman Igor Konashenkov said some bodies in the mass graves bore signs of savage torture.

Konashenkov said it was just the beginning of the discoveries being made.

--IANS

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Political chaos, death, destruction and suffering dominates the media portrayal of Iraq and its culture and art scene is completely neglected, according to Iraqi musician Osama Abdulrasol.

"The media across the world only speaks of Iraq in terms of war and sadness in that land. Hundreds of artistic things have originated in Iraq but the press exposes just one segment that is the political conflicts and the negative repercussions," the composer and producer told IANS in an interview.

"...That way people forget the value of Iraqis," he said.

Abdulrasol was recently here with Turkish musician Johannus Sahin to perform at the Tansen Samaroh organised by the Madhya Pradesh Culture Ministry's Kala Parishad to celebrate the universal language of music.

According to him, politicians don't want culture to be served and if it is to be served it has to be manipulated through them.

He said: "We are trying to revive the exquisite art by performing at such festivals. Our main goal is to showcase a positive side of Iraq and bring another image through music."

It was his first tour to India. From raagas to breads, Abdulrasol had a lot to say about the country and its people.

"It was an amazing experience performing for the Indian audiences. I was extremely tired before my performance but the enthusiastic audiences completely made it up to that," he said, adding: "We got to eat fantastic food in the afternoons."

"There was this delicious dish called shahi paneer. Then there were breads...chapatis, naans etc."

Referring to the multiple problems he witnessed here in India, he said: "Chaos creates a lot of creativity. I believe that it triggers artists."

"In Iraq also, the political chaos triggers creativity. Europe is organised and thus it has less creativity," he said jokingly.

Abdulrasol cited similarities between Indian music and Iraqi music saying: "We have maqams in Iraqi music, which are similar to raagas in Indian music. Many of the Indian raagas have different names in Iraqi."

"In old times, there used to be 3,500 maqams. They unfortunately got reduced to 47 with time. We are trying to bring those old maqams back to life."

The artist works a lot on fusions and likes to bring different instruments together but doesn't support the influence of contemporary styles on classical music.

"I don't enjoy the unnecessary influence of pop and rock on classical music. I like fusion only if it's made with taste and to do so is very difficult. A lot of artists don't know how to bring it out and end up ruining it," he said, adding: "My theory is to make new roots on the ground."

Abdulrasol's instrument, the qanun is very similar to the Indian santoorr. It is played by plucking the strings with two tortoise-shell picks (one for each hand) or with fingernails.

"People across the world remain very curious to know about the instruments that we play. They always come and ask about it as they cannot really figure out how we play it using fingernails," Abdulrasol explained.

For Turkish artist Johannus Sahin, India is alive in terms of music with active audiences, who understand music.

"It is a musical country. It's much easier to play music here than to play it in the west. People are mainly listening to pop there. Classical is very strange for them. They don't have the culture and patience to enjoy it like they have in India," he said.

Sahin performed at the Jodhpur folk festival a decade ago. This was his third tour to India. He feels that the music scene in the country is flourishing.

"I see a lot of events happening in Delhi and the music scene is flourishing. You go to a bank ATM, and see images of musicians...Zakir Hussain and Ravi Shankar. That's overwhelming."

"You can never ever witness such things in Europe. They would never put the pictures of an artist. It's great that this country supports artists more than political leaders," he laughed.

(Mudita Girotra's visit was at the invitation of the Kala Parishad. She can be contacted at mudita.g@ians.in)

--IANS

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Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Monday again criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue and said he had divided the country into two.

He said the November 8 -- wherein old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes were scrapped -- was not against corruption but against the poor and other sections of society.

"Modi ji has divided the country between one per cent super-rich people and 99 per cent honest people. All black money is not in cash and all cash is not black money," Gandhi said at a big rally in this tribal belt in the desert state.

He said the cash lying with 99 per cent Indians is not black money. "About 94 per cent of the black money is lying in Swiss bank accounts, gold and real estate. Just six per cent of the black money is in cash," the Congress leader said.

He demanded that the Modi government release in Parliament the list of names of those who hold black money in Swiss banks.

Targeting Modi over turning India cashless, Gandhi said: "A farmer buys seeds not through mobile. He purchases in cash. When a labourer works, he does not get payment in credit card but in cash. Modi ji, you hit them. You also hit small traders."

The Congress leader said some big corporates hold money in Swiss bank accounts and whenever Modi ji travels to Australia, Japan, China and other nations, some of these super-rich people travel with him, claiming that Modi gets them contracts.

"(Rajasthan Chief Minister) Vasundhara Raje does the same in the state," he added.

In September 2015, the Congress had demanded Raje's resignation over an alleged scam of Rs 45,000 crore in the allocation of mines in the state. The party said she was guilty of allocation of 653 mines in contravention of the Centre's policy on the matter.

"The Congress is against corruption; and if the government takes action against removing corruption, we (Congress) will support the government fully, the Congress leader said.

"But Modi ji, 'notebandi' is not against corruption. It is against the poor, labourers, women, farmers and middle-income families," he said.

"Modi ji, during (2014 general) election campaign, used to say he is going to get black money stashed abroad and deposit Rs 15 lakh in each bank account. Did you get the money?," he asked.

"The Modi government has completed over two and a half years at the Centre whereas the Raje government has completed three years in power in the state. Give me one instance they have done something for the benefit of the poor," Gandhi said.

He said the people and the Congress wants three things from Modi and Raje -- waiving of loans of farmers, lower electricity tariff and right price for agricultural produce to farmers.

"Farmers are committing suicide; the governments -- both at the Centre and the state -- have done nothing for the farmers.

"The maximum number of atrocities against scheduled castes and tribes happen in Rajasthan and the Chief Minister is doing nothing," the Congress leader said.
Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday requested Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda to include Odia language as a medium of examination in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for medical colleages.

Pradhan requested an additional option to the students to appear in either English or Odia in the NEET examination.

"This will ensure meritorious students from the state are not adversely affected on account of their lack of expertise in English," he said in a letter to his cabinet colleague.

The Health Ministry has included six regional languages as a medium of examination in NEET. These are Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, Tamil, and Telugu.

Slamming the Odisha government for failing to protect the interest of the students in the state, Pradhan said the exclusion of the Odia language is solely attributable to the state government which failed to protect the interest of the state's students.

"Though the decision to this effect was taken by your Ministry through an elaborate consultative process, the government of Odisha did not avail of the opportunities in articulating the aspirations of the students from Odisha.

"To cover up their failure in this regard, the state government has resorted to raising the matter with the Central government at this stage and thereby, misleading the people of the state," he said in his letter.

--IANS

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Congress's Uttar Pradesh Chief Ministerial candidate Sheila Dikshit on Monday said that she had said what she had to in the Sahara diary case, and now it was for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to respond.

"I have said what I had to. The ball is in the court of the @PMOIndia and others now. Will he respond and come out clean? #SaharaBirlaDiaries," Dikshit tweeted on her official Twitter account.

The Congress has demanded an "independent probe" into the "Sahara diaries", in which names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Ministers of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh and also Dikshit have figured.

Rejecting the allegations, Dikshit had said she "does not recall anything" about the diary and asserted she has "nothing to do" with it.

According to the list, Rs 1 crore in cash was given to Dikshit on September 23, 2013, in Delhi. She was the Delhi Chief Minister until December 2013.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Taiwan parliamentary committee on Monday approved the preliminary review of amendments to legalise same-sex marriage as thousands of supporters and detractors gathered near the legislative headquarters.

The approved review will be sent to parliamentary groups for further study, Efe news reported.

After the approval, opponents -- mostly religious groups and traditionalists -- announced they will fight till the end by promoting a referendum on the issue and will seek to revoke the mandate of legislators supporting equal marriage rights.

In the parliamentary committee debate the main opposition of the traditionalists appeared to be the changing of "male" and "female" and "father" and "mother" by words without references to the sex.

"I cannot accept that in my identity document it does not show I'm a father and in the documents of my father and mother it is not mentioned either," said opposition party Kuomintang parliamentary member Lai Shi-bao.

In the speeches of the opponents the two most recurrent themes appeared to be the legal disappearance of the terms "father" and "mother" and new educational material on homosexuality, which some say "encourage heterosexual children to become homosexual".

There is no strong opposition on the island to the legalization of gay marriage but rather to the change in the definition of marriage, which is the preferred option for the LGBT group as it rejects special legislation on grounds of being discriminatory and contrary to human rights.

In a poll released last week by Family Taiwan, a group opposed to same-sex marriage, 52.6 per cent of respondents rejected the amendments while 78 per cent considered them as affecting majority family values.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen voiced her support in favour of the same-sex marriage legislation and most of her party (Democratic Progressive Party) legislators approved the initiative, although some prefer it to be made into a special law.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Vice President M. Hamid Ansari will reach Mumbai on Tuesday for a two-day visit to the city, an official said here on Monday.

Among his major engagements, Ansari will deliver the 'Sir M. Visvesvaraya Memorial Lecture' and present the World Trade Centre awards at the WTC Auditorium at Cuffe Parade on December 27.

Sir M. Visvesvaraya, was an engineer, scholar and statesman, who also served as the Diwan of Mysore state from 1912-1918, and was conferred the Bharat Ratna posthumously in 1955.

He was the chief engineer overseeing the construction of the Krishna Raja Sagara Dam in Mysore and chief designer of the flood protection system for Hyderabad. His birthday, September 15, is celebrated as 'Engineers Day' in India.

On Wednesday, Ansari will release the new book of veteran journalist Sudheendra Kulkarni, entitled 'August Voices - What They Said on 14-15 August 1947 and Its Relevance for India-Pakistan-Bangladesh Confederation' at the Mumbai University's Convocation Hall.

The book comes against the backdrop of the 70th anniversary of India-Pakistan Independence Day to be celebrated in 2017, said Kulkarni.

He said its time to reflect on how they can normalise their relations, or whether their ties are destined to be permanently marred by mistrust, hostility and conflict.

The book dwells on how they can resolve their bilateral issues, including Jammu and Kashmir, peacefully to march ahead on the path of friendship and cooperation as dictated by their shared cultural, spiritual and civilisational heritage.

Whether there are positive ideas within the history of the freedom movement itself for the three countries to create a better future for themselves and move towards a "three-nation confederation before 2047".

Kulkarni said he has explored the book in two parts, the first comprising a compilation of what eight eminent personalities said, wrote or did on August 14-15, 1947.

They are: Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Maharshi Aurobindo, Swami Ranganathananda, Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Ananda Coomaraswamy.

The second part is an essay by Kulkarni where he shows how none of these great personalities wanted partition to be what it, catastrophically, turned out to be.

"Partition cannot be undone, but its negative outcomes can - and must - be undone jointly by the peoples and governments of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

"The beginning should be made by India and Pakistan arriving at a just, amicable, peaceful and compromise-based solution to the long-pending Kashmir dispute," Kulkarni said.

However, for this to happen, he said it was imperative for Pakistan "to completely eliminate the scourge of terrorism, fuelled by religious extremism, from its soil."

Kulkarni, an aide to former Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee, is currently Chairman of Observer Research Foundation, an independent public policy think tank.

He is also a campaigner for harmonisation of Hindu-Muslim relations and normalisation of India-Pakistan relations through his initiative 'Mumbai-Karachi Friendship Forum' which seeks to promote people-to-people contacts and cultural exchanges between the two neighbours.

--IANS

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Out of the 600-odd films released in four southern languages -- Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam -- there were some which may not have earned a robust box-office number but still managed to elicit positive response from the audience and critics alike.

IANS lists 10 best southern films of 2016:

"Visaaranai": A riveting take on the abuse of power, this film, made in an industry that's known for celebrating and worshiping khaki-clad heroes, is a gritty and hard-hitting portrayal of the police force, and it comes with a jolt of realism. This is a story of powerless men, faceless men, voiceless men and those with no identity and how they become victims of a corrupt system.

"Pellichoopulu": A refreshing tale of modern-day romance, Tharun Bhascker's "Pellichoopulu" doesn't bring anything new to the table in terms of storytelling. Nevertheless, it works and strikes a chord with the audience, thanks to its treatment and life-like characters and their applaud-worthy performances. Amidst all the romance and laugh-aloud humour, this Telugu drama makes a gentle, intelligent case for an educated woman.

"Ammani": It is the most rooted Tamil film in its setting since "Kaaka Muttai", and the way it is shot is proof of it. Shot as realistically as it can get in a small house in Vysarpadi (Chennai), actress-filmmaker Lakshmy Ramakrishnan captures the aspirational life of a lower middle-class household beautifully. The film proves that simple stories, when told with unflinching realism and unparalleled sensitivity, can strike a chord with the viewers and make for a compelling watch.

"U-Turn": Pawan Kumar's critically-acclaimed thriller "U-Turn", a terrific follow-up to his first film "Lucia", assures that there's more to Kannada industry than the remakes they are usually known for making. It's a film that keeps you guessing until the last minute. Even with its philosophical narrative style, it appealed to all sections of the audience, and it is more intriguing than any recent thriller in southern filmdom.

"Oru Muthassi Gadha": It's about two feisty grandmas - in lead roles - and the heartwarming relationship they share. Filled with fun and frolic, this Malayalam drama questions the attitudes towards elderly and how they are treated, in a way the message delivered doesn't come across as preachy. Though on the same lines of "Baghban", Jude Anthany Joseph's "Oru Muthassi Gadha" addresses the subject with a lot of sensitivity and entertainingly.

"Uriyadi": A solid directorial debut by Vijay Kumar, this Tamil campus drama doesn't hesitate to portray drug use and violence. With absolutely no commercial compromise, "Uriyadi" throws the spotlight on caste-based politics and how students fall prey to it across Tamil Nadu. The excessive violence might make one flinch and squirm, but it doesn't take your eyes off the film.

"Kshanam": A Ravikanth Perepu-directed Telugu thriller, "Kshanam" kept the viewers on the edge of their seats from the get go. It's a story where a bunch of underrated actors -- Vennela Kishore, Satyam Rajesh and Anasuya -- shine with the aid of a taut screenplay. Adivi Sesh, the lead actor, also proved himself as a successful writer.

"Iraivi": A story about a few women told from the perspective of the men in their lives. Karthi Subbaraj's Tamil drama "Iraivi" might have been a box-office dud, but it is a great tribute to women. This emotional drama hits you like a ton of bricks and it's equally moving. With performances that deserve our respect, the film brings out the actor in filmmaker S.J. Suryah, and he is a treat to watch.

"Sethupathi": Even though Vijay Sethupathi's "Sethupathi" is your regular Tamil police drama, the fact that it's a really cool movie, makes it stand out. It's also a great family drama and reminds us that policemen, too, like us have families and wish to spend more time with them. The crackling writing makes it work, even with minor flaws.

"Kammatipaadam": As much as it's a mob movie, Rajeev Ravi's stunning and extremely well-written Malayalam drama "Kammatipaadam" is actually about urbanization of a slum in Kerala, and how in the process the dalits were forced to give up their lands to real-estate mafias.

(Haricharan Pudipeddi can be contacted at haricharan.p@ians.in)

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Amid renewed incidents of violence, the year 2016 proved that peace in Nagaland and Assam will remain a distant dream until the government changes a general perception among militant groups -- including those favouring talks -- that it is not serious at reviving the stalled dialogue process in the insurgency-hit northeastern states.

The government had earlier opened talks with the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB)-Progressive and Ranjan Daimary factions, National Socialist Council of Nagaland's Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) and United Liberation Front of Assam (pro-talks). But its failure to make any headway led others to question the government's seriousness to resolve the issue.

Several militant groups, including those from neighbouring Manipur, came together under one umbrella and formed the United Liberation Front of Western South East Asia (UNLFW). The groups in the conglomerate are strictly against peace talks.

As despair replaced hope, violence surged and several militant groups in Assam and Nagaland -- dormant over the years -- regrouped and revived their activities. This included the killing of 14 people in an August attack in Assam by NDFB (Songibijit) faction.

The militant conglomerate in May killed six Indian soldiers in Manipur's Chandel. This was followed by the killing of four Manipur Police personnel on December 15.

The UNLFW has strong support from the NSCN-Khaplang -- a militant group that moved out of a 14-year-old ceasefire agreement with the government last year.

Though several attempts were made to persuade the group back into the truce talks, it made it clear that it did not have any faith in the Indian government's seriousness to solve the Naga issue.

"The government's attitude is so negative that it hurts the community and the cadres of the Naga groups. If we, after signing the accord, start confronting the security forces, we were told it is a violation of the accord. Then what about the apprehending of our cadres on false charges?" P. Tikhak, a senior militant leader, told IANS.

In between, several other factions of the NSCN such as the Reformation and Unification groups -- though having a ceasefire with the government -- started distancing itself from the Naga Peace Accord and mocked at its slow progress.

Tikhak, from the NSCN-Reformation, warned they were ready to go back to the jungles to carry on their strikes if the government was unable to solve the six-decade-old Naga conflict.

The Naga peace talks suffered a jolt in June when the chairman of NSCN-IM died after a prolonged illness leaving a vaccum in the political space seeking to push for peace in the state.

Assam also suffered revival of violence by the United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent -- led by Paresh Baruah. The group said it would join the talks only if "sovereignty of Assam" stays the main subject.

The ULFA-I was responsible for the kidnapping of 27-year old Kuldeep Moran -- nephew of a BJP legislator in Assam -- and demanded a ransom of Rs 1 crore. However, he was later released unharmed.

The group claimed responsibility for the killing of three soldiers in Tinsukia district on November 19. Similar incidents were witnessed in Arunachal Pradesh's Tirap district on the border with Assam.

As the year draws to a close, the NDFB-Progressive -- which is in peace talks with the government -- also started its mass agitation led by general secretary Gobinda Basumatary.

Basumatary believes the government "fooled" them to join the peace process by making a "false promise of statehood" for Bodo tribes.

(Rupesh Dutta can be contacted at Rupesh.d@ians.in)

--IANS

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Hollywood's popular socialite and actress Zsa Zsa Gabor was so competitive with sister Eva that she wouldnt give her a freebie from her skin-care line, according to the late stars former houseboy Aaron Tonken.

"I remember dropping off Zsa Zsa's face cream, and she specifically instructed not to leave it (with Eva) unless she wrote a check for $5.25. And when I would return, the first thing she would say to me is, 'Who do you think is more beautiful?'" pagesix.com quoted Tonken as saying.

He added: "Eva was always kind, but Zsa Zsa was verbally abusive. I remember always thinking I was working for the wrong sister. Zsa Zsa was only nice to people who met her on the outside briefly."

The houseboy, who says he lived in Gabor's guest house for a year in the 1990s, was fired by Gabor, and in 2004, Tonken went to prison for defrauding charity gala donors.

Gabor passed away at her Bel-Air home here on December 18 after suffering a heart attack.

--IANS

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At a time when almost every industry is complaining of slowdown as a result of demonetisation, cruise tourism appears to be largely unaffected by the cash crunch if we take Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkaris (pictured) words for it. At an event in Delhi Gadkari said the industry was thriving on the back of cashless transactions. It is in full swing as users have made cashless bookings to enjoy their cruises, he said.
Central government employees will soon be able to choose their pension fund manager and decide on their asset allocation within the National Pension System (NPS). At present, their funds are invested in a single scheme (central government plan), where the maximum equity allocation allowed is 15%. This change of rule will mean both greater choice and greater responsibility for government employees.
A day after Prime Minister laid foundation stones for projects worth over Rs 1.06 lakh crore in Mumbai, Congress on Sunday alleged that he "misled" about the cost of the projects which was actually much lower.

"The PM announced various projects with an eye on civic polls, including several metro projects the cost of which is not more than Rs 44,000 crore," Mumbai Congress president Sanjay Nirupam said in Mumbai.

"By saying the total cost of projects is over Rs 1 lakh crore, the PM has lied and the statement was made only with an eye on the coming BMC polls," he said.

Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP-led) Maharashtra government had no concrete plan of action, nor had it arranged funds for the projects, he said.

Nirupam also said that police's action against Congress workers on Saturday created "an atmosphere of terror". Congress workers had no plans to disrupt the prime minister's rally at BKC (Bandra-Kurla Complex) but the police detained them on Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis's orders, he alleged.

Modi on Saturday laid foundation stones for many key infrastructure projects worth over Rs 1.06 trillion in the megapolis, including the country's longest sea-bridge and two Metro lines.

"Developmental works of over Rs 1.06 trillion are getting started in a single city at a single event. This will be a big milestone in the city's history," the prime minister said at his rally.
Tuesday promises to be an interesting day politically, with Congress President and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, along with some other opposition party leaders, set to hold a joint press conference here, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi is slated to address a public rally in Dehradun in the morning.

The event will be significant for the Congress and Trinamool Congress leaderships cementing their proximity that was achieved during the winter session of Parliament. The Congress and Left parties had a seat adjustment in the Bengal assembly polls in May 2016.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister knows that this is his moment. The 43-year-old might win, or he might lose, the state assembly polls in early 2017. But what he does until then will define his political career for the next few decades.
One person was killed and two injured in road accidents as fog cover reduced visibility in the state, which witnessed dry weather over the past 24 hours.

Pravesh Kumar (25) was killed this morning, and two others injured, when a truck hit the motorbike they were riding near Gajna village in Gaura Badshahpur area in Jaunpur district.

According to the MeT office, moderate to dense fog occurred at many places over the state and very dense fog at isolated places.

Muzaffarnagar was the coldest place in the state at 7 degrees Celsius.

While the night temperature fell appreciably in Agra division, it rose appreciably in Kanpur and Lucknow divisions, rose in Varanasi, Allahabad divisions and changed little elsewhere.

The MeT has forecast, dry weather and shallow to moderate fog at many places and dense to very dense at isolated places over east UP.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
: Ten activists of Yuva Morcha, the youth wing of BJP were injured after their march to the secretariat demanding extension of the PSC Rank list turned violent, forcing police to use water cannons and tear gas to chase them away.

A policeman and a cameraman of a local television channel were also injured after the activists allegedly pelted stones at police.

The activists took out a march to the Secretariat, raising slogans.

They were stopped by police as some of them tried to get on top of the barricade. They then allegedly hurled stones and the latter chased them away using water cannons and tear gas.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Sixteen people were killed during Christmas holiday celebrations in Mexico's main drug- trafficking states and six human heads were found in one location, officials said.

A gang slaughtered seven people -- including three police officers -- at a family celebration in the violent southern state of Guerrero, police told AFP.

The massacre occurred early Christmas Day outside a house in the village of Puente del Rey, where the gunmen shot dead the six men and one woman, aged 24 to 54.

Those killed were three brothers, their father, their uncle, and a man and a woman who had been invited to the home.

Three of the victims were police officers, a regional security ministry official said.

In Chihuahua -- which borders the US and has, like Guerrero, endured brutal drug-related violence -- nine people were killed during Christmas celebrations, authorities said.

Five of them died in Ciudad Juarez, including three women who were first tortured and a man whose dismembered remains were found in an abandoned trunk.

In the western state of Michoacan six human heads were found, according to the local prosecutor's office.

Authorities have not identified the remains, which have been transferred to a forensic office for analysis.

The heads were found near the border with Jalisco, where the powerful Jalisco Nueva Generacion cartel operates.

That gang is known for clashing with rival criminals in neighbouring Michoacan state, where the Knights Templar drug cartel once held sway.

Cartels have been burying their victims in hidden graves across the country for years, and authorities regularly find human remains.

Guerrero recently earned international infamy as a region where 43 students in 2014 went missing, and were presumably murdered, at the hands of corrupt police working for criminals.

The government says that since 2006 more than 170,000 people have been killed and more than 28,000 have been reported missing. The data does not indicate which cases are related to organised crime.

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An estimated one lakh paramilitary personnel along with state police forces are likely to be deployed in the upcoming assembly elections in five states, including politically crucial Uttar Pradesh.

Election Commission (EC) has asked the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to make available 1,000 companies (100 personnel in each company) for the assembly elections expected to be held in next two months.

The EC has made the request during a recent meeting with the top officials of the MHA which discussed various aspects of security during the polling, official sources said.

In addition to the Central forces, police forces of all states will be deployed for the election duties.

Sources said that the MHA is expected to accede to the request of the EC and convey its decision to the poll body soon.

Assembly elections in Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur are expected to be held in single phase while in Uttar Pradesh it is likely to be multi-phased.

The schedule for the polls is likely to be announced by the EC anytime between December 28 and January 4.

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Two more elephants died in Coimbatore and Nilgiris districts of Tamil Nadu today amid an anthrax scare triggered by the death of two other jumbos recently, officials said.

While a nine-year old male elephant died following a sudden illness in a camp in nearby Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) in Nilgiris district, an elephant calf was found dead in Sirumugai forest range in Coimbatore district this morning.

Though the cause of the death of the two would be known only after post-mortem, it was suspected the elephant that died in MTR could have been suffering from anthrax, a highly infectious animal disease, prompting forest officials to take steps to shift all 23 elephants in the camp to nearby areas.

The nine-year old elephant suddenly developed dysentery early today and died in the afternoon, officials said.

A 26-year-old female had died in a similar manner in the camp last month.

As a preventive measure, MTR Field Director Srinivasa Reddy has taken steps to shift the remaining elephants from MTR to camps in Bombax and Foampuravayal, MTR Deputy Director S Saravanan said.

Accordingly, 21 elephants would be moved to the camps immediately and the two aged ones would be shifted after a few days after reviewing the condition.

The death of the elephant in MTR and Sirumugai comes close on the heels of two elephants dying in Madukkarai range in neighbouring Coimbatore District after suffering from anthrax, which came to light during post-mortem.

The Coimbatore District administration has already taken steps to administer anti-anthrax vaccination to the cattle in and around Madukkarai area to prevent the spread of the disease.

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Syrian authorities have accused rebel fighters of executing 21 civilians, including women and children, at close range as they quit second city Aleppo last week, state media reported.

The bodies were found in two neighbourhoods in east Aleppo, state agency SANA said late Sunday.

The head of Aleppo's forensic unit Zaher Hajjo told SANA that "21 corpses of civilian victims, including five children and four women, killed by terrorist groups" were examined.

"The bodies were found in prisons run by the terrorist groups in Sukkari and al-Kalasseh, and they were found to have been executed by gunshot at very close range," Hajjo was quoted as saying.

Under a landmark deal brokered by regime ally Russia and rebel backer Turkey, 35,000 rebels and civilians left the former opposition stronghold of east Aleppo last week.

Days before the evacuations began, the UN said it had received credible reports of at least 82 civilians, including 11 women and 13 children, being executed by pro-government forces in Aleppo.

On Monday, the Russian defence ministry said "dozens of Syrians" were summarily executed in east Aleppo by rebels.

"Mass graves containing dozens of Syrians who were summarily executed and subjected to savage torture have been discovered," spokesman Igor Konachenkov said, according to Russian agencies.

He said most had been killed by gunshot wounds to the head and many bodies "were not whole," and that thorough investigations would force opposition backers in the West to "recognise their responsibility for the cruelty" of rebels.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that bodies had been found in east Aleppo's streets, but could not specify how they had been killed.

World powers have been fiercely divided over Syria's conflict since it first erupted in March 2011, with Russia firmly backing Assad and Gulf powers and much of the West supporting the opposition.

The high-profile battle for Aleppo, in particular, has sparked accusations by Western powers that Russia and the government were committing war crimes.

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Three youth Congress activists were today arrested after they forcibly tried to enter the West Bengal BJP office during a protest rally against demonetisation by the Congress, the police said.

State Youth Congress president Arindam Bhattacharya today led a protest rally outside BJP state headquarters protesting against the demonetisation move of the Centre.

An effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was burnt during the rally.

According to the police, the youth Congress activists tried to enter the lane where the BJP office is located.

"When they tried to forcibly enter the lane where the office is located and cross the police barricade, we used force to disperse the crowd. We have arrested three youth Congress activists," a police officer said.

The three activists were later released.

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Gold jewellery weighing 30 kg was stolen from the office of a gold loan company at Ulhasnagar in Thane district, police said today.

"We suspect the incident might have taken place last night. A security guard, who is missing, may be involved in it. Unidentified thieves made a hole in wall of the office adjacent to water tap and staircase", a senior police official said.

The incident came to light when the office was opened this morning, police said.

Prima facie, thieves entered the office through the hole, and used gas cutters to open the lockers where the gold ornaments were kept. They had also tampered with the CCTV surveillance system of the office, the police officer said, adding, around 12 boxes of gold jewellery were left untouched.

The incident was reported by the company's staff to Vitthalwadi Police Station. The crime branch of Thane Police has started parallel investigation in the case, the official said.

"Police have dispatched four teams to Jharkhand and Nepal in search of the security guard. A case has been registered against unidentified persons," he said.

Police said similar kind of thefts occurred earlier at Bhiwandi and Ambarnath in the district and the modus operandi in those incidents are also being probed.

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Thirty-one persons were injured in the stampede at the Lord Ayyappa temple here, Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran said today and maintained that there was no lapse on the part of police.

"Thirty-one persons were injured, two of them seriously. Eight of the injured have been admitted to Kottayam medical college hospital, three in Pathanamthitta Government hospital, two in Pamba and 18 at Sannidhanam hospital," he told reporters.

An action plan would also be formulated to ensure that such incidents do not recur, he said, adding there was no lapse on the part of police.

"There was sufficient police at Sannidhanam. There were about 700 policemen on duty," he said.





ALSO READ: Sabarimala updates: Temple gates open at 5pm; security beefed up in Kerala

The minister said that barricades would be strengthened in the coming three days when the shrine will remain closed.

A joint inspection with police, Devaswom officials and the minister was held at the mishap site this morning.

The temple had witnessed heavy rush yesterday, the penultimate day of the 41-day pilgrimage season, which concludes today with 'Mandala Pooja'.

A rope barricade gave way at Malaikappuram following which some of them fell down causing injuries to the pilgrims, who were mostly from Andhra Pradesh, TN and Telangana.

One of the injured is from Kerala.

Meanwhile, DGP Loknath Behara said a huge tragedy was averted at Sabarimala due to police intervention and denied reports that the stampede was due to ineffective police presence yesterday, despite a heavy rush of pilgrims.

"Stampede was not due to the lapse of police," he said.

Behara said that IG D Sreejit, in charge of Sabarimala security, has been asked to file a report on the stampede today itself.

"I have asked Sreejit to immediately enquire and download the CCTV visuals and file a report today itself," Behara said.

Sreejit said there were nine policemen at the spot and it was due to their presence that a calamity was averted.

"It was due to their intervention that a big mishap was averted," Sreejit told PTI.

He said within 100 metres, there were 70 policemen, including NDRF.

Following the incident, security has been strengthened and entry of pilgrims is being restricted.
In a "stunning" discovery, archaeologists have found compelling evidence of new pharaonic tombs behind a 4,200-year-old wall unearthed in Egypt.

The two-metre high ancient encroachment wall has been found below a visitors' pathway in the West Aswan cemetery at Qubbet el-Hawa, Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities said.

The wall is thought to indicate the architectural support for the known tombs of the first upper terrace, including those of Harkhuf and Heqaib, who were governors of Elephantine Island during the Old Kingdom.

Owing to the landscape of Qubbet el-Hawa, the support wall helped to secure the hillside, and thus lower lying tombs, which were accessible by a causeway leading to a second terrace, according to the archaeological mission directed by Dr Martin Bommas of the University of Birmingham in the UK.

"The findings are dramatically altering our understanding of the funerary landscape in this area during the Old Kingdom and First Intermediate Period in 2278-2184 BC," Carl Graves, a PhD student who worked alongside Bommas on the project, said.

"I don't think anyone yet knows who the tombs might have belonged to," Graves said.

Nasr Salama, General Director of Aswan and Nubia Antiquities, described the discovery as "stunning" saying it is now only a matter of time until new tombs are uncovered within the important cemetery.

Eman Khalifa, director of the pottery project within the Qubbet el-Hawa Research Project Group (QHRP), told 'Egypt Independent' that the stone wall was dated by the pottery shreds embedded within the mortar used to build it.

The crushed pieces include parts of carinated bowls, executed in a style typical of the reign of King Pepi II from the Sixth Dynasty (2278-2184 BCE), she said.

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A rights advocacy group has claimed that seven members of Telangana Democratic Forum, who were planning to visit tribal villages in Chhattisgarh to enquire about "human rights violations" there, have been arrested and demanded NHRC intervention into it.

The seven members, including lawyers, journalists and human rights activists, was "illegally" arrested by Telangana Police yesterday, claimed V Suresh, general secretary of People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL).

"The group members were arrested at Dummagudam village of Bhadrachalam district in Telangana. They were planning to visit Chhattisgarh to enquire into complaints of human rights violations suffered by tribal villagers in the state by the security forces," he claimed in a statement.

PUCL demanded release of the members of the group and dropping of charges against them. It also demanded "immediate intervention" of National Human Rights Commission in the matter.

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is hassled by around 72,000 "blank calls" everyday with some callers dialling the Police Control Room helpline numbers over 50 times "by mistake".

With '112' also being in the trial run, along with '100', the number of blank calls received on both these helpline numbers totals to around 72,000 everyday, said a senior police officer.

Earlier, on an average, the PCR unit received around 27,000 calls daily with around 40 per cent of them being blank calls.

has now prepared a list of such callers who "harass" the control room personnel with repeated calls and has shared it with the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and DCPs of the districts concerned.

The list contains details of callers who have dialled '100' and '112' (India's equivalent to 911 of the US' all-in-one emergency services) four or more times "without any reason", said the officer.

"On one of the days, we received over 99,000 blank calls. In the last couple of weeks, we have looked into the details of these calls and made a list of 67 callers who dialled the numbers four or more times. We have sent the list to DoT for a solution," he added.

The PCR unit has also identified a few callers who have dialled '100' or '112' around 70 times or more, traced their addresses and shared the details with the concerned DCPs.

"We dialled some of these numbers and most of them said they had dialled the numbers by mistake. They could have dialled once or twice by mistake, but it's unlikely that someone would do that 70-80 times," he said.

The officer also talked about another problem which could surface once '112' is made the official helpline number.

"On the phone's keypad, '1' and '2' are next to each other. Many a times, people dial '112' by mistake due to this. In the last one month, we have heard this from many callers," he added.

Besides, there are call centres that divert calls to '100' "by default", said the officer.

"There are certain call centres that tell the people that they will provide police security to them and by default, divert calls to '100', so that the people are convinced of their claims. We have to look into this aspect as well," he added.

In some cases, telecom service providers too are not able to route the calls properly and it has come to the notice that even though the caller dials some other number, the call comes to '100'.

With the police writing to the DoT, it is hoped that this problem would also be addressed.

Recently, the police had found that some establishments in Sector 63, Noida were using '112' to test their computerised systems.

"We had recently found this during an investigation but it has to be probed further and ways have to be found out to address this," said the officer.

According to the PCR personnel, blank calls delay their response time to genuine calls and cause congestion in the phone lines.

"We have to receive each and every call. But in this confusion, sometimes, we are not able to respond in time to callers who urgently require our assistance urgently or send the PCR vehicle immediately," added the officer.
Nine new cases of dengue and 24 of chikungunya were reported in Delhi in the week ending December 24 even as the vector-borne diseases tapered off as the winter progressed, officials said today.

Till December 24, a total of 4,393 cases of dengue were reported causing 10 deaths, according to a report by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation which tabulates the data on behalf of all municipal corporations in the national capital.

The nine cases of dengue this week included one from East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) and two acquired infection and residents of other states. Six cases were untraced during investigation, said the report.

The chikungunya outbreak in Delhi this year saw a total of 12,221 cases reported out of which 9,749 were confirmed till December 24.

Among the 24 new cases reported, one was in EDMC, 8 each were untraced and not available on given addresses, three were acquired from other states, and four were residents of other states.

No new case of malaria was reported in the month so far.

A total of 32 cases have been reported from Delhi so far with the report mentioning 17 suspected deaths reported from hospitals.

East Delhi saw the highest number of cases at 17, as per the report.

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The police today seized 926 cartons of India Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) from two separate places in the past 24 hours from East Champaran and Samastipur districts of Bihar, where total prohibition is in force.

Acting on a tip off, police intercepted a truck near Pipra Kothi roundabout of East Champaran district and seized 600 liquor cartons from it, district Superintendent of Police Jitendra Rana said.

The consignment was being transported to Muzaffarpur from Punjab by the truck, he said, adding the vehicle was also seized and its driver detained for interrogation.

Following it police have started conducting raids at the dens of liquor smugglers in Muzaffarpur, he said.

In another incident, police seized 326 cartons of IMFL from a truck near a village in Tajpur area of Samastipur district late last night.

The police intercepted the truck near Bashi Bhidni village and seized the 326 cartons liquor consisting of 8208 bottles, Tajpur police station in-charge Manoj Kumar said, adding the vehicle bearing registration number of Jharkhand was impounded.

This consignment too was manufactured in Punjab as per the stickers on the bottles and were supposed to be sold in different parts of the state on the occasion of New Year.

However, no one has been arrested in connection with this incident, he added.

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AAP's chief ministerial face for Goa, Elvis Gomes, today appeared before ACB in connection with an inquiry into an alleged land conversion 'scam',amid allegations by his party said he was being victimised, a charge which the ruling BJP rubbished.

Gomes, who appeared before the anti-graft agency in connection with the case, has refuted the allegations against him, saying the timing of summoning him for the probe is "suspicious."



A former IG (Prisons), 53-year-old Gomes had taken voluntary retirement from police service some time back and joined AAP, which is making a serious bid in the assembly polls in the coastal state due in early 2017.

Gomes, who was then managing director of Goa Housing Board, and Nilkant Halarnkar, its chairman at that time, allegedly acquired about 30,000 sq m of land near Margao town, changed its 'zoning' (reservation) to residential, which would have increase its market value, and later gave it back to the owner in 2011, as per the ACB's FIR.

The board had acquired the land for building residential units and allegedly got its zoning changed from 'orchard' to 'settlement'.

Reacting to the development,AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleged that Gomes was being victimised by Goa's BJP-led government.

"Elvis Gomes is known all over Goa for his honesty. Being victimised by BJP government," Kejriwal tweeted, minutes after Gomes appeared before the ACB at its office in Altinho locality of Panaji.

AAP also posted a video on twitter which showed Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar and Deputy Chief Minister Francis D'Souza praising Gomes in the past.

"Watch this. BJP's dirty tactics. Elvis was an honest/efficient officer till he intended to join AAP. Goa CM/DyCM used to praise him," AAP leader Ashutosh alleged in a tweet.

AAP Goa leader Dr Oscar Rebello, addressing party volunteers outside the ACB office, alleged, "They have been asking him to join BJP. They sent him a strong message that if you want your cases to be withdrawn then join us."



BJP rubbished the charge of victimising Gomes.

"It is an inquiry by ACB. What role do we have to play in it?" BJP's Goa unit chief Vinay Tendulkar said.

He said the case was filed against Gomes when he was in the government service.

"How can AAP relate the case to elections and politics?" he questioned.

Tendulkar said the ACB is doing its job impartially.

(Reopens BES11)



Addressing a press conference, AAP leader Ashutosh accused BJP of victimizing his party workers and leaders the way it did in Delhi.

The AAP leader said it was a five years old case but the ACB has suddenly sprung into action.

"Within one week of Gomes being declared as the CM candidate, Goa's Anti-Corruption Branch summoned him for questioning on December 26.

"The case registered against him is part of the BJP government's political vendetta. Gomes had applied for voluntary retirement from the state services earlier this year," Ashutosh said.
In an embarrassment to the ruling CPI(M)-led LDF in Kerala, party veteran V S Achuthanandan today asked the central leadership to take "proper steps" against Electricity Minister M M Mani, whose petition to discharge him as an accused in a murder case was rejected by a court.

Achuthanandan, Chairman of the State Administrative Reforms Committee, in a letter asked the leadership to take proper steps against Mani in the wake of the court rejecting his petition.

He said it was ethically and morally incorrect for Mani to continue as minister as he was the second accused in murder case, the former Chief Minister pointed out in his letter.

Achuthanandan's statement assumes significance as the state party leadership had stood behind Mani after the court in Thodupuzha passed the verdict on December 24.

Meanwhile, CPI(M) state secretary KodiyeriBalakrishnan maintained there was no bar on Mani continuing as minister.

"There is no need for Mani to quit office", he said.

However, Balakrishnan said he was not aware of Achuthanandan's letter to the party leadership.

Meanwhile, putting pressure for his resignation, Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala said Mani's continuation as minister was a "challenge" to the judiciary and people.

"This is the first time in Kerala's history that a person accused in a murder case is continuing as a minister, he said.

Thodupuzha Additional Sessions Court had dismissedthe discharge petition of Mani, a member of the CPI-M state Secretariat, on December 24.

He was made a minister last month following resignation of Industries Minister E P Jayarajan on charges of nepotism.

With dismissal of his petition, Mani will continue being second accused in the case, related to the murder of Youth Congress leader Anchery Baby in November 1982.

Baby was shot dead at Udumbanchola in the district on November 13, 1982.

There were nine accused in the case, all of whom were acquitted by a lower court, which was later upheld by the High Court.

The case was reopened by the previous Congress led UDF government after Mani made two controversial speeches in 2012 in which he publicly stated that the Communist party had often eliminated its political foes in Idukki district in the 1980s.

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Air Commodore Mahesh Bhaskar Aserkar, who has a "distinguished" flying record of over 5,000 hours, today took over the command of the Air Force Station in Agra.

Aserkar, who previously was Air Officer Commanding of Air Force Station in Vadodara, replaces Air Commodore S Srinivasan as he has gone to attend the National Defence Course in Delhi, said Defence Public Relations Officer Gargi Mullick Sinha.

An alumnus of National Defence Academy and Defence Services Staff College, Air Comm Aserkar has a "distinguished record" of over 5,000 hours of flying experience on Hunters, MiG-21/ T-96 and the AN-32 aircrafts in all sectors including North, North East and Carnic.

He has an operational experience on AN-32 aircraft and has been actively involved in planning and conduct of exercises in India and abroad, according to Sinha.

She said Aserkar has obtained his Masters Diploma in Public Administration from Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA), Delhi and M. Phil in Social Sciences from Punjab University, both with distinction.

He has been commended twice by Chief of Air Staff and once by General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Head Quarters Western Command. His earlier tenures include Command of transport squardron and Operation IIA at Headquarter Western Air Command Indian Air Force.

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Bihar police has seized arms and ammunition, including police weapon, allegedly supplied to Maoists from the residence of a CRPF personnel in Bihar's Munger district, police said today.

Munger superintendent of police Ashish Bharti said following a tip-off, a raid was conducted at the residence of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel at Bageshwari village under Haveli Kharagpur police station late last night.

During the raid, police seized 38 bullets of AK47, five ammunition of Insas rifle, one magazine and a .303 Mark 4 rifle which was with a policeman currently posted with Patna police, the SP said.

The mother of the CRPF personnel was arrested after the raid and a police team has been sent to arrest the accused, who is posted in north-east and his Bihar police kin Mondeshwari Mandal, posted with Patna police, Bharti said.

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An army captain and his wife were killed and two others critically injured today when their vehicle hit a tree in Assam's Sonitpur district, police said.

The incident occurred on NH 37A in Tezpur, they said.

The two died on the spot, police said, adding they were identified as Captain Rahul Yadav and his wife Loveleena.

The injured have been admitted to the Base Hospital in Tezpur.

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The husband of the owner of a day-care centre, where a 10-month-old girl was allegedly beaten-up and kicked last month, was today arrested, police said.

Praveen Nikam, husband of the owner of Purva Play School (the day-care centre) in Kharghar here, was apprehended in connection with the case, a senior police official said.

Police have already arrested Priyanka Nikam, owner of centre.

Both Praveen and Pryinaka, whose remanded ended today, were produced in a local court which sent them in two-day police custody, he added.

In November, a 10-month-old girl was allegedly beaten up and kicked at a creche in Navi Mumbai by a caretaker, who along with the day care centre owner were arrested, police had said.

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A 51-year-old Bhutanese woman pilgrim was crushed to death by a truck apparantely due to low visibility in dense fog in Bihar's Begusarai district today.

The incident took place on NH 31 when a group of devotees from Bhutan were on their way to Bodh Gaya for Kalchakra puja.

The woman had alighted the bus along with others near the Town Council and was about to cross a road when a speeding truck mocked her down, police said.

Pema Choden's body was handed over to fellow devotees after autopsy.

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BJP today appealed the United Naga Council (UNC) to immediately withdraw the ongoing economic blockade on the highways of Manipur.

BJP spokesperson N Biren appealed the UNC to withdraw the blockade which entered its 56th day today and sought "another forum" to achieve its demands.

Biren was speaking to the reporters on his return from Delhi, where an eight-member BJP delegation met top central leaders including Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on the issue.

Biren said, "The ruling Congress government is answerable to the people of the state for the hardship faced by them".

He questioned whether it has made any formal effort at the Centre regarding the presence of NSCN(IM) camps in the Manipur, the number of its cadre present in the state.

He also sought to know whether there have been any effort to demolish the NSCN(IM)'s designated camps in the state as the ceasefire agreement between NSCN(IM) and the Centre does not cover Manipur.

Biren also asked whether the state government has made any move to identify the perpetrators of the twin ambush on Manipur police at Lokchao and Bongyang in Tengnoupal district which claimed the lives of three policemen earlier this month.

If there has been any such move, BJP demanded that the documents be made public.

He also said the BJP was for a neutral CBI or NIA inquiry into the attacks on Manipur police.

Later, lone BJP MLA Bishwajit said BJP's philosophy is nation first, party second and self last.

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Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said people have accepted BJP as a party of their own by electing it to power at the Centre with thumping majority even though opposition parties had made allegations in the past that it practised politics over religion.

"There was a big allegation that BJP used to do politics over religion or over communalism. Now that allegation has gone away. Had it been a party of doing politics over religion, then the 1.25 billion people of the country would not have elected to power with a clear majority," he said addressing a meeting of the BJP's Assam unit here.

Singh, a senior BJP leader, said the party never practiced politics over religion nor did over communalism but on the issue of justice and honesty.

"We are a party of doing politics over justice and honesty. We are a party which takes everyone along and wants to march forward with everyone's cooperation," he said.

The Home Minister said BJP's politics is centred around humanity - irrespective of whether someone is Hindu, Muslim, Christian or from any other religion.

Describing Indo-Bangladesh agreement on land-swap as a very significant pact for bilateral relations, Singh said after the exchange of 'enclaves' along the border, Dhaka has been supporting India in every international forums.

"Be is on terrorism or be it on any other issues, Bangladesh has been supporting India in every international forum ever since we have completed the process of exchange of enclaves between India and Bangladesh.

Singh said security of the more than 200-kilometre-long Indo-Bangladesh border in Assam was a priority for the BJP government and it will be completely sealed in next one and a half years.

"We are committed to sealing the 223.7-km Indo-Bangladesh border in Assam and the process is on. It is expected to be completed within the next year and a half," he said.

The Home Minister said Bangladesh is a neighbouring country and India shares a good and warm relations and wants to continue and remain committed to in the future.

The Home Minister, without referring to the issues of illegal migration and granting of citizenship to Hindu refugees, assured the people of Assam that BJP was committed to protect the interests of the indigenous population of the state as per Clause 6 of the Assam Accord.

"We are committed to Clause 6 of the Assam Accord and will protect it even if we have to amend the Constitution," he said.

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Britain's local councils were given permission to conduct surveillance on residents living in their borough to spyon dog-walkers, those feeding pigeons or throwing garbage incorrectly.

The2,800 covert surveillance operations over five years emerged today as part of a mass freedom of information request by the Liberal Democrat party, 'The Times' reports.

As many as 186 local authorities - two-thirds of the 283 that responded - used the UK's Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) to gather evidence via secret listening devices, cameras and private detectives.

Brian Paddick, home affairs spokesman of the Liberal Democrats, said: "It is absurd that local authorities are using measures primarily intended for combating terrorism for issues as trivial as a dog barking".

As per some of the details, Wolverhampton council used covert surveillance to check on the sale of dangerous toys; Slough to aid an investigation into an illegal puppy farm; and Westminster in London to crack down on the selling of fireworks to children.

Surveillance was also used to check that claimants of taxpayer-funded social benefits were not making fraudulent claims and to investigate "serious incidents of graffiti".

The councils involved in the controversial use of these powers said their operations were carried out before the law was strengthened at the end of 2012.

Local authorities can now use the powers only to investigate a crime that carries at least six months in prison, or the sale of alcohol and tobacco to children.

They also have to seek legal permission before beginning a covert operation.

However, according to the newspaper, councils continue to gain permission for surveillance covering thousands of days, with 6,684 days granted in 2015 and 3,806 this year.

"While the Investigatory Powers Act will now restrict the ability of local authorities to monitor people's communications, it will give mass surveillance powers to a huge number of government bodies," Paddick added.

A UK Home Office spokesperson said: "RIPA powers are an important tool that local authorities can use to address the issues that affect many people's lives, like consumer protection, environmental crime and benefit fraud".

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A case of theft has been registered after the manager of the Rabupura branch of Canara Bank alleged that some unidentified persons broke iron bars of a window at the bank.

When the bank reopened after the weekend break, an official found that iron bars of the window of the bathroom were broken. He informed the manager, who then called up police, Rabupura police station in charge Virendra Singh said.

A case has been registered in this regard and probe is underway.

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CBI has arrested a Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner of Chennai for allegedly demanding a bribe of Rs 25,000 from a cement company.

P M Srivastava, Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner, Chennai and also holding similar additional charge of Hyderabad was arrested by CBI on Saturday evening in connection with the alleged bribe demand, CBI sources said.

"A case was registered against Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner, Chennai who was also holding Additional Charge of Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner Hyderabad ...," CBI Spokesperson Devpreet Singh said today.

It was alleged that the said Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner had demanded a bribe of Rs 25,000 while camping at Hyderabad to show official favour to a cement factory at Tadipatri, Ananthapur where he had arranged to conduct the inspection of the said cement factory, Singh said.

The spokesperson said searches were conducted at the premises of the accused.

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Amid population declines for many wildlife species in Africa, conservationists are sounding alarm bells for the cheetah, the fastest animal on land.

An estimated 7,100 cheetahs remain in the wild across Africa and in a small area of Iran, and human encroachment has pushed the wide-ranging predator out of 91 per cent of its historic habitat, according to a study published today.

Consequently, the cheetah should be defined as "endangered" instead of the less serious "vulnerable" on an official watch list of threatened species worldwide, the study said.

"This period is really crunch time for species like cheetah that need these big areas," said Sarah Durant, a cheetah specialist at the Zoological Society of London and the lead author of the report published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

About 77 pe rcent of cheetah habitats fall outside wildlife reserves and other protected areas, the study said, requiring outreach to governments and villages to promote tolerance for a carnivore that sometimes hunts livestock. Besides habitat loss, cheetahs face attacks from villagers, loss of antelope and other prey that are killed by people for their meat, an illegal trade in cheetah cubs, the trafficking of cheetah skins and the threat of getting hit by speeding vehicles.

A cheetah has been recorded running at a speed of 29 meters per second. The species may move more slowly while hunting and it can only maintain top speeds for a few hundred meters.

More than half of the world's cheetahs live in southern Africa, including in Namibia and Botswana, which have relatively sparse human populations. Cheetahs have been virtually wiped out in Asia, save for fewer than 50 in Iran, according to the study, whose contributors included the Panthera group and the Wildlife Conservation Society. Durant said there was uncertainty over the 7,100 number, which was based on data from experts in areas where cheetahs live and estimates for other areas. Cheetahs are difficult to find because they move over vast regions, she said.

Durant also led a previous assessment of nearly 6,700 cheetahs published last year by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which keeps a watch list of threatened species. Since then, experts have provided new information and refined counting methods, contrasting with rough estimates in the 10,000-range in recent decades.

The cheetah population in Zimbabwe declined from an estimated 1,500 in 1999 to between 150 and 170, according to a survey conducted between 2013 and 2015 by a group called Cheetah Conservation Project Zimbabwe. The group solicited cheetah photographs and reports of sightings from tourists, safari guides and others and interviewed more than 1,000 people, including village heads and cattle managers.

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China has tested an improvised version of its stealth fighter and plans to sell it at half the price of the US variant to break Western monopoly over the high-tech aircraft, which will have strategic implications for India as Pakistan has already shown interest in acquiring it.

An improved version of China's fifth-generation FC-31 Gyrfalcon stealth fighter jet has conducted its maiden flight last week in Shenyang, capital of Liaoning province, state-run China Daily reported today.

Previously known as the J-31, the twin engine, radar evading aircraft is still under development by Shenyang Aircraft Corp, part of the Aviation Industry Corp of China, (AVIC), it said.

The Chinese stealth aircraft have strategic significance for India as besides China, Pakistan - which is producing JF-17 Thunder fighter along with Beijing - has already evinced interest in acquiring China's stealth fighter.

India is yet to have stealth aircraft in its arsenal.

AVIC displayed a large-scale model of the FC-31 at the 14th Dubai Airshow in the UAE in November, 2015.

Specifications supplied by AVIC show the jet has a maximum takeoff weight of 28 metric tonnes, a flight radius of 1,250 kms and a top speed of Mach 1.8, or 1.8 times the speed of sound.

It can carry eight tonnes of weapons. The plane can hold six missiles in its internal weapons bay and another six under its wings, AVIC said.

The first test flight of the FC-31's second prototype took place on Friday at Shenyang Aircraft Corp, four years after the first prototype took to the skies, the Daily quoted officials as saying.

The report also said fifth-generation fighters are the most advanced available.

Fu Qianshao, an aircraft expert with the PLA Air Force, said the new FC-31 has state-of-the-art instruments such as its electro-optical targeting system and helmet-mounted display and sight system.

The new FC-31 seems to have better stealth capabilities, improved electronic equipment and a larger payload capacity, said Wu Peixin, an aviation industry observer in Beijing said.

"Compared with the first FC-31, there are a lot of improvements on the second prototype. Changes were made to the airframe, wings and vertical tails, which make it leaner, lighter and more manoeuvrable," he said.

AVIC wants to use the FC-31 to capture market share at home and abroad but the company is making a big push to attract foreign buyers with its medium-sized stealth combat planes, he said.

Li Yuhai, deputy general manager of AVIC, previously said AVIC plans to use the FC-31 to "put an end to some nations' monopolies on the fifth-generation fighter jet" and this plane "is able to compete with any other aircraft of its kind".

"I believe the aircraft will have bright prospects in the market. Based on my experience and knowledge, I presume its price will be around USD 70 million, about half that of the US' Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II," Fu said.

(Reopens FGN4)



"Moreover, the fourth-generation Euro fighter Typhoon and Dassault Rafale fighter jets are priced at about USD 100 million. All of these mean you can spend a lot less money to get an advanced, fifth-generation stealth combat plane," Fu told the Daily.

The only fifth-generation fighter jet currently available in the market is the US' F-35 Lightning II, but the US sells it only to allies.

Following the Friday test flight, aviation enthusiasts posted pictures on Chinese websites, showing what they said was the second prototype in flight.

The FC-31 was unveiled in October, 2012, when the first prototype made its maiden flight, becoming the country's second fifth-generation fighter jet following the J-20, which conducted its first flight in January, 2011.

Deliveries of the J-20 to the People's Liberation Army Air Force have started.
Flexing its muscles over Taiwan, China on Monday sailed its aircraft carrier close to the estranged island amid tensions with the US following President-elect Donald Trump's telephone call with the Taiwanese president.

The first aircraft carrier, Liaoning, accompanied by five naval vessels, entered the disputed this afternoon after passing south of Taiwan, reports said.

"Aircraft carriers are strategic tools which should be used to show China's strength to the world and shape the outside world's attitude toward China...It is not built for war only. Chinese aircraft carriers must set off on a long journey," state-run Global Times said in its editorial about the aircraft carrier conducting exercises.

"China's core interests are mainly offshore, but the range of aircraft carriers must go beyond offshore areas. The rivalry must be extended to wider areas so as to ease China's offshore pressure," it said, suggesting that Beijing should acquire more aircraft carriers.

"The distant sailing of the Chinese aircraft carrier fleet is not aimed at provoking the US nor at reshaping maritime strategic structure. But if the fleet is able to enter areas where the US has core interests, the situation when the US unilaterally imposes pressure on China will change," it said.

China has also lodged a diplomatic protest with the Taiwan-related section in the US National Defence Authorisation Act for Fiscal Year 2017.

"We are strongly discontent with the US for signing this act," China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing today.

"The Taiwan question bears on China's sovereignty and territory integrity and falls entirely within China's domestic affairs. Although the Taiwan-related content in the US Act has no legal binding force, it still severely violates the three joint communique and interferes in China's domestic affairs," she said.

"China will by no means accept this. We urge the US side to honour its commitment on the Taiwan question, put an end to military exchanges with and weapons sales to Taiwan and avoid undermining China-US relations or cross-Straits peace and stability," she said.

Also, China resumed diplomatic ties with Sao Tome and Principe in Beijing today at a high-profile ceremony here after the African nation cut "diplomatic ties" with the Taiwan amid allegations of check book diplomacy by China.

The establishment of diplomatic ties with the African country comes weeks after Trump had an unprecedented phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and later questioned One-China policy, which drew sharp reactions from China.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Sao Tome and



Principe counterpart Urbino Botelho held talks and later signed a joint communique on resuming diplomatic relations.

Sao Tome was among less than two dozen countries which had diplomatic ties with Taiwan till recently without any contacts with China.

But "excess financial difficulties" reportedly made it turn to Beijing for economic assistance.

"Sao Tome will get full support and help from a permanent member of the UN Security Council and the world's largest developing nation," Wang said after meeting with Botelho.

"China is willing to support Sao Tome's quest for socio-economic development and efforts to improve livelihoods and well-being to the best of its ability," Wang said.

"We have to recognise that China plays an increasingly important role in the world, especially as a partner to promote development and its contributions protecting the interests of developing nations," Botelho said.

"Sao Tome is a small, island nation, with very friendly people. It is tranquil. It has very good conditions for developing trade and business and cooperating with Chinese companies," he said.
A powerful typhoon that spoiled Christmas Day in parts of the Philippines, leaving at least four people dead and destroying homes, roared over a congested region near Manila today with slightly weaker but still-fierce winds, officials said.

Typhoon Nock-Ten cut power to five provinces at the height of Christmas celebrations and displaced tens of thousands of villagers and travellers in Asia's largest Catholic nation.

A farmer died after being pinned by a fallen tree in Quezon province and three other villagers, including a couple who were swept by a flash flood, died in Albay province, southeast of Manila, after the typhoon made landfall in Casiguran province last night, police said.

Nock-Ten, locally known as Nina, then blew westward across mountainous and island provinces, damaging homes, uprooting trees and knocking down communications.

Although it had weakened slightly, the typhoon still had sustained winds of up to 130 kilometres per hour and gusts of 215 kph, government forecasters said, as it blew over the heavily populated provinces of Batangas and Cavite, south of Manila, this morning. It was expected to exit over the South China Sea later in the day.

A cargo ship with an unspecified number of crewmen radioed for help as their vessel started to sink off Batangas, while another ran aground and turned on its side in the province's Mabini town, the coast guard said, adding that it sent vessels to rescue the crewmen of both ships.

The storm was one of the strongest to hit the Philippines since Typhoon Haiyan left more than 7,300 people dead or missing and displaced over 5 million in 2014. But officials in some provinces found it difficult to convince people to abandon their Christmas celebrations and head for the shelters before the storm hit. Some officials said they had to impose forced evacuations.

"Some residents just refused to leave their homes even when I warned them that you can face what amounts to a death penalty," Cedric Daep, a top disaster-response official in Albay, said by phone.

Shopping malls and stores were ordered to close early on Christmas Day to encourage people to remain indoors, "but at the height of the typhoon, many cars were still being driven around and people were out walking," Daep said. "We warned them enough, but we just can't control their mind."



Officials in Albay, where more than 150,000 villagers were displaced by the typhoon, declared a "state of calamity" yesterday to allow faster disbursement of emergency funds.

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Ravideep Singh Sahi today took over as Inspector General of CRPF, Srinagar, following transfer of incumbent Atul Karwal to headquarters of the paramilitary force at New Delhi.

Sahi took charge of the Central Reserve Police Force at a simple ceremony, a spokesman of the CRPF said.

"Sahi joined CRPF as Assistant Commandant in 1986 and has vast experience of working in various operational theatres across the country including J&K, Punjab, Chhatishgarh and North East," the spokesman said.

He said Sahi also worked on deputation to Lok Sabha Secretariat, Parliament of India.

"Sahi looks forward to work with other security agencies and J&K Administration for maintaining peace with the support and cooperation of the people of the Valley," the spokesman said.

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Alex Romero was delighted when President Barack Obama came to Havana in March bearing the promise of a bright new future.

Like so many other Cubans, the 42-year-old state photography shop employee thrilled at the president's vision of restored ties between the US and Cuba.

Families would reunite. A flood of American business would lift the stagnant centrally planned economy, fueling its slow path toward reform. Even as Obama spoke, an 80 per cent surge in US visitors was drenching state-run and private businesses with hundreds of millions of desperately needed dollars.

Nine months later, the world seen from Havana looks very different.

President Raul Castro faces what could be his toughest year since he took power in 2006. 2017 brings a possible economic recession and a US president-elect who has promised to undo Obama's normalization unless the Cuban government makes new concessions on civil rights.

Resistance to pressure from Washington is a founding principle for the Cuban communist system, making domestic concessions in exchange for continued detente a virtual impossibility.

"People expected that after Obama came there would be changes in the relationship between the US and Cuba but that we could keep the best of what we have, the benefits for the people," Romero said. "Trump's not going to be able to get what he wants, another type of Cuba. If the world's number one power takes us on, 2017 is going to be really bad for us."



Castro must manage these twin economic and diplomatic challenges during a year of transition.

The 85-year-old general has promised to hand over the office in early 2018 to a successor, widely expected to be Miguel Diaz-Canel, a 56-year-old official with neither the Castro name nor revolutionary credentials.

The change will occur without Castro's older brother Fidel, the revolutionary leader whose largely unseen presence endowed the system he created with historical weight and credibility in the eyes of many Cubans before he died last month at 90.

"Even if those two events hadn't taken place Trump's victory and Fidel's death 2017 was going to be a very difficult year for Cuba," said Cuban economist Omar Everleny Perez, a visiting professor at Keio University in Tokyo.

Cuba publishes few credible economic statistics, but experts expect the country to end this year with gross domestic product growth of 1 per cent or less. It maintained a rate close to 3 per cent from 2011-2015.

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Dana Majhi carrying his wife's body on his shoulders is the "real image" of the Odisha government and the ruling party, BJP said today.

Over the Chief Minister's allegation of opposition parties trying to malign the image of BJD, Odisha BJP chief Basant Panda said, "The real image of the Naveen Patnaik's government is the picture of Kalahandi tribal Dana Majhi carrying his wife's body on his shoulders after being denied a hearse by a government hospital."



Addressing a function to mark the 19th foundation day of BJD, Patnaik had said, "There is an attempt to malign the image of BJD by a section of opposition parties. These parties have launched a misinformation campaign against BJD. But, they have been rejected by the people of Odisha."



Patnaik had said BJP survives on "publicity", while Congress leaders quarrelled among themselves.

Taking exception to the remarks, Panda said, "Where is the image of BJD government? Its image is Dana Majhi, death of over 100 children in Malkangiri due to lack of immunisation against Japanese Encephalitis, death of 21 children due to malnutrition at Nagada in Jajpur and killing of five innocent tribal, Dalits in police firing at Gumudumaha in Kandhamal."



Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly and Congress leader Narasingha Mishra said, "Which party is free from infighting? Patnaik's party also sufferers from this menace."



"Winning successive elections do not give a positive image to a party or its leader. These (successive victories) have made BJD a party of egoists. Good work for the people actually shapes the image of a party or a government, which is lacking in BJD," Mishra alleged.

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Jammu and Kashmir health minister Bali Bhagat today called for strict implementation of Standard Operating Procedure(SoP) in all health institutions, including tertiary-care centres, across the state while prescribing medicines.

Reiterating his directive that only genuine and necessary medicines, preferably those available with the government, should be prescribe for patients at government hospitals, he said there are reports about unnecessary and substandard medicines being prescribed for commission and to give benefits to some particular firms.

Those indulging in this "unhealthy and unholy practice" are being warned again. If they do not mend their ways, the government will take strict action against them, Bhagat said.

The minister directed officials to form a joint committee of Heads of Departments/experts from Kashmir and Jammu regions to suggest ways and means for strict implementation of SoP so that poor patients do not have to make unnecessary expenditure to buy medicines from the market.

He directed principals of government medical colleges, dental colleges, directors of health services in the state, ISM Department to recommend names of people to be inducted in the committee within a week.

Chairing a meeting of Head of Departments, convened here to gauge the progress of various decisions taken in earlier meetings regarding functioning of the department, Bhagat emphasised on speeding up digitisation of departmental records to ensure transparency in its functioning.

Officials concerned of all district hospitals, medical colleges must be deputed to undergo training on digitisation of records on priority basis, he said.

Expressing concern over the rate of referral of patients from secondary to tertiary-care centres to government hospitals, the minister told officials to strengthen the existing mechanism to ensure that only serious patients are referred.

Control rooms set up at sub-district and district hospital levels should be activated for effective monitoring and keep a check on unnecessary referrals, he said.

Bhagat also took stock of the overall functioning of the department, availability and supply of medicines to health institutions and implementation of various programmes under National Health Mission.

He directed HoDs concerned to make field visits frequently to oversee functioning of ground-level institutions and address important issues on-the-spot.

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Attacks in villages and fighting between militias killed at least 35 people over the Christmas weekend in North Kivu, a majority Christian area in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The bloodshed began in Eringeti -- a town 55 kilometres north of the regional hub Beni, which for two years has been hit by massacres killing hundreds, many of whom were hacked to death.

Rebels from The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) -- dominated by puritanical Ugandan Muslims -- killed 22 people after storming Eringeti on Saturday, regional official Amisi Kalonda told AFP.

The toll climbed to 35 today with the announcement that at least 13 Hutu civilians, mostly women and an eight-year-old girl, were killed yesterday by a militia from the Nande ethnic group.

"The victims were all Hutu. There was an eight-year-old girl, a father and the rest were women," said local official Alphonse Mahano.

They were killed around the village of Nyanzale, a Hutu majority community.

The Nande and some other ethnic groups regard the Hutus as outsiders because of their attachment to the majority ethnic group in neighbouring Rwanda.

A string of attacks in the past year by both Hutu and Nande militia forces has deepened hatred between the communities.

Hutu farmers have also been forced to abandon land further south because of high property costs and under pressure from major landowners.

Although Congolese officials have blamed the attacks on the ADF, several expert reports have suggested that other groups, including elements within the Congolese army, took part in some killings.

When the Beni massacres began in October 2014, the ADF was quickly branded the culprit by both DR Congo authorities and MONUSCO, the UN mission in DR Congo.

More than two years on, Congolese authorities and the UN have been unable to protect civilians and the ADF remains the only official explanation -- with the government insisting on a jihadist link to the killings.

It comes as relations with the international community have soured over President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step down despite his term ending on December 20.

Separately, the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) announced today that its troops had killed 10 soldiers from neighbouring Burundi after they crossed the border last week in pursuit of rebels.

"There were 10 deaths," Major Dieudonne Kajibwami, told AFP, following a previous statement that five bodies had been taken to Uvira, a lakeside town in the eastern South Kivu province.

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Democratic Republic of Congo troops killed 10 soldiers from neighbouring Burundi after they crossed the border last week in pursuit of rebels, the Congolese army said today.

The Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) initially announced the death of five Burundian soldiers who had entered the country overnight on December 21, in the first known clash since the end of the Second Congo War in 2003.

"There were 10 deaths," Major Dieudonne Kajibwami, told AFP on Monday following a previous statement that five bodies had been taken to Uvira, a lakeside town in the eastern South Kivu province.

"In their flight, they didn't manage to recover the five other bodies," added Kajibwami, the military spokesman in South Kivu, much of which lies across Lake Tanganyika from Burundi.

Questioned by AFP, the Burundian army declined to comment on the incident.

Burundian medical sources said that wounded soldiers were admitted on Thursday to the military hospital in the capital Bujumbura, which lies on the north shore of the lake, across from Uvira. The hospital also took in dead bodies, but the sources gave no number for the injured.

According to Kajibwami, Congolese soldiers opened fire on the Burundian troops when they crossed the border after midnight on Wednesday in pursuit of rebels from the ethnic Hutu National Forces of Liberation (FNL).

"Normally, there is cooperation between the two armies," another Congolese army officer told AFP, asking not to be named. He mentioned a tacit agreement between Bujumbura and Kinshasa to let Burundian soldiers act in pursuit of FNL rebels when they fall back after a raid into Burundi.

"The reason for this glitch" lay in the absence of the military commander of the sector and an ignorance among the soldiers of "the deal between the two sides," this officer added.

Congolese soldiers "opened fire because they have strict instructions at this moment of tension in the country," he said, six days after President Joseph Kabila defied his political foes by retaining power beyond his constitutional mandate.

Kinshasa has never acknowledged authorising a right of pursuit to Burundian soldiers.

The FNL established rear bases in Congo at the start of the Burundian civil war, a partly ethnic conflict that began in 1993 and ended in 2006. The rebels refused to sign the Arusha peace accord that led to an end of the bloodshed.

The FNL is believed to have about 500 fighters based in South Kivu.

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Over 4,000 products under 86 different categories, besides hiring of transport services, are now available on the government's e-marketplace (GeM), the Commerce Ministry today said.

GeM was launched for online purchase of goods and services by various central government ministries and departments.

"Presently, more than 4,000 products in 86 categories and hiring of transport services are available on GeM POC portal. More than 1,600 product sellers and service providers, and about 1,500 government officials are currently registered on GeM," it said, enlisting the major initiatives of the Ministry in 2016.

It also said that transactions above Rs 45 crore have already been processed on this platform.

On the proposed mega deal - Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) -- it said the 16th round of negotiations was held in December at Tangerang in Indonesia.

"There was an intersessional ministerial held on November 3 at Cebu (Philippines), wherein, positions on goods, services and investment were clearly articulated by participating countries," it added.

For building the India brand, it said a long term strategy has been conceptualised to ensure that 'Brand India' becomes synonymous with high quality.

"A programme to promote the branding and commercialisation of products registered as Geographical Indications and to promote their exports will be initiated...," it added.

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Scientists have found no significant difference between business schools offering traditional courses and those emphasising on a learning-by-doing approach to entrepreneurship education, drawing attention to why the latter may not work as expected.

The research challenges the ongoing trend across higher education institutes (HEIs) of focusing on experiential learning and suggests that universities need to reconsider their approach if they are to increase entrepreneurship among their students.

"Entrepreneurship education is seen as a major force capable of generating long-term socio-economic changes through developing entrepreneurial, creative, flexible and wise individuals," said Inna Kozlinska, research associate at Aston Business School in the UK.

"There is an ongoing shift towards experiential learning in business schools, yet there is little empirical evidence to suggest this approach has better impact than traditional learning," said Kozlinska.

"This study has shown, contrary to our expectations that 'learning-by-doing' approaches do not necessarily lead to better outcomes for students, and were even found to have adverse effects in some instances," Kozlinska added.

The study of HEIs in Estonia shows only one Estonian business school that focused on learning-by-doing produced graduates with higher entrepreneurial skills and attitudes.

This was compared to three business schools with predominantly traditional teaching.

Similar findings arose in Latvia, where no differences in entrepreneurial knowledge, skills or attitudes were found between experientially and traditionally-taught graduates.

"Many intuitively agree that experiential learning is the most appropriate and fertile given the nature of entrepreneurship entailing uncertainty, ambiguity and dynamism," said Kozlinska.

"However, this study challenges common assumptions and draws attention to why learning-by-doing might not work as expected," Kozlinska added.

The study, analysing more than 500 graduates, also highlights how new entrepreneurial knowledge, skills and attitude relate to further achievements in the professional life of graduates.

Kozlinska highlighted three possible reasons why experiential entrepreneurial education does not always work questioned the overall quality of entrepreneurship education.

"First, students should know how to learn experientially, how to make sense and find meaning in challenging learning situations, and how to reflect upon the learning-by-doing process," said Kozlinska.

"Second, educators teaching entrepreneurship should have a balanced share of experience in teaching and industry and third, an entrepreneurship course should be long enough for a meaningful impact on the professional impact of graduates," Kozlinska added.

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Ex-IAF chief S P Tyagi, arrested on December 9 in the AgustaWestland chopper scam, was today granted bail by a special court here which said CBI has failed to state the alleged bribe amount and when it was paid.

Tyagi, 72, who was interrogated by CBI in its custody for seven days, has been asked by special CBI judge Arvind Kumar to furnish a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh and one surety of like amount as pre-requisites for his release on bail.

The court asked Tyagi not to leave the National Capital Region without its permission and ordered him not to tamper with the evidence or try to influence the witnesses.

"CBI failed to state as to how much cash was paid to the accused and when it was paid. Admittedly, the CBI has seized the documents regarding properties in 2013 and more than three years and nine months have passed but could not conduct probe in this regard...

"Accused was arrested after about three years and nine months, LOC was withdrawn by CBI, his accounts were defrozed after the agency gave 'no objection' and accused was allowed to travel abroad," the court, in its order, said.

It noted that Tyagi has joined the investigation as and when CBI called him and it was not the case that he either tampered with evidence after registration of the FIR or influenced witnesses in the case.

"CBI's apprehension that accused may tamper with the evidence is without any basis... Accused has been a senior government servant. The correctness or otherwise of the allegation as to whether the accused has taken any kickbacks and in what manner he was connected with the same, can only be looked into during the course of trial," it said.

While granting the relief, the court took note of Tyagi's advancing age and his health conditions and said no purpose would be served by keeping him behind the bars.

Tyagi, who retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by CBI in connection with the case which relates to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime.

The court would now decide on January 4 the bail pleas of Sanjeev Tyagi and Khaitan.

During the hearing, Tyagi's advocate Manger Guruswamy had



said her client "could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".

She claimed that in last four years after registration of the FIR, CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.

Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi- layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".

"We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding the matter has "tarnished country's name".

On the court's query whether the CBI had any material regarding S P Tyagi receiving money, the agency replied the former IAF chief had purchased several properties for which the sources of income were not disclosed by him and alleged that he had abused his official position.

Advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, counsel for Khaitan, had also countered CBI's argument, claiming that the agency was trying to sensationalise the matter and there was no allegation that his client had not joined the probe or tried to influence it.

Sanjeev Tyagi's counsel Manav Gupta also opposed CBI's contention saying there was no reason to claim that if granted the relief, his client would hamper the probe.

The accused sought bail on the grounds that the evidence was documentary in nature and had already been seized by CBI and they have cooperated with the probe agency.

The court had on December 17 sent all the three accused to judicial custody till December 30.

The CBI had said it was a "very serious" and "a very high-profile" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as the "interest of the nation was compromised".

Tyagi's counsel had earlier claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office (PMO) was also a part of it.
Ex-IAF chief S P Tyagi, arrested on December 9 in AgustaWestland chopper scam case, was today granted bail by a special court here.

Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted the relief to Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs two lakh and one surety of like amount.

The court, however, imposed certain conditions on the accused and asked him not to try to influence the witnesses and hamper the probe.

The bail applications of other two accused - Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan - are pending before the court which said it will decide both the pleas on January 4.

During the hearing of the bail plea, S P Tyagi's advocate Maneka Guruswamy had said that her client "could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".

She had claimed before the court that in the last four years since the FIR was registered, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.

Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".

"We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding that the matter has "tarnished country's name".

On the court's query whether the CBI had any material regarding S P Tyagi receiving money, the agency told the court that the former IAF chief had purchased several properties for which the sources of income were not disclosed by him and alleged that he had abused his official position.

Advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, counsel for Khaitan, had



also countered CBI's argument, claiming that the agency was trying to sensationalise the matter and there was no allegation that his client had not joined the probe or tried to influence it.

Sanjeev Tyagi's counsel Manav Gupta also opposed CBI's contention saying there was no reason to claim that if granted the relief, his client would hamper the probe.

The accused sought bail on the grounds that the evidence was documentary in nature and had already been seized by CBI and they have cooperated with the probe agency.

The court had on December 17 sent all the three accused to judicial custody till December 30.

71-year old Tyagi, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by the agency in connection with the case. The case relates to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime.

The accused have alleged that the "CBI was trying to extract the confession using force". The defence counsel had also claimed that there was no apprehension of them fleeing from justice or tampering with evidence.

The CBI had said it was a "very serious" and "a very high-profile" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as the "interest of the nation was compromised".

It had submitted that "one part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land."



Tyagi's counsel had earlier claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office (PMO) was also a part of it.
Carrie Fisher's mother Debbie Reynolds confirmed that the actress is in stable condition after she suffered a mid-air heart attack.

The iconic "Star Wars" actress went into cardiac arrest while onboard a LA-bound flight on Friday.

Reynolds took to Twitter to inform fans about the 60-year-old star's health and also thanked them for their concern.

"Carrie is in stable condition. If there is a change, we will share it. For all her fans and friends. I thank you for your prayers and good wishes," she wrote.

Fisher was rushed to UCLA Medical Center by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics after the 11-hour flight touched down at Los Angeles International Airport shortly after noon on Friday.

Paramedics were standing by for the plane's arrival and provided advanced life support and "aggressively treated and transported the patient to a local hospital," said fire-department spokesman Erik Scott.

On December 24, Fisher's brother, Todd, confirmed that she was receiving treatment in an intensive-care unit, saying only, "We have to wait and be patient.

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Five kg of gold jewellery worth around Rs 90 lakh was allegedly looted at gun point by three unidentified persons from a branch of Muthoot Fincorp -- gold financing company -- at Dhoraji town here, police said.

"Three unidentified persons entered the branch of the company at Dhoraji and looted 4.8 kg gold jewellery at gun point," Rajkot (Rural) SP Antrip Sood said.

Three persons were armed with country-made revolver and knife, and their act was caught on the CCTV camera based on which the police launched a search operation, Sood said.

"We have sealed the exit points and have launched a hunt for the robbers with the help of CCTV footages," he said.

The CCTV footages showed three robbers armed with revolver and knife forcing the employees of the company's branch to open the locker from where they took out gold jewellery and fled immediately.

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A new indefinite truce in Ukraine held by a thread for a third day Monday as both pro-Russian insurgents and Kiev reported clashes near a prized railroad hub but no deaths.

Ukraine and Russia -- two ex-Soviet neighbours that are now sworn foes -- agreed to the armistice Wednesday with the help of mediation from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

The rebels signed on to the ceasefire Friday after some deliberation.

Yet mortar and artillery fire has continued unabated without claiming any lives.

"Our positions came under attack 33 times since early Sunday," the Ukranian military said in a statement.

The insurgents' website said their side had come under fire from Ukrainian grenade launchers 62 times in the past day.

Such weapons have been banned by a February 2015 peace agreement that both sides have long ignored.

Kiev and its Western allies view the eastern separatists as Russian proxies who have been fighting for 31 months to destabilise the Ukrainian government and keep it dependent on the Kremlin's whims.

Moscow denies interfering in the conflict but international monitors have seen tanks and other heavy military equipment enter the Ukrainian war zone from Russia throughout the war.

March 2014 saw Russia annex Ukraine's Crimea peninsula in apparent retaliation for Kiev's ouster of the Moscow-backed president the preceding month.

The latest truce came shortly after a week-long battle for control of positions near Debaltseve -- a railway hub that links the pro-Russian regions of Lugasnk and Donetsk.

Details are disputed but Kiev appears to have won back control of most regions around the town after an initial rebel assault.

Kiev lost eight soldiers in the battles while the rebels stuck their custom of not disclosing their deaths.

Ukranian General Anatoliy Petrenko -- charged with military contacts with his counterpart from Moscow -- told the Ukrainska Pravda website that he had asked the militias to stop their assault on Kiev-held villages near Debaltseve more than 800 times.

"They agreed on 415 occasions," Petrenko was quotes as saying



Debaltseve itself has been under separatist control since an immense January 2015 battle prompted Germany and France to step in and force all sides to agree to a peace deal the following month.

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A southern French town announced an investigation today after a sculpture of a black man that commemorates the abolition of slavery was desecrated with Nazi graffiti and white paint.

The damage to the bust which dates from the 19th century and is located in a park in Pau, near the Pyrenees and close to the Spanish border, was discovered during a police patrol.

The word "Nazi" had been scrawled on the statue. It was cleaned immediately and a probe opened.

France's overseas territories minister Ericka Bareigts condemned the vandalism, writing on Twitter that the memory of slavery must be respected.

French President Francois Hollande announced plans in May to establish a major foundation to fund a slavery memorial and museum in Paris.

The move was partly in response to frustration among members of France's black community over what many consider the country's overlooked involvement in the slave trade.

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The Gambia's president-elect Adama Barrow has called on President Yahya Jammeh to step aside, saying that even colonial power Britain was able to hand over power peacefully.

In a Christmas message yesterday, Barrow said Gambians should be free of the threat of violence as "we enter a New Year of hope" after Jammeh threatened to cling to power unless the Supreme Court orders him to step down.

Barrow also announced the creation of a group of experts to lay the foundations for his new administration.

Jammeh, who has been in power for 22 years, stunned observers by initially accepting his defeat in the December 1 vote by opposition candidate Barrow, but then flip-flopped a week later, rejecting the results and filing a court challenge.

"I should assume office when the term of office of the incumbent expires... I do not want to preside over a country that is not at peace with itself," Barrow said in a statement.

"I am calling on all peace loving Gambians to... Work for a peaceful transfer of executive power, for the first time in our history since independence."



Jammeh has stoked international concerns about the future of the tiny west African country, with the UN joining African leaders in calling for him to step down.

"If the colonialists could peacefully hand over executive power... (we) should be able to show a better example to our children," Barrow said.

"To ensure that the country realises its full potential when I assume office, I have already commissioned the establishment of a think tank" to prepare a transition plan.

Under Jammeh's long rule, The Gambia has remained crushingly poor but enjoyed relative stability -- though rights groups and media watchdogs accuse him of cultivating a climate of fear and clamping down on dissent.

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The strike observed today against Indore Municipal Corporation's move to introduce the 'biometric' attendance system inconvenienced citizens as rivalry between two groups of sanitary workers led to dumping of garbage on streets in some areas of city.

"One of the factions of the employees created a ruckus in Patnipura, MIG, Vijay Nagar, Chhaoni and Palasia areas of the city and even damaged the garbage vehicles," a police officer told PTI.

He said some motorcycle-borne persons misbehaved with workers from rival group and scattered the filth on roads in these areas.

Later, workers associated with both the groups created ruckus at Palasia police station demanding registration of criminal cases against each other.

IMC Additional Commissioner Devendra Singh said the municipal administration has lodged complaints in Palasia, MIG, Sanyogitaganj and Khajrana police stations against those who damaged the IMC vehicles.

"We have introduced bio-metric attendance in compliance with the Central norms under Swachch Bharat Abhiyan. There is no question of withdrawing this decision," he added.

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In a bid to raise awareness about online safety, India has partnered Ministry of Consumer Affairs for rolling out a nationwide 'Digitally Safe Consumer' campaign.

Google, along with Department of Consumer Affairs, will undertake a year-long campaign focussed on building capacities of consumer organisations, personnel of Consumer Affairs department and counsellors of National Consumer Helpline on Internet safety and related issues.

"With the rapid increase in digitisation across all spheres, the message of internet safety needs to be integrated into the everyday tasks that the consumer undertakes online," India Country head (Public Policy) Chetan Krishnaswamy said in a statement.

This initiative will add to Google's existing campaigns guiding users to navigate the web and manage their digital lives safely and leverage the web to the fullest, he added.

In order to provide training and information on online safety tools, with the help of partner agencies will work towards advocating digital security and privacy needs through workshops training about 500 people, including 250 consumer organisations across the country.

These trainers will further engage with the local community to spread awareness around the need for internet safety.

The campaign, which is expected to roll out in January, 2017 will reach out with training materials to over 1,200 consumer organisations as well as consumer affairs department of every state and union territories.
The Delhi government has appealed to the residents of the national capital to donate blankets and mattresses to homeless people who have taken refuge in night shelters to battle the harsh cold.

The government has also urged NGOs to adopt a night shelter each and provide food to the homeless.

Those wanting to donate blankets, mattresses and other material should dial 011-23387879, 8527898295 and 8527898296.

The Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board has set up about 250 night shelters to cater to those battling the icy chill and hunger out in the open.

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Six people have been killed in northern Nigeria's Kaduna state, with herdsmen suspected of committing the attack in the restive region, a former lawmaker and an official said today.

A long-running battle over land and grazing rights has left hundreds dead in central and northern Nigeria.

The violence occurred between Saturday and yesterday in Goska, near Kafanchan, despite a 24-hour curfew following incessant clashes between herdsmen and local farmers, they said.

"We lost six people, including my 17-year-old daughter who was one year to her graduation from secondary school," said Gideon Morik, a former member of the state house of assembly.

"The gunmen we suspect to be Fulani herdsmen attacked the village late Saturday into Sunday," he said, adding that the attackers wounded many people and destroyed houses before fleeing.

Governor Nasir El-Rufai condemned the attack in a statement today, vowing to find the killers.

President Muhammadu Buhari, a Muslim, has proposed setting up grazing reserves to address disputes.

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"Save us before we die from the cold," read the email in Father Zoltan Nemeth's inbox. It was an appeal that this Hungarian priest could not ignore.

The SOS was sent by an asylum-seeker, one of 14 relocated from a refugee camp earmarked for closure near Budapest to what they say are freezing military tents in Kormend close to the Austrian border.

Nemeth, the Catholic parish priest in Kormend, a town of around 12,000 souls some 230 kilometres west of Budapest, quickly offered them shelter in the parish community hall.

"I'm not a hero, it was simply my duty as a committed Christian to help," the bespectacled and portly 61-year-old told AFP in the parish house next door where he lives.

But Nemeth calls his stance a "lonely" one in a country led by the fiercely anti-migrant Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

In 2015 Orban built fences on Hungary's borders to keep out migrants, and changed laws enabling the expulsion and jailing of "illegal border crossers".

Refugee camps are being closed while a government referendum in October urged Hungarians to vote "No" to the EU's plan to relocate migrants around the bloc. The ballot however was declared invalid because of low voter turnout.

"Hungary doesn't need a single migrant," Orban has said, warning that the "poison" of mass migration will destroy Europe's Christian identity.

According to Nemeth however Orban's referendum campaign, with nationwide billboard posters that linked migrants to terrorism and crime, had an "anti-Gospel message".

"I follow Jesus, not the state's leaders," he told AFP, citing a passage from the Bible: "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat... I was a stranger and you invited me in."



The priest says his inspiration is Pope Francis who has regularly defended migrants and called on Europe to keep its doors open to those in need.

Upstairs in the parish hall, priest vestments hang on racks at one end, while mattresses and rucksacks line the walls.

Greeted with bear hugs when he goes upstairs to chat to the asylum-seekers, Nemeth says a three-year period in South America as a missionary taught him to "disregard religion, race, or class, and only see the person".

The group of young men, all awaiting decisions on appeals of rejected asylum claims, is comprised of Iraqi Kurds, Afghans, Cameroonians, Nigerians, Cubans and a Congolese. They include both Christians and Muslims.

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Indian Ambassador to Norway has sought a meeting with the head of the Consular Section in the Norwegian Foreign Ministry after the Indian woman, whose son has been taken away by the Child Welfare Services there, sought government's intervention.

"Indian Ambassador to Norway Debraj Pradhan has sought a meeting with the head of the Consular Section in the Norwegian Foreign Ministry," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said, adding after the meeting the government will decide how to pursue the case.

Gurvinderjit Kaur and her husband, who is a Norwegian national, have alleged that authorities in that country have taken away their 5-year-old son Aryan, also a Norwegian national, on a frivolous complaint of abuse.

MEA officials said after the "formal request" by the Indian woman, the ministry was now "empowered" to pursue the matter with the Norwegian authorities.

The Indian couple had first sought Jolly's help in getting back the custody of their child, after which he wrote to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj who had said India will provide them help.

Jolly had also maintained that according to the mother, the child is being "daily served porridge and bread while he is fond of Indian food".

In its response, the Norwegian Embassy here had asked for "restraint" in the case, assuring that it is being handled with "complete sensitivity and awareness".

This is the third case since 2011 when children have been taken away from their Indian-origin parents by the authorities in Norway on the grounds of abuse.

In 2011, a three-year-old and a one-year-old were separated from their parents, prompting the then UPA government to take up the issue with Norway. The Norwegian court later allowed the children to be reunited with their parents.

In December 2012, an Indian couple was jailed on charges of ill treatment of their children, 7 and 2 years. Later, they were sent to their grandparents in Hyderabad.

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Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman today criticised an upcoming Middle East peace conference organised by France, calling it a new "Dreyfus trial" and urged French Jews to move to Israel.

Representatives of around 70 countries are due to attend the January 15 conference aimed at restarting long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts.

Israel has strongly opposed it, instead calling for direct talks with the Palestinians.

"This is not a peace conference. It's a tribunal against the state of Israel," Lieberman told members of his Yisrael Beitenu party, according to a recording released by the party.

"A conference whose whole point is to harm the security of Israel, its good name -- a trial against Israel."



"It's a Dreyfus trial in a modern version, what they're preparing there in Paris for January 15, with one difference. Instead of one Jew being on trial, it will be the entire Jewish people and the state of Israel."



Alfred Dreyfus was a French Jewish army captain wrongly convicted in 1894 of espionage and treason whose ordeal became a symbol of injustice and anti-Semitism.

Yesterday, Lieberman also urged French Jews to move to Israel, saying it would be the most appropriate and "only answer we can give that plot (conference)".

After naming recent attacks in France targeting Jewish residents, he said the conference "adds to that atmosphere, and it might be time to tell the Jews of France: 'That's not your country, it's not your land, leave France and come to Israel'."



"If you want to stay Jewish and keep your children and grandchildren Jewish, leave France and move to Israel."



Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat, a former peace negotiator, told AFP that France aims through the conference to revive the peace process and throw its weight behind "a two-state solution".

The conference will follow Friday's UN Security Council resolution demanding that Israel halt settlement building in Palestinian territory, a vote that has deeply angered the Israeli government.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials have responded with especially harsh language to the resolution which passed after the United States abstained from voting.

By deciding not to veto the move, the United States enabled the adoption of the first UN resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

Peace efforts have been at a standstill since a US-led initiative collapsed in April 2014.

The Palestinians have more recently pursued international diplomacy, saying years of talks with the Israelis have not ended the near-50-year occupation of the West Bank.

Many have warned that Israeli settlement building is fast eroding the possibility of a two-state solution to the conflict.

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Israel has postponed this week's visit of Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman following a landmark UN Security Council vote demanding a halt to Israeli settlement building, officials said today.

The move was the latest by Israel targeting countries that supported Friday's resolution which deeply angered Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government.

Ukraine, currently a non-permanent member of the Security Council, in turn summoned the Israeli ambassador in Kiev for further discussion, the foreign ministries of both countries said.

It was unclear when or if the visit would occur following the postponement.

Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon confirmed the visit had been postponed, while also issuing a statement saying that "our ambassador Eli Belotsercovsky was summoned to the foreign ministry in Kiev" over the issue.

Ukraine's foreign ministry said it "expressed disappointment with the emotional reaction of individual Israeli officials and politicians concerning the vote in New York".

It added in its statement that it wanted to continue good relations with Israel.

Netanyahu and other Israeli officials have responded with especially harsh language to the Security Council resolution which passed after the United States abstained from voting.

Netanyahu has alleged that US President Barack Obama "colluded" to see the "shameful" resolution through.

By deciding not to veto the move, the United States enabled the adoption of the first UN resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

The text was passed with support from all remaining members of the 15-member council.

There have also been reports that Israel cancelled a planned meeting at next month's World Economic Forum in Davos between Netanyahu and British Prime Minister Theresa May.

It was unclear, however, whether there was any official meeting scheduled and if it was indeed called off.

British deputy ambassador to Israel Tony Kay told Israeli army radio the reports of the cancellation were a disappointment, but expressed hope for future talks.

Speaking to AFP, Kay said "we want to have conversations with our Israeli counterparts at all levels... To talk about regional and other security challenges and opportunities and to develop the very, very strong UK-Israel bilateral relationship."



Israel summoned ambassadors of countries that voted for the resolution yesterday -- Christmas day -- while Netanyahu also met with US ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro.

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The Income Tax department has issued a notice to Aam Aadmi Party, citing discrepancies in the donors' list submitted to tax officials and what had been put up on the party website.

Terming the notice as "malicious", alleged that the BJP-led NDA government is harassing the party and targeting its donors.

national treasurer Raghav Chadha said, "Initially, there was an inadvertent error in the list submitted to the income tax department, which has been rectified in the revised ITR after receiving the notice."



"To revise an IT return is the legitimate right of a party. Not even single donation is concealed by Aam Aadmi Party. We maintain 100 per cent transparency in donors' details and the amount we receive. The IT department had issued us a notice and we have revised the IT return," he said.

The party had removed the donors' list from its website claiming that its donors were being harassed by tax officials.

Attacking over the issue, Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari alleged that the funding details of Aam Aadmi Party are "manipulated".

"AAP seeking withdrawal of its accounts submitted to the authorities vindicates our stand. Arvind Kejriwal should make things clear right away as he has all through claimed to be champion of transparency in polity," Tiwari said.

Hitting back, Kejriwal tweeted, "AAP receives less than 8% of its donations in cash against 70-80% cash donations by Cong-BJP."



Another AAP leader blamed technical glitches for the error.

"While we put all donations on the website, at times there are some technical errors. For instance, there have been cases in which a donor has tried to make payment, but the transaction could not be completed. In that case, our website reflected that payment has been made, but we did not receive money in our bank account," the leader said.
The Delhi High Court today asked the AAP government to decide in three days the parole plea of Manu Sharma, undergoing life term for killing model Jessica Lall in 1999.

"The government of National Capital Territory of Delhi is directed to dispose of the application/representation of the petitioner (Sharma) within three days from the date of receipt of this order," Justice Pratibha Rani said.

The court said the order passed by the government should be communicated immediately to the petitioner and his counsel through the jail superintendent.

The direction came on plea by Sharma, who sought three months' parole to enable him appear for LLB second semester exams from December 31, attend his Personal Contact Programme and re-establish social ties.

Advocate Amit Sahni, appearing for Sharma, said three month was required as the convict has to appear before the Registrar in Chandigarh on January 19 next year. He said the government has not yet taken any decision on the application since October this year.

Additional Standing Counsel Sanjay Lao, appearing for the government, then said the application filed by the petitioner seeking parole shall be disposed of expeditiously.

The court noted that the parole application was sent to the competent authority only on December 7, which has not yet been decided.

The convict, who has been given parole six times since September 2009, has completed a post-graduate diploma in Human Rights and is now pursuing a Bachelor's in Law course from Annamalai University, Chennai.

Sharma, son of former Union Minister Venod Sharma, was awarded life imprisonment by the high court in December 2006 for killing Jessica Lall in 1999. The trial court had acquitted him, but the Delhi High Court had reversed it and the Supreme Court had upheld the life sentence in April 2010.

Lall was shot dead by Sharma after she had refused to serve him liquor at the Tamarind Court restaurant owned by socialite Bina Ramani at Qutub Colonnade in South Delhi's Mehrauli on the night of April 30, 1999.

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The ambitious Ken-Betwa river-linking project will be launched once its funding pattern is decided, Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti said here today.

The Ministry has received wildlife clearance for the multi-crore project, first such initiative aimed at linking inter-state rivers in the country. However, it awaits forest and environment approvals.

"The NITI Aayog had earlier recommended funding pattern for the project as per Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP). I have requested the Aayog that the funding pattern has to be 90:10 (Centre: state sharing pattern) or 100 per cent (Centrally-funded).

"The moment the funding pattern is decided, the project will be launched," she said.

Bharti made the remarks during an event in which she handed over Rs 1981-crore cheque issued by NABARD to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu for Polavaram project.

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu also attended the event.

Bharti though did not specify by when the funding pattern will be finalised for the river-linking project.

Besides Andhra Pradesh, the NABARD issued cheques worth Rs 830 crore and Rs 463 crore as assistance for completing irrigation projects in Maharashtra and Gujarat respectively.

The Ken-Betwa project is expected to irrigate 6.35 lakh hectares of land at an estimated cost of Rs 9,393 crore in the Bundelkhand region covering parts of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.

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Sudheendra Kulkarni, who served as a close aide to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, has in his new book mooted the idea of establishing an India-Pakistan-Bangladesh confederation before 2047.

Kulkarni's book "August Voices - What they said on 14-15 August 1947 and its relevance for India-Pakistan- Bangladesh Confederation', will be released by Vice President Hamid Ansari here on December 28.

"As India and Pakistan celebrate the 70th anniversary of their independence in 2017, both countries should boost efforts to normalise their relations in the new year," Kulkarni told PTI.

"They have a responsibility to future generations to prove that their ties are not destined to be permanently marred by mistrust, hostility and conflict," Kulkarni, who heads the Mumbai-based think tank Observer Research Foundation, said.

Kulkarni, a columnist and independent socio-political activist, said, "India's bloody partition in 1947, and the creation of Pakistan on the basis of the baseless and toxic 'Two-Nation' theory, was highly unnatural. Because it was unnatural, it predictably led to Pakistan's own bloody partition in 1971 with the liberation of Bangladesh."



"These two partitions have created multiple problems for all three countries," he said.

Kulkarni, who resigned from the BJP in 2013 after a close association with the party for 16 years, said, "The existence of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh as three separate, independent and sovereign countries is a reality that cannot be altered."



"Partition cannot be undone. But its negative outcomes can and must be undone jointly by the peoples and governments of India and Pakistan and Bangladesh. The beginning should be made by India and Pakistan arriving at a just, amicable, peaceful and compromise-based solution to the long-pending Kashmir dispute," he said.

"For this to happen, Pakistan must completely eliminate the scourge of terrorism, fuelled by religious extremism, from its soil," he said.

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A career best 137 by opener Tom Latham steered New Zealand to a substantial 341-7 against Bangladesh in the first one-day international at Hagley Oval in Christchurch today.

Latham dominated the crease for more than 47 overs as he faced 121 deliveries and smacked four sixes and seven fours.

Colin Munro chimed in with a rollicking 87 in a 158-run partnership with Latham for the fifth wicket to bolster the innings when the rest of the top order failed to stick around.

After winning the toss and electing to bat, New Zealand maintained a steady run rate without offering prolonged support to the left-hander Latham at the top of the order.

Martin Guptill was primed for a blistering start and smacked an early six but on 15 he misread a slower Mustafizur Rahman delivery and skied the ball to Soumya Sarkar at mid-off.

Captain Kane Williamson moved smartly to 31 before he was undone by Taskin Ahmed, while Neil Broom (22) and Jimmy Neesham (12) came and went in quick succession as New Zealand slumped to 158-4 in the 28th over.

But Latham, who had a heart-stopping moment on seven when Mushrafe Mortaza had a ball come back and sail just over off stump, soldiered on to surpass his previous best 110 not out against Zimbabwe last year.

He was eventually dismissed with 15 balls remaining in the innings when he edged a wide delivery from Mustafizur through to Mushfiqur Rahim behind the stumps.

The big-hitting Munro pounded four sixes and eight boundaries in his 61-ball stand.

Shakib al Hasan was the most successful of the Bangladesh bowlers with 3-69 while Mustafizur, in his first ODI in five months following shoulder surgery, took two wickets as did Taskin Ahmed.

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Superstar Shah Rukh Khan today encouraged young students to listen to their heart and do what they like, to avoid regrets about career choice later in life.

"When you become a person of my age or your parents' age or your teachers' age, somewhere that regret will be there that why I did not do that (as a career). I just want to tell every boy and girl that do where your heart is," he said.

Shah Rukh had a pep talk with students of Maulana Azad National Urdu University here where he was conferred an honorary doctorate for his contribution towards promotion of Urdu language and culture.

The actor recalled that his (late) father, though financially not so well-off, taught him various things in life.

"He used to play chess with the head priest of a Hanuman temple," he said.

The 51-year-old actor said the lessons he was taught included how to work with others and that one has to step back, sometimes, to move ahead in life.

"Nobody is small. You have to respect all," he said.

"He gave me a typewriter. You have to be very diligent in typing. When I learnt typing, I realised that practice makes you perfect. Whatever you do in life, do it with diligence as if it is the last chance to do it," he said.

Shah Rukh said his father told him to retain a sense of humour and childlike innocence.

"Life will be better if you look at things with a sense of humour," he said.

Observing that creative expression in any form would be a good outlet for one's feelings, he said such a habit would give solace in times of feeling lonely.

"I am a bad poet. But, I still write something...When I write, I get peace," he said.

The actor also suggested the students to respect and enjoy the gift of life, through good or bad times.

Earlier, Chancellor Zafar Sareshwala conferred the 'honorius causa' (doctor of letters) on Khan and Rekhta Foundation founder Sanjiv Saraf at the sixth convocation of the university, for their contribution in the promotion of Urdu language and culture.

Expressing happiness on being conferred the honorary doctorate, Khan said the honour would make his father happy as he was a freedom fighter and held Maulana Azad and also education in high esteem.

The actor said he would try to live up to the responsibility bestowed on him.

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Maharashtra government has accepted NABARD's funding for 23 irrigation projects in the form of long-term loan.

The decision would bring in Rs 7,242.74 crore for the completion of irrigation projects, according to a Government Resolution released today.

The GR further stated that National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) would charge an annual interest of 6 per cent over the loan.

As per the negotiations between the NABARD and state officials, the government would get a grace period of first three years from the commencement of the work. Hence, there will be no pressure of immediate payback of instalments for the three years.

"It is expected that the grace period would be used by the state government to expedite the procedures of pending permissions and start the pending works. This would enable the state to bring more area under irrigation and with more yield from farmers, a small amount on water tax can be collected. This amount is useful for payback of the loan instalment," a senior officer from state water resources department said.

The NABARD has permitted a period of 15 years for completion of all the pending projects. After the completion, there will be a period of 15 years for repayment of the loan amount, the GR stated.

Once the projects are completed, the state water resources department is asked to submit a 'completion certificate' to NABARD.

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Odisha's prominent businessman Mahimananda Mishra, who was detained by the police in Thailand, was brought back to the state capital tonight and is likely to be produced at a court in Jagatsinghpur district in connection with a murder case tomorrow.

Mishra, managing director of Odisha Stevedores Ltd and his aide Basant Bal were detained yesterday in Thailand, with the assistance of Interpol.

Mishra and Bal were sent to the Capital Hospital for medical checkup amid tight security as soon as they reached the city here.

"He will be taken to Jagatsinghpur tonight and be produced in the court there tomorrow morning," a senior police officer said.

Mishra and Bal would be formally arrested before being produced in the court, the officer said adding the duo had escaped to Kathmandu after hiding at several places in the country following the murder of Seaways Shipping official Mahendra Swain on October 26.

On Friday, a Kujang court had issued a non-bailable warrant against them.

So far seven persons have been arrested in connection with the murder, DGP K B Singh said.

The key accused in the case Susant Sethy, another close associate of Mishra, was arrested from the airport in New Delhi on Friday. Sethy had helped Mishra and Bal escape to Thailand.

The two had reached Bangkok from Nepal on a 15-day tourist visa, the police said adding a lookout circular had been issued for Mishra earlier.

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The Editors' Guild in on Monday decided to halt all media-related activities and publish blank editorial pages in protest against a hand grenade being found at the gates of an evening daily PANDM, located at at Wahengbam in Imphal West district.

The police said the Chinese-made grenade was suspected to be left behind by cadres of the banned KCP outfit.

The suspected militants also left a note, which read: "It is a new year gift to the paper of Manipur".

Protesting the bomb threat, the Editors' Guild decided in a meeting later in the day to stage a sit-in tomorrow morning, resolved to stop all media-related activities tomorrow and leave the editorial page blank for tomorrow's edition, said Guild president A Mubi.
A woman militant of proscribed NDFB(S) along with a linkman were apprehended by security forces in Assam's Kokrajhar district, police said today.

The security forces also seized 152 rounds of ammunitions of AK-47 rifle and two mobile phones from them, they said.

A joint team of police and army apprehended the two from Ultapani area along the Indo-Bhutan border of the district, Bodoland Territorial Area District IGP L R Bishnoi said.

The duo have been identified, Bishnoi added.

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In what could be a fresh irritant to Akhilesh Yadav, his warring uncle and state Samajwadi Party chief Shivpal Yadav on Monday took back in the party fold MLA Rampal Yadav, who was expelled by the chief minister in his previous capacity as head of state party unit.

"Expulsion of Rampal was revoked with the expectation that he will be devoted and disciplined," a party release issued by Shivpal said.

Rampal was expelled from the party early this year by the then state president Akhilesh for maligning party's image and his involvements in "illegal activities and irregularities".

Shivpal subsequently took over as the state SP chief from his nephew during a bitter power struggle in the ruling party.

Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) had razed the Sitapur MLA's illegal complex in April and arrested him along with eight others, including his relative former MLA Rajendra Yadav, for allegedly attacking the LDA team.

Rampal was sent to 14-day judicial custody by a lower court after he was booked under various sections of IPC including 307 (attempt to murder) and 7 Criminal Law amendment act late on Thursday night.

The MLA and his supporters had also clashed with police and LDA team after which police used lathicharge to disperse the mob.

In Sitapur, the MLA's Sparsh Hotel was also demolished as it was against norms.

Rampal, who is SP MLA from Biswan seat of Sitapur, was suspended from the party in 2015 during panchayat polls after he fielded his son Jitendra for the post of district panchayat chairman against his party's official candidate. Jitendra won the election.

However, after elections, his suspension was revoked.
In a bid to go cashless, the Mineral Resources Department of Madhya Pradesh has decided to implement online electronic transit pass (e-TP) services in 12 more districts of the state from next month.

Earlier, in October this year, online e-TP Services were launched through 'e-Khanij' Portal successfully in Jabalpur.

"Now, this e-TP facility is being extended to 12 more districts of the state. Online e-TP services will be implemented in all the districts after sorting out initial difficulties," Minister for Mineral Resources Rajendra Shukla told PTI today.

The minister informed that this facility is being started in the districts including Balaghat, Sagar, Tikamgarh, Satna, Rajgarh, Betul, Indore, Ujjain, Neemuch, Gwalior, Bhind and Hoshangabad.

An amount of over Rs 2.55 crore towards royalty has been received by the government in Jabalpur district since October. So far,19,839 online e-TP have been issued through e -Khanij Portal.

Shukla said royalty amount was deposited through e-TP by the mine contractors through challans earlier.

"Now cashless system has been introduced to deposit royalty amount online. This arrangement will fulfill the intention of state and union governments' ambitious cashless scheme," he added.

The minister said that the arrangements of training the officers and contractors through video conferencing have been made.

"Also training related to online e-TP is being imparted to the mining contractors and officers of the department by the IT team," he said.

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on Monday said it will boycott the meeting called by Congress in New Delhi tomorrow to ramp up attack on the Narendra Modi government over demonetisation.

"In the (last) five-six Parliament sessions, was with all opposition parties. But Congress (leaders) recently went to meet the Prime Minister alone, leaving other parties behind. A question has been raised on the unity among opposition parties," spokesperson Nawab Malik said here.

Malik was referring to a meeting between a Congress delegation headed by Rahul Gandhi, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"Tomorrow, Congress has called a meeting of all opposition parties (in Delhi). NCP will not be a part of it but we believe that all opposition parties should be together and for that a definite plan of action should be prepared and implemented," Malik said.
Nepal's national carrier today said it plans to restart flights to its northern neighbour China after the service was suspended nearly a decade ago.

The airlines, a state-owned entity, has sought a landing permit from Chinese authority at Guangzhou international airport as it plans to re-enter the Chinese mainland.

The Nepal Airlines Corporation, had long been operating flights to the Hong Kong, China, until 2008, when it had to suspend flights owing to shortage of aircrafts.

With addition of two more planes over the last two years, the airlines planned to reenter the Chinese airfield given the growing tourist arrivals from the northern neighbour in recent years. China is the second largest source market for Nepal's tourism after India.

"We are expecting the landing permit from Chinese authority in the next few weeks and we have got information that the process is in the final phase. Maybe, we will get green signal to operate flight to Guangzhou from Kathmandu in a couple of months," said NAC Managing Director Sugat Ratna Kansakar.

Guangzhou destination in China is the region from where most of the Nepalese traders import Chinese goods and they have been requesting for air service from NAC for a long time.

"As it is also the destination for conducting many international connecting flights, there is also the possibility of inflow of more Chinese tourists," said Kansakar.

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Nepali Congress, which is part of the ruling coalition, today floated a four-point proposal to end the political deadlock in Nepal and decided to engage in talks with other stakeholders to reach an agreement.

Party parliamentary office-bearers and central members held a meeting under the leadership of party president Sher Bahadur Deuba at the parliamentary party office Singha Durbar.

They decided to further intensify talks with the ruling partners and the oppositions to forge a consensus on the proposal.

The Nepali Congress (NC), the largest party in the Legislature-Parliament, proposed to announce the date for local poll immediately, endorse the election-related bills, resume the House proceedings and give a full shape to the Election Commission (EC).

It hoped that it will help find a ground to break the existing political deadlock, local media reported.

Party General Secretary Shashank Koirala told reporters after the meeting that the proposal was discussed.

However, the meeting did not mentioned the ground for holding the local level election (either in the existing structure or as per the new constitution).

The main opposition CPN (UML), which has obstructed the House since the registration of the Constitution amendment proposal on November 29, said it is ready to let the House resume business if political parties become committed to endorsing the local poll-related bill.

Likewise, three election-related bills are in the waiting for an approval at the Parliament while posts for three commissioners at the EC are lying vacant.

"A delay in opening the House business will prolong transition," Koirala said.

Senior party leader also Ramchandra Poudel spoke of the need of taking the country towards election phase to find a way out to the existing political imbroglio, saying the party would make initiative to forge a political agreement on holding the election.

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A Delhi court today extended the judicial custody an official of a private bank and two other persons in a case of alleged irregularities related to the conversion of old currency and supply of new notes.

The judicial custody of 32-year-old Vineet Gupta, now suspended branch manager in Axis Bank's Kashmere Gate branch here, and Rajeev Kumar Kushwaha, suspected to be the mastermind behind floating of shell companies, was extended by Additional Sessions Judge Vimal Kumar Yadav till January 9.

The court also extended the judicial custody of the third arrested accused, 33-year-old Shobit Sinha, now suspended manager (operations) in the bank, till January 9.

During the hearing, ED's special public prosecutor Vikas Garg pleaded that the two accused be sent to judicial custody as the investigation in the case was at a crucial stage.

Gupta and Sinha were arrested by ED on December 4 and later on suspended by the bank. Subsequently, Kushwaha was also apprehended.

ED had earlier told the court that the two officials, in connivance with others, were indulging in illegally changing demonetised currency into new notes.

ED claimed that the probe has so far revealed that Rs 40 crore worth of currency and several companies were involved in the case. It had said a gold brick worth Rs 39 lakh has been recovered from Sinha while another is yet to be recovered.

It had claimed that Kushwaha "used the identity documents of various persons to form shell companies" through which cash deposits worth Rs 39 crore were made between November 10 and November 22 in "close connivance" with the two bank managers.

The prosecutor had said the two bank officials were taking one per cent commission against the total amount of money deposited.

They agreed to accept the commission in the form of gold bar which was worth Rs 39 lakh, he had said.

Axis Bank had said in a statement, "The bank is committed to following the highest standards of corporate governance and has zero tolerance towards any deviation on the part of any of its employees from the set model code of conduct. In this particular case, the bank has suspended the erring employee and is cooperating with the investigating agencies."



A number of bank accounts of various people and traders are under the scanner of the agency in the case, ED had said.

ED had lodged a criminal complaint against the two bankers and others based on a Delhi Police FIR after three persons were intercepted with Rs 3.7 crore cash in old currency a few days ago in front of the bank's Kashmere Gate branch.

The Income Tax department too had surveyed the bank branch and searched the residential premises of the two.

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A 'notorious robber' whose gang was involved in more than 100 cases of bus robberies has been arrested, police said.

Vinod Kumar (30), was caught yesterday in connection with a robbery of a Delhi Police constable who was also attacked by the accused with a knife on December 23 morning, said Ishwar Singh, DCP(south).

Victim Ajit Singh, lodged complaint at Vasant Vihar police station that his mobile phone was snatched in a bus that he had boarded at Munirka at around 9 am on December 23, by two persons.

He said that he caught one of the accused but he was attacked by the person with a knife. The duo including Vinod managed to flee after threatening the bus driver to open the doors.

During interrogation, Vinod gave up names of his associates Ravi, Manoj, Bunty and an auto driver Rajesh. He "admitted" robbery and knife attack on Ajit, alongwith Ravi and Manoj, said the officer.

Vinod further disclosed involvement of the gang in more than 100 incidents of theft and robbery in running buses, the officer said.

The gang used to board buses at peak hours. Manoj used to pick-pocket and steal mobile phones and other valuables while Rajesh followed them in auto to provide escape after committing thefts and robberies.

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Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today said opposition parties were trying to malign BJD's image but they have been rejected by the people.

"There is an attempt to malign the image of BJD by a section of opposition parties. These parties have launched a misinformation campaign against BJD. But they have been rejected by the people of Odisha," the chief minister, who is also the president of ruling BJD, said at the party's 19th foundation day here.

"They (opposition) are in fact worried as their misinformation campaign has no impact on the people," he said.

Patnaik said though his party was ruling the state for the past 17 years, the "craze" for BJD among people is still there. "The people want the party should go ahead with their support."



"We are indebted to the people of Odisha since they remained untouched by the waves in national politics during 2014 elections," Patnaik said adding that the confidence of people in BJD made him more responsible.

Coming down heavily on opposition parties, Patnaik said, while some parties were engaged in internal quarrel others live on the publicity and people of Odisha were aware about them.

He was apparently referring to the infighting between leaders of Congress and BJP, which launched a publicity campaign.

"They (opposition parties) have no sincerity towards Odisha, while BJD is with the people of Odisha. The BJD continues to remain as number one party in the state due to hard work of the party workers... We will continue to keep up the position. Therefore, let us join hands and work for the service of the state and its people," he said.

Harping on his party's oft-repeated charge of "central negligence", Patnaik said, "The centre has cut down allocations for development of backward and tribal dominated regions of the state. However, the state government from its own resources continued the developmental activities in backward areas."



He also blamed the Centre for supporting the controversial Polavaram project in Andhra Pradesh and Chhattishgarh's unilateral construction of projects on Mahanadi river. BJD and Odisha government would continue its agitation against the two issues.

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Odisha Congress vice-president Pradeep Majhi and other party leaders today ended their six-day hunger strike after submitting a memorandum to Governor S C Jamir and announced to intensify its stir against the government's "anti-tribal" atittude.

Majhi and five others were on a hunger strike in front of Raj Bhavan here demanding compensation for the families of children who had died due to Japanese Encephalitis in Malkangiri district.

They also demanded appointment of doctors in all 55 vacant posts in the tribal-dominated district.

"The government gave Rs 5 lakh as ex gratia to victims of a fire incident in Bhubaneswar, while the amount of compensation for tribal families was only Rs 3 lakh," Majhi said criticising the state government.

The OPCC vice president also demanded stringent action against security personnel who had gunned down five innocent tribals and dalits including a child at Gumudumaha in Kandhamal district.

"We will intensify our stir over the issues," Majhi said.

OPCC president Prasad Harichandan, who accompanied Majhi to Raj Bhavan said the party would fight for the rights of tribal people.

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Russian rescuers found today the first parts of the Syria-bound military plane that plunged into the Black Sea, as officials dismissed terrorism as a possible cause of the crash that killed all 92 people on board.

The Tu-154 jet, whose passengers included more than 60 members of the internationally-renowned Red Army Choir, was heading to Russia's military base in Syria when it went down off the coast of the resort city of Sochi shortly after take-off yesterday.

Investigators have yet to confirm the cause of the crash, but officials said that an act of terror was not being considered as a possible explanation, despite the plane and its black boxes still being underwater.

A spokeswoman for the Sochi-based search and rescue branch of the emergency ministry confirmed that parts of the plane had been found underwater.

"The debris is at the depth of 27 metres one mile from shore," spokeswoman Rimma Chernova told AFP.

The Russian military added that divers had retrieved "two elements of the plane's control mechanism."



Authorities have said that the search operation would continue overnight.

Russia's federal security service said it is looking into four suspected causes of the crash, which do not include terrorism.

"No signs or facts pointing to a possible act of terror have been received at this time," Russia's Federal Security Service said in a statement carried by national agencies.

The probe is focusing on a pilot error, a technical fault, bad fuel and a foreign object in the engine as the four main scenarios, it added.

The military has cordoned off part of the Sochi shore, with soldiers standing in a chain and motor boats participating in the search regularly unloading at the pier, an AFP photographer reported.

More than three thousand people are racing to find the remaining bodies and debris in a massive operation that includes 45 vessels, planes, helicopters and drones, along with divers and remotely-operated deepwater machines.

Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said some of the bodies could have already been carried off by the "strong current" to Abkhazia, the separatist region of Georgia, and some of its own rescue workers have joined the search operation.

Along with the first 10 bodies, 86 body fragments were brought to the Russian capital for DNA analysis, defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.

He said searchers have finished looking over the on-land territory around the crash site while divers are working over an area with a radius of 500 metres.

The Tu-154 jet went down on Sunday morning minutes after taking off at 5:25 am from Sochi's airport, where it had stopped to refuel after flying out from the Chkalovsky military aerodrome in the Moscow region.

Onboard were 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble -- the army's official musical group, also known as the Red Army Choir -- and their conductor Valery Khalilov.

"The ensemble has been orphaned by a third," said state channel Rossiya.

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The multi-purpose Polavaram project is the "lifeline" of Andhra Pradesh and it is not going to affect any other state, Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu said here today.

Addressing an event, in which NABARD issued a cheque of Rs 1,981 crore to Andhra Pradesh as assistance for the project, Naidu said "misgivings or fears", if any, about the project will be discussed in due course of time.

Odisha has reportedly raised objections over the design and back water calculations of the project.

"It is the lifeline of Andhra Pradesh. It is not going to affect any other state. If there are any other misgivings or fears, we will discuss those in due course of time," the Union Minister said.

On reports of Odisha opposing the project, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, who too attended the event, said both the Centre and the state government are "completing formalities" and refused to speak more on the issue.

The Odisha government has been reportedly raising objections over design flood and back water calculations of the project, which the Andhra Pradesh government plans to complete by 2018.

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India today said it was in regular touch with Yemeni authorities and Saudi Arabia regarding the safe release of Father Tom Uzhunnalil, who was abducted nearly nine months ago from war-torn Yemen, after a video of the priest pleading for help became viral.

"You are aware of the circumstances currently prevailing in Yemen where fighting is going on with no central authority in that country.

"With regard to the safe release of Father Tom who was abducted some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

In the video, also uploaded on Facebook, Tom was seen as pleading for help from Indian government and fellow Christians including Pope Francis. However, the veracity of the video could not be ascertained.

He also said "several months have gone by and my captors have made many contacts with the government of India to get me released. Honourable President and Prime Minister of India, I am very sad nothing has been done seriously in my regard. Reports have been in that everything is being done to get me released quickly but in reality nothing seems to have happened."



He further said had he been "a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously by authorities and people and (they) would have got me released. I am from India and therefore, I perhaps am not considered as of much value".

Uzhunnalil was abducted from the port city of Aden in March 4 by militant group ISIS.

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Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh today hit out at the SAD-BJP government over a recent increase in incidents of religious sacrilege, saying the cases underlined lawlessness and communal polarisation in the state.

Addressing a gathering at the annual Jor Mela here, he condemned the incidents, saying religious attacks would not tolerated in Punjab and those responsible must be punished.

Capt Amarinder said there has been an increase in such incidents and cited the police firing in Bargari in which two youth were killed in police firing during a protest against a sacrilege incident in October.

"These (cases) underlined the state of lawlessness and communal polarisation into which Punjab had been plunged during the Badal regime," he said questioning the governance of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, ruling the state since 2007.

He urged people to vote for Congress to "save Punjab" from the Badal family and Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia, who were "only interested in promoting their interests".

The Punjab Congress chief questioned where the Badals had got the money for personal projects and businesses, without elaborating which projects or businesses he was referring to.

He also accused Majithia of selling drugs. "He and the Badals have ruined an entire generation of youth in Punjab."



The problem, he claimed, was so rampant in his previous Lok Sabha constituency Amritsar that there were many villages where there was no surviving male member.

He also attacked the state government over "300-odd political appointments" made in the past few days. He said the Badals made the appointments in a bid to place their "own people" in plum posts ahead of the imposition of the code of conduct.

Promising "free" power to farm sector and a reduction in in the tariff for industrial and commercial consumers, he said if Congress is voted to power no subsidy would be withdrawn.

He reiterated his promise not to allow a "single drop of water" to go out of Punjab. "The Akali government led by Parkash Singh Badal failed to protect the state's rights in the SYL case but I will fight on it till my last breath.

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A complaint of loot of Rs 5 lakh turned out to be fake with police arresting four including the complainant-- an assistant manager of a private bank here.

Haryana Police today said it has solved the case of loot of Rs 5 lakh from near village Sinhpura in Kurukshetra district and arrested four persons, including an Assistant Manager of a private bank who happened to be the alleged gang leader.

They committed the alleged crime when currency notes were being taken from one branch of the private bank to another, police said.

As per the complaint, three motorcycle-borne youths had looted Rs 5 lakhs in new currency notes from the employees of a private bank on December 22.

A spokesman for the Police Department today said accused included Assistant Manager of Dharala village branch of HDFC Bank; Ravinder Kumar, from Kirmach village; bank security guard, Paramjit Singh; Avtar Singh, a resident of village Kaulapur; and Rajdeep, who was arrested from Kaahangarh village.

He said Ravinder Kumar had lodged a complaint that on December 22 the bank money was looted from him and security guard Paramjit Singh after throwing chilly powder in their eyes on Jhansa road near village Sinhupara.

A case was registered against three unidentified persons on the basis of this complaint.

However, on interrogation, Ravinder Kumar revealed that he himself had planned to loot the bank money to pay his debt of Rs 40,000 to Avtar Singh.

After a failed attempt on December 19, Ravinder Kumar and Paramjit Singh drove towards another branch of the bank along with the cash, in Ravinder's own car on December 22. As per the plan, Avtar Singh and Rajdeep threw chilly powder in their eyes and fled with the cash.

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Russia's shock over the military plane clash that killed 92 people became all the more acute when Yelizaveta Glinka, a renowned doctor and charity worker, was on the doomed flight's passenger list.

The diminutive 54-year-old woman, affectionately known as "Dr Liza", had boarded the same military flight to Syria as more than 60 members of the famed Red Army Choir, who were on their way to entertain troops stationed at the Hmeimim base Moscow uses to launch airstrikes in the war-scarred country.

But Glinka's objective was neither musical nor military. She was on a mission to deliver medication to a university hospital in the Syrian coastal city of Latakia.

Since yesterday's crash Muscovites have been laying flowers and candles in front of the headquarters of Fair Aid, the charity she founded in 2007 to care for the homeless, terminally-ill patients and abandoned pensioners in Russia which often offers little support to vulnerable social groups.

"She didn't live her life in vain because she did a lot of good," said 48-year-old Anna, weeping as she laid flowers on the organisation's doorstep in central Moscow.

Glinka's death sparked a national outpouring of grief that spanned the political spectrum, with the defence ministry, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and the opposition-friendly mayor of the Urals city of Yekaterinburg pledging to rename a medical facility in her honour.

But unlike the Red Army Choir, Glinka was not known internationally, humbly building her reputation as a selfless worker by assisting Russia's underprivileged.

After graduating from medical school in Moscow in 1986, Glinka and her husband Gleb emigrated to the United States where she studied palliative care.

She later returned to Russia and also lived for some time in neighbouring Ukraine, where she founded a hospice affiliated with a Kiev oncology clinic.

In Moscow she is mostly remembered for feeding, clothing and providing medical care to the homeless people who sleep in the Russian capital's sprawling train stations.

"Liza Glinka helped the people that everyone turned away," human rights activist and opposition journalist Zoya Svetova, who knew Glinka, told AFP.

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BJP today alleged that the issue of SARFAESI Act has been blown out of proportion by some leaders in Kashmir Valley to incite the people of the state.

"The issue of SARFAESI (Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest) Act has been blown out of proportion without any justification by some leaders in Kashmir Valley to incite the people," state BJP chief spokesperson Sunil Sethi said.

"Strangely they are joined by so called legal experts from the Valley who themselves have defended the SARFAESI Act and powers of Parliament to enact and extend it to Jammu and Kashmir while appearing in high court as counsel for parties," he claimed.

"The politics of opportunism has already done much damage to Kashmir Valley and the whole state, both economically and politically, even as vested elements are again trying to mislead the public for their gain," he alleged.

Sethi supported the Supreme Court's order which had said Jammu and Kashmir has "no vestige" of sovereignty outside the Indian Constitution and its own, while the citizens of the state are "first and foremost" citizens of India.

The apex court had said this while holding that provisions of the SARFAESI Act are within the legislative competence of Parliament and can be enforced in the state.

He said Jammu and Kashmir is just one of the states of the Union but it has the exception of being vested with more powers than other states because of the special status it enjoys under the Constitution of India.

Sethi said that Jammu and Kashmir is part of a sovereign country that is India and in no circumstances a part "can be equal to whole".

"The accession of the state to India was complete and non-negotiable. The Instrument of Accession signed by ruler of Jammu and Kashmir was the same as was signed by other rulers," he said.

Sethi said the remarks made by NC leader Omar Abdullah about weak legal defence of the case before the Supreme Court were childish and factually untrue.

"It was during his government that the state had taken a similar stand in high court. Omar is trying to play politics by making false statements," he claimed.

"The state can't argue against the obvious position of law and no court would have upheld legally the part of judgement of the high court," he said.

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Delhi deputy Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia today visited family members of a woman who was allegedly raped and murdered at Mandvi village in Bhavnagar district earlier this month and sought a CBI investigation.

Sisodia alleged the perpetrators of the crime are still roaming freely as they are under the protection of "people in power" in state.

"A woman was raped and murdered 25 days ago in the village and the accused persons are still roaming free. Police arrested only one person though a group of men had committed the crime," Sisodia, who was on a one-day visit to Gujarat, told reporters after the meeting.

Gariadhar police had arrested one Atulbhai Baria in connection with the alleged incident occurred on December 2.

The incident had led to protest by Patidar activists claiming that the victim belonged to their community.

"The accused belonged to a certain section of people who have got political protection. I have come here to send out a message to the villagers that they are not alone, there are people in Delhi who care about them and will fight to bring justice to them. It's a matter of shame that those in power at Centre and state are not able to protect villagers," he said.

Sisodia said AAP wanted a CBI probe into the incident as the "villagers have no faith in the police or state agencies."



Patidar agitators, led by Sardar Patel Group (SPG), had claimed the incident occurred when the middle-aged woman was waylaid and raped by a group of men when she was walking towards home after her husband's motorcycle broke down, and was murdered.

Meanwhile, Sisodia met protesters demanding access to a playground in Ahmedabad, which they claimed was encroached upon by a school run by a private group.

According to protesters, the playground belongs to Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority (AUDA) but the corporate school has restricted the entry of common people during certain hours in a day.

The AAP leader spoke to residents and expressed his solidarity with them over the issue.

"A school belonging to a prominent industrialist has encroached upon over 6,000 square metre land, and such encroachments are happening everywhere in urban areas with the help of politicians and bureaucrats. Despite notices served to the school four times in 2001, they have not quit," he said.

AAP Gujarat in-charge and party MLA Gulab Singh Yadav and party leader Kanubhai Kalsaria accompanied Sisodia.

Kalsaria said he would sit on a'dharna' (sit in protest) outside the ground until the authorities open the playground for general public.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Sudan has freed 20 political opponents detained since last month after they called for protests against rising fuel prices, their parties said today.

Sudanese Congress Party spokesman Mohamed Arabi said 16 members were freed yesterday, but added that "dozens of other figures including the head of the party and his deputy are still imprisoned."



Another opposition group, the Future Forces for Change, announced that four of its members had also been released.

Groups of protesters have staged rallies in Khartoum and some other cities since the authorities announced a 30 per cent hike in petrol and diesel prices in November that has led to a sharp rise in the cost of other goods, including medicines.

A previous round of fuel subsidy cuts in 2013 sparked serious unrest that was only suppressed by a deadly crackdown that drew international condemnation.

The government is determined to avoid any repetition of that kind of unrest and has rounded up several opposition leaders to prevent widespread protests.

On December 12, President Omar al-Bashir vowed to crush any new anti-regime protests as the authorities did three years ago.

Rights groups say about 200 lives were lost in clashes with security forces in the 2013 crackdown on street protests, while the government puts the death toll at less than 100.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Investigators probing the brutal murder of a 23-year-old woman IT professional in Talawade near here today questioned a youth in Bengaluru, after her parents expressed suspicion that he could have been stalking her.

"Our team called the youth for questioning in Bengaluru in connection with the probe. He is cooperating," a police officer, attached to the local crime branch, said here.

Antara Das was attacked with a sharp weapon near Kanbay Chowk in Talawade on the outskirts of the city on Friday, barely 500 metres from her workplace.

The murder of the techie, who hailed from Bengal, had sent shockwaves across the city and among IT employees.

Das' parents suspect the youth, who was with her during her training in Bengaluru, may have been stalking her.

Police are investigating various angles, including an affair or unrequited love, and analysing the call details of Das, the officer said.

Another police team today combed the area near the spot of the crime.

"The area alongside the road, where the assailant was said to have escaped after the incident, has large number of trees and bushes and a search has been launched to look for any clue," said another police officer.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A prison riot erupted today in South Africa when inmates clashed with guards at a jail outside Port Elizabeth, leaving three people dead and 26 others injured, officials said.

A helicopter, ambulances and other emergency vehicles rushed to the scene as guards struggled to impose order at St Albans prison, which was also hit by a deadly riot in 2013.

Officials declined to say whether the three fatalities were prisoners or guards, but added that investigations were under way and Justice Minister Michael Masutha would visit the prison on Tuesday.

"There was a clash between prison officials and inmates resulting in the deaths of three people and 26 others injured," Correctional Services spokesman Logan Maistry told AFP.

"We cannot say how many are prisoners and how many are officials. We are concerned at seeing that the injured receive medical attention and that the situation returns to normal."



Ten of the injured were in a serious condition in hospital.

Maistry said that special security measures are put in place each year over the holiday period to tackle any protests or unrest in prisons.

Local media reported that the prison was put on lockdown, with many visitors turned away when they arrived to see relatives.

The prison in Eastern Cape province has a history of attacks by inmates on wardens.

"It is not the first time that violent events have occurred at this prison and we cannot allow such incidents to go unaccounted for," said the Democratic Alliance opposition party, calling for a full inquiry.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Three persons have been arrested in connection with the bank cash van heist in national capital in which Rs 10 lakh was stolen in Pandav Nagar area of east Delhi, police said today.

The meticulously planned heist was carried out on December 19 by three men while the employees of Brinks Securities were supplying cash in ATMs of trans-Yamuna area.

When the cash van reached the SBI ATM for depositing cash around 2 PM, the custodians of the cash were attacked by two armed criminals.

The criminals fired two gun shots and robbed Rs 10 lakh cash kept in a suitcase after overpowering the gunman.

"Earlier, we were informed that the cash amount stolen was Rs 5 lakh but later we were informed that the stolen amount is Rs 10 lakh," said DCP(East Omvir Singh.

During investigation, the teams probing the incident tried to get information about gangs operating with similar modus operandi.

The cash van had started from Janakpuri in west Delhi and had then come to East Delhi to replenish the ATMs.

CCTV footages from market areas of east and west districts were collected to determine from where the accused had started tailing the van, the officer said.

"A secret information was received by the police team that the accused would be coming near Cross River Mall on December 25. A raid was conducted and the three accused persons, identified as Bittoo, Sunny and Rohit were apprehended in an Accent Car yesterday afternoon," said the officer.

The accused had gone to Haridwar after committing the robbery and had returned to the area to see what was happening.

"Out of the robbed amount of Rs 10 lakh, Rs 9.48 lakh was recovered. One improvised pistol, a desi katta and a Pulsar bike that was stolen from the area of Kashmere Gate and was used in the commission of the robbery was also recovered," said Singh.

The accused only spent Rs 52,000 from thr robbed amount as they didn't want to draw suspicion and had even changed their mobile numbers so that they couldn't be traced, he said.

Sunny, who works as a cab driver, told police that after demonetisation, he had seen several cash vans which supply the cash to different ATMs, in the area of Karawal Nagar and other parts of northeast Delhi.

"He observed that there were usually four-five staff



members in the cash van, at the time of depositing the money in the ATM. He conceived the idea to loot the cash van and discussed it with his friend Rohit and Rohit's friend Bittoo who is working as a driver with a BSES official near V3S Mall, Preet Vihar," said Singh.

Bittoo asked Sunny and Rohit to do a recce of the area near V3S Mall Preet Vihar as there are several ATMs in close proximity.

They had even attempted the robbery a day before but couldn't carry it out.

They first stole a Pulsar bike and fixed a fake number plate at Bittoo's place and on December 19, they arranged weapons from a person, identified as Ravi, who lives in a rented accommodation in New Usmanpur area. They also got a pistol to use in the offence.

They came near Corporation Bank, Laxmideep Building behind V3S Mall and waited for any cash van.

"Around 12.30 PM, the cash van of Brinks Security, Janakpuri came and deposited money in the Corporation Bank ATM. Since there was a jam near the area, they did not commit the robbery there.

"From there they followed the cash van to Nirman Vihar where another ATM of Corporation Bank is located. There was a huge gathering of rickshaws and e-rickshaws and they decided against executing their plan," he said.

After this they followed the cash van to Shakarpur area where a SBI ATM is located. There was a long queue of people outside the ATM and they thought that they wouldn't be able to escape so they dropped the idea, added the officer.

When the cash van reached Pandav Nagar ATM, they saw that there was no crowd outside the ATM.

Bittoo remained in the driving seat while Sunny and Rohit with arms in their hands reached near cash van and fired rounds in air and committed the robbery.

They thought that the number plate might be flashed by police, so Bittoo dropped Sunny and Rohit and sent them with the suitcase containing cash in an auto.

"He left the motorcycle near Hassan Pur Depot and went to BSES Office near V3S Mall, so that no one could doubt on him. After keeping cash in their clothes, Sunny and Rohit threw the empty suitcase somewhere and took another auto to reach Vivek Vihar where they divided the robbed cash equally," he added.
Turkey today said it wanted international air support for its army's assault on the jihadist-held Syrian town of Al Bab where the military is facing tough resistance from Islamic State (IS) extremists.

Turkish forces have for weeks joined pro-Ankara Syrian rebels in fierce fighting for Al Bab, taking increasing casualties as they approach closer to the centre.

Turkey is part of the US-led coalition against IS jihadists in Syria and lets Western war planes use its Incirlik air base as a hub for air raids.

"As for our operations in Al Bab, the international coalition should assume its responsibilities, especially where air support is concerned," presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said in televised comments in Ankara.

"The weather conditions can sometimes entail delays," Kalin acknowledged. "But the absence of air support when there is no valid reason is unacceptable," he added.

The US and its allies have been conducting their own air strikes against IS targets in Syria but there have been no reports of them specifically aiding the Turkish operation.

Turkey at the weekend deployed more tanks and artillery to the border and also has sent 500 elite commandos to Al Bab in readiness for a final fight for the town, reports said.

A Britain-based monitoring group has accused Turkey of killing 88 civilians in air strikes on Al-Bab. However the army has unequivocally denied such claims.

Thirty-six Turkish soldiers have died so far in the operation inside Syria -- dubbed Euphrates Shield -- since it was launched on August 24.

Islamic State jihadists last week circulated a video purportedly showing two Turkish soldiers captured by the extremists in Syria being burned alive.

The authenticity of the video cannot be confirmed and Turkey's leadership has made no mention of the images.

Turkey's Defence Minister Fikri Isik has said three Turkish soldiers are being held by IS, without giving further detail. The issue was evoked at Kalin's televised conference but the spokesman did not give any comment.

Users in Turkey had reported severe problems with social media after the video emerged. However by Monday access to Twitter was fully restored after three days of disruption.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two police officials were injured today when a gas cylinder exploded inside a family quarter at a police station in Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir.

"Leakage of gas caused an explosion of the gas cylinder inside the family quarters of police station Kupwara, resulting in injuries to two constables," a police official said here.

He said the injured constables were rushed to hospital where doctors referred one of them to Srinagar.

The building also suffered some damage due to the explosion, the official said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The White House orchestrated a "gang-up" against Israel on last week's UN settlement vote, its ambassador to Washington said today, in the latest sign of anger between the longtime allies.

Israel's ambassador Rob Dermer said in an interview with CNN that his government plans to show evidence of the alleged US maneuvering in due time.

"What is outrageous is that the United States was actually behind that gang-up. I think it was a very sad day, really a shameful chapter," the Israeli diplomat told CNN.

"We have clear evidence of it. We will present that evidence to the new administration through the appropriate channels. And if they want to share it with the US people they're welcome to do it," Dermer said, adding that the Israeli government is "deeply disappointed" with Washington over the UN vote.

On Friday, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding that "Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem."



The United States -- which has a veto --refrained from casting its vote, enabling the adoption of the measure, the first resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

Dermer accused the Obama administration of helping Palestinians "wage a diplomatic and legal war against Israel."



They do not want to negotiate peace with us, which is why they've avoided negotiations for eight years," he said.

"What do the Palestinians want? What they want is to blame Israel for the lack of peace and to internationalise the conflict," Dermer continued.

"What this resolution just did is it gave the Palestinians ammunition in their diplomatic and legal war against Israel. And the US not only didn't stop it, they were behind it."



Obama's soon-to-be successor, president-elect Donald Trump, who has campaigned on a promise to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, slammed the position taken by the White House.

Trump, who last week said Washington should have used its veto to block the resolution, has chosen as ambassador to Israel the hardliner David Friedman, who has said Washington will not pressure Israel to curtail settlement building in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu summoned US Ambassador Daniel Shapiro yesterday to express his displeasure.

An official Israeli source confirmed only that Netanyahu and Shapiro had met, without elaborating on the content nor outcome of their discussions.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Four persons have been arrested in connection with the alleged gangrape of a US national in a five-star hotel here earlier this year.

The four accused arrested include the tour guide, driver, cleaner and a hotel staff, said a senior police officer.

The officer, however, refused to reveal the names of the arrested persons as police will be conduct an test identification parade.

The US national arrived here a few days ago to join the probe and recorded her statement in front of a judicial magistrate where she reiterated the charges she had made in her complaint.

Earlier, she had said that she was not "satisfied" with the probe and was ready to come to India to identify the accused.

On December 8, the tourist guide, accused of raping the woman, along with his accomplices, was questioned by police after his arrival from Nepal.

Police had identified the man and had contacted him while he was in Nepal.

The tour guide had denied his "involvement" in the matter and told police that the victim had given him a "positive feedback" in the forms.

The woman had alleged that she was raped by the men for two days. They also threatened her with dire consequences if she reported the matter to anybody.

She had also stated that the accused had made a video of the act and had threatened to make it public if she reported the matter to anyone.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
TMC President G K Vasan today demanded a probe into alleged illegal conversion of scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes in cooperative banks in Tamil Nadu.

Referring to the Income Tax department's inspection of Central District Cooperative Banks, he said this had come as a shock to the people and the matter should be inquired by a committee of officials.

Talking to reporters here, he said the Centre's demonetisation had affected the small and tiny businesses badly.

He also demanded that the Centre take steps to secure the release of fishermen and their boats now in Sri Lankan custody.

Vasan wanted the state to be declared drought-hit and Rs 10 lakh compensation to the families of farmers who allegedly ended their lives over crop failure.

On Common Civil Code, he said the Musim community had reservations over this and the Centre should respect their sentiments.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Pakistan's former President Asif Ali Zardari is expected to announce a grand alliance of opposition parties tomorrow when he addresses a rally to commemorate the death anniversary of his wife, slain prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

Asked about media reports that he was working towards forming a grand alliance against the Nawaz Sharif government, Zardari today told reporters here that he will reveal his further course of action on December 27.

The former president and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Co-Chairperson, who returned to Pakistan on Friday after 18-months in exile in Dubai and London, met with Pakistan Muslim League-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain yesterday, setting tongues rolling about a possible alliance against the government.

Zardari indicated that a situation could develop for early elections, with Lahore the hub of any changes.

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has already called on the government to accept four demands of the party or face a grand movement.

Hussain, a former prime minister, said democracy was in danger under Sharif's leadership and a grand alliance of opposition parties was the need of the hour to save democracy.

"We will not let democracy be hijacked," he said.

Sources said Hussain and Zardari have discussed the common points on which opposition parties can unite against the government.

Zardari has reportedly talked about reviving the PPP in Punjab, Pakistan's largest province and presently a stronghold of the ruling PML-N party.

Zardari, who is slated to return to Dubai this week, is also being put under pressure by the establishment as on the day of his arrival, the paramilitary rangers carried out raids at the offices and residence of his close ally and friend Anwar Majeed who has now been charged in absentia for corruption and under anti-terrorism laws.

In October 2007, a deadly attack on the motorcade and procession of former prime minister Bhutto, who had returned home from a self-imposed exile after nine years, had killed around 160 PPP activists.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Tech firm ZOPO today said it has appointed Sandeep Tomar as the company's new National Business Manager.

In his new role, Tomar will assume the responsibility of managing strategic planning, sales and distribution, business development, channel and team Management at Zopo India.

"With best-of-breed products under its portfolio and an online collaboration with Alibaba, Zopo aims to acquire 8.5% of international smartphone market share over the next 6 months, and cover PAN India," Tomar said.

Tomar is a MBA, Marketing from U P Technical University, Lucknow and had started his career with Nestle India.

****



NowFloats makes two senior level appointments



Tech firm NowFloats today announced the appointment of Rajeev Goyal as the Vice President of Growth & Strategic Projects, and Mukesh Lohar as the Business Head for India and Asia Emerging Markets.

Goyal will assume the responsibility of growing the discovery platform's business through the use of empirical and scalable methodology and will be also be leading the company's 'Digital Desh' drive.

Prior to joining NowFloats, Goyal was the Group Vice President for Operations, Strategy and Go-To-Market for Askme.

Lohar would be chiefly responsible for creating and managing business streams for NowFloats.

NowFloats extensively uses artificial intelligence, machine learning & big data analysis to help clients update their business website and also enables them to optimise their website for localised discovery by potential consumers.

* * * * * * *



AkzoNobel launches coatings production plant in Noida



Paints and coatings maker AkzoNobel today inaugurated its specialty coatings production facility and colour laboratory in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.

With an investment of Rs three crore in the first phase, the facility would service its customers in the consumer electronics, automobile and cosmetic industries, the company said in a statement.

The new site will manufacture 600 kl of coatings annually and its second phase is likely to be completed by the end of 2016, with scope for further expansion, it added.

"This facility will enable us to further strengthen our position as a leading producer while supporting the supply network. Additionally, this market shows signs of a high demand for consumer durables and electronics," AkzoNobel Managing Director, Specialty Coatings Alberto Slikta said



AkzoNobel is a leading producer of innovative solutions for the consumer electronics and automotive sectors.

AkzoNobel India currently operates six manufacturing sites and two research centres.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and finance minister Arun Jaitley will get views on the Budget for 2017-18, job creation through skill development and other issues at a meeting with experts on Tuesday.
In a bid to calm frayed nerves of stock market players, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday clarified the government has no intention to impose a tax on long-term capital gains from trading in shares. He went on to blame some sections of the media for misinterpreting Prime Minister Narendra Modis speech in Mumbai on Saturday.
October brought with it the encouraging news that the Modi government is planning a major overhaul of the country's drug policy. The overhaul, if we go by media reports, will include some very positive steps like reducing the number of drugs under price control, doing away with the practice of periodic renewal of manufacturing licenses, and encouraging medical and drug research in the country. This initiative is being backed by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), with two intents: help India emerge as a major hub both for manufacturing pharmaceuticals as well as innovation in medical research, and thereby stop further loss of pharma business to other countries, including China. Of course, this will also help address the twin healthcare challenges of affordability and access.

This is good news. In fact, Niti Aayog's view that the price control regime needs to be reviewed, as it is impacting investments negatively in the sector, is very encouraging. Their idea of evaluating negotiated price as a solution is definitely more sensible than fixed capping. That Niti Aayog is taking up this position, and the fact that it is receiving support from the PMO holds promise of interesting times ahead for the drugs industry.

What it should mean for the medical device sector

The medical device sector needs similar help and initiatives too, and soon. My experience tells me that the medical technology industry in India is standing at a crucial juncture and needs positive action quickly.

Innovation and manufacturing in India have both been adversely impacted due to the lack of predictable and fair policies from the government. With such policies, coupled with low market demand, any talk of capping prices for devices such as stents only adds fuel to fire. In this context, the recent initiative by Niti Aayog to overhaul the policy framework shows promise.

There is a need to therefore examine and come up with reasonable and forward-looking solutions. The government is also giving indications that it is keen to implement policies that enable more timely licensing of safe and effective products, and to review the medical product research approval process to make it more transparent and viable. These steps will definitely encourage investment.

All this offers hope to the pharma and med tech industry, which had begun despairing lately. A good beginning seems to have been made and now let us all build on that across both sectors.

Long coming

It is heartening to see that the government of India has identified the medical devices industry as a sunshine sector for the "Make in India" initiative and in doing so, has triggered a national discussion on what it takes to drive innovation and attract investment in this industry. But more needs to be done. Med tech sector can make huge contributions in terms of economic growth, job creation and enhanced innovation in a more conducive environment. In fact, my long stint in the sector has taught me that the medical device sector can deliver significant answers to the growing healthcare needs of India. India is one of the top twenty markets for medical devices in the world and growing at a fast pace. According to a white paper published by Deloitte in March 2016, the medical device industry in India grew at a rate of 10 per cent from 2008 to 2014, and is expected to reach $8.6 billion by 2020 at an organic growth rate of 15 per cent per annum. The Deloitte report further states that with an enabling policy framework and ecosystem support, industry estimates indicate a potential to grow at ~28 per cent p.a. to $50 billion by 2025. This makes it all the more imperative for us to open up the policies and rules to pave the way for India to become a global destination for life sciences in coming years.

Let innovation lead the way

The role of new and innovative medical devices in advancing patient care and treatment has been long established. Unfortunately, lack of a stable, predictable and globally harmonized regulatory system, inclination towards protectionism, arbitrary price controls that do not value innovation, and a lack of positive incentives for manufacturers including a dearth of tax incentives for manufacturing, are all dragging down innovation and manufacturing in our country.

I strongly believe that innovation is a key to this industry's growth and success. Globally, governments regularly champion innovation in medical technology and it's time we too moved towards that. We need to embrace innovation and support it by fair regulation. More than anything, we need the right kind of regulations that are appropriate for medical devices, reasonable and not overly burdensome. In my opinion, government must work with industry and other stakeholders in the healthcare delivery system (hospitals, distributors), to come up with the price regulation regime that takes the value of a product into consideration.

After all, our two main aims should be to increase affordability and improve accessibility of good quality healthcare for all. For this, the government needs evaluate its policies carefully and to encourage the medical devices sector, rather than alienate it. This is the only way the end user, the patient, will benefit.

The author is former Managing Director and VP, Medtronic India
Documented legal proceedings in the Thai media between the developer of the Phuket Airpark and an investor has cast a shroud of uncertainty over the residential-led project.

In what had been a unique property inspired product, an airpark for private planes on the island's east coast and house plots has encountered financial and now what appears to be larger issues.

With the apparent inability of the developer to fund the project to completion, plots sold to investors and new litigation, there is no telling what lays in the future for the Phuket Airpark.

In the meantime anxious Bangkok listed property developers and scouring the middle of the island and inner areas of the east coast for large land parcels in order to bank for future domestic residential projects.
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One of the three boys was brought to shore and later died in hospital while the bodies of the other two were not found for days. Police diver Constable George Harris was also swept over the weir and it is understood he suffered from immersion, bruising and shock.
The move is the first disposal in recent times by the acquisitive Altice group, which in the past two years has bought French mobile operator SFR; Cablevision, now called Optimum, and Suddenlink in the US; Portugal Telecom; and Oranges Dominican Republic business.

No reason has been given for the deal, which some see as indicating that Altice wants to focus on its larger operations.

The business it is selling is called Coditel Brabant, but it also uses the SFR BeLux brand. Liberty Global is buying the operation, subject to regulatory approval, via its majority-owned Telenet subsidiary in Belgium.

John Porter, Telenet CEO, said: We are very pleased with the acquisition of SFR BeLux as it would enable Telenet to extend its geographical footprint and offer approximately 90,000 customers in Belgium and 15,000 customers in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg the high-quality services for which our company has already won acclaim.

Telenet specialises in the supply of broadband internet, fixed and mobile telephone services and cable television to customers throughout Flanders and Brussels. In 2015it agreed to buy Base, the Belgian mobile operator, from KPN for 1.325 billion. That deal was completed in February 2016.

Telenet said that the acquisition means it will extend its cable footprint beyond the current Flemish and Brussels coverage areas to parts of Wallonia and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, while covering roughly two-thirds of the Brussels footprint post this acquisition.

Following the Base acquisition that was concluded in the beginning of the year, we have entered a new phase of growth and this acquisition is a next, very important step in this strategy, said Porter. Our ambition is to have the best networks  fixed and mobile  and the best services  landline and mobile telephony, high-speed internet, digital TV  in Belgium. We are also very delighted to be able to launch our great services in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg on our own network.

Telenet said it intends to finance the acquisition through a combination of existing cash and cash equivalents and available liquidity under its revolving credit facilities. It plans to invest 12 million in 2017-18 on the newly acquired networks beyond the current capex plans.

Liberty Global owns a number of operations across Europe, including Virgin Media in the UK and Ireland, and Cable & Wireless Communications in central America and the Caribbean.
TKSAT-1 was launched in December 2013 and went in to operation the following April. According to the director of the Bolivian Space Agency (ABE) Ivan Zambrana, it is currently operating at 70% capacity.

Speaking to EFE, Zambrana said: We think that in another year we'll be above 80 or 85 percent, which is almost the commercial physical limit for a satellite ... But we haven't stopped meeting the objectives that led us to launch it, which is for all Bolivians to have communications services.

"That makes us think that we need a second satellite. And that second satellite, which is also going to be paid for within its operating life, is a highly viable project. With that criterion, we've started working on that project,"

The second satellite will launch in 2020 or 2021, and will be called TKSAT-2, although Zambrana said he expected it to cost less than the $300 million spent on TKSAT-1.

During its first year, TKSAT-1 produced an income of $7 million, although this figure topped $25 million in 2016.
Millennial Moms Review: 2022 Acura MDX is pretty close to the perfect family car

I dont know if perfect is attainable, especially considering weve got the world of options when it comes to modern vehicles. Were spoiled and, as such, we have very specific needs and wants. Driving-wise, the 2022 Acura MDX is one of my favourite ...
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"If we encounter a man of rare intellect, we should ask him what books he reads." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) conducts the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) and the Indian School Certificate (ISC) examinations for Class X and Class XII respectively.

On 23rd November 2016 a new curriculum was released by CISCE for Preschool to Grade 8 students with the mission to incorporate "all elements of academic interests that cater to the challenging requirements of present day educational needs" writes Mr. Gerry Arathoon, Chief Executive & Secretary.

The new curriculum strives to "prepare the future generation of learners to meet the challenges of an ever advancing knowledge-based society and a dynamically changing environment."

The goal is provide children with a holistic education and theappropriate attitude, tools and knowledge base to become global citizens.

One of the best ways to steer children towards this path to success is to read, read and read!

Galileo saw reading as a way of having superhuman powers. Joseph Addison believed "Reading is to the mind, what exercise is to the body,"and James Baldwin discovered in books a way to change one's destiny.

Reading forms a fundamental part of every one's progress.

The updated CISCE curriculum has provided ICSE/ISC schools with a wide range of age appropriate books written by authors across genre, time and geography. A sample of the books included in the reading list are:

Mythology: The Ramayana/ Mahabharata - C. Rajagopalachari, Amar Chitra Katha

Comics: Tin Tin Series/ Asterix Series

Auto/biographies: Mahatma Gandhi, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, Jawaharlal Nehru,Nelson Mandela, MalalaYousafzai

Poems: Rabindranath Tagore, A.A. Milne

Mystery:Agatha Christie

Adventure: Treasure Island - RL Stevenson

Fantasy: Harry Potter Books by J.K. Rowling, The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien,Peter and Wendy (Peter Pan) - J. M. Barrie

Short Stories; Malgudi Days - R.K. Narayan, The Blue Umbrella, Ruskin Bond

Children's Classics: Books by Roald Dahl (James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the ChocolateFactory etc.), Little Women - Louisa M. Alcott (Abridged), Charlotte's Web - E.B. White, Black Beauty - Anna Sewell

So how does a broader range of books that includes some of the most popular reads of our time expand our children's mind and inculcate good reading habits?

Expands knowledge base

Books are the window to the world. An expansive reading list exposes children to different characters and lifestyles across the globe. For example, reading about I Am Malala fosters their understanding of another culture and strife's in other parts of the world.

Biographies can bring to light the humble beginnings of great leaders and the struggles they overcame through strategy or sheer persistence. Students will truly build a strong knowledge base in an extensive range of topics which they can incorporate into their essays, presentations, interviews and much more!

Builds vocabulary and communication skills

Reading is learning. If a child consistently reads science fiction, their vocabulary is also limited to this genre. However, by reading across numerous mediums you discover new words and meanings, including some current lingo and phrases! This prepares students for every phase of their life from academics to professional, as a strong communicator is always valued.

Encourages love for reading

No longer do students have to hide that Horrid Henry book or Asterix magazine. Instead their thoughts and insights are encouraged and discussed in the classroom. By incorporating into the curriculum books that a large part of the class is enjoying, schools will open doors to students exploring other interests. One Tin Tin fan may suggest to fellow mates how much they enjoyed the classic David Copperfield whereas another Harry Potter fan may also recommend Lord of the Rings to the grade.

Additionally, books have the ability to stimulate a child's imagination, foster creativity, introduce them to role models, enhance concentration, develop logical thinking and so much more.

"No two persons ever read the same book." - Edmund Wilson

Every child is different, as one devours current affair and debates about the current state of the economy; another is imaging how to build a spaceship that will travel across the galaxy. A book about a little girl working her way through adolescence or another about a boy losing his first tooth can have a profound impact on a child's growth and future. However, none of these stories may have found the right reader if the curriculum did not allow students to explore a broad range of topics.

Books truly have the power to transform a child's life. By incorporating some of the most popular books of not only our time, but across time, the CISCE has opened the hearts and minds of ICSE/ISC students across India.

About ReachIvy:

ReachIvy is a premium education and careers advisory. Avail of our expertise across - Study Abroad, Career Guidance and Free Resources. Their study abroad consultants and career guidance coaches help aspiring students get accepted into Ivy League and other top ranked schools globally, and reach their career aspirations through personal mentoring, online services and a wealth of knowledge accumulated over years of experience. For further information, visit www.reachivy.com

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After students at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur staged a massive protest that included hunger strike and gheraoing the director inside the campus premises, the management had succumbed to the demands of the students and have proposed to reduce the fee hike.

The hike in registration fees for MTech and PhD scholars would be reduced by half following unprecedented protests at the institute for over a week.

Director Partha Pratim Chakrabarti and several officials were held in hostage for 17 hours by over 300 research scholars. The officials had ghearoed the administrative building on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The revision was recommended by a committee of three deans from students affairs, UG and PG who that met on Friday to discuss the hike in overhead charges.

They recommended a revision in both hall establishment charge and mess advance. Instead of a 84% hike in hall establishment charge from Rs 8,250 per semester to Rs 15,200, the panel suggested a hike to Rs 12,500. At the same time, it a reduction in mess advance from Rs 13,500 to Rs 12,000 was also proposed.

Earlier, there was news doing rounds that a 20 per cent hike in hostel fees at IIT Kharagpur even before the GST comes into place. Fearing financial burden, the students had resorted to strike. They said that they were going to gherao the authorities till the fee hike decision was withdrawn.

IIT Kharagpur Students Go on Hunger Strike After a Fee Hike News

However, the authorities refused to speak to the media and have not taken any action on the issue so far. The main gates were made to close and the staff were forbidden from entering into the campus after that.

"At the time of the admission, we were not informed of any hostel fees hike. This sudden hike comes in the middle of the semester. The PhD scholars receive a small sum as stipend. From the stipend, the scholar has to send some amount at home and rest is given as hostel fees and food expenses. Without any increase in the stipend, it is difficult for the scholar to manage the hostel fees hike," said a student.

IIT to Hold Inter-IIT Tech Meet Annually
The tentative dates for the National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (NEET) 2017 undergraduate courses has been released. The NEET UG 2017 examination is likely to be held on May 7, 2017. across the nation at various centres.

The examination is held for admissions into MBBS/BDS courses in medical and dental colleges across the country.

The official notification about the same are yet to be released. According to Indiatoday, the last date of registration process is likely to be out by January 23, 2017.

Recently, the Union Ministry of Health announced that the NEET 2017 examination will be held in 8 regionl languages for the academic session 2017-18. The languages are Hindi, English, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, Tamil and Telugu.

Top Medical Colleges in India & Top Dental Colleges in India

Last year, NEET conducted by CBSE was made as a single entrance test mandatory for admissions into medical colleges. According to the Union Health Ministry, the candidates qualifying NEET will be eligible for all India quota and other quotas under the State governments and institutes irrespective of the medium taken by candidates, subject to other eligibility criteria.

NEET has replaced AIPMT and has been made mandatory for admissions in all-India medical/dental colleges which means no other state can conduct its separate medical entrance.

In another development, the government of Kerala has decided not to conduct separte entrance test by the state for admissions into medical and other professional courses except engineering. Thereafter, NEET scores will be considered for admissions into to all medical agricultural, AYUSH, veterinary science programmes.
In the aftermath of the vehicular attack on the Christmas market last week, authorities in Berlin have been taking steps to secure the site against any future such incidents. And theyve turned to Formula E for help.



For the Berlin ePrix this past May 21, organizers erected concrete barriers along the route through the German capital. With the next race scheduled to take place on June 10, 2017, and the barricades evidently sitting in a warehouse, theyve put them to good use.

We are directly in touch with the police department to assist with the organisation and handling of the barriers to various areas around Berlin, said Ulrich Weingartner of event organizers Gil und Weingartner. Formula E is working with us to provide the concrete barriers from storage free of charge to help protect the Christmas markets.

The hindsighted measure may be the very embodiment of closing the stable door after the horse has bolted, but the barriers may also be deployed for New Years Eve celebrations at the citys iconic Brandenburg Gate. If it provides some extra feeling of safety over the holidays for a city shocked by such a horrific event, were all for it.

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Castanet is counting down the top stories of 2016. We'll count down the top 10 to Dec. 31 and feature our newsmaker of the year on Jan. 1.

Today is No. 6  a bitter battle and a close vote as West Kelowna weighed in on a new city hall.

More division within the City of West Kelowna.

This time, over construction of a new city hall as part of a larger civic complex on Elliott Road.

Two attempts to get voter assent for approval of a borrowing bylaw to build the facility were shot down.

First, an Alternative Approval Process vote failed, as to did the ensuring city-side referendum.

The city had hoped to borrow the necessary funds to build a new city hall to replace the overcrowded, and inadequate city hall in the former Mount Boucherie Community Centre.

First, it was the AAP, which asks residents opposed to a borrowing initiative to sign a form stating they are against borrowing the funds. In this case, it was $10.5 million.

A vigorous no campaign, led by spokesman Ian Graham mobilized to defeat the request.

"There are a lot of questions and there are some answers, but not all of the answers make a lot of sense," said Graham about the Elliott Road city hall and civic centre.

"I believe they will need a city hall. I'm not sure if they will need it in 2016 ... They think they need it just now. I'm not sure they have proven it just yet, but the way they are doing it just now, we are not going to get much proof."

The borrowing bylaw was shot down with far more than the required 10 per cent opposed.

Rather than scrap the idea altogether, the city, after much debate, went to a full city-wide referendum.

City council also changed the way the project would be financed, asking for just $7.7 million in borrowing.

As the referendum campaign got rolling, a water quality advisory for users within the Lakeview Water System was issued, turning the campaign into a battle over clean water versus a city hall.

The city stated there was no correlation between a new water system and a new city hall.

The no side was not buying the argument.

The public sided with the no side, shooting down the referendum by a narrow 27 votes.

A recount was debated, but never requested.

Council is expected to look at other options in the new year.

In the meantime, money will be spent to upgrade the current Mount Boucherie site.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Somewhere on the North Atlantic, there's a small fleet of merchant ships headed for the port of Halifax, with crews that have spent Christmas Day at sea, far from their families.

Rev. Maggie Whittingham-Lamont knows all too well how those crew members are feeling.

"Quite often, morale is very low aboard ships at Christmas," says the co-ordinator of Mission to Seafarers in Halifax, which is in an old house that sits at the edge of the harbour, amid towering grain elevators, railway tracks and cargo cranes.

"It's such a poignant time, missing your family. And if you're on a ship without the Internet, you can't communicate. It's a difficult time."

For more than 20 years, she has led a campaign aimed at bringing seasonal cheer to these hard-working men and women, whose jobs keep them away from their homes for months at a time.

Every December and into mid-January, the energetic pastor and her small band of volunteers  she calls them her "elves"  offer the captain of each visiting commercial ship a special gift for every crew member, regardless of their religion.

The gifts are colourfully wrapped shoeboxes, each containing carefully chosen "items of comfort," such as toiletries and cold-weather apparel.

This year, the mission plans to distribute more than 1,500 boxes  many of them handed out by the captains on Christmas Day. But hundreds of others will be delivered well into next month to ensure those still at sea are not left out.

"The guys are so happy when they see you arrive with the shoeboxes," says Whittingham-Lamont, a former nurse whose broad smile never seems to leave her face. "They're so thankful ... By letting them know that somebody, who they will likely never meet, cares enough to give a gift  well, it's wonderful when I go on-board."

The shoeboxes all contain the same items: a tuque, scarf, gloves or mittens, socks, wrapped hard candy, soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, shampoo, shaving foam, razors, deodorant, lip balm, playing cards and a small memento of Canada  typically a postcard, key ring or lapel pins.

Matthew Hughson, a heritage interpreter at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in Halifax, says the tradition of giving mariners gift-laden shoeboxes started in the 1900s. Shoeboxes continue to be the container of choice because they are easy to carry and easy to inspect.

"A lot of the crew members are not well equipped for our cold weather," says Hughson, who helped put together 85 boxes at the museum. "Some would say (the contents) are kind of boring. But if you're at sea ... that shoebox can go a long way toward making life a little better on the ship."
Photo: The Canadian Press Former Alberta Conservative MP Jason Kenney

Albertas conservative political parties, two stubborn rams of provincial politics for almost a decade now, appear poised to lock horns once again in 2017.

An entirely new entity may emerge once the dust settles.

Albertas Progressive Conservatives, who will pick a new leader March 18, are roiled in debate in over whether they should try to merge with the Wildrose party.

The Wildrosers, in turn, have exposed faultlines of their own over whether to join forces with their former blood enemy or continue to capitalize on their Lazarus-like return to political relevance.

"I believe that if we continue on the path that we are as Wildrose that we're going to be stronger and more ready to battle the NDP than ever before," Wildrose Leader Brian Jean said in a year-end interview.

"We have seen a record number of sales of memberships and record number of people coming out to our rallies and our discussions over the past six months. Theyve seen us rise from the ashes like a phoenix and come back and be reborn into a much better party, a party that truly reflects Albertans."

Two years ago, the Tories appeared to have delivered a pre-Christmas coup de grace to end once and for all the schism of Albertas right that opened under former PC premier Ed Stelmach.

Led by Danielle Smith, most of the Wildrose caucus crossed the floor to join then PC premier Jim Prentice, gutting Albertas Official Opposition and enraging voters.

Two years and one election later, the roles are basically reversed. The PCs were decimated in the 2015 election, reduced to third-party status while the Wildrosers under Jean bounced back and now sit with 22 members to remain Official Opposition.

The PCs are now running a race to replace Prentice as permanent leader. But the narrative of the contest has been dominated by one candidate  former Conservative MP Jason Kenney  and his promise that, if he wins, he will push the rank and file to merge with the Wildrose and form a new party, perhaps the Conservative Party of Alberta.

Kenney says vote splitting on the right allowed Premier Rachel Notley's NDP to come up the middle and win a majority government in 2015, something he says can't be allowed to re-occur.
Photo: Contributed

After years of watching A Christmas Carol, I never realized we have become a society of Scrooges.

We all spend our lives striving for better jobs, bigger houses, and nicer toys, so we can live the fantasy life that we all imagine (just like Scrooge).

We are so obsessed with wealth and obtaining more stuff that we have become blind to everything (and everyone) else that does not serve that purpose (sound familiar?).

We treat the elderly like a nuisance, the homeless like an eyesore, and the sick and needy like a drain on our time and taxes.

As a whole, we are selfish and self-indulgent and we mostly only care for how we can improve our lives and those closest to us.

We have all become our own versions of Scrooge.

The charitable minority

Of course, just like in the story there are those of us who have chosen to ignore societies commercial persuasions and lead more kind-hearted,generous lives.

These selfless individuals remind us that there are more important things in the world than making money and gaining success.

In the story though, it seems like Scrooge is the minority and the world is full of merry people who want to spread joy and cheer to others. In reality, it seems things are far closer to the opposite.

So the question then becomes, do we chose to be part of our miser society or do we strive for a life with more substance?

Avoiding ghosts

Instead of waiting around for three ghosts to torture me into repentance, I wanted to take this December to try to do something positive.

Rather than pinning away in my office working solely for my own personal gain, I focused on creating as much social gain as I could.

I volunteered, raised money, advocated for charities, and promoted the needs of those less fortunate. And here, at the end of the month, I realized an interesting thing happened.

Even though I was working less and giving more, I actually got far more value out of this month than any other.

The 10x value of social capital

By donating only the smallest amount of my time, I found was making a massive impact on those who needed it.

Whether it was scooping soup at the Gospel Mission or helping distribute hampers at the local Food Bank, I could tell I was making a profound difference in people's lives.

I got to know others who were striving to make a difference and I received a harsh education on the suffering in my city.

Even though my profits for the month didn't change, my personal value did. Not only did I feel really great about the time I had invested but I was more connected me to my community than I had ever been before.

A new social Scrooge

At the end of the Christmas Carol story, we see Scrooge turn over a new leaf and make his business about the business of mankind.

Although some might think that he gave away all his riches to make up for his mistakes, I would argue that Scrooge's business more likely became more profitable than ever before.

By focusing on social practices rather than scrupulous capitalism, Scrooge would have created a positive social platform that would have only served to gain him more business.

Such is the same in today's society. Even though my businesses didn't see any impact to its bottom line, I have gotten many positive comments and connections.

This is the business model of the future and I believe, the best way to avoid becoming the crotchety, old miser we all hate.

By building a business model of people. profit, and planet we can strike a balance between community and capitalism and hopefully avoid becoming a bah-humbug society.

To see the remainder of my Charity Challenge and videos, check out my blog at scalemylife.com.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.
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This Sept. 15, 2015 file photo shows marijuana plants with their buds covered in white crystals at a medical marijuana cultivation center in Albion, Ill. (Seth Perlman / Associated Press)

Even for a puppy, Kat Donatello's black Labrador, Austin, was hyperactive. After experimenting with natural supplements on her older dog, Donatello slipped a special biscuit to Austin. "It just kind of took the edge off of him," she recalled.

The treat contained Cannabidiol, better known as CBD, a chemical compound extracted from the marijuana plant.

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The CBD supplements were expensive, and options for pet treats were limited, Donatello said. "So I started spending my winters baking dog biscuits." She tinkered with the recipe before launching her CBD-laced biscuit company earlier this year.

Austin + Kat, along with Therabis and Treatibles, are among several Cannabidiol-for-dogs businesses that have popped up in the last two years, a time period during which CBD pet product sales nationwide doubled, according to data kept by cannabis industry analytics firm MJ Freeway. It's the newest trend in America's booming half-billion dollar animal supplements market, which is expected to grow by more than $150 million in the next four years.

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CBD is one of over 80 active cannabinoid chemicals in marijuana, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Unlike tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), CBD doesn't create a euphoric sensation. In other words, these biscuits won't get your dog high. But there is debate as to what effect the compound has on our furry friends and whether they should be consuming it at all.

Academic research about CBD's affect on animals is nearly nonexistent, and the Food and Drug Administration has not approved marijuana use in animals. Still, some veterinarians recommend its use, and producers say pet stores are beginning to carry CBD treats. Treatibles is in talks for its products to be sold at a big-box pet store, though an executive wouldn't reveal which one as the deal is pending.

A photo posted by Austin and Kat (@austinandkat) on Nov 18, 2016 at 3:13pm PST

Veterinarians views on the supplement vary. Asked about CBD's effectiveness on dogs, Robert Goggs of Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine said there is "virtually no evidence in the veterinary literature."

Veterinarians Robert Silver and Gary Richter recently hosted a course on the cannabis -dedicated learning website Green Flower titled the "Cannabis for Pets Masterclass." Contacted by phone, Richter acknowledged that scholarly literature is lacking.

"A lot of what we're using is extrapolated data from humans, as well as just real-world experience on what works," he explained. If it works for humans, he argued, it could work for dogs.

In lieu of research, the CBD-for-dogs industry cites supportive veterinarians and customer testimonials as evidence of the products' effectiveness. On the website for Treatibles, which makes edible hemp products for animals, an October interview with the owner of a mixed-breed pup named Shelby described how the dog, plagued with anxiety and fear, settled down after eating a Treatibles product.

Human studies have linked CBD to anti-seizure, anti-inflammatory, and anti-anxiety effects. In findings presented to the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control in June of last year, Nora D. Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, said CBD could potentially aid those suffering from Alzheimer's, stroke, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease. Despite the largely positive feedback in Volkow's presentation, she warned that additional research on CBD is necessary. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agrees and hopes to review further scientific studies on CBD.

CBD is often purchased online, which is technically a violation of federal law, according to DEA spokesman Russell Baer. "Extracts or derivatives from the cannabis plant are Schedule I controlled substances-just like the plant itself," Baer said in an e-mailed statement. "There is widespread illegal distribution of purported CBD products-regardless if they are derived from the marijuana plant or hemp plant," he added.

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At a time when the nation faces an opioid crisis, the DEA's attention is not on CBD, and sterilized cannabis seeds can be legally used in animal feed mixture. Asked about the legality of the business, Therabis called it a "complex situation." Austin + Kat's Donatello expressed frustration with the DEA's position in light of the federal Controlled Substances Act and her ability to buy CBD products at Walmart.com.

Silver, the vet and a consultant to Treatibles, said on behalf of the company that the law is murky and referenced the Farm Act, a 2014 document passed by Congress to reform agricultural programs. The act mentions industrial hemp research and defers to state laws on industrial hemp cultivation.

There's also the matter of ethics. Humans can express discomfort verbally when trying a new treatment. Man's best friend cannot.

"If the proper administration of marijuana can truly relieve dogs' pain, then they should be given the same consideration that humans in pain are given, with regular doses to help reduce their misery," said Daphna Nachminovitch, senior vice president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. "But it's an entirely different matter to amuse oneself by getting the cat drunk or the dog high."

While the researchers debate what, exactly, CBD can do for Fido, investors are excited by its increasing popularity, which has been buoyed by the legalization of cannabis for humans and increased dialogue about marijuana's medicinal properties.

Treatibles founder Julianna Carella said sales have exploded "like wildfire" over the past two years. "I'm not surprised at all," Carella said. "There's so many pet owners that would do just about anything to relieve their animals suffering."

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Since February, Therabis has seen revenue quadruple, with sales growing 30 percent month-over-month, according to Joe Hodas, chief marketing officer of Therabis's parent company, Colorado-based Dixie Brands.

Troy Dayton, co-founder of the Arcview Group, an Oakland, California-based investment firm, was a skeptic before he saw the sales numbers. "If humans are noticing in droves all the different ways where cannabis products can have utility for them, then surely there will be a massive application" for animals," he said.

For two years, Arcview has been involved in fundraising efforts for two CBD pet-product companies. Dayton anticipates that additional capital will follow, particularly from investors leery of getting into the recreational cannabis market, which is legally murky. "There's a lot of opportunity" in the CBD market, Dayton said.
In this July 18, 2011, file photo, President Barack Obama nominates former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray (R) to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Agency, a central feature of a law overhauling the rules that govern the financial sector. (Jim Watson / AFP/Getty Images)

Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers have made no secret of their desire to remove shackles put on banks by the Dodd-Frank Act, and taking an ax to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is one of their top priorities.

But transforming stump speeches that vilified Elizabeth Warren's favorite regulator into actual change is easier said than done for a variety of reasons. They include disagreements among Republicans about how far to go and opposition to blowing up the CFPB from an unlikely source: bankers.

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Trump's transition advisers already are evaluating ways to legally fire CFPB Director Richard Cordray, according to people familiar with the matter. If they move forward with such a plan, many Republicans want Trump to replace him with someone committed to dismantling the agency. In Congress, another aggressive tactic being considered is forcing through an overhaul of CFPB funding so lawmakers can starve it of money.

Such scorched-earth strategies pose risks. Some Republican congressional aides and bank lobbyists privately say a hard-line approach on the CFPB will alienate Democrats, jeopardizing any chance of persuading moderates to compromise on a broader overhaul of the Dodd-Frank Act. To make big changes, Trump will probably need the support of at least eight Senate Democrats to overcome procedural hurdles that can be used to block legislation.

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"There are all sorts of risks," said Iain Murray, vice president of strategy at Competitive Enterprise Institute, a public policy group that advocates for limited government. "If a change in the CFPB director comes to symbolize the bigger fight over Dodd-Frank, there are going to be trade-offs."

Divisions over the CFPB are one example of a theme that's expected to play out repeatedly next year on policies ranging from taxes to health care: With Republicans in control of Congress and the White House, they'll have to resolve long-simmering disputes within their own party to get things done.

Some lawmakers, such as House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling, have proposed an aggressive replacement of Dodd-Frank, including a major shake-up of the CFPB. Others, including incoming Senate Banking Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, have indicated they'd rather seek modest, bipartisan deals.

"The CFPB is an unaccountable bureaucracy rife with racial discrimination that churns out regulations that harm consumers, especially those with low and moderate incomes," Jeff Emerson, a spokesman for Hensarling said in an e-mail. "Effective consumer protection requires providing Americans with the information they need to make informed decisions, policing markets for fraud and deception, and promoting competition and choice among financial products and services."

A spokesman for Crapo declined to comment.

Financial companies, which have grown accustomed to parts of Dodd-Frank after spending years and billions of dollars complying with the law, mostly support a measured approach. Instead of destroying the CFPB, they'd prefer Congress alter its structure to reduce the power of the agency's director, lobbyists said in interviews. The industry also wants to see specific rules scrapped, like one that would make it far easier for consumers to sue banks.

Either way, Republicans and banks are in for a battle. Warren, the Massachusetts senator who helped bring the CFPB into existence, has vowed to fight any changes to the regulator, and she's recruiting Democratic colleagues to take a similar stand. For now, New York's Chuck Schumer, the incoming Senate minority leader, is siding with Warren.

Democrats created the CFPB after the 2008 financial crisis to protect people from abuses tied to mortgage lending, credit cards and other products. Warren and agency officials tout that it has recovered $11.7 billion for consumers since opening its doors in 2011.

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Republicans have repeatedly painted the CFPB as a regulator run amok, arguing that it curtails lending by burdening banks with red tape. The attacks have run to the mundane, including when Hensarling grilled Cordray at a 2014 congressional hearing over plans to spend money on a granite waterfall at the CFPB's Washington headquarters.

Trump could set a new tone right away by ousting Cordray. While the Democrat's term doesn't end until 2018, he could be removed sooner if Trump's legal advisers can show cause, such as proving he was negligent in carrying out his duties or has run the agency inefficiently. In addition, Trump might be empowered to fire Cordray at any time for any reason if the CFPB loses an appeal of an October court ruling that found the agency's structure to be unconstitutional.

"Mr. Trump is looking at all of his options when it comes to changing the leadership," said John Allison, the former BB&T Corp. chief executive officer who met with the president-elect last month to discuss banking regulations. "He thinks the CFPB symbolizes the worst part of Dodd-Frank."

Spokesman for Trump's transition team didn't respond to an e-mail requesting comment. A spokesman at the CFPB declined to comment.

Several names of candidates who could replace Cordray have been discussed in talks between Trump's advisers and those they've consulted, said the people, who requested anonymity because the discussions were private. They include Representative Randy Neugebauer, a Texas Republican who is retiring from Congress this month. Todd Zywicki, a scholar at George Mason's University's Mercatus Center, has also been suggested for a leadership role at the agency, people have said. Both have been critical of the CFPB.

"I don't speculate on opportunities that have not presented themselves," Neugebauer said in an e-mailed statement. "I have been very pleased with the president-elect's personnel selections so far, and feel confident that when the time comes he will make choices that best ensure the American consumer is both protected and has access to affordable credit and financial product choices."

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On CFPB funding, some Republicans want to try to use procedural tactics to circumvent Democrats and make the regulator's budget subject to congressional approval.

Lawmakers including Senator Pat Toomey, a Pennsylvania Republican, have suggested that could be done by attaching a measure to a fast-track budget reconciliation bill that Democrats would be powerless to block. Right now, the CFPB essentially sets its own budget, estimated to be $606 million in 2016, through funding from the Federal Reserve.

"It would be a mistake to use the reconciliation process," Sen.-elect Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, who is joining the Senate Banking Committee, said in an interview. "That would get us off to a bad start in terms of an effort to work on a bipartisan basis."

Banks would like Congress to replace the CFPB's single director with a five-person commission of political appointees that approve rules and company sanctions. Such a change would make the agency's structure similar to that of the Securities and Exchange Commission, providing a check on the director no matter which party controls the White House.

One reason banks aren't advocating for the consumer bureau to be eviscerated: they don't want to be tarred as anti-consumer, especially after the agency led other regulators in fining Wells Fargo & Co. $185 million in September to settle claims that bank employees opened accounts without customers' approval.

In the meantime, CFPB officials are bracing for an uncertain future.

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Trump has tapped C.J. Jordan, a public relations executive and Republican political consultant, to the CFPB landing team, and she has begun meeting with agency staff to discuss the transition.

Paul Atkins, a former SEC commissioner who voted against several rules and corporate fines during his tenure at the securities regulator, is also examining the CFPB for Trump. Atkins has repeatedly criticized Dodd-Frank at congressional hearings in recent years.

"Morale is just really bad at the agency, people are crying," said Deepak Gupta, a lawyer and consumer advocate who previously worked at the CFPB. "All of their work to build this agency as a force to help consumers could be undone just like that."
John Halstead talks about the "Whiting 41" and the protests against BP in 2016 at his office in Merrillville. (Jim Karczewski / Post-Tribune)

Editor's note: To close out 2016, the Post-Tribune is taking a look back at the news through the eyes of people who helped make it.

John Halstead said he didn't even recycle a few years ago.

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But in May, he was one of 41 people arrested at the BP Whiting Refinery, protesting their oil sands production and urging the use of renewable sources of energy.

Being arrested and a defendant in a court case has been a peculiar experience for Halstead -- he's a Merrillville attorney. However, the BP and Standing Rock protests, in addition to the presidential election, have shaped Halstead's year, and going into 2017, he said he will continue to have a focus on environmental issues.

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Marching toward the BP entrance with a group of people behind him on May 15, Halstead remembers seeing a couple of police cars at the end of the street and thinking "it was kind of anti-climactic," he said. But then he turned the corner and saw police in riot gear.

"I thought, oh crap, what have I got myself into?" Halstead said. "If I hadn't been holding hands with the person next to me, I probably would've just frozen."

The protesters formed a circle at the refinery's main entrance and refused to leave despite warnings from law enforcement, he said, leading to their arrests.

Through the rest of 2016, their court case continued. A rally is planned for Jan. 13, the same day as their final court hearing, at Lake County Superior Court in Hammond to show support for the protesters, as well as send a message encouraging renewable energy sources a week before President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration day.

Halstead wasn't always involved in environmental activism, but he remembers a kind of turning point when he visited his in-laws in Utah. He went to see the Pando, a quaking aspen grove of 40,000 trees connected at the roots that are at least 80,000 years old, he said. Halstead said he asked a ranger about a portion of the trees that were fenced off and was told they were being threatened by invasive species.

"It's the first time I had been face to face with something that I can say, this is happening because of climate change," Halstead said.

That's when he said he realized he didn't have to go across the country to see the effects of climate change -- "I've got BP in my back yard," he said.

He started talking to people in the area and got more involved. At a Minnesota protest, he heard people chanting, "This is what democracy looks like," and it gave him chills, he said.

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"I was like, yeah, democracy isn't just what happens in the voting booth. This is democracy. This is people expressing their right to free speech and their right to assembly," Halstead said.

Halstead circulated petitions involving the Standing Rock protests against an oil pipeline in North Dakota. Although he later learned they had already returned, Halstead helped start a petition to bring back Indiana law enforcement that were sent to help North Dakota police. More recently, he helped create a petition to prevent Indiana officers from being sent up there again and urging Hoosier law enforcement to declare support of the Standing Rock protesters.

In November, the results of the presidential election came as a surprise to Halstead as he's continued his environmental efforts. After the initial shock, Halstead said he has seen people he knows become involved in movements that hadn't before. The way he sees it, "in a perverse way, the election of Trump may actually be a really good thing for the environmental movement."

"Elections have the effect of making a lot of people feel voiceless, not only because their candidate didn't get elected, but ... when the popular vote and the Electoral College don't line up, a lot of people feel disenfranchised. But we don't have to wait for election day to express ourselves. We can get out in the streets and do it now," he said.

rejacobs@post-trib.com

Twitter @ruthyjacobs
Author Julia Baird defied the British governments request to excise large sections of her Queen Victoria biography. It was the object of this book to hack through myths, not hew to them, she wrote. (Alex Ellinghaus / Penguin Random House)

Queen Victoria may just be one of the most recognizable figures in world history, a ruler who lent her name to an entire age. But Julia Baird writes persuasively in a new biography that the "real" Victoria "remains buried under a mountain of myths, created by observers, sycophants, monarchists, republicans and herself, and bolstered by the royal family ever since."

Baird thoroughly and engagingly strives to restore a truer perspective of both woman and sovereign in her fine work, "Victoria: The Queen." The Australia-based author, broadcaster and journalist not only tells the story of Victoria's life but places her in the context of her 19th-century world, a time of breathtaking technological advances set amid the polluted muck of unrelieved poverty and suffering, an era of empire-building and bloody oppression, an age where women began to fight for their rights while their queen looked askance at women's suffrage.

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"What we have truly forgotten today is that Victoria is a woman under whose auspices the modern world was made," Baird writes.

Queen Victoria was only human, but she also was smart, patriotic, and intent on doing what she thought was right for her country and her people. Baird's biography successfully presents the queen in all of her roles, some of which were contradictory, to show how Victoria did indeed have a mind of her own  despite her husband and prime ministers  and lived and ruled the way she thought best.

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The idea for this book was sparked, Baird writes, by the 2008 presidential election in the United States, when Hillary Clinton tried to win the Democratic nomination and Sarah Palin served as the Republican vice presidential candidate. Baird was working for Newsweek then, and "our editorial team had vigorously debated the way we talk about women in positions of power," Baird wrote. "One of the more robust arguments we had was about how we are still seemingly unable to reconcile women and power; too often it seems an awkward, surprising, unlikely and troubling pairing." Her editor then suggested that Queen Victoria could use a fresh look, and after a few months reading an "unvarying repetition of the same views about Victoria, with rare fresh interrogation of new material," Baird found she agreed.

A new biography of Queen Victoria seems so right for right now. For while she lived a life of almost unimagined privilege and wealth set in various palaces and castles, hers is a story that will seem all too familiar to today's readers, particularly women struggling, like Victoria, to balance it all.

Queen Victoria, shown in an 1842 portrait, grasped the mantle of power when other women had none. (Imagno / Getty Images)

Born fifth in line to the throne in the final year of the reign of her grandfather, King George III, Victoria was 18 when she became queen after the death of her uncle, King William IV. Forced from an early age to juggle personal desire and public policy, she struggled to be both woman and queen, wife and monarch. She fought for decades to protect her royal prerogatives, to influence ministers and policy, and to generally be heard and heeded  even by her dear husband, Prince Albert.

"At the time of her wedding, she was as contradictory and complicated as she would be throughout her life: publicly vowing to obey her husband at precisely the same time she privately overruled his wishes,'' Baird wrote.

While Albert was Victoria's great love, Baird tells of how he methodically undermined Victoria's confidence in herself as he sought to "better" her as queen, wife and mother. It was only when Albert died in 1861, a wrenching loss that Victoria held onto vividly for the rest of her life, that she found her footing again.

Widowhood is what Victoria is most remembered for today. Even by the overwrought standards of the day, the queen's mourning was deemed excessive. Yet she rarely, if ever, yielded to that so-public sorrow. Victoria dressed all in black and tossed her corsets, swapped a crown for a black bonnet (albeit one trimmed with diamonds on occasion) and withdrew from public view as much as possible to await the death she confidently thought was coming. Even her effigy on the tomb she built to share with Albert portrays her as she looked at the time of her husband's death.

"Victoria did not want to die. Perhaps the greatest contradiction of her character was her belief that she yearned for death; in truth, she clung tenaciously to life," Baird wrote, adding a few paragraphs later, "There was always more. Victoria believed that her greatest work  to improve herself, as Albert had bidden her  was not yet complete."

Penguin Random House (Penguin Random House / HANDOUT)

Victoria died in January 1901 at the age of 81. She had spent 63 years and seven months on the throne  a record of longevity eclipsed only on Sept. 9, 2015, by her great-great-granddaughter, Elizabeth II.

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"The world shuddered at the news of the queen's death," Baird wrote. And, indeed, as she noted in the book, Victoria personified  first as queen of England and, from 1876 onward, empress of India  British imperialism in every land over which the Union Jack was flown. She also represented continuity as the United Kingdom and the rest of the world underwent unimaginable modernization.

Baird's book also emphasizes Victoria's role as a woman who ruled. The queen "had, in a way she did not anticipate, changed everything for women," Baird wrote. "She stirred something that was difficult to name, a longing, or a stiffening of the spine; she was a visible sign of a woman who adored her family, yet had full rights and an independent income. H.G. Wells believed that at the moment the crown was placed on her head, there was a 'stir of emancipation.'"

"Victoria's heart beat strongly to her last breath," Baird wrote, adding that this was something her doctor made a point of noting. "This is the greatest clue to understanding the woman who helped shape the modern world, and dispelling myths about her supposed passivity, her reliance on men and distaste for power. She may have complained often, but she persisted. She grieved for decades, but as generations of statesmen witnessed, she also fought without flinching. Her unbending, steadfast presence shaped a century as she grasped the mantle of power when other women had none. To fly over the London today and see her magisterial marble figure looking above the streets is to marvel at how a reclusive, widowed mother of nine achieved unparalleled greatness. The answer is simple: Victoria endured."

But Victoria did not endure unedited or uncensored. Her eldest son, Bertie, now King Edward VII, and her youngest child, Princess Beatrice, were both keenly aware of what Victoria described as her "many faults." And they took steps to erase them  historical record be damned. Beatrice spent years censoring and rewriting passages of her mother's diaries  burning the originals when done. The new king worked to eliminate any vestiges of the queen's staff he felt held undue influence, notably John Brown.

Brown, the "Queen's Highland Servant," had such an unusually close and intense relationship with the widowed queen that it provoked considerable discussion then and now. While Baird wrote that the "extent or nature of their physical relationship" is unknown, there "was a level of intimacy between them that would have scandalized society."

How Victoria's story is told is still, apparently, a sensitive topic some 115 years after her death. In an author's note at the end of the book, Baird writes of being denied access to the Royal Archives at Windsor Castle because this was her first biography and she hadn't written about the royal family before. She later gained permission thanks to the intercession of the then-governor general of Australia. Like other researchers, Baird signed a contract promising to submit prior to publication "all intended quotations from records in the Royal Archives, and all intended passages based on information based on those records." Baird wrote that she submitted the entire manuscript as she had "used a great deal of archival material."

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What Baird got back was a letter from the senior archivist in which she was reportedly asked to "remove large sections of my book based on material I had found not inside but outside the archives." (Emphasis added by Baird.) That material came from the papers of Sir James Reid, who was the queen's doctor and was present at her death. The letter cited "documents in which the Queen issued instructions as to who should tend her in her final illness, arrangements for her funeral and what items she wanted placed in her coffin." Those items included, as Baird noted in the book, not only family photographs and mementos but personal items that had belonged to Brown.

Baird decided not to remove the material.

"It is my hope that those who read this book will understand how intently and thoroughly I have researched the life of Queen Victoria, and how inconsistent with that approach it would have been to delete large sections of the book for no clearly articulated reason," Baird wrote. "It was the object of this book to hack through myths, not hew to them."

I'm sure Baird's brave decision not to honor the request means she will likely never be welcome at the Royal Archives again. That's a pity as this fine work, with its family tree, maps, detailed notes and extensive bibliography, shows she has considerable talent for royal biographies. Unfortunately, royal bios usually need access to royal archives.

At least Baird can have the considerable satisfaction of a job extremely well done, of doing her utmost to bring the true Queen Victoria back into the light.

Bill Daley is a Tribune reporter.

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wdaley@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @billdaley

'Victoria: The Queen'

By Julia Baird, Random House, 697 pages, $35
As Barack Obama prepares to leave the White House, Donald Trump's supporters owe him a final salute. He was the enabler of their candidate's success.

I know that sounds like I've had too much eggnog. The president and the president-elect are worlds apart in style and substance. It's impossible to imagine Obama saying: "The beauty of me is that I'm very rich." Or Trump saying: "The cornerstones of the middle-class security all bear the union label."

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Trump wants to build a wall to keep undocumented Mexicans out. Obama wanted to give some a path to citizenship.

Obama's rallying cry was: "Yes, we can." Trump's could've been: "No, we shouldn't have."

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Still, consider this: Trump was an unusual presidential contender. He is vulgar, a braggart, and incapable of sharing the limelight. Those aren't ideal specifications for a candidate, especially for a GOP standard bearer.

So for the sake of argument, let's pretend the incumbent president was a run-of-the-mill politician. Wouldn't Republicans have chosen a more conventional candidate?

But Obama wasn't an ordinary president. He had been a professor, was more or less a liberal, and is unmistakably black. The last professor-president was Woodrow Wilson, a century ago. And Obama broke a presidential color barrier maintained for more than two centuries.

Obama smashed the mold, and Trump stepped nimbly over the pieces

Eight years ago, Obama dashed Hillary Clinton's presidential bid by generating a contagious hope that the status quo was on its death bed. This year, Trump dispatched Clinton by inspiring his followers with an unshakable belief that the status quo could be resuscitated.

In a real sense, Obama showed Trump how to write a winning playbook. That was an invaluable gift for a presidential candidate, who had been all over the map on the issues. Trump was for women's reproductive rights before he was anti-abortion. Trump was sort of for the Iraq War before he was sort of against it. He criticized Obama for not withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq, then accused Obama of precipitously pulling troops out of Iraq.

For anyone else, that would be flip-flopping. But for Trump, it was like a yachtsman tacking this way, then that, while searching for a course the prevailing winds would support.

Finding it, Trump put a post-it note on his political compass: "If Obama turns hard to port, steer this ship hard to starboard."

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By so doing, Trump proved that his sagacity was far greater than mine. I celebrated when Obama wrestled the Affordable Care Act through Congress. No longer would I have to try to explain to friends in Italy and France why the U.S. didn't have national care. In Europe, they are considered a citizen's unassailable right. Far from campaigning on a promise to abolish them, conservative parties there solemnly pledge to strengthen them.

Trump realized that even those who benefited from it were uncomfortable with Obamacare. Scholars would attribute that inconsistency to "American exceptionalism." In plain English: Most of us or our forebears having left another country, we have no use for anything "foreign." If they have it, we don't want it.

That antipathy extends to cities, home to immigrants and liberals. So Trump shrewdly became the champion of Middle America. That was quite a makeover for a guy who lives in New York in a penthouse resplendent with gold fixtures, 66 stories above Fifth Avenue. Trump wasn't a known aficionado of pot-luck suppers in small-town churches.

But he realized that votes could be won there. Perhaps he recalled what Obama said about his difficulty in reaching the white-working class in Rust Belt states. Facing grim economic prospects, "they cling to guns or religion ... or anti-trade sentiment."

That steered Trump to a powerful message to carry to the heartland: Anti-gun activists are targeting the Second Amendment, corporate greed is off-shoring jobs, and urban elitists are contemptuous of pious folk.

Whatever its source, Trump's daily sermon was that Hillary Clinton would confiscate guns  which she never said  and supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership  which she rejected, though after calling it the "gold standard" of trade agreements.

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To see the results of that litany, write "2016 election results by counties" on a search engine. If your favorite color is red, you're in luck. There's a sea of it, and very few smudges of blue.

rgrossman@chicagotribune.com
An occupied section of the Lathrop Homes CHA project is shown March 15, 2013, looking south from Diversey Avenue over the Chicago River. The campus of low-rise buildings has been added to Preservation Chicago's list of the city's seven most-threatened historic places. (Chris Walker / Chicago Tribune)

With an overhaul imminent for the only large public housing complex on Chicago's North Side, a decades-old legal battle over segregation has been reignited.

A team of public interest lawyers petitioned a federal judge last month to require the Chicago Housing Authority to replace hundreds of family-friendly apartments on the North Side now that it's only a matter of time before they are lost in the redevelopment of the Julia C. Lathrop Homes.

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Housing activists have long feared that Lathrop, a historic complex that stretches across 32 acres in the affluent neighborhood of Lincoln Park, would eventually be turned over to a private developer that would replace scarce North Side housing for low-income families with upscale units.

Next month, financing is expected to close on the redevelopment project, freeing up money to begin building, or reconfiguring, more than 1,100 units on the sprawling riverfront campus. Roughly a third of the apartments will be reserved for public housing residents.

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But now, housing officials and advocates have reached a truce of sorts.

The housing authority and the nonprofit Business and Professional People for the Public Interest recently reached an agreement over the Lathrop replacements that will add to the stock of North Side housing and avert potential delays.

While the agreement has buoyed housing activists, they have concerns about how it will be carried out. For example, there is no mandate on whether the apartments will have to be as large as those demolished at Lathrop. At minimum, they will all have one bedroom. And the housing authority won't be under any time pressure to create the new housing.

"We could set an arbitrary deadline, but we'd have to change it," said Julie Brown, an attorney with Business and Professional People for the Public Interest. The housing authority will be required, however, to provide progress reports.

In a statement, housing authority officials said that they "are pleased that, given the long-standing partnership between BPI and CHA, new, quality affordable housing will be made available to low-income residents on the North Side of Chicago."

The agreement is long in coming. For years, the complex  which opened in 1938 and is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places  has been steadily emptying out, following a 16-year leasing freeze. Today, just a small fraction  142 of 925  of Lathrop's red brick walkups remain occupied. Boards nailed over windows have become unofficial tally marks of each family that has moved out.

One of the few signs that there's still life inside is the bursts of steam that pour out of a chimney that towers over a busy stretch of Damen Avenue. The stillness is ever in contrast to the construction boom  of homes, condos and big-box stores  in the neighborhood around it.

For decades, public interest attorneys have been pushing the CHA to spend more of its resources on creating a more diversified housing stock in neighborhoods like the ones surrounding Lathrop that are predominantly white and rich with jobs and high-achieving schools.

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The housing authority had no interest in rehabbing the complex the way it had at a handful of other traditional family housing complexes, which are primarily in low-income neighborhoods. Of 4,339 occupied units remaining across the city, 6 percent are situated in more affluent neighborhoods, housing authority records show. About half of them are at Lathrop.

At Lathrop, housing authority officials initially resisted signing onto a legally binding mandate over replacement, instead asking U.S. District Court Judge Marvin E. Aspen to accept a written commitment to create 524 new units, the projected loss at Lathrop, in equally prosperous, nearby neighborhoods.

But housing advocates were skeptical of the pledge. The housing authority, they said, is chronically behind on replacing residences that were demolished years ago under the Plan for Transformation, the initiative driving the Lathrop redevelopment.

Only about a quarter of the new mixed-income units created in the aftermath are on the more affluent North Side, an analysis of housing authority records shows. Residents who opted for private market apartments haven't fared much better, with a vast majority living in overwhelmingly poor areas with struggling schools, double-digit unemployment and violence.

Now, with a court order in place, low-income housing advocates say they, too, are optimistic that this time the replacements will materialize.

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"This is a really good step in the right direction," said Kate Walz, a housing attorney with the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law.

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Getting the housing built, though, is going to take political will.

And that's something that housing authority officials have hinted could be challenging. "This will be a very difficult task," the agency wrote in court records, "that will require the cooperation of developers, landlords, neighborhood groups, the city."

Enforcement, local leaders say, will be key to making sure that happens.

"The replacement units have to mirror the ones that are lost at Lathrop," said Ald. Joe Moreno, one of two aldermen who represents the community. "We have to watch them closely."

acaputo@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @AngelaTCR
High School District 128 Superintendent Prentiss Lea, left, talks with School Board President Pat Groody during a board meeting at Vernon Hills High School on Dec. 12, 2016, in Vernon Hills, Ill. (Kamil Krzaczynski / Chicago Tribune)

In Lake County's Community High School District 128, teachers on average earn $102,000 and administrators $146,000  but that doesn't include annual bonuses.

The affluent district paid more than $500,000 in bonus checks this month, mostly to teachers and administrators rewarded for high student achievement, but to all other employees as well, with limited exceptions.

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The bonuses  described in district records as "performance recognition"  also went to custodians, security staff, technicians, library aides, bookkeepers and school finance staffers, among others. Everyone met the same academic criteria to qualify and everyone got checks worth 1.5 percent of base salary. The average bonus was about $1,300, and several dozen teachers and administrators got more than $1,800.

It's become more common for school districts both in Illinois and around the country to experiment with ways to link compensation and student achievement.

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Whether they're called bonuses, incentives, rewards or merit pay, the programs  pushed in part by funding from the Obama administration  have spawned both support and rancor, according to educators, researchers, union officials and taxpayers.

The District 128 bonuses are unusual in that they include virtually all staff members, not just teachers and administrators.

"From a compensation philosophy standpoint, it's a team sport," said District 128 School Board President Pat Groody. "We believe everyone matters, and that goes all the way to people working in our facilities to our best teachers. We really wanted to get people focused on the concept that performance matters."

Longtime school watchdog Timothy Anderson questioned the criteria used in District 128 to award the bonuses: Why did so many people who are not licensed educators receive them and are they necessary given the already high student achievement in the district's two high schools in Libertyville and Vernon Hills?

"They're giving a Christmas bonus to everybody. That is fine if you're doing it in a privately owned company but not with taxpayers' money," Anderson said. He referred to the bonuses as Christmas-related because the checks were sent in December, but the district said the bonuses are not connected to the holidays.

Much of the debate over bonuses swirls around what has long been the status quo in teacher compensation: raises for experience and adding education credentials, such as a master's degree.

That approach goes back decades  a way to standardize pay for educators and fix inequities in teacher pay based on race, gender, nepotism and other factors, said Matthew Springer, an assistant professor of public policy and education at Vanderbilt University who has researched performance-based pay for educators.

That traditional system results in the same type of raises for teachers, "regardless of their effectiveness," Springer said. "It is inefficient, it is broken  but we don't know how to fix it yet."

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Bonus and incentive programs in other states have produced varied results, some short-lived, Springer said. "They are so controversial that they are likely to come under some type of scrutiny," he said.

The Tribune previously wrote about bonuses given to teachers and administrators who have already retired  payouts that come after a series of salary increases and distributed after the educator is out the door. The practice prompted a state lawmaker to file legislation to ban such post-retirement bonuses that cost taxpayers thousands of dollars.

School board president Pat Groody, right, speaks during the board meeting at the Vernon Hills High School on Monday, Dec. 12, 2016 in Vernon Hills, Ill. (Kamil Krzaczynski / Chicago Tribune)

New statewide salary data from the Illinois State Board of Education shows 144 school districts in 2015-16 provided bonuses, usually in addition to regular salary increases, to teachers or administrators or both. That represents nearly 20 percent of the state's public school districts.

About 3,100 employees got the bonuses, adding up to about $5.5 million, with the average bonus at about $1,750, according to the data. The state's data includes only licensed educators, including teachers, administrators and other licensed professionals in schools, such as social workers and school counselors.

So not all bonuses would show up in the data for places such as District 128, which gave bonuses to nonlicensed employees as well.

Teachers in regular public schools in the Chicago Public Schools system do not get performance bonuses, and the Chicago Teachers Union has fought against merit pay.

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However, in 2015-16, close to 100 educators got bonuses in several charter schools in Chicago  public schools that are privately run.

At Horizon Science Academy-McKinley Park charter school, Principal Cafer Cengiz said bonuses are paid to teachers for a variety of reasons, including when students show growth on critical tests or do well in competitions such as science fairs.

"It motivates the teachers; they want to earn that bonus. They put in more effort. And I believe it helps the kids," Cengiz said. In 2015-16, 43 educators at the school got bonuses adding up to $113,400. The average bonus was $2,637.

Algonquin-based Community Unit School District 300 focused on bonuses for administrators rather than rank-and-file teachers, spending about $184,300 in 2015-16 for nearly 100 employees, including principals, assistant principals, deans and other administrators. The average bonus was $1,920.

Spokesman Anthony McGinn said, "District 300 provides performance bonuses to our administrators as part of our compensation package. The bonuses are based upon an administrator's performance in relationship to their annual evaluation and established goals."

Likewise, McHenry County's Community High School District 155 also provides administrator bonuses based on evaluations and goals, district officials said. The district spent about $205,000 in 2015-16, for 52 administrators, with the average bonus about $3,900, state data show.

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Lincolnshire-Prairie View School District 103 in Lake County launched a program for teacher performance bonuses that went from 2013-14 through 2015-16, using district evaluations of teachers to calculate bonuses, said Dan Stanley, the district's assistant superintendent for business. Teachers getting higher ratings on those evaluations would get larger bonuses, he said.

For 2015-16, the district spent about $111,500 on the bonuses, averaging about $885 per teacher.

Elsewhere, districts had other reasons for providing bonuses.

Downstate Pekin Public Schools District 108 gives bonuses to teachers who use only a minimal number of sick days or attain perfect attendance. Caty Campbell, the payroll and accounting coordinator, said the program was implemented to stave off growing costs for substitute teachers. "This was a way to incentivize people to come to work," she said.

The sick day bonuses in 2015-16 ranged from $75 to $250 for about 100 Pekin District 108 employees, totaling $12,800, according to state data.

In southern Illinois, the financially struggling East St. Louis School District 189 gave nearly $1 million in bonuses in 2015-16  for 345 employees, mostly teachers getting $3,000 each, according to state data. A district spokeswoman, Sydney Stigge-Kaufman, said the bonuses were one-time stipends in lieu of regular salary increases, and were provided as part of a union contract settlement.

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The one-time bonuses are not embedded in district salary plans that compound over the years.

"In the long term, it benefits the district," said Jeffrey Schubert, director of finance and operations in Cary School District 26 in McHenry County. There, the district broke out the salary increase for teachers by including a regular salary increase, and then a one-time bonus, according to Schubert. The bonuses for 123 teachers in 2015-16 added up to about $34,000, according to the state data, with an average bonus of $271.

In Vernon Hills-based high school District 128, it was the school board's idea to do performance-related bonuses for teachers and staff, said Groody, the board president. The board and the teacher's union worked on the criteria for the bonuses as part of negotiations for the 2013-18 union contract.

"Any kind of payment of an incentive was controversial," Groody recalled. "I remember very specifically when we were negotiating, the fundamental concept that some element of compensation would be at risk was a breakthrough thought."

The district kept the traditional salary schedules that give pay increases for experience and educational attainment.

But it added a performance recognition bonus for meeting specific districtwide academic criteria related to statewide and college entrance exams; the percent of students who take college-level Advanced Placement exams and the percent who pass them; and the percent of students participating in extracurricular activities.

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Meeting the criteria in a specific number of areas would mean teachers could get bonuses of at least 1 or 1.5 percent of their base salaries. The program was expanded to employees who were not licensed educators. That meant virtually all employees in varied jobs could get the bonuses, with limited exceptions. Those not eligible for bonuses included staffers in their first year of employment and employees getting specific end-of-career raises as they head into retirement.

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About 420 teachers, administrators and other staffers across the district got the bonuses in 2015 and 2016. The district spent about $520,000 on the bonuses in 2015 and about $536,000 in 2016.

Anderson, a Libertyville resident who keeps a close eye on the school board, remains critical, maintaining that the standards to get the bonuses are "artificially low" and can be "reached automatically just for showing up."

In addition, teachers are already well paid and meeting the outlined criteria should be a given rather than an opportunity for an extra bonus, he said.

"Isn't that what we pay the salary for in the first place?" he asked.

"I think this is a waste of taxpayers' money."

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drado@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @diane_rado
Two girls, 13 and 14, were shot on the South Side as a violent Christmas weekend came to a close during one of the most violent years in Chicago in decades.



A total of 61 people were shot in the city during the holiday weekend and 11 of them died of their wounds, according to data kept by the Tribune. Seven people were killed on Christmas Day alone, more than on the holiday the past three years combined. Three people were killed in 2015, one in 2014, and two in 2013.



The number of people shot over the holiday weekend also sharply outpaced recent years. During the Christmas weekend in 2015, 29 people were shot and seven of them died. In 2014, when Christmas fell on a Thursday, the four-day weekend included 35 people shot and seven people killed, according to Tribune data.



This past weekend's toll pushed the total number of people shot in Chicago this year to more than 4,300 and the number of homicides to around 770. Last year, there were 2,989 shooting victims and 492 homicides.



Most of the shootings occurred on the West and South sides, in neighborhoods that have borne the brunt of the gun violence this year. They ranged from Austin and West Humboldt Park on the West Side to Gresham and Chatham on the South Side.



There were eight shootings involving multiple victims and two double homicides. One of them was an attack during a party in the East Chatham neighborhood that left two brothers dead and five others wounded.



Chicago police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said most of the weekend's victims were targeted by gang members.



"The violence primarily occurred in areas with historical gang conflicts on the South and West sides of the city," Johnson said the day after Christmas. "We now know that the majority of these shootings and homicides were targeted attacks by gangs against potential rival gang members and groups who were at holiday gatherings.



"These were deliberate and planned shootings by one gang against another," he added. "They were targeted knowing fully well that individuals would be at the homes of family and friends celebrating the holidays. This was followed by several acts of retaliation."



Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said 90 percent of those killed during the weekend "had gang affiliations, criminal histories and were pre-identified by the department's strategic subject algorithm as being a potential suspect or victim of gun violence."



Among the last people shot during the long weekend were two young teenage girls wounded in Gresham while waiting in a van for their father, according to police.



The girls were with a 2-year-old boy outside Leland Giants Park just after 11:30 p.m. Monday, police said. The 13-year-old's father had just left the van to speak with someone in a house when two people came up and fired into the vehicle, police said.



The 14-year-old was hit in the back and was taken to Comer Children's Hospital in critical condition. The 13-year-old was grazed in the arm and was taken to St. Bernard Hospital in good condition. The 2-year-old was unharmed, police said.



Guglielmi said the father was a gang member and police "are operating under the belief that the father was the intended target."



Other shootings as the holiday weekend came to a close:



-- Around 12:50 a.m. Tuesday, a 25-year-old woman was shot as she sat in a parked vehicle in the 3500 block of West Van Buren Street. Another vehicle approached and someone inside fired shots. She was hit in the buttocks and went to Stroger Hospital in good condition.



-- Around 10:50 p.m. Monday, a 23-year-old man was grazed by a bullet in the Near West Side neighborhood. He was outside in the 200 block of South Leavitt Avenue when someone got out of a silver Ford Fusion, shouted gang slogans and opened fire, police said. The man was grazed in the right arm and listed in good condition at Stroger Hospital.



-- About 8:55 p.m. in the 800 block of North Keeler Avenue, a 23-year-old man was hit in the buttocks and taken to a hospital, where his condition was stabilized, police said.



-- Earlier in the West Englewood neighborhood, someone was wounded around 7:20 p.m. An 18-year-old man was shot in the 6700 block of South Wolcott Avenue and taken to Holy Cross Hospital for treatment.



-- Two shootings happened in about a 15-minute span in rival gang territories in the Back of the Yards neighborhood.



The first, about 5:40 p.m, happened in the 4800 block of South Bishop Street. A 34-year-old man was shot in the neck and drove to a fire station seeking treatment. Paramedics took him to Stroger Hospital, police said.



Just after 5:50 p.m., someone was shot in the 4400 block of South Hermitage Street a few blocks away. The 23-year-old was walking when someone stepped out of a vehicle and fired shots, hitting him multiple times.



The 23-year-old is in critical condition, and the 34-year-old's condition has been stabilized. Both are at Stroger Hospital.



-- Around 5:25 p.m., a 45-year-old man was shot in the 4100 block of West Arthington Street and taken Mount Sinai Hospital. He had been in an argument just before getting shot, police said.



-- Two people were shot in the 5800 block of South May Street in the Englewood neighborhood about 3:25 p.m. A 20-year-old man was taken to Stroger Hospital with a gunshot wound to his back and a 35-year-old man refused medical treatment for a graze wound. Someone in a dark-colored sedan fired shots and fled the scene, police said.



-- A 22-year-old man walked into Advocate Trinity Hospital on the South Side around 2:45 p.m. with a gunshot wound suffered in the 7900 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue, police said.



-- Around 11:20 a.m. in the 1800 block of South Ridgeway Avenue in North Lawndale, a 23-year-old man was shot in each leg. He was being treated at Mount Sinai Hospital, according to police.



-- Around 10:40 a.m., a 24-year-old man was shot in the hand in the 400 block of West Marquette Road in Englewood, police said. Details weren't immediately available.



-- In the 7000 block of South Indiana, in the Park Manor neighborhood about 9:30 a.m., an initial call went out for two people shot in the area of 78th Street. Police later said a 25-year-old man had a graze wound to his head and also was shot in a leg. A 26-year-old man was shot in the face. The men were able to get themselves to St. Bernard Hospital, where they were being treated.



-- The first daylight shooting Monday happened about 9:25 a.m. in the 300 block of South Kostner Avenue. A 24-year-old man was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital with gunshot wounds to the ankle and leg. He was stable, authorities said. Police said he was in a car in the 4400 block of West Van Buren Street when he was shot and he fled to the 300 block of South Kostner, around the corner.



The holiday weekend began with five teenagers shot within feet of each other in the South Austin neighborhood. At 3:30 p.m. Friday, a 16-year-old boy was shot in the 4900 block of West Kinzie Street. A little more than an hour later, four other teenagers were shot just feet away, in the 4900 block of West Hubbard Street. Their conditions had stabilized.
The scene where a person was shot Dec. 26, 2016, near the intersection of South Hermitage Avenue and West 45th Street in Chicago. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)

Eleven people were killed and at least 33 others have been wounded in shootings across Chicago so far during the holiday weekend, including seven people shot dead on Christmas Day.

Two brothers, James and Roy Gill, were fatally shot late Sunday as they hung out on an East Chatham porch during a family party, according to police and witnesses. They were shooting dice with their relatives when someone ran out from an alley to the south and started firing shots into the porch. The Gill brothers were pronounced dead; five other people were wounded, two of whom were listed in critical condition.

Just past midnight Saturday, 27-year-old Juan Gonzalez was killed while he walked around the Brighton Park neighborhood streaming video live on Facebook. When they shot at him, that's when everything just cut off," his sister said of the video. Officers found him unresponsive on the sidewalk, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

The weekends first homicide was Friday night, when two men were killed in the South Austin block where both lived. They went outside after a phone conversation and shots rang out; one man, 20, was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital and pronounced dead. The other, 21, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The weekend started with five teenagers shot within feet of each other in the South Austin neighborhood. At 3:30 p.m. Friday, a 16-year-old boy was shot in the 4900 block of West Kinzie Street. A little more than an hour later, four other teenagers were shot just feet away, in the 4900 block of West Hubbard Street. Their conditions had stabilized.
William Carini is serving a 26-year sentence in a 1991 sexual assault, a Lake County conviction that is on the verge of being reversed. He also is serving a life sentence for two 1983 murders in Cook County. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)

Twenty-five years after a woman was raped at knifepoint in her car on the shoulder of the Tri-State Tollway near Gurnee, authorities are poised to undo the conviction of the man who was found guilty of the crime.

Lake County State's Attorney Michael Nerheim said he will dismiss the charges against William Carini, who was convicted of the sexual assault in 1992 and sentenced to 26 years in prison.

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Paperwork expected to be filed in court as early as this week will request that a judge overturn Carini's rape conviction  the culmination of a three-year review by Nerheim's office in which forensic evidence was retested and found not to match Carini.

His reversal of fortune in the rape case  for which he has long maintained his innocence  won't secure Carini's release from prison. He is still serving a life sentence for the 1983 murders of his uncle and a childhood friend in Cook County. Their remains were found in a north suburban storage unit Carini had rented, long before the Lake County sexual assault, but Carini was not found guilty of their murders until the rape conviction and a tip from Carini's estranged girlfriend prompted authorities to take another look the case.

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Yet while Carini, 54, remains a convicted killer in the eyes of the law, the collapse of the rape case represents another blow to the legacy of Nerheim's predecessor, former State's Attorney Michael Waller. Several violent crime convictions prosecuted during Waller's tenure have fallen apart in recent years, leading to payouts of tens of millions of dollars to settle lawsuits brought by the wrongly accused men.

The latest development also suggests that the true perpetrator of the tollway sexual assault was never prosecuted for it.

Throughout his legal odyssey, Carini's biggest champion has been his mother, Ruthe Wille, who kept a box of evidence in the case in her closet for more than a decade while she sought to prove what she has long maintained is her son's innocence.

Wille, who herself was convicted of murder and imprisoned for shooting her husband Joseph Carbona, Carini's stepfather, in 1971, got to break the news to her son that his Lake County conviction is expected to be overturned.

"I told him ... 'I've got a big Christmas present for you,'" said Wille, who took a paralegal class at age 70 to help fight her son's conviction. "I could hear him choke up a little bit. He said, 'Mom, it's all because of you.'"

In a prison interview with the Tribune earlier this year, Carini said he hoped an acquittal in the rape case could benefit his ongoing appeals in the Cook County murder conviction. The Cook County State's Attorney's Conviction Integrity Unit is reviewing the murder conviction as well, spokeswoman Tandra Simonton said.

Nerheim said the two cases are not connected but acknowledged he was once skeptical of Carini's innocence in the sexual assault.

"This is one of those cases where the truth is stranger than fiction," Nerheim said. "There have been a lot of twists, but that's why it's always important to keep an open mind."

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Another Lake County case collapses

Carini will be the seventh man cleared of rape or murder charges in Lake County since 2010. In some cases, prosecutors under Waller continued to assert the men's guilt even after forensic evidence pointed away from them. Three of the former defendants  Juan Rivera, Angel Gonzalez and Bennie Starks  each spent about 20 years in prison before they were freed as the cases against them collapsed.

Rivera, who was cleared of the 1992 rape and murder of 11-year-old Holly Staker in Waukegan, settled his wrongful conviction lawsuit against the city of Waukegan and other defendants for $20 million. Other lawsuits from some of the men who were cleared are pending.

But, possibly of greater consequence to the public, the latest abandoned conviction means the 1991 sexual assault remains unsolved.

In Carini's case, the forensic evidence was substantial enough to indicate that DNA found at the crime scene did not belong to Carini. But to authorities' disappointment, the evidence was too degraded to run through an FBI DNA database to determine whether a match could be found.

Nerheim said the Illinois State Police is expected to take up the 25-year-old case.

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"The more time goes by, the more difficult it is to get a conviction," he said. "It's not impossible with the advances in science and in other areas. Nothing is out of the question, but time does certainly hurt."

Waller, who retired from the state's attorney's office in 2012 after 22 years at its helm, could not be reached for comment.

A rape at knifepoint

The sexual assault case against Carini stemmed from an attack on a northwest Indiana woman who was driving home from a family gathering in Milwaukee and pulled her car over on the side of the tollway to rest. Around 3 a.m. on June 3, 1991, she was awakened by a man pressing a knife against her throat. She fought back and the man eventually fled.

Authorities generated a list of 100 potential suspects based on the woman's description of the assailant as a white, clean-shaven man in his late 20s or early 30s, about 5 feet 7 inches tall, with "dark fuzzy" hair and a quarter-inch scar above the right side of his lip.

Authorities homed in on Carini, in part because he lived somewhat near where the crime had taken place and because he had a criminal record, according to court documents. The victim also identified him among a group of photos of possible suspects, but Carini's advocates would later argue she was misled by the fact that all the other photos depicted men who appeared to be Hispanic.

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At Carini's trial, his stepfather Lawrence Wille provided Carini's alibi, testifying that the two had watched movies from midnight to about 3 a.m. at Wille's home in Prospect Heights, about 25 miles from where the rape occurred.

In a further indication of the weakness of the case, prosecutors lacked physical evidence tying Carini to the crime. Still, he was found guilty and sentenced to 26 years in prison.

The victim eventually signed a statement saying she had doubts about whether Carini was her attacker, but Carini was denied a new trial in 2000, in part because the judge on the case said he was concerned that the woman only signed the statement under pressure from Ruthe Wille, Carini's mother.

But Wille also had in her possession a box of evidence from the case that a forensic lab erroneously mailed to her years ago. Wille kept the box in her closet for years until she approached Nerheim shortly after his election as state's attorney in 2012.

Nerheim eventually agreed to retest the forensic evidence after he determined it had not been tampered with and its seals were intact. The results of that testing, he said, showed that none of the physical evidence matched Carini, including DNA found on the victim's undergarments and on a car seat.

Authorities were able to determine the identity of fingerprints recovered from inside the car. That person, however, has been eliminated as a suspect, Nerheim said.

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"I think this was a tough case," Nerheim said. "Police had the suspect description and nothing else. ... There was no witness statement or confession by (Carini)."

The victim of the sexual assault could not be reached for comment.

New look at older murder

Though Carini is expected to be formally cleared of the Lake County sexual assault in the coming days or weeks, proving his self-proclaimed innocence in his double murder conviction would be a much bigger hurdle.

Carini's uncle John Kuba, who lived in the Glenview area, and a childhood friend of Carini's, 19-year-old Joanne Seaquist of Vernon Hills, were separately reported missing in the spring of 1983.

Months later, a foul smell led police to a Northfield-area storage garage, where they discovered Kuba's and Seaquist's badly decomposed bodies in the trunk of Kuba's 1968 Chevrolet. Autopsies revealed Kuba had been shot several times and Seaquist had been strangled.

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Carini, who had rented the garage space, was arrested out of state. He was then 20 years old.

Over the years, Carini has told different versions of how the bodies ended up in the car, but he asserts his involvement did not amount to first-degree murder.

He initially said that he had been with Seaquist and his uncle when he fell asleep and was later awakened by gunshots and loud voices. Carini said he hid in a crawl space for an hour and when he emerged, Kuba and Seaquist were gone. Carini claimed to have received several anonymous calls over the next two days directing him to "get rid of the Chevy," so he moved it to his rented garage.

Initially, authorities determined they didn't have the evidence to charge Carini with murder. In 1985, he was convicted of concealing a homicide, for which he served 21/2 years in prison.

When he was released, he found a job and began a relationship with a woman his mother introduced him to. The weekend of the 1991 sexual assault in Lake County, the couple and their child had just moved into the Prospect Heights home of Ruthe and Lawrence Wille.

In 1995, after Carini was imprisoned for the rape, his former girlfriend implicated him in Kuba's murder. It wasn't until 1999 that Carini was formally charged with first-degree murder for the slayings of Kuba and Seaquist.

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At the murder trial, Carini's ex-girlfriend testified Carini told her he killed Kuba because "he deserved to die." He denied killing Seaquist, according to her testimony.

In a different version of events than he had told earlier, Carini testified that he walked in on his uncle attacking Seaquist. Carini said he wrestled a gun away from Kuba and shot him several times in defense of Seaquist, but not before Kuba strangled her.

Nonetheless, Carini was found guilty of both murders. Prosecutors asked for the death penalty but after hearing pleas for mercy from some of Carini's relatives, he was given a life sentence.

Kuba's death and Carini's conviction splintered the family. But even some relatives who remain convinced of Carini's guilt in Kuba's murder said they believe he was framed for the Lake County rape.

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"The rape case was a ploy to get him put away" for the murders, said Carini's aunt Cheri Everly, of Long Grove. "The cops really wanted to get him put away for the murder."

Still, Everly said she was "terrified of him (getting out of prison), knowing what he's capable of."

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Carini's uncle Ed Kuba, the brother of murder victim John Kuba, testified against Carini at the murder trial. Ed Kuba said he received a voicemail after his brother disappeared from someone who warned him, "Get your headstones. You're next." He said he believed Carini left the message.

Whether Carini is ever retried for the murders, his mother has set her sights next on obtaining a certificate of innocence in Carini's Lake County case. She said the document will confirm what she had already known for years.

"It's about time," she said.

tbriscoe@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @_tonybriscoe
"In retrospect," said President Barack Obama, speaking in an interview released Monday, he realizes he was "wildly pretentious."

As he prepares to write a post-presidential book, Obama told old friend David Axelrod, he is reading his "old journals" and letters to girls he was "courting." He is chagrined at what he wrote.

"They're impenetrable," Obama said in an interview for the "The Axe Files" podcast. "I mean, I don't - I don't understand what I'm saying . . . I'm like what - what are you talking about?"

Obama's comments about his time in college and the years that followed, particularly when he was a junior and senior at Columbia University, from which he graduated in 1983, come in the wake of the release of the Netflix movie "Barry." The movie focuses on his relationship with a white woman who is a composite character of those he dated at the time, as well as his developing views on race relations and his estranged father. The movie depicts him smoking, dancing, dating and partying.

Obama, while not referencing the movie in his interview with Axelrod, remembered himself as decidedly stodgy. He was, he said, a "monk" and "humorless," begging off from parties because he had to read the French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre. The women on campus found him "too intense."

Looking back, said the president of the United States, "I should've tried, like, you know, 'Wanna go to a movie?'"
Rep. Frank J. Mautino, D-Spring Valley, in the House Revenue and Finance Committee on the first day of the fall veto session at the State Capitol in Springfield Tuesday Oct. 22, 2013. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)

For months, the top financial watchdog in state government has declined to turn over financial records to election authorities. He also has disclosed he is under federal investigation regarding his campaign fund. Frank Mautino, a former lawmaker appointed Illinois auditor general last year, continues to stonewall.

Only in corruption-numb Illinois would Mautino remain on the job under those circumstances.

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The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of Illinois opened an investigation earlier this year into Mautino's higher-than-usual campaign expenditures at a gas station in his district and odd payments to a local bank, a Mautino spokesman has confirmed. The campaign fund, which is now dissolved, served Mautino while he was a state lawmaker from 1991 until 2015, when the General Assembly appointed him auditor general. In addition to the criminal probe, a citizen-driven complaint based on many of the same questions regarding his campaign account is making its way through the State Board of Elections.

But because of the inquiries  the feds and the elections board  Mautino has lawyered up and shut up. He hasn't talked about either case while continuing to oversee a statewide auditing office that is supposed to be led by an independent, uncompromised financial analyst.

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Here's a nudge for Mautino: Produce the paperwork the elections board has requested, but that you haven't provided, or take unpaid leave from your job. The state's top auditor should not be perched in the powerful position of auditing government departments when he's failing to comply with a state request for records.

The elections board has been waiting for Mautino to amend his old campaign reports since May 18. The board denied his request for a delay this summer. Attorney General Lisa Madigan filed a brief supporting the board's position in October.

Mautino is afforded the presumption of innocence; he hasn't been accused of wrongdoing. We're not suggesting he be stripped of his job. But while his attention is swallowed up by two sensitive legal matters, he should step aside and allow his deputies in the auditor general's office to take charge until this is resolved.

Mautino's attorney has argued that Mautino can't move forward with the elections board case because it could interfere with his ability to protect himself from self-incrimination in the federal case. He says Mautino is simply following the process set in statute, not stonewalling.

The underlying issues: Elections officials and prosecutors are questioning more than $200,000 in campaign funds spent at the same auto repair shop during a roughly 10-year period. While it's common for lawmakers to use their campaign funds to pay for fuel and vehicle expenses, Mautino's costs seem high. Many payments to the auto shop, Happy's Super Service in Spring Valley, were made in round numbers of more than $1,000 each.

Mautino's reports also show heavy spending at a local restaurant owned by his family.

Watchdog groups have noted other issues, including payments to Spring Valley City Bank that don't seem to make sense. Mautino's campaign fund appears to have paid the bank for things such as parking and campaign work. Mautino has not explained.

"What exactly were they getting from the service station? There's no explanation. It's implausible that you would spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on service in a few years," says Jacob Huebert, an attorney with the Liberty Justice Center who is representing David Cooke, the citizen who filed the initial complaint with the elections board against Mautino's committee.

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The Illinois auditor general is supposed to be an independent, principled watchdog. The previous auditor general, William Holland, earned a reputation for thorough, nonpartisan stewardship. He wasn't shy about releasing damning audits that jabbed both political parties. While Gov. Pat Quinn was facing a tough re-election campaign, Holland substantiated questionable spending on a violence prevention program Quinn spearheaded that squandered millions of dollars with little accounting.

Mautino is off to a sketchy start. About a dozen House Republican lawmakers filed a resolution calling for his ouster. It's sitting in the House rules committee overseen by Speaker Michael Madigan, for whom Mautino, a Democrat, once served in a leadership role.

Taxpayers have been patient for the past year as various groups have been questioning Mautino's campaign fund. But by now it's clear Mautino has every intention of stringing this out. The elections board has been waiting seven months for an explanation.

That's not what taxpayers expect of, or deserve from, the top auditor in state government. Step aside, Auditor General Mautino, until these matters get resolved.

Join the discussion on Twitter @Trib_Ed_Board and on Facebook.
The following people were sentenced on Nov. 22 in Cumberland County Court of Common Pleas. All sentences include costs and run concurrently with other sentences unless otherwise specified. Probation is unsupervised unless indicated otherwise. Driving under the influence (DUI) offenses generate different mandatory-minimum sentences based on an offenders prior convictions in the past 10 years.

Sentenced to State Correctional Institute

Boiling Springs

Alexis Laskowski: Nine to 24 months, restitution of $3,280, 60 months probation and 96 hours of community service for theft by unlawful taking or disposition. (Placey)

Camp Hill

Adam L. Morgan: Twelve months to 5 years and restitutions of $1,532.19, $250 and $250 for burglary-adapted overnight accommodation, no person present. (Ebert)

Harrisburg

Andrew Todd Merceruio: Six to 24 months, a $200 fine and restitutions of $547.25 and $657.88 for criminal trespass and criminal mischief, credit of 209 days. (Peck)

Leeroy Quiros-Correa: One to 2 years and a $200 fine for unlawful delivery, manufacture, possession with intent to deliver a Schedule I controlled substance-heroin. (Peck)

Sergio Becerra Santiago: One to 2 years for corrupt organizations; 3-6 years for criminal conspiracy to unlawful delivery, manufacture, possession with intent to deliver a Schedule II controlled substance-cocaine. (Masland)

Mechanicsburg

Collin Mitchell Miller: Twelve to 24 months and a $100 fine for arson (endangering property), charge A; 12 to 24 months and a $100 fine for arson (endangering property), charge B; 12 months probation for recklessly endangering another person, consecutive. (Peck); Twelve to 24 months, a $50 fine and restitutions of $5,000, $761.14, $1,000, $24,106, $23,859.86, for arson (endangering property) charge A; 12 to 24 months, a $50 fine for arson (endangering property), charge B; 12 months probation for recklessly endangering another person, consecutive. (Peck)

Mount Holly Springs

Rodney Lee Hartzell: Twenty-one to 42 months to possessing instruments of crime. (Masland)

Shermans Dale

Roger Lee Morrison Jr.: Twelve to 24 months and restitution of $2,170 for theft by unlawful taking or disposition. (Masland); Twenty-one to 42 months and restitution of $1,950 for criminal trespass; 12 to 24 months for theft by unlawful taking or disposition, credit of 239 days. (Masland)

Shippensburg

Jeffrey Lynn Dupy Jr.: One to 5 years and a $2,500 fine for DUI; 90 days and a $1,000 fine for driving while under suspension. (Ebert)

Other

Jonathan Lee Stimeling: Thirty months to 7 years, restitutions of $565, $10 $68, $2, $10 and $258 for theft by unlawful taking or disposition. (Masland)

Sentenced to Cumberland County Prison

Camp Hill

Shawn Eugene Beinhower: Ninety days to 23 months and a $1,500 fine for DUI. (Ebert)

Tamara Janell Leitzel: Thirty days to 6 months and a $750 fine for DUI, second offense; a $200 fine for driving while under suspension. (Guido); Ten days to 2 years and a $500 fine for DUI. (Guido)

Katelyn Marie Seewald: Nine to 23 months and restitution of $1,206.37 for theft by unlawful taking or disposition. (Guido)

Carlisle

Brandon James Barger: Ten days to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI, second offense. (Brewbaker)

Katrina Emerald Hughes: Nine days to 12 months, 48 months probation, restitution of $1, and 48 hours of community service for criminal conspiracy-theft by unlawful taking. (Placey)

Jamall Anthony Miller: Seventy-two hours to 23 months and a $1,000 fine for DUI, controlled substance; a $1,000 fine for driving while under suspension; costs for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Peck)

Janessa Dawn Rustamov: Four to 23 months and restitution of $39.99 for retail theft. (Masland)

Dalton Thomas Stackfield: Eleven and one-half to 23-1/2 months and 24 months probation for recklessly endangering another person; 11-1/2 to 23-1/2 months, 24 months probation and 48 hours of community service for recklessly endangering another person. (Placey)

Lucas Eugene Timmons: Five days to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI, second offense. (Ebert)

Darlene Marie Uplinger: Two days to 12 months, 36 months probation and 48 hours of community service for retail theft. (Placey)

Cecil Edward Williams: Time served to 23 months and restitution of $678.98 for recklessly endangering another person, credit of 181 days; a $200 fine for driving while under suspension. (Masland)

Edwin Lee Zinn: Six to 12 months for retail theft. (Masland)

Enola

Gilbert Shuler Bamberger Jr.: Ninety days and a $1,000 fine for driving while under suspension, DUI-related; 30 days to 6 months and a $750 fine for DUI, high rate, second offense, credit of 42 days. (Masland)

Harrisburg

Jamir Dimitri Gray: Three days to 6 months and a $1,000 fine for DUI; $200 fine driving while under suspension. (Guido)

Miguel Joseph Garcia: Five days to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI, second offense. (Guido)

Leeroy Quiros-Correa: Three months to 5 years and a $100 fine for endangering welfare of children-parent or guardian, consecutive. (Peck)

Lemoyne

Christopher Wayland James: Eleven days to 23 months for simple assault. (Guido)

Mechanicsburg

Michael Barry Howard: Five days to 6 months and a $750 fine for DUI, second offense. (Placey)

Clyde Steven Miller: Ten days to 9 months and a $300 fine for recklessly endangering another person. (Brewbaker)

New Cumberland

Jeremiah S. Musser: Ten days to 6 months, a $500 fine and 18 months probation for DUI; 20 days and 48 hours of community service for driving while under suspension. (Placey)

Newport

Jeramiah Winfield Shaffer: Ten days to 2 years for DUI; 60 days and a $500 fine for driving while under suspension, DUI-related. (Brewbaker)

Shippensburg

Irvin Lee Franklin: Nine days to 23 months, a $150 fine and restitution of $965 for unlawful delivery, manufacture, possession with intent to deliver a Schedule I controlled substance-marijuana. (Peck)

Heather Lynn Robinson: Ten days to 6 months and a $1,000 fine for DUI, second offense. (Brewbaker)

Brandon Lee Thomas: Twelve days to 12 months, 48 hours of community service, restitution of $1 and 48 months probation for criminal conspiracy to theft by unlawful taking. (Hess)

Other

Andrew Michael Konetsco: Sixty-one days to 23 months for prohibited offensive weapons; a $300 fine for disorderly conduct. (Masland)

Sentenced to Probation

Carlisle

Brandon James Barger: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Brewbaker)

David Robert Barnett: Six months probation and a $30 fine for DUI. (Guido)

Akeem Jahmal Ramsey: $50 fine for unlawful possession small amount of marijuana; $25 fine for careless driving; 6 months probation and a $200 fine for driving while under suspension, second offense. (Guido)

Jared Scott Rohrer: Twelve months probation for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Guido)

Jessica Anne Wood: Two years probation, a $100 fine and restitutions of $800 and $110 for retail theft. (Peck)

Dillsburg

Devin Michael Stough: Thirty months probation, a $300 fine for fleeing or attempting to elude police officer; a $300 fine for accident involving damage to unattended vehicle or property; a $200 fine for driving while under suspension, second offense. (Brewbaker)

Enola

Selby Shade Harter: Twelve months probation for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia; a $300 fine for accident involving damage to unattended vehicle or property; 6 months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Guido)

Harry William Tavernia Jr.: Twenty-four months probation and 24 hours of community service for simple assault. (Placey)

Mechanicsburg

Andrew Norris Muza: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Peck)

Kevin James Randolph: Four years probation and restitution of $4,540 for theft by unlawful taking or disposition. (Masland)

Tate Howard Warlick: Twelve months probation, a $150 fine and restitutions of $866.38 and $24 for theft by unlawful taking or disposition and defiant trespass. (Peck)

Mitchell George Wirth: Three years probation, a $300 fine and restitution of $75 for endangering welfare of children, parent or guardian. (Peck)

Mount Holly Springs

Christopher James Nicoll Jr.: Six months probation for unauthorized use of automobile and other vehicles; a $50 fine for harassment. (Peck)

Dallas Raye Gipe: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Ebert)

New Cumberland

Benjamin Thomas Cameron: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Brewbaker)

Daniel L. Corrigan: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI; a $200 fine for reckless driving. (Guido)

John David Lauver: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Ebert)

Newport

Carl John Weidenhof: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Ebert)

Newville

Jacob Shawn Moore Belt: Sixty months probation and 96 hours of community service for statutory sexual assault (4 to 8-years and older). (Placey)

Shippensburg

Terry Lee Holtry: Sixty months probation and a $1,300 fine and 100 hours of community service for DUI; 60 months probation, 48 hours of community service for endangering the welfare of children, parent or guardian. (Placey)

Melissa M. Sanders: Twenty-four months probation, a $100 fine and restitution of $5,917 for obtaining public welfare funds by misrepresentation. (Brewbaker)

Other

Victor B. Calafaty: Thirty-six months probation and a $1,300 fine for stalking. (Guido)

George Elliot Dickerson: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI; $200 fine for driving while under suspension, second offense. (Guido)

Sentenced to Fine

Carlisle

Jessica A. Wood: Costs for unlawful possession of Schedule I controlled substance-Oxycodone. (Peck)
Nolan Dickte, second from left, 21, and Eric Hertel, 18, right, mount tires at Douglas Automotive on Dec. 13, 2016, in Barrington. Douglas Automotive was subject to a Cook County ordinance that requires employers to pay their workers a mandatory minimum wage and offer up to 40 hours of paid sick leave. The city of Barrington, where the auto shop in located, decided to opt out of the ordinance. (Alyssa Pointer / Chicago Tribune)

Cook County's looming minimum wage hike and paid sick time law have sparked the perpetual debates about whether such mandates help workers or hamstring employers and threaten jobs.

Now at least one community is doing more than debating  it has opted out. And other suburbs could follow suit.

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In October, the Cook County Board passed two laws to mirror measures in Chicago: One allows employees, with a few exceptions, to accrue up to five days of paid sick time each year; the other increases the minimum wage, in increments, to $13 an hour by 2020.

Supporters said workers should be able to make a living wage and shouldn't have to choose between earning a day's pay and taking care of themselves or a family member, yet about 40 percent of private sector workers do not currently have paid sick time benefits.

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But particularly in suburbs that border collar counties, some local officials are worried the mandates will put undue strain on employers or could dissuade new businesses from setting up shop. Some critics argue such workplace policies should be left up to business owners.

The new laws take effect July 1, but any municipality can opt out at any time, regardless of whether they have home-rule authority, according to county and local officials.

"As a border community, it hurts our businesses," said Jim Schwantz, mayor of Palatine, which borders Lake County. "I think it's an overreach by the (Cook County Board)."

After inquiries from elected officials and the business community, the Palatine Village Council is expected to take up the question early next year of opting out of one or both of the pay measures, Village Manager Reid Ottesen said.

"Our concern is trying to do something at the local level. All (the ordinances are) doing is unbalancing the playing field," Ottesen said. "You're going to have businesses ... go (across the county line) to Lake Zurich. Why go to Palatine?"

He added that the issue "needs to be addressed at a statewide level, not a county level."

That lack of uniformity is why Barrington officials just last month opted out of the new laws  apparently the first community to do so.

Village President Karen Darch said officials were concerned because the village straddles the Cook-Lake county line, which runs right through the community's downtown business district.

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"We acted immediately," she said. "We want a level playing field. We would have had one side of the street playing by one set of rules, and the other side playing by another. We don't want to have two sets of rules for businesses in our community."

Elgin Mayor David Kaptain said he plans to bring up the issue to the City Council at some point before the new laws take effect. About a third of Elgin is in Cook County; the rest is in Kane.

Kaptain said he shares the concerns of other border towns about the effect of more than one set of rules for businesses.

Northwestern University law professor Nadav Shoked, who specializes in local government laws, said county regulations typically only govern unincorporated areas, so it's not surprising that municipalities are already looking at opting out of the new Cook County laws.

Douglas McAllister, owner of Douglas Automotive, talks about his experience as a business owner and the impact that the Cook County minimum wage and paid time ordinance would have had on his small business. (Alyssa Pointer/Chicago Tribune) ((Alyssa Pointer/Chicago Tribune)/Chicago Tribune)

Generally speaking, he said, a municipal ordinance trumps a county law when it comes to issues like minimum wage.

And, Shoked added: "These things tend to have a domino effect. If one (town) opts out, the one next door does."

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Cook County Commissioner Timothy Schneider, a Republican from Bartlett, voted against the sick pay and minimum wage increase laws after hearing from businesses in his northwest suburban district, which includes part of Barrington. He said he's heard from officials in other suburbs he represents and believes most will follow Barrington's lead and opt out.

Other suburban Republican commissioners who voted against the measure say most of the municipalities they represent want to opt out but fear political payback.

"I would say that a majority would prefer to opt out, but there's a genuine fear among community leaders of retribution from the county," said Commissioner Gregg Goslin of Glenview, whose district includes parts of the northern and northwest suburbs near the county border. Gosling said if local leaders reject the pay initiatives, the county might reduce funding of county roads that run through their towns.

"Whether that's real or perceived is another story," he said.

Commissioner Sean Morrison of Palos Park represents a district that runs from Des Plaines in the north all the way south to Orland Park. He said most of the officials in the suburbs he represents have expressed an interest in opting out, but he won't name them, and added they, too, fear the loss of funds for local roads.

Still, Morrison said, "I have a suspicion that a great many of (the suburbs) will (opt out). In late winter, early spring, you might see villages doing it."

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Morrison points out the concern in his district stems from the effect of several county initiatives, like tax increases, have had on business near the border.

"It's noticeable in the last eight to 10 years. It's starting to become retail deserts along the border," he said. "This patchwork creates an unfair business advantage. It's terrible policy."

Suzanne Corr, president of the Barrington Area Chamber of Commerce, said her members wrote letters to county and village board members in opposition to the new laws, expressing that same concern about a patchwork of laws. Because Barrington sits in two counties, her local business community was troubled about having two different sets of rules for employers, she said.

"It would put our community and our businesses at a complete disadvantage," she said. "You become acutely aware of how decisions like that are going to affect your community when you have a dividing line down the middle."

Corr also said county laws designed to mirror standards in Chicago may not work in outlying suburban areas.

"It appears Cook County follows the Chicago lead," she said. "There's just different dynamics going on in suburban communities. Particularly in our community, we can see the differences, and we have to respond to the differences to create level playing field."

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Doug McAllister, owner of Douglas Automotive on the Cook County side of Barrington, said he's glad the village took such swift action opting out. He also has locations in Crystal Lake and Fox River Grove, outside of Cook County.

"It would've been a challenge for me to have different pay scales for the same job," he said, adding that "the whole premise ... just annoys me because I take good care of my people. (The County Board) needs to do what government is supposed to do and let businesses do what they're supposed to do."

McAllister said he doesn't need a sick day mandate to offer his employees attractive benefits and the opportunity to stay home if they need to for themselves or their family.

The cost of the minimum wage increase on McAllister's business also could've forced him to cease a part-time program he has for young employees.

"What they were asking for, that would've been a problem and might've limited my ability to mentor young guys who are looking to get into this business," he said.

But Adam Kader, worker center director with Arise Chicago, an organization that supports workers' rights, said suburbs that opt out are doing a disservice to those who work in their communities. The group plans to speak out to elected officials, as it did at a recent Palatine Village Council meeting, to urge them to keep the county's sick time law in place.

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"We feel strongly that this is a well-rounded policy," Kader said, pointing out similar laws in New York City, Los Angeles and other major cities. "You have to choose between making a day's wage and taking care of ... your health? That's an unfair choice, an unnecessary choice. There's a growing recognition that this is unacceptable. It's a basic protection all workers should have."

At the federal level, President-elect Donald Trump's pick for labor secretary, fast-food executive Andy Puzder, has reportedly been critical of a push for a $15-an-hour minimum wage and other mandated worker protections.

kthayer@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @knthayer
A Harvey man has been charged with attempted murder and aggravated battery following a shooting at a holiday party Saturday night in South Holland, according to police.

Alford Thorpe, 44, of 14441 S. Des Plaines St., was charged Sunday evening in the shooting of 35-year-old Kehinda Pryor during a party in the 17000 block of Parkside Avenue in South Holland, police said in a news release.

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Thorpe was being held Monday at Cook County Jail on $800,000 bail, with a Tuesday court appearance scheduled at the Markham Courthouse, according to sheriff's police records.

Thorpe had attended the party with his girlfriend, a relative of Pryor's, and argued with the girlfriend prior to the shooting, according to South Holland Police Chief Greg Baker.

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Baker added that Thorpe was told to leave and later returned with a gun.

Police had previously said that Thorpe and the victim had been arguing at the party, and that after he was escorted from home where the party was being held came back about an hour later and shot Pryor in the stomach. Pryor was taken to Advocate Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, and police said in the news release that he was still recovering from his injuries.

Pryor lives at the home where the shooting took place, according to police.

Police report that after the shooting, which occurred at about 9 p.m., several people at the party held Thorpe down until police arrived..

Mike Nolan and Daily Southtown freelance reporter Frank Vaisvilas contributed.
Daphne McClain, center, was looking for after-Christmas bargains at Orland Square Mall with her daughter Diamond, left, and son Ivory. (Mike Nolan / Daily Southtown)

Whether returning or exchanging gifts or hunting for post-Christmas deals, Southland residents Monday hit area shopping centers, including Orland Square Mall in Orland Park.

Looking through the assortment of bags she had collected, Tess Gheytanchi explained that Monday was the first day she had been able to get out to buy Christmas gifts for her family in Kentucky, and she had picked up items including sweaters and soaps.

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Visiting cousins in the area, the Louisville woman said she had at least six people to find gifts for before heading back home Tuesday. One of her cousins, Elaina Stevens, of New Lenox, was with her and used the opportunity to scour the mall for post-holiday bargains.

"Any kind of clothes," she said when asked what was on her list.

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Abigail Arroyo, of Chicago, came to the mall to return one item that was the wrong size, but also spent time Monday "taking advantage of some of the discounts" that mall tenants such as Gap and Macy's were offering. The half-price sale at Macy's was a chance to pick up shoes and pants, she said.

Whether exchanging or returning Christmas gifts or hunting for post-holiday sales, shoppers were plentiful Monday at Orland Square Mall in Orland Park. (Mike Nolan / Daily Southtown)

Arroyo said that while merchandise discounts in the days leading up to Christmas are enticing, "I wait until now (after the holiday)" to do some shopping because "it's a better deal."

Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

Daphne McClain, of Calumet City, said she was at the mall looking for "things we couldn't find before" the holidays and also hoping that crowds at the mall would be more manageable. She said the deals Monday were "pretty good," and that she was able to find a pair of sneakers for her 7-year-old daughter.

While some people at the mall were there for their daily walk or said they were just browsing, many shoppers were toting bags, walking through the mall's corridors or taking a break in or around the food court.

During the two weeks preceding Christmas, Orland Square was "exceptionally busy," and people were doing more buying than browsing, Andrew Dunn, the mall's marketing director, said Monday.

A sign outside the Carson Pirie Scott store at Orland Square Mall advertised post-Christmas discounts Monday at the Orland Park mall. (Mike Nolan / Daily Southtown)

He said that sales figures for the mall overall showed that November was "an awesome month," and that through November the mall was showing "great year-over-year growth" in sales among tenants.

Before the holiday shopping season got underway, the National Retail Federation was projecting sales this season to increase 3.7 percent, to $630.5 billion, compared with growth of 4.1 percent for the 2015 holiday season. The NRF said the average increase for the last 10 years has been 2.5 percent.

The International Council of Shopping Centers, based on a survey conducted for the organization in September, was forecasting a 3.3 percent year-over-year increase in sales at stores for this holiday season compared with a 2.2 percent increase last year when compared to 2014. The council, citing survey results, said that 91 percent of holiday shoppers planned to do their buying this year at brick-and-mortar stores.

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mnolan@tribpub.com
More than 40 volunteers came to the Naperville Marriott on Sunday to serve a Christmas dinner to more than 150 seniors. The YMCA offered the holiday meal for the 33rd year. (David Sharos / Naperville Sun)

When it comes to what to eat on Christmas Day, Joe Reuter says he's not fussy.

"Look at me," he said while patting his stomach. "I'm round, firm, and fully packed. When it comes to Christmas dinner  I'm not picky. I just want the food."

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Christmas dinner without friends or family would bring out the "bah humbug" in anyone. But thanks to the efforts of Naperville's YMCA and Park District, more than 150 senior citizens like Reuter were treated to a warm holiday meal with all the fixings beginning at noon Sunday at the Chicago Marriott Naperville.

More than 100 senior citizens came to the Naperville Marriott Sunday to enjoy a Christmas dinner provided by the Naperville YMCA and Park District. (David Sharos / Naperville Sun)

Sunday's meal was the 33rd offered by the YMCA and the seventh it has hosted in partnership with the Park District. Executive director of Naperville YMCAs R.J. Bartels said the alliance was formed after the YMCA lost its location at a local Holiday Inn.

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"This was started years ago by a gentleman who went to pick up his mother at a local senior center and he saw all these seniors alone on Christmas Day," Bartels said.."He reached out to the YMCA and offered a down payment, and we've been doing this ever since."

Banquet chef for the Marriott Nick Salmieri said preparation for Sunday's meal began two days before the event and that this was not the first time he has overseen preparations for the YMCA Christmas dinner.

"People seem to like the sweet potatoes which are really good, and the turkey is nice and moist," Salmieri said. "Overall, I like the atmosphere of this event, and even though I'm away from my wife and two kids  I'll be done here by 1:30 or so, and there will still be family time today."

Naperville Park District Executive Director Ray McGury welcomes guests to the 33rd annual Christmas sponsored by the Naperville YMCA and the Park District. (David Sharos / Naperville Sun)

Bartels said the meal itself carries a price tag of anywhere from $3,000 to $4,000 and that close to 200 people were served by 40 volunteers.

"Once again, we had so many people volunteer, we had to turn many of them away and ask them to come back next year," he said.

Brian McClowry of Naperville and his daughter Maggie, 19, currently a student at the University of Illinois, said this was their first year to volunteer working at the holiday dinner and that it gave them a renewed appreciation for their own family.

"I'm a father of eight with six girls and two boys, so we're never alone when it comes to the holidays," Brian McClowry said. "All of my kids have been involved with the YMCA over the years and we wanted to give back."

"This is the first time we've worked here, but we've done other community things before," added Maggie McClowry. "We lost my grandmother on my mother's side two years ago today on Christmas, so this is kind of a bittersweet thing for us."

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Horst Fiedler of Naperville and his wife Maria were among the many guests enjoying dinner and the holiday music. Horst Fiedler said this was his first time coming to the dinner and that he was looking forward to enjoying himself despite having a menu that didn't reflect his German ethnicity.

"I prefer a good Schnitzel myself, but I also like American food," he said. "I really appreciate what they are doing here."

Banquet chef Nick Salmieri helps serve a special Christmas meal offered Sunday at the Naperville Marriott by the YMCA. (David Sharos / Naperville Sun)

Judy Patchett of Hillside said she has been attending the holiday meal for 15 years and declared herself and others "lucky on Christmas Day to have a place for myself and other seniors to go."

"I brought three other people today that I know from the YMCA and this is a wonderful opportunity to have a meal as well as having others to talk to," she said.

Executive director for the Park District Ray McGury acknowledged the Christmas dinner interrupts his and other volunteers' holiday plans but said he was "humbled and honored" to be a part of the event, which he added also provides a teachable moment.

"Of all the partnerships and things we do throughout the year  this event is probably at the top of my list," McGury said. "If this prevents someone from being alone on Christmas Day and having a nice meal  this is a victory. I always bring my wife and sons, who are grown men, to this, and I feel you're never too old to learn the importance of giving back and understanding there are others who don't have as much."
When Jeremy Langer of Hammond recently convinced his parents to take him to see Santa Claus at the Indiana Welcome Center, he had no idea he would have the opportunity to eat mashed potatoes for breakfast.

'I wondered why all these people were streaming into the auditorium," said mom Jeannie Langer, as the family perused the many decorated trees while waiting for Santa to arrive. "We found out that the Mommy's Little Piggy Eating Contest was going on."

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The annual event is in its eighth year, and is one of many contests offered during the, "A Christmas Story Comes Home" exhibition sponsored by the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority, at the Welcome Center.

Randy  one of the characters in popular holiday movie "A Christmas Story", written by Hammond native Jean Shepherd  is encourged to eat his mashed potatoes in a messy manner by his mother.

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Four age groups vied for a chance to win a trophy with a Ralphie bobblehead. Younger contestants were monitored by a three-minute timer as they tried to consume scoops of mashed potatoes on their plate.

In the adult category, the winner was based on how many scoops of mashed potatoes they can eat in a three-minute time period.

"My granddaughter Emma was registered in her age category and we came here to support her," said Ralph Furman of Hammond. "She convinced me to sign up too when we got here."

Grandpa was glad he did, because he won in the adult category, taking home the coveted trophy and a gift card from Strack and Van Til.

Strack and Van Til also donated the many pounds of mashed potatoes used in the competition. The spuds arrived in insulated boxes to keep them warm, according to Andrea Riveria, one of the servers.

Chuck Anderson of Griffith was in the audience cheering on his two grandchildren Isabella, 11, and Gabe, 8.

"This is an exciting, fun contest for them" he said. "This gets the whole family involved."

Frank Johnson of Munster also yelled out support for his grandchildren Jerry, 7 and Jolene, 6, as they downed their mashed potatoes.

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"My Christmas Story film has been through three generations," he said, with a laugh. "There's never been a story told like this film does, especially for those of us who grew up in Hammond."

The emcee for the event was Speros Batistatos, president/CEO of the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority, who kept a close eye on the participants and made sure the plates of potatoes kept flowing.

He believes the continued popularity of the Welcome Center exhibit and various contests is due to people identifying in a personal way with the film.

"This movie is iconic, a classic that reflects family values," he said, during an intermission in the contest. "That's what we're all about. Everything we do is for families."

Sue Ellen Ross is a freelance writer for the Post-Tribune.

Mommy's Little Piggy Eating Contest winners

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4-7 age group - Beau Bliss

8-12 age group - Cesar Vargas

13-17 age group - Brandon Bacerra

Adult - Ralph Furman
The December day began like any other. Will Corporon awoke to the noisy bustle of his life, five children and loving wife. He headed out, a normal day in the life of a hardworking American father.

Until the days news reared with an offending slap.

Dylann S. Roof was convicted on 33 federal hate crime-related charges for the execution slaughter of nine African-Americans as they prayed in a historically significant South Carolina church.

Corporon sent me a text shortly after he heard the news: Hey, Mary, how come there is a federal hate crimes trial for Dylann Roof but not our idiot?

Our idiot is known to the Kansas Department of Corrections as F. Glenn Miller Jr. He drove to the Kansas City area from southern Missouri in 2014 intent to murder Jews. He shot and killed Corporons father and his 14-year-old nephew, and then turned his shotgun on the beloved wife and mother of another family who had ventured out that rainy afternoon to visit her mother in a nursing home. All were Christian.

Dont know the names of the victims? Specifics of the case dont resonate? Thats part of what makes Corporon upset, and with good reason.

In America, deranged people can kill with racial, ethnic, religious or any of a wide range of hatreds and receive far differing reactions from the national media, the general public and seemingly even from the forces of justice.

And so 24/7 news coverage of Roof agitated Corporon, who lives in Arkansas.

What if the idiot had been successful and had killed numerous Jewish people? Would the national outcry have been different? What if the victims had been black? Would advocacy groups or high-profile individuals have stepped in to pressure for federal attention?

In this day and age, why pass up the opportunity to send a message? Corporon asked.

Fair questions  and hard to answer. As a reporter, I was truly surprised that Millers murders did not become a bigger national story.

The most recent federal data on hate crimes detail more than 7,000 people targeted in 2015. Hate crimes targeting the victims real or perceived race/ethnicity/ancestry were the most prevalent, accounting for 59 percent of the incidents. Next was religious bias at nearly 20 percent, followed by sexual orientation at almost 18 percent.

Among the hate crimes motivated by race or ethnicity, black people by far were the main victims, drawing more than 50 percent of the crimes. Whites followed at nearly 19 percent. Anti-Hispanic or Latino bias motivated 9 percent of the crimes. Among crimes motivated by religious bias, anti-Semitism accounted for more than half of the attacks, followed by anti-Muslim bias at about 22 percent.

So the despicable actions of both Roof and Miller fit the leading patterns of hate crimes.

There are explanations for the lack of hate crime charges in the Kansas murders. Corporon accepts them, to a point.

We did get justice, he said. But to me, its more about a message that the U.S. government stands up and says, This is a hate crime and we arent going to tolerate it. 

A decision was made between the district attorney and the then-U.S. attorney for Kansas, Barry Grissom. The goal was to get the case to trial quickly. Federal action would take longer.

Like South Carolina, Kansas has no hate crime law. But it does have enhanced sentencing for bias motivated crimes. Miller was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death. Asthmatic and feeble, he will die in prison.

Officials didnt want to put the community and the families through another trial to reach the same result. As Corporon concedes, they cant kill Miller twice. The dignity and respect afforded the families during every phase of the trial was a testament to prosecutors and the judge.

More than 50 years of age separate Roof and Miller. But they are largely the same type of person.

Both dwell on concocted versions of racial strife. Roof wanted to start a race war, inspired by online reports of nonexistent murder sprees by black people targeting whites. Miller, a longtime white supremacist, was obsessed by the belief that immigrants, Jewish people and minorities are pitted against white people.

Corporon sees a common theme. Its all just another example of ways that we are mean and hostile to each other, he said.

Yet both crimes also engendered tremendous acts of kindness from people moved by the violence, strangers who were deeply offended by the hatred. Maybe, it will be at that level that these hateful acts will be overcome.

Mary Sanchez is an opinion-page columnist for The Kansas City Star. Email at msanchez@kcstar.com.
Julena Jeffries, mother of Aneiceia Moore, 21, sits next to her bed in their Gary home. (Jim Karczewski / Post-Tribune)

People came and went from the blue bedroom Wednesday as Aneiceia Moore lay on what looked similar to a hospital bed, watching TV. With one broken and one fractured hip, a broken pelvis and a damaged bladder, she has been bedridden for weeks, she said.

It has been tough to watch Moore recover from being run over by a car on Thanksgiving, said Moore's mother, Julena Jeffries, and her focus has been on helping her daughter during the holiday season.

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"I have completely forgotten about Christmas," Jeffries said.

It has been almost as unnerving to wait for answers and potential charges from an investigation into the incident nearly a month later, Jeffries said. There is a proper procedure police and prosecutors have to follow when investigating and filing potential charges to make sure a case is handled right, but for a family waiting for answers and knowing whoever hurt her daughter "is still out there," it can be frustrating, Jeffries said.

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"She's a wreck. She's not sleeping. She's having nightmares," Jeffries said.

Aneiceia Moore, 21, lies in bed with a shattered pelvis in her Gary home. (Jim Karczewski / Post-Tribune)

East Chicago police have interviewed Moore, 21, and witnesses in the case, and are working to be transparent while not jeopardizing the investigation, according to Lt. Marguerite Wilder. As of Tuesday, the department had submitted its case file to the Lake County Prosecutor's Office for review, Wilder said.

No one had been charged in the case as of Friday afternoon.

Moore and an East Chicago police report recount what happened Nov. 25: Moore was returning to her East Chicago apartment about 2 a.m. after celebrating Thanksgiving with family at her mother's home.

She was approached by a man she knew who took her keys and tried to leave in her car. Moore tried to stop him and jumped on the hood of the car while it was moving, and she fell from the hood and was run over, she said. In hindsight, Moore said she probably should not have tried to stop him, but at the time, she just wanted to keep her car, she said.

Julena Jeffries, mother Aneiceia Moore, talks about her daughter's recovery recently in her Gary home. (Jim Karczewski / Post-Tribune)

Moore recalls that the man put her in the vehicle and said, "I'm going to take you to the lake," she said. She was able to get free by cutting him with a box cutter in her car, she said, and the man fled on foot, leaving her around 5th Avenue and Tennessee Street in Gary.

"I had rolled out of the car and was waving for help from someone who would drive past," Moore said.

Moore was able to flag someone down, who notified police, and she was transported to Methodist Hospital in Gary and then to Advocate Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, Ill. When Jeffries heard the news from a relative, she called around until she found what hospital her daughter was in, she said.

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After having surgery, Moore said she was released from the hospital on Dec. 9 and is looking at six to eight weeks of recovery. She hopes to work on walking again soon, her mother said.

Jeffries looked through photos Wednesday of her daughter's injuries and bruises taken from when she was in the hospital. She also had photos of Moore's shirt and pants that were dirtied from being under the car.

Lorrell Kilpatrick and Kim McGee, of Black Lives Matter Northwest Indiana, have offered their help to Moore and Jeffries in the weeks after the incident, visiting the two Wednesday. They have worked to raise money to help pay for medical bills and with hashtags on social media to share encouraging words with Moore.

"We basically just have been trying to support their family," McGee said.

In the coming days, Jeffries said she will continue to check in with authorities on their progress as she waits and cares for her daughter.

rejacobs@post-trib.com

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People work at a co-work space in Liaocheng,Shandong province,Oct 28, 2016. [Photo/China Daily]

These days, "Shanghai 189 Lane", Citic Capital's colorfully decorated and brightly illumined seven-story shopping complex in downtown Shanghai, sees an endless stream of young people entering and exiting, morning till late night. The year-end winter chill is no bar for thembut Christmas shopping isn't what they are here for.

They are the city's entrepreneurs and self-employed professionals, out to view the floor plans of the top two stories of the complex.

That's where lots of co-work spaces have been installed of late. Shanghai 189 Lane is one of the 200-odd co-work space sites that have mushroomed across the city.

Zhang Yueqiang, a startup co-founder who is expecting to launch a visual reality content design outfit soon, said: "I've visited 18 sites in Shanghai in the last one week, and I'm thinking of moving into one of them at the beginning of 2017. Some are offering discounted rates at the year-end. But my co-founder said we should visit some more as there are plenty of choices now.

"We need to choose the most cost-effective one, taking rental, location and services into consideration."

Convenient, flexible, and affordable, co-work spaces have become the first choice of many startups, freelancers, independent players and self-employed professionals on the lookout for offices in Beijing and Shanghai.

According to a research note by JLL, a real estate services provider, the number of co-work spaces in Beijing and Shanghai has jumped to over 500 from no more than 10 just five years ago.

A research note from Shanghai-based Ruiyi Consultancy Ltd said the co-work space market by floor space grew 71 precent annually on average from 2007 to 2015, and is projected to grow 68 percent annually from 2016 to 2018.

Companies from different fields such as real estate (UR Work, Soho 3Q), hospitality (Naked Hub which owns several resorts and hotel sites), and media (KrSpace) have entered the co-work space market and expanded quickly.

That's not all. Foreign brands in this segment like WeWork from the US are trying to meet China's rising demand for co-work spaces.

WeWork received $430 million in funding from China's Legend Holdings. The latter's private equity arm Hony Capital valued WeWork at more than $15 billion.

WeWork has opened two co-work sites in Shanghai. It is preparing to launch a third one now, and is also expanding to Beijing.

Mao Daqing, founder of UR Work, said his co-work space brand aims to increase the number of its sites from 40 across 10 cities by this year-end to 60 in 2017.

Naked Hub announced in late November that it will accelerate its regional expansion and enhance its property resources via Gaw Capital Partners, aiming to add up to 30 new locations, or about 150,000 square meters and 30,000 members across the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, and other key cities in Asia.

A research note from CBRE on innovative sectors' leasing trends said that China's small enterprises and startups are favoring co-work spaces because their cost is "lower" and their atmosphere appeals to young talent, particularly those working in the TMT (technology, media and telecommunication) space.

Sam Xie, research director of CBRE China, said innovative talent tends to work at sites in convenient locations. And when they work together, they can form a "cluster".

"Co-work spaces are meeting these demands, so they are increasingly favored," said Xie.

Tenants have other considerations too, said real estate agents.

Feng Yunxi, a real estate agent with Shanghai-based Fengxiang Real Estate Co, said: "Innovation and entrepreneurship have become a national aspiration. An increasing number of startups are emerging. All of them need a decent space to operate from. They can actually work from their homes or even rented residential flats to save on costs.

"But they are looking for a community, where they can feel that they are not alone, where they can get resources, such as business opportunities from other tenants, on short-term lease basis. That's so because startups do realize there's no certainty they will survive in the long run and thrive. If they do, they may need to move to a larger office."

That would be a risk though, from the space provider's perspective. Whether tenants' businesses succeed or fail, they would eventually likely move out, leaving the office desks empty. So, operators are evolving new strategies to make their own business viable in the long run.

In addition to startups and freelancers, mid-sized and large enterprises are also being courted by co-work site operators.

"Co-work spaces may no longer be an exclusive zone for small businesses. Operators' huge investments need a stable turnover. So, a balanced tenant portfolio becomes necessary to hedge risks.

"In the US where co-work spaces first emerged, and in Hong Kong where co-work spaces are common, bigger businesses such as banks and technology companies have moved some of their teams to co-work spaces.

"The younger generation among their staff prefer such atmosphere and some creative arms of established businesses may not find a fixed seat comfortable and suitable. I think in the Chinese mainland, more co-work spaces will allocate more resources to bigger tenants in the future," said Kenneth Rhee, CEO of Huhan Business Advisory (Shanghai).
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The Fifth Session of the 12th National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, will convene in Beijing on March 5 next year.

The decision was adopted at a week-long bimonthly session of the NPC Standing Committee, which concluded in Beijing on Sunday.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang presides over a conference on promoting the sustainable and healthy development of the country's western regions in Beijing, capital of China, Dec. 23, 2016. Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli attended the conference. (Xinhua/Li Tao)

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has urged greater efforts to promote the sustainable and healthy development of the country's western regions.

China has made remarkable progress since it initiated a strategy to develop its vast western areas in 2000. The 13th Five-Year (2016-2020) Plan period is a crucial time for western regions to realize transformation and upgrading, Li said at a conference on Friday.

The country should push forward supply-side structural reform, expand demand moderately, boost innovation, continue to implement the west development strategy, and strengthen the coordination of it with other major strategies such as the Belt and Road Initiative and development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, he said.

The fundamental way to develop the regions is to enhance their endogenous growth through innovation and reform and opening-up, Li said.

More efforts should be done to streamline administrative approvals, reduce taxation and fees, cut transaction costs, improve business environment, promote entrepreneurship, encourage private capital to participate in the development of the western regions.

Li stressed the importance of infrastructure construction and ecological protection in promoting the western regions' sustainable development. He urged efforts to protect the environment, improve road and water infrastructure, and ensure the quality of drinking water for rural residents.

Environmentally-friendly industries that can employ a large workforce are encouraged to move to the western regions. Investors are also encouraged to build factories there.

Li called for efforts to develop advanced manufacturing sector and emerging sectors, and promote the development of industries with ethnic characteristics such as medicine and traditional handicraft.

He added that in order to improve people's livelihoods, targeted and precise measures should be adopted to alleviate poverty. More education and health care resources should be channeled to the western regions, and basic public services should be increased.

The west development strategy covers 11 provinces and autonomous regions including Gansu, Guizhou, Ningxia, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Tibet, Xinjiang, Yunnan, Inner Mongolia and Guangxi, in addition to Chongqing Municipality. The regions account for more than two thirds of the nation's territory, with a population making up over 20 percent of the nation's total.
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China will set up 126 monitoring sites nationwide to study the effect of air pollution on health.

The National Health and Family Planning Commission has been researching correlations between health and smog, Ma Xiaowei, deputy head of the commission, told a press conference held on Friday.

"This work is still in its primary stage, but we are losing no time," said Ma.

China has started smog risk assessments and a program on smog warning technology to identify typical pollutants that harm people's health and establish an evaluation system.
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Two people were killed and six remained missing after an explosion at a fireworks workshop in north China's Hebei Province Saturday, local police announced Sunday.

Scene of the explosion at a fireworks workshop in north China's Hebei Province.[Photo: Chinanews.com]

The explosion at 1 p.m. Saturday leveled down the workshop and damaged about a dozen homes nearby in Yanzihe village in Fengrun District of Tangshan City, said the district's public security bureau.

Sixteen more people were injured. One suffered severe eye injuries and the rest suffered bruises.

A police investigation found that the workshop owner, a villager surnamed Gao, were allegedly involved in illegal storage and production of fireworks.

Police have retrieved some human tissues at the site and were conducting DNA testing.
The CNS Liaoning aircraft carrier battle group has set off for the Western Pacific where it will take part in an open-sea exercise, a spokesman for the People's Liberation Army Navy has announced.

A J-15 fighter takes off from the Liaoning on Friday during a fleet training exercise in the Yellow Sea. [Photo/China Daily]

Senior Captain Liang Yang did not provide further details of the exercise on Saturday, but did say that it was part of the group's annual training schedule.

According to the PLA Navy, the group carried out "full-element" training in the East China Sea on Saturday, which mainly involved J-15 carrier-borne fighter jets.

The planes performed air tactical confrontation drills and air refueling operations, while ships conducted resupply training, the navy said.

"From the Bohai Sea to the Yellow Sea, and farther into the East China Sea, the carrier battle group ... has been exploring integrated, systematic and realistic training methods and performed 'full-element', joint exercises among the Liaoning, carrier-borne aviation units and escort ships," read a navy news release.

Footage broadcast by China Central Television showed Admiral Wu Shengli, commander of the PLA Navy, aboard the Liaoning as he oversaw the battle group's drills. It is not known whether Wu will remain aboard for the Western Pacific exercise.

The Japanese Defense Ministry said on Sunday it had spotted the Liaoning group on Sunday morning as the fleet was passing through the Miyako Strait toward the Western Pacific. The group consists of the aircraft carrier, three Type 052C and Type 052D guided missile destroyers and two Type 054A guided missile frigates, according to a Japanese news agency.

In mid-December, the Liaoning group carried out its first live-fire exercise in the Bohai Sea.

The carrier performed drills with destroyers and frigates, with scenarios including reconnaissance, aircraft interception, sea strikes and missile defense. Multiple groups of J-15s fired missiles at designated targets, the Chinese navy said.

Zhang Junshe, a senior researcher at the PLA Naval Military Studies Research Institute, said a long-distance training mission in the Western Pacific indicates that the Liaoning group has gained initial combat capability.

"This will expand the Navy's defense range and deter enemies' offensive operations," he said, adding that the major exercise will also test the group's logistics ability.

The PLA commissioned the CNS Liaoning in September 2012 in Dalian, Liaoning province.

Its battle group took shape in December 2013, when the carrier and several escort vessels, including two guided missile destroyers, two guided missile frigates and an attack submarine took part in a long-range formation drill in the South China Sea.
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Pakistan had freed 220 Indian fishermen as a goodwill gesture amid tension over cross-border fire exchanges in recent weeks, state radio reported on Sunday.

The fishermen, who had been detained for illegally entering Pakistani water for fishing, were freed from a jail in the port city of Karachi, Radio Pakistan reported.

They are expected to be handed over to the Indian authorities at the Wahga border on Monday.

Officials in Karachi said the freed Indians will be sent to the eastern city of Lahore by buses.

Pakistan and India routinely catch fishermen who cross water boundaries for illegal fishing.

Groups working for the welfare of such fishermen say the fishermen mistakenly enter other's waters as the two rivals have not yet reached an agreement on maritime boundaries.

The fishermen have been freed at a time when the relations between the two countries are tense following the attack on an army base in the Indian-controlled Kashmir in September that killed 19 soldiers.

India boycotted a regional summit in Islamabad in November that led to its postponement. However, Pakistan attended the Heart of Asia Ministerial Conference in the Indian city of Amritsar earlier this month.

Indian Prime Minister Naendra Modi on Sunday sent birthday greetings to his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif.

"Birthday wishes to Pakistan PM Mr. Nawaz Sharif. I pray for his long and healthy life," Prime Minister Modi said on his official Twitter.
KCR  BJP      : -       ;       
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A woman lays flowers outside the building of The Alexandrov Academic Ensemble of Song and Dance of the Russian Army in Moscow, Dec. 25, 2016. (Xinhua/Evgeny Sinitsyn)

A Russian military Tu-154 aircraft crashed into the Black Sea on Sunday, presumably killing all 92 people aboard, said the Russian Defense Ministry.

The ill-fated plane, en route to Russia's Hmeimim air base in the Syrian port city of Latakia, vanished from the radar screens shortly after takeoff from an airfield in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi at 5:40 a.m. Moscow Time (0240 GMT).

Several bodies of the victims have been recovered at the crash site. Fragments of the aircraft have been discovered in 1.5 km from the Black Sea shore of Sochi at a depth of 50-70 meters.

Over 3,000 people and dozens of ships have been deployed in a search and rescue operation led by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the ministry's press service said.

More than 200 policemen have also been mobilized in the mission, according to the local administration of the Russian Interior Ministry.

The federal Investigative Committee has launched a criminal case over the crash. Based on preliminary information, the tragedy was caused by technical malfunction or pilot error, a law enforcement source was quoted by the RIA Novosti news agency as saying. However, the Defense Ministry said the Tu-154 aircraft was flown by an experienced first-class pilot.

The Interfax news agency quoted an emergency services source as saying that the possibility of a terror attack has been virtually ruled out.

Live TV broadcast showed the weather was sunny at the time of the accident.

According to RIA Novosti, the Tu-154 was built in 1983 and has spent 6,689 hours in flight, with the most recent technical maintenance conducted in September 2016.

The Defense Ministry confirmed that a total of 92 people -- 84 passengers and eight crew members -- were aboard the plane.

Among the passengers were 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, a renowned choir of the Russian Armed Forces, as well as nine Russian journalists. They were heading to the air base for New Year celebrations.

Russian President Vladimir Putin declared Dec. 26 a nationwide day of mourning, and promised a thorough investigation.

Russian TV channels, including the Zvezda, the NTV and Channel One, have named their journalists aboard the Tu-154 plane.

Established in 1928, the Alexandrov Ensemble is widely recognized as the oldest and biggest choir of the Russian military.

The Tu-154 is a three-engine medium-range airliner produced by Tupolev. It is one of the fastest civilian aircraft in use and has been widely used in extreme Arctic conditions.

Sunday's crash was the second accident in less than one week concerning Russian planes. On Monday, an Il-18 aircraft crash-landed near the Tiksi airfield in Russia's Far Eastern Sakha Republic, injuring 16 people.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan talked about the Syria issue over phone on Sunday, the Kremlin said in a statement.

The two leaders exchanged views in details on the situation in Syria, the Kremlin said, adding that President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, who is currently on a working visit to Russia, also took part in the discussion.

The statement did not specify the content of their talks, but considering Putin's recent proposal to arrange a meeting between the Syrian opposition and the government at Kazakhstan's capital of Astana, their phone talk was probably about the preparation for the meeting.

In his earlier talks with Putin, Erdogan has agreed to work with Moscow on such a meeting.

In Sunday's phone talks, Erdogan also extended his condolences to Putin over the crash of a Russian military Tu-154 aircraft into the Black Sea earlier on Sunday, presumably killing all 92 people aboard.
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A Taliban commander was killed together with five militants after Afghan police launched an ambush in eastern province of Ghazni on Monday, the Interior Ministry said.

"A top Taliban commander named Mullah Firoz Jahadi along with five other armed Taliban were killed in Aab Band district of Ghazni province in an Afghan National Police (ANP) ambush Monday morning," the ministry said in a statement.

The statement noted that nine other armed Taliban were wounded and two rocket launchers, two heavy machine guns and one vehicle were seized by the ANP after the attack.

"Mullah Firoz Jahadi was leading the Kunduz battle," the statement said, adding that his death will have a positive impact on security situation in Ghazni, 125 km south of Afghan capital of Kabul, and neighboring provinces.

Taliban militants captured major parts of Kunduz city, capital of northern Kunduz province on Oct. 3 this year but were forced to retreat from the city on Oct. 12.

The Afghan security forces have beefed up security operations recently as militants were attempting to take territory and consolidate their positions ahead of winter in the mountainous country.

The militant group has yet to make comments.
North County band students could be seen at Caseys in Bonne Terre on a recent Saturday pumping gas for tips to help raise money to go on a Disney World trip to Florida in 2017.

The group has been raising money since the beginning of the year and North County Band Boosters President Jeanne Spradling said the Pump for Tips fundraiser has been going really well.

The cold weather helped us a lot, said Spradling. Students took shifts from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and the students and band boosters pumped gas while customers were able to stay in their warm cars. We appreciate everyone who stopped by to help support the band.

Spradling said Casey's provided the students with hot chocolate to stay warm and they appreciate Caseys letting them have the pump for tips fundraiser. She added they have had this particular fundraiser set up one Saturday a month since October and it will run through May.

The band will be doing fundraisers for the rest of the school year ... We will start back after Christmas Break with a Super Bowl Basket Fundraiser, Cosmic Bingo, Dine in Nights at Dairy Queen and Dominos, Yankee Candle and Cookies Dough Sales and then The Jazz Band Spaghetti Dinner and Jazz Festival ending with the Car Show and Craft Fair in May.

Spradling said students have also been selling candy bars since the beginning of school year and they keep adding more fundraisers each month to help students earn their way to Disney.

We currently have 86 students signed up to go, explained Spradling. The band takes a trip every four years and this year they will be going to Disney. The majority of the band is close to nearing the halfway point. We have a way to go to meet our goal but doing all the fundraisers with the students has been a blast. It is an honor to be part of the band program and working with the directors, students and boosters.

Spradling wanted to give a huge 'thank you' to the community and businesses for their support as they continue to raise funds into the New Year and through the end of school year.

The Christmas Concert Food Drive went great, said Spradling. We received many donations from those attending the concert. The band will be dropping off the items to the Ministerial Alliance this week.

To get more information about the North County Band and its fundraisers please check out the North County Band Booster Facebook page. They regularly post videos and photos of performances, accomplishments and fundraisers.
China Change

Yaxue Cao, December 25, 2016

 On December 9, 2015, after dropping their two sons off at school, Pastor Yang Hua () and his wife Wang Hongwu () of the Living Stone house church () in Guiyang, made their way to the 24th story of Guiyang International Center, which hosts the main hall of their congregation. At the same time every Wednesday, at three different church locations, Living Stone congregants hold a prayer service. A few days prior, government Neighborhood Committees and police stations dispatched personnel to go door-by-door to the homes of hundreds of Living Stone church members, warning them against attending the Wednesday service. Well arrest whoever goes, they were told. Needless to say, the authorities had the home addresses, workplaces, telephone numbers, and other personal information of every churchgoer. The few who were determined to attend that morning were intercepted by government agents, who deliberately collided with their car and then dragged them off to the local police station to settle the accident.

Pastor Su Tianfu (left) and Pastor Yang Hua.

The prayer service was set to start at 9:30 a.m., but at 9:00 well over 100 integrated law enforcement agents swept in. There were personnel from the Bureau of Civil Affairs and the Bureau of Religious Administration, public security bureau agents, and a squad of SWAT police in full armed regalia. They demanded that Pastor Yang open all the doors. After he refused, they called over their locksmith. When the law enforcement personnel attempted to enter the office and the sound control room next to it, to take the computer hard drives, Pastor Yang stood blocking the doorway. He demanded that the technical personnel present their work identification cards. When they said they didnt have any, he announced that they wouldnt be allowed in. At that point, one of the commanders of the operation yelled out SWAT police, come over here! A few burly members of the SWAT team ran over, lifted Yang Hua off his feet, and carried him away to a corner next to the elevator, pinning him there.

Pastor Su Tianfu (), who had just finished his errands in the morning and arrived at the church, attempted, abortively, to reason with the agents. They began confiscating the churchs computers, equipment, and anything else they thought useful. They said they would provide a list of the items confiscated, but over a year later no such list has been forthcoming. They also confiscated the cellphones of Yang Hua, Hongwu, Pastor Su, and a number of couples who arrived for the service, deleting all photographs on them.

When the raid was over they posted two notices sealing the church doors, one saying that the church was an illegal civil organization, the other that it had set up a center of religious activity without authorization. Yang Hua and Hongwu were taken to the police station. Living Stones two branch locations were dealt with in a similar manner.

On December 14 Pastor Su was taken into custody at his home by police. Two days later when he was released, they warned him that he would be charged with divulging state secrets later. A year on, he is still technically on bail pending further trial, which means that his freedom of movement is restricted.

A few days after Yang Hua was arrested the authorities raided his home and took away his computer and everything else that they thought would be useful for their investigation.

The secret document issued by the

Guiyang Municipal Command Center for

Legally Dealing with the Living Stone

Church, Page 1.

On December 26, 2016, Yang Hua will be on trial for deliberately divulging state secrets (). The Chinese government seems to deliberately time cases of political persecution around the Thanksgiving and Christmas vacations, as a means of avoiding international attention.

The state secrets in question is a document issued by an ad hoc office set up to eliminate the Living Stone Church, which goes by the title of the Guiyang Municipal Command Center for Legally Dealing With the Living Stone Church (). Dated December 3, 2015, the document bore the official seal of the Office of the Guiyang Municipal Stability Maintenance Work Leading Small Group (). It said that Dealing with the Living Stone church according to the law is a political task that must be given a high level of priority. Leaders of work units must be personally on task, fall in line with the entire citys overall deployments, and earnestly mobilize to complete all the work. Attached to it was a list of names of every Living Stone member, which was forwarded to each of their workplaces, demanding that those employees be investigated and placed under stability control ().

The letter came to the attention of a young woman named Wang Yao (), who worked in the office of the Party Committee of the Maternal and Child Healthcare Hospital of Guiyang City. She knew a friend, Yu Lei (), who attended Living Stone bible study sessions. So she gave Yu photographs of the document. Now, Wang and Yu have been tried for illegally acquiring state secrets () and illegally disseminating state secrets () respectively. Their judgements have not yet been handed down.

Two Young Preachers from Poverty

The two descriptions I kept hearing about the two pastors of the Living Stone church were, firstly, that they were from the poorest parts of Guizhou (Guizhou itself is one of the poorest provinces in China), and secondly that they were both very young. Pastor Su Tianfu was born in 1975, while Pastor Yang Hua was born in 1976; they come from the neighbouring counties of Qianxi () and Nayong () respectively.

Zhang Tan (), a member of the Living Stone church and an independent scholar of Christianity in China, explained that Guizhou was one of the 12 centers of missionary activity established by the China Inland Mission, the protestant organization founded by 19th century English missionary Hudson Taylor (). Yang Hua and Su Tianfu grew up in an area in which the China Inland Mission had once preached the Gospel, until early 1950s when missionaries were expelled by the Communist Party. Most Christians at that point were forcibly integrated into the Party-controlled Three-Self church movement. After the Cultural Revolution, Zhang Tan says, Christians in Guizhou began to embrace their faith ardently. In the poverty-stricken far-off reaches of mountainous Guizhou, he added, neither the Three-Self church nor house churches had much purchase.

Page 2 of the secret document.

Yang Hua was born Li Guozhi (), the fourth sibling in a third-generation Christian family. When he was young, though, he not only refused to believe, but found the idea embarrassing. His father was an elder in a house church. He spent most of his time dealing with church affairs and relatively less on looking after his family. He also struck his kids at the slightest provocation. Nevertheless, after suffering a sudden accident in the family, and personally experiencing the transformative effect of prayer, Yang Hua became a Christian.

At around that time there were Christian workers offering in his hometown Bible study sessions, which he joined. Before long he felt the desire to spread the Gospel himself. At age 13 in 1989 (he probably had little idea what was taking place in Beijing that year), he cut short his studies and became a roaming preacher. First he followed a group in his hometown, then went onto Yunnan, Guangxi, Henan, Zhejiang, and other provinces to preach. Christians in Zhejiang wanted him to put down roots there, but he felt the urge to return to Guizhou.

In 1997 Yang Hua, then 21, moved from Zhejiang back to Guiyang.

Su Tianfu grew up in abject poverty. In 2011, in an interview with the Christian author Yu Jie (), he mentioned that the only clothes he wore when growing up were hand-me-downs from relatives. In winter, he said, there was often hardly any food at home, so he only ate once a day. His father was a drunk who beat him. When he was unable to pay the miscellaneous expenses for junior high school, one of the teachers pitied him and only made him pay half up front. The rest he earned over summer, collecting trash, hauling sandbags at a construction site, and laboring as a road builder. When he finished middle-school he applied for junior teachers college () because it was free. In his own words, he was a cynical and hopeless youth who was convinced that life had no meaning.

But he began to join a Bible study class at the teachers college. There was no pastor and no preacher; sometimes a fine arts teacher at the school, who was a Christian, would lead them in Bible study, or play hymns on tape that everyone would sing to. Though I didnt understand a great deal about the truth of it, I participated in the meetings regularly, and I felt in my soul a great sense of contentment, Su said. I felt joy.

On Christmas 1993 Su Tianfu was baptized as a Christian  the first in his family. In 1997 at the age of 22 he quit his job teaching elementary school and went to Guiyang.

1997-2000: Each Their Own Ministry

The two young men first met while serving the Dandelion Christian Fellowship at Guizhou University of Technology. It was established in 1980 by two foreign missionaries who were teaching there.

In June of 1997, Su Tianfu went to Guangzhou to be further trained in pastoral care. In Guangdong he began to regularly participate in church meetings led by the renowned pastor Lin Xiangao () of the Damazhan house church. He studied Cantonese and traveled with other disciples to found churches and spread the Gospel around Guangdong. In 2000 he married Ouyang Manping (), a young lady hed gotten to know in their Bible training classes.

Back in Guiyang, Yang Hua joined a house church group of a few dozen members. It was there that he got to know Wang Hongwu, at the time a nurse at the charity clinic run by the church. When he revealed that he took an interest in her, however, he was curtly rebuffed. As Hongwu put it: He didnt fit my criteria. All the things a girl wanted, he didnt have: a diploma, money, good looks  he didnt measure up in any area.

Yang Hua was deeply hurt, and for a while fell into terrible health. He had nosebleeds and high fever, and came to the clinic for treatment. This went on for a while until he decided he had to pull himself out of it. At a workers meeting one day, Yang Hua told a Ms. Li that Next week Im going out to the Yachi River (). Hed been planning and hoping to establish a church there for a long time, but had put it off because of the emotional turmoil of being rejected. Hongwu overheard the conversation. My heart thumped, she said. It was like a shut door being suddenly flung open.

Yachi River at the time was the headquarters to the Ninth Engineering Bureau of the Sinohydro (), inhabited by thousands of construction workers and their families. Over the next two years, Yang Hua went door to door spreading the Gospel. There had been only one or two believers when he started, and number quickly mushroomed to over a hundred over the next two years. In 2000 he went back to Guiyang, and in 2001 he and Hongwu married.





Preaching and Training in Guizhou from 2000 to 2008

Even though Id lived in Guangzhou for quite a few years, had learnt Cantonese, and was gradually getting used to life there, there was always a voice in my heart telling me: You have to return to your home province and begin a new phase of your Ministry. Though Guizhou was poor and behind-the-times, it was a much bigger canvas, Su Tianfu said.

On the day that Su and his wife arrived in Guiyang, Yang Hua and another friend met them at the train station. Their journey together had begun.

In his interview with Yu Jie, Pastor Su explained what happened over those years. First, the two young men each led their own small-scale house church assemblies. They also returned to serve a mission in their hometowns in the Bijie () and Liupanshui () prefectures, southwest Guizhou, populated by the Miao and Yi ethnic groups. As a way of alleviating the reliance on preachers coming out to the countryside, from 2003 to 2008 they held training sessions in Guiyang every year for ethnic Christian workers, and each session lasted three months, training 20 students each time.

Beginning in 2003 they arranged for Christian workers to travel around Guizhou, focusing on regions without churches, to conduct short- and long-term missionary work. Theyve relied on the donations of congregants for their livelihoods, though their wives have also worked to help support the family.

Their activities have alwasys been a matter of close attention for the authorities. In 2003 they got a tip off that the secret police were investigating them, and were likely going to make arrests. They prepared travel bags and were ready to flee at short notice, but in the end they didnt flee. In the years followed, similar threats stalked them, until police interrogations and menace became a part of life.

Living Stone Church atop of the building on the right.

A City on the Hill

By 2008 Yang Hua and Su Tianfu were being harassed and attacked wherever they went in Guizhou. They were increasingly running short of resources, until they were unable to pay the rent on their training venue.

It bothered them that the house churches they led in Guiyang had been underground. Even though it was just a small meeting of a dozen or so people, we had to act like the underground [revolutionary-era] Communist Party you see on television dramas  using codewords, acting secretively as though we were doing something terrible, Su said.

But at that point, as Su judged it in the 2011 interview, Guiyang had only one Three-Self church for a population of five or six million, plus a seminary and another small church on the outskirts of town. On the one hand, a lot of people had never ever heard the Gospel, but on the other, the existing Christians had nowhere to meet.

Through prayer and careful consideration together, their small church groups started to think clearly on what they wanted to achieve: they wanted their fellowship to grow and thrive in the open, and they wanted to make an impact on the city of Guiyang.

Given that Christians are the light of the world, the church is the city on the hill. So it cant be hidden. Its got to be public, Su Tianfu said.

The new church they opened would be the Living Stone church, a name that Yang Hua picked. It was drawn from Peter 2:4-5: To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

After spring in 2008 they began drawing up plans to rent an office space for worship. In Easter they held a dedication ceremony for a new church with about 50 members. Apart from regular services, the church held Christmas celebrations, hosted weddings, and organized excursions, all of which attracted more members.

Beginning in 2009 the Living Stone church each year baptized between a few dozen and over 100 new believers. Their Christmas celebrations attracted over 1,000, either participants or onlookers. The government was apprised of every large-scale activity in advance. When the authorities tried to interfere, the churchmen, often led by Pastor Yang Hua, argued their case strongly and never gave ground. In 2011, in a river on the southern outskirts of Guiyang, they held a baptism ceremony for 120 new Christians. With friends and family included there were probably between 300 to 400 people there. The government then mobilized at least twice as many security personnel to watch them.

As part of the churchs pastoral program with congregants, they encouraged all believers to also participate in small-scale house church meetings. Last year when the church was formally banned by the Guiyang authorities, there were over 20 of these small house church congregations, each with between one and a few dozen members. The effect of the small groups was to give believers a sense of family, return, and belonging, where spreading the Gospel, caring for one another, and caring for society became part of their way of life.

Most of the congregants were between 20 and 40, from all walks of life: businessmen, teachers, doctors, professionals, public servants, homemakers, students, and more.

For years they facilitated adoption of abandoned infants, fostered children with developmental disabilities, taught survival skills to children in orphanages, and performed other welfare services  all of which they were praised for in the local press. Separately, a number of church members founded or participated in charitable social programs of their own, helping disabled people, orphans, the elderly, and others. The church became an interconnecting structure, linking the community with the wider society.

A church service at Living Stone last fall, with Pastor Yang

Hua preaching. The number of attendants at service has

decreased significantly as more congregants were threatened.

Church management was handled by a 12-member board of directors elected by the congregation, which held meetings to discuss and make decisions on church affairs both large and small. When there were items of serious disagreement, they put the matter aside rather than have the majority overrule a minority. The goal was to eventually reach a consensus.

As the number of congregants continued to grow, the church bought three residential units on the 24th floor of the Guiyang International Center with a total 600 square meters. After they bought the units, the church began coming under more intense pressure from the authorities. Before they began using them, the government posted notices inside and outside the building stating that the newly established church was an unapproved non-religious site established without permission, and that pastors Su Tianfu and Yang Hua were unapproved, unregistered ministers.

On November 8, 2015, Living Stone congregants, under the menacing gaze of hundreds of riot police, SWAT police, regular police, and officials from a multitude of government agencies, held a ceremony dedicating their new church. When government agents later attempted to force them to join the regime-controlled Three-Self church movement, they were firmly rejected. The result was a campaign of harassment, threats, and efforts at blocking believers from attending.





Defending the Rights of Small Churches

Pastor Yang Hua and Pastor Su divided their duties roughly in half: Su handled internal affairs, and Yang took care of liaison and external activities. As one congregant told me in an interview: Weve been helping small rural churches around Guizhou for years. When these churches are raided and broken up and their members arrested, no one else even knows. The small churches seek out Yang Hua, who finds lawyers to defend them. Quite a few cases have been defended successfully.

Hongwu, Pastor Yangs wife, said that on every occasion that brothers and sisters of the faith have been attacked by the government, Yang Hua stands up for them.

In May 2014 the authorities made a series of arrests of churchgoers in Liupanshui (), at a church that had grown rapidly and had held regular services for over 20 years. Now it was called an evil religion and its members detained. Yang Hua engaged lawyers in Beijing and Shanghai who traveled with him to Liupanshui, where they were followed by government vehicles. Chen Jiangang (), one of the lawyers, described the torture that believers were subject to while in custody: they were beaten hard with long wooden staffs, forced to stand for prolonged periods, starved, deprived of sleep, and had lit cigarettes stuffed into their mouths.

In 2015 there was a similar incident in Daguan, Qianxi county (), where a number of locals, who had returned from years in Hangzhou as migrant workers, were arrested after setting up a thriving church. Yang Hua and two lawyers from out of town arrived to help. They were followed by government-hired thugs everywhere they went. The men rammed their vehicle into Yang Huas, and pulled out long machetes threatening to hack him and the lawyers to death.

More than one person has described Yang Hua as diminutive in size and frail in appearance: hes just under 1.6m (53), is somewhat hunched due to back inflammation (ankylosing spondylitis) and often in pain. But when the rubber hits the road and fellow Christians are being assailed and threatened, hes on the front lines defending their rights, not in the least afraid. He carries of aura of invincibility. Pastor Yang Huas courage and sense of responsibility is extraordinary, a church member who was on some of these trips with Yang Hua told me.

Zhang Tan once wrote an article about how Yang Hua dealt with a traffic case. No matter the size of the case, Yang Hua fights it from the lowest level court to the highest. Even if hes losing every step of the way, he doesnt give up. The process, Zhang told me, has revealed the savagery of the government power, but its also shown Yang Huas tenacity.

In todays China, this sort of resistance doesnt have much practical value. In the Daguan case, the five churchmen arrested were all imprisoned on Chinas evil religion laws, and the Living Stone church has now also been crushed. Indeed, some church members complained that the fate of Living Stone was precisely because Pastor Yang Hua got involved in too many affairs of other churches.

As far as the Chinese Communist Party is concerned, Christianity and its dissemination is in and of itself a question of ideological competition. For decades the Party has used the Three-Self church system to integrate and assimilate Christianity under the banner of patriotism, exerting strict doctrinal and administrative control over these competing faiths. The escalated repression in Zhejiang, Henan and other provinces over the last three years are another example of the Party and Xi Jinpings determination to dig out this supposed threat by the root. The shutdown of the Living Stone church and the arrest of Pastor Yang Hua is simply one development in the overall political schema in China. It has little to do with the leak of a ridiculous government document.

Zhang said that Christianity in China has reached a point in time, and that Guiyangs Living Stone church is a perfect product of this point in time.

The Judgment of the Party vs. the Judgement of God

Since his detention, Pastor Yang Huas wife and children have been prevented from seeing him because his case involves state secrets. The two lawyers she engaged met Yang Hua for the first time in March and again in May. Yang Hua revealed how his interrogators used torture to try to extract a confession. They fixed him to an iron chair, stomped his feet with their shoes, and threatened his life and that of his wife and children. They also told him: We know we cant change your faith, but we control everything. If we want, we can paint you as a greedy pastor and destroy your reputation.

The lawyers said that despite the threats, Pastor Yang Hua didnt give in. Nor did the churchs accountant, Zhang Xiuhong (), who was detained in July 2015  she is still being held, though according to Chinese criminal procedure should have long ago either been tried or released.

In September, lawyers reported that Yang Hua was suffering from liver pain, and had scabies all over his body.

The authorities claim that the case has nothing to do with religion. But theyve denied Yang Hua, and the three other detainees, the right to read the Bible while in custody. For months Yang Huas wife hand-copied Bible passages and mailed them to him, but in October that final connection too was severed too.

Pastor Yang Huas family.

For the pending trial, police warned lawyers not to plead not-guilty (indeed, the judicial system in China is government-directed theater, and everyone is expected to follow the script). But in their Legal Opinion submitted to the court in November, the two lawyers questioned the legality and authority of the ad hoc agency set up to suppress the church, the Guiyang Municipal Command Center for Legally Dealing With the Living Stone Church. They also questioned the validity of the regulation cited by the prosecution: Regulations on State Secrets, Their Classification, and Scope in Religious Work. Its a document whose existence has never been announced to the public, and whose issuer, legal remit, and period of effect remain unknown. Yet it forms the basis of the charges against Pastor Yang Hua.

Hongwu said that though she has received no announcement of the trial, the only reason she wont be there is if shes put under house arrest. Pastor Su, according to a source, has been taken out of Guiyang on an involuntary trip.

As for the fate of the Living Stone church and the trial of Pastor Yang, Zhang Tan shared his thoughts: Chinas governing the country according to the law () is about using harsh legal instruments to control the people, in the model of the Qin Dynasty. Its about maintaining and exercising the power of rulers, and has nothing to do with protecting the rights of the people. This, he said, is really the Chinese characteristics. Secrets are everywhere in todays China, he said. For example, they want to demolish my home, so they have a secret document for demolishing my home. If I get ahold of this document, it is me who violated the law, not they, who want to destroy my property. Only a dictatorship has secrets everywhere, and its only under a dictatorship that one finds such absurdities at every turn.

Zhang Tan argues that throughout Chinese history, there have been benevolent governments and ruthless governments. But take any issue and compare todays communist rule with that of the Qin or Ming  widely seen as the harshest and most abusive dynasties  and the regime of today is worse. The Chinese nation, he said, has come to an end.

A sense of peace fills the letters Pastor Yang Hua has sent to his wife and children from his cell. He told Hongwu that his conditions have improved, and that he had no more need of money or other supplies. His imprisonment, he wrote, is a sabbatical that Jesus granted him after 23 years of toil. He said hell enjoy it, like a child whos had his full of milk, sleeping in his mothers arms.





Yaxue Cao edits this website. Follow her on Twitter @YaxueCao.

ChinaAid Media Team

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People work at a co-work space in Liaocheng,Shandong province,Oct 28, 2016. [Photo/China Daily] Popularity of the co-work space business spreads like wildfire among entrepreneurs, stoking a new culture

These days, "Shanghai 189 Lane", Citic Capital's colorfully decorated and brightly illumined seven-story shopping complex in downtown Shanghai, sees an endless stream of young people entering and exiting, morning till late night. The year-end winter chill is no bar for thembut Christmas shopping isn't what they are here for.

They are the city's entrepreneurs and self-employed professionals, out to view the floor plans of the top two stories of the complex.

That's where lots of co-work spaces have been installed of late. Shanghai 189 Lane is one of the 200-odd co-work space sites that have mushroomed across the city.

Zhang Yueqiang, a startup co-founder who is expecting to launch a visual reality content design outfit soon, said: "I've visited 18 sites in Shanghai in the last one week, and I'm thinking of moving into one of them at the beginning of 2017. Some are offering discounted rates at the year-end. But my co-founder said we should visit some more as there are plenty of choices now.

"We need to choose the most cost-effective one, taking rental, location and services into consideration."

Convenient, flexible, and affordable, co-work spaces have become the first choice of many startups, freelancers, independent players and self-employed professionals on the lookout for offices in Beijing and Shanghai.

According to a research note by JLL, a real estate services provider, the number of co-work spaces in Beijing and Shanghai has jumped to over 500 from no more than 10 just five years ago.

A research note from Shanghai-based Ruiyi Consultancy Ltd said the co-work space market by floor space grew 71 precent annually on average from 2007 to 2015, and is projected to grow 68 percent annually from 2016 to 2018.

Companies from different fields such as real estate (UR Work, Soho 3Q), hospitality (Naked Hub which owns several resorts and hotel sites), and media (KrSpace) have entered the co-work space market and expanded quickly.

That's not all. Foreign brands in this segment like WeWork from the US are trying to meet China's rising demand for co-work spaces.

WeWork received $430 million in funding from China's Legend Holdings. The latter's private equity arm Hony Capital valued WeWork at more than $15 billion.

WeWork has opened two co-work sites in Shanghai. It is preparing to launch a third one now, and is also expanding to Beijing.

Mao Daqing, founder of UR Work, said his co-work space brand aims to increase the number of its sites from 40 across 10 cities by this year-end to 60 in 2017.

Naked Hub announced in late November that it will accelerate its regional expansion and enhance its property resources via Gaw Capital Partners, aiming to add up to 30 new locations, or about 150,000 square meters and 30,000 members across the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, and other key cities in Asia.

A research note from CBRE on innovative sectors' leasing trends said that China's small enterprises and startups are favoring co-work spaces because their cost is "lower" and their atmosphere appeals to young talent, particularly those working in the TMT (technology, media and telecommunication) space.

Sam Xie, research director of CBRE China, said innovative talent tends to work at sites in convenient locations. And when they work together, they can form a "cluster".

"Co-work spaces are meeting these demands, so they are increasingly favored," said Xie.

Tenants have other considerations too, said real estate agents.

Feng Yunxi, a real estate agent with Shanghai-based Fengxiang Real Estate Co, said: "Innovation and entrepreneurship have become a national aspiration. An increasing number of startups are emerging. All of them need a decent space to operate from. They can actually work from their homes or even rented residential flats to save on costs.

"But they are looking for a community, where they can feel that they are not alone, where they can get resources, such as business opportunities from other tenants, on short-term lease basis. That's so because startups do realize there's no certainty they will survive in the long run and thrive. If they do, they may need to move to a larger office."

That would be a risk though, from the space provider's perspective. Whether tenants' businesses succeed or fail, they would eventually likely move out, leaving the office desks empty. So, operators are evolving new strategies to make their own business viable in the long run.

In addition to startups and freelancers, mid-sized and large enterprises are also being courted by co-work site operators.

"Co-work spaces may no longer be an exclusive zone for small businesses. Operators' huge investments need a stable turnover. So, a balanced tenant portfolio becomes necessary to hedge risks.

"In the US where co-work spaces first emerged, and in Hong Kong where co-work spaces are common, bigger businesses such as banks and technology companies have moved some of their teams to co-work spaces.

"The younger generation among their staff prefer such atmosphere and some creative arms of established businesses may not find a fixed seat comfortable and suitable. I think in the Chinese mainland, more co-work spaces will allocate more resources to bigger tenants in the future," said Kenneth Rhee, CEO of Huhan Business Advisory (Shanghai).
An entrepreneur works at his desk in the ATLAS Workplace in Guangzhou, Guangdong province. The co-work space will open a site in Shanghai this year. [Photo provided to China Daily]

You have a business idea and have even raised some money for your dream startup, but without a proper space to work, the business may run aground.

But, most startups tend to be cash-strapped initially, and hence unable to afford to rent, let alone own, a full-fledged office straightaway.

Such startups are a global phenomenon now, and are particularly ubiquitous in urban China. To meet their needs, the commercial property industry has invented co-work spaces, in line with the trend of the sharing economy.

Take, for instance, the US-based co-work space firm WeWork's site in central Shanghai.

Jasmine Jin walks into her six-desk, 12-square-meter office at 9 am, grabs a cup of freshly brewed coffee at the pantry, and joins her small army of co-workers of OneMoreCloset, a startup whose online platform allows users to share their fashion.

For co-founder Jin and her staff, the morning coffee, and many other conveniences that are part of the WeWork package, make a huge difference.

Operating from WeWork, OneMoreCloset has been in business with no more than a couple of wardrobes as its office fixtures. The cupboards hold fashion like all-black evening dresses to colourblock to studded pants. All elsefurniture, printers, internet, pantry, housekeeping, meeting rooms, so onare provided by WeWork.

Thousands of entrepreneurs such as Jin and startups such as OneMoreCloset wouldn't settle for anything less these days.

Co-work spaces such as WeWork are not owned or rented by an individual or a company. Individuals or groups rent workstations or portions of office space on yearly, monthly, weekly or even daily subscriptions.

What's more, when entrepreneurs from different paths work on the same premises, a vibrant community evolves, connections develop, networking ensues, which could help foster mutual growth. Conceivably, office-sharing could well lead to success-sharing.

For instance, OneMoreCloset's office sits opposite a one-desk office of a catering services provider. Next to them, a more spacious office portion that hosts tens of providers of financial services. And next to them, a wine distributor. A neighbor could be a visitor, a visitor a potential customer. And a customer a future partner.

"The best part of being a tenant here is that you can make full use of various services, and you see opportunities everywhere. It's like a 24-hour party of entrepreneurs. Everyone wants to know about everyone else's business. 'How I can help others through my business?' That's what drives us. You can have a shower late at night because this space is open 24x7. You've all the flexibility, all the convenience and all the joy of being a part of an innovative community," said Jin.

Encouraged by the experience so far in Shanghai, OneMoreCloset is planning to open an office in the United States, again at a WeWork site. "You can set up an office and start operations quickly in overseas markets," said Jin.

That's because co-work spaces abroad offer loads of "value-added" services. The website of one such co-work space provider lists the following among its features: workstations, conference rooms, photocopying and printing, free or discounted access to events, high-speed Wi-Fi, 24x7 power backup, lockers, document storage, food and beverages, lounges, cafes, games area, gym, shower area.

"A desk can be rented for some 3,000 yuan ($435). Given other freebies, savings work out to more than what you would pay toward rent for a conventional office. For example, you don't have to decorate the office, thus saving hundreds of thousands of yuan. You don't have to hire a housekeeping team, a receptionist, an admin person, a facility managerall these services are provided at very low prices or free of cost. That helps you save at least 200,000 yuan in the first year of operations," said Hu Jinwen, an entrepreneur whose startup in Wuhan develops children's reading materials.

As competition intensifies, co-work space operators are pulling out all the stops to attract and retain tenants.

"Free coffee and snacks are old hat. Free networking events and facilities renting are a plus. The best operators even help tenants find potential investors and facilitate funding," said Hu.

Some operators even help their tenants get exposure to public. Why, a few actually fund their tenants' startups that offer bright prospects, giving co-work spaces the dimension of business incubators.

That could be happening because ride-hailing giant Uber hit pay dirt in Philadelphia in the US operating out of a co-work space spanning almost an entire floor. So, it is not uncommon anymore to see some developers transforming a couple of floors of an office building into co-work sites.

"Co-work spaces aren't denting the market share of office buildings. Instead, they are becoming part of the office building market. Some well-run projects are brightening the reputation and brand of developers and office-building projects," said Albert Lau, CEO of Savills China.
Dong Wenbiao (left), chairman of China Minsheng Investment Group, meets Cambodian Premier Hun Sen (middle) and his wife during the first-ever Cambodia-China Business and Financial Development Forum held in Phnom Penh on Dec 1, 2016. [Photo/China Daily]

CMIG leads Chinese companies in new model in Cambodia to help reduce risks, multiply advantages

Cambodia has never been a popular destination for Chinese investors. Not for long though.

Particularly for State-owned enterprises or SOEs that, in recent years, have spent lavishly acquiring landmark projects in North America, western Europe and bigger economies in the ASEAN region, Cambodia has been a bit of a no-no.

For, among its Southeast Asian peers, Cambodia ranks only eighth in terms of economy size.

According to the International Monetary Fund's 2015 data, Cambodia's GDP per capita of less than $3,500 contrasts with Singapore's nearly $85,000, and sits at the bottom of the 10-country bloc.

Yet, for Dong Wenbiao, chairman of China Minsheng Investment Group or CMIG, Cambodia's poor foundation may be hiding many opportunities.

The country will be an ideal destination for China's leading private enterprises, if they go and invest together rather than individually. Toward this end, CMIG is pioneering a "group investment" model.

CMIG comprises 59 private enterprises. It was founded in Shanghai in 2014 with a registered capital of 50 billion yuan. CMIG's total assets have since snowballed to 200 billion yuan.

According to Dong, to reduce risks and multiply their advantages, Chinese private-sector enterprises from different sectors would be better off investing abroad in groups, given that they can't match the financial muscle of SOEs.

Dong has been so enthusiastic in promoting the model that nothing, not even constant power failures during a media conference at a new luxury hotel in Phnom Penh, would dent his belief in Cambodia. For Dong, embarrassments like power failures not only reflect the severe infrastructure shortage in the country but represent potential opportunities for foreign investors.

That is what he told the first-ever Cambodia-China Business and Financial Development Forum on Dec 1, organized by CMIG and Ly Yong Phat or LYP Group, a local conglomerate.

"Cambodia has huge room to develop infrastructure... Many of the CMIG's shareholders are leaders in water, electricity and gas infrastructure. They will work with local governments in the future," he said.

Dong said CMIG's plan also includes helping Cambodia to develop clean energy, real estate, and financial services.

Three related deals were signed as a result of the forum.

They include a $1.5 billion deal to develop Cambodia-China Friendship City by LYP Group and SRE Group of Shanghai. The city will be a subdivision of a 2,000-hectare satellite city in northern Phnom Penh.

What was more significant than the forum was that China's leading private-sector tycoons from various industries gathered together in Cambodia, under the aegis of CMIG, to seek investment opportunities.

The CMIG-led delegation included real estate developer SRE Group, and financial institutions Guangxi Beibu Gulf Bank and Fudian Bank.

In the run-up to the forums, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen even held a meeting with Dong in Phnom Penh in September.

Li Huaizhen, president and CEO of CMIG, said the forums typify the potential of the group investment model to band together industrial and financial players for a common goal of "coordinated development" abroad. "Such a model will have strong vitality."

China is CMIG's focus with more than 80 percent of its business in the domestic market. But Li noted that it is consistently seeking business opportunities overseas, including along the vast area covered by the Belt and Road Initiative.

CMIG International Holding, a subsidiary of CMIG, acquired Sirius International Insurance Group in Singapore in August 2015, marking CMIG's entry into global insurance.

The group had said in 2015 that it will guide dozens of leading Chinese private enterprises to jointly invest $5 billion in Indonesia to construct CMIG Indonesia Industrial Park.

CMIG later pledged 100 million yuan ($14.5 million) to fund executive education in China of Indonesian managers and Chinese executives seeking investment opportunities in the archipelago for 10 years.

Under the first Belt and Road Initiative-CMIG-Tsinghua Pilot Program for Indonesian Entrepreneurs, 15 students started classes at the Tsinghua School of Economics and Management in late July. They are the founders or senior executives of Indonesian enterprises in fields such as agriculture, manufacturing, trade and services.
A steel-tube arch bridge in Yunnan province was successfully closed on Nov 15, 2016. [Photo/VCG]

BEIJING - Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has urged greater efforts to promote the sustainable and healthy development of the country's western regions.

China has made remarkable progress since it initiated a strategy to develop its vast western areas in 2000. The 13th Five-Year (2016-2020) Plan period is a crucial time for western regions to realize transformation and upgrading, Li said at a conference on Friday.

The country should push forward supply-side structural reform, expand demand moderately, boost innovation, continue to implement the west development strategy, and strengthen the coordination of it with other major strategies such as the Belt and Road Initiative and development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, he said.

The fundamental way to develop the regions is to enhance their endogenous growth through innovation and reform and opening-up, Li said.

More efforts should be done to streamline administrative approvals, reduce taxation and fees, cut transaction costs, improve business environment, promote entrepreneurship, encourage private capital to participate in the development of the western regions.

Li stressed the importance of infrastructure construction and ecological protection in promoting the western regions' sustainable development. He urged efforts to protect the environment, improve road and water infrastructure, and ensure the quality of drinking water for rural residents.

Environmentally-friendly industries that can employ a large workforce are encouraged to move to the western regions. Investors are also encouraged to build factories there.

Li called for efforts to develop advanced manufacturing sector and emerging sectors, and promote the development of industries with ethnic characteristics such as medicine and traditional handicraft.

He added that in order to improve people's livelihoods, targeted and precise measures should be adopted to alleviate poverty. More education and health care resources should be channeled to the western regions, and basic public services should be increased.

The west development strategy covers 11 provinces and autonomous regions including Gansu, Guizhou, Ningxia, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Tibet, Xinjiang, Yunnan, Inner Mongolia and Guangxi, in addition to Chongqing municipality. The regions account for more than two thirds of the nation's territory, with a population making up over 20 percent of the nation's total.
BEIJING - Chinese lawmakers on Sunday called for early introduction of a draft e-commerce law so as to regulate and facilitate booming e-commerce in the country.

The draft law was submitted for review by legislators at the week-long bimonthly session of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, which concluded on Sunday.

It is the first reading of the draft by the top legislature.

During the discussion, legislator Yan Yixin said all parties involved in e-commerce should be subject to regulation of the new law.

Yan suggested the law expand its coverage from the current e-commerce business operators and consumers to e-payment and express delivery service providers.

Protection of personal information is a highlight of the draft law. It stipulates that operators must ensure personal information security for consumers. Those that fail will face fines of up to 500,000 yuan and could have their business certificates revoked.

Legislator Han Xiaowu said more detailed regulations should be set down to specify procedures for citizens to safeguard their legal rights, file a law suit and claim for compensation once their information security was infringed upon.

China is the world's largest e-commerce market. E-commerce trade amounted to over 20 trillion yuan ($2.87 trillion) in 2015, with online retail sales totaling 3.88 trillion yuan.
BUENOS AIRES - Jorge Castro, the head of Argentina's Strategic Planning Institute, has spoken highly of China's structural reforms and the bid to attract more foreign investment.

In an interview with Xinhua, Castro said that China is "seeing the pushing between new, high-tech companies and traditional industries, which do not add value, such as steel, iron and coal."

Last week, the Chinese government issued a statement from its Central Economic Work Conference which said the structural reforms would continue to advance in 2017.

The world's second-largest economy said it will seek to make headway in five key reforms over the coming year, including reducing excess production capacity, and lowering company costs, among others.

Castro emphasized that these will bring about a competition between new, high-tech enterprises and large state-owned enterprises with negative or nil rates of return.

Castro said workers in such companies should be diverted to new technology companies.

"The crucial element of the further opening-up will be free trade zones(FTZs), following the example of the first one, which opened in Shanghai," said Castro.
PARK HILLS -- Lena Leona Swain, of Park Hills, passed away at Country Meadows Nursing Center on Friday, December 23, 2016, at the age of 81. She was born on February 2, 1935, at Knoble, Arkansas, to the late Thomas Lee Floyd and Rose B. (Williams) Floyd. In addition to her parents she was preceded in death by her husband, Richard Lee Swain, Sr.; two brothers, Thomas Junior Floyd and Alf J. Bud Floyd and three sisters, Kate Valenti, Norma Wylie and Audrey Welch.

Lena was raised in Knoble, Arkansas, and the Neeleyville area. After high school graduation, she went to St. Louis and worked for Carter Carburetor where she met her husband, Richard. They married in 1957 and to this union one son was born, Richard, Jr. After retirement they moved to the Piedmont area where Lena worked as a CMT at Ozark Mountain Nursing Home. She was also a certified EMT and drove an ambulance in the Piedmont area.

Survivors include a brother, Jerry Floyd; sisters, Ina Parks and Bridget Presson; two grandchildren, one great-grandchild; numerous nieces, nephews and friends.

Visitation will be Thursday, December 29, 2016, at Cozean Memorial Chapel from 9:30 to 10:30. Funeral services will follow at 10:30 with the Reverend Bill Rawson officiating. Interment will be held Thursday afternoon at 1:15 p.m. at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis. Memorials, if desired, may be made to the charity of donor's choice. View the online obituary and share your memories and condolences at cozeanfuneralhome.com.
Cyclists ride recumbent bicycles in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong province, on Dec 25, 2016. [Photo/VCG]

A dozen Guangzhou cyclists demonstrated what it is like to ride bicycles in laid-back reclining positions on Sunday.

They rode 30 kilometers from Guangzhou's Tianhe Stadium to Ersha Island, a riverside area in Yuexiu district, attracting a lot attention from locals.

Team captain said most of the bicycles had been retro-fitted by themselves. He said riding in the reclining position is better at reducing air drag and avoids backache or neck pain that may be caused by the common upright bicycles.

The team also included cyclists on prone bicycles with their bodies facing the ground.
A test driver demonstrates autopilot features in a Tesla Model S electric car in California, the US, in October last year. [Photo/Agencies]

There was, in hindsight, a clear element of risk to Tesla Motors Inc's decision to install autopilot hardware in every car coming off the production line since October 2014. It paid a price, with federal regulators probing the deadly crash of a Model S while in driver-assist mode and critics slamming Tesla for rolling the technology out too soon.

But there was also a reward. The company has collected more than 1.3 billion miles of data from autopilot-equipped vehicles operating under diverse road and weather conditions around the world.

In the frantic race to roll out the first fully functional autonomous vehicle, that kind of mass, real-world intelligence can be invaluable. In that way, for now, the electric-car maker has a leg up on competitors including Google, General Motors Co and Uber Technologies Inc.

"There's no question that Tesla has an advantage," said Nidhi Kalra, a senior information scientist at the Rand Corporation. "They can learn from a wider range of experiences and at a much faster rate than a company that is testing with trained drivers and employees behind the wheel."

The autonomous autos Google developed have covered 2 million real-world mileswith employees on boardsince 2009, according to the company. Parent Alphabet Inc last week spun the self-driving project into a business called Waymo.

Uber, which has been piloting self-driving rideshare vehicles in Pittsburgh, recently deployed a fleet in San Francisco in its partnership with Volvo Cars. Each SUV is staffed with two employees, one ready to grab the wheel and the other on the lookout for pedestrians.

Uber made the move without approval from the California Department of Motor Vehicles and state prosecutors have threatened to seek a court order to force the company to stop. An Uber executive said it's acting "just like Tesla."

As for GM, it'll be putting its flotilla on the streets in Michigan, now that Governor Rick Snyder has signed a law allowing public-road testing of cars without steering wheels, gas or brake pedalsor any need for human control. But GM engineers will be in the front seats, as they are in test-trips that have been taking place in Arizona and California. Ford Motor Co has been doing its controlled runs on Michigan roads since 2015, including when it's snowing.

The fatal accident occurred in May when a man drove his 2015 Model S under the trailer of an 18-wheeler on a Florida highway. Neither the driver nor autopilot noticed the white side of the tractor-trailer against a brightly lit sky, so the brake wasn't applied, according to the company.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in October that the upcoming Model 3, due out in late 2017, as well as all Teslas now being made at the company's Fremont, California, factory, will ship with an improved hardware suite that will enable total self-driving.

While he's said he wants to demonstrate an autonomous cross-country drive within a year, other automakers have generally ruled out total self-driving capability until sometime after 2020.

Bloomberg
A worker works on electric cars at a plant in Zouping county, Shandong province. The fast-growing new energy vehicle sector now faces the risk of overcapacity. [Photo/Xinhua]

Companies chasing new energy vehicle profits could crowd each other out

China's fledging new energy vehicle sector is confronted with the risk of severe overcapacity as traditional automakers and fresh faces are rushing to exploit the segment that is believed to be the largest gold mine of the automotive industry.

On Tuesday, Wanxiang Group won the nod from the authorities for its plant in Zhejiang province, which will be able to produce 50,000 electric cars per year when completed.

The move made the giant auto parts supplier the sixth company approved to jump on the wagon of electric car making in China this year.

The six newcomers' annual capacity will reach a combined 1.13 million units per year around 2020.

The figure exceeds 2 million units when coupled with those from NextEV, Chehejia and LeEco, all dotcom companies.

Traditional automakers have even more ambitious plans. Public statistics show that the combined annual capacity of 13 major passenger carmakers including BYD, SAIC Motor and JAC Motor will exceed 4 million units by 2020.

That means China will be able to produce about 7 million new energy vehicles a year by the end of the decade, more than three times the goal the country has set: 2 million units sold annually in 2020.

The simple math shows plants with a combined capacity of around 5 million units will stand idle even if China manages to fulfill the ambitious target, and some suggest an even worse scenario as the goal would be difficult to achieve considering the sector's current performance.

China sold 400,000 new energy vehicles from January to November this year for year-on-year growth of 60 percent, according to statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Due to declining subsidies, the market for new energy vehicles is unlikely to continue the momentum it has seen in recent years. [Photo/China Daily]

Such vehicles are defined in China to consist of electric cars, plug-in hybrids and fuel cell cars but exclude hybrids like Toyota's Prius.

Despite a growth rate much faster than that of the industry's average of around 13 percent, Wang Binggang, an expert on China's new energy vehicles program, said: "It is mainly driven by government policies instead of market demand."

The central government offers a subsidy up to 55,000 yuan ($7,913) for an electric passenger car, 30,000 for a plug-in hybrid, and 500,000 yuan for an electric bus. Subsidies from local governments vary regionally.

The central government started offering subsidies in 2009 to stimulate the development of new energy vehicles.

By the end of last year, 33.4 billion yuan had been earmarked, according to the finance ministry.

But recently, things have started to change.

On Tuesday, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said the authorities will cut subsidies and totally withdraw them in four years now that some carmakers have been caught swindling the subsidies.

Ye Shengji, a CAAM deputy secretary-general, said the scheme was adjusted to ensure the steady and healthy development of the sector as it has grown rapidly in the past several years.

At a CAAM press conference earlier this year, Wu Wei, an official at the National Development and Reform Commission, said: "Due to rapid expansion in the sector, we have seen the problem of blind investment, which must be addressed in order to prevent risks."

A survey by the China Times newspaper says that 32 major automakers have announced plans to invest 311 billion yuan in new energy car and battery plants.

Yet even more are making forays into the already overheated segment.

Last Monday, telecom equipment and smartphone maker ZTE Corp announced that it has purchased a 70 percent stake in Granton Auto, which is located in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, and plans to build a manufacturing base with investment of 14.6 billion yuan.

Tian Feng, an executive in ZTE's car division, said it was not an impulse purchase.

"We tend to look at cars as smartphones with wheels. If you see from this perspective, you can find it is logical that we enter into the sector."

Three days before ZTE's announcement, Dong Mingzhu, chairwoman of China's leading appliances maker Gree Electric Appliances, and four partners including China's richest man, Wang Jianlin, made public their plans to invest 3 billion yuan in a carmaker called Zhuhai Yinlong New Energy Co.

The move came after Gree's plan to acquire the company was vetoed by its shareholders in November.

"Gree failed to buy it. But I, Dong Mingzhu, will do it," said Dong at a recent forum in Beijing. She said this time she invested as an individual and that she has "put all (her) money into the project".

Experts are not as optimistic as Dong. Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, said: "It is easy to churn out cars but difficult to produce good ones. And a number of factors including declining subsidies will make it difficult for the market to see explosive growth."

John Zeng, managing director of LMC Automotive Consulting (Shanghai), said the newcomers have underestimated the difficulty of building a car brand.

"There may be chances in the auto parts sector if they can produce breakthrough technology. But car making is different.

"They have to win recognition from suppliers, dealers and customers. But if they insist on making cars, there is a 99 percent chance that they fail," he said.
Volkswagen has pledged $225 million to mitigate environmental damage caused by the vehicles. [Photo/Agencies]

VW agrees to $1 billion settlement in scandal recovery

Volkswagen took an important step in digging out from its emissions-cheating scandal by reaching a $1 billion agreement to settle lawsuits over tainted 3.0-liter diesel engines.

The preliminary accord calls for the German automaker to fix or buy back 83,000 Audi, VW and Porsche vehicles equipped with a so-called defeat device.

The deal includes pledges by Volkswagen to spend $225 million to mitigate environmental damage the autos caused and $25 million to support the use of zero-emission models, the California Air Resources Board and the US Department of Justice said in statements following a US federal court hearing in San Francisco.

Resolving the issue with the 3-liter vehicles has proven to be sticky, as Volkswagen insisted the engines were fixable and balked at agreeing to buy back all of the affected cars, in contrast to an October deal covering 480,000 rigged 2-liter autos in the US.

While the settlement is a step forward, it will potentially add to the 18.2 billion euros ($18.9 billion) Volkswagen has so far set aside to cover the damages from years of duping consumers and regulators by manipulating emissions tests in a scandal involving 11 million diesel vehicles worldwide.

Volkswagen is still under criminal investigation in the US and on the hook for outstanding civil claims from several states.

It also faces hundreds of investor lawsuits in Germany and is the subject of a criminal probe there as well as in South Korea.

The US Justice Department said the settlement reached on Tuesday "does not resolve any pending claims for civil penalties, nor does it address any potential criminal liability," nor does the deal "resolve any consumer claims, claims by the Federal Trade Commission or claims by individual owners or lessees who may have asserted claims in the ongoing multidistrict litigation".

Remaining issues

The US Environmental Protection Agency estimated that the accord reached on Tuesday will cost Volkswagen $1 billion, which would increase the amount it has agreed to pay to resolve claims in the US and Canada to more than $19 billion.

Jeannine Ginivan, a spokeswoman for Volkwagen's US unit, declined to comment on any dollar figure until a final agreement has been reached with car owners.

Details of the agreement with car owners were still being worked out, and US District Judge Charles Breyer, who's overseeing the case in San Francisco, ordered lawyers to report back to him on Thursday.

The settlement marks "an important step in the right direction to get the DOJ criminal fine out of the way, which we expect under the Obama administration," Arndt Ellinghorst, a London-based analyst at Evercore ISI, said in a note to clients. He estimates the financial hit from that penalty to be $3 billion.

Volkswagen is "committed to earning back the trust of all our stakeholders and thank our customers and dealers for their patience as the process moves forward," the carmaker said in a statement.

Bosch claims

The settlement provides for repairing the cars if the government approves a fix.

It also covers claims against auto parts supplier Robert Bosch, which said specific terms may not be disclosed until a definitive agreement is reached and presented to the judge.

"Bosch neither acknowledges the facts as alleged by the plaintiffs nor does Bosch accept any liability," the component maker said in a statement.

Vehicles covered by the 3-liter settlement include the 2014 Volkswagen Touareg, some 2015 Porsche vehicles and some 2016 Audi models. Recall plans for most 3-liter vehicles involve a simple software update, people familiar with the matter have said.

Avoiding a full buyback of all the cars would save the company about $4 billion, the people said.
A consumer experiences a virtual reality game device that applies 5G technology at a high-tech fair held in Shanghai in May last year. [Photo/China Daily]

As the mass deployment cycle of 4G technologies slows, we are preparing for 5G, or the fifth generation mobile communication technology, to take off, an Ericsson executive said.

Chris Houghton, Ericsson's senior vice president and head of region North East Asia, said the company is currently increasing its R&D resources to prepare for 5G in China.

The new generation of the internet will allow users to download massive digital content in seconds and execute tasks that are thrilling but remain difficult in the 4G era, such as operating driverless automobiles and implementing applications related to the Internet of Things.

Since the Sweden-headquartered telecommunications conglomerate will have been in China for 125 years by next year, Houghton believes it is a dynamic, challenging and highly competitive market and will increasingly drive the future of global communications.

Recently he spoke to China Daily about his vision and strategy and new opportunities for Ericsson in China.

The following are edited excerpts of the interview:

Chris Houghton, Ericsson's senior vice president and head of region North East Asia. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

China's growth over the past 30 years has been remarkable and the benefits are there for all to see -- people's lives have been improved tremendously.

A slowdown from such a rapid growth rate is to be expected but 6.5 percent GDP growth is still a comparatively high rate of growth in a low growth world and therefore highly attractive to global companies.

Mobile communication is one of the last areas to be affected by changes in growth rates. People still have the need to communicate even in lower growth times and it's not one of the portions of disposable income they tend to cut back on, so we don't see a dramatic change to our business from the slowdown.

In addition, the digitalization of our daily life continues at a rapid pace and there is a need for more advanced technologies. As the mass deployment cycle of 4G technologies slows, we are preparing for 5G to take off.

How do you assess the prospects of Ericsson in China in conjunction with the Chinese market and economy?

I believe Ericsson China has a bright future; we have been in China for 125 years next year and we are planning for another 125. It's a dynamic, challenging and highly competitive market and will increasingly drive the future of global communications, so we are highly committed and will continue to contribute to China's economic growth and social development into the future.

Do you have any plans for new investments in China in the next few years? Do you plan to add to your R&D efforts in China?

We have a significant investment in China already, with over 11,000 people in the country covering sales, manufacturing, R&D, global service center and other global functions.

We also source a considerable portion of equipment and components in China for our global operations. We are currently increasing our R&D resources to prepare for 5G.

What do you think of the opportunities and challenges facing your company amid recent traditional industry reform in China? How does Ericsson fit into the national strategy of "Made in China 2025" and "Internet Plus"?

Our industry is ever-changing so we are used to change. We are in a continuous transformation to stay relevant and competitive in such a dynamic industry.

For us, change is good and to be embraced.

Ericsson has been manufacturing in China since 1992 and our factory in Nanjing is one of only two main manufacturing hubs globally.

Made in China 2025 is a key initiative for us, as manufacturing is transformed by increased development in robotics and the industrial internet powered by 5G technology.

Internet Plus is our core business and the benefits to Chinese society of a Networked Society, where everything that can be connected will be connected, are huge.

What's the biggest difference between the China market and the other markets? What are the challenges in the China market?

The China market is at the forefront of technology.

It's not watching other countries, it's taking a lead. Adding to that, the huge scale in the country combined with the incredible speed in which that scale is deployed, you have a unique combination that sets China apart.

China is an incredibly exciting and dynamic market with all the challenges to a business that cutting edge technology on a huge scale with high speed deployment entails, but it is also a market where the world's leading companies need to be for those very same reasons.
Aircraft carrier heads out for long-range mission to expand naval defense capacity, test logistics

A J-15 fighter takes off from the Liaoning on Friday during a fleet training exercise in the Yellow Sea. Mo Xiaoliang/CHINA DAILY

The CNS Liaoning aircraft carrier battle group has set off for the Western Pacific where it will take part in an open-sea exercise, a spokesman for the People's Liberation Army Navy has announced.

Senior Captain Liang Yang did not provide further details of the exercise on Saturday, but did say that it was part of the group's annual training schedule.

According to the PLA Navy, the group carried out "full-element" training in the East China Sea on Saturday, which mainly involved J-15 carrier-borne fighter jets.

The planes performed air tactical confrontation drills and air refueling operations, while ships conducted resupply training, the navy said.

"From the Bohai Sea to the Yellow Sea, and farther into the East China Sea, the carrier battle group ... has been exploring integrated, systematic and realistic training methods and performed 'full-element', joint exercises among the Liaoning, carrier-borne aviation units and escort ships," read a navy news release.

Footage broadcast by China Central Television showed Admiral Wu Shengli, commander of the PLA Navy, aboard the Liaoning as he oversaw the battle group's drills. It is not known whether Wu will remain aboard for the Western Pacific exercise.

The Japanese Defense Ministry said on Sunday it had spotted the Liaoning group on Sunday morning as the fleet was passing through the Miyako Strait toward the Western Pacific. The group consists of the aircraft carrier, three Type 052C and Type 052D guided missile destroyers and two Type 054A guided missile frigates, according to a Japanese news agency.

In mid-December, the Liaoning group carried out its first live-fire exercise in the Bohai Sea.

The carrier performed drills with destroyers and frigates, with scenarios including reconnaissance, aircraft interception, sea strikes and missile defense. Multiple groups of J-15s fired missiles at designated targets, the Chinese navy said.

Zhang Junshe, a senior researcher at the PLA Naval Military Studies Research Institute, said a long-distance training mission in the Western Pacific indicates that the Liaoning group has gained initial combat capability.

"This will expand the Navy's defense range and deter enemies' offensive operations," he said, adding that the major exercise will also test the group's logistics ability.

The PLA commissioned the CNS Liaoning in September 2012 in Dalian, Liaoning province.

Its battle group took shape in December 2013, when the carrier and several escort vessels, including two guided missile destroyers, two guided missile frigates and an attack submarine took part in a long-range formation drill in the South China Sea.


Yu Yabin, a pediatrician from Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, conducts a health check on a Tibetan girl. [PALDEN NYIMA/CHINA DAILY]

While awaiting surgery to remove tumors from her uterus, Tibetan Lingkyi Drolkar said she was pleased to hear that it was a doctor from Beijing who would perform the operation.

"I heard Lhasa People's Hospital had been sent doctors from Beijing as part of an aid program, so I chose this hospital for my surgery," the 49-year-old said.

Since 1995, China's central government has been sending doctors to the Tibet autonomous region to improve its healthcare system.

Last year, the Communist Party of China Central Committee's Organization Department expanded the Aid-Tibet Program.

As part of the program, 16 medical teams consisting of more than 300 doctors were dispatched to Tibet over the past 15 months by the Beijing Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning. The first batch was relieved by a second group of 179 doctors in July.

They have come from some of Beijing's best hospitals and have been distributed among seven key hospitals in Tibet's cities and prefectures.

Yu Yabin, a pediatrician from the Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, is one of 15 doctors who were assigned to Lhasa People's Hospital. She works alongside three other Beijing doctors in the obstetrics and gynecology department.

"Tibetan patients always show deep gratitude toward doctors, which is rarely seen elsewhere," she said.

In addition to performing surgeries, the visiting doctors have a secondary role training local medical staffsomething that they hadn't been required to do in the past.

Every Tuesday and Thursday, 32-year-old Lyu Taoanother Beijing doctor working in the obstetrics and gynecology department of Lhasa People's Hospital, who came to Tibet six months ago from Beijing Tsinghua Chang Gung Hospitaloperates on patients while being observed by three local doctors.

In the first week Yu Yabin's team was in Tibet, a 2-year-old suffering from pneumonia was treated.

The child had swallowed a melon seed that was stuck in his windpipe.

As the hospital in Lhasa did not have a bronchoscopea piece of medical equipment that is used to inspect and pass other instruments into the airwaysthe doctors were unable remove the seed.

Yu asked Beijing Children's Hospital to lend them a professional bronchoscope, which the team was able to use to operate on the child two weeks later.

To prevent a repeat of such events, Yu's team bought a new bronchoscope for the hospital's pediatrics department and trained two local doctors to use it.

The team's next goal is to set up a diagnosis center for heart disease.

"They have a solid foundation here, but there is a lack of high-tech devices, so we hope to create a cardiac care unit in the hospital," said Yu, adding that they were also focused on improving the level of prenatal care in the region.

"With the thin air and risk of high blood pressure, it is important to encourage Tibetan pregnant women to have regular examinations."

Contact the writers at palden_nyima@chinadaily.com.cn
Nan Nan, a female giant panda, undergoes surgery on Dec 3 for an intestinal blockage at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Sichuan province.[Zhang Zhihe for China Daily]

A giant panda that underwent surgery this month to remove an intestinal blockage is recovering well, according to experts at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.

Despite the rain, Nan Nan, a 3-year-old female, was seen on Sunday morning leisurely eating a breakfast of bamboo leaves on a hillside in Sichuan province.

"She is recovering from her operation to remove an obstruction in her intestines," a condition that can prove fatal for pandas, said Lan Jingchao, head of the base's animal hospital.

In fact, Nan Nan could be the first to survive the surgery, according to Zhang Zhihe, director of the research base. He said that in the 1990s a panda with the same symptoms died after a similar operation.

On the morning of Dec 1, keepers noticed that Nan Nan was restless and was having trouble defecating. Veterinarians went on to remove about 2 kilograms of droppings from her transverse colon, descending colon and recta.

"We thought she was OK, but the symptoms returned in the evening," said Yang Zhi, who is in charge of disease prevention and control at the base.

An ultrasound examination showed a large blockage affecting Nan Nan's colon, descending colon and sigmoid flexure.

Again, nearly 2 kg of droppings were removed, but the vets could not access the upper part of her colon.

"We had to ask experts from the Nuclear Industry 416 Hospital in Chengdu for help," Lan said.

He said that on the morning of Dec 3, a team of 11 surgeons, anesthetists and nurses from the hospital performed surgery on the panda at the base.

In an operation that lasted two hours, doctors cut open Nan Nan's intestinal wall and extracted about 2.8 kg of droppings.

Yet the work was only half done. Pandas have sharp claws, and when Nan Nan feels itchy, she will scratch, which could reopen the wound and cause an infection, according to Yang Kuixing in the base's animal management office.

Two workers have been taking turns to stay in her den around the clock. Whenever she tries to touch, bite or lick her wound, panda keeper Dai Sha said they shout "Nan Nan, stop!"

She added, "Although she can't understand what we say, it diverts her attention."

Before the operation, Nan Nan would usually eat more than 10 kg of food a day. Over the past two weeks, her appetite has gradually started to recover and she is now eating 2 to 3 kg of bamboo leaves and bread a day.

"We fear too much food could be detrimental to her recovery, but she is getting enough nutrients, as she gets a liquid made of trace elements, protein and amino acid," Lan said.

Doctors have said it will take Nan Nan at least six months to make a full recovery, he added.
Students at the No 4 Primary School in Changxing county, Zhejiang province, perform during the school's English drama festival.Xu Yu / Xinhua

Language proficiency in China remains at a low level, despite record investment in school programs

Liu Jian started learning English while in middle school at age 13. It was a compulsory subject, and he took classes in it every day.

He continued to learn the language in high school and college, until he began a master's degree program in 2009.

Now, at age 30, he says he is still not confident in his English ability.

"To be honest, I worked very hard when learning the language at school and got satisfactory test scores," said Liu, who works at a State-owned petroleum company.

"But I still need to look up words in dictionaries when I read English books. I can't speak fluently and confidently when I have to talk with a native English speaker. And what's more, I sometimes can't understand the English news on TV."

A teacher from the United States talks with students at a community in Fuyang city, Anhui province, in English.Wang Biao / For China Daily

Liu's feelings are typical for people his age. In the sixth English Proficiency Index, recently published by Swedish education company Education First, China ranked 39th out of 72 countries and regions.

The level of English proficiency among Chinese remains at a low level globally and lags behind a number of other Asian countries such as South Korea and Japan, according to the report.

Younger starting age

Despite China's low ranking in the Education First report, Chinese have historically spent a lot of time and money on learning English.

A report by Shenzhen-based consultancy CIConsulting showed that with almost one-fourth of its population learning the language, China is the world's largest market for English education.

The report said Chinese people spent 30 billion yuan ($4.3 billion) on learning English in 2013, a figure it projected would increase by 15 percent each year.

A series of regulations released in 2001 by the Education Ministry called on the nation's primary schools to start teaching English in the third grade. That is earlier than Liu and his peers began learning, but in reality, many schools in first-tier cities such as Beijing begin English courses even earlier, from the first grade.

Parents are also keen on having their children learn beginning at younger ages.
Chinese students at US colleges should take advantage of every opportunity to engage with people from other nations, a visiting university head has advised.

Michael McRobbie, president of Indiana University, led a delegation to Beijing earlier this month to expand relations with higher education institutions and meet with alumni.

"It's perfectly natural for foreign students to congregate among themselves because it's more comfortable and easier and less challenging," he said.

"But that means you don't necessarily get full exposure to everything that a new country has to offer."

Indiana University has more than 9,000 international students, about 40 percent of whom come from China.

McRobbie, a native of Australia, said he benefited a lot from interaction with classmates and peers from diverse backgrounds during his own time in overseas education. "One of the best ways of building international understanding is through international engagement," he said.

Indiana University has long been popular among Chinese students, mostly at postgraduate level, although in recent years more have enrolled as undergraduates, McRobbie said.

It has more than 5,800 alumni affiliated with China.

McRobbie said Indiana University has signed cooperative agreements with some leading institutions in China, such as Tsinghua University and Beijing Normal University.

He said that it is working to encourage more students to study abroad and the number of Indiana University students in China for exchange or short-term programs has increased greatly since he became president.

"I'd like to see that number continue to increase," he said, adding that they would try to achieve the goal by developing relationships with more Chinese universities.

Having made eight official trips to China since becoming the university's president in 2007, McRobbie said he was particularly impressed when he attended Tsinghua University's centennial celebrations in 2011, which he described as "pretty remarkable".

"It stuck in my mind because we'll have a bicentenary in 2020. So it was a good way of seeing how another great university used all its assets to carry out a really distinctive celebration."
A meeting of the St. Francois County 911s Board of Directors Public Safety Committee held recently at Desloge City Hall provided the committee an opportunity to update emergency responders and local municipal officials on improvements already made or soon to be made to improve emergency communications in St. Francois and Ste. Genevieve counties.

The Public Safety Committee is made up of committee chairman and 911 Joint Communications Center Director Alan Wells, Goose Creek Fire Chief Bob Reeves, Ste. Genevieve fire personnel representative Robert Bach, St. Francois County Ambulance Director Dave Tetrault, Ste. Genevieve County Ambulance District Director Kendall Schrum, St. Francois County Sheriff Dan Bullock, Ste. Genevieve County Sheriff Gary Stolzer, Farmington Fire Chief Todd Mecey and 911 Board Chairman Ron Bockenkamp.

Local emergency responders and municipal officials were invited to attend a Sept. 13 meeting of the Public Safety Committee held in response to concerns raised in August by 911 board member and Big River Fire Chief David Pratte regarding radio communications issues that emergency responders were having with the joint communications center.

Pratte was especially concerned about area police officers. The board decided a meeting between the Public Safety Committee and emergency responders would provide an opportunity for them to discuss any issues they have with the current communications system.

At the August committee meeting it was decided  after consultation between the committee members, emergency responders and community members present  that the current system should be upgraded rather than moving to an all-digital network or joining the Missouri Statewide Interoperability Network, or MOSWIN (a mobile radio network)  both of which could prove to be expensive alternatives.

At the recent Public Safety meeting, Wells said, The things that this committee deals with affects all of us. It affects all of your departments or your entities  police, fire or EMS. It affects all of our citizens in every municipality and the county. The committee was put together to make up representation of all three disciplines that affects both counties in which we do service. With that, of course, we have the sheriffs of both counties, the ambulance directors of each county and two fire representatives  two from each county.

The objective of this committee is to address dispatch procedure and protocol that affect all three disciplines  which in turn represents you, the agencies in the field, to make sure were giving the best quality service to our police, fire and EMS on the dispatch systems  and our procedures and guidelines. We also look at and help drive what our initiatives are going forward with our technologies that affect our ability to give our responders quality service  as well as to our citizens.

In technology that will be our existing 911 system, which is what were looking at today. Our existing 911 system is no longer going to be maintained, serviceable or supported under contract as of January. So, thats one of the big project initiatives that was looked at by the board of directors when we moved to the local sales tax.

"We had a project action list and one of the items on the list was to improve the 911 system itself, so we can better service the citizens in our community and we can move into next-generation 911 and receive that emergency call from our citizens from whatever device they may be using to get ahold of us  that is landline, that is cellular phone, that is texting, that is Voice over IP. VoIP includes OnStar, where your vehicles can dial 911 for emergency calls.

Wells introduced Tom White of A&W Communications in Jefferson City, the company hired to improve the countys existing 911 infrastructure.

Thats what came out of our last meeting from you all and the committee, Wells said. To recommend to the board that our day-to-day operations stay in our existing infrastructure  in the VHF network, but to also offer the additional components as we can. This could possibly include MOSLINK and a digital system as we can apply that into our existing communications network.

White presented a brief overview of work that has been completed at several sites around St. Francois and Ste. Genevieve counties. Most of the work involved replacing, adding or enhancing antennas to help improve communications.

Dispatch Supervisor Allen Stegall reported that things are moving forward with the countys new CAD (Computer-Aided Dispatch) system.

Its going good, Stegall said. Just not as fast as wed like.

After a number of questions posed by the committee as well as those in the gallery, Wells reported that work on the expansion of the current 911 Communications Center is moving along swiftly, with the projects architectural firm  FGM Architects of O'Fallon, Illinois  having completed the final plans. The project is expected to go out for bid as early as next month.
A university in Qingdao, Shandong province, has replaced some of its cleaning staff with students, saying this could "help cultivate an awareness of self-discipline and service among students".

Students at Qingdao University of Technology have been tasked with cleaning the school twice a week in groups of four or six. Their performance is being graded, and whichever of the university's eight colleges receives the highest grade is awarded 10,000 yuan ($1,440) each month.

However, some students are not happy about the practice, especially with final exams approaching.

Yes

"I think it is a good way for students to realize the importance of keeping public spaces clean. Many students are spoiled by their parents and don't know the hardships that cleaning staff face. University is not only a place for students to learn and take exams, but also to practice other skills. Many have said that the university instigated this practice because it wants to save money. However, it has to pay extra money to reward the students who perform best. It is not physical punishment but an innovation of education. Besides, one hour of cleaning every day is not very long, not to mention the fact that students can take shifts."

Liu Zhen, a middle school teacher in Nanjing, Jiangsu province

"Back in the days when I was in college, we had to clean the whole campus and no one complained about it. It was our campus, and we were happy to keep it clean. Nowadays, youngsters pay too much attention to themselves and think less about others. Going to college is not like purchasing a product, where after you have paid the money, you can do whatever you want. Students in college should think about how to contribute to society by first thinking how to contribute to the university."

Li Haiying, a retired doctor in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province

No

"Spending tens of thousands of yuan on rewarding students for cleaning is a waste of educational resources because professional cleaning staff may cost less money. Educational resources are public resources; the university should think about whether this is the best way to spend this money. Education is all about guiding, not forcing. I don't think students can really learn anything if universities only want to motivate students with money."

Guan Hongtao, a pharmaceutical researcher in Beijing

"The cultivation of self-discipline and service could be done without making students clean. There is no evidence to show that physical work can replace or enhance a college education. The tuition fees students pay to universities include the public service fee. It is the responsibility of the university to provide this service. Besides, the standard for judging students' quality of work should be their devotion and willingness to take responsibility."

Xiong Bingqi, deputy director of the 21st Century Education Research Institute

suzhou@chinadaily.com.cn
Istituto Marangoni's second China campus also offers opportunities to study abroad

Italian fashion school Istituto Marangoni has opened its second China branch in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, to help to meet the demand for talent from the local fashion industry.

Classes began last month at the Istituto Marangoni Shenzhen Fashion and Design Training Center, which offers a three-year program in fashion design as well as short courses.

The school also has campuses in Milan, London, Paris and Florence, Italy while its Shanghai branch opened in 2013.

"Shenzhen is sharpening its status as a fashion capital and has also set the goal of becoming an international consumption and economic center. To do this, it needs to upgrade its soft power," said Joe Zhou, director of the training center.

"Apart from high-end fashion designers, the city also lacks quality buyers and professional luxury goods managers, among other things. We hope very much that Istituto Marangoni can fill the gap in high-end fashion education."

In addition to classes in fashion design and marketing, the Shenzhen campus will also provide tailor-made corporate training classes based on Istituto Marangoni's philosophy of creating balance between creativity and commercial interests.

All the teaching staff have come from the school's Milan campus, and students on the three-year course have the choice of continuing their studies in Europe after completing the required classes in Shenzhen.

Students are taught in English with translation and have the opportunity to take additional classes on language and culture if they wish to study in Europe.

Laura Egoli, Italian consul general in Guangzhou, the provincial capital of Guangdong, said that since its founding in 1935, Istituto Marangoni has become one of the most prestigious fashion schools in the world.

"You may have come across some big names in Italian fashion: Dolce & Gabbana, Moschino, Valentino, Versace, Prada, and Armani. These iconic brands have one thing in common - many of their fashion designers were alumni of Istituto Marangoni," she said.

"Students at Istituto Marangoni are given the best tools to stimulate their own growth and are equipped to confidently face the working world. In the meantime, students from all over the world meet and interact through a continuous exchange of ideas, projects, stimuli and vision."

Guangdong ranks first in China for its garment industry, fashion brands, industrial chain and fashion designers.

French fashion design school Esmod launched its Guangzhou campus in 2014, while the Italian Istituto Secoli also opened a branch there earlier this year.

"Guangdong is already well-known for being a fashion manufacturing base, and is proving its design capabilities with more local brands coming to the global market. We strongly believe that the opening of two Italian fashion schools in this province will reinforce the design capacity of Guangdong, and even southern China, in terms of creativity and craftsmanship," Egoli said.

"We hope that more and more Italian universities will broaden their offerings and cooperate with China, grasping the opportunities offered by this exceptional country."
The guideline on Western China Development for 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) was approved at a State Council meeting on Friday to boost social and economic development of the vast region.

It was the latest move of the Western China Development, a campaign that started in 1999. Details were not immediately available.

Premier Li Keqiang, who presided over the meeting, urged western China to align with national strategies of Belt and Road Initiative and the Yangtze River Economic Belt to achieve a healthy and sustainable growth.

The premier called on the region to focus on infrastructure and environmental protection, attracting high-quality talents, building city clusters suitable to local conditions and proceed with targeted poverty relief.

In addition to support from the central government and regions in the east, western China should also strengthen reform and innovation by cultivating a cost-effective market to attract investors and explore growth potentials, Li said.

The economy is geographically composed of four major parts, namely the east, the northeast, the central and western China. Before this guideline, the central government had approved plans to boost development of the northeastern and central China.

Western China consists of six provinces and one municipality, which have about 28 percent of the country's population on 70 percent of its land. More than 30 million poverty-stricken people were living in the west by 2015, accounting for more than half of the total poor population.
The stranded passengers wait at New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido.[Photo from Sina Weibo]

Heavy snow hit central Hokkaido, northern Japan, over the holiday weekend, disrupting flight and train services throughout the region.

Thousands of passengers, including 500 from China's Hong Kong and Macao, were stranded at New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido for three straight nights from Thursday.

The Chinese consulate in Sapporo, Japan, has dispatched an emergency convoy carrying food and drinking water to the airport to aid the stranded Chinese on Sunday.

Planes from two domestic airlines, including Cathay Pacific Airways and Hong Kong Airlines, have arrived at the New Chitose Airport.

The first batch of the stranded Chinese has started to check-in and others are expected to travel back to country depending on the weather condition.
The top health authority has urged local officials to look into allegations of payment-for-prescription schemes between doctors and pharmaceutical companies.

Teams from the National Health and Family Planning Commission have been sent to hospitals in Shanghai and Hunan province to investigate claims that doctors have been accepting bribes, according to a statement on Sunday.

The statement came a day after China Central Television broadcast the findings of an eight-month undercover investigation at six hospitals in the two places.

Sales representatives from pharmaceutical companies were found to be paying doctors kickbacks to prescribe their medicine. According to the CCTV expose, they usually visited a doctor's office at lunch, counted the medicine they had prescribed over the past month and handed them cash in an envelope.

One doctor received 12 yuan ($1.70) for every box of medicine prescribed, which worked out at a total of 1,800 yuan for 150 boxes.

The national health commission said it will look into the pharmaceutical companies mentioned in the CCTV program as well as work with other government departments to step up supervision and punish violations.

Medics who accept kickbacks from pharmaceutical companies or accept "red envelopes" (envelopes stuffed with cash) from patients face tough penalties and even dismissal.

Rules banning doctors from promoting brand-name medicines or taking commission for prescriptions were introduced in December 2014 by the national health commission and the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

"Doctors aren't well paid and their work is not respected by today's society, so when they're given the chance to get cash from sales representatives it's hard for them to resist the temptation," said Fu Hongpeng, a researcher for the National Health and Family Planning Commission.
A file photo of Hua Chunying, the spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry. [Photo/IC]

China lodged a protest with the United States for signing a defense act that included a call for senior military exchanges between the US and Taiwan, the Foreign Ministry said on Monday.

"We are resolutely against the Taiwan-related section in the US National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017, and have lodged solemn representations with the US," ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular news conference.

Part of the $618.7 billion National Defense Authorization Act directs the US Department of Defense to conduct a program of senior military exchanges between the US and Taiwan, Reuters reported.

Noting that the Taiwan question has a bearing on China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, Hua said that "China will by no means accept" the stipulation of the US defense act.

"Although the Taiwan-related content in the US act has no legal binding force, it severely violates the three joint communiques and interferes with China's domestic affairs," she said, adding that China urges the US to end military exchanges with and weapons sales to Taiwan. The three communiques were crucial agreements in the normalization of diplomatic relations between the US and China.

Hua praised the recent remarks by Zbigniew Brzezinski, the national security adviser to former US president Jimmy Carter. Brzezinski told WorldPosta partnership between online news aggregator Huffington Post and independent think tank the Berggruen Institutelast week that "a world in which America and China are cooperating is a world in which American influence is maximized".

"It is not in our interest to antagonize Beijing," Brzezinski was quoted as saying. He criticized the phone call between US president-elect Donald Trump and Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen on Dec 2 as "a pointless irritant".

"Cooperation is the only right choice between China and the US," Hua said, adding that the two countries should adhere to the principle of non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and cooperation for win-win results.

Tang Shao-cheng, a research fellow in the Institute of International Relations at National Chengchi University in Taipei, said that although the US defense act looks like a measure that is friendly toward Taiwan, it is hard to say whether it would benefit Taiwan.

Taiwan is a valuable chip for the US to curb the rise of the Chinese mainland, Tang wrote in an article in the Taipei-based China Times, noting that it was Tsai's refusal to accept the 1992 Consensus, which establishes the one-China policy, that led to the island's self-limitation.
Royal Philips of the Netherlands is looking to roll out a personal health ecosystem in the Chinese market to seek opportunities amid surging demand for health improvement, according to Jorgen Behrens, senior vice president, business leader, Personal Health Solutions at Philips.

Behrens made the announcement during his trip to China for the launch of Philips Health Watch, a piece of upgradable hardware that helps users to better manage their health using data from sensors, smartphone app software and remote location support services.

The product is the first among a slew of products targeting China's consumers in first- and second-tier cities who are allocating more income on personal health improvement, said Behrens.

The product aims at translating the measurements from the data into healthy lifestyle choices and improved behaviors by encouraging users to take charge of their own health, said Behrens.

New users of the product - which has a starting price of 3,599 yuan ($519) - in China can have the first three-month subscription with value-added services for free. After that, the charge is 500 yuan for every three-month subscription.

The business model of the Philips Health Watch is quite different from many of the existing wristband products as it offers value-added services, said Behrens.

He said: "We regard the complete health solution not just as wearable products but all the parts in an ecosystem that gives users incentives and support to improve health."

Users can upgrade both the hardware and software of the Philips Health Watch, and have access to health tips through a smartphone app, and one-on-one telephone health consulting services through the subscription, talking to professional health experts from health centers in partnership with Philips personal health solutions arm.

A study by global management consulting firm McKinsey indicates that expenses for medical treatment have been surging in recent years, so consumers are looking for solutions to prevent disease, such as changing lifestyle and behaviors including better sleeping hours, quitting smoking and getting more exercise.

Market analysts said that the sales of wearable devices targeting consumers who wish to improve their health are booming, but they are also facing increasing competition as more players are entering the market.

According to data of the market research services provider CCS Insight, 29 million wearable devices were shipped in 2014, 85 million in 2015, and the number is expected to rise to 123 million in 2016, and reach 411 million in 2020.

Tong Wei, an analyst with Dialog, said in a research note: "Wearable devices need to seek new areas where they can play a part in people's lives. They should become more interactive, linking hardware, software and professional advice, and at the same time protect users' privacy and data security."

wuyiyao@chinadaily.com.cn

A user checks his heart rate on Philips Health Watch, the first among the company's products targeting Chinese consumers, whose spending on wellness and fitness gadgets and programs has been increasing of late. Provided To China Daily

(China Daily 12/26/2016 page16)
Important moments for English learning in China over the past four decades:

1978: English became one of the subjects tested in the gaokao, the national college entrance exam, which resumed in 1977. English learning has gained in importance ever since.

1982: Follow Me!, a television program made by the BBC that provided a crash course in English learning, was broadcast on China Central Television and attracted large audiences. Viewers learned by following conversations and imitating pronunciation.
The China Academy of Fine Arts celebrated the inauguration of its new campus in Shanghai on Dec 4.

Located in the suburb of Lingang New City, the campus will be home to the Sino-French Institute of Arts and Design Management, an unprecedented collaboration between China's leading college of fine arts and the Kedge Business School in France.

"We decided to build this partnership because there is a very strong need in China and throughout the whole world for people who can bridge art, design and management," said Thomas Froehlicher, director general of Kedge.
DEAR DOCTOR: If I received the flu shot in September, will I still be protected from the flu in March?

DEAR READER: That's a very good question -- and the answer depends, in part, on your current health.

The flu season normally lasts from November to March, but it can begin in October and even end in May. The injected influenza vaccine, which contains three to four inactivated viruses from the prior flu season, spurs the formation of antibodies to help your body fight off influenza if you're exposed. It takes about two weeks after the vaccine for your body to produce sufficient protective antibodies.

If you are a young, healthy person under 50, you're more likely to get a good immune response from the vaccine -- and also more likely to have an immune response that lasts six to 12 months. You'll also have a greater and longer-lasting immune response if you get the flu vaccine every year. So if you got your shot in September, you should have immunity that lasts throughout the flu season.

If you're older than 50 and have diabetes, cancer, or kidney or liver failure, your ability to mount a good response from the vaccine decreases. So six months after your vaccination, you may not have sufficient antibodies to ward off the flu. This has been shown specifically for the H1N1 influenza virus. If you received the vaccine on Sept. 1, you may be less protected by April of the following year against H1N1.

This decreased immunity is especially pronounced in people over the age of 65. It decreases even further among those over 65 who have chronic illnesses.

Some pharmacies have been administering the flu vaccine as early as the middle of August. This isn't necessarily a bad thing for someone older than 65 or someone with chronic illnesses, because you still get immunity from the vaccine that should last through much of the flu season. Still, it's probably better to wait until at least the middle of September to get the flu vaccine just to ensure you're protected for as much of the flu season as possible.

Finally, it's especially important to get yearly flu vaccines if you are: older than 60; between the ages of 6 months and 4 years; have chronic illnesses; or are pregnant. The flu is especially risky for these groups.

While imperfect, the flu vaccine is the best way our society has found to decrease the death rates and the long-term complications from a potentially fatal disease that causes anywhere from 3,300 to 49,000 deaths per year in the United States.

DEAR DOCTOR: Do I really need a yearly mammogram?

DEAR READER: This might be hard to accept, but if you're woman at low to average risk of breast cancer, you probably don't need a yearly mammogram. That's not to say we shouldn't give mammograms their due.

Mammograms can reduce deaths from breast cancer, and they're an important reason why breast cancer death rates have decreased over the last 40 years in this country. Studies have found a decreased death rate from breast cancer among women who have had mammograms compared to those who didn't.

Now let's look at just how much benefit. The public health advocacy group the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force calculated that, if 10,000 women between the ages of 39 and 49 had regular mammograms for 10 years, it would prevent three breast cancer deaths. For the same number of women between the ages of 50 and 59, there would be eight fewer breast cancer deaths. And for women between 60 and 69, there would be 21 fewer breast cancer deaths over that 10-year time period.

In short, the overall death rates were not significantly different between those women who had mammograms and those who didn't. This has especially been shown in studies in Canada and Sweden that compared the impact of annual mammograms with yearly breast exams from a health professional. In a 22-year Canadian study of 89,000 women, no difference in death rate was seen among women who had regular mammograms compared to those who had yearly breast exams with a health professional. This may point more to the importance of getting a yearly breast exam than the benefit of getting a mammogram.

Mammograms also have downsides. A primary one is that they have many false positives, leading to more imaging, breast biopsies and significant anxiety for patients. Another is that many breast cancers, such as ductal carcinoma in situ, would never be of clinical significance, so finding them on a mammogram is of little benefit.

That's not to say mammograms aren't useful. They do find breast cancers. But doctors and their patients need to discuss their risks and their benefits.

If you're a woman who has a mother or a sister with breast cancer, or if you have the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation that increases breast cancer risk, then a yearly mammogram after the age of 40 is a good idea. If you have a combination of risk factors -- such as having had your first baby after the age of 30, having later-onset menopause or having had an earlier onset of menstruation -- then a mammogram is likely a good idea.

However, if you're at average risk of breast cancer and between the ages of 40 and 49, there is only a small statistical benefit in having a mammogram, which should be balanced with the risks of testing.

If you are between the ages of 50 and 69, the benefit of a mammogram may overcome risk. At that age, you should get a mammogram every two years.

If you're older than 70, keep in mind that breast cancer rates increase up to the age of 80, so the screening could have a benefit. But that benefit must be weighed against the likelihood of dying from something else. Here again, the recommendation is for a mammogram every two years, but you should discuss your individual needs with your doctor.

Breast cancer screening is still evolving, with newer 3-D types of mammograms, breast MRIs and the possibility of biochemical markers to detect breast cancer. We'll need future studies of these technologies to assess their effectiveness at detecting breast cancer and reducing death rates. In time, the recommendations may change yet again.

Robert Ashley, M.D., is an internist and assistant professor of medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Send your questions to askthedoctors@mednet.ucla.edu, or write: Ask the Doctors, c/o Media Relations, UCLA Health, 924 Westwood Blvd., Suite 350, Los Angeles, CA, 90095
BEIJING - Chinese lawmakers on Sunday adopted new legislation to improve cultural services.

The National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee approved the law after three readings.

The law, which will go into effect on March 1, 2017, aims to carry forward the traditions of Chinese culture and cultural confidence.

Public cultural services must be people-oriented and "guided by socialist core values," according to the law.

County-level governments and above must improve community cultural service centers, build more of them and offer more products online.

Private funds will be invited to finance public cultural facilities.

Authorities in rural areas must provide more books, newspapers, magazines, opera performances, movies, radio programs and online information, as well as festivals and sporting activities to ensure equal service in urban and rural areas.

Public services should serve special groups such as minors, the elderly, the disabled and migrant workers. They must also ensure quality services in revolutionary bases, ethnic, border and impoverished areas.

The state will translate cultural products into minority languages in ethnic regions, and encourage ethnic cultural products and sports.

International cooperation and exchanges should be expanded.

It is rare in China for a law or an amendment to go through three readings before being passed. One exception was the property law, which was passed in March 2007 after eight readings.

At a press conference on Sunday afternoon, Liu Binjie, head of the NPC education, science, culture and public health committee, said the top legislature will draft a law on the cultural industry and another on libraries. It will also work on amending the law on copyright and protection of cultural relics.
Qiu Jinxian (right) restores an ancient calligraphic piece with the help of a conservator at the British Museum. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Chinese paintings and calligraphy are treasures of humanity. But keeping them in good shape both at home and abroad is a big challenge, Wang Kaihao discovers at a recent forum in Beijing.

For the past 29 years, Qiu Jinxian, who works at the British Museum, has been handling top-tier artworks from China.

"My job is to handle precious cultural relics and rejuvenate the paintings, just like a doctor treats patients," the 64-year-old said earlier this month at an international forum on the authentication, restoration and protection of ancient Chinese calligraphy and paintings at Renmin University in Beijing.

"I always use traditional techniques in my work, whether it is for mounting, colors of pigments or selections of materials," she says.

The process is complicated, and many details are still rooted in tradition. For instance, the glue she uses is made of starch and seaweed. And the paper she uses to restore paintings is dyed using soybean milk.

Qiu arrived at the British Museum in 1987. Before that, Japanese methods were widely used to restore ancient Chinese paintings.

For example, The Admonitions Scroll housed in the British Museum, a work from AD 400 and the oldest surviving Chinese paintinga claim doubted by some scholars, who believe that it is a facsimile of the originalwas mounted in wooden lattice in the 1910s rather than preserved as a scroll.

But when Qiu and her colleagues restored the piece in 2013, they decided not to mount it as a scroll due to its fragility.
Butterfly-shaped, sugar-sprinkled cookies are widely enjoyed in Shanghai, especially when they come fresh out of the ovens. Gao Erqiang / China Daily

Guidebooks advise sampling Shanghai's "must-tries" like xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), red-braised pork and hairy crabs.

But the city's best-kept open secret is haipai xican, which literally translates as "Hai-style Western fare".

It shows every dimension of the metropolis' culture - down to its cuisine - exists at the intersection of East and West.

It's perhaps the closest you'll find to Western Chinatowns' food in the country, yet is its own distinctive group - a melting pot of ancient indigenous dishes with a dash of French, Italian and German influence.

It's considered fine dining and often savored during important or romantic occasions.

"It's a kind of Western cuisine that you can use chopsticks to eat, even though most people wouldn't," local food writer Kong Mingzhu explains.

Haipai staples include potato salad, fried pork chops and borsch.

These three dishes are used as the litmus test to determine if a cook has mastered local culinary arts.

Yet all these are different from how they're classically prepared in their countries of origin.

The potato salad, for instance, lacks the medley of other vegetables the Moscow original contains. Potatoes and processed ham are cubed and mixed with a sauce made from egg yolk and cooking oil.

Fried pork chops remain truer to the Vienna cutlet from which it's derived. The lip-puckering spicy soy sauce is Shanghai's addition.

The dialectical pronunciation of borsch, luosong - the soup believed to have originated from Ukraine - is homophonic with the Chinese word for Russian, the nationality who brought it to the city.

Beetroot wasn't grown in China when borsch arrived, so it instead features an assortment of veggies and sausage slices in a tomato broth.

Adaptation according to available ingredients is the hallmark of haipai, says retired Red House chef Hou Genquan.

Even baking includes a mix of culturally influences.

A butterfly-shaped, sugar-sprinkled pastry is widely enjoyed during afternoon tea and creates long lines at stores like Deda and Park Hotel every afternoon, when it comes fresh out of the ovens.

Visitors to the city should of course try its iconic dishes - and save room for a helping of haipai.
Sample mutton noodles in Xingyi By Yang Fan ( chinadaily.com.cn ) Updated: 2016-12-23

More than 13,000 people from 15 countries enjoy mutton rice noodles in Xingyi on Dec 17. [Photo/zgqxn.com]

Approximately 13,000 people enjoyed bowls of mutton rice noodles in Xingyi on Dec 17 after hiking 7.8 kilometers as part of the citys first International Mutton Rice Noodle Festival.

Xingyi, located in Qianxinan Bouyei and Miao autonomous prefecture, was honored as the hometown of mutton rice noodles by the Chinese Hotel Association at the third Silk Road Food Festival in Sanya, Hainan province. Therefore, the city took the chance to promote itself and invited the world to have a taste of its specialty.

Participants from 15 countries, including the United States, France, and South Korea, started at the entrance of the Wanfeng Forest scenic spot, hiked through the sea of flowers, and finally arrived at Southwest Square where bowels of mutton rice noodle were ready for them.

Edited by Jacob Hooson
Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying speaks at a seminar for the 25th anniversary of the promulgation of the Basic Law in Hong Kong, April 4, 2015. [Photo/Xinhua]

President Xi Jinping, in a meeting with Leung Chun-ying, chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, in Beijing on Friday, praised Leung and the SAR government for their efforts to safeguard national sovereignty and the principle of One Country, Two Systems.

This is yet another signal to those intent on seeking "Hong Kong independence" that the authorities have zero tolerance for separatism and will never let their guard down against it.

Leung, who was delivering his work report for the year, was on what is expected to be his final duty visit to Beijing as chief executive, as his term in office ends on July 1 next year. Xi's remarks emphasize that there should be no doubt that the next chief executive is expected to follow Leung's example and exercise the utmost vigilance against separatism.

Hong Kong's rule of law has been challenged repeatedly by separatist groups, sometimes violently, since the Occupy Central illegal movement in fall 2014. As recently as last month, some lawmakers elect demonstrated their "independence" aspirations by violating Article 104 of the Basic Law and Section 21 of HK's Oaths and Declarations Ordinance. Two of themLeung Chung-hang and Yau Wai-chinghave since been disqualified as Legislative Council members by the High Court.

So far those separatist opposition politicians have shown no sign of remorse. On the contrary, they are soliciting cash donations to fund their court cases and seeking assistance elsewhere, which suggests the fight against separatism will very likely intensify in the days ahead.

Since those seeking "independence" jeopardize the SAR's economic development and social stability, also undermine national sovereignty and security, the authorities should continue to contain "Hong Kong independence" according to the law. This is the only way to respect the wishes of the overwhelming majority of HK residents and protect the interests of both the SAR and the country.
Milan Bacevic, Serbian ambassador to China, experiences TCM diagnosis at "TCM Health Day For Ambassadors" in Beijing, Dec 12, 2016. [Zou Hong/China Daily]

The National Health and Family Planning has urged its local branches in Shanghai and Central China's Hunan province to hold accountable all parties involved in a recent scandal, in which doctors received kickbacks for prescribing drugs. Beijing News commented on Sunday:

It is not news that some doctors feast on prescription kickbacks. But what is incredible in this case is some of drugs, which are supposed to be affordable to most residents, cost patients more than they would pay for the drugs in a private hospital.

That nearly half the money patients paid for the drugs were kickbacks for some doctors is not only a stain on medical ethics and the nationwide fight against corruption, but also a setback for the country's efforts to keep hospitals away from illegal price-fixing. Harsher restrictions are called for to keep both the medication procurement and bidding in check.

Therefore, the bidding process for medicines should be made transparent for public scrutiny and a set of market-based prices introduced for reference.

Which drugs are procured and at what cost should be disclosed in a timely fashion for needed supervision. Those who report overpriced drugs or illegal price-fixing that prove true, should receive proper rewards.

An improved accountability mechanism is essential as part of efforts to regulate the procurement of medicines.
A policewoman attends to a boy in Xinxiang, Henan province, after he was rescued in March from a child trafficking gang. [Photo/China Daily]

According to a latest judical interpretation released by the Supreme People's Court on Thursday, acts that lure children under the age of 6 away from their parents or guardians will be defined as "infant stealing", which may result in 10 years behind bars at the minimum, even the death penalty under serious circumstances. Daily Sunshine, a newspaper based in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong province, commented on Friday:

The top court's revised interpretation of the crime of "infant stealing" should be a major deterrent to human traffickers and settle many disputes over what constitutes "infant stealing". The update, which will come into effect on Jan 1, came a week after some 36 kidnapped children were rescued in a joint operation under the command of the Ministry of Public Security that covered seven provinces and netted some 157 suspects.

Admittedly, kidnapped children are "lucky" if someone pays to adopt them, because many of them are otherwise deliberately crippled and sent out to beg. That explains why some legal experts argue that executing all kidnappers is not necessarily efficient, because that may put the kidnapped in a more dangerous position.

However, that does not make it any less essential to impose harsher punishments on baby stealers, most of whom have been caught more than once. The light punishments mean they have not been deterred from committing the same crime again.

And before last year's revisions to China's Criminal Law, those who did not impede abducted women and children they bought from human traffickers from going home, mistreat the kids, or thwart the rescue of them, could be exempt from criminal penalties. Now they face minor punishments.

That is a "minor" judicial advancement. It is not enough to deter potential child buyers at bay. Refraining from mistreating kidnapped children or impeding rescue efforts, in effect, does not justify minor punishments for those who "buy" stolen children. The need to hold them accountable remains striking, because buying kidnapped children also constitutes a violation of the Criminal Law.
Photo taken on Aug 23, 2015 shows the roof of the Amitabha Palace of the Dayun Temple, Pingshun county of North China's Shanxi province. The Dayun Temple was originally built in the third year of Tianfu, Later Jin Dynasty (AD 938). It is one of the five remaining wooden structure buildings of the Five Dynasties period in China. More than two million RMB has been invested for the repair and restoration of the temple since this April. [Photo/Xinhua]

The compound surrounding Dayun Temple in Shangluo, Northwest China's Shaanxi province, has been encroached upon by the construction of a new development. This has caused damage to several relics including an ancient mulberry tree and four houses built during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). Beijing News commented on Saturday:

The construction work endangering a cultural and historical site on the provincial cultural heritage protection list stopped when the Shangluo museum published an open letter calling for official intervention. However, damage had already been done to the temple, which has a history of more than 600 years: An old tree and a decorated archway were relocated and four houses torn down. There are also cracks in the walls and gates.

It is regrettable that despite years of struggle between the cultural heritage protection authorities and city planning officials, the "urban renovation project" went on undisturbed even though it infringed upon areas under protection. When it comes to construction work near valuable cultural heritage, the urban managers should be very careful to ensure no irreversible damage is done.

According to China's Law on Protection of Cultural Relics, the construction of permanent buildings within 50 meters of a protected building or site cannot proceed unless it has approval from the State Administration of Cultural Heritage. However, in the name of renovation, the property developer employed several tricks to bypass the 50-meter restriction and managed to do so "thanks to" the acquiescence of the local authorities.

The real estate developer's boldness lies in the fact that the Shangluo government supported the project as part of the city's renovation program. Such a lack of respect for the rule of law has dealt a serious blow to the government's image as well as the preservation of the Dayun Temple, and it highlights the need to crack down on all misbehaving officials.
CAI MENG/CHINA DAILY

The new family planning policy allowing all couples to have two children took effect on Jan 1, but the number of newborns this year has been less than expected. The total number of newborns is expected to be just over 17.5 million, which is only 950,000 more than the 16.55 million in 2015, and 630,000 more than the 16.87 million in 2014.

The estimated number of newborns as a result of the new family planning policy accounts for 24 percent of the births in 2016. Given that about 90 million couples are eligible to have a second child, the actual number of second-born children will account for only 1 percent of the newborns in 2016.

The general trend in China is one of a gradual decline in the total fertility rate, and the continuous low birth rate has become a new demographic normal. According to the national sample survey in 2015, which covered 1 percent of China's population, the total fertility rate has declined to as low as 1.05.

After the previous change in the family planning policywhich allowed couples to have two children if either of them was the only child of their parentsgradually took effect in 2014, there was no baby-boom as some people had feared. Of the 11 million eligible couples according to the previous policy, only 920,000 applied by the end of 2014 to have a second child; the figure increased to 1.39 million by May 2015.

The figures show an overwhelming majority of Chinese couples may not be interested in having a second child. And the factors responsible for thatsuch as strict birth control in the past decades, low fertility desire and the huge cost of raising childrenhave left China staring at a low fertility rate trap.

Chinese people's fertility rate is generally between 1.6 to 1.8, which means the policy that allows all couples to have two children is not likely to achieve its goal. Given the rising living and housing costs, couples in general delay the decision to have even their first child, with many not even thinking of having a second child.

In other words, couples who desire to have two children comprise just a small percentage of all the childbearing-age couples, and those who truly have a second child are much fewer than those who have the desire to do so. The policy-made fertility rate is about 1.8, the wanted fertility rate is less than 1.5 and the actual fertility rate is less than 1.3.

Although the number of newborns is expected to increase in the short term, the fertility and birth rates will remain low. For instance, in East China's Zhejiang province, 152,000 couples eligible to have a second child according to the previous family planning policy had applied by the end of 2015 to do so. But they accounted for just about 20 percent of all the eligible couples in the province.

In the long run, the number of newborns relative to China's total population will remarkably decrease because of the low birth rate, as the number of women of childbearing age declines. In the decade from 2015 to 2025, the population of women between 24 to 29 years old, considered ideal childbearing age, will decline from 73.87 million to 41.16 million. This means the number of newborns will decrease by a half even if the fertility rate remains unchanged in the next decade.

In the next few decades, therefore, China will face the challenge of shrinking and aging population.

The author is a professor at the Population Research Institute of Peking University.
The development of internet-based charity activities has been amazing this year. Three landmark developmentslegislation, the total amount of online donation, and rational public discussionsdeserve the credit for the progress.

The annual session of the National People's Congress, the top legislature, in 2016 passed the Charity Law, which includes online charity law. And even though China lags a little behind some other countries in terms of modern charity legislation, it is taking the lead in online charity activities and making efforts to streamline the sector.

Internet makes it convenient for Chinese people to embrace modern charity. Online charity has grown pretty fast in China and has huge potential to expand further.

There are several reasons why online charity has grown at such a fast pace. The traditional practice was to donate money to charity organizations, thank yourself for doing a good deed and forget about it. That used to be the case partly because donors had little information about where the money they donated went and who benefited from it.

But today the internet offers information on online charity more transparently and frequently. Despite the positives, however, the development of online charity this year has not been without glitches. Late last month, it was revealed that Luo Er, who went online to seek public help to save his 5-year-old from leukemia, had hidden from people the fact that he owned three apartmentsone in Shenzhen and two in Dongguan in South China's Guangdong province. Luo eventually returned the more than $360,000 money he had received to the donors but only after raising a controversy.

Some have called Luo "a liar" and blamed online charity for giving him the chance to fool the Good Samaritans. What such people forget is that the truth came to light only because of the internet.

While a few internet users hold radical opinions and blame Luo for everything, the majority have kept the discussion on a rational level. As a result, when Luo decided to return all the money he had received as donation, he could do so without much of a hitch.

The Luo incident also made netizens discuss what measures should be taken to make sure the information released on online charity platforms is complete and factual. The government, on its part, should take measures to better regulate such platforms and protect both the donors and those receiving the donations.

The internet will continue playing an influential role in promoting charity in the future, and the internet will propel China's online charity sector toward greater success.

Wang Zhenyao is the dean of China Philanthropy Research Institute at Beijing Normal University. The article is an excerpt from his interview with China Daily's Zhang Zhouxiang.
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Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond attends UK-China High Level Financial Services Roundtable at the Bank of China head office building in Beijing, July 22, 2016.[Photo/Agencies]

The year 2016 saw some ups and downs between China and the UK caused by Brexit and Hinkley. Let's hope Britain will treat China more regally in the Year of the Rooster.

The new reality is that China is an increasingly competitive place for everyone. Increased competition for domestic firms in light of the anti-corruption drive. Increased competition for British firms as they no longer benefit from preferential investment policies.

Businessmen will need to assume the following cockerel characteristics:

1. Courage of Zheng He

Leading the most powerful fleet in the world from 1405-1433, Zheng He made seven voyages to the western seas. In 2017, China is great again and the best opportunities lie in its globalization drive. But are Chinese and British businesspersons brave enough for the arduous journey?

I watched Jack Ma (modern Zheng He) interviewed by CNBC the day Alibaba listed in New York. Asked if he was "nervous" he laughed. Chinese see opportunity in change.

Quick to capitalize on the favorable post-Brexit exchange rate, during the Golden Week, I observed Chinese on their mobiles in Manchester snapping up real estate bargains. On December, 19, 2016, China National Building Materials Group Corp struck a 2.75-billion-pound ($3.41 billion) joint venture to open six pre-fabricated house-building factories in the UK.

British businesses have to cultivate the same appetite for risk.

GKN, one of the UK's first auto-parts suppliers in Shanghai, went global last year, accessing the US via their Henan joint-venture. GKN don't see China as an "outpost", but as a global hub. British businesses that adapt to the new economic pecking order win out.

2. Compassion of Lei Feng

With China's focus on balanced development in 2017, courage must be tempered with compassion; At a micro-level British companies must reflect China's new focus on balanced development via enhanced CSR programs as two new charity laws will take effect in 2017. Every company will be required to show its contribution towards more equal development.

At a macro-level, post-Brexit Britain can learn a more balanced form of globalization from China. Zheng He did not go abroad to invade but to trade. If inclusive capitalism is Theresa May's mantra, Jun Liqun (AIIB President) must be her man. Turned on its side the logo of AIIB looks like an equals. Right way up it looks like a railway across the globe.

3. Clever like Confucius

As China urbanizes and the middle class expands to 600 million by 2020 there is ample opportunity for new innovations in education, healthcare and tech. However, in order to realize these opportunities, British business needs to learn to communicate effectively with China.

Confucius was an expert in reducing difficult concepts to manageable sound-bites. UK Plc needs to be more willing to communicate quickly with China, able to clearly articulate their USPs and more ready to listen to ideas on how to localize.

For institutions that show the courage to change the benefits are obvious. CIC Ltd in Stoke-on-Trent is a branding consultancy which had five employees in 2005. Since opening in Hangzhou in 2007, it has grown its business to 55 staff. Why? Because they take their time to go and visit their clients across China and listen to their rapidly changing needs in Ningbo, etc.

Conclusion

There is little doubt in my mind that China and global trade are moving up the priority list of the British government. My first meeting of the new year is with Greg Hands, Minister of State for Trade and Investment, on January 3rd. The political momentum is there.

I see the changes reflected in the British Chamber in China. My role has completely changed. Eighty percent of attendees at our events are now Chinese reflecting the outbound wave. Sixty percent of my speaking engagements are on Belt and Road Initiative. Our AGM attracted 120 last year and 380, three days after Brexit. Brexit has been a catalyst for Sino-UK connectivity and I expect it to continue.

Let's hope that UK business has the courage to push China up its pecking order to give everyone something to crow about in 2017.

Clare Pearson is chairwoman of the China-British Business Council.

The opinions expressed here are those of the writer and don't represent views of China Daily website.
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe delivers a speech during an extraordinary parliament session in Tokyo, Japan, on Sept. 26, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

On purpose or by mistake, Japan's Foreign Ministry announced on Dec 5 that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will visit Pearl Harbor on Monday and Tuesday becoming the first head of government in office to do so.

But Abe is not the first sitting Japanese prime minister to visit the Pearl Harbor; the Hawaii Hochi newspaper has reported that Shigeru Yoshida, Ichiro Hatoyama and Abe's grandfather Nobusuke Kishi visited the key World War II site as Japanese prime ministers in the 1950s. In fact, Hatoyama and Kishi are believed to have visited Pearl Harbor in an official capacity and the United States military even provided an honor guard to them.

Along with US President Barack Obama, Abe will visit the USS Arizona Memorial, which commemorates Americans killed during Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec 7, 1941.

Therefore, Abe's visit to Hawaii is not only aimed at seeking reconciliation for the attack on Pearl Harbor but also to send a signal to US president-elect Donald Trump who takes office on Jan 20.

When Obama paid a visit to Hiroshima in May, Trump tweeted: "Does President Obama ever discuss the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor while he's in Japan? Thousands of American lives lost." In what could be considered a response to Trump's question, Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga has said Abe's visit to Pearl Harbor will "express the value of reconciliation" between the two countries.

Daniel Kritenbrink, senior director for Asian affairs at the National Security Council, has said that Obama is expected to term Tuesday's event in Pearl Harbor "a demonstration of the strength of our alliance" and "a powerful demonstration of how the two countries can overcome a very painful history to become the closest of allies and friends". Kritenbrink also said that based on communications with his Japanese counterparts and Abe's own comments, Washington believes the Japanese leader is "approaching this event from a similar perspective".

"Not just Abe, but the whole foreign policy community in Japan, is desperate to send a message not just to the world, but to (US) president-elect Trump, that the US-Japan alliance is strong and can only get stronger," Sophia University professor Koichi Nakano said in an interview with Reuters.

In an article published on the Foreign Affairs magazine website, Zach Przystup, associate director of Global Executive and Diplomatic Education at the Fletcher School at Tufts University, called Abe's visit to Pearl Harbor "the pragmatism of reconciliation". Przystup said: "Abe's efforts to dull his nationalist impulses may not reflect a personal conversion, but they do demonstrate a shrewd and pragmatic understanding of Japan's current geopolitical reality."

On Thursday Japan's National Security Council approved the operating guidelines, including the Self-Defense Forces offering protection to US and other foreign military even during peacetime, or so-called gray areas that do not directly involve a military attack. Besides, Abe's Cabinet has approved a record high defense budget of 5.1 trillion yen ($44 billion).

For the first time, Japan has earmarked a sum of 14.7 billion yen ($125.3 million) for an advanced ship-based ballistic missile interceptor, the Standard Missile-3 Block 2A, which was co-developed with the US. And research funds will be allocated for the potential procurement of new equipment, such as the US' Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system.

But according to an NHK poll conducted on Nov 11-14, 37 percent of the respondents said US-Japan relations will worsen and 35 percent predicted an "unchanged" relationship, with only 5 percent saying it would improve under the incoming Trump administration.

The findings of a Yomiuri Shimbun poll conducted on Nov 12-13 were even more pessimistic, according to which about 58 percent of the respondents said "instability" will grow.

And given Trump's unpredictable foreign policy, it is difficult to say whether Abe's reconciliatory visit to Pearl Harbor will get the desired response from the incoming US administration.
Two girls dressed as Santa Claus dance in a shopping mall in Beijing on the night of Dec 24, 2016. Although Christmas is not traditionally celebrated in China, shopping malls welcome the festival by organizing activities to attract shoppers and boost year-end sales. [Photo/Asianewsphoto]

It rings harshly in the ears to hear some people complaining about the influence of jingle bells at this time of year.

On Sunday, Christmas Day, some students at a vocational school in Chengdu, Southwestern Chinas Sichuan province, dressed in traditional Chinese clothes and called on people to boycott Christmas and cherish traditional Chinese festivals. It is said that some colleges and universities even banned students from holding any celebrations for this festival.

Such calls for a boycott of Christmas are narrow-minded.

Peoples growing acceptance of foreign festivals does not automatically erode their enthusiasm for traditional celebrations. In the past years, traditional culture has been rejuvenating in society with the governments promotion, and Chinese people have been paying increasing attention to traditional festivals.

Spring Festival, Tomb Sweeping Day, Dragon Boat Festival, and mid-Autumn Festival are all traditional festivals that are observed today.

For many ordinary Chinese people, Christmas is just another excuse for a family reunion or gathering with friends. The localization of Christmas in China has the core beliefs of peace and love, which are in line with the values celebrated in the traditional festivals. For instance, apples, which are called pingan guo in mandarin, are perfect gifts during Christmas to send best wishes of peace, health and happiness.

And, of course, the main reason Christmas and other Western celebrations are observed are because they are another way to get people to open their wallets and part with their money. Such boosts to consumption are to be encouraged as the country seeks to shift from investment-led economic growth to consumption-driven economic growth.

China has achieved rapid growth in the past more than three decades since reform and opening-up in the late 1970s, and cultural exchanges have become an important part of the countrys opening-up. Late leader Deng Xiaoping, the architect of reform, said that its important to solicit the good parts of foreign culture and resist the bad. Top leader Xi Jinping has also said its important to enhance Chinas soft power by promoting cultural exchanges and learning from other cultures.

Despite the calls for a boycott of Christmas, it was celebrated with Chinese characteristics over the weekend in cities across China, just like Spring Festival is now celebrated in many metropolis in the US and Europe.

Christmas is just another celebration of life, please let it be.
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TUNIS - Tunisia's Interior Ministry said a false alarm due to bomb threat had on Sunday delayed a Tunisair airliner bound for Barcelona, Spain.

Security personnel evacuated all the people on board the flight of Tunisia's national airline expected to leave the Tunis-Carthage international airport. They searched the plane completely and checked the luggage without finding any suspicious objects, according to the ministry.

The plane then took off and landed safely in the Mediterranean city of Barcelona.

A suspected woman was under investigation, it said in a statement.
President Xi Jinping sent a message of condolence to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday over the crash of a Russian military plane.

On behalf of Chinese government and people, Xi expressed deep sympathy over the accident and extended his sincere condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims.

The Tu-154 aircraft, with 92 people on board, was en route to the Syrian port city of Latakia. It vanished from the radar screens shortly after taking off from an airfield in the southern Russian city of Adler at 5:40 am, according to Russian media reports.

"Fragments of the Russian Defense Ministry's Tu-154 aircraft were discovered 1.5 kilometers from the Black Sea shore of Sochi at a depth of 50-70 meters," the Russian Defense Ministry said.

The ministry's spokesman Igor Konashenkov confirmed that 84 passengers including 65 choir members, and eight crew members were on board the plane.

Among those on board were Russian servicemen and members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, the Russian army's official choir, who were heading to the air base for New Year celebrations, according to the ministry.

Among the 84 passengers there were also nine journalists, the ministry noted.

Russia's Investigative Committee has launched a criminal case over the crash. A defense ministry commission, headed by Deputy Defense Minister Pavel Popov, has departed to Adler.

The Tu-154 is a three-engine medium-range airliner produced by Russian aerospace and defense company Tupolev. It is one of the fastest civilian aircraft in use and widely used in extreme Arctic conditions.

Contact the writer at anbaijie@chinadaily.com.cn
WASHINGTON - A two-year-old boy accidentally shot himself dead with his father's gun, US media reported Sunday.

The child was taken to hospital from his home in Ohio City, Cleveland, following the incident Friday morning, and died during surgery.

A neighbor told local media that she heard the boy's brother run outside the house when the gun went off and then she called 911.

She said the child suffered a gunshot wound to the head and was lying on the floor.

The boy's father, a 54-year-old police officer, has been on duty since 1993, according to a Cleveland police statement. Investigations are still under way. There have been no arrests.
China has lodged "solemn representations" with the United States in response to the signing of its defense act which includes senior military exchanges between the US and Taiwan.

Foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Monday that China "will by no means accept" the new legislation.

"We are resolutely against the Taiwan-related section in the US National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017, and have lodged solemn representations with the US," she said.

Part of the $618.7 billion National Defense Authorization Act suggests the US Department of Defense should conduct a program of senior military exchanges between the United States and Taiwan.

Hua said the Taiwan question has a bearing on China's sovereignty and territory integrity.

"Although the Taiwan-related content in the US Act has no legal binding force, it still severely violates the three joint communiques and interferes in China's domestic affairs," she said.

"We urge the US side to honor its commitment on the Taiwan question, put an end to military exchanges with and weapons sales to Taiwan and avoid undermining China-US relations or cross-Straits peace and stability," she added.
MOSCOW -- The flight recorders of the Russian military Tu-154 aircraft that crashed into the Black Sea on Sunday could remain intact, a senior official was quoted as saying on Monday.

"Flight recorders will definitely be raised when the plane is found on the sea floor, we know where they are; they are in the fin," the Interfax news agency quoted Russian Airspace Forces Commander-in-Chief Viktor Bondarev as saying.

Bondarev believed that the flight recorders, also known as black boxes, could be intact since the fin is normally the least damaged part in an air accident.

Currently, 3,500 people are participating in the search and recovery operation, as well as 39 ships, and seven deep-sea submergence vehicles, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.

So far, 11 bodies and 154 fragments have been recovered, of which 10 bodies and 86 fragments were sent to Moscow by plane for identification, the Defense Ministry said.

Russian Deputy Defense Minister Pavel Popov was quoted as saying at a briefing in Sochi that experts believed the aircraft had fallen into the sea some 6 km away from the shore.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Maksim Sokolov virtually ruled out the possibility of a terror attack behind the tragedy.

"The main versions of the crash may be technical failures or pilot errors," Sokolov told a press briefing broadcast live by the Russia 24 TV channel.

The exact causes have yet to be established by investigators and a special commission of the Russian Defense Ministry.

The ill-fated plane, en route to Russia's Hmeimim air base in the Syrian port city of Latakia, crashed shortly after takeoff from Sochi early Sunday morning.

Ninety-two people -- 84 passengers and eight crew members -- were aboard the plane. Most of them were members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, a renowned choir of the Russian Armed Forces, as well as nine Russian journalists. They were heading to the air base for New Year celebrations.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Urbino Botelho, his counterpart from the African island nation of Sao Tome and Principe, share a light moment before they meet journalists in Beijing on Monday to discuss the nations' resumption of diplomatic relations. Feng Yongbin / China Daily

China and the African island nation of Sao Tome and Principe resumed diplomatic relations on Monday, a move experts see as a clear warning to Taipei of a possible flood of breaks with its "diplomatic allies".

Also on Monday, a group of warships from the mainland, led by the country's only aircraft carrier, the CNS

Liaoning, steamed through the northern portion of the South China Sea after passing south of Taiwan, Reuters quoted the island's "defense ministry" as saying.

Beijing said on Saturday that the Liaoning had set off for a routine exercise in the Western Pacific.

In Beijing, Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his counterpart from Sao Tome and Principe, Urbino Botelho, signed a joint communique to resume diplomatic ties at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse. The ceremony on Monday came after the African nation broke ties with Taipei last week.

"We need to acknowledge that China is playing an increasingly important role internationally," Botelho said when meeting reporters with Wang. "We want to make good on our past mistakes."

Beijing suspended its relationship with the nation in 1997 after it established "diplomatic ties" with Taipei.

Botelho said his country now expects more Chinese investment and tourists.

"We are happy to see that Sao Tome and Principe has conformed to the tide of history by looking at the facts and long-term interests of both countries' peoples," Wang said.

The disruption of ties between Sao Tome and Principe and Taiwan came after US president-elect Donald Trump irritated Beijing by accepting a phone call from Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen on Dec 2, breaking with diplomatic precedent.

He Wenping, a researcher at the Institute of West Asian and African Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the move was a "wake-up call" for Tsai to avoid undermining the one-China principle during her upcoming trip to Latin America in January. She is also expected to pass through the United States.

"Or she'll face an avalanche of breaks in diplomatic allies' with Taiwan. ... Sao Tome and Principe is just the tip of the iceberg," He said.

Taiwan now maintains "official" ties with 21 countries and governments, mostly in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Yu Wensheng, a researcher in African studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, said Sao Tome and Principe wants to "ride China's economic express train in Africa and build a diversified and sustainable economy".

"China has the capital and technologies to help it create a healthy economy through win-win cooperation that far outweighs any gift money," Yu said.
A woman takes a selfie with workers wearing panda costumes during a promotional event for Chinese tourists at a department store in Seoul, South Korea, in April. [Photo/Agencies]

South Korea will introduce a new five-year renewable visa in January to attract affluent Chinese tourists, against the backdrop of a decrease in Chinese arrivals in the second half of the year.

The visa, which allows holders to return for stays of up to 30 days during the period of validation, is named hallyu, after the Korean pop culture wave. Chinese tourists who buy specialized four-day travel packages costing 17,350 yuan ($2,500) or more can apply.

China's leading tour company, Ctrip, predicted that only 1 percent of mainland tourists would be eligible for the new visa.

South Korea rapidly became a top destination among Chinese travelers in recent years, though it saw a brief slowdown in May last year after an outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome. By the end of this year, the number of Chinese visitors is expected to reach a record 8 million, an increase of 33 percent year-on-year.

However, since Seoul announced in July that it would deploy the THAAD advanced United States missile defense system, there have been monthly decreases in the number of Chinese tourists. According to Seoul, 917,500 Chinese visited South Korea in July, but only 680,900 visited in October and 516,956 in November.

Xu Xiaolei, a spokesman for China Youth Travel Service Co, said his company saw a decrease of about 20 to 30 percent in the number of visitors to South Korea in the second half of the year compared with the first half. He said "many complicated exterior reasons" were responsible.

Additionally, protests arising from a scandal that led to the impeachment of South Korea's president affected some Chinese tourists' decision-making.

Tao Jia, a fashion buyer in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, rebooked her trip to Tokyo instead of Seoul in late November because she was concerned that protests in the South Korean capital might disrupt her travel or otherwise prove inconvenient.

Industry insiders said it was too early to know whether the new visa might fuel South Korea's inbound tourism industry in the coming year.

Wang Zhenyue, deputy director of UTour International Travel Service's direct-marketing center, said the timing of the new visa policy is good because it coincides with the New Year and Spring Festival holidays, a peak season for outbound Chinese tourism.

However, the amount needed to qualify for a hallyu visa "is relatively expensive" for a brief visit, and "residents from Shanghai and Beijing can easily get a five-year, multiple-entry visa without spending so much money", he said.

Xu of China Youth Travel Service said the new visa might prove more attractive to those from certain second- and third-tier cities whose residents usually must provide more documents to get a regular visa.

"However, generally speaking, the visa threshold for South Korea is not high," he added.
Political prisoner, activist, journalist, hymn-writer, emerging think tanker, aspiring novelist, "tribal elder", parliamentary candidate for North West Durham, Shadow Leader of the Opposition, Speedboat, proudly banned from Twitter so officially more dangerous than the Taliban, eagerly awaiting the second (or possibly third) attempt to murder me.
(Photo : Getty Images) The "Death by China" author's appointment has not been received well in Beijing.

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Donald Trump's pick to head the White House Trade Council Peter Navarro believes that China's Communist government is a despicable, brutal, parasitic, crass, and callous totalitarian imperialist power.



Navarro's appointment was not well received by the mainland because of his outspoken views that China is a brass-knuckled regime that is also the biggest police state and prison in the world.



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China's ruling elite initially seemed convinced that ties with Washington could be mended with the deal-making Donald Trump in charge, but Navarro's nomination has seen that resolve waver.



Navarro, a business professor at the University of California, is being seen as a hindrance to hopes of bringing the two nuclear powers together.



While making the announcement of his nomination, Trump's transition team described Navarro as a "brilliant policy mind and a tireless worker." But Beijing sees him as a radical hawk and is unlikely to concur with such sentiments.



The professor has penned a number of highly stinging anti-China publications, such as "Death by China" and "Crouching Tiger: What China's Militarism Means for the World."



He has accused the communist country of destroying both American factories and lives by flooding the US with illegal "contaminated, defective and cancerous" exports.



In a 2012 Netflix documentary based on "Death by China," the Harvard-educated scholar blamed China for the loss of 57,000 American factories and 25 million jobs.



"The repressive communist government is now victimizing both American and Chinese citizens alike," the documentary, which Trump termed as "spot on," claimed.



Navarro is also on record accusing China of being a "global pollution factory" and "disease incubator." He made no secret of his revulsion for China's rulers during Trump's election campaign.



Li Yonghui, the head of the school of international relations at the Beijing Foreign Studies University, opined that Navarro's nomination is in tandem with Trump's hawkish view of China.



"We should stay vigilant. We have to be prepared," Li said, adding that Trump will place unprecedented pressure on China.



Responding to his appointment, China's Global Times said that "China needs to face up to the reality that the Trump team maintains a hard-line attitude toward China," urging the government to be fully prepared for any offensive move by the Trump government.



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Tagschina, donald trump, china US dispute
(Photo : Getty Images) Banking regulator FDIC believed it is being targeted by Chinese military-sponsored hacks.

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The FBI is probing how hackers managed to infiltrate computers at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) since 2010 in a security breach that senior FDIC officials believe was funded by China's military, sources familiar about the matter told Reuters.



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Hackers were able to gain access to dozens of computers, including the work station of former FDIC Chairwoman Sheila Bair.



Last month, the agency allowed congressional staff to access international communications among senior FDIC officials related to the security breach. The officials pinned that the hacking attacks were the works of Chinese military-backed individuals. However, the congressional staff was barred from retaining copies of the exchanges, which did not explain why they were convinced that China was behind the hacks.



FDIC spokeswoman Barbara Hagenbaugh refused to comment on the previously unreported FBI probe but said that the regulator "took immediate steps" to root out the hackers once they discovered the breach.



The breach is one of several security lapses at the FDIC in recent years. This year, the regulator has informed the Congress of at least seven cyber security incidents, which occurred between 2015 and 2016.



The FDIC said that there were 159 incidents of illegal computer access during the 2015 fiscal year, according to a redacted copy of its annual report obtained by the media under a Freedom of Information Act request.



The regulator said that it is beefing up information security standards, including a ban on thumb drives. Coordination with the Department of Homeland Security is also being emphasized to prevent future attacks.



"We are continuing to take steps to enhance our cybersecurity program," Hagenbaugh said.



The FDIC is one of the three federal agencies that regulate commercial banks in the United States. It oversees confidential blueprints on how big banks would handle bankruptcy. It also has access to records on millions of individual American deposits.



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Tagschina, cybersecurity, cyber espionage
(Photo : Getty Images) Vladimir Putin said that Russia's military can deal with any potential aggressors.

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President Vladimir Putin said that Russia has modernized its nuclear arsenal and other forces, making it "stronger than any potential aggressor."



Speaking during the annual conference, Putin added that the United States' withdrawal from the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) treaty in 2001 "created the conditions for a new nuclear arms race." The US-Soviet ABM treaty was signed in 1972.



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"It's no secret that we have worked hard to improve our missile forces," Putin said, although admitting that the United States military is the strongest in the world.



"If anyone is unleashing an arms race it's not us. We will never spend resources on an arms race we can't afford," the Communist leader emphasized.



Despite Putin's strong sentiments, a study on Russia's nuclear capabilities said that a budget crunch is causing delays on the country's modernization effort.



Meanwhile, commenting on Donald Trump's win in the US Presidential elections, Putin said "Nobody believed he would win, apart from us."



The Russian president said that Trump's call for the United States to "greatly strengthen and expand" its nuclear capabilities is "nothing special."



The President also scoffed at the US government allegations that Moscow was behind the hacking of the Democratic Party computer systems during the recent US elections.



"The losing side is looking for people to blame outside. They would do better to look for the problems among themselves," Putin said.



He said that it is clear that the Democrats are losing ground in congressional elections as well. "So that's my work too?" he queried.



"The main thing is the information that these hackers provided. Did they exaggerate anything? No, they revealed true information," Putin said.



When asked whether he would be seeking for another term in office during next year's elections, Putin refused to reveal his plans.



"I will look at what is going on in the country, in the world," Putin said.



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(Photo : Getty Images) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that his country will not abide by the UN Security Council resolution.

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Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that a UN security council's call to stop Israeli settlements in the occupied land is shameful and that the country will ignore Friday's vote at the 15-member UN Security Council.



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"Israel rejects this shameful anti-Israel resolution at the UN and will not abide by its terms," Netanyahu said.



"At a time when the Security Council does nothing to stop the slaughter of half-a-million people in Syria, it disgracefully gangs up on the one true democracy in the Middle East, Israel, and calls the Western Wall 'occupied territory'," Netanyahu complained.



Israel also announced that it had recalled its ambassadors to Senegal and New Zealand and cut all aid programs to Senegal.



Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' spokesperson said that the UN resoution will be a huge blow to Israeli policy.



Egypt had withdrawn the resolution after Israel asked US President-elect Donald Trump to intervene. However, Malaysia, New Zealand, Senegal, and Venezuela decided to reintroduce the motion during the Security Council meeting.



The resolution was passed after the United States refused to veto it, breaking the country's long-standing practice of sheltering Israel from condemnatory resolutions. The resolution was approved by 14 votes to zero, with only the United States abstaining.



In the resolution, the UN Security Council demanded that Israel quit all settlement activitities including those in East Jerusalem, adding that the Jewish settlements are a violation under international law. It also said that the settlements are a hindrance to the achievement of the two-state solution.



The settlements issue is one of the biggest sources of friction between Israel and Palestine. Approximately 500,000 Jews live in about 40 settlements built since 1967, when Israel started its occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.



The settlements are considered illegal under international law, an accusation that the Israeli government strongly disagrees with.



Palestinian ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, said that while the UN resolution has been long overdue, its ratification is timely.



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(Photo : Getty Images) Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces have regained control of Aleppo with the help of Russia.

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Syrian President Bashar Assad expressed his gratitude to Russian leader Vladimir Putin and the Russian people for Moscow's help in retaking Aleppo from opposition fighters.



The two leaders had a phone conversation, which was initiated by Putin, on Friday after Assad's government resumed full control of the city of Aleppo.



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"The two sides discussed during the phone call the next political process in Syria, with President al-Assad thanking President Putin and Russia as a key ally for Syria, which contributed along with other allies to liberating Aleppo," Syrian state media reported.



Assad reportedly offered his opinion that victories in Aleppo paved way for political work in Syria and that they will push many rival factions to the political track and reconciliation.



The phone conversation between the two leaders was also picked up by Russian state media.



"The main task now is to concentrate efforts on issues of advancing a peace settlement, in particular, through concluding an agreement on comprehensive settlement of the Syrian crisis," Putin said.



Aleppo is one of the biggest cities in Syria and was a key battleground in the bloody conflict between forces loyal to Bashar Assad and rebel groups trying to oust him. The war has led to widespread death and destruction of infrastructure.



In September, the United States and Russia tried to institute a ceasefire in the city, but the deal collapsed after Washington failed to convince militants opposed to Assad to honor the truce.



The Russian military is currently helping to clear mines from the liberated city. They are also providing humanitarian aid to returning residents.



Russia has also sent an elite force to guard aid workers and convoys.



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(Photo : Facebook) China claimed it successfully tested EmDrives technology in its laboratories and a proof-of-concept is currently undergoing zero-g testing in orbit.

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China claimed that it successfully tested electromagnetic drives (EmDrives) technology on its laboratories and a proof-of-concept is currently undergoing zero-g testing in orbit, Dr. Chen Yue, director of Commercial Satellite Technology for the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), announced on Dec. 10.



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Both the US and China have been pouring serious resources into these seemingly impossible engines. And now, China said it made a major breakthrough in the impossible EmDrives, with test taking place on the Tiangong 2 space station, according to the International Business Times.



Why EmDrive is Impossible?



While traditional engines produce thrust by expelling mass, EmDrives, which is a piece of space tech, use electricity to create movement that would violate the law of conservation of momentum by generating mechanical action without exchanging matter.



EmDrive was first developed by Roger Shawyer as a microwave cavity that is a truncated cone with one end bigger than the other. Electromagnetic energy then hits the narrow end with microwaves that strike the cavity walls and create electromagnetic resonance.



Efficiency and Future of EmDrive



EmDrives are excellent for deep space exploration because these do not need refueling. It only requires a power source to run like a reactor or solar energy to fuel anything ranging from a manned martian mission to robotic probes going outside of the solar system.



EmDrives can be high-function satellites as well and could result in smaller and more efficient satellites, since these could ditch space-consuming chemical thrusters used for maneuvering.



China has not yet released any pictures of the EMDrive, but NASA has published a different EmDrive named Eagle works, or the unmanned X-37 space plane.



Li Feng, lead CAST designer for commercial satellites, stated that if China gets successful in installing EMDrives on the satellites, it would do well for orbital maneuvering and altitude control. It would also create new opportunities for China's long range probes beyond asteroids.



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Tagschina, EmDrive, breakthrough, Fuel-Free, China Academy of Space Technology
(Photo : Getty Images) Russia condemned the United States for imposing new sanctions over the Syrian civil war.

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The Russian foreign ministry accused the United States of losing its grip on reality after Washington slapped sanctions on Syrian ministers and a Russian bank.



The United States added several senior Syrian government officials, including the country's ministers for oil and finance, to its sanctions blacklist.



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"The widening American sanctions against Russia at a time when the bloody attacks in Ankara and Berlin should bring reasonable people together to fight the terrorist threat, shows that Washington has completely lost its grip on reality," the ministry said in a statement.



In the statement, the Russian foreign ministry said that the US is "trying to punish us for our support to the Syrian government against terrorism which is a threat not only to that country but to the whole world."



The ministry added that Washington's desire to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is so great that it is ready to help any destructive force. It further vowed that Moscow will not be cowed by sanctions, adding that the targeted Russian companies are functioning normally.



Syria has been involved in a civil war for five years. The war has left more than 300,000 people dead and millions more displaced. The conflict started as a pro-democracy revolt but quickly morphed into an all-out civil war after Syrian government forces unleashed a violent reprisal against dissidents.



It soon drew in global powers, with Russia and Iran supporting the government, while the United States and some regional states backing rebel fighters.



While announcing the new additions to the blacklist, the United States also imposed sanctions on Syrian airline Cham Wings, which has been accused of transporting foreign fighters to help government forces in the war.



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(Photo : Getty Images) CNS Liaoning, China's only aircraft carrier.

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China revealed that its first aircraft carrier has carried out a set of combat drills in the Yellow Sea ahead of further planned missions.



The Chinese aircraft performed air conflict maneuvers along with launch practices and recovery from the Soviet-era warship, which was bought from Ukraine in 1998 and has since been refurbishing it for service.



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The international community has closely monitored the capabilities of the Liaoning carrier group since China declared it was "ready to fight against enemies" in November.



The exercises on the Yellow Sea were announced by the Chinese Defense Ministry late on Friday.



"As a next step, the group will conduct scheduled cross-sea training tests," the ministry said.



The Liaoning carrier group's destination was not revealed by the ministry, but its "cross-sea" statement has led Chinese media to speculate that it will soon be heading into the South China Sea.



State-owned tabloid Global Times quoted a popular military analyst saying that the South China Sea would be the perfect next location because troops stationed on the reefs owned by China could be involved in the joint exercises.



Tensions in the South China Sea are high, with both China and the United States, accusing each other of engaging in dangerous military build-ups. China laid claim to nearly the entire sea and is disputing with weaker neighbors over the ownership of islands, coral reefs, and lagoons.



However, China insisted that the carrier will be used mostly for training and research. Many analysts, however, believe that the carrier is another strategic cog in China's efforts to assert its authority in the South China Sea.



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Tagschina, South China Sea Dispute, South China Sea
(Photo : Getty Images) At least 110 dogs that were rescued from the Yulin dog meat festival are now living a new life in Canada.

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A Canadian animal rights organization has given a new lease of life to 110 dogs after successfully rescuing them from the infamous Yulin dog meat festival. These rescued dogs will now undergo medical treatment across Canada.



The Humane Society International Canada (HSI) said that 110 dogs have safely landed at the Toronto airport late Thursday night. The organization confirmed the news on its official Twitter account and uploaded photos, describing that the dogs homecoming was like a Christmas miracle.



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HSI's executive director, Rebecca Aldworth, claimed that the dogs were rescued in June and were later shifted to a local emergency shelter for temporary medical care.



Aldworth later revealed that 63 dogs will be shifted to rescue organization in King City, 10 to Ottawa, and the rest will be taken to Montreal SPCA.



She hopes that these dogs will be soon available for adoption and can set an example to encourage people to put an end on the global dog meat trade that is responsible for the death of 30 million canines every year.



Talking specifically about cruelty, she said "These dogs have endured a level of cruelty that most people can't bear to watch on video and they need time to regain their trust of people."



The Yulin dog meat festival is held every year in the summer season in southern Chinese city of Yulin. Nearly 10,000 dogs and cats are rounded up during the 10-day festival for feeding the local meat industry.



There are several online petitions, initiated by animal rights organizations, doing rounds in the social media world. These petitions have became online sensations, with millions signing it and urging the Chinese government to ban the Yulin dog meat festival.



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TagsYulin Dog Meat Festival, china dog meat festival, china, Canada, China and Canada
(Photo : Getty Images) The official choir of the Russian army was on its way to Syria when the plane crashed.

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A Russian defense force Tu-154 aircraft carrying 92 people crashed in the Black Sea shortly after take off at 5:40 a.m. local time on Sunday.



The plane, with 84 passengers, including nine journalists, and eight crew members on board, dropped off radar shortly after it took off from the resort of Sochi.



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Fragments of the Soviet-designed three-engine plane were later found by rescuers about 1.5 kilometers from the shore in waters around 50 to 70 meters deep. No survivors have been reported.



Citing an anonymous source, Russian media said that preliminary data indicated that the plane crash was caused by a technical malfunction.



According to the Russian defense ministry, the plane was supposed to deliver Russian personnel and artists from Russia's official military choir, the Alexandrov Ensemble, to a New Year concert for troops and air force servicemen based at the Khmeimim air base near Latakia in Western Syria.



Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, said that Russian President Vladimir Putin is aware of the plane crash and was being kept abreast of the search efforts. Authorities have also launched a criminal investigation to determine whether safety breaches led to the fatal crash.



Meanwhile, there have been several Tu-154 aircraft crashes in the past. In 2010, several high-ranking Polish officials including then President Lech Kaczynski perished when a Tu-154 plane crashed down in foggy weather while approaching western Russia's Smolensk airport.



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TagsRussia, Alexandrov Ensemble
(Photo : Getty Images) After spending 28 years in sorting out terms and conditions, Russia and China have finally began the construction of a bridge across Amur River.

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The construction of the long awaited Amur River Bridge finally started on Saturday. The wait was indeed a long one, given that both Russia and China have painstakingly spent almost 28 years in negotiating terms and conditions.



The bridge is a part of China-Mongolia-Russia economic corridor that aims to connect Russia's eastern city of Blagoveshchensk with China's north-eastern city of Heihe. This ambitious bridge will be constructed at the cost of $355 million.



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"We've started the construction of the cross-border bridge. The governor of the Amur region and top officials in Heilongjiang province took part in the ceremony," a Russian official from the Amur region told local news agency.



The bridge will be 19.9 kilometers long. Of which, around 6.5 kilometers will be reportedly located in China and the remaining 13.5 kilometers will be in Russia. Media reports also claimed that the main suspension bridge has a length of approximately 1,300 meters and width of 14.5 meters.



Engineers and companies involved in the project claimed that construction work will be completed within the next three years and the bridge will be opened for public use in 2019.



The final agreement, which was signed on September 2015, is dominated by territorial principles. It categorically stated that each country will construct the part falling in their respective geographical area. It further stated that upon completion, the bridge falling in Russia will become the property of the Amur region, while China's part will be owned by Heilongjiang Province.



The ambitious bridge is expected to greatly boost trade and economic development between the two countries as it shortens the distance between Russia and China by 3,500 kilometers.



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TagsRussia and China, amur river, Amur River Bridge, china
(Photo : Getty Images) Apple has reportedly removed all Withings products from its online and retail stores after Nokia filed a patent infringement case on several courts across the world.

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In less than a week after Nokia filed several patent infringement lawsuits against Apple, the Cupertino-based tech giant promptly removed all Withings products on its stores. Withings, a company known for making Wi-Fi scales, digital health devices, and fitness hears, was acquired by Nokia earlier this year.



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As of this writing, doing a Google search for Withings products will still give out a listing that has a link directly towards Apple's online store. However, clicking the link will lead to an error message on Apple's website informing the customer that the product is no longer available.



In a statement acquired by Recode, Apple said, "We respect intellectual property and we've always been willing to pay a fair price to secure the rights of patents covering technology in our products."



Apple added that Nokia has been reluctant to offer a new license for some of its patents on a fair price. Apple said that Nokia is using a dirty business tactics called "patent troll" in order to extort money through unfair means.



For its part, Nokia said that the company decided to bring the issue into federal courts as Apple did not agree to the terms the company set in order to acquire a new license.



Earlier this week, Nokia sued Apple in courts all over the world for issues regarding patent infringement. Nokia filed cases in courts of Finland, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Japan, Hong Kong, France, Spain, Sweden, and the United States. According to Mashable, Nokia filed 40 patent lawsuits in issues covering display technology and user interface, among others.



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Tagsapple, Nokia, Patent, patent lawsuit, Withings, nokia lawsuit, apple lawsuit
(Photo : Getty Images) Beijing has denied US accusation that it is not properly enforcing UN sanctions on North Korea

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Denying the US' accusations that it was not properly enforcing the latest UN-backed sanctions on North Korea, Beijing on Saturday said it has instructed all companies, especially those involved in the coal business, to follow the UN Security Council resolution in dealing with Pyongyang.



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The UN imposed new sanctions on North Korea last month by slashing its annual coal exports to China by US$700 million effective on 2017 in a bid to prevent its leader, Kim Jong-un, from having access to hard currency that could be used to fund its nuclear weapons program.



The sanctions, adopted unanimously by the 15-member Council after three months of deliberation, were imposed after Pyongyang carried out its fifth and largest missile test on September 9.



'Unnecessary Losses'



In a statement on its website, China's commerce ministry said that pertinent companies should pay close attention to the UN sanctions and restrictions to "avoid unnecessary losses."



"Understand the United Nations circular about North Korean coal exports, make preparations in advance and rationally arrange imports to avoid unnecessary losses," it said.



Aside from coal, the US-drafted resolution also bans companies from purchasing North Korean copper, nickel, silver, and zinc exports.



Target



The US has repeatedly stated that China is not properly enforcing the UN sanctions on North Korea, but Beijing strongly denies this.



Despite its condemnation of Pyongyang's repeated nuclear tests, Beijing remains North Korea's most important trade partner and diplomatic backer.



The commerce ministry said China has always enforced the UN sanctions to the letter and the same strict imposition of the sanctions would be made with the new resolution.



China recently expressed disappointment over the US, Japan, and South Korea's sole reliance on Beijing to rein in Pyongyang and force it to give up its nuclear weapons saying it could not do it alone.



An editorial published in the communist-backed newspaper, Global Times said that all parties should assume their respective responsibilities and not look to China alone to solve the Korean Peninsula crisis.,



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TagsUN sanctions, North Korea, Kim Jong Un, coal exports, UN Security Council, china, US
(Photo : US Army) A THAAD missile system on its mobile launcher and what the system can do.

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China has again said it plans to retaliate against the deployment of the United States' THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Aerial Defense system) in the Republic of Korea by 2017.



China reiterated it would "resolutely" take necessary actions -- but without specifying what actions -- to protect its security interests in response to the U.S. deployment of THAAD in South Korea at the request of the South Korean government.



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Beijing latest blast against THAAD came only a few days after acting South Korean President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn said THAAD has to be deployed to South Korea as soon as possible to counter North Korea's persistent nuclear and missile threats.



"For security, (we) have to deploy (THAAD)," said Hwang. "As we cannot wait even for a moment to cope with North Korea's nuclear provocations, we have to do what we can do first."



South Korea will install a THAAD battery in the southern county of Seongju, 296 kilometers southeast of Seoul, in May 2017. A second THAAD battery is also to be deployed.



"China has repeatedly expressed its serious concerns and clear opposition," said Hua Chunying, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman.



"The THAAD deployment by the US in the ROK severely undermines the regional strategic balance and the strategic and security interests of relevant regional countries including China.



"It will not help preserve the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula. We hope that relevant countries can take our legitimate concerns seriously and halt the deployment."



The incoming administration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump made one of its first comments about THAAD recently when Michael Flynn, Trump's designated national security adviser, said the decision to deploy THAAD was an "appropriate move."



"The Seoul-Washington alliance remains strong and firm," said Flynn.



This was the first time a senior adviser to Trump clearly supported the THAAD deployment. Flynn's remarks suggests Trump will continue with the deployment of THAAD, a decision made under President Barack Obama.



Flynn also called for closer collaboration with South Korea to deal with nuclear and missile threats from North Korea, which THAAD is to deter.



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TagsTHAAD, Terminal High Altitude Aerial Defense, Republic of Korea, Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, china, retaliation, South Korea
(Photo : Boeing) U.S. Air Force X-51 Waverider hypersonic missile (illustrationj).

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The discovery by researchers at the Imperial College London of materials that can withstand an incredible 4,000 degrees Celsius opens the door to more applications involving protection from extreme heat, including manned hypersonic aircraft and spacecraft.



The temperature at the surface of the Sun is 5,500 degrees Celsius, a factoid that shows how heat resistant these materials are.



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Researchers discovered that the ability of tantalum carbide (TaC) and hafnium carbide (HfC) materials to withstand extreme heat means refractory ceramics can be used in thermal protection systems on hypersonic vehicles travelling in excess of Mach 5 or 6,200 km/h.



Tantalum carbide and hafnium carbide are refractory ceramics, meaning they are extraordinarily resistant to heat. Researchers discovered that the melting point of hafnium carbide is the highest ever recorded for a material.



Hypersonic cruise missiles armed with warheads such as those being developed by the U.S. Air Force can hurtle towards their targets at Mach 5, and can be fired further away from their targets. At these fantastic speeds, a hypersonic missile can jet from Los Angeles to Beijing in less than 1.5 hours.



Researchers developed a new extreme heating technique using lasers to test the heat tolerance of TaC and HfC. They used the laser-heating techniques to find the point at which TaC and HfC melted, both separately and as mixed compositions of both.



They found that the mixed compound (Ta0.8Hf0.20C) was consistent with previous research, melting at 3905C, but the two compounds on their own exceeded previous recorded melting points. The compound TaC melted at 3768C and HfC melted at 3958C.



Researchers said the new findings could pave the way for the next generation of hypersonic vehicles, which means these aircraft will become faster than ever.



"The friction involved when travelling above Mach 5 -- hypersonic speeds -- creates very high temperatures," said Dr. Omar Cedillos-Barraza, an Associate Professor at the University of Texas - El Paso whocarried out the study while doing his PhD at Imperial's Department of Materials.



"So far, TaC and HfC have not been potential candidates for hypersonic aircraft, but our new findings show that they can withstand even more heat than we previously thought -- more than any other compound known to man.



"This means that they could be useful materials for new types of spacecraft that can fly through the atmosphere like a plane, before reaching hypersonic speeds to shoot out into space. These materials may enable spacecraft to withstand the extreme heat generated from leaving and re-entering the atmosphere."



Other potential uses for TaC and HfC could be in the re-entry shields for spacecraft, and in external instruments that have to withstand the most friction during flight.



Hypersonic aircraft traveling at Mach 5 or above currently don't carry people, but Dr. Cedillos-Barraza suggests this might be possible in the future.



"Our tests demonstrate that these materials show real promise in the engineering of space vehicles of the future. Being able to withstand such extreme temperatures means that missions involving hypersonic spacecraft may one day be manned missions.



"For example, a flight from London to Sydney may take about 50 minutes at Mach 5, which could open a new world of commercial opportunities for countries around the world."



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TagsImperial College London, tantalum carbide, hafnium carbide, hypersonic space vehicles, Dr. Omar Cedillos-Barraza
I didnt want to show up at church. The black-and-blue marks already beginning to appear up and down my arms documented another night of fighting between my mother and me. I hadnt slept much and was sure I wasnt ready to face the shiny, happy people in my church who never seemed to struggle with anything. But I knew that my absence from the Sunday service would raise more questions than not. Reluctantly, I covered up in a long-sleeve shirt and went.

The friendliest woman in the entire congregation greeted me at the door. Becky had a beautiful family. They were so picture-perfect that I felt embarrassed for her to know the kind of family I came from. Her home was always filled with her kids and grandkids, and they matched their outfits each year for their Christmas card photo. I couldnt even imagine what it would be like to be included on a Christmas card.

As I exchanged hugs with Becky, I did well at concealing the heaviness in my heart and my aversion to being there that morning. As I listened to Becky share her anticipation over her daughter Annas upcoming wedding, I felt even more miserable. Anna was her fourth child, and the last one to marry a godly spouse.

Please pray for Anna, Becky asked, a slight frown wrinkle forming on her brow. Shes really struggling.

I was confused by this request, considering how Becky had just gushed with excitement and joy over Annas wedded bliss.

Anna doesnt want to lose her last name, Becky confided. She doesnt want to lose that connection to her family heritage.

I had absolutely no idea how Anna felt. I hated my nameevery part of it. Esther seemed too old for a young person, ...

1
Obamacare Mandate Attacks Religious Doctors Over Transgenderism

WASHINGTON, Dec. 26, 2016 / Christian Newswire / -- Eight states and several faith-based organizations presented oral arguments in Texas federal court challenging an Obamacare regulation forcing all doctors and staff perform "gender re-assignment" surgeries and hormone treatments on patients, even children. The December 20, 2016, arguments focused on their request for a preliminary injunction. The Department of Health and Human Services intentionally refused any religious exemptions, despite dozens of requests and essentially is demanding faith-based organizations and religious people bow to LGBT demands.

This mandate forces doctors to break their Hippocratic Oath of "Do no harm" and demands doctors and staff actively participate in, and cause, something that deeply opposes their religious beliefs. It ignores the inherent risks of unnecessary surgery, especially with regard to children. In Liberty Counsel's memo , evidence shows that most children who claim to identify as another gender before puberty outgrow that perception by the time they become adults. In addition, two-thirds of patients experience at least one other simultaneous psychiatric issue.

This lawsuit is in the same court that previously ended Obama's administration forcing all schools and employers to ignore biological sex and instead include "gender identity" in their non-discrimination policies and gender specific facilities on the basis of "gender identity." That same edict and effort is what has been incorporated into Obamacare by the Department of Health and Human Services.

"It is horrific that our government is trying to bully every practicing surgeon in America to cut and carve people, even children, based on a tenuous whim or wish. Our First Amendment protects everyone, even doctors, from being forced to take disastrous actions opposing their religious beliefs." said Mat Staver (photo), Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel. "These patients, and especially children, need to find a safe environment to address the roots of their desire for sex-change surgery. Oftentimes, surgical mutilation does nothing to heal the hurt and heart of the matter. These people need to be lovingly counselled, not cut up." said Staver.

Liberty Counsel is an international nonprofit, litigation, education, and policy organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of life, and the family since 1989, by providing pro bono assistance and representation on these and related topics.
home US ISIS calls for attack on U.S. churches during holidays

The Islamic State has called on its adherents for an attack in the U.S. during the holiday season, and it has released a list of targets which include thousands of churches across all 50 states.

The announcement was posted in the "Secrets of Jihadis" social media group on the Telegram app on Wednesday night.

According to Vocativ, a user who goes by the name of "Abu Marya al-Iraqi" posted an Arabic-language message that called for "bloody celebrations in the Christian New Year." The message also contained plans to utilize the terror group's network of lone wolf attackers to "turn the Christian New Year into a bloody horror movie."

The post included a public directory of the churches across the U.S. Other messages posted on Telegram include manuals for preparing weapons and explosives for aspiring assailants.

In another post, a member urged "the sons of Islam" to target "churches, well-known hotels, crowded coffee shops, streets, markets and public places." The user also shared a list of addresses in the U.S., Canada, France and the Netherlands.

A "kill list" published by the terror group in June included more than 8,000 names and addresses. Some of the people in the list were reportedly police officers in the U.S. No known attacks were linked to the list.

Following the assassination of the Russian ambassador to Turkey in Ankara earlier this week, ISIS published a document containing the addresses and contact information of Russian embassies in a bid to incite more attacks.

The terror group has claimed responsibility for the attack on a Christmas market in Berlin on Monday. The jihadis said that the attacker was a "soldier of the Islamic State" who followed the orders "to target coalition countries."

The suspect, who was identified as Anis Amri, was killed by the police in Milan, Italy after four days on the run.

A video was released by ISIS showing Amri pledging allegiance to its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The group also acknowledged his death and praised the incident as "another attack" on Italian police.
BEIJING - China's Ministry of Finance (MOF) will adjust tariffs on a number of exports and imports.

The new plan comes into force on Jan 1, according to the MOF website.

To meet domestic demand, tax rates will be lower on some imported commodities next year including hydraulic actuators for aircraft.

Imports tariff will also be reduced on commodities including tuna and arctic shrimp.

Exports tariffs on commodities including nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers will be scrapped and commodities such as steel billet will see reduced export tariffs.

In line with trade pacts, more imports from Hong Kong and Macao will be tariff-free next year, while some commodities from countries including the Republic of Korea, Australia, Pakistan and New Zealand will see reduced tariffs.

The number of items to be taxed in 2017 will reach 8,547, said the plan.
Blog Hinangai

While there is much discussion in Guam about the economic benefits of increasing the islands military presence, the damages/dangers that they represent are rarely mentioned. This blog, a supplement to the Peace and Justice for Guam Petition, is meant to counter that by providing information about the US military in Guam, with the hopes of steering policy away from a dangerous unilateralist course to more sustainable notions of regional development and a strengthening international solidarity.
Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) recently crucified a man suspected of aiding the coalition, based on images recently released by the terrorist group.

News organization Heavy released a photo report showing ISIS religious police called "hisbah" publicly crucifying a man accused of spying for the anti-ISIS coalition. In one of the photos, an ISIS member was pointing a gun at the victim's head.

According to the news outlet, the photo was released on the ISIS channels on Dec. 19. The photo is captioned: "The Killing of One of the Spies of the Crusader Coalition for His Apostasy."

Crucifixion is a known execution tactic employed the Islamic State. In June 2014, UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported to AFP (via RT News) that ISIS brutally killed and crucified eight men and left their bodies displayed at the town square in Aleppo, Syria for three days. They also crucified a ninth man and left him nailed up for eight hours, although he reportedly survived the ordeal.

Earlier this year, Christian Aid, a charity aimed at helping persecuted Christians worldwide, reported that 11 indigenous Christian workers near Aleppo were crucified and beheaded by ISIS for refusing to convert back to the Jihadist's twisted version of Islam.

With the group was the 12-year-old son of the team leader who set up nine churches across Syria. Witnesses say the terrorists cut off the boy's fingertips and beat him up, as they attempted to force the father to return to Islam. Both the ministry leader and his son eventually died via crucifixion after enduring heavy torture.

Eight others were beheaded and likewise crucified. Two of them were women, and villagers say they were publicly raped before being killed by the jihadists.
home US Judge blocks Illinois law that forces pregnancy centers to promote abortion

An Illinois circuit court handed down a preliminary injunction against a law that would have forced pregnancy centers and pro-life medical professionals to refer patients to abortion businesses.

The injunction, which applies only to the clinics and individuals named in "Pregnancy Care Center of Rockford, et al. v. Bruce Rauner et al," was granted by Judge Eugene Doherty of the 17th Judicial Circuit Court in Winnebago county on Tuesday. It could serve as a precedent for a broader case to challenge the law in federal court.

The law, which was signed by Gov. Bruce Rauner earlier this year, is set to take effect on Jan. 1.

The lawsuit was filed by the non-profit organization Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) on behalf of the Pregnancy Care Center of Rockford, Dr. Anthony Caruso at A Bella Baby OBGYN in Downers Grove, and Aid For Women. The case is scheduled to be heard on Jan. 10, 2017.

Tiffany Staman, executive director at Pregnancy Care Center of Rockford, said that she is grateful for the injunction and that she is optimistic about the case.

"We realize this is just the beginning of the road, but we're really grateful that the court ruled based on our free speech rights that are found in the Constitution. We are looking forward to 2017 and following God's leading every step of the way," she said, according to Life News.

Doherty declared in the court order that the state's amendment violates the free speech rights of the plaintiffs by compelling them to speak a state-sponsored message, particularly since the state is capable of speaking its own message without forcing others to do so on its behalf.

"No state has the authority to compel health professionals, against their will and their sacred oath to 'do no harm,' to promote abortion," ADF senior counsel Matt Bowman said in a statement. "We commend the court's ruling which is a victory for free speech and the freedom of conscience," he went on to say.

Heartbeat International president Jor-El Godsey, who attended the hearing, commended the judge for granting the injunction. He has previously urged the 49 affiliates of his organization in Illinois to refuse compliance with the law should it come into effect.
home Faith Pope Francis' belief in evolution, Big Bang 'inconsistent with God's Word,' says Ken Ham

Christian fundamentalist and Young Earth creationist Ken Ham criticized Pope Francis' views on the theories of evolution and the Big Bang being compatible with how the world was created from a Biblical perspective. He claimed that the pope was contradicting the world of God by saying so.

In a recent Facebook post, Ham asserted that denying the Big Bang does not make God a "magician," as Francis pointed out, quoting Luke 1:37 in writing, "For nothing will be impossible with God."

He also cited Exodus 20:11 in reminding that God created the world in six days.

Speaking at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in 2014, Pope Francis made controversial comments that bridged scientific and biblical assertions on how the word came to be.

According to Francis, scientific theories do not contradict the idea of a creator. "When we read about Creation in Genesis, we run the risk of imagining God was a magician, with a magic wand able to do everything. But that is not so," the pope said, adding, "The Big Bang, which today we hold to be the origin of the world, does not contradict the intervention of the divine creator but, rather, requires it."

This is not the first time that Ham adversely reacted to the pope's comments on the theory of evolution and the Big Bang. In 2014, Ham wrote an article published on the Answers in Genesis website, in which he stated, "Pope Francis, like so many other religious leaders, is putting man's word above God's Word. And not only that, he's also going so far as to say that only a magician with 'a magic wand' could create the way that God said He created in Genesis!"

For centuries, the Catholic church has had a reputation for being anti-science. Looking back in history, Galileo was forced to take back is "heretic" theory that the earth revolved around the sun.

Pople Pius XII, John Paul II, and Pope Francis were the ones noted to have warmed up to the idea of evolution and the Big Bang theory.

Francis' predecessor, Benedict XVI, had an entirely different view. The former pope endorsed the idea that natural selection is not enough to explain the complexity of the world.
home World Sahara gets snow for the first time in 37 years

The 1984 Band Aid theme song "Do They Know It's Christmas?" composers Bob Geldof and Midge Ure got it wrong when they wrote "there won't be snow in Africa this Christmastime" because snow has fallen on the Sahara Desert for the first time in 37 years.

Ain Sefra, an Algerian town located deep in the Sahara Desert, received snowfall on Monday, Dec. 19. The last time that such phenomenon took place was in February 1979, when a half-hour snowstorm hit the area. On Monday, though, the snow stayed for more than a day before melting away. This gave residents just enough time to snap some photos of the beautiful landscapes that were created as a result of the snowfall.

Images shared on social media boast of red sand dunes coated with snow, a very rare scenery.

Amateur photographer Karim Bouchetata was one of the lucky ones who managed to take pictures of the Saharan desert covered with snow.

"Everyone was stunned to see snow falling in the desert; it is such a rare occurrence," Bouchetata said, The Telegraph reported. "It looked amazing as the snow settled on the sand and made a great set of photos. The snow stayed for about a day and has now melted away," he added.

The Sahara Desert is one of the hottest and driest regions in the world, and in the past, temperatures in the area reached 47 C (117 F). Surrounded by the Atlas Mountains, Ain Sefra is situated 1,078 meters above sea level. According to LiveScience, snow landing on sand dunes is more likely to occur on Saharan mountain ranges.

Other areas in Africa that get some snow include Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and the Algerian ski resorts of Chrea and Tikjda.

In November, some parts of Israel, Syria, and the middle east also saw some snow.
Atheists And Christians Tweet #ImWithJustinWelby After Nigel Farage Attacks ABC's Christmas Message

Christians and non-Christians have responded on Twitter to an attack by Nigel Farage on the Archbishop of Canterbury by tweeting #ImwithJustinWelby.

Former Ukip leader Farage hit out at Justin Welby yesterday, after the Archbishop in his Christmas message said the world was 'awash with division and fear'.

He tweeted:

Merry Christmas. Ignore all negative messages from the Archbishop of Canterbury and have a great day!  Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) December 25, 2016

In response, Twitter user @KtTup, who describes herself as a priest and a 'Jesus freak', tweeted:

Custodian of the faith Nigel Farage accuses amateur theologian Justin Welby of unnecessarily Christian message on Christmas Day. #Christmas  Robb Sutherland (@changingworship) December 26, 2016

To my mind @JustinWelby if you're disliked by Nigel Farage you're probably doing something right, keep speaking up and speaking out  Kate Bottley (@revkatebottley) December 25, 2016

Apparently @Nigel_Farage says I should ignore @JustinWelby - Read this tweet from the archbishop and then ponder what Farage said https://t.co/idsQujsas6  Mark Russell (@markrusselluk) December 25, 2016

In his sermon, delivered at Canterbury Cathedral on Christmas Day, the Archbishop said the world felt less predictable and certain and awash with fear and division. "That uncertainty of our world, our feelings, tells us that our values are in the wrong place," he said. "Economic progress, technological progress, communication progress hasn't resulted in economic justice. It hasn't delivered glory for us. "It is among those on the edge, those ignored, and amongst persecuted believers that I have most clearly seen the glory of God this year, a glory that chases away the fear of terror, the power of death, and the economies of injustice, and presents a path to a more just, more Christ-like world." Welby talked about two people he'd encountered this year and how their faith had helped them in times of suffering. "Let me tell you about a bomb-injured woman in Pakistan, bereft of her youngest child in the blast that had injured her, who said, 'One thing we know, Jesus really is the good Shepherd'," he said. "And a lonely elderly woman in London, and a trafficked teenager in Watford, both of whom spoke recently at a Carol service at Lambeth Palace: they have seen the glory of God in Jesus and he has brought powerful transformation to their lives. People on the edge. "How then do we find glory? The only place and person who can bring glory to us is the child of Bethlehem who became the victim on the cross."

Jesus came to us homeless and in a manger. This Christmas please pray with me for the poor, hungry and homeless, here and abroad.  Justin Welby  (@JustinWelby) December 25, 2016

Welby clashed with Farage in June, when he told MPs that the Ukip leader was "accentuating [people's] fear for political gain and that is absolutely unacceptable".

He accused Farage of "inexcusable pandering to people's worries and prejudices, that is giving legitimisation to racism".

He has made many calls for compassion towards refugees and those in need, and has also defended those who fear migration.

Earlier this year he told Parliament's The House Magazine it was "outrageous" to label those who worry about the impact of immigration as racist insisting there was "genuine fear" about the impact on housing, jobs and the NHS.
Church And State Should Be Separate Because Britain Is No Longer A Christian Country, Says Report

The Church of England's position as the established church with the Queen as Supreme Governor is "no longer tenable" and needs a rethink, according to a report today.

As churchgoing and belief in God continues to decline, the public role of religion in Britain needs "significant reform" says the new report from the National Secular Society.

Its main demand is that the Church of England should no longer enjoy the patronage of the state.

The report notes that the Church of England is established only in England, not Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. The Church of Scotland is the national church in Scotland but has few privileges comparable to those of the Church of England.

"One of the greatest privileges of the Church of England is the 26 bishops from English dioceses with ex officio seats in the UK Parliament, which gives them significant power to introduce and amend UK-wide legislation," the report says. "The UK parliament is the only one in the world where bishops have such seats.

"Other significant privileges include the Church's currently pre-eminent role in national ceremonies, especially the coronation, and the monarch being the Supreme Governor of the Church, over whose liturgy and regulation Parliament has nominal control."

The National Secular Society says this privileged status fails to reflect society as it is today and leads to inequity and unfairness.

The secularists also call for a moratorium on all new faith schools.

"The time has come to separate church and state in order to ensure equality and fairness for believers and non-believers alike," said the society.

Rethinking religion and belief in public life, which is being sent this week to all MPs, calls for Britain to "evolve" into a secular democracy with a clear separation between religion and state.

It says the current multi-faith approach is "at odds with the increasing religious indifference" in Britain.

Terry Sanderson, president of the National Secular Society, said: "Vast swathes of the population are simply not interested in religion, it doesn't play a part in their lives, but the state refuses to recognise this.

"Britain is now one of the most religiously diverse and, at the same time, non-religious nations in the world. Rather than burying its head in the sand, the state needs to respond to these fundamental cultural changes.

"Our report sets out constructive and specific proposals to fundamentally reform the role of religion in public life to ensure that every citizen can be treated fairly and valued equally, irrespective of their religious outlook."

The report also warns that the rise of so called 'sharia courts' risks undermining the legal system. Allowing groups to opt-out of the state legal system in favour of a religious alternative "strikes at the heart of citizenship and a cohesive society", it says.

The report also urges politicians to refrain from describing Britain as a "Christian country".

"Any approach which seeks to label the values widely shared by UK citizens as exclusively 'Christian' is doomed to be out of touch with the views and lifestyles of the population", it states.

Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain of Maidenhead Synagogue said: "It may be true that more people in Britain are now secular rather than religious, but the report dismisses too easily the fact that the country is still based on Christian culture and Christian values.

"It also glosses over the fact that the Church of England has been very accomodating to other faiths and stepped back to make room for them in the national life. While this may undermine the NSS's assertions about the disproportionate role of faith in Britain, some of the recommendations still deserve attention.

"Publicly funded faith schools have become agents of segregation and should no longer be allowed to discriminate in pupil admissions or teacher employment. The role of Sharia Councils should be reviewed to ensure that individual freedoms are not denied. A Humanist should be allowed to contribute to the BBC's Thought for the Day. Expansive demands such as Disestablishment are an ask-too-far, but some gentle nudges are needed to keep faith tolerant."
How Jesus' Birth Should Give Us Hope

Christmas is a time that should fill our hearts with hope in God, no matter what we are going through or have gone through. It's a time that reminds us of the coming of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who came to rescue us at just the right time. His earthly life, from birth to death to resurrection, gives us hope.

Christmas is a very festive season among many Christians now, and it should be because it celebrates the coming of the King of kings who has come to save all men. But for those who are going through hard times right now and are feeling hopeless, here's something for you: Jesus' birth gives you hope. Here's how.

Jesus Was Born in Unlikely Conditions

If you think you're going through something so bad that God will not understand, you're wrong. Jesus' birth was full of unlikely things that many children don't even go through.

First, Jesus' earthly mom was a single virgin who was still to be married when she got pregnant.

His earthly dad, Joseph, planned to leave His earthly mom because of this. Joseph stayed because God told him of His plan.

Are you a child born out of wedlock? Do you come from a broken family? Are you going through struggles with your marriage? Christ was born in the midst of many uncomfortable situations.

Second, Christ was born in a stable, because there was no room at the inn.

Mary and Joseph arrived there after a long travel and found no place for Mary to give birth.

Do you come from a poor family? Do you feel like you have no place in the world? Are you rejected by many people? Jesus, even before He was born, was already rejected by the world (see John 1:11). Think about it. His earthly life had very humble beginnings, and fast forward into the future He also humbled Himself and died on the cross.

Third, Jesus' first guests were shepherds  led by angels.

You may feel like nobody remembers you this Christmas, but God hasn't forgotten you. Maybe you feel like no one is happy with you, but God actually sings over you (see Zephaniah 3:17). If you're in Christ, you're God's child and He rejoices in you!

Fourth, Wise men sought and brought gifts for Jesus, born the King of the Jews.

You might not feel like it right now, but God has woven you into His plans. You're not an accident ever. In fact, God has already prepared good things for you. What He has prepared for you will surprise you. (see 1 Corinthians 2:9; Ephesians 2:10)

Fifth, a murder plot was hatched against Jesus.

Do you ever feel like the world hates you for being a Christian? Are you being persecuted for believing Christ? Are you rejected for loving God? Be thankful that you're counted worthy to suffer for Christ (see Acts 5:41), who has been the target of assassination and all evil since His birth.

Christ Went Through It All

Christ went through all pain and suffering, even right from the time He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit inside Mary's womb. His coming is our hope.

"Since then we have a great High Priest who has passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who was in every sense tempted like we are, yet without sin. Let us then come with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:14-16)
Myanmar Says Muslim With Links To Government Murdered In Troubled Rakhine

A man has been found dead with stab wounds in Myanmar's Rakhine State, in what the government said on Monday was the second murder in under a week of a Rohingya who cooperated with authorities as they crack down on suspected insurgents.

Coordinated attacks on October 9 killed nine police officers and sparked a military operation in northern Rakhine. The government of predominantly Buddhist Myanmar blamed Muslim Rohingyas supported by foreign militants.

State media has reported at least 86 deaths and the United Nations says 34,000 people have fled to Bangladesh.

The violence poses a challenge to Aung San Suu Kyi's government and has renewed international criticism that the Nobel laureate has done too little to help the Rohingya, who are denied citizenship in Myanmar.

Residents and rights groups say soldiers have raped Rohingya women, burnt homes and killed civilians during the operation near the frontier with Bangladesh.

The government denies the accusations, and has launched a social media campaign in an effort to demonstrate that security forces are acting properly in Rakhine.

An administrator in Yae Twin Kyun village, named as Rawphi, was found dead with knife wounds on Sunday, Lieutenant Colonel Aung San Win of the local border guard police told Reuters.

He said the killing of the 28-year-old Muslim might be "related to terrorism".

Myanmar's state counsellor's office said on Monday evening on its Facebook page that the victim had been "cooperating with members of security forces in administration duties."

The case is the second murder in Rakhine where authorities have highlighted the victim's cooperation with the government, appearing to point the finger at Rohingya insurgents.

On Friday, the state counsellor's office said a Muslim man was decapitated after he had denied stories of Myanmar military abuse when speaking to reporters.

"He told media that there was no case of arson by the military and police forces, no rape and no unjust arrests," said a Facebook post accompanied by a picture of a headless body with English text that read: "truth teller beheaded".

Neither the police nor the state counsellor's office have said who was responsible for the decapitation.

A Rohingya community leader, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals, told Reuters many Muslims were sceptical about the government's account of the beheading.

A report by the International Crisis Group said insurgents calling themselves Harakah al-Yaqin were responsible for the attacks on Oct. 9 that sparked the crackdown. The group also have killed Rohingyas who threatened to inform on them to authorities, the ICG said.

Reuters could not independently verify the government accounts as access for independent journalists to northern Rakhine has been prohibited since security forces locked down the area.
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Entries accepted for Art Car Parade

Join the celebration of the 30th annual Houston Art Car Parade Weekend - one of the largest and most colorful free public events in the city of Houston.

Start with Main Street Drag and Sneak Peek at Discovery Green on Thursday, April 6, followed by the party at The Legendary Art Car Ball on Friday, April 7, and then being one of more than 250 mobile masterpieces that will take to the streets of downtown Houston on Saturday, April 8, to a crowd of nearly 300,000 screaming fans during The Houston Art Car Parade.

Individuals/artist teams & schools/youth groups who want to enter must fill out the online form at artcarentry.com in order to be considered for the 30th Annual Houston Art Car Parade Weekend. In addition to filling out the form, applicants will be asked to upload 1-5 images of their entry. Keep in mind that these images need to accurately capture the entry as they will be published in the annual Houston Art Car Parade program.

Entry fees are $35 and include one official Houston Art Car Parade Artist T-shirt and two tickets to The Legendary Art Car Ball. Additional T-shirts can be purchased at check-out, and additional Art Car Ball tickets will be available after the new year.

Nonprofit organizations interested in submitting an entry into the Houston Art Car Parade Weekend are asked to download the form from www.thehoustonartcarparade.com/media/files/page/6a55d3ee/2017_Non-Profit_Entry_Form.pdf and follow the instructions. Entry fees are based on the non-profit's annual budget. For any questions contact Jonathan Beitler at jonathan@orangeshow.org.

Businesses and corporations wanting to become involved in the Houston Art Car Parade Weekend through sponsorship, activation or vehicle entry in the parade are asked to visit www.thehoustonartcarparade.com/media/files/page/41ca32fc/2017_Houston_Art_Car_Parade_Sponsorship_Opportunities_FINAL.pdf to download the sponsorship packet. For additional information, contact Elaine Dillard at elaine@orangeshow.org.

For any other questions regarding submitting entries, contact Houston Art Car Parade artist liaison Rebecca Lowe at artcarentry@orangeshow.org.

HGO to openwinter season

Houston Grand Opera, 510 Preston St., Houston, will present "Nixon in China" Jan. 20-28 and "Verdi's Requiem" Feb. 10-18.

For information, visit HGO.org or call 713-546-0200.

Congregation Beth Israel Sisterhood sets Girls Night out

Join Congregation Beth Israel Sisterhood on Thursday, Jan. 26, for the fourth annual Girl's Night Out at 5600 N. Braeswood Blvd. in southwest Houston.

The evening will feature light bites, desserts, wine and Mah Jongg for both experienced and beginning players at separate tables. Play bridge or bring a board game. All are welcome. Just bring your own cards, games, Mah Jongg sets and cards.

The cost to eat, drink and play is $40, and underwriters at the $100 level will get special recognition.

For a reservation form and to RSVP, contact Marlene Spolane at spoldm@swbell.net or Rosalyn Margolis at roz.margolis@gmail.com. Jan. 16 is the deadline to RSVP.

Watercolor Art Society features local artists

The December Small Paintings show highlighted the talent of local water-media artists and WAS-H members in the Greater Houston area.

Carla Gauthier, a Houston-based watercolor artist and previous juror, jurored the Small Paintings show.

First-place winner was Karen Capper, second-place winner was Mohammah Ali Bhatti and third-place winner was Robin Avery.

The Small Paintings show prospectus called for paintings no larger than 12"x12."

Community members and artists' friends and families gathered closely around the paintings to view the detail the small paintings held.

"It's amazing what a little brush and some dedicated time cclaimed Michael L., amazed by the level of intricacies.

Located in the heart of the Museum District, The WAS-H accepts all community members to entertain their water-media skills in workshops, demos and to participate in monthly or annual shows. Monthly shows like the Small Paintings Exhibiton is one perk of joining the WAS-H community.

The Small Paintings show runs until the last week of December.

The Watercolor Art Society-Houston, founded in 1975, is a nonprofit with more than 650 members. Visit www.watercolorhouston.org or call 713-942-9966 for more information.

Art Colony plans Bayou City Festival

The Art Colony Association Inc. has announced the Bayou City Art Festival Memorial Park 2017 featured artist is Amanda Bennett, a mixed-media artist from New Orleans.

Bennett along with more than 300 artists from around the country and 19 different disciplines will showcase their art at the Bayou City Art Festival Memorial Park on Friday-Sunday, March 24-26.

"For 46 years now, festival patrons have enjoyed a beautiful and vibrant walk through Memorial Park," said Bridget Anderson, executive director of Art Colony Association. "With the dedication and help from our wonderful sponsors and supporters, we are able to produce one of the top festivals in the U.S. for all our guests."

Visit www.artcolonyassociation.org for details.
HPD

Houston police are asking for the public's help in identifying a woman found dead more than 36 years at 3600 Stokes about 3 p.m. on Dec. 10, 1980.

The woman is described as a black female, believed to be in her 20s. She was found partially clothed and wearing two thin gold bracelets as well as an orange bracelet on her left wrist. She was also wearing two necklaces.
Over the next two years, Westchase District will be building more trails and parks to enhance the walkability of the area.

A "Community Meeting Vision Workshop" will be held 6 to 8 p.m. Jan. 4 at 10370 Richmond, Suite 890.
The city of Bellaire recently held a successful first Citizen's Academy wherein the community learned the inner workings of their city government.

According to Paul Hofmann, the Bellaire city manager, the city council was interested in finding ways in which they could engage with the community and find opportunities and ways for the residents of Bellaire to become more informed.

He had seen similar plans being implemented in other communities, so the council borrowed ideas and came up with something that worked for Bellaire.

"This was the inaugural class, so a big part of the Academy was to get feedback from the participants and learn how to make it better for the next time we do this," Hofmann said.

More Information Want to go? Bellaire Citizen's Academy: If anyone is interested in reserving a spot for the next Citizen's Academy, contact Raquel Porras at 713-662-8276 or rporras@bellairetx.gov. See More Collapse

Once the idea of a Citizen's Academy was in place, a notice was posted on the city's website and public announcements were made at council meetings.

Word of mouth

A lot of citizens heard about the Academy through word of mouth, and told their friends and neighbors about it.

"We asked people to share in writing why they were interested in doing it.

"There were no qualifications to join other than to be a resident.

"We took the first 15 people who said they wanted to do it," Hofmann said.

Six sessions

The Citizen's Academy consisted of six different sessions, starting in October.

In the sessions, they met and talked to a host of city workers.

Academy members heard from the finance director, who talked about how the city plans a budget and how to be good stewards of the community's money.

They heard from the human resources director about how Bellaire tries to be a premiere employer.

The park director spoke about how the city plans and maintains parks, and were taken on a tour of all the city's parks during several hours on a Saturday.

The Academy also toured the police and fire station, and they learned about what a patrol officer does and what a firefighter or paramedic does.

They toured the library after hours and listened to a presentation from the library director.

Additionally, the members learned from the city clerk about how to be on the city council.

The public works director explained how the city provides water and how wastewater treatment works.

The development director spoke about the process for building permits for new residential and commercial construction, and how they work with the Planning and Zoning Commission to implement the city's plan.

"They also heard from me about general forms of government, how the council works and what a city mangers does, plus long-range strategic planning and how we try to tie that to council's priorities," Hofmann said.

Each member also got a binder filled with reference documents that the council works with, such as the city's budget, service plans and the city charter.

The sessions lasted through November, and ended with a miniature graduation ceremony at a council meeting on Nov. 21.

Hofmann said Academy members were asked to evaluate their time afterwards and the feedback was very favorable.

Too much info, too little time

"The only negative comments were that we tried to cram too much information into too little time.

"We need to make sure there is more time the next time we do this," Hofmann said.

Hofmann noted that there were many PowerPoint displays, and he is hoping to make the Academy more interactive the second time around.

Hofmann thinks it was great not only for the community, but also for the city workers as well.

"I think they enjoyed doing it, even though it was technically an assignment I gave them.

"I was really proud of the time they put into the presentations and I think they enjoyed showing off how we provide services to the community," Hofmann said.

"It is interesting that folks said they had no idea the extent of what was involved.

"They all said that they didn't know city employees were such fun and nice people."

When asked why it was important for the community to know how their government worked, Hofmann said, "I am biased about local government. It is where the rubber most hits the road.

"There is a direct relationship between the taxes you pay and the services you get as a result.

"Now I've got 15 residents of Bellaire who understand better where their tax dollar goes and I think that is a really good thing."

Second academy

Plans are in the works to do a second Citizen's Academy next fall.

Hofmann hopes that one potential outcome of more citizens joining the Academy is that they will decide they want to get involved in other ways.

"This is the impetus they needed," Hofmann said.

"They can become more active in their neighborhood. They can tell friends and neighbors about city services that others didn't know about.

"The more that they know, it makes our job easier in the end."

If anyone is interested in reserving a spot for the next Citizen's Academy, contact Raquel Porras at 713-662-8276 or rporras@bellairetx.gov.
Authorities have charged a 22-year-old man for a fatal Christmas Day shooting.

Zacchaeus Mitchell faces a murder charge for allegedly shooting and killing Eric Burch.

Burch was picking up his children from his estranged wife -- Mitchell's girlfriend -- in north Houston, police said.

Burch arrived at 200 Dominion Park, near Greenspoint, about 3:10 p.m. and got into a fist fight with Mitchell, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office.

Investigators said Mitchell pulled a handgun and shot Burch at least once, then fled in a silver vehicle. Burch was transported to Houston Northwest Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Mitchell's bail is set at $30,000, according to court filings.
The summers final Live on the Waterfront concert was held Wednesday evening at Prince Arthurs Landing. The popular series in Thunder Bay has completed nine weekly shows that began on July 13. Wednesdays concert was unique as it was held one hour later in the evening to mesh with the 10 p.
AO Centrul de Drept al Avocatilor anunta concurs pentru procurarea/elaborarea panourilor informative pentru Inspectoratul General al Politiei de Frontiera
Plenty of Trump-focused political cartoons have circulated the web and social networks since Election Day. But one has drawn particular viral attention: It depicts a wolf in a suit on a campaign billboard with the words, I am going to eat you, while onlooking sheep grazing in a field respond, He tells it like it is.

Paul Noth, the New Yorker cartoonist who drew it, sold it to the magazine back in January and figured it would never appear. The magazine did run it, in August, but the sketch didnt go viral until after Trumps win. The New Yorker added the image to its cartoons Facebook page the day after the election, and that post has been reshared more than 16,000 times. A number of Noths single panel one-liners created early in the campaign have garnered newfound attention now that Trump won.

Noth chose to pursue fiction writing after college because he never thought he could make a living as a cartoonist. However, he never lost his love of cartoons and continued to sketch for fun. Noth, 43, spoke with CJR about how he landed his dream job as an artist, some of his other projects, and his political cartoons. The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Why did you become a cartoonist and how did you get your start at The New Yorker?

Ive always been drawn to cartoons since I was a kid and I always kind of wanted to be a cartoonist. By the time I was in college though, I was more interested in being a writer because it didnt seem like the cartoon industry was as viable a thing to be a part of.

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Ive always been a big fan of New Yorker cartoons, so I knew how hard it was to break into. So I mainly did cartoons as a hobby and worked towards being a fiction writer. Then one day, I met Matt Diffee, whos a New Yorker cartoonist, and he and I got to talking. He encouraged me after seeing some of my artwork.

So, it was fall of 2004. I sort of knew the drill at The New Yorker, which was that youre supposed to submit about 10 per week to give them an idea of what your stuff is like. So Matt helped me, he looked at my stuff, and gave me some notes to help refine it a little bit before showing them to Bob Mankoff, the cartoon editor. Then Bob invited me to come in, and I sold my first batch of cartoons. That was great.

Related: Why the controversy over an Iowa cartoonist is no laughing matter

What cartoons did you enjoy growing up? Who inspires you?

My favorite earliest on and still one of my favorites is Charles Schulz. I just immersed myself in and loved all cartoons from the time I was a kid. My father was a movie critic at the Milwaukee Journal, so he would bring me home reviewer copies of cartoons that came across the features desk. That wasnt really enough for me, so I would also go to the library and look at them all the time. The first New Yorker cartoonist I really loved was Charles Addams. I used to look through those collections. I was drawn to them and always looking at their work.

Whats your process like to come up with ideas and concepts to submit weekly?

Its changed a little bit over the years. I think the main thing is having that deadline of 10 a week (recommended submission amount for The New Yorker), that was what really made me learn how to become a cartoonist, because one way or another I have to come up with 10. Ive tried a variety of things over time. Now I usually start with the writing (the concept) first, then just start jotting down ideas. By the time Sunday or Monday rolls around, I start drawing the ones I think are the funniest. Once I start drawing them, I actually start to see which ones are the best. Sometimes I have to start drawing to actually see which ones work and which ones dont.

You mentioned that you worked mostly as a fiction writer before becoming a cartoonist. What were some projects that you worked on?

Well I went to college (Emerson College) for writing literature and publishing, hoping to be a writer and thats what I mainly did after school. Around that same year that I broke into The New Yorker, I started to explore other avenues to make a living. I began doing a little bit of freelance comedy writing for television (Saturday Night Live, Late Night with Conan OBrien, and Adult Swim). I found that unlike my fiction, people liked it. I would get good feedback on it, but nothing really sold that I could make a living from. I then found with comedies and jokes, that was something I could actually do and get paid for. So thats what became my main focus in terms of a career. I pitched an animated sketch (Pale Force) to Late Night with Conan OBrien, that became a recurring thing there.

Im still writing fiction. I have a series of childrens novels, like middle grade novels, that will be published by Bloomsbury. The first one is going to come out in early 2018. Its also comedy driven storytelling with cartoons interspersed throughout a series of three books. The first one is called How to Sell your Family to the Aliens. Its like an absurd funny, sort of like adventure story.

A couple of political cartoons that you created throughout the campaign have recently taken off on social media. What inspired these cartoons and why do you think they are now gaining popularity?

Every week a couple of the cartoons that I do usually turn out to be political. The one with the sheep and the wolf on the billboard, I think that one didnt run until August, but I sold it as early as January or February. I had a couple of Trump cartoons before that as well so it was a topic on my mind clearly.

There was an issueThe New Yorker seldom does thisbut turns out they were planning to do an issue where the cartoons would all be Trump cartoons. So when they put out the call for that, I created the cartoon where they are swearing in Trump. That one, I actually happened to be in the office when that issue was being laid out, that would have been in April. They had the cartoon with the sheep with the wolf billboard and ended up swapping it for the one where he was being inaugurated. So I kind of thought, oh okay that type of thing happens from time to time and things get rejected so often, the wolf one wasnt that good.

So I really didnt have any idea that both these images had a huge viral response, and then after the election an even bigger one. A lot of times, when cartoons get shared a lot on social media, I may not even be aware of it because people wont necessarily put my name on it. So it wasnt until people began to comment and tag me in it that I realized they were everywhere. I think it was sort of a bittersweet thing after the election.

Related: 12 images that capture the new reality show at Trump Tower

There are two other cartoons of mine that gained some attention after the election. One is from August 8, and its in the Kremlin. Its Putin and hes sitting in the center of a table and they are looking at an electoral map. The entire caption is in Russian except for the last words, which are Waukesha County. translated it means, Its all going to come down to Waukesha County.

The other one, is a clown at a podium, he looks really angry and hes slamming his fist down saying, Other countries are laughing at us. That ones had a good response too. The meaning speaks for itself.

Are there any reactions that really stuck out to you?

Well one thing that stuck out is that people began to change the caption. I thought that was kind of funny. Like some post-election thing. For example, the one with the wolf and the sheep someone changed it to something along the lines of hey lets give him a chance, which also works.

Funny enough it begins to morph and change or recontextualize. Sometimes that tweet ends up going viral in different places and not the original cartoon. Ive made the mistake of scrolling down into the comments of someones Facebook post. One time someone texted me and said Hey Ricky Gervais posted your cartoon, and I was like oh thats cool. I began reading down the comments and they became calling each other names, you know like how political comments just devolve into chaos.

Over the last couple of years, the industry has seen many cutbacks. How has this impacted cartoonists?

Its constantly changing, and I think thats why I felt wanting to be a cartoonist was an unlikely career. You really cant even plan for it. That would be such a tricky pool shot to bid your lifes hope on. The odds were always stacked against you. It was always hard to get to The New Yorker, but there used to be a lot of other markets. All of the old timers told me to have something else, and pretty much all of us do have something else, with some exceptions. People are genuinely doing it because they really love it, its not anyones plan to get rich and famous.

Do you think cartoons and cartoonist are still an important part the media ecosystem?

That implies that we ever were. I mean its important to me. I love it as an art form, and part of the fun of it is that its not, or at least the way I do it, a huge political statement cartoon or heavy duty satire. Thats important, but its also hard. I still love cartoons and come up with them all the time and get genuinely happy when I see good work and funny work, and theres a lot of that both online and in print. So its very important to me. Its always kind of helped keep me sane and I hope that its had that kind of role in general.

Whats your favorite cartoon that you have created over the years?

Wow, huh. I mean I have this one that baffles people, and I love it. Ive had a lot of complaints about it. Its probably my favorite one because Im defense of it, and its had a bad reaction. Its hard to explain. Its two guys and they are standing on either side of a monkey standing on a stool, and one of them has a razor in his hand. Hes shaved the face of a clock onto the back of a monkey and the other guy looks like hes objecting to this. He says, Well by that logic no one would ever shave a clock onto a monkey. I get emails about that one from people who are like I went to Stanford and my husband went to Brown and that cartoon makes no sense. I think its a pretty straightforward cartoon.

We didnt get it, either.

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Carlett Spike is a freelance writer and former CJR Delacorte Fellow. Follow her on Twitter @CarlettSpike.
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Cuyahoga County Council will add two new members in 2017 with the retirement of Chuck Germana and the election of Dave Greenspan to the state legislature.

(Karen Farkas, cleveland.com)

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cuyahoga County Council will welcome two new members in January.

Democrat Scott Tuma, a member of Parma city council since 2005, will represent District 4, which encompasses Parma, Parma Heights and Middleburg Heights. He replaces Chuck Germana, who announced in September that he would not seek re-election.

Cuyahoga County Republican Party precinct committee members from District 1 will fill the vacancy created when Dave Greenspan was elected state representative from Ohio District 16 in November.

District 1 includes the cities of Bay Village, Fairview Park, North Olmsted, Rocky River, and Westlake.

Outgoing State Rep. Nan Baker, who Greenspan replaced, and Brad Lamb, a county Common Pleas Courts bailiff and political operative, are seeking the seat.

Committee members from District 1 will meet Jan. 2. Their chosen candidate will fill the remainder of Greenspan's term, which expires in 2018.

The two new members will join the 11-member body, which includes seven men and women who have been on council since its inception in 2010. They are Dale Miller, Dan Brady, Michael Gallagher, Jack Schron, Yvonne Conwell, Pernel Jones Jr. and Sunny Simon.

Shontel Brown and Anthony Hairston joined in recent years.
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Ohio delegates to July's Republican National Convention in Cleveland -- at left, former Ohio House Speaker Jo Ann Davidson, at center on mic Ohio GOP Chair Matt Borges and at far right, current Speaker Cliff Rosenberger -- celebrate after casting their votes for Gov. John Kasich. As Ohio Republicans regroup for 2017, Borges is facing a challenge for his Ohio Republican Party chairmanship from Canton's Jane Timken, who is backed by supporters of President-elect Donald Trump in Ohio.

(Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com)

The Statehouse's pace may be slow today, and for the next few, whether observed as part of Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa. But the General Assembly returns to Capitol Square Jan. 3 - and things are about to get lively.

For instance, on Jan. 6, Feast of the Three Kings, the Republican State Central Committee will re-elect Republican State Chair Matt Borges - or unseat him in favor of suburban Canton Republican Jane Timken. Ohio's GOP has evidently adopted a Democratic tradition: infighting.

Three days before, on Jan. 3, Ohio's 132nd General Assembly will have been sworn in. Leadership slates are already in place, headed by House Speaker Clifford A. Rosenberger, of Clarksville, and Senate President-elect Larry Obhof, of Medina.

(An FYI for taxpayers: Base pay for an Ohio General Assembly member is $60,584. That's about 23 percent more than median household income in Ohio - $49,429, the Census says. Most General Assembly members will echo Donna Summer's song, and tell you they work hard for the money. Some actually do.)

For rank-and-file legislators, Opening Day - meaningful though it is for legislators' families - is secondary to some later-January dates.

One will come when Rosenberger and Obhof announce which legislators will serve on which legislative committees. (For the 2015-16 session, Rosenberger announced committee appointments on Jan. 21, 2015; then-Senate President Keith Faber, a Celina Republican, announced his on Jan. 27.)

For an Ohio legislator, the most desirable committees are the budget-writing House and Senate finance panels. Those committees decide where, and on what, Ohio spends billions of dollars (this biennium, which ends June 30, about $71.2 billion in general revenues). And budgets also include tax changes - up, or down. So legislators appointed to budget panels have lots of friends - and attract campaign donations.

If Jan. 3 will be the 132nd General Assembly's overture, one of its crescendos will sound Jan. 31, when Republican Gov. John Kasich is expected to formally propose a state budget for the two years beginning July 1. Kasich has said money's tight, which is what Ohio governors have to tell a Republican legislature that runs conservative but spends liberal.

This'll be Kasich's last budget. A governor's last budget is his or her legacy budget. So, besides funding state government's nuts and bolts, Kasich may propose cutting-edge technology endeavors - "Big Data" is one phrase floating around Capitol Square.

Two big budget issues already loom:

First: If Congress, in trying to scuttle the Affordable Care Act, yanks the rug out from under states, such as Ohio, that have expanded Medicaid.

It's one thing to loll in a talk-show chair, yammering about big government. It's another thing to be an General Assembly member who knows killing Medicaid expansion could also kill some community hospitals back home - hospitals that may be an Ohio county's biggest employer.

Issue Two: A potential budget push by GOP General Assembly members for truly high-impact state programming to fight Ohio's drug epidemic.

Epidemic is the right word: The state Health Department reports that "unintentional drug overdose continued to be the leading cause of injury-related death in Ohio in 2015, ahead of motor vehicle traffic crashes."

In absolute numbers, overdose deaths were greatest in urban counties. But, if expressed as deaths per 100,000 Ohioans, community destruction has often been even greater in rural, often Appalachian, Ohio - that is, districts represented at the Statehouse by Republicans. In roughly a third of Ohio's 32 Appalachian counties, overdose death rates are worse than the statewide rate.

That's a bleak fact to face during the Christmas season. But if it isn't faced, nothing will change - and heartbreak will keep crushing Ohio families and towns.

Thomas Suddes, a member of the editorial board, writes from Athens.

To reach Thomas Suddes: tsuddes@gmail.com, 216-999-4689

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CLIFTON PARK >> The town board recently honored two longtime supporters of Clifton Park for their many years of work on behalf of the town, its residents, and the greater Capital Region community.

In an upbeat Dec. 12 town board meeting, board members as well as community members honored longtime state Sen. Hugh Farley, R-Niskayuna, and Capital District Regional Planning Commission Chairman Rocco Rocky Ferraro. Both men are retiring Dec. 31.

Farley will leave public service after representing different communities in the Capital Region for 46 years. Ferraro, who is a Clifton Park resident and chairman of the town planning board, is also retiring. He will, however, continue to lead the planning board in the appointed position as well as teach geography and planning at the University at Albany.

Joining in to say thank you to Farley at the meeting were Senator-elect Jim Tedisco, R-Glenville, the man elected in November to replace Farley in the 49th Senate District seat and Assemblywoman-elect Mary Beth Walsh, R-Ballston Spa. Walsh is replacing Tedisco in the 112th Assembly District seat.

Though Farleys official role as Clifton Parks representative in the Senate was relatively short, going back only to 2013, the resolution honoring him made note of his many legislative successes that impactednot only the Saratoga County community but the entire state. The list included Farleys long support for personal privacy rights, the elimination of income tax on the first $20,000 of pensions and retirement annuities, his chairmanship of the Senate Subcommittee on Libraries, and his role as the Senates first chairman of its Committee of Aging.

Town Supervisor Philip Barrett said the help Farley had offered the town since 2013 and the support he had given it before the redistricting had been appreciated.

You supported us every step of the way, Barrett said. You werent our senator for very long but you were there for us all the way.

In his remarks, Tedisco acknowledged that following Farley, a man he described as a living legend, will most likely be the toughest thing he will ever have to do.

He embodies what public service is all about, responding, integrity, honesty, Tedisco said. I have big shoes to fill. Hes been my friend and mentor and hes been my partner. He always had the wisdom to give you a good answer to solve your problems. Hell be missed.

In responding to Tediscos remarks Farley joked that the man who is replacing him is not only hard working, but seemingly everywhere.

In honoring Ferraro, the towns resolution described how the native of New Jersey made his way to the Capital Region from a planning position in Toledo, Ohio in 1985. It also recognized the 40 years of service and dedication for the advancement of professional planning he had provided the Capital Region.

For a planning board to have a professional planner with 40 years experience is very unique, Barrett said. You tackle the job with passion, study and a lot of hard work. Thank you for your donation of time to the town.

In his brief remarks, Ferraro described the urban setting where he grew up and labeled himself a NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) in his youth. His interest in the changes he saw going on in his community but didnt appreciate at the time led him to seek out community planning as a course of study in college that eventually led to a career.

Its been a great ride, a great profession, he said, and a lot of that has to do with the great support (the CDRPC) gets from all those who represent the four counties we work with.
The Bank of Latvia recalls the World War I Christmas Battles in Latvia on a Proof 2016 silver 5 coin.

Christmas is celebrated as a time of peace, but during WWI a battle in modern-day Latvia became legendary.

A Latvijas Banka (Latvias central bank) 2016 Proof .925 fine silver 5 coin commemorates the Christmas Battles.

The coin is dedicated to the Latvian riflemen, heroes of the Christmas Battles, and their eternal contribution to the future.

The Christmas Battles raged from Dec. 23 to 29, 1916 (Jan. 5 to 11, 1917, in the calendar Russia was using then), along a 30-kilometer-long front line. Latvian national military units, joined in one division, were involved in these battles for the first time.

Latvian forces were the tip of the spear for the Russian defense, and they caught German forces by surprise, camouflaged in white during a blinding snowstorm.

It was the biggest Russian Empire victory on the Riga front and the German army lost one of its strongest fortifications, but the commander of the 12th Russian Army failed to anticipate the victory and could not exploit it.

An estimated 9,000 Latvian riflemen also perished in the assault, bringing fame to the Latvian fighters as outstanding and fearless warriors, according to the bank. It was a kind of statement and proof of national vitality, a noble sacrifice on the altar of the dream about the would-be State of Latvia.

The obverse of the coin features a group of Latvian riflemen and a stylized image of the sun, taken from the Latvian riflemen battalions soldier badge, having a red-painted central field, eight broken sunbeams, and a slanted sword.

The reverse features a snowflake, a point of bullet impact, and the inscription Christmas Battles in Latvian.

The coin is struck in a hexagonal shape, with a diameter of 38.61 millimeters at the widest points. The coin weighs 28 grams and has a mintage limit of 5,000 pieces.

It is official priced at 53 from the Bank of Latvia website.
December 26, 2016

 There is a scene in the new feature film "Hidden Figures" where Octavia Spencer, portraying a real-life NASA mathematician, leads a group of her fellow African American women "computers" down a hall towards their new assignment.



The scene, which represents a moment of empowerment in the movie, evokes a civil rights march. But it also mimics an iconic clip from a 1983 feature film that was set during the same events in history, but with a different focus.



In "The Right Stuff," it is original astronaut John Glenn and the other members of NASA's Mercury 7, who march down the hall, dressed in their silver spacesuits. But it is more than just that scene that links the Philip Kaufman film with director Ted Melfi's "Hidden Figures."







Side by side hallway scenes from "Hidden Figures" (left) and "The Right Stuff." (20th Century Fox/Warner Bros.)

Both films dramatize and take liberties with the "based on true events" stories they seek to retell in order to celebrate the achievements of their respective leading characters.



"They really did a big Hollywood rollicking adventure," said Margot Lee Shetterly, whose book by the same title served as the basis for "Hidden Figures." "That great spirit that the space program has  that sense of adventure and drama  they brought all of that to this movie, and these women got to be the protagonists."



The right atmosphere



"Hidden Figures," which debuted in select U.S. theaters on Sunday (Dec. 25) and opens wide Jan. 6, tells the "untold story" of Dorothy Vaughan (Spencer), Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae) who with other black and white women served as "computers" before the electronic machines took over, both in purpose and title.



In particular, the movie focuses on the Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, and the events leading up to and through the launch of John Glenn (Glen Powell), who, on Feb. 20, 1962, became the first American to orbit Earth.







John Glenn (Glen Powell) walks out to a transfer van to be taken to the pad in a scene from "Hidden Figures." (20th Century Fox)

Glenn has been portrayed on the silver screen just twice; first in "The Right Stuff," and now in "Hidden Figures." But whereas the earlier film centered on the adventures of the astronauts, "Hidden Figures" looks behind the scenes, at the work of NASA's Space Task Group and specifically, the challenges that its women mathematicians faced within the context of the early 1960s and the civil rights movement.



Glenn, who died on Dec. 8 at the age of 95, did not have a chance to see "Hidden Figures," but he was on record for not liking the "The Right Stuff," stating in a 1996 interview that he didn't think the film "accurately reflected the people involved in the Mercury program, including me."



It is a contention that was shared by several of his fellow early astronauts, as well as by historians.



"From an atmospherics perspective, I enjoyed 'The Right Stuff,'" said NASA's chief historian Bill Barry in an interview with collectSPACE. 'From a history perspective, it is cringe worthy."



Barry, who joined the agency in 2001, was not around to advise on "The Right Stuff," but he and others at NASA did offer input into the script for "Hidden Figures" at the invite of the filmmakers.





"They wanted to get the atmosphere of the film correct," he said.



"Like anything based on real-life events, there are some temporal things that, as a historian, are like, 'eh, that didn't really happen like that,' but I think that the movie is true to the stories of the main characters," he said. "On the whole I was very happy with the outcome."



Shetterly was still writing her book when production of the film began  it was only just released in September  but she was also available to the filmmakers as they sought to condense a story spanning a few decades into their setting of just a couple of years.



"For better or for worse, there is history, there is the book and then there's the movie," Shetterly said. "Timelines had to be conflated and [there were] composite characters, and for most people [who have seen the movie] have already taken that as the literal fact."



'Not a documentary'



"Movies become reality for a lot of people," said Barry.



For audiences watching "Hidden Figures" who think what they see on the screen happened exactly as depicted, they might believe Johnson, Jackson and Vaughan were close friends, that Al Harrison (Kevin Costner) was the head of the Space Task Group and that Johnson completed quick calculations as John Glenn waited on the launch pad to lift off. The real history however, was different.



"To be able to tell a story in a way that the audience can understand and make it entertaining enough for them to be able to watch, I think the scriptwriters have to be creative and find a balance between telling the exact historic details and delivering a story that is both interesting and gets the message across," Barry explained.







Behind the scenes view of "Hidden Figures" being filmed on a set recreating NASA's Mercury Mission Control. (20th Century Fox)

"I say this all the time but the movie is not a documentary," said director Ted Melfi. "We were painfully aware and very careful with how we portrayed the women and the things they accomplished."



"There are little liberties taken here and there to dramatize, but the crux of the story is true," he told collectSPACE.



For Shetterly, perhaps the biggest difference between the movie and reality are the number of people depicted.



"You might get the indication in the movie that these were the only people doing those jobs, when in reality we know they worked in teams, and those teams had other teams," she said. "There were sections, branches, divisions, and they all went up to a director. There were so many people required to make this happen."



"It would be great for people to understand that there were so many more people," Shetterly explained. "Even though Katherine Johnson, in this role, was a hero, there were so many others that were required to do other kinds of tests and checks to make [Glenn's] mission come to fruition. But I understand you can't make a movie with 300 characters. It is simply not possible."



'The highest praise'



Unlike "The Right Stuff," where the general history of the Mercury 7 was already a part of the public consciousness, audiences going to see "Hidden Figures" may have little or no knowledge by which to judge the movie's veracity. That provided a freedom for the filmmakers to take liberties with the history, but also a responsibility to ensure the overall film rang true.



"I think that in these days, in particular, filmmakers have a huge responsibility to stay true to history because most people will go to see the movie and they are never going to read the book, much as everyone should read Margot's book  it is great a book and well-researched and much better than [Tom Wolfe's] 'The Right Stuff,' quite frankly," stated Barry.







"Hidden Figures" opens wide on Jan. 6, 2017. (20th Century Fox)

Barry thought "Hidden Figures" delivered more truth than fiction, despite the limitations of the medium.



"On the whole, I am pleased with the balance of this thing and I think it does a good job of telling a complex story," he said.



Shetterly also enjoyed the film, which she said embodied the "spirit of authenticity."



"I loved it. I mean, really, honestly," she said. "I was crying, I was laughing, I was just like, 'What happens next? Does Glenn make it back home?'"



"I think a lot of people will get sucked into the movie and get transported to NASA-land. I hope so," Shetterly said.



"I have told my employees that I hope every single one of them gets to see it," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden told collectSPACE. "They will laugh, they will cry through it and a lot will get very angry because it is not [only] a black women story  it is the story of any minority in a technical field, even today."







NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson, 98, watches the premiere of "Hidden Figures" on Dec. 1, 2016. (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Ultimately though, it was one of the original women who is depicted in "Hidden Figures" who perhaps offered the best endorsement for the film.



"Katherine Johnson saw the movie and she really liked it," said Shetterly. "So I think that is pretty much the highest praise you can give, when the person whose life is being shown on the screen says 'Yep, that kind of looks like it!'"



Return to collectSPACE in the week leading up to "Hidden Figures" opening on Jan. 6, 2017 for a more in-depth look at some of the history depicted in the film.
Tuesday: Takena Kiwanis Club breakfast meeting, 7 a.m., Elmers Restaurant, 2802 Santiam Highway S.E., Albany. Janice Brown and Larry Johnson discuss their trip to the Burning Man festival. Cost: Free.

Jan. 4: Free-Flow Yoga, noon to 1 p.m., Running Princess Apparel, 351 S.W. Madison Ave., Corvallis. Staff members of Live Well Studio will teach the class every Wednesday.

Jan. 12: Network After Work, 6 to 9 p.m., Kells Irish Pub, 112 S.W. Second Ave., Portland. Admission: $15 and up. RSVP: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/network-after-work-portland-at-kells-irish-pub-tickets-28952435514.

Jan. 17: Albany Area Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours: Pacific Residential Mortgage. Time: 5 p.m., 2405 14th Ave. S.E. Cost: $7 for members, $8 at the door, $10 for guests. Info: 541-926-1517.

Jan. 19: Lebanon Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center Business After Hours: The Oaks at Lebanon. Time: 5 p.m., 621 Oak St. Cost: Free. Info: 541-258-7164.

Jan. 25: Albany Area Chamber of Commerce Forum Luncheon. Speaker: Paul Warner, state legislative revenue officer, will discuss Analyzing the Impact of Oregons Revenue Policies. Time: 11:30 a.m., Linn County Fair & Expo Center, 3700 Knox Butte Road. Cost: $15 members, $20 members at the door, $25 nonmembers. Info: 541-926-1517.

Jan. 27: Lebanon Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center Forum Lunch. Speaker: Fred Steele, ombudsman. Time: 11:30 a.m., Lebanon Community Hospital Training Center, 525 N. Santiam Highway. Cost: $15, RSVP required. Info: 541-258-7164.

Jan. 31: Customer Service Skills that Lead to Success, an educational seminar. Time: 5:30 p.m., Linn-Benton Community College Lebanon Center Annex, 44 Industrial Way. Cost: $5 chamber members, $10 nonmembers. Info: 541-258-7164.
City receives feedback on Whitegate Park proposal

Community members had an opportunity to provide feedback on a proposal for a new neighborhood park on Whitegate Drive in Columbia.
Major cyberattacks against organizations of all sizes seem to happen almost weekly. On Dec. 14, Yahoo announced the largest-ever data breach, involving more than 1 billion customer accounts.

Despite the scale and potential harm from such attacks, there's wide recognition that corporate leaders, especially boards of directors, aren't taking the necessary actions to defend their companies against such attacks. It's not just a problem of finding the right cyber-defense tools and services, but also one of management awareness and security acumen at the highest level, namely corporate boards.

"Our country and its businesses and government agencies of all sizes are under attack from a variety of aggressive adversaries and we are generally unprepared to manage and fend off these threats," said Gartner analyst Avivah Litan, a longtime cybersecurity consultant to many organizations.

"Some organizations do a better job than others, but those efforts are almost always led by CIOs, CISOs or business line managers and not by corporate boards, CEOs and executive management throughout government and the private sector," Litan added.

Unless senior executives, corporate boards and other senior stakeholders get their act together, the threat actors will continue to win. Avivah Litan, Gartner cybersecurity analyst

Litan said what's needed is a national response and cyber protection plan, but said she fears that the federal government is "way too fragmented and politicized to make any real progress toward this goal."

Threats against nationwide infrastructure, including the electricity grid, are "enormously serious," she added. "Unless senior executives, corporate boards and other senior stakeholders get their act together, the threat actors will continue to win. I'm not sure how many more wake-up calls we need in this country."

Litan's worries seem to have reached some quarters of the corporate governance community. The National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) recently released a survey of more than 600 corporate board directors and professionals that found only 19% believe their boards have a high level of understanding of cybersecurity risks. That's an improvement from 11% in a similar poll conducted a year earlier.

The survey also found that 59% of respondents find it challenging to oversee cyber risk. The nonprofit NACD, which has 17,000 members, is working with security awareness firm Ridge Global and Carnegie Mellon University to create a Cyber-Risk Oversight program to educate corporate directors about the systemic risks of cyberattacks.

Litan said such education is important, but she also supports state and federal laws to require organizations to report cyber attacks so that customers and partners will know to change passwords and make other adjustments to protect sensitive data.

"Having a requirement to disclose is a great motivator to increase security to prevent future attacks," Litan said. "No one wants their names in the news. That's what corporate directors are most worried about, in fact."

A majority of states have data security breach notification laws, but so far there's no nationwide provision. California first enacted its notification law in 2003, and other states followed suit.

At the federal level, a number of U.S. senators have backed breach notification laws, but no bills have passed congressional muster. President Barack Obama proposed such legislation in 2015. With the January inauguration of Donald Trump as the next U.S. president, it remains to be seen whether a federal breach notification law will take effect in the next four years, or longer.

When Yahoo disclosed in September a separate hack dating back to 2014, U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., renewed calls for bipartisan legislation to create a uniform data breach notification standard and co-founded the bipartisan Senate Cybersecurity Caucus. "Action from Congress to create a uniform data breach notification standard ... is long overdue," Warner said at the time.

One analyst, Jack Gold of J. Gold Associates, questioned whether a national breach notification law would be effective. "There are disclosure laws in many states and there are some government regulations that require disclosure, but I'm not sure it has any effect if companies lie about a hack or don't disclose it," he said.

This story, "Corporate boards aren't prepared for cyberattacks" was originally published by Computerworld .
The current state of coffee in the mid-Willamette Valley  a plethora of Starbucks, Dutch Bros., coffee kiosks and local shops and restaurants, all offering great cups of brew  was something that Allan Stuart hoped would happen decades ago.

In 1972, Stuart started Allann Brothers in his Ashland apartment, roasting coffee beans in a cast iron skillet.

He had recently traveled to Europe and fell in love with the coffee there, and he wanted to produce a product that measured up to the blends from his trip.

This wasnt something new. There was already a culture there, Stuart said. I always imagined this would be a standard that would come to America.

Today, the small-batch roasting for Allann Brothers happens at the business headquarters in Albany off of Interstate 5, and the company has seven Beanery cafe locations, including three in Corvallis, and about 100 workers.

Starbucks was born one year before us and actually has a kind of similar backstory, said Robert Morgan, CEO of Allann Brothers.

For years after Allann Brothers' humble beginnings, it seemed there were few options for a decent cup of coffee in the mid-Willamette Valley besides the Beanery, which opened a cafe on Second Street downtown in the 1970s and in the 1980s added a shop just off the Oregon State University campus on Monroe Avenue.

So when Paul Tostberg came to town in the early 1990s, he saw a business opportunity. Tostberg grew up in Seattle, so hes always been aware of gourmet coffee, and he noticed something lacking from the local scene.

A drive-through hadnt been done in this area before, he added.

So he and his wife opened up their first coffee kiosk in the parking lot of the Timberhill Shopping Center in 1993.

The couple wanted to hedge their bet, however, so they also offered an overnight film developing service. We opened as Photo Espresso, because it wasnt a given that coffee by itself would be successful, he said.

Some locals flat out told the couple not to quit their day jobs, expecting the business to fail. And part of it did, of course, thanks to digital cameras that effectively killed off the film industry.

But coffee shops began to proliferate throughout the mid-Willamette Valley. Photo Espresso morphed into Coffee Culture, which now has four locations in Corvallis and about 50 employees.

It has changed. Today, if a coffee shop is opening, they really need to know what they are doing. The bar has been raised quite high, Tostberg said.

Much of the change in the industry was thanks to Starbucks, which has what seems like an army of locations in Linn and Benton counties.

Despite the competition, Tostberg and Morgan were appreciative of the giant Seattle-based company.

They developed the market for specialty coffee at a time when if you wanted an espresso, youd have to search out an ethnic restaurant, Tostberg said.

Smaller operators were able to ride the coattails of Starbucks, but differentiate their products, Tostberg added.

They definitely made coffee mainstream for everyone, Morgan said. Would I do it the Starbucks way? No. But would I have all these locations today without Starbucks? No.

A more recent shift in the industry is that roasters are interested in building connections with the farmers where the beans are grown.

That enables businesses like Coffee Culture and Allann Brothers to support small farms in other parts of the world and get an ethically sourced product. Its not a commodity-broker relationship anymore, Morgan said.

Unlike Coffee Culture, Allann Brothers doesnt use computer systems to aid its roasting, relying on an old beast of a machine and employees sight, hearing and smell to figure out when a batch is done, Morgan said.

We definitely have stuck to our roots, Morgan said. Black coffee is still the No. 1 selling item at the Beanery locations, but Allann Brothers, like Coffee Culture, is trying to train consumers to brew great cups of coffee at home, as well.

For 2017, Allann Brothers 45th anniversary, the business plans to put cold brew on tap in all of its Beanery locations. Morgan said the company also plans to renovate the cafes interiors, along with new food preparation methods, new manual espresso machines and an upgrade tea offerings.

But Morgan and Stuart said they still want to create places with great customer service and atmosphere to pair with the coffee.

And Tostberg doesn't expect the popularity of coffee to wane anytime soon.

Theres a reason coffee has stood the test of time over 1,000 years. People appreciate the qualities of coffee that are stimulating. And now were seeing research on the health benefits of coffee, Tostberg said.
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"The Vampire Diaries" fans seem to be excited to see the return of Nina Dobrev in the popular supernatural TV drama. However, the actress has not confirmed her engagement with the show as of this posting. Would we ever see Dobrev's character on "TVD" again before it concludes?

It can be noted that "TVD" brought memories of Dobrev's character Elena throughout the first half of its Season 8. As earlier teased by Executive Producer Julie Plec, her character will have "a very strong presence this season, in the entire season, similarly to how she did last year."

However, despite the high anticipation from fans and producers of the show, the actress has not confirmed whether or not she will reprise her role on "The Vampire Diaries" Season 8. It is also important to note that "TVD" is in its final season so even fans are thrilled to see her return to Mystic Falls for the last time.

Several reports about Dobrev's comeback on Season 8 of the well-celebrated fictional series have emerged following the confirmation that The CW is having a discussion for the actress to return. "We'd love to have Nina back. She was great for The CW. She was integral for 'The Vampire Diaries,'" CW president Mark Pedowitz told TV Line.

But even The CW has not announced any progress on its arrangement with the actress. Fans are now left to hope that Dobrev would one day confirm that she will be back before "The Vampire Diaries" Season 8 wraps up.

Meanwhile, a report by TV Fanatic pointed that Dobrev's character might return as Katherine Pierce instead of Elena Gilbert. It can be recalled that Katherine died on Season 5 of "TVD" but the villainous doppelganger of Elena was not able to pass through the other side. Instead, she was dragged into a dark side which is presumed to be hell.

"The Vampire Diaries" Season 8 is centered on hell's darkness and what the souls do on their way there. For this reason, Katherine may find her way out and live again but this remains as a mere speculation for now until "TVD" airs back on Jan. 13.

See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare
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It looks like the political storyline will not continue due to some problems with the newly elected president of the United States, Donald Trump. There are ongoing speculations that Season 5 of the show House Of Cards wont continue because the original showrunner Beau Williamon left the show due to some issues with Donald Trump.

Like Travelers Today reported, it looks like the show House Of Cards wont continue its political storyline in season 5 since Beau Willimon left the show. Willimons decision to leave the show was final and it had something to do with his childrens children. Willimon tried his best to change peoples minds who wanted to vote for Trump, but despite his effort, Trump was elected and now he is the newest president of the United States. Since he couldnt manage to stop Trump from winning the election, he decided to leave the show for the sake of his grandchildren. With the decision of Willimon to leave the show, this could also mean the show will be canceled and the storyline will stop where it is. However, nothing is for certain and the fans are holding their thumbs to see another season of their favorite political show.

On the other hand, there are ongoing speculations about a possible death of Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) Express UK reported. Season 5 will feature and exciting storyline for Frank and Claire (Robin Wright) and Frank might run again for the presidency with Claire as his running mate. Fans are speculating that Claire will do everything she can to be the next president, including killing her husband. Netflix still hasn't released any hints and fans are eagerly waiting to see what will the story bring.

Fans could wait eagerly forever to see another season, since Beau left the show and this could mean the end of the series. The cast tried their best to make an exciting and interesting story behind Willimons absence but this directly affects the storyline. Currently, Beau Willimon is focusing on an anti-Trump organization called Action Group Network. "House Of Cards season 5 will be released on February 24, 2017, on Netflix.

See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare
Albany likely will need more branch fire stations soon, probably one each in the northeast and southeast corners of town, Chief John Bradner said.

But when it comes to main stations, he said, the one under construction on Lyon Street should be the last one the city will ever need.

At two stories and 24,300 square feet, the new station is about 10,000 square feet bigger than its predecessor.

The $7.5 million building will have a ground-floor apparatus bay with room for up to 10 vehicles. And for the first time, that bay will be open on both sides, which means trucks won't have to turn around and back in but can pull directly through whether they're coming from either direction.

A lobby with an antique fire truck on display will greet first-floor visitors, Bradner said. The rest of the first floor will be office space and a training room that can be accessed by the community.

Upstairs, crews will find individual bunk rooms as opposed to the large, dorm-style room partitioned off by a handful of dividers that the old Station 11 had.

There will be locker rooms and showers for both men and women, a large kitchen and dining area and more office space, and an outdoor patio to bring in light and fresh air.

The new station also will boast two brass fire poles for firefighters to slide down: a new one and the pole salvaged from the old building, which was salvaged from an even earlier structure and might date back to the early 1900s, Bradner said.

Masonry work is going on right now, and next comes internal steel columns and framing, said James Lutz, the Gerding Builders superintendent in charge of the project. The next step is the structural steel framework.

Based on engineering evaluations, the former Station 11, built in 1949, had significant structural inefficiencies and was thought likely to collapse if a significant quake hits the area.

Not its successor, Lutz said. "You'd be hard pressed to collapse this building."

Lutz said freezing rain earlier this month delayed work for a couple of days but otherwise, work is on schedule and on budget. Insulating blankets are used on the completed masonry when temperatures drop at night, he said.

When it's finished, likely late this summer, visitors will see century-old old-growth fir reclaimed from the Ralston Grange and used for the ceiling of the lobby, the training room and the upstairs day room, Lutz said. Other lumber used in the project is also locally-sourced.

Gerding Builders itself is out of Corvallis, and Lutz grew up there before moving to live in both Albany and Lebanon. "It's a blessing, for sure, to work with the local fire chief, police chief and local community," he said. "It's really an awesome thing."
Maybe this moment hasn't happened yet for Donald Trump, but we hope it will sometime in the next four weeks or so before his inauguration.

We understand that trying to create an administration leads to, as Trump recently tweeted, "busy times," but here's hoping that he finds a quiet moment before Jan. 20 to reflect, and begins to come to terms with the enormity of the job he's won. Maybe such a moment would be humbling.

But humility never has struck us as one of Trump's strong suits (in fact, his lack of the same may well have been one of the things that attracted voters to him). And our president-elect seems to enjoy filling whatever quiet time he has by grabbing his phone and tweeting.

The deal with Twitter, of course, is that it's a medium that lends itself to snap judgments. By its 140-character nature, it's not much for nuance, either. That might explain why Trump likes it as much as he does  that, and the fact that it allows him to speak directly to his followers on Twitter. (This is part of the reason why Trump hasn't held a press conference since July 27. To be fair, President Barack Obama hasn't held many press conferences either, despite his famous promise that his would be the most transparent White House in history. By contrast, no one expects the Trump administration to be a model of transparency.)

If we are fortunate, Trump will learn sooner rather than later that some matters facing the president of the United States require deliberate reflection instead of a snap judgment. If we are fortunate, he will learn that some issues require a level of nuanced thinking that goes beyond what can be expressed in 140 characters.

Trump needs to learn that the use of the so-called "bully pulpit" afforded to him by his position does not require an actual bully. (In fact, when Theodore Roosevelt originally coined the phrase, he was using the word "bully" as an adjective for "superb" or "wonderful." Roosevelt meant that the White House offered a superb platform from which to advocate for a certain position, not that the president himself needed to use bullying tactics. This is a distinction we hope Trump comes to understand.)

Trump could start this process by putting his phone down and giving the tweets a rest, at least until he's inaugurated. (We suspect that many members of the president-elect's staff would be pleased by this as well.) He doesn't need to be talking to the presidents of Taiwan or Egypt about matters of foreign policy until after the inauguration (after all, another person occupies the White House for another four weeks or so). He doesn't need to be adding his voice just yet to the conversation about what China should do with the drone it seized a couple of weeks ago. And perhaps this business of launching another arms race over nuclear weapons is the sort of thing that could use some in-depth reflection.

Jeff Merkley, the junior U.S. senator from Oregon, made some national news recently when he said during a CNBC interview that "... we have an incoming president who has kind of the maturity of a 5-year-old and wrapped by a massive ego and to have that just a second away from a nuclear trigger is very, very scary."

Merkley is positioning himself as among Trump's most outspoken foes. But the senator speaks for millions of Americans. Trump himself can defuse some of that fear by acting in a way that befits his new job. (mm)
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BRIDGEPORT  City Council members have threatened to punish the Library Board over its recent decision to fire Library Director Scott Hughes.

There was even an online petition circulated  signed by 295 people  to totally purge the board and start from scratch.

All of that tough talk amounted to nothing last week, when the council reappointed two of Hughes most vocal critics  Board Chairman Jim ODonnell and Superior Court Judge William Holden  to three year terms.

Id like to think its because they realized (Library Board members) are very committed people whose only interest is seeing library service at its best possible light available for the people of Bridgeport, ODonnell said.

Or it could come down to the fact the council members believe that, were they to reject a library board nominee, the council would have little to no power to enforce the decision. Under the City Charter, the Library Board appoints its own members, then submits the names to the council. But should the latter body vote no, the board could still stand by its initial decision to vote yes.

We can get into an internal loop forever, City Council President Thomas McCarthy said. They appoint someone. We say no. They appoint the same person again. We say no. 

The current Library Board, some members of which, like ODonnell and Holden, have served since the 1980s, was at odds for months with Hughes over his job performance. The board placed him on probation in February to improve his management and communications skills. After nearly a year of very public back-and-forth between Hughes and his bosses over whether he was being treated fairly, the board fired him in late October, as he approached his 10-year anniversary.

Hughes had run for public office during his tenure and forged some political alliances, particularly with black community leaders like himself. He has filed a lawsuit alleging he was fired for his political activities and his support of ex-mayor Joseph Ganims successful comeback campaign in 2015. Hughes, in a separate complaint, has also alleged he was discriminated against.

Earlier in the year, Hughes correctly claimed that some of the board members had never been properly voted on by the council, raising questions about the boards legitimacy. There were still enough valid board members, though, to end Hughes employment.

Councilwoman Mary McBride-Lee has been one of Hughes most outspoken defenders, and has threatened to try to oust board members. But McBride-Lee admitted it appears the council lacks that power.

As long as they (Library Board members) want that seat, they can have it, she said. They can do and say what they want to, and nobody can do anything about it. Everybody needs to answer to somebody. Thats a bad place to be, as far as Im concerned.

McCarthy agreed, noting the library is funded with taxpayer dollars.

I do not like or agree with the idea its a self-appointing board, he said. This is not a shot against anybody on that board. All the people in front of us were qualified. I just dont think its appropriate.

Tom Errichetti, the Library Boards treasurer, said were the council to turn down an appointment, the board would likely agree to replace that person and it would look bad to do otherwise. But he said members can continue to serve until replaced.

Errichetti said giving the board the ability to appoint members makes it apolitical, which benefits taxpayers.

Were not beholden to any administration, in terms of how to manage a library, he said.

Without that freedom, Errichetti said, the board might not have successfully pushed for a referendum in 2009 that required the city create a library fund with a minimum budget.

Errichetti said the board also works hard to try to choose members with a certain expertise. He was asked to join because of his financial background. ODonnell, a lawyer, does pro bono legal work for the board, Errichetti said.
STRATFORD  For most of this year, the Town Council has been fretting over whether to restore $53,000 in funding for the Stratford Visiting Nurse Association, an item that was cut to zero when the 2016-17 budget was approved last spring.

At its December meeting the council approved the spending  all $53,000 of it.

The VNA issue seemed to be on the meeting agendas more often than not. Although the towns $215.3 million 2016-17 budget was approved in May, the council has brought up the zeroed-out VNA line item several times since then, and each time there seemed to be more acrimony over it.

Council Chairwoman Beth Daponte opposed the VNA funding, noting that its the only charity that the town supports with no formal ties to the town. (The Sterling House is a charity, too, but it operates a number of town-sponsored programs and it has deep ties to Town Hall.)

What were doing here is giving a nonprofit  a nonprofit with no formal arrangements or agreements with the town  fifty-three thousand dollars, she said. Its a lot of money. Its a lot of money one year, its a lot of money next year and its a lot of money the year after that.

She said that the VNA allotment was nearly equivalent to the salary of a teacher and that it would be difficult to justify giving money to the VNA as opposed any one or more of the scores of charities that help out Stratfordites.

Fifty-three thousand dollars over 20 years is over a million dollars, Daponte, a Democrat, said. Now, its a fine organization, but I just dont think that this community should be cherry-picking this particular nonprofit over the many others that are out there.

The town has given money to the VNA for decades. But Daponte said that this is no reason to continue doing it.

Were doing this because weve always done it, she said after the meeting. But is that a good reason for this? Lets not go down this route anymore.

She also said that Medicare, Medicaid and insurance pays for the services provided by the VNA and also questioned whether the charity could raise far more money if Town Hall cut off funding. When people hear that a charity is getting taxpayer money, theyre far less likely to write them a check, she said.

She also suggested that if the council wants to assist a charity, a competitive bidding process should be employed.

But Dapontes arguments found little traction with the other council members.

There is a limit to Medicare. There is a limit to Medicaid. There is a limit to insurance, said Marianne Mitzi Antezzo of Dist. 7. And when these clients have to be transported to the ER because no visiting nurse can come to their homes, the town picks up that cost.

Wali Kadeem, the councilman from Dist. 3, agreed. I would prefer to keep on funding this to make sure the needy get these services, he said.

The federal government cant do everything for us, said Tina Manus representing Dist. 10. This is a town of working-class people, and a lot of us just cant do this alone.

The motion to restore the VNA funding passed 8-2, with Daponte and Dist. 8 councilman Vincent Chase, a Republican, in opposition.
CHRISTIAN POST REPORTERDecember 23, 2016Several Christians have been arrested in China's southwestern Yunnan province and accused of belonging to "evil cults," according to persecution watchdog group China Aid.The arrests occurred between Oct. 22Nov. 27, though the exact number of Christians apprehended by authorities is not yet known, China Aid reported on Thursday."Tu Yan, a woman who began attending churches in Yunnan after she moved there for work, was returning home from a Christian gathering on Oct. 22 when she was apprehended on suspicion of 'using a cult organization to undermine the implementation of the law,'" the report explained."A month later, she was arrested for the same charge. Authorities also accused her of being the backbone of two so-called 'evil cults' and organizing three meetings on behalf of these institutions. In an interview, her father denied her involvement in any cult activities."Tu revealed that four other church members were arrested on the same charge, though local Christians claim that as many as 12 people might have been apprehended. Three people have since been arrested as Tu and the others remain in custody.Another eight Christians were reportedly arrested on Nov. 27 in Kunming, the capital of the province, after they were again accused of belonging to illegal cults. Government officials accused the Christians of belonging to a sect originating in Taiwan, which China calls a cult. The arrested individuals insist that they are Christians, not members of a cult.The ruling Communist Party has been engaged in a widespread crackdown on Christian churches this past year, watchdog groups have said, with several Christians and human rights activists detained for protesting against forced church demolitions and the arrest of other activists.Another China Aid report revealed that authorities also arrested two Christian summer camp leaders in August in the northwestern Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region, accusing them of trying to "brainwash" children."Both women were accused of indoctrinating minors with superstitious beliefs. Chinese law forbids religious teaching to anyone under the age of 18, believing matters of faith to be dangerous brainwashing from which children must be protected," the group explained back then."Christian parents and church leaders can face disciplinary action from officials for involving their children in any Christian activities."In November, two Canadian lawyers claimed that Christians could very well be victims of a long-standing forced organ-harvesting scheme that targets prisoners.David Kilgour, a former prosecutor and Canadian secretary of state for Asia-Pacific, and David Matas, a human rights lawyer, said that their research exposes that around 60,000 to 100,000 organ transplants take place in China every year.Bob Fu, founder and president of China Aid, told The Christian Post in an interview that while he doesn't have systematic evidence that Christian prisoners are specifically being targeted in the organ-harvesting, the practice is very much a reality."This barbaric practice of organs harvesting continues in China. I applaud the enormous work to highlight this issue by the two Canadian friends," Fu told CP at the time.
25 Aralk 2016 Pazar, 19:59

BirGun newspapers Administrative Affairs Supervisor Mahir Kanaat, editor of the Diken website Tunca Ogreten and Dihaber editor Omer Celik and reporter Metin Yoksu have been arrested. Dihaber reporter Metin Yoksu and Diyarbakr office supervisor Omer Celik were arrested in coordinated raids.

According to a report at Sendika.org, with Tunca Ogretens home being raided at around three in the morning, the police conducted a search for three hours and stated that they had arrested the journalist for membership of a terrorist organisation. It is said that Ogreten will be denied the opportunity of speaking with his lawyer for five days.

Police officer to Celik's mother: Why did you make your son a journalist?



A raid was staged by special operations police at around four in the morning on journalist Omer Celik's home in Diyarbakrs Kayapnar Sub-Province. According to a report by Dihaber, as soon as the family had opened the door, Celik's mother and wife were made to lie on the floor. They reportedly took Omer Celik, on the other hand, first to the living room and then to the balcony of the flat and he was exposed to beatings, verbal abuse and swearing for half an hour. The police repeatedly said, interspersed with swearing, as they were beating Celik, You report the news, huh! Come on, write a report now. You are an Armenian b*stard. Come on, write a report now. At one point the police took Celik into the bathroom and beat him here in the presence of his wife and mother.

One police officer also pointed a gun at Celik's mother and abused her saying, Why did you make your son a journalist? Why did you permit it? The police handcuffed Celik and took him to the sub-province police headquarters. The police left the flat having confiscated everyones mobile phones, books and flash memories. It has been learned that a confidentiality order has been imposed on the case.
Civil War Gala to be held Saturday in Somerset

The 14th annual Col. Robert Cummins Civil War Gala will be held at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Somerset Church of the Brethren, 606 Berlin Plank Road in Somerset.
Bangkok is home to over 8 million people and is a bustling, cosmopolitan city with plenty for everyone to see and do. Like many capital cities around the world, the roads in Bangkok are heavily congested although there is an excellent Skytrain (BTS) and underground (MRT) connecting many areas in central Bangkok, so getting from A to B is not as difficult as you may imagine. View more
Although sadly indisposed yesterday and unable for the first time to join her family at the traditional Sandringham church service, the Queen still played her full part in the nations Christmas Day celebrations.

Her annual message, which after 64 years is now as synonymous with the festive season as turkey and chestnut stuffing, was a typical blend of wisdom and inspiration.

Where others  notably the Archbishop of Canterbury  had given irredeemably forlorn assessments of the anxiety, division and fear that exists in the world, Her Majestys advice was to take courage, roll up our sleeves and get on with building a better society through hard work and mutual respect.

The Queen's Christmas message was a typical blend of wisdom and inspiration

Emphasising the vital importance of self-help, she said: We sometimes think the worlds problems are so big that we can do little  but the cumulative impact of thousands of small acts of goodness can be bigger than we imagine.

As a woman who lived through the War and has weathered countless crises since  including several in her own family  this was a characteristically doughty and upbeat message.

With the constant whingeing and scaremongering from the Remoaners about the challenges facing post-Brexit Britain, the Queens optimism and indomitable spirit are a true example to us all. We wish her a speedy recovery.

...and more good news

And its not only the Queen whos feeling confident about this countrys future as we prepare to part company with the EU.

More than 60 per cent of members of the Institute of Directors said in a survey that they are optimistic or very optimistic about how their company will perform in 2017. A month after the referendum that figure was just 46 per cent.

Meanwhile, a major report by the influential Centre for Economics and Business Research predicts that because of economic stagnation in the eurozone, Britain and Germany will be the only European countries left in the worlds top eight economies by 2030. France and Italy will be ejected from that elite group by emerging countries such as South Korea, Brazil and India.

Could there be more eloquent proof of the need to unshackle ourselves from the doomed European project and look out to a wider, more dynamic world?

Getting away with it

Following a steady fall in crime over more than a decade, the year to June saw a worrying rise of 7 per cent overall and a positively frightening spike of 24 per cent in violent offences.

Figures published in this paper today may go some way to explaining why. Nearly half of all recorded crimes  1.9 million  are never solved and only one in seven ends in a charge or summons.

Following a steady fall in crime over more than a decade, the year to June saw a worrying rise of 7 per cent overall (file photo)

With such minuscule chances of being brought to book, is it any wonder criminals are becoming more emboldened? These pathetic detection rates are an invitation to commit crime.

The police naturally blame cuts and its true there has been a fall in officer numbers as a result of austerity measures. But there has also been a huge rise in CCTV on the streets, access to mobile phone and computer data, advances in DNA and other forensic techniques which should have vastly improved detection.

Yes, cuts may have played their part, but some chief constables have also shown highly questionable priorities.
Like many people who work at a desk, my posture is terrible. As the hours tick by, I slump forward like a wilted daisy, but the trouble is I dont realise it until I uncurl myself, painfully, at the end of the day.

In the absence of my mother standing over me barking Sit up straight!, its hard not to slouch.

Which is where new posture-correcting app Lumo Lift (you slouch, it vibrates) comes in. The 59.99 sleek, pebble-like gadget (which you attach to your vest or bra with a tiny magnet) buzzes a warning every time you unwittingly begin to curl into a hunch.

Like many people who work at a desk, my posture is terrible. As the hours tick by, I slump forward like a wilted daisy (File photo)

Provided it is touching your skin, it monitors your posture angle. Given my history of worn discs and lower-back pain, this appears to be just what the physiotherapist ordered.

As I attach the device to my bra strap just beneath my collarbone, I confess Im nervous. I dont want my underwear to vibrate alarmingly every time I tilt away from the vertical.

Next I install the app on my phone and read the galvanising message: Get ready to sit and stand taller, Anna. I guiltily shift position.

Now I must train the device to recognise my target posture (ideally, the graceful poise of a dancer, though my natural stance is more Stone Age woman than English National Ballet).

I shuffle backwards on my chair until my spine, hips and bottom press against its supporting back. As I straighten up, I hear something in my spine click. In better news, the Lumo Lifts buzz turns out to be audible only to me, the wearer. More of a genteel cough than a warning shout.

Target posture achieved, Im supposed to press and release the device to inform it this is my ideal sitting position. It beeps three times in response to confirm it is primed. Then, if I laze back into a slouch, my slump monitor will buzz after 15 seconds.

But after a day of fidgeting, I realise Im not at all clear on what ideal posture is. I refer to the gadgets website for guidance.

A post entitled What is good posture? informs me its a straight, stacked spine . . . imagine your head is being pulled by a string.

Lift your chest slightly and draw in your abdominals. Keep shoulders down and back.

Youre aiming for a strong, confident position! Beginners should clasp their hands together behind their back while standing, then bring both hands back to their sides. This naturally pulls your shoulders back.

If this is good posture, then my shoulders hang a good inch too far forward  like a baboons  so I make a conscious effort to force my shoulders down and back, lift my neck and straighten my upper back.

It feels awkward, but I grumpily press the device to inform it that this elevated position is my target posture. If you feel unnatural strain in your back or muscles, reset target posture in a more comfortable position, says the Lumo Lift website.

Which is where new posture-correcting app Lumo Lift (you slouch, it vibrates) comes in (File photo)

Now Im getting really annoyed. Yes, its very uncomfortable  my back and shoulders ache like mad  though perhaps after years of sitting like Neanderthal woman, the correct posture should feel challenging.

At the end of the day, my phone shows Ive achieved just 3.37 hours of good posture. Meanwhile, the device and I have developed the relationship of an unhappily married couple.

Oh shut up, I mutter, as it buzzes irritably when I lean forward to eat toast. It even vibrates when I dare to rest on my elbow. We are not getting on.

I decide to get advice from an expert on the definition of ideal posture. What if Im doing more harm than good?

So, its left entirely to your interpretation as to what good is? asks the London-based physiotherapist Nigel Roe, whose pedigree includes a decade of work with rugby teams the All Blacks and Saracens.

Though he approves of the Lumo Lift concept, he agrees that, like me, most people would have no idea what position they were aiming for.

If you sit badly for long enough that becomes your normal, he says.

A clue you might be sitting badly is if you have back and neck discomfort that you think a massage will fix. But, because our muscles have adapted to our poor posture, Roe says: If you try to correct [your spinal posture], your brain will say Why? 

His advice is to aim for a sense of lengthening through your middle back. He likes the Alexander technique tip of drawing up from the centre of the chest by visualising being gently pulled by a string from the top of your head.

You can tell he has worked with rugby blokes: he tells me to think of a meat hook lifting me from under the breastbone.

Roe warns its possible to over-correct. Good posture should involve minimal effort. Its got to be efficient.

He also disagrees with Lumo Lifts advice on shoulders. Good posture has nothing to do with pulling shoulders back, he says.

Telling people what good posture is only works if they have the suppleness to achieve it. To that end we do a flexibility test.

I stand, back flattened against the wall, with my feet half a foot length out. I raise my arms until theyre vertical, flat against the wall, and bend my elbows to a 90 degree angle. Then, keeping my back flat and pelvis tilted, I try to raise my arms higher against the wall.

Roe says this shows if youve got the straightening potential through your middle back and rib cage to bring your arms up, without your lower back coming off the wall. To my relief, I can manage the exercise.

Finally well-informed, I re-attach the Lumo Lift. Every morning, as I settle myself at my desk, I ensure my bottom is against the chair back and my chin doesnt jut out or tuck in. It takes a bit of twisting to perfect my neck position.

When I stand, I consider Roes advice about not over-tilting the pelvis either way (doing a Beyonce or an Elvis).

Once I re-programme the Lumo Lift, I barely hear a peep out of it.

Five days in, Ive accumulated tens of hours of good posture without undue exertion.

Rather than feeling enraged when the device buzzes as I load the dishwasher, I take it as a pleasing sign that the rest of my day has been spent in a spine-friendly attitude.

Wearing it is a valuable mental prompt  I even re-think how I sprawl on the sofa. Good posture requires effort, but it quickly becomes habit. In less than a week, I am in better shape.
As the New Year creeps ever closer, many of us will be turning our minds to what we want to achieve in 2017, and setting ourselves a few New Year's resolutions.

Often, setting boundaries in the workplace is one of those resolutions many people fail to keep.

Rachel Service, originally from New Zealand, was a high-flying career woman working with major brands and agencies in her early twenties, when she collapsed from exhaustion and passed out in a bathroom on the way to work.

Since that point, Ms Service has overhauled her attitude to her career, and become a mental health in the workplace advocate, founding the business, Happiness Concierge.

Change of course: Rachel Service (pictured), from New Zealand, was a high-flying career woman, when she collapsed from exhaustion and passed out in a bathroom on the way to work

Happy: Since that point, she has become a mental health in the workplace advocate, and founded the business, Happiness Concierge

How can I improve my life in 2017? * Do less with more impact, Rachel Service advises. Speak up more in the workplace. * Learn to empathise with those you disagree with in order to open a conversation. * Work less. * Write an 'I Want' list and divide it into: 'I Want To Feel', 'I Want To Have' and 'I Want To Be/Achieve'. * Get used to saying exactly what you want, so you can get it. * Learn to know what you will and won't accept. * Learn how to communicate your boundaries or challenge an opinion in a constructive way. Advertisement

Happiness Concierge aims 'to help people ace work and life, with workshops that give people tactical tools to avoid burnout and get noticed at work'.

Ms Service travels all over the world with the business, hosting events, classes and speeches which help people to achieve their goals.

Speaking to Stuff, Ms Service explained the resolutions she has ready to go this January 1, and how they can help you, too.

'Do less with more impact. Speak up more,' was one, she wrote.

'Learn to empathise with those I disagree with to open a conversation which shares a different perspective.' was another.

'Work less,' she added.

On a practical level, Ms Service also advocates writing an 'I want' list; something which she has written about on her website in detail.

The 'I Want list' is a 'list of legit things you want', Ms Service said.

Divided into three sections: I Want To Feel, I Want To Have and I Want To Be/Achieve, Ms Service believes the objective is to get used to saying exactly what you want.

New Year, new you: Ms Service (pictured) already has many resolutions ready to go this January 1 which can help you: 'Do less with more impact. Speak up more,' she said

Balance: 'Learn to empathise with those I disagree with to open a conversation which shares a different perspective,' she said, adding it's important to work less

The expert also believes good communication is the key to having a good 2017.

'I think the biggest thing people can do is make small, brave decisions every day about communicating the behaviour they will and won't accept,' she said.

'Learning how to communicate your boundaries or challenge an opinion in a constructive way is not something we're taught.'

To do: On a practical level, Ms Service also advocates writing an 'I want' list

Ms Service was inspired to start Happiness Concierge in her late twenties after she found 'my addiction to work was nearly killing me'.

'When I was 22, I passed out in the bathroom on the way to work,' she wrote on her blog.

'The ulcers which developed in my mouth immediately afterwards saw me bed ridden and unable to eat for two weeks.

'At 24, I literally couldn't stand up one day after working 24/7 for months, skipping meals and hitting the gym all hours.

'I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression and adrenal fatigue from over working and was ordered to bed rest for six weeks, unable to work.'

Dangerous: Ms Service (pictured) was inspired to start Happiness Concierge after she found 'my addiction to work was nearly killing me'

Later on, at Beyonce concert at age 27, she realised she had to change; hence, the fact that she founded Happiness Concierge.

'With professional help, the support of my family and friends, I eventually landed on a sustainable life I love, creating a series of tactics to help me cope.

'I started to share these tips with my friends and on a blog, which eventually led me to creating workshops around each of these tactics.'

For more information about Happiness Concierge and to download your own 'I want' list, click here.
Dubbed the Queen of Blonde, Nicola Clarkes clients include Cate Blanchett, Kate Winslet and Kate Moss.

Nicola, 41, is creative colour director for Color Wow and John Frieda salons, and lives in London with her husband, film director Chris, and their two children.

I never set out to work with celebrities. I was an Essex girl who loved fashion. But I always knew I wanted to do something creative.

I started as a Saturday girl in a local hair salon aged 13. Later I got a job at Hyper, Hyper, the trendy Nineties fashion emporium, where I met celebrity hairdresser Sam McKnight. I called his agent every week and used my holiday to work free as his assistant on London Fashion Week.

Dubbed the Queen of Blonde, Nicola Clarkes clients include Cate Blanchett, Kate Winslet and Kate Moss

One day Kate Moss turned up for a show with a big blonde stripe in her hair. Sam was appalled, so I went back to her house and recoloured it. Ive been doing her hair ever since.

I still didnt think of myself as an artist. In Britain we downplay everything. Then, in 2000, Gwyneth Paltrow recommended me to Madonna. I went to her house in West London. I only realised when I turned up I was colouring her hair for her wedding to Guy Ritchie.

When I arrived, she said: Do you have my colour formula? Her New York stylist hadnt given it to me, so I explained shed have to wait while I worked out the colour match.

Yes, shes a diva, and Im sure people crumble. But she really respects you if youre honest and straightforward.

Looking back, working with Madonna was my light bulb moment. I thought: Yes, I really know what Im doing. It gave me the confidence to see myself as a creative, too.

Looking back, working with Madonna was my light bulb moment

When I go on film sets to work with actors I feel like an equal. And Ive taken a role as brand ambassador for Color Wow, hair products that are formulated for coloured hair.

Everyone calls me Clarkie. I know my boundaries, Im not interested in being friends with celebrities. But Madonna sends me flowers for my birthday and invites me to parties.
The festive season can take its toll on hair  all that blow-drying and straightening  so an at-home treatment with nourishing oil will help bring the bounce back.

I used Vo5 Hot Oil as a teenager and it took a lot of washing out. These days, hair oils are easier to use and quickly restore shine.

Philip B Rejuvenating Oil (33, selfridges.com) works wonders on dry hair. The celebrity hairdresser recommends working a few drops of oil through brushed hair, using your fingertips.

Try Tresemme Keratin Smooth Beautifying Oil, Lee Stafford Nourishing Miracle Oil or the Body Shop Wild Argan Miracle Oil for Body & Hair

Leave for 20 minutes, warm with a hair dryer than wash.

Try Tresemme Keratin Smooth Beautifying Oil (7.34, Boots) or Lee Stafford Nourishing Miracle Oil (11.99, Boots) to strengthen and repair.

The Body Shop Wild Argan Miracle Oil for Body & Hair (14, thebodyshop.com) contains famous Moroccan argan oil to revitalise dry hair.

If your hair is suffering after too many festive parties, leave it on overnight.

If you find contouring hard to perfect and time-consuming then new Pure Light, The Collection, a palette from Delilah (48, SpaceNK) is for you.

The beautiful gift box contains three powders  called Solar, Lunar and Aura  that can be used together or on their own to brighten, warm and illuminate your complexion.

If you find contouring hard to perfect and time-consuming then new Pure Light, The Collection, a palette from Delilah (48, SpaceNK) is for you

The natural-looking shades make shaping your face and highlighting your cheekbones quick and simple. A luxury brush is also included to make blending easier, for a completely natural look.

Want to banish eye bags ready for a New Years Eve party?

Helena Bonham Carter uses Kerstin Florians Correcting Eye Rescue pads (98 for six pairs, kerstinflorian.co.uk).

The patches reduce puffiness and shadows, while smoothing fine lines.

Simply spray the pad with the hydrating neroli water that comes in the box and pop under your eyes, removing them after 15 minutes.

Want to banish eye bags ready for a New Years Eve party? Helena Bonham Carter uses Kerstin Florians Correcting Eye Rescue pads

The biggest benefit of facial sheet masks is they contain highly concentrated ingredients to hydrate the deeper layers of skin.

Dermatologist Dr Anjali Mahto says: While being portable and easier to use, sheet masks are unlikely to exfoliate or deep cleanse in the same way as a traditional mask. So while they are good for hydration, cream masks are more likely to benefit acne or blemish-prone skin.

The biggest benefit of facial sheet masks is they contain highly concentrated ingredients to hydrate the deeper layers of skin

Anti-ageing sheet masks tend to be super-hydrating and great for plumping wrinkles.

Try Lancome Genefique Youth Activating Second Skin Mask (six for 59, John Lewis), for 20 minutes and your skin will be glowing.

The new DHC Quick Film Smoother (17.50, dhcuk.co.uk) doubles as a wrinkle plumper and skin protector. Its a gel cream, so its lightweight, and it contains seaweed extract, which instantly firms skin. And its so effective at smoothing that you wont even need a primer on top.

The new DHC Quick Film Smoother (17.50, dhcuk.co.uk) doubles as a wrinkle plumper and skin protector

Sanctuary Spa Luxury Bath Float Sanctuary Spa Luxury Bath Float (10, Boots) is packed with lots of vitamin E to hydrate and soften skin. It has an uplifting orange fragrance to help you unwind at the end of a long day. Shop

Ren Moroccan Rose Otto Body Wash Ren Moroccan Rose Otto Body Wash (18, marksandspencer. com) works brilliantly if your tired muscles need a long soak. The rose is soothing for dry skin and the scent is known to be a stress-reliever. Shop

Neals Yard Aromatic Foaming Bath Neals Yard Aromatic Foaming Bath (15.50, nealsyardremedies.com) has a blend of skin-conditioning botanical oils including lavender, marjoram and geranium to help you relax, while nourishing your skin. Shop

The Celebration Candle (55, wilneliaforsyth.com) is the creation of Wilnelia Forsyth, wife of Bruce. She has teamed up with Fortnum & Mason to produce a candle with a vintage Fifties feel.

The fragrance draws inspiration from scents of the Caribbean, with main notes of rose, bergamot and jasmine. But earthy undertones of patchouli, sandalwood and frankincense balance the floral notes to create a delicious, universal scent.

It comes in an elegant black jar with a gold polished lid that can be used as a candle coaster.
Forget clean eating gurus and jewellery makers. 2016 has been all about bikini designers.

From start-ups to established names, countless Australian women have got in on the lucrative field - and as it's been recently revealed that the global swimwear industry is worth around AUD $23 billion, they're clearly tapping into a burgeoning market.

From Gold Coast labels with worldwide fame to Port Macquarie-based global businesses, FEMAIL rounds up several of the hottest new bikini labels in Australia, introducing the women making thousands of dollars from their original ideas.

New Year's resolution business plan, anyone?

Huge success: Bikinis these days are big business - the global market is currently valued at more than AUD $23 billion dollars

Success: From Gold Coast labels with worldwide fame to Port Macquarie-based global businesses, FEMAIL rounds up several of the hottest new bikini labels this side of the world

Big names: The big-name brands these days include the likes of Kokoh Bikini (left) and Moana Bikini (right)

KARINA IRBY OF MOANA BIKINI

At just 26, Karina Irby, from Port Macquarie, leads a life that may well be the envy of many.

After spending hours on YouTube learning how to make and design swimwear, she launched her own business with the mantra: 'It's not just a bikini, it's a lifestyle'.

Ms Kirby now has buyers from Australia, America, Europe, Russia and as far away as Iceland, who come to the 26-year-old's website in order to stock up on one of her striking, colourful swimwear sets.

Passion: Karina Irby (pictured), 26, spent hours learning how to make swimwear

'I always liked the cheekier styles that were sold in beautiful places like Hawaii but couldn't be found in Port Macquarie,' Ms Kirby previously told Daily Mail.

When I was around 18 or 19, I went over to Hawaii and got inspired by the amazing styles and bikinis.'

Karina Irby soon started to work wholesale for Hawaiian bikini brands because she wanted to bring 'the beautiful swimwear to Australia'.

She then went on to found her own label, Moana Bikini - which is now worth millions.

And with over 400,000 Instagram followers for the brand now, as well as a turnover of 1,000 pieces of swimwear in just 45 minutes in December, the rest - as they say - is history.

Live the brand: She has since launched her own business with the mantra: 'It's not just a bikini, it's a lifestyle' - Ms Irby (pictured left and right) now has buyers all around the world

Fun: 'I always liked the cheekier styles that were sold in beautiful places like Hawaii but couldn't be found in Port Macquarie,' Ms Kirby previously told Daily Mail

CHANTAL UMPELBY AND JASMIN YOUNG OF SUMMER ADDICTION SWIMWEAR

A relative newcomer to the bikini market, Summer Addiction Swimwear, created by two 22-year-old Gold Coast friends, is already making a splash in the bikini market.

After falling in love with swimwear at young ages at school and spotting a gap in the market for high-end, Brazilian-cut swimwear, Chantal Umpelby and Jasmin Young used their passion to launch their own self-funded line earlier this month.

They have since sold more than 30 per cent of their debut collection, White Label.

Newbie: Summer Addiction Swimwear is relatively new (pictured: Chantal Umpelby)

'We take our design cues from luxury European fashion and Brazilian cuts,' Ms Young told Daily Mail.

'We aimed for this unique, sophisticated look and have seen a real demand for such swimwear. We've always loved swimwear and bikinis, growing up on the Gold Coast. It's in our nature.

'The red-wine-hued bikini is the most popular right now.'

The reasonably-priced bikinis and swimsuits are made from Italian lycra, and right now they are being sold in four designs and three colours.

At the moment, Summer Addiction Swimwear is sold exclusively on the friends' website.

After falling in love with swimwear while young and spotting a gap in the market for high-end, Brazilian-cut swimwear, Chantal Umpelby and Jasmin Young (pictured) launched their own line

Inspiration: 'We take our design cues from luxury European fashion and Brazilian cuts,' Ms Young told Daily Mail

Cut: The reasonably-priced bikinis and swimsuits are made from Italian lycra, and right now they are being sold in four designs and three colours (pictured)

Dream come true: When Kendall Layt (pictured), from New South Wales, was a teenager, she told her mother it was her dream to design bikinis - 10 years later, she turned it into a reality

Idea: Ms Layt came up with the idea for KOKOH Bikini while she was travelling around the world as a flight attendant

KENDALL LAYT OF KOKOH BIKINI

When Kendall Layt, from New South Wales, was a teenager, she told her mother it was her dream to design bikinis.

Now, more than a decade later she has made that dream a reality - by running and launching KOKOH Bikini, which she devised while she was travelling around the world as a flight attendant.

'I started surfing when I was 15, and I was always a bikini fiend,' Ms Layt previously told Daily Mail.

'But I had quite a flat bum and I could never find a cheeky cut that would fit. So I would alter them myself.'

Personal: 'I started surfing when I was 15, and I was always a bikini fiend,' Ms Layt previously told Daily Mail - 'But I had quite a flat bum and I could never find a cheeky cut that would fit'

Mega story: KOKOH Bikini turned over $100,000 in its first year and has seen the 30-year-old Ms Layt since work all over the world, including in the Maldives and Tahiti

After she got a job as a flight attendant and found herself slowly burning out from all the travel, she started working on designs and collaborating with manufacturers in February 2013, before launching her website and online store in August that same year - eventually quitting her flight attendant job.

These days, KOKOH Bikini is a huge success story.

It turned over AUD $100,000 in its first year and has seen the 30-year-old since work all over the world, including in the Maldives and Tahiti.

The most popular style on Ms Layt's website right now is her hand-painted waves pattern, but all have been swimwear hits.

'Since I left the job, my brand has taken me to places that I'd never dreamed of,' Ms Layt said.
A seemingly simple picture of six women in a bar has left the internet completely baffled.

The snap, which shows the friends sitting side-by-side on a sofa, appears to have something amiss - but this only becomes clear on closer inspection.

Since being shared online by Reddit user jr0d7771, it has attracted hundreds of comments and left social media users divided. But can you spot what's wrong with the image?

Scroll down for the reveal...

This seemingly mundane snap, which shows six friends sitting on a sofa in a bar, appears to have something wrong with it - but this only becomes apparent on closer inspection

If you look closely, you will see there are only five pairs of pins for the six women - meaning that the third woman from the left appears to be missing her legs.

Reddit users were desperate to solve the problem and spent hours squabbling over the correct answer.

Kacie1989 suggested: 'I actually think the first girl has [her] legs draped OVER the second girl's legs.'

Others were confused by the girl on the far right, whose left leg appeared to be abnormally long.

Have you spotted it yet? If you look closely, you will see there are only five pairs of pins for the six women - meaning that the third woman from the left appears to be missing her legs

Reddit users were desperate to solve the problem and spent hours squabbling over the correct answer, with the most plausible explanation coming from Canadian_Ireland

However the most plausible explanation came from Canadian_Ireland, who wrote: 'The second girl's legs are behind the first girl's legs.'

This would suggest that the girl with the 'missing' legs is actually sitting at an angle, with her legs appearing to belong to the friend on her right.

The snap is just the latest in a long line of optical illusion photos to leave people baffled.

In October, seemingly mundane photo of three women sitting on a park bench left the internet in a state of confusion.

An optical illusion image of three women sitting on a park bench that's recently resurfaced online has been causing confusion

At first glance the photo appears to show the trio pausing for a sit down during a sunny stroll.

But there appears to be no seat on the bench and the women are hovering mid air.

The most likely explanation is that the bench features smaller pull-out seats.

Earlier this year, a photo of a bed with a part of the duvet circled in red went viral this week - with many not realising that the picture is really an optical illusion.

Within the red ring there's a section of a white duvet covered in a black floral pattern, as well as part of the carpet.

A photo of a bed with a part of the duvet circled in red has been confusing people online - with many not realising that the picture is an optical illusion

However, people who have spotted the image - which has been shared on Reddit - are struggling to work out what the circle signifies.

The image was posted by Imgur user Idon'tevenknowwhat'sgoingon yesterday, and has received more than 63,500 views.

Optical illusions are increasingly popular online. At first glance the below picture looks like a regular selfie of a woman striking a seductive pose on her bed.

Scroll down for the reveal...

At first glance this picture looks like any normal selfie you might see. However, if you look closer you will see that something is not quite right

However, if you look closer you will see that something is not quite right with the black and white image.

The shot has been driving the web to distraction ever since it went viral, with puzzlers unable to figure out the oddity.

The image has recently resurfaced on Facebook after it first originated in 2003, when it was posted by Deviantart user Missmiserystock. It was titled 'Look-carefully'.

The woman in the image actually has six fingers, instead of the usual five

At closer inspection it is revealed that the woman actually has six fingers instead of five. The subtle abnormality is likely to be a clever trick of Photoshop, designed to confuse.

One internet user, Bogina, wrote: 'Hahaha thats insane it took me a while to catch it good job!' [sic]

But are your eyes sharp enough to solve this brain teaser driving the web crazy?

Scroll down for the reveal...

Can you spot the phone? The image has been shared nearly 16,000 times and reached 120,000 reactions

It is just the latest in a series of brain teasing images baffling the internet.

An image of a floral carpet, uploaded by Jeya May Cruz from Pasig, the Philippines, was shared nearly 16,000 times and reached 120,000 reactions.

Why? Because the photograph contains a camouflaged mobile phone that is devilishly hard to spot.

If you are struggling, the phone has a floral pattern which does not quite match the carpet.

Confused? The handheld device lies just beside the right side table leg at the top of the photo

The phone has a floral pattern which does not quite match the carpet but is still a devilishly hard spot

Still confused? The device is just beside the right side table leg at the top of the photo.

It may seem a simple find, but it has left thousands bewildered.

Jeya captioned her image: 'Since I can't sleep, let's play a game. Look for the cellphone.'

She works as a sales representative at Dell, and studied Banking and Finance at Far Eastern University.

Sometimes the easiest-sounding brain teasers are the most difficult ones. And another puzzle to recently sweep the web certainly plays by those rules.

Scroll down for the reveal...

Created by a PlayBuzz user, this colour photo depicts a grey car seat with a mysterious object hidden on it that it's up to you to find

At first, the secret object is impossible to find. However, after a more detailed search you can spot a grey iPad lying flat on the back on the seat

Created by a PlayBuzz user, this colour photo depicts a grey car seat with a mysterious object hidden on it for you to find.

At first, the secret object is impossible to find.

However, after a more detailed search you can spot a grey iPad lying flat on the back on the seat.

The iPad is well-camouflaged because it's the same colour as the seat, with similar markings.
There seems to be a subscription box service for everything these days, from cosmetics to snacks to alcohol  so really, it was only a matter of time for the medical marijuana community got in on the monthly shipment craze.

A California company called Club M bills itself as a 'luxury' brand, and ships monthly boxes of cannabis products to those in the state with a medical marijuana prescription.

For $97 a month, customers get a specially-curated box of ganja goodies, including concentrates, vapes, edibles, flowers, and 'gear'.

Smokers' lounge: A San Diego-based company is selling marijuana subscription boxes

Special delivery! Club M charges $97 a month to deliver marijuana products to Californians' doors

Stocking up: The boxes include marijuana, vapes, edibles, and tools

Chris Husong started Club M in October 2015 and now has 300 monthly subscribers, 60 per cent of whom are women, according to Quartz.

He told the website that his company is 'not for potheads' and caters more to classier enthusiasts who are looking to 'aid wellness and creativity'.

'Our members are always looking to create perfect moments, and this subscription makes those moments even more elegant,' he said.

Founder Chris Husong said the service isn't for potheads but connoisseurs

Spliff splurge: There is also a special limited-edition luxury box for $1,000

Around 60% of the service's users are female, and all have a medical marijuana prescription

The box mailed out this past November, for instance, included a vape pen, a gram of marijuana, 'powder cannabis mixers' for mixing into beverages, cannabis-infused olive oil, chocolate caramels infused with cannabis extract, an 'artistic single-hit glass blunt', a cannabis cookbook, a 'stash box', and a music playlist.

The packages are valued at around $200 each  and can be purchased individually, for those who don't want to commit  but subscribers pay less than $100 for each shipment.

Past boxes have also contained gummy candles, incense, puzzles (not containing marijuana), sativa, ganja gum, and even snacks not infused with cannabis to help with the munchies.

Nom nomL:The boxes include edibles  food infused with cannabis  as well as regular snacks for the munchies

There are also vaping tools and concentrates, as well as lighters and stash boxes

The company was launched in October 2015 and previous boxes can be bought for about $200

Recently, the company also rolled out special limited-edition premium boxes for $1,000 each, marketed toward 'the discriminating cannabis connoisseur'.

The carefully-crafted shipment includes 3.4g of different concentrates, 11g of various flowers, 1.5g of vape options, .66g of edibles like coffee and hot sauce, and 'gear' like a journal, lighter, roller, and an Apothecarry Limited Edition Box.
Delhi Police data has revealed that a quarter of the total rape cases registered in the national Capital this year belong to accusations of sex under 'false promise of marriage'.

The annual figures also show a marginal dip, 1.93 per cent, in the total rape cases reported.

In 2015, Delhi recorded 2,069 rape cases, the highest in previous 15 years.

Delhi Police data has revealed that a quarter of the total rape cases registered in the national Capital this year belong to accusations of sex under 'false promise of marriage'

Just as promises of marriage can be fraudulent, legal experts say certain grey areas in Section 375 of Indian Penal Code, 1860, allow a complainant to take advantage of the situation when a relationship turns sour and ends.

A few recent observations of higher courts across the country in this regard substantiate this belief.

Amit Khemka, a Delhi High Court lawyer said: 'Having sex before marriage cannot be forced upon a girl. That is why in many cases, various courts have expressed concern over the rise in false rape cases'.

The loophole which Khemka pointed out is an eventuality in section 375 where the victim's 'consent is given because she believes that he is another man to whom she is or believes herself to be lawfully married'.

'So far as the rape on pretext of marriage is concerned, no blame can be put on the male alone in those cases, where the girl is a major because no one can force sex on the pretext of marriage,' Khemka said.

He also pointed out the dismal rate of conviction in rape cases - less than 25%.

'Rape accused are acquitted in court in the absence of proper investigation or evidence,' he said.

In March this year, Justice Mridula Bhatkar of Bombay High Court, granting bail to a rape accused on marriage pretext, observed: 'An educated woman is mature enough to understand the consequences of having physical relations with her partner and such cases will not fall under the ambit of rape.'

However, social activists contest such generalisation in a city where one rape is reported every four hours.

'It is important to understand the fraudulent. If one is living with a woman and promised to marry her, he should honour his commitment,' woman rights activist Ranjana Kumari told Mail Today.

Kumari feels there should be dialogue in home where girls are vulnerable and despite being exploitation, they complain only after rape takes place by someone known to her.

Police data also shows that 96.26 per cent of cases in 2016 the accused were known to the victim.

'Except for 74 cases reported till November 30 in 2016, the accused were known to the victims in all other cases.

'This makes prevention of such crimes comparatively more difficult as these were committed in private spaces,' said a police officer.

Police also claimed 85.95 per cent of rape cases reported in 2016 have already been solved, 57.74 per cent of them within one week of registration, and 1,974 persons were arrested.

According to statistics, highest rape cases were reported under Aman Vihar police station (60), followed by Mehrauli (48), Shahbad Dairy (41), Khajoori Khas (39), Shakarpur (36), Begumpur (35), New Ashok Nagar (34), Mangolpuri (33), Nihal Vihar (33), and Govindpuri (30).

Cases of molestation came down from 5,328 to 4,005 - a drop of 24.83 per cent.
Savvy shoppers: Increasing numbers of shoppers in Europe are switching to British websites

Savvy European shoppers are switching to British websites to snap up a bargain after the post-Brexit fall in the pound.

Online shops and delivery firms said they have been shipping an increasing number of parcels overseas since the value of sterling fell against the euro following the referendum decision to leave the European Union.

Amazon said exports from UK businesses listed on its marketplace were set for a 30 per cent increase this year to 1.8billion, and delivery companies have reported a rise in the number of parcels being collected from British warehouses for foreign buyers.

The UKs biggest delivery firm, Royal Mail, said a decline in its export parcel volumes had slowed since sterlings fall. We are seeing an improving trend in export due to movements in foreign exchange and increasing cross border e-commerce, a spokesman said.

Rivals DPD and UPS have reported double-digit increases in the number of British parcels being sent overseas compared to last year, while Hermes has registered a 15 per cent jump since the Brexit vote.

Last year, Brits were shopping abroad to snap up a bargain, but now the situation has reversed.

Goods on British websites are 10 per cent cheaper in euros than they were on June 23  the day of the Brexit vote.

The decision sent the value of sterling tumbling, making British goods more attractive to overseas buyers. While some global brands such as Apple have increased prices, others have held steady until next year.

Many companies have hedged against currency movements well into 2017, allowing international buyers to exploit low prices.

Uptick: Amazon said exports from UK businesses listed on its marketplace were set for a 30 per cent increase this year

Online fashion giant Asos is among those to benefit, because about 57 per cent of its sales are made outside the UK. The pounds fall has allowed it to cut prices to win over shoppers, and made it easier to invest in Britain.

Asos plans to hire 1,500 staff at its London headquarters, and said domestic production had become more affordable.

Tourists are also finding that their cash goes further  sending up sales of luxury labels such as Burberry  and UK retail demand is surging.

October saw luxury brands grow at their fastest pace for 14 years, defying gloomy predictions before the EU referendum that a vote to leave would spark a recession.

Retail sales volumes were up 7.4 per cent on a year earlier  the strongest growth since early 2002.

The biggest contribution to this came from non-store retailers, which includes mail-order as well as internet-only firms.
by the 'PR-friendly and tame' tweets posted

But some officers are

Police around the country are being urged to get on Twitter as trendy chief constables encourage officers to use social media to 'engage' with the public.

But, as these tweets show, rank and file officers now fear the cringe-worthy efforts of forces' social media teams could undermine respect in the thin blue line.

Police forces and officers around the country have been setting up more and more Twitter and Facebook accounts, with chiefs seeing it as a way of improving relations with local residents.

An awards ceremony has now been set up for forces and officers who garner the most followers and a huge section in the College of Policing's guidelines to officers is given over to 'engagement and communication' through social media.

Police in Sunderland posted this message on Twitter celebrating National Cupcake Day

Meanwhile, officers in nearby Gateshead sent out this emoji-filled message telling followers to 'Have a tip top Tuesday'

The same force also tweeted this '#mondaymotivation' message earlier this year

A 'gif' video of Mr Bean was meanwhile jokily put on Gateshead West police's Twitter feed

This picture was sent out by officers in Warwickshire ahead of Halloween

The guidelines even quote Assistant Chief Constable Gordon Scobbie, who has the title of 'lead for digital and social media engagement'.

He states: 'We need to embrace this new form of communication because if we don't engage with people via social media they will move on without us and we will miss the opportunity to influence them, making it much more difficult to re-engage with them later.'

But alongside the appeals for information and safety messages which have become a staple of police force Twitter accounts, the motivational tips and words of wisdom have left some officers wincing.

A neighbourhood PC recently wrote to The Guardian stating: 'The main way we're encouraged to engage with the public is via social media, which, as we lose more officers, seems to have replaced actual interaction.

'Our force has just discovered social media and we now spew out corporate messages designed to be PR friendly and extremely tame, to conceal the fact that we're sinking.'

Forces often use memes to try to get locals laughing, with Newcastle Police tweeting this

Lincolnshire Police chose to post a picture of Rudyard Kipling's If on National Poetry Day

Meanwhile, police in Norfolk copied a jokey tweet doing the rounds to highlight cybercrime

Newcastle meanwhile posting a 'gif' of a man on a skateboard to celebrate it being Friday

Film gifs are popular among forces social media teams, including those in West Midlands

Police social media teams are also generous with their use of emojis, such as in this tweet

Meanwhile, the hastily posted tweets of some forces have led to controversy and criticism.

Traffic officers from Greater Manchester Police used the force's Twitter account to post pictures of two men wearing SS uniforms on the M62, next to the caption: 'These two likely lads trying to invade.'

After the force was criticised by Jewish groups, they apologised and the officers involved were spoken to.

Hampshire Road Police were also slammed for tweeting a picture of a badly-damaged crashed car and asking followers to guess its model and make.

And the Metropolitan Police's helicopter team came under fire for posting an aerial picture of comedian Michael McIntyre and asking people to guess who it was.

Manchester police were slammed by Jewish groups for posting photos of men in SS uniforms

Hampshire Police were branded 'moronic' for asking followers to guess which car this is
Advertisement

'Tis the season for Santa to take a scuba dive.

As part of holiday festivities at the California Academy of Sciences, the fish are getting fed by a diver dressed as Santa Claus.

The show known as 'Scuba Santa' runs through Christmas Day. It takes place during the morning feed at the Philippine Coral Reef tank at the San Francisco museum.

Volunteer diver George Bell donned his Santa suit, from hat to coal black boots, and scuba gear for a recent feed and fielded visitors' questions from inside the tank.

Floating amid the coral reef and array of fish, he explained that Santa likes to 'take a tropical vacation or two' during his off months and first learned to scuba dive in the Bahamas and then trained in California.

Packs of people watched on as the would-be Santa explored the underwater world.

Speaking after clambering out of the tank, Bell explained why he gets decked out in his best red suit and swims with the fishes.

'The guests get a kick out of it, especially the kids,' he said.

Volunteer diver George Bell, dressed as Santa Claus, swims in the Philippine coral reef tank before giving a presentation as part of the 'Tis the Season for Science holiday exhibit at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco

Spectators watch as volunteer diver George Bell, dressed as Santa Claus, swims in the tank while giving a presentation

Spectators look at fish as volunteer diver George Bell, dressed as Santa Claus, swims around in the massive tank on Thursday, December 15, 2016

George Bell spoke about why he wears the Santa suit and goes scuba diving at the aquarium during a recent interview

Bell is seem climbing into the huge tank in these pictures, before diving down to entertain the guests with his presentation
A massive sinkhole that could measure 60-feet deep started forming outside Detroit, forcing 22 families to evacuate their homes on Christmas Eve.

Police and firefighters in Fraser, Michigan received a call at about 6 am Saturday from a homeowner who said he could hear a popping noise before the bricks in the house began to split.

Mayor Joe Nichols declared a state of emergency, said the ground could collapse at any moment, and cited a possible sewer problem as the cause.

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A massive sinkhole that could measure 60-feet deep started forming outside Detroit, forcing 22 families to evacuate their homes on Christmas Eve

A homeowner called authorities on Saturday morning, saying he could hear a popping noise before the bricks in the house began to split

'It's not a question of whether the road will collapse, but when it will collapse,' Fraser Public Safety Lt. Michael Pettyes said

Sue Albu and her husband, who have lived in their home on 15 Mile Road for more than a decade, first noticed a popping sound at 4am on Saturday and called authorities two hours later.

Authorities have already declared their home a total loss, and Public Safety Director George Rouhib said: 'You can hear the basement walls cracking, so we evacuated that family right away.

'The house is getting worse  the bricks are falling off the side, the sidewalk is lifting.'

Traffic along 15 Mile Road was diverted, and the sewer line, thought to have caused the sinkhole, was closed, with the city working to divert sewage flow.

Utilities like electricity and gas have also been shut off and the homes are being winterized while 22 families were forced to leave their homes for the holidays.

An underground camera was being used to view any damage to a major sewer line below the road.

'It's not a question of whether the road will collapse, but when it will collapse,' Fraser Public Safety Lt. Michael Pettyes said, and Nichols warned people to stay away.

Mayor Joe Nichols declared a state of emergency and cited a possible sewer problem as the cause.

In 2004, a sewer collapse caused a nearby section of 15 Mile Road in Sterling Heights to cave in. It created a sinkhole 160 feet long, 60 feet wide and 30 feet deep.

The 11-foot-wide sewer line is about 55 feet underground.

'You get a break in that line  it's just washing away dirt down there,' Pettyes told the Detroit Free Press. 'It creates a void. When it creates a void, it moves the dirt out. The ground gives way.'

Many of the evacuating residents were seen taking their wrapped gifts with them Saturday as they left their homes.

'It's devastating to watch people walking out of their homes with their Christmas presents,' said Alannah Wood, shift manager at Green Lantern, a pizza restaurant across 15 Mile Road.
Pastors in Fort Worth and Arlington have gathered to protest against the incident

Fort Worth Police has placed the officer involved in incident on restrictive duty

911 to report an assault on Craig's son, aged seven

It came after they had

Dozens of Fort Worth and Arlington pastors say the recent arrest of a black mother and her two teenage daughters by a white officer was racist despite other characterizations from city officials.

The pastors gathered on Christmas Eve at Beth Eden Baptist Church to ask the black community to remain calm while an internal investigation is completed.

Several pastors said the community still believes the police chief, mayor and other city officials want to work with the pastors and the black community, but they have lost faith in the ability of the officer, who hasn't been named and is on paid restricted duty, to police the community.

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Dozens of people feel the recent arrest of a black mother and her daughters by a white officer was racist. The incident began when the officer (seen above) was called to the scene. Craig (seen above right) complained that the man in the blue shirt above choked her son

When the officer suggested that Craig's son deserved to be choked because he littered, Craig grew angry. Her daughter, Brea Hymond, tried to come between her mother and the officer

A Fort Worth police officer used force to subdue Jacqueline Craig (left) and Brea Hymond (right) during a heated confrontation that escalated quickly on Wednesday

'We do not trust him to carry a gun nor does he have our permission to come in our community and enact deadly force,' B.R. Daniels Jr., pastor of First Greater New Hope Baptist Church told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

'He has lost credibility in our community.'

The arrest was filmed on a cellphone and a video was posted to Facebook late Wednesday. It had been viewed millions of times as of Sunday.

City officials held a news conference Friday to address the video. During it, Police Chief Joel Fitzgerald, who is black, said: 'I can't call it racism but I noticed in the video that the officer was rude. There's a difference between rude and racism.'

City officials also have asked the community to remain calm during the investigation.

After the scuffle, the officer wrestles Craig to the ground and presses a Taser to her back (above); he then points the taser at family members protesting the treatment

Police were called to an argument between Jacqueline Craig and a neighbor who Craig said choked her seven-year-old son after the neighbor said he littered and refused to pick it up.

The video shows a quickly escalating argument between Craig and the unnamed officer.

The officer asks Craig why she didn't teach her son not to litter.

Craig answers that whether he littered or not, the neighbor didn't have the right to put his hands on her son. The officer can be heard asking, 'Why not?'

Hymond (left) and her mother (right) are pictured at the Fort Worth jail after the arrest

People protested against the Fort Worth Police Department at the Tarrant County Courthouse in Fort Worth on Thursday

He is seen wrestling Craig to the ground after one of her daughters tries to step between the officer and Craig.

He points a Taser into Craig's back and, after cuffing her, points the Taser at the daughter who tried to intervene and arrests her. Police said the daughter filming the incident was arrested, too.

Craig's attorney, S. Lee Merritt, has asked that charges be dropped against the woman. He also wants the officer to be fired and prosecuted.
A former Fort Bragg soldier who killed four women and raped several others is headed for execution eight years after he was first scheduled to die.

Ronald Gray, who is held at a military prison in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, lost a battle to keep in place a 2008 federal court's order blocking his execution.

Gray was convicted in 1988, and and his death sentence will be the first for the U.S. military since 1961.

Ronald Gray (pictured), a former Fort Bragg soldier who killed four women and raped several others is headed for execution eight years after he was first scheduled to die

The Army cook was convicted and sentenced to death in military court for two murders and three rapes while stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.

He also pleaded guilty in civilian courts to two more murders and five separate rapes, for which he received a total of eight life sentences.

His murder victims included cab driver Kimberly Ann Ruggles, Army Private Laura Lee Vickery-Clay, Campbell University student Linda Jean Coats and soldier's wife Tammy Wilson, the Fayetteville Observer reported.

The case was caught in appeals courts for two decades, and the Department of Justice launched an investigated before President George W. Bush signed an execution order in 2008.

Only the president can approve a death sentence in the military courts, and Gray is currently the only military convict whose execution has been given the green light.

But Gray appealed, and was granted a stay of execution. His attorneys tried to keep the court order in place, arguing the military courts didn't have the power to prosecute him.

But Judge J. Thomas Marten said that there was no evidence of error or injustice and government lawyers said there was no basis to extend the stay of execution if Gray was not facing additional court proceedings.

The judge ruled last week that the court order granted in 2008 was no longer in effect.

Government lawyers acknowledged that Gray could petition for another stay of execution and 'pursue any remedies available in that court'. It remains unclear whether he will do so.
Thirteen people have been killed in an ongoing and vicious drug war across Mexico that saw six men decapitated and their heads left in the street.

The people were killed in the restive Mexican states of Michoacan and Guerrero, authorities said on Sunday.

The killings were carried out amid feuds between rival drug gangs that have racked the country.

Thirteen people have been killed in a vicious drug war across Mexico that saw six men decapitated and their heads left in the street. Pictured is a police officer on patrol

Drug traffickers from the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) are known to operate in the area when six men were found dead

The prosecutor's office of the western state of Michoacan said in a statement the heads of six men were found in front of a business in the town of Jiquilpan, near the border with Jalisco,

Drug traffickers from the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) are known to operate in the area.

A threatening message signed by the New Michoacan Family (NFM), a rival criminal group, was left next to the heads, the prosecutors office also said.

In another episode in the mountains of Atoyac in the state of Guerrero, home to the resort town of Acapulco, seven people were killed by gunfire.

Three of the people killed are officers, state police said.
British foreign aid spending is vital to stem the tide of migration into Britain, Priti Patel has insisted

British foreign aid spending is vital to stem the tide of migration into Britain, Priti Patel has insisted.

The International Development Secretary, who is facing pressure over her departments huge budget, said the cash was vital to prevent starvation in sub-Saharan Africa.

Her ministry has committed 362million in aid over this year and next to help tackle the effects of droughts and floods in southern and eastern parts of the continent.

Miss Patel told The Independent online newspaper that failure to act could see thousands of people in the Horn of Africa moving to Europe and eventually the UK.

She said the money was an important contribution from Global Britain to help the worlds poor. Tory backbenchers are demanding the Government abandon its pledge to spend 0.7 per cent of national income on overseas aid.

They are wanting more money spent on elderly care here in the UK, and want most of the aid budget to go on humanitarian help rather than schemes such as tackling climate change.

Miss Patels intervention  pointing out that much of our aid budget goes on traditional humanitarian effort  is designed to blunt this criticism. She has also called for action to prevent profiteering charities from siphoning so much aid money in fat cat salaries for bosses.

The minister said more money could be contributed to tackle drought in Africa in the future.

As we enter 2017, over 37million people across Africa are without food, she said.

Families face losing their homes and livelihoods as the effects of widespread drought worsen. That is why Global Britain is leading the response to the escalating crisis by providing life-saving food, water and shelter.

Warning the crisis could force many people in the region to become refugees, Miss Patel appealed to other countries to step up to prevent people from going hungry.

Tackling the global challenges of our time such as drought and disease  which fuel migration, insecurity and instability  is the right thing to do and is firmly in Britains interest, she said. More than 250,000 people died in the Horn of Africa in 2010 and 2011  and aid workers are concerned there could be a similar disaster next year.

Her ministry has committed 362million in aid over this year and next to help tackle the effects of droughts and floods in sub-Saharan Africa

A source in the international aid community told The Independent there was a danger of a repeat of the desperate conditions and extreme hunger that killed hundreds of thousands in 2010.

The source added: Certain population groups are now in the third year of having very limited household input. They will have already sold off household assets, livestock will have died or are likely to be unhealthy and not productive.

Rebecca Sutton, Oxfams global El Nino campaign manager, said: The vegetation cover index in parts of the Horn of Africa area is lower now than it was at this stage in the 2010/11 drought.

That indicator is looking worse now than it was then. With drought, its a slow-onset crisis. It doesnt attract media coverage and very unpleasant pictures of people and animals in a very bad way come only once its way too late.
A synagogue in Santa Monica has been smeared with filth in a shocking anti-Semitic attack on the first day of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah.

On Saturday night, the Living Torah Center on Wilshire Boulevard had feces and food rubbed on one of its windows by an unknown figure.

Rabbi Boruch Rabinowitz told Breitbart the attack was not random - and followed another anti-Semitic incident in November.

This Santa Monica synagogue was smeared with feces and food on Saturday. Last month, a black man entered and performed a Nazi salute before pretending to shoot the crowd

The mess was spotted Sunday and cleaned by a rabbi before services started, but some remained on the building's facade.

A report was called in to police by Assistant Rabbi Dovid Tenenbaum, a chaplain with the local police department.

The apparently anti-Semitic attack may have been instigated by the appearance of a menorah lit in the window of the synagogue.

In November the synagogue suffered another attack when a man entered while a service was taking place and threw a Nazi salute while shouting 'Heil Hitler!'

The man - who was black - then mimed firing a machine gun at the crowd before walking away.

Hanukkah, also spelled Chanukah, is an eight-day festival that commemorates a Jewish revolt in 165BC. This year it runs from Saturday through to January 1.

The menorah, each candle of which represents a day of the festival, was once traditionally placed outside a building, but is now commonly put on display in a window.
Oren Cohen (pictured), 34, is accused of picking up a two-year-old girl in the home of a family he didn't know after he claims he mistook her for a 'midget'

An Arizona man accused of picking up a two-year-old girl in the home of a family he didn't know claims he was drunk when he went into the wrong apartment and 'saw a midget'.

Oren Cohen said Friday that he was drinking at a friend's place and accidentally went into the wrong apartment after going outside to smoke a cigarette.

The girl's father woke up early Thursday after hearing the child whimpering and found Cohen holding the pajama-wearing toddler in their living room, authorities said.

He confronted Cohen, who ran away, while the mother called 911, police said.

Cohen, 34, appeared in court a day after being arrested outside the apartment on suspicion of kidnapping, burglary and aggravated assault.

After stepping outside his friend's Tempe, Arizona, apartment where they had been drinking 'a lot,' Cohen said he 'went to the wrong door, and that's why I got charged with burglary  I went to the wrong apartment.'

Cohen (pictured) appeared in court a day after being arrested outside the apartment on suspicion of kidnapping, burglary and aggravated assault. He told a judge that he had mistaken the child for a 'midget' and that he didn't abuse her

He said he 'would never do anything close to' abusing the girl.

'I didn't realize, it was dark. I didn't realize what was happening,' Cohen said.

He said he had mistaken the child for a 'midget' and that he didn't abuse her.

'I didn't do anything. That's why I want to say something,' Cohen told Court Commissioner Jane McLaughlin, who cautioned him that anything he said could be used against him.

He told McLaughlin that his 'dad was a sex offender' and that he would 'never do anything like that' to a child.

After listening to Cohen, McLaughlin said she still believed he was a 'grave risk' to the community and ordered him jailed in lieu of $250,000 bond.

Police were called to the Tempe, Arizona apartment complex (pictured) after receiving a 911 call placed by the girl's mother

The father told authorities that Cohen's pants 'were slightly pulled down and his buttock was exposed' and that the girl said 'the 'bad man' gave her 'an ouchie' and pointed to her buttocks,' according to a police statement.

Police are unsure how Cohen managed to get into the house as there were no signs of forced entry.
Nearly half of all crimes recorded are never solved by police as they cannot identify a culprit, allowing up to 1.9million offenders to escape scot-free.

For some offences such as criminal damage, arson and theft, as many as seven out of ten investigations were shut without a suspect being established.

In many other cases there were issues with evidence or the case was settled out of court, meaning they did not go to court either.

Nearly half of all crimes recorded are never solved by police as they cannot identify a culprit, allowing up to 1.9million offenders to escape scot-free

Overall, only around one in seven of all crimes probed by the police end in a charge or a summons.

Critics said the statistics were a national outrage and would send the message to offenders that crime does pay.

It will further harm public faith in the police at a time when officers are under fire for failing to attend the scene of many crimes.

Earlier this month it was reported that more than half the residents in some areas have not seen a policeman patrolling their streets in the past year.

For the first time the Home Office has published the outcomes of criminal investigations carried out by all 43 of England and Waless forces and the British Transport Police.

In 2015-16 some 3.9million crimes were assigned an outcome. Of these, 49.6 per cent were written off as no suspect identified.

In 58 per cent of robberies, in one in seven violent offences  about 14 per cent  and in 16 per cent of sexual attacks a perpetrator was never identified.

The statistics revealed that 917,138 of all cases investigated by the police  or 25.5 per cent  do not go to trial because of difficulties with evidence.

Another 95,407 (2.5 per cent) are not in the public interest and 302,884 (7.7 per cent) are dealt with out of court.

It means only 14.4 per cent, or one in seven offences, end in a charge or a summons, equivalent to nearly 562,000 prosecutions. Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said: The police do an amazing job of keeping us safe.

Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said: 'If the Government is not prepared to properly resource the police then it is likely more crimes will go unsolved'

'But if the Government is not prepared to properly resource them then it is likely more crimes will go unsolved.

This is a worrying trend that could lead to criminals being emboldened if their actions have no consequences.

David Spencer, of the Centre For Crime Prevention think-tank, said: These figures are a national outrage and an indictment of the unsustainable current situation in law enforcement in this country.

Police are being forced to work with ever-dwindling numbers and resources and these statistics prove that the situation is endangering the general public.

The situation is essentially an invitation to criminals to offend at will because the chances are you wont face any consequences for your actions.

It is high time the Government got to grips with this crime crisis and gave the police the resources they need to do their job effectively, and ensure that crime doesnt pay in the UK.

Ministers are demanding improvements in police performance. Although the Home Office has said chief constables must be ready to do more with fewer resources, rank-and-file-police blame cuts for the failure to catch criminals.

Critics say the damning statistics highlight the death of traditional Dixon of Dock Green-style bobbies pounding the streets. Since 2010, there has been a fall in the number of police and community support officers from 161,000 to 140,000.

The Home Office stressed that the figures could change if investigations are reopened to assess new evidence.

The departments bulletin, Crime Outcomes In England and Wales, said: Given the different natures of the various crime types shown, it is unsurprising that some outcome types are more common for some crime types than others.

This reflects the severity of each offence, the local guidance on outcomes given to police forces and the varying difficulty in identifying a suspect for certain types of offence.

Phil Kay, assistant chief of Leicestershire Police, said victims should take responsibility

For example, it may be far more difficult to identify a suspect for a criminal damage offence that was not witnessed or caught on CCTV than for a drug possession offence where the offender is usually identified when the crime comes to the attention of the police, or for an offence where there was substantial forensic evidence.

A senior officer was recently accused of giving a green light to criminals after one force said that burglary victims who left doors or windows open should not expect police to investigate.

Phil Kay, assistant chief of Leicestershire Police, said victims should take responsibility.
A family's Christmas has been ruined after heartless thieves broke into their home and stole their car which was filled with expensive presents.

Horrified mother Robin awoke on Christmas morning to find the gifts she had hidden in her garage were gone - as was her Nissan Murano.

One of the gifts stolen from the house in Rockingham, Western Australia, was a pricey drum kit that had been bought to reward her 16-year-old son, Rhys, for his hard work at school this year.

A family's Christmas has been ruined after heartless thieves broke into their home and stole their car which was filled with expensive presents. CCTV shows the burglars in the driveway

Heartbroken Robin told The West Australian that the family did not hear anything as the crooks crept into their garage overnight and made off with the vehicle and the gifts inside.

She woke up early to set up a Christmas surprise for her children, only to find their possessions were gone.

'We didn't hear anything. We didn't know until we opened the door and saw the car was gone. It's awful, awful any day but especially today,' she said.

'[Rhys] has worked hard all year on assessments to deserve that. Christmas has been ruined for him.'

The family had only been in bed for a few hours after going to mass and playing a game when the robbers struck.

They broke into another car in the family's driveway before using a remote control to enter their garage and steal the vehicle.

Horrified mother Robin awoke on Christmas morning to find the gifts she had hidden in her garage were gone - as was her Nissan Murano (pictured)

Robyn (pictured with her children) woke up early to set up a Christmas surprise for her children, only to find their possessions were gone

Another of the family's children, Drew, said he heard 'a commotion' in the dead of night but guessed it was his mother preparing things for the big day.

He said it was a 'big shock' when he realised it may have been the criminals just a few metres away.

Robin said she and her loved ones felt 'violated' by the burglars.

'We work really hard for what we have and they think they can just take it,' she said. 'They need to get a job and earn money and buy their own things, they're not entitled to take what's ours.'
A vigilante has outed an alleged paedophile after posing as a 14-year-old boy.

The 'Coffs Coast Pedo Hunter' captured messages allegedly sent by a council worker in the Hobart area which appear to ask the child to send explicit images of himself.

In the messages, the man repeatedly asks for the man posing as a teenager to take 'hot sexy nudes' and forward them on to him.

A vigilante has outed an alleged paedophile (pictured) after posing as a 14-year-old boy

The 'Coffs Coast Pedo Hunter' captured messages allegedly sent by a council worker in Hobart, Tasmania, which appear to ask the child to send explicit images of himself

In the sickening conversation, the man is seen calling the boy 'gorgeous' and asking him for explicit images.

The teenager quickly tells the man that he is 14 years old, but that does not stop him from requesting more pictures of the child.

He instructs him to go to the bathroom to take photos of himself, despite the supposed child telling him again that he is 'underage'.

'I've talked to guys younger before,' the alleged paedophile chillingly replies.

In the messages, the man repeatedly asks for the man posing as a teenager to take 'hot sexy nudes' and forward them on to him

The vigilante claims the man is a council worker (pictured) from Hobart, however this has not been confirmed

The conversation appears to have taken place on the gay dating app Grindr.

The vigilante claims the man is a council worker from Hobart, however this has not been confirmed.
Britain and Germany will be the only European economies in the worlds top eight by 2030, experts say today.

While the UK slipped below France in the past year, it will draw level again by 2021 and overtake it soon afterwards, according to the Centre for Economics and Business Research.

Britain is currently in sixth place in the list of the largest economies in the world and while it will slip to eighth by 2030, France and Italy will fall out of the elite group completely, the CEBR said.

The report will pile pressure on Theresa May to secure strong trade deals with more distant nations after the UK leaves the EU

It predicted that China will overtake the US to take the top spot, while Brazil and South Korea will also rise in the international league table.

The report will pile pressure on Theresa May to secure strong trade deals with more distant nations after the UK leaves the EU.

The latest trade figures show British exports soared to a record high of 26.8billion in October  up 8.7 per cent on the previous month and 17.9 per cent on a year earlier. Most of this increase came from outside the EU.

BRITISH BOSSES CONFIDENT ON GROWTH BUSINESS leaders go into the new year bullish about their firms prospects after Brexit, a major survey has found. More than 60 per cent of members of the Institute of Directors said they were optimistic or very optimistic about how their company will perform in 2017  a month after the referendum, the figure was just 46 per cent. Many of the Institutes 34,000 members, predominantly small businesses, said they now expected higher revenue and more profitability, despite warnings from Remain campaigners that UK firms would suffer if we voted to leave. Simon Walker, director general of the IoD, said: Businesses are becoming used to uncertainty, and while some speculate on what our relationship with Europe might look like in the years to come, employers are getting on with the job of growing their businesses and delivering UK jobs. Advertisement

While exports to the EU were up 1.5 per cent to 12.4billion in October, sales to the rest of the world jumped 15.7 per cent to a record 14.4billion.

Gerard Lyons, chief economist at Netwealth Investments and a key backer of the Leave campaign, said: Theres no doubt that the weakest region for growth will be Western Europe, largely because of the eurozone.

'While the UK needs to retain good relationships with the EU, it needs to start playing to its global and national strength and forging trading ties further afield.

Gerard Lyons, chief economist at Netwealth Investments, said the weakest region for growth will be Western Europe

This year, the US was the worlds largest economy, followed by China, Japan, Germany and France.

The UK, India and Italy made up the rest of the top eight.

This year, the US was the worlds largest economy, followed by China, Japan, Germany and France

But by 2030, CEBR analysts predict China will be top, with America second, then India and Japan, and Germany in fifth place. Brazil and South Korea will come next, with Britain in eighth position.

France, meanwhile, will have fallen from fifth to ninth, and Italy from eighth to 11th.

By 2030, just 15 of the worlds 50 largest economies will be European, according to the report. Longstanding British allies Australia and Canada will respectively be in the 12th and 13th place.

Chris Blythe, of the Chartered Institute of Building, which backed the study, said: New trading agreements with the Asian powerhouse economies of China and India and with the US, along with nations such as Australia, could help unlock growth opportunity for Britains infrastructure and construction sector.
Police foiled an Islamic State plot to set off a homemade mobile phone bomb in Britain in the run-up to Christmas, it emerged yesterday.

Asylum seeker Munir Hassan Mohammed, 35, was charged with terror offences along with Rowaida El Hassan, 32.

The accused man and woman were arrested with four others during raids in Derby, Burton upon Trent and London earlier this month. Just a week later, 12 shoppers were killed at a Berlin Christmas market in a lorry attack claimed by IS.

Asylum seeker Munir Hassan Mohammed, 35,(right) was charged with terror offences along with Rowaida El Hassan, 32 (left)

The other four suspects were later released, but Mohammed, of Derby, and El Hassan, from Kilburn, north London, were charged with eight terror offences between them and appeared in court on Christmas Eve.

Westminster magistrates heard that Mohammed, an Eritrean seeking asylum in Britain, was a member of IS who was allegedly preparing to blow up an unknown target in the lead up to Christmas.

He had a manual on how to make bombs from mobile phones which he sent to other potential terrorist recruits, it was claimed. El Hassan is accused of helping him prepare for an attack, as well as owning similar terrorist materials.

The pair, who are thought to have met online, appeared in the dock flanked by five police officers. Neither indicated a plea.

Mohammed is facing six charges, including one of plotting to commit an act of terror sometime between the anniversary of the 7/7 bombing on July 7 and December 13 this year.

He is also charged with one count of belonging to a banned organisation, namely IS, and two counts of possessing a record likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.

The pair appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court, charged with terrorism offences

El Hassan, who wore a green hijab in court, was charged with two counts, including one of engaging in the preparation of an act of terrorism and one of possessing terrorist material.

She also allegedly sent terrorist material to others online. Police said they could not be sure exactly where or what had been the target of the suspected attackers, but it is alleged that there was a plan to set off an explosive in the run-up to Christmas.

Officers added that there was nothing to suggest the alleged plot was linked to the murders in Germany last week.

A spokesman for North East Counter Terrorism Unit said: We believe there was a plan to do something before Christmas ... but in terms of identifying targets we dont think they got as far as identifying specific areas.
A 25-year-old, who was charged with shooting dead his mother and brother last month, thought police were following him and his phone was bugged in the days leading up to the deaths.

Seth Gordon Peterson is accused of shooting and killing his 45-year-old mother, Susan Peterson, and his brother, James Peterson, 23, on November 2.

He was charged with two counts of aggravated murder, attempted aggravated murder, aggravated robbery and failing to stop at the command of an officer, Deseret News reported.

'Seth stated during an interview that he believed he was being followed by the police or other persons and that his cellphone was bugged,' according to a search warrant affidavit obtained by the Deseret News.

Seth Peterson (pictured), 25, who was charged with shooting dead his mother and brother last month, thought that police were following him and his phone was bugged in the days leading up to the deaths

Susan Peterson (left), 45, a married mother-of-15, and her 23-year-old son, James Peterson (right), were killed on November 2

The bodies of the two victims were found in a field near this ranch outside of Hiawatha, an old mining town in Carbon County

The affidavit said Peterson 'threw his previous cellphone out of the car near Exit 13 on Interstate 215 the day prior to the homicides'.

'Peterson purchased a new phone on the day of the shootings and used it 'to call 911 from the Feichko farm several hours before the homicides,' the affidavit states.

Investigators say Peterson shot dead his mother, who had 15 children, and younger brother around 6pm near the Fiechko Ranch in Carbon County, in Utah, the Price Sun Advocate reported.

He was taken into custody a short time later after a brief high-speed chase and foot pursuit.

According to Sheriff Wood, the suspect was unarmed at the time of his arrest, but deputies seized several high-powered hunting rifles at the crime scene in a field, about seven miles west of Price, Utah, near the old mining town of Hiawatha, reported Deseret News.

The sheriff said officials did not have a motive for the double homicide but were looking into a couple of 'different theories'.

Susan was the wife of Shane Peterson (pictured together), with whom she had 15 children ranging in age from three to 28

Nine of Susan's children still live at home. This photo shows Susan with three of her kids

The Peterson family belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

Deputies had responded to the ranch about three hours before the killings after getting a report about a 'suspicious incident', but the sheriff said there was no threat at that time.

After allegedly shooting dead his mother and brother later that day, Seth Peterson got into a car and drove off.

Deputies gave chase, pursuing the suspect for about five miles before he pulled over and fled on foot.

Wood said deputies were able to quickly track him down and peacefully detain him.

The bodies of Susan and James were found lying in a field next to a four-wheel ATV, reported The Salt Lake Tribune.

The sheriff said the mother and son had driven to that location to pick up Seth Peterson, but he did not know why.

Susan and her husband, Shane, had 15 children together, ranging in age from three to 28.

The bodies of Susan and James (left and right) were found lying in a field next to a four-wheel ATV. The sheriff said the mother and son had driven to that location to pick up Seth Peterson, but he did not know why

A neighbor said Susan (pictured) had left an unnamed polygamous group years earlier and later remarried, starting a new life with her husband. A preliminary hearing for Seth Peterson is set for January 3

Nine of their children still live at home, according to a GoFundMe campaign that was launched by one of the daughters.

The family are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, commonly known as Mormon Church.

Marilyn Larsen, Susan Peterson's friend and neighbor from Ferron, Utah, told the station KUTV the woman had left an unnamed polygamous group years earlier and later remarried, starting a new life with Shane Peterson.

The Petersons' LDS bishop released a statement on behalf of the family saying that Susan was very active in the local community and her church, and was always taking care of others and putting the needs of her children above her own.

'Her family was her whole life and she supported them in all they did,' the statement read. 'She never wanted for herself.'

The bishop described James as 'kind-hearted' and as someone who would give you the shirt off his back.
Dashcam footage has shown the moment a driver almost collides with other motorists on the busy road approaching the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

The Dash Cam vision from driver Martin McNaught, and shared to Dash Cam Owners Australia, shows the red P-plate driver swerving out of their lane at a high speed on Military Road, in Neutral Bay, north of Sydney.

The video from Mr McNaught's camera shows the driver of the large utility truck on his right side at the traffic lights.

Dash Cam vision shows a P-plate driver swerving in front of another car on Military Road, north of Sydney

The can be seen P-plater speeding up and aggressively overtaking the driver recording him

When the lights go green, his camera shows him slightly swerving into the left bus lane to avoid hitting the P-plater.

Further on in the clip, the two vehicles can be seen approaching the Harbour Bridge does a speed of 80 km/h.

As the cars get closer to the toll gates, the P-plater aggressively overtakes Mr McNaught.

He then squeezes into the small gap between the two cars, forcing Mr McNaught to move into the right lane - narrowly avoiding a collision.

As the cars get closer to the toll gates the P-plater squeezes into the small gap between the two cars

Mr McNaught, the driver of the car recording the dash cam vision, is forced to move into the right lane - narrowly avoiding a collision

Facebook users have commented on the heart-stopping video.

One man wrote: 'If a P-plater gets that mad than how the hell did he get his license. and it should be taken off him.'
A former Navy soldier who was shot in the face by an Iraqi sniper has been able to smile again for the first time a decade later.

Dustin Kirby, 32, has been living in pain since he survived being hit in the face with a bullet from an enemy soldier while serving with the Navy in Karmah, Iraq, on Christmas Day 2006.

The then-22-year-old's jaw was almost entirely shattered by the shot, and he said he was forced to pick up pieces of his face from the ground.

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Dustin Kirby, a former Navy soldier who was shot in the face by an Iraqi sniper (left, the damage caused by the shot in 2006) has been able to smile again for the first time a decade later (right, in October 2016)

'I was gathering pieces of meat and a bunch of debris in a little pile on the floor. I had no idea how bad it really was until I reached down and picked up an entire tooth with jaw still attached,' he told the New York Post.

After initially trying to treat himself, he was flown to a nearby hospital. He would eventually be taken to Germany, where he underwent procedures that would see him have metal screws inserted in her jaw.

Despite the more than 30 surgeries, the father-of-four was forced to live in pain for the next nine years.

'Sometimes it hurt just to breathe. I had basically given up hope that I would ever stop feeling pain,' Kirby told the Post.

Dustin Kirby, 32, is seen left with one of his daughters on a plane, and right, looking at his new teeth after the surgery

This picture shows the damage to Kirby's jaw and face from the injury he suffered on Christmas Day in 2006 in Iraq

But then in October 2015, he was given the chance to get his smile back.

Kirby traveled from his home in Acworth, Georgia, to New York City to meet with Dr. David Hirsch.

Hirsch, the reconstructive director at Lenox Hill Hospital, was able to get a look at his would-be patient.

Kirby is pictured with President Obama after he was injured while serving in Iraq with the Navy

The veteran surgeon said what he saw at that first meeting was not good.

'His jaw wasn't aligned, he had infected hardware and metal holding things together, he lost a lot of salivary gland function and his teeth were decaying,' Hirsch told the newspaper.

But in the months since, Hirsch and his team have been able to fix Kirby's jaw.

Dr. David Hirsch (pictured), reconstructive director at Lenox Hill Hospital, was able to perform the surgeries on Kirby

In October, the former soldier went in for his second surgery that saw him given a mouth-full of new teeth.

'I'll never forget waking up after surgery, opening my mouth and feeling just amazing. The pain that had become a part of me was gone,' he told the Post.

Then to celebrate Christmas, Hirsch reunited with his patient in New York City, thanks to a generous gift from Northwell Health - the group that operates Lenox Hospital.

'We wanted to show our respect and gratitude for Dusty's service to our country by making his first pain free Christmas in 10 years something to smile about,' Northwell spokeswoman Barbara Osborn said.

The hospital also published a video showing Kirby and his family meeting Dr Hirsch in his office, before they were presented with tickets to see the Rockettes as an additional present.

'This will be the best Christmas I'll have since that day,' Kirby said.
A tragic car crash has left a 44-year-old pregnant woman in critical condition, but her unborn child died on Christmas Eve.

Rose Dale, 44, was driving her Toyota on Booral road, in Hervey Bay north of Brisbane, on Christmas Eve when a Mitsubishi struck the side of a van that caused the Sedan to lose control and collide with the woman's car, according to Chinchilla News.

The 44-year-old driver of the Toyota suffered serious injuries and was rushed to Hervey Bay Hospital, but tragically she lost her unborn child.

Rose Dale (right) is in serious condition in Hervey Bay Hospital and is pictured with her partner Alan Sorensen (left) and a GoFundMe page has been set up for the family

Ms Dale was believed to be seven months pregnant, according to Chinchilla News.

Of the four passengers in the Toyota, a 58-year-old woman, was taken to the same hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

The driver of the Mitsubishi that collided with the Toyota was also taken to Hervey Bay Hospital with injuries that were not life threatening.

No one in the van was injured.

As a result of the devastating incident a GoFundMe page was set up by a family friend to help raise funds for the funeral and other expenses for her partner Alan Sorensen and the family during the difficult period.
President Obama was given a dressing-down by the rabbi performing the National Hanukkah Menorah lighting ceremony in Washington, DC on Sunday for the decision to allow a UN vote condemning the West Bank settlers.

Rabbi Levi Shemtov gave a speech after Obama's proxy, acting treasury undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence Adam Szubin, spoke of dealing with the 'darkness' of terrorism by 'drowning [it out] with light'.

The Orthodox Jewish rabbi took that speech and turned it around, transforming Obama's actions into the 'darkness' that he said settlement-supporting Jews must fight, The Washington Examiner reported.

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'Darkness': Rabbi Levi Shemtov (pictured) said on Sunday that Jews were in 'darkness' after the US refused to block a UN motion that declared Israeli West Bank settlements to be illegal

'Grief': Shemtov said that after the vote Jews were 'in grief and darkness' - drawing a parallel with a speech by an Obama representative who likened the terrorist threat to darkness

Shemtov was motivated by the UN vote held on December 23 that condemned as illegal the settlements created by Israeli citizens in the West Bank.

The UN voted 14-0 in favor of the resolution. The US allowed the measure to pass by abstaining from voting - a major shift in the US's long-standing policy of backing Israel.

'Secretary Szubin spoke before of fighting darkness with light,' said Shemtov, who is also the executive vice president of Orthodox Jewish group American Friends of Lubavitch.

'I remember those words being spoken to a particular man by the rabbi many many years ago on Simchat Torah,' he continued, referring to the time of the year in which one reading of the Torah ends and another begins.

'The rabbi told him: "You are working in a place where there is great grief and darkness, but remember that in that place of darkness, you can only counter it by lighting a candle. By creating light."

'That man was Benjamin Netanyahu, and he was at the time the ambassador to the United Nations.'

He continued: 'So as I know that some of us are so sad at what happened there with regard to Israel, we must remember that the way to counter any darkness, any disappointment is not with harsh rhetoric, not with anger, but when we create light, the darkness dissipates.'

Abstained: The US abstained from voting on December 23, foregoing its right to a veto allowing the motion to pass - a controversial change in American policy

The Obama administration has faced harsh criticism from several quarters for the UN resolution, including President-elect Donald Trump.

Trump had demanded the US exercise its veto rights on the vote, and later said that things would be 'different' at the UN under his watch.

On Friday Ben Rhodes, the White House's deputy national security adviser, dismissed Trump's objections.

'Our position is that there is one president at a time,' he said. 'President Obama is the president until January 20, and we are taking this action of course as US policy.'

'We could not in good conscience veto a resolution that expressed concerns about the very trends that are eroding the foundation for a two-state solution.'

The reverberations from Friday's vote were still being felt in Israel on Friday, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called a meeting with the ambassadors of the ten countries that voted in favor of the resolution, as well as the US ambassador.

A furious Netanyahu even accused Obama of organizing the vote itself, according to NPR.

'From the information that we have, we have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated on the wording and demanded that it be passed,' he said in Hebrew.

Furious: On Sunday Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu claimed the Obama administration had orchestrated the vote, and demanded a meeting with the relevant ambassadors

His rant then continued in English.

'Over decades, American administrations and Israeli governments had disagreed about settlements, but we agreed that the Security Council was not the place to resolve this issue.

'We knew that going there would make negotiations harder and drive peace further away.

"And, as I told John Kerry on Thursday, friends don't take friends to the Security Council. I'm encouraged by the statements of our friends in the United States, Republicans and Democrats alike.

'They understand how reckless and destructive this UN resolution was, they understand that the Western Wall isn't occupied territory.'

The Obama administration said Friday that the US's support for Israel is undiminished but blamed Netanyahu for accelerating the settlement process.
drop correlates with the rise in popularity of political groups

A Muslim organisation has handed out pamphlets to challenge the hateful stereotypes amid the growing popularity of political groups One Nation and Reclaim Australia.

Members of Ahmadiyya Muslim community in Tasmania have done something out of the ordinary by delivering pamphlets to hundreds of Hobart homes in a bid to educate Australians about their faith.

The leaflets titled 'Muslims for Loyalty' and 'Muslims for Peace' include inspiring quotes from Muslim leaders such as 'Love of one's country of residence is part of faith' and 'Love for all hatred for none'.

A group of Muslim people have been delivering pamphlets to hundreds of homes across Hobart in a bid to educate Australians about their faith

The leaflets include inspiring quotes from Muslim leaders such as 'Love for all hatred for none'

Ahmadiyya Muslim community Tasmanian state president Doctor Aamir Mahmoud said that correlating with the rise of the popularity of the political parties has been a rise in hatred and ignorance directed towards their faith.

'With the rise of One Nation and Reclaim Australia a lot of people think that Muslims have a personal agenda,' he told the ABC.

'When I came in 2010, most of the people were afraid to talk to me, to come to me.'

Dr Mahmoud said that the message was being received positively but they still had a long way to go.

'(I hope) to change the mind of people. To get very clear concept to them that if some people or a group of people or a person is doing something wrong, it should not be related to every person,' he said.

The group have previously done pamphlet drops in other states throughout Australia.

The flyers include inspiring quotes such as 'Love of one's country of residence is part of faith'
Chicago's homicides have increased by more than 50 per cent since last year, as at least 27 people were shot over the Christmas weekend.

Seven of those individuals were fatally shot within the last 48 hours, the Chicago Police Department (CPD) reported.

Officer Jose Estrada, a spokesman with the CPD told the New York Times on Sunday that the total number of homicides this year was 745, a 56 per cent increase from 476 around the same time last year.

Chicago's homicides have increased by more than 50 per cent since last year, as at least 27 people were shot over the Christmas weekend. Derrick Jones (left), 21, and his friend 20-year-old Stephen Tucker (right) were gunned down outside a home in Chicago on Friday

Seven people, including Jones and Tucker, were fatally shot within the last 48 hours, the Chicago Police Department (CPD) reported. A spokesman with the CPD said the total number of homicides so far this year was 745, a 56 per cent increase from 476 last year

The weekend's most recent shooting resulted in the death of an 18-year-old male who was shot multiple times in the neck and back while he was driving at 1.30am on Sunday on the city's Southwest Side, NBC 5 Chicago reported.

He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

No suspects are in custody for his murder.

Last year's Christmas weekend saw 30 people shot and six of those died.

This year was the first time in nearly 20 years that more than 700 homicides had been recorded in the city, The Chicago Tribune reported this month.

Officer Estrada said the total number of shooting victims so far stood at 4,252, up 47 per cent from 2,884 at the same time in 2015.

The majority of the individuals shot were men under the age of 30.

Forty-two homicides have been recorded for December compared to 33 around the same time last year, the Tribune reported.

Another man was found shot dead around 12.49am in the backyard of a home of East 76th Street, according to police.

He had been shot in the head and was pronounced dead at the scene.

The weekend's most recent shooting resulted in the death of an 18-year-old male who was shot multiple times in the neck and back while he was driving at 1.30am on Sunday. He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Police work a crime scene

Majority of the individuals shot were men under the age of 30. Forty-two homicides have been recorded for December compared to 33 around the same time last year

On Saturday, a 20-year-old man was found unresponsive with a gunshot wound in the South Side West Englewood neighborhood shortly after 9pm, police told NBC 5.

He was taken to Christ Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

Officers found a 27-year-old male on the ground with gunshot wounds around midnight on Saturday when the responded to reports of gunfire in the Brighton Park neighborhood on the Southwest Side.

The unidentified man suffered gunshot wounds to the head and abdomen and was pronounced dead at the scene at 12.25am.

Two men were gunned down in front of a home in the West Side Austin neighborhood around 10.50pm on Friday.

Derrick Jones, 21, was pronounced dead at the scene, while 20-year-old Stephen Tucker suffered gunshot wounds to the head and back and died at Mount Sinai Hospital, authorities told NBC 5.

Some victims were not identified as of Sunday night.
Terry Whitney (pictured), 63, set his estranged wife's house on fire in the middle of the night before fatally stabbing himself

A central Maine man set his estranged wife's house on fire in the middle of the night before fatally stabbing himself in front of responding officers, police said on Sunday.

Shortly after midnight Saturday, Terry Whitney, 63, went to his estranged wife's home, shut off the power, and set fire to his truck and the house, police told WGME.

Fairfield Police Capt Paul St Amand said Whitney was outside the home when he spread gasoline and oil mixture on the siding before setting it ablaze with the torch, the Portland Press Herald reported.

His wife called police and escaped uninjured.

When an officer arrived, police say Whitney had a propane torch in his hand and ran to the back of the house.

The officer used a Taser on him but it was ineffective because of Whitney's bulky clothing, Press Herald reported.

When an officer arrived, police say Whitney had a propane torch in his hand and ran to the back of the house. The officer used a Taser on him but it was ineffective because of Whitney's bulky clothing. Pictured is the burned out home

A second officer arrived and also used a Taser. Police said Whitney then pulled out a knife and cut himself, but they would not provide further details about his injuries. He died at a local hospital

A second officer arrived and also used a Taser.

Police said Whitney then pulled out a knife and cut himself, but they would not provide further details about his injuries. He died at a local hospital.

Authorities told the Press Herald that there were no immediate signs that drugs or alcohol were involved at the time, and Whitney did not say anything to officers during the confrontation.

The home had exterior damage and was deemed uninhabitable due to broken windows and concerns about damaged electrical wiring, according to the Press Herald.

Whitney had been charged with criminal mischief and domestic violence assault October 31 and was under a court order to keep away from his wife, police said.

Police said the case remains under investigation.
Two men in South Florida were caught on surveillance camera brazenly ripping cellphones from the display at a Sprint store to steal them before fleeing.

Davie police Sgt. Mark Leone said the two males entered the store located along Carriage Drive and Sterling Road posing as customers on December 8 before they snatched the phones from a security cord on the display.

Store employees attempted to chase the men outside of the store, as the stolen phones are valued at $1,600 total.

Two men in South Florida were caught on surveillance camera (pictured above) brazenly ripping cellphones from the display at a Sprint store to steal them before fleeing

Davie police Sgt. Mark Leone said the two males entered the store located along Carriage Drive and Sterling Road posing as customers on December 8 before they snatched the phones from a security cord on the display (above)

'Two gentlemen walked in, and then they split separate ways,' employee, Carlos Russell told WSVN.

'One went over to the iPhone 7s, the other went over to the HTC Bolts. The gentleman over there heard him pull the phone, he reacted the same time and started pulling the HTC.

'He managed to get it out, but after I chased him down, I took a swing, he dropped it, and then we were able to recover that one. Unfortunately, the two iPhone 7s, gone.'

Store employees attempted to chase the men outside of the store, as the stolen phones are valued at $1,600 total. Police released the surveillance video in hopes that someone will recognize the men and call 911

Authorities say customers were inside the store at the time of the incident, but luckily no one was injured.

The Sprint store's owner told the TV station that he has had his three other stores in Hollywood, Royal Palm Beach and Margate hit by robberies in the past four weeks.
Donald Trump will be able to fill more than 100 vacancies in the federal courts when he takes office next month.

Trump will walk into the White House as there are a total of 103 empty seats on courts, in addition to the lingering Supreme Court vacancy after the death of Antonin Scalia.

The triple-digit figure is staggeringly almost double the number President Barack Obama had to fill - 54- when he replaced George W. Bush in the Oval Office.

Conservative leaders are already hoping Trump will pick people to further push their ideals on a number of key issues - such as gun control, women's health and rights, immigration, and voter restriction, the Washington Post reports.

Donald Trump will be able to fill more than 100 vacancies in the federal courts when he takes office next month

'I'm optimistic he'll come at this right out of the gate,' Judicial Crisis Network chief counsel Carrie Severino said.

'Every president can expect to make a huge impact. [Trump] is unique in having campaigned really hard on this issue  the significance of the courts, and of the Supreme Court in particular.'

Severino's group has been staunchly against many of President Obama's court appointments.

The Republicans refusal to confirm Obama's choice to fill the crucial vacancy on the Supreme Court, Merrick Garland, has been seen by Democrats as a deliberate ploy organized in the hope the GOP took back the White House.

Democrats point the finger at Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Judiciary Committee chairman Sen. Charles E. Grassley for the stalling.

Democrat Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, who has been a representative for 42 years, blasted the tactic earlier this month as, 'the most outrageous act of obstruction and irresponsibility' he has seen throughout his lengthy career.

Many Democrats are furious one of the positions Trump will fill in on the Supreme Court, after Republicans broke with tradition by refusing to confirm Obama's pick, Merrick Garland (pictured)

Democrats point the finger at Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (left) and Judiciary Committee chairman Sen. Charles E. Grassley (right) for the widespread stalling on judge confirmations in the Senate

'I'm optimistic he'll come at this right out of the gate,' Judicial Crisis Network chief counsel Carrie Severino (pictured) said. Severino's group has been staunchly against many of President Obama's court appointments

White House spokesman Eric Schultz also spoke of the Democrats frustrations that 25 of Obama's court nominees were left pending on the Senate floor - despite receiving bipartisan supporter before making their way there.

'Republican tactics have been shameful and will forever leave a stain on the United States Senate,' Schultz told the Post.

'Republican congressional dysfunction has now metastasized to the third branch of government, and that is not a legacy to be proud of.'

In total, the number of confirmed judges in the past two years - 22 - was the lowest since Harry Truman was president.

'Republican tactics have been shameful and will forever leave a stain on the United States Senate,' White House spokesman Eric Schultz said of the GOP stalling tactics

Democrats largely blame an unwilling Republican Senate for the logjam.

Over the entire eight years he has been President, 329 nominees have been confirmed.

Obama attempted to diversify the courts with many of his nominees, tapping 11 LGBT judges over his time. There was only one when he took office.

He also nominated a record number of minority and woman judges.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused the Obama administration of orchestrating a unanimous UN Security Council resolution that declared Israeli settlements in the West Bank criminal.

The furious leader summoned the ambassadors of ten of the countries that voted in favor of the resolution to his weekly cabinet meeting Sunday.

'From the information that we have, we have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated on the wording and demanded that it be passed,' he told them in Hebrew, according to NPR.

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Furious: Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu ranted Sunday that the US had orchestrated a UN resolution that denounced the illegal occupation of the West Bank by Israeli settlers

Unanimous: The Security Council vote passed Friday with a 14-0 vote. The US declined to veto it, breaking a long-held protection of its Middle East ally

The Israeli leader's rant to the gathered ambassadors - which included representatives of permanent members Russia, China, the UK and France - continued in English.

'Over decades, American administrations and Israeli governments had disagreed about settlements, but we agreed that the Security Council was not the place to resolve this issue.

'We knew that going there would make negotiations harder and drive peace further away.

'And, as I told John Kerry on Thursday, friends don't take friends to the Security Council. I'm encouraged by the statements of our friends in the United States, Republicans and Democrats alike.

'They understand how reckless and destructive this UN resolution was, they understand that the Western Wall isn't occupied territory.'

Netanyahu also summoned the US ambassador for a meeting - a rare decision by an Israeli leader.

The resolution, which condemned the occupation by Israeli settlers of parts of the West Bank that were seized by Israel in the 1967 Mideast War, passed 14-0 on Friday.

Most of the world opposes the settlements, which come at the expense of Palestinians living in the occupied territories, but the US has traditionally used its veto to block UN condemnation.

However, on Friday the US abstained for the first time - marking a massive break from its long-standing policy, which is to hold back on official condemnation for fear of upsetting a possible two-state solution.

The result could restrict Israel's negotiations in future peace talks, and Israel also fears economic sanctions.

Speaking to Fox News, Netanyahu's spokesman, David Keyes, said: 'We have rather ironclad information from sources in both the Arab world and internationally that this was a deliberate push by the United States and in fact they helped create the resolution in the first place.'

The White House has admitted that Obama told US Ambassador Samantha Power to abstain in the vote.

Orders: US ambassador Samantha Power (center) was ordered to abstain from voting by Obama, but the White House says Egypt organized the resolution with Palestinians

But in a statement the White House denied that the US had a hand in creating the resolution.

'The Egyptians, in partnership with the Palestinians, are the ones who began circulating an earlier draft of the resolution,' said White House spokesman Eric Schultz.

'The Egyptians are the ones who moved it forward on Friday. And we took the position that we did when it was put to a vote.'

Israel has also recalled its ambassadors to New Zealand and Senegal for discussions and cancelled a visit to Israel by Senegal's foreign minister that was planned for January.

Trump has campaigned on behalf of Israel last week, reportedly after being contacted by Israel.

He later tweeted that the UN vote had made a peaceful solution to conflicts in the area more difficult, and that 'Things will be different after Jan 20.'

However, given the world's widespread opposition to the settlements, it will be almost impossible for anyone - including Trump - to reverse the decision.

On Friday, Kerry said that the vote was essential if the hope of a two-state solution was ever to be realized.

'The United States acted with one primary objective in mind: to preserve the possibility of the two state solution, which every US administration for decades has agreed is the only way to achieve a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians,' he said.

'Two states is the only way to ensure Israel's future as a Jewish and democratic state, living in peace and security with its neighbors, and freedom and dignity for the Palestinian people.'
First it was Adelaide and Melbourne roasting over Christmas - and now it is Sydney's turn to sizzle in a second brutal heatwave.

Temperatures in the west of the city are expected to reach a high of 36C on Tuesday and 38C on Wednesday before entering consecutive days of temperatures above 40C, according to the Daily Telegraph.

It comes after Melbourne sweated through its hottest Christmas in 18 years at 36.8C, while Adelaides 40C heat broke a 75-year record.

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Sydney is set to sizzle over the coming week with temperatures rising to 40C on Thursday and then staying above that mark until the New Year

Families flocked to the beach on Sunday in Adelaide as temperatures soared well above 40 degrees, making it the hottest Christmas Day in the city for 75 years

The mercury climbed to 41.3C just before 4pm in the South Australian capital, becoming the third hottest day on record for Adelaide

Santa is seen hitching a ride on Christmas Day for a break from the heat

FIVE-DAY WEATHER FORECAST IN CAPITAL CITIES Sydney Monday: Min 21, max 29, sunny Tuesday: Min 21, max 29, partly cloudy Wednesday: Min 21, max 30, partly cloudy Thursday: Min 23, max 38, sunny Friday: Min 24, max 36, sunny Melbourne Monday: Min 24, max 31, cloudy Tuesday: Min 18, max 32, showers Wednesday: Min 25, max 34, showers Thursday: Min 23, max 29, showers Friday: Min 19, max 25, shower or two Brisbane Monday: Min 21, max 28, showers Tuesday: Min 21 max 29, showers Wednesday: Min 22, max 30, shower or two Thursday: Min 18, max 31, showers Friday: Min 23, max 32, possible showers Adelaide Monday: Min 22, max 30, cloudy Tuesday: Min 21, max 31, heavy showers Wednesday: Min 22, max 32, shower and possible storm Thursday: Min 18, max 26, cloudy Friday: Min 17, max 24, cloudy Advertisement

Families flocked to the beach on Sunday as the temperature climbed to 41.3C just before 4pm in the South Australian capital.

It was the hottest Christmas Day for Adelaide since 1941 and the third hottest on record ever, according to the Advertiser.

Thousands of people were also seen frolicking in the waters of beaches in Sydney and Melbourne as the heatwave brought simmering temperatures across the country for the holiday.

Melbourne reached 36.3C for its hottest Christmas since 1998 and may other southeastern cities also saw the temperature climb into the high 30s.

'Merry Christmas from sunny Melbourne,' this woman wrote on Instagram

The heatwave will continue to encompass the country throughout the week, but temperatures are expected to see a slight drop

Melbourne reached 36.3C for its hottest Christmas since 1998

A koala in Adelaide drinks out of a man's water jug while hiding from the sweltering heat

Hobart reached its high of 26.5C early in the day, with the temperature starting to fall after lunch while Sydney saw a high of 27.4C at 2pm.

Meanwhile many Queenslanders had to celebrate indoors with downpours across much of the Sunshine State.

Areas around Noosa had 112mm of rain on Sunday, while Brisbane had about 37mm.

Flood alerts and wild wind warnings are in place for Western Australia's interior as a tropical low crosses the state.

That low is set to head into South Australia by Monday, changing conditions quite dramatically for sweltering Adelaide locals.

While most of Australia swelters through a sunny Christmas Day (bathers at Bondi Beach pictured), parts of Sydney's west and Brisbane are forecast for afternoon showers

Conditions across Sydney were dry throughout the day

Five capital city's are set to see temperatures above 30C while cyclones were predicted - and later downgraded - for Western Australia

Rain and potential thunderstorms are predicted for areas between Bundaberg and Townsville and much of Queensland's interior (pictured, Gold Coast man on Christmas Day)

There will be an 11C drop in Adelaide's maximum temperature to 29C, the bureau predicts.

A slight cool change will see Melbourne's temperature drop to 31C on Monday while the rest of Victoria faces a heatwave until at least December 29.

On the other hand, temperatures in Sydney are expected to reach 38C on Thursday and 36C on Friday.

The Australian Medical Association has urged people to look after themselves, stay indoors, drink lots of water, and watch out for signs of dehydration.

People can be seen walking through Adelaide in the sweltering heat
Rick Parfitt died aged 68 in Spain after complications following surgery

Former bandmate Francis Rossi has paid tribute to the late Rick Parfitt as questions are raised over the future of the rocker's 10million fortune.

Rossi has paid tribute to his late bandmate Rick Parfitt, saying: 'His life was never boring, he was louder and faster and more carefree than the rest of us.

'There were any number of incidents along the way, times when he strayed into areas of true danger and yet still losing him now is still a shock.

'Even in a year that has claimed so many of our best, including now George Michael, Rick Parfitt stands out.

'I was not ready for this.'

Rick Parfitt's family will be left in suspense as to the future of his massive 10million fortune after his death.

The Status Quo rocker was married three times and has four children but was said to have dumped his third wife Lyndsay over the phone in October.

However, she was by his bedside at his death and it is thought the twins, aged eight, she had with him, and his other children, will get most of his fortune.

A source told the Sun: 'Who his cash and assets will go to is all up for dispute.

'There are going to be some tense times between the various family members in the months to come.

'He had no idea exactly how much he was worth and just spent it at his own free will. But there are millions left over and obviously he has all of his properties, too.

'He actually left the organisation of his finances to his wife Lyndsay before deciding to split up. They never divorced before he died so there are going to be a lot of legal issues in terms of what she is entitled to.'

Parfitt's first wife was Marietta Boeker with whom he had his first son Richard and his daughter Heidi, who died when she was two-and-a-half.

Parfitt's first wife was Marietta Broker, with whom he had two children. His daughter Heidi died aged two-and-a-half and his marriage broke down soon after

His second wife was Patty Beedon and the pair had a son Harry. He now lives in Geneva while Patty is still based in the UK

Rick Jr is now a DJ in London with residencies at several of the capital's nightclubs.

Parfitt's second wife was Patty Beedon, with whom he had a son Harry, who now lives in Geneva, where he works as a biodiesel broker. Patty Parfitt is a partner in a jewellery firm.

His third wife was Lyndsay Whitburn who he married the same year he divorced Patty, and they had twins Tommy and Lilly.

He is said to have dumped her over the phone in October 2016, but she was by his side when he died on Christmas Eve.

Parfitt remarried in 2008 and had twins with wife Lyndsay. The pair settled in Marbella and founded an estate agency

Friend of the pair Hilary Devey told the Mirror: 'My heart goes out to Lyndsay. The only person left looking after Rick Parfitt at the end was his loving wife Lyndsay who had arranged his admission to hospital.'

He also put their five-bedroom home in Marbella on the market.

She runs Status Homes, which the husband and wife duo founded with the man who helped them buy their home in the Costa del Sol.

She is said to have managed a lot of their financial affairs, with him being confident there was enough money and rarely concerned. He also had a personal assistant.

The Status Quo guitarist died on Saturday in a Spanish hospital at the age of 68 as Queen legend Brian May led the tributes - saying that he 'rocked our world'.

Parfitt had been recuperating since June when he suffered a heart attack but died after suffering from a severe infection.

His son, Rick Jr, paid his own emotional tribute online, writing that, although he was a rock star to many, to him 'he was simply 'Dad', and I loved him hugely'.

It comes after the veteran musician was taken into hospital in Marbella on Thursday evening due to complications with a pre-existing shoulder injury.

The Status Quo website was changed to a full picture of the guitarist with his birth and death years as a tribute to him

He died there at lunchtime on Saturday, his manager and family said in a statement.

Similar outpourings of sadness came from across the musical community, where he was praised as 'a lovely man' and 'one of the nicest guys in rock 'n' roll'.

May, 69, said: 'Shocked and so sad to hear of the passing of Rick Parfitt. Hard to find words. You truly joyfully rocked our world. RIP dear buddy.'
A 60-year-old man has tragically died as he tried to rescue his brother's grandchildren from drowning in rough water at the beach.

Geoffrey Blackadder was found floating face down in the water after he rushed out to rescue the children when they were caught in a rip on Monday.

The great-uncle was swimming with his four grandchildren at Wooli Beach on the north coast of NSW on Monday, The Daily Telegraph reported.

But the family trip ended in tragedy when the children were swept into deeper water as Mr Blackadder rushed out to rescue them from the rough surf.

Geoffrey Blackadder (pictured) has tragically died as he tried to rescue his great nieces from drowning in rough water at the beach

Emergency services were called to Wooli Beach, north of Coffs Harbour on the north coast of NSW shortly after 1pm on Monday following reports a man was found unresponsive

Lifeguards used rescue boards to safely drag the children back to shore before they returned to rescue Mr Blackadder.

His great niece Jasmine Blackadder tried to help her sister, 16, and three young cousins out of the water after she noticed they were struggling against the waves.

'He was waving to me, beckoning for me to come and help him,' she recalled as she told the publication.

The 19-year-old woman was among the rescuers who saved the children as she helped drag the unconscious grandfather back to shore.

'I just dropped, I was so exhausted, I couldn't breathe. Then I looked back and I knew he was gone,' she said.

'He always so beautiful with all the kids, he'd go to the end of the earth for them. My family has been praising me but I think anyone would have done it.'

Emergency services tried desperately to revive the man but attempts to resuscitate him failed as he died at the scene.

The man, believed to be from Grafton, had taken his family to the beach for the day during the school holiday.

Distraught family members have set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for his funeral following the tragedy.

The great uncle was swimming the children at Wooli Beach on the north coast of NSW

Paramedic Rick Knox said the man was 'pulled from the water in cardiac arrest' as beachgoers attempted to revive him

Clarence Valley Lifeguard Supervisor Greg Whyllie said the group were swept into deeper water after being caught in a 'flash rip'.

Paramedic Rick Knox said the man was 'pulled from the water in cardiac arrest'.

'Life guards and bystanders worked on him for a while,' he told The Daily Examiner.

'The Westpac Helicopter arrived and winched down, the doctor from the chopper announced him deceased on the scene.'

Officers from Coffs/Clarence Local Area Command will prepare a report for the Coroner.
Girl, 15, stabbed woman, 46, and man, 44, at 1am on December 26, police say

A 15-year-old girl has been charged after police say she stabbed a woman and a man as they slept in bed on Christmas night.

The teenager launched her attack at around 1am on Monday at a property in Rockhampton, Queensland, investigators say.

A woman, 46, was left in critical condition while a 44-year-old man suffered wounds to the legs and chest and was taken to hospital in a stable condition.

A 15-year-old girl has been charged with GBH and unlawful wounding after police say she stabbed a woman and a man as they slept on Christmas night (file image)

A police source told Daily Mail Australia that the adults involved are the girl's parents.

The 15-year-old has since been arrested and charged with grievous bodily harm and unlawful wounding.

Investigators say they will not be discussing a motive for the attack, or identifying any of those involved.
Their distraught mother Fleur Manago pulled their lifeless bodies from the pool

The girl has tragically died as her twin brother continues to fight for his life

The twins - aged 23 months - were rushed to hospital in a

A baby girl has tragically died as her twin brother continues to fight for his life in hospital after they were pulled from a backyard swimming pool.

Charli Manago and her brother Robbie were found unconscious at their Kellyville Ridge home, in Sydney's north west, on the evening of December 20.

The 23-month-old twins were rushed to The Children's Hospital in a critical condition after their distraught mother Fleur Manago pulled their lifeless bodies from the pool.

But earlier on Monday, the young girl passed away as her brother, who remains in a critical condition, continues to undergo treatment.

Police will prepare a report for the Coroner.

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Charli (right) and Robbie (left) Manago were found unconscious at their Kellyville Ridge home, in Sydney's north west on the evening of December 20

The two children were submerged in the pool when their mother ripped them from the water

The tragic news comes as neighbours recalled the harrowing moment they heard the babies' mother frantically screaming for help when she found them in the water.

The pair stabilised overnight as their church, Our Lady of the Angels Primary School, in Kellyville - where the twin's siblings attend school - held a community rosary on Thursday night to pray for the babies swift recovery.

'Fleur messaged to say that it means so much to her to know that Robbie and Charli are in everyone's prayers,' the school's parent council said.

The local church were inundated by members offering to help the family out and have organised to prepare meals as they sit by Charli and Robbie's bedside.

The church group said they are still waiting to hear from the family to see how best they can provide support but have urged all their members to pray for the to children wake up so they can spend their second Christmas with their loved ones.

'Please continue to keep them all in your prayers. "When there are no words, God still hears",' the council wrote.

The children were transported to the Westmead Children's Hospital in a critical condition under police guard and were still fighting for their lives on Wednesday

Charli (left) and Robbie Manago (middle) stabilised overnight. But one has tragically died and the other twin is still fighting for their lives

A friend of the family posted an emotional plea begging for the congregation to keep the young children in their thoughts, adding that she truly believes in the power of 'Christmas miracles'.

'At this blessed time of the Christmas season can we please pray and put every positive intention out to the universe to our Lord to bless these toddlers and give them the strength they need to recover,' she wrote.

'I believe that the power of prayer can move mountains so please pray, meditate, light a candle, send positive affirmations or whatever your beliefs.'

The twins' parents, Robert and Fleur Manago, are believed to have looked away from the pool momentarily when the two children slipped under the water's surface, according to police.

The babies were not conscious as neighbours and paramedics performed CPR before they were rushed to hospital.

'I think those with children are very aware how quickly things can change,' Chief Inspector Garry Sims told the ABC last Wednesday.

'Whatever happens in seconds is a life-changing situation for the families, and you can't imagine the grief the family are going through.'

Robert and Fluer Manago are believed to have looked away from the pool momentarily when the two children slipped under the water's surface, according to police

Ms Manago was the first to notice, with their father rushing to her side after hearing her screams for help.

A concerned neighbour also raced over to check on the family and helped perform potentially life-saving CPR on the small children before paramedics arrived and took over.

'We just kept going and going until the paramedics arrived,' neighbour Michelle Skevington told Nine News last Wednesday.

'We may have saved those children's lives... I am not sure but I hope we have,' she added.

Michelle Skevington (pictured) said she had only just done a CPR refresher course when she rushed over to the Manago household after she heard screaming coming from the back yard

Police confirmed both children were underwater when they were found.

The children were pictured sitting atop Santa's lap ahead of Christmas Day last year with their four siblings.

Another neighbour said news of the incident had rocked the community.

'Everybody was in shock because they are such lovely neighbours. They are very caring parents... it's really sad,' Elsae Susanto told Sunrise.
Terrified skiers were stranded in cable cars 180ft above ground for seven hours on Christmas Eve after the lift's wires became tangled in strong Alpine winds.

All 153 holidaymakers, five of them British, were safely rescued by 11.15pm after the gondola got stuck at around 2pm in Cervinia, Italy.

Rescuers had to climb up the pylons, enter the 25 cable cars through the roof and then winch the skiers to safety.

Terrified skiers were stranded in cable cars 180ft above ground for seven hours on Christmas Eve after the lift's wires became tangled in strong Alpine winds

A graphic showing how the skiers were rescued on Christmas Eve

Brad Davies, from West Wales was among five Britons involved in the terrifying rescue.

The 50-year-old told The Times: 'As we got on the lift, it was stopping and starting.

'It was scary  you don't know how long you're going to be stuck. I called the company and they could not say any more than it was a technical fault and then it started to get dark and the fear was we would be stuck overnight.'

No cases of hypothermia were reported during the incident in the Aosta Valley, near the French border.

'Luckily the wind wasn't too cold... everything is under control,' said Adriano Favre, the head of the local rescue teams.

'Because of the wind and the cold, we needed to get the skiers out, and we have trained to do this.'

In September, more than 30 tourists spent a cold night trapped in several cable cars high above the French Alps, before eventually being freed.
China's only aircraft carrier and five other warships sailed past Taiwan and into the contested South China Sea on Monday, Taiwan's Defense Ministry said.

The Liaoning and five escorts sailed 20 nautical miles outside Taiwan's air defense identification zone (ADIZ) in the Bashi Channel between Taiwan and the Philippines before moving into the highly contested South China Sea, the defense ministry said.

The move was seen as a show of strength amidst rising tensions between Beijing and Taipei over the status of the self-ruled island, but China's Defense Ministry said it was simply a routine open-sea exercise.

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China's only aircraft carrier (file photo, the Liaoning) and five other warships sailed past Taiwan and into the contested South China Sea on Monday, Taiwan's Defense Ministry said

Taiwan's defense ministry said the Taiwanese military was 'on guard' and 'fully monitoring the Liaoning,' but Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said it was a routine exercise (file photo, fighter jets on the Liaoning)

China views self-ruling Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting unification - by force if necessary - even though the two sides split in 1949 after a civil war.

Beijing says failing to endorse the one-China principle would destabilize relations.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, however, has refused to endorse Beijing's concept that Taiwan is a part of China.

Tsai spoke to US President-elect Donald Trump earlier this month in a phone call that upended nearly 40 years of U.S. foreign policy and prompted a formal complaint from the Chinese government.

On Monday, the Taiwanese ministry said Liaoning and the accompanying warships sailed 90 nautical miles south of Taiwan's southernmost point through the Bashi Channel.

The ships then sailed southwest into the South China Sea, passing the Dongsha Islands, according to the ministry, which issued a statement saying the Taiwanese military was 'on guard' and 'fully monitoring the Liaoning'.

Taiwanese media said an unspecified number of F-16 fighter jets and warships were deployed in Taiwan's ADIZ to closely watch the Chinese warships. The ministry declined to comment.

The navy drills, the latest in a series of recent exercises staged by China, are seen as a show of strength by Beijing.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen (left) spoke to US President-elect Donald Trump (right) earlier this month in a phone call that prompted a formal complaint from China

But Hua Chunying, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said the Liaoning was operating within international regulations.

'Our Liaoning should enjoy in accordance with the law freedom of navigation and overflight as set by international law, and we hope all sides can respect this right of China's,' she told a daily news briefing.

Influential state-run Chinese tabloid the Global Times said the exercise showed the carrier was improving its combat capabilities and that it should now sail even further.

'The Chinese fleet will cruise to the Eastern Pacific sooner or later. When China's aircraft carrier fleet appears in offshore areas of the US one day, it will trigger intense thinking about maritime rules,' the newspaper said in an editorial.

The Soviet-built Liaoning aircraft carrier has taken part in previous exercises, including some in the South China Sea, but China is still years away from perfecting carrier operations similar to those the US has practiced for decades.

China has been angered recently by US naval patrols near islands in the South China Sea, with tensions mounting as both countries accuse each other of engaging in a dangerous military buildup.

China has been angered recently by US naval patrols near islands in the South China Sea, with tensions mounting as both countries accuse each other of engaging in a military buildup

The U.S.-based Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative think tank said this month that satellite imagery showed China building large anti-aircraft guns on artificial islands in the contested waters, where China has also laid airstrips, built communications facilities and deployed suspected missiles.

China has characterized its moves as defensive in nature and accused U.S. warships of making provocative passes through the region.

China's air force also conducted long-range drills this month above the East and South China Seas that rattled Japan and Taiwan. China said those exercises were also routine.

Last December, the defense ministry confirmed China was building a second aircraft carrier but its launch date is unclear. The aircraft carrier program is a state secret.

Beijing could build multiple aircraft carriers over the next 15 years, the Pentagon said in a report last year.
Two men were shot in the face with a shotgun during a terrifying home invasion on the Gold Coast.

Three people allegedly stormed a rural home on Old Wharf Road in Pimpama at about 5.15pm on Monday and shot the pair inside.

A man in his 50s received wounds to his face and groin while another, in his 20s, had injuries to his face, police said.

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Two men were shot in the face with a shotgun during a terrifying home invasion on the Gold Coast

Three people allegedly stormed a rural home (pictured) on Old Wharf Road in Pimpama at about 5.15pm on Monday and shot the pair inside

They were rushed to hospital and are both in a stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries.

One man was arrested nearby and police are hunting another man and a woman who fled in a gold Toyota Land Cruiser.

It was not known what sparked the shooting.

Friends or family of the victims comfort each other at the scene
A jihadi father who used his seven-year-old daughter as a suicide bomber in Syria has now met his own death.

Abu Nimr al-Suri was shown on a video kissing his daughter goodbye before sending her into a Syrian police station, where she was blown up by a remote detonator.

Russia Today's Middle East correspondent Lizzie Phelan has tweeted a photograph of Abu Nimr in his traditional death shroud.

She said he had also been involved in the murder of Syrian TV actor Mohamad Rafea, 30, who was kidnapped and killed in 2012.

Many Islamist extremist fighters believe the Koran promises 'martyrs' 72 virgins in heaven if they die during a jihad, or holy war. Islamic scholars say this is a misreading of one of the shuras in the Koran.

Abu Nimr was shown in the traditional Muslim death shroud (right) but it is unclear exactly how he was killed

Earlier this month a appalling video emerged showing the ranting extremist holding the girls in his arms as he brainwashes them.

Footage showed him lecturing her and her nine-year-old daughter about how to carry out suicide bomb attacks before they are embraced by a woman in a burka, believed to be their mother.

A short time later the seven-year-old walked into a police station in Syria's capital, Damascus, before being killed in an explosion.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said yesterday gunmen opened fire on Abu Nimr, whose real name was Abdul Rahman Shaddad, in the Teshreen neighbourhood on the outskirts of capital Damascus.

Footage captured the moment jihadi father Abu Nimr kissed his daughters goodbye shortly before one of them walked into a Syrian police station and was blown up by a remote detonator

Both girls said 'Allahu Akbar' before separate footage showed them dressed in coats and woolly hats as they embraced their mother and left the room

Footage showed Abu Nimr lecturing the two children, seven and nine, about how to carry out suicide bomb attacks before they are embraced by their mother

The seven-year-old is thought to have walked into a police station (pictured) in Syria's capital, Damascus, before being killed in an explosion believed to have been detonated remotely

As music played in the background, Abu Nimr, sitting in front of a black and white jihadist flag, drums into the girls the importance of completing their mission.

Both girls then said 'Allahu Akbar' before separate footage showed them dressed in coats and woolly hats as they embraced their mother and left the room.

A short time later, on December 16, the seven-year-old girl calmly walked into a Damascus police station before being killed in a bomb blast that also injured three officers.

In one video, the mother repeatedly hugs the seven-year-old, named as Islam, and the older girl, named as Fatima.

A man behind the camera asks the woman why she is sending her daughters to jihad when they are so young.

A short time later, the seven-year-old reportedly walked into a police station in Syria's capital, Damascus, and was killed in an explosion at a police head quarters

There were Syrian media reports that Abu Nimr was a member of Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, formerly known as the al-Nusra Front, which had links with al-Qaeda

She replied: 'No-one is young when it comes to jihad as every Muslim is supposed to participate in jihad.'

He then prays for Allah to accept the sacrifice the woman is making

In the second video Abu Nimr asks one of the girls what she is 'going to do today' before she replies that she is going to carry out a suicide bombing in Damascus.

In an apparent reference to the recent bus evacuation of rebel fighters and residents from Aleppo, Abu Nimr asks one of the children: 'Shouldnt you leave fighting to the men? Or did all of them flee in the green buses?'

He later added: 'You are not going to be afraid because you are going to the Heavens, right?'.

The girl on the left replied simply: 'Yes'.

Both children then said Allah Akbar on their fathers request before he started saying prayers.

Abu Nimr teaching his two children to become suicide bombers before kissing them goodbye

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed there had been a blast in Midan but said it could not specify the cause

The explosion in the bustling Midan neighbourhood of the Syrian capital wounded three police officers, said the Al-Watan daily, which is close to the government.

A police source told Al-Watan the little girl had appeared lost and asked to use the toilet when the explosives went off.

Although rebel groups have fired rockets and mortar rounds into the capital, explosions inside the city itself are rare.

A police source told Al-Watan the little girl had appeared lost and asked to use the bathroom before the explosives went off

A news report from the scene showed the girl's remains, which had been blurred out by the television network

Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP 'one woman' was killed in the blast, but it remained unclear whether she was a suicide bomber or a bystander.

In early 2012, a suicide bomber killed 26 people when he blew himself up in Midan. More than 310,000 people have died since Syria's conflict broke out in 2011.
This is the shocking moment a green power box billowed thick black smoke and blew up - shooting 40kg concrete blocks and road barriers into the air.

Around 30 homes were left without power and two maintenance vans were damaged after the explosion in Chigwell, Essex, at around 2.45pm on Thursday.

Imran Yousaf, 21, watched the drama unfold from his bedroom window and said he feared the huge concrete blocks could have killed someone.

He said: 'I'm an electrician by trade and as I was watching it I thought 'I'm telling you now that's going to blow'.

'You don't normally see smoke like that unless something is wrong.

'One of the workers was standing over it, he was told to move quickly and then it went "boom."

'Two of their vans were damaged, but luckily it wasn't someone's head or house.'

Imran said that the box smouldered for about five minutes before blowing up and shooting flames into the air near fearful onlookers.

Imran said: 'Two of the square concrete slabs which give you access to the cables, and take about three men to lift safely, went up in the air along with a red barrier they put up.

This is the shocking moment a green power box billowed thick black smoke and blew up in Chigwell, Essex

'Everyone was panicked as they ran away from the blast. The video ends so suddenly because my 12-year-old brother, Imtiaz, was stood outside and I wanted to make sure he was ok.

'He was fine and just complained of a ringing in his ears.

'My mum was a bit upset that he was in the street when it went off, but nothing that a cream cake wouldn't fix.'

Imran said Virgin Media engineers had been working on Fontayne Avenue just before the blast sent debris flying.

Imran claims workmen at the scene shortly after the explosion said they suspected two cores in a cable, which would normally have been insulated, had touched, while someone else suggested there might have been a power surge.

40kg concrete blocks and road barriers (circled right) were thrown into the air. An onlooker said it was lucky nobody was killed

A UK Power Networks spokesman said: 'We are investigating an incident in the Chigwell area, which interrupted power to 28 properties on Thursday [December 22nd].

'Our engineers attended to investigate and restored power supplies.'

A Virgin Media spokesman said: 'We can confirm that no one was injured during the incident and we apologise for any worry this may have caused the local residents.

'UK Power Networks is currently investigating the cause of the fault which caused the incident.
A 'miracle' baby girl who was born three months early and weighing just 628 grams is now set to go home in time for the New Year.

Doctors feared Darcey Grace Clegg wouldn't survive when she was born weighing less than a bag of sugar at the Royal Oldham Hospital in Manchester on September 27.

She battled an infection at three weeks and while she wasn't able to leave hospital over Christmas, her mother Gill Clegg, 45, and father Mark Moscrop, 53, are now looking forward to taking their little girl home in time for the New Year.

Little Darcey Grace Clegg, pictured with her mother Gill Clegg and father Mark Moscrup, was born weighing the same as half a bag of sugar

Miracle baby: Darcey was born three months early and weighing just 628 grams

Darcey is now a healthy weight and fighting fit and should be at home with her family in the coming days.

Her mother Gill said: 'She really is our little miracle. We couldn't have asked for anything more for Christmas.'

Ms Clegg, from Littleborough in Rochdale, was rushed to hospital at 28 weeks for an emergency Cesarean section, after a scan revealed Darcey was not receiving enough blood and there was a placental abnormality.

She was born safely on September 27, but weighed just 628 grams - less than 1lb, 4oz - and needed emergency care at the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit to help her through her first months.

'We want our story to inspire others who might be going through the same thing,' added Ms Clegg, a carer, who has three other children - Karl, 25,Olivia, 15 and Jack, 13.

'It was a really frightening time for us, but the staff at the hospital have all been absolutely amazing and looked after us and Darcey so well.'

Ms Clegg was rushed to hospital at 28 weeks for an emergency Cesarean section, after a scan revealed Darcey was not receiving enough blood and there was a placental abnormality

Darcey's taxi driver father Mark Moscrop added: 'Darcey is the best little girl you could ever hope for. She is so good and she hardly ever cries. We love her to bits.'

The couple have been spending each day by Darcey's side at the hospital,counting the hours before she is allowed home.

'She is doing really well now and she'll be home any day,' said Gill.

'We spent Christmas Day with her in hospital and had a little party with the family there.
A murder investigation has been launched after a 43-year-old man died in North Glasgow.

Police were called to Ashgill Road, Saracen, at 4am on Christmas Day after receiving reports of a disturbance.

A man was found seriously injured and was taken to Glasgow Royal Infirmary where he sadly died.

Police were called to Ashgill Road in Saracen, Glasgow, at 4am on Christmas Day after receiving reports of a disturbance

Detective Chief Inspector Paul Livingstone, a senior investigating officer, said his family have been 'shattered' by the news.

Another man, 50, was also found injured and was taken to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow for treatment. Medical staff described his condition as stable.

Residents said the violence was started after one of the victims let his dog out in the back court of flats in Ashgill Road, Milton, Glasgow, according to the Daily Record.

A 43-year-old man was taken to hospital with severe injuries, where he sadly died

Witnesses said the victims were screaming as they were battered by a 'bodybuilder', who hit the 43-year-old's head into the ground, and heard him saying: 'Scream all you like. Nobody can hear you. Shout it louder. Tell them you're not coming back. Tell them you'll not be back.'

The source said both victims had 'had a drink' before the incident.

Detectives are today appealing for information from the local community in an effort to identify who is responsible, and have been carrying out a number of enquiries in the local area which includes accessing public and private CCTV and speaking to local residents.

A spokesman for the police confirmed no arrests have yet been made.

Another man was injured in the incident. Forensic teams were photographed visiting a block of flats in Ashgill Road yesterday

DCI Livingstone said: 'This was a violent attack on two men in the early hours of Christmas Day, which has sadly culminated in the death of a 43 year old man.

'I would like to speak to anyone who was in the vicinity of Ashgill Road at the time of the incident to come forward.

'This area is highly residential, and I am confident that there will be people who may have heard the disturbance or who may have witnessed it that we haven't yet spoken to.

'I would urge these people to speak to police. A man has lost his life following a sustained attack on Christmas Day, and his family and friends have been left shattered.

Detective Chief Inspector Paul Livingstone is urging witnesses to come forward and speak to police about the incident

'Understandably, local residents in the area will be shocked and concerned however I would like to take this opportunity to reassure them that we are working hard to identify who is responsible.

'We have additional police officers in the area to provide reassurance and I would ask anyone with concerns to speak to an officer.
Flash flooding closed Uluru and forced a town to evacuate after a record 232 millimetres of rain fell in a single day.

The freak desert storm damaged at least 40 per cent of homes in Kintore, about 520 kilometres west of the red centre, forcing 100 of its 400 residents to flee.

Uluru National Park was shut down at 9am on Monday but visitors revelled in the rare sight of water cascading down the sides of the massive rock the day before.

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Flash flooding closed Uluru and forced a town to evacuate after a record 232 millimetres of rain fell in a single day with a thick low-lying white cloud obscured the top of the rock

Uluru National Park was shut down at 9am on Monday but visitors revelled in the rare sight of water cascading down the sides of the massive rock the day before

Dozens of waterfalls completely changed its complexion and put on a show for tourists who stayed out in the rain to watch the spectacle.

Photos and video from the base of Uluru showed huge pools forming below the waterfalls that lapped around raised walkways.

A thick low-lying white cloud obscured the top of the rock.

Dozens of waterfalls completely changed its complexion and put on a show for tourists who stayed out in the rain to watch the spectacle

Water begins to trickle down the side of the massive rock

Photos and video from the base of Uluru showed huge pools forming below the waterfalls that lapped around raised walkways

Park manager Mike Misso said the park was closed due to the risk of flooded roads and the potential for car accidents.

'There's a lot of water coming off the rock and what that does is just channels across the ring road around Uluru, some of those roads there were flooded by about 300 to 400 millimeteres of rain,' he told the ABC.

'[It is] quite spectacular but very hazardous road conditions.'

Kintore remained largely cut off with 20-25 homes completely flooded, along with other remote towns in the area.

'It is a remote area and it's quite tricky, all the roads are impassable... it's quite dangerous to get though, so it's obviously going to impair us getting resources in there,' Acting Superintendent Pauline Vicary said.

One of the many waterfalls forming over the side of Uluru in the rare spectacle

Rain hammers down on Uluru for the first time in months

Some 61.4mm fell from 8-9pm on Sunday night alone, which Weather Bureau said was a one-in-50-year rainfall event

The highest daily total for any time of the year was 127 milimetres, recorded in March 2006, and the region averages only 274.6 milimetres for a whole year

Some flights to Uluru were cancelled and the town square of Yulara, the closest town to Uluru, was so badly flooded that firemen had to pump the water out.

Some 61.4mm fell from 8-9pm on Sunday night alone, which Weather Bureau said was a one-in-50-year rainfall event.

'We've only got about 15 years of records at that location, but it's clearly well above previous totals,' BOM forecaster Mosese Raico said.

The freak desert storm damaged at least 40 per cent of homes in Kintore (pictured), about 520 kilometres west of the red centre, forcing 100 of its 400 residents to flee

Kintore remained largely cut off with 20-25 homes completely flooded, along with other remote towns in the area

A tourist makes he most of the flooding at Uluru on Sunday

The town square of Yulara (pictured), the closest town to Uluru, was so badly flooded that firemen had to pump the water out

Previously, the highest monthly total for December for that region was 161 milimetres, recorded in 2003. About 373.4 milimetres has fallen so far this month.

The highest daily total for any time of the year was 127 milimetres, recorded in March 2006, and the region averages only 274.6 milimetres for a whole year.

The last time tourists were treated to waterfalls at Uluru was in August when 16 milimetres of rain fell on the rock, and before that in January.

Only three per cent of the 400,000 visitors experience the breathtaking sight.

The area only averages 308 millimetres of rain a year with an average of five cloudy days a month and 28.8 days where it could rain a year.

Only three per cent of the 400,000 visitors experience the breathtaking sight of water cascading down the side of Uluru
This is the bizarre moment a shirtless rebel-without-a-cause filmed himself going on a rant against police.

George Aslanidis, from Adelaide, recorded himself accusing two police officers of 'corruption' after they followed him to his house to check an address he gave them.

In the film Aslanidis can be seen repeatedly yelling at the cops, telling them to 'get out of my f***ing street', before they leave without doing anything.

George Aslanidis, from Adelaide, recorded himself shouting at the police outside his house after accusing them of 'corruption' and 'harassment'

It is unclear exactly what happened before the footage began, though Aslanidis references an incident 'at McDonalds' where it appears he has been questioned.

It also appears from the conversation that Aslanidis has been suspended from driving, as he also mentions this to the officers.

At the start of the footage, he can be seen accusing the police of 'harassing me' after he has made his way home.

The police try to explain to Aslanidis, who is becoming increasingly angry, that they were simply confirming his address.

Aslanidis is not having any of it, however, shouting back: 'I have done nothing wrong, you're at the front of my house, I don't like it when cops are at the front of my house.'

The cop tries a second time to explain himself, but as Aslanidis keeps cutting across him he seems to tire of that option, instead ordering him out of the road.

Aslanidis can be seen threatening the officers with violence, yelling at them, and throwing what appears to be a Nazi salute, before the police drive away without doing anything

Aslanidis is not finished, however, and becomes hostile when the officer smiles.

He can be heard saying: 'Don't smile at me mate, get out of the car if you want to smile. Get out of my f***ing street because I've done nothing wrong and you're harassing me now.'

Despite accusing the police of harassing him, Aslanidis follows them up the street and walks back into the road to accuse them of 'corruption'.

As a final act Aslanidis takes the officers' badge numbers before retreating to the pavement where he continues his rant.

As the footage ends, Aslanidis can watching the police drive away while his arm is raised in a Nazi-style salute.

This is not the first time Aslanidis has caught the attention of local authorities.

Back in July he was criticised by animal welfare groups and police after videos were posted to a Facebook site he hosts of dogs being encouraged to act aggressively.
Hundreds of Syrian civilians have started returning to their homes in the badly damaged east of Aleppo after months of intense fighting.

Their return comes as the regime of President Bashar al-Assad accused rebel fighters of executing 21 civilians, including women and children, at close range as they fled the city last week.

The state news agency SANA said the bodies had been found in two neighbourhoods in east Aleppo.

Civilians return to their homes in the ruined city of Aleppo after months of fighting

Russia said today its troops had found mass graves in Aleppo, with bodies showing signs of torture and mutilation.

Defence Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov said they had 'found mass graves of several dozens of Syrians who suffered atrocious torture and massacre'.

He also accused rebels, who controlled eastern Aleppo before they were pushed out earlier this month, of laying multiple booby traps and mines across the city, endangering the returning civilians.

Civilians coming back to the ruined east of the city of Aleppo. More than 60 soldiers have been killed by mines and booby traps allegedly left behind by the rebels

Wrecked vehicles are strewn across most of the streets after months of heavy fighting

Human rights observers have recorded numerous examples of massacres and organised torture, perpetrated by the government, various rebel groups and ISIS.

The Russian Air Force helped the Assad regime reconquer Aleppo and Russia has dispatched military police to the city.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which gathers information on the conflict through local contacts, said 63 Syrian soldiers and militiamen had been killed by booby traps in east Aleppo since the last rebels left on Thursday.

Many civilians are fearful of what they might find in their homes in the devastated eastern part of Aleppo, a city which was founded thousands of years ago

Two men walk through the devastated streets of the city. Thousands of people have died in five years of fighting, which has ended with victory for President Assad

Christians in Aleppo celebrated Christmas for the first time in four years.

Christians, who made up about 10 percent of Syria's 23 million population before the war broke out in 2011, have tried to stay on the sidelines of the conflict.

But many preferred Assad's secular regime to the extreme brands of Islam on offer from many of the rebel groups.

A man and his grandson return to their home in the east of Aleppo, bearing some food supplies

Meanwhile further south, in Iraq, the city of Mosul is in danger of becoming a new Aleppo.

Hundreds of civilians have been streaming out of the city as the Iraqi Army prepares to renew its push against ISIS positions.

Elite Iraqi soldiers have retaken a quarter of Mosul, the last major ISIS stronghold in Iraq, but their advance has been slowed down by incessant suicide attacks by jihadist fanatics.

An Iraqi woman and her children wait at a gathering point for refugees in Bartella, 20 miles outside Mosul today

A Iraqi woman from Mosul and her two children sit on top of an old refrigerator as they wait for a place in a refugee camp

The Iraqis and their Kurdish peshmerga allies have stopped for a pause this month but a US battlefield commander, Lieutenant Colonel Stuart James said: 'Right now we're staging really for the next phase of the attack as we start the penetration into the interior of east Mosul.'

The international coalition has conducted thousands of air strikes but as the noose tightens on ISIS in east Mosul there will be pressure to avoid the civilian casualties which marked the Russian-backed assault on east Aleppo.

Lt Col James said: 'Right now we're staging really for the next phase of the attack as we start the penetration into the interior of east Mosul.

'So right now, positioning forces and positioning men and equipment into the interior of east Mosul...it's going to happen in the next several days.'

Referring to ISIS by their Arabic name, he said: 'If we achieve great success on the first day and we gain momentum, then it may go very quickly. If Daesh fights very hard the first day and we run into a roadblock and we have to go back and go OK that was not the correct point of penetration, it may take longer.'
Demonstrators demanding peace in Syria have begun a 1,800-mile march from Berlin to Aleppo.

The group of activists, who will walk all the way to the war torn city, set off from a refugee camp this morning.

With backpacks fully stocked and sleeping mats at the ready, they held banners reading 'we are all human' and white flags symbolising peace.

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On the way: Demonstrators demanding peace in Syria have begun a 1,800-mile march from Berlin to Aleppo

The group are demanding peace in Syria and international help for civilians in Aleppo after Bashar al-Assad's forces won control of the city from rebels earlier this month.

On their Facebook page, the organisers of the Civil March for Aleppo, wrote: 'On Dec 26th we left Berlin and march for Aleppo.

'We demand help for civilians, protecting human rights and working out a peaceful solution for the people of Aleppo and other besieged cities in Syria and beyond. Join us!'

It is not known how long it will take to get to Aleppo, but the initial stage to the Czech border will take 15 days.

The route then goes through eastern Europe and Turkey, into Syria.

Anna Alboth, a Polish traveller, blogger and journalist based in Berlin, organised the march.

She was determined to do something more than just watch the horrifying news coming out of Aleppo on a daily basis.

The group of activists, who will walk all the way to the Syrian city, set off from a refugee camp this morning

A demonstrator with a white flag waits for the launch of the Civil March for Aleppo

The group's GoFundMe page reads: 'We are an international group of determined civilians starting the #CivilMarchForAleppo as a way of showing our support to the Syrian people, demanding peace talks in the region, saying #StopTheBombs and proving that we aren't powerless in the face of human-inflicted crisis.

'The March will take us from our homes to the streets, towards what has been the center stage of our social media activity: Syria. And to make this work, to make our voices heard out there, in the real world, we need you too.'

With backbacks fully stocked and sleeping mats at the ready, they held banners reading 'we are all human' and white flags symbolising peace
A parent was caught allegedly giving their child a driving lesson while almost twice the legal alcohol limit.

The instructor blew a blood alcohol reading of 0.095 after they were pulled over in Perth at 5.02pm on Christmas Day.

WA Police publicly admonished the unnamed parent on its Twitter page, branding the alleged incident a 'parenting fail'.

A parent was caught allegedly giving their child a driving lesson while almost twice the legal alcohol limit

'Your kids are your world, look after them!' it wrote next to a photo of the test results accompanied by a handwritten explanation.

A parent instructing their child while drunk was the latest in a string of alleged incidents published on WA Police social media since the state's infamous holiday period double demerits came into effect.

On Christmas Eve a photo appeared to show a man being charged with driving while high on meth by officers wearing Santa hats and reindeer antlers.

'He's making a list, he's checking it twice, don't drive methed up its naughty not nice!' the post read.

On Christmas Eve a photo appeared to show a man being charged with driving while high on meth by officers wearing Santa hats and reindeer antlers

Another driver 'trying to catch Santa' allegedly drove 155km/h along a remote highway with two babies in the back seat

Earlier at 4.36am 21-year-old man was allegedly caught driving at 144km/h on the Mitchell Freeway and was slapped with 14 demerit points and a $1000 fine.

Another driver 'trying to catch Santa' allegedly drove 155km/h along a remote highway with two babies in the back seat.

Finally the police had a bit of fun crushing dozens of Emu Export beer cans confiscated from revellers in a park on Friday.

Officers lined them up and drove over them with a police car.
A mudslide in California displaced four families on Christmas morning after it broke through the walls of an apartment complex.

The mudslide burst through the two-story, four-unit building in Oceanside, California, at about 5am after mud accumulated on an outside wall.

It occurred in an area about 75 feet long and 12 feet wide, the Oceanside Fire Department said.

The mudslide burst through the two-story, four-unit building in Oceanside, California, at about 5am on Christmas

A water leak from a residential irrigation line above the complex is the reported cause of the mudslide

The two bottom floor apartment units sustained mud and water damage, while the top floor units were evacuated due to structural concerns, according to CBS Los Angeles.

There were no injuries, and one of the four families was not home at the time of the incident.

A water leak from a residential irrigation line above the complex is the reported cause of the mudslide.

The Oceanside Water Utilities Department found no leaks or damage to its water lines in the surrounded areas.

It is unknown when the families will be able to return to their apartments, but the fire department believes it could be a long time.

The Red Cross is helping the families find temporary housing while they look for more long-term places to live.

The time frame and cost of repairs are unknown.
A teenager was reported to the police for drink driving by her own parents after she gave a friend a lift home while three times the legal limit.

Shannon Downie, 18, returned to her home in Westhill, Aberdeenshire, via a taxi after a night out but then gave a friend a lift home in her Ford Fiesta despite drinking.

Her parents saw her leaving and called the police, who pulled her over and arrested her for drink driving.

Police caught 18-year-old Shannon Downie three times the limit behind the wheel after her parents saw her driving after a night out and alerted officers in 'disgust' (file picture)

According to the Daily Record, Downie pleaded guilty to the offence at Aberdeen Sheriff Court and was banned from driving for a year and also fined 400.

The court heard her parents called police because they were disgusted at her actions, while Downie herself offered no explanation for the ridiculous decision and her solicitor told the court she was ashamed.

According to the Record, Judge Secretary Michael Matheson said: It is disappointing that some are continuing to ignore the law and put themselves, and others, at risk.

Drink-driving is completely unacceptable. If you get caught you face a minimum one-year ban, a criminal record, points on your licence and a substantial fine.

College student Downie will have her ban reduced by three months if she completes a drink-driving course.

The incident on December 2 comes as 388 people have been caught drink-driving during a month-long Police Scotland crackdown.

Assistant Chief Constable Bernard Higgins said: Our message is simple - if you're going to drink, do not risk driving. Police Scotland does not tolerate this kind of behaviour and will stop anyone they suspect of driving under the influence of alcohol.

Downie was given a one-year driving ban and a 400 fine at Aberdeen Sheriff Court, pictured

The consequences are severe; they include an automatic ban, a potential fine and even the possibility of a prison sentence as well as being the potential to kill or seriously injure yourself or others.

Thirty four of those drivers caught were found to be over the limit when stopped by police between 6am and 10am.
A Thai man had a lucky escape when he fell 32 foot from his balcony onto a metal spike after he slipped trying to hang up his towel after a shower.

Patirat Punudom, 35, finished showering at 2am on Friday and climbed onto the second floor balcony ledge to hang his towel on a washing line.

The metal tip narrowly missed his penis and went seven-inches deep into his abdomen meaning the spike could be seen pressing against his skin from the inside.

This is the eye-watering moment a man had to be rescued after falling onto metal railings and impaling himself through the groin

The metal tip narrowly missed Patirat Punudom's penis and went seven-inches deep into his abdomen meaning the spike could be seen pressing against his skin from the inside

Neighbours in Pathum Thani, cenral Thailand, heard Mr Patirat calling for help and called rescue workers who cut the railings away to free him

Emergency services has to remove the spikes in order to free the man from Pathum Thani

Neighbours in Pathum Thani, cenral Thailand, heard Mr Patirat calling for help and called rescue workers who cut the railings away to free him.

They said the spike narrowly avoided rupturing vital organs and causing almost certain death.

A spokesman for the Ruamkatanyu Foundation said: 'Neighbours in the village heard the Mr Patirat calling for help.

'We arrived just after 2am and cut the railings away to free him.

'He almost died. The spike nearly hit important arteries.

'He could have been bleeding to death.

'His father said Mr Patirat had just finished taking a shower and had climbed on the railings to hang up his towel.
Neighbors of Dartmouth College property where for years the Ivy League school disposed of mice and other small animals used in science experiments say they fear pollution from the site has contaminated their groundwater.

The Hanover, New Hampshire, site has contaminated the well water of at least one family, that of Richard and Debbie Higgins, who blame a variety of health problems on it, including rashes, hair and skin loss and dizziness.

Even their dogs were not spared, they say, with one urinating blood and another vomiting.

'We have been drinking the water for years and we had no idea, absolutely no idea,' Debbie Higgins said.

Few nearby residents even knew the half-acre plot on the college's Rennie Farm was used from the 1960s until 1978 to dump carcasses from 'tracer experiments,' in which scientists used radioactive compounds to see how things moved through life systems.

Dartmouth's (pictured) Rennie Farm was used from the 1960s until 1978 to dump carcasses from tests in which scientists used radioactive compounds to see how things moved through life systems.

A nearby site also contained remains of human cadavers and stillborn fetuses used in medical classes.

The obscurity of the fenced site changed in 2011, when Dartmouth chose to clean it up, removing 40 tons of carcasses and soil from scores of unlined pits that were legal at the time they were dug.

That led to the discovery of hazardous waste and low-level radioactive materials on the site and eventually evidence that at least one chemical used in the animal experiments, the suspected carcinogen 1,4-dioxane, had leaked into the groundwater.

It was initially found at 50 times the state standard of 3 parts per billion on the site and more recently as high as 600 parts per billion in the ground.

The chemical has been linked to eye, nose and throat irritation and, in long-term exposure, to liver and kidney damage, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

The 1,4-dioxane was eventually found to have migrated off the site and contaminated the Higginses' well across the street, about 800 feet from the site - at twice the state standard.

They learned in September 2015 that their well was polluted, and now depend on bottled water supplied by Dartmouth for cooking and drinking.

Richard Higgins, whose family's well water has been contaminated by a suspected carcinogen from a Dartmouth dump site, looks down at one of many test wells installed to monitor the groundwater in Hanover, New Hampshire

The news has rattled the semi-rural neighborhood, sparking anger and fear among dozens of homeowners who worry the plume will reach their own wells and damage their property values.

Many contend Dartmouth was too slow to respond once it found the contamination and has been reluctant to provide full details of what was on the site - something the college denies.

'Right now, everyone is very confused and concerned,' said Ellen Waitzkin, a radiologist who lives across from the site. 'They are trying to determine on what basis they should feel threatened or not.'

The Higginses and other residents argue an alert about the spreading contamination should have gone out earlier.

New Hampshire environmental and Dartmouth officials said initial test showed the levels of 1,4-dioxane were declining on the site and were projected to remain on the farm site - though state officials now concede there could have been more aggressive monitoring.

Now, Dartmouth is working to regain the trust of Higgins and the other residents.

It apologized in September for its handling of the case, established a neighborhood advisory panel and sampled 110 drinking wells in the neighborhood; no others have tested positive. It also offered 20 households bottled water.

Debbie and Richard Higgins, look at a map on their kitchen table in Hanover, which shows where the contamination has spread. Dartmouth College said it has spent around $8.4 million cleaning up contamination where scientists dumped carcasses of lab animals in the 1960s and 1970s

It is also finishing construction on a system at the dump site to capture and clean the contaminated water.

When it begins operating in January, wells will pull contaminated groundwater into the system and filter it.

The treated water will then be returned to the ground, a process that could take several years.

'We are committed to protecting the health of our neighbors, addressing their concerns, and communicating regularly and openly with them about the project,' college spokeswoman Diana Lawrence said of the cleanup, which so far has cost $8.4million.

But for the Higginses and their neighbors, the college hasn't gone far enough. Some want more soil removed, while others want Dartmouth to offer compensation for their deteriorating property values  demands the college says it is considering.

The Higginses say their health problems have mostly disappeared since they switched to bottled water. But they call that a short-term fix and want the college to move them to a new home a safe distance from the site of the contamination.
Britain should be 'more self-confident' about its prospects outside the European Union, a former governor of the Bank of England has said.

Lord King acknowledged that Brexit will bring 'great political difficulties', but said that there would also be 'many opportunities' economically for the UK striking out on its own.

The crossbench peer led the Bank as Sir Mervyn King from 2003 to 2013 and said the UK should leave the European single market.

He warned there were 'real question marks' over whether it should seek to remain in the customs union, which might constrain its opportunities to forge new trade deals.

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Lord King acknowledged that Brexit will bring 'great political difficulties', but said that there would also be 'many opportunities'

On immigration, he said: 'It seems to me inevitable that the British Government needs to set out - and sooner rather than later - our own immigration policy.

'Most countries in the world have an immigration policy, but we can't have one effectively as a result of our membership of the EU.

'I think the result of the referendum made it pretty clear that people wanted our ability to control immigration. That doesn't mean to say "No immigration" - far from it. It does mean to say that the UK controls its own immigration.

'That is not negotiable and it can't be negotiable. It would be a big mistake to put it into the basket of things that we would negotiate about with our former partners in the EU.'

His comments came as it was reported that the billionaire businessman chosen by US President-Elect Donald Trump as his new trade chief has said that Brexit represents a 'God-given opportunity' for other countries to take business away from the UK.

Wilbur Ross, the US commerce secretary designate, said Britain was facing a 'period of confusion' following the vote to leave the EU and that it was 'inevitable' there would be 'relocations', according to The Times.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Lord King said it was too early to judge the economic impact of Brexit, despite data since the June 23 referendum being more positive than some economists had predicted.

Donald Trump's new trade chief Wilbur Ross (right) has urged Britain's rivals to take advantage of the 'God-given opportunity' of Brexit to take business away from the UK

He said: 'I think the challenges we face mean it's not a bed of roses - no-one should pretend that - but equally it is not the end of the world and there are some real opportunities that arise from the fact of Brexit we might take.

'There are many opportunities and I think we should look at it in a much more self-confident way than either side is approaching it at present.

'Being out of what is a pretty unsuccessful European Union - particularly in the economic sense - gives us opportunities as well as obviously great political difficulties.'

Lord King said it made no sense for the UK to seek to join Norway as a non-EU member of the single market, which would allow free access for businesses but probably mean accepting freedom of movement of EU citizens.

And he raised doubts over the merits of remaining within the customs union, which would allow Britain to trade goods without border tariffs, like Turkey, but restrict its ability to strike its own trade deals.

A Turkey-style arrangement would make it 'more difficult to take advantage of those opportunities,' said Lord King.

'I don't think it makes sense for us to pretend we should remain in the single market and I think there are real question marks about whether it makes sense to remain in the customs union. Clearly if we do that we cannot make our own trade deals with other countries.'

Lord King said the Government should outline its policies on immigration 'sooner rather than later', arguing that it would be a 'mistake' to make them part of the withdrawal negotiations which will be triggered when Theresa May invokes Article 50 of the EU treaties next year.

Mr Ross will be responsible for negotiating a free trade deal with the UK and his reported comments will raise concerns the incoming US administration will seek to exploit Britain's isolation following Brexit.

His remarks were said to have been made to an audience of Cypriot financiers in the days following last June's referendum vote - before he had been appointed to Mr Trump's cabinet.

'I recommend that Cyprus should adopt and immediately announce even more liberal financial service policies than it already has so that it can try to take advantage of the inevitable relocations that will occur during the period of confusion,' he is quoted as saying.

He is said to have added that the UK's withdrawal from the EU was a 'God-given opportunity' for financial rivals of the City of London, naming Frankfurt and Dublin in particular.

Labour said his comments, should be a 'salutary warning' that other countries were ready to take advantage of the UK's vulnerability post-Brexit.

Wilbur Ross, President-elect Trump's nominee for Commerce Secretary, departs Trump Tower

Shadow international trade secretary Barry Gardiner told The Times: 'Wilbur Ross's comments are a stark reminder that the trade deals Britain will agree in future will not depend on goodwill from our partners, but on their own shrewd political and economic calculations.

'Theresa May's government has failed to articulate a coherent vision of what kind of economy Brexit Britain will be. This makes us weak and vulnerable in the eyes of others.'

But a Government spokesman sought to play down the report saying: 'We will build a relationship with the new administration based on substance not rumour.'

Meanwhile, Lord King defended his Bank of England successor Mark Carney against charges that he has been too 'political' in warning about the possible economic consequences of leaving the EU.
Geoffrey Morgan nearly drowned in the sinking HMS Warrior during the Battle of Jutland in 1916 before his life was saved by a heroic petty officer.

And at a house party in Somerset 100 years later, his son David Morgan, 77, finally discovered the identity of his father's rescuer after overhearing a conversation about a new book written by a local author.

The two men were among just three who escaped the wrecked engine room of the sinking ship as it flooded.

David, a retired brigadier with the Gurkha Rifles, was told the story by his father as a boy but thought he would never learn the name of his saviour.

George Lancaster, left, risked his own life to save Geoffrey Morgan, right

David Morgan and Rosie Parr: The pair met after discovering Rosie's grandfather saved David's father's life

The HMS Warrior in 1914, at the start of the First World War - some 71 men lost their lives as the ship sunk

A century on David discovered it was brave George Lancaster who saved his father.

He overheard guests talking about new book, A Shy and Simple Warrior, which has been published to mark the centenary of the famous First World War Sea battle.

It is written by local author Rosie Parr, the granddaughter of George who coincidentally lives near David in Somerset.

Rosie had discovered more about David's father's life than even he knew -and for the first time he heard the full story of his father's survival.

David said: 'I overheard people talking about the book and told them 'That's funny, my father was in the engine room on HMS Warrior.

'It was an absolutely astounding moment. It was purely by chance. I found Rosie and told her, "I think your grandfather and my father must have known each other.

'I would go further to suggest that your grandfather was responsible for saving my father's life.'

Rosie, a solicitor from Wanstrow, was not at the party but David of nearby Ilminster in Somerset, wrote to her publisher and they arranged to meet last month.

David Morgan's father Geoffrey Morgan in 1916, left, and in 1909, right

David, a grandfather-of-seven who was just 17 when his highly-decorated engineer father died, said it was a miracle he and Rosie found each other.

He added: 'It was amazing to meet Rosie because she had done loads of research and I had done virtually none.

'My father was a remarkably calm and quiet man. He never really initiated any sort of conversation that would suggest he was boasting about anything. But quite clearly he had had the most phenomenal career.

'My father died in 1956 and I assumed that everybody else involved in the story would have died an equally long time ago.

'I found it absolutely fascinating talking to Rosie, not least because she knew more about my father than I did. I certainly never expected to meet a next of kin.'

Rosie, 63, said: 'It was very moving to meet David and quite an extraordinary coincidence.'

David, a grandfather-of-seven who was just 17 when his highly-decorated engineer father died, said it was a miracle he and Rosie found each other

George Lancaster, grandfather of Rosie Parr, in 1937 in Devonport

Geoffrey Morgan and George Lancaster spent 18 months together on HMS Warrior, a ten-gun armoured cruiser.

On May 31, 1916, a shell burst through the side of the ship and into the port engine room where it exploded.

Geoffrey, then a 26-year-old engineer lieutenant and George, a 29-year-old engine room petty officer, heroically risked their lives keep the engines going.

After helping the ship escape enemy fire and helping to save the lives of around 700 sailors on board, they found themselves trapped.

Rosie said: 'The ship was badly shot up by the German ships but Warrior managed to escape more enemy fire and get to safety because the engine room crew kept the engines going.

'But they found themselves trapped. The engine room was flooding and there were eight of them, and only three managed to get out.

'They were trying to clamber out of the engine room with water rising inside the ship.

Rosie's book, 'A Shy and Simple Warrior'

'Of course there was a lot of metal above them and around them and they were trapped for about two hours.'

David said: 'It went on for the best part of two and a half hours. Eventually they had to start climbing up the machinery.

'They were swimming with ladders and bits of machinery knocking into them - a number of people were taken out by the machinery.

'My father organised everybody to form a circle and hold hands, which they did, but there were a lot who were very badly scalded by water coming from the boiler.

'My father was hanging onto two people, one on each arm, but he was swept away.

'The chief petty officer grabbed him. He was effectively saved from drowning.

'There were grilles above them which they suddenly realised were white hot - the ship was on fire.

'They were caught between fire and the deep blue sea.'

In the face of death, Geoffrey encouraged the remaining crew members to sing.

David said: 'I have absolutely no idea what songs were sung.

'I recall that my father's favourite hymn was 'All through the Night', but as that tune is slow and best sung by a Welsh Male Voice Choir, I doubt that it came to him in the circumstances he found himself on the night of the 31st May 1916.'

Miraculously, the singing was heard by sailors up on deck and Geoffrey, George and third man were hauled to safety through a trap door.

Other rescuers pulled hundreds more to safety onto another ship, but 71 lost their lives.

Rosie added: 'Another Royal Navy ship came alongside and the surviving crew literally jumped to safety and watched as HMS Warrior disappeared into the mist and sank.

'By keeping the engines going Geoffrey and George had helped to save the lives of those sailors on board.

'Around 6,000 British sailors died at Jutland so their escape is quite extraordinary.'

Geoffrey Morgan, pictured in 1948, survived the war, was promoted and worked for The Admiralty. He served in WWII and retired as a Rear Admiral

George Lancaster (far right), grandfather of Rosie Parr, in 1919 aboard the HMS Dauntless in Newfoundland, Canada, meeting the then Prince of Wales

Geoffrey survived the war, was promoted and worked for The Admiralty. He served in World War II and retired as a Rear Admiral before being discharged with diabetes.

George was awarded the distinguished service medal and served in World War II at the shore base HMS Drake in Plymouth, throughout the Plymouth Blitz.

He finished his career as a lieutenant commander before dying from a heart attack in 1945 aged 58.

Rosie wrote A Shy and Simple Warrior following the death of her daughter, Sophie, 24, from cancer in December 2009.
Police are now focusing their attention on finding Sarah Spiers, the first of three women to go missing from Perth in the 1990s.

Ms Spiers, who was 18 at the time, left Club Bay View in Claremont on January 27, 1996 and, after hailing a taxi, was never seen again.

Forensic police were seen with digging equipment at Bradley Robert Edwards' parent's investment property at Madora Bay, south of Perth, reported the Daily Telegraph.

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Police are now focusing their attention on the first of three women to go missing from the Perth suburb of Claremont in the 1990s - Sarah Spiers. She remains missing to this day

Edwards, 48, was arrested and charged with the deaths of two other missing women Jane Rimmer, 23, and Ciara Glennon, 27, on Thursday last week.

The former head of the Macro taskforce assigned to investigate the cold case has also said he prays information about Sarah Spiers will finally be discovered.

David Caporn said hardly a day goes by when he doesn't think about the victims, and said: 'I hope and pray that more will come to light about Sarah.'

Bradley Robert Edwards (pictured left) was arrested and charged with the murders of two other women who disappeared from Claremont in 1996 and 1997 - Jane Rimmer, 23, and Ciara Glennon, 27

Police search a property south of Perth owned by the parents of a man charged with two murders

Police officers continued to guard the property on Challenger Road on Friday night, WA Today reported.

The accused man's parents haven't lived there for some years and rent the property out, the Fairfax Media report said.

The Telstra worker appeared in Perth Magistrates Court on Friday charged with the abduction and murder of Jane Rimmer, 23, and Ciara Glennon, 27 in 1996 and 1997.

A third woman who disappeared during that period, Sarah Spiers, remains missing, almost 21 years after leaving the Club Bay View in Claremont.

Ms Rimmer disappeared after a night out with friends in 1996.

Her body was found in bushland at Wellard in Perth's southern suburbs on August 3 that year.

Ms Glennon disappeared in March 1997, also after a night out in Claremont.

Her body was found in bushland in Eglington, north of Perth.

Jane Rimmer was 23 when she went missing in 1996 after a night out in Claremont

Ciara Glennon was 27 when she disappeared in March 1997 in upmarket Claremont in Perth

West Australian Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan said the investigations were continuing.

'So there is still much work to be done, but this has already been the biggest and most complex police investigation in WA history,' he said.

'Hundreds of police officers have worked on this case over the 20 years.'

Edwards has also been charged in relation to attacks on other women, including two counts of deprivation of liberty, two counts of aggravated sexual penetration without consent, one count of breaking and entering and one count of indecent assault.

A white kimono that may provide police with vital clues in the cold case murders

Commissioner O'Callaghan told reporters last week police would allege he abducted a 17-year-old girl as she walked through a park in 1995 and took her to a nearby cemetery where he sexually assaulted her.

He is also alleged to have entered the bedroom of an 18-year-old girl in 1988, and attacked her while she slept. He fled after she struggled but left behind a white kimono, which he accidently dropped.
The largest police union in the United states has demanded that Amazon remove Black Live Matter shirts sold by a third-party reseller - right after getting Wal-Mart to pull similar clothes from the shelves.

The Fraternal Order Of Police put out an open letter to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, accusing Amazon of allowing vendors to profit from racial divisions by letting one of them sell shirts that read 'Bulletproof Black Lives Matter'.

Wal-Mart stopped selling items with the same message Friday after the FOP called them offensive. The retailer cited customer concerns.

The clothes still appear on Amazon but are currently listed as 'unavailable'.

The country's largest police union has demanded that Amazon remove Black Lives Matter clothes (such as the T-shirt on the right) after getting Wal-Mart to pull similar items (left)

'I wanted to let you know that my members are very upset that you and Amazon are complicit in the sale of this offensive merchandise,' FOP president Chuck Canterbury wrote Wednesday in his open letter to Bezos.

Fraternal Order Of Police president Chuck Canterbury (pictured) went after Amazon and Wal-Mart after resellers sold the items

'Commercializing our differences and perpetuating the myths which harm the relationships between the protectors and their communities is wrong at any time of year, but it is especially egregious now.'

Canterbury told The Guardian on Friday that Amazon was 'a pretty liberal marketer'.

He cited the 'amount of violence demonstrated at Black Lives Matter marches' as well as the shootings of eight police officers in Dallas and Baton Rouge over the summer. The gunmen in both instances were not part of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Canterbury wrote to Wal-Mart the day before he wrote to Amazon to ask the retailer to remove similar items.

Wal-Mart pledged to cease sales of the shirts Tuesday in a statement to the Associated Press.

The company has a marketplace with millions of items offered by third parties, including Blue Lives Matter, Black Lives Matter and All Lives Matter merchandise. The now-defunct Black Lives Matter items were sold by Connecticut-based Old Glory Merchandise.

Wal-Mart said it had removed the Black Lives Matter shirt after hearing concerns from customers.

'I wanted to let you know that my members are very upset that you and Amazon are complicit in the sale of this offensive merchandise,' Canterbury wrote Wednesday in his letter to Bezos
Cheltenham Girls High School principal Susan Bridge (pictured) spent $19,000 building a private toilet in her office to avoid using a staff bathroom two metres away

The principal of a top public high school spent $19,000 building a private toilet in her office to avoid using a staff bathroom two metres away.

NSW education bosses are now investigating the lavish ensuite at Cheltenham Girls High School in Sydney, financed partly with parents' donations.

A source at the school, which had the best HSC results for a public school this year, said a three-cubicle staff toilet was at most two metres from principal Susan Bridge's office door.

'People are wondering whether she is just too proud to pee with the plebs,' they told the Daily Telegraph.

'They want to know why the principal gets a private loo while students have to put up with disgusting toilets that were built in the late 1950s or early 1960s.'

The NSW Department of Education confirmed the development was part of a $49,000 project to construct a set of stairs, improve drainage and install safety rails.

It investigation would focus on whether the toilet's construction had 'appropriate consultation'.

Cheltenham's building fund was set up to meet ATO guidelines for tax deductible funds with a suggested $100 donation on top of school fees.

It was designed to subsidise new and renovated school buildings.

NSW education bosses are now investigating the lavish ensuite at the top Sydney school, financed partly with parents' donations

The stink is just the latest scandal for Ms Bridge who last month charged parents $30 to attend end of year presentations at the Sydney Opera House.

Cheltenham teachers were also in July reportedly banned from using the words 'girls, 'ladies' or 'women' to avoid discrimination and support LGBTI students.

This policy was quickly slapped down by NSW Education Minister Adrian Piccoli after backlash from parents.
Malcolm Turnbull has taken a swipe at councils for taking too long to approve development applications.

The Australian Prime Minister has accused councils for causing Sydney's housing crisis because they are delaying plans to build new homes.

He said the DA processing time for Sydney was taking three times longer than Brisbane, The Daily Telegraph reported.

Malcolm Turnbull has accused councils for causing Sydney's housing crisis because they are delaying plans to build new homes

'The cities that have better planning laws in the sense that developers can get approvals more quickly, so theyre not delayed, have more affordable housing,' he said.

'We're not asking people to compromise on planning standards, but it shouldn't take you 18 months to get a DA if in other cities it can take you six months.

'That's why housing is more affordable in Brisbane than it is in Sydney.'

He said the DA processing time for Sydney was taking three times longer than Brisbane (pictured of an apartment complex under construction in inner Sydney in April this year)

Fairfield, Woollahra, Hawkesbury and Canada Bay were among the suburbs with the slowest processing time - taking at least 100 days to sign off on DAs.

A Local Government of NSW has slammed reports that councils were to blame for the city's property affordability crisis.
Donald Trump blasted Barack Obama on Monday for claiming he could have won a third term in the White House if he had been the Democratic nominee instead of Hillary Clinton.

'President Obama said that he thinks he would have won against me,' the president-elect tweeted. 'He should say that but I say NO WAY! - jobs leaving, ISIS, OCare, etc.'

Disappearing jobs, the shortcomings of the Obamacare medical insurance overhaul law and the rise of the ISIS terror army were major campaign themes Trump leveraged to draw lines of distinction between himself and the Democrats.

Moments after the first tweet, Trump delivered a broadside to the United Nations following an anti-Israel vote that Obama chose not to veto.

'The United Nations has such great potential but right now it is just a club for people to get together, talk and have a good time. So sad!' he wrote.

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Donald Trump clobbered outgoing U.S. president Barack Obama on Monday for claiming he could have beaten the billionaire in a head-to-head election matchup

'NO WAY': Trump blasted the president for suggesting that the election result would have been different if a third Obama term had been one of the options voters could choose

'So sad!' Trump claimed the United Nations is little more than an elite social club, following a vote on Friday that angered

Obama, playing golf on Monday, told CNN that he could have mobilized Americans around his unity vision and won a third term if the Constitution allowed him to run again

The president framed national unity in terms of 'one America that is tolerant and diverse and open, and full of energy and dynamism'

CNN on Monday published an interview that former Obama senior adviser David Axelrod conducted with his old boss, who claimed the vision of a united America he stressed in his famous 2004 Democratic National Convention keynote speech is still powerful enough that it might have carried the day.

'You know, I am confident in this vision because I'm confident that if I  if I had run again and articulated it, I think I could've mobilized a majority of the American people to rally behind it.'

'I know that in conversations that I've had with people around the country, even some people who disagreed with me, they would say, "The vision, the direction that you point towards is the right one",' he said.

Obama claimed that Republicans including former Fox News Channel CEO Roger Ailes and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell 'mobilized a backlash to this vision' in order to beat Democrats up and down the ballot.

Part of Trump's standard stump speech promised Americans that he would unite them as 'one people, under one God, saluting one American flag.'

Obama claimed that high ground for himself, saying the GOP proved it 'can just just throw sand in the gears' and produce national disunity.

He accused Republicans of believing 'that if we just say "no," then that will puncture the balloon, that all this talk about hope and change and "no red state and blue state" is  is proven to be a mirage, a fantasy.'

The president framed national unity in terms of 'one America that is tolerant and diverse and open, and full of energy and dynamism,' claiming his time in office has produced that attitude 'in all sorts of ways.'

'It manifests itself in communities all across the country. We see it in this younger generation that is smarter, more tolerant, more innovative, more creative, more entrepreneurial, would not even think about, you know, discriminating somebody against, for example, because of their sexual orientation,' he said.

Trump was castigated by the political left for prejudices of all kinds but insisted on protecting 'the LGBT community' in dozens of speeches before cheering Republicans, and famously defended transgender icon Caitlin Jenner's right to use whichever bathroom she wished in his Trump Tower skyscraper.

The lame duck Obama blamed Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnel for proving Republicans know how to 'throw sand in the gears' that Democrats turn politically

Obama also said in the CNN interview published Monday that he might not stay on the sidelines and let his successor have the spotlight all to himself, if Trump's presidency raises 'foundational issues about our democracy.'

He seemed to be firing a warning shot that while he has no immediate plans to be vocal as a former president, that might change if he thinks the Trump administration threatens his own values.

'I have to be quiet for a while. And I don't mean politically, I mean internally,' he said.

'At a certain point, you make room for new voices and fresh legs,' Obama explained, talking mostly about the need to let up-and-coming Democrats find their own public voices.

But 'that doesn't mean that if a year from now, or a year-and-a-half from now, or two years from now, there is an issue of such moment, such import, that isn't just a debate about a particular tax bill or, you know, a particular policy, but goes to some foundational issues about our democracy, that I might not weigh in,' the lame duck president explained.

'You know, I'm still a citizen and that carries with it duties and obligations.'

It's traditional for former presidents to hold their tongues and avoid criticizing the men who take over the Oval Office after they pass the baton.
Six men escaped a Tennessee prison through a hole behind the toilet on in the early hours of Christmas morning.

A water leak behind a toilet caused a hole, and men were able to climb through and find their way outside of the Cocke County Jail Annex.

While two men were captured later in the day, four are still on the run.

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A water leak behind a toilet caused a hole, and six men were able to climb through and find their way outside of the Cocke County Jail Annex in the early hours of Christmas morning. Among those still on the run are John Thomas Shehee and Harce Wade Allen

Eric S Click (left) and David Wayne Frazier (right) are also on the run. Click, 29, was in jail awaiting trial for evading arrest, possession of schedule II substance, driving while suspended, violating probation and joy riding. Frazier, who is considered to be dangerous, was in jail awaiting trial for aggravated robbery and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon

Inmate John Mark Spier (left) was re-captured at a home in Cosby, Tennessee, where two men were charged with harboring a fugitive. Steven Lewis(right) was captured after a foot chase in Carson Springs

Courtesy WATE.com

The Cocke County Sheriff told WVLT: 'The inmates escaped after a water leak occurred behind a wall unit stainless steel toilet.

'Apparently the bolts holding the unit rusted out and there was prior damage to the concrete due to plumbing repairs.

'The inmates vandalized the lavatory removing it from the wall and gained access to a hole which led outside of the facility.'

Inmate John Mark Spier was re-captured at a home in Cosby, Tennessee, where two men were charged with harboring a fugitive.

A water leak behind a toilet caused a hole, and men were able to climb through and find their way outside of the Cocke County Jail Annex. Pictured above, the Cocke County Sheriff's Department where the jail annex is located

Steven Lewis was captured after a foot chase in Carson Springs, WATE reports.

The four men still on the run are: John Thomas Shehee, Harce Wade Allen, Eric S Click and David Wayne Frazier.

Shehee, 28, was facing criminal charges for arson, criminal trespassing and property theft under $500.

Allen, 28, was serving a 45-day jail sentence for violating his probation.

Click, 29, was in jail awaiting trial for evading arrest, possession of schedule II substance, driving while suspended, violating probation and joy riding.
A nursery school teacher has been given the sack after she kicked and slapped two little girls who could not memorise a dance routine properly for their Christmas event.

The incident happened a few days before the festive holiday in Lu'an City, which is in East China's Anhui Province.

Surveillance footage taken from the school shows the two girls, aged around four or five, taking part in the dance, which was to be shown to all the parents for their annual Christmas show.

However, the girls seem to struggle to memorise the dance routine, which involves half the group standing up while the other half squats down.

Their impatient teacher, whose name was not mentioned, pulls the two girls by the hair and takes them aside, after which she shockingly kicks them in their backside as punishment for their poor coordination.

After letting them rejoin the group of dancing kids, the pair struggle with the movements once more and are singled out second time, when they are slapped and poked harshly.

The girls are believed to have told their families about the abuse, and they demanded to see CCTV footage from the classroom.

This nursery school teacher has been given the sack after she kicked and slapped two little girls who could not memorise a dance routine properly for their Christmas event

The impatient teacher, whose name was not mentioned, pulls the two girls by the hair and takes them aside, after which she kicks them in their backside as punishment

There appeared to be at least one other teacher inside the classroom at the time of the incident, but she did not intervene either.

The shocking revelations have led the parents to sue the school for damages, as well as call for the teacher's dismissal.
by writing: 'Its been a long year filled with ups and downs, it hasnt been easy but I am so grateful to have had you by my side through it all'

Nicholas posted a photo of himself and Chelsea last week writing 'there's NO one I'd rather go through this crazy life with'

Missing from the photos was her 19-year-old daughter Chelsea

on Christmas with sons Parker and Blake and daughters Vivienne and Dakota

Rosie O'Donnell posted a holiday photo on Sunday that showed her celebrating Christmas with four of her five children.

'THE O'DONNELL GANG !!!' wrote Rosie on the photo, which showed her sons Parker and Blake and daughters Vivienne and Dakota.

It did not show Rosie's troubled daughter Chelsea however, who was missing from all of the photos the former talk show host posted over the holiday weekend.

Chelsea, 19, instead spent the holiday with her new husband Nicholas Alliegro, who posted a photo of the two together last week.

'Throwback from last Christmas its been a long crazy year and a Lot has happened ups downs in-between lol but I love you Chelsea and there's NO one I'd rather go through this crazy life with then you I will always have your back no matter what and there's noting that could ever get in the way of that ever,' he wrote on the post.

Chelsea responded by commenting on the post: 'I love you so much Nicholas Alliegro that made my day. Its been a long year filled with ups and downs, it hasnt been easy but I am so grateful to have had you by my side through it all.'

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Rosie O'Donnell posted a photo of herself on Christmas with sons Parker and Blake and daughters Vivienne and Dakota (l to r: Blake, Vivienne, Rosie, Dakota and Parker)

Missing from the photos was her 19-year-old daughter Chelsea, who spent the holiday with husband Nicholas Alliegro (above)

Nicholas posted a photo of himself and Chelsea last week (above) writing 'there's NO one I'd rather go through this crazy life with'

Chelsea responded by writing: 'Its been a long year filled with ups and downs, it hasnt been easy but I am so grateful to have had you by my side through it all'

Rosie also posted photo of Vivienne and Dakota over the weekend, including one on Sunday after her youngest daughter had opened all her presents.

She also posted a photo of her oldest son Parker playing with Dakota on Sunday.

And on Christmas Eve Rosie wrote on a photo of Dakota, 'the best gift.'

Chelsea and Nicholas were married this past July DailyMail.com revealed earlier this year, something which came as a complete surprise to Rosie.

A source close to the couple revealed that they married before an official at Islip Town Hall on Long Island, New York after eight months of dating. They first met at a Dunkin Donuts last November.

The couple wore casual clothes for the ceremony before going out to a local burger joint to celebrate.

The former View star only found her daughter was married to Nicholas when Chelsea was hospitalized on Labor Day and she called the hospital to check up on her.

Rosie shared a photo of daughter Dakota after she opened her presents underneath the tree on Christmas (above)

On Christmas Eve Rosie wrote on a photo of Dakota, 'the best gift' (above)

Rosie also posted a photo of Parker playing with Dakota (left) and one of her with Vivi (right)

A source told DailyMail.com that the former View star attempted to find out about her daughters medical condition but was informed by a hospital staff member that they could only release this information to Chelseas husband.

When Rosie argued that her teenage daughter wasnt married, she was corrected by the medical worker.

Nicholas confirmed the marriage to DailyMail.com but declined to comment further.

Chelsea has changed her name on Instagram and Facebook to Chelsea Alliegro.

She said that 'almost everything isn't true' but declined to say what exactly she disputed or give her own version of events.

Chelsea and Nick - a plumber - had been living together at an apartment in Sayville, New York, for several months.

According to the source, it was Nick who insisted that Chelsea work on her relationship with Rosie and the rest of the family.

'Nick felt it was important for Chelsea to have a sense of family, as there's nothing more important,' the source said.

After Chelsea reached out to Rosie, the breakthrough reconciliation for the TV star, 54, and her eldest daughter happened 'almost overnight'.

On June 20, Rosie was pictured with Chelsea, Nick and her 13-year-old daughter Vivienne at a charity gala in Manhattan (above)

Rosie's ex Kelliu Carpenter posted holiday card with photos of all the children, but Chelsea did not appear alongside her siblings in the pictures

On June 20, Rosie was pictured with Chelsea, Nick and her 13-year-old daughter Vivienne at a charity gala in Manhattan.

'Their reunion happened quickly and Chelsea was so happy to be around everyone again and reconciled with her siblings,' the source said.

But what she did not tell her family was that she and her plumber boyfriend were planning to get married - at her insistence.

'Chelsea really wanted to get married and told Nick she couldn't imagine spending the rest of her life with anyone else,' a source told DailyMail.com.

'He knew that they would get married eventually but Chelsea was dead-set on getting married immediately, so he bought a diamond ring.

'She has abandonment issues because of her family situation. She feels that everyone leaves her.'
An Indian diamond tycoon has thrown a mass wedding for 236 fatherless brides and given each of them gifts worth thousands of pounds.

In India the ritual of kanyadaan - giving away one's daughter in marriage - is a cherished tradition but many young women, especially from impoverished communities, are deprived of it.

But multi-millionaire Mahesh Savani has come to the rescue, paying for a huge wedding in Gujarat yesterday and performing kanyadaan for all of the brides.

The mass wedding (pictured) took place in Surat, Gujarat. Mahesh Savani said the women, whose families were all too poor to finance their weddings, saw him as their foster father

A helicopter hired by a local TV channel took his picture of the enormous wedding in Gujarat

His own two sons also got married at the same ceremony, making a total of 238 brides.

Mr Savani, who made his fortune in the diamond polishing industry in the city of Surat, said he believed giving away the brides was a blessing from God.

It is not the first time he had done it and he said: 'With Sunday's mass wedding, I have become a proud father to have performed the kanyadaan of over 700 girls.'

Video footage, taken by a helicopter hired by a local TV station, showed the enormous wedding with hundreds of brides in colourful saris and ornate jewellery.

Although kanyadaan is a Hindu ritual, five of the brides were from the Muslim community and one was a Christian.

Mahesh Savani (pictured, left, with one of his sons) paid for the mass wedding. Among those getting married was his cousin Jay (right) who wed his bride, Divya

The tycoon also gifted gold, sofas and beds, worth 500,000 rupees (6,000), to each of the brides.

Savani began his kanyadaan campaign in 2008 when one of his employees died days before his daughter's wedding.

Indian weddings are famous for their sumptuous feasts, decorated horses, bands and dancers to entertain hundreds or even thousands of guests.

Fathers in India traditionally pay for their daughters' weddings, which can mean that if a bride's father has died or is extremely poor, her chances of getting married are next to nil.

Mr Savani's son Mitul (centre) marries his bride Janki (right) in the presence of a Hindu priest. Among the fatherless brides were five from the Muslim community and one Christian

There were literally thousands of wedding guests at the mass ceremony near Surat
Russian leader Vladimir Putin today toured a Russian factory which is working on anti-ageing pills.

The 64 year old Kremlin president visited the Biocad plant in St Petersburg with ailing Kazakhstan leader Nursultan Nazarbayev, 76, who has failed so far to nominate his heir in his energy-rich central Asian state despite his advanced years.

As well as seeking a 'youth pill' in laboratory tests, the plant is also working on treatments to combat cancer.

(left to right) Biocad General Director Dmitry Morozov, Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Russia's President Vladimir Putin, and Russia's Industry and Trade Minsiter Denis Manturov at the Biocad plant

General director at the Diakont Group of Companies, Nikolai Tsukanov (left), explains the plant's process to Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev (right) and Russia's President Vladimir Putin (centre)

Of an anti-ageing breakthrough, scientist Alexander Karabelsk told Putin and Nazarbayev: 'We are expecting the first results within a year.

'Our goal is not to extend life but more to allow a person to improve the quality of life and feel younger in the older years.'

Such therapy should help reduce risks of cardiovascular disease and cancer which are the two main causes of mortality worldwide.

Should the clinical trials be successful, youth pills would allow increase life to 130 years in just 20 or 30 years, the two presidents were told.

Biocad is seen as Russia's leading innovative biotechnology company.

Under their respective constitutions, Putin is limited to one more six year term in office in the Kremlin, while technically Nazarbayev could go on for ever, if his health permits.

Biocad general director Dmitry Morozov, Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Russia's Healthcare Minister Veronika Skvortsova, and Russia's President Vladimir Putin (left to right at the front) visit the Biocad plant

Putin (centre) said last week it was too early to say if he would stand for reelection in 2018, while Nazarbayev (right) - known as 'leader of the nation' in Kazakhstan, won a new five year mandate with 98 per cent of the vote in 2015

Putin said last week it was too early to say if he would stand for reelection in 2018, while Nazarbayev - known as 'leader of the nation' in Kazakhstan, won a new five year mandate with 98 per cent of the vote in 2015.

The visit to the anti-ageing plant came soon after a strong hint from the Putin camp that he does intend to stay in power until the age of 71.

A close ally of the strongman - formerly his chief of staff and now speaker of the Russian parliament - has publicly called on him to seek another six year term in 2018.

'People are waiting for it,' said Vyacheslav Volodin, a key player in United Russia party, Putin's vehicle of power.

'I am not just counting on it, I would like it to happen.'

The move to trumpet another term for 64 year old Putin comes less than a month before Donald Trump - seen as being more open to the Kremlin leader than incumbent Barack Obama - takes over the White House.

'We have a candidate,' said Volodin.

'And we will keep supporting him.

'You know him - and I think you will support him too.

'Because he is a man who has proved with his labour and his service that he can do a lot for Russia, that he loves it.

'He is doing everything for our country and he is acknowledged in the whole world.'

The 64 year old Kremlin president (centre) visited the Biocad plant in St Petersburg with ailing Kazakhstan leader Nursultan Nazarbayev (left, front), 76, who has failed so far to nominate his heir in his energy-rich central Asian state despite his advanced years

As well as seeking a 'youth pill' in laboratory tests, the plant is also working on treatments to combat cancer as the world leaders are shown around

The strong and unequivocal call on Putin to stand in 2018 from his close friend comes after opposition politician and anti-corruption campaigner Alexei Navalny - the president's sternest critic - announced he plans to contest the 2018 election.

If Putin served another six year term, he would be 71 when he stepped down in 2024.

It would take a change in the constitution for him to remain in power longer.

He originally came to power as acting president at the dawn of the new millennium in 2000 with the surprise resignation of Boris Yeltsin.

After two terms of four years each he reverted to his earlier role of prime minister before reclaiming the presidency in 2012 from ally Dmitry Medvedev.

Volodin denied he had his own ambitions to become president, although he is seen as a possible future Kremlin leader alongside a cadre of rival politicians with security backgrounds who Putin appears to be grooming.
A grammar school sixth-form party at Cheltenham Racecourse was shut down by police after Class A drugs were found in the toilets.

Security guards brought an abrupt end to the party after discovering cocaine and MDMA at the pre-Christmas 'Snow Ball'.

Officers raided the event at the world-famous racecourse and the teenagers, from two grammar schools in Stroud, Gloucestershire, were sent home.

A grammar school sixth-form party at Cheltenham Racecourse was shut down by police after Class A drugs were found in the toilets

The ball was organised by grammar school pupils from Stroud High School (pictured) and Marling School

At first, the white powder was thought to be a former legal high before tests revealed it was cocaine and MDMA.

The annual Snow Ball is organised by youngsters at Stroud High and Marling schools with no input from teachers or parents.

Marling School is a non-fee paying selective grammar school for boys aged 11-18 who must pass an entrance test at the start of Year 6.

Notable alumni of the school include Blackadder actor Tim McInnerny and poet, novelist and screenwriter, Laurie Lee.

Former pupils at Stroud High School include jazz musician and vocalist Tina May, politician Emma McClarkin and, Dame Margaret Weston -who was Director at the Science Museum, London from 1973 until 1986.

Gloucestershire Constabulary said the force would not be prosecuting any of the teenagers due to a lack of evidence but have met with staff and both schools.

Staff at the Racecourse venue cancelled the event on December 6 immediately and the 17 and 18-year-old pupils were asked to leave just after 9.30pm

Marling School is a non-fee paying selective grammar school for boys aged 11-18 who must pass an entrance test at the start of Year 6

Staff at the Racecourse venue cancelled the event on December 6 immediately and the 17 and 18-year-old pupils were asked to leave just after 9.30pm.

The early eviction from the venue meant dozens of stranded teenagers had to find alternative ways home, re-book taxis, and call their parents to pick them up.

After the event was shut down both schools said they were working with police and were taking steps to warn pupils about the dangers of drugs and alcohol.

Marling headteacher Dr Stuart Wilson said: 'We are aware that an event in Cheltenham attended by students from the Stroud area was closed early by the venue and that police were in attendance.

'Consequently, we have spoken with the police and continue to liaise with them.'

Mark McShane, head teacher at Stroud High School, said the school supported the police in helping young people understand the risks.

A police spokesman said: 'Due to a lack of evidence that would identify the person who was in possession of the drugs we are not going to be pursuing this case any further.
Investigation uncovered that Barahona, an Afghan War veteran, had four-month affair with 17-year-old student at DeWitt Clinton High School in The Bronx

Barahona was fired from her job as high school science teacher in The Bronx in 2012 when she became pregnant with her student's baby

A former high school teacher, who made headlines in 2012 when she had a baby with her teenage student, was discovered dead Monday morning inside her Harlem apartment along with her love child.

Police officers were summoned to the crime scene at 640 West 153rd Street at around 8.15am and found the lifeless bodies of 36-year-old Felicia Barahona and her 4-year-old son, Miguel Barahona.

According to investigators, Ms Barahona was lying on the living room floor with an electrical cord wrapped around her neck.

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Mother and son: Felicia Barahona, 36, and her 4-year-old son, Miguel (left), were found dead in their Harlem home Monday morning

Horrible find: The mother and son were discovered dead inside their third-floor unit at 640 West 153rd Street in Manhattan

The woman was found in the living room floor with an electrical cord around her neck, and the toddler was drowned in the bathtub

EMS workers who responded to the scene pronounced mother and son dead

Her toddler son was found face down in the bathtub that was filled with water, reported ABC Eyewitness News. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.

The superintendent of the building called 911 early Monday morning after he noticed a foul stench coming from the family's third-floor apartment and then saw the womans body in the living room through the fire escape.

A source with the NYPD told New York Post it is believed the mothers body had been in the apartment for up to four days.

The city medical examiner will determine the cause of death for both victims.

Authorities are investigating to determine whether the deaths were homicides or a murder-suicide.

An investigative report released in early 2013 revealed that Felicia Barahona, then 32 years old, had a four-month affair with a 17-year-old boy who attended DeWitt Clinton High School in The Bronx where she taught science.

Barahona, an Afghan War veteran, was fired from her job as a public school teacher in 2012 after it emerged that she had an affair with a 17-year-old student; Miguel Barahona was the product of his mother's affair with the teen

Barahona, 36, also had an 8-year-old daughter from an earlier relationship, pictured far left

The teacher got pregnant after allegedly telling her underage lover 'not to worry' about using condoms because she did not like them. Barahona delivered a son in August 2012.

Photos posted on Barahona's mother's Facebook page at the time showed the newborn baby boy in a pink outfit, and the woman's neighbors in Harlem revealed to the New York Post that she would sometimes dress 4-year-old Miguel as a girl.

Barahona also had an eight-year-old daughter from a previous relationship who did not live with her.

Siblings: This photo, taken in December 2015, shows then-3-year-old Miguel and his sister meeting with Santa Claus

Barahona, an Afghan War veteran, had waited until her teenage lover was of legal age of consent before the pair began a sexual relationship in 2011.

Barahona allegedly went so far as to purchase the pair wedding rings during their brief romance.

It is believed that the couple were getting together five times a week for trysts, according to the investigation for which they were both interviewed.

The NY Daily News reported in 2013 that Barahona kicked her young lover out of her home for drinking after four months together and shortly after she learned that she was pregnant.

Barahona was fired from her $73,000-a-year job in August 2012, around the time that she welcome her son, Miguel.

On her Facebook page, Felicia Barahona indicated that she studied forensic science at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and also taught at the school. She described her martial status as 'divorced.'
Ivanka Trump and her family are enjoying a holiday getaway at the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai.

The family was seen enjoying some sun and fun over the weekend at the tropical destination, with Ivanka still finding time to workout.

The beach vacation also gave Jared Kushner a chance to toss on his swim trunks and show off his very impressive body.

The 35-year-old was looking very ripped and muscular as he headed off to the beach with his wife and their two sons Joseph and Theodore.

For their getaway, the family appears to be staying at a private villa on the resort, which gives them access to the Four Seasons facilities.

Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump (above with sons Joseph and Theodore on Saturday) are celebrating Hanukkah at the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai

The family was pictured spending some time relaxing over the weekend

Jared Kushner showed off his impressive upper body while shirtless in a pair of swim trunks

The family appears to be staying at a private villa on the resort, which gives them access to the Four Seasons facilities

The billionaire is no stranger to the gym and has been featured working out on his wife's Instagram account

Ivanka posted a photo of herself with husband Jared and the three children on Sunday as they celebrated Christmas and Hannukah, writing: 'This year is one of the rare and special occasions where Hanukkah and Christmas coincide. As we light the candles, sending love from our family to yours this holiday season! Merry Christmas & Happy Hanukkah!'

And later that night, Ivanka slipped out to the beach in her negligee dress to snap a photo of herself and her husband Jared, writing: 'Hawaii.'

Most of Donald Trump's five children spent the recent holiday apart, with Tiffany in Georgia, Eric and his wife Lara in her home state of North Carolina, and Barron and Donald Jr. the family's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach.

Ivanka and Jared jetted off to the islands with Arabella, Joseph and Theodore on Thursday, running into some trouble before they even left New York when Dan Goldstein, a lawyer from Brooklyn, began yelling at Ivanka: 'Your father is ruining the country.'

Goldstein then apparently began screaming out: 'Why is she on our flight. She should be flying private.'

Ivanka kept her cool and she and her family made it to Hawaii after switching over to a private flight once they had landed in San Francisco.

Goldstein's husband, Matthew Lasner, later said on Twitter: 'My husband expressed his displeasure in a calm tone, JetBlue staff overheard, and they kicked us off the plane.'

Family bonding time: Ivanka later posted a cute snap of her relaxing with baby Theodore, who is nine months old, by the pool

This will be the Ivanka and JKared's final holiday before they become the first family

Ivanka hid her face while photos were snapped of her heading to the beach on the resort

Ivanka wore a bikini as she read on the beach while her husband also pulled out a book

Ivanka his her face with some paper as soon as photos started being snapped on Saturday

The couple love a warm-weather getaway, having jetted off to Croatia in August to spend some time on David Geffen's yacht (above)

However, just an hour prior to that Lasner wrote on Twitter: 'Ivanka and Jared at JFK T5, flying commercial. My husband chasing them down to harass them. #banalityofevil'

Lasner also took a photo of Ivanka sitting on the plane writing that they were kicked off for 'expressing displeasure about flying w/ Trumps.'

And while Goldstein was happy to go after Ivanka ,and Lasner was eager to defend his actions, neither of the men confronted Ivanka's husband Jared Kushner, who was right next to her on the flight standing in the aisle the entire time.

The plane was still boarding when the incident occurred, so the crew was able to get the two men and their child off the flight and avoid any further incident.

Ivanka also stopped for some breakfast at a resort cafe on Saturday (above) before heading to the beach

She was joined by her daughter Arabella for the outing on Saturday

It is unclear if the family will be staying through the new year or returning before then

Ivanka posed for a family photo with Jared and their three children, Arabella, Joseph and Theodore Kushner as they celebrated Christmas and Hanukkah on Sunday (above)

Ivanka posted a photo on Christmas night of herself and husband Jared on the beach at their resort (above)

Goldstein began saying to the crew as they escorted him off the plane: 'You're kicking me off for expressing my opinion?!!'

It was after they were off the plane that Lasner then posted his tweets defending his husband and the photo of Ivanka sitting in her seat.

Those tweets were then deleted in less than an hour. An hour after that Lasner deleted his entire account.

JetBlue released a statement soon after saying: 'The decision to remove a customer from a flight is not taken lightly. If the crew determines that a customer is causing a conflict on the aircraft, the customer will be asked to deplane, especially if the crew feels the situation runs the risk of escalation during flight.'

Ivanka's brother, Donald Trump Jr also posted a picture of his five smiling children (from left to right) Kai Madison, Chloe Sophia, Donald John Trump III, Tristan Milos and Spencer Frederick standing in front of their Christmas tree

Lara Trump posted a photo of herself and husband Eric on the beach over the weekend
A female suicide bomber in Nigeria was lynched to death by an irate mob after her explosive vest failed to detonate.

The woman was killed by people at the Kasuway Shanu cattle market in the central district of Kasuwa in Maiduguri in northeastern Nigeria.

She was killed shortly after another woman had successfully detonated her vest.

A would-be suicide bomber was lynched to death by an angry mob in Maiduguri, Nigeria

The first bomber exploded in the busy market but police said she was the only casualty

It is understood the two attacks were due to be coordinated in order to maximise the number of casualties.

Police confirmed the first terrorist died in the attack while the second woman was 'lynched by an irate mob in her vicinity'.

Nobody has claimed responsibility for this morning's attack, which took place around 8.40am local time.

Security forces believe the two terrorists were from Boko Haram.

This week, President Muhammadu Buhari claimed the Nigerian military had successfully wiped out Boko Haram's main base in the Sambisa Forest.

Eyewitnesses collected the dead suicide bomber's body parts and dumped them in a black bag

Her arms and legs were scattered over a wide radius according to eyewitness reports

The two women were believed to be members of the Islamic Boko Haram terror group

He said: 'I was told by the Chief of Army Staff that the Camp fell at about 1:35pm on Friday, December 23, and that the terrorists are on the run, and no longer have a place to hide. I urge you to maintain the tempo by pursuing them and bringing them to justice.'

He said the victory was the 'final crushing of Boko Haram.

Despite having been pushed back to the forest by the army in recent months, the group still stages bombings in the northeast and in neighbouring Niger and Cameroon. A suspected Boko Haram suicide bomber killed two people in Cameroon on Sunday.
The year 2016 took a toll on Americans with emotionally wrenching politics, foreign conflicts and shootings at home. But a majority believes things are going to get better for the country next year, a new poll has shown.

Only 18 per cent of Americans said things for the country got better in 2016 while 33 per cent said things got worse and 47 per cent said they remained the same, according to the Associated Press-Times Square Alliance poll.

But they remained optimistic about 2017 on a personal level.

Fifty-five per cent said they believe things will be better for them in the coming year - a 12-point improvement from last year's poll.

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Emotionally wrenching politics, foreign conflicts and shootings at home took a toll on Americans in 2016. Pictured is a September protest after the fatal police shooting of Keith Lamont Scott in Charlotte, North Carolina

The year 2016 saw the ramping up of the Syrian crisis. Pictured, people wait at a crossing point in Aleppo earlier this month, as the city was under siege by Iran-led Shiite militias and Assad Regime forces

'Next year will be better than this year, because people will have more jobs and they'll have more money to spend,' said Bourema Tamboura, a Harlem resident behind the wheel of a New York car service.

'I'm hoping 2017 will be better,' added Elizabeth Flynn, 62, an elementary schoolteacher from Peabody, Massachusetts. 'You've got to be optimistic, and I'm going to try.'

Democrats are more likely than Republicans to say 2016 was worse for the country than 2015. And Republicans are especially likely to feel that 2017 will be even better for them personally.

University of Miami professor Benjamin Alsup said he needed only three words to explain why 2016 felt worse for him: 'Trump, Trump, Trump!'

Robert Greenstone, a New York commercial real estate broker, said the political discourse leading up to Republican Donald Trump's election as president played havoc with people's emotions.

Fifty-one per cent of Americans found stories about violence at the hand of or against police officers to be among the year's most important news events. Pictured, demonstrators march in New York City in July to call for justice for Alton Sterling and Philando Castile

'The amount of disinformation made people suspect of everything and everyone, even their neighbors,' he said.

The US elections lead Americans' list of top 10 news events in 2016. Three-quarters called the presidential election and Trump's victory very or extremely important.

Sixty-three per cent ranked mass shootings and bombings in Orlando, Florida, and in Belgium, Turkey, Pakistan and France as personally important news stories of the year.

Fifty-one per cent said they found news stories about the deaths of people at the hands of police officers, or news about ambush attacks on police in three states, to be among the year's most important news events.

Sixty-three per cent ranked mass shootings and bombings in Orlando, Florida, and in Belgium, Turkey, Pakistan and France as personally important news stories. Pictured, mourners hold candles at a memorial service for the victims of the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting in June

The US elections lead Americans' list of top 10 news events in 2016, with Democrats more likely than Republicans to say 2016 was worse for the country than 2015. Pictured, Hillary Clinton supporters show their sorrow as she loses the presidential election in November

Fourth on the list are 43 per cent who described the spread of the Zika virus as important.

The three events described by the largest percentages of Americans as not too important included the death of Muhammad Ali (50 per cent), approval of recreational marijuana use in four states (43 per cent), and the death of Fidel Castro (40 per cent).

A majority of Americans, including 7 in 10 Midwesterners, called November's World Series win for the Chicago Cubs to end their 108-year drought memorable.

Of nine other pop-culture items tested, two were called memorable by about half of Americans: the death of Prince, David Bowie and Leonard Cohen; and the Olympic victories of the US women's gymnastics team.

The two least-notable events for Americans, of the 10 possible choices in the poll, were the Angelina Jolie-Brad Pitt divorce filing and the 'Pokemon Go' app game phenomenon, each described by most as forgettable.

About half of Americans plan to celebrate the New Year at home. About two in 10 plan to go out to a friend or family member's home, and one in 10 to a bar or restaurant. About a quarter don't plan to celebrate at all.

About six in 10 plan to watch the Times Square ball drop, nearly all of whom will watch on television.

The AP-Times Square Alliance Poll of 1,007 adults was conducted online between December 9 and December 11, using a sample drawn from market research institute GfK's probability-based KnowledgePanel, which is designed to be representative of the US population.
'If aliens visit us, the outcome could be much like when Columbus landed in America,' Hawking has said in the past

Some are against the plan,

on the best way to say 'hello'

A team of scientists is preparing to phone ET's home.

The San Francisco-based non-profit organization METI (Messaging Extraterrestrial Intelligence) International has announced plans to start sending signals into space for extra terrestrials starting in 2018, rather than waiting for them to contact Earth.

It is a plan that is receiving mixed reviews however, with some leading minds of the opinion that we should not try and seek out alien life but rather hide from them out of fear that could want to conquer the planet.

'If we want to start an exchange over the course of many generations, we want to learn and share information,' said Douglas Vakoch, the president of METI.

Now it is just a question of figuring out the best way to greet any extra terrestrials who might receive this message.

METI (Messaging Extraterrestrial Intelligence) International has announced plans to start sending signals into space for extra terrestrials starting in 2018

Vakoch spoke of the need to send more complex signals out into the universe earlier this year in an interview with Forbes.

'It's too late to conceal ourselves in the universe, so we should decide how we want to represent ourselves,' said Vakoch.

'Extraterrestrials may be waiting for a clear indication from us that we're ready to start talking.'

METI plans to send their first radio transmission by the end of 2018, with an emphasis on messages that reveal basic mathematical and scientific concepts.

'It would be ideal to use a powerful transmitter like those used for planetary radar studies, such as Arecibo Observatory,' said Vakoch.

A number of such signals have already been sent, with perhaps the most famous being fired out by the Arecibo radio telescope in 1974.

Its binary digits reveals some details about our solar system, humans species and Earth's biochemistry.

Vakoch says that we should include an instruction manual of sorts so that aliens can decode are messages more easily.

'If we want to start an exchange over the course of many generations, we want to learn and share information,' said president of METI Douglas Vakoch

''There are a lot of hidden assumptions embedded in the ways we portray three-dimensional objects on two-dimensional surfaces,' said Vakoch.

'Even if aliens use pictures, they may use a different set of conventions to map solid objects onto flat surfaces.'

Some scientists, however, believe we should refrain from contacting aliens at all in case they are hostile.

Professor Stephen Hawking believes if aliens discovered Earth, they are likely to want to conquer and colonize the planet.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrived in Hawaii on Monday to recognize the Japanese attacks on Pearl Harbor.

Abe landed at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam for the historic visit, where he was greeted by the U.S. Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy.

He will be the first Japanese prime minister to visit the memorial that honors sailors and Marines killed in the 1941 attack - but he will stop short of offering an apology. Barack Obama made a trip to Hiroshima six months ago where he too offered his sympathies but stopped short of an apology.

Shortly after landing he made his way to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as Punchbowl, where he presented a flower wreath and observed a moment of silence.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrives. Abe will visit Pearl Harbor with Barack Obama on Tuesday, becoming the first leader of Japan to visit Pearl Harbor

Caroline Kennedy, U.S. Ambassador to Japan, greets him on the tarmac

Marking the day: Caroline Kennedy snapped photos with her iPhone

Punchbowl is the final resting place for more than 13,000 American veterans of the war in the Pacific.

Japan's former leader Shigeru Yoshida went to Pearl Harbor six years after the country's World War II surrender, but that was before the USS Arizona Memorial was built.

Yoshida arrived at Pearl Harbor in 1951, shortly after requesting a courtesy visit to the office of Adm. Arthur W.R. Radford, commander of the U.S. Pacific fleet.

The office overlooked Pearl Harbor, offering a direct view of the attack site.

The memorial will be closed to the public Tuesday when Abe visits the historic site, joined by U.S. President Barack Obama, who is vacationing in Hawaii with his family.

Shortly after landing Prime Minister Abe took a wreath to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, the final resting place for more than 13,000 American veterans of the war in the Pacific

The Punchbowl cemetery, opened after WWII, contains remains from the Armed Forces and includes soldiers from locations around the Pacific Theaterincluding Japanese POW camps

Prime Minister Abe and Director of the National Memorial of the Pacific James Horton observe a moment's silence as 'Taps' are played after presenting the wreath

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, center, and delegation bow at the Ehime Maru Memorial at Kakaako Waterfront Park on Monday

They will meet in Honolulu for a summit before venturing to the wreck of the USS Arizona, where 1,177 sailors and Marines died.

The ship's rusting remains are now a memorial.

Pearl Harbor survivor Al Rodrigues, 96, (pictured Monday) says he welcomes the visit by Abe

The two-hour attack killed 2,403 Americans in all, injured more than 1,100 others and sank or heavily damaged eight US battleships.

The importance of the visit may be mostly symbolic for two countries that, in a remarkable transformation, have grown into close allies in the decades since they faced off in brutal conflict.

At the same time, it's significant that it took more than 70 years for U.S.-Japanese relations to get to this point.

Abe won't apologize for Japan's attack when he visits, the government spokesman said earlier this month.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said that 'the purpose of the upcoming visit is to pay respects for the war dead and not to offer an apology.'

The visit comes six months after Obama became the first sitting American president to visit Hiroshima for victims of the U.S. atomic bombing of that city at the end of the same war.
The cheetah is in danger of extinction, wildlife experts have warned.

The Zoological Society of London wants the world's fastest land animal to be given endangered status along with tigers and Asian elephants, after estimating that just over 7,000 remain globally.

The spotted big cats, which can reach speeds of up to 70mph, are now believed to live on only 9 per cent of the land they once occupied.

The Zoological Society of London wants the world's fastest land animal to be given endangered status

More than half of the world's cheetahs live across six countries in southern Africa

They are being illegally traded as exotic pets, overhunted and killed for bushmeat. They are also losing their habitat to humans.

A study by the ZSL, the Wildlife Conservation Society and conservation organisation Panthera, says Asian cheetah populations have been hit hardest, with fewer than 50 individuals remaining in one isolated pocket in Iran. There may also be some in a few areas of the Indian subcontinent.

More than half of the world's cheetahs live across six countries in southern Africa.

Part of the problem is that they cover massive areas of almost 400 square miles, so need a lot of space.

But many of the wildlife reserves and other protected areas that have been set up to preserve them are 'too small to sustain populations that are viable in the long term', according to the report. Only around a third of cheetahs live in protected areas.

Lead author Dr Sarah Durant said: 'Given the secretive nature of this elusive cat, it has been difficult to gather hard information on the species, leading to its plight being overlooked.

'Our findings show that the large space requirements for cheetah, coupled with the complex range of threats faced by the species in the wild, mean that it is likely to be much more vulnerable to extinction than was previously thought.'

While the global population of cheetahs can only be estimated, for 18 populations where the statistics are available, 14 are in decline, and there are thought to be only 7,100 cheetahs left.

Part of the problem is that they cover massive areas of almost 400 square miles, so need a lot of space - experts say

70MPH...AND A 21 FT STRIDE: THE LEAN AND FAST BIG CAT Cheetahs can reach their top speed of 70mph in just three seconds, but can maintain such velocity only for short bursts of around 300 yards. At full speed, their stride can be as long as 21 ft. Although the cheetah is the fastest animal on land, the fastest animal is the peregrine falcon, which can reach up to 240mph. The cheetah has a long, muscular tail which, at speed, functions like a rudder on a boat, controlling steering and balance. Its name is derived from the Hindi word chita, meaning spotted one. Advertisement

The authors, whose study is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, say the cheetah could be lost forever unless urgent conservation action is taken. It is currently classed as vulnerable, with its population decreasing on the Red List of Threatened Species produced by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
A 39-year-old man fatally shot his wife before killing himself on Christmas morning in front of their nine-year-old daughter, police said.

Tyrone Vanhorn, of Moundville, Alabama, shot his wife Tamiesure Minter Vanhorn inside their home at 1.30am on Sunday before walking outside, telling a family member and shooting himself, police said.

The couple's nine-year-old daughter witnessed the murder suicide and is now in the care of her extended family.

Minter Vanhorn's cousin Deondra Epps struggled to make sense of what happened, telling Dailymail.com: 'I didn't see any signs. She loved him and he loved her. '

Tyrone Vanhorn shot his wife Tamiesure Minter Vanhorn (left) before killing himself in front of their nine-year-old daughter on Christmas (right, the girl with her aunt after the incident)

Vanhorn shot his wife inside their home at the Cedar Bend Mobile Home Park, according to the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's Office.

Vanhorn walked out of the house immediately after and confessed to a family member just 75 yards away before shooting himself, police said.

Minter Vanhorn was airlifted to the DCH Regional Medical Center in critical condition before she died, police said in a statement released on Sunday afternoon.

The couple's nine-year-old daughter is now staying with her grandmother, according to Epps.

The 23-year-old considered Minter Vanhorn her 'big sister' and lived just 25 miles away from the couple.

Epps was reeling from the loss, saying the couple had been happily married for 10 or 11 years.

She told Dailymail.com: 'We don't understand what happened.

'I didn't see any signs. She loved him and he loved her. If [Minter Vanhorn] did have something going on, she would tell you.

'The main concern now is her daughter. I'm going to make sure from now on that she's taken care of and loved,' she added.

Epps said her cousin always had a smile on her face and remembered the 34-year-old as a loving and hardworking person who made sure to provide for her family.
Biological weapons of mass destruction with the ability to spread deadly diseases like Ebola and Zika could wipe out up to a fifth of the world's population, it has been claimed.

Ex-Nato commander James Stavridis described the prospect of advanced biological technology being used by terrorists or 'rogue nations' as 'most alarming'.

He said that it could lead to an epidemic 'not dissimilar to the Spanish influenza' a century ago.

Biological weapons of mass destruction with the ability to spread deadly diseases like Ebola could wipe out up to a fifth of the world's population, it has been claimed

Writing in Foreign Policy, Stavridis said: 'In that plague, by some estimates, nearly 40 percent of the worlds population was infected, with a 10 to 20 percent mortality rate.

'Extrapolated to our current global population, that would equate to more than 400 million dead.'

He continued: 'Most alarming would be that either rogue nations or violent transnational groups would gain access to these technologies and use them to create biological weapons of mass destruction.'

Last year, an EU report suggested that ISIS has recruited experts to wage war on the West using chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction.

Ex-Nato commander James Stavridis described the prospect of advanced biological technology being used by terrorists or 'rogue nations' as 'most alarming'

It warned: 'At present, European citizens are not seriously contemplating the possibility that extremist groups might use chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear (CBRN) materials during attacks in Europe.

'Under these circumstances, the impact of such an attack, should it occur, would be even more destabilising.'
A British 'futurist' who runs a cryogenics facility in the United States wants the treatment applied to himself - but only to his brain and skull.

Dr Max More, the president and CEO of Alcor Life Extension Foundation in Scottsdale, Arizona, told the Galactic Public Archives in a short documentary that he believes his body, unlike his brain, is 'replaceable'.

Cryogenics adepts have their bodies frozen at extremely low temperatures after they are declared legally dead, in the hope that scientific and technological progress will be able to revive them one day.

More holds the same hope for his brain, which will be preserved inside his skull at the facility.

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Dr Max More, the president and CEO of cryogenics facility Alcor Life Extension Foundation in Scottsdale, Arizona, wants to get his brain frozen after he dies

More believes his body, unlike his brain, is 'replaceable'. He is pictured next to a container in which a brain can be preserved upside down, still inside the skull

'Some people call it decapitation - that's wrong, we're not taking the head off, we're taking the body off. The brain is the part we want,' More said.

A little more than half of the foundation's members have chosen to have their brains frozen as opposed to their entire bodies, according to More. Members are people who are still alive but have made all necessary arrangements for their remains to be frozen at the facility once they are declared legally dead.

Patients are deceased people whose bodies or brains are currently housed at Alcor. The facility had 1,111 members as of November, and 149 patients.

Brains are preserved in a transparent container, where they are placed upside down, still inside the skull.

'We don't try to remove the brain from the skull because that's actually quite difficult to do. It could damage it. And this is quite a useful bit of packaging anyway,' More said while gesturing towards his own head.

Cryogenics adepts have their bodies frozen at extremely low temperatures (More is pictured next to a row of preservation tanks) after they are declared legally dead, in the hope that scientific and technological progress will be able to revive them one day

WHAT IS CRYOPRESERVATION, HOW MUCH DOES IT COST AND HOW DOES IT WORK? Cryogenics adepts have their bodies frozen at extremely low temperatures after they are legally dead, in the hope to be revived one day thanks to medical advances WHAT IS CRYOPRESERVATION? The deep freezing of a body to -320F (-196C). Anti-freeze compounds are injected into the corpse to stop cells being damaged. The hope is that medical science will advance enough to bring the patient back to life. Two main US organisations carry out 'cryonics'  Alcor, in Arizona, and Cryonics Institute, Michigan. HOW IS IT MEANT TO WORK? The process can only take place once the body is legally dead. Ideally, it begins within two minutes of the heart stopping  and no more than 15. The body must be packed in ice and injected with chemicals to reduce blood clotting. At the cryonics facility, it is cooled to just above OC and the blood is replaced with a solution to preserve organs. The body is injected with another solution to stop ice crystals forming in organs and tissues, then cooled to -202F (-130C). The final step is to place the body into a container which is lowered into a tank of liquid nitrogen at -320F (-196C). WHAT'S THE CHANCE OF SUCCESS? Many experts say there is none. Organs such as the heart and kidneys have never been successfully frozen and thawed, so it is even less likely a whole body  and the brain  could be without irreversible damage. HOW MUCH DOES IT COST? Charges at the Cryonics Institute start at around $35,000 to 'members' for whole-body cryopreservation. Alcor charges $200,000 for whole-body preservation. HOW LONG BEFORE PEOPLE CAN BE BROUGHT BACK TO LIFE? Cryonics organisations claim it could be decades or even centuries. However Medical experts say once cells are damaged during freezing and turned to 'mush' they cannot be converted back to living tissue, any more than you can turn a scrambled egg back into a raw egg. Advertisement

Alcor, one of two main cryonics facilities in the United states, began housing its own patients in 1982.

Cryonics adepts believe that death as currently defined by the law will one day be reversible and can this be considered temporary. More compared it to a 'deep coma' in the documentary.

They do not know, however, when or how it would be possible to revive those who have gotten their bodies or brains frozen.

Alcor charges $200,000 for a whole body preservation and $80,000 to get a brain frozen. There is a $10,000 surcharge for cases outside the United States or Canada.

WHERE CAN YOU BE FROZEN AFTER YOUR DEATH? Cryonics Institute - Clinton Township, Michigan Alcor Life extension Foundation - Scotsdale, Arizona Oregon Cryonics  Salem, Oregon TransTime - San Leandro , San Francisco The US is no longer the sole preserve or cryogenics, with Russian firm KrioRus becoming one of the first to set up outside of the US. Advertisement

More, who was born in Bristol and earned a degree in philosophy, politics and economics from Oxford University, has been interested in what he calls life extension since he was just 16 years old. He earned his PhD in 1995 with a thesis about the nature of death.

He admits he and other cryogenics specialist have no idea when it might be possible to successfully revive their patients, and said it might take decades or centuries.

'We are like Leonardo Da Vinci who could design wings and helicopters which could actually work but he didn't have the tools to build them back then. But he could show in principle that these would work,' he said.
Sam Champion has quietly stepped down from his job at The Weather Channel just two years after first joining the network.

Tuesday will mark the final episode of Champion's program 23.5 Degrees, which he taped weeks ago.

He began hosting that show in March, seven months after he was dropped from his morning news program by the network.

Champion has yet to make any mention about the news he is leaving, and there has been no word on the social media accounts for his program.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution was the first to report that Champion was leaving the network.

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Gone: Sam Champion (above in 2014) is leaving The Weather Channel

His departure comes two years after he first joined the network after leaving his job at Good Morning America (above in August 2012 with Robin Robert, Lara Spencer and Josh Elliot)

The Weather Channel released a statement on Monday confirming the news, saying: 'While Sam will always be part of The Weather Channel family, we have mutually agreed to not enter into a new contract.

'As our managing editor, host of our flagship AMHQ and his pioneering work on 23.5 Degrees, Sam's leadership has helped transform The Weather Channel into the dynamic high-quality environment it is today.'

A spokesperson then added: 'We are grateful for his contribution and dedication. We wish him all the best in his future endeavor.'

Champion left Good Morning America in December of 2013 to become managing editor of The Weather Channel, where he anchored a morning show, AMHQ: America's Morning Headquarters.

However, in September of 2015, it was revealed that the TV veteran had been cut from the program, after the network decided to 're-work' the show and cut out non-weather content.

Champion currently lives in Miami with his artist husband Rubem Robierb (couple above in 2014)

Champion then briefly returned to Good Morning America in January of this year when he filled in for Ginger Zee, who had just given birth.

It is unclear where he plans to move next.

Champion currently lives in Miami with his artist husband Rubem Robierb.
The Queen supported Brexit and asked why the UK could not just 'get out' of the EU, it was dramatically claimed yesterday.

BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg said the monarch had apparently made her views clear at a private lunch before the referendum in June.

According to Miss Kuenssberg's contact, the Queen told guests at the lunch: 'I don't see why we can't just get out. What's the problem?'

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The BBC's political editor has said she was told that the Queen (pictured) supported EU withdrawal, but did not report it as she could not find a second source

Laura Kuenssberg said she was told about the alleged comment months before the eventual appearance of The Sun's 'Queen backs Brexit' headline in March

The claim was made on another day of positive news for the economy six months after the referendum vote, including:

High streets reported a 4 billion Boxing Day bonanza, spearheaded by foreign tourists cashing in on the weak pound;

A pro-Leave pressure group unveiled figures showing that leaving the single market and the customs union could deliver a 24 billion-a-year boost to the economy;

Former Bank of England governor Sir Mervyn King said the EU was 'pretty unsuccessful' in an economic sense and leaving it presented Britain with 'opportunities'.

Miss Kuenssberg's extraordinary claim follows a report in The Sun newspaper nine months ago, under the headline 'Queen backs Brexit'. Last night, Buckingham Palace said it had nothing more to add to the statement it issued in March, in response to the Sun report, which said the Queen was politically neutral.

Miss Kuenssberg said she did not run the story at the time because she had only one source. But her claims will re-ignite the debate over what the Queens private views about the EU are.

Mr Clegg tweeted following claims that the Queen had 'let rip' at then deputy prime minister about Europe at a lunch at Windsor Castle

Speaking on Radio 4s Today programme yesterday, Miss Kuenssberg said her jaw hit the floor when an unnamed contact told her that the Queen had told a private lunch that she could not see why Britain could not simply leave the bloc.

She said: In a casual chat with one of my contacts, they said, Do you know what? At some point this is going to come out, and Im telling you now and I dont know if the BBC would touch it, but the Queen told people at a private lunch that she thinks that we should leave the EU.

Apparently at this lunch, she said I dont see why we cant just get out. Whats the problem? 

She added: My jaw hit the floor. Very sadly, I only had one source. I spent the next few days trying to prove it. I couldnt find the evidence.

Lo and behold, a couple of months later, someone else did. Of course, then ensued a huge row between that newspaper and the Palace over what had really been said or not said.

EU PRESIDENT IS 'IN DENIAL' OVER TERROR Jean-Claude Juncker was accused of being in denial yesterday after suggesting the best way to fight terror was to keep the borders between EU countries open. The European Commission president said it was now impossible to prevent terrorists crossing borders on the continent. But he insisted that the answer was not a clampdown on free movement and the restoration of passport checks  but a greater effort at an EU level to spot potential security threats. Mr Rees-Mogg said last night: Perhaps Mr Juncker has had too much sherry in his Christmas pudding. He and others like him in Brussels are so sheltered from reality that they have become muddled in their thinking. Advertisement

The Sun always stood by its piece, saying it had two sources for the claim that the Queen had let rip at then deputy prime minister Nick Clegg over Europe at a lunch at Windsor Castle in 2011. Mr Clegg has named then justice secretary Michael Gove as a source, but Mr Gove has never confirmed the allegation. It is not known whether Miss Kuenssbergs source is the same as one of The Suns, or whether it is the same lunch. A BBC spokesman said last night that neither the corporation nor Ms Kuennssberg would comment.

Last night Tory MP Andrew Bridgen said: Its not really a surprise that the Queen is in favour of a sovereign constitutional monarchy.

All the time we were campaigning for Leave, we said we were doing it for Queen and Country. The Queen is 90 years old and she knows full well how great Britain was before we joined the European Union, and how things are now. She is well qualified to offer an opinion, although she keeps these opinions to herself.

Fellow Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg said: It would not be a surprise if the Queen felt this way, given that joining the European Union was a great betrayal of the Commonwealth, and the Commonwealth is close to her heart.
Radio host Chris Bath has revealed how her 17-year-old niece was bullied by a man during a 13-hour flight to see family on Christmas.

The teen had been flying on Emirates EK414 from Dubai to Sydney alone on an international flight for the first time when she was left intimidated and in tears by an older man, Bath claimed.

In a post on Twitter, the Sydney ABC radio presenter wrote that the man wouldn't let her niece recline her seat during the flight.

Radio host Chris Bath revealed how her teenage niece was bullied on a flight (stock image)

Bath took to social media to reveal the man's actions during the long flight

Then, elaborating on Instagram, the former Seven Network newsreader wrote: 'My 17 year old niece is 45kgs dripping wet, a tiny ballerina. She was travelling alone internationally for the first time to see her family for Christmas.

'She landed last night, wiped out, because an awful man seated behind her intimidated and bullied her, had her in tears. Merry Christmas Captain Courageous.'

Her posts drew dozens of responses from people outraged by the man's actions.

Many believed her niece deserved a refund from the airline, while others questioned why the flight crew hadn't stepped in to resolve the situation.

An spokesperson for the airline said: 'Due to privacy reasons Emirates is unable to comment on individual bookings.

'Emirates takes all customer complaints seriously and encourages any passengers with concerns regarding their flight to contact the Emirates customer service team.'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Bath for comment.

Bath's posts drew dozens of responses from people outraged by the man's actions (stock image)
Fraser Watt, 58, has broken the record for the world's longest Christmas day

A British man has broken the record for the world's longest Christmas day after spending nearly two days flying in different planes and countries to have a 47 hour December 25th.

Christmas-mad Fraser Watt, 58, started his race against Santa at midnight on Christmas Eve from Auckland in New Zealand.

He passed through Hong Kong, London and Los Angeles before eventually arriving in Honolulu in Hawaii at 11.38pm local time.

In doing so he also broke the record for the furthest distance travelled on commercial airliners in a single day and the record for the furthest distance travelled in any 24 hour period.

He made Christmas Day last twice as long as usual by flying through different time zones

The incredible journey saw him travel almost 20,000 miles - and stretched his Christmas Day to a whopping 47 hours.

Fraser, originally from Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire, has managed to raise nearly $AUS16,000 for UNICEF for his unenviable feat.

He said: 'I'm currently incredibly tired but very, very happy to have managed to do this.

The incredible journey saw him travel almost 20,000 miles - and stretched his Christmas Day to a whopping 47 hours

Christmas-mad Fraser started his journey at midnight on Christmas Eve from Auckland

Fraser thought of the wacky challenge while he was sitting in a bar with his friend in 2015

'There were a few moments where it looked like it wasn't going to be possible.

'At Los Angeles, it took forever to get off the plane and at the check-in desk I had to argue my case to get my boarding pass after initially being denied a place on board.

'We were 25 minutes late in leaving Los Angeles but actually managed to arrive on the ground early in Hawaii.

'The transfer at Heathrow turned out to be a lot tighter than I thought it would be and we ended up leaving half an hour late.

'I've been running on adrenaline for the last two days and have managed to stay awake for the majority of the time. But as soon as my head hits the pillow in my hotel, I'll have the best sleep of my life.'

It was only on his London flight that he was finally given a traditional Christmas dinner with all the trimmings - with the rest of his journeys offering standard airline fare.

Thankfully Christmas Day is one of the days in the year with the lowest amount of air passenger traffic, which should help Fraser brave the transits and the queues

Fraser first thought of the wacky challenge while he was sitting in a bar with his friend in New Zealand in 2015.

He added: 'We were both approaching big birthdays, and talking about how to make the most of the time we had left.

'We began wondering if you could make a big birthday a 'big birthday' by chasing the sun around the world.

'A quick Google identified that the current world record for the longest day was by a German guy who made 46 hours in 2015, but by cheating and going backwards across the International Date Line.

'The challenge was on.

'The big issue to overcome is can I stand eating four tepid tasteless tin-foil-wrapped turkey dinners at twenty-thousand feet?'

Fraser is no stranger to flying, and is himself a private pilot, but the scope of his challenge dwarfs the Piper prop planes he is used to.

Connections made the timing of his challenge razor-thin - he will only have around 30 minutes from the time he lands in Heathrow from Hong Kong to connect to his LA-bound flight.

Thankfully Christmas Day is one of the days in the year with the lowest amount of air passenger traffic, which should help Fraser brave the transits and the queues.

The dad-of-three admits his globe-trotting adventures make quite a change from growing up in a little house in Clydebank

On his London flight Fraser was given a traditional Christmas dinner with all the trimmings

Fraser also shunned alcohol for the entirety of his journey.

He said: 'If you're going to be on multiple flights you've got to stay hydrated.'

Fraser, who works as an Environmental Scientist in Australia, wore a special red suit decorated with reindeers, snowmen and Christmas trees for the whole haul.

He said: 'That suit has been acquired especially for this trip. I had a collection of Christmas vests but if I'm going to do this I want to grab as much attention as I can.'

Fraser is no stranger to the jet-set lifestyle. As well as living in Australia, he's worked in the Philippines, Vietnam and India.

The dad-of-three admits his globe-trotting adventures make quite a change from growing up in a little house in Clydebank.

He said: 'Back then to go to Spain on a package holiday was considered exotic.'

The Watts always try to share a family Christmas, but this year Fraser caught up with them on the 28th instead.
Eight-time line honours winner and competition favourite Wild Oats XI is out of the Sydney to Hobart race due to a broken hydraulic ram on Tuesday.

The mechanical breakdown meant the team had to retire despite charging to the top of the field and looking like they would set a new record for the race.

It was the second year in a row that Wild Oats XI had to pull out of the classic sailing event after retiring from the 2015 race with a torn mainsail.

Anthony Bell's Perpetual Loyal is now the race leader and is also under race record pace. Giacomo is currently in second place with Maserati in third.

Eight-time line honours winner Wild Oats XI had to retire from the 2017 Sydney to Hobart race

The fleet of 88 yachts which left Sydney on Monday has been reduced to 84 after the additional withdrawals of Freyja, Dare Devil and Patrice.

It had been a disastrous race for skipper Mark Richards and his crew from the beginning.

On Monday he had to manoeuvre his way past some smaller yachts to stay in touch with the other supermaxis after making a terrible start.

Richards was still able to get his supermaxi yacht back in contention, but not before he could be heard frustratingly yelling live on TV: 'I can't f****** see mate!'

His angry remark saw him come in for some teasing on social media.

'Some great language by Mark Richards on Wild Oats XI,' Ollie Howe wrote afterwards.

Wild Oats XI (right) was retired from the race after suffering a broken hydraulic ram on Tuesday

Ollie Howe was just one of a few people who teased Wild Oats XI skipper Mark Richards for cursing live on TV on Monday

Multioptioned joked that the on-air gaffe show that it showed a lack of standards for Australia TV

Wild Oats XI skipper Mark Richards (left) let his frustrations show at the start of the race

Brandon felt that Richards' swearing lapse showed the tension that was involved on the day

The crew on current race leader Perpetual Loyal crash through the waves

'Australian TV has no standards anymore,' multioptioned tweeted.

'And they're off. Oh the tension!' Brandon also tweeted after the on-air gaffe from Richards.

On Monday Perpetual Loyal and Scallywag both had issues with their sails as they approached the first mark, which gave Wild Oats XI the chance to gain ground after its bad start and move into third.

Enigma - a Manley yacht - was the first race-day casualty after withdrawing on Monday morning with engine trouble.

Despite the bad start that Wild Oats XI made, Richards and his crew are favourites to take line honours this year.
Its little wonder why January is one of the most popular times of the year to think about a holiday: the festivities are over and theres little to look forward to but months of chilly weather.

But dont just leave it to wistful thinking - an escape to the historic city of Valletta in Malta will brighten your horizons (and your mood!) with scrumptious local cuisine, year-round sunshine and plenty of culture  and it wont break the bank.

An escape to the stunning historic city of Valletta in Malta will brighten your horizons

Here, we take you through the reasons why Valletta is the only city-break destination you need to know about this year.

ITS DRIPPING WITH HISTORY

As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Valletta is bursting with heritage. In fact theres over 320 historical sites to explore including the Museum of Archaeology, which is home to a rich collection of artefacts and relics, and the National Museum of Fine Art, where you can view Renaissance and Baroque works in abundance and modern works by internationally acclaimed artists.

As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Valletta has over 320 historical sites to explore

St John's Co-Cathedral is a one-of-a-kind Baroque building that is a must see for every visitor

But no trip to Valletta would be complete without a visit to St. Johns Co-Cathedral. The breathtaking Baroque building was the first complete work of its kind with intricately carved stonewalls and an awe-inspiring painted ceiling and is often regarded as one of the worlds most precious sights to see.

YEAR-ROUND SUNSHINE

Valletta has been proven to be the sunniest city in Europe with over 300 days of sunshine making it the perfect escape from the Great British winter.

While summers are typically Mediterranean with temperatures hitting the mid-30s, the cool sea breeze makes the heat totally enjoyable but the winter months are also a great time to visit.

Valletta has been proven to be the sunniest city in Europe with over 300 days of sunshine

The weather in winter is particularly mild and temperatures in springtime reach 20 degrees  perfect for ambling around and exploring the historical city.

ITS A FOODIE HAVEN

From traditional Maltese delicacies to the best of Mediterranean cuisine, Valletta is an essential on any foodies bucket list.

Valletta is packed with a huge variety of restaurants to suit every palette - like Rampila,(pictured) a terrace tucked away behind the stunning, recently restored City Gate

Traditional dishes include Lampuki Pie (fresh fish pie), Kapunata (the Maltese version of ratatouille) and delicious bread dipped in olive oil and rubbed with ripe tomatoes and filled with tuna, onion, garlic and capers, which are bound to impress even the most discerning foodie.

Valletta was named the European Capital of Culture 2018 and is packed full of cultural treats - like the fiesta of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel (pictured)

Not only is the food utterly mouth-watering, but Valletta boasts some of the most romantic restaurants, bursting with ambiance and character. Try Rampila  a terrace tucked away behind the stunning, recently restored City Gate, or Legligin for the best of Maltese food home-cooked by in-house chef (the Maltese Meze of nine traditional dishes is a must).

ITS A CULTURAL HUB

It wasnt named the European Capital of Culture 2018 for nothing  Valletta is home to an array of festivities all celebrating Maltese traditions and talents.

Take carnival week for example, which happens annually in February and sees the streets of Valletta transform into a wash of extravagantly decorated floats and vibrant costumes where carnival-goers dance the day (and night!) away.

Music-lovers will be pleased, with an abundance of opera houses and theatres putting on world-class performances all year round, and even an annual Jazz Festival with a line-up of top International and Maltese artists.

Theres also an International Fireworks Festival and an International Arts Festival which take place every year and are bound to amaze.

THERE ARE BEAUTIFUL BOUTIQUE HOTELS

From beautiful baroque BnBs to opulent 5 star hotels, you will have no trouble finding a place to stay in Valletta. Take Palazzo Consiglia, a traditional Maltese townhouse located in the heart of the culture oh, and dont miss the rooftop pool and the utterly indulgent spa.

If you want to be near the waterfront, try SU29 Hotel, where each room has its own unique theme

The Romantica room at Palazzo Consiglia, a traditional Maltese townhouse located in the heart of the culture

For art lovers, look no further than Ursulino Valletta for rooms that are adorned with vibrant colours of a private art collection and works of visiting artists, or try SU29 Hotel  they are both a stones throw from the Grand Harbour.

But it doesnt stop at Valletta  a few minutes in a water taxi will take you to beautiful Vittoriosa where you can find the hidden gem of Locando la Gelsomina  boutique hotel and luxury teahouse, where they serve award-winning tea blends and delicious homemade treats to guests and passers-by  trust us, its not to be missed.

ITS CLOSE TO HOME

Its hard to believe that anywhere thats warm can be close to home but you can fly to Malta in just three hours and with English as the official language of Malta, Valletta really is a home away from home.

Not only that but British Airways flights start from as little as 49 making it ideal for post-Christmas budgeting.
She's managed to keep herself in the public eye after appearing on Big Brother.

But did Tully Smyth just concede to phoning it in?

The 28-year-old seemed to admit to a year-long lack of inspiration as she showcased her stunning bikini body in a festive Instagram post.

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Phoning it in? Tully Smith seemed to admit a year-long lack of inspiration as she showcased her stunning bikini body in a festive Instagram post

The former reality star flashed her toned abs and generous cleavage, wearing nothing but a skimpy red bikini stop and cut-off shorts.

Her long, lithe legs were dipped in the pool as the 28-year-old covered her face with sunglasses and a Santa hat.

With a whole bottle of champagne in hand, Tully raised a glass to toast. exposing her toned abs and rib tattoo.

Identical? In the caption, the former Big Brother star wrote: 'Thanks for putting up with yet another year of identical selfies, photos of my food and annoying posts with a million tags'

'MERRY CHRISTMAS BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE!' She wrote in the caption.

'Thanks for putting up with yet another year of identical selfies, photos of my food and annoying posts with a million tags'

The tongue-in-cheek post seemingly ousted the socialite's social media accounts for lacking diversity and creative inspiration.

One commenter disagreed, replying: 'keep the selfies coming Jim and I would be lost with out you.'

Couple Alert! The 28-year-old later posted with a mystery man, as well-known performer DJ Generik commented 'CUTE COUPLE ALERT!!!!!', although it was unclear whether or not he was joking

The blonde bombshell later posted a bikini selfie to her Instagram story, before another snap showed her cuddling up to a mystery man.

Tully wore a sleeveless white slip as she cuddled up to her smoking companion.

She wrote in the caption: 'The two third wheels, hanging out together @thediamondfish.'

Single? The former reality star has not publicly commented on her relationship status since she posted a video in bed with her ex-girlfriend in August

Well-known performer DJ Generik commented on the Instagram snap, saying 'CUTE COUPLE ALERT!!!!!'

Although it was unclear whether or not he was joking.

The former reality star has not publicly commented on her relationship status since she posted a video in bed with her ex-girlfriend in August.




Zoe Foster Blake's joker hubby Hamish dialed up the Christmas festivities by dressing up in some hilarious outfits - and he got his son and brother in law in on the fun.

In an Instagram photo posted by Zoe on Sunday, the radio host dons a loud Christmas themed suit while his little boy Sonny wears a tropical themed suit.

Another festive photo shows Hamish again in the blue suit while his brother in law proves he's a good sport by posing in a matching red one.

Like father like son: Zoe Foster Blake's joker hubby Hamish dialed up the Christmas festivities by dressing up in some hilarious outfits - and he got his son in on the fun

'Two out of three ain't bad. (Matchy-matchy outfits/smiles.) Happy Chrimmus, everyone. I hope your day has been joyful,' Zoe captioned the picture.

The author however stuck to a flowing white dress and opted to sit out the 'matchy matchy' family tradition on Christmas day.

Zoe, 36, did however get involved in the matching outfit gag on Christmas Eve, wearing a blue Festivus jumper alongside Hamish, who had on a burgundy version.

Playing along: Another festive photo shows Hamish again in the blue suit while his brother in law is a good sport and poses in a matching red one.

The Gold Logie winner started his dress ups well before Christmas, donning a bear suit for a laugh instead of shopping for gifts as he was planning to.

'Ok, MUST do some Xmas shopping for the fam. 6 working days later....' the 36-year-old dad captioned the amusing photo.

Family time is important to Hamish and Zoe. The beauty editor ensures that she and her fun-loving husband always have dinner together as it's 'important' to them.

Cannot 'bear' it: The Gold Logie winner started his dress ups well before Christmas, donning a bear suit for a laugh instead of shopping for gifts as he was planning to

'We have a glass of wine, we eat dinner, and we talk about our day,' the beauty editor revealed in an episode of the podcast I Don't Know How She Does It.

While the best selling author admits she wasn't attracted to her now-husband at first, the pair's slow-burning romance eventually blossomed.

The good looking couple married in 2012 in a secret ceremony and on that occasion, Hamish stuck to looking dapper a regular old tux!
She's known for her outspoken ways and bizarre fashion sense.

And on Saturday Miley Cyrus combined her two passions in an Instagram post she shared to express her disdain for consumerism.

'Call me the grinch but "Christmas" always makes me feel deeply sad,' the 24-year-old songstress wrote. 'It is filled with so much excessiveness & greed.'

'Call me the Grinch': Miley Cyrus said Christmas makes her 'deeply sad' due to consumerism and 'greed' in an Instagram post she shared on Saturday

The Hannah Montana alum went on, 'I just hope everyone gives the gift of love and acceptance this year to not only their own family but those around the globe who don't get everything they wished for due to life's unfair circumstances!'

'My parents always made Christmas about others,' she continued. 'And I hope you find it in your heart to do the same!'

The daughter of country crooner Billy Ray Cyrus took the opportunity to promote her nonprofit organization The Happy Hippie Foundation.

'Purpose it gives me': The 24-year-old songstress took the opportunity to promote her nonprofit organization The Happy Hippie Foundation

She wrote: '@happyhippiefdn is what I am most thankful for this year because of the purpose it gives me. Without it I would feel so lost and useless on this planet!... #celebrateloveveryday.'

Miley's foundation has a mission to 'rally young people to fight injustice facing homeless youth, LGBTQ youth and other vulnerable populations,' according to their site.

The Golden Globe nominee donned a sequinned reindeer headband with red and white snowflake onesie.

Sexy Santa! Miley posted a selfie in a plush red off-the-shoulder mini dress which she accessorized with a sparkling bow headband and Christmas tree-themed shades

'Happy Hollydaze!': Miley shared a sweet snapshot with her 57.8million followers showing her with fiance Liam Hemsworth, 26

'Our big and beautiful rescue!': Miley posted a sweet photo with Liam and her rescue dog Dora as she promoted adopting over buying pets in the caption: 'A perfect holiday present for your family to ADOPT & SAVE a life! #adoptdontshop'

A strand of colourful Christmas lights hung around the former Disney Channel star's neck and she added a few jewelled stickers for extra sparkle.

She slipped into another eye-catching ensemble to keep in line with the festive yuletide theme.

Miley posted a selfie in a plush red off-the-shoulder mini dress which she accessorized with a sparkling bow headband and Christmas tree-themed shades.

Meanwhile the Wrecking Ball hit-maker - who is yet to walk down the aisle with fiance Liam Hemsworth, 26 - celebrated the holiday with the hunky Australian actor.

Hollywood holidays! Miley celebrated Christmas with fiance Liam Hemsworth, 26, his brothers Luke and Chris Hemsworth and their family

Liam, along with his A-list brothers Luke and Chris Hemsworth, posted a gorgeous family photo including the Nashville starlet.

The attractive family showed the gang dressed in matching festive pyjamas as they celebrated in what appeared to be a perfectly styled living room.

The crew was seen squished together on a large couch in front of a table covered in candles and an indoor bonfire.

A giant sign behind the couch spelling out Merry Christmas with lights inside each letter gave the celebration a Hollywood touch.
She rose to fame as the 'villain' on this year's season of The Bachelor.

And Keira Maguire looks set to turn up the heat this Christmas, with the 29-year-old telling fans she will be heading to Byron Bay to celebrate the festive season.

'Bye Sydney. Time to trade in the jeans for the 'kinis ... Byron I'm coming for you..... (sic)' the former reality star told her 54,500 followers on Sunday.

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'Bye Sydney': Keira Maguire revealed to her Instagram fans on Sunday that she was headed to Byron Bay to soak up the sunshine during the festive season

The blonde shared the news alongside a selfie out and about in Sydney.

It appears Keira is loving her new look - after having had $22,000 worth of plastic surgery recently - with the former real estate worker showing off her smile in a selfie.

'Morning ... I'm so happy with my results,' Keira wrote alongside a snap of her pearly whites, while touting a dental product.

'Time to trade in the jeans for the 'kinis': The 29-year-old later shared a snap of herself showing off her pearly whites and new nose job

Speaking of her recently surgeries, Keira told NW magazine: 'I've always wanted to be perfect!'

Her dramatic makeover included a nose job, fillers, Botox, tattooed eyebrows, and 'vampire facials'.

Keira confessed she decided to have rhinoplasty after seeing how her nose looked on The Bachelor earlier this year.

Chasing perfection: The former reality star recently underwent $22,000 worth of plastic surgery, telling NW: 'I've always wanted to be perfect!'

For the nose surgery, which cost $15,000, Keira saw Dr. Michael Zacharia, the man behind former Big Brother star Skye Wheatley's rhinoplasty.

Keira also admitted that she is now looking into upgrading her breast size.

'Maybe just boosting them to little teardrops, not big bazookas,' she said.
We're Going On A Bear Hunt

Rating:

Strictly Come Dancing

Rating:

Len Goodman may have tripped the light fantastic for the final time for us  but it was another heart-warming spectacle that scored a perfect 40 points.

Every few years, a simple animated delight proves to be the highlight of Christmas television  more satisfying and rewarding than all the big-budget spectaculars.

It happened in 1982, with a shimmering version of Raymond Briggss storybook, The Snowman, on Channel Four. The children who were enchanted by that now have families of their own, and The Snowman is as much a Christmas tradition as mistletoe or silly knitwear.

Len Goodman may have tripped the light fantastic for the final time for us  but it was another heart-warming spectacle that scored a perfect 40 points, says CHRISTOPHER STEVENS

Much more recently, Julia Donaldsons multi-million-selling The Gruffalo was adapted by the BBC in 2009, with a celebrity cast including Robbie Coltrane, Helena Bonham Carter and James Corden. It made everything else on telly that Christmas feel as though it had been done on the cheap.

This year, weve been given another absolute delight: Were Going On A Bear Hunt (C4). It featured some big names in mum Olivia Colman and dad Mark Williams, as well as grandma Pam Ferris. But they werent the main attraction.

Instead, the main star was the glorious English countryside, which was the backdrop for a story that seemed to encompass the whole of childhood in a single day.

It was uplifting and moving, and C4 bosses must have known they had an instant classic because they scheduled it twice, for both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

The original book was published in 1989, written by former Childrens Laureate Michael Rosen, with drawings by Helen Oxenbury. Told in bouncy verses ideal for bedtime reading, it seems a straightforward tale at first: left alone by their parents, five children set off with their dog in search of adventure and, if theyre lucky, a real live bear.

Were Going On A Bear Hunt featured some big names in mum Olivia Colman and dad Mark Williams, as well as grandma Pam Ferris

Were going on a bear hunt! they chant. Were going to catch a big one! What a beautiful day... were not scared! When they find one, it chases them all the way home, until they hide under the blankets. And hidden under the warm layers of the story is a deeper, sadder theme: the children are mourning for their grandfather.

Grampa would have liked it here, they say to themselves, as they sit on a hillside and watch the red kites wheeling... with his flask of tea, and toffees, and his book on birdwatching.

Eight-year-old Rosie misses him most. Shes the first to find the bear, and she gives it Grampas scarf to keep it warm in its cave. The bear doesnt want to hurt the children: it chases them because it wants to be with them, and of course it cant be. (Rosen himself did the bears growls.)

As it lollops away along the beach at the end, still wearing the scarf, and stands on its back legs to heave a great sigh, theres a sense that somehow the bear is like death  scary, and lonely, but something its better to understand than to fear. Thats a big notion for a childrens animation.

To find their bear, the children must journey across all sorts of landscapes. They begin in a summer meadow, surrounded by butterflies, before crossing a freezing stream and then traipsing across mudflats. Wild animals are glimpsed everywhere, including a curlew, red squirrels and a stag in the mist.

They climb a hill, explore an ancient wood and finally brave a snowstorm, before reaching the seaside where the bear has his cave. Its like every childhood holiday memory bundled into one long walk, and beautifully drawn.

Meanwhile, that cuddly old teddy bear of Strictly Come Dancing (BBC1), Len Goodman, performed his final encore after weeks of getting ready to say goodbye.

Last week, he helped Ore Oduba dance to victory with his last-ever ten from Len  now he was shaking a leg himself for the finale.

There were some baffling choices among the returning dancers: former finalists Frankie Bridge (of the girl group The Saturdays) and sex therapist Pamela Stephenson were there, but also DJ Melvin Odoom, who was dumped out of this years contest so quickly that none of the judges even had time to do a Dads Army joke about how he was Odoomed, I tell ye... Odoomed!

With a line-up fleshed out by the likes of TV chef Ainsley Harriott, who is no Fred Astaire, there was a strong inkling that the big dilemma for producers had been, not Who shall we invite back? but Who hasnt turned us down?
Eva Longoria planted her Christmas tree on a balmy beach in Mexico.

The 41-year-old actress shared a Snapchat video on Sunday of her decorated tree standing tall in the sane near lapping ocean waves.

Eva playfully posed around the green tree trimmed with white tinsel, silver sphere ornaments and a blue bow on top.

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Beach tree: Eva Longoria brought her Christmas tree out to the beach on Sunday while celebrating the holiday in Mexico and shared it on Snapchat

The Desperate Housewives pranced around the tree in a bikini and grey coverup.

Eva noted that it was a balmy 74 degrees Fahrenheit outside.

'The Christmas tree is on the sand. We brought it outside from the house. They thought I was crazy,' Eva said in a video.

Eva also took to Snapchat on Saturday to capture Christmas Eve festivities.

Fun party: The actress also shared a Snapchat video on Saturday of Christmas Eve fun

Dance party: Eva's husband Jose Antonio Baston danced in a Santa outfit

The Texas native said they were celebrating with dance routines.

Eva's husband Jose Antonio Baston, 48, was shown in a Snapchat video dancing while wearing a Santa Claus outfit.

The Telenovela star also posted bikini pictures on Friday while on a whale watching trip in Mexico.

Blue Christmas: The Desperate Housewives star stood under blue skies near her tree

Social media: The Christmas tree also was shown on Instagram with a 'Merry Christmas' message from Eva

Eva can next be seen on the big screen in the drama Lowriders due out in May 2017.

She also has been cast in All-Star Weekend, a comedy written and directed by Jamie Foxx, 49.

The film, which does not yet have a release date, also stars Jessica Szohr, Jeremy Piven, Corinne Foxx and Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Throngs of Australians have hit beaches across the country in a bid to enjoy the balmy temperatures Down Under during the festive season.

And on Christmas Day, Hollywood star Simon Baker, 47, joined in on the fun as he took on the surf with bravado at Sydney's Bondi Beach.

Pictures captured at the popular tourist hotspot saw the sandy blonde actor gliding along waves, before spectacularly falling backwards into the relentless ocean swell.

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Dumped: Simon Baker has been spotted at Bondi Beach gliding along waves - before spectacularly falling backwards into the relentless ocean swell

Simon appeared to start off well as he steadily navigated across the water.

The popular television personality appeared focused as he drew closer to the breaking point of the waves.

Getting down close to his board the actor - known for his role in the Mentalist - was seen placing his hand into the water as he cruised along the turquoise water.

Strong start: Simon appeared to start off well as he steadily navigated across the water

Determined: The popular television personality appeared focused as he drew closer to the breaking point of the waves

Summer vibes: Getting down close to his board the actor - known for his role in the Mentalist - was seen placing his hand into the water as he cruised along the turquoise water

Wading out into the ocean to catch a wave, Simon was seen looking at something off camera as he lay on his chest on top of his board.

With one sure lift, Simon was seen lifting his chiseled body from the board up into a crouching position.

His long hair was slicked back by the crashing water and he wore a pair of navy board shorts as he glided across the water.

Drenched: His long hair was slicked back by the crashing water and he wore a pair of navy board shorts as he glided across the water

What a wave: The 47-year-old was seen steadying himself on his board as the wave coiled behind him as he rode

Lucky: Simon appeared to avoid being dumped by the wave as he turned on his surfboard

The 47-year-old was seen steadying himself on his board as the wave coiled behind him as he rode.

Simon appeared to take the wave at ease before loosing his footing.

His arms appeared to flail in a peculiar fashion before he was thrown off his board into the sea foam.

The famed Hollywood star appeared determined to continue to surf as seen when the Devil Wears Prada actor got back onto his board to cruise the wave again.

Looking good: The Mentalist star stayed close to his board kneeling as he glide across the water

Uh-oh! Simon appeared to lose balance but quickly straightened up

Surf's up! The Devil Wears Prada actor was seen using his arm as a way to balance while standing up on the teetering surfboard

Just days earlier, Bondi Beach evacuated beach goers at around 8am after a shark was suspected to be in the water.

Fellow Hollywood hard hitter Hugh Jackman was among the people asked to vacate the water.

The 48-year-old had gone for an early morning swim when he was called out of the ocean. No injuries were reported after initial panic subsided.

Professional: At times, Simon appeared to have a knack for the water sport

Maybe not? But often more than not was seen thrown from his board into the waves below

Taking the plunge! His arms appeared to flail in a peculiar fashion before he was thrown off his board into the sea foam

Meanwhile, Simon recently returned from Japan after a trip to Tokyo for the Japan Cup on behalf of Swiss watchmakers Longines.

Simon will now gear up for the release of his first movie as a director.

He directs and stars in Breath, which is based off a Tim Winton novel and set for release in 2017.

Practice makes perfect: Simon appeared to get back on his board a number of times to practice staying afloat on the small waves

Happy to be home: Simon appeared happy to be in the water at the tourist hot spot after coming home from Japan

Making a splash! The sandy haired Hollywood actor seen surfing at Bondi rose to prominence with his role on The Mentalist as Patrick Jane

Breath is set in mid-70s coastal Australia and follows the story of two teenage boys, who are pushed to take risks that will have lasting and profound impacts on their lives.

Simon Baker rose to prominence in his role at Patrick Jane in the television series The Mentalist.

He has been married to wife Rebecca Rigg since 1998 and shares three children Stella, Harry and Claude with her.
They've been estranged since news of their separation broke in September.

And Karl Stefanovic experienced his first Christmas without the company of his immediate family, including wife Cassandra Thorburn.

The 42-year-old Today host was spotted arriving at a property in Sydney on Sunday ahead of his extended family's celebrations, while Cassandra was seen outside the former couple's family home with their daughter Ava in Lindfield.

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Spending Christmas apart: Karl Stefanovic and his estranged wife Cassandra Thorburn were spotted preparing for Christmas day celebrations in separate houses in Sydney

Sporting a blue linen shirt with a pair of khaki shorts, Karl was seen unloading presents and party supplies from his car and carrying them into the house.

The father-of-three cut a relaxed figure, adding a fedora and a pair of sandals to his Summer look.

He was joined by his mother Jenny and his niece as they made their way into the house.

Feeling festive: Cassandra appeared to be in the Christmas spirit, sporting a quirky little Santa hat on her head while carrying a large platter of food into the house

A helping hand: The journalist was joined by her daughter Ava, who helped carry party supplies from the car

The Logie winner's brother Peter was also spotted along with other family members.

Peter's future brother-in-law Andrew Jeffreys was also invited to the family bash, arriving with his wife Aki and their daughter Yuumi.

Elsewhere in Sydney, at their family home in Lindfield, Cassandra looked to be getting into the festive spirit without her estranged husband.

Relaxed: The estranged wife of Karl cut a casual figure in denim shorts and a striped tank top as she carried heavy bags inside from the car

Preparations: It appears Cassandra celebrated the holiday without Karl, who was busy in another part of town with his extended family

The former ABC journalist was spotted unloading a large platter of food from her car and carrying it to the house.

She made several trips back and forth, carrying two bags full of various items.

The mother-of-three wore a pair of denim shorts with a laid-back striped tank top as she ran the errand.

Christmas cheer: Karl meanwhile, was seen in high spirits as he joined his mother Jenny (right) and other relatives for a party

He comes bearing gifts: The Today host was seen carrying a large box wrapped in colourful paper into the house

Holiday mode: The father-of-three beamed from ear to ear, sporting a salt-and-pepper beard and a fedora

She added a Christmas feel to her outfit with a quirky little Santa hat.

The brunette was joined by her daughter Ava, who also helped to unload the car and carry supplies into the house.

Ava hat a Santa hat of her own, although she opted to carry it in one hand rather than wear it while walking to and from the car.

Summery: The newly-single star showed off his personal style, sporting a pair of khaki shorts with a blue shirt and a pair of tan sandals

Daily Mail Australia have approached representatives for both Karl and Cassandra for comment.

Despite being away from his immediate family, Karl seemed in high spirits while celebrating with the rest of his relatives.

Brothers: Karl's brother Peter was also spotted carrying a carton of beer into the house while barefoot

Festive: The 60 Minutes journalist was dressed in bright colours as he carried ice in from the car

Big family: Peter's future brother-in-law, Andrew Jeffreys, was also invited to the shindig, arriving at the house with his wife and daughter

The Channel Nine star was seen grinning from ear to ear while sporting a salt-and-pepper beard, posing alongside his siblings.

Standing in front of a Christmas tree, Karl was joined by his brothers Tom and Peter, and sister Elisa, as they took the fun snap.

'My beautiful family. Brothers @mali_dje @kstefanovic and sister Elisa. Big love. Great day,' 60 Minutes journalist Peter captioned the post.

Single life: The Logie winner has been enjoying single life since splitting from Cassandra, and shared a snap of himself doing yoga with his mother and sister last week

Time off: The Channel Nine personality is currently enjoying a break from his TV duties before returning to Today in the new year

Karl has been enjoying single life since his split from Cassandra.

On Wednesday, the 42-year-old enjoyed an early morning yoga session with his mother Jenny and sister Elisa.

In the Instagram photo, Karl balanced on one leg as he stared towards his sister, who stood in a similar pose.

'Morning yoga with @littlethingsyoga and my Sis and Ma. Im not stretchy,' he captioned the photo.

Karl is currently taking the holiday season off and will return to hosting Today next year.
Christy Carlson Romano welcomed her first child with husband Brendan Rooney.

The 32-year-old former Disney Channel star is now mother to little girl Isabella Victoria Rooney, who was born in Los Angeles on Saturday.

'Joy doesnt begin to express how we feel this Christmas!' the actress told People magazine. 'Isabella is the greatest thing to ever happen to us.'

'Greatest thing': Christy Carlson Romano and husband Brendan Rooney welcomed their first child on Christmas Eve, a little girl named Isabella Victoria Rooney

'We are truly grateful to all those who have supported us during this special and momentous time,' the new mum added.

The actress - best known for her role as Ren Stevens on the hit Disney series Even Stevens - told the publication back in June she felt 'blessed.'

'I am flabbergasted at the serendipity of having a baby on Christmas. Its our favorite holiday!' Christy said when she announced her pregnancy.

'Motivating to get dressed': Last week the 32-year-old actress took to Instagram in a black bra as she held her bare pregnant belly

'What a gift well have this year. Feeling so blessed and grateful and a little nauseous.'

The beauty has taken to Instagram and shared several photos with fans as she documented her pregnancy along the way.

Last week, she donned a black bra and held her bare pregnant belly in a snapshot she captioned: 'Me having a full on conversation with my bump about motivating to get dressed for a holiday party. Haha. I'm trying guys.'

Ready to pop! The Even Stevens actress showed over her blossoming bump at an event earlier this month in a crimson dress

She added numerous hashtags including: '#soclose #10days #prayers #motivation #holidayparty #letsdothis #canIwearleggings.'

The Emmy Award-nominated starlet and her writer-producer husband met in February 2011 while she was studying at Barnard College in New York City.

The couple became engaged in November of that same year and married on New Year's Eve 2013.

'The jelly is cold!': The Emmy nominee and her writer-producer husband met in February 2011 and tied the knot on New Year's Eve in 2013

Christy described: 'I was the assistant director on an on-campus documentary about veterans.'

'Brendan was the president of the Military Veterans at Columbia and we met while we were interviewing him,' she continued.

'It was such a magical feeling that stayed with me, so I wanted to recapture that on my wedding day,' the Broadway star explained of why she chose a hotel she visited while performing in The Sound of Music, as the perfect place to celebrate.
She made her feelings blatant to her younger sister Georgia Love during her first meeting with her soon-to-be partner Lee Elliott.

But it seems Georgia's protective older sister Katie has buried the hatchet with Lee, since he was chosen in the finale of the Bachelorette earlier this year.

Pictures posted to Georgia's Instagram story saw the blunt older sister beaming as she posed beside him in pictures from a Christmas gathering with the Love family.

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BFFs: Georgia Love's protective older sister Katie seems to have buried the hatchet with Bachelorette's Lee Elliott after slamming him for being insincere with his feelings

The words 'He's a bit smooth' were written across the bottom of the snap, in reference to Lee's cold first encounter with a once disapproving Katie.

Other pictures posted to Instagram saw Georgia, Lee and Katie smiling together as they enjoyed Christmas Day together.

Lee stood in the middle of the Love sister in a picture captioned with a small love heart and the words 'sister' written on the bottom.

Katie showed off her quirky side in a peculiar reindeer mask and Santa's hat, while Lee and Georgia opted for a more casual look with plain Santa's hats and no masks.

Peculiar: Georgia was seen posed with her cat wearing reindeer antlers, meanwhile Katie showcased her quirky side wearing a reindeer mask and a Santa cap

Georgia also posted a picture of herself with her cat, who she started an Instagram account for and is often seen in pictures with her on social media.

Lee opted for a humorous Christmas Day post, sharing an image of what people would have as expectations versus the reality of Christmas day.

The picture saw him and Georgia in two separate frames one with a huge Christmas tree with plenty of gifts and one that was meagre in comparison.

Happy snaps: Other pictures posted to Instagram saw Georgia, Lee and Katie smiling together as they enjoyed Christmas Day together

Georgia however took the opportunity to pay tribute to her late mother by posting a picture from last Christmas reminding fans to show their loved ones they care.

She wrote: 'This time last year none of us had any idea this would be the last Christmas photo we'd have all together.

'Give your loved ones an extra big hug tonight, family is everything.'

Expectation vs Reality: Lee opted for a humorous Christmas Day post, sharing an image of what people would have as expectations versus the reality of Christmas day

Meanwhile, earlier this year Lee received a grilling from Georgia's protective older sister during his first meeting with her family on the Bachelorette.

Katie was unsure about the brunette hunk's intentions and made her thoughts blatant when speaking to her younger sister about the mechanical plumber.

'It makes me feel like he's being ingenuine with his feelings (sic),' she told Georgia.

'Give your loved ones a big hug': Georgia however took the opportunity to pay tribute to her late mother by posting a picture from last Christmas

'The vibe that I get from him is that he's very smooth,' Katie shared in a private one-on-one with the camera after the meeting.

'I get the impression he's saying the right things. He knows that he's saying the right things.

'I think Georgia might be getting a bit swept up with Lee. I think I have been able to call a bad egg out in the past.

Not happy: Earlier this year Lee received a grilling from Georgia's protective older sister during his first meeting with her family on the Bachelorette - but the pair have since become friends

'I don't want to see her getting swept up and then let down again,' she finished.

Despite her strong feelings against Lee and her obvious favour towards Matty J, Georgia chose Lee in the final rose ceremony - much to the dismay of fans.

The pair have been seen sharing loved up snaps across Instagram since the finale gushing over their unwavering love for one another.
Kourtney Kardashian shared a b&w party snap of herself with ex-partner Scott Disick and their sons Reign, 2, and Mason, 7, on Christmas day.

'Merry Christmas from my modern family to yours!' the 37-year-old reality star - who boasts 87.4M followers - wrote.

The picture was taken at her momager Kris Jenner's annual Christmas Eve bash on her Hidden Hills estate where R&B belters John Legend and Babyface performed.

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'Modern family!' Kourtney Kardashian shared a b&w party snap of herself with ex-partner Scott Disick and their sons Reign, 2, and Mason, 7, on Christmas day

The half-Armenian socialite bared her taut midriff in a white bra-top, matching trousers, and fur selected by her stylist Monica Rose.

Kourtney and her 33-year-old babydaddy's nine-year on/off relationship famously ended after he was caught canoodling with stylist Chloe Bartoli last year.

The former KUWTK couple - who are also parents four-year-old Penelope - are not back together despite prior reports.

Fancy: The picture was taken at her momager Kris Jenner's annual Christmas Eve bash on her Hidden Hills estate where R&B belters John Legend and Babyface performed

Hanging with Kim: The 37-year-old reality star bared her taut midriff in a white bra-top, matching trousers, and fur selected by her stylist Monica Rose

'Kourt insists there's no intimacy,' a source told TMZ earlier this month.

'They are on better terms than they've been in years - he's staying clean, and has been a present father - but she still isn't sold enough to make a romantic leap. Scott still stays at his own house.'

According to Us Weekly, the University of Arizona grad has been romancing 23-year-old boxer-turned-Next Model Younes Bendjima 'for some time now.'

It's over: The half-Armenian socialite and her 33-year-old babydaddy's nine-year on/off relationship famously ended after he was caught canoodling with stylist Chloe Bartoli last year

'Kourt insists there's no intimacy': The former KUWTK couple - who are also parents four-year-old Penelope - are not back together despite prior reports (pictured Friday)
They've been enjoying a festive break in Barbados and Made In Chelsea's Lucy Watson and her boyfriend James Dunmore appear to be enjoying the time away.

The pair were seen indulging in a passionate PDA as they soaked up the sun on the tropical isle, where they could barely keep their hands off one another.

Lucy, 25, looked incredible in a plunging blue bikini top which showed off her ample assets and washboard abs.

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Stunning: Made In Chelsea's Lucy Watson flaunted her washboard abs in a plunging blue bikini as she holidayed with boyfriend James Dunmore in Barbados on Christmas day

Can't keep his hands off her: The pair were seen indulging in a passionate PDA as they soaked up the sun on the tropical isle

She teamed the top with a contrasting black pair of bottoms as she headed out on a jet ski with her man, where they took it in turns to drive.

Wearing sunglasses, it was when the couple got back to dry land that they couldn't resist a tender moment, with James wrapping his arms around his towel-clad love.

Later on, she was seen getting back into a floral sundress before heading off with her man.

Wow thing: Lucy, 25, looked incredible in a plunging blue bikini top which showed off her ample assets and washboard abs

Whoosh! She teamed the top with a contrasting black pair of bottoms as she headed out on a jet ski with her man, where they took it in turns to drive

Taking over: James showed off his driving skills as he took the controls

Over to her: Then Lucy had a go as well and looked delighted

Safety first: The former reality star made sure to put on a lifejacket

Back in September, Lucy announced her departure from Made In Chelsea, revealing she wanted to concentrate on new projects.

The announcement came shortly after Lucy's friend Frankie Gaff revealed she was taking time away from the spotlight to concentrate on her relationship with her boyfriend James Dunmore, who she has been dating since 2015.

Frankie told BANG Showbiz: 'Lucy's not going to be in the next series. At the moment she's decided not to because she's loved up.'

Hold this please: Lucy showed off a golden glow as she enjoyed the water sports

All the fun: Lucy showed off her flawless figure as she stepped off the jet ski

Stepping out: The pair showed off their gym honed figures as they headed back out to dry land

Just like a poster: The couple looked picture perfect as they walked along the sands together

Cosy: James looked as though he was about to pick his lady up in the air as he threw his arms around her

Lucy's last appearance on Made in Chelsea saw her clash with her best friend Stephanie Pratt after she 'dumped' her for her boyfriend-at-the-time Josh Shepherd.

Lucy - who joined the show in 2012 - previously said: 'We don't talk anymore.

'Last year was a very difficult year for me because she essentially dumped me for her boyfriend at the time [Josh Shepherd] as he didn't like me. When something like that happens you don't forget.'

Mixing it up a little: Later on, she was seen getting back into a floral sundress before heading off with her man

Looking out: James seemed rather transfixed as Lucy got dressed

In high spirits: They both got the giggles as something caught their attention
It's an annual migration which sees him enjoy the sun, sea and sand in the tropics alongside his friends and family.

And Simon Cowell was clearly making the most of his festive downtime as he spent Christmas Day on the beach in Barbados with Lauren Silverman and their son, Eric.

Joined by Lauren's mother, Carole Davis, the 57-year-old music mogul, his partner and their son all looked to be enjoying some quality time together.

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Daddy cool! Simon Cowell was clearly making the most of his festive downtime as he spent Christmas Day on the beach in Barbados with Lauren Silverman and their son, Eric

Family festivities? Joined by Lauren's mother, Carole Davis, the 57-year-old music mogul, his partner and their son all looked to be enjoying some quality time together

Stripping down to just his swim shorts for a walk along the beach, Simon strolled along the golden sands with his trusted pet dogs as Lauren and her mother looked after Eric, two.

The X Factor supremo cut a very casual figure in nothing but his board shorts as he and an assistant looked after the family's two dogs, Squiddly and Diddly.

Lauren, 39, played the doting parent to the couple's only son, as she carried Eric in her arms along the beach.

Doggy daycare: The X Factor supremo cut a very casual figure in nothing but his board shorts as he and an assistant looked after the family's two dogs, Squiddly and Diddly

Looking as chic as ever in a teal patterned Bardot mini dress, the American socialite was the picture of beach-bound glamour.

And it was clear to see where Laurent has inherited fashionable from, as the brunette beauty was joined on the beach by her equally chic mother, Carole.

While Lauren went for a breezy little mini teamed with a floppy sunhat and shades, her mother showed off her incredible figure in a pair of white shorts and a matching tank.

Beach chic: Looking as chic as ever in a teal patterned Bardot mini dress, the American socialite, 39, was the picture of beach-bound glamour

Fashionable as ever: And it was clear to see where Laurent has inherited fashionable from, as the brunette beauty was joined on the beach by her equally chic mother, Carole

Simon's mini-me: Eric looked the spitting image of his dad as he went for a walk with his grandma and mother, though he kept the sun at bay by covering up, unlike his tanned father

The other two Cowells: The family's pet Yorkshire Terriers, Squiddly and Diddly, looked to be having some fun during the walk

The man himself: Simon looked eager to inject some action into the family's day, and threw oa life-preserver as he hit the water on a jet ski

Clearly having had his fill of excitement on the special day, Eric, was seen clinging to his mother's side as the adorable tyke was carried along the beach.

But it seems that Simon felt a little excitment was needed on Christmas Day, and SYCO boss couldn't resist hopping on a jet ski for a speed around the waves.

And after his blast around the sea Simon even found some time to pose for pictures and chat with a myriad of fans.

Ready for action: Leaving Eric and Lauren on the sands with the dogs and Carole, Simon hopped onto a powerful Yamaha jet ski

An old pro: Though it looked as though the vehicle's speed was slightly underwhelming for the X Factor boss

Fans a-plenty: Some eagle-eyed fans managed to spot Simon on the beach, and were keen to have a chat with TV's Mr. Nasty
She's the PR maven, mother-of-two and jet setting fashionista.

And Roxy Jacenko continues to live the high life as she jets off to Hawaii with her two children Hunter and Pixie post Christmas celebrations.

Taking to Instagram on Monday, the 36-year-old posted a pic of herself standing next to her children.

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Jetsetters! Roxy Jacenko continues to live the high life as she jets off to Hawaii with her two children Hunter and Pixie post Christmas celebrations

She captioned the post: 'And we're off SYD >> Hawaii  smiling for now!'

But it's not all glam and glitz.

The day prior, Roxy was the picture of doting domesticity as she scrubbed dishes after a delightful Christmas feast with her family.

'So Stepford,' wrote as she shared the image of herself to social media.

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'So Stepford!' Roxy Jacenko washed some dishes on Christmas Day

In the picture, the blonde beauty was smiling as she gingerly scrubbed an orange plate.

A single red apple could be seen sitting on a bench in the background, which further added to the homely atmosphere of the image.

Roxy later posed for a photo with her glamorous mother Doreen, as well as Bebe Davis.

Girl power: The PR queen posed with her mother, Doreen, and Bebe Davis

She also shared a selfie with her young son Hunter, who was munching on a Christmas treat.

Roxy spent her first Christmas without her husband, Oliver Curtis, who is currently serving time for insider trading.

Cutie pie! The doting mum also shared a selfie with her young son Hunter

Oliver, who recently lost his appeal to spend Christmas at home, had hoped to walk free just in time to spend the holidays with his family.

But just a week ago, he was told the appeal has been dismissed and he will stay in Cooma prison for a further six months.

On Friday, Roxy was spotted enjoying dinner with her multi-millionaire ex-boyfriend, now close friend, Nabil Galaz at exclusive restaurant Otto in Sydney's Woolloomooloo.
She's known for posting super sexy pictures of herself on social media.

But Emily Ratajkowski, 25, went one step further over Christmas when she shared some collages she had made which featured naked photos of herself.

In one snap, uploaded to Instagram, the model and actress showed off one piece of homemade art which she sent out as a Christmas card.

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Glad tidings: Model Emily Ratajkowski went COMPLETELY NAKED in a series of Christmas cards which she sent out to her family and friends, covering her modesty with just her hands

Wow thing: The model has been sharing sexy swimwear shots of herself on Instagram this week as she tops up her tan in the Bahamas

She covers her modesty with two well-placed hands in the picture which shows off her impressive physique.

Emily recently told The Sun that she only made five in total, which she sent out to friends and family.

She said: 'The cards are far more than just a holiday greeting  theyre a gift in and of themselves.

'Huh?' Emily also shared this sexy picture of herself on Instagram on Monday

'With everything going on in the world this year, my material gifts seemed to stop short at feeling special and full of love, so I decided to do the collages.'

Meanwhile, Emily also showed off the results of a photo she took alongside stunner Bella Hadid in an Instagram story she posted on Friday.

The star flaunted her impeccable bikini bod in a sexy two-piece as she lounged in the sand.

Bikini babes! Emily also posted a sexy snapshot on Friday with Bella Hadid, 20, during a photo shoot

Emily - who shot to fame after stripping off for Robin Thicke's Blurred Lines video in 2013 - allowed her sculpted abs and ample cleavage to take centre stage in the sultry image.

Her sun-kissed skin looked radiant as she relaxed with what appeared to be a cold beer in one hand.

A pair of dark shades rested neatly on her nose and her ocean-drenched raven tresses swept back off her face.

Sun-kissed stunners! Bella and Emily posed up a storm while on jet skis

Eye-popping! The brunette beauty showed off her ample bosom in an tiny black bikini which held together by a small gold ring

She skipped the cosmetics, allowing her natural beauty and flawless complexion to shine through.

Bella, 20, showcased her phenomenal bikini bod in a black swimsuit with eyelet detailing as she relaxed next to the Gone Girl actress.

Last week Emily posed in several sultry bikini-clad Instagram photos with fellow stunners including Victoria Secret models Elsa Hosk, Bella Hadid, Hailey Baldwin, as well as Lais Ribeiro, Rose Bertram and Gizele Oliveira.

Originally, all of the models had been sharing images from the shoot but none of them dropped a hint what it was for.

Red hot! The Blurred Lines babe flooded her Instagram account with several smouldering swimsuit snapshots this week from the provocative photo shoot

Gorgeous gals! Last week Emily posed in several sultry Instagram photos with fellow stunners including (L-R) Hailey Baldwin, Bella Hadid, Elsa Hosk and Rose Bertram

Sandy bum! Emily shared this snap on Friday with a cheeky peach emoji

Hailey, 20, finally posted a picture of a simple orange square on her Instagram account which she captioned: 'So excited to announce #fyrefestival! Join me in the Bahamas.'

The bevy of beauties participated in a sexy photo shoot to promote the Fyre Festival which takes place during two weekends next year from April 28 through April 30 and May 5 through May 7.

While only a handful of posts have been shared to the festival's Instagram account, it teases an 'immersive music festival.'

It says the events which takes place on a remote and private island of Exuma on the Bahamas includes 'the best in food, art, music and adventure.'
She's often flaunting her toned physique on Instagram or in lingerie shoots.

And on Sunday, Bachelor's Tiffany Scanlon was at it again as she posted a before and after pic to Instagram.

Pictured in the same tiny two-piece, the reality TV star is seen looking even more ripped and svelte after her 28-day fitness challenge.

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Body goals! On Sunday, Bachelor's Tiffany Scanlon was at it again as she posted a before and after pic to Instagram

Her biceps are even more defined as is her washboard stomach.

The post drew a flood of positive comments with fans praising how 'amazing' she looks.

It's one of many images where Tiffany has been known to flaunt her amazing buff physique.

In another Instagram post, she is pictured wearing a tiny multi-coloured bikini lying on a wooden fence close to the shore.

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Body goals! Tiffany took to Instagram to flaunt her amazing beach buff physique

Her lithe sunkissed limbs are on full display as she stretched out and arched her back.

Captioning the post: 'When you finally let go of the beliefs and expectation of what your life is 'meant' to look like, you will be free to live life on your own terms. Life is too short not to bask in it.'

And Tiffany is certainly enjoying life to its fullest.

White-hot! The Bachelorette's Megan Marx and Tiffany Scanlon have shared racy photos of them wearing sheer lace lingerie in bed together on Monday

Recently, she shared a series of very racy photos of herself in bed together with girlfriend Megan Marx.

The blonde beauties are seen wearing sheer lace lingerie, revealing their enviable figures as they embrace each other.

In the caption for the racy shot, shared on Tiffany's Instagram, she shares a quote from author Marie Lu explaining how Megan leaves her so she 'can't catch my breath'.

The look of love: In another photo shared to Megan's social media account, the pair hold hands as they stare deeply into each other's eyes

'You drive me insane...You're the scariest, most clever, bravest person I know, and sometimes I can't catch my breath because I'm trying so hard to keep up,' Tiffany writes.

'There will never be another like you. You realize that, don't you? Billions of people will come and go in this world, but there will never be another like you.'

In another photo shared to Megan's social media account, the pair hold hands as they stare deeply into each other's eyes.

'You both inspire the LGBT community': Megan and Tiffany's fans have gushed about their romance

Unable to keep matching smiles off their faces, the loved-up couple's bodies on full display as they lounge together on the bed.

In the accompanying caption, Megan explains how their love would still be unconventional even if they were heterosexual.

'If you took the whole same-sex 'issue' out of our relationship, it would still be untraditional,' she wrote.

Not shy: Both girls aren't afraid to flaunt their enviable physiques in countless photos of them at the beach

'We ordinate our own life and love terms, and somehow it works.'

The couple have been dating since June, cementing their love by going on a romantic trip to Bali together.

They finally confirmed their relationship after months of speculation in late October.

With their love going from strength to strength, the girls are now using their social media sway to campaign for marriage equality.
He became a dad for the first time last week.

And NRL star Jarryd Hayne is showing his soft side as he posted yet another picture of his newborn daughter to Instagram on Sunday.

The adorable snap shows the 28-year-old looking lovingly down on his beautiful baby girl as she breaks out into a heartwarming smile.

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Proud papa! NRL star Jarryd Hayne is showing his soft side as he posted yet another picture of his newborn daughter to Instagram on Sunday

Meanwhile, on Christmas Day he once again took to Instagram to share an adorable snap of his newborn daughter sleeping.

The newborn is pictured blissfully sleeping as the father captions the post: 'Bubba smiling in her dreams. Makes my heart melt ''.

Last week Jarryd debuted his adorable newborn in a sweet snap from a private Gold Coast hospital.

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Adorable! NRL star Jarryd Hayne is clearly enjoying fatherhood as he took to Instagram on Christmas Day to share an adorable snap of his newborn daughter sleeping

Jarryd, who shares the baby girl with rumoured girlfriend Amellia Bonnici, 25, rested the youngster on his muscular chest as he looked down at her in awe.

Jarryd and Amellia met on Instagram early this year, and the athlete was surprised to discover she was pregnant, it was claimed at the time.

'Daddy's girl': NRL star Jarryd Hayne debuts adorable snap with newborn daughter he shares with rumoured girlfriend Amellia Bonnici... after meeting on Instagram earlier this year

Captioning the cute image, the footaballer said: 'All praise to god above, for he never makes mistakes!!!! #daddysgirl.'

The sleeping beauty was dressed in a pink onesie and white beanie as Jarryd lay still in a white T-shirt.

It's a girl! Jarryd Hayne (L) and his rumoured girlfriend Amellia Bonnici (R) welcomed their daughter into the world 'a few days ago', The Sunday Telegraph reported

The name of the child is yet to be revealed.

Jarryd's manager declined to comment when contacted by Daily Mail Australia.

Sources told The Sunday Telegraph that both parents were 'besotted' with their new child.

It's also understood Jarryd has moved the brunette into his apartment in the Gold Coast and vows to support her.

First time father: It's understood Jarryd has moved the brunette into his apartment in the Gold Coast and vows to support her in raising their daughter. Pictured: Jarryd in June 2016

It is believed the pregnancy played a part Jarryd quitting the San Francisco 49'ers and returning to Australia to play for the Gold Coast Titans.

The couple have remained silent on the topic of Amellia's pregnancy.

Jarryd has repeatedly declined to comment, as have family members.

Amellia grew up in Tuncurry, NSW, where her parents still live. She was a student at Great Lakes High School, before graduating and moving to Sydney.

Return home: It is believed the pregnancy played a part Jarryd quitting the San Francisco 49'ers and returning to Australia to play for the Gold Coast Titans

She was living in the beachside suburb of Coogee, when she met Hayne early this year through Instagram, New Idea claimed.

Considering Jarryd's faith - and Amellia's presence at a service of the controversial church recently - it is possible they will raise the child with the help of Hillsong.

Since joining in 2008, after an altercation in a Kings Cross alleyway which almost saw him shot, Jarryd has become a supporter of the church.
She may be just 15 but already this young model is on pace to outshine her mother - and no doubt her super star parent could not be happier.

Kaia Gerber ran - literally - out of her mom Cindy Crawford's shadow on Christmas Day.

The 15-year-old has had a very big 2016 and it was evident why as she enjoyed the special day with her family in Miami, Florida, on Sunday.

Spot the difference: Kaia Gerber ran - literally - out of her mom Cindy Crawford's shadow on Christmas Day in Miami, Florida

The teen went from being Cindy's daughter at the end of last year to Kaia, America's top new model, this year.

And while her good genes and resemblance to her mother has helped catapult her into the spotlight, it was clear on Sunday that she has a style all of her own - and has decades of modelling to come.

Kaia looked like she was on a Teen Vogue modelling shoot despite just having a lark with her also genetically-blessed brother, Presley.

Presley, 17, also has a modelling career brewing but 2016 was definitely his younger sister's year.

Stepping up: The 15-year-old has had a very big 2016 and it was evident why as she enjoyed the special day with her family

Icon in the making: And while her good genes and resemblance to her mother has helped catapult her into the spotlight, it was clear on Sunday that she has a style all of her own - and has decades of modelling to come

Style siblings: Kaia looked like she was on a Teen Vogue modelling shoot despite just having a lark with her also genetically-blessed brother, Presley

In fact, it was Presley's love of photography that helped bring the world's attention to Kaia as he often used her as his subject and her modelling skills were very evident.

There is obviously nothing but love between the two siblings with the pair happily having fun together and hanging out.

The two teens ran in and out of the water, making the most of Miami's not-so-wintry winter weather.

Related besties: There is obviously nothing but love between the two siblings with the pair happily having fun together and hanging out

Spot on: For their day of fun in the sun, Kaia wore a retro-inspired red two piece which was both fashion-forward but age appropriate

Splish splash: The two teens ran in and out of the water, making the most of Miami's not-so-wintry winter weather

For their day of fun in the sun, Kaia wore a retro-inspired red two piece which was both fashion-forward but age appropriate.

Her brother, meanwhile, wore a pair of dark above-the-knee boardshorts.

As they children amused themselves in the water, Cindy and husband Rande Gerber enjoyed their Christmas while sitting in a cabana.

Kicking back: Cindy and Rande Gerber opted to stay dry, marking Christmas Day from their cabana with a few cocktails

Always iconic: While her teen daughter is the talk of the modelling world of late, Cindy's beauty remains mesmerizing

Easy breezy: The 50-year-old wore a purple, blue and green kaftan for their day on the sand

Mother daughter time: Kaia came and joined her mom, and the pair kicked back and soaked up some sun for a while

Cindy sipped on what appeared to be a margarita and looked very relaxed.

While her teen daughter is the talk of the modelling world of late, Cindy's beauty remains mesmerizing.

As she kicked back in a purple, blue and green kaftan, it was obvious why she is one of the most iconic supermodels.

Big future: The teen went from being Cindy's daughter at the end of last year to Kaia, America's top new model, this year

Family time: Earlier that morning that had enjoyed a Christmas brunch with Rande's mom Ellen

Without makeup and her hair unstyled, the 50-year-old was still ready for her close up.

Kaia came and joined her mom, and the pair kicked back and soaked up some sun for a while.

While spending Christmas on the beach is far from par for the course in America, the group looked like they were having a fantastic time together as a family - just the way it should be on Christmas.

Vacation time: The family have been in Miami for a few days and spent Christmas Eve exactly the same way - together and having fun in the sun

Joining in: This time Rande decided to leave the warmth of the cabana and go for a swim

Earlier that morning that had enjoyed a Christmas brunch with Rande's mom Ellen.

The family have been in Miami for a few days and spent Christmas Eve exactly the same way - together and having fun in the sun.

This time Rande decided to leave the warmth of the cabana and go for a swim with Kaia.

Surf knowledge: The 54-year-old businessman appeared to discuss the currents with his daughter, but she did not seem that interested

Double take needed: As Kaia stood there, on first glance she looked like her mom Cindy

Taking a slower approach than the 15-year-old and her brother gad, the father daughter duo walked slowly into the water.

The 54-year-old businessman appeared to discuss the currents with his daughter, but she did not seem that interested.

As Kaia stood there, on first glance she looked like her mom Cindy.

'Beach time with not Cindy': Rande even took to social media to joke about the resemblance

In the genes: But while Kaia may look like her mom, she is a daddy's girl with Cindy posting a video of the pair at lunch showing that their movements are perfectly 'in sync'

Rande even took to social media to joke about the uncanny resemblance.

Posting a picture of his daughter resting on the beach on Instagram he joked: 'Beach time with not Cindy.'

But while Kaia may look like her mom, she is a daddy's girl with Cindy posting a video of the pair at lunch showing that their movements are perfectly 'in sync.'

Keeping it simple: For their day at the beach, Kaia wore a nude and black fixed triangle bikini

Back to the future: The teenager wore a pair of oval retro-inspired shaped sunglasses

For their day at the beach, Kaia wore a nude and black fixed triangle bikini.

Rande meanwhile hit the water in some black, grey and teal boardshorts.

Before her dip, Kaia horsed around with her brother with the model turning the camera on her sibling for a change.

Get ready for your close up: The model snapped some pictured of her brother before hitting the water

Dedicated: The model contorted her body to ensure she got the perfect snap of her brother

The 15-year-old threw on denim skirt and some Old Skool Vans.

The model contorted her body to ensure she got the perfect snap of her brother.

The 17-year-old male model - who now sports a giant 'be grateful' tattoo on his arm - checked the snaps after his sister's photographic session.
Sean 'Diddy' Combs got into the holiday spirit as he shared a photo of himself going full Santa on Christmas Eve.

The music mogul and multimillionaire posed confidently in front of an elaborately decorated Christmas tree on his super-yacht where he celebrated the holiday in the Caribbean island of St. Barths.

Making sure to give the traditional Santa suit the Puff Daddy flare, the 47-year-old rapper wore a Santa hat atop a red fedora.

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Santa daddy: P. Diddy, 47, posed as Santa on his $72million yacht in the Caribbean

Around his neck was a diamond-studded chain, and he added a pair of circular sunglasses.

The Ciroc spokesperson spent the holiday in the yacht-filled harbor of Gustavia in St. Barths alongside Dave Chappelle, Donnell Rawlings, Russell Simmons, French Montana, and family.

The Revolt TV founder hosted the holiday celebrations on Oasis, his $72 million superyacht.

The whole gang: The Ciroc spokesperson spent the holiday alongside Dave Chappelle, Donnell Rawlings, Russell Simmons, French Montana, and more

The yacht - which measures at 59.4m - easily housed the large crew and their families.

The father-of-six shared photos of himself and his children enjoying their extravagant getaway with his habitual hashtag #FamilyFIRST.

He and shirtless son, 18-year-old Christian Combs flaunted their Christmas presents, which appeared to be gold chains with large medallions.

Christmas gold: He and 18-year-old son Christian Combs flaunted their Christmas presents, which appeared to be gold chains with large medallions

Bonding: Diddy also enjoyed father-son time with 22-year-old son Justin Combs as the two hit the island to ride ATVs

Diddy also enjoyed father-son time with 22-year-old son Justin Combs as the two hit the island to ride ATVs.

St. Barths is the celebrity destination for New Year's Eve, and Diddy and his entourage traditionally spend the evening before the new year on his mega-boat before hitting up billionaire Roman Abramovich's annual star-studded party.

The Hollywood heavyweights focused on family and good friends this year - as the men's female counterparts were not seen on the vacation.

Solo: Khloe Kardashian's ex, French Montana, was sans current girlfriend Iggy Azalea as he enjoyed the views and activities of the French island

Khloe Kardashian's ex, French Montana, was sans current girlfriend Iggy Azalea as he enjoyed the views and activities of the French island solo.

French also posted a video of himself working out on Diddy's yacht, facing a picturesque view of the pristine blue Caribbean waters.

The Ain't Worried About Nothin' rapper ominously released a new song titled Ain't My Girlfriend the day before the holiday.

Diddy's on-again off-again girlfriend Cassie was also missing in action.
Sofia Vergara and Joe Mangianiello had an epic Christmas weekend in paradise.

The Modern Family actress took to her Instagram page to post several photos of how she and her Magic Mike actor husband celebrated the holidays.

The two went on vacation where they hung out with good friends, watched some scenery and spent time with each other.

Christmas in paradise: Sofia Vergara and Joe Manganiello had a memorable holiday weekend in new vacation pictures on the actress's Instagram page

Another day in paradise: The Chef star put on a white dress for her boat trip near the palm trees

Look out below: The 44-year-old snapped a pic of the water beneath her on her amazing Christmas journey

Namaste: The celebrity couple did some morning yoga on their romantic getaway

It's unclear exactly where the two stars were, but it was definitely a place they'll remember forever.

In one shot, Sofia did some yoga outdoors with palm trees in front of her.

She captioned the Instagram pic, 'Morning yoga in paradise.'

Family time: The Latina beauty added an Instagram photo with some relatives as they celebrated Christmas together

So much beauty: The handsome pair took a moment to check out the amazing view from a doc. Sofia sported a flowing dress as her husband donned a black and white shirt with shorts

The couple spent time with relatives for a family photo.

They were also seen in another picture checking out the view from a doc.

Sofia dressed in a long dress that flowed around her legs while her spouse sported a black and white shirt with a pair of shorts.

More fun outdoors: The Magic Mike star enjoyed the evening with a young boy as the Modern Family icon hung out with the kid when the sun was out

In a few more snapshots, the Modern Family star went on a boat in a lovely white dress while embracing the sun.

She captioned the image, 'En el mar la vida es mas sabrosaaaaaa.'

The 44-year-old also went outside with young boy who appeared to be having as much of a blast as the two stars.

Stunning woman: Joe's wife wore a revealing black swimsuit as she began her Christmas vacation under the sun in an Instagram picture from last Saturday

Sofia and Joe have been married since November 2015.

She was previously married to Joe Gonzalez. They have a son together, Manolo, 24.

The Colombia native's son made his modeling debut earlier this month for a spread in Paper Magazine.
She recently revealed that she's back in her native Australia after spending two years away from home.

And former Home and Away star Sharni Vinson has certainly made the most of being back as the beauty had a very Australian Christmas at the beach.

The 33-year-old brunette stripped down into a halterneck one piece costume as she spent time with her family at Sydney's Wana Beach, near Cronulla.

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Back Down Under! Former Home and Away star Sharni Vinson (third L) celebrated Christmas at a Sydney beach with her family, after jetting back to Australia

Sharing a family group shot to her more than 22,000 followers, Sharni shows off a golden tan in her black costume.

She sits on the sand as her family, including mother Narelle, gathers alongside her.

Sharni - who used to date Twilight hunk Kellan Lutz, 31 - also recently shared a shot of herself with her grandfather and mother posing in Santa's seat on Christmas Eve.

Family: Sharni - who used to date Twilight hunk Kellan Lutz, 31 - also recently shared a shot of herself with her grandfather and mother posing in Santa's seat on Christmas Eve

Catching up: It comes after she also spent time on the Gold Coast and wrote on Instagram that she was 'finally back on Australian soil after two years away from home'

It comes after she also spent time on the Gold Coast and wrote on Instagram that she was 'finally back on Australian soil after two years away from home.'

Sharni is based in the US and is believed to be in Los Angeles, where she's working on her acting career.

The stunner has recently enjoyed a short trip to the idyllic Maldives, where she showed off her trim figure in a number of stylish bikinis.

Doing well: Sharni is based in the US and is believed to be in Los Angeles, where she's working on her acting career

Beach babe: The stunner has recently enjoyed a short trip to the idyllic Maldives and regularly showcased her trim figure in a number of stylish bikinis

One included her in a white costume floating in the crystal clear water under a restaurant, before stripping to a black and red bikini by the beach.

Sharni is known for her role in Home and Away, playing popular character Cassie Turner.

She's also appeared in some films, including 2010's Step Up 3D.
She may have been basking in the holiday season with her loved ones.

But that didn't stop Lisa Rinna from thinking about the future.

The 53-year-old reality star posed up in matching Christmas pajamas with husband Harry Hamlin in a photo shared on Instagram Sunday.

Cute couple: Lisa Rinna and Harry Hamlin rocked matching Christmas pajamas in this Instagram shared on Sunday

However the very next day on the same social network she posted an image which declared that she wasn't going to make any New Year's resolutions for 2017.

It said: 'I'm not making resolutions this year. No one likes a skinny sober b**** anyway.'

In the Christmas post, she and her 65-year-old actor husband were a cute couple as they rocked tops which had 'I [heart] Lisa' and 'I [heart] Harry' on them, respectively.

Keeping it simple: The 53-year-old reality star shared this image on Monday as she declared she does not have a New Year's resolution

Along with the long-sleeve the pair married since 1997 wore red and white striped pajama pants along with matching Santa Claus caps.

Lisa wore her signature short hair down as she sported natural make-up including eyeliner and shiny pink lip.

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star wrote: 'Merry Christmas to you and your families! We feel so blessed and grateful! Love to you all!'

What a selfless family: On Friday, Lisa, her husband and daughter Delilah volunteered for the Los Angeles Mission Christmas celebration

For a good cause: The Hamlin family served meals for those in need just days before Christmas, with Lisa and Harry even sporting a festive hats

Happy times: The Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills star layered a red apron with a Santa hat that had 'naughty' stitched along the front

They are certainly in the Christmas spirit as just two days prior the couple were joined by their daughter Delilah as they volunteered at the Los Angeles Mission Christmas celebration.

Lisa, Harry and their 18-year-old daughter served meals to those in need as they posed for a few pictures before putting together plates of food.

Lisa and Harry have a second daughter, Amelia Gray, 15.

On the same day, the matriarch of the family shared an image of their family card on social media as they all matched in black.
She just celebrated her son Axel's first birthday on December 19 and Michelle Bridges is already back to her fighting-fit form.

The former Biggest loser star shared an impressive Instagram selfie on Monday while showing off her incredible abs and gym-honed physique.

While most people were preparing for a festive food coma, the fitness instructor posted a video of her post-Christmas workout in the lead up to holidays.

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Banging bod: She's just celebrated her son Axel's first birthday on December 19 and Michelle Bridges is already back to her fighting-fit form

The exhaustive routine included lunges, squats and kicks repeated five times along with a ten minute warm up jog.

The former reality star captioned the routine her 'Christmas Cardio calorie shredder!'

Her followers were quick to notice that the hands-on mum was looking shredded. 'Is that a six pack I've just seen? Mum you're killing it,' one fan commented on the video.

Another follower gushed that the 46-year-old was 'Body and career goals right here keep doing what you do!'

Michelle has been including her one-year-old son in her workout routines, including jogging up and down concrete stairs using Axel as a weight earlier this month.

'You want me to do more than 10 times Axel?! Are you nuts!?? My legs are shaking!!' the fitness author captioned the picture.

Working out with baby: The former Biggest Loser trainer recently told her 234k Instagram followers that she's been using her son as '12kg weight vest'

She recently told her 234k Instagram followers that she's been using her son as '12kg weight vest.'

Michelle, inventor of the 12 Week Body transformation, began working out less than a month after giving birth, spending 56 minutes a day jogging and walking.

She came under fire for the intense post-natal routine, which was slammed as 'irresponsible' by physiotherapist Lyz Evans.

She defended her choice to return to her normal routine as 'right for her body.'
He's the self-proclaimed 'Paris Hilton of Australia,' known for his love of fake tan, selfies and cosmetic enhancements.

And Kurt Coleman, 19, reminded fans just how much he has changed over the past nine years by sharing a rare throwback selfie on Tuesday.

Taking to Instagram, the social media star shared a selfie taken seven years ago, with the caption: 'Me when I was little #2009. I always took photos of myself, it prepared me for the life I live now.'

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Is that you? Kurt Coleman, 19, reminded fans just how much he has changed over the past nine years by sharing a rare throwback selfie on Tuesday

In the image, Kurt looked almost unrecognisable as he sported a decidedly fresh-faced look, pale complexion and a shaggy mop of blonde-streaked hair.

While some celebrities go to great lengths to hide the fact that they have undergone cosmetic procedures, Kurt has remained candid about his changing looks.

Back in September 2015, the Gold Coast-based socialite unveiled a newly-plumped pout on Instagram, alongside the caption: 'Got a lil enhancement on my lips, I've always loved big lips!'

Staying honest: While some celebrities go to great lengths to hide the fact that they have undergone cosmetic procedures, Kurt has remained candid about his changing looks

'I'm always going to be honest about my beauty secrets with all of you.... Thank you so much, actually love them so much!! @cosmedicentresigna #PerfLikeKurt' he added.

In June, Kurt took his transformation further with injections to change his rounded jaw line.

Sharing before and after photos, the teen wrote: 'This is another before (2015) and after of what my jawline and lips looked like before I started getting injections @cosmedicentresigna.'

Enhancement: Back in September 2015, the Gold Coast-based socialite unveiled a newly-plumped pout on Instagram, alongside the caption: 'Got a lil enhancement on my lips, I've always loved big lips!'

Positive message: Previously speaking to Daily Mail Australia, Kurt explained that he aims to teach his fans to have confidence in themselves and their appearance

He added: 'Looks so natural always but it's just enhancing my natural beauty.'

Previously speaking to Daily Mail Australia, Kurt explained that he aims to teach his fans to have confidence in themselves and their appearance.

'My message is always, 'Love yourself'. And that it isn't all about what you look like and not about what you have,' he said.

'It is just about the person you are and you should always love the person you are because we are all different.'
She spent the past few weeks in snowy Wisconsin, America after welcoming her new daughter via surrogate.

And so it's no wonder Sally Obermeder, 43, was happy to soak up the balmy climes this week as she continued her US holiday in Hawaii on Tuesday.

Taking to Instagram to showcase her fabulous figure in a one-piece swimsuit, the stunning TV presenter shared a photo of herself sitting cross-legged on a pool deck-chair with the caption: 'back in my happy place.'

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'Back in my happy place': Sally Obermeder, 43, was happy to soak up the balmy climes this week as she continued her US holiday in Hawaii on Tuesday

'Where it's warm and sunny and I don't have to curse every time I see the pics of everyone back home enjoying life without thermals and snow jackets,' she added.

A day earlier, Sally shared a glimpse of her Christmas festivities with E! host Giuliana Rancic.

She took to Instagram to commemorate the reunion, sharing a photo of herself posing with the blonde starlet and Sally's sister Maha.

'Wishing we could sneak G into our suitcase': A day earlier, Sally shared a glimpse of her Christmas festivities with E! reporter Giuliana Rancic

Sally was also pictured holding her newborn daughter Elyssa Rose, while Giuliana held Sally's eldest daughter Annabelle, five, in her arms.

'Wishing we could sneak G into our suitcase and bring her home with us,' cooed Sally in the caption.

While Sally was unable to spend Christmas with her Australian relatives, she was lucky enough to be welcomed into Giuliana's home for a festive feast on Monday night.

Spreading the joy! While Sally was unable to spend Christmas with her Australian relatives, she was lucky enough to be welcomed into Giuliana's home for a festive feast on Monday night

Sally and husband Marcus welcomed their glowing bub into the world two weeks ago.

Elyssa Rose was born via surrogate after Sally was told the risks of giving birth to a second daughter were too high due to her experiences with breast cancer.

After previously blasting Australian surrogacy laws in an interview with Sunrise, Sally had flew to Milwaukee to await the arrival of her newborn.

Growing her brood! Sally and husband Marcus welcomed their glowing bub into the world two weeks ago
Duped by fake news, Pakistan minister makes nuke threat to Israel

Pakistan's defence minister has threatened to retaliate in kind to any Israeli nuclear strike after apparently being tricked by a fake news site into a confrontation on social media.

Khawaja Asif was responding to an invented story published on the website AWDNews and headlined: "Israeli Defense Minister: If Pakistan send ground troops into Syria on any pretext, we will destroy this country with a nuclear attack."

"Israeli def min threatens nuclear retaliation presuming pak role in Syria against Daesh (Islamic State).Israel forgets Pakistan is a Nuclear state too" the Pakistani minister tweeted Friday.

Khawaja Asif threatened nuclear retaliation against Israel after apparently being tricked by a story on a fake news site FAROOQ NAEEM (AFP/File)

His missive prompted a clarification from Israel's Ministry of Defense, which responded to him on Saturday:

"@KhawajaMAsif The statement attributed to fmr Def Min Yaalon re Pakistan was never said," adding: "KhawajaMAsif reports referred to by the Pakistani Def Min are entirely false".

Israel has a policy of ambiguity in relation to its nuclear arsenal, neither confirming nor denying its existence, but is widely believed to be an atomic power.

Pakistan, which conducted its first nuclear test in 1998, is believed by analysts to have around 120 nuclear weapons and the fastest growing stockpile.

Mainly Muslim Pakistan has no diplomatic ties with Israel.

Asif was widely mocked for his blunder.

"Our nuclear program is too serious a business to be left to Twitter-addicted politicians", said prominent TV journalist Nusrat Javeed.

There is a rising tide of fake articles being widely shared on social media.

Earlier this month a rifle-wielding man entered a pizza restaurant in Washington, saying he wanted to investigate a fake news story that the establishment was a centre for child abduction linked to failed US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
China and Sao Tome restore diplomatic ties in snub to Taiwan

China signed an agreement to restore diplomatic relations with Sao Tome and Principe Monday, just days after the small African nation announced it had cut ties with Taiwan.

The move comes amid heightened tensions between Beijing and the independence-leaning government of the self-ruled island, which Chinese leaders view as a "renegade province."

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi and his counterpart Urbino Botelho signed a document formalising their new relationship at the Diaoyutai State Guest House.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) shakes hands with his Sao Tome counterpart Urbino Botelho as the countries sign an agreement to restore diplomatic ties GREG BAKER (AFP)

"We need to acknowledge that China is playing an increasingly important role internationally," Botelho said, adding "we want to make good on our past mistakes."

Speaking to reporters after the ceremony, Wang said China "highly appreciated" Sao Tome's choice.

"We are happy to see that Sao Tome and Principe has actively conformed to the tide of history, looking at the facts and long-term interests of both countries' peoples," he said.

Last Wednesday, Beijing issued a statement welcoming Sao Tome's decision to split with Taiwan, which it has recognised since 1997.

The move earned a stinging rebuke from Taiwan, which said it condemned the "reckless and unfriendly decision and action by the Sao Tome government."

Taiwanese foreign minister David Lee said Sao Tome had demanded an "astronomical" amount of financial assistance to continue its relations with Taipei, which was refused.

Sao Tome's decision leaves Taiwan with formal diplomatic ties to only 21 states, including just two in Africa, and the Vatican -- its highest profile supporter.

For years, China and Taiwan were locked in a bitter diplomatic tug-of-war, luring away each other's allies with generous financial packages in so-called "chequebook diplomacy".

Diplomatic tussles between the two had eased under Taiwan's previous Beijing-friendly government, but two months after President Tsai Ing-wen's China-sceptic Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won landslide elections in March, China recognised Taiwan's former ally Gambia.

Cross-strait tensions have been further exacerbated by a highly unusual call from President Tsai to congratulate US president-elect Donald Trump, who has questioned Washington's policy towards the island, including its decision to not formally recognise its government.
No tax on CO2 emissions in China's new environment law

China has passed a law that levies taxes on pollution, but ignores carbon dioxide, one of the major contributors to global warming, according to the web site of the country's highest legislative body.

The National People's Congress (NPC) standing committee passed the law, the first to tax polluters, on Sunday, less than a fortnight after a red alert for smog left more than 20 cities in the country's northeast choking under a heavy haze.

Polluters will be charged for contributing to air, water and noise pollution, according to a copy of the legislation on the NPC's official web site.

China is the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases, due to its heavy reliance on coal to provide electricity to its population of 1.37 billion Greg Baker (AFP/File)

But CO2 did not make the list, which includes air and water pollutants such as sulphur dioxide and sulfite, taxed at rates beginning at 1.2 yuan ($0.17) and 1.4 yuan ($0.20) per unit respectively.

It also stipulates a monthly tax ranging from 350 to 11,200 yuan ($50 to $1612) for noise pollution.

The Environment Tax Law will come into effect on January 1, 2018.

China is the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases, due to its heavy reliance on coal to provide electricity to its population of 1.37 billion.

The fuel has also contributed to the country's severe smog problem.

Last week, cities across China's northeast went on "red alert" for air pollution, triggering an emergency response that included taking large numbers of cars off the road and closing some factories.

The crisis also spurred a call by Chinese President Xi Jinping for the country to develop clean energy sources in order to reduce smog, the official Xinhua news agency reported.
Turkey accuses IS of killing 30 civilians in Syria

The Turkish army on Monday accused Islamic State (IS) jihadists of killing at least 30 civilians seeking to flee the flashpoint Syrian town of Al-Bab which Ankara and its rebel allies have been seeking to capture for weeks.

The army said that the civilians were killed with mines and homemade bombs as they tried to make their way out of Al-Bab, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported, without giving further details.

Turkish forces and allied Syrian rebels have been seeking to take Al-Bab as a key part of un unprecedented four month campaign that began in late August.

Syrian opposition fighters fire towards positions held by Islamic State (IS) group jihadists in al-Bab on December 13, 2016 Saleh Abo Ghaloun (AFP/File)

But they have been facing tough opposition from the jihadists and suffered the highest casualties of the campaign so far in the fight for the town.

Turkey at the weekend deployed more tanks and artillery to the border and also as sent 500 elite commandos to Al-Bab in readiness for a final fight for the town, reports said.

Thirty-six Turkish soldiers have died so far in the operation -- dubbed Euphrates Shield -- after another wounded soldier lost his life in hospital in Turkey overnight, reports said.

Sixteen Turkish soldiers were killed by IS in the battle for the town on Wednesday -- Ankara's biggest loss so far since it launched its incursion.

A Britain-based monitoring group has accused Turkey of killing 88 civilians in air strikes on Al-Bab, including 21 children. However the army has unequivocally denied such claims.
Kuwait jails Filipina for joining IS jihadists

A Kuwaiti court on Monday sentenced a Filipino woman to 10 years in jail after convicting her of joining the Islamic State jihadist group and plotting attacks.

The ruling, which is not final, also calls for deporting the 32-year old after serving her term.

The woman was arrested in August, two months after arriving in the oil-rich Gulf state to work as a domestic helper.

Kuwaiti courts have sentenced to various jail terms a number of members, sympathisers and financiers of the IS group Yasser al-Zayyat (AFP/File)

At the time, the interior ministry said she had confessed to being a member of the Islamic State group and was plotting terrorist attacks in the emirate.

The woman told interrogators that her husband was an active fighter with IS in Libya and he had asked her to come to Kuwait from the Philippines as a domestic helper, according to the ministry.

An IS-affiliated group in the Philippines has conduced a string of bombings as well as kidnappings for ransom of foreign tourists and Christian missionaries in the country.

Kuwaiti courts have sentenced to various jail terms a number of members, sympathisers and financiers of the IS group.

In October, Kuwait police arrested an Egyptian driver suspected of being a member of the IS, after he rammed a garbage truck into a pick-up carrying five Americans.

Authorities in July said they had dismantled three IS cells plotting attacks, including a suicide bombing against a Shiite mosque and against an interior ministry target.
Iran culls birds after avian flu outbreak

Iran has killed hundreds of thousands of birds in recent weeks as avian flu spreads across seven provinces of the country, officials have reported.

More than 1,000 wild birds, mostly geese, have been found dead in the Mighan wetland in central Iran, the environmental protection organisation told state news agency IRNA on Monday.

IRNA said 63,000 chickens, along with 800,000 fertilised eggs and day-old chicks, were culled at a farm in Qazvin province in recent days after an outbreak of the deadly H1N8 and H1N5 strains of the disease.

Iranian authorities said 63,000 chickens, along with 800,000 fertilised eggs and day-old chicks, were culled at a farm in Qazvin province Iroz Gaizka (AFP/File)

That adds to the 725,000 birds destroyed since mid-November across the country following nine flu outbreaks, according to a report from the World Organisation for Animal Health released last week.

Licenses for bird shooting have been suspended due to fear of infection by migratory birds, and people have been advised not to buy game birds at local markets.

Despite a small number of human deaths in different countries over the years, the disease is mostly a risk to other birds, spreading rapidly and killing large numbers.
Taiwan moves a step closer to legalising same-sex marriage

Taiwan's parliament on Monday passed the first draft of a controversial marriage equality bill, moving the island a step closer to becoming the first place in Asia to legalise same-sex nuptials.

A legislative committee approved the amendment to the civil law that would allow gay couples to legally tie the knot, as dozens of opponents to the change rallied outside to demand a referendum on the divisive issue.

"Stop reviewing (the bill). Put it to a referendum," protesters shouted. Some demonstrators climbed over a wall into the parliamentary grounds and were later removed by police.

A supporter of same-sec marriage holds a rainbow flag outside the Parliament in Taipei on November 17, 2016 Sam Yeh (AFP/File)

One man even made it as far as the committee's meeting room but was stopped before he could reach the podium.

Lawmaker Yu Mei-nu of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), who proposed the bill, hailed Monday's decision as an example of Taiwan's "mature democracy" and called for calm and tolerance.

"It is not the end of the world to pass such a bill. Heterosexual marriages will not be destroyed... I hope everybody will take a calm and tolerant attitude," Yu told reporters.

The amendments require further vetting before they can take effect, a process Yu estimated would take around six months.

While Taiwan is considered progressive on many issues including gay rights, its roots in Confucianism translate into a strong sense of adherence to traditional values such as family loyalty and social hierarchy.

Past attempts to legalise same-sex marriage stalled under the Kuomintang party, which dominated politics for decades until it was unseated by the DPP in this year's elections.

While support for marriage equality has gained momentum under President Tsai Ing-wen, who has openly supported legalising same-sex marriage, so too have opposing voices.
21 civilians 'executed' by rebels in Aleppo: state media

Syrian authorities have accused rebel fighters of executing 21 civilians, including women and children, at close range as they quit second city Aleppo last week, state media reported.

The bodies were found in two neighbourhoods in east Aleppo, state news agency SANA said late Sunday.

The head of Aleppo's forensic unit Zaher Hajjo told SANA that "21 corpses of civilian victims, including five children and four women, killed by terrorist groups" were examined.

A member of the Syrian regime forces stands amidst destruction in the former rebel-held Sukkari district in the northern city of Aleppo on December 23, 2016 George Ourfalian (AFP/File)

"The bodies were found in prisons run by the terrorist groups in Sukkari and al-Kalasseh, and they were found to have been executed by gunshot at very close range," Hajjo was quoted as saying.

Under a landmark deal brokered by regime ally Russia and rebel backer Turkey, 35,000 rebels and civilians left the former opposition stronghold of east Aleppo last week.

Days before the evacuations began, the UN said it had received credible reports of at least 82 civilians, including 11 women and 13 children, being executed by pro-government forces in Aleppo.

On Monday, the Russian defence ministry said "dozens of Syrians" were summarily executed in east Aleppo by rebels.

"Mass graves containing dozens of Syrians who were summarily executed and subjected to savage torture have been discovered," spokesman Igor Konachenkov said, according to Russian agencies.

He said most had been killed by gunshot wounds to the head and many bodies "were not whole," and that thorough investigations would force opposition backers in the West to "recognise their responsibility for the cruelty" of rebels.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that bodies had been found in east Aleppo's streets, but could not specify how they had been killed.

World powers have been fiercely divided over Syria's conflict since it first erupted in March 2011, with Russia firmly backing Assad and Gulf powers and much of the West supporting the opposition.

The high-profile battle for Aleppo, in particular, has sparked accusations by Western powers that Russia and the government were committing war crimes.

Under a landmark deal brokered by Russia and Turkey, 35,000 rebels and civilians left the former opposition stronghold of east Aleppo last week George Ourfalian (AFP/File)
DR Congo Christmas slaughter leaves 35 dead

Attacks in villages and fighting between militias killed at least 35 people over the Christmas weekend in North Kivu, a majority Christian area in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The bloodshed began in Eringeti -- a town 55 kilometres (35 miles) north of the regional hub Beni, which for two years has been hit by massacres killing hundreds, many of whom were hacked to death.

Rebels from The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) -- dominated by puritanical Ugandan Muslims -- killed 22 people after storming Eringeti on Saturday, regional official Amisi Kalonda told AFP.

A military operation was deployed to put an end to the Christmas Day killing spree Junior D. Kannah (AFP/File)

The toll climbed to 35 on Monday with the announcement that at least 13 Hutu civilians, mostly women and an eight-year-old girl, were killed on Sunday by a militia from the Nande ethnic group.

"The victims were all Hutu. There was an eight-year-old girl, a father and the rest were women," said local official Alphonse Mahano.

They were killed around the village of Nyanzale, a Hutu majority community.

The Nande and some other ethnic groups regard the Hutus as outsiders because of their attachment to the majority ethnic group in neighbouring Rwanda.

A string of attacks in the past year by both Hutu and Nande militia forces has deepened hatred between the communities.

Hutu farmers have also been forced to abandon land further south because of high property costs and under pressure from major landowners.

- Relentless bloodshed -

Although Congolese officials have blamed the attacks on the ADF, several expert reports have suggested that other groups, including elements within the Congolese army, took part in some killings.

When the Beni massacres began in October 2014, the ADF was quickly branded the culprit by both DR Congo authorities and MONUSCO, the UN mission in DR Congo.

More than two years on, Congolese authorities and the UN have been unable to protect civilians and the ADF remains the only official explanation -- with the government insisting on a jihadist link to the killings.

It comes as relations with the international community have soured over President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step down despite his term ending on December 20.

Separately, the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) announced Monday that its troops had killed 10 soldiers from neighbouring Burundi after they crossed the border last week in pursuit of rebels.

"There were 10 deaths," Major Dieudonne Kajibwami, told AFP, following a previous statement that five bodies had been taken to Uvira, a lakeside town in the eastern South Kivu province.

Kivu is rich in natural, mainly mineral resources, such as gold, coltan and cassiterite, coveted by the telecommunications industry. Both south and north Kivu have rich agricultural and forestry resources.

North Kivu is one of the DRC's most densely populated areas.

Tiny compared to the vast size of the country, the two provinces suffer not only because of fighting over their mineral resources but because of their proximity to an unstable border with Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda, along with Tanzania.

Democratic Republic of Congo
DR Congo troops killed 10 soldiers from Burundi

Democratic Republic of Congo troops killed 10 soldiers from neighbouring Burundi after they crossed the border last week in pursuit of rebels, the Congolese army said Monday.

The Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) initially announced the death of five Burundian soldiers who had entered the country overnight on December 21, in the first known clash since the end of the Second Congo War in 2003.

"There were 10 deaths," Major Dieudonne Kajibwami, told AFP on Monday following a previous statement that five bodies had been taken to Uvira, a lakeside town in the eastern South Kivu province.

According to Kajibwami, Congolese soldiers opened fire on the Burundian troops when they crossed the border after midnight on Wednesday in pursuit of rebels

"In their flight, they didn't manage to recover the five other bodies," added Kajibwami, the military spokesman in South Kivu, much of which lies across Lake Tanganyika from Burundi.

Questioned by AFP, the Burundian army declined to comment on the incident.

Burundian medical sources said that wounded soldiers were admitted on Thursday to the military hospital in the capital Bujumbura, which lies on the north shore of the lake, across from Uvira. The hospital also took in dead bodies, but the sources gave no number for the injured.

According to Kajibwami, Congolese soldiers opened fire on the Burundian troops when they crossed the border after midnight on Wednesday in pursuit of rebels from the ethnic Hutu National Forces of Liberation (FNL).

"Normally, there is cooperation between the two armies," another Congolese army officer told AFP, asking not to be named. He mentioned a tacit agreement between Bujumbura and Kinshasa to let Burundian soldiers act in pursuit of FNL rebels when they fall back after a raid into Burundi.

"The reason for this glitch" lay in the absence of the military commander of the sector and an ignorance among the soldiers of "the deal between the two sides," this officer added.

Congolese soldiers "opened fire because they have strict instructions at this moment of tension in the country," he said, six days after President Joseph Kabila defied his political foes by retaining power beyond his constitutional mandate.

Kinshasa has never acknowledged authorising a right of pursuit to Burundian soldiers.

The FNL established rear bases in Congo at the start of the Burundian civil war, a partly ethnic conflict that began in 1993 and ended in 2006. The rebels refused to sign the Arusha peace accord that led to an end of the bloodshed.
Israel minister dubs French peace meeting new 'Dreyfus trial'

Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Monday criticised an upcoming Middle East peace conference organised by France, calling it a new "Dreyfus trial" and urged French Jews to move to Israel.

Representatives of around 70 countries are due to attend the January 15 conference aimed at restarting long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts.

Israel has strongly opposed it, instead calling for direct talks with the Palestinians.

Israel's Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman also urged French Jews to move to Israel Menahem Kahana (AFP/File)

"This is not a peace conference. It's a tribunal against the state of Israel," Lieberman told members of his Yisrael Beitenu party, according to a recording released by the party.

"A conference whose whole point is to harm the security of Israel, its good name -- a trial against Israel."

"It's a Dreyfus trial in a modern version, what they're preparing there in Paris for January 15, with one difference. Instead of one Jew being on trial, it will be the entire Jewish people and the state of Israel."

Alfred Dreyfus was a French Jewish army captain wrongly convicted in 1894 of espionage and treason whose ordeal became a symbol of injustice and anti-Semitism.

On Sunday, Lieberman also urged French Jews to move to Israel, saying it would be the most appropriate and "only answer we can give that plot (conference)".

After naming recent attacks in France targeting Jewish residents, he said the conference "adds to that atmosphere, and it might be time to tell the Jews of France: 'That's not your country, it's not your land, leave France and come to Israel'."

"If you want to stay Jewish and keep your children and grandchildren Jewish, leave France and move to Israel."

Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat, a former peace negotiator, told AFP that France aims through the conference to revive the peace process and throw its weight behind "a two-state solution".

The conference will follow Friday's UN Security Council resolution demanding that Israel halt settlement building in Palestinian territory, a vote that has deeply angered the Israeli government.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials have responded with especially harsh language to the resolution which passed after the United States abstained from voting.

By deciding not to veto the move, the United States enabled the adoption of the first UN resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

Peace efforts have been at a standstill since a US-led initiative collapsed in April 2014.

The Palestinians have more recently pursued international diplomacy, saying years of talks with the Israelis have not ended the near-50-year occupation of the West Bank.
Oman appeals court revokes ban on Azamn daily: lawyer

An appeals court on Monday lifted a ban on Azamn newspaper which was forced to close in August after it published an article alleging government corruption, the paper's lawyer said.

The court also reduced prison sentences handed down by a lower court to editor-in-chief Ibrahim al-Maamari and his deputy Yousef al-Haj.

They were arrested on July 28, two days after the paper published an article accusing public officials of corruption and interfering in judicial decisions.

Oman is ranked 125th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2016 World Press Freedom Index Eric Feferberg (AFP/File)

The authorities shut down the paper indefinitely in a decision later confirmed by judicial authorities, and the journalists were tried and sentenced to three years in prison each.

They were accused of "undermining the prestige of the state and misusing the internet", according to the charge sheet.

But on Monday, the appeals court lifted the ban on Azamn and reduced the sentences to six months in jail for Maamari and one year for Haj, lawyer Yacoub al-Harithi said.

Maamari and Haj, who were released on bail in October, will appeal the latest sentencing, sources close to the pair said.

Ten international rights groups had urged Sultan Qaboos to revoke the closure order and end a crackdown by the Omani authorities on journalists and activists.

A joint statement by the 10, including Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists, said "the harsh sentences are a clear attempt to hinder the work of journalists and to curtail the rights of freedom of expression in Oman".
US led UN 'gang-up' on Israel settlement vote: ambassador

The White House orchestrated a "gang-up" against Israel on last week's UN settlement vote, its ambassador to Washington said Monday in the latest sign of anger between the longtime allies.

Ambassador Ron Dermer said in an interview with CNN that the Israeli government plans to show evidence of the alleged US maneuvering in due time.

"What is outrageous is that the United States was actually behind that gang-up. I think it was a very sad day, really a shameful chapter," the Israeli diplomat told CNN, employing unusually sharp language to describe the relationship.

Samantha Power (C), Permanent Representative of the US to the UN, votes to abstain during the December 23, 2016, vote on Israeli settlements Manuel Elias (SC Chamber/AFP/File)

"We have clear evidence of it. We will present that evidence to the new administration through the appropriate channels. And if they want to share it with the US people they're welcome to do it," Dermer said, adding that the Israeli government is "deeply disappointed" with Washington over the UN vote.

On Friday, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding that "Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem."

The United States -- which has a veto in the Security Council -- refrained from casting its vote, enabling the adoption of the measure, the first resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

Relations between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have long been cool, with sharp differences over settlement policy, the contours of a potential Middle East peace deal, and Iran's nuclear program. Israel receives more than $3 billion in annual US aid -- a record $3.8 billion starting in 2018 -- and previous Israeli leaders have carefully nursed the relationship.

But Dermer bluntly accused the Obama administration of helping Palestinians "wage a diplomatic and legal war against Israel."

"They do not want to negotiate peace with us, which is why they've avoided negotiations for eight years," he said.

"What do the Palestinians want? What they want is to blame Israel for the lack of peace and to internationalize the conflict," Dermer continued.

"What this resolution just did is it gave the Palestinians ammunition in their diplomatic and legal war against Israel. And the US not only didn't stop it, they were behind it."

Obama's soon-to-be successor, President-elect Donald Trump, who has campaigned on a promise to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, slammed the position taken by the White House.

Trump, who last week said Washington should have used its veto to block the resolution, has chosen as ambassador to Israel the hardliner David Friedman, who has said Washington will not pressure Israel to curtail settlement building in the occupied West Bank.

Trump said his inauguration will mark the end of Obama-era strained relations with Washington, and will see a return to unstinting support for Israel.

"As to the UN, things will be different after Jan. 20th," Trump tweeted after the Security Council vote.

Netanyahu summoned US Ambassador Daniel Shapiro Sunday to express his displeasure.

An official Israeli source confirmed only that Netanyahu and Shapiro had met, without elaborating on the substance of their discussions.

The UN text was passed with support from all remaining members of the 15-member council, with applause breaking out in the chamber.

The Haaretz daily's website said that for Israel to summon an American ambassador was "considered a most unusual step."

"Even more unusual is the fact that, unlike the other envoys who were summoned on Sunday to the foreign ministry, Netanyahu will conduct the conversation himself at his office," it said ahead of the meeting.
More foreign Vegas visits don't equal more tips, workers say

LAS VEGAS (AP)  Servers and dealers on the Las Vegas Strip say they're worried that as more foreign visitors hit the restaurants and casinos, they'll receive smaller tips because the tourists are coming from countries like China, where American-style, 20 percent gratuities are uncommon.

"It's very difficult when you're serving or relying on tips and the majority of your guests are foreign. They don't tip you, or they may have a $200 meal and tip you a dollar per person," said Cheryl Holt, who has been a food server on the Strip since 2011.

With a $200 dinner check, Holt said as a server, she'd typically have to pass on about $10 to the rest of the service staff, including a bartender, busser and food runner. If she receives a small tip, Holt said she's paying for those customers to eat at her table.

Holt told the Las Vegas Review-Journal (http://bit.ly/2hWRxOH) that in her experience, visitors from Canada tend to tip about 10 percent. European tourists give smaller tips and Chinese visitors give about $1 per person.

Hotels and resorts should help educate visitors, perhaps by displaying signs at dealer tables noting that the dealers expect tips, according to Xiaosheng Huang, a Chinese immigration lawyer in Las Vegas.

"Chinese normally think service workers are paid by the boss and need not to be paid separately," Huang said. "This is a side of cultural misunderstanding."

Dealers in the casinos, who receive about 80 percent of their income in gratuities, worry about stingy tips too, according to Joseph Carbon, who represents dealers at Caesars Palace, Harrah's Las Vegas, Bally's, Paris Las Vegas, and Wynn Las Vegas as the head of the Transport Workers Union of America's gaming division.

"Let's face it, this is a tip town," Carbon said.

Chinese tourists have an obligation to learn the culture they're visiting, but tourism officials need to help too, according to Michael Boyd, with China Ni Hao, a New York firm that was hired to help McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas welcome Chinese visitors.

"We may just have to accept the fact that we want that business, we want them to come here, but if they feel gouged for a tip, they may go somewhere else," Boyd said.

Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority spokeswoman Heidi Hayes said the agency does not have any program in place to educate foreign visitors about the culture.

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Cuban President Raul Castro faces deep problems in 2017

HAVANA (AP)  Alex Romero was delighted when President Barack Obama came to Havana in March bearing the promise of a bright new future.

Like so many other Cubans, the 42-year-old state photography shop employee thrilled at the president's vision of restored ties between the U.S. and Cuba. Families would reunite. A flood of American business would lift the stagnant centrally planned economy, fueling its slow path toward reform. Even as Obama spoke, an 80 percent surge in U.S. visitors was drenching state-run and private businesses with hundreds of millions of desperately needed dollars.

Nine months later, the world seen from Havana looks very different.

FILE - In this March 21, 2016 file photo, Cuban President Raul Castro, right, lifts up the arm of U.S. President Barack Obama, at the conclusion of their joint news conference at the Palace of the Revolution, in Havana, Cuba. Next year will likely be Castros toughest year in office since he took power in 2006, as the 85-year-old general faces a possible economic recession alongside a hostile new U.S. administration promising to undo measures that gave many Cubans expectations of a better future. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa, File)

President Raul Castro faces what could be his toughest year since he took power in 2006. 2017 brings a possible economic recession and a U.S. president-elect who has promised to undo Obama's normalization unless the Cuban government makes new concessions on civil rights. Resistance to pressure from Washington is a founding principle for the Cuban communist system, making domestic concessions in exchange for continued detente a virtual impossibility.

"People expected that after Obama came there would be changes in the relationship between the U.S. and Cuba but that we could keep the best of what we have, the benefits for the people," Romero said. "Trump's not going to be able to get what he wants, another type of Cuba. If the world's number one power takes us on, 2017 is going to be really bad for us."

Castro must manage these twin economic and diplomatic challenges during a year of transition. The 85-year-old general has promised to hand over the office in early 2018 to a successor, widely expected to be Miguel Diaz-Canel, a 56-year-old official with neither the Castro name nor revolutionary credentials. The change will occur without Castro's older brother Fidel, the revolutionary leader whose largely unseen presence endowed the system he created with historical weight and credibility in the eyes of many Cubans before he died last month at 90.

"Even if those two events hadn't taken place  Trump's victory and Fidel's death  2017 was going to be a very difficult year for Cuba," said Cuban economist Omar Everleny Perez, a visiting professor at Keio University in Tokyo.

Cuba publishes few credible economic statistics, but experts expect the country to end this year with gross domestic product growth of 1 percent or less. It maintained a rate close to 3 percent from 2011-2015.

One bright spot is tourism, booming since Obama and Castro's Dec. 17, 2014, detente announcement set off a surge in overall visitor numbers, up more than 15 percent in 2015 and again this year.

"I've never seen as many tourists as I have this year," said Magalys Pupo, a street-corner pastry vendor in Old Havana. "They're everywhere and they're the income that we need in this country."

The slowness of macroeconomic growth despite a surge of interest in foreign investment and the greatest tourism boom in decades attests to both long-term mismanagement of the Cuban economy and the depth of the crisis in other sectors, particularly aid from Venezuelan in the form of deeply subsidized oil.

Analysts believe that as Venezuela's Cuba-inspired socialist economy has disintegrated, exports to Cuba has dropped from 115,000 barrels daily in 2008 to 90,000 in recent years to 40,000 a day over the last few months.

Venezuela was the prime destination alongside Brazil for Cuban doctors and other professionals whose salaries go directly to the Cuban government, providing another vital source of hard currency believed to be slackening in recent years. Nickel, another of Cuba's main exports, has seen a sharp price drop this year.

The revenue drop may be creating a vicious cycle for Cuba's state-run industries. Experts say cutbacks in imported industrial inputs this year will lead to lower productivity in Cuba's few domestic industries in 2017 and make zero growth or recession highly likely.

"Raul Castro's government has a year left and it should be planning what needs to be done," said Pavel Vidal, a Cuban economist at the Universidad Javeriana in Cali, Colombia. "Above all, it will be managing a crisis."

The government cut back summer working hours and gas rations for state-owned vehicles and has so far avoided any sustained power outages. But a crackdown on black-market gasoline sales to taxi drivers led them to increase prices, causing drivers to raise their prices, squeezing many Cubans already struggling to get by on state salaries of about $30 a month. Many Cubans say, however, that worsening conditions could drive them to rally around the government rather than against it.

"It's going to be a tough year," said Antenor Stevens, a 66-year-old retired public water specialist. "We're a people who've suffered a lot. We've felt a lot of need, but there's still a revolutionary consciousness."

One cushion will be remittances from Cuban expatriates in the United States and other countries, estimated by some experts to be in excess of $3 billion a year and rising as Cubans flood to the United States in fear that they may soon lose special immigration privileges.

Another bright spot is Cuba's growing private sector, particularly businesses boosted by increased demand from tourists.

While rising food prices are a constant problem for ordinary Cubans, many of those investing in food production are finding success.

Fernando Funes, owner of a farm that supplies vegetables to about 30 private restaurants in Havana, most with tourist clienteles, has nearly doubled his workforce from 12 to 20 in recent years, all earning about $25 a week. Five have begun cultivating their own plots of land alongside to produce food for sale to similar clients.

"We have a lot more opportunities to start projects these days," Funes said. "Personally I'm optimistic about 2017."

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Associated Press writer Michael Weissenstein contributed to this report.

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Andrea Rodriguez on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ARodriguezAP

Michael Weissenstein on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mweissenstein

FILE - In this Dec. 3, 2016 file photo, a soldier of the Revolutionary Armed Forces stands guard next to the tomb of Cuba's late leader Fidel Castro at Santa Ifigenia cemetery in Santiago, Cuba. Fidel's brother Raul must manage economic and diplomatic challenges during his last full year as president without his older brother whose presence endowed the system he created with historical weight and credibility in the eyes of many Cubans. Fidel died in November at age 90. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa, File)
Mass graves, booby traps as Russians, Syrians sweep Aleppo

BEIRUT (AP)  Russia's Defense Ministry said on Monday that its troops had found mass graves in Syria's Aleppo with bodies showing signs of torture and mutilation.

Dozens of bodies have been uncovered, according to Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov. He said some bore gunshot wounds.

While the Syrian war is now largely fought with mortars, tanks, and air power, death has come at close quarters as well. Human rights observers and the media have recorded numerous examples of massacres and organized torture, perpetrated by the government, opposition, and the Islamic State group.

The Russian Air Force has helped Syrian President Bashar Assad and its allies to capture Aleppo, Syria's largest city, after weeks of a siege. Russia has since dispatched military police to the city.

Konashenkov also accused rebels, who controlled eastern Aleppo before they were pushed out earlier this month, of laying multiple booby traps and mines across town, endangering the civilian population.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which gathers information on the conflict through local contacts, said on Sunday that at least 63 Syrian soldiers and militiamen had been killed by such booby traps in east Aleppo since the government took control of it from rebels last Thursday. The Observatory said the victims were a mix of demining personnel and soldiers or militiamen looting the districts.

As Russian and Syrian forces secured and consolidated eastern Aleppo, Syrian president Bashar Assad was showing signs of increasing confidence in his position.

On Sunday, Assad visited a Christian orphanage near the capital Damascus to mark Christmas.

Photographs posted on the Syrian presidency's Facebook page showed Assad along with his wife, Asma, standing with nuns and orphans in the Damascus suburb of Sednaya.

In the northern city of Aleppo, Christians celebrated Christmas for the first time in four years with the country's largest city now under full control of government forces.

The rebel withdrawal from east Aleppo last week marked Assad's biggest victory since Syria's crisis began in 2011.
Trump repeating some behaviors he criticized in Clinton

WASHINGTON (AP)  Donald Trump spent the past two years attacking rival Hillary Clinton as crooked, corrupt, and weak.

But some of those attacks seem to have already slipped into the history books.

From installing Wall Street executives in his Cabinet to avoiding news conferences, the president-elect is adopting some of the same behavior for which he criticized Clinton during their fiery presidential campaign.

FILE - In this Dec. 13, 2016, file photo, President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a rally at the Wisconsin State Fair Exposition Center in West Allis, Wis. Trump is embracing some of his top attacks on Hillary Clinton as he forms his new administration, engaging in some of the same behavior he used against his rival during the presidential campaign. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Here's a look at what Trump said then  and what he's doing now:

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GOLDMAN SACHS

Then: "I know the guys at Goldman Sachs," Trump said at a South Carolina rally in February, when he was locked in a fierce primary battle with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. "They have total, total control over him. Just like they have total control over Hillary Clinton."

Now: A number of former employees of the Wall Street bank will pay a key role in crafting Trump's economic policy. He's tapped Goldman Sachs president Gary Cohn to lead the White House National Economic Council. Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary nominee, spent 17 years working at Goldman Sachs and Steve Bannon, Trump's chief strategist and senior counselor, started his career as an investment banker at the firm.

Trump is following in a long political tradition, though one he derided on the campaign trail: If Cohn accepts the nomination, he'll be the third Goldman executive to run the NEC.

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BIG DONORS

Then: "Crooked Hillary. Look, can you imagine another four years of the Clintons? Seriously. It's time to move on. And she's totally controlled by Wall Street and all these people that gave her millions," Trump said at a May rally in Lynden, Washington.

Now: Trump has stocked his Cabinet with six top donors  far more than any recent White House. "I want people that made a fortune. Because now they're negotiating with you, OK?" Trump said, in a December 9 speech in Des Moines.

The biggest giver? Linda McMahon, incoming small business administrator, gave $7.5 million to a super PAC backing Trump, more than a third of the money collected by the political action committee.

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NEWS CONFERENCES

Then: "She doesn't do news conferences, because she can't," Trump said at an August rally in Ashburn, Virginia. "She's so dishonest she doesn't want people peppering her with questions."

Now: Trump opened his last news conference on July 27, saying: "You know, I put myself through your news conferences often, not that it's fun."

He hasn't held one since.

Trump skipped the news conference a president-elect typically gives after winning the White House. Instead, he released a YouTube video of under three minutes. He also recently abruptly canceled plans to hold his first post-election news conference, opting instead to describe his plans for managing his businesses in tweets. "I will hold a press conference in the near future to discuss the business, Cabinet picks and all other topics of interest. Busy times!" he tweeted in mid-December.

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FAMILY TIES:

Then: "It is impossible to figure out where the Clinton Foundation ends and the State Department begins. It is now abundantly clear that the Clintons set up a business to profit from public office. They sold access and specific actions by and really for I guess the making of large amounts of money," Trump said at an August rally in Austin.

Now: While Trump has promised to separate himself from his businesses, there is plenty of overlap between his enterprises and his immediate family. His companies will be run by his sons, Donald Jr and Eric. And his daughter, Ivanka, and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, have joined Trump at a number of meetings with world leaders of countries where the family has financial interests.

In a financial disclosure he was required to file during the campaign, Trump listed stakes in about 500 companies in at least 25 countries.

Ivanka, in particular, has been caught making early efforts to leverage her father's new position into profits. After an interview with the family appeared on "60 Minutes," her jewelry company, Ivanka Trump Fine Jewelry, blasted out an email promoting the $10,800 gold bangle bracelet that she had worn during the appearance. The company later said they were "proactively discussing new policies and procedures."

Ivanka is also auctioning off a private coffee meeting with her to benefit her brother's foundation. The meeting is valued at $50,000, with the current top bid coming in at $25,000.

"United States Secret Service will be Present for the Duration of the Experience," warns the auction site.

Trump on Saturday said he would dissolve his charitable foundation amid efforts to eliminate any conflicts of interest before he takes office next month.

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CLINTON INVESTIGATIONS

Then: "If I win, I am going to instruct my attorney general to get a special prosecutor to look into your situation, because there has never been so many lies, so much deception. There has never been anything like it, and we're going to have a special prosecutor," Trump said in the October presidential debate, referring to Clinton.

Now: Since winning office, Trump has said he has no intention of pushing for an investigation into Clinton's use of a private email server as secretary of state or the workings of her family foundation. "It's just not something that I feel very strongly about," he told the New York Times.
Wham!'s influence felt in China after landmark 1985 concert

BEIJING (AP)  George Michael's death brought back memories in China of the heady 1980s when Wham! was the first major Western band to play in the country after the death of Mao Zedong and decades of cultural isolation.

Many Chinese who had never even heard of the band lined up for hours to buy $1.75 tickets to the groundbreaking April 1985 concert at the People's Gymnasium, the biggest stadium in Beijing at the time.

Inside the 12,000-strong stadium seated spectators watched in bewilderment as Michael and Andrew Ridgeley danced in big-shouldered jackets with bleached and feathered hair. The backing dancers' strapless costumes and polka-dot miniskirts also stunned the audience in China at a time when people still dressed in similar shades of green and gray.

FILE - In this April 7, 1985 file photo, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley of the British group WHAM! perform during a concert in Peking, China. Michael, who rocketed to stardom with WHAM! and went on to enjoy a long and celebrated solo career lined with controversies, has died, his publicist said Sunday, Dec. 25, 2016. He was 53. (AP Photo)

"It was the first time a Western band had come to China, everyone was ready to make some noise and stand," said Li Ji, a restaurant owner who went to the concert in his 20s. "But there were so many police officers there, people didn't dare to."

Wham!'s manager Simon Napier-Bell had spent 18 months persuading the Chinese government to let them in and secure their place as one of the world's biggest bands by telling them it would help them attract foreign investment.

The police had warned spectators to stay seated, worried that they would be unable to control the crowds and that there might even be riots. Some young Chinese who got up to dance were hauled away by security officers.

The Wham! concert influenced Chinese musicians, who had never seen electric guitars played on stage and began to get interested in rock 'n' roll.

Huang Wen, a music writer, said that the performance had an impact on big-name musicians, including the godfather of Chinese rock, Cui Jian. "In the early 1980s, pop songs from Hong Kong were very popular in mainland China and after the concert college students and people in the music industry started to get interested in rock 'n' roll," she said.

Li said the army department that his parents worked for had given out tickets as a benefit. He attended the concert along with his parents' colleagues and their kids.

"I remember there was a little incident during the concert, the main lights went out because there was a problem with the electricity, so the bassist danced a little break dance," Li said. "It was the first time people saw that and it was so popular, people liked it."

State media said Monday that the concert "was a sensation."

While young Chinese today don't know the names George Michael or Wham!, many instantly recognize his well-loved songs "Last Christmas" and "Careless Whisper." The latter song had already been translated into Chinese and sung in several versions before the 1985 concert.

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Mali state TV says 20 dead after boat accident near Timbuktu

GAO, Mali (AP)  Mali's state television is reporting at least 20 dead after a boat capsized in the region of Timbuktu.

The accident took place Sunday, according to the report.

Souleymane Mahamane, who lives in the nearby village of Gourma-Rharous, says survivors reported that the boat was overladen and encountered high winds.

Boating accidents are common in Mali during periods of high winds. Boats often carry more passengers and goods than is allowed. As a result, sometimes the true death toll is never known as not all passengers have tickets.
2 dead, 1 missing after car crashes into South Florida canal

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP)  Authorities say at least two people are dead and a third person is missing after a red Jaguar crashed into a South Florida canal.

A Broward Sheriff's Office news release says the car left the roadway, crashed through two chain-link fences and plunged into the water in a residential area near Fort Lauderdale early Monday morning.

The release says one man was able to get out of the car and swim to safety. He told authorities that another man and two women remained in the vehicle.

The sheriff's office aviation and marine units responded. Divers found the submerged car  tangled in thick, long weeds  with a man and woman inside, but they were still looking for the other woman later Monday.
Atheist group offers church-like gathering in Salt Lake City

SALT LAKE CITY (AP)  A new Salt Lake City atheist group is offering non-believers a church-like service that offers music, readings and community for those who don't belong to the state's dominant religion, Mormonism, or other faith groups.

The Sunday Assembly hopes to use its weekly gatherings, started in 2016 in Salt Lake City, to build a community and change perceptions people have about atheists. It's modeled after a similar secular assembly launched by two London comedians almost four years ago. There's now more than 70 Sunday Assemblies in the U.S. and around the world.

The group promotes a three-pronged motto: Live better, help often, wonder more.

In this Dec. 9, 2016 photo, Sunday Assembly Vice Chairman Brian Worley speaks about the science behind the way snowflakes form during Sunday Assembly in Salt Lake City. The Salt Lake City atheist group is offering non-believers a church-like service that offers music, readings and community for those who don't belong to the state's dominant religion, Mormonism, or other faith groups. (Scott Sommerdorf/The Salt Lake Tribune via AP)

"We don't do supernatural, but we also won't tell you you're wrong if you do," Salt Lake City organizer Nichelle Reed said. "It's a place where you can find community that is not based on your religious beliefs, where you're from, your race, your orientation or your identity."

About 70 people attended the December gathering in a light-filled events center in Trolley Square, the Salt Lake Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/2hWO3cy ). The 1  hour program opened with a band playing the 1980s hit song, "Walking on Sunshine" while attendees sang along and batted beach balls around the room.

After children were invited to move to a different room for a Lego challenge, the adults played a paper plate art game as an icebreaker and then sang along to the song, "I Will Survive." Reed's husband, the group's co-founder Brian Worley, then used slides and six volunteers to act out and explain the science of snowflakes and stages of water.

Assembly board member Laura Beck announced during the "Life Happens" segment that one group member had bought a house and another learned to play the ukulele. The gathering ended with everyone singing the group's theme song, "It's My Life" before they went to the foyer to eat snacks.

The growing Salt Lake City community of the Sunday Assembly pleases Reed, who says it not only gives a home to those who don't practice Mormonism or the other major religions.

"We share the same ideals; just take a different approach," Reed said. "Basically, we are here to celebrate and have fun."

They fall into a growing category in the U.S. of the so-called "nones," people who don't affiliate with any religion. A fifth of the U.S. public  and one-third of adults under 30  claim no religion, showed a 2012 Pew Research Center survey. That was the highest percentage Pew had ever documented.

Well-known Utah atheist Gregory Arthur Clark said the Sunday Assembly offers social and emotional connections for people without religions to help them through life's trial and tragedies. Abandoning a religion can be "psychologically wrenching," Clark said.

People still want to feel connected to others, "without the magic, and in some cases, without bigotry," Clark said.

"We are a social species," Clark said. "The worst thing you can do is put someone in social solitary confinement."

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Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune, http://www.sltrib.com

In this Dec. 9, 2016 photo, one of the activities at Sunday Assembly, people were asked to do "the paper plate challenge" - a blind drawing game, where they drew a Christmas tree, presents, a fireplace and stockings on a plate placed on top of their heads at Sunday Assembly in Salt Lake City. The Salt Lake City atheist group is offering non-believers a church-like service that offers music, readings and community for those who don't belong to the state's dominant religion, Mormonism, or other faith groups. (Scott Sommerdorf/The Salt Lake Tribune via AP)
1 Tenn. inmate still on the run after Christmas jail break

NEWPORT, Tenn. (AP)  Authorities in Tennessee say they have recaptured five of the six inmates who broke out of jail on Christmas Day.

The Cocke County Sheriff's Office says six inmates escaped from the jail early Sunday after removing a toilet from the wall and going through a hole behind it that led to the outside of the facility.

A statement by the sheriff says that prior plumbing repairs had loosened the concrete holding the toilet and leaking water had rusted the bolts holding it.
Police: Man shot during struggle with deputy after crash

LOUISA , Va. (AP)  Virginia State Police say they're investigating after a man was shot during a struggle with a Louisa County sheriff's deputy near a crash scene.

Police said in a statement that as a deputy arrived at the scene of a one-vehicle crash about 35 miles west of Charlottesville early Monday, the driver ran into the woods.

A few minutes later, the deputy found the man about a quarter mile away. During a discussion, police say the man charged the deputy. As they struggled, police say the man was shot once. Police say the 44-year-old man was taken to a hospital, where he is in stable condition.

Police say the deputy is white and the man is black.

Police say the deputy wasn't injured.
The Latest: Barack and Michelle Obama dining out in Honolulu

HONOLULU (AP)  The Latest on President Barack Obama's annual holiday vacation in Hawaii (all times local):

7:45 p.m.

President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama are having dinner with friends at a high-end restaurant in Honolulu.

President Barack Obama greets people waiting for him outside Island Snow Hawaii in Kailua, Hawaii, Saturday, Dec. 24, 2016, after the president, joined by family and friends, had shave ice during the first family's annual vacation. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The president's motorcade departed his Kailua rental home and arrived at Alan Wong's Restaurant about 30 minutes later.

The Obamas have frequented the establishment on past holiday vacations to Oahu, where Obama was born.

There were about 40 onlookers trying to catch a glimpse of the Obamas as the president and his wife arrived for dinner.

Obama will meet with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the site of the 1941 Pearl Harbor attacks on Tuesday. Abe is speaking at a reception dinner Monday night not far from where the Obamas are eating.

12:15 p.m.

President Barack Obama is following up his morning workout with a round of golf at a private Hawaii course.

The White House says Obama's golfing partners Monday are friends Bobby Titcomb, Mike Ramos and Greg Orme.

They're golfing at Mid Pacific Country Club in the windward Oahu neighborhood of Lanikai. It offers sweeping views of the Koolau mountains.

A crowd of about 30 people waved to the president's motorcade as it arrived at the course.

Obama also played at Mid Pacific last week.

He's spending his annual winter vacation with his family on the island of Oahu, where he was born.

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9:15 a.m.

President Barack Obama is wishing a "happy and healthy new year" to those celebrating Kwanzaa.

Obama is issuing his final annual Kwanzaa message as president.

He says Kwanzaa is a joyous time to "reflect on the rich African-American culture."

Obama is emphasizing the principles enshrined in the Kwanzaa holiday: unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith. He says those principles reflect Americans' most cherished values.

The White House released the greetings from Obama on Monday while the president and his family are vacationing in Hawaii.

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8:35 a.m.

President Barack Obama is spending the morning after Christmas at a gym on a marine corps base near his Hawaii vacation rental.

It's the 10th day of the first family's annual winter vacation on Oahu, where Obama was born.

Obama left his Kailua rental home Monday morning for his workout at Marine Corps Base Hawaii.

A family of four waved to Obama's motorcade as it headed to the base in Kaneohe Bay.

Obama and first lady Michelle Obama paid a Christmas visit to Marines on Sunday.

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This story has been corrected to show the Obamas' 10th day of vacation is Monday.
Man stabbed, killed inside Target on Christmas Eve; 2 jailed

HAYWARD, Calif. (AP)  Authorities say a Northern California man was stabbed to death inside a Target store on Christmas Eve after an altercation with two other men.

Police in Hayward said in a statement Monday that the pair were arrested on suspicion of homicide and are in jail awaiting formal charges.

Witnesses told investigators that the three men got into an altercation before the attack Saturday night at the store. The 36-year-old victim was taken to hospital, where he died.

Officers arrested the suspects, both in their 20s, nearby soon after the stabbing.
Cheetah numbers decline as African habitat shrinks

JOHANNESBURG (AP)  Amid population declines for many wildlife species in Africa, conservationists are sounding alarm bells for the cheetah, the fastest animal on land.

An estimated 7,100 cheetahs remain in the wild across Africa and in a small area of Iran, and human encroachment has pushed the wide-ranging predator out of 91 percent of its historic habitat, according to a study published on Monday.

Consequently, the cheetah should be defined as "endangered" instead of the less serious "vulnerable" on an official watch list of threatened species worldwide, the study said.

In this Aug. 22, 2012 photo, a cheetah is photographed in the Tamboti Game Resrve, near Lephalale, South Africa. Amid population declines for many wildlife species in Africa, conservationists are sounding alarm bells for the cheetah, the fastest animal on land, where there are an estimated 7,100 cheetahs remaining across Africa and in a small area in Iran. (AP Photo/Kevin Anderson)

"This period is really crunch time for species like cheetah that need these big areas," said Sarah Durant, a cheetah specialist at the Zoological Society of London and the lead author of the report published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

About 77 percent of cheetah habitats fall outside wildlife reserves and other protected areas, the study said, requiring outreach to governments and villages to promote tolerance for a carnivore that sometimes hunts livestock.

Besides habitat loss, cheetahs face attacks from villagers, loss of antelope and other prey that are killed by people for their meat, an illegal trade in cheetah cubs, the trafficking of cheetah skins and the threat of getting hit by speeding vehicles.

A cheetah has been recorded running at a speed of 29 meters (95 feet) per second. The species may move more slowly while hunting and it can only maintain top speeds for a few hundred meters.

More than half of the world's cheetahs live in southern Africa, including in Namibia and Botswana, which have relatively sparse human populations. Cheetahs have been virtually wiped out in Asia, save for fewer than 50 in Iran, according to the study, whose contributors included the Panthera group and the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Durant said there was uncertainty over the 7,100 number, which was based on data from experts in areas where cheetahs live and estimates for other areas. Cheetahs are difficult to find because they move over vast regions, she said.

Durant also led a previous assessment of nearly 6,700 cheetahs published last year by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which keeps a watch list of threatened species. Since then, experts have provided new information and refined counting methods, contrasting with rough estimates in the 10,000-range in recent decades.

The cheetah population in Zimbabwe declined from an estimated 1,500 in 1999 to between 150 and 170, according to a survey conducted between 2013 and 2015 by a group called Cheetah Conservation Project Zimbabwe. The group solicited cheetah photographs and reports of sightings from tourists, safari guides and others and interviewed more than 1,000 people, including village heads and cattle managers.

Cheetah experts note that Angola is developing a plan to protect cheetahs and African wild dogs. That could yield better data on cheetah numbers in a country where information has been thin, said Rosemary Groom, a conservationist who participated in an October workshop on the subject in Angola's Quicama National Park.

Despite habitat loss across the continent, the Mara area in southwest Kenya and in the adjacent Serengeti National Park in Tanzania still offers a refuge, said Femke Broekhuis, head of the Mara Cheetah Project. Recent data from a GPS collar on one Mara cheetah showed that it traveled 19 kilometers (12 miles) overnight, she said.

Cheetahs often roam alone, though on Monday morning Broekhuis saw a rare sight: five male cheetahs, together.

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Follow Christopher Torchia on Twitter at www.twitter.com/torchiachris
Pilot error or a technical fault is thought to be the cause of Sundays Black Sea plane crash that killed 92 people, Russias transport minister has said as the nation held a day of mourning for the victims.

All 84 passengers and eight crew members on the Russian militarys Tu-154 plane are believed to have died on Sunday when it crashed two minutes after taking off from the southern Russian city of Sochi. Passengers included dozens of singers in Russias famous military choir, nine Russian journalists and a Russian doctor known for her charity work in war zones.

More than 3,000 rescue workers on 32 ships - including over 100 divers flown in from across Russia - have been searching the crash site at sea and along the shore, the Defence Ministry said. Helicopters, drones and submersibles were being used to help spot bodies and debris.

Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said in televised remarks on Monday that terrorism was not among the main theories, and that authorities were looking into a possible technical fault or a pilot error.

Searches team looking for bodies off the coast of Sochi (Vikto Klyushin/AP)

Still, several aviation experts noted factors that could suggest a terror attack, such as the crews failure to report any malfunction and the fact that plane debris was scattered over a wide area.

Possible malfunctions  certainly wouldnt have prevented the crew from reporting them, Vitaly Andreyev, a former senior Russian air traffic controller, told RIA Novosti.

Emergency crews on Sunday found fragments of the plane about 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) from the shore but a deputy defence minister told Russian news agencies that experts estimated the Tu-154 crash site at 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from the shore.

Rescue workers bring wreckage to the shore (Viktor Klyushin/AP)

By Monday morning, rescue teams had recovered 11 bodies which were flown to Moscow, where the remains will be identified.

Mourners light candles at Sochi Adler airports chapel and laid flowers at an improvised shrine that featured photos of the plane and of some victims.

A woman lights a candle at the choir's headquarters in Moscow (Pavel Golovkin/AP)

The plane, which originated from Moscows military airport of Chkalovsky and stopped in Sochi for refuelling, was taking the Defence Ministrys choir, the Alexandrov Ensemble, to perform at a New Years concert at the Russian air base in Syrias coastal province of Latakia.

Despite the Syrian connection, Mr Sokolov said the government saw no need to heighten security measures at Russian airports.

The Black Sea search area - which covers over 10 square kilometers (about 4 square miles) - is plagued by underwater currents that can carry debris and body fragments into the open sea. Mr Sokolov said the planes flight recorders did not have radio beacons, so locating them on the seabed was going to be challenging.
A musical great known for both his chart-topping hits and his turbulent personal life, George Michael was a giant of popular culture.

With wham bandmate Andrew Ridgeley in 1984 (PA)

Michael  born Georgios Panayiotou  found fame as a teenager in the early 1980s after forming Wham! with school friend Andrew Ridgeley.

The two at Heathrow in 1985 embarking on a tour of Japan (PA)

The pair enjoyed hit after hit, including Club Tropicana, Young Guns (Go For It) and Last Christmas.

But they decided to bow out at the top, pulling the plug on their partnership with a final chart-topping single The Edge Of Heaven in 1986 and triumphant Wembley shows.

Performing at the Live Aid concert at Wembley Stadium in London in 1985 (PA)

Michael then embarked on a hugely successful solo career, plus occasional collaborations with the likes of Aretha Franklin, Sir Elton John and Queen, after the death of Freddie Mercury.

His album Faith  which has been remastered and later released in 2010  was a massive success in 1988.

Michael was awarded an Ivor Novello award for his album Faith in 1989 (Martin Keene/PA)

But lengthy legal battles followed as he tried to free himself from a deal with record label Sony which effectively prevented new recordings (only to re-sign with them a few years later).

Things began to unravel further when, after years of refusing to be drawn on speculation about his sexuality, he was arrested in public toilets in Beverly Hills, California, in 1998 for engaging in a lewd act.

The incident forced him to disclose his homosexuality and his relationship with American Kenny Goss.

With former partner Kenny Goss in 2004 at Attitude magazine's 10th birthday party (Myung Jung Kim/PA)

Meeting Diana, Princess of Wales at the Concert of Hope at Wembley Arena in 1993 (Martin Keene/PA)

With Elton John after the funeral of Diana at Westminster Abbey in 1997 (Adam Butler/PA)

A further run-in with the law came in October 2006 when he was found slumped over the wheel of his car. The following May he pleaded guilty to driving while unfit through drugs and was banned from driving for two years.

Making a statement to the press outside Brent Magistrate's Court, after he was sentenced to 100 hours community service for driving while unfit (Andrew Parsons/PA)

In 2008 Michael took a step back from the public eye but less than a month later he was once again in the glare when he was cautioned for possession of class A drugs, which included crack cocaine, and class C drugs.

The Snappy Snaps store in Hampstead, north London, where he crashed his car (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

In September 2010 Michael received an eight-week prison sentence following an incident the previous July in which he crashed his Range Rover into a shop in north London. He was also given a five-year driving ban after he pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of drugs and possessing cannabis.

Speaking to the media after being released from jail in 2010 (Yui Mok/PA)

Performing with Sir Paul McCartney during the LIVE8 Concert in Hyde Park in 2011 (Yui Mok/PA)

The star nearly died from pneumonia in late 2011. After receiving treatment in a Vienna hospital, Michael made a tearful appearance outside his London home just before Christmas and said it had been touch and go whether he lived.

He made a statement to the media outside his home in Highgate after his health scare in Vienna (PA)

In an attempt to relaunch his musical career, Michael performed a song from his new album during the closing ceremony at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Michael performed during the London Olympic Games 2012 Closing Ceremony (David Davies/PA)

But he was to return to hospital just 18 months later with a head head injury following a bizarre incident on the M1 motorway when he fell from his vehicle on to the tarmac.

In concert at the Royal Albert Hall, London during his 2012 Symphonica Tour (Max Nash/PA)

Michael had been looking to the future shortly before his death, with a documentary film entitled Freedom due for release next March.
Britain should be more self-confident about its prospects outside the European Union, a former governor of the Bank of England has said.

Lord King acknowledged that Brexit will bring great political difficulties, but said that there would also be many opportunities economically for the UK striking out on its own.

The crossbench peer  who led the Bank as Sir Mervyn King from 2003-13  said the UK should leave the European single market and warned there were real question marks over whether it should seek to remain in the customs union, which might constrain its opportunities to forge new trade deals.

Former Hovernor of the Bank of England Sir Mervyn King (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

His comments came as it was reported that the billionaire businessman chosen by US President-Elect Donald Trump as his new trade chief has said that Brexit represents a God-given opportunity for other countries to take business away from the UK.

Wilbur Ross, the US commerce secretary designate, said Britain was facing a period of confusion following the vote to leave the EU and that it was inevitable there would be relocations, according to The Times.

Mr Ross will be responsible for negotiating a free trade deal with the UK and his reported comments will raise concerns the incoming US administration will seek to exploit Britains isolation following Brexit.

Wilbur Ross

The remarks were said to have been made to an audience of Cypriot financiers in the days following last Junes referendum vote  before he had been appointed to Mr Trumps cabinet.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4s Today programme, Lord King said it was too early to judge the economic impact of Brexit, despite data since the June 23 referendum being more positive than some economists had predicted.

He said: I think the challenges we face mean its not a bed of roses  no-one should pretend that  but equally it is not the end of the world and there are some real opportunities that arise from the fact of Brexit we might take.

There are many opportunities and I think we should look at it in a much more self-confident way than either side is approaching it at present.

Lord King said it made no sense for the UK to seek to join Norway as a non-EU member of the single market, which would allow free access for businesses but probably mean accepting freedom of movement of EU citizens.

And he raised doubts over the merits of remaining within the customs union, which would allow Britain to trade goods without border tariffs, like Turkey, but restrict its ability to strike its own trade deals.
Beijing buyers club? China's cancer patients gamble on grey market

By Adam Jourdan

SHANGHAI, Dec 26 (Reuters) - When her father's lung cancer worsened, Yin Min, a 51-year-old financial broker from Shanghai, faced a choice: pay nearly $3,000 a month for an approved drug or pay a fraction of the price for a generic drug not approved for use in China.

Yin, like many families in China, turned to the increasingly popular, unregulated market of online pharmacies, agents and peer groups for drugs.

She bought a generic version of Iressa, not approved for use in China, directly from a manufacturer in India.

"With this sort of misfortune, it's hard to put into words the financial pressure you feel," Yin told Reuters.

Of 30 cancer patients interviewed by Reuters over the past year, two thirds took routes similar to Yin's, pushed by China's high drug prices and a lack of access to newer drugs. The patients were aged between 32 and 81, had varying income levels and suffered from a variety of cancers.

There is no official data on how many cancer patients in China turn to unregulated channels, but research indicates an increase globally in the use of grey and counterfeit markets.

Liu Xuemei, a 61-year-old carcinoma patient from Beijing, said she went through a pharmacy agent to get a cheaper alternative to the approved Zadaxin, while Zhao Xiaohua, who has lung cancer, said he found a cheaper treatment through a patients group recommended by his doctor. Patients Reuters spoke to said doctors often turn a blind eye to them accessing drugs through the grey market, and some actively help them do this.

Medicines bought through unofficial channels are not necessarily harmful, and some of the Indian generics available online are approved for use in other markets. But they can include drugs that are ineffective or fake.

The reason patients in China turn to these unregulated channels are largely financial.

Low average salaries, a chasm between urban and rural wealth, and creaking state reimbursement schemes mean serious disease is among the leading causes of poverty, creating a major social burden and rising debt.

In Yin's case, the generic drug she bought was 13 times less expensive than the China-approved branded Tarceva.

But Chinese also turn to unofficial channels because of bottlenecks in China's drug approvals, which pharmaceutical executives say can mean drugs lag markets like the United States by 5-10 years. China requires all new drugs to be tested and approved in the country, but has a shortage of specialists for this work.

The national drug reimbursement list, the main catalog of medicines covered by state health insurance, is being updated for the first time since 2009. That means even if a drug has been approved, patients can often only access it if they pay for it themselves.

China's health ministry did not respond to Reuters' questions about patients turning to unregulated channels to buy medicines, or the lack of access to new drugs.

The high cost of drugs is not confined to China, and there has been a jump globally in so-called 'buyers clubs' - informal patient groups sourcing drugs via the grey market to help those with HIV and hepatitis access drugs at more affordable prices.

LIMITED OPTIONS

China last year had four million new cancer cases, according to official data, and the nation's personal healthcare bill is set to soar almost fourfold to 12.7 trillion yuan ($1.84 trillion) by 2025, according to Boston Consulting Group.

For many Chinese, being left outside the health system at a time of need is in sharp contrast to the 'iron rice bowl' concept of state benefits and guarantees for life.

"If we can't buy the drug in China or we can't afford to buy it, then what other options do we have?" asked Duan Guangping, a banker in Chongqing, whose mother got lung cancer in 2011. He bought a drug for her from Bangladesh.

China has sought to increase insurance coverage for serious diseases, and encourage drug makers to lower their prices to gain better market access. It has also tried to speed up the regulatory approval process by thinning out the waiting list, forcing manufacturers to withdraw new drugs where trial data isn't strong enough.

But change has been slow.

"A lot of new oncology drugs were approved in the U.S. and UK, but in China there's a 5-7 year delay," said Li Tiantian, a former doctor and founder of medical platform DXY.com. "A lot of patients with cancer cannot wait."

The overall 5-year survival rate for cancer in China is just over 30 percent, less than half the level in the United States, according to Deutsche Bank.

LEGAL RISK

Turning to unofficial channels can also carry a legal risk.

Leukemia patient Lu Yong, a prominent member of a local 'buyers club', was arrested last year and charged with selling unapproved drugs and credit card fraud. He was later released after a public outcry.

In 2004, after buying a generic version of Iressa from India, Lu helped set up an online group for leukemia patients, who wanted the same drugs he was getting at a fraction of the price of the approved drug in China.

The generic started at around 3,000 yuan ($435) and the price slowly dropped over the years, Lu said - to a long way below the price of the approved drug from AstraZeneca.

"There was no other option, so we took this path even though what we were doing was against the law," Lu told Reuters before his arrest.

Lu declined to comment to Reuters after his release, but in his earlier interview he said he never profited from the transactions and only helped other patients to make the complicated overseas payments.
Behind Tata-Mistry clash, a distinct set of governance rules

By Aditi Shah, Euan Rocha and Promit Mukherjee

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI, Dec 26 (Reuters) - When Ratan Tata retired as chairman of Tata Sons Ltd in 2012, he proposed a change in the laws governing the relationship between India's largest conglomerate and its key shareholder, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Until then, the Tata Trusts - public charities owning two-thirds of the company - had easily protected its investment. A Tata family member had for decades held the chairmanship at both the Trusts and the company, whose businesses include cars, software and steel.

But an outsider, Cyrus Mistry, had just taken the top job at Tata Sons. Tata wanted to make sure the Trusts, that rely on Tata Sons for dividends to fund their charitable work, could keep having a major say in company decisions, the sources said.

Mistry agreed, and in doing so sowed the seeds of his ouster from the company last October, according to interviews with more than half-a-dozen current and former Tata executives and advisors, and a review of meeting minutes, emails and a court petition that Mistry has filed against Tata Sons.

Mistry's departure - and the reinstatement of the 78-year-old Tata as interim chairman - has triggered a bitter, public spat that has contributed to nearly a $10 billion decline in the market value of Tata's many listed companies.

Even if the conflict is resolved, the company could face future governance issues as the structure remains unchanged, which means it could weigh on any new chairman. "It is going to be very difficult for an external person to take the role," said Shriram Subramanian, founder of proxy advisory firm InGovern Research.

Mistry wrote in a letter to the Tata Sons board on Oct. 26 that Tata improperly used the change in bylaws to interfere in the affairs of the company and created an alternate power center at the group, which made it hard for him to do his job.

Tata Sons spokesman Debasis Ray said Tata asked Mistry to do only what was in the bylaws and got involved in the company's affairs when he was asked. Tata Sons has cited Mistry's performance as the main reason for firing him, holding him responsible for rising expenses and impairment provisions.

Still, interviews with sources on both sides and the review of documents show that the changes in bylaws helped create the conditions that caused friction between Mistry and Tata and increasingly hindered smooth functioning of the group.

Over the past 30 months, Mistry met Tata - often along with fellow trustee Noshir Soonawala - more than two dozen times to update them on deals and other strategic decisions at group companies. In several cases, the meetings and explanations led to disagreements, the sources said.

CHANGES TO BYLAWS

The changes in bylaws, which were finalised in 2014 after more than a year of discussions, substantially increased the accountability of the chairman of Tata Sons to the directors nominated by the Trusts.

The Trusts can nominate one-third of Tata Sons' directors. The new bylaws require major decisions, such as deals and changes to the company's capital structure, be approved by a majority of the Trusts' nominees.

The chairman was also now required to present five-year and annual business plans to the board and have them approved by a majority of the nominees, the bylaws show.

The chairman, though, was not directly accountable to any of the trustees, including Tata. The Trusts' nominees were expected to represent their interests on the Tata Sons board, sources familiar with the rules on both sides of the conflict said.

Mistry said in his letter that the family's patriarch nevertheless continued to directly interfere in the conglomerate's affairs and called the nominees "postmen" who did Tata's bidding.

Mistry also wrote that Tata's interference "severely constrained" his ability to make the necessary changes to turn around many of the conglomerate's loss-making businesses.

Of the three nominees of the Trusts on the nine-member Tata Sons board at the time of Mistry's ousting, one declined to comment and two others could not be reached.

Tata Sons' Ray denied that Tata interfered with operational matters after stepping down. Tata never attended the group's board meetings and any interaction between Tata and Mistry was at Mistry's behest, Ray said.

The dispute is now being litigated. Mistry filed a petition on Dec. 20 at the National Company Law Tribunal, a quasi-judicial body that deals with corporate grievances in India.

In his petition, Mistry has asked the court to stop Tata and the trustees from interfering in the affairs of the company, replace the entire Tata Sons board and order an investigation into the role of the trustees.

Tata Sons has called his accusations baseless and malicious and said it believes that Mistry's petition is not maintainable in law.

MANY MEETINGS

While the extent of Tata's influence remains in dispute, sources on both sides acknowledged that Tata and Mistry often met to talk about the affairs of the company, and sometimes disagreed on the best course of action.

For example, when Tata Power decided to buy $1.4 billion worth of renewable energy assets from rival Welspun Energy this summer, Tata and Soonawala - who is also a former Tata group finance chief and close confidante of the family's patriarch - got involved.

Emails from early July between Mistry and Soonawala show that Soonawala had ideas about how the deal should be structured that were different from the proposals made by bankers who were advising the group.

Soonawala also told Mistry to get Tata's sign off before finalising the deal, two sources close to Mistry said, adding that the involvement of the two men led to the deal being delayed by several weeks.

Ray said Soonawala, 81, got involved because he was asked by Mistry to do so. Another Tata Sons spokesman said "there were no delays because of consultation with the trustees". Sources close to Mistry deny he asked for Soonawala's advice.

Reuters could not independently confirm whether such a request was ever made.

In another instance, just weeks before an Indian telecom airwaves auction in the autumn, Mistry met Tata and Soonawala on three separate occasions to discuss Tata Teleservices' bidding strategy, two sources close to Mistry said. They said the meetings lasted for hours, as the two sides disagreed on how much extra spectrum Tata Teleservices should buy.

Reuters could not independently determine who asked for the meetings.

Tata and Soonawala wanted the purchase to be kept at a minimum because the company was already bleeding, but Mistry and Tata Teleservices executives wanted to buy more, arguing it could help increase value and draw interest from suitors, the sources said.

Tata Teleservices ended up paying 46.2 billion rupees ($681 million) for some of the spectrum being sold, government data showed.

What is not clear is who prevailed in the internal argument over the bidding.

($1 = 67.8265 Indian rupees)
Taiwan says Chinese aircraft carrier passes south of island

TAIPEI, Dec 26 (Reuters) - A group of Chinese warships lead by the country's sole aircraft carrier has passed through waters south of Taiwan and is heading southwest, Taiwan's defence ministry said on Monday of what China has termed a routine exercise.

The ministry said the aircraft carrier the Liaoning, accompanied by five other vessels, had passed 90 nautical miles south of Taiwan's southernmost point on Monday morning via the Bashi Channel, between Taiwan and the Philippines.

"Staying vigilant and flexible has always been the normal method of maintaining airspace security," said ministry spokesman Chen Chung-chi, declining to say whether Taiwanese fighter jets were scrambled or if submarines had been deployed.

Chen said the ministry was continuing to "monitor and grasp the situation".

The exercise comes amid renewed tension over self-ruled Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own, following U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's telephone call with the island's president that upset Beijing.

Senior Taiwan opposition Nationalist lawmaker Johnny Chiang said the Liaoning exercise was China's signal to the United States that it has broken through the "first island chain", an area that includes Japan's Ryukyu Islands and Taiwan.

In Beijing, influential state-run tabloid the Global Times said the exercise showed how the carrier was improving its combat capabilities and that it should now sail even further afield.

"The Chinese fleet will cruise to the Eastern Pacific sooner or later. When China's aircraft carrier fleet appears in offshore areas of the U.S. one day, it will trigger intense thinking about maritime rules," the newspaper said in an editorial.

China has been angered recently by U.S. naval patrols near islands that China claims in the South China Sea. This month, a Chinese navy ship seized a U.S. underwater drone in the South China Sea. China later returned it.

Japan said late on Sunday it had spotted six Chinese naval vessels including the Liaoning travelling through the passage between Miyako and Okinawa and into the Pacific.

Japan's top government spokesman said on Monday the voyage showed China's expanding military capability and Japan was closely monitoring it.

China's air force conducted long-range drills this month above the East and South China Seas that rattled Japan and Taiwan. China said those exercises were also routine.

China's Soviet-built Liaoning aircraft carrier has taken part in previous exercises, including some in the South China Sea, but China is years away from perfecting carrier operations similar to those the United States has practised for decades.

Last December, the defence ministry confirmed China was building a second aircraft carrier but its launch date is unclear. The aircraft carrier programme is a state secret.
PM Abe to send message Japan won't repeat war atrocities

TOKYO, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Monday he wants to send a message to the world during his visit to Pearl Harbor that Japan will never repeat the atrocities of past wars.

"The alliance between Japan and the United States is one with hope in dealing with various problems in the world," Abe said in a speech to the Japanese business lobby Keidanren.

"I hope this visit will be a historical one with leaders of Japan and the United States jointly visiting Pearl Harbor in a show of reconciliation," he said.
Friend of South Korea's impeached Park "says sorry" for scandal

SEOUL, Dec 26 (Reuters) - The detained friend of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-hye, at the centre of a corruption scandal engulfing Park's administration, said she was sorry on Monday when questioned by a special parliamentary committee, an opposition MP said.

Choi Soon-sil, whom Park has said she turned to at difficult times, denied key allegations against her, including colluding with Park to pressure big businesses into paying money to foundations she controlled, the MP said.

"I am sorry to the people of the country," Choi was quoted as saying by opposition Democratic Party MP Sohn Hye-won, who visited Choi at the Seoul Detention Centre and later told a committee hearing what she had said.

Choi and former government officials are on trial for abuse of power and fraud and are also under investigation on other charges by a special prosecutor who is probing Park's role in the scandal.

The visit came after Choi ignored several summons to appear at parliament hearings.

Prosecutors who indicted Choi last month said Park had colluded with her and her former aides to pressure big conglomerates to contribute 77 billion won ($64 million) to foundations set up to back her policy initiatives.

Park has denied wrongdoing but apologised for carelessness in her ties with Choi.

Park's Dec. 9 impeachment is being reviewed by the Constitutional Court which has up to 180 days to reach a decision.
Brazil taps academic to lead microeconomic reforms -sources

BRASILIA, Dec 26 (Reuters) - The Brazilian government has invited an academic to join the finance ministry and lead a microeconomic reform agenda that aims to bolster the country's productivity, two government officials said on Monday.

Finance Minister Henrique Meirelles has asked Joao Manoel Pinho de Mello, a professor with Sao Paulo-based business school Insper, to be part of his team, said the officials who asked for anonymity because the information has been made public yet.

The finance ministry press office and de Mello did not respond to requests seeking comments.

At the request of President Michel Temer, Meirelles has launched a series of microeconomic measures to help reduce Brazilian's debt burden and ease financial costs to aid an economy entering its third year of recession.

Some of the measures include allowing workers to make early withdrawals from their severance funds and writing off some tax debts owed by corporations.
New Egyptian law establishes media regulator picked by president

By Ahmed Aboulenein

CAIRO, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will pick a chairman and members of a new media council under a law passed on Monday, giving the body the power to fine or suspend publications and broadcasters and give or revoke licences for foreign media.

The law, approved by parliament and signed into law by Sisi, creates the so-called Supreme Council for the Administration of the Media whose chairman will be picked by Sisi and whose remaining members will be appointed by him based on nominations from various bodies including the judiciary and parliament.

Human rights organisations and the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists have repeatedly criticised media freedoms in Egypt, which jailed the second most journalists of any country in the world in 2015, according to the CPJ.

The new council is tasked with suing media organisations that violate its regulations, creating a list of penalties, fining media organisations that break licence terms, and can revoke or suspend the right to publish or broadcast.

It will also ensure fair competition between media groups as well as their independence and neutrality, adherence to journalistic ethics, and will make sure they do not compromise national security, the Official Gazette in which the law was published said.

Yehia Qalash, chief of the press syndicate, told Reuters that the law and the council were mostly concerned with administrative affairs and did not compromise media freedoms. Parliament was still debating other media legislation, he said.

A second media law will cover sentencing, freedom of information, confidentiality of sourcing and the relationship between journalism and national security, lawmakers and press syndicate members said.

The press syndicate had lobbied for a single media law encompassing all issues but parliament decided on two separate laws.

On Sunday, the Interior Ministry said it had arrested an Al Jazeera news producer, accusing him of "provoking sedition" on behalf of the Qatar-based broadcaster that it considers a mouthpiece of the banned Muslim Brotherhood.

Three Al Jazeera journalists were arrested in December 2013 and sentenced to between seven and 10 years in prison on charges including spreading lies to help a terrorist organisation. One was eventually deported and the two others freed in 2015.

Police raided the Egypt's press syndicate offices in Cairo in May and arrested two journalists critical of the government. Thousands of Egyptian journalists protested the move.

A court in November found the syndicate leadership, including Qalash, guilty of harbouring criminals and sentenced them to two years in prison in relation to the incident. Qalash has appealed in is out of detention on bail.
Former Senior DIG Anura Senanayake and former Crime OIC of the Narahenpita police Sumith Perera were further remanded till January 6 by Colombo Additional Magistrate Nishantha Peiris today.

They were arrested for allegedly withholding evidence into the Wasim Thajudeen murder case. (T. Farook Thajudeen)
Yesterday (25) Christians the world-over celebrated the birth of the Christ child. As the clock struck twelve, the stillness of the night was shattered as crackers and fireworks exploded commemorating the birth of Christ. A man born in a cattle-shed in Bethlehem. Yes, Christ, whom all Christians believe is God made man, was actually born in a cattle-shed, amidst sheep, cows and the putrid smell of cattle urine and dung.

His mother and father were betrothed, not married

This is the eternal truth and reality of Christmas. A child born to unmarried parents -Joseph and Mary- who were moving in accordance of a decree of Caesar Augustus that the entire world should be registered. It was also time for Mary the mother of Christ to give birth, but because of the crowds of people moving from one place to another the Inns were filled to capacity.. and there was no place, she could give birth to her child. And so it came to be the Son of God was born of an unwed mother in a cattle-shed in Bethlehem and shortly after his birth, forced to flee persecution in Bethlehem to seek asylum in Egypt.

What a far cry from what Christmas is portrayed today. From the time of his birth, until his death on a cross between two thieves- Christ challenged values, principles, perceptions of justice and the structures of the day. He challenged attitudes toward those who had materially less and were powerless. He challenged our attitude towards children born of single mothers; after all we still refer to such innocents by a single derogatory word.

While Christ was born in dire poverty, to an unwed mother and forced to flee persecution, the birth of the Christ-child is today, commemorated with hardly a thought to what in fact he represented. Through his birth to an unwed mother Christ paid respect to womanhood and motherhood irrespective of whether the women were married or not. His birth in a manger or cattle-shed, shames the ostentatious celebrations held in some homes and mega hotels in his name. Arent they in fact an affront to the poverty and suffering into which he was born and around us today? And lastly but certainly not least the Christ-child was a refugee fleeing persecution.

The Middle East, the land of Christs birth is aflame. The travails of war, destruction, blood-letting and all manner of horrors are befalling them. While we sat down to our Christmas roast and accompanying delicacies for Christmas lunch, a number of Christs descendants and followers were huddled in refugee camps in the Christian countries of Britain, Holland, Austria and Germany, where the population was not very pleased to have them in their midst.

Many others live in overcrowded camps in West Asia. According to the United Nations (UN), the numbers of forcibly displaced persons at June 2015 stood at 65.3 million with more people forced from their homes by war, conflict and persecution. Of this number, 5.2 million are Palestinian refugees registered by UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency). We are forcefully put in mind that Christ, himself a Palestinian, was one among those people who the UN today refers to as forcibly displaced persons. Todays conflict in the West Asia or the Middle East as it is commonly referred to have forced millions of desperate human beings to abandon their homes and lands and flee for dear life.

The friends, followers and descendents of Christ are, once again many centuries after his death, victims of a similar persecution which forced Joseph and Mary -the father and mother of the Christ-child- to flee Bethlehem and seek asylum in Egypt.

Just as in the days of yore, when the Middle East/West Asia was roiled by foreign rulers who put the ordinary people to the sword, today a similar, if not worse, war stalks that land.Yet, Christmas is not only a time when we are challenged, it is also the greatest expression of love-the love shown by God made man accepting humiliation, suffering and death on a cross for the sake of his fellowmen. It is therefore a time to celebrate love, but always keeping in mind that Christians or followers of Christ are required to stand up for what is right and oppose that which is unjust even if it endangers life and limb.
The Public Administration Ministry had drafted the bill for the introduction of a new pension scheme for Public Servants and had submitted to President Maitripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe for consideration, a Minister said yesterday.

The bill, if enacted, will provide for the establishment of a contributory pension fund for public servants joining the service in future.

Subject Minister Ranjith Madduma Bandara told the Daily Mirror yesterday the proposed National Pension Bill had been drafted at the moment to introduce a contributory pension scheme.

There is no Parliamentary law governing pension at the moment. We have only a minute, he said.

We will now enact legislation to create a fund. Similar funds exist in countries such as Japan, India and Europe. We studied all such models and worked out our own system. Ours contains features taken from all, he said.

The Minister said Rs. 1 billion had been allocated in the budget for it.

Alongside, we will get another Rs.3-4 billion from a separate fund. Then, we can start the fund with Rs. 5 billion. In Japan, the pension fund contains as much as Yen 71 trillion, he said.

The Ministry is planning to hold talks with the trade union sector soon about the new bill.(Kelum Bandara)
The Right to Information that has been much hyped by the leaders of the Yahapalanaya government in the recent past seems to be one of the main issues not or less understood by the same leaders and the officials under them. Some bigwigs arrogantly scorn at and ridicule the media men in public when the latter question them about important matters involving public interest. They justify the recent assault on a journalist by the Navy Commander citing ethical and legal grounds. Now the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Pujith Jayasundera has imposed some sort of ban on the private media.



The police had announced that the police news would not be sent daily to private media institutions through emails with effect from December 21. The Police Chief had also instructed his officers not to invite private media representatives to any function held at the Police Headquarters in the future. The decision has ludicrously taken after the uproar in the country that followed a telephone conversation between the IGP and a sir during a recent public meeting in Ratnapura. The conversation with visual was telecast on a private media channel raising many questions on governments much hyped anti-corruption drive and the independence of the police.



To explain the Police Chiefs decision through an example involving the police themselves, it amounts to a gambler scolding a policeman for arresting him. In his opinion it was the media which caught him on camera answering a telephone call before a microphone in an apparently submissive tone that had faulted. It is unfortunate that he cannot realize that it was his action and not that of the media that created the controversy over the manner in which good governance is

at work.



Firstly, one should not answer telephone calls before a microphone as it might involve personal matters of the person at the other end or others and create ethical issues. Besides, it is an insult to the audience behind the microphone. Secondly, as an independent officer he should not have given assurances to anybody that somebody would be or would not be arrested. What media reported was just the fact that involved public interest.



Besides, showing the true face of Yahapalanaya, the controversy is almost swept under the carpet now. The statements made by leaders that the matter would be investigated seem to have gone into thin air. It is the IGP who now seems to want to rejuvenate it by imposing a ban on private media, which is, in a way, good.

The Police Chief has no right to deprive the people of their right to information which is implemented by both the state as well as the private media. Even National Police Commission (NPC) Secretary Ariyadasa Cooray had told that police should provide news to private media institutions when the Right to Information (RTI) Act was in force.



The country must know whether the IGPs decision to officially dissociate the private media has been sanctioned by the political leadership of the country. The leaders of the government including those who scorn at the media men in public must remember that they would not have come to power had there not been the private media during the last Presidential election. For instance, it must be remembered that it was the private media that exposed the attack on them by the provincial leaders of the last regime at the Mattala airport. It must also be remembered that the journalists covered that incident without permission as they did during the recent Hambantota Port strike. They wanted to bring in a Right to Information Act then keeping in mind especially the private media and not the state media or the general public, as they professed.



Now the pendulum seems to have turned. It is time for the UNP which was advocating media rights when it was in the Opposition to talk about media ethics and find fault with media and for the UPFA led by the leaders of the former regime who had hitherto been accused of suppression of media to be champions of media freedom. However, media would brave all the odds including bans so long as the masses are thirsty for information.
In the wake of proposals for the reduction of powers of provincial governors in the new Constitution, Southern Province Governor Hemakumara Nanayakkara spoke out against the move. In an interview with , he says a Governor should have more powers to protect the unitary status and to prevent the country sliding towards secession. Excerpts of the interview:

Q : How do you analyse the role of provincial governors in the present context ?

A Provincial Governor is the direct representative of the executive President. As the President cannot look after intensively the affairs of nine provincial councils, the President vests some powers with the governors to deal with the respective provincial administration. A Governor enjoys the power vested upon him by the President only. The committee on centre-periphery relations has not taken a decision as such. But, there are organizations, particularly International Non-Government Organizations (INGO)s that want to enact a Federal Constitution.

The two main parties - United National Party (UNP) led by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) led by President Maithripala Sirisena - do not want it. They are not for Federalism. Yet, there are people advocating Federalism. These people have come to the conclusion not to use the word Federal as a ploy to hoodwink people. They will not call the new Constitution Federal. That is to mislead the general public.

Instead, they will use a different terminology. However, they will try to a get a Federal structure into the Constitution. This is their ulterior motive. We have to bear in mind that 74 per cent of people in this country are Sinhalese, 12 per cent Tamils (Sri Lankan Tamils and Tamils of Indian origin) and eight per cent Muslims. The balance accounts for Malays and Burghers. In a structure like this, how can they think of any Federal structure which will harm the majority community and create eternal problems among different communities? First, we will go against it if anything harmful happens to the Sinhalese.

Also, if there is any injustice to the minorities, I will be the first to come out and voice. This form of Federalism is not advocated by ordinary Tamils and Muslims. The architects of this are those fed with dollars by INGOs and Tamil diaspora. They want a Federal state. It is only a dream. It will never come true.

They have sought to trim the powers of provincial governors. It means the pruning of the powers of the President. The President and the governors appointed by him preserve the unitary state in its real shape. The moment the governors powers are trimmed, the provincial councils will become provincial governments. Today, we have only one government and nine provincial councils. In India, it is a kind of Federal system with provincial governments. There is also, the governor who is appointed by the centre. The governors in India hold much more power than we do in Sri Lanka. Here, MPs like Jayampathi Wickramaratne are there.

This is a democratic country. Let anyone scream and shout. We do not care. We know they cannot get through this. Probably, we need a new Constitution. We do not object to a new Constitution without harming the Sinhala people who have been living in this country for more than 2500 years, and those of other minority communities who live in close affinity with the majority.....

He is a member of Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP) but entered Parliament on the UNP National List. It is a peculiar type of hybrid I cannot fathom out. Mr. Wickramaratne, long before he became an MP, had been clamouring for Federalism. I went for a forum in Switzerland. Jayampathi was there in that Forum. Even at that time, he was clamouring for Federalism. Today, all these Federalists have come to an agreement not to use the word Federalism but to get the Federal status to the provinces.

Q : In your view, how will the reduction of governors power lead to strengthening separatist ideology?

Lets take for example the North, the Chief Minister and the board of ministers are from another party. The President belongs to different party. What is the control the centre should have over the provincial councils?

This is what people like Jayampathy Wickramaratne and Pakiasothy Saravanamuttu are trying for. They are spending millions and millions. They have held conferences in big hotels inviting the governors and the Chief Ministers. I could not make it.

They have given a dead rope to the Chief Ministers. They have said once the governors power is trimmed, the Chief Ministers will be very powerful. Most of the Chief Ministers have not been carried away by this idea. A few Chief Ministers have been caught into this trap. It clearly speaks of their strategy to fragment this country into nine.

Today, the rights of even minoritiies are protected due to the unitary status. In the North, Catholics are a minority. In the south, Tamils and Muslims enjoy their rights because of the unitary structure of the Constitution. Foolish people coming up with this sort of idiotic proposals should realize that they should get two-thirds in Parliament. No person with a clear conscience will vote for a dangerous proposal of this nature. It is a draconian proposal. After getting two-thirds in Parliament, it should be referred to approval of the people by a referendum. The President is intelligent. The Prime Minister is intelligent. They know what could be the repercussions. But, foolish persons think it can be forced down the throats of masses. These fools should realize what has happened in Italy. The leaders had to resign after being defeated at the referendum.



Q : As a Governor, you are a direct representative of the President. How do you use your good office with the President to pre-emt this move?

This is a democratic country. Let anyone scream and shout. We do not care. We know they cannot get through this. Probably, we need a new Constitution. We do not object to a new Constitution without harming the Sinhala people who have been living in this country for more than 2500 years, and those of other minority communities who live in close affinity with the majority.

The SLFP has taken a decision that it is not for a new Constitution. It is only for reforming the present Constitution. Only a few people, looked after by powerful elements, would want this. People of this country will teach them a lesson.

Q : What is the kind of solution you propose for this?

To begin with the war, a dissatisfied group of youths took up arms. Even at that time, these youths called Tigers killed even the leaders of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) at that time - Mr. Amirthalingam, Mr. Dharmalingam to name a few. Starting from Alfred Duriyappa, they killed decent, educated politicians. If these youths contested elections, they could not have come to power. People in the north and the east are decent. They do not advocate terrorism.



Q : Do you advocate power devolution as a solution?

It is a good question. We have devolved power. We never had this provincial council system. Former Indian Prime Minister the late Rajiv Gandhi proposed it, and then President the late J.R. Jayewardene agreed to it. A few leaders like R. Premadasa and Lalith Athulathmudali were against it.

After devolution of power to this extent, did terrorist problem end? It did not. They were concentrating more on the warpath after that only. In the areas with concentrations of Tamils and Muslims, there should be enough and more government officials to work in Tamil.

Otherwise it is unreasonable. When someone goes to a police station to lodge a complaint in Tamil, it is wrong to entertain it in Sinhala. All successive governments complained about the lack of competent people to work in Tamil. Today, it is not a big deal because of Technological advancements. The computer technology can be used in translation work.

It is better to get more and more translators. There are so many unemployed youths in this country. We have devolved power. But, administration is not functioning well. In the North and the East, the administration should function well in the language spoken in the area concerned.



Q : Does it mean the decentralization of administrative power rather than devolution of power?

Yes, we have one central government. We have the provincial councils with devolved power. If there are lapses, we can look into them. What is needed really is devolution of administrative power to a great extent so that people could be happy. We have not really devolved administrative power.



Q : What do you think of the current provincial council system as the unit of devolution?

That is all right provided that adequate staff is given.



Q : Has the system serve the intended purposes?

Hmmm, I can say yes and no, both.



Q : Why do you say so?

When you get the cost-benefit ration, it is not there. There is duplication of work. There is complication of work. When you compare the cost to maintain these councils in terms of payment of salaries for members, the administrative staff etc, there are less dividends. But, when you think of long term development of those areas, this could be a good unit as long as geographic and climatological conditions are taken into account to fast track development.



Q : When you compare and contrast the appointment of governors, how do you compare and contrast the systems in Sri Lanka and India?

In India, governors are much more powerful than here. We went through the Indian Constitution. Governors are appointed by the centre there. Yet, they have provincial governments- Tamil. Here, we have provincial councils. When the President appoints governors, we should, in fact, have more powers than those in India going by argument. It is very important to have lots of power with governors to prevent the country from sliding towards separatism.

They have sought to trim the powers of provincial governors. It means the pruning of the powers of the President. The President and the governors appointed by him preserve the unitary state in its real shape. The moment the governors powers are trimmed, the provincial councils will become provincial governments

I advocate unitary status and a strong centre. I do not call it a central government. When we say the central government, it connotes that there are provincial governments. There should be one government.

Q : What is the role of a strong military?

We need a strong military to protect the country. We need a strong Navy, Army, Airforce and a police. Those who are opposed to the strong military forces are the ones aspiring to take arms against the legitimate government. When the JVP started its insurrection in 1971, we had a ceremonial army. It was not prepared with enough ammunition to deal with it. Some countries try to make their paradises in Sri Lanka. Some countries try to have their military bases here.
Former SLTB Chairman Shashi Welgama, who was arrested over a financial misappropriation of Rs. 125 million at the SLTB, was further remanded till January 5 by Colombo Additional Magistrate Nishantha Peiris today.

He was arrested by the CID on December 20. (T. Farook Thajudeen)

Video by Buddhi
The Joint Opposition MP for the Anuradhapura District Shehan Semasinghe, in an interview with the Daily Mirror , says it is thoroughly unacceptable to delay the local government elections. He says the country is going through a turbulent period.



How do you see the current political situation?

It is really a disaster. There was a change of government in January, 2015. Peoples expectations were raised at that election. They were promised a better standard of living. The picture drawn was that the Mahinda Rajapaksa administration was tainted with corruption, and that the rule should be changed for the installation of the Yahapalana government. The exact opposite to what was promised has happened. Today, people have come to realize that the previous government was better than the current administration in every aspect.

The country has fallen back in every aspect. The government has no way out of it even. It does not have a future plan. It is only occupied with criticizing the last government.

Today, democracy has failed. The local government elections are due. It is something crucial. Two years would have passed as of March, 2017 without elections. It is very unfair to delay this election merely for the fact that the governments popularity has waned.

On the other hand, media freedom is at stake. It is deteriorating by the day. There is a witch-hunt on media because it brings out news unfavourable to the government.

The government understood that social media was a key factor that brought them into power. Two years has passed. What is the governments stand on social media today? It is seen as anathema to the forward march of the government. There is absolute contradiction in policy stand.



You talk about the local government election. But, Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) which you represent is divided. You sit with the Joint Opposition. How confident are you that your side can make it at the election?

When it comes to a party, members are the most important factor. In a private company, employees matter the most. But, employees are paid. In a political party, members are not paid. It is voluntary. As of now, the main principles of SLFP have been rescinded. When a party compromises its policies and joins the government that leads the country down the path of disaster, what is the choice for its members at grassroots level? They will look at alternative factors.

Today, both the United National Party (UNP) and SLFP are parts of the government. Sadly, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), with its 16 MPs, has virtually become a part and parcel of the government. The JVP also acts in the same manner. Imagine what would have happened if 51 of us in the Joint Opposition joined the government! Then, there would not have been any Opposition to the government. People are rallying against the government today.



There is a school of thought that the split of the SLFP will eventually translate into the UNP having the edge at an election. What is your view?

There is a thought like that. That is a story planted by those sitting with the government. SLFP voters have not mandated them to sit with the government. The UNP has got 106 seats. It is by the manipulation of peoples wish. Majority of the people, in fact, wanted the SLFP-led United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) to win, and Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa to become the Prime Minister. But, different steps were taken during the election to ensure the victory for the UNP. Secondly, people are today against the government in general.

They do not find any reason to support any of the governing parties. So, at an election, people will be divided as pro-government people and anti-government people. Otherwise, there is no such division of public opinion on party lines. Actually, there will he split within the government with its allies going in different directions, but not in the Joint Opposition. People will rally behind the party opposed to the government. That party will have the edge at the end.



How do you brace for the election?

First, let the government decide on the election! Once the government decides, we will decide. We do not harbour personal grudges with anybody. We want to protect the principles of the SLFP. We do not want to become part of the UNP. The Yahapalana government is not carrying forward even a single principle of the SLFP.



You served in the last Parliament as a young member. In your view, what was the reason for the downfall of the then government which you represented?

There were several issues which we have to accept. There were several persons whose acts people did not like. Secondly, the then opposition established through propaganda that the then government was riddled with corruption. Thirdly, there was a lot of international pressure regarding the issue of the north and the east.

"They do not find any reason to support any of the governing parties. So, at an election, people will be divided as pro-government people and anti-government people. ... "



The previous government was planning to work out a solution to this problem, acceptable to all the ethnic and religious groups with favour for none. The international community did not realize it. In fact, it was supportive of the LTTE ideology. The pro- LTTE activists were living all around the world, extending support to this ideology. But, there were certain issues, despite all that, we should have corrected. We, in the previous government, did not look at them because we felt that we were doing fair enough for the country.

People decided at the end. We genuinely respect it. Actually, the people who were responsible for the downfall of the last government are with the present government. Almost all of them are with the present government.



Today, we see a lot of differences between the UNP and the SLFP section in the government. Will it result in the unification of the SLFP factions in the government and the opposition against the UNP at one point?

As I said earlier, there is nothing personal here. If 95 of us on the UPFA ticket remained together, we could have taken over the government by now. I doubt whether these differences visible at the moment are something staged. The UNP back benchers take on SLFP MPs serving in the government and ask them to quit if they wish. Nobody has made a move yet. Secondly, some SLFPers in the government say they are bogged down in a quagmire. State Minister of Finance Lakshman Yapa clearly said it. Then, Minister Dilan Perera called this government Paanduwa.

It means the government is fragile. This could be another drama to cover the failures of the Yahapalana government. Nobody should be too optimistic about it. However, I am glad that both the UNP and the SLFP have realized that their political marriage is incompatible.



Do you see any possibility of former President Rajapaksa and President Maithripala Sirisena mending their differences?

That is up to them. However, I would say people want Mr. Rajapaksa to play the role and lead the country. I represent a very rural district. Economically, people are suffering. Expenditure is very high. The government is not acting fairly. The government is only acting in the interests of the sections of the international community that helped it in coming to power. The government always talks about a debt trap. It is only a phenomenon created by the Yahapalana government. During the previous government, we developed the country.

"When it comes to a party, members are the most important factor. In a private company, employees matter the most. But, employees are paid. In a political party, members are not paid. It is voluntary. As of now, the main principles of SLFP have been rescinded. When a party compromises its policies and joins the government that leads the country down the path of disaster, what is the choice for its members at grassroots level? They will look at alternative factors."



The current government is so inefficient. When it comes to corruption and frauds, this government has set a record. Nobody can match the government in this regard. The economy is crashing as a result. The general public are suffering hugely. The government should be sympathetic towards the citizens of this country. This issue has become critical. Not even a single measure is taken to address it. With the budget, nothing but more and more taxes came in.



Today, the Joint Opposition is accused of being racist. What are your views?

We are definitely not. We do not support any sort of extremism. We advocate the middle path. This allegation is also part of a conspiracy against us. It was made against us two years ago. The same is being hatched against us now. I am telling you with responsibility that we do not take extreme ends.



As a young parliamentarian, how do you look at parliamentary democracy today?

It is very sad. The reason is that the parties have gone against the mandate they go. Secondly, 51 of us sit in the opposition. It has been accepted as a separate group. The TNA has only 16 MPs. But, it has been made the main opposition.

The JVP has only six members. Yet, the Chief Opposition Whip post has been given to them. It is unfair. These 22 members together get 60 percent of oral time allocated to the entire opposition in Parliament. We, 51 members, do not get even 20 percent of time. Is that fair in that sense?



The government has introduced new committee system in Parliament. How do you see it?

The committees are not functioning well as of now. These committees need much more improvement.
Whistleblower Edward Snowden made a Christmas request to his Twitter followers to help the refugee families living in Hong Kong that sheltered him after he left the US and while he worked to expose the scope of the National Security Agency's information-gathering.

A fundraising effort was launched earlier this month for the individuals that helped Snowden. Their lawyer says the Hong Kong government has been retaliating against him and against them.

Robert Tibbo, a Canadian barrister who advised Snowden in Hong Kong in 2013, also represents asylum-seekers Supun Thilina Kellapatha and his partner, Nadeeka, from Sri Lanka, and Vanessa Mae Bondalian Rodel from the Philippines, all of whom allowed the NSA whistleblower to stay in their tiny city accommodations while he hid in Hong Kong in 2013 before being granted asylum in Russia.

After two years of inactivity, 30 of Tibbo's cases were suddenly reactivated in mid-December, he told the South China Morning Post. There was no way he could meet the mass of urgent new deadlines given his other work commitments, Tibbo said, and he has missed key document filing deadlines for his clients despite proposing alternate schedules.

"I understand I have been particularly targeted. They all know I have 30 cases that have been held in limbo and now this happens," he said, the South China Morning Post reported.

Snowden also stayed with Ajith Pushpakumara, another Sri Lankan refugee whose asylum claim is not considered at risk because crucial paperwork has already been filed, but who is included in the fundraising effort.)

Hong Kong is not a signatory to the UN's refugee convention and does not grant asylum, but it is bound by the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT) and considers protection claims on those grounds. It also considers claims based on risk of persecution, Yahoo News reports.

Many refugees spend years in waiting for the government to screen their claims. Those that are found to have merit are referred to the UNHCR, which may then try to resettle them to a third country. But fewer than one percent of cases are ever successfully substantiated by Hong Kong authorities, according to Yahoo News.

"Hong Kong's acceptance rate for asylum-seekers is effectively zero," Marc-Andre Seguin, an immigration specialist, told Canada's Globe and Mail. Seguin is one of the three Montreal lawyers who launched the campaign to support and ultimately resettled the refugees who helped Snowden.

In a video made by AFP earlier this month, Tibbo explains that his clients were destitute. They are barred from working in Hong Kong as their cases are pending. They didn't have enough money for rent or food, he said, and their bills were not being paid by international social services, which he called a serious deprivation of their basic needs and a violation of their constitutional rights.

Rodel told the Globe and Mail, "I can't go back because something bad will happen to me, especially now with our new president," referring to Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte's support for extrajudicial killings. "I think for me he could easily shoot me. He could do anything. All I want is for me and my daughter, my family, to be safe and have freedom. And I want to work and get an education for my daughter."

Tibbo has been criticized for involving his clients, but said that they wanted to help. German Chancellor Angela Merkel  AFP 2016/ MAURIZIO GAMBARINI Critics Corner Merkel by 'Linking Every Refugee Crime to Her Policy' "We tried to explain magnitude to the families. They said We understand, we understand.' They wanted to help, wanted to feel useful," Tibbo said, according to the Globe and Mail.

The group hopes to raise $100,000 by mid-March. So far, it has raised $8,735.(Sputniknews)
A Christmas carols service in Sri Lanka mistakenly printed out the lyrics to gangster rapper Tupac's hit song 'Hail Mary' on thousands of its service programmes.

The unfortunate mix-up took place at the Catholic 2016 Joy to the World Festival, which was held at the Nelum Pokuna Theatre in Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka.

Instead of reflecting on the traditional Catholic prayer's message of how 'blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus' - attendees were presented with lyrics reading: 'I ain't a killer but don't push me, revenge is like the sweetest joy, Next to gettin' p***y.'

Sri Lankan journalist Jithendra Antonio uploaded photographs of the carols program to his Twitter account, tagging Pope Francis and CNN.

The lyrics were printed on over 1,000 flyers for the event - which is heralded as one of the biggest carol services in the country, according to Pedestrian TV.

The event was billed by organisers as 'a fund-raiser for poverty alleviation projects jointly organised by the Archdiocese of Colombo and St. Joseph Vaz Trust.'

Sri Lankan journalist Jithendra Antonio uploaded photographs of the carols program to his Twitter account, tagging Pope Francis and CNN.

The lyrics were printed on over 1,000 flyers for the event - which is heralded as one of the biggest carol services in the country, according to Pedestrian TV.

The event was billed by organisers as 'a fund-raiser for poverty alleviation projects jointly organised by the Archdiocese of Colombo and St. Joseph Vaz Trust.'(Daily Mail)
Victims of identity theft are seldom aware of their plight. Thakshila Sumanasiri from Kandy alleges that a former housemaid has stolen her identity card to make a new passport and obtained Singapore citizenship. She told Daily Mirror that the authorities have failed to establish her identity and restore her identity rights. She has therefore placed her confidence elsewhere to conduct unbiased investigations to establish her identity so that she could travel unhindered.

NIC Stolen

Thakshilas story dates back to more than twenty years ago. In 1993 her half-brother requested to accommodate Ruwani Nimalka, a housemaid who worked in Singapore. He was involved in transferring goods belonging to housemaids and had met Ruwani at the airport. Thakshila says that she does not know why Ruwani stayed at her house avoiding her own family members. However, Ruwani was treated as another member of their family. She was called by her nickname Rajji.

During the three months Ruwani stayed in Thakshilas house, Thakshila lost her National Identity Card (NIC). There was another housemaid called Renuka with us. She told me that she had seen my NIC in Ruwanis bag, said Thakshila. Thereafter Renuka had called Ruwani outside her room while Thakshila checked her luggage. To her dismay Thakshila found her NIC in a pocket of the bag.

When Ruwani was questioned she had flippantly told Thakshila that someone would have hidden it in her bag in jest. The incident was soon forgotten and Ruwani subsequently left the house. There was no cause for alarm as the NIC had been recovered.



Anonymous calls

Afterwards there were rumours that someone had impersonated Thakshila. It 1995 Thakshila received anonymous calls informing her that Rajji (Ruwani) had impersonated her, had made a passport under her name and was currently residing in Singapore. At this point in her life Thakshila herself had not obtained a passport.

I informed the Balagolla Police about the calls. They said that if my NIC was lost I could make a complaint. But I was in the possession of my NIC and I had no evidence to prove the allegations, said Thakshila. However, Thakshila was yet in the dark as to who gave her the initial tip but believed that it was someone who resided in close proximity to her.

Her family members were afraid that she would be arrested for impersonation and requested her not to make a passport. She also feared for her three children who were very young at the time. Hence she gave up on her dreams of going abroad to pursue a course in bridal tailoring. Thereafter Thakshila had opened her own bridal tailoring shop in the country.



Obtains a passport

In 2008 the police had informed her that she should inquire from the Department of Immigration and Emigration. I narrated the whole story to a head I met at the Department and told them about my miserable fate of not being able to obtain a passport, recalled Thakshila. After four hours at the Immigration Department she was informed that there was a fault in the system which would be rectified. Consequently she was given a passport on the same day.

On my way out another Immigration Officer approached me. Out of concern for me he asked me not to investigate further as I may face detrimental consequences. I explained to him my situation and he handed me two printed sheets, said Thakshila. The Immigration Officer had rushed her outside and she had no time to look at the sheets of paper.

Later she realised that the Immigration Officer had given her two sheets that contained Ruwanis photograph but Thakshilas details. It was a copy of the details of the forged passport. Thakshila immediately contacted the Immigration Officer who had given his number. He requested her not to take action as he may fall into trouble. She had been advised to use the printed sheets when a dire situation arose. He had further asked her to keep her ID, Birth Certificate and the printed sheets with her at all times.

"I have a recording of the meeting with the Deputy Controller. I dont know if it is legal or not. But Ive come to a point where I cant trust anyone and now I have to depend on such evidence"



Threats

I started getting anonymous calls threatening me. They knew that I had obtained a passport. They asked me not to go to the police. If I did, they said that I would face the consequences, Thakshila recollected. She also felt that she was being followed and as a result had to move her salon which fetched high profits by then.

One day someone rang the bell late at night. I was hesitant to open the door and did so gradually. But two people rushed in. One of them grabbed me by my hair. My little children started crying. Despite my disabled aunts pleas they threatened me, Thakshila said.



Revisits the Immigration department

In 2009 she had revisited the Department of Emigration and Immigration and had met the same Department head who informed her that it had been an issue in the system which would be rectified. I told him that I have evidence and showed him the sheets of paper. I pointed out that the photograph and signature did not belong to me. He asked me if I was crazy to investigate the matter and asked if I wanted to get arrested, Thakshila said. The head had taken the sheets away from her but Thakshila retains copies of them.



CID Investigation

In 2011 Thakshila flew to India and did not face any unnecessary interrogation or detention. Later the same year she was asked to come to the International Unit of the Criminal Investigation Department on September 13, 2011. I met the OIC. He showed me a file with copies of an ID, birth certificate which the Singapore Interpol had sent. He informed me that there was a petition against Ruwani in Singapore, Thakshila said. When asked as to how Singapore Interpol started investigating she said she believed that the anonymous caller had informed them.

The OIC had asked her to verify that she was the genuine Thakshila. Fingerprints were obtained and further documents were gathered. She had to provide a certificate by the Gramaseva as well. The OIC promised Thakshila to send them to Singapore Interpol. He had also told her that he received calls asking to close the case. However, he had asserted that justice would be delivered.

That day when she returned home Ruwani had called her. She apologised and she said she has two daughters. She offered me money but I refused. I asked her why she did it. I told her that I wanted my freedom, Thakshila recalled.

Thakshila was later informed by the OIC that the case was closed and Ruwani will be deported and arrested. Thereafter Thakshila had flown to Bangkok and Singapore, and did not come across any difficulty.



US visa rejected

However, in 2014 Thakshila was denied a visa to Japan. When she applied for the US visa it had been rejected as well. At the interview I was told that I had flown to the US before from Singapore. I told them that wasnt me and that I had never flown to the US. Though they didnt specifically state the reason for denying a visa I think they thought that I had a forged passport, Thakshila said.



Investigations halted

Thakshila had gone to the CID once again and was notified that the OIC whom she had met before was abroad. I spoke to an officer who was working in his place. He looked at the file and informed me that investigations have halted halfway through, recollected Thakshila. An argument had ensued afterwards and Thakshila had blamed the CID. The officer had asked her to write a complaint demanding the matter be solved.

When Thakshila inquired from the CID later on, she was informed that the CID was awaiting a response from the Singapore authority. Then the CID had asked her to go to Singapore and inquire from the authority. I was not allowed to enter the bureau. So I placed a complaint at a police station in Singapore. I gave them the reference number but they didnt give me information as I was from Sri Lanka. But they gave me a letter stating that I came to the police station and placed a complaint stating that someone has used my name and NIC to make a passport and obtain visas to other countries, Thakshila said.

"I started getting anonymous calls threatening me. They knew that I had obtained a passport. They asked me not to go to the police. If I did, they said that I would face the consequences"



Thereafter when she inquired again the CID informed her that nothing could be done. In 2015 she had written to the President as well. Subsequently a friend suggested to place a complaint at the passport section of the CID. Though the first complaint was ignored she received a response to the second letter. The letter asked her to come to the CID.

The OIC of the passport division asked me to meet the Deputy Controller of Immigration. When the Deputy Controller, Mr. Lakshan [n1] was checking my information on the computer I saw the printed sheets I had received before, displayed on the screen, Thakshila said. She had explained to him that she was unable to go to any country that Ruwani had visited. He had asked her to provide a written complaint certified by the Gramasevaka, so that she could be directed to the Legal Department. The very next day she travelled back to Colombo from Kandy with the documents.

I have a recording of the meeting with the Deputy Controller. I dont know if it is legal or not. But Ive come to a point where I cant trust anyone and now I have to depend on such evidence, she said.



Travel ban and arrest warrant

Thereafter she was informed by the CID in writing that investigations were carried out by the section responsible to prevent illegal immigration. The letter notified her that there was a travel ban obtained from the Colombo Magistrates Court against Ruwani. [n2] It further stated that Thakshila would be informed about the progress of the investigation once the alleged impersonator was arrested.



Migrated to Australia

Meanwhile, Thakshila conducted her own investigation. Her half brother who had initially brought Ruwani to their house had met a friend coming from Singapore. Thakshila said that the case had gained some notoriety in Singapore that they were all on the look out for anyone coming from the country so they could inquire about it. Thakshila found that Ruwani was married to Dissanayake who was related to the friend the step brother met at the airport. Thakshila alleges that Ruwani had flown to Singapore under her identity after she left her house in the 90s. According to Thakshila, Ruwani had befriended an Indonesian Tamil called S.Nadaraja alias Ricky whom she married and later divorced.

"On my way out another Immigration Officer approached me. Out of concern for me he asked me not to investigate further as I may face detrimental consequences. I explained to him my situation and he handed me two printed sheets"



The friend of the step brother, whose name Thakshila did not disclose to us, knew Ruwani as Thakshila. The friend has told her that though they did not know that Ruwani had stolen someone elses identity, there had been instances which raised concern about the family. Ruwani and her husband did not move about well with the people whom they had associated long time back, who presumably knew about Ruwanis background.

Disanayake had borrowed Rs. 1.2 million from the friend to migrate to Australia as his business in Singapore was declared bankrupt in 2011. As the family had obtained Singapore citizenship (in 2008) they were able to move to Australia smoothly.



Two passports one identity

The friend had recollected how Ruwani had renewed her passport at the Department of Immigration and Emigration in 2008. This was after I made my passport. Ruwani had gone to the Immigration and Emigration Department with the wife of the friend who was in the car while Ruwani went in. Ruwani had come back saying that someone had made a passport under her name. However after she called Disanayake and informed him about the incident, her passport had been renewed consequently, Thakshila said.

Officers of the Immigration Department had clearly detected the falsehood. They could have arrested her. If they were still unsure they could have immediately arrested both of us, and interrogated us to verify who was genuine, she added.

According to the friend they have migrated to Australia in 2012. Disanayaka had not returned the money and allegedly threatened the friend. Thakshila also alleges that Disanayaka was an influential person which was why they were able to bypass being arrested and brought to justice.



Plot to arrest the culprit

The friend had provided Thakshila with photographs of Ruwani and her husband, and the address of their residence in Australia. The friend also informed her that they were coming to Sri Lanka in April this year for an alms giving.

He notified her that Ruwani and her family would come to Kegalle on April 09. She had provided this information to the CID OIC and as they had obtained an arrest warrant, Thakshila depended on them for support. The friend had given Disanayakas number as well which Thakshila had given to the police so they could trace him. The CID had promised to arrest Ruwani. When she contacted the CID again they have told her that they were busy with New Year Celebrations. She had requested the duty be passed over to the Kegalle Police. However, no arrest was made until April 11. In the meantime I called the CID but no one picked up the phone. Later when the OIC did pick up the phone he asked how he could know who the genuine person was. If that was the case he should have arrested both of us and held an inquiry. Ruwani has left the country on the 13th though she was supposed to leave at the end of April, she said. Thakshila suspects that Ruwani left the country because the CID informed her that Thakshila was after her.



The friend of her half brother had also given her information of a friend Ruwani befriended in Australia called Ayomi. After some digging Thakshila found that Ayomi was from Bentota and that they managed a hotel. Thakshila had created a fake facebook profile posing as a New Zealand girl and had befriended Ayomis brother. She had chatted with him and somehow convincingly obtained the address of the hotel. Thakshila visited the hotel and obtained Ayomis house address. Ayomi told me that she had been suspicious of Ruwani when Ruwani asked them not to post her photographs on facebook. Ruwani has told her that she had not wanted her relatives back home feel jealous of her looking at her successful life. Ayomi has also heard rumours about the impersonation, which she had not given much thought, as she trusted the Disanayake family, Thakshila narrated.

Ayomi also said that the Disanayakes always shift from one hotel to another and never stayed with their families. Ruwani hasnt introduced her parents to Ayomis family, Thakshila added. Ayomi had informed her that Ruwanis family and Ayomifamily were supposed to leave together at the end of April, but that Ruwani had left hurriedly before the due date.

"I was not allowed to enter the bureau. So I placed a complaint at a police station in Singapore. I gave them the reference number but they didnt give me information as I was from Sri Lanka"



I became suspicious of the CID and didnt give them any further information I found, said Thakshila. Thereafter she had complained to the Human Rights Commission.

Someone told me that the current director of the CID was just and fair. So I went back to the CID. The OIC who promised to arrest Ruwani was absent. I gave him Ruwanis address in Australia. He said that he would write to the Australian Embassy, she said.

We asked Thakshila if she suspected her half brother to be part of the plot. I suspected him. I was not on talking terms with him for a while. But later he explained himself and cleared all the doubts. He has been very supportive, she said.

As her efforts to pursue justice through local authorities failed, Thakshila appealed to International authorities to look into the matter. Daily Mirror withholds information on current investigations on the request of Thakshila, so that fair and uninterrupted investigations are conducted.

I have been deceived many times. Now I have no faith in our countrys law which supports corruption, Thakshila expressed.
India on Monday successfully test-fired its indigenously developed intercontinental surface-to-surface nuclear capable ballistic missile Agni-V from the Abdul Kalam Island off the Odisha coast in Balasore district. Described as a huge success by officials of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), which designed and developed the missile, here's why everyone's closely watching the flight of Agni-V.

1. One of the most-advanced missiles, Agni-V is capable of striking a target more than 5,000km away while the range of the missile can cover most parts of China and Europe.

2. An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), Agni-V, is about 17-metre long, 2-metre wide and has a launch weight of around 50 tonnes. The missile can carry a nuclear warhead of more than one tonne and is able to travel faster than a bullet.

3. Once inducted into the Indian military, India will join the elite club of countries with ICBMs alongside the US, Russia, China, France and Britain.

4. Interestingly, the missile can be launched only on the orders of the prime minister.

China claims that India has deliberately downplayed Agni-V's capability. (Credit: PTI)

5. It was earlier reported that Agni-V will be equipped with multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles (MIRVs) as well, making it capable of hitting several enemy targets with multiple warheads on a single missile. This is something that has raised alarm over possible arms race in the region.

6. With its first successful test, Agni-V managed to rattle China, which claimed that India has deliberately downplayed the missile's capability. While India maintained the missile can cover more than 5,000km, China felt the missile has the potential to reach targets 8,000km away.

The state-run Global Times had derided the missile saying that Chinese nuclear power is stronger and more reliable and India had no chance to catch up.

7. Although the missile by now has become more of a political weapon than a war armament, India, with its no-first use (NFU) doctrine, claims it is unlikely to let any addition to its nuclear inventory impact the regional stability, and they are only deterrents against a nuclear attack from its enemies.

The BJP-led government, which came to power in 2014, also maintains that the NFU policy is here to stay and that the doctrine grants a certain amount of leverage in foreign-policy matters".

Despite all that, Agni-V has rasied serious concerns over a spillover effect on Pakistan, which might use it as an excuse to enhance its nuclear capability further.

8. This was the fourth and final test of the missile  it was first tested in April 2012 and again in September 2013 and in 2015, but the DRDO had announced a glitch in the missile technology earlier this year.

"In 2015, there were some minor technical snags in Agni-V, which required tweaking of its internal battery and electronic configurations after its last test in January 2015," the IANS quoted an unnamed source as saying on Monday.
Protests for reservation, growing feeling of insecurity among several communities, charges of corruption against key politicians and a politically stronger chief minister marked the social and political developments in Maharashtra in 2016.

The year began with gloom on the economy as the state was reeling under drought in the fourth consecutive year. The main challenge till the monsoon was to supply water to several lakh thirsty people.

The situation was severe in several areas in Marathwada, north Maharashtra and western Maharashtra. Latur, the city known for its trade of pulses, became the face of drought-affected areas with people running from pillar to post to get potable water.

As the Manjra dam situated at Dhanegaon dried up for the first time since its construction in 1982, water supply to five lakh people in and around Latur was severely affected.

Good monsoon came as a solace four months later. The same dam stored 85 per cent water of its capacity, ending Latur's water worries for at least three years. The nearby Bindusara dam in Beed too received good rainfall, putting an end to the water scarcity.

While the state was recovering from the drought, two of its senior politicians came under the scanner of agencies for alleged corruption. NCP heavyweight Chhagan Bhujbal was sent to the Arthur Road Jail after the Enforcement Directorate booked him under Prevention of Money Laundering Act for amassing wealth disproportionate to his known income sources. His nephew Sameer, a former MP, too was arrested under the same charges.

Then revenue minister Eknath Khadse gave the opposition the ammunition it was looking for to target the Devendra Fadnavis government. Khadse's wife and son-in-law purchased a disputed industrial land in Pune for which he was supposed to decide the amount of compensation to its original owner in his capacity of revenue minister. As the opposition alleged quid pro quo in this case, Fadnavis convinced Khadse to step down.

The Maratha morcha was the biggest talking point in the state this year. (Photo: India Today)

Two other colleagues of Fadnavis, food and civil supplies minister Girish Bapat and tribal development minister Vishnu Savra too faced ire for being negligent in their respective departments. Bapat was at the helm of criticism when prices of tur daal soared up to Rs 220 per kg. Bapat stood accused for not taking the shortage of pulses seriously and acting accordingly to contain the price rise. Consumer protection activist Shirish Deshpande alleged that the price rise was a scam worth Rs 4,000 crore. Fadnavis discarded the allegation.

Savra has come under fire after a number of cases of rape and molestation were reported in state-run schools for tribal children. His department's purchase of several items for tribal students is also under scrutiny for alleged irregularities.

The silent protests by the politically powerful Maratha community demanding reservation in education and government jobs as well as dilution of the stringent Atrocity Act was the biggest talking point in the state in 2016.

The protests not only highlighted the community's issues on the economic front but also brought its largely scattered members together. Community leaders found it difficult to answer the tough questions raised by the members on issues of economic stability, educational backwardness and opportunities in the government jobs. However, a virtual rift among community leaders at the end of the year puzzled members over their intentions and direction to the agitation.

The OBCs, Dalits and Muslims too came on the street with their demands pertaining to social security and employment. The Dalits opposed dilution of Atrocity Act, the OBCs protested against the thought of accommodating Marathas in their quota in education and government jobs. The Muslims too demanded 5 per cent reservation.

The previous Prithviraj Chavan government had announced the quota for Muslims. The Bombay High Court had approved reservation for the community in education but had ruled that there wont be reservation in government jobs on the basis of caste or religion.

Fadnavis faced turbulence over the quota issue as well as the deteriorating law and order situation almost throughout the year. At one point, his chair too was not safe as BJP president Amit Shah mulled replacing him. However, he has managed to secure his position by leading the party to a magnificent victory in the municipal council polls. Fadnavis was the sole BJP face in this campaign. So he obviously got credit for the victory.

Fadnavis' opponents in the party are marginalised. His acceptance in the state is growing. He is rapidly emerging as a master strategist.
China said on Monday that it has always believed that China and the United States share broad common interests, and cooperation is the only right choice for both countries.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chuying said on Monday that "Zbigniew Brzezinski is a famous strategist and China values his opinion", after the former US national security adviser said in a recent interview that "a world in which America and China are cooperating is a world in which American influence is maximized".

He also said that it is not in Washington's interest to antagonize Beijing, and "it is much better for American interests to have the Chinese work closely with us".

"The Chinese government always believes that ... China and the US share special important responsibilities in fields such as safeguarding world peace and stability, promoting global development and prosperity," Hua said, adding that the two countries also share broad common interests.

"The two sides should adhere to the principles of non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation, enhance mutual trust, focus on cooperation, and properly handle differences, so as to achieve greater progress for the China-US relationship, as well as benefiting the people in both countries and the world," she added.
Emergent BioSolutions Inc., a life sciences company, focuses on the provision of preparedness and response solutions that address accidental, deliberate, and naturally occurring public health threats (PHTs) in the United States. The company's products address PHTs, which include chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosives; emerging infectious diseases; travel health; and emerging health crises and acute/emergency care. It offers BioThrax, an anthrax vaccine; ACAM2000, a smallpox vaccine; Botulism Antitoxin Heptavalent to treat botulinum disease; vaccinia immune globulin intravenous that addresses complications from smallpox vaccine; raxibacumab for the treatment and prophylaxis of inhalational anthrax; Anthrasil to for inhalational anthrax; reactive skin decontamination lotion kits; and Trobigard, a combination drug-device auto injector product candidate; and Trobigard, a combination drug-device auto injector product candidate. The company also provides NARCAN, a nasal spray for the emergency treatment of known or suspected opioid overdose; Vivotif, an oral vaccine for typhoid fever; and Vaxchora, a single-dose oral vaccine to treat cholera. In addition, it is developing AP003, a Naloxone multidose nasal spray; AP007, a sustained release Nalmefene injection for treatment of opioid use disorder; AV7909, an anthrax vaccine; CGRD-001, a pralidoxime chloride/atropine auto-injector; CHIKV VLP, a chikungunya virus VLP vaccine; COVID-HIG for the treatment of SARS-CoV2; EGRD-001, a diazepam auto-injector; SIAN, an antidote for the initial treatment of acute poisoning of cyanide; and UniFlu, a universal influenza vaccine. Further, the company provides contract development and manufacturing services comprising drug substance and product manufacturing, and packaging, as well as technology transfer, process, and analytical development services. The company was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
The following companies are subsidiares of Dover: APM Grundstucksverwaltungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, Accelerated Production Systems, Acme Cryo Intermediate Inc., Acme Cryogenics, Acme Cryogenics Inc., Acme Elevator, Advansor A/S, Advansor Dover International (Poland) sp. z o.o., Advansor Germany GmbH, Alfred Fueling Systems Holdco Ltd., Alfred Fueling Systems Inc., Alfred Fueling Systems Intermediate Holdco Ltd., All-Flo Pump Company, Anman LLC, Anthony Equity Holdings Inc., Anthony Holdings Inc., Anthony Inc., Anthony International, Anthony International Foreign Sales Corp., Anthony International Holding Company, Anthony Mexico Holdings LLC, Anthony North Holdco Inc., Anthony Specialty Glass LLC, Anthony TemperBent GP LLC, Audax ECII Blocker Inc., Auto Glanz Solutions LLC, AvaLAN Wireless Systems Incorporated, BELVAC CR spol s r.o., BSC Filters Limited, Belanger, Belanger Inc., Belvac Middle East FZE, Belvac Production Machinery Inc., Blackmer, BlitzRotary GmbH, Blue Bite LLC, Blue Bite LLC, Butler Engineering and Marketing S.P.A., CDS Visual, CDS Visual Inc., CEP Liquidation LLC, CP Formation LLC, CPC Europe Inc., CPI Products Inc., Caldera, Canada Organization & Development LLC, Chief Automotive Technologies (Shanghai) Trading Company Ltd., Chippewa Square Captive Insurance Company, Colder Products Company, Colder Products Company GmbH, Colder Products Company LTD, Cook Compression LLC, Cook Compression Limited, Cook-MFS Inc., Cryogenic Experts LLC, DD1 Inc., DDI Properties Inc., DE-STA-CO Benelux B.V., DE-STA-CO FRANCE, DE-STA-CO Shanghai Co. Ltd., DESTACO UK Limited, DFH Corporation, DFS Netherlands B.V., Datamax International Corp, De Sta Co (Asia) Company Limited, De-Sta-Co Cylinders Inc., DeStaCo Europe GmbH, Delaware Capital Formation Inc., Delaware Capital Holdings Inc., Dositec Sistemas SL, Dosmatic U.S.A. Inc., Dover (China) Investment Co. Ltd., Dover (Schweiz) Holding GmbH, Dover (Shanghai) Industrial Co. Ltd., Dover (Shenzhen) Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Dover (Suzhou) Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Dover Asia Trading Private Ltd., Dover Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Dover Business Services EMEA Limited, Dover Business Services Europe S.R.L., Dover Business Services LLC, Dover Business Services Philippines Corporation, Dover CLP Formation Limited Partnership, Dover Canada Holdings ULC, Dover Canada Operations ULC, Dover Corporation Regional Headquarters, Dover DEI Services Inc., Dover Denmark Holdings ApS, Dover EMEA FZCO, Dover Energy UK Ltd, Dover Engineered Products Segment Inc., Dover Europe Inc., Dover Europe Sarl, Dover Fluids UK Ltd, Dover France Holdings, Dover France Participations, Dover France Technologies, Dover Fueling Solutions Segment Inc., Dover Fueling Solutions UK Limited, Dover Germany GmbH, Dover Global Holdings LLC, Dover Holdings de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Dover Imaging & Identification Segment Inc., Dover India Pvt. Ltd., Dover Intercompany Services UK Limited, Dover International B.V., Dover International Operations Inc., Dover International Ventures Inc., Dover International ithalat ihracat ve Pazarlama Limited Sirketi, Dover Italy Holdings S.r.l., Dover Luxembourg Finance Sarl, Dover Luxembourg Participations Sarl, Dover Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Dover Luxembourg Services Sarl, Dover Operations South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Dover Overseas Ventures Inc., Dover Pumps & Process Solutions Segment Inc., Dover Refrigeration & Food Equipment Segment Inc., Dover Refrigeration & Food Equipment UK Ltd, Dover Resources International de Mexico S. de R.L. C.V., Dover Solutions Colombia SAS, Dover Southeast Asia (Thailand) Ltd., Dover Spain Holdings S.L., Dover Switzerland Participations GmbH, Dover UK Pensions Limited, Dover WSCR Holding LLC, Dover WSCR LLC, Dover do Brasil Ltda., Dow-Key Microwave Corporation, Dresser Wayne Data Technology (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Dresser Wayne Fuel Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ECI - IGT Holdings LLC, ECI Holding Company LLC, ECI RegO S. de R.L. de C.V, ECI RegO Servicios S. de R.L. de C.V., ECII (Mexico) LLC, EOA Systems Inc., Ebs-Ray Holdings Pty Ltd, Ebs-Ray Industries Pty Ltd, Ebs-Ray Pumps Pty Ltd, Em-Tec, Engineered Controls International LLC, Espy, Ettlinger, Ettlinger Kunststoffmaschinen GmbH, Fairbanks Environmental Limited, Fibrelite Composites Limited, Fibresec Holdings Limited, Fibresec Limited, Finder, GAL LLC, GIIER LLC, Gala Industries, Guangdong Tokheim LIYUAN Oil Industry Technology Limited Company, Highland Park Insurance Company, Hill PHOENIX Inc., Hill PHOENIX WIC LLC, Hill Phoenix Costa Rica Sociedad De Responsabilidad Limitada, Hill Phoenix El Salvador Limitada de Capital Variable, Hill Phoenix Guatemala Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix Honduras Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix Nicaragua Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Hiltap Fittings Ltd., Hydro Systems Company, Hydro Systems Europe Ltd., Industrial Motion Control LLC, Innovative Control Systems, Innovative Control Systems Inc., Inpro/Seal LLC, JK Group, JK Group S.P.A., JK Group USA Inc., K S Boca Inc., K&L Microwave DR Inc., K&L Microwave Inc., KPS (Beijing) Petroleum Equipment Trading Co Ltd., KPS Fueling Solutions Sdn. Bhd., KPS Hong Kong Holding Limited, KPS UK Limited, KS Formation Inc., KS Liquidation Inc., KSLP Liquidation L.P., Kiian Digital (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Knappco LLC, Knowles Electronics, LIQAL, LIQAL B.V., Liquip, Liquip, Liquip International Pty Limited, MAAG, MARKEM FZ SA, MARKEM-IMAJE Corporation, MIP Holdings Inc., MS Printing Solutions, MS Printing Solutions S.R.L., Maag, Maag Automatik Plastics Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Maag Gala Inc., Maag Germany GmbH, Maag Italy S.R.L., Maag Pump Systems, Maag Pump Systems (US) Inc., Maag Pump Systems AG, Maag Reduction Inc., Maag Service (Malaysia) Sdn. Bdn., Maag Service (Taiwan) Ltd., Maag Systems (Thailand) Limited, Macro Technologies LLC, Malema, Marathon Equipment Company (Delaware), Markem Imaje Center of Competencies Spain S.L.U., Markem-Imaje, Markem-Imaje (China) Co. Limited, Markem-Imaje - Unipessoal Lda, Markem-Imaje A/S, Markem-Imaje AB, Markem-Imaje AG, Markem-Imaje AS, Markem-Imaje B.V., Markem-Imaje CSAT GmbH, Markem-Imaje Co. Ltd., Markem-Imaje GmbH, Markem-Imaje Holding, Markem-Imaje Identificacao de Produtos Ltda., Markem-Imaje Inc., Markem-Imaje India Private Limited, Markem-Imaje Industries, Markem-Imaje Industries Limited, Markem-Imaje KK, Markem-Imaje LLC, Markem-Imaje Limited, Markem-Imaje Ltd., Markem-Imaje N.V., Markem-Imaje Oy, Markem-Imaje Philippines Corporation, Markem-Imaje Pty. Ltd., Markem-Imaje S.A., Markem-Imaje S.A. de C.V., Markem-Imaje S.r.l., Markem-Imaje SAS, Markem-Imaje Sdn. Bhd., Markem-Imaje Singapore Pte. Ltd., Markem-Imaje Spain S.A., Markpoint Holding AB, Midland Manufacturing LLC, Midwest Cryogenics Inc., Mouvex, Northeast Services Inc., Northern Lights (Nevada) Inc., Northern Lights Funding LP, Northern Lights Investments LLC, Nova Controls Inc., OK International, OK International Holdings Inc., OK International Inc., OK International Ltd., OPW Engineered Systems LLC, OPW Fluid Transfer Group Europe B.V., OPW Fluid Transfer Solutions (Jiang Su) Co. Ltd., OPW Fluids Group Inc., OPW Fuel Management Systems Inc., OPW Fueling Components (SuZhou) Co. Ltd., OPW Fueling Components LLC, OPW Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., OPW Slovakia s.r.o., OPW Sweden AB, Officine Meccaniche Sirio S.R.L., PDQ Manufacturing, PDQ Manufacturing Inc., PISCES by OPW Inc., PSD Codax Holdings Limited, PSD Codax Limited, PSG (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PSG (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., PSG California LLC, PSG Germany GmbH, Petro Vend Sp. z o.o., Pike Machine Products Inc., Pole/Zero Acquisition Inc., Precision Brasil Equipamentos E Servicos Para Postos De Combustiveis Ltda., Precision Service - Servicos De Manutencao E Instalacao De Postos De Abastecimento De Combustivel Ltda., Production Control Services, Pump Management Services Co. LLC, Quantex Arc Limited, Quantex Patents Limited, RAV France, Ravaglioli S.P.A., Reduction Engineering GmbH, RegO (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., RegO Holding GmbH, RegO Products, RegO Valve (Shanghai) Company Ltd., Rego GmbH, Revod Corporation, Revod Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Revod Sweden AB, Robohand Inc., Rosario, Rosario Handel B.V., Rotary Lift Consolidated (Haimen) Co. Ltd., SE Liquidation LLC, SWEP France, SWEP Germany GmbH, SWEP Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., SWEP North America Inc., SWEP Slovakia s.r.o., SWEP Technology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Seabiscuit Motorsports Inc., Shanghai RegO Flow Technology Company Ltd., Shine Bloom - ECI A Blocker Corp., Shine Bloom - ECI Blocker Corp., Shine Bloom - ECI S Blocker Corp., Simmons Sirvey Corporation, So. Cal. Soft-Pak, So. Cal. Soft-Pak Incorporated, Soft-Pak, Solaris Laser, Solaris Laser S.A., Somero Enterprises, Sound Solutions, Sound Solutions, Space S.R.L., Spirit, Start Italiana S.R.L., Superior Holding LLC, Superior Products LLC, Swep Energy Oy, Swep International A.B., Swep Japan K.K., Sys-Tech Solutions, Sys-Tech Solutions Inc., Systech, TQC Quantium Quality S.A. de C.V., TTSI III Inc., TWG Canada Consolidated Inc., TXHI LLC, Tartan Textile Services Inc., The Espy Corporation, The Heil Co., Tokheim, Tokheim Belgium, Tokheim China Company Limited, Tokheim GmbH, Tokheim Group, Tokheim Hengshan Technologies (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd., Tokheim Holding B.V., Tokheim India Private Limited, Tokheim Sofitam Applications, Triton Systems, Tulsa Winch Inc., UPCO Inc., US Synthetic, Unattended Payment Solutions LLC, Unified Brands, Val TemperBent Glass L.P., Vectron Frequency Devices (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Vehicle Service Group LLC, Vehicle Service Group UK Limited, Vos Food Store Equipment Ltd., WSCR Corp., Warn Automotive LLC, Warn Industries, Waukesha Bearings, Waukesha Bearings Corporation, Waukesha Bearings Limited, Waukesha Bearings Russia LLC, Wayne Fueling Systems, Wayne Fueling Systems (Rus) Limited Liability Company, Wayne Fueling Systems Australia Pty Ltd, Wayne Fueling Systems Canada ULC, Wayne Fueling Systems Italia S.R.L., Wayne Fueling Systems LLC, Wayne Fueling Systems Ltd., Wayne Fueling Systems Sweden AB, Wayne Fueling Systems UK Holdco Ltd., Wayne Industria e Comercio Ltda., WellMark, WellMark, and em-tec GmbH.

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Allergan plc, a pharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, and commercializes branded pharmaceutical, device, biologic, surgical, and regenerative medicine products worldwide. The company operates in three segments: US Specialized Therapeutics, US General Medicine, and International. It offers a portfolio of products in various therapeutic areas, including medical aesthetics and dermatology, eye care, neuroscience, urology, gastrointestinal, women's health, and anti-infective therapeutic products. The company also offers breast implants and tissue expanders; and RM-131 (relamorelin), a peptide ghrelin agonist for the treatment of diabetic gastroparesis. In addition, it develops medical and cosmetic treatments; therapies for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis and other liver diseases; inhibitor for the treatment of psoriasis and other autoimmune disorders; atopic dermatitis drug candidate; peri-ocular rings for extended drug delivery and reducing elevated intraocular pressure in glaucoma patients; and treatments for neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease. Further, the company develops RST-001, a novel gene therapy for the treatment of retinitis pigmentosa; small molecule therapeutics for inflammatory and fibrotic diseases; topical medicines for fat reduction; and delivery system and botulinum toxin-based prescription products. It has collaboration, option, and license agreement with Lyndra, Inc.; and strategic alliance and option agreement with Editas Medicine, Inc. Allergan plc also has licensing agreements with Assembly Biosciences, Inc.; MedImmune; and Heptares Therapeutics, Ltd. The company was formerly known as Actavis plc and changed its name to Allergan plc in June 2015. Allergan plc was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.
EnerSys provides various stored energy solutions for industrial applications worldwide. It operates in three segments: Energy Systems, Motive Power, and Specialty. The company offers uninterruptible power systems applications for computer and computer-controlled systems, as well as telecommunications systems; switchgear and electrical control systems used in industrial facilities and electric utilities, large-scale energy storage, and energy pipelines; integrated power solutions and services to broadband, telecom, renewable, and industrial customers; and thermally managed cabinets and enclosures for electronic equipment and batteries. It also provides motive power products that are used to provide power for electric industrial forklifts used in manufacturing, warehousing, and other material handling applications. In addition, the company offers mining equipment, diesel locomotive starting, and other rail equipment. Further, it provides specialty batteries for starting, lighting, and ignition applications in transportation; and energy solutions for satellites, military aircraft, submarines, ships, and other tactical vehicles, as well as medical and security systems. Additionally, the company offers battery chargers, power equipment, battery accessories, and outdoor cabinet enclosures, as well as related after-market and customer-support services for industrial batteries. The company sells its products through a network of distributors, independent representatives, and internal sales forces. The company was formerly known as Yuasa, Inc. and changed its name to EnerSys in January 2001. EnerSys was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Reading, Pennsylvania.
22 Support to Pursue Academic Activity in Hungary Erasmus + (former Erasmus Mundus) European support (i.e. Marie Curie fellowships) Brazilian support (CNPq, CAPES, FAPs) Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship Programme (in process) Launched by the Hungarian Government and organized by the Tempus Public Foundation Full degree and sandwich programs in Msc and PhD level Free tuition, insurance, accommodation-aid and a monthly stipend for the scholarship holders Hungarian State Scholarships by Tempus Public Foundation Full degree and in Bachelor/Master/Doctoral partial/semester studies Postgraduate and postdoctoral studies, research Summer courses 22

21 CSF students in Scientific Research in Hungary Students invited to the Premio Muranyi ceremony in Sao Paulo through the HRC Catarina Azevedo Borges UFMG / SZIE "Examination of energy recovery of brewers spent grain I. - Chemical process XIV Risk Factors of Food Chain International Scientific Conference (October 9-10th, 2014, Jaworze, Poland "Examination of energy recovery of brewers spent grain II. - Biological process XIV Risk Factors of Food Chain International Scientific Conference (October 9-10th, 2014, Jaworze, Poland) "Conceptual design and implementation of an integrated system for organic solid waste treatment and by-products recovery pmethan" 9th Conference on Organic Resources and Biological Treatment (26-28 June, Godollo, Hungary) Willian Rafel Fernandes UFSCAR / BME "Characterization of peltier cell for the use of waste heat of spas", Published in: Power and Electrical Engineering of Riga Technical University (RTUCON) IEEE Explorer Guilherme Padovani UFABC / BME Acquired experience among large, small, national and multinational companies. Worked in the development of new methodologies for analytical essays with strong statistical basis, feasibility studies and regional and global projects. Arthur Pendragon Simone UFSCAR / BME Article presented at BME's Brazilian Structural Engineering Contest, and winning first prize. Article presented at two brazilian congresses, one in Brasilia and the other at my home university. Following the research developed in Hungary, I'm finishing my thesis this year using the great experience and knowledge acquired during my stay in Budapest. 21

16 Hungarian Higher Education in a glance First Hungarian University was founded in 1367 ~ Hungarian students ~ International students 30 institutions offer all together around 450 foreign language degree programs Bologna system (BA/BSc, MA/MSc, PhD) BA/BSc = 3 or 3,5 years MA/MSc = 2 or 2,5 years PhD = 3 years Undivided programs = 5 years (e.g.: Law, Medicine)

14 Famous Hungarian descendants in Brazil Paul Ronai Nelson Ascher Istvan Jancso Alinka Lepine-Szily Cassia Kis Magro Cca Hungarian descendants in Brazil Several Hungarian descendent professors at Brazilian universities (>8 at USP) 14

13 Nobel Prizes Related to Hungary Avram Hershko, (Hersko Ferenc), Chemistry, 2004 Imre Kertesz, Literature, 2002 George Andrew Olah (Olah Gyorgy), Chemistry, 1994 John Harsanyi, (Harsanyi Janos), Economics, 1994 Dennis Gabor (Gabor Denes), Physics, 1971 Eugene Wigner, (Wigner Jeno Pal), Physics, 1963 Georg von Bekesy (Bekesy Gyorgy), Physiology or Medicine, 1961 George de Hevesy (Hevesy Gyorgy), Chemistry, 1943 Albert Szent-Gyorgyi, Physiology or Medicine, 1937 Richard Adolf Zsigmondy, Chemistry, 1925 Robert Barany, Medicine, 1914 Philipp Lenard, Physics, 1905 Nobel Prize-Winning Hungarian Scientists - Stamps of 1988

10 Hungarian Language & Culture Course at USP II. Registered students at the course: 2015/1: 91 students 2015/2: 102 students 2016/1: 155 students Altogether: 348 students Students receiving certificate: 2015/1: 77 students 2015/2: 68 students Altogether: 145 students Join the course even for a week or two and invite your friends, as well! 10

9 Hungarian Language and Culture Course at USP I. University of Sao Paulo Sponsored by Hungary The Foundation Pallas Athene Domus Animae (PADA) In collaboration with the active Hungarian Community in Brazil Managed by the University of Pecs letrasorientais.fflch.usp.br/hungaro facebook.com/cursodehungaro 9

8 CSF Hungary Welcome And Orientation Day Co-organized by the Hungarian Rectors Conference and the Brazilian Embassy Personalized pen drives with useful information by the Brazilian Embassy and a CSF Hungary Users Guide compiled by the HRC Detailed guidance on academic rights and requirements, finances, accommodation, and residence permit issuance; legal advices covering all aspects of staying legally safe in Hungary; and a psychologist advised on how to deal with difficulties, culture shock and homesickness during the scholarship period. Equestrian theatre and horse show, followed by a dinner with the highlights of Hungarian cuisine accompanied by Gipsy music 8

7 Conference on the Brazilian-Hungarian Academic and Scientific Cooperation in Budapest 7

6 Artwork in HRC Office by Luana Desconci Obuda University / Universidade Tecnologica Federal do Parana 6

5 Institutions Number of Scholarship Holders by Institutions September 2013 August , CAPES Eszterhazy Karoly College Eotvos Jozsef College University of Miskolc Hungarian University of Fine Arts University of Dunaujvaros Budapest Business School University of Pannonia University of Pecs Semmelweis University Corvinus University of Budapest Obuda University Szent Istvan Eotvos Lorand University University of Debrecen BME

4 Number of Scholarship Holders by Scientific Area September 2013 August , CAPES 1400 Engineering and Other Technological Areas Biologym Biomedicine and Health Creative Industries 1000 Computation and IT Exact and Earth Sciences 800 Agriculture Biotechnology 600 Pharmacy Renewable Energy Biodiversity Other Scientific Areas 4

2 The Number of Scholarship Holders by Calls 2016, HRC 129/ / / /2014 Number of applicants and actual scholarship holders 640/432 students 1800/1032 students 1600/345 students 800/370 students Number of scholarship holders participating in the preparatory language course 284 students 468 students - - Scholarship period Altogether 2179 scholarship holders approved to Hungarian universities.

1 Looking Back and Moving Forward The Hungarian Rectors Conference

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Donald Trump will inherit over 100 court vacancies which is uncommon in the federal court system, as well as the open seat in the U.S. Supreme Court, which gives the soon to be U.S. President a huge opportunity to reshape the countrys judiciary once he takes office.

The estimated judicial vacancies have reached 103 that most expect President Obama to hand to Trump when there is a transition of power on January 20. That is close to double the openings that Obama was handed over that were 54 when George Bush left the presidency.

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Confirmation of the judicial nominees for Obama slowed almost to a halt, after the U.S. Senate was controlled by the Republicans, in 2015.

Officials at the White House blamed Republicans in the Senate for what they called an unprecedented amount of obstruction in blocking the court picks by the Democratic president.

The result has been an increased number of openings across the entire list of district and federal circuit courts that will give the new president, who is a Republican, the chance to make a number of appointments that are for a lifetime.

Abortion restrictions, gun control measures, voter laws, immigrant issues and anti-discrimination measures are different matters that have been increasingly heard by the federal judges and will become influenced by the composition of the U.S. courts.

During his campaign Trump vowed to pick ideologues that are from the same mold as Antonin Scalia the late justice on the Supreme Court who was a conservative icon.

Many believe Trump will start his selections for court appointments, including for the Supreme Court, shortly after being inaugurated.

The vacancy in the Supreme Court that was created by the death of Scalia last February was a big issue for a number of conservative voters to vote for Trump, especially for the evangelical Christians.

Republicans in the Senate have refused to hold a hearing on the nomination by President Obama of Merrick Garland for the vacant seat left by Scalias death.

Democrats have accused Mitch McConnell the Senate Majority leader and Senator Charles Grassley the Judiciary Committee chair, both Republicans, of intentionally denying the nominees by Obama a fair and impartial hearing running the clock out in hopes that a GOP president would follow, which is exactly what happened when Trump was elected in November.

Twenty-five of the court nominees by Obama were pending on the floor of the Senate, after being given approval from the committee in bipartisan support.
Phillips 66 operates as an energy manufacturing and logistics company. 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. The Chemicals segment produces and markets ethylene and other olefin products; aromatics and styrenics products, such as benzene, cyclohexane, styrene, and polystyrene; and various specialty chemical products, including organosulfur chemicals, solvents, catalysts, and chemicals used in drilling and mining. The Refining segment refines crude oil and other feedstocks into petroleum products, such as gasolines, distillates, aviation, and renewable fuels at 12 refineries in the United States and Europe. The M&S segment purchases for resale and markets refined petroleum products, including gasolines, distillates, and aviation fuels primarily in the United States and Europe. This segment also manufactures and markets specialty products, such as base oils and lubricants. The company was founded in 1875 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
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Ltd., Accenture Federal Services LLC, Accenture Finance II Limited, Accenture Finance Limited, Accenture Finance and Accounting BPO Services S.p.A., Accenture Finance and Accounting Services S.r.l., Accenture Financial Advanced Solution & Technology S.r.l., Accenture Flex LLC, Accenture GP LLC, Accenture Global Capital Designated Activity Company, Accenture Global Engagements Limited, Accenture Global Holdings Limited, Accenture Global Services Limited, Accenture Global Solutions Limited, Accenture GmbH, Accenture HR Services S.p.A., Accenture Healthcare Processing Inc, Accenture Holding Brasil Ltda, Accenture Holding GmbH & Co. KG, Accenture Holdings (Iberia) S.L., Accenture Holdings B.V., Accenture Holdings France SASU, Accenture Hungary Holdings Kft, Accenture Inc, Accenture Industrial Software Limited Liability Company, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions Kft, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions SA, Accenture Insurance Services B.V., Accenture Insurance Services LLC, Accenture International B.V., Accenture International LLC, Accenture International Limited, Accenture Japan Ltd, Accenture Korea B.V., Accenture LLC, Accenture LLP, Accenture Lanka (Private) Ltd, Accenture Limited, Accenture Lithuania UAB, Accenture Ltd, Accenture Ltda, Accenture Maghreb S.a.r.l., Accenture Managed Services SRL, Accenture Management GmbH, Accenture Marketing Services LLC, Accenture Marketing Services Limited, Accenture Middle East B.V., Accenture Minority I B.V., Accenture Mozambique Limitada, Accenture Mzansi Pty Ltd, Accenture NV/SA, Accenture NZ Limited, Accenture Nova Scotia Unlimited Liability Co., Accenture OOO, Accenture Operations GmbH, Accenture Operations S.p. z o.o., Accenture Operations Services Private Limited, Accenture Operations Services Sdn Bhd, Accenture Outsourcing S.r.l., Accenture Outsourcing Services S.A., Accenture Oy, Accenture Panama Inc, Accenture Participations B.V., Accenture Participations II Limited, Accenture Peru SRL, Accenture Post Trade Processing SASU, Accenture Post-Trade Processing Limited, Accenture Process (Mauritius) Ltd, Accenture Pte Ltd, Accenture Puerto Rico LLC, Accenture Qiyun Technology (Hangzhou) Co. 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Ltd., Altima Asia Ltd, Altitude, Altitude LLC, Altius Consulting Limited, Altius Data Solutions Private Limited, Analytics 8 LP, Analytics 8 Pty Ltd, Analytics8, Aorui Advertising (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Apis, Apis Group Pty Ltd, Appaloosa Technology SASU, AppsPro, AppsPro, Arca, Arca Ingenieros y Consultoria S.L., Arca Telecom S.L., Ariba - BPO, Arismore, Artio People (Payroll) Pty Ltd, Artio People Pty Ltd, Aspiro Solutions (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Automation Partners Pty Ltd, Avanade (Guangzhou) Computer Technology Development Co. 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Ltd., Beijing Zhidao Future Consulting Co. Ltd, Benext, Berico Technologies LLC, Bionic, Bionic Solution LLC, Blue Horseshoe, Boomerang Pharmaceutical Communications, Bow & Arrow, Bow & Arrow Limited, Brand Learning, Brand Learning Group Limited, Brightstep AB, Byte Prophecy, Byte Prophecy Private Limited, CAS, CRMWaypoint, CS Technology (Australia) Pty Ltd, CS Technology (UK) Limited, CS Technology Group LLC, CS Technology LLC, CadenceQuest Inc., Callisto Integration Europe B.V., Callisto Integration Europe Limited, Callisto Integration LLC, Callisto Integration Ltd, Capgemini - North American health practice, Capital Consultancy Services Inc, Certus Solutions Consulting Services Limited, Certus Solutions Ltd, ChangeTrack Research Pty Ltd., Chaotic Moon Studios, Chengdu Mensa Advertising Co. Ltd., Cimation, Cirrus Connect Australia Pty Ltd, Cirrus Connect Limited, Cirruseo, Clarity Insights, ClearEdge Partners, Clearhead, Clearhead Group LLC, ClientHouse GmbH, Cloud Sherpas, Cloud Sherpas (GA) LLC, Cloud Sherpas Japan G.K., Cloud Sherpas New Zealand Limited, Cloudeasier SAS, Cloudpoint Limited, Cloudsherpas Inc, Cloudworks, Cloudworks Consulting Services Inc, Cloudworks Technology LLC, Computer Research and Telecommunications LLC, Concrete Desenvolvimento de Sistemas Ltda, Concrete Solutions, Concrete Solutions Ltda, Context Information Security, Context Information Security LLC, Context Information Security Limited, CoreCompete LLC, CoreCompete Limited, CoreCompete Private Limited, Corliant Inc., Creative Drive LLC, Creative Drive US LLC, CreativeDrive, CreativeDrive Digital Content Services (Shenzhen) Co Ltd., CreativeDrive EMEA Limited, CreativeDrive Singapore Pte Ltd, CreativeDrive UK Group Limited, Cutting Edge Solutions Limited, Cygni AB, Cygni Norrsken AB, Cygni Stockholm AB, Cygni Syd AB, Cygni Vast AB, Cygni Ost AB, Cygni Ostersund AB, DAZ Systems Inc, DAZ Systems LLC, DAZSI Systems (India) Pvt. Limited, DI Futures Corporation, Data Essential SARL, Davies Consulting, DayNine Consulting, DayNine Consulting (New Zealand) Limited, DayNine Consulting LLC, Declarative Holdings LLC, Decora Marketplace LLC, Decorado Marketplace Ltda-EPP, Defense Point Security, Deja vu Security, Design Strategy and Research de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Designaffairs LLC, Digiplug S.A.S., Digital Results Group LLC, Double Digit Limitada, Double Digit Pty SA, Droga5, Droga5 LLC, Droga5 Studios LLC, Droga5 UK Limited, Duck Creek Technologies, ESR Labs, ESR Labs AG, EdenOne Solutions Limited, Edenhouse ERP Holdings Limited, Edenhouse Solutions Limited, Enaxis Consulting, Enaxis Consulting LP, End to End Analytics LLC, End-to-End Analytics, Endorphin Medici (M) Sdn Bhd, Energuia Web S.A., Energy Management Brokers Limited, EnergyQuote JHA, Enimbos, Enimbos Global Services S.L., Enkitec, Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions LLC, Enterprise System Partners, Enterprise System Partners B.V., Enterprise System Partners Bilisim Danismanlik Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Enterprise System Partners Global Corporation, Enterprise System Partners Limited, Enthusian Pty Ltd, Entropia, Entropia (M) Sdn Bhd, Entropia Holdings Pte Ltd, Entropia Intercraft Sdn Bhd, Epylon, Ergo, Espedia S.r.l., Ethica Consulting Group, Ethica Consulting S.p.A., Evopro Group, Exactside Limited, Experity, Exton Consulting, Exton Consulting Spain Strategy&Management S.L., Exton Germany GmbH, Exton International SAS, Exton Italia S.r.l., Exton SAS, FGM LLC, Fairway Technologies Inc, Farah BidCo Limited, Farah MidCo Limited, Farah Topco Limited, Filmproduction ApS, First Annapolis Consulting Inc., First Annapolis Consulting LLC, Fjord, Focus Group Europe, Formicary, Founders Intelligence, Fruendo S.r.l., FusionX, Future State Consulting LLC, FutureMove (Beijing) Automotive Technology Co. Ltd., FutureMove Automotive, FutureMove Automotive Co. Ltd., GRA Supply Chain Pty Ltd, Gagel Group S de R.L. de C.V., Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda, Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda., Genfour, George Group Consulting L.P., Gestalt LLC, Gevity, Gren utvikling AS, H.B. Maynard and Co. Inc., HRC Retail Advisory, Hagberg Consulting Group, Hahntel Ltda, Halo Partners LLC, Hamilton Holding Company S.A, Hangzhou Aiyunzhe Technology Co. Ltd., Happen, Happen GP Limited, Happen Limited, Headspring, Hjaltelin Stahl, Hjaltelin Stahl A/S, Hjaltelin Stahl K/S, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting Malaysia Sdn Bhd, IBB Consulting, ICM.S S.r.l., IMJ Corp, IMJ Corporation, INSITUM, IQSP Consulting LLC, IT One Company Limited, ITBS Servicios Bancarios de Tecnologia de la Informacion SL, Icon Integration, Icon Integration (NZ) Limited, Icon Integration Pty Ltd, Imagine Broadband (USA) Limited, Imagine Broadband USA LLC, Imaginea Inc, Imaginea Technologies LLC, Industrie IT (Hong Kong) Ltd, Industrie IT (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Industrie IT Group Pty Ltd, Industrie IT Pty Ltd, Industrie&Co, Infinity Works Consulting Limited, Infinity Works Holdings Limited, Infinity Works Management Limited, Infinity Works Midco Limited, Informatica de Euskadi S.L., Innotec International EAD, Innotec International S.p. z.o.o., Innotec Marketing GmbH, Innotec Marketing International Ireland Limited, Innotec- Marketing Spain S.L, Insitum Consultoria Argentina SRL, Insitum Consultoria S.A. de C.V., International Biometric Group LLC, International Biometric Group UK Limited, Intrepid, Intrepid Futureworks Sdn Bhd, Intrigo Systems Inc, Intrigo Systems India Pvt. Limited, Intrigo Systems LLC, Inventor Technology Ltd, InvestTech, Investtech Systems Consulting LLC, ItSafer Continuity Services S.L., JKD Consulting LLC, Javelin Group, K Comms Group Limited, KSC Studio LLC, Kaper Communications Limited, Karma Communications Debtco Limited, Karma Communications Group Limited, Karma Communications Holdings Limited, Karmarama, Karmarama Comms Limited, Karmarama Limited, King James Group, Knowledge Rules Inc., Knowledgent, Knowledgent Group LLC, Kogentix, Kogentix LLC, Kogentix Limited, Kogentix Singapore Pte Ltd, Kogentix Technologies Private Limited, Kolle Rebbe, Kolle Rebbe GmbH, Kream Comms Limited, Kunstmaan, Kurt Salmon, Kurt Salmon Canada LTD, Kurt Salmon US LLC, LEXTA, LINKBYNET, LINKBYNET Indian Ocean (L.I.O) Ltd, LabAnswer, Lexta GmbH, Lexta UK Limited, Lien par le reseau Inc, Lien par le reseau infrastructures Inc, Lin Bo (Shanghai) Network Technology Co. Ltd., Link By Net SAS, Link By Net SRL, Link By Net Vietnam Company Limited, Linkbynet East Asia Ltd, Linkbynet Singapore Pte Ltd., Loud & Clear Creative Pty Ltd, Lumenup S.A., MAXIM Systems Inc., MCG US Holdings LLC, Mackevision CG Technology and Service (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Mackevision Japan Co. Ltd., Mackevision Korea Ltd, Mackevision LLC, Mackevision Medien Design, Mackevision Medien Design GmbH, Mackevision Singapore Pte Ltd, Mackevision UK Limited, Maglan, Maglan Information Defense Technologies Research Ltd, Maihiro, Matter, Maud Corp Pty Ltd, Maxamine International, Measuretek LLC, Media Audits Ltd., Media Hive, Mediasenz Pty Ltd., Meredith Specialty LLC, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing LLC, Meridian Informed Purchasing Ltd., Mindtribe, Mistral Wind Operations  Servicos Empresariais Unipessoal Lda., MobGen, Mortgage Cadence LLC, Mortgage Cadence an Accenture Company, Most Champion Ltd, Mudano, Mudano Limited, Myrtle Consulting Group LLC, N3, N3 (Dalian) Business Consulting Co. Ltd., N3 Brazil Consultoria em Marketing Ltda, N3 Germany GmbH, N3 LLC, N3 North America LLC, N3 Results Australia Pty Ltd, N3 Results Ireland Limited, N3 Results Japan G.K., N3 Results Limited, N3 Results Malaysia Sdn Bhd, N3 Results Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., N3 Results S.A.S., N3 Results Singapore Pte Ltd, N3 Results Unipessoal Lda, NYTEC, Nanjing Demeng Advertising Co. Ltd., Nashco Consulting, NaviSys Inc., Nell'Armonia Israel Ltd, Nell'Armonia SAS, Nell'Participation SAS, NellArmonia, Neo Metrics Analytics S.L., Neo Metrics Chile S.A., New Content, New Content Editora e Produtora Ltda, New Energy Group, News Imaging LLC, NewsPage, NewsPage (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, NewsPage Pte Ltd, Northstream, Novetta Holdings LLC, Novetta LLC, Novetta Solutions LLC, Novetta Topco LLC, OCTO Technology, OPS Rules Management Consultants, Octagon Research Solutions Inc., Octo Technology Pty Ltd, Octo Technology SA, Odgaard ApS, Olikka, Olikka Pty Ltd, Olympus Systems Corporation, Openmind, Openmind S.r..l., Openminded, Openminded SAS, Operaciones Accenture S.A. de C.V., OpusLine, Orbium, Orbium AG, Orbium Consulting Limited, Orbium Inc., Orbium Ltd, Orbium Pte Ltd, Orbium Pty Ltd, Origin Digital, PCO Innovation, PLM Systems S.r.l, PRION GmbH, PT Accenture, PT Asta Catur Indra, PT Kogentix Teknologi Indonesia, PacificLink Group, Paja Finanssipalvelut Oy, Parker Fitzgerald Inc, Parker Fitzgerald International Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Limited, Parker Fitzgerald PTY Ltd, Parker Fitzgerald Services Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Solutions Limited, Pecaso Ltd., Pegasus Production A/S, Pegasus Production K/S, Phase One Consulting Group, Pillar Technology, Pollux, Pollux Automation Mexico S.A. de C.V., Pollux Canada Inc, Pollux S.A.S., Pollux USA LLC, Pragsis Bidoop, Pragsis Bidoop UK Limited, Pramati Technologies Europe Limited, Pramati Technologies Private Limited, Presence of IT Workforce Management North America LLC, PrimeQ, PrimeQ Australia Pty Ltd, PrimeQ Ltd, PrimeQ NZ Pty Limited, Procurian Inc., Prof. Homburg GmbH, Proquire LLC, PureApps Ltd., Qi Jie Beijing Information Technologies Co. Ltd., RBCP Fund 1-A Vapor Blocker LLC, RBCP Platform Vapor Blocker I LLC, REPL Consulting LLC, REPL Consulting Limited, REPL Digital Limited, REPL Group K.K., REPL Group Pty Ltd, REPL Group Worldwide Limited, REPL Pte Ltd, REPL Software Limited, REPL Technology Limited, Radiant Services LLC, Random Walk Computing Inc., Reactive Media Pty Ltd., Real Protect, Realworld OO Systems Ltd., Redcore, Redcore (New Zealand) Limited, Redcore Group Holdings Pty Ltd, Redcore Pty Ltd, Revolutionary Security, RiskControl, Root LLC, Rothco, Rothco Limited, S3 TV Technology Ltd., SALT Solutions GmbH, SEC Servizi, SOPIA Corp., Sagacious Consultants, Salt Solutions, Sandbox Studio LLC, Sapling Bidco Limited, Sapling Midco Limited, Sapling Topco Limited, Schlumberger Business Consulting, Seabury Aviation & Aerospace (UK) Limited, Seabury Consulting, Seabury Corporate Advisors LLC, Seabury Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Search Technologies BPO Inc, Search Technologies International LLC, Search Technologies LLC, Search Technologies Limited, Securiview SAS, Sentelis, Sentor Managed Secuirty Services AB, Servicios Tecnicos de Programacion Accenture S.C., Seven Seas Business Ventures LLC, Shackleton, Shackleton Chile S.A., Shackleton S.L.U., Shanghai Baiyue Advertising Co. Ltd., Shun Zhe Technology Development Co. Ltd., SigInt Technologies LLC, Silveo, Silveo Consulting India Private Limited, Simian Pty Ltd, SinnerSchrader, SinnerSchrader AG, SinnerSchrader Content GmbH, SinnerSchrader Deutschland GmbH, SinnerSchrader Praha s.r.o., Sirvart S.A., Sistemes Consulting S.L., Skylink SAS, Soltians Limited, Solutions IQ LLC, SolutionsIQ, SolutionsIQ India Consulting Services Private Limited, Somers Ventures Ireland Limited, Somers Ventures LLC, Spacelink SAS, Storm Digital, Structure Consulting Group LLC, Sutter Mills, Synership LLC, Systor AG, T.A. Cook, TXF LLC, Tambourine, TargetST8, Tech - Avanade Portugal Unipessoal Lda, Tecnilogica Ecosistemas S.A., Tecnilogica, The Brand Learning Partners Limited, The Callisto Integration Corporation, The Monkeys, The Monkeys Pty Ltd, The Myrtle Group, Total Logistics, Tquila, Trivadis, Trivadis AG, Trivadis Austria GmbH, Trivadis Denmark AS, Trivadis Germany GmbH, Trivadis Holding AG, Trivadis Partner AG, Trivadis Services AG, Trivadis Services SRL, Troop Studios Pty Ltd, VanBerlo, Vector Acquisition Company LLC, Vector Topco LLC, Verax Solutions, Vertical Retail Consulting (Shanghai) Ltd, Vertical Retail Consulting Ltd, Vivere Brasil Servicos e Solucoes SA, Vivere Brasil Solucoes De Credito Ltda., Wabion GmbH, WaveStrike LLC, White Cliffs Consulting LLC, Wire Stone, Wire Stone LLC, Wise Partners SAS, Wolox, Wolox Colombia S.A.S, Wolox LLC, Wolox Mexico S.R.L de C.V., Wolox S.A., Wolox SpA, Workforce Insight, Workforce Insight LLC, Yesler, Yesler LLC, Yesler Limited, Yesler Singapore Pte Ltd, Zag, Zag Australia Pty Ltd, Zag Limited, Zag USA LLC, Zebra Worldwide Australia Pty Ltd, Zebra Worldwide Group Limited, Zebra Worldwide Media Pty Ltd, Zenta, Zenta Global Philippines Inc, Zenta Mortgage Services LLC, Zenta Recoveries Inc, Zenta US Holdings Inc, Zestgroup, Zielpuls, Zielpuls (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Zielpuls GmbH, avVenta, designaffairs, designaffairs Business Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., designaffairs GmbH, designaffairs group China Co. Ltd., dgroup, i4C Analytics, iDefense, solid-serVision.com GmbH, and umlaut.

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MADISON  A Madison-based business recently featured on the Dr. Phil show faces $68,000 in fines in an ongoing case with the state office of the attorney general for not providing requested information.

After receiving 35 consumer complaints, Virginias Office of the Attorney General began investigating Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers. Owned by Dan Warren, the nonprofit organization provides alert dogs to those in need.

According to the organizations website, the trained dogs provide aid to those with diabetes, autism, PTSD and seizure disorders. The company is said to have developed a proprietary program for training dogs to recognize fluctuations in the blood sugar levels of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetics. These dogs are trained to alert or tell the diabetic  or a family member  that the diabetics blood sugar is going low or high.

To investigate the consumer complaints, which the attorney generals director of communications, Michael Kelly, said was an unusually large number, the office attempted to obtain additional information about the company.

As part of our attempts to investigate these consumer complaints, the OAG issued civil investigative demands to the company asking for certain information that would help us determine whether any laws were being broken, Kelly said. The first page of the CID says, for example: The investigation relates to Service Dogs marketing, sale, delivery and training of Diabetic Alert Dogs (DADs) to consumers, including, without limitation, misrepresentations regarding Service Dogs, DADs, the services provided by Service Dogs, and the terms of any agreements with consumers for DADs.

In May, Kelly said, the company had failed to fully and completely respond to the states CID and was found in contempt of court. On May 18, the Richmond Circuit Court entered an order compelling the company to pay the state $14,250 for not responding to the request for information, with fines continuing to accrue at $250 per day.

Last week, a Richmond Circuit Court judge found Warren in contempt for failing to comply with the courts original order of default, entered in October 2015, as well as subsequent enforcement orders.

Warren was ordered to be held joint and severally liable for all fines and attorneys fees and sanctions ordered through today against Service Dogs, and ordered to pay the ongoing civil fine until fully compliant along with the states costs and attorneys fees in an amount to be subsequently determined.

A hearing was scheduled for Jan. 30 to determine compliance and also, as appropriate, to determine the amount of fines and fees due to the state.

It was noted that John B. Russell Jr., attorney for Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers, had seen the order but objected to it. Reached by phone last week, Russell said the objection was due to three or four items requested by the attorney generals office that he argued didnt fall within the scope of the request and were beyond their jurisdictional powers under the CID.

The judge ruled that the office was entitled to the items; Russell argued that his client should not be held in contempt over those items and said they will obtain the requested information.

Im hopeful well get this resolved, he said.

Russell said many of the complaints received by the OAG were from people who hadnt actually received service dogs from Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers. He said the attorney generals office can say they have all these complaints, but a small group of detractors can file them and get others to file, as well.

Theres no system in place to ensure the complaints are made by actual customers of the company, Russell said.

Generally, the attorney generals office tries to resolve complaints quickly, but [some of] these have been there since 2014, Russell said. Theyve just sat there. Weve responded to each one with documentation, but they havent been listed as resolved.

According to Kelly, the fines now amount to $68,000 with an additional $12,000 in attorneys fees.

On Nov. 14, Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers was the focus of a Dr. Phil episode titled, Were pet owners scammed out of thousands of dollars by a service dog company?

During the program, three women spoke out against the company.

Melinda Colon, Jovana Flores and Michelle Ninstant shared their experiences, which included claims of receiving an ill animal due to over breeding, one dog who did not properly alert to medical situations and a refusal to take receipt of a dog because a 30-page contract was not provided prior to delivery.

Russell and SDWRs development director, Lucinda Williams, represented the organization on the show. Dr. John Beach, an endocrinologist and diabetic, and client Mollie Moore also appeared and provided positive testimonials for the company. Moore said her service dog saved her daughters life.

Warren did not appear on the show.
As a member of the clergy, I believe in redemption. I believe in transformation. And I believe in Charlottesville's vice mayor, Wes Bellamy.

In no way do I condone the language and thoughts expressed in the recently discovered tweets. They are, simply, hateful. And Mr. Bellamy has said as much.

But I believe him when he also says that they are the thoughts of a young man, a man who has since matured in his thinking as he has had more life experience.

In the Christian Scriptures, the author of the book of James challenges, "Show me your works, and I will show you your faith." Put another way: "Let me see how you act in the world  that will show me what you believe."

The actions of the Wes Bellamy of today demonstrate a radically different worldview than the one he expressed in the past. The angry words of exclusion have been replaced by works dedicated toward loving inclusion. His previous "black and white" thinking has been replaced by actions committed to celebrating and expanding our multi-color reality. And his call for radical inclusion embraces not just differences in skin color, but also ethnicity, religion, class, gender identity, sexual orientation  wherever we are divided, he can be seen at work today calling for unity.

Some say that since the tweets continued until just a few years ago, there is no way his apparent conversion could be real. In the Christian tradition we are told that Saul of Tarsus went from persecuting Christians to promoting the faith in just three days. Within the Zen tradition, it is said that enlightenment can occur in an instant.

Repentance, atonement, and reconciliation are themes found in every religion we humans have ever developed. I believe in these ideas, and I believe I have seen them at work in Wes Bellamys life.

I have two multiracial children in the Albemarle school system, and I would be pleased to have a man like Mr. Bellamy be their teacher.

Erik Wikstrom

Albemarle County
Yemen is in the midst of a humanitarian catastrophe. Over two years of fighting between Houthi rebels and government forces of elected President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, along with airstrikes by the Saudi Arabia-led Gulf States coalition in support of President Hadis troops, have devastated the civilian population and destroyed the countrys economy.

As is common in war, it is the civilian population that suffers the most. Armed militias have staged attacks on residential neighborhoods and on civilian infrastructure. Children have been pressed into service as soldiers, and there have been reports of detentions of civilians, of targeted killings, and of forced evictions of civilians by the warring parties. The United States has called on all parties to the conflict to take every possible measure to avoid civilian casualties, and to investigate those incidents when they occur.

The United Nations reports that since the conflict escalated in March 2015, over 7,270 people, most of them civilians, have been killed and another 38,280 others have been injured. Out of a population of 27 million people, some 3.3 million have been displaced from their homes and two thirds of these remain homeless. Another 180,000 have left the country. Seventy percent of the population, nearly 19 million people, is in desperate need of humanitarian assistance.

There is only one way to ease the suffering of the people of Yemen, and that is to bring the war to an end by following the plan put forward by the United Nations.

As Secretary Kerry said recently in Riyadh, Ending the bloodshed is top priority, so establishing a ceasefire is critical. I know that the decisions that are required to try to bring any war to an end and create peace are very difficult, but the costs of war make delay inexcusable, he said.

The parties need to do what they can to make progress, and for our part, the United States will remain diplomatically engaged along with our international partners and particularly with Saudi Arabia and with the UN Special Envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed.
Many news outlets release annual News of the Weird lists at year's end, highlighting strange, quirky and out-of-the-ordinary stories that sometimes do not have happy endings. Culpeper experienced more than its share of the weird in 2016. Here is a look at the highlights, as covered by the Star-Exponent:

Culpeper houses enormous Darth Vader collection

Star Wars super-fan Bill McBride of Culpeper is seeking recognition from Guiness World Records for his plethora of Darth Vader collectibles.

With more than 63,000 distinct items in his collection, McBride was drawn to the Sith Lord when he first saw the masked character on the big screen at a theater in Manassas.

The character's physical presence drew him in.

"Something about it just blew me away," McBride said.

Like lots of other kids in the 70s, McBride wanted Star Wars toys, but his parents only let him pick one. The choice was clear, and McBride still has his original Vader figures - in their boxes.

McBride has been a collector for the past 25 years, acquiring items through trade publications, toy shops, conventions, dealers and the internet.

McBride said he came by his desire to collect naturally.

"My dad has a pretty amazing Civil War collection," he said. "I guess you have that collector DNA. I just always gravitated to the Darth Vader stuff."

 Vincent Vala

Ozzy Osbourne visits Ellwood

Black Sabbath front man and popular solo artist Ozzy Osbourne arrived unannounced at the historic manor house Ellwood in Orange County on St. Patrick's Day.

Taping a new cable television show co-hosted by his son, Jack, the Osbournes had come to the plantation off Route 20 near the Wilderness Battlefield to tape a segment for their History Channel show at the grave of the amputated left arm of Confederate General Stonewall Jackson.

Locust Grove resident Mark Leach, president of the Friends of the Wilderness Battlefield, spent about 10 minutes talking with the legendary rocker and reality television star.

"It was out of nowhere. We were up there cutting grass and he showed up. There was no doubt it was him. I find it very exciting that, out of all the sites in Virginia, even just in Fredericksburg, that they picked us," Leach said. "It was an honor."

"Ozzy and Jack's World Detour" aired over the summer on the History Channel. In each episode, the Osbournes visited noted historical places and unusual sites, such as the grave site of Gen. Jackson's arm in the Ellwood family cemetery.

Jackson lost his arm in 1863 when he was accidentally shot by one of his own men during the Battle of Chancellorsville. Surgeons amputated it at the nearby Wilderness Tavern Field Hospital, and it was buried with a marked stone at Ellwood.

Jackson died eight days later  the rest of him was buried in Lexington.

 Vincent Vala

Woman dies after falling from mattress

A Culpeper woman was charged with reckless driving and driving without a license last September after a co-worker fell off the top of a van she was driving and died as a result in Prince William County.

According to Prince William County Police, Norma Guadron Canales, 41, of Friendship Way on Culpeper was charged in connection with the Sept. 23 death of Sidney Zelaya Gonzalez, who fell of the top of a 2006 Chevrolet Express van while holding down a mattress the pair found while working in the Haymarket area.

The two women had reportedly found the mattress left by the side of the road in the area where they were working and decided to take it, a police spokesperson said.

Canales turned herself into authorities the following week and was released on bond, police said.

 Vincent Vala

Wacky weather keeps us guessing

Culpeper experienced its share of wacky weather this year.

A brutally cold winter storm dumped about two feet of snow on the Culpeper area with temperatures dipping into the single digits overnight during that two-day stint in January, closing schools and other local businesses. Culpeper hadnt received this much snowfall since Feb. 5, 2010 when more than 30 inches of the white stuff fell on the area.

No major power outages were reported in the town or county of Culpeper, according to a county press release, and only two emergency calls came in overnight. One disabled motorist was taken to the shelter at the Culpeper County Volunteer Rescue Squad, and was the only motorist at the shelter as of Jan. 23.

Heavy rains combined with melting snow caused minor flooding around Culpeper, closing roads along waterways like the Hazel River in early February. The low-water bridge at Butler Store Road and Monumental Mills was covered with muddy, running water, causing it to become impassable. About an inch of precipitation was recorded before the flooding started.

In July, temperatures soared to 100 degrees for several days, causing several heat waves for extended periods of time this summer. Temperatures were so extreme that the town of Culpeper asked its electric customers to conserve energy by cutting down on the usage of non-essential appliances and air conditioning.

In August, heat advisories were issued as forecasters predicted temperatures in the mid to upper 90s.

 Rhonda Simmons

Police chase ends with power outage

A 21-year-old man wanted for murder in Manassas stemming from a deadly shooting on Nov. 25 reportedly fled a hit-and-run situation on Bus. 29 and Belle Avenue in Culpeper before slamming into an electric power box on Nov. 28.

The crash, which occurred on Virginia Avenue in the Lakeview subdivision off Sperryville Pike, caused widespread power outages in the town of Culpeper for a few hours. Bobby Lewis Thomas, 21, was arrested and charged with two counts of hit and run, felony eluding and driving on a suspended license and reckless driving. Thomas faces accessory to second-degree murder charges in Manassas.

 Rhonda Simmons

Germanna Foundation helps actor link German heritage

Members of the Germanna Foundation helped Hollywood actor, television host and magician Neil Patrick Harris traces his German roots to Gertrud Trud Stuell.

In a segment that aired on the PBS series Finding Your Roots, Harris was able to trace his lineage to early settlers at Fort Germanna in Locust Grove and back to Germany, learning that his ancestor, Trud, was burned at the stake as a witch in Germany in 1590.

Hans Stuell, the actors paternal 12th great-grandfather, born between 1530 and 1535, was married to Trud. According to Germanna historians, Harris is one of Stuells descendants through Elisabeth Otterbach, wife of Germanna colonist Peter Hitt (Heide), who was born in Germany around 1683 and died in Fauquier County in 1772.

 Rhonda Simmons

Varmint shootin' wounds neighbor instead

A Culpeper man received a five-year suspended sentence in September for accidentally shooting his neighbor instead of what he thought was a rabid raccoon.

Like something straight out of Looney Tunes, the Yosemite Sam-like accident, thankfully, caused non-life-threatening injuries for the female neighbor of Douglas Ward, who was contrite at sentencing at which he was ordered to pay $2,748 to his inadvertent victim.

The town of Culpeper, with its colonial roots, still allows its citizens to shoot at varmints, even in densely populated areas like the area off of Orange Road, but it does not condone shooting your neighbor.

 Allison Brophy Champion

Grandma tries to kill custody rivals, gets 12 year sentence

It was traumatic for the people who were targeted, but it certainly was odd when a Culpeper grandmother attempted to put out a hit on the other set of grandparents and their adult children after losing custody of their shared grandson.

Tammy Lynn Kelly of Stevensburg saw her plan fall apart when authorities got wind of her evil plot and set up an undercover operation. She was sentenced in November to 12 years in the state penitentiary after pleading guilty to four counts of solicitation to commit murder.

The great-grandmother of the targeted family said at sentencing that learning of the murder plot was an unbelievable and horrible nightmare." Ms. Kelly, on the other hand, said she was sorry and had been raised better than that.

I believe I am a good person who made a very bad choice, Kelly said.

It was a choice she nonetheless made.

A search warrant executed at her Fairfield Road home uncovered computers, printers and tablets used in the production of $2,500 in counterfeit bills in addition to a handgun.

 Allison Brophy Champion

Frederick loses election but the lawsuits continue

Voters may have ousted embattled Culpeper Commonwealth's Attorney Megan Frederick in November 2015, but the former prosecutor's legal concerns in Culpeper continued throughout 2016  and aren't yet finished.

Culpeper police officer Matthew Haymaker filed a defamation lawsuit against Frederick and five members of her staff last year, alleging they impugned his integrity in newspaper articles and on Facebook and attempted to have him fired. The suit was refiled in August and a substitute judge has been appointed to hear the matter.

Haymaker seeks $200,000 in damages.

Frederick chose not to prosecute any of Haymaker's cases after, according to court documents, the officer improperly interrogated a suspect during the execution of a warrant. Frederick's office also expressed concern that a video of a 17-year-old suspect, reportedly filmed in Haymaker's presence, was not released to the defense attorney.

A letter sent by Frederick's office to police chief Chris Jenkins in March 2015 stated, "As prosecutors, we are unanimous in our determination that it is not in the commonwealth's best interest to utilize detective Haymaker as a witness."

Because the commonwealth's attorney's office steadfastly refused to prosecute any of his cases, Haymaker was returned to patrol duty and removed from the Virginia State Police's Blue Ridge Narcotics and Gang Task Force, according to court records.

A court date for the lawsuit has yet to be set.

In May, a case filed against Frederick by county IT worker Todd Frazier concluded after the parties  who had both appealed an initial judgement against Frederick  chose not to proceed further with the case. Frederick failed to "perfect," or complete, her appeal and Frazier withdrew his. The judge's $1,500 award to Frazier and the ruling that Frederick committed civil battery stands.

 Marla McKenna
Workers in Culpeper and Fredericksburg are more likely to get matching 401(k) contributions from their employers than workers in most other cities in Virginia, according to a study by personal finance research company SmartAsset.

Local financial advisor for Northwestern Mutual Rob Billingsley said there are a few reasons employers here would be willing to offer robust benefits, and chief among them is a desire to retain talent.

Years ago, it was common for employers to offer a pension that provided retirement income for life, but many employers have chosen to replace pension plans with defined contribution plans like 401(k) and 403(b) plans, he said.

A 401(k) is a retirement savings plan sponsored by an employer. It lets workers save and invest a piece of their paycheck before taxes are taken out. Taxes arent paid until the money is withdrawn from the account.

SmartAsset used data from the United States Department of Labor, looking at employer and employee 401(k) contributions to calculate an employer contribution percentage.

Culpeper was third on the list with an overall employer contribution percentage of 60.6 percent. Fredericksburg was sixth, with an employer contribution percentage of 51.8 percent.

Billingsley said the region has a fairly low unemployment rate and employers have to offer competitive benefits to attract and retain qualified employees.

If everything else is equal and an employee has the option between an employer with a retirement plan and matching contributions and one that does not match, the employee likely will select the employer that offers matching contributions, he said.

Another less obvious reason, he said, is the regions proximity to Washington. Because of the location, this area has many current and former federal government workers who are used to matching contributions.

Consequently, employers who seek to attract and hire workers formerly employed in the federal sector understand that they, too, must offer a robust benefits package, he said.

Billingsley said while these types of retirement savings plans are common, during the recession that started in 2008, many employers stopped matching employee contributions until economic conditions improved.

Lets face it, most prospective employees focus on compensation when seeking employment, Billingsley said. Next in terms of priority would be health insurance, followed by a retirement plan. Ones priorities, however, depend largely on ones age. While health insurance may not be a priority for a 24-year-old, it may be extremely important for the 35-year-old with a growing family to support.

Billingsley offered these three tips for retirement savings:

 It is important to start as soon as possible and to save consistentlyregardless of market conditions

 Take advantage of accounts that offer tax advantages, such as employer-sponsored retirement accounts and traditional and Roth IRAs.

 Build and act upon a financial plan that looks at your whole financial picture. No one financial product will fully prepare you for retirement. The people I talk to dont want to be sold financial productsthey want a full picture financial plan so they can achieve their goals. When you have a plan to build wealth and protect your wealth, thats when you can live life differently and pursue passions with confidence.
When the real assailant confessed last year to an abduction and attempted rape, a Richmond man wrongly imprisoned for the crimes was set free but needed help.

Michael Kenneth McAlister, 60, was lucky  he had a supportive family waiting on the outside after his full pardon. Nevertheless, after 29 years behind bars he still needed assistance, and he needed it quickly.

In Virginia, the legislature awards compensation for wrongful imprisonment. McAlister was released in May, and the General Assembly would not meet until January.

His lawyers and a legislator helped him to obtain $15,000 from the state in emergency transition funds to assist him until he was granted $1.2 million in compensation; roughly $250,000 of that was to be paid upfront, with the rest to be paid in an annuity. And McAlister had to promise not to sue the state.

Now the legislator who wrote the bill for McAlister's compensation, state Del. Richard C. "Rip" Sullivan Jr., D-Arlington, has drafted one for the upcoming General Assembly that will smooth and speed up the process for an exoneree to receive $15,000 without promising not to sue.

Matt Weinstein, Sullivan's legislative aide, said they were able to get the transitional assistance grant for McAlister last year, but it was a long, complicated process. According to the Attorney General's Office, McAlister would have to relinquish any claims against the state.

Weinstein said the intent of the bill is to allow an exoneree to receive help without waiving his or her claim against the commonwealth. That would provide some financial relief until the exoneree receives help from the legislature or the courts.

Shawn Armbrust, executive director of the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project, which helped McAlister win his freedom, welcomes the bill.

"It's fantastic," she said. "We're really good at getting people out  but neither the lawyers nor the criminal justice system itself has really figured out how deal with exonerees once they're out."

She noted that if McAlister actually had committed the abduction and attempted rape 30 years ago and then was released from prison, he would have received transition help from the state.

Keith Allen Harward, exonerated this year of a rape and murder in Newport News, said he has not yet received any help from the state but has been getting assistance with essentials from The Innocence Project in New York.

He said that at this point, he does not wish to take any money from Virginia that would come with strings attached.

In October, five months after McAlister was awarded $1.2 million by Virginia, he was arrested in Orlando, Fla., on a felony charge of possession of cocaine and misdemeanor charges of resisting arrest and destruction of evidence. Records show he pleaded not guilty and was released on bond.

The new charges do not cast doubt on McAlister's innocence of the 1986 abduction and attempted rape of a woman in South Richmond. But if convicted of the felony in Florida, it appears he risks losing much of his wrongful-imprisonment award.
Residents celebrating Christmas Day at the evacuation center take a break before Typhoon Nock-ten is expected to strike Legazpi City, Albay province, central Philippines, December 25, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

MANILA - Typhoon Nock-Ten is battering provinces south of Manila, leaving at least three people dead, police and local officials said on Monday.

Al Francis Bichara, governor of the Albay province in southeastern Luzon, said the dead included a 57-year-old woman who was killed by a fallen concrete wall and a couple, a 73-year-old man and his 70-year-old wife, who drowned in a river.

Transport services, schools and offices in the province were suspended, Bichara said, adding the entire province and neighboring provinces were also without power after being hit by the typhoon.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) has yet to come up with the number of casualties, saying the typhoon is still hitting other provinces as it slowly moves west-northwest of Luzon at 20 kilometers per hour.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said in its 2 pm bulletin that the typhoon has slightly weakened, packing maximum winds of up to 130 Kilometers per hour and gusts of up to 215 kph.

NDRRMC also said on Monday that 77,560 families or 383,097 persons were preemptively evacuated from Calabarzon, Bicol Region, Mimaropa and Eastern Visayas in anticipation of the typhoon.

The disaster agency said Typhoon Nock-Ten is expected to exit the country on Wednesday morning.
(BPT)  Youve joined a health club and now youre curious about fitness classes. Youre almost ready to sign up for an indoor cycle, yoga or strength-training class, but something stops you. You feel nervous and uncomfortable and decide to wait.

Group fitness classes are a fantastic way to exercise because youre guided by an expert, plus the energy of the group keeps you motivated. However, because its something new that puts people outside their comfort zone, its common to feel apprehensive in the beginning.

To help you gain confidence to try any type of group exercise class, consider these tips from three health club members.

Comfort over style. Trust me, no one cares what youre wearing, says Deb Kampe, a member at Life Time, which operates 122 destinations across the United States and in Canada. If you want to wear gym shorts and a T-shirt, do it. Head-to-toe athleisure? Do it. A tutu? Do it. Just make sure youre comfortable and safe. Dont spend a fortune on the latest fitness clothing trends or labels. Expensive does not equal better.

Dont be self-conscious. Its easy to assume everyone in class is fit, knows all the moves and is judging you. No one cares, Kampe says. Once the music starts and the instructor begins, all eyes are up front taking direction and being lifted into the moment.

Everyone was a newbie. Everyone was a first-timer at some point, so they know how it feels, says Dustin Meriwether, member at Life Time. Theyre not going to judge you for it, and manyhopefully allwill be willing to answer any questions and help in any other way.

Instructors want to assist. All instructorsand other memberswant to help you, says Kelby Mezzenga, member at Life Time. So just walk in and let the instructor know you are new or have a question. That welcoming feeling takes the edge off and chances are, youll have met a new friend.

Keep an open mind. Group fitness classes are designed to challenge you and take you out of your comfort zone. You may be unfamiliar with the equipment youll use or how hard it might be, but I guarantee you will feel the burn, Mezzenga says.

Listen to your body. You know your body best, says Meriwether. If something doesnt feel right or if you know you have problems with something, modify the workout correspondingly. People do that all the time and many instructors are good about suggesting such modifications.

Give it 100 percent. You get out what you put in, Meriwether says. If you put in minimal effort, you can expect minimal results. But if you give it your all, you can expect some pretty fantastic fitness changes.

Bring water. Hydration is important, but you dont need to worry about anything else. Life Time has everything youll need for any class, from yoga mats to towels, says Mezzenga.

Celebrate victories. During the cool-down and stretching segment of class, take a moment to celebrate your victory, says Kampe. Look around, everyone no matter what their age and ability will beseriously sweaty, all there with you sharing the same endorphins. Take that feeling with you and own it. Then look at the class schedule and commit to another one.

For more information about group fitness, visit www.lifetimefitness.com.
ELKO  The second annual Kicks for Kids Charity Shoe Drive ended with 153 pairs of shoes and boots donated by the community for children in need throughout Elko County.

The charity drive, hosted by Ignite Life Chiropractic, collected new or gently worn shoes or boots for children of all ages for distribution by Communities in Schools of Northeastern Nevada and Family Resource Centers of Northeastern Nevada.

We do these charity drives to give back to the community for the blessings weve received, said owner Dr. Joshua Byers.

Melissa Schultz, executive director of Communities in Schools, was pleased to have the community support for the drive. The group also works with Head Start of Northeastern Nevada, Department of Child and Family Services and any other agency that serves children.

We appreciate the partnerships we have in the community and with Ignite Life Chiropractic, said Schultz.

Their partnership provides kids the shoes they need to keep their feet warm, explained Schultz, adding that the donations will be delivered to schools after classes resume in January.

The next charity drive at Ignite Life, the Undie 500, will collect brand-new packaged socks and underwear and is scheduled to start Feb. 6.

For more information, contact Communities in Schools at 753-9183, Family Resource Center at 753-7352, or Ignite Life Chiropractic at 775-375-5401.
Every child, and most wives, have experienced the gift obviously purchased at the airport, in spastic response to the sudden memory of a birthday or an anniversary, William F. Buckley wrote in a column about the joy of giving written for Playboy magazine. The founder of the conservative National Review magazine, at which Ive worked for some two decades, would occasionally be invited to write for or be interviewed for the mens magazine whose values he didnt necessarily subscribe to. I wonder if this might be what Pope Francis means when he urges Christians to go to the peripheries with their mission of sharing the message of the Gospel.

Buckley wasnt explicitly teaching the tenets of Christianity in that Playboy article and others like it, but he was, with his characteristic wit and good humor, making the case for charity and its rewards. He affirmed the generality that It is graceless to refuse a gift, even as it is graceless to refuse to give.

In that same column, Buckley wrote about how giving should be fun, and told a story that showed how giving was not just a convenient column topic or a nice thing to do, but was something at the heart of his political philosophy and faith. In describing how giving should be fun, he described fun as the enemy of those who wish to socialize pleasure. He told the story of a landowner in Sweden who announced his intention to bequeath to his village the large forest he owned. The town elders responded that they did not want to receive a forest as a gift from one of their townspeople; if they wanted a forest, they would appropriate one  taxing the citizenry for whatever compensation was owed to the man whose forest had been socialized. They deemed it undignified to receive a gift from someone who egotistically decided to make such a gift.

He wrote that telling the tale left the taste of ashes in the mouth. The problem, he said with socialist reasoning is that when everything belongs to everybody, it no longer appears clear why one should accept a gift. Indeed, it becomes unclear what a gift is at all.

Humans are gifts, creations not of our own making. I sometimes talk about gratitude in the tradition of Buckley, thinking about it as a responsibility to honor and care for all the gifts given to us by our Creator. In many ways, its the antidote to a political mindset and way of living that assumes that we are the ones we have been waiting for. That campaign slogan of Barack Obamas always struck me as the perfect encapsulation of how we think of ourselves today and how it might need a re-evaluation. Our reasoning stops making sense when we cant look to what came before  the wisdom, the experience, the tradition that looks beyond present circumstances and talents to see what lies beneath and beyond and what ought to be treasured and protected.

I see similarities in Buckley and Pope Francis again when I think about how the latter talks about a throwaway society. We do settle for treating things as disposable, including human life, using people for convenience and utility rather than in reverence for the gift of their very lives. Giving is about more than whatever you pick up for a holiday celebration, its actually about who we are, as individuals and as a people. Are we gifts or not? Do we have gifts or not? Do we give of ourselves or not? You may not be able to wrap those questions up with a bow, but they are the kinds of thoughts that make for the greatest of gifts when they are sincerely grappled with.
When Ratan Tata retired as chairman of Tata Sons Ltd in 2012, he proposed a change in the laws governing the relationship between India's largest conglomerate and its key shareholder, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Until then, the Tata Trusts - public charities owning two-thirds of the company - had easily protected its investment. A Tata family member had for decades held the chairmanship at both the Trusts and the company, whose businesses include cars, software and steel.

But an outsider, Cyrus Mistry, had just taken the top job at Tata Sons. Tata wanted to make sure the Trusts that rely on Tata Sons for dividends to fund their charitable work, could keep having a major say in company decisions, the sources said.

Mistry agreed, and in doing so sowed the seeds of his ouster from the company last October, according to interviews with more than half-a-dozen current and former Tata executives and advisors, and a review of meeting minutes, emails and a court petition that Mistry has filed against Tata Sons.

Mistry's departure  and the reinstatement of the 78-year-old Tata as interim chairman  has triggered a bitter, public spat that has contributed to nearly a $10 billion decline in the market value of Tata's many listed companies.

Even if the conflict is resolved, the company could face future governance issues as the structure remains unchanged, which means it could weigh on any new chairman. "It is going to be very difficult for an external person to take the role," said Shriram Subramanian, founder of proxy advisory firm InGovern Research.

Mistry wrote in a letter to the Tata Sons board on Oct. 26 that Tata improperly used the change in bylaws to interfere in the affairs of the company and created an alternate power center at the group, which made it hard for him to do his job.

Tata Sons spokesman Debasis Ray said Tata asked Mistry to do only what was in the bylaws and got involved in the company's affairs when he was asked. Tata Sons has cited Mistry's performance as the main reason for firing him, holding him responsible for rising expenses and impairment provisions.

Still, interviews with sources on both sides and the review of documents show that the changes in bylaws helped create the conditions that caused friction between Mistry and Tata and increasingly hindered smooth functioning of the group.

Over the past 30 months, Mistry met Tata - often along with fellow trustee Noshir Soonawala - more than two dozen times to update them on deals and other strategic decisions at group companies. In several cases, the meetings and explanations led to disagreements, the sources said.

CHANGES TO BYLAWS

The changes in bylaws, which were finalised in 2014 after more than a year of discussions, substantially increased the accountability of the chairman of Tata Sons to the directors nominated by the Trusts.

The Trusts can nominate one-third of Tata Sons' directors. The new bylaws require major decisions, such as deals and changes to the company's capital structure, be approved by a majority of the Trusts' nominees.

The chairman was also now required to present five-year and annual business plans to the board and have them approved by a majority of the nominees, the bylaws show.

The chairman, though, was not directly accountable to any of the trustees, including Tata. The Trusts' nominees were expected to represent their interests on the Tata Sons board, sources familiar with the rules on both sides of the conflict said.

Mistry said in his letter that the family's patriarch nevertheless continued to directly interfere in the conglomerate's affairs and called the nominees "postmen" who did Tata's bidding.

Mistry also wrote that Tata's interference "severely constrained" his ability to make the necessary changes to turn around many of the conglomerate's loss-making businesses.

Of the three nominees of the Trusts on the nine-member Tata Sons board at the time of Mistry's ousting, one declined to comment and two others could not be reached.

Tata Sons' Ray denied that Tata interfered with operational matters after stepping down. Tata never attended the group's board meetings and any interaction between Tata and Mistry was at Mistry's behest, Ray said.

The dispute is now being litigated. Mistry filed a petition on Dec. 20 at the National Company Law Tribunal, a quasi-judicial body that deals with corporate grievances in India.

In his petition, Mistry has asked the court to stop Tata and the trustees from interfering in the affairs of the company, replace the entire Tata Sons board and order an investigation into the role of the trustees.

Tata Sons has called his accusations baseless and malicious and said it believes that Mistry's petition is not maintainable in law.

MANY MEETINGS

While the extent of Tata's influence remains in dispute, sources on both sides acknowledged that Tata and Mistry often met to talk about the affairs of the company, and sometimes disagreed on the best course of action.

For example, when Tata Power decided to buy $1.4 billion worth of renewable energy assets from rival Welspun Energy this summer, Tata and Soonawala - who is also a former Tata group finance chief and close confidante of the family's patriarch - got involved.

Emails from early July between Mistry and Soonawala show that Soonawala had ideas about how the deal should be structured that were different from the proposals made by bankers who were advising the group.

Soonawala also told Mistry to get Tata's sign off before finalising the deal, two sources close to Mistry said, adding that the involvement of the two men led to the deal being delayed by several weeks.

Ray said Soonawala, 81, got involved because he was asked by Mistry to do so. Another Tata Sons spokesman said "there were no delays because of consultation with the trustees". Sources close to Mistry deny he asked for Soonawala's advice.

Reuters could not independently confirm whether such a request was ever made.

In another instance, just weeks before an Indian telecom airwaves auction in the autumn, Mistry met Tata and Soonawala on three separate occasions to discuss Tata Teleservices' bidding strategy, two sources close to Mistry said. They said the meetings lasted for hours, as the two sides disagreed on how much extra spectrum Tata Teleservices should buy.

Reuters could not independently determine who asked for the meetings.

Tata and Soonawala wanted the purchase to be kept at a minimum because the company was already bleeding, but Mistry and Tata Teleservices executives wanted to buy more, arguing it could help increase value and draw interest from suitors, the sources said.

Tata Teleservices ended up paying 46.2 billion rupees ($681 million) for some of the spectrum being sold, government data showed.

What is not clear is who prevailed in the internal argument over the bidding.
Mumbai: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday strongly backed lower tax rates in country as the $2 trillion worlds fifth largest economy widens its tax base.

Jaitley was speaking at the inaugural session of professional training for new batches of Indian Revenue Service officers in Faridabad near New Dehi.

Finance Ministry quoted Jaitley as saying, Taxes have to be globally competitive. Many economies while they develop, payment of taxes is part of citizens' duty."

He added that officers to have a high level of integrity, honesty, sincerity and do hard work with eagerness to learn new things.

He exhorted tax authorities to reciprocate tax payers who pay their dues on time voluntarily with a tax friendly administration.
When the 23-km-long corridor was being contemplated, it was planned that complete flight operations, including domestic, will be from T3

New Delhi: Domestic low-cost carriers not operating from Terminal 3 has been a "setback" for the Airport Express Line of Delhi Metro, DMRC chief Mangu Singh has said.

Although the premium corridor has scripted a turnaround of sorts with daily ridership touching a high of 50,000 in August this year, Singh suggested that the numbers could have been more had things panned out as per plan.

When the 23-km-long corridor was being contemplated, it was planned that complete flight operations, including domestic, will be from T3, he said, but "we do not know" why authorities decided to continue with Terminal 1.

"This is really a setback because we believe that passengers of domestic carriers use public transport. T3 people mostly travel in their own vehicles. However, we are running a feeder service between the two terminals and that has helped to some extent," Singh told PTI.

At the planning stage, it was also envisaged that property development would be a major source of revenue for the corridor but low ridership was coming in its way, which prompted metro to slash fares, he said.

The idea was that when footfall increases property development will follow, Singh said. Fares were cut by up to 50 per cent in September last year to popularise the relatively expensive line that connects New Delhi Railway Station to T3.

The maximum fare has been reduced to Rs 60 from Rs 180 while the minimum is Rs 10 against Rs 50 in 2013. As metro already had a robust system in place, operating the Airport corridor was not much of a challenge when it took over the operations from a private concessionaire in July 2013.

"We had one big advantage because we were already operating a system. There were many things that we could simply absorb. Control centre was shifted here, similarly maintenance staff was shared.

We could bring in a lot of efficiency as per operational and maintenance cost is concerned," he said. As per official data, the average daily ridership figure of July, 2013, was 10,069. It subsequently rose to around 12,000 in March 2014 and further to 19,466 a year later.

On August 28, 2015, more than 32,000 people had taken the corridor, also known as Orange Line and a year later it recorded the highest-ever ridership of 50,000.
With over 13,000 fuel stations and close to 4,500 LPG outlets, BPCL serves lakhs of people on a daily basis.

Bengaluru: Ola Money, digital payment solution from Ola, will be accepted at Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) fuel pumps and LPG distributors across the country, the company announced today.

Acceptance of Ola Money in a prominent public utility such as BPCL is another step by Ola towards supporting the governments vision of a cashless 'Digital India', Ola Money Senior Vice President Pallav Singh said in a statement here.

With the increased recharge limit on wallets from Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000 until December 30, Ola Money is better positioned to facilitate convenient cashless transactions for citizens and merchants alike, the statement said.

With over 13,000 fuel stations and close to 4,500 LPG outlets, BPCL serves lakhs of people on a daily basis,it added. With the alliance, both driver partners and consumers will be able to pay for their fuel and LPG requirements with Ola Money on VeriFone enabled PoS devices, the statement said.

"The entire process of payment is exceptionally easy and convenient, done through a single step mobile verification process," it said.

Ola Money is accepted at over 500 online and offline merchants, as well as for bill payments at over 25 major utilities across India, it said.
the centre is planning to ban possession of old 500 and 1000 notes to force people use amnesty scheme.

New Delhi: The Central government is reportedly planning to issue a new ordinance to ban having more than Rs 10,000 of worth demonetised currency notes after December 30.

The order is expected to ban transferring or receiving the demonetised currency of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 in excess of Rs 10,000. Any violation of this order is expected to be made a punishable offence.

According to reports, the government is looking at imposing a fine that could range from a minimum of `50,000 to fives times the amount seized  whichever is higher. However, these penal provisions are still being worked on. A municipal magistrate will adjudicate such cases.

While banning the high value notes on November 8, the government had announced that people can deposit their old notes in their accounts till December 30 and in RBI offices thereafter.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday defended frequent changes in the demonetisation rules saying that the government was sensitive to the problems of the people and was acting on the feedback on their hardships.

A blanket ban on having old notes could run in the face of this announcement and may draw flak from people again.

Sources claim that the government may some mechanism which allows people, who could not deposit their old notes for genuine reasons, may not suffer because of this ordinance.

Some experts believe that the proposed ordinance to ban the possession of old notes is likely to force people declare illegal money under the amnesty scheme.

The government has recently come out with a new amnesty scheme for black money, which allows people having unaccounted money to legitimise their hoard by paying a 50 per cent tax.

This scheme was announced after many people who were having black money, started employing different ingenious methods to get their old notes converted into the new currency. Though this may not legitimise their money, it got some relief in the form of new currency.

Under the Taxation and Investment Regime for Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, 2016 (PMGKY), people who voluntarily declare their black money in cash and bank deposits will have to pay a 50 per cent in taxes (tax, surcharge and penalty) and 25 per cent of the total income declared will be locked off for four years. The money will be locked off in interest free deposit scheme for four years to be notified by the RBI under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme, 2016.
Mumbai: Katrina Kaif and Anushka Sharma set the TV sets on fire with their easy chemistry as they shared Karans couch on Koffee with Karan on Sundays episode. They let their quirky side on full display on the shows Sunday episode which has already made a lot of headlines all over the country.

While both happily confessed to being anti-social, they also had only good things to speak about each other on the show.

During rapid fire round, Karan Johar asked the ladies to describe the personalities of the stars he mentioned.

KJo mentioned Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Aamir Khan, to which Katrina and Anushka said SRK is the most witty and energetic amongst the three, whereas Salman is the grumpiest and crankiest whike Aamir is quiet and disciplined.
Its been just five days since the trailer of the much-awaited Jolly LLB 2 released and controversy is already knocking on its door. Footwear company, Bata, has slapped a legal notice on the movies team for using the name of the company and damaging its reputation.

In the movies trailer, Annu Kapoor, who plays lead actor Akshay Kumars opposing lawyer heaps insult on him by saying Bata ki chappal pehenkar, tuchhi si terricoat pehen kar, hum se zaban ladata hai? (You wear Bata slippers and a shabby coat and dare to argue with me?) Not surprisingly, this has sparked a controversy, as Bata wants these references removed before the movie is released. But do references like these affect the brand negatively?

Prahlad Kakkar, ad and film director, thinks it depends on how the dialogue affects the audience. If a dialogue is derogatory to the brand, or gives it a bad name, the company has all rights to want to take the reference down. The reason being that certain cult dialogues can become a part of our daily language, he explains.

When Alyque Padamsee was in school  which was a very long time ago, he laughs  Bata Shoes would make really cheap footwear. They were like Japanese shoes (Japanese shoes were made of cardboard and would break after mere three or four wears). After the Second World War, the brand tried to change their image  they started making moderate quality shoes, recalls the Indian theatre personality and ad-guru.

Today, the company is trying to change its brand image yet again. If the reference is pushing the brand down, then they would definitely have a problem, but on the other hand, if it is pushing the brand up, then chances are the filmmakers would get good money for it. This is how the system works, he states.

This is, however, not the first time popular product brands have been used to make references in a movie. Earlier, Emami had taken offence to Malaika Arora dancing to lyrics about Zandu Balm in the sultry item song, Munni Badnaam in Dabangg. Emami took the decision to encash on the songs popularity in an out-of-court settlement with Arbaaz Khan Productions.

Aditya V. Agarwal, director of Emami group, is of the opinion that mutual respect between brands and films is necessary, We, as a brand, respect what filmmakers do  the creativity, their creative process, liberty and the final creation as well. And so, we as a brand, feel that the filmmaker should also respect the brand value.

Onir, director of My Brother Nikhil, on the other hand, isnt a huge fan of censorship enforced by brands. In real life, we make several jokes on brands all the time, then why not in movies? Situations like these become very politicised when you blow it out of proportion, he says.

There are some who arent completely on board with the idea of self-censorship too, like Sharat Katariya, writer and director of Dum Laga ke Haisha. When you write you have much bigger challenges to think about, and at that point, brands are the least of ones concerns. When writing, we try not to offend anyone on sensitive issues, not just brands. For instance, in Dum Laga Ke Haisha, the film was about overweight women, and I worked towards not to make it offensive towards overweight women, he says.

Prahlad doesnt understand why films simply dont refrain from using references of brands. There are certain movies that use the names of brands with prior permission from the brand and a proper MoU, which expresses a convergence of will between two or more parties. However, there are several films that dont comply to this. In the last 10 years, companies have grown wiser to know about copyright infringement and legal issues. In that case, doesnt it make sense for filmmakers to be aware of the same too? he signs off.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan has in a searing criticism of the national film awards selection under the new dispensation called for a probe against the jury chairman (Rajendra Singh Babu), who presided over the selection of the Indian Panorama at IFFI 2016. In a nine-point letter to Information and Broadcasting Secretary Ajay Mittal, Mr Gopalakrishnan lamented the plight of the cinema movement of purpose and integrity.

He was also vehemently critical of the Ramesh Sippy-led jury that selected the national awards for 2015, heavily biased in favour of commercial cinema. Mr Gopalakrishnan withheld names of the two chief jurors in the letter but did not conceal his outrage since never before have such jokers been appointed as jury chairmen.

Reflecting sentiments of the film fraternity pursuing purposeful cinema, Mr Gopalakrishnan said that soon there would be an occasion to choose members as well as a chairman to the National film awards jury. We insist that the jury should be headed by a filmmaker of eminence, familiar with modern trends in cinema and enjoys a national stature and he and other members on the jury would instill a feeling of fairness in the minds of the professionals involved, said Mr Gopalakrishnan.
Workers in more demanding jobs, who felt in control, were a third less likely to die than those in less stressful careers (Photo: AFP)

London: Is stress at your workplace affecting your life? A new study finds that stressful jobs can make you find ways to solve problems and work through ways to get the work done, instead of making something debilitating, it can actually be something that is energising.

A new study finds that stress in your office concentrates the mind, keeps you alert, improves your efficiency and even hikes up your productivity.

According to The Mirror, the new research says, however, to enjoy these benefits of stress you have to feel in control of the task in hand and be involved in decisions such as timetables and deadlines.

Researchers from the University of Indiana's Business School have followed more than 10,000 workers in their sixties since 2004.

To measure the stress of their jobs, employees were asked how hard they worked; how much they needed to concentrate and if they were overworked.

The findings indicated, seven years later, those who worked in high-stress, low-control jobs were most likely to have died.

Cancer was found to be the leading cause of death among the study group, with stress known to be a risk factor. Those with the most demanding jobs - and no control over them - are 15 percent more likely to die than those with less taxing careers. Also, people in high-stress, low-control jobs tend to be overweight.

Workers in more demanding jobs, who felt in control, were a third less likely to die than those in less stressful careers. They also find stress stimulating.

"These findings suggest that stressful jobs have clear negative consequences for employee health when paired with low freedom in decision making, while stressful jobs can actually be beneficial to employee health if also paired with freedom in decision making," said lead study author Erik Gonzalez-Mule.

"You can avoid the negative health consequences if you allow people to set their own goals, set their own schedules, and prioritise their decision making and the like," Professor Gonzalez-Mule added.

Stressful jobs cause you to find ways to problem solve and work through ways to get the work done. Having a higher amount of control gives you the resources you need to do that.
Samastipur: The police have seized 326 cartons liquor from a truck near a village in Bihar's Samastipur district, a police officer said on Monday.

During patrolling late on Sunday night, the police intercepted a truck near Bashi Bhidni village and recovered 326 cartons liquor consisting of 8208 bottles, Tajpur police station in-charge Manoj Kumar said.

The truck, bearing registration number of Jharkhand, has been impounded and brought to Tajpur police station, he said.

The seized consignment of liquor was manufactured in Punjab as per sticker stamped on these bottles, Kumar said.

No arrest has been made in this connection, he said.
Bhubaneswar: Eight human traffickers were sentenced for life and fined heftily on Sunday said a prosecutor, after being found guilty of torturing and chopping off the hands of two labourers.

Prosecutor Dhirendra Nath Patra said the court in Bhubaneswar heard how the traffickers chopped off the hands of Nilambar Dhangdamajhi and Dayalu Nial in Odisha state on December 15, 2013.

The two men were among of a group of 12 labourers who had taken money from labour agent Parvesh Duni in exchange for working for him but quickly realised he had trapped them.

When the men found out they were being taken to Andhra Pradesh instead of Chhattisgarh, they tried to escape. Unfortunately, they were caught and locked up for hours before their hands were chopped off.

News of the torture and confinement triggered widespread outrage and made national headlines.

Dhangdamajhi died on September 21 this year after years of illness.

"Under the sentence Parvesh Duni and other traffickers will serve a life term in prison. They will also have to pay fines," the prosecutor said adding that this would be a lesson for all.

Amidst the publicity, in 2014 the Supreme Court intervened and asked the Odisha government to fast track charges against the traffickers and provide rehabilitation for the two men whose stories are typical of many trapped in debt bondage in India.

Dhangdamajhi was 32 when he took a loan of 14,000 rupees from labour agent Duni and agreed to work at a brick kiln in 2013.

But he was taken to a paddy field, kept under house arrest and made to work for his traffickers who demanded he pay back the advance taken by all 12 labourers if he wanted to go home.

Dayalu, who was 17 years old at the time, earlier had said that they were asked if they would rather have their hands or legs chopped off if they do not agree to the new terms of contract.

Patra said nine men were accused of the abuse and eight of these were arrested and were now in jail.

A ninth man absconded ahead of the hearing that started in October last year and ended in March this year. He has been arrested recently and would now face trial.
Meanwhile, the Juvenile Justice Board has sent both the accused to Observation Home till January 2. (Photo: Representational Image)

Mumbai: The teenage boys accused of murdering a three-and-half-year old girl from Nagpada area for a ransom of Rs 1 crore, "panicked and strangulated" the child after the mother of the little one knocked their door in her search, police said.

"They took the abducted girl, who was unconscious after administering chloroform, to the house of one of the accused who stays in the neighbourhood. When the minor's mother knocked their door to see whether the girl was at their home the duo panicked and strangulated the child with wire of the mobile phone charger," said a senior police official.

Both the accused had abducted the girl from the first floor of Haji Kasam Chawl of Kajipura, where she stayed, on December 5, police said.

He added, "The accused duo also refused entry to the girl's mother on the ground that one of them was having a bath. They later put the body in a polythene bag and kept it on terrace of the building."

Police suspect that the accused, who are students of a college in south Mumbai sourced chloroform from the science lab.

On interrogation the accused have confessed to the crime and revealed the whole sequence of events, claimed police.

The accused were impressed with the economic status of girl's father, as they used to see people in expensive cars coming to meet him and hence planned abduction for ransom, said the official.

They demanded Rs 1 crore from the girl's father who happens to be a scrap dealer. However, the amount was later scaled down to Rs 28 lakh after he expressed inability to pay the amount.

They asked him to come to Parsik tunnel in Thane district and throw the money bag there after which they will leave girl near the railway track, police said.

However, the accused fled from the spot after they spotted police alongwith the father of the girl.

The girl was killed the same day (December 5) she was abducted and even before her parents approached J J Marg police with a missing complaint.

Meanwhile, the Juvenile Justice Board has sent both the accused to Observation Home till January 2.

The incident came to light on Saturday night after the girl's body was recovered from the chawl after one of the accused who was questioned by police on suspicion confessed to the crime after which police went to the site where the body was dumped. The duo was arrested on Sunday.
Hyderabad: A woman IAS aspirant was arrested for creating a fake FB profile in the name of IT secretary Jayesh Ranjan and posting abusive content. The woman in her late twenties was be suffering from depression, police said.

Central Crime Station police said that Mr T. Narender, personal assistant to Mr Ranjan, had lodged the complaint on behalf of the officer earlier.

Mr Narender had alleged that an unidentified person had created a fake Facebook ID in the name of Mr Ranjan and had started posting obscene content. This had become a cause of nuisance for those following the IT secretarys FB page, according to investigation official from the Central Crime Station.

Police tracked the IP address of the user and traced the suspect. They found that the woman was preparing for the civil services exam while staying in a hostel at Gandhinagar. Police found that she was suffering from depression.

Police could not find out why she had picked on Mr Rajan. Police said she had come across inspirational speeches by the Mr Ranjan earlier, after which she started the Facebook page. Police said the woman should not be named as she was not mentally fit.
SALT LAKE CITY (AP)  A series of violent crimes involving teenage suspects over the last two months is raising tough questions for Utah courts, police and parents.

Utah Criminal Justice Center Director Rob Butters says theres no connecting thread between the cases, which range from teens accused in a car chase that left a police officer dead to a student who police say stabbed five of his classmates in a school locker room.

He says youth violence is hard to predict and often involves suspects who dont have a history of crime. Butters recommends parents bring up and talk through high-profile events with their children. He says kids are influenced by whats going on around them and often have a wider exposure to media than adults realize.

Heres a look at the cases:

REHAB WORKER KILLED

A teenager from Arizona is accused of killing a counselor at a southern Utah ranch for troubled teens.

Investigators say 17-year-old Clay Brewer told police he lost his mind because he was addicted to pills, had attempted suicide and felt his parents didnt love him after they sent him to the ranch.

Charging documents say Brewer liked 61-year-old victim Jimmy Woolsey before attacking him with a metal stick on Dec. 6. A second staffer who was attacked survived.

The Associated Press does not typically name juvenile defendants, but Brewer has been charged as an adult.

GUN FIRED AT SCHOOL

Police say a 15-year-old brought two guns to school and fired a round into a classroom ceiling before his parents arrived and disarmed him, likely preventing bloodshed.

Prosecutors say he hid the shotgun and handgun under a long coat and also carried two boxes of ammunition to the school in Bountiful on Dec. 1. Investigators have said the teenager pointed the shotgun at his neck before his mother and father managed to bring him into a hallway and remove the weapons.

LOCKER ROOM STABBING

Five students in Orem were wounded when a classmate brought knives and long wooden sticks to school.

Police said the 16-year-old planned the Nov. 15 attack using videos he found on YouTube, and went to the locker room to find a large group of students. Police say he told officers hed had suicidal and harmful thoughts since he was very young.

The teen has been charged as a juvenile with attempted murder.

POLICE OFFICER KILLED

Police say three teenagers were inside a stolen car that fatally struck a police officer who was trying to lay down tire-puncturing strips during a police chase.

The pre-dawn Nov. 6 chase started after an officer saw the car being stolen and tried to pull it over. Police havent said whether they intentionally hit West Valley City police officer Cody Brotherson, 25.

Three males aged 14 and 15 were arrested after the car careened down an embankment and hit a fence.

SHOOTING OUTSIDE SCHOOL

A 14-year-old Utah boy is charged with shooting another teen twice in the head in a fight outside a middle school.

The other teenager, age 16, survived the shots fired during an Oct. 25 fight over a girl. Police say the younger boy was dating the 16-year-olds former girlfriend, and the taunts started with taunts over texts and social media.

The younger teen is charged with attempted murder and weapons violations.
As many as eight murder cases, dozens of extortion complaints and land grabbing cases had been booked against him by the city police.

Hyderabad: After years of wait, notorious gangster and fugitive Ayub Khan was arrested by the city police with the help of Mumbai airport immigration officials, following a lead the cops here got from Interpol.

A wanted criminal, Ayub Khan had multiple non-bailable warrants (NBWs), and a red corner notice was pending against him. He was arrested from Mumbai airport upon his arrival from abroad on Monday.

As many as eight murder cases, dozens of extortion complaints and land grabbing cases had been booked against him by the city police. He had been shuttling between Dubai and India using a fake passport for many years, police said.

Senior officials from South Zone said the two NBWs pending against him were being executed with this arrest, while probe and trials in other cases would be resumed. He would be booked under preventive detention act, by which bail is not possible. This will help cops keep him in jail for a while. Charminar ACP Ashok Chakravarthy said a rowdy sheet has been opened against Ayub. There is also involve in an arms act case in which he had threatened his victims with swords, he said.

Another official said the police is also investigating fresh charges against Ayub Khan for holding and using fake passports for overseas travel. He has been on the run since 2013. He had been travelling to Dubai and back to India using fake passports. Every airport in the country was on alert with a red corner notice on him, said an official.

Sources said that the city police did not arrest Ayub Khan for a while despite having information on his arrival in Hyderabad earlier this year. He had came four times this year. He must have come via Nepal or other cities in India using his fake passport. But, police did not arrest him, a source said.

Shahbaz had narrow escape from Ayub

In 2008, the then Telugu Desam minority cell president Shahbaz Ahmed Khan found himself in the jaws of death, when gangster Ayub Khan and his associates walked into his office at Masab Tank. They carried with them deadly weapons. An extremely cautious Shahbaz Khan had CCTV cameras installed in his office. Seeing the arrival of the gang on the screen, he made good his escape from the building.

After this, the state government provided security to the TD leader.

Shahbaz Khan, now an MIM leader, says he was just one of those who faced life threat from the gangster.

I was lucky enough to escape being trapped. Many innocent people were killed by him and his gang, he said.
Kochi: An Indian Catholic priest abducted from Yemen this year appealed to Pope Francis and the Union government through a purported video to secure his release from his captors.

"If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously. I am from India. I am perhaps not considered as of much value," said priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil in a weak voice in the video, aired by news channels in Kerala.

"Dear Pope Francis, dear Holy Father, as a father please take care of my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating," he said in the video, a day after Christmas. Father Uzhunnalil, who looked very weak, appeared to be reading out from a text placed before him.

The veracity of the video, which was uploaded from YouTube and Facebook, could neither be independently verified nor was the period when it was shot known.

Father Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala, was abducted in March by terror group Islamic State which attacked an old-age home run by Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity in southern Yemeni city of Aden.

He claimed his captors have made many contacts with the Government of India--President and Prime Minister.

"I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in my regard," he said.

He said reports had said everything has been done to get his release, "but in reality nothing" has been done. Father Uzhunnalil said a news reporter abducted in the Middle East was released as she was from France.

"I am from India and not considered. Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all to do your might to help me to save my life. I need hospitalisation soon. Please come to my help quickly," he said.

The Union Government has said efforts are being made to secure Uzhunnalil's release, but such attempts take time.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had informed Parliament that Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has spoken to various countries through which contacts can be established in Yemen.

Swaraj had said it takes more time to secure release of people who are held captive and asked the MPs to keep "faith" in government's efforts to trace the abducted priest.
New Delhi: Ex-IAF chief SP Tyagi, arrested on December 9 in Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland chopper scam case, was granted bail on Monday by a special court here. Tyagi is accused of receiving kick-backs in the deal.

Total deal amount in AgustaWestland was Rs 3,767 crore and bribe amount was 12 per cent of main amount, the CBI had said.

Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted the relief to Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh and one surety of like amount.

The court, however, imposed certain conditions on the accused and asked him not to try to influence the witnesses and hamper the probe.

The bail applications of other two accused - Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan - are pending before the court which said it will decide both the pleas on January 4.

During the hearing of the bail plea, S P Tyagi's advocate Maneka Guruswamy had said that her client "could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".

She had claimed before the court that in the last four years since the FIR was registered, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.

Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".

"We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding that the matter has "tarnished country's name".

On the court's query whether the CBI had any material regarding S P Tyagi receiving money, the agency told the court that the former IAF chief had purchased several properties for which the sources of income were not disclosed by him and alleged that he had abused his official position.

Advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, counsel for Khaitan, had also countered CBI's argument, claiming that the agency was trying to sensationalise the matter and there was no allegation that his client had not joined the probe or tried to influence it.

Sanjeev Tyagi's counsel Manav Gupta also opposed CBI's contention saying there was no reason to claim that if granted the relief, his client would hamper the probe.

The accused sought bail on the grounds that the evidence was documentary in nature and had already been seized by CBI and they have cooperated with the probe agency.

The court had on December 17 sent all the three accused to judicial custody till December 30.

71-year old Tyagi, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by the agency in connection with the case. The case relates to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime.

The accused have alleged that the "CBI was trying to extract the confession using force". The defence counsel had also claimed that there was no apprehension of them fleeing from justice or tampering with evidence.

The CBI had said it was a "very serious" and "a very high-profile" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as the "interest of the nation was compromised".

It had submitted that "one part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land."

Tyagi's counsel had earlier claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office (PMO) was also a part of it.
Police personnel walks infront of a charred bus burnt down by bandh supporters of United Naga Council, at Senapati, Manipur. (Photo: PTI)

Imphal: BJP on Monday appealed to the United Naga Council (UNC) to immediately withdraw the ongoing economic blockade on the highways of Manipur.

BJP spokesperson N Biren appealed the UNC to withdraw the blockade which entered its 56th day on Monday and sought "another forum" to achieve its demands.

Biren was speaking to the reporters on his return from Delhi, where an eight-member BJP delegation met top central leaders including Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on the issue.

Biren said, "The ruling Congress government is answerable to the people of the state for the hardship faced by them".

He questioned whether it has made any formal effort at the Centre regarding the presence of NSCN(IM) camps in the Manipur, the number of its cadre present in the state.

He also sought to know whether there have been any effort to demolish the NSCN(IM)s designated camps in the state as the ceasefire agreement between NSCN(IM) and the Centre does not cover Manipur.

Biren also asked whether the state government has made any move to identify the perpetrators of the twin ambush on Manipur police at Lokchao and Bongyang in Tengnoupal district which claimed the lives of three policemen earlier this month.

If there has been any such move, BJP demanded that the documents be made public.

He also said the BJP was for a neutral CBI or NIA inquiry into the attacks on Manipur police.

Later, lone BJP MLA Bishwajit said BJPs philosophy is nation first, party second and self last.
New Delhi: The Centre has rushed around 4,000 paramilitary personnel to Manipur in the wake of violence following economic blockade on National Highways connecting the state. While around 1,500 paramilitary personnel were rushed in to Manipur in last two days, around 2,500 paramilitary were dispatched to the state last week, a senior Home Ministry official said on Tuesday.

The security personnel were sent to the Northeastern state keeping in view the security situation in the state in the wake of violence following the economic blockade imposed by the Union Naga Council on two National Highways since November 1. The UNC has imposed the economic blockade on NH-2 (Imphal-Dimapur) and NH 37 (Imphal-Jiribam) that serve as lifelines for the landlocked Manipur.

Curfew in Imphal East district was clamped indefinitely on Sunday last after a mob torched and vandalised 22 passenger vehicles on the Imphal-Ukhrul road, while curfew in Imphal West district was imposed from evening to dawn.

Nagaland Chief Minister T R Zeliang has sought the intervention of both the Centre and Manipur government in securing the lives and property of Naga people in the Imphal valley of Manipur.

Zeliang in separate letters to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Manipur Chief Minister Ibobi Singh yesterday drew their attention to the plight of hundreds of Nagas who are stranded in the Imphal valley and claimed that they were prevented from proceeding to their respective villages in the hills after threats to their lives by some valley based organisations.
New Delhi: The Congress attempt to unify the Opposition over the notes ban issue seems to be falling apart, with the Left stating its unwillingness to attend a meeting and a joint press conference headed by Sonia Gandhi, and the Janata Dal (United) expressing doubts.

Sonia Gandhi has invited Opposition parties across the board and the Congress hopes for a big show of strength in a meeting on Tuesday to attack the government over demonetisation and the personal corruption of the PM.

JD(U) leader KC Tyagi said his party had not yet decided whether to attend or not, but said it would first like to know what the agenda was. He said there appeared to be no common minimum programme decided on. The JD(U) has actually supported demonetisation, while expressing concerns about its implementation.

"We have decided to stay away from the press conference of opposition parties convened by the Congress because there has been no proper consultation and coordination among the parties," CPI (M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury told a press conference in Kolkata.

"Most of the parties were neither consulted nor informed about what will be the agenda of the meeting. Several opposition parties have reservation about the way the meeting has been convened," Yechury said.

Yechury said that a few days ago he had received a call from the Congress leadership inviting him to the press conference on December 27.

"But when I wanted to know what will be the agenda of the meeting, plan of action and whether all opposition parties have been called, I didn't receive any answer," Yechury said.

On being asked if the decision to stay away would not provide ammunition to the BJP camp, Yechury said," When you want to take the opposition unity of 16 parties from a

Parliament level to a political level then you need to hold consultation and discussion with the political leadership. A decision should be taken on the basis of proper consultation. That was not done, which is unfortunate," the veteran leader said.

He noted that in order to take forward the unity of opposition parties, references should be taken from the efforts that the CPI(M) has taken during the 1996 United Front government and UPA-I government.

Yechury wondered why only the Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee was invited to the press conference and Chief Ministers of Tripura, Bihar, and the NCP leadership were not properly consulted.

"Why are you only inviting Chief Minister of West Bengal and not calling CMs of Bihar, Tripura and other states which have non-BJP governments?" he questioned.
The court said the order passed by the government should be communicated immediately to the petitioner and his counsel through the jail superintendent. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday asked the AAP government to decide in three days the parole plea of Manu Sharma, undergoing life term for killing model Jessica Lall in 1999.

"The government of National Capital Territory of Delhi is directed to dispose of the application/representation of the petitioner (Sharma) within three days from the date of receipt of this order," Justice Pratibha Rani said.

The court said the order passed by the government should be communicated immediately to the petitioner and his counsel through the jail superintendent.

The direction came on plea by Sharma, who sought three months' parole to enable him appear for LLB second semester exams from December 31, attend his Personal Contact Programme and re-establish social ties.

Advocate Amit Sahni, appearing for Sharma, said three month was required as the convict has to appear before the Registrar in Chandigarh on January 19 next year for registration of his marriage.

Sahni said the government has not yet taken any decision on the application since October this year.

Additional Standing Counsel Sanjay Lao, appearing for the government, then said the application filed by the petitioner seeking parole shall be disposed of expeditiously.

The court noted that the parole application was sent to the competent authority only on December 7, which has not yet been decided.

The convict, who has been given parole six times since September 2009, has completed a post-graduate diploma in Human Rights and is now pursuing a Bachelor's in Law course from Annamalai University, Chennai.

Sharma, son of former Union Minister Venod Sharma, was awarded life imprisonment by the high court in December 2006 for killing Jessica Lall in 1999. The trial court had acquitted him, but the Delhi High Court had reversed it and the Supreme Court had upheld the life sentence in April 2010.

Lall was shot dead by Sharma after she had refused to serve him liquor at the Tamarind Court restaurant owned by socialite Bina Ramani at Qutub Colonnade in South Delhi's Mehrauli on the night of April 30, 1999.
Chennai: DMK on Monday announced that its General Council meeting, which was deferred in view of M Karunanidhi's hospitalisation, would be held on January 4, 2017.

DMK General Secretary K Anbazhagan said that the General Council, originally slated on December 20 under its President M Karunanidhi, will now be held next month.

The General Council was earlier scheduled on December 20 amidst an increasing chorus from Stalin's supporters for his elevation.

Stalin, also leader of the opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, was expected to be appointed working president of the party in the General Council, the powerful decision-making body of DMK.

However, the meet was deferred following Karunanidhi's hospitalisation due to lung and throat infection. Karunanidhi was discharged from the private hospital on December 23.
Road at Malkapuram village, which is a part of the capital area.

Vijayawada: With the overall economic development of the capital city, more than 3 lakh direct and indirect jobs are expected to be created in next 8-10 years.

The governments proposed road connectivity to the capital city and the roads within the city will be designed keeping the future needs in mind. The CM has directed the top officials of the power and infrastructure wings to make more facilities.

He stressed the need for establishment of hotels having national and international reputation, hospitals and universities at the earliest which would automatically boost economic development.

In a teleconference conducted on Sunday, the CM has directed the officials to develop necessary roads to ensure less than 5-hour travel time from the capital to any district.

He underscored the need to exert special focus on laying the connectivity roads to Amaravati, especially the Anantapur-Amaravati Green-field Expressway which connects Rayalaseema to Amaravati. The CM will conduct a high-level meeting on infrastructure development in Amaravati on Dec. 27.

Minister for MA&UD Dr. P. Narayana, Chief Secretary S.P. Tucker, Special Chief Secretary (T&RB) B. Sambob, Amaravati Development Corporation (ADC) CMD Lakshmi Pardha-saradhi, Special Chief Secretary to CM Sateesh Chandra, Principal Secretary to CM G. Sai Prasad, Principal Secretary (Energy, I&I & CRDA) Ajay Jain, CRDA commissioner Dr Cherukuri Sridhar and CRDA media advisor participated in the tele-conference.

Mr Sambob informed that the proposed 600 km of Amaravati  Anant-apur Express Highway is envisaged to be developed as a Greenfield Access Controlled Express-way with 6/4-lane configuration with an investment of Rs 29,000 crore. It would provide connectivity between Amaravati and the backward Rayala-seema districts, covering Guntur, Prakasam, Anan-tapur, Kurnool and Kadapa.

To speed up the construction of this road project, five separate land acquisition units and a forest cell for processing all the required clearances with regard to de-reservation of forest land have been set up.

Mr Ajay Jain informed the CM that prominent health and educational institutions like VIT, SRM University, Amrita University, Indo-UK Institute of Health are being set up. Top international schools have shown keen interest to set up their institutions in Amaravati.
New Delhi: Responding to an Indian Catholic priest's request, who was abducted in Yemen this year, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) official spokesperson Vikas Swarup on Monday said India is in regular touch with Saudi Arabia and Yemen authorities and is undertaking efforts to secure his release.

"You are aware of the circumstances currently prevailing in Yemen where fighting is going on with no central authority in that country. With regard to the safe release of Father Tom, who was abducted some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard," Swarup said.

Read: Abducted Kerala priest appeals to Pope, Centre to secure his release

The response from the foreign ministry came after father Tom Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala and works in a Church at Aden, in a video posted through web, appealed to the Government of India to release from his captors.

"President and Prime Minister, I am sad nothing done seriously in my regard. If I was a European priest then I might have been taken more seriously by authorities and people would have got me released," he said.

"I am from India and therefore I am perhaps not considered of much value, I'm sad. Dear Pope Francis, please take care of my life. I request my fellow human beings of different Governments to come forward and help me," he added.

The veracity of the video, which was uploaded from YouTube and Facebook, could neither be independently verified nor was the period when it was shot known.

Father Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala, was abducted in March by terror group Islamic State which attacked an old-age home run by Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity in southern Yemeni city of Aden.
Demonetised currency has to be deposited directly into the Reserve Bank after December 30. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: The Modi government is planning to bring in an ordinance by which possessing, transferring or receiving an amount over Rs 10,000 in banned Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes after December 30 will be punishable by law.

According to a report in NDTV, the maximum number of banned notes one can possess subsequently will be 10.

The ordinance has to be issued before December 30, said the report.

The penal provisions, which are yet to be finalised, will involve a fine of a minimum Rs 50,000 or 5 times the amount in question, whichever is higher.

A municipal magistrate will hear cases involving violation and decide on penalty, said the report.

The ordinance includes recommendations made by the Central board of directors of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Demonetised currency has to be deposited directly into the Reserve Bank after December 30, and a grace period for the same will be specified later.

On December 13, the Reserve Bank said around Rs. 12.44 lakh crore - 80 per cent of the 15.44 lakh crores that were circulating in 500 and 1,000 rupee notes when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the ban - had been submitted.

The RBI had earlier this month issued an order stating that an amount exceeding Rs 5000 in demonetised notes cannot be deposited into bank more than once till December 30. Following outrage, the order was withdrawn.

PM Modi announced demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes on November 8. Subsequently, there has been significant cash crunch at banks and ATMs, even though the government stated that 80 per cent of ATMs had been recalibrated with new notes of Rs 500 and Rs 2000. Also, several thousand crores in old and new currency have been seized across the country.

There is also a weekly withdrawal limit of Rs 24,000 from banks and Rs 2500 per day from ATMs. However, bankers have opined that the curbs may continue after December 30.
Chennai: It is barely three weeks since the untimely demise of the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and AIADMK supremo J. Jayalalithaa, but the media has been already saturated with predictions and possible scenarios in a post-Amma Tamil Nadu polity.

The new word pictures have raised questions about the future of the Dravidian Movement in the State. This is amid the two major Dravidian parties, DMK that is yet to come to real terms with the partys ageing leadership and the AIADMK that has been suddenly left rudderless, giving the impression that an over-worked political paradigm could well reach a point of least rejuvenation, giving its competitors a much sharper edge.

The turbulence witnessed in Fort St. George, the seat of the Government in Chennai, in the past week, in the wake of investigative actions by the Central agencies, and the way consequences of the Centres November 8 demonetisation of two high-value currencies have been grimly playing out, may even reinforce impressions of a deepening crisis.

The sum and substance of much of the political assessment, nuances apart, is that with both the major Dravidian parties on the decline, and the Congress already nowhere towards regaining its lost ground in Tamil Nadu, history is unfolding the stage for the BJP, well placed at the Centre, and forces of right-wing nationalism to take that space.

The atmosphere tends to get more surcharged with a younger, tech-savvy and vocal section simplistically reducing all issues to corruption and governance. Yet, as the proverbial adage goes, even one day can be too long in politics. And predicting socio-political processes is always a perilous course, wherein only a thin line separates bare factual, ear-to-the-ground descriptive approach, from a self-fulfilling prophecy!

Historically, both the DMK and AIADMK, which have been dominating Tamil Nadu politics since 1967 and also deciding government formations in New Delhi in recent decades, have in degrees shed their intense regionalism and Tamil pride, part of the core of the Dravidian Movement, in their relationship with the Central government.

There have been important instances of such cooperative federalism, from the way an earlier Karunanidhi-led DMK government had backed much of the socialist policies of Mrs Indira Gandhi as Prime Minister, to a firm-willed Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK regime uncompromising in nipping Tamil militancy and terrorist tendencies in the bud, particularly in the post-Rajiv Gandhi assassination scenario.

A whiff of Tamil nationalism often comes to play, in issues like Cauvery, Sri Lankan ethnic crisis and Mullaperiyar dam, but successive governments have kept it at bay.

Even after the February 1998 Coimbatore serial blasts, when religious divide threatened to take hold of the States political discourse, it is to the credit of the inherent secular outlook in the people, that runs down right from saint-poet Thiruvalluvars days and nurtured by successive social reformers, both the Dravidian majors have not played divisive politics.

Yes, Ms Jayalalithaa did draw considerable flak for the controversial ordinance against religious conversions, but she later wisely allowed it to lapse, after the AIADMKs debacle in the 2004 Lok Sabha polls. The political costs were too huge.

So, given this backdrop and more, is the Dravidian Movement paradigm cracking up? The fact of the matter is, notwithstanding other issues about total objectivity in the social sciences, the word paradigm is often used rater loosely in political narratives.

The notion of a paradigm shift is credited to the American physicist and philosopher Thomas Kuhn, who in his seminal work, Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962) had described it thus: fundamental change in the basic concepts and experimental practices of a scientific discipline. For him, a radical shift from the Newtonian notions of space and time to an Einsteinian one was one such paradigm shift in physics after a crisis point was reached in the then scientific paradigm. This idea as applied to the social sciences gets even more problematic, making snappy predictions all the more slippery.

But any fairly objective analysis would show that there is no such crisis in the guiding paradigm of the Dravidian Movement now. In fact, Ms. Jayalalithaa had ensured the continuation of the 69 per cent reservation in government jobs and educational institutions, in the wake of the Supreme Court verdict in the famous Mandal case.

So much so, despite her upper caste origins, the Dravidar Kazhagam (DK) leader, K Veeramani conferred Ms. Jayalalithaa the title, Samuga Needhi Kaatha Veeranganai.

The caste-based reservations including for Dalits, and the caste-based arithmetic that decides elections, continue to remain the bedrock of the Non-Brahmin/Self-Respect Movement, even if some of its other ideological aspects may have lost its virulence. Despite its shortcomings, the cosmopolitan ethos basically informing the Dravidian Movement has nurtured an inclusive approach over long years, giving, what C.E.M. Joad said in another context, a certain freedom from sectarian intolerance.

There is a sense of fatigue among sections of the people with both the Dravidian majors, but to read leadership crisis in individual parties as tectonic shift in the underlying socio-political orientations in Tamil Nadu now, could be like the irrational exuberance of the stock market.

The boundaries of the Dravidian majors may get redrawn alongside a new alliance politics. But the new challenges like dovetailing what Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen calls a capabilities approach into a secular, social justice model, and inter-state water issues, should be a wake-up call to all key political players in the State.
Patna: Taking a dig at Narendra Modi over his remark that people can punish him for demonetisation after the 50-day window, Lalu Prasad on Monday asked the Prime Minister to choose a "chauraha" (roundabout) where people can punish him for triggering a chaotic situation in the country.

"PM should chose his favourite 'chauraha' (roundabout) where people could punish him for leading the country to a chaotic condition in the name of demonetisation to fight black money," RJD President Lalu Prasad told reporters after flagging off Rath to drum up support for party dharna across Bihar on December 28.

Prasad was reminding the PM of his utterances at Goa where he had asked people to give him 50 days for fight against black money through scrapping of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 currency notes.

Launching a scathing attack at the PM, the RJD chief said "Madari ka khel bana diye hain kabhi notebandi to khabi cashless economy (he is re-enacting play of monkeys in the name of demonetisation and than cashless economy)".

Prasad said the PM was under "illusion" that people are appreciating him by chanting "Modi, Modi". It's a few RSS men who occupy front seats in his rallies and shout Modi, Modi which he is reading as voice of masses".

"If election is held in the country today BJP would draw a nought," the RJD chief said.

Prasad said that the saffron party would bite dust in Uttar Pradesh poll.

"BJP ka koi ata-pata nahin rahega Uttar Pradesh ke chunav mein (BJP will be no nowhere in UP polls)," he said.

The RJD chief predicted victory for Samajwadi Party in UP and said like in Bihar he and other leaders from the state would campaign for Mulayam Singh Yadav party to ensure its victory in UP.

Asked if family feud in SP would mar his chances in the election, Prasad who is related to Mulayam Singh Yadav's family, dismissed it and said minor fight happens in every family.
Chennai: With central co-operative banks coming under the I-T radar for alleged large-scale deposits of invalid currencies, leader of Opposition M. K. Stalin on Sunday demanded that Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam constitute a high-level committee to probe into the alleged irregularities in the banks trusted by the rural masses.

In a statement, Mr Stalin also demanded that the presidents of the central co-operative banks in Salem and Cuddalore, searched by I-T sleuths last week, be sacked immediately to restore the image of the financial institutions.

It is shocking to note that the Salem Central District Cooperative Bank, which had received Presidents Award for best performance four times in the past, has come under the I-T radar. It is a known fact that people in rural areas trust these institutions and throng in huge numbers for all their financial transactions, Mr Stalin said in the statement.

Quoting reports, the DMK treasurer said the banks were allegedly being used by powerful politicians from the AIADMK to convert their blackmoney. It was shocking to note that invalid currencies to the tune of several crores have been found at these banks at a time the co-operative banks were asked not to take up any financial transactions of demonetised currency, Mr Stalin said.

He also wondered how the banks accepted fixed deposits in the demonetised currencies. Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam should constitute a high-level team to probe the irregularities in these banks that threaten the economy and sack the presidents of these banks to restore them to their past glory, he said in the statement.
Panaji: AAP's chief ministerial face for Goa, Elvis Gomes, on Monday appeared before Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) in connection with an inquiry into an alleged land conversion 'scam', amid allegations by his party that he was being victimised, a charge which the ruling BJP rubbished.

Gomes, who appeared before the anti-graft agency in connection with the case, has refuted the allegations against him, saying the timing of summoning him for the probe is "suspicious."

A former IG (Prisons), 53-year-old Gomes had taken voluntary retirement from police service some time back and joined AAP, which is making a serious bid in the assembly polls in the coastal state due in early 2017.

Gomes, who was then managing director of Goa Housing Board, and Nilkant Halarnkar, its chairman at that time, allegedly acquired about 30,000 sq m of land near Margao town, changed its 'zoning' (reservation) to residential, which would have increase its market value, and later gave it back to the owner in 2011, as per the ACB's FIR.

The board had acquired the land for building residential units and allegedly got its zoning changed from 'orchard' to 'settlement'.

Reacting to the development, AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleged that Gomes was being victimised by Goa's BJP-led government.

"Elvis Gomes is known all over Goa for his honesty. Being victimised by BJP government," Kejriwal tweeted, minutes after Gomes appeared before the ACB at its office in Altinho locality of Panaji.

AAP also posted a video on twitter which showed Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar and Deputy Chief Minister Francis D'Souza praising Gomes in the past.

"Watch this. BJP's dirty tactics. Elvis was an honest/efficient officer till he intended to join AAP. Goa CM/DyCM used to praise him," AAP leader Ashutosh alleged in a tweet.

AAP Goa leader Dr Oscar Rebello, addressing party volunteers outside the ACB office, alleged, "They have been asking him to join BJP. They sent him a strong message that if you want your cases to be withdrawn then join us."

BJP rubbished the charge of victimising Gomes. "It is an inquiry by ACB. What role do we have to play in it?" BJP's Goa unit chief Vinay Tendulkar said.

He said the case was filed against Gomes when he was in the government service.

"How can AAP relate the case to elections and politics?" he questioned. Tendulkar said the ACB is doing its job impartially.
Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi's waves to the crowd during his Padyatra from Holy Sprit Church to Fatorda Ground at Margaon in Goa. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Hitting back at Rahul Gandhi, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday said he was making untrue and baseless allegations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi due to his frustration over the "success" of the campaign against black money and corruption.

It said the Congress vice president was afraid that the government's ongoing action against corruption will result in expose of a number of graft cases involving his party leaders.

"Rahul Gandhi is frustrated and desperate due to success of Modi's campaign against black money and corruption. He is perhaps most hurt by demonetisation, thus levelling untrue and baseless allegations. That is why he raked up charges which the Supreme Court had refused to take note of.

Read: Court dismisses Swamy's plea in National Herald case against Sonia, Rahul

"He talks about the government not disclosing the names of people having unauthorised accounts in foreign banks. We have handed over the list to the SIT. Disclosing names will only help the suspects as our government then will not get help from these countries. This is what he wants," BJP National Secretary Shrikant Sharma said.

He noted that former Union Minister Preneet Kaur's names had cropped up in one such list of foreign account holders.

She has maintained that she never had such an account. Gandhi is himself out on bail in the National Herald case of corruption, he said, claiming that industry groups run by Adani brothers and Anil Ambani had run up debt of Rs 72 thousand crore and Rs 1.13 lakh crore respectively during the UPA government.

"UPA government had waived off debts running into over Rs 36 lakh crore to corporate groups. Out government is working to recover their debts," he said, responding to the charge that the Modi government was "pro-rich and pro-corporate".

Addressing a public rally in Baran in Rajasthan, Gandhi alleged that the note ban decision "is not against corruption but is an economic lockdown. It is not against black money but against the poor, farmers, labourers and women".

"In the last two-and-a-half years, Modi only worked to create a divide in the country and functioned only for the rich," he alleged.
Sabarimala (Kerala): Thirty-one persons were injured in the stampede at the Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala, Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran said on Monday and maintained that there was no lapse on the part of police.

"Thirty-one persons were injured, two of them seriously. Eight of the injured have been admitted to Kottayam medical college hospital, three in Pathanamthitta Government hospital, two in Pamba and 18 at Sannidhanam hospital," he told reporters.

An action plan would also be formulated to ensure that such incidents do not recur, he said, adding there was no lapse on the part of police.

"There was sufficient police at Sannidhanam. There were about 700 policemen on duty," he said.

The minister said that barricades would be strengthened in the coming three days when the shrine will remain closed.

A joint inspection with police, Devaswom officials and the minister was held at the mishap site this morning.

The temple had witnessed heavy rush on Sunday, the penultimate day of the 41-day pilgrimage season, which concludes today with 'Mandala Pooja'.

A rope barricade gave way at Malaikappuram following which some of them fell down causing injuries to the pilgrims, who were mostly from Andhra Pradesh, TN and Telangana. One of the injured is from Kerala.

Meanwhile, DGP Loknath Behara said a huge tragedy was averted at Sabarimala due to police intervention and denied reports that the stampede was due to ineffective police presence on Sunday, despite a heavy rush of pilgrims.

"Stampede was not due to the lapse of police," he said. Behara said that IG D Sreejit, in charge of Sabarimala security, has been asked to file a report on the stampede on Monday itself.

"I have asked Sreejit to immediately enquire and download the CCTV visuals and file a report today itself," Behara said.

Sreejit said there were nine policemen at the spot and it was due to their presence that a calamity was averted.

"It was due to their intervention that a big mishap was averted," Sreejit told PTI.

He said within 100 metres, there were 70 policemen, including NDRF.

Following the incident, security has been strengthened and entry of pilgrims is being restricted.

Meanwhile Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala said the government should take steps to ensure that adequate police personnel are posted at Sabarimala during 'Makaravilakku' on January 14 and pilgrims are able to offer worship without any difficulty.

Incidents like Sunday's stampede, in which 31 persons were injured, should be avoided and all efforts should be made to ensure that pilgrims are able to offer worship without any hassle, he said in a letter to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

The incident should be viewed seriously as the rush of pilgrims is increasing every year. There are reports that enough police personnel had not been deployed at the mishap site and the Sannidhanam hospital was not well equipped, he said.
New Delhi: Four persons have been arrested in connection with the alleged gangrape of a US national in a five-star hotel in New Delhi earlier this year.

The four accused arrested include the tour guide, driver, cleaner and a hotel staff, said a senior police officer.

The officer, however, refused to reveal the names of the arrested persons as police will be conduct an test identification parade.

The US national arrived in New Delhi a few days ago to join the probe and recorded her statement in front of a judicial magistrate where she reiterated the charges she had made in her complaint.

Earlier, she had said that she was not "satisfied" with the probe and was ready to come to India to identify the accused.

On December 8, the tourist guide, accused of raping the woman, along with his accomplices, was questioned by police after his arrival from Nepal.

Police had identified the man and had contacted him while he was in Nepal.

The tour guide had denied his "involvement" in the matter and told police that the victim had given him a "positive feedback" in the forms.

The woman had alleged that she was raped by the men for two days. They also threatened her with dire consequences if she reported the matter to anybody.

She had also stated that the accused had made a video of the act and had threatened to make it public if she reported the matter to anyone.
New Delhi: With the queues outside banks and cash vending machines refusing to end even more than 45 days after the demonetisation exercise was announced, and negative feedback about the move gaining ground among the common public with even stock markets falling amid feelers from the Centre over introduction of harsher tax measures in the near future, a concerned Government has called a meeting with economic experts at Niti Aayog on December 27 to discuss the post-demonetisation scenario, and thrash out ways to deal with the situation.

The meeting comes at a time when the December 30 deadline announced by the Government to deposit old currency notes of 500 and 1,000 denomination in banks is just days away, and indications are coming from the Government that the cash withdrawal restrictions may continue for quite some time. Also with speculations rife that some tax could be imposed on withdrawals, has also raised concern among people.

Sources privy to developments said that during the meeting, the Prime Minister is likely to discuss the current economic situation, especially with the National Stock Exchange (NSE) slumping to a 7-month low of 7,908 and the Sensex below 26,000 on Monday, after Mr Modis December 24 remark that market participants should contribute to nation-building in a fair, efficient and transparent way, as he promised more sound and prudent policies and reform measures, which was seen by some as the Government planning to impose long-term capital gains tax on profit made from shares. Though finance minister had sought to allay the fear saying that the Centre has no such intention, investors were a nervous lot.
Hyderabad: Convicts in the Dilsukhnagar bomb blast case on Monday moved the Hyderabad High Court, appealing the death penalty awarded by a special NIA court. They said the National Investigation Agency had failed to establish that they were members of the Indian Mujahideen, a banned terror outfit.

Mr T Srinivasa Rao, additional district and sessions judge cum special judge for scheduled offences under the National Investigation Agency Act, on December 13 had awarded the death penalty to five key operatives of Indian Mujahideen, including its co-founder Yasin Bhatkal and a Pakistani national, Zia-ur-Rahman alias Waqas, Asadullah Akhtar alias Haddi, Tahaseen Akhtar alias Monu and Ajaz Shaikh for the blasts which claimed 18 lives and left more than 100 injured in 2013.

The NIA had claimed that the Indian Mujahideen had hatched a conspiracy to wage war against India and decided to carry out bomb blasts in Hyderabad to create terror further its activities. The appellants in their appeal relied on the ground which was pointed out by the special court judge.

The judge had said that the question that fails for my determination is does the prosecution prove the accused No 2 to 6 along with absconding accused No 1 (Yasin Bhatkal) during the period between 2010 to 2013 February were members of the unlawful association namely Indian Mujahideen which has been declared as unlawful by notification under Section 3 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967.

The judge had noted that the prosecution had not produced any notification issued by the Centre under Section 3 of the Act 1967. Meanwhile the NIA special court referred the case to the Hyderabad High Court for confirmation of the death sentence.
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP)  The downturn in Wyomings mining and oil and gas industries have caused the state to experience its first population decline since 1990, but there are signs the states economy has bottomed out and stabilized, economists said following the release of a national population report released this week.

The U.S. Census Bureau estimated that Wyomings population declined by 1,054 people, or 0.2 percent, to 585,501 from July 2015 to July 2016. Wyoming is one of seven U.S. states that had population declines during the period.

In contrast, the states population grew by 2,913 between July 2014 and July 2015 and had been growing since 1990.

State economist Wenlin Liu said the population decline reflects the downturn in key Wyoming economic sectors that cost thousands of mining and related jobs over about the last year. Many people who lost their jobs in Wyoming sought employment in other states that are not so dependent on the mining industry.People tend to move to areas where economies are vibrant, which is particularly true for Wyoming, Liu said.

State economist Jim Robinson said job losses in Wyomings oil and gas industry appear to have flattened out and there has been a slight increase in drilling activity in recent months.

Business is up for 17 or 24 sectors monitored by the state and personal income in Wyoming grew by $157 million during the July-September quarter compared to the previous quarter, Robinson said.I guess youd say its good news because things arent getting any worse, he said. The economy looks fairly stable right now. Were just not seeing any growth really any place.
Bengaluru: Congress leader in the Lok Sabha, M. Mallikarjun Kharge, on Monday cautioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi against making fun of people who stand in long queues. If things fail to change in the next couple of days, people will rise against the Prime Minister, he warned.

After inaugurating a five-day photo exhibition on demonetisation by senior photo journalist K. Venkatesh here, Mr Kharge said, Soon after demonetisation, Mr Modi started ridiculing everyone, including those who have died and those standing in queues to withdraw their own money. This is not the right approach towards people. They are standing in queues because of an ill-thought and unplanned scheme like demonetisation. If Mr Modi does not change his attitude, the people are not going to pardon him for his horribly blundered scheme. He must not forget that the day is not too far when people rise against him."

Lashing out at the BJP's strategy of countering critics of demonetisation by raising the bogey of patriotism, he said, Nobody needs to learn lessons on patriotism from the BJP. Everyone living in this country is a patriot. They have proved it time and again. It was put to test during Lal Bahaddur Shatry's time and people cutting across social strata accepted his decision to sacrifice a meal once a week to feed our jawans. This is how the people of this country have proved their patriotism. Now, the BJP is trying to say that standing in queues is patriotism! This is not patriotism. What the BJP has begot is an enormous blunder that was done without proper thinking," he said.

Taking a swipe at Mr Modi's aim to turn the country into a cashless economy, he said that the Prime Minister is trying to help his friends in the industry by pushing for cashless economy. Even if all those who possess cards (3.3 crore cardholders) in this country go cashless, by 2019-20 end, charges from the card would run into nearly Rs 50,000 crore and this will only be pocketed by entities like Pay to Modi (PayTM)," he said.
Hyderabad: Thirteen of the 20 pilgrims from Andhra Pradesh who were injured in Sundays stampede at Sabarimala Sannidanam were discharged on Monday from various hospitals and health centres. The others were still undergoing treatment.

Officials at the Kottayam Medical College Hospital informed the media that a woman pilgrim, Ms Guruvamma, who suffered a leg injury, underwent surgery. Eight injured persons shifted to the Kottayam hospital on Sunday night.

Thirty-one persons were injured in the stampede, Devaswom minister Kadakampally Surendran said and maintained that there was no lapse on the part of police.

Thirty-one persons were injured, two of them seriously. Eight of the injured have been admitted to Kottayam medical college hospital, three in Pathanamthitta government hospital, two in Pamba and 18 at Sannidhanam hospital, he said.

An action plan would also be formulated to ensure that such incidents do not recur, he said, adding there was no lapse on the part of police.

There was sufficient police at Sannidhanam. There were about 700 policemen on duty, he said. The minister said that barricades would be strengthened in the coming three days when the shrine will remain closed.

A joint inspection with police, Devaswom officials and the minister was held at the mishap site on Monday morning.
Kottayam: Father Tom Uzhunalil, the Saleshian priest who was abducted by terrorists from the Missionaries of Charity destitute home in Yemen on March 4, 2016, has sought the immediate intervention of the Indian government and the Church for his release. His appeal came in a new video taken from an undisclosed location. His second cousin Thomas Uzhunnalil confirmed that the person in the video is Fr Tom.

Fr Tom, a native of Ramapuram near Kottayam, said in the video that though his abductors had tried to contact the authorities, no one was responding. The central government, the President, the churches and the Pope should intervene in my case, he said. His health was weak and he needed immediate medical aid, he added. If I belonged to any other country I would have got help from the authorities. A French mediaperson was also abducted by the terrorists. However, the French government intervened and facilitated his release, he said.

Mr Thomas Uzhunnalil alleged that the government of India and the Saleshian Church were not effectively intervening for the release of Fr Tom. He appealed for their help as the members of the family assembled at their house at Vadakkumbhagom near Ramapuram near Pala after coming to know of the video. The terrorists had killed 16 inmates of the destitute home, including four nuns, one of whom hailed from India.
Lucknow: The ruling Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh is heading towards a fresh crisis with differences emerging sharply on a number of issues.

While Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has been aggressively pushing for an alliance with the Congress so that we can get more than 300 seats, party president Mulayam Singh Yadav on Sunday night told a number of candidates that there would be no alliance and they should start working in their constituencies.

Some candidates who met him included those who have been named on the seats held by the Congress. He almost made it clear that there would be no alliance and the party will contest all 403 seats, a candidate said.

Mr Yadav had held detailed deliberations with party general secretary Amar Singh and state president Shivpal Yadav on Saturday but Prof. Ram Gopal Yadav and Akhilesh Yadav were not a part of these deliberations.

The CM, meanwhile, is now embarking on his campaign without informing the party of his route. "He will be campaigning on seats where he has candidates of his choice," said an aide, while a senior party office bearer said that they had no information of the CM's programme.

The CM has not been visiting the party office lately and neither has Shivpal Yadav met him for the past one month. No one knows what is happening and the sense of unease in the party is growing. The candidates are in dilemma because they do not know what to do, said a party functionary.

A senior minister in the Akhilesh government admitted that the crisis in the party was raising its head again. A split seems imminent - we do not know whether it happens before elections of after elections, he added.

Mulayam Singh Yadav, meanwhile, gave another jolt to his son on Sunday night when he appointed controversial minister Gayatri Prajapati as the party's national secretary. Mr Prajapati is said to be close to Mulayam Singh Yadav's younger son Prateek Yadav and is, therefore, disliked by the Akhilesh camp.
Thanjavur: A farmer from Thanjavur district, Thangavel of Thirunaraiyur village near Kumbakonam has urged the district collector, Mr A. Annadurai, to take steps to get the body of his son Manimaran (27), who was allegedly knifed to death by some unidentified persons in France, where he had gone for higher studies, on Friday.

In a petition to the collector, Thangavel said that Manimaran had completed engineering degree from a private University (Periyar Miammai University) at Vallam near Thanjavur four years back. He then went to France for doing M.S. (Master in Science) course.

He completed his course and got a placement in a company in France and was to join duty on January 2, 2017. But on Friday, Thangavel received news from Kumaresan and Naveen from Nachiyarkoil, who were staying in Manimarans room in France that the latter came to the room with knife injuries, adding, some unidentified persons knifed him and took away his cellular phone, laptop etc. He died way to hospital, his father was informed over phone. Hence, Thangavel urged the collector to bring back his sons body home.

Thangavel later told Deccan Chronicle on Sunday that his son had last spoken to him on December 22, when he told him about his new job details including his salary.

When we were happy that he got a job, we got the news that he was killed from his friends, Thangavel said in an emotion-choked voice. We borrowed loans and spent for his studies. At this juncture his death is a big loss to us, the father added.

Meanwhile, the collector told Deccan Chronicle that steps were being taken to bring Manimarans body to India. The couple Thangavel and Manimehalai, who also have a daughter, have given a petition to Consulate General Office in Puduchery too, seeking help to bring the body of his son. Consulate officials reportedly informed him that they would get the body after police formalities were completed.
The event was organised by the local real estate firm P P Savani Group. (Photo: AFP)

Ahmedabad: As many as 236 girls who have lost their fathers were on Monday married off at a mass-wedding ceremony here.

The event was organised by the local real estate firm P P Savani Group.

Notably, apart from these 236 girls which included five Muslims and a Christian, two boys from Savani family also got married at the ceremony.

"I feel extremely proud for organising such a mass wedding....My son Mitul and my uncle's son Jay also got married during the ceremony," said Mahesh Savani of Savani Group.

"Of these 236 girls, five were from Maharashtra, three from Rajasthan, one from Bihar and rest were from Gujarat. During the 'Kanyadaan', we gave them clothes, ornaments, utensils and five house appliances each," he said.

The family had been organising such weddings for the last five years, he said.

"I have now become a proud foster-father of 708 fatherless girls who were married off by my family in the last five years," he said.
A view of the Lok Sabha during the winter session, in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Government's sudden demonetisation decision wrecked the Winter Session making it one of the worst in terms of the level of disruptions witnessed in recent times as Parliament wrapped up the year struggling to find a balance that will enable transaction of work.

The raging political storm over demonetisation may even spill over, given the confrontation between the ruling and opposition benches, into the Budget Session which will see advancing of the presentation of the General Budget on February 1.

Rahul Gandhi's recent attack accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of personal corruption is likely to add fuel to the fire which turned the Winter Session as one of the least productive period in Parliament's recent history.

While the ties between Modi dispensation and Opposition were never that cordial, the dramatic demonetisation decision on November 8 widened the growing chasms like never before.

Continued disruptions saw the Prime Minister not speaking a single word on the issue either in the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha amid conflicting claims from rival sides.

Modi and BJP time and again complained that the Prime Minister was not being allowed to speak while the Opposition hit back charging him with running away from debate in order to avoid inconvenient questions.

He has all the time to address a pop concert but no time for Parliament, was the refrain of the detractors of the Prime Minister.

Opposition also alleged that the ruling side deliberately created an uproar on days when Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi planned to target the government especially Modi.

A highlight of the year was government approving the merger of Railway Budget with Union Budget, an issue which had long been debated in the past but never implemented.

Plans are afoot to advance the Budget Session and present the Union Budget 2017-18 on February 1, dispensing with the age old practice of carrying out the exercise on February 28.

With the chill setting in government-Opposition ties, the last session of Parliament in the year hardly saw any legislative action except for the passage of the Rights of Persons with Disability Bill by both the Houses.

Significantly, this legislation was cleared after a brief debate with a rare bonhomie, which was missing from the entire Winter Session.

In March, weeks before the first phase of the West Bengal Assembly elections, Narada News released videos that showed several TMC leaders including its MPs accepting cash in return for promising to grant favours to a fictitious company.

The Lok Sabha's ethics committee headed by BJP veteran L K Advani sought an explanation from five Trinamool Congress MPs in the matter but the whole issue appears to have been put in cold storage.

AAP leader in the Lok Sabha Bhagwant Mann created a flutter by his videography of Parliament complex putting its security at risk. He was suspended from the Lok Sabha during the Winter Session till the end of the session.

In May, Parliament was rocked after Vijay Mallya fled to the UK, an issue taken up aggressively by the Opposition to corner the government over the fugitive businessman who owes some Rs 9000 crore to Indian banks.

The suicide by Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula of Hyderabad Central University and JNU row dominated Parliament proceedings for some time with Opposition targeting the then HRD Minister Smriti Irani.

The year later saw Prakash Javadekar being made the HRD Minister apparently to cool off tempers.

However, it was virtually business as usual in the Monsoon session and the Budget session. The Monsoon Session saw passage of the GST bill and unanimous resolutions in both Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on Kashmir.

The Budget Session also saw the Opposition and treasury benches giving credit to each other for introducing and piloting the Real Estate Bill.

Government changed its chief floor manager by bringing in Ananth Kumar as the Parliamentary Affairs Minister ahead of the Monsoon Session in place of M Venkaiah Naidu.

2016 was more productive compared to 2015 which had seen persistent disruptions during two sessions over a host of issues including Lalit Modi and Vyapam scam.
Mumbai: Bollywood music composer duo Sajid and Wajid Ali on Sunday joined BJP in the presence of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai.

The two musician brothers joined the saffron party at a programme organised by BJP's youth wing on the occasion of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birthday.

"There is only one promise we can make ourselves on Atal-ji's birthday, to make India corruption-free. Atal-ji worked hard all his life to enhance the nation's capabilities and (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi is only fulfilling Atal-ji's dreams," Fadnavis said at the event.

"I ask every youth present here to teach ten people how to conduct trade in cashless way and help fulfil Atal-ji's dream of corruption-free nation," Fadnavis said.

"During his tenure (as the PM) Atal-ji brought immense repute to the country in the international arena," he said and added that whatever BJP is today is because of Vajpayee.
Have a happy New Year! Please say it with conviction, so it works this time. Last year we clearly messed up  2016 was not a happy year. In fact, there has seldom been a year that has caused so much grief to so many people across so many countries, and has introduced so many possibilities of causing further grief in the future. No sir, not happy at all. Bizarre, at best. Take, for example, our homeland. We have a respectably right-wing, pro-capitalist government, right? Its the government that released Republic Day advertisements where the words secular and socialist had been omitted from the Preamble to the Indian Constitution. So why on earth is it spouting socialist jargon? Why this sudden harping on empowering the poor? During the colossal chaos following demonetisation, apna sarkar even talked of the redistribution of wealth. Keep the money the rich have deposited in your Jan Dhan accounts, said the Prime Minister to the poor, do not give it back! If this is what we do when we hate socialism, what would we do if we loved it?

But to be honest, this drastic demonetisation does have benefits. I for one am happy that I can give my seven-year-old a glimpse of my childhood experiences. We grew up seeing people standing in slow-motion, serpentine queues. For kerosene, for sugar, for rice, for wheat, for candles, for daily necessities generally classified as ration. People set aside time for queuing up, took time off from work, skipped friendly addas, got up early to get a headstart on the queue. Because sometimes, by the time they got to the head of the queue the kerosene or sugar was finished. Which meant another day standing in line. Very often, it was just a long line of odd bricks and empty tins thirsting for kerosene. Placeholders for tired men and women who sat in gender-segregated clusters in the shade somewhere nearby. Today the queues are back, but the new generation has not perfected the art of waiting with placeholders yet.

Unlike middle class youngsters today, we were also quite used to not having enough cash. You had to choose your pleasures to suit your pocket. So this post-demonetisation cash crunch was not entirely new either. It had elements of deja vu. Except that we were now middle-aged, with less patience and greater needs. More importantly, we were not queuing up for government-subsidised provisions, but for our own, hard-earned money on which we had already paid tax to the government. This was the first time that the promise inscribed on the Reserve Bank of Indias promissory notes was being brazenly violated. Legal tender was suddenly not legal anymore. Every other day you were given new instructions about how you may try to access your own money, and how little of it you would be allowed to touch. And even then, you were not sure that there was money at the end of the long line. Banks and ATMs speedily run out of cash. Like unwelcome rain, you are routinely told to go away and come back another day. It was as if the very concept of private property was under attack. Now its money  the next target, we are told, will be our houses. Sounds like a communist dreamland, doesnt it?

But we are not really interested in the abolition of private property or the redistribution of money in the socialist sense. Thats where our government sticks firmly to its pro-capitalist stance. While the poor are squeezed dry and the honest cash economy is throttled, as farmers unable to repay small loans kill themselves, the State Bank of India gets busy writing off loans worth thousands of crores of big industrialists, and dishing out a $1 billion loan to the Adani Group. Its income redistribution all right, but not the socialist kind. Anyway, theres more to our deja vu than the cash crunch and socialist frills. There is the word notebandi. Reminds us of another notorious word from our childhood, as scary, as confusing and as disempowering  nasbandi. The forced sterilisation campaign during the Emergency. It reminds us of the sudden suspension of our rights, the clampdown on free speech, the suspension of democratic freedoms and constitutional guarantees. When citizens were as harassed and frightened as today, but not as silent.

People spoke out. Everyone from political opponents like Raj Narain, who sought justice in court, and Jayprakash Narayan, who galvanised the public, to a strident press that refused to accept censorship, to writers and poets and even Bollywood filmmakers and lyricists. Kya mil gaya sarkar tumhe Emergency lagake/ Nasbandi karake hamari bansi bajake? (What did you gain my government with this Emergency, by sterilising me, by making us face the music?) people asked in I.S. Johars satirical film Nasbandi. And concluded: Ram bolo bhai Ram, Ram nam satya hai! Today, Bollywood bows not only to the state but even to the wishes of non-state agents. And Karan Johar has to prove his nationalism by promising never to work with Pakistani actors again.

Of course we are not in an Emergency-like situation today. For one, the trains dont run on time. And bribes continue to rule the roost. Besides, there is a fascinating arbitrariness about this demonetisation and other attacks on our individual freedom that a heavy-duty act like the Emergency could never aspire to. We are merely distressed. And so is our democracy. But fear not, dear reader. The year is over and a new year is waiting. A year full of possibilities. It could be full of towering taxmen and further shrinking freedoms, or it could be a rejuvenating year celebrating democracy. Its up to us. As they sing in Nasbandi: Jag zara soch zara lagega sabka number/ dama dam mast kalandar! (Hey crazy beggar! Wake up, think a bit, everyones time will come!) So this time, we better get it right. Lets make it work. And say it once more, with feeling: Happy New Year!
With just four days to go before the end of the 50-day deadline Prime Minister Narendra Modi had set when he announced the demonetisation, to ease the pain of the withdrawal of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes, the devastating effect of snuffing out nearly 86 per cent of the cash in circulation continues. Its implementation has been sorely lagging behind what needed to be done. Till now the Reserve Bank has managed to put back barely a fraction of the Rs 15.4 lakh crores demonetised currency, and reports claim the full amount can be done only by June as the two printing presses have limited capacity. Rural India has faced unprecedented pain, much worse than urban India. Bank branches are few and far between in rural areas, and are usually open for just a day or two a week.

The Federation of Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises says the smaller the enterprise, the bigger the problem, and reports claim manufacturing value addition has come to a halt. The informal sector, like MSMEs, has been in a trauma as cash transactions rule there. In areas like Tirupur in Tamil Nadu, about one-and-a-half lakh workers in about 2,000 small and micro units have been literally put on hold as theres no cash to pay them and demand is down. The situation is similar in several other labour and cash-intensive sectors. Daily wage earners in the informal sector, the backbone of employment, have been badly hit and it is doubtful if they can recover from this traumatic situation in the next few months.

The PM has added insult to injury by saying he has the peoples support over this. While there was overwhelming support for demonetisation in the early days, now, after 50 days, there is only pain and disillusion in implementation of this fatal move. Rooting out corruption or curbing black money are worthy objectives. but little has been achieved in these areas. Those demanding bribes are taking the new Rs 2,000 notes or seeking payoffs in gold and diamonds. Experts also say barely six per cent of illegal money is in cash, while the rest is mostly in real estate or jewellery.

Attacking this six per cent could have been handled more effectively without causing pain and suffering to millions of people. So while the rich are laughing all the way to the bank, the poor continue to face immense hardships. Mr Modi, who usually has his hands on the pulse of the people, appears to have gone wrong over demonetisation. As an afterthought the government is now talking about digitising India. This is also a pipedream as even in the most advanced countries like Germany and the US, cash is still the most common mode of monetary transactions.
The road to competitive gasoline prices in Mexico will begin at the USMexico border in early 2017 and end in 2018 when the entire country will be selling fuel at market rates. Mexicos Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE) has unveiled a roadmap to bring an end to the 79-year-old state monopoly on refined hydrocarbons managed by Petroleos Mexicanos ( Pemex ), the clearest step so far toward implementation of President Enrique Pena Nietos 2013 energy reform law.

All hands to the pumps... service stations will set their own prices from next year. Saul Ruiz

More information Este es el plan de Mexico para liberar el precio de la gasolina en 2017

On March 30, 2017, gasoline stations in Baja California and Sonora will begin selling fuel at the going rate on the international market. The CRE said it chose to start in this area because of its proximity to the United States and its many oil import routes. The border region accounts for 25% of all oil consumed in Mexico, while its extensive industrial sector will encourage competition, says the regulator.

Final prices at the pump will reflect those on the international markets, as well as the cost of transportation, storage and processing, the profit margin of each company, taxes, and the peso-to-dollar exchange rate. The measures will see the emergence of new companies to supply and distribute fuel.

The number of gas stations in Mexico is expected to double in coming years

The second stage in the opening up of Mexicos gasoline market will kick off on June 15 in the states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas.

On October 30  after the summer, when prices rise considerably  Baja California Sur, Sinaloa and Durango will join in. The most complex phase will begin on November 30, when 20 states from the Bajio region and central Mexico are expected to float their prices. The southern states of Campeche, Quintana Roo and Yucatan will be the last three to remove price controls.

We are moving away from a single model based on a national standard that involves a set of prices pegged to a single national price that does not recognize regional difference and where adjustments to international prices only come after a certain delay, and where there is nothing to encourage the industry to invest, CRE president Guillermo Alcocer explains.

There are 11,490 gasoline stations in Mexico, and the commission says that number may double in coming years. Alcocer estimates that investments in the gasoline sector could reach $12 billion.

Pemex will allow private companies entering the market to use its infrastructure. Mexico has 17,000 kilometers of pipelines and 89 freight terminals that will gradually open up to competition. The federal attorney generals office will supervise the commercialization of the sector to avoid abuses along the distribution chain.

Final prices at the pump will reflect everything from the world oil price to taxes and the peso-to-dollar exchange rate.

Energy regulators say that opening up the gasoline market will require warehousing more reserves to respond swiftly to emergencies or shortages. Mexico will need to store at least 10 days worth of reserves. They will only be used in extraordinary cases, said Aldo Flores, Deputy Secretary of Energy for Hydrocarbons. In 2025, Mexico is expected to store 15 days worth of reserves.

In the meantime, until gasoline prices are allowed to float, the Mexican treasury will continue to fix the maximum price at the pump as it has done throughout 2016.

English version by Dyane Jean Francois.
The way it is shaping, the project of reviving the famous fifth century centre of learning at Nalanda, near Rajgir in Bihar, in a modern format seems to be entering an extremely troubled phase. If matters do not improve soon, the venture is likely to bring India a lot of negative international publicity, and detract from its leading soft power status. Conceived in 2006, the modern Nalanda University opened its doors to its first few students in 2014 under the mentorship of Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, who, as the universitys first chancellor, lent lustre to the scheme to develop Nalanda as an Asian centre of modern learning by attracting an international student body and faculty with facilities for the most advanced knowledge production.

The concept was initiated by India and was given ready international backing, with the 18-member East Asia Summit, which includes China, Japan, Russia, the United States, Australia and New Zealand, offering support both financially and in many other ways. But the Narendra Modi government virtually sacked Prof. Sen. His successor, former Singapore foreign minister George Yeo, who was associated with Nalanda from its inception, was also sent packing. Mr Yeo has hinted at governmental interference. The unkindest cut is that the name of Y. Sudershan Rao, who headed the RSS history wing and was made chairman of the Indian Council of Historical Research amid deep controversy in academic circles, for he has few qualification as a historian, is doing the rounds as the possible new chancellor of Nalanda University.
Three pictures taken in December epitomise the West Asia scenario: the crumbling edifices of Aleppo, the Iraqi armed forces poised outside Mosul, and the Russian ambassador shot dead at an art gallery in Ankara by an off-duty Turkish security official, who shouted Aleppo, vengeance and God is great, as he pumped bullet after bullet into the Russian diplomat. On December 13, Aleppo, Syrias commercial centre and home to two million people, fell to Syrian government forces, backed by massive Russian air support, after enduring a relentless siege and vicious assaults over five years. As the winter rain fell upon the besieged denizens, a resident wrote: The sky is crying for Aleppo with soft tears. In Iraq, the military operation to take Mosul began in October. It is spearheaded by the elite US-trained counter-terrorism forces, and supported by the Iraqi Army, the Kurdish peshmerga, assorted Sunni militia, a few thousand US and Nato special forces and the formidable largely Shia Popular Mobilisation Units (PMU), trained by Iran.

The operation began with about 30,000 troops, but the attacking coalition soon swelled to a hundred thousand, the largest force mobilised in Iraq since the US invasion in 2003. There are about 5-8000 ISIS militants in Mosul. The troops have made quick progress so that Mosul is now besieged on all sides. The PMU have been placed in the west of the city to prevent ISIS fighters from escaping to Syria. The Kurds are in the east, alongside their own autonomous territories in Iraq, so that they are well-placed to stake a claim on Mosul once it has been liberated. In mid-December, the attack was halted for an operational refit, reflecting the tough fighting spirit of the ISIS militants and the high casualties that the Iraqis have suffered.

The fighting on the Iraqi and Syrian battlefields has been taking place amidst some significant shifts in regional political alliances. The most striking change has been in the Turkish approach to regional affairs. From 2011, Turkey had allied itself with the Gulf sheikhdoms to mobilise the Salafi militants and had even set up a jihadi highway to facilitate the movement of radicals into Syria. But the success of these Islamic forces also opened opportunities for the Syrian Kurds to expand their hold over their traditional Rojava, their western homeland across the Turkey-Syria border. Soon, most of the border came under Kurdish control so that it was contiguous with Kurdish territories in Iraq and Turkey. As seen from Ankara, a consolidated Kurdish homeland in the heart of West Asia was imminent.

This concern has led Turkey to abandon its Gulf allies and reach out to Iran and Russia. Its military forces have entered both Iraq and Syria to control Kurdish aggrandisement. In Iraq, it has projected itself as the champion of the Turkoman community and of Sunnis in general, and has positioned itself to challenge Kurdish efforts to take Mosul and change the traditional demographic domination of Turkoman and Sunnis in the area. In Syria, Turkish forces have broken the contiguity of the nascent Rojava by taking control of a 90-km front at the border and going up to 55 km into Syrian territory to set up a buffer zone. Turkey has now emerged as the principal partner of Russia and Iran in promoting peace in Syria, a process that at present excludes the UN, the US and all the Arab countries.

The outlook for West Asia for 2017 hardly looks promising. While the fall of Aleppo is a major blow for the rebels, the fighting is expected to go on, though it appears that the backing of Gulf sheikdoms for the rebels is now largely confined to media support. Again, while Mosul could also fall to Iraqi troops, the future shape of Iraq will be determined by the aftermath, i.e., whether we will witness bloody sectarian revenge-killings or Iraq will be able to control its sectarian cancer and truly build an accommodative polity. The future of the Kurds also remains uncertain: while they have taken advantage of conflicts in Iraq and Syria to bring their traditional lands under their control, they have aroused the animosity of two formidable foes  Turkey and Iran. If moderate counsels prevail, they might opt for autonomy in Iraq and Syria, but the more ambitious among them might seize the historic moment to fulfil their age-old aspirations.

Russia and Iran now seem like the dominant regional powers, but will this survive the presidential transition in Washington? The signals here are mixed: While the Trump camp has indicated a desire to work closely with Russia and to reduce backing for the Syrian rebels, it is not clear if this posture will continue in the face of the Cold War-like hostility for Russia in the Republican Party and other sections of the US political establishment. And, then there is the visceral animosity for Iran projected across the Trump grouping, with some senior Trump appointees also having strong negative views about Saudi Arabia and Islam in general. The competition for influence among the Trump stalwarts will ensure that the US approach to West Asia will remain mired in harsh rhetoric and policy paralysis, with the US unlikely to offer any effective leadership in the region.

Where will this leave the ISIS? During the Mosul operation, the ISIS carried out a series of devastating attacks in Istanbul, Baghdad and different parts of Saudi Arabia. Its lone-wolf adherents have also been destructive in several parts of West and South Asia, and have carried out at least 20 attacks in Europe in which several hundred people have been killed. Even if Mosul were to fall and some important ISIS leaders killed, ISIS militants are likely to go underground and perpetrate attacks against vulnerable targets, wherever they might be. West Asias dysfunctional and conflictual politics will also ensure a steady supply of new recruits. ISIS members will then continue to proclaim: We remain, we expand.
Artist impression of the protoplanetary disk surrounding the young star HD 163296. By studying the dust (ruddy brown) and carbon monoxide gas (light blue) profiles of the disk, astronomers discovered tantalizing evidence that two planets are forming in the outer two dust gaps in the disk.

Chennai: In one of the exciting findings in the field of astronomy, scientists with the help of a powerful ALMA telescope in Chile have observed the formation of a new solar system, some 400 light years away from the Earth.

This observation gives the opportunity for the astronomers to directly witness the birth of planets. The evidence shows that two newborn planets, each about the size of Saturn, are in orbit around a young star known as HD 163296. It is located approximately 400 light-years from Earth in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius.

These planets, which are not yet fully formed, revealed themselves by the dual imprint they left in both the dust and gas portions of the stars protoplanetary disk.

Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimeter Array (ALMA) has shown us amazing images and never-before-seen views of the rings and gaps around young stars that could be the hallmarks of planet formation,said Andrea Isella, an astronomer at Rice University in Houston, Texas and lead author on a paper published in Physical Review Letters.

In studying HD 163296, the research team used ALMA to trace, for the first time, the distribution of both the dust and the carbon monoxide (CO) gas components of the disk at roughly the same level of detail.

These observations revealed three distinct gaps in HD 163296s dust-filled protoplanetary disk. The first gap is located approximately 60 astronomical units from the central star, which is about twice the distance from our Sun to Neptune. (An astronomical unit  AU  is the average distance from the Earth to the Sun.) The other two gaps are 100 AU and 160 AU from the central star which is roughly five million years old.

Using ALMAs ability to detect the faint millimetre-wavelength glow emitted by gas molecules, Isella and his team discovered that there was also an appreciable dip in the amount of CO in the outer two dust gaps.

By seeing the same features in both the gas and the dust components of the disk, the astronomers believe they have found compelling evidence that there are two planets coalescing remarkably far from the central star. The width and depth of the two CO gaps suggest that each potential planet is roughly the same mass as Saturn.

Our results indicate that there are two planets with a mass similar to that of Saturn orbiting at 100 and 160 AU from a young star, Andrea Isella told Deccan Chronicle.

He said it implies that planets can form very far away from their host star. The general consensus is that planet from between 1- 10 AU from the star. These planets are 10 times and 100 times further away from their host star.

Scientists also believe that it will reveal the details of the formation of our own solar system. Our solar system is 4.5 billion years old. The planets in the solar system might have moved away from their birthplaces stirring up by asteroids and comets.

The study and exploration of the solar system can, therefore, provide limited information about its origin. Instead, we have now the opportunity to image planetary systems in the formation and directly witness the birth of planets, he concluded.

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A growing area of research called solid-state thermoelectrics aims to capture that waste heat inside specially designed materials to generate power and increase overall energy efficiency. (Representationa image)

Scientists are working on a novel technology that will allow future electronic devices to convert heat into electricity.

Previously researchers from Ohio State University in the US pioneered the use of a quantum mechanical effect to convert heat into electricity. Now, they have figured out how to make their technique work in a form more suitable to industry.

They used magnetism on a composite of nickel and platinum to amplify the voltage output 10 times or more - not in a thin film, as they had done previously, but in a thicker piece of material that more closely resembles components for future electronic devices.

Many electrical and mechanical devices, such as car engines, produce heat as a byproduct of their normal operation.

It is called "waste heat," and its existence is required by the fundamental laws of thermodynamics, researchers said.

However, a growing area of research called solid-state thermoelectrics aims to capture that waste heat inside specially designed materials to generate power and increase overall energy efficiency.

"Over half of the energy we use is wasted and enters the atmosphere as heat," said Stephen Boona, a postdoctoral researcher at Ohio State.

"Solid-state thermoelectrics can help us recover some of that energy. These devices have no moving parts, don't wear out, are robust and require no maintenance. Unfortunately, to date, they are also too expensive and not quite efficient enough to warrant widespread use. We're working to change that," said Boona.

In 2012, the research group, led by Joseph Heremans, demonstrated that magnetic fields could boost a quantum mechanical effect called the spin Seebeck effect, and in turn boost the voltage output of thin films made from exotic nano-structured materials from a few microvolts to a few millivolts.

In the latest advance, they have increased the output for a composite of two very common metals, nickel with a sprinkling of platinum, from a few nanovolts to tens or hundreds of nanovolts - a smaller voltage, but in a much simpler device that requires no nanofabrication and can be readily scaled up for industry.

Heremans said that, to some extent, using the same technique in thicker pieces of material required that the team rethink the equations that govern thermodynamics and thermoelectricity, which were developed before scientists knew about quantum mechanics.

While quantum mechanics often concerns photons  waves and particles of light - Heremans' research concerns magnons - waves and particles of magnetism.

"Basically, classical thermodynamics covers steam engines that use steam as a working fluid, or jet engines or car engines that use air as a working fluid.

"Thermoelectrics use electrons as the working fluid. And in this work, we're using quanta of magnetisation, or 'magnons,' as a working fluid," Heremans said.

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Panasonic today announced the winners of Panasonic Open-Innovation contest, Mobivation 2016, initiated in the month of August 2016 by the company. The contest reflects Panasonics commitment to encourage the concept of 'Making' in India while acknowledging the youth of today to showcase the innovative streak in them and utilize the theoretical knowledge in a more practical way.

Panasonic Open-Innovation contest invited innovative ideas from students enrolled full-time in IIT Delhi & Roorkee, DTU Delhi and NSIT Delhi in areas of Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Innovation in (Hardware/Software) in terms of Smartphones (Android Platform). Students of IIT Roorkee emerged as overall winners of the five month long contest and received cash prize worth 1 lakh and Panasonic smartphones.

The winners for the Panasonic Open-Innovation contest in the Software category were Shubham Goyal, Chirag Maheshwari and Rahul Babbar, team CodeSquad from IIT Roorkee. Students of Delhi Technological University , Prempal Singh and Pranav Gulati team Genesis were winners of the Hardware category.

The category winning teams also received a cash reward along with Panasonic smartphones and commendation certificates. The Panasonic Mobivation prizes were given away by Mr.Manish Sharma, President & CEO  Panasonic India & South Asia.

The Panasonic Open-Innovation allowed the participants to register online on www.mobivation.in for free and submit their Synopsis. Participants could register as individuals or teams and choose to participate in one or multiple categories such as: (1) Artificial Intelligence (AI); (2) Internet of Things (IoT); (3)Software  UI/UX Customization;(4)Software: Android Innovative features/App concept to enhance consumer experience; (5)Hardware  Hardware Innovation in terms of Design or any usable hardware centric feature for smart phones.

The judging was anonymous, when entering the challenge the participant was assigned a number, and the Judges identified their submission by title and number only. Judges scored each team on a scale of 1 (Poor) to 10 (excellent). All the submissions were adjudged on the criteria of their innovativeness, feasibility, usability, relevance and overall impact on masses. The innovation projects were reviewed by a jury comprising of Product Experts, Technical Masters & Marketing Connoisseurs having vast experience in their respective fields.

The winners were selected from over 218 nominations. We are grateful to IIT Delhi & Roorkee, DTU Delhi and NSIT Delhi students for these exceptional ideas. Panasonic believes in the power of innovation and we allowed teams to think creatively and outside-the-box, be innovative and inventive in their approach. Our Panasonic Open-Innovation contest aimed to help these students relate concepts they learn in the classroom to real world, which can further motivate them to look deeper into specific concepts instead of merely studying what is required.Such initiatives help students to understand the industrys requirements as well as push their own boundaries to come up with innovative solutions. said Mr. Pankaj Rana, Business Head  Mobility Division, Panasonic India.

He added, Some of the ideas shared during the contest were so innovative that we have decided to implement them in the next series of Panasonic Smart Phones.

For many years Panasonic India has maintained a constant commitment to education reform. IITs and engineering institutes in India are highly respected in Japan. Panasonics Ratti Chhatr Scholarship Program an initiative from Panasonic India as part of its corporate social responsibility which aims at providing financial aid to talented undergraduate students across different branches of the venerated Indian Institute of Technology (IIT).

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Samsungs next flagship, the Galaxy S8, is said to get launched early next year, and as the due date is getting closer, the rumour mill is churning out every possible piece of information necessary to know about the device.

The Samsung Galaxy S8 is now rumoured to come with a 6-inch display. In fact, according to a report by Sammobile, Samsung Electronics is preparing to launch two Galaxy S8 models: a 5-inch Galaxy S8 and a 6-inch Galaxy S8 Plus, eliminating the physical home button.

The company has already started off with the 6-inch Galaxy S8 production, and is claimed to go ahead with the 5-inch variants production by next month.

Earlier rumours suggest that Samsung will not unveil the flagship until April 2017; however, the S. Korean electronic firm still hasnt confirmed the actual date for the launch. More information is expected to be disclosed during Mobile World Conference (MWC) to be held in January next year.

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Acapulco: Sixteen people were killed during Christmas holiday celebrations in Mexico's main drug-trafficking states and six human heads were found in one location, officials said.

A gang slaughtered seven people - including three police officers - at a family celebration in the violent southern state of Guerrero, police said.

The massacre occurred early Christmas Day outside a house in the village of Puente del Rey, where the gunmen shot dead the six men and one woman, aged 24 to 54.

Those killed were three brothers, their father, their uncle, and a man and a woman who had been invited to the home.

Three of the victims were police officers, a regional security ministry official said.

In Chihuahua - which borders the United States and has, like Guerrero, endured brutal drug-related violence - nine people were killed during Christmas celebrations, authorities said.

Five of them died in Ciudad Juarez, including three women who were first tortured and a man whose dismembered remains were found in an abandoned trunk.

In the western state of Michoacan six human heads were found, according to the local prosecutor's office.

Authorities have not identified the remains, which have been transferred to a forensic office for analysis.

The heads were found near the border with Jalisco, where the powerful Jalisco Nueva Generacion cartel operates.

That gang is known for clashing with rival criminals in neighboring Michoacan state, where the Knights Templar drug cartel once held sway.

Cartels have been burying their victims in hidden graves across the country for years, and authorities regularly find human remains.

Guerrero recently earned international infamy as a region where 43 students in 2014 went missing, and were presumably murdered, at the hands of corrupt police working for criminals.

The government says that since 2006 more than 170,000 people have been killed and more than 28,000 have been reported missing. The data does not indicate which cases are related to organized crime.
Washington: Donald Trump spent the past 2 years attacking rival Hillary Clinton as crooked, corrupt, and weak.

But some of those attacks seem to have already slipped into the history books.

From installing Wall Street executives in his Cabinet to avoiding news conferences, the President-elect is adopting some of the same behavior for which he criticized Clinton during their fiery presidential campaign.

Here's a look at what Trump said then - and what he's doing now:

Goldman Sachs

Then: "I know the guys at Goldman Sachs," Trump said at a South Carolina rally in February, when he was locked in a fierce primary battle with Texas Senator Ted Cruz. "They have total, total control over him. Just like they have total control over Hillary Clinton."

Now: A number of former employees of the Wall Street bank will pay a key role in crafting Trump's economic policy. He's tapped Goldman Sachs President Gary Cohn to lead the White House National Economic Council. Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary nominee, spent 17 years working at Goldman Sachs and Steve Bannon, Trump's chief strategist and senior counselor, started his career as an investment banker at the firm.

Trump is following in a long political tradition, though one he derided on the campaign trail: If Cohn accepts the nomination, he'll be the third Goldman executive to run the NEC.

Big Donors

Then: "Crooked Hillary. Look, can you imagine another four years of the Clintons? Seriously. It's time to move on. And she's totally controlled by Wall Street and all these people that gave her millions," Trump said at a May rally in Lynden, Washington.

Now: Trump has stocked his Cabinet with six top donors - far more than any recent White House. "I want people that made a fortune. Because now they're negotiating with you, OK?" Trump said, in a December 9 speech in Des Moines.

The biggest giver? Linda McMahon, incoming small business administrator, gave $7.5 million to a super PAC backing Trump, more than a third of the money collected by the political action committee.

News conferences

Then: "She doesn't do news conferences, because she can't," Trump said at an August rally in Ashburn, Virginia. "She's so dishonest she doesn't want people peppering her with questions."

Now: Trump opened his last news conference on July 27, saying: "You know, I put myself through your news conferences often, not that it's fun."

He hasn't held one since.

Trump skipped the news conference a President-elect typically gives after winning the White House. Instead, he released a YouTube video of under three minutes. He also recently abruptly canceled plans to hold his first post-election news conference, opting instead to describe his plans for managing his businesses in tweets. "I will hold a press conference in the near future to discuss the business, Cabinet picks and all other topics of interest. Busy times!" he tweeted in mid-December.

Family ties

Then: "It is impossible to figure out where the Clinton Foundation ends and the State Department begins. It is now abundantly clear that the Clintons set up a business to profit from public office. They sold access and specific actions by and really for I guess the making of large amounts of money," Trump said at an August rally in Austin.

Now: While Trump has promised to separate himself from his businesses, there is plenty of overlap between his enterprises and his immediate family. His companies will be run by his sons, Donald Jr and Eric. And his daughter, Ivanka, and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, have joined Trump at a number of meetings with world leaders of countries where the family has financial interests.

In a financial disclosure he was required to file during the campaign, Trump listed stakes in about 500 companies in at least 25 countries.

Ivanka, in particular, has been caught making early efforts to leverage her father's new position into profits. After an interview with the family appeared on "60 Minutes," her jewelry company, Ivanka Trump Fine Jewelry, blasted out an email promoting the $10,800 gold bangle bracelet that she had worn during the appearance. The company later said they were "proactively discussing new policies and procedures."

Ivanka is also auctioning off a private coffee meeting with her to benefit her brother's foundation. The meeting is valued at $50,000, with the current top bid coming in at $25,000.

"United States Secret Service will be Present for the Duration of the Experience," warns the auction site.

Trump on Saturday said he would dissolve his charitable foundation amid efforts to eliminate any conflicts of interest before he takes office in January.

Clinton investigations

Then: "If I win, I am going to instruct my Attorney General to get a special prosecutor to look into your situation, because there has never been so many lies, so much deception. There has never been anything like it, and we're going to have a special prosecutor," Trump said in the October presidential debate, referring to Clinton.

Now: Since winning office, Trump has said he has no intention of pushing for an investigation into Clinton's use of a private email server as Secretary of State or the workings of her family foundation. "It's just not something that I feel very strongly about," he told The New York Times.

"She went through a lot. And suffered greatly in many different ways," he said. "I'm not looking to hurt them."
Tokyo: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe departed on Monday for Hawaii where he will visit Pearl Harbour with US President Barack Obama as the two countries highlight decades of post-World War II reconciliation.

Abe's visit to the site, which was bombed by Japan in a surprise attack in December 1941 that drew the United States into World World II, was announced earlier in December.

It follows a journey Obama made with him in May to the city of Hiroshima where a US plane dropped the world's first atom bomb as the war drew to a close in 1945.

"I am visiting Pearl Harbor in Hawaii to commemorate victims as the prime minister of Japan, as the representative of the Japanese people," Abe told reporters at Tokyo's Haneda airport.

"We must not repeat the horror of war ever again. Together with President Obama, I would like to express to the world this pledge for the future and the value of reconciliation."

The two leaders hope that their joint visits will underscore the alliance between their two nations forged in the years following the war.

They will meet Tuesday in Honolulu for a summit before venturing together to Pearl Harbour to visit the wreck of the USS Arizona, where 1,177 sailors and Marines died. The ship's rusting remains are now a memorial.

The two-hour attack killed 2,403 Americans in all, injured more than 1,100 others and sank or heavily damaged eight US battleships.

Officials have said that the purpose of Abe's visit is not to apologise but rather to pay homage to the victims and encourage historical reflection, as Obama did in Hiroshima.

It also comes at a delicate time with Obama due to hand over power to US President-elect Donald Trump in January.

The New York real-estate magnate sent shockwaves through Japan during the campaign when he appeared to question the US-Japan security alliance.

He said that Japan should pay more to support US troops stationed in the country and could even consider developing its own nuclear weapons.

Though he later walked back on the comments, they jolted public opinion in the world's only country to ever be attacked with atomic bombs.

Abe became the first world leader to meet Trump after the election, rushing to New York to confirm the importance of the relationship.
This is not the first time Kim Jongs has expressed an aversion for the festival. (Photo: AP)

Pyongyang: Celebrating Christmas took a new meaning in North Korea this year as Dictator Kim Jon-un banned the festival and instead, wanted to spread cheer to celebrate his grandmother Kim Jong-suk who was born on Christmas eve in 1919.

According to a report in The New York Post, Jong-suk was the wife of North Koreas first dictator Kim II-sung. She was also the mother of former leader Kim Jong-ils mother, an anti-Japanese guerrilla and a Communist activist.

By visiting her tomb, it is said that many pay homage to the Sacred mother of the revolution, who died under mysterious circumstances in 1949.

However, this is not the first time Kim Jongs has expressed an aversion for the festival. As per the report, the autocrat had flipped out in 2014, when he discovered that South Korea planned to erect a huge Christmas tree along the border. However, the tree was never put up due to threats of an all-out war.

Despite his hatred for Christmas trees, they can be found in the capital of Pyongyang  especially in upscale shops and restaurants  but are largely stripped of religious symbols.

The report also mentioned that Pyongyang used to have more Christians than any other city in Korea and even had a seated Catholic Bishop. However, things changed by the early 1950s, when authorities curbed all Christian activities in the country.

Also, human rights groups estimate around 50,000 to 70,000 Christians are in jails that have been likened to concentration camps, merely for their faith.
Volkswagen has won nine out of 10 lawsuits in Spain brought by buyers of its vehicles over rigged emissions levels. In 2016, only one court ruled partially in favor of the owner of a Volkswagen; in the other nine cases, judges decided that the German carmakers vehicles did not produce any more pollution than other cars and that there were no charges to answer, ruling against awarding damages to owners, according to summaries seen by EL PAIS.

Volkswagen's Pamplona plant in northern Spain. LUIS SEVILLANO

In September 2015, Volkswagen admitted that since 2008 it had deliberately interfered with the software on a number of Volkswagen, Audi, Seat, and Skoda diesel models Around the world, the German group sold a total of 11 million vehicles with fraudulent software, 700,000 of them in Spain. Since then, aside from compensation requests by the Spanish government, several individuals have brought legal action against Volkswagen showrooms where they bought their cars.

Furthermore, besides the original fraud involving software that deliberately reduced nitrogen oxide emissions during engine testing in order to pass environmental controls, the German carmaker subsequently admitted that carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions were also understated, and that some vehicles real fuel consumption could be higher than customers were led to believe.

In only one case did a court partially recognize the plaintiffs grievance

The rulings in favor of Volkswagen are based on technical reports showing that Volkswagens emissions are no higher, and in some cases lower, than those of other vehicles in their category.

Almost all the judges who ruled in favor of Volkswagen noted that the company had offered to rectify the defective software free of charge.

In only one case did a court partially recognize the plaintiffs grievance. This involved an Audi Q5 Ambiente, which cost 50,065 in May 2013. The owner wanted the car replaced with a new model free of charge, as well as compensation for damages.

But while the judge accepted the right to compensation, as well as noting that Volkswagen had tricked the relevant emissions controls and infringed the rules, a fine of just 10% of the value of the vehicle was imposed on the showroom that sold the car.

The German carmaker has admitted that CO 2 emissions were also understated

The other nine rulings are all similar. In the case of a Volkswagen Tiguan Cross 2.0 bought in Valencia, a local court dismissed a complaint brought against the German carmaker, noting that the vehicle was apt for the purposes it was bought and that its emissions did not represent a greater threat to the environment than any other similar product.

Another court in Valencia rejected a similar compensation claim, noting: It is well-known that Volkswagen will provide a technical solution to the engine, covering all costs derived from the implanting of said solution.

A ruling by a court in the town of Manacor, in Mallorca, highlighted that emissions controls were not the main reason the plaintiff had bought an Audi A4 Avant, rejecting a request by the owner for compensation of 10,346 due to depreciation of the car: It is true that the vehicle lacked the characteristics attributed to it, but it has not been accredited (and in this case not even alleged), that this was the main reason the car was bought, for which reason, it cannot be ruled that the lack of information about the installation of the software has any relevance to the invalidation of the sales agreement.

In November 2015, Spains High Court public prosecutor called for an investigation into the engine rigging scandal, noting that the German automobile group committed offenses related to misleading advertising, public subsidies given to the manufacturer by the Spanish government, and environmental legislation.

English version by Nick Lyne.
Tokyo: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Monday he wants to send a message to the world during his visit to Pearl Harbor that Japan will never repeat the atrocities of past wars.

"The alliance between Japan and the United States is one with hope in dealing with various problems in the world," Abe said in a speech to the Japanese business lobby Keidanren.

"I hope this visit will be a historical one with leaders of Japan and the United States jointly visiting Pearl Harbor in a show of reconciliation," he said.

Abe's Dec. 27 visit with President Barack Obama comes 75 years after the attack that thrust the United States into World War Two.
Colombo: A Tamil lawmaker in Sri Lanka has questioned the credibility of the country's justice system after the acquittal of five persons in connection with the murder of a minority legislator.

"We have always said that because of our lack of confidence in the local judicial system that we want international judicial process for war crime allegations. This stance has now been proved right," said MA Sumanthiran, a legislator of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA).

Nadaraja Raviraj, who represented the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) from the northern Jaffna district, was shot dead outside his home in his car in Colombo in November, 2006.

Raviraj was an advocate for greater self-rule for minority Tamils and had explained the Tamil perspective of the conflict in Sinhala, the language of the majority. He was shot dead during the country's three-decade-long civil war with Tamil Tiger rebels, which ended in 2009.

Sumanthiran represented the wife of Raviraj in the case.

"We do not accept this," Sumanthiran said stating that they would appeal against the ruling. Sri Lanka's new government, which came to power in January 2015 promising accountability for war time atrocities and ethnic reconciliation, has so far refused to allow international judges in any war crimes probe.
Guerrero is one of Mexico's states most affected by brutal drug gangs which frequently battle each other, as well as carrying out kidnappings and extortion. (Representational Image)

Acapulco, Mexico: An armed gang slaughtered a family of seven celebrating Christmas in Mexico's violent southern state of Guerrero on Sunday, police said.

The massacre occurred early Christmas Day outside a house in the village of Puente del Rey, where the gunmen shot dead the six men and one women, aged 24 to 54.

Those killed were three brothers, their father, their uncle, and a man and a woman who were invited to the home.

Guerrero is one of Mexico's states most affected by brutal drug gangs which frequently battle each other, as well as carrying out kidnappings and extortion.

It recently earned international infamy as a region where 43 students in 2014 went missing, and were presumably murdered, at the hands of corrupt police working for criminals.
Netanyahu, who also holds the foreign ministry portfolio, had rejected the resolution as a "shameful blow against Israel".

Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has summoned US Ambassador Daniel Shapiro, two days after Washington abstained in a vote on a UN resolution against Israeli settlements.

Their meeting came after Israel on Sunday called in 10 representatives of 14 other states that voted for the resolution.

An official Israeli source confirmed that only Netanyahu and Shapiro had met, without elaborating on the content or outcome of their discussions.

The UN Security Council passed the measure Friday after the United States abstained, enabling the adoption of the first resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

The resolution demands that "Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem". It says settlements have "no legal validity" and are "dangerously imperilling the viability of the two-state solution."

Netanyahu, who also holds the foreign ministry portfolio, had rejected the resolution as a "shameful blow against Israel".

On Sunday, he repeated Israel's claim that US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry were behind it. "We have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated the drafts and demanded to pass it," the premier said at the beginning of the weekly cabinet meeting.

"This is of course in total contradiction to the traditional American policy of not trying to impose conditions of a final resolution," he said, "and of course the explicit commitment of President Obama himself in 2011 to avoid such measures."

The Haaretz daily's website said that for Israel to summon an American ambassador was "considered a most unusual step". "Even more unusual is the fact that unlike the other envoys who were summoned on Sunday to the foreign ministry, Netanyahu will conduct the conversation himself at his office," it said ahead of the meeting.

By deciding not to veto the UN move, Washington took a rare step that deeply angered Israel, which accused Obama of abandoning its closest Middle East ally in the waning days of his administration.

The text was passed with support from all remaining members of the 15-member council, with applause breaking out in the chamber.

The landmark vote came despite intense lobbying efforts by Israel and calls from US President-elect Donald Trump to block the text.
Beijing: China has tested the latest version of its fifth-generation stealth fighter, state media reported Monday, as it tries to end the West's monopoly on the world's most advanced warplanes.

The test comes as the nation flexes its military muscles, sending its sole aircraft carrier the Liaoning into the western Pacific in recent days to lead drills there for the first time.

The newest version of the J-31 -- now renamed the FC-31 Gyrfalcon -- took to the air for the first time Friday, the China Daily reported.

The so-called "fifth-generation" twin-engine jet is China's answer to the US F-35, the world's most technically advanced fighter.

The new FC-31 has "better stealth capabilities, improved electronic equipment and a larger payload capacity" than the previous version which debuted in October 2012, the newspaper said, quoting aviation expert Wu Peixin.

"Changes were made to the airframe, wings and vertical tails which make it leaner, lighter and more manoeuvrable," Wu told the paper.

The jet is manufactured by Shenyang Aircraft Corp., a subsidiary of the Aviation Industry Corp of China (AVIC).

The fighter is expected to sell for around $70 million, the article said, aiming to take market share away from more expensive fourth-generation fighters like the Eurofighter Typhoon.

AVIC has said that the FC-31 will "put an end to some nations' monopolies on the fifth-generation fighter jet", the China Daily reported.

China is aggressively moving to develop its domestic weapons industry, from drones and anti-aircraft systems to homegrown jet engines.

In the past it has been accused of copying designs from Russian fighters, and some analysts say the FC-31 bears a close resemblance to the F-35.

When completed the FC-31 will become the country's second fifth-generation fighter after the J-20, which put on its first public performance at the Zhuhai Air Show in November.
Chinas first aircraft carrier, Liaoning, and five naval warships passed by Taiwan and sailed into the contested South China Sea on Monday. (Photo: AP)

Beijing: China has tested an improvised version of its stealth fighter and plans to sell it at half the price of the US variant to break Western monopoly over the high-tech aircraft, which will have strategic implications for India as Pakistan has already shown interest in acquiring it.

An improved version of Chinas fifth-generation FC-31 Gyrfalcon stealth fighter jet has conducted its maiden flight last week in Shenyang, capital of Liaoning province, state-run China Daily reported.

Previously known as the J-31, the twin engine, radar evading aircraft is still under development by Shenyang Aircraft Corp, part of the Aviation Industry Corp of China, (AVIC), it said.

The stealth aircraft have strategic significance for India as besides China, Pakistan  which is producing JF-17 Thunder fighter along with Beijing  has evinced interest in acquiring Chinas stealth fighter. India is yet to have stealth aircraft in its arsenal. Specifications supplied by AVIC show the jet has a maximum takeoff weight of 28 metric tonnes, a flight radius of 1,250 kms and a top speed of Mach 1.8, or 1.8 times the speed of sound. It can carry eight tonnes of weapons and hold six missiles in its internal weapons bay.
In an era when most people complain of having no time for self, it is rare to see a person who has invested so much in a passion of his.





P K Gokulababu, who works with Buildcraft Interiors Pvt. Ltd, started collecting stamps when he was in the ninth standard.



Ten to 15 years back, he also started collecting postcards from different regions of the country and abroad. Gokulababu became a member of postcrossing last year and owns 99 postcards and has sent out about 93 postcards.



Apart from that, he owns 458 printed postcards of different kinds and places like Vidhana Soudha, Lalbagh and MG Road. It is the unique and colourful elements and pictures on the postcards that attract me. Thats how the interest in collecting postcards grew in me. I have these from almost every place I visit.



My friends have also contributed a few to my collection after their trips, says Gokulababu.



His interest in travelling has been a motivating factor for his passion. He makes sure to pick up something specific to the place he visits, be it a tourist spot or a place of historical importance.



My brother, who worked for a cruise ship for eight years got me a few from the countries he travelled too. I have postcards from about six countries at present  Rome, Maldives, Poland, Philippines and Germany, he says.



Apart from postcards and stamps, Gokulababu has a keen interest in collecting currencies of different countries.



Ask him how he manages to find time for his passion amidst his busy schedule and he says that if a person is passionate about something, they will automatically find time for it. When everybody else is busy looking for something amusing to do on a weekend, his definition of a perfect weekend is to spend time arranging and sorting out his collectables.



I work for a private company and it is a nine to five job. So I spend most of my time after work and weekends looking for new set of postcards and stamps and arranging them according to a theme in my treasured album, he says.



Some of the rare collection that he has includes stamps of Princess Diana and former US President Bill Clintons visit to Barbados and postcards from Rome and Maldives.



The block of four stamps of Princess Diana and the postcard of Gateway of India are my personal favourites. My family has always been very supportive of my passion. My brother and sisters have always helped me find unique and rare pieces, he adds.



(P K Gokulababu can be contacted on 9901036579)


City doctors gave 35-year-old Wizdan Khadim from Iraq a new lease of life, by removing a coconut-sized tumour from her head.





Khadim used to have frequent headaches, which gradually spread to her ears and right side of her body. The doctors in Iraq dismissed the case as a symptom of age-related weakness among women. But, after two years, the pain became intolerable.



Khadim started experiencing memory loss, found difficulty in recollecting names and suffered from mobility impairment. She underwent an MRI scan, which revealed a tumour in her brain. It was then that she was referred to Fortis Hospital, Bannerghatta Road for a brain surgery.



The tumour approximately measured 8x7x6 cm. There were risks of loss of vision in the left eye, given the size of the tumor. It took us more than 10 hours to operate and remove it, said Dr Rajakumar Deshpande, director, Neurosurgery, Fortis Hospital.



The doctors chose to perform the surgery using computer-assisted advanced neuro-operating 3D microscope.



The technique allows surgeons to navigate inside the skull, with the help of specialised computers that scan the affected area and generate three-dimensional images.
He also asked as to why the government has not tabled in Parliament names of those holding Swiss bank accounts.



"How to exempt his friends from heavy loans is currently the sole problem of Narendra Modi who has currently adopted only one policy- 'snatch the money from the poor and nourish the rich'," he said.



Mocking Modi's appeal for cashless transition, the Congress vice president said, "PayTm means- 'Pay to Modi' as 5% commission on payments made through PayTm goes to the families of super rich."



Rahul again read out the dates with years and sum of the amount allegedly paid to Modi by Sahara and Birla when he was Gujarat Chief Minister. He said that in nine installments, Modi was allegedly paid Rs 40 corer in six months.



He asked the Prime Minister Modi to reply to his charges.



"You can mock me. But the public, the poor are asking the same questions on charges of corruption by you," he said.



Rahul left for Delhi around 3.45 PM.



AICC general secretary Guru Das Kamat, PCC chief Sachin Pilot, former state chief minister Ashok Gehlot were among the congress leaders present on the occasion.



Terming demonetisation a 'yajna' where the poor and the labourers are "being sacrificed", Rahul Gandhi today said though the Prime Minister has assured the problems due to note ban will end by December 30, the "economic lockdown" will continue to hurt people beyond that."Modiji has said the problems will end after December 30. But I can say with confidence that it will not be so. These hardships will continue for six-seven months and beyond," the Congress Vice President said addressing a rally here.He was referring to the Prime Minister's repeated assurance to the people that the problems due to note ban will begin to ease after the 50-day period.In his nearly 40-minute speech, Rahul said the poor, the labourers and the middle class are being sacrificed in the demonetisation 'yajna' for the benefit of the "super-rich families" of the nation.Modi had recently hailed the campaign as a 'yagna against corruption and black money.Rahul also alleged that the Modi government at the Centre and the Raje government in the state have neither waived farmers' loan, nor compensated them for their damaged crops.He also alleged they have not reduced electricity tariffs. Consequently, 60 farmers have committed suicide in Rajasthan alone, the Congress vice president alleged."The note ban decision is not against corruption but is an economic lockdown. It is not against blackmoney but against the poor, farmers, labourers and women," he alleged."99 per cent of the people do not have black money and they were targeted by the demonetisation drive while on the other hand, there are 50 families who have lakhs and crores of rupees and that is black money," he said.Stating that the Congress party wants to eradicate corruption and its leaders would support the NDA government against the menace, Gandhi alleged that the decision of demonetisation was "totally against the people of the country".He said that only six per cent black money is stored in cash while the remaining is in the form or real estate and gold and is also stashed in Swiss bank accounts."In the last two-and-a-half years, Modi only worked to create a divide in the country and functioned only for the rich," he alleged.Rahul alleged that the Modi government tried to "murder" the Land Acquisition Act, which benefits the farmers, and also attempted to stall other pro-poor steps like MNREGA started by the Congress.He also alleged that the tribals were being exploited in BJP-ruled states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. "The entire government is functioning of the rich. What Narendra Modi ji is doing at the Centre, the same is being done by the chief minister of Rajasthan."In Rajasthan, privatisation is going on. Power tariff was raised by 18 per cent. Have Modiji and the BJP government here taken any step for the poor. They have done nothing for the poor," he said.
One of the oft-repeated pledges Donald Trump made during the recent US presidential election campaign was to build a big, beautiful wall along the border with Mexico to keep rapists and drug addicts out, and that furthermore, the United States southern neighbor would pay for.

A stretch of fence near to Brownsville, in Texas. Eric Gay

More information Trump estudia la viabilidad del muro con Mexico

Now, less than a month away from taking office, Trump seems to have begun looking into whether he will be able to keep his promise to voters. The President-elects team has contacted border officials in Texas, who have said that any barrier should be a fence, not a wall, and that it would only be needed in certain areas.

Henry Cuellar, a Democrat Congressman for Texas whose district includes some 320 kilometers of border with Mexico, opposes Trumps plans, and has also spoken to border officials.

If there were to be a fence, [border officials] would want it to be limited and to apply only to certain areas, the Congressman told EL PAIS by telephone. I am sure that no senior official along the border is recommending that their sector be 100% covered by a fence, he added.

A mile of fence costs around $6.5 million; surveillance technology costs $1 million

The border between the United States and Mexico runs for 3,100 kms. Of this, some 1,000 are already fenced as a result of legislation passed in 2006. In Texas, the border runs for 2,000 kms, of which just 160 are protected by a fence, according to the Associated Press. The rest of the frontier is made up of geographical obstacles such as mountains or the Rio Grande river.

Build the wall! was one of the most popular chants at Trump campaign meetings. But in his first television interview after winning the elections on November 8, Trump admitted that a fence was a more likely option and refused to give more details. In the video in which he announced the agenda for his first 100 days in office, there was also no mention of any wall with Mexico.

Nevertheless, since November 8, Trumps team has said repeatedly that building a wall is a priority for the incoming president. Their contacts with border officials would suggest this remains the case, but also indicate that for those on the ground, Trumps plans are not seen as the best solution.

Around a third of the 3,100 km border is already fenced

Furthermore, Cuellar points out that any further fence building would require Congressional approval. The Republican Party, which controls both houses, argues in favour of beefing up border security, but legislators too have also suggested that they are not necessarily in favour of any hypothetical wall.

For the Democratic Party, opposition to any wall is a matter of principle. A fence is a 14th century solution to a 21st century problem, says Cuellar, adding that anyway, around 40% of undocumented migrants in the United States arrived legally and that a wall would not put a brake on asylum requests.

Another factor is geography. Laredo, with a population of 255,000 inhabitants, is the most important city in Cuellars district. The only physical barrier there is a fence along a small stretch of the border. What really separates Laredo from Nuevo Laredo on the other side of the frontier with the state of Tamaulipas is the Rio Grande. Cuellar says that there are many areas along the river where it would not be possible to build any kind of barrier, in large part because the Republican governor of Texas has made it clear protected parkland would make it impossible.

There are also economic issues. Cuellar says that a mile of fence costs around $6.5 million, while simply using technology to increase surveillance of border areas costs around $1 million per mile.

English version by Nick Lyne.
Syrian authorities have accused rebel fighters of executing 21 civilians, including women and children, at close range as they quit second city Aleppo last week, state media reported.





The bodies were found in two neighbourhoods in east Aleppo, state news agency SANA said late Sunday.



The head of Aleppo's forensic unit Zaher Hajjo told SANA that "21 corpses of civilian victims, including five children and four women, killed by terrorist groups" were examined.



"The bodies were found in prisons run by the terrorist groups in Sukkari and al-Kalasseh, and they were found to have been executed by gunshot at very close range," Hajjo was quoted as saying.



Under a landmark deal brokered by regime ally Russia and rebel backer Turkey, 35,000 rebels and civilians left the former opposition stronghold of east Aleppo last week.



Days before the evacuations began, the UN said it had received credible reports of at least 82 civilians, including 11 women and 13 children, being executed by pro-government forces in Aleppo.



On Monday, the Russian defence ministry said "dozens of Syrians" were summarily executed in east Aleppo by rebels.



"Mass graves containing dozens of Syrians who were summarily executed and subjected to savage torture have been discovered," spokesman Igor Konachenkov said, according to Russian agencies.



He said most had been killed by gunshot wounds to the head and many bodies "were not whole," and that thorough investigations would force opposition backers in the West to "recognise their responsibility for the cruelty" of rebels.



The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that bodies had been found in east Aleppo's streets, but could not specify how they had been killed.



World powers have been fiercely divided over Syria's conflict since it first erupted in March 2011, with Russia firmly backing Assad and Gulf powers and much of the West supporting the opposition.



The high-profile battle for Aleppo, in particular, has sparked accusations by Western powers that Russia and the government were committing war crimes.
Congress today demanded an independent probe into the "Sahara diaries" in which names of former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and that of some other chief ministers also purportedly figure.





"Whoever, whichever name is there should be investigated. There should be an independent probe into whosoever's name is there. Why are you shying away from an impartial, independent probe?," Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh told reporters.



He said there should first be an investigation and in the course of which some names may prove to be wrong. Ramesh said action can be taken only after a probe.



He also demanded an independent probe against all those BJP leaders who allegedly knew of the demonetisation decision before the Prime minister announced it on November 8.



He asked whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi would order an independent time-bound probe to ascertain whether there was any money laundering by certain BJP leaders and whether they were in the know of demonetisation before it was announced.



"Maximum Governance, Minimum Government", "Maximum Drama, Minimum Governance" and "Maximum Publicity, Minimum Governance", this is the motto of Narendra Modi," he said, dubbing demonetisation as a "complete failure" and an "unmitigated disaster".



He claimed that Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank, which had received Rs 500 crore deposits within two days of demonetisation and asked why there was no probe into it.



The Congress leader also asked who was Mahesh Shah, who had declared over Rs 13,860 crore under the income disclosure scheme, and asked whether some leaders were involved and whether any money laundering was being done at their behest.



To a question on introduction of Benami Property Act and its implementation by the Government, Ramesh said the fight against corruption is a long drawn out fight. "It will require law; it will require tough executive action. Whatever steps the Government takes which we feel is going to be effective, will automatically get our support.



"Any serious, well considered step and well thought out step to deal with corruption and black money will automatically be welcomed by us," he said.



"However, if Benami Property Act also becomes a gimmick like demonetisation, then we are against it. Demonetisation has taught us, that economic policy is a serious business; these are serious issues which unfortunately the Prime Minister is unable to understand because his Governance philosophy is maximum headline minimum governance," he said.



The Congress leader said, "We are not North Korea, we are not Venezuela. We are not disintegrating Soviet Union. We are not a bankrupt Mynamar. We are an economy that is growing at 7-1/2 per cent per year and no economist in his right mind would ever recommend demonetisation to an economy that is growing at that rate. Demonetisation has been an unmitigated disaster."
Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said people have accepted BJP as a party of their own by electing it to power at the Centre with thumping majority even though opposition parties had made allegations in the past that it practised politics over religion.





"There was a big allegation that BJP used to do politics over religion or over communalism. Now that allegation has gone away. Had it been a party of doing politics over religion, then the 1.25 billion people of the country would not have elected to power with a clear majority," he said addressing a meeting of the BJP's Assam unit here.



Singh, a senior BJP leader, said the party never practiced politics over religion nor did over communalism but on the issue of justice and honesty.



"We are a party of doing politics over justice and honesty. We are a party which takes everyone along and wants to march forward with everyone's cooperation," he said.



The Home Minister said BJP's politics is centred around humanity - irrespective of whether someone is Hindu, Muslim, Christian or from any other religion.



Describing Indo-Bangladesh agreement on land-swap as a very significant pact for bilateral relations, Singh said after the exchange of 'enclaves' along the border, Dhaka has been supporting India in every international forums.



"Be is on terrorism or be it on any other issues, Bangladesh has been supporting India in every international forum ever since we have completed the process of exchange of enclaves between India and Bangladesh.



Singh said security of the more than 200-kilometre-long Indo-Bangladesh border in Assam was a priority for the BJP government and it will be completely sealed in next one and a half years.



"We are committed to sealing the 223.7-km Indo-Bangladesh border in Assam and the process is on. It is expected to be completed within the next year and a half," he said.



The Home Minister said Bangladesh is a neighbouring country and India shares a good and warm relations and wants to continue and remain committed to in the future.



The Home Minister, without referring to the issues of illegal migration and granting of citizenship to Hindu refugees, assured the people of Assam that BJP was committed to protect the interests of the indigenous population of the state as per Clause 6 of the Assam Accord.



"We are committed to Clause 6 of the Assam Accord and will protect it even if we have to amend the Constitution," he said.



Referring to the updating of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, Singh said the process is underway and the state government should complete it soon.



Singh said the Centre will make no compromise on the issue of insurgency as he claimed that violence has considerably come down in the state.



"If any people or group have any grievances, problems or issues, we are ready to talk to them... We are ready to embrace them and talk. But if there is violence, there will be no compromise," he said.



The Home Minister claimed people have supported Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "bold step" to demonetise high-value currency notes and his fight against black money and corruption.



"The Prime Minister's bold step of demonetisation has been welcomed by the people of the country and we are grateful for that," he said.



The Prime Minister's fight against black money and corruption was "beyond any doubt" and the people of the country have expressed their gratitude by supporting him despite facing initial difficulties, the home minister said.



"People did face initial difficulties after demonetisation was announced, but no one has questioned the intention of the Prime Minister.



"People had to wait for hours in queues outside ATMs, but when told they were facing difficulties, many replied, 'When our jawans our dying on the borders to protect our country against enemies, then why can't we stand in queues for a few hours.' This is the spirit of our people," he said.



Modi on November 8 had announced to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, and said new notes of denominations Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 will be issued in their place, leading to a rush among people to exchange their notes at banks and withdraw new notes from ATMs.
India today said it was in regular touch with Yemeni authorities and Saudi Arabia regarding the safe release of Father Tom Uzhunnalil, who was abducted nearly nine months ago from war-torn Yemen, after a video of the priest pleading for help became viral.



"You are aware of the circumstances currently prevailing in Yemen where fighting is going on with no central authority in that country.



"With regard to the safe release of Father Tom who was abducted some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.



In the video, also uploaded on Facebook, Tom was seen as pleading for help from Indian government and fellow Christians including Pope Francis. However, the veracity of the video could not be ascertained.



He also said "several months have gone by and my captors have made many contacts with the government of India to get me released. Honourable President and Prime Minister of India, I am very sad nothing has been done seriously in my regard. Reports have been in news that everything is being done to get me released quickly but in reality nothing seems to have happened."



He further said had he been "a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously by authorities and people and (they) would have got me released. I am from India and therefore, I perhaps am not considered as of much value".



Uzhunnalil was abducted from the port city of Aden in March 4 by militant group ISIS.
Alleged terrorist Mohd Mosiuddin was plotting ISIS-style chilling execution of foreigners, especially those from the US, Russia and the UK, visiting the Mother House in Kolkata as it would be a "heart pleasing" experience for him, the NIA has claimed.





The NIA, in a charge sheet filed before a special court in Kolkata recently, claimed that Mosiuddin alias Musa was planning to stab and kill foreigners, a style frequently chosen by the ISIS to eliminate its targets.



The Mother House in West Bengal capital is the headquarters of Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity.



In its charge sheet, the anti-terror probe agency has said Musa termed the militants operating in Kashmir as "Mujahids (holy warriors) with impure ideologies" who were fighting for Kashmiri land when they should have fought in support of Sharia, the Islamic canonical law based on the teachings of the Koran and the traditions of the Prophet (Hadith and Sunna).



The agency has provided Musa's photographs in Kashmir to buttress its claim that the terrorist had visited the Valley.



NIA alleged it had proof of his having bought a big knife to commit the terror crimes before fleeing away.



He also allegedly procured pepper spray from Snapdeal, an online marketplace to facilitate his proposed criminal acts as the intended target would be rendered temporarily blinded by it.



The charge sheet alleged that Musa discussed plans for conducting such attacks at the Mother House, which is frequented by foreigners from the US, Russia and the UK. Armed forces of these countries are locked in fierce battles with the ISIS in many nations.



Musa had discussed with some others the exact location of the Mother House and was claimed to have told them that foreigners, particularly Russians, Britishers and Americans often visited the place. He wanted them killed as the governments of their countries had bombarded the ISIS in Syria and Libya, the charge sheet alleged.



The NIA had taken over investigation in the case from Howrah police on July 22.



During Musa' arrest, a .38 bore six-chamber revolver, three rounds of ammunition, a knife, a Samsung mobile phone and other incriminating articles were seized.



Subsequently, one Apple Macbook and a sword were seized from his residence at Tiruppur, Tamilnadu.




The first aircraft carrier, Liaoning, accompanied by five naval vessels, entered the disputed South China Sea this afternoon after passing south of Taiwan, reports said.





"Aircraft carriers are strategic tools which should be used to show China's strength to the world and shape the outside world's attitude toward China...It is not built for war only. Chinese aircraft carriers must set off on a long journey," state-run Global Times said in its editorial about the aircraft carrier conducting exercises.





"China's core interests are mainly offshore, but the range of aircraft carriers must go beyond offshore areas. The rivalry must be extended to wider areas so as to ease China's offshore pressure," it said, suggesting that Beijing should acquire more aircraft carriers.





"The distant sailing of the Chinese aircraft carrier fleet is not aimed at provoking the US nor at reshaping maritime strategic structure. But if the fleet is able to enter areas where the US has core interests, the situation when the US unilaterally imposes pressure on China will change," it said.





China has also lodged diplomatic protest with the Taiwan-related section in the US National Defence Authorisation Act for Fiscal Year 2017. "We are strongly discontent with the US for signing this act," China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing today.





"The Taiwan question bears on China's sovereignty and territory integrity and falls entirely within China's domestic affairs. Although the Taiwan-related content in the US Act has no legal binding force, it still severely violates the three joint communiques and interferes in Chinas domestic affairs," she said.





"China will by no means accept this. We urge the US side to honour its commitment on the Taiwan question, put an end to military exchanges with and weapons sales to Taiwan and avoid undermining China-US relations or cross-Straits peace and stability," she said.





Also China resumed diplomatic ties with Sao Tome and Principe in Beijing today at a high profile ceremony here after the African nation cut "diplomatic ties" with the Taiwan amid allegations of check book diplomacy by China.





The establishment of diplomatic ties with the African country comes weeks after Trump had an unprecedented phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and later questioned One-China policy, which drew sharp reactions from China.





Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Sao Tome and Principe counterpart Urbino Botelho held talks and later signed a joint communique on resuming diplomatic relations.



Sao Tome was among less than two dozen countries which had diplomatic ties with Taiwan till recently without any contacts with China. But "excess financial difficulties" reportedly made it to turn to Beijing for economic assistance.





"Sao Tome will get full support and help from a permanent member of the UN Security Council and the world's largest developing nation," Wang said after meeting with Botelho.



"China is willing to support Sao Tome's quest for socio-economic development and efforts to improve livelihoods and well-being to the best of its ability," Wang said.



"We have to recognise that China plays an increasingly important role in the world, especially as a partner to promote development and its contributions protecting the interests of developing nations," Botelho said.



"Sao Tome is a small, island nation, with very friendly people. It is tranquil. It has very good conditions for developing trade and business and cooperating with Chinese companies," he said.

Flexing its muscles over Taiwan, China today sailed its aircraft carrier close to the estranged island amid tensions with the US following President-elect Donald Trump's telephone call with the Taiwanese president.
India is not new to Ariel Pollock. It has always opened a window of experiences for her even as she continues to explore the different facets of its cities. Ariel, who is the Public Affairs Officer at the US Consulate General in Chennai, was in the city recently for the The Migratory Cultures art project, which collects regional stories of migration from around the world and shares them here through photographs and video projection in urban spaces. In a tete-a-tete with Anupama Ramakrishnan, Ariel speaks about her connect with India and its people, her experiences as a diplomat and the secret behind her rather poetic name.



If you retrace your diplomatic journey, when and how did your connect with India begin?

I applied for a fellowship with the State Department and did not think about becoming a diplomat until I got this assignment. My first assignment was in Ethiopia and I remember cheesy stories. We had these international dinner and movie night. We were watching Pride and Prejudice and eating pretty much North Indian food  in Ethiopia  and I remember saying I want to go to India. And I went. The first time I was in India, I was in a different job. I thoroughly enjoy this particular job. We interact so much with communities to learn about what their interests and concerns are and find out where those interests and concerns connect or intersect with our policy priorities. Then we work with them to create spaces where we can find solutions or create dialogues around some of those issues.



This is your second time serving in South India...

Work has really helped me see so much more of the region, so much more of the people and have more discussions on interesting topics. I have always felt an affinity for South India. Reminds me of where I am from  New Orleans. Everybody here is like an extended member of your family. And thats how things are where I am from.



How did the The Migratory Cultures art project happen?

It is really funny how the project came to me. I was on leave back in the US when I was sent two proposals to bring American artistes over  one to look at issues of migration and immigration, the other to look at data mining. And I thought it was so innovative and creative to fuse our design and technology to talk about such important issues that I jumped at it immediately. we are excited be part of it.



When you are not into your diplomatic work, what would you be doing?

I love movies and reading books; I am a member of the book club in Chennai. But my passion really is travelling and I love music, dance and art; anything that exposes me to another culture; anything that Ive not experienced before because that makes me a more well-rounded person.



How are you adapting to Indian food?

I love the food here. I dont have too much of a problem with spicy food. I grew up in New Orleans where we have a lot of spicy food. But I particularly love South Indian food and I know I am in Bangalore but my favourite is Malayali food. I love the sea food and the appam and all that.



To wrap up, could you narrate the tale behind your name. Were your parents admirers of Shakespeare?

I wish it was that poetic (laughs)! My father is a physician and when I was in medical school, my mother was expecting me and he had a classmate whose wife was also expecting. She was born a few days before me and they named her Ariel. My father loved that name and they took that name  Ariel. Interestingly enough, when I went out for my first assignment to Ethiopia, I found that my name meant Lion of God. Ethiopia has a lot of history in it, they have a big lion statue and different stories that date back to Christianity. And my father looked at me and said I knew I picked the right name for you.


The White House orchestrated a "gang-up" against Israel on last week's UN settlement vote, its ambassador to Washington said today, in the latest sign of anger between the longtime allies.





Israel's ambassador Rob Dermer said in an interview with CNN that his government plans to show evidence of the alleged US maneuvering in due time."What is outrageous is that the United States was actually behind that gang-up. I think it was a very sad day, really a shameful chapter," the Israeli diplomat told CNN.



"We have clear evidence of it. We will present that evidence to the new administration through the appropriate channels. And if they want to share it with the US people they're welcome to do it," Dermer said, adding that the Israeli government is "deeply disappointed" with Washington over the UN vote.



On Friday, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding that "Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem."



The United States -- which has a veto --refrained from casting its vote, enabling the adoption of the measure, the first resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.



Dermer accused the Obama administration of helping Palestinians "wage a diplomatic and legal war against Israel." They do not want to negotiate peace with us, which is why they've avoided negotiations for eight years," he said.



"What do the Palestinians want? What they want is to blame Israel for the lack of peace and to internationalise the conflict," Dermer continued.



"What this resolution just did is it gave the Palestinians ammunition in their diplomatic and legal war against Israel. And the US not only didn't stop it, they were behind it."



Obama's soon-to-be successor, president-elect Donald Trump, who has campaigned on a promise to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, slammed the position taken by the White House.



Trump, who last week said Washington should have used its veto to block the resolution, has chosen as ambassador to Israel the hardliner David Friedman, who has said Washington will not pressure Israel to curtail settlement building in the occupied West Bank.



Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu summoned US Ambassador Daniel Shapiro yesterday to express his displeasure.



An official Israeli source confirmed only that Netanyahu and Shapiro had met, without elaborating on the content nor outcome of their discussions.
Another spectacular year of discoveries and innovations is closing soon and we are getting ready to welcome the new year with hopes and expectations. At the time of chronicling major events of science and technology for the year 2016, one can see that there is a deluge of discoveries and achievements. For India, it is the year that Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) that repeated its success saga with several launches, while the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) saw the launches of a few major Missiles including its coveted Agni-I, a surface-to-surface medium-range ballistic missile. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) took off its Light Combat Helicopter and Light Utility Helicopter to the skies. These are just some of the developments that took place in the past year.



Across the world, there were thousands of innovations in science and technology that made a mark in 2016. Here are some of the innovations that made a splash:



Shape-shifting materials

This year, scientists have been able to develop materials that change their shape over the course of time and not due to an external trigger, as it usually is. This was seen in the work of Sergei Sheiko, a Materials scientist at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA. He and his team were able to create an artificial blooming flower with petals that gradually opened, one by one.

This shape-shifting material can have wide applications in the medical world too, as it can be programmed to alter its shape after insertion into the human body. This technique can help implanting medical devices through noninvasive or minimally invasive surgery.



Diagnosing health with sweat

Doctors often ask for blood tests for diagnostic purposes as it is the sole live fluid which traverses through the entire body. During this course, it assimilates information about any metabolic changes. However, sometimes, taking blood samples through invasive techniques is painful. This need not be the case anymore as researchers have found out that sweat can also shed light on what is happening inside our body. Sweat is full of molecules that range from simple electrically charged ions to more complex proteins. Hence, doctors can use sweat to diagnose certain diseases or even uncover drug use.



In this light, John Rogers, a materials scientist and director of Northwestern Universitys Centre for Bio-Integrated Electronics, USA, and his team have developed a thin, soft and flexible skin-mounted device to capture and analyse sweat. They embedded chemical sensors and other devices into a small soft, flexible silicone rubber disc that can easily stick to skin. This will collect and analyse sweat to check for key biomarkers or health markers.



The device uses microfluidics to channel sweat drops and the process is similar to what microelectronics does with electrons. These measure specific biomarkers such as pH, lactate, chloride and glucose levels of the sweat drops. For example, the sweat sensor can show how people are responding to exercise. The new sensor can analyse sweat in real time. What makes this device unique is that it does not need any batteries to function. The researchers added that their technology could extend to other bodily fluids such as tears and saliva in future.



Better utility of spy satellites

As much as 20% of the worlds population relies on the Himalayan glaciers seasonal meltwater for various purposes including drinking water, agriculture and hydropower energy. Recent 3D imaging of the Himalayan glaciers revealed that it has been losing more ice than gaining. So, in order to monitor any changes, scientists are enlisting help in an unlikely source: the 20 US spy satellites that were used during the time of the Cold War.



These satellites will help scientists track environmental change in the Himalayas. With the data from these satellites, scientists from Columbia Universitys Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in New York and University of Utah, USA have created 3D images of the Himalayan glaciers. These satellite terrain maps provide the first consistent look at 40 years of glacier change across Asia's high-mountain

region.



A glacier may be losing mass for two reasons  it may be from melt or it may be getting less snow, year by year. By comparing the spy satellite images the scientists have estimated annual average mass loss (if melted to water) to be at least seven inches (0.18 metres) lost over the entire surface of each glacier.



Stay warm or cool with this

Rich nations spend a vast amount of money on energy consumption. Hence, scientists are focusing on improving building insulation and enabling smart temperature controls to save energy. In this light, researchers found that it would be more prudent to provide individual heating or cooling than supplying power to cool an entire building. This lead to the personal thermal management system being developed by Shanhui Fan, a professor of electrical engineering at Stanford University and his colleagues.



This is a new type of fabric that has been made using a plastic-based textile that allows the body to release heat in a new way. This allows the person to stay cool in hot climates and stay warm in cold climates more efficiently. The material used is a nanoporous polyethylene (nanoPE), which has interconnected pores 50 to 1,000 nanometres in diameter. These pores allow infrared waves to pass through them.

Shanhui found that nanoPE materials allowed 96% of infrared radiation to pass through them. In contrast, cotton clothing only permits only 1.5% of infrared radiation to pass through. The new plastic-based material allows perspiration to evaporate like any other ordinary fabrics. If nanoPE material is woven into clothing, they could make the wearer feel at least two to three degrees Celsius cooler.



A thin water filter

Removing salt from sea water, though expensive, is the only reliable method available to meet our fresh water needs. Most of the desalination plants employ a process called reverse osmosis, where a large amount of pressure is applied to salt water to force it through a semi-permeable membrane. To force the water molecules through, one needs powerful pumps, which uses a lot of electricity.

However, the aerospace engineering company, Lockheed Martin has recently produced a desalination filter material to counter this. Called Perforene, it is made with a single sheet of graphene, which is often seen as the lightest material. The holes in the Perforene captures salt molecules that are only about 100 nm in diameter. It also 500 times thinner and much stronger than traditional filters. Hence, this filter needs less energy for pumping salt water through it.



Fighting blood cancers

Our immune system is specially designed to defend us against the virus attacks. At the time of crisis, it acts as a natural weapon of mass destruction. This system has several major cell types, including T cells. Medical researchers have found that these T cells can suppress the growth of cancer cells at times, without harming other healthy tissues. However, Cellectis  a French biotechnology company based in USA  has developed genetically manipulated T cells which can destroy leukaemia (a type of blood cancer) cells.



The researchers of this laboratory have isolated the T cells from blood cancer patients bloodstream and using a virus (the identity of which is not disclosed), added new DNA instructions to aim them at the type of blood cell that fights against leukaemia. By employing the techniques of genome editing, the genetically engineered cells are known to target and kill cancerous blood cells. This new treatment has now been tested on more than 300 blood cancer patients.



The year has not just ended with these inventions; there were many more such as robots that teach each other. With so many innovative and pioneering research having taken place this year, one cannot but hope for the same to take place in the coming year.


For years, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, a conservative, has played a double act, competing domestically with his right-wing rivals in backing the settlement project all over the occupied West Bank while professing support for a two-state solution with the Palestinians.



Now, with the stinging UN Security Council resolution on Friday condemning Israeli settlement construction as lacking any legal validity, Israeli politicians and analysts on the right, the left and in the political centre say Netanyahus game may soon be up.



The Israeli right, feeling empowered by the advent of the Trump administration, which is expected to be more sympathetic to Israelis current policies, is pushing Netanyahu to abandon the idea of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, long considered the only viable solution to the conflict.



Naftali Bennett, the leader of the pro-settlement Jewish Home party in Netanyahus governing coalition, with whom Netanyahu and his Likud Party compete for votes, is goading him to take on more extreme positions like annexing parts of the West Bank, adding to a sense in Israel that the real Netanyahu may have to stand up and decide which side he is on.



He has to choose between the international community and Bennett, said Shlomo Avineri, a professor of political science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. It is not an easy choice, but he has to make a choice, Avineri said, adding, Is Israel going to alienate itself from the whole world for the sake of settlement activity? And it is the whole world. Is this what Zionism is about?



For a second consecutive day on Sunday, Netanyahu denounced the departing Obama administration, publicly accusing it of having orchestrated Fridays Security Council resolution, despite denials from Washington. The United States refrained from using its veto power, as it had done many times before to shield Israel, and abstained in the 14-0 vote.



From the information that we have, we have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated on the wording and demanded that it be passed, Netanyahu said at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting.



Referring to the US secretary of state, Netanyahu added, As I told John Kerry on Thursday, friends dont take friends to the Security Council, and he said he was looking forward to working with president-elect Donald Trumps administration when it takes office next month.



The Foreign Ministry summoned ambassadors of countries that had voted in favour of the resolution for personal meetings with ministry officials in Jerusalem, despite the Christmas holiday, which some of those countries celebrate. In a highly unusual move, Netanyahu, who is also the foreign minister, summoned the US ambassador to Israel, Daniel Shapiro, for a meeting on Sunday night.



Netanyahu also instructed his ministers to reduce their diplomatic activities and contacts with counterparts from the countries that had voted for the resolution for the next three weeks, until the US administration changes, and to minimise travel to those countries, according to Israeli news reports.



In an additional step, Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman instructed Israels agencies to suspend contact with Palestinian Authority representatives on some unspecified civil matters, though the measure was not supposed to affect security coordination or meetings about water, agriculture and the economy.



With the Israeli occupation in its 50th year and the peace process frozen, Saeb Erekat, a senior Palestine Liberation Organisation official and the Palestinians veteran negotiator, called on Israel to seize the opportunity, to wake up, to stop the violence, to stop settlements, and to resume negotiations. Netanyahu says he is ready for negotiations anytime, but with no preconditions.



The Security Council vote seemed to have caught Israel off-guard. I hope for Netanyahus sake (and also for ours) that he knows the truth at least deep in his heart  it was the chronicle of a failure foretold, Ben Caspit, a political commentator, wrote in the Maariv newspaper on Sunday.



Many commentators said the Security Council vote partly reflected a history of conflict between Netanyahu and President Barack Obama over the settlements and Netanyahus anger over the Iranian nuclear deal. They also pointed to Netanyahus increasingly vocal backing of the settler cause.



That includes his advancement of highly contentious legislation, known as the Regulation Bill that would retroactively legalise settler outposts and homes built on privately owned Palestinian land and force the owners to accept compensation.



Netanyahu and his attorney general had warned that the bill, which recently passed a first reading in parliament, contravenes international law and could land Israeli officials in the defendant dock of the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

After he said it, he rushed to vote in favour of the bill. Why? Caspit wrote. Because of Bennett. The fear of the possibility that he would not be able to siphon seats from Bennett next time on election day caused him to act like a small-time grocery owner, instead of a national leader.



Regulation Bill

Tzipi Livni, a former Israeli foreign minister and a leader of the centre-left Zionist Union, wrote on Facebook after the Security Council vote: The Security Council decision is bad for Israel and it is the result of Netanyahus surrender to the extreme right.



Even Haggai Segal, a prominent settler and editor-in-chief of a right-wing newspaper, Makor Rishon, wrote in recent months that the Regulation Bill had no chance because it would be invalidated by Israels Supreme Court and would be used by the International Criminal Court to incriminate Israel for war crimes.

Segal, who served jail time as a member of the Jewish Underground that maimed and killed Palestinians in the 1980s, wrote this summer, The wise thing now is to make do with what it is possible to do, and not lose it all by insisting on impossible goals.

Bennett did not seem deterred. In a statement to reporters on Sunday at the Western Wall in the Old City in East Jerusalem, Bennett said, Its time to decide between two alternatives: surrendering our land or sovereignty. He added that steps would be taken in the near future to try to apply Israeli law in Judea and Samaria, the biblical terms for the West Bank.



But some Israelis were sceptical that Netanyahu, in his third consecutive term in office, and fourth overall, would choose one side over the other. Bennett knows that Netanyahu is not going to make a decision, said Shmuel Sandler, a professor of political science at Bar-Ilan University, near Tel Aviv. He may say he will go with both. So far, it worked. It is easier for Bennett because he is not the prime minister. Netanyahu wants to enjoy both of the worlds.




The Forum for Building Bribe-free Karnataka has demanded the suspension of Dr B C Ravi Kumar, Director of Hassan Institute of Medical Sciences (HIMS), over the alleged irregularities.





Addressing media here, on Monday, forum president Ravi Krishna Reddy alleged that Dr Ravi Kumar had joined as assistant professor of HIMS by producing fake documents that claimed he had served in a private medical college in Sullia between 2001 and 2006.



There is no proof of Dr B C Ravi Kumar serving at KVG Medical College in Sullia. There is no proof of attendance register, salary slip or cheque or bank statement to substantiate his claims. A private complaint was lodged and summons has been issued to Dr Ravi Kumar and five others in connection with the fraud, Reddy explained.



He alleged that Dr Ravi Kumar managed to obtain experience letter from KVG Medical College and landed a teaching job at HIMS. Now, he has been promoted as Dean of the same college. It is a mockery of the administrative system, Reddy complained.



Reddy said, the fraud was exposed when a committee constituted by the government to probe a similar issue against a few professors of Mandya Institute of Medical Sciences (MIMS) was initiated. The committee, headed by retired judge R Gururajan, confirmed that the KVG Medical College has issued fake experience letters to a few doctors including Dr Ravi Kumar.



As it will be difficult to conduct a transparent probe, Dr Ravi Kumar, who is facing criminal charges, should be suspended. There are possibilities of him misusing power to tamper the records and evidence. He should be suspended and a departmental enquiry be ordered. A letter has been written to the Principal Secretary of Medical Education, seeking appointment of an honest person for the post, he said.



Reddy claimed that HIMS is in a pathetic state due to staff shortage, drinking water problems, theft of newborn babies, lack of emergency services in the evening hours, defunct CT scan machine among other problems. The patients are sent to private laboratories to get their tests done. Medical Education Minister Dr Sharan Prakash Patil and District in-charge Minister A Manju should take necessary measures to address the problems faced by the institute, he added.
More than 50 farmers, under the banner of Rajya Kabbu Belegarara Sangha, launched an indefinite protest demonstration in front of Sugar and Cooperation Minister H S Mahadev Prasads residence on Jodi Basava Road, in Kuvempu Nagar, in the city, on Monday, urging fulfilment of their demands.





Accusing the state government of being partial towards the farmers of Belagavi, Bagalkot and Vijayapura, the protestors demanded an appropriate fair and remunerative price (FRP) for sugarcane and a compensation of at least Rs 25,000 per acre for crop loss.



Claiming that Mahadev Prasad has been unfair to sugarcane growers of Mysuru region by announcing a hike of Rs 300 per tonne to cane growers in Mumbai-Karnataka districts, the farmers urged the minister to keep his promise of sharing the profits (Rs 250 per tonne) earned by the factories from the byproducts with the farmers.



Stating that farmers of Mysuru, Chamarajanagar and Mandya districts have suffered huge loss due to failure of rains and non-release of water into canals, the protestors urged the government to waive off all agriculture loans in cooperative banks as the price of available agriculture produce has also crashed, following demonetisation.



The price of sugar, per quintal, has increased by Rs 400, compared to last year. The production and transportation cost of sugarcane has also increased. But, the state government has fixed a lower purchase price, Rs 1,700, this year. It has not kept its words of announcing the FRP at Rs 2,300. In Uttar Pradesh, the government has fixed FRP of Rs 3,150 for 8.5 sugar recovery rate, the price is Rs 3,200 in Haryana, but the Karnataka government is dilly dallying to fix even Rs 3,000 for a higher recovery rate of 9.5, they said.



The protestors insisted that they will not withdraw the demonstration until the minister personally lends a ear to their grievances and issues some concrete assurances. Sangha president Kurubur Shantakumar, Attahalli Devaraj, Bhagyaraj, Shankar, Mahadevaswamy, Puttabasappa, and Narayan were present.Saraswathipuram Police provided tight security around the ministers residence.
Tension continue to simmer for the second day on Monday at Thopanahalli, which was witness to a double murder, during a clash over a petty issue on Sunday. Five persons have been arrested in this connection.





The clash, which erupted during the Gram Panchayat elections, ended in the murder of two JD(S) workers, triggering tension in the village. The clash erupted after Congress workers attacked the JD(S) workers claiming that the members of rival camp have damaged the flex put up by them.



The deceased are Nandeesh and Muthuraju. Nandeesh was pursuing a diploma course at the Government Polytechnic in Ramanagaram while Muthuraju, a farmer, had contested the GP polls a few times with JD(S) support.



The Maddur police have arrested Shivu, Hemanthkumar and Muthuraju, who were being treated at the taluk hospital, on Sunday night. The prime suspect Prasannakumar, son of Shivanna, and Kumar were arrested on Monday morning.

Superintendent of Police Sudhir Kumar Reddy told reporters that the police have launched manhunt to nab the other suspects who are at large. The last rites of the bodies of the slain JD(S) workers were performed on Monday, amid police security.



The district police have turned the village into a khaki fortress. Four platoons of reserve police, led by DySP Mathew Thomas, are camping in the village to prevent any untoward incident. Police jeeps, fire brigade vehicles and ambulances are stationed as a precautionary measure. The houses of the accused Shivanna and Devaraju were found locked as their family members have left the village.



Highway block



Meanwhile, demanding stern action against the accused, the residents of the village blocked the Bengaluru-Mysuru highway near T B Circle, disrupting vehicular traffic for more than an hour.



Earlier, JD(S) state president H D Kumaraswamy visited the town hospital, consoled the grieving families and presented cheques for Rs 1 lakh each. He was accompanied by MLA D C Thammanna, MLC K T Srikantegowda and JD(S) district president D Ramesh.



The police prevented the JD(S) workers from taking out the bodies in procession. The party workers got into an heated exchange with the police. The agitating workers withdrew their protest following the intervention of Kumaraswamy.
As uncertainty looms over the US policy in Asia-Pacific in the forthcoming Trump administration, India recently opened up trilateral talks with China and Russia to consolidate the regional position.





Earlier this month, New Delhi despatched a senior diplomat to Beijing to talk to the Chinese and Russian representatives. The move is said to create space for policy manoeuvring, enabling a response to any modification in the US policy in Asia after the change of regime in Washington.



Indias move comes two years after US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Narendra Modi met here and issued a Joint Strategic Vision for the Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean, a document that signalled the growing strategic convergence between the US and India in the region and raised hackles in China.



Sources told DH that Jaideep Mazumdar, Joint Secretary (South) at the Ministry of External Affairs headquarters in New Delhi, had met senior Chinese and Russian diplomats in Beijing for a three-nation engagement on Asia-Pacific.



The three men had in-depth exchange of views on the regional situation, foreign policy towards Asia, regional security architecture, coordination within regional and multilateral fora, anti-terrorism and other acute, topical regional issues.



They also discussed possible changes of the US policy in Asia-Pacific during the Trump era in White House and their implications for their bilateral ties with the US and for the region at large, sources said.



The diplomats agreed to continue the engagement and hold the next trilateral talks on Asia-Pacific in 2017.



New Delhis growing ties with the US and its allies in Asia-Pacific over the past few years caused unease in Beijing, which perceived it as a strategic move to contain its influence.



Indias Act East policy appeared to be in sync with US pivot to Asia, a major policy initiative of the Obama administration for strategic rebalance of Americas diplomatic and military resources to Asia.
Ten months after an Indian Catholic priest was abducted by gunmen in the Republic of Yemen, an undated video has surfaced on YouTube in which he calls for help and alleges apathy from the Indian government and the Church.





The video, uploaded on December 24, has since been shared with the family of the priest, Fr Tom Uzhunnalil, a native of Ramapuram in Keralas Kottayam district.



Fr Uzhunnalil, in the video, said that his health was deteriorating and might soon need hospitalisation. Pointing out that efforts were made by his captors to negotiate with the government of India, he said nothing constructive had been done to ensure his release.



Addressing the President and the prime minister, the priest said he was depressed over the apathy. He also stated that Pope Francis and the Bishop of Abu Dhabi, despite contacts made by his captors, had not initiated measures for his release.



Several months have gone by and my captors have made many contacts with the government of India to get me released. Honourable President and prime minister of India, I am very sad (as) nothing has been done seriously in my regard. Reports in the news suggest that everything is being done to get me released quickly but in reality, nothing seems to have happened, Fr Uzhunnallil said in the video, the authenticity of which could not be ascertained.



Fr Uzhunnalil said if he were a European priest, the authorities would have taken him more seriously and released already. I am from India and therefore perhaps not considered of much value. I am sad about this, he said in the five-minute video.



The 56-year-old Salesian priest from the Province of Bengaluru was abducted on March 4, 2016, after gunmen attacked a Missionaries of Charity convent and nursing home for the elderly, killing at least 16 people, including four nuns.
The JD(S) is yet to decide whether to field a candidate for the Nanjangud Assembly byelection.





State party president H D Kumaraswamy told reporters in Bengaluru on Monday the Assembly elections would be held in six months or a years time after the byelection.



Hence, the party is contemplating whether to contest the byelection. If it does, then it would field Keshavamurthy, he added.



The ruling Congress has made arrangements for distribution of Rs 25,000 as loan for each of the 15,000 families in Nanjangud. This loan is arranged by the Ambedkar Housing Corporation. The government is also getting ready to lay the foundation for various projects worth Rs 400 crore to Rs 500 crore, he said.


The state government on Monday faced a new hurdle in executing the Yettinahole project with BJP, peoples representatives and activists threatening to intensify their opposition against the project in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi.





A meeting convened by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah with politicians, environmentalists and experts from the coastal region to allay misgivings about the project backfired.



BJP members and Nethravathi Rakshana Samyuktha Samithi (an umbrella organisation of like-minded organisations opposing the project) boycotted the proceedings midway stating that they will intensify their agitation against the project as they are not convinced by the governments stand.



There was a war of words both inside and outside the meeting venue between the BJP and Congress members after Siddaramaiah stated that there is no question of dropping the project as civil works amounting to Rs 1,800 crore had already been completed.



He also pointed out that it was the BJP government that had initiated the project in 2012.



The Rs 13,000-crore project proposes diversion of 24.01 tmcft of water at Yettinahole in Hassan district to cater to the drinking water needs of people in Kolar, Chikkaballapur, Bengaluru Rural and Tumakuru districts.



Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Forest Minister Ramanath Rai even dared the BJP to move a motion in the legislature seeking that the project be scrapped.



If the House adopts the motion, I will even fall at the feet of the chief minister to get the project abandoned. The BJP is playing a double game. While it holds a padayatra in Kolar seeking that the project be implemented, the same party organises agitations in Dakshina Kannada against the project, Rai said.



Dakshina Kannada MP Nalin Kumar Katil of the BJP said his party will not allow the project. The government has not answered several questions we have raised.

Besides, the matter is before the National Green Tribunal. Let a study team comprising elected representatives and experts be constituted to plan the conservation and utilisation of water of west-flowing rivers before taking any step forward, Katil said.



Water Resources Minister M B Patil said the deficient rainfall this year had affected the flow of over 140 tmcft water into Nethravathi River, but it had not caused any ecological damage in the Western Ghats region.


The year 2016 dawned with the hope of a thaw in Indias troubled ties with Pakistan. The neighbours had just agreed to restart the dialogue which New Delhi had suspended in January 2013 after the Pakistani army and militants had killed two Indian Army soldiers and beheaded one of them.





Prime Minister Narendra Modi had just made a surprise visit to Lahore to greet his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif on his birthday and to attend the wedding ceremony of his granddaughter.



Yet the hope was belied and 2016 proved to be the annus horribilis for India-Pakistan relations. The year began with the January 2-5 deadly attack on the Indian Air Force base at Pathankot in Punjab by Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorists from Pakistan. Then came the July 8 killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani by the security forces in Kashmir.



Pakistan sought to cash in on the protest against the killing to raise its pitch on Kashmir and launched a high-octane international campaign against India.



The September 18 attack  again by terrorists from the neighbouring country  on a brigade headquarters of the Indian Army at Uri in north Kashmir prompted New Delhi to pull out of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) summit, which was to be held in Islamabad on November 9.



The summit was called off as six other Saarc-member nations also sided with India. Modi later hosted the leaders of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (Bimstec) on the sidelines of the Brics summit in Goa, ostensibly to promote the bloc for regional cooperation sans Pakistan. India used both Brics and Bimstec summits to lambaste Pakistan for sponsoring terrorism.
Dashnaktsutyun follows Seyran Ohanyan (video)

2016 was a year of new beginning for Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), Aghvan Vardanyan, secretary of the NA ARF faction, told journalists in the final press conference. During the recent 6 months of 2016, 800 people have joined Dashnaktsutyun. 80 percent of them are young people. Touching upon the upcoming parliamentary elections, Mr Vardanyan noted that he welcomes each political union, alliance, but as of now Dashnaktsutyun does not carry out negotiations with any force. As for the alliance with the Republican Party of Armenia (HHK), the results of the elections will show whether continue the cooperation or not: People can see that there is an opportunity to make changes in Armenia through elections, said Aghvan Vardanyan, adding that the representation of Dashnaktsutyun as well as opposition forces in the new parliament will be very important: Under the conditions of this new system the bigger the role of Dashnaktsutyn, the representation in the parliament is, the more inner sustainability in our country will be ensured, real preconditions for development will be established, the security of our country, Artsakh will be guaranteed, foreign interventions will be less or will face resistance. We want our political forces to realize that at the claim of Dashnaktsutyun it was determined in the Constitution that the opposition must have 30 percent of positions in the parliament, as we understand that without real representation of the opposition, without counteraction, the country cannot develop. Mr Vardanyan also touched upon Seyran Ohanyans and Gagik Tsarukyans return to politics, noting that it is their right, Seyran Ohanyan is not new in the politics; he held a political post, was member of political team. Simply I want to know by what format, which team, what political force he will return to politics. As for Levon Ter-Petrosyans speech at the Armenian National Congress (HAK) conference, there is nothing new for Aghvan Vardanyan, The only good and new thing was that Henrikh Mkhitaryan is our greatest pride. Compromise implies concessions from two sides; if one side doesnt resort to concessions, it cannot be called compromise. Mr Vardanyan also singled out another important event for this year, seizure of police regiment by Sasna Dzrer, In spite of sincerity and hopelessness of that step, I think that it was directed towards destroying the unity of our nation formed during April War and was guided by foreign forces.
Former Air Force chief S P Tyagi was on Monday granted bail, 18 days after his arrest by the CBI in the AgustaWestland case. The special court said the apprehension that Tyagi will influence witnesses appears unfounded.





Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted bail to Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh and a surety of the same amount, but imposed conditions like that he will not try to influence witnesses or leave the National Capital Region without the courts permission.



The court will hear the bail petitions of two others  his cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan  on January 4.



Tyagi was arrested on December 9, following years of probe into the case registered in 2013. The case had rocked the country following charges of bribery to the tune of around Rs 450 crore paid by Finmeccanica, the Italian company that produces AgustaWestland choppers, through a maze of companies. Tyagi also became the first former military chief to be arrested.



The court felt that the CBIs apprehension that he may tamper with evidence is without any basis and that he would influence witnesses who had been subordinate to him during his tenure appears unfounded.



The court noted that during the last three years and nine months after lodging the FIR, a lookout notice against Tyagi was withdrawn by the CBI, his accounts were defrozen after the investigation agency gave its no objection and he was allowed to travel.



Rejecting CBIs arguments to deny bail, the accused has joined the investigation as and when called by the CBI and has also been questioned in custody. No purpose will be served keeping the accused behind the bar, the order said.



The CBI said, Certain new dimensions have emerged, and Tyagis release at this moment would seriously hamper further investigation and lead to alerting other potential witnesses and also destruction of evidence.
IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha said he would have been happier if his predecessor S P Tyagi was treated with more respect by the investigating agencies.





Tyagi has been named as an accused in a scam involving the purchase of VVIP helicopters. If they could treat him with more respect till the time he is proven guilty, I would be happy, said Raha, who is to retire on December 31.



The comments from Indias senior-most military officer come on a day when Tyagi got bail from a Delhi court after spending 18 days behind the bars. Raha gave his comments in a television interview.



Asked if Tyagi should not have been incarcerated like any common criminal, Raha said, I agree. He described Tyagi as professionally sound with whom he had worked in the past.



This is for the first time that a serving military chief has spoken on the arrest of Tyagi, who was being investigated by the CBI for the last three years as part of the probe on the charge of corruption while purchasing 12 VVIP helicopters from arms major AgustaWestland.



Two retired military chiefs, Admiral Arun Prakash and Air Chief Marshal Anil Tipnis wrote articles asking the authorities to stop harassing Tyagi and take the matter to the court at the earliest. There are also voices in the social media in support of Tyagi.



Its very unfortunate that a person of his stature has been investigated by the CBI and other agencies, so it definitely hurt the morale of the people, of the armed forces. I cant say that it doesnt dent our image, dent our reputation, it definitely does, Raha said.



We will go by the law of the land. Let the judicial process be completed and the evidence be produced in the court. he said.
The Congresss attempt to project unity among all the Opposition parties has hit rough weather again.





Major anti-BJP parties such as the Left, Janata Dal (United), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Samjwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Sanaj Party (BSP), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) expressed their unwillingness to attend a meeting and press conference called by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday.



The Congress called the meeting saying all Opposition parties could evolve a joint strategy and show the people that they have peppered over differences to take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a grand way in the wake of note ban.



But the parties, barring the Trinamool Congress (TMC), still appeared peeved with Congress vice president Rahul Gandhis decision to meet Modi in Parliament without consulting them.



TMC chief Mamata Banerjee, who has been at the forefront of the protests against demonetisation, however, conveyed her readiness to attend the meeting. Let us see what happens, she said in Kolkata before leaving for Delhi.



The Left, which has not hidden its reservations over Mamatas role in the exercise, said the Congress should know that in a combined effort, prior understanding and consultations are a must.



CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury said he received a call from the Congress leadership inviting him for the press conference.



But when I wanted to know the agenda of the meeting, plan of action and whether all Opposition parties have been called, I didnt receive any answer, he said.
Opposition parties, including the Left, the JD (U) and the RJD, are trying to use Sahara dairies to target both the BJP and the Congress. Their number one enemy is, however, Prime Minister Narendra Modi.





The stand of these parties may not suit elder leaders of Congress party, but it endorses Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's position that the information contained in the dairies needs a probe.



This stand also suits their politics of not allowing the Congress to take lead in articulating opposition to Modi government.



The dairies which have been in circulation contain the names of Congress leaders including that of then Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit. She has denied the allegation.



The parties including the Left, JD (U), RJD and NCP are demanding a probe even if it contains names of Congress leaders or any other party.



All the parties are allying with the Congress, but they do not want to allow the Congress to grow beyond a limit that the latter may re-emerge on its own. The reason is simple. All these parties have overlapping constituencies with the Congress in their states of influence and they are in competition with the grand old party.



I want that the Sahara diaries be made public now and all the people named in it be questioned, said JD (U) leader K C Tyagi.



Irrespective of who has been named in the list, immediate action should be taken and a probe by a sitting judge of the Supreme Court ordered, said RJD leaderManoj Jha.



Because we do not want to target an individual, rather we do not want the prime ministers position losing its credibility in front of the entire world and this is our priority, he said. It does not matter if the person is from the Congress or the BJP or is a PM or a former CM, said NCP leader.
For the first time after the high court gave a green signal for the implementation of Akrama-Sakrama scheme, a preliminary meeting at the ministerial-level was held on Monday.





The meeting was chaired by Bengaluru Development Minister K J George. Cut-off date for regularisation of unauthorised buildings, regularisation fee, date of issuing applications for regularisation among others, were discussed at the meeting.



Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Commissioner N Manjunath Prasad told DH: Issues like land conversion and whether a person with agricultural/revenue land should directly approach the district commissioner or BBMP for conversion, were discussed. We plan to compile all the issues discussed and put them before Chief Minister Siddaramaiah at a meeting to be held shortly, Prasad said.



The high court on December 13 had dismissed petitions challenging the state governments Akrama-Sakrama scheme. With this, the government has got a chance to regularise domestic and commercial buildings violating municipal bylaws. According to BBMP, there are at least 1.54 lakh such properties built before October 19, 2013.
Memorandum signed with Iran

The Chairman of the RA Investigative Committee Aghvan Hovsepyan met the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Islamic Republic of Iran Naser Seraj in Tehran. The parties were pleased to record the efficient cooperation between the law enforcement bodies of two countries, the legal mechanisms developed for that purpose. The efficient cooperation, particularly in providing legal aid to each other in fight against transnational crime, illegal turnover of drugs, disclosure of cyber and corruption crimes, experience exchange on investigation peculiarities, protection of rights and freedoms of citizens and legal entities was highlighted. Pursuant to the memorandum of understanding signed in Yerevan an agreement was achieved on signing a two-year program on cooperation in the framework of which joint measures will be taken, discussions will be held on the above-mentioned issues important for both parties. At the end of negotiations a press conference was held during which the Chairman of the RA Investigative Committee Aghvan Hovsepyan and the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Islamic Republic of Iran Naser Seraj answered the reporters questions. During the working visit the RA IC Chairman has met the First Deputy Head of IRI Judiciary Mr. Gholam-Hossein Mohseni Ejei, Deputy Head of Judiciary on social issues and crime prevention Mohammad Bagher Olfat. During the meetings the parties emphasized the importance of cooperation in fight against crime, during investigation of criminal cases to provide the inevitability of punishment of those having committed criminally prohibited acts, to protect the human rights. A wide range of issues of mutual interest was discussed and a number of new directions to develop the cooperation were outlined. The RA IC Chairman continues his working visit in Tehran. Information and Public Relations Department of the RA Investigative Committee
Azerbaijan may block gas supply to Armenia (video)

A pipeline transporting natural gas from Russia to Armenia may appear in the hands of Azerbaijan. The grave economic situation in Georgia has forced the countrys authorities to put the gas pipeline on sale. After the recent parliamentary elections [in Georgia, the countrys prime minister said that the government was planning to sell 25% shares of the gas company as well as the Georgian railway. They will try to get more income, directing it towards the modernization of their assets, says Johnny Melikyan, expert on Georgian affairs. The pipeline transporting natural gas to Armenia is not profitable to Georgia, and it is the aspiration for additional income that forced the Georgian authorities to put it on sale. The main question is why the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) is interested in a pipeline with such a low income. SOCARs interest in the pipeline is determined by Armenia. They want to be part of the project, control the process and be informed about it, says Armen Manvelyan, an expert in geopolitics and international security. There is danger that Azerbaijan might block the gas supply to Armenia if hostilities resume between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Experts say that Armenia cannot remain without gas even in a force majeure situation. Armen Manvelyan says, The Iran-Armenia gas pipeline is an interesting project and it is quite workable. In such a force majeure situation, it can fully supply natural gas to Armenia. Anyway, it cannot be an alternative to Russian gas. It can work only for a short period of time. Gia Khakhashvili, Board Chairman at the Georgian Development Research Institute, said at a discussion organized by the Media Center NGO. He said the Georgian government fully understands the importance of gas pipeline for Armenia and even if the pipeline the Azerbaijani company (SOCAR) acquires it, the Georgian side will guarantee its uninterrupted operation.
We are now just a few days shy of calling it a New Year and 2017 already looks like a jam packed year for technology. While we have already summed up the tech trends expected to rule the coming year, companies also have an exciting portfolio of products lined up for 2017. So without further ado, lets take a look at whats in the pipeline. Here are the most anticipated tech launches of 2017.

Samsung Galaxy S8

After Samsungs fiasco with the Galaxy Note 7, the South Korean tech giant is gearing up to redeem its losses (and its reputation) with the upcoming Galaxy S8 smartphone. Samsung is looking at launching the Galaxy S8 at a dedicated event in New York in April, but there are internal arguments about an early launch. According to ChoiceNews, the handset is likely to cost 15% to 20% more than the Galaxy S7, owing to increased prices of raw materials. The company also recently filed for a trademark on Beast Mode, which is expected to feature in the Galaxy S8. Looks like the device may get some powerful VR, gaming capabilities. Lets wait and watch.

TCLs new BlackBerrys

We recently told you that Blackberry has given TCL the rights to manufacture smartphones under its name. Now, as per hints dropped by TCL, the company is already set to showcase something evolutionary at the Consumer Electronic Show 2017. In a press statement, TCL announced that the company has plans to unveil an evolutionary first in the mobile industry, including BB phones. No other details have been revealed so far, but we are really hoping Blackberry phones get some life pumped into them in 2017.

iPhones 10th anniversary

2017 will mark the 10th anniversary of the original iPhone and Apple is expected to take full advantage of that fact. According to the Wall street Journal, Apple may bring about some big, distinctive design changes to the iPhone. Apple is reportedly working on three iPhones for 2017 with one of the models getting AMOLED display and a thin bezel-less design. However, considering Apple's launch cycle for the iPhone, we could also be looking at an iPhone 7s in 2017.

A Google branded laptop

The Mountain View tech giant is planning to overhaul its Chrome and Android ecosystems in 2017. According to Android Police, Google is planning to leverage the Andromeda OS and make an all new laptop. Expected to launch in fall 2017, the new machine will show off Googles revised vision of the Chromebook. The computer is also expected to be a hybrid, and function like a tabet as well as a laptop at the same time.

Microsoft VR

Microsoft revealed the required specifications for running its Virtual Reality headsets on Windows 10 systems. According to The Verge, the company has included a "Windows Holographic First Run" application in the recent test builds of Windows 10 to find if a machine is compatible. Word is that the company will launch VR support for all Windows 10 PCs as part of the Creators Update early next year. The company is reportedly creating its own VR platform using the Windows Holographic platform, which powers the HoloLens headset. Microsoft will be partnering with several manufacturers such as HP, Dell, Lenovo, Asus, and Acer to build the headsets.

Foldable Samsung phones

Rumours of Samsung unveiling foldable phones have been doing the rounds for a while now. According to a report by ETNews, Samsung was to start mass producing foldable displays by the end of this year, with market availability starting in 2017. Reaffirming these plans, Samsung recently published a patent with renders of a phone that folds into half from the middle. Sounding rather futuristic, the device is expected to hit the market somewhere in 2017.

Nintendo Switch

Nintendos puppy-faced modular console, Switch will also see its market launch in 2017. The new system can work as a console and a handheld gaming device. The device will be debuted on January 12 in a Tokyo event and is expected to hit the shelves on March 17, 2017.

Xbox Project Scorpio

At E3 2016, Microsoft gave the world a quick glimpse at its new, supercharged console, Xbox Project Scorpio. The console is aimed at 4K gaming, and is also tipped to support VR gaming. Microsoft's Xbox head Phil Spencer told the audience that Project Scorpio will have an 8-core processor, 320GB memory bandwidth and 6 teraflops of GPU performance.

Google smartwatch

A recent report by Android Police states that Google is in the process of designing its own smartwatches. The watches seem to have a circular interface and are reportedly codenamed Angelfish and Swordfish. The watches are also expected to be powered by Googles AI assistant called, well, Assistant.
TCL's next BlackBerry-branded smartphone could come with QWERTY keyboard

In the world of technology, 2017 could end up being the year of redemption. The now defunct Nokia is planning a grand comeback in February and BlackBerry, the Canadian smartphone maker has similar ambitions with things taking shape as early as January 2017.

BlackBerry which recently sold its brand licensing deal to TCL, is aiming to take on the household names in the smartphone market early next year. TCL, the Chinese manufacturer is planning to announce new BlackBerry-branded smartphones at CES 2017. TCL has announced its plan to "unveil an evolutionary first in the mobile industry" at CES and it could very well come with BlackBerry branding.

There are no concrete details on what TCL plans to announce but a purported BlackBerry device codenamed Mercury has been making the internet rounds for all the right reasons.

BlackBerry Mercury's leaked renders hint at a candybar smartphone with dedicated QWERTY keyboard, a hallmark among BlackBerry devices. The smartphone is expected to feature candybar form factor along with a QWERTY keyboard complete with BlackBerry touchpad gesture support.

TCL is already giving away hints that more BlackBerry devices coming out of TCL will feature QWERTY keyboard and it is unclear whether TCL is trying to take BlackBerry back to its roots. With virtual keyboards having turned really great for typing, it is questionable how TCL will sell the option of QWERTY keyboard.
From putting a bullet through Googles head to putting one in its own. CyanogenOS is no more, with the company shutting down all Cyanogen services recently. Does that mean your Cyanogen-powered phone is now dead? As has become usual in the tech industry, Cyanogen Incs announcement was misinterpreted by the media and users alike, leading to rumours and speculations. If youre confused, heres what the death of Cyanogen really means.

No more updates

If youre running a smartphone on CyanogenOS you will no longer be getting updates. There will be no more nightlies and no more regular OTA updates for such devices. So, you will need to move to a different OS.

To simplify it, if you have a OnePlus One that still runs on CynogenOS, or a Lenovo Zuk Z1 or older Yu smartphones, you need to change operating systems. That should be easy for OnePlus users, since the company already has its own OxygenOS. Weve reached out to Lenovo and Yu, the other two brands that have CM-powered phones in India, and neither responded to our queries.

Note: That is an ominous sign for those who purchased devices from these OEMs, running CyanogenMod.

Cyanogens statement said, As part of the ongoing consolidation of Cyanogen, all services and Cyanogen-supported nightly builds will be discontinued no later than 12/31/16. The open source project and source code will remain available for anyone who wants to build CyanogenMod personally.

What happens to CyanogenMod?

The open source code repository for CyanogenMod is stays where it is, and it is up to individuals to take it forward. However, there will be no official advancement. The CM team said that building its own infrastructure to continue CyanogenMod would be risky, since the brand itself can be sold by Cyanogen Inc at any point.

In addition to infrastructure being retired, we in the CM community have lost our voice in the future direction of CM  the brand could be sold to a third party entity as it was an asset that Kondik risked to start his business and dream. Even if we were to regroup and rebuild our own infrastructure, continuing development of CM would mean to operate with the threat of sale of the brand looming over our heads. Then there is the stigma that has grown to be attached to anything named Cyanogen. Many of you reading this have been champions of clarifying that the CM product and CyngnOS were distinct, yet the stain of many PR actions from Cyngn is a hard one to remove from CM. Given CMs reliance on Cyngn for monetary support and the shared source base, its not hard to understand why the confusion remains, the CM team said in a blog post.

Continuing the Lineage

CyanogenMod may be dead, but the idea behind the ROM isnt. The team has announced that it is going back to the roots, with what it calls Lineage OS (Lineage Android Distribution). Essentially, this is a rebranding of CyanogenMod. Lineage OS will be be built on the same foundation as CyanogenMod, that is a community driven approach.

While that doesnt guarantee its success, it is plausible for the CM team to build the same kind of following it had for CyanogenMod at one time.

What happens to Cyanogen Inc?

If youre not yet clear on this, Cyanogen Inc (often referred to as Cyngn) is not the same as CyanogenMod. Cyngn owns the CyanogenMod brand and while the OS and the services behind it have been shut down, the company itself may or may not close. Currently, there is no word on whether Cyngn will also shut down. So, to quote Nick Fury, from Avengers, Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on.

Is your phone bricked?

Your phone will most likely not be bricked, but critical components may fail after the services are withdrawn. Unfortunately, one will have to wait till January 1, 2017 to understand how such phones will be affected. Regardless, continuing with an OS that isnt supported is never recommended.
Airtel has accused TRAI of being a mute spectator while it suffers significant prejudice and day-to-day losses.

Airtel, Indias largest mobile service provider, has challenged the Telecom Regulatory Authority of Indias (TRAI) decision, giving Reliance Jio a green chit to continue its free voice calling and data services. After investigation Jio for predatory pricing, the telecom regulator had earlier stated that Reliance Jios offer of lifetime free voice calling services complies with existing rules and is not discriminatory.

Now, in a fresh appeal to the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) on Friday, Airtel has challenged TRAIs decision. Airtels complaint to the quasi-judicial body states that Jio was incorrectly allowed to continue its free promotional offers beyond 90 days, and that TRAI has been a mute spectator to these violations. The 25-page petition from Airtel also urges TDSAT to rule against the continuation of Reliance Jios free voice and internet services beyond December 3. Remember, Jio had recently announced an extension of its welcome offer till March 31, 2017.

In addition, the incumbent telco said that Jios free offers are affecting its services and creating "significant prejudice and day-to-day loss" for the company. The petition was presented before the TDSAT bench on Friday, where TRAI asked for 10 days to arrive at a decision. However, the tribunal directed TRAI to decide the next day and instructed Jio to file an impleadment application. The next date for the hearing of the matter has been fixed for January 6, 2017.
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October 30, 2022

Holidays are about making memories and there are so many reasons why visiting Walt Disney World during the holidays is a must-do. Now more than ever, in this fast-paced world, its so important to take that time to give experiences to your families because in doing so, you will be creating memories that will last a
Police charge suspect who fired at police, was shot in exchange

Columbus police identified the gunman wounded by police early Thursday morning as Raymond Richard Hampton, 26, of the University District.
A 59-year-old man who died on Monday near his home following a road traffic collision has been named locally as Bartley Doohan of Curransport.

The incident occurred on a minor road at Curransport, Gortahork, sometime after 1.30am and 11.30am. The man was pronounced dead at the scene.

A single vehicle road traffic collision, its understood the incident occurred less than half a kilometre from the mans home.

Reacting to the death of Mr Doohan, local Cllr. John Sheamais O Fearraigh said the community had been shocked by the news of the death of the well-liked man.

"Again, we see, unfortunately, accidents occurring at this festive time," he said.

"It seems to be a sad time of year when you see tragic events happening close to your door."

Cllr. O Fearraigh offered his condolences to Mr Doohan's family.

He said Mr Doohan had returned to Donegal after working in construction for some time in Dublin, England and Scotland.

Gardai in Falcarragh are investigating the single vehicle road traffic collision. Mr Doohan was the sole occupant of the car.

The Democrat understands Mr Doohan's car went off the road.

Gardai and emergency service personnel attended at the scene this morning.

Garda forensic collision investigators carried out investigations this afternoon.

A Post Mortem will be held at Letterkenny University Hospital.
Members of the musical Mooney family of Gaoth Dobhair have played music together since childhood, and entertained audiences around the world with Altan and other performances.

But it was not until this year that they recorded their first CD together.

Weve been talking about it for years, and then when youre a family its a wee bit like fresh air and water  you take everything for granted, Mairead Ni Mhaonaigh, co-founder of Altan, said. And then you realise, wouldnt it be nice if we did come together to make something.

There is more for the Mooneys to celebrate these days, with the announcement last week that Mairead has been named the TG4 Gradam Ceoil Traditional Musician of the Year.

Im just delighted and totally honoured, Mairead said. Id still be playing music if nobody ever listened to me  its my identity now  but its lovely to be given the recognition for your work.

Na Mooneys, the familys new CD, brings together Mairead and her siblings, Anna Ni Mhaonaigh on whistle and vocals, and Gearoid O Maonaigh on guitar; Ciaran O Maohaigh, Gearoids son, on fiddle and octave fiddle; Caitlin Nic Gabhann, Ciarans wife, on concertina and foot percussion; and Nia Byrne, Maireads 13-year-old daughter, on fiddle and vocals.

The CD was produced by Na Mooneys with Manus Lunny, who also plays bouzouki and keyboards on a number of tracks.

The distinctive Donegal fiddle playing of Francie Mooney also appears on the final track of the CD, from a 2003 recording made at Cuil a Dun in Teelin by Hummingbird Productions for the television series The Raw Bar.

Francie passed away in 2006, but his influence is across the recording: Mairead said when they thought about the tunes and songs for the CD, they first went through songs they played with Francie, their father. Some of the tunes came from Francies mother, the well-known musician known locally as Roise Mhor.

Roise played the concertina and he got a lot of tunes from her, so were going back a lot of generations here, Mairead said.

Na Mooneys is dedicated to Francies memory.

We were always quite close-knit anyway, and I think that comes through in it, Gearoid said.

Sitting around the table at Maireads west Donegal Gaeltacht home, the Mooney siblings spoke about their latest project and how it came about. It was Mairead and Ciaran who first went to Manus studio to put down some basic fiddle tracks.

When we had the tracks down I got very excited about it, I really did, Mairead said. Because I knew there was something unusual there.

The familys busy schedules made for some delays, though they were all committed to the project. It took about four years from that first trip to the studio to the CDs release this year.

Ciaran has a great drive about him and he kept pushing, pushing, pushing, Mairead said.

Some of the tracks are unusual versions of Donegal tunes that Mairead recovered from archives  there is a new version of The Morning Dew, for example, and a little-heard John Doherty version of John Dohertys reel. The Doherty tune is linked with Frankie Kennedys reel, a tune Maireads late husband, Frankie, would play; and the Limerick Lasses, a tune master fiddle player Tommy Peoples turned into a session mainstay.

Belfast flute and tin whistle player Frankie Kennedy and Mairead had married in 1981 and recorded together before founding Altan some years later. After Frankies death from cancer in 1994, the Mooneys organised and ran the Frankie Kennedy Winter School in his memory for 20 years, until it was succeeded by Scoil Gheimhridh Ghaoth Dobhair in 2014.

As Gearoid said, the feeling of family runs deep in the recording. But this also made for interesting moments in the studio: Na Mooneys said that when youre recording with family, diplomacy sometimes goes out the window.

Its like, What note are you playing?, you know, Mairead said. Gearoid added, There were some compliments, though  Gearoid, youre doing that wrong. They all laughed.

And they all credited Manus for his work coordinating the production, and for his role at times, as Anna said, as the UN peace process. They laughed again.

The recording process was also a different experience for those family members who are more familiar with live playing.

Its not like sitting down playing a session in Hiudais, Gearoid said, referring to the Monday and Friday night sessions in Hiudai Beags in Bunbeg, where he is a stalwart player, as was Francie, and where all of the Mooneys have played at times over the years.

Its a different process. In a session, youre playing for the moment, Mairead explained. It does sound great and its brilliant, but its different.

On the record, the moment will last forever, she said.

In recent weeks, Ciaran and Caitlin, who perform as a duo, had finished a sold-out tour of the western United States. Speaking later from Dublin, Ciaran said work on the CD was a pleasure, and he was delighted with the finished product.

I really enjoyed it, being in the studio with family, he said.

The Mooney siblings describe their music-filled Gaoth Dobhair youth in golden tones. They were encouraged and supported in their music by Francie and their mother, Kiti Rua Bn Ui Mhaonaigh, and they recalled summers of day-long trad sessions at Hiudais, followed by parties into the morning hours where musicians would gather to keep the tunes going. One morning Kiti made 60 breakfasts, feeding musicians and Irish students who had landed at the house after one of those nights.

They learned many tunes during those sessions, and during family gatherings, where they played and sang with relatives. That is part of the legacy the CD celebrates.

Its passing on a legacy, a tradition, Ann said. Its our particular viewpoint of it, but its very much passing it on.

Na Mooneys are performing in Letterkenny Trad Week and the Temple Bar Trad Fest in Dublin, both in January. They will also play in Cork when Mairead is presented with her award.

As a family we are all very proud of her, Maireads nephew Ciaran said. She followed her dream, just playing her music and taking her own culture with her and putting it on stages around the world.

So were all very proud of her, but sometimes we dont get a chance to say that, he said.

Na Mooneys is available in shops and online at namooneys.bandcamp.com.
Home Four wheelers Mercedes-Benz To Showcase Its Concept EQ And Vision Van At CES 2017 oi-Sreejith

German automaker Mercedes-Benz is all geared up to debut the Concept EQ and the Mercedes-Benz Vision Van at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January 2017. The company will introduce its CASE (Connected, Autonomous, Shared & Service, and Electric Drive).



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Home Four wheelers Uber Self-Driving Cars Head To Arizona After California Dispute oi-Sukesh

Uber Technologies Inc pulled out its self-driving cars from California and the cars are headed to Arizona. Uber shut down the self-driving car project in its hometown after a dispute over permit with the regulators.

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Sarah Rice (nee Finnegan), Ardaghy, Omeath, passed away peacefully on 22 October, 2016.

Originally from Annaskeagh, Mountpleasant, Sarah was a daughter of the late Mary and Mathew Finnegan.

Born in 1942, she came from a family of eleven, and often talked about her childhood, growing up in a large family, and the happiness they shared together.

Sarah attended Ravensdale national school along with her siblings, where she met friends whom she remained close to throughout the years.

In 1959, Sarah took up her first job in the Textiles factory in Dundalk where she worked for several years.

Sarah met her husband, Patrick, at the local dance in Mountpleasant hall. They later married in 1961, and set up home in Omeath, and were happily married for 55 years.

Sarah then took up employment in the Strand Hotel in Omeath, which she enjoyed, and where she made great friends whom she often spoke about.

Sarah and Patrick had three daughters, Patricia, Linda and Valerie, to whom she was a devoted mother, and, in her later years, a devoted grandmother in her gentle and caring ways.

She enjoyed family life and always liked get-togethers with family and friends. In her younger days, she had a great singing voice, and enjoyed music.

When Sarahs family was grown up, she decided to return to work in her spare time.

In 1989, she got employment in the Carrickdale Hotel where she worked for 16 years, and was very well respected and appreciated by her employers and colleagues. She thoroughly enjoyed this work up until her retirement.

Sarah had a great devotion to Saint Martin de Porres and Saint Brigid, and would visit St. Brigids Shrine in Faughart regularly with her daughters and grandchildren.

She was very good-natured and kind in every way. She had a very good attitude towards life, and a very sharp and witty sense of humour.

Sarah loved her grandchildren, and enjoyed having them around her, and watching them grow. She was delighted with the arrival of her first great-grandchild last year.

During Sarahs short illness she never complained. Her good humour and gratitude inspired all who cared for her.

After reposing at her home, her remains were received in St. Laurences Church, Omeath, on October 25, and the funeral took place to the adjoining cemetery.

She was predeceased by her parents, Mary and Mathew Finnegan, sisters, Claire and Bridie and brothers, Matt, Dominic and Peter.

Sarah is survived by her husband, Patrick, daughters, Patricia, Linda and Valerie, sons-in-law, Eric, Kieran and Ciaran, grandchildren, Claire, Emma, Martin, Micheal, Grace, Patrick and Michael, great-grandchild, Darragh, along with sisters, Josie, Joan and Mavis, brothers, Frank and Thomas, sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, nieces, nephews, friends, and entire family circle, by whom she will be sadly missed and never forgotten.
2017 Spanish property market gems

2016 has been a good year for the Spanish property market. Spanish properties enjoyed steady price growth and an encouraging transaction rate during the year. House sales in Spain have recorded a 15% rise on the previous year and ten consecutive quarters of growth, which means that the Spanish property market crash officially ended in Q2 2014. According to the experts at innovative Spanish property portal Kyero.com, the country hasnt looked back since.

As well as being a good year for Spanish property in general, 2016 was also a record-breaking year for Kyero.com. Despite Spains stubbornly high unemployment rate, weak economy, restricted credit and a period of almost no government, the property portal has flourished  much like the countrys housing market.

Richard Speigal, Head of Research at Kyero.com, explains why,

Spains market has two unusual advantages. Firstly, it had nowhere to go but up. The 2008 crisis completely shredded the housing market, and little short of a zombie apocalypse could have sent it lower. Secondly, Spain has incredible international appeal; with one in five property sales going to foreigners, it can endure weak local demand. British, French, German, Dutch, Belgian, Italian and Swedish buyers are picking up the slack, which has been good news for the wider market and for those involved in selling property in Spain.

The UKs Brexit vote looked set to disrupt the market balance in mid-2016, given that British buyers top foreign demand in Spain, but the anticipated drop-off in UK demand never materialized. Instead, overseas searches for Spanish property via Kyero.com hit all-time highs after the vote, up over 50% on 2015. The portals largest agents also reported seeing record attendance at UK investor shows. Buyers were certainly talking about Brexit, but still looking for Spanish in their droves while they did so. Q3 2016 figures from the Spanish land registry confirmed the trend  foreign sales in Spain were close to all-time highs.

The situation in the UK goes some way to explain this, according to Kyero.coms Richard Speigal,

The British housing market is currently moribund, with prices rising way beyond all the laws of affordability, and transactions at historic lows. The winners of this situation are older Brits who find themselves sitting on a vast trove of property wealth (while homeownership becomes a dying dream for their kids).

In short, the 50+ British buyers who so love Spain are sitting on huge equity piles and Brexit didnt diminish their wealth. As a group, British buyers are getting richer. Q3 sales to Brits may have slowed, but they are only blinking rather than quitting. The fundamentals remain healthy.

The one area that Brexit has impacted is the hunt for value and this will translate to a key trend in the Spanish property market in 2017: the search for good value properties that offset the drop in sterlings value. Evidence is already emerging of the benefits of this on lower priced destinations, which look set to boom in 2017.

With this in mind, and using completed sales data (via land registry statistics) and search data from Kyero.com (as a forward indicator of buyer sentiment), along with the international mix of buyers in each destination, and relative property prices, Kyero.com has identified the top four Spanish property market gems for 2017.

Almeria

Having seen much less development than its neighbours, Almeria retains an authentic charm that has proven popular with almost every nationality of European buyer. Q3 sales rose a massive 93% YOY, and with an average price of 129,000 it is nearly half the cost of Kyeros national average.

Almeria is charming, well connected and very affordable and expectations are that an ever larger number of overseas buyers will discover it in 2017. Trending destinations include Vera, Mojacar and Albox.

Alicante

International investors buy more houses in Alicante each year than any other province of Spain, driving over half of all housing transactions. While this could make it susceptible to shocks, its strengths are hard to beat: excellent connections, fabulous beaches, steady sales growth and prices 10-15% lower than Kyero.coms national average.

Alicante is a solid performer, and very hard to bet against. Trending destinations include Torrevieja, Alicante and La Marina.

Tenerife

The western Canaries have had an excellent year, with average prices growing steadily at 5% to 249,000  almost exactly in line with the national average. This is the first destination in Kyero.coms portfolio to see Italians overtake British buyers as the dominant international buyer group. Low cost flights, year-round sunshine, and a penchant for building the holiday apartments that foreign buyers crave have all made Tenerife a property hotspot. Trending destinations include Playa de las Americas, Costa del Silencio and El Medano.

Ibiza

This is a final  and more speculative  pick for 2017. The gravity defying housing market in Ibiza saw average prices grow 20% in 2016 to over 1.1m, with similar growth in sales. The data is hard to follow, but thats because Ibiza has something that cant be boiled down to a number: cachet.

This picturesque island has become a hub for international wealth, helped in no small part by Spains benign tax environment for high net worth individuals. With their numbers on the rise, we expect Ibiza to continue being the place theyll show it off. Trending destinations include Ibiza Town, Sant Josep de sa Talaia and Santa Eulalia del Rio.

For further details, visit kyero.com.
Whats one of the most insidious myths weve bought into, when it comes to climate change?

It has nothing to do with the science: Its the simple idea that we have to be a certain type of person to care about climate change.

If Im a liberal, if I bike to work and call myself a tree-hugger, then of course I care about climate change. But what if Im conservative, I drive a car or I worry about the economydoes agreeing with the science of climate change mean I have to change who I am?

When I moved to Texas 10 years ago, I didnt know what to expect. I study climate change, one of the most politicized issues in the entire U.S. If were serious about it, we have to wean ourselves off fossil fuels. Thats not a popular message in a state best known for its oil and gas.

But Texas surprised me. It surprised me by how many different kinds of people, from oilfield engineers to Christian college students, want to talk about why climate change mattersto us and to everyone else on this planet. Ive also been surprised by the questions I getsome about the science, sure; but even more about politics, faith, and other topics near and dear to our hearts.

To answer these questions, Ive teamed up with our local West Texas PBS station to produce a new PBS Digital Studios web series, Global Weirding: Climate, Politics, and Religion. Every other Wednesday, we roll out a new video exploring climate change and what it means to all of us.

This episode tackles the identity myth, head-on. Climate change is not some distant issue that only matters to the polar bears. Its affecting our lives right now, in the places that we live. And if were a human living on planet Earth, then we already have every value we need to care about a changing climate.

We all depend on this planet for the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat and the places we live. Unless weve signed up for the next trip to Mars, this planet is the only one we have. It just makes sense to take care of it: to ensure that it will continue to support us in the years to come. Its the sensible, fiscally responsible, and most conservative thing to do, in the truest sense of the word.

https://twitter.com/EcoWatch/status/802190820002643968

Theres more to it than pure self-interest, though. When I was nine years old, my family moved to Colombianot British Columbia, but Colombia, South America. There, I learned an even more important life lesson: that there are plenty of people on this planet far less fortunate than I am, and many of those people cannot count on having clean water to drink, or safe places to live.

This hard truth has always stuck with me and its one of the main reasons Im motivated to study climate science: because it affects all of us, but most of all the poor the world overthose who already lack sufficient food, who are already at risk for diseases that no one should be dying from in the twenty first century, and whowhen disaster strikeshave no choice other than to leave behind their homes and flee.

Climate change isnt a niche issue that only matters to people who think or act or vote a certain way. Each of us, exactly who we are, with exactly the values we already have, already have every reason we need to care.

So whats our job, as people who care about climate? Our job is this: connect the dots between what some have called the longest distance in the world, from our heads to our hearts.

Tune in to our live chat every other Thursday at 8E/7C on Facebook and Twitter, subscribe to our YouTube channel, and if you like what you hearplease share!

This essay originally appeared at The Equation, a blog of the Union of Concerned Scientists.
By Paul Brown

There have been three well-documented major nuclear accidents in the last 60 years, each one accompanied by official lies and cover-ups. There have been other less well-known serious accidents that have been so effectively hushed up that decades later there are only the sketchiest details available.

The legacy of these disasters is a deep distrust of the industry by many voters. In some leading industrial countries this has led to governments being forced to abandon nuclear power altogether, while others face such strong opposition to new stations being built that they have abandoned the idea, although they still keep the old ones operating, at least for now.

This checkered history of the industry matters. It has caused a global split. While many scientists and politicians concerned about climate change believe that nuclear power is vital if governments are to meet their commitments to curb dangerous global warming, just as many do not.

The opposition is based on the belief that the industry has lost all integrity and credibility and that renewables are a cheaper, safer and all-round better bet. This view is reinforced by the inability of the industry to deal with its waste. Renewables can easily be recycled, but nuclear waste remains dangerous for thousands of years, leaving future generations to pay for it.

But it is the three major disasters that are at the root of this fierce debate. They happened over a span of 60 years and all had different causes. But all followed a familiar pattern.

The first was at Windscale in north-west England in 1957, when a plutonium-producing reactor caught fire. The second was Chernobyl on the border of Ukraine and Belarus in 1986: the top blew off one of the reactors and there was a serious fire. The third was at Fukushima in Japan in 2011, when an earthquake and a tsunami caused meltdowns at three reactors.

https://twitter.com/EcoWatch/status/706459401868152832

Official Concealment

All three accidents had startling similarities in the official reaction. In each case the governments involved, the nuclear regulators and plant owners tried to hide the scale of the disaster from the public who were most in danger. In each case this resulted in unnecessary exposure of the population to harmful radiation.

Second, the possible long-term health effects to the people involved were hotly disputed. In each case this took the form, both at the time and ever since, of governments and the industry playing down the health risks.

There is still an argument about whether the Windscale fire caused a leukaemia cluster in children in the neighborhood. After Fukushima, governments and the industry claim, very few or no deaths at all resulted. Expect the argument to continue for decades.

Third has been the underplaying of the enormous cost and intractable nature of trying to clean up the mess. For example, people who are evacuated are told the move is only temporary, when it could last for decades, possibly generations.

Again, the official estimate for compensation for the Fukushima accident rose from 5.4 trillion (40bn) to 8 trillion (70bn), a fact only slipped out at the end of November 2016, nearly five years after the accident.

Technically Insurmountable

In each case, even after the Windscale accident 60 years ago, the clean-up of the actual nuclear pile that caught fire has several times started and then been abandoned as too difficult. They are not expected to be completed for decades.

There is no hope of cleaning up Chernobyl or Fukushima this century. A new concrete shell over Chernobyl to replace the existing crumbling structure should be in place by 2017 at a cost of 2.1but this is designed only as a temporary structure, to last 100 years.

Governments tried hard to cover up what happened. At Windscale, the British government subsequently admitted it had deliberately covered up the seriousness of the accidents to keep its nuclear weapons program on track.

In Chernobyls case it was the sky-high radiation readings from as far away as Scandinavia and Germany that led the Soviets to admit what had happened. Thirty years later the real health effects of the accident are hotly disputed.

Thousands of children have had their thyroids removed and there have been many birth defects and cancers. Belarus, worst hit by the disaster, is anxious to play down the long-term effects to avoid frightening potential foreign investors in the country.

The nuclear industry has been trying hard to put all this in the past. In response to public concerns it has come up with a whole series of safer designs for nuclear power stations. As a result, some countries like Finland and Britain are encouraging the building of a new generation of French, Japanese, Chinese and American designs.

This time, however, it is not just safety that is at issue. For the last 35 years not a single nuclear power station in the west has been built to time or on budget. It undermines the claim that nuclear power will be able to compete with other fuels on price. It has repeatedly been shown that, without government subsidy, nuclear power cannot survive.

The latest evidence for this is the two new power stations being built in Finland and France. Both are nearly 10 years behind schedule and have more than doubled in cost.

The original claims that the price of the electricity the stations would produce would be competitive cannot be true. Wholesale prices must already have more than doubled before a single watt of power has been produced.

Yet, despite this track record, the nuclear industry hopes to keep on growing and claims it is expecting to do soand many governments continue to pour money into research and development. They do so in the hope that one day nuclear power will provide a safe and economically viable method of producing electricity.

So far, however, there is no sign of the long-predicted nuclear renaissance. The costs of a safe design continue to increase as the industry and governments attempt to live down the legacy of misleading the public for the last 60 years. It seems that if the climate is to be saved from overheating, we shall have to do this without the aid of new nuclear power.

Reposted with permission from our media associate Climate News Network.
By Mark Trahant

Its easy for me to dismiss 2016 as a horrible year.

There have been eight years of relative progress on issues I care about, from the climate to equality. The election reversed that. Big Oil is now in charge of the environment, a senator with a history of hate is now in charge of the Justice Department, and the new government seems to be of the billionaires, for the billionaires, and by the billionaires.

Annus horribilis.

The Latin phrase for horrible year rings hollow when you think about the events of this year and the Lakota phrase mni wiconi. Water is life. Make no mistake: Year 2016 is an inspirational and historic moment. Standing Rock is no longer just a geographic location but words that call each of us to do more. Standing Rock is a reminder that people standing together can do amazing things when facing injustice.

Mni wiconi.

Think about the ways we have been seduced by our own progress. In September, for example, President Barack Obama praised the Paris agreement on climate change and called it the single best chance that we have to deal with a problem that could end up transforming this planet in a way that makes it very difficult for us to deal with all the other challenges that we may face. Lofty words. Yet the actual government actions to implement those words have been, at best, limited. Baby steps. Imagine a framework that starts with the promise of Paris and then builds decisions based on that. In that scenario there would have been no debate about the Dakota Access Pipeline because we wouldnt need it.

But at least for the next four years, the government will be the adversary. The entire apparatus of state will look more like the Morton County Sheriffs office than our ally. We will all face water cannons rather than comforting language. But we can be clear about the challenges ahead knowing that the government is absolutely wrong about the very nature of the problem.

So what does our nations Standing Rock moment look like?

In some ways its already unfolding. The BP Statistical Review, an energy industry outlook, reports that carbon emissions in 2015 already showed the lowest growth in emissions in nearly a quarter of a century, other than in the immediate aftermath of the financial crisis. Similar data show we are driving fewer miles and there is steady growth in renewable energy sources. And theres this tell: The amount of capital thats being invested in clean energy development, $328 billion, is the most ever.

Federal processes will delay the Dakota Access Pipeline beyond its promised January 2017 operational target date, and litigation with the Standing Rock Sioux tribe could delay the project for many more months. And every day, every week, and every month of delay makes the Dakota Access Pipeline less compelling from a financial point of view.

Oil production in the Bakken region was down in 2016 by some 13,000 barrels a day. The oil industry hopes that the new Trump administration will change that and flip the switch that brings back consumption. In fact, oil companies, as well as the state of North Dakota, cling to the idea that oil production will magically double to around 2 million barrels a day. And that idea is bolstered by upticks in oil prices, new well production, and more drilling.

Trump's Pick for Energy Secretary Sits on Board of Dakota Access Pipeline Company https://t.co/KBfYj4c7Tu @dhlovelife @dirtyoilsands  EcoWatch (@EcoWatch) December 14, 2016

But the opposite is possible. We can continue to shrink our oil appetites. We can set Standing Rock as the framework for consumption. This is one way to challenge the oil uber alles mentality of the Trump administration. We walk. We adjust the temperature in our houses. We measure our own carbon consumption with the goal of reducing it by 20 percent or more.

Standing Rock captured our imagination. And while it was only one battle, the tribe and its allies showed the world how to defeat powerful forces. Now the larger test is making further oil production irrelevant.

Mni wiconi. And in 2017, that means we pick up the fight in new ways.

Mark Trahant is an independent journalist and a journalism professor at the University of North Dakota. Hes a member of the Shoshone-Bannock tribes. His most recent project is TrahantReports.com. He is a contributing editor at YES! Follow him on Twitter at @TrahantReports. Reposted with permission from your media associate Yes! Magazine.
(Photo: REUTERS / Tony Gentile)Pope Francis gives the thumb up as he leads the Easter mass in Saint Peter's Square at the Vatican April 20, 2014

Pope Francis has called for an end to the persecution of Christians in conflict, particularly in Africa and the Middle East, but also praised the recent nuclear agreement with Iran in his Easter message.

Speaking before a crowd braving rainy skies at St. Peter's Square after saying Easter mass, the Pontiff spoke on Christianity's most important liturgical feast day with memories of the April 2 massacre in Kenya still fresh.

"We ask Jesus, the victor over death, to lighten the sufferings of our many brothers and sisters who are persecuted for his name, and of all those who suffer injustice as a result of ongoing conflicts and violence - and there are many," said Francis.

The Pope also commented publicly for the first time on the basis for an agreement reached in Lausanne, Switzerland, on the same day as the massacre, aimed at a safeguard on Iran which has been accused of developing nuclear weapons.

"In hope we entrust to the merciful Lord the framework recently agreed to in Lausanne, that it may be a definitive step toward a more secure and fraternal world."

Armed guards were protecting Christian congregations at Kenyan churches from the al Shabaab extremist group claiming to represent Islam, as the Pope spoke during his customary Urbi et Orbi (to the city and the world address).

Al Shabaab terrorists massacred nearly 150 people, executing Christians who were singled out the day before Christianity commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus on Good Friday.

"May constant prayer rise up from all people of goodwill for those who lost their lives," said Francis.

"I think in particular of the young people who were killed last Thursday at Garissa University College in Kenya - for all who have been kidnapped, and for those forced to abandon their homes and their dear ones."

SYRIA AND IRAQ

He asked for peace in Syria and Iraq, "that the roar of arms may cease and that peaceful relations may be restored among the various groups which make up those beloved countries.

"May the international community not stand by before the immense humanitarian tragedy unfolding in these countries and the drama of the numerous refugees."

Pope Francis denounced the general prevalence of weapons in the world noting, "And we ask for peace for this world subjected to arms dealers, who earn their living with the blood of men and women."

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, the most senior bishop in the 88-million strong Anglican Communion said in his Easter message that the message of the Church at Easter remains constant over the centuries.

It proclaims "in the midst of hopelessness the hope of Christ, triumphant beyond death and the powers of evil; living and life giving amongst us."

He also noted this is a, "a world in which our brother and sister Christians are still a beleaguered and even persecuted community in many places, as they have been at different times and places in history. We continue to remember the suffering Christians in the Middle East.

"This year our remembrance is also focussed particularly on the Armenian people who a century ago were driven to their death and into exile because they were Christians."

At the same time, the Religious Liberty Commission of the World Evangelical Alliance on April 4 called for an international coalition to fight against terror that is impacting Christians.

"It's an unfortunate race among terror groups to cause destruction of human lives to maintain their relevance at a time when ISIS (Islamic State) is causing unprecedented bloodshed.

"This trend demands that the international coalition fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria should expand their mission to include other terror groups as their targets - of course, not with airstrikes or troops on the ground," said Godfrey Yogarajah of the WEA commission.

"World leaders should join hands to defeat terrorism by cooperating with each other and treating the end of terrorism in every country as a common objective."
(Photo: Albin Hillert / WCC)Archbishop Thabo Makgoba has been outspoken from the pulpit. Makgoba, the Anglican archbishop of Cape Town, preaches during a July 19 interfaith prayer service, held at the Roman Catholic Emmanuel Cathedral in Durban, South Africa, during the 2016 International AIDS Conference.

Church and State are separate in South Africa, but throughout the country's 20th and 21st century history, the government and the major Christian institutions have been at loggerheads over injustice.

South African Anglican head Archbishop Thabo Makgoba was the latest to join this fray.

He told President Jacob Zuma Dec. 25 that the Church will "ignore" his recent call for clergy to stay out of politics, a similar call made by the country's former apartheid leaders.

The archbishop also raised the question of whether religious communities from all faiths in South Africa should withdraw their moral support for the government in the country.

"Can you believe it?" he asked a congregation attending Christmas midnight Mass at St George's Cathedral, Cape Town.

"A President of a democratic South Africa telling the Church to stay out of politics? You would be forgiven for thinking that you had climbed into a time machine and gone back 30 years into the past, when apartheid presidents said the same thing."

Zuma, who has been embroiled in multiple scandals during his tenure, on Dec. 5 called on church leaders to concern themselves with praying for the country rather than being preoccupied with politics.

"It is sad to see the church leaders getting mired in matters of politics instead of praying for leaders. I urge the church to pray for us as leaders pray for our people to stop the hatred," Zuma said.

In his Christmas sermon, Makgoba, the archbishop of Cape Town said, "As we look ahead to 2017, we see a ruling party at war with itself, crippled by division to the degree that some serving members of the Cabinet believe the President must step down.

"As a result we see a government becoming paralysed by an inability to achieve policy certainty and to chart a clear way ahead.

"People of faith need to begin asking: At what stage do we, as churches, as mosques, as synagogues, withdraw our moral support for a democratically-elected government?"

Makgoba is a successor of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984.

He noted that despite the crippled ruling party, South Africa's democracy is vibrant.

"South Africa is not broken. We have a sound Constitution and we have seen over this past year that we have resilient institutions.

"The courts, especially the Constitutional Court, civil society, the media, whistle-blowers in the government and private sector, and the many honest and hard-working public servants we do have - they are all doing their jobs well."

CHURCH NOT DOING ENOUGH

But, he cautioned that the Church is not doing enough, and he announced a series of Lenten Bible studies for next year to address this.

Makgoba, who also took on the apartheid regime said, The Christmas story is.... the story of the God of Love being born in a stable, some kilometres from the centre of power."

He noted that time in the Holy Land was, "a time when political power was dragged into the mire of the politics of suspicion, revenge and unhealthy intrigue  as we see in Herod's reaction to the news of Jesus's birth.

"It is incredible to think that one so entrenched in power could be so disturbed, so threatened by a prophetic Word emerging from the margins."

Makgoba said he had not yet joined the many calls for President Zuma to resign, "but said that he should step aside while his party leaders address their crisis.

"But our situation compels us to ask: When do we name the gluttony, the inability to control the pursuit of excess? When do we name the fraudsters who are unable to control their insatiable appetite for obscene wealth, accumulated at the expense of the poorest of the poor?

"And let's not confine these questions to politicians. We need to ask them of our business leaders and, indeed, of ourselves. These are not just the 'sins' of politicians and business leaders, in these sins and ills we see our own shortcomings."
To build the largest and most complete Amateur Radio community site on the Internet - a "portal" that hams think of as the first place to go for information, to exchange ideas, and be part of whats happening with ham radio on the Internet. eHam.net provides recognition and enjoyment to the people who use, contribute, and build the site. This project involves a management team of volunteers who each take a topic of interest and manage it with passion. The site will stand above all other ham radio sites by employing the latest technology and professional design/programming standards, developed by a team of community programmers who contribute their skills to the effort. The site will be something of which everyone involved can be proud to say they were a part. We welcome your comments. The eHam.net Team, Revision 07/2020.




SOCHI, Russia (AP) -- The Kremlin on Monday played down the possibility that a terror attack might have downed a Syria-bound Russian plane, killing all 92 people on board, as the nation observed a day of mourning for the victims, including most members of a world famous military choir.



The Tu-154 owned by the Russian Defense Ministry crashed into the Black Sea early Sunday two minutes after taking off in good weather from the city of Sochi. The plane was carrying members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, often referred to as the Red Army Choir, to a New Year's concert at a Russian military base in Syria.




Tomi Lahren has a neck tattoo of South Dakotas flower and state grass. The pasque flower was designated as the states flower in 1903. Native americans used the flower as medicine for centuries. The state designated western wheat grass as its official grass in 1970. Tomi was born in Rapid City, South Dakota on August 11, 1992.

Hate her or love her, Tomi is here to stay. I dislike the television host but she is forcing the nation to discuss our issues. We have a horrible tendency of ignoring our problems. Tomi never bites her tongue, as she proved throughout 2016. We can all learn valuable lessons from Tomis recent appearance on The Daily Show.

Tomi Lahren Neck Tattoo

While Lahren deflected numerous questions, she showed up and was willing to defend herself. As a result, we got a deeper look into her belief system. No one is born with beliefs, instead were taught values that we typically maintain throughout our lives. Tomi understands that strength lies in differences but she has a complex regarding diversity of color.
Selena Gomez and Jennifer Lawrence spent their holidays by visiting local children's' hospitals on Christmas Eve. These tow A-list celebrities gained the nod of the fans with the way on how they celebrated that very special occasion.

Selena went to Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas wherein she spent time with maybe 14 kids as per E! News. She played with the kids and she helped in decorating the cookies.

A source even shared that Selena Gomez was very amazing and was so sweet with the children. Some were even in tears and that most of them were very emotional when the pop princess spent time with them most especially on a very special day.

One of the patients who captured her sympathy was Madison Ramsey who is suffering from Post-Transplant Lymphoma Disease and that she is currently undergoing chemotherapy. The said patient is also a Selena fan for years already.

The hospital appreciated Selena Gomez' visit and was so thankful that she even chose to spend the special day away from her family to visit these children who can't be with their family on Christmas.

Meanwhile, Jennifer Lawrence also paid a visit to Norton Children's Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. As per Seventeen, the actress has special ties to the said hospital in Kentucky.

The report also added that Lawrence is actually making a surprise Christmas visits there every year which started last 2013. It can be recalled that the Jennifer Lawrence even donated $2 million for the Jennifer Lawrence Foundation Cardiac Intensive Care Unit.

Rumors are rife that the stars' visits to those hospitals gained favorable remarks from fans and people. Selena and Jennifer opted to celebrate Christmas Eve with these people who are in dire need of help instead of their family.

Selena Gomez and Jennifer Lawrence's visits are just manifestations that if one wants to spread love, that there is no better day and time to do it but on Christmas.
Queen Elizabeth has been reported to have given her blessing to Prince Harry to marry Meghan Markle. The reason for this is because the Queen has been so impressed with the actress' humanitarian initiatives.

As per Celeb Dirty Laundry, Harry and Meghan are said to be making engagement announcements in the coming weeks after Harry received stamp of approval from his grandmother. The reports further added that Queen Elizabeth is so impressed with Meghan's dedication to her humanitarian trips and works.

Apart from that, it has been speculated that the Queen is so pleased with seeing Prince Harry genuinely happy with Meghan Markle by his side. The very reason why the couple got along so well at first is because of their passion when it comes to humanitarian works.

Well, if the Queen already gave her blessing to her grandson, perhaps people could expect for another royal wedding soon. But before the wedding, people are wondering if the Palace will announce an engagement soon or perhaps early 2017.

US Weekly also reported that Queen Elizabeth is very much supportive of Harry's relationship with the Hollywood actress. She is in fact delighted to see Harry in such a loving relationship. It seems like it's only now that the Queen has been so supportive of Harry's relationship since people never heard of that before.

If Meghan Markle finally got the approval of the Queen, will she accept if Prince Harry proposes and asks her to be his wife? Well, perhaps for some, they make a lovely couple but there are also surrounding circumstances like how other people would view the "Suits" actress as someone who is unfit to become a member of the royal family.

Despite the odds, it can be recalled that Harry has been very vocal in defending and protecting his girlfriend from the unfair criticisms mostly from the press. Because of that, rumors have escalated that Harry is really serious with Meghan and that perhaps he found the right one.

Because of Queen Elizabeth's wedding approval, can people already expect for a Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's engagement announcement soon?
Immediately after Narendra Modi became Prime Minister of India in May 2014, there was considerable speculation in Delhi about who his media adviser would be. This was natural given the speed and fury of Modis election campaign. There were expectations from journalists that the new media adviser would keep them regularly updated with the goings-on in his "fast-paced" government. A high-profile media adviser to the Prime Minister had been the norm in Lutyens Delhi since Indira Gandhis time, when the well-known journalist H Y Sharada Prasad occupied the position. Even during Lal Bahadur Shastri's short tenure as Prime Minister, his media portfolio was handled by another well-known journalist, Kuldip Nayar.

Imported from Gujarat

The media was surprised, therefore, that after great efforts Modi found a nondescript bureaucrat, Jagdish Thakkar, to serve as his public relations officer (PRO), who was given a status equal to that of a deputy secretary to the Government of India (GoI). Thakkar had been "imported" from Gujarat, where he was a PRO in the chief ministers office. His job had been to distribute press releases, not articulate Modis policies. It soon became clear that in Delhi too, Thakkar's job would not be very different. He was chary of sharing even his mobile phone number with journalists, which many found rather unusual. His appointment was an indicator of the shape of things to come. Modi's government is not an open one. Its policies and programmes are not debated in the various forums before these are finalised.

What subsequently happened gave a clue to how else the government would be run. Thakkar turned out to be only one of the worthies who were parachuted in to the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) straight from the chief ministers office in Gujarat. P K Mishra, Modis principal secretary at the time of the 2002 riots, was brought in as additional principal secretary to the Prime Minister. Officers like Arvind Sharma, Rajiv Topno and Sanjay Bhavsar, who had worked at various times in the chief ministers office in Gujarat, found themselves in the rarefied environment of the PMO. Other confidantes of Modilike Hiren Joshi who was appointed as Officer on Special Duty (Information Technology)were paradropped to South Block. Other important officers also came down, including Hasmukh Adhia, who had been principal secretary to the then chief minister of Gujarat, Modi; Adhia has been perched as the revenue secretary.

As per norms, important appointments in the government have to be cleared by the Appointment Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), of which the Prime Minister is the chairperson. This, in real terms, means that the appointments have to be ratified by the PMO. Reputedly, this job of vetting officers in the PMO has devolved on P K Mishra, even as a disproportionately high number of officers (from Gujarat, not necessarily Gujaratis) are being appointed, sometimes even raising eyebrows in the bureaucracy about the manner in which these appointments are being pushed through. The latest in the line is the lateral transfer of Rupak Dutta, an IPS officer of 1981 batch of Karnataka cadre from the position of special director, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to special secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs. Dutta was in charge of crucial investigations and is certainly not one to be a caged parrot. Dutta was sent off just as the CBI chief retired and before a shortlist could be sent to the committee that will select the new CBI chief. The selection panel includes the leader of the opposition in Parliament. An interim CBI chief has been appointed and this is none other than Rakesh Asthana, an IPS officer of the 1984 batch of the Gujarat cadre, who worked closely with the Modi government in Gandhinagar. If the government delays the constitution of the selection panel, Asthana can continue for a long time. His appointment as interim chief is now a subject of litigation at the apex court.

According to a senior government official, The government is being run by the PMO and in turn the PMO is being operated like the CMO of Gujarat, suggesting that even the performance of Modi ministers is being actively monitored closely by the PMO. Thank god, Gujarat is a relatively small state with a small IAS and IPS cadre. Otherwise there would be more Gujarat officers manning top positions in Delhi, he adds.

Running Solo

With a tightly controlled government operating in the shadow of the PMO, the government itself has metamorphosed into a kind of a one-man show. In fact, even an analyst like Rajiv Kumar, disposed kindly to Modi, notes in his recent book Modi and His Challenges (2016) that the Prime Ministers approach is marked by over-centralisation and unquestioned loyalty of civil servants to Modi himself: It is a model that revolves around Modis persona and requirements and not a structurally-driven model for sustained development. He adds that the big brother is watching you syndrome is beginning to appear on Raisina Hills and observes that there is very limited degrees of freedom even for Modis senior cabinet colleagues.

It was in these circumstances that Modi sprung a rude shock on 8 November by demonetising 500 and 1,000 notes, which in one swoop removed 86% of the currency in use, paving the way for the contraction of the economy and fall in national output. It is unbelievable that a politically savvy Modi would deliberately do something like this, which would hit the rural poor and the unorganised sector and, thus, his own vote bank.

The only way that Modi would fall in this trap was by being misled by ill-informed advisers, or if he had not consulted anyone for this momentous decision. The latter is more likely, given Modis nature. Interestingly, Power Minister Piyush Goyal asserted on 3 December that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley knew about demonetisation. This created a flutter because the finance minister has to be privy to such a decision, and, in fact, be part of such a move. Goyals strong assertion made many wonder whether the finance minister was actually in the dark about the demonetisation or at least about its timing.

The RBI governor is one functionary without whose formal nod, currency notes cannot be sent out of circulation. But, that may have been true in spirit when Raghuram Rajan was the boss of Mint Street. However life was made miserable for Rajan, who decided to opt out. The incumbent governor, Urjit Patels stature is no more than that of a joint secretary to the GoI, it would appear, given that he played second fiddle to economic affairs secretary Shaktikanta Das in the post-demonetisation press conference. On paper, the RBI governor has a stature far above that of GoIs economic affairs secretary, and it is unlikely that Patel could have stood up and proffered an alternate course of action to Modi. The same can be said for the other mandarins who might have had any inkling of this move (although this looks unlikely).

Modi was preceded by Manmohan Singh, who was the Prime Minister for 10 years. But, the economist-turned-bureaucrat-turned-politician was widely seen as Prime Minister to Queen Sonia, and not as Prime Minister of India. With scams breaking out with amazing regularity during the tenure of the United Progressive Alliance II (200914), voters sought a strong Prime Minister who was his own man and could clean the Augean stables. Thus, they put their faith in Narendra Modi. Earlier, there was a powerless Manmohan Singh and, now, we have Narendra Modi, who runs his government solo and listens to nobodys counsel. The latter can be equally, if not more, dangerous than the former.

What is worse is that Modi, now caught on the wrong foot, is trying to make no amends. Even as the life of ordinary Indians has been made miserable, the only concession Modi has made is to change his discourse. While demonetisation was earlier a strategy to clamp down on terror financing, counterfeit notes, and black money, it is now for the introduction of a cashless and digital economy.

Instead of this, Modi should introspect. Running a country as huge as India is not a one-man show and cannot be run from the PMO.
The European Commissions chief, Jean-Claude Juncker, said in the aftermath of the terror attack in Berlin that the best way to fight terror is with openness, emphasizing that the old continent must continue to receive migrants. It would be wrong to put all refugees under suspicion, he said and added that hate and terror have no religion, no sex, no country of origin. The President of the European Commission warned that the rhetoric of exclusion gives strength to terrorists. Terror only takes us if we allow it, he said of the Berlin attack at a Christmas market, in which 12 people died and many more were injured.

Mr. Juncker also declared that the basic values for which the European Union stands remain unchanged and insisted that Europe must continue to offer refuge to people who flee from war zones and from terror. Addressing the apparent sweep at populists across Europe, Mr. Juncker stressed that anyone who pounces on the rhetoric of exclusion is helping the extremists way of thinking, which strengthens their spiral of hate. He also said that the populists idea to restrict migration from the Middle and Africa neither creates solutions nor helps the victims and their relatives.

Commissions chief was firm on the idea that liberalism is the best response to repeated attacks on Europeans: Our values, our way of living together in freedom, coexistence, and openness are the best weapons against terror. Mr. Juncker admitted that freedom of movement across the Schengen area is indeed helpful to terrorists, but also said the solution to this is an emphasis on pan-European security, asserting that national domestic policy alone is no longer sufficient. Finally, he also emphasized that We must counter the terrorists hatred with the values of the population who want to live freely, openly and peacefully with each other. The people with whom I spoke after the attacks in Berlin, Paris, Nice, and Brussels stand for exactly this attitude. They react in a prudent way  and expect to see this reflected in our politics as well.
Editors note: As the year winds down, the editorial staff of Evolution News looks back on 2016 and recalls the Top 10 stories of the year that was. We wish you a merry and meaningful holiday season, and a wonderful and prosperous New Year. If you havent done so already, please take a moment to consider the unique news resource we offer here daily.

Sources of information (and disinformation) on evolution from Darwinist media are beyond plentiful. But theres only one Evolution News, and we need your friendship and support. Thank you for your generosity!

The following was originally published on March 24, 2016:

Science Magazine published a paper last week, Design and synthesis of a minimal bacterial genome, describing the creation of a bacterium with a stripped-down genome. The paper represents twenty years of work by many scientists, including celebrated biochemist J. Craig Venter. They managed to reduce the genome by almost half, from over 900 genes to 473, a little bit at a time. The paper has made a splash across the Internet (see, for example, articles from Associated Press and Bloomberg).

Why on earth would the researchers do such a thing? The hope is that this minimal bacterium will provide a useful vehicle for future synthetic biology, enabling the production of useful medicines to treat disease.

But there is another reason they spent twenty years on this project. Its an attempt to answer a basic question. Whats the minimum amount of genetic information needed to get a functioning cell? Estimates have ranged from 250 to 300 genes, depending on what kind of cell and where it is living. For the bacterium M. mycoides, the starting point of their work, the answer seems to be about 470 genes. Scientists want to know the answer because the simplified cell may allow them to tease apart how the genes interact, and what all of them do. Its easier to tackle 400 genes than over 900, or in the case of the common bacterium E. coli, over 4,000.

This work has already yielded some interesting results. They still dont know what 30 percent of the reduced genome does, just that the genes are essential. Second, genes that appear to be nonessential by themselves can become essential when another gene is deleted. Clearly there are complex interactions going on among the 473 genes.

All of this leads to an obvious question. This little bacterium has to be able to copy its DNA, transcribe and translate it into protein, plus be able to coordinate all the steps involved in cell division. It has to be able to make all the things it cant get from its environment. Thats a lot of information to be stored and used appropriately. Hence 473 genes.

But where did the cell come from in the first place? Its a chicken-and-egg problem. Given the number of things the cell has to do to be a functioning organism, where does one begin? DNA or RNA alone is not enough, because protein is needed to copy the DNA and to carry out basic cellular processes. But protein is not enough by itself either. DNA is needed to stably inherit the genetic information about how to make proteins.

Some people propose that RNA could do the trick, because under just the right circumstances, and with an experimenters help, RNA can copy itself, partially. The idea is that if just the right sequence of RNA were to come along, it could serve as both an RNA enzyme (or ribozyme) and as the template for reproducing itself.

That leaves aside bigger problems. Ribozymes can only carry out a few simple chemical reactions, while even a minimal cell needs many kind of reactions. Second, how did the switch to DNA and proteins happen? No one has a clue. Last, lets not forget the problem of interdependence, or irreducible complexity as biochemist Michael Behe calls it in his book Darwins Black Box. The minimal cell, he writes, is a system composed of several [many in this case] well-matched, interacting parts that contribute to the basic function, wherein the removal of any one of the parts causes the system to effectively cease functioning.

Irreducible systems are evidence of intelligent design, because only a mind has the capacity to design and implement such an information-rich, interdependent network as a minimal cell.

Think about the design of a basic car. You need an engine, a transmission, a drive shaft, a steering wheel, axles and wheels, plus a chassis to hold it all together. Then theres gas, and a way to start the whole thing going. (I have undoubtedly left out something, but you get my point.) Having one or two of these things wont make a functioning car. All the parts are necessary before it can drive, and it takes a designer to envision what is needed, how to fit it together, and then to build it.

Whether youre talking about a car or a minimal cell, it wont happen without a designer.

Image source: Tom Deerinck and Mark Ellisman, National Center for Imaging and Microscopy Research, University of California at San Diego, via J. Craig Venter Institute.
Thums Up, which has always recognised the Toofani - heroic spirit  in every individual, takes the theme forward with the new Thums Up communication campaign that was released today. The new thematic campaign starring Ranveer Singh, draws on the core idea of Main Hum Bhi Hoon, Aur Khaas Bhi  a set of values that is true for all Thums Up loyalists. The "Toofani" Thums Up drinker shines in the face of danger. Along with introducing a bold new face to the brand, the campaign ladders up from its traditional chase, for a bottle of Thums Up.

The new campaign is the second rendition of the creative expression  Main Hoon Toofani which was launched early this year. Based on the idea of celebrating the Khas in Hum, the campaign seeks to inspire its consumers to unleash their toofani or heroic spirit.

Launching the new Thums Up campaign, Debabrata Mukherjee, Vice President, Marketing, Coca-Cola India and South West Asia, said, Thums Up advertising is set apart by its energetic, fast-paced and stylishly rendered action. Ranveer Singh, with his palpable energy and inimitable style, will help amplify the aspirational quotient of the brand. Ranveer embodies the Thums Up philosophy in his personal life - an uncompromising attitude towards achieving ones goals. We are confident that this partnership will work towards fulfilling the brands objectives.

The campaign has been conceptualised by team Leo Burnett, led by Sachin Das Burma (National Creative Director) and has been launched through a high-octane action film directed by acclaimed Hollywood Director Simon West, known for his work in blockbusters such as Con Air and Expendables 2.

Commenting on the campaign, Das Burma said, It is a fact that nobody is born a Toofani, it is what you do in the face of adversity that makes you one! Real Toofani exists in everyone, its just that we need to recognise it and work towards achieving our goals. Following the brands philosophy of believing in oneself and inspiring people to unleash their true potential, the campaign focuses on the hero spirit that resides in every Thums Up drinker. It was a great learning experience working with someone of Simons caliber, as all the action sequences in the film are live and look nothing short of an action-packed rollercoaster ride.

Talking about associating with Thums Up, Ranveer Singh said, Thums Up has been an integral part of my life, my favourite cola. My entire family could entice me with a Thums Up and make me do anything for it. I am glad to have chosen Thums Up as its endorser, since the brands attitude resonates with me more than any other. Thums Up personifies me  daring, confident in my skin and a risk taker.

Creative Team on the new Thums Up campaign:

Shahid Hussain  Associate Creative Director

Avinash Chauhan  Associate Creative Director

Jaikrit Singh  AVP

Dhruv Maithani  Brand Associate

Ritika Jaiswal  Brand Associate

Read more news about (ad news, latest advertising news India, internet advertising, ad agencies updates, media advertising India)
The GBP to AUD exchange rate could be set to see further fluctuations over the course of this week amid quiet holiday trade. Is the pound sterling likely to appreciate against the Aussie?

Reference FX: The Pound to Australian Dollar exchange rate today (28/12/16): -0.07pct at 1.70593.

The Australian Dollar to Pound Sterling exchange rate today: +0.07% at 0.58619.

GBP/AUD began the previous week at the level of 1.7100 and spent most of the week fluctuating just below opening levels.

The pair hit a weekly low of 1.6991 on Friday but due to weakness in the Australian dollar the pair managed to stay above its worst levels.

Both UK and Australian markets will be closed on Monday and Tuesday to observe public holidays.

Brexit Worries and Iron Ore Prices Sees GBP AUD Exchange Rate Volatility

Movement in the GBP/AUD was mixed last week.

By the end of the week the pair had edged lower though it remained highly volatile due to broad weakness in both currencies.

Throughout the week, the Pound was weakened by new concerns that Britain would lose access to the single market following the Brexit process.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May refused to promise a commons vote on Brexit terms and it also emerged that any member of the EU would be able to veto a potential post-Brexit UK-EU trade deal.

Over in Australia, the Aussie was given a brief boost by a relatively hawkish Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) but ultimately risk-sentiment was too low for the Australian Dollar to hold its ground this week.

Risk-off movement followed this months hawkish Federal Reserve comments. This as well as falling prices in iron ore (Australias most lucrative commodity) left the Aussie widely unappealing last week.

British Pound (GBP) Forecast: Quiet Trade Expected in Week Ahead

Without a fresh boost of demand, the Pound is likely to trend limply into the end of the year. UK markets will be closed for bank holidays on Monday and Tuesday so GBP/AUD trade will be particularly quiet on these days.

As for the rest of the week, the Pound is likely to remain weak. Wednesday and Thursdays session will see the publication of house data, the BBAs November mortgage approvals and Nationwides December house prices. Neither of these are likely to entice investors towards Sterling.

Ultimately, it would take a surprisingly cheery holiday development in ongoing Brexit discussions to bring the Pound out of its current limp trajectory  especially if there is some hope that the UK will remain in the single market following Brexit.

Australian Dollar (AUD) Forecast to Strengthen if Iron Ore Futures Improve

As with UK markets, Australian markets will be closed at the beginning of next week. GBP/AUD is forecast to see especially light movement until Wednesday as a result.

The weeks only Australian ecostats will not be published until Fridays private sector credit results and with the holiday period in full swing these figures are unlikely to send much inspiration into Aussie traders.

The main driving factor for the Australian Dollar next week going into 2017 will be shifts in risk-sentiment.

For the Aussie this will rely on iron ore prices.

Until the heavy smog halting construction in northern China lifts and iron ore futures begin to improve again, demand for the commodity will be weak.

This means demand for the commodity-correlated Australian Dollar will be highly limited throughout the week unless improvement is seen.

As it stands, the GBP/AUD exchange rate could easily see its recent movement continue in the coming week as both weak currencies fluctuate in a battle for which can be the least appealing.

The AUD-impacting events in the next seven days includes just the Private Sector Credit (Source).
James Rodriguezs statement in Japan has remained just a set of words and although he isnt playing regularly at Real Madrid, he will be staying. Of course, Jorge Mendes has plenty of say in the matter, as does Florentino Perez, who still works in the interests of both player and president despite the fact that 2016 was a horrible year for the Colombia captain in sporting terms. So far this season he has played 859 minutes under Zinedine Zidane in 16 games, an accurate gauge of the midfielders standing at the club. Chelsea, PSG, Manchester United, Juventus and Inter have all made inquiries, but Real Madrid have said no. In Colombia soap operas are called telenovelas, and that is how things are set to continue.

Real Madrid would like to recoup their outlay of 80 million euros, which is a seemingly impossible task in Europe for a player who has dropped to the position of third-choice substitute. James stock rose at the 2014 but has since crashed in Madrid. He hardly features for the side and his commitment when he leaves the Valdebebas training complex has been the object of some suspicion. However, he must have yielded some return during his time at the club. His agent has the figures clear in his head and it is a concern that the Chinese market may be the only one able to satisfy the demands of Real Madrid. We saw Mendes in the photographs with Jackson Martinez before he left for Guangzhou.
Monday, December 26, 2016

It feels great to play Santa. If you celebrate Christmas, theres nothing like a Christmas holiday to make you remember that giving is fun. You find a present, wrap it up nicely, see the joy and excitement on someone elses face, and feel good about what youve done. For many philanthropists, its the same: you write a nice check, present it to a nonprofit, see the joy and excitement on their faces, smile for the camera, and then feel good about what youve done. But then what?

The problem with Santa-style giving is that its a once-a-year gig. But during the other 364 days of the year, the organizations youve made grants to still have ongoing needs, unexpected challenges, and goals that require much more than a one-time gift.

The occasional infusion of cash is nice, and it has its place, but it also pays to consider the difference you might if you help an organization create some long-term staying power. There are several ways to accomplish this goal:

1) Consider multi-year funding. The programs that nonprofits operate and the needs they are working to address arent one-off occurrences. Why should funding be? When nonprofits have more stable, predictable streams of support, they can spend less time scrambling for money and more time making a difference for your community.

2) Match your giving to an outcome. Want to see some near-, mid- and long-term outcomes? Tie your funding to those goals. When a nonprofit knows that reaching a near-term outcome will generate funding for the next phase, they become more confident and more likely to push for each milestone. And youll both be able to clearly see the return on your investment.

3) Support leadership development. Strong, capable leaders are what make strong, effective organizations. The corporate world knows this, but the nonprofit world struggles to find, and afford, meaningful leadership development opportunities. By supporting leadership development at one or multiple organizations, you make a great contribution to long-term stability and nonprofit infrastructure in your community.

4) Make a program-related investment. Giving doesnt have to be a one-way street. Program-related investments can deliver returns for both you and the nonprofit you support. For example, suppose a nonprofit food bank in your area also operates a restaurant to provide culinary arts training for youth. In addition to providing grant support to the food bank, why not provide a low-interest loan to its restaurant business? You can receive a financial return on your investment, and the food bank can expand its fee-for-service income stream.

5) Become an ally, not just a funder. No matter how small your giving, you can amplify it and help nonprofits build a more solid future by complementing your financial gifts with non-financial ones  like speaking up as an avid supporter to encourage other givers, speaking out about public policies that have an impact on their work, or opening doors to new potential partners in your community.

With gifts that go the distance, nonprofits can accomplish more and create more value (as well as more return on your investment). So as you consider your giving in 2017, try thinking a little less like Santa, and a little more in terms of staying power.

______________________________________________________________________

Kris Putnam-Walkerly, MSW, is a global philanthropy advisor, author of the new book Confident Giving: Sage Advice for Funders, and was recently named one of Americas Top 25 Philanthropy Speakers. Want more ideas, tips and tools to improve your giving? Read an article, listen to a podcast, or check out a case study.

Kris will be sharing the findings of her latest report, The Road to Achieving Equity: Findings and Lessons from a Field Scan of Foundations That Are Embracing Equity, at several upcoming events: a webinar for National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers on January 19, and a workshop for the Colorado Association of Foundations in Denver on January 26.

Putnam crafted an analysis that helped us more deeply understand the impact and challenges of our investments in youth media, which guided our work to its next phase. As a result of their findings, we doubled the number of grants we were making and expanded our geographic reach. I strongly recommend them.

~Rhonnel Sotelo, Chief Operating Officer, Stuart Foundation
"Unfinished Business," an article by Diane Bosser in the Fall 2016 issue of Insights Magazine, the publication for Montgomery College alumni and friends, focuses on Gail Rubin, CT, The Doyenne of Death.

A pioneering death educator, Rubin graduated from Montgomery College in 1978 with an AA degree in Radio, Television and Film. She puts her degree to work by using funny film clips to supplement the humorous presentations she makes on end-of-life issues: doing pre-need funeral planning, making advance medical directives, wills and trusts, and downsizing and organizing before death.

The article, which includes 5 Tips on What You Need to Know to Save Money, Time, and Sanity, covers four pages of the magazine. From the article:

During her time as the Doyenne* of Death, a certified thanatologist (death educator), and funeral celebrant, Rubin has helped hundreds make final exit plans.

"It's not morbid. It's a consumer issue," says Rubin. "A funeral is one of the top five event expenses a family will incur, similar on scale to weddings and bar mitzvahsbut it remains the party no one wants to plan."

Without directives or experience, surviving family members are often faced with making decisions in an area they know little about. They contact the local funeral home and the newspaper, but they have no idea what anything is going to cost. Some may guess about what the deceased would have wanted, or worse yet, may overspend out of guilt. Some refuse services based on costs. Like any life event with a significant financial impact, getting price quotes and shopping around can pay offin savings and peace of mind.

"It's so much easier to talk about finances, insurance, and disposal of body options when death seems far away and you can still laugh about it," says Rubin.

Rubin has a license to use film clips from motion pictures and television programs in her talks. Read the full "Unfinished Business" article online.
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The export of U.S. natural gas is climbing  and much of it is coming from Texas shale fields and bound for power plants in Mexico.

As Mexico continues to overhaul and modernize its energy sector, its appetite for U.S. natural gas is swelling. Daily pipeline exports to Mexico rose 25 percent in August, compared with the year before, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. August exports were up 85 percent from the average amount of natural gas that had been exported daily between 2011 and 2015.

Its a trend that shows no signs of slowing, even as Mexico moves to increase its own oil and gas production, according to Antonio Garza Jr., a former U.S. Ambassador to Mexico under President George W. Bush and a former chairman of the states oil and gas regulator, the Texas Railroad Commission.

The amount of natural gas flowing from shale fields in the United States to Mexico has been rapidly increasingly over the last few years  doubling from mid-2014 through today and expected to double yet again in the coming years, Garza said.

More than half of U.S. natural gas exports have gone to Mexico since April 2015. To move the gas, pipeline capacity from the U.S. to Mexico is on the rise, too. Its currently at 7.3 billion cubic feet per day, mostly headed from Texas to the northeast and central parts of Mexico.

Four new U.S.-to-Mexico pipelines are expected to come on line next year, with two more expected to start moving gas in 2018. In the next three years, that U.S.-to-Mexico export capacity is projected to double, according to recent reports from the EIA.

Some of this demand certainly comes from Mexicos steadily growing economy, population and manufacturing sector, Garza said. But it mostly reflects the countrys longer-term transition toward cleaner and cheaper electricity sources  away from coal and fuels and toward natural gas.

Mexicos state oil company, Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, controlled the nations oil production and distribution starting in 1938, but Mexican officials decided in 2013 to end the monopoly and open the market to international competition. The move has affected every aspect of energy in Mexico, from inviting competitors into the retail gas station business to opening up auctions to international companies to drill in Mexicos onshore and offshore fields. Its recent auction of some deep-water offshore fields in December drew the worlds largest oil companies to bid. Garza called it a smash hit that will draw $34 billion in investment over 35 years.

These deep-water fields were some of the countrys crown jewels: big, profitable and accessible through technology that has already been tested and proven on the U.S. side of the border, Garza said.

Mexico needs that influx of foreign investment to reverse its declining oil and gas production, but it takes time, said Thomas Tunstall, a research director at the University of Texas at San Antonio.

Mexico uses mostly coal and fuel oil for electricity generation and wants to move to cleaner sources but cant move quickly enough to meet all its needs.

Theyre very keen on importing natural gas, Tunstall said.

That jibes well with whats happening in Texas, where some of the fields closest to Mexico  the Eagle Ford Shale and the Permian Basin  produce a combined 3 million barrels of oil daily but burn off much of the natural gas as a waste byproduct, Tunstall said. In the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas, Webb County is the states top producer of natural gas.

The EIA said Mexicos domestic production of natural gas could increase and eventually displace the demand for U.S. gas.

Voter Guide: What to know for the midterm election Your guide to the Texas and San Antonio races and candidates on the Nov. 8 ballot.

Garza said he doesnt see much long-term risk for the U.S.-to-Mexico pipelines, though. Even when more Mexican production comes on line, there would be little incentive for Mexico to stop importing gas from Texas.

Its true that Mexico energy reform is looking to boost natural gas production, but not only is that a long-term goal, it wouldnt mean much for these current natural gas imports, Garza said. With the pipelines in place to bring U.S. natural gas directly to Mexicos electricity generating plants (and gas in the two countries having the same price, given the regional market), its hard to imagine what the financial incentives would be to displace this supply with Mexican natural gas over the coming years.

For now, the increasing U.S. exports by pipeline are displacing natural gas that Mexico was importing with tankers of liquefied natural gas, according to the EIA.

In 2017, four U.S. pipelines will start delivering to new natural gas-fired power plants in the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Nuevo Leon, Sonora and Sinaloa: Roadrunner Phase II near San Elizario south of El Paso; the Comanche Trail Pipeline, which originates near Fort Stockton in West Texas; the Trans-Pecos Pipeline in the Big Bend Region; and the Nueva Era project, from Webb County in South Texas to Monterrey.

The EIA expects that in 2018, the Mier-Monterrey pipeline, from Starr County to Monterrey, and the Nueces-Brownsville pipeline, which crosses South Texas, will start exporting natural gas mostly from the Eagle Ford Shale.

Mexico is expanding its domestic pipeline network, too, with 12 new pipelines in development that can carry 9.7 billion cubic feet of gas per day, according to EIA reports.

jhiller@express-news.net

Twitter: @Jennifer_Hiller
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In response to demand from both students and local employers, St. Marys University is joining a growing number of schools that offer flexible Master of Business Administration degrees.

Next year, the university will debut the MBA for Professionals, a program specifically tailored to the needs of working careerists. As opposed to traditional lockstep programs that rely on set graduation timelines and groups of students that attend classes together, the flexible program will allow students to finish at their own pace.

To complete the program, students will study in one of five concentrations: data analytics, health management, compliance, international business or general management. In one to three years, students will take 21 core credit hours, plus required courses for their tracks. Rolling admissions will enable enrollment in the fall, spring and summer.

Tanuja Singh, dean of the Greehey School of Business, said the concentrations were selected based on market trends in the San Antonio area.

Our program is looking at people within organizations who have needs for understanding compliance better, or have needs for understanding data analytics better, Singh said.

Jeremy Grace, who took over as director of St. Marys MBA programs in May, said many colleges and universities are trying to reach more nontraditional students with hybrid programs. The new degree will combine some of the flexibility of online MBA programs with the value of on-site learning, he said.

Last year, many part-time MBA programs with flexible graduation timelines saw a surge in interest, with 54 percent of programs surveyed by the Graduate Management Admission Council reporting an increase in applications. In 2016, applications rose at 44 percent of surveyed programs, according to the council.

There is a trend toward flexibility, Grace said. Theres also just a trend toward masters programs reaching more diverse markets.

To design the new St. Marys program, Singh said they looked nationwide at schools with strong models, including the University of Georgia and the Georgia Institute of Technology. In Texas, similar programs are offered at Texas Tech University, Sam Houston State University and the University of the Incarnate Word. For its MBA program, UIW offers rolling admissions, evening weeknight classes and graduation in a two- to three-year window.

The MBA for Professionals degree joins two other MBA options at St. Marys: the MBA for Value-Driven Leaders and the MBA in Professional Accountancy.

In January, Grace said, St. Marys will initiate an aggressive marketing campaign for the program, which launches in August.

lcaruba@express-news.net
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Asia Rome, 12, gave a gasp, her eyes wide open, when she saw her presents peeking out of her gift bag.

This is everything on my wish list, she exclaimed while pulling out a Jordan backpack, new clothes, a blanket and other goodies.

Asias outburst was one of many joyful noises made by more than 50 children of displaced families at the Salvation Armys Emergency Family Shelter, 519 W. Elmira St., as they opened gifts from an anonymous donor who had matched their Christmas wish lists with the real thing.

The sounds of shredding paper and Christmas music, the visit from Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus and the piles of presents that seemed stacked in every corner brought a smile to Asias mother, Andrea Lyanda, 34. The two have been homeless and living in the shelter for six months, ever since Lyanda lost her job at a local restaurant.

Its good to know you have people out there who care, she said.

Her familys heavy drug and alcohol use had cut into her ability to support herself and her daughter  they just took, took, took from me, Lyanda said  but throughout the hardship, Asia has been her biggest support, she said.

The Salvation Army facility was the second shelter they found.

Theyre very caring and dont treat (the residents) like prisoners, Lyanda said. Its safe and its very clean. The people are understanding.

Weve had an event almost every day, leading up to the Christmas celebration, Asia said.

Salome Flores and her family volunteered their time cooking and serving a large meal of turkey, ham, tamales and other goodies. Shelter manager Roxanne Coronado said the facility recruited the family, which was already doing its own community outreach on Christmas.

We decided to host the event on Christmas Day to make it a little more special, she said. When I first started working here, I came by to drop off some stuff and it was super quiet ... it was just like a dark feeling. It did not feel like Christmas, but all the days leading up to it did.

Flores and her family have spent several years dressing as Mr. and Mrs. Claus and an elf, decking out a trailer with Christmas finery and driving it around the neighborhood with presents and food.

We go through the community with music and honking and everything else, her relative Juan Vazquez, 50, said. Kids and families come out, and we hand them gifts ... and little candies.

The family tradition was created by Flores who had always wanted gatherings filled with food and fun since she was little.

When I was a little girl, I wish we had this, she said.

The food was the icing on the cake for Lyanda and her daughter, who was able to find a job at another restaurant a week ago.

God is on our side, Asia said with a smile.

jbeltran@express-news.net

Twitter: @JBfromSA
The Vietnam War Summit in April in Austin became an impressive display of testimonials from journalists, leaders and soldiers who related their stories from the controversial conflict. Old film clips, 1960s music and rehashed news engaged the aging and reflective crowd.

The most poignant moment arrived unannounced when a massive, intimidating guy in a sleeveless jersey approached Luci Baines Johnson to receive a recognition medal. He'd been very noticeable in the waiting line. Tall and muscular, wearing patches denoting struggles with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, resentment seemed to radiate from him.
At the meeting (Photo: VNA)



He made the proposal at a meeting with Politburo member and standing member of the Party Central Committees Secretariat Dinh The Huynh in Hanoi on December 26th.

The official thanked the Vietnamese Party, State and people for supporting Cambodia in the past and at present, especially saving the country from the Khmer Rouge regime.

Cambodia will spare no effort to further nurture its relations with Vietnam across the fields, he affirmed.

For his part, Huynh said in any circumstances, the Vietnamese Party, State and people will stand side by side the CPP and Cambodian people to develop their good neighbourliness, traditional friendship, and comprehensive, sustainable and long-standing collaboration.

He hailed the outcomes of the talks between Vietnamese and Cambodian Party Central Committees Offices and suggested the two sides increase information and experience exchanges.

Vietnam is willing to share experience with Cambodia in the Party building and cadres training, he asserted.

On the day Mam Sarin held talks with Nguyen Van Nen, head of the Party Central Committees Office, seeking to speed up the two offices affiliation in the coming time./.
Marlene Garcia, 21, walked quickly down Santa Rosa Street in her blue Mi Tierra Cafe and Bakery apron, passing stores and businesses closed for Christmas.

But Mi Tierra is open 24/7, and having worked until almost 4 a.m., she was back for the Sunday evening shift change, one of many people working Christmas Day to keep the lights on, the streets safe, hospitals running and holiday traditions alive  or simply to meet the sudden urge for pan dulce.

I enjoy working where Im at, a smiling Garcia said, keeping her brisk pace into Market Square, where the days damp breeze was filled with smoke from restaurants and food stands, loud conversations and the smell of roasted corn.

Area malls, packed with last-minute shoppers the night before, were ghost towns Sunday except for movie megaplexes, but Market Square was a busy Christmas destination. Kiosks offered the standard tourist services of face painting and hand-drawn caricatures and the usual array of crafts, such as Filiberto Marquezs handmade leather products.

Sitting under a canopy with stacks of leather goods on display, Marquez said business had been steady and the crowds brisk.

I always work on Christmas, Marquez said in Spanish, adding that hes been at the spot for 18 years.

Mi Tierra had earlier sent a donation of food to the San Antonio Police Departments Prue Road substation, whose operational boundary encompasses most of the Northwest Side.

An SAPD detective was not far into his shift when the food arrived but was already investigating a vehicle burglary. It was a busy day for police, but things were starting to calm down as the evening drew closer, he said, giving only his last name, Locati.

Obviously, were probably not going to have any shoplifters today because all the stores are closed, he said.

And people celebrating Christmas at home meant fewer vehicle accidents, he said, predicting that the overnight crew would probably have one of its quieter shifts of the year.

The Christmas spirit has been evident, Locati said, with department employees organizing potluck meals.

Yesterday, while I was out and about, people were thanking us and saying Merry Christmas. It was nice, he said. People take the time to thank us more often than normal.

Things were pretty slow at Cowboy Bail Bonds downtown, where Jackelyn Castorena, 29, was also at work Christmas night. She expected that. Only two people had come in, one of them just to photocopy a document. A few people called, and she had looked through paperwork for them.

Castorena said she had often worked Christmas Day at her previous jobs and didnt really mind.

I mean, Im a single mom. I need to make money, she said. She has three kids, ages 2, 4 and 8.

For Jamar McCracken, 27, downtown at Christmas also was just another night on the job. A horse-drawn carriage driver for nine years, he has worked most holidays.

Im single, I dont have kids, so I dont need to be at home, McCracken said, sitting on the front of a four-bench white carriage with maroon seats. He had just gotten to his pickup point next to the Alamo, waiting for his first fare.

The carriages, with their fairy-tale lighting, are a magnet for those celebrating special occasions. The Christmas holidays are definitely the busiest of the year, he said. Typically, Christmas Eve is busier than Christmas night, and traffic along Alamo Street can affect how many trips the carriage drivers can complete in a given evenings work.

Two families came by and asked about prices while some women stopped to snap selfies with some of the carriages waiting in line.

Within a few minutes, McCracken was pulling away, with Max, his horse, clomping down the road, tugging the first customers of the night.

jbeltran@express-news.net
Welsh farming union NFU Cymru has 'strongly opposed' government proposals to designate further areas of Wales as Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZ).

In response to the Welsh government consultation, which closed yesterday (23 December 2016), NFU Cymru set out its opposition to proposals which would see the area of NVZ in Wales increase from 2.4% to 8% with a significant new designation in Pembrokeshire and smaller new designations within Anglesey and Carmarthenshire.

NFU Cymru President Stephen James said the Union remains 'wholly unconvinced' on the basis of evidence presented by Natural Resources Wales that further NVZ designations are necessary in Wales.

He said: Additionally, proposals to designate the whole of Wales as NVZ, known as Whole Territory Designation are completely without any scientific foundation.

NFU Cymru says it is 'disappointed' that Welsh government has opted not to publish a regulatory impact assessment alongside the consultation.

This work is vital to demonstrate the costs and impacts of proposals on individual businesses, sectors and specific regions and indeed the whole economy of rural Wales together with its social and cultural well-being.

Without a comprehensive Regulatory Impact Assessment neither our members nor decision makers are in a position to make an informed, evidence-based decision on the impacts of designation or the cost-effectiveness of the action programme.

One in eight considering leaving

An NFU Cymru NVZ Survey showed that around one in eight (13%) of farmers would consider leaving the industry if the NVZ proposals are introduced.

Nearly three quarters (73%) of farmers surveyed did not have sufficient slurry storage on their farm to meet the proposed NVZ requirements and it would cost, on average, nearly 80,000 for Welsh farmers to upgrade their slurry storage facilities to achieve NVZ slurry storage compliance.

Mr James said: The significant costs to achieve compliance need to be considered in the context of a sustained period of low market returns across many sectors. According to the figures based on the results of the Wales Farm Business Survey for 2015-16 (up to March 2016), average farm business income across All Farm Types fell by 6,800 to 22,200 - a decline of around 23%. This is the third consecutive year for farm incomes to fall.

The high levels of concern and opposition expressed by farmers throughout the consultation period are predominantly due to the added costs and reduction in farmers ability to make good management decisions, relating to resource management based on their knowledge of their own farm, prevailing weather and ground conditions.

Effectiveness has 'not been demonstrated'

NFU Cymru believes that the extent to which the existing NVZ Action Programme is effective in reducing levels of nitrates from agriculture has 'not been demonstrated.'

Mr James added: NFU Cymru recognises the clear role that farmers have to play in contributing to further and sustained improvements in water quality in the years ahead. We would emphasise, that throughout the consultation period with our members, their willingness to play their part and take action to address nitrates where agriculture is responsible has been unequivocal  farmers take their environmental responsibilities very seriously.

We are strong advocates of appropriate interventions where poor practices are responsible. It is our view that approaches to address water quality must consider the full range of issues and sectors influencing water quality, be evidence-based, provide local solutions to local problems working in partnership with industry.

Concluding Mr James said: NFU Cymru is strongly opposed to the consultation proposals as the costs associated with the implementation vastly outweigh any benefits to water quality.

NFU Cymru believes that the new legislative framework provided through the Well-Being of Future Generations Act 2015 and the Environment (Wales) Act 2016 presents opportunities and the flexibility to move forward and make progress on water quality issues on a different basis to that proposed within the consultation.

An alternative approach rather than an unwieldly EU directive will enable us to develop, grow and realise NFU Cymrus vision of a productive, progressive and profitable industry that will deliver jobs, growth and investment for Wales.
A training course for nursing candidates to Germany (Photo: PANO)

The cooperation has opened up opportunities for thousands of Vietnamese nurses to work in the developed country.

Talking with a reporter from the Vietnam Peoples Army newspaper, Pham Viet Huong, Deputy Head of the Overseas Labourer Management Department, said that the program to send labourers to nurse the elderly in Germany had been carried out since 2013, while a pilot implementation was conducted between 2013 and 2014 by the department and the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ). Since 2015, the implementation of the program has been assigned to different Vietnamese and German agencies.

According to Mr. Huong, candidates who are between 21 and 25 years old and who have graduated from nursing colleges or universities will be selected to attend a 12-month German training course. Standard candidates will then be sent to Germany to be trained as nurses for the elderly for 3 years.

He added that Vietnamese labourers will enjoy salaries like German labourers at some EUR2,400 - EUR2,500 per month, as well as other social assistance, while having to pay taxes and social insurance based on German legal regulations.

Germany continues to expand its reception of Vietnamese nurses to work in the countrys hospitals, Mr. Huong confirmed./.
Will Gov. Coopers veto become useless? Cumberland voters to decide

Republicans need five seats  three in the NC House, two in the NC Senate  to get carte blanche control of the state. Cumberland County voters can help that happen or prevent that from happening.
The India International Garment Fair (IIGF), the biggest international trade fair for fashion, will host buyers and buying agents from more than 70 countries. Manufacturers and exporters from across India will exhibit their products at the fair for Autumn/Winter 2017-18 season that is scheduled to take place from January 18-20 in Delhi.

The fair for womenswear, menswear, childrenswear, scarves and stoles, bags and footwear, fashion accessory and jewellery has been organised by the Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) under the guidance of the textiles ministry. It will occupy an area of over 16,540 square metres and is likely to be inaugurated by Union textiles minister Smriti Irani.

IIGF would be encouraging participants to display sustainable practices in design and production of garments. It will provide ample opportunities to showcase product range through fashion shows, which would be organised twice every day, on all three days of the fair.

The India International Garment Fair (IIGF), the biggest international trade fair for fashion, will host buyers and buying agents from more than 70 countries. Manufacturers and exporters from across India will exhibit their products at the fair for Autumn/Winter 2017-18 season that is scheduled to take place from January 18  20 in Delhi.#

With strong support of the government through Market Access Initiative grant and incentives offered to buyers under the Reverse Buyer Seller Meet scheme, the fair has always attracted buyers from various countries.

The network has been growing and flourishing from year to year and forms the basis for the sourcing plans of all major brands in the world of fashion and accessories, said the organiser of the fair. Various promotional activities have also been undertaken by the council to invite buyers and buying agents.

Not only does this fair give a good opportunity to invite regular buyers, but a number of new buyers and buying agents are added every year by the organisers. This way this fair is a platform for interface with new buyers from new countries every season.

In the last edition, that is, 57th IIGF held during July 2016, 408 participants and more than 1100 buyers and buying agents had visited the fair. (KD)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
The ministry of textiles has introduced a dashboard for Integrated Skill Development Scheme (ISDS) hosted on the NIC cloud to bring more transparency into the system. Information related to the progress of ISDS along with state-wise details of all live training programmes under the scheme will be opened for public view through the ministrys website.

The dashboard was launched by Union minister of textiles Smriti Irani on the occasion of Good Governance Day on December 25 along with the JUTE-SMART tool and Bunkar Mitra-Handloom Helpline Centre.

The live information being sourced from MIS will be displayed in a separate page of Ministrys website in a user friendly dashboard format giving State-wise, sector-wise, category-wise progress of training programmes under the scheme across the country. The drop down provision will facilitate downloading of state-wise details of training centres along with names of trainees undergoing training in respect of all live training centres under the scheme.

The ministry of textiles has introduced a dashboard for Integrated Skill Development Scheme (ISDS) hosted on the NIC cloud to bring more transparency into the system. Information related to the progress of ISDS along with state-wise details of all live training programmes under the scheme will be opened for public view through the ministry's website.#

The proposed interactive provision in the Management Information System (MIS) will also enable any prospective trainee to identify the live training centre close to his native so as to enrol himself/herself for training. In addition, as part of this occasion, in order to utilize and harness the benefits of existing state-of- the-art secured Government cloud set up by NIC, ISDS-MIS presently hosted in a private cloud has been migrated to NIC cloud.

The strength of the textile industry, especially the textile and clothing sector, can be leveraged in two ways. While skilled workforce will provide competitive edge to the textile industry in the global market, it will also be a tool for participative and inclusive growth by providing job opportunities to the unemployed rural youth preferably below matriculates and from marginalised section of the societies. ISDS, the flagship demand driven placement linked skilling programme of the ministry is an initiative towards this direction.

The ministry is partnering with state government agencies, industry, major textile training institutions, textile research organizations and industry associations for implementing the scheme. Out of the 12th plan target of 15 lakh persons under the scheme, the ministry has so far trained a total of 8.82 lakh persons.

With an objective to ensure transparency in implementation and also to maintain accountability, the ministry has taken some measures. These include outcome based approach with mandatory placement of 70 per cent of trainees, MIS platform for ease of monitoring of implementation of training programme, biometric attendance of trainees, third party assessment of trainees after training, random physical verification of live training centres by field offices of ministry and QR code enabled e-certificates for trainees. (KD)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
Kriti Sanon recently wrapped up the shooting schedule of her upcoming film Bareilly Ki Barfi which has her sharing screen space with Ayushmann Khurrana and Rajkummar Rao. The pretty actress spoke about her role in the film to a leading lady and revealed why she gave her nod to this film.

Kriti was quoted saying, "It was a tough role to shoot as I play a tomoboyish character and had to talk in the Uttar Pradesh lingo. Rohit Choudhury, who is also in the film and from Lucknow taught us all the intonations, pauses and how to pitch the dialogues. My role is of a deglamourized tomboy who wears denims, kurtas, half jackets and loose pullovers."

She further added, "I had to incorporate little things into the character and think how else to make her a little more different. She works in the electricity department and takes in all the complaints so she's quite independent and strong-headed and questions a lot of things. What attracted to me the role was that it's not just unique, fun and special but the way it is written - it keeps you entertained throughout with the humour and romance. It's something I have never done before and I get attracted to quirky characters. My role is completely opposite to who I am."

Talking about her other films, Kriti will be next seen in Sushant Singh Rajput's Raabta which is slated to release in June 2017. Meanwhile, she opted out of Farhan Akhtar's Lucknow Central citing date issues and if one goes by the latest buzz then Mirzya girl Saiyami Kher is now likely to step into her shoes.
Ranbir Kapoor is busy prepping up for the Sanjay Dutt biopic and Ayan Mukherji's superhero flick Dragon. But, the young lad recently took out some time from his busy schedule to shoot a cameo for Ronnie Screwvala's independent debut production which is yet to be titled.

The film directed by Anand Tiwari stars Vicky Kaushal and Angira Dhar who was seen in YRF's web-series Band Baaja Baarat. It is a romcom with a hilarious take on intricacy of relationships and the changing dynamics in society. The movie revolves around an unmarried couple looking for an apartment in Mumbai.

Sumeet Vyas who became a household name with TVF's 'Permanent Roommates' has co-written the script of this flick with Anand.

We hear that Ranbir appears to Vicky in a dream sequence in the movie. The actor wrapped up his portions in the strictly-under-wraps film in a day.

Further, a Mumbai Mirror report quoted a source saying, "Ranbir and Ronnie have known each other for years and Anand too was an assistant director on Anurag Basu's Barfi! which featured Ranbir in the lead. So, when Ronnie approached him for the special appearance he readily agreed."

Well, we are quite excited for Ranbir's special appearance!
Celebrated Hollywood actor Michael Fassbender states that his forthcoming film titled Assasin's Creed might be just the initial part of an overwhelming trilogy.

Fassbender, who portrays the character of Callum Lynch, a present-day convict teased fans by stating that this could be just the beginning of a much interesting story.

"We had an idea of what would happen over three stories, basically, when we were starting this one, It'll be a different time zone, for sure. A different regression." Michael Fassbender said in a statement.

Fassbender always had a big fascination for history and therefore he is happy to finally do a film with some historical angle.

"History was always one of my favourite subjects at school. I really enjoy this exploration of history," said the actor.

"What's fun about the history element of it as well - and this is something we did with the Spanish Inquisition - is: we all have an idea of what happened in that period of time; it seemed to be some sort of religious cleansing, the Spanish Inquisition." Fassbender stated.

"But what's fun is when you put a little slant on it. Actually, Templars and Assassins were at work behind the scenes there, and there was something political that was going on behind that facade. That's fun to play with." he added further.
Manikandan Achari (Kammatipaadam)

Manikandan Achari made a fantastic debut with his role Balan, in Rajeev Ravi's Kammatipaadam. We are very sure that the actor, who comes from the theatre background, is here to stay.

Shane Nigam (Kismath)

Kismath marked the lead role debut of Shane Nigam, who has earlier played small roles in several films. The actor astonished us with his matured performance as a Muslim youth who falls in love with an elder woman from a lower caste.

Gokul Suresh (Mudhugauv)

Gokul Suresh made a decent debut with his charming performance in the romantic comedy Mudhugauv. He perfectly played the role of Bharath, a happy-go-lucky young man who has a peculiar habit of kissing everyone around him, when he's happy.

Team Aanandam

Aanandam, the feel-good campus story introduced seven newfaces, including Vishak Nair, Anu Antony, Thomas Mathew, Arun Kurian, Siddhi Mahajankatti, Roshan Mathew, and Anarkali Marikkar. All of them were equally wonderful in their respective roles.

Rajisha Vijayan (Anuraga Karikkin Vellam)

Rajisha Vijayan stole millions of hearts with her performance as Eli, in Anuraga Karikkin Vellam. She played the role of a annoying yet doting girlfriend to near perfection, and is undoubtedly one of the most promising debutantes of the year.

Prayaga Martin (Oru Murali Vanthu Parthaya)

Prayaga Martin made a huge fan following among the Malayali youth, with her performance as Parvathy in Oru Murai Vanthu Parthaya. She has all the qualities to be an ideal Malayalam heroine, and we are sure that Prayaga will find a place for herself in the industry very soon.

Arthana Binu (Mudhugauv)

Arthana Binu was perfect for the role of Ganga, the innocent college girl in Mudhugauv. She delivered a decent performance and made a mark with her charming screen presence.

Anu Sithara (Happy Wedding)

Anu Sithara, who has earlier essayed small roles in several popular films, made her lead role debut with Happy Wedding. The actress played her role Shahina to near perfection, and we are sure that she is here to stay.
Priyanka Brother Sameer

After her exit Priyanka had mentioned on the Facebook account that the show was scripted, but later it was deleted. Even Priyanka's brother Sameer supported Priyanka and mentioned on his social networking account that the show is doing all these for TRPs.

(Image Source: Facebook)

Sameer Jagga

Sameer Jagga wrote this on his Facebook wall, "TRP ka Darama hai BIGG BOSS ka Abhi bhi priyanka ka naam use kar raha hai or End tak karaigai.Rahi baat Salman ki. Aaj 30 Saal mai jitnai log salman ko jaantai ha. Sayad 3 months mai hahaha????" (sic). But, later the post was deleted.

(Image Source: Facebook)

Dale Bhagwagar Says...

PR person Dale Bhagwagar, who is not representing Priyanka as of now, but is in touch with her family members, said that she was seen crying during her entire journey.

Priyanka Cried During Her Entire Journey

Dale was quoted by a leading daily as saying, "Priyanka was sitting at the Mumbai airport and crying. She took a flight to Delhi. In fact, during her entire journey from Lonavala to Mumbai in a Toyota Innova, she has been crying."

Priyanka Had Gynaecological Problem

He even said Priyanka was suffering from a gynaecological problem and was unhappy with the local Lonavala doctors provided to her by Bigg Boss. He said she will be going to the doctor in Delhi.

Did Priyanka Jagga Suffer A Miscarriage?

He was quoted by the leading daily as saying, "I've been told she was frustrated as she was not happy with treatment from the doctor provided to her inside the house. I've also been told she was out of the house for a day and underwent a sonography test from another doctor."

Priyanka Not Happy With The Medical Treatment

He added, "But it seems she was still not happy with the treatment and wanted more experienced medical attention from Mumbai or Delhi."

Priyanka Felt Helpless & Cranky!

He further added, "Apparently, when that didn't happen, she is said to have felt extremely helpless and cranky. That led to the ultimate showdown we all witnessed on national television."

Priyanka Had Health Issue?

Taking Priyanka's side, Dale asked, "Don't you think that to Priyanka, her health and well-being would be more important than anything else in life. What's wrong about putting health before reality television?"

Colors Channel Has A Different Story...

But Colors has something else to say. Colors was quoted by the leading daily as saying, "We wish we could show the audience the uncut version of how Priyanka Jagga misbehaved with Salman. She argued back in the most offensive manner."

Colors Deny Any Such Issue!

It further said, "And from past 10 seasons we have been giving medical help to contestants why will we single out one contestant? This is a ridiculous claim that she wasn't given adequate medical help. This is a case of sour grapes."
Daejeon, KOREA, Dec 24, 2016 - (ACN Newswire) - ETRI's broadcasting and media technology has been globally recognized as a leader of related technologies around the world. ETRI is gaining traction in establishing related core technologies as international standards in the industry for UHD, often known as the next-generation television service, which has been expanding its market size.Researchers from ETRI have developed LDM (Layered Division Multiplexing) technology that can simultaneously transmit and receive UHD and mobile HD broadcasting signals through a single channel, and it was selected as a baseline technology for the ATSC 3.0 standard. In addition, ETRI has developed and applied to UHD television, HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding), enabling twofold greater data compression than the existing technology as well as MPEG-H 3D audio technology to provide multi-channel, multi-objective services. The latter is projected to become available in the global market in the future through application to UHD television service. Based on these achievements, South Korea is scheduled to launch the world's first UHD broadcasting service through terrestrial networks in February 2017.These two technologies won several awards inside and outside Korea for their excellence, strengthening the position and presence of ETRI. The LDM technology won the Technology Innovation Awards at the NAB Show 2015, the world's largest broadcasting equipment exhibition, held in the United States in April 2015. The technology was also the subject matter discussed in the top award-winning papers at the BMSB 2012, 2014, and 2015, the world's largest conference for the broadcasting and media industry. For the video compression technology, Dr. Hui Yong Kim was awarded "Inventor of the Year" in May 2015 by the Korean Government Office of Intellectual Property in recognition of his contribution to core technology research.ETRI researchers have conducted a number of studies related to UHD broadcasting. The research outcomes include HEVC encoder technology to compress 4K-UHD images, which are four times clearer than those in full HD broadcasting, at a rate of 60 frames per second in real time, as well as upscaling technology to convert full HD images into high-quality 4K-UHD images.By the end of 2015, the technologies had been transferred to related companies, which opened broad prospects for entry into the broadcasting equipment markets.ETRI has recently completed the development of high-efficiency audio coding encoder technology to provide 10.2 channel stereophonic sound service for both horizontal and vertical sides and an interactive service that can selectively control the volume of dialogues and is currently working to commercialize this technology.ETRI has also successfully developed convergent 3D broadcasting technology to air 3D UHD broadcasting without additional data transmission, in addition to UHD and mobile HD broadcasting. The institute reflected the technology into the ATSC 3.0 international standard, thereby significantly expanding the scope of viewers' options for broadcasting services.ETRI is now set to target the global market based on its enhanced presence in the area of broadcasting technologies. In October 2016, upon suggestion by Technicolor and Ateme, French global broadcasting technology companies, ETRI successfully completed the world's first field test in Jeju Island for the LDM technology combined with SHVC, a new type of video compression technology.ETRI is also facilitating full-scale global cooperation with various international companies, including CRC (Canada), NHK (Japan), NERC-DTV (China), Fraunhofer (Germany), and UPV/EHU and iTeam (Spain). In relation to the UHD broadcasting technology, the institute has thus far registered over 400 patents, published more than 20 SCI-level papers, and completed over10 cases of technology transfer.About ETRIEstablished in 1976, ETRI is a non-profit Korean government-funded research organization that has been at the forefront of technological excellence for about 40 years. In the 1980s, ETRI developed TDX (Time Division Exchange) and 4M DRAM. In the 1990s, ETRI commercialized CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) for the first time in the world. In the 2000s, ETRI developed Terrestrial DMB, WiBro, and 4G LTE Advanced, which became the foundation of mobile communications. Recently, as a global ICT leader, ETRI has been advancing communication and convergence by developing SAN (Ship Area Network) technology, Genie Talk (world class portable automatic interpretation; Korean-English/Japanese/Chinese), and automated valet parking technology. As of 2016, ETRI has about 2,000 employees of whom about 1,800 are researchers. For more informatoin, please visit https://www.etri.re.kr/eng/main/main.etriETRI Broadcasting Media Technology Laboratory Homepage: https://www.etri.re.kr/eng/sub6/sub6_0101.etri?departCode=7For more information, please contact:Dr. Jinsu ChoiManaging Director, Realistic Broadcasting Media Research Dept., ETRIe-mail: jschoi@etri.re.krphone: +82 42 860 5185Dr. Namho HurManaging Director, Broadcasting Systems Research Dept., ETRIe-mail: namho@etri.re.krphone: +82 42 860 6568Press release distributed by ResearchSEA on behalf of ETRI.Source: ETRICopyright 2016 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.
PUNE, India, December 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The report "Aerospace Robotics Market by Type (Scara, Cylindrical, Articulated, Catesian), Component (Controller, Processor, End Effector, Drive, Sensor) Technology (Traditional, Collaborative), Application and Region - Global Forecast to 2022", published by MarketsandMarkets, the market is projected to grow from USD 1.81 Billion in 2016 to USD 4.54 Billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 16.55% during the forecast period.

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Browse 90 market data Tables and 52 Figures spread through157 Pages and in-depth TOC on"Aerospace Robotics Market"

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Factors such as increasing use of robots for efficient aircraft production, growing use of robotics to handle aircraft orders backlog, and increasing labor costs are expected to drive the growth of the aerospace robotics market.

Articulated segment estimated to witness the highest growth during the forecast period

By type, the articulated segment of the Aerospace Robotics Market is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Articulated robots are used for various functions, for instance drilling, fastening, and painting, among others. They are the most preferred and widely used robots in the aerospace industry because of the wide range of applications for which they can be used. Articulated robots dominate the automated world in terms of speed and agility.

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Sensors segment estimated to witness the highest growth during the forecast period

Based on component, the sensors segment of the aerospace robotics market is estimated to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period, owing to the increasing use of robotic sensors to provide essential inputs about an object's motion, location, velocity, and temperature, among others.

Collaborative segment estimated to witness the highest growth during the forecast period

Based on technology, the collaborative segment of the aerospace robotics market is estimated to witness the highest growth during the forecast period. This segment's growth is driven by the increasing demand for human safety while working alongside robots, in the aerospace industry. Customers/manufacturers in the aerospace industry are showing an interest in collaborative robots, as these robots can safely work alongside humans.

Asia-Pacific market is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period

Asia-Pacific is the fastest-growing markets for aerospace robotics, due to increase in the number of aircraft deliveries in the region. The region's major economies, such as India, China, and Japan are increasingly investing in automation solution for aircraft manufacturing. These countries are also expected to increase their acquisition of robotic systems and invest in research & development in aerospace manufacturing.

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Some of the major players in the aerospace robotics market include Yaskawa Electric Corporation (Japan), Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (Japan), and FANUC Corporation (Japan).

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Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Market by Application (Military, Civil & Commercial, Homeland Security), Class (Small, Tactical, Strategic, Special Purpose), Subsystem, Energy Source, Material Type, Payload and Region - Global Forecast to 2022

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SEATTLE, WASHINGTON -- (Marketwired) -- 12/26/16 -- Versatile Systems Inc. (TSX VENTURE: VV) ( the "Company") is providing this bi-weekly default status report in accordance with National Policy 12-203 Management Cease Trade Orders ("NP 12-203") for the Management Cease Trade Order ("MCTO") issued by the British Columbia Securities Commission on October 31, 2016. On November 1st, 2016, the Company announced by way of press release that the filings of the Company's annual financial statements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2016 and the related management's discussion and analysis (collectively, the "2016 Annual Financial Statements") were not completed by the legal deadline of October 28, 2016. The Company made an application to the provincial securities commissions under NP 12-203 and on October 31, 2016, received the MCTO in respect of the late filing. The MCTO does not affect the ability of other shareholders of the Company to trade their securities, however, Bertrande des Pallieres, the Executive Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and acting Chief Financial Officer of the Company and Andrew Lynch, the President of the Company, will not be able to trade the Company's shares.

As previously reported, the Company's failure to file the 2016 Annual Financial Statements by the prescribed deadline is due to a data corruption issue with its inventory count and the Company's management, together with its audit committee will continue to cooperate with its auditors to provide the information as soon as possible. The Company is not yet in a position to file the 2016 Annual Financial Statements.

The Company confirms that it intends to satisfy the provisions of the alternative information guidelines found in NP 12-203 for so long as it is delayed in filing the 2016 Annual Financial Statements. The Company further reports that since October 31, 2016, except as stated in this default status report, there have not been any material changes to the information contained in its press releases dated November 1(st), 2016, November 15, 2016, November 28, 2016 and December 12, 2016; nor any failure by Company to fulfill its intentions as stated therein with respect to satisfying the provisions of NP 12-203, and there are no additional defaults or anticipated defaults subsequent to the disclosure therein, other than the delay in filing the 2016 Annual Financial Statements. Further, the Company confirms that, at the date hereof, it is not aware of any other material information concerning its affairs which has not been generally disclosed.

About Versatile

Versatile is a multi-disciplinary technology company with solutions across the mobile software and hardware landscape. The company's products are utilized by Fortune 500 retailers, as well as large and small distribution companies representing grocery, dairy, beverage and consumer packaged goods. For more information please visit www.versatile.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This document may contain forward-looking statements relating to Versatile's operations, filing of annual financial statements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2016 and the related management's discussion and analysis or to the environment in which it operates, which are based on Versatile's operations, estimates, forecasts and projections. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict or are beyond Versatile's control. A number of important factors including those set forth in other public filings could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements. Consequently, readers should not place any undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. In addition, these forward-looking statements relate to the date on which they are made. Versatile disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Contacts:

Versatile Systems Inc.

Andrew Lynch

President

(425) 778-8577

inquiries@versatile.com




According to the latest market study released by Technavio, the global rail logistics marketis expected to grow at a CAGR of nearly 4% during the forecast period.

This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161226005037/en/

Technavio has published a new report on the global rail logistics market from 2017-2021. (Graphic: Business Wire)

This research report titled 'Global Rail Logistics Market 2017-2021' provides an in-depth analysis of the market in terms of revenue and emerging market trends. This market research report also includes up to date analysis and forecasts for various market segments and all geographical regions.

The important market drivers responsible for the growth of the global rail logistics market are an increased efficiency of rail freight over truck freight, reduction in traffic and road congestion in highways, and growth of rail intermodals. The global rail logistics market is forecast to be valued at USD 210.13 billion by 2021.

On an average, rail freight transportation is 4.5 to 6 times more fuel efficient that transport through trucks. Rail freight fuel efficiency varies between 150 ton-mile-per-gallon to 520 ton-mile-per-gallon, whereas truck freight fuel varies between 70 ton-mile-per-gallon to 140 ton-mile-per-gallon.

Request a sample report: http://www.technavio.com/request-a-sample?report=55300

Technavio's sample reports are free of charge and contain multiple sections of the report including the market size and forecast, drivers, challenges, trends, and more.

Based on mode of transportation, the report categorizes the global rail logistics market into the following segments:

Intermodals

Tank wagons

Freight cars

Intermodals

"Intermodal freight transportation is forecast to be the segment that will showcase the highest growth rate, with a CAGR of almost 5% through the forecast period. This growth will be driven by the cost-efficient solutions to transport of complex commodities provided by the intermodals. The intermodal segment accounted for a majority 41.72% of the global market," says Sharan Raj, one of the lead analysts at Technavio for logistics research.

The high demand for intermodal transportation has brought in many investments from rail operators and manufacturers for the development and integration of intermodal technologies for better efficiency. Canadian National Railways announced an investment of USD 250 million towards the development of an intermodal and logistics hub in Milton, Ontario, during the forecast period. Additionally, CSX, a transportation company in the US offering logistics solutions, has developed tracking systems that help shippers track their intermodal containers from the source to the destination point.

Tank wagons

Tank wagons are cylindrical containers that are used for storage and transportation of liquids, liquefied gases, and oil. The growth of this segment can mainly be attributed to the growth of the oil and gas industry. In 2015, the US alone produced almost 9.4 billion barrels of oil per day. The companies involved in this industry rely completely on railroads for the transportation of these commodities to the refineries. Rail freight transportation market in the US by oil and gas industry accounted for 32.16% volume share in 2015, and is expected to account for 33.15% in 2016.

APAC accounted for 10.11% of the world's oil production in 2015, with China in the lead, producing 4.22 million barrels of oil and related products per day. The region totally accounted for the production of 15.14 million barrels of oil per day. The high volume of these products directly translates to a healthy demand for tank wagons, thus driving the market growth.

Freight cars

The freight car segment of the global rail logistics market is expected to maintain a steady position in the market through the forecast period. Freight car transportation includes flat cars, open cars, box cars, and sliding wall freight cars. Freight cars are meant to carry goods up to 100 tons and are primarily used in the transportation of coal, logs, and vehicle equipment.

"Rail freight operators across the globe are investing in redesigning freight cars to increase the capacity to accommodate an increased volume of goods in a single trip, and to increase the efficiency of each container. In the US, few manufacturers have redesigned rail cars to increase the weight capacity of the freight car from 2,200 tons to almost 3,600 tons. Such innovations will bring in demand for this segment of the global rail logistics market," says Sharan.

The top vendors highlighted by Technavio's research analysts in this report are:

CN Railway

DB Schenker

SBB Cargo

Union Pacific

Browse Related Reports:

Rail Freight Transportation Market in Europe 2016-2020

Global Air Cargo Market 2016-2020

Domestic Freight Market in the US 2015-2019

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About Technavio

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. The company develops over 2000 pieces of research every year, covering more than 500 technologies across 80 countries. Technavio has about 300 analysts globally who specialize in customized consulting and business research assignments across the latest leading edge technologies.

Technavio analysts employ primary as well as secondary research techniques to ascertain the size and vendor landscape in a range of markets. Analysts obtain information using a combination of bottom-up and top-down approaches, besides using in-house market modeling tools and proprietary databases. They corroborate this data with the data obtained from various market participants and stakeholders across the value chain, including vendors, service providers, distributors, re-sellers, and end-users.

If you are interested in more information, please contact our media team at media@technavio.com.

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Two years short of its silver jubilee anniversary, Mohanlal's Manichitrathazhu (The Ornate Lock) remains a classic 23 years later, with its core plot revamped (to call it a remake is an insult to the original) in varied languages (by Priyadarshan in Hindi, P Vasu in Tamil with Superstar Rajinikanth in Chandramukhi and ahead of that, P Vasu made it in Kannada with the late Soundarya).

The memory of a good film lingers on and Manichitrathazhu is one of those landmark films. This year saw Mohanlal's best box-office successes like Oppam and Pulimurugan, and he's also a premium actor whose films have been remade in multiple languages ever since he hit super-stardom with the 1986 blockbuster Rajavinte Makan (The Kings Son).

The powerhouse performer that he is, Mohanlal has faced severe criticism for his choice of scripts whenever he has had a lean year, but it is stunning to note that he has starred in very few remakes himself. For example, he acted in the Malayalam remake of Amitabh Bachchans Don (Rajinikanth did Billa in Tamil) but he stopped saying yes to remakes when he hit bulls eye with his series of super-hits in different genres with an elite set of directors like Padmarajan, Fazil, Sibi Maliyil, Sathiyan Anthikad, Priyadarshan, Ranjith and their ilk. He continues to act with newer directors as the years go by.

Rajavinte Makan changed the tide for Mohanlal, who was up until then playing a mere second lead as Mammottys friend or foe in many films. The film was remade in Tamil for another villain-actor Satyaraj, who switched gears rather efficiently in 1987 with Makkal Enn Pakkam (People are on my side).

Thus began a series of Mohanlal films which were selected for remakes. A recent remake success would be Drishyam (2014) which released to a rousing welcome in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi. The importance Mohanlal gives to the script, his director and thereafter to his own character in the film makes the movie work as one whole entity rather than just a stand-alone lead role which could just be adapted to suit a hero in another language.

Apart from Rajinikanths Muthu (1995) which was a remake of Thenmaavin Kombathu (1994) Mohanlal has had his films remade with non-superstar actors as well. Take Nadodi Kaattu (1987) for example. It was remade by K Balachanders Kavithalaya Films as Kathanayagan (1988) with Pandiarajan and S V Shekar, and Spadikam was remade with Sundar C as Veerappu in 2007 many years after its release in 1995.

Content from Mohanlals films travels across eras, and the scripts work for whoever stars in them even though the lead actor comes from another generation altogether. A classic example is the Ajith starrer Kireedam (2007 - the Crown) remade from the Malayalam Kireedom (1989) which fetched Mohanlal his first Special Jury National Award for Best Actor. Thereafter even Bharatham (1991) for which he won the Best Actor - National Award, was remade by P Vasu with Karthik as Seenu (2000).

So, what is so unique about a Mohanlal film which makes actors from other states flock to remake them?

The answer also lies in how powerfully he is able to portray the character given to him which makes the hero timeless. However there are characters like Mangalaserry Neelakantan from Devasuram (1993) which are tough to touch. It took nearly two decades for Kamal Haasan  who hasn't shown much interest in remakes since Raajapaarvai  to relent his rule for only one film.

It had to be a Mohanlal-starrer Drishyam, whose Tamil remake Papanasam proved to be hit for Ulaganayagan in 2015. The list of heroes who have acted in remakes of Mohanlals films range from Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, Ajith, Satyaraj, Sundar C to a Madhavan who donned Mohanlals role in Lesa Lesa (2002) which was a remake of Summer in Bethlehem (1998) in Tamil.

Nagarjuna did Nirnayam in 1991 which was remade from Mohanlals Vandanam (both directed by Priyadarshan) and starred in Criminal by Mahesh Bhatt in 1995, the Indianised version of Harrison Ford's Fugitive. Venkatesh, who has a keen eye for stories in Tamil and Malayalam, starred in the Drishyam remake in Telugu while Ravichandran took over such remakes for Kannada.

When a Malayalam script is okayed by Mohanlal, it grabs maximum mileage when compared to his long-standing competitor Mammotty. This is some sort of an unexplained phenomenon which exists in the south film industry for the last two decades and now the Hindi market has also opened its doors for scripts from Mohanlal movies.

After a 100 crore blockbuster like Pulimurugan which was preceded by a 50 crore hit like Oppam (Ajay Devgn stars in the Hindi remake), Mohanlal awaits the release of his family film Munthirivallikal Thalirkkumbol, which, if one were to go by the trailer and songs, seems apt for Venkatesh in Telugu, Anil Kapoor in Hindi and who can star in Tamil? Well, your guess is as good as mine for the film is hot in the remake trade even before we hit the publish button on this article.
On November 22nd 2016, the NDA government signed an agreement with Switzerland for exchange of financial information, which will provide India details of the financial assets held by its citizens in that country. In the backdrop of black money dominating the media headlines and popular discourse in the country, this development was termed as a game-changer in the fight against black money by a number of commentators. In the celebratory noise, however, some of the subtle elements of the agreement were ignored, which on detailed examination reveal serious weaknesses of the current framework that could potentially undermine the success of this initiative.

Background of the agreement

There are two components of black money  domestic and international, also known as illicit financial flows (IFFs). Unlike domestic black money that can be dealt solely by the prerogative of national governments, international black money, which moves across countries, creates the problem of information inaccessibility and legal jurisdiction for national authorities, which are the biggest hurdles in detection and control of illicit financial flows. One way to deal with these hurdles is sharing financial information among countries; for example - Switzerland sharing the information of assets owned by Indian citizens in Switzerland. This seemingly simple solution is rather hard to implement because many countries (loosely termed as tax havens) benefit from such financial flows; hence are against any such initiative. The issue becomes more complex due to differences in the regulatory framework among jurisdictions, the sensitive nature and the legal implications of information sharing.

To overcome these difficulties, jurisdictions sign agreements making it legally binding for them to share the information in the pre-agreed format. Such bilateral agreements have been part of international cooperation for long, either as a clause of Double Tax (Avoidance) Agreements (DTAs) or more recently as Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEAs). India signed its first such agreement with Egypt in 1965 and since then, more than 100 such agreements have been signed with various countries.

After the financial crisis of 2008 and subsequent revelations about the misuse/ abuse of international Financial and Tax Architecture, there was a global outcry against illicit financial flows, and Exchange of Financial Information was accepted by world leaders as a major tool to fight IFFs. Consequently, it led to the creation of the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Taxation purposes by OECD, backed by the G-20. With more than 130 member countries, the Global Forum is currently the biggest intergovernmental organisation working on the issue of a multilateral framework for exchange of information. It has created Common Reporting Standard (CRS) as a model for Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI), which has been accepted by 101 countries and they are expected to start exchange of information automatically from either 2017 or 2018. The agreement signed between India and Switzerland, which is based on the CRS, is part of that process in which around 40 countries have agreed to share information with India.

Improvement over previous arrangement

There are two major ways of information exchange  upon request and automatic. Under exchange of information on request (EOIR), country A has to make a request to country B for information about a particular entity that is a resident of country A. The limitation of this method is fishing expedition and hence the request made has to contain very specific details such as name of person, bank name, branch name, account number, etc. Because of such limitations of EOIR, there are instances when requests made by countries like India and Argentina were turned down by countries like Switzerland.

This limitation of EOIR is expected to be addressed with automatic exchange of information (AEOI). Under AEOI, designated financial institutions within each participating country will collect and report the financial information of foreign entities to the government authorities, which will then share the information with the respective foreign governments. Since, information for all the foreign financial accounts of citizens will be available to government authorities, AEOI is expected to help in detection and deterrence for black money compare to EOIR, which works just as a confirmation tool for already suspected fund flow.

Drawbacks in the current framework

Notwithstanding the improvement over the previous framework, the current method of AEOI under CRS still has many loopholes, which may significantly reduce the expected benefits. A select few of them are listed below:

1) Exempting the pre-existing accounts: Only the information of accounts opened after 2016-17 will be shared and in some cases, like the recent Indo-Swiss agreement, this exchange will apply on accounts opened on or after 2018. Also, in some cases the new account opened by an existing customer can be considered an old account  this essentially means all the wrong-doers of past might get an easy and convenient escape route.

2) Exclusion of many financial instruments and non-financial assets: Trusts, foundations, real estate, bullion, art work, individual broker, credit card issuer and such instruments, many of which are known to be among the big instrumentalities of IFFs are excluded from reporting requirements.

3) Possible exemption of the accounts with balance less than $2,50,000 (around Rs 1.6 crore), where balance is to be checked on a particular date instead of setting as minimum balance during a period. An account holder can reduce the balance for a few days during collection of data thus escaping the reporting requirement.

4) Fake certificate of residence: If a resident of India opens an account by using a fake certificate of residence from a tax haven then information will be shared with that tax haven instead of being shared with India rendering the entire exercise rather ineffective. The current framework does little to check this abuse.

5) Beneficial Ownership (BO): It refers to the individual who owns and ultimately benefits from a legal entity. The unavailability of BO information, which is rather easy to conceal, is another obstacle in identification and curbing of IFFs, especially if the owner (either individual or legal entity) is resident of a foreign country.

6) Non-participation of the US: The US has not committed to the CRS and instead is continuing with Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), its own agreement for information exchange. Unfortunately, FATCA has only limited reciprocity. In other words, while the US will get information about US residents from abroad, it will provide limited information to countries like India and others. Given its economic significance and the fact that a number of regions in the US, like Nevada and Delaware, are considered tax havens, the non-participation of the US can seriously undermine the success of the entire process.

7) Some tax havens not yet committed to sharing information: Out of 101 countries committed to CRS, only 40 have indicated that they will share information with India. The notable ones missing from the above list of 40 countries are Cyprus, Hong Kong, Macao, Mauritius, Panama, Singapore and Bahamas among others. A 2014 study by Gabriel Zucman, an economist working on the issues of international tax avoidance, found that signing of agreement with a tax haven results only in the shifting of funds to other non-signatory tax havens highlighting the need to bring all such potential destinations of IFFs under AEOI agreements.

By a coincidental turn of events, both globally and domestically, the fight against black money has gathered significant political momentum. Time has never been more appropriate to push for these changes. Allowing these loopholes to continue runs the serious risk of these initiatives being just another exercise in futility with the scourge of black money persisting.

(The author is with Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability, New Delhi. He can be reached at suraj@cbgaindia.org. Views expressed are personal.)
When Ratan Tata retired as chairman of Tata Sons Ltd in 2012, he proposed a change in the laws governing the relationship between India's largest conglomerate and its key shareholder, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Until then, the Tata Trusts - public charities owning two-thirds of the company - had easily protected its investment. A Tata family member had for decades held the chairmanship at both the Trusts and the company, whose businesses include cars, software and steel.

But an outsider, Cyrus Mistry, had just taken the top job at Tata Sons. Tata wanted to make sure the Trusts, that rely on Tata Sons for dividends to fund their charitable work, could keep having a major say in company decisions, the sources said.

Mistry agreed, and in doing so sowed the seeds of his ouster from the company last October, according to interviews with more than half-a-dozen current and former Tata executives and advisors, and a review of meeting minutes, emails and a court petition that Mistry has filed against Tata Sons.

Mistry's departure  and the reinstatement of the 78-year-old Tata as interim chairman  has triggered a bitter, public spat that has contributed to nearly a $10 billion decline in the market value of Tata's many listed companies.

Even if the conflict is resolved, the company could face future governance issues as the structure remains unchanged, which means it could weigh on any new chairman. "It is going to be very difficult for an external person to take the role," said Shriram Subramanian, founder of proxy advisory firm InGovern Research.

Mistry wrote in a letter to the Tata Sons board on October 26 that Tata improperly used the change in bylaws to interfere in the affairs of the company and created an alternate power center at the group, which made it hard for him to do his job.

Tata Sons spokesman Debasis Ray said Tata asked Mistry to do only what was in the bylaws and got involved in the company's affairs when he was asked. Tata Sons has cited Mistry's performance as the main reason for firing him, holding him responsible for rising expenses and impairment provisions.

Still, interviews with sources on both sides and the review of documents show that the changes in bylaws helped create the conditions that caused friction between Mistry and Tata and increasingly hindered smooth functioning of the group.

Over the past 30 months, Mistry met Tata - often along with fellow trustee Noshir Soonawala - more than two dozen times to update them on deals and other strategic decisions at group companies. In several cases, the meetings and explanations led to disagreements, the sources said.

Changes to bylaws

The changes in bylaws, which were finalised in 2014 after more than a year of discussions, substantially increased the accountability of the chairman of Tata Sons to the directors nominated by the Trusts.

The Trusts can nominate one-third of Tata Sons' directors. The new bylaws require major decisions, such as deals and changes to the company's capital structure, be approved by a majority of the Trusts' nominees.

The chairman was also now required to present five-year and annual business plans to the board and have them approved by a majority of the nominees, the bylaws show.

The chairman, though, was not directly accountable to any of the trustees, including Tata. The Trusts' nominees were expected to represent their interests on the Tata Sons board, sources familiar with the rules on both sides of the conflict said.

Mistry said in his letter that the family's patriarch nevertheless continued to directly interfere in the conglomerate's affairs and called the nominees "postmen" who did Tata's bidding.

Mistry also wrote that Tata's interference "severely constrained" his ability to make the necessary changes to turn around many of the conglomerate's loss-making businesses.

Of the three nominees of the Trusts on the nine-member Tata Sons board at the time of Mistry's ousting, one declined to comment and two others could not be reached.

Tata Sons' Ray denied that Tata interfered with operational matters after stepping down. Tata never attended the group's board meetings and any interaction between Tata and Mistry was at Mistry's behest, Ray said.

The dispute is now being litigated. Mistry filed a petition on 20 December at the National Company Law Tribunal, a quasi-judicial body that deals with corporate grievances in India.

In his petition, Mistry has asked the court to stop Tata and the trustees from interfering in the affairs of the company, replace the entire Tata Sons board and order an investigation into the role of the trustees.

Tata Sons has called his accusations baseless and malicious and said it believes that Mistry's petition is not maintainable in law.

Many meetings

While the extent of Tata's influence remains in dispute, sources on both sides acknowledged that Tata and Mistry often met to talk about the affairs of the company, and sometimes disagreed on the best course of action. For example, when Tata Power decided to buy $1.4 billion worth of renewable energy assets from rival Welspun Energy this summer, Tata and Soonawala - who is also a former Tata group finance chief and close confidante of the family's patriarch - got involved.

Emails from early July between Mistry and Soonawala show that Soonawala had ideas about how the deal should be structured that were different from the proposals made by bankers who were advising the group.

Soonawala also told Mistry to get Tata's sign off before finalising the deal, two sources close to Mistry said, adding that the involvement of the two men led to the deal being delayed by several weeks.

Ray said Soonawala, 81, got involved because he was asked by Mistry to do so. Another Tata Sons spokesman said "there were no delays because of consultation with the trustees". Sources close to Mistry deny he asked for Soonawala's advice. It could not be independently confirmed whether such a request was ever made.

In another instance, just weeks before an Indian telecom airwaves auction in the autumn, Mistry met Tata and Soonawala on three separate occasions to discuss Tata Teleservices' bidding strategy, two sources close to Mistry said. They said the meetings lasted for hours, as the two sides disagreed on how much extra spectrum Tata Teleservices should buy. It could not be independently determined as to who asked for the meetings.

Tata and Soonawala wanted the purchase to be kept at a minimum because the company was already bleeding, but Mistry and Tata Teleservices executives wanted to buy more, arguing it could help increase value and draw interest from suitors, the sources said. Tata Teleservices ended up paying 46.2 billion rupees ($681 million) for some of the spectrum being sold, government data showed.

What is not clear is who prevailed in the internal argument over the bidding.
By Shwe Yee Saw Myint

| YANGON

YANGON A man has been found dead with stab wounds in Myanmar's Rakhine State, in what the government said on Monday was the second murder in under a week of a Rohingya who cooperated with authorities as they crack down on suspected insurgents.Coordinated attacks on October 9 killed nine police officers and sparked a military operation in northern Rakhine. The government of predominantly Buddhist Myanmar blamed Muslim Rohingyas supported by foreign militants. State media has reported at least 86 deaths and the United Nations says 34,000 people have fled to Bangladesh.The violence poses a challenge to Aung San Suu Kyi's government and has renewed international criticism that the Nobel laureate has done too little to help the Rohingya, who are denied citizenship in Myanmar.Residents and rights groups say soldiers have raped Rohingya women, burnt homes and killed civilians during the operation near the frontier with Bangladesh.The government denies the accusations, and has launched a social media campaign in an effort to demonstrate that security forces are acting properly in Rakhine.

An administrator in Yae Twin Kyun village, named as Rawphi, was found dead with knife wounds on Sunday, Lieutenant Colonel Aung San Win of the local border guard police told Reuters.He said the killing of the 28-year-old Muslim might be "related to terrorism". Myanmar's state counsellor's office said on Monday evening on its Facebook page that the victim had been "cooperating with members of security forces in administration duties."

The case is the second murder in Rakhine where authorities have highlighted the victim's cooperation with the government, appearing to point the finger at Rohingya insurgents.On Friday, the state counsellor's office said a Muslim man was decapitated after he had denied stories of Myanmar military abuse when speaking to reporters."He told media that there was no case of arson by the military and police forces, no rape and no unjust arrests," said a Facebook post accompanied by a picture of a headless body with English text that read: "truth teller beheaded".

Neither the police nor the state counsellor's office have said who was responsible for the decapitation.A Rohingya community leader, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals, told Reuters many Muslims were sceptical about the government's account of the beheading.A report by the International Crisis Group said insurgents calling themselves Harakah al-Yaqin were responsible for the attacks on October 9 that sparked the crackdown. The group also have killed Rohingyas who threatened to inform on them to authorities, the ICG said.Reuters could not independently verify the government accounts as access for independent journalists to northern Rakhine has been prohibited since security forces locked down the area. (Reporting By Shwe Yee Saw Myint and Simon Lewis; Writing by Yimou Lee; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Chennai: The 12th anniversary of the killer tsunami that caused massive destruction in Tamil Nadu in 2004 was observed across the state with people mourning the dead and fishermen keeping off the seas.

Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar and Handloom Minister OS Manian paid tributes in Chennai and at Nagapattinam, respectively.

Special prayers and floral tributes besides remembering the loved ones by pouring milk into the sea marked the day, even as many recalled that fateful day on December 26 when tidal waves swept away their loved ones along the coast.

Prayers and tributes were held in Chennai and Nagapattinam, with the latter bearing the brunt of the killer waves, besides others, including Cuddalore and Kanniyakumari.

Women poured milk into the sea as a mark of respect to the departed ones while candle light and floral tributes were paid by people for their relatives who were consumed by the sea.

While many remembered their surviving the ordeal, others recalled how the waves swept away their close relatives.

Fishermen did not venture out to sea for their vocation on Monday.

At Nagapattinam, when the clock struck 9:17 a.m, people rose to observe a minute's silence to pay homage to the persons who lost their lives in the tsunami.

District Collector S Pazhanisamy and other officials participated in silent marches, candle processions and floral tributes.

At Vailankanni, a special mass was conducted at the Shrine Basillica in memory of the tsunami victims. A silent procession was also held.

At Nagore, tributes were paid to those who were buried in the land owned by the Dargah. The graveyard of the dargah of Saint Hazrath Syed Shahul Hameed Quadir Wali at Nagore, which is more than 500 years old, witnessed mass burials 12 years ago.

Memorials were also held in neighbouring Karaikal.

Hundreds of fishermen from 12 affected villages in the district took out silent processions,placed wreaths and lit candles at the memorial sites. Puducherry Agriculture Minister Kamalakannan,District Collector P Parthiban and other officials paid floral tributes at Nandalar memorial site.

In fishing hamlets such as Pattinacherry, Karaikalmedu and Kottucherrymedu, people hoisted black flags in memory of the departed and decorated photographs of victims with flowers.

Triggered by earthquake in Indonesia, a massive tsunami struck the Tamil Nadu coast on December 26 morning, a Sunday, causing massive damage to life and property across the state.

Nagapattinam faced the maximum fury of the natural disaster even as other coastal districts like Chennai, Cuddalore and Tiruvallore suffered.

Nearly 7,000 people died on that fateful day.

The government later rolled out series of rehabilitation schemes for the affected people.
Guwahati: Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said the security of the more than 200-kilometre-long Indo-Bangladesh border was a priority for the BJP government and it will be completely sealed in next one and a half years.

"We are committed to sealing the 223.7-km Indo-Bangladesh border and the process is on. It is expected to be completed within the next year and a half," Singh said addressing BJP workers in Guwahati.

"Bangladesh is our neighbouring country and we share a good and warm relation, which we will continue to pursue and remain committed to in the future," he said.

The Union minister, without referring to the issues of illegal migration and granting of citizenship to Hindu refugees, assured the people of Assam that BJP was committed to protect the interests of the indigenous population of the state as per Clause 6 of the Assam Accord.

"We are committed to Clause 6 of the Assam Accord and will protect it even if we have to amend the Constitution," he said.

Referring to the updating of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, Singh said the process is underway and the state government should complete it soon.

The Union minister said the Centre will make no compromise on the issue of insurgency as he claimed that violence has considerably come down in the state.

"If any people or group have any grievances, problems or issues, we are ready to talk to them. We are ready to embrace them and talk. But if there is violence, there will be no compromise," he added.
Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has directed the Union Territory of Daman and Diu to pay a compensation of Rs four lakh to a journalist who was handcuffed by the police and paraded on the streets after he was arrested on the charge of extortion in 2009.

"The Administration of the Union Territory has violated the fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution by illegally handcuffing and parading him on 2 July, 2009," said the High Court in its ruling on 22 December.

A division bench of Justices Abhay Oka and AA Sayed directed the Union Territory to pay the compensation to Satish Sharma within two months. Sharma had moved the HC questioning police's action of handcuffing and parading him. It was illegal and violated the right to personal liberty guaranteed by the Constitution, he said.

Maintaining that he was an honest journalist and the whole episode had tarnished his reputation, Sharma demanded a compensation of Rs five crore.

The HC said that while it was ordering the administration to pay Sharma Rs four lakh, he was free to file another suit to demand additional compensation. The Administrator of the Union Territory can take steps for recovery of the compensation amount from the erring officers through a due process of law, the judges said.

The court also ordered the Union Territory to pay an additional Rs 25,000 to Sharma towards litigation cost. Further, the Administrator of the UT shall initiate inquiry for fixing the responsibility for the illegal action of police, the court said.

Sharma, editor of the daily Savera India Times, was arrested by the police in Daman after a case of extortion and criminal intimidation was filed against him.

He alleged it was a vindictive action as his newspaper had exposed misdeeds of the then Administrator of the Union Territory, other officials and the police. The Administrator had filed a police complaint against him.

Sharma was arrested in Diu, brought to Daman by police in a bus, and forced to walk while handcuffed to the police station through a crowded market, according to the petition.

The Press Council of India had ordered an inquiry by a sessions judge into Sharma's allegations. The judge confirmed that he was indeed handcuffed and paraded by the police.

Advocate MK Kocharekar, petitioner's lawyer, cited several Supreme Court decisions to argue that handcuffing was illegal and amounted to a gross violation of fundamental rights.
Crop losses, mounting debts and a spate of pest attacks apart, the cotton farmers of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh now have to deal with the demon of demonetisation as well.

"The note ban has been a worse epidemic than the white fly or pink bollworm for cotton farmers," says Konda Surekha, a former minister from Warangal, one of the most prominent cotton-growing areas in Telangana. These farmers are sour that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had picked a wrong time for banning big currency notes  the harvest period of the Kharif season for cash crops like tobacco, tomato, groundnut, sugarcane and cotton. Now prices have fallen by 20 to 30 percent and they are unable to clear loans due to the ushering-in of the cashless regime in agricultural markets.

"My cotton stock withered at the market yard as traders said they had no cash to pay and offered cheques," said Jagarlamudi Anil Babu, a cotton farmer of Prakasam district. Farmers say that banks would rather adjust cheques towards loans and interest than disburse cash.

A variety of issues abound for the cotton and textile industry like the non-implementation of the promised loan waiver, the delay in institutional credit and fall in global demand.

Cotton farmers in five districts of Telangana and six districts of AP are wringing hands in distress as cotton prices crashed to Rs 4,100 per quintal from Rs 5,600 per quintal in the pre-demonetisation period. Adding to our woes, the traders are asking us to accept payments in cheques or scrapped notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000, says a cotton grower from Inkollur in coastal Andhra who deferred cotton-plucking for a week due to demonetisation.

The RBI decision to allow scrapped notes circulation among farmers in marketing their produce and also purchase of seeds and fertilisers has given them temporary relief, but Telanganas farmers say that Modi should have chosen mid-January to February for demonetisation. A cascading impact is evident from the distress on cotton farmers  weddings, house warming functions and thread ceremonies are either low-key affairs or deferred. Besides cotton, the tobacco industry is dominated by 70 percent cash transactions in the vicious circle of growers, lenders, commission agents and exporters.

Andhra Pradesh and Telangana contribute to one-third of the countrys cotton trade. Chirala in Guntur and Siricilla in Karimangar are popular for their handloom and lungi markets and concentration of looms  they are considered the biggest in Asia for exports to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

According to the US-based International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) the currency crunch in India has created shortages in domestic textile market and also hit exports to global markets. Cotton exports from Australia, Mali, Burkina Faso and the US could fill up the gap caused by Indian cotton in 2016-17. The ICAC report also blamed the note ban as an untimely move detrimental to the Indian cotton market, which could have a domino effect for the next two years.

Officially 21 cotton farmers had committed suicide in 2016 from June to December. Unofficially though, 61 farmers have committed suicide since June and 12 more in the months of November and December.

Since its birth as a new state in June 2014, Telangana has recorded 1,269 suicides. The Hyderabad-based Centre for Sustainable Agriculture (CSA), estimates farmer suicides in Andhra Pradesh in the past 20 years (1995-2014) at 38,000. Lack of access to institutional credit and low crop insurance add to farmers' woes. Besides, in anticipation of loan waivers, a large number of farmers did not repay loans last year, and banks have refused loans this year, points out GV Ramanjeyulu, executive director of CSA.

They take up crops in Kharif with high interest loans and high expectations to wipe off old dues but often end up adding to their debts and consequent suicides, says K Changal Reddy, a farmers representative.

Local common sense

In many parts of Telangana and Andhra the crisis has been tackled with local common sense. Farmers are deferring payments to daily wagers but pay partly in the form of rice and also stood guarantee to small loans taken by them in the local grocery shops, says Palaparthi Srinivasa Rao, a cotton farmer of Srikakulam. Traders linked payments to fertilisers and seed suppliers for the benefit of farmers. We also tied up with lorry operators and hotels to pay their dues from the amounts due to them, says Gopalakrishnaiah, a cotton exporter in Guntur market.

Kuvulu Rythu Sangam (Andhra Pradesh Tenant Farmers Association) state secretary N Ranga Rao says that for the Kharif crop season, farmers needed Rs 3,200 crores to take up harvesting in about 40 lakh acres. Another Rs 2,400 crores is needed for the Rabi season. Since private money lenders also do not have valid currencies now, we depend on government to release crop loans early, he said.

The monthly report of the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) said the cotton market in Andhra Pradesh, one of the major producers in the country, has plunged into a deep crisis in the aftermath of demonetisation, as trade and export transactions have almost come to a halt and cotton prices have slumped by Rs 1,000 per quintal from Rs 5,000 to Rs 4,100 in just 40 days. Though the CCI has opened over 40 purchasing centres and offered cash payments in Rs 2,000 notes, the farmers are unwilling to sell and choose to suffer rather than sell at the current prices.

Arrears in loan waiver payments

Although both Andhra and Telangana government announced farm loans waiver as a poll promise, they have been paying dues to banks in installments. Telangana government had pegged arrears at around Rs 18,000 crores and Andhra had reduced the burden to Rs 36,000 crores. Banks were advised to issue new crop loans with the promise that loans as of June 2013 would be borne by the government. However, the RBI had opposed the bulk farm loan waiver initiative of both the states and advised banks to release only crop loans in a guarded manner and ensure that until clearance of arrears, farmers slates would not be cleaned.

As a result, banks refuse to give fresh loans until old loans are either paid by the farmer or by the state government. As a result, farmers had to take up farming with savings and loans from private money lenders. My money lender wants cash and not cheque, says Bharatakka, a cotton farmer of Ibrahimpatnam in Nalgonda district.

Cotton crop grown in Andhra is sent to the ginning mills of Guntur district which supply cotton to textile mills in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Karnataka. According to market sources, almost 70-80 percent of transactions have come to a halt and the market has been hit hard. This has meant the denial of wages to over two lakh people engaged in cotton trading, spinning, ginning and harvesting activities in the state.

In Telangana too, the situation is similar. Traders are offering farmers sops now to get them to sell their cotton and accept cheques  trips to Mumbai, Shirdi and Tirupati are being offered. If we deposit the cheques in the banks, the bankers will adjust it against loans and interest and the government will not reimburse it, said Muthyala Reddy of Warangal.

Cotton trade is always cash and carry activity and bank operations are hardly 10-15 percent. If we offer to pay online or through cards, our suppliers of seeds and fertilises will just reject, says a cotton farmer, K Samaiah at Enumamula market yard in Warangal. The ceiling on withdrawals had also made us delay payments. The government cap on withdrawal at Rs 24,000 per week has sandwiched the farmers, says Phani Raj, a cotton trader at Chilakaluripeta.

Continuing trouble for cotton

The cotton crisis since 2014 in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh had led farmers to shift to other crops due to delay in institutional credit and an unending wait for farm loan waivers. The total area under cotton declined by 12 percent to 10.5 million hectares this year against 11.88 million hectares in 2015-16.

In 2015 and in early 2016 the crop was hit by the white fly and pink bollworm leading to 30 percent drop in yields. We are asking the farmers not to use non-Bt cotton seed as refuge crop and reduce area under cotton, says K Dhananjaya Reddy, commissioner for agriculture (Andhra Pradesh).
On Christmas 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave one of the biggest surprises in India's diplomatic history, when he chose to have a stopover at Lahore to personally wish his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif on his 66th birthday and also attend his granddaughter's wedding at his palatial house at Raiwind. Exactly a year later, all that Modi did to wish Sharif was a tweet:

Birthday wishes to Pakistan PM Mr. Nawaz Sharif. I pray for his long and healthy life.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 25, 2016

The tweet may be an indicator of the deterioration in the bilateral ties between the two countries. Soon after the surprise visit last Christmas, the Pathankot Air Force station was attacked on 2 January. In a gunbattle with security forces, four militants, who allegedly entered the area in army fatigues, were gunned down. The Indian Air Force lost three of its personnel. United Jihad Council claimed responsibility for the attack.

In Pathankot today, our security forces once again demonstrated their valour. I salute their sacrifice.https://t.co/jqcIYiflzE  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 2, 2016

India later nailed ISI's hand in the attack, while Pakistan denied the accusations. However, after initially promising to allow a National Investigation Agency team to visit Pakistan to probe the attack, Islamabad backtracked. This was after an ISI probe team visited Pathankot, which was criticised by the Opposition.

While Pathankot probe was underway, Kulbhushan Yadav, an alleged Indian Navy officer, was arrested by Pakistani authorities on charges of spying. With this Balochistan came into the picture in the India-Pakistan bilateral ties. While India claimed he was a businessman, Pakistan alleged he was spying on the behalf of RAW in Balochistan and Karachi.

The decline in the bilateral ties hastened after Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani was killed in an encounter in Kashmir. His killing led to widespread unrest across the valley, with the security forces imposing curfew which remained enforced till October. It gave Pakistan a chance to raise the issue of India's alleged human rights violations in the state.

On 10 August, Sharif held a cabinet meeting to discuss the Kashmir unrest, with the cabinet deciding to internationalise the issue. The meeting observed that "Kashmir remains an unfinished agenda of the United Nations and accordingly India must realise that Kashmir is not its internal matter, rather it is a matter of regional and international concern".

With the unrest in Kashmir, Modi invoked the alleged human rights violations in Balochistan and Gilgit Baltistan during his Independence Day address to the nation. The reference made Pakistan to claim that this proved its contention that India has been allegedly "fomenting terrorism" in the province.

Sharif chose to hit back at India during his address to the United Nations General Assembly.

Sharif said, "Peace and normalisation between Pakistan and India cannot be achieved without a resolution of the Kashmir dispute. This is an objective evaluation, not a partisan position."

"Our predictions have now been confirmed by events. A new generation of Kashmiris has risen spontaneously against India's illegal occupation  demanding freedom from occupation. Burhan Wani, the young leader murdered by Indian forces, has emerged as the symbol of the latest Kashmiri Intifada, a popular and peaceful freedom movement, led by Kashmiris, young and old, men and women, armed only with an undying faith in the legitimacy of their cause, and a hunger for freedom in their hearts."

Rebutting Sharif, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj told the gathering at the UNGA that Pakistan had been ignoring the human rights violation in Balochistan. "In the last two years, in exchange of our friendship, we got Pathankot, Uri, Bahadur Ali. Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India and it will remain so, she added.

India strongly condemned the reference to the slain militant and criticised Islamabad silence over the recent Uri attack. Speaking at the UN, India's First Secretary Eenam Gambhir, called Pakistan a host to the "Ivy League of terrorism" and urged the world community to declare Pakistan a "terrorist state".

Pak PM Sharif at #UNGA glorifies Hizbul terrorist Burhan Wani in UN's highest forum. Shows continued Pak attachment to terrorism.  Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) September 21, 2016

Pak PM Sharif at #UNGA in complete denial of Uri terror attack. 19 infiltration attempts stopped at LoC this year. Indigenous??!!  Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) September 21, 2016

Uri attack, which India referred to after Sharif's speech at the UN, took place on 18 September. Heavily armed militants stormed a battalion headquarters of the Army in North Kashmir's Uri town in the wee hours, killing 17 jawans and injuring 19 other personnel. Four militants were also neutralised. Fingers were pointed once again at Pakistan.

We strongly condemn the cowardly terror attack in Uri. I assure the nation that those behind this despicable attack will not go unpunished.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 18, 2016

With the clamour for avenging Uri, India conducted "surgical strikes" over terror launchpads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The strikes  refuted by Pakistan, which even sent journalists to the area where the attack allegedly took place  escalated tensions on the border, with Pakistan even capturing an Indian soldier.

Three months after the attack by India's special commandos, cross-border firing between the two countries is still going on.

Meanwhile, India decided to turn on the heat on the diplomatic front. Modi called Pakistan the "mothership' of terrorism" during his address at the Brics Summit at Goa in October.

In the Goa Declaration, the five member countries of Brics asked all countries to prevent terrorist actions from their soil. It called for expeditious adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) by the UN to tackle the problem and step up practical cooperation against terrorism.

The member countries also condemned the recent attacks against some Brics countries, including that in India. "We agreed to strengthen cooperation in combating international terrorism both at the bilateral level and at international fora," the Goa Declaration issued at the end of the summit said.

India also pulled out of the Saarc Summit, which was scheduled to be held in Islamabad. The refusal to participate, along with several other member-states, citing Pakistan's sponsorship of terrorism, led to it being delayed indefinitely.

The Modi government took another step to rein in Pakistan, threatening to abrogate the World Bank- assisted Indus Waters Treaty. Modi is reported to have told a meeting convened on this issue, "Blood and water cant flow together". Pakistan reacted to this news sharply.

"India set to wage war against Pakistan," screamed a headline of a Pakistani newspaper, The Nation.

Shireen Mazari, former journalist and leader of Pakistan-Tehreek-e-Insaf party, went to the extent of saying that Indias "suspension of the treaty" was the first step towards declaring (a real) war against Pakistan. Speaking in Pakistans National Assembly on Monday, she demanded an immediate response to India from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

The Indus Waters Treaty has now become a major bone of contention between the two countries now, with the World Bank urging both countries to sort out their issues through alternative means.

Clearly, it seems relations between the two nations have gone downhill in the last one year. With a new army chief in Rawalpindi and India acting tough on terrorism post the surgical strikes, relations might remain tense in 2017.

With inputs from agencies
The decision of the Jammu and Kashmir state government to issue identity certificates to thousands of refugees from Pakistan (who are settled in Jammu and Kashmir since Partition in 1947) to help them get jobs in Central government departments has divided the state on communal lines.

While the Hurriyat Conference in Kashmir has objected to the move, which is seen by it as a ploy to settle down non-state subjects in Jammu and Kashmir to tilt the vote in favour of India on the event of any referendum on Kashmir, the National Conference has accused the PDP-BJP government of undermining the state subject laws. However, even as the PDP has chosen to stay away from the controversy stating that identity certificates will not confer state subject rights on West Pakistani refugees, BJP has demanded that refugees need to be given the rights to enable them to get jobs in the state.

Both the PDP and NC are trying to protect their respective votebanks in Kashmir, which remains a predominantly Muslim area, while the BJP is seeking to secure the large Hindu vote from the Jammu region. As per government figures, there are around 5,764 families who migrated from the then West Pakistan and are now living mainly in the Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts of Jammu division. The West Pakistan Refugee Action Committee (WPRAC) has said that the number has now soared to 19,960 families comprising of near one lakh people, mostly Hindus and Sikhs. It was during the partition of Punjab in 1947 that Hindus and Sikhs fled Pakistan, and Muslims went from India to Pakistan.

The issue of granting any state subject rights to West Pakistani refugees has, however, not only divided the state on regional and religious lines, but has the potential to spur the ongoing unrest in Kashmir. Although the separatists have provided a relaxation to the shutdown for five days a week, they lodged protests against the government's decision to issue identity certificates to refugees and a recent decision of the Supreme Court to extend the SARFESI Act to the state. Some legal experts have argued that the extension of the SARFESI Act to the state will enable external banks to take the ownership of the properties of local people in lieu of their due loans, which will violate the state subject laws.

On the move towards conferring state subject rights to West Pakistani refugees, separatists have termed it as against the interests of Kashmiri Muslims. "By settling refugees in Jammu and Kashmir, the historical and political reality of the Jammu and Kashmir will get jeopardised," the statement said. The NC has toed a somewhat similar line stating that the PDP-BJP coalition "is working against the interest of majority Muslims".

The National Panthers Party that corners a sizable amount of support in the Jammu region, has however accused the BJP of succumbing to the "pressure of separatist forces of Kashmir". The Panther Party's leader Harsh Dev Singh said that the "refugees of West Pakistan who had taken shelter in Jammu and Kashmir have been left in the lurch for the last 70 years or so". He added, "The refugees are living in plight as they have not been granted PRCs, employment and other benefits."

However, even as PDP leader and minister for education Naeem Akhtar has clarified that "an orchestrated and misleading campaign has been launched to create an impression that the government is changing the status of West Pakistani Refugees and they are being provided domicile certificates", BJP leaders said that they are committed to providing the state subject rights to refugees. Senior BJP leader and party MLA from Samba, Devindar Manyal, in whose constituency a large number of West Pakistani Refugees live, said that the party was committed to safeguarding the rights of the people.

"We are in favour of granting refugees ownership rights. The BJP government both at the state and the Centre is committed to providing them the rights. We are in favour of giving them permanent resident certificates (PRCs)," said Manyal. Meanwhile, senior BJP leader and minister of state for relief and rehabilitation Ajay Nanda said that West Pakistani Refugees should have been granted state subject rights. "They have been settled in Jammu and Kashmir for a long time, but cant get government jobs or vote in the Assembly elections, which is discriminatory," he said.

President of the WPRAC, Labha Ram Gandhi, said that they had earlier brought to the notice of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh the fact that they are not getting state subject rights that deprive them of state government jobs. "An unnecessary controversy has been created over issuing identity certificates to us. These certificates only mention that we have come from Pakistan after 1947 and these have been issued for the past four months. These certificates are necessary for us to get government jobs," said Gandhi.

However, even as the Ministry of Home Affairs had earlier directed that the voter ID cards that are used by the West Pakistani Refugees to cast the ballot in the parliamentary elections should be used as proof of identity for Central jobs, the state government has stoked a fresh controversy by issuing new identity cards to refugees for getting jobs in Central government departments, especially the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs).
Kochi: Stepping up its attack against Electricity Minister MM Mani after he rejected Opposition's demand to quit following a court's refusal of discharging him from a 34-year-old murder case, Congress on Monday alleged that his presence in the CPM-led LDF government would weaken the trial into the charges against him.

"Mani is an accused in a murder case. He must quit. It is necessary to ensure proper justice in the case," KPCC Chief V M Sudheeran told reporters here.

He alleged that Mani's presence in the government would help him "pressurise" witnesses and Investigating Officers.

"We strongly believe that there will be efforts to influence the witnesses," Sudheeran said.

Mani has rejected opposition Congress and BJP's demand that he quit after a court in Thodupuzha refused to discharge him as an accused in the 34-year-old murder case, saying he would fight the case both "legally and politically".

Noting that Mani is the second accused in the case related to the murder of Youth Congress leader Anchery Baby in November 1982, Sudheeran said that his continuation in the Ministry raises "moral, ethical and legal" questions.

"So the chief minister should seek his resignation from the Ministry or he should be sacked," the KPCC president said.

Sudheeran also asked the CPM central leadership to explain their stand on the issue.

The state unit of CPI(M) heading the LDF regime, has rallied behind Mani, saying the demand for his resignation was "politically motivated".

"The demand is politically motivated. The case existed when Mani contested the state Assembly elections. There is nothing new in the court verdict. The demand for his resignation has no basis and he can continue as Minister," CPM State Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan had said, soon after the verdict on Saturday.
It is the worst drought to have hit the state in 115 years. If the forecast of the State Meteorological Department is read along with the reports coming from the groundwater authorities, Kerala is on the verge of a crisis of unprecedented proportions.

The Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) has called upon the government to brace itself for the impending crisis. For the first time ever, the state might soon impose a water rationing system across households and industries as recommended by the KSDMA. Irrigation has already been stopped across three districts in the state.

While the state had received a deficient of 33.7 percent rains from the South West Monsoon (SWM) from July to September this year, the real villain had been the North West Monsoon (NWM) winds which has more or less deserted the state between October and December.

A 61 percent shortage in rainfall in these months has come as a shocker to the weathermen dashing all hopes of a revival. Though the state government had declared Kerala a drought-hit state in October itself after the initial monsoon setback, it is only now that the severity is staring the Pinarayi Vijayan administration in its face.

The State Emergency Operations Centre in Thiruvananthapuram is now a virtual war room as inter-departmental teams comprising of revenue, water, power, district administration and crisis management brainstorm their way to mitigate the looming calamity.

This is a 115 years return interval drought. If 2012 was a 100-year one, this is worse. Such meteorological occurrence is very rare. We had anticipated this in October itself and so the government went for the declaration. But the next few months will be just terrible for the state, something we have never seen before, says Shekhar L Kuriakose, member secretary, KSDMA.

From the year 1881 to 2000, there were 66 drought years in the state. But none of them has been as severe as this one. The 2012 drought was perhaps the worst one until this year. The absence of summer showers had spoilt the party then.

But what makes this years dry spell even worse is evident from the numbers the Met department has. While 2012 recorded a deficient of 24 percent in the SWM, this year it is a record 33.7 percent short. Also in 2012, the NWM showers compensated for the initial loss, but this time round these rains have just stayed away  a negative 61 percent.

Though the rains had been scarce it had fallen widespread, perhaps the only reason, experts say the states flora has survived these dry months. But with no more rains on the horizon, and with the Met department completely ruling out any likelihood till the anticipated summer showers in April-May, the next few months are going to be the hardest since the states formation.

Water bodies will dry up, vegetation and crops will wilt on a large scale, and an immense heat wave will take over, the likes of which has never been witnessed by almost the entire population in their lifetimes, predict the experts. Scientists at the Meteorological department say their last chances of a rain revival died when the North West Monsoon stayed away. They blame the cyclonic systems that developed in the Bay of Bengal including the Vardah that hit Chennai as the primary reason for killing any chances of a depression in the Arabian Sea.

The failure of consecutive monsoon systems is something which is very rare and that is clearly going to hit us badly. While last year we got 20 percent more rains than normal from the northwest, this time its running on a negative scale. So you can see what the impact will be, says S Sudevan, director, State Meteorological Department.

The groundwater situation in the state too is moving from bad to worse. Though Kerala is blessed with rains more than six months in a year, the states topography hardly helps in retaining any of the water that falls on the ground.

The hilly terrain means water flows to the Arabian Sea in quickly unless there is a prolonged interval of heavy showers which is usually brought about by the NWM that falls in November and December. With NWM keeping away this time round, the groundwater table too has started looking dismal. Reports coming from reservoirs and dams across the state too had been far from encouraging. Almost all reservoirs have been recording fall in water level continuously.

The water level is of course decreasing in almost all the reservoirs across the state and at this rate we will have water to last for the next 100 days only in most of the places. It is a very difficult drought situation and we are taking all measures to make it easy for the people, said A Shainamol, managing director, Kerala Water Authority (KWA).

At a meeting chaired by the chief minister on 28 October, the government decided to enforce stringent controls in the use of the remaining stored water in the state. The KSDMA had suggested a 26-point agenda which the state government has put in place with the motto of '3Rs' - reduce, reuse and recycle water. An order of preference has also been decided for use of water till May 2017 with drinking water at the top followed by use of water for household purpose and then for industrial use.

For the first time ever water kiosks would be set up per grama panchayat. Tanker lorries, the usual mode of supplying drinking water will cater only to high water scarce areas. While the government has banned the use of fresh and potable water supplied by the public system for washing motor vehicles, industries that tap groundwater have been issued notices to stop productivity by 75 percent till the summer showers arrive in May. Also police protection has been given to all reservoirs to ensure pollution does not take place at any cost. Water, at the moment is most precious commodity in Kerala.

Power crisis looms large

With the water crisis all set to deepen, its impact is already showing on the power sector too. While the state needs annually 24,000 Million Units (MU) of power only 7,100 MU are generated at home while the rest is sourced from outside.

The bad news is that as the rains cease and water storage decreases the internal generation will fall to 5,200 MU which means close to 2,000 MU of power will have to be again bought from outside. This will put immense financial burden on the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), the public sector agency, which is already feeling the pinch.

At the Idukki hydroelectric project which is the largest producer of power in the state there is only enough water to generate 40 percent of its total capacity.

With all the power plants put together in the state, a stock taken on 22 December shows that only 1,988 MU of power can be generated against previous years. While in 2015 it was 2,754 MU, in 2014 it was 3,246 MU taken on the same date.

In 2012 alone, when the state witnessed its earlier severe drought, the generation was 1,820 MU till the same period. With four months to go in this fiscal year, the state might just witness the lowest generation ever, exposing Kerala to frequent bouts of likely power cuts.

Sensing the situation, the Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission (KSERC), the regulatory body for tariff, has already proposed a usage based hike in electricity charges. From February to mitigate the losses the board will incur and to buy extra power units needed from outside to ensure that the state does not go in to darkness, consumers will have to pay an extra 10 to 50 paisa per unit depending on their consumption slabs.

For the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government in Kerala the drought has hit it at the worst time politically. The government as a part of the states 60th year of formation had recently launched the Haritha Keralam or the Go Green project. A major part of the project involves the reclamation of ponds, streams and other water bodies and use them to revive the lost agricultural heritage of the state.

With the state hurtling towards the most severe drought in its history, this pet project which had been an election promise would have to be put on the back-burner for sometime. On the ground, the common man for the moment has not been affected except a few hyper sensitive areas in Palakad, Kannur and Thrissur districts where the water table has gone down considerably. The next few weeks are immensely crucial as the direct effects of the drought will start reflecting on the lives of the people in the state like never before.
New Delhi: Alleged terrorist Mohd Mosiuddin was plotting Islamic State-style chilling execution of foreigners, especially those from the US, Russia and the UK, visiting the Mother House in Kolkata as it would be a "heart pleasing" experience for him, the NIA has claimed.

The NIA, in a charge sheet filed before a special court in Kolkata recently, claimed that Mosiuddin alias Musa was planning to stab and kill foreigners, a style frequently chosen by the IS to eliminate its targets.

The Mother House in West Bengal capital is the headquarters of Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity. In its charge sheet, the anti-terror probe agency has said Musa termed the militants operating in Kashmir as "Mujahids (holy warriors) with impure ideologies" who were fighting for Kashmiri land when they should have fought in support of Sharia, the Islamic canonical law based on the teachings of the Quran and the traditions of the Prophet

(Hadith and Sunna).

The agency has provided Musa's photographs in Kashmir to buttress its claim that the terrorist had visited the Valley.

NIA alleged it had proof of his having bought a big knife to commit the terror crimes before fleeing away. He also allegedly procured pepper spray from Snapdeal, an online marketplace to facilitate his proposed criminal acts as the intended target would be rendered temporarily blinded by it.

The charge sheet alleged that Musa discussed plans for conducting such attacks at the Mother House, which is frequented by foreigners from the US, Russia and the UK. Armed forces of these countries are locked in fierce battles with the IS in many nations.

Musa had discussed with some others the exact location of the Mother House and was claimed to have told them that foreigners, particularly Russians, Britishers and Americans often visited the place. He wanted them killed as the governments of their countries had bombarded the IS in Syria and Libya, the charge sheet alleged.

The NIA had taken over investigation in the case from Howrah police on 22 July.

During Musa' arrest, a .38 bore six-chamber revolver, three rounds of ammunition, a knife, a Samsung mobile phone and other incriminating articles were seized. Subsequently, one Apple Macbook and a sword were seized from his residence at Tiruppur, Tamilnadu.

During investigation, two more accused, namely Saddam Hossain alias Kalu and Abbasudin Sk alias Amin were arrested by West Bengal CID.

"Mosiuddin was found involved in furthering the illegal activities of the IS in India and Bangladesh and had been in touch with Shafi Armar...and was also linked to the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) operatives in Bangladesh," NIA had said in a statement.

Armar is a former Indian Mujahideen operative who was later claimed to have joined the IS. It was Armar who had radicalised him by sending the links of jihadi sites like Jihadology.net, Al-Shabab media and Just-Paste-it links, etc.

Armar also allegedly sent him videos released by Ansar Ut Tawid (AuT) which included footages of the war between the IS and Iraqi forces. The videos and speeches of 'Anwar ul Awlaki', a jihadist ideologue and preacher who was killed in a US drone attack in Yemen, were also sent to him by Armar, a native of Bhatkal in Karnataka and one of the main recruiters for IS in India.

Abu Suleiman, a Bangladeshi IS/JMB operative, visited India to meet Musa twice in March, 2015, and May, 2016. He encouraged Musa to use encrypted chat applications like Telegram, Surespot, Threema, Chatsecure, to communicate with him and other IS operatives, NIA has alleged.
The latest research paper of the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) published in the Hindi journal Itihaas states that the 'Dancing Girl' of Mohenjodaro is actually Goddess Parvati, reported The Indian Express.

In the research paper titled Vedic Sabhyata Ka Puratatva (Archaeology of Vedic Civilisation), author Thakur Prasad Verma wrote that this proves that the people of Indus Valley Civilisation worshiped Shiva, a claim made by many "Right-leaning historians", added the report. Verma writes that the 'Seal 420' and "trefoil pattern seen on the shawl of the 'Priest King'" indicate Shiva worship in the Vedic period, stated The Indian Express.

The author then states that the bronze statue of 'Dancing Girl', which is on display at the National Museum, New Delhi, is Parvati because: where there is Shiva, there should be Shakti.

Earlier in October, a Pakistani lawyer has moved the Lahore High Court, asking it to direct the government to bring back the 'Dancing Girl' statue from India.

The ancient bronze statue excavated from Mohenjodaro was sent for exhibition to India on the request of the National Arts Council, Delhi, some 60 years ago. New Delhi later refused to return the statue, the petitioner claimed, Express News had reported.

Barrister Javed Iqbal Jafree had made this request through a writ petition. He had claimed the statue was actually a property of the Lahore museum, and urged the high court chief justice to take suo motu notice of the matter and direct the government to get the statue back from India.

Jafree contended that the 5,000-year-old statue enjoyed the same historical importance in Pakistan as Mona Lisa in Europe. He pleaded that the bronze piece of art was Pakistan's cultural heritage and needed to be protected.

With inputs from IANS
At an undisclosed lockup, Parasmal Lodha  known for his fetish for limousines, priceless watches, Cognac and mahogany beds  sleeps on the floor covered with prickly blankets, his meals comprise flatbread and lentils.

Officials of the Enforcement Directorate, who arrested Lodha on charges of illegally re-routing cash to make it look legal (read hawala), showed no mercy to the 60 year-old influencer, rejecting all pleas for special treatment, including home-cooked food. Lodha, claimed sources within the probe agency, did not like being treated as a commoner. To the wealthy across India, he was  over two decades  known as the three-word man: "Get it Done". But now, Lodha had no choice.

"It's interesting to see him in such a condition. In 40 years, life has turned full circle for Lodha and his crimes, quipped an ED official, in an apparent hint about Lodhas initial years when he had arrived in Kolkata in 1977 as a carpetbagger and sold stuffed betel leaves and flavoured paan masala in front of Poddar Court, an imposing building close to Lalbazar police headquarters.

Old-timers in Kolkata recall how Lodha and Nandu Pasari, a dealer of Raymond suitings, grew in stature and, of the two, Lodha started doing small-time brokering on behalf of Arun Poddar, owner of Poddar Court.

Lodha, thanks to Poddar, increased his network among Kolkatas Marwari community, and using their financial prowess, wanted to take over the Peerless Group, then Indias largest residuary non-banking company, in 1987 by acquiring 50 percent of its shares and a seat on its board.

Chairman of Peerless PC Sen had complained to the Kolkata Police that Lodha had offered his staff loads of cash but when refused, Lodha even threatened to kill him using his contact with Dawood Ibrahim. Lodha was questioned by the cops but eventually let off. However, his attempt failed as the Left Front and Congress jointly staved off his bid  CPM leader Somnath Chatterjee and Congress leader Priya Ranjan Das Munshi joined hands  and Lodhas stake was down to 30 percent.

However, the Peerless misadventure proved to be the biggest springboard for Lodha, who was now seen as the best face for deals and negotiations in Kolkata, some in Delhi and Mumbai were also calling him for consultations.

But then came the second jolt when 43 people were charred to death in a deadly inferno that swept through the multi-storeyed Stephen Court in the heart of Kolkata in March, 2010. Lodha was rumoured to be the actual owner of the building, where he had flouted several rules and even built two extra floors bribing his way through. A team of the Kolkata Police had also arrested Sanjay Bagaria, the son-in-law of industrialist GP Goenka  a friend of Lodha's  from a guest house of a paper mill in Saharanpur, in August 2010. Bagaria was one of the directors of Stephen Court Limited  the century-old architectural heritage building on the upmarket Park Street in Kolkata  and had gone missing after the inferno swept through the building. Interestingly, Lodha managed to extricate himself from the incident.

"Lodha had  by the mid-1090s  moved from Kolkata to Delhi and acquired expensive properties, including a huge farmhouse where he entertained guests, said ED sources.

Among his friends were a host of retired judges with considerable influence on the judiciary, many cabinet ministers, corporate captains, and sons of the then prime minister PV Narasimha Rao. Lodha was a regular at the PMO in South Block.

Lodha expanded his wings even abroad. The ED is looking into his proximity with some influential Indian families in London and Kenya, even in Australia and whether those families benefitted from Lodhas largesse. Having helped a top Indian conglomerate when his business deals in Australia went sour, Lodha was also seen in the forefront of a group helping a London-based family solve teething problems in its automobile business.

He was seen as the ultimate saviour who knew the routes to instant cash. He wanted to try his hand into everything, including films, claimed ED officials. It is reliably learnt that it was Lodha who helped the influential Renu Roy garner cash to finance Rituparna Ghoshs award winning film, Unishey April, in 1994. He even lobbied for Roy to become the first woman president of Kolkatas prestigious Saturday Club in 2007-2008, raising many eyebrows in the city.

ED officials claim Lodha had been under the scanner for almost a decade but serious tracking by the agencies started when it was claimed that he was the front to re-route financial packages offered by the Indian government to ailing jute mills in Bengal. Many jute mill owners were accused of diverting Central funds without refurbishing the jute mills. Some were also slicing off portions of jute mills into real estate zones. Lodha was thick in it, claimed ED officials.

Lodha also worked with influential Marwari tycoons in Kolkata who wanted to acquire heritage buildings close to the Ganges. He had an uncanny ability to get sanctions for extra floors and eventually legalise them by paying hefty bribes to the cops, state government officials and civic authorities. He was then jokingly called "Extra Floor Lodha".

But his interests in real estate dimmed in late 1990s amd he shifted to cash re-routing, lobbying with the judiciary and started negotiating with many across India. Instead of shuttling regularly between Delhi and Kolkata, his new destinations now were Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad. Bollywood interested him immensely, Lodha often used small-time Bollywood actresses and models to impress his clients. Barely 10 days before his arrest, Lodha was in touch with a Bollywood starlet whose services he wanted for two of his clients.

It wasn't just cinema and actors, however, as Lodha showed an interest in owning news channels. Always ready to strike a deal and completing it successfully, he was then known as "Deal Done Lodha". He was always interested in the end result, often telling his conduits in simple words: "Kaam Hona Chahiye" which translates to "The work must happen".

His name cropped up when many in Kolkata were being interrogated by the CBI in the Sharada scam. Lodha  or so claimed those who were interrogated  had urged them to sell licences to run news channels to Sudipta Sen of Sharada, promising them high value deals because of his clout with Sudipta.

Arrested last Thursday from the Mumbai Airport while trying to flee to Malaysia, allegedly for illegally converting demonetised notes worth Rs 25 crore into new currency for Chennai sand baron J Sekhar Reddy and lawyer Rohit Tandon, Lodha started showing his clout at the airport, virtually naming the entire UPA-I and UPA-II Cabinets and some ministers of the ruling NDA-led government as his friends. His handset and messages folder looked like an encyclopaedia, said a top source.

ED officials were tracking Lodha after New Delhis demonetisation moves, and eventually a dossier was prepared on the hawala trader and influencer, and clearances were sought from the Ministry of Home Affairs. His huge influence was indeed a cause of worry for us, claimed the ED officials.

No more.

Inside the ED lockup, Lodha is unable to crack a deal and nothing is happening to his satisfaction. He does not even have his expensive watch to see if time is on his side.
New Delhi: Four persons have been arrested in connection with the alleged gangrape of a US national in a five-star hotel in Delhi earlier this year.

The four accused arrested include the tour guide, driver, cleaner and a hotel staff, said a senior police officer. The officer, however, refused to reveal the names of the arrested persons as police will be conduct an test identification parade.

The US national arrived in Delhi a few days ago to join the probe and recorded her statement in front of a judicial magistrate where she reiterated the charges she had made in her complaint.

Earlier, she had said that she was not "satisfied" with the probe and was ready to come to India to identify the accused. On 8 December , the tourist guide, accused of raping the woman, along with his accomplices, was questioned by police after his arrival from Nepal.

Police had identified the man and had contacted him while he was in Nepal. The tour guide had denied his "involvement" in the matter and told police that the victim had given him a "positive feedback" in the forms.

The woman had alleged that she was raped by the men for two days. They also threatened her with dire consequences if she reported the matter to anybody.

She had also stated that the accused had made a video of the act and had threatened to make it public if she reported the matter to anyone.
Kochi: An Indian Catholic priest abducted from Yemen this year appealed to Pope Francis and the Union government through a purported video to secure his release from his captors.

"If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously. I am from India. I am perhaps not considered as of much value," said priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil in a weak voice in the video, aired by news channels in Kerala.

"Dear Pope Francis, dear Holy Father, as a father please take care of my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating," he said in the video, a day after Christmas. Father Uzhunnalil, who looked very weak, appeared to be reading out from a text placed before him.

The veracity of the video, which was uploaded from You tube and Facebook, could neither be independently verified nor was the period when it was shot known.

Father Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala, was abducted in March by terror group Islamic State which attacked an old-age home run by Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity in city of Aden in southern Yemen.

He claimed his captors have made many contacts with the Government of India  President and Prime Minister.

"I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in my regard," he said.

He said reports had said everything has been done to get his release, "but in reality nothing" has been done. Father Uzhunnalil said a news reporter abducted in the Middle East was released as she was from France.

"I am from India and not considered. Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all to do your might to help me to save my life. I need hospitalisation soon. Please come to my help quickly," he said.

The Union Government has said efforts are being made to secure Uzhunnalil's release, but such attempts take time. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had informed Parliament that Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has spoken to various countries through which contacts can be established in Yemen.

Swaraj had said it takes more time to secure release of people who are held captive and asked the MPs to keep "faith" in government's efforts to trace the abducted priest.
Congress president Sonia Gandhis call seems to have failed to form a united Opposition force against Prime Minister Narendra Modis demonetisation move.

Many Opposition parties have expressed apprehension over participating in the proposed meet scheduled to be held in New Delhi on 27 December. Is it because the agenda of the press conference is unclear as some of the parties have claimed or is it that the Opposition parties do not want to be seen as against Modis anti-corruption move?

Five questions

Before giving nod to be a part of the proposed press conference called by the Congress party on Tuesday, several Opposition parties have posed five questions for the Congress.

1. Whats the agenda of the meeting?

2. Is it only to attack the demonetisation move?

3. Is there any common minimum programme that will be discussed by the Congress with other parties?

4. Are all the 16 Opposition parties participating on 27 December?

5. Will Congress clear its own economic stand?

The Janata Dal (United) that had forged a coalition with Lalu Prasad Yadavs Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress to win Bihar Assembly election sounded apprehensive joining the press conference.

We havent decided yet. In all possibility we wont participate in the meeting tomorrow. Theres clearly no common minimum programme, no common agenda. Inside Parliament, we had been with other parties including the Left and criticised the poor implementation of demonetisation. But, now as the Congress party has called a political leaders meeting, it has to first tell what is the agenda or central theme of this meeting, Rajya Sabha MP and JD(U) leadrer, KC Tyagi told Firstpost.

Lets not forget that Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar  from the Opposition camp  was among the first leaders to welcome Modis demonetisation move. This obviously keeps JD(U) out of the meeting, if the sole purpose of it, is to oppose demonetisation.

But, the JD(U) is not alone in remaining away from the press conference.

The Left, especially the CPM that has been vocal against the poor implementation of demonetisation and its cascading effect on the poor, the labourers and the farmers, has also backed out from the meeting.

Opposition alignment needs prior consultancy, prior discussion and understanding. Moreover, 16 Opposition parties wont be there. A few days back, I had received a call from the Congress leadership regarding the press conference on 27 December, but when I wanted to know the agenda of the meeting, plan of action and whether all Opposition parties have been called, I didnt receive any answer, CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury told PTI.

Explaining why CPM shouldnt be a part of the presser just because Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has launched a scathing attack against demonetisation, the CPM central committee member Badal Saroj said an anti-BJP front is not possible at present on the issue of demonetisation alone.

Forming an anti-BJP front at present is not possible just by criticising demonetisation. Congress has to first clear its own economic stand. Is Sonia Gandhi ready to give up the economic path that was followed during the UPA regime? They have to change themselves first and give up the policies adopted by the Manmohan Singh government, Saroj told Firstpost.

Its obvious that demonetisation has badly affected workers and labourers, and weve taken it up at every forum. But, larger mobilisation through political unity is needed to combat bigger issues like communalism and economic policies like poverty alleviation etc, he added.

Why the presser seems infeasible?

The JD(U) doesnt want to be seen in an alignment, where parties like All India Trinamool Congress (AITMC) is one of the allies. Political parties like TMC want rollback of demonetisation, but we have asked for proper implementation of the move. Here lies the difference, added Tyagi.

Besides, the Left and JD(U), a few others are equally apprehensive about being a part of Sonias all-party meeting.

Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) is not likely to participate. Even, the Samajwadi Party is not clear about its stand. Party leadership hasnt decided whether to participate in it or not. Till now were not taking part in tomorrows meeting, an NCP source said.

According to sources, the Bahujan Samaj Party may also back out because the party supremo has strongly criticised the proposed SP-Congress tie-up ahead of Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls.

Is Mamata Banerjee the only face-saver?

Im going there to discuss. Lets see, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee told reporters before taking her flight from Kolkata to Delhi on Monday. Mamata, who is also the chairperson of the All India Trinamool Congress, has already called upon the people and different political parties to intensify the anti-demonetisation movement across the country by giving a call Modi Hatao, Desh Bacho.

Her party will launch its eight-day state-wide anti-demonetisation movement from 1 January to mark its foundation day.

According to political pundits, right now the Opposition parties do not want to be seen as against Modis anti-corruption move, as the common man despite standing in long queues for hours at bank branches and ATMs, have given thumbs up to demonetisation policy, if not its ill-prepared implementation.
Granting major relief to Sonia Gandhi and Rahul in the National Herald case, Patiala House Court has dismissed BJP leader Subramanian Swamy's plea seeking certain documents from the Congress party and Associated Journals Ltd (AJL), the holding company of the Congress party mouthpiece.

#FLASH: Patiala House court dismisses Subramanian Swamy's plea seeking some documents of National Herald, next hearing on Feb 10th  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

Metropolitan Magistrate Lovleen rejected Swamy's application while giving him the last opportunity to submit the list of complainant witnesses in the case. The court has now put up the matter on February 10 for

pre-charge proceedings.

During the hearing on Monday, the counsel appearing for the accused told the court that Swamy was seeking a "fishing and roving enquiry" in the case by asking for the documents from the party and the AJL as he wanted to make out a "new case" against them.

Swamy, however, termed the allegation as baseless and said his demand was legitimate. In the present application, Swamy has sought documents relating to a loan given by the Congress to the AJL, the holding firm of the National Herald, saying these were necessary for the purpose of trial.

In a case that dates back to 2012, Swamy had filed a complaint alleging misappropriation of funds in the acquisition of Associate Journals Ltd by Young Indian Pvt Ltd., a company owned by Congress leaders, including Sonia and Rahul Gandhi both of whom hold 38 percent shares each.

Swamy had sought documents relating to a loan given by the Congress to the AJL, the holding firm of the National Herald, saying these were necessary for the purpose of trial.

Swamy has also sought certain documents from the Registrar of Companies (ROC) which were filed by the AJL and papers from the Department of Income Tax (DoT) in relation to income tax returns filed by AJL.

The documents sought from the AJL included "authorisation by the members of the AJL to borrow money in excess of its paid-up capital and free reserve of AJL, relevant extracts from the books of accounts of the AJL during the period of loan and documents by which the loan was converted into shares in the books of AJL."

On Swamy's plea, the trial court in its January 11 and March 11 orders had sought documents from Ministries of Finance and Urban Development, Department of Corporate Affairs and Income Tax Department and 2010-11 balance sheet of the Congress party in the case, which were submitted by the INC and AJL on 8 April.

However on 12 July, Delhi High Court had set aside both the orders of the trial court saying they were passed in a "casual manner" and "without application of mind". Swamy then filed a fresh application before the trial court seeking summoning of certain documents while the Congress leaders and AJL sought the return of documents including its balance sheet, which had been submitted in the court.

The court had on 26 June, 2014, summoned Sonia, Rahul, Motilal Vora, Oscar Fernandes, Suman Dubey and Sam Pitroda as accused in the case besides YI.

It had on 19 December, 2015, granted bail to Sonia, Rahul, Vora, Fernandes and Dubey, who had appeared before it pursuant to summons. Pitroda was granted bail on 20 February when he had appeared in the court.

Sonia, Rahul, Vora, Fernandes, Dubey and Pitroda were summoned for alleged offences under section 403 (dishonest misappropriation of property), 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating) read with section 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC.

Swamy had accused the Gandhis and other Congress leaders of allegedly conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds by just paying Rs 50 lakh by which Young India obtained the right to recover Rs 90.25 crore which AJL owed to the Congress party. All accused have denied the allegations.

With inputs from agencies
The National Commission for State Regulation of Energy, Housing and Utilities Services (NCER) from January 1, 2017 revised the tariffs for crude oil transportation using trunk pipelines of public joint-stock company Ukrtransnafta to consumers in the country.

The decision was made on December 23.

The tariff for the Hnidyntsi oil pumping station to Kremenchuk oil refinery was set at UAH 52.20 per tonne (a fall of 31% compared to the current tariff), Hlynsko-Rozbyshevka line operation dispatcher station to Kremenchuk oil refinery at UAH 41.10 per tonne (a decline of 39.2%), Mala Pavlivka to Kremenchuk oil refinery at UAH 53.40 per tonne (a decline of 30.3%), Pivdenny terminal to Kremenchuk oil refinery at UAH 101.30 per tonne (a decline of 8.8%) and Odesa oil point to Kremenchuk oil refinery at UAH 107.90 per tonne (a decline of 6.3%).

The production program of Ukrtransnafta envisages oil transportation to Ukrainian oil refineries in the amount of 2.705 million tonnes in 2017 and oil transit of 10 million tonnes.
Chennai: DMK on Monday announced that its General Council meeting, which was deferred in view of M Karunanidhi's hospitalisation, would be held on 4 January, 2017.

DMK General Secretary K Anbazhagan said that the General Council, originally slated on 20 December under its President M Karunanidhi, will now be held next month.

The General Council was earlier scheduled on 20 December amidst an increasing chorus from Stalin's supporters for his elevation.

Stalin, also leader of the opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, was expected to be appointed working president of the party in the General Council, the powerful decision-making body of DMK.

However, the meet was deferred following Karunanidhi's hospitalisation due to lung and throat infection. Karunanidhi was discharged from the private hospital on 23 December.

Later speaking to reporters, Stalin said that decisions such as his elevation are "obviously" taken only by the party's decision-making bodies.

"Obviously. Only the General Council and Executive Council decide" on such matters, he said in response to a query in this regard.
Cracks seem to have appeared in the Opposition's concerted campaign against demonetisation as several parties have pulled out of a joint press conference called by the Congress in Delhi on Tuesday over the contentious issue. While West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is travelling to Delhi to attend the meeting, similar enthusiasm is missing among other Opposition parties.

Many important partners of the anti-demonetisation campaign, such as Janata Dal (United) (JD-U), the Left, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Samajwadi Party (SP), on Monday refused to attend the joint press conference scheduled to be held at the Constitution Club in New Delhi on Tuesday. Several Opposition parties were left red faced after a Congress delegation led by its vice-president Rahul Gandhi went to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 16 December, the last day of the Winter Session of Parliament, without even informing them.

"You cannot stall Parliament for a month demanding Modi's presence and then go to meet the prime minister even before it is adjourned sine die. You didnt find it proper to consult us," an NCP leader was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

With campaigning for Uttar Pradesh Assembly election gathering storm, Tuesday's meeting gains more significance. The Congress was likely to focus on two issues: The corruption allegations against Modi, who rode to power two years ago promising a corruption-free government and the plight of the common people due to the demonetisation exercise.

CPM General Secretary Sitaram Yechury on Monday said, "The Congress should know that in a combined effort, prior understanding and consultations are a must." "We have decided to stay away from the press conference of Opposition parties convened by the Congress because there has been no proper consultation and coordination among the parties," Yechury said during a press conference in New Delhi. "Most of the parties were neither consulted nor informed about what will be the agenda of the meeting. Several Opposition parties have reservation about the way the meeting has been convened," Yechury said.

"But when I wanted to know what will be the agenda of the meeting, plan of action and whether all Opposition parties have been called, I didn't receive any answer," Yechury said. "Till now, there was coordination among different Opposition parties' parliamentary groups. If you have to elevate it to the party level, you must do it with prior consultation," he added.

The motive behind Opposition presser is to decide on a strategy before the upcoming Union Budget and in the backdrop of the recently concluded Winter Session of Parliament which was a washout. JD(U) leader KC Tyagi told IANS: "We were not sounded out; we don't know what is the agenda of the press briefing; there is no common programme. So how can we participate?" Speaking to Livemint on the condition of anonymity, a senior JD(U) leader said, "Coordination in Parliament is very different from having a joint strategy against the government on the ground. We cannot commit to it right away. We will decide on it only after discussing it with (Bihar chief minister) Nitish Kumar, who will take a final call on it."

Nitish has been quite vocal in his support for the demonetisation drive.

Senior NCP leader DP Tripathi said although the "Opposition is united over the wrong implementation" of the 8 November demonetisation, his party won't be going to the presser. "Many parties are not coming; so we are not coming too," Tripathi said.

The Samajwadi Party, too, was undecided on the issue. "We have not decided... at least, I am not going. You may contact neta ji (Mulayam Singh Yadav) for more details," SP leader Naresh Agrawal told IANS. However, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), a coalition partner of JD(U) in Bihar, confirmed participation.

Trinamool Congress leader Sukehndu Shekhar Roy said his party is "most likely" to participate.

The Congress is striving for uniting the Opposition on the issue of Rahul Gandhi's charges of "personal corruption" against the prime minister and plans are afoot for a joint press conference by its president Sonia Gandhi and other Opposition leaders on 27 December. Yechury said that a few days back he had received a call from the Congress leadership inviting him to the press conference.

On being asked if the decision to stay away would not provide ammunition to the BJP camp, Yechury said," When you want to take the Opposition unity of 16 parties from a Parliament level to a political level then you need to hold consultation and discussion with the political leadership. A decision should be taken on the basis of proper consultation. That was not done, which is unfortunate," the veteran leader said.

Yechury noted that in order to take forward the unity of Opposition parties, references should be taken from the efforts that the CPM has taken during the 1996 United Front government and UPA-I government. Yechury wondered why only Mamata was invited to the press conference and chief ministers of Tripura, Bihar, and the NCP leadership were not properly consulted.

"Why are you only inviting chief minister of West Bengal and not calling the chief ministers of Bihar, Tripura and other states which have non-BJP governments?" he questioned.

The entire Opposition had tried to corner the government over the demonetisation issue and stalled Parliament proceedings for the entire session that began on 16 November.

A few days back, the Congress reached out to several Opposition parties to rally support once again over the issue. However, not all parties seem convinced with the Congress initiative this time around.

With inputs from agencies
Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has summoned US Ambassador Daniel Shapiro, two days after Washington abstained in a vote on a UN resolution against Israeli settlements.

Their meeting came after Israel on Sunday called in 10 representatives of 14 other states that voted for the resolution.

An official Israeli source confirmed only that Netanyahu and Shapiro had met, without elaborating on the content or outcome of their discussions.

The UN Security Council passed the measure Friday after the United States abstained, enabling the adoption of the first resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

The resolution demands that "Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem".

It says settlements have "no legal validity" and are "dangerously imperilling the viability of the two-state solution."

Netanyahu, who also holds the foreign ministry portfolio, had rejected the resolution as a "shameful blow against Israel".

On Sunday, he repeated Israel's claim that US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry were behind it.

"We have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated the drafts and demanded to pass it," the premier said at the beginning of the weekly cabinet meeting.

"This is of course in total contradiction to the traditional American policy of not trying to impose conditions of a final resolution," he said, "and of course the explicit committment of President Obama himself in 2011 to avoid such measures."

The Haaretz daily's website said that for Israel to summon an American ambassador was "considered a most unusual step".

"Even more unusual is the fact that unlike the other envoys who were summoned on Sunday to the foreign ministry, Netanyahu will conduct the conversation himself at his office," it said ahead of the meeting.

By deciding not to veto the UN move, Washington took a rare step that deeply angered Israel, which accused Obama of abandoning its closest Middle East ally in the waning days of his administration.

The text was passed with support from all remaining members of the 15-member council, with applause breaking out in the chamber.

The landmark vote came despite intense lobbying efforts by Israel and calls from US President-elect Donald Trump to block the text.
Istanbul: The Turkish army on Monday accused Islamic State (IS) jihadists of killing at least 30 civilians seeking to flee the flashpoint Syrian town of Al-Bab which Ankara and its rebel allies have been seeking to capture for weeks.

The army said that the civilians were killed with mines and homemade bombs as they tried to make their way out of Al-Bab, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported, without giving further details.

Turkish forces and allied Syrian rebels have been seeking to take Al-Bab as a key part of an unprecedented four month campaign that began in late August.

But they have been facing tough opposition from the jihadists and suffered the highest casualties of the campaign so far in the fight for the town.

Turkey at the weekend deployed more tanks and artillery to the border and also as sent 500 elite commandos to Al-Bab in readiness for a final fight for the town, reports said.

Thirty-six Turkish soldiers have died so far in the operation  dubbed Euphrates Shield  after another wounded soldier lost his life in hospital in Turkey overnight, reports said.

Sixteen Turkish soldiers were killed by IS in the battle for the town on Wednesday  Ankara's biggest loss so far since it launched its incursion.

A Britain-based monitoring group has accused Turkey of killing 88 civilians in air strikes on Al-Bab, including 21 children. However the army has unequivocally denied such claims.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at the weekend the battle for Al-Bab is nearly finished, reiterating Turkish forces would then head to Manbij, a former bastion of IS that is now under the control of US-backed, Kurdish-led militia.
Tokyo: Japan and the US have agreed in principle on details of the scope of American military base workers given immunity from Japanese prosecution under a bilateral agreement, following a murder case this year on Japan's southern island involving a Marine-turned-contractor.

The governments have been negotiating several points concerning US civilian contractors at American bases subject to protection under the pact, known as the Status of Forces Agreement, since July.

Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said on Monday that the two sides have agreed on the specifics of "civilian component" and hoped to sign the agreement "during President Barack Obama's term."

The May arrest of the base contractor, accused of murdering and raping a 20-year-old woman, has renewed outrage on Okinawa, where resentment has been simmering over its heavy US troop presence.
By Adenike Lucas

The All Progressives Congress in the United Kingdom has paid tribute to brave Nigerian service men and women in its Christmas message.

The party noted the recent recapturing of Sambisa forest as one of the success of the Buhari-led administration.



Boko Haram, an Islamic militants group which operates in the north-east, has killed more than 15,000 people and has displaced two million others.

In April 2014, the sect led by Abubakar Shekau kidnapped more than 200 school girls from Chibok in Borno State.

Since then, 21 of the girls have been released to their families after a deal was brokered by the Red Cross and Swiss government.

The Nigerian troop which has engaged in a major offensive (Operation Lafiya Dole) against the militant group, were able to successfully clear them out of their last camp in Sambisa forest, on December 23.

This government is determined to fulfill the CHANGE promise it made to Nigerians. This is evident by the successes recorded by our brave soldiers especially the capture of camp-zero in Sambisa forest and rescue of twenty-one Chibok girls, the statement from APC UK reads.

President Buhari, the Commander in Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces sent a congratulatory message to all our troops who contributed to this most commendable and momentous effort.

The APC UK also thanked Nigerians, telling them all over the world, we, Nigerians are known for our hard work and our ability to succeed in any given situation.

2016, might have been tough but we all know that tough times dont last, but tough people do.

The message highlighted achievements of the APC-led government, such as the introduction of the national home-grown school feeding programme, which is slated as one of the social intervention programmes promised to Nigerians by our great party.

It gave high hopes about the economy and commended President Buhari, for his submission of the 2017 budget of Recovery and Growth.
Ex-first deputy board chairman of PrivatBank denies withdrawal of funds from bank before temporary administration introduced

Former first deputy board chairman of PrivatBank Oleh Horokhovsky has denied the withdrawal of funds from the bank before temporary administration was introduced to the bank.

"It is impossible to withdraw something nowhere in the modern world, as everyone would have known about it and seen. These mythical billions of hryvnias allegedly withdrawn do not exist," he said on 1+1 TV channel.

He said that the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) knows that the funds were not withdrawn.

Earlier NBU Governor Valeriya Gontareva said that UAH 2.6 billion was withdrawn from the bank before introduction of temporary administration at PrivatBank.
Xiaomi launched its Mi explorer program back in back in January this year before the launch of Redmi Note 3 smartphone in March. Today the company will start taking applications for a new Mi explorer program ahead of the launch of the next Redmi smartphone, which will likely be the Redmi Note 4.

Regarding the Mi Explorers campaign, Xiaomi on the Mi Community website, said:

We care deeply about providing the best product experience possible to all our users. Mi Explorers is designed for Mi to perfect the next Redmi device based on extensive user feedback and data before launch. The first Mi Explorers programme was born when Redmi Note 3 entered India in the beginning of 2016, and we are now announcing its second edition. We will be selecting hard-core Mi Fans to fully experience the next Redmi device through a series of challenging missions designed just for Mi Explorers. Be among the first to receive our next Redmi device, be highly involved in improving it before launch, attend the launch event and become a star among Mi fans! Moreover, the Top 5 Explorers get to receive an ultimate prize!

You need to submit the entries before 30th December, 2016 (Friday). Entry link will be up soon on c.mi.com later today. Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 was introduced in China back in August this year. Hope we can expect the India launch in January or February.

Similar to the Redmi Note 3, the Redmi Note 4 is also expected to come with a Snapdragon processor in India instead of Helio X20 SoC in the Chinese variant. We reviewed the Redmi Note 4 recently, check out the review here.

Which Snapdragon processor do you think will power the Indian version Redmi Note 4?

Source
Google India has collaborated with Ministry of Consumer Affairs to launch nationwide Digitally Safe Consumer campaign. The initiative has been launched with an aim to raise awareness about online safety and to help better protect consumer interest online.

Google along with Dept. of Consumer Affairs will undertake a yearlong campaign focused on building capacities of consumer organisations, personnel of Consumer Affairs department and counselors of National Consumer Helpline on Internet safety and related issues. Under the initiative, Google with the help of partner agencies will work towards advocating digital security and privacy needs through Digital Literacy, Safety & Security workshops through a Train the Trainer model for approximately 500 people including 250 consumer organisations across the country.

The trainers will further engage with the local community to spread awareness around the need for Internet Safety. The campaign expected to roll out in January, 2017 will reach out with training materials to over 1200 consumer organisations as well as consumer affairs department of every State and Union Territories. The educational campaign including multiple workshops across the country will feature write ups, posters, interactive quizzes and audio-visuals that will help in educating the internet users about the challenges of Internet safety and security.

Chetan Krishnaswamy, Country head, Public Policy, Google India said

With the rapid increase in digitisation across all spheres, the message of internet safety needs to be integrated into the everyday tasks that the consumer undertakes online. This initiative will add to our existing campaigns guiding users to navigate the web and manage their digital lives safely and leverage the web to the fullest.
Gionee just announced M2017, the companys latest smartphone in the M series in China, as it had promised. The main highlight of the smartphone is the 7000mAh polymer lithium-ion battery with its own intelligent power management system and low power consumption display, which promises up to 25 hours of continuous video playback and 915.42 hours of standby. It has support for 24W Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 and dual fast charging chip.

It has a 5.7-inch Quad HD AMOLED curved display with sapphire glass protection, is powered by an Octa-Core Snapdragon 653 SoC and runs on Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) with Amigo OS 3.5 on top. It has a metal frame and a leather back. It has a 12-megapixel and a 13-megapixel dual rear cameras offering 2x optical zoom and an 8-megapixel front-facing camera. It also has a fingerprint sensor on the front.

Gionee M2017 specifications

5.7-inch (2560  1440 pixels) Quad HD AMOLED curved glass display with sapphire glass protection

Octa Core Snapdragon 653 processor (Quad 1.95GHz ARM Cortex A72 + Quad 1.44GHz A53 CPUs) with Adreno 510 GPU

6GB RAM, 128GB / 256GB internal memory

Dual SIM

Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) with Amigo OS 3.5

12MP + 13MP dual rear cameras with LED flash

8MP front-facing camera

Fingerprint sensor

Dimensions: 155.277.610.78mm; Weight: 238 grams

4GLTE, WiFi 802.11 ac (2.4 GHz + 5 GHz), Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, USB OTG, USB 2.0 Type-C

7000mAh battery with Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0

The Gionee M2017 comes in Gold and Black colors and is priced at 6,999 yuan (US$ 1007 / Rs. 68240 approx.) for the standard version, while the exclusive version with Italian custom alligator leather back costs whopping 16,999 yuan (US$ 2446 / Rs. 1,65,740 approx.). It is already available for pre-order in China.

Source
The Cabinet of Ministers has approved a draft agreement with the European Commission on financing the annual program on nuclear safety 2015, according to the governmental online portal.

The corresponding decision is stipulated in government resolution No. 1001-r dated December 21, 2016.

According to the press service of the government, the budget foreseen by the agreement is EUR4.5 million.

The program is aimed at streamlining Ukrainian and European legal framework, providing technical support for the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine.
For years, Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic has been trying to invent a better way to launch rockets into space. Instead of launching from Earth in a fiery blast and a cloud of dust, Virgin Galactic aims to carry a "SpaceShipTwo" spaceship into the stratosphere, strapped to the belly of a "WhiteKnightTwo" mothership -- then detach the former from the latter, and rocket to 62 miles above sea level.

If Branson can succeed in the endeavor, he'll build a space tourism business enabling well-heeled thrill-seekers able to afford the $250,000 ticket to enjoy several minutes of weightlessness on the edge of space.

But Orbital ATK (OA) can push them right past that edge, and actually into orbit.

Space tourism isn't Virgin Galactic's only business. "Leveraging" its work with SpaceShipTwo and WhiteKnightTwo, Virgin says it's also building a business to service the small satellites revolution. As the company explains on its website, it won't be long before Virgin can put satellites into orbit by air-launching them with a "LauncherOne" rocket carried by a Boeing 747-400 mothership.

But here's the thing: Orbital ATK is already doing that.

Been there, done that

Orbital is already an established provider of terrestrial launch services -- rockets blasting directly from Earth to space. But Orbital also does air launches. Last week, Orbital announced its latest launch of a small satellite into space from an airborne aircraft, a mission it has conducted successfully 29 times in a row since 1997. The 61-pound Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System, or CYGNSS, satellite that it launched will be the first of an eight-satellite NASA constellation used to forecast the formation of tropical storms.

Orbital loaded CYGNSS aboard a Pegasus rocket, carried on the underbelly of a Lockheed Martin L-1011 aircraft -- one dubbed "Stargazer" by Orbital ATK. Then, at an altitude of 39,000 feet, Orbital detached the Pegasus, ignited its engine, and blasted it, and CYGNSS, into orbit.

Space is hard

Now here's where things get interesting from an investing perspective: Virgin Galactic has from time to time floated plans to IPO the company, following in the footsteps of Branson's Virgin America airline (which had its IPO in 2014, rocketed in value, and was ultimately acquired by Alaska Air (ALK 0.64%)). Presumably, Branson would prefer to notch a few successes with the company, though, before taking Virgin Galactic public.

Unfortunately, Virgin's space tourism business hit a rough patch when its SpaceShipTwo crashed during test flights in 2014, and it still hasn't fully recovered. But now, Virgin's LauncherOne business offers a second path to profits. Virgin is promising to offer launch prices as low as $10 million once it has the system up and running -- a mere fraction of the $50 million-plus that Orbital charges. That price point promises to win a lot of business from small-satellite operators -- and, potentially, to disrupt Orbital ATK's air-launched satellites business.

On the other hand, it took Orbital ATK several years to work out the kinks of air-launched rockets-to-orbit. In fact, in its early years, Pegasus experienced in excess of a 20% failure rate, losing multiple valuable payloads before figuring out how to make the process work. Assuming Virgin Galactic faces a similar learning curve, it could be some years before its business matures enough to reassure investors and support an IPO.

Meanwhile, Orbital ATK just keeps extending its lead -- and collecting $50 million a launch.
So you say that Boeing (BA 6.34%) is out of the fighter jet business? That Lockheed Martin's (LMT 0.57%) F-35 fighter jet is "the last manned strike fighter" that will ever be built, and Boeing's F-15s and F/A-18 fighter jets are passe?

Well even if that were true (and it may not be), it might not be the end of the world for Boeing. Earlier this year, Boeing Defense head Leanne Caret laid out a plan to refocus Boeing's efforts away from fighter jet production, and toward the sale of auxiliary aircraft such as transports and surveillance and maritime patrol aircraft.

Good news! Things are going pretty well on that front.

The Poseidon adventure

Earlier this year, we told you about Boeing's big $3.2 billion sale of nine P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft to Great Britain. Two years prior, Boeing landed an even bigger deal to sell eight Poseidons to Australia for $3.6 billion (apparently, the prices are coming down as production ramps up), followed by a local contract to provide the U.S. Navy with 16 of these sub-hunting jet aircraft for $2.1 billion.

Clearly, Poseidon sales are heating up; as further evidence, Boeing looks likely to book yet another big Poseidon sale -- this time to Norway. As we learned just last week, the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency has notified Congress of a request by the Norwegian military to buy five P-8A Poseidon aircraft and associated electronics gear for a grand total of $1.75 billion.

Boeing Stock Market capitalization $97.2 billion Revenue $94.9 billion Net profit $4.3 billion

Ready to hunt for Red October

At $350 million per aircraft, Norway will be getting roughly the same deal that the U.K. got in April, and will pay considerably less per plane than the Australians were charged (if not quite as little as the U.S. Navy paid).

Norway intends to use its new Poseidons to replace the six aging Lockheed Martin P-3C Orions it currently has on sub-hunting duty -- and not a moment too soon. For years, we've been hearing about Russian submarines probing NATO defenses in the Arctic region, and south all along the coasts of Scandinavia. These Poseidons should come in mighty handy, keeping track of Russian submarine movements in Norwegian waters.

What it means to Boeing

Boeing will be the prime contractor on the $1.75 billion Poseidon sale -- worth approximately 13% of annual revenues to the company's Military Aircraft division, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. At Military Aircraft's 9.8% pre-tax profit margin, the sales should yield just over $171 million in profit for Boeing -- about $0.28 per share.

Should you buy Boeing stock?

Now, $0.28 may not sound like much. But if you add up all the Poseidons Boeing has been selling around the globe these past few years, this single aircraft type has already yielded well in excess of $10 billion in sales for Boeing, and is rapidly becoming a big part of the planemaker's business.

That being said, one plane model -- even one selling as well as Poseidon -- cannot in and of itself justify buying a stock. To know whether Boeing stock is a "buy," you have to go back to the basics: You need to examine the valuation.

Boeing Stock Price-to-earnings ratio 24.1 Price-to-free cash flow 11.9 Price-to-sales 1.0 Projected 5-year growth rate 15% Dividend yield 3.6%

Valued on its price-to-earnings (P/E) divided by growth, Boeing boasts a PEG ratio of 1.6. Factor in the 3.6% dividend yield, and the stock's total return ratio drops to 1.3. Both of those valuations seem a bit high. At the same time, though, Boeing's price-to-sales ratio of 1.0 is right on the money for fair value, according to my rule-of-thumb method for valuing defense stocks. Moreover, when valued on its free cash flow -- which eclipses reported "net" income by nearly a factor of two today -- the stock's price-to-free cash flow ratio of 11.9 seems more than acceptable given analysts' expectation of 15% long-term profits growth at Boeing.

All things considered, I think "two out of three isn't bad" here. Boeing's cheap P/FCF ratio, combined with its fair P/S ratio, outweigh my concerns over the stock's somewhat elevated P/E ratio. The stock looks cheap enough to buy.

And while Boeing's robust Poseidon sales aren't the dispositive factor in this analysis, they certainly do not hurt.
Headed for a fourth straight annual profit decline, Hyundai Motor <005380.KS> is trimming its cost fat; scaling back on business class flights and annual family home trips for overseas employees, executives told Reuters. 005380.KS>

The South Korean automaker has been hit by its exposure to weak emerging markets, and a product line-up that features more sedans than sport utility vehicles, just as SUVs have become more popular across many global markets.

The belt-tightening - which also includes cutting back on printing and fluorescent light bulbs - aims to buy Hyundai time to prepare new models and a design revamp.

"We're trying to address a mismatch between the market trend and our product line-up," said one Hyundai insider, referring to a need for more SUV models. "That's a longer term plan. For now we're trying to save every penny," he said, declining to be identified because the plans are not public.

Since October, Hyundai Motor Group executives have taken a 10 percent pay cut, the first such move in seven years. The number of executives at Hyundai Motor alone has risen by 44 percent in five years, to 293 last year.

The group has also downgraded hotel rooms for executive travel, and is encouraging video conferencing as a cheaper alternative to travel, insiders said.

"We're in emergency management mode," said another insider, who didn't want to be named as he is not authorized to speak to the media.

In a response to Reuters for this article, Hyundai Motor said it is "making various cost-saving efforts", with shrinking global demand and growing business uncertainty, but did not elaborate.

Other costs, such as low-margin supplier parts and labor at the heavily-unionized automaker, are tougher to pare back, said Ko Tae-bong, analyst at Hi Investment & Securities, noting Hyundai needs also to spend more on research and development in self-driving and other new technologies.

While Hyundai remains cash-rich, its costs as a proportion of revenue have risen for five straight years, to 81 percent so far this year, regulatory filings show.

"Cutting expenses are stopgap measures, and won't do much to improve its bottom line," Ko said, calling them more "symbolic".

SALES DECLINE

Hyundai grew quickly after the global financial crisis, with brisk sales of its Sonata and Elantra sedans. It was the only major automaker to increase sales in the United States in 2009.

But it has struggled to maintain that momentum as rivals' sales of SUVs have boomed and emerging market economies have weakened. Hyundai Motor shares have fallen 40 percent in the past three years, the worst performer among global automakers.

The automaker's top U.S. executive has resigned, and the South Korea sales chief and China head have been replaced.

Sales of Hyundai cars, and those of its affiliate Kia Motors <000270.KS>, could drop to 8 million this year, a first decline since Hyundai bought its smaller domestic rival in 1998, said Ko, the analyst. 000270.KS>

For next year, Hyundai-Kia Executive Vice President and research head Park Hong-jae, expects sales to pick up again. "It was a difficult year this year. Things will get better," he told reporters on Thursday, citing recovery in markets such as Brazil and Russia.

Another Hyundai source said the group has trimmed its preliminary 2017 sales target to 8.2 million vehicles, from 8.35 million forecast in mid-year.

MORE SUVS

While it looks to manage its staff budget, Hyundai is beefing up its SUV offerings, freshening up its Sonata sedan, and redirecting exports from slow-demand markets such as the Middle East to the United States.

In the United States, SUVs accounted for 28 percent of Hyundai's sales in January-November, up from 23 percent a year earlier, according to Autodata Corp, but less than half the industry average.

At its plant in Montgomery, Alabama, Hyundai has replaced some Sonata production with its popular Santa Fe SUV.

Next year, Hyundai will look to plug a gap in its SUV offerings for developed markets by making a sub-compact model - under the project name "OS" - in South Korea for sale at home, in the United States and Europe, people inside the company said. Hyundai makes sub-compact SUVs locally in China, India and Russia.

"We need that small SUV in the U.S, much sooner than later," Scott Fink, one of Hyundai's biggest U.S. dealers, told Reuters.

In sedans, Hyundai is pushing sales of bigger, higher-margin models like the Azera, or Grandeur, and its Genesis luxury line. Its smaller sedans, including the Elantra and Sonata, have lost ground to rivals like Honda Motor's <7267.T> Civic, which one Hyundai executive said has "wowing design". 7267.T>

Hyundai is working on a next generation of cars with "a different flair" to hit the market from 2019, Luc Donckerwolke, senior vice president for design, told Reuters on the sidelines of a recent event.

The biggest holder of Hyundai Motor preferred shares, the Norway-based Skagen Kon-Tiki fund, expects the automaker to get back on track over the next couple of years, with new SUVs, recovering emerging market currencies and better plant utilization.

Knut Harald Nilsson, the fund's lead portfolio manager, reckons Hyundai's margins should recover to above 7 percent over that period, from 6 percent earlier this year, but are unlikely to return to the 10 percent levels of a few years ago "anytime soon".

(Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin; editing by Tony Munroe and Ian Geoghegan)
Image source: Fitbit.com.

Fitbit (NYSE: FIT) sells more fitness trackers than their two biggest competitors combined. The consumer technology space is a challenging one with prices dropping year over year as technology improves. But what you might not know is that Fitbit has increased revenue per device sold in each of the last four years. In fact, this number has grown 69% from 2012 to the current 2016 average, as shown in the chart below.

Image source: Author calculations and Fitbit's earning releases.

Fitbit's ability to increase the revenue per device sold is important as competitors release lower-cost and lower-margin devices in an attempt to win market share from Fitbit. Often, consumer goods companies are stuck in a race to the bottom, competing on price. Consumer goods such as televisions, computers, and household appliances have all become commoditized with increased competition. It's a rare company that is able to maintain pricing power over the long run. Often they are innovative companies, that have great brands, and powerful network effects -- or a combination of those factors.

Can Fitbit be one of those rare companies?Revenue per device sold is the one number for Fitbit investors to watch. This number gives you insight into whether Fitbit's innovative product line, including accessories and other non-device revenue streams, is winning with customers.

Fitbit's product line expands to bring higher revenue

Fitbit has gradually grown its product lineup from a single clip-on fitness tracker to seven fitness trackers ranging from $49 to $249 and a Wifi-connected scale.

Image source: Fitbit.com.

This expansive product line has been the key contributor to revenue increases per device. The current product lineup is shown above.The table below shows the release dates of each of the Fitbit devices and the prices at introduction. In fact, six of the last seven new products were $129 or more.

Image source: Author chart based on Fitbit's press releases.*Force was recalled and replaced by the Charge five months later.

Fitbit doesn't release sales by device, but it did have a press release when the company shipped more than one million Blaze units in the first month it was available.The success of the Blaze contributed to Fitbit's 2016 revenue per device sold being over $100 for the first time ever. CFO William Zerella stated in the most recent conference call that Fitbit's "Q3 product mix benefited from the contribution of Blaze's $199 price point versus a year ago."

Removable trackers are an opportunity to increase revenue per device

Fitbit's revenue is also helped by the fact that all of its new products released this year have trackers that can be removed from their bands. This allows users to personalize their trackers with different color bands, different band materials, or even wear their tracker in a stylish necklace. Fitbit accessories range in price from $4.95 to $195. The ability to personalize your Fitbit to your liking is key to customers using the Fitbit product after the purchase.

"One of the first things we learned in this industry is that fitness is personal -- and if something isn't your style, you won't wear it," said James Park, CEO and Co-Founder of Fitbit.

Fitbit has partnered with well-known design houses such as Public School and Vera Wang to provide fashionable alternatives to the standard fitness bands. Starting next year, Tory Burch will be added to the lineup. This accessory revenue for Fitbit could be an important driver to increase its revenue per device going into 2017.

Other revenue opportunities

While product mix and accessories are the biggest drivers for increased revenue per device, Fitbit has a few more tricks up its sleeve, including software, corporate wellness programs, and its newly announced digital health initiative.

Software offerings include Fitbit's Fitstar personal training app, premium subscriptions, and software and services related to Fitbit's corporate wellness programs. Fitbit doesn't report its revenue related to software and services in its quarterly reports. The last data point is the 2015 annual report, where both subscription-based premium services and software and services from corporate wellness programs were both listed separately, with each contributing less than 1% of revenue.

Corporate wellness programs reportedly contributed less than 10% of revenue for the sale of devices at the end of 2015, but no updates on corporate wellness programs have been given throughout 2016. As far as the digital health initiatives go, these are too new to even talk about in the earnings call. When Fitbit's CEO and Founder James Park was asked about digital health initiatives, he indicated, "we're going to reserve comments there until the next call ... while we might start to see some revenue streams there, they're going to be small initially."

The Foolish bottom line

Fitbit has made significant progress in expanding its product line to higher-cost devices like the Fitbit Blaze, Charge 2, and Surge to capture more revenue per device sold. Fitbit is also putting a tremendous effort into the accessory business to allow users to customize their Fitbits to their personal style. These efforts have allowed Fitbit to stay out of the race to the bottom, as often happens with consumer goods devices.

While these efforts have been successful so far, Fitbit will need to continue to focus on innovation to keep its revenue per device sold from backsliding, and they are. In the most recent quarterly report, Fitbit's research and development (R&D) spend was a solid 14% of revenue, and its R&D staff makes up 60% of the employees at Fitbit. These efforts should continue to pay off. In the most recent earnings call, CEO James Park remarked how its research and development efforts impacted revenue:

Fitbit's investments in innovation are defending its average revenue per device, but Fitbit will need to make its other revenue opportunities a bigger part of its overall revenue -- contributing more than 1% -- in order to become a valuable long-term investment.

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Brian Withers owns shares of Apple, Fitbit, Starbucks, Starbucks, and Under Armour (A Shares). The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Apple, Fitbit, Starbucks, and Under Armour (A Shares). The Motley Fool has the following options: long January 2018 $90 calls on Apple and short January 2018 $95 calls on Apple. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Bank of America lowered the bar on its stock price in 2009. Image source: iStock/Thinkstock.

If you compare Bank of America's (NYSE: BAC) stock to the other global systemically important banks in the United States, one thing sticks out: Bank of America's share price is significantly lower than all of the rest.

It costs a little less than $23 to buy a share of Bank of America, and that's after the post-election surge in bank stocks. Meanwhile, even the second least expensive big bank stock, Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), costs more than $43 per share.

Given that Bank of America is the second biggest bank in the United States, what explains this?

Data source: YCharts.com.

Why B of A's share price is so low

The answer is that Bank of America has way more shares outstanding than any other bank. It had an average of 11 billion shares of common stock outstanding in the third quarter of this year, according to YCharts.com.

That compares to five billion outstanding shares at Wells Fargo, 3.6 billion at JPMorgan Chase, 2.9 billion at Citigroup, and 1.9 billion at Morgan Stanley, to cite the four other big banks with the most outstanding shares.

This means that Bank of America's book value must be divvied up across a much larger number of shares than close competitors such as Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, and Morgan Stanley. This dilutes the amount of book value that each share of Bank of America's stock lays claim to.

It accordingly follows that because a bank's share price is largely a function of its book value per share, Bank of America's stock will invariably trade for a lower price than its peers so long as it has so many more outstanding shares.

How this happened

Bank of America wasn't always in the situation. Going into the financial crisis, Bank of America had between four and five billion shares of outstanding common stock. That's roughly half its current count.

Data source: Bank of America. Chart by author.

Most of the increase came in 2009, when Bank of America issued upwards of five billion new shares of common stock in order to acquire Merrill Lynch and to raise capital to survive the crisis.

It issued 1.4 billion shares in January 2009 to fund the Merrill Lynch acquisition.

It issued 2 billion shares in the second quarter of 2009 to raise capital.

And it followed this up by issuing 1.3 billion shares more at the end of the year to raise funds to pay off its TARP funds.

Consequently, even though Bank of America has turned the cornerand largely left the 2008 crisis in the rearview mirror, the bank's missteps in the lead-up to the downturn continue to be reflected in its share price today.

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Tobacco giant Altria Group (NYSE: MO) has had an exceptionally strong 2016, producing total returns in excess of 20% for shareholders. Yet even with the gains that the company has produced, Altria has plenty of positives looking ahead, and success in the future could produce even more share-price gains in 2017 and beyond. Below, we'll take a look at three reasons why Altria Group shares could have further to climb in the next year.

Image source: Altria Group.

1. The potential for FDA approval of iQOS could be a game-changer for Altria in reduced-risk products.

No one disputes that traditional cigarettes remain the most important business for Altria. Even with contributions from other businesses such as smokeless tobacco and wine, Altria still relies on the success of Marlboro and other cigarette brands for the vast bulk of its revenue and profit. However, in the long run, many believe that reduced-risk products are a larger potential source of growth for the tobacco industry, and Altria is just one of many companies looking for ways to tap into demand for e-cigarettes and other innovations.

Along those lines, Altria stands to benefit greatly from the move from former subsidiary Philip Morris International to submit an application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its iQOS heat-not-burn technology and related HeatSticks tobacco product. iQOS uses regular tobacco rather than a liquid to produce a more realistic smoking experience, but by heating the tobacco rather than burning it, there's a huge reduction in the amount of toxic chemicals produced. If the FDA grants approval to the application, then Altria will have the rights to market iQOS in the U.S., where the market for the product could be huge. Already, sales of iQOS in Japan have taken market share into mid-single digit levels. Altria has to root for iQOS to pass FDA muster and give it a new avenue for growth.

2. Anheuser-Busch InBev profits could add dramatically to total earnings.

After a long wait, Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE: BUD) finally closed on its merger with SABMiller, and Altria is now the owner of a greater-than-10% stake in the surviving beer maker's stock. That will entitle the tobacco giant to include its proportional share of A-B InBev's profits on its own financial statements, and it will also give Altria favorable tax treatment for foreign tax credits related to the beer business.

Investors hope that Anheuser-Busch InBev will do a better job of contributing earnings to Altria than SABMiller did in recent years. After strong performance in the early 2010s, SABMiller's pass-through earnings to Altria had fallen over the past couple of years. A-B InBev's position in the global beer industry will be much stronger than SABMiller's was, however, and that could help power stronger results onto Altria's income statements in the quarters to come.

3. Buybacks are coming.

One consequence of the Anheuser-Busch InBev deal was that Altria received a substantial amount of cash. Although the tobacco company used some of that money to build up a larger stake in the beer maker, Altria also agreed to take some of the cash and increase the size of its current stock repurchase program from $1 billion to $3 billion. As a result, investors can expect that additional $2 billion to get put to work in the next couple of years, with Altria expecting to complete buybacks by the second quarter of 2018.

Altria hasn't entirely given up on buybacks, but the pace of its repurchases had been relatively lackluster lately. Over the past three quarters, Altria has bought back just over $500 million in shares, after posting repurchases of $554 million in 2015. If the company spends its entire authorized amount, that could double the pace of buybacks, in turn providing more support to the stock.

Altria has already produced good returns for investors in 2016. But with many potential positives ahead, shareholders could see further gains in the stock price if Altria can execute well on all of its opportunities.

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Minutes after the Obama administration abstained from a crucial U.N. Security Council resolution vote on Israel condemning settlement activity, the collective jaw of the sole democracy in the Middle East dropped.

You have (Turkish President) Erdogan arresting justices, terror in Libya, the Russians invading Ukraine, taking Crimea, and no resolutions against any of them.

In a FOX Business exclusive interview Christmas Eve in Jerusalem, Ayalon, who served as ambassador to the U.S. from 2002 to 2006, told FBN that the abstention is particularly stunning considering other, more pressing global issues have taken center stage.

Imagine that just a day before Christmas Eve and Hannukah, President Obama was busy not trying to help innocent Syrians who are getting murdered in Aleppo, or dealing with the emergency humanitarian crisis, but instead was working to undermine Israel, said Danny Ayalon former Israeli Ambassador to the United States.

Ayalon said whats perhaps most shocking is the U.S.s change in tone toward the Jewish nation that, since 1948, has fought off numerous attacks by Arab nations. From Harry Truman to Ronald Reagan to Bill Clinton, never has an American president taken such a sharp turn away from Israel. Ayalon says during his own entire stint as Israeli ambassador to the United States, President George W. Bush always made it clear that he and America stood with and for Israel. Whats ironic, Ayalon told FBN, is that President-elect Donald Trump, who intervened Thursday and successfully convinced the Egyptians who had floated the original resolution to back down, may very well win at the Middle East peace game that has been so elusive to Barack Obama.

Israelis believe that finally we have a U.S. president who not only keeps his promises and is very smart but is also is someone who thinks outside of the box. (Trump) may have a better chance than any president in the last 40 years to bring both sides together. If the Palestinians and the Arabs understand that he will not bend on (the settlement) thing, and if they dont accept that, hell refuse to back down on things like moving the embassy to Jerusalem.

If they come to their senses, they will want to cut a deal before things like the embassy issue become irreversible. Then you might have a new reality in the region.

Mollie Hemingway, Senior Editor of the Federalist told FOX News the Obama administration is playing a dangerous game by abstaining on the vote which was eventually brought by New Zealand, Senegal and Venezuela after the Egyptians were prompted by Trump to abandon the resolution.

This is moral cowardice on behalf of the U.S. and gives Palestinians false hope. In just a few weeks (when President-elect Trump is sworn in) policy will revert to what it has always been in the U.S.

Democrats from Sherrod Brown of Ohio to New Yorks Chuck Schumer rushed to side with Israel.

"Whatever ones views are on settlements, anyone who cares about the future of Israel and peace in the region knows that the UN, with its one sidedness, is exactly the wrong forum to bring about peace," Schumer said. "An abstention is not good enough. The administration must veto this resolution."

Former DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman-Schultz issued a statement saying, I condemn this reckless abstention while the Obama Administration pushed back. Settlement construction puts a two-state solution at risk, Ben Rhodes, deputy national security advisor for strategic communications, told the Jerusalem Post in a phone interview.

What is perhaps one of the most unusual developments since the Thursday night passage of Resolution 2334 is that Arab sources and intelligence reportedly informed Israel that the U.S. worked behind Israels back, drafting and promoting the anti-Israel resolution. While theres no official evidence of such dealings, Republican members of Congress led by Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) are now demanding discussions be opened to defund the United Nations. The United States funding pays an outsized 22% of the UNs budget.

As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu moved quickly to call back Israeli Ambassadors from the resolutions promoting countries of New Zealand and Senegal, Ayalon says Israelis are searching for the reason President Obama made such a controversial, anti-Israel move.

I think he wanted to leave the legacy that he is the guy who pushed the 2-state solution and be that guy who stood up to Israel. Hell then become a celebrity in Europe and be invited to give speeches for thousands of dollars. Thats his motivation.
Elton John led social media tributes to George Michael after the pop star's death at age 53 was announced late Sunday.

The two collaborated on a rendition of John's 1974 classic "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" that was released in 1992.

Andrew Ridgeley, who reached the height of fame in the mid-1980s as Michael's partner with the pop duo Wham, tweeted that he was "heartbroken at the loss of my beloved friend."

Heartbroken at the loss of my beloved friend Yog. Me, his loved ones, his friends, the world of music, the world at large. 4ever loved. A xx https://t.co/OlGTm4D9O6  Andrew Ridgeley (@ajridgeley) December 26, 2016

Another icon of the 1980s, Madonna, tweeted, "Farewell My Friend! Another Great Artist leaves us. Can 2016 F--- Off NOW?"

English New Wave group Duran Duran echoed her sentiments with a post on their official Twitter account.

2016 - loss of another talented soul. All our love and sympathy to @GeorgeMichael's family. pic.twitter.com/3h4xqEDXR9  Duran Duran (@duranduran) December 25, 2016

Admiration for Michael was not limited to the pop world. Hip-hop artist MC Hammer expressed his condolences on social media, as did CBS "Late Late Show" host James Corden.

Stunned. George Michael. A talented and gentle soul. May you rest in Gods love and Peace  #RIPGeorgeMichael  MC HAMMER (@MCHammer) December 26, 2016
PLEASE NOTE!

Due to the March 23, 2020 NM DOH Public Health Order, These Event Listings Are Not Accurate!

All non-essential businesses are closed, public gatherings are prohibited!

(One day some of these events will be rescheduled or will resume, but they are not happening now!)
Coal stocks in the warehouses of thermal power plants (TPP) of Ukraine from December 18 until December 25, 2016 decreased by 5.8%, from 1.804 million tonnes to 1.7 million tonnes, Ukrenergo has reported.

In particular, anthracite coal stocks fell by 3.3%, to 877,000 tonnes (including 131,000 tonnes at Luhansk TPP), while gas coal and long-flame coal stocks were down by 8.2%, to 823,000 tonnes (including 112,000 tonnes at Burshtyn TPP).

Ukrenergo said energy consumption in the morning of December 26 was 22.233 GW, while 41 coal power units at the TPPs generated 7.562 GW. Nuclear power plants (NPPs) showed a capacity of 10.752 GW, hydroelectric power plants 1.742 GW, combined heat and power plants 2.126 MW and alternative energy units 51 MW.

Exports from the Burshtyn TPP energy island on December 25 stood at 544 MW. No exports to Poland, Belarus, Moldova and Russia were reported.
Celeste Castillo, a Guatemalan immigrant, was invited to a news conference with Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius early last year to help promote enrollment in the country's new health insurance marketplaces.

From the podium, the U.S. citizen excitedly spoke of soon being able to get insurance for the first time under President Barack Obama's health care law.

"I felt so honored to be there that day," Castillo recalls. "They told me I would be the face of the campaign."

Fourteen months later, the 57-year-old nanny was still uninsured until The Associated Press contacted the Quinn administration last week. She had first become tangled in computer problems, then was denied by the state's expanded Medicaid program  underscoring how complicated the process has been for many Americans, even one held up as an example of who the law was designed to help.

State officials blame a mistake in how to categorize an $800-a-month gift from Castillo's estranged husband, which they quickly corrected. But it's also ironic that she ran into such difficulties because Latinos were among the groups the Obama administration most coveted for enrollment and fell short in signing up, according to federal figures released last week.

"Every story is unique, but the theme that keeps coming up is how complicated this is," said Jane Delgado, president of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, a nonpartisan advocacy network.

Castillo, who moved to the United States 38 years ago and speaks English well, was no ordinary consumer; she's a board member at a community health clinic where she has received care on a sliding fee scale because she couldn't afford private insurance and didn't qualify for Medicaid before the health law's expansion. That connection brought her to the attention of the governor's office, which invited her to speak at the February 2013 event.

In October, she started applying for health insurance, wanting to be among the first covered. She was thwarted by website crashes, then by requests for additional paperwork. She worked with several counselors through the fall, winter and into the spring.

The counselors guided her toward coverage through the new expanded Medicaid program.

With an estimated annual income of $19,183 for a two-person household  herself and her 22-year-old daughter, a full-time student  Castillo qualified for expanded Medicaid. But if she made just $211 per month more, she would have needed to buy insurance on the marketplace. She was willing to do that, but went with the advice to apply for Medicaid.

Two weeks ago, she was notified she'd been rejected because of her income. By then, the March 31 deadline had passed for marketplace coverage. She didn't know what to do.

"I thought by now I would be one of the people who would have insurance," Castillo said last week.

An AP reporter, discovering Castillo had been rejected after calling her to discuss Latino enrollment figures, then called a spokesman for the Quinn administration. Hours later, Castillo received a phone call from a lead casework specialist in the Illinois Medicaid office. He assured her a mistake had been made, her application now was approved and that his boss told him to call her right away.

Castillo learned that $800 a month she received from her estranged husband in Panama  his Social Security check  had been counted as part of her income, disqualifying her from Medicaid. That was an error, according to several independent experts interviewed by the AP.

In a reassessment of her case, under rules for the Medicaid expansion established in the Affordable Care Act, the money was determined to be a gift from her husband to help pay for his daughter's college education.

Wayne Turner, staff attorney at the National Health Law Program in Washington, D.C., says the Illinois about-face makes sense to him. The new Medicaid rules allow Illinois officials to consider the husband's contribution a gift because Castillo, while married, files income taxes separately from her husband.

"It's a complex policy that state staff are learning," said Kathryn Nelson, an expert on the new rules who trains enrollment counselors through a University of Illinois program. "Some caseworkers are wrapping their brains around this better than others."

Quinn administration officials said Castillo's story illustrates the complexity of the Medicaid review process.

"In cases where a mistake is made, we work very quickly to correct it," said Quinn spokesman Mike Claffey.

Even after being rejected for Medicaid, a person in Castillo's situation possibly can get marketplace coverage by requesting an enrollment exception, Claffey said.

Castillo said she would have kept pushing to get coverage, despite her frustration. But she said she worries that others might have become too discouraged to try again.

"I'm assuming it wasn't just me," she said.

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Dr. Jacinto Convit, who played a key role in fighting two of the world's most feared diseases, has died in Venezuela at age 100, the foundation that bears his name announced Monday.

Convit's work toward a vaccine for leprosy helped develop a therapy against the tropical disease leishmaniasis, which kills some 20,000 to 30,000 people annually across the world.

He work led the Pan American Health Organization to declare him a "public health hero" in 2002. He was honored with Spain's Prince of Asturias Prize for scientific research in 1987.

Convit was continuing to oversee work toward developing a vaccine against cancers at the Institute of Biomedicine that he founded, and he published the last of his more than 300 scientific papers in 2013.

Born in Caracas, he attended the Central University of Venezuela and later worked during the 1940s at Colombia University in New York and Case Western Reserve University in Ohio. He taught at Stanford University and the University of Miami in the 1960s.

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Employees at two Orlando hospitals who came in contact with a Saudi resident infected by the second confirmed U.S. case of a rare virus are being monitored for symptoms and have been told to stay home for two weeks, health officials said Tuesday.

Fifteen hospital workers at Dr. Phillips Hospital and another five employees at Orlando Regional Medical Center were being monitored at home for fever, chills and muscle aches, said Dr. Antonio Crespo, an official with the hospital system.

"We are prepared for situations like this. This is what we do every day."  Dr. Antonio Crespo, an official at Dr. Phillips Hospital

So far, none of them has tested positive for MERS, or Middle East Respiratory Syndrome. MERS is a respiratory illness that begins with flu-like fever and cough but can lead to shortness of breath, pneumonia and death.

The Saudi resident was being treated at Dr. Phillips Hospital, where he showed up at the emergency room May 8. Three days earlier, he had visited Orlando Regional Medical Center with a friend who went to the hospital for a test.

Two workers at Dr. Phillips Hospital, who were not identified, have shown flu-like symptoms recent days. One of them was sent home, and the other has been hospitalized in isolation. Both are awaiting test results that could come later this week. Crespo said MERS has been shown to have a 14-day incubation period.

"We are prepared for situations like this. This is what we do every day," Crespo said.

Crespo said the Saudi resident spent most of his time in Orlando at the home he was staying at, and he didn't visit any of the area's tourist attractions.

The 44-year-old patient still has a low-grade fever and is being treated in isolation at Dr. Phillips Hospital.

Dr. Kevin Sherin, health officer for the Florida Department of Health in Orange County, said that though those who came into contact with the man are being monitored, the risk to local residents remains "negligible."

The White House said Tuesday that President Barack Obama had been briefed on the MERS cases in the U.S.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said Obama's team is watching the situation very closely and that the Centers for Disease Control is coordinating responses along with Florida officials.

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It might have become an international joke when Venezuela briefly ran out of toilet paper supplies a year ago, but a public health crisis is gripping the troubled nation  and its no laughing matter.

The country is running short on supplies of antiretroviral medicines to treat the HIV-AIDS virus, affecting about 50,000 Venezuelans taking the medicine that prevents the HIV virus from turning into full blown AIDS. Non-profit groups in Venezuela claim that thousands of patients are now living without the medication.

"I go to the state hospital once or twice a week to see if my pills have arrived,'' schoolteacher Jose Ramos, 38, told USA Today. They always tell me to come back later."

The lack of antiretroviral medicines has become a highly criticized failure of the socialist government of President Nicolas Maduro, who has touted the free and comprehensive healthcare plans started by former leader Hugo Chavez.

Despite the Venezuelan government championing the health care plan, it has failed at times to be either free or comprehensive, with patients complaining about short supplies of medicines for people with cancer and diabetes and long delays at hospitals due to a lack of anesthesia and other medicines. Patients have also had to pay inflated prices for such hospitals staples like gauze, gloves and drugs for their doctors to use in operations when hospital supplies run dry.

Making up for the shortages in country, HIV/AIDS patients have had to get their supplies from NGOs from abroad  chiefly from the United States. The donations, however, are not enough to meet the demand.

"It's not easy to find donations abroad now, say Feliciano Reyna, who heads the NGO Accion Solidaria. Our situation is really critical."

Besides the medical supply shortages, Venezuelans have had to deal with a lack of such vital items such as flour, cooking oil and toilet paper, and one of the highest murder rates in the world.

These shortages, along with popular discontent with the Maduro government, has led to widespread protests across the country and clashes between demonstrators and security forces that at times have turned violent.

Since Feb. 12, Venezuela has been experiencing a series of anti-government protests, which on occasion have become violent and so far have left more than 40 people dead and hundreds arrested.

The dead include both opponents and supporters of the government, as well as police and bystanders.

Among the hundreds of people in custody are members of the security forces accused in connection with two of the deaths.

Efe contributed to this report.

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A gruesome discovery at Madrid Complutense University, ranked as the top university in Spain, is sending shivers across the country and sparking outrage at the highest level of government.

A so-called chamber of horrors uncovered by El Mundo newspaper in a campus basement served as depository of hundreds of human bodies donated to science over the last three years.

As many as 250 mummified bodies are estimated to be piled inside the 300-square-feet facility, crossed by a central corridor with tubs full of formaldehyde and covered with metal planks. The newspaper said it is unclear how many bodies are inside the tubs because the planks had not been removed.

But it is impossible to know: to open them you would need to go through a mountain of corpses, El Mundo reports.

A Madrid Complutense University statement said it was an isolated occurrence and that an investigation is underway. The bodies had been due for incineration, it said, but spending cuts had caused delays.

It also said a funeral company would begin removing the bodies this week.

El Mundo video images show the discarded body parts, some not covered by sheets, piled on shelves and tables.

The university insists the cadavers have been treated with formaldehyde and pose no health risk.

The paper describes the grotesque scene in detail. Some are wrapped in shrouds without any identification, glued together by ice blocks inside a noisy and rundown fridge  those bodies seem to be relatively cold enough for medical students to use, according to El Mundo. Arms and legs come out here and there, in a scene reminiscent of a mass grave.

Other bodies were piled up in the tubs with formaldehyde, some of them so decomposed they were rotting, resulting in rancid odor. There are about eight to 10 tubs throughout the facility with approximately a dozen bodies in each of them.

A third group of bodies found is the "drying area," which El Mundo describes as the true chamber of horrors. This is the room where the bodies have already been used by the students and are awaiting cremation.

The ground is slippery with fat and fluids released from the bodies, the paper reports. Its vision is a true nightmare.

According to published reports, Spain has seen an increase in the number of people donating their bodies to medical science since the start of the economic crisis, as a way to avoid funeral costs.

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They suffer searing headaches, a burning fever and so much pain in their joints they can barely walk or use their hands. It's like having a terrible flu combined with an abrupt case of arthritis.

Hospitals and clinics throughout the Caribbean are seeing thousands of people with the same symptoms, victims of a virus with a long and unfamiliar name that has been spread rapidly by mosquitoes across the islands after the first locally transmitted case was confirmed in December.

"You feel it in your bones, your fingers and your hands. It's like everything is coming apart," said 34-year-old Sahira Francisco as she and her daughter waited for treatment at a hospital in San Cristobal, a town in the southern Dominican Republic that has seen a surge of the cases in recent days.

The virus is chikungunya, derived from an African word that loosely translates as "contorted with pain." People encountering it in the Caribbean for the first time say the description is fitting. While the virus is rarely fatal it is extremely debilitating.

"It is terrible, I have never in my life gotten such an illness," said Maria Norde, a 66-year-old woman confined to bed at her home on the lush eastern Caribbean island of Dominica. "All my joints are in pain."

Outbreaks of the virus have long made people miserable in Africa and Asia. But it is new to the Caribbean, with the first locally transmitted case documented in December in French St. Martin, likely brought in by an infected air traveler. Health officials are now working feverishly to educate the public about the illness, knock down the mosquito population, and deal with an onslaught of cases.

Authorities are attempting to control mosquitoes throughout the Caribbean, from dense urban neighborhoods to beach resorts. There have been no confirmed cases of local transmission of chikungunya on the U.S. mainland, but experts say the high number of travelers to the region means that could change as early as this summer.

So far, there are no signs the virus is keeping visitors away though some Caribbean officials warn it might if it is not controlled. "We need to come together and deal with this disease," said Dominica Tourism Minister Ian Douglas.

One thing is certain: The virus has found fertile ground in the Caribbean. The Pan American Health Organization reports more than 55,000 suspected and confirmed cases since December throughout the islands. It has also reached French Guiana, the first confirmed transmission on the South American mainland.

The Pan American Health Organization says seven people in the Caribbean with chikungunya have died during the outbreak but they had underlying health issues that likely contributed to their death.

"It's building up like a snowball because of the constant movement of people," said Jacqueline Medina, a specialist at the Instituto Technologico university in the Dominican Republic, where some hospitals report more than 100 new cases per day.

Chikungunya was identified in Africa in 1953 and is found throughout the tropics of the Eastern Hemisphere. It is spread by two species of mosquitoes, aedes aegypti and aedes albopictus. It's also a traveler-borne virus under the right circumstances.

It can spread to a new area if someone has it circulating in their system during a relatively short period of time, roughly 2-3 days before the onset of symptoms to 5 days after, and then arrives to an area with the right kind of mosquitoes.

For years, there have been sporadic cases of travelers diagnosed with chikungunya but without local transmission. In 2007, there was an outbreak in northern Italy, so health authorities figured it was just a matter of time before it spread to the Western Hemisphere, said Dr. Roger Nasci, of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"With the increase in travelers the likelihood that something like this would happen goes up and eventually it did," said Nasci, chief of a CDC branch that tracks insect-borne diseases. "We ended up with somebody at the right time and the right place infecting mosquitoes."

The two species of mosquitoes that spread chikungunya are found in the southern and eastern United States and the first local transmissions could occur this summer given the large number of U.S. travelers to the Caribbean, Nasci said. Already, the Florida Department of Health has reported at least four imported cases from travelers to Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Dominica.

"What we're seeing now is an increase in the number of infected travelers coming from the Caribbean, which is expected because there's a lot of U.S. travel, a lot of vacation travel, a lot of work travel," he said.

Around the Caribbean, local authorities have been spraying fogs of pesticides and urging people to remove standing pools of water where mosquitoes breed.

An estimated 60-90 percent of those infected show symptoms, compared to around 20 percent for dengue, which is common in the region. There is no vaccine and the only cure is treatment for the pain and fluid loss.

One consolation for those suffering from the illness is that unlike dengue, which has several variants, people only seem to get chikungunya once.

"The evidence suggests that once you get it and recover, once your immune system clears the virus you are immune for life," Nasci said.

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First lady Michelle Obama is answering Republicans in Congress who want to roll back healthier school meal standards, holding an event at the White House to highlight the success of the health guidelines.

The Tuesday event is an unusual move for the first lady, who has largely stayed away from policy fights since she lobbied for congressional passage of a child nutrition law in 2010.

Sam Kass, director of Mrs. Obama's Let's Move initiative to combat childhood obesity, said a Republican bill that would allow schools to opt out of the standards is "a real assault" on administration efforts to make foods healthier for kids.

Kass, who is a White House chef, said the event is an attempt to point out the successes of some schools that have implemented the standards, which were set by the Obama administration and Congress over the past several years. School nutrition officials from across the country will speak about how well the standards are working in their schools.

"She wants to have a conversation about what is really happening out in the country," as opposed to Washington, Kass said. "These standards are working."

An agriculture spending bill approved by a House subcommittee last week would allow schools to waive the standards if they have a net loss on school food programs for a six-month period. Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Ala., who wrote the bill, said he was responding to requests from school food directors.

The standards championed by the first lady have been phased in over the past two school years, with more changes coming in 2014. The rules set fat, calorie, sugar and sodium limits on foods in the lunch line and beyond.

While many schools have had success putting the rules in place, others have said they are too restrictive and costly. Schools pushing for changes say limits on sodium and requirements for more whole grains are particularly challenging, while some school officials say kids are throwing away fruits and vegetables that are required.

The Agriculture Department, which administers the rules, has tweaked them along the way to try to help schools that have concerns. The department scrapped limits on the amount of proteins and grains that kids could eat after students complained they were hungry. Last week, USDA announced it would allow some schools to delay serving whole grain pastas just hours after the House subcommittee approved the opt-out language.

School groups have been split. The School Nutrition Association, which represents school nutrition directors and companies that sell food to schools, has lobbied for changes to the standards, saying some are too restrictive.

The national PTA is pushing lawmakers to keep the standards intact.

"At a time when families are working hard to live healthy lives, school meals should be supporting families' efforts, not working against them," PTA President Otha Thornton wrote to members of Congress.

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Almost a third of the world is now fat, and no country has been able to curb obesity rates in the last three decades, according to a new global analysis.

Researchers found more than 2 billion people worldwide are now overweight or obese. The highest rates were in the Middle East and North Africa, where nearly 60 percent of men and 65 percent of women are heavy. The U.S. has about 13 percent of the world's fat population, a greater percentage than any other country. China and India combined have about 15 percent.

"It's pretty grim," said Christopher Murray of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, who led the study. He and colleagues reviewed more than 1,700 studies covering 188 countries from 1980 to 2013. "When we realized that not a single country has had a significant decline in obesity, that tells you how hard a challenge this is."

Murray said there was a strong link between income and obesity; as people get richer, their waistlines also tend to start bulging. He said scientists have noticed accompanying spikes in diabetes and that rates of cancers linked to weight, like pancreatic cancer, are also rising.

The new report was paid for by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and published online Thursday in the journal, Lancet.

Last week, the World Health Organization established a high-level commission tasked with ending childhood obesity.

"Our children are getting fatter," Dr. Margaret Chan, WHO's director-general, said bluntly during a speech at the agency's annual meeting in Geneva. "Parts of the world are quite literally eating themselves to death." Earlier this year, WHO said that no more than 5 percent of your daily calories should come from sugar.

"Modernization has not been good for health," said Syed Shah, an obesity expert at United Arab Emirates University, who found obesity rates have jumped five times in the last 20 years even in a handful of remote Himalayan villages in Pakistan. His research was presented this week at a conference in Bulgaria. "Years ago, people had to walk for hours if they wanted to make a phone call," he said. "Now everyone has a cellphone."

Shah also said the villagers no longer have to rely on their own farms for food.

"There are roads for (companies) to bring in their processed foods and the people don't have to slaughter their own animals for meat and oil," he said. "No one knew about Coke and Pepsi 20 years ago. Now it's everywhere."

In Britain, the independent health watchdog issued new advice Wednesday recommending that heavy people be sent to free weight-loss classes to drop about 3 percent of their weight. It reasoned that losing just a few pounds improves health and is more realistic. About two in three adults in the U.K. are overweight, making it the fattest country in Western Europe.

"This is not something where you can just wake up one morning and say, 'I am going to lose 10 pounds,'" said Mike Kelly, the agency's public health director, in a statement. "It takes resolve and it takes encouragement."

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The GOP-controlled House voted early Friday in favor of blocking the federal government from interfering with states that permit the use of medical marijuana.

The somewhat surprising 219-189 vote came as the House debated a bill funding the Justice Department's budget.

The amendment by conservative GOP Rep. Dana Rohrabacher of California  the first state to legalize medical marijuana  came as almost half the states have legalized marijuana for medical uses, such as improving the appetites of cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.

"Public opinion is shifting," Rohrabacher said, noting a recent Pew Research Center that found 61 percent of Republicans support medical marijuana. The numbers are higher for independents and Democrats.

"Despite this overwhelming shift of public opinion, the federal government continues its hard line of oppression against medical marijuana," he said.

Oregon Democrat Earl Blumenauer told opponents that "this train has already left the station."

Opponents said that marijuana is regulated too loosely by the states and harms the brain.

Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., cited a recent Drug Enforcement Administration study that said that many in the medical marijuana movement are using it as "a means to an end," meaning legalization for recreational use.

"Congress is officially pulling out of the war on medical marijuana patients and providers," said Dan Riffle, director of federal policies for the Marijuana Policy Project.

The measure now heads to the Democratic Senate.

Based on reporting by the Associated Press.

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How old is too old for a colonoscopy? A surprising number of people older than 75 haven't ever been screened for colon cancer  and researchers reported Monday that it's not too late for them to get caught up.

Some may even consider screening into their 80s.

Colon cancer screening is powerful, credited not only with saving lives. The American Cancer Society recently calculated that over the past decade, new cases of colon cancer dropped significantly among middle-aged and older adults, thanks largely to increasing use of colonoscopies that allow removal of precancerous growths before tumors have time to form.

Some things to know about the latest research on colon cancer screening.

WHO SHOULD BE SCREENED?

National guidelines recommend regular checks starting at age 50 and going up to age 75. Nearly two-thirds have been appropriately screened for colon cancer, according to the latest government estimates.

WHAT ABOUT OLDER AMERICANS?

Those guidelines don't recommend routine screening after age 75. After all, a colonoscopy that delivers good news isn't supposed to be repeated for 10 years, because it takes so long for those precancerous polyps to become dangerous. Average life expectancy for an 80-year-old is eight to 10 years.

But the guidelines don't address the 23 percent of Americans over 75 who somehow missed out on screenings when they were a bit younger, before a colon check in your 50s and 60s had become the norm.

Monday's study examines if it's worth starting screening so late, when most people already have at least a few other health problems, such as heart disease, that could affect whether detecting an early-stage colon cancer prolongs life.

THE FINDINGS

Researchers at Erasmus University in the Netherlands and New York's Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center used computer modeling to compare the potential effects of different colon checks on 10 million previously unscreened people ages 76 to 90.

Someone who's very healthy should consider some form of screening up to age 86  but even a person with severe health problems could benefit from a first-time check up to age 80, the team reported in Annals of Internal Medicine.

In the healthiest patients, a colonoscopy was the most effective choice up to age 83, while a stool test was the better choice for 85- and 86-year-olds, the researchers found.

The results are a bit surprising, said Dr. Richard C. Wender, the American Cancer Society's chief of cancer control.

"Our sense was, if we're going to screen beyond age 75, it should only be in very healthy people," said Wender, who wasn't part of the new study. "This model I think will help us give clearer advice to the public."

THE BIGGER MESSAGE

About 137,000 Americans will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer this year, the cancer society estimates. About 50,000 colon cancer patients will die.

Upper age limits aside, public health officials say not enough of the 50-and-older crowd get potentially life-saving checks. The cancer society's new campaign aims for a screening rate of 80 percent, up from two-thirds, by 2018.

"If you're polyp-free at 70, we have so dramatically reduced your likelihood of a death from colon cancer, you probably don't need to ever think about it again," Wender said.

THE CHOICES

With a colonoscopy, doctors use a long flexible tube to examine the colon and remove any polyps. While only needed once a decade, it can be uncomfortable and is the priciest option.

Studies show a home stool test done every year can be equally effective. (A third choice, sigmoidoscopy, uses a tube to examine the lower colon but isn't common in the U.S.)

In the new study, stool testing was a better value for the oldest patients because it targets larger polyps "that have a shorter period of time before they become a real threat," Wender explained.

But individual choice matters: "There's a test out there for everybody," he said.

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PJSC Ukrzaliznytsia plans in 2017 to carry 436.6 million passengers, which almost corresponds to the expected figure for 2016.

The press service of the company told Interfax-Ukraine, according to the expected data for 2016, the railways will carry more than 438 million passengers, 0.1% more than the target. The number of long-haul passengers will be 86.8 million, which is 8.1 million passengers, or 9.8% more in comparison with 2015.

The regional branches of PJSC Ukrzaliznytsia are expected in 2016 to provide 351.9 million passengers with suburban traffic services, which is 5.5 million, or 1.6% less than in 2015.

According to the data expected, services worth UAH 423 million will be provided in 2016 on transportation of citizens entitled to benefits that are to be refunded from local budgets. Payments received will amount to about UAH 30 million. The percentage of compensation will be about 7%. The debt will come to UAH 393 million.
House Republicans are united as ever in their election-year opposition to "Obamacare," but they're increasingly divided over their promise to vote this year on an alternative to it.

The disagreement comes amid a shifting political calculus around President Barack Obama's health care law. Millions are enrolled for medical insurance through the law's exchanges, and an all-out repeal has become less practical and popular. Some Democrats have begun promoting the measure in campaign commercials, and some Republicans are treading more carefully in belittling the program.

At a recent closed-door House Republican caucus meeting, several conservatives pressed GOP leaders over the pledge Majority Leader Eric Cantor made in January that House Republicans would rally around an alternative to "Obamacare" and pass it this year.

"We said at the retreat in January we were going to do this. Well it's June and we still haven't done it," Rep. Phil Roe, R-Tenn., said he told Cantor during the meeting last week. "It's moving at a snail's pace. ... We want to be for something."

Roe said he got little reply beyond polite attention. Cantor's spokesman, Doug Heye, said, "Majority Leader Cantor continues to work towards bold legislative solutions to replace 'Obamacare.'"

Behind the scenes, lawmakers and aides say, powerful committee chairmen with jurisdiction over the issue have been unable to agree over how to proceed. Some have even begun to suggest publicly that this year is not the time to vote on an alternative that likely would die in the Democratic-controlled Senate or face a veto threat from Obama.

That argument looks especially compelling in light of Republican hopes of taking over the Senate in November.

"We know that we have a Senate that's not going to do much," Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., said. He also pointed to the dwindling number of legislative days this year.

"There's not a lot of time but we're exploring a lot of different options," Upton said. "We haven't come to a conclusion yet."

Lawmakers are home in their districts this week listening to what voters are saying about the health care law, which as a political issue is getting increased competition from the post-mortem on the attack in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four Americans, the Taliban prisoner exchange and treatment delays and reports of falsified records at VA medical facilities.

The House already has voted more than 50 times to repeal or excise all or part of the health care law. But it has been two months since the last vote attacking a fundamental provision of the law, and no further votes on the law have been scheduled.

Even ardent opponents now question the need to repeal the law in full. Repeal remains the official GOP position but is widely acknowledged to be impractical now that the initial problems with the enrollment website have subsided, people have signed up and popular provisions such as a ban on denying coverage because of pre-existing conditions have taken hold.

"I don't think anybody's talking about repealing the entire bill," said Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., who is a physician. "There are clearly sections of the bill ... that people are saying, 'OK, these are actually good things.'"

GOP pollster David Winston, who advises House Republicans, said "Obamacare" has remained unpopular, and he doesn't expect that to change before the November midterm elections. He said the challenge, and opportunity, for Republicans is to come up with solutions to new issues voters are experiencing, such as unexpectedly high deductibles.

"This plan has created a whole new raft of problems, and what they want to see is those problems resolved," Winston said. "And so the idea of shifting back to the previous set of problems versus the existing set of problems is not necessarily where they're focused."

The changing dynamic is evident on the campaign trail, where some Democrats have run ads publicizing their support for the law or attacking their opponents for resisting it. Some Republicans, meanwhile, are beginning to focus on fixes they would make to the law, rather than repeal. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has come under criticism from Democrats in his re-election campaign after vowing to repeal "Obamacare" while suggesting that Kentucky's state health insurance marketplace, which was created under the law, could remain.

On Capitol Hill scant consensus has emerged. Roe and other conservatives have rallied around a bill to repeal "Obamacare" and replace it with a series of traditionally Republican initiatives, including expanding access to health savings accounts and allowing insurance to be sold across state lines. Other lawmakers favor their own approaches. Some want a single bill, others a series of them.

Even if GOP leaders did put a bill on the floor, there's no guarantee their fractious caucus would hold together to pass it.

"There's a number of aspects we've been meeting on in the health care team, talking about those elements that will be in there," Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Pa., said. "Do I think we have enough to have a vote on it before October? I don't know if it will be on the schedule."

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Good Samaritans save the day  or, in this case, the eyesight of a New Mexico toddler.

Two-year-old Pamela Soto of Hobbs, New Mexico has been suffering from a degenerative eye disease that caused one of her retinas to completely detach from her eye. Doctors expected her other retina to also deteriorate.

Soto already had surgery on her eyes, but it was ineffective and her only hope was a second $35,000 surgery that her family could not afford.

Unsure what to do, Soto approached local businesses to ask for donations. This led her to her Danny Watson and Jimmy Cooper, who own a construction company.

The girls mother didnt speak English so I had my Spanish-speaking employees translate what she was saying, Watson, 59, told Yahoo Shine. After thinking it over, Jimmy and I decided that it was a really neat opportunity to help someone out. It would have been tragic for this girl to lose her sight at such a young age.

He told KOB News that they felt it was something God needs us to do.

Sotos family had only raised $5,000 when they approached the two businessmen. The men initially wanted to remain anonymous until they were certain the surgery worked.

Last month, the toddler flew to Michigan where she underwent surgery and is now recuperating in New Mexico. She has full vision in both her eyes.

Words cant even express the way they feel, Jessica Sanchez, a family friend, told KOB news.

Last week, the two businessmen-turned guardian angels had the chance to meet Soto in person when they visited her at her parent's home.

As a thank you, she gave us photos of her doctors and cups from the state of Michigan, Watson said. Shes also coming to the office on Friday to meet the state. We plan on remaining friends for a long time.

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In one of the most ambitious attempts yet to thwart Alzheimer's disease, a major study got underway Monday to see if an experimental drug can protect healthy seniors whose brains harbor silent signs that they're at risk.

Scientists plan to eventually scan the brains of thousands of older volunteers in the U.S., Canada and Australia to find those with a sticky build-up believed to play a key role in development of Alzheimer's  the first time so many people without memory problems get the chance to learn the potentially troubling news.

Having lots of that gunky protein called beta-amyloid doesn't guarantee someone will get sick. But the big question: Could intervening so early make a difference for those who do?

"We have to get them at the stage when we can save their brains," said Dr. Reisa Sperling of Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, who is leading the huge effort to find out.

Researchers are just beginning to recruit volunteers, and on Monday, a Rhode Island man was hooked up for an IV infusion at Butler Hospital in Providence, the first treated.

Peter Bristol, 70, of Wakefield, Rhode Island, figured he was at risk because his mother died of Alzheimer's and his brother has it.

"I felt I needed to be proactive in seeking whatever therapies might be available for myself in the coming years," said Bristol, who said he was prepared when a PET scan of his brain showed he harbored enough amyloid to qualify for the research.

"Just because I have it doesn't mean I'm going to get Alzheimer's," he stressed. But Bristol and his wife are "going into the situation with our eyes wide open."

He won't know until the end of the so-called A4 Study  it stands for Anti-Amyloid Treatment in Asymptomatic Alzheimer's  whether he received monthly infusions of the experimental medicine, Eli Lilly & Co.'s solanezumab, or a dummy drug.

Solanezumab is designed to help catch amyloid before it builds into the brain plaques that are a hallmark of Alzheimer's. It failed in earlier studies to treat full-blown Alzheimer's  but it did appear to help slow mental decline in patients with mild disease, raising interest in testing it even earlier.

Scientists now think Alzheimer's begins ravaging the brain at least a decade before memory problems appear, much like heart disease is triggered by quiet cholesterol build-up. Many believe the best chance of preventing or at least slowing the disease requires intervening, somehow, when people still appear healthy.

The $140 million study, funded by the National Institutes of Health, Lilly and others, will track if participants' memory and amyloid levels change over three years.

Whether this particular drug works or not, the Alzheimer's study is being watched closely as a chance to learn more about how amyloid works and how people handle the uncertainty of knowing it's there.

"Amyloid we know is a huge risk factor, but someone can have a head full of amyloid and not decline" mentally, Sperling said. "We need to understand more about why some brains are resilient and some are not."

Before any brain scans, interested 65- to 85-year-olds will undergo cognitive tests to make sure their memory is normal. Volunteers also must be willing to learn their amyloid levels, and researchers can turn away those whose psychological assessments suggest they may not cope well with the news. Sperling expects to screen more than 5,000 healthy seniors to find the needed 1,000 participants, who will be monitored for anxiety or distress.

"It is breaking new ground," said Dr. Laurie Ryan of the NIH's National Institute on Aging. "We really do have to understand how that affects people."

More than 35 million people worldwide have Alzheimer's or similar dementia, including about 5 million in the U.S., numbers expected to rise rapidly as the baby boomers age.

Alzheimer's affects 1 in 9 people over age 65, and about a third of those 85 and older, according to the Alzheimer's Association.

Today's medications only temporarily ease some symptoms, and scientists don't even know exactly how the disease forms. A leading theory is that amyloid plaques kick off the disease but tangles of a second protein, named tau, speed up the brain destruction.

As scientists shift their attention to the still healthy, a few studies are underway to try blocking Alzheimer's in people genetically at risk to get a form of the disease that runs in their families.

The A4 study widens the focus beyond a genetic link.

Like Bristol, the first participant, some people do want to know if they're at risk, said Dr. Jason Karlawish, a bioethicist at the University of Pennsylvania who helped design the study's psychological precautions. After all, many already get tested for Alzheimer's-related genes.

He calls the research "an opportunity to study the future of the way we're going to think about, talk about and live with the risks of Alzheimer's disease."

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After two overwhelming votes in two days, members of Congress say they are confident they can agree on a bill to improve veterans' health care and send it to the president's desk by the end of the month.

The Senate easily approved a bill Wednesday to help shorten wait times for thousands of military veterans seeking medical care, a day after the House unanimously adopted a similar measure.

The Senate bill would authorize about $35 billion over three years to pay for outside care for veterans, as well as hire hundreds of doctors and nurses and lease 26 new health facilities in 17 states and Puerto Rico. The House would spend about $620 million over the same period.

Just three lawmakers  all Republican senators  voted against the veterans measures, compared with 519 lawmakers who voted in favor.

Opponents said the Senate bill was a "blank check" to spend billions of dollars with little or no way to rein it in.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, said the overwhelming Senate vote spoke for itself. The 93-3 tally came after the Senate voted 75-19 to waive normal budget rules and declare the bill an emergency.

"I think we've shown that we can overcome partisanship and move quickly on a very important issue," Sanders said, adding that he hopes to bring a unified House-Senate bill to a vote as soon as next week.

Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., chairman of House Committee Veterans' Affairs Committee, also was optimistic. Many of the provisions included in the Senate bill "are based on ideas that have already cleared the House, so I'm hopeful that both chambers of Congress can soon agree on a final package to send to the president's desk," Miller said.

The White House said Wednesday that President Barack Obama supports the Senate bill.

"Our No. 1 priority is getting veterans the care they've earned," the White House said in a statement. "To do that, we need to make sure that the problems identified at VA medical facilities get fixed."

The legislative effort comes as the FBI revealed it has opened a criminal investigation into the VA, which has been reeling from allegations of falsified records and treatment delays for veterans.

FBI Director James Comey said Wednesday that the investigation was being led by the FBI's field office in Phoenix, which he described as the "primary locus of the original allegations" being investigated by the VA's Office of Inspector General.

"We're working with the VA IG to follow it wherever the facts take us," Comey said.

The inspector general said in a report last month that 1,700 veterans seeking treatment at the Phoenix VA hospital were at risk of being "lost or forgotten." The VA has confirmed that at least 35 veterans died while awaiting treatment in Phoenix, although officials say they do not know whether the deaths were related to long waiting times for appointments.

The Veterans Affairs Department released an audit this week showing that more than 57,000 veterans have had to wait at least three months for initial appointments. An additional 64,000 veterans who asked for appointments over the past decade never got them.

The VA, which serves almost 9 million veterans, has faced mounting evidence that workers falsified reports on wait times for medical appointments in an effort to mask frequent, long delays.

VA Secretary Eric Shinseki resigned May 30, but the situation remains a continuing embarrassment for Obama and a potential political liability for congressional Democrats seeking re-election in November.

While the legislation will not solve all the VA's problems, it should "spark long-overdue change  from the top down  in order to ensure our veterans are getting the care and support they expect and deserve," said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.

Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., said the Senate bill created "an unlimited entitlement program" for veterans and voted against it.

Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., supported the bill but said "money is not the problem" at the VA. "It's management and accountability and honesty in treating the veterans" that are needed to improve care for veterans, Coburn said.

But Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., one of the bill's co-authors, said it was needed to respond to an ongoing national crisis. "Make no mistake: This is an emergency," McCain said.

In addition to Sessions, Republican Sens. Bob Corker of Tennessee and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin voted no.

Four senators did not vote: Republicans Thad Cochran of Mississippi and Jerry Moran of Kansas and Democrats Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Jeff Merkley of Oregon.

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Quinoa, the current darling of the health food scene, is a little granule grown in the high plains of the Andes. It so dense with protein and essential amino acids it is called a super food. It has become such a rock star the United Nations even dedicated a whole year  2013  to it.

Besides being packed with nutrients, it carries an equally weighty and complicated tug of war between interests outside of quinoa producing regions and those of indigenous farmers.

At issue is quinoas germplasm, the genetic material in its seeds. Bolivia, the main exporter of the grain, has seed backup for the countrys 120 different species and 1,800 varieties. However, the country has a treaty that limits what it will share with the world. U.S. researchers who are trying to grow the grain elsewhere argue the seeds need to be made available so that they can breed plants that can survive in other areas to bring better nutrients to poor countries.

But Bolivian farmers see things a differently. Spanish conquistadores banned quinoa, which was used for spiritual practices. It was derogatorily considered an indigenous food. Now, centuries later, it has brought prosperity and power to a historically marginalized region.

I have no doubt about researchers goodwill, said Pablo Laguna, a sociologist and anthropologist who has been studying social and financial impact of quinoa on Bolivian producers. What draws his concern is the potential for companies take over and eventually outproduce Andean farmers. The problem is, What mechanism do we have to protect the peasants intellectual property?

Quinoa is grown in the altiplano, the high plains region of the Andes in Bolivia and Peru, and also in parts of Ecuador, Colombia and Argentina. The U.S. and Canada are among some of the countries that produce it also, but in smaller quantities, and there are efforts to grow it elsewhere. But, some researchers say, without having a large sampling of seeds to select for certain traits, it will be hard to cultivate crops to survive pests or climate in other regions.

Researchers from Brigham Young University are working with Bolivian farmers, said chair of the plant and wildlife department Rick Jellen. Quinoa, he said, wasnt widely consumed outside of the altiplano region in Bolivia.

Farmers were seeking a way to increase production and make it more attractive to the rest of their country. But when U.S. importers started inquiring about the seed, farmers quickly shifted their sights to a global market.

One of the ways to increase production and make the food palatable was to find an efficient mechanism to get rid of the bitter coating on the seeds. After many years of trying and many grants to help them buy equipment, they had success. Since then, demand has skyrocketed. In 2007, the U.S. imported 7.3 million pounds of quinoa. In 2013, nearly 70 million, most of that coming from Peru and Bolivia.

As important as quinoa is to Bolivia and its people, many say quinoa can put a dent in global hunger. Professors, such as Jellen, are working with Morocco and other countries to grow it. But this will prove challenging, some argue, if a diverse array of seeds from Bolivia and Peru arent shared.

I believe God gave [humanity] this as a gift  along with wheat, corn, rice  not something for one group to benefit from, said Jellen.

Besides quinoa, other crops native to Bolivia are grown in parts of the high plains. But its quinoa that has the spotlight and is giving indigenous farmers increasing political and economic clout. Bolivias president Evo Morales, who reported to have once been a quinoa farmer, declared quinoa a strategic priority two years ago and has devoted millions to expand the crop and introduce harvesting machinery.

As great as the demand has become, it could be much greater. A wider use of quinoa in cereals and breads isnt likely to happen until companies can start tapping a more reliable supply, said Jellen.

The problem is, its really hard to grow quinoa outside of the Andean high plains, said Stephen Gorad, who was the first to import quinoa to the United States. When he first started, he got some seeds from Chile and tried to grow quinoa in Colorado. It wasnt successful and now, after working with quinoa for decades, hes learned how fickle the plant is. Hes also learned that the Bolivian varieties thrive in an extreme climate with limited oxygen but there arent many places that can reproduce that.

Regardless, there are large fields of quinoa growing in France, Argentina and elsewhere. Gorad said the train to grow quinoa on a mass scale that may be useful to larger food companies is getting ready to leave the station  whether Bolivia is holding the seed or not.

There is some concern that the Andean altiplano region cant sustain quinoa demand without taking a toll on the environment and forgoing other crops. But Blake Waltrip, CEO from Ancient Harvest, a brand that imports quinoa, thinks the country can go further than it currently has.

There are 120,000 hectares of land being used for quinoa farming in Bolivia, but 4 million hectares are available and appropriate for quinoa farming. There's room to plant much more quinoa than is currently being cultivated, he said. Because there is so much land, there is better opportunity to farm in a sustainable way by allowing the land adequate time to rest.

Ultimately, Bolivian farmers are acutely aware of what can happen if they lose control of their crop. When the Spanish invaded South America in the 1500s, they brought the potato plant from indigenous populations and grew it worldwide. Meanwhile, altiplano natives grew ostracized and now the country doesnt grow enough potatoes to feed itself. Bolivia imports half their potatoes.

With the quinoa boom has come a certain amount of prosperity. Farmers have been able to upgrade the homes they keep that are away from the plains. They are able to provide education for their children and they have seen an increase in the number of teachers in their communities. The key to keeping this growing wealth could be the seeds.

Quinoa is not only providing money to farmers, you have an industry, you have exporters, you have industrial machine factories to supply industrial cleaning process, said Laguna. Of course you want to keep all the advantages.
Scientists have made big progress on a "bionic pancreas" to free some people with diabetes from the daily ordeal of managing their disease. A wearable, experimental device passed a real-world test, constantly monitoring blood sugar and automatically giving insulin or a sugar-boosting drug as needed, doctors said Sunday.

The device improved blood-sugar control more than standard monitors and insulin pumps did when tested for five days on 20 adults and 32 teens. Unlike other artificial pancreases in development that just correct high blood sugar, this one also can fix too-low sugar, mimicking what a natural pancreas does.

The device was developed at Massachusetts General Hospital and Boston University. Results were featured Sunday at an American Diabetes Association conference in San Francisco and were published online by the New England Journal of Medicine.

"I'm very excited about it," said Dr. Betul Hatipoglu, an endocrinologist at Cleveland Clinic who had no role in the work. Many patients have been frustrated waiting for a cure, so "this is really a great new horizon for them," she said.

The bionic pancreas is for Type 1 diabetes, the kind often found during childhood. About 5 percent of the 26 million Americans with diabetes have this type and cannot make insulin to turn food into energy. Sugar builds up in the blood, raising the risk for heart disease and many other problems.

These people must check their blood and inject insulin several times a day or get it through a pocket-sized pump with a tube that goes under the skin.

"This would lift that burden off of their shoulders," Dr. Steven Russell, a diabetes specialist at Massachusetts General, said of the bionic pancreas he helped design.

It has three parts: two cellphone-sized pumps for insulin and sugar-raising glucagon, and an iPhone wired to a continuous glucose monitor. Three small needles go under the skin, usually in the belly, to connect patients to the components, which can be kept in a fanny pack or a pocket.

Patients still have to prick their fingers to test blood sugar twice a day and make sure the monitor is accurate, but the system takes care of giving insulin or glucagon as needed.

Kristina Herndon said her 13-year-old son, Christopher, "loved it" when he tried it for the study, and "felt pretty badly giving it back" when it ended. Christopher has to check his blood sugar eight to 10 times a day and his family has to watch him closely in case it dips too low while he sleeps, which can cause seizures or even death.

"It's a disease that I think people think is not a big deal but it's tough. It's hard on a family," said Herndon, who lives in Newburyport, Massachusetts.

Next steps: A study starts Monday in 40 adults who will use the device for 11 days. By fall, researchers hope to have a next-generation version combining all three components in one device to be tested in studies next year aimed at winning federal Food and Drug Administration approval.

"My goal is to have this device done by the time my kid, who has Type 1 diabetes, goes to college" in about three years, said Ed Damiano, a biomedical engineer at Boston University.

Two San Diego-based companies  DexCom and Tandem Diabetes Care Inc.  made components of the version tested in the current study. Boston University and Massachusetts General own or have patents pending on the system, and several researchers may someday get royalties.

Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson and several other companies also are working on artificial pancreas devices.

The Boston group's work is exciting and the results are compelling, but there still are practical challenges to bringing a device to market, said Aaron Kowalski, who oversees grants by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation on artificial pancreas development.

"Most people with diabetes want less devices in their lives, not more," so putting the components into a single automated system is key, he said.

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Food companies and restaurants could soon face government pressure to make their foods less salty  a long-awaited federal effort to try to prevent thousands of deaths each year from heart disease and stroke.

We believe we can make a big impact working with the industry to bring sodium levels down, because the current level of consumption really is higher than it should be for health  Margaret Hamburg

The Food and Drug Administration is preparing to issue voluntary guidelines asking the food industry to lower sodium levels, FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg told The Associated Press. Hamburg said in a recent interview that the sodium is "of huge interest and concern" and she hopes the guidelines will be issued "relatively soon."

"We believe we can make a big impact working with the industry to bring sodium levels down, because the current level of consumption really is higher than it should be for health," Hamburg said.

The food industry has already made some reductions, and has prepared for government action since a 2010 Institute of Medicine report said companies had not made enough progress on making foods less salty. The IOM advised the government to establish maximum sodium levels for different foods, though the FDA said then  and maintains now  that it favors a voluntary route.

Americans eat about 1 teaspoons of salt daily, about a third more than the government recommends for good health and enough to increase the risk of high blood pressure, strokes and other problems. Most of that sodium is hidden inside common processed foods and restaurant meals.

In addition to flavor, companies use sodium to increase shelf life, prevent the growth of bacteria, or improve texture and appearance. That makes it more difficult to remove from some products, Hamburg noted.

Once the guidelines are issued, Americans won't notice an immediate taste difference in higher-sodium foods like pizza, pasta, bread and soups. The idea would be to encourage gradual change so consumers' taste buds can adjust, and to give the companies time to develop lower-sodium foods.

"I think one of the things we are very mindful of is that we need to have a realistic timeline," Hamburg said.

Health groups would prefer mandatory standards, but say voluntary guidelines are a good first step.

Still, Michael Jacobson of the Center for Science in the Public Interest says he is concerned companies may hesitate, worried that their competitors won't lower sodium in their products.

If that happens, "then FDA should start a process of mandatory limits," Jacobson says.

That's what companies are worried about. Though the limits would be voluntary, the FDA is at heart a regulatory agency, and the guidelines would be interpreted as a stern warning.

Brian Kennedy of the Grocery Manufacturers Association, which represents the country's biggest food companies, says the group is concerned about the FDA setting targets and any guidelines should be based on a "rigorous assessment of all available scientific evidence."

The food industry has pointed to a separate 2013 IOM report that said there is no good evidence that eating sodium at very low levels  below the 2,300 milligrams a day that the government recommends  offers benefits. The government recommends that those older than 50, African-Americans and people with high blood pressure, diabetes or chronic kidney disease eat 1,500 milligrams a day. The American Heart Association recommends that everyone eat no more than 1,500 milligrams a day.

Those pushing for sodium limits say it's pointless to debate how low the recommendations should go  Americans are still eating around 3,400 milligrams a day.

Many food companies and retailers already have pushed to reduce salt. Wal-Mart pledged to reduce sodium in many items by 25 percent by next year, and food giant ConAgra Foods says it made a 20 percent reduction. Subway restaurants said it has made a 30 percent reduction restaurant-wide.

The companies say that in some cases, just removing added salt or switching ingredients does the trick. Potassium chloride can also substitute for common salt (sodium chloride), though too much can cause a metallic taste.

Levels can vary widely. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, sodium in a slice of white bread ranges from 80 milligrams to 230 milligrams. Three ounces of turkey deli meat can have 450 milligrams to 1,050 milligrams.

Those ranges give health advocates hope.

"Those differences say to me that the companies that make the highest-sodium products could certainly reduce levels to the same as the companies that make the lower-sodium products," Jacobson says.

Still, the guidelines could be a hard sell. In recent years, congressional Republicans have fought the Obama administration over efforts to require calorie labels on menus and make school lunches healthier. When the administration attempted to create voluntary guidelines for advertising junk food for children, the industry balked and Republicans in Congress fought the idea, prompting the administration to put them aside.

Other members of Congress are pushing the agency to act.

"As the clock ticks, America's blood pressure, along with health costs due to chronic disease, continues to rise," says Sen. Tom Harkin, chairman of the Senate committee that oversees the FDA.

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California is being hit hard with a whooping cough epidemic, according to the states public health department, with 800 cases reported in the past two weeks alone.

The agency says that there were 3,458 whooping cough cases reported between Jan. 1 and June 10, well ahead of the number of cases reported for all of 2013.

This is a problem of epidemic proportions, the department said. And the number of actual000

cases may be even higher, because past studies have shown that for every case of whooping cough that is reported, there are 10 more that are not officially counted.

Whooping cough, known to doctors as pertussis, is a highly contagious respiratory infection that is caused by a bacterium known as Bordetella pertussis.

The popular name for the disease comes from the whooping sound an infected person makes when gasping for breath after a coughing fit.

The bacteria spread through coughing and sneezing. One person can infect up to 15 people nearby, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Typically symptoms appear an average of seven to 10 days after exposure.

Infants and young children are more vulnerable to the disease than other age groups. It can be particularly dangerous for babies. About half of the infants who get whooping cough end up in a hospital. Some cases are fatal.

Thats why the public health department in California is strongly urging people to make sure their vaccinations are up to date, especially if theyre pregnant.

State health officials are working closely with schools and local health departments to spread the word.

Unlike some other vaccine-preventable diseases like measles, neither vaccination nor illness from pertussis offers lifetime immunity, Dr. Ron Chapman, director of the California Department of Public Health, said in a statement. However, vaccination is still the best defense against the potentially fatal diseases.

All adults should get a Tdap booster, unless you had one as a teenager (after age 11).

Nationally, more than 90% of children get the first three doses of the vaccine, but far fewer get the booster.

California has historically had higher vaccination rates than other states, but a recent study found large clusters of parents who did not vaccinate their children close to areas with a large number of whooping cough cases during the 2010 California outbreak.

The current outbreak is too new for scientists to know if there is a similar pattern.

Whooping cough cases have spread rapidly in the United States this year, with a 24% increase nationally in the number of cases, compared to January through April of last year, according to the CDC.

Other states are reporting similar problems. The Mobile County Health Department in Alabama, for example, recently noted an alarming rise of cases locally, with 18 cases in May and June. Thats more than all the reported cases in Mobile for 2013, health officials say.

If you do catch whooping cough, you will typically be treated with antibiotics. Doctors often also treat all the family members in an infected persons house to prevent transmission.

For more stories, visit fox13now.com.

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A bill that would have made California the first state in the nation to require warning labels on sodas and other sugary drinks was effectively killed Tuesday.

Sen. Bill Monning's SB1000 failed on a 7-8 vote as his fellow Democratic lawmakers doubted whether a label would change consumer behavior. It needed 10 votes to pass.

Certain sodas, energy drinks and fruit drinks would have included a label reading, "STATE OF CALIFORNIA SAFETY WARNING: Drinking beverages with added sugar(s) contributes to obesity, diabetes, and tooth decay."

It was developed by public health advocates using cigarette and alcohol warnings as a model. Representatives of the beverage industry argued that the bill was unfair by not applying to other foods and drinks, including lattes and chocolate milk.

Monning, of Carmel, says warning labels would be the most efficacious tool for educating people about the dangers of sugary drinks.

"Changing behavior is the hardest challenge in the world of medicine," Monning told lawmakers before the vote. "But you can't start to even make a commitment to make behavior change if you don't have the information."

His bill had support from the California Medical Association, the California Center for Public Health Advocacy and groups devoted to improving the health of minorities. A similar bill introduced in Vermont stalled this year.

Democratic Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez noted that cigarette warning labels were accompanied by taxes and prohibitions on smoking in public places before tobacco use plunged.

"It wasn't necessarily the labels that changed peoples' habits, but it was the other requirements," said Gomez, who represents Los Angeles.

CalBev, the California arm of the American Beverage Association, says it posts calorie counts on the front of many beverage containers as part of a voluntary campaign that started in 2010.

Industry groups also say warning labels may conflict with an upcoming overhaul of the nutritional information labels regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Sugary drinks have been a target of public health advocates who see them as one of the biggest drivers of preventable diseases. Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg pushed a ban on large servings of soft drinks in 2012. A court later struck down the ban after it prompted lawsuits and an aggressive campaign from businesses.

Leaders in San Francisco and Berkeley are considering sending measures imposing a sugary drink tax to voters in November after nearby Richmond rejected such a tax in 2012.

A children's health group recently launched a "Sugar Bites" ad campaign in the east San Francisco Bay Area and state capital depicting sugary drinks as snarling monsters with sharp teeth held by anxious children.

Monning, who previously called for a soda tax, said he would keep pushing for warning labels.

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Two cases of the mosquito-borne virus chikungunya have been reported in Leon County, FL, both in patients that had recently traveled to Haiti.

Leon County Health Officer Claudia Blackburn told USA Today, however, that the public is not in danger because the cases didn't spread locally.

"People dont need to worry about getting this disease here in Leon County, she told the paper.

She added that people need to remember to cover up, use an insect repellent, cover their windows, make sure their screens are intact and drain standing water around their homes.

Chikungunya virus is spread by two mosquito species: Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, both found in Florida.

According to the Duval County Health Department, the number of cases has nearly doubled in the last two weeks in Florida, but the disease has not yet been detected in local mosquito populations.

As of June 8th, the number of cases stood at 18. But as of June 14th, the number of reported cases came in at 42.

Deriving its name from an African word that loosely translates as "contorted with pain," chikungunya is rarely fatal, but those who have contracted the virus call it a miserable experience.

Its symptoms have been described as a combination of a terrible flu and a sudden case of arthritis, with searing headaches, a high fever and intense muscle and joint pain.

Cuban health authorities said on Wednesday they detected six cases of chikungunya fever, caused by a debilitating, mosquito-borne virus that is suspected of afflicting tens of thousands across the Caribbean since its arrival in the region last year.

In a statement published by Communist Party newspaper Granma and other official media, the Health Ministry said the cases were found in people who had recently traveled to Haiti and the Dominican Republic, where there have been thousands of locally transmitted cases of the virus.

Their condition was "evolving favorably."

Some Cubans make regular trips to those and other countries to import clothing and other goods for resale. Havana has also sent large contingents of medical workers to treat the poor in Haiti and elsewhere, though the Ministry said they undergo quarantine before returning.

Chikungunya, which has long been present in Africa and Asia, was first detected in the Caribbean in December.

Deriving its name from an African word that loosely translates as "contorted with pain," chikungunya is rarely fatal, but those who have contracted the virus call it a miserable experience.

Its symptoms have been described as a combination of a terrible flu and a sudden case of arthritis, with searing headaches, a high fever and intense muscle and joint pain.

Cuba is in the early part of its summer monsoon season, when mosquito-borne diseases typically spike.

As in other years, in recent weeks Cuban authorities have ramped up a campaign to send brigades of workers door-to-door fumigating houses, offices and government buildings nationwide.

"The Health System ratifies the need to intensify the vector-control fight that is being carried out in the country, for which it is essential that in every home and workplace the necessary actions are guaranteed to eliminate possible (mosquito) breeding grounds," the Ministry said in its statement.

It advised islanders traveling to other parts of the Caribbean to see a doctor upon their return and to seek immediate medical care if they experience symptoms typical of the virus.

According to a report by the Pan American Health Organization, there have been about 166,000 suspected and 4,600 confirmed cases of Chikungunya in the Caribbean as of mid-June.

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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Bank Khreschatyk (Kyiv), being under liquidation, on December 19 under the decision of the Individuals' Deposit Guarantee Fund repaid a UAH 190.457 debt on a refinancing loan received from the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), according to the website of the fund.

According to the report, the creditor's claims were satisfied at the expense of funds received from the repayment of the Finance Ministry's government domestic loan bonds in foreign currency, property rights on which were pledged to the NBU for a refinancing loan on December 8, 2015.

As reported, the Individuals' Deposit Guarantee Fund on the basis of NBU decision No. 46-RSh dated June 2, 2016 on revoking the banking license and liquidating insolvent Bank Khreschatyk started the procedure of liquidation of the financial institution.

The procedure of liquidation was started on June 6 and will last until June 5, 2018.

The National Bank and Kyiv authorities said the main reason for the bank's insolvency was the reluctance of other shareholders to invest in its recapitalization, which was estimated at UAH 1.25 billion until June 2017, including UAH 600 million until May 1 this year.
Elaine Wyllie, headteacher of St. Ninians Primary School, was shocked to see that her students were unfit. A class of 11-year-olds struggled mightily to jog, or even walk, a mile. Not about to stand by and let the pride of Stirling, Scotland, succumb to crisps, video games and the ravages of obesity, the next day Wyllies class was outside circling the school grounds for 15 minutes.

They were out there the next day, and the day after that.

That was February 2012, the birth of The Daily Mile. The idea was to improve fitness and social and emotional health, and to combat obesity. But equally important to Wylliea brisk, no-nonsense womanwas that the program be utterly simple. Fifteen minutes, outside, every day. No gym clothes, no fancy facility, no competition, no rigid schedule, no additional staff, no cost.

Want to run your first marathon? Get a training plan from Runners World.

No-brainer is the response Wyllie said she gets most often about her program.

Like much of the developed world, childhood obesity in the U.K. is considered a public health crisis. Results from a 2014 health survey for England showed that 31.2 percent of children ages 2 to 15 were either overweight or obese, and a 2015 study of 10,000 primary school children in the U.K. found that two-thirds lacked basic fitness.

Knowing that cost and taking time out of instructional schedules are major barriers for schools, Wyllie emphasized The Daily Mile could be implemented by any school for free, at any time that suited the teacher. Other tenets are that TDM be done outdoors, that it be non-competitive, social, and all-inclusive. Wyllie suggested students help in designing, mapping, and measuring the course.

Podcast: Get More Inspiring Stories from The Runners World Show

By September 2012, all the children at St. Ninians, ages 3 through 11, were running or walking for 15 minutes every day, in addition to their PE class. Anecdotal results were remarkable: Most kids could run the whole time, no Primary One (equivalent to first grade) students were deemed overweight by the school nurse, and students concentration, behavior and mood improved. Maybe most important? They enjoyed it.

While in the early stages, scientific studies show Daily Milers have improved sleeping and eating patterns, improved physical fitness and scores in math and working memory, and reported being happier in school. (In the video below, students from Applegrove Primary School in Forres, Scotland, attest to that.)

The program also earned praise from Sebastian Coe, Englands most famous miler and president of the IAAF. Children must be given every chance to live healthily, Coe told The Sun. This mile a day will make a difference.

Wyllie, who was awarded Pride of Britains 2015 Teacher of the Year, has since retired from teaching to introduce her idea to schools and adult groups worldwide. Because theres nothing to buy, its spread largely by word of mouth, with schools adapting the idea to fit their circumstances.

The Daily Mile is now a fixture in an estimated 1,750 schools in the U.K., more than 540 schools in Belgium, and 100 in the Netherlands, with programs popping up in Canada, Ireland, Egypt, Australia, France, Spain, Switzerland, and Germany. And yes, in one place in the U.S.Montgomery County, North Carolina.

The program may look different here in the U.S. than it does in Europe, said Roxanne Elliott, policy director for FirstHealth of the Carolinas, who heard about The Daily Mile at a health conference. This version is being implemented by FirstHealth community services in two rural school districts, funded by a $450,000, three-year grant from the Duke Endowment. The funding, Elliott explained, goes toward teacher training, a toolkit FirstHealth developed, and infrastructurepermanent quarter-mile walking trails on school grounds that will be open to the community.

This is rural Americathere are no sidewalks and the school grounds can get muddy, Elliott said. The greenway material is quite costly. So far, weve built one path for $20,000.

You can absolutely do this program without building a $20,000 trail, she continued, and some of our schools will be participating without any additional infrastructure. We wanted to do something for the schools, as our partners, for allowing us to implement the program. Theyre taking 15 minutes out of their instructional time, which is a lot to ask, so we want to make sure they have a safe place to walk or run.

Elliott said the students at three elementary schools in Montgomery County will be running 15 minutes per day by the end of December, with other schools coming on board in 2017. Heart disease and obesity are troublingly high in the area, and since money has been invested, FirstHealth is expecting a return in the form of lower student BMIs. The schools may track test scores to see if theyre affected by the daily activity.

Significantly higher budget and more complex than its Scottish model, Elliott is nonetheless proud to have been the first to plant The Daily Mile on U.S. soil. This is a fantastic, feel-good program, she said. Its been super exciting to see the way the kids interact with each other, and how its already instilling this habit of physical activity.

This article originally appeared on RunnersWorld.com.
Six months out from Congressional elections, Republicans appear ready to roll over Democrats. Recent polls indicate this could be the worst rout in recent midterm election history. The combination of our anemic economic recovery, the presidents personal disapproval ratings, his feeble foreign policy and still deeply unpopular Obamacare have set the stage for a GOP sweep.

He deserves criticism not support, but his strength is that he is less obnoxious than the Republicans. At least President Obama never called the undocumented wetbacks.  Geraldo Rivera

Except, maybe not, since most swing districts in the House are already held by Republicans. The GOP swept that middle ground in the 2010 triumph that gave them control of Congress, and John Boehner the Speakership. On the other hand, there are 44 currently Republican House districts in which at least 12 percent or more of voters are Hispanic and/or Asian American. Those groups broke for Obama big-time in 2012, almost three out of every four voters pulling the lever for the president. When added to the near unanimous African-American vote, the trio makes a potent voting bloc that even a GOP tsunami will find hard to swamp.

Im not saying the Democrats will fool everybody and take control of the House of Representatives. But the Democrats could avoid shrinkage in the House and be tougher to dislodge from control of the Senate than many believe.

Assuming black turnout is more or less constant, the big question is how frustrated those potential Asian/Latino voters will be in November over the Republicans refusal to pass comprehensive immigration reform. Remember, Asians recently replaced Latinos as the most numerous new immigrants. Their citizen family members are worried their immigrant friends and relatives will be deported. And much depends on whether that fear and anger will be hot enough to overcome traditionally low voter turnout. I believe immigration is the card the president will play to encourage Asians and Latino voters to shake off midterm apathy.

First and foremost, his Democrats will continually remind the Asian/Latino blocs that Republicans hate them. Vice President Joe Biden hit that theme hard at a Cinco de Mayo celebration Monday when he pressed Speaker Boehner to bring the Senates comprehensive immigration reform to the House floor for a vote.

It's time for him to stand up, stand up and not let the minority, I think its a minority, of the Republican Party in the House keep us from moving in a way that will change the circumstances for millions and millions of lives, Biden said.

The irony of course is that since taking office the president has been Deporter-in-Chief. He has overseen the expulsion of two million undocumented immigrants, many who have citizen children born here in the United States. He deserves criticism not support, but his strength is that he is less obnoxious than the Republicans. At least President Obama never called the undocumented wetbacks with calves the size of cantaloupes from carrying loads of dope across the Rio Grande.

Here is how the president is going to stop the GOP expected midterm rout in its tracks.

His team will provoke the GOP, constantly reminding Asian/Latinos that House Republicans are refusing to allow an immigration vote. Cue the tears from families wrenched apart. Then, when summer comes and still no legislation has been offered by House Republicans, President Obama will use the same powerful card he used to prod Latino/Asians to vote in the run-up to the November 2012 elections. He will again unleash his Executive Authority.

Saying something like, those awful Republicans have sold you out again, he will decree that all parents of the DREAMer kids previously saved from deportation will henceforth also be immune from deportation. And/or that all undocumented immigrants who arrived in this country prior to, say, January 1, 2014 are immune from deportation. And/or all those undocumented immigrants with family ties, etc., etc.

Senator Ted Cruz and Rep. Steve King will howl foul. Pollsters will scratch their heads when the November rout fails to materialize. And Republicans will rue the day they ignored the nations changing demographics.
All campaigns have their share of heated rhetoric, but as a proud Texas Republican, Im worried about the long term repercussions of the tone of some of the campaigns Im observing in my home state, especially when it comes to the GOPs ability to attract more Latinos like me to our tent.

In the battle for the office of lieutenant governor, the issue of illegal immigration looms large. In Texas, the lieutenant governor is a powerful post, serving as president of the state Senate. When it comes to power and influence, this is no consolation prize.

Harping on illegal immigration is no way to grow a party or lay the foundation for a long political career.  Nelson Balido

The Republican challenger to incumbent Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst is state Sen. Dan Patrick, who has made illegal immigration a centerpiece of his campaign. Patrick has used the term illegal invasion on the campaign trail to describe undocumented immigration from Mexico across the Rio Grande.

The hostility to illegal immigration might play well in primary audiences, but Patrick is wrong on the facts.

There were approximately 420,000 apprehensions nationwide in 2013 related to illegal entry. Thats a big number, but it is small in comparison to what it was seven or eight years ago when it was over 1 million.

And Mexico is not the problem. The Rio Grande Valley Border Patrol sector is the highest trafficked area for illegal border entries. But the majority of apprehensions there are not from Mexico, they are from Central and South America.

Patrick also continues to sow fear in the primary electorate with the idea of hordes of Mexicans streaming into Texas to take our jobs. He fails to mention that visa overstays are the biggest contributor to illegal immigration. Without a system that can reconcile international arrivals with departures at our land border, overstays will continue to be a challenge, as individuals turn their entry visas into one-way tickets to the American dream.

The sound bites that Patrick is flogging portray Texas not as the open, welcoming, trade-oriented state we all know, but as one that is antagonistic to our southern neighbor and largest trading partner.

What Mexico is to Texas and the rest of the country is nearly $1 million per minute in international trade through our commercial ports. One in four jobs in the United States are attributed to trade, and for 21 states in addition to Texas, Mexico is the number 1 trading partner. Over a half million Texas jobs depend on exports and the Lone Star state sends over $94 billion in exports to Mexico.

Patrick views our border as a liability, but for so many Texans its a land of opportunity. Patricks campaign is seemingly premised on not just opposing Dewhurst, but on consciously ignoring a critical spoke in the wheel of our economic success.

Im no Karl Rove, but I do know that jobs and the economy are always on the minds of voters. In last months Gallup poll, respondents cited unemployment and jobs as their top issue. Immigration registered a paltry 4 percent, and its an issue that has lost steam since this same time last year. Harping on illegal immigration is no way to grow a party or lay the foundation for a long political career.

Democrats know that Republican candidates like Patrick are doing their party no favors. Theyre stocking their bench for the long game, preparing to tap into Texas growing Latino voter-age population and introducing themselves to recent Democrat arrivals from other states.

If Texas Republicans think that using the same electoral playbook year after year will always lead to wins, they could be in for a rude awakening in just a few election cycles.
(From my speech May 14, 2014 at The Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey's Women's Philanthropy luncheon)

Id like to talk about being Jewish in a Puerto Rican family by telling you the story of my Bar Mitzvah. First, some interesting background. Lily Friedman, my mom, now 94 and the pride of Siesta Key, Sarasota, Florida met my late dad Cruz Rivera of Bayamon, Puerto Rico in 1939 at Childs Cafeteria on the corner of 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue [in New York City]. He had just emigrated from the island, literally arriving on the weekly banana boat; she was from Newark and was working as a waitress. He was in charge of the restaurants Latino dishwashers.

As someone who loves Israel, I beg you to see that organizations like J-Street in D.C. are more reflective of the view of a majority of progressive Jews than many of the more traditional organizations that claim to speak for us. The Palestinians need their homeland too.  Geraldo Rivera

It was love at first sight. They married in Manhattan. Her family sat Shiva (went into mourning) in Newark. We lived on the Lower East Side. My dad was a sergeant in the Army during WWII. When he got out, we moved to Williamsburg, Brooklyn, where my sister Irene and I attended PS 19, the local public school. Then we moved to West Babylon, Long Island where mom and dad bought a house for $10,000 under the GI Bill.

In West Babylon, we were not just the only Puerto Rican family, but also the only Jewish family. There was no Temple in West Babylon, so our tiny congregation held its services and my Bar Mitzvah in the local Volunteer Fire Department hall in North Lindenhurst, right near the tracks of the Long Island Railroad.

For my Bar Mitzvah, we invited both dads family and moms. The thing is my Jewish moms family was far smaller than my dads Puerto Rican family. My dad was one of 17 children, all from the same parents Juan and Tomasa who both lived into their late 90s. A humble, hard-working man, Abuelo was majordomo at a sugar cane plantation, and the kids all cut cane as youngsters.

At the time of my Bar Mitzvah, the Riveras were all devout Catholics. Nowadays, many are Evangelical; my favorite cousin Lily, named for mama, is a Pentecostal minister in the Bronx, but back in the day they were Catholic.

They were also absolutely non-judgmental. They were good with anyone as long as you were a person of faith. They followed the Bar Mitzvah service as closely as they could. Many still only spoke Spanish. And when they sensed the most sacred moment had come when the Ark was opened for the Torah reading, they took off their yarmulkes and put them over their hearts, which ritually speaking is exactly the wrong move.

There are many great things about being married to my smart, sexy, gorgeous wife seated right there, and one big one is Ericas pride in her Jewishness. Ill tell you about it in all its grandeur, but even before Erica blessed my life at the beginning of this Millennium, I was a poster-boy for flamboyant Jewishness.

Maybe it was overcompensation.

Being a mixed breed, Ive often felt the need to remind people that I was Jewish, because its usually not the first thing that most think of when they hear my name. And that was especially true when I started at Eyewitness News four and a half decades ago. Geraldo Rivera and Jewish werent exactly synonymous.

But I always tell people that Jews are tough and you never know where well turn up. I have a Star of David tattoo on my left hand. I got this in 1972 after the Maillot massacre, when terrorists infiltrating from Lebanon slaughtered a bunch of kids at a kibbutz nursery school in Northern Israel.

I got the tattoo because if the time ever came again when someone was asking for the Jews, I wanted to be the tough guy who brandished this clenched fist and said heres one.

But the tattoo is a fairly sensible response to a particular outrage; far campier is the Chai, (a fake-gold pin in the shape of the spiritually significant Hebrew number 18, a symbol for alive). I used to wear it on the lapel of my favorite purple fake velvet sport jacket during those Eyewitness days in the early 1970s.

I swear I became a sailor because of Longfellows poem about the Jewish cemetery in Newport, Rhode Island.

How strange it seems! These Hebrews in their graves,

Close by the street of this fair seaport town,

Silent beside the never-silent waves,

At rest in all this moving up and down!

Who knew?

When Erica told her parents that she was marrying me, a man far older than she, her brother Josh who is now one of my best friends punched his fist through the wall in rage and frustration. Ericas late father Howard, a longtime local leader of the Anti-Defamation League said, at least hes Jewish.

This, as I mentioned, is very important to my wife. Even though weve been married for eleven years, Erica is still constantly reminding me that so and so is Jewish. Did you know that Drake the Canadian rapper is Jewish? Barbara Walters? Howard Stern? Lenny Kravitz? Simon Cowell? Sarah Jessica Parker? Gwyneth Paltrow? And my favorite, Harry Potter, aka, Daniel Radcliff?

For Erica, there is no brighter light than someone whos converted, thats really huge. Sammy Davis Jr. and Marilyn Monroe in my day. Ivanka Trump now. Lindsay Lohan was in the process of converting, when she bailed out, which may explain her current difficulties.

Erica and I are also great lovers of Israel, and Zionists to the core. Ive covered every conflict there since the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Indeed, for a time in 2002 I had the notion of our moving to Israel so I could run for the Knesset, the Israeli Parliament. The problem with my scheme for Ericas parents was its timing, coming as it did in the midst of the Second Intifada, when bombs were exploding there daily.

But having established my familys Jewish bona fides, I come now to the difficult part of the speech, what I have to say about the time bomb thats ticking in Israel, especially now that the latest round of peace talks have ended so badly. And to me, the scariest thing about the failed peace talks is how little the news affected most Jews there in Israel or here at home.

Anyone whos actually traveled around Israel in the last couple of years will tell you: things are great, so peaceful, relatively speaking. A couple of rockets here or there. Of course were all worried about Iran and the nukes and so forth, but generally speaking things are OK, the beaches and the clubs are filled, the economy is churning along; a condo in Herzliah (a Tel Aviv suburb) is more expensive than its ever been. And why upset the status quo by taking a chance on peace with an unreliable partner?

But what I wish every Jewish visitor to Israel could do is spend one night with a Palestinian family, as I have done many times over the years. You cant imagine how devastating it is to them to be second-class citizens in the land they claim a part of as their own, and for them to watch helplessly as the Israeli settlements continue to expand into the Palestinian territories, as they yearn for a nation and a passport of their own.

I believe that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is right to demand that Israel be recognized as the Jewish State of Israel or as the Homeland of the Jewish people. That is what it is, and the name strips away the facade of secularity. Further, the characterization is as appropriate as Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan calling themselves the Islamic State of...

But as someone who loves Israel, I beg you to see that organizations like J-Street in D.C. are more reflective of the view of a majority of progressive Jews than many of the more traditional organizations that claim to speak for us.

The Palestinians need their homeland too.

Going back to Longfellows mournful poem at the Jewish Cemetery.

But ah! What once has been shall be no more!

The groaning earth in travail and in pain

Brings forth its races, but does not restore,

And the dead nations never rise again.

Israel has risen from the dead. We exalt in that miracle. But lets spread it around.
I find it ironic that as we gathered for the Womens Leadership Board meeting at the Harvard Kennedy School, the world of female empowerment gets a black eye with the firing of Jill Abramson, the first female executive editor at the New York Times.

Media, top minds, bloggers and women at large are outraged after learning that the polite issue with management in the newsroom excuse for her dismissal was reportedly related to Abramsons demand for equal pay. While the New York Times has denied the claim, according to The New Yorker Abramson may have offended her male bosses sensibilities by being too pushy over a wage gap between herself and the man who previously held the position as head editor.

What good does it do to get educated yet be undervalued and stereotyped when it comes to opportunity and pay? An analysis of pay gap by race and gender reveals that Hispanic women are disproportionately affected, earning 53 percent of white mens earning.  Liliana Gil

In the era of Sheryl Sandbergs Lean In and the fast-growing Latina Red Shoe Movement, it is cases like Abramsons that serve as a vivid reminder that womens issues prevail around gender stereotypes, equal pay and a boys club mentality that rule key decision-making in the C-suite.

Clearly, decades of data and Catalyst reports reporting marginal progress for womens issues in the workplace and politics have not been enough to fix a system that tends to mislabel assertiveness for pushiness and motivation for aggression, therefore undermining the true potential of extraordinarily talented women.

In an attempt to graduate from simply reporting data to documenting scientific and actionable interventions, the Harvard Kennedy School recently launched the Gender Action Portal. The reports and solutions suggested provide evidence addressing issues around bias, competition, compensation, leadership, among others. Many of the shocking qualitative studies confirm how professional women suffer negative consequences for displays of emotion in the workplace, how workgroup sex and race composition affects turnover and career mobility, among other issues.

As Abramsons story puts a magnifying glass over the embarrassing issue of equal pay, a closer look at the data highlights a much greater issue for minorities, particularly Latinas in the workplace.

In 1980, women earned 60.2 cents for every $1 men did; by 2011women earned 76.5 cents for every dollar that men did last year, moving no closer to narrowing a gender pay gap. In fact that is a $16 dollar improvement over 30 years.

While the statistics around Hispanic growth have now penetrated the hallways of boardrooms and Washington, D.C. it is Hispanic women who have not yet been granted the value they represent as Americas fastest growing female segment. Between 2010 and 2020, Hispanic women drive 100 percent of the growth of women 18-49 in the U.S. reporting a +28.3 percent increase versus -1.8 percent for non-Hispanic women. Which means the pool for talent, economic growth and female base driving all the growth in America is driven by Latinas. And yet, they are not getting their fair share in equal pay and opportunity.

A greater share of Hispanic recent high school graduates are enrolled in college than whites, as reported by the Pew Research Center. Forty-nine percent of young Hispanic high school graduates were enrolled in college. By comparison, 47 percent of white non-Hispanic high school graduates were enrolled in college. What good does it do to get educated yet be undervalued and stereotyped when it comes to opportunity and pay? An analysis of pay gap by race and gender reveals that Hispanic women are disproportionately affected, earning 53 percent of white mens earning, versus 78 percent for non-Hispanic women, according to AAUW. The median income for a college educated Latina is $37,405 versus $61,175 for a college educated white-male. First quarter 2014 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics highlights Hispanic women as those earning the lowest median weekly, at $214 versus $240 for white women; a 12 percent gap.

As the media evaluates the role gender played in Abramsons abrupt dismissal from the New York Times, we reflect on an even more concerning issue that touches our community in a way it is hardly ever discussed. Just as women have spent decades to overcome issues around equal pay, bias and opportunity, it is time to amplify the cultural, racial and gender gap that exists amongst the group that represents 100 percent of the growth of the female base of future professionals, leaders and consumers in this country.

As America is quickly becoming a majority/minority country with Hispanics driving 53 percent of the total population growth, addressing the issue of equality in the group that represents the future of our nation should be a priority for all.
In a recent weekly address in Spanish, White House Director of the Domestic Policy Council Cecilia Munoz weaved the Presidents budget proposal into a fictitious narrative aimed to assure the Hispanic community that the administrations policies will contribute to provide opportunity, economic growth, and prosperity, promising it will grow the middle class.

But as has all-too-often been the case during the last few years, the administrations rhetoric concerning economic opportunity flies in the face of heavy-handed political maneuvers that destroy chances for upward mobility.

Without a sane analysis, efforts like Operation Choke Point can really only be interpreted as political operatives prioritizing an ideological crusade over an interest in actual economic recovery.  Mario H. Lopez

For example, the Obama administration has been employing clandestine policies to cut off easy access to cash by systematically eliminating alternative lending options. In August 2013, the Wall Street Journal reported that the Justice Department was targeting banks that service a broad range of what it considers questionable financial ventures, including online payday lenders. Additionally, banks like Capital One have already closed the accounts of check-cashing companies. By going after these companies, hardworking Hispanics without a bank account may not have a place to cash their paychecks.

This affects anyone who finds themselves strapped for cash, including self-employed and blue-collar workers. The administration's regulatory assault is not an assault on the short-term lending industry, but rather on any consumer who relies on having access to cash in cash flow emergencies, especially in underserved communities. For example, two-thirds of all Hispanics work in the service industry, and they will feel the brunt of these policies more than others. In addition, alternative lenders can cater to newer immigrants without substantial credit histories  a demographic that banks fail to serve.

Contrary to the administrations claim that these targeted financial businesses have a disparate impact on minorities, the truth is that these heavy-handed regulations will have a disparate impact on the countrys minorities, many of which live in communities with limited access to traditional banks. And the answer is not capping rates or creating artificial waiting periods as the controversial Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has considered. Those remedies will ultimately ensure that the companies will stop providing these services since they are no longer profitable.

In addition to restricting financial options for blue-collar workers, lending regulation will also hurt small-business owners and entrepreneurs, an area where Hispanics have contributed greatly to the American economy. Hispanic entrepreneurs fortified the U.S. economy by an estimated $468 billion last year. This has been pivotal for the nations economy, especially in the face of the economic recession.

For frame of reference, from 2010 to 2012, the total number of American entrepreneurs declined by 250,000. Yet in the same period, there were 160,000 new Hispanic entrepreneurs in the U.S.

From 1990 to 2012, entrepreneurship among Hispanics multiplied nearly 10 times that of the general population. Many of them utilized these alternative loan products for quick access to capital, capital that is harder than ever to receive from traditional banks due to the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act.

Targeting payday lenders is only the tip of the iceberg of the administrations broader initiative, which they tellingly named Operation Choke Point, a maneuver designed to literally choke private businesses at their financial wellsprings by intimidating banks and lending institutions into compliancy. These purely political maneuvers hold no promise for actual economic recovery.

In addition to targeting short-term lenders, another goal of the Obama Administrations Operation Choke Point is to obstruct multi-level marketing companies, where new entrepreneurs often get their start.

Take Herbalife, a company where Hispanics make up 60 percent of direct sellers. The administration opts to gut profitable companies, condemning sales practices that they judge to be inferior while at the same time initiating no real recovery measures. These policies hurt minorities, who disproportionately make up the lower echelon of workers that are forced to seek irregular forms of employment.

Government agencies and the folks who seek to empower them with more control over the lives of ordinary people are quick to claim disparate impact as a justification for their regulatory excesses. But in order to understand the full story, policymakers should look at the impact those very same regulations have on the economy at large, all the people whose jobs and livelihoods are tied to the impacted industries, and the disparate impact the destruction of those industries will have on underserved communities all across the country.

Without a sane analysis, efforts like Operation Choke Point can really only be interpreted as political operatives prioritizing an ideological crusade over an interest in actual economic recovery.
Daniel Neyoy Ruiz, an undocumented immigrant has, quite literally, turned to his church for an eleventh hour stay of deportation.

Since last week Ruiz, his wife and his U.S. citizen son have been held up in the Southside Presbyterian Church in Tucson, Arizona after it offered him refuge from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which seems to have an insatiable appetite for devouring mixed immigration status American families.

Ruiz, who is from Mexico, was scheduled to be deported last week but instead chose indefinite detention in the church, which has a three decade history of offering sanctuary to undocumented immigrants.

Until Boehner and Cantor decide to show some political courage, good people like Mr. Ruiz will be forced to seek sanctuary in churches to protect their families from ICE agents looking to meet deportation quotas.  David Leopold

There is more than a little irony in an undocumented man fleeing to a church to protect his family while the GOP controlled House of Representatives  whose leaders are quick to tout religion and family values  do nothing to keep mixed immigration status American families safe and together. Never mind that recent polls show overwhelming support by Republicans (64 percent), Democrats (78 percent) and Independents (71 percent) for immigration reform, including a legal route to lawful immigration status for the 11 million undocumented noncitizens living in America. And thats not just a cold statistic. Thats 11 million undocumented Americans  mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers  who came to this country like generations of immigrants before them, to build a better life for future generations.

Of course its not quite fair to say that the House GOP has done nothing on immigration. To the contrary, they have voted to deport DREAMERs and, as I write this, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor is devoting his energy (and your tax dollars) to blocking the Enlist Act which would allow some undocumented immigrants to serve in the U.S. military and, under certain circumstances, earn green cards. The legislation was introduced Monday by Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Va.) as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act. But Cantor is vowing to not even allow debate on the bill.

Its almost like House Republican leaders are looking for ways to further alienate Hispanic voters and threaten the GOPs national viability.

Imagine if Speaker John Boehner, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and the rest of the GOP leadership paid the same deference to the will of the American people that they do to the extremists in their party. An immigration overhaul would likely already be the law of the land and hard-working fathers like Mr. Ruiz would be supporting their families, continuing to pay their taxes and further contributing to the fabric of their communities.

But until Boehner and Cantor decide to show some political courage, good people like Mr. Ruiz will be forced to seek sanctuary in churches to protect their families from ICE agents looking to meet deportation quotas at the expense of common sense enforcement.

If the Republicans insist on being the party of No We Wont when it comes to immigration reform, then President Obama should once again insist that Yes We Can. There is plenty the President can do to stop the humanitarian crisis which plagues the nation and bleeds American families in places like Tucson, Arizona, Seattle Washington, and Painesville, Ohio. Mr. Obama has the legal authority to broaden DACA, the temporary deportation reprieve he gave to qualified undocumented youth in June 2012. He could also order Attorney General Holder to review the onerous evidentiary burdens placed upon immigrants seeking waivers from immigration judges due to the extreme hardship that deportation would cause their U.S. citizen and lawful resident family members. Further, the President could use statutes already on the books to allow the qualified undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens to apply for green cards without having to leave the country and risk being banned from returning to their families for 10 years.

Its a sad day in America when an undocumented immigrant is forced to seek haven in a church to keep his family together. I am sure that many Americans will pray for him and other undocumented immigrants who are caught in the web of a broken, rigid and unforgiving immigration system.

In the meantime, it shouldnt take a miracle for the House of Representatives to do its job and pass immigration reform.
The Tea Party Express has been hijacked and if you look closely you can see Senator Mitch McConnell firmly at the helm. Thats right, the unflappable, undeniable and seemingly unbeatable Senator from Kentucky along with his merry band of establishment type conservative bandits have pushed back the likes of Matt Bevin and his other whipper snapper more principled conservative colleagues.

Even the Tea Party now seems to be realizing that when it comes to minorities  and especially Latinos, who are known for their family values, work ethic and religiousness  finding what you have in common with potential voters is more important than pointing fingers at them.  Rick Sanchez

Has the train actually left the Tea Partys station? It sure is looking that way. And if youre a mainstay Republican, then McConnell is not only your flag bearer, but also your soothsayer to boot. After all, it was McConnell who back in March called it just as it seems to be turning out: We are going to crush them everywhere.

So what was McConnells master plan? Nothing! Well, nothing but money and time that is. The money was easy, a reported $21 million garnered and another $3 to $4 million from the Chamber of Commerce and a Super PAC called Kentuckians for Strong Leadership who bought him enough TV time to make him look like Elvis.

But money aside, McConnells win may have less to do with him and more to do with his opponents baggage. McConnells millions tagged his Tea Party opponent with the moniker bailout Bevin, which seemed to stick like freshly mowed bluegrass on a rainy day.

But it goes beyond money and Kentucky politics for this years crop of challengers like Matt Bevin. It goes right to the heart of the Tea Party itself. Fair or not, the Tea Party has allowed itself to be branded as anti-women, anti-gay, anti-Hispanic, anti-science and anti-youth. Its like starting a race barefooted and 50 yards behind the starting position of your opponent whos racing with a brand new pair of Asics. Good luck with that.

Even the Tea Party itself seems to be coming to grips with its bad rap. Not with words, but with actions. Just this week, Tea Party express co-founder Sal Russo announced his support for comprehensive immigration reform. Heres Russo pushing for the very same plan he used to be vehemently against.

"We need to make the 11 million people who are here illegally obey the law, pay taxes and come out of the shadows. We have to get them right by the law in exchange for legal status, but not unbridled amnesty. This should include penalties, background checks to root out criminals, and the requirement that they learn English, understand the Constitution and be committed to our basic freedoms," said Russo.

If what hes asking for sounds slightly familiar, thats because its almost a carbon copy of what former Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez reasonably drew up years ago. Gutierrez, upon orders from president Geoge W. Bush, presented his reform program in 2006 to Republicans whose conservative wing was so nonplused by it, they summarily rejected his plan.

The most vehement detractors of all were the same rigid anti-immigration conservative factions who would go on to become what we today know as the Tea Party coalition of the Republican Party.

Yes, even the Tea Party now seems to be realizing that when it comes to minorities  and especially Latinos, who are known for their family values, work ethic and religiousness  finding what you have in common with potential voters is more important than pointing fingers at them.

But it may be too little too late. Mitch McConnell and his merry band of non-Tea Party types have taken their more principled conservative opponents to the woodshed and the beating may be heard from coast to coast before its over.

Its too bad. The Tea Partys original platform regarding less government, frugality, citizen involvement and individual responsibility seemed ideal. Now, all we can do is watch as their train leaves the station, maybe for good.
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We were running late, racing hard down a roughly-paved jungle road. Having just passed the last government checkpoint, a rickety bridge where a gun battle five months before left eight dead, including a Colombian congressman, we were now in territory controlled by FARC, for Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia.

[Raul] Reyes explained how FARC really wasnt dealing drugs  they were merely taxing the drug trade. I noted that his explanation seemed a distinction without a difference. We agreed to disagree, and the next time I heard his name was when Reyes was killed in a massive American targeted air raid in 2008.  Geraldo Rivera

A violent, drug-dealing, Marxist insurgency, FARC was destabilizing the entire Andes region of South America as it corrupted public officials and waged war against the Colombian government based in the distant capital of Bogota. With robust help from the Castro brothers in Cuba, crazy renegade Hugo Chavez was already plotting Chavez takeover in neighboring Venezuela. Ecuador was also turning hard-left. And cocaine and heroin from the tumultuous region were pouring into the United States.

To get a closer view of Colombias torment, I had sailed my old boat Voyager 1,400 miles up the Amazon River to the chaotic, jungle port city of Leticia, using it as our base of operations during production of my Dateline NBC special called Blown Away.

It was July 2001, and this struggle for control of the Andes called Plan Colombia was Americas biggest fight in the world. I remember meeting Marine General Peter Pace, who would later become Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at a secret jungle base in the Colombias interior. The Balkan Wars in Europe were over. The Soviet Union was newly broken up. China was still finding its way, and in that otherwise tranquil summer before the 9/11/01 attacks changed the world, attempting to manage Colombias bloody, half-century-long civil war was Americas most urgent foreign policy challenge.

Back then, in a desperate attempt to placate the guerillas, FARC had been ceded the huge hunk of Colombian countryside that we were driving through. About the size of Switzerland, the territory was known informally as FARC-Landia. And we had arranged to meet a top rebel leader, Raul Reyes, and other FARC leaders in San Vicente, its largest town.

Heavy jungle shadows were making the scene spooky and surreal as we drove past that final government checkpoint. It was 10 minutes to 4 oclock in the afternoon. The strict curfew set by the FARC rebels was 6 p.m., and we still had 40 miles of bad road between us and San Vicente.

As the jungle darkened, I remember the next two hours as among my most nerve-racking. As I said on camera as we approached the outskirts of San Vicente on that evening almost 13 years ago, Were going to be late. I dont like this. A FARC roadblock a minute after the expiration of the curfew. Very, very, very uncomfortable.

It was with great relief that the hyper-aggressive teenage revolutionaries guarding San Vicente were swayed by my invocation of Commander Reyes name, and allowed us to pass into the relative safety of town.

At first light, we left San Vicente and headed deeper into the bush, ultimately meeting up with El Comandante at a heavily guarded camp. There, Reyes explained how FARC really wasnt dealing drugs  they were merely taxing the drug trade. I noted that his explanation seemed a distinction without a difference. We agreed to disagree, and the next time I heard his name was when Reyes was killed in a massive American targeted air raid in 2008.

I thought about my time with Comandante Reyes and his FARC rebels this week while reading a story about Colombias presidential elections, which are scheduled for this Sunday May 25th. To allow voting to take place, a tenuous cease-fire has been declared by the government and the FARC rebels in their never-ending war.

Colombias current president Juan Manuel Santos and FARC rebel commanders just announced what a report in The Economist describes as a landmark agreement on how to curb the countrys multi-billion dollar drug trade as part of broader peace talks to end half a century of conflict.

I am too experienced to share their reporters optimism.
Thanks to nearshoring, many are calling Mexico the new China. But maybe calling Mexico the new Detroit would be more accurate.

Foreign manufacturers are continuing to invest at a quickening rate in Mexico. Some are expanding their facilities, while others are coming over for the first time. But the international automotive sector is leading the foreign investment pack.

All this new investment and the job growth that comes with it give Mexican politicos the chance to claim credit for the boomlet. But the political and economic climate outside of Mexico in countries like the United States has played a major role in the countrys current success as well.

The presidents domestic agenda, comprised of pursuing a hike in the minimum wage, a job-killing health care plan and throwing up stop signs to job creating projects like the XL pipeline, will likely see more companies eyeing operations south of our border.  Nelson Balido

Vehicle production for export in Mexico has played a leading role in the countrys growth. As Mexico, Canada and the United States celebrate 20 years of the North American Free Trade Agreement, Mexicos quest at the outset of the agreement to integrate its economy more fully with the U.S. and Canada has paved the way for the positive growth we have seen over the past few years.

According to the Federal Reserve Bank, 83 percent of light vehicles made in Mexico were exported last year, the highest percentage in the world and especially impressive for a country that does not have a domestic carmaker. Mexico produces nearly 2.3 million vehicle units, fourth-most in the world behind Germany, Japan and South Korea.

Mexico is an attractive low labor cost location, an important designation as costs rise in Asia and the regulatory environment in the U.S. becomes less accommodating to growth. The country offers a favorable tax structure through bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, and various pro-employer, pro-business elements of its economic environment.

For example, Ford produces its Fusion model for the entire North American market from Mexico. From Fords perspective, Mexico is a location integral to its entire global operations. Manufacturers and automakers are not only driven by economic conditions in Mexico, but also by the geographic location for shipping to points north and south, and not just for finished products but for supply chain efficiency as well. In fact, Mexico has been so successful in exporting that some less developed countries have installed restrictive quotas on Mexican-origin products.

But Mexicos political class, especially those who tout their support for policies that lead to conditions favorable to job growth and a higher quality of life (so, everyone), should look at improving the infrastructure and security leading to the countrys land ports. Improvements in these critical trade corridors would lead to a reduction in crime and enhance the countrys overall international trade profile. Mexicos customs agency should remain committed to maintaining a leading role in in trade technology and processes.

Mexico is poised for continued growth not just because of its geographic proximity to the U.S. market, but also because of President Barack Obama. The presidents domestic agenda, comprised of pursuing a hike in the minimum wage, a job-killing health care plan and throwing up stop signs to job creating projects like the XL pipeline, will likely see more companies eyeing operations south of our border.

Mexico is expanding, but whether its leadership knows it or not, the U.S. is contributing to that success in more ways than one.
The Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMC) has fined PrivatBank (Kyiv) UAH 82,600 for violation of legislation on economic competition protection in the form of submitting incomplete information to the agency within the prescribed period.

As reported, the Cabinet of Ministers under the initiative of the National Bank and the shareholders of PrivatBank on December 18 decided to nationalize the financial institution.

The volume of the issue of government domestic loan bonds for these purposes was estimated at UAH 116.8-148 billion.

The Individuals' Deposit Guarantee Fund and the Finance Ministry of Ukraine on December 21 signed an agreement on the sale of 100% of PrivatBank for UAH 1.
Lets talk about a scandal. Everyday, tens of thousands of undocumented immigrants perform work that could be done by citizens. They work as housekeepers, janitors, and cooks for staggeringly low wages. They have no choice about working, because their employer  the largest employer of undocumented immigrants in the country  coerces them into to service. That this could happen throughout the U.S. is shocking. But the real scandal is that their employer is the United States federal government.

In an article in The New York Times, reporter Ian Urbina reveals how the government and private prison contractors take advantage of immigrants in detention, using them as a pool of captive, cheap labor. Last year, about 60,000 detainees worked for the government while in detention, in 55 out of the 250 detention facilities used by the government. They earned one dollar a day, far below the federal minimum wage of $7.25.

About half of immigrant detainees eventually win their cases, so they should not be treated like common criminals. More importantly, conservatives ought to wonder why the U.S. government is giving away jobs to undocumented immigrants (when this work could be done by citizens), and liberals ought to think about the due process and human rights violations of these detainees.  Raul Reyes

This work program is exploitative because immigrant detainees are not criminals. They are people who are awaiting a decision on their immigration status by a judge. Remember, being in the country without papers is not a crime, it is a civil violation. Detainees include immigrants seeking asylum, domestic abuse victims, and even legal residents and citizens who are held in error. They are not prisoners, and they should not be treated like prisoners.

Officials say that detainees work on a voluntary basis. The (work) program allows detainees to feel productive and contribute to the orderly operation of detention facilities, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spokeswoman Gillian Christensen told the Times. Yet Urbinas article cited instances of detainees who reported being bullied into working, or threatened with the loss of privileges. Detainees went on hunger strikes at a Tacoma, Washington facility to protest being placed in solitary confinement if they refused work assignments. A 2012 report by the American Civil Liberties Union found evidence of forced labor in Georgias detention facilities. Often times, the voluntary nature of the work program is explained only in English to detainees who speak other languages.

Immigration officials say that these work programs save taxpayers money. But it is inconsistent for the government to forbid employers from hiring undocumented immigrants, while they are doing it themselves on a widespread basis (one university professor told the Times that a more accurate estimate of the number of immigrants working in detention was 135,000 a year). The private companies that cut costs using detainee labor do not reimburse the government; they simply increase their profits  which are considerable. In 2011, the Corrections Corporation of America and The Geo Group, the two companies that run most of the private detention centers, reported revenue of $1.7 billion, and $1.6 billion, respectively. That they would rake in such astronomical sums on the backs of detainee labor is unconscionable.

In fact, private contractors profit from detainees twice over. First, they use their labor at rock-bottom wages. Then, detainees are typically paid in the form of credits that they can use to purchase toiletries and phone calls, which are sold at grossly inflated prices in detention centers. So these companies doubly exploit detainees.

The situation is worse considering how slowly immigrants are processed through detention. According to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, immigration cases took an average of 516 days from start to finish. Successful immigration cases took longer, an average of 772 days. All the while, detainees languish in detention and are subjected to these unfair work programs. And a recent meltdown of the computer system used by immigration courts has only increased these delays.

Sure, some Americans believe that anyone behind bars should be put to work. But about half of immigrant detainees eventually win their cases, so they should not be treated like common criminals. More importantly, conservatives ought to wonder why the U.S. government is giving away jobs to undocumented immigrants (when this work could be done by citizens), and liberals ought to think about the due process and human rights violations of these detainees. Surely, reasonable people can agree that the U.S. detention system is ripe for a thorough review by the Department of Homeland Security.

The work programs in U.S. detention facilities are shameful and unjust. All people, including immigrant detainees, deserve to be paid fairly for their labor.
For most of the country, the events leading up to the current VA scandal must seem like recent anomalies. Those of us who have experienced the bureaucracy of military healthcare firsthand, however, have seen this coming for years.

Frankly, Im amazed that it has taken this long for the VAs problems to reach the point of scandal. For years weve been told about the increasing number of veteran suicides, while those of us still serving have attended countless suicide awareness briefings. Nonetheless, too many returning from overseas deployments still have a hard time re-acclimating and getting the necessary preventative care, resulting in a dramatic and unnecessary increase in the number of veterans who choose to take their own lives (nearly 22 commit suicide every single day).

Your average citizen might be surprised to know that when you return from a war zone, you dont just automatically get health care. Believe it or not, you have to apply for it. Im still waiting on approval to access my bases health services. I deployed in 2012.  Justin Velez-Hagan

Unfortunately, this tragedy wasnt enough for the country to demand action from Washington. Dozens of my fellow vets had to die waiting in line for medical care at the Phoenix VA hospital to capture the nations attention.

If we have known about the problems for so long, some wonder why more veterans and current servicemen havent voiced their opinions. Well, its in our DNA to not complain. Those who enter the military are generally conservative by nature. When we sign the dotted line volunteering to risk our lives and sacrifice our own freedoms, we realize that there is going to be little reward ... and we dont go around asking for gratitude either. Our best reward is knowing that we did our duty for the love of our country.

The culture of the military isnt one to promote a bunch of whining either. While an active member of the armed services, complaining doesnt make you popular and can even be rewarded with severe consequences. In at least one case, a Marine was dismissed for criticizing the President, our Commander-in-Chief, on social media. If were not careful, a complaint can be seen as a critical statement against our commanders, which can result in punishment under the UCMJ.

Many of my fellow veterans have spent years in war zones, going wherever duty calls, without a single word of protest. So, when they finally do get to come home, even major healthcare setbacks are relatively benign hiccups in the scheme of things. We dont complain because were used to sacrificing. A little more time and a little more pain wont kill me is the attitude that makes us successful overseas, but creates a problem when its time to heal.

When you come from an organization whose culture thrives on suppressing criticisms, emotions, and pain, it becomes very difficult to convince yourself that you really need psychological or physical care. And if you finally do decide that its time to get help, its very easy to be discouraged, which sometimes leads to completely giving up.

Ive seen this happen time and time again among my fellow troops. During my time in Kandahar, I cant count the number of Marines and soldiers who sustained combat injuries and just wanted to throw a little dirt on it and get back out there. Seeing one of your fellow troops hooked up to life support has the incredible effect of making your own injury, which might be serious back home, seem more like a mild headache when deployed.

Putting off caring for my own injuries until I returned home, unfortunately, made it harder to get medical care. Your average citizen might be surprised to know that when you return from a war zone, you dont just automatically get health care. Believe it or not, you have to apply for it. Im still waiting on approval to access my bases health services. I deployed in 2012.

The VA is a whole different animal and, to be honest, I still dont understand it. The onus is on the service member to maintain and present his records of injury to the VA for benefits. Didnt get a printed record signed by the doctor you visited while deployed? Good luck proving you were injured on Uncle Sams watch.

Although veterans of campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq are supposed to automatically qualify for VA hospital benefits following their deployments, we still have to fill out paperwork to apply. Ive been denied twice in my own ongoing battle with the VAs bureaucracy, who has incorrectly cited missing or incorrect information. And I used to think the DMV was frustrating.

After realizing that the VA might take a while, I was lucky enough to have the option to seek care through the TRICARE plan (health insurance for military personnel) that I pay for. For the most part, the service and care has been excellent. Unfortunately, the TRICARE system is overwhelmed too. After my first six weeks of therapy, I was told Id be added to a six month waiting list in order to continue. My consolation was a prescription of pain meds. No thanks, I think Ill just suck it up.

My own injuries require more physical therapy and possibly surgery, but until now my family are the only ones who ever heard me mention them. I did my duty and wouldve given up far more for the opportunity to do so. But, what I wont stand for is the mistreatment of my three million fellow veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan who deserve only the best our country has to offer, yet consistently have to settle for less.

It might not be in their nature to grumble or complain, but lets hope our collective outrage finally sparks the action from our elected representatives that our veterans deserve.
We used to lock up crazy people. Then we stopped. We used to care for crazy people. Then we stopped. We used to call crazy people insane. Then we stopped. We used to call crazy people mentally ill. Then we stopped.

Now, we do next to nothing. Until they do something, like kill for reasons most of us could never even begin to fathom.

Today were no longer allowed to call them insane. Were simply allowed to say theyre ill mentally ill. Gone are the places to put them. Gone are the institutions. So what are we left with? Crazy people, lots of them. And drugs, lots of them. And murders, lots of them.  Rick Sanchez

Elliot Rodger was lonely. Elliot Rodger was desperately lonely. Elliot Rodger was isolated. Elliot Rodger was a murderer, he was sick, and we can sit there and blame it on class warfare, misogyny, alienation, guns. The real cause (not to be disrespectful to the dead) is the fact that Elliot Rodger was just plain crazy.

There, I said it. Somebody has to. Since the dawn of time, there have been people who are ... well ... crazy.

I know it sounds harsh, but the longer we sit around looking for euphemisms and explanations for their actions, the more people will die.

It turns out that Rodger was on psychotropic drugs. What are psychotropic drugs? Basically they are medicines that alter chemicals in the brain, which in turn affect mood and behavior. Some of the common side effects include (but are not limited to) suicidal tendencies, hallucinations, psychosis and mania.

Psychotropic drugs have become so commonplace, theyve blended into our lexicon and may be taken, at one time or another, by as many as half of all Americans. Lithium and Prozac come to mind as immortalized by Gen X-ers. In the Nirvana song of the same name, Kurt Cobain describes crazy for millions of fans with the lyrics: I'm so happy/'Cause today I found my friends/They're in my head. By the way, Kurt Cobain was a manic-depressive drug user who shot and killed himself in the head 20 years ago.

Which brings us back to Elliot Rodger. He too had a friend in his head, a friend who convinced him that women who didn't want to be with him needed to die. This past weekend he went on a violent killing spree in and around the campus of the University of California Santa Barbara due to his loneliness. He was a sad, sick young man who thought he was entitled to love, entitled to sex ... misunderstood?

Actually, he was pretty easy to figure out. He was crazy. His mother told that to the police, but they they didnt listen.

Police chose to leave him alone. They didnt take his guns (they didn't see them). They didnt even take him away. Why? Because, by law, they couldnt institutionalize him unless hed already been institutionalized. They problem is we no longer institutionalize.

Psychiatrists say getting somebody committed today is close to impossible. Long-term facilities are few and far apart, with waiting periods of up to a year. As for short-term interventions? They say insurance companies arent willing to pay for hospital stays, thereby creating a revolving door where even the violently insane can pass through undetected.

And therein lies the problem. We used to have a place for people who we thought were crazy. They were called insane asylums. Then in the 1960s and 1970s, we did away with them. We chose instead to treat them with anti psychotic drugs and manage them with short-term or outpatient care.

Today were no longer allowed to call them insane. Were simply allowed to say theyre ill mentally ill. Gone are the places to put them. Gone are the institutions. Gone is the money to manage their care, long term or short.

So what are we left with? Crazy people, lots of them. And drugs, lots of them. And murders, lots of them.

Is it unfair to suggest that all people who consume psychotropic drugs become violent criminals? Of course it is. So instead, lets consider this list of the most noteworthy violent offenders who were on psychotropic, beginning with a man who tried to kill a president.

John Hinckley (1981) attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan. Also shot press secretary James Brady, Secret Service agent Timothy McCarthy and policeman Thomas Delahanty. Drug: Valium.

Laurie Dann (1988) shot up a second-grade classroom in Winnetka, IL, killing one and wounding six. Drugs: Ana-franil and Lithium.

Patrick Purdy (1989) conducted a schoolyard shooting rampage in Stockton, CA, murdered five children and wounded 30. Drugs: Amitriptvine and Thorazine.

Joseph T. Wesbecker (1989) shot 20 workers at Standard Gravure Corp. in Louisville, Ky., killing nine. Drug: Prozac.

Kurt Danysh (1996) shot his own father to death in 1996 without knowing what happened. Drug: Prozac.

Michael Carneal (1997), just 14 year old, shot up a High School prayer meeting in Paducah, KY, killing three and leaving another paralyzed. Drug: Ritalin.

Kip Kinkel (1998), 15 years old, murdered his parents and went to school the next day where he killed two classmates and wounded 22. Drugs: Prozac and Ritalin.

Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold (1999) were behind the school shooting rampage in Columbine, Colorado in which they killed 12 students and a teacher and wounded 24 others. Drug: Luvox.

Larry Gene Ashbrook (1999) murdered seven people and injured seven at a Christian Rock concert in Fort Worth, Texas. Drug: Prozac.

Michael McDermott (2000) accused of gunning down seven of his co-workers at a Wakefield tech. Drugs: A trio of anti-depressants.

Christopher Pittman (2001), 12 years old, murdered his grandparents. Drugs: Paxil and Zoloft

Andrea Yates (2001) drowned all five of her children  ages 7 years down to 6 months  in a bathtub. Drug: Effexor.

Jeff Weise (2005), a 16-year-old living on Minnesota's Red Lake Indian Reservation, shot and killed nine people and wounded five others. Drug: Prozac.

Terry Michael Ratzmann (2005) killed seven members of the Living Church of God (LCG) before committing suicide. Drug: Medication for Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

Seung-Hui Cho (2007) was the spree killer who killed 32 people and wounded 17 others at Virginia Tech. Drug: Prozac.

Robert Hawkins (2007) killed eight people before turning a gun on himself and committing suicide. Drugs: Ritilin and Zoloft.

Steven Kazmierczak (2008) opened fire in a lecture hall at Northern Illinois University, killing six and wounding 21. Drugs: Xanax and Ambien.

Robert Stewart (2009) killed eight people in a shooting at the Pinelake Health and Rehab nursing home in Carthage, NC. Drugs: Lexapro, Ambien, Benadryl, Xanax.

Jared Loughner (2011) shot former Rep. Gabby Giffords, D-Ariz. at an event she was holding at a Safeway market. Drug: Medication for schizophrenia.

Eduardo Sencion (2011) entered IHOP restaurant in Carson City, Nev., and shot 12 people. Five died, including three National Guard members. Drugs: He was taking unknown drugs for mental issues.

Scott Evans Dekraai (2012) entered a hair salon in Seal Beach, Ca. Killed and fatally shot six women and two men. Drug: Anti-psychotics.

Thomas "TJ" Lane (2012) killed three students during a rampage at Chardon High School in Chardon, Ohio. Three others were injured. Drugs: Mix of prescription drugs with heroin.

Ian Stawicki (2012) opened fire on Cafe Racer Espresso in Seattle, Wash., killing five and himself after a citywide manhunt. Drugs: Unknown medication for psychiatric problems.

James Holmes (2012), dressed like the Joker, killed 12 people and wounded 58 during the midnight premiere of "The Dark Knight Rises" in Aurora, Colo. Drugs: Four prescription medications including Vicodin, (he was said to be hooked on it.)

Andrew Engeldinger (2012) shot five to death at Accent Signage Systems in Minneapolis, Minn. Three others were wounded. Drugs: Mirtazapine Trazodon, Temazepam and Wellbutrin.

Adam Lanza (2012) shot and killed 27 people, including 18 children, at Sandy Hook elementary in Newtown, Conn. Drug: Fanapt.
President Obamas decision to delay the release of the results of the review of his administrations deportation policies is political folly and has been interpreted as a knife in the back of his most ardent supporters.

The response from the immigration reform community has not been favorable. United We Dream, the largest immigrant youth-led organization in the nation, expressed outrage at the presidents decision. They see him cowering to House Republicans while demonstrating complacency and willingness to deport more than 1,100 people every day and separate countless families, cementing his legacy as the Deporter in Chief.

The window for immigration reform in 2014 is only open a crack, and the Republicans are quickly slamming it shut with calls for more interior immigration enforcement.  Matthew Kolken

Erika Andiola of the Dream Action Coalition was "appalled" by the president's decision stating that while we keep waiting, more and more families continue to be detained and deported.

The New York Times editorial board called the delay ridiculous and infuriating commenting that the move has resulted in individuals being forced to live in fear as Obamas deportation machine continues to grind up families, while also expressing skepticism of the presidents oft-repeated, oft-failed strategy of waiting for Republican legislators to do their jobs.

The irony is that House Republicans arent happy with the delay either. House Judiciary member Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) complained that When the president says that hes going to set a time limit and then consider taking actions himself  that makes doing immigration reform harder, not easier.

So much for giving the GOP space to move on reform.

Director of the White House's Domestic Policy Council Cecilia Munoz exercised damage control stating that "The president really wants to maximize the opportunity to get a permanent solution enacted, which requires Congress." Absent from her explanation is an acknowledgment that the president maintains the constitutional authority to expand prosecutorial discretion initiatives in a way that would provide immediate and permanent solutions to what could be millions of undocumented immigrants who either have strong family or employment ties to the country.

Specifically, an expansion of parole in place already extended to family members of military personnel.

Parole in place is a legal mechanism that circumvents the harsh consequences of the 1996 immigration law signed by President Clinton. It confers temporary legal status to individuals that enables them to apply for a Green Card from inside the United States if otherwise eligible. This is necessary because Clintons law established penalties for individuals that either entered the United States without inspection or overstayed their visa, cutting off the ability to apply for legal status from inside the country. The Catch-22 is that in most instances departure automatically triggers a 10-year bar, preventing those same individuals from applying for immigration benefits from home absent a waiver, which may or may not be available, and is difficult to obtain.

Should the president expand the parole in place initiative beyond family members of military personnel, undocumented immigrants with certain United States citizen relatives would be afforded an opportunity to get right with the law from inside the country without needing a waiver and without having to endure extended and destructive separation from their family. These are the same people who the administration has purportedly deemed a low priority for deportation, and the polls show the majority of Americans want to protect.

The point being, the president doesnt need the Republicans to act to start fixing problems now. More importantly, the immigrant community cant wait another three months and approximately 100,000 deportations for him to stop destroying immigrant families with deportation.

So what would the political fallout be if the president unilaterally implemented constitutionally permissible prosecutorial discretion initiatives? From what Ive seen very little, as the window for immigration reform in 2014 is only open a crack, and the Republicans are quickly slamming it shut with calls for more interior immigration enforcement.

The only thing I can tell you with absolute certainty is that if it were my parent or spouse facing an immediate threat of deportation I wouldnt put my money on the guys wearing the black hats. Suffice it to say, the time has long past for someone to ride in on a White House horse with six-guns a blazin to save the day.

Its high noon Mr. President.
Should the United States military allow young immigrants without legal status to enlist in the military? That question is being considered by the United States Congress and the White House. The Pentagon is examining creating a very limited pathway to citizenship for those who are part of the Dream Act and call themselves Dreamers. The Secretary of Defense informed Congress last week that he had taken action to allow for the enlistment of a few young undocumented immigrants. The White House, however, has asked Mr. Hagel to hold off pending the Congressional summer session.

Eligible immigrants would be covered by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program initiated by President Obama in 2012. This action provides them with deportation deferrals. Recent studies indicate that more than 550,000 young immigrants have already received these deferrals. Individuals would apply under the Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest program, which currently allows immigrants with certain temporary visas to enlist. These visas cover doctors or those with other critical medical skills or languages, such as Farsi and Arabic. In return for their service the Department of Defense would offer these new enlistees expedited U.S. citizenship. Some could become American citizens in as little as three months. None of this is new. In fact, the Pentagon has been using a pathway to expedited citizenship for decades to help fill its ranks with eligible young men and women.

They will have paid for that honor with their blood and sweat and tears. The same cannot be said of the vast majority of Americans, who take their citizenship for granted.  Col. Gilberto Villahermosa

Since its inception the U.S. military has always been a haven for immigrants. Today, African Americans make up 13 percent of the American population but 20 percent of the U.S. military. And the two greatest demographic growth areas for the U.S. military are Hispanics and African-American women. Hispanics number 53 million and constitute 17 percent of the U.S. population and 11.4 percent of the U.S military. And African-American women make up 16 percent of the American female population but outnumber white women in the U.S. Army.

Minorities have always been overrepresented in Americas fighting forces with the wealthy and upper class notably absent. In fact, despite the homage the people of the United States pay to their soldiers, with each passing decade, fewer and fewer Americans are actually willing to serve in its ranks. This is especially true for Americas leaders, who throughout its history, were always well represented in its military ranks. In 1975 some 80 percent of the 535 members of Congress had served in the armed forces. By 2011 that number had plunged to 20 percent. And in 2013, just 19 percent of the U.S. House and Senate had any Active-duty military service on their resume. In the current Congress, 22 percent are military veterans.

During the Second World War things were quite different. More than 16 million men and women, or approximately 12 percent of the entire U.S. population served in the U.S. military. By the height of the Vietnam War, in 1968, the Active Duty population numbered over 3.5 million, or 1.7 percent. Today, the Active Duty military numbers 1.4 million personnel, or approximately 0.5 percent. Even when the Reserve component of 850,000 is added, less than 1 percent of the U.S. population is serving in the U.S. military.

In July 2002 the manpower demands on the U.S. military of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan prompted President George Bush to sign an Executive Order making all non-citizens on Active Duty during the Global War on Terror eligible for immediate American citizenship. Previously, non-citizens were required to serve on active duty for three years before they could apply for citizenship. By September 2003, there were approximately 37,000 active duty soldiers (or about 3 percent) who were not U.S. citizens. In addition, there were another 13,000 non-citizen reservists.

In fact, the first American soldier to die in Iraq was Lance Corporal Jose Gutierrez, a U.S. Marine and native of Guatemala who was killed on 21 March 2003. At the time there were 3,000 non-citizens fighting in the ranks of the American military in Iraq. To the great credit of the U.S. Congress, Gutierrez became one of the first beneficiaries of an April 2003 bill awarding American citizenship to non-citizens killed in combat while serving with the U.S. military during the Global War on Terror.

The manpower demands of our wars abroad thus forced us to implement changes more than a decade ago aimed at incorporating all of those who wish to serve in the U.S. military, even if it were to expedite their U.S. citizenship.

Later, the U.S. military spent billions of dollars in various bonuses to keep its ranks filled with the volunteers. Additionally, in 2006 the upper age limit for enlistment was raised from 35 to 40 and then again to 42. Moreover, the U.S. military increased the number of high school dropouts and convicted felons. And for the war in Afghanistan, the U.S. military found it necessary to keep active duty soldiers from separating, despite completion of their contracts, and to call up additional service members from the National Guard and the Reserves.

Even with a reduction in its numbers, the American armed forces will be stressed to fill their ranks with volunteers in the years to come. Should we become embroiled in another war, as we most surely will, those stresses will be even greater and could jeopardize our national security. Let those who do not wish to be American soldiers, sailors, Marines or airmen, or to fight in the defense of their country, serve elsewhere. But allow all of those who do, the opportunity to serve their adopted country, as they have done so honorably and faithfully for hundreds of years, in the ranks of its armed forces. That they do so to become U.S. citizens is nothing new. And they will have paid for that honor with their blood and sweat and tears. The same cannot be said of the vast majority of Americans, who take their citizenship for granted. It is time to allow undocumented immigrants to serve in the U.S. military. Its good for America and the American people.
Less than three months after being declared El Salvadors new president, Salvador Sanchez Ceren accepted the presidential sash of a deeply polarized nation on June 1. The wounds of a divided campaign had yet to heal as half the nation celebrated President Sanchez Cerens inauguration and the other half cautiously watched his inaugural address.

The festive inauguration ceremony  marked by singing, chants, and flag waving in support of the ruling Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN) political party  had the feel of a victory party. Attendee enthusiasm, in sharp contrast to the events more staid protocol, bubbled over with excitement for the new president, but also praise for his predecessor, Mauricio Funes, the television journalist turned president.

The United States has the opportunity to be a partner in what will be a difficult road ahead. A positive story line for this Central American country is a win for the United States and will improve national security.  Jason Marczak

Salvadorans of all walks of life traveled to the packed amphitheater in downtown San Salvador along with some of the nearly 2 million who reside in the United States. Beyond individuals, groups such as the Washington D.C.-based Salvadoran Business Civic Committee (COCIES), a group of Salvadoran business leaders committed to advancing U.S.-El Salvador policy, organized delegations of policy influencers to attend the inauguration and discuss the governments plans for the next five years.

One challenge will be balancing the relationship with the United States and Latin American countries less friendly to U.S. interests. Fear in some U.S. policy circles is that the new Salvadoran government is further to the left than its predecessor, with the potential of impeding a strong bilateral relationship marked by U.S. assistance in the form of the Partnership for Growth economic plan and a Millennium Challenge Corporation compact.

A quick look at some of the high-level attendees (president or vice president level) at the inauguration is exhibit A that hemispheric leaders who generally disagree with the United States see the new government as a potential ally. Its also evidence of the United States wariness of immediate high-level, in-country engagement. Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa walked down the red carpet to join world leaders on the stage with fists pumping as the crowd shouted his name. Bolivian President Evo Morales followed suit.

The United States, which sent then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to Funes inauguration in 2009, opted for a delegation led by the head of a domestic-focused U.S. agency, Small Business Administration Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet. Yes, shes Latina and a competent SBA administrator, but this is not an agency that deals with the many pressing bilateral issues that our competent ambassador in El Salvador, Mari Carmen Aponte, faces everyday.

Although no U.S. delegation was announced, President Sanchez Ceren gave an inaugural address that could largely have been written by a U.S. speechwriter. He highlighted plans to stamp out corruption, implement necessary structural reforms, and focus on three key pillars for national growth: security, employment, and education. The president reinforced his commitment to commercial relations and to the countrys deep ties to the United States. Only then, in a swift political pirouette, was it announced that El Salvador would join Petrocaribe (an oil alliance with Venezuela) the following day.

After a contested election, Sanchez Ceren and his very capable vice president, Oscar Ortiz, inherit a divided nation that shows little signs of political reconciliation. In nine months, Salvadorans go to the polls again for legislative elections. The new government has tried to reach out to the opposition but with campaign season about to start again, a grand dialogue to tackle pressing security and fiscal issues will be virtually impossible.

The United States has the opportunity to be a partner in what will be a difficult road ahead. A positive story line for this Central American country is a win for the United States and will improve national security.

A first move should be to send a cabinet secretary to San Salvador whose portfolio is relevant to bilateral relations. One option is Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker who could engage in substantive conversations with government and business leaders on how to maximize the benefits of our free-trade agreement and increase foreign investment. A second Millennium Challenge Corporation compact, currently pending, should also be quickly approved.

President Sanchez Ceren punctuated his campaign and inaugural address with the phrase Unidos Crecemos Todos (United, We Grow Together). This vision must be applied to the U.S.-Salvadoran agenda.
About 10,000 delegates voted on party platforms at the Texas GOP Convention in Fort Worth Saturday. One of the issues that passed this year is reparative therapy for homosexuals. Reparative therapy is meant to convert homosexuals into heterosexuals and it's seen as very controversial in the medical field, but supporters of the therapy said it should be an option.

"The reparative therapy is a voluntary program. It is just made available like every other healthcare or counseling need that Americans would seek out," said Texas Eagle Forum President Cathie Adams who is spearheading the measure.

States like California and New Jersey have banned reparative therapy for minors because the American Psychiatric Association as well as the American Medical Association said the therapy is dangerous.

"It can cause so much stress that it might cause substance-abuse, suicidal thoughts or actions, major depression," said Clinical Sexologist Tali Boots.

"If you have some immutable quality about you that the world is telling you is terrible and you must change it ... and you put all your effort into changing it... and at the end of the day it still doesn't change that about you, that is psychologically damaging," said Gay Rights Activist Jimmy Flannigan.

Adams said the right to choose the therapy is a free speech issue.

"If you are in that lifestyle and you want to get out, you are trapped by yourself, you cannot have help and that is not right," said Adams.

"I don't think it should be pushed at all. I'm worried that the Texas Republican Party is actually going in the wrong direction, a couple steps backwards," Boots disagreed.

Adams said the APA and the AMA have ulterior motives when they call reparative therapy harmful.

"It is taking a stand, not based on what is good for patients, instead what empowers themselves, what makes them politically correct, what pushes the liberal agenda," said Adams.

"I think that both of those organizations go on scientific proof and I think that scientific proof backs the patients," Boots argued.

Adams said she believes homosexuality is a lifestyle choice.

"There's nothing worse about it then lying or stealing or cheating, but it is not a normal, natural, healthy behavior," said Adams.

"There are plenty of studies that show animals in the wild having homosexual tendencies also, so I don't think that's true," said Boots.

"It's not something that could or couldn't be fixed. It's irrelevant. It's something that's in your personal life about who you are and it doesn't change your ability to be a productive member of society," said Flannigan.

A U.S. Court of appeals in California heard arguments regarding the ban on reparative therapy for minors last fall. All three judges on that panel ruled that the ban did not violate the First Amendment.

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Oh no they didnt. On Monday, the Supreme Court decided to make life harder for immigrants and their families who are playing by the rules and coming to the U.S. through legal channels. In the case of Scialabba v. Cuellar de Osorio, a plurality of the Court held that children of immigrants who are waiting with their parents for a visa have to go to the back of the line once they reach the age of 21.

Although Supreme Court cases arent always easy to understand, they are important to understand. In de Osorio, the Court ignored basic fairness, long-standing immigration policy, and even Congress to craft their own interpretation of immigration law. Lets unpack the facts along with the decision, to see how the Court went wrong.

If the Court had any doubts about what the CSPA was intended to do, they only had to ask the legislators who approved it.  Raul A. Reyes

The original plaintiff in this case was Rosalina Cuellar de Osorio. In 1998, she applied for a visa to leave El Salvador and join her mother in the U.S. De Osorio and her thirteen-year-old son were approved for a visa, but government backlogs meant that one did not become available until 2005. By then, de Osorios son was 21, and immigration officials said he had to start his application all over as an adult. De Osorio sued, and yesterday the high court ruled against her.

Yet it is profoundly unfair to break up families simply because the U.S. has such long wait times for visas. Not only are such delays the governments fault, they are unfortunately quite common. According to the Department of States June 2014 visa bulletin, right now the government is processing some visas from China from 2001, from Mexico from 1993, and from the Philippines from 1990. People like de Osorios son should not lose their spot in line simply because our immigration system is so slow.

Remember, this case is about legal immigrants. It has nothing to do with the Deferred Action program for DREAMers, the recent influx of child migrants into the U.S., or any form of illegal immigration. It concerns those people who are willing to wait their turn to come here properly, with papers. No one is seeking special treatment or amnesty. Thats what makes the high courts decision so baffling.

In fact, lawmakers foresaw the problem of young people aging out of their place in line for visas, and took steps to address it. In 2002, Congress passed the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA), which allowed children waiting for visas to keep their place in line, and to convert their applications into adult visas. It was designed to address the dilemma that de Osorio and her son faced due to long waiting periods, and was signed into law by then-President George W. Bush.

But a plurality of the Supreme Court examined the CSPA and found it to be confusing and contradictory. They used this notion as their basis for deferring to immigration officials and ruling against de Osorio. Big mistake. If the Court had any doubts about what the CSPA was intended to do, they only had to ask the legislators who approved it. In a supporting brief, a bipartisan group of lawmakers including Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) all agreed that the government was wrong in this case: they wanted the CSPA to be interpreted broadly, to help people like de Osorio keep their families together. Still, the Court saw ambiguity in the CSPA and endorsed the position of immigration officials and the government.

In her dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor noted that Congress has already spoken on this issue, and that the Court is obliged to defer to Congress. Sotomayor wrote that this whole case should have been resolved with a commonsense approach. Shes right. Breaking up families serves no purpose, and our immigration system is byzantine enough without the Court adding their convoluted reasoning into the mix. Besides, it is inconsistent for the Obama administration to be promoting immigration reform to help the undocumented  while throwing up obstacles to legal immigrants.

The Supreme Court decision in de Osorio was flawed and unjust. Legal immigration should be supported, and immigrant families deserve to stay together.
To quote a playwright named Willie, its the unkindest cut of all. Its the dagger that politically speaking seems to have struck at the very heart of not just house majority leader Eric Cantor's political career, but very likely at the very heart of the GOPs chances of winning over Latino voters for years to come.

And it comes just as Latino voters were awakening to the fact that President Obama is no friend of Hispanic voters regarding immigration. In short, hes been a true hardliner. Thats right. President Obamas policies when it comes to deportations have made the Republican presidents who came before him look like a cluster of pro-amnesty do-nothings. Hes already officially deported more than two million people, which is by most estimates more than President George W. Bush deported in his entire eight years in office.

[It's] a recurring problem for the Grand Ol Party  the need to broaden the base in order to improve the turnout during general elections continually conflicts with the reality of primaries.  Rick Sanchez

But just as that narrative was starting to hit home for Hispanic voters, along comes a guy that no ones ever heard of named Dave Brat and soundly defeats the Republicans heir apparent to House Speaker John Boehner.

Brat attacked Cantors open borders and pro-amnesty policies with reckless abandon and it worked. Never mind that Cantor was neither pro-amnesty, nor for open borders.

What was Cantor actually for? He was quietly trying to head off Latino support of democrats nationwide by offering a competing idea on immigration. In fact, Cantors push to pass the Enlist Act, which would grant U.S. citizenship to Dreamers who enlist in the military, was so tepid even he was backing off of it.

But while Cantor was trying to position the GOP brand nationally, Tea Party candidate Brat was using it against him locally. His campaign, impressively grassroots, struck a nerve with a very small contingent of fired up conservative Virginians.

How small? As of this writing, the congressional race in Virginia has been called for Brat after receiving just 36,000 votes. In a country of 300 million, 36,000 people may have just charted the direction of the Republican Party. And that direction appears to be steadfastly on the side of anti-immigration reform.

And so it is with what has become a recurring problem for the Grand Ol Party  the need to broaden the base in order to improve the turnout during general elections continually conflicts with the reality of primaries. Its a long-term strategy versus a short-term gain. Its an established candidate like Cantor trying to re-establish the Republican brand by reaching a more diverse voter pool versus a local college professor with a grassroots following catching lightening in a jar with a single and arguably overheated issue like immigration.

As incongruous as it may sound, voters in the Republican primary in Virginia, who make up less than one half of one percent of the population of the United States, have just sent shivers down the backs of Republicans with a message that is loud and clear: Hands off immigration reform, we dont want it in any form.

And ironically, while theyre at it, primary voters may also ask this: Why cant you guys be more like the other guy, like President Obama, you know, the one they call the 'deporter in chief?"


How much longer can we, one of the fastest growing minority groups in America, pretend that racism is not an issue within the Latino community?

To quote my friend, scholar, and poet Alysia Harris, Some of us speak English because we were born and raised in America. Some of us are racist because we were born and raised in Americayou think inside a racist hegemony. It is an unconscious choice even once politically correct language is acquired because racism is a part of your upbringing.

We must begin to embrace an unchanging reality: Latinos come in many shades, and the diversity simply adds to the vibrancy of our culture.  Mark Travis Rivera

Oxford Dictionary defines racism as the following: Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that ones own race is superior. I contend that racism is rooted in privilege and power, and when asserted, is meant to create fear and to disempower an individual.

Often those who identify as Afro-Latino or as both black and Latino are treated as outsiders in our communities because many Latinos, in their assimilation to white American culture, carry the belief that being black means you are dangerous, that having a darker complexion means you are less.

As the issue of immigration continues to be a pressing one, as we continue to advocate for the needed reform, we must understand and acknowledge how varying shades of our brown and black skin plays a role in the anti-immigration debate. That while some of us have the privilege of being white, others do not, and racism is not just an issue for African Americans.

Some Latinos can walk into an establishment and not feel as if they are being watched because of their skin color. Some Latinos can turn on the television and see themselves showcased as the ideal beauty (i.e Jennifer Lopez and Shakira) but its a privilege to not be seen as a threat or less than beautiful. I am left wondering why the issue of assimilation, colorism, and white supremacy within the Latino community continues to often go unspoken of within our communities.

We see white privilege play out on Telemundo, a quick Google search will show you that the anchors are of lighter complexions. We see it in the roles given to white Latinos versus black Latinos in novelas, and Americas representation of the Latino community. A community where family is of much importance in our culture, by not addressing how we foster and support racism, we are neglecting the members of our community that are brown and black. We feed into the notion that black is not beautiful, not wanted, or loved.

Many times I am asked why many Boricuas refuse to affirm their Blackness. I attribute this denial to the ever-rampant anti-Black sentiment in America and throughout the world, but I will not use this as an excuse. Often Puerto Ricans who assert our Blackness are  outcast by Latinos who identify more with their Spanish Conqueror than their African ancestors, activist Rosa Clemente wrote in a recent blog post entitled "Who Is Black"?

In a study conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center in 2012, when asked to state their race a third (36 percent) called themselves white, a quarter (26 percent) said they are some other race and another quarter (25 percent) volunteered that they are Hispanic or Latino (even though the U.S. government doesnt treat those labels as a race). Just 10 percent said their race is black, Asian or mixed. By comparison, on the 2010 Census form, 53 percent of Hispanics checked white.

The statistics reflect what I have come to learn and understand within my own family and it is that we are conditioned to aspire to whiteness, to be seen not as people of color, but as Americanos.

It is time that we start holding ourselves accountable for the ways we keep the vicious cycle of racism going. We must begin to embrace an unchanging reality: Latinos come in many shades, and the diversity simply adds to the vibrancy of our culture.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has signed the law on state budget for 2017.

Poroshenko also signed laws on increasing the wages to employees of state coal enterprises, on amending certain legislative acts of Ukraine concerning the increase of minimum wages to UAH 3,200, and a law on amendments to the Budget Code, the Ukrainian president's press service reported.

The Ukrainian president stressed that the government of Ukraine this year timely submitted draft state budget to the Verkhovna Rada.

Poroshenko said that the budget was discussed in detail in a timely manner and at a meeting of the National Security Council in terms of spending on national defense and security sector. He also emphasized that these expenditures amount to 5.2% of GDP, and noted that these funds will go first of all for the financing of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

"For the first time the new models of weapons that have been developed over the past two and a half years, will move from the testing process to the army arsenal, which will greatly enhance the combat capability of our armed forces," the president said. However, he stressed that other law enforcement agencies will also be provided with sufficient funding.

The head of state also noted that the government, the president, the prime minister and the parliament, together made revolutionary unprecedented steps to strengthen the protection of working people - raised the minimum wages to UAH 3,200.

In addition, he stressed the importance of raising salaries of teachers and doctors.

The president said that the 2017 state budget envisages unprecedented spending on road construction.

Poroshenko also stressed that the decentralization reform has been leading to a substantial increase in local budgets for the third consecutive year. The president said that budgets of local communities increased by 5-6 times.

The president expressed the hope that after a thorough analysis of the legislative amendments by investors and international experts, Ukraine will continue improving its position in the Doing Business ranking.

As reported, Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada passed the national budget for 2017 on December 21, 2016. Some 274 MPs voted for the document. Commenting on the adoption of the document, Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman said that his government had closely been cooperating with the parliament to prepare the national budget.
The second line of the Christmas carol slips past us. We hear Good King Wenceslas looked out But what about the next bit, on the Feast of Stephen? Whats that about?

December 26th is St. Stephens Daythe Feast of Stephenlong an important celebration in the Christian calendar and now largely ignored. Its time to bring it back.

Stephen was the first Christian martyr, the protomartyr, stoned to death in the years of persecution that followed the death of Jesus. In the Acts of the Apostles, Chapters Six to Eight, we learn that Stephen was a man full of faith, appointed to oversee the care of neglected widows. Stephen took on the established authorities, corrupt in deed and belief, and they could not refute his arguments.

So, in timeless human fashion, the powers-that-were bribed witnesses against him. At the climax of his trial, knowing he was doomed, Stephen declared, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.

Out came the rocks.

What has this to do with us, as the Year of Our Lord 2017 approaches? To believing Christians, the answer might be Everything.

The 2,000-year-old Middle-Eastern Christian civilization that began in the days of St. Stephen lies in ruins, persecuted as never before. As the Obama administration averted its self-righteous gaze, a religious genocide already underway accelerated across the region. Stubborn and dogmatic, the administration refused to acknowledge the problem of Christian refugeesthose whod survived the kidnappings, tortures, rapes, massacres and broad religious cleansingeven to the extent of labeling those who wished to help Christians as bigots.

In Obamas global village, theres no room at the inn for Christian refugees. Theres not even a stable.

Weve watched as a great religious civilization nears extermination. For millennia, through good and horrid times, the three great monotheist religions of the Middle East rubbed along together (with varying levels of friction). Then, in the lifetime of many of this columns readers, the Jews were driven out. Next came the turn of the Christians, as well as a number of minority faiths. Thanks to extremist Islam.

In the Middle Ages, the majority of Christians lived in the east. The doctrines of the faith were refined in Asia Minor, Palestine and North Africa. The greatest monuments of Christianitys first thousand years all stooda few still standin lands where Christians long have been persecuted and are now massacred.

Now the Christians are gone, their churches, monasteries and homes in ruins.

This is a new age of martyrs. Its a time when those who believe in the transcendent generosity of Christ are driven from their homes to suffer exile. Its an age of blood spilled at a ravaged cross.

Even Bethlehem, within living memory a majority-Christian city, has driven out the followers of Jesus until perhaps a dwindling eighth of the population is Christian.

Where are the campus demonstrations against the torture, rape and murder, the dispossession and massacre of Christians? Where is the outrage in the media? Where are the modern Pharisees we call public intellectuals. Where are the consciences in our cant-be-bothered government?

Those Christians who survive the new barbarians become refugees with nowhere to go. Assigned to all-faith asylum homes in Europe, theyre tormented, beaten and threatened by violent migrants. Nor can they go elsewhere in the Middle East.

Yet, we in the United States bar the door against themin the name of religious tolerance, of all things. One day, we will be as ashamed of our denial of Christian refugees as deeply as we are shamed by our rejection of Jewish refugees from the Nazis.

In this new age of martyrdom, a time when forces such as the Islamic State inflict torments on Christian captives to rival the tortures endured by the early saints, its time to revive St. Stephens Day to honor the countless martyrs our leaders ignore.

This is not meant as a call for religious division. But in this age of shouting cults and fanaticism, a quiet consideration of Christian ordeals deserves at least one day of our pampered lives.

Wenceslas, too, became a saintmore or less by popular demand. He spread the faith among his pagan subjects, only to be murdered by his brother. In the Victorian-era carol, hes a king (the historical figure was a duke) who spies a poor man gathering twigs for a fire on the Feast of Stephen--a peasant who will have no feast that day. And the king sets off in the snow on a personal relief mission, followed by one page, the two of them bearing food and wine and pine logs. That particular event may not have occurred, but the symbolism of the gesture should stir us.

For that matter, mark the words of the other old carols, too.

And when you serve up your holiday leftovers on Monday, declare it the Feast of Stephen. Remember those who are martyred as you eat, the tens of thousands of Stephens whom we ignore.
Alfonso Cuaron is not letting Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto lag on the issues of reform to the countrys state-owned oil industry.

The Oscar-winning director published another full-page newspaper ad in Mexican newspapers Monday challenging the president for at least three televised public debates among experts, critics and government representatives.

On April 28, the Gravity director published 10 questions about Mexicos reform efforts, calling out the president and making it clear he doesnt agree with the way the constitutional reform was passed last year.

The presidents office responded days after, explaining how the reforms would benefit Mexicans and protect the industry from environmental or financial abuses.

But these responses were not enough for Cuaron.

I feel that your answers cannot exhaust the discussion, nor should they, he wrote in the open letter on Monday. On the contrary, they open a door of opportunity for initiating a public and open debate on these reforms, the debate that our citizens deserve.

He continued: The quality of a democracy goes beyond the electoral process. And it transcends discussions and votes in Congress. The quality of democracy depends very much on its public debates.

Cuaron said the debates should include experts in the relevant fields as well as representatives of the political parties as well as independent voices concerned with the subject.

These debates should be comprehensible, efficient, agile and conducted according to the rules of modern debate, in which the participants do not read prepared responses and in which, of course, the presence of members of your team would be necessary and your own presence most welcome, Cuaron wrote.

The overhaul of energy reform in Mexico will allow private companies to drill for oil and hold concessions for the first time since Mexicos oil industry was nationalized in 1938. Enabling legislation must still be passed.

Cuaron wrote that Mondays ad would be his last on the issue.

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A record 8 million Latinos are likely to vote in the November elections this year, said the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials.

The group also projects that by 2016, 28 million Latinos will be eligible to vote, up from the current 25 million.

Looking to the future, the Latino electorate is expected to nearly double within the

next generation, or two decades, alone, NALEO said in a report it released Tuesday on voter projections. The Latino community has established itself as a decisive force in Americas political process.

NALEO also said that an analysis of voting rights and voter identification laws and their impact on Latinos showed that barriers still exist for members of the community wanting to cast ballots.

The organization said that so-called preclearance protections  in which a district or state with a history of impeding minority voting would have to prove that their election practice wasnt discriminatory  are imperative to ensuring that Latinos be able to make their voices heard at the ballot box without confronting discriminatory barriers or obstacles.

Some protections for minority voters were removed when the Supreme Court invalidated a key part of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 last year, allowing several states to change election procedures without first getting federal approval.

In the 2010 mid-term elections, 6.6 million Latinos voted.

NALEO urged Congress to restore protections the Supreme Court invalidated in the voting rights law.

The organization said that nearly 7 million Latinos eligible to vote who reside in jurisdictions that were previously subject to preclearance protections are now without them.

Our democracy thrives when all its citizens are able to participate fully in the nations political system, said Arturo Vargas, NALEO Educational Fund Executive Director. We need to be promoting policies that make voting and registering to vote more accessible, and not less accessible, to the nations second largest population group and all qualified U.S. citizens.

Many political candidates have stepped up their courtship of Latino voters.

Several Republican gubernatorial candidates, for instance, have focused on Spanish-language advertising unusually early in their re-election campaigns.

In Florida, Gov. Rick Scott began the Latino outreach much earlier than usual, taking the unprecedented step of courting Latinos a whole seven months before the November election.

The others are New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, and Illinois Bruce Rauner. Abbot began advertising in Spanish in early March  before he won the primary. Rauner took out Spanish-language ads last month and Martinez released her ads last week.

Underlying the assertive effort is the growth of the Latino population.

You can expect to see many of our governors build their coalitions for re-election with multi-language ads and outreach, said Jon Thompson, a spokesman for the Republican Governors Association, according to the Wall Street Journal.

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The spouses of as many as 100,000 high-skilled guest workers would also be allowed to work in the United States under a change proposed by the Obama administration.

The change, which will appear in the Federal Register this week, applies only to spouses of people who are here on H-1B high-skilled employment visas and are applying for permanent residence in the United States.

Obama administration officials touted the proposed change as a way to keep the United States globally competitive by making it a more attractive destination for people around the world who are trained in such fields as science, technology, engineering and math.

The proposals announced today will encourage highly skilled, specially trained individuals to remain in the United States and continue to support U.S. businesses and the growth of the U.S. economy, said Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas in a statement.

A concurrent goal is for the United States to maintain competitiveness with other countries that attract skilled foreign workers and offer employment authorization for spouses of skilled workers, he said. American businesses continue to need skilled nonimmigrant and immigrant workers.

Supporters of the change said to Fox News Latino that it would motivate people from other nations to come here who otherwise would be reluctant to because of barriers their spouses would face to being able to work in the United States. Spouses of H-1B visa holders are not authorized, at present, to work in the United States.

This change is not without precedent, said immigration attorney Matthew Kolken, as spouses of multinational managers, and investors are already able to apply for employment authorization.

Another attorney, Susan Cohen, lauded the proposal, but said it should be even broader.

The U.S. would be more competitive if we grantedspouses a blanket right to apply for employment authorization regardless of whether their H-1B spouse has started the green card process, she said to FNL, but at least it is a step in the right direction and this change should be welcomed and applauded.

The H-1B visas for high-skilled workers are among the most sought-after by high-tech firms. Earlier this year the 85,000 H-1B visas available for 2015 were gobbled up in just a week. The same thing happened last year.

Proponents of stricter immigration laws quickly assailed the proposed change, calling it an end-run around Congress.

They have been particularly critical of Obama, who has put in place various initiatives aimed at giving breaks to some undocumented immigrants. The administration has characterized those initiatives as temporary reprieves while efforts to overhaul the U.S. immigration system remains stalled in Congress.

U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, an Alabama Republican and a senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and Ranking Member of the Budget Committee, said Obama was abusing his executive powers and hurting U.S. workers.

Yet again, the administration is acting unilaterally to change immigration law in a way that hurts American workers, Sessions said in a statement. Fifty million working-age Americans arent working. Research shows as many as half of new technology jobs may be going to guest workers.

Yet the administration is now going to immediately add almost 100,000 new guest workers to compete against unemployed Americanson top of the existing annual supply of approximately 700,000 guest workers and 1 million new permanent immigrant admissions, the senator said.

This will help corporations by further flooding a slack labor market, pulling down wages.

The proposed changes will be open to 60 days of public comment before the administration can implement them.

A second proposed change the administration announced would extend the time that specialized workers from Chile, Singapore, Australia and the Northern Mariana Islands could stay here, among other things.

Immigration advocates have been pushing Obama to make substantive changes to immigration laws, including halting all deportations until and unless Congress acts on a comprehensive immigration bill.

Last June the Senate passed a bipartisan immigration reform measure that, among other things, tightened border security, expanded foreign worker visas and provided a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. But the effort has stalled in the House, where Republicans have a majority and several of them have vowed not to pass a bill that gives amnesty to people who have broken immigration laws.

The rule proposed Tuesday would not impact deportations, but could at least partially satisfy requests from the tech industry for the government to make it easier to attract and keep foreign workers trained in science, technology, engineering and math.

If Republicans continue to block action on immigration reform, they cede the initiative to the Obama administration to take executive action, said Frank Sharry, founder and executive director of Americas Voice, an organization that advocates for more flexible immigration policies. This latest move is a classic example.

Republicans have tried to position themselves as champions of hi-tech companies, Sharry said to Fox News Latino, but their failure to pass reform that includes changes favored by both parties means that the Obama Administration can step in and save the day. Hard line opposition from the likes of Senator Sessions only makes it worse.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The primary season is getting underway Tuesday, beginning with North Carolina, Ohio, and Indiana.

But its North Carolinas that most is generating interest beyond its borders.

It is in the Tar Heel State's primary for U.S. Senate that the Tea Party is firmly taking on what its members call establishment Republicans.

USA Today reports that the contest here  where eight Republicans want to oust the incumbent U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan, a Democrat  is the first of several primaries this month testing Republican loyalties.

Among the GOP challengers who want to go head-to-head with Hagan in November are a state politics insider backed by Mitt Romney or first-time candidates more aligned with the Tea Party and the Christian right.

Hagan was being challenged in her own party by two lesser-known opponents.

Thom Tillis, the state House speaker and leading fundraiser in the GOP primary, is hoping to avoid a mid-July runoff by securing more than 40 percent of the vote.

Latinos, who have been moving to North Carolina in growing numbers in the last decade or so, make up 1.7 percent  or 113,000  of the states 6.6 million registered voters.

"I'm not the one who believes it's certain," Tillis said on election eve. "I believe it's going to depend on turnout."

His leading rivals, obstetrician and Tea Party favorite Greg Brannon and Baptist pastor Mark Harris, want to block Tillis from winning, either now or in the summer.

"We believe that there's more to come," said Harris, whose backers include former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. "There's a strong possibility or probability of a runoff, and we've realized that we've got to keep going."

As Harris worked with volunteers knocking on doors Monday, Tillis and Brannon tried to use their endorsements to their advantage.

Tillis rolled out his written endorsement from Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, who called Tillis a "conservative" and a problem-solver in state government. "I am confident he will do the same in Washington," Romney wrote in an email to Tillis' supporters.

Brannon, meanwhile, benefited from a visit to Charlotte by Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, another tea party favorite.

North Carolina needs "a dragon slayer, and that dragon slayer is Dr. Greg Brannon," Paul told 250 people downtown near the NASCAR Hall of Fame, suggesting Brannon's strong conservative beliefs would shake up the status quo in Washington. "I'm here today because Greg Brannon is a true believer and we need true believers in Congress," Paul added.

The election-eve push was all about inspiring voters in a state that narrowly chose President Barack Obama in 2008 and Romney four years later. Tuesday's balloting is being hotly monitored in a year in which Republicans are six seats away from a Senate majority and determined to put electable candidates on the ballot.

In Ohio, House Speaker John Boehner is expected to win the primary.

But observers will be looking to see by what margin Boehner, who is seen by many conservatives as a Beltway Republican, manages to beat a Tea Party opponent.

That race has become symbolic nationally, said John Green, director of the Ray C. Bliss Institute for Applied Politics in Akron, Ohio, according to the Christian Science Monitor. Boehner doesnt want articles to be written saying, Well, he won, but he got the lowest margin in 12 years."

And in Indiana, Rep. Susan Brooks, a Republican, faces a challenge from two fellow GOP candidates.

In all, May is to have 11 state primaries.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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Four U.S. House members have met with an American government subcontractor who is serving a 15-year prison sentence in Cuba.

The delegation includes U.S. Reps. Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri, Sam Farr and Barbara Lee of California and Gregory Meeks of New York.

Cleaver says they are hoping to start negotiations on securing the release of Alan Gross, a Maryland native.

Lee says it is time for both countries to "make a serious commitment" to serious negotiations.

The delegation also met Monday with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez.

Gross was arrested in 2009 after he was caught setting up hard-to-detect Internet networks for Cuba's small Jewish community on a U.S. government contract. Havana considers such programs to be an affront to its sovereignty.

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Authorities arrested a suspected hacker for trying to obtain information to sabotage government peace talks with Colombia's biggest rebel movement, the chief prosecutor's office said Tuesday.

The announcement described Andres Sepulveda as the leader of a spying ring that operated out of an office raided over the past two days in a tony Bogota neighborhood.

The case has political overtones, coming less than three weeks before Colombia's presidential election.

Investigators said they had reason to believe that President Juan Manuel Santos' email might have been intercepted, but they provided no details.

Sepulveda was a collaborator on the campaign of Oscar Ivan Zuluaga, one of Santos' toughest rivals in his bid to win re-election May 25.

Zuluaga, a former finance chief, acknowledged on Tuesday that Sepulveda had been providing information security and social networking services to his campaign since February. But he condemned any illegal actions by the contractor, assuring they had nothing to do with his work for the campaign.

Chief prosecutor Eduardo Montealegre said he had no reason to believe it was anything other than coincidence that Sepulveda was working with the conservative candidate.

Zuluaga hinted the arrest might be an effort to distract Colombians from another campaign scandal: Monday's resignation of Santos' chief campaign strategist, J.J. Rendon, amid allegations that he received $12 million from top drug lords to mediate a negotiated surrender. Rendon denied having taken any money from drug traffickers.

Sepulveda's alleged effort to undermine the government's talks with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia is not the first case of spying on the peace negotiations in Cuba. In February, authorities acting on a media investigation uncovered a secret surveillance center in Colombia's capital tied to the military and from which the electronic communications of government and rebel negotiators were being monitored.

Montealegre said Tuesday that there was no indication that government agencies or the military were connected to Sepulveda's alleged activities.

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Its still early, as far as the November elections go.

But Florida Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican, is already on his second Spanish-language campaign ad, and this one takes a direct hit at his challenger, Charlie Crist.

The ad accuses Crist, who was Florida governor from 2007 to 2011, for ruining the states economy. The title of the ad is Nos Abandono (He Abadoned Us).

Scott is also trying to capitalize on the Florida legislatures recent passage of a bill that allows people who are in the United States illegally to attend public colleges at the same tuition rates as legal residents of the state.

Scott, who has trailed Crist in polls, has noted that in 2006, when Crist was a Republican, he opposed in-state tuition. Crist now supports it.

A group supporting Crist, meanwhile, recently released an ad targeting Latino voters that hits back at Scott. The ad draws attention to Scotts past hard-line stances on immigration.

Both men are casting each other as chameleons who have flip-flopped on issues of interest to many Latinos for the sake of getting their votes.

Charlie Crist, the human chameleon, has held at least two positions on practically every issue, including issues the Hispanic community cares about, The New York Times quoted Ana Navarro, a GOP strategist, as saying.

Political observers say the increasingly nasty tone of campaign ads targeted at Latinos is a recognition of how important the voting bloc is.

"It's the vote that's going to make the difference in who becomes governor," said Evelyn Perez-Verdia, the Weston-based publisher of the website PoliticalPasion.com, according to the Sun Sentinel. "We're the swing vote, the vote that's unpredictable. Hispanics tend not to vote for the party. They'll vote for the person."

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Four Cuban exiles from Miami have been detained on the island and accused of planning "terrorist actions," Havana authorities said Wednesday, the first such arrests in years.

The Interior Ministry said the men were taken into custody on April 26 and alleged that their targets were military. Few details were released, and it was not clear why it took so long to make the arrests public.

"They intended to attack military installations with the goal of perpetrating violent actions," the ministry said in a statement published by Communist Party newspaper Granma. "To such ends, since mid-2013, three of them had made several trips to the island to study and carry out their plan."

The arrests come amid increased exchanges between exiles and their homeland, including visits by several prominent former hardliners who had vowed never to set foot on the island while brothers Fidel and Raul Castro were still in charge.

The statement listed the detained men as Jose Ortega Amador, Obdulio Rodriguez Gonzalez, Raibel Pacheco Santos and Felix Monzon Alvarez.

None are well-known within the exile community in South Florida, but Cuba claimed they were acting on orders from others who do have a history of militancy.

In its statement Wednesday, the Interior Ministry said the alleged Miami-based masterminds were Santiago Alvarez Fernandez Magrina, Osvaldo Mitat and Manuel Alzugaray. It also linked them to perhaps the best known militant Cuban exile, Luis Posada Carriles, whom Cuba and Venezuela have sought to prosecute for a 1976 airliner bombing that killed 73 people aboard a flight bound for Cuba.

Cuba's Interior Ministry said it was reaching out to U.S. authorities to investigate.

"We have seen the statement by the Cuban Ministry of Interior," said U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki. "We don't have any further information at this time. The Cuban government has also not been in touch with us yet on these cases. We have not been in touch at this point."

The U.S. Interests Section in Havana and the FBI office in Miami had no immediate reaction.

Santiago Alvarez and Mitat pleaded guilty in 2006 in the United States to conspiracy after an informant tipped the FBI that a large cache of weapons  including automatic machine guns and a grenade launcher  was being moved from apartments Alvarez owned.

A subsequent search of a storage area at the apartment revealed more weapons and thousands of rounds of ammunition. Another arms cache was found in the Bahamas, including C-4 plastic explosives, that prosecutors claimed was linked to Alvarez. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison and Mitat got a two-year sentence.

Contacted Wednesday in Florida, Santiago Alvarez denied involvement in any plot and said he did not know the detained men. He said he rarely speaks to Posada Carriles and only sees Mitat occasionally. Posada Carriles declined to comment.

Alvarez accused Havana of trying to drum up an excuse to crack down further on island dissidents. He said he still supports change on the Communist-run island, but no longer condones violence.

"Honestly, if I could, I would be doing it," he said. "But the truth is, the thought of everybody of how to fight the dictatorship in Cuba has changed  the tactics at least."

"This is nothing more than a plan to use my name to go against the opposition in Cuba."

In 2001, three Cuban-Americans were detained on the island after coming onshore with guns and ammunition, according to Cuban authorities. They were prosecuted nine years later over an alleged plan to place a bomb in the famous Tropicana nightclub.

In 1997, a series of hotel bombings hit Havana, one of which killed an Italian man. Salvadoran and Guatemalan nationals were arrested and pointed to Posada Carriles and other exiles as the intellectual authors of the attacks.

But it has been years since Cuban authorities have reported a specific terror threat such as the alleged one announced Wednesday.

Elizardo Sanchez, a Cuban non-governmental human rights monitor on the island, said he had not heard anything about the detained exiles. His organization has regular communication with people in Cuban lockups.

"''It is very strange," he said. "This feeds the idea that there is an external threat. "

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In the most closely watched race Tuesday launching primary season, North Carolina voters leaning Republican chose candidates who embraced more middle-of-the-road stances over Tea Party contenders.

State House Speaker Thom Tillis, a conservative who ran as the so-called establishment Republican, captured the Republican nomination over Tea Party favorite Greg Brannon, who got backing from Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky.

Rep. Renee Elmers, who has taken a liberal stance on immigration reform, handily defeated opponent Frank Roche, who staked his candidacy on a hard line immigration stance.

She won by nearly 20 percentage points, a greater margin than her primary victory during her 2012 reelection campaign. State Assemblyman David Rouzer, also a supporter for more liberal immigration policies, won the race for an open seat left by Mike McIntyre, a congressman who is not seeking re-election after serving since 1997.

The Tar Heel states Republican primary fight between ultra-conservative candidates and those with more flexible views is being seen as a test of where Republican voters stand on the ideological spectrum, and what that may imply for the November elections.

Groups that favor more liberal immigration policies seized on the triumph of more moderate Republicans over Tea Party candidates as a sign that GOP voters were eschewing ultra-conservatism, particularly when it comes to how to deal with immigrants.

Yesterdays primaries in North Carolina and Ohio proved, once again, that the supposed strength of the nativist wing of the GOP is more myth than reality, said a statement by Americas Voice, a group that favors more lenient immigration policies. The results show that the vaunted anti-immigrant movement is loud but not large, and that Republican primary voters are more pragmatic and open to reform than right-wing media pretends.

Nationally, GOP leaders are intent on gaining, at a minimum, the six seats needed to win a Senate majority in the fall. They already have a majority in the House of Representatives.

Establishment GOP figures made little or no secret of their desire for Tillis to prevail, fearful that any other challenger to the Democrat incumbent, Sen. Kay Hagan, could mean a replay of 2010 and 2012, when Republicans lost winnable Senate races in Nevada, Indiana and Missouri.

In many races in recent years, the most conservative candidates won GOP primaries, but then lacked the broader appeal to win the general elections.

The nations largest Tea Party group, the Tea Party Express, did not actively support anyone in North Carolina, but said it will probably endorse Tillis for the November election.

Sal Russo, chief strategist for the Tea Party Express, said North Carolinas primary results did not spell a defeat for the Tea Party or its principles.

The first test [for the Tea Party] was in Florida, Russo said. Thats the first election in which the Tea Party Express endorsed a candidate, Curt Clawson, in the primary.

Clawson, a conservative businessman, beat three GOP contenders, putting up millions of his money into the campaign, and garnering the support of the ultra-conservative base, including Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky. His main challenger was state Senate Majority Leader Lizbeth Benacquisto, who was endorsed by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

Russo argues that the lines between Tea Party conservatives and other Republicans are not always as clear as many deem them to be.

Governor Palin was not with us on that one, Russo said about the former vice presidential candidate who is a favorite of Tea Party groups. That shows that with the Tea Party, its not always black and white. Its usually gray.

Theres a constant struggle that goes on, the insiders and outsiders, Russo said. Whats important is at the end of the day, they come together on a common interest, which we did in 2010."

In this case, the candidates described as establishment were largely conservative, though they ran under more of a moderate GOP banner, and seemed more center-right when stood up against their more conservative challengers.

The head of the Democratic National Committee balked on Wednesday at the contention that moderate Republicans had won the civil war against the Tea Party faction.

On the contrary, the Tea Party has won the civil war that has been raging inside the Republican Party, said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the Florida Democrat who chairs the DNC, at an event hosted by by the Christian Science Monitor.

North Carolina House Speaker Tillis, Wasserman said, is really a Tea Party conservative hiding under establishment GOP clothing.

If anything, the congresswoman added, North Carolinas primary results reflect how the Tea Party has pushed the Republican Party into embracing more extreme conservative positions.

Tom Tillis is no longer  if he ever was  an establishment candidate. He has been dramatically pulled to the right, she said. As speaker of the House, he has presided over some of the most extreme right-wing policies that have ever been enacted by a legislature. He has taken positions, by being forced to the right, and Im assuming hes done that willingly. He certainly seems to have gleefully engaged in some of the policies hes put forward.

She added: Thats what I think is going to continue to cause the Republicans problems in winning elections.

Democrats in North Carolina already have signaled that they will cast candidates like Tillis and Elmers as extreme-right conservatives masquerading as moderate Republicans.

Hagan said in a statement, "Speaker Tillis cut public education by nearly $500 million, killed equal pay legislation, defunded Planned Parenthood, gutted unemployment insurance for 170,000 people and rejected health care for 500,000 North Carolinians" by declining to expand Medicaid. She said he cut taxes for the rich and froze teachers' pay.

Tillis portrays his legislative record as a triumph of common-sense conservatism. He says voters should elect him senator because of that legislative record. Hagan says they should reject him for precisely the same reason.

Their contest should show where voters want the conservative-liberal balance drawn in a state that often sends one Democrat and one Republican to the Senate.

Like her fellow Democrats in Arkansas, Louisiana, Alaska and elsewhere, Hagan must persuade anti-Obama independent voters that her support for the president's health care law does not signal blind loyalty on all issues.

Activists in both parties say the Obamacare attacks have hurt Hagan. But they also agree that Tillis can't beat Hagan by harping on the health care issue alone.

"I don't think there's anyone in North Carolina who doesn't know Kay Hagan voted for Obamacare," said longtime Republican strategist Carter Wrenn of Raleigh. The broader issue, he said, is overall disenchantment with Obama, especially among independents.

"Saying she supports Obamacare is saying she supports Obama," Wrenn said.

Veteran North Carolina Democratic adviser Gary Pearce predicts Tillis' strategy will amount to: "I'm going to fight Obama, and she's going to support Obama. ... That's all you're going to hear from now on."

It's a Republican strategy likely to play out in Arkansas, Louisiana, Alaska, Colorado and New Hampshire, where Democratic senators seek re-election. They are among the GOP's priorities in its drive to gain six Senate seats and control the Senate during Obama's last two years in office.

Tillis' nomination gives North Carolina a head start in the effort.

"If the election is a referendum on Obamacare, then Kay Hagan will probably lose," said North Carolina Democratic strategist and blogger Thomas Mills. "If it's a referendum on the state General Assembly, Thom Tillis is going to have a hard time."

Russo, for his part, has traveled all over the country meeting with congressional GOP candidates to get a feel for whom the Tea Party Express will endorse.

They are sizing up the candidates on whether they adhere to conservative principles, where they stand on growing the economy, whether they can raise enough money and whether they are electable in a general election.

"Can they put together a viable campaign?" Russo said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.
U.S. President Barack Obama has signed the U.S. budget for the needs of national defense for 2017, increasing aid to the Ukraine security sector to $350 million.

"U.S. President Barack Obama has signed into law the National Defense Authorizations Act 2017 authorizing up to $350 million to be made available for security assistance to Ukraine, including lethal defensive assistance for the fiscal year of 2017. It is a $50 million increase from $300 million authorized in NDAA 2016," reads a report on the Facebook page of the Embassy of Ukraine in the United States.

The document foresees fiscal assistance to Ukraine in the field of security, including lethal defense weapons. The list of types of assistance was extended by inclusion of funds and technical support for the development of an integrated system for monitoring the state border of Ukraine, as well as assistance in training staff officers and the command authorities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

As reported, the bill on U.S. defense policy signed by the president provides for the restriction of military cooperation with Russia. The act for 2017 foresees $611 billion budget for the defense sector. Of these, $3.4 billion will be used for "containment of Russia."
In Florida, U.S. policy on Cuba long has been factor in local politics.

And now, the gubernatorial campaign is no exception.

The Democratic candidate for governor, Charlie Crist, has said its time to lift the trade embargo between Cuba and the United States. Whats more, Crist, who was governor from 2007 to 2011, says hes considering going to Cuba in the summer.

"We ought to think big. We ought to lift the embargo on Cuba and work with the president and get things done," Crist said recently during a visit to the landmark Cuban eatery, Versailles Restaurant, in Miami.

Earlier this year, Crist, who previously had supported the embargo, said in an interview on HBO: I mean the embargo has been there  what  50 years now? I dont think it worked. It is obvious to me that we need to move forward and I think get the embargo taken away. Really. I believe that."

His opponent, Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican, strongly condemned Crists plans to visit Cuba as well as his opposition to the embargo  both touchy subjects among many of the Cuban exiles who live in Florida.

He is talking about going to Cuba so all this is going to do is embolden the Castro regime, Scott said during a campaign event Wednesday with Miami elected officials, most of whom were Cuban-American. He will be used for propaganda for Cuba. I'm going to focus on Florida families. When he spends money there he is helping the Castro regime."

Asked by a reporter if he would go to Cuba, Scott said: I wouldn't go. There is no freedom of speech, they throw people in prison. There is oppression. It is not a free country.

For decades, opposing the embargo openly practically spelled political suicide in South Florida, where Cuban-Americans generally harbor strong feelings against the Castro regime and long insisted on keeping the embargo, if for no other reason than a symbolic one.

Many critics of the embargo have said that it has failed to bring democratic changes to the government in Cuba, and has succeeded only in hurting the people on the island by cutting off their access to many resources.

Supporters say that lifting the embargo will not bring more liberties to Cubans there, and that the regime will be the only one to benefit from any influx of U.S. dollars.

Also, Florida is now home to a vastly diverse Latino population, one that includes many people who oppose the embargo. Crist is beating Scott in Miami-Dade 49-33 percent. He also leads him in polls statewide.

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, a Democrat from Florida, praised Crists views and his consideration of traveling to Cuba.

"I am very pleased that others will travel to Cuba, speak with the outgoing and friendly Cuban people, stand up for American values, and learn for themselves, said Castor, who traveled there last year with a non-profit group, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

Fox News producer Serafin Gomez contributed to this report from Miami.

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U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson met with groups on opposite ends of the immigration debate on Wednesday.

Johnson, who is in the midst of considering changes to the way the deportations are carried out, met with undocumented immigrants who want the Department of Homeland Security to waive deportations for people who do not have criminal records. And he also met, separately, with some of the nations leading groups that advocate for stricter immigration enforcement.

United We Dream, which describes itself as the largest immigrant youth organization in the country, said in a statement that the meeting with Johnson had been productive.

The group said it had told the DHS head that the administrations record rate of deportations  2 million since President Obama took office  has had a devastating impact on families, separating spouses, parents from children and destabilizing immigrant communities.

They want the administration to extend to more undocumented immigrants an initiative from 2012 that suspended deportation for immigrant youth.

While Sec. Johnson did not provide details about the timing or content of his current policy review, the stories we shared make it clear why we need significant relief and reform now, said Lorella Praeli, the director of policy and advocacy at United We Dream. Our community cannot wait.

United We Dream also suggested creating a humanitarian relief program for deported immigrants who have U.S. resident or citizen families. They also are pushing for less detention.

We look forward to continuing the dialogue with Sec. Johnson and asked to meet with him again, she said, to ensure that the real people affected by the Obama Administrations immigration enforcement remain front and center in his mind and heart.

On the same day, Johnson met with heads of Numbers USA, the Center for Immigration Studies, the Federation for American Immigration Reform, Progressives for Immigration Reform and the Eagle Forum  all groups that want tougher enforcement.

Several people who attended the meeting told Politico that they expressed concern about state and local governments that have said they were defying orders by federal officials to detain people whom local authorities arrest so that immigration agents can take over and begin deportation proceedings.

Our point was  you need to exercise a little leadership in coming out against these publicly, condemning them, said Mark Krikorian, the executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, according to Politico.

The proponents of tough immigration enforcement also urged Johnson to make random deportations a part of the agencys practice.

They argued, according to Politico, that enforcement practices by other agencies use randomness  such as the Internal Revenue Service does with random audits, and local police use of speed traps.

We pushed very hard that there has to be a percentage of the resources [that] have to be for random deportations, said Roy Beck, the executive director of Numbers USA.

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Congress is moving closer to imposing economic penalties against Venezuela's government.

State Department officials will brief a Senate committee Thursday on violent street protests that have rocked the country for weeks, and a House panel will finalize its version of a sanctions bill Friday.

The legislation in both chambers is relatively modest. It centers on $15 million in new funds to promote democracy and rule of law in the South American country. It bans visas for Venezuelan officials who crushed anti-government protests by students, opposition leaders and others and freezes their assets.

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., a sponsor of the Senate legislation, said the message penalties would carry is most important, coming at a time when human rights groups accuse Venezuelan security officials of arresting, torturing and even killing unarmed demonstrators.

"This is happening in our very own hemisphere," Rubio said in a telephone interview with the Associated Press. He said sanctions should target anyone responsible for human rights violations, refusing to rule out Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro as a potential target.

Action now would show the U.S. is "firmly on the side of the democratic aspirations of the Venezuelan people," Rubio said.

Sanctions are gaining support following the release of a scathing report this week by Human Rights Watch. The group said judges and prosecutors have repeatedly ignored evidence of systematic rights abuses by government forces, citing dozens of protesters who have suffered serious physical and psychological abuse. At least 41 people have died since February, while others have suffered broken bones, denial of medical treatment and threats of rape or death.

At least 10 cases were serious enough to be considered torture, the New York-based organization said. Nearly all the cases it examined involved people who were denied due process, with many held incommunicado and refused access to legal counsel until minutes before they went to court, often in the middle of the night.

Maduro and other officials blame protesters for most of the violence and abuses and say the demonstrations are a coordinated attempt to overthrow the government. The government says 15 officials are being investigated for alleged rights violations, while 200 security force members and officials have been injured and at least nine killed, Human Rights Watch noted.

Rubio, a potential Republican presidential candidate in 2016, shifted his focus to foreign policy after pulling back from an immigration overhaul. He introduced sanctions legislation in the Senate in March, with Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., and Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J. Thursday's hearing to study the bill is also partly to persuade the committee's top Republican, Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, to back the effort.

Corker has championed tougher U.S. sanctions on Russia over its actions in Ukraine and has sought to block the Obama administration's attempts to roll back sanctions against Iran as part of last year's interim nuclear agreement. He has been more cautious about Venezuela, however.

"With ongoing diplomatic efforts to support dialogue in Venezuela, the committee needs to hear first from the administration about what the U.S. strategy is and how targeted sanctions would help advance that strategy," Corker said last month.

Rubio says ways to best apply economic pressure will be discussed at the hearing.

"We're looking to target individuals in the government or associated with the government," he said. "We're not penalizing the Venezuelan people."

Rubio also has spoken of bringing opposition leaders to testify before the Foreign Relations panel and suggested special temporary U.S. visas for Venezuelans forced to flee.

In an editorial published in the Miami Herald, Rubio wrote, "Congress should expand the scope of the sanctions to include individuals taking part in massive economic corruption schemes that rob the Venezuelan people of a better life and prop up the tyrannical Maduro regime."

Legislative efforts in the House are further advanced than in the Senate. The House Foreign Affairs Committee will consider a bill from another Floridian, Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, on Friday.

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No other president in the history of the United States has abused the power of the White House more than President Barack Obama, at least according to Ted Cruz.

The Texas Republican senator, in a new report, outlined 76 times Obama has bypassed Congress and federal law to enact his own policies.

"Of all the troubling aspects of the Obama presidency, none is more dangerous than the president's persistent pattern of lawlessness, his willingness to disregard the written law and instead enforce his own policies via executive fiat," Cruz wrote in the opening of his report entitled "The Legal Limit Report No. 4."

The 12-page document lays out the administration's alleged "abuse of power" and executive overreaches  the examples include disregarding marriage, immigration, welfare, and drug laws. Cruz also said the president has bypassed Congress to extend federal marriage benefits to same-sex couples, to issue a new immigration policy that allows relatives of military troops and veterans to stay in the country legally to issuing exemptions, waivers and delays with the implementation of Obamacare.

Rule of law means that we are a nation ruled by laws, not men. No one  and especially not the president  is above the law. For that reason, the U.S. Constitution imposes on every president the express duty to take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed. Rather than honor this duty, President Obama has openly defied it by repeatedly suspending, delaying, and waiving portions of the laws that he is charged to enforce, Cruz wrote.

Cruz noted in his report that Democrats should consider the precedence set by the Obama administration and what would happen if a Republican president decided to bypass Congress and federal law to enact his or her own policies.

"For all those who are silent now: What would they think of a Republican president who announced that he was going to ignore the law, or unilaterally change the law?" Cruz wrote. "Imagine a future president setting aside environmental laws, or tax laws, or labor laws, or tort laws, with which he or she disagreed. That would be wrong."

Below are some of the other alleged examples of Obama's "lawlessness" in Cruz's opinion.

1. Implemented portions of the DREAM Act, which Congress rejected, by executive action.

2. Continued to give Egypt aid after the military took over its government, even though, Cruz said, federal law prohibits aid to Egypt in the event of a coup.

3. Falsely portrayed the Benghazi terrorist attack as a spontaneous protest against an anti-Muslim YouTube video, Cruz said, and then lied about the White House's involvement.

4. Extended the deadline to enroll in Obamacare.

5. Had meetings with lobbyists in coffee shops near the White House to avoid disclosure requirements.

6. Illegally sold thousands of guns to criminals, in the operation known as Fast and Furious, and then refused to comply with congressional subpoenas about the operation.
As the Republican Party and big-pocketed political donors turn their attention to Jeb Bush, who many think could be a strong presidential contender, freshman Sen. Marco Rubio is clamoring for the spotlight.

The Cuban-American rose quickly in the GOP ranks  and quickly became a hot commodity in a party striving to reinvent itself. But his star power has cooled recently as more seasoned politicians have taken his spot in the spotlight.

But now Rubio is fighting to revive his political prospects. He is returning to the presidential campaign circuit and beefing up a political organization that could lay the groundwork for a White House bid.

In the clearest sign yet of his interest in a presidential run, the Florida Republican plans to visit New Hampshire on Friday, his first appearance in an early-voting state in more than a year. He is set to headline a pair of fundraisers in Republican-rich counties and meet with local officials, efforts that will grant him an audience with activists and donors in the home of the nation's first presidential primary.

At the same time, he has shuffled his staff and directed his political resources to three key Senate races this year, including a GOP primary in Iowa. The first voting of the presidential primary season occurs in the Iowa caucuses.

Taken together, Rubio's actions are part of an effort to strengthen his standing in a potentially crowded 2016 presidential field after a year in which he saw his popularity slip over his backing of an immigration overhaul.

The renewed push also comes as the GOP establishment turns its attention to the freshman senator's onetime mentor, Jeb Bush. Many party insiders and major donors are signaling their preference for the former Florida governor, which could threaten a potential Rubio candidacy.

Neither man has publicly declared his intentions for 2016, but Rubio had proved a prolific fundraiser, tapping his donor-rich home state and the political networks of the past three GOP presidential nominees. Last year, he raised about $8.3 million  more than Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky or Ted Cruz of Texas, both tea party stars who are also weighing White House bids.

For now, Rubio's advisers say his political focus remains on helping Republicans retake the Senate in November. Last month, he moved Cesar Conda, his chief of staff and a longtime GOP insider who once worked for Vice President Dick Cheney, to his Reclaim America political action committee. The group is backing candidates in Arkansas, Colorado and Iowa  efforts that aides acknowledge could help buoy a presidential campaign should Rubio choose to run.

In Washington, Rubio has muscled his way to the forefront of major domestic and foreign policy debates, becoming a leading Republican voice for more robust action in geopolitical hot spots from Venezuela to Russia to China. Next week, he will detail his ideas to bolster retirement security and overhaul entitlement programs.

"By every measure, those who are struggling to get ahead are worse off than they were four years ago," Rubio told the Associated Press in an interview. "I think both parties are guilty of continuing to debate how we can fix these broken 20th century institutions instead of having a debate about how we create new institutions for the 21st century."

It's a theme he'll likely sound on Friday in New Hampshire, where he faces a wide-open contest on largely friendly ground.

His support for last year's immigration legislation is unlikely to hurt him among the state's primary voters, a group considered more moderate than those who decide early contests in Iowa and South Carolina.

Steve Duprey, a current Republican National Committee member, was among five former state GOP chairmen to sign a letter last year endorsing the Rubio-backed immigration overhaul. The state's GOP senator, Kelly Ayotte, was the first Republican outside Rubio's working group to publicly support the plan.

"He's sort of a victim of his own success. He was considered this hotshot rising star. Then a couple of issues like immigration haven't gone very far, so some people think his stock is falling," Duprey said of Rubio. "To me, he comes across as a serious and thoughtful, mainstream conservative."

Indeed, Rubio is the first in the group of the so-called mainstream Republican class to appear in New Hampshire this year. Mike Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor and ordained Baptist minister, and Tea Party favorites Paul and Cruz have visited several times.

Other New Hampshire Republicans report some skepticism about Rubio, whom they describe as a relatively inexperienced politician who has failed to impress in key moments.

Based on reporting by the Associated Press.

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Slightly more than 1 million international students are attending some 9,000 U.S. schools on academic or vocational visas, according to federal data.

Three quarters of those students were from Asian nations. A third of them were from China.

The only Latino nations among the top 10 that sends students to the U.S. were Mexico and Brazil.

The degree program with the most foreign students is the bachelors, with 335,609, followed by the post-graduate, with 265,210.

The most popular majors were business, engineering and computer.

Students from India dominate in the popular STEM academic programs  they make up nearly 80 percent of those who study science, technology, engineering or mathematics.

The data looked at student enrollment as of April 1 and was released by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

In recent years, Congress has considered proposals to facilitate permanent U.S. visas for international students who graduate with a degree in a STEM field. They have cited a shortage of U.S. citizen workers who have the skills for those jobs.

Critics of such proposals argue that there is no shortage of Americans with STEM skills, and that employers are seeking cheaper labor.

A 2010 report by the Brookings Institute said that students from India and China would benefit most from any measure that would give them easier access to U.S. residency.

Under the current visa system, citizens from these two countries face waiting times that exceed 10 years for a green card due to country caps backlogs, the report said.

The institute also noted that the United States is the global hub of higher education, attracting 21 percent of all students studying abroad.

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U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz denied having any knowledge about a political action committee that is using his name and the Benghazi attack that killed a U.S. ambassador and three other Americans to raise funds.

The PAC, named Patriots for Economic Freedom, said in a fundraising notice that contributions would go toward supporting Ted Cruz in his efforts to create a Senate select committee to investigate Benghazi.

Such solicitation would go against a request to members of Congress by Rep. Trey Gowdy, a South Carolina Republican who is chairing a committee in the House looking into the Benghazi attack, not to raise funds off the investigation.

On Thursday, Cruz, a Republican from Texas, denied knowing about the fundraising, according to Politico.

I know nothing about it, he said. First Ive heard of it.

Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier is quoted in Politico as saying that the senators office is asking the PAC to stop using the lawmakers name in its effort.

We have not authorized the Senators name or image to be used in this case and ask groups that have done so to stop using it for that purpose, Frazier said.

Cruz has been a vocal supporter of conducting an investigation into what happened at the embassy, and the response by the U.S. State Department.

Four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens, were killed when militants stormed the diplomatic outpost. Republicans, who insist the Obama administration hasn't come clean on what happened, voted Thursday to create the special investigative committee.

The panel's investigation means high-profile hearings in the months leading up to the elections, with Republicans grilling current and former Obama administration officials. Certain to be called to testify is former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, the Democrats' potential 2016 presidential candidate.

Join Ted Cruz and give the Benghazi victims the honor they deserve. Dont let the White House cover up this scandal! the PAC wrote on Wednesday, according to Politico. Ted Cruz needs your support to demand that the Senate create a select committee to investigate this tragedy.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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California on Friday proposed requiring immigrants in the country illegally to present foreign government-issued identification to obtain a driver's license or go through an interview process using other documents to prove their identity.

The move would make the state the first in the country to offer a secondary review process for immigrants using alternate documents, such as marriage, tax and school records, California's Department of Motor Vehicles said in a statement.

Under the proposal, California would require fewer documents when those presented are very secure. An interview with a DMV investigator would be required when alternate documents are used to prevent fraud.

"We heard from individuals that they may not have the more secure documents," Kristin Triepke, policy branch chief for the DMV's license operations division, told reporters in a conference call. "That is why we are proposing to have our investigative staff provide this review."

The announcement comes as California gears up to start issuing the new licenses by January 2015. The state is one of nearly a dozen to approve driver's licenses for immigrants in the country illegally, and expects to issue about 1.4 million of the new licenses during the first three years.

California was recently dealt a blow, however, when federal Homeland Security officials rejected the proposed design for the license, saying it didn't meet national identification standards because it was not easily distinguishable from the state's standard driver's license. Since then, congressional and state lawmakers have urged federal authorities to reconsider the decision.

Earlier this year, immigrants and advocates pushed hard for California's DMV to be flexible on what documents are required to prove identity and residency for the new licenses, noting immigrants in the country illegally may have a hard time getting foreign government-issued identification such as a passport or birth certificate.

Leaders of the state's Latino Legislative Caucus on Friday said they were pleased that the proposed rules allowed applicants various ways to prove their identity.

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A woman nicknamed Rocky. A daughter of former migrant farmworkers. A child of politics.

These female candidates for the House embody Democratic hopes in a rough election year.

President Barack Obama's unpopularity is a drag on his fellow Democrats, and no one is talking seriously about breaking the GOP lock on the House in midterm elections, when the president's party traditionally loses seats.

But Democrats, after robust recruiting of female candidates, are counting on women to knock out a few GOP men.

That's where Rocky from New Mexico  39-year-old Roxanne "Rocky" Lara  comes in.

The former Eddy County commissioner, who got her nickname from an uncle, is an underdog against Republican Rep. Steve Pearce in a district that stretches across the southern part of the state. The five-term conservative has $1.4 million cash on hand in a district that leans Republican.

Lara is counting on winning over voters with a record of bipartisanship, working-class issues such as raising the minimum wage, support for an immigration overhaul in a Hispanic-leaning district and, in a break with liberals, backing of the Keystone XL pipeline. She adds a dose of gender politics.

Pearce, in his memoir published this year, wrote that the "wife is to voluntarily submit, just as the husband is to lovingly lead and sacrifice." The Baptist lawmaker's writings were based on his reading of the Bible.

In a recent interview, Lara said her campaign is drawing "the contrast between my experience, my beliefs and my values and what I'm going to work for, compared to those 1950s beliefs that Congressman Pearce lives by."

In California, 39-year-old Amanda Renteria is the daughter of a Mexican immigrant, was educated at Stanford and Harvard, and was the first Latina chief of staff in the U.S. Senate. She worked for two of the 20 women in the Senate  Democratic Sens. Dianne Feinstein of California and Debbie Stabenow of Michigan.

Renteria is looking to unseat first-term Rep. David Valadao, a third-generation farmer, in the Central Valley. She disagrees with Obama's efforts to cut crop insurance in a district the president won with 55 percent of the vote, and criticizes her rival as immigration legislation founders in the GOP-controlled House.

She says that sends a clear message of disrespect to families and the Hispanic community, and offers a saying in Spanish. The translation: "Tell me who your friends are and I'll tell you who you are."

In Florida, Gwen Graham, 51, is trying to emulate the campaign success of her father, Bob Graham, a former governor and senator, in a race against two-term Rep. Steve Southerland in the Panhandle. She criticizes his vote against the Violence Against Women Act, has adopted her father's "work days" to gain insights into the lives of Florida residents and insists that she'll be a pragmatic Democrat in his mold.

Graham says complaints that she was riding her father's coattails initially held her back.

"I don't think if my father had had a son that there would have been that hesitation to make sure that I had all the skill sets before I offered myself for office," she said.

The three candidates, who recently sat down for an interview with The Associated Press, are part of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's "Red to Blue" program focused on the party's high-profile candidates in competitive races. Their bids this election year underscore the gender divide between Democrats and Republicans.

Sixty-three of the 199 Democrats in the House are women, compared with just 19 of the 233 Republicans. Democrats have recruited 102 women to run for open seats and challenge incumbents this election, compared with 66 Republicans, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University.

"You cannot recruit women while you're prosecuting a war on women," said Rep. Steve Israel, D-N.Y., chairman of the campaign committee. He criticized the GOP record on health care, opposition to Democratic bills such as raising the minimum wage and efforts to block the Violence Against Women Act, which passed last year with overwhelming Democratic support.

Not so, say Republicans, who describe the Democratic claims of a GOP "war on women" as false arguments engineered for political purposes. As for the numbers, Reps. Ann Wagner, R-Mo., and Diane Black, R-Tenn., are working on getting more women elected to the House, helping with fundraising, campaign staff and messaging.

Their record so far is mixed. Republicans expect Mia Love, a former mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah, to easily win an open seat, and they are upbeat about state Del. Barbara Comstock's prospects in claiming an open seat in northern Virginia.

Another opportunity recently slipped away in a Florida special election primary.

"The universe that we have to work with is only open seats and challenger seats," Wagner said. "I try to remind folks. It's not like we're running Republican women against some of our Republican male members that are currently serving."

Wagner is certain that the number of Republican women will increase in the House. She counts up 24 women with potential.

"Some will get there. Some won't. I think we're going to grow our numbers," says Wagner, a former co-chairman of the Republican National Committee.

Lara, Renteria and Graham are intent on increasing the Democratic numbers, spending 80 percent of their time raising money, a crucial step. The three laugh in agreement when asked the hardest part of campaigning.

"Having to get dressed up every day," they say.

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Sen. Marco Rubio on Friday evening called out President Barack Obama for failing to deliver on his 2012 campaign promise to working class families.

Rubio told a gathering of New Hampshire Republicans that, The extraordinary irony is the man who is now in the White House, and his party, actively campaigned six years ago on the promise that they would work for these people  They say Our new focus now is trying to help the people trying to make it. Whats been your focus for the last six years?

The freshman senator from Florida delivered his remarks at a Rockingham County fundraiser in New Castle, N.H., the county has the largest population of Republicans in the state.

In the past, the senator has pushed for comprehensive immigration reform, a highly divisive issue within the Republican party, but he was silent on the topic Friday evening.

Instead, Rubio focused on creating opportunities for the working class, saying, The truth is our wages haven't kept pace with the cost of living in America. The solution to that is not more government. Its robust economic growth that creates not just new jobs but better paying jobs40 percent of new jobs created in America under the Obama presidency have paid less than $16 an hour.

Rubio also pointed a finger at big business. Big companies may not like big government, but they can afford to deal with it. They can higher the best lobbyist in Washington to help write those regulations. They can hire the best lawyers in America to find loopholes in those regulations. But if youre starting a new business out of the spare bedroom in your home you cant do that.

He added, There are thousands of companies that were never born because they could not comply with the regulations they were buried underneath.

The Florida senator drew roaring applause when he spoke about school choice for underprivileged families and a parents right to advocate for his or her children.

Rubio made reference to a New Hampshire parent who was arrested at a school meeting for breaking a two-minute speaking limit, saying we should be giving the parents a right to speak out about their childrens education at a meeting without being arrested.

This is the senator's first visit to the Granite State in nearly two years.

Earlier this week, Sen. Rubio endorsed Iowa Republican senatorial candidate, Joni Ernst, describing her as a tough, no-nonsense conservative.

With Rubio making headlines in the two earliest electoral battleground states, there would seem to be little doubt about his intentions for 2016?

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Fragments of the body of the Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft of the Russian Defense Ministry have been found 1.5 kilometers off Sochi in the Black Sea at the depth of 50-70 meters, the ministry's spokesperson told Interfax on Sunday.

"During a planned flight from the airfield in the city of Adler at 5.40 a.m. (Moscow time), after takeoff, the Tu-154 disappeared from the radars. There were 83 passengers and eight crew on board," the ministry said.

All search and rescue services of the Defense Ministry and other federal agencies have been called in.

"The Tu-154 plane which disappeared from the radars was carrying Russian military personnel and artists from the Alexandrov ensemble, who were flying to congratulate the Russian Aerospace Force grouping at the Hmeimim airbase (Syria) on New Year, as well as nine Russian journalists," the spokesperson said.
U.S. diplomats confirmed on Saturday that Cuban officials have given them some information about four Florida residents who were arrested on suspicion of preparing attacks against military installations on the island.

The U.S. Interests Section issued a statement confirming the May 8 meeting with representatives of the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It said, "The Cubans provided some information about the allegations which we are now reviewing."

Cuba's Interior Ministry has identified the men as Jose Ortega Amador, Obdulio Rodriguez Gonzalez, Raibel Pacheco Santos and Felix Monzon Alvarez. It said they were detained in late April for planning "terrorist actions" masterminded from Florida.

The Interior Ministry said the men were detained on April 26 for plotting to attack military installations, but released few specific details.

None of the four are well-known within the exile community in South Florida, but Cuba claimed they were acting on orders from others with a history of militancy, singling out Santiago Alvarez Fernandez Magrina, Osvaldo Mitat and Manuel Alzugaray in Miami.

Santiago Alvarez and Mitat pleaded guilty in 2006 in the United States to conspiracy after an informant tipped the FBI that a large cache of weapons, including machine guns and a grenade launcher, was being moved from apartments Alvarez owned.

Alvarez, however, denied involvement in any plot and said he did not know the detained men.

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An undocumented immigrant can attend a California public university paying in-state tuition, and even receive financial assistance under the states Dream Act, but he or she cant practice in the profession in which theyre trained.

Unless the person in question happens to be a lawyer, thanks to a law passed last year and upheld in January by the California Supreme Court.

So it may not come as a surprise that State Sen. Ricardo Lara, a Democrat, has authored a bill that would allow people without Social Security Numbers to get licensed as dentists, psychologists, nurses, pharmacists, real estate agents, barbers, security guards and 30-some other professions.

We believe that by removing the barrier that we face in obtaining professional licensing, we will be able to reach our full potential, said aspiring doctor Denisse Rojas at a recent legislative hearing. Rojas, Los Angeles Times reports, was brought into the United States illegally at 6 months of age, studied biology at Berkeley and now wants to apply to medical school.

On Thursday, the bill passed the Senate. Now it heads to the State Assembly.

Its insane, William Gheen, the president of the Americans for Legal Immigration PAC, told the Times. By granting licenses to illegal immigrants you both aid and abet illegal immigration, which is a violation of federal law, and you are sending a message to the rest of planet Earth that says, Come on!

Sen. Laras parents were undocumented at one point, and, he argues, the measure would make it so that more Californians have an effective means of economic mobility and self-sufficiency.

The bill has divided the California legislature along party lines, with Democrats in favor and Republicans opposed.

Ira Mehlman, a spokesperson for the conservative Federation of American Immigration Reform, told the Times, California is doing everything in its power to blur any distinction between those who are legally present and those who are not.

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House Speaker John Boehner said Monday that he's "nudged" former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush to seek the Republican nomination for president in 2016.

With various potential GOP candidates jockeying two years out, the top Republican in Congress delivered the strongest hints about his preference for the White House while cautioning that the talk was a bit premature.

"Jeb Bush is my friend. I think he'd make a great president. I've nudged him for some time," Boehner told the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

Republican Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Ted Cruz of Texas have been mentioned as possible presidential candidates along with a number of GOP governors.

In this year's elections, Republicans are expected to keep control of the House and have a legitimate shot at seizing the majority in the Senate. Boehner said he expects to keep his leadership position in 2015 but stopped short of committing to serving out a full 13th term in Congress.

"I have a very good relationship with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle," Boehner said. "Even in my party, even with some people with whom we have disagreement almost every day, I have a good relationship with them as well.

But given a chance to end speculation that he may not complete another full two-year term, Boehner said he couldn't predict what might happen.

"I'm going to be 65 years old in November. I never thought I'd live to be 60. So I'm living on borrowed time," the Ohio Republican said.

Boehner has provoked discontent among some conservatives over his actions during last year's government shutdown, his backing for raising the nation's borrowing authority and his support for moving ahead on immigration overhaul. He drew a primary challenge in his Ohio district against two tea party candidates but easily beat both last week and now faces a token Democratic opponent in November.

Boehner also briefly discussed a new special select committee that will conduct the eighth investigation of the deadly 2012 attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya. Four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens, died in the assault.

Republicans have accused the Obama administration of misleading the American people about the attacks.

Boehner named seven Republicans to the panel last week, but Democrats are divided about whether to participate in the probe they consider an election-year stunt. Democrats have five seats to fill.

Boehner said the investigation will move ahead with or without Democrats.

"I promised Ms. Pelosi that if she appoints members to this, they will be treated fairly," Boehner said. "We've been having a discussion over the last four or five days about how witnesses would be handled, how documents would be handled. We're trying to come to some understanding, up front, of what I mean by fairness."

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The GOP primary in Nebraska is being seen by many as a symbolic vote, in a way, on the influence of U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, and the Tea Party.

That is because Cruz, a potential 2016 presidential contender, has given his endorsement of Tea Party candidates Ben Sasse, a university president who is running to be the GOP nominee for the U.S. Senate in the November general election, and gubernatorial candidate Pete Ricketts, the son of Joseph Ricketts, the founder of TD Ameritrade and owner of the Chicago Cubs.

Cruz has made public appearances for both Sasse and Ricketts, which, observers say, could boost their chances or backfire if voters see them as pawns of Washington D.C. insiders.

But in stomping for Sasse recently, Cruz said that sending the university president to Washington D.C. would be a way of avoiding picking a representative who would practice status quo politics.

"I'm here supporting Ben Sasse because I believe he has the courage to look in the eyes of the party bosses in Washington and say, 'I don't work for you, I work for the people of Nebraska,''' Cruz said, according to U.S. News & World Report.

If the electorates verdict on Sasse and Ricketts ends up as a sort of referendum on Cruz, and his clout, as far as Republican voters go, it is also expected to come across as sign of how relevant the Tea Party is, or isnt.

In particular, the race between Sasse and banker Sid Dinsdale, the second leading contender (as far as polls show) for the GOP primary has been cast as part of a national struggle between established GOP leaders and tea party activists.

Having seen their candidates lose in North Carolinas GOP primary last week, Tea Party Republicans are looking toward Nebraska to potentially win their first U.S. Senate primary of the year.

Conservative power brokers are closely following the Nebraska primary, filling campaign coffers in the hope of seeing one of their own fill the Senate seat to be left open by retiring Sen. Mike Johanns, a Republican, published reports say.

The various GOP contenders for Senate do not necessarily have clear ideological differences among them, Politico notes.

Besides Cruzs backing, Sasse, who has worked in several different roles in Washington D.C., also has the embrace of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, another towering Tea Party figure.

At the same time, local Nebraska-based Tea Party groups endorsed Osborn, who has the backing of allies of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Nebraskans are kind of the pawn here, said Phil Young, a Nebraska-based political consultant, according to Politico. The big guys in D.C. are trying to play in our sandbox. But Nebraskans have a real independent streak. They like to make their own decisions.

They dont want somebody who is owned by Mitch McConnell, but they also dont want anybody who is owned by Ted Cruz or Mike Lee, said Young.

Including Ricketts, there are six Republicans vying for governor. All argue that their experience leaves them best-suited for the job, creating a clear divide: those from private sector backgrounds, who promise a fresh approach at the Capitol, and those with government experience, who say their knowledge will help them accomplish more.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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In a meeting with law enforcement leaders about how to reform immigration, President Barack Obama said that he thought Congress had a narrow window left this year to pass a comprehensive measure on the issue before mid-term elections.

Obama, who has been meeting with different groups  including conservative ones such as evangelicals  about immigration reform, told the law enforcement officials on Tuesday that after about August, the attention on Congress would be on the November elections.

"The closer we get to midterm elections the harder it will be to get things done," Obama told the group, according to published reports.

Obama is touting a bipartisan bill passed by the Senate, but says he's, in his words, "not hell-bent" on having every letter of that bill reach his desk. Still, he says there's certain principles that must be included, such as a path to citizenship.

The president stressed the benefits to law enforcement of a revamped immigration system. He said an overhaul, for instance, would help crack down on unscrupulous employers who exploit undocumented workers.

But the status quo, Obama added, "makes it harder for our law enforcement agencies to do their job.

"Large segments of the community are afraid to report crimes or serve as witnesses because they fear the consequences for themselves or their families," the president said. "This system is not fair. Its not fair to workers; it's not fair to businesses who are trying to do the right thing; its not fair to law enforcement agencies that are already stretched thin."

Obama says House Speaker John Boehner, an Ohio Republicans, wants to do immigration. But he says a handful of House Republicans are blocking it.

He exhorted his audience to lobby Boehner and House Republicans ahead of the midterm elections.

"We've got maybe a window of two, three months to get the ball rolling in the House of Representatives. And your voices are going to be absolutely critical to that effort," said the president.

Last June, the Senate passed a bipartisan immigration reform measure that, among other things, tightened border security, expanded foreign worker visas and provided a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.

But the effort has stalled in the House, where Republicans have a majority and several of them have vowed not to pass a bill that gives amnesty to people who have broken immigration laws.

For his part, Obama several times has uttered deadlines for Congress to act on immigration  sometimes he has set them forth as an ultimatum, others he simply has discussed the time frame he believed existed for the lawmakers to discuss and act on a measure.

Last year, and again earlier this year, Obama said that if Congress did not pass an immigration reform bill, he would put one forth himself, as well as take some unilateral steps to address aspects of the issue.

The president has taken some steps, such as establishing an initiative in 2012 that suspended deportation for two years for undocumented immigrants brought as minors and who met other criteria.

But advocates for more lenient immigration policies increasingly have shifted their frustrations to Obama, who has presided over some 2 million deportations since he took office in 2008.

The president's remarks on immigration today are more of an indictment of his own policies than of Congress's failure to allow a vote," said Pablo Alvarado, executive director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, in a statement. "President Obama's policies, not Republicans in Congress, have led to the Arizonification of the country. It borders on becoming a political crime for President Obama to decry the very status quo he created."

"While there is unity among immigrant rights advocates on the need for Speaker Boehner to allow a vote," said Alvarado, "there is equal consensus that the president should end his failed experiment to use police and sheriffs as so-called force multipliers for immigration enforcement."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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The head of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said that Republicans should not bother to run a candidate for president in 2016 if Congress does not pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill this year.

Speaking at an event in Washington D.C. Monday focused on infrastructure investment, Chamber President Tom Donohue said: If the Republicans dont do it, they shouldnt bother to run a candidate in 2016.

Think about that, Donohue said, according to Politico. Think about who the voters are.

He added that he said that to get everybodys attention.

The Chamber of Commerce has been pushing for comprehensive immigration reform in the hope that Republicans, who generally support stances that are seen as important to the business world, will break the impasse in Congress over how to address border security while also deciding how to address the estimated 11 undocumented immigrants already in the country.

In February, the chamber sent a letter to House Speaker John Boehner, an Ohio Republican, urging him to advance work on a measure to overhaul the immigration system.

"Failure to act is not an option," the letter said. "We cannot afford to be content and watch a dysfunctional immigration system work against our overall national interest. In short, immigration reform is an essential element of a jobs agenda and economic growth. It will add talent, innovation, investment, products, businesses, jobs, and dynamism to our economy."

Last June, the Senate passed a bipartisan immigration reform measure that, among other things, tightened border security, expanded foreign worker visas and provided a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.

But the effort has stalled in the House, where Republicans have a majority and several of them have vowed not to pass a bill that gives amnesty to people who have broken immigration laws.

After the bruising defeat of GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney in 2012, and the role that Hispanic voters  71 percent of whom voted to re-elect President Barack Obama  played in the overall election, Republican leaders vowed to court Latinos more assertively. One of things some GOP leaders said they would try in order to attract more Latino voters was passing an immigration reform bill.

At Mondays event, the moderator asked Donohue whether he believed that Congress would pass an immigration bill this year.

Yes, yes, Donohue said.

National Association of Manufacturers President Jay Timmons agreed.

This is a unified position of the business community, Timmons said, according to Politico.

But some Republicans in Congress vow they will not support any measure that seeks to give a break to people who have broken immigration laws.

The immigration bill in question would double the annual number of guest worker admissions  from roughly 600,000 a year under current law to 1.2 million a year if passed, Stephen Miller, spokesman for Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), according to Politico. It would also triple the admission of largely lower-skilled permanent immigrants over the next decade  from 10 million to 30 million. Immigration reform should mean putting unemployed Americans back to work, not replacing them at a lower cost.

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Hes not a household name.

But in the military world, the Pennsylvania native has been a star for decades.

General David M. Rodriguez, a 1976 West Point graduate, oversaw the surge of 30,000 additional U.S. troops in Afghanistan in 2009. He had leadership roles in the Gulf War, Desert Shield and Desert Storm, as well. Among his numerous honors are the Defense Distinguished Medal, Bronze Star Medal, and Distinguished Service Medal.

Now, Rodriguez, who towers at 6-foot-5, is one of the central figures in the U.S. effort to assist the Nigerian government in the search for and rescue of the kidnapped schoolgirls.

Rodriguez, who is head of the U.S. Africa Command, arrived earlier this week in Nigeria  a trip that actually had been planned before the abduction of nearly 300 girls on April 15 by the Boko Haram militant group. Boko Haram is demanding that its jailed members be swapped for the girls freedom.

The abduction has spurred a global movement to secure the girls' release amid fears they would be sold into slavery, married off to fighters, or worse, following a series of threats by Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau.

On Tuesday, Rodriguez was in Nigerias capital, Abuja, meeting with officials at the U.S. Embassy, according to the defense officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

The Nigerian military said in a statement that Rodriguez visited Nigeria's defense headquarters to discuss U.S. support for Nigeria's campaign against the Boko Haram militants, who have killed more than 1,500 people this year in a campaign of bombings, massacres and kidnappings.

Those who know him describe Rodriguez as low-key and humble.

He had a pivotal role in the Afghan surge five years ago  though friends said he never touted his part in the mission.

Hell never tell you that this whole thing was his baby, a 2011 Newsweek story about him quoted his top aide at the time, Col. Kimberly Field, as saying. But it was.

Rodriguez, known as just General Rod by his officers, was only too happy, his officers told Newsweek, to let his then-boss, Gen. David Petraeus, get all the attention.

You never hear of General Rod as long as General Petraeus is within a hundred miles, said one of Rodriguezs staff officers to Newsweek. But he could care less.

If he prefers to remain behind the scenes, he also believes more people should stay out of the spotlight.

I tell everybody, If we used our two ears and one mouth in the same ratio we had them, we would be better off,  he told Newsweek.

Rodriguez had military life in his pedigree.

He grew up in a community, West Chester, Pennsylvania, where every family either had someone in the military or knew someone who served.

"We all knew someone who served in the armed forces," Rodriguez said in an interview with GoArmySports.com. "Schools like nearby West Chester University offer Army ROTC. The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 106 has been operating there since 1899 and hosts a picnic on Memorial Day to honor the fallen. My father was in the Army and part of the occupation army of Japan."

Unsurprisingly, two of his four children are in the military and, like their dad, graduated from West Point.

Of his son, Andrew, who has become a respected U.S. military member in his own right, Rodriguez said: "He has grown up around the Army with assignments at Fort Bragg, the Pentagon and military bases around the world.

"He also knew about family separations. He was only three months old when I was deployed to Operation Desert Storm in 1990, and was 13 when I went back there in 2003, he said.

Growing up, he'd go to work with me sometimes as well as visiting injured soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and the Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. He knew about the values, the personal dedication and sacrifice it takes to pursue a career in our armed forces."

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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The Tea Party scored a win in Nebraska on Tuesday as university president Ben Sasse captured the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in a bitter race that highlighted fissures within the GOP. Two women set the stage for history-making in West Virginia.

Sasse, who had the backing of outside conservative groups as well as Sen. Ted Cruz and Sarah Palin, grabbed 48 percent of the vote in a five-man primary. Sid Dinsdale, the president of Pinnacle Bank, surged to second, while former State Treasurer Shane Osborn finished third.

"We were never doing this because we need another job," Sasse told supporters Tuesday night. "We were only going to do this if we were going to talk about big, bold, conservative ideas."

Outside groups pumped millions into the race for Sasse while allies of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., tried to propel Osborn to the nomination.

With little to celebrate to date, conservative groups immediately trumpeted Sasse's victory.

"Ben Sasse won this race because he never stopped fighting for conservative principles," said Matt Hoskins, executive director of the Senate Conservatives Fund. The group spent more than $1.2 million to help Sasse.

Cruz said Sasse's win "is a clear indication that the grassroots are rising up to make D.C. listen."

Voters in Nebraska and West Virginia decided their lineups for the November elections in the latest round of spring primaries. The fall midterms will determine control of Congress for the last two years of President Barack Obama's second term, with Republicans expected to hold the House and cautiously optimistic about winning control of the Senate.

The GOP needs to net six seats to grab the majority

In West Virginia, Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito and Democrat Natalie Tennant cruised to primary wins and will square off in a Senate showdown in November that will give the state its first female senator.

Capito is a seven-term congresswoman and daughter of former Gov. Arch Moore; Tennant is the state's secretary of state. Democratic Sen. Jay Rockefeller is retiring after 30 years.

West Virginia has become increasingly Republican, and Capito entered the general election contest as the heavy favorite. If elected, she would be the first Republican senator from West Virginia since 1959.

In Nebraska, Sasse, who heads Midland University, had the backing of the Tea Party Patriots and FreedomWorks in his bid to replace Republican Sen. Mike Johanns, who is retiring after a single six-year term.

Sasse had focused on his conservative credentials, opposition to abortion, support for gun rights and goal of repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act.

In one 30-second ad, Sasse's two young daughters, Alex and Corrie, talk about how much their dad opposes the Affordable Care Act. "He wants to destroy it," says one daughter. "He despises it," says the other.

While Sasse won over tea partyers, he offered voters some significant establishment credentials. He served as an assistant secretary in the Health and Human Services Department in President George W. Bush's administration, studied at Harvard and Yale, and was a visiting scholar in economics at the Brookings Institution.

Sasse is a heavy favorite against Democratic nominee Dave Domina in the Republican-leaning state.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee, which had remained neutral, called Sasse a "problem-solver who will be a conservative voice" to repeal the health care law.

The tea party has struggled this year as candidates have lost to establishment favorites in Texas, North Carolina and Ohio, and Nebraska stood as the insurgent movement's best remaining shot. Looking ahead to upcoming primaries, the tea party's chances to upset incumbents have been diminishing in Kentucky, Kansas, Idaho and Mississippi.

The Republican establishment has a love-hate relationship with the tea party. It welcomed the movement's energy that propelled the GOP to control of the House in the 2010 elections, but it blames tea partyers for less-than-viable general election candidates in 2010 and 2012 Senate races in Indiana, Colorado, Nevada and Delaware.

Republicans in the capital remain convinced they could have won control of the Senate if only their establishment candidates had won more primaries, and some in the party have been determined to defeat the movement's candidates this election.

In Nebraska's GOP primary for governor, Omaha businessman Pete Ricketts narrowly defeated Attorney General Jon Bruning. Term limits prevented Republican Gov. Dave Heineman from running again.

In West Virginia, Democratic names like Byrd and Rockefeller dominated politics for decades, but since 2000, the state has voted Republican in presidential elections. The transformation is widely expected to continue this fall as Republicans capitalize on voter antipathy toward Obama, who lost all of the state's 55 counties in 2012.

Capito's planned departure from the House created a messy GOP primary in her 2nd Congressional District that stretches across the state.

Alex Mooney, the former chairman of the Maryland GOP who moved to West Virginia, captured the nomination in a seven-candidate race and will face Democrat Nick Casey, the former state party chairman of West Virginia, in the fall.

In his appeal to voters, Mooney's campaign said he moved to West Virginia to "live in freedom, and he'll fight Obama to preserve it."

One of the most endangered House Democrats is 19-term Rep. Nick Rahall, who easily won his primary and will face Democrat-turned-Republican Evan Jenkins in the fall.

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The Republican National Committee (RNC) is calling into question whether the Eva Longoria-sponsored campaigns mission to boost Hispanic-American political candidates is in fact just a ploy to get Democrats elected.

In a letter to the Latino Victory Project, the RNC said a bipartisan initiative to boost Latino candidates and give a greater voice to Hispanics in the United States is a worthy cause, but that it would seem that's not quite the intention here.

Izzy Santa, RNC Hispanic Communications Director, said they support the group's premise to recruit, train and build the next generation of leaders, but that initiative loses credibility when all of its founders are prominent Democrats.

They have to be honest if they are a bipartisan group or a Democrat front group. People dont like wannabes, she told Fox News Latino. This is no embellishment. You cant go to a press conference and say you are a bipartisan group and will support candidates from both sides of the isle when your leadership is all Democrats.

The Latino Victory Project, launched earlier this month, was co-founded by Longoria and Henry Munoz III, the finance chair for the Democratic National Committee, with the purpose of elevating Latino political participation.

"We seek to find solutions to important issues like immigration reform, education, a clean environment, and access to quality health care," said LVP president Cristobal Alex in a statement sent to Fox News Latino.

"Any candidate who shares these values, regardless of party affiliation, shares in the mission of the Latino Victory Project. It would be helpful if the RNC would make its case on the merits. We hope that the RNC shares our broad goal of increasing Latino political power, and that it will not hold our members to a different standard than those involved in other 501(c)(4) organizations," Alex added in his statement.

Longoria and Munoz had previously teamed up to lead the Obama campaigns Futuro Fund in 2012, which raised $32 million  mostly from first-time donors.

This is presumably part of the reason why the RNC says the group is acting like a front group for the Democratic National Committee, which has been unable to raise sufficient funds to get rid of their debt and compete in this years midterm.

The letter also calls out Munozs recent appearance on MSNBC where he had the DNC banner in the background while promoting a supposed bipartisan group. Meanwhile, Longoria is being criticized for her interview with prominent Latino journalist Jorge Ramos, from Univision, on which she names a number of Hispanic-American candidates the Latino Victory Project will support and none of them were Republicans.

You failed to name a single Republican. You didnt highlight the leadership of Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, who are two of only three Hispanic U.S. Senators, the letter said. Nor did you mention either of the nations Latino governors  Brian Sandoval of Nevada and Susana Martinez of New Mexico  both of whom are Republicans. This list goes on.

Santa said the truthfulness of the initiative is at stake.

We welcome the fact that we need to increase the representation of Latinos, but they have to be honest, she added.

The Latino Victory Project has already supported several candidates  all Democrats. They include Amanda Renteria, a California Democrat who is running for the House of Representatives; Nevada Assemblywoman Lucy Flores and Texas state Sen. Leticia Van De Putte, who are running for lieutenant governor in their respective states; and Angel Taveras, the mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, who is running for governor.

The group is also supporting Charlie Crist, who is running for his old job as governor in Florida.

On Tuesday, Cristobal Alex spoke exclusively to BuzzFeed and fired back, questioning whether the RNC wanted to get into a debate about elevating Latino voices.

Its ridiculous that the RNC would question our mission to raise the political participation among Latinos, said Alex, arguing that this sense of justice does not seem to affect them when it comes to other de facto partisan and conservative groups like Crossroads, Americans for Prosperity, or the Libre Initiative.

At the same time, the RNC is working to restrict the right to vote and diminish Latino voting power (with controversial voter ID laws), Alex continued. Instead of attacking organizations such as ours, they should be looking at ways to attack these disparities.

In response to Alex's comments to BuzzFeed, Santa said the attacks solidifies their concerns that the Latino Victory Group is more preoccupied with pushing for more Democrat politicians instead of supporting Hispanics overall.

His response makes our case, she said.

As to the charge on voter ID laws, Santa said they are not trying to restrict minority voters from participating in elections, but instead they are trying to protect the integrity of the vote.

"We believe every voter has a right and we are protecting our vote," she said.

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Carlos R. Moreno, a former California Supreme Court justice who has been a champion of civil rights, was confirmed unanimously by the Senate as the United States ambassador to Belize.

Asked by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) during his confirmation hearing last October if he had ever visited Belize, according to the Washingtonpost.com, Moreno answered Yes, about two years ago, and Ive also visited the adjoining countries of Mexico and Guatemala, so Im familiar in particular with the Yucatan.

The new ambassador was born in Los Angeles, the child of Mexican immigrants. His father died while young, and Moreno grew up speaking Spanish at home, which was in the Solano Canyon area of L.A., not far from Dodger Stadium.

He attended Yale during the 1960s, when the Ivy was just starting to open its doors to minority students, on a scholarship. He was one of three Latinos in a class of about 1,000, according to a 2009 Los Angeles Times article.

Moreno, who studied law at Stanford and is widely regarded as a legal centrist, was first appointed to the bench as a municipal court judge in 1986 after a career as a prosecutor and then in private practice. He served as a federal District Court judge from 1998 to 2001.

He was appointed to the Supreme Court of California by then-Gov. Gray Davis in October 2001, and served there for 10 years.

Moreno told the L.A. Times, that he considers himself a careful jurist. I am not in favor of big leaps, he said.

But he became sort of a champion for gay rights in 2009 after he was the only California Supreme Court justice who voted to overturn Proposition 8, an initiative that reinstated a ban on same sex marriages. It would be seen as his signature opinion while on the bench.

"He has been a champion of ensuring the Constitution's protection of equality," Geoff Kors, executive director of Equality California, the state's largest gay-rights group, said at the time.

His decision came at a time when President Barack Obama was considering him as a possible successor to Supreme Court Justice David Souter. The president later announced that he was naming Sonia Sotomayor to the nations top court.

UC Irvine Law School dean, Erwin Chemerinsky, told the L.A. Times that his Proposition 8 decision was a bold one  especially since he was being considered for such a coveted post.

He knew he was being considered for the U.S. Supreme Court, and it would have been very easy for him in a 6-1 case to make it unanimous, he said.

After his bold dissenting opinion, Moreno likened the gay marriage fight to the one-time ban on interracial marriages.

The bans against interracial marriage were at one time widely accepted, Moreno told the L.A. Times, but no one would tolerate that kind of restriction in modern times. And I think the same is true for gay marriage.

Moreno and his wife, Christine, an artist, have three kids.

Since 2011, he was worked at the private L.A. law firm of Irell & Manella. He has also served as the president of the Mexican American Bar Association.

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Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has postponed his visit to Israel, which was previously scheduled for December 27-28, an informed source told Interfax-Ukraine.

According to the source, the visit was postponed sine die due to the situation over the vote in the UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolution, which calls on Israel to stop building settlements in the Palestinian territories. Some 14 members out of 15 members of the UNSC, including Ukraine, voted for the resolution, with the U.S. abstained, which did not use its veto right, though.

The Israeli side immediately reacted quite negatively to the results of voting. The Israeli media spread a lot of criticism over Ukraine's stance on UNSC Resolution.

According to the source, the prime minister understands this situation, and in the future he intends to intensify talks with the Israeli side to resolve problematic issues and promote more active development of bilateral relations.
A member of a local Latino group was about to raise a concern at a meeting of a county commission in Memphis, Tennessee when exasperation over something else eclipsed it.

He listened as the Shelby County Commission earlier this week discussed whether a roofing company that had a majority of Latino workers was discriminating against African-Americans.

He detected an attitude, an anti-Latino tone, that didnt sit well with him.

So Pablo Pereyra of the Hispanic Republic Alliance decided to push back, even though the roofing company matter was not what he had gone to the meeting to discuss.

I see you guys smirking and laughing, like Im not a minority, Pereyra said to the commissioners. I know what its like to be a minority. I grew up in Memphis, and I can tell you being a Hispanic in Memphis is definitely the minority of the minority.

Am I any less American? Pereyra asked. Am I any less minority?

Commissioner Henri Brooks, an African-American whose pointed comments and provocative actions often have been controversial, was not going to let Pereyras scolding pass unaddressed.

She admonished him for what she saw as his attempt to put the problems of blacks and Latinos on the same level, according to a local CBS affiliate station.

Dont ever let that come out of your mouth again, because you know what? That only hurts your case, she told Pereyra. Dont compare the two. Theyre not comparable.

Your experience does not compare to mine, she said. What you are experiencing as a minority probably has been blown out of proportion here.

She added that what Hispanics may experience do not compare with a history where there is a pattern of intentional discrimination against black folks.

You asked to come here. We did not, she told Pereyra.

Brooks, who is known for her stark comments on various issues, and for refusing to pledge allegiance to the U.S. flag before meetings, also directed her frustration at a fellow commissioner who expressed disagreement with her comments.

Turning to Commissioner Chris Thomas, who is white, she said: Excuse me you over there mouthing somethingYou with the sheet, the white sheet on?

Later, Pereyra and Thomas described Brooks comments, which she stands by, uncalled for and bigoted.

I was really shocked that that type of terminology was coming from a community leader, Pereyra said to reporters after the meeting.

Brooks, meanwhile, said he was shocked by how his fellow commissioner tried to shut down the debate.

I took that as her saying Im part of the KKK just because I disagreed with something she said, Thomas told reporters.

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Several years ago, Columba Bush was at a Republican womens gathering in Jacksonville, Florida, looking like she wanted to bolt for the exit.

Tom Slade Jr.  former chairman of the Florida GOP and a friend of Columba and her famous husband, former Gov. Jeb Bush  recalled how she seemed utterly ill at ease.

Her dislike of being in the spotlight, and at events where people go to see whos there and to be seen, is well-known among those who know the Bush couple.

Columba Bush, who is 60, has endured it, Slade told the Washington Post, because the high-profile world of politics is one her husband revels in, like a fish in water.

He recalled her saying Jebby really does love politics, so I cant stand in his way.

But whether that also goes for being on-board with her husband, who is 61, running for president in 2016 is, for the moment, anyones guess.

Jeb Bushs eldest son, George P. Bush, recently said in an interview with Fox News that his father will look at the impact a run for the presidency in 2016 would have on his family before deciding whether or not to throw his hat in the ring.

Bush said his father would likely evaluate the rigors on family life as well as how a presidential campaign would fit in with his role as a businessman.

He is leaving the option open, but he will make his assessment later in the year, said the younger Bush. He hasnt indicated one way or the other. I think he is assessing it seriously.

Columba and Jeb, who have been together for 40 years, met in her native Mexico in the early 1970s when he was an exchange student there. They regularly speak to each other in Spanish, various published reports note.

She is a staunch, albeit behind-the-scenes, advocate for Latinos, telling the Gainesville Sun many years ago that she often has pointed out to the political family dynasty the important contributions of Latinos.

She has unwittingly found herself in the cross-hairs of Latino issues and political missteps of the family into which she married.

When her father-in-law, George H. W. Bush, referred to her and Jebs children as the little brown ones, she conceded to a Florida newspaper that she found the backlash and media attention on her family overwhelming.

It was a challenge, she was quoted as saying. But it turned out to be a great experience. What that made me do was start to promote Mexican art. I wanted Hispanics to be proud of their culture, to not be ashamed of being brown.

A more overwhelming, and painful, time in the limelight came when her daughter, Noelle, was arrested in 2002 for buying prescription drugs in a fraudulent manner, and again later for hiding crack while she was in court-ordered drug rehabilitation, according to the Washington Post.

A presidential campaign, those who are close to Jeb and Columba say, could open those wounds and put their daughter, who has kept out of the news ever since, back under media spotlight  a price her parents may consider too huge.

I did not ask to join a famous family, Columba is quoted as having said many years ago. I simply wanted to marry the man I loved.

At the same time, her role as Floridas first lady gave her a platform to advocate for causes she considers important, such as substance abuse and domestic violence.

Columba is not in any way power-ambitious, said Rafael A. Penalver Jr., a Miami lawyer who is friends with the couple, according to the Post. Shes supportive and will stand by him, even taking roles that are not in her nature.

Other friends, many of them unnamed in the Post story, said in no uncertain terms that Bush will not run for president if Columba has reservations.

The family issues are Columba 1, 2 and 3. Its whether shes up for it, one friend said.

Another added, Shes cognizant of what a campaign would be like, and she would have to come to terms with that. Hes not going to do it over her objections.

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The Homeland Security Department released 36,007 convicted criminal immigrants last year who are facing deportation, including those accounting for 193 homicide and 426 sexual assault convictions, according to new federal data.

The immigrants released had completed their criminal jail sentences and nearly all still face deportation and are required to check in with immigration authorities while their cases are pending.

The data from U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement were first disclosed by the Center for Immigration Studies, a conservative group that advocates for less immigration. In its own report, the group said "the vast majority of these releases from ICE custody were discretionary, not required by law ... nor the result of local sanctuary policies." It did not describe how many immigrants ICE decided on its own to release and how many a judge ordered to be released.

An ICE spokeswoman, Barbara Gonzalez, said Friday that in many cases cited in the report the agency was required by law to release the immigrants while their deportation cases are pending.

"The releases required by court decisions account for a disproportionate number of the serious crimes listed in the report," she said. Gonzalez said, for example, that mandatory releases account for over 72 percent of the immigrants convicted of homicide.

Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson and his predecessor Janet Napolitano have repeatedly said that deporting those immigrants who pose a threat to national security or public safety is Homeland Security's top priority. And ICE has routinely touted increases in the number of convicted criminals removed annually. Last year, the agency said 59 percent of the 368,644 people removed had been previously convicted of a crime.

But the releases that weren't mandated by law, including 28 percent of the immigrants with homicide convictions, undermines the government's argument that it uses its declining resources for immigration enforcement to find and jail serious criminal immigrants who may pose a threat to public safety or national security.

Details of how many criminal immigrants were released in the last year come amid a months-long review of the Obama administration's deportation policies by Johnson.

Johnson has not said when he expects that review to conclude, but in an interview Thursday with PBS' "NewsHour" program he did say a program used to identify potentially deportable immigrants in local jails needs a "fresh start." The Secure Communities program has been widely criticized by immigration advocates who said it too often swept up immigrants accused of only traffic violations or other minor offenses.

Republican lawmakers decried the releases as evidence the Obama administration is not fulfilling its duty in immigration enforcement. In a joint statement, Republican Reps. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Lamar Smith of Texas, said the disclosure was "incredibly alarming"

"Most could be detained by immigration enforcement authorities if the administration had the will to do so," they said. "These criminals should be locked up, not roaming our streets."

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A spokesman for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor says he'll block a vote next week on legislation giving a path to citizenship to people living here illegally who serve in the military.

Friday's announcement from Cantor comes after a Republican congressman from California announced plans to try to bring the measure to a vote as an amendment to the annual defense bill.

The ENLIST Act championed by Rep. Jeff Denham would give green cards to immigrants living here illegally who serve in the military.

But conservative groups have recently announced their opposition. Cantor himself is facing a primary challenge from a tea party opponent who's made immigration an issue.

The move was the latest setback for President Barack Obama's efforts to move comprehensive immigration legislation through Congress to boost border security, remake legal worker programs and offer legal status to the estimated 11.5 million people now living here illegally. The Senate passed an immigration bill last year, but it's been stalled in the GOP-led House.

Denham's measure was widely popular and seen as perhaps the likeliest path for progress.

But in recent weeks prominent conservative groups including the Heritage Foundation announced their opposition.

Cantor himself faces a primary challenge in Virginia on June 10 from a tea party opponent who has criticized the majority leader for not being conservative enough and accused him of supporting amnesty for immigrants living here illegally.

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President Barack Obama's new homeland security secretary is offering his first public hints at executive action the administration might take on immigration, suggesting changes to a much-criticized program that runs the names of people booked for local crimes through a federal immigration database.

But advocates who have pushed Obama for bold action with immigration legislation stalled in Congress wasted no time in declaring that such steps wouldn't go far enough.

Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, tasked by Obama with reviewing the nation's deportation policy to see whether it can be made more humane, said Thursday that the so-called Secure Communities program needs "a fresh start."

The program allows Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials to ask local police and sheriffs to detain people who have been booked and whose fingerprints match up in a federal database for immigration violations. ICE can then decide whether to deport them.

That's led to complaints that people are being deported for immigration violations without being convicted of any crime, or with only minor offenses. Police and sheriff's officials also complain people are afraid to interact with law enforcement because they worry they'll be deported. Following recent court rulings that raised questions about the program, local governments increasingly have announced plans to refuse to honor the detention requests.

In comments Thursday on PBS' "NewsHour" program, Johnson indicated he might aim to revamp the program to focus on people who actually have been convicted, not just those arrested or booked.

"In my judgment, Secure Communities should be an efficient way to work with state and local law enforcement to reach the removal priorities that we have, those who are convicted of something," he said.

Changes in the Secure Communities program or other enforcement policies would answer some demands from immigrant advocates who have been pressuring Obama to take steps to curb record-high deportations on his watch. But many advocates have pushed for Secure Communities to be eliminated altogether, and such steps also would fall short of the sweeping action advocates are pushing for to allow some of the 11.5 million people in the country illegally to stay.

Johnson said he still was reviewing the possibility of expanding an Obama program granting work permits and protection from deportation to some immigrants brought here illegally as children  known loosely as "Dreamers" for the DREAM Act legislative proposal. But Johnson sounded a note of caution.

"I would say that we have to be careful not to pre-empt Congress in certain areas," Johnson said. "They are the lawmakers. Whatever we do in the executive branch, we have to do within the confines of existing law."

Advocates contend Obama has more authority to act on his own than the administration acknowledges.

"The goal posts for Secretary Johnson are clear. He has to end the so-called Secure Communities program as we know it, and he needs to protect more low priority immigrants and expand on what President Obama did in 2012 when he boldly protected Dreamers," said Frank Sharry, executive director of America's Voice, an advocacy group. "Anything less will be viewed as merely tinkering."

Joanne Lin, an attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union, said, "Secure communities cannot be successfully rebooted" and must end.

Johnson's deportation policy review comes with immigration legislation stuck in the GOP-led House 11 months after Senate passage of a far-reaching bill that included billions of dollars more for border security, new visa programs and a path to citizenship for many now here illegally.

Republicans have warned that any executive action by Obama would destroy whatever chance remains to get their cooperation on immigration. Some see a narrow window for the House to act in the next couple of months, ahead of Congress' August recess and the November midterm elections.

And some Republicans warn that Obama should not be taking steps to relax enforcement.

"We must be strengthening  not weakening  the enforcement of our nation's immigration laws," said Stephen Miller, spokesman for Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala.

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Uruguayan President Jose Mujica, whose nation is the first in the world to legalize marijuana, argued in an interview with Fox News Latino that the law will not lead to widespread use of the drug, but instead would result in more control of its use and distribution.

That would be different, Mujica said, than the way Colorado is carrying out its legalization of marijuana, which the president  who visited Washington this week, and stopped at the White House to speak with President Obama  said seems in danger of not having appropriate checks and balances.

The countrys legalization of marijuana has been extremely controversial, even among Uruguayans, who fear that it would encourage the nations youth to smoke it, leading to an uptick in addiction.

Mujica, typically a low-key, soft-spoken man, bristles at his critics characterization of the marijuana law.

People, he said, have it all wrong.

Its exactly the other way around, Mujica said in an interview with Fox News Latino from Washington D.C.

Why? Because since the worlds beginning of time, what attracts young people is the forbidden, the mysterious.

Make it legal, strip it of its mystique, and, as Mujica sees it, its allure will diminish.

Uruguay, he stressed, is not legalizing the drug as much as its regulating it, to get control of a market that is operated at the whim and lawlessness of criminal enterprises.

This is not going to be a country of smoking weed liberally, quite the contrary, Mujica said.

Uruguays system will involve keeping close records of who buys the drug, requiring them to register and keeping them to some 10 grams per week.

Right now, every cow, 13 million of them, are registered here, Mujica said. We know where they were raised, what they eat  were the only country that does that, he said. We are going to apply a process just like that to marijuana laws.

If [people] want to consume more, we recommend treatment before the addiction grows, Mujica said, In other words, we try to treat him as a patient before his condition becomes critical, and starts to have consequences that are irreparable.

Medicinal weed in Colorado requires a physician's recommendation, and the dispensaries will be separate outlets from the recreational pot retailers.

As for recreational pot, people 21 and older who have a Colorado ID may buy up to an ounce at licensed stores.

Mujica feels Colorados system will lack the circuit breakers needed to keep tabs on consumption, and see red flags if a person seems addicted or headed to addiction.

Mujica made his comments in a wide-ranging interview on various topics that also covered at his austere lifestyle, Cuba under the leadership of the Castro brothers, and smoking as one of the globes most worrisome killers.

Mujica, one a guerrilla fighter who tried to overthrow Uruguays government, is known for living with his wife in a humble way  a small, run-down home, off a dirt road. Mujica also drives around in a VW Beetle that is more than 20 years old, and he cooks his own food, rejecting the staff of more than 40 that was available to him at the presidential palace he could have moved into.

My way of thinking on personal, family matters  without wanting to impose it on anybody  is based on one principle that can be summarized into this, Mujica said, live with a light baggage, because in the long run, we have to live as we think, because otherwise we run the risk of thinking as we live.

He feels it is wrong, not to mention hypocritical, to live lavishly when most of his countrymen struggle to get by.

I represent the majority, and the majority of my people cant live as the minority lives  a life of privilege, he said, and I have opted to live the way the vast majority of my countrymen live.

He likes to say that tobacco use each year kills more people around the globe than world wars combined.

We havent made a dent in curbing the [cigarette] smoking habit, he said.

We must start at the school level, aiming for the young generation, to attack use and addictions, he said.

More than 20 years ago, he said, about 2,000 people regularly smoked cigarettes in Uruguay. Today, he said, there are at least 150,000 in the nation of about 3 million.
Colombia's government and main rebel group on Friday announced an agreement to jointly combat illicit drugs in the South American country, which was long the world's leading cocaine producer.

Under the accord, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known as the FARC, agreed to divorce itself completely from the drug trade.

DEA and Colombian authorities have said that some FARC fronts are involved in the production and sales of drugs to Mexican and Colombian traffickers and through Venezuelan intermediaries. In the past, the FARC had denied any involvement in trafficking, claiming it only taxes producers. Peru recently overtook Colombia in cultivation of coca, the crop used to produce cocaine.

"What we have agreed upon recognizes that in order to set the bases for a stable and lasting peace in Colombia it is necessary to find a definitive solution to the problem of illicit drugs," said statement from the talks read at a news conference in Havana.

It was the latest agreement reached during months of talks in the Cuban capital. The two sides earlier reached accords on agrarian reform and the political participation for the FARC, but none of them will take effect until all items on the agenda for negotiations are settled. The FARC is the Western Hemisphere's last remaining major leftist insurgency, having taken up arms a half century ago.

The announcement comes a little more than a week before elections in Colombia, involving incumbent President Juan Manuel Santos, who launched the peace talks, and his main challenger, Oscar Ivan Zuluaga, who opposes them. Zuluaga, a protege of former President Alvaro Uribe, argues that the FARC needs to end hostilities for talks to continue and should not be permitted into national politics.

Earlier in the day, the FARC and Colombia's other main rebel group, the National Liberation Army, issued an unusual joint statement declaring a halt in fighting for eight days, from May 20-28, around Colombia's May 25 presidential election.

Rebels have tried to disrupt past presidential elections and often dismiss Colombia's electoral politics as a sport dominated by the country's elites, so the cease-fire appears to be a vote of confidence in the Havana-based peace talks launched in November 2012 by Santos. The FARC also declared a cease-fire during March legislative elections.

Santos, who is seeking re-election, has been under attack from his main rivals for breaking with the policy of Uribe, whose relentless, U.S.-backed military pressure had seriously weakened the guerrilla forces.

Conservative Party candidate Marta Lucia Ramirez said the rebel announcement "is a cease-fire in which the FARC joins the presidential campaign" of Santos.

Zuluaga, running second behind Santos in most polls, said that "the halt to criminal actions should be indefinite and verifiable."

But the action was welcomed by pro-Santos Sen. Roy Barreras, who said it "is a clear message Colombians that peace is close and is possible."

The rebels have declared temporary cease-fires in the past, though they have not been fully honored. The government itself has refused to grant cease-fires to the rebels during the talks.

Both of Colombia's rebel groups formed in the 1960s as an outgrowth of rural movements that sought a more equitable distribution of land.

The FARC is the hemisphere's largest active guerrilla army, with about 8,000 members still in arms. The National Liberation Army, which has about 2,000 fighters, is not taking part in the Havana talks, though it has expressed a desire for negotiations with the government.

Meanwhile, four presumed members of the FARC died in an explosion, apparently while mishandling explosives, according to Patricia Velez, mayor of the town of Planadas, where the blast occurred. She said the dead included three adults and one minor.

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San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro may very well be going through the vetting process to secure a spot within President Barack Obama's Cabinet, the San Antonio Express-News reported Saturday.

The newspaper attributed knowledgeable sources.

The Associated Press reported that Obama is considering nominating the San Antonio mayor to be housing secretary.

If Castro is nominated and is confirmed by the Senate, he would become one of the highest-ranking Hispanic officials in the Obama administration.

The White House and Castro's office aren't confirming that Castro is under consideration for the post.

Castro would succeed Shaun Donovan, a member of Obama's original Cabinet.

Last year, Castro declined a chance to to serve as the transportation secretary.

The mayor would join his twin brother, Rep. Joaquin Castro, who have both shined brightly in the national spotlight. According to the paper, Castro would have to go through a FBI vetting process and a Senate hearing.

Castro was the first Hispanic chosen to deliver the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte.

The 39-year-old has been mayor since May 2009. He marked his third term in 2013.

Earlier this year when asked by the New York Times about who would be a good Democratic Hispanic candidate who could counter a a Republican Hispanic candidate, Castro responded and said: "I don't know...That's a good question. Call me in 2016."

The White House press secretary in the past has said, "The president and others believe that Mayor Castro has a very bright future."

For more stories like this, visit FoxSanAntonio.com.

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Republican Rep. David Valadao says he's not worried that Congress' failure to pass immigration legislation will hurt his prospects for re-election to a district in California's agricultural heartland. Same goes for GOP Rep. Jeff Denham, who represents a neighboring district in the state's San Joaquin Valley.

Still, the California congressmen are making sure voters know they support an immigration overhaul. They're aware that Democrats will try to turn the congressional gridlock into an advantage during this year's midterm elections.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce spent $300,000 on television ads in Valadao's district, noting that he is the son of immigrants. Denham highlights an award he received from the nation's largest Latino advocacy group for "putting sound immigration policy over party politics." He was the first Republican co-sponsor of a sweeping immigration bill now stalled in the House.

"People have seen I've shown real leadership in driving this issue forward," Denham said.

Sounding a lot like Democrats, some Republican members of California's congressional delegation are making the case that changing the law is necessary to help farmers and businesses and to keep families together. But they also are members of a party that has stifled immigration-overhaul efforts, providing a political opening for Democrats in a state where immigrants are a crucial underpinning of the economy.

A recent national survey conducted by the Pew Research Center found that about 7 in 10 Hispanics say it's important that new immigration legislation pass this year. And a California Field Poll last year found that 9 in 10 California voters support allowing immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally to stay and become citizens if they work, learn English and pay back taxes.

Valadao, Denham and about a dozen other Republican lawmakers nationally are in districts that have a sizeable and growing Latino population. Latinos make up more than half of the registered voters in Valadao's district and about a quarter in Denham's.

Immigration also could play a role in a handful of open seats around the country, including those in Southern California now held by outgoing Republican Reps. Gary Miller and Buck McKeon. Latino voters make up a third of the electorate in Miller's district, and 1 in 5 voters in McKeon's. Democrats have made both seats a priority.

Valadao and Denham are in competitive districts and are targets for Democrats, who need to win 17 seats to win control of the House.

"My constituents understand I've been in the middle of it," Valadao said. "I've been vocal. I've signed onto legislation. I continue to put pressure on the leadership."

Democrats are questioning just how dedicated Valadao and Denham are, noting they declined to sign a petition that would have forced House Speaker John Boehner to schedule a vote on an immigration bill. No Republican joined the effort.

"They pay lip service to comprehensive immigration reform, but they refuse to lift a pen to sign the discharge petition to force a vote," said Rep. Steve Israel, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

Valadao's opponents also cite his 2011 vote while he served in the state Assembly that opposed the California Dream Act, which allows immigrants in California without legal permission to get privately funded scholarships to attend the state's public universities. Another provision allows immigrants to qualify for state financial aid to attend college.

"If there's anything that affects the kids in the Central Valley, the undocumented dreamers in the Central Valley, it's the California Dream Act that he opposed," said Amanda Renteria, Valadao's chief Democratic opponent.

Valadao spokeswoman Anna Vetter said the congressman voted against the legislation because he believes immigration is a federal issue. Further, he supports a path to citizenship for the so-called dreamers, she said.

Next week, Denham plans to introduce an amendment that would allow people to enlist in the armed forces as a way to become legal permanent residents, a move House Majority Leader Eric Cantor promises to block.

"There are those of us who have to do a greater job of championing and being vocal on the issue," Denham said. "My concern is that there is a very vocal minority in our conference that likes to say crazy and outlandish things that get picked up by the media."

Denham's leading Democratic opponent, almond farmer Michael Eggman, said it would be better for Democrats to control the House if voters want immigration reform. He said the GOP leadership will not bring up an overhaul bill unless it's forced to, as the failed petition would have done.

"If you don't sign the petition, you're really not committed to immigration reform," Eggman said.

Denham said he wants to work through the committee process while Valadao calls the petition a stunt.

Even if the California Republicans say they support changes to immigration law, Israel said it signals a lack of effectiveness that they can't get more Republicans to join them. Denham and Valadao counter that an immigration overhaul didn't happen even when Democrats controlled the White House and both chambers of Congress in 2008-09.

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President Barack Obama's expected nomination of San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro as secretary of Housing and Urban Development could test the 39-year-old's ability to navigate Washington ahead of 2016 elections, Texas Democrats say.

Since giving the 2012 keynote address at the Democratic National Convention, Castro's star has been on the rise, with his name often included among possible vice presidential contenders.

"This is an important step for Julian," Henry Cisneros, a HUD secretary under President Bill Clinton and a former mayor of San Antonio, told The Associated Press. "If indeed he has the capability to be what we all think he can be," Cisneros said, he can prove it by performing well at the helm of the federal housing agency.

Job performance aside, Castro's background could be his main selling point.

He and his twin brother, U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, grew up on the West Side of San Antonio in a working-class Mexican-American neighborhood. They were raised by their single mother, a prominent Latino rights activist in the 1960s and 1970s, and their grandmother, who crossed the border from Mexico as a child.

If Julian Castro is nominated to preside over HUD and confirmed by the Senate, he would become one of the highest-ranking Hispanic officials in the Obama administration.

"That says a lot. He carries with him the hopes and dreams and prayers of the entire Latino population," said U.S. Rep. Pete Gallego, D-Texas.

Gallego also thinks a Castro nomination would galvanize a grassroots effort in Texas to turn the historically Republican-dominated state into a place where Democrats can compete.

While neither Castro brother speaks Spanish fluently, both became well-versed in politics at an early age when their mother, Rosie, took them to political rallies and meetings.

"She literally taught them in her lap," said Cisneros, who has known Rosie Castro since meeting her in kindergarten.

With the housing market's lackluster recovery, if Julian Castro is named housing secretary, it will matter where he came from, Cisneros says.

"This is a poor city, so it means a lot that a person who's going to be in public service is living the reality. He has never strayed far from his roots," Cisneros said.

Castro earned an undergraduate degree at Stanford University and a law degree at Harvard before returning to San Antonio to become, at age 26, the city's youngest councilman.

As mayor, Castro spearheaded a voter-approved preschool program; set up a walk-in center for high school students seeking guidance on college; and initiated revitalization of some of San Antonio's most downtrodden neighborhoods.

Castro also worked on San Antonio's "Promise Zone" program. That federal government initiative aims to revitalize high-poverty communities by increasing economic activity, improving educational opportunities and leveraging private capital.

HUD plays a key role in the "Promise Zone" initiative and San Antonio was among the first cities that received a grant for the program from the administration.

Newt Gingrich, a former congressman from Georgia, said Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday morning that Castro would be "a good political pick for the president, it is a smart pick." But Gingrich noted that it likely signals the conservative state won't be turning blue anytime soon.

Obama's anticipated nomination of Castro as secretary of HUD also could be a symbolic passing of the baton.

In many ways, the two men's stories mirror one another's: Both are minorities raised by single mothers, attended Harvard Law School and saw their political careers ascend rapidly after giving lauded keynote speeches at Democratic National Conventions.

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Tribunal in early 2017 will consider Ukraine's claim against Russia as for violation of UN Convention on Law of Sea

The United Nations International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in early 2017 will start considering Ukraine's claim against the Russian Federation regarding the violation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea by Moscow.

The press center of the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine said the tribunal was formed on December 22, 2016 and consists of the following members: judge Jin-Hyun Paik (South Korea) appointed by the president of the tribunal; judge Boualem Bouguetaia (Algeria); judge Alonso Gomez-Robledo Verduzco (Mexico); Professor Love (UK) appointed by Ukraine; and judge Vladimir Golitsyn appointed by the Russian Federation.

"The appointed members of the tribunal have the reputation for fair, competent, honest and independent experts in the field of international maritime law. The Foreign Ministry expresses its sincere gratitude to the vice president of the UN International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea for the fast appointment of the tribunal members," the ministry said.

As reported, Ukraine on September 14, 2016 initiated a dispute with the Russian Federation regarding the violation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea by Moscow.
More than a dozen undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as minors are heading to Capitol Hill to push for a measure that would allow a path to legal status for people like them who want to serve in the U.S. military.

The immigrants, who as a group are known as Dreamers, say they should not be punished for the actions of the adults who brought them here illegally, and that they want to serve the country as military members.

One of the young adults who will be in Washington D.C. pushing for the measure is Alina Cortes, a 23-year-old Texas resident who came from Mexico at the age of 5 and participated in the Army ROTC program at Texas A&M University.

Her ROTC experience, said Cortes, convinced her that she is meant to have a military career.

My experience in ROTC changed my life, said Cortes in a statement sent to Fox News Latino. I realized that I have not only the desire but also the leadership capabilities to serve as an officer in the Corps  to stand up for others and to lead with courage and respect.

To be able to serve the only nation I call home is now is my biggest dream," Cortes said. "I know that this is what I was meant to do. I only ask for a chance to prove that I am just as American as anybody else who was born here."

The Dreamers' push comes as lawmakers in both the Senate and House wrangle over whether to include an amendment granting a path to legal status to undocumented immigrants who enlist in the U.S. military.

Senate Democrats are considering adding a measure known as the ENLIST Act to their defense budget bill. On Monday, in an attempt to fuel the idea of moving forward the ENLIST Act, Sen. Dick Durban, an Illinois Democrat, held a field hearing in Chicago.

I am confident that Dreamers will soon have the chance to serve honorably in the armed forces, Durbin said, according to published reports. On that day America will be [a] stronger and better country.

The head of Americas Voice, a group that advocates for more lenient immigration measures, said the undocumented immigrants willing to give their lives for the United States deserve special consideration.

Were very thankful that Senator Durbin is shedding light on this important policy problem and working hard to give young immigrants who are American in all but paperwork the opportunity to serve the country they know and love, said Frank Sharry, executive director of Americas Voice. If an immigrant is prepared to put his life on the line to contribute to the country he loves, then I believe he has earned the right to be called a citizen.

Meanwhile, a House Republican from California, Rep. Jeff Denham, filed his military-immigration bill as an amendment to the sweeping defense policy measure that the House will consider this week.

Denham's legislation would create a path to citizenship for immigrants who were brought illegally to the U.S. as children and serve in the military.

The House Rules Committee will decide on Tuesday on what amendments the House will vote on during work on the defense bill, which should be completed by week's end.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said he would block efforts to include the ENLIST Act in a larger bill.

Last week, Cantor spokesman Doug Heye said: "No proposed ENLIST amendment to [the defense budget bill] will be made in order."

Heye said no stand-alone vote on the measure would be permitted, either.

It was the latest setback for President Barack Obama's efforts to move comprehensive immigration legislation through Congress to boost border security, remake legal worker programs and offer legal status to the estimated 11.5 million people now living here illegally. The Senate passed an immigration bill last year, but it's been stalled in the GOP-led House.

Denham's measure was widely popular and seen as perhaps the likeliest area for compromise.

But in recent weeks prominent conservative groups, including the Heritage Foundation, announced their opposition. Heritage Action, the group's political arm, announced it would include the vote in its ratings on lawmakers and called Denham's legislation "deplorable."

Cantor himself, who previously had supported offering a path to citizenship for immigrants brought illegally as children, faces a primary challenge in Virginia on June 10, from a tea party opponent who has criticized the majority leader for not being conservative enough and accused him of supporting amnesty for immigrants living here illegally.

Cantor, House Speaker John Boehner and other House GOP leaders have insisted they want to advance immigration legislation, though they've rejected the Senate's comprehensive bill.

Chances have always looked slim, but the White House and outside advocates saw a window for action over the next several months, before Congress' August recess and November midterm elections.

One of the young immigrants in Washington D.C. this week, Lorenzo Robles-Gomez, 20, said he hopes that face-to-face appeals to lawmakers and their staffs will compel them to move on a measure that could help young immigrants.

I came illegally when I was five, the Kansas youth said to Fox News Latino, but I didnt have anything to say about it.

He said he would like to join the U.S. Air Force, a way that he feels he could give back to this country for what it has given me.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
House Speaker John Boehner on Tuesday defended a decision by Republican leaders to reject a GOP congressman's effort to bring his immigration bill to a vote.

Boehner told reporters that the national defense bill was not the place for a vote on California Rep. Jeff Denham's measure offering citizenship to immigrants who serve in the military.

Defying House Republican leaders, Denham filed his bill, known as the ENLIST Act, as an amendment to the sweeping defense policy measure that the House will consider this week. Denham intended to offer his measure as an amendment to the defense bill during a meeting of the House Rules Committee on Tuesday.

The bill "provides an avenue for those who want to perform the ultimate act of patriotism  serving their country  to earn legal status," Denham said in a statement. "As a veteran, I can think of no better way to demonstrate your commitment to our nation."

House leaders, who control the Rules Committee, have made clear that Denham's effort will be denied.

Boehner says there have been discussions about allowing Denham a stand-alone vote on his bill but no decision has been made.

The dispute comes with comprehensive immigration legislation stalled in the House, where even small-bore measures like Denham's cannot gain support.

The Senate passed a comprehensive bill last year that would boost border security, remake legal worker programs and offer a path to citizenship to the estimated 11.5 million people now living here illegally. That bill remains stalled in the Republican-led House, where Boehner has blamed GOP distrust of President Barack Obama to enforce any law for the inaction.

Despite a wide coalition of business, labor, religious groups, farmers and others pushing for an immigration overhaul, many individual Republican House members who represent largely white districts have been unmoved. That's particularly true in an election year amid concerns about angering core GOP voters.

Denham's measure was widely popular and seen as perhaps the likeliest area for compromise on the divisive issue of immigration.

Denham's bill would allow immigrants who were brought to this country on or before Dec. 31, 2011, and were younger than 15 years old to become legal, permanent residents  the first step toward citizenship  through honorable service in the military.

It was co-sponsored by 50 House members, 26 Democrats and 24 Republicans, but an outspoken minority was opposed. Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., had warned that "all hell will break loose" if Denham tried to promote the measure.

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The Borinqueneers, an Army infantry unit made up of mostly Puerto Ricans soldiers, is one step closer to receiving one of the highest civilian honors.

The House of Representatives on Monday afternoon approved by voice vote a bill to award the Congressional Gold Medal to the U.S. Armys 65th Infantry Regiment.

Among civilian honors, the medal trails only to the Presidential Medal of Freedom in importance.

The bill was introduced jointly by Bill Posey (R-Fla.) and Puerto Ricos Resident Commissioner (a non-voting member of the House), Pedro Pierluisi.

During the Korean conflict in the early 1950s, the 65th Infantry Regiment worked as a segregated unit, and its servicemen were awarded 10 Distinguished Service Crosses, 256 Silver Stars, 606 Bronze Stars and 2,771 Purple Hearts.

But when the Puerto Rican soldiers returned to the U.S., they were not given the same care and benefits that other soldiers received after they retired from active duty.

Members of the unit are called Borinqueneers, Pierluisi said on the floor of the House while speaking in support of the bill. Since the term was first used over 60 years ago, coined by members of the Regiment on their way to Korea, it has become synonymous with honor, courage, redemption and pride.

Four other military units previously have received the Congressional Gold Medal collectively: the Native American Navajo Wind Talkers, the Japanese-American Nisei Soldiers and the African-American Tuskegee Airmen and Montford Point Marines. The Womens Air Service Pilots (WASPs) have also received the medal.

Representatives Jose Serrano and Nydia Velazquez, both New York Democrats of Puerto Rican descent, also spoke in defense of the measure, which will now be considered by the Senate.

If the measure passes, the Congressional Gold Medal awarded to the unit will be given to the Smithsonian Institution.

For years, members of the Borinqueneers alliance lobbied heavily both on the island and in the mainland U.S. to spur Congress to award the medal to the Puerto Rican veterans.

They served their country and then they got back to Puerto Rico to find that they dont have the same status as other soldiers, said Javier Morales, the president of the 65th Infantry Veterans Association.

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Six states are having primaries Tuesday, and both parties are hoping that the results will give them an edge in having control of the U.S. Senate after the November elections.

Republicans around the country are pleading with voters to turn out in high-profile races and help them gain the six Senate seats they need to take control of the chamber from the Democrats.

Republicans already have a majority in the House of Representatives.

The six states having primaries Tuesday are Georgia, Kentucky and Oregon, which have closely watched Republican contests for Senate; Pennsylvania and Arkansas, which have feisty gubernatorial primaries; and Idaho, where tea party-backed lawyer Bryan Smith is trying to oust Republican Rep. Mike Simpson, who's seeking a ninth House term.

Hispanic voters do not make up a significant part of the electorate in any of these states.

They comprise less than 2 percent of the registered voters in Georgia, Kentucky, and Arkansas, 4 percent of eligible voters in Pennsylvania, 5 percent in Oregon and 6 percent in Idaho.

But any change on party control would ultimately have an impact on Latinos, of course, especially regarding certain issues, such as immigration.

Tuesday's primary elections will give establishment Republicans another chance to defeat tea party-backed candidates, but some political activists are asking if it makes much difference.

They see tea partyers losing individual races but winning the larger ideological war by tugging the Republican Party rightward, and as far as the heated battle over comprehensive immigration reform goes, that would mean that any effort to push for a path to legal status for undocumented immigrants would almost definitely fail.

Several tea party-endorsed candidates are also struggling Tuesday in Georgia and Kentucky. In each state, however, the "establishment" Republican candidates have emphasized their conservative credentials, which narrows the party's philosophical differences.

Brent Bozell, a sharp critic of Republican moderation, said: "With virtually no exception, everyone is running as a conservative. No one is running as a moderate, no one is running as an anti-tea-partyer."

In an interview with NBC News leading up to her expected primary victory Tuesday, Georgia's Michelle Nunn refused to say how she would have voted on the Affordable Care Act if she were a senator in 2010. She later tried to clarify her remarks, but still didn't answer the question.

Nunn and Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes  also expected to win her party's nomination Tuesday  are Democrats' best, and perhaps only, shots at picking up Republican-held seats. A Democratic victory in either state would seriously dent Republican hopes of picking up a net of six seats and regaining a Senate majority.

But Nunn will certainly hear about her health care answer once Republicans pick one of seven candidates as their nominee to succeed retiring Sen. Saxby Chambliss. Tuesday's primary should send the top two finishers on to a July 22 runoff.

Kentucky voters are poised to set up a long-awaited battle between Grimes and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who's favored to dispatch GOP challenger Matt Bevin in an anticlimactic end to what once looked like a threat to the GOP's top senator.

Senate races also are on the ballot in Arkansas, Idaho and Oregon on Tuesday, and there are primary contests for governor and some congressional seats in Pennsylvania, Arkansas, Idaho, Georgia and Oregon.

The Kentucky and Georgia Senate races have attracted international attention and impressive sums of money. Candidates already have spent more than $32 million, with $26 million by Republicans.

Yet both contests are likely to be settled by a small share of the electorate in a midterm year marked by antipathy toward the president and both parties in Congress.

In her official capacity as secretary of state, Grimes predicted a 30 percent turnout across Kentucky's two party primaries Tuesday. Only the 1.2 million registered Republicans can vote in the McConnell-Bevin primary.

In Georgia, several of the top Senate candidates said they expected 600,000 or fewer ballots cast, at least 80,000 less than a crowded primary for governor four years ago. Georgia has about 5 million active registered voters who can choose either major party's ballot in Tuesday's open primary.

Polls suggest former Secretary of State Karen Handel, Rep. Jack Kingston and businessman David Perdue will battle for two runoff posts. Reps. Paul Broun and Phil Gingrey are also running.

"Voters feel very distrustful right now, and voters are frustrated and angry right now," Handel said.

Still, she and her fellow Republicans made clear that they want that frustration  particularly with Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to bring loyal Republicans to the polls.

"Voters want a fighter," Handel said.

Kingston, an 11-term congressman, said, "Voters want a proven conservative."

In Kentucky, McConnell summoned the same themes to look past the primary. "There's nothing the president and his allies would like better than to defeat the guy you are looking at," he said, casting Grimes as a stand-in for Obama.

"She's able to raise money because she is running against me," McConnell said. "I'm able to raise money because I am me."

Grimes and Nunn have tried to frame themselves as centrists and capitalize on voters' obvious frustrations: Obama's job approval rating is in the low 40s nationally, and approval for Congress in recent years has consistently been less than half that figure.

Nunn continued those tactics Monday amid a rhetorical dance on Obama's health care law.

After her awkward exchange with NBC News on a hypothetical 2010 vote on health care, her campaign spokesman released a statement that still avoided the question.

The candidate later told The Associated Press that she plans on "continuing to answer the question by talking about where we need to go in the future and how we need to move forward."

Nunn previously has criticized her potential Republican rivals for a "run to extremes," including in their absolute opposition to the health law. And she's called for states, including Georgia, to expand Medicaid eligibility under the law. Republican Gov. Nathan Deal, who also faces a primary challenge Tuesday, has refused.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Immigration advocates are increasingly losing patience as legislation on a comprehensive reform continues to stall in Congress. They have focused their ire on President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner, and now have a new target: Eric Cantor, the House majority leader.

Eric Cantor is the No. 1 guy standing between the American people and immigration reform, said Frank Sharry, executive director of pro-immigrant group Americas voice, during a conference call Wednesday organized to criticize Cantor.

More so than House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, Cantor is seen as responsible for the House's election-year failure to act on immigration 11 months after the Senate passed a wide-ranging bill with billions for border security and a path to citizenship for the 11.5 million immigrants in the country illegally.

Cantor, a Virginia Republican who is widely seen as having ambitions of being speaker one day, has hardened his stance on immigration. He faces a tea party primary challenge June 10.

Cantor and the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, fellow Virginian Bob Goodlatte, announced last summer that they were developing legislation offering citizenship to immigrants brought illegally to this country as kids. The bill never appeared.

And according to Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Calif., Cantor committed last year to helping him bring legislation to a vote granting citizenship to immigrants brought here illegally as kids who serve in the military. No agreement was reached, and Cantor's office announced Friday that Denham's measure would not even be allowed to come to the floor this year as part of the annual defense bill, which the House is considering this week.

Denham said the announcement took him by surprise after talking with Cantor earlier in the day, and he had no explanation.

Cantor's spokesman, Doug Heye, said that Cantor continues to support Denham's bill, the ENLIST Act, as well as legislation allowing citizenship to kids brought illegally, and conversations are ongoing. Heye said Cantor never committed to bringing the ENLIST Act to a vote, just to working on it.

Political considerations play no role, Heye said.

"On the issue of kids, he thinks that's a great place to start and wants to continue to work on that. He supports the principle behind the ENLIST Act," Heye said. "These are things that he believes because they're the right things for him to do. It's not a political calculation."

But Cantor is facing pressure on immigration from his primary opponent, Dave Brat, an economics professor at Randolph-Macon College. Brat is a long-shot to unseat Cantor, who cruised to a seventh term with 58 percent of the vote in 2012. But his candidacy has attracted attention from prominent Republicans such as columnist Ann Coulter, who described Cantor as "amnesty-addled."

Earlier this month at a convention in Cantor's district, Virginia conservatives booed the majority leader and ousted one of his allies as chairman of a local Republican committee, elevating a tea party favorite instead.

Brat has seized on the dispute around Denham's bill, accusing Cantor in an opinion piece published in a local online community forum of supporting the legislation "until he saw my primary challenge and principled conservatives' stand on amnesty."

Even before his primary drew near, Cantor was seen as the member of House Republican leadership most opposed to acting on immigration legislation.

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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In a race considered key in Tuesdays primaries, Kentuckys U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, a Republican, handily beat his tea party challenger, Matt Bevin  another sign, many political experts say, that the most right-wing faction of the GOP is losing steam.

For so-called establishment Republicans, who hope to win six seats in the U.S. Senate, and gain control of that chamber, this year has been one of trying to beat back tea party candidates, viewed by the GOP as a hindrance to winning general elections in November.

On Tuesday, McConnell, who as a 30-year senator and party leader is about as establishment as they come, predicted that he and other mainstream Republicans would "crush" tea party candidates this year.

Bevin initially excited anti-establishment Republicans, but his campaign eventually collapsed under rookie mistakes and McConnell's overwhelming advantage in money, experience and organization.

One of the issues both Bevin and McConnell sparred over was immigration, with Bevin casting the senator as pro-amnesty and the senator at one point assailing Bevin, saying hed insulted the people of Kentucky, when the candidate said that U.S. citizens did not want to do certain hard work that immigrants do.

The Kentucky victory for establishment Republicans reflected the best evidence yet that Republicans are avoiding previous mistakes and improving their chances of controlling the Senate during President Barack Obama's final two years in office.

GOP voters again chose solidly conservative nominees while rejecting the most extreme and outlandish types who led the party to painful losses in 2010 and 2012.

While McConnell and Bevin criticized each other over immigration, they actually both harbor largely conservative views on the issue, supporting stricter enforcement.

In fact, the differences between tea party and non-tea party Republicans seem to be shrinking. Often it's merely tone and experience that separate them. Tone and experience matter, however, and Tuesday's GOP voters chose the less bombastic and unpredictable conservatives in most cases.

Kentucky Democrats, who are trying to guard against losing the majority in the Senate, are planning a tough offensive against McConnell with their candidate, Alison Lundergan Grimes.

McConnell is mindful of this, taking aim at her in his victory speech on Tuesday night, according to The Hill. The Senate Minority Leader called Grimes a partisans partisan whos been practicing party politics since she learned to talk.

Barack Obamas candidates preach independence but they practice loyalty above all else, McConnell said, according to The Hill. Im confident of this: Kentuckians will not be deceived. Alison Lundergan Grimes is Barack Obamas candidate.

Grimes has not missed a beat, meanwhile, responding that she is "not an empty dress...not a rubber stamp..not a cheerleader."

Mitch McConnell would have you believe that President Obama is on Kentuckys 2014 election ballot, Grimes said. Senator McConnell, this race is between you and me.

Tea party candidates fared poorly in other Tuesday primaries, as well.

In Georgia, Republican voters rejected the two most outspoken tea party proponents, Reps. Paul Broun and Phil Gingrey. They set up a July 22 Senate runoff between two men who constantly emphasize their conservative credentials but leaven their rhetoric by wooing corporate support: Dollar General CEO David Perdue and Rep. Jack Kingston claimed the top two spots Tuesday and now begin a two-month runoff campaign.

Establishment Republicans once feared that Broun, who called embryology and evolution "lies straight from the pit of hell," would win the nomination and become the type of gaffe-prone, over-the-top candidate who killed great GOP Senate chances in Delaware, Indiana, Missouri and other states in 2010 and 2012.

In Oregon, Republicans chose pediatric neurosurgeon Monica Wehby, who supports abortion rights, to run against first-term Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley this fall. Her opponents included state Rep. Jason Conger, who was endorsed by the Tea Party Nation and former presidential candidate Rick Santorum.

Arkansas' two uncontested Senate primaries officially set up a fierce November showdown between two-term Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor and freshman Republican Rep. Tom Cotton.

Tuesday's Republican elections continued earlier trends from states such as North Carolina. There, Republicans nominated state House Speaker Thom Tillis for the Senate, rejecting a tea party leader and a Baptist minister who were making their first runs for office.

North Carolina Democrats scoff at the notion that Tillis is "moderate," citing his self-described "conservative revolution" in the closely divided state. There and in many other states, Democrats will say the GOP Senate nominees are too conservative. They are happy to see Republican leaders play down the differences between themselves and tea party activists, as House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, did Tuesday.

"Sometimes," Boehner told reporters, "there's not that big a difference between what you all call tea party and your average conservative Republican."

Before mainstream Republicans get too excited about Tuesday's Senate results, they might note that Democrats have solid, well-funded nominees waiting. Oregon's Merkley and Arkansas' Pryor  like North Carolina's Sen. Kay Hagan  have proven they can win statewide elections.

In Georgia and Kentucky, where Obama hardly campaigned in 2008 and 2012, Democrats are banking on two women with well-known political names. Michelle Nunn of Georgia is the daughter of former Sen. Sam Nunn. Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes is the daughter of a long-time Democratic Party leader.

Republicans need to gain six net Senate seats to control the chamber. Losing either McConnell's seat or the Georgia seat, which Saxby Chambliss is vacating, could kill those chances.

Nunn would rather have drawn Broun as her opponent. And Grimes would have been ecstatic to face Bevin rather than McConnell.

So far, Republican primary voters aren't handing those types of gifts to Democrats. That suggests they've learned the hard lessons of 2010 and 2012, when non-mainstream nominees lost winnable races.

Now the question is whether all Republican candidates  not just Constitution-quoting tea partyers  have moved too far right for moderate voters in November's general elections.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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In Miami, a hub of Cuban and Venezuelan exiles, about the most politically lethal thing a lawmaker can do is to speak about Communism in a positive way.

But that is what U.S. Rep. Joe Garcia, a Democrat, did Tuesday night during a Google Hangout about immigration and crimes along the U.S.-Mexico border.

In a discussion about the issue, the Cuban-American noted that El Paso, Texas, known as being one of the countrys safest cities, is directly across from Juarez, Mexico, one of the most dangerous in the hemisphere.

And then he added: It happens to be across the border from the most dangerous city in the Americas, which is Juarez, right? And two of the safest cities in America, two of them are on the border with Mexico. And of course, the reason is weve proved that Communism works.

If you give everybody a good, government job, theres no crime, Garcia said.

His point, apparently, was to say that border cities that have a lot of people employed in government jobs have low crime rates.

Then he added that the Republican push for pumping so much money into border security  which has created many of those government jobs  was misguided because it was failing to keep people from crossing over.

But that isnt what we should be doing on the border, he said. The kind of money weve poured into it, and were having diminishing returns.

Garcias comment produced a backlash in the local and national media. The congressman, however, says it is preposterous to interpret his comment as an embrace of Communism.

"This is an absurdity, he told the Miami Herald when they asked him about the controversial comment. Accusing the son of Cuban immigrants of believing in Communism is just ridiculous.

Garcia blamed America Rising PAC, the Herald reported, for creating a stir over the comment and, he suggested, blowing it out of proportion.

America Rising PAC is a Republican opposition research firm that, according to Politico, aimed to become a content-focused site featuring negative news and oppo [opposition] research about Democratic candidates.

Garcia in the past has held high-ranking posts in conservative Cuban exile lobby groups that push for democracy in Cuba.

Garcia, a former practicing Miami lawyer who beat incumbent Rep. David Rivera, a Republican, in 2012 in the race to represent Floridas 26th congressional district, is up for re-election in November.

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The State Department said Wednesday the U.S. may have to take a larger role in trying to ease the crisis in Venezuela if a South American effort to broker talks between the government in Caracas and the opposition remains stalled.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was headed to Mexico to discuss potential next steps with officials there.

The U.S. has supported regional efforts to reach a compromise. But a senior State Department official told reporters Wednesday that the standoff needs to be resolved within days, or weeks at most, or risk the continued of violent unrest that has gripped Venezuela for months.

The official said Kerry and Mexican officials are expected to look at what more can each country do to help the regional talks and Washington may have to exert its influence with another country in the region which has stronger ties to Caracas. The official was not authorized to discuss the diplomatic plans by name and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Congress is considering issuing sanctions against Venezuelan officials to punish them for human rights abuses.

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The goal is to add more Latinos to the federal workforce, where they are only 8 percent of the payroll, despite being 17 percent of the U.S. population.

But for the Obama administration official who is tasked with making the goal a reality, the mission is personal.

Katherine Archuleta, the director of the United States Office of Personnel Management, a post she has held since late last year, said she is spending time on the ground, going to Latino communities in various states to raise awareness about job opportunities in the federal government.

This week she was in California. Then shell be stopping in Colorado, Pennsylvania, Florida and New Mexico, she said.

Its a personal passion of mine, Archuleta said to Fox News Latino. Its my longtime professional career goal to involve more Latinos in government work.

Hispanics are underrepresented, she said. What I can do is broaden their network, and make sure they have this opportunity to learn about and land federal jobs.

She said one way to increase Latino interest in and access to federal jobs is, for one thing, to take a surgical approach to hiring.

I want to find out where Latinos are, and match them with our efforts, she said.

Archuleta, who is the first Hispanic to head the OPM, and is one of the highest-ranking Hispanics in the Obama administration, said she is partnering with groups such as the League of United Latin American Citizens, or LULAC, and colleges, including about a dozen Hispanic-serving higher education institutions, for her agencys Latino outreach effort.

Archuleta, the former national political director for President Obamas reelection campaign, said the Latino outreach effort essentially targets three groups  millennials, mid-level professionals, and senior workers who may consider going from the private to public sector.

One of the biggest misunderstandings among Latinos regarding federal government jobs, she said, is that they are all in Washington D.C.

Within the Latino community, theres an incredible interest in staying home, Archuleta said, they dont want to leave their communities.

So part of her work has meant raising awareness about the ubiquity of federal jobs  letting Latinos know that such work is everywhere, and they can find employment without venturing far from their hometown and family.

I tell them 85 percent of federal jobs are outside the D.C. area, Archuleta said. She urged Latinos to check USAJobs.gov

Latinos long have complained that they lack the contacts in the federal government that other groups have and that help members of those groups learn about opportunities and get their foot in the door.

That helps explain in part why of the nearly 2 million federal workers, only 8.2 percent are Latinos, who make up about 15 percent of the private job sector.

African Americans, one group that has a strong network that provides leads about federal jobs, make up 18.2 of the federal workforce, while they are about 8 percent of the private sector, and 13 percent of the U.S. population.

Edward Valenzuela, co-chairman of the national Coalition for Fairness for Hispanics in Government, said to The Washington Post last year: Our community could be way ahead financially if we were able to participate in federal government hiring the way African Americans did.

Archuletas focus on Latinos as part of her public service has been par for the course in her career.

In an interview in 2012 with Politic365.com, a political news site, Archuleta said her foray into politics was rooted in a desire to improve conditions and life for women and Latinos.

You do it because you have a deep passion for public good, for civic engagement, she said, according to the site.

For me, I was passionate about womens issues and Latina issues in particular. I never imagined that I would be in this position, but I always knew that I would speak out on behalf of Latinas.

For now, Archuleta will not attach a number to the goal of raising the percentage of Latinos in the federal workforce.

We just want to move the number [8.2 percent] up, she said.
Accusations of bribes from drug traffickers, spying and email hacking have turned Colombia's presidential election into an ugly slugfest that has further polarized a country trying to emerge from its violent past.

The mudslinging has distracted attention from talks with the country's main rebel group to end the country's half-century internal conflict, which had been expected to be a key issue going into Sunday's election.

Much of the blame for the dirty campaigning falls on two former allies whose public feuding has divided Colombia the past four years: President Juan Manuel Santos and his still-powerful predecessor, Alvaro Uribe.

Despite presiding over what may be South America's best-performing economy, Santos is struggling amid relentless attacks by Uribe and his hand-picked heir, former finance chief Oscar Ivan Zuluaga. Polls say the two are running neck and neck, well ahead of three other candidates but with neither likely to garner the 50 percent needed to avoid a runoff.

Zuluaga's conservative Democratic Center movement has lambasted Santos for what it calls his softness in 18-month-old negotiations with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known as the FARC. Zuluaga has threatened to end the talks in Cuba if he is elected, saying he will demand the rebels prove their commitment to peace by declaring a permanent cease-fire within a week.

But those policy differences have taken a backseat to endless bickering and near-daily bombshells that have Colombians shaking their heads in disgust.

It began with media reports that Santos' campaign manager, J.J. Rendon, received $12 million from the nation's biggest drug traffickers to negotiate their surrender. The information was based on three-year-old, leaked testimony to Colombian prosecutors from a drug cartel boss jailed in the U.S.

Rendon, a Venezuelan native, quickly resigned after acknowledging that he interceded in the case, although he denied taking any money.

Two days later, authorities arrested a computer expert who worked for Zuluaga's campaign, accusing him of hacking into the emails of FARC negotiators and even Santos. Zuluaga denounced the arrest as a ploy to derail his candidacy.

Uribe, without presenting any evidence, then accused Rendon of funneling $2 million from the alleged drug-dealer payments to Santos' 2010 campaign.

The waters were muddied even more with the appearance last weekend of a video shot clandestinely from a cellphone in which Zuluaga listens attentively as the suspected hacker outlines a strategy to use intelligence gathered illegally to try to sabotage support for the peace talks.

And many Colombians, even those who support Santos, were asking whether the president was playing electoral politics with the peace process when he announced a landmark agreement with the FARC on May 17 to jointly combat illicit drugs. Many observers say he should have put the talks on hold until elections had passed.

Both Zuluaga and Santos "are trying to win at any cost," said Marta Lucia Ramirez, a former Uribe defense minister and presidential candidate who was a distant third in the latest Invamer-Gallup poll. "That's what's causing damage to the country, that's what destroying Colombians' trust in their political leaders and institutions."

Vicente Torrijos, a political analyst at Bogota's Rosario University, said the onslaught of accusations was unlikely to tilt the election's outcome.

"The society is so saturated with scandal that it produces the paradoxical effect of reinforcing voter preferences," he said.

Santos, the scion of one of Colombia's richest families, inspires little enthusiasm among voters, especially among the poor who have benefited less from the economic boom. And Zuluaga is widely viewed as Uribe's subordinate. Yet none of their challengers appear to have been able to turn that to their advantage, perhaps because the mainstream media have focused on the two better-funded campaigns.

Whoever wins is going to have a tough time soothing the bitterness stirred up by the accusations. Congress is divided and Uribe, who was recently elected to the Senate, has promised to rally opposition against Santos should he win re-election.

"The hatred unleashed by the campaign isn't going to go away easily," said Michael Shifter, president of the Washington-based Inter-American Dialogue.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered all his ministers not to travel to the countries voted against Israel in the UN Security Council over the next three weeks, 112. Ukraine TV channel has said with reference to Israel's 9 Channel.

The ban also applies to Ukraine, which supported the resolution, stipulating that the establishment of settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory by Israel has no legal force and is a flagrant violation of international law.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said on Wednesday that the chambers Democrats will participate in the special, Republican-led select committee investigating the deadly 2012 attack in Benghazi, Libya.

Soon after the announcement, Pelosi, of California, named five Democrats she appointed to the panel to join Republicans in the investigation of the attack, in which four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens, died when militants stormed the mission.

The five Democrats are: Linda T. Sanchez of California, the ranking Democrat on the Ethics Committee; Elijah E. Cummings of Maryland, the ranking member on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform; Adam Smith of Washington, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee; Adam B. Schiff of California, a member of the Intelligence Committee; and Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, a wounded combat veteran of the Iraq war who serves on Armed Services.

All the Democratic panel members except Sanchez have had some involvement in past congressional investigations of the Sept. 11, 2012 assault, according to the New York Times.

Democrats repeatedly have expressed concerns that the GOP-led inquiry is an election-year ploy to energize Republican voters.

Republicans have accused the Obama administration of misleading Americans about a terror attack weeks before the election.

"I believe we need someone in that room to simply defend the truth," said Cummings at a Capitol Hill news conference.

Cummings will serve as the ranking member on the select committee. Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, had selected Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., a seasoned prosecutor, to be the panel's chairman along with six other Republicans.

Democrats have been divided over whether to boycott the investigation, the eighth probe. Some Democrats have called the new inquiry a political sham designed to embarrass the Obama administration and rough up former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, a potential 2016 presidential candidate.

Among Democratic leaders, Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina reiterated his reservations on Tuesday. Clyburn had said, "If you're going to have a hanging, don't ask me to bring the noose."

Pelosi said she "could have argued this either way. Why give any validity to this effort?"

Other Democrats have maintained that they must participate in the select committee to ensure they have a role in questioning witnesses.

"We can't simply let the Republicans run the show," Smith said. Cummings said the select committee is unnecessary "because many of the so-called unanswered questions" have been answered in previous reports.

In a statement, Gowdy said he looked forward to working with committee members "toward an investigation and a process worthy of the American people and the four brave Americans who lost their lives in service to our country."

At the White House, spokesman Jay Carney said there was reason to suspect the House GOP's investigation "might not be divorced from politics."

"Our view has always been  and it has been not just our view, but our practice  that it is appropriate to have legitimate congressional oversight," Carney added, without elaborating on whether the Gowdy-led investigation constitutes legitimate oversight.

The Benghazi attack has become a conservative rallying cry, with Republicans accusing the Obama administration of intentionally misleading the public about the nature of the attack and stonewalling congressional investigators.

The special investigation means high-profile hearings in the months leading up to the elections, with Republicans likely to target current and former administration officials. Almost certain to be called to testify is Clinton.

The panel is authorized to work through the end of the year, past November's midterm elections, when the GOP hopes to win control of the Senate and tighten its majority grip on the House.

In the 20 months since the attack, multiple independent, bipartisan and GOP-led probes have faulted the State Department for inadequate security in Benghazi, leading to four demotions. No attacker has been arrested.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Political calls for more walls and policing at the U.S.-Mexico border are a "straw man" designed to defeat immigration reform, former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano said Wednesday.

"When you go to some of our ports and see the backup  it's gotten better but it's not good enough. And it's not keeping pace with the amount of commerce that's growing between our countries,"  Janet Napolitano, former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security

Napolitano said in an interview with The Associated Press that U.S. money would be better spent on easing border-crossing bottlenecks that affect trade rather than on adding more barriers and agents.

"When you go to some of our ports and see the backup  it's gotten better but it's not good enough. And it's not keeping pace with the amount of commerce that's growing between our countries," she said, emphasizing that she is expressing a personal opinion now that she has left government.

"You cannot seal a border, that's an unrealistic expectation," she added. "And I think that unfortunately it has become a straw-man argument to prevent immigration reform from passing."

The prospect of Congress rewriting U.S. immigration laws is increasingly unlikely. The Senate passed a comprehensive immigration bill last year that would boost border security, remake legal worker programs and offer a path to citizenship to the estimated 11.5 million people now living there illegally. But the House, where all lawmakers are facing re-election later this year, has not acted on any element of the legislation.

Napolitano stepped down as homeland security secretary in September to become president of the 233,000-student University of California system. She spoke in Mexico on Wednesday on a trip to promote collaboration between the UC system and Mexican universities. She said perceptions on both sides of the border have inhibited student exchanges, including fear of violence by Americans and sentiments that the U.S. is an unfriendly place for Mexicans.

As homeland security secretary, Napolitano supported then Mexican President Felipe Calderon in his stepped-up attack on drug cartels, a strategy that many say caused a spike in gruesome violence that scared many Americans from traveling in Mexico.

"Mexico is a sovereign nation and makes its own decisions ... the policy of the U.S. government is to support those decisions," she said.

Napolitano also set records every year in the number of immigrants deported from the United States.

But she said the Obama administration and the University of California system have done a lot to expand opportunities for students in the U.S. without proper documents, allowing some 700,000 so far nationwide to stay in the country under a deferred status.

"I don't know any other country in the world that's done that for students, and in California we've done even more," she said. "Those students also qualify for in-state tuition even though they're technically undocumented, and I'm supporting a bill now that would create a state loan bank for those students because they can't get federal student loans."

Napolitano has sought to soften perceptions about her positions on illegal immigration since she left office. The number of Customs and Border Protection officers has tripled to more than 20,000 over the last decade, including the years when Napolitano oversaw the budget for the border patrol, and the agency is looking to add 2,000 more.

She also played down fears that President Barack Obama's decision to declare almost 500,000 acres of mountain ranges in New Mexico as a national monument could create an opening for Mexican drug cartels. The proclamation on Wednesday heightened criticism from some lawmakers in the West and local law enforcement agents who see the move as a threat to security in the region.

Napolitano noted such areas already exist along the border and have been policed through agreements between Homeland Security and the Interior departments.

"There are national parks all along the border," she said.

Based on reporting by the Associated Press.

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President Barack Obama on Wednesday declared almost a half-million acres of rugged desert terrain along the U.S.-Mexico border as a national monument, marking the largest swath of land to be set aside for that purpose since he took office.

While praised by environmentalists, the move is generating criticism from some lawmakers in the West and local law enforcement agents who see Obama's use of power as a threat to security in a region where the influence of Mexican drug cartels, human smuggling and illegal immigration are all apparent.

House Speaker John Boehner and others also complained that the designation of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument in southern New Mexico is the latest example of Obama taking unilateral action to sidestep Congress.

"Once again, the president has chosen to bypass the legislative branch  and, in this case, do so in a manner that adds yet another challenge in our ongoing efforts to secure our southern border," Boehner said. "At a time of continued cartel violence in Mexico, we should not be putting any additional restraints on efforts to protect our borders."

Officials with U.S. Customs and Border Protection said the designation will not limit their ability to perform the agency's mission along the border.

The campaign by environmentalists, hunters and tourism officials to gain wilderness protection for the Organ Mountains and Desert Peaks has dragged on for a decade, with numerous versions introduced by the state's delegation over the years.

New Mexico Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, both Democrats, had most recently proposed legislation to protect the region, which includes hunting areas and features rock outcroppings, petroglyphs, ancient lava flows and sites such as Billy the Kid's Outlaw Rock and Geronimo's Cave.

After hosting a series of public meetings, the senators amended their proposal to include a buffer zone for law enforcement. With Wednesday's proclamation, critics say there are no provisions to allow for local law enforcement to patrol the area.

Dona Ana County Sheriff Todd Garrison recalled the times his deputies and federal agents were shot at as they pursued suspected drug smugglers through the area. He also talked about stolen cars that were used to ferry drugs through the desert and past border patrol checkpoints.

"If we have no ability to patrol that area, crime is going to increase. It will be akin to the Organ Pipe National Monument in Arizona. I wonder how many years it will be before we have to post signs that say 'Enter at your own risk,'" Garrison said.

U.S. Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, was among those who sent letters to Obama asking him to refrain from establishing the monument. Bishop said letting the legislation work its way through Congress would have allowed for border security concerns to be addressed.

"His decision stands, and now we have to go back in and try and fix it. That is just a backward way of trying to have good government," Bishop said. "Originally the Antiquities Act was used to try and preserve stuff. These recent presidents are abusing the process to make a political statement, not to save anything."

Obama vowed during Wednesday's signing ceremony to make more proclamations using his executive power under the Antiquities Act to protect federal lands.

Republican Rep. Steve Pearce, whose congressional district covers the region, had proposed a designation for just 55,000 acres. He said years of work went in to developing a plan that would be acceptable to ranchers, business owners, sportsmen and conservationists. He said Obama ignored that "with the stroke of a pen."

Udall and Heinrich said Wednesday they will continue their legislative push to establish wilderness areas within the new monument and to release the restrictions that come along with such areas to give Border Patrol agents more flexibility.

Supporters of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks monument say setting aside the area could generate $7.4 million in economic activity from visitors and business opportunities. They say the designation could also lead to more federal funding and staffing for the Bureau of Land Management and the Border Patrol to enforce rules throughout the area.

"When you don't have enough management and staff that's always a problem, but also it's hard to control when the public doesn't value the resources," said Oscar Simpson with Backcountry Horsemen of New Mexico, one of the groups supporting the monument. "It's all an education process. It's making people understand these are really unique things and you need to protect them."

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As sanctions legislation against Venezuela advances in Congress, the Obama administration is finding itself wedged between pressure from Capitol Hill to punish officials over human rights and regional governments that think such a move would only add to tensions in the South American country.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday joined its House counterpart and issued a bipartisan approval of legislation that would ban visas and freeze the assets of Venezuelan top level and security officials guilty of abuses committed during three months of anti-government protests.

While it's unclear whether the bill will move to a full vote, the Obama administration is trying to slow its momentum, arguing that more time is needed for efforts by Brazil and other regional nations to broker dialogue between Venezuela's government and opposition. The opposition last week pulled out of month-old talks, arguing the government wasn't negotiating in good faith as it continued to arrest protesters and refused to budge on proposals to free jailed activists and create an independent commission to investigate the deaths of 42 people on both sides.

There may be another reason for the United States' reluctance: fears of a regional backlash.

Chris Sabatini, policy director at the Council of the Americas, said that even targeted U.S. sanctions would smack of a return to Cold War policies like the half-century embargo against Cuba that are a favorite target of the current generation of Latin American leaders.

Many, like Brazil's Dilma Rousseff and Argentina's Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, are allies of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and have so far refused to join the U.S. in condemning his government's crackdown. Even more moderate governments are unlikely to support sanctions just now.

"The bottom line ... is isolation," Sabatini said. "Something does have to be done, but it can't be done by the U.S. acting unilaterally."

The U.S. has suffered a number of setbacks in the region in recent years, from Ecuador's closure of the only U.S. military base in South America to Rousseff's cancellation of a state visit to Washington over revelations that the United State spied on her communications. As countries flex their growing economic muscle, they're also diversifying ties away from the U.S., traditionally its biggest trading partner, to new players such as China and Russia.

Secretary of State John Kerry criticized Maduro's government during a visit to Mexico City on Wednesday, saying it hasn't demonstrated a willingness to cede space to the opposition.

"Regrettably, there has just been a total failure by the government of Venezuela to demonstrate good-faith actions to implement those things that they agreed to do," Kerry said.

His Mexican counterpart, Jose Antonio Meade, refused to take sides. He said only that dialogue has to be inclusive and produce results.

Still, Sabatini said the threat of U.S. sanctions might actually help regional countries exert more pressure on Maduro. "It's good cop, bad cop," he said.

Maduro on Tuesday lashed out at the prospect of sanctions, calling the Senate committee vote "detestable." He called for a meeting of South American heads of state in June to present evidence of what he says is a U.S. effort to work with local Venezuelan political groups to carry out a slow-motion coup.

Maduro's opponents at home also warn that U.S. intervention could backfire.

"Instead of weakening an authoritarian government like Venezuela's, it actually strengthens it by providing an argument that behind the social protests is a conspiracy led by the U.S.," said Marino Alvarado, head of local human rights group Provea.

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It is a well-known fact that the U.S. immigrant population has grown steadily in recent years. What may be less known is where the majority of those new arrivals are ending up.

Back in 1990, California was the only state to have more than a fifth of its population born outside the U.S. The Pew Research Center found that today four states  California, New York, New Jersey and Florida  meet that threshold.

Those four states and 11 more  Nevada, Hawaii, Texas, Massachusetts, Maryland, Illinois, Arizona, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Washington and Virginia  account for 79 percent of all the nations immigrants. And although the rankings of the states have changed since 1990, which states made the top 15 hasn't.

The number of immigrants have risen so quickly in some parts of the country that states typically thought of as hubs of immigration, such as Arizona, have slipped behind other states by some measures, the Pew Research Center noted. It added that immigrants made up 12.9 percent of Arizonas population in 2000, putting the state ninth of the list, but by 2012 it had fallen to 12th even though the percentage of immigrants in the state rose to 13.6 percent of its population.

Studying data from the Department of Homeland Security, Slate found that 15 percent of the new immigrants came from Mexico, with China and India coming in second and third respectively with roughly 8 and 6 percent of 2012s new legal permanent residents.

Mexicans made up the majority of immigrants in 26 states and surprisingly held the top immigrant spots in places as far from the border as Michigan, Washington and Tennessee.

Cubans are the largest immigrant group in Florida and Kentucky, while Dominicans predominate in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

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A years-long effort to award the Congressional Gold Medal to a group of mostly Puerto Rican veterans who fought in the Korean War is finally coming to an end.

The United States Senate on Thursday passed a bill to award medal to the U.S. Armys 65th Infantry Regiment.

Known better as the Borinqueneers, the soldiers  and a number of lawmakers  have lobbied tirelessly for years to recognize the military regiment with the Congressional Gold Medal. The Senate bill, which was passed by the House earlier this week, paves the way for President Obama to sign the measure, which he is expected to do within 10 days.

I am overjoyed that the Borinqueneersthe pride of Puerto Rico and of Puerto Ricans everywherewill receive this profound expression of national gratitude in recognition of their courage, skill and patriotism, Puerto Ricos Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi said in a statement. The fact that it took many years to arrive at this moment does not diminish the sweetness of the moment itself. 

Along with Pierluisi  a non-voting member of the House  the bill was introduced last year by Congressman Bill Posey (R-Fla.)

I want to thank Congressman Posey, Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and all the other Senators and Members of Congress who made passage of this legislation possible, Pierluisi said. I also want to thank the many individuals and grassroots organizations who have been so devoted to this cause, raising public awareness about the Borinqueneers, communicating with their elected officials, and urging support for this legislation.

During the Korean conflict in the early 1950s, the 65th Infantry Regiment worked as a segregated unit, and its servicemen were awarded 10 Distinguished Service Crosses, 256 Silver Stars, 606 Bronze Stars and 2,771 Purple Hearts.

But when the Puerto Rican soldiers returned to the U.S., they were not given the same care and benefits that other soldiers received after they retired from active duty.

I hope it brings great joy and pride to the surviving Borinqueneers and to the families of the Borinqueneers who have passed away. Pierluisi said.

Four other military units previously have received the Congressional Gold Medal collectively: the Native American Navajo Wind Talkers, the Japanese-American Nisei Soldiers and the African-American Tuskegee Airmen and Montford Point Marines. The Womens Air Service Pilots (WASPs) have also received the medal.

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Sen. Marco Rubio told Fox News Greta Van Susteren Thursday it is time for President Obama to make the case of Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi, the Marine jailed in Mexico, a priority and convey its importance to Mexican authorities.

Tahmooressi was arrested March 31 after border inspectors found three legally purchased and registered firearms in his truck. Although he says he made a wrong turn at the poorly marked crossing, he was taken to the notorious La Mesa Prison in Tijuana and charged with weapons trafficking.

Rubio, R-Fla., said on On the Record with Greta Van Susteren that he understands Mexican authorities would like to work through Tahmooressis case in their own judicial system.

However, he said he believes the situation was clearly an accident, and that Tahmooressi does not fit the profile of someone dangerous.

I hope he is treated fairly. I hope he is back in Florida soon, Rubio said. Tahmooressi grew up in southern Florida and his mother still lives there.

Rubio said the Obama administration should make it clear to the Mexican government that Tahmooressis case is important to the U.S., and work to find a solution.

I think he should call on the authorities over there, including the president of the country Pena Nieto, and make this a priority, he said, later adding that the U.S. should use our diplomatic influence to ensure that they know that this matters to us, and I hope the White House will do that.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP)  San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro was long viewed as biding his time: waiting out shifting demographics in Texas until 2018, when a Hispanic Democrat with a national profile could be a formidable contender for governor.

Instead, the 39-year-old rising political star has accepted President Barack Obama's offer to become the nation's housing secretary. Aside from positioning Castro as a possible vice presidential candidate in 2016, it's a promotion that his fiercely Republican home state couldn't offer anytime soon.

Democrats, led by architects of Obama's re-election in 2012, are pouring millions of dollars into the state to put Texas back in play on the electoral map. No Democrat has won a statewide race in Texas in two decades, the longest streak of political futility in the U.S. But the state's booming Hispanic population  Hispanics since 2000 have counted for roughly two out of every three new residents  has given Democrats hope. At the same time, a turnaround could still be far off.

"If we do what we're supposed to do, we're going to be OK in Texas for a long, long time," said Lionel Sosa, a Republican former adviser to President George W. Bush who helped the GOP capture 40 percent of the Hispanic vote in the 2004 presidential election.

Castro is an up-and-comer described as an "all-star" on Friday by Obama, who in 2012 picked him to deliver the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention. A Mexican-American whose mother was a civil rights activist, Castro at the time was coming off an easy re-election in San Antonio, where he said he saw himself staying as mayor until term limits pushed him out in 2017.

Those close to him said joining Obama's cabinet now after spurning a previous opportunity wasn't a matter of Castro growing pessimistic or impatient about his future in Texas.

"A lot of people take the longer view of the demographic changes occurring in our state. I think that (Castro) has always known both the demographic and political realities in Texas," said Democratic state Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, another of the party's rising stars in San Antonio. "But opportunity is only going to knock so many times when the president of the United States asks you to serve."

Mark McKinnon, a top Republican strategist who advised the presidential campaigns of Bush and John McCain, said Castro had hit his political ceiling back home.

"I think Julian Castro is (a) big fish that has just outgrown his pond in Texas," he said in an email interview.

Wendy Davis, a Texas Democrat equally as famous as Castro after her nearly 13-hour filibuster over new abortion restrictions last summer, has energized her party like no gubernatorial candidate since Ann Richards, who narrowly won the office in 1990. Yet Davis remains a heavy underdog to Republican Attorney General Greg Abbott.

Nor is the Texas GOP getting any less conservative: Tea party challengers are poised to knock off establishment Republicans and clean up in primary runoffs Tuesday.

Democrats say 2020 is a realistic target for Texas to become a swing state. Obama lost Texas by 16 points in 2012, and a year later, those who engineered his re-election campaign launched Battleground Texas with the goal of using long-term, grass-roots organizing to ultimately put the state's 38 electoral votes up for grabs.

If confirmed by the Senate, Castro would become one of the highest-ranking Hispanic officials in the federal government. Two years ago, Castro spoofed the constant speculation about his political ceiling with a video in which he asks his iPhone's digital personal assistant, Siri, whether he should run for higher office.

"Ay, mijo," the phone answered back in Spanish. "Of course you should."

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CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- South American governments have rejected an effort by U.S. lawmakers to apply sanctions on Venezuela over human rights concerns.

Foreign ministers from the 12-member Union of South American Nations issued a statement Friday saying that the proposed legislation would constitute a violation of Venezuela's internal affairs and undermine attempts by regional diplomats and the Vatican to foster dialogue between the government and opposition.

Sanctions represent "an obstacle for the Venezuelan people can overcome their difficulties with independence, and in democratic peace," according to a statement after a meeting in the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador.

The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday is expected to debate a bipartisan bill that would order the Obama administration to ban visas and freeze the assets of Venezuelan officials who've committed abuses during the past three months of unrest. Similar legislation has already cleared the Senate foreign relations committee.

The Obama administration has condemned President Nicolas Maduro's crackdown on protests but wants to hold off on applying sanctions to give more time to dialogue.

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Colombians voted Sunday in a presidential election characterized by a clash of personalities and relentless mudslinging that have overshadowed differences on how to put an end to a half-century of guerrilla violence.

Despite presiding over one of Latin America's fastest-growing economies, support for President Juan Manuel Santos' re-election has been falling steadily for months, especially among poor Colombians who haven't benefited as much from the economic boom.

Amid fatigue with Santos' rule, former finance chief Oscar Ivan Zuluaga has emerged as the strongest challenger thanks to the backing of his one-time boss and mentor, the still-popular but polarizing former President Alvaro Uribe.

The last polls published a week ago placed the two in a dead heat, with about 29 percent support each, below the 50 percent threshold needed to avoid a June runoff. The remaining three candidates trailed by about 20 percentage point.

The two conservative front-runners served simultaneously in Uribe's Cabinet, where they backed a free trade agreement and close anti-narcotics cooperation with the United States.

Where they differ is on how to manage an 18-month peace process with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, that is the centerpiece of the president's re-election bid.

Santos, after casting his ballot early Sunday, said that whoever wins should continue to lead Colombia toward a deal with the country's largest rebel army. But concerns that rebel leaders, on the ropes after a decade-long US-backed offensive, will not be punished for any crimes have been fueling mistrust of the process that Santos' opponents have been quick to seize on.

Although Zuluaga says he too favors a negotiated settlement, he says if elected he'll give FARC negotiators in Cuba a week to demonstrate their commitment to peace by declaring a permanent cease-fire.

Zuluaga is also threatening to take a tougher stance on Venezuela, saying in a debate this week that he won't remain "silently complicit" as President Nicolas Maduro jails opponents and stamps out anti-government protests. Santos has been careful not to provoke the socialist president, calculating that extensive commercial ties with the country and relations with leftist governments in South America could suffer.

But those policy differences have largely been engulfed in the past two weeks by a string of bitter attacks and shocking revelations.

It began with media reports that Santos' campaign manager, J.J. Rendon, received $12 million from the nation's biggest drug traffickers to help negotiate their surrender. Rendon quickly resigned after acknowledging he interceded in the case, though has denied taking any money.

Meanwhile, Zuluaga's campaign has been reeling over the arrest of a computer expert who worked for his campaign and is accused of hacking into the emails of the president and FARC negotiators.

Zuluaga denounced the arrest as a desperate ploy to derail his campaign. But the emergence of a clandestinely shot video where the candidate listens as the alleged hacker outlines his strategy to undermine the peace talks have cast doubt on his claim that he had no knowledge of the consultant's allegedly illegal activities.

The tensions came to a head in a feisty exchange at a televised debate this week where Santos accused his rival of being Uribe's "puppet" and Zuluaga fired back: "You must show me respect."

It's unclear if the last-minute feuding will affect voter preferences.

So far, none of the other candidates  former Bogota Mayor Enrique Penalosa , former Defense Minister Marta Lucia Ramirez and Clara Lopez of the leftist Democratic Pole party  appear to have capitalized on widespread disgust with the two better-funded campaigns. But after several polls in the 2010 election failed to predict a landslide win by Santos, few are certain of the outcome.

Regardless of who wins, the polarizing rancor unleashed by the race won't be easy to mend.

"The entire political class comes out looking bad," said Ivan Garzon, a political scientist at the University of the Savannah in Bogota.

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There are 110 people which are held captive in the territory out of Ukraine's control, advisor to the Ukrainian Security Service chief Yuriy Tandyt has said.

"Some 110 people are considered to be illegally held persons in Donetsk and Luhansk, according to the official security services. Besides, ten of our heroes are illegally detained on the territory of the Russian Federation. When someone tries to underestimate these figures, we say that these are the lives of our fellows," Tandyt said in the air of Inter TV channel on Sunday.

He recalled that in the near future Ukraine will hand over 15 people from the release list provided by the representatives of certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
At a recent meeting, the Tampa Bay Young Republicans recited the Pledge of Allegiance, prayed and then tackled the night's topic: marijuana.

Their guest? Personal injury lawyer John Morgan, a huge Democratic Party donor campaigning to legalize medical marijuana in Florida. Months earlier, the same group supported a Supreme Court opinion that was a victory for gay marriage advocates even as Republican leaders insisted marriage should be between only a man and a woman.

The group illustrates a growing generational divide in the GOP as younger Republicans increasingly break rank from the establishment on social issues. In Alabama, a college Republican group leader was nearly kicked out of the party for supporting gay marriage. The successful push to legalize gay marriage in Minnesota was backed by several prominent younger Republicans. And in Colorado, the spokesman for a group that pushed to legalize marijuana was a Republican activist. Perhaps only in opposing abortion are most young Republicans nationally as conservative socially as older members.

"We've grown up in a time where everything's much more open. We want to talk about more things," Tampa Bay Young Republicans president Anibal Cabrera said. "We're willing to listen to the other point of view. We're willing to have an opposite opinion."

Whether the split on social issues forces the GOP to change its platform or risk alienating younger voters probably won't be answered until after the 2016 presidential election, said Matthew Corrigan, a University of North Florida political science professor. He said one thing to watch is support for Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, the son of former Texas Rep. Ron Paul, who is mixing a libertarian message with a more moderate outreach to Republicans.

"It's unsettled," Corrigan said. "If the nominee of the Republican Party signals less of an emphasis on social issues than in years past, that leaves an opening for these young Republicans who may have more libertarian leanings, but there's a lot of seniors within the party that I don't think are ready to give up on those positions."

While Republicans nationally have struggled to recruit younger voters, women and minorities, the Tampa group says welcoming socially liberal as well as conservative members has helped swell its ranks from seven to 200 members in less than a year. Executive director Lacey Wickline said the party establishment could learn from the approach, but instead has largely ignored the group.

"We're doing something right. We've got the energy, we're trying to do what's right by our party, and where's the support?" Wickline said. "If you're really trying to target the under 40 demographic, there's only one place to turn  that's us."

Part of the shift among younger Republicans is growing up in an era where gay rights, pot smoking and other issues are more acceptable, even among conservatives.

"We grew up on 'Will and Grace' and our parents grew up on 'All in the Family,'" said Stephanie Petelos, the chairman of the College Republican Federation of Alabama who was almost banished from her party for supporting gay marriage.

Alabama Republican Party Chairman Bill Armistead said there may be some differing opinions among younger Republicans, but he still feels most support the party platform. Those interviewed noted even young Republicans tend to be anti-abortion. And Armistead pointed out that the man elected to replace Petelos after she graduated firmly supports traditional marriage.

"It was very disruptive for the previous college chairman to advocate a position that's contradictory to our state position and our national platform," Armistead said. "It did not represent the majority of college Republicans, yet she used her position to advocate her personal opinions, which is unfortunate."

Beyond being a generational issue, young Republicans say their positions stem from the party's belief that government shouldn't intrude on people's lives. Ron Paul's 2012 presidential campaign got most of its following from younger Republicans attracted by his libertarian message that allowed for gay marriage and the legalization of marijuana.

"When it comes to issues like gay marriage or marijuana legalization, younger Republicans often find themselves asking, 'Why is government involved in this at all?'" said Alex Holzbach, a Tallahassee-based Republican political consultant who served as president of the Florida State University College Republicans before graduating this year. "It's really just a realization that the party's current status quo against some of these issues is in direct conflict with our belief in smaller, less intrusive government. "

He and Petelos said they are Republicans because they believe the party is stronger on economic issues, and both said the GOP's position on social issues made it harder to recruit college students.

"It's just a little bit harder to get into what the Fed did last week than it is for equality for one of your best friends from high school," Petelos said.

The economy is especially relevant when recruiting students staring down college loan debt and a tough job market, said Young Republican National Federation Chairman Jason Weingartner.

"It's often the Democrats that are trying to shake the narrative so that we go back to discussing predominantly social issues so it will distract from the current economic climate," he said.

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A day before the issue is to come to a vote in the House of Representatives, 14 Democratic members of Congress have sent a letter to President Obama saying they agree with his opposition to U.S. sanctions against Venezuela.

The bipartisan congressional bill instructs the Obama administration to compile a list of human rights abusers in the Venezuelan government, freeze their assets and ban them from the United States.

Foreign Relations' committees in the House and Senate have overwhelmingly approved it.

Administration officials are opposed. They say sanctions risk undermining mediation efforts in Venezuela and straining relations between the U.S. and Latin American partners.

The Democrats led by Michigan Rep. John Conyers wrote a letter to Obama Tuesday backing his administration. They also urged an exchange of ambassadors with Venezuela after a four-year hiatus.

Violent unrest has gripped Venezuela for months. Forty-two people have been killed since February.

Last week, South American governments denounced the effort by U.S. lawmakers to apply sanctions on Venezuela over human rights concerns.

Foreign ministers from the 12-member Union of South American Nations issued a statement Friday saying that the proposed legislation would constitute a violation of Venezuela's internal affairs and undermine attempts by regional diplomats and the Vatican to foster dialogue between the government and opposition.

Sanctions represent "an obstacle for the Venezuelan people can overcome their difficulties with independence, and in democratic peace," according to a statement after a meeting in the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador.

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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A tea party leader is favored to become Texas lieutenant governor. A Ted Cruz-endorsed newcomer is inching closer to replacing Democrat Wendy Davis in the statehouse. On television, millions of dollars in attack ads have given established Republican incumbents all they can handle.

For all the talk of Texas growing competitive for Democrats in 2016 and beyond, GOP voters are poised to make a harder turn right on Tuesday.

Though the tea party has sputtered this year in elections around the country, Texas conservative insurgents are the front-runners in Republican primary runoffs for major statewide offices and positioned to bolster their ranks in the Legislature. Victories now and again in November would signal an aggressive new slate of Republican priorities  from tightened spending to expanded gun rights  after Gov. Rick Perry leaves office in January.

I think Texans want principled leaders who will listen to the people.  Sen. Ted Cruz

Of the four statewide GOP races, none have been nastier than state Sen. Dan Patrick trying to oust longtime Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst. Republicans are also nominating an attorney general to replace Greg Abbott, who faces Davis in the governors race, and candidates for nearly a dozen statehouse races.

Were supposed to be this very conservative state, and the people in Texas are, yet our Legislature doesnt always reflect that, said Republican Konnie Burton, a tea party leader running for Davis state senate seat in Fort Worth. We are going in a different direction than many states, but I dont think were the only ones. Were probably just louder. Were Texans, right?

For Democrats, its a less lively runoff. Their main decision is choosing a U.S. Senate nominee to serve as token opposition to Republican John Cornyn, and Democrats have spent much of the primary trying to dissuade their voters from picking Kesha Rogers, whos called for impeaching President Barack Obama and still forced a runoff against Dallas dental mogul David Alameel.

But most attention  and money  has been on the Republican ballot.

Dewhurst, who finished a distant second in March, has spent $5 million of his own fortune in trying to mount a comeback and shed accusations that hes become too entrenched and moderate after 11 years in office. But Patrick, founder of the state Senates tea party caucus, has attracted more outside support  a $4 million haul in the last two months, impressive even by Texas political fundraising standards.

Candidates have wooed GOP voters by saying Texas can do more to expand gun rights, restrict access to abortions and tackle illegal immigration. Tea party-backed candidates have also admonished the Republican-controlled Legislature as financially reckless and vowed to slash economic incentives they deride as corporate welfare.

That troubles Bill Hammond, a Republican and president of the influential Texas Association of Business, who said hes worried about Texas losing a competitive edge in luring companies and the GOP turning away Hispanic voters.

Its much more so this cycle than you have in the past. Youve seen some very solid conservative candidates defeated in the Texas Republican primary, unfortunately, Hammond said. Its absolutely a concern more and more for us.

Unlike in 2010 and 2012, tea party-backed candidates are dealing with a disappointing election year, particularly in congressional and U.S. Senate races. But Cruz, who rode the wave to Washington and bolstered Burtons campaign with a rare endorsement, said Texas stands out with Marchs primary results.

I think Texans want principled leaders who will listen to the people, Cruz said.

Even a GOP runoff for a seat on the State Board of Education has shades of tea party-versus-establishment. Pat Hardy, a 12-year incumbent on the solidly conservative board that has gained national attention over ideological battles over creationism and magnifying Christianity in history lessons, faces a challenge from Eric Mahroum that puzzles even her critics.

She was a Texas Republican before being a Texas Republican was cool, said Dan Quinn of the Texas Freedom Network, a liberal-leaning watchdog. Shes been pretty darn conservative. Its sort of remarkable thats where the division is these days.

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Consider it Throwback Thursday for New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez.

That is when the two Republicans, who have lavished praise upon each other in recent years, will join forces again.

On Thursday Martinez, who traveled to New Jersey last year to campaign for her Republican colleague in his re-election bid, will be the one laying out the welcome mat as Christie stops in New Mexico to stump for her.

A June 3 primary election will decide which of five Democratic candidates will challenge Martinez in November in her bid to win re-election.

Christie previously lent his support for Martinez with a visit to eastern New Mexico in 2010, when she first ran for governor.

But much has changed for the New Jersey governor since Christie and Martinez shared the limelight during her campaign stop for him in New Jersey last fall.

Back then, Christie was seen as an almost inevitable 2016 presidential candidate. Martinezs trip to New Jersey to stump for him was viewed as a possible early glimpse into a 2016 GOP presidential-vice presidential ticket.

Martinez and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani were the only two Republicans that Christie had summoned to be his re-election surrogates.

The New Mexico governor had been only too happy to oblige. As The Atlantic noted, And why wouldn't she? Christie, the magazine said, was basking in adoring media attention and even the begrudging acknowledgment of conservatives in his party.

But then, in some political circles  particularly those orbiting around the 2016 presidential elections  Christie became nearly radioactive because of the scandal involving lane closures around the George Washington Bridge, and whether it had been political payback for a Democratic mayors unwillingness to endorse the governor for re-election.

In the last week, Christie has barreled back into the spotlight after a few months of dialing it down.

He has held press conferences, had legislative bill signing ceremonies, and even taken another shot at a powerful group with whom he long has been at loggerheads  the states teachers, saying he would slash New Jerseys contributions to public pensions because of a shortfall in the budget.

Last week, he was in Florida, pushing for Gov. Rick Scott in his re-election bid.

But it will be an especially significant reunion on Thursday for Martinez and Christie, who have proven to enjoy a unique chemistry.

Both are former prosecutors, and are viewed as moderate Republicans, although they do share conservative views on some issues, such as gay marriage.

They think highly of each other, and have made a point to make it known on several occasions.

When speaking about why he wanted Martinez, in particular, at his side during the last days of his re-election campaign last year, Christie told reporters: We get along.

I like to campaign with people I like, he said. And I like her a lot, we get along really well, so thats one reason honestly  Im on the last few days of the campaign and I really dont want to feel like I have to babysit someone. And Susana is just an adult, shes great. And shes a team player.

When Martinez was asked in 2012 about Christies opposition to same-sex marriage, she defended him, adding that she would also oppose it in New Mexico.

I love his authenticity, I love who he is, The New York Times quoted Martinez saying about Christie last year. I will support Governor Christie in anything he decides to do in life.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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The immigration debate was at a fever pitch again Wednesday, with groups from different sides of the issue taking aim at House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, a Virginia Republican, who sent a flier to voters in recent days boasting of shutting down a plan to "give illegal aliens amnesty."

The flier, distributed in his district by his re-election campaign, comes as Cantor is under pressure ahead of his June 10 GOP primary  and as the narrow window for action on immigration legislation in the House closes.

At the same, President Obama came under fire for  proponents for more lenient immigration laws say  backpedaling on a vow to review deportation practices and possibly limit them to dangerous criminals.

Cantor's flier underscores how vexing the issue is for the GOP, seen by critics as the roadblock to comprehensive immigration reform.

Advocates on the left are accusing Cantor of standing in the way of getting overhaul legislation through the House 11 months after the Senate passed a sweeping bipartisan bill.

Cantor's tea party opponent in Virginia's GOP primary, Dave Brat, convened on Wednesday a press conference on the steps of the Virginia Capitol to label Cantor a top cheerleader for "amnesty" in the House, citing Cantor's support for action on certain immigration measures.

A short time later, in a conference room inside the state Capitol, Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., a leading proponent of overhauling immigration laws, held his own press conference to accuse Cantor of standing in the way of progress in the House on a measure that would address border security as well as a path to citizenship for the 11.5 million immigrants living in the country illegally.

"Allow America to have a vote," Gutierrez implored. Several immigrants who are facing deportation orders joined him.

Obama, meanwhile, drew the ire of advocates of more lenient immigration policies after his administrations announcement Tuesday night that it is delaying until late summer the results of a review of the nation's deportation policy.

Advocates had met with Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson in recent weeks and pushed for an end to the high rate of deportations, particularly the detention and expulsion from the country of undocumented immigrants who have no criminal background and are not national security threats.

The administration had indicated that it would review its deportation process and perhaps focus it on dangerous criminals, something it had said several times before but has not fully implemented.

That emboldened House Republicans to argue that they can't trust the current administration to enforce laws and that Obama is undermining prospects for a broader immigration overhaul in Congress.

The White House sees a narrow window this June and July for Congress to act on immigration before the August congressional recess, which is when, traditionally, incumbents begin to seriously focus on midterm elections this November. So Obama directed Johnson not to release the results of the deportation review until that window closes.

Cantors flier references Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and says, "Barack Obama and Harry Reid: Pushing amnesty to give illegal aliens a free ride. Conservative Republican Eric Cantor is stopping this liberal plan."

That strong message was a changed tone for Cantor, who has repeatedly voiced support for giving citizenship to certain immigrants brought illegally to the country as children. Last year Cantor joined Gutierrez and other lawmakers on a three-day tour of immigration-related sites in New York aimed at increasing awareness of the issue.

Brat dismissed the new tone from Cantor as politics and flip-flopping.

"Eric Cantor saying he opposes amnesty is like Barack Obama saying he opposes Obamacare," Brat said.

Cantor's campaign spokesman did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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President Barack Obama has delayed the completion of a Department Homeland Security (DHS) review of U.S. deportation policies for four months, according to White House officials.

The move is intended to try to preserve the chance of Congressional action on immigration reform.

In March the president directed numerous branches of the government to examine whether deportation practices can be made more humane. That emboldened House Republicans to argue that they can't trust the current administration to enforce laws and that President Obama is undermining prospects for a broader immigration overhaul in Congress.

The White House sees a narrow window this June and July for Congress to act on immigration before the August congressional recess, which is when, traditionally, incumbents begin to seriously focus on midterm elections this November. So Obama has directed Homeland Security Jeh Johnson not to release the results of the deportation review until that window closes.

"The president wants to take every opportunity to find a permanent solution," said Cecilia Munoz, the White House Director of the Domestic Policy.

The underscores a split in the ranks of pro-immigration reform forces. Some have urged Obama to take executive action unilaterally without Congress. But others have insisted that they must keep the pressure on Republicans while there is a chance, however distant it may be, to pass a bill that provides a path to citizenship for the 11.5 million undocumented immigrants living in the U.S.

"We have an opportunity for two or three months to revive the situation in the House of Representatives," Obama said earlier this month.

This window, according to White House officials, opened after a number of Republican incumbents won primary challenges against Tea Party candidates who oppose reform immigration laws. The White House sees the end date as being when lawmakers leave Washington for a monthlong recess at the end of July.

"If they dont pass immigration reform before that, the president will have no choice but to act on his own," said Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said last week.

Obama informed Johnson of his decision to delay the review during a meeting at the White House last week in which the DHS chief updated the president on the progress of the review, a senior White House official told the Associated Press.

DHS will continue to work on the review but wont publish the results until August, said the official, who asked not to be identified because he was not authorized to speak on the topic.

Obama's decision came on the same day that a coalition of pro-immigration reform groupsincluding the National Immigration Forum, the Service Employees International Union and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishopsasked the president to delay unilateral action in order to "give the leaders of the House all the space you could need."

Based on reporting by the Associated Press.

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Expressing hope that he can return to the United States with positive news about Cubas progress on free enterprise, U.S Chamber of Commerce President Thomas Donohue is visiting the island, where he is meeting with government officials and business owners.

But Donohues visit has drawn the ire of U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and the son of Cuban immigrants.

Writing to the chamber, Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat who always has pressed for a hard line on U.S. policy toward Cuba, said Cuba isn't an attractive investment opportunity because the government unjustifiably jails foreign business leaders and breaks international labor standards. He questioned the merits of engaging a government controlling almost all the country's economic activity.

I hope to go home with a very clear message of progress that's being made in Cuba on free enterprise and private employment and great progress in small business.  Thomas Donohue, president, U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Donohue is meeting with entrepreneurs, officials and university students. U.S. business executives traveled with him. The delegation arrived Tuesday afternoon in Havana and met with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez.

"I hope to go home with a very clear message of progress that's being made in Cuba on free enterprise and private employment and great progress in small business," Donohue said. "And that I hope to go home with other information as well."

Chamber officials say it is the organization's first visit to the island since 1999.

The delegation was scheduled to visit an auto-repair cooperative Wednesday.

The two countries have no diplomatic relations, and the U.S. maintains a 52-year-old trade embargo against Cuba. But American food and agricultural goods are sold to the island under an exception to the sanctions.

President Raul Castro has launched a program of economic reforms in recent years, and has said that more foreign investment will be vital to meet the country's future financial goals.

But Menendez reminded the chamber the five-decade U.S. embargo against Cuba is unlikely to be lifted soon. He says Cuba must release political prisoners and give citizens their rights.

I am deeply concerned about the U.S Chamber of Commerces willingness to seek out a relationship with a regime that is in constant violation of international labor rights, said Menendez in his letter. More specifically, the Cuban governments labor and employment practices are in direct violation of International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions on freedom of association, collective bargaining, discrimination, the protection of wages, and the abolition of forced labor.

The senator also blasted the agency for seeking to strengthen its relationship with Cuba.

"A government that jails foreign business leaders without justification, violates international labor standards, and denies its citizens their basic rights," Menendez said, "such conditions hardly seem an attractive opportunity for any responsible business leader.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Hours after President Obama touted a foreign policy approach that would avoid acting unilaterally, the House approved new sanctions Wednesday against Venezuela, where dozens have died since February in connection with anti-government protests.

The measure instructs the administration to compile a list of human rights abusers in the government, freeze any assets they hold in American banks and ban them from entering the United States.

The bill, passed by voice vote, raises the stakes in Congress' efforts to hold Venezuelan authorities accountable for a crackdown against protesters that has raged since February.

Forty-two people have been killed, with the violence heightening tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela that have persisted unabated since the death last year of the South American country's former leader Hugo Chavez.

Venezuelan officials have responded angrily even to the threat of economic punishment.

They say the demonstrations are a coordinated attempt to overthrow the government and have regularly tried to discredit the opposition by linking it to the United States.

On Wednesday, leaders of the ruling socialist party presented what they described as indications the U.S. ambassador to Colombia was involved in a plot to destabilize Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's rule.

Up to now, Obama administration officials, too, have opposed sanctions legislation in Congress. The reluctance echoes a general aversion by the Obama administration to acting unilaterally to conflicts overseas -- a topic he focused on in his commencement speech Wednesday in West Point.

Administration officials have argued in hearings over the last two months that imposing economic measures could undermine mediation efforts between Venezuela's government and opposition, and strain relations between the U.S. and Latin American partners.

That opposition may be softening, however.

Last week in Mexico, Secretary of State John Kerry rapped Venezuela's government for its "total failure" to adhere to agreements aimed at easing the unrest and warned sanctions may be inevitable.

"The United States Congress must stand ready to act on the calls for freedom and democracy around the globe and the Venezuelan people have sent us a distress signal for help," said Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., who drafted the bill. Political dialogue, she said, "has provided no results, no actions, no concessions and the innocent are still being imprisoned."

Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, was among those who also spoke in favor of the bill. Another Democrat, Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, was the only member to express reservations to what he termed "unilateral" U.S. action.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 13-2 to advance a similar bill last week. It's unclear when the full Senate might take it up. The office of Majority Leader Harry Reid declined to comment.

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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Investigators identified 1,700 veterans awaiting medical care at the Phoenix VA hospital, but not on an official waiting list, and an average wait of 115 days for a first appointment for those who were listed, the Veterans Affairs Department's inspector general said Wednesday. The IG concluded that "inappropriate scheduling practices are systemic throughout" the nationwide VA health care system.

Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., immediately called for VA Secretary Eric Shinseki to resign. Miller also said Attorney General Eric Holder should launch a criminal investigation into the VA.

Richard J. Griffin, the department's acting inspector general, said in an interim report that investigators had "substantiated serious conditions" at the Phoenix VA hospital. "While our work is not complete, we have substantiated that significant delays in access to care negatively impacted the quality of care at this medical facility," he wrote in the 35-page report.

Miller said the report confirmed that "wait time schemes and data manipulation are systemic throughout VA and are putting veterans at risk in Phoenix and across the country."

Shinseki called the IG's findings "reprehensible to me, to this department and to veterans." He said he was directing the Phoenix VA to immediately address each of the 1,700 veterans waiting for appointments.

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Griffin said his office has increased the number of VA health care facilities it is investigating to 42 nationwide, up from 26 known to be under investigation as of last week. He said investigators' next steps include determining whether names of veterans awaiting care were purposely omitted from electronic waiting lists and at whose direction and whether any deaths were related to delays in care.

He said investigators at some of the other 42 facilities "have identified instances of manipulation of VA data that distort the legitimacy of reported waiting times."

Justice Department officials have already been brought into cases where there is evidence of a criminal or civil violation, Griffin said.

Dr. Samuel Foote, a former clinic director for the VA in Phoenix who was the first to bring the allegations to light, said the findings were no surprise.

"I knew about all of this all along," Foote told The Associated Press in an interview. "The only thing I can say is you can't celebrate the fact that vets were being denied care."

Foote took issue with the finding by the inspector general that patients had, on average, waited 115 days for their first medical appointment.

"I don't think that number is correct. It was much longer," he said. "It seemed to us to be about six months."

Still, Foote said it is good that the VA finally appears to be addressing some long-standing problems.

"Everybody has been gaming the system for a long time," he said. "Phoenix just took it to another level. ... The magnitude of the problem nationwide is just so huge, so it's hard for most people to get a grasp on it."

The report Wednesday said 84 percent of a statistical sample of 226 veterans at the Phoenix hospital waited more than 14 days to get a primary care appointment. VA guidelines say veterans should be seen within 14 days of their desired date for a primary care appointment. A fourth of the 226 received some level of care during the interim, such as in the emergency room or at a walk-in clinic, the report said.

The report said investigators would not be able make any determination about whether long appointment waits resulted in patient deaths until after they analyze medical records, death certificates and autopsy results.

In a related matter, Griffin said investigators have received numerous allegations of mismanagement, inappropriate hiring decisions, sexual harassment and bullying behavior by mid- and senior-level managers at the Phoenix hospital. Investigators were assessing the validity of the complaints and their effect, if any, on patients' access to care, he said.

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The Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Jeh Johnson is asking for an internal review of the Obama administration's release of tens of thousands of immigrants in the country illegally who were convicted of crimes and facing deportation. He's telling lawmakers he wants a deeper understanding of the issue.

Federal data published this month showed that the DHA released 36,007 convicted criminal immigrants last year who are facing deportation, including those accounting for 193 homicide and 426 sexual assault convictions. The immigrants nearly all still face deportation and are required to check in with immigration authorities while their deportation cases are pending.

News of the releases, which came amid an ongoing review of the Obama administration's deportation policies, incensed Republican lawmakers who contend that President Barack Obama has not properly enforced immigration laws. The House Judiciary Committee chairman, Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said the releases "needlessly endanger Americans' lives."

In testimony sent to Congress ahead of a hearing by the committee Thursday, Johnson said he was "committed to enforcing our immigration laws in a manner that best promotes and ensures national security, public safety and border security." He said he has asked for a "deeper understanding" of the releases, and he pledged to continue to work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to ensure public safety.

Johnson said many of the releases were directed by an immigration judge or were prompted by other legal requirements. His written testimony did not provide additional details.

The White House said this week it asked Johnson to delay completing his review of deportation policies until the end of the summer. It was a move aimed at salvaging hope for Congress to act on an immigration bill before November's midterm elections.

It's an election-year gambit with the potential to backfire: By asking for patience yet again from frustrated immigration activists, Obama is driving up expectations about actions he'll take if the fight in Congress ultimately fails.

"It's an audacious strategy," Democratic pollster Celinda Lake said. "But it has some downsides to it too."

White House officials said the delay is intended to give the GOP as much breathing room as possible to maneuver now that most GOP primaries are over, freeing incumbent Republicans from concerns about challenges from conservatives who oppose an immigration overhaul.

Yet Obama's allies also hope that by holding off on controversial steps to ease deportations, Democrats can keep the focus squarely on the failure of Republicans and House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, to bring immigration to a vote.

"Giving the Republicans space takes away their final excuse," said Jim Wallis, president of Christian social justice group Sojourners. "It's all now focused on John Boehner."

But Republicans dismissed the notion that Obama's move makes it easier for Republicans to act on immigration, noting that Obama has only delayed  not removed  the threat that he'll go over lawmakers' heads if they don't act by August.

"It's completely inappropriate for the president to threaten Congress that he will unconstitutionally act on his own if Congress doesn't produce a bill to his political liking within his own made-up timeframe," House Judiciary Committee Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said.

Laying the blame squarely at Republicans' feet could motivate dispirited Latino voters, who tend to favor Democrats, in a midterm election in which Obama has warned repeatedly that the biggest hazard for his party is that Democrats won't show up to vote. At the same time, some immigration groups and Democrats  including Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill.  have lost patience and already are balking at Obama's delay.

Most Americans  55 percent  favor providing a legal way for those in the U.S. illegally to become citizens, according to a May AP-GfK poll, including 73 percent of Democrats.

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Ukraine will unilaterally hand over 15 people, who were detained and sentenced in Ukraine, to promote to the process of hostages' swap, SBU chief Vasyl Hrytsak has said.

"Now we will give 15 people back on a unilateral basis who have already received their sentences at courts. We will just hand them over to break the deadlock," Hrytsak said in an interview with 112.Ukraine TV channel on Sunday night.

"The decision on the hostages' swap is taken by one person alone [in Russia]. We are ready to do anything to take away our guys," he said, recalling that there are 109 Ukrainian citizens held captive.
This weekend, some 400 undocumented immigrants from Central America arrived at Greyhound Lines bus terminals in Tucson and Phoenix.

It was a staggering occurrence, but not nearly as remarkable as how they got there  courtesy of federal immigration officials.

The immigrants arrived at the bus stations after having been arrested and processed by federal authorities in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, and flown to Arizona from there because the Border Patrol lacked the resources to deal with the growing flow of people crossing illegally into the Lone Star State, according to USA Today. Federal officials said all the detention facilities in Texas were full and that they couldn't take in any more migrants.

"We have enough manpower, it's due to detention space," Andy Adame, a Border Patrol spokesman in Tucson, Arizona told Reuters.

The practice, the newspaper reported, apparently has been underway for several months.

Groups of immigrants left in Arizona have included infants. Organizations that serve immigrants complain that federal authorities essentially are dumping people without food, water, or other necessities.

"It's not safe healthwise and we are concerned for their physical safety," said Cyndi Whitmore, a volunteer with an advocacy group that has been going to the bus terminal in Phoenix to help, USA Today reported.

Tucson News Now

Whitmore said that one day she found 50 women and children at a Greyhound station who had just been left there by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

"Some of the kids were crying," Whitmore said. "Some were infants that weren't fully clothed. They didn't have diapers. They didn't have formula."

Organizations on the other side of the immigration debate are aghast over the appearance of large groups of undocumented immigrants, but because they say they federal government is being negligent about enforcing the law.

"This is a huge concern," said Ira Mehlman, a spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, a Washington, D.C.-based group that favors strict immigration enforcement.

"This is exactly the incentive for people to cross the border illegally," he said.

Volunteers who have been going to Greyhound to help immigrants left there say that they are seeing more women and children unlike before, when they saw mostly adult men and women.

Laurie Melrood, a volunteer family advocate in Tucson, said: "The conditions under which they are released are inadequate and inhumane.

Volunteers have been trying to help by buying the immigrants bus tickets to join relatives in other places, and by bringing them food and water, among other things.

In response, volunteers in Phoenix and Tucson have been going to the bus stations to help the migrants make arrangements to buy bus tickets to travel to relatives in other cities. They also have been providing food, water and other necessities.

ICE officials say the immigrants who are released are families whom the Border Patrol arrested as they attempted to cross into the United States illegally. Immigration officials screen the arrested people, then order them to appear at an ICE office after about two weeks of their release.

The flow of undocumented immigrants has subsided in Arizona but risen in South Texas, USA Today said, adding that ICE is giving priority to removing criminals who are considered the biggest public safety threats.

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In Texass GOP primary runoff election this week, there was a winner whose name wasnt on the ballot  U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz.

Cruzs influence was prevalent in the runoff primary, where Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and Rep. Ralph Hall, at 91 the oldest-ever member of the U.S. House, lost to more conservative candidates.

The only candidate he officially endorsed, conservative Konni Burton, beat former state Rep. Mark Shelton with some 60 percent of the vote in the race for a state Senate seat.

Political observers are calling the smooth victory by conservatives over more so-called establishment Republicans in Texas a testament of Cruzs clout, according to The Hill. Tea party candidates have not fared as well in GOP primaries in other states.

State Sen. Daniel Patrick, who will face Democrat Leticia Van de Putte in the November election for lieutenant governor, is being described as another potential Ted Cruz in terms of his unyielding conservative views and willingness to rattle political cages.

Patrick wears the Cruz crown proudly.

The people of Texas have given us a mandate tonight, Patrick said in his victory speech. Tea Party folks love America. They love the Constitution. They love free markets. And they love the Second Amendment. And they love Texas. And they love the liberty that is granted to them by God and not government.

JoAnn Fleming, executive director of Grassroots America  We the People, a conservative activist group based in East Texas, said: "Dan Patrick, he's going to make people in both parties very unhappy, just like we've seen with Senator Cruz."

Democrats are hoping to use the Cruz conservative tilt of the GOP in Texas to their advantage by portraying them as overzealous and out of touch.

The days of a pragmatic Texas Republican Party are over, Texas Democratic Party Communications Director Emmanuel Garcia said, according to The Hill. U.S. Senator Ted Cruz and Senator Dan Patrick have driven their party so far off the ideological cliff there is no room balance and common-sense.

Republican strategists, meanwhile, are looking at Cruz as a leader who is showing a new way to win elections.

[Cruz] provided a playbook for conservative candidates to overcome the establishment, said Texas-based GOP strategist Matt Mackowiak, who advised John Ratcliffes campaign, who beat Hall. In every race, there was a Cruz dynamic.

He showed that if you raise enough money to be competitive, and if you run a good campaign and really mobilize the conservative base in Texas, that it can be done.

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In a move in which Latinos stand to be the biggest beneficiaries, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, are giving San Francisco Bay Area schools $120 million.

Latinos are a dominant segment of the student body in two of the three school districts that are receiving the gift, which aims to finance computers, connectivity and teacher training.

In Ravenswood, the couple pointed out, less than 40 percent of Latino students  who predominate in the schools  have proficiency in English. The district's science studies survived mainly because of volunteers, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

"This means fewer students from low-income and minority backgrounds graduating from high school or attending and succeeding in college," said the couple in an essay they wrote for The San Jose Mercury News.

"This situation doesn't exist for lack of effort by our school leaders," they wrote. "There are many heroic educators doing their best to serve students here. But the challenges are much greater than the resources they receive ... The commitment we're announcing today is our effort to change this."

The first $5 million of the $120 million will go to the San Francisco, Ravenswood and Redwood City school districts and will focus on principal training, classroom technology and helping students transition from the 8th to the 9th grade. The couple and their foundation, called Startup: Education, determined the issues of most urgent need based on discussions with school administrators and local leaders.

Latinos make up nearly 40 percent of the city of Redwood, followed by Asians with 11 percent, and blacks with 2 percent. In San Francisco, Hispanics comprise about 15 percent of the population.

To transform our schools into truly 21st century learning systems we need a greater investment in financial, social and political capital, said San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Richard Carranza in a statement quoted by TheStreet.com.

We are thrilled that Mark and Priscilla have stepped up to support our vision by focusing on the needs of students in San Francisco's most underserved communities."

The Zuckerbergs' gift, which the couple discussed Tuesday in an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, will be spread over the next five years. It is the biggest allocation to date of the $1.1 billion in Facebook stock the couple pledged last year to the nonprofit Silicon Valley Community Foundation.

"Education is incredibly expensive and this is a drop in the bucket," Chan, a pediatrician, said in an interview Thursday at Facebook's Menlo Park, California, headquarters. "What we are trying to do is catalyze change by exploring and promoting the development of new interventions and new models."

The gift comes at a time when critics are still questioning what became of Zuckerberg's $100 million donation to Newark, New Jersey's public school system. Four years ago, he announced the donation flanked by then-mayor Cory Booker and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. A recent New Yorker article criticizes the donation and the chain of events it set in motion.

While well-intentioned, the money has so far failed to fix the city's ailing school system. The process lacked meaningful community input and much of the money has been spent on high-paid contractors and consultants. Four years later, the money is nearly gone and a lot of people are angry. The story's most poignant quote is from Vivian Cox Fraser, president of the Urban League of Essex County, who said "Everybody's getting paid, but Raheem still can't read."

Zuckerberg said the Newark experience is a "big influence on our thinking" with the Bay Area donation. Taking the long view, he's quick to point out that the results in New Jersey are too early to measure.

"The schools and programs that the folks put in place, only now are they ramping up and students are starting to go through them. So you won't know what the outcomes are until like 5, 7, 10 years from now," he said. "That said, I think there are some things that are going generally better than we'd expected and some things that we've definitely taken as lessons."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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The Obama administration has signaled a willingness to drop its legal fight against a section of Arizona's 2010 immigration law that critics say opens the door to racial profiling.

A deal between the Justice Department and Republican Gov. Jan Brewer would end the court challenge asking a judge to strike down a requirement that police question the immigration status of people suspected of being in the country illegally, according to court records.

In exchange, Arizona would permanently do away with a provision requiring immigrants to carry registration papers, lawyers on both sides of the case wrote. Courts have blocked that section on a preliminary basis.

The attorneys cautioned in Thursday's filing that they haven't yet come up with a proposed court order that would carry out their agreement in principle.

If such a deal is approved by a judge, all that would remain of the Obama administration's case would be a challenge to a 2005 immigrant smuggling law. No agreement has been reached on that section.

The possible resolution of key parts of the challenge comes after nearly four years of litigation.

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the questioning provision, but it threw out the section calling for registration paperwork.

The courts also blocked other parts of the law until the disputes are litigated further, such as a prohibition on harboring immigrants who are in the country illegally. The harboring requirement would be permanently blocked if the proposed agreement goes through.

Messages left for the Justice Department and governor's office weren't immediately returned Friday.

Two of six other challenges to the 2010 law remain.

One of the suits was brought by a coalition of civil rights groups mounting a broader challenge than the Obama administration.

Karen Tumlin, an attorney representing the coalition, said that lawsuit will continue even if the Obama administration's case fades.

"There needs to be clarity that Arizonans cannot be illegally detained based on their suspected immigration status," Tumlin said.

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The release of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl has not been an uncomplicated yellow-ribbon celebration.

Just hours after his release after five years in Taliban hands  which was completed with the exchange of five terrorist suspects from the Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp  Bergdahls return home has been stirring debate in Washington over whether it will heighten the risk of other Americans being snatched as bargaining chips.

"Have we just put a price on other U.S. soldiers?" asked Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. "What does this tell terrorists, that if you capture a U.S. soldier, you can trade that soldier for five terrorists?"

Cruz, who spoke on ABCs This Week Sunday, said Bergdahls release is emotional and powerful and will be celebrated, but the terms of the deal are very troubling.

I do not think the way to deal with terrorists is through releasing other violent terrorists, he said. Can you imagine what he would say to his fallen comrades who lost their lives to stop these people who were responsible, either directly or indirectly, for threatening or taking U.S. civilian lives?

Cruz continued: The idea that we're now making trades, what does that do for every single soldier stationed abroad? It says the reason why the U.S. has had the policy for decades of not negotiating with terrorists is because once you start doing it, every other terrorist has an incentive to capture more soldiers."

He called out President Barack Obama on the precedent that the trade could be setting.

It's part and parcel with the pattern we've seen of the Obama administration across the board, the senator said.

Other Republicans agreed with Cruz, saying the deal could set a troubling precedent  one called it "shocking." Arizona Sen. John McCain said of the five Guantanamo detainees, "These are the hardest of the hard core."

Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois said, "I'm going to celebrate him coming home," but added that the release of "five mid- to high-level Taliban is shocking to me, especially without coming to Congress."

U.S. officials said Sunday that Bergdahls health and safety appeared in jeopardy, prompting rapid action to secure his release. Had we waited and lost him, said national security adviser Susan Rice, I dont think anybody would have forgiven the United States government.

In weighing the swap, U.S. officials decided that it could help the effort to reach reconciliation with the Taliban, which the U.S. sees as key to more security in Afghanistan. But they acknowledged the risk that the deal would embolden insurgents.

And in Kabul Monday, the Afghan Foreign Ministry called the swap "against the norms of international law" if it came against the five imprisoned Taliban detainees' will. The ministry said: "No state can transfer another country's citizen to a third country and put restriction on their freedom."

Tireless campaigners for their son's freedom, Bob and Jani Bergdahl thanked all who were behind the effort to retrieve him. "You were not left behind," Bob Bergdahl told reporters, as if speaking to his son. "We are so proud of the way this was carried out." He spoke in Boise, Idaho, wearing a long bushy beard he'd grown to honor his son, as residents in the sergeant's hometown of Hailey prepared for a homecoming celebration.

The five detainees left Guantanamo aboard a U.S. military aircraft flying to Qatar, which served as go-between in the negotiations. They are to be banned from leaving Qatar for at least a year. Among the five: a Taliban deputy intelligence minister, a former Taliban interior minister with ties to al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden and a figure linked by human rights monitors to mass killings of Shiite Muslims in Afghanistan in 2000 and 2001.

Bergdahl, 28, was being treated at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany. Officials did not offer details about Bergdahl's health to support their contention that his release had to be arranged without delay. Rice on one hand said he had lost considerable weight and faced an "acute" situation. Yet she said he appeared to be "in good physical condition" and "is said to be walking."

Questions persisted, too, about the circumstances of Bergdahl's 2009 capture. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel declined to comment on earlier reports that the sergeant had walked away from his unit, disillusioned with the war. Such matters "will be dealt with later," Hagel said.

Hagel, visiting troops in Afghanistan, was met with silence when he told a group of them in a Bagram Air Field hangar: "This is a happy day. We got one of our own back." It was unclear whether the absence of cheers and applause came from a reluctance to display emotion in front of the Pentagon chief or from any doubts among the troops about Bergdahl.

That same point was made Monday morning by White House press secretary Jay Carney.

Carney, who is leaving the White House after more than three years, said, "In a situation like this, you have a prisoner of war, a uniformed military person that was detained. The United States does not leave our men and women behind in conflict. It was absolutely the right thing to do."

Asked in an NBC "Today" show interview about victory claims by the Taliban, Carney replied, "I caution anyone against buying the propaganda of terrorists."

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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Former U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis seems headed to a victory in her quest to be elected to a seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday.

The current county supervisor in that seat, District 1, is stepping down because of term limits. Gloria Molina, who has held the District 1 seat since 1991, in recent weeks endorsed Solis.

The position, experts say, can give Solis the kind of household name recognition in the state that even a Cabinet-level post could not.

She would be in a better position to run statewide in California, said Louis DeSipio, a political scientist at the University of California, Irvine. She doesnt have much of a reputation in the state at the moment.

The county position is quite powerful, despite how it might be perceived by those outside California.

It has among the greatest powers of any local government in the country, DeSipio said.

Each of the five county supervisors' districts, for instance, has some 2 million constituents. The supervisors are responsible for a plethora of services and programs in the county, including public safety and health. The board has executive, legislative and quasi-judicial roles and the members, all elected by the people in their district, can serve a maximum of three, four-year terms.

Solis, who is 56, has racked up the support of major labor and business organizations and political leaders.

And Solis had raised a whopping $765,000 by early May, leaps and bounds ahead of her rivals. (Her main competitor, Juventino "J" Gomez, an El Monte city councilman who entered the race early this year, had raised $107,000.)

Solis resigned from her Cabinet post with the Obama administration in January of last year, saying she had opted to leave Washington D.C. after discussing the idea of returning to the Golden State with her family and close friends.

Her campaign website says: Now I'm returning home to serve at the local level.

Solis has steadily been the front-runner, even as she campaigned under the cloud of a federal investigation into fundraising activities she reportedly was involved in as labor secretary.

The Los Angeles Times reported that investigators were looking into whether Solis asked staff members to make contributions to the presidents re-election campaign and to help with fundraisers.

The Times said that a spokesman for Solis maintained that she is innocent of any wrongdoing.

Steve Erie, a UC San Diego political science professor, told the L.A. Times that it's unclear what, if any, impact the investigation would have on her campaign.

"It's a cloud over the Solis campaign," he told the Times. "The question is, is it a thundercloud or is it just a cumulus?"

DeSipio said that the investigation is not really registering as significant among many people in California.

The connection to her is pretty loose at the moment, he said. People dont seem to be taking it very seriously.

One of the highest-ranking Hispanics in Obama's administration at the time of her service, Solis won praise from labor unions for aggressive enforcement of wage and hour laws and job safety regulations. But business groups criticized her as not taking a more cooperative approach.

In 2000, Solis received the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award for her pioneering work on environmental justice issues in California.

The late Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., called her "a voice for the voiceless with a true passion for fairness and justice."

Solis was the first Latina elected to the California Senate, where she led the battle to increase the state's minimum hourly wage from $4.25 to $5.75 in 1996.

She won her congressional seat in 2000 after taking on a Democratic incumbent who had lost the support of organized labor. During eight years in Congress, Solis made protecting the environment and helping immigrants two of her top priorities.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Cesar Chavez died more than 20 years ago, and yet the name of the National Farm Workers Association co-founder is still making headlines. In fact, Cesar Chavez is gearing up for a run for the U.S. Congress from Arizona's Seventh District and angering his opponents and leaders of the state's Democratic Party.

No, the beloved labor leader is not back from the dead. All the fuss is about a 34-year-old born as Scott Fistler who used to be a registered Republican and is now running for Congress as a Democrat.

He said he hopes the new name helps him attract more votes in his heavily Hispanic area.

Fistler changed his name to Cesar Chavez in 2013. He filed his papers to run as a Democratic candidate in February for the seat that will be vacated when Arizona Representative Ed Pastor retires next year.

Pastor, a Democrat, was Arizona's first Latino congressman and has held his post for nearly 40 years.

Chavez has run for office under the name Fistler twice  once as a write-in candidate for Pastors seat and again in 2013 for a seat on the Phoenix City Council  with both campaigns ending unsuccessfully.

When asked by the Arizona Republic why he changed his name to Chavez, the politician cited the need to make voters in the Latino-heavy district feel secure with him.

People want a name that they can feel comfortable with, Chavez said in an interview with the paper. If you went out there running for office and your name was Bernie Madoff, youd probably be screwed.

Chavezs two opponents  Mary Rose Wilcox, a 30-year politician and the first Latina elected to the Phoenix City Council, and Iraq War veteran Ruben Gallego  say that the name change is in poor taste given the original Cesar Chavezs high-standing among Latinos in the U.S.

My husband and I grew up under the leadership of Cesar Chavez [the labor leader] and he means so much to our community, Wilcox told The Capitol Times. Voters arent going to be fooled. If he thinks he can fool them, its a real affront to the community. He should be ashamed.

On Chavezs website  a hastily-made blog  the candidate also repurposes a number of photos from Venezuela of people celebrating the late leader Hugo Chavez.

My name is on a lot of popular things, he said.

Some Democratic Party leaders are calling it a dirty political trick. Bill Roe, Arizona Democratic Party Chair, is calling him an "impostor."

"Our understanding is that he is a very conservative person and so this is clearly an attempt to either confuse the electorate or sneak by on a fluke," he told Fox 10 News.

"It is so brazen, an attempt to subvert the process, taking the advantage of a name like that, that I would think we're going to have a backlash," Roe added.

Reporters with Fox 10 went to the candidate's home Monday but he said he didn't want to answer questions.

"Do we really want this almost impostor representing a Congressional District in Arizona? Do we want them in Washington? I don't think we do," said Roe.

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The exchange of five Taliban detainees at Guantanamo for a U.S. Army soldier held captive in Afghanistan could set a precedent for a similar swap with Cuba, a Cuban intelligence agent who spent years imprisoned in the United States said Monday.

Fernando Gonzalez, who returned to the island in February after serving more than 15 years behind bars in the United States, said the deal to secure the release of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl has a clear parallel to the cases of Alan Gross, a civilian U.S. government subcontractor, and three Cuban agents still imprisoned in the United States.

"It is obvious that the only thing needed is the will on the part of the U.S. government to bring about that swap or exchange," Gonzalez said in his first news conference back in Havana. "This latest development makes that clear."

Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, who was campaigning Monday in suburban Des Moines for U.S. Senate candidate Joni Ernst, said the hostage exchange was evidence of what he called a weak and reckless Obama foreign policy.

"We have released five very dangerous individuals who eventually will find their way back into the battlefield," Rubio told reporters, referring to the swap as setting a price on for American soldiers. "I think it sets a very dangerous precedent."

White House chief of staff Denis McDonough pushed back.

"All Americans should know that we did what was necessary to get Bowe back," he said in a speech to a think tank. "We did not have 30 days to wait to get this done. And when you're commander-in-chief, you have to act when there is an opportunity for action."

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Washington remains committed to winning release for any American citizens held overseas, but suggested that Gross' case is not comparable to that of a uniformed soldier captured in a war zone. U.S. officials have publicly been cool to the idea of a swap involving the Cuban agents for Gross.

"Nothing has changed in that case now," Psaki said.

Gross was arrested in Cuba in 2009 while working to set up hard-to-detect Internet networks for the island's tiny Jewish community as part of a U.S. government development contract. He says his actions posed no threat to the Cuban state. But Havana considers such programs to be an affront to its sovereignty, and he was sentenced to 15 years.

Havana has said repeatedly it wants to sit down with Washington to negotiate the fate of Gross and the three members of the so-called Cuban Five who remain imprisoned in the United States. The agents were arrested in 1998 and convicted on charges including espionage, although Cuba argues that they were only keeping tabs on militant exile groups blamed for terror attacks on the island.

"On this side there is nothing standing in the way" of an exchange, Gonzalez said. "On this side we have transparently and with clarity shown an intention for this situation to be resolved and for humanitarian concerns to be taken into account on both sides."

Gross, a 65-year-old Maryland native, suffers from various health problems. His U.S. lawyer said in April that he is determined to go home within the next year, either alive or dead.

Rene Gonzalez, who is not related to Fernando Gonzalez, was the first of the Cuban agents to walk free and returned to Cuba in 2013. Antonio Guerrero is the next one scheduled to be released, in 2017.

The cases of Gross and the Cuban Five have been a major sticking point for Cold War foes Havana and Washington, which have not had formal relations for more than five decades.

Bergdahl was released over the weekend after five years in Taliban captivity, stirring debate in Washington over whether the exchange could put other Americans at greater risk of being taken as bargaining chips.

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Government officials are estimating that as many as 60,000 unaccompanied children will be caught trying to enter the United States illegally this year through the border with Mexico, a figure that may double in 2015.

In the last eight months alone, 47,000 children have been apprehended at the Southwest Border.

President Barack Obama described the surge of immigrant children, most of them coming from Central America, as an "urgent humanitarian situation." The White House estimates that it will cost the federal government more than $2.28 billion to house, feed and transport the children to shelters or to reunite them with relatives already living in the United States. The president is asking Congress earlier for an extra $1.4 billion to handle the situation.

Obama said the U.S. will temporarily house the children at two military bases.

The president appointed the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Craig Fugate, to be in charge of the situation. A presidential memorandum released Monday outlined a government-wide response led by Fugate.

The White House response, at least for the present, takes on the issue as something to be managed rather than a problem to be fought.

We are only talking about protecting these kids, White House domestic policy adviser Cecilia Munoz told reporters when asked what plans there might be to try to stem the flow, according to the Washington Times. These are children, and in many cases they are young children. They have just traveled from Central America to the U.S. alone.

The children are among the thorniest cases in the immigration debate.

Munoz mentioned that the number of children traveling alone has been on the rise since 2009, but the increase was larger last year. She said the group also now includes more girls and larger numbers of children younger than 13.

"All of these things are contributing to the sense of urgency," Munoz said. "These are children who have gone through a harrowing experience alone. We're providing for their proper care."

The growth has surpassed the system's capacity to process and house the children. Last month, the federal government opened an emergency operations center at a border headquarters in South Texas to help coordinate the efforts and the Office of Refugee Resettlement, a division of the Health and Human Services Department, turned to the Defense Department for the second time since 2012 to help house children in barracks at Lackland Air Force Base near San Antonio.

Mark Greenberg, an assistant secretary at the Health and Human Services Department, said about 1,000 children were being housed at the Texas base and as many as 600 others could soon be housed at a U.S. Navy base in Southern California.

The number of children found trying to cross the Mexican border without parents has skyrocketed in recent years. Between 2008 and 2011, the number of children landing in the custody of Refugee Resettlement fluctuated between 6,000 and 7,500 per year. In 2012 border agents apprehended 13,625 unaccompanied children and that number surged even more  to over 24,000  last year. The total is expected to exceed 60,000 this year.

More than 90 percent of those sheltered by the government are from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, many driven north by pervasive violence and poverty in their home countries. They are held in agency-contracted shelters while a search is conducted for family, a sponsor or a foster parent who can care for them through their immigration court hearings, where many will apply for asylum or other special protective status. Border Patrol agents have said that smugglers are increasingly notifying authorities once they get children across the Rio Grande so that they can be picked up.

Rampant crime and poverty across Central America and a desire to reunite with parents or other relatives are thought to be driving many of the young immigrants. Munoz said Monday the administration is aware of false rumors that have circulated that migrant children who get to this country would be automatically allowed to stay here or benefit from some future immigration reform legislation.

Migrant kids remain in removal proceedings even after they're reunited with their parents here, though many have been able to win permission from a judge to stay in the U.S.

The Office of Management and Budget said in a two-page letter to Sen. Barbara Mikulski, the chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, last month that the increase in children trying to cross the border alone could cost the government as much as $2.28 billion. The administration originally asked Congress for $868 million for the "Unaccompanied Alien Children" program run by Health and Human Services, the same amount Congress approved last year.

Brian Deese, deputy director of the budget office, said the Homeland Security Department would also need an extra $166 million to help pay overtime costs for Customs and Border Protection officers and agents, contract services for care of the children and transportation costs.

A House appropriations subcommittee voted last week to add $77 million to the original request. Deese sent the letter to Mikulski a day after the House subcommittee vote.

Based on reporting by the Associated Press.

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Spain's crown prince will be proclaimed King Felipe VI on June 18 before Parliament in Madrid, legislative officials said Tuesday.

The 46-year-old Felipe de Borbon, who currently holds the title of Prince of Asturias, will succeed his father, King Juan Carlos, who announced on Monday that he was abdicating.

The body that manages legislation in the lower house of Parliament introduced the bill making King Juan Carlos de Borbon's abdication official on Tuesday afternoon.

Under Spanish law, Parliament must approve legislation governing the succession process for the Crown.

The succession law is expected to be approved by the lower house of Parliament next week, with the Senate likely following suit on June 17.

The constitutional mechanisms for the succession will be activated once the law is published in the Official Bulletin of the State, or BOE, and Prince Felipe will then be proclaimed king before Parliament.

The one-article document, which has two sections, states that King Juan Carlos I is abdicating the Crown of Spain and the move will "produce an automatic succession, following the order established in the Constitution."

The proclamation of Felipe VI as king of Spain will be carried out before a joint session of the two houses of Parliament.

King Juan Carlos and Crown Prince Felipe on Tuesday made their first public appearance together since the monarch announced that he was abdicating in favor of his son. They participated in a military ceremony at the San Lorenzo de El Escorial Monastery that was attended by the army and air force commanders.

Juan Carlos appeared frail as he emerged from a car with his son, pacing slowly with a cane to a podium where the two watched soldiers parading decked out in dress uniforms. As Juan Carlos and Felipe arrived, people shouted "Long Live the King!" and "Long Live the Prince."

The Spanish monarch said Monday he was abdicating in favor of his son after nearly 39 years on the throne.

"Today, a younger generation deserves to move to the forefront, with new energy, committed to carrying out the transformations and reforms that the current situation demands with determination," the king said, referring to Felipe, the Prince of Asturias.

King Juan Carlos said he began preparing to step down in January, when he turned 76.

Juan Carlos ascended to the throne on Nov. 22, 1975, and is widely respected for leading Spain's transition from dictatorship to democracy and staring down a 1981 coup attempt, but was hit hard by royal scandals over the last several years..

His son Felipe became Prince of Asturias, the title held by the heir to the Spanish Crown, in January 1977.

The Associated Press and EFE contributed to this report.

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Military Procurator's Office of Mykolaiv Garrison of Southern region of Ukraine has completed a pretrial investigation and filed claims to court against two former military men of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Baranov and Maksym Odyntsov, who violated an oath and deserted to the enemy.

"Former junior sergeant and warrant officer, who served in a military unit stationed in the territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, during the occupation of the peninsula did not comply with the order to arrive to the new duty station and stayed in the occupied territory, thus committing desertion, wherefore they were put on the wanted list. Further on they signed contracts for military service in the Russian Armed Forces," the press service of the Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine said on Monday.
The one-time Arizona Republican, Scott Fistler, has generated a lot of buzz recently over his new name, Cesar Chavez, and his new Democratic Party affiliation. But Arizona Dems arent exactly rolling out the welcome mat for Chavez,, who legally changed his name in 2013.

Shasta McManus is the executive director of the Pima County Democratic Party, and she says that his new identity wont help.

Its a guy who has lost twice already running as a Republican in the same area  He didnt lose because his name was Fistler, and he didnt lose because he was a Republican. He lost because he was out of touch with the district, McManus told Fox News Latino.

In 2012, Fistler ran as a write-in Republican candidate for the U.S. Congress from the Seventh District. He lost to Ed Pastor. The following year, he ran for a seat on the Phoenix City Council. He lost that election to Pastors daughter, Laura.

Some political analysts argue that the Fistler-Chavez name change is a ploy to win over his districts Hispanic community, which accounts for 56 percent of the population.

Chavez told the Arizona Republic, People want a name that they can feel comfortable with.

But McManus believes the name-change is more of an insult than an enticement.

Its incredibly offensive on the sheer fact that he thinks that voters are that uninformed or that ignorant. Cesar Chavez was an iconic labor leader in the Latino community. And for him to choose any name  but that name ... It really says exactly what he thinks of the voters in that district, said McManus.

FNL reached out to the candidate for comment, via email and phone, but did not get a response yet.

Cesar Chavez  the labor figure  founded the National Farm Workers Association in 1962, which later became United Farm Workers. As a labor leader, Chavez championed for better treatment, pay and working conditions for field workers and is largely considered a hero in the Hispanic community. He died in 1993 in San Luis, Ariz.

Name changes arent new in the world of politics. The 38th president of the United States changed his name from Leslie King, Jr. to Gerald Ford in 1935. But McManus pointed out that this is more than a simple name change  this is cultural appropriation.

Normally its going by your middle name  or after youre married, hyphenating your name. But to completely take on something that has nothing to do with you or what you stand for or your positions  thats crossing a line, said McManus. "Thats a line I hope we dont see crossed again."

The road to victory will be a tough one for Chavez. He will face stiff competition in the August primary.



We have two democrats running in that district already. We have Mary Rose Wilcox and Ruben Gallego. And they have been working for years in that district. Theyve been elected to office and theyve served their community well, McManus told FNL.

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Former U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis easily won a seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, pulling in a commanding 67.65 percent of the vote with only 22 percent of votes counted late Tuesday night.

Her opponents, April Saucedo Hood and Juventino Gomez, received around 18 percent and 13 percent of the vote respectively.

The Board of Supervisors position is more powerful than it might appear.

It has among the greatest powers of any local government in the country, said Louis DeSipio, a political scientist at the University of California, Irvine.

Each county district elects a supervisor, who has some 2 million constituents. The board is responsible for a plethora of services and programs in L.A. County, including public safety and health. The board has executive, legislative and quasi-judicial roles and the members can serve a maximum of three four-year terms.

Solis, who is 56, has racked up the support of major labor and business organizations and political leaders. And she had raised $765,000 by early May  much more than her rivals. Gomez, an El Monte city councilman who entered the race early this year, had raised $107,000 in the same time period.

The daughter of a Teamsters shop steward who grew up in La Puente, Calif., Solis resigned from her Cabinet post with the Obama administration in January of 2013, saying she had opted to leave Washington, D.C., after discussing the idea of returning to the Golden State with her family and close friends.

Throughout her campaign Solis was the front-runner, even as she campaigned under the cloud of a federal investigation into fundraising activities she reportedly was involved in as Labor secretary.

The Los Angeles Times reported that investigators were looking into whether Solis asked staff members to make contributions and to help with fundraisers for President Barack Obamas re-election campaign.

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Democratic Attorney General Gary King cleared the first hurdle in his underdog bid to become governor, toppling four opponents in a lackluster primary race. His next challenge will be much more formidable.

King faces Republican Gov. Susana Martinez in the November general election and is at a decided disadvantage, even in a state that backed Democrat Barack Obama in the past two presidential elections.

Martinez has aired television campaign ads for weeks and has more than $4 million in the bank that she built up as a national political star after becoming the nation's first female Hispanic governor. She wasted no time to begin her race against King, scheduling three campaign stops Wednesday in the GOP stronghold of Farmington and the heavily Hispanic communities of Espanola and Las Vegas. Both are areas in northern New Mexico that Democrats badly need to win to have any chance in the governor's race.

King, in an email to supporters shortly after his victory, described the upcoming campaign as an "epic one-on-one battle" with Martinez. He and other Democrats planned a "unity" campaign event on Wednesday.

The Republican Governors Association was quick to criticize King. "His tenure as attorney general has been marred by shortcoming and failure," association Executive Director Phil Cox said in a statement.

In other campaigns Tuesday, Vietnam War veteran and retired Marine Col. Allen Weh easily defeated his GOP challenger to win the Republican primary and run against first-term Sen. Tom Udall. The Democratic senator is heavily favored to win, but Weh said he believes the tide is turning against Washington politicians like Udall. Other races included an attack-filled state treasurer's race, a handful of state House seats and two Public Regulation Commission contests, including one in western New Mexico where the winner likely faces no general election opponent.

King won about a third of the vote statewide. A key to his victory was coming out on top in the vote-rich Albuquerque metropolitan area and then leading in large swaths of the rest of the state, including ranching and oil-producing regions.

Santa Fe businessman Alan Webber ran second behind King, followed by former government administrator Lawrence Rael of Albuquerque and state Sen. Howie Morales of Silver City. State Sen. Linda Lovejoy of Albuquerque trailed.

Without a primary opponent, Martinez has been able to air television advertisements to polish her image and frame the general election on her terms. One recent ad said Democrats would return to the "same failed agenda" of former Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson.

Martinez told GOP supporters Tuesday night that the general election campaign is about "the past versus the future, moving forward or taking our state backward."

King will start the general election campaign with little money and a track record as a weak fundraiser. King had cash on hand of about $75,000 in his campaign account as of last week. He loaned his campaign $195,000 to help pay for television ads and mailings in the final stretch of the primary.

Democrats refrained from criticizing each other during the primary and focused their attacks on Martinez, blaming her for New Mexico's weak economy and a lack of progress on a host of nagging social economic problems such as a child-poverty rate that is among the country's highest.

King entered the gubernatorial race with the most name recognition of the Democratic candidates as a statewide officeholder and the son of New Mexico's longest-serving governor, the late Bruce King.

Webber was making his first bid for elective office. He co-founded the business magazine Fast Company in the 1990s and, along with investors, later sold it for more than $300 million. He was the leading Democratic fundraiser and jump-started his campaign with $450,000 in personal loans and contributions.

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Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Florida Republican, is rekindling calls for the release of a civilian U.S. government subcontractor who has been in jail in Cuba for five years.

The congresswoman, who came from Cuba and is one of Washington D.C.s most vocal critics of the Castro government, said the subcontractor, Alan Gross, should be released immediately by Cuban officials.

We should pressure the Castro regime so that Alan Gross is freed without preconditions, said Ros-Lehtinen in a statement on her website.

The congressman stressed, however, that Grosss release should not arise from any agreement by the United States to release three Cuban intelligence agents who are in jail in this country.

Ros-Lehtinen, who chairs the House Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, expressed dismay over news reports that the Obama administration may be considering a swap of the convicted Cuban spies for Gross.

Its incredible that anyone can think it is a good idea to exchange Cuban spies, she said, who had enjoyed the constitutional protections afforded to them in the United States, for Alan Gross, who is a hostage of the Cuban regimeAn exchange of spies, who jeopardized our national security, for Alan Gross is unjust and irresponsible.

Ros-Lehtinen strongly condemned the Obama administrations decision to swap five Taliban detainees from Guantanamo for an American soldier who has been held by the Taliban in Afghanistan for five years. Like other critics of the administrations move, Ros-Lehtinen said that administration officials had been met with disapproval when they floated the idea for the swap to her and a few other members of Congress over the years.

I can reaffirm that I, and many of my colleagues, strongly stated our opposition to any deal for Sgt. Bergdahl, she said, that would in any way benefit the Taliban or jeopardize the safety and security of our brave men and women in uniform who placed their lives on the line day in and day out to protect their fellow servicemen and women, our country, and our national security interests.

Efforts by Fox News Latino to get a comment from the congresswoman on Thursday were unsuccessful.

In recent days, another spy, Fernando Gonzalez, who returned to Cuba in February after serving more than 15 years behind bars in the United States, said the controversial deal to secure the release of Bergdahl has a clear parallel to the cases of Gross and the three Cuban agents still imprisoned in the United States.

"It is obvious that the only thing needed is the will on the part of the U.S. government to bring about that swap or exchange," Gonzalez said in his first news conference back in Havana. "This latest development makes that clear."

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Washington remains committed to winning release for any American citizens held overseas, but suggested that Gross' case is not comparable to that of a uniformed soldier captured in a war zone. U.S. officials have publicly been cool to the idea of a swap involving the Cuban agents for Gross.

"Nothing has changed in that case now," Psaki said.

Gross was arrested in Cuba in 2009 while working to set up hard-to-detect Internet networks for the island's tiny Jewish community as part of a U.S. government development contract.

He says his actions posed no threat to the Cuban state. But Havana considers such programs to be an affront to its sovereignty, and he was sentenced to 15 years.

For her part, Ros-Lehtinen said she holds little faith in statements by the Obama administration about its intentions regarding Gross.

She believes the administration is, in fact, considering swapping the remaining jailed Cuban spies for Gross.

I seriously believe the administration is considering a swap, Ros-Lehtinen said, according to The Miami Herald. The administration has shown itself not to be faithful to the law and is not to be trusted.

She pointed to assurances she said the administration gave two years ago to her and other members of Congress in a private intelligence briefing about Bowe Bergdahl and the idea of swapping five Taliban detainees to secure the U.S. servicemans release.

It is believed that Bergdahl willingly left the U.S. base and shortly after fell into the hands of the Taliban.

The congresswoman said she, House Speaker John Boehner and others at the closed-door meeting vehemently objected to the swap and the notion of hammering out a deal with terrorists.

They said: We hear you loud and clear. And two years later, what do we have? she asked. A prisoner swap.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as children and won government protection from deportation under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program since 2012 can apply for another two years of safety.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will start taking renewal applications from the more than half-million immigrants already enrolled in the program, starting immediately.

Renewal applications are being sought now to ensure that immigrants already in the program don't fall out of status, Alejandro Mayorkas, the deputy secretary of the Homeland Security Department, said Wednesday. Renewals, like new applications, carry a $465 fee. The program remains open for first-time applicants.

DACA, as the program has come to be known in immigration circles, was launched in advance of the 2012 presidential elections, and the first applications were approved in September of that year. Since then, more than 560,000 immigrants who arrived in the United States as children but didn't have legal status have been given permission to legally stay for two years.

Mayorkas announced the renewal program in the midst of President Barack Obama's latest push to get Congress to pass a comprehensive immigration bill in advance of November's midterm elections. Last month the White House announced that a Homeland Security-led review of deportation policies would be put on hold until the end of the summer.

The delay is aimed at giving Congress time to act on immigration before the August recess.

DACA was hailed by immigration advocates as a good interim fix to a larger problem of what to do with the more than 11 million immigrants thought to be living in the country illegally. Since the program's launch, those advocates have pushed Obama to do more for a larger group of immigrants.

Many of the people who were approved for DACA were pleased at the announcement, but expressed some misgivings that immigration reform has stalled out in Congress. Some people feel exposed.

I also know that DACA does not have a pathway to citizenship and it also has to be renewed every two years, so its not a permanent thing," Javier Huamani, 22, a Peruvian immigrant living in Austin, Texas, told the Texas Tribune. Its at least a first step, he said.

DACA is open to immigrants who came to the United States before they were 16 years old, were younger than 31 on June 15, 2012, and had been in the country since at least June 15, 2007, and have no criminal history. They also must be in school, have graduated from high school or earned a GED certificate or served in the military.

Republican lawmakers have derided the program as "backdoor amnesty."

And news earlier this week of a surge in unaccompanied children trying to enter the U.S. through the Mexican border was blamed on DACA by some Republicans in Congress. House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., issued a statement reading, Many of the Obama Administrations policies, such as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)  have led to a surge of minors arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Based on reporting by the Associated Press.

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U.S. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor could be the next House speaker, but first he has to get past a little-known, tea party-backed challenger with a vocal following in Tuesday's Republican primary in Virginia.

Cantor is squaring off against Dave Brat, an economics professor who has never held elected office and has raised just a fraction of what Cantor has.

Although he's a political novice with little money, Brat has been a thorn in Cantor's side, casting the congressman as a Washington insider who isn't conservative enough. Last month, a feisty crowd of Brat supporters booed Cantor in front of his family at a local party convention.

"Listen, we are about a country of free speech, so decency is also a part of this," Cantor told the crowd.

He then took aim at Brat directly: "It is easy to sit in the rarified environs of academia in the ivory towers of a college campus with no accountability and no consequence ... when you throw stones at those of us who are working every day to make a difference."

Cantor's campaign has held to a variation of that theme in TV ads, a website and mailers accusing Brat of being a "liberal college professor." The most recent campaign finance reports show Cantor spent more than $1 million in April and May and has more than $1.5 million left in the bank.

Beltway-based groups have chipped in, too. The American Chemistry Council, whose members include many blue chip companies, spent more than $300,000 on TV ads promoting Cantor. It's the group's only independent expenditure so far this election year. The American College of Radiology political action committee paid nearly $23,000 for fliers touting Cantor as better qualified than Brat at "ending business-as-usual in Washington."

Brat, by contrast, has raised just more than $200,000 for his campaign, according to the most recent campaign finance reports. He's hoping to offset the cash disadvantage with endorsements from conservative activists, like radio host Laura Ingraham, and with help from tea party activists angry at Cantor.

Intra-party Republican squabbles between the tea party and the GOP establishment have been frequent in Virginia since tea party favorite Ken Cuccinelli lost last year's gubernatorial race. This year, Cantor supporters have met with stiff resistance in trying to wrest control of the state party away from tea party enthusiasts, including in Cantor's Richmond-area home district.

Cantor, who was in the good graces of tea partyers a few years ago, now finds himself a target of the movement.

"It does speak to the kind of restlessness of the tea party," said University of Richmond political science professor Daniel Palazzolo.

The battles mirror a larger ongoing identity crisis for the GOP nationwide. Several longtime Republican incumbents have been fending off tea party primary challengers this year. Mississippi Sen. Thad Cochran currently faces a highly watched runoff election against a tea-party backed challenger who has accused Cochran of not being conservative enough.

Brat said Cantor, who was first elected in 2000 and has ties to tea party-backed lawmakers in Congress, has spent too much time in Washington and lost touch with his conservative base back home.

"The job title is representative. It's hard to represent people when you haven't met them," said Brat, who teaches at Randolph-Macon College, a small liberal arts school north of Richmond.

Cantor spokesman Ray Allen said Cantor isn't worried but has a duty to respond to Brat's attacks. Allen also said it's prudent to run a full-scale campaign in an era when super PACs can drop into races and spend millions.

"You have to run a full campaign, and you have to take every election seriously, even if your opponent doesn't have a lot of money," said Allen.

Much of the campaign has centered on immigration, where critics on both sides have taken aim at Cantor.

Brat has accused the House majority leader of being a top cheerleader for "amnesty" for immigrants in the U.S. illegally. Cantor has responded forcefully by boasting in mailers of blocking Senate plans "to give illegal aliens amnesty."

It's a change in tone for Cantor, who has repeatedly voiced support for giving citizenship to certain immigrants brought illegally to the country as children. Cantor and House GOP leaders have advocated a step-by-step approach rather than the comprehensive bill backed by the Senate. They've made no move to bring legislation to a vote and appear increasingly unlikely to act this year.

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In her new book, former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says she pushed President Barack Obama to lift or ease the decades-long U.S. embargo on Cuba because it was no longer useful to American interests or promoting change on the communist island.

In excerpts of the book "Hard Choices" obtained by The Associated Press ahead of its release next week, Clinton writes that the embargo has given communist leaders Fidel and Raul Castro an excuse not to enact democratic reforms. And she says opposition from some in Congress to normalizing relations  "to keep Cuba in a deep freeze"  has hurt both the United States and the Cuban people. She says the 2009 arrest by Cuba of USAID contractor Alan Gross and Havana's refusal to release him on humanitarian grounds is a "tragedy" for improving ties.

"Since 1960, the United States had maintained an embargo against the island in hopes of squeezing Castro from power, but it only succeeded in giving him a foil to blame for Cuba's economic woes," she writes. She says her husband, former President Bill Clinton, tried to improve relations with Cuba in the 1990s, but the Castro government did not respond to the easing in some sanctions. Nonetheless, Obama was determined to continue the effort, she writes.

She says that late in her term in office she urged Obama to reconsider the U.S. embargo. "It wasn't achieving its goals," she writes, "and it was holding back our broader agenda across Latin America. ... I thought we should shift the onus onto the Castros to explain why they remained undemocratic and abusive."

Clinton writes that in the face of "a stone wall" from the Castro regime, she and Obama decided to engage directly with the Cuban people.

"We believed that the best way to bring change to Cuba would be to expose its people to the values, information and material comforts of the outside world," she says.

The steps that Obama took, including allowing more travel to the island and increasing the amount of money Cuban-Americans can send back to the island, have had a positive effect, she writes.

However, Clinton notes with disappointment that Cuba arrested and imprisoned Gross, a contractor working for the U.S. Agency for International Development, who the U.S. says was trying to help Cuba's small Jewish community communicate with the rest of the world. Gross was convicted of trying to subvert the Cuban state and sentenced to 15 years in prison. Despite repeated appeals from the U.S., Gross remains in prison in Cuba.

In the book, Clinton says she spoke out frequently about Gross' imprisonment and was disappointed that "the Castros created new problems by arresting" him.

She said Cuba has refused to consider Gross' release until the U.S. frees all of the "Cuban Five" spies who have been imprisoned in the United States. The U.S. has rejected Cuba's demands to link the cases.

Clinton said she suspected that some in Cuba are using the Gross case "as an opportunity to put the brakes on any possible rapprochement with the United States and the domestic reforms that would require."

"If so," she writes, "it is a double tragedy, consigning millions of Cubans to a kind of continued imprisonment as well."

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Alba Hernandez and her young child got off a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) bus in Phoenix, Arizona. It wasnt where Hernandez figured they would be after crossing the United States-Mexico border in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas.

Hernandez says she emigrated from Honduras to give her children a chance at the American dream, but her experience in the U.S. so far has been more of a nightmare.

Where I have been during the process, I have suffered, Hernandez told Fox News. You suffer because you are not used to that kind of food, and you get sick. I spent five days with no food because I was sick from the stomach with fever I asked for a pill or something, they told me they didnt have anything.

Beginning on Memorial Day Weekend, DHS began dropping off hundreds of undocumented immigrants at bus stations in Arizona. They were released without food or water in one of the hottest parts of the country.



Arizona Governor Jan Brewer blasted the actions of immigration officials as dangerous and unconscionable in a letter to President Obama.

Thats not a very humane way to treat human beings, said Masavi Perea, a business representative for the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades in Phoenix.

Pereas organization has taken in over 150 immigrants, providing them with food, medicine, clothing and a place to stay. He says most of the women and children are from the most crime-ridden parts of Honduras and Guatemala.

You see women and kids, and some people say, Whyd they risk their life? And the answer is very simple. Because if they dont risk their life here, theyre going to risk their life where they live. They have no defense at all where they live, Perea told Fox News.

The union is also helping purchase airline and bus tickets to get the immigrants to their intended destinations.

Hernandez told Fox News that she is trying to get to Maryland, where her sister lives.

She hopes one day that she can help her other four children immigrate to the U.S. When asked what she planned to do when she finally settles in Maryland, Hernandez replied, Work hard for my kids.

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Angry about the federal government sending from Texas to Arizona immigrants who are in the country illegally, Arizona officials say they are rushing federal supplies to a makeshift holding center in the southern part of the state that's housing hundreds of migrant children and is running low on the basics.

Gov. Jan Brewer's spokesman, Andrew Wilder, said Friday that conditions at the holding center are so dire that federal officials have asked the state to immediately ship the medical supplies to the center in Nogales.

A Homeland Security Department official told The Associated Press that children are sleeping on plastic cots but about 2,000 mattresses have been ordered, and portable toilets and showers have been brought to the holding center  a warehouse that has not been used for detention in years.

The official, who who spoke on condition of anonymity because there was no authorization to discuss the matter publicly, said the Nogales holding center opened for children because the Department of Health and Human Services had nowhere to turn.

"They became so overwhelmed and haven't kept up with planning," the official said.

U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement has said the immigrants were mostly families from Central America fleeing extreme poverty and violence.

Wilder said a total of 432 unaccompanied minors detained in Texas arrived in Nogales on Friday, with 367 more expected both Saturday and Sunday.

The Homeland Security official said as many as 1,400 children are expected to be eventually brought to the warehouse, which has a capacity of about 1,500.

Federal authorities plan to use the Nogales facility as a way station, where the children will be vaccinated and checked medically. They will then be sent to facilities being set up in Ventura, California, San Antonio, Texas, and Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

The Homeland Security official said that the children are being moved out of the Nogales site as soon as Health and Human Services finds places for them. But the official said: "As quickly as we move them out, we get more. We believe this is just a start."

The children being held in Nogales are 17 or younger. The official estimated three of every four were at least 16.

Wilder said reports from consulates that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security was stopping the program to fly migrant families to Arizona and then bus them to Phoenix were incorrect. Instead, the program that has shipped unknown thousands of adult migrants and their children to Arizona since last month shows no sign of stopping, he said.

"The adults, the adults with children, families  that continues unfettered and we have no idea where they are going," Wilder said.

In a statement Friday, Homeland Security officials said "appropriate custody determinations will be made on a case by case basis" for migrants apprehended in South Texas. The department declined to comment on the reports that the program of flying migrant families to Arizona was being halted.

Homeland Security started flying immigrants to Arizona from the Rio Grande Valley in Texas last month after the number of immigrants, including more than 48,000 children traveling on their own, overwhelmed the Border Patrol there.

The immigrant children were flown from Texas, released in Arizona, and told to report to an ICE office near where they were traveling within 15 days.

Brewer sent an angry letter to President Barack Obama on Monday demanding that the program of dropping off families at bus stations in Phoenix stop immediately. She called the program dangerous and unconscionable, asked for details and demanded to know why state authorities weren't consulted or even informed.

The governor said she hadn't received a response to her letter by Friday.

"I have reached out to Federal Homeland Security Director Jeh Johnson for answers. Meanwhile, I reiterate my call on President Obama to secure our southern border and terminate this operation immediately," Brewer said in a statement.

Brewer's staff spent Friday in a series of calls with officials from FEMA, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Homeland Security.

Wilder said FEMA's Region 9 administrator was being sent to the holding center in Nogales on Saturday to oversee efforts to deal with the hundreds of arriving children.

The federal emergency supplies are held in Arizona warehouses, and Wilder said the state is working to send them to the holding center.

On Friday night, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that young lawyers and paralegals are being sought for the community service program AmeriCorps to provide legal assistance in immigration proceedings to children who come to the U.S. illegally. Officials say about 100 lawyers and paralegals will be enrolled as members of AmeriCorps in a new division called "justice AmeriCorps."

Immigration officials can immediately return Mexican immigrants to the border, but they are much more hard-pressed to deal with Central American migrants who illegally cross into the U.S. In recent months, waves of migrants from nations south of Mexico have arrived in Texas.

The Homeland Security official said that legally, only their parents or guardians can take custody if the government makes the children eligible for release.

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Officials are working to improve conditions at a makeshift holding center in southern Arizona where immigration authorities are housing hundreds of unaccompanied migrant minors.

A federal official said that mattresses, portable toilets and showers were brought in Saturday for 700 of the youthful migrants who spent the night sleeping on plastic cots inside the Nogales area center.

The Homeland Security official told The Associated Press that about 2,000 mattresses had been ordered for the center  a warehouse that has not been used to shelter people in years.

With the center lacking some of the basics, federal officials have asked Arizona to immediately ship medical supplies, Gov. Jan Brewer's spokesman Andrew Wilder said.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security started flying immigrants in the country illegally to Arizona from the Rio Grande Valley in Texas last month after the number of immigrants  including more than 48,000 children traveling on their own  overwhelmed the Border Patrol there.

Immigrant families were flown from Texas, released in Arizona, and told to report to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office near where they were traveling within 15 days. ICE has said the immigrants were mostly families from Central America fleeing extreme poverty and violence.

The Homeland Security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because there was no authorization to discuss the matter publicly, said the holding center opened for unaccompanied migrant children because the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services had nowhere to turn.

At the holding center, vendors are being contracted to provide nutritional meals, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, meanwhile, will provide counseling services and recreational activities.

The Homeland Security official said the number of children at the warehouse was expected to double to around 1,400. The warehouse has a capacity of about 1,500.

The Arizona Daily Star reported Saturday (http://bit.ly/UlC3VD ) that Jimena Diaz, consul general of Guatemala in Phoenix, visited the center Friday and said there were about 250 children from Guatemala, with the rest coming from El Salvador and Honduras.

Diaz told the newspaper that the children are being kept in separate groups, divided by age and gender. Most of them are between 15 and 17, Diaz said, with a few much younger than that. Teenage mothers with their children are also being detained separately, he said.

The warehouse began sheltering children flown from South Texas last Saturday. About 400 were scheduled to arrive Friday but, because of mechanical issues with the planes, only about 60 came, the Homeland Security official said. Saturday's flights were canceled, also because of mechanical problems. There are flights scheduled through mid-June.

Federal authorities plan to use the Nogales facility as a way station, where the children will be vaccinated and checked medically. They will then be sent to facilities being set up in Ventura, California; San Antonio, Texas; and Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

Customs and Border Protection in Arizona "is prepared to and expects to continue processing unaccompanied children from South Texas," said Victor L. Brabble, a spokesman for the agency in Tucson.

The children being held in Nogales are 17 or younger. The official estimated three of every four were at least 16.

Nogales Mayor Arturo Garino visited the facility Saturday, but he did not get inside the site where the children were being held. Garino said he did meet with Border Patrol officials. He was told some of the children are as young as 1 year old.

"I have all the faith in the world as mayor and as a citizen of Nogales that our Border Patrol is doing the best and the most kind and humane thing with the children," Garino said.

The town has begun collecting clothing donations for the kids, he said.

"Border Patrol has always been good to the city of Nogales, and they work very closely with us," Garino said. "Now, as a city, we need to help Border Patrol so that they can accomplish their goal of making sure these children are all taken care of."

Immigration officials can immediately return Mexican immigrants to the border, but they are much more hard-pressed to deal with Central American migrants. The Homeland Security official said that legally, only their parents or guardians can take custody if the government makes the children eligible for release.

Officials in Central America and Mexico have noticed a recent increase in women and children crossing the border. Father Heyman Vazquez, the director of a migrant shelter in Huixtla in the southern Mexico state of Chiapas, said he and others advise children that it's too dangerous.

Yet Vazquez is seeing more and more youths heading north.

"I remember a little boy of 9 years old and I asked if he was going to go meet someone and he told me 'No, I'm just going hand myself over because I hear they help kids,' " Vazquez said.

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The leaders of the self-proclaimed DPR (Donetsk People's Republic) and LPR (Luhansk People's Republic) are handing over two captured women to Ukrainian representative Nadia Savchenko, the website of the Luhansk Information Center has said.

"As a goodwill gesture before the New Year and Christmas we are handing over, without any preconditions, to Nadia Savchenko, a representative of the people of Ukraine, two women, Angelika Presnyakova and Olga Svorak, in the hope of intensifying the process of release of our citizens, in the hope that they will be reunited with their relatives and loved ones next year," the LPR and DPR leaders said in their statement.
Florida students living in the country illegally will be allowed to qualify for in-state college tuition rates under a bill signed into law Monday by Gov. Rick Scott.

Scott signed the bill privately, but he planned to tout the signing at a campaign event scheduled later in the day in Fort Myers.

The new law offers in-state college tuition rates to undocumented students who had attended a Florida school for at least three years before graduation. The current in-state rate is one-quarter of what out-of-state students and those in the country illegally pay.

"Signing this historic legislation today will keep tuition low, and allow all students who grew up in Florida to have the same access to affordable higher education," Scott said in a statement. "With this legislation, higher education became more affordable and more accessible to all Floridians."

The measure also restricts the ability of Florida universities to raise tuition above the rate set each year by legislators. It repeals a law that allowed universities to raise tuition up to 15 percent a year. Instead it allows two schools  the University of Florida and Florida State University  to raise tuition up to 6 percent without approval by the Florida Legislature.

When he campaigned as governor four years ago, Scott vowed to push tougher anti-immigration measures. He also voiced opposition to offering the in-state tuition rate to students living in the country illegally.

But the Republican governor changed his stance during a year when Hispanic voters may prove to be crucial during a tough re-election fight.

Scott also plans to remind voters that former Gov. Charlie Crist, who is now running as a Democrat, approved the changes that let universities raise tuition above the rates set annually by legislators.

The in-state college tuition bill had been considered several times before over the last decade and had support from Republicans such as then-Gov. Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio when he was in the Legislature. But it divided the Republicans and never passed.

This year, the proposal again drew sharp opposition from some Republicans. During floor debate, several GOP state senators questioned the potential cost  nearly $50 million when fully implemented  and said the state should not reward people who had broken the law by coming, or living, in the United States illegally.

"I know it feels good giving benefits away," said Sen. Aaron Bean, R-Fernandina Beach said in early May. "We are giving so many benefits to non-citizens .... Does it matter even being an American citizen anymore?"

The measure was ultimately passed due to the strong pushing by Scott and other top Republican leaders such as House Speaker Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel.

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A small group in Puerto Rico has launched a campaign to demand that the Caribbean island break all political links with the United States and annex itself once again to Spain to become an autonomous community of the Iberian nation.

The U.S. distorted our history. Nobody here knows we were Spanish citizens with full voting rights until the 1898 invasion. The United States denies us that right, said Jose Nieves, the founder of the Puerto Rico Reunification With Spain group, to Fox News Latino.

The Puerto Rican culture is disappearing, added Nieves, 42, a history buff with a criminology degree from the Caribbean University.

He noted that Puerto Rico was a colony of Spain for more than four centuries and in 1897 even had a charter that gave it sovereignty as an overseas Spanish province.

Nieves said he is planning to call a general assembly in the summer, before registering the movement with the Puerto Rico State Department. Then, he said, they would formally contact the Spanish Consulate and ultimately the Spanish government.

So far, he said, in Spain his initiative has received the endorsement of the Partido Libertario de Espana.

We want to become Spaniards again, to be autonomous community No. 18 of a country that we never wanted to abandon," he said.

Nieves told FNL that to achieve that goal, the group plans to take the case to the International Court of Justice in The Hague and contest the Treaty of Paris of 1898, by which the island changed to American hands.

Our priority is to have historic justice done, because Puerto Rico and Spain were forcefully separated, he said.

Nieves said the idea for the group came to mind out of frustration, after the U.S. repeatedly ignored the Puerto Ricans popular discontent with the islands current status. In a 2012 plebiscite, 54 percent of Puerto Ricans favored a change of the islands territorial status.

I knew we had to do something different to get their attention, he said, referring to the U.S. authorities.

He also said he is planning to run in the 2016 gubernatorial election as a write-in candidate.

With the slogan "It's time to return home!" and a promotional video in which the Spanish national anthem plays in the background, the initiative so far has fewer than 2,000 followers on Facebook.

"We're getting support from (U.S.) statehood advocates, independence-minded people, who would accept unification as a decolonizing option, and even supporters of the status quo," Nieves said, referring to those who want to remain a U.S. commonwealth.

"In contrast to what we're told in the schools, we Puerto Ricans welcomed U.S. troops with gunfire, not with flowers," he said.

"The U.S. invasion was heavily contested. In fact, they could not move in during the first two attempts. Finally, they managed to do it because the mayor of Yauco sold out," he said.

Among the group's followers, according to Nieves, "there are many university people and ones with advanced degrees. We believe we would be accepted by the Spanish people. To date, 95 percent of the feedback we've had from there is positive."

EFE contributed to this report.

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Just two years after embracing a softer stance on immigration in hopes of wooing the state's surging Hispanic population, the Texas Republican Party has done a dramatic about-face  gutting its own past initiative and vowing that not giving an inch on the issue will ensure future success.

Democrats, who haven't won a statewide office in 20 years, the longest such streak in America, say shifting demographics mean Texas will eventually turn blue. They insist such hard-line GOP policies will only speed the process. But the message from the tea party forces who dominated the recent Republican primary and this week's state party convention was simple: We're not budging.

"This idea that somehow we're not going to be able to attract Hispanic voters to our party over immigration is wrong," state Sen. Dan Patrick, a tea party darling from Houston who toppled long-serving incumbent David Dewhurst to win the GOP lieutenant governor nomination, told delegates Saturday. "Because, much of the time, all Hispanics want the same thing that you want, they want a secure border."

Opponents say calls to secure the border are an excuse to immigrant-bash while offering few solutions, since defining what constitutes a pacified border between Mexico and the United States is impossible. But Patrick's campaign even distributed signs shaped like a fence with a giant padlock over the words "Secure the Border."

"We must not step back from being bold on the issue that impacts the country and this state," Patrick said, "and that's people pouring across the border every week."

Since no incumbent is left running, every major statewide office will have a new occupant following November's election. And not all rising Texas conservatives have taken such fiery immigration stances. Attorney General Greg Abbott, the Republican gubernatorial candidate, urged delegates to think about the future of their party and ways to grow it in his convention address.

George P. Bush, who is running for land commissioner and represents the latest generation of his family's political dynasty, says the party doesn't have to change its message, but must take it directly to Hispanic communities that conservatives have long ignored. A similar tone came from U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, a tea party favorite and native Texan who also addressed delegates.

Still, for many at the convention, there was little patience for a more measured approach.

As the gathering in Fort Worth entered it's final, frantic hour Saturday, the most conservative wing of the party dismantled language in the 2012 state party platform known as the "Texas Solution." It had sanctioned a guest worker program for people in the U.S. illegally, bolstering a workforce for the state's booming economy while providing an olive branch of sorts to Hispanics who tend to support Democrats.

Opponents, however, branded the endorsement amnesty for lawbreakers and removed it in a roll-call vote involving thousands of delegates, many of whom struggled to understand what they were voting on. The move defied business-minded conservatives, who had spent hours trying to hammer out a compromise that would have allowed the Texas Solution to survive in modified form.

Firebrand U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz won the convention's 2016 presidential straw poll, easily defeating Paul and outgoing Gov. Rick Perry, a former tea party champion who has since seen the state's Republican Party perhaps move too far to the right even for him.

At a Dallas event later Saturday, Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Wendy Davis called the new GOP immigration plank "a slap in the face to every Texan across the state."

Battleground Texas, a grass-roots group attempting to make Texas politically competitive, noted that in addition to scrapping a guest worker program, the GOP platform endorses offering voluntary therapy to turn gay people straight.

That the Democrats might be on the rise with Davis' candidacy and Battleground Texas, though, is one issue tea party conservatives and more traditional Republicans agree on.

"They picked the wrong battleground," Patrick said Saturday. And Perry went further in his earlier convention speech: "Texas will be their political burial ground."

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When Rick Scott made his maverick push for Florida governor four years ago, the Republican took a hard line against illegal immigration that he used to assail his main Republican rival for the job. But with a likely tight re-election campaign looming, the incumbent is making a concentrated push to win over Hispanic voters.

Scott's latest bid to redo his image came Monday when Florida joined more than three dozen other states in the U.S. that offer lower in-state college tuition rates to students living in the country illegally.

He has framed his support as an effort to keep the cost of college affordable for aspiring students. The tuition rate paid by those in the country illegally is about four times higher than it is for other residents. The bill also restricts the ability of most state universities to charge tuition higher than the rate set by the state Legislature.

"Signing this historic legislation today will keep tuition low, and allow all students who grew up in Florida to have the same access to affordable higher education," Scott said in a statement.

But the new law also gives Scott a way to try to win over Hispanic voters.

Democrats, who have backed the push for in-state tuition for several years only to watch it die under previous Republican administrations, have sharply criticized Scott's about face as a "deathbed conversion." Democratic state Sen. Chris Smith called Scott's decision to back the bill a "remarkable turn-around."

And Scott's decision to embrace the in-state tuition law comes at the same time his re-election campaign is actively targeting Hispanic votes. It launched a Spanish radio ad this week, which followed a Spanish-language ad that was aired on television in late April. The ads came earlier than those from past candidates.

Jaime Florez, the Hispanic communications director for Scott, vowed the initial buy was "only the first of many to come." Scott has a Spanish website and a Spanish communications shop.

Four years ago, Scott had strong backing from tea party conservatives. He called for an enforcement law for illegal immigration similar to a controversial measure passed in Arizona and spoke of a need to "secure the borders." Just last year he vetoed a bill that would have offered temporary driver's licenses to some young immigrants.

But freed from the likelihood of a contested Republican primary, Scott is softening the stances he took during his first campaign.

The incumbent governor signed the college measure into law even though he had opposed the idea back in 2011. He pushed for the legislation even after many of his fellow Republicans came out firmly against it and even called it "pandering" during a divisive debate in the state Capitol this spring.

Florida's Hispanic community varies widely by region and political affiliation. While Cuban-Americans reside in Miami-Dade and lean Republican, many Puerto Ricans who back Democratic candidates reside in Central Florida.

An April poll taken by a statewide business group found that 75 percent of likely Hispanic voters backed the idea. The poll of 500 voters, which had a margin of error of 4.38 percentage points, found strong support among both Cuban-Americans and Puerto Ricans for offering in-state tuition rates to high school graduates even if they were living in the country illegally.

House Speaker Will Weatherford, who championed the legislation even before Scott did, contended the push in the Legislature was not about a political goal of helping the governor and Republicans but about policy.

"We were righting a wrong," said Weatherford. "I think it's a reflection of the leaders in Tallahassee who recognize there was an injustice taking place in society."

Scott has also criticized top Democratic rival and former Gov. Charlie Crist for advocating that the United States should scrap the 52-year-old embargo with Cuba.

Annette Taddeo-Goldstein, chairwoman of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party, maintained that Hispanics won't be swayed by an "election year ploy."

"At the end of the day I don't think it's going to work because as Hispanics we remember," said Taddeo-Goldstein.

One problem for Democrats, however, is that Crist was opposed to in-state tuition for students living here illegally when he was running as a Republican. Crist, who switched parties, now says he supports the change.

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As the tide of undocumented immigrants from Mexico is replaced by a growing surge from Central America, federal authorities in the United States are faced with the issue of returning home those migrants slated for deportation  now that "home" is a few thousand miles farther.

The Department of Homeland (DHS), the federal agency responsible for deporting undocumented immigrants, charters daily flights to return migrants to their home countries  but as the number of immigrants rises so have the number of flights  and the cost.

In its 2015 budget overview, the DHS has requested $229.1 million for the removal of undocumented immigrants alone  an amount that does not include housing and feeding them.

When people look at the fiscal impact of immigration, Marc Rosenblum, the Deputy Director of the Migration Policy Institutes U.S. Immigration policy program told Fox News Latino. This is one expensive slice of it.

The DHS calls these flights from places like San Antonio and Miami an innovative arrangement that provides ICE cost effective and highly flexible flight services, but the prices laid out in the budget show that the 2013 cost of a flight per hour was more than $8,300 and has risen steadily since 2011.

The rise in flight costs and the number of flights  approximately one or two a day to countries like Guatemala and Honduras  has coincided with the rapid rise of Central Americans arriving in the United States, especially along Texas southern border.

While undocumented immigrants from Mexico still make up the largest segment of the population  peaking at 6.9 million in 2007  their numbers have dropped in recent years thanks to stepped-up border enforcement in traditional hotspots like Arizona and California as well as rebounding Mexican economic situation.

The Mexican economy has been relatively strong over the past few years, Rosenblum said. Also some migrants stopped coming to the U.S. when the recession in the U.S. hit.

The decline in Mexican immigration has coincided with the rise of those from Central America, as U.S. Census data estimates that migrants from the region were the fastest growing segment of the Latin American immigrant population. The number of Central American-born immigrants living in the United States increased from 2.0 million to 3.1 million, a growth rate of 51 percent from 2000 to 2010.

Immigration hardliners argue that this spike in Central American migrants is due in part to the governments alleged lax policies toward immigration, claiming that when they make it to the U.S. there is very little chance that an undocumented immigrant will be deported.

This is a crisis that endures because of our countrys policies, Ira Melhman, a spokesperson for the Federation of American Immigration reform (FAIR) told Fox News Latino. Were seeing a rational response to the message that the Obama administration is saying.

Most Central Americans immigrants cite a surfeit of reasons why they have emigrated to the U.S., with the top motives being poverty, lack of job prospects and rampant violent crime in their home nations. But the reason that they leave the country is mainly deportation.

In Arizona alone, 18,493 Guatemalans have been deported so far during 2014, representing a 24 percent increase over the same period in 2013.

Along with the cost that these expatriation airlifts accrue for the federal government, the newly arrived deportees also present problems for the financially strained governments of Central America. Already struggling to deal with their own problems, the deported migrants, some tied to notorious gangs like MS-13 and Calle 18, continue to fuel the violent unrest in places like El Salvador and Honduras  and sending repercussions to the U.S.

MS-13 was founded by immigrants fleeing El Salvador's civil war more than two decades ago, building a reputation in the Los Angeles area and in other regions of the U.S. as one of the most ruthless and sophisticated street gangs in the country. Deportations to their home nations have led the gangs to proliferate throughout Central America and led Honduras and El Salvador to have, respectively, the two highest per capita homicide rates in the world.

With the White House asking Congress for an extra $1.4 billion to house, feed and reunite with their families the 47,000 children apprehended at the Southwest Border in the last eight months, the cost of immigration is on the minds of many in the Capital Beltway right now. Some analysts argue that immigration enforcement is more costly than processing visas, but it appears for the time being that these flights will remain standard practice.

The only other alternative would be to bus them back to their countries through Mexico, but that would take three days and there is no way that Mexico would sign off on that, Rosenblum said. I guess they could use boats, but that doesnt sound practical.
The mayor of Nogales, Arizona said that his tour of a facility Monday where state officials say about 700 to 1,000 mostly Central American children were sent after they were caught crossing into Texas left him assured that they are in good care there.

Arizona border officials will indefinitely continue to process hundreds of Central American children immigrants caught crossing the border illegally from Mexico into Texas.

The number of unaccompanied minors from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras has soared more than 1,000 percent, according to Border Patrol data. In fiscal year 2009, border agents apprehended 3,304 such children from those three countries. This year, that figure is now more than 48,000 and expected to continue to grow. Meanwhile, the number of minors from Mexico crossing the border alone has dropped.

Immigration authorities have so far provided few details about how many of those children are being flown from Texas to Arizona and how often, but in a statement said the flights will continue.

Nogales Mayor Arturo Garino said the children he saw seemed to be in good care. They were in a facility that used to be one of the city's largest produce warehouses and were separated by gender and age, he said.

"The warehouse is very nice comparing to a lot of what I've heard. ... I'm very comfortable with it," Garino said.

Arizona politicians have criticized the transfer of hundreds of migrant children to a state known for its immigration problem.

The children are mostly on their own, complicating the influx of migrants last month to the Rio Grande Valley in Texas that overwhelmed the Border Patrol there. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security started flying immigrants to Arizona, where they were released and told to report to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement office near where they were traveling within 15 days.

Mexican immigrants caught crossing the border are usually deported immediately, but it is more difficult to deport migrants from Central American countries, especially if they are minors.

Immigration advocates have warned for months that they expect tens of thousands of unaccompanied minors to cross the border this year.

Many critics say the influx stems from word spreading that ICE does not hold children in detention and from misinformation about immigrant children who qualify for President Barack Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which protects some youth brought to the U.S. illegally from being deported. Others say the children are looking to reunite with parents who are already in the country.

Federal authorities plan for the Nogales facility to be transitional, where the children will be vaccinated and given medical checkups. They will then be sent to facilities being set up in Ventura, California; San Antonio; and Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer and other state officials have harshly criticized the transfers and called for them to stop, some even threatening criminal charges.

Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery said Monday that immigration authorities may have violated state child abuse laws by dropping off women and children at Greyhound stations in Phoenix and Tucson a few weeks ago.

But border officials say that as long as the children keep coming, they need somewhere to hold them and expect to continue processing minors in Arizona.

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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Unaccompanied children under U.S. border authorities custody are packed in frigid cells and sleep on hard floors without enough food or medical care, advocacy groups said in a complaint filed Wednesday. It alleges widespread abuses amid a surge of illegal crossings by young immigrants from strife-torn Central American countries.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Esperanza Immigrant Rights Project and three other groups have produced 116 allegations of abuse of children who were in Customs and Border Protection custody. They said more than 80 percent received inadequate food and water, about half were denied medical care, and about one of every four was physically abused.

A 13-year-old boy said he was threatened by an official with a metal rod and was later sexually molested while in custody, a 14-year-old girl reported her asthma inhaler was confiscated, and a 14-year-old boy was unable to sleep for five days because the lights were always on. A 16-year-old boy said an official told him, "You are in my country now, and we are going to bury you in a hole."

The allegations described in the administrative complaint to the Department of Homeland Security were based on interviews with the children from around March to May. The complaint doesn't provide dates of the alleged abuse, but authors said much of it occurred over the last year. The locations are not listed because, the authors said, the children were frequently shuttled around and didn't know where they were.

The children were identified only by initials in a 25-page version of the complaint that was made public but the authors said they provided names and other biographical information to the Homeland Security's inspector general and office civil rights and civil liberties. They urged the department to investigate the complaints, punish any wrongdoing and make its findings public.

Customs and Border Protection said in a statement that it does not tolerate misconduct and was providing food, medical care and other basic services under constant supervision, while working to transfer children to the Department of Health and Human Services within 72 hours, as required by law. It said "extraordinary measures" were being taken in response to an overwhelming tide of children crossing in South Texas.

The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees Customs and Border Protection, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"This should be the final straw. These children's stories are horrific," said James Lyall of the ACLU's Border Litigation Project, which joined Americans for Immigrant Justice, the National Immigrant Justice Center and the Florence Immigrant Rights & Refugee Project. The groups work closely with the children after they are released.

Customs and Border Protection arrested 47,017 unaccompanied children on the border from October through May, up 92 percent from the same period a year earlier. A draft Border Patrol memorandum estimates that number could reach 90,000 in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, up from a previous government estimate of 60,000.

Last week, President Barack Obama declared a crisis and appointed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to lead the government's response. Hundreds of children have been flown to a makeshift shelter at a Border Patrol station in Nogales, Arizona, while the Defense Department prepares military bases in California, Oklahoma and Texas, for temporary housing.

Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson told the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday that violence in Central America is main driver but acknowledged that parents likely know their children will be released to the Department of Health and Human Services, "which very often means reuniting them with their parents."

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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Immigration activists had been following Eric Cantors race closely. He seemed to be their last hope in passing any kind of immigration reform in the House.

But Cantors loss on Tuesday has upended the whole immigration reform movement, with advocates on both sides of the political aisle questioning the measures future. Cantor, a Virginia Republican, was defeated by a little-known Tea Party-back candidate, Dave Brat, in the primary race which featured immigration as the central issue.

[Immigration] is really dead now.  Roy Beck, president of Numbers USA, which opposes immigration reform

The stunning loss, many say, almost certainly ended whatever slim hopes remained for a deal on immigration in the House this year, likely putting the issue on ice until after the 2016 presidential election.

"It's really dead now," said Roy Beck, president of Numbers USA, a group that opposes comprehensive immigration legislation. Immigration "has been pronounced dead many times over the last two years, but I think the voters of Cantor's district have sent an incredible message."

Brat accused Cantor of embracing "amnesty" and open borders, signed an anti-immigration pledge, and got assists in recent weeks from conservative figures popular with tea party voters such as radio host Laura Ingraham and columnist Ann Coulter, who labeled Cantor "amnesty-addled."

Cantor fought back, boasting in strongly worded mailers of shutting down plans to grant "amnesty" to "illegal aliens"  a changed tone for a lawmaker who'd spoken out in favor of citizenship for immigrants brought illegally to this country as youths.

He hardened his stance on the policy, moving to block House action last month on a GOP-authored measure offering citizenship to certain immigrants here illegally who serve in the military.

It wasn't enough.

After a primary election season in which immigration had barely registered, the outcome suggested that it can still be a potent political issue for Republican primary voters.

Some immigration advocates and pollsters cautioned it was too soon to say whether immigration was the deciding factor for Cantor. David Winston, a GOP pollster who advises House Republicans, said that had Cantor known he was truly threatened, he would have campaigned differently, possibly producing a different outcome. Instead, Cantor's internal polling had shown him comfortably ahead.

"Was that the key issue? We don't know because the candidate never thought he was in a race," Winston said.

Immigration advocates also noted that some GOP candidates who embraced immigration legislation escaped their primaries unscathed. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., an author of the comprehensive immigration bill that passed the Senate last year, won his primary handily Tuesday.

Another House member, Rep. Renee Ellmers, R-N.C., also won last month even though her opponent attacked her as a supporter of relaxing immigration laws.

Some Democrats were still holding out hope for action. "Now Mr. Cantor can do the right thing instead of the political thing," said Rep. Joe Garcia, D-Fla.

But Cantor's loss was such a stunning rebuke for a politician seen as next in line to be speaker of the House that it immediately emboldened conservative opponents of immigration legislation.

For a Republican House rank and file already reluctant to take on the politically volatile issue in an election year, the outcome offered an object lesson on the benefits of steering clear.

And for establishment Republicans who've been pushing support for an immigration overhaul as the best way for the GOP to win back the Latino voters crucial to national elections, Tuesday's result was a sobering setback. In the year since the Senate passed a comprehensive immigration bill, House Republicans have resisted the entreaties of the business community, religious leaders and the GOP establishment.

That doesn't look likely to change anytime soon.

"We're all shocked that you got the No. 2 Republican taken down and the entire campaign was on immigration," said Hector Barajas, a Republican consultant in California who is trying to sell the GOP to Hispanics. "That emboldens the Ted Cruzes of the world to go out there and say 'I told you so.'"

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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The defeat on Tuesday of Rep. Eric Cantor, the second-most powerful lawmaker in the House of Representatives, by a little-known Tea Party candidate in Virginias GOP primary should be viewed in isolation, and not as a harbinger of future voter actions, political experts said Wednesday.

That because, experts in both Democratic and Republican camps say, Virginias politics and Cantors congressional district specifically are vastly different from the rest of the nation.

Latinos are just 8 percent of Virginias population, dramatically less than the 17 percent they make up of the national population. Cantors district is 80 percent white and only 2 percent Hispanic.

And what may gain traction in the state, and in Cantors largely conservative district, would have a tougher time of gaining support on a national level, experts say.

We should not let what happened in Virginia, where only 65,000 people voted, in a very conservative district, determine the fate of the immigration issue or set the state of the mood of the country, said Ben Monterroso, Executive Director, Mi Familia Vota Education Fund. Virginia is not a reflection of the nation.

Cantor lost to David Brat and then announced he would step down at the end of July. His congressional district stretches from Culpeper to the Richmond area.

After Cantors unexpected loss, theories abounded about its larger political significance. Many said that Cantors perceived weakness by voters on immigration enforcement  his opponent Brat had cast him as an amnesty supporter  showed how moderate views on the divisive issue could doom a candidate.

There are many sweeping conclusions based on a very small number of people in a small corner of Virginia, said Tom Densen, director of Democratic pollster Public Policy Polling, which conducted a survey in Cantors district of more than 400 voters. The survey showed that more than 70 percent of voters favor comprehensive immigration reform, including a path to legal status for undocumented immigrants.

A lot of Republicans really do want to get something done about immigration. We found that even Republicans in Cantors district really want to see something happen with immigration reform.

Cantors dismal performance among voters was contrasted with that of fellow Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, who on Tuesday night defeated six Tea Party opponents and avoided a runoff by getting more than 50 percent of the vote.

Many experts noted that while some conservatives loathe Graham for his support of immigration reform and other issues, none of his challengers could gain traction or match Graham's fundraising.

Cantor, they say, simply didnt fight hard enough in a race he was sure hed win. His campaigns internal polls had showed him comfortably beating Brat, an economics professor who forced immigration as the central issue in the campaign.

Cantor, whod once held a more moderate view on reforming immigration, shifted to a hard line after Brats attacks depicting him as soft and willing to reward law breakers by giving them amnesty.

With votes counted in 99 percent of the precincts, 64,418 votes were cast, roughly a 37 percent increase over two years ago. Despite that, Cantor polled fewer votes than he did in 2012  28,631 this time, compared with 37,369 then.

Graham, whose constituency tends to be even more conservative, in many ways, than Cantors, handed him a hefty victory even though the senator not only backed the idea of immigration reform that would include enforcement as well as an opportunity for undocumented immigrants to legalize, but he also was directly involved in a Senate bill on the issue that passed last year.

Lindsey Graham was able to talk about what the Senate bill actually does, said Jon McHenry of the Republican pollster Northstar Opinion Research. He took it out of the context of just amnesty.

People who run successfully in support of immigration reform say its not amnesty, its securing our border, and they talk about what do we do with the undocumented immigrants who live in our country.

Last month, Rep. Renee Ellmers of North Carolina beat a conservative challenge in the GOP primary that also sought to portray her as an amnesty-loving weakling on immigration.

Renee Elmer had a tough primary, her race was all about immigration, McHenry said. And she successfully fought on that issue, she spoke about what she was for instead of letting it be defined for her.

Advocates for Latino voters say that many in this voting bloc hold the GOP responsible for inaction on immigration reform. Hard line views by Republicans during the 2012 GOP presidential primaries alienated many Latino voters, experts say, and were believed to have led to the defeat of GOP candidate Mitt Romney by President Barack Obama. More than 70 percent of Latino and Asian-American voters cast their ballots for Obama.

Gebe Martinez, of Mi Familia Vota Education Fund, said that Latinos and Asian-Americans are watching how political candidates and parties address issues that involve them.

Conservative groups that favor strict immigration policies are celebrating Cantors defeat, and the role that the issue had in the election.

"The wage-earning voters of Rep. Cantor's district apparently felt abandoned by his immigration positions, said Roy Beck, president of NumbersUSA, that virtually ignored their anxiety about stagnant wages and high unemployment and that projected primary concern for unlawful foreign visitors and employers seeking more foreign workers.

Beck sees Cantors defeat as a cautionary tale for other politicians who embrace moderate and liberal immigration policies.

Prof. Brat's insistence that immigration policies should focus on the needs of American workers and taxpayers provided a sharp contrast to the corporate-driven vision of the top echelon of the Republican Party that Rep. Cantor exemplified.

But others say the cautionary tale is that Republicans need to pass an immigration reform bill.

Mr. Cantor was never in favor of immigration, Monterroso of Mi Familia Vota Education Fund said. He would say one thing to some of us in the [Latino] community and do something else.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The growing immigration crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border, where tens of thousands of unaccompanied children have arrived in the last year, is sparking efforts in Congress to contain the situation.

On Tuesday, a Senate appropriations panel voted to give the Obama administration $2 billion it requested to handle the dramatic increase in child migration.

The money is more than $1.1 billion more than President Barack Obama initially asked for in his budget proposal for the Health and Human Services division that cares for and houses immigrant children caught alone at the border. It would effectively come from yet unspecified changes in mandatory programs.

Advocates with organization that assist undocumented immigrants and push for policies that would help them lauded the efforts to address the crisis.

This will help the federal government and non-governmental organizations respond to the arrival of unaccompanied minors, most of whom have fled violence, suffered abuse and are, after all, kids, said Frank Sharry, founder and executive director of Americas Voice, a D.C.-based group that advocates for comprehensive immigration reform.

Not all of them will get to stay in America, Sharry said to Fox News Latino, but every one of them deserves to be treated humanely while their request for protection is adjudicated.

Another proposed bill in the Senate would change the pay structure of the Border Patrol to add manpower and allow more flexibility around overtime wage restraints.

The bill, which is backed by Sens. John McCain, an Arizona Republican, and Jon Tester, a Missouri Democrat, could add some 1,500 border agents to help with the surge of undocumented immigrants  many of them youth traveling alone  that is overwhelming immigration authorities who are working in the area.

James W. Ziglar, who served as immigration commissioner under President George W. Bush, told Fox News Latino the proposal is only putting a Band-Aide on the problem.

"An additional 1,500 agents will help, but I dont know that it will end the problem, Ziglar said. If people are determined to come here, theyll come.

What we need is to do something about the overall immigration policy  it doesnt work.

Border Patrol Deputy Chief Ronald Vitiello told the Senate Homeland Security Committee on Monday that it would give the agency more capability, according to ABC News.

Its in essence, he said, giving us nearly 1,500 agents more capability along the borders with current staffing levels.

Brandon Judd, whose labor union represents about 17,000 border agents, noted in the Homeland Security committee hearing that the unaccompanied children influx and pay restrictions for agents are having a detrimental impact.

Its pulling agents out of the field. Theyre no longer patrolling the border, he said, according to ABC. Theyre having to deal with this whole influx of minors that are coming in. Theyre having to process them. Theyre having to watch them. Theyre having to feed them. Theyre having to do all these different things instead of actually being out and patrolling the border.

The number of children found trying to cross the Mexican border without parents has skyrocketed in recent years. Between 2008 and 2011, the number of children landing in the custody of HHS's Refugee Resettlement fluctuated between 6,000 and 7,500 per year.

In 2012, border agents apprehended 13,625 unaccompanied children and that number surged even more  to over 24,000  last year. The total is expected to be as high as 90,000 this year.

Office of Management and Budget Deputy Director Brian Deese wrote to committee chairwoman Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., to formally ask for more money on May 30.

The HHS budget approved by the committee would also allow the government to move money from other areas if the flow of child immigrants grows beyond the latest estimate of up to 90,000.

The full Senate will have to approve the final version of the HHS budget. And the House has not yet acted on the issue.

Most children caught crossing the border alone are from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala and cannot be quickly repatriated.

Under federal law, the children are supposed to be turned over to HHS within 72 hours. Most are then reunited with parents or other relatives already living in the United States.

Because of the massive influx of children this year, the Border Patrol IN TEXAS has been forced to house many children in local patrol stations and recently has moved some young immigrants to Nogales, Arizona, where they are being quartered temporarily in a warehouse.

The administration has turned to the Department of Defense to use three military bases in California, Texas and Oklahoma to temporarily house other children once they are transferred to HHS care.

Ziglar, now a senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute, a think tank, said unaccompanied minors arriving illegally in the United States has always been a problem.

The surge has come and gone over the decades, but I have no memory of anything of this significance, Ziglar said about his time as immigration commissioner between 2001 and 2002.

Its not totally unexpected that older kids want to come here, and that many people want to get their kids here, said Ziglar, Its really, in a sense, the most heartbreaking of all [immigration] situations. These are minors, who are here with no family. You cant just let these kids run the streets or starve.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Ukrainian military positions in Donbas came under fire 33 times in the past 24 hours, the press center for the Anti-Terrorist operation (ATO) said on Facebook on Monday morning.

In the Mariupol sector, the enemy opened fire on Lebedynske using 122mm artillery, on Shyrokyne, Talakivka and Vodiane using 82mm mortars, and Starohnativka, Shyrokyne and Pavlopil using large-caliber machine-guns and small arms, while Novotroyitske was subject to sniper fire, the source said.

In the Donetsk sector, Luhanske, Artiomove, Novhorodske and Verkhniotoretske fire was sustained from 120mm and 82mm caliber mortars, combat infantry vehicles and grenade launchers, while small arms were used against Zaitseve, ATO press centre said.

In the Luhansk sector, Stanytsia Luhanska and Novozvanivka fire was sustained from grenade launchers and small arms, the headquarters said.
Canada-born U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz has made good on a promise to renounce his birth country's citizenship  doing so amid speculation he could make a run at the White House in 2016.

Spokeswoman Catherine Frazier said Cruz's action became official May 14 and that Texas' junior senator received written confirmation at his home in Houston on Tuesday. She said the tea-party-backed Republican "is pleased to have the process finalized."

"Being a U.S. Senator representing Texas, it makes sense he should be only an American citizen," Frazier said in an email.

Cruz, 43, was born in Calgary, Alberta, in 1970, while his parents were working in the oil business there. His mother, Eleanor, is from Delaware, while his father, Rafael, is a Cuban became a U.S. citizen in 2005.

Though he has been in office only about 18 months, Cruz helped lead last year's partial government shutdown and has become a conservative grass-roots champion.

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Amid questions last August about his eligibility to be president should he decide to run, Cruz released his birth certificate to the Dallas Morning News  and said then that he was surprised to learn he was a dual Canadian-U.S. citizen.

Upon learning that he'd received it at birth, he promised to formally give it up. Months then passed before Cruz hired an immigration attorney to help him with the process.

Frazier provided a copy of Cruz's Certificate of Renunciation, which certifies that Rafael Edward Cruz "has formally renounced Canadian citizenship and pursuant to the Citizenship Act will cease to be a citizen."

Still, the citizenship issue could still be a thorny one for Cruz. Some conservatives claimed President Barack Obama was born in Kenya and thus not eligible to be U.S. president. Obama is an American citizen; his father was Kenyan, his mother American.

The U.S. Constitution says only a "natural born Citizen" may be president. Legal scholars, however, generally agree the description covers foreign-born children of U.S. parents.

Previous foreign-born Americans  notably Republicans John McCain and George Romney  have run for president with some mention, but no serious challenges, of their eligibility.

Cruz, who has made frequent trips to Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, the first three states to hold presidential contests, has refused to say if he plans to run for president.

Asked about his presidential eligibility at the Texas Republican Convention last week, Cruz said, "I've disclosed all the relevant facts. As you know, I was born in Canada. My mother was a U.S. citizen at the time of my birth. She was a U.S. citizen from birth so, under U.S. law, I'm an American citizen by birth."

"Beyond that," he added, "I will leave the legal consequences of those facts to others to worry about."

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Americans were being evacuated Thursday from a major Iraqi air base as Al Qaeda-aligned militants toppled cities in the country's north and threatened to advance toward Baghdad.

A senior U.S. official confirmed to Fox News that Americans were being evacuated from a base in Balad, which had been one of the largest training missions in Iraq.

The three planeloads of Americans are mostly contractors and civilians. The State Department said Thursday that the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad is operating as usual.

But the evacuation means that the vital training mission at Balad, about an hour northwest of Baghdad, has been suspended indefinitely -- despite repeated administration statements that it would continue to support Iraq's military.

Regarding those assurances, one U.S. official clarified to Fox News: "At the same time, we are not going to do anything stupid."

The development signals the worsening security environment in the northern part of the country. One senior official told Fox News that the focus for evacuation at this point is on people outside of Baghdad.

Two senior intelligence sources, though, told Fox News there is serious concern about how to evacuate other Americans out of Iraq if the situation further deteriorates.

"We need places to land, we need safe and secure airfields," one source said, noting that the militants are "seizing airfields and they have surface-to-air missiles, which very clearly threatens our pilots and planes if we do go into evacuation mode."

Sources said "all western diplomats in Iraq are in trouble," and American allies are scrambling to put together an evacuation plan. Military officials said there are "not a lot of good options."

The Obama administration is still trying to determine how to assist the Nouri al-Maliki government, while making clear it does not want U.S. troops in the middle of the fight.

"We are not contemplating ground troops," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Thursday.

According to the White House, Vice President Biden spoke Thursday with Maliki and expressed "solidarity" with the Iraqi government in its fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.

Obama promised Thursday to send more military aid, without saying what kind of new assistance would be given to Baghdad. Two U.S. officials who are familiar with ongoing negotiations told The Associated Press the White House is considering air strikes and increased surveillance, requested this week by the Iraqi defense minister, as the insurgency nears Baghdad.

The Iraqi government has been asking for more than a year for surveillance and armed drones to combat a Sunni insurgency that has gained strength from battlefield successes in neighboring Syria.

Republican lawmakers were harshly critical Thursday of the administration's response. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called for Obama to replace his national security team.

House Speaker John Boehner snapped: "What's the president doing? Taking a nap."

Obama commented on the violence shortly afterward.

"What we've seen over the last couple of days indicates the degree to which Iraq is going to need more help," Obama said. "It's going to need more help from us, and it's going to need more help from the international community."

Several thousand Americans remain in Iraq, mostly contractors who work at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad on programs to train Iraqi forces on American military equipment like fighter jets and tanks. Those being evacuated from Balad on Thursday included 12 U.S. government officials and military personnel who have been training Iraqi forces to use fighter jets and surveillance drones.

Other U.S. contractors are at a tank training ground in the city of Taji, just north of the capital, that is still in operation for now.

In addition to the possible military assistance, State Department spokeswoman Psaki said the U.S. is sending about $12 million in humanitarian aid to help nearly a million Iraqis who have been forced from their homes by recent fighting in the nation's north and west.

Fox News' Justin Fishel and Adam Housley and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Hillary Rodham Clinton said Wednesday that House Majority Leader Eric Cantor "was defeated by a candidate who basically ran against immigrants."

In Chicago to promote her new book in a public discussion with Mayor Rahm Emanuel, the potential 2016 Democratic presidential candidate said a "negative attitude about immigration and immigrants" is playing out politically in some parts of the country, including Cantor's GOP primary.

The Virginia Republican lost to tea party-backed economics professor David Brat Tuesday in a shocker of an election in which Brat ripped Cantor for not being tough enough on illegal immigration.

Clinton said the basic argument of Brat's campaign was that if Americans are out of work, immigrants shouldn't be allowed into the U.S. to take those jobs. She echoed comments from a Tuesday speech to an industry group that represents fruit and vegetable growers, saying immigrants take jobs  such as picking fruit  that Americans won't.

"The answer is not to throw out of work and deport the 11 million immigrants who are contributing already to our economy," Clinton said. "The answer is to grow our economy and create more jobs."

Clinton has sounded increasingly like a candidate as she's hawked her book, which was released Tuesday.

She said Wednesday she supports legislation that passed the Senate that would provide a path to citizenship to people in the U.S. illegally, comments that could appeal to a growing Hispanic population as well as other immigrants. The prospects of the Republican-controlled House passing that legislation were unlikely before Tuesday, and Cantor's loss seemed to guarantee the measure is dead for this year.

Wednesday's event also included some more light-hearted moments between Clinton and Emanuel, who was a senior adviser to former President Bill Clinton and was Obama's first chief of staff.

Emanuel razzed Hillary Clinton for a comment she made in earlier interviews that she and the former president were "dead broke" when they left the White House.

"'Dead broke?'" Emanuel deadpanned early in the discussion before several thousand people. "Really?"

Clinton said it "may not have been the most artful way" of saying they had been through some financial ups and downs.

On Thursday Hillary Clinton is returning to New York for more stops on her book promo blitz.

She'll join the president of the Council on Foreign Relations in the morning for a conversation about her career in government and her new book, "Hard Choices."

Then she'll attend the World Resource Institute's 2014 Courage to Lead luncheon. The event honors leaders tackling global environmental and economic development challenges.

Clinton also is scheduled to be honored by the Wildlife Conservation Society at the Central Park Zoo.

Clinton's first book tour stop in Union Square on Tuesday morning attracted around 1,000 people  some of whom slept on the sidewalk so they could see her.

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The Republican Party is expanding its Hispanic outreach in the Southwest, hoping to capitalize on the popularity of its two Hispanic governors in the region and win back a part of the country that has been trending Democratic.

The party is hiring six new staffers to work with Hispanic voters in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada. On the presidential level, three of those four states have shifted solidly into Democrats' column since 2004, fueled partly by Hispanic voters angered by some GOP politicians' stance on immigration.

The outreach effort is part of the Republican National Committee's effort to combat that drift and expand the GOP beyond its mostly white base by engaging with minority communities.

Some Republicans are particularly optimistic about the Southwest because the region boasts the nation's only two Hispanic governors, both popular Republicans  Susana Martinez in New Mexico and Brian Sandoval in Nevada.

But it also boasts former U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, an immigration firebrand who is considered the front-runner in a four-person primary for the Republican nomination for governor in Colorado. Many Republican leaders fear that a nominee like Tancredo could set the party back in its attempts to appeal to new voters.

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The hires bring the number of states in which Republicans have paid staffers reaching out to Hispanics to 10. The staffers will speak to Hispanic voters regularly and attend community events and forums.

"Long-term, face-to-face contact between voters and volunteers from the same community is the best way to inform and motivate Hispanics voters to get to the polls," Sandoval said. "The RNC's effort is extremely important and a step in the right direction to help Republican candidates make gains in our communities."

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An online effort to help with legal costs for the six crew members of a U.S. vessel who are jailed in Honduras has raised more than $4,600 in 10 days.

The fundraising effort on behalf of the crew of the Aqua Quest International is on Go-Fund-Me, a crowdfunding site. Aqua Quest's goal is to raise $18,500.

The six crew members of the Aqua Quest vessel have been in jail at Puerto Lempira since early May. On May 13, a judge ordered the crew to remain in custody indefinitely.

An appeals court in Honduras may decide as early as Friday what happens next to the men, said Gustavo Arguello, whose law firm in Honduras has been representing them.

When local police authorities boarded the vessel last month, and found weapons  several firearms, including an AK-47 rifle, two shotguns and two handguns, according to published reports  and arrested the captain and five crew members based on allegations that they were in possession of illegal arms.

The captain, Robert Mayne, the CEO of Aqua Quest International, a salvage company based in Tarpon Springs, Florida said the company was in Honduras to remove mahogany logs. Mayne, who had encountered criminals along his trips who had tried to rob him and his crew, said he carried weapons for protection.

Aqua Quest representatives insist the captain had carefully reviewed the regulations for carrying weapons and made sure they remained in compliance.

Weve done everything we can, Arguello said. Now its in their hands. They could go free, or theyll be sentenced.

A security team was set up for the crew in Honduras, aware of the dangers, and how much a U.S. vessel  rarely seen in the area  would attract attention.

U.S. publications cite a Honduran newspaper, El Heraldo, as quoting the commander of the Honduran Navy as saying the crew was arrested because they carried five weapons, one of which is prohibited, and they did not have a permit to carry weapons in Honduran territory.

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With the upset on Tuesday in the Virginia GOP primary, where Rep. Eric Cantor lost to a Tea Party candidate, activists on both sides of the immigration debate are scrutinizing his potential successors as House Majority Leader and how they might handle the emotionally-charged issue.

Rep. Kevin McCarthy, who is from California and whom Cantor is backing to succeed him, is widely expected to take the helm during the election, which is scheduled for June 19. McCarthy became the clear frontrunner after his strongest challenger, Rep. Pete Sessions of Texas, bowed out of the race late Thursday.

McCarthy has in the past expressed support for giving undocumented immigrants a path to legal status, although not full-blown citizenship.

McCarthy stressed earlier this year that his support for an opportunity to allow some undocumented immigrants to legalize their status was not tantamount to being in favor of amnesty, or rewarding people who break the law.

He said to KBFX Eyewitnesses News that he backed giving those who qualify legal status that will allow you to work and pay your taxes.

If you want to become a citizen, you'll have to go through the path, he said. There won't be amnesty inside it.

He added that the path to legal status was a decision that every Republican will have to make.

McCarthys district is 35 percent Latino, starkly different than that of Cantor, whose district is only 2 percent Latino.

Last June, the U.S. Senate, where Democrats have a majority, passed a sweeping bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform bill that, among other things, bolstered border security, expanded foreign worker visa programs, and provided a path to legal status for undocumented immigrants who meet a strict set of criteria.

But the effort stalled in the House, where Republicans have the majority, and where some of the most conservative members fought against taking up any immigration measure that provided a path to legal status to people who are here illegally.

Some House Republicans who favor a strict approach to immigration are resisting McCarthys candidacy for Majority Leader, and want the June 19 leadership election pushed back in the hope that a candidate with a harder line on the issue can be put in the running for the position.

Two of those conservatives are Reps. Steve King, of Iowa, and Michele Bachmann, of Minnesota, who said they want a candidate who does not support "amnesty, according to The Hill.

"We don't have the lineup of conservative rule of law candidates in place, said King, who is one of the staunchest opponents in the House of any proposal that would give a break to undocumented immigrants. So we're asking for a delay in this vote so there's time for the conference to come to its senses and evaluate all of the opportunities that we have going forward.

Activists who favor strict immigration enforcement arent satisfied with McCarthy.

Pro-enforcement Americans should be extremely cautious about McCarthy and his admitted willingness to repeat the failed legalization of 1986, said Georgia-based conservative leader D.A. King, who is of no relation to Steve King. He is an unrepentant legalization advocate. Kevin McCarthy is another illustration of the depth of establishment Republicans amnesty or bust team.

McCarthy hopes that America can be convinced that legalization and a work permit for people who escaped capture at our borders or laughed at the fact that we dont control visa departures like Mexico does isnt amnesty, King told Fox News Latino.

Ira Mehlman, a spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, or FAIR, a national group that favors strict immigration enforcement, said that the successor to Cantor will not have much of an impact on what Congress does or doesnt do about immigration.

What happened to Cantor is going to put a lot of Republican House members on notice, Mehlman said to Fox News Latino. Its going to show them that this not something they want to deal with before the election.

The child migrant influx on the U.S.-Mexico border, he said, is shifting the national focus back on the need for more border control.

Dealing with an amnesty bill is not something their constituents will want to see them dealing with right now.

Before dealing with a bill, he said, Congress will have to hold the president accountable for what he said has been lax enforcement.
President Barack Obama said Friday he is weighing a range of options for countering the violent Islamic insurgency in Iraq, but he warned government leaders in Baghdad the U.S. will not take military action unless they move to address deep-seeded political troubles.

"We're not going to allow ourselves to be dragged back into a situation in which, while we're there we're keeping a lid on things, and after enormous sacrifices by us, after we're not there, people start acting in ways that are not conducive to the long-term stability and prosperity of the country," Obama said from the South Lawn of the White House.

The president did not specify what options he was considering, but he ruled out sending American troops back into combat in Iraq. The last U.S. troops withdrew in 2011 after more than eight years of war.

The president's announcement met quickly with criticism from members of the Republican Party.

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), said in a press conference Wednesday, regarding al-Qaida's takeover of Mosul, "We need to ensure our assistance programs to Iraq are adequate to deal with the threats to their stability. We need a more aggressive and comprehensive strategy to support our partners in the region in their efforts to repel these threats."

Obama argued that the insurgency is not only a danger to the Iraqi people but also to American interests in a volatile region.

Administration officials said Obama is considering airstrikes using drones or manned aircraft. Other short-term options include an increase in surveillance and intelligence gathering, including satellite coverage and other monitoring efforts. The U.S. also is likely to increase various forms of aid to Iraq, including funding, training and providing both lethal and non-lethal equipment.

Obama suggested it could take several days before the administration finalizes its response to the situation on the ground in Iraq.

"We want to make sure we have gathered all the intelligence that is necessary so that if in fact I do direct and order any actions there that they are targeted, they're precise and they're going to have an effect," Obama said before leaving for a four-day trip to North Dakota and California.

Officials said the president had no plans to cut his trip short.

The al-Qaida-inspired Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has quickly overrun Iraq's second-largest city of Mosul, Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit and smaller communities, as well as military and police bases  often meeting little resistance from state security forces.

The fast-moving rebellion, which also draws support from former Saddam-era figures and other disaffected Sunnis, has emerged as the biggest threat to Iraq's stability since the U.S. withdrawal. It has pushed the nation closer to a precipice that could partition it into Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish zones.

Obama argued that the insurgency is not only a danger to the Iraqi people, but also to American interests in a volatile region. He also cited America's long investment in Iraq as a rationale for stepping in to help the country from crumbling.

Secretary of State John Kerry, traveling in London Friday, urged Iraq's neighbors to also understand the gravity of the situation.

"Everybody in the region, every country that understands the importance of stability in the Middle East, needs to be concerned about what is happening with ISIL in Iraq today," Kerry said.

The Pentagon has been pulling together a broad range of military options that could be taken in Iraq, and is having discussions with the White House about the best way forward.

One of the immediate moves could be to position small teams of military troops and aircraft close by in case they are needed to evacuate U.S. personnel or to provide security if required.

More aggressive options include airstrikes and other counterterrorism operations against the insurgency, in conjunction with or with the approval of the Iraqi government. The U.S. routinely has an array of ships in the region. On Friday, the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush and an accompanying Navy cruiser were in the northern Arabian Sea, while two Navy destroyers from the Bush strike group had already moved into the Persian Gulf.

The ships carry Tomahawk missiles, which could reach Iraq, and the Bush is carrying fighter jets that could also easily get to Iraq.

Based on reporting by the Associated Press.

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In one of the highest-profile showdowns between establishment Republicans and Tea Party conservatives so far this year, Rep. Raul Labrador said Friday that he is challenging Rep. Kevin McCarthy for the House majority leader position that became open this week.

Labrador, of Idaho, would be the Tea Party alternative to McCarthy, who is the whip and is favored by establishment Republicans. Only in Congress since 2010, Labrador would represent several firsts: the first Latino, first Mormon and first Idaho lawmaker to be House majority leader.

Labradors foray into the race for majority leader is yet another dramatic turn of events for Republicans, who were stunned by the defeat in Tuesdays primary in Virginia of Rep. Eric Cantor to a Tea Party candidate who cast the congressman as someone who embraces the status quo of Beltway GOP politics and did not truly represent his constituents.

Americans dont believe their leaders in Washington are listening and now is the time to change that.  Rep. Raul Labrador, announcing he's running for House Majority Leader

And it upends the June 19 voting by the House Republicans for majority leader. On Friday morning, McCarthy, 49, appeared to be headed toward running unopposed after some rivals dropped out.

I was stunned when Eric Cantor lost his primary election earlier this week, Labrador, who is 46, said in his announcement about running for majority leader. Eric is a good friend and I have tremendous respect for him. But the message from Tuesday is clear  Americans are looking for a change in the status quo.

Some conservatives in the House were pushing for a postponement of the June 19 election for majority leader, saying they wanted more time to put someone with more right-wing views in the running for the position.

I want aleadership team that can bring the Republican conference together, Labrador said in his statement, A leadership team that can help unite and grow our party. Americans dont believe their leaders in Washington are listening and now is the time to change that.

Some lawmakers pressed Labrador to run, according to several published reports that quoted unnamed sources.

Economics professor Dave Brat, the Tea Party candidate who defeated Cantor, attacked the congressman as soft on border security and on people who come here illegally.

Cantor, who had once been more moderate on immigration issues  particularly on the bitterly divisive aspect of whether to give undocumented immigrants already in the U.S. a chance to legalize their status  shifted sharply to a hard line position, saying he would block any effort in the House to consider proposals to give such immigrants a break.

But some observers said Cantors tough stance toward the end of the primary  one hed seemed confident hed easily win  was too little too late.

Others say it was Cantors lack of popularity in general in his district, and his lackluster campaign, that doomed him.

Nonetheless, many see the next majority leader as potentially influencing the House handling of immigration reform, which stalled as conservative members said they would not support a comprehensive measure for an overhaul of the system, and especially not one that, in their view, would grant amnesty to lawbreakers.

The Senate last year passed a sweeping bipartisan immigration reform bill that both tightened border security and provided a path to legal status for undocumented immigrants who meet a strict set of criteria.

McCarthy, whose district is 35 percent Latino, has expressed support for providing a path to legal status, but only after those applying for it earn it by learning English and paying fines and taxes, among other things.

Labrador, who worked as an immigration attorney before serving in Congress, was part of a bipartisan group in the House that was working on a reform bill. But Labrador famously quit the group because of a disagreement with its other members over whether to entitle undocumented immigrants to some form of healthcare.

Labrador has not been shy about criticizing House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, saying that he should step down if he allows a vote on an immigration bill this year. The Idaho congressman, echoing other conservatives, has said that Congress should wait until at least 2015 to take up the issue again because President Obama must make a clear attempt to take steps to secure the borders and step up interior enforcement of immigration laws.

He has said he will not back a version of the Senate reform bill, and prefers to deal with the subject in a piecemeal fashion. Labrador supports a path to legal status, but only after evidence that enforcement has been improved, he has said. He also supports expanding foreign worker visa programs.

Labrador says this about himself on his website: Born to a single mother in Puerto Rico, Raul Labrador moved with his mother to the mainland U.S. at age 13.

His mother worked many different jobs to make ends meet, it says. Though times were tough, Rauls mother often reminded him that if he studied, worked hard, and played by the rules, he could achieve the American Dream. This encouraged Raul to never give up on his professional aspirations and personal dreams.

One of the conservative members in the House who wanted to postpone the June 19 vote for majority leader quickly indicated that for him, Labrador would not do.

Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa), tweeted on Friday "#Labrador is pro amnesty. If not this year, he has strongly advocated for amnesty next year. No fair trying to redefine amnesty.
To the frustration of many of his supporters, President Barack Obama is backing away from immigration changes he could make on his own. He is kicking the issue to House Republicans instead, despite mounting evidence they won't address the millions of immigrants living illegally in the United States.

This week, lawmakers from both parties summarily declared immigration-overhaul efforts dead after House Majority Leader Eric Cantor suffered an unexpected defeat at the hands of a fellow Republican who criticized him as too soft on the issue. But Obama still voices hope Congress will act.

"Our strategy has not changed," says White House communications director Jennifer Palmieri. "The impetus for action remains on the House."

It's an approach that's drawing friendly fire from immigration advocates who say Obama has been sitting on his hands long enough. For starters, they want immediate action to slow deportations.

But the White House wants to ensure that if and when an overhaul ultimately dies in Congress, Republicans can't claim it was Obama who pulled the plug. Instead, Obama hopes his strategy will allow Democrats down the road to put all the blame on Republicans for failing to deal with immigrants in the U.S. illegally.

It's not as if Obama could legalize an estimated 11.5 million people with a wave of his hand.

Last month in the Oval Office, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson presented him with a basket of options he'd developed after the president personally ordered a review of how he could make deportation policy more humane, said a senior White House official. The official spoke only on condition of anonymity to describe a private meeting.

Johnson's options were narrow and would affect only small groups of immigrants facing deportation, the official said  a far cry from the across-the-board freeze many immigration advocates are demanding.

Even so, Obama directed Johnson to hold off. Republicans were arguing that if Obama acted unilaterally, he would prove he can't be trusted to enforce immigration laws and would doom prospects for the legislative overhaul he so badly wants. So Obama decided to wait until it was certain House Republicans wouldn't act during a narrow summertime window before the midterm elections.

For many lawmakers, that window closed this week. Cantor was trounced in his Virginia primary by an obscure, underfunded professor who had accused him of supporting "amnesty" and open borders. Cantor denied that, but no matter. Members of both parties said Republicans would draw a clear lesson: GOP voters will punish anyone who doesn't take a firm stance on immigration  even the House's No. 2 Republican.

"I think immigration is dead for the rest of the year," said Rep. John Fleming, a conservative Louisiana Republican. "I wouldn't be surprised if it ends it for the entire term of President Obama."

On the night after Cantor's shocking defeat, White House chief of staff Denis McDonough huddled with top Democrats in House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's Capitol suite to assess whether that was true and to plot their path forward. Joining the session were Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and the Democratic half of the "Gang of 8" that wrote and passed a bipartisan immigration overhaul last year. Obama sent his legislative liaison, Katie Fallon, and his domestic policy chief, Cecilia Munoz, across town for the meeting, according to several Democratic officials.

Over Capitol-shaped cookies and chocolate mousse left over from a reception honoring Kathleen Sebelius, the former Health and Human Services secretary, the Democrats agreed to stay the course, the officials said. The assumption was that Cantor, who had hardened his immigration stance after being attacked by his opponent, actually had been more of a hindrance than a help in getting a bill to the House floor.

The Democrats' hopes have been bolstered now that it's increasingly likely that Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy will succeed Cantor as speaker-in-waiting. His two main potential challengers for the post bowed out as support began coalescing behind McCarthy, although a third challenger entered the race Friday. McCarthy's California district is more than a third Hispanic, and he has been supportive in the past of the idea of changing U.S. immigration laws.

Still, McCarthy's own inclinations on immigration could prove less than decisive if rank-and-file Republicans decide that after what happened to Cantor, it's too risky to be perceived as soft on immigration by the tea party and other conservative parts of the Republican base.

But if the summer comes and goes with no action in Congress, Obama will be under more pressure than ever before from immigration advocates to take substantial action to assist immigrants in the U.S. illegally.

"The president's decision could not be harder," said Gabriella Domenzain, who ran Hispanic media outreach for Obama's re-election campaign. "Regardless of what he does, he's going to get flak and it's not going to be enough."

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Colombians voted Sunday in the nation's tightest presidential contest in two decades, an election that President Juan Manuel Santos has framed as a referendum on peace talks to end the Western Hemisphere's longest-running conflict.

His right-wing rival, Oscar Ivan Zuluaga, has challenged the slow-going negotiations with rebels in Cuba, accusing Santos of selling out to an insurgency that is already on the ropes.

Zuluaga is the hand-picked candidate of former two-term President Alvaro Uribe, who has played a major role in what has been Colombia's dirtiest campaign in years.

A former Uribe finance minister who stresses his provincial roots as a contrast to Santos' blue-blood lineage, the 55-year-old Zuluaga won the most votes in a five-candidate field in the election's May 25 first round.

The last Invamer-Gallup poll gave Zuluaga a slim 48.5 percent to 47.7 percent lead over Santos, with 3.7 percent of respondents saying they would choose neither. Its margin for error was 3 percentage points.

The challenger has capitalized on widespread distrust for the rebel Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, and has set what seem to be impossible conditions for continuing the peace talks launched 18 months ago in Havana.

The insurgents must halt all military activity, says Zuluaga, with some essentially having to agree to jail time. He and Uribe accuse Santos of offering impunity to the rebels.

Santos, 62, denies he would let war criminals go unpunished. And he is certainly no dove. As Uribe's defense minister and then president, he wielded Colombia's U.S.-backed military to badly weaken the FARC, including killing its top three leaders.

The bulk of Colombia's left has endorsed Santos as, says political scientist Arlene Tickner of Universidad de los Andes, he steered the nation to "a historic juncture at which the possibility of putting a peaceful end to the conflict needs to be seized."

Santos won important endorsements last week and may have regained some momentum. He got the backing of 80 top business leaders and announced exploratory talks with the National Liberation Army, Colombia's other, far smaller rebel band.

Former longtime police director Oscar Naranjo, highly respected regionally and member of the government peace-negotiating team, said Colombians must think about the victims of a half century of conflict and vote for Santos:

"It's isn't easy to change the chip of war for that of peace, but it's a history reality we must build so as not to remain anchored in the past."

Yet the U.S.-educated incumbent has a "severe likeability and trust problem," says analyst Adam Isacson of the Washington Office on Latin America, and has been "unable to shake the image of an out-of-touch Bogota aristocrat who will promise everything and deliver little."

Santos is opposed by Colombia's cattle ranchers and palm oil plantation owners, beneficiaries of a deal Uribe made with far-right paramilitaries that dismantled their militias. Large landholders had by then consolidated control over territory that the militias had largely rid of rebels while driving at least 3 million poor Colombians off their lands.

The slow pace of talks has not helped Santos. Framework agreements have been reached on agrarian reform, dismantling the illegal drug trade and a rebel role in national politics.

But analysts say Santos could have done much better at communicating the gains and building public support.

The peace process also ranks relatively low on most Colombians' list of priorities. The Gallup poll found less than 5 percent of respondents believe the FARC will be the next president's main problem. Spreading the benefits of a growing economy is more important to many.

Economic growth averaged 4.5 percent annually during Santos' four years and 2.5 million jobs were added. But analysts say the president has done little to improve education, health care and infrastructure.

Less important, apparently, to supporters of Zuluaga and Uribe are the multiple scandals of the latter's presidency.

They include extra-judicial killings of innocent civilians to boost military body counts, illegal spying on judges and journalists and the funneling of agricultural subsidies to well-heeled ranchers. Uribe won a Senate seat in March after being constitutionally barred from another presidential run.

The campaign's mud-slinging, meanwhile, has been fierce. In its final days, the Zuluaga camp accused Santos' campaign of a vote-buying push on the Caribbean coast "without precedent in Colombia."

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Five servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been injured over the past day as a result of hostilities in the Anti-Terrorist operation (ATO) area in Donbas, Ukrainian Defense Ministry spokesman Andriy Lysenko has said.

"No one soldier was killed. Five of our soldiers were wounded as a result of hostilities," he said at a briefing in Kyiv on Monday.
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Juan Manuel Santos convincingly won re-election Sunday after Colombia's tightest presidential contest in years, an endorsement of his 18-month-old peace talks to end the Western Hemisphere's longest-running conflict.

Santos got 53 percent of the votes for candidates, against 47 percent for right-wing challenger Oscar Ivan Zuluaga, the hand-picked candidate of former two-term President Alvaro Uribe, who many considered the true challenger. More than 600,000 voters cast "blank" ballots, a protest vote for neither candidate.

Zuluaga and Uribe accused Santos of selling Colombia out in slow-slogging Cuba-based negotiations, and said Zuluaga would halt the talks unless the rebel Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known as the FARC, ceased all hostilities and some of its leaders accepted jail time.

Santos said the win affirmed his claim to be ably steering Colombia through a historic moment  out of a crippling conflict that has claimed more than 200,000 lives, mostly civilians.

"This is the end of more than 50 years of violence in our country and it is the beginning of a Colombia with more justice and social inclusion," Santos told cheering supporters. "In four years no one will regret having voted for us."

He flashed his palm emblazoned with the word "Paz," or peace  his campaign slogan. Many palms in the crowd were similarly inscribed.

A FARC spokeswoman in Havana said the rebels had no comment on the election's results.

The campaign was Andean nation's dirtiest in years, and Uribe alleged widespread vote-buying by the Santos camp. After Santos' victory speech, he stunned the nation by appearing on TV to accuse the winner of "the biggest corruption in history."

Uribe also alleged that leftist rebels used armed intimidation against pro-Zuluaga voters. He presented no evidence, and independent election observers did not report serious irregularities.

Zuluaga made no such claims in a gracious concession speech two hours earlier. The Associated Press could not immediately reach him or his campaign to ask if they endorsed Uribe's accusations.

Santos' win was a comeback of sorts  Zuluaga beat him in the first round of five candidates May 25. His 900,000-vote victory hinged in large part on winning Bogota and major gains on the Caribbean coast, where his party machinery was strong. The region does indeed have a tradition of vote-buying.

In the first round, Santos finished third in the capital, stronghold of defeated leftist candidate Clara Lopez, who endorsed him in the runoff.

Voter turnout rose somewhat, too, from 40 percent in the first round to 48 percent Sunday, and was seen as favoring Santos.

The University of Kansas-educated incumbent got the backing last week of 80 top business leaders and announced exploratory talks with the National Liberation Army, Colombia's other, far smaller rebel band.

Uribe had accused Santos, grandnephew of a president from a blue-blood Bogota newspaper clan, of offering impunity to the rebels.

Bogota industrial designer Felipe Quintero said he voted for Zuluaga, a previously little-known finance minister, because Santos was conceding too much to rebels.

"They need to be punished, not to be rewarded" with seats in Congress, Quintero said.

Santos, 62, denies he will let war criminals go unpunished.

And he is no dove. As Uribe's defense minister and then president, he wielded Colombia's U.S.-backed military to badly weaken the FARC, including killing its top three leaders.

Analyst Adam Isacson of the Washington Office on Latin America called the election less a vote on the peace process than "a referendum on Alvaro Uribe and his role in Colombian society."

"The eight years he was president were a time of some of the worst corruption and biggest scandals," said Bogota business consultant Maria Eugenia Silva, who voted for Santos.

A victory for Zuluaga would have lessened chances that Uribe might face prosecution for alleged crimes. Blemishes of his 2002-10 government included extrajudicial killings of innocent civilians to boost military body counts, illegal spying on judges and journalists and the funneling of agricultural subsidies to well-heeled ranchers.

Uribe, who is constitutionally barred from another presidential run, won a Senate seat in March. But Santos will continue to dominate Congress.

"Even skeptics of the peace process voted with Santos," said Michael Shifter, president of the Inter-American Dialogue think tank. "They didn't want to go back to Uribe-style politics."

Zuluaga was backed by cattle ranchers and by palm oil plantation owners, beneficiaries of a deal Uribe made with far-right paramilitaries that dismantled their militias.

Big landholders had by then consolidated control over territory that the militias largely rid of rebels while driving at least 3 million poor Colombians off their lands. As part of the Santos-negotiated peace process, those stolen lands would be returned.

The slow pace of peace talks did not help the incumbent. So far only framework agreements have been reached on agrarian reform, dismantling the illegal drug trade and creating a role for rebels in national politics.

Still, the peace process ranks relatively low on most Colombians' list of priorities. The Gallup poll found less than 5 percent of respondents believe the FARC is Colombia's main problem.

For many, spreading the benefits of a growing economy is more important. Economic growth averaged 4.5 percent annually during Santos' four years and 2.5 million jobs were added, but analysts say he has done little to improve education, health care and infrastructure.

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Republicans, including the vanquished majority leader himself, on Sunday considered Rep. Eric Cantor's primary loss last week to a little-known tea party challenger and what it means for the GOP heading forward.

The monumental rejection of House Republicans' No. 2 lawmaker left many in Washington stunned and searching for a way to prevent another upset. Following his defeat, Cantor, R-Va., announced he would soon step down from his GOP leadership post but serve the remainder of his term.

"I don't think there's any one particular reason why the outcome was what it was," Cantor said, adding, "I don't think anybody in the country thought that the outcome would be what it was."

Fellow Republicans offered a litany of reasons but no single flaw fueling Cantor's loss.

"People are making all kinds of claims about what happened or didn't happen in this primary without actually realizing what the facts were on the ground," said Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., who runs the GOP House campaign committee.

Cantor's challenger, economics professor Dave Brat, campaigned against Washington as a whole and railed hard against the 7-term incumbent for seeming to be flexible on an immigration overhaul. At the same time, Cantor did not take his challenger seriously and was not in his district enough for some voters.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who unsuccessfully ran for president in 2008 and 2012, said pundits were making too much of Cantor's defeat.

"I know it's our inclination to look at races and suggest that somehow a national movement is causing what occurs," Romney said.

Instead, Romney and others urged, party leaders need to consider all of the factors that went into Cantor's loss.

"I don't think Eric got beat because of his stand on immigration. I think he got beat because of his lack of defining himself on immigration," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

Graham faced much the same criticism that Cantor faced over stalled immigration proposals but spent heavily, campaigned hard and avoided a runoff against a crowded field of underfunded rivals.

"Politics is war in another form," Graham said.

Former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli said Cantor didn't do enough to remind voters in his district why they had re-elected him every time he's run since 2000.

And rank-and-file Republicans are just fed up with anyone in Washington  even their own.

"There is enormous energy at the grassroots conservative base of the Republican Party. And they're upset about Washington," Walden said.

That frustration has complicated Republicans' efforts this year. Longtime Sen. Thad Cochran is in a nasty runoff in Mississippi for his seventh term because neither he nor tea party-backed challenger, Chris McDaniel, captured 50 percent of the vote during their first meeting. A fierce primary for the open Senate seat in Oklahoma is shaping up. And the Senate's top Republican, Mitch McConnell, had to spend millions to win re-nomination in Kentucky.

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said the internal squabbling will be settled well in advance of 2016, when Republicans are eager to try to win a presidential race for the first time since 2004.

"We will be united in the presidential election," Priebus said.

Cantor spoke to CNN's "State of the Union" and ABC's "This Week." Walden appeared on "Fox News Sunday." Romney and Cuccinelli spoke to NBC's "Meet the Press." Graham was interviewed on CNN and CBS's "Face the Nation." And Priebus was on CBS.

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One of Vermonts gubernatorial candidates says, jokingly, that if he wins, he will give out mofongo to celebrate  thats Spanish for a Puerto Rican mashed fried plantain dish.

Dan Feliciano is the Libertarian Party nominee who is running on a platform that is, in a way, a mofongo of Republican and Democrat positions on various issues.

The New York-born business consultant cites as priorities cutting taxes, bringing down spending, retaining businesses, and legalizing marijuana, among other things.

My platform is 80 percent of the Democratic platform and 80 percent of the Republican platform, Feliciano said to Fox News Latino.

His campaign website says he strongly believes "that the government should not interfere with our personal freedoms  People should be empowered AND accountable to live the lives they chose.

Feliciano also expresses concern that as many other states have experienced a sharp decline on tax revenues and sharp increases in costs, so has Vermont.

The deadline for candidates to file for the August primary election is 5 p.m. Thursday.

Challengers will be running against Gov. Peter Shumlin, who is a Democrat.

Feliciano jokes that he is one of maybe two Puerto Ricans in Vermont.

Its about 99 percent white, he said.

Indeed, local newspapers noted after the last Census that while many states across the country were seeing population growths because of Latinos, the same was hardly true in Vermont.

Of the states population of some 626,000, according to the 2010 Census, Latinos accounted for just under 2 percent, or 9,208.

Feliciano ran for governor in 2010 as an Independent, but he considers this candidacy as the first real time he is running for the position.

When I ran last time, it wasnt a serious run, Feliciano, 51, said. I ran just to get big issues out on the table.

He is proud of his Latino and Bronx roots.

Im a Puerto Rican from New York who dropped out of high school, he said, saying that far from hurting his campaign, its part of his connection to voters.

It resonates with a lot of people here, he said of the salt of the earth mien he exudes with the public.

Feliciano, who enlisted in the Navy when he was a young man, moved to Vermont 10 years ago.

Local media outlets depict the governors race as open, not exactly a slam dunk.

So far there is no establishment Republican seeking the party's nomination to run against Shumlin in November. Emily Peyton, who ran for governor as an independent two years ago, has filed to seek the Republican nomination. But local media say she lacks strong backing by the party.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A Texas congressman is calling on the Obama administration to help Mexico secure its southern border to help stem an influx of immigrants from Central American countries.

U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar met Saturday with Border Patrol agents, immigrant families and unaccompanied children who entered the country illegally. Most of them are from Central American countries, such as Guatemala and El Salvador, and entered the United States after trekking through Mexico.

The McAllen Monitor reported that Cuellar said securing the U.S.-Mexico border isn't enough. The United States must also work with Mexico to secure its southern border, and engage Guatemala and El Salvador otherwise "we're going to continue having them continue crossing over."

Thousands of unaccompanied minors from Central America have been entering the United States in recent months.

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A Michigan congresswoman who heads a House subcommittee on border security is calling on President Obama to dispatch the National Guard to help border agents handle the influx of unaccompanied minors coming from Central America.

U.S. Rep. Candice Miller, a Republican, said in a letter sent to the president on Monday that the tens of thousands of children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally is a humanitarian crisis as well as a national security one.

Miller, who is vice chair of the House Homeland Security Committee and chair of the Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security, wrote: I strongly urge you to call upon the National Guard to assist our overwhelmed border agents in not only addressing the unfolding humanitarian crisis, but also to assist our agents in defending our border against the violent drug cartels who are increasing smuggling operations as a result of this crisis.

More than 47,000 children, primarily from Central America, have been apprehended at the Mexican border since October.

That is a 92 percent increase from the same period a year earlier. A draft Border Patrol memorandum estimates that number could reach 90,000 in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, up from a previous government estimate of 60,000.

Obama declared the migration a crisis and appointed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to lead the government's response. Hundreds of children have been flown to a makeshift shelter at a Border Patrol station in Nogales, Arizona, while the Defense Department has prepared military bases in California, Oklahoma and Texas, for temporary housing.

Rather than carrying out their regular duties, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and agents are put in the position of providing basic child care, said Miller in her letter. This diversion away from normal patrol responsibilities will result in an increase of drugs and migrants illicitly crossing our border.

Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson told the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday that violence in Central America is main driver but acknowledged that parents likely know their children will be released to the Department of Health and Human Services, "which very often means reuniting them with their parents."

Many Republicans in Congress have blamed the influx in large part on initiatives by the Obama administration to give a reprieve to undocumented immigrants who come to the United States as minors and meet certain criteria.

The most significant such initiative, called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, gives immigrants who qualify a two-year reprieve from deportation, and allows them to obtain a work permit and, if state law allows, a drivers license. After the two-year period, immigrants may apply for a renewal.

Critics of DACA says programs such as these have given families overseas the impression that if young people can just reach the United States, they can remain here and perhaps eventually obtain legal permanent residency.

Miller cited the rise of rumors throughout Central America that if parents send their children to United States they will be allowed to stay.

It is time to change the message, she said. I urge you to launch a robust public relations campaign informing people throughout Central America that no change has been made to U.S. law and that their children are not eligible for any special status upon their arrival.

You must make it clear, if parents send their children to our border unaccompanied they will be sent home.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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U.S. officials are looking into temporarily housing hundreds of Central American immigrant children and teenagers on the campus of a closed college in rural Virginia.

Administration for Children and Families spokesman Kenneth J. Wolfe told The Associated Press in an email Monday that the idea is on hold to allow the community to discuss it. He said a Thursday meeting is scheduled on the idea to house the immigrants at St. Paul's College in the tiny tobacco-farming community of Lawrenceville.

Brunswick County Sheriff Brian Roberts says residents are worried about security and are upset no one told them about the plan.

The children and teenagers were caught entering the country illegally following a surge in border crossings. They are being held on an interim basis at military bases.

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In a new video marking LGBT Pride Month, the U.S. ambassador to the Dominican Republican speaks about intolerance and discrimination and says its time to stop it.

James Wally Brewster, the ambassador, appears in the video with his husband, Bob Satawake, condemning all sorts of bias and hate speech in the first public response by him to those who denounced his nomination by President Obama last year.

The video is posted on Twitter, YouTube and the embassys Facebook page.

We are proud to celebrate with the millions of LGBT individuals, Brewster says, with Satawake sitting to his right, celebrating life, diversity, inclusion, compassion and equality.

In many places around the globe, LGBT people face persecution, arrest or even state-sponsored execution, he adds. This is unacceptable.

Brewster, who owns a home in the Caribbean country, was the seventh U.S. ambassador in history to be openly gay.

While generally the Dominican government accepted the new ambassador with open arms, the Dominican Evangelical Fraternity in the country vehemently objected, calling for a black Monday protest, and urging locals to tie black ribbons to their cars to show their opposition to Brewster.

When he testified at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in the fall, Brewster conceded the backlash he faced in the Dominican Republic.

Brewster said during his testimony that some groups in the country continued to be marginalized.

But he vowed that as ambassador it would be a priority for him to work on greater social inclusion.

The couple married in Washington D.C. shortly before Brewster was sworn in as ambassador.

Brewsters video for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Month seemed part of his objective to push for broader inclusion in the Dominican Republic.

The couple noted their 25 years together, and said they looked forward to their lives and work in the Dominican Republic. And that work, they said, included promoting culture and democracy through inclusion and equality.

Brewster asked rhetorically, Has it always been easy? No.

But every day has been a blessing, he said, adding that for the most part people in the Dominican Republic had been warm and embracing of him and his spouse.

Of course, there are those what were no so kind prior to our arrival, Brewster noted, saying there were people who continue to discriminate against people because of who they are as human beings.

I have to ask, he said, isnt it time to stop hating?

Brewster added that it is important to always find a path around them.

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A global human rights organization is accusing the Cuban government of being behind an attack on a prominent journalist on the island.

The Human Rights Foundation said on Wednesday that the journalist, Roberto de Jesus Guerra Perez, was brutally attacked last week in Havana as he was heading to the Czech embassy to use the Internet.

HRF said that a man came up to Guerra, who is the founder and director of the Centro de Informacion Hablemos Press (CIHPRESS), and proceeded to punch and kick him on his face and head. Guerra suffered injuries, including a broken nose, HRF said, adding: The attack continued as Guerra was grabbed violently by the neck and thrown to the ground. The attacker used an unidentified sharp object to inflict wounds on the journalists head and stomach.

HRF said that the Cuban government was behind the assault, noting that four men then arrived and told the attacker: Thats enough, dont hit him anymore.

The attacker then warned Guerra: This is so that you can see what we do to members of the opposition.

HRF said that Guerra recognized one of the four men as someone who took part in what is known in Cuba as an act of repudiation, an attack planned by the Cuban regime on citizens believed to be a threat to it. In such acts, mobs go to the house of the target and cover it with graffiti, and scream offensive comments at the occupants of the home.

Cuba is the only country in the Western Hemisphere where it can be said with certainty that freedom of expression is non-existent, HRF president Thor Halvorssen said in a press release.

Information can only be obtained through state-owned media and the few lucky Cubans who can access the internet, which is tightly restricted by the regime, get their news through a Wikipedia created by the dictatorship.

Halvorssen said those who speak out on the island or those who try to report the news in an unbiased way are dismissed as a worm, a mercenary, or a counterrevolutionary.

For HRF and for the friends of human rights around the world who are familiar with the work of Hablemos Press, Roberto Guerra is not a worm, but a hero, he said.

HRF said other journalists as well as reporters who work for Guerras CIHPRESS have been harassed in the recent week by Cuban government agents.

Guerra established CIHPRESS in 2009, HRF said, when Cuban officials imprisoned 75 independent journalists as part of a sweep that resulted in the arrest of numerous opponents or critics of the government.

Government secrecy in democracies is difficult to maintain under the bright lights of thousands of media outlets operating legally and openly, but, under a dictatorship, those individuals who try to shed even a small ray of light on government abuses must be willing to pay the highest of prices, Halvorssen said. This is why those of us who enjoy the freedoms of a democratic nation cannot abandon these critical voices.

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A former porn star hopes to shake things up a bit as he runs for a post in the Palm Beach County School Board.

David Mech, professionally known as Dave Pounder, is a resident of Boca Raton and says sex education will be the focus of his campaign.

"I absolutely believe that condoms and comprehensive sex education must be available in all of our high schools, and perhaps even as early as middle school," Mech told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Mech said teen pregnancy is his main concern. His other priorities would include improving technology and innovation and keeping religious morality out of schools.

Mech, 38, has a master's degree and now runs the Happy/Fun Math Tutor service.

Mech is no stranger to the School Board  hes suing the district in federal court after they removed his signs advertising his tutoring service once they learned about his background in the adult film industry. Mech claims this was a civil rights violation, and the case set for trial in November.

Mech is running for the District 3 seat against Karen Brill, the incumbent, and John Hartman, a law student. The election will be Aug. 26.

Mech isnt the first porn star to venture into the political arena. Mary Carey ran for California governor in the 2003 recall election. And Manhattan madam Kristin David ran for New York City comptroller last year.
A Latino, Rep. Raul Labrador, one of only two Republicans running to be the next House majority leader, is the Tea Party alternative to the so-called establishment GOP candidate.

A Latino  Ted Cruz of Texas  is considered one of the most firebrand conservatives in the U.S. Senate, and even all of Congress.

And a Latino, Al Cardenas, is head of the American Conservative Union (ACU), one of the nations most influential conservative political organizations and the oldest such lobbying group in the United States.

They are just three of a growing number of Latinos moving into leadership roles  the role of mover and shaker  in not just the Republican party, but in its most conservative faction.

Sometimes the GOP establishment sees and deals with Hispanics as just a constituency. Its what I call pinata politics. To get Hispanics, it has to be an idea-driven effort, not just celebrating culture, or Cinco de Mayo.  Alfonso Aguilar, executive director of the Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles

Before, it used to be that Hispanics were just operatives in the Republican party, helping candidates organize Hispanics events, said Alfonso Aguilar, the executive director of the Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles and former chief of the U.S. Office of Citizenship in the George W. Bush administration. Now we are not just operatives, we are ideologues and leaders in the conservative movement.

It is yet another chapter, experts say, in the constantly evolving story of Latinos and their involvement in politics, where they do not march in lockstep, where they defy categorization.

Latino in American politics reflect the widespread diversity of opinions [in the Latino community], said Whit Ayers, a Republican pollster, they span the spectrum from left to right and everything in between.

This is a group, after all, that gave George W. Bush more than 40 percent of the vote in 2004, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican, more than 50 percent of the vote (over his Democratic challenger, despite her running mate  a Latina), and President Barack Obama about 70 percent in 2012.

Latinos are up for grabs, Ayers said. They are not settled in their voting behavior like African Americans have  90 percent vote for Democrats.

On Thursday, the Republicans in the House will vote on their next majority leader.

Labrador is popular with the conservative faction of the GOP in the House, and is viewed as the Tea Party alterative to Kevin McCarthy, who is from California.

GOP members will vote, via secret ballot, on Thursday. The victor will succeed Eric Cantor, who lost the Virginia primary last week to a Tea Party insurgent.

If elected, Labrador, 46, would be the first Hispanic majority leader.

The command of Latinos in the conservative spotlight, Ayers noted, is a natural extension of their many years in lower levels of politics, and their coming of age, so to speak.

Florida Latinos, for instance, have held positions of clout in the Republican and conservative arenas for some time, even though they may not have been household names.

U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez was head of the Republican National Committee, and Alex Castellanos, a political consultant, had major roles in the campaigns of such GOP candidates as Bob Dole, George W. Bush, Jeb Bush and Mitt Romney, among others.

Latino politicians have matured, Ayers said. Theyve gotten enough experience in lower levels of government. Marco Rubio was in his 30s, a young man, when he became speaker of the Florida House. By the time he was still relatively young, he could run with vast experience for the U.S. Senate.

They have that level of experience now that allows them to ascend higher and higher, Ayers added.

The political world, too, has changed, experts say, to accept and support Latinos in leadership and leadership-track positions.

Theyve evolved, Ayers said.

The country in general, Aguilar said, is more open.

Aguilar argues that the conservative base  viewed by many as less accepting of minorities  actually is more authentically embracing of minorities as leaders than Beltway Democrats or Republicans.

Sometimes the GOP establishment sees and deals with Hispanics as just a constituency, Aguilar said. Its what I call pinata politics.

To get Hispanics, it has to be an idea-driven effort, not just celebrating culture, or Cinco de Mayo, he said. It cant be just superficial.

The new crop of headline-making Latino conservative leaders, Aguilar said, further broadens avenues for attracting yet more Latinos to the more right-wing group of the Republican party.

We have Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz defending conservative principles, he said. We have very good leadership really penetrating the conservative movement. Seeing Hispanic faces will become more mainstream in the conservative movement.

Look at Labrador, he said.

Heres a kid who came from Puerto Rico, representing Idaho, who might become majority leader of the House, with the support of conservatives, Aguilar said.

Be that as it may, others say, the tone that many Republicans and conservative adopt when speaking about Latinos and other minorities, and addressing such topics as immigration, shows that not all doors are open to the community.

Many Democrats and others, for instance, said that while the Republican national convention in 2012 included many minority speakers on the stage, the audience was overwhelmingly white.

The rhetoric about immigration during the GOP primary in 2012, they said, was harsh.

"The presence of Latinos in the Tea Party and on the right more generally certainly reflects the fact that Latinos are not of a single mind on ideology or partisanship," said Louis Desipio, a political science professor at the University of California. "Even in years when national Democratic candidates do well in Presidential elections, a quarter of the Latino vote goes to the Republican candidate."

"That said, conservative or Tea Party Latinos seem have little influence over the rhetoric or policy agenda of the right," he said. "The exclusionary tone of Republican debates has continued, if not expanded, despite the presence of Republican Latino leaders."

Desipio noted that when Rubio supported comprehensive immigration reform -- including providing some undocumented immigrants with a path to legal status if they met various strict conditions -- many conservative groups denounced him.

The detractors, he said, questioned how committed to conservative values Rubio really was, especially when he joined a bipartisan Senate group in drafting a sweeping immigration reform bill that passed in the chamber last year, but stalled in the House.

"Until the Republican right learns to reach out to Latinos on issues that Latinos care about," Desipio said, "they will continue to earn low levels of support from Latino voters."

Tea Party leaders counter that liberals and Democrats have gone out of their way to portray all conservatives as racist and against Latinos.

The Tea Party's success in nationalizing races and helping to elect underdog candidates has changed the face of the GOP, said Taylor Budowich, the executive director of the Tea Party Express. The media-created perception of the Tea Party being racist or anti-immigrant has been baloney from the start.

Budowich said that Latinos are not a single-issue monolith, and that many of them share conservative views on a vast array of matters.

Unfortunately, the policies of the Democratic Party have created a sinister cycle of poverty through dependency and the American Dream has started to erode, Budowich said. So it should be no surprise that some of the biggest opponents of this liberal orthodoxy are individuals that come from the communities that are suffering the most.

Many of these Hispanic Tea Party-aligned legislators have run for office to protect the American Dream, Budowich said, so that the United States remains that beacon of hope that brought past generations to our country.
Honorary Consul of Israel in the western region of Ukraine Oleh Vyshniakov has expressed his hope that Kyiv and Jerusalem will make efforts to ensure that the consequences of Ukraine's vote for the UN Security Council resolution, which called on Israel to stop building settlements in the Palestinian territories, will not affect bilateral agreements.

"We will be working together not to let it [the vote in the UN] affect any agreements  neither those that have already been taken, - nor any future ones. We will also be working to ensure signing of the agreement on free trade area which is very important," he said in the air of 112.ua TV channel.

Vyshniakov expressed hope that the 25-year relationship between the two countries will not be wiped out by one vote. "I think that the Israeli Embassy, the friendship group of the parliaments of Ukraine and Israel and I will make every effort to somehow mitigate this situation. Moreover, I am sure that there was no other choice. No one is looking for the ways to purposefully spoil relations. I think that we all will make every effort to get our relations back on track as quickly as possible. I hope that this situation won't last long and our friendly countries will soon make advances," he said.

The consul also expressed the view that this situation has arisen through the fault of the U.S. "I think this whole theater of the absurd in the voting arose due to the U.S., when they didn't veto this "anti-Israeli" initiative. I think this is due to the fact that [outgoing U.S. President Barack] Obama's administration and [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu's administration were on rather bad terms. And I think when new [president-elect Donald] Trump's administration starts working  he has already done the appropriate relevant statement  the global situation will change. And relations between Ukraine and Israel will change for the better," Vyshniakov said.

As reported, on December 23, 2016 the UN Security Council adopted resolution No. 2334, which urges Israel to stop building settlements in the Palestinian territories. All UNSC member states voted in favor of the above mentioned resolution except the U.S. which abstained, but didn't use its right of veto.

The document contains the demand for Israel and Palestine to make steps to prevent acts of violence against civilians and to make an effort to begin "credible negotiations" on issues related to final status and affiliation of the disputed territories.

The Israeli side immediately reacted quite negatively to the results of voting. The Israeli media criticized Ukraine's stance on the UNSC resolution.

Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman postponed his visit to Israel, which was previously scheduled for December 27-28.

On December 26, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered all his ministers not to travel to the countries which voted against Israel in the UN Security Council for the next three weeks.

At the same time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has summoned the Israeli ambassador to Kyiv to clear up the situation with voting for the resolution of the UNSC and concerning the abolition of the visit of the Ukrainian premier to Israel.
The United States is likely to miss its deadline for reaching a deal with Iran over its uranium enrichment program, according to Sen. Robert Menendez, who is chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat, told reporters on Tuesday that the United States self-imposed July 20 deadline is likely to pass without an accord with Iran, reported The Hill.

Personally, I am not optimistic that they will achieve an agreement by that date, Menendez said.

Officials of the two nations are in Vienna in an effort to reach an agreement on Iran's nuclear program. Menendez has been a supporter of a measure that would impose sanctions against the Middle Eastern country if it fails to agree to steps regarding its uranium-enrichment program.

The White House, according to The Hill, has expressed a preference for handling concerns over Irans nuclear program diplomatically. But many lawmakers in both parties have said that Iran must be closely monitored and that sanctions are the kind of tougher approach that it's more likely to respond to.

Current sanctions brought Iran to the negotiating table, and a credible threat of future sanctions will require Iran to cooperate and act in good faith at the negotiating table, Menendez said last year.

The burden rests with Iran to negotiate in good faith and verifiably terminate its nuclear weapons program. Prospective sanctions will influence Irans calculus and accelerate that process toward achieving a meaningful diplomatic resolution.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif sought to convey that his nation is taking the talks this week seriously.

If the other parties enter in negotiations with realistic views, the possibility of a final agreement exists, Zarif said, according to Reuters.

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Vice President Joe Biden is in the Dominican Republic for talks expected to touch on energy security and crime-fighting.

Biden is scheduled to meet with Danilo Medina at the presidential palace in Santo Domingo. Later in the day, he's scheduled to visit a solar energy facility and meet with U.S. Embassy staff.

Biden and Medina are expected to discuss regional issues including energy security and transnational crime. It was not immediately clear whether they would discuss a new law creating a path to citizenship for people of Haitian descent born in the Dominican Republic.

The U.S. vice president traveled to the Dominican Republic from Colombia and is scheduled to fly to Guatemala on Friday. It's his second visit to the region this year.

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United States Vice President Joe Biden was in Bogota, Colombia, on Wednesday to meet with the newly re-elected president, Juan Manuel Santos, and to pledge the U.S.'s firm support for the peace process on which Santos has staked his presidency.

While in the country, Biden, in an interview with a local newspaper El Espectador, urged Latin American nations to take in the detainees currently held at a prison at the U.S. military facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, that was created after the September 11, 2001, attacks.

One of the fastest ways to accelerate the closure of Guantanamo is for other countries to agree, in a responsible manner, to receive detainees, Biden told the paper.

U.S. President Barack Obama has promised to close the facililty, but 149 prisoners remain, according to AFP.

The U.S. would prefer not to repatriate the prisoners for security reasons and, in some instances, for fear that the detainees would face retribution in their home countries, so the administration has been working to find other countries to house them.

Earlier this year, the government of Uruguay agreed to take in five detainees, and Colombia has indicated that it would consider accepting prisoners.

After meeting for more than two hours with President Santos, Biden visited a center dedicated to chronicling Colombia's half-century-old civil conflict by focusing on its victims, where he said that true peace can only be secured through a full accounting.

"In war and in peace, Mr. President, we stand with Colombia," Biden told Santos at the presidential palace in brief remarks in front of reporters. His visit's timing conveyed that "unmistakable message," Biden said.

Santos said he felt "very honored to be a strategic partner of the United States." Washington has no stronger ally in the region, and Santos called the meeting "very fruitful."

The two discussed building on a two-year-old free trade agreement, including expanding energy cooperation. Biden offered full U.S. support once a peace accord is signed but no specifics on Washington's envisioned post-conflict role.

"I know there's a lot left to do, and I have absolute confidence in your determination," he told Santos of the 18-month-old negotiations in Cuba with the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

The talks have been slow-going but have covered more than half the agenda, reaching a still-secret framework of agreements on agrarian reform, ending the illegal drug trade and how rebel political participation will unfold.

Colombian officials say implementing a peace deal will be far more complicated than reaching one. Peace commissioner Sergio Jaramillo said it will depend heavily on international donors and the outside verification of an eventual accord.

Before Wednesday's meeting, Santos said a peace deal would seal with "a golden brushstroke" the counter-narcotics and anti-insurgency initiative known as Plan Colombia through which Washington has delivered more than $9 billion in mostly military aid since 2000.

Biden, as a senator, was an architect of the program and it helped Colombia badly weaken the rebels.

Publicly acknowledged U.S. police and military assistance to Colombia has dropped considerably since Santos, who was defense minister from 2006-2009, first won election in 2010. At less than $300 million this year, it is the lowest since 1998.

Biden, who arrived from Brazil on Tuesday night and headed later Wednesday for the Dominican Republic, was in Colombia for the second time in 13 months after not visiting it for 13 years.

At the National Center for Memory, Peace and Reconciliation  created through a 2011 Santos-backed law on restitution of victims and restoration of land  he wrote a note to add to an iron-limbed "Tree of Peace" where Colombian schoolchildren have attached tens of thousands of mediations on peace.

Biden said he quoted the 20th-century Irish poet William Butler Yeats: "Too long a suffering makes a stone of the heart."

He added, "There has never been a country that has overcome the past without coming to grips with exactly what happened."

Colombia's bitter, mostly rural conflict has claimed an estimated 220,000 lives, four in five of them civilians, and uprooted an estimated 5 million people.

Biden toured the memorial, which includes more than 2,000 small glass tubes of soil from different conflict zones, with his granddaughter Maisy and nephew Nick, and met briefly with indigenous, LGBT rights and union leaders.

The candidate who Santos defeated on Sunday, Oscar Ivan Zuluaga, was hand-picked by his immediate predecessor in office, Alvaro Uribe, who many considered the true challenger.

Uribe has been a fierce foe of Santos' peace process, claiming his successor is selling out the country to the rebels, offering them too many concessions.

Uribe's foes say he and his hard-line political allies prefer to evade truth and reconciliation as it could incriminate many of them.

Based on reporting by the Associated Press.

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The House has spoken.

The Republican majority in the lower chamber chose Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California as its new leader, replacing Rep. Eric Cantor after his surprise defeat in the Virginia GOP primary.

McCarthy, elected to Congress less than eight years ago, defeated Rep. Raul Labrador of Idaho to continue his extraordinarily rapid rise through the ranks. The totals of the secret ballot election were not immediately disclosed.

McCarthy, 49, had been expected to win despite the desire of the Houses vocal conservative faction to see one of their own in the leadership post.

Labrador, 46, was the Tea Party alternative to McCarthy. Only in Congress since 2010, Labrador would have represented several firsts: the first Latino, first Mormon and first Idaho lawmaker to be House majority leader.

McCarthy, 49, has been serving as his party's whip, or chief vote counter. His ascension set up a three-way election to fill his current spot in the leadership, involving Reps. Steve Scalise of Louisiana, Peter Roskam of Illinois and Marlin Stutzman of Indiana.

The elections followed a brief campaign set in motion little more than a week ago, when Cantor, the current majority leader, lost a primary election to little-known, underfunded tea party-backed challenger David Brat.

In setting quick elections, Speaker John Boehner and other leaders hoped to avoid a drawn-out, divisive struggle that might complicate the party's drive to retain its majority in midterm balloting on Nov. 4.

Yet the timing of the day's events made it unclear whether the winners  or perhaps Boehner, himself  might face fresh challenges when the rank and file gathers in the fall after national elections.

McCarthy, moved quickly to line up the votes for majority leader in the wake of Cantor's defeat at the polls in Virginia, deploying an organization developed since he became whip more than three years ago when Republicans took control of the House.

One potential rival, Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, decided against joining the race, while another, Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Texas, deferred to a second Texan, Rep. Pete Sessions. Sessions quickly dropped out, though, saying it was obvious that a successful campaign would have created painful divisions within the party.

Rep. Raul Labrador of Idaho jumped in, but by then, the California front-runner had amassed support from across the rank and file. He was aided not only by personal ties, but by the fundraising prowess he has displayed since joining the leadership.

His Majority Committee PAC gave nearly $1.2 million to Republican House candidates and organizations during the two-year election cycle of 2011-2012, and an additional $480,000 to candidates so far in advance of this fall's balloting.

If McCarthy's ascension seemed a foregone conclusion, the battle to take his whip's spot was anything but  so much so that there was speculation that a second ballot might be required to settle the contest.

Congressional leadership races are traditionally contests that turn on personal relationships, geographical considerations, ideology and more. Inside the current GOP rank-and-file, moderates needed not apply. Instead, the various candidates stressed their conservative credentials.

Roskam, 52, a fourth-termer who is currently chief deputy whip, sought to move up the leadership ladder among a group of politicians that often prefers breaking precedent rather than following it. Additionally, his rivals cited a need to install a red-state Republican in the top tier of leadership that so far lacks one.

Scalise, 48, who won his seat in a special election in 2008, fit the bill, and campaigned as head of the Republican Study Conference, a group of that sometimes serves as a conservative thorn in the side of leadership.

Stutzman, 37, a second-term lawmaker, also reached out to tea party-backed lawmakers. He joined the race at a time it appeared that Scalise was having trouble gaining enough votes to defeat Roskam.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz is calling on the Department of Homeland Security to authorize Texas to secure the southwest border as a soaring influx of unaccompanied minors from Central America continues.

The senator, a Texas Republican, said in a pointed letter to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson that the influx of some 50,000 unaccompanied minors so far this year had reached a crisis level that required the state to take swift action to protect its portion of the border and not wait for the White House.

Cruzs letter expressed frustration and blamed the Obama administrations lax immigration policies as a factor in the child migration surge.

The Obama Administrations outright refusal to enforce the law is causing chaos for those of us who live and work in border states that must deal with the surge of immigrants who are illegally arriving each day, Cruz said. For decades now, Congress has mandated that the federal government secure the border, and yet the number of persons arriving illegally in the United States has grown from around 8.5 million in 2000 to around 11.5 million today.

On Friday, House Speaker John Boehner sent a letter to President Barack Obama urging him to send National Guard troops to the southern border to help deal with the surge of unaccompanied minors from Central America. Boehner called the situation a "national security and humanitarian crisis" of Obama's making and said the president must act.

Boehner said National Guard troops could help ensure the safety of the children and their families. He also says the State Department should work with Central American nations to make sure their people know of the dangers of heading north.

But Cruz, and other Texas officials, said they do not want to wait for the White House to step in.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry and other state officials have directed the state Department of Public Safety to plan and implement a beefed-up police presence on the border.

"Texas can't afford to wait for Washington to act on this crisis and we will not sit idly by while the safety and security of our citizens are threatened," Gov. Perry said in a statement on his website. "Until the federal government recognizes the danger it's putting our citizens in by its inaction to secure the border, Texas law enforcement must do everything they can to keep our citizens and communities safe."

In his directive, Perry noted that the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol arrested more than 160,000 undocumented immigrants in the Rio Grande Valley in the first eight months of the current fiscal year (which runs from October 2013 to September 2014), a greater number than they arrested in all of the previous fiscal year.

And in Texas alone, Perry said, border agents have arrested 34,000 children this year.

The Border Patrol says the number of minors coming from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras has soared more than 1,000 percent. It's increasingly a political problem for the Obama administration.

Includes material from The Associated Press.

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A former chief adviser to the Obama administration on Latin America says that political leaders and the wealthy in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador for years have put self-interest above the welfare of their nations, leading the least fortunate to flee to the United States in numbers that have reached a crisis point.

The adviser, Dan Restrepo, says that Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernandez was not adequately recognizing how his and other Central American nations were fueling the desperation of their citizens to leave when he placed significant blame on the United States last week for the upheaval in his nation.

Hernandez said the United States weak drug laws and widespread drug use was fueling the illicit business in Honduras and the ruthless cartels that have made violence there soar.

Its convenient when the president of Honduras blames the United States and our drug culture, Restrepo said in an interview with Fox News Latino. The Honduran economic and political elite have systematically and historically failed the people of Honduras.

The same is true to varying degrees in Guatemala and El Salvador, said Restrepo, who served as principal adviser to Obama from 2008 to 2012 on Latin America, the Caribbean and Canada.

These countries dont have the rule of law or policing situation to deal with transnational crime, said Restrepo, who is a senior fellow at Center for American Progress. The wealthy families, a small number of economic classes, have enjoyed success, and have significant political influence. But they havent gone about the hard work of working toward a state that functions.

Thousands of unaccompanied minors from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala have come to the United States illegally this year, creating a crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border. An estimated 60,000 children are expected to reach the U.S. this year.

To be sure, Restrepo said, drugs are a significant part of the persistent violence and desperation families feel in those nations.

But neglect by leaders and movers and shakers in those nations have meant poor education, lack of jobs and violence that claims numerous lives, experts say.

Richard Jones, a representative for Catholic Relief Services in El Salvador, said that Honduras in particular is in an all-out war with the drug cartels.

Young people, he said, do not have many options.

Many are bullied into carrying drugs for gangs involved in lower-level drug trafficking.

Jones believes that the United States should redirect some of the aid it sends to Central America for security measures to efforts focused on job creation and ending street-level violence.

He pointed to a program with which he was involved in El Salvador that was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAid) and was aimed at getting young people to go back to school, find jobs or start businesses.

About 86 percent of the some 4,000 youths the program, which ran from 2011 to 2014,worked with returned to school, or got jobs or started their own ventures, he said.

The point, he said, is that there are solutions that address some of the so-called "push factors" underlying much of the child migration crisis. But there must be the will and the commitment of resources to resolving the problems that create a sense of chaos and desperation in those nations, he said.

"We know it's possible to work with the kids who are at risk," he said. "You can tighten security at the border, but if you're not taking care of the issues that cause people to migrate in the first place, it's a moot point."

Congress is weighing increasing aid to Central America, something Restrepo said was tried during his years with the Obama administration, but that, echoing Jones, he added can only do so much without the commitment of Central America's political leadership and wealthiest citizens to improve conditions for everyone in their countries.

He pointed to Colombia, once a country wrestling with a struggling economy, rampant violence, lawlessness and a populace desperate to flee.

"The Colombian elite, the political and economic elite," he said, "realized that for the long-term survival of their country, they needed to invest in the state, and create an environment where people wanted to invest."

The United States gave Colombia financial aid to improve conditions, but Colombia itself committed "ten times" more to the mission, Restrepo said.

"The decision was made in Colombia, by Colombians, to help Colombians," he added. "Today, Colombia has one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America, crimes is less than a fifth of what it used to be, and it happened in less than a decade."

In recent days, members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus held a meeting with representatives of the Honduran, Salvadoran and Guatemalan governments and told them, in no uncertain terms, that they had to take control of conditions in their nations that have made life so difficult and prompted many to flee, according to published reports.

Vice President Joe Biden, who is traveling in Latin America, is scheduled to travel to Guatemala on Friday to speak with the president, Otto Perez Molina, as well as El Salvador President Dalvador Sanchez Ceren, and senior government officials of Honduras and Mexico.

While in Guatemala, officials said, Biden will speak out publicly to discourage parents from sending children north to the U.S., stressing the dangers of crossing the border.

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Under fire over a growing tide of Central Americans, including thousands of unaccompanied minors arriving across the U.S.-Mexico border, the Obama administration plans to provide hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to the nations from which the migrants are coming, and to create more detention space to hold them.

More than 174,000 people, mostly from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, have been arrested in Texas' Rio Grande Valley so far this year.

The administration announced Friday it will give those three countries $9.6 million to help local authorities reintegrate returned immigrants. Meanwhile, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) will launch a $40 million program to help improve citizen security in Guatemala.

USAID will also start a $25 million crime and violence prevention program in El Salvador.

More than $18 million will be used to support community policing and law enforcement efforts to combat gangs in Honduras under the Central American Regional Security Initiative, or CARSI. The U.S. government will also provide $161.5 million for CARSI programs focused on security and government challenges in the region.

Also on Friday, Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the administration was actively looking for additional space to house immigrant families, primarily mothers with young children, caught crossing the Mexican border illegally.

He did not say how many people the new family detention centers would house or where they will be located.

The government currently operates only one such facility, in Berks County, Pennsylvania, with space for fewer than 100 people.

The United States has numerous detention facilities across the country, many of them operated for immigration authorities by private prison contractors. They usually house immigrants who have civil immigration violations, or request political asylum, as well as immigrants who have been charged with or convicted of a serious crime.

Although immigration officials call them detention centers and avoid the term jail, they often have many of the rules and feel of prison, complete with correction officers, detectors, restraints, head counts, attorney-client meeting rooms, visitation hours and uniforms for the detainees.

Families, especially with minors, are kept in less jail-like settings, although they are under constant supervision and not free to leave. Such facilities usually have more activities for the detainees, and provide classes for the children, among other things.

Family detention is an awful and damaging process. It profoundly and irreversibly affects the physical and mental health of children and breaks down parent-child relationships.  Michelle Brane, Director of Migrant Rights & Justice Programs at Women's Refugee Commission

The plan to expand detention to accommodate families drew an immediate outcry from advocates for more lenient immigration policies, and also from Obama's fellow Democrats.

I appreciate that the administration is taking a hard look at addressing the root causes of this crisis and putting resources into programs," said Sen. Robert Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat, in an emailed statement. "Development and security in the region, however, have been consistently underfunded and we are playing catch-up in the midst of a crisis."

"While the announcement of new funding is welcome news, I still think we are falling short in terms of meeting the crisis that has developed in our front yard," Menendez said. "Ill be holding hearings on this issue and expect that we are going to need to consider wholesale approach  in coordination with regional governments  similar to how we approached the crisis in Colombia in the 90s.

He objected to expanding detention as a way to handle the families.

I dont think children should be locked up in jail," he said. "There is consensus that we must quickly address this refugee and humanitarian crisis, but to say that a child who is apprehended at the border with their parent must remain locked up throughout their judicial proceeding is simply a step too far."

The administration has released an unspecified number of them into the U.S. in recent months with instructions to report later to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices. Mayorkas, the No. 2 official at the agency and former head of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, told reporters he didn't know how many people have been released or subsequently appeared as ordered.

Mayorkas said the administration will also send more immigration judges, ICE attorneys and other immigration officials to the region to help process immigrants caught crossing the border illegally and, when possible, quickly return them to their home countries.

Family detention has long been a contentious issue for Homeland Security. In 2009 the department was forced to shutter a large family detention center in Texas after legal challenges about the conditions of the facility. And in 2012, ICE abandoned plans to accept bids for a new family detention center in Texas amid complaints from advocates about the possibility of housing immigrant families in jails.

Michelle Brane, Director of Migrant Rights & Justice Programs at Women's Refugee Commission, urged the administration in a statement to the press to consider alternatives to detaining families with children.

Plain and simple, family detention is an awful and damaging process," she said the statement. "It profoundly and irreversibly affects the physical and mental health of children and breaks down parent-child relationships."

She said that a visit by her organization to a detention facility that housed families proved that such an approach did more harm than good.

When we visited the Hutto facility in 2006, DHS claimed the facility was specially equipped to meet families needs and would put an end to the separation of families in detention," she said. "Instead, we found babies in prison jumpsuits, families sleeping in cells with open-air toilets, highly restricted movement and only one hour of recreation per day. Detainees were subject to alarming disciplinary tactics, including threats to separate children from their parents. After public outrage and lawsuits, that facility was closed for families.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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The U.S. will start to detain families at the border instead of releasing them on their own recognizance, warned Vice President Joe Biden in Guatemala City, where he held a multilateral meeting Friday with Guatamala's president Otto Perez Molina, Salvadoran President Salvador Sanchez Ceren and high-ranking ministers from Honduras and Mexico.

The summit of sorts is part of a regional public-relations campaign launched by the Obama administration to stem a flood of Central American children and families that has overwhelmed the U.S. immigration system.

After weeks of insistence that criminal violence was responsible for the surge of Central American migrants, the U.S. is now trying to fight the widespread belief that children and families will be allowed to stay in the U.S. if they are caught by the Border Patrol.

That belief has been fueled both by migrant smugglers seeking more clients and by calls home from children and families who have been released by the thousands in recent years, with notices to appear in immigration court, because there are no facilities to hold them.

The administration said Friday that it was opening detention centers to house families, although it did not provide details.

President Perez Molina asked the U.S. to start a temporary work program for Guatemalan migrants and grant "temporary protected status" for Guatemalan migrants. Salvadorans and Hondurans can apply for that status, which offers some protections against deportation.

Homicide, extortion, rape and gang recruitment have risen to epidemic levels in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador in recent years. The violence is seen as the key factor driving migrants north, with children making up an increasing proportion of the U.S.-bound flow. The 20,000-plus unaccompanied children from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador detained at the U.S. border last year was more than double the previous year's figure.

To coincide with Biden's trip, the Obama administration pledged $93 million in new programs to reduce violence in Central America. The funding includes $40 million to reduce gang membership in Guatemala, $25 million to build 77 youth outreach centers in El Salvador and $18.5 million to build 77 youth outreach centers in Honduras.

"We're approaching this issue with a shared recognition that the current situation is not sustainable. It is unacceptable. And we have a shared responsibility to take significant steps to address this issue," Biden said after meeting with Perez Molina. "But I want to make clear, Mr. President, the United States recognizes that a key part of the solution to this problem is to address the root causes of this immigration in the first place. Especially poverty, insecurity and the lack of the rule of law."

The vice president's visit coincided with the arrival of two flights carrying at least 250 migrants deported from the U.S. Guatemala's migration department said it expected two more such flights Friday, bringing the total of Guatemalans deported in 2014 to 27,140.

Despite the waning likelihood of U.S. immigration reform, Sanchez Ceren told reporters that he would emphasize the need for reform in which "family reunification can be something achieved through the best means possible."

He said he had spoken with the foreign ministers of Guatemala and Honduras about presenting a united demand for a deal with the U.S. that would make it easier for immigrant families in the U.S. to be legally reunited with children they left behind.

Meanwhile, U.S. diplomats in the region warned families not to send children north or go themselves.

"All who enter the United States without proper immigration status are subject to deportation proceedings. Simply put, there is no reward for the great risk to which these children are being subjected," Anthony Wayne, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico, said Thursday.

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Republican Sen. Ted Cruz says the Obama administration is to blame for the waves of immigrant children crossing the border illegally.

The potential presidential candidate told reporters at a Republican fundraiser in Miami on Friday that Obama's 2012 decision to defer the deportations of some young immigrants who were brought to the country illegally creates a perception of an incentive to cross the border.

The Texas Republican calls Obama's executive order a "lawless act" that grants "amnesty."

More than 47,000 children, primarily from Central America, have been apprehended at the Mexican border since the start of the budget year. The administration says the influx is being driven mostly by gang-related violence in other countries.

Cruz says Congress should pass legislation that tightens border security and streamlines the immigration system.

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Thousands of immigrant children fleeing poverty and violence in Central America to cross alone into the United States can live in American cities, attend public schools and possibly work here for years without consequences.

The chief reasons are an overburdened, deeply flawed system of immigration courts and a 2002 law intended to protect children's welfare, an Associated Press investigation finds.

Driving the dramatic increases in these immigrants is the recognition throughout Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador that children who make the dangerous trip can effectively remain in the U.S. for years before facing even a moderate risk of deportation.

The Obama administration estimates it will catch 90,000 children trying to illegally cross the Mexican border without their parents by the end of the current budget year in September. Last year, the government returned fewer than 2,000 children to their native countries.

The administration has asked Congress for $2 billion to spend on the issue.

"They almost never go home," said Gary Mead, who until last year was director of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office responsible for finding and removing immigrants living in the country. "It's not a process that ultimately ends in easy resolutions or clear-cut resolutions."

The situation is widely perceived as becoming a humanitarian crisis at the border. The system is now so overwhelmed that children are being housed in Border Patrol facilities ill-equipped to handle them.

The government has asked the military to open temporary shelters in Texas, Oklahoma and California.

U.S. officials, including the Homeland Security secretary, the White House domestic policy council director and the Customs and Border Protection commissioner have described immigrant families' concerns about education, jobs and personal safety as driving the rise in border crossings.

Only recently have officials acknowledged that perceptions that these children may be allowed to stay or that Congress soon may relax U.S. immigration laws  which is highly unlikely  may also be responsible.

The AP's investigation, based on interviews, court records and federal data, found that such perceptions are understandable because of America's broken system.

"That misinformation is causing some people who are in a rather desperate situation to risk their lives to come to the United States border expecting that they'll be able to stay in this country. That is simply not true," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Friday.

"It's important for viewers or those consumers of information in Central America to understand that showing up at the border illegally is not a ticket into this," he said.

Elmer Antunez Barahona, 17, left Honduras last year to reunite with his mother, who had traveled to find work in the United States when he was 4. He was apprehended in Texas' Rio Grande Valley, one of more than 26,000 juveniles apprehended at the border in the 2013 budget year. His lawyer, Victor Cuco, said he spent about a month in government custody before being reunited with his mother in Virginia last summer.

The Border Patrol has apprehended more than 52,000 child immigrants traveling on their own since the start of the 2014 budget year in October.

Like Antunez and thousands of others, most spend about one month in the custody of the Office of Refugee and Resettlement under the Health and Human Services Department, before they are reunited with parents or other relatives in the United States. There is no requirement that their parents or those other relatives were legally allowed into the United States.

All the young immigrants who cross the border illegally are subject to deportation eventually. But it's not a quick process.

The immigration court system was backlogged with as many as 30,000 pending cases before the most recent surge.

Court delays that already persist for years will grow even longer as the beleaguered system absorbs the cases for the new children immigrants. That will make the risk of speedy deportation even less likely and further fuel perceptions that crossing the U.S. border carries few immediate consequences.

Antunez lived in the U.S. for nearly nine months before his first court hearing in March. When he appeared again last week in an immigration court in Arlington, Virginia, Antunez was ordered to come back again next year after his lawyer told Judge John M. Bryant that his client will ask the government for asylum.

It was the same for many for the teenagers who stood in court for their first hearings. The judge told them, come back next year and try to find a lawyer in the meantime.

Cuco, the immigration lawyer, said next year's hearing will only be the beginning of a process that will take years longer.

Antunez will meet with an asylum officer at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and his case probably will be sent back to court, his lawyer said.

As he waits, the high school freshman will focus on school and keep learning English. Six months after his asylum claim is filed, Antunez can apply for a work permit.

Final decisions by immigration judges can take years, but that supposes immigrants dutifully attend their assigned hearings. Many won't. As many as one-quarter of the immigrants ordered to show up in court in recent years have failed to appear, according to the Executive Office for Immigration Review, the Justice Department agency that runs immigration courts.

"The longer the process goes, the less likely it is that people will return," said Doris Meissner, a former head of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

After years in the United States, immigrants establish roots.

Advocates so far have successfully urged President Barack Obama not to immediately deport many young immigrants and those whose only offense is living in the country illegally.

Instead, the government has more narrowly targeted people who return to the U.S. after they were deported, people who threaten U.S. national security and public safety and adults who can be subject to expedited deportation that takes hours or days.

The recent increase in child immigrants is politically inopportune for Obama, who has pushed Congress to act on long-stalled proposals to overhaul the nation's immigration laws.

The president has made several administrative changes to immigration enforcement, including a program to allow some young immigrants who came to the country before 2007 to avoid deportation and obtain a work permit for two years.

Children crossing the border "would not be entitled to a path to citizenship as a result of entering the country now," said Customs and Border Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske.

Republican lawmakers have criticized Obama's immigration policies and blamed the administration for what Obama has described a humanitarian issue at the border.

"Once these minors come to the U.S., they are eligible for a wide array of benefits and it will be years before their case is ever heard in court," said GOP Rep. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

"Without immediate consequences for this illegal immigration, it will only encourage more illegal immigration and more dangerous journeys by children in order to take advantage of the administration's failure to enforce our immigration laws," he said.

Adult immigrants caught crossing the Mexican border illegally are generally removed from the U.S. within hours or days of their arrest. But a federal law dating to President George W. Bush's administration requires that unaccompanied child immigrants must be turned over to HHS within three days. From there, many are reunited with parents or other relatives already in the United States or other sponsors before the lengthy court process beings.

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There is currently no info on possibility of terrorist attack on board crashed Tupolev Tu-154

No indications of a terrorist attack on board the Tupolev Tu-154 plane that crashed into the Black Sea on Sunday have been obtained as of yet, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said.

"No indications or facts pointing to the possibility of a terrorist attack or an act of sabotage on board the aircraft have been obtained as of yet," the Russian Federal Security Service's public relations center told Interfax on Monday.

"Eyewitnesses of the plane crash have now been determined, there is also a recording from a dashboard camera, with which members of the group of investigators are working," the Russian Federal Security Service's public relations center said.

The Federal Security Service also said the main working theories regarding the Tu-154 crash in the Black Sea are "foreign objects getting into the engine, low-quality fuel leading to loss of capacity and engine failure, pilot error, and a technical failure of the plane."

The military investigations department of the Investigative Committee for the Sochi garrison has opened a criminal case based on evidence of a crime under Article 351 (violation of flight regulations or preparations for them) of the Russian Criminal Code, the special service said.

The central administration of the investigations body has been tasked with investigating the criminal case by the chairman of the Investigative Committee. Search and rescue work and operative and investigative actions are ongoing.

The Federal Security Service has reported the timeline of the Russian Defense Ministry's Tupolev Tu-154 departure from Moscow, its landing at the Sochi airport for refueling and its takeoff until the moment of its crash into the Black Sea.

The Tupolev Tu-154 arrived at Sochi airport from Chkalovsky airport in the Moscow region at 03:43 a.m. for refueling, which was initially expected to take place in Mozdok, but was changed to Sochi due to bad weather conditions.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the plane was carrying 84 passengers and eight crewmembers, the passengers' luggage and 150 kilos of cargo (food and medications).

"The aircraft was not carrying military or dual-purpose cargoes or pyrotechnic devices," the Federal Security Service's public relations center said.

The Federal Security Service said the plane was taken under the protection of the Russian Federal Security Service's Border Guard Service and Russian Defense Ministry troops upon arrival at the Sochi airport.

A mobile stairway was deployed to the aircraft during refueling, one official from the Federal Security Service's Border Guard Service and one Sochi customs official went on board. The captain and the flight engineer left the plane to supervise the refueling," the Federal Security Service's public relations center said.

On December 25, a Russian Defense Ministry Tupolev Tu-154 plane en route from Sochi to Latakia failed to make contact and disappeared from the radars of the air traffic control services at 5:25 a.m. Moscow time, one minute after takeoff over the Black Sea at a distance of 6,250 meters from the airport runway.

According to the Federal Security Service's public relations center, it has been determined that the takeoff speed of the Tu-154 (no. RA-85572) was 345 km/h, which is a standard takeoff speed for aircraft of this type.

The crash site was found 1.5 kilometers off the coast of the Black Sea at the Khosta traverse. "The Russian Emergency Situations Ministry's Aleot vessel and the Russian Federal Security Service's Border Guard Service's Zhemchug vessel," the Vodolaz-32 diving cutter of the Rosrechflot marine emergency and rescue service with divers aboard, and other search and rescue services "were immediately sent" to the area," the Federal Security Service's public relations center said.
The thawing of diplomatic relations between Cuba and the United States is having a little-spoken-about side effect  people on the island are feeling bolder about challenging the government, says one of Cuba's leading dissidents.

Without a doubt, the people of Cuba grow weary, said Jose Daniel Ferrer, leader of Cuba's largest and increasingly influential dissident group, in an interview with Fox News Latino. Its been too many years of misery and oppression.

The change in relationship between the two countries has been accompanied by more outside sources of news and perspectives reaching Cubans long accustomed to state-run media.

International and internal forces within Cuba have resulted in Cubans being exposed to more information, and that drives Cubans to feel more inspired and oppose the regime, said Ferrer, who is visiting the United States after receiving a short-term permission from the Cuban government to travel outside the island. Each time the size of disillusioned, frustrated people grows broader and so do the number of people who oppose and challenge the government.

Ferrer does not criticize the many Cubans who have risked their lives trying to flee, most recently to Latin American in hopes of reaching the United States. That number has surged as more Cuban fear that improving relations between their homeland and the United States will spell the end of opportunities their northern neighbor gives Cubans to seek refuge there.

The Cuban regime clearly drives the point home to Cubans that we in Cuba have only two options  you completely obey the regime, or if you dont want to obey them, you leave, he said.

The third option (in Ferrers group) is we defend our rights, is were not leaving, were staying, and we are going to fight for freedom from inside Cuba, the freedom many Cubans choose to flee to seek.

International and internal forces within Cuba have resulted in Cubans being exposed to more information, and that drives Cubans to feel more inspired and oppose the regime. Each time the size of disillusioned, frustrated people grows broader and so do the number of people who oppose and challenge the government.  Jose Daniel Ferrer, Cuba dissident

Many Cubans are afraid, they say either I leave now or Ill never be free, Ferrer added. But to leave Cuba means they will not be able to push for that change. We believe Cuba is where we must be, where must stay, to effectively fight for change and a better future.

While tens of thousands of Cubans have under cover of darkness fled the island in recent months  not to mention over the decades  Ferrer flatly refused the Cuban regimes near-begging that he leave the island.

Its not that Ferrer wasnt facing the same hardships  and more  as his countrymen. He had gone through more, including arrests for opposition to the Cuban regime, beatings by government security forces, and 8 years in jail for taking part in a petition pushing for freedom of speech and other democratic reforms.

On rarely given permission to travel outside the United States, the leader of the Cuban Patriotic Union, Cubas most prominent dissident group, told Fox News Latino in a wide-ranging interview that he would not trade his political activism for life in exile.

Its a matter of dignity, a matter of moral obligation, Ferrer told Fox News Latino about why he did not jump at the chance to leave a life he clearly found insufferable. And that is why we stayed put.

Ferrer was one of 75 dissidents rounded up by Cuban security forces in 2003 in what became known as Cubas Black Spring.

Ferrer, a former fisherman, was one of several sentenced to 25 years in prison. Under a deal pushed by the government of Spain and the Cuban Catholic Church, the Castro government agreed to free many of the prisoners after several years, but on the condition that they live in exile elsewhere.

About a dozen of the dissidents, including Ferrer, refused. In 2011, Ferrer and Felix Navarro Rodriguez, the only two of the 75 inmates who still remained in jail from the Black Spring sweep, were released.

During the 8 years that we were in prison, the regime was always proposing that if we would leave Cuba indefinitely, they would release us and then our difficult conditions would come to an end, Ferrer said. I always said no because, remembering [Cuban revolutionary leader] Jose Marti, he said the freedom of a people always comes at a great price.

And you decide either to achieve it, or you resign yourself and that society to continue living without liberty.

The focus on Cuba these days, for the most part, is on the parade of U.S. businesses looking to get a foothold there, and on American tourists clamoring to travel the long-forbidden Caribbean island.

Ferrer has said that there are differences in how Cuban dissidents view the restoration of U.S.-Cuba relations.

Some feel that the United States, for instance, should have demanded more concessions and promises by the Cuban government to make democratic reforms before moving ahead with such things as reopening embassies in each others nations and easing restrictions on trade and travel.

Others feel that Cuba would have continued to resist making changes, and that stalemate that has languished for decades would continue.

Its not divisions that we have among dissidents groups in Cuba over normalizing relations with the U.S., its just differences of perspectives, Ferrer said. We are not divided in the opposition movement; we are united in the daily struggle for democracy and the well-being of the Cuban people.

He praised Obama for using his visit in March to essentially scold the Castro regime and making a point of reaching the Cuban people in a variety of ways, including doing a skit with Cubas most popular comedian, Panfilo.

President Obamas visit is without a doubt the most important visit weve had in the last half century, said Ferrer, who was among a handful of dissidents who met with Obama at the U.S. Embassy in Havana during the presidents visit. The impact was quite forceful.

Ferrer said it was nothing short of a stroke of genius for Obama to humanize himself before the Cuban people by using Panfilos popular comedy show to reach out to the public.

People watch and love Panfilo, he said. Brilliant move, that was.

Ferrer will be traveling in the United States and Europe until July, then will return. He does so at considerable risk. Cuban authorities do not hide the fact that at any time, for any reason, they can return him to jail to complete the rest of the original 25-year sentence.
With just three months left in his presidency, Barack Obama on Friday announced changes in U.S. policy that amounted to one last, bold move toward normalizing relations with Cuba.

The changes included stepping up joint medical and scientific research, increasing commerce between the two nations as well as people-to-people exchanges.

But the effort by Obama to make the United States kinder and gentler in its approach to Cuba is not being reciprocated.

At government-organized rallies and protests across Cuba this week, speakers have denounced the U.S.-Cuba trade embargo, depicting it as an obstacle to any meaningful warming of relations.

The protests carried the slogan, Hornets nests against the blockade  as the embargo is called in Cuba  according to the Miami Herald.

Obama is finishing his term, but the blockade remains, Josefina Vidal, head of the U.S. Department at the Cuban Foreign Ministry, said at a rally held at the University of Havana.

Its hard work to implement and carry out the changes implemented by Obamas executive orders, she said, according to the Heral, because they retain restrictions that do not allow us to move forward.

The Castro governments message, echoed in remarks by Cuban officials since the first steps toward normalized relations were announced in 2014, is that the island nation cannot  or will not  fully commit to the journey to restored diplomatic and economic partnerships with the United States so long as the embargo remains.

Vidal said the Obama administrations unilateral moves were commendable but that they have been more beneficial to the United States than [to] Cuba and the Cuban people.

The new regulations, which took effect Monday, and are issued by the Departments of Commerce and Treasury, will pave the way for importing Cuban pharmaceuticals and for Americans to deal more directly with the new crop of Cubans who are running their own business ventures.

One of the key changes in the presidential directive  noted prominently in social media posts and news reports  calls for eliminating the $100 limit on the value of Cuban rum and cigars that American travelers can bring back from the island.

Some Cuba experts and those who have been involved in trying to do business in Cuba say the embargo poses problems for many considering investing in Cuba.

Nothing will happen with the big American companies until the embargo is lifted, Saul Berenthal, president of Cleber LLC, which plans to assemble farm tractors in Cuba, told the Herald.

Vidal said that the United States still does not permit sectors other than telecommunications to invest in Cuba, and that neither U.S. exports to Cuba nor imports from Cuba have increased to any great extent.

A big impediment, Vidal told the Herald, are restrictions in U.S. bank dealings with Cuba.

Until today, Cuba has been unable to make deposits  or make payments to others in U.S. dollars, she said. Banks around the world are still terrified to work with Cuba.

Some experts say that Cuba itself has posed obstacles, not fully cooperating with efforts aimed at attracting more investors.

We have designed the policy very much to have the maximum benefit to the Cuban people broadly. But in so doing, we are not restricting engagement with the Cuban state, one high-ranking U.S. official said recently in a teleconference with journalists.

Other experts believe that Cubas half-hearted approach to normalizing relations is a tactic to force more out of the United States.

It is not surprising that the Cuban government is waiting as long as it can, thinking that the longer it waits, the better deal it can get, said John Kavulich, president of the U.S.-Cuba Economic and Trade Council. This is a strategy that makes sense because the Obama administration is willing to do anything to create a commercial, economic and political scenario that can survive the end of his presidency.

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Israels government publicly accused the Obama administration Sunday of helping create and push the recently passed United Nations resolution condemning settlement activity, with a top official telling Fox News they have ironclad information on the U.S. governments involvement.

We have rather ironclad information from sources in both the Arab world and internationally that this was a deliberate push by the United States and in fact they helped create the resolution in the first place, David Keyes, spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said on Fox News Americas News HQ.

The accusation marks a new escalation in the Netanyahu governments response to the U.N. Security Council vote on Friday. The resolution passed thanks to a U.S. abstention, a decision Netanyahu has described as a shameful ambush.

The White House already has acknowledged President Obama made the decision for U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power to abstain. Unclear was how involved the Obama administration was in crafting and pushing the resolution itself  which initially was put forward by Egypt, and then pursued by New Zealand, Malaysia, Senegal and Venezuela.

White House spokesman Eric Schultz issued a statement Sunday defending Obama's support for Israel and stressed that the U.S. did not draft the resolution.

"The Egyptians, in partnership with the Palestinians, are the ones who began circulating an earlier draft of the resolution," Schultz said. "The Egyptians are the ones who moved it forward on Friday. And we took the position that we did when it was put to a vote."

Keyes' criticism followed similar rhetoric by Netanyahu himself, who said that while the U.S. and Israel for decades had disagreed on settlements, they had an understanding that such action before the U.N. Security Council would make peace negotiations harder.

As I told [Secretary of State] John Kerry on Thursday, friends dont take friends to the Security Council, Netanyahu said.

He pointedly said he looks forward to working with the new Donald Trump administration when it takes office next month. He said he was encouraged by Israels friends in the United States who criticized the resolution, saying they understand how reckless and destructive it is.

Keyes also told Fox News on Sunday that Israel was deeply disappointed by the resolution and the Obama administrations abstention.

I think what were seeing is an abandonment of Israel, and an abandonment of a long-standing American policy, he said.

Israel's Foreign Ministry, meanwhile, said it began summoning the ambassadors of countries who voted in favor of the resolution, including those from the permanent members of the Security Council -- Russia, China, the U.K. and France. In a highly unusual move, the U.S. ambassador was later summoned as well, Israeli media reported.

"We will do all it takes so Israel emerges unscathed from this shameful decision," Netanyahu said.

The resolution, which condemned Israeli settlement activities in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, sparked outrage in Israel and led to a new low in relations between Netanyahu and Obama. Israel has accused Obama of colluding with the Palestinians against the Jewish state.

The resolution's immediate impact appears to be largely symbolic, but Israel fears it could open the door to an increase in international steps, including economic measures. Much of the international community considers the settlements illegal or illegitimate and an obstacle to peace.

In addition to the measures declared Sunday, Israel has recalled its ambassadors to New Zealand and Senegal for consultations and canceled a planned January visit to Israel by Senegal's foreign minister. A visit by Ukraine's prime minister has also been canceled in light of its support for the U.N. vote and Israel has pledged to cut millions of shekels in funding to certain U.N. agencies.

President-elect Trump had intervened last week after the Israelis reportedly appealed to him for help. Trump came out against the resolution but, after a vote was delayed, the Security Council went ahead with consideration and approved it on Friday.

Trump tweeted afterward: Things will be different after Jan. 20. He later tweeted that the vote "will make it much harder to negotiate peace." But, he added, "we will get it done anyway."

Kerry said Israels continued and stepped-up attempts to build more settlements in the region, which includes East Jerusalem, risks the so-called two-state solution between Israelis and the Palestinians, who also lay claim to the region.

The United States acted with one primary objective in mind: to preserve the possibility of the two state solution, which every U.S. administration for decades has agreed is the only way to achieve a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians," Kerry said Friday. Two states is the only way to ensure Israel's future as a Jewish and democratic state, living in peace and security with its neighbors, and freedom and dignity for the Palestinian people.

He also said the administration does not agree with every aspect of the resolution but that it rightly condemns violence and calls on both sides to take constructive steps to reverse current trends and advance the prospects for a two-state solution.

Netanyahu did not mince words on Saturday in responding to what he described as a shameful ambush.

Netanyahu said the U.S abstention was "in complete contrast" to U.S. commitments -- including one that he said Obama made in 2011 -- not to impose conditions for a final agreement on Israel at the Security Council. "The Obama administration conducted a shameful anti-Israel ambush at the U.N.," Netanyahu said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu summoned the American ambassador Sunday to protest the Obama administrations role in allowing an anti-settlement resolution to pass the U.N. Security Council, as his government accused the U.S. of helping orchestrate the vote.

According to The Wall Street Journal, U.S. ambassador Daniel Shapiro was called to the prime ministers office where he was told the resolution would not help the peace process.

Acts such as these hinder peace and [do] not promote it. That was the message, an Israeli official told the Journal.

The U.S. abstained in Fridays vote, allowing the council to approve it. The Israeli foreign ministry reportedly also summoned diplomats from 10 of the 14 countries that backed the resolution.

The mounting tensions over Fridays proceedings have sent already-frosty ties between the Obama and Netanyahu governments to their lowest level yet. The rare summoning of the American ambassador was only the latest flare-up.

On Sunday, Israels government also accused the U.S. of pulling the strings in last weeks dramatic developments.

We have rather ironclad information from sources in both the Arab world and internationally that this was a deliberate push by the United States and in fact they helped create the resolution in the first place, Netanyahu spokesman David Keyes said on Fox News Americas News HQ.

Netanyahu made similar claims during a meeting with cabinet ministers.

White House spokesman Eric Schultz, though, issued a statement Sunday defending President Obama's support for Israel and stressing that the U.S. did not draft the resolution.

The US did not draft this resolution nor did the US introduce this resolution, he said. The Egyptians, in partnership with the Palestinians, are the ones who began circulating an earlier draft of the resolution. The Egyptians are the ones who moved it forward on Friday. And we took the position that we did when it was put to a vote."

The White House already has acknowledged Obama made the decision for U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power to abstain. Unclear was how involved the Obama administration was in crafting and pushing the resolution itself  which initially was put forward by Egypt, and then pursued as well by New Zealand, Malaysia, Senegal and Venezuela.

Netanyahu told his cabinet on Sunday that while the U.S. and Israel for decades had disagreed on settlements, they had an understanding that such action before the U.N. Security Council would make peace negotiations harder.

As I told [Secretary of State] John Kerry on Thursday, friends dont take friends to the Security Council, Netanyahu said.

He pointedly said he looks forward to working with the new Donald Trump administration when it takes office next month. He said he was encouraged by Israels friends in the United States who criticized the resolution, saying they understand how reckless and destructive it is.

Netanyahu said Israel also was considering a "plan of action" against the U.N., without elaborating.

"We will do all it takes so Israel emerges unscathed from this shameful decision," Netanyahu said.

The resolution itself condemned Israeli settlement activities in the West Bank and east Jerusalem.

The resolution's immediate impact appears to be largely symbolic, but Israel fears it could open the door to an increase in international steps, including economic measures. Much of the international community considers the settlements illegal or illegitimate and an obstacle to peace.

President-elect Trump had intervened last week after the Israelis reportedly appealed to him for help. Trump came out against the resolution but, after a vote was delayed, the Security Council went ahead with consideration and approved it on Friday.

Trump tweeted afterward: Things will be different after Jan. 20. He later tweeted that the vote "will make it much harder to negotiate peace." But, he added, "we will get it done anyway."

Kerry said Israels continued and stepped-up attempts to build more settlements in the region, which includes East Jerusalem, risks the so-called two-state solution between Israelis and the Palestinians, who also lay claim to the region.

The United States acted with one primary objective in mind: to preserve the possibility of the two state solution, which every U.S. administration for decades has agreed is the only way to achieve a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians," Kerry said Friday. Two states is the only way to ensure Israel's future as a Jewish and democratic state, living in peace and security with its neighbors, and freedom and dignity for the Palestinian people.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
After blasting Republican colleagues for years over their blockade of President Obamas agenda, Democrats are gearing up for their turn as the opposition party  planning to throw up early roadblocks for President-elect Donald Trumps Cabinet picks and proposals.

With the new Congress set to convene Jan. 3  and Trump set for his inauguration on Jan. 20  House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi last week issued a call to action to her rank and file to fight Republican efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, or ObamaCare, one of Republicans top agenda priorities for 2017.

Pelosi is planning to intensify the drumbeat in the week before the inauguration, setting Jan. 14 as a national day of action with events across the country.

The Democrats bid to fend off Republican attacks on Obamas signature domestic policy achievement is no surprise. But the resistance extends well beyond fortifying their ObamaCare defenses.

Bloomberg reports that Democrats are preparing for a separate fight with Republicans over plans to overhaul the tax code.

Theres going to be opposition if these tax cuts are directed to the people at the top again, Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., the next top Democrat on the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee, told Bloomberg. Were going to be pretty united.

While Democrats have not put forward their own plan, House Republicans and Trump both have outlined overhauls. Both would reduce the number of tax brackets from seven to three, including reducing the top rate for individuals from 39.6 percent to 33 percent. The gist of the plans is to lower tax rates for most people, and make up lost revenue by scaling back exemptions, deductions and credits.

LOBBYING EFFORT IN FULL SWING TO CONFIRM SESSIONS

The House plan, however, retains some of the most popular tax breaks, including those for paying a mortgage, going to college, making charitable contributions and having children.

As Democrats prepare to fight proposed tax breaks for top earners, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., have signaled they may play hardball. Both GOP leaders have said they plan to use a legislative maneuver that would prevent Senate Democrats from using the filibuster to block a tax bill.

Senate Democrats, meanwhile, are signaling a potentially rocky road ahead for some of Trumps Cabinet picks, last week demanding extensive financial information on some of his wealthy candidates.

Frustrated by the slow response of billionaires and multimillionaires to their request, 16 Democrats delivered an ultimatum Thursday, saying no committee should vote on a nominee until the individual has cleared an FBI background check, provided a financial report and an ethics agreement with the Office of Government Ethics, and responded to "reasonable requests for additional information" such as tax returns.

"The United States Senate has a rich, bipartisan tradition of vetting nominees to the president's Cabinet," said New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, the incoming Democratic leader.

Republicans controlling the Senate want to make quick work of Cabinet confirmations once Trump takes office on Jan. 20.

Democrats have limited options to block nominees outright because they changed filibuster rules when they controlled the Senate in 2013, and Cabinet nominees can win approval on a simple majority vote. Republicans will hold a 52-48 advantage next year. However, Democrats could drag out the process in committee or force longer Senate debates than usual.

Trump's choice of ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson for secretary of state has been a focal point of the complaints. In a letter to colleagues, Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin, the Foreign Relations Committees top Democrat, said he asked the Trump transition team for three years' worth of tax returns because Tillerson was "actively engaged with many foreign governments" at ExxonMobil. Cardin said Tillerson "promised to provide" the tax information in response to a question on a standard questionnaire that all nominees submit prior to appearing before the committee.

Tennessee Republican Sen. Bob Corker, the committee chairman, quickly responded with a statement saying the GOP-controlled panel never officially asked for the tax returns and insisted that Tillerson was ahead of schedule in providing information to the committee. He said it is not the practice of his committee to request tax information, and the committee's own financial disclosure forms "are very expansive.

In addition to Tillerson, Trump has tapped Steve Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs executive, for treasury secretary, and Betsy DeVos, daughter of the Amway co-founder, for education secretary.

Trumps conservative allies outside Capitol Hill are preparing for confirmation turbulence. The Judicial Crisis Network recently launched a website touting the nomination of Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., for attorney general and defending his record in office.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a Trump adviser, told Fox News last week that he anticipates congressional Democrats will fall into a few groups as Trump joins with majority Republicans to pursue his agenda.

You're going to have the hard left -- the Elizabeth Warrens who aren't going to support anybody. They'll be hostile and bitter and nasty. You're going to have the partisan group -- Pelosi is a good example. They are going to be tough-minded, he said. But there are going to be a lot of Democrats that are going to say I don't want to deal with eight years of yelling no."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
President Obama suggested in an exit interview with his former top adviser that, had he been able to run, he could have won a third term in the White House.

Describing his confidence in an America that is tolerant and full of energy, Obama said: I am confident in this vision because I'm confident that  if I had run again and articulated it, I think I could've mobilized a majority of the American people to rally behind it.

President-elect Donald Trump fired back Monday in a tweet: "He should say that but I say NO WAY!" He cited the rise of the Islamic State terror group and trouble with Obama administration agenda items including ObamaCare.

The outgoing president made the comments as part of an extensive interview with David Axelrod, for his podcast produced by CNN and the University of Chicago. Axelrod was one of Obamas top advisers during the 2008 campaign and his first term in the White House.

I know that in conversations that I've had with people around the country, even some people who disagreed with me, they would say the vision, the direction that you point towards is the right one, Obama told Axelrod, defending his assertion.

Obama was term-limited and could not run, clearing the way for his former primary rival  and secretary of state  Hillary Clinton to be the partys standard-bearer in 2016. She nevertheless ran in large part on Obamas agenda, vowing to preserve some of his signature policies as Donald Trump and his Republican allies campaigned against them.

As other top Democrats have done in the wake of President-elect Trumps victory, Obama did acknowledge that Democrats and progressives face political challenges, especially in rural areas.

If we can't find some way to break through what is a complicated history in the South and start winning races there and winning back Southern white voters without betraying our commitment to civil rights and diversity -- if we can do those things, then we can win elections, he said.

Obama also warned about an era where we are looking for simple solutions  that we end up starting to shut ourselves off from different points of view, shutting down debate, becoming more dogmatic, becoming more brittle. And I don't see that being a successful strategy for us winning over the country.

He reminded listeners that his party won the popular vote on Election Day, but said: We don't have very good population distribution from a democratic perspective.

Vice President Biden offered a somewhat tougher critique of his party in a similar exit interview with the Los Angeles Times.

He said his party failed to connect with working-class, largely white voters, and warned that a bit of elitism has crept in to party thinking.

He recalled watching a Trump rally in Pennsylvania near where he grew up. Theyre all the people I grew up with, he said. Theyre their kids. And theyre not racist. Theyre not sexist. But we didnt talk to them.
A Republican National Committee official lashed out at critics after part of a Christmas statement it made Sunday sparked outrage on social media.

RNC Chairman Reince Priebus released a three-paragraph statement on the holiday, but it was the first paragraph that drew critics attention.

Over two millennia ago, a new hope was born into the world, a Savior who would offer the promise of salvation to all mankind. Just as the three wise men did on that night, this Christmas heralds a time to celebrate the good news of a new King."

The message kicked off a heated debate on social media over whether the reference to a new King was about President-elect Donald Trump.

John Weaver, a top aide to Ohio Gov. John Kasich, was among those who tweeted their displeasure with the statement.

Dear RNC: We don't have a "new King." What the hell is wrong with you people? #TwoPaths #Vigilance  John Weaver (@JWGOP) December 25, 2016

#GOPChristmasMessage either blasphemy or crowning Trump king of America. Either way disturbing. https://t.co/BtFGTRF4Yf  Jim Gonyea (@JimGonyea) December 25, 2016

RNC spokesman and future Trump press secretary Sean Spicer defended the message, telling CNN the reference didnt have anything to do with Trump and Christ is the King in the Christian faith.

Spicer later said that it was sad & disappointing you are politicizing such a holy day.

The statement also asked Americans to keep military members in their thoughts and prayers and to rise to meet the material, emotional, and spiritual needs of individuals all around us.

Click for more from Politico.
A flurry of big decisions out of the Obama administration just weeks before President-elect Donald Trump takes office has rekindled Republican concerns about President Obamas plans for jamming through so-called midnight regulations and other leftover items from his wish-list on his way out the door.

In the last week alone, the Obama administration blocked future oil and gas leases in swaths of the Arctic and Atlantic oceans; granted a record number of pardons and commutations for a single day; and scrapped a dormant registry for male immigrants from a list of largely Muslim countries.

Defense officials told Fox News there is an effort underway to transfer up to 22 additional detainees out of Guantanamo Bay. And Obamas ambassador to the United Nations stunned Israel on Friday by abstaining on a Security Council measure condemning settlement activity, allowing it to pass.

And Obama still has a month left in office. The most recent announcements were made while the first family was on vacation in Hawaii  leaving unclear what Obama has in store for when he gets back to Washington.

GINGRICH: OBAMA IN 'DESPERATE FRENZY'

Hanging over any final actions is the likelihood that Trump, once in office, will roll back many of them. The things hes done this week will be turned around, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said of Obama on Fox News Sunday. Hes in this desperate frenzy.

But Democrats are urging the outgoing president to pursue further actions, as the administration weighs its next steps.

Among the possibilities:

Sixty-four House Democrats recently asked Obama to use his pardon power to preserve his Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which spared millions of illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as children from deportation. Led by Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., the lawmakers asked Obama in a letter to exercise your Constitutional authority to provide pardons to young people who are American in every way but on paper. The goal is to make it more difficult for Trump to potentially deport them.

The White House already has teed up the strong possibility of more clemency for nonviolent drug offenders and others. After Obama pardoned 78 people and granted another 153 commutations on Monday, White House Counsel Neil Eggleston said he expects more grants of both commutations and pardons before [Obama] leaves office.

Former President Jimmy Carter has called on Obama to go further in the Middle East and recognize a Palestinian state before leaving office. In a New York Times op-ed, he wrote: The simple but vital step this administration must take before its term expires on Jan. 20 is to grant American diplomatic recognition to the state of Palestine.

The White House has expressed reluctance to take some of these steps.

White House spokesman Eric Schultz said there is a process at the Department of Justice to review pardon applications and the president has said he is not going to do anything to circumvent that process. As for Carters appeal, Schultz said, I don't think [Carters] views are new today, so I don't have any new positions or views from us on that.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest also said recently that any executive actions the president takes at this stage likely were in the works before the November election.

What I can rule out are any sort of hastily added executive actions that werent previously considered that would just be tacked on at the end, Earnest said.

Regulation Finish Line

While Obama weighs his last batch of policy decisions, many regulations already are coming through the pipeline. The final plans reportedly include as many as 98 regulations classified as economically significant, meaning each would cost the economy $100 million through compliance and consumer impact.

According to an analysis by the conservative American Action Forum, based on the Federal Register agenda, the administration is eyeing $44.1 billion in midnight regulations  or rules pushed in the final two months of an outgoing administration.

This has been the most active December ever for regulations, Sam Batkins, AAFs director of regulatory affairs.

Gina McCarthy, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, didnt conceal her eagerness in a staff memo sent after the election. As Ive mentioned to you before, were runningnot walkingthrough the finish line of President Obamas presidency, McCarthy wrote.

By late November, the EPA announced stronger greenhouse gas emission standards, pushing 54.1 miles-per-gallon fuel efficiency standards for cars and light trucks for model years 2022-2025. In mid-November, the Interior Department finalized a rule to cut methane emissions during oil and natural gas production on federal lands.

Among regulations expected to take effect: the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services plans to make it easier for employers to sponsor highly skilled immigrants in the country; the Education Department is working on student debt relief at for-profit colleges; and on the financial services side, the Federal Reserve and the Securities and Exchange Commission are working on matters such as executive pay and mutual fund management.

According to an administration official, the number of active rules at the end of this administration still is 15 percent lower than at the end of the George W. Bush administration. The administration also notes that some economically significant regulations help the economy.

Republican Roll-Back

Congressional Republicans are bent on stopping or reversing the onslaught of new rules.

In a Dec. 5 letter, 20 Republican senators asked Obama to honor the will of the American people and refrain from working on or issuing any new, non-emergency regulations while carrying out your remaining term in office.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., in a Nov. 15 letter to federal agency heads signed by other House committee chairmen, asserted, we will work with our colleagues to ensure that Congress scrutinizes your actionsand, if appropriate, overturns them.

The Congressional Review Act of 1996 allows Congress, with the presidents signature, to rescind regulations and prohibit agencies from imposing rules that are substantively the same.

That, however, would have limits even when Trump takes office, Batkins said.

Congress can rescind regulations when it gets back, using the CRA, but the House and Senate will be working on health care, the economy and infrastructure, Batkins told FoxNews.com. Congress has a lot on its plate. Of the 100 or more midnight regulations that could fly through, there probably wont be more than a dozen they would be interested in repealing.

Asked at a November press conference about GOP calls to hold off on finalizing rules in his final weeks in office, Obama defended their rulemaking pace: The regulations that we have issued are ones that we've been working on for a very long time.  These aren't things that we've been surprising people with.

Fox News Lucas Tomlinson and Jennifer Bowman contributed to this report.
President-elect Donald Trumps preemptive strike on the price tag of two major projects with leading defense contractors has fiscal hawks hopeful the incoming administration can rein in Pentagon contract costs even as Trump vows to invest in rebuilding the U.S. military.

I hope this will be an opportunity to look at the Pentagon more clearly from someone who has not been part of the system, Mandy Smithberger, director of military reform for the Project on Government Oversight (POGO), told FoxNews.com.

Since early December, Trump has been browbeating Boeing and Lockheed Martin over the costs of the next Air Force One and the F-35, respectively.

I don't need a $4.2 billion airplane to fly around in, Trump told Fox News Sunday earlier this month, referring to Air Force One.

His criticism led to meetings last week with Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg and Lockheed Martin CEO Marillyn Hewson.

Muilenburg afterward committed to deliver the next Air Force One for far less than $4 billion. Trump then turned up the heat on Lockheed, tweeting, Based on the tremendous cost and cost overruns of the Lockheed Martin F-35, I have asked Boeing to price-out a comparable F-18 Super Hornet!

TRUMP ASKS BOEING TO 'PRICE-OUT' ALTERNATIVE TO LOCKHEED'S F-35

Hewson put out a statement Friday, after another conversation with Trump, saying she heard his message loud and clear.

I gave him my personal commitment to drive the cost down aggressively, she said. I know that President-elect Trump wants the very best capability for our military at the lowest cost for taxpayers and were ready to deliver!

The cost of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter has grown to $400 billion for 2,457 planes to be used by the U.S. and its allies, about twice the initial estimate. Boeing, for its part, was awarded the Air Force One contract in January 2015. The Air Force budget in research and development for the contract is reportedly $2.9 billion through fiscal 2021, while procurement is $1 billion.

Trumps early intervention on these two projects, taking a nearly unprecedented level of interest in contract negotiations for a president-elect, has buoyed groups that for years have tried to control costs for what President Dwight Eisenhower first dubbed the military industrial complex.

Trump also wants lifetime bans for Pentagon acquisition officials from ever going to work for defense contractors.

But watchdogs say, going forward, Trump will have to take more far-reaching actions to keep costs in line.

Smithberger said reforms should include modernization, greater transparency, and comprehensive testing, which POGO calls a fly before you buy policy.

That would absolutely be a key first step if he wants to drain the swamp, Smithberger said. The Pentagon is not the only problem. Congress aids and abets by using the Pentagon as a jobs program.

As he signals changes for defense contracts, Trump also has vowed to grow the military itself. In a September speech, Trump said he will ask Congress to eliminate the budget-tightening measure known as the defense sequester while pursuing a force build-up in the Army and Marine Corps, an increase in ships and submarines for the Navy, and an increase in fighter aircraft for the Air Force. How he balances those goals with his push to cut costs remains to be seen.

Key to any Pentagon reforms will be Trumps choice for Defense secretary, retired Marine Gen. James Mattis. The general, however, has been on the board of directors for defense contractor General Dynamics since 2013.

It raises some concerns about his ability to reform the system, Smithberger said of Mattis.

Still, the retired generals experience as head of U.S. Central Command and as a NATO commander might provide a useful perspective for reform, said Ben Fitzgerald, director technology and national security at the Center for a New American Security, a Washington-based national security think tank.

Trump could be more focused and demand results and accountability from the Pentagon, Fitzgerald told FoxNews.com. General Mattis is not a contract guy, but he understands the importance of having the right equipment in the hands of our war fighters.

Boeing and Lockheed both have stressed they want to deliver value for the U.S. government.

Boeing is committed to providing the best value for warfighters and taxpayers, company spokesman Todd Belcher told FoxNews.com in a statement. Thats a goal we share with our partners in the Department of Defense. We work closely with them every day to ensure that we are making strong progress on meeting that goal.

The two firms on the receiving end of Trumps critiques, Boeing and Lockheed Martin, also are in a partnership for the United Launch Alliance, which manufactures rockets. This year, the joint venture got an $860 million contract for maintenance and sustainment.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich backed Trumps tougher tone on contractors, predicting hell act more like a governor than a traditional president in his level of involvement. He told Fox News Sunday the Pentagons acquisition process needs to be totally redone.

Serving notice that we are not trapped by large contractors with big armies of lobbyists is going to shake up Washington as much as any single thing you can do, Gingrich said on Fox News Sunday.

The record of skyrocketing costs and less-than-ideal transparency is ample, pointing to the magnitude of the task ahead.

The Defense Department hasnt issued a single statement of budgetary resources since the enactment of the 1990 Chief Financial Officers Act, which required such statements from agencies, according to POGO.

In February, the Defense Department inspector general concluded the Air Force didnt properly negotiate maintenance contracts at the Robins Air Force Base in Georgia, and improperly paid between $9.6 million and $24.9 million in questionable fees to Boeing, Northrop Grumman and Honeywell. In a 2014 report, the Government Accountability Office determined the cost of growth for the Pentagons weapon programs in 2013 grew by $448 billion with an average delay of two years for completion of projects.

The Defense Department risks losing its technological advantage over other countries, according to a new report by the Center for a New American Security. The report says the military must create a more market-oriented competitive system. Further, the report states this wouldnt have to increase costs if done effectively.

Under such a strategy, the DoD could leverage the almost $2 trillion of global commercial research and development more effectively, mitigate the risks of overruns and program cancellations (estimated from $58 to $116 billion between 1997 and 2015, not including classified programs), and better manage its operational and maintenance costs, the report says. Above all, this strategy will help the DoD avoid the incalculable costs of losing the nations military-technical advantage.
NASA is set to launch the robotic portion of its Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM) in 2021. This will be the first mission to visit and collect a multi-ton sample from a large near-Earth asteroid. The collected sample will be used in a demonstration of enhanced gravity tractor asteroid deflection.

Recently at the Robotic Operation's Center of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, a robotic capture module system prototype used a mock asteroid boulder to test its capabilities. [NASA's Asteroid-Capture Mission in Pictures]

NASA, along with students from West Virginia University, created the mock asteroid boulder from rock, styrofoam, plywood and an interior aluminum frame. The robotic hardware for the project includes three space frame legs with foot pads and two seven degrees of freedom arms with microspine grippers to hold on to the massive rock.

Within the ROC engineers have multiple tools  industrial robots, motion-based platforms, and customized algorithms  to aide in creating simulations of robotic spacecraft operating in space. Engineers will also have the capability to practice and perfect robotic satellite servicing operations, fine tuning systems and controllers and optimizing performance factors for future repair and refueling missions.

This portion of ARM will place the recovered asteroid sample in stable orbit around the moon. Future astronauts will explore the boulder and retrieve samples for study. NASA's Asteroid Redirect Mission offers advances in technologies and spaceflight experience, bringing necessary growth for the manned Martian missions planned for the 2030s.

Original story on Space.com.
SBU chief advisor Yuriy Tandit welcomes the decision of the LPR/DPR [self-proclaimed Luhansk and Donetsk people's republics] to hand two captive women over to MP Nadia Savchenko.

"We will be glad to release of any captives. Not only our Minsk Group - experts, volunteers, public figures are working to achieve a result. We are happy to return any our citizens with the help of politicians. Actually, the most important thing is to free people. The main thing is that the LPR/DPR should not use this for as the means to their end," he told Interfax-Ukraine on Monday.

Tandit said: "We do not want this release of the two women be the last one."

Responding to a question about the dates when these women will be handed over to Savchenko, he said: "I do not comment on this information, but I think in the near future."
Collision course!  or not. Saturn's battered moon Mimas appears to be headed for a crash through the planet's trademark rings, but it's all an optical illusion seen by NASA's Cassini spacecraft.

While it looks as if Mimas is about to smash into Saturn's rings, the moon is actually 28,000 miles away. "There is a strong connection between the icy moon and Saturn's rings, though," NASA officials wrote in a description of the image, which the agency released Dec. 19. "Gravity links them together and shapes the way they both move."

Mimas, which is less than 250 miles in diameter, creates ripples in Saturn's rings with its gravity, NASA officials added. This disruption separates the A and B rings, an event called the Cassini Division. [Photos: Saturn's Glorious Rings Up Close]

Launched in 1997, the Cassini mission is a cooperative project of NASA and the European and Italian space agencies. In addition to NASA's Cassini spacecraft, the mission also sent ESA's Huygens probe to Saturn's largest moon, Titan, in January 2005.

Cassini has collected amazing amounts of data about the Saturn (and its rings and moons) over the years. The spacecraft began the grand finale of its mission at the end of 2016, and will eventually end its mission with a death dive into Saturn itself on Sept. 15, 2017.

Original story posted on Space.com.
An electoral commission judge in the Dominican Republic says kids shouldn't be named after cars and fruit, or called "Dummy."

Central Electoral Commission judge Jose Angel Aquinas has submitted a proposal to ban any names that could be confusing or give no indication of gender.

He also said vulgar names or those having more than three words should also be banned.

The commission is expected to consider the proposal sometime this year.

A second judge suggested civil registry officials should simply explain to parents the consequences of choosing and using such names.

Judge Aura Celeste Fernando said in a statement yesterday the government shouldn't have the final say on names parents give their children.

Among the unique names in the civil registry: Mazda Altagracia, Toshiba Fidelina, Querida Pina (Dear Pineapple), Tonton Ruiz (Dummy Ruiz) and Winston Churchill de la Cruz.
One of the largest and best-preserved collections of ancient sealed books has been discovered in a cave in Jordan and are believed to be some of the earliest Christian documents, according to the BBC.

The 70 tiny books could date back to the first century. Carbon dating tests found that a piece of leather found with the scrolls was over 2000 years old.

Experts say the books, made of lead and copper and bound by rings, may be more significant than the Dead Sea Scrolls, BBC reports.

The writing featured in the books is a form of archaic Hebrew script with ancient messianic symbols, mixed with some form of a code, according to a news release. The codices show notable references to symbols of the Feast of Tabernacle, and depict images of menorahs and fruiting palm trees.

The books are currently the subject of a dispute between authorities, archeologists and an Israeli Bedouin who smuggled the books into Israel and hid them, claiming they were found by his great-grandfather, The Telegraph reports.

Authorities in Jordan want the books returned, since under Jordanian law, they are property of the Kingdom of Jordan, according to the news release.

Archeologists in Israel claim the books are forgeries, while British archeologists are committed to saving and studying the ancient scrolls.

"It is an enormous privilege to be able to reveal this discovery to the world," David Elkington, leader of the British team, said in a news release, adding in an interview with the Daily Mail, "It is a breathtaking thought that we have held these objects that might have been held by the early saints of the Church."
Records found in Muammar Qaddafi's former intelligence headquarters in Tripoli show that British officials apparently warned the Libyan regime in 2003 about its dealings with Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, who was convicted last week in New York on federal conspiracy charges.

The documents indicate that Bout had been trying to expand his operations in Libya. They add new intrigue to questions of whether he played a role in the Qaddafi regime's rush to bolster weapons caches in the years before it was ousted last month by a national insurrection.

American officials and allied governments have sent teams of weapons specialists into Libya in recent weeks to scour for loose, Russian-made, anti-aircraft missiles and other dangerous munitions. Arms experts and investigators said learning more about the source of those weapons would aid in knowing what to look for and assessing their threat.

"We know there are a lot of conventional weapons floating around Libya now and an important question to pursue is how they got there," said Lee S. Wolosky a former Clinton administration national security deputy who headed U.S. scrutiny of contacts between Bout's network and the Qaddafi regime in 2000. "Viktor Bout's operation in Tripoli would be a good place to start."

U.S. prosecutors revealed evidence before Bout's three-week trial that the Russian air transport executive had sought in 2008 to sell a Russian-made missile system to an unidentified Libyan client. Last Wednesday, a federal jury convicted Bout on charges of conspiring to kill Americans and U.S. officials, deliver anti-aircraft missiles and aid a terrorist organization. He was arrested in Bangkok as he negotiated a weapons deal worth at least $15 million with South American narco-terrorist officials who turned out to be U.S.-paid undercover informants.

More On This... American Who Joined Libyan Rebels Returns to U.S.

Documents found by human rights activists in a former Qaddafi regime office in Tripoli indicate that in late September 2003, British intelligence officials told then-Libyan intelligence chief Musa Kusa that Bout had a "considerable commercial presence in Libya" and aimed to expand his interests there. The documents do not include any response from Kusa, who later became Qaddafi's foreign minister until he defected earlier this year.

The documents, copied by Human Rights Watch officials in the regime's external security building in Tripoli, show that Kusa was apparently warned about Bout during a phone conversation with Sir Mark Allen, then-counterterrorism director for MI6, the British spy service. An aide to Allen then followed up with telefaxes to Kusa outlining Bout's Libyan business interests and alerting him to concerns that Bout planned to transfer a major air cargo maintenance operation to Tripoli.

In one fax, referring to Bout by his known alias of "Viktor Butt," a British intelligence official asked Kusa for more information about the Russian's reported plans to travel to Tripoli. At the time, Bout was targeted by a U.N. international travel ban and subject to arrest. "We should be most grateful for any confirmation of any attempt by Mr. Butt to visit your country," wrote a person who identified himself as Allen's assistant.

Allen, who is now an adviser to LSE IDEAS, a London-based international affairs group, did not respond to emails requesting comment. British intelligence officials would not confirm or deny the authenticity of the documents. The officials also declined to confirm Allen's dealings with Kusa.

Similar documents made public in recent weeks by the Human Rights Watch team from Kusa's office led to a spate of media accounts about the British government's apparent involvement in the forced rendition to Tripoli of opponents of the Qaddafi regime. Peter Bouckaert, the Human Rights Watch official who led the document search, criticized both British intelligence and the CIA for working with the Qaddafi regime's "abusive intelligence services."

Bouckaert said the Bout documents came from faxes sent to Kusa and his aides from the CIA and MI6.

U.S. intelligence officials had been aware of Bout's operations in Libya as early as 2000, Wolosky said. National security officials learned that summer that a plane leased from one of Bout's transport companies was chartered by Qaddafi and flew a team of Libyan hostage negotiators to the Philippines to aid in the release of hostages held by Abu Sayyaf, a regional terror group whose leaders were trained in Libya. Reportedly flown by a Bout crew, the plane returned with six freed hostages, briefly boosting Qaddafi's international standing.

The British intelligence faxes pointedly warned Kusa in 2003 that one of Bout's primary air cargo front companies, Jetline, was headed by a Libyan who also directed a Tripoli-based business, Sin-Sad. That company leased planes "frequently chartered by the Libyan government." The faxes also noted that Bout "had a considerable involvement with the former Taliban regime in Afghanistan and his aircraft regularly flew there while the country was under embargo."

The faxes also warned Kusa that British officials learned Bout intended to transfer a United Arab Emirates-based maintenance operation for Russian cargo planes to Tripoli. The documents do not confirm that move, but a U.S. official who insisted on anonymity to discuss ongoing inquiries into Bout's dealings said much of the maintenance operation apparently remained in the UAE.

Federal prosecutors revealed before Bout's trial that seized Skype Internet messages showed he laid plans in early 2008 to sell a Russian-made Kornet missile system to an unidentified Libyan client. The deal was aborted by his arrest, but the missiles could have been used, prosecutors said, to destroy tanks and helicopters.
Two suspects were being tracked down Sunday after North Carolina investigators say they shot seven people during a private Christmas party attended by hundreds of people.

None of the victims appeared to suffer life-threatening injuries after being shot early Saturday at a Moose Lodge in Madison, about 25 miles north of Greensboro, deputies said. The two men were still at large Sunday and no other details were being made public, Rockingham County Sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Kevin Suthard said.

Deputies said a fight broke out during the party attended by 250 to 300 people. Witnesses told investigators that both gunmen attended the party. They covered their faces with ski masks and opened fire before speeding away from the scene in a silver car driven by a woman. The car's make and model weren't known.

Daisy Joins was shot in the ankle at the party. She said most people attending were between ages 18 and 30.

"I'm very lucky; it could've been a lot worse," Joins said told WGHP (http://bit.ly/2i8mrEt).

Deputies described one of the gunmen as a black male with dreadlocks wearing a brown coat and black pants. The second suspect was described as wearing a light green jacket and black pants.

Responding deputies found just two of the gunshot victims at the scene. One made it to a hospital 30 miles away in Reidsville. The rest were found at three other locations.
Police say a New York City man out on bail on an attempted murder charge opened fire at a nightclub in suburban Westchester County early Sunday, killing two people  including the club's co-owner  and injuring four other people.

The Journal News reported that the unidentified suspect initially escaped after being tackled by security at the Mansion nightclub in Mount Vernon, but was quickly apprehended by police.

"It's a dark day in our city," Mayor Richard Thomas told the paper. "Today is a day we're supposed to spend with our family, not extend condolences. No person and no family should ever spend Christmas like this."

One of the victims was identified as Mansion co-owner O'Neal Badoo. Thomas said the name of the second deceased victim was being withheld until next of kin were informed.

Investigators say the suspect may have been ejected from the club shortly before the shooting, which took place at around 4:30 a.m. Christmas Day. The Journal News reported that bars and nightclubs in Westchester County are required to close no later than 4 a.m.

The mayor said the "random yet retaliatory" shooting "rises to the level of domestic terror," according to the Journal News. Thomas' spokesman later clarified that the mayor was referring to the "sense of fear" in the city, which sits just north of the Bronx.

Police Capt. Edward Adinaro said the victims were found in the lobby and on the street outside the club.

Witness Cleveland Douse told the paper that Bandoo was with him on the second floor of the club when he heard gunshots and went to investigate.

"He died on the spot," said Douse, who estimated there were around 200 people in the club at the time of the shooting. "I just heard shots fired, I heard lots of shots."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Click for more from LoHud.com.
Christmas weekend was grim in Chicago even by this year's wretched standards for gun violence: Police say at least 41 people were shot, 11 fatally, between Friday evening and Sunday night, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

The victims include James Gill, 18, and Roy Gill, 21, who were killed when somebody came out of an alley and opened fire on a front porch during a family party, the Chicago Tribune reports. Five others were wounded in that shooting alone, two of them critically.

BLIZZARDS, ICE WREAK HAVOC ACROSS NORTHERN PLAINS DURING CHRISTMAS WEEKEND



Hours earlier, a man around 40 was pronounced dead in a South Side hospital after having been shot multiple times near the Apostolic Labor of Love church, where a pool of blood could be seen on the front step.

Chicago Police Department spokesman Jose Estrada tells the New York Times that the number of homicides in the city so far this year is 745, up from 476 at this time last year, and marking the first time since 1997 that there have been more than 700.

He says the total number of shooting victims so far this year is 4,252, up 47% from 2,884 at this time in 2015. Most victims are men under 30.

The number of murders in Chicago this year is on course to top that of Los Angeles and New York City combined.

Click for more from Newser.
A young woman says anti-Trump bullies at a prestigious womens liberal arts college forced her to drop out of the school.

Eighteen-year-old Andi Moritz told FoxNews.com Saturday that the ridicule began when she went on Bryn Mawr Colleges ride-share Facebook page in September to look for a fellow student to help her knock on doors for Donald Trump.

It didnt hit me at first because it was just one person being negative, Moritz said. Thats not that big a deal to me. It was when the negative comments started to continue and I saw a lot of people 'like' those comments and it just made me feel like I wasnt welcome Bryn Mawr.

Nobody has the right to an opinion of bigotry. 0 tolerance for fascists! was one response to her Facebook request for a ride.

You want to go campaign for a man who has systematically oppressed entire ethnic/racial groups not to mention the LGBTQIA+ community and many others, was another.

Why y'all doing this free labor for white supremacists tho, was a third.

I can understand you not liking someone politically, but things get taken too far when you dont like that person because of their political support, she told FoxNews.com.

Moritz said she worked hard to get into Bryn Mawr and was a first year student.

The night of her ride-share post, fellow freshman on her floor met to discuss the matter.

Moritz, who is from Hershey, Penn., says she deleted the post after the meeting and then the next day called the campus suicide hotline.

I just need someone to talk to, she said. She said she has battled depression in high school.

Two days after the call she dropped out after she spoke to her parents.

I let myself realize I wasnt happy and Bryn Mawr wasnt a good fit, she said.

She says she now works full-time at an animal shelter and is happy.

Moritz said she became a Trump supporter over time, attracted to his positions on terrorism, national security and gun rights.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Friday that Bryn Mawr sophomore Anna Garguilo wrote about Moritz for a journalism class blog a few weeks ago.

Garguilo told the paper Moritz shouldnt have been subjected to such cyberbullying just because of her beliefs. She said she faced ridicule from Bryn Mawr students for telling Moritzs story, but doesnt regret it.

Bryn Mawr gave The Inquirer a statement after being asked about Moritz.

Freedom of speech and expression can lead to heated debate on campuses, and the Bryn Mawr campus has not been immune from the polarization of views that characterized the campaign, the statement said, according to the paper. Ad hominem attacks have no place in these discussions and do nothing to help us learn from or better understand one another. We continue to strive to be a place that both affirms freedom of speech and promotes civil discourse.

The Inquirers article says several students who responded to Moritz ride-share request with critical comments were also contacted.

The paper reported that those students either did not return calls or declined to comment.
A California man is reportedly prepared to fight a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence after he was pulled over in 2015 and a blood test only showed traces of caffeine in his system.

According to The Guardian, Joseph Schwab was allegedly driving erratically and cut off an officer from the California department of alcoholic beverage control in August 2015 in Solano Country.

Schwabs attorney Stacey Barrett told the paper that he was given a breathalyzer test which showed that his blood-alcohol content level was at zero percent. A toxicology test also came back negative for drugs. Schwab was booked into county jail.

A Pennsylvania lab that conducted a secondary test provided documents to The Guardian that showed the only thing in Schwabs system was caffeine.

Schwabs motion to get the case dismissed was denied and now hes scheduled for a Jan. 11, 2017 court fight. Solano County deputy district attorney Sharon Henry said the department was still investigating.

The charge of driving under the influence is not based upon the presence of caffeine in his system, Henry said in a statement.

Click for more from The Guardian.
The manhunt is on for one inmate who fled a Tennessee jail through a leaky toilet, as police captured five other men who got a few moments of freedom.

BLOODY CHRISTMAS WEEKEND: MORE THAN 40 SHOT, 11 KILLED IN CHICAGO

Officials for the Cocke County Sheriffs office said six inmates originally made their getaway early Christmas morning, according to KOMO. They added that the breakout was prompted by a water leak that was behind a jail toilet.

The bolts holding the unit rusted out and there was prior damage to the concrete due to plumbing repairs, police told ABC News.

TWO DEAD, FOUR INJURED IN NEW YORK NIGHTCLUB SHOOTING; SUSPECT ARRESTED

Earlier repairs to plumbing lead to a weakening of the concrete used to encase the wall unit toilet and also caused the bolts holding the unit in place to become rusted out, according to a press release from the sheriffs office.

The inmates managed to remove the toilet from the wall and crawled through a hole in that wall leading them outside the country jail facility.

Two of the inmates have already been apprehended.

Steven Lewis, 37, was nabbed after a foot chase with cops and John Mark Speir, 38, was found inside a home that was near the jail. According to the Sheriffs office, two men were charged with allegedly assisting Speir. Jarred Schoondermarks, 30, and Daniel Speir, 29, were charged with harboring a fugitive.

Investigators spotted Harce Wade Allen, 28, Eric S. Click, 29, and are John Thomas Shehee, 28, later Monday, and took them into custody.

Still on the loose is David Wayne Frazier, 54.

Frazier was considered to be the most dangerous according to WATE 6. He was in custody for aggrivated robbery and possession of a weapon.

Shehee was facing charges for arson and criminal trespassing as well property theft. Allen had violated probation and was in the midst of covering a 45-day sentence. Click was being held on charges of evading arrest and a series of probation violations.

Anyone with information leading to the whereabouts of the remaining two alleged escapees is urged to call the sheriff's office at 423-623-2064 or the jail at 423-623-6023.
On Wednesday, December 28, at 11.00, the Interfax-Ukraine News Agency's press center will host a press conference entitled "A Step towards Crimea: Human Rights Activists Urging Authorities to Abolish Laws Restricting Human Rights in Crimea." The participants will explain which regulations on the part of Ukraine adversely affect the human rights situation in Crimea and what the government should do in 2017 to protect the rights of the Crimean people. The participants will include Coordinator of the Crimean Human Rights Group Olha Skrypnyk, Lawyer of the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union Darya Svyrydova, Chair of the Center for Human Rights Information Tetiana Pechonchyk (8/5a Reitarska Street). Admission requires press accreditation. Additional information by phone (067) 445 9543 or e-mail: tp@humanrights.org.ua
A professor from Drexel University in Philadelphia is likely in hot water after professing on twitter that all he wanted for Christmas was white genocide.

The school was forced to issue a statement on Christmas day after George Ciccariello-Maher, an associate professor of politics and global studies, tweeted on his account, all I want for Christmas is white genocide, according to blog Inside Higher Ed.

The tweet quickly went viral after many conservative websites and individuals spoke out against it. Drexel was forced to issue condemnation as well.

"Drexel became aware today of Associate Professor George Ciccariello-Maher's inflammatory tweet, which was posted on his personal Twitter account on Dec. 24, 2016, reads the statement from Drexel University officials. While the university recognizes the right of its faculty to freely express their thoughts and opinions in public debate, Professor Ciccariello-Maher's comments are utterly reprehensible, deeply disturbing, and do not in any way reflect the values of the university. The university is taking this situation very seriously. We contacted Ciccariello-Maher today to arrange a meeting to discuss this matter in detail."

Ciccariello-Maher followed up with another tweet on Christmas Day before being contacted by Drexel officials according to Philly.com.

"To clarify: when the whites were massacre during the Haitian revolution, that was a good thing indeed," he tweeted.

A bio on Drexels website says that Ciccariello-Maher is, an expert and frequent media commentator on social movements, particularly in Latin America Ciccariello-Maher also teaches, researches and writes about race, racism, prisons and policing in the U.S. and internationally, including how race is associated with suspicion and guilt.

It was not immediately clear what actions would be taken against the professor by the university.

Since the tweet went viral Ciccariello-Maher has made his Twitter feed private, so the tweets are no longer visible.

In an email exchange with Inside Higher Ed, the professor said the tweet was "satirical," but added that he has received hundreds of death threats over it.

"On Christmas Eve, I sent a satirical tweet about an imaginary concept, 'white genocide,'" he said. "For those who haven't bothered to do their research, 'white genocide' is an idea invented by white supremacists and used to denounce everything from interracial relationships to multicultural policies."

Ciccariello-Maher also said Drexler's statement about the situation was "chilling."

"While upholding my right to free expression, the statement refers to my (satirical) tweets as 'utterly reprehensible," he said." On the university level, moreover, this statement -- despite a tepid defense of free speech -- sends a chilling message and sets a frightening precedent. It exposes untenured and temporary faculty not only to internal disciplinary scrutiny, but equally importantly, it encourages harassment as an effective means to impact university policies."
Authorities in Tennessee are searching for four inmates who broke out of jail on Christmas.

Media reports quote the Cocke County Sheriff's Office as saying six inmates escaped from the jail early Sunday after removing a toilet from the wall and going through a hole behind it that led to the outside of the facility.

A statement by the sheriff says that prior plumbing repairs had loosened the concrete holding the toilet and leaking water had rusted the bolts holding it.

The reports say two inmates were caught by Christmas evening, but four remain on the run: John Thomas Shehee and Harce Wade Allen, both 28 years old; Eric S. Click, 29; and David Wayne Frazier, 54.
Leading scholars from around the globe are teaming up to shed more light on how America got its start.

Nineteen prominent museums and historical societies from the U.S. and Europe that specialize in the 17th century have formed New England Beginnings .

The group is using mobile phone apps, searchable online archives and conventional lectures to showcase the crucial role the 1600s played in shaping what would become the United States.

Its members hope to capitalize on resurgent interest in the period as the country gears up to mark the 400th anniversary of the Pilgrims' arrival in 2020.

Coordinator Francis Bremer says New England Beginnings is also trying to dispel myths and challenge long-held assumptions about how the settlers interacted with Native Americans.
A judge on Tuesday ordered the arrest of a local television show host who set fire to the hair of a U.S. magician, burning his scalp, face and arm.

The judge announced the decision just hours after TV host Franklin Barazarte told The Associated Press in a phone interview from New York that the incident was an accident. He tossed flaming liquid on Wayne Houchin's head as a "blessing" during a Nov. 26 taping of the show.

Barazarte, who was serving as guest host on an astrology and variety show called "Closer to the Stars," couldn't be immediately reached for comment after the judge issued his decision.

He said during the interview that he was in the U.S. this week for previously scheduled work commitments.

"I'm not hiding. I hope to sit down with Wayne and reach a settlement," Barazarte said. "It was a demonstration within a magical religious framework that turned out badly."

In a widely viewed video that a member of the magician's crew captured on his IPhone and posted online, Barazarte is seen trying to pat Houchin's head after it is set on fire.

"It was an accident. It was under no circumstance an intentional act," Barazarte said.

He said that he had performed similar blessings for more than 20 years and that "none of them had ever turned out badly." He said his hands also were burned during the incident.

Monica Pena, a spokeswoman for the Dominican prosecutors' office, said a doctor certified that Houchin suffered first-degree burns on his scalp, face and right arm.

Houchin said in an email Monday to the AP that he was seeking legal action.

"The attack was intentional. The host didn't trip and accidentally spill it on me. He intended to pour flaming liquid on me," Houchin wrote.

Houchin, a 29-year-old from Chico, California, who recently finished a season as a host of the Discovery Channel show "Breaking Magic," came to the Dominican Republic with his wife as part of the "Curiosities 2012" tour. He and two other magicians expected to be interviewed and perform magic on the local program.

When Houchin came on stage, Barazarte said he wanted to give him a blessing and asked another magician, BJ Bueno, to give him a bottle of "Agua de Florida," a highly flammable cologne used in Santeria rituals. Barazarte then asked Houchin's wife to pour the cologne into his hands and asked Bueno to light the fluid. He then doused the fluid on Houchin's head.

Houchin is still receiving medical treatment in the Dominican Republic.

Barazarte said he had tried to contact Houchin without success. He added that while he understood the pain caused, he expressed resentment over the position taken by Houchin and others.

"They're treating me like a criminal," Barazarte said.


Time is running out to gain legal status for tens of thousands of people born to migrants in the Dominican Republic.

The government says people have until Feb. 1 to apply for birth certificates as foreigners. Deputy Interior Minister Luis Fernandez said Friday that only 6,500 of the estimated 60,000 in the country have registered.

Migrant advocates say the low enrollment is because of requirements to produce documentation that many people lack. Some are reluctant to register as foreigners in the country where they were born, even if the government says they can apply for citizenship in two years.

The government launched the effort after the Supreme Court ruled that people born in the country don't qualify for citizenship unless their parents were citizens. Most are of Haitian descent.
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP)  Colombian authorities have arrested a prominent Panama businessman they're calling the world's most-wanted money launderer and froze assets belonging to dozens of companies linked to him that were allegedly used to hide millions in illegal drug profits.

The coordinated operation was announced Thursday as the U.S. Treasury Department froze assets belonging to 68 companies in this Central American nation and in Colombia under a drug kingpin designation.

On Friday, Colombian police showed videos taken during the arrest of Nidal Waked, who the U.S. has signaled as the co-leader with his uncle, Abdul Waked, of a money laundering network that stretched across an empire of real estate, financial and retail businesses in 14 Latin American nations.

Nidal Waked, 44, was arrested Wednesday night on a U.S. drug warrant upon arrival to Bogota's international airport from Panama City. Police said he seemed surprised but was cooperative and explained he had traveled to the Colombian capital on business and with a family member who he was accompanying for a medical appointment. Born in the Colombian city of Barranquilla, he's being held in Bogota pending a U.S. extradition request.

A statement from U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami described Nidal Waked as one of "the most significant money launderers and drug traffickers in the world." If convicted, he faces up to 70 years in prison.

The U.S. law enforcement operation has come as a major shock to Panama, which is still reeling from a huge leak of documents known as the Panama Papers detailing how the world's rich and famous used the Central American nation to hide their wealth. On Friday, the Obama administration announced tougher rules and proposed legislation to prevent wealthy individuals, including politicians, from using offshore shell companies to embezzle money or avoid paying taxes.

Panama's tradition for financial secrecy and crossroads location along the path of South American cocaine heading to the U.S. has long made it an attractive money-laundering center.

President Juan Carlos Varela, who was in Washington when the sting took place, said he had instructed his finance minister to work with U.S. authorities to protect the jobs of Panamanians affected by the asset freeze. He said Panamanian prosecutors are also investigating and banking regulators taking action so that depositors and capital markets aren't hurt.

"I want to assure Panamanians that our independent system of justice and regulators are doing their jobs," Varela said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Abdul Waked has taken distance from his nephew's alleged actions, saying that he hadn't conducted any business with his older brother's family since the 1980s.

"He's not my partner and he's never been," Waked told Colombian radio station La W, adding that he was unaware of any money-laundering investigations against his companies until Thursday. "I want to defend myself. My books are open. And I'll do everything to defend my honor, that of my family and my children."

Abdul Waked, who was born in Lebanon and immigrated to Colombia's Caribbean coast, is behind some of Panama's highest-profile investments including a luxury mall, a bank and the country's oldest newspaper, La Estrella de Panama. Grupo Wisa, the family's holding company, employs more than 6,000 people who work at duty-free zones at airports across the Americas, including Mexico City's international terminals.

The base of operation was Panama City's international airport, a major travel hub that has come under U.S. scrutiny before. In 2007, Grupo Wisa along with the owners of Panama's Copa Airlines paid $173 million to run the airport's duty free zone.

A leaked 2009 U.S. diplomatic cable published by Wikileaks described the airport as "tainted by a seamy underside of alien smuggling, money laundering, narcotics trafficking and corruption." Passengers in transit could launder money through the many jewelry, perfume and electronics shops found at every turn and which face little regulatory scrutiny, the cable said.

"The duty-free zone at Tocumen is a good example of the kind of live-and-let live attitude permeating the airport," the cable said.

Grupo Wisa issued a terse statement saying the accusations "are false and unfounded." The company said it had instructed its lawyers to cooperate fully in the investigation announced by Panamanian officials.

It's still unclear who they believe the Waked family was allegedly laundering drug proceeds for.

A law enforcement official, who agreed to discuss the matter only if not quoted by name because he was not authorized to discuss the case publicly, said the family worked with a wide range of drug cartels from Colombia and Mexico as well as independent drug-trafficking organizations.

The indictment unsealed against Nidal Waked and a co-defendant alleges the two conspired to defraud Ocean Bank by misrepresenting transfers into their account at the Miami bank as loans from another financial institution in Panama.

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One of the most generous Pokemon Go gyms in Caracas is located just outside the Lider mall, but nobody dares go there with a cellphone.

In a country where 3,000 cellphones are stolen every day, walking around with a handheld device out does not seem like a good idea, least of all in the low-income area where Lider is located.

I have only seen two or three people playing each day, and they try to do it as close to the mall entrance as possible. This is not a safe area, said Daniel Hernandez, a mall cop.

Playing a game like this one is a terrible idea in Venezuela, added Luis Izquiel, a local lawyer and criminologist. Many of the murders occur during robberies, he told Fox News Latino.

According to the National Observatory of Violence, 27,875 people were killed in Venezuela in 2015. In 1999, the year Chavismo took power, the number was 4,550.

Understandably, a vast majority of Venezuelans live in fear these days. According to a Gallup poll conducted worldwide and released last week, only 14 percent of those surveyed said they felt safe walking alone at night. It was the lowest number in the world, even behind nations in war such as Syria and Afghanistan  both scored 32 percent.

Eleonora Silva, a 35-year-old Pokemon gamer, is one of those that feel insecure. Despite being an avid fan, her playing time is painfully limited because of safety concerns.

Its frustrating, she told FNL, but recently I was robbed and I still feel a little bit paranoid. I am playing only in closed areas and inside a car.

As a result, she hasnt been able to battle other players because in order to do that you need to walk into a gym and most of them are located in public areas.

Near my house there is one [gym] close to a police station, but here you cannot trust police either, Silva said. Indeed, according to the Gallup poll, only 19 percent of Venezuelans said they trusted police officers  another worldwide low.

The new normal in Caracas and other main cities has completely transformed peoples nightlife, which used to abound in late-night parties.

An investigation released in May by Universidad Catolica Andres Bello found that 63 percent of Venezuelans have changed or restricted recreational activities because of the insecurity.

More than 70 percent said they were afraid of being targets of a robbery while out or in public transportation. Fifty-eight percent said they feel fear even in their own homes.

People changed their way of life and many have left the country for that reason, said Izquiel, the criminologist.

Malls that traditionally opened until 9 p.m. now close at 8 p.m. or even 7 p.m. Theaters schedule movie screening and plays until 10 p.m. the latest.

In the 17 years of Chavismo, the government has appointed 16 different Interior ministers, 12 of them from the ranks of Venezuelas National Army.

Security plans have no sense of continuity because each new official arrives with his own agenda. No public policy can work like that, Izquiel said.

Just last week President Nicolas Maduro appointed Gen. Nestor Reverol to that office, despite being investigated by the U.S. for alleged drug trafficking activities.

With those allegations, [Reverol] will have a hard time coordinating efforts with foreign agencies and polices, which could make the situation even worse, Izquiel warned.
The lawyer for the U.S. man being held in a Venezuela prison under weapon charges says she is confident that her client, 24-year-old Joshua Holt, will be exonerated or at least temporarily released during a preliminary hearing set for Thursday morning in a Caracas court.

Jeanette Prieto told Fox News Latino that the defense has enough evidence to prove Holts innocence, but declined to comment any further to protect her case.

We are prepared to refute all of the prosecutors arguments, she said. The judge will have to review the evidence presented by the defense and by the plaintiff and make a decision.

Holt, a Salt Lake City resident, was arrested on June 30 in Caracas, five days after marrying his Venezuelan bride Thamara Caleno Candelo.

Venezuela authorities contend Holt was using his wife's apartment to stockpile weapons and have suggested his case was linked to other attempts by the U.S. to undermine President Nicolas Maduro's rule amid deep economic and political turbulence.

This case is just an example of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, Prieto said.

She explained that during Thursdays hearing the judge will decide whether to take the case to trial or drop the charges. Either way, she expects Holt to be released.

If the charges are dropped, he will be completely free and justice will have been done. If not, we expect him to be released pending trial, she told FNL. Legally there is no reason to keep him behind bars.

Holt met his wife Caleno Candelo, who has two small children from a previous marriage, through the website of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for which he worked in a Mission in Washington State.

According to local reports, on the night of June 30 police found weapons in the house where the couple was arrested  a grenade, an AK-47 rifle and an M4 assault rifle.

Holt and his wife insist the weapons were all planted.

Since his arrest, Holt has been portrayed by the government as el agente gringo, a U.S. spy who infiltrated the country under false pretenses.

Back in July, then-Interior Minister Gustavo Gonzalez Lopez described him as a "trained gunman" and questioned the legality of the couples marriage license.

"Under different facades, the secret services of the United States are seeking to achieve goals in an unconventional war through interventionist actions that stimulate the formation of criminal paramilitary gangs in housing complexes," he said.

He even accused Holt and his wife of being part of a paramilitary gang called Los Sindicalistas, responsible for the murder of Chavista leader Omar Jesus Molina Marin on April 12.

But none of those accusations have been formally added to the legal charges.

This has been a complex case because of the improper handling of the authorities, Prieto said. It has been use as a political pawn, even though Holt is not a politician and wasnt doing any related activity.

Thursdays hearing, which is expected to be held before noon, will be closed to the public.

Prieto is the head of Holts defense, but he is also being assisted by a group of lawyers from Venezuelas Mormon community and the U.S. Embassy in Caracas.

Holt is being held at El Helicoide, a prison managed by the National Intelligence Services where a dozen of political prisoners are also detained.
The Mexican airline Interjet says it's had to cancel some flights due to a mandatory safety inspection of its Russian-made Superjet 100 aircraft.

Russian authorities issued the directive on Dec. 23 after cracks were found in a part on one of the Sukhoi planes. Interjet is among the largest customers for the relatively new Superjet, with more than 20 in its fleet.

Mexico's consumer protection agency says at least 25 flights and more than 680 passengers have been affected.

The consumer agency initially issued an erroneous communique confusing the Superjet with the Tupelov-154 model that crashed in the Black Sea on Sunday, killing 92 people. The Tupelov is a completely different, much older design made by another company.

Interjet's Sunday statement says its Superjets meet "the highest standards of security."
Kim Jong Un is the Grinch who stole Christmas.

North Koreas tubby tyrant wants the few Christians in the hermit state to spread cheer only to celebrate his grandma, Kim Jong Suk  not the birth of Jesus.

Jong Suk  who was born on Christmas Eve in 1919  was an anti-Japanese guerrilla and Communist activist, wife of North Koreas first dictator, Kim Il Sung, and former leader Kim Jong Ils mother.

Many pay homage to the Sacred Mother of the Revolution, who died under mysterious circumstances in 1949, by visiting her tomb.

The daffy dictator is so obsessed with banning Christmas that he even flipped out in 2014 when he found out that South Korea planned to erect a huge Christmas tree along the border. Amid threats of all-out war, the tree was never put up.

Click for more from the New York Post.
A J-15 fighter takes off from the Liaoning on Friday during a fleet training exercise in the Yellow Sea. Mo Xiaoliang/CHINA DAILY

The CNS Liaoning aircraft carrier battle group has set off for the Western Pacific where it will take part in an open-sea exercise, a spokesman for the People's Liberation Army Navy has announced.

Senior Captain Liang Yang did not provide further details of the exercise on Saturday, but did say that it was part of the group's annual training schedule.

According to the PLA Navy, the group carried out "full-element" training in the East China Sea on Saturday, which mainly involved J-15 carrier-borne fighter jets.

The planes performed air tactical confrontation drills and air refueling operations, while ships conducted resupply training, the navy said.

"From the Bohai Sea to the Yellow Sea, and farther into the East China Sea, the carrier battle group ... has been exploring integrated, systematic and realistic training methods and performed 'full-element', joint exercises among the Liaoning, carrier-borne aviation units and escort ships," read a navy news release.

Footage broadcast by China Central Television showed Admiral Wu Shengli, commander of the PLA Navy, aboard the Liaoning as he oversaw the battle group's drills. It is not known whether Wu will remain aboard for the Western Pacific exercise.

The Japanese Defense Ministry said on Sunday it had spotted the Liaoning group on Sunday morning as the fleet was passing through the Miyako Strait toward the Western Pacific. The group consists of the aircraft carrier, three Type 052C and Type 052D guided missile destroyers and two Type 054A guided missile frigates, according to a Japanese news agency.

In mid-December, the Liaoning group carried out its first live-fire exercise in the Bohai Sea.

The carrier performed drills with destroyers and frigates, with scenarios including reconnaissance, aircraft interception, sea strikes and missile defense. Multiple groups of J-15s fired missiles at designated targets, the Chinese navy said.

Zhang Junshe, a senior researcher at the PLA Naval Military Studies Research Institute, said a long-distance training mission in the Western Pacific indicates that the Liaoning group has gained initial combat capability.

"This will expand the Navy's defense range and deter enemies' offensive operations," he said, adding that the major exercise will also test the group's logistics ability.

The PLA commissioned the CNS Liaoning in September 2012 in Dalian, Liaoning province.

Its battle group took shape in December 2013, when the carrier and several escort vessels, including two guided missile destroyers, two guided missile frigates and an attack submarine took part in a long-range formation drill in the South China Sea.
Israel says its ambassador to Ukraine has been summoned by the foreign ministry in Kiev following Israel's decision to cancel a planned visit by the Ukrainian prime minister.

Israel over the weekend called off the upcoming visit by Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman after Ukraine voted in favor of a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Israeli settlement construction in occupied lands.

It was one of a number of steps Israel has taken in response to the measure, which passed 14-0 with an American abstention. On Sunday, Israel summoned ambassadors from council members, including the U.S., to protest.

In a statement, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said Eli Belotsercovsky, the ambassador to Ukraine, was summoned Monday in Kiev "following Israel's decision regarding the visit of Ukraine's prime minister."
A file photo taken on July 14, 2015, shows the former Flying Tigers veteran John Yee at his home in Denver, the United States. [File photo: Xinhua]

A Chinese-American veteran of World War II has said that Japan should first apologize to China for what the Japanese military did during the war, Xinhua News Agency reports.

John Yee was chosen to work as a translator with the 1st American Volunteer Group (AVG) of the Chinese Air Force, also known as the Flying Tigers, who landed in Kunming city, Yunnan province to join the fight against the Japanese two weeks after the Pearl Harbor attack in December, 1941.

In an open letter to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who will pay a visit to Pearl Harbor later this month, 95-year-old Yee recalled the Nanjing Massacre: "It was a horrible, sickening event, and shocked everybody in China. It started a long period of atrocities committed by the Japanese military against innocent Chinese people."

"Just like Hitler trying to exterminate the Jews in Europe, the Japanese committed genocide against the Chinese," Yee said. "But Western educators and media have yet to recognize the extent of the atrocities committed by Japan."

Describing Abe's visit to Pearl Harbor as "US-Japan theater," Yee said the first people the Japanese should be apologizing to are the Chinese, for their invasion of China and the murders of millions of Chinese people.

"It seems like more Japanese-American back-rubbing in Pearl Harbor this month," said Yee. "There are several countries that Japan should apologize to, and China is at the top of the list."

Yee went to the US in 1942 and later became a history professor at the University of Denver and University of Colorado. He enjoyed an award-winning, 30-year teaching career.
Workers in Culpeper and Fredericksburg are more likely to get matching 401(k) contributions from their employers than workers in most other cities in Virginia, according to a study by personal finance research company SmartAsset.

Local financial advisor for Northwestern Mutual Rob Billingsley said there are a few reasons employers here would be willing to offer robust benefits, and chief among them is a desire to retain talent.

Years ago, it was common for employers to offer a pension that provided retirement income for life, but many employers have chosen to replace pension plans with defined contribution plans like 401(k) and 403(b) plans, he said.

A 401(k) is a retirement savings plan sponsored by an employer. It lets workers save and invest a piece of their paycheck before taxes are taken out. Taxes arent paid until the money is withdrawn from the account.

SmartAsset used data from the United States Department of Labor, looking at employer and employee 401(k) contributions to calculate an employer contribution percentage.

Culpeper was third on the list with an overall employer contribution percentage of 60.6 percent. Fredericksburg was sixth, with an employer contribution percentage of 51.8 percent.

Billingsley said the region has a fairly low unemployment rate and employers have to offer competitive benefits to attract and retain qualified employees.

If everything else is equal and an employee has the option between an employer with a retirement plan and matching contributions and one that does not match, the employee likely will select the employer that offers matching contributions, he said.

Another less obvious reason, he said, is the regions proximity to Washington. Because of the location, this area has many current and former federal government workers who are used to matching contributions.

Consequently, employers who seek to attract and hire workers formerly employed in the federal sector understand that they, too, must offer a robust benefits package, he said.

Billingsley said while these types of retirement savings plans are common, during the recession that started in 2008, many employers stopped matching employee contributions until economic conditions improved.

Lets face it, most prospective employees focus on compensation when seeking employment, Billingsley said. Next in terms of priority would be health insurance, followed by a retirement plan. Ones priorities, however, depend largely on ones age. While health insurance may not be a priority for a 24-year-old, it may be extremely important for the 35-year-old with a growing family to support.

Billingsley offered these three tips for retirement savings:

It is important to start as soon as possible and to save consistentlyregardless of market conditions

Take advantage of accounts that offer tax advantages, such as employer-sponsored retirement accounts and traditional and Roth IRAs.

Build and act upon a financial plan that looks at your whole financial picture. No one financial product will fully prepare you for retirement. The people I talk to dont want to be sold financial productsthey want a full picture financial plan so they can achieve their goals. When you have a plan to build wealth and protect your wealth, thats when you can live life differently and pursue passions with confidence.
For Mechelle Allen, the smell of sweet potato pie evokes Christmas and family.

Along with her husband Ricky Allen, she owns and runs Mechelles Baking Company, which will make nearly 600 piesmany of them sweet potatofor clients in the Fredericksburg area during the holidays.

Everyone thinks their grandma makes the best sweet potato pie, Ricky Allen said Thursday while the pair made fillings for holiday pies. But Mechelle perfected her grandmas recipe. We tell people, just buy one, Grandma will never know.

Allen started Mechelles Baking Company out of her Stafford County home in 2013 after her husbands insisted that she stop giving away her pies. Before then, she was working for the government and daydreaming about recipes at her desk.

And every holiday, family and friends would call her up for pies.

This season shes offering sweet potato, pecan, apple, blackberry, lemon meringue and peanut butter-chocolate fillings nestled into flaky butter and shortening crusts.

I always had a passion for cooking, she said. Baking evokes fond memories. My best memories are of watching my mom cook.

Now, she sells pies at farmers markets and to individual customers. An average week sees 300 pies sold, but that increases during her busy season between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

As consumers are increasingly looking for quality, locally made food, foodpreneurs like Allen have found an eager market in the last couple of years.

According to the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, which oversees home-based food and beverage businesses, Virginia boasts around 250 farmers markets now, compared to 85 markets in 2005.

Elaine Lodholm, spokeswoman for VDACS, said consumer interest in local foods has not only energized Virginia farmers markets, but specialty food manufacturers and producers as well.

The number of vendors in the biannual Virginia Food & Beverage Expo, sponsored by VDACS, has increased since 2010. The most recent event held this past March at the Greater Richmond Convention Center celebrated a record-high number of exhibitors with 160. In 2012, that number was about 130.

Like Allen, Tart Cart owner Georgia Rathje was looking for a change and decided to capitalize on her love of cooking as a way to make a living.

Food is my way of being creative, she said. Im always looking for inspiration in seasonal flavors. 

Before Christmas, she delivered cranberry-orange cream cakes to one of her wholesalers, The Olde Towne Butcher in Fredericksburg. The cakes, decorated with mint and cranberries to resemble holly, were among her seasonal specials.

Other popular flavors for Rathje this fall and winter have been pumpkin spice and chocolate banana. She also sells wholesale salads, sauces and sweets to local businesses Hyperion Espresso, Forage, Goolricks and River Rock Outfitter.

She started the business two years ago after switching to vegan eating for health reasons.

As a food-lover and avid cook, I had to figure out how to adapt, she said.

During farmers market season she works six days a week to be able to meet customers downtown at the weekly Hurkamp Park market and get feedback.

People are looking for quality, she said. Theres more trust in local people and products.

Mechelle and Rickys son, Marcus, left corporate life to help grow the family company, finding new farmers markets for them to expand into.

The company started selling pies at the downtown Fredericksburg market for the holiday season. They started selling at the market the week before Thanksgiving, and Ricky Allen called it pie pandemonium.

The business and the people were so good, he said. We were taking orders and the line was like at the opening of the Apple Store.

You find a commonality with people when you get out and meet them, Mechelle Allen said. Its such a rich experience.
Sodium Percarbonate Market: Industry Analysis, Size, Trend, Demand and Global Forecast to 2027

Global Sodium Percarbonate Market Research Report by Application and by Product Type - Forecast to 2027

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Market Scenario:

Sodium percarbonate is a type of chemical; adduct of sodium carbonate and hydrogen peroxide a per hydrate whose formula is 2Na2CO3 - 3H2O2. It is crystalline, colorless, hygroscopic and water-soluble solid. It is used in eco-friendly cleaning products as a laboratory source of anhydrous hydrogen peroxide. The market of Sodium Percarbonate has been valued at US $XX million in the year 2016 and from past years, growing with the CAGR rate of XX%. During the forecasted period, this market is epxeceted to grow with the CAGR rate of XX% and reach the market size of US $XX million.

Request a Sample Copy @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/sample-request/global-sodium-percarbonate-forecast-to-2027

Market Segmentation:

By Product Type:

On the basis of product type, market has been segmented as Coated & Uncoated.

By Application:

By application the market has been segmented as Detergent, Commercial, Bleach and Others.

Key Players of Sodium Percarbonate Market:

o JINKE Company Limited

o SHANGYUCHEM

o Henan Province Hongye Chemical Co.ltd.

o Wuxi R & D Chemical ltd

o Shangyu Jiehua Chemical

o OCI

o FMC

o Evonik

o Solvay

Access Report Details @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/global-sodium-percarbonate-forecast-to-2027

Objective of Studies:

o To provide detailed analysis of the market structure along with forecast of the various segments and sub-segments of the Global Sodium Percarbonate market.

o To provide insights about factors affecting the market growth. To analyze the Sodium Percarbonate market based on various factors- price analysis, supply chain analysis, porter's five force analysis etc.

o To provide historical and forecast revenue of the market segments and sub-segments with respect to four main geographies and their countries- North America, Europe, Asia, and Rest of the World (ROW).

o To provide country level analysis of the market with respect to the current market size and future prospective. To provide country level analysis of the market for segment by Application, Product Type and sub-segments.

o To provide strategic profiling of key players in the market, comprehensively analyzing their core competencies, and drawing a competitive landscape for the market.

o To track and analyze competitive developments such as joint ventures, strategic alliances, mergers and acquisitions, new product developments, and research and developments in the global orthopedics biomaterial market.

Regional Analysis:

The North American market for Sodium Percarbonate is a growing. Currently North America is leading the market of Sodium Percarbonate with the market share of XX% followed by the Europe region which holds the XX% market on the global scale. The main reason for this as laundry business has increased in past couple of years, resulting more demand for the product. Asia Pacific has emerged as fastest growing market for Sodium Per carbonate with the CAGR rate of XX% and expected to reach the market size of US $XX million by end of forecasted period.

Related Report:

Global ethylene Market Information By use (Ethylbenzene, Ethylene dichloride, Ethylene oxide, Oligomers--olefins/alcohols, Linear alpha-olefins and Linear primary alcohols) by consumption and by source (Hydrocarbon steam cracking,Refinery gases, Ethanol dehydration, Ethylene from coal, Ethylene from natural gas and Plant economics) - Forecast to 2027

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About Market Research Future:

At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.

MRFR team have supreme objective to provide the optimum quality market research and intelligence services to our clients. Our market research studies by products, services, technologies, applications, end users, and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enable our clients to see more, know more, and do more, which help to answer all their most important questions.

Contact:

Akash Anand

Market Research Future

Office No. 528, Amanora Chambers

Magarpatta Road, Hadapsar,

Pune - 411028

Maharashtra, India

+1 646 845 9312

Email: akash.anand@marketresearchfuture.com

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Contact Info:

Name: Akash Anand

Organization: Market Research Future

Address: Hadapsar, Pune

Phone: +1 646 845 9312

Source: http://marketersmedia.com/sodium-percarbonate-market-industry-analysis-size-trend-demand-and-global-forecast-to-2027/156916

Release ID: 156916

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Scotch Whiskey Market 2016 Global Analysis and Forecast to 2020

WiseGuyReports.Com Publish a New Market Research Report On - "Scotch Whiskey Market 2016 Global Analysis and Forecast to 2020".

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The market research analyst predicts the global scotch whiskey market to witness a steady growth at a CAGR of around 5% during the forecast period.

The rise in disposable income and the growing demand for premium whiskey has been fueling the growth of this market. Around 88% of consumers globally, consider whisky as an affordable luxury, which is driving manufacturers to launch more premium and super-premium offerings to meet the demand.

Rising trends such as organic scotch whiskey is also expected to drive the growth of the market during the forecast period. Organic whisky distilleries avoid the usage of artificial colors for enhancing the appearance of the whisky.A Some of the distilleries that offer organic scotch whiskies in the market are Benromach, Bruichladdich, Organic Spirits Company, and Da Mhile.

Download Sample Report @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/sample-request/310149-global-scotch-whiskey-market-2015-2019

For more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.com

Segmentation by product and analysis of the global scotch whiskey market

o Malt scotch

o Grain scotch

o Blend scotch

Blend scotch accounted for nearly 79% of the market shares during 2014. This market research report predicts this segment to continue its dominance during the forecast period owing to the high demand from consumers. Some of the popular brands in this segment are Bells, Dewar's, Johnnie Walker, Whyte and Mackay, Cutty Sark, J&B, The Famous Grouse, Ballantine's, and Chivas Regal.

Geographical segmentation and analysis of the global scotch whiskey market

o Americas

o APAC

o Europe

o MEA

The global scotch whiskey market is dominated by Europe, which had a market share of 34% during 2014. France, Spain, and Germany are the major contributors in the scotch whisky market in the region. This research report anticipates Turkey to be an emerging market during the forecast period, fueling the demand for scotch whisky in Europe.

Competitive landscape and key vendors

The global scotch whisky market is fragmented due to the presence of numerous small and large suppliers. These vendors compete on the basis of price, quality, innovation, service, reputation, distribution, and promotion. The report predicts the market to witness a reduction in product prices due to the increasing competition among vendors. Diageo was the largest provider in the market during 2014 with a market volume share of 24%.

Complete Report Details @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/reports/310149-global-scotch-whiskey-market-2015-2019

The leading vendors in the market are

o Bacardi

o Diageo

o Pernod-Ricard

o William Grant & Sons

Other prominent vendors in the market include Aceo, Beam Suntory, Ben Nevis Distillery, Erdington, Gordon & MacPhail, Harvey's of Edinburg International, International Beverage Holdings, Isle of Arran, and The Glenmorangie.

Key questions answered in the report include

o What will the market size and the growth rate be in 2019?

o What are the key factors driving the scotch whiskey market?

o What are the key market trends impacting the growth of the scotch whiskey market?

o What are the challenges to market growth?

o Who are the key vendors in this market space?

o What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the vendors in the global scotch whiskey market?

o Trending factors influencing the market shares of the Americas, APAC, Europe, and MEA?

o What are the key outcomes of the five forces analysis of the global scotch whiskey market?

Table Of Contents - Major Key Points

PART 01: Executive summary

o Highlights

PART 02: Scope of the report

o Top-vendor offerings

PART 03: Market research methodology

o Research methodology

o Economic indicators

PART 04: Introduction

o Key market highlights

PART 05: Market landscape

o Market overview

o Market size and forecast

o Five forces analysis

PART 06: Market segmentation by product

PART 07: Geographical segmentation

o Scotch whisky market in Europe

o Scotch whisky market in Americas

o Scotch whisky market in APAC

o Scotch whisky market in MEA

PART 08: Key leading countries

PART 09: Market drivers

PART 10: Impact of drivers

PART 11: Market challenges

PART 12: Impact of drivers and challenges

........CONTINUED

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ABOUT US:

Wise Guy Reports is part of the Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. and offers premium progressive statistical surveying, market research reports, analysis & forecast data for industries and governments around the globe. Wise Guy Reports features an exhaustive list of market research reports from hundreds of publishers worldwide. We boast a database spanning virtually every market category and an even more comprehensive collection of market research reports under these categories and sub-categories.

For more information, please visit https://www.wiseguyreports.com

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Name: Norah Trent

Email: sales@wiseguyreports.com

Organization: WiseGuy Research Consultants Pvt Ltd.

Address: Office No. 528, Amanora Chambers Magarpatta Road, Hadapsar Pune - 411028

Phone: +1-646-845-9349

Source: http://marketersmedia.com/scotch-whiskey-market-2016-global-analysis-and-forecast-to-2020/156955

Release ID: 156955

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A Russian military Tu-154 aircraft crashed into the Black Sea on Sunday, presumably killing all 92 people aboard, said the Russian Defense Ministry.

The ill-fated plane, en route to Russia's Hmeimim air base in the Syrian port city of Latakia, vanished from the radar screens shortly after takeoff from an airfield in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi at 5:40 a.m. Moscow Time (0240 GMT).

Several bodies of the victims have been recovered at the crash site. Fragments of the aircraft have been discovered in 1.5 km from the Black Sea shore of Sochi at a depth of 50-70 meters.

Over 3,000 people and dozens of ships have been deployed in a search and rescue operation led by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the ministry's press service said.

More than 200 policemen have also been mobilized in the mission, according to the local administration of the Russian Interior Ministry.

The federal Investigative Committee has launched a criminal case over the crash. Based on preliminary information, the tragedy was caused by technical malfunction or pilot error, a law enforcement source was quoted by the RIA Novosti news agency as saying. However, the Defense Ministry said the Tu-154 aircraft was flown by an experienced first-class pilot.

The Interfax news agency quoted an emergency services source as saying that the possibility of a terror attack has been virtually ruled out.

Live TV broadcast showed the weather was sunny at the time of the accident.

According to RIA Novosti, the Tu-154 was built in 1983 and has spent 6,689 hours in flight, with the most recent technical maintenance conducted in September 2016.

The Defense Ministry confirmed that a total of 92 people -- 84 passengers and eight crew members -- were aboard the plane.

Among the passengers were 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, a renowned choir of the Russian Armed Forces, as well as nine Russian journalists. They were heading to the air base for New Year celebrations.

Russian President Vladimir Putindeclared Dec. 26 a nationwide day of mourning, and promised a thorough investigation.

Russian TV channels, including the Zvezda, the NTV and Channel One, have named their journalists aboard the Tu-154 plane.

Established in 1928, the Alexandrov Ensemble is widely recognized as the oldest and biggest choir of the Russian military.

The Tu-154 is a three-engine medium-range airliner produced by Tupolev. It is one of the fastest civilian aircraft in use and has been widely used in extreme Arctic conditions.

Sunday's crash was the second accident in less than one week concerning Russian planes. On Monday, an Il-18 aircraft crash-landed near the Tiksi airfield in Russia's Far Eastern Sakha Republic, injuring 16 people.
Hill returns to Limestone to lead softball program Free Access Following a national search to find the seventh head coach in program history, the Limestone University Athletics Department did not have to look very far as Caroline Hill, the former...

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[File photo]

Chinas top legislature is considering a new regulation that would tackle the countrys surging doctor-patient disputes, which have led to violent confrontations targeting medical workers.

Tension in China's medical community incited calls from legislators and political advisors at the recently concluded seven-day session of the National Peoples Congress Standing Committee for legal action to restore the credibility and security of medical workers.

The National Health and Family Planning Commission, along with the State Council, is working on regulations aimed at preventing and tackling medical disputes, which may push forward even greater reform, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

Violent attacks related to such disputes have resulted in the deaths or serious injury of many doctors and nurses. A total of 600,000 Chinese doctors signed an online petition in 2015, calling for the end of retaliatory attacks after a physician was injured by a patient in Guangdong province.

In a 2015 poll by the Chinese Medical Doctor Association, some 13 percent of 12,600 doctors said they had been physically assaulted by their patients in the last year, and nearly 60 percent had been verbally abused. Doctors reported feeling disrespected, and worried about their personal security in the workplace.
Facebook Lurking, Stalking Are Dangerous; Social Media Can Make User Miserable During Holidays

Research claimed that the use of social media apps like Facebook could be dangerous to people. The over usage of it can make a user feel miserable especially during the holiday season.

A report from BBC News suggested that too much lurking on Facebook and other social media sites can make a person feel miserable. Studies claimed that stalking friends on Facebook can make a social media user miserable, as the users see happy friends, while they are not having fun themselves can make them feel unhappy.

The research claimed that "regular use of social networking such as Facebook can negatively affect your emotional well-being and satisfaction with life". The study even suggested that people must take a break in using social media.

A University of Copenhagen researched about the social media effects in people. The research found out that the over usage of social media can make a user feel envious about what their friends post on the said website. The University reportedly warns the negative impact of lurking to people who use social media often without communicating to anybody important. Even though a person might have lots of friends on Facebook, the reports claimed that these people are not really a friend in life.

The researcher even claimed that a person who uses and lurks on social media, as it can deteriorate their mood. Social media stories can also result to unrealistic social comparisons. Social media users can make people feel jealous and envy, while they see boasts and posts of other users on line.

However, the researchers claimed that people must engage in conversations and connect with their friends on Facebook rather than just look at other people's posts. Facebook users must not be passive and lurk on the website for hours to avoid feeling unhappy and gloomy.
CoffeeWorks wins awards

Corvallis CoffeeWorks won three medals at the second annual North American Compak Golden Bean Competition, which was held in October.

Owner and roaster Rio Prince won a silver for his milk-based coffee and two bronze medals for his espresso.

About 250 roasters and 700 coffees total were entered in the competition.

Corvallis CoffeeWorks also is a partner of The Lobby, a Lebanon cafe that serves Princes coffees.

Cheesy Stuffed Burgers delivers

Food cart Cheesy Stuffed Burgers now delivers in Albany through a sister business, Cheesy Stuffed Express.

For a limited time, there is no delivery fee.

Delivery times are 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. through 7 p.m. The minimum order for delivery is $15.

To order burgers for delivery, call 541-936-9961.

City of Lebanon

recognized as "

all-star employer

The city of Lebanon was named the 2016 All-Star Employer for Workplace Wellness.

The annual award, presented by Samaritan Health Plans, recognizes one Oregon employer for its commitment to promoting physical fitness, health and safety in the workplace.

The city supports a number of initiatives to create a work environment that fosters a healthy work/life balance. One such initiative is the Balance Program, which provides modest cash bonuses to employees who complete a series of 10 activities focused on health and fitness, volunteerism and professional development.

The city of Lebanon also has an active Safety and Wellness Committee comprised of representatives from each department. Making safety a priority has paid off, with zero lost time in 2014, only one recordable incident in 2015, and zero lost time so far in 2016.

McClean joins Coldwell Banker

Jennifer McClean is a new broker at the Coldwell Banker Valley Brokers real estate Albany office.

She can be reached at 541-230-4124 or jmcclean@valleybrokers.com.

Grandparent program wins grant

The Oregon Cascades West Council of Governments Foster Grandparent Program received a $19,590 grant through the United Way of Benton and Lincoln Counties for its Breaking the Cycle of Childhood Poverty project in in Benton County.

The funding will support the programs English Language Learner Collaboration, a collaborative effort that also includes the Boys & Girls Club of Corvallis, Casa Latinos Unidos de Benton County, and Strengthening Rural Families.

The Foster Grandparent Program focuses on schools and after-school programs within Benton County that hold the highest rates of low-income, English language learning students. The program recruits, trains and matches foster grandparents with students to increase individualized reading practice, helping students improve fluency of the English language. The collaboration also will offer financial literacy training in English and Spanish, including a tax preparation seminar for Spanish-speaking families.

Statistician joins OSU faculty

Javier Rojo will join the Department of Statistics at Oregon State University next month as the inaugural Korvis Professor of Statistics.

Rojo currently is chair of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Nevada at Reno, where he holds the Seneca C. and Mary B. Weeks Endowed Chair in Statistics.

Rojo has made research contributions in the areas of survival analysis, nonparametric function estimation, statistical decision theory, random matrices and dimension reduction techniques. He is an elected fellow of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics, the American Statistical Association, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the International Statistical Institute.

Before moving to Reno, Rojo was professor of statistics at Rice University from 2001 to 2013.
Shelly Moothart spent Thanksgiving in a borrowed motor home parked in her aunts driveway.

At that point, she had been couch-surfing with friends and relatives for more than four months and was wondering if she would ever again have a place to call her own.

But now her wandering days are over.

The 59-year-old Corvallis woman and her daughter, Jennifer, moved into a two-bedroom duplex near the Oregon State University campus on Dec. 11, just in time for the holidays.

Moothart spent Christmas morning curled up on the living room couch with her cats Rip, Loki and Bubba. A small Christmas tree stood on a table in the corner and seasonal decorations adorned the room, while country-western Christmas songs played on the radio and a cozy fire burned in the woodstove.

The only thing I havent done is make my Christmas cookies, Moothart said. Im a sugar cookie person, and everybody loves my sugar cookies.

Its a happy ending to a hard luck story that began a few years ago when Moothart developed serious health issues that required her to have open-heart surgery. By the time she was strong enough to go back to her job as a legal secretary, she said, she was told her services were no longer needed.

Unable to find more than half-time work, she burned through her modest retirement savings until she could no longer pay the $550-a-month space rent at her south Corvallis trailer park.

On July 22, Moothart was evicted from the place that had been her home for the past 22 years.

Ill never forget it, she said. Just trying to get all my stuff packed, not knowing what was going to happen  the future was just so uncertain.

She still owned her mobile home, a 1990 Fleetwood single-wide, but she didnt have the money to move it. Besides that, few parks in the area had space available  and most wouldnt accept a mobile home that old.

Then things got worse. Moothart received notice from her trailer parks attorney that she would have to sell or move her mobile home within 45 days  or the park would do it for her.

I just dont know what Im going to do, Moothart told the Gazette-Times in September.

But after a story about Mootharts situation appeared in the newspaper, her luck began to improve.

Offers of help came pouring in. A sympathetic reader gave her a second part-time job, one that meshed with her existing work schedule. And the trailer parks management offered to purchase her mobile home at what she considered a fair price.

After settling her debts, Moothart had enough money left in the bank to start looking for an apartment  but finding one turned out to be harder than she had expected.

There just werent many rentals available, especially in her limited price range. A lot of them didnt allow pets, and those that did often required an additional monthly fee for each animal.

That was so disheartening, Moothart said. I didnt think I was going to find a place ever.

She was almost ready to give up looking. But the day after Thanksgiving she gave it another shot  and turned up an online ad from some college students looking for someone to take over their lease.

It was the kind of break Moothart had been hoping for. She didnt have to come up with first and last months rent plus deposit right away, she didnt have to wait long to move in, she could get her furniture out of storage and, perhaps best of all, she could bring her cats.

The whole time Moothart had been couch-surfing, her cats had been homeless, too  hanging around the trailer park, where a kindhearted neighbor had been taking care of them. One, too feral to live indoors, is still there. Another, left behind by a former roommate and never happy about sharing space with other felines, is awaiting adoption at Heartland Humane Society.

But the other three  the ones Moothart calls her fur babies  made the move to the new place with her. They sit by the door when she goes out and wait for her to come back home.

It was nice to get them all back together under one roof, she said. It doesnt take much to make me happy  and a roof over our heads is definitely at the top of my list.

Moneys still tight. At $800 a month, the rent on the duplex is a lot higher than Moothart was paying at the trailer park, and even with two jobs shes still earning substantially less than she did at the law firm.

But she and her daughter no longer have to worry about where theyre going to be for the holidays. Once again, they have a home of their own.

I did set up the tree, even though we dont have presents, Moothart said. The house was the present for both of us.
Christmas Speech : Gauck: do not make the divisions in our society any deeper

Berlin Joachim Gauck, the German Head of State, urges for debates to be held free of hatred.

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In the face of the anger and fear provoked by the Christmas market attack in Berlin, the German President Joachim Gauck has called for further unity and warned against adding fuel to the idea of an enemy.

In times of terrorist attacks we should not be making the divisions in our society any deeper said Gauck in his Christmas address. This does not mean that we should stop discussing the refugee crisis, or do away with further security measures. Rather it is about maintaining respect for political opponents as well as a sense of proportion.

The attack on the Christmas markets in Berlin last week was deeply shocking and disturbing.  The terror which we have been experiencing across the world for many years has suddenly penetrated into our capital city said Gauck. This has led to feelings of anger and rage as well as fear and helplessness. He said that when you look more closely, it can be seen that we have come together as a society which defends humanity. Diverse people have given each other strength, warmth and a feeling of closeness. Confronted by murderous hate, the people have strengthened their will for peaceful and humanitarian unity.

In his speech broadcast on Christmas Eve, Gauck emphasised that these are not pipe dreams. He has met with witnesses of the Berlin Christmas market attack who rushed to help those injured and dying. The ideals of Gauck's Christmas message are reflected in their actions  to live sensitively and attentively to others and be ready to help. The anger and rage can then be transformed into strength to defend against the hate, violence and contempt towards others. Only then will our society remain a place of solid unity.

In his final Christmas address Gauck praised the dedication of those citizens who are actively committed to the community through their jobs, families or voluntary work. During my years as German President these people have made me more and more hopeful said the Head of State, who will be leaving his office in March 2017. This country deserves the trust of its citizens. Also at this time, when it is struggling with unsolved problems.

Gauck said that he values the reliable work of so many people in such times of insecurity and he thanked among others the nurses, teachers, police, trade unionists, businesses and refugee aid workers. These people show that we must not reject and dismiss the unknown in order to preserve ourselves and to live our lives.
(Xinhua) 14:34, December 26, 2016

Ban Ki-moon, outgoing UN Secretary General, whose second five-year term is set to end by the end of this year, reclaimed the top spot in recent South Korean presidential polls, local survey showed on Monday.

According to a survey of 2,528 voters nationwide conducted by local pollster Realmeter between Dec. 19 and 23, support for Ban as the country's next leader was 23.3 percent, up 2.8 percentage points from the previous week.

His main support base was the North Gyeongsang province, a traditional home turf for impeached President Park Geun-hye and the ruling Saenuri Party, in which Ban garnered 35.8 percent in approval scores, up 9.3 percentage points from a week earlier.

As there is no competitive presidential contender found in the ruling bloc, Ban is seen as the last remaining hope for conservative voters.

Ban has not officially declared his run for president in his homeland, but local media outlets speculated that he had already indicated his candidacy in recent press conference with South Korean journalists in New York.

Since the scandal involving President Park erupted in late October, Ban's approval rating declined in tandem with growing fury over Park which resulted in the presidential impeachment on Dec. 9.

The outgoing UN chief was known to have been close to President Park and the ruling party, as seen in his seven meetings with Park during her four-day trip to New York in September 2015, but he recently drew a line to the close relations.

Moon Jae-in, former head of the biggest opposition Minjoo Party who had been the frontrunner in presidential surveys for the past seven weeks, surrendered to Ban last week with an approval rating of 23.1 percent. It was 0.2 percentage points lower than Ban's.

Lee Jae-myung of the Minjoo Party, mayor of Seongnam, a city to the southeast of capital Seoul, maintained the third place at 12.3 percent, but it was down 2.6 percentage points compared with a week ago.

Ahn Cheol-soo of the minor opposition People's Party came next with a support score of 8.2 percent, almost unchanged from the prior week.
An opportunity for foodies and beer lovers to get lost in a world of food and drink from a hand-selected range of food trucks and breweries from around New Zealand.
Quick Snap

You should turn on this feature as it allows you to quickly take pictures without launching the camera app. All you have to do is double tap any of the volume keys while the screen remains off or locked. To turn on this feature, just go to Settings>Feature>Quick Snap. You will see the on/off tab.

However, while playing music, this function will not work. The buttons will be used only for volume adjustment.

Fingerprint Snap

This is another camera feature that allows you to use the fingerprint sensor button as a shutter button. In order to take a picture, you just have to place your finger on the sensor and the phone will click a photo. To activate it, you just have to go to Settings>Feature>Fingerprint Snap.

SEE ALSO: Super Mario Run Android Coming in 2017

VR Mode Switch

The phone has a dedicated VR app that lets you view everything in VR mode. As such, if you like VR and you own a headset, you can activate the VR mode by just tapping and holding the power button. However, you have to switch on the feature first by going to Settings>Feature>VR Mode Switch.

After turning on the feature, once you press the power button and hold it for some time, you will be able to see the VR option right there and you don't have to go to settings page again and again.

Power Button for Camera

You can quickly open the camera app without unlocking the screen. All that you have to do is press the power button twice in quick succession to open the camera. To activate this, you have to go to Settings>Feature>Press power button twice for camera. Then, switch on the feature. This is pretty useful when you want to take pictures on the go.

SEE ALSO: Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge Black Pearl Variant to Start Shipping in India From December 30

Quick Flashlight

Usually, when the power goes off, the best and quickest solution, which comes to our mind is turning our phones' flashlight on. But you either need an app or you need to access the camera to turn on the flashlight.

With Lenovo K6 Power, you can easily turn on the flashlight by just pressing the home button for a long time whenever the screen is locked. Turn on this feature by heading to Settings>Features>Quick Flashlight.

Knock to Light

With this feature, you don't have to keep pressing the unlock button to open or light the device. Instead, on Lenovo K6 Power you can turn on the "Knock to Light" feature by heading to settings. After you have turned it on, you can now light the device when it's screen is off by just tapping on the screen twice.

SEE ALSO: Four New Mid-range 4G VoLTE Smartphones Hit the Indian Market

Decreasing Tone Volume

With this feature whenever you pick up the device, the phone automatically decreases the ringing tone volume. This feature might save us some embarrassing moments as well when we forget to put our phones in silent mode in some situations. So, to turn it, head on to Settings>Feature>Decrease tone volume.

Well, the new Lenovo K6 Power does seem to be an interesting phone, and with these features on board, you can do so many things easily and quickly. More significantly, with Lenovo K6 Power, the company might further strengthen its portfolio in the sub-Rs. 10,000 price segment.

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Freedom 251

Ringing Bells' Freedom 251 created a lot of buzz in the smartphone arena earlier this year. The smartphone priced at Rs. 251 got millions of people order one for themselves without any suspicion of how they could get a smartphone at such a low price tag. Later, when the company failed to deliver its promises regarding the launch date, people started raising questions related to the shipping of the phone. Now there are claims that the company is shut down for good, but there are no confirmations as of now.

Apple iPhone 7

The iPhone 7 emerges as the second most searched smartphone on Google among Indians. India is a significant market for Apple with a surge of 50 percent in the sales of iPhones of late in comparison to the previous year. With the numerous Galaxy Note 7 explosions everywhere, the iPhone 7 was preferred by many who seek a high-end flagship phone.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 3

The Redmi Note 3 was the third smartphone, which was searched a lot by Indians. Ever since its launch, the Redmi Note 3 is one of the best-selling smartphones in the country. Lately, Xiaomi announced that it sold around 23 lakh units of the device in seven months of its launch, which is a notable record created by the Chinese mobile maker.

Lenovo K4 Note

Lenovo K4 Note has ranked fourth in the annual search rankings of Google India. The smartphone is an impressive budget offering in the country that has a vivid display, inbuilt VR technology, and a long-lasting battery. This smartphone is a value for money offering in the Indian market making it a good buy.

Samsung Galaxy J7

Belonging to the Galaxy J lineup of smartphones, the Galaxy J7 is an attractive mid-range smartphone. This device has been one of the best sellers and it has grabbed the fifth position among the most searched smartphones in Google India. The positives of this phone include the support for 4G connectivity, long lasting battery life, and competitive price point.

Moto G4

Undoubtedly, Moto G lineup has built a great user base across the world ever since it was launched, which was possible due to the affordable price tag of these smartphones. The Moto G4 launched in mid-2016 also carries these highlights and is a great seller in the mid-range smartphone market. This smartphone features all the much-needed aspects that a smartphone should have making it a good buy.

OnePlus 3

This flagship killer smartphone priced competitively is the seventh most searched smartphone among Indians. This smartphone is packed with everything that a flagship smartphone should have and comes at half the price of Apple and Samsung phones making it a great choice for the buyers. Eventually, there's no doubt that the OnePlus 3 occupied a place in the list of most searched phones.

iPhone SE

While the newly launched iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are way too expensive for many smartphone buyers in India, the iPhone SE launched earlier this year is a great buy. This smartphone comes with a much affordable price tag. Also, the many offers on iPhone SE provided by the e-commerce portals have interested those who want to own an iPhone, which is not too expensive.

Google Pixel

The Google Pixel smartphones are impressive ones in the market, but they did not make it to the top of the search results on Google India for many reasons. Google is claimed to have grabbed 10 percent of the market share in the premium smartphone segment of the country, but these phones are too expensive.

Lenovo K5 Note

The Lenovo K5 Note is the third smartphone from the Chinese company to have occupied a position among the 10 most searched smartphones in Google India. Well, we say third including the Moto G4. Like the K4 Note, this one has also set a USP of delivering long lasting battery life and 4G connectivity despite the reasonable price tag.
Samsung Galaxy S8 is Now Expected to Come With Massive 8GB of RAM and UFS 2.1 Storage News oi -Chakri Kudikala The Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus might feature these specifications.

Samsung Galaxy S8 will be the upcoming flagship phone from the South Korean smartphone giant. After being hit with the Galaxy Note 7 disaster in recent times, the companys focus is now completely on their upcoming flagship as it needs to get back the lost trust.

Take a Quick Look at Google's Best 2016 Launches: Google Pixel, Daydream VR, YouTube Go & More

Just a couple of days ago, we reported that there would be a new Galaxy S8 Plus variant with a massive 6-inch display and today we have a new leak about the smartphone saying that it will feature an enormous 8GB of RAM and UFS 2.1 storage. The RAM is manufactured by the company itself, and they are using a 10nm manufacturing process, says the website Ice Universe.

Its pretty much clear that Samsung is betting big on their Galaxy S8. The Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus, the bigger variant might feature the massive 8GB of RAM, and the UFS 2.1 storage might be present on both phones.

The smaller Samsung Galaxy S8 is expected to feature the same 5.1-inch display, but there will be only the dual curved variant this time around. It was rumored a long time ago that Samsung is killing the flat panel display variant of Galaxy S8.

The Samsung Galaxy S8 will feature the recently unveiled Snapdragon 835 chipset. However, there will be another Exynos variant. The Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus might feature a dual rear camera and the Galaxy S8 supposedly to get only a single rear camera of 12MP, but none of them are officially confirmed.

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[File photo]

New Oriental, the Chinese education consulting and test prep giant, has once again run afoul of standardized testing guidelines.

Reuters reported on Dec. 23 that a number of New Oriental clients were given access to practice questions taken from actual administered exams, which were not released by the College Board, the New York-based owner of the SAT. The College Board opts not to release some test questions, as they are often reused on subsequent exams. The report noted that some students possessed full copies of an SAT exam given in Asia last month, while someone who identified himself as a New Oriental Instructor had posted 15 pages of the same exam on social media.

In addition to the SAT, New Oriental has also been accused of helping students to cheat on the TOEFL, a popular English proficiency exam. In 2004, the company lost a case brought against them by ETS, the owner of the TOEFL, for distributing exam content without permission. Reuters noted that after the case concluded, New Oriental and ETS actual formed a partnership, making the former the official provider of online TOEFL practice exams in China. Tom Ewing, an ETS spokesperson, was quoted confirming that ETS has a process in place for identifying and dealing with copyright infringement.

Meanwhile, in response to the Reuters investigation, New Oriental issued its own response, confirming that it condemns illegal and illegitimate business practices, whether committed by competitors or any of our past employees  we are reviewing what has been raised and will take disciplinary actions against anyone who violated our policies and procedures.

Although New Oriental has not disclosed how it gained access to the test materials, the statement to Reuters did acknowledge that its instructors are required to periodically take the exams for which they tutor.

We believe this practice is fully consistent with industry practice elsewhere, including that of established private educational service providers in the U.S., the statement read. However, Reuters noted that the College Board banned tutors and other non-students from taking its newly redesigned exam in March, and again in December. In addition, those who did take the exam were prohibited from sharing its content, though the College Board acknowledged that this restriction is difficult to enforce.

A number of scores from SAT exams administered around Asia in October, November and December of 2014 were either withheld or canceled after allegations of widespread cheating, according to the Washington Post. A similar situation emerged in South Korea in May and October 2013, as well as in January 2007, when many students obtained access to unreleased test questions from previous exams.
ZTE Nubia Z11 and Nubia N1 Go on Sale Today in India, Exclusive to Amazon News oi -Sneha Nubia N1 and Z11 up for sale in India.

ZTE, the Chinese smartphone manufacturer had launched two of its high-end Nubia smartphones, namely Nubia Z11 and Nubia N1 on December 14 in India. These bezel-less 4G VoLTE smartphones will be available for sale from today onwards, exclusively on Amazon.

ZTE in a statement states that they are excited to announce the availability of their newly-launched Nubia Z11 and Nubia N1, and are ready to mark a new chapter for Nubia in India.

Take a Quick Look at Google's Best 2016 Launches: Google Pixel, Daydream VR, YouTube Go & More

Powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, Nubia Mobile launched Nubia Z11 with 64GB storage capacity available at a market price at Rs. 29,999, whereas Nubia N1 will be available at Rs. 11,999, which comes equipped with nubia's NeoPower technology and a massive 5,000mAh battery.

Going through the specifications, the smartphones will be packed with a 5.5-inch full HD display and will be powered by a 2.15GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 quad-core processor. Along with that, the smartphones will sport a 16MP rear camera with dual-tone LED flash, PDAF, and OIS and an 8MP front camera with f/2.4 aperture.

SEE ALSO: Christmas 2016: The Most Affordable Tech Gifts For Your Loved Ones



Being a subsidiary of ZTE Mobile Corporation, the devices are available with a quick fingerprint sensor at their back, which can unlock the phone in just 0.2 seconds. These devices are also bagged with 4G VoLTE support, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 4.1, and USB Type-C support as connectivity options.

Media reports suggest that the two Nubia smartphones will be up for sale from this noon onwards, only on Amazon India.

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LG V20 Review: The Most Underrated Smartphone of 2016! Reviews oi -Chakri Kudikala The phone excels in the audio department.

LG, the South Korean smartphone vendor, has been struggling a lot in recent times. The company' first valiant attempt in the modular smartphone market with the LG G5 was backfired. Although the G5 has incredible rear cameras and offered stellar performance, it was heavily letdown with its ill-fitted modular design.

Rating: 4.0 /5

PROS Gorgeous Quad HD Display

Decent Performance

Camera App is Tuned Very Well

Complete Day Battery Life

Excellent Audio Capabilities CONS Design is Boring

Poor Wide-Angle Rear Camera

Previously, LG used to release only flagship smartphones every year in their famous 'G' series. With the flop show of the LG G4, the company switched to two flagship smartphones per year much like what Samsung does with their 'S' series and 'Note' series of smartphones. And, at the IFA 2015, we saw the LG V10 came into limelight with its unique approach of the dual display, dual front-facing cameras, dual stereo speakers, and nearly everything 'dual.' It inspired many, but we never got a chance to test the phone as it did not reach the Indian shores.

Also Read: Why Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi and Other Phones Use 2.5D Glass Display

But, that isn't the case with LG V20. With the terrible show of their LG G5 in the country, the firm, earlier this month, announced the V20 in India with a price tag of Rs. 54,999, which was pretty much expected. And, it is worth noticing that the V20 retains all the duals from the V10 and adds one more dual to the list. Yes, we are speaking about the dual rear camera setup. Also, LG has included an exclusive DAC in the phone, which is its USP, probably.

Does the LG V20 justify the asking price? Or is it another flop show from the company? Let's find out in our complete review of the phone.

Design: The Phone Feels Substantially Heavy in Hands

The LG V20 is a larger LG G5 minus the modular mess. However, the phone's chin looks like a removable panel same as the G5. From the first glance itself, we started calling the phone a 'bulky monster,' and yeah, the phone is substantially heavy at 174 grams and easily falls into our list of bulky phones we used this year.

The LG V20 is bigger as well with a 5.7-inch display. The phone comes with dimensions of 159.7 x 78.1 x 7.6 mm, and it is worth noticing that it is taller than the Google Nexus 6 with 159.7mm, thanks to the secondary display present above the primary display. Thankfully, the phone is thinner than the competition at 7.6mm.

Most of the front is dominated by the display and the phone boasts of a 72.4 percent screen-to-body ratio. Both the chin and portion above the secondary display are made up of plastic for better RF (Radio Frequency) signals. Apart from this, the phone is entirely made of metal and LG is one such brand offering removable batteries with every smartphone they release onto the market and the V20 is no exception. The phone's rear panel along with the battery is removable. This removable back panel has some interesting mechanism under it sleeves as it automatically opens up when the phone accidentally slips from your hands and protects the display from shatters.

There's nothing fancy with the button placements, though. LG sticks to their design language as the power button is still present on the rear of the phone. That said, the power button also has the fingerprint sensor embedded into it within reach of your index finger. Unlike the scanner on the LG V10, this is an active scanner, which wakes up the device directly from sleep.

The volume rockers are present on the left side of the phone and the USB Type-C port along with the 3.5mm headphone jack and single speaker are present at the bottom of the phone. Overall, the phone feels good in the hand but too bulky at the same time.

Display: The QHD Panel is Bright, but Not as Bright as the Competition

The LG V20 comes with a 5.7-inch Quad HD display with a resolution of 1440*2560 pixels that further expands to a pixel density of 515 PPI. This Quad HD panel is bright and vivid with punchy colors and deep blacks. Having said that, text appeared crisp, and even the sunlight legibility is far better from the previous iteration of LG phones. On the whole, the display on the V20 is a much improved one but slightly lags behind the Google Pixel XL and Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge as they both exhibit better colors than the V20.

Another interesting aspect in the LG V20 is its secondary display which is 2.1 inches in size with a resolution of 160x1040 pixels. This display is present above the primary one and acts an always-on display feature present on the LG G5. It displays the notification icons when a notification arrives and when the screen is on, it shows the quick notification toggles such as the Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc.

Hardware and Performance: Buttery Smooth!

The LG V20 might be the last phone released in 2016 to come powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chipset, which is a quad-core chip with two of its cores clocked at 2.15GHz, and two of them are clocked at 1.6GHz. The phone also gets 4GB of RAM and Adreno 530 GPU to handle the system and graphic intensive operations.

The LG V20, much like other Snapdragon 820 phones released this year, performs well enough even with graphic heavy tasks. The phone heats up a lot when the brightness levels are set to maximum, and as a result, we have experienced severe battery drain. With ample gaming, the phone becomes warm on the rear.

The major flaw which we came across the phone is: when the battery is down to below five percent, the power button becomes irresponsive. To overcome this, we need to pull out the battery (thankfully) and reboot the phone to get it function properly. Apart from this, we never faced a single issue.

Audio Performance: Manufactured to Impress Audiophiles

The LG V20 comes with a special 32-bit Quad DAC that delivers superior sound quality. However, the DAC should be enabled manually to get it working, and that's too easy. There's a notification toggle present for the DAC in the notification center. After turning on the DAC, the audio is heavily impressive and interestingly, LG is bundling a B&O (Bang and Olufsen) headphones. We will be making a separate article on the V20's audio capabilities by the end of this week. Stay tuned for that.

Software: The First Android Nougat Laden Phone Apart from Pixels

The LG V20 comes with Android Nougat based LG Optimus UI out-of-the-box. With the LG G5, the company has ditched the app drawer and all the apps are spread across your home screen, but thankfully, LG has added the traditional app feature. Though, you need to enable it manually.

The LG Optimus UX is a heavily customized interface and there are no signs of stock Android anywhere. LG has added some exclusive features such as the profiles that allow you to create a profile of your choice and these profiles will be automatically enabled based on your location. For example, if you are at home and created a profile exclusively for home timings, then that profile will be activated automatically when you reach your home. However, this feature only works when location services are turned on in your phone.

Apart from these, regular features such as the double tap to wake and sleep and a particular theme engine are also present in the phone. The user interface is neatly polished, and we never came across a single issue with the interface.

Camera: The Same Old Dual Camera Setup

The LG V20 retains the same dual-camera setup as the LG G5. The primary camera sensor on the V20 is of 16MP and the secondary one is an 8MP one with a wide angle lens. Out of them, the images captured by the first sensor turned out to be excellent with great clarity and accurate colors. Low light performance was decent with some noise in extremely low light situations.

However, the major letdown is the 8MP wide-angle camera, which captures decent images in bright light conditions but fails to exhibit the same in low light situations. Noticeable noise can be seen on all the images captured with the 8MP camera on the rear. Having said that, we were pretty much disappointed with the secondary camera.

The most impressive thing with the LG V20 is its video recording capabilities. The phone can record Ultra HD videos, and with the help of Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) and Electronic Image Stabilization (EIS), there is no distortion in the videos at all.

Speaking of the 5MP front-facing camera, a wide-angle lens is present in it as well. You can quickly toggle between the standard camera and a wide-angle camera easily in the camera app. Selfies captured with this camera in bright light conditions turned out to be good but doesn't inspire confidence in low-light shots.

Battery Life: Lasts Easily for a Day

The LG V20 comes with a 3200mAh battery with support for Qualcomm QuickCharge 3.0 technology. The phone takes about one and half hours to charge from zero to 100 percent completely and easily lasts for a day with 4G mobile data turned on all the time. With moderate usage involving social messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, etc., one hour of gaming, and 30 minutes of internet browsing, the phone lasted for one and half days.

However, the battery quickly drains while using the camera app. In our review period, the battery drained about 30 percent for 15 minutes of video recording, which is underwhelming. LG G5 has the same issue, and the same continues with the V20 as well. But, with moderate usage, the phone easily lasts for a day on a single charge.

Verdict: The Most Underrated Smartphone of 2016

LG has been with us for a while now, and we know what their smartphones can offer. With the letdown of LG G5, there were several questions asked by the consumers, but thankfully, LG has answered all those with a decent all-rounder in the form of LG V20.

Although the phone is priced aggressively, it justifies the asking price. The phone delivers excellent performance, non-buggy software, decent cameras, and a whole day of battery life. However, there is a stiff competition in the form of Google Pixel XL and Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. The Galaxy phone has better aspects than the V20 and is available for a lesser price as well. But, you will miss the wide-angle camera and dual display as well.

The major advantage with the LG V20 is its 32-bit quad DAC that offers superior audio quality, and no other phone matches it regarding audio performance. The loudspeaker is decent as well, whereas we get a below average speaker on the S7 Edge, which is mainly due to its water resistant properties. The LG V20 is clearly a winner if you are looking for a smartphone with incredible audio performance.

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Overall, Double XL is a well-made film that might be liked by gentry in all shapes, sizes, and age too. By the way, do not miss the interval!!
Polish Defense Ministry Drafts Reform of Armed Forces' Command Structure

Sputnik News

20:31 24.12.2016

Poland's Defense Ministry worked out a reform project of the armed forces leadership, the ministry said Saturday.

WARSAW (Sputnik)  Earlier this month, Poland's President Andrzej Duda announced his plans to reform the leadership of the state's army to overcome the disadvantages of the current system.

"Yesterday, the Defense Ministry handed over for departmental approvals a bill on the introduction of the new system of command and leadership of Poland's Armed Forces. The joint system will replace the current structure based on the three commands operating in parallel with each other introduced by former President Bronislaw Komorowski in 2013," the ministry said in a statement.

The system introduced by Komorowski implies that the army is controlled by three commands, namely the General Command, the General Staff and the Operational Command.

 Sputnik

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Strikes Continue Against ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release

SOUTHWEST ASIA, Dec. 25, 2016  U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack and fighter aircraft conducted nine strikes in Syria:

-- Near Ar Raqqah, nine strikes engaged eight ISIL tactical units, destroyed seven fighting positions and a tunnel, and suppressed an ISIL tactical unit.

Strikes in Iraq

Bomber and fighter aircraft conducted three strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq's government:

-- Near Al Huwayjah, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit, destroyed four buildings and two tunnels.

-- Near Al Qaim, a strike engaged two ISIL car bomb factories and a weapons storage facility.

-- Near Mosul, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit, destroyed four buildings, four heavy machine guns, three tactical vehicles, three car bombs, suppressed nine mortar teams and two ISIL tactical units.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

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Arab world welcomes UNSC resolution against Israeli settlements

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 09:58, December 25, 2016

CAIRO, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Arab world received Friday's endorsed United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution demanding immediate and complete halt of Israeli settlement activities on occupied Palestinian territories.

Arab League (AL) Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit congratulated the Palestinian people and government on the "pivotal" resolution that was endorsed by a large majority and after more than 35 years of attempts to issue a similar resolution.

"The resolution reflects massive international support for the historical struggle of the Palestinian people to get their legitimate rights, atop of which is the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital," said the AL chief in a statement Saturday.

The resolution was endorsed Friday by 14 out of the council's 15 member states, while the United States, Israel's biggest ally, abstained but did not veto despite attempts of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.

Egypt, which initially proposed the draft resolution, attempted to delay the whole vote on the resolution, which was seen as response to pressure from Trump, yet the Egyptian foreign ministry later explained that the requested delay was only meant to make sure veto right will not be exercised against the resolution.

The draft resolution was later on Friday resubmitted by New Zealand, Venezuela, Malaysia and Senegal and it was massively endorsed.

Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat, also Secretary-General of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), thanked in a phone call on Saturday Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry for Egypt's vote in favor of the resolution.

"Erekat reiterated confidence of the Palestinian people in Egypt due to its care and defense of the Palestinian cause," said the Egyptian foreign ministry in a statement.

The spokesman of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas hailed the adoption of the resolution as a "day of victory," and described it as "a blow to the Israeli policy."

Earlier in December, the Knesset, Israel's parliament, has initially approved a couple of controversial pro-settlement bills that are meant to retroactively legalize about 4,000 settlement homes as well as unauthorized Israeli outposts and to allow expropriation of more Palestinian lands in the West Bank.

Over 400,000 Israeli settlers currently live in the West Bank and at least 200,000 others live in East Jerusalem, which the Palestinians see as the capital city of their future state.

The Arab Parliament also hailed in a statement Saturday the UN anti-settlement vote and regarded it as "a step on the way of returning the rights of the oppressed Palestinian people who started to yield the fruits of their struggle."

The Arab Parliament's chief Meshal al-Sulami called on the UNSC to pressure Israel to implement the resolution as well as the rest of UN relevant resolutions to achieve the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

The resolution was also praised by many Arab states including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan, Sudan, Lebanon, Tunisia, Yemen and others, mostly describing it as "historic."

Among non-Arabs, the anti-settlement resolution was welcomed by regional powers such as Turkey and Iran, several bodies including the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and Amnesty International, and world figures including UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

Israel is blamed by the international community for the deadlock of the Middle East peace process due to its settlement expansion policy that is rejected even by the United States.

Supported by the United States, Russia, China, the European Union and many others, a UN-sponsored two-state solution seeks to put an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict via the establishment of an independent Palestinian state within the 1967 borders.

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Israeli PM slams Obama over UN vote on settlements

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 10:00, December 25, 2016

JERUSALEM, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed at the Obama administration on Saturday, after a U.S. abstention in a UN vote that passed a resolution demanding an end to Israeli settlement construction.

"The Obama administration has carried out an underhanded and an anti-Israel maneuver at the United Nations Security Council," Netanyahu said of the resolution passed by the 15-member body on Friday. The hardline prime minister also slammed the motion as "distorted and shameful."

Israel has recalled its envoys in New Zealand and Senegal, which, together with Venezuela and Malaysia, submitted the resolution that was passed by a 14-0 majority.

Netanyahu suggested that Israel might sever ties with the United Nations, saying he had already ordered to cut funds of 30 million shekels (8 million U.S. dollars) to five "exceptionally hostile" UN bodies.

"There isn't a greater absurdity than calling the Western Wall an 'occupied territory'," Netanyahu said of the site in East Jerusalem, a territory that Israel seized in 1967 and the Palestinians see as their future capital.

The Israeli cabinet has vowed to respond with a full annexation of settlement blocs.

The UN vote came in the wake of the Regulation Bill, which the Israeli parliament approved in its first out of three readings almost three weeks ago to legalize Jewish settlements built on occupied Palestinian lands.

The motion demands Israel "immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem." It states that the building of settlements by Israel has "no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law."

The United States, Israel's closest ally, traditionally protects Israel from such motions.

B'Tselem, one of Israel's largest human rights organizations, welcomed the resolution.

"Today's United Nations Security Council resolution reaffirms international consensus that Israel's settlements are illegal and harm Palestinian human rights," the group said in a statement.

"It is not an 'anti-Israeli' resolution, but a balanced one, which rejects the occupation, not Israel," the statement read, adding that the group expects further international measures "for a better future for Israelis and Palestinians."

About 500,000 Jewish settlers live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, lands that Israel seized in the 1967 Mideast War and has been controlling them ever since, despite international condemnations.

The Palestinians wish to build their future state on these lands.

The U.S. officially opposes the settlements and considers them as an obstacle to peace. The settlements are illegal under international law.

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Sen. Graham threatens to defund UN after Israeli settlement vote

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 1:33PM

A US senator has threatened to introduce a measure in Congress to pull US funding for the United Nations until the Security Council repeals a resolution it passed condemning Israeli settlement construction as illegal.

"It's that important to me," Sen. Lindsey Graham, a member of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, told CNN on Saturday. "This is a road we haven't gone down before. If you can't show the American people that international organizations can be more responsible, there is going to be a break. And I am going to lead that break."

"I will do everything in my power, working with the new administration and Congress, to leave no doubt about where America stands when it comes to the peace process and where we stand with the only true democracy in the Middle East, Israel," the South Carolina Republican added.

In a major rebuke to Israel, the UN Security Council passed a resolution in a 14-0 vote on Friday demanding Israel "immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem (al-Quds)."

The US, which has vetoed similar measures in the past, abstained from the vote, allowing the resolution to be adopted.

The decision came despite significant pressure from the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in alliance with US President-elect Donald Trump, who personally intervened to keep the measure from coming up to a vote.

Graham said he had been planning to work with the UN to create a Marshall Plan to support countries in conflicts, but added he will not do so unless the council cancels the anti-Israeli resolution.

"I am a huge supporter of foreign aid and the UN," he said. "I want to do more, not less. But I can't support funding a body that singles out the only democracy in the Middle East who shares our values."

The senator said that the effort to defund the UN is a new approach.

"This is a road we haven't gone down before," Graham said. "If you can't show the American people that international organizations can be more responsible, there is going to be a break. And I am going to lead that break."

Senator Ted Cruz, another staunch ally of Israel in Congress, also put the UN on notice on Saturday evening, issuing a strongly-worded statement in response to Friday's vote.

The Texas Republican said he had spoken with Netanyahu to "assure him of strong support in Congress." "No US $ for UN until reversed," he said in a tweet.

Cruz said on Friday that he looked forward to working with Graham and Trump "to significantly reduce or even eliminate US funding of the United Nations."

White House officials said the Barack Obama administration's decision not to veto the measure was in line with long-standing US opposition to Israeli settlement activities, calling them an obstacle to peace and a "two-state solution."

Netanyahu slammed the outgoing US president for the decision to abstain from the vote.

"The Obama administration conducted a shameful anti-Israel ambush at the UN," Israeli premier said on Saturday. "We are entering a new era and as the President-elect Trump said yesterday, this is going to happen much quicker than people think."

Over half a million Israelis live in more than 230 illegal settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem al-Quds.

All Israeli settlements are illegal under international law. Tel Aviv has defied international calls to stop the settlements expansion in the occupied Palestinian territories.

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Netanyahu slams Obama over UN vote against Israel

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 11:0AM

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has condemned outgoing US President Barack Obama and said he is looking forward to working with President-elect Donald Trump after the US allowed the UN Security Council to adopt a resolution against illegal Israeli settlements.

Netanyahu made the comments on Saturday, a day after the Obama administration allowed the resolution to get adopted by refusing to veto it, breaking from a long-standing practice to shield Israel from UN condemnation.

"The Obama administration conducted a shameful anti-Israel ambush at the UN," Netanyahu said. "We are entering a new era and as the President-elect Trump said yesterday, this is going to happen much quicker than people think."

Netanyahu said the US abstention was "in complete contrast" to US commitments not to impose conditions on Israel at the Security Council.

The UN resolution, while mostly symbolic, could further isolate Israel and hinder its negotiating position in future peace talks.

Tensions have intensified between the outgoing Obama administration and Israel after the UN resolution, which is likely the final bitter chapter in the years of antagonism between Obama and Netanyahu.

The decision to abstain from the council's 14-0 vote is one of the biggest US rebukes of its long-standing ally in recent history.

The Obama administration has grown increasingly frustrated with Israel's illegal settlement construction, describing it as an obstacle to peace and a "two-state solution."

The US ambassador to the UN, Samantha Power, raised her hand to abstain in the chamber when the resolution was put to a vote. After the vote, she said the US chose not to veto the resolution because settlement building has "no legal validity."

Israel's UN ambassador, Danny Danon, reacted angrily to the vote and issued a sharp rebuke at the Obama administration's role. "It was to be expected that Israel's greatest ally would act in accordance with the values that we share and that they would have vetoed this disgraceful resolution," he said.

The vote came a day after Trump personally intervened to keep the measure from coming up for a vote. Israeli officials said they were aware of such plans by the White House and had turned to Trump for support.

Over half a million Israelis live in more than 230 illegal settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem al-Quds.

All Israeli settlements are illegal under international law. Tel Aviv has defied international calls to stop the settlements expansion in the occupied Palestinian territories.

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Philippines' Duterte threatens to 'burn down' UN

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 8:16AM

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, known for his colorful rhetoric, has threatened to "burn down" the United Nations headquarters in New York over mounting international criticism of his crackdown on suspected drug dealers.

"You go and file a complaint in the United Nations, I will burn down the United Nations if you want," Rodrigo Duterte said when asked about the country's reported human rights violations, as quoted by media on Saturday.

Addressing military personnel at an army base during a December 18 trip to the country's southern city of Zamboanga, the tough-talking president said, "I will burn it (the UN) down if I go to America."

Over 6,000 people have been killed in the country's drug war, according to a December 19 government report. Duterte has been under fire for the harsh crackdown.

On Thursday, the Philippine leader repeatedly described UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, as an "idiot" after the UN official earlier suggested launching an investigation into Duterte's own accounts of killings when he was the mayor of Davao and the "shocking" number of deaths during the ongoing anti-drug war.

Duterte had claimed earlier he had personally killed people when he was Davao's mayor to set an example for police.

"It should be unthinkable for any functioning judicial system not to launch investigative and judicial proceedings when someone has openly admitted being a killer," Zeid al-Hussein said in a statement. "The killings committed by Mr. Duterte, by his own admission, at a time when he was a mayor, clearly constitute murder."

In September, Duterte, who assumed the presidency in July, rejected a meeting scheduled with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, and even threatened to leave the UN after the world body criticized his "war on drugs."

Duterte has used offensive language to describe world politicians who make comments he does not like on numerous occasions.

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A giant rooster figure, sporting a Donald Trump hairstyle, has popped up outside a shopping mall in downtown Taiyuan, north China's Shanxi Province. The designer said the sculpture - heralding the upcoming Chinese Year of the Rooster - was inspired by the American president-elect, by both his iconic hairstyle and gestures. [Photo: qq.com]
Yemeni army snipers shoot dead six Saudi soldiers

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 7:17AM

Yemeni army snipers have shot dead six Saudi soldiers in the kingdom's Najran Province in a fresh wave of retaliatory attacks.

According to Yemen's al-Masirah television, three of the Saudi troops were killed at the Shaja' military base in Najran on Saturday night.

Earlier in the day, Yemeni snipers shot and killed three other soldiers at the military base of Tal'a in the same province.

Yemeni armed forces also launched rocket attacks at positions of Saudi-backed mercenaries near Khadra border crossing in Najran, killing and wounding a number of them.

Also on Saturday night, army troops and allied force attacked the Saudi bases of Samnah and Afra in the kingdom's southwestern province of Jizan, leaving an unspecified number of military personnel there dead and injured.

The Yemeni army also fired several artillery shells at Saudi military positions in Jizan.

According to the report, massive explosions also hit the Saudi army's weapons warehouses to the west of Qais Mountain in Jizan.

The Yemeni attacks come in retaliation for Riyadh's nonstop military campaign against its impoverished neighbor.

Most recently, Saudi fighter jets pounded the Razih district in Yemen's Sa'ada province and Nihm district, northwest of the Yemeni capital, Sana'a, on Sunday.

There were no immediate reports of possible casualties.

Saudi Arabia has been engaged in a deadly campaign against Yemen since March 2015 in an attempt to reinstall the former Yemeni government.

The offensive has claimed 11,403 lives and left 19,343 others wounded, according to figures compiled by the Legal Center for Rights and Development, a Yemeni non-governmental monitoring group.

Yemen wants UN action

In a statement on Sunday, the Yemeni Human Rights Ministry condemned the Saudi regime for its crimes during the war on the Arabian Peninsula state, particularly its use of internationally-banned weapons against civilians.

The statement further called on the United Nations to adopt measures aimed at putting an end to Saudi brutalities, saying the world body should launch an "unbiased" investigation into the deadly Saudi-led offensive.

The ministry also urged the removal of Riyadh's blockade against Yemen as well as swift aid delivery to the violence-stricken civilians.

The statement came days after Human Rights Watch censured Saudi-led forces for using cluster bombs during the "unlawful" campaign against Yemen.

The New York-based rights body said "cluster munitions are prohibited weapons that should never be used under any circumstances due to the harm inflicted on civilians."

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Angered by UN vote, Israel threatens annexation of Palestinian land

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 6:24AM

Israel has threatened to annex the Palestinian properties on which it has built settlement blocs after the UN Security Council approved a resolution denouncing the structures as illegal.

"We should announce the immediate annexation of the settlement blocs We should renew construction throughout the land," Gilad Erdan, the Israeli minister for public security, from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hardline Likud Party said on Saturday.

Israel was created in 1948 after wholesale wars on Arab states. The warfare was followed by the establishment of the so-called Green Line, which marked its forcefully-seized contours.

However, in 1967, it staged further military attacks beyond the line, seizing the Palestinian territories now known as the West Bank and East Jerusalem al-Quds. Since then, it has been dotting the lands with more than 120 settlements despite the international outcry against the unlawful activities.

Resolution 2334, which was passed on Friday, declared the settlements to be void of any "legal validity" and said their existence amounted to "a flagrant violation under international law and a major obstacle toa just, lasting and comprehensive peace."

Palestinian factions in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip have collectively welcomed a United Nations Security Council resolution, with Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki describing the vote as a "victory for the Palestinian people."

Prior to the vote, Tel Aviv had launched into a frenetic but unsuccessful lobbying to block the vote and prompt a veto by its strongest ally, the United States, who surprisingly abstained.

The regime was swift to lash out at the measure, block funding to some UN projects, and threaten to revise ties with the world body.

"There's so much darkness and so much hypocrisy in the UN's vote on Israel," Erdan further said. "It's hypocrisy and shamelessness."

Before the vote, US President-elect Donald Trump had called on Egypt, which had drafted the resolution, to decide against tabling the proposal.

Egypt toed the line, but the draft was put to vote by Senegal, New Zealand, Malaysia, and Venezuela, who had said they would resort their right to do so if Cairo would back down.

After the vote, Netanyahu said the regime would reassess ties with the world body. "The decision that was taken was biased and shameful, but we will withstand it," he added.

Also as a means of getting back at the UN, the Israeli regime has put back on track proposed legislation to award legal status to some 4,000 settler units built on private Palestinian property in the West Bank.

The bill had been advancing through Knesset (the Israeli Parliament), but was put on hold until Trump would enter the White House on January 20.

Israel's Channel 2 has also reported that Netanyahu could announce new construction beyond the Green Line, when he convenes his cabinet for its weekly meeting on Sunday morning.

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Israel May Bring Controversial Settlement Bill to Early Vote; PM Asks for Calm

Sputnik News

21:57 25.12.2016(updated 03:54 26.12.2016)

Israel continues to respond to the UN Security Council resolution demanding it stop building settlements in occupied Palestinian territories with a mix of defiance and conciliation.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he's formulating a plan to retaliate against the UN at a December 25 Cabinet meeting  but he also apparently instructed his party's lawmakers to tone down their settlement rhetoric until US President-elect Donald Trump takes office next month.

On the other hand, other sources say the UN resolution is causing pro-settlement factions in Israel to push even further, bringing up a vote on a deeply controversial bill to officially legalize a number of outposts.

"We will do all it takes so Israel emerges unscathed from this shameful decision," Netanyahu told his Cabinet, AP reports. He said he had asked the Foreign Ministry to prepare a "plan of action" against the UN, but offered no more details.

Netanyahu has accused US President Barack Obama of secretly working with Israel's enemies to allow the vote to take place. The US abstained from the resolution but did not veto it, as it has similar resolutions in the past.

"Israel looks forward to working with President-elect Trump and with all our friends in Congress, Republicans and Democrats alike, to negate the harmful effects of this absurd resolution," Netanyahu said in a statement after the resolution.

However, the Times of Israel reports that Netanyahu doesn't want the belligerent stance to spread. Meeting with ministers of his Likud party before he met the Cabinet, he asked them to like low until Trump is inaugurated at the end of next month. Trump is seen as more accommodating to Israel than Obama and has called the resolution, which is largely symbolic, "shameful."

"I say to the ministers, you need to act with insight, with responsibility and coolheadedness. That means both in action and in words," the prime minister said, the Ynet news website reports.

"Don't come out now with statements about annexing territory and building in the settlements, because there may be another international move [against Israel] before the change in the US administration on January 20," he said, according to the Times of Israel.

Israeli local media report that Netanyahu may be worried that as the Obama administration prepares to exit the White House, they may push for the UN to set parameters for a permanent Israeli-Palestinian accord.

Other ministers, including members of Netanyahu's party, called openly for Israel to annex some parts of the West Bank following the Security Council decision. Despite the requests for calm, sources within Israel's Knesset tell the Times of Israel that a controversial bill previously shelved until Trump took office may be brought to a vote in the coming weeks in a show of defiance.

The Regulation Bill, which would legalize 4,000 housing units in the West Bank built on private Palestinian land, could be voted on before the inauguration after all. The bill has been condemned by the US, the UN and the EU, and even Israel's attorney general.

"We are done playing nice," a coalition government source told The Times of Israel December 24. "It's back on the table."

Since the UN Security Council passed the resolution, Netanyahu has cancelled meetings with the leaders of the UK and Ukraine, recalled its ambassadors to Senegal and New Zealand, and summoned a number of envoys to his office.

 Sputnik

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Netanyahu Summons US Envoy After UNSC Vote on Israeli Settlements Resolution

Sputnik News

20:53 25.12.2016(updated 22:52 25.12.2016)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has summoned US Ambassador Dan Shapiro in connection with the UNSC resolution which condemns Israeli settlements in the West Bank, an Israeli government source told RIA Novosti.

American authorities did not use their veto power over the resolution and abstained from voting.

For the first time during the eight years of Barack Obama's administration, the United States turned a deaf ear to the requests of Jerusalem and abstained from using its veto power, thereby giving the opportunity for the resolution to pass.

Speaking at Sunday's cabinet meeting, Netanyahu accused the Obama administration of initiating the resolution document behind the scenes, formulating its position and passing it in the UN.

The resolution states that Israel should immediately and completely cease all settlement activities on "occupied Palestinian territory," including in East Jerusalem.

Earlier on Sunday, Netanyahu summoned 14 ambassadors of the UN Security Council (UNSC) member states, including Russia, following their vote on a resolution.

According to Netanyahu's spokesperson, "Israeli Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the Foreign Ministry to summon the ambassadors of the UNSC member states that voted on a resolution against the settlement activities."

The spokesperson added that the meetings would be held separately with the respective deputies of the director general of the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

Over 500,000 Israeli settlers live in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, which Israel captured during the 1967 war. The settlements are considered illegal by the United Nations.

Israeli authorities criticized the resolution and refused to abide by its provisions.

 Sputnik

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Trump Claims UNSC Anti-Israel Resolution Will Inhibit Middle East Settlement

Sputnik News

03:27 25.12.2016(updated 03:31 25.12.2016)

Adoption of the UN Security Council's resolution, condemning Israeli settlements in the West Bank will make it more difficult to negotiate establishing peace in the Middle East, US President-elect Donald Trump said Sunday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  The statement came in the wake of the UN Security Council's adoption of resolution damning the Israeli construction activities in the West Bank and in Easr Jerusalem.

"The big loss yesterday for Israel in the United Nations will make it much harder to negotiate peace. Too bad, but we will get it done anyway!" Trump posted on his Twitter account.

The resolution was passed on Friday in a 14-0 vote, with the only abstention from the United States. The resolution states that Israel should immediately and completely cease all settlement activities on "occupied Palestinian territory," including in East Jerusalem. Israeli authorities criticized the resolution and refused to abide by its provisions.

Later in the day, Trump said in a statement that Washington would change its policy toward Israel at the United Nations after he assumes presidency.

Over 500,000 Israeli settlers live in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, which Israel captured during the 1967 war. The settlements are considered illegal by the United Nations.

 Sputnik

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Netanyahu: Israel Will Review Relations With UN After Resolution on Settlements

Sputnik News

02:22 25.12.2016

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the state's Foreign Ministry to review the UN-Israel relationship, including the issues related to Israeli contributions to UN budget and the presence of the organization's representatives in the state after the adoption of the anti-Israel UN Security Council's resolution.

TEL AVIV (Sputnik)  On Friday, the UN Security Council passed the resolution condemning Israeli settlements in the West Bank in a 14-0 vote, with the only abstention from the United States. The resolution states that Israel should immediately and completely cease all settlement activities on "occupied Palestinian territory," including in East Jerusalem. Israeli authorities criticized the resolution and refused to abide by its provisions.

"I have ordered the Foreign Ministry to carry out a revision of all our relations with the United Nations, including funding UN institutions and presence of UN representatives in the state," Netanyahu said Saturday, adding that he had already directed that the contributions to the budget of five UN institutions should be decreased by some $7.87 million.

On Saturday, local media reported that Netanyahu canceled the visit of his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Groysman scheduled for the next week over Kiev's support for the UNSC resolution.

Over 500,000 Israeli settlers live in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, which Israel captured during the 1967 war. The settlements are considered illegal by the United Nations.

 Sputnik

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Warsaw, Washington Sign Agreement on Missiles Delivery to Poland

Sputnik News

01:36 25.12.2016

Warsaw and Washington signed deal on supplying Poland with Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile-Extended Range (JASSM ER), designed to destroy hostile air defenses before aircraft are within range, Polish Defense Ministry said.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  The $223 million (940 million zlotys) contract was signed Saturday, the ministry said.

"National Defense Ministry informs, that over the past days the US and Polish representatives signed an agreement, guaranteeing delivery of JASSM Extended Range missiles to Poland."

On November 29, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said the US Department of State has made a determination to approve a possible sale of seventy JASSM ER missiles to Poland for upgrades to F-16 combat aircraft.

In April, Russian district Commander, Col. Gen. Andrei Kartapolov said the United States planned to provide its allies in the Eastern Europe with the JASSM ER missiles, which would make it possible for NATO aviation to reach targets in Russia's territory at a distance of no less than 807 miles.

Since 2014, NATO has been building up its military presence in Europe, especially in Eastern European countries neighboring Russia, using Moscow's alleged interference in the Ukrainian conflict as a pretext. Moscow has repeatedly denied the claims and warned NATO that the military buildup on Russia's borders is provocative and threatens the existing strategic balance of power.

 Sputnik

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Tu-154 Careless

According to Ascend magazine, Tu-154 has suffered a fatal accident for every 431,200 flights, compared with Boeing 737s record of one fatal crash for each 2.68-million flights. In the 1980s the Tu-154 aircraft in different modifications became the greatest mass aircraft of Aeroflot. Tu-154 carried out flights along routes by those connecting practically all large cities of the USSR, aircraft in the summer periods became the basic "ferryman" of tourists and vacationers into the southern cities of the country. The Tu-154 accomplished flights into more than 80 cities of Europe, Asia and Africa. For the salient achievements on the development and the putting into commission of aircraft Tu-154 in 1980 to the large association of the creators of aircraft was awarded the Lenin Prize.

Taking into account the large fleet of operational Tu-154B and Tu-154M aircraft and their significant role in a matter of the guarantee of passenger transportation in Russia, the Tupolev OKB continues to work at the maintenance of the fleet of aircraft of the type Tu-154 in the normal state, and also are performed constant work on the improvement of the elements of the construction of the glider of aircraft, its engines and equipment for the purpose of the guarantee of correspondence to contemporary requirements to domestic and international requirements and, first of all, in the part of the requirements on the environmental impact on the environment (noise and harmful ejections).

The scale work of OKB Tupolev carried out the transfer of operational Tu-154M to repairless technology. All latest achievements, which led to the considerable savings of the means of airlines, to an increase in the flying time, to an increase in the airworthiness of aircraft were carried out in the close creative collaboration with the specialists of the number of the enterprises of Russia and, in the first place, by TsAGI (Central Institute of Aerohydrodynamics im. N Ye Zhukovskiy) and GosNII (State Scientific Research Institute) GA. Because of these works the aircraft today ensures, in spite of the opinion of some "specialists", the necessary level of flight safety. The best confirmation of this became creation, including in recent years, on the base Tu-154 the aircraft- salons, which successfully fly on the internal and foreign routes. The high, in the comparison with the contemporary liners, fuel consumption is not so important for them. In entire rest Tu-154, that transported already about 25 million passengers, is not too and much inferior to its younger followers and as before remains one of the basic toilers of the sky.

The history of the Tu-154 is still far from completion. The Aviacor plant preserved the technological equipment and reserves for the production of the Tu-154M. In 2005-2006 two new aircraft for the air lines of Cuba were prepared. In these machines was established a new flight complex, which ensured flights with engines with sound-absorbing constructions, which ensure fulfilling the requirements of chapter of 3 appendices 16 ICAO (i.e. admittance for the flights into Europe). The first aircraft - RA-85123, was transmitted to the airline in June 2006, the delivery of the second was expected on August 22. Prior to the end of the year Aviacor was building one Tu-154M according to the special-order of the Samara provincial administration, into 2007 it was planned to let out three more aircraft.

As of late 2008 there were several machines of this type in the state of completion at the series plant in Samara which finish building. They are additionally equipped and are transferred to concrete customers in accordance with to their requirements by the equipment, to equipment of aircraft and passenger compartments.

Aircraft Tu-154M has been in series produced since 1985, and since 2003 joint stock company Aviakor Aircraft Plant approached the production and sale of its new version, which calculates contemporary international requirements on the basis of the flight safety and accuracy of air navigation. This became the result of the production and commercial policy of plant and KB im. A.N. Tupolev, which ensured the technical improvements of model, an increase in the comfort of aircraft, that improved of service maintenance.

Specialists assert that into the next 15-20 years of the airline of Russia and peace they will experience the greatest need for the medium-haul airliners in 125-175 places with the flying range of 3-5 thousand kilometers. In the share of the aircraft of family Tu-154, for completely corresponding these requirements, are today necessary more than 50% all passenger transportation on Russia and CIS. The new version Tu-154M - their worthy successor on the domestic and foreign aviation markets. The family of aircraft Tu-154M is traditionally famous by the high strength and aerodynamic characteristics of glider and its systems. The flying period of service Tu-154M is 30 years. This is substantiated by aviation science, it is proven by laboratory and full-scale tests and it is confirmed by practice.

The many years of experience of series production and operation have confirmed the unquestionable advantages Tu-154M: longevity and high reliability under different climatic conditions in combination with the low price Tu-154M the version of 2003 it preserved all best qualities of the machines of this family, acquired the new properties, which made its completely competitive. Reinforcement of the air fleet of airlines by fundamentally new model airplane - matter being expensive. However, the new version Tu-154M, because of its family similarity to any modification of family Tu-154M, will make it possible to decrease not only initial expenditures, but also operational expenses. The similarity of construction and all main systems of family Tu-154M, and also the general principle of their operation makes it possible to limit the nomenclature of spare parts and types of maintenance facility, to decrease the expenditures for the instruction of crews and service personnel.

Russian aviation plant Aviakor ceased the production of Tupolev Tu-154Ms in mid-2006 after fulfilling the last orders for building three of the type. In June 2006, regional operator Kuban Airlines received a newly assembled tri-jet and took one more in July 2006. Aviakor general manager Sergei Liharev said the airframer has also completed assembly of the Tu-154M ordered by the government of Samara region. From now on, well only provide maintenance and overhaul services for these aircraft, hundreds of which are still in service, he says. Currently we have ten Tu-154s under repair. At the same time, Aviakor was gearing up for serial production of the Antonov An-140 twin turboprop with three aircraft due to be rolled out this year.

A 26-year-old Tupolev TU-154, the Polish presidential plane, crashed on 10 Apr 2010 as it approached an airport near Smolensk. The 60-year-old President Lech Kaczynski was killed. Along with the president, the 97 dead included the army chief of staff, the head of the National Security Office, the national bank president, the deputy foreign minister, the deputy parliament speaker, the civil rights commissioner and and scores of Polish legislators. The pilot of the plane carrying Polish President Lech Kaczynski attempted to land in thick fog against the advice of air traffic controllers. The plane was advised to turn around and head for Minsk, the capital of neighboring Belarus, as the Smolensk military aerodrome lacked the necessary navigational equipment to receive planes in heavy fog.

A Ministry of Defence Defense Ministry Tu-154 crash in Sochi took place December 25, 2016 early in the morning shortly after taking off from the airport of Adler. On board were 92 people - soldiers, members of the media, the head of the fund "Fair Aid" Elizaveta Glinka (Dr. Lisa), as well as artists Alexandrov Ensemble and its artistic director, People's Artist of Russia Valery Khalilov aircraft coming Happy New year Air Group FSI Russian airbase Hmeymim in Syria.

On 20 January 2017 Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu directed a to study the possibility of replacing used in military passenger aircraft Tu-154, Tu-134 and Il-62M in the new Russian analogues. The Ministry of Defense and enterprises of the United Aircraft Corporation were to agree on a "road map": determine which aircraft will be the first out of service, and to build a production schedule for the uniform loading of plants. To replace the Tu-134 the short-haul SSJ 100 can be used, and instead of the Il-62 and Tu-154 a long-range Tu-214 could be used. At the same time, according to sources, the minister instructed the Defense Ministry to upgrade the fleet, though without additional funds. The exact timing of execution of the order was not specified in the mandate.





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Tunisian police warn of Takfiris' return from Iraq, Syria

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 2:26PM

Tunisian security authorities have warned of the return of thousands of Takfiri militants fighting for terrorist groups in Iraq and neighboring Syria to the small Mediterranean country, demanding "exceptional measures" to combat the phenomenon.

"The return of terrorists from hotbeds of unrest to Tunisia is worrying, and could lead to the Somalization of the country," said a Sunday statement from the internal security forces' national union.

It added that battle-hardened fighters "have received military training and have learnt to use all sorts of sophisticated weapons."

The warning came a day after Tunisian authorities said they had arrested three people, including the nephew of Anis Amri - the main suspect in the December 19 Berlin Christmas market truck attack. The 24-year-old Tunisian was killed in a shootout with police in a suburb of the northern Italian city of Milan on Friday.

The 12 victims of last Monday's attack in the German capital city of Berlin included seven Germans, an Italian, a Czech, a Ukrainian, an Israeli as well as a Pole.

Amri's nephew confessed to Tunisian authorities that he had been in contact with his uncle via Telegram messaging application. Amri had asked him to join Daesh terror group, and had even sent his nephew some money by post to enable him to travel to Germany.

Earlier this month, President Beji Caid Essebsi said Tunisia would refuse to pardon Tunisians, who have fought for terrorist groups.

"Many of them want to return, and we can't prevent a Tunisian from returning to his country, but we will be vigilant," he said.

Hundreds of people gathered outside the Tunisian parliament building on Saturday to express their strong opposition to letting terrorists back in the country.

As many as 7,000 Tunisians have reportedly left the North African country since 2011 to fight alongside extremist groups in Iraq and Syria, particularly with Daesh.

There are more Tunisians among the ranks of foreign fighters in Iraq and Syria than any other nationality.

Tunisian extremists have also been behind a series of deadly attacks in their own country, namely the attack on foreign tourists at the Bardo National Museum in Tunis on March 18, 2015.

Twenty-one people were killed at the scene, while an additional victim died ten days later. Around fifty others were injured.

Daesh claimed responsibility for the attack. However, the Tunisian government blamed the Okba Ibn Nafaa Brigade, a local splinter group of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, for the assault.

On June 26, 2015, a gunman, identified as Seifeddine Rezgui, attacked a hotel at Port El Kantaoui, located about 10 kilometers north of the city of Sousse, killing 38 people. Thirty of the victims were British.

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Beijing Sends 'Clear Signal' for US to Stick to 'One-China' Policy

Sputnik News

10:52 24.12.2016(updated 10:55 24.12.2016)

With Donald Trump's inauguration now less than a month away, China reiterates the importance of honoring "key interests' in bilateral ties, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said. In an interview with Sputnik China, political analyst Andrei Korneyev commented on the significance of Mr. Yi's statement for relations between China and the US.

Andrei Korneyev, deputy director of the Institute of Asian and African Studies in Moscow, said that Donald Trump's election has caused serious concern in Beijing about a possible change in the US foreign policy, with some analysts predicting inevitable conflicts in bilateral relations that could be fraught with a military showdown.

Beijing's worries further increased after the US President-elect spoke with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on December 2 in a major break with the "one China" policy President Jimmy Carter adopted in 1979. During the 10-minute telephone linkup initiated by the Taiwanese leader, Donald Trump noted "the close economic, political and security ties" between Taiwan and the United States."

The call came at a time of heightened tensions between Taiwan and China since the election of Tsai Ing-wen's pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) earlier this year.

"What is important, however, is that despite the controversial statements made by Trump and his transitional team, China still hopes that reason will eventually prevail and Chinese-US relations will progress in a constructive way," Korneyev told Sputnik China.

"In an interview with Renmin Ribao, Wang Yi said that shortly after Mr. Trump's election, Chinese President Xi Jinping got in touch with him and the two underscored their shared desire to maintain close ties between their two countries," Andrei Korneyev told Sputnik China.

The Chinese minister also mentioned "new problems and uncertainty" that might arise between China and the United States in the future as a result of a possible U-turn in Washington's foreign policy.

"Wang Yi said that mutual respect and attention to each other's frundamental interests and concerns hold the key to long-lasting and stable cooperation, which he described as 'a historical tendency that no one can change at will,'" Korneyev noted.

He added that even though the Chinese foreign Minister didn't mention Donald Trump by name, it was exactly the US President-elect he had in mind.

"Many experts see this as a clear signal to the new US Administration that any attempts to reconsider America's long-standing policy on China [whereby Washington shifted diplomatic recognition of China from the government in Taiwan to Beijing] could lead to a complete destabilization of relations between the two countries," Andrei Korneyev concluded.

The inauguration of Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States will take place on Friday, January 20, 2017, in Washington, D.C.

 Sputnik

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Guo Lei's greenhouse in Dongxingxing, Shandong province. (Photo/Official Weibo of CCTV-2)

Guo Lei, a former Chinese diplomat, has found an unexpected second career growing vegetables in the village of Dongxingxing in Shandong province.

While ordinary greenhouses produce four to eight seasons of leafy vegetables each year, the number is 18 in Guo's greenhouses. Guo's secret comes from Israel. He was surprised by Israel's soil-free cultivation technology during his time there; after returning, he eventually decided to start his own business utilizing similar technology.

Guo Lei works in his greenhouse in Dongxingxing, Shandong province. (Photo/Official Weibo of CCTV-2)

Guo found a partner in Israel in 2015. He then built a series of greenhouses in Shandong using imported equipment and technology. Guo's vegetables are cultivated without any soil whatsover, but with nutrient solutions. Each vegetable recives its own tailored nutritional "meals," along with regular physical examinations. Computers automatically adjust the nutrient solution ratio in accordance with the results of each examination.

Guo Lei's greenhouse in Dongxingxing, Shandong province. (Photo/Official Weibo of CCTV-2)

Guo's 15,000-square-meter operation is divided into five sheds. Three contain leafy vegetables and utilize the Israeli technology; the other two support tomatoes and strawberries using technologies from the Netherlands and Britain. Advanced technology and equipment have ensured extraordinary cultivation efficiency in all of Guo's greenhouses.

Guo Lei's greenhouse in Dongxingxing, Shandong province. (Photo/Official Weibo of CCTV-2)
China aircraft carrier's planned drill warning for Taiwan

Central News Agency

2016/12/25 17:07:49

Taipei, Dec. 25 (CNA) China's reported plan to sail its first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, through the first island chain toward the Western Pacific should serve as a warning for Taiwan and the United States, according to a Hong Kong military commentator.

The Liaoning is set to take part in its first blue-water military exercises in the Western Pacific, media reports have stated, citing China's military. The ship will be part of a wider naval formation deployed to the region.

"The Liaoning will conduct military drills in the Western Pacific," China's state-run Global Times reported Saturday, citing People's Liberation Army Navy spokesperson Liang Yang.

The Western Pacific stretches from China to New Zealand and encompasses countries in the Pacific, Oceania and parts of Asia.

It is believed to be the first time the Liaoning, which was commissioned by the Chinese navy in 2012, will have participated in open sea training.

The "first island chain" refers to the major archipelagos off the East Asian continental mainland, including Japan, Taiwan and the northern Philippines.

The carrier recently carried out its first live-fire exercises with several destroyers and frigates in the Yellow Sea. The drills were normal Chinese arrangements and involved China's indigenous J-15 fighter, which has been assigned to the Liaoning, according to the reports.

On Dec. 23, 12 J-15s took off from the Liaoning and carried out assignments including air refueling and air confrontation in the Yellow Sea, Hong Kong's Ming Pao daily reported Sunday, citing video footage released by Chinese state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV).

China's top naval commander, Adm. Wu Shengli, was shown aboard, watching the exercises.

Participation in an open-sea training exercise is a mission required for almost all carriers, Hong Kong military commentator Liang Kuo-liang () told the Ming Pao.

However, the Liaoning's passage signals a warning for Taiwan, Liang said, adding that the carrier could sail to waters near Taiwan, block foreign interference in the Taiwan Strait and pose a threat to Taiwan's east coast areas.

Taiwan should also prepare for any new contingencies that could potentially harm cross-strait relations, Liang said.

Also, the move will show the United States the Liaoning's real combat ability and therefore, the U.S. should take the vessel into account while devising its strategy in the future, according to Liang.

In Taipei, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense said Sunday that it would closely monitor the Liaoning's movement in the Western Pacific, especially if it should return to China via the Bashi Channel, which lies between southern Taiwan and the Philippines.

(By Evelyn Kao)

ENDITEM/J

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China to conduct drill in Western Pacific, aircraft carrier to partake

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 11:17AM

China will be conducting an open-sea training drill, involving its first aircraft carrier, in the Western Pacific, the Chinese military has announced.

"A Chinese navy formation, including the aircraft carrier Liaoning, headed toward the West Pacific on Saturday for scheduled blue-water training," Xinhua on Saturday cited China's navy spokesperson Liang Yang as saying.

In a statement later in the day, the Chinese navy said that the Liaoning, along with its accompanying fleet, would conduct "exercises far out at sea," without elaborating on the location or the duration of the drill.

Xinhua said that the carrier had been involved in exercises in the Yellow Sea in recent days, with J-15 fighter jets taking off from it and conducting air refueling and combat drills.

Japan's Defense Ministry also confirmed that eight Chinese vessels, including the Liaoning carrier and three destroyers, had been spotted by one of its ships in the central part of the East China Sea on Saturday afternoon.

The 60,000-ton Liaoning was handed over to the Chinese navy on September 23, 2012. The Soviet-built aircraft carrier can sail at a top speed of 37 kilometers per hour and can carry 36 aircraft. China is currently manufacturing its second aircraft carrier.

China is involved in maritime disputes in the South China Sea and the East China Sea.

China has, in response, accused Washington of meddling in regional issues and deliberately escalating the situation in the region.

Washington has been meddling in the disputes by sailing its own ships in the contested waters.

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China's Liaoning Carrier Group Conducts Military Tests in Yellow Sea

Sputnik News

01:40 25.12.2016(updated 10:57 25.12.2016)

China's first aircraft carrier group conducted a series of military tests in the Yellow Sea December 24, ahead of scheduled testing farther away later, its military reported.

The tests included a fighter launch and air combat and recovery exercises, AP reports.

The next steps for the Liaoning carrier group will be "cross-sea" training and tests at an unspecified location. Chinese media are speculating that this could mean the ships will conduct operations in areas of the contested South China Sea.

AP quotes a military analyst in China's Global Times newspaper as saying the South China Sea would be an "ideal" location because joint exercises could be done in areas controlled by China.

The South China Sea is a patchwork of contention right now, with Brunei, China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam all involved in territorial disputes in the area. China claims nearly all of the sea and this week launched daily civil charter flights to Woody Island, an island in the Parcels group that is also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam.

The US and China have accused the other of escalating a military buildup in the region, with China calling its military installations "defensive" while accusing the US of making provocative passes nearby. China seized an unmanned underwater US Navy drone last week, leading to days of tension compounded by US President-elect Donald Trump's tweets about the incident, which he called an "unprecedented attack." China returned the drone soon after nabbing it, though Trump also said they should "keep it."

Trump has previously antagonized China by suggesting the country made up climate change as a way to remain an industrial leader, and by taking a phone call from the President of Taiwan, which China also claims.

The Liaoning was declared combat-ready last month and held its first live-fire exercises last week.

 Sputnik

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8 new aircraft to be delivered to Iran within three months

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Dec 25, IRNA -- Eight new passenger planes are to be delivered to the Airline of the Islamic Republic of Iran (Iran Air) by the end of the Iranian calendar year (March 20, 2017) Deputy Minister of Roads and Urban Development for International Affairs Asghar Fakhriyeh-Kashan has announced.

The new aircraft will be delivered by France's Airbus and the French-Italian aircraft manufacturer ATR, Fakhriyeh-Kashan told IRNA here on Sunday.

Based on the agreement with the Airbus, Iran Air is to receive an A330 and two A320 planes this year, the official added.

Referring to the foreign companies' interest in striking deals with Iran, he noted that the country has no problems for funding such agreements.

Also, Iran Air and the American Corporation of Boeing signed an agreement on selling 80 aircraft to Iran on December 11.

The first batch of those passenger aircrafts are expected to be delivered to Iran in early 2018.

Iran's Ambassador to London Hamid Baeedinejad in a post on his Instagram page on Saturday wrote that contract with Airbus for purchase of 100 passenger planes put an end to the most prolonged sanction against the country.

Despite all doubts about the possibility of a deal with France's Airbus which continued to even the latest moments, the preliminary contract was signed during the historical visit of the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Paris in January, said the senior diplomat.

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Iran Army to hold major air defense maneuvers: Commander

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 1:29PM

The Iranian Air Defense Force will stage massive five-day military exercises in southern parts of the country to display its might and boost its integrity and cohesiveness, a senior Iranian commander says.

The large-scale maneuvers, code-named Modafean Aseman Velayat 7 (The Defenders of Velayat Skies 7), will kick off on Monday over a vast area of nearly half a million square kilometers in the three provinces of Khuzestan, Hormozgan and Bushehr all the way east to Kerman Province, Brigadier General Farzad Esmaili, the commander of Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Air Defense Base, said at a press conference on Sunday.

He added that various units of the Army's Air Defense Forces and the Aerospace Division of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) and Air Force fighter jets, including F-4 Phantoms, will take part in the joint exercises.

The commander noted that more than 17,000 personnel of the Armed Forces will participate in the drills either directly or indirectly.

The maneuver will be held in the "most sensitive" area of the country, Esmaili said and warned extra-regional aircraft to stay out of the drill zone during the exercises.

He added that forces of the Iranian Army and the IRGC would deploy radar systems, electronic eavesdropping devices and low-, medium-, and high-altitude missiles during the massive maneuvers.

The commander said the drills would also include high-level electronic warfare.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei on September 1 instructed the Iranian Air Force defense forces to constantly upgrade their preparedness for repelling a variety of threats.

"Upgrade your preparedness and options constantly for countering all types of threats," Ayatollah Khamenei said in a meeting with top commanders and officials of the Khatam al-Anbiya Air Defense Base in Tehran.

In recent years, Iran has made great achievements in its defense sector and reached self-sufficiency in producing essential military equipment and systems.

The Islamic Republic has conducted several military drills to enhance the defense capabilities of its Armed Forces and to test modern military tactics and equipment.

The Islamic Republic has repeatedly assured other countries, especially the regional neighbors, that its military might poses no threat to anyone. Iran says its defense doctrine is merely based on deterrence.

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Iran Says It Will Pay Half Price For Boeing Planes

RFE/RL December 25, 2016

Iran has said it will only pay half of the price announced for 80 new planes from U.S. firm Boeing.

Iran's official IRNA news agency quoted Deputy Transport Minister Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan as saying the country will only pay half of the $16.6 billion deal because of reduced purchasing options.

"Boeing has announced that its IranAir contract is worth $16.6 billion," Kashan was quoted as saying on December 25. "However, considering the nature of our order and the available options, the purchase contract for 80 Boeing aircraft is worth about 50 percent of that amount,"

Boeing did not immediately comment. The firm had earlier said that the value of the deal was based on list prices, though customers typically negotiate discounts for large orders.

Iran's national carrier IranAir and Boeing signed an agreement on December 11 for the purchase of 50 narrow-bodied 737s and 30 long-range 777s.

Boeing and its European rival Airbus have both signed lucrative contracts this month to supply airliners to Iran, a boost for an Iranian economy hobbled by years of sanctions.

On December 22, Airbus and IranAir finalized a deal for 100 planes worth $18 billion dollars. The contract includes single-aisle A320 and A330 jets and wide-body A350 XWB planes, which are expected to be delivered starting early next year.

Both deals were made possible by the nuclear deal Iran negotiated last year with world powers, enabling them to lift sanctions in exchange for Iran curbing its nuclear activities.

In September, the U.S. Treasury Department granted permission to Boeing and Airbus to sell billions of dollars' worth of aircraft to Iran.

Most of Iran's aging fleet of 250 commercial planes was purchased before the 1979 revolution, and only about 162 are still in operating condition.

Iran says it intends to buy 400 new planes over the next decade.

With reporting by AP and Reuters

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/iran-boeing-planes -half-price/28196329.html

Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Terrorism claimed over 12,000 lives in Iraq in 2016: UN

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 6:44PM

The United Nations says more than 12,000 people have lost their lives in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in Iraq so far this year as government forces and allied fighters battle to drive the Daesh Takfiri militants out of the country.

According to a survey conducted by Turkey's official Anadolu news agency on the basis of monthly reports issued by the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), a total of 12,038 Iraqis have been killed and 14,411 others injured since the beginning of the current year.

The UN mission added that there were 6,492 civilians among those killed. The attacks claimed the lives of 5,546 members of Iraqi security forces as well.

The figures were collected from health and security officials in the capital Baghdad, the northern provinces of Salahuddin, Nineveh and Kirkuk in addition to the western and eastern provinces of Anbar and Diyala.

The fatalities came as a result of shootings, improvised explosive devices, car bombs, and bombers wearing explosive belts, as well as clashes with the Daesh Takfiri militants in different parts of the country.

The death toll shows a surge in violence in Iraq during the final months of the year, when 5,683 people were killed. The number accounts for about half the number of deaths recorded during the first eight months of 2016.

The number marks a nine-percent increase compared to the corresponding period last year, when at least 11,118 Iraqis, mostly civilians, were killed in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict. A total of 18,419 people sustained injuries during the period.

Habib al-Torfi, a member of the human rights committee in the Iraqi parliament, said the high figure of fatalities in 2016 stipulates the need for deeper commitment on the part of the United Nations and the international community regarding Iraq.

Iraqi troops, supported by fighters from Hashd al-Sha'abi and Kurdish Peshmerga forces, are in a joint operation, which was launched on October 17, to retake the northern city of Mosul from Daesh terrorists.

The International Organization for Migration said on December 18 that 103,872 people had been displaced since the operations began.

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Multiple bombings kill 11 in, around Iraq's capital

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 3:47PM

Eleven people have been killed and over 30 others injured in a series of bomb attacks that ripped through commercial areas in and around the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.

Police said the deadliest in Sunday's separate attacks were carried out in the southeastern district of Nahrawan and the southwestern district of Suwaib. Three civilians were killed in each of the areas. Five fatalities were also reported from elsewhere.

No group or individual has claimed responsibility for the attacks, but they have the hallmark of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group.

On Saturday, Iraqi officials announced that at least ten people had been killed in bomb and mortar attacks by Daesh across the country.

Iraqi troops, supported by fighters from Hashd al-Sha'abi and Kurdish Peshmerga forces, are engaged in a joint operation that was launched on October 17 to retake Mosul, the second largest Iraqi city, from Daesh terrorists.

Mosul fell to Daesh in June 2014 and has since been used by the terror group as its de facto capital in Iraq.

Iraqi forces have managed to liberate most of the areas Daesh once controlled in the country during the past year and are increasingly tightening the noose around the terrorists to win back their last urban bastion, Mosul.

Having largely lost to government and pro-government forces, Daesh currently resorts more than ever to sporadic bomb attacks against civilians in urban areas.

Human Rights Watch said on December 21 that Daesh in Mosul were deliberately targeting civilians who declined to join their ranks.

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Obama Expands Magnitsky Act Globally

Sputnik News

17:17 24.12.2016(updated 17:20 24.12.2016)

Outgoing US President Barack Obama has signed into law the annual defense policy bill to set the 2017 budget for the Department of Defense in which he expanded the use of the Magnitsky Act.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  The policy also curbed military cooperation with Russia and set conditions for the provision of military equipment for the Syrian armed opposition.

"On Friday, December 23, 2016, the President signed into law: S. 2943, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017," the White House stated on Friday.

The US Senate and House of Representatives passed the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) earlier in December. It increases base funding by $9 billion and provides US soldiers with 2.1-percent pay raise.

Expansion of Magnitsky Act Globally

The NDAA 2017 allows to apply the Magnitsky Act worldwide to impose sanctions on anyone Washington deems engaged in corruption or human rights violations.

"The President may impose the sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to any foreign person the President determines, based on credible evidence is responsible for extrajudicial killings, torture, or other gross violations of internationally recognized human rights committed against individuals in any foreign country," the document reads.

The law also applies to those deemed responsible for corruption, embezzlement and other crimes.

The sanctions include inadmissibility to United States and blocking of property.

The law will be valid for six years but only the US president himself may terminate the application of sanctions with respect to a particular person and obliged to report to Congress afterwards.

The document expands the Magnitsky Act, which was passed four years ago by the US Senate and allowed Washington to deny visas and freeze assets of Russian officials allegedly involved in the death of Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky.

On November 24, 2008, Magnitsky, a managing partner of Moscow law company Firestone Duncan, a tax and legal consultant of London-based Hermitage Capital Management investment fund was arrested by the tax crime agency of Russia's Interior Ministry in Moscow. Soon afterwards, the ministry's investigative department charged Magnitsky with abetting the company in tax evasion as part of the Hermitage Capital criminal case.

Magnitsky was accused of committing crimes under Sections 3 and 5 of Article 33, Part 2 of Article 199 (conspiracy and abatement in serious company tax evasion by a group of individuals) of Russia's penal code. On November 16, 2009, Magnitsky died in the Matrosskaya Tishina pre-trial detention center in Moscow after nearly a year-long detention.

Restrictions in Military Cooperation With Russia

The NDAA also stipulates the conditions under which the bilateral military cooperation between Russia and the United States may continue.

"None of the funds authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2017 for the Department of Defense may be used for any bilateral military-to-military cooperation between the Governments of the United States and the Russian Federation until the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the Secretary of State, certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that the Russian Federation has ceased its occupation of Ukrainian territory and its aggressive activities that threaten the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization," the document read.

The law stipulates that Russia must abide to the Minsk agreements on Ukraine settlement.

Kiev launched a special military operation in Ukraine's southeast in April 2014, after local residents refused to recognize the new Ukrainian authorities, which came to power as a result of a coup. In February 2015, the two sides reached a peace agreement after talks brokered by the leaders of Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine  the so-called Normandy Format  in the Belarusian capital of Minsk. Kiev has been reluctant to implement a number of Minsk deal provisions.

However, the law does not apply to the United States or NATO operation in Afghanistan or "any activities necessary to ensure the compliance of the United States with its obligations or the exercise of rights of the United States under any bilateral or multilateral arms control or nonproliferation agreement or any other treaty obligation of the United States."

The law stresses that no funds may be provided for any actions acknowledging Russian sovereignty over the Crimean peninsula with the only exception to be the case of the US national security.

Crimea seceded from Ukraine and reunified with Russia in March 2014, when more than 96 percent of local voters supported the move in a referendum. Kiev, as well as the European Union, the United States and their allies, did not recognize the move and consider the peninsula to be an occupied territory.

Conditions of Provision Syrian Opposition With MANPADs

The NDAA states that Syrian opposition would only get the US man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADs) after the joint report to the Congress by the US defense secretary and the secretary of state.

"If a determination is made during fiscal year 2017 to use funds available to the Department of Defense for that fiscal year to provide man-portable air defense systems (MANPADs) to the vetted Syrian opposition such funds may not be used for that purpose until the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State jointly submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the determination," the document read.

The report should include "a description of each element of the vetted Syrian opposition that will provided man-portable air defense systems." In addition, the geographic location, a detailed intelligence assessment and the number and type of man-portable air defense systems should be included in the report.

Earlier in December, Obama lifted the formal restrictions on the supply of arms, ammunition and military equipment to the US allies in the fight against terrorism in Syria. At the same time, the State Department stated that Washington still does not intend to supply MANPADS to the armed Syrian opposition.

 Sputnik

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Russian Armata Tanks, Armored Vehicles to Become 'Smarter'

Sputnik News

16:42 24.12.2016(updated 17:26 24.12.2016)

Russian tanks and combat vehicles will soon sport a state-of-the-art damage control and information system, the newspaper Izvestia reported.

The unique system, dubbed GALS-D4, will make it much easier for the crews to monitor the gauges and inform their commanding officers about the condition of their fighting vehicles.

The GALS-D4 ensures stable navigation and keeps in its hard disk memory all information about the vehicle's whereabouts and condition of the past ten years.

The complex consists of a microprocessor, computing and navigation modules, each weighing up to 2.5 kilograms and placed under the driver's and commander's seats.

They feed data onto a 20 cm touch-sensitive screen in the commander's compartment.

The GALS-D4 has several modes of operations. In diagnostic mode, information about all of the vehicle's electronically operated elements is sent to a touch-sensitive screen.

In navigation mode, a pre-loaded area map is fed to the operator's screen showing the vehicle's exact location in real time.

"The system is still being brought up to speed with the combat modules to be eventually operated via remote-control, Sergei Mosiyenko, chief designer at Volna Central Research Institute, told the newspaper.

The GALS-D4 is currently installed on a number of Taifun armored cars now being tested by the Defense Ministry and also on the all-new Armata tanks, which boast a number of back-up target acquisition and technical control systems.

 Sputnik

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"Aircraft carrier operations are indispensable for China," said Chinese military expert Li Jie in an interview with the Global Times on Dec. 25. Carriers are not offshore forces, and they must go to remote oceanic areas, Li added, noting the country's growing need for overseas interests protection.

According to China's Ministry of National Defense, the country's first domestically made aircraft carrier is expected to be finished in 2020. Beijing could build multiple aircraft carriers over the next 15 years, the Pentagon said in a report last year, while Reuters commented that China is years away from perfecting carrier operations similar to those the United States has practiced for decades.

Zhang Junshe, a senior researcher at the PLA Naval Military Studies Research Institute, told the Global Times on Dec. 25 that, given its global deployment and presence, the U.S. Navy is the most advanced naval force in the world. Its overseas patrols can last up to 10 months, supported by its overseas military bases, Zhang noted.

Li believes U.S. dollars and aircraft carriers both contribute to the Navy's global influence. He told the Global Times that China has always been perceived as a mild country; its military growth has therefore been poorly received by the rest of the world. However, Li said that increased military presence is necessary for such a major power, and other countries need to get used to China's changed status.

Reuters commented that China's expanding military presence in the South China Sea has fueled concerns, and the U.S. even accuses China of militarizing its maritime outposts, holding regular air and naval patrols in the name of freedom of navigation.

An anonymous source told the Global Times that military development is a sign of China's increasing ability to safeguard its sovereignty and territories, which also reflects the will of the people.

China's development has always been distorted by some media outlets. Nevertheless, in reality China's military research, production, equipment and drills are all guarantors of regional peace and stability.
Russia confirms its TU-154 aircraft crashed in mountains

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Dec 25, IRNA -- The Russian aircraft TU-154, which had disappeared from radar shortly after take off in Sochi Sunday, has crashed in the mountains in Krasnodar Territory in the south of the country, a source in local security services told RIA Novosti Sunday.

The Russian media reports quoted the source as saying the RIA Novosti that the plane with 91 people aboard, including 83 passengers and eight crew members, lost contact with land while flying over the Black Sea.

Journalists, military personnel, musicians from an official army choir of the Russian armed forces, were also onboard.

'According to preliminary findings, the missing TU-154 arrived in Sochi from Chkalovsky airport in Moscow region for refueling,' the Russia media reported.

Most likely, it crashed in the mountainous area of Krasnodar Territory,' the source told RIA Novosti.

The preliminary data shows that the disappeared plane was heading to Syria's Hmeimim airbase.

According to the source, the possible reasons for the crash could be technical malfunction or pilot error.

The source added that the plane disappeared from radars 20 minutes after departing from Sochi, Krasnodar Krai.

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Russia military plane crashes in Black Sea, all on board presumed dead

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 4:41AM

The Russian Defense Ministry says a military aircraft has crashed over the Black Sea, with all the 92 people on board presumed dead.

The Tu-154 airliner was carrying 84 passengers and eight crew members, according to the ministry. Reports earlier said the plane had gone off radar shortly after takeoff from an airport in Sochi on Sunday.

Local news agencies cited the Defense Ministry as saying later that the Tu-154 plane had crashed shortly after taking off from the southern city of Adler, south of the Black Sea resort city of Sochi, at 5:40 local time (0240 GMT).

Major-General Igor Konashenkov, a ministry spokesman, told reporters that no survivors had been spotted in the search operations, which were still underway in the Black Sea.

The ministry also issued a statement, noting that 10 bodies had been recovered off the coast of Sochi, with authorities pledging to dispatch more than 100 divers to aid in the search.

"Fragments of the Tu-154 plane of the Russian Defense Ministry were found 1.5 kilometers (0.9 miles) from the Black Sea coast of the city of Sochi at a depth of 50 to 70 meters (165 to 230 feet)," the ministry added.

Military servicemen, journalists, and musicians had been on board.

The ministry said the plane was conducting a routine flight to Russia's Hmeimim airbase outside the coastal Syrian city of Latakia. Russia has been carrying out a bombardment campaign against militants in Syria on a request from Damascus. It has two airbases in Syria.

Russia's Investigative Committee said technical personnel responsible for preparing the plane for takeoff were being questioned to determine whether safety regulations had been violated.

Some reports said piloting error was also a possibility.

Putin declares national mourning on Monday

President Vladimir Putin has announced that the country will observe a national day of mourning on Monday.

"Tomorrow Russia will declare a national day of mourning," Putin said on state television.

Assad condoles with Putin over plane crash

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has also sent a message to Putin telling his Russian counterpart that he is "extremely sad" over Russian plane crash. Emphasizing that the mishap will not hinder the two countries' joint war against terrorism, Assad said the two countries were partners in the "fight to lay the foundations of stability, security and peace" in Syria.

"Our prayers are with you ... our sorrows and joys are one," Assad told Putin in his message, adding, "The plane had dear friends who had come to join us and the people of Aleppo in their joy with victory and Christmas feasts."

Tu-154 aircraft, like the one in the Sunday incident, have been involved in accidents before. In April 2010, high-ranking Polish officials, including then-president Lech Kaczynski, were killed when a Tu-154 airliner crashed while approaching the Smolensk airport in western Russia.

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Russia Holds Day Of Mourning After 92 Killed In Plane Crash, Putin Orders Probe

RFE/RL December 25, 2016

Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared that December 26 will be a national day of mourning after a Russian military plane crashed in the Black Sea, killing all 92 people on board.

Search and recovery operations were continuing late on December 25 after a Russian military plane -- carrying members of a prominent armed forces song-and-dance ensemble to Syria for a New Year's concert -- crashed near the southern city of Sochi.

In the Russian capital, mourners laid flowers and candles throughout the day in front of the Moscow concert hall where the ensemble usually performed.

Russia's Defense Ministry said there was no sign of any survivors at the crash site, where debris and 11 bodies have been found.

The Soviet-made TU-154 airplane had vanished from radar screens shortly after taking off at 5:40 a.m. local time on December 25 from the southern city of Sochi. It was flying to Russia's Hmeimim airbase outside the coastal Syrian city of Latakia.

Russian Transport Minister Maksim Sokolov, the head of a state commission probing the incident, said investigators were looking into every possible reason for the crash, although officials had earlier ruled out terrorism.

Putin "has ordered Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to form and head a state commission to investigative the crash of the Tu-154 plane," the Kremlin said in a statement on December 25.

"I would like to express the most sincere condolences to the families of our citizens killed this morning," Putin told reporters in St. Petersburg. "A thorough investigation of the causes of the crash will be carried out and everything will be done to support the families of those killed."

Medvedev described the crash as a "terrible tragedy."

Defense Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov told a news briefing in Moscow that the "area of the crash of the Tu-154 plane has been determined" but "there were no survivors seen."

Dozens of ships, drones, and divers are searching for more bodies. Around 3,000 people were participating in the search and recovery operations.

Earlier, the ministry said that "fragments  of the plane were found 1.5 kilometers from the Black Sea coast of the city of Sochi at a depth of 50 to 70 meters."

The Defense Ministry has released a list of the passengers. They include 64 members of the Aleksandrov Ensemble, the official army choir of the Russian armed forces. The ensemble's conductor Valery Khalilov was among the passengers.

Konashenkov said the ensemble members had been flying to Latakia for a New Year's performance for Russian troops deployed in Syria.

Nine Russian reporters were also been on board as well as military servicemen. The state-run TV stations First Channel, NTV, and Zvezda said they each had three staff onboard the flight.

The passenger list also includes Elizaveta Glinka, known as Doctor Liza, a prominent activist and member of Putin's advisory human rights council.

The ministry said 84 people aboard the aircraft were passengers and eight were crew members. The flight originated in the capital, Moscow, and had a stopover in Sochi for refueling.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters it was too early to say what had caused the crash.

Russia's Investigative Committee said a criminal probe had been launched to determine whether violations of air transport safety regulations had led to the crash.

Investigators were questioning the technical personnel responsible for preparing the plane for take-off, the committee said.

Sokolov said the airplane's black boxes had yet to be located.

The Tu-154 is a Soviet-era plane which has a checkered past in terms of accidents. The plane, which has not been in commercial use since 1994, is still used by the military.

The Tu-154 has been involved in almost a dozen major crashes since 2000, killing more than 800 people, including Poland's then-president Lech Kaczynski near the Russian city of Smolensk in 2010.

Deputy Defense Minister Pavel Popov has flown to Sochi along with a team tasked with clarifying the circumstances surrounding the crash, spokesman Konashenkov said.

Viktor Ozerov, head of the defense affairs committee at the upper house of the Russian parliament, said he "totally excludes" terrorism as a possible cause of the crash.

In remarks carried by the state news agency RIA Novosti, Ozerov -- without citing any source -- said the crash could have been caused by a technical malfunction or a crew error, but he believes it could not have been terrorism because the plane was operated by the military.

According to the Defense Ministry, the aircraft had been in service since 1983 and had flown some 7,000 hours since. The plane last underwent repairs in December 2014 and was serviced in September, the ministry said.

The Interfax news agency cited an unnamed source as saying the plane had not sent an SOS signal.

With reporting by TASS, Interfax, Reuters, AP, AFP, and BBC

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/russia-plane-missing- aleksandrov-ensemble/28195683.html

Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Work Starts On First China-Russia Highway Bridge

RFE/RL December 25, 2016

Chinese state media are reporting that construction of the first China-Russia highway bridge across the Amur River began on December 24, more than 28 years after it was first proposed and more than a year after an agreement on the project was reached.

The plans call for 20-kilometer bridge that stretches from Heihe, a border town in China's Heilongjiang Province, to the Russian city of Blagoveshchensk.

China is meant to build about one-third of the structure while Russia has agreed to build the other two-thirds of the bridge from its side of the Amur River.

Russian engineers are also tasked with connecting the two bridge sections together.

According to Chinese traffic department officials in Hailongjiang Province, the toll bridge is expected to transport more than 3 million metric tons of cargo and 1.5 million passengers per year after its scheduled completion date in October 2019.

But some analysts are questioning whether mutual distrust between the two countries will keep the project from going forward on schedule -- despite the dire need to develop infrastructure for cross-border trade.

Russia, facing Western sanctions since 2014 for its forcible annexation of Crimea and its involvement in eastern Ukraine's conflict, has been eager to develop export routes to China.

China, meanwhile, is thirsty for energy and raw materials from Russia to fuel its economic growth.

But if other stalled joint-infrastructure projects serve as an indicator, the goal of completing the proposed $355.6 million Amur River highway bridge by October 2019 could be a stretch.

China and Russia had agreed a decade ago to jointly build a railway bridge across the Amur River at the remote Russian frontier settlement of Nizhneleninskoye.

That bridge would lower the cost of transporting iron ore from a Russian mine to a large Chinese steel mill by reducing the current transport distance of more than 1,000 kilometers to just 233 kilometers.

But although China has completed its side of the project, major construction from the Russian side has yet to begin.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also signed a 30-year-gas deal with Beijing during a visit to China in May 2014 that was estimated to be worth $400 billion -- a deal that would require the construction of a major new pipeline by Russia.

But Russia has stalled on building the so-called Power of Siberia pipeline.

Chinese diplomats have complained and expressed dismay about the slow pace of the construction work by Russia.

After Western sanctions were imposed against Russia in 2014, Moscow and Beijing had vowed that they would increase their bilateral trade to $100 billion during 2016 and to $200 billion by 2020.

Instead, two-way trade between the countries fell by 28 percent during 2015 to just $68 billion, and bilateral trade has been slow to recover during 2016.

With reporting by China Daily, The New York Times, and the BBC

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/russia- china-amur-river-highway-bridge- border-trade/28195627.html

Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Decommissioning of Tu-154 Aircraft Would Be Premature - Industry Minister

Sputnik News

14:20 25.12.2016(updated 15:55 25.12.2016)

It would be premature to decommission the Tu-154 aircraft, Russian Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov said Sunday, in the wake of a plane crash over the Black Sea.

ST.PETERSBURG (Sputnik)  The minister recalled that lots of planes, which were no longer manufactured, continued their operation globally.

"Such a decision, as of today, would be premature," Manturov replied, when asked if he considers it appropriate to remove the Tu-154 planes from service.

"The designated service time of this aircraft [Tu-154] is currently 40 years, while some foreign analogues have a life cycle of 60 years," Manturov said.

Commenting on whether or not Tu-154s flights should be suspended, Manturov noted that it was up to aircraft operators to make a respective decision.

"First, it is necessary to complete the investigation and find out the causes, and then take one or another decision," he outlined.

Earlier in the day, the Russian Defense Ministry Tu-154 aircraft en route to Syria with 92 people on board crashed in the Black Sea shortly after refueling at an airport in the resort city of Adler. Most of the passengers were members of the famous army choir of the Russian armed forces, the Alexandrov Ensemble, who were traveling from Moscow to Hmeymim airbase in Syria to take part in New Year celebrations.

 Sputnik

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Russian MoD's Plane Reportedly Disappears From Radars After Takeoff in Sochi

Sputnik News

07:21 25.12.2016(updated 22:25 25.12.2016)

Russian Defense Ministry's Tu-154 carrying some 91 people has disappeared from radars after departing from Russia's southern city of Sochi, a source in the country's Emergency Ministry told RIA Novosti.

The plane with some 91 people onboard, including 83 passengers and eight crew members lost contact with land while flying over the Black Sea, the source said.

Journalists, military personnel, musicians from Alexandrov Ensemble, an official army choir of the Russian armed forces, were on board.

Initially it was reported that the aircraft was carrying some 70 people.

"According to preliminary data, Russian Defense Ministry's Tu-154 disappeared from the radar screens after departing from Sochi. About 70 people were onboard," a source said to the agency on Sunday.

The priliminary data shows that the disappeared plane was heading to Syria's Hmeimim airbase. According to the source, the possible reasons for the alleged crash could be technical malfunction or pilot error.

The source added that the plane disappeared from radars 20 minutes after departing from Sochi, Krasnodar Krai.

"The plane disappeared from radars about 20 minutes after takeoff: it departed [from Sochi] at 5.20 AM local time and the contact was lost at about 5.40 AM."

All rescue services of Krasnodar Krai and neighboring regions are engaged in the search operation.

 Sputnik

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Syrian army kills dozens of Daesh terrorists east of Aleppo

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 25, 2016 10:2AM

The Syrian army has killed dozens of terrorists in military operations against the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group to the east of the recently-liberated city of Aleppo.

Syria's official news agency SANA quoted a military source as saying that Syrian forces attacked Daesh positions and supply routes in the eastern countryside of Aleppo on Saturday.

The source further said that some 50 terrorists were killed as the Syrian troops targeted convoys of Daesh terrorists in the villages of Mashrafeh Abu Jabar and Bihan on the outskirts of Air Force college, east of Aleppo City.

According to the report, a car bomb and two machine gun-equipped vehicles as well as a large amount of weapons and ammunition were destroyed in the attacks.

The Syrian military announced on December 22 that it had regained full control of the northwestern city, having completely cleansed its eastern side of militants for the first time since 2012.

Elsewhere in Syria, the Syrian army also carried out counterterrorism operations in the eastern countryside of Homs, killing and injuring dozens of the Takfiris, according to the report.

A military source said the Syrian troops in Tifour area, east of Homs city, advanced towards the al-Soud hills and the village of Shrifa, southwest of Palmyra, killing 15 militants and wounding scores more.

The Syrian forces had thwarted a terrorist attack on Jub al-Jirah district in Homs, leaving 20 terrorists dead on Friday.

The Syrian troops fired artillery shells at the terrorists in the village of Kherbet al-Naqous , 80 kilometers north of Hama City, a military source said, leaving nine militants dead.

Syrian sources also reported that Ali Kabkab (aka Abu Fahd), one of the commanders of the so-called Jaish al-Islam Takfiri group, had been killed along with two of the militants on the outskirts of Douma in the Damascus countryside.

Since March 2011, Syria has been gripped by militancy it blames on some Western states and their regional allies.

The Takfiri terrorists operating in the Arab country have suffered major setbacks over the past few months as the army has managed to liberate a number of areas from their grip.

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Russia, Turkey Fulfill Commitments on Syrian Ceasefire - Turkish FM

Sputnik News

20:40 25.12.2016

According to the Turkish foreign minister, Russia and Turkey have fulfilled their obligations concerning the Syria truce.

ANKARA (Sputnik)  Russia and Turkey have fulfilled their obligations concerning the ceasefire in Syria and the evacuation of people from Aleppo, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Sunday.

"In recent days, Russia has kept its promises on all efforts regarding the ceasefire, for humanitarian aid, for saving the people from there Turkey has also kept its promises [towards Russia]," Cavusoglu was quoted as saying by the Anadolu news agency.

On Tuesday, the foreign and defense ministers of Russia, Iran and Turkey met in Moscow to discuss the situation in Syria, including Aleppo. The countries noted the importance of extending the ceasefire, voicing their willingness to become guarantors of the forthcoming agreement between Damascus and the opposition.

Since 2011, Syria has been engulfed in a civil war, following the protests that had turned violent, as part of the so-called Arab Spring. Over the recent months, Aleppo became a major battleground in Syria. On December 16, the Russian Defense Ministry's center for Syrian reconciliation said that the Syrian army operation to liberate the eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo was over, and that the Syrian government troops were eliminating separate hotbeds of militant resistance.

 Sputnik

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A woman in Zhejiang province offered a large donation to the Haining Charity Federation in the wake of her successful battle against leukemia, Qianjiang Evening News reported recently.

Last October, Yang Zhenren was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia. Her doctor recommended a bone marrow transplant, which Yang and her family could not afford. However, Yang's friends quickly launched an online donation drive, raising 186,919 RMB($26,897) for her treatment. Donors also offered Yang enormous encouragement and strength to fight the disease.

Yang was prudent about the donations, relying on them only as a last resort. After her recovery, she tried to give back the leftover funds, but the kind donors refused. So Yang gave the funds to Haining Charity Federation instead.

Though we have confronted great expenses since I became ill, this life-saving money can help more people in need. They need as much help as I once did, Yang said.

At present, she is trying to pay off her remaining debt through a WeChat business.
MOSCOW, Dec. 26, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mechel PAO (MICEX:MTLR) (NYSE:MTL), one of the leading Russian mining and metals companies, reports signing agreements with VTB Bank for extending the maturity of the debt on its credit lines until 2022.



According to the signed agreements totaling 70.2 billion rubles, payments on the debt was extended till first quarter of 2020 with repayment by the first quarter of 2022. Simultaneously conditions of the trade financing, with outstanding balance of 45 million euro, were also renegotiated and the deal was extended until April 2022.

We thank all our lenders for their constructive and balanced approach. Signing of the agreements with VTB Bank means that similar conditions on debt repayment that we made with Gazprombank and Sberbank will now come into force. So we can say that the extensive restructuring process with Russian state banks, which hold 67% of Mechels debt, is complete. This restructuring will enable the company to stabilize its financial position and focus on operational efficiency. We hope that this will also speed up restructuring agreement with our international lenders. Considering the positive trends on commodity markets and the additional cash flow from our implemented investment projects, we will make every effort to begin repaying our debt early, to decrease the companys debts, Mechel PAOs Chief Executive Officer Oleg Korzhov noted.

Mechel PAO

Ekaterina Videman

Tel: + 7 495 221 88 88

ekaterina.videman@mechel.com



Mechel is an international mining and steel company which employs 66,000 people. Its products are marketed in Europe, Asia, North and South America, Africa. Mechel unites producers of coal, iron ore concentrate, steel, rolled products, ferroalloys, heat and electric power. All of its enterprises work in a single production chain, from raw materials to high value-added products.

Some of the information in this press release may contain projections or other forward-looking statements regarding future events or the future financial performance of Mechel, as defined in the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. We wish to caution you that these statements are only predictions and that actual events or results may differ materially. We do not intend to update these statements. We refer you to the documents Mechel files from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Form 20-F. These documents contain and identify important factors, including those contained in the section captioned Risk Factors and Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements in our Form 20-F, that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those contained in our projections or forward-looking statements, including, among others, the achievement of anticipated levels of profitability, growth, cost and synergy of our recent acquisitions, the impact of competitive pricing, the ability to obtain necessary regulatory approvals and licenses, the impact of developments in the Russian economic, political and legal environment, volatility in stock markets or in the price of our shares or ADRs, financial risk management and the impact of general business and global economic conditions.
Chinese nationals may have been the earliest people to make textile from silk fiber, according to a recent report in international academic journal Plos One. The report was created by scholars from the University of Science and Technology of China.

Scientists inspected silk fibroin through soil samples collected from three tombs at the Neolithic site of Jiahu, Henan province. Rough weaving tools and bone needles were also excavated from the site, indicating that Jiahu residents from 8,500 years ago may have possessed basic weaving and sewing skills necessary for producing textiles.

Although previous studies have provided evidence of the early emergence of weaving, there has long been a lack of direct evidence proving the existence of silk. According to the report, this new finding may advance the study of early silk production, as well as civilization during the Neolithic Age, by nearly 4,000 years.
Venkaiah Calls Babu A Historic Leader!

Union minister for urban development, information and broadcasting M Venkaiah Naidu does not lose any opportunity to promote his close friend and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and project him as an outstanding leader.

On Monday, Venkaiah went a step further and described Naidu as a historic leader. The occasion was handing over of the cheque for the first instalment of Rs 1,981 crore for the construction of Polavaram project by Union water resources minister Uma Bharati to Naidu.

Venkaiah said the construction of Polavaram would be a major milestone in the history of Andhra Pradesh.

The credit goes to two persons  Prime Minister Narendra Modi and chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu. Both are historic leaders and their names would be etched in the pages of Andhra Pradesh history for completing the project, Venkaiah said.

Uma Bharti was also all praise for Naidus vision. She said it was for the first time in Indian history that NABARD was funding a major irrigation project.

After Narendra Modi government declared the project as a national project, it has assured to provide all the expenses involved in it. She assured to provide whatever assistance needed for the early completion of this project.
Thousands of people, including 500 Chinese citizens from Hong Kong and Macau, have been stranded at the airport in Hokkaido, Japan since heavy snow paralyzed land and air transport in the region on Dec. 22.

At noon on Dec. 25, a convoy carrying food and water from the Chinese consulate in Sapporo arrived at the airport to provide aid to Chinese passengers. Cathay Pacific and Hong Kong Airlines also arranged extra flights to the airport. By press time, passengers had begun boarding the first such plane. Subsequent flights will carry the remaining passengers out of the city once weather conditions permit.
By grabbing various types of atoms and putting them together LEGO-style, the new technique could potentially be used to build tiny wires for a wide range of applications, including fabrics that generate electricity, optoelectronic devices that employ both electricity and light, and superconducting materials that conduct electricity without any loss. The scientists reported their results in Nature Materials .

Scientists at Stanford University and the Department of Energys SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have discovered a one-pot synthesis process using diamondoidsthe smallest possible bits of diamondto assemble atoms into hybrid metalorganic chalcogenide nanowires with solid inorganic cores having three-atom cross-sections, representing the smallest possible nanowires.



Schematic of synthesis and structure of metal organic chalcogenides (MOCs) crystals. a, Schematic of the two-phase synthetic strategy for MOC crystals. R, adamantane or diamantane; M, Cu; EG, ethylene glycol. b, Refined SC-XRD structure of copper adamantane-1-thiolate (1ADCu) viewed along the chain elongation direction. Cu, S and C are represented by brown, yellow and black colors, respectively. The blue spheres denote the vdW radii of the adamantane side group. Yan et al. Click to enlarge.

What we have shown here is that we can make tiny, conductive wires of the smallest possible size that essentially assemble themselves. The process is a simple, one-pot synthesis. You dump the ingredients together and you can get results in half an hour. Its almost as if the diamondoids know where they want to go. Hao Yan, a Stanford postdoctoral researcher and lead author of the paper

Although there are other ways to get materials to self-assemble, this is the first one shown to make a nanowire with a solid, crystalline core that has good electronic properties, said study co-author Nicholas Melosh, an associate professor at SLAC and Stanford and investigator with SIMES, the Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Sciences at SLAC.

The needle-like wires have a semiconducting corea combination of copper and sulfur known as a chalcogenidesurrounded by the attached diamondoids, which form an insulating shell.

Their minuscule size is important, Melosh said, because a material that exists in just one or two dimensionsas atomic-scale dots, wires or sheetscan have very different, extraordinary properties compared to the same material made in bulk. The new method allows researchers to assemble those materials with atom-by-atom precision and control.

The diamondoids they used as assembly tools are tiny, interlocking cages of carbon and hydrogen. Found naturally in petroleum fluids, they are extracted and separated by size and geometry in a SLAC laboratory. Over the past decade, a SIMES research program led by Melosh and SLAC/Stanford Professor Zhi-Xun Shen has found a number of potential uses for the little diamonds, including improving electron microscope images and making tiny electronic gadgets.

For this study, the research team took advantage of the fact that diamondoids are strongly attracted to each other through van der Waals forces. (This attraction is what makes the microscopic diamondoids clump together into sugar-like crystals, which is the only reason you can see them with the naked eye.)

They started with the smallest possible diamondoidssingle cages that contain just 10 carbon atomsand attached a sulfur atom to each. Floating in a solution, each sulfur atom bonded with a single copper ion. This created the basic nanowire building block.

The building blocks then drifted toward each other, drawn by the van der Waals attraction between the diamondoids, and attached to the growing tip of the nanowire.

Much like LEGO blocks, they only fit together in certain ways that are determined by their size and shape. The copper and sulfur atoms of each building block wound up in the middle, forming the conductive core of the wire, and the bulkier diamondoids wound up on the outside, forming the insulating shell. Stanford graduate student Fei Hua Li

The team has already used diamondoids to make one-dimensional nanowires based on cadmium, zinc, iron and silver, including some that grew long enough to see without a microscope, and they have experimented with carrying out the reactions in different solvents and with other types of rigid, cage-like molecules, such as carboranes.

The cadmium-based wires are similar to materials used in optoelectronics, such as light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and the zinc-based ones are like those used in solar applications and in piezoelectric energy generators, which convert motion into electricity.

You can imagine weaving those into fabrics to generate energy. This method gives us a versatile toolkit where we can tinker with a number of ingredients and experimental conditions to create new materials with finely tuned electronic properties and interesting physics. Nicholas Melosh

Theorists led by SIMES Director Thomas Devereaux modeled and predicted the electronic properties of the nanowires, which were examined with X-rays at SLACs Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource, a DOE Office of Science User Facility, to determine their structure and other characteristics.

The team also included researchers from the Stanford Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and Justus-Liebig University in Germany. Parts of the research were carried out at Berkeley Labs Advanced Light Source (ALS) and National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), both DOE Office of Science User Facilities. The work was funded by the DOE Office of Science and the German Research Foundation.

Resources
A series of photos showing college students celebrating Christmas by playing in artificial snow has recently caused a sensation online.

Sichuan Southwest Vocational College of Civil Aviation produced the artificial snow, using it to decorate the school's campus on Christmas Eve. By giving students this classic Christmas experience, the school hopes students will be better equipped to work with foreign clients in the future.

Many students and even teachers put on costumes, dressing up as Mrs. Claus and Santa in addition to dancing and offering presents to passersby. Many handmade crafts were also sold around campus, in an imitation of typical European Christmas markets. Those students who had never traveled to the north enjoyed their first experience with snow, albeit fake snow, with most professing amazement at the sight and taking countless photos.

Activities like this one, part of the school's culture education week, are intended to reinforce students faith in their own country while simultaneously helping them to form open and inclusive attitudes toward other cultures.
GREENWICH  For some 20 years, Fe Joaquin embarked on solo trips for her Christmas dinner. On Sunday, she brought a contingent large enough to fill its own table.

To the delight of the 75-year-old Joaquin, four of her family members joined her at the Christmas dinner hosted by the Knights of Columbus Greenwich chapter, Orinoco Council 39.

Joaquins sons, Dennis Joaquin and Lorenzo Dino, and their daughters, Shanice Joaquin and Lorelyn Dino, moved to Greenwich earlier this year from the Philippines.

I wanted to show them what Ive been enjoying all these years, Fe Joaquin said. Now they can see it. And they can learn about the culture  and learn how to eat turkey.

Council 39s annual dinner at 37 West Putnam Ave. represents one of the town's largest Christmas service initiatives. The Knights fed about 80 local seniors in the dining room of their downtown headquarters and made about 75 deliveries to homebound residents. They also gave guests rides to and from the dinner.

Its a community service that we supply that I think should be done every year, said John Fasone, a past grand knight of Council 39. Christmas Day is a day of giving, and we dont ask anything of them but to come and enjoy it.

Dennis Joaquin said he was impressed by Council 39s generosity.

I can see why this event means so much to my mother, he said. I feel so lucky to be with her here today.

Gesmene Piercin, Fe Joaquins caregiver, joined the Joaquins and Dinos at the gathering.

It feels great, Piercin said. This is my passion.

Many attendees said they came to the dinner because they were looking for company on the holiday.

Even after feeling ill a few days ago, Darlene Miles said she was determined to make the dinner. She has attended the Knights Christmas gathering for about 15 years.

I didnt want to miss out on this opportunity, Miles said. The volunteers are very giving with their time and efforts. I appreciate everything that they do. I feel blessed to be here.

A roster of about 30 volunteers served the guests. The helpers schedules extended well beyond the dining hours. The kitchen crew started work Sunday at about 7 a.m.

The volunteers work was appreciated by the guests, who enjoyed Christmas favorites such as turkey, cranberry sauce, green beans, mashed potatoes, yams and apple pie.

Greenwichs Shemin Nurseries donated floral arrangements for each of the tables, plus a raffle.

The Knights of Columbus exemplify the spirit of giving, said Jean Pennicott, who joined Miles at the same table. Its through giving, not getting, that the heart finds its quest.

Bob Spider Morris, a former grand knight in Greenwich, started the diner in 1974. He envisioned a gathering that would include those who might be alone on the holiday. More than 40 years after founding the event, Morris still volunteers.

Were reaching out to a lot of people who would otherwise be lonely on Christmas, Morris said. Were bringing a lot of people together.

The Knights can already count on guests for next year.

This is our new family tradition, Fe Joaquin said. Were going to be doing this for a long time.

pschott@scni.com; 203-

964-2236; twitter: @paulschott
GREENWICH  An overhaul of the towns Board of Education to eliminate party politics is not completely dead yet.

A five-person committee has requested a second legal opinion about the feasibility of creating a non-partisan school board.

However, the town attorneys office has already said this type of change would be unlikely and one state representative predicted the reform would easily fail.

In going over all the options again. Almost all of us thought it was the best way for the town to go, committee chairwoman Joan Caldwell said Monday. It gets down to the heart of what we feel the issue is. It moves beyond partisanship on the board and it will give everyone an equal say in what happens.

The committee is considering expanding the Board of Education to 10 members with five elected every two years on a staggered schedule, and a board with an odd number of candidates, either seven or nine. The committee could also determine the best option is for the board structure to remain the same.

A non-partisan board would allow for members to be unaffiliated voters, which now comprise the second-largest block in town only narrowly behind the Republicans.

Berlin is the only Connecticut municipality to have a non-partisan Board of Education that was grandfathered in.

Greenwich town attorney Wayne Fox said the committee asked his office to request a special act of the legislature. However, Fox said he believes a state statute enacted in 1969 prevents the General Assembly from enacting special legislation relative to the organization, terms of officers or form of government of any municipality.

Fox said the committee has requested a second opinion and he will further explore the issue.

It is my intent to speak with (the committee) to clarify the issue the committee is seeking, Fox said. I will do that in the next several days. If, in fact, we decide to obtain a second opinion that would be arranged through my office.

Caldwell understood Foxs explanation, but wanted a second opinion to ensure the committee has explored all options.

The committee voted 4-1 last week in favor of seeking a second opinion. Only Peter von Braun voted against the request. He said Monday it was because he felt the chance of a special act happening was zip.

Regardless of the merits of the idea, this is a total waste of time, von Braun said. It excites expectations that cant be met.

The committee initially planned to have a report prepared for the Board of Selectmen by this month. However, the committee has not yet determined how it will fulfill its goals of increasing board accountability and creating an opportunity for unaffiliated voters. Caldwell now expects to have the report completed in January.

The committee was formed in August to consider expanding the Board of Education from eight members, who are evenly split among Republicans and Democrats, to as many as 10. Proponents said having five seats up for election would create competitive races.

The committees recommendation would be sent to the Board of Selectmen, which would need to approve it and send to the Representative Town Meeting for a final hearing and vote to change the town charter.

The towns delegation to Hartford is not convinced the board structure should be changed.

No one has officially asked us to look into this, but I don't think support of the idea is universal here in town, said state Rep. Fred Camillo, R-151. Moreover, I don't ever remember seeing special exemption type of legislation getting passed in my years in the Connecticut General Assembly.

State Rep. Livvy Floren, R-149, said the attempt would fail.

In my experience in the General Assembly, outlier, special exception legislation is almost impossible, she said.

State Rep. Michael Bocchino, R-150, and state Sen. L. Scott Frantz, R-36, could not be reached for comment.

The process has been controversial from the beginning. Prominent town Democrats have strongly opposed additional board seats. They said it would put the Democrats in the boards minority, considering they are far outnumbered by the amount of the towns registered Republicans.

Some Republicans have also opposed the idea of adding seats, saying it would politicize a board that typically works in a bipartisan fashion. However, new Republican Board of Education Chairman Peter Sherr, who succeeded Democrat Laura Erickson last week, is a vocal advocate of the reform effort and has said more seats would better represent the town because competitive elections make people feel they have a voice.

kborsuk@scni.com
With LGs G5 not a home run as many would have hoped, many are looking forward to seeing what LG has in store for a 2017 flagship. Last year, the LG G5 was announced at MWC. But with Samsung rumored to skip out MWC this year, LG would have more of the limelight for itself.

But it could be that LG is aiming for an even earlier commercial release for the LG G6. A Korean media outlet ETNews reports that LG is aiming to have the G6 out in stores a whole month earlier than the LG G5, which launched on the first of April in the US.

So instead of waiting about a month after announcing a phone, LG might be able to announce the G6 at MWC and then launch a commercial release much more quickly. If LG is even more ambitious, it can plan its own launch party and skip MWC altogether.

There is a window of opportunity for LG to drop a new smartphone with Samsungs rumored release of the Galaxy S8 to come later, and the same window is also when Apples iPhone sales become stagnant. A smartphone release with a strategically planned date of release, supported by a strong ad campaign in the very beginning should help LG sell more units overall.

The LG G6 is rumored to be drastically different than its predecessors. The company will supposedly be going for an all-new design that implements both metal and glass, which results in the removal of the removable battery and the potential of water-resistance and wireless charging are on the table. Theres even been word of an iris scanner on the G6, but that myth is yet to be confirmed or debunked. Only time will tell.

MWC is scheduled for February 27 through March 2 in Barcelona, Spain. We wont be seeing the Galaxy S8 here as far as rumors are concerned. So this years show will definitely be in interesting one.

Source | Via 1 | Via 2
The time for yearly recaps has come and we're kicking things off with a Top 10 list. It's not a 'best phone' type of list, strictly speaking - we won't be pronouncing the phone of the year here. Instead, we'll be looking at the phones that have gathered the most fans throughout the year. Alright, on second thought that maybe does make it a 'best phone' list, sort of.

Wait, back up a little, what fans? You know - that obscure feature we have, where you can state your affection for a device by hitting the heart icon on its specs page. That will also send it to your profile page where you can browse all the devices you've liked and possibly owned, and maybe even reminisce on the days of alphanumeric displays.

Anyway, Top 10 time now, and it's all touchscreens.

The Sony Xperia X Performance was the last to make it on the list snatching the 10th spot by a few votes ahead of the LG V20 - so no ticker in the Top 10. One higher we find the Xiaomi Mi Mix - concept phone become reality in a matter of minutes during its announcement keynote in late October. And yes - in just two months it's got more fans than the Xperia, which has been official since February.

Next comes the Galaxy Note7 in 8th spot. Yes, the Note7 that is no more still has a loyal following. A couple of flagships from the spring sit higher on the list - the LG G5 with its Friends modular concept will be the only one of its kind (LG confirmed - no more Friends on the G6), while the HTC 10 doesn't seem to be doing as well as the struggling company needed it to be. Both made it to the hearts of our readers, though.

A much more successful on the market Samsung Galaxy S7 is only slightly ahead in fan count - we find that one in 5th. Announced mere days after the Samsung flagship at MWC in February, the Xiaomi top model for the first half of this year - the Mi 5, is in 4th spot.

It's not over for Xiaomi on this list, though - there's one more. The Redmi Note 3 is one of those gems that combine premium build with good specs at an unbeatable price - no wonder it's been frequenting our weekly Top 10 trending phones chart.

Runner-up in number of fans this year is the OnePlus 3, the original one, and not the 3T update. In just three product generations the once tiny Chinese startup (with far from tiny backing, of course) turned into a force to be reckoned with, selling globally and beating the big guys in their own game.

But in the end it is the Samsung Galaxy S7 edge that gathered up the greatest number of fans this year. The fancier version of the Samsung mainstream flagship has it all - premium build, superb display and camera, battery life to spare - makes you wonder who can not be a fan of it?




Haiti - News : Zapping politics...





The situation becomes "more and more complicated"

For Jocelyne Colas Noel, National Director of the Episcopal Commission (Roman Catholic) Justice and Peace, the situation becomes "more and more complicated", pointing to the excessive and intransigent behavior of the representatives of the protesting parties, which make the situation more difficult, calling them to favor the interest of the country before their personal ambitions...



Success for 40 micro-companies

18 months after the launch of the "Innovation and Economic Development Laboratory" (LIDE) project, the 40 micro-enterprises created by Fort National youth are growing and are beginning to create jobs and income. These 40 young entrepreneurs are now looking for more credits and investors to maximize the experience accumulated since the start of their startup and sustain their efforts.



Petit-Goave : two police officers rewarded

Petit-Goave police informs us that police officers Philibert Jean Tony and Macillon Yves were chosen as the two best police officers of the year 2016 of Petit-Goave police station, therefore they will be honored on Wednesday, December 28, 2016 to the Hotel le Flamboyant (Delmas 75) at 6h00 pm in the presence of the High Command of the National Police IH/ iciHaiti / Guyto Mathieu (Correspondant Petit-Goave)



Day with the Diaspora of Atlanta

A delegation from the Haitian Consulate General in Atlanta want to Albertville, Alabama for a day with the Haitian community. Chief of Mission Faustin Lebon, accompanied by Consul Roody Metellus, Head of Health Department Sonia Timmer, and agents Rachelle Simon, Brierre Debrosse and Nathalie Celestin thanked the Eglise Porte Etroites led by Pasteur Johnny Jean Louis who jointly organized a health fair with a great part of civic education for women. The delegation also visited the company "Pilgrims" and some local authorities with which it shared positive comments on the integration of our compatriots in this city.



Diaspora : Invitation, Mass of Thanksgiving

On the occasion of the Commemoration of the 213rd Anniversary of Independence, the Embassy of the Republic of Haiti to the Kingdom of Spain is pleased to invite you to a Mass of Thanksgiving which will be celebrated on Sunday 1st January 2017 at 3 p.m. at the Parish of Santa Angela de la Cruz, located at Calle Cesar Manrique, 7 28035, Madrid.



At the end of the religious ceremony, the traditional soup of January 1st or "soup joumou" and refreshments will be offered to the refectory of the parish. The Embassy is relying on the presence in large numbers of members of the Haitian community and friends of Haiti to this commemoration.



Sharing of digital data...

A Memorandum of Understanding for the sharing of digital data was signed between the Investment Facilitation Center (CFI) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development (MARNDR) as part of the project Open Data | Investing in Haiti ".



Other Memoranda of Understanding are foreseen with, among others, the Bank of the Republic of Haiti (BRH) and the Haitian Institute of Statistics and Informatics (IHSI).



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Published on 2016/12/26 | Source

Pop starlet-turned-lawyer Lee So-eun got married in Seoul on Friday. She sang a wedding song herself at an event for only close relatives and friends.

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Debuting at the age of 16, Lee later decided to focus on her studies after releasing her fourth album in 2005.

She left for the U.S. in 2009 and graduated from Northwestern University's law school in Chicago
Published on 2016/12/25

10 Magazine reveals 10 strange Korean superstitions, the BBC explores the cultural inertia leading to the recent political unrest, 3D print your own Korean cultural heritage objects, and the "Korean Schindler" honoured with a statue in Seoul.

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"10 STRANGE KOREAN SUPERSTITIONS TO AVOID"

10 Magazine has compiled this list of ten superstitions you may encounter in the Land of the Morning Calm, like don't write someone's name in red; beware of the number 4; whistling at night is not wise; and, perhaps most famously, don't fall asleep with the fan on and the windows closed ("fan death"). Do you know of any other Korean superstitions? What superstitions are prevalent in your country?

...READ ON 10 MAGAZINE

"Why South Korea's corruption scandal is nothing new"

Here is an interesting feature on the BBC about the recent political scandal and the cultural roots that underpin it. "There are also deeper roots, according to Professor Kyung Moon Hwang of the University of Southern California. Confucianism 'values not only hierarchy in social relations but also reciprocity, the idea that one must repay kind treatment'". What do you think about the recent political events in South Korea in relation to K-culture? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below...

...READ ON BBC

"South Korea's Cultural Heritage is Available in 3D Printable Format from 3Dupndown"

Modern South Korean cultural has done an incredible job of promoting itself in the twenty-first century, and one of the main reasons Korea has been so successful in marketing itself to the world is because of its tireless quest to innovate. According to this article on 3D Printing, the Korea Culture Information Service Agency (KCISA) has signed up with the 3D file-sharing platform Dupndown for an innovative project: "Under the agreement, 3Dupndown can distribute 3D files of Korean cultural heritage online for anyone to print..." The future is now.

...READ ON 3D PRINT

"Statue to honor 'Korean Schindler'"

Hyun Bong-Hak, the "Korean Schindler" (after Oskar Schindler who saved the lives of some 1,200 Jews during WWII), was recently honoured with a statue of his likeness in front of the Severance building in Seoul. During the Korean War, Hyun persuaded the US military to evacuate 104,000 refugees from a battlefield in North Korea. "Dr. Hyun's efforts to evacuate the refugees helped save more lives than Schindler himself, while protecting the value of freedom", said Kim Gong-hak of Yonsei University.

...READ ON THE KOREA HERALD
Harlow is a former New Town in Essex with a population of 86,000. Located in the upper Stort Valley, it was built in the decades after the Second World War to ease overcrowding and London and provide homes for people bombed out during the Blitz. It includes Britain's first pedestrian precinct and first modern residential tower block, The Lawn. Old Harlow, the historic part of the town, was mentioned in the Domesday Book. David and Victoria Beckham's former home, Rowneybury House, nicknamed 'Beckingham Palace', is nearby.

17:38, 3 NOV 2022
THE TOP 10: Training center, Meadows, Publix

No. 10. Law enforcement training center



Henderson County commissioners said no in May when Sheriff Charlie McDonald looked into a shooting range at a 300-acre site on Pinnacle Mountain, the second time the board had sided with landowners who opposed McDonalds outdoor range idea. But by October, after commissioners had concluded there was no place in Henderson County that would be suitable for an outdoor range, McDonald had won approval of a $20 million indoor range on the BRCC campus. The 49,000-square-foot facility, now under design, will be used for tactical training that McDonald says his department needs.

No. 9. The fall and rise of Mark Meadows

If Democrats in Western North Carolina thought an ethics complaint would damage U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows, they were sorely disappointed. The Office of Congressional Ethics investigated and sent to the House Committee on Ethics a complaint that Meadows had improperly paid severance to Chief of Staff Kenny West after banning West from the workplace over sexual harassment claims. Although Democratic nominee Rick Bryson accused Meadows of stonewalling the investigation voters didnt care. Meadows won re-election with 64 percent of the vote. Four weeks later the third-term rep was elected to chair the Freedom Caucus, a Tea Party-oriented faction of conservatives with an outsized influence on the Republican leadership Congress. In his new role, Meadows has gained a measure of national prominence and landed frequent guest spots on cable networks.

8. Stuck in the mud



Hendersonvilles first Publix supermarket was supposed to be under construction by now. The struggle to win a permit to build in a floodplain has stalled the construction timetable. Publix won zoning approval from the City Council in January and completed the purchase of seven acres of land for $5.8 million in June. Hendersonville is still on track for a late 2017 opening, a Publix spokeswoman said in July. Publix is building the 49,000-square-foot supermarket at ground zero of the grocery war  competing with a new 72,000-square foot Ingles, a remodeled Fresh Market and Harris Teeter and five drugstores within a few hundred yards. Tom Vincent, president of the construction company building the store for Publix, said that his company had gone through the floodplain permitting process before. The only real impact is from a time perspective, he told the Lightning late November. Its in and its tracking. Hopefully well have that shortly and well be off and running.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

Trend:

Over the past 24 hours, Armenias armed forces have 38 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, said Azerbaijans Defense Ministry Dec. 26.

The Azerbaijani army positions located on the nameless heights of the Qazakh district underwent fire from the Armenian army positions located on the nameless heights and Paravakar village of the Ijevan district of Armenia.

Moreover, the Azerbaijani army positions also took fire from the Armenian positions located near the Armenian-occupied Goyarkh, Chilyaburt villages of the Tartar district, Shuraabad village of the Aghdam district, Kuropatkino village of the Khojavand district, Horadiz village of the Fizuli district, Mehdili village of the Jabrayil district, as well as from the positions located on nameless heights of the Goranboy, Tartar, Khojavand and Fuzuli districts.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
CIVIC GROUPS

ABINGDON CIVITAN: Abingdon, Va., Harbor House, first and third Monday, 6 p.m. New members welcome. Roger Edwards, 276-698-1349.

ABINGDON LIONS CLUB: Abingdon, Va., Shoneys, 480 Cummings Street, meets first and third Thursdays. Bob Trent, 276-628-6195.

ABINGDON TOWN COUNCIL: Abingdon, Va., first Monday, 7:30 p.m., Municipal Building on Main Street. Visit www.abingdon.com.

ABINGDON KIWANIS: Abingdon, Va., 200 Clubhouse Drive, Glenrochie Country Club, First three Tuesdays on each month, noon to 1 p.m. Visitors welcome. Lee Saunders III, 276-356-8201.

ABINGDON ROTARY: Abingdon, Va., 200 Clubhouse Drive, Glenrochie Country Club, Fridays, 12:00 p.m. Janice Rice Reeves, President, 276-676-0210.

COMMUNITY CENTER OF ABINGDON: Abingdon, Va. 300 Senior Drive, every Monday afternoon 2 p. m.: Movie, every Monday night 6 p. m.: Music jam, every Wednesday night: Ballroom dance class 7:15 p. m.: every Friday afternoon 1  4 p. m.: Game day, 276-628-3911.

AMERICAN LEGION HACKLER-WOOD POST 145: Bristol, Tenn., 515 Marion Ave., Veterans from all branches of service, come place your membership with Post 145; youll make new friends and get reacquainted with your fellow veterans, 11 a.m to 11 p.m. daily. Questions, 423-968-9973.

AMERICAN LEGION POST 145 RIDERS: Bristol, Tenn., 515 Marion Ave., Interested in growth and membership, 423-368-9973.

BRISTOL EVENING LIONS: Bristol Va. Exit 7, Golden Corral, second and fourth Thursday, 6 p.m. Membership open to men and women, Charles Coulthard, 276-466-5357. Joe Wall, 423-764-8545.

BRISTOL GOODSON LIONS CLUB: Bristol, Va., Bordwine Road, 1st and 3rd Mondays, 6 p.m. visitors welcome. 423-534-9313.

BRISTOL HOST LIONS: Bristol, Va., Exit 5, Euclid Avenue Food City, Fridays, noon. New members welcome. David Hoelscher, president. 423-646-2923.

BRISTOL MORNING ROTARY: Bristol, Va., Euclid Ave., Food City, every Tuesday, 7:30 a.m., Club President: Glenn Myers, 423-968-5351.

BRISTOL SHRINE CLUB: Bristol, Tenn., King Lodge, 35 5th St., third Friday, 7 p.m.; Ron Schoenhardt, president; 423-968-4531.

BUFFALO RURITAN: Bluff City, Tenn., Beaver Creek Road and Buffalo Road, Ruritan building, fourth Monday, dinner at 6:30 p.m., meeting follows. Visitors welcome. 423-967-1651.

GLADE SPRING CIVIC CLUB: Glade Spring, Va., old Glade School on the hill, second Thursday, 6:45 p.m. social, 7 p.m. meeting.

JERICHO SHRINE TEMPLE: Kingsport, Tenn., 1100 Jericho Dr.; second Tuesday, 7:30 p.m.; Elbert (Smiley) Bridwell, potentate, 423-323-1982.

KING MASONIC LODGE NO. 461: Bristol, Tenn., 35 5th St., 2nd Monday, 7:30 p.m. WM Bill Caffey, 423-360-0543, www.kinglodge.org.

KIWANIS CLUB OF BRISTOL, TN/VA: Bristol Public Library (Kegley room upstairs), Thursdays, 11:30 a.m. Treasurer, Richard Ball, rpball@BVU.net. Visitors welcome. Memberships open to men and women, call Richard Ball 276-466-4009.

KIWANIS CLUB OF ELIZABETHTON: Downtown Elizabethton, Dinos, every Tuesday, noon. President: Jared Tetrick (jaredtetrick@yahoo.com)

KIWANIS CLUB OF MARION: Marion, Va., 861 Goolsby St., VFW Post Home 4667, every Tuesday, 6:30 p.m. Kiwanis Office, 276-783-2316.

MEADOWVIEW CIVIC CLUB: Meadowview, Va., Exit 24, I-81, Community Center on the Square. 2nd Thursday, 6:30 p.m. Pot luck meal before meeting.

OPTIMIST CLUB OF BRISTOL: Bristol, Va., Euclid Ave., Food City, Thursdays, noon. Ron McCready, 423-968-7181.

ROTARY CLUB OF BRISTOL VA./TN.: Bristol, Va., Bristol Train Station. Tuesdays, noon. Secretary/treasurer, Joyce Crockett. www.rotary7570.org/BRSTLVATN.

ROTARY CLUB OF TRI-CITIES AREA TN/VA: Bristol, Tenn., Northeast State Community College, Pierce Building, noon. Mike Parker, 423-575-5534.

ROTARY CLUB OF WASHINGTON COUNTY, VA.: Abingdon, Va., Cummins St., Shoneys, Wednesdays, 7:30 a.m. Visitors welcome. George Whitley.

SHELBY LODGE NO. 162: Bristol, Va., 251 Old Airport Road meets first Monday, 6:30 p.m., food and fellowship; 7:30 p.m. dispatch of business. Robert A. Bruce, WM., 276-466-8591.

SOUTH HOLSTON RURITAN: Bristol, Tenn., Meadow Creek Road near South Holston Dam, Club House, fourth Thursday.

SONS OF CONFEDERATE VETERANS: Bristol, Va., 1601 Euclid Ave., Bristol Life Saving Crew, monthly meeting will be the third Monday of each month. New members welcome. renegade24201@yahoo.com, 276-591-6732.

TWIN CITY CIVITAN: Bristol, Tenn., 3332 Seventh St., Weaver Family Care Center, second and fourth Tuesday, 6 p.m. Stanley Mann, 423-968-2579. Visitors welcome.

VALLEY LODGE #93: Bristol, Va., 7707 Rich Valley Road. Meets every third Thursday, 423-742-0786.

WASHINGTON COUNTY, VA. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE: Abingdon, Va., Senior Drive, Virginia Ball-room, third Thursday, doors open at 7 a.m., breakfast at 7:15 a.m. Networking and business breakfast. Free to chamber members. 276-628-8141.

WYTHEVILLE RURITAN CLUB: Wytheville, Va., Hedgefield meeting room, first Monday 6 p.m.

YORK MASONIC LODGE NO. 12: Abingdon, Va., 14411 Black Hollow Road, every 4th Monday, 7:30 p.m.; Work and instruction each Tuesday, 7 p.m., WM Fred Bowers, 276-466-4466.

MEETINGS

ABINGDON TOWN COUNCIL: Abingdon, Va., first Monday, 7:30 p.m., Municipal Building on Main Street; visit www.abingdon.com.

BRISTOL GOODSON LIONS: Bristol Va., Lions Clubhouse on Bordwine Rd., First and third Mondays, 6 p.m. at Visitors welcome. 423-534-9313; 276-791-9650

BRISTOL TN TREE CITY USA BOARD: Bristol, Tenn., 325 McDowell St, Slater Center, third Monday, 5 p.m. Public welcome. 423-654-4023.

BRISTOL REPUBLICAN WOMENS CLUB: Bristol, Va. Food City, Euclid Avenue. Noon: Last Monday of every month. 423-361-1774.

MARION DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION ASSOCIATION BOARD: Marion, Va., Municipal Building second Thursday, 5:30 p.m. visitors welcome. To be added to agenda, 276-783-4190.

SULLIVAN COUNTY EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS DISTRICT 911 BOARD: Blountville, Tenn., 1570 Hwy. 394, SCECD 911 building, second Monday, every other month at 10 a.m. Due to conflict in schedules meetings can change at any time, public welcome. 423-279-7606.

SULLIVAN COUNTY ANTI-DRUG COALITION: Blountville, Tenn. 154 Blountville Bypass, Regional Health Department, second Thursday, odd number month 10 a. m.  noon. Speakers on various prevention topics, snacks will be provided, for more information call 423-742-2991 or visit www.scadcoalition.org.

HOW TO SUBMIT INFO

Submission deadline is Monday noon for the items scheduled during the upcoming week. Email fea-tures@bristolnews.com or fax 276-669-3696. Put Monday Calendar in the email subject line. For information, call Dorothy Hurt, 276-645-2556 or email dhurt@bristolnews.com
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

Trend:

Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has sent a congratulatory letter to the Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on occasion of his birthday.

Dear Mr. President, dear brother, on behalf of the people of Turkey and on my own behalf, I extend my most sincere congratulations to you on the occasion of your birthday, reads Erdogans letter. It is with great happiness that I follow the strengthening, day by day, of our friendly and brotherly relations, which is driven by the values of common language, religion, history and culture under your wise leadership.

Taking this auspicious opportunity, I wish Your Excellency and your esteemed family robust health, happiness, and the friendly and brotherly people of Azerbaijan peace, prosperity and joyful days, the Turkish president added.
Candidates with no legislative history not uncommon

Maryland's candidates for governor do not have long legislative records. Wes Moore has none at all. Analysis shows that is not uncommon.
Details added (first version posted on 11:17)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

Trend:

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva on Dec. 26 familiarized themselves with the conditions of Ali Isazade Street in Bina settlement after reconstruction.

President Aliyev cut the ribbon symbolizing the opening of the street.

Chairman of Azeravtoyol OJSC Saleh Mammadov informed the president about the reconstruction work.

He said renovation included the construction of sidewalks and installation of modern lighting system along the street.

The street will ease traffic flow in the direction of Bina, Mardakan, Bilgah, Gala, Pirallahi settlements and city center.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

Trend:

Azerbaijans first lady, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva has today viewed conditions created at newly-constructed orphanage-kindergarten No.343 in Bina settlement, Khazar district, Baku.

Construction of the orphanage-kindergarten started in 2015 under the Heydar Aliyev Foundations Program for Development of Preschool Institutions, and ended in August 2016.

President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva cut the ribbon symbolizing the opening of the orphanage-kindergarten, and then toured it.

Azerbaijans first lady was informed of the work done here. The two-storey orphanage-kindergarten can handle up to 140 children in 7 groups.

President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva met with children, chatted with them and posed together for photographs.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

Trend:

Professor of the Petroleum Engineering Department of Baku Higher Oil School (BHOS) Fuad Veliyev participated in IV International Energy Technologies Conference, which took place in Istanbul (Turkey).

At the conference plenary session, the BHOS professor presented a paper entitled Energy Saving Technologies in Oil Production Systems on the Basis of Negative Pressure Phenomenon.

Conclusions of the presented paper generated a strong interest among the conference participants.

At the conference, Veliyev also provided information about Azerbaijan in general and, in particular, about the Higher School, which gained close attention of the audience.

He told about the BHOS establishment, growth, activities and prospects of development. Representatives of various universities expressed their interest in Azerbaijan and their intentions to develop cooperation with the Higher School in the field of science and education.
A 22-day-old baby died at Bhopals Hamidia hospital on Sunday, sources said.

The father of the deceased, Radheshyam told HT that his child was admitted in the special newborn care unit (SNCU) of Kamla Nehru Hospital from where he was taken to Hamidia hospitals medicine ward for a test.

As per sources even infants in critical condition admitted in SNCU ward are removed from the life support system and taken to a 300-metre far medicine ward of Hamidia hospital.

The newly appointed superintendent at Hamidia hospital Dr Deepak Maravi remained unavailable to comment on the issue.

The superintendent of Hamidia hospital was removed on Saturday, a day after chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan visited the facility and two officers of the medical education department  additional chief secretary (medical education) Prabhanshu Kamal and Gandhi Medical College (GMC) dean Dr Ulka Shrivastava  were transferred.

A surprise check was conducted at Chhatarpur district hospital by minister of state Lalita Yadav on Sunday. Looking at the dirt and mess in hospital, Yadav cancelled the tender of the agency which was hired to clean the hospital.

The same day, health and family welfare minister Rustam Singh suspended Dr VK Gupta, civil surgeon at Morena district hospital over several irregularities found during an extensive inspection.
Communal tension erupted in the Gormi locality of MPs Bhind district after the body of a 50-year-old man, who was missing since December 16, was found in a river on Sunday.

After the body of the missing man was found, some unidentified persons allegedly burnt down about 12 houses and six vehicles reportedly owned by the members of a particular community, said sources. The district administration has clamped prohibitory orders in the area under Section 144 of CrPc.

According to sources who didnt wish to be named, the deceased, Munnalal Samadhia, a resident of Gormi locality, was allegedly missing since December 16.

On that day, he had gone to market to buy some grocery but didnt return after that. The next day, members of his family lodged a complaint about it and suspected the role of two of his neighbours in his sudden disappearance as they too were also untraceable since December 16.

The police at that time didnt file a case against those two neighbours who belonged to a particular community citing unavailability of evidence against them. Locals of the area accused the police of not doing enough to find Samadhia and observed a bandh two days ago in the area.

On Sunday at around 12.30 pm, the locals found the body of Samadhia in Kunwari river in Kachnao village in the district. The body, which was found tied to stones, was taken out by Samadhias kin and the locals.

They later put the body on the highway passing through the area, demanding action against the two neighbours whom they suspected of being involved in his disappearance.

After some time, the locals moved towards the locality comprising members of a particular community and torched about 12 houses along with six vehicles kept there. After receiving the information, police tried to reach the spot but were stopped by the crowd which resorted to stone pelting.

The crowd was dispersed only after district collector (DC) Ilayaraja T reached the spot along with senior police officials and additional police force, added sources. The DC later imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPc in the area to control the violence.

Apart from Section 144 of CrPc, restrictions have also been imposed on social media against posting any objectionable matters which could hurt religious sentiments and flare up communal tension. A three-member special investigation team led by additional superintendent of police has also been formed to investigate the case. Currently the situation is under control, said the DC, adding a survey is on to ascertain the loss to property caused by violence.
A 70-year-old man died in Madhya Pradeshs Chhatarpur district after he was asked by three men of his caste to stand on a leg as a punishment for a cow calfs death in his agricultural field.

The man, Har Singh Lodhi, had earlier undergone a series of purification rituals ordered by a caste panchayat.

The three men -- Karan Lodhi, Gondi Lodhi and Mardan  forced Har Singh on Friday to pay 500 as penalty, and stand on a leg at Ramtoriya village in Badi Malahra area. He gave 500 to the men, but unable to stand on a leg for long, he fell down and fainted. He was taken to a hospital where doctors declared him dead on arrival.

The elderly man was given the punishment for what they said atonement for the death of the cow calf in the agricultural field on December 9, said Dariyab Singh, foster son of Har Singh.

Chhatarpurs Bamnora police station sub-inspector Pradip Saraf said a case has been lodged under section 174 of CrPC (death under circumstances raising a reasonable suspicion).

Though the deceased mans foster son has verbally made the allegations, his statements are yet to be recorded. Once the statements are recorded and the autopsy report is out, action will be taken against those found responsible for the death, Saraf told Hindustan Times on Sunday.

Dairyab Singh said a calf was found dead in their agricultural field with a bottle of rat-killer on December 9.

Panchayat slapped a series of punishments on the deceased

A Lodhi caste panchayat, which met the next day at Ramtoriya village, blamed Har Singh for the calfs death. The panchayat slapped a series of punishments on him -- taking a prayaschit snan (bath for atonement), tonsuring of head, and hosting of a lunch for the community members.

Abiding by the diktat, Har Singh went with his son to Allahabad on December 13 to take the bath at the Triveni Sangam, and got his head tonsured. He returned to the village the next day, and hosted two community lunches for the Lodhi villagers.

While the family thought that the matter was over, the three men of the Lodhi clan gave the elderly man punishment which caused his death, said Dairyab Singh.

Vigilantism in the name of cattle protection has triggered a spate of attacks in many states, including Madhya Pradesh that has over 1.96 crore cows.

Police officials of the state posted in districts bordering Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh confirmed that anti-socials, in the garb of cow vigilante groups, were attacking those carrying milch animals.
A limestone mining barons wife and two children, who went missing from outside a mall in Jabalpur on December 22, were traced at Bhavnagar in Gujarat early on Monday by a joint police team of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.

Sangeeta Grover, wife of Ranjan Grover and in her early 30s, their two children Rudraksh and Shivaksh aged 10 and 12, and her friend Ashish Khatwani were staying in a hotel near Bhavnagar in Gujarat, Jabalpur superintendent of police MS Sikarwar told reporters on Monday.

Sangeeta along with her two sons had come from MPs Katni to her parental town Jabalpur and went to a mall from where they vanished. They had flown in from Jabalpur to Delhi at 4.55pm On December 22, 2016, and later from Delhi to Bhavnagar in Gujarat, the police said.

She has told the police that she was upset with frequent family disputes and to teach them (in-laws) a lesson she took the step, said the SP.

The woman had checked into the hotel under the name of Jasmeet Khatwani, Sikarwar said, adding that she had told the police that Ashish is her friend who helped her get out of trouble.

Sangeeta had also couriered an eight-page suicide note to the police before disappearing, which cops suspect was a smokescreen.

They are being brought to Jabalpur by a police team, he said. Ashish Khatwani hails from Jabalpur.

Police are trying to piece together Sangeetas movements on December 22. They are also probing why her mobile phones location was traced to Galgala and Omti localities of Jabalpur on December 22 and 23, the police said. After December 23 night, her mobile phone was switched off.

Ashishs phone was switched off on December 24 with the last location showing Bhopal, the police said.

The same will be looked into after they reach here (Jabalpur) and further action will be taken accordingly, the SP said.

The Jabalpur police took help of the crime branch of Bhavnagar police in Gujarat to track the woman and her children.

The suicide note

Their disappearance became even more sensational after an eight-page note purportedly written by the woman to the police informed them about her intention to commit suicide along with the kids.

The note which was ostensibly couriered by the woman to Gaurav Tiwari, the Katni SP, stated that she was under severe mental harassment by her husband Ranjan Grover, whose business-family reportedly had contacts in the top government levels in Bhopal.

The note mentions about the womans husband having publicly insulted her before prominent people in Bhopal and even forced her to dance with strangers at an amusement park in the Madhya Pradesh capital, a police officer privy to the probe had told Hindustan Times on Sunday.

The note also mentioned her husbands alleged extramarital relations with other women, including call girls which were caused her unimaginable mental agony.

Sangeetas mother lodged a complaint with the Jabalpur police on the night of December 22 after she went missing.

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It has been the most public of all corporate battles in India so far.

The almost daily fight between Tata Sons and ousted chairman Cyrus Mistry, which bore different lessons for India Inc, was without doubt the biggest surprise of 2016. That a leadership dispute could happen in one of Indias oldest business families was unthinkable before October 24; that it would sow seeds of doubt about corporate governance in the Tatas, was also beyond comprehension.

Some say it had been in the making since a year. But the Monday morning board meeting of Tata Sons on October 24 sparked the countrys biggest boardroom coup in India, when a vote was passed to remove chairman Mistry, citing the boards loss of confidence. The loudest voice was from Tata Trusts, the philanthropic arm of the Tatas, who said that Mistry had deviated from the $103-billion groups philosophy of earning to give.

The removal brought patriarch Ratan Tata back into the saddle, albeit for an interim period, till a successor was found, a job that was entrusted to a select panel, which has been given time till February end.

Mistry represents the single-largest shareholder of he Tata Group -- the Shapoorji Pallonji family with 18.5% equity stake. The Trusts are the principal shareholders with 66% ownership.

But Mistry refused to leave without a fight, and the dispute has only grown since then.

Read more: Definite move to damage my personal reputation over last 2 months: Ratan Tata

In a letter to Tata Sons and the Trusts a day after his removal, which also reached media houses, Mistry alleged that the main reason for his ouster was because he had started cleaning up doubtful deals and breaking decades-long cosy clubs in the 150-year old conglomerate, raising governance issues, which threatened to turn the popular opinion about brand Tata, on its head.

The Tatas were quick to swing into action. What followed has been a daily dose of charges and counter charges, which has unfortunately shaved off more than R1 lakh crore in shareholder wealth of Tata group companies.

But what added colour to the boardroom battle was the attack from industrialist and corporate samurai Nusli Wadia on November 12.

For years a Tata confidante, godson of much respected former Tata chairman JRD Tata, and a childhood friend of Ratan Tata, Wadia felt slighted after his position as independent director on boards of Tata Chemicals, Tata Steel and Tata Motors was suspected, following an endorsement of Mistrys leadership by independent directors of a group company.

The Tatas, who had expected Mistry to step down from the boards of all group companies after his removal as Tata Sons chairman, were taken aback by Wadias support and proceeded to convene extraordinary general meetings (EGMs) to oust both Mistry and Wadia as directors.

This spurred Mistry to renew attacks, bringing out the groups various business decisions that caused say, Tata Steel to face potential impairments of $10 billion, or that related to sustaining the Nano car project despite losses only because it was a personal favourite of Ratan Tata. The allegations also covered the haemorrhaging in telecom business and suspicious transactions in an aviation joint venture.

On December 19, ahead of key EGMs, Mistry sprang a surprise; he stepped down from all boards vowing to continue the fight in the courts, since it was getting destructive for other stakeholders. The next day an investment firm from his family, moved the National Company Law Tribunal, alleging oppression and mismanagement and undue control of the Trusts in the groups businesses.

Wadia, on the other hand, mounted a parallel legal battle, filing criminal defamation complaints and making public board discussions on different projects.

The EGMs, however, voted out Wadia  resolutions on Mistrys removal had become infructuous since he had already stepped down. The focus is now on the fight between Mistry and Tata Sons in the Tribunal and the courts.

The duel has, however, come at a wrong time for the Indian economy, which is battling a slow down due to demonetisation and the impact of foreign funds outflows. With foreign institutions adopting a strong stance on governance issues within the Tata Group - they are learnt to have led the no vote on the Mistry removal  it should prompt some corrective measures in the old, yet vital business, which makes both luxury cars and table salt.

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The last time Seeta Kaurs family saw her in India was in a glass coffin. They had just arrived from Britain and were immediately suspicious because the body was fully wrapped up in blankets. Her sister had to fight and push people out of the way to reach the lifeless body and take off the blankets.

I pulled off the blanket off her face and saw scratch-marks, her sister Swinder Kaur told me. I saw bruises across her neck and her chest. I turned around and told her husbands family - you have killed my sister. You strangled her. You cant get those scratch-marks otherwise. I was devastated.

A day earlier, on March 31, 2015, Seeta parents in Britain had been told their daughter had suddenly died of a heart attack. She had been a healthy 33-year-old woman with no such problems. They didnt believe it. The entire family flew to New Delhi and arrived the next day in Kurukshetra, Haryana, where her husband lived.

They asked to take her body back to Britain for a post-mortem. He agreed. But the next morning the body was gone. She had apparently been cremated overnight without her familys consent.

The tragic story of how Seeta Kaur, a young woman from east London who married a man from north India and died in mysterious circumstances, is still largely untold. It is coming to light now only after a campaign was launched last week by the London-based womens group Southall Black Sisters. Over the last year Seetas family have tried their best to get justice for their daughter and got nowhere. They are despondent and angry.

Read: Key changes sought in UK domestic workers visa regulations

The tragedy of the story lies not just in what happened to Seeta but the callous attitude of the British and Indian authorities to her death. This is about romance blooming across countries, but turning sour over cultural differences. But most importantly, this story is about how a loophole in the law is used to put women in danger.

By the age of 23, Seeta Kaur ran her own little salon in East London as a beautician. She worked hard, her family say, and always put others ahead of herself. Her parents introduced her to Pawan, who was from a family in India, for marriage a decade ago. They hit it off and the marriage was arranged. He moved to the UK.

The problems started when she had her first child, a boy. Her husband had promised to give one of their sons to his brother without telling his wife. Seeta refused to give up her child and tensions grew. Then she had a daughter. Her childless brother-in-law didnt want the girl, they only wanted a boy. Then Seeta had twins, a boy and a girl, and the pressure became intense. She started to become depressed.

Her sister says she was beaten for not doing her husbands bidding, but did not relent. So they tricked her into going to India. Pawan told Seeta his mother was seriously ill and wanted to see the children. It was a lie, her sister says. In February 2015 the family went to India. Seeta never came back. Neither have her children.

The Indian police have been of no help at all. They wont even investigate the husbands family, instead asking her family to reconcile with him. More shockingly, UK authorities wont act either. Neither the Foreign Office nor London police have asked what happened to their citizen. Pragna Patel from Southall Black Sisters says they are washing their hands off it by claiming its the familys responsibility to ensure action is taken, not theirs.

Campaigners say that because the police is more lax there, dozens of women from Britain have been taken to the Indian subcontinent and just disappeared. And British authorities can ignore such cases.

Read:20,000 NRIs will come to Punjab to help AAP in polls

In 2007, the husband and mother-in-law of Surjit Kaur Athwal were convicted for murdering her in Punjab and dumping her body in the river Ravi. A few years later, Manjit Kaur Kullar also died in Punjab under suspicious circumstances. She had also suffered domestic violence.

Samia Shahid was another such victim. It was initially reported in July this year she had died of natural causes in Pakistan. But pressure from the family and British MPs forced the Pakistani police to investigate further. Her father and ex-husband were found responsible for her murder.

Pragna Patel says the Indian police should hang their heads in shame because the Pakistani police showed themselves more willing to investigate such crimes against women.

A society that pretends to put women on a pedestal but treats them as disposable is in denial about its own values. Seeta Kaur wasnt just murdered because she refused to give up her son, when women are still treated as inadequate if they cant give birth to one. She was murdered because she was seen as disposable, and because people knew the police would look the other way. This is a damning indictment not just of the authorities but what our society has become.

Her family deserve justice because the story of Seeta is one of countless other women. The authorities owe it to women in Britain. They owe it to the women of India.

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With elections fast approaching, partiesfrom BJP and Congress to UKD and SPare in a race to take credit for the formation of Uttarakhand, 16 years after the state came into being.

BJP recently placed full-page advertisements in regional dailies announcing Atal ji ne banaya, Modi ji sanwarenge (former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee created Uttarakhand, current PM Narendra Modi will nurture it) ahead of Modis proposed visit to the state capital on Tuesday.

The BJP says that it was under Vajpayee that the bill for the formation of a separate hill state (then named Uttaranchal) was passed by Parliament in 2000.

BJP spokesperson Virendra Singh Bisht said there were no doubts that the BJP government had given the go-ahead for the formation of Uttarakhand.

We are not denying the collective efforts made by others (in the formation of Uttarakhand) but the concept is very clearit was only under Ataljis leadership that a separate hill state was born, Bisht said, alleging that the earlier Congress governments had failed to take a decisive stand on the matter.

We (the BJP) are very sensitive towards the needs of the state and Modiji will take it to greater heights, Bisht said.

Other parties have, however, rejected BJPs claims. Formed in 1979, the only recognised state-party Uttarakhand Kranti Dal (UKD), which had played an active role in the states formation movement, accused national parties of hijacking its contribution.

We (UKD) were the ones who played an important role in the formation of Uttarakhand and we alone can nurture it properly, Kashi Singh Airy, patron of the UKD, asserted, while releasing the partys Vision Document for the state at Gairsain on December 25.

The Samajwadi Party, meanwhile, has claimed that the then Uttar Pradesh government under Mulayam Singh Yadav was the one which first gave a green signal to the formation of Uttarakhand by clearing recommendations of the Kaushik Committee (which was commissioned to study the carving out of Uttarakhand from UP) and sending it to the central government.

We were the ones who set the process (for the states creation) into motion and not the BJP or the Congress. In fact, Ataljis government did not even make a permanent capital unlike the other two states (Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh which were formed along with Uttarakhand in 2000), whose repercussions are still being faced 16 years later, SP state chief Satyanarayan Sachan said.

SP is now planning to distribute booklets highlighting the SPs contribution to the hill states formation.

State Congress chief Kishore Upadhyay claimed that the grand old party was the one which actually paved the way for the Uttarakhand formation movements initiation.

Perhaps the movement wouldnt have started had I along with others (Congressmen) not made (statehood movements pioneer) Indramani Badonijis delegation meet then Union minister for internal security Rajesh Pilotji in 1993 to raise the demand for a separate state. I had even sat on a 12-day hunger strike at the All India Congress Committee headquarters in Delhi to escalate the demand within the party, Upadhyay said, alleging that the BJP was hurting the sentiments of the people by politicising the issue.

Meanwhile, people who were involved in the statehood movement feel that parties have done nothing for the regions development over the years.

Theyve only been playing with our sentiments and politicising the issue, Kamala Pant, who took part in the statehood agitations and now heads Swaraj Abhiyan in Uttarakhand, said.

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After a wait of three years, people will get to see Delhis tableaux at the 68th Republic Day parade at the historic Rajpath. The theme representing the national capital would be education  a sector in which the Aam Aadmi Party government has completed a host of projects.

The model schools project, under which 54 schools are being revamped with state-of-the-art infrastructure, the mega parent-teacher meetings, the skill development centre and the unique students-teachers training programme are the key initiatives that would be modelled this time.

Delhi tableau last participated in the 2013 Republic Day parade when the theme was The cultural hub of the country as the city sees inhabitants coming from different backgrounds and regions. In the previous years, there were no Delhi tableaus either because the proposal itself was not prepared or we were not selected by the selection committee of the defence ministry, a government official said.

The selection has not been easy for the Capital as the government for the first time had tasked the Department of Arts and Culture and the Sahitya Kala Parishad to finalise the concept for the tableau. It is a matter of immense pride that after three years we will get to showcase good things about Delhi on the prestigious Republic Day parade. We are among the 15 other selected states. A special theme song on education and how it carves a good citizen out of a human being is also being prepared. School children will dance to its tune, tourism minister Kapil Mishra said.

Describing the proposed tableaux, which still is being modified based on suggestions from the Defence Ministry, he said there would also be a replica at Jantar Mantar. We will show students visiting the monument the importance of excursions in education. There will also be a replica of a model school, Mishra added.

The government presented four themes to the Centre. These included the work done in the health and education sectors, the communal and cultural diversity of Delhi and a mix of all key projects across sectors.

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A week after three unidentified bikers robbed a cash van outside an ATM outlet in east Delhis Pandav Nagar, the Delhi Police on Monday claimed to have solved the daylight robbery case, the first such crime after demonetisation.

The three men have been arrested and Rs 9 lakh were recovered from them. All three are residents of trans-Yamuna localities and were previously involved in similar crimes. One of them has been identified as Bittu.

Omvir Singh, deputy commissioner of police (east), said that the three were arrested on Sunday from different parts of Delhi on a tip off received by the investigating team. The crime took place around 2.30 pm on Monday last when the Brinks Security cash van had come to replenish an SBI ATM on Patparganj Road in E-block.

Police said the robbers had looted Rs 10 lakh from the cash van that had reached outside the ATM outlet to replenish cash in the ATM machine. The cash van staff initially told police that the robbed amount was Rs 5 lakh.

In the FIR, the police mentioned robbery of Rs 5 lakh only. But in their supplementary statement, the cash replenishment company officials informed police that they checked their records and found that the looted amount was Rs 10 lakh.

Police said, Abdul Kadir, a cash custodian from the bank, took out a bag full of money from the van and was walking towards the ATM when three men on a bike snatched it from him. The robbed money was all in new currency notes of Rs 2, 000 and Rs 500. Although he tried to resist, one of the assailants fired thrice to threaten him and managed to snatch the bag.

One of the robbers was wearing a helmet and the others two had their faces muffled, police said. Police said the robbers were on a Bajaj Pulsar bike. They said the gunman who was accompanying the van staff also fired in retaliation but the robbers escaped.

CCTV footage from the area showed that the bike reached the spot following the van. As soon as the van reached near the ATM, the bike came closer to the van.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

Trend:

Winners of the I Interuniversity contest Native Language held at Azerbaijan State University of Economics (UNEC) have been defined.

The competition dedicated to World Azerbaijanis Solidarity Day was jointly organized by the Public Association Support to Economist Students and UNEC Creativity Center. The event is targeted in promoting our national wealth- native language, its popularization among youth and bringing to future generations.

Members of the jury- Peoples artist, famous Nuraddin Mehdikhanli, Honored artist Zaur Amiraslanov, Dr. of Philological Sciences, Professor Zahid Khalil, writer- screenwriter Vusal Nuru and the Laureate of the Project Azeri Star Aygul Mammadova stressed the great importance of the Project realized at UNEC in revealing students creative abilities who will be owners of different specialties.

At least, students of 17 universities practiced their abilities on the nominations of poetry and song. Student of the Azerbaijan State University of Culture and Art Umman Budagov won I place of the intense contest on poetry. II place was achieved by UNEC student Igbal Bayramov and III place by the student of Sumgait State University Aliyar Rafiyev.

The best song performer was selected UNEC student, young vocalist Aslan Azimzade. II place was honored to ADMIU students Azer Salimov and Aghayar Khanlarov and Jahandar Khanlarov and III place by the student of the University Odlar Yurdu Anvar Mammadhasanov.

Winners were presented diplomas and money prize.

UNEC is the brand of Azerbaijan State University of Economics. The brand of UNEC has been registered and patented by the State Committee on Standardization, Metrology and Patent on January 21 2016.
Delhis new top bureaucrat has cracked the whip on lax officers, warning of strict action on babus who come to work after 9.45am, as part of a raft of tough new measures.

Newly appointed chief secretary MM Kutty has broken away from his predecessor KK Sharmas low-profile style, and asked secretaries of every department to ensure punctuality after noticing that a large number of officers were often late.

The general administration department needs to ensure all officers working in the Delhi secretariat mark their attendance through biometric system by 9:45 am, he told officers, as per the official minutes of the meeting.

An official present at the meeting also said that Kutty asked secretaries of every department to take action against habitual late-comers.

The 1985 batch IAS officer was working as additional secretary in the Union environment ministry and took charge on December 1.

He had earlier served as principal secretary to former chief minister Sheila Dikshit and as finance secretary in the present Aam Aadmi Party administration. He was also with the Delhi government during the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

He is known for the punctuality and would expect the best from his officers. He will review the progress in the next meeting, said the officer.

Apart from housing the offices of ministers, the Delhi secretariat has office of all important departments such as urban development, home, social welfare, public works, finance and planning.

He has also directed the revenue, trade and tax, excise and transport department to improve collection as they are the major revenue-generating departments.

Kutty has directed secretaries to review position of court cases to ensure timely reply and effective representation to avoid contempt of court. Any laxity in this regard may be viewed seriously and responsibility of the concerned officer be fixed, he said.

In his earlier stint with the Delhi government, Kutty was part of acommittee set up to resolve the issue of contractual employees in the city administrations various departments. He has also served in the unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi and was part of a panel that worked on the trifurcation.

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The Delhi University is planning to introduce entrance tests for admissions to B.Com courses starting 2017.

Manoj Khanna, convener of the DU admission committee, said: We are planning to conduct entrance exams for admission to B.Com (honours) and BA (programme) for the upcoming academic session. We are ready for this in terms of infrastructure and preparedness. But this needs to be accepted by all statutory bodies.

At present, DU conducts entrance tests for its post-graduation and professional courses. However, admissions to undergraduate courses are done on the basis of Class 12 marks.

Khanna said it has been observed that students from some schools and areas were getting admission due to high marks being given to them in their board exams.

Read | Businesses at an all time low at Delhi Universitys one-stop market Patel Chest

We do not have the process of rationalising numbers as of now. Many deserving students were not able to get admission in these courses due to a lower score in Class 12. Entrance exam will give everyone a chance to get admission, he said.

He said the admission committee is consulting faculties, principals and students on the issue and is discussing the possibility of conducting entrance test for Science and Humanities courses too.

The university is also assessing how to strengthen infrastructure for online admissions and preparations of entrance tests, with focus on evolving a student friendly admission system, he added.
The students and teachers of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) have termed the move to make entrance test as the only qualifying criterion an attempt to change the character of the university.

Under the current system, students have to score in both the written examination and interview. The weightage for written test is 70% and for viva-voce it is 30%, an official said.

But now students will have to qualify the entrance test with a minimum of 50% marks and the interview will decide the merit list.

The move comes amid demand from students union to decrease the weightage given to the interview.

What needs to be underlined is that University Grants Commission gazette notification of 5th May is not even a guideline, but a straightjacket which directs all universities to conduct qualifying exams for MPhil and PhD courses in two levels, with viva having become the sole criterion for deciding the merit list. The modus operandi of V-C is clearly a ploy to push through the Hindutva agenda of RSS-BJP in the university, JNU Students Union said in a statement.

Read: Interview to be key criterion for JNU admissions from next academic session

The constitutional mandate to ensure access to higher education for the socially disadvantaged group has been successfully met by the present JNU model. So any new proposal which can fundamentally alter the composition of JNU has to take place through debate and discussion, said Atul Sood, professor at the School of Social Sciences.

On Monday, the Academic Council (AC) approved a University Grants Commission (UGC) gazette notification on eligibility and procedure for admission to MPhil and PhD courses, amid protests from students and teachers.

Sachidanand Sinha, professor at the Centre for the Study of Regional Development said, In the last academic council it was decided that a status quo will be maintained. But in the minutes of the meeting the language has been changed and the administration cannot be doing so. It is an undemocratic way of taking the academic council meeting. Such decisions will destroy the institutional character of JNU.
Four people were arrested on Monday evening in connection with the gang rape of an American woman who had come vacationing to Delhi in April.

Though the crime was reported in October, an FIR was registered only on December 3.

Sources said the suspects  a tour guide, a driver, a cleaner and a hotel staffer  were questioned for five hours and later taken into custody. Police said the four were asked to join the investigation on December 5, and questioned on several occasions in the days that followed. The suspects passports were also seized, and they were prohibited from leaving the city without seeking due permission.

The tour guide was questioned after he arrived from Nepal on December 8. He denied the charges levelled against him, and even said the victim had rated him positively in the feedback forms, said an officer.

Police said the four were not arrested earlier because the travel agency they worked with had conducted an internal inquiry and given them a clean chit. Also, the woman had not recorded her statement before the magistrate. During questioning, the men claimed that the woman was trying to falsely implicate them because she had gone with them to Agra a day after accusing them of the crime. They also showed pictures of her looking calm. Taking this into consideration, the travel agency gave them a clean chit, another officer said.

Read | Worried that I may not get justice, says American woman allegedly raped in Delhi

After the woman came to Delhi and recorded her statement under Section 164 of the CrPc, the suspects were called for questioning once again and placed under arrest.

The woman had alleged that the guide, who befriended her while showing her tourist spots in Delhi and adjoining states, entered her room with his friends on April 8 purportedly to discuss the following days itinerary. They allegedly offered the woman water laced with sedatives, and then took turns to rape her. She accused them of raping her the next day as well, and threatening her with dire consequences if the matter was reported. The suspects also allegedly made a video of the act, which they threatened to make public if she approached the authorities.

Read | American woman raped in Delhi: Psychologists helping cops in probe

(With PTI inputs)

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Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is a man given to large gestures. First, he splashed out on an expensive fortified residence for himself based on vaastu. As if to spread some New Year cheer, he has now undertaken a land allotment spree to various communities. This is obviously to win their support. He has given away 6.1 acres of land at Gopanpally in Hyderabads suburbs to the Brahmin community for construction of a resource centre and a hostel facility for Brahmin students pursuing higher education. Alongside, he has given 10 acres of land at Budwel near Rajendranagar to the Raja Bahadur Venkatrama Reddy Educational Society for setting up a hostel for Reddy students, an old age home and a residential school. The land would cost Rs 1 per acre against the prevailing rate of Rs 4 crore per acre according to government estimates though the market value would be at least five times that.

Read: KCR on land allotment spree to various castes, religious communities

It is worrying that these allotments are based on caste and religion which then would make these unconstitutional. Significantly, the government had said it would distribute three acres of land to every eligible Dalit but little has been done on this. The Telangana government ought to be looking at the serious drought situation, which has triggered an upsurge in farmers suicides. The court has intervened in this but to little effect. The plan to construct two lakh homes to combat the housing shortage for the weaker sections too has not gone beyond the pilot stage.

Read: This latest move opens the floodgates for other castes and communities to demand similar sops

This is not to suggest that all is doom and gloom in the state. But the chief minister should not be seen to be pandering to any particular community. Neither the Brahmins nor the Reddys are considered economically or socially backward in any sense of the term. The free education programme which the KCR government had mooted would have made a difference to the poor across communities and castes. But this has not got off the drawing board yet.

Read: KCR steps into his vaastu-compliant bungalow with bullet-proof toilet

This latest move opens the floodgates for other castes and communities to demand similar sops. The party has been in power for two years and while the leadership has excelled in its political strategies, it has left a lot to be desired on delivering on development issues.

The state has many inbuilt advantages having been part of the former Andhra Pradesh. These should be the focus, not creating new fronts for divisiveness. A good beginning has been made in the IT sector and job creation rather than freebies should be the way ahead for the fledgling state.
The Smart Grid project, aimed at providing uninterrupted power to Gurgaon, has been completely restructured to reduce cost, time and to improve efficiency. As per the new plan, consumers will not be required to pay an extra surcharge as proposed in the previous plan.

Earlier, the project was to be undertaken in three phases and the city was divided into zones and subdivisions for the project. A project report, prepared by the Power Grid Corporation of India Limited, had estimated the cost of the project at around Rs12,000 crore. The plan was aimed at overhauling the entire power infrastructure and relocating it underground.

Considering the cost and estimated time for the project, authorities of Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN), the discom supplying power to southern Haryana including Gurgaon, restructured the project in four layers and drastically reduced the estimated cost to Rs3,500 crore for the project.

The new plan has four layers  relocating 11KV electricity lines underground, setting up of supervisory control and data acquisition system (Scada) system, installation of smart meters and strengthening the low tension wire system.

The first three layers will cost a total Rs1,600 and rest of the budget will be spent on the last layer. Authorities aim to complete the first three layers by March 2019 and a deadline of 2022 has been set for the fourth layer.

The revised project plan is proposed to cover the entire city, including Manesar, in the four layers. Specific work will be undertaken and completed across all the areas in one go. Work on other layers will be undertaken thereafter and completed in a sequential manner, Arun Kumar Verma, managing director of DHBVN, said.

As per the earlier plan, areas were earmarked in three phases and the whole project was to be completed in a particular phase before work on the next phase was to be started.

The discom had floated tenders for the project in sub-division under the first phase, but the process was postponed thrice, reportedly due to lack of expected response from bidders, official sources said.

Initially, tenders were to be opened on July 22 but the date was extended to August 17 and then to September 28. The state government had set a target of starting construction of the first subdivision, worth Rs1,300 crore, by December. This (earlier plan) meant that a lot of time was consumed in developing only one area and the cost was also exorbitant, Verma said.

In the new plan, the four layers have been designed in such a way that specific work will be undertaken and completed in one go across the entire city, Sanjeev Chopra, superintending engineer, Smart Grid , said.

Shifting power lines

In the first layer, the discom will shift 11KV electricity cables (that supply power from substations to transformers) underground, thereby strengthening the ring main system, feeder interconnection and increasing the capacity of existing infrastructure. Snapping of electricity cables during rains and heavy winds is a regular occurrence. Officials said that this problem will be reduced by 90% once the lines are shifted. Eight tenders are to be released, two in this week and six before January 31. Officials said that each tender will be given two years for completion, failing which a penalty would be levied.

Ring main system and feeder interconnection will ensure that no area is left in darkness. Feeder interconnection ensures that even if a feeder trips, power is restored from an alternate feeder. We are aiming to increase the capacity of infrastructure to 100% efficiency and provide 24x7 supply, Chopra said.

SCADA

After shifting cables underground, work on the supervisory control and data acquisition (Scada) system will be done. Through this system. authorities will be able to exercise automatic control on the power supply at the substation level. Scada is a computer software and uses networked data communications and graphical user interfaces for high-level process supervisory management.

The system provides supervisory control of power system element, a replay of events, protective and informative tagging of power system device, load management, recording sequence of events and providing a user interface.

Chopra said that the system will allow discom staff to manage load as per need. The staff will also receive real time information about problems in power supply.

Smart meters

Smart meters or advanced metering infrastructure are a two-way interface to check theft, overloading, transmission and distribution losses. Consumers will be able to adjust usage as per the tariff so that power is saved.

Arun Kumar Verma, DHBVN managing director, said that the aim is to replace all existing meters with smart meters before March 2020.We will talk to some companies to procure smart meters in bulk, he said.

Strengthening low tension system

The discom will strengthen the low tension, 440V lines that supply power from transformers to consumers. This is time-consuming and costly work as a large number of lines will have to be dealt with. But, strengthening this system will ensure 100% efficiency, Chopra said.

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A 43-year-old man was found dead in a village in Bilaspur, 25 kms from Gurgaon, where he had gone to find a days work, police said on Monday. The man, who they said worked as casual labour, died due to excessive bleeding from injuries to his head.

According to the police, Sunil, of Ghoshgarh village in Bilaspur, had gone to find work in neighbouring Jamalpur village on Sunday. Police was informed through a call to the control room at 5pm on Sunday that some men had fought near a bank in the village. When police from Bilaspur station reached the spot, they found a bloodied Sunil lying on the ground. He died before they could take him to a hospital, police said.

He smelt of alcohol and his head was bleeding when we reached. Prima facie it seemed he was beaten to death with sticks, said sub-inspector Dharam Singh, the investigating officer. Sunil is survived by a son, a daughter and an estranged wife.

Police said he was an alcoholic whose wife had deserted him a few months ago, due to which he was distressed. Based on his familys complaint, a case of murder was filed against unknown persons after a post-mortem exam confirmed that he had died due to excessive bleeding.

We handed over the body to the family and are investigating the case, Singh added.

According to police records, over 105 people were killed in Gurgaon till Monday this year, as against 94 murders last year.

On December 8, police had arrested a man, identified as Umesh, for allegedly getting his cousin, Satbir Singh Yadav, killed in connivance with alleged gangster Kaushal, who is wanted by the police. According to the police, Yadav, a 45-year-old property dealer, was killed in his house in Birhera village in Farukhnagar on November 30 as he had refused to sell a plot to Kaushal through Umesh.

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Thirty-one persons were injured in the stampede at the Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala, Devaswom minister Kadakampally Surendran said on Monday. He maintained that there was no lapse on the part of police.

Thirty-one persons were injured, two of them seriously. Eight of the injured have been admitted to Kottayam medical college hospital, three in Pathanamthitta government hospital, two in Pamba and 18 at Sannidhanam hospital, he told reporters.

An action plan would also be formulated to ensure that such incidents do not recur, he said, adding there was no lapse on the part of police.

There was sufficient police at Sannidhanam. There were about 700 policemen on duty, he said.

The minister said that barricades would be strengthened in the coming three days when the shrine will remain closed.

A joint inspection with police, Devaswom officials and the minister was held at the mishap site this morning.

The temple had witnessed heavy rush on Sunday, the penultimate day of the 41-day pilgrimage season, which concludes on Monday with Mandala Pooja.

A rope barricade gave way at Malaikappuram following which some of them fell down causing injuries to the pilgrims, who were mostly from Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. One of the injured is from Kerala.

Meanwhile, DGP Loknath Behara said a huge tragedy was averted at Sabarimala due to police intervention and denied reports that the stampede was due to ineffective police presence.

Behara said that IG D Sreejit, in charge of Sabarimala security, has been asked to file a report on the stampede on Monday itself.

I have asked Sreejit to immediately enquire and download the CCTV visuals and file a report, Behara said.

Sreejit said there were nine policemen at the spot and it was due to their presence that a calamity was averted.

It was due to their intervention that a big mishap was averted, Sreejit told PTI.

He said within 100 metres, there were 70 policemen, including NDRF.

Following the incident, security has been strengthened and entry of pilgrims is being restricted.
One of Odishas richest businessmen, who was named as the alleged mastermind behind the murder of a rival shipping company executive, and his associate were nabbed from a Bangkok hotel on Sunday, after dodging the police for two months.

Mahimananda Mishra, 63, managing director of Orissa Stevedores Limited that controls over 90% of the cargo handling operations at Paradip port in Jagatsinghpur district, was held along with Basant Bal by the Thailand police from a hotel where he stayed as a tourist for some time.

Shortly after he and Bal were detained, Bangkok immigration commissioner Pol Lt Gen Nathathorn told Bangkok Post newspaper that the investigators traced the two suspects to various tourist spots in Chon Buri and finally learned they were staying at a hotel in the Pratunam area in the Thai capital.

Mishra was on the run since October 26 after Mahendra Swain, an executive of Hyderabad-based Seaways Shipping and Logistics Limited, was killed in Paradip town. Swain was shot dead at point blank range by hired killers in Paradip while he was on his way to the office.

Swains brother Rajkishore named Mishra and 3 other executives of Mishras firm in his FIR as having hatched the murder conspiracy.

Though police last month arrested 7 men including Congress leader Bapi Sarkhel and main killer Rakesh Choubey, Mishra continued to elude police dragnet till one of his key associates was arrested.

We traced the whereabouts of Mishra and Bal after we arrested Mishras confidante Sushant Sethy. We found that Mishra fled Odisha and stayed in various posh hotels of New Delhi, Gurgaon, Chandigarh, Amritsar, and Indo-Nepal border on his way to Bangkok. He made all payments by using the credit cards of Sethy. He went to Nepal by road from where he fled to Thailand by boarding a Thai Airways plane, Odisha director general of police KB Singh.

Read | Mahima Mishra, one of Odishas wealthiest, accused of murder

A four-member team of Odisha police has left for Bangkok from where he will be brought to Odisha on Monday.

Once he reaches Odisha shores, he will be formally arrested, Singh said.

The murder case was a result of a trouble that was brewing since April last year when Naveen Jindal-owned Jindal Steel and Power Ltd quashed its stevedoring agreement with Mishra and awarded a consortium of 3 companies, including a Hyderabad-based cargo company Seaways Shipping and Logistic Ltd.

The 3 companies formed a separate Utkal Stevedores Association that sought to challenge the hegemony of Mishras Paradip Port Stevedores Association, which controlled all cargo operations in the port for more than 3 decades. Using the clout of port workers union and sometimes by brute force, Mishra decided who would get a particular contract.

If anyone dared to defy him he would not have be able to work. His bunch of goons kept everyone terrorised, a shipping company executive, who did not wish to be named, said.

In the last fiscal, Paradip port became Indias second biggest port handling a record 76 million tonnes of cargo, next only to Kandla port in Gujarat that handled 1 billion tonnes. The port authorities have set off a major expansion plan lining up Rs 20,000 crore that would make it Indias biggest port.

Police said Mishras stevedoring association was a cartel that effectively decided the rates of cargo handling operations at Paradip port and arm twisted even major corporates like Tata and Jindal into paying much more than the prevailing rates.

In response to a tender of import of limestone by SAIL, Seaways Shipping had quoted a price of Rs 103 per tonne while Mishras firm quoted Rs 143 for the same. Mishra and his associates tried hard to paralyse the port but due to adequate arrangements made by district and police authorities they could not succeed, DGP Singh said.

Frustrated by this, Mishra and his associates allegedly decided to eliminate Swain and pass a message that they can do anything to safeguard the monopoly of OSL, he added.

Mishra, a postgraduate from Utkal University, started his stevedoring company in 1978 and rode to success with timely help from state Congress politicians. From stevedoring, Mishra ventured into hospitality, education, mining, automobile dealership, chartered aviation and construction among others.

His business empire is estimated to be worth at least Rs 12,000 crore. Shipping company officials say stevedoring is no longer as lucrative and Mishra used to make money from the theft of commodities like coal, coke, fly ash, gypsum, and limestone during dispatch.

We would try to keep him behind bars as long as possible and submit a chargesheet quickly. We would leave no stone unturned to ensure that he spends the rest of his life in jail, a senior police official said.
The Jammu and Kashmir government has decided to lift the three-month ban on Srinagar-based Kashmir Reader  a prominent English newspaper that was banned amid the unrest triggered after the death of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani.

In a high-level meeting of the government, it was decided to revoke the ban. The formal orders have to be issued by deputy commissioner Srinagar, joint director (headquarters) of the information department, Abdul Majid Zargar, said.

The paper was barred from publishing on October 2 by the government blaming it of publishing material that tends to incite acts of violence and disturb public peace and tranquillity. The officials, however, did not specify the content that prompted them to invoke the ban.

Srinagar deputy commissioner had served a notice to the newspaper asking its printer, publisher and owner to abstain from printing till further orders so that disturbance of public tranquillity is prevented. The notice threatened to forfeit the printing press and other properties if the orders were not complied with.

Director information spoke to our bureau chief and said we can resume our publication. We hope press would be allowed to function independently, Hilal Mir, editor of the Kashmir Reader told News18.

Reports quoted the director of information, Shahid Iqbal Choudhary, as saying that a formal order about the lifting of the ban on the newspaper would be issued in a day or two.

Choudhary told The Indian Express that Kashmir Reader had made a representation to the government and sought permission to resume publication.

The case was examined and the government was satisfied that there was no further need to disallow its publication, he told the Express.

The paper was stopped from publishing at the time when the government was struggling to bring normalcy to the state where over 88 persons lost their lives and thousands more were injured in the spiralling violence after Wanis death.

The Kashmir Reader published many stories on the alleged atrocities and high handedness of the security forces during the unrest. It also became very popular online for its extensive coverage of the victims of the violence.

The decision shocked and angered the journalistic fraternity of the valley. Journalists protested multiple times over the governments decision and the editors of Kashmirs prominent newspapers also met chief minister Mehbooba Mufti over the issue.

The Editors Guild of India also issued a statement questioning the ban.

Kashmir Reader, with a circulation of over 5,000, was minimally dependent on ads from the government, unlike most newspapers, but was backed by a business house.

Apart from not being able to report or write, the 30-odd core employees of the newspaper and scores of others involved in peripheral activities  such as hawkers, printing presses and drivers  faced immense uncertainty and more importantly, a financial constraint.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

Trend:

Azerbaijani first lady, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva has today attended the opening of a 120-apartment residential building for graduates of orphanages in Masazir, Baku.

The first such building, with 13 storeys and 120 apartments, was inaugurated by Mehriban Aliyeva in December, 2014.

First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva was informed that all apartments in the building had been repaired and supplied with furniture and necessary equipment.

Mehriban Aliyeva cut the ribbon symbolizing the inauguration of the building. She also met with girls who received the new apartments. They thanked Azerbaijan`s first lady for her support.

The President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation congratulated them on receiving new apartments and upcoming holidays.

Mehriban Aliyeva also laid a foundation stone for another 13-storey building.
In what could be a fresh irritant to Akhilesh Yadav, his warring uncle and state SP chief Shivpal Yadav on Monday took back in the party fold MLA Rampal Yadav, who was expelled by the chief minister in his previous capacity as head of state SP unit.

Expulsion of Rampal was revoked with the expectation that he will be devoted and disciplined, a party release issued by SP state president Shivpal Yadav said.

Rampal was expelled from the party early this year by the then state president Akhilesh for maligning partys image and his involvements in illegal activities and irregularities.

Shivpal subsequently took over as the state SP chief from his nephew during a bitter power struggle in the ruling party.

Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) had razed the Sitapur MLAs illegal complex in April and arrested him along with eight others, including his relative former MLA Rajendra Yadav, for allegedly attacking the LDA team.

Rampal was sent to 14-day judicial custody by a lower court after he was booked under various sections of IPC including 307 (attempt to murder) and 7 Criminal Law amendment act late on Thursday night.

The MLA and his supporters had also clashed with police and LDA team after which police used lathicharge to disperse the mob.

Read: New chapter in SP feud opens as candidates grapple with uncertainty

In Sitapur, the MLAs Sparsh Hotel was also demolished as it was against norms.

Rampal, who is SP MLA from Biswan seat of Sitapur, was suspended from the party last year during panchayat polls after he fielded his son Jitendra for the post of district panchayat chairman against his partys official candidate. Jitendra won the election.

However, after elections, his suspension was revoked.
An army captain and his wife were killed and two others critically injured on Monday when their vehicle hit a tree in Assams Sonitpur district, police said.

The incident occurred on NH 37A in Tezpur, they said.

The two died on the spot, police said, adding they were identified as Captain Rahul Yadav and his wife Loveleena.

The injured have been admitted to the Base Hospital in Tezpur.
Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat who was summoned by the CBI on Monday in the alleged sting CD case will not appear before the investigation agency.

Rawat had made an oral plea before the bench to allow him for the time being, not to make an appearance before the CBI as a petition challenging the justification of the CBI probe into the alleged sting CD is already pending before the court.

The Uttarakhand high court on Sunday set aside the chief ministers plea and decided that the next date of hearing would be January 7 as fixed earlier.

The CBI had summoned Rawat earlier on December 23. It had registered the preliminary inquiry on April 29 to probe the video purportedly showing Rawat offering bribes to rebel Congress MLAs in exchange for their support in the assembly floor test.

Rawat had dismissed the video as being faked after it was released by rebel Congress MLAs but later admitted that he was in the clip.

The CBI had earlier summoned the chief minister on May 9, 2016 but he had sought more time.

After Rawats victory in the floor test, the state cabinet on May 15 withdrew the notification recommending a CBI probe and decided to set up a special investigation team to go into the case.
The Bastar police on Monday arrested seven people from Andhra Pradesh inside the Chhattisgarh border in Sukma district and claimed that they belonged to intellectual wings of Maoists outfits.

Police said they seized four motorcycles they were riding, demonetized currency with face value of Rs 1 lakh, mobile phones and Maoist literature from their possession.

All the arrested people were presented before a court after registering an FIR at Konta police station of Sukma district. The court sent them to judicial custody.

The accused were found with old currency notes and some important Naxal-related documents. They were arrested and booked and were produced in court, said Indira Kalyan Elesela, SP of Sukma said.

Read: Pen or gun: Journos in Chhattisgarh stuck between cops and Maoists

Elsela said those arrested included social activist Durga Prasad (36) of Hydrabad, R. Laxmaiyya (45), secretary of Adiwasi Tudem Dubba, Khammam, journalists B. Prabhakar Rao (52) and Rajendra Prasad (28) from Hyderabad, high court advocates Ch Prabhakar Rao (48) and B. Ravindra Nath (42) Hyderabad and Mohammad Nazim (27), research scholar Osmania University.

One of the arrested people - Ch. Prabhakar said the police action was unwarranted because they were only civilians.

Police claimed that the both the journalists used to instigate the people while the advocates had enlarged support to the Maoists in encounters and the research scholar was propagating Maoist line of thinking.

The seven men were booked under the Chhattisgarh Public Security Act (CSPA).

Read: Chhattisgarh: Another journo arrested, focus on police intimidation

The accused claimed they were rights activists on a fact-finding mission related to encounters and atrocities in Maoist-affected areas of Telangana and Chhattisgarh.

Civil rights activists have slammed the police for the arrest.

They left Hyderabad on December 24 and were detained on December 25 in Telangana. Later, Telangana police handed over the team members to Chhattisgarh police. They were human right activists and the citizen of India and the charges framed against them are unconstitutional, said N Narayandeo, general secretary of Civil Liberties Committee, Telangana.

He said the committee has called for a massive protest on Tuesday in Hyderabad.

Read: Chhattisgarh top cop threatens HT journalist over Bastar reporting

What is CSPSA ?

Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act, 2005 (CSPSA) was passed by the Chhattisgarh assembly in December 2005.

Activists allege that the act authorises police to detain a person for committing acts, which among other things, show a tendency to pose an obstacle to the administration of law. The act says that any person whose actions encourage(s) the disobedience of the established law will be considered unlawful.

Touchy cops

The Chhattisgarh Police has been extremely touchy about the foray of civil rights activists in the Maoist hit regions where allegations of rights abuse have been rife.

Journalists have been at the receiving end in Bastar for what activists say are persistent attempts by the local police to intimidate the media. Four local journalists have been arrested since last year while a visiting BBC newsman was forced to leave the district. Another was forced to flee the region after being accused of having Maoist links.

Early last month, the Chhattisgarh Police registered a murder case against Nandini Sundar, a Delhi University professor and others in Sukma on the complaint of the wife of a tribal who was killed on 4 November in Chhattisgarh.

Sundar rubbished the allegations of the police, while a number of civil rights bodies called the charges a tactic of revenge and harassment. The DU professor said it was a clear case of being framed and that police have been forcing some people in Bastar to name her and others in some way.

On November 12, the Chhattisgarh government assured the Supreme Court that it would not arrest Sundar and others after the apex court said it was inclined to stay the FIR registered against them in the case. Sundar has been working extensively in Maoist-hit regions like Bastar. On her petition, the Supreme Court had banned the state-backed anti-Maoist force Salwa Judum, calling it unconstitutional. She has also been highlighting situation of ordinary villagers in Bastar and other areas.

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The Chhattisgarh high court has ordered that the body of the 13-year-old boy, who was killed by security forces in an alleged encounter and branded as a Maoist in insurgency-hit Bijapur district, should be exhumed and a post mortem examination conducted again.

On December 16, Bijapur police had said a joint team of the district force had killed an unidentified and armed Maoist in uniform in a successful operation in the jungles of Metapal and Gongla under Gangaloor police station, following a fierce gun battle. The body was later identified to be that of Somaru Pottam from Metapal village.

His family members disputed the polices version and said Pottam, who was unarmed and dressed in ordinary village clothes, was killed in cold blood by the security forces after being brutally tortured by them.

A petition demanding an independent inquiry into the matter was filed by the boys family in the Bilaspur high court earlier this month.

After hearing the petition, the HC on Friday ordered a re-postmortem within three days, saying it should be conducted at Jagdalpurs Maharani Hospital under the supervision of the Bastar divisional commissioner.

The petition is demanding an independent inquiry into the matter but since the body was buried a week ago and the court is on vacation from Saturday, therefore the justice has ordered a re-postmortem on Friday. The body will be exhumed and brought to Jagadalpur for re-postmortem for evidence in the presence of deceased family, Shalini Gera, the familys lawyer, told Hindustan Times.

According to the petition, Pottam was coming back to the village on the morning of December 16 after spending the night on the threshing ground with another youth when they stopped to gather some chhapra (red ant colonies that are considered to have culinary and medicinal properties) from a Mahua tree.

While they were gathering the Chhapra, security forces suddenly emerged from the nearby shrubbery and tried to capture them. Fearing for their lives, the other youth managed to run away but Pottam, who is hard of hearing and suffers from skin ailments on his lower body, could not run fast enough and was captured.

The security forces then tied him to a tree trunk, while a group of 4-5 jawans interrogated and tortured him by stabbing him with bayonets attached to their rifles.

The child Somaru was interrogated for approximately an hour during which he was unable to answer many questions being hard of hearing. At the end of this interrogation, and in full view of the villagers present there, above-named Teera Sannu, Mangal and Manish drew their rifles and shot at the child Somaru from a distance of less than 5 feet, killing him instantly, the petition said.

The body of the deceased was then untied from the tree, undressed and dressed with a fresh uniform, consisting of a black pant and a black shirt. A 12-bore gun was placed next to the body, a photograph was taken, it added.

The next day, the family members and other villagers carried the body of the child back to the Gangaloor police station to demand an impartial inquiry into his death and an independent post-mortem examination.

However, they received no response from the police.

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Kashmir, limping back to normal after five months of violent agitation, is seeing murmurs of protest following a series of decisions that are being read as an attempt to dilute the special status granted to Jammu and Kashmir.

The Kashmir Valley was shut down on Friday. The separatists had called the strike after a section of media reported that the government had begun issuing domicile certificates to west Pakistan refugees.

As anger grew, the government clarified, twice in two days, that the reports were mischievous. The refugees were only given identity certificates which didnt make them state subjects, minister for education Naeem Akhtar said on Friday and Sunday.

The protest came a few days after the Supreme Court overturned a high court ruling and said the border state has no vestige of sovereignty outside the Constitution of India. It also rejected the view that the J-K constitution was equal to the Indian Constitution.

The Supreme Courts ruling and the move on refugees are being seen as an attempt to dilute the states special status given under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution.

The top court shot down an HC ruling that upheld the state governments contention that the securitisation and reconstruction of financial assets and enforcement of security interest (Sarfaesi) act wasnt applicable to J-K due to its special status.

The ruling, locals believe, will allow banks in helping back-door acquisition of property by non-Kashmiris, which is barred.

The Sarfaesi act allows banks to move a tribunal to take possession of secured assets of the borrower and sell them outside the court process.

The Opposition has hit out at the PDP-BJP government. The governments weak legal defence was alarming, as it was allowing step-by-step erosion of Article 370, National Conference leader Omar Abdullah said on Sunday.

The former chief minister said the PDP, it seemed, was facilitating the long-cherished desire of the alliance partner BJP to circumvent and subvert the constitution of the state.

The separatists groups, which used to issue a weekly calendar of protests during the recent unrest, accused the PDP of trying to change the demography of the state to fulfil the Hindutva agenda of its coalition partner.

The west Pakistan refugees are largely Hindus and some are Sikhs.

Experts warn the recent decisions can trigger another round of protests. It seems the government hasnt learnt its lessons even after five months of shutdown and killing of nearly 100 people, journalist Sheikh Mushtaq said.

The killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani was merely a trigger for protests, he said. The Valley was already charged over the governments decision to build houses for army personnel and a separate colony for Kashmiri Pandits.

While the government was quick to clarify on the refugee issue, law minister Abdul Haq Khan described the Sarfaesi act judgment an achievement for the state, saying the SC had upheld the states special status.

Of late, locals have been cold to separatists protest calls but on Friday, the strike was complete as people protested restrictions on their movement.

All Parties Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq criticised the government for restricting movement to prevent people from joining the protest against the anti-Kashmir policies of granting domicile rights to WP refugees and using the judiciary to subvert the Kashmir dispute.

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A mere four days before the demonetisation deadline of December 30, by when the pains of customers are supposed to allay -- as Prime Minister Narendra Modi said -- bankers seemed to nurse no hopes of any comfort and expected long queues to slither into the new year and into the months that follow.

The rush is still there and theres no hope of any respite. How can there be any when the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) is providing only 20-30 per cent of total cash required at the banks? All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) General Secretary C.H. Venkatachalam told IANS.

The situation has not improved much. We had written to even RBI Governor Urjit Patel, apprising him of the situation. But then this is India, you cannot expect a swift reply from anyone. Theres no transperancy, he said.

Venkatachalam expressed his anger also at the sorry state of bank employees who are being targets of disillusioned customers wrath for no fault of theirs.

He blamed RBI for eroding customers confidence in the institution of banks by not coming up with any satisfactory answers for the instances of new currency being seized all over the country, while none of this is reaching the legitimate candidates.

Why doesnt RBI give an answer for the currency leakage? The customer is naive; he sees the news in the paper or TV and thinks its the doing of the bank officials, that the money is being siphoned off by them. It disillusions him further, Venkatachalam said writing-off the motive of eradicating black money too as a red herring.

He was seconded, in part, by a bank official from a HDFC branch in Noida, who said that money accorded to banks is just as little as before, however, the rush has attenuated.

The crowd of customers is not as massive as before; partly because of the ATMs, some of which have finally found some cash, Samiksha Sandle, Manager, HDFC branch Noida Sector-16 told IANS.

Despite this time being the holiday season, the bank officials have been persuaded to not go on leave, she said.

As an emergency measure, we have not approved any long leave for our employees, Sandle added.
In a U-turn, the environment ministry raised red flag over a joint affidavit with the water resources ministry for declaring 100 kilometers of Ganga in Uttarakhand as pristine on Monday, a week after the consensus document was submitted to the National Green Tribunal (NGT).

The joint affidavit was submitted after the tribunal pulled up the two ministries for the slow pace of implementation of eco-sensitive zone spread over 4,700 sqkm in the upper reaches of Ganga.

The eco-rule notified in 2012 prohibited construction of dams bigger than 2 MW and other infrastructure projects that could adversely impact the fragile ecosystem.

The rule asked the Uttarakhand government to prepare zonal management plan within two years to ensure free flowing Ganga, but the state has been seeking modifications of stringent norms in the eco-zone notification.

In August this year, the environment ministry agreed to diluting the notification to allow hydro projects up to 25 MW and wider roads, evoking a strong response from Water Resources secretary Shashi Shekhar.

As the contradiction between the ministries was brought to the notice of the NGT, the tribunal sought a response from the Centre.

Read: NGT directs authorities to act against units polluting Ganga

On December 21, the environment and water resources ministries submitted a joint affidavit trashing the Uttarakhand governments zonal plan, saying it was incomplete and non-compliant with provisions of eco-rule described as pro-development.

Stating that 2,500 km of Ganga had been exploited, the affidavit said only this 100 km was left pristine, and suggested setting up of an expert committee to prepare a comprehensive zonal plan as per spirit of the eco-zone notification.

However, at a meeting called on direction of the NGT, the environment ministry withdrew its consent to the affidavit. We dont agree with it, two of the three ministry officials present at a meeting said.

They did not give reasons but cited the August meeting in which the green ministry had suggested changes in the eco rule, sources said.

A senior water resources ministry confirmed the development, saying he will raise the issue with senior environment ministry officials. The environment ministry was represented by mid-level officials at the meeting chaired by Shekhar.

Water resources minister Uma Bharti had been at loggerheads with her environment counterparts since the NDA government came to power in 2014 on ensuring unhindered flow of Ganga in Uttarakhand. This is the latest round of fight between the two ministries.

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Suspected IS sympathiser Mohammad Mussa, who allegedly planned to attack the headquarters of Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata, also carried out reconnaissance in Delhi and Srinagar for attacking and executing foreign tourists especially, Russians, Americans and British, the NIA has claimed in a chargesheet.

According to the chargesheet filed on Friday, he was indoctrinated by none other than Abu Sulaiman, the alleged mastermind of Dhakas Holey Artisan Bakery attack.

On Sunday, HT reported on how this 25-year old terror suspect who is now lodged in Alipore Central Jail under maximum security plotted to attack foreigners who regularly visit Mother House.

Read: ISIS terror plan expose prompts Mother House security revamp

NIA sleuths recovered phone chat conversations between him and IS operatives elsewhere in the world where he wrote that on the direction of Abu Sulaiman, he went to Kashmir in May-June 2015 to spend a month. There, Mussa even demonstrated with the IS flag. He used to live in a hotel near the Dal Lake.

He hoisted the ISIS flag in Kashmir and the local media had taken his video containing ISIS flag in his hands. He said he was masked during the flag hoisting. He asked the ISIS operative to watch Protesters to Wave ISIS Flag in Srinagar in YouTube, read a section of the chargesheet.

In the chat Mussa also introduced himself as an IS spy. One Friday he took part in the prayers at Jamia Masjid at Nowhatta in the middle of the old city in Srinagar and demonstrated with the IS flag after the prayers, NIA sleuths found out.

The document also states that A-1 (Mussa) mentions all the old Ansars (members of Ansar-ut-Tawheed) and members have joined ISIS and further says that ISIS has ten thousand members in India.

Mussas conversation with IS operatives revealed that as a matter of strategy in India, he favoured low-intensity violence to escape detection. He preferred killing with long knives instead of using explosives. In fact, when he was arrested one such knife was found in his possession that he would have used allegedly to kill Malay Chatterjee, a businessman from Labhpur in his home district Birbhum.

According to the charge sheet, he advocated killing mercilessly, but silently.

Mussa also revealed that Abu Sulaiman had come to Labhpur and Malda in Bengal in February 2015 to discuss the atrocities being faced by the Muslims.

On July 5 this year Mussa was picked up by CID and government railway police from Visva-Bharati Fast Passenger at Burdwan railway station. He was also interrogated by Bangladeshi sleuths in August while the FBI grilled him in the second week of December for his involvement in the massacre in Dhakas Holey Artisan Bakery.

In 2015-16 Mussa created Facebook accounts Muslimah Hind, Sabilillah Fi Sabilillah and Ronaldo Maradona and registered these with his mobile numbers for propagating the ideology of IS and contacting IS operatives in Syria, Bangladesh and India.

However, it appeared that Mussa was not satisfied spying for IS in India. He was trying to obtain a passport to travel to Syria to join the IS forces, but could not get one due to incomplete address, the NIA said in the charge sheet.

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

By Azad Hasanli  Trend:

Azerbaijani entrepreneurs will pay a visit to the Iranian cities of Tabriz and Ardabil Jan. 14-17, 2017, the Azerbaijan Export and Investments Promotion Foundation (AZPROMO) said in a message Dec. 26.

Meetings with Iranian entrepreneurs are planned during the visit to expand ties among the businessmen of Iran and Azerbaijan.

The visit will take place under the organizational support of the National Confederation of Entrepreneurs Organizations of Azerbaijan.

Baku will host the Azerbaijani-Iranian business forum Dec. 27.

It is expected that the Iranian entrepreneurs working in the fields of agriculture, food industry, light industry, pharmaceuticals, transportation, logistics, tourism, ICT, construction, production of building materials, spare car parts and others, will take part in the forum, according to the message.

Iranian companies have so far invested $2.6 billion in Azerbaijans economy. As much as $145 million of the total amount has gone to the non-oil sector of Azerbaijan. This is while some 450 companies with Iranian share operate in Azerbaijan.



Trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Iran amounted to $175 million in January-November 2016, $130.13 million of which accounted for the import from Iran, according to the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan.
A group of alleged Islamic State (IS) sympathisers, conspiring to target police stations in Hyderabad, used a host of encrypted applications, including one developed by al Qaedas propaganda arm, in order to keep their communication secure, the National Investigation Agency has said.

Al-Fajr Media Centre distributes al Qaedas online propaganda material. Its technical branch al-Fajr Technical Committee was established in 2012. Two years later, it released an Android version of it is encryption programme called Amn al-Mujahid (security of mujahid) for mobile phones.

Two members of the (IS sympathiser) group, Mohammed Ibrahim Yazdani and Abdulla Bin Ahmed al-Amoodi had downloaded Amn al-Mujahid encryption on their mobile phones, says the NIA chargesheet against eight members of the group.

Even then, they never discussed their plans on these applications and preferred face-to-face meeting to discuss their targets, the agency noted.

Read | Target IPS, IAS officers: Al Qaeda tells Indian Muslims

The group also used Tor applications like Orbot and Orfox, which hide a users internet usage by bouncing it through a series of computers around the world.

We will have to continuously update our knowledge and technology to keep track of the suspect communication, an NIA official said on condition of anonymity.

The chargesheet says two handlers of the groupone of them is suspected to an Indian named Shafi Armar who is originally a native of Bhatkal (Karnataka) and a former member of terror outfit Indian Mujahideenkept them informed about the latest tools to keep their communication secure. Armar moved to IS-held area in Syria two years back.

The chargesheet says the group members had plans to target policemen and police stations in Hyderabad and used navigation and map application OsmAnd+ to plot their targets.

One of the group members, Muzaffar Hussain Rizwan was found with a digital document containing three Global Positioning System co-ordinates saved in it. These corresponded to Kamathipura, Afzalganj and Bahadurpura police stations in Hyderabad when plotted on the Google map, says the chargesheet.

Rizwan, during interrogation, confirmed that he was tasked with surveying the police stations.

These coordinates of the police stations were later sent to the IS handler in Syria using Pidgin application which allows users to log into multiple chat accounts simultaneously.

Read | Leader of al Qaeda-inspired Indian module wanted to wage jihad: NIA

For making Voice-over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls, the group was asked to use Nymgo application.

Besides, the group was also using Chatsecure and Trillian, considered secure chat applications, and Tutanota email that provides end-to-end encryption.

According to the NIA, the group was also planning to target religious places in Hyderabad to foment communal tension in the city.

Read | Arrested militant leader reveals how Al Qaeda radicalises and trains youth

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The Jammu and Kashmir State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) on Monday directed all deputy commissioners (DCs) to submit reports about those blinded during the unrest in the Kashmir, which began on July 8, after the killing of Hizbul Mujahedeen militant Burhan Wani in an encounter.

"Taking suo-moto cognizance of a report published in a section of the press, chairperson SHRC, Justice (retd) Bilal Nazki directed the deputy commissioners of all the 10 districts of Kashmir to submit a detailed report of all the victims who have sustained eye injuries during the recent disturbances in the valley," an official spokesperson said in Srinagar.

The government press release said: "SHRC chairman has directed the DCs to include details of victims, date and place of injury, extent of injury, treatment given and compensation paid if any to them. He has asked for the report containing the requisite information to be submitted to the commission by or before 3 February 2017."

The SHRC has further said in the statement that people or the victims themselves may also approach the commission.

The use of the controversial pellet guns as a non-lethal weapon of mob control has been criticised for its use in during Kashmir protests.

Hospital data has shown that the eyes of more than 1,000 people were pierced by pellets in the ongoing unrest, leading to either complete or partial blindness.

Despite calls by opposition parties and rights groups to ban the use of pellet guns, the government has refused to do so.

In a recent address to newly-recruited policemen, chief minister Mehbooba Mufti had appealed to the personnel to restrain using pellet guns till an alternative is not introduced.

"If there is an attack on your camp or police station, then I understand, but if someone throws stones at you, you should try to restrain yourselves till we find an alternative to pellet guns and ban them completely," she had said.

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Government schools in Jharkhand will soon feature the national anthem, names of the Prime Minister and chief minister among others on classroom walls in a bid to improve the students general knowledge and also instil patriotism in them.

The state school education and literacy department recently issued a directive to all district education officials asking them to paint the outer walls of the classrooms of Class 1 to 8 with such facts.

As per the guidelines, photographs of national heroes and freedom fighters will also be painted on school walls.

When the students will pass these walls and see them every day, it will get registered in their minds and will help develop their general awareness and a well-rounded knowledge about their state as well as the country, Ranchi district education officer (DEO) Ratan Kumar Mahawar said.

Mahawar added that the painting work according to the new directive will begin soon.

They will also be able to identify the national bird, national animal, governors name, along with the names of the respective block and district, said an official from the state education and literacy department.

The quality of education in the states government schools lags behind as compared to private institutes.

As per the Annual Survey of Education, as many as 55.7% of Class 1 students in rural areas are unable to recognise the English alphabet while 53.7% cannot recognise the single-digit numbers. It said that 0.6% of Class 8 students are unable to recognise single digit numbers while 1% of them cannot recognise a single letter of the alphabet.

Officials hope to improve the prevailing situation of education, especially in rural Jharkhand, with this move.

Earlier, chief minister Raghubar Das had directed all deputy commissioners to put up photocopies of Aadhaar cards of teachers in all classrooms in government schools. The CM had said that this would help students and their parents identify their teachers.

He added that it would also check teacher absenteeism as in many schools they deploy others to take classes on their behalf.

There are 45,680 state-run schools in Jharkhand imparting education to nearly 52.50 lakh children.

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Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has been on land allotment spree to various communities in an apparent bid to win over their support in the state.

The latest came on Friday, when the TRS government issued an order allotting 6.1 acres of land at Gopanpally in Hyderabads suburbs to Brahmin community for construction of a Brahmin Sadanam, a resource centre and a hostel facility for Brahmin students pursuing higher education. It would also have accommodation to the Archakas visiting Hyderabad.

In the same order, the government allotted 10 acres of land at Budwel near Rajendranagar to the Raja Bahadur Venkatrama Reddy Educational Society from the Reddy community for setting up a hostel for Reddy students, an old age home and a residential school.

Read | KCR oversees the woes of Telangana from his bulletproof confines

Both the pieces of land would be charged a nominal rate of Rs 1 per acre against the prevailing rate of Rs 4 crore per acre as per government estimates whereas the market value would be at least five times the government rate.

According to sources, the allotments were made as per the promises KCR made to these communities on different occasions.

During a meeting of Reddy Jana Sangham in October 2015, he had announced a grant of Rs 10 crore and 10 acres of land.

Similarly, on October 23 this year, he announced setting up of a Brahmin Corporation with a corpus fund of Rs 100 crore, besides allotment of land.

Opposition parties have described it as a move to appease various communities.

Telangana Congress spokesperson Dasoju Sravan said the allotments to caste and religious groups were against the constitutional spirit.

He also noted that the allotment to rich communities at just Rs 1 per acre was a waste of public money.

The chief minister had also allotted lands to other communities, but little has come up on these.

In December 2014, the CM laid foundation for a Christian Bhavan at Mahendra Hills in Secunderabad and sanctioned Rs 10 crore for its construction. However, no work has been done till date due to legal problems over the land.

Two days back, KCR promised a two-acre land for the Christian Bhavan at Nagole in lieu of the one at Mahendra Hills and said it would be ready by next Christmas.

He had laid the foundation for three other BhavansAdivasi Bhavan for tribals, Babu Jagjivan Ram for Dalits and Banjara Bhavan for Lambada communityin December 2014 on a three-acre land in upscale Banjara Hills in Hyderabad and announced Rs 7.5 crore for their construction. Till now, there has been no progress.

A building promised in April 2015 at Rs 5 crore in the name of social reformer Basaveshwara to appease the Lingayat community has met the same fate.

So was the case with Kerala Bhavan announced in February 2015 on a one-acre land at Mahendra Hills and Doddi Komaraiah Bhavan, in memory of the first martyr of Telanganas armed struggle, on a one-acre land at the same place.

Read | Dwindling revenue forces Telangana to put welfare schemes on the back burner

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Two trucks carrying 900 LPG cylinders caught fire at Chintamani near Chikaballapur early on Monday, triggering massive explosions.

As many as 900 gas cylinders burst after two lorries laden with them, and a nearby car, accidentally caught fire near the godown of SNL Gas Agency in Chintamani, about 39km from here, sub-inspector Liaqat Ali told PTI in Chikaballapur.

What followed were deafening blasts and huge inferno for some time as the cylinders exploded one after the other damaging at least one more car.

There was no loss of lives or injury as nobody was inside the parked vehicles, Ali added.

#WATCH: More than 900 cylinders blast near Chintamani (Karnataka) last night. 3 vehicles gutted. pic.twitter.com/hJE4l1dhaF  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

The blasts occurred between 12.30am to 1am, he said, adding that police and fire service personnel from Chikkaballapur, Sidalaghatta and Srinivasapura, reached the spot on being informed and doused the blaze within half an hour.

No arrests have been made yet, he said, adding police are investigating the matter.
Dijen Singh travels 38km from his home in Manipurs Thoubal district to Imphal every time his father Jogeshwar Singh needs to undergo dialysis. But he is worried the routine may soon grind to a halt.

An ongoing economic blockade by United Naga Council (UNC) in Manipur, which entered its 57th day on Monday, could affect Dijens father and thousands of other patients in need of routine and urgent medical care.

Medical supplies are running alarmingly low since the UNC took to the streets after the state government proposed the creation of several new districts for what it said was administrative convenience. UNC alleges non-Nagas stand to benefit at their cost from the redrawing of the district maps. Home to 33 different ethnic groups, the UNC protests in Manipur intensified and gave way to violence after the state government went ahead with its plan and announced the creation of seven new districts on December 9.

Read | Three govt offices burnt down in Manipur as protests continue

The Manipur problem Two highways blocked since November 1 in protest against the Manipur governments proposal to create two new districts  Jiribam and Sadar Hills. UNC alleges that Naga villages have been appropriated and merged with non-Naga areas. Despite opposition by the Nagas, the Congress government of Okram Ibobi Singh issued a gazette notification on December 9 announcing creation of seven new districts. The Meiteis and Kukis welcomed the creation of new districts, but the Nagas intensified protests Manipur goes to polls early next year. Congress hopes the move to create new districts will help it retain power This is the first of the series on Manipur protests

Due to the blockade of National Highway 2 and 37 --the lifelines of Manipur-- the supply of essential medicines that reach the state through these roads has been severely affected.

Most hospitals in Imphal Valley are running short on many life-saving drugs, there is a scarcity of oxygen, and operations and other services are getting adversely affected.

The situation is critical and unless the blockade is lifted within the next 5-7 days and supply of goods resume, we might have to stop admitting patients, said Dr KH Palin, chairman and managing director of Shija Hospital.

Nearly 20 patients with kidney problems undergo dialysis daily at Dr Palins hospital, the biggest private hospital in Imphal Valley. But due to the blockade, the hospital has stock of dialysis fluid only for the next five days.

If the patients dont have their dialysis done on time, it could lead to renal failure. The stock of many life saving drugs like intravenous fluid, antibiotics and anesthesia is also low, he said.

Hospitals are facing difficulties on the functional front as well. Due to scarcity of fuel, many doctors, nurses and other employees are not able to attend their duties on time.

Read | Highway blockade, note ban take the sheen off Christmas in Manipur

Patients at the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal East district. (HT photo)

The blockade and the counter-blockade by those opposed to UNCs tactics have prevented thousands of patients from the hill districts from reaching Imphal Valley to get medical attention.

There is low attendance in most hospitals. With limited supply of petrol and diesel available, doctors are worried that essential services such as operations and intensive care units (ICUs) will get affected during power cuts.

Many vaccines like those for polio are not available. We are trying to get them by air. Same is the case with hormones needed for treating women patients, said Dr L Shyamkumar, a child specialist at Imphal Hospital.

Drugs of several pharmaceutical companies have run out of stock and doctors are prescribing similar combination of medicines made by other companies.

Read | Creation of new districts could be game-changer in Manipur polls

Companies are facing problems in sending medicines to Manipur since the past two months. Some are sending vaccines by air, said Gautam Deb Nath, a Guwahati-based representative of a pharmaceutical company.

Most pharmacists in Imphal are having a tough time requesting patients to buy medicines belonging to companies other than those prescribed by their doctors.

This is happening as some of the bigger companies have not been able to send supplies. Medicines for diabetes and psychiatric patients are running out, said Tony Sharma of Khuyathong-based Balaji Pharmacy.

Over 700 trucks carrying essential goods, including medicines, are stranded in Jiribam, located nearly 200 km west of Imphal. On Friday security personnel moved from the state capital to escort the trucks into Imphal Valley.

Once they arrive, the supply situation is expected to ease for few weeks. Manipuris like Dijen are hoping the blockade would be lifted soon and normalcy returns to the state.

Read | Blockades are nothing new to Manipur, but this time its different

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take stock of the economy with experts at Niti Aayog on Tuesday and discuss ways to speed up its growth post-demonetisation.

The theme of tomorrows meeting is Economic Policy Reform, Road Ahead. The Prime Minister will make opening remarks. There are 15 invitees who will make their presentations before the Prime Minister, a senior government official said.

The meeting assumes significance in view of various multilateral agencies and RBI lowering growth forecast for the current fiscal. RBI has reduced the economic growth forecast to 7.1% from 7.6%in its monetary policy review earlier this month.

Multilateral funding body Asian Development Bank (ADB) too slashed growth projection to 7%for the current fiscal, from its earlier 7.4% due to the impact of demonetisation on economic activities.

Indian economy expanded by 7.1% and 7.3% in first and second quarters of 2016-17.

Economists, including former planning commission deputy chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia, have raised concerns that demonetisation will disrupt the economy and pull down GDP growth rate for this fiscal by up to two percentage points.

The official said the Prime Minister will also take stock of various initiatives of Niti Aayog to promote digital economy like Lucky Grahak Yojana and Digi Dhan Vyapaar Yojana to incentivise digital payments.

The estimated expenditure on the first phase of the schemes (up to April 14, 2017) is likely to be Rs 340 crore.
The teenage boys accused of murdering a three-and-half-year old girl from Nagpada area for a ransom of Rs 1 crore, panicked and strangulated the child after the mother of the little one knocked their door in her search, police said.

They took the abducted girl, who was unconscious after administering chloroform, to the house of one of the accused who stays in the neighbourhood. When the minors mother knocked their door to see if the girl was at their home, the duo panicked and strangulated the child with wire of the mobile phone charger, said a senior police official.

Both the accused had abducted the girl from the first floor of Haji Kasam Chawl of Kajipura, where she stayed, on December 5, police said.

He added, The accused duo also refused entry to the girls mother on the ground that one of them was having a bath. They later put the body in a polythene bag and kept it on terrace of the building.

Police suspect that the accused, who are students of a college in south Mumbai sourced chloroform from the science lab.

On interrogation the accused have confessed to the crime and revealed the whole sequence of events, claimed police.

The accused were impressed with the economic status of girls father, as they used to see people in expensive cars coming to meet him and hence, planned abduction for ransom, said the official.

They demanded Rs 1 crore from the girls father who is a scrap dealer. However, the amount was later scaled down to Rs 28 lakh after he expressed inability to pay the amount.

They asked him to come to Parsik tunnel in Thane district and throw the money bag there after which they will leave girl near the railway track, police said.

However, the accused fled from the spot after they spotted police along with the father of the girl.

The girl was killed the same day (December 5) she was abducted and even before her parents approached JJ Marg police with a missing complaint.

Meanwhile, the Juvenile Justice Board has sent both the accused to Observation Home till January 2.

The incident came to light on Saturday night after the girls body was recovered from the chawl after one of the accused who was questioned by police on suspicion confessed to the crime after which police went to the site where the body was dumped. The duo was arrested on Sunday.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy on Monday said that he would file an appeal in the Supreme Court in connection with the National Herald case.

Swamys assertion came after a Delhi Court dismissed his plea seeking documents from the Congress Party in connection with this case.

I will appeal to the Supreme Court on Patiala House Courts order. The law is very clear that I am entitled to ask the court and summon the documents in possession of certain institutions, he said.

Rejecting Swamys plea, the Patiala House Court earlier in the day observed that the order was passed without giving any notice or opportunity of hearing to the opposite side. The court also directed Swamy to move the trial court again with a similar plea.

Swamy alleged that the National Herald took lots of benefits from the then government.

Swamy has accused Congress president Sonia Gandhi and party vice-president Rahul Gandhi of allegedly conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds by just paying Rs. 50 lakh through which Young Indian obtained the right to recover Rs. 90.25 crore that the Associated Journals Ltd owed to the grand old party.

Besides the Congress president and her son, party leaders Motilal Vora and Oscar Fernandes, Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda and Young Indian are accused in this case.

The Delhi High Court had in December 2015 dismissed the plea of the Gandhis to quash the summons issued by the trial court.
The Hyderabad high court on Monday upheld the ban on cockfighting, directing the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana governments to ensure that no cockfights take place during the Sankranti (Pongal) festival in January.

The court extended the ban on cockfights throughout the year and not just during the Sankranti festivities, the period during which a large number of people take part in the sport in the name of tradition.

The HC ruling comes against the backdrop of a growing clamour in Tamil Nadu against the ban on the bull-taming sport of Jallikattu.

Cockfighting is a blood sport, during which razor-sharp blades are tied to the claws of two rosters. They are then made to fight each other to death while people place bets on them. The cockfighting betting ring in Andhra Pradesh often runs into crores.

The common HC for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana passed the orders on the petitions filed by the Animal Welfare Board of India, Humane Society International (HSI), India, and People for Animals.

The petitioners brought to the notice of the court that cockfighting was being conducted every year on Sankranti in violation of the ban imposed by courts in the past.

Cockfighting is not only cruel to animals but also encourages gambling and child labour. A practice that glorifies so many illegal activities should have no place in a civilized society, HSI Indias managing director NG Jayasimha said.

Gauri Maulekhi, government affairs liaison for HSI India, said people had largely ignored the social and economic repercussions of cockfighting. From betting on lives of animals to child labour and sale of illicit liquor, the practise of cockfighting leaves every opportunity open to exploit humans and animals alike. We expect the state to strictly follow the orders and ensure that people responsible for organizing cockfighting are booked under the law, she said.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

By Azad Hasanli  Trend:

A delegation led by Minister of Communications and Information Technology of Iran Mahmoud Vaezi will arrive in Baku today, on Dec. 26, Azerbaijans Economy Ministry said in a message.

Meetings with officials of Azerbaijan, 11th meeting of the Azerbaijani-Iranian intergovernmental commission on economic, trade and humanitarian issues, as well as the Azerbaijani-Iranian business forum will be held within the framework of the visit, which will last until Dec. 29.

The Iranian delegation will also visit Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, where it will hold a series of meetings.

Iranian companies have so far invested $2.6 billion in Azerbaijans economy. As much as $145 million of the total amount has gone to the non-oil sector of Azerbaijan. This is while some 450 companies with Iranian share operate in Azerbaijan.



Trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Iran amounted to $175 million in January-November 2016, $130.13 million of which accounted for the import from Iran, according to the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan.
It is not just the countrys top courts that are short of judges, at least five tribunals -- set up to fast-track justice -- are headless and failing to get work done, adding to a growing backlog of cases.

While the government and judiciary slug it out over a large number of vacancies in the Supreme Court and 24 high courts, little attention is being paid to tribunals, generally headed by a former judge of the Supreme Court or a high court with area experts as members.

Take for instance, the cyber appellate tribunal (CyAT). It is lying defunct after the tenure of its last chairman, justice Rajesh Tandon, ended June 30, 2011.

The National Crime Records Bureau reported 11,592 cyber crime cases in 2015, a 20.5% increase over the previous years figure of 9,622.

Internet penetration in India is growing and is among the fastest in world. Increasingly people are moving to the cyberspace not just to communicate but to conduct business and for daily needs. Demonetsiation and push for cashless economy has added to the cyber rush.

Its really surprising that the government is talking about cash-less economy and has left CyAT headless for such a long time, Quickheal Technologies director (cyber education and services) Vishal Kumar said, terming the situation as alarming.

If someone is aggrieved by an order passed by the adjudicating officer, he is forced to go to a high court. This is increasing pendency in already burdened high courts, said Kumar, whose 2002 PIL led to setting up of CyAT.

High courts have a backlog of around four million cases.

But CyAT is not unique. Telecom disputes settlement & appellate tribunal, armed forces tribunal, competition appellate tribunal and authority for advance rulings, which deals with NRIs income-tax issues, are also headless.

Tribunals play an important role in adjudication of disputes. They are supposed to give speedy justice, as they are free of the labyrinthine procedures that plague Indian courts.

Tribunals were created for handling of cases of particular areas. Technical members were to sit with judges and decide cases quickly. But the failure to appoint chairpersons to these tribunals has crippled them, former Bar Council of Delhi chairman KC Mittal said.

Faced with lack of manpower and infrastructure, judges were reluctant to take up such assignments, he said.

Chief Justice of India TS Thakur flagged these concerns last month. Tribunals are not equipped and are lying empty. Today a situation has come that when no retired Supreme Court judge wants to head the tribunals, Thakur had said.

The problem, he said, was adding to judicial backlog. The least that you (government) must do is to ensure that these tribunals run with full strength, he said.

The government, on the hand, is struggling against a mushrooming of tribunals, especially after India opened its economy in the early 1990s.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, too, has questioned the large number of tribunals and even wanted a debate if the funds allocated to tribunals could be diverted to strengthen courts.

The government in May set up an inter-ministerial group to suggest ways to reduce the number of tribunals. Previously, a committee of secretaries had proposed halving the number tribunals to 18.

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Eight human traffickers found guilty of torturing and chopping off the hands of two labourers received life prison sentences and hefty fines, a prosecutor said on Sunday, hoping the severity of the punishment would deter others.

Prosecutor Dhirendra Nath Patra said the court in Bhubaneswar heard how the traffickers chopped off the hands of Nilambar Dhangdamajhi and Dayalu Nial in Odisha state on December 15, 2013.

The two men were among of a group of 12 labourers who had taken money from labour agent Parvesh Duni in exchange for working for him but quickly realised he had trapped them.

When the men found out they were being taken to Andhra Pradesh in southeastern India instead of Chhattisgarh state in central India as expected they tried to escape but were caught and locked up for hours before their hands were chopped off.

News of the torture and confinement triggered widespread outrage and made national headlines in India which is estimated to have the highest number of modern day slaves of any country.

Dhangdamajhi died on September 21 this year after years of illness.

Under the sentence Parvesh Duni and other traffickers will serve a life term in prison. They will also have to pay fines, the prosecutor told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. This is a lesson for all.

Amidst the publicity, in 2014 the Supreme Court intervened and asked the Odisha government to fast track charges against the traffickers and provide rehabilitation for the two men whose stories are typical of many trapped in debt bondage in India.

Modern slavery has become a catch-all term to describe human trafficking, debt bondage, forced marriage and other slave-like exploitation with an estimated 46 million people in slavery around the world.

Dhangdamajhi was 32 when he took a loan of 14,000 rupees ($209) from labour agent Duni and agreed to work at a brick kiln in 2013.

But he was taken to a paddy field, kept under house arrest and made to work for his traffickers who demanded he pay back the advance taken by all 12 labourers if he wanted to go home.

Dayalu, who was 17 years old at the time, earlier told the Thomson Reuters Foundation that they were asked if they would rather have their hands or legs chopped off not agreeing to the new terms of contract.

Patra said nine men were accused of the abuse and eight of these were arrested and were now in jail.

A ninth man absconded ahead of the hearing that started in October last year and finished in March this year but he had been arrested recently and would now face trial.

Authorities have freed around 282,000 workers trapped in bonded labour in 18 states in India since 1978, according to government data, although non-government organisations question these figures and the real extent of debt bondage in India.
The entry of former Congress legislator Pandurang Madkaikar into Goa BJP, has led to a war of words between two union ministers Manohar Parrikar and Sripad Naik, with the latter claiming that he was not consulted on the latest induction.

I was not consulted before taking decision to allow Madkaikar enter the party. I was just told at the last minute. I was not in favour of the decision, Naik told PTI on Monday.

Naik is apparently upset as his son Siddhesh was hopeful for a ticket from Cumbharjua constituency which was represented by Madkaikar before joining the BJP.

Madkaikar joined the party last week after which Parrikar had addressed the Vijay Sankalp rally in Cumbharjua constituency during which he amply made it clear that the three-time MLA (Madkaikar) would be contesting on the BJP ticket from that constituency.

However, Parrikar said on Sunday, as far as Sripad Naik is concerned he was totally taken into confidence before the decision (of Madkaikars entry) was taken.

Naik, who is union AYUSH minister, however, claimed that he was consulted just as a formality. He said he was informed after the decision was taken.

Such induction is against the principles of the party. I will take up the matter before party leaders in Delhi, Naik said.

Madkaikar, a former BJP minister had left the party to join the Congress. He left the Congress last week claiming that the party had no future in Goa.
Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modis radio programme, the Janata Dal (United) on Monday said the former is only interested in his own Mann Ki Baat and does not care about what the nation wants.

The Prime Minister just does his Mann Ki Baat and does not listen to the peoples heart. He also does not listen to what the opposition is saying. He hesitates in coming to Parliament and just makes announcements outside parliament, JD (U) leader KC Tyagi told ANI.

Talking about the cashless economy, Tyagi said his party doesnt agree with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The underprivileged people of the villages cannot afford a cashless economy. Even in America, not more than 40 percent of the people are involved in cashless economy, he added.

In a veiled attack on the opposition, Prime Minister Modi on Sunday thanked the nation for bearing the pain post-demonetisation and said that the people have given a befitting reply to those attempting to mislead them.

I congratulate the people for not only enduring the pain but also for giving appropriate answers to those who were trying to mislead them, Prime Minister Modi said in his Mann Ki Baat programme.

Prime Minister Modi said many people had written to him and some had praised the governments move to demonetise Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 currency notes. However, they have also spoken about the problems they faced due to demonetisation, he said.
The Railways has decided to double the compensation paid to train accident victims from coming January, a little over a month after 140 passengers died in the Indore-Patna Express derailment.

According to a Railways notification, the immediate family of a passenger, who died in a train accident, will now get Rs 8 lakh instead of the earlier Rs 4 lakh. A passenger facing serious injuries like loss of limbs or facial disfigurement will also be paid Rs 8 lakh instead of Rs 4 lakh.

Payments in cases leading to amputation due to a shoulder injury have been hiked from the earlier Rs 3,60,000 to Rs 7,20,000 and from the earlier Rs 1,20, 000 to Rs 2,40,000 in the case of loss of thumb. The compensation amount for loss of two fingers of one hand has also been increased from Rs 80,000 to Rs 1, 60,000, the December 22 government notification states.

These reimbursements will be paid over and above the compensation of a maximum of `10 lakh given to the families of passengers opting for insurance cover for train travel.

The Railway Claims Tribunals (RCTs) awards financial compensation for 41 categories of injuries, including amputation at the hip and fracture of the spine, in a train mishap.

In a judgment relating to a public interest litigation filed by advocate Setu Niket last year, the Delhi high court had ruled that it was obligatory for the Centre to update the compensation amount by taking into consideration the substantial change in the money value and the impact it has caused in the cost of living.

The petition had stated that the Railways had not enhanced the compensation amount since 1994.

The Railways minister usually announces ex-gratia compensation to accident victims. This amount is sometimes adjusted with the final claim awards of the RCT, unless otherwise clarified in the notification. In the case of the Kanpur victims, the Railways Minister had made clear that the ex-gratia amount would be over and above the amount awarded by the RCT.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday taunted the ongoing feud between Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and his uncle Shivpal Yadav, saying the first family of the Samajwadi Party should resolve the Mahabharat and focus on law and order, corruption and lack of administration in the politically crucial state.

BJP spokesperson Nalin Kohli spoke of reports suggesting the possibility of a mahagathbandhan in the run-up to next years Uttar Pradesh assembly polls.

However, in the first family of the Samajwadi Party of Uttar Pradesh a Mahabharat is already on for quite some time. Now, it appears that there are multiple lists - one by the uncle, one by the nephew who is the chief minister and there are all sorts of disputes. They should resolve that, Kohli told ANI.

As far as the people of Uttar Pradesh are concerned, they are obviously going to vote on the track record of the Samajwadi Party. The substantial issues are law and order, corruption and the lack of administration, he added.

The tussle in Uttar Pradeshs ruling family reignited yesterday after Akhilesh drew up his own list of poll candidates and submitted it to Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, bypassing his uncle and state president Shivpal Yadav.

The chief ministers surprise move angered Shivpal, who is officially in-charge of ticket distribution in consultation with the party president.

Shivpal tweeted that ticket distribution would be decided by victory potential.

The party will not tolerate any indiscipline that might hurt the partys image, he tweeted.

According to sources, Akhilesh while reviewing the list of candidates for 403 assembly seats, expressed concern over the party giving 181 tickets to tainted persons.

This is not the first time that Akhilesh and his uncle have clashed over tickets distribution. The chief minister, who is of the view that his image and record is partys strength, had earlier this month expressed displeasure over the decision to field don-turned politicians Atiq Ahmed and Mukhtar Ansaris brother Sibaqtullah Ansari for next years elections.

The Ansari brothers belong to Quami Ekta Dal, which recently merged with the party despite opposition from Akhilesh.

Mulayam has so far made all attempts to engineer a truce between his son and brother, but seat allotment has remained a thorny issue in the Samajwadi Party.
Haryana Congress chief Ashok Tanwar on Sunday said Congress leader Sheila Dikshit, who is the partys chief ministerial face in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, should give her explanation for figuring in the Sahara list.

Addressing a press conference in Rohtak, Tanwar said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should answer on the serious allegations of corruption levelled against him by Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi.

However, when asked about Congress senior leader Sheila Dikshits name in the list, Tanwar said, Sheila Dixit must also give her explanation. After accusing Modi of taking Rs 40 crore in kickbacks from Sahara while he was Gujarat CM, the Congress tweeted a list from its official account, featuring Dikshit as a recipient of Rs 1 crore in cash from Sahara when she was the chief minister of Delhi in 2013.

The Congress state president also attacked CM Manohar Lal Khattar for not taking any action against the accused who thrashed him and his group during the culmination of Rahul Gandhis Kisan Yatra in Delhi on October 6.

However, when asked on action taken by his party high-command in the matter, Tanwar tried to dodge the question.

CM Khattar had come to meet me specially in the hospital. But what action did they take against the guilty for thrashing us? My face is still swollen, said Tanwar.

A clash between supporters of Tanwar and former Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hoodas supporters waiting to welcome Rahul had turned violent, in which Tanwar and many in his group were hospitalised.

Shinde has submitted his report to the high command. For the party, its an internal matter. But we want to know what action Khattar took in the case, he said.

The Congress leader said an earthquake from Rahul Gandhi was due to when he will be allowed to speak in the Parliament.
As many as 236 girls who have lost their fathers were on Monday married off at a mass-wedding ceremony here.

The event was organised by the local real estate firm P P Savani Group.

Notably, apart from these 236 girls which included five Muslims and a Christian, two boys from Savani family also got married at the ceremony.

I feel extremely proud for organising such a mass wedding....my son Mitul and my uncles son Jay also got married during the ceremony, said Mahesh Savani of Savani Group.

Mitul Savani (C), son of Mahesh Savani, organiser and director of PP Savani Group, weds Janki in the presence of a Hindu Brahmin (L) at the mass wedding. (AFP)

A general view of the mass wedding. (AFP)

The brides-to-be arrive for the mass wedding. (AFP)

A Christian bride-to-be, Daxa, is helped by her friend at the mass wedding. (AFP)

Of these 236 girls, five were from Maharashtra, three from Rajasthan, one from Bihar and rest were from Gujarat. During the `Kanyadaan, we gave them clothes, ornaments, utensils and five house appliances each, he said.

The family had been organising such weddings for the last five years, he told PTI.

An aerial view of the mass marriage program. (PTI)

I have now become a proud foster-father of 708 fatherless girls who were married off by my family in the last five years, he said.
Three workers were killed on Monday after a fire broke out at a fireworks factory at Naranapuram in the district, police said.

Three others trapped in the factory were rescued by fire and rescue services personnel, who are trying to bring the blaze under control. Police said the fire spread quickly owing to extreme heat conditions and the cause of the fire is being ascertained.

The injured have been admitted to the Sivakasi government hospital.
West Pakistan refugees (WPRs) living in Jammu and Kashmir do not see any hope in the state governments recent decision to give them identity certificates as it will not entitle them to the basic fundamental rights.

These refugees, who migrated from West Pakistan after partition of the country in 1947 to settle in Kathua, Samba and Jammu districts of the state, have been demanding citizenship rights, a right to vote, contest state assembly polls and a rehabilitation package in vain for the past 70 years.

At present, WPRs comprise 19,960 families with a population of around 80,000 to 85,000. They are not considered naturalised citizens of the state even though many of them have been living in the state from three generations.

They are only entitled to vote in parliament elections, but cant exercise their franchise in state assembly polls. The J&K Constitution provides voting rights in assembly and local body polls only to naturalised residents.

The announcement of issuing the certificate to WPRs sparked a violent protest in Jammu and Kashmir, prompting the government spokesperson and education minister Nayeem Akhtar to clarify on Thursday that it would not change the status of the refugees.

Read | Cabinet approves Rs 2,000 crore aid for refugees from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir

The WPRs being non-state subjects cant apply for any job within the state. So to facilitate them to get jobs in paramilitary forces and other central government establishments, the government has issued them the Identity certificates. This does not in any way change their status. They will continue to be the non-state subjects, he said.

Labha Ram Gandhi, chairman of the West Pakistan Refugees Action Committee 1947, agreed with the minister.

He said a false impression is being created that our status has been changed. The non-issue is being made into an issue and is being given a communal colour by some vested interests, including politicians. We are being issued identity certificates and not domicile certificates, as it is being made out, he clarified.

He accused all the successive central governments for their plight. The settlement of WPRs is a humanitarian issue and not a political issue or a communal issue. Despite living here for 70 years, nobody owns us. In the past seven decades from various governments, we have received mere assurances of giving us basic fundamental rights. Many committees, groups, were formed to look into our demands, but till date they remain only on papers, lamented Gandhi.

Gandhi alleged, In the grab of an identification certificate, there is a sinister design to convert the entire J&K into a Muslim state or get it integrated with Pakistan.

The saddest part is weak and appeasement policies are being pursued by the successive Central governments, which led to the present situation, he added.

Read | West Pak refugees accuse BJP of ignoring them
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 19

By Seba Aghayeva  Trend:

There are undiscovered oil fields in the Cuban part of a shelf in the Gulf of Mexico, and Azerbaijani companies could show interest for participation in their exploration and further development, newly appointed Ambassador of Cuba to Azerbaijan Alfredo Nieves Portuondo said in an interview with Trend.

Azerbaijani companies specializing in the energy sector can participate in energy projects in Cuba, both independently and as part of an international consortium, the diplomat said.

Cuba is also interested in reviving the old traditions of education and training in universities of Azerbaijan, including preparing experts in the energy sector, the ambassador said.

He added that before coming to Azerbaijan, he held various governmental meetings in Havana and studied prospective trends, gathered proposals that are of interest to various Cuban ministries and departments, where it would be possible to expand cooperation.

The ambassador noted that he is willing to submit these proposals to the Azerbaijani side.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @Asebaa
Jharkhand is working through a surge in crimes against women with a headless womens commission.

More than a month and a half has passed since the three-year tenure of Mahuwa Manjhi, the last Chairperson of the Jharkahnd Womens Commission, ended on November 10 but the top post at the womens rights panel is still lying vacant.

This year till October, more than 1,000 rape cases were reported in the state. In December alone, four women were burnt to death in the state, besides the rape and murder of a four-year-old girl, whose mutilated body was found on December 22.

A 19-year-old engineering student was raped, strangulated and set afire on December 16.

On December 14, an elderly woman and her husband in Simdega district were burnt to death on allegations of practicing black magic.

Another woman was burnt alive on December 12 in Khuti district, also on wild charges of practising black magic.

Earlier, a minor girl was burnt and thrown in a well after she protested alleged gang-rape attempt in Seraikela-Kharsawa district.

Now the commission is handicapped as police officials are least bothered to reply to the queries of the commission. The chairperson of the commission has many powers, which help us to ensure justice to the victims, an official of the commission told IANS.

The opposition parties have criticised Chief Minister Raghubar Das and his Bharatiya Janata Party government for keeping the constitutional posts vacant.

Raghubar Das has demeaned the dignity of constitutional posts. A PIL is pending against Health Minister, Chief Minister and others. Despite the corruption charges, the Lokayukta and other posts are lying vacant, Jharkhand Congress General Secretary Alok Dubey told IANS.

Shameful incidents against women took place this month as JCW chairperson post has been lying vacant for over a month, he added.

The posts of Lokayukta, Chairperson of the Minority Commission and Chief of the state Election Commissioner are lying vacant from last six months to one year.

No arrest has been made in the rape and murder case of the 19-year-old engineering student so far. A Special Investigating Team (SIT) has been formed to probe the incident.

The Ranchi police have also announced a reward of Rs 1 lakh for the person who provides information on the case.
The Kerala government on Monday said that the entry of Bhumata Brigade chief Trupti Desai will not be allowed in the Lord Ayyappa temple here, even as the activist plans to lead 100 odd women to the famous hill shrine in Sabarimala.

There are restrictions for the entry of women between 10-50 years of age in the temple.

The Sabarimala temple is administered by Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) and its traditions and rules are applicable to everyone, Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran told reporters here.

The matter with regard to entry of women of all age groups is already before the supreme court. There will be no change in the tradition and customs, until a decision is taken by the Supreme Court, he said.

The CPI(M)-led LDF governments stand comes after it had filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court last month informing that it favoured the entry of women of all age groups in the Sabarimala temple.

Read: In a U-turn, Kerala now wants women to be allowed inside Sabarimala temple

Trupti Desai had recently stated that she would be visiting the Lord Ayyappa temple next month with 100 odd activists and there was no change in her plans.

Desai had earlier campaigned for the entry of women at the Shani Shingnapur, Trimbakeshwar Shiva temple and Haji Ali dargah.

Read: Can wait vs why wait: Sabarimala row splits women devotees into two camps
Thousands of students from all across the country from different walks of life are participating in the four-day long National Conference of Akhil Bhartiya Vidhyarthi Parishad in Indore.

More than 10,000 students, including 2,200 girl students from across the states shared their thoughts about issues ranging from the education system in the country, to the culture, tradition in the country.

Hindustan Times spoke to a cross-section of students about their experience of the journey to Indore and their impression of the meet.

Atul Sharma, 24, a law student from Himachal Pradesh says, It has been a very good experience as we had the chance to a major part of central India during out train journey to Indore.

This is the first time I have come to Indore and I am very pleased with the people here. We eat poha and sev for breakfast, which I find very tasty, he says

Bishant Bhattrai, a bachelor of technology student from Sikkim, shares his experience and says The weather of central India is very different.

We from Sikkim are not use to the heat but overall the journey was good and we enjoyed the train travel as it traversed though a major part of the country.

Most students say they were overwhelmed to see people from different cast, creed, culture and convictions coming together on one platform and sharing their cultures.

It feels good when you came to a conference where people from different regions share a single platform, eat together, learn together and stand united for social development, said Yanga Dui, 18, a first year Bachelor of Science student from Arunachal Pradesh.

My journey was excellent, it was first time I am coming to central India and it took us two days to reach Indore. It is a rare occasion when such a large number of students came at one place from different universities for common cause, opined Tarundev Singh Chib, 20, an engineering student from Jammu and Kashmir

We are not used to the plains as we have hills in Darjeeling. It is an amazing experience for us. The strength I have witnessed here has strengthened my dedication toward the ABVP. This convocation is the best example of unity in diversity, expressed Rabgay Rai, 21, a Bachelor of Arts student from Darjeeling.
Party spirits seem to be a low-key affair this season, owing to crackdown by the Indore district administration on serving of alcohol past 12 in the city. Pub and hotel owners expect a minimum of 30% drop in sales owing to this.

The problem with parties on New Years eve is that they start very late. The crowd starts to come in at around 11 pm. Therefore it becomes difficult to tell them to leave by 12 pm. This would lead to customers choosing house parties and farm parties over partying at a pub, said a pub owner in the city requesting anonymity.

Similar thoughts are shared by food blogger Rakesh Dawani, who points that a drop in the number of parties has been registered for sure. A lot of people state that demonetisation has affected the business, but more than that it is the crackdown that has affected the party scenes. Last year, more than 20 parties were announced till Christmas eve. But this year, only six or seven were announced, he said.

Dawani said late night business is a must for a party to be profitable for a club or restaurant owner. People want to go to a place wherein they can party in peace till the wee hours. Owing to the crackdown, no place is ready to allow this, he said.

While most of the parties announced so far dont have the presence of an international or national music artist of repute, which is a very unlikely phenomenon for a city that hosted international artists like Akcent, most of the pub owners plan to start the party early to milk profits. We start early this year at around 8 pm, so that we can allow people to enjoy some time before we end the party. We will also be able to generate profits, said Jagdish Makhija, owner of Vidorra, a pub in the city.

But despite the starting early, pub owners cry about the low turnout. Low footfall was visible throughout this year because of continuous checks. Not much changing with Christmas, we just hope that new years eve sorts things out, said Makhija.

Meanwhile, the food safety department will leave no stone unturned to check that the rules are properly followed on the occasion. We have been continuously carrying out raids to check that there are no violations. On new years eve as well, we will be moving in teams to book defaulters. Anybody found to be violating the rules will be punished accordingly, said Manish Swami, food inspector.
More than 90,000 LPG consumers in Indore district have been denied subsidy as they have failed to link their Aadhaar number under the direct benefit transfer (DBT) scheme. Another about 10,000 consumers have given up the subsidy.

Beginning November 30, Aadhaar has been mandatory for availing LPG subsidy.

The government currently allows 12 cylinders of 14.2 kg each at subsidised rates per household in a year. The subsidy on every cylinder (173) is transfered directly into bank accounts of individuals, who buy the LPG cylinder at market rates.

Out of more than 7.5 lakh LPG consumers in Indore district, about 12% (more than 90,000) consumers are not getting subsidy, mostly because they have not submitted their Aadhaar number, district nodal officer for DBT scheme, Nilesh Vyas told HT.

About 10,000 consumers have given up their LPG subsidy. (Arun Mondhe/HT photo)

Sources say that most of these consumers belong to rich and upper middle class category. We contacted all the customers over phone but it seems most of them are too busy to link their Aadhaar number, an LPG distributor said requesting anonymity.

Following scrutiny last year, the number of active LPG consumers in Indore were reduced from 8.20 lakh to 7.5 lakh after it was found that some consumers had multiple connections on same address.

Fuel facts

Total registered connections: 7.50 lakh

Not linked with Aadhaar: 90,000 plus

Price of non-subsidised LPG cylinder: Rs 650

Subsidy transfer to bank (less VAT): Rs 173
Lectures and discussions on new education policy, Indianisation of education, contribution of science in India, Islamic Banking, cashless-economy and new currency were the highlights at the second day of the 62nd National Conference of Akhil Bhartiya Vidhyarthi Parishad in Indore.

Eminent scholars from across the country addressed students and shared their views on different issues.

KN Raghunandan and Dharampal addressed students on the new education policy and Indianisation of the education system.

There is a need to Indianise the education system to curb anti-national activities at prestigious education institutions in the country, they said.

Indianisation of education System is need of time and we are demanding this from long, eminent speakers said.

Speaking to Hindustan Times on the sideline of the programme after his presentation on Islamic banking in the country, Vishwas Vyas said, According to the Sachar Committee and official data, only 9% of Muslims in the country have bank accounts as Islam does them to make deposits in banks.

Unlike Islamic banking system, which is based on profit and loss sharing concept, traditional banking system in our country based on an interest system, still a large number of Muslims stay away from the banking system, he said.

On whether Islamic banking system has a future in the country, Vyas said amendments in the banking laws have to be made, until then it can be allowed to function like any other non-banking financial company.

Indianisation of Education System is need of time and we are demanding this from long, the speakers said.

Students at an exhibition at ABVP national conference. (Arun Mondhe/HT photo)

Speaking to Hindustan Times on sideline of his lecture on Islamic Banking in the country, speaker Vishwas Vyas who did research work on Islamic Banking in the country said, According to Sachar Committee and official data base he have, only nine percent of minority of population in the country have bank accounts, it could be because of religious boundation as taking interest on bank deposits not allowed in Islam.

Vyas said unlike Islamic banking system which based on profit and loss sharing concept, traditional banking system in our country based on interest system, still good number of peoples belongs to minority section away from banking system

Explaining how Islamic banking functions, Vyas said, In the Islamic banking system, once you borrow money from the bank, it become a financial partner in the project and in that case the percentage of non-performing assets become zero.

On the other hand, in the normal banking system, if you deposit money, the bank invests it in public welfare projects.

On whether the Islamic banking system possible in future, he said it need some amendment in banking laws, until that allow it to function like any other non-banking financial company.

He further said that there is a need to improve the banking sector in our country.

In other developing countries, there is one bank for 4,000 people, but in our country the figure is 15,000.

Prof Yashwantrao Kelkar Youth Award, 2016, recipient and fitness trainer Rajkumar Vishwajit Singh said that there is need to encourage students and youths become close to spirituality as it will help them to move away from drugs and other addictions.

The Imphal-based fitness trainer who has encouraged thousands of youngsters to quit drugs and inspired them to maintain a fit and healthy life, said he inspires youngsters, especially y victims of HIV/AIDS to inculcate good moral character through spiritual engagement.

Singh, who did his graduation in political science is on a mission since the last 18 years said, Youngster in Central India are more disciplined compare to the north-eastern part of the country due to lack of spiritual teachers who can channelize their energy in the correct direction.

An ardent fan of Nana Patekar and Aamir Khan, Singh said Bollywood movies and celebrities also have impact on the younger generation and people should understand that.

People support PMs note ban move

Earlier, the ABVP meet kickedoff on Saturday in presence of Union defence minister Manohar Parrikar and Padma Vibhushan Sonal Mansingh.

Union defence minister Manohar Parrikar addresses ABVP convention in Indore on Saturday. (Arun Mondhe/HT photo)

Addressing the inaugural ceremony, Parrikar and Mansingh emphasised on importance of knowledge and education for young generation.

The defence minister got lots of applaud from the thousands of students waiting to listen him, especially after the recent surgical strike carried out by the Army across the border.

Parrikar took a jibe at Congress-led opposition saying, I find it surprising that today people from the Congress talk about emergency-like situation in the country, their own forefathers killed democracy declaring emergency in the country on June 25, 1975, he said.

Speaking to media on sidelines of the programme, Parrikar said, Though people are facing few problems because of demonetisation, they are still with PM Modi and his decision.

Parrikar also spoke about forthcoming Goa and UP elections and said that BJP will earn majority in Goa election, while in UP no single party had guts to contest single handedly specially after demonetisation. Addressing the gathering, Sonal Mansingh urged students to be seekers. Questioning the word Secular and several students involved in anti-national movement, Mansingh said, The word secular wasnt there in the original Constitution of India and it was inserted.
The Centres digital-economy drive has forced taxmen in Madhya Pradesh to adopt tribal language to sensitise uninitiated villagers about the jargons of new economy to breach the language divide.

Ya seep machine chhe, remarked a tribal referring to swipe machine during a Digital India presentation which was organised in tribal-predominant Jhabua districts Dharmapuri village on December 23, 2016.

The presentation saw speakers including Professor Pratayjit Majumdar from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, take help of translators to explain difficult words on demonitisation, digital economy in Bhili dialect to over 60 tribals present at the workshop.

Junapani villages tribal farmer Rajaram Katara, who attended the programme, admitted the language was a problem. But tribals, he said, have devised a solution.

Since government officials dont translate or provide local dialect terms for difficult Hindi or English words, tribals, most of whom are semi literate, have found a way out. After hearing words like swipe machine, ATMs, debit cards they mould it in their dialect and pronounce it accordingly. The swipe machine is thus pronounced in 10 different ways like sep machine or swep machine, Katara said.

Seeing this, the taxmen have begun to use local tribal dialects including Bhili to communicate with people of tribal predominant districts of south-west Madhya Pradesh.

We engage (Bhili) translators at our workshops. which are organised in Jhabua, Alirajpur district to help tribals understand better, income tax departments joint commissioner (Ratlam) Ila Parmar said.

Words like Chutni card for voter ID card, `Beg ki Chopri for bank pass book, `Haath nu photowala kagaz for Adhar card have entered the lexicon of taxmen, auditors, government officials as tribals queue up at office of chartered accountants, tax practitioners to make TIN (Taxpayer Identification Number), PAN (Permanent Account Number) cards.

My office used to receive 10,000 PAN card applications in a year. After of high currency notes on November 8, we received 4,000 applications in last two months. Tribals are inquiring about PAN, income tax, Aadhar card to open bank accounts, set up small businesses, avail government welfare schemes. Awareness has gone up, said Meghnagar-based (Jhabua district) chartered accountant Balwant Hada.

He talks with his tribal clients in Bhili.

Income tax practitioner Sanjay Vyas, whose family is living in Jhabua for last 110 years, said I-T department takes his help to explain practical aspects of Income Tax Act, PAN benefits and arbitration matters to tribals.

We speak Bhili-mixed Hindi while talking to them. Many tribals have become contractors for constructing toilets under Clean India Mission. For this, they need TIN, PAN etc. So, they come to us to understand provisions and formalities required, said Vyas, whose 50% of clients are tribals.
The dirty red blotches are easily visible over Aruns (name changed) teeth. The eight-year-old was asked whether he consumes gutka, a tobacco product prohibited for below 18-year-olds.

Gradually, the shyness gives away an indulgent smile as he confesses to taking gutka regularly.

I buy gutka from the same shops from where my parents get it, he says and adds, when asked, YesMy parents know that I consume gutka. At times I have taken it in front of them as well. No one disapproves as my parents consume it too.

His friend Lakshman (name changed) who studies in class 2, has another truth to reveal.

In the morning, my motions dont happen unless I have consumed gutka, says Lakshman, a resident of Dabi village in Bundi district of Rajasthan.

He also mentions his favourite gutka brand even as another 7-year-old friend argues in favour of another brand.

For children living in villages adjacent to stone quarries in Bundi, addiction to tobacco products is as normal as breaking cobblestones which are exported to countries such as Belgium, London and Netherlands.

Many of them are child labourers who drop out of school at a very young age and engage in making cobblestones near stone quarries.

We had surveyed a total of 1,438 children in the age group of 6-12 years living in the villages Budhpura and Bheelo ka Jhopra and found that 263 children are addicted to chewing gutka, said Bajrang Singh of the Manjari Sansthan, an NGO which works with the objective to end child labour in Bundi.

The survey revealed that the number of addicted children increases drastically as they enter their teenage.

Out of the 945 children in the age group of 13-18 years, we found that 546 were addicted to tobacco products. We also came across one or two cases where children have become alcohol addicts, said Singh.

Budhpura, Dabi, Dhaneshwar and Parana villages are stone quarrying hubs where the labourers have migrated from different parts of the country looking for work in the mines. Children are engaged in the activity at a very young age.

To counter the fatigue, they consume gutka and even alcohol. Gradually this consumption becomes permanent and as they grow up, become alcoholics, says 19-year-old Deepak Yadav, a volunteer with the Shiv Sikhsha Samiti Ranoli, another NGO.

Yadav, whose family has been working as labourers in Bundi stone quarries for the last two generations, tries to spread awareness about the harms of addiction among the local kids.

We try to teach the children about the adverse effects of chewing gutka and alcohol addiction through various interactive activities and games. It is something that takes time and is a long process, said Ramswaroop Gurjar of the Shiv Shiksha Samiti Ranoli.

According to representatives of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) in Bundi, government is not doing enough to address the issue of addiction among children.

Till now, we havent been able to do large scale work on this because of a number of hindrances such as lack of infrastructure and funds. At times, we have partnered with private organisations working in these areas to eliminate child labour. We will raise this issue of addiction to the government in the future, Rekha Sharma, chairperson, Child Welfare Committee (CWC), told HT.

Doctors believe that chewing tobacco products such as gutka from a young age can increase the chances of cancer early in life.

We have come across cases where 14-year-olds have been diagnosed with mouth cancer owing to chewing gutka. Moreover, this addiction also gradually shrinks their mouth, a phenomenon termed as oral submucous fibrosis, said Dr Pawan Singhal, associate professor, department of ENT, head and neck injuries, SMS Hospital, Jaipur.

The fact that a child is psychologically under the belief that he cant pass his motions without consuming gutka is a sign of high-level addiction, he observed.

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For 19-year-old Lakshmi (name changed), silicosis came at an early age.

I used to break cobblestones here since I was a child. A few years ago, I started having breathing problems and was later diagnosed with silicosis, she said.

During the six years she broke cobblestones along with other children, the threat of this incurable disease loomed, but she did not have a choice.

A fatal respiratory disease that results from breathing in silica dust from the mines and sandstone quarries, silicosis has been diagnosed in more than 5,000 workers in Rajasthan in the last four years by government medical boards.

Now, it threatens the children engaged in the task, some as young as six years old, in villages such as Budhpura, Dabi and Dhaneshwar in Bundi district.

The sight of frail men and women breaking cobblestones in the stone quarries of Bundi district in Rajasthan is quite common. Within a few years, they resemble people much older than their age, occasionally panting and having trouble breathing.

Also Read: Addiction rising among child labourers in Rajasthans stone quarries

Lakshmi received Rs 1 lakh as relief from the government in March this year but prior to that all her treatment expenses had to be arranged through a loan taken from a local moneylender after mortgaging their house.

Though she has now stopped working in the quarries and is undergoing a course in tailoring with the support of a local NGO, her family has to depend on her mother and 16-year-old brother, breaking cobblestones, to repay the loan. Her ill father cannot work regularly.

Another 17-year-old girl, Vimla (name changed) has been experiencing breathing problems for over a year although she has not been diagnosed with silicosis.

We dont really have a choice to do anything else as we dont know about any other livelihood, she said.

An Unending Wait For Compensation

While silicosis threatens an entire generation, government has promised Rs 3 lakh to families of people who died of the disease. But the promise has kept many waiting, aggravating the problem.

Even after a year since my husband passed away due to the disease, I am yet to receive any compensation, said Jamna Bai, a resident of Silica Colony of Dhaneshwar village, a settlement of labourers engaged in mining and cobblestone-breaking.

Occupants of the colony said many a times the mine and quarry owners dont want their workers to feature in the list of people suffering from Silicosis.

I came to Bundi from Mathura in 1986, and have been working in the stone quarries as a labourer till I was diagnosed with silicosis and tuberculosis. Today, my son is also a labourer. This is a dangerous place where generations get trapped into breaking cobblestones and families are wiped out, said 66-year-old Dulichand Yadav.

He said that apart from the few who have received the relief from the government, none of those affected by the disease have received any sort of assistance or compensation from their employers.

Expressing concern over the issue, N L Mina, director, Directorate of Child Welfare, Rajasthan government told HT that the concerned child welfare committee (CWC) will be directed to look into the matter.

If there are children who are suffering from silicosis as a result of child labour, then the government will take steps for their rehabilitation, Mina said.

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A day after HT reported that suspected Islamic State (IS) activist Mohammad Mussa had planned to attack the headquarters of Mother Teresas Missionaries of Charity in the city, Kolkata Police thoroughly revamped the security arrangements at Mother House.

A contingent of the polices combat force, including commandoes, was deployed outside the House early on Sunday, especially in view of the day being Christmas. Apart from senior officers of Park Street police station (Mother House falls under its jurisdiction), top officers of Kolkata Police visited the place at different times during the day and took stock of the situation.

A senior police officer told HT, I can say only this much that security has been beefed up. Sisters of the Missionaries of Charity refused to comment on the latest developments.

HT had reported on Sunday that Mussa, who was arrested on July 4, had planned to carry out an attack on Mother House. His statement on the matter has been referred to in the charge sheet filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Mussas targets were British, American and Russian tourists  who regularly visit Mother House  to avenge the bombing of areas controlled by the Islamic State in conflict-ridden Syria, Iraq and Libya by the US, the UK and Russia, the NIA charge sheet filed on Friday states.

Twenty-five-year-old Mussa was recently interrogated by officers of the American Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Bangladeshs Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) for his alleged links with the massacre at Dhakas Holey Artisan Bakery, where terrorists armed with sharp weapons slaughtered 20 people in July. The attack, including a 12-hour siege of the bakery, was later claimed by the IS.

Sources said that the people with whom Mussa used to discuss his plans in Kolkata through a cell phone app called Telegram were Abu Sulaiman, an IS operative and the alleged mastermind of the Dhaka attack, Safi Omar, an Indian Mujahideen suspect, and other members of the IS and Jamaat-e-Mujahideen, a banned terror organisation of Bangladesh.

NIA and Intelligence Bureau (IB) officers had picked up Mussa from the Visva-Bharati Fast Passenger train at Burdwan station. A knife (apparently to kill a businessman to prove his worth before his IS bosses for bigger assignments) and a camera (to record the killing) he was carrying were seized. A resident of Labhpur in Birbhum district, Mussa is now lodged at the Alipore central jail.

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

By Elena Kosolapova  Trend:

Russia and Kazakhstan signed the concept of further cooperation on Baikonur Cosmodrome and agreed on changes to the agreement between the two countries on the special status of the city of Baikonur located next to the Cosmodrome, RIA Novosti reported.

The documents were signed after a meeting of Russian and Kazakh presidents, Vladimir Putin and Nursultan Nazarbayev in St. Petersburg Dec. 26.

The concept of further cooperation in Baikonur was signed by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and Kazakhstans First Deputy Prime Minister Askar Mamin.

The protocol amending the agreement on the city of Baikonur was signed by Head of Russian State Space Corporation Roscosmos Igor Komarov and Kazakhstans Minister of Defense and Aerospace Industry Beibut Atamkulov.

The Baikonur Cosmodrome is the world's first and largest operational space launch facility. It is located in the desert steppe of Kazakhstan. It is leased by the Kazakh government to Russia, currently until 2050. Under the current Russian space program, Baikonur remains a busy space port with numerous commercial, military and scientific missions being launched annually.
For the first time in the history of the countrys space programme, an instrument designed and built by a team of scientists from Kolkata would be landing on the moons surface in January 2018. It would be piggy-riding on the same mission that is planning to unfurl the Indian tricolor on the lunar surface on January 26, 2018 when the country celebrates its 69th Republic Day.

The four-kg payload would be installed atop a lunar lander that a Bengaluru-based private company Team Indus is planning to send to the moon in December 2017. We have signed a deal with Team Indus. The countrys trusted Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) engineered by Indias space agency ISRO would be carrying the lander and at least two rovers to the moon, said Sandip Kumar Chakrabarti, who also heads the Indian Centre for Space Physics in Kolkata.

The engineering model would have to be handed over to the company by March 2017. It would be subjected to a series of tests to check whether the instrument can withstand extreme temperature, pressure and vacuum conditions. The final flight model would be made ready and handed over by June 2017. The take-off is scheduled in December 2017.

Fitted with an X-ray detector and four in-built computers among other complex parts, the instrument would be studying the outer space, including Black Holes, Gamma Ray bursts, Neutron stars and the sun from the moons surface. Never in the past had any instrument studied the outer space from the lunar surface. They were all engaged in inspecting the moons surface. This includes Indias first lunar probe Chandrayan-I which was focused on chemical, mineralogical and photo-geologic mapping of the moon, said Chakrabarti, who is heading the six member team at ICSP.

It would take around a week for the Team Indus lander to reach the moon after it is launched. Scientists hope to start extracting data within a day or two after it touches the moons surface.

Once it lands in the Mare Imbrium area --- a vast lava plain on the moons surface --- we would have to wait for at least a day or two for health check-up of the instrument --- the temperature and pressure among other parameters. We also need to allow the moons dust --- regolith --- to settle down before we can switch on the instrument and downlink data, said Chakrabarti, who also heads the astrophysics department at SN Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences in Salt Lake.

Scientists said that as one lunar day is equal to 28 days on earth, they expect to get a longer and continuous exposure of the outer space which was otherwise impossible from earth-based satellites. Satellites orbiting the earth can only give us chinks of data from outer space that last for around 40 minutes. But if we inspect the space from moons surface we expect continuous data for more than 42 hours at a time. This would help us to monitor the subtle changes which have been missing till date, Chakrabarti said.

Chakrabarti and his team had sent a payload to space on a Russian satellite some five years back. The team has already sent balloons with pay loads to the outer reaches of the atmosphere more than a 100 times.

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The deadline to commission phase-II of the Monorail corridor between Wadala and Jacob Circle was revised for the 14th time after it looked unlikely that the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority would finish the mandatory trial runs by February 2017.

This is not the first time that the project missed its deadline. According to the original schedule, the stipulated date for completion of phase I and II of the monorail was fixed at November 2010 and May 2011, respectively, but phase I was commissioned in February 2014.

According to senior MMRDA officials, they are still awaiting conductor rails, a key component that is required to power the monorail,without which trains runs were not to be possible. In October, the conductor rail dislocated from the girder beam of the monorail, near Lower Parel . The contractor has been told to procure the conductor rail and they are in the process. It is being procured from United Kingdom and involves a tendering process, so it will take some time, said a source.

MMRDA officials are expecting the component to arrive by January-end. Apart from that, the civil construction of the corridor is still not complete and the required number of rakes has not been shipped yet.

The conductor rail will be here by January. Currently, we are giving the final touches to the civil construction including the stations which will be over by January-end. Once the remaining rakes arrive in Mumbai, the trains will be subject to a series of tests, including the 3,000km trial run, mandatory for the safety certification, said a senior MMRDA official who did not wish to be named.

Now there are only 10 rakes, but when the entire corridor between Chembur and Jacob Circle is commissioned, there will be a requirement of more trains to ferry passengers. The rolling stock or trains are being manufactured the Malaysian company, Scomi Engineering.

Phase-II, which will connect Wadala and Jacob Circle, is a crucial section of the countrys only monorail corridor as it will cater to more commuters and make the project financially sound. Currently, the number of daily commuters on the operational 8.8km corridor, is in the range of 17,000 daily and this is expected to go up when the entire corridor is operational.

Phase I Missed Deadlines (Chembur-Wadala)

March 2010

December 2010

May 2011

November 2011

May 2012

December 2012

June 2013

August 2013

September 2013

October 2013

December 2013

January 2014

Inauguration: February 1, 2014

PHASE I

The countrys first monorail was commissioned on the Chembur - Wadala route on February 1, 2014. Ever since the opening of Phase 1, the line has faced a lot of technical issues. The services have been affected due to power tripping, incidents where the doors of the trains opened during the travel, and a trains tyre had fallen on the ground.

Phase II Missed Deadlines (Wadala - Jacob Circle)

December 2010

May 2011

December 2011

May 2012

December 2012

December 2013

June 2014

December 2014

March 2015

December 2015

April 2016

December 2016

February 2017

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HT Unclog Mumbai: And miles to go before we reach

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More than 30,000 slum dwellers from Kalwa hit the streets to protest against the demolition of illegal structures along the Kalwa creek by the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC). The protestors were led by Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLA Jitendra Awhad, who alleged that the TMC was targeting only slums in Kalwa.

The demolition of slums in Shastrinagar, Janaki Nagar and Jai Bheem Nagar has become fodder for a major showdown between the ruling combine and the opposition party in the last few days. While demolition was opposed by the NCP, the ruling Shiv Sena-BJP combine passed a resolution to demolish illegal structures after rehabilitation the residents. The ruling was passed during a general body meet, which overruled the stay brought in by the NCP two weeks ago.

Awhad alleged that the ruling Sena-BJP corporators are chamchas of the administration. He even asked people not to vote for such corporators who have passed resolution to bulldoze homes of the slum dwellers. The protestors blocked all the four roads at Kalwa Naka, bringing the traffic to a standstill.

Awhad said, Around 72% population in Thane resides in illegal buildings, including slums. A few years ago, when the question of demolition of slums in Wagale Estate cropped up, NCP leader Sharad Pawar himself assured that there will be no action against the slums in Thane. Moreover, despite the stay in legislative council, how can the ruling party pass the resolution in the TMC house to demolish the slums?

He alleged that the law for Wagle Estate, Lokmanya Nagar and Kisannagar is different than that for Kalwa. He claimed that the ruling party did not think about rehabilitation of these people before passing this proposal.

Also read

Two-acre wetland patch cleared at Thane for illegal housing

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The J J Marg police will approach the special juvenile justice board to get permission to prosecute two minors, aged 17 years and 16 years, booked for kidnapping and murdering a four- year-old girl. The police will seek permission to try the two as adults before the regular sessions court. DCP Manoj Kumar Sharma said, We will file an application on the basis of the new Juvenile Justice Act amended last year.

The act was amended last year to enable trying a minor aged 16 and 18 years as an adult in a regular trial for heinous offences such as rape and murder. The police said the two minors took the girl to the 17-year-olds house and used chloroform to keep her quiet. The girls nose began bleeding when the accused panicked and strangulated her with a mobile charger wire, the police said.

The police said the 17-year-old accused had stolen the chloroform from his south Mumbai-based college laboratory for the crime.

An officer from JJ Marg police station, The two accused have been planning the crime for the past one month. So accordingly, the 17-year-old stole chloroform from the college laboratory two weeks ago and kept it at his residence.

The 17-year-olds accomplice was involved in making ransom calls and also helped him destroy evidence by throwing the girls body on the terrace opposite her house, the police said.

The police said they are checking the 17-year-olds background for a criminal record.

We have learnt the accused has taken lots of money on loan from others and this could be a reason for him to plan the kidnapping, said an officer.

The first call was made on Friday and the duo demanded Rs1 crore initially, but later negotiated it to Rs28 lakh. The parents then informed the police and on the basis of the call data record, the 17-year-old was caught from his residence, followed by the 16-year-old, who was picked up on the basis of the first accuseds statement.

The juvenile justice board has remanded the two minors in remand custody until January 2.

Read: Mumbai Police arrest two teenagers for kidnap and murder of toddler

Dongri murder: Second case where teens may be tried as adults

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Mumbai man dupes TV producer, govt officials by promising Mhada flats, held

The RAK Marg police have arrested a 32-year-old Vakola resident for duping his victims by promising Mhada flats at cheaper rates. Officers said they received complaints from more than 10 individuals, including a television producer and several government officials, against the accused. Read

ED questions Zaveri Bazar trader for exchanging Rs150 crore in old currency at 4 banks

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is questioning a Zaveri Bazar-based trader for exchanging Rs 150 crore in old currency at four private banks with the alleged help of bank staffers. Investigators said the bank employees collected the old currency and deposited the amount into the accounts of several shell firms and later transferred it into the traders account using real time gross settlement system (RTGS). Read

Mumbai airport security: Stamping of tags on carry-on bags to go?

About 1,200 additional carry-on bags were physically checked in a day at the Mumbai airport during a trial-run to find out whether stamping of tags on hand baggage should be scrapped or not. A preliminary report on the trial period showed that security personnel had the time to physically check 2,810 bags on December 18 when stamping was suspended. Read

Tempo driver dies on the spot following accident on Mumbai-Pune Expressway

A 35-year-old man died after the tempo he was driving hit a heavy vehicle on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway on Monday morning. The mishap occurred near Lonavla around 5am. According to police officers, a tempo belonging to a private company was coming towards Mumbai from Pune. As it was crossing a bridge near Lonavla, it rammed into a heavy vehicle from behind which was also on its way to Mumbai. Read

Biker crushed under bus in Thane dies while being rushed to Mumbai hospital

A 35-year-old Mulund resident, who was heading towards Mumbai via Ghodbunder Road, lost his life after his motorcycle skid and he came down under the rear wheel of a Thane Municipal Transport (TMT) bus heading towards Borivli. The incident took place near Anand Nagar at 1.30 pm on Monday. Read
A 35-year-old Mulund resident, who was heading towards Mumbai via Ghodbunder Road, lost his life after his motorcycle skid and he came down under the rear wheel of a Thane Municipal Transport (TMT) bus heading towards Borivli. The incident took place near Anand Nagar at 1.30 pm on Monday. The deceased was identified as Umesh Tambe.

Santosh Kadam, regional disaster management official, Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC), said, We reached the spot immediately after being informed about the accident and rushed the victim to Thane civil hospital. Doctors there recommended that Tambe be shifted to Sir JJ hospital. However, he succumbed to his injuries in the ambulance while being shifted.

While the officials belive the accident couldnt have occurred due to overspeeding, as there is heavy traffic on the Ghodbunder Road owing to the ongoing work, they suspect Tambes bike must have hit a pothole before skidding. Investigation is on to exact the reason.

Also read

Tempo driver dies on the spot following accident on Mumbai-Pune Expressway

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Picking the right school for your child is a major decision but the entry of international boards has made it even more confusing, leaving parents spoilt for choice.

As if choosing between the state boards, the Indian Council of School Examination (ICSE) and the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) wasnt tough enough, today, international ones such as International General School Certificate Examination (IGCSE) and the International Baccalaureate (IB) board are additional options.

Often parents end up selecting a board based on popularity, rather than its suitability, say experts. The choice of boards, they say, should match the childs learning needs, aspirations, and the familys budget. Parents need to understand whether the philosophy of the board matches their needs, said a parent and teacher.

She added, Despite teaching in an international school, I chose to admit my daughter in a CBSE school because I felt its the right fit for us.

In contrast, such boards may put children at a disadvantage if theyre looking at pursuing medicine or engineering in India. Admissions to medical and engineering courses in India are based on national entrance exams.

Parents need to understand the international curriculum, its goals and methodologies before signing on. It requires them to be mature in their approach, said Rakhi Mukherjee, principal, Utpal Shanghvi School, Juhu.

On the other hand, international boards can be heavy on the pocket. Schools have to bear the expense of the training programme offered by the boards, which translates into higher fees.

Academicians also caution parents not to enroll IGSE students in tuitions. The board is geared towards making the child self-reliant, said Mukherjee.

Among the national boards, parents are increasingly opting for CBSE and ICSE over state boards. CBSE is preferable for parents in transferrable jobs. For such parents, CBSE is ideal as the curriculum, languages and books are uniform across all the schools, said Deepshikha Srivastava, principal of Rajhans Public School.

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Want a better Class 10 score? Be disciplined and punctual, says CBSE

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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is questioning a Zaveri Bazar-based trader for exchanging Rs 150 crore in old currency at four private banks with the alleged help of bank staffers.

Investigators said the bank employees collected the old currency and deposited the amount into the accounts of several shell firms and later transferred it into the traders account using real time gross settlement system (RTGS).

An ED official said, During interrogation, the trader claimed he received the amount from their clients whom they sold gold. But the trader was unable to provide details of the clients.

The ED is now in the process of sending letters to the banks in connection with legalising currency using illegal ways.

We will send letters to all four banks soon and will question bank employees involved, said an ED official.

No case has been filed so far.

More bullion dealers from the city could come under the scanner of ED,as the agency has focused its attention on the conversion of black money into gold.

Earlier, the central agency had conducted raids at four Zaveri Bazar establishments after intelligence inputs stated black money was being used to buy precious metals. As the trend of pumping black money into gold has been observed across the country, the heat is also now on dealers in the Zaveri Bazaar, the biggest bullion market in the country.

Also read

Note ban not enough: Corruption in India is like water, it finds a way
Fares of your suburban railway tickets may undergo a major overhaul if the Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) has its way. On the agenda: Cheaper first-class tickets and a 100% rise in the minimum second-class fare from the existing Rs5.

A proposal was presented by the MRVC chairman and managing director Prabhat Sahai in the recently concluded Rail Vikas Shivir and is awaiting the railway ministrys nod.

The minimum first-class ticket fare, which now ranges between Rs50 and Rs70, has been proposed to be slashed to Rs25, in an attempt to shift passengers from the second to the first class. Monthly season ticket fares for second-class short-distance passengers will be doubled, but second-class passengers from faroff suburbs will have to pay much less than the existing fares, according to the new proposal.

The planning authority for Mumbai suburban railways, for the first time, has proposed zone-wise ticketing for all four suburban lines on the Central and Western Railway (WR). It means the entire suburban network will be divided into four zones and fares will be based on these zones instead of the distance-wise slabs used currently.

The objective is to simplify and rationalise suburban fare while increasing the revenue for loss-making railways. The restructuring may slightly increase fare for short-distance passengers, but for longdistance passengers, especially those travelling from Virar, Kalyan and Panvel, it will be reduced so it is balanced, he said.

In the proposed restructuring, each of the suburban railway lines have been segregated into four zones and changing lines will attract 50% premium on season passes. Whereas, class I and II single tickets will cost an additional Rs25 and Rs5, respectively. The WR and CR mainline zone 1 will be from Churchgate to Dadar, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT)-Dadar, while on harbour line it will be CSMT to Wadala.

Similarly, Zone 2 will comprise Dadar-Borivli on WR mainline, Dadar-Thane on CR mainline and Wadala Mankhrud and WadalaAndheri/Goregaon on harbour line.

To simplify this, the MRVC has also proposed Rs500 and Rs1,500 monthly season tickets for class II and class I passengers respectively, which will allow suburban passengers to travel all across suburban network.

Of the total 80 lakh passengers in Mumbai, 70% are season-ticket holders, while 80% are Class II commuters. Commuters will be charged to travel within zone or interzone similar to developed countries.

Also read

Demonetisation: Railways will have to recalibrate ticket vending machines to accept new notes

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Burglars dug a three-foot long tunnel in the wall of a Mannapuram Gold Loan branch in Ulhasnagar and wiped it clean of 32kg of gold jewellery worth Rs9 crore.

The police said the burglars  yet to be identified  may have broken into the centre between Sunday and Monday, as the incident came to light when the staff came into work on Monday morning and found the jewellery missing .

The Vitthalwadi police said they are trying to find out how many were involved, but said they suspect the buildings security guard was involved, as he has been missing ever since. The police also found the CCTV camera had been disconnected.

Our teams are working on catching the burglars as soon as possible said Sunil Bharadwaj, DCP, Ulhasnagar region.

In a statement released to the media, the management of Manappuram Finance Ltd. confirmed the gold stolen from the branch was fully insured and that the affected customers will not face any loss. The statement said that even though the burglars tampered with the surveillance system, a fair amount of footage of the incident was captured and shared with the police. The company has an advanced, centrally-monitored security system to ensure customers gold is fully protected, the statement said,

Sakshi Jagtap,32, a customer said the firm had assured compensation within a week. My whole family had deposited gold at this branch, she said.

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3 held for stealing 6.88 lakh in gold, from outstation travellers

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Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Dec. 26

By Huseyn Hasanov  Trend:

Presidential electoral campaign has started in Turkmenistan, the countrys Central Election Committee said in a message.

The election will be held in the country on Feb. 12, 2017.

Electoral commissions together with local executive authorities and other organizations of Turkmenistan are responsible for organization of the events, according to the message.

Three candidates are nominated for the president in Turkmenistan.

The Democratic Party nominated the incumbent head of state Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, the Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Turkmenistan nominated chairman of the Commercial Bank Rysgal, Bekmyrat Atalyev, and the Agrarian Party nominated Durdygylych Orazov.

Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov has been elected twice as the countrys president. During the presidential election in 2012, 97.4 percent of voters cast their ballots for Berdimuhamedov.

Turkmen president is elected for a period of seven years, according to new amendments to the countrys Constitution.
The new year will see a number of schools in Mumbai adopt unconventional styles or learning or pedagogy and offer new courses that are will better prepare children for the jobs of tomorrow.

Every day at Polymath School, Bhiwandi, which will start classes from the next academic year, for instance, will begin with students taking on a new project -- it could be about the power-looms in the neighbourhood or finding answers to contemporary issues. This is part of the schools expeditionary learning style, which is aimed at challenging students to think critically and play an active role in their communities. The school will follow the Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) curriculum but will incorporate the Expeditionary Learning (EL) pedagogy in its classrooms.

The learning style, developed by Harvard School of Education and Outbound learning, has 150 schools in the United States mentor each other. The idea is to connect subjects to the real world and what is happening right now. This helps in giving context to what the students are learning, said Bhavesh Gandhi, schools trustee.

Unlike most schools, students will be engaged in projects lasting for six to eight weeks. Most schools give a couple of projects towards the end of the academic year but we believe in engaging students in small or big projects throughout the year, said Gandhi.

Another course that some schools are adopting is scratch programming, developed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) media lab to easily create animations and games.

From next year, many of the established Catholic schools, which offered only state-board education at affordable rates, will also start international schools. One such school is Aquinas International, Goregaon, which will begin classes from this June, at St Thomas Academy campus.

Started by the Archdiocese of Bombay, the school will offer Cambridge International Examination (CIE) curriculum from nursery to class 2 (and will gradually expand in the coming years).

What sets it apart is that it will teach coding to students from kindergarten itself. The idea is to get children to really understand, and be able to create technology and promote research skills, said Francis Joseph, school spokesperson and co-founder, School Leaders Network.

Students will be introduced to conditionals, sequences and loops and other concepts over the years. Coding is at the heart of how everything works. It teaches students logic, thinking and problem-solving, skills, said Joseph. This will help students in all fields and not just in engineering or technical jobs.

Increasing pressure from 21st century parents is driving schools to adopt such new pedagogies, said educators. Parents readiness to spend on education has also shot up said educators. The new generation parents are well-informed and at least 80% dont mind spending big bucks on school education, said Joseph. They want schools to go beyond providing formal education, said Joseph, adding, This is why schools are looking for differentials. Parents want schools to provide specific skills.

Close to 75% parents said that the school curriculum was at odd with the practical world, found a recent survey by Next School, which will open in Mulund. The school will also follow the IB curriculum, but it is working with Big Picture Learning, an online community, that personalises learning. Parmeet Shah, founder and chief executive officer of the school, said, We are still following a 150-year-old school education system at a time when the world is changing rapidly due to technology and globalisation. Our education system is desperately in need of new ideas that makes it relevant to the modern world.

Additionally, many of the new schools are joining the maker movement to encourage them to design, think and create from an early age. It is focused on transforming students from consumers to creators. Children are encouraged to tinker with objects such as play dough, LEGO blocks, craft objects and 3D printers using design-thinking processes. The Niti Ayog, the national think tank and a leading software company are promoting Atal tinker or maker labs across schools.

Educators said that such approaches are in stark contrast to the current curriculum, which makes them interesting and relevant to students. The school curriculum, where you do things in isolation, doesnt make much sense in this emerging world, said Avnita Bir, principal, RN Podar School, Santacruz, that took up the maker model this year. There arent jobs where you do one hour of maths, then physics, then art. These things need to come together at the same time.

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In Mumbai: Teachers want gap between 3 SSC papers

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Two days after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) booked four officials of Vaidyanath Cooperative Urban Bank Ltd and two doctors over alleged illegal swapping of currency, state women and child development minister Pankaja Munde said everyone will cooperate with investigating officers in the case.

Pankajas sister Pritam, who is a BJP MP, is a director of the bank.

The CBI on Friday registered a case against the six people for entering into a conspiracy and illegally transporting Rs25 crore in demonetised currency for changing it to legal tender.

According to Pankaja Munde, the cash seized by the Mumbai police last week, based on which the CBI has registered a case, was part of routine transactions. The bank officials have categorically told me that the seized money was part of routine transactions If there is anything wrong, we will fully cooperate with the investigating agency, said the minister.

The alleged role of two prominent doctors  an oncologist from Mumbai and a doctor who runs a hospital in Aurangabad -- has also surprised many. The CBI has registered a case against them.

The doctors have, however, refuted the CBI charge of entering into a conspiracy and fraudulently transporting the demonetised currency for changing it with new notes.

The oncologist distanced himself from the seized cash and said it belonged to the Aurangabad doctor who brought it for safe-keeping to his apartment at Ghatkopar on December 12. On the same day, officials of Vaidyanath bank came to his flat and collected half of the money, the oncologist said.

Refuting all allegations, the Aurangabad doctor said he had deposited money in the bank on November 12 and 13 while the CBI has booked him for the money seized on December 15.

According to the CBI, the two managers of Vaidyanath banks Ghatkopar and Pimpri branch, two other officials and the doctors entered into a conspiracy and fraudulently transported around Rs25 crore in demonetised currency from the banks head office in Beed to its Ghatkopar branch in Mumbai on November 19 for changing it with new notes.

A sum of Rs15 crore of the total amount was allegedly deposited with Maharashtra State Urban Co-operative Bank and Rs10.10 crore (Rs10 lakh in Rs2,000 denomination and Rs10 crore in old Rs500 notes) was being transported back to Beed in a car when it was intercepted by the Mumbai police.

Read

Officials of cooperative bank run by Munde family under CBI lens

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Although parts of Mumbai still do not have proper toilets, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is likely to go ahead and declare the city open defecation free this week.

To the dismay of citizens, areas that do not fall under the civic bodys jurisdiction, such as Aarey colony, Mumbai Port Trust and defense area in south Mumbai among others, will not be considered while making this declaration, revealed sources. These areas still need proper toilets and Bollywood actor Salman Khan had offered to repair the existing ones in Aarey colony through BMC officials, who in turn were denied permission for the same.

A civic official, who did not want to be named, said, Due to lack of coordination with different authorities in the city, it is not possible to consider those areas as open defecation free because we cannot improve them. There are permissions required for every step as they do not fall under the BMCs jurisdiction. But wherever we found the possibility of placing mobile toilets, our ward officials did it.

Furthermore, to declare the city open defecation free, the civic body has provided about 611 mobile toilet seats in the past two months as a temporary measure, wherever construction of permanent public or community (toilets in slums) toilets was delayed. It has spent approximately Rs2 crore at the ward level to facilitate this.

After two years of identifying 118 locations in the city where open defecation takes place, the BMC has managed to eliminate 44 locations from that list by providing permanent measures. And at the remaining 74 locations, 611 mobile toilet seats have been placed as a temporary measure to curb open defecation.

After declaring the city ODF, the civic body will start an awareness programme and urge citizens to use the toilets provided by it. It has also taken No Objection Certificates (NOC) from over 200 civic corporators while the remaining 20 odd have refrained from it. Further, after self-declaration, a team of central government officials will visit the city and check the infrastructure along with the criteria of having at least one toilet every 500 meters.

If the civic body can fulfil the criteria, only then will it get the open defecation free certificate.

This certificate however will be valid only for six months and thus maintenance of infrastructure will be a continuous process that we will take up, said another civic official.

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Salman Khan visits slum as part of drive against open defecation

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Job interviews are not easy, especially if you have just graduated. While students at colleges offering professional courses are better prepared, considering regular placement seasons there, degree college youth are not equally prepared.

Keeping this in mind, several colleges have started grooming their final-year students in personality development, which not only includes training them how to conduct themselves during job interviews, but also helps them to put together a strong curriculum vitae (CV) .

Our placement cell starts working in August and there is a custom-made programme in place catering specifically to our third-year students. The programme helps students for their interviews and higher education institutes, said Shobana Vasudevan, principal of RA Podar College, Matunga. She added that all final-year students are encouraged to seek help from the placement cell throughout the year.

While preparedness for job interviews is just one part of the process, institutes also focus on building the confidence level of students once they are out of college. None of the companies give a second chance to freshers, and we want the first impression to be the best. Ultimately, they are representing us in the real world, and we want to make sure they leave a good impression, said Ashok Wadia, principal of Jai Hind College, Churchgate. He added his college conducts workshops throughout the year on group discussions, personal interview, CV building and personality development.

Knowing very well that a large number of students opt for higher education after graduation, colleges also conduct sessions on how to put together an application while applying to national or foreign institutes. Something as basic as a Statement of Purpose (SOP), which describes a candidates professional and personal interests, can be quite challenging sometimes and our college has been kind enough to teach us how to write an SOP. Applications for higher education very easily get rejected or accepted on the basis of the SOP, said Ruhi Sharma, a student of RA Podar College.

At UPG College, Vile Parle, special attention is given on short-term certificate programmes to help students CVs look more appealing.

The management has termed these life skills programmes as an important part of the curriculum. We ensure our students regularly interact with industry experts to keep themselves abreast with the ongoing trends, said Anju Kapoor, principal of UPG College.

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Wearing low-cut dress in job application photo may land you an interview

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A 35-year-old man died after the tempo he was driving hit a heavy vehicle on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway on Monday morning. The mishap occurred near Lonavla around 5am.

According to police officers, a tempo belonging to a private company was coming towards Mumbai from Pune. As it was crossing a bridge near Lonavla, it rammed into a heavy vehicle from behind which was also on its way to Mumbai.

The tempo driver Kisan Kumar suffered severe head injuries and died on the spot. The impact of the collision was such that it damaged the drivers cabin Kumar had occupied. There were no other passengers in the tempo.

The heavy vehicle, however, did not stop there after the accident. We found only the tempo we reached the accident site after a while, said Arvind Kate, assistant police inspector from Lonavla city police station.

The reason behind the accident is still not clear.

We suspect the tempo driver might have fallen asleep behind the wheel, as he had been driving for a long time. We have sent the body to a government hospital for post-mortem and are awaiting autopsy report, he said.

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More than 1.3K dead on Mumbai-Pune Expressway in 6 years, but Maharashtra sits on trauma centre

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The Noida authority is all set to officially begin online property management system from December 27.

Plot allottees can now get approvals for property transfer, mortgage and layout maps, etc, online. To begin with, the facility will be available to around 10,000 industrial and commercial plots owners. By the end of January, the online services will be extended to an estimated 70,000 residential plot owners, officials said. We will provide 12 services, including layout map approval, mortgage permission and plot transfer, to industrial and commercial plot owners from January 1. For residential plots, we hope to begin the service by January-end, said Deepak Agarwal, chief executive officer of the Noida authority.

On July 8, then chairman of the Noida authority, Pravir Kumar, had directed officials to begin online property management system to save the plot owners a trip to the Sector 6 administrative office for these matters. However, the system could not be put in place then.

Officials said that with the new online system, getting an approval for a building map will become easier and faster. Once a plot owner fills up the form, it will be approved within 30 days. If the authority fails to approve it in 30 days, it will be considered approved. The system is such that an applicant can monitor the status of the application.Officials will not be able to delay an approval, said Agarwal.

To ensure that residents get their property or civic woes addressed online, the Noida authority, in August 2015, had started an online citizen charter, delivering 152 services. However, residents said their complaints were not being addressed online and they were compelled to visit the authoritys office.

The new online system will benefit around 8,000 industrial unit owners as it will end corruption and fix accountability. I hope it will be executed properly as some unscrupulous babus do not want it for their vested interests, said Sudhir Shrivastava, spokesperson of Noida entrepreneurs association.

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Kashmir is covered under a thick blanket of snow during the Chillai Kalan, the 40-day long period of harsh cold beginning December 21. Owing to the inclement weather, the frost and fog are making it tough for the people of the Valley to venture outdoors and address their day-to-day needs for firewood, fuel and food rations.

But the inhospitable terrain also makes it impossible for infiltrators to sneak in into the Valley. That is why there is a perceptible dip in insurgency-related activities during this time of the year. On Sunday, Mufti directed state officials to review cases against youth who were not involved in any serious offence during the recent unrest in the Valley or were too young. Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Muftis confidence building measures could not have been better timed.

The move takes forward the line of thinking recommended by a number of high-powered government panels including the official three-member group of interlocutors headed by the late journalist Dilip Padgaonkar. Another indicator that conditions are on the mend in the Valley comes from the governments decision to revoke its ban on Srinagar-based English daily Kashmir Reader and allow it to resume publication after shutting it down for three months.

Earlier this month, two factions of the separatist party alliance Hurriyat Conference and the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front, which had been spearheading the five-month-long unrest in Kashmir, had in a joint statement, invited tourists and pilgrims to visit the Valley.

The Centre needs to support confidence building measures such as releasing youth involved in minor cases of stone-pelting. This indicates that the government is responsive to the hardships being faced by the locals in the wake of the series of violent protests that gripped the Valley since the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani on July 8. About 100 civilians were reportedly killed in the security crackdown that followed Wanis killing. Though many top separatist leaders have been released, several youths involved in cases of stone-pelting in the Valley are still in custody. Gestures such as Muftis can go a long way in putting salve on the wounds of the Kashmiri people. Alongside, there must be measures to mitigate the hardships people are suffering on account of lack of power and medical facilities. Easing restrictions on movement would also help.

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The heart-wrenching video of two Turkish soldiers in camouflage fatigues taken out of a cage in the desert of northern Syria and then burnt alive by ISIS barbarians alive shows how serious the challenges ahead for Turkey are. The ISIS has termed it a payback for Ankaras involvement in its war against Muslims in Syria.

There has been a great deal of strife within Turkey this year, with a spate of bombings in several areas. Some recent terror-related incidents underscore its heightened exposure to instability caused by the ongoing security challenges in and around the country.

The assassination of the Russian ambassador to Turkey, Andrei Karlov, in the Turkish capital, is the latest in the string of terror attacks in an already troublesome year for Turkey. In December alone, there have been three high-profile terror attacks that hit Istanbul, Ankara and Kayseri.

Turkey has been under terror attacks since July 2015 and so far 390 people have been killed and 1,350 injured. This figure does not include the fatalities caused by the Kurdish separatist insurgency in the south-eastern provinces of the country.

The country has been fighting war on terror for a long time now. It faces an increased and serious threat perpetrated by two main militant groups - Kurdish separatists and Islamist radicals.

Read: In new Islamic State video, Erdogan-critic burns two Turkish soldiers alive

In this crisis , the West needs to support Turkey in its war on terror and Europe needs to embrace it as one of its own. Turkey, which has been waiting in the wings to be admitted to the European Union, should be strengthened to showcase a modern, liberal face of the Muslim world, not an easy task given the predilections of its president. The delay in entry to the European Union and mistrust are also alienating young Turks, and a large section of society is slowly drifting towards hard-core Islam.

On the streets, there is a strong sense among Turks that the US and the European governments are using terror attacks to arm-twist Turkey to get what they want. Another popular view is that the West is fighting a proxy war against Turkey through the PKK and the Gulenist terror groups that continue to freely operate in Europe and the US.

A Eurasianist group close to President Erdogan wants to cut its ties completely with the EU after years of being rebuffed and facing a lack of gratitude for housing millions of Syrian refugees. But they are thwarted by another group which says that Europe remains the only viable route to economic modernisation and a temporary alliance with Russia should be used to bargain a better deal with the West.

The West must realise that any increase in Islamic violence, deterioration and economic instability in Turkey would create more problems for the European countries since Turkey, with a significant Muslim base as a secular state, can act as a buffer between unstable Middle East, west Asia and Europe.

Sanjay Jha is a senior journalist.
At 895 per 1,000 males, the poor sex ratio has not been on the agenda of political parties in Punjab. But the Congress is now trying to woo women voters by promising a 33% job quota. After launching schemes for youth voters  50 lakh smart phones with free data and calling for one year and one job, per family  Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh on Sunday announced to reserve 33% government jobs for women, as many seats in educational institutions and allotment of residential and commercial plots in all categories.

Taking a leaf out of Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumars poll promise which has been implemented by his government, Amarinder said this will be first among the many steps the party intends to take towards women empowerment. We will ensure women get reservation in jobs and educational institutes and the poll manifesto being prepared by Manpreet Badal will provide a detailed framework for the same, he said.

According to party sources, Amarinders new move has come after studying the effect of Nitishs promise on poll verdict in Bihar. Buoyed by the promise of liquor ban and job quota, women had outnumbered men in voting during Bihar elections and emerged as a stronger vote bank than the caste factor. Though the Congress admits the idea has been inspired by Nitish, it claims it has worked on the political, economic and social gains from the move.

Our poll manifesto is not a cut-paste cliche. It will be a well-researched document. Studies by policy research institutions show that households where women are economically empowered create more assets and do higher savings than where they are not. The quota will extend to all government jobs from executive jobs such as Punjab Civil Services (PCS) to non-executive jobs of Class 2 and 3 employees, Punjab Congress spokesperson Raman Subramaniyam, who is working on the promise along with Badal, told HT.

The party has its own theory on the political gains though. Many Punjab youth have become goons of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Women are more non-political and comprise at least 49% of the states population. We need women in jobs as women will be more comfortable with them, he said.

Interestingly, the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) too was mulling announcing 35% reservation in government jobs following a recommendation by the Punjab Governance Reforms Commission, but no announcement to this effect has been made. In neighbouring Haryana, which shares the notoriety of being worse-off than Punjab in sex ratio, the first move has been to take the number of women cops in the police force to 10% to deal with a high (over 70%) rate of crime against women. Before Nitish, the Madhya Pradesh government of Shivraj Patil too had given its nod to 33% reservation for women in jobs last year.

Ironically, while championing the cause of women, the Congress has announced names of just eight women among the 77 seats announced so far, making for just 10%. Three women MLAs have given up their claims on seats for husband, sons and brother-in-law, including Punjab Congress chief Captain Amarinder Singhs wife Preneet Kaur who has left the family seat of Patiala (urban) for him. All three women MLAs were adjudged as winnable in the party surveys. Amarinder defended the move, saying, If my wife has given her seat to me, is there something wrong in it? Congress general secretary in-charge of Punjab offered a different consolation: The number of women candidates in Congress will be higher than those fielded by the SAD and the AAP in Punjab.

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As many as 4,500 drivers of Uber cabs went on an indefinite strike on Sunday, demanding that no new car should be attached to the company, as it is the drivers that suffer ultimately. With the strike, a surge pricing was witnessed causing major inconvenience to the passengers who were made to pay three times charges for taking a cab even for shorter distances.

Taxi welfare association president Rajesh said, Around 4,500 of our drivers went on an indefinite strike. We will not end the strike till our demands are fulfilled.In the past three days, the surge pricing has gone up by three times.

He added, We have been demanding that no new car should be attached to the company for the time being as we have to suffer ultimately.

He claimed that Uber has been advertising fake offers to the youngsters saying they can earn Rs 1 lakh by bringing their own car and get it attached to the company.

He added, Its a fake offer because a driver can only earn Rs 1 lakh per month if he drives 20 hours a day, which is next to impossible. We ourselves ask our drivers to stop driving after completing 12 hours. If he drives for 20 hours a day, the next day, he may bang into some other car.

Meanwhile, the Uber company coordinator in the city could not be contacted despite repeated attempts by HT.
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Dec. 26

By Huseyn Hasanov Trend:

Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov signed a decree to address issues related to the upcoming chairmanship of Turkmenistan at the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) in 2017-2019, the Turkmen government said in a message.

Speaking from the standpoint of broad international cooperation in the environmental field, neutral Turkmenistan is implementing large-scale projects and is taking active steps to develop balanced solutions to topical issues of regional and global agenda, attaching great importance to issues of saving the Aral Sea, as well as the improvement of social and environmental conditions in its basin, the Turkmen State News Agency reported.

The IFAS was established in 1993 to support scientific and practical research and organize financing social and economic and environmental programs in the region aimed at improving environmental situation of Aral Sea region.
Although foundation stone of the memorial of Shaheed Udham Singh was laid by the Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Sunday, on the eve of martyrs 118th birth anniversary, the belongings of Udham Singh are still in England.

As per an RTI reply, Udham Singhs diaries, knife, revolver and ammunition are in the possession of the United Kingdom law enforcement authorities.

English government has conveyed that the articles were used as evidences and cannot be returned. Punjab government had written to their government in 2004 for the belongings but after that there was no correspondence between the England and Punjab government, said, Jatinder Jain, who filed the RTI.

He said, Successive governments have been doing politics to get mileage but the current state government has not written even a single letter in last 10 years.

However, advocate HC Aroa has filed a PIL in Punjab and Haryana High Court to emphasise on the demand to return martyrs belongings to India. The hearing is in January and the government will file status of its action taken to bring these articles, advocate Arora said.

The ashes of the martyr were brought to India and the articles will be brought as well. The efforts are being made by the Centre government said Harsimrat Kaur Badal, who laid the foundation stone of the memorial of Shaheed Udham Singh on Sunday in Sunam.

Udham Singh was present in the Jallianwala Bagh on the fateful Baisakhi, April 13, 1919, when a peaceful assembly of people was fired upon by General Reginald Edward Harry Dyer. To avenge the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, revolutionary Udham Singh killed Sir Michael Francis ODwyer, who was Lieutenant Governor of Punjab at that time, in London in 1940.
Christians in Aleppo celebrated under a giant Christmas tree lit up for the first time in five years, hailing what many described as the return of peace to a city that came back under full government control last week.

The fall of rebel-held east Aleppo was the biggest victory of Syrias nearly six-year-old civil war for supporters of President Bashar al-Assad, and many in pro-government parts of the city have been jubilant.

However, the rebel defeat has also brought severe hardship on civilians who fled from insurgent-held areas, thousands of whom have been forced to camp in wilderness under the snow. Aid groups say many are in peril and children have died from exposure to severe winter weather.

In the war ravaged St. Elias Cathedral located on what was long the frontline in Aleppos historic Old City, priests prayed for peace at the first Christmas Eve Mass for five years, attended by dozens of worshippers, including some Russian officers.

Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All East John X Yazigi leads prayers during Christmas mass at the Elias Orthodox Church in Aleppo. (AFP Photo)

The festive atmosphere is great. Its a new birth for Jesus Christ and a new birth for the city of Aleppo, said George Bakhash, a Christian community leader.

He said the numbers attending mass across the city had surged, now that worshippers no longer feared missiles from rebel-held areas.

Many Syrian Christians supported the government in the civil war, viewing Assad, a member of a Shia-derived minority sect, as a protector against rebel fighters mainly drawn from Syrias Sunni Muslim majority.

In the comparatively undamaged parts of the city that had long been held by the government, restaurants were thronged by Christians late into the night.

Hundreds of people danced and celebrated in the Azizya neighbourhood, where the public Christmas tree had gone unlit since rebels took the eastern half of the city in 2012. Giant posters depicted Assad and his Christian ally, Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Christmas ornaments decorate a balcony in Aleppo. (Reuters)

In live footage shown on state television, a woman identified as the mother of slain Syrian soldier carried her sons picture alongside an image of the Virgin Mary.

I am sure his soul is in peace now because Aleppo has been liberated, she said.

Although some Christians stayed on the sidelines of the civil war, many saw the rise of Islamic State and other Sunni Muslim insurgent groups as a threat to the very existence of their communities, some as old as the Bible. The Christian population of Aleppo has shrunk since the start of the conflict to around 50,000 from 250,000 according to Bakhash.

Fighting in rural areas

Outside the city, rebels still hold at least 40 percent of Aleppo province, and rebels have still fired sporadic shells from the fringes of the city to the south.

Russian jets resumed heavy strikes on rebel-held rural areas of Aleppo province after a pause during a ceasefire to complete the evacuation of rebels from the city.

A bombing raid in the rebel-held town of Atareb in western Aleppo countryside killed at least seven refugees who had fled from the city under the evacuation deal, a local resident said.

Members of the Saint Elias Cathedral committee inspect the damage inside east Aleppo's crumbling church, in the Old City, on December 21, 2016. (AFP Photo)

Some people who fled east Aleppo earlier in the war have begun returning to inspect homes in neighbourhoods reduced to rubble by years of aerial bombing, which intensified last year when Russia joined the war.

The army and pro-government militias are still combing parts of east Aleppo. Rebels accuse the pro-government forces of carrying out summary executions of scores of youths who stayed behind, and say looting has been rampant. The government denies its forces have executed prisoners or looted homes.

Thousands of people who were bussed out of Aleppos rebel-held eastern districts as they fell to government forces have ended up in makeshift camps exposed to severe winter weather.

Many left everything behind as they fled under the evacuation deal, under which only mostly elderly people stayed.

We brought a few belongings just to wear.. We lost everything, Omar Sarout, 55, told Reuters by internet message from a makeshift camp for more than 700 people, mostly women and children, run by Turkish and Gulf charities.

Yousef Hanbali, a carpenter who fled Aleppo for a makeshift camp in Idlib province, said his family hoped to reach Turkey to find work. We need money. We left without anything, he said.
Militias in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo killed at least 34 civilians over the weekend, the army and local activists said, and the violence stoked concerns over political instability.

Attacks have surged across the country in the past week alongside violent protests over President Joseph Kabilas failure to step down at the end of his constitutional mandate on Tuesday.

While it is not clear that all the violence is related, analysts fear political instability over Kabilas tenure is stoking localised conflicts by creating security vacuums.

An ethnic Nande militia killed at least 13 Hutu civilians on Sunday in the eastern town of Nyanzale with guns and machetes in an apparent revenge attack for the deaths of Nande civilians last week, local activist Innocent Gasigwa said.

This must be the response for last time, Gasigwa said, referring to an attack on Thursday by Nyatura, an ethnic Hutu militia, that killed at least 17 civilians in a nearby village. He said two militiamen were killed as well.

On Saturday, 21 civilians and four militiamen were killed on Saturday in attacks near the city of Beni, 300 km (185 miles) north of Nyanzale, local army spokesman Captain Mak Hazukay told Reuters.

Hundreds of civilians have died in raids near Beni since October 2014. The government blames the ADF, a Ugandan Islamist group, though analysts say others, including Congolese soldiers, are involved.

At least 40 people died last week in protests against Kabilas refusal to step down at the end of his constitutional mandate last Tuesday. The government says he will remain in office until an election can be organised in 2018.

Local mediators from the Catholic church hope talks between Kabilas ruling coalition and the main opposition bloc will produce a deal by Friday for Kabila to step down after an election in late 2017.

Catholic priests across Congo on Sunday read out a message from the churchs national head, Cardinal Laurent Monsengwo, saying: The time is over when one tried to hold onto power with arms by killing ones people, these young people who only seek out their right to live with a little more dignity.

African and Western powers fear the violence could spark another conflict in a country where millions died between 1996 and 2003 in regional wars. The central African country has not achieved a peaceful transfer of power since independence in 1960.
Syrian authorities have accused rebel fighters of executing 21 civilians, including women and children, at close range as they quit second city Aleppo last week, state media reported.

The bodies were found in two neighbourhoods in east Aleppo, state news agency SANA said late on Sunday.

The head of Aleppos forensic unit Zaher Hajjo told SANA that 21 corpses of civilian victims, including five children and four women, killed by terrorist groups were examined.

The bodies were found in prisons run by the terrorist groups in Sukkari and al-Kalasseh, and they were found to have been executed by gunshot at very close range, Hajjo was quoted as saying.

Under a landmark deal brokered by regime ally Russia and rebel backer Turkey, 35,000 rebels and civilians left the former opposition stronghold of east Aleppo last week.

Days before the evacuations began, the UN said it had received credible reports of at least 82 civilians, including 11 women and 13 children, being executed by pro-government forces in Aleppo.

On Monday, the Russian defence ministry said dozens of Syrians were summarily executed in east Aleppo by rebels.

A woman carries a child as she walks near rubble of damaged buildings in al-Rai town, northern Aleppo. (Reuters Photo)

Mass graves containing dozens of Syrians who were summarily executed and subjected to savage torture have been discovered, spokesman Igor Konachenkov said, according to Russian agencies.

He said most had been killed by gunshot wounds to the head and many bodies were not whole, and that thorough investigations would force opposition backers in the West to recognise their responsibility for the cruelty of rebels.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that bodies had been found in east Aleppos streets, but could not specify how they had been killed.

World powers have been fiercely divided over Syrias conflict since it first erupted in March 2011, with Russia firmly backing Assad and Gulf powers and much of the West supporting the opposition.

The high-profile battle for Aleppo, in particular, has sparked accusations by Western powers that Russia and the government were committing war crimes.
An unexploded British bomb from World War Two forced 54,000 people out of their homes in Germany on Christmas Day, the countrys biggest such evacuation since the end of hostilities.

The huge operation on Sunday in the southern city of Augsburg took 11 hours, involved 900 police officers and it ended successfully around 1800 GMT, local authorities announced.

The 1.8-tonne explosive was found on Tuesday during work at a construction site in the Bavarian city, but authorities waited until Sunday to coordinate the logistics necessary to make it safe.

This picture shows an evacuation leaflet on December 24, 2016 in Augsburg, southern Germany. The lettering reads: "Danger zone. Do Not Enter" (AFP Photo)

More than 70 years after the end of the war, unexploded bombs are regularly found buried on German land, legacies of the intense bombing campaigns by the Allied forces against Nazi Germany.

Augsburg, the third-largest city in Bavaria, was targeted several times during the war.

The bomb is successfully defused. Evacuation is suspended now. #evakupdate  Stadt Augsburg (@AugsburgCity) December 25, 2016

A 1,500-metre exclusion zone was created for the operation in case the bomb exploded while engineers were trying to deactivate it and sandbags were set up all around.

Two experts defused the explosive, which was described as a mega bomb according to police spokesman Manfred Gottschalk cited by DPA news agency.

Police checked house by house to ensure they were clear of residents before giving the go ahead.

Police and paramedics are seen on December 25, 2016 on the empty streets of Augsburg, southern Germany. (AFP Photo)

The effort to defuse the bomb only started around 1400 GMT due to a larger than expected number of bedridden or disabled people that had to be removed from the area, said Augsburg mayor Kurt Gribl.

About 100 buses and trams were deployed for the evacuation.

He had earlier urged everyone concerned to leave the area, if possible by themselves, in a video message posted on the citys Twitter account.

Gribi also called for each person to verify that their relatives, parents and friends have found places to stay outside the (security) zone... Look out for one another.

All clear given

But pictures later showed the bomb disposal team calmly standing around the cylinder shaped bomb, around two metres long, smiling after their task had ended.

Citizens were then given the all clear to return to their homes.

Emergency shelters had been set up in schools and gymnasiums to handle those displaced, especially the elderly who had been unable to find accommodation at relatives or friends.

People wait inside an exhibition hall in Augsburg, Germany. Thousands of people in the German town of Augsburg have temporarily left Christmas presents and decorations behind while authorities disarm a World War II bomb. (AP Photo)

Ambulances were called in to transport the infirm to a safe location.

Admittedly this was an unusual Christmas day in Augsburg, a city spokesman told TV channel n24, adding that hopefully people would voluntarily leave their homes given the expected force of the explosion that could occur during the defusing of the bomb.

Bombs are often found during digging work at construction sites.

German authorities estimate there are 3,000 sunken bombs in the Berlin area alone.

The biggest previous evacuation caused by the dismantling of an unexploded bomb in Germany took place in December 2011 in Koblenz, in the west of the country.

Some 45,000 people had to leave their homes on that occasion.
China has passed a new law to levy environment tax on polluters, specially on heavy industries.

The environment tax law was adopted by the legislature, the National Peoples Congress (NPC) standing committee, which concluded its meeting in Beijing on Sunday.

However, carbon dioxide -- one of the major contributors to global warming -- is not included in the levying list.

The law followed nearly week-long red alert due to heavy smog over Beijing and 23 other cities last week, leading to imposition of odd-even number system to regulate vehicles and closure of schools.

The law, to be implemented on January 1, 2018, will be key to fighting pollution, Wang Jianfan, director of the ministry of finance tax policy department said.

China has collected a pollutant discharge fee, since 1979.

In 2015, it collected 17.3 billion yuan (about $2.5 billion) from some 280,000 businesses, Wang said.

However, some local governments exploit loopholes and exempt enterprises that are otherwise big contributors to fiscal revenue.

For years, regulators have suggested replacing the fee system with a law.

The new law will reduce interference from government, Wang said.

It will also improve tax payers environmental awareness, forcing companies to upgrade technology and shift to cleaner production, Wang said.

Under the new law, companies will pay taxes ranging from 350 yuan ($60) to 11,200 yuan ($1870) per month for noise, according to their decibel level.

It also set rates of 1.2 yuan on stipulated quantities of air pollutants, 1.4 yuan on water pollutants and a range of five to 1,000 yuan for each tonne of solid waste, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

For instance, polluters will pay 1.2 yuan for emission of 0.95kg of Sulfur Dioxide and 1.4 yuan for one kg of chemical oxygen demand (COD).

Under the new law, provincial-level governments can raise the rates for air and water pollution by up to ten times after approval by the peoples congresses.

Lower rates may also be applicable if emission are less than national standards.

The law only targets enterprises and public institutions that discharge listed pollutants directly into the environment.

Punishment for evasion or fraud are not specified, but offenders will be held liable in line with the law on administration of taxation and the environmental law.

With more than a year still to go before the law comes into effect, Wang said authorities will make preparations including drafting a regulation for implementation of the law.

China is the worlds largest emitter of greenhouse gases, due to its heavy reliance on coal to provide electricity to its population of 1.37 billion.
China has tested the latest version of its fifth-generation stealth fighter, state media reported Monday, as it tries to end the Wests monopoly on the worlds most advanced warplanes.

The test comes as the nation flexes its military muscles, sending its sole aircraft carrier the Liaoning into the western Pacific in recent days to lead drills there for the first time.

The newest version of the J-31 -- now renamed the FC-31 Gyrfalcon -- took to the air for the first time Friday, the China Daily reported.

The so-called fifth-generation twin-engine jet is Chinas answer to the US F-35, the worlds most technically advanced fighter.

The new FC-31 has better stealth capabilities, improved electronic equipment and a larger payload capacity than the previous version which debuted in October 2012, the newspaper said, quoting aviation expert Wu Peixin.

Changes were made to the airframe, wings and vertical tails which make it leaner, lighter and more manoeuvrable, Wu told the paper.

The jet is manufactured by Shenyang Aircraft Corp., a subsidiary of the Aviation Industry Corp of China (AVIC).

The fighter is expected to sell for around $70 million, the article said, aiming to take market share away from more expensive fourth-generation fighters like the Eurofighter Typhoon.

AVIC has said that the FC-31 will put an end to some nations monopolies on the fifth-generation fighter jet, the China Daily reported.

China is aggressively moving to develop its domestic weapons industry, from drones and anti-aircraft systems to homegrown jet engines.

In the past it has been accused of copying designs from Russian fighters, and some analysts say the FC-31 bears a close resemblance to the F-35.

When completed the FC-31 will become the countrys second fifth-generation fighter after the J-20, which put on its first public performance at the Zhuhai Air Show in November.
A group of Chinese warships led by the countrys sole aircraft carrier entered the top half of the South China Sea on Monday after passing south of Taiwan, the islands defence ministry said of what China has termed a routine exercise.

The move comes amid renewed tension over self-ruled Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own, following US President-elect Donald Trumps telephone call with the islands president that upset Beijing.

The ministry said the aircraft carrier the Liaoning, accompanied by five vessels, had early Monday afternoon passed southeast of the Pratas Islands, which are controlled by Taiwan, heading southwest.

The carrier group earlier in the day passed 90 nautical miles south of Taiwans southernmost point via the Bashi Channel, between Taiwan and the Philippines.

Staying vigilant and flexible has always been the normal method of maintaining airspace security, said ministry spokesman Chen Chung-chi, declining to say whether Taiwan fighter jets were scrambled or if submarines had been deployed.

Chen said the ministry was continuing to monitor and grasp the situation.

Senior Taiwan opposition Nationalist lawmaker Johnny Chiang said the Liaoning exercise was Chinas signal to the United States that it has broken through the first island chain, an area that includes Japans Ryukyu Islands and Taiwan.

In Beijing, influential state-run tabloid the Global Times said the exercise showed how the carrier was improving its combat capabilities and that it should now sail even further afield.

The Chinese fleet will cruise to the Eastern Pacific sooner or later. When Chinas aircraft carrier fleet appears in offshore areas of the U.S. one day, it will trigger intense thinking about maritime rules, the newspaper said in an editorial.

China has been angered recently by U.S. naval patrols near islands that China claims in the South China Sea. This month, a Chinese navy ship seized a U.S. underwater drone in the South China Sea. China later returned it.

Japan said late on Sunday it had spotted six Chinese naval vessels including the Liaoning travelling through the passage between Miyako and Okinawa and into the Pacific.

Japans top government spokesman said on Monday the voyage showed Chinas expanding military capability and Japan was closely monitoring it.

Chinas air force conducted long-range drills this month above the East and South China Seas that rattled Japan and Taiwan. China said those exercises were also routine.

Chinas Soviet-built Liaoning has taken part in previous exercises, including some in the South China Sea, but China is years away from perfecting carrier operations similar to those the United States has practised for decades.

Last December, the defence ministry confirmed China was building a second aircraft carrier but its launch date is unclear. The aircraft carrier programme is a state secret.

Beijing could build multiple aircraft carriers over the next 15 years, the Pentagon said in a report last year.

China claims most of the South China Sea through which about $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year. Neighbours Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims.
In a Christmas debacle, Sri Lankas Catholic church withdrew hymn sheets after lyrics of Hail Mary were mixed up with an expletive-packed version by rapper Tupac Shakur, a spokesman said Monday.

Hail Mary is a traditional Catholic prayer asking for the intervention of the blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus.

The version by Tupac, an African-American rapper who was shot dead 20 years ago and whose stage name was 2Pac, is littered with obscenities.

The incident, which came to light on Christmas Day, took place two weeks ago when several hundred copies of Tupacs version were printed and sold at the Joy to the World 2016 festival of music for peace and harmony in Colombo, said Catholic church spokesman Edmund Tilakaratne.

Instead of the familiar Hail Mary, full of grace. Our Lord is with you... the audience was invited to sing: ...Mama told me never stop until I bust a nut. F___ the world if they cant adjust, its just as well, Hail Mary.

The embarrassing mistake was made public when several people who had bought the hymn sheets to sing at the carol service posted photographs on social media.

It was a human error, a genuine printing mistake, Tilakaratne told AFP. The offending version of Hail Mary was never sung. Those who bought the souvenir (with the hymn sheets) were refunded.

Tilakaratne said the organisers of the event could have avoided the blunder had they gone through the proofs of the hymn sheets.

aj/mb/sm
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26

By Fatih Karimov  Trend:

Irans imports from Germany increased by 38.22 percent in terms of value, year-on-year during the first nine months of current fiscal year (March 20-Dec. 21, 2016), according to the Iranian Customs Administrations latest monthly report.

Iran imported $1.78 billion worth of goods from Germany during the 9-month period.

China was the main exporter of goods to Iran in the mentioned period. Iran imported $7.51 billion worth of goods from China in the 9-month period indicating a fall by 2.37 percent in terms of value year on year.

After China, the UAE ($5.103 billion), South Korea ($2.503 billion), Turkey ($2.02 billion) and Germany were other biggest exporters of goods to Iran.

The Islamic Republics imports from the UAE decreased by 10.1 percent, meanwhile South Korea exports to Iran witnessed a fall by 8.1 percent.

Turkeys exports to Iran also registered a fall by 9.89 percent during the 9-month period year on year.

Iran imported 24.867 million tons of goods, worth $31.538 billion, during the 9-month period, which is 4.38 percent more in terms of value as compared to the same period of preceding year.

Corn fodder worth $1.015 billion topped the list of Iran's imported goods during the 9-month period.

After corn fodder, soybean worth $656 million, car parts worth $605 million, motor vehicles with internal combustion engine worth $544 million and rice worth $527 million were among other main imported goods of the Islamic Republic in the first nine months of the current fiscal year.
Batangas, Philippines (AP)  A powerful typhoon that spoiled Christmas Day in parts of the Philippines, leaving at least four people dead and destroying homes, roared over a congested region near Manila on Monday with slightly weaker but still-fierce winds, officials said.

Typhoon Nock-Ten cut power to five provinces at the height of Christmas celebrations and displaced tens of thousands of villagers and travelers in Asias largest Catholic nation.

A farmer died after being pinned by a fallen tree in Quezon province and three other villagers, including a couple who were swept by a flash flood, died in Albay province, southeast of Manila, after the typhoon made landfall in Casiguran province Sunday night, police said.

Nock-Ten, locally known as Nina, then blew westward across mountainous and island provinces, damaging homes, uprooting trees and knocking down communications.

Although it had weakened slightly, the typhoon still had sustained winds of up to 130 kilometers (80 miles) per hour and gusts of 215 kph (133 mph), government forecasters said, as it blew over the heavily populated provinces of Batangas and Cavite, south of Manila, on Monday morning. It was expected to exit over the South China Sea later in the day.

A cargo ship with an unspecified number of crewmen radioed for help as their vessel started to sink off Batangas, while another ran aground and turned on its side in the provinces Mabini town, the coast guard said, adding that it sent vessels to rescue the crewmen of both ships.

The storm was one of the strongest to hit the Philippines since Typhoon Haiyan left more than 7,300 people dead or missing and displaced over 5 million in 2014. But officials in some provinces found it difficult to convince people to abandon their Christmas celebrations and head for the shelters before the storm hit. Some officials said they had to impose forced evacuations.

Some residents just refused to leave their homes even when I warned them that you can face what amounts to a death penalty, Cedric Daep, a top disaster-response official in Albay, said by phone.

Shopping malls and stores were ordered to close early on Christmas Day to encourage people to remain indoors, but at the height of the typhoon, many cars were still being driven around and people were out walking, Daep said. We warned them enough, but we just cant control their mind.

Officials in Albay, where more than 150,000 villagers were displaced by the typhoon, declared a state of calamity on Sunday to allow faster disbursement of emergency funds.

About 20 typhoons and storms lash the Philippines each year. In the past 65 years, seven typhoons have struck the country on Christmas Day, according to the governments weather agency.

Tens of thousands of villagers, forced to spend Christmas in crowded and powerless emergency shelters, started to return home Monday to deal with the damage.

They have left the evacuation centers and were seeing the sun again, Ann Ongjoco, mayor of the town of Guinobatan in Albay, one of five provinces that lost electricity, said by phone.

But she said her town, where more than 17,600 villagers fled to shelters in schools, will not be able to resume the holiday celebrations because of the post-typhoon mess. Many houses made of light materials were destroyed, she said.

___

Associated Press writer Jim Gomez in Manila contributed to this report.
US President Barack Obama says he could have been re-elected for a third term and that the nation still largely embraces his political vision despite last months election of Donald Trump to succeed him.

The US leaders remarks were made in an interview posted on the podcast The Axe Files, produced by CNN and the University of Chicago.

Obama, who winds up his second and final term in office in just over three weeks, said he believes the American public still supports his progressive vision, despite having voted for Trump -- his political opposite.

I am confident in this vision because Im confident that if I had run again and articulated it, I think I couldve mobilized a majority of the American people to rally behind it, Obama tells his interviewer, former senior adviser David Axelrod, in the most recent of several exit interviews he has been conducting.

He was philosophical and a little rueful about Democrats loss of the presidential election, when Hillary Clinton was defeated by Trump in a shock outcome almost no one predicted.

Losings never fun, he tells Axelrod, a political strategist who helped craft Obamas winning 2008 presidential campaign and then followed him to the White House.

Im proud that I have tried to conduct myself in office to do what I think is right rather than what is popular, I always tell people dont underestimate the public humiliation of losing in politics, Obama said.

Its unlike what most people experience as adults, this sense of rejection.

But he was also proud of the way the progress made in the two terms of his presidency, thanks to the spirit of America, especially evident in the younger generation.

That spirit of America has still been there in all sorts of ways. It manifests itself in communities all across the country, Obama said.

We see it in this younger generation that is smarter, more tolerant, more innovative, more creative, more entrepreneurial, would not even think about, you know, discriminating somebody against for example because of their sexual orientation, the president said.

All those things that I describe, youre seeing in our society, particularly among 20-year-olds, 30-year-olds.

Despite the election of Trump -- a Republican who appears set to put in place policies that will take the country sharply to the right -- during his presidency the culture actually did shift, Obama told Axelrod.

The majority does buy into the notion of a one America that is tolerant and diverse and open and full of energy and dynamism, the US president said.

The problem is, it doesnt always manifest itself in politics.
Egypt confirmed on Sunday that it had arrested an Al Jazeera news producer, accusing him of provoking sedition on behalf of the Qatar-based broadcaster that it considers a mouthpiece of the banned Muslim Brotherhood.

Judicial sources said Mahmoud Hussein, who was detained on Friday, was being held on charges of disturbing public security and spreading false news.

The interior ministry said in a statement that Al Jazeera officials had ordered some individuals collaborating with the channel inside the country to continue implementing its media plan of provoking sedition, incitement against the state, and spreading chaos through broadcasting false news.

It identified Hussein as a person implementing that plan for the channel which is not allowed to operate inside Egypt.

Al Jazeera issued a statement later on Sunday denying the fabricated charges brought against Hussein and demanding his immediate release, adding that he was in Egypt on vacation and not for work.

(Hussein) is a news producer in the Al Jazeera Arabic newsroom and not a correspondent supervisor as alleged by the statement ... (he) would not have travelled through the airport at Egypt if he was undertaking any illegal activities as alleged by the MOI statement, the statement said.

The broadcaster expressed concerns over Husseins safety.

Al Jazeera holds the Egyptian authorities against subjecting Mahmoud to torture or extracting any information from him by force, it said.

Egypt has arrested several Al Jazeera reporters over the past two years, raising concerns over the freedom of journalists working in the country.

In May, a Cairo court recommended the death penalty against two of them, charged in absentia with endangering national security by leaking state secrets to Qatar.

The Brotherhood is a Qatar-backed movement that President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has cracked down on since an army takeover in 2013 stripped former president Mohammed Mursi - a prominent member of the group - of power following mass protests against his rule.

Thousands of Brotherhood supporters including Mursi are in jail and Egypt has designated the group, which says it is non-violent, a terrorist organisation.
Father Thomas Uzhunnalil, a Catholic priest abducted from an old peoples home in Yemen by the Islamic State in March, has made an emotional plea to the Indian government and the church to save his life.

Uzhunnalil, 55, made the appeal in a five-minute video that was posted on YouTube and aired by news channels in his home state of Kerala on Monday. He looked haggard, with a long white beard, and spoke haltingly in English.

The priest, abducted when IS fighters stormed the old peoples home in the port city of Aden on March 4 and gunned down 16 people, including an Indian nun, accused the Indian government and the Pope of doing little for his release.

If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously by authorities and people and (they) would have got me released. I am from India and therefore, I perhaps am not considered as of much value. I am sad about this, he said in a weak voice.

Watch | Latest video featuring Father Thomas Uzhunnalil

Uzhunnalil said a French woman reportedly kidnapped in the Yemeni city of Sanaa had been freed because she was a Westerner.

Dear Pope Francis, dear holy father, as a father please take care of my lifeI am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating, I may need hospitalisation soon, please come to my help quickly he said in the video that was apparently released on Christmas Day.

The veracity of the video, also uploaded on Facebook, could not be independently verified. This is the second video featuring Uzhunnalil to be posted on social media, and the first one had emerged in July.

Uzhunnalil is seen wearing a grey sweat shirt and spoke slowly, repeating his accusations about the government and the church doing little for his release. He said he was kidnapped because he was working for the Christian religion. He also said his captors had made several contacts with the Indian government.

Addressing the prime minister and president, he said: I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in my regard.

Though there were news reports of everything being done to get me released quickly, but in reality nothing seemed to have happened, he added.

Uzhunnalil belongs to Ramapuram village in Keralas Kottayam district.

India said it was in regular touch with Yemeni authorities and Saudi Arabia regarding the safe release of Father Uzhunnalil

You are aware of the circumstances currently prevailing in Yemen where fighting is going on with no central authority in that country. With regard to the safe release of Father Tom who was abducted some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard, said external affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

Parliament that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had spoken to leaders of several countries through which contacts could be established in Yemen.

Read | Over 40 Indians abducted by IS, kin living on Centres assurances

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United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon will perform one last ceremonial duty before ending his 10-year leadership of the world body.

Organizers of the Times Square New Years Eve celebration announced on Monday that Ban will push the Waterford crystal button to begin the official 60-second countdown to 2017.

The South Korean statesman was elected as the eighth secretary-general by the United Nations General Assembly in October 2006. December 31 will be his last day in office. Antonio Guterres, of Portugal, will take over on January 1.

Times Square Alliance head Tim Tompkins praised Bans legacy of bringing people and nations together, supporting refugee relief efforts and opposing war.

Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to watch the ball drop at midnight Saturday in Times Square.
Christmas wasnt really merry in Western Mexico where plague of violence continued on Sunday with the discovery of six decapitated heads in one state and the slaying of seven people in another.

The Michoacan state prosecutors office said the six heads were found in Jiquilpan, a municipality near the state of Jalisco in a region that has been a battleground between competing drug gangs in recent years. In a brief statement, it said the six men had not yet been identified and their bodies had not been found.

Meanwhile state security officials in the neighbouring state of Guerrero said gunmen entered a house and shot to death seven people in the municipality of Atoyac de Alvarez. Five were members of one family and two were a married couple.

A girl lies on a silhouette that represents a victim of violence that was painted by an activist of the organization Nos hacen falta (We are missing them), during a demonstration demanding justice for the victims of violence and drugs, at the Monument to the Revolution in Mexico City in Mexico on December 11, 2016. The names of victims are seen in each silhouette. (Reuters)

State security spokesperson Roberto Alvarez Heredia said in a statement that two of the seven killed were municipal police officers and one a state police officer. The preliminary investigation suggested the gunmen wanted to kill one of the victims in a revenge attack but ended up killing them all.

Guerrero, where Acapulco is located, is one of the states most plagued by drug gang violence.
The woman at the heart of the impeachment crisis surrounding South Korean President Park Geun-Hye refused to leave her jail cell on Monday for questioning by lawmakers who had convened a special hearing at her detention centre.

Choi Soon-Sil, a long-time friend of the president, has repeatedly snubbed a parliamentary committee probing a corruption scandal that triggered Parks impeachment earlier this month.

Currently on trial for extortion and abuse of power, Choi had ignored several summons to attend the committees hearings in the National Assembly -- prompting the lawmakers to come to her.

A special, televised hearing was convened in the detention centre where Choi is being held on the outskirts of Seoul, but lawmakers were left with little to do but vent their frustrations after she refused to leave her cell.

Two former top presidential aides being held in a separate facility also refused to appear for questioning.

Its regrettable that the witnesses disregarded the authority of the people and the parliament by ignoring their obligation to attend, said committee chairperson Kim Sung-Tae.

There are no legal grounds for forcing witnesses to attend a parliamentary hearing, although they can be held in contempt and face a maximum five-year prison term for not doing so.

Choi Soon-Sil is at the core of the parliamentary probe, said Jung You-Sub, a lawmaker from Parks ruling Saenuri Party.

Her reasons for not attending are not justified. The people want to hear the truth, Jung said.

Choi had been questioned on Sunday by special prosecutors investigating the extent of the presidents alleged collusion with Choi in shaking down a number of major conglomerates to provide donations to two foundations she controlled.

Choi denied new allegations that she had stashed around 10 trillion won ($8.3 billion) abroad.

The National Assembly voted to impeach Park earlier this month, stripping away her substantial executive powers.

She remains president in name, pending a decision by the Constitutional Court on whether to ratify parliaments impeachment motion.

Earlier on Monday, prosecutors seized documents during an early morning raid on the central Seoul residence of Kim Ki- Choon, who served as Parks chief of staff between 2013-15.

Kim has a long association with Parks family, having also served her father - the late military strongman Park Chung-Hee who led the country for 18 years after seizing power in a 1979 military coup.
The White House orchestrated a gang-up against Israel on last weeks UN settlement vote, its ambassador to Washington said on Monday, in the latest sign of anger between the long-time allies.

Israels ambassador Rob Dermer said in an interview with CNN that his government plans to show evidence of the alleged US manoeuvring in due time.

What is outrageous is that the United States was actually behind that gang-up. I think it was a very sad day, really a shameful chapter, the Israeli diplomat told CNN.

We have clear evidence of it. We will present that evidence to the new administration through the appropriate channels. And if they want to share it with the US people, theyre welcome to do it, Dermer said, adding that the Israeli government is deeply disappointed with Washington over the UN vote.

On Friday, the UN Security Council passed a resolution, demanding that Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem.

The United States -- which has a veto --refrained from casting its vote, enabling the adoption of the measure, the first resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

In this photo provided by the United Nations, members of the United Nations Security council vote at the United Nations headquarters, in favour of condemning Israel for its practice of establishing settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem. (AP Photo)

Dermer accused the Obama administration of helping Palestinians wage a diplomatic and legal war against Israel.

They do not want to negotiate peace with us, which is why theyve avoided negotiations for eight years, he said.

What do the Palestinians want? What they want is to blame Israel for the lack of peace and to internationalize the conflict, Dermer continued.

What this resolution just did is it gave the Palestinians ammunition in their diplomatic and legal war against Israel. And the US not only didnt stop it, they were behind it.

Obamas soon-to-be successor, president-elect Donald Trump, who has campaigned on a promise to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital, slammed the position taken by the White House.

Trump, who last week said Washington should have used its veto to block the resolution, has chosen as ambassador to Israel the hardliner David Friedman, who has said Washington will not pressure Israel to curtail settlement building in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu summoned US ambassador Daniel Shapiro Sunday to express his displeasure.

An official Israeli source confirmed only that Netanyahu and Shapiro had met, without elaborating on the content nor outcome of their discussions.
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has summoned 10 of the 14 diplomats who voted for a UN resolution stopping Israel from occupying West Bank and East Jerusalem.

The Israeli leader has also cut it financial support to the UN body after the decision, while saying that he will reassess the alliance of the nations that favor the UN resolution, including the US.

"From the information that we have, we have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated on the wording and demanded that it be passed," said Netanyahu as quoted by DailyMail.

It was highly unusual for Israel to summon diplomats on Christmas Day. But the move apparently revealed how serious Israel in taking the UN resolution which it believes to be a US-initiated conspiracy. Among the summoned ambassadors included representatives from Russia, China, the UK, and France.

Netanyahu earlier said that Israel "cannot and will not" accept the UN resolution. The resolution, which condemned the occupation by Israeli settlers of parts of the West Bank that were seized by Israel in the 1967 Mideast War, passed 14-0 on Friday.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
When you think about NASA, the first thing that comes to your mind are the space stations, Mars, and other astronomical things. But NASA has come with a new kind of idea and in this project, they will work on polar ocean plants. Though it is not the first time, NASA is working on an atmospheric project. Previously NASA has worked on two researches called "CALIPSO" and "CALIOP" and both of these implementations was based on the atmosphere of the Earth.



When NASA had previous systems, they could only measure the level of planktons in the sea with the help of satellites. The system is generally based on the reflection of the sunlight which is incident on the ocean. But the improved lidar based system does not rely on the outer lights to check the level of plants in the sea. In fact, it can check the amount of vegetation in the sea both in the daytime and the night time with the same efficiency.



But if you want to talk about the real game changer in this field then you really have to consider the "CALIOP" as one of them. The system was introduced back in 2006 by NASA in order to study the ecosystem of the high latitude oceans. If this system was not introduced then most of the scientists would have no idea about the ecosystem of high -latitude seas.



As soon as the "CALIOP" system was introduced, it was a new source of light to the scientists. Especially to the people who were researching on the biological system of the polar seas. But with the help of this technology, many scientists and experts believe that there is more that we will get to know about the ecological system of the polar seas as the new approach of NASA can bring a new ray of hope to the scientists.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Tehran, Iran, Dec. 26

By Mehdi Sepahvand  Trend:

Mehdi Karroubi, one of Irans 2009 election opposition leaders, has resigned from his post as the chairman of the National Trust Party, IRNA news agency reported December 26.

Announcing his resignation while still under house arrest, Karroubi wanted his fellow party members to fare under Rasoul Montajabnia as the new chairperson.

The new leader of the reformist party has acted as Karroubis deputy so far.

Karroubi said he was resigning for the good of the party.

Karroubi, alongside other opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, has been under house arrest following the post-presidential election unrest in 2009.

The resignation seems to be a bid to prepare the party for a better campaign in the upcoming presidential election to be held in May 2017.
Aleppo was a thriving city in the past, it was called the Commercial Capital of Syria. It had great shopping centers, western chains and impressive mosques. Today, it has been devastated and has been described as a wasteland of rocks. The government of Assad has recovered a destroyed city, the syrian government was backed by Vladimir Putin and the russians bombed Aleppo to weaken the rebels.

The bombing by the regime and the russians has slowed lately and civilians are being evacuated. Anyway, thousands remain in the devastated city. There are many people who have lost everything, there are a lot of refugees. The Syrian army says it has retaken Aleppo.

Many rebels have left, this is the greatest victory for President Bashar al-Assad since the uprising began in 2011. Syria has been blooding these years because of the fierce war. Here we give you 20 Stirring Photos of War Torn Aleppo.
T he number of Londoners leaving the capital is at the highest level in nine years as new data shows 74,000 households left the city this year.

Rising house prices and stretched affordability continue to be the big drivers behind many of the exit decisions. On average, those buying outside the capital spent 388,000 on their new home, compared to the average asking price in London of 616,000.

Most London leavers stay in the South of England. The pace of house price growth in the South East, South West and East of England continues to outstrip Greater London as a result of rising demand for homes in the hundreds of commuter towns and villages within a 60-minute commute of the capital.

Broxbourne in Hertfordshire, bordered by the river Lea, is one of the most popular spots for home buyers leaving the capital / Alamy

WHERE LONDONERS ARE BUYING OUTSIDE THE CAPITAL

DISTRICT REGION % OF LONDON BUYERS Tandridge South East England 64% Broxbourne East of England 64% Hertsmere East of England 59% Epsom and Ewell South East England 58% Thurrock East of England 58% Epping Forest East of England 50% Brentwood Brentwood 50% East Hertfordshire East of England 50% Sevenoaks South East England 46% Dartford South East England 45%

Source: Hamptons International

TOP SPOTS

Broxbourne, Herts

This pretty south-east Hertfordshire town has long been tempting home buyers priced out of the capital, thanks to easy access to the M25 and A10 and a commute of just over half an hour into Liverpool Street.

Crossrail 2 is also set to speed up journey times into the capital, and although residents still have a long wait until the line starts running in 2033, regeneration will continue to open up new parts of the district. The scenic River Lea borders the wider Broxbourne district, which also takes in Chestnut, Hoddesdon, and Waltham Cross.

Tandridge, Surrey

The Tandridge district takes in the popular commuter towns of Oxted, Caterham and Godstone. With trains to London taking about 45 minutes, Godstone offers the perfect combination of the village idyll and a manageable commute.

WHY THE EXODUS?

Almost 75 per cent of leavers are in search of bigger homes with three or more bedrooms, while for an increasing number of first-time buyers, leaving the capital is the only way of getting onto the housing ladder.

Johnny Morris, Head of Research at Hamptons International, says: "With affordability in the capital stretched, more Londoners are looking elsewhere to buy their first home. More too are likely to go further afield, with increasing numbers heading to the Midlands and North."

While 80 per cent of London leavers head to the South East or East, the proportion and number of Londoners heading north of the capital has been steadily rising since 2012.

The number of Londoners buying outside the capital this year is up by 11,000 from 2015, but still 16,000 fewer than the levels recorded in 2007, according to the Hamptons International report. With the pace of house price growth tipped to slow next year, a drop in exit numbers is expected.

"A slower housing market in 2017 will likely mean that we see fewer Londoners buying outside of the capital than in 2016," says Morris.
If you thought Hollywood shamelessness had hit its rock bottom, theres The Emoji Movie to make you reconsider your assessment. Inside Out if Inside Out was meritless, the trailer for this movie seems like its almost embarrassed of its own existence. Featuring the voices of T.J. Miller, James Corden, and Ilana Glazer, this movie is destined for devastating returns, although perhaps itll surprise us. If Donald Trump can be elected President of the United States, then The Emoji Movie can win Best Picture at the Oscars.

Watch the trailer for The Emoji Movie below, and let us know what you think in the comments below. Are you low-key excited to watch this?

Emoji Movie
Troy Ave, who dropped off his new mixtape White Christmas 4 just the other day, was reportedly shot while driving in Brooklyn on Christmas day.

The New York rapper was reportedly driving in his red Maserati at around 4:20 PM when he was stricken by a bullet on his arm, and another grazed his head, before he crashed his vehicle into a parked car. The incident occurred on E 91st St & Linden Blvd.

The 31-year old MC is currently at Brookdale Hospital, in stable condition. Hes expected to survive his wounds. Troy Aves lawyer spoke on the shooting in a statement to Billboard, elaborating on the circumstances.

Tonight, Troy Ave was targeted again on Christmas, his attorney Scott Leemon said, In Booklyn, going to meet his family for the holiday, he was shot two times. Thankfully, he will survive the second attempt on his life. As we have said from the beginning  he is a victim. We pray for his speedy recovery.

Well update you once more information becomes available.

Troy Ave
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A server emerges hurriedly from the kitchen at Pho Ve Dem on Bellaire, pushing a metal cart carrying piping-hot bowls of pho, the Vietnamese noodle soup. As he whizzes past my table, aromas of beef tinged with toasted star anise and myriad other spices emanate from wafts of steam in the cart's wake.

Comfort food takes different forms for different people. For me, a Vietnamese-American whose parents immigrated to the U.S. after the fall of Saigon in 1975, these are the smells of my childhood, my homeland. Pho is something I know by heart. I look around the 18-seat, hole-in-the-wall restaurant's dining room. Patrons from an array of ethnic backgrounds are contentedly digging into their bowls, slurping up long strands of elastic rice noodles in between spoonfuls of rich, fragrant broth.

The scene makes me proud - because as much as pho is an intrinsic part of me, it's finally gone mainstream.

Nationally, pho is so on trend that Lucky Peach, the food-culture magazine founded by celebrity chef/restaurateur David Chang, dedicated an entire issue to it this year. (Chang, by the way, also recently declared that Houston has America's best Vietnamese food in a column for GQ magazine.) Bon Appetit named pho among the 23 Coolest Restaurant Trends of 2016. And a new cookbook on the subject is set to publish in February (Andrea Nguyen's "The Pho Cookbook").

More Information SIX BOWLS OF PHO TO TRY IN HOUSTON Pho Dien You'd think that having two locations less than mile from each other would be bad thing, but pho connoisseurs flock to Pho Dien for its undeniably delicious trifecta of rich beef bone broth, fresh noodles and quality beef toppings. What to order: Pho dac biet (house special) with tai uop rare marinated filet mignon on the side. Address: 10623 Bellaire, Suite C198, 832-328-1866, and 11830 Bellaire, 281-495-9600; phodienhouston.webs.com Pho Saigon Midtown Houston's diversity is on display daily at this 28-year-old pho house in Midtown, where students, businesspeople and neighborhood regulars find happiness in bowls of noodle soup ladled with delicate, clear broth generously topped cuts of everything from rare eye of round to tripe, tendon and brisket. What to order: Pho tai bo vien (rare beef eye of round and beef meatballs) with the tai on the side. Address: 2808 Milam, Suite D, 713-524-3734; phosaigonnoodlehouse.com Les Ba'get In addition to banh mi, the customizable pho menu at this trendy Montrose cafe was designed for the millennial generation. What to order: Build-your-own pho bowl for one price with a choice of fatty brisket, filet mignon, beef tendon, beef meatball, lean brisket, beef tripe or tofu. Optional upgrades include whole roasted bone marrow served on a sizzling comal, or a side bowl of bone marrow with quail egg. Address: 1717 Montrose, 832-548-1080; lesbaget.com Pho Ve Dem Craving pho at night? This old-school mom-and-pop joint opens every Tuesday through Sunday from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. serving hearty bowls of 17- to 18-hour simmered pho. What to order: Pho with hand-cut filet mignon and bo vien (meatballs), and a side bowl of fall-off-the-bone duoi bo (oxtails). Address: 13030 Bellaire, 281-983-0599 Pho A Hung by Night The owners at this restaurant started the trend of offering be thui (a Vietnamese appetizer of roasted veal calf) as a pho topping. What to order: Pho tai be (thinly sliced rare veal calf round steak). Dip the rare slices into the hot broth to cook them, then dip the meat into the accompanying ginger dipping sauce for a hot-pot-meets-rice-noodle experience. Side bowls of tuy xuong bone marrow and/or duoi be oxtail are excellent supplements. Address: 11900 Bellaire, Suite D, 281-498-8899 Pho Ga Dakao Most pho houses focus on pho bo (beef pho); the specialty at this popular spot is chicken pho (pho ga). What to order: Pho ga dac biet (house special chicken pho), which comes with white and dark chicken meat, giblets and a quail egg. Address: 11778 Bellaire, 281-879-5899 See More Collapse

Houstonians, of course, have embraced the centuries-old Vietnamese dish for years. But in the eyes of the world, this is the year that pho became a thing. Like barbecue, poke, ramen and soup dumplings, pho has become the focus of foodie pilgrimages and late-night food runs, of endless Instagram posts and foodie debates: Where is the best pho in the city? In the country?

In this, Houston has an edge. In fact, I'll throw down the gauntlet: Houston is home to the best pho in America.

It makes perfect sense: Houston boasts third-largest Vietnamese population in the nation (110,000, according to 2010 U.S. Census data). This soulful noodle soup - first introduced to Houstonians in the Vietnamese enclaves of Midtown and east downtown in the late '70s and '80s at places such as Mai's and Pho Cong Ly - has emerged as one of our city's must-try signature dishes, right up there with Ninfa's Original Tex-Mex fajitas.

Pho is no longer confined to Vietnamese-centric enclaves, either. New pho joints are popping up in every major suburb, such as on the outskirts of New Territory in Sugar Land, where The Pho Shack is poised to open, or in Rosenberg, where construction has begun on Pho Huynh. The soup has even gone upscale at restaurants such as River Oaks District's Le Colonial, where Saigon-born Nicole Routhier - whose 1989 cookbook "The Foods of Vietnam" was seminal in helping introduce Vietnamese cuisine to New York and the rest of America - consulted on the menu.

From Baytown to Tomball to Palacios, where Anthony Bourdain famously visited a bait shop/cafe for pho in his Houston episode of "Parts Unknown," pho restaurants are now as easy to find as Whataburger. A quick count of local establishments with the word "pho" in their name number well over 100. And that's not including traditional restaurants that simply serve the dish.

The breadth of choices alone would make Houston a bona fide pho lover's paradise. But it's our local love of pho and the increasingly high demand for it that have made Houston a destination for the most creative expressions of pho in the country.

So, what exactly is pho? And more important, how do you distinguish a good bowl of pho from a bad one? At its most basic, pho is made of a bone broth, rice noodles and meat toppings. Traditionally, there are only two accepted versions: pho bo (beef pho) and pho ga (chicken pho).

I asked Dien Pham, the 52-year-old owner of the popular Pho Dien on Bellaire, what makes a good bowl of pho. "It has to start with bones," he said. "The broth needs to be made from bones, simmered for a minimum of 12 hours." Other important elements: fresh, elastic rice noodles and high-quality meat toppings.

Pham should know. When he moved to Houston in 2011 and quietly opened his tiny restaurant on the side of a strip mall in the Saigon Houston Plaza, his goal was serve pho that would compete with established pho shops such as Pho Binh, which had an existing location on the same block.

Pham's pho quickly set a standard that had other pho entrepreneurs scrambling to emulate his formula. His broth was a thing of beauty: deeply flavored and rich with bone essence, almost silky in texture, and subtly aromatic. But his beef topping set him apart. Instead of offering the thinly sliced rare eye of round that other joints had been utilizing for decades, he bought filet mignon and marinated it, introducing Houstonians to a new version of the dish called pho tai uop.

Discerning pho connoisseurs could tell the difference immediately. Through word of mouth, lines started forming at the door. Within two years, Pham was successful enough to open a second location, Pho Dien 2, less than a mile away.

And yet Pham's pho is just one example of the many ways you can enjoy the noodle soup in Houston. You could go to Pho Ga Dakao and get a bowl of chicken pho with a bowl of giblets on the side. Pho A Hung By Night, meanwhile, takes its Vietnamese roasted veal calf appetizer (be thui) and serves it as a replacement for the rare eye of round to make pho tai be.

At Les Ba'get, a cafe in Montrose that specializes in banh mi sandwiches, chef/owner Cat Huynh offers build-your-own pho and entices diners to order whole roasted bone marrow to go with it.

And then there's the tried-and-true pho shops such as Pho Saigon Midtown, where Phuong Tran and his family have been serving traditional pho tai alongside glasses of Vietnamese iced coffee (ca phe sua da) made in the old-school metal drip filters since the 1980s. Katie Couric famously sampled a bowl here earlier this year for her Yahoo News video series, "Cities Rising: Rebuilding."

In Lucky Peach's pho-focused issue, Chang wrote an essay called "The Future of Pho." His prediction: "I think we're going to see pho change, the same way that ramen and pizza have evolved into many different things. Pho is a blank slate for people to work with. Look at what ramen in America was decades ago, and all the regional and shop-specific styles that have popped up since. We're only at the starting line with pho."

I'd say we're well past the starting line in Houston. LA Crawfish introduced a crawfish pho, which blends Cajun and Vietnamese sensibilities, as early as 2013. Pho & Crab in Memorial introduced a crab, shrimp and scallop pho in 2014.

And on a recent Tuesday evening in the Heights, chef Vincent Huynh took liberties with the classic pho recipe during a pho pop-up event at neo-ice house Eight Row Flint, which typically serves tacos from an on-site truck.

Huynh started with veal bones but roasted them like the French do when making stock, simmering the liquid for 48 hours before adding a special blend of spices to yield a chocolate-colored broth with a caramelized beef flavor. He topped it with thinly sliced Marble Ranch chuck eye and Revival Market house-made pork meatballs, then served the pho with a side of Asian herbs that deviated from those offered at traditional pho restaurants. He sold out within a couple of hours.

"I think making pho in Houston is just as appropriate as making gumbo in Louisiana," Huynh said. "I grew up here. It's a local dish. It's become part of our culinary canon."

***

Want to make pho at home? Nicole Routhier shared a simplified version of the pho recipe that appeared in her game-changing cookbook "The Foods of Vietnam" (Stewart, Tabori and Chang, 1989). The full version follows.

Hanoi Beef Noodle Soup

From Nicole Routhier

Makes 4 main-course servings

Broth

2 (28-ounce) cans "Pho Bo" beef broth, preferably Temple brand or Two Horses brand, available at Vietnamese markets

1 "Pho Hoa" spice bag, available at Vietnamese markets

 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons fish sauce, preferably Three Crabs brand

Beef & Herbs

1 pound beef tenderloin, lean beef sirloin or eye of round (for easier slicing, place the piece of meat in the freezer 30-40 minutes until slightly frozen)

 yellow onion, thinly sliced

2 scallions, thinly sliced (use both white and green parts)

2 tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro leaves

Noodles & Garnishes

1 pound fresh Banh Pho rice noodles, available in the refrigerated section at Vietnamese markets

Freshly ground black pepper

2 cups fresh bean sprouts

1 lime, quartered

Fresh Thai chili peppers or jalapeno peppers, thinly sliced

Fresh basil sprigs

Instructions:

1. Pour the beef broth into a large pot. Add the spice bag and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the broth is well infused with the spices, about 20 minutes. Remove and discard the spice bag. Add salt and fish sauce to the broth. Set aside.

2. Using a sharp knife, cut the meat into paper-thin slices. Arrange the slices in overlapping layers on a platter. Set aside. Combine the sliced onion, scallions, and cilantro in a bowl. Set aside.

3. For the garnishes, arrange the bean sprouts, lime, chili peppers, and basil on a platter. Set aside.

4. When you are ready to serve, bring the beef broth back to a simmer, covered. In another pot, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Add the noodles, and loosen the strands with a fork. Heat until the noodle are just limp, 30 seconds. Pour the contents into a colander, and drain.

5. Divide the noodles among 4 deep soup bowls, and top each with the sliced beef. Add the herb mixture and a generous sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper to each bowl.

6. Bring the broth to a rolling boil, and ladle it directly over the meat in each bowl (the boiling broth will cook the raw beef instantly). Serve immediately, adding the garnishes to the soup as you eat.

Full version:

Hanoi Beef and Rice-Noodle Soup (Pho Bac)

From "The Foods of Vietnam" by Nicole Routhier

Yield: 4 servings

This dish constitutes a complete meal. It is consumed indiscriminately at breakfast, lunch or dinner.

This sublime recipe comes from my mother, a native of Hanoi. She always made the beef stock in large quantities  enough for at least 3 meals  and froze it in batches until needed.

In order to cut the beef into paper-thin slices, freeze the piece of meat for 30 minutes before slicing.

5 pounds beef bones with marrow

5 pounds oxtails

2 pounds short rib plate, or 1 pound flank steak

2 large onions, unpeeled, halved and studded with 8 whole cloves

3 shallots, unpeeled

2 ounces fresh gingerroot, unpeeled, in one piece

8 star anise

1 cinnamon stick

4 medium parsnips, cut into 2-inch chunks

2 teaspoons salt

1 pound beef sirloin

2 scallions, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon shredded coriander

2 medium onions, sliced paper-thin

1/4 cup hot chile sauce (tuong ot or Sriracha sauce)

1 pound 1/4-inch -wide dried rice sticks (banh pho)

 cup nuoc mam (Vietnamese fish sauce)

Freshly ground black pepper

Accompaniments

2 cups fresh bean sprouts

2 fresh red chile peppers, sliced

2 limes, cut into wedges

1 bunch of fresh mint, separated into leaves

1 bunch of fresh Asian basil or regular fresh basil, separated into leaves

Instructions: The night before, clean the bones under cold running water and soak overnight in a pot with water to cover at room temperature. (This will help loosen the impurities inside the bones. When heat is applied, these impurities are released and come to the top much faster and can be removed, therefore, producing a clear broth.)

Place the beef bones, oxtails and short rib plate in a large stockpot. Add water to cover and bring to a boil. Cook for 10 minutes. Drain. Rinse the pot and the bones.

Return the bones to the pot and add 6 quarts of water. Bring to a boil. Skim the surface to remove the foam and fat. Stir the bones in the bottom of the pot from time to time to free the impurities. Continue skimming until the foam ceases to rise. Add 3 quarts more water and bring to a boil. Skim off all of the residue that forms on the top. Turn the heat to low and simmer.

Meanwhile, char the clove-studded onions, shallots and ginger directly over a gas burner or under the broiler until they release their fragrant odors. Tie the charred vegetables, star anise and cinnamon stick in a double thickness of dampened cheesecloth. Add the spice bag, parsnips and salt to the simmering broth. Simmer for 1 hour.

Remove the short rib plates. Pull the meat away from the bones. Reserve the meat and return the bones to the pot. Simmer the broth, uncovered, for 4 to 5 hours. Keep an eye on it; as the liquid boils away, add enough fresh water to cover the bones.

Meanwhile, slice the beef sirloin against the grain into paper-thin slices, roughly 2 by 2 inches in size. Slice the reserved short rib meat paper-thin. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the scallions, coriander and half of the sliced onions. Place the remaining sliced onions in a small bowl and stir in the hot chile sauce. Blend well.

Soak the rice sticks in warm water for 30 minutes. Drain and set aside.

When the broth is ready, remove and discard all of the bones. Strain the broth through a strainer or colander lined with a double layer of dampened cheesecloth into a clean pot. Add the fish sauce and bring the broth to a boil. Reduce the heat and keep the broth at a bare simmer.

In another pot, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil. Drain the noodles, then drop them in the boiling water. Drain immediately. Divide the noodles among 4 large soup bowls. Top the noodles with the sliced meats. Bring the broth to a rolling boil. Ladle the broth directly over the meat in each bowl (the boiling broth will cook the raw beef instantly). Garnish with the scallion mixture and freshly ground black pepper.

Serve the onions in hot chile sauce and the accompaniments on the side. Each diner will add these ingredients as desired.

Mai Pham is a freelance food writer in Houston.
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"Lighting a candle in the darkness, that is something that stands on its own," Rabbi Jack Moline told me, just as that early winter night was closing in and the Christmas lights around us began twinkling.

It's a powerful image, a strong metaphor for both Christians and Jews.

The start of Hanukkah and Christmas fall on the same day this weekend, a rarity that comes only every few decades. It means millions of people of both faiths will be lighting candles together, across the land.

Hello? Haters? Are you seeing this celestial bat signal?

It's a sign. Interfaith wonderpowers, time to activate. Because the darkness has been deep this year.

Anti-Semitism, for ages, felt dead or maybe just dormant in the ugliest, dark corners of America, where moon landing and illuminati conspiracy theories writhed.

But since the start of this presidential campaign, there has been a resurgence of swastikas and hate speech. Trolls are trying to ignite the internet with pictures of ovens or subversive signals sent to folks with Jewish sounding names.

"It's no surprise to me that there are people who hate Jews for being Jews," said Moline, who is president of the national Interfaith Alliance.

History will never allow American Jews to completely exhale, not even in the country where George Washington, Founding Father Numero Uno, sent that lovely letter to the Hebrew Congregations in Rhode Island back in 1790:

"May the children of the stock of Abraham who dwell in this land continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other inhabitants-while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree and there shall be none to make him afraid," Washington wrote.

Rabbi Gerry Serrota, the executive director of the Interfaith Conference on Washington, said that America has been wonderfully hospitable to Jews. More than 40 percent of the world's Jews live here.

Both Serrota and Moline grew up when Jewish kids were bullied in school, the slurs and jokes were common, and there were quotas on the number of Jews admitted to American universities.

But their kids? They've experienced none of that.

And the stuff they're seeing today is scary.

Not just scary because there are swastikas on a school bathroom wall in tolerant and enlighted Bethesda, Maryland. Not only frightening because a guy who hosted a showcase of bigotry and hate - Steve Bannon - will work in the high reaches of the Trump White House.

But today's atmosphere is terrifying because of what other minorities are facing.

"What Jews are experiencing now ain't nothing," Moline said.

A people who saw their communities destroyed and their families slaughtered by the millions during the Holocast are understandably appalled by the way Muslims are now being targeted in this country.

While Merry Christmassing around the country this week, Trump underscored his commitment to a nationwide Muslim registry and a ban on Muslim immigrants.

"You know my plans all along," Trump declared.

This - far more than a swastika scrawled on a building - is terrifying.

"If they're asking Muslims to register, of course we'll get every Jew in America to register," Rabbi Daniel Zemel vowed at a Friday night Shabbat service at Temple Micah in Washington last month. "If they're going to start deporting people, we'll make Temple Micah into a sanctuary."

Moline agreed, joining Christians, Jews, Buddhists and Muslims outside Masjid Muhammad, which calls itself "The Nation's Mosque," in Washington last month and saying "I will be the first in line to say, 'Ana Muslim!' 'I am a Muslim!'"

It's because Jews remember not just the Nazis but the people like Marion Pritchard.

Pritchard, a Dutch social work student, was 96 when she died in Washington last week.

She was credited with feeding, clothing and hiding more than 150 Jews during the Holocaust, many of them children. She even killed a Nazi collaborator who discovered one of the hideouts she used under floorboards. She shot him and slipped his corpse into a coffin with another cadaver, to escape detection.

Pritchard always insisted that none of it would've been possible without the assistance of others.

Serotta pays tribute to Christians like her every Christmas. His family goes out to Chinese food, as many Jewish families do, and then they volunteer at a local church soup kitchen, so Christians can have the night off to celebrate with their families.

He'll do it again this year, and light his Hanukkah candle when he gets home.

The rabbi's America is the one we must embrace - a place of love, religious freedom and tolerance.

George Washington was very clear in his letter to the Jews he visted in Rhode Island, explaining that the United States "gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance."

And now is a good time to live up to that promise, to light a candle in the darkness.
Christian district al-Qassaa in the Syrian capital city of Damascus was subject to terrorist attack with three mortar shells Sunday, media reported citing a police source, Sputnik reported.

The terrorists fired three mortar shells during church service near a French hospital, located in the residential neighborhood, inflicting damage on the private and public properties, the source told the SANA news agency.

No information on casualties has been provided to date.

Syria has been in a state of civil war since 2011, with government forces fighting against numerous opposition and terrorist groups, such as the Jabhat Fatah al Sham and Daesh, both outlawed in Russia.
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El Salvador: "The 45 Minute Country."

New Zealand: "100 percent Pure."

Slovakia: "Travel in Slovakia - Good Idea."

Well, let's go and find out.

Recently, the British travel site Family Break Finder assembled a list of tourism slogans, from the hugest nations to the smallest.

Quick question: What new tourism slogan does the U.S. use to attract international tourists?

"All Within Your Reach."

Which is kind of humdrum, compared to some jazzier slogans out there.

One slogan I love is Canada's: "Keep Exploring."

I also like Moldova's: "Discover the Routes of Life."

Denmark claims the slogan "The Happiest Place on Earth" because it often comes out on top of lists of best places to live. Boy, does that confuse it with Disney's Magic Kingdom.

Meanwhile, some of the most grandiose slogans come from the smallest nations.

Honduras claims "Everything is Here." The Dominican Republic promises "Dominican Republic Has it All." The Ukraine advertises "It's All About U."

The most common words used in tourism slogans, the Family Break editors found, were Beautiful, Experience, Discover and Life.

One country that uses none of these words is Jordan, with the extremely modest and slightly despairing new slogan "Yes, it's Jordan."

Yes, well, I guess it is.

Some slogans seem to have lost something in the translation. Hungary's is "Think Hungary - More than Expected." Tunisia's slogan is "I Feel Like Tunisia."

Sometimes you feel like a nut, and sometimes you feel like Tunisia.

El Salvador's supposed catchy slogan, "The 45 Minute Country" apparently refers to the fact that you can get to most tourism attractions within 45 minutes - but actually, the list has it wrong. The actual tourism slogan of the Central American nation is the far more boring and tedious "El Salvador Impressive!" Time for a change?

Still, there are some splendid slogans out there.

I love the African nation of Djibouti's lyrical slogan, "Djibeauty." I am fond of Greece's top-notch slogan, "All Time Classic." Both Lesotho's "Kingdom in the Sky" and Cambodia's "Kingdom of Wonder" slogans also make me want to pack my suitcase and go.

Which brings us back to New Zealand's slogan, "100 percent Pure." That sounds suspiciously like the state of Michigan's popular slogan "Pure Michigan." Our slogan was invented in 2006 and is marking its 10th anniversary. When was New Zealand's slogan invented?

Um, in 1999. So our state's brilliant, original idea apparently copied the Kiwis, not the other way around.

To see the whole fun list of world tourism slogans and an interactive map that lets you check by nation, see www.familybreakfinder.co.uk/holidays/map-every-countrys-tourism-slogan/.

And have a beautiful experience of wonderful discoveries while you're at it.
Michael Ciaglo/Houston Chronicle

The Anti-Defamation League said Texas A&M University's handling of white nationalist Richard Spencer's visit to campus was the most inspirational moment of 2016.

Spencer came to College Station in early December, mere weeks after espousing white supremacist and anti-Semitic views in Washington, D.C. News of his visit, which was sponsored by a former student, not the university, immediately evoked backlash among alumni, students and staff members.
ANKARA, Turkey - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan plans to seek joint action with the Trump administration against the Islamic State in its de facto capital in Syria, Raqqa.

Turkish troops are close to capturing the ISIS stronghold of al-Bab in northwest Syria and could move via the town of Manbij toward Raqqa, Erdogan said in a televised speech in Istanbul.

Erdogan reiterated his country's readiness to extend its fight against the Islamic State if U.S. President-elect Donald Trump agrees to prevent Kurdish forces from participating in such an operation.

Turkey is concerned the Kurds' territorial gains in Syria could lead to a new state there, in turn emboldening separatist Kurdish aspirations at home. Kurds have established control over much of Syria's north during five years of violence, and in doing so, emerged as a favored U.S. fighting force in the ground war against ISIS.

"We will not allow the formation of a new state in northern Syria," Erdogan said as he vowed to retake Manbij, which was seized by Kurdish forces from ISIS. "After Manbij, Raqqa is next if we can join hands with the U.S."

Turkey entered Syria in August to fight ISIS and the Kurdish forces. Turkey regards the Kurds as terrorists because of their links to the Kurdistan Workers' Party, whose fight for autonomy in Turkey's southeast has, by the government's account, killed nearly 40,000 people, cost hundreds of billions of dollars, and undermined Turkish aspirations to join the European Union.

"We will declare a safe zone cleared from terrorism in northern Syria," Erdogan said.
LONDON - For the first time in nearly 30 years, Queen Elizabeth II failed to attend a Christmas Day church service because of what Buckingham Palace described as a persistent cold.

The Palace said Sunday that the 90-year-old queen "continues to recover from a heavy cold and will stay indoors to assist with her recovery."

The queen, who had already been forced to change her travel plans for the holiday period because of the illness, planned to "participate in the royal family Christmas celebrations during the day," according to the statement.

The queen and her husband, Prince Philip, 95, were scheduled to travel Wednesday by train to their Sandringham estate

Their poor health pushed back the journey by a day, and they made the trip by helicopter.

Philip, who had also been ill last week, was well enough to attend the service. He was accompanied by members of the royal family, including Prince Charles, heir to the throne.

The British monarch is particularly visible during the holidays, and Buckingham Palace said that the queen had attended church services at Sandringham on Christmas Day since 1988, when the royal family began celebrating the holiday there.

Her annual Christmas Day speech, which was prerecorded, was broadcast as usual.
SOCHI, Russia - Backed by ships, helicopters and drones, Russian rescue teams searched Sunday for victims after a Russian plane carrying 92 people to Syria crashed into the Black Sea shortly after takeoff. Investigators said they were looking into every possible cause for the crash, including a terror attack.

Initial Russian news media reports indicated it was a technical failure rather than terrorism.

All 84 passengers and eight crew members on the Russian military's Tu-154 plane are believed to have died when it crashed two minutes after taking off at 5:25 a.m. in good weather.

The airplane was technically fit, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

Wreckage of the plane was found in the sea, most of it about one mile from shore, the Defense Ministry said. No survivors have been found at the crash site, Russian officials said.

The passengers included 64 members of Russia's world-famous military choir, the Alexandrov Ensemble.

The band was traveling to Russia's Khmeimim Air Base in Syria to serenade Russian personnel on New Year's Eve.

Founded in the Soviet era, the Alexandrov Ensemble, which had performed in Syria earlier this year, is the official band of the Russian armed forces. It consists of an orchestra, a choir and a dance ensemble, and is one of the two Russian orchestras allowed to use the title "Red Army Choir."

A day of mourning

President Vladimir Putin expressed his condolences to relatives of the victims, and he declared Monday a national day of mourning. (Christmas is not celebrated as an official holiday in Russia on Dec. 25, because the Russian Orthodox Church observes it on Jan. 7.)

"First of all, I would like to express my sincere condolences to the families of our citizens, who died today, as a result of an aviation catastrophe over the Black Sea this morning," Putin said, according to remarks published on the Kremlin's website.

He also ordered Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to establish a state commission, headed by the transportation minister, Maxim Sokolov, to investigate the crash. The Defense Ministry said that 11 bodies had been recovered, Russian news agencies reported.

Three journalists from Channel One, Russia's main television station, were on the plane, as were journalists from the Zvezda and NTV television networks, news reports said.

Yelizaveta P. Glinka, a prominent Russian philanthropist and a member of the presidential council on human rights and civil society, was also on the list of people on board. Putin recently honored Glinka with a state award for her human rights and charity work. Valery V. Khalilov, the ensemble's artistic director, was also on the plane, according to the list of passengers.

Rescue effort

A makeshift memorial was installed inside the Sochi airport, and people brought candles and flowers. Relatives of the victims were whisked away by authorities to a specially designated zone, where they were treated by psychiatrists.

Sokolov told journalists inside the terminal building that the rescue effort would not stop at night.

"It is premature to say anything about the causes of this tragedy," he said.

The age and reputation of the Tu-154, as well as the fact that the aircraft had flown out of secure military airfields, meant most senior officials speaking publicly ruled out the possibility that an attack had caused the crash. But several experts noted factors that suggested a terror attack, such as the crew's failure to report any malfunction and the fact that plane debris was scattered over a wide area.

"For us the worst version is an act of terrorism, because if this is the case, this will mean that we have paid another bill for Aleppo," Vadim Lukashevich, an aviation expert, told Dozhd, an independent television station.

More than 30 vessels were deployed in the recovery operation, Sokolov said, and the Defense Ministry said more than 100 divers had been sent to the crash site.

The Black Sea search area - which covered about 4 square miles - was made more difficult by underwater currents that carried debris and body fragments into the open sea. Sokolov said the plane's flight recorders did not have radio beacons, so locating them on the seabed would be challenging.

This report contains material from the Associated Press.
Authoritarians with an animus against ethnic minorities are on the march across the Western world. They control governments in Hungary and Poland, and will soon take power in the United States. And they're organizing across borders: Austria's Freedom Party, founded by former Nazis, has signed an agreement with Russia's ruling party - and met with Donald Trump's choice for national security adviser.

But what should we call these groups? Many reporters are using the term "populist," which seems inadequate and misleading. I guess racism can be considered populist in the sense that it represents the views of some non-elite people. But are the other shared features of this movement - addiction to conspiracy theories, indifference to the rule of law, a penchant for punishing critics - really captured by the "populist" label?

Still, the European members of this emerging alliance - an axis of evil? - have offered some real benefits to workers. Hungary's Fidesz party has provided mortgage relief and pushed down utility prices. Poland's Law and Justice party has increased child benefits, raised the minimum wage and reduced the retirement age. France's National Front is running as a defender of that nation's extensive welfare state - but only for the right people.

Trumpism is, however, different. The campaign rhetoric may have included promises to keep Medicare and Social Security intact and replace Obamacare with something "terrific." But the emerging policy agenda is anything but populist.

All indications are that we're looking at huge windfalls for billionaires combined with savage cuts in programs that serve not just the poor but also the middle class. And the white working class, which provided much of the 46 percent Trump vote share, is shaping up as the biggest loser.

True, we don't yet have detailed policy proposals. But Trump's Cabinet choices show which way the wind is blowing.

Both his pick as budget director and his choice to head Health and Human Services want to dismantle the Affordable Care Act and privatize Medicare. His choice as labor secretary is a fast-food tycoon who has been a vociferous opponent of Obamacare and of minimum wage hikes. And House Republicans have submitted plans for drastic cuts in Social Security, including a sharp rise in the retirement age.

What would these policies do? Obamacare led to big declines in the number of the uninsured in regions that voted Trump this year, and repealing it would undo all those gains. The nonpartisan Urban Institute estimates that repeal would cause 30 million Americans - 16 million of them non-Hispanic whites - to lose health coverage.

And no, there won't be a "terrific" replacement: Republican plans would cover only a fraction as many people as the law they would displace, and they'd be different people - younger, healthier and richer.

Converting Medicare into a voucher system would also amount to a severe benefit cut, partly because it would lead to lower government spending, partly because a significant fraction of spending would be diverted into the overhead and profits of private insurance companies. And raising the retirement age for Social Security would hit especially hard among Americans whose life expectancy has stagnated or declined, or who have disabilities that make it hard for them to continue working - problems that are strongly correlated with Trump votes.

In other words, the movement that's about to take power here isn't the same as Europe's far-right movements. It may share their racism and contempt for democracy; but European populism is at least partly real, while Trumpist populism is turning out to be entirely fake, a scam sold to working-class voters who are in for a rude awakening. Will the new regime pay a political price?

Well, don't count on it. This epic bait-and-switch, this betrayal of supporters, certainly offers Democrats a political opportunity. But you know that there will be huge efforts to shift the blame. These will include claims that the collapse of health care is really President Barack Obama's fault; claims that the failure of alternatives is somehow the fault of recalcitrant Democrats; and an endless series of attempts to distract the public.

Expect more Carrier-style stunts that don't actually help workers but dominate a news cycle. Expect lots of fulmination against minorities. And it's worth remembering what authoritarian regimes traditionally do to shift attention from failing policies, namely, find some foreigners to confront. Maybe it will be a trade war with China, maybe something worse.

Opponents need to do all they can to defeat such strategies of distraction. Above all, they shouldn't let themselves be sucked into cooperation that leaves them sharing part of the blame. The perpetrators of this scam should be forced to own it.

Krugman is a New York Times columnist.
It's an exciting time for veterans as we eagerly wait for President-elect Donald J. Trump to reveal the next secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs. But we're also nervous, because the task ahead for the next VA secretary is a daunting one. It's been more than two years since the original VA scandal broke in Phoenix, exposing that secret wait-lists were being kept and veterans were literally dying while waiting for care. And yet, nothing's improved. In fact, between the secret wait-lists, dirty facilities, wasted money and poor performance of employees, it's safe to say the VA is actually worse off now than it was back then.

The VA is the second-largest government agency, with more than 300,000 employees and a projected 2017 budget of over $185 billion. At the very least, an agency this large and well-funded should be able to fulfill its basic duty: taking care of those who have defended our country and protected our freedoms. Instead, the bloated and incompetent VA continues to fail veterans time and time again. Fixing it is going to require a great deal of T.A.C.T.  Transparency, Accountability, Choice and Trustworthiness.

To properly reform the VA, the next VA secretary will need staff to be open about the problems at the VA and be transparent with taxpayers about those problems. The implementation of regular audits to account for possible financial waste, fraud, and abuse must be non-negotiable. Hospital construction in Colorado is a prime example. Spending ballooned to more than $1 billion and the completion date was extended by years before the public was made aware of the issue. Situations like this should be unacceptable in the new administration.

There is little to no accountability for misconduct at the VA. Even if an employee is found guilty of wrongdoing, the process for disciplining and firing employees is near impossible to navigate. Many are able to keep their jobs, and, if not, it can take months to be fired at taxpayer expense. But there are solutions.

Reforms like The VA Accountability First and Appeals Modernization Act of 2016 would stop systemic problems at their root by expediting the removal of problem employees, increasing the firing power of the VA Secretary, and preventing bonuses for senior executives.

Choice in health care is essential to properly serve veterans. The VA must recognize that it is not equipped to care for all of our nation's veterans. In fact, it proves just about every day that a veteran waits for care that could be received outside the VA system.

No veteran should be left waiting days, even months for an appointment at a VA facility when they can be seen immediately by a doctor of their choosing. Legislation such as the Caring for our Heroes in the 21st Century Act, which would empower veterans with choice over where and when to see a doctor, is vital. Men and women who fought to protect freedom should have the freedom to choose where they go for their health care.

The harsh reality is that VA has betrayed the trust of veterans when it comes to their promised health care and benefits. Most enter the VA with a blind sense of trust, but through manipulated wait times, wrong prognoses and poor-quality health care, one can imagine all trust has dissipated. Through Concerned Veterans for America's "My VA Story" initiative and events across the nation, I've heard countless stories of poor experiences by veterans at VA facilities.

Rebuilding the bridge of trust will take time as will fixing this massive government agency that plays such a pivotal role in caring for our veterans. But there's no doubt it can be accomplished, if the next VA secretary has plenty of tact on behalf of the great men and women who have served this country. It is our hope that President-elect Trump chooses a VA secretary that has reforms like these in mind.

McGregor is national outreach director for Concerned Veterans for America, Arlington, Va.
A Houston woman was injured Christmas Day in an accident southeast of Houston.

Sgt. Dale Pounds said a northbound 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt driven by Brandi L. Blair, 24, ran off Highway 17 about five miles south of Houston and struck a tree at about 3:50 p.m.

Blair, who was wearing a seat belt, was taken by private vehicle with minor injuries to Texas County Memorial Hospital.

Pounds said the vehicle sustained extensive damage.
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Police on Sunday were attempting to identify two suspects who shot up a Christmas party at a North Carolina Moose Lodge and wounded seven people before escaping in a vehicle driven by a third suspect, Reuters reported.

The gunfire broke out on Saturday at a private party in Rockingham County, just outside the city of Madison in north-central North Carolina.

No one was in custody and police had yet to identify the suspects, a spokesman for the Rockingham County Sheriff's Office said.

The Moose Lodge had rented the space to a private party, and officers responding to reports of gunfire there found two victims at the scene while five others had already gone elsewhere to seek treatment, the sheriff's office said in a statement.

Some 250 to 300 people were at the party when an argument began, leading to the gunfire, the statement said.

All of the victims received treatment, and none of their wounds were considered life-threatening, it said.

The two shooters, both men, had been attending the party and put on ski masks before shooting, the statement said, citing witnesses.

They fled the scene in a silver car driven by a woman, but the make and model of the car were unknown, the statement said
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Thirteen people were killed in the restive Mexican states of Michoacan and Guerrero, Mexican authorities said on Sunday, amid feuds between rival drug gangs that have racked the country, Reuters reported.

The prosecutor's office of the western state of Michoacan said in a statement the heads of six men were found in front of a business in the town of Jiquilpan, near the border with Jalisco, where drug traffickers from the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) operate.

A threatening message signed by the New Michoacan Family (NFM), a rival criminal group, was left next to the heads, the prosecutors office also said.

In another episode in the mountains of Atoyac in the state of Guerrero, home to the resort town of Acapulco, seven people were killed by gunfire, including three police officers, state police said.
Outgoing UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon gains higher popular support compared to the over candidates for South Korean presidency, a poll said Monday, Sputnik reported.

According to the Realmeter polling agency, Bans popular support has increased by 2.8 percent over the past week, reaching 23.3 percent, which is 0.2 percent higher than the rating of his closest rival, the former head of the main opposition Democratic Party Moon Jae-in.

Bans term as the UN chief officially ends on December 31. Ban served as South Korea's foreign minister from 2004 to 2006 and his candidacy for presidency has long been discussed, despite he has not announced a decision to join the presidential race to date.

South Korean parliament decided to impeach the President Park Geun-hye on December 9 after it became known that the president's close friend Choi Soon-sil, who does not hold any official posts in the government or president's administration, got familiar with texts of dozens of president's speeches and possibly used her ties to the president for her own financial benefit. Choi, as well as 2 former officials from the president's administration, have been arrested and accused of corruption and abuse of authority.

The Constitutional Court has six months to decide upon validity of the parliament's impeachment of Park. If the impeachment is recognized valid, presidential elections should be called within 2 months.
The holiday season is a time that reminds us about the important things in life, like spending time with our loved ones, helping people and spreading that holiday cheer. Frank is Jewish, and I am Catholic, so growing up we had our own customs and traditions.

Frank's Traditions

Growing up, my family celebrated Hanukkah, with a pinch of Christmas thrown in for good measure. As a child I went to a Jewish Parochial School. I spent half my day with an English teacher learning things like math and science and the second half of my day I was learning Hebrew and studying the Old Testament. Around the holidays we would learn all the traditions and songs that accompanied them. Needless to say, I was pretty excited to go home to share with my family all the things I had learned.

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At Hanukkah we light candles to remind us of two great miracles. First, how Judah Maccabee led the Maccabean Revolt (they named the army after him because he was so awesome) against the Greeks and took back the Temple in Jerusalem. Second, we celebrate the miracle of the oil needed to light to temple for worship. The Maccabees found one jar of oil in the temple that the Greeks overlooked which had enough oil for only one day, but it lasted for eight..

We did have a few traditions that included lighting the menorah, giving gelt (not to be confused with giving guilt, which I am really good at giving BJ!) and going on a family vacation.

For some reason it is customary to give money or "gelt" for Hanukkah, I have researched why this is and have never really found a good reason, but trust me I never complained when money was handed to me! Now we give all our nieces and nephews gelt.

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We lit the menorah every night for eight nights. My brother, sister and I would receive small gifts and gelt every night and one big gift on the eighth night! We played with our dreidel and if we were lucky my mom would fry up some latkes (truth be told we had to be very lucky because my mom didn't love to cook! lol).

Every December, since I was four years old, we would travel to Florida or Mexico as a family. This was by far my favourite tradition, and the one in which I have to most fond memories. In our house, the Christmas/Hanukkah season was about going to a warm climate and spending time together as a family. This is a tradition that still carries on to this day. This year we are all going on a cruise to celebrate my mom's birthday. Not everyone has this opportunity, and we are so fortunate to travel as a family and spend the time with each other. This is only one of many traditions that BJ and I hope to continue to do when Milo gets older.

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I mentioned above that we always had a pinch of Christmas thrown into our family traditions each year. We had a nanny that lived with us most of my childhood (since I was the oldest) and we always had a little tree for her. Truth be told, I think I was always pretty excited to put that mini Christmas tree up and decorate it with strings of popcorn. My mother also used to take us for holiday photos with Santa, I guess it is hard to get away from Christmas and even harder to explain to a child why you don't get to celebrate what everyone else in celebrating. It took me many years to realize that being different is cool.

BJ's Traditions

I grew up in a Catholic/Italian/Polish family, so going overboard on anything that had to do with Christmas is an understatement. We decorated our house with Christmas lights, put on carols and decorated our Christmas tree, hung stockings by the fireplace, and waited for that first snowfall. I mean what is Christmas without snow, right?! My mom bought my sisters and I each an Advent Calendar, which we would open the little flaps every day to get a chocolate and count down the days until Christmas.

My parents own an Italian Bakery in Niagara Falls, Canada, so we didn't have the opportunity to go travelling. All my life, Christmas Eve meant going into work in the early morning hours, getting orders ready, and spending the day serving our loyal customers and wishing everyone a Merry Christmas. Although I now live in Toronto, I do miss all that hustle and bustle of the bakery, but I don't miss the 15 hour work days! (Maybe I'm getting lazy in my old age!)

On Christmas Eve, we opened our presents after dinner and cleaning ALL THE DISHES, which trust me, felt like an eternity! We all gathered in the living room around the Christmas tree. My mom was in charge of handing out the gifts to us, as she still does.

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One of the things I looked forward to the most was my grandma's Christmas cookies. She made large tins full of all different kinds:linzer cookies, lemon iced shortbreads, and rum balls potent enough to feel that holiday cheer, just to name a few!

Christmas Day we wore our best clothes and we went to church, visited family and then came home and have our Christmas lunch. Being off for the Christmas holidays meant we spent time together, whether working together in the bakery, or going over to our cousin's house to play, we were together.

Our Traditions

Being a mixed faith family gives us the opportunity to celebrate our own customs and traditions, and create new ones with our son Milo. We celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas, and we will raise Milo to know both his Jewish and Catholic roots. Ultimately, it becomes his decision which religion he will chose, but we are teaching him to be kind, supportive, and empathetic towards others and really that is what every religion should be about.

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Now having Milo, we want to continue our own family's traditions, but of course create new ones. Both being teachers, Frank and I are lucky enough to have the same working schedule, so family trips are well planned out in advance. Travelling and going away somewhere warm during the winter break is a tradition we hope to continue. Now I will trade the white snow for the white sand!

Before Milo was born, Frank and I would host a Chrismukkah Party with our friends. There would be lots of food, a lot of drinking, and a gift exchange. Since Milo was born, our annual Chrismukkah Party has been put on hold, but this year we are inviting our neighbours and Milo's classmates from his Day Care. There will be food, crafts for the kids to do, and some holiday punch for the adults. Chrismukkah was all about spending time with friends, now it means spending time with friends, and kids!

My inner baker in me explodes with excitement this time of year! I get to make my grandma's cookies, and lots of them! I love making her cookie recipes, and love giving them out as gifts! Milo even likes to help out!

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We also celebrate Hanukkah, and we all gather around the menorah and say the prayer and light the candle. We are pretty sure Milo thinks they are birthday candles and will try to blow them out, but teaching him about Hanukkah and why it is important to our family is a tradition we will carry on.

We decorate the house with Christmas lights, although not too many. And we put up our tree and top it off with a Jewish Star. It's the perfect way to combine both our religions.

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Milo has an Advent Calendar which he opens every day, and sometimes sneaks an extra chocolate when we aren't looking!

Growing up, my parents took my sisters and I to the Santa Claus Parade. When Milo gets older we will take him, but for now we visit with him and get our annual picture with the big guy.

Being Jewish and Catholic allows us to blend our traditions and create new ones for our family. We will continue to wear our matching sweaters for our Holiday card until Milo tells us to stop because it's embarrassing! We will continue to celebrate both Hanukkah and Christmas and teach Milo the significance of both holidays and our religions. We will spend time with family and friends for as long as we can, because there is no better gift than having the time to spend with the people you love.

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Originally posted on Gays With Kids

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FogStock/FogStock Collection via Getty Images Lit String of Holiday Lights

Tom Leggett's life-changing day started like many Saturdays. A little work was required on the siding of his house, so after a lazy breakfast, he called a neighbour's son, who worked in construction, to help him. They had nearly completed the job when the neighbour's son had to leave. Tom, noting that there were only a couple more panels to install, told the young man not to worry. He'd finish the work himself.

That was his last memory before waking up in Royal Columbian Hospital. He'd been rushed there after his 15-year-old son found him lying beside the ladder, blood trickling from his left ear. He had a punctured lung and multiple fractures, including one to his skull. The gravest threat was a subdural hematoma, bleeding in his brain. He was lucky to be alive.

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As a trauma physician at Royal Columbian Hospital -- one of the busiest trauma units in Canada -- I can tell you that Tom's case is all too common. When I meet people and tell them what I do, they often ask what the most common accidents and injuries are. Those who watch a lot of American TV imagine it might be gunshot wounds. Many people assume, particularly at this festive time of year, that the majority of victims end up in emergency due to alcohol-related car accidents.

While it is important that we raise awareness around these often preventable tragedies, auto accidents aren't even a close second as the major cause of trauma. Falls account for over 50% of the injuries that land people in our hospital. Of those, almost a third involve a ladder (and even more involve stairs).

Between them, stairs and ladders account for 70% of all trauma cases. And the number of incidents is highest in certain months: June through September, when much outside-the-house work gets done; and then again in December, when people hang lights and ornaments, both inside and outside the home.

Most of these accidents could be avoided if people followed a few simple rules to ensure that a time of celebration doesn't result in an accident that could affect the rest of their lives.

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1.Hire a professional. I myself never get on a ladder to reach anything higher than what's required to change a lightbulb (in a standard 8' or 9' ceiling, nothing higher!). Anything above that and I hire a professional. They have the proper training, experience, and equipment to do the job safely.

2.Adhere to the "belt buckle" rule. From the nature of Tom's injuries, and his position on the ground when his son found him, his trauma team believes he was reaching to his left when he fell. Always centre your body (where your belt buckle sits) on the ladder, and never reach beyond the rails. Better to take a minute to climb down, reposition the ladder, and then continue than to risk a trip to emergency.

3.Stay off the top. Never stand on the top few rungs of a standard ladder, or the top of a step ladder.

4.Consider the environment. Ensure you're wearing proper footwear. If the ground is uneven, or the ladder needs to be angled left or right, it's not a safe set up. If it's icy or windy, ask yourself: do those lights really need to be hung today?

5.Consider your condition. If you are tired, stiff or sore, or have had a little too much eggnog, you're not the person for the job.

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6.Use a spotter. Have someone with you, to steady the ladder and remind you not to take risks.

I could add one more: don't be male. For people between 30 and 59, men are 67% more likely than women to end up in the trauma unit due to a fall. Consider not just the immediate pain and inconvenience of an accident, but the long-term implications during prime income-earning and family-raising years.

Tom would be the first to tell you that recovering from a brain injury is not simple. And he was one of the lucky ones. It took over a year and a half of intensive therapy by a team of skilled professionals, the love and support of his family, and his own personal perseverance, but he's now back at work and able to resume most of his previous activities.

He won't be hanging any holiday lights this year, though. He's hired someone for that job.

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We talk a lot in healthcare about demand, efficiencies and cost, only occasionally amid the headlines of delayed discharges, A&E waiting times, GPs under pressure, cancelled operations, unavailable medications and doctor's strikes do we look seriously at the quality of care.

Our NHS does many amazing things every single day. Indeed you might argue just surviving this long as a free-at-the-point-of-use healthcare system as various governments have tinkered around the edges with it is, in itself, a bit of a miracle.

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But real quality of care, the sort that seems on the face of it to be very basic but in reality is utterly transformative, is rarely mentioned. In this blog I want to remedy that in my own small way.

Regular followers of mine on social media, or readers of my D4Dementia blog, will know that I became a mum in November 2015. Overall, we had some wonderful care from the NHS during our transition into parenthood, but one experience more than any other has remained with me long past the contractions and blood pressure monitoring.

A very proud mummy to a very beautiful daughter, Sophie Rae, born 21 November #totallyinlovepic.twitter.com/gUdhBHlWww  Beth Britton (@bethyb1886) 4 December 2015

I've been a breastfeeding mum for over a year now. Not very remarkable you might think, but according to a study published in January 2016 only 0.5 percent of UK mothers continue to breastfeed after their baby reaches its first birthday, the worst rate in the world. But it could have been so, so different.

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Our daughter was born in hospital, and during our stay there (only 24 hours), three different midwives all confirmed that her and I had taken to breastfeeding like ducks to water. Only by day three after the birth, I knew something wasn't right. Thankfully we'd opted to have our postpartum care with the amazing birthing centre midwife who'd cared for us in the last weeks of my pregnancy and the early hours of our birthing experience.

She took one look at our breastfeeding technique, changed everything, and my daughter and I have sailed along with feeding ever since. Even when I got mastitis in the early weeks, I avoided antibiotics with some self-help techniques shown to me by another of the birthing centre midwives. Up until that point I thought cabbage leaves were just something you ate, but ladies, they have other uses too!

Going back to those early days though, how four midwives in the same NHS Trust - three in the hospital and one in the birthing centre - could view our feeding technique so differently is a mystery to me, but perhaps explains why so many women struggle with breastfeeding. The birthing centre have a UNICEF Global Baby Friendly Award, which might explain their additional knowledge, plus they had the time to help. In modern healthcare, giving time can be a bit of a wonder treatment in itself.

But where do my experiences leave our under-pressure, creaking at the seams NHS? Of course all healthcare is subject to the natural differences in aptitude and application that we all show as human beings. No two midwives, nurses or doctors will see things in quite the same way, but as patients this variation in care and support has consequences that aren't always positive.

If there is one thing I've learnt time and again, from the experiences of caring for my dad during his 19 years with dementia all the way through to my experiences as a mum, the choices we make as patients about where we have our care and who provides that care (as much as it's possible to choose) are absolutely critical. We have to be more savvy about our healthcare: yes demand better, more consistent care and support, but also seek out, as much as we can, those services and professionals who can give us what we need.

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And when we find a great service or healthcare professional, shout about it. I wrote to the Secretary of State for Health with a detailed account of our birthing experiences, imploring him to visit our amazing birthing centre and see what can be learnt from what they do (a small, local service, expert and dedicated staff, home-from-home facilities) that could be replicated across NHS maternity services and throughout healthcare for the whole life course.
Shannon Stapleton / Reuters

It would be fair to say that Nigel Farage has been basking in a post-Brexit glow these past few months, held up as the man of the hour by assorted xenophobes, racists, and right wing cranks -- the kind of people who walk around in Union Jack underpants and find themselves fighting back tears during the opening credits of Zulu. Indeed not only is Nigel the man of the hour in this company, his stock is such that he has even been admitted into the Golden Temple that is Trump Tower, rubbing shoulders with the man who intends to Make America Great (White) Again.

This means that when he speaks we are required to listen, even when what we are listening to is the verbal equivalent of a proctologist's worst day.

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Nigel's most recent intervention came in response to the terrorist atrocity in Berlin. In response to the attack Farage tweeted that it was "Merkel's legacy" -- i.e. directly attributable to the German Chancellor's open door policy towards refugees. He subsequently found himself embroiled in a Twitter exchange with Brendan Cox, husband of murdered MP Jo Cox. It culminated in Farage, during an interview with LBC's Nick Ferrari, accusing Mr Cox of courting extremism himself via his support for the anti-racism campaign group Hope Not Hate. As a result the organisation is now threatening Nigel Farage with legal action.

It is worth recalling that Jo Cox was murdered in the run up to the EU referendum earlier this year not by a Muslim, refugee, asylum seeker, or migrant, but by a white British citizen and Brexit-supporting fascist. It is also worth pointing out that the free movement of people across the EU, of which Nigel Farage has made it his life's work to oppose, is not and never has been a source of terrorism in the UK. As for refugees and asylum seekers, they are in a distinct category when it comes to being admitted into countries, such as Germany, across Europe, and have zero bearing on the issue of free movement. Of course this is something you might expect a man who's spent more than a few years as an MEP to know. And, of course, he knows it full well. But here we are talking about someone who never misses an opportunity to stick the boot into those migrants and refugees, even if it means having a go at the widower of a woman who was slaughtered in the street by a terrorist of the white British variety.

It is impossible to avoid the conclusion that Nigel Farage is so low he could get under a snake's belly wearing a top hat. Indecency, after all, is his default position on any given topic; in fact make that his only given topic - namely the despoilation of this green and pleasant land by people who might dare arrive here seeking work or sanctuary.

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Though, clearly, Brendan Cox is someone who does not need anyone to speak up for him, his dignity and bearing in the wake of his horrific loss is of a sort that allows us to retain hope that we do not yet live in a society totally and irredeemably lost to hatred, bigotry, and intolerance. If only someone would tell that to the mainstream media, however, which continues to give Farage a platform from which to spout his reactionary bile.

Indeed the former Ukip leader's elevation to mainstream prominence is evidence of the extent to which we are living in an upside down world, wherein every problem, everything wrong, is somehow and in some way connected to foreigners. It has reached the point of madness, responsible for propelling us off the end of a Brexit cliff whereupon we now find ourselves flying through the air with no idea when or where we will land. All we know is that when we do finally come to rest it will likely not be in one piece.

Nigel Farage represents all that is indecent in our politics and society, while Brendan Cox represents all that is decent. Sadly, as 2016 draws to a close it is Farage's Britain more than Brendan Cox's that find ourselves living in. However the struggle to reverse this dynamic is not yet over. It is a struggle that not only can be won but must be won. With this mind let 2017 be a year when bigotry, racism, and intolerance is met with fierce opposition of a sort consistent with a just and civilised society.
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At the end of 2015 I made a number of predictions for UK politics (https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/nicholas-mazzei/10-simple-predictions-for_b_8889236.html). Of the ten predictions, around half came true. I was right about Jeremy Corbyn remaining leader of the Labour party and that his popularity in the party would increase. I was right that the Labour vote nationwide would decline and they would lose council seats. I was right that UKIP would become more popular (I'm basing that on polls at the moment, but it certainly isn't less popular than it was 12 months ago). I was half right that Boris Johnson would be moved to a senior post in government, but I never saw that it would be Theresa May doing it and not David Cameron.

I was also quite wrong on a few things. I was utterly wrong about the EU referendum, the Mayoralty in London (Zac lost not one but two elections in 2016 and is no longer an MP) and completely misread the Welsh assembly elections. I haven't checked to see if my bonus prediction on Karen Danczuk getting a job on babe station came true. But do we even really care?!

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So, what are my bets for 2017? Well, UK politics has been as interesting as it can get in 2016 so I'll need to expand to include the USA and EU too.

1. There will be no general election in the UK in 2017 - It's just not Mrs May's style. The electorate punishes unnecessary elections and she doesn't really face much opposition in Parliament. Her main issue is Brexit and an election won't solve that issue for her.

2. The US electoral college will make Trump president, but he'll lose a few electoral college votes - despite all the hope around the world that the electoral college will find him unfit, it's unlikely enough Republican members will vote him down, though some will raise an issue with his relationship with Russia and Russian interference. (This has already happened since I wrote this, but I'm gonna keep it in!)

3. Francois Fillon will be elected President of France - Francois is right wing enough to win the current wave of popularism sweeping elections. Marine Le Pen won't make it through the first round.

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4. Article 50 will have been invoked, but Brexit will still face major challenges in the British parliament - legal actions will attempt to delay it, but in the end most MPs won't oppose what their constituents have asked for.

5. Corbyn will remain leader of the Labour party, but...

6. ...MPs will begin splitting off from him to form a new party. They'll realise they are doomed in the north if they stick with super pro-immigration Corbyn. They'll also realise Corbyn just isn't going anywhere since the membership of the party was invaded by super hard-left populists. They'll split the vote and in the north Ukip will take the territory. In London, the Lib Dems could take some seats from them but many London seats are very safe Labour.

7. No progress will be made on a UK/USA trade deal, as Trump will be too busy breaking deals instead of making them - Britain might be at the front of the queue, but a queue for nothing is still nothing. Still, this all depends on what Britain is able to do while looking to leave the EU.

8. The Italians will vote to leave the Euro, but won't vote to leave the EU. The EU will hold its integrity for now, but major challenges remain - I'm 50:50 on this one. But something has to give in the EU, and it'll either be Italy or Greece. Greece has lasted this long, so I expect it'll be the Italians.

9. Turkey will leave NATO - The Bromance between Erdogan and Putin is a clear indicator that Turkey no longer has a place in NATO. They'll leave or be kicked out. Unless there is another coup, although that looks highly unlikely.

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10. Finally, Boris Johnson won't last another six months as Foreign Secretary. There will be too many conflicts between himself and Theresa May and something will have to give. Mrs May isn't going anywhere, so it'll be Boris. Where he'll go though is anyone's guess.
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George's sudden, sad death has robbed the world of a great artist and a star with a social conscience. He spoke out against injustice and the Iraq war and helped raise huge sums for AIDS charities.

I first met George about 1980 when he was still a teenager and before he was famous. It was a chance meeting in a small gay disco above a pub by Manor House tube station in north London. He was a great dancer and sang along to songs. He had a good voice and said he was going to be a pop star. There were lots of wannabes in those days. I thought: may be. I was surprised and pleased when he hit the big time three years later with Wham.

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He never came out until relatively late, 1998, after he was busted in an undercover police sting operation in Los Angeles. But he turned his arrest into a defiant defence of the right to be gay.

In the 1980s, he chose not to reveal that he was gay because he feared a negative reaction from his parents, fans, record company and, particularly, the tabloid press. Back then, the red tops were vicious to gay public figures. They were vilified and smeared. Being gay was portrayed as a scandal and shame. It ruined many careers.

This was also the era of AIDS, which was often dubbed 'the gay plague.' Gay men were blamed for the deadly virus. Public attitudes become much more homophobic. Gay-bashings and murders rocketed. It was a fearful period to be gay, let alone a gay public figure. I wish George had come out then. He could have helped counter that tide of prejudice. But I understand why he didn't.

As well as being a brilliant artist, George had a social conscience, did message music and raised lots of money for charities.

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His 1990 record 'Praying for Time' was a hauntingly beautiful, albeit despairing, critique of poverty and injustice. He did not appear in the official video. There was no dancing. It was a black screen with the lyrics in white. He clearly wanted his fans to see and understand a message that he felt strongly about.
In the News: A number of news items in recent weeks show how powerful money-brokers work inside and outside the law in their war on public education in the United States.

(1) In the State of Washington, a State Supreme Court Judge up for reelection sided with a 6-to-3 court majority in a ruling that declared a state law directing tax dollars to independently run charter schools unconstitutional. To remake the court in their image hundreds of thousands of pro-charter Bill Gates and Paul Allen "Microsoft money" was donated to support his opponents campaign. Fortunately Washington voters rejected the charter judge, this time.

(2) Federal authorities charged seven leaders of the Platinum Partners hedge fund with fraud for operating what was alleged to be a "Ponzi scheme." They kept the fund afloat by continually using money from new investors to pay off older investors who wanted out. Mark Nordlicht, founder and the chief investment officer for Platinum, also dabbles in operating low-cost religious schools that would benefit from the Trump-Amway DeVos voucher give-away

(3) The New York Times Business pages featured Bill Ackman of Pershing Square Holdings in an article they called "Hedge Fund Math: Heads or Tails, They Win." It seems that even when his hedge fund performs poorly, Ackman always takes a profitable slice of the pie. According to the Los Angeles Times, Ackman's Pershing Square Foundation has poured millions of dollars into promoting charter schools in their city. Ackman, through his foundation, is also a major donor to private schools and to Teach for America.

(4) Old friends at New York's Success Academy Charter Network are under investigation by the city's Comptroller for lax financial oversight, poor record keeping, understating administrative costs, and for billing the Department of Education for special education services they did not provide to students. The charter schools transferred money earmarked for the education of the students to the governing charter network and could not adequately account for what happened to $25 million worth of computers, desks, whiteboards, and other supplies.

(5) Carol Burris, Executive Director of the Network for Public Education, writing in the Washington Post, documented the salaries charter school magnets pat themselves. KIPP co-founder David Levin received a compensation package of nearly $475,000 from the KIPP Foundation in 2014. Co-founder Mike Feinberg received $219,596 from KIPP Inc., and another $221,461 from the KIPP Foundation. Success Academy's Eva Moskowitz paid herself $600,000 in 2014 as the CEO of forty-one charter schools. The online for-profit charter company K12 paid its CEO $650,000 in salary plus a series of bonuses that brought his total compensation package to over a million dollars.
Image: Donald Trump. Stock Photo. Pixabay.com

Donald Trump's munchkins would have us believe that the new American president is going to usher in a period of prosperity for the United States and the world.

But Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman and other top economists believe Trump will make policy mistakes that will touch off a global recession, if not a depression.

"When the United States sneezes, the rest of the world catches a cold," is a longstanding maxim about the global economy that became only too true again in 2008.

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In fact, many countries are still struggling to right their economic ships seven years after the crisis struck.

Those countries include three of the largest economies in the former Soviet Union -- Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan.

One of the greatest ironies I could envision under a Trump presidency would be the Donald sparking a global recession that further roils Russia's economy.

I doubt he will be able to refrain from starting the trade war he has threatened against China, which he complains is not playing fair against the United States in bilateral commerce.

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Given that economics is so complex, whatever Trump does has the potential to generate unpredictable consequences that, together, tank the global economy.

Let's say he slaps a 35 percent duty on Chinese goods coming into the United States, as he has threatened to do.

An immediate consequence would be middle-class and poor Americans paying more for Chinese goods, many of which they would be unable to obtain from other sources. This would likely make the "angry white men" whom Bill Clinton said Trump was able to appeal to in the 2016 election even angrier -- but this time, against Trump.

Then, of course, there would be the Chinese retaliation against a hefty duty on their goods.

No one knows what the retaliation would consist of, but one thing is certain: It would be designed to hurt the U.S. economy -- and it would likely do so.

I don't think even Krugman could predict how quickly a U.S.-China trade war could spread economic malaise across the globe, or how much damage it could do. But one of his, and other economists', biggest fears is an amateur economic policy-maker like Trump letting any angry cat out of a bag that no one could get back in without massive clawing of the furniture.

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A key reason the wrong move by Trump could hammer many of the already weakened economies in the former Soviet Union is the sorry state of the region's banks.

Two announcements in the past week brought this weakness home: the revelations that Ukraine was nationalizing its biggest bank, Privatbank, and that Kazakhstan was providing an emergency loan of $4.5 billion to keep its biggest bank, Kazkomertsbank, from going under.

It should come as no surprise that in graft-ridden Ukraine, corruption was a key factor in Privatbank's travails.

Privat was bleeding cash due to the recession and questionable loans, a full 97 percent of which were made to companies connected with its shareholders. Talk about loaning money to insiders that you never expected to get back!

Kazakhstan's financial system has never recovered from a greedy loan policy that almost all banks employed before 2008, and the theft of about $15 billion at two of its largest banks.

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The greedy policy was borrowing money at 5 to 7 percent from the West, then loaning it out to Kazakhs at 14 percent or more, and pocketing the difference. The bottom fell out when the American-sparked global recession landed on Kazakhstan, and many Kazakhs were unable to repay their loans.

The thefts involved the chairman and vice chairman of Alliance Bank absconding with $1.2 billion and the chairman of BTA, a world-class scoundrel named Mukhtar Ablyazov, stealing a whopping $14 billion, then fleeing to the West.

Just this month, Ablyazov fooled France's highest administrative court, the Council of State, into believing his claim that he is a dissident who would be punished for his political views if he had to go to Russia or Kazakhstan to face embezzling and other charges.

Dissident my foot! Martin Luther King Jr., Mohatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela were dissidents. Ablyazov is a common criminal -- albeit a big-time one.

Russia, whose economic problems have affected countries like Armenia that are tried to its economy, had to bail out some of its biggest banks earlier than Ukraine and Kazakhstan did.

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In late 2014 it pumped $1.2 billion into state-owned VTB, its second-largest bank, with VTB expected to get an additional $1.7 billion in early 2015. Also in late 2014, it spent $449 million bailing out state-owned Gazprombank, which said it needed another $345 million in early 2015.

The bailouts were needed because of a drop in the price of oil, the mainstay of the Russian economy; Western sanctions that hurt Russian banks' ability to borrow in the West; and a plunge in the value of the ruble.

Russia desperately wants the sanctions to end, because they're keeping its economy from recovering.

Just how angry Moscow is about the sanctions came to the surface this week when the Russian government screamed about a new round of sanctions. Barack Obama slapped the punishments on six high-ranking Syrians and nine board members of a Russian bank connected with the two countries' brutal crushing of opposition forces in Allepo, Syria's second-largest city.

The U.S. had already sanctioned Moscow's Tempbank for providing financial services to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government. This time it added the nine bankers.

Russia hopes that President Vladimir Putin's buddy Trump will lift all the sanctions the United States has imposed since the spring of 2014, when the Kremlin seized Crimea and sent thousands of troops to help eastern Ukrainian separatists ward off government forces.

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Putin has worked hard to stroke the ego of the narcissist Trump, so the new American president may well lift the sanctions.

That would be an injustice, since it would send a message that Putin could impose his will on his neighbors with impunity.

I do believe that Trump will lift the sanctions, although there will be a nasty political battle over the issue in the United States between the Trump forces and those Americans who still see Russia -- as I do -- as the gravest threat to democracy.

If he does lift the sanctions, I hope Trump starts a trade war with China or makes some other economic miscalculation that slams the global economy so hard that it further damages Russia.

The only way the Kremlin can be slowed from trying to reconquer more of its neighbors is if its economic problems are so bad that it has to spend energy and money dealing with the economy instead of unleashing its military on others.

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Research shows that most people complain once a minute during a typical conversation. Complaining is tempting because it feels good, but like many other things that are enjoyable--such as smoking or eating a pound of bacon for breakfast--complaining isn't good for you.

Your brain loves efficiency and doesn't like to work any harder than it has to. When you repeat a behavior, such as complaining, your neurons branch out to each other to ease the flow of information. This makes it much easier to repeat that behavior in the future--so easy, in fact, that you might not even realize you're doing it.

You can't blame your brain. Who'd want to build a temporary bridge every time you need to cross a river? It makes a lot more sense to construct a permanent bridge. So, your neurons grow closer together, and the connections between them become more permanent. Scientists like to describe this process as, "Neurons that fire together, wire together."

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Repeated complaining rewires your brain to make future complaining more likely. Over time, you find it's easier to be negative than to be positive, regardless of what's happening around you. Complaining becomes your default behavior, which changes how people perceive you.

And here's the kicker: complaining damages other areas of your brain as well. Research from Stanford University has shown that complaining shrinks the hippocampus--an area of the brain that's critical to problem solving and intelligent thought. Damage to the hippocampus is scary, especially when you consider that it's one of the primary brain areas destroyed by Alzheimer's.



Complaining Is Also Bad for Your Health

While it's not an exaggeration to say that complaining leads to brain damage, it doesn't stop there. When you complain, your body releases the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol shifts you into fight-or-flight mode, directing oxygen, blood, and energy away from everything but the systems that are essential to immediate survival. One effect of cortisol, for example, is to raise your blood pressure and blood sugar so that you'll be prepared to either escape or defend yourself.

All the extra cortisol released by frequent complaining impairs your immune system and makes you more susceptible to high cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. It even makes the brain more vulnerable to strokes.

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It's Not Just You . . .

Since human beings are inherently social, our brains naturally and unconsciously mimic the moods of those around us, particularly people we spend a great deal of time with. This process is called neuronal mirroring, and it's the basis for our ability to feel empathy. The flip side, however, is that it makes complaining a lot like smoking--you don't have to do it yourself to suffer the ill effects. You need to be cautious about spending time with people who complain about everything. Complainers want people to join their pity party so that they can feel better about themselves. Think of it this way: If a person were smoking, would you sit there all afternoon inhaling the second-hand smoke? You'd distance yourself, and you should do the same with complainers.



The Solution to Complaining

There are two things you can do when you feel the need to complain. One is to cultivate an attitude of gratitude. That is, when you feel like complaining, shift your attention to something that you're grateful for. Taking time to contemplate what you're grateful for isn't merely the right thing to do; it reduces the stress hormone cortisol by 23%. Research conducted at the University of California, Davis, found that people who worked daily to cultivate an attitude of gratitude experienced improved mood and energy and substantially less anxiety due to lower cortisol levels. Any time you experience negative or pessimistic thoughts, use this as a cue to shift gears and to think about something positive. In time, a positive attitude will become a way of life.

The second thing you can do--and only when you have something that is truly worth complaining about--is to engage in solution-oriented complaining. Think of it as complaining with a purpose. Solution-oriented complaining should do the following:

Have a clear purpose. Before complaining, know what outcome you're looking for. If you can't identify a purpose, there's a good chance you just want to complain for its own sake, and that's the kind of complaining you should nip in the bud.

Start with something positive. It may seem counterintuitive to start a complaint with a compliment, but starting with a positive helps keep the other person from getting defensive. For example, before launching into a complaint about poor customer service, you could say something like, "I've been a customer for a very long time and have always been thrilled with your service ...."

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Be specific. When you're complaining it's not a good time to dredge up every minor annoyance from the past 20 years. Just address the current situation and be as specific as possible. Instead of saying, "Your employee was rude to me," describe specifically what the employee did that seemed rude.

End on a positive. If you end your complaint with, "I'm never shopping here again," the person who's listening has no motivation to act on your complaint. In that case, you're just venting, or complaining with no purpose other than to complain. Instead, restate your purpose, as well as your hope that the desired result can be achieved, for example, "I'd like to work this out so that we can keep our business relationship intact."

Bringing It All Together

Just like smoking, drinking too much, and lying on the couch watching TV all day, complaining is bad for you. Put my advice to use, and you'll reap the physical, mental, and performance benefits that come with a positive frame of mind.
Bolivian President Evo Morales declared an amnesty for 1,800 prison inmates, including pregnant women, handicapped people, those with minor sentences and people awaiting trial, Sputnik reported.

Morales pardoned nearly 2000 prisoner with sentences of less than five years, first-time offenders, prisoners under the age of 28, single mothers with incarcerated children, prisoners with terminal illnesses and people with disabilities.

The presidential decree will not affect those sentenced for grave crimes, which include homicide charges, terrorism, kidnapping, aggravated robbery, contraband, corruption, human trafficking, and assault on state officials.



"The present decree's aim is to give amnesty and total or partial pardons to people who have been deprived of their liberty," Morales told reporters at a press conference in the city of Cochabamba. This is the fourth time Morales approves statewide pardons.

The decree is perceived as a measure to fight the overcrowding of prisons: according to some estimations, almost 15,000 of nation's 10.6 million people are in prison, with less than one third of them have already faced trial. This figure represents 0.14% of nation's population; by comparison, in the US, 0.68% of the population were in prison as of 2013, making it the world's second largest per capita imprisonment ratio.

The state's largest prison, San Pedro, is notorious for its inner society formed by prisoners who have no guards inside, impose their own laws, live with their families and welcome tourists, who bring them the money. The government promised to close San Pedro to stop "cocaine trafficking and other abuses" in 2013, but as of 2016, the prison is still there.

Another prison, Palmasola Penitentiary in the city of Santa Cruz, was built for 800 people but holds 4,800 inmates. On August 23, 2013, a violent fight broke out, with inmates cutting each other with knives and machetes and finally burning each other using fire extinguishers filled with gas. The riot ended with a massive fire. Thirty-one people died in the melee, including a one-year-old child, and 37 were injured. Over the next few days, four more people died from their burns, bringing the total number of fatalities to 35.



"The government isn't interested in people who go to prison, neither is most of society," Human Rights Ombudsman Hernan Cabrera said in 2015, when Pope Francis visited Palmasola Penitentiary during his visit to Bolivia. "We see prison as a dump. It's the final dump, and we send people there to rot. We don't give them a second chance."
Mr Mistry asked the court to appoint an inspector to investigate whether Mr Tata had breached of insiders trading regulation by allegedly seeking price-sensitive information from Tata operating companies that are publicly listed.

Cyrus Mistry brought a veiled accusation that cannot be left unanswered: he accused Ratan Tata and the Trusts of violating insider trading rules, which is a criminal accusation potentially leading in India to an imprisonment up to ten years. Accusing Ratan Tata to be a criminal is despicable and, more importantly, incorrect in fact and in law.

Insider trading in securities may occur when a person in possession of material nonpublic information about a company trades in the company's securities and makes a profit or avoids a loss. To break an insider trading rule, three elements have to be present: the information has to be price sensitive, it has to come from insider sources and it has to be used in trading activities. Let's look at the case.

The request for information is legitimate

JR Varma, professor of finance at Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad and a former Sebi board member says, "We can't improve corporate governance by limiting shareholder democracy, and therefore the 'legitimate' governance rights of the majority shareholder must be respected...Policymakers should accept the fact that large shareholders will rule the roost when it comes to decision-making at a company. A structure where the rights of large shareholders are curtailed will unduly empower the management of the company, which will result in negative outcomes."

In this case, the large shareholder is Tata Trusts, and they own 66% of Tata Sons. They are therefore entitled to information on Tata Sons as well as on its assets, in this case, the group companies. The statement by Shriram Subramanian, founder and managing director at proxy advisory firm InGovern Research Services Pvt. Ltd that there is no locus standi for Mr. Soonawala or Mr. Ratan Tata because they are not on the board of Tata Sons completely ignores the right of Tata trusts to approve the allocation of assets by the majority shareholder of Tata Sons.

Does anybody believe that, in the real world, a two-third shareholder would not be directly informed and involved in the decision process of a major investment? After all, Tata Sons is just another company, and Cyrus Mistry is an appointee of the Tata Trusts. He has no locus standi, in law or in fact, to refuse requests of information from Tata Trusts.

The fact that the information is price sensitive does not imply that it is requested for insider trading

Cyrus Mistry single singlehandedly decided that the Tata Trusts who have anointed you and who own 66% of Tata Sons, were not entitled to information about the fate and situation of the listed companies and that such a request was violating insider trading rules calling them "price sensitive".

That was a breach of his fiduciary duties since, as Executive Chairman, he is only the custodian of Tata Sons, not the owner. He now pretends that that request was were a breach of insider trading rules. That accusation is unsubstantiated.

The Tata Trusts and their Chairman do not trade in Tata Companies

What makes the case even more compelling, is that Cyrus Mistry knows for a fact that neither the Trusts nor Ratan Tata do trade in group companies. Neither do the Trustees. They own Tata Sons and only exceptionally own some shares of the listed companies for historic reasons. Even in those shares, they are not traders but long term investments. Their requests were fiduciary in nature, not in the context of trading.

It is ridiculous to use as he and Mr. Wadia did, the fulfilment of Tata Trusts fiduciary duties a search of "price sensitive" information for "insider trading" purpose.

Under no circumstance can their requests for information be construed as supporting nonexistent trading activities. The Trusts did take seriously their own fiduciary responsibility and were not prepared to ignore their own duties. They needed information to exercise those duties.

Tata Sons is accountable to the Tata Trusts

Accountability goes both ways. By virtue of his position, Cyrus Mistry is a Chairman of the listed companies and has access to implied information. Around the Board table, he is actually the only member who disposes from an asymmetric information of confidential nature. Not only does he have access to all the documents, but as the Chairman of the Board of those companies he is able to know important information from the management and his fellow board members.

In a paradoxical way, he is in an even more difficult position than Ratan Tata: he needs to report, but he also needs to be reported to. One cannot have two sets of rules when it comes to transparency and accountability. While he feels empowered to obtain the information from the listed companies (even when Tata Sons does not control them), he does not agree that the similar request from his majority shareholder, the Tata Trusts.

Following his accusations, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has initiated a preliminary examination of the arrangement between Tata Sons and group companies to understand whether it is in accordance with current insider-trading regulations. target="_hplink">

Furthermore, for a Chairman to accuse the companies he chairs of breach of corporate governance norms and listing regulations at various listed companies to SEBI is self-inflicting and undermines the confidence in the accounts of the listed companies. . SEBI asked the audit committees of the companies to investigate the matter.

As professor Sharma puts it, the central problem in Indian corporate governance is how to manage the conflicts between dominant shareholders and minority shareholders. This, however, does not imply that it is sufficient a reason not to give access to the relevant information to large shareholders.

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Today is my 26th wedding anniversary. I am smiling!

This is my second marriage due to the death of my late husband, Michael, the father of my children. I have been married longer to Sheldon Good than I was married to Michael Forman.

I am sitting near my burning fireplace in my home in California. It is raining outside. I hear the pitter-patter of raindrops on my roof. Most couples, celebrating their anniversary, would feel deprived wishing for a sunny day on their special day. I do not. I am very content and happy. Why? Because as my husband, my ultimate concierge, always tells me, "Rain or shine, every day is our anniversary."

I am smiling because, even through the rough patches of the last 26 years, there has been one constant in my life, my husband, Sheldon Good. I hope he feels that way about me, too.

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We have lived and experienced, together, a magnanimous fairy tale life. We met. It was attraction at first sight. He told me he had been waiting for me for over five years since losing his late wife. He called me his Hawaiian princess. I felt like a Queen!

We were married ten months later. And truly for ten years, except for a few blips, our life was better than the most romantic and interesting novel. We melded as one. Our values were the same. Our taste in everything was identical. We learned from one another. We shared our most intimate feelings and over the past 26 years I have given him the title of 'ultimate concierge and best girlfriend.'

It must seem that all of our planets were aligned. And they were. But like all of you, dear readers, life started dealing us outside blows. Life shattering blows. Blows that many members of my family and many of my friends have, thank God, never experienced.

These unexpected and frightening incidents ranged from serious illness, issues with blended family members, concerns with our children, suicide, betrayal from family members and beyond. Enough to change the personality of a spouse and make the magic of any marriage disappear. And, that was the time in our marriage, dear readers, that we were able to weather life's events as a team, a unit, and tackle our hardships as one collective force.

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Were Shelly and I tethered to one another by some magical force? That is 'fairyland' thinking.

I grew up with parents who were committed to their marriage. I noticed over the years my parents' ability to be great allies. You know the expression, 'monkey see...monkey do.' That was my lucky exposure to the art of a successful marriage.

Shelly grew up with two working parents. His mother asked him to take watch over and care for his younger sister. He committed himself to a relationship, taking her everywhere with him. He learned how to establish a lifelong and loving relationship with a sibling.

Some of you are beset with problems. Maybe alcohol addiction, monetary problems, 'he says potato and you say potato,' whatever, dear readers.

I once overheard a doctor tell a patient on television: "The worst marriage is better than the best divorce." He went on stressing the additional grief with the children, finances, dividing up property, new marriages, dealing with blended families and the in-laws and out-laws (so to speak.) When he was done talking, I was exhausted from listening and I thought to myself, "Maybe he is right!"

Maybe you dear readers, who are in a stressful marriage, should try my solution? Remember this...

All marriages have dark moments, differences and challenges, to include my own. What holds me close to my darling, ultimate concierge is that my allegiance and devotion has never wavered. He has earned my love by his allegiance and devotion to me.

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My 26 years with Sheldon Good is a love story with perfect timing. I do believe the stars were aligned.
Every year during Christmas, I'm struck by how important demographic data have been in shaping the course of history, often for the worse. The Bible verses we hear during Advent lay out how King Herod was able to use public records to seek out and kill all the boys aged two and under in the Bethlehem area as he tried to find and eliminate Jesus (Matthew 2:16 NIV).

That wouldn't be the last time a bad guy used population records for evil. Key example: two thousand years later, Adolf Hitler's 1939 "minority census" sought to identify every household member with at least one Jewish grandparent. That information, as we know, was used to systematically eliminate the Jews during the Holocaust.

The Gospels actually kick off with a lengthy description of Jesus' geneology (Matthew 1:1-17). That genealogy is important for establishing that Jesus is indeed the Messiah, and is essential for Christianity to eventually take hold. As with Jesus' lineage, demographic data can be quite useful. Today, policy makers use such data to distribute resources, like schools and infrastructure, where the population actually needs them.

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But as Herod and Hitler show, population data can also be a dangerous political tool. During Advent, we also learn about the great census undertaken by Caesar Augustus:

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to their own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. (Luke 2:1-5 NIV)



I'm guessing that the census was just as controversial during Jesus' time as now. In Lebanon, there has been no official census since 1943, when Christians were counted as the barest of majorities in the country. Seats in Lebanon's Parliament are doled out according to religious sect and it is pretty common knowledge that over the last six decades the proportion of Christians in Lebanon has dramatically shrunk due to emigration and low fertility.

But since they still hold power, the Christian-based political parties have no incentive to undertake a new census that would more accurately reflect Lebanon's demographic reality. That's a problem for the "minority" sects, who surely aren't getting the resources or representation they need and has exacerbated resentment among this deeply divided country. Even if there were a new census, the resulting shift in political order would surely erupt into violence.

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Most countries are multi-ethnic and census data can be used to manipulate and control the population in non-democratic countries. But absence of knowledge can sometimes make the fear even worse. The US and France, for example, don't track residents' religions and fear mongers have had free reign to invent wild statistics about the growth in those countries' Muslim communities in order to suit their political purposes. It's worked. A 2016 survey of French citizens showed that they estimated France's Muslim population at nearly a third-31%-when in actuality it is more likely 7.5%, according to the nonpartisan Pew Research Center.


Long before Mario Batali, David Chang, Daniel Humm, even before Eric Ripert, Gunther Seeger had a well-earned and well-established reputation as one of America's finest, most inventive chefs. But unlike those other NYC-based chefs, Seeger made his indelible mark in Atlanta, first at the Ritz-Carlton, Buckhead, then independently under his own name, which was my pick in Esquire as Restaurant of the Year in 1998.



Born and raised in Germany's Black Forest, Seeger arrived in Atlanta in 1985, a city whose most prominent restaurants of the time included a slew of continental old-timers, The Abbey, where staff wore monk's habits, and Nikolai's Roof, a Russian restaurant where everything was flamed on skewers. Seeger's introduction of nouvelle cuisine was widely praised, but his insistence on long tasting menus made dining at his restaurants something of a slog.

After leaving Atlanta behind in 2007, he did consulting out of NYC, but there was never any doubt he would one day assert himself in the Big Apple. Opened last summer, Gunther Seeger NY just won its first Michelin star. The NYC food media, however, were not so inclined, finding the nine-course $185 tasting meal--no a la carte--off-putting and the service pretentious. Staff would boast of having Iranian caviar, when it actually came from China. By summer's end, any novelty the place had had wore off, and few were the nights the dining room filled up.

As stubborn as Martin Luther at the start, Seeger saw the need to modulate, this fall instituting a four-course menu a very reasonable $98, and there'll probably be some additional amuses when you sit down. A ten-course menu is also offered at a lower priced $148 + $125 for wines + tax + tip.



I found the West Village dining room quite beautiful, with a bright open kitchen to the rear where Seeger works intensely with his crew. The room is stark, with blond wooden floors, softened by a lovely chandelier said to be Seeger's grandmother's and more modern ones glowing pink; huge vases of flowers may put you in mind of La Grenouille, wooden beams and columns echo Seeger's Black Forest childhood, and you'll sit down on very comfortable chairs and banquettes. Glassware is exquisitely thin. Alas, there are no tablecloths, and if the room fills up, it will get loud.

The charge that Seeger's service staff is pretentious is nonsense: They are a cadre of very well-dressed, slender young professionals with very good manners indeed, friendly and knowledgeable about both food and wine. The wine list, pricey as you'd expect, is one of the few in NYC that features German labels of excellent provenance.

Since there are two selections for each of the four courses, my wife and I ate them all, along with a luscious amuse of delicately steamed egg with a maple Chantilly cream and bottarga roe that gave it pleasing salty edge. Abalone was quickly seared on a hibachi, giving it a slightly smoky taste, then put back in the shell with maitake mushrooms, dashi and sea lettuce, though the broth it swam in was fairly bland. Silky foie gras took on the sweetness of poached plum and onion marmalade, two components that showed as much finesse as any other ingredient, and I've never had better prepared trout, with horseradish and apple, a dish that clearly derives from Seeger's German background.

Another appetizer was a brown paper mat heaped with little, buttery ratte potatoes with Burgundy truffle, but there is the option of adding $75 to your bill if you want a few shavings of white truffle. Next time I'll stick to the black.

Simplicity is key to Seeger's cooking--nothing is ever extraneous on the plate--so you get the full flavor of fat grilled quail, impeccably rosy, with Japanese leek and dates. The real disappointment of the night was veal schnitzel, which, given Seeger's DNA, should have has skin as crispy as the best Southern fried chicken but was instead limp and separated from the veal. A single carrot and some ginger did nothing to remedy its shortcomings.



For dessert you have a choice of Red Cow Parmesan with quince jus (these and other dishes change frequently), a pleasing apple tarte Tatin with cranberry sorbet, or a rich hazelnut cremeux with delightful peppermint ice cream. Frankly, after four courses like these I cannot imagine going for a ten-course dinner, even if it had smaller portions.

Though Seeger's cooking has never been flamboyant, it is now more restrained and focused, not dissimilar to certain aspects of Japanese cooking, and, within the white brick walls and soft lights, it all seems a very personal expression of the man, whose once doctrinaire approach has softened into a real desire to please his guests. "We want to get better and better and better," he told me after dinner, and for a chef of his caliber, that is a promise he will keep.

Open for dinner Mon.-Sat.
2016 is finally coming to a close.

For those who care about the environment, the only choice is to look forward toward mobilizing in 2017 -- with the goal of keeping progress from backsliding.

Easier said than done?

Not really.

True, there will not be a pro-active partner in the White House. However, the biggest take away from this deadly election cycle is that grassroots action is the key to the success of any movement or ideology. Change emanates from the strength at the bottom, creating a shift that may be slower than desired -- but that in the end yields a monumental force.

Too many people are already throwing up their hands, convinced that there is nothing that they -- as an individual -- can do.

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Not true.

There is a much bigger picture here. What cannot be overlooked is the essential hyperlocal aspect of the struggle.

Has your district been gerrymandered so that people faced with environmental justice challenges are not being equitably represented? Does your Councilperson share your alarm about particulate matter in air pollution or the high rates of asthma in children? How about your State Senator?

Do you know where your elected officials stand on state-based deregulation or why the electrical industry is pushing to restructure itself to become a "tradable commodity?"

I recently read Frackopoly by Wenonah Hauter. One of the biggest insights culled from her well-researched book was how actively interconnected fossil fuel companies, finance, government, media, and influence have become. Hauter introduces her story with the evolution of today's top fossil fuel companies. They evolved out of the 1911 Supreme Court decision to break up the Standard Oil monopoly, which was divided into thirty-four companies, because it violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

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In 1946, Congress opened up public lands that were not yet developed, making them easier to lease and accessible to the grasp of fossil fuel interests. In post-World War II America, there was an expansion of infrastructure devoted to pipelines. It is during this period that fossil fuel interests began to seek out connections within Congress, in order to exert their influence and become active players.

Hauter revisits the history of the CIA's involvement in the 1953 coup against the democratically elected Iranian government. The purpose was to secure the oil resources connection. In a deja vu scenario, Trump has spoken about taking all the oil in Iraq as part of his "plan" to defeat the Islamic State.

By 1980, Hauter writes that those in the gas and oil sector began aggressively working to defeat those in the House and Senate who didn't support their agenda.

The fossil fuel sector had a friend in Ronald Reagan, who appointed James Watt as the Secretary of the Interior. Watt could be a model for what Trump has in mind for appointments, including posts for the Interior, Energy, and the EPA. Watt was a lawyer who was on the side of those opposing regulations and conservation. He became known as the "anti-environmentalist."

Not too long ago, Dick Cheney was behind getting fracking exempted from national environmental laws with a clause known as "The Halliburton Loophole?"

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Today, energy companies have an outsized influence on American politics. It's easy to make the connections: just follow the money. The Koch brothers have opposed regulations at every turn to make sure that their bottom line stays untouched? They have backed up their agenda with generous campaign contributions.

Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), a staunch climate denier, has received in excess of 1.7 million dollars from gas and oil companies during the period of 1989 to 2015. Oklahoma has seen an upsurge in earthquakes (5,417 in 2014), attributed to the increase in fracking activity.

When Rachel Maddow broke the story that President-elect Donald Trump was widening his Secretary of State search to include both the former and present CEOs of Exxon Mobil, a shudder went through me. (So much for draining the swamp of special interests and the big money boys.) The possibility was clear that Trump was considering a mashup of corporate, big energy, and Wall Street interests. (Fossil fuels was one of the stocks to shoot up after the Trump win.)

Now, he is a nominee-in-waiting.

Hauter calls for a "grassroots insurgency" to take place both in the United States and around the world.

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The country is witnessing a true example of organic activism in the Standing Rock movement. Solidarity and support came from groups inclusive of religious leaders, war veterans, and anti-pipeline advocates.

On December 4, the Army Corps of Engineers announced it would not move forward with granting a permit for the Dakota Access pipeline to drill under the Missouri River.

This example goes beyond serving as a template. It exemplifies the importance of demanding accountability, and stands as a reminder that what transpires is on each of us, as American citizens.

January 20th isn't the end. It is, in fact, a new beginning....

To protect our communities, our children, and the future of the planet.
"Pranay, like it or not, you will be a gringo in India." Dr. Guerrant warned me as I got ready to fly to India for a global health rotation. Gringo is the picturesque Latin American term for foreigners. I felt outraged. After all, I am a passport carrying citizen of India! Born in humid Kolkata and raised in the dry heat of New Delhi, I pish-poshed his advice. So what if I had spent my entire adult life studying in America? I was still bristling at Dr. Guerrant's warning when I boarded the bus that morning.

After tossing three well-worn one rupee coins to the conductor, I curled myself into a window seat. I say curled because it is impossible for anyone taller than 5 feet to sit in those seats without an impressive display of contortionism. Reading on the bus is almost impossible; the jerks feel strong enough to rearrange one's visceral organs. If this were not enough, the imaginative interpretation of traffic laws by most bus drivers is sufficient to reacquaint any traveling atheists with the deities they staunchly deny.

The imaginative interpretation of traffic laws by most bus drivers is sufficient to reacquaint any traveling atheists with the deities they staunchly deny.

Five minutes into my jangly bus ride, I saw a lady, in a gorgeous saffron sari squatting behind a small bush. She was defecating. Seeing the bus approach, she made a few perfunctory moves to conceal herself, but she knew as well as I that it was futile. I averted my gaze to give her some privacy. Though I had seen similar sights hundreds of times before, it shook me up in a way that the bus could not. I was struck by how different my India was than hers.

You know you've been left out of the prosperity party when you cower behind bushes as you carry out you basic bodily functions.

A vocal minority of Indians boasts of overtaking China's economy soon. We have come a long way from being an impoverished British colony. Middle-class Indians like me suddenly have the capacity to patronize brands such as Bvlgari and BMW. But you know you've been left out of the prosperity party when you cower behind bushes to carry out basic bodily functions. This is the case for more than six hundred million people in India who do not have access to bathrooms. That's twice the population of the United States! Structural violence and institutionalized inequalities underpin these disparities.If we prosperous Indians allow the creation of a permanent economic underclass, won't our democratic claims ring unforgivably hollow? Won't history judge us harshly for this denigration of our fellow humans?

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"Doctor sahib, can you help me?"

My reverie was suddenly broken by my young co-passenger who had had spotted my stethoscope. I clarified that I was a lowly med student, but agreed to look at a leg wound that he wanted to show me. The wound was crusted with matted mud and some dried exudate. A fly promptly buzzed onto and began feasting on the grime. I waved the fly away with my hand and suggested some simple wound care and tetanus prophylaxis to the boy.

My English is inspired by Oscar Wilde. His was inspired by necessity.

Sometimes, Indians communicate more by jiggling their heads than they do through their words. There is the ready sideways head-jiggle of the Indian who is on the same page as you and then there is the slow, tenuous cranial swaying of the Indian who is mystified, but too proud to admit it. From the amplitude and frequency of the boy's head, I could tell that my vocabulary and accent were impenetrable for him. My English3 is inspired by Oscar Wilde. His was inspired by necessity. I broke into Tamlish (a hybrid of Tamil and English) and descriptive gestures to communicate with him.

As I clumsily counseled the boy with broken words and jerky gestures, I felt a sickening twinge: I truly was a gringo. For all intents and purposes, I spoke, a different language than the majority of Indians. The rupee had a completely different meaning for me. The three rupees I had paid thoughtlessly to the conductor were almost ten percent of the daily earnings of millions of Indians who subsist on 99 cents a day. I even look physically different from the millions of Indians who are stunted by malnutrition and chronic disease.

In that moment, I resented and despised everything from my expensive education to my posh-sounding accent. They were exposed as the products of inequalities deeply ingrained in Indian society, the same inequalities I vehemently decry. I felt like I had somehow swindled the man next to me.

Gringo or not, I have the capacity to advocate for my voiceless Indian brothers and sisters.

I stepped off that bus shaken. But as I crossed the street, dodging bicycles and bulls, I felt a glimmer of hope. My brain was unimpaired by malnutrition. My education hadn't been discontinued at an early age due to lack of funds. My body was not crippled by preventable diseases. Gringo or not, I have the capacity to advocate for my voiceless Indian brothers and sisters. This would be my atonement.

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Poor quality and inaccessible information about school performance is preventing parents and governments from making good choices about different schooling options

Private education is a high stakes investment for both parents and governments

All over the world parents are making decisive schooling choices for their children. In South Africa, for example, a 2013 study of over 1,400 primary age children from Soweto, near Johannesburg, found that only 18 percent are attending the school closest to their home. This study, together with the growing number of private schools in South Africa, shows that parents are choosing to make substantial financial investments in pursuit of high-quality education. Such a strong belief in education as a means to escape poverty is promising for the life chances of South Africa's children and indeed for the future of that nation's economy. But for the investment to be realized, the private schools parents choose for their children need to giving them a high-quality education.

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And it's not just parents who are paying for private education. In many parts of the world governments are starting to fund non-state school operators, through vouchers, subsidies or contract management agreements, like charter schools or academies. With parents and governments investing heavily in private education, ensuring open and accessible information about school quality - both public and private schools - should be an urgent priority for governments and donors.

Information imperfections are disadvantaging poorer parents

Market theory says that this kind of consumer choice - a thriving private sector competing with a previously monopolistic government provision - should raise standards and improve learning for poor children. But competition-driven market theory will only be effective in education if the market imperfections caused by poor and weak information are corrected. Information imperfections are particularly acute in education because parents, particularly those on low incomes and with low levels of education themselves, are often poorly informed about school quality. School choice is difficult for any parent. Many school systems do not conduct standardised tests. When they do, scores may not be made public and tend to be confusing and difficult to compare. This means that parents all over the world make school choices for their children with information based on brand and perception, rather than learning outcomes. Parental information is generally, by nature, imperfect and asymmetric.

Without easy access to school attainment data, children from poorer families will not benefit optimally from the increased school choice, public and private, that comes from the growing private sector. Indeed, there is even a risk that parents unintentionally enrol their children to in private schools that are actually lower performing than free local government schools.

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Governments and parents need to be able to make informed choices about private schooling

The duty of government should be to guarantee that every child receives a high-quality education, and to support parents to make good and informed choices about their children's schooling, backed by reliable and accessible data. There is a developing body of evidence that shows when parents have access to information about how their child is doing in school, and how children are doing in other schools, it can lead to better learning outcomes. A 2016 study from Pakistan, for example, showed that giving parents information about their child's school and progress in school led to improved test scores, lower fees in the private schools in the village and higher primary school enrollment.

The growing number of governments who are funding vouchers or other initiatives that allow children to attend private schools subsidized by the state should take note of this study.

Informed parental choice is firmly in the interests of the state. Performance and costs of schooling has significant implications for public finances. With the many competing priorities for limited public resources, governments must ensure value for money. Some finance and education ministers have taken note that private schools can educate students at a significantly lower cost per children than government schools can. Consequently, voucher-style PPPs are emerging in many parts of the world.

The Philippines recently launched an ambitious initiative that will create two million new state-funded school places in private schools. And the results of Muralidharan and Sundararaman's double randomised trial in Andhra Pradesh, India, a seminal study for its scale and rigour, support policies that use government funds to send poor children to private schools. The private schools in the study achieved similar test scores (compared with government schools) in basic subjects, with less instructional time, using the remaining time to increase test scores in other subjects. Furthermore, these results were achieved at a much lower cost, did not disadvantage the students who remained in public schools and did not benefit children from richer families more than their poorer peers.

Of courses, there's no such thing as a magic bullet. Vouchers should provide better parent-level accountability, but only if parents can exercise informed choice

Vouchers certainly seem like they hold potential as a policy option for governments wanting to improve quality and reduce inequity in education systems. But the devil is in the detail, and more literally in the parent and state accountability mechanisms. It is complex and hard to get right. A voucher alone is not going to transform learning outcomes.

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The theory behind vouchers suggests that programmes should improve learning among children from low-income communities through four channels, all related to consumer choice and better parent and state-level accountability. First, vouchers enable dissatisfied parents to move their children from poorly performing schools to better schools. Second, vouchers break inefficient public school monopolies by introducing competition from the private sector, challenging public schools to improve and reignite parental demand. Third, private schools are incentivized to improve quality as a means to attract more voucher-owning students. Fourth voucher schools are accountable to the state for the learning outcomes that they deliver for children.

But the voucher theory will not, and in some cases has not, proven successful without clear and accessible performance data made available to parents and public sector leaders. Without evidence and monitoring, students may migrate from better public schools to poorer private schools; public schools need not respond to the competition from private schools; and private schools will be incentivized to attract students though means other than better education quality. In other words, if the information imperfections are not corrected, the educational returns to the significant investment in private schools by both parents and governments will be limited.

A zero-sum improvement is not the only risk

While intuitively the presence of the voucher should reduce inequality by removing financial barriers to parents, research from Ghana warns further of the dangers presented by information imperfections in school choice programmes. The study showed that parents with low levels of education or income, or with children in low quality primary schools, were more likely to make ex-post judgment errors in the school choice process and less likely to apply to the highest quality schools. This resulted in children from poor families attending lower quality schools than their richer peers, deepening not reducing existing educational inequalities. Greater school choice should deliver positive educational returns, but these acute information imperfections need to be corrected urgently to prevent potentially transformative initiatives from being derailed.
Let me make a prediction: You will buy an E-Bike, and like me, you will love having one.

Wallerang Ebike

Over the last six months, I've been testing a wide variety of E-bikes and have come to believe strongly that E-bikes are in the future for many of us, specifically those over 50, but in time, for everyone. I've tested bikes from brands you know such as Trek, Specialized and Raleigh, and ones you haven't such as Swedish Ebike company Wallerang (which turned out to be my favorite but more on that later).

An E-bike is a two-wheeled bicycle-like personal transport device that has a motor that is powered in part by a rechargeable battery. In some cases pedaling the bike engages the battery (pedal assist bikes) or even recharges it (although that is not always the case). Others have a throttle. Either way, a motor is engaged that helps power the bike faster, or makes hills or upwards grades easier. In cases where you might have dismounted and walked the bike up a hill, you can now cruise; where others passed you, you can now pass them.

Your friends may think of an Ebike as cheating or tell you that if you are not pedaling all the time, what's the point. They do not get it: An Ebike allows you to bike more often, in more places -- and for those who rately bike at all, it creates a compelling, easy reason to do so.

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With an Ebike suddenly you can take rides and bike trips that seemed daunting; or work commutes that you feared would make you sweaty are suddenly manageable. It also gives a psychological boost - it increases when you might ride and how often and opens up a world of biking to those who thought it too much work. As I said, perfect for aging boomers who want the illusion of youth without the work.

My romance with Ebikes started about six months ago when I came into possession of a first generation Ebike by A2B. It has a throttle and goes up to 20mph. The battery is built into the stem and charges in a few hours. However, the bike is very heavy and clunky, closer to a moped than a bicycle. Still I have used it with great pleasure around Santa Monica and it is fun to run errands with. It also provided a great introduction to Ebikes and gave me a sense that what I was looking for did not need to be faster, but it needed to be lighter and look more like a bicycle. Also I was looking for it to maintain the same strength going up hills as did my A2B which, despite its weight, is quite powerful.

In California, where I live, Ebikes have become so popular that the legislature recently passed regulations defining motorized bicycles by class, according to speed and other features. Class 3 Ebikes go over 20 mph and are not permitted on ocean bicycle paths; class 2 ebikes (20 mph and under) are treated like regular bikes.

This is just one indication that the Ebike market has exploded. For further proof, a few weekends ago I attended the Santa Monica E-Bike Expo held at the Santa Monica Pier beach parking lot where I was able to inspect and try more than a dozen different brands of E-bike.

Specialized Ebike

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Traditional bike brands such as Raleigh, Trek and Specialized (Specialized calls theirs "Turbo Bikes) have all introduced their own branded Ebikes. In addition there are many other specialized, American and European brands dedicated to Ebikes including Stromer, Tempo, Bulls, Gazelle, Kalkhoff, Riese and Mueller, Wallerang and Yuba. Each has its own distinctive positive attributes - as well as drawbacks. Which model is best for you, is a matter of how (and where) you will most use the bike (on trails, on city streets, etc..) as well as price, features (do you need it to haul cargo or kids) and some are distinguished by style.

There are those who will argue the virtues of whether the ebike is rear wheel powered hub or front and whether the chain is encased or not; how many gears and how you shift them, and the location of the battery. Is it a mountain bike, a road bike, for commuting or off road. For some it is purely an esthetic question of what looks the best. However, to me, what matters most is how you feel riding the bike.

As a caveat, I will note that there are many crowdfunded ebikes on Indiegogo and Kickstarter, most of which are priced at substantial less than the models I tested. Some of them require you to assemble them, and servicing them is more of a promise than a guarantee. As a result, my own survey is limited to the brands below all of which have US distribution and are serviced by the stores that sell them and/or their U.S. distributor or manufacturer.

Let me start with my favorite, Wallerang.



Wallerang is a Swedish bike company from Gothenburg, Sweden. They like to call themselves a marriage of Scandinavian design and Japanese technology. They've set up U.S. headquarters in Santa Cruz, CA. The bikes are all purpose commuter bikes with a aluminum frame, a Shimano mid-step electronic gear shift (with an automatic setting). The frame is non-suspension but they do have models with front shocks. They are also built with a modular system allowing for a variety of cargo carrying choices front and back. But all of that is just justification for the fact that from the moment I rode their M.02X Smartbike, it just felt right. What is great is that you just get on and ride and the gear shifting and power assist are all automated. This was the Ebike for me.



Wallerang Smart bike (posed with model Therese)

The M.02X has a suspension fork is available as a step-through. This means you sit comfortably on the bike and on whatever terrain you ride. The power when climbing is strong. I liked the silent drive unit and the shifting with three easy to click buttons (and the fully automatic option) make riding simple. There is cycle computer that comes standard with gear, range and battery indication. From the moment I sat on the Wallerang I felt not just comfortable but like I wanted to go somewhere on this bike. The price, (around $3600) is steep. But if that is within your budget, I can say that there was no Ebike I liked more, no bike that I would be eager to use as often as possible on as many roads as possible.

My second favorite was Kalkhoff, which boasts its German engineering and its pedigree of having made bicycles for almost 100 years, making all their own components in Germany. They are premium commuter Ebikes with a dozen different styles including features such as electrical gear shifting and combination back pedal and disc brake, bike lock and battery lock. They have pioneered smart displays and Bluetooth enabled navigation. They are well made and have entry level bikes that retail in the US for under $1600 (although of course one covets the higher price models). If I was looking for an entry level Ebike in price, Kalkhoff provides good value.

As for the other Ebikes I tested: Raleigh makes a line of Ebikes that are moderately priced (for Ebikes) which is to say in the $1600-$2600 range. They handle well and produce a strong push when pedaled. However I found the bike somewhat stiff in its handling and not as comfortable as I would have liked. Specialized's Turbo Ebikes are more in the $4500 price and above price range, but they make powerful mountain bikes to take you up hills (a claimed 530 watts of power!) and are attractive and well-made (personally they are more expensive than I'd spend but if money is not an issue I would recommend trying them).

Trek makes commuter bikes that begin around $3000, have a mid-drive motor, and have long range battery and come with Trek's warranty. The Trek was stiffer ride, did the job well but it was more about efficiency than pleasure. I would say Trek is a safe reliable choice, but I wasn't crazy about how the bike felt (again this is highly personal but I felt on the Trek as if my butt would wear out before the ebike did).

Yuba SPicy Curry Ebike

Some of the brands you might not have heard of include Yuba which make cargo Ebikes and ones that can accommodate young kids as second (or even third) passengers. Priced in the $3-4000 range they weigh between 55-70 pounds, but are around six feet in length and really can haul your groceries or kids around town.

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Gazelle Ebikes also in the $3-4,000 range, are a Dutch brand that has a retro look (leather seats and handles). Their ebikes are practical and have a spare simple design. The ride is comfortable and the bikes are not too heavy. More stylish are Farragut Ebikes which look like classic bicycles. The ride is somewhat stiff and I didn't find them as comfortable or powerful as other brands but they are attractive.

Stromer is a Swiss ebike that is perhaps the most solid of those I tested. The Stromers are serious ebikes, they feel a little bit heavier (and they are more expensive) but it is fair to say they are the Cadillac of the crowd and the one many Ebike stores recommended to me for all around use.



Bulls Ebike

The Germans made a strong showing at the Ebike Expo. Bulls has been in the Ebike market since 2010, mostly in Europe, and has a wide variety of Ebikes from fat-tire off road models to commuter bikes - they are priced at middle and higher range ($3500 and above). The one I rode was an all-purpose model and it handled well. They have a wide range of drive systems and models but I didn't feel they were as intuitive to use as I might have liked.

BMW (yes that BMW) makes an Ebike ($3,430) featuring Bosch motors with a 400 watt battery and shimano disc brakes and a top speed of 25 mph (making it a class 3 bike). The design is clean and there is a ten-gear system (a bit too much for me). There is an onboard computer that makes gear recommendations.

Another German company is Riese and Muller who make more than a dozen models (including folding bikes, some with multiple batteries allowing for an extended range, (also with Bosch motors) as well as cargo ebikes that carry their cargo in front. Their bikes have a distinctive look and appear well engineered (some look somewhat Rube Goldberg-esque). However, I am not sure about the extent of the US dealership service and support.

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At whatever price point you choose, and for whatever best suits your needs there's an Ebike for you. And biking with assist is better than not biking at all! As for me, I know I'm going to upgrade from A2B sooner rather later.
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim called on Monday his Russian counterpart Dmitri Medvedev over the Russian plane which crashed in the Black Sea on Sunday, Anadolu reported.

The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media, said Yildirim expressed his condolences to the families of those killed and the people of Russia over the deadly incident. The plane crash killed all 92 people on board.

Yildirim said that the Turkish nation shared the pain of the Russian Federation nation, including those of the families who lost their relatives in this tragic accident.

In a separate note, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu conducted on Monday a phone call with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov over the deadly accident.

According to diplomatic sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, Cavusoglu extended his condolences to Lavrov over the Tu-154 military transport aircraft's crash near the Russian city of Sochi.

The sources said that Cavusoglu also shared information with Lavrov over his recent visit to Qatar.

The Russian aircraft was en route to Latakia, Syria to perform in a holiday concert when it crashed, killing all 92 people on board, most of them musicians from the Red Army Choir, or Alexandrov Ensemble, as well as nine journalists.
Reno Commission puts liquor by drink without food sales on 2023 ballot

Hutchinson board acts quickly to respond to brewery's dilemma, but vote is more than a year away.
@theMarket: Stocks Bump & Grind Toward Christmas

No surprise that stocks took a break this week. Profit-taking from the election rally has been the main theme over the last few days for investors and could continue through the New Year.



As traders desert their desks for holiday shopping (present company included), volumes have petered out as world markets experience a consolidation. Remember readers that markets can correct in two ways: a sharp sell-off or this kind of sideways movement.



Frankly, give me a good old consolidation anytime. They may be boring, but sharp declines, especially around the holidays, makes for unhappy investors and can ruin the office Christmas party. I am actually relieved that we have had the Santa rally a little earlier this year.



Over the last two weeks I warned investors not to chase the Trump rally. Greed has given way to common sense and another week or two of consolidation might relieve a large part of what I see as "overbought" conditions.



This week, U.S. investors did receive some good news. The economy actually grew by 3.5 percent, which was the fastest rate of growth in over two years. The third-quarter results were fueled by strong consumer spending, higher food exports, and a revival of investment spending.



Of course, the Obama Administration will get no credit for the facts that unemployment is at historical low levels, GDP growth is finally revving up and wage growth is starting to climb.



The new administration will take credit for this revival in investor's minds. The same thing happened in reverse when President Obama took office eight years ago.



George W. Bush left the Democrats with an economy in shambles, a financial crisis that rivaled the crash of 1929, and ultimately an unemployment rate north of 10 percent. Naturally, investors blamed the new guy for the old guy's mistakes. Well, nothing is fair in politics.



The reason I am bringing this up, however, is to ask the question -- how much of the "Trump rally" should be attributed to the Donald's election and how much is simply a reflection of a turn in the economy that has been going on for the past few months?



Why, you might ask, is this important? Most pundits are crediting last month's market gains to Trump's elections. What if the gains were simply a celebration of a new-found strength in the nation's economy? It would make the levels in the stock market reasonable, especially if investors expect more good news in the future.



Of course, the future is a lot less predictable now than it has been in the past. We still have no idea how many of the president-elect's initiatives are going to bear fruit. In the meantime, the markets are being supported by the existing strength in the economy and a new-found "animal spirit" based on Trump's campaign promises.



But there are a lot of questions in my mind concerning some of those promises. Let's take the tax cuts that just about everyone is convinced are just around the corner. Tax cuts to investors, by definition are positive. But will corporations benefit from a 15 percent tax rate or a 20 percent rate? The difference is substantial, and exactly what will the fine print mean for various sectors?



What sectors will gain the most or will every corporation benefit equally? Will capital gains taxes be cut as well, and if so, by how much? Throw questions about the estate tax, individual income taxes and changes in both corporate and individual tax deductions (like mortgage deductions) into the mix and you may have some unexpected surprises. No one knows.



Then there is all this talk about a huge infrastructure program. Metals and mining stocks as well as cement, copper, steel, and God knows what else have doubled or tripled in the expectation that all these materials companies will benefit from trillions of dollars in government spending. Re-building the nation's highways, hospitals, schools, bridges, airports, electrical grids, etc., were certainly part of Trump's campaign promises, but the timing and method of spending is open to question.



Trump has said in a post-election New York Times interview that infrastructure spending won't be a core part of the first few years of his administration. He also admitted that a New Deal-type program would not sit well with the traditional Republican ethos. That's not to say he won't fulfill his commitment, but it might be so far in the future than the present prices of material stocks justify.



What we do know is that the new president will be unorthodox in his approach to many of the nation's problems. He may very well cut corporate tax rates and at the same time take steps to eliminate corporate cronyism. He may get his infrastructure plan, but convince the private sector to foot the bill, instead of government. He has already showed his penchant for deal making via Twitter.



The point is that the best may lie ahead of us, but attempting to discount the future without the facts is dangerous at best. Fortunately, the growing strength of our economy has less to do with Trump, I believe, and more to do with the policies of the past, especially those of the Federal Reserve Bank. To me, the future looks promising under a new set of Trump initiatives and should be reflected in higher levels in the stock market going forward. I would use any pullbacks in the months ahead as buying opportunities.

Bill Schmick is registered as an investment adviser representative with Berkshire Money Management. Bills forecasts and opinions are purely his own. None of the information presented here should be construed as an endorsement of BMM or a solicitation to become a client of BMM. Direct inquiries to Bill at 1-888-232-6072 (toll free) or email him at Bill@afewdollarsmore.com.
American Legion Will Provide Meal On Christmas Day

NORTH ADAMS, Mass.  The North Adams American Legion Post 125 will once again provide a Christmas Day meal for all those in need.

William Schrade, chairman of the Be Our Guest Christmas Dinner at American Legion Post 125, said since 1955 the American Legion has been providing meals and company for those without during the holiday.

"We have deliveries for folks that may be shut in," Schrade said. "We rather they come here and eat here and be with someone but if not we just want to take care of them."

Schrade said usually between 200 and 250 will come to the Legion between 11 to 2 for a community dinner. He said they will deliver near 200 meals as far as Readsboro, Vt., to those who call in.

The Legion will serve turkey soup, ham, mashed potatoes, a dinner roll, and mixed vegetables from 11 to 2. Those who eat at the post home will take home a bag with a sandwich, an apple, and a cookie.

Schrade said the dinner is possible through the kindness of the community members who donate money to purchase the food and volunteer to deliver meals and serve at the Legion.

"The Legion is all about children and youth but community as well," he said. "It is just importing to be around people during the holidayswhen our volunteers deliver the people dont want them to leave."
The private non-profit Sand Springs Recreational Center Inc. seeks 90 percent of the cost of a $42,300 project to make the facility more compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Williamstown Community Preservation Committee Sees Seven Applicants



The Conservation Commission seeks $19,000 for the restoration of the historic 1926 Stone Hill Bench. WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.  Seven petitioners seeking a total of $189,501 have submitted applications to the Community Preservation Committee for fiscal 2018, according to the town website on Sunday.

The deadline for FY18 applications passed on Dec. 17.

The total amount of money sought is about $19,500 above the CPC's stated target for distributions in the next fiscal year. The committee expects to have about $311,000 available from Community Preservation Act revenues, but it has decided to try to carry a $140,000 balance forward into the next fiscal year.

The seven requests before the committee are distributed among the three allowable uses under the act: open space/recreation, historic preservation and affordable housing.

The largest single "ask" falls under the historic preservation category. The Department of Public Works is seeking $46,000 toward the restoration of the stone wall at the entrance to Mount Hope Park.

The restoration of the 1920s stone wall is related to the 2015-16 reconstruction of the Mount Hope Bridge, which provides access to Hopper Road.

"Great care was taken during the design of the replacement bridge to replicate the appearance of the original structure to the maximum extent possible," according to the application submitted by DPW Director Tim Kaiser. "The bridge was finished with a beautiful cut stone veneer very reminiscent of the original structure and that of the stone wall that is the subject of this request.

"Unfortunately, restoration of the stone wall at the entry to the park was not eligible for funding under the Massachusetts Department of Transportation's Bridge Replacement program."

The total cost of the restoration is $50,000, of which Kaiser writes the town is contributing $4,000 from the DPW budget to do plans and administer the public bidding process.

Folllowing closely behind the DPW application is a $45,123 request from the Spruces Land Use Committee.

The town panel looking at how to convert the former mobile home park to a town amenity hopes to launch Phase One of the restoration in 2017.

According to the application, the total cost of the Phase 1 work is $86,523, of which the CPC is being asked to fund 54 percent.

"Fortunately, Andy Hogeland [of the Spruces committee] and [Guntlow & Associates'] Julie Sniezek talked to Tim Kaiser about what the DPW could possibly do of these things we need done on the property," Spruces Chairman Thomas Hyde told the Board of Selectmen. "We're looking at removing existing trees and stumps, removing existing roads and using that gravel elsewhere. About $38,000 of the initial cost could be done by town employees.

The CPC will renew all seven applications starting at its Jan. 4 meeting with an eye toward holding a second review on Jan. 17 and a final review and selection of the projects it recommends funding on Feb. 7. The final say on whether to allocate CPA funds is made at the May annual town meeting.

In May 2002, the town decided to add a 2 percent property tax surcharge as allowed under the CPA. The first $100,000 of property value is exempted from the surcharge. The money generated by the town's CPA tax is supplemented by a partial match from the commonwealth.

The breakdown of this year's applications by category (some projects claim applicability under two categories) is:

 Historic preservation: Williamstown Historical Museum ($7,700), Stone Hill Bench ($19,000), Mount Hope Farm Stone Wall ($46,000) and First Congregational Church ($8,608).

 Open space/recreation: Spruces Land Use Committee ($45,123), Stone Hill Bench, Sand Springs Pool ($38,070).

 Affordable housing: Affordable Housing Trust ($25,000).

The lone affordable housing project, submitted by the town trust, seeks $10,000 toward a pilot rental assistance program and $15,000 in general support for the AHT's programs, which include its DeMayo Mortgage Assistance Program and potential development costs associated with the trust's efforts to build housing on two lots it owns in town.

The Affordable Housing Trust application cites the potential of $10,000 in matching funds for the rental assistance program. In recent years, CPC members have strongly encouraged applicants to cite matching funds in their applications.

Five of the applications seek five-figure dollar amounts.

In addition to the Spruces, Mount Hope Farm's stone wall and Affordable Housing Trust, the Conservation Commission seeks $19,000 for the restoration of the historic Stone Hill Bench, also known as the Great Stone Seat. The bench was constructed in 1926 and is located on land under the care, custody and control of the Con Comm. The commission's application seeks the entire project's cost to be funded by the CPC.

The private non-profit Sand Springs Recreational Center Inc. seeks 90 percent of the cost of a $42,300 project to make the facility more compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The project would "create an outdoor entrance that is more accessible to those with disabilities" and build a walkway from the parking area directly to the pool.



First Congregational Church is seeking funds for foundation repairs. The two smallest applications on the CPC's agenda come from the Williamstown Historical Museum and First Congregational Church.

The latter seeks 67 percent of a $12,900 renovation project that includes repairs to the foundation of the historic Main Street (Route 2) Meetinghouse. The meeting house is part of the commonwealth's inventory of historic assets. The present meetinghouse, built in 1869, replaced the original structure that was erected in 1798.

The museum seeks 75 percent of a $10,310 project to preserve, conserve and display "historically valuable textiles," including the 19th century wedding dress of Louise Daley, who married local businessman Frederic A. Moore.

"These pieces, along with others chosen for treatment, are important artifacts that provide evidence of the interests and activities of our town's past residents," the museum's application reads. "Treatment goals range from freezing textiles to eradicate insects that may be present int he articles to cleaning, stabilization and mending."

The museum cites a contribution of more than $2,000 from its own coffers and $500 in private funding toward the project.
Berkshire Bank, based in Pittsfield, is being sued for allegedly wiring some $1.4 million out of a customer's account to scammers.

Berkshire Bank Sued After $1.4 Million Cyber Scam

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  A Florida-based art dealer is suing Berkshire Bank after a "personal banker" wired $1.4 million out of his account and into the hands of scammers.

The suit says the personal banker, an employee at Berkshire Bank, fell for a "spoofing" scam and made two wire transfers out of the account to Hong Kong without making an attempt to verify the authenticity of the email requests.

In a suit filed in U.S. District Court in Springfield, Jim Jacobs, who opened an account in the 1980s with Great Barrington Savings, which later merged into Berkshire Bank, says the bank failed to provide sufficient security, made the fraudulent transfers without contacting him, and then later refused to refund the loss. Jacobs is now looking for the money to be returned, plus interest and legal fees.

According to court documents, the bank provided Jacobs a personal banker as his account had grown substantially. The banker was responsible for helping the art dealer make financial transactions  and occasionally he'd make wire requests via email.

On Oct. 17, a scammer sent an email to the personal banker imitating Jacobs saying he was at a non-existent "International Contemporary Art Fair" and wanted $580,000 wired to a bank in Hong Kong. Hong Kong just a year earlier had been cited by the FBI as a common locale for banking scams. The complaint says Berkshire Bank made no attempt to contact Jacobs nor verify the veracity of the email any other way.

Instead, the personal banker went ahead with the transfer. The next day, the scammer followed up and asked for confirmation and an account balance total, which the banker allegedly provided via email.

Two days later, that transfer "bounced" back. The banker then resent the wire transfer  again without Jacob's knowledge, according to the complaint. In the following week, the banker received yet another email asking for $826,000 more to be sent to a different bank in Hong Kong. Jacobs alleges that again the banker sent the wire without attempting to verify the email or contacting Jacobs.

Jacobs' suit says he had not worked with either of the Hong Kong banks and it states that for the last 15 years or so there have been repeated warnings of an increasing number of these types of scams. Jacobs says the bank should have known about these scams and should have taken steps to prevent it.

On Oct. 25, Jacobs was informed by the banker of the wire transactions, to which he responded that he had not authorized them.

Jacobs says the bank denied any responsibility for the wires. According to the complaint, Berkshire Bank said the personal banker was representing Jacobs and not the bank at the time of the transfers even though the action was taken "while at her Berkshire Bank office, during Berkshire Bank working hours, using Berkshire Bank equipment, on Berkshire Bank time, and with Berkshire Bank's knowledge and authority."

Jacobs said the banker responded to his emails via the Berkshire Bank account and that part of her duties while employed at Berkshire Bank include facilitating his transfers.

Jacobs then says he was contacted by a Berkshire Bank supervisor who allegedly told him the bank would attempt to recover the funds, but only if he signed a letter which required Jacobs to "indemnify, defend and hold harmless, Berkshire Bank against any losses or costs that the bank might incur in connection with its effort to recover the stolen funds even if such losses were caused by the negligence, gross negligence, willful misconduct or bad faith of Berkshire Bank."

Jacobs claims he refused to sign such a document as he was "shocked" by the bank's "improper attempt to condition any effort to recover the funds on securing a waiver from Mr. Jacobs of rights against Berkshire Bank."

Instead, he handwrote a letter saying the wires had not come from him and asking for the bank to "immediately credit his account in the amount of the unauthorized wires."

Attorney Lucy Prashker of Cain, Hibbard & Myers PC filed the lawsuit on Dec. 19.

"Berkshire Bank, by failing to exercise the care of a reasonably prudent person in connection with the sending and resending of wires to Hong Kong without authenticating the transfer orders, breached its fiduciary duty owed Mr. Jacobs," the lawsuit reads.

Berkshire Bank Lawsuit by iBerkshires.com on Scribd
Shoppers mill about in Times Square. (Photo : Getty Images)

Despite the economic slowdown in China, the Internet sector is continuing to grow at an impressive rate. According to a study from eMarketer, a market research company, China's digital advertisement expenditure will reach $40.42 billion by the end of 2016. This is a 30-percent increase year-over-year, and the number is expected to double by 2020.



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The data indicates that the expenditure on TV and print advertisement is declining due to China's shift from traditional to digital media. TV advertisement expenditure only accounts for 24.2 percent of the total media ad spending in 2016.



Sheleen Shum, a forecast analyst at eMarketer, said: "This is driven by a growing share of young Internet-savvy consumers who are spending more than the older generation. The slower economic growth has also caused advertisers to look more closely at ad budgets, with some preferring to spend more on targeted digital formats."



An offline-to-online small company, Moxian Incorporated connects users to merchant clients online through various engaging ways. They provide users games to play, rewards as well as social events. In return, users provide them with valuable feedback, which will be used by merchant clients so that they can effectively promote products and services.



The small company just recently announced that they will be working with Xinhua News Agency to launch a game channel on Xinhua's mobile app.



The mobile app platform accumulated approximately 110 million downloads with 10 million daily active users.



Moxian is expected to benefit from the planned Game Channel through advertisement banner sales as well as revenue streams from game downloads.



Baidu Inc, China's largest Internet search company, provided a service for companies so that they can reach customers through search services, transaction services and the online video media service iQiyi.



There is also SINA.com, a Chinese online media company, that provides professional digital contents to users as well as online brand advertising and marketing solutions.



As the Intenet is ever more available to more people around the world, it is expected that there will be more companies in China that will engage internet-savvy consumers through online marketing and advertisting.


Starlings return to their roosts at Shapwick Heath, a wetland reserve, as the sun sets on February 1, 2012 near Glastonbury, England. (Photo : Getty Images/Matt Cardy)

Researchers track for the first time that trillions of high-flying insects pass across the skies of Southern England every year. They found out that around 3.5 trillion bugs and butterflies are migrating across the region yearly and this does not even get noticed by humans.



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The mass of these insects is equivalent to 20,000 reindeer, according to the study published in the journal Science. The scientists made this discovery possible by using a vertical radar and insect nets mounted on balloons. It took 10 years for these researchers to observe these insects flying night and day between 150 and 1200 above the ground.



In a statement obtained NPR, Jason Chapman, an entomologist at the University of Exeter, said that since England is rather cold and damp, the number of these insects would even exceed if the study is repeated elsewhere. He said, "If you were to repeat this study almost anywhere else, I guarantee that you would exceed those numbers."



The study on migrating insects hasn't really been the focus by other scientists who study migration. "The insects have really not been studied in the way that they should have been," Chapman says. What he's trying to point out is that this migration of the insects can either become a cause of a problem or it can also be beneficial.



One of the most interesting things the scientists found out was the small insects took off regardless of the direction but the medium and larger ones have shown a clear direction and pattern. Chapman noted, "The insects are basically measuring the wind direction and deciding whether or not to fly on that particular day or night."



Chapman explained that insects have a natural ability to identify north and south, as if they have their built in compass. They also have the capability to fly higher in the skies and assess the direction of the wind so that they can decide whether to fly or not. Another interesting discovery they found was that they can travel as fast as 36-58 kilometers per hour over 200 to 300 meter distances.



Here's a video clip about insect migration:






USS Wasp Completes Deployment, Ready for Japan

Atlantic Ocean - The amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1) completed the final portion of its first deployment in 12 years when it finished offloading the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), December 22.

While deployed, Wasp's crew completed a certification validation (CV) enabling the ship to forward deploy to Sasebo, Japan, next year. The rotation is the latest move in the Navy's ongoing Pacific rebalance.



"This crew did their jobs in amazing fashion during this deployment," said Wasp Commanding Officer Capt. Andrew Smith. "They often had to do deployment certification drills part of the day and fight ISIL the other. Not to mention, we simultaneously carried out the massive day-to-day operations that are required to run a deployed Navy warship."



CVs are designed to support deployment certification extensions when necessary. They include a comprehensive assessment of most mission areas to make sure a ship is ready to get underway quickly.



"We do certification validations on the rare occasion that a ship needs to get underway within a short time frame after deployment for events such as re-deployment," said Afloat Training Group (ATG) Tactical Mentor Lt. Cmdr. Michael Myers. "The fact that we completed CV testing phases while the ship was also doing real-world operations is unprecedented both for a ship and for ATG. We had to de-conflict with replenishments-at-sea, flight operations, and normal ship operations."



Areas tested during the CV included navigation, seamanship, communications, explosive safety, search-and-rescue plotting, engineering, and damage control.



"We went at least 14 weeks at a minimum of 14-20 hour days," said Master at Arms 1st Class Jeffery Martinez. "My crew is exhausted, but at the end of the day we passed, we got our recertification done. It required a lot of work and a lot of effort by my crew to get the job done and I'm very proud of them. Now it's time to go home and get some time off, some well-deserved liberty earned by everybody."



A large portion of the drills were completed while the crew was simultaneously carrying out Operation Odyssey Lightning (OOL). On Aug. 1 the 22nd MEU was ordered carry to out precision air strikes against ISIL targets in Sirte, Libya, in support of the Government of National Accord (GNA) forces fighting there.



Wasp was initially on station supporting OOL for 100 consecutive days before being relieved by the amphibious transport dock ship USS San Antonio (LPD 17), another ship in the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group (ARG).



"It's amazing to see what the American Sailor can do," said Wasp Command Master Chief Gregory Carlson. "I think it was amazing that we not only focused on combat operations but also focus on our own training repetition. Whether it was damage control, force protection, or the IT training done for radio, it's nice to go back to basics and make sure we can execute the core fundamentals of the ship."



On Dec. 6 GNA-aligned forces claimed liberation of the city.



"I'm very humbled by what we've been able to accomplish," Carlson continued. "I have an overwhelming sense of gratitude for what these Sailors and Marines have done."



Over the course of the 180-day deployment, Wasp transited more than 34,000 nautical miles, and logged more than 14,300 flight hours. The crew also took on more than 1,280 pallets of cargo during 18 replenishment-at-sea evolutions.



Additionally, Wasp, Amphibious Squadron Six (PHIBRON Six), and the 22nd MEU took part in Exercise African Sea Lion, a bi-lateral cooperation exercise with the Moroccan Royal Navy, and supported maritime security operations in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations.



Wasp was deployed as part of the Wasp ARG to both the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of operations. Commander, PHIBRON Six commands the Wasp ARG, which consists of San Antonio, Wasp, and amphibious dock landing ship USS Whidbey Island (LSD 41).
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Clean Bandit have claimed the coveted Christmas number one in the UK with their single 'Rockabye'.

The classical crossover trio fuses the genre with electronic and pop music notes, having formed while studying together at Cambridge University.

The track managed to beat off the likes of 'Human' by Rag N Bone Man, Little Mix's 'Touch', Louis Tomlinson's debut solo single 'Just Hold On' ft. Steve Aoki, and X Factor winner Matt Terry's 'When Christmas Comes Around'.

It also beat out a tribute to murdered Labour MP Jo Cox - a cover of the Rolling Stones' song 'You Can't Always Get What You Want' featuring David Gray, KT Tunstall and a cross-party group of MPs.

"To now be Christmas number one is mind-blowing," Clean Bandit told the Official Charts Company (via Reuters). "It's something we never imagined would happen with Rockabye when we were writing and recording it. Thanks to everyone who has made this happen."

The track, which also features Anne-Marie and Sean Paul, first entered the charts nine weeks ago; its lyrics dealing with the struggles of a single mother clearly striking a chord with the British public during the holiday season, though Christmas songs accounted for nearly one third of the week's top 100.



That includes all the traditional mainstays, with Mariah Carey's 'All I Want For Christmas Is You' and Wham's 'Last Christmas' both making an appearance in the Top 40.

On the album chart, Michael Ball and Alfie Boe's joint record Together won the top spot, ahead of Little Mix's Glory Days.
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The Berlin market attack suspect reportedly encouraged his 18-year-old nephew to kill his police officer uncle so he could prove his allegiance to Isis.

Anis Amri, 24, is believed by police to have driven a truck through a Christmas market in the German capital, killing 12 people and wounding 56. He was shot dead in Milan in a clash with police.

Before his death, he is alleged to have urged his teenage nephew Ferjan Fadi to kill so he could prove his allegiance to Isis. A police source told The Telegraph that the target was the police officer husband of one of Amris sisters.

Fadi was arrested in his hometown of Oueslatia, where Amri also hails from, this weekend. The impoverished community is around 100 miles south of the North African countrys capital, Tunis, where two other men believed to be connected to Amri, were also detained.

The three suspects were members of a "terrorist cell" that was "connected to the terrorist Anis Amri who carried out the terrorist attack in Berlin", according to a statement fromTunisia's Interior Ministry.

Amri appears to have recorded a video message pledging allegiance to Isis and vowing to take revenge on European "crusaders" for bombing Muslims, according to footage released by the Isis-affiliated Amaq agency.

In the video, a man claiming to be Amri says: "My message to crusaders bombing Muslims everyday... Their blood will not go in vain. We are a nation behind them and will take revenge for them.

Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Show all 18 1 /18 Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Several people have been killed after a lorry drove into crowds at a Christmas market in Berlin REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch Berlin Christmas market lorry attack 'At least nine' people have been killed and more than 50 injured. AP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Emergency Services rush a Berlin market victim to an ambulance Associated Press Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Police cordoned off the square at Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church following the incident REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Rescue workers inspect the lorry that crashed into a Christmas market close to the Kaiser Wilhelm memorial church in Berlin EPA Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Emergency crews inspect the lorry that ploughed into a Berlin Christmas market, killing at least nine people AFP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Fire crews attend the scene of the attack AFP/Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Armed police secure the site of a lorry attack at a Christmas market in Berlin REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Crushed debris is visible beneath the wheels of the vehicle REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack An injured man is pushed to an ambulance REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Medics attend an injured person after the lorry attack which killed at least nine and injured more than 50 people AFP/Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Firefighters examine the lorry which was rammed into a Berlin Christmas market REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack A person is carried into an ambulance REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack View of the lorry that crashed into a Christmas market in Berlin, killing at least nine and injuring at least 50 people AFP/Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Rescue workers push a person on a stretcher to an ambulance Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Firefighters assess the damage after the lorry rammed the Christmas market, killing 'at least nine', and injuring more than 50 people AP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Firefighters stand beside a toppled Christmas tree at the site of the suspected terrorist attack in a Berlin Christmas market AP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Damaged stalls at the scene of the incident at a Berlin Christmas market where at least nine people have been killed EPA

"I call on my Muslim brothers everywhere... Those in Europe, kill the crusader pigs, each person to their own ability.

Amris family have called for his remains to be sent to Oueslatia and asked authorities for details about his role in the attack.

But Tunisian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bouraoui Limam said that while he expected the body to be repatriated, it would "take a while" because Italian, German and Tunisian investigators needed to carry out examinations first.
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While George Michael shrank from the public eye towards the latter stages of his career, he could be famously frank about his own life and loves during interviews.

Here are some of his most famous quotes:

:: "Fame after Wham! drove me close to lunacy" - Reflecting on his career in 2014.

:: "I have a really serious problem with the fact that when I brought myself down, I felt I was letting young gay kids down. My behaviour meant these kids suffered abuse and the homophobic language that is legal in this country" - On the damage he fears his public disgraces have caused, 2011.

:: "I felt very re-energised after my recent troubles" - George Michael, who spent a month in prison in 2010 for drug-driving.

:: "I always receive more support abroad. It's a shame, but let's be honest, after almost 30 years I count myself lucky to get any support anywhere" - Disappointed that the BBC did not use his royal wedding anthem, although it was played during Norwegian television coverage of the wedding between William and Kate in 2011.

:: "I couldn't be involved in the cruel part" - Why he did not want to be an X Factor judge, 2011.

:: "I really don't think so. I've run out of ideas" - Promising there would be no further scandals on his forthcoming visit to the United States, 2008.

:: "I finally realised that one reason why my life has felt so self-destructive is that I never had any feeling that my talent would let me down" - Typically honest, in 2007

Notable deaths in 2016 Show all 42 1 /42 Notable deaths in 2016 Notable deaths in 2016 Debbie Reynolds was an American actress, singer, businesswoman, film historian, and humanitarian. She died on December 28 in Los Angeles Rex Notable deaths in 2016 Actress Carrie Fisher died on December 27 aged 60 Rex Notable deaths in 2016 Comedian and Actor Ricky Harris died on December 26 aged 54 Rex Notable deaths in 2016 British singer George Michael died on 25 December aged 53 Getty Notable deaths in 2016 Rick Parfitt OBE was an English musician, best known for being a singer, songwriter and rhythm guitarist in the rock band Status Quo. He died on December 24 in Marbella, Spain Rex Notable deaths in 2016 Lord Jenkin of Roding died at the age of 90 on the 21 December PA wire Notable deaths in 2016 Rabbi Lionel Blue died on the 19 December Rex Notable deaths in 2016 Zsa Zsa Gabor died on December 18 Getty Notable deaths in 2016 Leonard Cohen died on 7 November Getty Images Notable deaths in 2016 Grand secretary of the Orange Order Drew Nelson died on 10 October aged 60 after a short illness PA Notable deaths in 2016 Aaron Pryor, the relentless junior welterweight died Sunday, Oct. 9, at the age of 60 at his home in Cincinnati after a long battle with heart disease AP Notable deaths in 2016 Polish Director Andrzej Wajda died on October 9, aged 90 Reuters Notable deaths in 2016 Stylianos Pattakos has died following a stroke on 8th October. He was 103 years old. AP Notable deaths in 2016 Dickie Jeeps, was an English rugby union player who played for Northampton. He represented and captained both the England national rugby union team and the British Lions in the 1950s and 1960s. He died on 8th October. He was 84 Getty Notable deaths in 2016 Duke of Westminster Billionaire landowner the Duke of Westminster, Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor has died on 9 August, aged 64 Rex Features Notable deaths in 2016 Christina Knudsen Sir Roger Moores stepdaughter Christina Knudsen has died from cancer on 25 July at teh age of 47 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2016 Caroline Aherne The actress Caroline Aherne has died from cancer on 2 July at the age of 52 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2016 Christina Grimmie Christina Grimmie, 22, who was an American singer and songwriter, known for her participation in the NBC singing competition The Voice, was signing autographs at a concert venue in Orlando on 10 June when an assailant shot her. Grimmie was transported to a local hospital where she died from her wounds on 11 June Getty Notable deaths in 2016 Kimbo Slice Former UFC and Bellator MMA fighter Kimbo Slice died after being admitted to hospital in Florida on 6 June, aged 42 Getty Notable deaths in 2016 Muhammad Ali The three-time former heavyweight world champion died after being admitted to hospital with a respiratory illness on 3 June, aged 74 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2016 Sally Brampton Brampton who was the launch editor of the UK edition of Elle magazine has died on 10 May, aged 60 Grant Triplow/REX/Shutterstock Notable deaths in 2016 Billy Paul The soul singer Billy Paul, who was best known for his single Me and Mrs Jones, has died on 24 April, aged 81 Noel Vasquez/Getty Images Notable deaths in 2016 Prince Prince, the legendary musician, has been found dead at his Paisley Park recording studio on 21 April. He was 57 Notable deaths in 2016 Chyna WWE icon Joan Laurer dies aged 45 after being found at California home on 20 April Notable deaths in 2016 Victoria Wood The five-time Bafta-winning actress and comedian Victoria Wood has died on 20 April at her London home after a short illness with cancer. She was 62 Notable deaths in 2016 David Gest The entertainer and former husband of Liza Minnelli, David Gest has been found dead on 12 April in the Four Seasons hotel in Canary Warf, London. He was 62-years-old PA Notable deaths in 2016 Denise Robertson Denise Robertson, an agony aunt on This Morning for over 30 years, has died on 1 April, aged 83 Notable deaths in 2016 Zaha Hadid Dame Zaha Hadid, the prominent architect best known for designs such as the London Olympic Aquatic Centre and the Guangzhou Opera House, has died of a heart attack on 31 March, aged 65 2010 AFP Notable deaths in 2016 Ronnie Corbett British entertainer Ronnie Corbett has passed away on 31 March at the age of 85 2014 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2016 Imre Kertesz Hungarian writer and Holocaust survivor Imre Kertesz, who won the 2002 Nobel Literature Prize, has died on 31 March, at the age of 86 REUTERS Notable deaths in 2016 Rob Ford Rob Ford, the former controversial mayor of Toronto, has died following a battle with a rare form of cancer. The 46-year-old passed away at the Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto on 22 March Notable deaths in 2016 Joey Feek Joey (left) passed away in March after a two-year cancer illness. She was part of country music duo, Joey + Rory, with her husband Rory (right) Jason Merritt/Getty Images Notable deaths in 2016 Umberto Eco Italian writer and philosopher Umberto Eco died 19 February 2016 aged 84 EPA Notable deaths in 2016 Harper Lee Harper Lee, the American novelist known for writing 'To Kill a Mockingbird', died February 19, 2016 aged 89 2005 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2016 Vanity Vanity, pictured performing in 1983, died aged 57 REX Features Notable deaths in 2016 Dave Mirra The BMX legend's body found inside truck with gunshot wound after apparent suicide aged 41 Notable deaths in 2016 Harry Harpham The former miner became Sheffield Labour MP in May after many years as a local councillor. He died after succumbing to cancer, at the age of 61. Notable deaths in 2016 Dale Griffin The Mott the Hoople drummer died on January 17, aged 67 REX Notable deaths in 2016 Rene Angelil Celine Dion's husband and manager Rene Angelil has lost his battle with cancer on 14 January, aged 73 2011 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2016 Alan Rickman Legendary actor Alan Rickman has died on 14 January at the age of 69 after battle with pancreatic cancer. He is largely regarded as one of the most beloved British actors of our generation with roles in Love Actually, Die Hard, Michael Collins, and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and an illustrious stage career 2015 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2016 Maurice White The Earth, Wind & Fire founder died aged 74. The nine-piece band sold more than 90 million albums worldwide and won six Grammy awards Notable deaths in 2016 Lawrence Phillips Former NFL star found dead in prison cell on 13 January in suspected suicide, aged 40 AFP/Getty Images

:: "It helps if you have a beard as it covers a multitude of sins. It really does" - On his vanity, in 2004.

:: "It's about time I made a record for the boys, isn't it? I think there will be people dancing around their handbags to this one" - Describing his 2004 track Flawless, which he dedicated to homosexuals.

:: "The most horrific thing that happened was that I was photographed with my shirt off and I was fat. Can you imagine two worse things than being fat and gay?" - Discussing, in 2004, events after his arrest in a US public lavatory six years previously.

:: "As you become older, you become more selective. Most celebrities bore me to tears" - On celebrity culture and ageing, in 2004.

:: "Close up, my face is starting to resemble an Ordnance Survey map" - Self-deprecating in 1998.

:: "As some of you may know I have been over busy of late" - Apologising for the brevity of his 35-minute set at The Symphony of Hope show for Aids charities in 1993, having made several recent court appearances as part of his legal battle with recording company, Sony.

:: "I'm not too grand to sit around a table with the marketing people but I pay a manager to do that. You don't get respect that way" - On the music industry in 1993.

:: "Extraordinarily wealthy ... about three houses" - His response, when asked by a High Court judge to assess his assets during the same year.
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Pope Francis has paid tribute to Christians in the Middle East who have been persecuted by Islamist militants.

The pope praised those who had clung to their faith and said there are more Christian martyrs now than in the Church's early days.

He spoke to thousands of people in St Peter's Square for his holiday blessing on the feast of St Stephen, the first Christian martyr.

The Pontiff mentioned the persecution of Christians in Iraq, many of whom were able to spend their first Christmas since 2013 in churches, after towns and cities were retaken from Isis.

In pictures: The rise of Isis Show all 74 1 /74 In pictures: The rise of Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters of the Islamic State wave the group's flag from a damaged display of a government fighter jet following the battle for the Tabqa air base, in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from Islamic State group sit on their tank during a parade in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from the Islamic State group pray at the Tabqa air base after capturing it from the Syrian government in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from extremist Islamic State group parade in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping A video uploaded to social networks shows men in underwear being marched barefoot along a desert road before being allegedly executed by Isis Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping Haruna Yukawa after his capture by Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping Khalinda Sharaf Ajour, a Yazidi, says two of her daughters were captured by Isis militants Washington Post In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Spokesperson for Isis Vice News via Youtube In pictures: The rise of Isis A pro-Isis leaflet A pro-Isis leaflet handed out on Oxford Street In London Ghaffar Hussain In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Isis Jihadists burn their passports In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid A man collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid A woman collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid Local civilians queue for aid administered by Isis. Since it declared a caliphate the group has increasingly been delivering services such as healthcare, and distributing aid and free fuel In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces detain men suspected of being militants of the Isis group in Diyala province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Mourners carry the coffin of a Shi'ite volunteer from the brigades of peace, who joined the Iraqi army and was killed during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Samarra, during his funeral in Najaf In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi Shiite Turkmen family fleeing the violence in the Iraqi city of Tal Afar, west of Mosul, arrives at a refugee camp on the outskirts of Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi A photograph made from a video by the jihadist affiliated group Furqan Media via their twitter account allegedly showing Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivering a sermon during Friday prayers at a mosque in Mosul. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared an Islamist caliphate in the territory under the group's control in Iraq and Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq Smoke and debris go up in the air as Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul. Images posted online show that Islamic extremists have destroyed at least 10 ancient shrines and Shiite mosques in territory - the city of Mosul and the town of Tal Afar - they have seized in northern Iraq in recent weeks In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq A bulldozer destroys Sunni's Ahmed al-Rifai shrine and tomb in Mahlabiya district outside of Tal Afar In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces celebrate after clashes with followers of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi, in front of his home in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi at his home after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis A vehicle burns in front of a home of a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi woman holds her exhausted son as over 1000 Iraqis who have fled fighting in and around the city of Mosul and Tal Afar wait at a Kurdish checkpoint in the hopes of entering a temporary displacement camp in Khazair In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees Displaced Iraqi women hold pots as they queue to receive food during the first day of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, at an encampment for displaced Iraqis who fled from Mosul and other towns, in the Khazer area outside Irbil, north Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria A militant Islamist fighter waving a flag, cheers as he takes part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa. The fighters held the parade to celebrate their declaration of an Islamic "caliphate" after the group captured territory in neighbouring Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters wave flags as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province Reuters In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters travel in a vehicle as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Fighters from the Isis group during a parade with a missile in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from an al-Qaida splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Fighters from the Isis group during a parade in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from the splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters hold a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria A member loyal to the Isis waves an Isis flag in Raqqa In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi anti-government gunmen from Sunni tribes in the western Anbar province march during a protest in Ramadi, west of Baghdad. The United Nations warned that Iraq is at a "crossroads" and appealed for restraint, as a bloody four-day wave of violence killed 195 people. The violence is the deadliest so far linked to demonstrations that broke out in Sunni areas of the Shiite-majority country more than four months ago, raising fears of a return to all-out sectarian conflict In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces hold up a flag of the Isis group they captured during an operation to regain control of Dallah Abbas north of Baqouba, the capital of Iraq's Diyala province, 35 miles (60 kilometers) northeast of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq Isis fighters parade in the northern city of Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Volunteers, who have joined the Iraqi army to fight against the predominantly Sunni militants from the radical Isis group, demonstrate their skills during a graduation ceremony after completing their field training in Najaf In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Kurdish Peshmerga troops fire a cannon during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Jalawla, Diyala province In pictures: The rise of Isis Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference Iraqi Prime Minister's security spokesman, Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference about the latest military development in Iraq, in the capital Baghdad. Iraqi forces pressed a campaign to retake militant-held Tikrit, clashing with jihadist-led Sunni militants nearby and pounding positions inside the city with air strikes in their biggest counter-offensive so far In pictures: The rise of Isis A police station building destroyed by Isis fighters An exterior view of a police station building destroyed by gunmen in Mosul city, northern Iraq. Iraq's new parliament is expected to convene to start the process of setting up a new government, despite deepening political rifts and an ongoing Islamist-led insurgency. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani issued a decree inviting the new House of Representatives to meet and form a new government In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq Smoke billows from an area controlled by the Isis between the Iraqi towns of Naojul and Tuz Khurmatu, both located north of the capital Baghdad, as Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces take part in an operation to repel the Sunni militants In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An elderly Iraqi woman is helped into a temporary displacement camp for Iraqis caught-up in the fighting in and around the city of Mosul in Khazair In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi Christian woman fleeing the violence in the village of Qaraqush, about 30 kms east of the northern province of Nineveh, cries upon her arrival at a community center in the Kurdish city of Arbil in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi woman, who fled with her family from the northern city of Mosul, prays with a copy of the Quran AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq The body of an Isis militant killed during clashes with Iraqi security forces on the outskirts of the city of Samarra Reuters In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi civilians inspect the damage at a market after an air strike by the Iraqi army in central Mosul EPA In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Members of the Al-Abbas brigades, who volunteered to protect the Shiite Muslim holy sites in Karbala against Sunni militants fighting the Baghdad government, parade in the streets of the city AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Shia tribesmen gather in Baghdad to take up arms against Sunni insurgents marching on the capital. Thousands have volunteered to bolster defences AFP/Getty In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis A van carrying volunteers joining Iraqi security forces against Jihadist militants. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announced the Iraqi government would arm and equip civilians who volunteered to fight AFP/Getty In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters of the Isis group parade in a commandeered Iraqi security forces armored vehicle down a main road at the northern city of Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq An Islamist fighter, identified as Abu Muthanna al-Yemeni from Britain (R), speaks in this still image taken undated video shot at an unknown location and uploaded to a social media website. Five Islamist fighters identified as Australian and British nationals have called on Muslims to join the wars in Syria and Iraq, in the new video released by the Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Al-Qaida inspired militants stand with captured Iraqi Army Humvee at a checkpoint belonging to Iraqi Army outside Beiji refinery some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of Baghdad. The fighting at Beiji comes as Iraq has asked the U.S. for airstrikes targeting the militants from the Isis group. While U.S. President Barack Obama has not fully ruled out the possibility of launching airstrikes, such action is not imminent in part because intelligence agencies have been unable to identify clear targets on the ground, officials said In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants attacked Iraq's main oil refinein Baiji as they pressed an offensive that has seen them capture swathes of territory, a manager and a refinery employee said In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants from the Isis group parading with their weapons in the northern city of Baiji in the in Salaheddin province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq A smoke rises after an attack by Isis militants on the country's largest oil refinery in Beiji, some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad. Iraqi security forces battled insurgents targeting the country's main oil refinery and said they regained partial control of a city near the Syrian border, trying to blunt an offensive by Sunni militants who diplomats fear may have also seized some 100 foreign workers In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group stand next to captured vehicles left behind by Iraqi security forces at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province. For militant groups, the fight over public perception can be even more important than actual combat, turning military losses into propaganda victories and battlefield successes into powerful tools to build support for the cause In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq An injured fighter (C) from the Isis group after a battle with Iraqi soldiers at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis aiming at advancing Iraqi troops at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis group taking position at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis group inspecting vehicles of the Iraqi army after they were seized at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq One Iraqi captive, a corporal, is reluctant to say the slogan, and has to be shouted at repeatedly before he obeys Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Iraqi captives held by the extremists Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Iraqi captives held by the extremists Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group force captured Iraqi security forces members to the transport In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group transporting dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members to an unknown location in the Salaheddin province ahead of executing them In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq A major offensive spearheaded by Isis but also involving supporters of executed dictator Saddam Hussein has overrun all of one province and chunks of three others In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group executing dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis militants taking position at a Iraqi border post on the Syrian-Iraqi border between the Iraqi Nineveh province and the Syrian town of Al-Hasakah In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis rebels show their flag after seizing an army post AFP/Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis militants waving an Islamist flag after the seizure of an Iraqi army checkpoint in Salahuddin Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Demonstrators chant slogans as they carry al-Qaida flags in front of the provincial government headquarters in Mosul, 225 miles (360 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad. In the week since it captured Iraq's second-largest city, Mosul, a Muslim extremist group has tried to win over residents and has stopped short of widely enforcing its strict brand of Islamic law, residents say. Churches remain unharmed and street cleaners are back at work

"This was an example of fidelity to the Gospel," he said. "Despite trials and dangers, they courageously show that they belong to Christ," he said.

"Today, we want to think of them and be close to them with our affection, our prayers and even our tears," the pope added.

Christians in northern regions of Iraq held by Isis were given an ultimatum: pay a tax, convert to Islam, or die by the sword. Most of them fled to the autonomous Kurdish region to the east.

 Isis 'does not have the guts' to continue fight for Mosul, claims Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi

Leaders of various churches, including the Coptic Church in Egypt, whose members have been beheaded and churches bombed, have called the fact that Christians of all denominations were being killed in the Middle East an "ecumenism [unity] of blood."

"There are more Christian martyrs today than in the first centuries," the pope said.

He has often denounced Isis and condemned the concept of killing in God's name.

Additional reporting by Reuters
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Councils used listening devices, cameras and private detectives to spy on the public for more than 50,000 days over a five year period after receiving permission under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa).

Designed to fight terrorism and serious crime, Ripa is not supposed to be used for trivial purposes and should only be utilised if criminal activity was suspected.

But a freedom of information request issued by the Liberal Democrats, found 186 local authorities had used them for a range of things.

Allerdale borough council used Ripa to gather evidence on those guilty of feeding pigeons and Midlothian council used the Act to monitor dog barking, according to The Guardian, which broke the story.

However, Wolverhampton Council used covert surveillance to investigate the sale of dangerous toys and car clocking,

Permission was also granted to a number of councils to perform covert surveillance on benefit claimants. Tens of thousands of days were racked up doing this.

Lord Brian Paddick, the Liberal Democrat peer, said the new Investigatory Powers Act, which will take in Ripa powers, would restrict the ability of local authorities to monitor peoples communications but gives a number of government bodies mass surveillance powers.

It is absurd that local authorities are using measures primarily intended for combating terrorism for issues as trivial as a dog barking or the sale of theatre tickets. Spying on the public should be a last resort not an everyday tool, Lord Paddick told The Guardian.

As with any legislation, there is a significant risk that authorities will use powers in a way that parliament never intended, he added.

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Some councils were quick to defend their use of Ripa. Trading Standards' officers also claimed the powers had been used to secure convictions.

The Home Office said that permissions were only ever granted for such covert surveillance after a rigorous authorisation procedure and independent inspection.

Ripa powers are an important tool that local authorities can use to address the issues that affect many peoples lives, like consumer protection, environmental crime and benefit fraud," a spokesman said.
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Donald Trumps trade chief has urged Britains rivals to exploit the God-given opportunity of Brexit to take business away from the UK, it has been reported.

Wilbur Ross, the incoming US Commerce Secretary, said Britain was facing a "period of confusion" following the vote to leave the EU and that it was "inevitable" there would be "relocations", according to The Times.

Mr Ross was said to have made his comments to an audience of Cypriot financiers in the days following last June's referendum vote  before he had been appointed to Mr Trump's cabinet.

 Theresa May refuses to rule out making payments to the EU after Brexit

The billionaire businessman will be responsible for negotiating a free trade deal with the UK and his reported comments will raise concerns the incoming US administration will seek to exploit Britain's isolation following Brexit.

Recommended The year of President Trump will be much more dangerous

"I recommend that Cyprus should adopt and immediately announce even more liberal financial service policies than it already has so that it can try to take advantage of the inevitable relocations that will occur during the period of confusion," he is quoted as saying.

He is said to have added that the UK's withdrawal from the EU was a "God-given opportunity" for financial rivals of the City of London, naming Frankfurt and Dublin in particular

Labours Barry Gardiner, the Shadow International Trade Secretary, seized on the billionaires comments as evidence that future trade deals will not depend on goodwill from our partners, but on their shrewd political and economic calculations.

Mr Gardiner added: "Theresa May's government has failed to articulate a coherent vision of what kind of economy Brexit Britain will be. This makes us weak and vulnerable in the eyes of others."

But Lord King, former Governor of the Bank of England, said Britain should be more self-confident about its future prospects outside the EU. Mark Carneys predecessor acknowledged that while Brexit will bring great political difficulties he said there would also be many opportunities economically for the UK.

The crossbench peer - who led the Bank as Sir Mervyn King from 2003-13 - said the UK should leave the European single market and warned there were "real question marks" over whether it should seek to remain in the customs union, which might constrain its opportunities to forge new trade deals.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Lord King said it was too early to judge the economic impact of Brexit, despite data since the June 23 referendum being more positive than some economists had predicted.

He said: "I think the challenges we face mean it's not a bed of roses - no-one should pretend that - but equally it is not the end of the world and there are some real opportunities that arise from the fact of Brexit we might take.

"There are many opportunities and I think we should look at it in a much more self-confident way than either side is approaching it at present.

"Being out of what is a pretty unsuccessful European Union - particularly in the economic sense - gives us opportunities as well as obviously great political difficulties."
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At least 13 civilians, including an eight-year-old girl, were massacred in an ethnically charged attack in the easter Democratic Republic of Congo on Christmas Day.

The attack, understood to have targeted an Hutu village and perpetrated by an ethnic Nande militia, took place after another 22 civilians were killed in clashes on Saturday.

The weekend of violence stokes fears that the countrys current political instability is fuelling localised conflicts while leaving its security forces incapable of keeping order.

The Christmas Day massacre occurred in the eastern town of Nyanzale, and resulted in the deaths of the young girl, a man and 11 women, local activists said.

Innocent Gasigwa told Reuters men from a Nande militia entered the town armed with guns and machetes, in an apparent revenge attack for the deaths of Nande civilians last week.

On Thursday, at least 17 Nande civilians were killed by an ethnic Hutu militia in a nearby village.

A demonstrator holds a sign reading 'Kabila must leave without any conditions' during a protest against plans of Democratic Republic of Congo's President Joseph Kabila to stay in office past the end of his term (Reuters)

This must be the response for last time, Gasigwa said.

Local army spokesman Major Guillaume Djike confirmed to the AFP news that all the victims of the Christmas Day attack were Hutu, but refused to say whether the two attacks were linked. He said six members of the Nande militia were killed, adding: The army intervened to restore order.

Saturdays attack occurred some 300km (185 miles) north of Nyanzale, near the city of Beni which has been plagued by violence since October 2014.

Captain Mak Hazukay said 21 civilians and four militiamen died in this weekends clashes, for which the authorities blamed the ADF, a Ugandan Islamist group.

Last week at least 40 people died in protests against President Joseph Kabilas refusal to step down at the end of his constitutional mandate last Tuesday. The government says he will remain in office until an election can be organised in 2018.

Local mediators from the Catholic church hope talks between Kabila's ruling coalition and the main opposition bloc will produce a deal by Friday for Kabila to step down after an election in late 2017.

Catholic priests across Congo on Sunday read out a message from the church's national head, Cardinal Laurent Monsengwo, saying: "The time is over when one tried to hold onto power with arms by killing one's people, these young people who only seek out their right to live with a little more dignity."

African and Western powers fear the violence could spark another conflict in a country where millions died between 1996 and 2003 in regional wars. The central African country has not achieved a peaceful transfer of power since independence in 1960.

Additional reporting by agencies
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A Christmas message issued by the organising body of the Republican party sparked controversy on Sunday night after some said it compared the election of Donald Trump to the birth of Jesus Christ.

The statement was released by the Republican National Committees co-chairs Reince Priebus, who has been named as Mr Trumps chief of staff, and Sharon Day, who is also set to join the new administration.

And its reference to a new king, though ambiguous, has provoked outrage among left-leaning commentators and Twitter users.

The message reads: Merry Christmas to all! Over two millennia ago, a new hope was born into the world, a Savior who would offer the promise of salvation to all mankind.

Just as the three wise men did on that night, this Christmas heralds a time to celebrate the good news of a new King.

Political journalists and even an aide to Republican John Kasich, John Weaver, were among the first to spot the apparent connection being made between Jesus and the President-elect.

The RNCs spokesman Sean Spicer lashed out at those who even questioned whether there was a link, calling a BuzzFeed News article about the statement and subsequent reaction an attack on Christ.

Mr Spicer, who has been named as Mr Trumps White House press secretary, told CNN simply: Christ is the King in the Christian faith.

But he was more effusive on Twitter, tweeting in response to one journalist who commented on the RNC statement: Christ is the King. He was born today so we could be saved. Its sad & disappointing you are politicizing such a holy day.

On this holy day of Christmas @CNN @greggbirnbaum mock @gop 4 acknowledging that Christ is the King of Christians, he wrote in another.

And to MSNBC and Business Insiders Josh Barro, who wrote it was great that both sides of the argument could pretend to be outraged, Mr Spicer said: No Josh, there is nothing great about this. Today Christians celebrate the birth of our Savior & the idea u don't the recognize this is sad.

BuzzFeed News also published Reince Priebuss Christmas statement from last year for comparison, noting that it included no references to this Christmas or the good news of a new King.

The equivalent paragraph read: Each Christmas brings a chance to rejoice at the humble birth of the Child who brings a new hope. Over two thousand years ago in Bethlehem a Savior was born whose message is love and peace. As we gather with friends and loved ones, I want to wish a very Merry Christmas to all those who are celebrating.

The RNCs 2016 statement follows with a message urging people to remember those among us who are less fortunate, and be mindful of our men and women in uniform.
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Newt Gringrich has admitted Donald Trump does not yet have a plan to defeat Isis - despite the President-elect boasting that he would defeat the terror group very, very quickly.

The former Republican House Speaker, who informally advises Trump, said he did not think they had a strategy but was confident that they know, which is important, is that they are gonna need a strategy.

Despite this, Mr Gingrich told Fox News he was confident that Mr Trumps security advisory team - which includes several retired generals - would come up with an aggressive action plan.

He said: They are going to be able to produce a very aggressive strategy. They have a much better grip on reality than the Obama administration did.

This is a markedly different tone from the confident bluster of the campaign trail where Mr Trump said Isis' days are numbered but refused to divulge his plan for fear of the terror group hearing about it.

In April, the former reality star said: If I am elected President, Isis will be gone and they will be gone quickly. Very, very quickly.

I wont tell them where and I wont tell them how. We must as a nation be more unpredictable.

 Donald Trump reacts to Berlin attack

Containing the spread of radical Islam must be a major foreign policy goal of the United States and indeed the world.

Mr Gingrich said one of the ways Mr Trump could fight back against extremism would be to suspend civil liberties - which he claims Abraham Lincoln did during to the American Civil War.

He said: People should go back and look at how Lincoln dealt with Southern sympathisers during the Civil War.

We passed a Sedition Act for example, which changed our ability to control people who were advocating treason.

Donald Trump's most controversial quotes Show all 14 1 /14 Donald Trump's most controversial quotes Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Isis: "Some of the candidates, they went in and didnt know the air conditioner didnt work and sweated like dogs, and they didnt know the room was too big because they didnt have anybody there. How are they going to beat ISIS?" Getty Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On immigration: "I will build a great wall  and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me and Ill build them very inexpensively. I will build a great, great wall on our southern border, and I will make Mexico pay for that wall. Mark my words." Reuters Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Free Trade: "Free trade is terrible. Free trade can be wonderful if you have smart people. But we have stupid people." PAUL J. RICHARDS | AFP | Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Mexicans: "When Mexico sends its people, theyre not sending their best. Theyre sending people that have lots of problems. Theyre bringing drugs. Theyre bringing crime. Theyre rapists." Getty Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On China: "I just sold an apartment for $15 million to somebody from China. Am I supposed to dislike them?... I love China. The biggest bank in the world is from China. You know where their United States headquarters is located? In this building, in Trump Tower." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On work: "If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable." AP Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On success: "What separates the winners from the losers is how a person reacts to each new twist of fate." Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On life: "Everything in life is luck." AFP Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On ambition: "You have to think anyway, so why not think big?" Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On his opponents: "Bush is totally in favour of Common Core. I don't see how he can possibly get the nomination. He's weak on immigration. He's in favour of Common Core. How the hell can you vote for this guy? You just can't do it." Reuters Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Obamacare: "You have to be hit by a tractor, literally, a tractor, to use it, because the deductibles are so high. It's virtually useless. And remember the $5 billion web site?... I have so many web sites, I have them all over the place. I hire people, they do a web site. It costs me $3." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Barack Obama: "Obama is going to be out playing golf. He might be on one of my courses. I would invite him. I have the best courses in the world. I have one right next to the White House." PA Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On himself: "Love him or hate him, Trump is a man who is certain about what he wants and sets out to get it, no holds barred. Women find his power almost as much of a turn-on as his money." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On America: "The American Dream is dead. But if I get elected president I will bring it back bigger and better and stronger than ever before and we will make America great again." GETTY

Historians say Lincoln did not pass a specific law tackling dissent but he did suspend several First Amendment freedoms such as Habeas Corpus - the right to a speedy trial.

Mr Gingrichs suggestion comes as it emerged Mr Trump was still keen to establish a registry of all 3.3m Muslim people in the US because the Berlin terror attack proved he was 100 per cent correct.

Following his victory in the Electoral College last month, the Muslim registry was one of several outlandish pledges - including the infamous wall on the Mexican border - he appeared to have backtracked on.

But after an attack where Anis Amri ploughed a stolen lorry into the crowd at a Christmas market in west Berlin, killing 12 people, Mr Trump renewed his registry pledge saying: Its an attack on humanity and its got to be stopped.

It is still unclear how Mr Trump will be able to put this idea into practice without violating the US Constitution but the Council on American-Islamic Relations reported at least 900 hate crime incidents against Muslims in the weeks after the election.

These have included everything from mosques being vandalised and set on fire to Muslims being beaten, shot and stabbed in the street.
Smoke billows from a steel plant in Inner Mongolia. (Photo : Getty Images)

The demand for industrial metals is expected to surge next year, with China maintaining its role in defining the prices, an article by the Australian Financial Review said.



Advertisement

According to the report, the U-turn in China's economic policy last year has brought changes to the industrial metal sector, exceeded expectations, and affected the price of precious metals.



Next year, it is expected that the country will bring more surprises to the sector.



At the same period last year, copper was traded in London at $4500 per ton, the lowest level since the global financial crisis of 2008-2009 while iron ore also dropped below $40 per ton for the first time.



China said that the "supercycle" has ended to give way to fixed asset investment, which would become the "new normal" to be determined by consumers rather than the construction business.



But the country changed its policy and reverted to its so-called "old normal," where government poured in money to traditional investments in construction and property development.



By February, investment in real estate, which had been slowing for two years, picked up and reversed the trend.



At about the same time in March, the metals index at the London Metal Exchange bottomed out as iron ore traded at above $60 per ton.



At the local iron ore and steel futures markets, retail Chinese investors entered, inflating the volume and raising the prices of both iron ore and steel.



In March, the price of spot iron ore climbed by about 20 percent to $62.60, the first time in response to local exchange prices.



Although Chinese authorities raised the margins and trading fees to drive them, retail investors continued with their call. Currently, the iron ore price is traded at $80 per ton.



On base metals, retail investors made a similar call in the past eight months. Last month, the volume of aluminum traded an all-time high record on the Shanghai futures Exchange (ShFE). The second highest on record were zinc volumes and tin.



In November, more than 10 million tons of base metals were traded, which equal almost the entire world market's annual tonnage. All metals have also recorded sharp price increases. But again, Chinese authorities raised the margins and trading fees to limit the retailers.



Members of the ShFE were also cautioned to be "well prepared for risk prevention" as well as to "remind investors to prudentially judge information from the market and make rational investment."



The report said that the price of metal, which was once driven by Chinese fundamentals, is now shaped by both fundamentals and funds.



However, the effects of China's policy on providing stimulus to real property sector resulted in property bubbles in top cities.



But the government is now working to control its effects, the report said.



A statement issued by top policymakers at the end of the Central Economic Work Conference thus read: "Houses are for people to live in, not for people to speculate."



The government's campaign to curb air pollution caused by its huge industrial production sector is also seen as a new potential driver for metals prices.



Last week, authorities asked 23 cities in northern China to issue red alerts as inspection teams scoured the country, closing and giving remedial actions to pollution offenders.



The government's self-declared "war on pollution" may have unpredictable results for the metals production sector of the country, which remains to be seen in the next year.


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A former male Versace employee is suing his former company for allegedly firing him after his manager realized he was black.

TMZ reports that the unnamed complainant recently filed a racial discrimination lawsuit that accuses his manager of giving him a code for black shoppers who entered the high-end retail outlet in San Francisco.

Apparently, whenever black customers walked into the store, co-workers would relay a message that a D410 has entered the store. D410 is the color code for black shirts at Versace.

When the complainant became aware of the practice, he responded to his manager by saying, You know that Im African-American?

Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn Show all 15 1 /15 Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 20: People participate in an anti-hate rally at a Brooklyn park named in memory of Beastie Boys band member Adam Yauch after it was defaced with swastikas on November 20, 2016 in New York City. On Friday, the park and playground was spray painted with swastikas and the message "Go Trump". Hundreds of people, many with their children, listened to community leaders and Beastie Boys member Adam Horovitz condemn racism and intolerance. Following the election of Donald Trump as president, there has been a surge of incidents of racist activities reported. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 20: People participate in an anti-hate rally at a Brooklyn park named in memory of Beastie Boys band member Adam Yauch after it was defaced with swastikas on November 20, 2016 in New York City. On Friday, the park and playground was spray painted with swastikas and the message "Go Trump". Hundreds of people, many with their children, listened to community leaders and Beastie Boys member Adam Horovitz condemn racism and intolerance. Following the election of Donald Trump as president, there has been a surge of incidents of racist activities reported. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 20: People participate in an anti-hate rally at a Brooklyn park named in memory of Beastie Boys band member Adam Yauch after it was defaced with swastikas on November 20, 2016 in New York City. On Friday, the park and playground was spray painted with swastikas and the message "Go Trump". Hundreds of people, many with their children, listened to community leaders and Beastie Boys member Adam Horovitz condemn racism and intolerance. Following the election of Donald Trump as president, there has been a surge of incidents of racist activities reported. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 20: People participate in an anti-hate rally at a Brooklyn park named in memory of Beastie Boys band member Adam Yauch after it was defaced with swastikas on November 20, 2016 in New York City. On Friday, the park and playground was spray painted with swastikas and the message "Go Trump". Hundreds of people, many with their children, listened to community leaders and Beastie Boys member Adam Horovitz condemn racism and intolerance. Following the election of Donald Trump as president, there has been a surge of incidents of racist activities reported. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 20: Children play on playground equipment that was defaced with swastikas during an anti-hate rally at a Brooklyn park named in memory of Beastie Boys band member Adam Yauch on November 20, 2016 in New York City. On Friday, the park and playground was spray painted with swastikas and the message AGo Trump.A Hundreds of people, many with their children, listened to community leaders and Beastie Boys member Adam Horovitz condemn racism and intolerance. Following the election of Donald Trump as president, there has been a surge of incidents of racist activities reported. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 20: Beastie Boys member Adam Horovitz speaks at a anti-hate rally at a Brooklyn park named in memory of Beastie Boys band member Adam Yauch after it was defaced with swastikas on November 20, 2016 in New York City. On Friday, the park and playground was spray painted with swastikas and the message AGo Trump.A Hundreds of people, many with their children, listened to community leaders and condemn racism and intolerance. Following the election of Donald Trump as president, there has been a surge of incidents of racist activities reported. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 20: A piece of playground equipment that was defaced with swastikas stands during an anti-hate rally at a Brooklyn park named in memory of Beastie Boys band member Adam Yauch on November 20, 2016 in New York City. On Friday, the park and playground was spray painted with swastikas and the message AGo Trump.A Hundreds of people, many with their children, listened to community leaders and Beastie Boys member Adam Horovitz condemn racism and intolerance. Following the election of Donald Trump as president, there has been a surge of incidents of racist activities reported. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn A woamn takes a photo of messages and flowers left at a playground before a protest against racism and hate after swastikas were found in Adam Yauch Park in Brooklyn, New York on November 20, 2016. / AFP / ANGELA WEISS (Photo credit should read ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images) AFP/Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn Activists protest racism and hate after swastikas were found in Adam Yauch Park in Brooklyn, New York on November 20, 2016. / AFP / ANGELA WEISS (Photo credit should read ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images) AFP/Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn Activists protest racism and hate after swastikas were found in Adam Yauch Park in Brooklyn, New York on November 20, 2016. / AFP / ANGELA WEISS (Photo credit should read ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images) AFP/Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn Activists protest racism and hate after swastikas were found in Adam Yauch Park in Brooklyn, New York on November 20, 2016. / AFP / ANGELA WEISS (Photo credit should read ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images) AFP/Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn New York State Senator Daniel Squadron speaks as activists protest racism and hate after swastikas found in Adam Yauch Park in Brooklyn, New York on November 20, 2016. The two remaining members of the Beastie Boys called for an anti-hate rally at the park in memory of band member Adam Yauch after it was defaced with swastikas. / AFP / ANGELA WEISS (Photo credit should read ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images) AFP/Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn Flowers left by activists at the entrance to Adam Yauch Park in Brooklyn, New York on November 20, 2016 after swastikas were found in the park. The two remaining members of the Beastie Boys called for an anti-hate rally at the park in memory of band member Adam Yauch after it was defaced with swastikas. / AFP / ANGELA WEISS (Photo credit should read ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images) AFP/Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn Messages and flowers left by activists at a playground protesting racism and hate after swastikas were found in Adam Yauch Park in Brooklyn, New York on November 20, 2016. The two remaining members of the Beastie Boys called for an anti-hate rally at the park in memory of band member Adam Yauch after it was defaced with swastikas. / AFP / ANGELA WEISS (Photo credit should read ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images) AFP/Getty Images Activists Protest Racism And Hate In Brooklyn Activists protest Racism and Hate after swastikas found in Adam Yauch Park in Brooklyn, New York on November 20, 2016. The two remaining members of the Beastie Boys called for an anti-hate rally at the park in memory of band member Adam Yauch after it was defaced with swastikas. / AFP / ANGELA WEISS (Photo credit should read ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images) AFP/Getty Images

According to the lawsuit, the manager was shocked, refused to give the employee rest breaks, and fired him after two weeks on the job. He said the managers reason for terminating his employment was that he hadnt lived the luxury life.

Now, the complainant is seeking unpaid wages and an unspecified amount of damages. Versace has denied all the allegations and is seeking a dismissal of the lawsuit.
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Mexicos plague of drug-gang related violence showed no sign of let-up on Christmas Day  in the western state of Michoacan six severed human heads were found.

According to authorities, they were discovered in Jiquilpan, a municipality near the state of Jalisco  a region that has become a battleground for competing drug gangs in recent years.

The six men are yet to be identified and their bodies have not been found.

Though a particularly grim discovery, authorities regularly find dismembered body parts across Mexicos more violent states, as cartels bury their victims in hidden graves.

In the southern state of Guerrero, seven people were massacred as they gathered to celebrate Christmas in the municipality of Atoyac de Alvarez.

Gunmen entered a house and shot dead five men from the same family  three brothers, their father and their uncle. A married couple who had been invited to lunch with the family were also killed.

State security spokesman Roberto Alvarez Heredia said two of the seven killed were municipal police officers and one a state police officer. Initial reports suggested the gunmen had wanted to kill one person in a revenge attack but ended up killing seven people.

In Chihuahua state, authorities said nine people were killed during Christmas Day violence, according to AFP. Five of those were in Ciudad Juarez, including three women who showed signs of having been tortured.

While much of Mexicos drug violence goes unreported, official data say more than 170,000 people have been killed and 28,000 reported missing since 2006.
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Hundreds of refugees have returned to live in secret camps in the Calais region in the hope of travelling to the UK, The Independent can reveal, just weeks after the demolition of the 'Jungle' shantytown.

There are at least six informal settlements in rural parts of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region, each housing scores of refugees and migrants, with numbers growing steadily in recent weeks.

It comes two months after the closure of the Jungle, which was intended to bring an end to the refugee situation in Calais by destroying the camp and dispersing its residents to reception centres (CAOs) across France  an operation the authorities hailed as a success.

 Calais 'Jungle' exodus: Charity boss likens refugee treatment to Nazi persecution

However, scores of refugees and migrants who were taken on buses to CAO centres have now started making the journey back to the north of France.

Many of them are children whose asylum claims were rejected by the Home Office earlier this month, and have decided to make their own way to the UK after experiencing poor living conditions in the French centres.

One so-called secret camp lies on the edge of a small French village called Norrent-Fontes, around 30 kilometres from the port of Calais.

Around 130 refugees currently live in the camp, which has existed since 2008, but the numbers have been rapidly growing in recent weeks, as refugees  particularly minors  have begun leaving the reception centres.

A camp in Norrent-Fontes has become home to more than 120 refugees (Sue Clayton)

Julien Muller, volunteer for a small French charity called Terre dErrance which supplies aid at the Norrent-Fontes camp, told The Independent: There are more and more people coming back. This week there has been several dozen people arrive. I suppose it will grow more in the coming months.

With the UK Government closing down its transfers of underage refugees to the UK, there have been a lot of minors coming back.

"There are people who are clearly underage and clearly have family in the UK, but they have been told that now its closed. Now they're coming back to try make their own way.

Recommended Human rights lawyers blocked from entering Jungle during demolition

Adults are also coming back from centres in bigger numbers. Some wanted to stay in France, but they have been waiting for two months and they havent even been given the opportunity to apply for asylum. They've given up.

Mr Muller said the camp was one of six dotted around the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region.

Sue Clayton, a refugee advocate and professor at Goldsmith's University, discovered the hidden camp earlier this month.

Describing it as a mini-Jungle, she said the conditions were dire and that residents of the informal settlement appeared to be afraid to accept aid for fear of drawing attention to themselves.

Professor Clayton said: Its a little pocket of woods up a very narrow, single-track lane. You see it through the trees and it's like a mini-Jungle.

"The shelters are put together with various bits of wood and tarpaulin  whatever they can grab. There is no support there. Theyve divided themselves up so theres a mens section and a women and childrens section.

The authorities will find that more and more of these secret camps will pop up because these people are getting increasingly frustrated.

"Many have made the long journey from the centres back to the Calais area which is familiar to them, like a home  or as near to a home as they can make it.

She said the camp is about two kilometres from a lay-by on the highway that leads up to the port of Calais, where lorry drivers often make their last stop before crossing, potentially making it a trafficker's paradise.

The inhabitants of the new camp can walk across a couple of fields and there is a lay-by where trucks park overnight  the last stop before they go through the port, she said.

Its where the deals are done, well away from the port. Its a traffickers paradise. Everyone around this new camp is vulnerable to them.

Recommended Refugee children in France have started turning back to Calais

Shahajhan Khan, a 15-year-old refugee from Pakistan who has been living in one of the centres designated for children (CAOMIE) in Anemasse, a town on the French-Swiss border, along with 19 other child refugees, said he and his friends were planning to leave the centre and return to Calais.

The teenager was recently informed that he and most of his friends had been rejected by the Home Office, and said they now had no other option but to return to Calais in the hope of another Jungle.

He added that they were living like donkeys in the centre, and provided The Independent with footage of their warehouse-like sleeping area, and photographs of a meal of bread and yoghurt.

They promised us they would take us to the UK but said we had to be patient. At this centre they treat us like donkeys," Shahajhan said.

"We are living in a factory and we are eating expired bread. We have waited in these factories without eating properly and now they are saying we can't go. It means we must go back to Calais.

Young refugees in a CAO in Annemasse eating yoghurt and bread they were forced to buy because they say the food supplied was inadequate ( Shahajhan Khan) (Shahjahan Khan)

If they werent going to take us they should have told us clearly. We left the Jungle on the condition that we would go to the UK. We accepted these conditions just to go to the UK, and now they are saying we have to give up.

I hope you will see another Jungle soon.

The Nord-Pas-de-Calais prefecture rejected reports that there are six informal settlements in the region, and denied there had been an increase in numbers of refugees.

Calais and Dunkirk camps Show all 16 1 /16 Calais and Dunkirk camps Calais and Dunkirk camps (Photo: Alan Schaller) Calais and Dunkirk camps A portrait of an Afghan man wearing a traditional Perhan Turban in the Calais Jungle (Photo: Emily Garthwaite) Calais and Dunkirk camps Two Gendarmes guard the main entrance to the Dunkirk camp (Photo: Emily Garthwaite) Calais and Dunkirk camps One Kurdish Iraqi mans reminder to himself (Photo: Alan Schaller) Calais and Dunkirk camps Two young boys in the Dunkirk camp (Photo: Alan Schaller) Calais and Dunkirk camps An Iranian hunger striker stands outside the only remaining shelter in the South Side of the Calais camp (Photo: Emily Garthwaite) Calais and Dunkirk camps A church in the South Calais camp, on of the the only structures not demolished in the South Side of the camp (Photo: Emily Garthwaite) Calais and Dunkirk camps A man gets a hair cut in the Calais camp (Photo: Alan Schaller) Calais and Dunkirk camps Night falls on the Calais Jungle. Fires burn in the distance (Photo: Alan Schaller) Calais and Dunkirk camps The containers provided as alternative accommodation for the people in the camps (Photo: Alan Schaller) Calais and Dunkirk camps A young boy in the Dunkirk camp (Photo: Alan Schaller) Calais and Dunkirk camps A man listens to music inside one of the shipping containers (Photo: Emily Garthwaite) Calais and Dunkirk camps The awful living conditions in the Dunkirk camp (Photo: Alan Schaller) Calais and Dunkirk camps An Afghan man in the Calais camp (Photo: Emily Garthwaite) Calais and Dunkirk camps One of the Iranian hunger strikers (Photo: Alan Schaller) Calais and Dunkirk camps A family in their wooden shelter in the new Dunkirk camp (Photo: Alan Schaller)

A spokesperson said: The migrants in the small camps of the Department of the Pas-de-Calais (three in total) are regularly recorded and we have not observed an increase.

Since the dismantling of the Jungle, no new camp has been established in Calais. State Services remain vigilant: the Mobile Coquelles Research Brigade, which was tasked with combating smugglers, was strengthened in September 2016 and police reinforcements are still being mobilised today.

Nonetheless, we observe that migrants continue to be present. Around 200 migrants each week are discovered in heavy goods vehicles during cross-channel controls.

When migrants are found hidden in heavy goods vehicles during cross-channel checks, the states response is firm. If it is confirmed that migrants are illegally in national territory, they are placed in detention."

A long-time volunteer for refugee charity Calais Migrant Solidarity, who didn't want to be named, predicted that refugees would continue to return in growing numbers.

Migrants used to stay inside the town, but now with the police checks everywhere when they arrive in Calais they quickly go into hiding," he said.

"Their plan might be to stay away from the police-controlled areas for now. They will keep quiet and stay in hidden places for a few months and then after the situation will change again, because there will be more and more people coming.

The secret camp is situated in the countryside, far out from the heavily policed Calais town (Sue Clayton)

The state [the government] claimed the demolition was a success, but the people of Calais know that the people will keep coming.

"Until there is a structure to welcome people and give them a right to stay, they will occupy places here.

The reality is that Calais is a border town. Its a reality that French politics doesnt want to see anymore, but it will come again.
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Western security officials are warning the Isis terror group may be trying to manipulate refugees into carrying out terrorist attacks.

There are also fears Isis will sneak in trained fighters among the mass movements of people fleeing war, hunger and extreme poverty.

Frontex, the European border and coast guard agency, stressed the need for the continent to be ready for the potential dangers.

Some people might get radicalised or manipulated or used or utilised by terrorist groups after they enter the EU, Fabrice Leggeri, executive director of Frontex, said, according to Voa News.

This is something where I don't have clear indications."

A report from Europol, the EU law enforcement agency, noted the vulnerability of refugees to radicalisation.

Given that it is in the interests of IS [Isis] to inflame the migration crisis to polarise the EU population and turn sections of it against those seeking asylum, some infiltration of refugee camps and other refugee/migrant groups is likely, the report said.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

Europol said as of April 2016 there have been approximately 300 cases in which jihadists tried to recruit refugees entering Europe.

Isis just wants to give itself options, Robin Simcox, a terrorism and national security analyst with the Heritage Foundation think tank, said.

It chimes perfectly with what Isis would want to do. It enables them to extend their foreign operations.
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Almost 3,000 people have been evacuated from three major train stations in Moscow after security officers received an anonymous bomb threat.

Passengers in the Russian capital were moved to safety as specialist bomb squads moved in to secure the area, Russian media reported.

Police with sniffer dogs were deployed in the Kazansky, Leningradsky and Yaroslavsky railways stations, which are located on the same square in the north-east of the city.

Eyewitnesses said fire and rescue units as well as ambulances services were attending the scene, although nobody has been reported injured.

According to Reuters, Russian police said they had found no evidence of explosives in the area as of Monday lunchtime.

A source told Russias RIA radio channel: Phone calls warning of bombs at the Kazansky and Leningradsky railway stations prompted evacuations of a thousand people from each site.

Further 750 people were evacuated from the Yaroslavsky station. We are waiting for explosive-sniffing dogs.
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Terrorism was likely not the cause of the Black Sea plane crash involving a Russian military jet carrying 92 people on Sunday morning, the countrys transport ministry has said.

As Russia began a day of mourning on Monday, minister Maxim Sokolov said more than 3,000 rescue workers were involved in a huge search of the crash site, but that no survivors had been found.

Either a pilot error or a technical fault on board the Tu-154 mid-range military airliner were described as the most likely causes for the crash, which occurred just two minutes after the plane took off from the resort city of Sochi.

More details have started to emerge about the 84 passengers and eight crew feared dead as a result of the disaster, 68 of whom were believed to be members of the world-renowned Alexandrov Ensemble, the official choir of the Russian Armed Forces.

On Sunday night it was confirmed that those killed also included the revered Russian humanitarian Elizaveta Glinka, better known simply as Dr Liza, who was accompanying the choir to deliver medical supplies to a hospital in Latakia, Syria.

Ms Glinka, 54, was head of the Fair Help charity and best known for her work in eastern Ukraine, where she oversaw efforts to extract sick and injured children from the war zone.

According to RT there was some initial confusion over her fate, with some media outlets reporting that she had failed to board the flight after a security check.

But her death was later confirmed by her charity and the defence ministry.

Mikhail Fedotov, head of the Presidential human rights council, revealed that he too had been due to fly on the doomed airliner alongside Ms Glinka, but that he was ultimately barred from doing so.

This is horrible news, he told Interfax. I dont want to believe it I cant believe shes no more.

I knew she was flying, Moreover, we were intending to fly together, but only she got approval.

And I know she went there to bring medical supplies. It wasnt a tour, a leisure trip. She was bringing medicines to the university hospital in Latakia.

As of Monday morning, rescue teams had recovered 11 bodies and fragments of bodies. Those were flown to Moscow, where the remains will be identified.

Minister Sokolovs televised comments about the cause of the crash were called into question by some aviation experts, who noted factors that could suggest a terror attack, such as the crew's failure to report any malfunction and the fact that plane debris was scattered over a wide area.

"Possible malfunctions ... certainly wouldn't have prevented the crew from reporting them," Vitaly Andreyev, a former senior Russian air traffic controller, told RIA Novosti.

Emergency crews on Sunday found fragments of the plane about 1.5km (1 mile) from the shore but a deputy defence minister told Russian news agencies that experts estimated the Tu-154 crash site at 6km (3.7 miles) from the shore.

Its a little over 14 months since a Russian plane was targeted in a terrorist attack, when a jet carrying mostly Russian tourists back from vacation in Egypt was brought down by a bomb over the Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people aboard. Officials said the explosive was planted in the plane's luggage compartment, and the local arm of the Isis group claimed responsibility.

The Sochi plane, which originated from Moscow's military airport of Chkalovsky and stopped in the Black Sea resort for refueling, was taking the military choir to perform at a New Year's concert at a Russian air base.

Despite the Syrian connection, Sokolov said the government sees no need to heighten security measures at Russian airports.

Additional reporting by agencies
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Russian troops have found mass graves in Aleppo with bodies showing signs of torture and mutilation, the Russian defence ministry has claimed.

Major General Igor Konashenkov said the Russians found mass graves of several dozens of Syrians who suffered atrocious torture and massacre.

In a statement, he said some of the bodies had been mutilated and some had gunshot wounds.

Mr Konashenkov also criticised opposition rebels, who controlled eastern Aleppo before they were pushed out earlier this month, for laying multiple booby traps and mines across the town, endangering the civilian population.

 Shocking images show Aleppo before and after the conflict

The Russian air force helped Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his allies retake Syrias largest city after weeks of brutal siege.

Russia has since dispatched military police to the city.

The retaking of the city came as the UN special envoy for Syria warned that cessation of hostilities across the country is vital to avoid another battle like the bloody fight for Aleppo.

Steffan de Mistura said thousands of people evacuated from rebel-held areas of Aleppo after a crushing government offensive could suffer a similar fate in their new refuge outside the city.

Many of them have gone to Idlib, which could be in theory the next Aleppo, Mr de Mistura warned.

Evacuees from Aleppo had expressed concerns about being taken to Idlib and a senior European diplomat said earlier this month that this would suit Russia, as it would put all their rotten eggs in one basket.

Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Show all 12 1 /12 Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man crosses a street in Aleppo, December 12, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A vendor sits inside an antique shop in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, December 12, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A view shows part of Aleppo's historic citadel, overlooking Aleppo city, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A view shows part of Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Visitors walk inside Aleppo's Umayyad mosque, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk inside the Khan al-Shounah market, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man walks past shops in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk along an alley in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Visitors tour Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A general view shows the Old City of Aleppo as seen from Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk near Aleppo's Bab al-Faraj Clock Tower, Syria October 6, 2010 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man stands inside Aleppo's historic citadel, overlooking Aleppo city, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters

The Syrian President has declared that the war is far from over and said his armed forces would march on other rebel-held areas.

Christians celebrated Christmas in Aleppo for the first time in four years with the city now under full control of government forces.

The rebel withdrawal from east Aleppo last week marked the Assad regimes biggest victory since the Syrian civil war began in 2011.

Christians, one of the largest religious minorities at about 10 per cent of Syria's pre-war 23 million population, have tried to stay on the sidelines of the conflict. However, the oppositions increasingly outspoken Islamism has meant many have leant towards Mr Assads government.

Additional reporting by Associated Press
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Outside the Saint Shmony Church the bells are ringing over a deserted town. Christmas Eve mass has just finished and the congregation file past the wooden pews, out through large iron doors and into the rainy courtyard. Its cold but there is a sense of joy and relief to be back.

For the hundreds of worshippers, this is the first Christmas theyve celebrated in their home town of Bartella since it was captured by the jihadists of Isis two and a half years ago.

But they cannot stay here  it is still too dangerous to come here at night. They will return to Irbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region, 40 miles east where they fled to in panic in the summer of 2014 when Isis advanced across the ancient towns of the Nineveh plain.

They tried to remove us here but we refused, said Father Sahar Qurkios, a Priest from the nearby St Marys church, as the mass came to a close. The mass is a symbolic gesture of defiance. It is a challenge to the ones who thought we would leave and never come back, he added.

Bartella lies in ruins; homes are caved in, looted, surrounded by rubble or blackened with flames. On 22 December Isis targeted the nearby liberated district of Gogjali with suicide attacks, killing 23, showing that they can still penetrate behind Iraqi lines and cause havoc. Black humvees of the Iraqi Counter Terror Forces roll by on the main highway through the town and groups of soldiers stand huddled beside oil drum fires to keep warm.

In pictures: Mosul offensive Show all 40 1 /40 In pictures: Mosul offensive In pictures: Mosul offensive A doctor carries an Iraqi newborn baby at a hospital in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi girls play at a yard of a school in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017alal Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A woman on crutches who is a relative of men accused of being Islamic State militants is seen at a camp in Bartella, east of Mosul, Iraq July 15, 2017. Picture taken July 15, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A displaced girl, who fled from home carries a doll at Hamam al-Alil camp south of Mosul, Iraq July 13, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi federal police members and civilians celebrate in the Old City of Mosul on 9 July 2017 after the government's announcement of the "liberation" of the embattled city. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's office said he was in "liberated" Mosul to congratulate "the heroic fighters and the Iraqi people on the achievement of the major victory" AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken on 9 July 2017, shows a general view of the destruction in Mosul's Old City. Iraq will announce imminently a final victory in the nearly nine-month offensive to retake Mosul from jihadists, a US general said Saturday, as celebrations broke out among police forces in the city. AFP In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of the Iraqi federal police raise the victory gesture as they ride on a humvee while advancing through the Old City of Mosul on 28 June 2017, as the offensive continues to retake the last district held by Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Smoke billows as Iraqi forces advance through the Old City of Mosul on 26 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district held by the Islamic State (IS) group. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi man wearing the green scarf of the Shi'ite faith kisses an Iraqi Army soldier on safely reaching the Iraqi forces position as Iraqi civilians flee the Old City of west Mosul where heavy fighting continues on 23 June 2017. Iraqi forces continue to encounter stiff resistance with improvised explosive devices, car bombs, heavy mortar fire and snipers hampering their advance. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken from the inside of an Iraqi forces armoured vehicle shows residents walking through a damaged street as troops advance towards Mosul's Old City on 18 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district still held by the Islamic State (IS) group. Military commanders told AFP the assault had begun at dawn after overnight air strikes by the US-led coalition backing Iraqi forces. They said the jihadists were putting up fierce resistance. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi Army soldiers advance in a destroyed street after an Iraqi forces airstrike targeted an Islamic State sniper position 17 June 2017 in al-Shifa, the last district of west Mosul under Islamic State control. IS snipers, as well as car and suicide bomb attacks continue to hinder the Iraqi forces efforts to retake the final district. A series of airstrikes by Iraqi helicopter gunships attempted to hit multiple Islamic State sniper positions in al-Shifa. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier frisks a displaced Iraqi man at a temporary camp in the compound of the closed Nineveh International Hotel in Mosul on 16 June 2017 which was recovered by Iraqi troops from Islamic State group fighters earlier in the year. A screening centre set up in the compound's fairgrounds sees a constant stream of Iraqis fleeing the battle for Mosul, awaiting their turn to be checked by the Iraqi forces who are searching for suspected Islamic State (IS) group members. The small fairground lies at the end of a pontoon bridge across the Tigris recently opened to civilians that is the only physical link between the two banks of the river. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis staying at the al-Khazir camp swim in a river near the camp for internally displaced people, located between Arbil and Mosul on 11 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi government forces drive on a road leading to Tal Afar on 9 June 2017, during ongoing battles to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi policeman carries a poster bearing an image of Mosul's iconic leaning minaret, known as the "Hadba" (Hunchback), on 22 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis stand in line to receive food aid in western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood on 7 June 2017, during ongoing battles as Iraqi forces try to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. Living conditions in Mosul have again deteriorated since the start of the Iraqi government's offensive on the city in October in which they retook a large part of the west of the city. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced Iraqis carry lightbulbs and sacks as they evacuate from western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood as government forces advance in the area during their ongoing battle against Islamic State (IS) group fighters on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) flashes the victory gesture as he patrols in western Mosul's al-Islah al-Zaraye neighbourhood on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi army soldiers from the 9th armoured division on a truck flash the sign of victory as they drive back from Mosul to the town of Qaraqosh (also known as Hamdaniya) Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of Iraqi forces flash the sign of victory on their vehicle as they advance towards Hammam al-Alil area south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi security forces gestures in Hammam al-Alil, south of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi children, one flashing the sign of victory, greet Iraqi army's soldiers from the 9th armoured division in the area of Ali Rash, adjacent to the eastern Al-Intissar neighbourhood of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Peshmerga forces look at a tunnel used by Islamic State militants near the town of Bashiqa, east of Mosul, during an operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier takes a photograph with his phone as his comrade stands next to a detained man, whom the Iraqi army soldiers accused of being an Islamic State fighter, who was fleeing with his family in the Intisar disrict of eastern Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iranian Kurdish female members of the Freedom Party of Kurdistan (PAK) hold a position in an area near the town of Bashiqa, some 25 kilometres north east of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families, who fled their homes in Hamam al-Alil, gather on the outskirts of their town Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced people walk past a checkpoint near Qayara, south of Mosul, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families who were displaced by the ongoing operation by Iraqi forces against jihadists of the Islamic State group to retake the city of Mosul, are seen gathering in an area near Qayyarah In pictures: Mosul offensive A boy who just fled Abu Jarbuah village is seen with his family at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi child eats a pomegranate upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive People who just fled Abu Jarbuah village sit as they eat at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A couple who just fled Abu Jarbuah village are escorted by Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Women carry a boy over a wall as civilians flee their houses in the village of Tob Zawa, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier and a civilian ride a motorbike as smoke rises behind them, on the road between Qayyarah and Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces, wearing a skull mask, waits at a checkpoint for people fleeing the main hub city of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier sits at a checkpoint in an area near Qayyarah Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi men prepare food portions for Iraqi forces deployed in areas south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi forces celebrate upon the arrival of vehicles bringing food to them Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi childen smoke cigarettes upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces distributes drinks to children in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty

Isis seized Mosul in a lightning advance in June 2014 and in July, they gave the citys ancient Christian community an ultimatum: the pay a tax, convert to Islam or face the sword. Instead nearly all of them fled and have spent the years since in exile. Ismail Ibrahim Mattai, 16, from Bartella, failed to escape with the rest of his family when Isis attacked, and was left stranded in Isis territory with his mother, Jandak Bahnan, 55.

They were caught by Isis and moved around the city, forced to convert and pray. Ibrahim was imprisoned 12 times and endured regular beatings by Isis fighters using a piece of plastic piping, before finally escaping for good when the Iraqi Counter Terror Services advanced into Mosul at the beginning of November and they were able to sneak across the frontlines. The operation to retake Mosul began on 17 October.

 Isis 'does not have the guts' to continue fight for Mosul, claims Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi

During their initial interrogation by Isis, Ismail and his mother saw their captors executing a Shia Muslim prisoner. Later on, Ismail said his mother, who has epilepsy, was tortured by an Isis fighter who pierced her shoulders, hands and head with needles until the blood ran. I cant believe I lived through all this evil, Ismail said from a shelter in Irbil where he now lives with his mother. I cant go back to Bartella now, he added, I want to leave Iraq to good care for my mother.

This is a common feeling among Iraqs Christians who left the country in large numbers after jihadist attacks and a general deterioration in security following the 2003 US-led invasion. But despite the pain and sadness of the last two and a half years, Father Sahar said that conversely, Isis has already healed the wounds it inflicted on Iraqi society, by bringing together different groups in defiance of them.

Isis made it better, now everyone comes here. We were invaded by Muslims but our town was also retaken by Muslims. Because of Isis, Muslims are coming here, taking pictured with us, looking at the cross and sharing our sorrow  Isis did that. He said.
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Jerusalems planning committee is expected to approve the construction of hundreds of homes in east Jerusalem, despite a UN Security Council resolution condemning Israeli settlements across the Green Line as a flagrant violation of international law.

The Jerusalem Local Planning and Construction Committee is expected to approve permits to build 618 new homes in Jewish neighbourhoods across the Green Line on Wednesday, Haaretz reports.

While the meetings agenda was set before the UN Security Council resolution, the number of construction plans approved for east Jerusalem has sharply increased over the last two years.

Around 140 homes will be approved in Pisgat Zeev, 262 in Ramat Shlomo and 216 in Ramot, according to Haaretz, and additional permit requests may be added for Pisgat Zeev and Ramot.

The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies Show all 10 1 /10 The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies Medics evacuate a wounded man from the scene of an attack in Jerusalem. A Palestinian rammed a vehicle into a bus stop then got out and started stabbing people before he was shot dead AP The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies Israeli ZAKA emergency response members carry the body of an Israeli at the scene of a shooting attack in Jerusalem. A pair of Palestinian men boarded a bus in Jerusalem and began shooting and stabbing passengers, while another assailant rammed a car into a bus station before stabbing bystanders, in near-simultaneous attacks that escalated a month long wave of violence AP The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies Getty Images The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies Palestinians throw molotov cocktail during clashes with Israeli troops near Ramallah, West Bank. Recent days have seen a series of stabbing attacks in Israel and the West Bank that have wounded several Israelis AP The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies Women cry during the funeral of Palestinian teenager Ahmad Sharaka, 13, who was shot dead by Israeli forces during clashes at a checkpoint near Ramallah, at the family house in the Palestinian West Bank refugee camp of Jalazoun, Ramallah AP The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies A wounded Palestinian boy and his father hold hands at a hospital after their house was brought down by an Israeli air strike in Gaza Reuters The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies Palestinians look on after a protester is shot by Israelis soldiers during clashes at the Howara checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus EPA The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies A lawyer wearing his official robes kicks a tear gas canister back toward Israeli soldiers during a demonstration by scores of Palestinian lawyers called for by the Palestinian Bar Association in solidarity with protesters at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, near Ramallah, West Bank AP The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies Undercover Israeli soldiers detain a Palestinian in Ramallah Reuters The IsraeliPalestinian conflict intensifies Palestinian youth burn tyres during clashes with Israeli soldiers close to the Jewish settlement of Bet El, in the West Bank city of Ramallah, after Israel barred Palestinians from Jerusalem's Old City as tensions mounted following attacks that killed two Israelis and wounded a child

The Committee is also expected to debate the construction of around 5,600 new homes beyond the Green Line, Israel Hayom reports.

It will debate plans for 2,600 new homes in the neighbourhood of Gilo, 2,600 in the Givat Hamatos neighbourhood, and 400 in the Ramat Shlomo neighbourhood.

We remain unfazed by the UN vote, or by any other entity that tries to dictate what we do in Jerusalem, deputy Jerusalem mayor Meir Turgeman told the paper.

I hope the Israeli government and the new US administration will support us, so we can make up for the lack [of construction] during the eight years of the Obama administration.

 Israeli man starts charity to get injured Syrians to Israel for medical treatment

Israel pressed forward with promises of retaliation and damage control following the UN vote on an anti-settlement resolution, which passed thanks to an abstention by the US, Israels close ally.

Israels Foreign Ministry said it began summoning the ambassadors of countries who voted in favour of the resolution, including those from the permanent members of the Security Council  Russia, China, the UK and France.

In a highly unusual move, the US Ambassador was later summoned as well, Israeli media reported.

Speaking to a weekly meeting of his Cabinet on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was also considering a plan of action against the UN, without elaborating.

We will do all it takes so Israel emerges unscathed from this shameful decision, Mr Netanyahu said.

The resolutions immediate impact appears to be largely symbolic, but Israel fears it could open the door to an increase in international steps, including economic measures. Much of the international community considers the settlements illegal or illegitimate and an obstacle to peace.
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The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reported to have snubbed Theresa May over the UKs support for a UN resolution condemning the building of settlements in occupied Palestinian territories.

According to Israeli media, arrangements were being made for Ms May and Mr Netanyahu to meet on the sidelines of the annual World Economic Forum summit in Davos, Switzerland between 17 and 20 January.

Britain was among 14 UN Security Council members to approve the resolution last week which declared Israeli settlements illegal, however, and Israel has since lashed out diplomatically in a number of ways.

Mr Netanyahu told ministers at his weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday that he no longer had any desire to meet with the British Prime Minister, Israeli media reported.

Recommended Israel to approve 100s of new homes despite UN settlements resolution

Tony Kay, Britains deputy ambassador to Israel, has been on duty this week while the UK head of mission David Quarrey is home for Christmas.

He was summoned and officially reprimanded by the Israeli government along with other ambassadors representing UN Security Council members  including the US, which refused to use its veto to protect Israel and instead chose to abstain.

And speaking to Israel Army Radio on Monday, Mr Kay said he regretted the decision not to hold high-level talks at Davos.

It is a disappointment that the Israeli government has announced that Prime Minister Netanyahu does not want to have a conversation with Theresa May, he said.

Mr Netanyahus office responded to the initial Israeli reports with a carefully worded statement arguing that there had been no firm plans set, therefore no snub made. No meeting with the UK Prime Minister had been set therefore no meeting was cancelled, a spokesperson said.

But Mr Kay told The Times of Israel there had been plans for a conversation to take place, and Jerusalem had not given UK officials any formal notice of a change of heart on that front.

Davos is an opportunity where many world leaders attend and our Prime Minister would have conversations with many world leaders, including hopefully Prime Minister Netanyahu, he said. We remain hopeful and optimistic that such a conversation can take place at the prime ministerial level, whether its at Davos or elsewhere.

The UK has not been the only country to feel Israels anger in response to the UN vote. Again according to briefings from the cabinet meeting on Sunday, Mr Netanyahu is reported by Reuters to have railed against the Obama administration for allegedly colluding with the Palestinians.

Mr Netanyahu called it shameful that the US did not take its usual course of action and defend its closest Middle East ally.

Around 570,000 Israelis live in settlements in east Jerusalem and the West Bank.

The overwhelming international consensus is that such settlements are illegal, while Washington too defines them as illegitimate.

But with a potentially more favourable US administration arriving with Donald Trump in less than a month, Mr Netanyahu refused to budge. He said that, far from halting settlements as required by the UN, he would push ahead with plans for hundreds more.

And he cemented that message with an unscheduled Hanukkah visit to the Western Wall, one of Judaism's holiest sites, and which is located in Jerusalem's eastern Old City.

"I did not plan to be here this evening but in light of the UN resolution I thought that there was no better place to light the second Hanukkah candle than the Western Wall," Netanyahu said during the event.

"I ask those same countries that wish us a happy Hanukkah how they could vote for a UN resolution which says that this place, in which we are now celebrating Hanukkah, is occupied territory?"

The resolution adopted on Friday at the UN changes nothing on the ground between Israel and the Palestinians and, if his campaign statements are anything to go by, will likely be all but ignored by the incoming Trump administration.
Though Banned in China, Snapchat Is Hiring Engineers for Its New Office in Shenzhen

A customer shows a pair of Snapchat Spectacles, a pair of camera-equipped sunglasses made by Snapchat Inc. (Photo : Getty Images)

Though blocked in China, the parent company of U.S. messaging app Snapchat is trying to establish its presence in China as Snapchat Inc. opened a technology office in Shenzhen and announced hiring of new workers, a CNN report said.



Advertisement

The new office was established for the company's Spectacles, the sunglasses are equipped with camera that can send footage to the users' Snapchat accounts.



The sunglasses, which are assembled in China, are the company's first venture into hardware using Bluetooth and WiFi to connect to users, the report said.



About 20 people are now employed in the new office to work on research and development. Most of the company's product design and engineering works are done in its Los Angeles headquarters. The company has more than 1,500 employees worldwide, according to Snap.



China's tech blogs wrote about the news on Snapchat's Shenzhen office after people noticed its job postings in WeChat.



According to Snapchat's recruitment ad, the company is looking for engineers, with previous experience working for China's three tech giants--Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent--to fill its "first core team in China."



The company offered successful applicants with salaries that included stock in Snap as an incentive. The company is estimated to be worth about $20 billion to $25 billion, based on documents filed for its initial public offering last month.



The report added that employees at the Shenzhen office have a chance to transfer to the company's U.S. team.



Industry experts said that Snapchat's new office would provide the company with ideas into China's fast-growing tech industry.



"Understanding what Alibaba, WeChat, Baidu, Netease and smaller players in China are up to is helpful to keep up with local trends that . . . can influence the global market," Duncan Clark, founder of Beijing-based consulting firm BDA, said.



Clark added that although the Chinese people may not use the platform, they can advertise on Snap, which is an opportunity for the U.S. company to earn money.



"Chinese companies seeking to advertise or expand overseas are a source of potential revenues for U.S. players, even if they're blocked in China," Clark said. "We've seen that with Facebook."



Some Chinese tech companies were also interested in Snap's efforts as Alibaba invested $200 million in the company last year, while Tencent also reportedly invested in the company in 2013.


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Police in rural Louisiana say a Walmart employee found a baby girl in a bathroom a few hours after the infants mother gave birth to her and dumped her in a trash can.

The infant was only about 4 hours old when an employee at a Walmart Supercenter in the city of New Roads in Pointe Coupee Parish found her just after 7 pm on Friday, Lt. Shael Stringer of the New Roads Police Department told The Washington Post. The mother, Kyandrea Thomas, a woman in her 30s, was found shortly after.

Stringer said a Walmart employee saw Thomas in the bathroom at about 3 p.m. that day and noticed that she was bleeding heavily. Thomas told the employee that she was having some trouble with her menstrual cycle.

At that point, police said, the employee gave Thomas some paper towels and waited outside the bathroom stall, not knowing that she was giving birth inside.

Thomas wrapped the newborn girl, placed her in the trash can and left, police said.

About 4 hours later, another employee who was emptying the trash can noticed that it was relatively heavy, Stringer said. The employee placed the trash bag on the floor and found the infant, who was discolored and wasnt breathing.

The baby was revived at the scene and was taken to a hospital less than a mile away, Stringer said. The infant, who is now in stable condition, was later taken to a hospital in Baton Rouge.

Had it been just a little bit longer, the possibility of resuscitation probably wouldnt have happened, Stringer said.

Investigators found Thomas, who was taken to another hospital in a nearby town Friday night because of complications from giving birth.

Thomas was taken into custody after she was discharged from the hospital on Saturday afternoon. Stringer said she will be booked at East Baton Rouge Prison and will be charged with attempted second-degree murder.

Copyright: Washington Post
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January: Chile

British Airways took delivery of the Boeing 787 three years ago  and from 4 January the airline finally deploys the ultra-long range jet on a really long hop, the 7,250 miles between Heathrow and the Chilean capital, Santiago. Flee the cold dark northern hemisphere with the 10pm flight, touching down after nearly 15 hours the next morning in that rare species: a charming Latin American capital.

Spend 48 hours enjoying Santiagos relaxed ambience, flamboyant architecture and superb food and drink. Then head south to enjoy Chiles lakes and mountains at the height of summer. The greatest trip starts from Puerto Montt, and takes you across the Andes in a day using a combination of boats, buses and trucks  a route once followed by Che Guevara. SC

BA is about to take off for Santiago (Turismo Chile)

February: Paphos

Only a couple of years ago, some travellers were concerned about visiting Cyprus because of the islands precarious financial situation. Today, it looks a picture of stability compared with other parts of the world  and a picture of loveliness in terms of culture, cuisine and superb beaches.

Paphos, in the extreme west, is the arrival airport of choice. About 20 minutes closer than Larnaca, its blessed with popular beaches such as Coral Bay (some blissfully empty beaches can be found in hidden coves along the Akamas Peninsula, north of the town). Yet it is also profoundly historic, with an archaeological site with mosaics and rock-cut tombs.

This rich heritage will come to the fore during Paphoss year in the sun as European Capital of Culture  shared with the rather less sunny Aarhus in Denmark. SC

Explore ancient civilisations in Paphos (Getty Images) (Getty)

March: Ghana

Following peaceful democratic elections in December, which saw opposition leader Nana Akufo-Addo named Ghanas new president, a CNN report described Ghana as a place where citizens struggle to obtain food and day-to-day services. Ghanaians were quick to respond. The hashtag #CNNGetItRight began trending, with everyone from journalists to the countrys First Lady eager to point out that, far from conforming to African cliches, Ghana is booming.

On Independence Day, 6 March, Ghana marks 60 years since it emancipated itself from British rule. There could hardly be a more significant time to go. Looking forward to a new political era, and with its capital, Accra, fast becoming a hub of art and fashion, Ghana has achieved much since reclaiming its freedom.

Gallery 1957's celebrated 'Yellow is the Colour of Water' exhibition (Nii Odzenma)

It isnt the place to live out the age-old Africa fantasy of safari tents, lions and leopards. You go to Ghana to get to know modern Africa, from Accras impressive new contemporary art venue Gallery 1957 (responsible for this summers social media sensation of an exhibition, Yellow is the Colour of Water), to Carbon, the luxury club founded by Boujis and Mahiki main man Nick House. And  bonus - there are beaches aplenty when youre ready to slow the pace. LC

 The 25 richest, healthiest, happiest, and most advanced countries in the world

April: New Orleans

You might think February is the best time to visit New Orleans, when the city goes wild for Mardi Gras, but if youre travelling from the UK its worth holding out a little longer. The reason? BA is starting direct flights from Heathrow in March; the first time since the 1980s that the Big Easy has had a non-stop UK connection.

Visit in April and you certainly wont be short of chances to party. Theres the French Quarter Festival  a long weekend celebrating the citys culture, music and food, (6-9 April)  or else visit over Easter (16 April), when a series of flamboyant parades take to the streets. Alternatively, do as the musos do and plan your visit around the prestigious New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, which kicks off on 28 April. NT

The New Orleans Jazz Festival is the city's top music event (Getty) (Getty Images)

May: Peru

May sees the launch of a brand-new bucket-list train journey  all aboard South Americas first-ever luxury sleeper train, the Belmond Andean Explorer. From the team behind the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express and Irelands new Grand Hibernian, this five-star service will travel along one of the highest train routes in the world, whooshing through the plains of the Andes and between Perus big-ticket sights, including Machu Picchu, Cusco and Lake Titicaca.

So whether you fancy plush cabins and fine dining while you soak up the spectacular Andean scenery, or simply have always dreamed of doing the Inca Trail (though be sure to let your knees know its more of an Inca Staircase), May 2017 is a great time to tick it off. LC

Peru's first luxury sleeper train travels through the High Andes and past Lake Titicaca

June: Tallinn

In some former Soviet republics, 2017 will be a year of commemorating the centenary of the October Revolution that led to the creation of the USSR. But Estonia, which later became an unwilling component of the Leninist empire ruled from Moscow, will instead be celebrating another year of freedom.

Tallinn is probably the prettiest of all the capitals of ex-Soviet republics, with a well-preserved medieval Old Town, a splendid collection of grand architecture atop Toompea (Dome Hill), and a park  Kadriorg  with a pair of fine art galleries. The superb cuisine and enticing places to stay offer some of the best euro-stretching value in the EU. And the best time to be there? The beginning of June, when the capital is en fete for the Old Town Days. SC

Join the festivities in Tallinn (Simon Calder)

July: Canada

In 2017, Canada marks 150 years since its confederation, starting with the mother of all New Years Eve parties in the capital, Ottawa. And visit in summer to see the celebrations reach their peak around Canada Day, 1 July. Vancouver and Toronto are among the cities planning multi-day events, though most of the details are still under wraps.

Celebrate Canada Day in Vancouver (Getty) (Getty Images)

The anniversary isnt all about revelry though. To mark the occasion, Parks Canada is offering free entry all year to the countrys 46 national parks, as well as national historic sites and marine conservation areas. Just order your pass online and head off for an epic hike, bike ride or paddle in the likes of Banff, Jasper Fundy or Glacier National Park. NT

August: Pacific Northwest US

Occasionally in travel, everything comes together in the manner of a celestial coincidence. In summer, Portland in Oregon gets a new link from London (Heathrow with Delta, starting 27 May), making this sparkling city more accessible, while Virgin Atlantic starts serving Seattle. And the Cascades train that beautifully connects those two cities to each other and Vancouver, across the Canadian border, gets faster and more frequent.

Best of all, a real celestial coincidence  the greatest solar eclipse in American history  will make landfall at Newport, South-west of Portland, and sweep across Oregon en route to the Atlantic. The morning of 21 August will be a great time to be alive in the sometimes weird and always wonderful Pacific Northwest. SC

The eclipse will be visible from Newport, Oregon (Shutterstock)

September: Aarhus

Aarhus is the other European Capital of Culture for 2017, but just because weve left it for later in the year doesnt mean it will be playing second fiddle to Paphos. September is a great time to visit, when the weather is mild but you dont have the tourist crowds of high summer.

Denmarks laid-back second city has a packed calendar of events to celebrate its new title, including exhibitions, concerts and film screenings  dont miss the nighttime Full Moon Events. For something a little more unusual, try and catch one of the Life-Boats, three floating sculptures designed to look like different stages in a womans life, which are sailing along the coast of the Jutland peninsula until the end of 2017. NT

Admire Aarhus from the colourful top of ARos art gallery (Bech Poulsen/VisitDenmark) (Bech Poulsen)

October: Xian, China

As the gateway to the Terracotta Warriors, Xian is on the itineraries of most travellers to China, though more often than not theyll just be passing through. But this important Silk Road stop, which served as the capital for 13 different ancient dynasties, is well worth exploring further, and in 2017 its more accessible than ever before. Tianjin Airlines launches a non-stop flight to Xian from Gatwick in May, but hold on if you can until October, when the weather hovers around more reasonable temperatures (generally early 20s).

Probably most interesting about Xian itself is its Islamic heritage; as the eastern terminus of the Silk Road, it has long been home to a hodgepodge of cultures and religions, and today has a significant Muslim Quarter and the largest mosque in China. Be sure to sample the distinctive Muslim-Chinese cuisine, like spicy mutton stew with unleavened bread, kebabs flavoured with chili and cumin, and shredded charcoal-fired beef stuffed in a steamed bun. Then have a waddle around the nearly 650-year-old city wall, the only ancient fortification in China that still stands unbroken. LC

The Terracotta Warriors, found just outside of Xi'an, will be more easily accessible (Getty)

November: New Zealand

The battle to lay claim to the worlds longest flight continues apace, with Qatar Airways throwing its hat into the ring next year. Its Doha-Auckland connection will steal the mantle from Emirates in March (soon to be overtaken by Qantass London-Perth link)  and introduce a new way to get to New Zealand's most populous city. But its best to hold off your visit until later in the year, timing it to coincide with the southern hemispheres spring/summer.

New Zealand is known for its incredible landscapes and adrenaline-raising activities, so head to adventure capital Queenstown to immerse yourself in both. Here you can go zip-lining through the treetops in the dark on a new twilight tour, or  by daylight  take a helicopter ride over the mountains and glaciers of the nearby Southern Alps before hiking through Mt Aspiring National Park. Want to stay close to the capital? Try paddling around the secluded bays of pretty Waiheke Island, 22 miles off shore. NT

Take to the water around Waiheke Island (Shutterstock)

December: Amsterdam

Since 1994, youve been able to catch a train from London to any European capital you like, so long as its Paris or Brussels. From December 2017, Eurostar will increase that choice by 50 per cent  with the addition of the Dutch capital, Amsterdam. Provisional timings indicate two trains a day, each way, taking as little as 3 hours 50 minutes outbound (rather longer inbound, due to security checks).

You go from one cathedral to the railways, St Pancras, to another: Centraal in Amsterdam. The magnificent station should finally be free of building works after more than a decade of disfigurement, providing the perfect overture to a city whose humanity is matched by its artistry. SC

In December you'll be able to take the Eurostar direct to Amsterdam (Getty)

Click here for 2017's best holidays, cruises and escorted tours, with Independent Holidays
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It is the biggest what if? after a dramatic year in politics: if David Cameron had delayed his EU referendum until after the US Presidential election, would Britain have voted to stay in the EU?

Cameron is unrepentant about calling the referendum, telling an audience in Indiana two weeks ago the Europe issue had to be resolved because it was poisoning British politics and the Conservative Party. His closest ally George Osborne disagreed, warning him prophetically in 2012 that a referendum would unleash uncontrollable anti-government sentiment, opportunism, genuine concern  and then you lose.

Cameron didnt have to hold the referendum this year; the law he pushed through gave him until the end of 2017. He was so confident of repeating his success at the 2014 Scottish referendum and 2015 election that he gambled on securing a quick EU deal and relatively short referendum campaign. He judged that French and German elections in 2017 would complicate his renegotiation of Britains EU membership terms, and tried to bounce his EU counterparts into concessions.

 Theresa May refuses to rule out making payments to the EU after Brexit

With hindsight, it would have been much better to play it long. Although Nigel Farage believes the Brexit vote in June paved the way for Donald Trumps election in November, it is unlikely to have made much difference; Americans were not going to install Hillary Clinton in the White House.

Trumps arrival on the world stage would have transformed Camerons prospects of winning the EU referendum. With a cloud of uncertainty hanging over the UK-US relationship, I can hear Cameron telling voters: Now is not the time to walk away from our alliance with our European neighbours and closest trading partners. A Trump victory might have made Cameron less hubristic, try harder for an EU deal and work more closely with Remainers in other parties rather than dictate the referendum campaign from Downing Street.

Similarly, EU leaders would surely have adopted a different attitude towards the British renegotiation. With Trump threatening to weaken NATO, Europe would become more dependent on the UK for its security. EU leaders, who never believed that the British people would vote to leave their club, might have been shaken out of their complacency by Trumps win.

If Cameron were now in the middle of his renegotiation ahead of a 2017 referendum, his EU counterparts would have seen the rise of populists in Italy, France and the Netherlands as well as the US, and would be taking the prospect of a Brexit vote more seriously. Crucially, they might realise that, to preserve their cherished EU project and halt the populists' march, they need to reform EU rules on free movement.

So Cameron might have got what he really wanted from the renegotiation  an emergency brake allowing the UK to call a temporary halt to EU migration, which he did not even ask for because Angela Merkel made clear it was off limits. An emergency brake might have been an EU-wide measure but could have been hailed by Cameron as a major victory. It would have protected his Achilles heel in the referendum campaign  that he had nothing to say about immigration. It might even have persuaded some newspapers who backed Leave to reluctantly support Remain.

A longer referendum campaign delayed until 2017 would have given the Remain camp longer to make the case for EU membership and counter 30 years of poisonous headlines since the Thatcher era. It is not impossible that the result would have been 52-48 to Remain rather than Leave.

At one level, this is academic and irrelevant to the task facing Theresa May  making Brexit work. But she might be able to salvage something positive out of the ashes of Camerons failed renegotiation. Because Britain is walking out, EU leaders insist that their four freedoms, including free movement, are non-negotiable if the UK wants single market access. Yet despite this tough rhetoric, things are changing quietly. The European Commission is proposing new curbs on access to social security benefits, saying that no migrant should have a legal right to residence if they do not work or actively seek a job. The rising terrorism threat, which has now spread from France and Belgium to Germany, is another reason why free movement reform is on the EU agenda.

So some UK politicians see an outside chance that EU-wide restrictions to free movement  even an emergency brake  might just be combined with a soft Brexit deal allowing the UK to keep much of its single market access. If free movement were no longer sacrosanct, it might be easier for EU leaders to put mutual trade benefits first in the Brexit talks.

It wouldnt be easy, and May would have to face down hardline Eurosceptics who want nothing less than a clean break with the EU, whatever the economic cost. But if she played her negotiating cards right, it might just help her smooth the rough edges of a hard Brexit and lead to a more cooperative UK-EU relationship than currently looks likely.
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Imagine it: youre settling in to a warm, happy Christmas  and the first day of Hanukkah  spent eating, drinking and hanging out with loved ones. And then youre summoned by the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. You think: Wow, he left it a bit late, but maybe just wants to extend seasonal greetings. Yeah, no. He wants to haul you over the coals for your countrys decision to vote in favour of the UN Security Councils resolution on Israels settlements.

Thats one of the reactions, from Israel, to the resolution described by Netanyahu as hostile and imbalanced, which passed last Friday, with 14 votes supporting and a rare US abstention (it usually vetoes in Israels favour). The resolution describes Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank as a violation of international law and calls for countries to distinguish between Israel and the territories it has occupied since 1967. This resolution wont change anything on the ground and is a reiteration of the international communitys existing position  that Israeli settlements are illegal under international law.

Still, the Israeli Prime Minister summoned ambassadors from ten countries, including the UK. He also recalled Israels ambassadors to Senegal and New Zealand, cancelled plans to meet the Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman and Theresa May and announced a halt on contributions to UN bodies. In other words, the reaction to an internationally community deemed intent on isolating Israeli is to isolate Israel.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 3 November 2022 A villager cooks roti bread at the site of the annual Camel Fair in Pushkar, in India's desert state of Rajasthan AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 2 November 2022 A red squirrel gathers nuts in Pitlochry, Scotland Reuters UK news in pictures 1 November 2022 Englands Tara-Jane Stanley scores their sides seventh try against Brazil during the Womens Rugby League World Cup group A match at Headingley Stadium, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 31 October 2022 GBs James Hall competes during the mens parallel bars qualification at the World Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 October 2022 People dressed in Halloween costumes paddle board along the river Avon in Christchurch, Dorset PA UK news in pictures 29 October 2022 Members of the public take pictures as police officers remove activists from a road during a Just Stop Oil protest, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 28 October 2022 A cosplayer attends the MCM Comic Con London 2022 at the ExCel Centre in London Reuters UK news in pictures 27 October 2022 98-year-old D-Day Veteran Bernard Morgan, whose story is among those featured on the giant poppy wall, during the launch of The Royal British Legion 2022 Poppy Appeal, at Hay's Galleria in central London PA UK news in pictures 26 October 2022 A meerkat explores a pumpkin in the enclosure at Wild Place, Bristol, where some of the animals are having pumpkin treats as part of their environmental enrichment PA UK news in pictures 25 October 2022 King Charles III welcomes Rishi Sunak during an audience at Buckingham Palace, where he invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative Party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 24 October 2022 Rishi Sunak celebrates with Tory MPs outside the Conservative Campaign Headquarters after becoming the new leader of the Conservative Party Reuters UK news in pictures 23 October 2022 The Green Man at October Plenty, Borough Market's annual Autumn Harvest festival, in London, which returns for the first time post pandemic PA UK news in pictures 21 October 2022 Sculptor Peter McKenna puts the finishing touches to a pumpkin that will form part of the Planet A Hebden Bridge Pumpkin Trail in the West Yorkshire town PA UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA

As is often the case with Netanyahu, his likely focus is mostly domestic: he isnt much concerned with how we view his Christmas chidings. How this plays to voters, who may want their prime minister to stand up to a global community viewed as inherently hostile to Israel, is more significant to a man who, if nothing else, has managed political survival. This, after all, is the politician who scaremongered about Arab voting in Israels last election  we called it horrible and racist; he secured power.

It is no secret that the international community views Israels settlements as the biggest obstacle to peace with the Palestinians. This has been stated repeatedly, with mounting frustration, over many years. At Fridays vote, US ambassador to the UN Samantha Power noted a recent acceleration of settlements expansion as one of the factors in the decision not to veto this resolution.

Meanwhile, rightist Israel supporters cant expect their ugly claims about Barack Obama as an Israel-hater to be taken seriously. The outgoing President has been as ardent a supporter of Israel as any other; indeed, he increased the US military aid budget to Israel, to $38bn, just months ahead of the UNSC vote.

 Israeli man starts charity to get injured Syrians to Israel for medical treatment

No, the anger isnt about the international position on settlements so much as a puncturing of Israeli exceptionalism  the idea that it can violate international law with impunity. After all, the resolution could have legal consequences. It is binding  so Donald Trump, with his settler-supporting hardline views, cant undo it once he becomes president. Meanwhile, as Haaretz writer and law professor Aeyal Gross notes, it may cause countries to take measures that will exclude the settlements from their various forms of cooperation with Israel  financial, trade, academic, and so on. There may also be an effect at the International Criminal Court, which is currently in preliminary examination of a potential investigation into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The ICC is looking not just at possible war crimes  on both sides  during the Gaza war of 2014; it is considering whether Israeli settlements can be viewed in that context, too.

Some Israeli politicians may rail at international bodies upholding international law  no country is likely to enjoy being held to account when flouting such laws but stop picking on us is hardly going to cut it as a response. The reality is that such conventions are all we have: internationally agreed laws and principles around the rules of engagement, the rules of war. In Israels case the settlements project, its largest enterprise, is also its biggest impediment. Friends dont take friends to the Security Council, Netanyahu lashed out at the US. Well, in this case, its exactly what a friend would do.
Illegal ivory, alligator and crocodile heads were among the items seized by customs tackling the banned trade of endangered animals this year.

Revenue said its officers made seven seizures with most of them spotted in suspicious packages posted into the country.

In one instance a foot-long piece of ivory was discovered in unaccompanied luggage at Dublin Airport.

And in a stop-and-search a woman was found to be entirely innocent when asked to explain moose antlers she was carrying through the airport but failed to declare at customs.

She was allowed to continue on her journey home after revealing they had been bought legally in Savannah, Georgia, and that the animal is not threatened by extinction.

Mark Newman, from Revenue Customs Prohibitions and Restrictions section in Dublin Castle, said the internet had turned into a huge supermarket for trade in illegal animal products.

"There's certainly the element of having something that is taboo. But when it came to the detections that we made, like the alligator heads, we didn't see any connections with black magic or voodoo," he said.

"It's more for the decorative or ornamental side of things, or the fantasy."

Elsewhere, a parcel of eight alligator heads was intercepted in An Post's mail sorting centre in Portlaoise after being posted from the US.

Other seizures included a wallet made from the skin of the critically endangered Siamese crocodile which had been sent to Ireland from Thailand.

There were also five conch shells being brought in from the Bahamas, three pieces of coral and one piece of hippo tusk ivory which was also found in Dublin Airport.

Customs said the illegal products were all confiscated under laws governing the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

Species controlled by the convention can only be moved in and out of Ireland with special licences granted by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

Mr Newman added: "We don't really see the large-scale trafficking of material listed under Cites laws into Ireland. It's not as if we are not a hub for it.

"But the advice that we would give is that people should contact authorities to see if they have something that would need a licence, an export licence.

"Something might look attractive to buy but there could be major restrictions and ultimately people could find themselves facing a prosecution."
The Department of Agriculture recently announced new rules and increased supports for the early removal of PI (persistently infected) calves under the national Bovine Viral Disease (BVD) Eradication Programme in 2017.

The progress to-date in the eradication effort, which has seen the incidence of PIs fall by 75pc since 2013, has resulted in very substantial savings to farmers, currently estimated at 66m per year, and these savings will increase further in the years ahead as the incidence of the disease continues to decline.

Dairy

150 if the female dairy and dairy cross calves are removed within 21 days (3 weeks) of the first positive or inconclusive test.

35 if the female dairy and dairy cross calves are removed between day 22 & 35 (the 4th and 5th week) of the first positive or inconclusive test.

It is also proposed to offer 30 towards the disposal of the dairy bull PI through the abattoir or knackery within 21 days of the first positive or inconclusive test.

Beef

185 if the calf is removed within 21 days (3 weeks) of the first positive or inconclusive test.

60 if the calf is removed between day 22 & 35 (4th and 5th week) of the first positive or inconclusive test.

New Rules

Herd Restrictions

The Department will be embarking on a system of automatic restrictions that will apply five weeks following the date of the original positive or inconclusive test.

This avoids an immediate unanticipated close down of the herd, provides a window such that animals may be retested if required and acknowledges the bio-security concerns about retention of positive animals. Automatic de-restriction will follow removal of the PI.

An automatic system is also being put in place for the bio-security notification of contiguous herds where necessary. Work on these systems is underway and delivery is expected by 31 January 2017.

Confirmatory testing

The BVD Implementation Group request that the system of confirmatory testing would continue to be available, where a farmer wishes to avail of it.

However in order to enhance the confirmatory process, this will be done through blood sampling, rather than repeat tissue tagging.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine will fund a system of blood sampling (undertaken by a Private Veterinary Practitioner (PVP) who will take bloods from the calf and the dam), providing additional funding to pay for the PVP visit, sampling and the test.

Mandatory Herd Investigations under the TASAH

The Department also confirmed to the BVD Implementation Group that a trained PVP will conduct a mandatory farm herd investigation once a PI is disclosed.

The Department will work with Animal Health Ireland to expedite herd investigations and will aim to have these completed within 3 months of the first positive test result.

In addition, the Department will work with ICBF on providing a system of sharing relevant information with veterinary practitioners investigating infected herds.

BVD laws

The programme is supported by legislation.

Requirement to test all calves born from 1st January 2013 onwards

Ban on sale of calves without a negative result

Follow up testing where PIs (persistently infected animals) are identified

What is BVD?

BVD virus is the cause of an important viral disease of cattle that is estimated to cost Irish farmers around 102M each year.

How is it spread?

Calves become persistently infected (PI) when their mother is exposed to the virus during the second to fourth month of pregnancy (or if the mother is PI). PI cattle are the main source of infection within herds and means of spread between herds.
The sales are already under way in Dublins Henry Street. Photo: Mark Condren

We used to wait until January to get our tech bargains. Then it was St Stephen's Day. Now, a growing number of Irish electronics retailers are starting their January sales on Christmas Day itself.

Two of the country's largest retail chains - Harvey Norman and Argos - already kicked off their sales on December 25. Rivals such as Halfords did likewise. Harvey Norman did not even wait until the stroke of midnight, starting its sale at 4pm on Christmas Eve.

The move follows a UK and US trend where retail sales events are becoming an ever-present process.

"It's indicative of how some of the sectors are adapting, in particular the electronics sector," said Lynn Drumgoole of Retail Excellence Ireland (REI), an organisation that represents 13,000 retail outlets in Ireland.

"A lot of money went out of the country on Black Friday in that sector.

"Add to that the fact that the UK websites will be starting their sales and you have a situation where Irish retailers feel they have to get on it as well and keep the money in Ireland. A number of our members are starting their sales on Christmas Day now."

Halfords, which has several stores around Dublin, has kicked off its post-Christmas sales on December 25 online for several years.

Internet retailers such as Amazon have done the same. More traditional retailers, such as Power City and DID Electrical, are resisting the pressure and waiting until the day after Christmas to start their sales.

"It's also being driven by customers themselves, who are looking for discounts and researching online for the best prices.

"The patterns are changing. Ease of shopping is important," said Ms Drumgoole.

As for the discounts themselves, few of the retailers were giving much away before the start of their sales, citing concern that consumers might decide to hold off shopping until the lower prices kicked in.

However, tech sales in Ireland are a mixed bag between prestige brands and commoditised items. Marques such as Apple, Bose, Leica, and Miele don't have much - if anything - sliced off their products.

By comparison, lower-profile manufacturers of tablets and audio speakers can have large discounts chopped off their pre-Christmas prices.

One way of checking where the biggest tech discounts are is to check price comparison websites, such as pricespy.ie. This site lists existing prices for gadgets and electronics based on the retailers' online published pricing.

However, shoppers may reasonably disregard some claimed sales as being overhyped or taken out of context.

Irish tech retailers freely admit the discounts they publish frequently refer to pricing applied several months before the sale and not to the most recent pre-sale price tag.

While the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission says that this isn't allowed, it has never taken action against any retailer that does this.

So if a discount sounds too good to be true, it may well be that the 'original price' quoted is from eight or nine months ago and the product is simply an end-of-life item.
'We used to wait until January to get our tech bargains  now, a growing number of electronics retailers start their sales on Christmas Day' Photo: Stock Image

Adrian Weckler has a quick guide for technology lovers in the sales

Harvey Norman - Starts: Yesterday (4pm) online and today (9.30am) in-store.

Look for: Televisionss, audio products, cosmetic electronics (hair straighteners and similar beauty items).

Harvey Norman will also generally match discounts from rival stores.

Argos - Starts: Yesterday online and today in-store.

Look for: Cameras, phones, and Apple products.

Argos operates a 'click and reserve' service online rather than home delivery.

Still, it often applies deep discounts to tech products because of its huge scale.

PC World/Currys - Starts: Yesterday online and today in-store

Look for: Laptops, TVs, headphones, and tablets.

PC World and Currys (part of the same group as Carphone Warehouse) usually sell things off quickly at hefty discounts.

Halfords - Sale starts: Yesterday (online), today in-store.

Look for: Bike-related gadgets, outdoor tech g ear, car-related electronics.

As well as camping and sport-related gadgets, Halfords does a decent line in computer parts and even some robotics.

Amazon - Sale starts: Yesterday

Look for: Kindle e-readers (Amazon's own product).

Amazon is the world's largest online retailer and will have a lot of discounts on tech stuff, although you may have to hunt for them.

Most tech goods sold on Amazon to Ireland come from UK sellers.

Power City - Sale starts: Today, 9am

Look for: Kitchen tech, coffee-makers, small audio equipment.

Power City is a local stack-em-high retail chain that is usually good for cheap prices, although it doesn't quite have the variety of multinational rivals.
Pia Wurtzbach's boyfriend Marlon Stockinger is a racing driver, who raced for Status Grand Prix in the 2012 GP3 Series and Lotus F1 Team Juniors in the 2013 World Series by Renault. (Photo : YouTube/Daily Showbiz)

Pia Wurtzbach and boyfriend Marlon Stockinger flirted on the comment section of the latter's Instagram post.



Stockinger posted a photo of himself wearing a holiday sweater from his photo shoot for a magazine to which Pia commented "Sungit" (snob). The boyfriend adorably replied, "Only when I miss you." This gives their fans goosebumps as they show their affection for each other.



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While they were apart for Christmas, the beautiful couple spent some time together in Singapore last week. With the imminent Miss Universe pageant, the reigning beauty queen is busier than ever.



Wurtzbach's hot boyfriend is a race car driver and is the first Filipino to win a formula race in Europe. He rose to celebrity status and became well-known nationwide when he started dating Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach.



The two recently admitted that they are in a relationship. However, the two seldom spend time together as Pia Wurtzbach is currently based in New York City and is travelling worldwide for her duties as Miss Universe. This could be the reason they cannot spend a lot of time together.



In an interview, Marlon revealed that he feels fortunate to get to know Pia Wurtzbach on a more personal level. "It's amazing! Pia is very beautiful, of course, that is the reason why she is Miss Universe. I just feel lucky that we got to meet and we've been seeing each other," he said.



The beauty queen was once rumored to be dating hot surgeon Dr. Mike. In the end, a Filipino won her heart. Meanwhile, Wurtzbach is back home as the Miss Universe 2016 will be held in the Philippines on Jan. 30, 2017.


Actress Carrie Fisher (L) and her mother, actress Debbie Reynolds, arrive for Dame Elizabeth Taylor's 75th birthday party at the Ritz-Carlton, Lake Las Vegas on February 27, 2007 in Henderson, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Actresses Debbie Reynolds (L), recipient of the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award, and Carrie Fisher pose in the press room at the 21st Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 25, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Actresses Debbie Reynolds (L), recipient of the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award, and Carrie Fisher pose in the press room at the 21st Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 25, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher is in a "stable" condition after she suffered a medical emergency on a London to Los Angeles flight.

The 60-year-old, who starred as Princess Leia in the sci-fi franchise, was being treated in a hospital intensive care unit after the incident which prompted well-wishes from fans and stars.

Her mother Debbie Reynolds tweeted on Christmas Day: "Carrie is in stable condition. If there is a change, we will share it. For all her fans & friends. I thank you for your prayers & good wishes."

Celebrity website TMZ, which first reported the incident, said anonymous sources told them the actress suffered a heart attack.

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Star Wars actor Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker alongside Fisher, sent a Christmas message to his "super cool space sis" on Twitter, saying: "Wishing each & every one of you a #HoneyOfAHoliday! (especially my #SuperCoolSpaceSis @carrieffisher) #XmasPrincessPleaseComeHome."

Harrison Ford, who played Han Solo opposite the actress, said in a statement: "I'm shocked and saddened to hear the news about my dear friend. Our thoughts are with Carrie, her family and friends."

Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Erik Scott said paramedics administered advanced life-saving care to a patient at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on Friday and transported the person to a nearby hospital. He did not identify the patient.

United Airlines said a passenger on flight 935 was "unresponsive".

Expand Close Actress Carrie Fisher (L) and her mother, actress Debbie Reynolds, arrive for Dame Elizabeth Taylor's 75th birthday party at the Ritz-Carlton, Lake Las Vegas on February 27, 2007 in Henderson, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Actress Carrie Fisher (L) and her mother, actress Debbie Reynolds, arrive for Dame Elizabeth Taylor's 75th birthday party at the Ritz-Carlton, Lake Las Vegas on February 27, 2007 in Henderson, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

A spokeswoman for police at LAX airport said: "Los Angeles police responded at 12.15pm to Terminal 7 regarding a female victim who went into cardiac arrest.

"Upon arrival the LAFD (Los Angeles Fire Department) was already performing CPR on the victim and the victim was transported to a local hospital for further medical treatment."

It was reported that Fisher was given CPR by passengers on board before the plane landed at LAX, where paramedics tried to resuscitate her for 15 minutes before finding a pulse.

US YouTube star and actress Anna Akana had tweeted about seeing Fisher fall ill.

Video of the Day

She said: "Don't know how else to process this but Carrie Fisher stopped breathing on the flight home. Hope she's gonna be OK.

"So many thanks to the United flight crew who jumped into action, and the awesome doctor and nurse passengers who helped."

Expand Close Movie: Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher reunite in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. / Facebook

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Whatsapp Movie: Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher reunite in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Actress Sally Field tweeted: "Merry Christmas or whatever you celebrate to everyone! Especially thinking of @carrieffisher with all my heart and soul."
This file photo taken on September 9, 2012 shows British singer George Michael performing on stage during a charity gala for the benefit of Sidaction, at the Opera Garnier in Paris/ AFP PHOTO / MIGUEL MEDINAMIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/Getty Images

WHILE George Michael shrank from the public eye towards the latter stages of his career, he could be famously frank about his life and loves during interviews.

Here are some of his most famous quotes:

* "Fame after Wham! drove me close to lunacy" - Reflecting on his career in 2014.

* "I have a really serious problem with the fact that when I brought myself down, I felt I was letting young gay kids down. My behaviour meant these kids suffered abuse and the homophobic language that is legal in this country" - On the damage he fears his public disgraces have caused, 2011.

Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Singer George Michael poses at the "George Michael: A Different Story" Photocall during the 55th annual Berlinale International Film Festival on February 16, 2005 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images) File photo dated 13/07/85 of George Michael of Wham performing at the Live Aid concert at Wembley Stadium in London: PA/PA Wire George Michael / Facebook

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Whatsapp Singer George Michael poses at the "George Michael: A Different Story" Photocall during the 55th annual Berlinale International Film Festival on February 16, 2005 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

* "I felt very re-energised after my recent troubles" - George Michael, who spent a month in prison in 2010 for drug-driving.

* "I always receive more support abroad. It's a shame, but let's be honest, after almost 30 years I count myself lucky to get any support anywhere" - Disappointed that the BBC did not use his royal wedding anthem, although it was played during Norwegian television coverage of the wedding between William and Kate in 2011.

* "I couldn't be involved in the cruel part" - Why he did not want to be an X Factor judge, 2011.

* "I really don't think so. I've run out of ideas" - Promising there would be no further scandals on his forthcoming visit to the United States, 2008.

Expand Close George Michael. Photo: REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth/File Photo / Facebook

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* "I finally realised that one reason why my life has felt so self-destructive is that I never had any feeling that my talent would let me down" - Typically honest, in 2007

* "It helps if you have a beard as it covers a multitude of sins. It really does" - On his vanity, in 2004.

* "It's about time I made a record for the boys, isn't it? I think there will be people dancing around their handbags to this one" - Describing his 2004 track Flawless, which he dedicated to homosexuals.

* "The most horrific thing that happened was that I was photographed with my shirt off and I was fat. Can you imagine two worse things than being fat and gay?" - Discussing, in 2004, events after his arrest in a US public lavatory six years previously.

Video of the Day

* "As you become older, you become more selective. Most celebrities bore me to tears" - On celebrity culture and ageing, in 2004.

* "Close up, my face is starting to resemble an Ordnance Survey map" - Self-deprecating in 1998.

* "As some of you may know I have been over busy of late" - Apologising for the brevity of his 35-minute set at The Symphony of Hope show for Aids charities in 1993, having made several recent court appearances as part of his legal battle with recording company, Sony.

* "I'm not too grand to sit around a table with the marketing people but I pay a manager to do that. You don't get respect that way" - On the music industry in 1993.

"Extraordinarily wealthy ... about three houses" - His response, when asked by a High Court judge to assess his assets during the same year.
Diarmuid Martin with John and Gwyneth Heffernan, Blanchardstown, and Holly Byrne at the Knights of Columbanus Christmas dinner in the RDS, Dublin. Photo: Mark Condren

The head of the Catholic Church in Ireland has hit out at the ongoing gang warfare in the capital, condemning the "sick individuals who murder openly on our streets" and the "evil individuals who instruct and pay them".

In his Christmas homily, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin asked if the birth of Christ, the Prince of Peace, meant anything to them.

His comments were made as armed members of an elite Garda unit patrolled the streets of the capital over Christmas in an effort to prevent further bloodshed in the Hutch-Kinahan feud which has already claimed 11 lives in 14 months.

On Thursday night, the latest victim, Noel Kirwan, was shot dead in west Dublin.

On Friday, Dr Martin told RTE Radio that the feud was linked to "a multi-million euro business of death called the drugs trade".

Speaking at St Mary's Pro- Cathedral in Dublin yesterday, the Archbishop listed a litany of social ills afflicting Irish society.

He asked if there was any way those who are victims of domestic violence or sexual violence, of road violence or the violence of economic exploitation, can experience the joy of Christmas.

"Our city is marked by homelessness, but also indeed for many by hopelessness.

"We have very high suicide rates and so many are searching for real hope in the face of an economic crisis, in the face of loneliness and emptiness and the illusion of drugs or empty consumerism," he warned.

In a reference to how the economy is failing so many, he said: "Technical progress must be matched by progress in true humanism. True progress is progress for all."

He said believers cannot be satisfied simply to celebrate Christmas "like an anaesthetic which hides pain for a moment or like an eruption of spending which ends up leaving us only with a hangover of emptiness".

He also questioned how God, as the Prince of Peace, could be explained to a war-torn world where the "perennial desire of humankind for peace is being martyred daily" and the ambition to save succeeding generations from the "scourge of war" was rendered a "cynical, empty dream".

Posing the question "Where is our God?", Dr Martin said the problem is that people look for God in the wrong places.

The shepherds at the first Christmas were led to "a small baby living without not just the external signs of power: he is born with only the simplest necessities in total contradiction of what we are led to consider power".

Meanwhile, the Archbishop of Armagh paid tribute to Irish "messengers of hope" in the Navy, and UN peacekeepers in Lebanon who have helped the "traumatised" and "survivors of conflict".

In his homily for Christmas Day at St Patrick's Cathedral in Armagh, Archbishop Eamon Martin said that if Christmas is to be more than sentimentality, tinsel and lights, then Christmas worship should challenge people to play their part in "making the world a better place".

Fleeing

"Anyone following the news in recent days cannot fail to be moved by the sight of fellow human beings fleeing for their lives - from Aleppo to Berlin, and from Turkey to Egypt," he said.

Closer to home, Dr Martin said the plight of people "forced to live and sleep on the streets makes us thankful to have a warm home, food on the table and a bed to rest in at night".

He was "heartened" by the courageous work of the charity Trocaire through its partners in Syria and Iraq in helping traumatised victims and survivors of conflict, and he sent good wishes for Christmas to the "brave Irish UN peacekeepers in Lebanon and other troubled places".

He also saluted the "tremendous humanitarian work of our Navy, which has helped to rescue thousands of migrants from the Mediterranean".

Elsewhere, the Church of Ireland Primate paid tribute to 2016's commemorations which had provided people with the "freedom to remember and the grace to grieve".

At Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin, Archbishop Michael Jackson said tens of thousands of people at home and abroad, together with friends of Ireland worldwide, had been enriched by this experience of knowing and engaging with commemoration. The history of the State had been told with objectivity and with respect as people recalled the 1916 Rising and the Battle of the Somme, he said.
Gardai are investigating whether a burnt-out vehicle dumped in a remote ravine is linked to the murder of a former Real IRA chief earlier this month.

Aidan O'Driscoll (37) was shot dead at the Old Commons Road, Blackpool, Co Cork, on December 7.

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It is being investigated whether 'The Beast' was targeted by former dissident associates.

Gardai believe a red Opel Astra vehicle was used in the murder plot, but were not able to locate the vehicle in the days following the killing.

However, on Tuesday of last week a car matching the description of the red Opel was located in a ravine between Rylane and Nadd in the Boggeragh Mountains, north Cork.

The car had been burnt out and dumped in the remote location, making it difficult for gardai to recover the vehicle.

Expand Close Aidan O'Driscoll pictured at a protest against the visit of Queen Elizabeth in 2012. Picture: Collins Photos / Facebook

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Officers managed to carry out forensic tests on the abandoned Opel and do not believe that the car was stolen prior to the murder.

It is yet to be officially determined if the vehicle is linked to Aidan O'Driscoll's murder.

But a source stated that "all indications so far" match it to the red Opel Astra for which gardai previously appealed for information.

Two other burnt-out cars believed to be linked to the killing were recovered in the immediate aftermath of the murder.

A silver grey Nissan Almeira car and a white Vauxhall Astra van were recovered at Redemption Road and in Killeens, which gardai say were directly used in the gun attack.

Aidan O'Driscoll, a father-of-two, was shot in the back before the gunman pumped two further bullets into him as he lay dying.

O'Driscoll was a former chief in the Real IRA in Dublin before he was dispelled form the group after a falling-out with Alan Ryan, who was himself murdered in September 2012.

However, one line of enquiry now being pursued is that he was killed because of a local dispute with republicans with whom he previously associated.

Detectives from Anglesea Street garda station are leading the murder investigation but no arrests have yet been made.
Agents acting for Apollo House post the High Court notice to vacate the building on the gates of Apollo House. Picture; Gerry Mooney

ROCK star Glen Hansard said money raised by activists who took over Apollo House will go towards hostels and other homeless services.

To date, more than 152,000 has been raised through a fundraising website affiliated with the Home Sweet Home group occupying the office block in Dublin. It aims to raise 500,000.

The group is not a registered charity so all funding is allocated to the Irish Housing Network which is monitoring and running a GoFundMe webpage for the group.

Money has also been raised by handing out Home Sweet Home T-shirts in return for a donation.

The future of the occupation was put in doubt last week after the High Court ruled that 40 homeless people staying in the facility were trespassing in the building which had been left vacant since mid-2015.

Mr Justice Paul Gilligan said they must vacate the building but added they could stay there for Christmas until noon on January 11.

Speaking to the Sunday Independent, Mr Hansard, who was listed as one of the defendants in court, said he felt the judgment was fair. However, he failed to elaborate on what will happen once the court imposed deadline passes. He added that funds raised by the activists would go towards other homeless services across the country.

"In terms of the funding, we will just pass it on to the hostels if that is the case.

"This is not about me or the Irish Housing Network or trade unions in particular, this is about homelessness.

"The artists and everybody involved, they are all giving their energy to this because it is an important conversation."

Organisers have denied the takeover and occupancy of Apollo House was a stunt, insisting it is part of a plan to address Ireland's homeless crisis.

A media action plan and a pathway for the future of the Home Sweet Home group had been put in place last Tuesday night before it was issued with legal papers and made to appear before the High Court.

This forced it to cancel future plans to deal with the legal proceedings but it is now believed these plans will be put in place next week after Christmas.

"The idea of this was to start a conversation and the judge ruled very well on this as far as we are concerned," said Mr Hansard.

"We expected to be out by Christmas. We hoped we would not have been and we had no intentions of leaving before Christmas.

"Most importantly, this is a huge national emergency that needs to be recognised."

The group is supported by a number or artists, including Hozier, Christy Moore, Kodaline and Liam O Maonlai, as well as unions and politicians.

Hozier was among a group of artists who performed live at the makeshift homeless hostel this week to draw attention to the occupation.

He told the Sunday Independent he got involved because the Government was not doing enough to help combat homelessness.

"They have cut right to the heart of the problem and created a solution in a very short space of time.

"It is a solution that the Government has chosen not to engage with. It is a solution that the Government has chosen not to explore.

"I think by ignoring the problem we are committing an injury to ourselves and society."
Dylan (10) was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at 12 months old. Photo: True Shot Photography

A dad has told how he watched in astonishment as his young son took his first steps after undergoing a life-changing surgery in the US.

Gerry Walsh, from Co Wicklow, brought his son Dylan to Saint Louis Children Hospital (SLCH) in Missouri to undergo a surgery that would help Dylan to walk.

Dylan, now 10-years-old, was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at 12-months-old and was told he would be in a wheelchair up to his 10th birthday.

Tomorrow Dylan is playing in a hurling blitz, the surgery changed his life," Dad Gerry Walsh told Independent.ie.

The family went to Missouri for selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) surgery, where the nerves in the spinal cord are cut to ease spasticity and release tension in the nerves and body.

Currently, the cost of the surgery is $45,000 (43,000), which includes the surgery as well as three weeks of intensive physiotherapy post SDR and a refundable $6,000 (5,700) provision for equipment and splints, which the patient may or may not need.

Expand Close After the surgery Dylan can now take part in hockey games / Facebook

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Whatsapp After the surgery Dylan can now take part in hockey games

In 2011 when Dylan was a five-year-old, the medical professionals in Ireland wouldnt discuss the SDR surgery.

"They didnt know anything about it. When we came across the SDR surgery, the history wasnt great.

"But we knew a Wicklow family who had gone to America for the surgery and we saw his improvement and it was astonishing, Gerry said.

The family decided to travel to the US for surgery and began fundraising over 60,000.

In 2012, Dylan became the ninth child in Ireland to have the SDR surgery in the US.

Before the surgeries Dylan couldnt stand, he got around by crawling.

When he took his first steps it was astonishing. I never even dreamt that could happen. I never thought it would become a reality. He never knew what it felt like to stand, said Gerry.

The spinal operation is invasive. It was a big decision to make but we never looked back.

The spasticity was causing him so much pain because his legs were so tight. Hed wake up in the morning crying and wed have to force his legs into a position because they were so tight.

Dylan now has an extreme pain threshold because he got to a point where pain was normal to him.

Gerry said that even if Dylan didnt walk after the surgery, it was still the right decision if it meant he would no longer be in pain.

He became a happier, louder child because his little body wasnt tense from being in pain.

The pain was like when you point your toes as far as you can and hold it. Most people can only do that for a couple of seconds but thats pain he was constantly in.

Before the surgeries Dylan was given Botox injections to help release the spasticity but it was only a temporary release.

After 2012 an assessment team in Ireland was set up to look into making the surgery available here.

The surgery, which is since available in the UK, is covered under the treatment abroad scheme but there is a tight criteria to be selected which Gerry is campaigning to change.

The SDR surgery was pioneered by Dr Park in St Louis and he has performed the surgery almost 4,000 times since the 1980s.

People all around the world go to learn from him.

Gerry said the success of the surgery widely depends on your definition of success.

Some kids who have the surgery are now doing karate, others are just in less pain. Everyone is different. Some parents wonder why their child isnt running but every child is different and the outcome of the surgery is different for everyone.

I havent heard any regrets or disappointments with the surgery and Id know most of the families in Ireland who have had the surgery.

Gerry warned that the surgery isnt a fix-all solution and that there is a lot of physiotherapy and exercising to be done afterwards.

The surgery doesnt get rid of cerebral palsy but it helps them along the way. Dylan says the surgery meant the world to him.

Dylan has had other surgeries since and hell have more again in the future but he wouldnt be where he was today without it.

Thankful

Isabelle Dodeman-Lawless (50) from Dublin was the only adult from Ireland and the oldest person in the world to undergo the SDR surgery in St Louis.

After a difficult birth, I didn't breath for a minute, which resulted in a mild form of cerebral palsy (CP). I walked at two years old and have always been very active and independent.

I stated to notice I was getting stiffer in my twenties, but it was subtle in the beginning. By the time I was in my 30s and especially after having my three children, my mobility was deteriorating very quickly. I was increasingly tired and in pain, I was falling very often. I needed support to go up or down kerb, stairs and downward slope. I was losing my independence.

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The brain damage causing CP is not progressive. However, the spasticity or constant pulling of the muscles takes its toll on the body, which means that over time, even people with mild CP see their mobility deteriorate in adulthood."

Isabelle explored other treatments such as baclofen, botox injections and physiotherapy before hearing about the SDR surgery.

"The cut off age for SDR had been extended to 50 years old, and I was 49 and 11 months old at the time of my surgery in February 2016.

Isabelle said that thankfully her parents gave her an advance on her inheritance in order to pay for the surgery before she missed the cut off age.

We are also extremely thankful to the army of friends and family who looked after our three teen age children while my husband and I went over to America for four and a half weeks to have the surgery and intense physiotherapy.

Isabelle said the few days post-surgery were rough, which was made worse by her reaction to the pain medication.

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Post SDR, my legs felt were like cooked spaghetti and I had to learn how to walk again, build strength and endurance, discover and build new muscles I never knew existed or were supposed to be used for walking.

She explained that her posture has improved and she can now walk faster and for much longer distances.

SDR combined with a huge amount of daily physiotherapy, personal training, stretching and exercise at home has allowed me to regain some of the mobility I had lost and to regain my independence.

"I have resumed being able to do things that people take for granted like carrying the grocery, which I could no longer do before SDR.

Now when I walk, I feel I am gliding rather than dragging myself. It is such a privilege and a glorious feeling.

Anyone who wants more information on the SDR surgery can visit https://www.facebook.com/groups/160985950682949/
In the strongest terms, the head of the Catholic Church in Dublin has hit out at the ongoing gang warfare in the capital condemning the sick individuals who murder openly on our streets and the evil individuals who instruct and pay them.

In his Christmas homily, Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin asked if the birth of Christ, the Prince of Peace, meant anything to them?

His comments were made as armed members of an elite Garda unit patrol the streets of the capital this Christmas in an effort to prevent further bloodshed in the Hutch-Kinahan feud which has already claimed 11 lives in 14 months. On Thursday night, the latest victim, Noel Kirwan was shot dead in Clondalkin.

On Friday, Dr Martin told RTE Radio that the feud was linked to a multi-million euro business of death called the drugs trade.

Speaking at St Marys Pro Cathedral in Dublin on Christmas day, the Archbishop listed a litany of social ills afflicting Irish society and asked if there was any way those who are victims of domestic violence or sexual violence, of road violence or the violence of economic exploitation, can experience the joy of Christmas.

Our city is marked by homelessness but also indeed for many by hopelessness. We have very high suicide rates and so many are searching for real hope in the face of an economic crisis, in the face of loneliness and emptiness and the illusion of drugs or empty consumerism, he warned.

Referring to the recent queues of up to 3,000 people for Christmas food parcels at the Capuchin Day Centre in Dublin, Dr Martin stated, All of us were stunned even here in our own city to find thousands of people queuing for basic food at the Capuchin and other food centres, while within a few kilometres others were queuing for luxury goods.

In a reference to how the economy is failing so many, he stressed, Technical progress must be matched by progress in true humanism. True progress is progress for all.

Acknowledging how Christmas brings joy which touches hearts like no other feast, bringing out real goodness even in the hardest of hearts, he said believers cannot be satisfied simply to celebrate Christmas like an anaesthetic which hides pain for a moment or like an eruption of spending which ends up leaving us only with a hangover of emptiness.

He also questioned how God as the Prince of Peace could be explained to a war-torn world where the perennial desire of humankind for peace is being martyred daily and the ambition to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war was rendered a cynical empty dream.

Posing the question, Where is our God? Dr Martin said the problem is that people look for God in the wrong places.

The shepherds at the first Christmas were led to a small baby living without not just the external signs of power: he is born with only the simplest necessities in total contradiction of what we are led to consider power.

The birth of Jesus in powerlessness and poverty teaches us that we seek hope somewhere else than in a constant seeking for power, Dr Martin said and added that believers should be seeking to bring light to all those who live in darkness and in a land of deep shadow.

In his Christmas message, Archbishop Michael Jackson of Dublin and Glendalough expressed concern for those in cities and townlands across Ireland who struggle, often without hope, to make ends meet and who are homeless and loveless.

He also highlighted the plight of people in cities and wastelands across Europe and the Middle East and Africa whose only hope of a future is to flee everything that once was theirs amidst trafficking, the dismantling of their dignity and the care and worry for those who remain dependent on them.
A garda investigation is underway after a former TD was arrested outside his home and reportedly pepper-sprayed.

The Daily Mail is reporting that former Co Clare deputy Michael McNamara was stopped at his home in the early hours of December 10 after he was followed there by a garda.

According to the newspaper Mr McNamara, who is also a barrister and Labour spokesperson on international tax justice, was pepper-sprayed outside the property in Scariff, Co Clare and arrested.

However, when he was brought to a garda station he passed a breathalyser test and was released without charge.

A spokesperson for An Garda Siochana said: "Gardai are investigating an incident in Scariff Co Clare on December 10. A file will be prepared for the DPP in relation to it."

The Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) may also investigate the matter if a complaint is made.

Mr McNamara was first elected to the Dail in 2011 but failed to retain his seat earlier this year.

He then launched an unsuccessful bid to be elected to the Seanad.

The politician is married to the Sarah-Jane Hillery, a fellow barrister and granddaughter of former president Patrick Hillery.

Mr McNamara did not respond to requests for comment from Independent.ie.
The man was discovered on the St Margaret's Avenue in Waterford City. Picture Google Maps

A young man is fighting for life after he was found unconscious on a city street on Christmas night.

Gardai say they are investigating all possibilities after the man, who is in his late 20s, was discovered on St Margaret's Avenue in Waterford.

He was taken by ambulance to University Hospital Waterford where he is described as being in a "critical condition".

He was found shortly after 8.30pm and gardai are seeking information or witnesses from anyone who may have noticed anything in the area around this time.

Detectives have been unable to establish how the man sustained these injuries.

A source said: "At the moment it is impossible to say if this man suffered these injuries in a fall or an assault."

A garda spokesman said: "Officers are investigating all of the circumstances surrounding his injuries."

Meanwhile a man is continuing to receive treatment today after he was stabbed on Christmas eve in South Dublin.

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Gardai say that the incident happened late on December 24 in an area known as The Metals, Dalkey.

The victim, who is in his 20s, was stabbed at least once in the attack.

He was brought by ambulance to St Vincent's Hospital where doctors originally feared that his injuries were critical.

However sources said his condition improved on Christmas Day.

Gardai in Dun Laoghaire have launched an investigation and the they are currently gathering evidence in the area.
South Korean actor Park Seo-Joon plays the lead character of Moo Myung/Sun Woo-Rang in KBS 2TV's 'Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth.' (Photo : YouTube/ain't taehyung)

Many viewers were upset when KBS 2TV's "Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth" did not meet their expectations. The historical drama stars Park Seo Joon, Go Ara and ZE:A's Park Hyung-Sik.



"Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth" has been getting attention for its star-studded cast that includes SHINee's Choi Min-Ho, Do Ji-Han, Cho Yoon-Woo and BTS member V. The hype was prominent to the point that it took over "Descendants of the Sun" spot as the most expensive Korean drama sold to China.



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Despite that, poor ratings marked the historical drama since it debuted on Dec. 19. The first episode posted viewership ratings of 6.9 percent, while its second episode edged up to 7.2 percent. Still, it was not able to rank in the top 20 daily programs of the Monday-Tuesday timeslot.



Not long after the series premiered, many viewers took to the drama's bulletin board, as cited by The Korea Times, to express their disappointment over the stars unnatural acting. It is said that the first two episodes was not all that impressive, as the drama seems to carry no weight.



Some even noted that the KBS 2TV drama gave them a flashback of SBS' "Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo" with the distractive storytelling and unnatural acting of the lead stars. It is said that the former in some ways looks similar to the SBS historical drama.



However, compared with Lee Joon-Gi and IU's drama, "Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth's" overall tone is splendid and cheerful. At the same time, it has a serious side that deals with the real history of Silla's King Jinheung and other Hwarang members.



"Although it's clearly a historical drama, we aimed to create a historical drama that is also a fusion (of genres), talks about youth and has a modern feel," Yonhap News Agency quoted producing-director Yoon Sung-Sik as saying during a promotional press conference held in southern Seoul. Check out KBS 2TV's "Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth" here:






Emergency services are the scene of two crashes on the M1 motorway this afternoon with gardai reporting long traffic delays.

Shortly after 12 noon gardai reported that they were attending two road traffic collisions on M1 Northbound close to Junction 6, Balbriggan.

Two road traffic collisions on M1 Northbound close to junction 6, Balbriggan. Delays expected. Please approach with caution.  An Garda Siochana (@GardaTraffic) December 26, 2016

We're attending 2 RTCs within 100 mts of each other. #M1 NB J6 #Balbriggan, no serious injuries thankfully. Delays at present #Dublin #fire pic.twitter.com/SYV3FVlkfS  Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) December 26, 2016

They advised motorists to expect delays and "approach with caution".

A short time later Dublin Fire Brigade tweeted they were attending the scene of the road traffic collision. They were also investigating reports of a fire at the scene.

Gardai have no reports of serious injuries.

Shortly before 3pm AA Roadwatch tweeted that the collisions had been cleared up and delays should now ease.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell: 'I think Pope Francis will change things; I think people will see his authenticity.' Photo: Getty

The highest-ranking Irishman in the Vatican, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, believes Pope Francis's visit to Ireland in 2018 will turn around some of the negativity across the country towards the Catholic Church.

The 69-year-old former bishop of Dallas, who was elevated to the cardinalate in November, said: "I think Pope Francis will change things; I think people will see his authenticity.

"He is clearly a man of God and he will attract people to think in those terms again. He is a person who inspires all of us to do something good for the church and for people," added the Dublin-born prelate, who was speaking exclusively to the Irish Independent from Rome.

Pope Francis has chosen Ireland for the hosting of the World Meeting of Families in 2018, having just passed a referendum on marriage equality and amid calls for change to the country's abortion laws.

Cardinal Farrell, who now heads up the Vatican's new Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, said: "I don't think Ireland is any more secular than most of northern Europe, so Pope Francis clearly understands the situation in Ireland and that's the challenge he wishes to accept.

"I think the whole question of family life is also very dear to Irish people - even today in the changing environment of the world and of Ireland. Family life is an important part of the culture of Ireland.

"I think that is what Pope Francis wishes to convey to the people of Ireland by having this world gathering of families."

When Pope Francis called Cardinal Farrell on the telephone last May to offer him the role of Prefect of the new Department for Laity, Family and Life, the Cardinal said he was "just completely shocked".

"He called me on the telephone and started to talk to me about coming to Rome to set up this new dicastery. I didn't know what to say or how to respond," he said.

"I had spent most of my life involved in promoting laity within dioceses and within my own diocese in Dallas in Texas. From that to then come to Rome was a complete surprise. You can't imagine how shocked I was."

The Drimnagh-born prelate travelled to Rome to meet Pope Francis and tried to convince him not to appoint him, saying he was too old for the job.

"He was very welcoming to me, very caring about it and he understood what it was like to leave a diocese - to leave where you had worked for most of your life. At 69 years of age I didn't think of moving anywhere. I kept telling him that I was too old for the job, but he kept reminding me that he was 75 years old when he was elected Pope and he had to leave Argentina.

"We had a conversation for about an hour and a half and the rest is history. Here I am."

Cardinal Farrell's older brother, Bishop Brian Farrell (72), also works for the Vatican as Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity in Rome. This is the first time the two have worked together in the same country since ordination.

"It is very unusual that there would be two brothers working within the Vatican at the same time. I don't know of any other two brothers that are in Rome at the moment who are both bishops," he said.

His younger brothers Eamon and Patrick both live in Dublin.

Cardinal Farrell also criticised opponents of Amoris Laetitia, Pope Francis's document on the family, for closing their minds to "certain nuances that exist in the life of people".

Four cardinals recently revealed they had written to Pope Francis asking him to clarify the "uncertainty, confusion, and disorientation among many of the faithful", which they said Amoris Laetitia had caused.

But Cardinal Farrell, who has consistently defended the Pope's apostolic exhortation against conservative opponents, said the document's critics wished the world were "more perfect than it truly is".

Asked if Pope Francis has made enemies, Cardinal Farrell admitted that it "could be a correct observation".

Of those who are opposed to the Pope, he said: "People have their own point of view and vision and their own misunderstandings."

He added that he had "never known a document in the Catholic Church where there wasn't some criticism by some people".

"It doesn't surprise me in the least that there would be differences of opinion - there are differences of opinion as to which way you say the Hail Mary; there are differences of opinion as to how we celebrate the Mass and which language we use," he said.

Finally, Cardinal Farrell appealed this Christmas for compassion, kindness, understanding and mercy for "all of our brothers and sisters, no matter who they are, or where they come from, or what language they speak". He said these were the greatest gifts people could give each other for Christmas.

"Christmas is a time for us all to open up our hearts to those who are closest to us. So often we go through life bearing a grudge.

"Let us remember that we are all human beings, we are all the same flesh and blood and we're all created by the same God," he said.

"We are brothers and sisters and we should treat each other as such.

"I think that is the greatest gift we can give to each other."

Describing Christmas as "a time for family life", the Cardinal said it was also a time when we have to look also at why we celebrate Christmas.

"It was not just an historical event in our Church; God wished to be a part of our lives and our existence," he added.
A major clampdown on diesel laundering in the Border counties has forced key players linked to the leadership of the Provisional IRA to move their multi-million euro racket overseas.

Operations by the Revenue Commissioners and gardai have effectively shut down the highly lucrative scam for the main players over the past year.

This has resulted in a big boost to the sale of legitimate diesel at filling stations and a saving to State coffers of more than 200m.

For decades diesel laundering has been a key source of fundraising for terrorists and, since the IRA ceasefire, for gangs closely linked to the Provisional leadership that still exists in the Border region and some dissident groups.

But the introduction of a new mineral oil marker, Accutrace S10, has tilted the balance in favour of the State, as it has so far defied the efforts of highly trained laundering technicians to find an economical way of eliminating it.

Abroad

As a result, many of the key players have now moved out of the jurisdiction and are believed to be operating in Britain.

Accutrace, which was launched here in 2015, is a colourless marker, whose chemical properties are similar to diesel, making it resistant to conventional dye-washing laundering methods.

Close monitoring of the impact of Accutrace led to a series of random samples being taken by Revenue officers around the country and found no evidence that the marker had been removed.

The number of finds of sludge, the residue of oil laundering, dropped by 95pc from 186 to 11, in Co Monaghan and by 71pc in Co Louth between January and July in 2015, and the same period this year.

Despite the evidence, Revenue head of enforcement on the Border, Pat Gralton said it had not become complacent about fuel laundering.

"This is an ongoing project and we are staying on the alert," he said.

This view was vindicated two months ago when intelligence gathered by officers led to an operation against a gang based in the Cavan-Monaghan area.

This resulted earlier this month in the discovery of an oil laundry plant at Castleblayney, Co Monaghan, the seizure of two oil tankers, 13,500 litres of laundered fuel, 134 bags of bleaching earth, which is used in the laundering process, as well as other equipment.

Backed up by heavily armed members of the Garda regional support unit, Revenue officers carried out a total of six searches. During one of them, at a house in Monaghan, they also seized bank drafts and cheques worth more than 60,000 and believed to be payments for previous deliveries.

The illicit fuel was found at a filling station in Co Cavan and also discovered to be in use by two haulage companies.

Revenue estimated that the gang's activities represented a potential loss to the Exchequer of 1.2m a year, if the product displaced legitimate diesel in the marketplace.

A total of 13 goods vehicles were found to be running on laundered fuel.

Prosecution files are now being prepared as a result of the operation.

Revenue has also been active on other fronts in the Border region in recent months including a 4m drugs seizure that included cocaine, herbal cannabis and ecstasy tablets, while a clampdown on street stalls selling illicit cigarettes had shut down the illegal business in Drogheda.

Officers are also targeting some of the other big markets where some stalls are suspected of being involved, including those in Balbriggan in north county Dublin and Clara, Co Offaly.

More than 100,000 illicit cigarettes were confiscated in various searches last month.

Tougher controls and auditing of filling stations have also led to the disappearance of outlets suspected of selling laundered fuel, with 149 stations being closed nationwide over a five-year period.
A 10-year-old girl died on a flight over the North Atlantic despite the best efforts of medics on board, and a mercy dash by the crew to the nearest airport, which was Shannon. Stock photo.

A 10-year-old girl died on a flight over the North Atlantic despite the best efforts of medics on board, and a mercy dash by the crew to the nearest airport, which was Shannon.

The child was travelling on board Air Canada flight AC-868 on Christmas Eve. It was a scheduled service from Toronto, Canada, to Heathrow Airport in London.

The Boeing 787-800 Dreamliner jet, with 238 passengers and crew on board, was just 90 minutes from its destination when the crew declared a medical emergency and advised air traffic controllers they needed to divert and land.

The crew reported they had a young girl on board who was "unresponsive". A doctor and a nurse who were also travelling on the flight began CPR.

An ambulance and rapid-response advanced paramedic unit from Ennis were sent to Shannon Airport. Two units of the local authority fire service from Shannon town were also requested to provide additional personnel to assist.

Shannon Airport's own emergency first responders were also waiting at the terminal for the aircraft when it landed at 7.40pm.

National Ambulance Service paramedics quickly boarded the aircraft and began efforts to resuscitate the gravely ill child.

Paramedics worked on the girl in one of the aircraft's aisles, but despite their best efforts, the child was pronounced dead at the scene.

She was later removed to University Hospital Limerick for a post-mortem examination.

A Garda spokesman confirmed that the county coroner was informed of the tragedy. The flight continued its journey to London at 9.20pm.

It's understood that the girl, who was a Canadian citizen, was travelling with three older sisters who were cared for in a Limerick city hotel.

An airline spokesman said: "We are deeply saddened by this situation and we are doing all we can to assist the family in these tragic circumstances."

One emergency worker said: "Everything that could have been done in the air and on the ground was done for this poor girl. Between the National Ambulance Service and Shannon Fire Brigade, we had all the personnel we needed to ensure continuity of CPR all the way to the hospital. In the end, we weren't all needed unfortunately. It's an awful tragedy, especially on the night that was in it."

Separately, a US-bound passenger flight turned around over the Atlantic in the early hours of yesterday and diverted to Shannon Airport with a seriously ill woman.

The Israeli airline flight was travelling from Tel Aviv to Boston in the US at the time.

The flight landed shortly after 5am and was met by airport staff and National Ambulance Service paramedics.
Christmas day swimmers take the plunge at the Forty foot in Dublin. Photo: Frank McGrath

It was one of the warmest Christmas Days in years as the thermometer peaked near 14C in parts of the country.

Met Eireann recorded a peak of 13.8C at Oak Park in Carlow while in Phoenix Park it was 13.7C and Malin Head recorded 13C as early as 10am.

The mild conditions came as the brunt of Storm Conor passed us by, instead impacting Scotland before heading towards Norway.

There were high winds over the weekend and power outages affected homes around Mullingar and Athlone. A spokesman for ESB Networks said it was a normal winter's day for them. "We apologise for any convenience for the day that was in it, but we had the usual crews on standby and where there were pockets of people with outages we worked hard to get it restored," he said.

But while there was rain and wind, parts of the country enjoyed good spells of sunshine yesterday.

The duty forecaster at Met Eireann said that temperatures in the teens on Christmas Day were "not usual" but not unique.

She added that people remembered the colder Christmases such as 2010 when snow and ice carpeted the country, but yesterday we were in a "broad warm sector" with temperatures actually rising through the night on Christmas Eve.

Today, however, the weather will feel colder, with a dusting of snow possible on higher ground.

With a busy day of sport ahead, including racing at Leopardstown and the Munster v Leinster clash, fans will be glad to hear the forecast is positive.

"There could be thundery showers overnight but when the winds die down it will be high pressure for the rest of the week," she said.
Advice is available to help those with an addiction to cope at Christmas

An alcohol addiction expert says that the booze-soaked festive period where the usual social norms no longer apply can be the trigger for longer-term problem drinking.

It comes as debates rage online about whether it's acceptable to crack open bottles of alcohol early during the run-up to Christmas.

There are two key reasons why people end up drinking more at Christmas.

The first is the increase in parties, but for some the festive period can be a miserable time, and they end up self-medicating with alcohol, Dr Sally Marlow from the Addictions Department at Kings College London told The Independent.

They feel they need to do it more to cope because for a lot of people Christmas isnt like a John Lewis ad.

While no-one is likely to develop a severe alcohol problem solely in the run-up to Christmas, its a time of increased risk.

You wont suddenly tip into alcoholism but you might realise the severity of your drinking when you wake up one morning.

But the more you drink and the more frequently you drink, the more likely you are to become dependent on alcohol and move towards an alcohol problem.

People develop alcohol dependence at different rates - its a combination of how their biology and neuropsychology work, how they metabolise alcohol. But the more you drink the more at risk you are because you develop tolerance, Dr Marlow explained.

While its generally accepted that people will crack open the hard stuff on Christmas morning as a special treat, early morning drinking in the run-up to the big day regularly splits opinion online.

In the latest example, one woman wrote on Mumsnet that shed had a Baileys hot chocolate at 8am.

And while many people approved, some chipped in raising concerns that it could be problematic.

One said: Bizarre how people are egging on really worrying behaviour.

Another added: At home, in the middle of the week for no particular reason? Nah. Not big and not clever. And possibly quite concerning actually.

But many said it was harmless fun: It's fine, it's Christmas! Enjoy yourself, wrote one woman.

So whether youre cheersing with chums or sipping amaretto alone, it might be worth asking yourself why youre drinking and make sure you enjoy the festive season for the right reasons.

( Independent News Service)
An error in her French comprehension meant that when Kelli and Patrick Marjolet first met online in 1997, she thought he was a gay woman. The Chicago woman was looking to improve her French, and got chatting to Frenchman Patrick in a language chatroom.

"His screen name ended in 'e' and I presumed it was feminine," says Kelli, then 20. "He said his heart had been broken by a girl so then I thought I was talking to a lesbian. We clarified he was a man and he sent me a photo. I thought I had to 'friendzone' him because he was out of my league."

They wrote back and forth, purely as friends, but their first phone call was a disaster as Patrick's English was as bad as Kelli's French, When she graduated in journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison two years later, her dad, Jim Hader, gave her a trip to Europe as a present. She decided to go to Rennes to hang out with her pal Patrick, who was studying maths at university there.

"Patrick picked my friend and me up from the train station and was carrying the saddest-looking baguette, which was so cliche," she laughs. "I was dating someone else - another French guy - and my plan was actually to set Patrick up with my friend."

Patrick, 40, is from Brittany and comes third of Gilles and Elisabeth's four children. As soon as he saw Kelli, he liked her. "She had this white shirt on, beautiful blue eyes and the perfect figure," he recalls. "Kelli was always smiling and there was, and is, something so vibrant about her. She brings balance to my craziness."

They hung out for a few weeks, and Patrick brought Kelli to Ireland as he had visited previously and really loved it. Alas she wasn't as impressed with the country as her thoughts lay in France, but she found that she was interested in him.

She went back to Chicago, planning to move to Paris and the firm she worked at happened to offer her a job at their branch there. Both her boyfriend and Patrick were living in Paris, but her relationship with the other guy ended after a while. She began dating Patrick in April 2001. "He showed me such compassion and taught me what unconditional love was," says Kelli, now 39. "I think I won the lottery when I met him."

Patrick then got a job in IT in Los Angeles. They moved over for 18 months and Kelli got a marketing job. They got married in Beverly Hills in 2003, with one witness present... "I was in work that morning and bought the dress en route," Kelli recalls. "We went to Catalina Island for our honeymoon. Patrick lost his wedding ring while we were snorkelling, three days after we got married."

The Marjolets then moved to Wisconsin and Paris and came to Ireland for four years as Kelli had warmed to it somewhat. Then they had a four-year stint in San Francisco. "We went to Chicago to visit my family for Christmas, and my stepmum Maxine asked me where I felt home was?" says Kelli, who has two older brothers. "I didn't know, but then on the plane to visit Dublin, Ireland came into view and I started bawling. I'm not an emotional person but I was thinking about seeing our friends and walking down the streets in the cold, and I just felt we belonged here. I went on a quiet campaign as soon as we got home to move back to Dublin. We came back in 2014 and are staying here forever because I love it."

Kelli and Patrick have begun a very exciting adventure making chocolate now, and it all started when someone gave Kelli a bag of roasted cocoa beans in SF. Patrick decided to see if he could make chocolate from them, and really enjoyed the process. He began experimenting, adding different ingredients and hosting tasting parties along the way.

He was working on developing Failte Ireland's website at the time, and got such a great reaction, he and Kelli got serious about it and set up The Proper Chocolate Company in May. Patrick made the chocolate and Kelli did the design and branding work, and they now work out of a kitchen in Glasnevin. They sell the bars and hot chocolate at two markets every Saturday, Honest2Goodness in Glasnevin and Green Door in Newmarket. They are also in six retailers.

"We actually import the beans and do the entire process ourselves," Patrick explains. "It has a deeper flavour than the classic dark chocolate and we don't put any additives in it. The Irish palate has come a long way in recent years, and we feel we can bring something that people will really like. The reaction has been wildly good so far - better than we could have imagined."

Kelli and Patrick recently stepped out of their respective careers to focus full-time on the chocolate. They have eight bars, ranging from the 58pc cocoa Ghana Milk Chocolate and Hazelnut bar to the 75pc Dominican Republic Hispaniola. They live in Rathmines with their cat Stout, a stray they adopted in San Francisco.

Was having a family on the cards for them? "Maybe briefly," Kelli replies. "We were just always on the go, and if it had happened, it would have been perfectly fine but it is fine without it too. I don't think Patrick and I have ever been closer than we are right now. We know our sensitive spots and when to give each other space, and have so much respect for one another. We're also the least dramatic people we know."

www.facebook.com/properchocolate
Chart-topper Adele is set to tour Australia - and why not. Edreams.com has listed some reasons why you might consider going Down Under too.

1. Because the sunset over Ayers Rock (also known as Uluru) is an extraordinary experience;

2. Because Australia has more kangaroos than people;

3. Because it's the world capital of surfing (and surfing is way cool);

4. Because barbecuing is a real way of living;

5. Because Australia has beaches that look like they came straight out of a postcard;

6. To discover the incredible marine life of the Great Barrier Reef;

7. Because the Great Ocean Road is the most scenic route in the world.

8. For its delicious wines that make Dom Perignon jealous!;

9. To discover the fascinating Aboriginal culture.

And last but not least...

10. To enjoy the pool and sea together at Bondi Beach.

Tips for being stylish in the air

After packing a suitcase, the last thing you want to do is spend time worrying about what to wear on a plane. Instyle.com has some tips for looking good in the air.

1. Wear pants that have some stretch; a black ankle-length skinny pant, jeans in a simple dark wash, a riding pant, or substantial leggings.

2. Choose a "boyfriend cardigan" or tunic-length pullover sweater in light-weight wool or cashmere. It should be long enough to cover your bottom, especially if you are wearing leggings.

3. Underneath, wear a loose cotton T-shirt or shirt with a shirt-tail hem (longer in the back). If the cabin is overheated, you can take off the sweater and still look great.

4. When it comes to coats, you might consider a waterproof trench or puffer coat, depending on where you are travelling to. A lightweight puffer rolls up to serve double-duty as a pillow.

5. An oversize cashmere or fine-gauge wool scarf pulls the look together. It can be used as a blanket during the flight (or worn as a wrap over a cocktail dress when you've reached your destination).

Hook up with this hip device

The Airhook is a small plastic device that hooks on to the tray table of the seat in front of you on a plane - giving you somewhere to put things without having to lower the table.

It consists of a hook, a cup holder and a clamp that can hold a variety of tablets or smartphones. So without lowering the tray table, and making the little leg room you have on a plane even smaller, you have somewhere to put a drink, and a clamp to support phones and tablets up to 8.5 inches tall. theairhook.com
Change and counter-change in State-induced property market policy can have unforeseen economic ramifications - but it can also indirectly change the paths of Irish lives. Take a look at the ripples that recent interventions have caused these past few years, both economically and socially.

The latest results of the Irish Independent/REA quarterly average homes survey show just how quickly the market reacts to State intervention - this time to the recent removal of borrowing restrictions and the easing of the tax regime for first-time buyers. Today's survey results demonstrate how those changes resonate in unexpected places.

So first, the State restricts borrowing in Dublin so more people rent in the capital and more people move out to buy. Therefore, prices are controlled in Dublin, but less expected was that they would shoot up artificially in outer counties. Now that the measures have eased, the reverse is happening. Consider also that the decision two years ago by the Central Bank to restrict mortgage lending has already ensured that more Dublin children have ended up moving from school to school than ever before. This is because more city-based parents have been prevented from buying and have been living the renter's nomad existence of a move every two years from lease to lease. In many cases, their children have had to be reschooled. An indirect ripple of that policy is increased instability in young lives which, in turn, could cause social problems down the road.

Next, consider Dublin couples who, since restrictions were brought in, stuck resolutely with the notion of buying. They took their only option - to move out in search of cheaper homes. The Central Bank pen strokes of two years ago mean that many children whose families bought in commuter counties as a result will stay put for life. They will play Gaelic football in the colours of Kildare, Louth or Meath instead of in Dublin's sky blue and navy. Their lives in smaller towns in rural areas will be very different.

While warranted, the Central Bank's recent decision to ease up its borrowing regime for first-time buyers, along with the Help to Buy Scheme, means those families won't be leaving the capital in such great numbers. So more children will play their Gaelic football in Dublin. Those changes will also mean fewer families renting in the capital and less moving about for their children. So maybe less crime in the future. But when the regime was first imposed, more layers of red tape were added, making solving the housing crisis more complicated. Not only are there fallouts - expected and unexpected, economic and social - in applying interventions in the first place, there are also ripples caused by the very removal or easing of those interventions.

So the tough lending regime imposed two years ago had the intended effects of controlling Dublin borrowing and prices.

But it indirectly caused artificial property inflation in Kildare, Louth and Meath, while also causing more children to move from school to school in Dublin. Now the partial undoing of a tough State lending policy, which pumped prices up in commuter towns in the first place, is causing those prices to freeze and they might even fall for a time.

With layers of rules applied over the years by Government, the Central Bank and local authorities, the red tape involved in solving the housing crisis has become a Gordian knot. Each strand has produced its intended effects and unintended ripples. But there are side-effects to removing those interventions.

Today's REA survey shows that reworking the two-year-old lending regime for first-time buyers, alongside the introduction of help-to-buy, have artificially hiked prices in Dublin and frozen those in commuter towns, where they may fall in future. You might also want to watch out for the Dubs at Croker in 2037.
Miss World 2013 Megan Young and Philippine contestant Catriona Gray (Photo : YouTube/DailyShowbiz)

It is nice to see when beauty queens support each other. This is exactly what Miss World 2013 Megan Young did for her fellow Filipina beauty queen as she calls for support for her fellow beauty queen Catriona Gray's advocacy "Paraiso" despite the latter recent loss at the Miss World pageant.



In a recent Instagram post, Young posted a photo of her and PH's bet Catriona Gray and used her star power to call the attention of people to support the latter's advocacy in the Philippines.



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The caption reads, "It is only beginning of great things for this lady, I believe. A bump in the road only makes you stronger. @catriona_gray represented our country with pride and grace and as a Filipino and a Miss World sister, I am so proud of her achievements  let us show support to Cat most especially by helping out with her Beauty With A Purpose Project - Paraiso. To donate to her cause, visit http://cat-elle.com/paraiso/ we love you, Queen Cat! #ForThePhilippines"



Gray is an active volunteer of non-government organization (NGO) Young Focus. One of the projects that the beauty queen is supporting is the "Paraiso" project, which aims to provide access to free education to children living in Smokey Mountain in Tondo, Manila to help their holistic growth. Smokey Mountain is a landfill site in Metro Manila and is tagged as one of the poorest communities in urban area.



Meanwhile, Gray made it in the top five of the recently concluded Miss World beauty pageant. However, she fell short in winning the highly coveted crown. 18-year-old Miss Puerto Rico Stephanie Del Valle was hailed as Miss World 2016.


Some 75 years after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour, Shinzo Abe will become the country's first prime minister to visit the US base today and tomorrow. He meets Barack Obama for what will be one of the US president's last sessions with a world leader before he hands over power to Donald Trump on January 20.

For Mr Abe, now four years into his second stint as prime minister, the meeting is a symbolic way to showcase to the world, especially China, the enduring strength of US-Japan relations in the post-war period. It is all the more potentially powerful as the second leg in a year of historic reconciliation with the United States following Mr Obama's visit to Hiroshima in May.

The visit is also significant coming so soon after Mr Abe's recent meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. A key common thread being the respective concerns that Tokyo, Moscow and Washington have about a 'rising China' in Asia and beyond.

Mr Abe has particular worries, right now, about China's growing influence in the context of the uncertainties that Mr Trump's presidency will bring, with the billionaire businessman's previous pledges to review longstanding alliances and make allies "pay for American protection".

Already, Tokyo has been alarmed by the unravelling of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in recent weeks, which opens up a window of opportunity for Beijing to assert itself into the vacuum of power that now exists around the trade and investment deal's apparent collapse.

China's alternative vision to TPP is for a Free Trade Area of Asia Pacific (FTAAP) plus a pact, for which discussions have been under way since 2012, known as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which would not include the United States, mirroring the exclusion of Beijing from the previously proposed TPP. At the heart of the debate on this issue has been not just competing trade treaties, but contrasting US and Chinese visions to shape the regional order and cement their influence in it.

From China's perspective, RCEP and FTAAP would be much more conducive to its national interests (not least because it would be explicitly part of the new economic agreements and shape their design) by creating free trade areas with China potentially at the centre. By playing a lead role in championing these initiatives, Beijing aspires to burnish its regional leadership credentials.

And this dynamic is playing out in the context of broader tensions in Asia-Pacific which could be exacerbated by the unpredictability of Mr Trump's impending presidency. Already, China has been taken aback by his questioning of Washington's longstanding 'One China' policy, and his phone call with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, believed to be the first direct contact between a sitting US president-elect or president and his Taiwanese counterpart since the 1970s.

Moreover, there are also continuing tensions in the South China Sea where Japan has been planning to ramp up its activities through joint training patrols with the United States and exercises with regional navies. In this theatre, it is not just Japan and the United States, but also other countries such as Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam and Brunei, that are in dispute with China in the sea through which some $5trn 4.78trn) of ship-borne trade passes each year.

This geopolitical context is also shaping Mr Abe's domestic political strategy too. He knows that his historic trip to Pearl Harbour could give him a lift in the polls (his approval rating is already around a strong 60pc) in advance of potentially calling a snap general election early next year. While a ballot is not technically required until 2018, Mr Abe's team is currently calculating whether an earlier poll could minimise losses for his ruling alliance, which currently holds around a two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives, the lower chamber.

In the current fluid geopolitical landscape which is being re-shaped as key countries manoeuvre for advantage, Mr Abe is seeking to overturn much of the remaining legal and political underpinning of the country's post-war pacifist security identity so that it can become more internationally engaged, an outcome he senses that Mr Trump could favour.

One big, specific measure Mr Abe wants to push for is abolition of Article Nine. This is the clause in Japan's post-war constitution which constrains the country's military to a strictly defensive role rather than a conventional army, and has meant that defence spending has most often remained below 1pc of GDP.

To overturn this, Mr Abe would need not just a two-thirds majority in the lower house, and upper house (the House of Councillors), but also a simple majority in a national referendum.

Straight-forward as that may sound given Mr Abe's high approval rating, it may yet prove a major challenge given the large body of Japanese public opinion which still values its post-war pacifism in the only country in the world to have ever been attacked with nuclear weapons.

Taken overall, the Pearl Harbour meeting is Mr Abe's latest move to fortify Japan's external alliance system in the face of China's rise.

He now senses that four years into his second prime ministership, he may have a window of opportunity to also secure landmark domestic constitutional change around the country's post-war pacifism which will enable it to become more internationally engaged, but potentially raising regional tensions with Beijing.

Andrew Hammond is an Associate at LSE IDEAS (the Centre for International Affairs, Diplomacy and Strategy) at the London School of Economics, and is an Adviser to Reputation Inc
If US president-elect Donald Trumps utterances are to be believed, the nature of the Nato alliance, which survived the end of the Cold War, could now be in doubt. Photo: Reuters

This is not how 2017 was supposed to begin: with an untried and iconoclastic president about to take office in the United States; with the UK preparing for divorce negotiations with the European Union, and with Russia re-established in the Middle East, underwriting an uneasy victory for the ancient regime in Syria.

In Europe, the sense of uncertainty is compounded by elections in the Netherlands, France and Germany. Russia faces perhaps its most sensitive anniversary since the collapse of the Soviet Union - the centenary of the Bolshevik Revolution.

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Suddenly, the rest of the world looks reassuringly familiar by comparison, if only because volatility there is already factored in.

The 'Arab Spring' has given way to a messy, sometimes violent, autumn, in which regional rivalries have been exacerbated. Barring accidents, Xi Jinping will strengthen his grip on China with the 27th Communist Party Congress set to acclaim him for a second term as general secretary.

India looks destined for more fitfully chaotic growth; Latin America ditto, with the bonus of peace in Colombia.

Cuba will be watched for signs that the passing of Fidel Castro - and the promised retirement of his brother Raul - is bringing long-awaited change. Developments in Africa - justly or not - will be observed warily, largely because of its burgeoning young population and the numbers of people driven for one reason or another to move north.

What is unusual, perhaps unique, about the start of this year is that the international settlement that has remained in place pretty much since 1945 seems to be coming apart, and some big questions are being posed as a consequence.

What has been termed globalisation, and regarded until recently as either inevitable or a universal good, is being challenged.

Nor is the challenge related only to dissatisfaction with the economy; it is about politics, identity and the reassertion of the nation state. Multilateralism of all kinds threatens - or promises, depending on your perspective - to go into reverse.

Donald Trump won the US presidency on a platform of America First, which presupposes the dismantling of multilateral trade agreements and alliances that, in his view, do not work in the US's interest.

He wants to keep the US out of conflicts that are not, in his judgment, in the direct national interest.

To an extent, the post-war doctrine of US exceptionalism always assumed America First, but it came with offers of protection and solidarity, as exemplified in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato).

If Mr Trump's utterances are to be believed, the nature and structure of this alliance, which survived the end of the Cold War, could now be in doubt. At the very least this means more cost to be borne by the European members.

Further down the line, a lesser US commitment could mean an emboldened Russia, a greater sense of insecurity among the east and central Europeans; alternatively, it could encourage the EU to develop its own defence capability. Atlanticism as we have known it, though, could be on the way out.

But the UK's departure from the European Union - a form of Britain First - also casts doubt on the durability of the EU.

Once hailed as a collegiate model for other regions of the world - and awarded the 2012 Nobel peace prize - the EU depends on the readiness of states to sacrifice a degree of sovereignty for the sake of the common endeavour.

Restoration

The UK always found that difficult; the "new" Europeans are finding it hard, too, not least because the restoration of their own sovereignty is so relatively recent.

But 2017 will also show whether a more militant nationalism, including in France, could threaten, even doom, the common project.

This is not inevitable. The EU could respond to the UK's departure by closing ranks and completing the currency and security unions that London rejected.

But a world without a United States prepared to project its might, and without an EU committed to ever-closer union (or at all), starts to look both more fragmented and more old fashioned in terms of international relations and power centres.

Post-Soviet Russia, and to an extent France, have long favoured what they call a multi-polar world as the arrangement that should have followed the Cold War.

Russia has several times mooted a pan-European security pact. From this sort of thinking would logically follow the reform of the UN and other international structures to include China, India and others on more equal terms.

With hindsight, the Soviet Union's collapse 25 years ago last month marked only Act I of the end of the Cold War, as many of the old hierarchies remained in place.

Could 2017, with Mr Trump, Brexit and a spate of signal European elections, be the year that begins Act II? ( London Independent Service)
The violence happened in the Mexican states of Jalisco and Guerrero

Mexico's plague of violence continued on Christmas Day with the discovery of six decapitated heads in one state and the killing of seven people in another.

The Michoacan state prosecutor's office said the six heads were found in Jiquilpan, a municipality near the state of Jalisco in a region that has been a battleground between competing drug gangs in recent years.

It said the six men had not yet been identified and their bodies had not been found.

Meanwhile state security officials in the neighbouring state of Guerrero said gunmen entered a house and shot dead seven people in the municipality of Atoyac de Alvarez. Five were members of one family and two were a married couple.

State security spokesman Roberto Alvarez Heredia said two of the seven killed were municipal police officers and one a state police officer. The preliminary investigation suggested the gunmen wanted to kill one of the victims in a revenge attack but ended up killing them all.

Guerrero, where Acapulco is located, is one of the states most plagued by drug gang violence.

AP
The president said that the Czech Republic should not take in migrants on a "so-called volunteer basis"

The Czech president has linked recent attacks in Europe to the continuing influx of migrants escaping war-torn, poverty-stricken countries.

Milos Zeman told Czechs in his annual Christmas speech on Monday that "today almost no-one doubts the connection between the migration wave and terrorist attacks".

In order to prevent terrorist attacks on Czech soil, the president said that the Czech Republic should not take in migrants on a "so-called volunteer basis", alluding to the European Union's efforts to distribute migrants across the continent.

Mr Zeman said he has nothing against helping migrants "on their territory, or on neighbouring territories", or helping Italy and Greece, but "placing Muslim, hardly compatible migrants on our territory would mean creating a breeding ground for potential terrorist attacks".

AP
Russian rescuers carry a stretcher with a body recovered after a Russian military plane crashed in the Black Sea, on a pier outside Sochi. Photo: Getty Images

Pilot error or a technical fault is thought to be the cause of Sunday's Black Sea plane crash that killed 92 people, Russia's transport minister has said as the nation held a day of mourning for the victims.

All 84 passengers and eight crew members on the Russian military's Tu-154 plane are believed to have died on Sunday when it crashed two minutes after taking off from the southern Russian city of Sochi. Passengers included dozens of singers in Russia's famous military choir, nine Russian journalists and a Russian doctor known for her charity work in war zones.

Expand Close Portraits of journalists killed in the crash are put on display at a memorial in Moscow. Photo: AP / Facebook

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Whatsapp Portraits of journalists killed in the crash are put on display at a memorial in Moscow. Photo: AP

More than 3,000 rescue workers on 32 ships - including over 100 divers flown in from across Russia - have been searching the crash site at sea and along the shore, the Defence Ministry said. Helicopters, drones and submersibles were being used to help spot bodies and debris.

Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said in televised remarks on Monday that terrorism was not among the main theories, and that authorities were looking into a possible technical fault or a pilot error.

Still, several aviation experts noted factors that could suggest a terror attack, such as the crew's failure to report any malfunction and the fact that plane debris was scattered over a wide area.

"Possible malfunctions ... certainly wouldn't have prevented the crew from reporting them," Vitaly Andreyev, a former senior Russian air traffic controller, told RIA Novosti.

Expand Close A woman in Moscow cries as she holds flowers at the home of the Alexandrov Ensemble (the Red Army Choir). Photo: Getty Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp A woman in Moscow cries as she holds flowers at the home of the Alexandrov Ensemble (the Red Army Choir). Photo: Getty Images

Emergency crews on Sunday found fragments of the plane about 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) from the shore but a deputy defence minister told Russian news agencies that experts estimated the Tu-154 crash site at 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from the shore.

By Monday morning, rescue teams had recovered 11 bodies which were flown to Moscow, where the remains will be identified.

Mourners light candles at Sochi Adler airport's chapel and laid flowers at an improvised shrine that featured photos of the plane and of some victims.

The plane, which originated from Moscow's military airport of Chkalovsky and stopped in Sochi for refuelling, was taking the Defence Ministry's choir, the Alexandrov Ensemble, to perform at a New Year's concert at the Russian air base in Syria's coastal province of Latakia.

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Despite the Syrian connection, Mr Sokolov said the government saw no need to heighten security measures at Russian airports.

The Black Sea search area - which covers over 10 square kilometers (about 4 square miles) - is plagued by underwater currents that can carry debris and body fragments into the open sea. Mr Sokolov said the plane's flight recorders did not have radio beacons, so locating them on the seabed was going to be challenging.

Russia asked the authorities of Georgia's breakaway republic of Abkhazia, which borders Russia just 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) east of the Sochi airport, to help monitor the Black Sea area for possible plane fragments or bodies.

Russian planes have been hit before by terror attacks, including one just last year.

In October 2015, a plane carrying mostly Russian tourists back from holiday in Egypt was brought down by a bomb over the Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people aboard. Officials said the explosive was planted in the plane's luggage compartment. Islamic State claimed responsibility.
Queen Elizabeth missed her traditional Christmas morning church service for the first time in many years due to a bad cold.

It is extremely rare for the queen (90) to miss the service near her Sandringham estate in rural Norfolk, which is a cornerstone of the British royal family's Christmas celebrations and brings the monarch into contact with local residents who gather outside for a glimpse of her.

Expand Close Prince George eats a sweet after attending a Christmas Day service at St Marks Church in Englefield with his parents, Prince William and his wife Kate. Photo: Getty / Facebook

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Whatsapp Prince George eats a sweet after attending a Christmas Day service at St Marks Church in Englefield with his parents, Prince William and his wife Kate. Photo: Getty

"The queen continues to recover from a heavy cold and will stay indoors to assist with her recovery," a Buckingham Palace spokesperson said.

"Her majesty will participate in the royal family Christmas celebrations during the day."

Those festivities usually include a gala lunch. In past years, the royal family would often go for extended walks in the countryside.

The queen has been in generally good health and has maintained an active schedule in the last year, despite travelling less often than in the past.

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Her husband, 95-year-old Prince Philip, has also cut back his public schedule and his charitable works. He was also suffering from a heavy cold earlier in the week.

The prince did attend the Sunday morning Christmas service, waving to well-wishers on his way out of the church. As a concession to age and his cold, he drove to the church instead of walking.

Prince Harry spent time talking to local residents after the church and stopped to pet a dog.

The royal family got some sad news on Saturday, when it was revealed the queen's granddaughter, Zara Tindall, had suffered a miscarriage while expecting her second child with husband Mike Tindall.

The queen (inset) used her pre-recorded Christmas Day message to praise British Olympic and Paralympic athletes and others who inspired her. It was televised in Britain and throughout much of the Commonwealth.
Pope Francis used his Christmas message to urge Catholics around the world to feel compassion for those "not allowed to be born".

Speaking to tens of thousands of Catholics in Saint Peter's Square, the head of the Catholic Church asked worshippers to celebrate "the fragile simplicity of a small newborn".

"Let us allow ourselves to be challenged by the children who are not allowed to be born, by those who cry because no one satiates their hunger, by those who do have not toys in their hands, but rather weapons," he said.

During his speech to 1.2 billion Catholics around the world, the Pontiff also wished Christmas peace for people scarred by wars and those who lost loved ones to terrorism.

He said terrorism was sowing "fear and death" in many cities and countries.

Some 40,000 tourists and Romans calmly endured long security queues to enter St Peter's Square to see the Pope on the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica, where he delivered the traditional Urbi Et Orbi (to the city and to the world) Christmas message and blessing.

Francis spoke sorrowfully of the suffering caused by the Syrian war, especially in Aleppo, pressing the international community to help negotiate a solution.

He urged Israelis and Palestinians to "write a new page of history, where hate and revenge give way" toward building a future of understanding and harmony.

He also cited the "brutality of terrorism" in Iraq, Libya and Yemen.

In Nigeria, the Pope lamented, "fundamentalist terrorism exploits even children", a reference to child suicide bombers. He expressed hope that dialogue would prevail over "the mindset of conflict" in both South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The heavy security at the Vatican reflected apprehension in much of Europe, which is reeling from extremist attacks.

Last week, 12 people died in Berlin when a Tunisian man who had pledged allegiance to Isil ploughed a lorry through a crowd at a Christmas market. He was killed a few days later in a shoot-out near Milan.

"Peace to all those who have been injured or have suffered the loss of a loved one due to the brutal acts of terrorism that have sown fear and death in the heart of many countries and cities," the Pope said.

Referring to the meaning of Jesus' birth, Francis said: "Today this message goes out to the ends of the Earth to reach all peoples, especially those scarred by war and harsh conflicts that seem stronger than the yearning for peace."

His Christmas message also recalled Colombia, which has seen his personal intervention try to end Latin America's longest-running conflict, and Venezuela, where a papal envoy has tried to facilitate talks between the government and the opposition as Venezuelans endure widespread food and medicine shortages.

Francis expressed concern over tensions on the Korean peninsula, and over Burma, which he said should "consolidate efforts to promote peaceful coexistence".

Throughout his papacy, Francis has denounced the Islamic extremist violence that has driven Christians from communities that date to Christianity's foundations.

He has also demanded that Europe, in particular, do more to welcome refugees.
Israel summoned the ambassadors of 11 nations including the US to Jerusalem to reprimand them on Christmas Day and again lashed out at the Obama administration over a UN Security Council resolution demanding an end to settlement-building.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed his personal anger at the row by repeating at the weekly cabinet meeting what an unidentified Israeli government official claimed on Friday - that Washington had conspired with the Palestinians to push for the resolution's adoption.

The White House has denied the allegation.

The vote passed in the 15-member Security Council on Friday because the United States broke with its long-standing approach of diplomatically shielding Israel and did not wield, as a permanent member of the forum, its veto power, instead abstaining.

"According to our information, we have no doubt the Obama administration initiated it (the resolution), stood behind it, co-ordinated the wording and demanded it be passed," Mr Netanyahu told the cabinet in public remarks.

Ambassadors from 10 of the 14 countries that voted in favour of the resolution and have embassies in Israel - Britain, China, Russia, France, Egypt, Japan, Uruguay, Spain, Ukraine and New Zealand - were summoned to the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem. Mr Netanyahu also summoned the American ambassador to protest at the US abstention in the vote.

Sunday is a regular work day in Israel, but most embassies are closed, and calling in envoys on Christmas Day is highly unusual.

At the weekly cabinet meeting yesterday, Mr Netanyahu described a telephone conversation with US Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday, when Israel and US president-elect Donald Trump successfully pressed Egypt to drop the anti-settlement resolution it had put forward.

It was resubmitted a day later by New Zealand, Senegal, Venezuela and Malaysia.

"Over decades, American administrations and Israeli governments disagreed about settlements, but we agreed that the security council was not the place to resolve this issue," Mr Netanyahu said.

"We knew that going there would make negotiations harder and drive peace farther away. As I told John Kerry on Thursday, 'Friends don't take friends to the Security Council'," he said.

Israel has pursued a policy of constructing settlements on territory it captured in a 1967 war with its Arab neighbours - the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem
Troy Ave is recovering in hospital while being shot in his car (AP)

R apper Troy Ave has been shot while sitting in his car at a traffic junction in New York City.

Lawyer Scott Lemon said his client, whose real name is Roland Collins, was on his way to visit his family on Sunday evening when he was shot twice in Brooklyn.

Police said the 31-year-old was in a red Maserati when a man fired several rounds into the car, striking Collins once in the arm and grazing his head.

Collins is in hospital in a fair condition. No arrests have been made.

Collins is free on bail following his May arrest in connection with a fatal shooting inside a popular Manhattan concert venue.

He has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder charges. He also was shot in that incident.

AP
Actor Song Joong-Ki arrives at the 2011 Mnet Asian Music Awards at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on November 29, 2011 in Singapore. (Photo : Getty Images/Chris McGrath)

Filming for "Battleship Island" has wrapped up and is now in post-production. Helmed by Ryoo Seung-Wan, the upcoming film stars Song Joong-Ki, So Ji-Sub and Hwang Jung-Min.



On Dec. 20, "Battleship Island" ended its six months of filming at a 6,600-square-meter set in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, South Korea, MBC News reported. The last scene taken reportedly involved more than 200 extras in undersea coal mines.



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As part of the celebration, "The Innocent Man" actor reportedly gave a 50,000 won ($42) worth scented candles to the film's 500 staff members. It is his way of expressing his deepest gratitude to the staff for their diligent work. Photos of the lead actors on set have also been widely circulated on Twitter.



"Battleship Island" recounts the concealed story of more than 400 Korean laborers who were forced to work in undersea coal mines under the brutal treatment of the Japanese soldiers. With the help of Korean independence fighters, they stage a daring escape from the 16-acre island lying in the southern part of Japan's sea.



The movie centers on a hotel bandmaster, Lee Kang-Ok (Hwang), who is tricked into a job offer in Japan but was sent to the Hashima Island instead. It also follows Kyungsung's best fighter, Choi Chil-Sung (So), who is one of the prisoners in the said island.



"Descendants of the Sun" actor will once again play an independence fighter, Park Moo Young, who infiltrate the said island to rescue an important individual. Besides Hwang, Song and So, the film also star Lee Jung-Hyun, Kim Su-An, Yoon Kyung-Ho and Shin Seung-Hwan.



The historical feature film will have a simultaneous release in South Korea and China despite the rising political strain between the said countries over the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile. It is intended to hit theaters in the first quarter of 2017.



"Now that Korea and China share the scars from World War II, it is very likely that the movie will be released on the same day, both in Korea and China," an official from film distributor, CJ E&M, told Hong Kong newspaper Sing Tao Daily, as cited by The Kpop Herald.



Check out the short documentary below for more information:






A police car is parked in a flooded street caused by rains from Typhoon Nock-Ten in Quezon city (AP/Aaron Favila)

A powerful typhoon blew out of the northern Philippines on Monday after killing at least six people on Christmas Day and forcing more than 380,000 others to abandon celebrations at home to find safe shelter.

Typhoon Nock-Ten cut power to five entire provinces due to toppled electric posts and trees, dimming Christmas revelries in Asia's largest Catholic nation. More than 300 flights were delayed or re-scheduled and ferries were barred from sailing, stranding more than 12,000 holiday travellers.

Six people died from drowning or by being pinned by fallen trees, poles and a collapsed concrete wall in the provinces of Quezon and Albay, south-east of Manila, after the typhoon made landfall in Catanduanes province on Sunday night, officials said.

Many military camps and outposts in Catanduanes and outlying provinces were damaged and some troops were injured, the military said.

Nock-Ten, locally known as Nina, then blew westward across mountainous and island provinces, damaging homes, uprooting trees and knocking down communications.

After weakening on landfall, the typhoon had sustained winds of up to 120 kilometers (74 miles) per hour and gusts of 180 kph (111 mph) when it blew into the South China Sea after battering the congested provinces of Batangas and Cavite, south of Manila, government forecasters said.

A cargo ship with about two dozen crewmen radioed for help as their vessel started to list off Batangas. It later ran aground and turned on its sided in Mabini town, the coast guard said.

The storm was one of the strongest to hit the Philippines since Typhoon Haiyan left more than 7,300 people dead or missing and displaced over five million in 2014. But officials in some provinces found it difficult to convince people to abandon their Christmas celebrations and head for the shelters before the storm hit. Some officials said they had to impose forced evacuations.

About 20 typhoons and storms lash the Philippines each year. In the past 65 years, seven typhoons have struck the country on Christmas Day, according to the government's weather agency.

AP
CONCORD  Cabarrus County has a new district court judge and its a familiar face around the court house.

Assistant District Attorney Nathaniel Nate Knust was sworn in Thursday as the newest judge to serve in Cabarrus County. He is one of two judges appointed by Gov. Pat McCrory earlier this month. The other was in Guilford County.

The local legal community applauded the move, especially considering the growing population and the demands on the court system.

Prior to coming to the DAs office, Knust has extensive experience in district and superior court, handling numerous criminal and juvenile cases. Prior to working in Cabarrus County, he worked as an assistant state attorney in Brevard County, Florida.
Imported PoS Machines Exempt from Mandatory Labelling

The Indian government has decided to exempt mandatory Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) labelling of imported PoS (Point-of-Sale) machines until March 31, 2017. This exemption has been implemented to expedite shipments and facilitate cashless digital payment particularly after the governments recent demonetization rule. BIS is the National Standards Body of India that covers product quality certification. As per the earlier rules, imported PoS machines required mandatory BIS certification and standard logo for custom clearance and sales in India.

The Ministry of Finance had proposed the change to MEITY (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology) to promote a cashless eco-system. As per the new proposal, the government will provide import clearance, if the merchant has a valid registration number issued by BIS for a specific model of PoS machine along with the manufacturers details. The merchants are also required to label their products at the port before the consignment is released. Currently India has around 1.5 million PoS machines but according to a new State Bank of India research report, the market requires further 2 million PoS machines to facilitate digitization.

Government Reduces Electronic Transfer Charges

The government has directed Public Sector Banks (PSBs) to reduce fees for transactions above US$14.76 (Rs 1000) through different digital means until March 31, 2017. As per the directive, PSBs will not charge any fees for Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) and Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions in excess of that levied for National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) of over US$14.76 (Rs 1,000). As per the current Reserve Bank of India (RBI) rules, NEFT transfers of up to US$147.61 (Rs. 10,000) attract a fee of US$0.04 (Rs 2.50). Transfers from US$147.61 (Rs 10,000) to US$1476 (Rs 100,000) have a fee of US$0.07 (Rs 5) while those from US$1476 (Rs 100,000) to US$2952 (Rs 200,000), the fee is US$0.22 (Rs 15). Transactions above US$ 2952 (Rs 200,000) will attract a fee of US$0.37 (Rs 25). Service tax will be applicable as an addition to the transaction fees. For USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) transactions above US$14.75 (Rs 1000), a further discount of US$0.01 (Rs 0.5) is applicable.

NEFT is a nation-wide payment system facilitating one-to-one funds transfer while IMPS is an instant interbank electronic funds transfer service through mobile phones. The recently implemented UPI system is a money transfer system that allows customers to conduct online and offline payments to merchants without an IFSC code, credit card, net banking or bank wallet detail. USSD is a mobile-based banking system that works in a feature phone with no internet connectivity and therefore preferred for rural users. The RBI has also decided to reduce charges for Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) for debit card transactions up to US$29.49 (Rs 2,000). These current measures are in line with the governments push for greater adoption of digital payment systems.

Internet Penetration Still Low

Deloitte shows that around 950 million Indians have no access to the Internet. This is despite low mobile phone data tariff packs and falling smartphone prices. In addition, India has a skill shortfall of 2.3 percent over the global average of 50 percent. While steps have been made, the authorities will have to take further steps to help the population achieve digital literacy.

The skill shortage is particularly acute in the electronic and digital sectors. The study further stated that digital literacy can be helped by institutional training in schools, college and universities, as well as partnerships with global tech leaders and using the workforce trained under Skill India. Private sectors can further help in digital literacy; at present telecom operators are yet to invest in high speed networks in rural areas. Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are also unaware of government schemes and incentives that avail benefits.



About Us Asia Briefing Ltd. is a subsidiary of Dezan Shira & Associates. Dezan Shira is a specialist foreign direct investment practice, providing corporate establishment, business advisory, tax advisory and compliance, accounting, payroll, due diligence and financial review services to multinationals investing in China, Hong Kong, India, Vietnam, Singapore and the rest of ASEAN. For further information, please email india@dezshira.com or visit www.dezshira.com. Stay up to date with the latest business and investment trends in Asia by subscribing to our complimentary update service featuring news, commentary and regulatory insight.

An Introduction to Doing Business in India 2016

Doing Business in India 2016 is designed to introduce the fundamentals of investing in India. As such, this comprehensive guide is ideal not only for businesses looking to enter the Indian market, but also for companies who already have a presence here and want to stay up-to-date with the most recent and relevant policy changes.

Pre-Investment Due Diligence in India

In this issue of India Briefing Magazine, we examine issues related to pre-investment due diligence in India. We highlight the different regulatory, tax, and socio-economic issues that a company should be aware of before entering the Indian market. We also detail some of the topics related to entry structures while investing in the Indian market, as well as cultural and HR due diligence, which may differ from state to state.

Strategies for Repatriating Funds from India

In this issue of India Briefing Magazine, we look at issues related to repatriating funds from India. We highlight the unique regulations for sending funds back from India, examine the various strategies companies can make use of while repatriating, and look at remittance procedures for different types of Indian entities. Finally, we give some tips on how expats can remit their Indian money to their home countries.
Android 7.0, 7.1.1 Nougat Update: Some users of Galaxy S7, Note 5, S6, S7 Edge will get 7.1.1, others will get 7.0

Android 7.0, 7.1.1 Nougat Update: Some users of Galaxy S7, Note 5, S6, S7 Edge will get 7.1.1, others will get 7.0 (Photo : YouTube/ Samsung Mobile)

If reports are anything to go by, the tech giant Samsung will release different versions of Android 7.0 Nougat update to different models of its Galaxy S7 Edge and Galaxy S7 in different regions of the world.



A few users of the smartphones will receive the newest version of the update, Android 7.1.1 Nougat. Some users will get the older version, Android 7.0 Nougat, Android Central reported.



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A rep for Vodafone in Australia confirmed the news. Australia is one of the regions that will receive the Android 7.0 Nougat update on the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge as well as Samsung Galaxy S7.



In a response to a consumer inquiry as to whether customers will be upgraded straight to the latest version of the Android 7.1.1 Nougat update, the rep said that they have checked in with the right individuals for them @shauno100 and @chri5tin3 and they have confirmed the references to the company skipping Android 7.0 Nougat refer to other markets and not to Australia. They are certainly testing Android 7.0 Nougat for both gadgets.



The software company has been running an Android 7.0 N beta program for users of the Galaxy S7 Edge and Galaxy S7. Samsung had confirmed that it would offer Android 7.1.1 N upon official launch of the update.



Recently, Vodafone has announced that the Android 7.0 N update had been officially moved into carrier testing by them, suggesting that the upgrade release was imminent.



According to reports, based on the earlier guidance from the electronics company, the released version will be Android 7.1.1 Nougat. That appears not to be the case, however, at least in Australia. It is not known as to which models in which other regions of the world will get which build, either Android 7.1.1 Nougat or Android 7.0 Nougat.



Also, it is not clear what the status is for the older devices expected to get the Android 7.0 Nougat following the rollout to the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and Samsung Galaxy S7, namely the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus, S6 Edge, Galaxy S6 and Galaxy Note 5.



It was initially believed that these models would skip straight to Android 7.1.1 Nougat; however, now that appears uncertain, and may vary by region and model.



Meanwhile, latest reports suggest that owners of Moto Z in India has begun getting the Android 7.0 Nougat update. The new update makes the device compatible with Daydream.


A J-15 takes-off from the Liaoning (Photo : PLAN)

Japan reckons the latest -- and longest -- naval patrol conducted by the CNS Liaoning (CV-16), the only aircraft carrier of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), is China's way of sending another pointed message to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.



The Liaoning and its escorting warships (destroyers and tankers) departed the Chinese mainland Dec. 16 for the PLAN Surface Fleet's longest patrol into the Western Pacific.



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On Dec. 23, Shenyang J-15 multirole fighters took off from the Liaoning to carry out missions, including air refueling and simulated air combats over the Yellow Sea. A PLAN press release said the training was guided by PLAN Commander Admiral Wu Shengli.



PLAN said the training "strengthened the synergy among different vessels in the formation and refined its overall capability."



It claims the training and tests were "normal arrangements in accordance with annual plan made by the navy."



The Liaoning can embark 36 aircraft: 24 Shenyang J-15 fighters; 6 Changhe Z-18F anti-submarine warfare helicopters; 4 Changhe Z-18J airborne early warning helicopters and 2 Harbin Z-9C rescue helicopters.



Japan has been monitoring the progress of the Liaoning battle group since it was detected in the East China Sea by a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) destroyer and an aircraft some 110 km northeast of Miyako Island on Dec. 25. The Japanese government said the JMSDF will maintain surveillance over the area.



Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Liaoning's sortie into the Pacific shows China's expanding military capability. He said this is the first time the JMSDF has confirmed a Chinese aircraft carrier advancing toward the Pacific Ocean.



Suga said the Chinese sortie appears aimed at sending a message to Trump, who is questioning whether the United States should continue to adhere to its nearly four-decade policy of recognizing Taiwan as part of a "One China Policy."



Sources close to Trump are saying the next President will also put more teeth into Barack Obama's five year-old pivot to Asia strategy by increasing the number of ships, planes and men in the U.S. Navy.



Confronting China militarily has long been expected of Trump, who blamed Obama for failing to prevent China from building man-made islands that militarized the South China Sea and led to festering tensions that might one day ignite a war.


Single-digit reduction in NBS rates The revised NBS rates for ensuing Rabi season have been announced by the Government of India. New rates have not seen much steeper cuts as was widely anticipated; therefore, positive for complex (NPKs) fertilizer companies. This brings much comfort to the domestic complex fertilizer companies as a steeper cut would have entailed higher inventory losses. 03 Nov 2022 11:10 AM

October 2022 auto sales: PV and CV segments continue to impress Underlying demand trend has stayed strong for PV and CV segments. Analysts at IIFL Securities estimate October 2022 wholesale dispatches in PV, MHCV and LCV segments to have grown 30%, 24% and 14% YoY, respectively. They expect the above segments to clock 25-35% volume growth in FY23. 02 Nov 2022 11:43 AM

Initial signs of moderation in API cost pressures: IIFL Securities High raw-material inflation, elevated freight expenses, and normalization in marketing spends have impacted margins of Indian pharma players over the past 12 months. However, some of these API/RM cost pressures have started abating in Q3CY22. Cipla, Sun, JB Pharma and Torrent remain IIFL Securities top-picks in the pharma sector owing to lowest risk to IIFL Securities margin and earnings estimates for these companies. 01 Nov 2022 10:53 AM
Las Patronas: (English; The Bosses) is a group of selfless volunteer women helping migrants headed to the US in search of jobs. These women, single-handedly, also put the Mexican city of La Patrona back on the map again.

Reuters

Almost two decades and a single moment in time back, the Romero Vazquez sisters dove headfirst into something that was going to change their lives forever. An approaching train full of migrants triggered this. They didn't recognise it at the time but appreciate it now.

While talking to bbc.com, Norma Romero explains the moment, "As it came past, a group of people on one of the wagons shouted at us: 'Madre, we're hungry'. Then another group passed by and shouted the same thing: 'Madre, we're hungry'."

"So we threw them our bread, and then our cartons of milk."

Posta

For someone travelling from as far as Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, this wasn't a small gesture.

And that was all it took for this group of young girls to become an organisation that immensely helped the cause of Central American migrants. It's no surprise then that the group went on to win the prestigious National Human Rights Award in 2013.

"We used to think they were just adventurous Mexicans, travelling our country for free," says Norma of the people who came rumbling by on a train, some sitting on the roof, some hanging off of the side rails.

witness4peace.blogspot.in

The girls' mother, Dona Leonidas played a big role in shaping the way the organisation came to be. It was Leonidas who suggested they ready at least 30 packs of rice and beans daily. And, so, it isn't hard to imagine the almost factory-like workspace that now exists in place of a family's small kitchen.

These pictures tell the tale.

1. A girl talks to a person (not pictured) at the premises of Las Patronas.

Reuters

2. A woman from Las Patronas passes food and water to immigrants on their way to the border with the United States, at Amatlan de los Reyes, in Veracruz state, Mexico.

Reuters

3. Immigrants walk toward the premises of Las Patronas.

Reuters

4. A woman volunteer hands out donated food to a migrant travelling on a train.

Reuters

5. A woman volunteer holds a basket with donated food and drinks to hand out to migrants travelling on trains in La Patrona.

Reuters

6. Honduran immigrants ride on the top of a freight train on their way to the border with the United States in La Patrona, near Cordoba in the state of Veracruz.



Reuters

7. A Honduran immigrant stands on board a freight train.

Reuters

8. Honduran immigrants eat as the train stops on its way to the border with the United States.

Reuters

9. An immigrant receives a pair of shoes from a woman from Las Patronas.

Reuters

10. A woman from Las Patronas passes food and water to immigrants on their way to the border with the United States.

Reuters

11. Immigrants eat at the premises of the group Las Patronas.

Reuters

Header images (L-R):La Voz del Sureste; Remezcla
Yes, 2016 has been brutal. Claiming the lives of such musical legends as David Bowie, Prince, Leonard Cohen, Glenn Frey (Eagles guitarist) and George Michael. Older fans have cried and consoled themselves over the loss of these legendary voices, but they were still left with one horrifying question: How will younger generations remember the musical maestros of old?

Facebook holds the key to that question. If there ever is a sliver of silver lining on the passing away of George Michael, Leonard Cohen and David Bowie, then its the fact that their respective Facebook pages all saw huge traffic surges and increased Likes. People whod never heard of these icons of music were first introduced to them through news of their deaths circulated on Facebook. This is a big deal!

After news of his death broke last night, George Michaels Facebook page surged by 5% compared to last week, and received more than 1,20,000 new Likes in just over a day -- a whopping 6000% higher than normal. The effect is expected to continue for a few weeks at least.

Similarly, David Bowies Facebook page surged like crazy after his early January 2016 demise. In fact his Facebook page has added close to 1 million new fans in the past 12 months -- which is just bonkers. Leonard Cohen of Hallelujah fame also saw a lot of people flocking to his Facebook page, adding over 2,00,000 new Likes in under two months of his death.

This phenomenon isnt just restricted to Facebook, as Google search trends also point to a lot of people searching for lost musical icons of this year, listening to their songs and watching their music videos on YouTube. Pop legend and musical royalty Prince also made a seismic impact on Googles search traffic in the month of April when he passed away.

Facebook, Google impact = Increase in music sales

True, everyone would search for a trending news on the day of an iconic figures demise. This is human behaviour, and not something restricted to pop music idols. People searched for Jayalalithaa on the day she passed away and immediately afterwards. Why should anyone care about increased number of Facebook likes and surging Google search trends?

Because it all leads to something, however insignificant these trends may be. And in the case of fallen music legends like David Bowie and Prince, for instance, who passed away in the first half of 2016 -- for which we have more data to dig -- unlike Leonard Cohen and George Michael, who passed away very recently, the music industry saw people actually buying and streaming more David Bowie and Prince music.

According to a Time.com article, in the first few days after Princes death, 654,000 of his albums were sold, and just under 3 million of Princes songs were downloaded. Similarly, David Bowie topped several US music sales charts, netting a combined album and song sales of 682,000 by the fifth day after his death. Similar trends were observed in the UK, too, according to an August report from The Guardian.

Given the fact that a lot of music is now consumed digitally over the Internet, specifically through Spotify and iTunes, these numbers are freaking astronomical.

Finally, Millennials are being introduced to truly epic music

It is no secret that todays music is trash. Nope, it isnt just a golden age syndrome experienced by 80s and 90s kids whore in their 30s and 40s right now. The stinging criticism of dropping IQ standards in chart-topping lyrics of contemporary artists was revealed by a data scientist Andrew Powell-Morse who analyzed 225 chart-topping songs from a variety of genres like Hip-Hop, Country, Pop and Rock in a study he published in May 2015.

He found the lyrical intelligence in most modern songs deteriorating, as most songs were suited for second and third standard students consumption. Not meant for teenagers or adult consumption at all.

Adults, obviously arent the problem here. I think every parent wants to introduce their child to music they listened to as kids. And yes, through Spotify, iTunes, Facebook and Google, its great to see kids being exposed to some great musical legends and acquiring better musical tastes. Cant think of any greater homage to the memory of fallen musical titans of 2016.
It has been almost two months, but the economic blockade by a Naga group in Manipur is not coming to an end. Now, the Central government has rushed an additional 4,000 paramilitary personnel to Manipur.

maniurpao.com

With this, the total number of central security personnel deployed in the sensitive northeastern state for assisting the local administration for maintaining law and order has gone up to 17,500.

"Our top priority is now to reopen the National Highway-2 connecting Manipur (to Nagaland). While the other highway (NH-37) is reopened, we want to reopen the NH-2 too as early as possible," a senior Home Ministry official said.

manipurpao.com

The security personnel were sent to the northeastern state keeping in view the security situation in the wake of violence following the economic blockade imposed by the Union Naga Council (UNC) on the National Highways since November 1.

The UNC has imposed the economic blockade on NH-2 (Imphal-Dimapur) and NH 37 (Imphal-Jiribam) that serve as lifelines for the landlocked Manipur.
Ram Sutar, who is fashioning the 395-foot Shivaji statue with his son Anil, is unfazed by concerns over the Rs 3600-crore bill the sculpture will run up If people had worried about how much the Taj Mahal would cost, it would never have been built, says Ram Sutar, the 92-year-old Noida-based artist who, by 2018, is going to give the world its highest statue, that of the 17th century Maratha warrior king Shivaji.

BCCL

About eight decades ago, acting on a whim, an 11-year-old Sutar had etched on a fragile slate a relief of Goddess Bhawani blessing Chhatrapati Shivaji. At the time he didn't know that it would fall to him and his son Anil (57) to fashion the Shivaji bronze, which will tower over the Arabian waters off Mumbai on reclaimed land about 3.5 kilometres out to sea.

In preparation for the monolith , Sutar has sculpted a sharp 50-ft model of Shivaji brandishing a sword astride a galloping horse, its front hooves frozen mid-air. It is one-seventh of the real McCoy we'd see off Mumbai's shore, a 395foot statue perched atop the equivalent of a 20-storey circular structure, which will elevate it to the touted 623 feet. The statue itself will be crafted at Sutar's workshop and pieced together in Mumbai.

But the fractional model, too, makes for an imposing sight at his atelier in Noida which in the neighbourhood is casually referred to as `Murityon Ki Factory'. A walk through it impresses upon the viewer the feel of a museum of historic greats, from Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel -deathless giants awing humans with their scale and unchanging frame.

BCCL

The father and son stand in front the 50-ft model, which took more than a year to culminate."The first step," says Anil of the process, "is to make a clay statue to freeze the design. Once you have the design, half the battle is won."

When the Sutars take the chisel to the block of metal, there isn't a ready image they are referencing: it is forged from memory. As such, the progression to the final design for the actual statue was punctuated by seven clay sculptures, showing Shivaji striking various poses.These prototypes were rejected for fear they might be "misinterpreted". More accurately, though, they were cast away to sanitise history to suit the volatile sentiments today. A model of Shivaji and his horse on top of the ruins of a fort and a broken canon was ruled out, for instance, as it could be seen as depicting Shivaji as a plunderer.

"It is a continual process. Just like a painter draws repeatedly to get the art right, we sculpt many times to enhance it," Anil says. It does not bother Sutar, who made a name for himself with his Gandhi statues -an iconic 20-feet bronze in a meditative posture adorns Parliament House -that the Mahatma and the Maharaj are on opposite ends of the ideological spectrum. "Shivaji was a not a cruel person," his son Anil says, speaking for him. "He was not some Mongolian invader, he helped his people. Gandhi and Shivaji may be different personalities, but their ends were the same."

BCCL

Sutar has already sculpted three Shivaji statues, one of which also decks the Parliament House. "This time we wanted to depict him differently. We picked a more dynamic pose, with his horse frozen in a gallop and Shivaji sitting with a raised sword, signifying victory," he says.

Before the 395-foot-high statue is ensconced off the city, a ther mocol structure of the same scale will be created using 3D computer images. This in turn will be used to fabricate a fibre-glass sculpture, to be used as a cast for the bronze.

The challenge is procuring 1,700 tonnes of bronze for the statue -it will have to be imported.Sutar is conscious of the controversy over sourcing bronze from China for the 182-metre Sardar Patel Statue of Unity, being built in Gujarat, but he prefers not to comment, saying only: "I don't know yet where we will get it from."

BCCL

His Noida workshop and his foundry at Sahibabad together employ nearly 100 people. For the Shivaji sculpture, he will need to hire around 2,000 more. "Once they complete the foundation work in Mumbai, we will begin the process of casting here. The target is to complete the statue by the time the building is up," Anil says.

The Sutars are unfazed by concerns over cost: the project will run a bill of Rs 3,600 crore, an amount with which Maharashtra can set up a micro-irrigation programme to supply water to farmers in dry regions, or pay for rural roads seven times over, as a business daily pointed out; utilitarianism is not the artists' ideal."Had there been such alarm over budget, then the world would not have got the Statue of Liberty, the Mother Russia statue, or even the Taj Mahal," Sutar says. In any case, adds Anil conclusively, "Unless you have someone's monument, people tend to forget history. And a statue is the best way to preserve memory."
The dogfight for picking the Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA) for the security of the Indian skies is beginning anew, this time for a much larger number than the 2007 figure of 189 asked by the Indian Air Force (IAF) -- an estimated 400 for the Indian Air Force (IAF) and 60 for the Indian Navy.

Reuters

While the IAF has already issued a global request for single-engine combat jets under the government's Make in India programme, the Indian Navy is looking for about 60 twin-engine shipboard fighters for delivery to begin within five years. The Navy's first Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC 1) is due for delivery within the next couple of years, and the preferred choice this time is either the Boeing F/A 18 Super Hornet or French Rafale, which the IAF has already decided to buy.

The two single-engine aircraft being considered by the IAF are US Lockheed Martin F 16 Fighting Falcon and Swedish Saab Gripen.

Reuters

Boeing, which developed the F 18 as a shipboard fighter, has also offered to make it in India while sources in Dassault, which makes Rafale, told India Strategic that they are aware of the Indian requirements and should be submitting a proposal soon. Rafale was also developed as a shipboard fighter.

Meanwhile, the IAF is buying 36 Rafale MRCAs under a government-to-government deal and the first contractual payment of 15 percent was made in November. The first batch of six or so aircraft is to be delivered to the IAF in 2019 as per the contract although India has requested the timelines to be advanced.

BCCL

Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba recently stated that the Navy had jettisoned the indigenous naval variant of Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) because of low power. He did not specify the number or choice for the naval requirement but did say that only a couple of them are available in the market and that he wants them as fast as possible, say in about five years. He expressed confidence that the government approval would come along speedily.

As for the IAF, it has been losing two squadrons of Soviet-vintage MiG series aircraft every year, and although the numbers are being made up to an extent by the licence-production of 272 Russian Su 30MKIs, the depletion process of the IAF squadrons is continuing.

Reuters

Notably, in 2007, the IAF's requirement was put at 126 plus 63 options (189), but their acquisition process was scrapped in 2015 over price differences with the French Dassault whose Rafale was selected in 2012 against Eurofighter in the finals.

The government then opted for a small number of 36 aircraft, or two squadrons, in 2015 for nearly 8 billion euro inclusive of about two billion euro for India-specific modifications and missiles as part of the package.

BCCL

Air Marshal V.K. 'Jimmy' Bhatia (Retd), former Commander-in-Chief of the Western Air Command (WAC), and Air Marshal Ashok Goel (Retd), former Director General Inspection, say the government should work towards both numbers and timelines. The IAF needs to modernise 20 squadrons, or roughly 400 aircraft, as the need of the hour. An IAF fighter squadron has 18 aircraft for combat missions and another two for training. At least three more are kept for Maintenance Reserve and Strike off Wastage.

Notably, the acquisition process in India takes five to seven years, and that has to be factored in while planning for new fighter jets. An IAF proposal to upgrade some 100 1970s-generation Jaguars with more powerful Honeywell engines and better avionics to extend their lives by 10 to 15 years is also pending for rather long with the Ministry of Defence.

(Gulshan Luthra is Editor of India Strategic defence magazine and website. The opinions expressed are personal. He can be contacted at gulshan.luthra@indiastrategic.in)
The three-day Dharma Sanstrukti Mahakumbh, a congregation of seers backed by RSS, ended on Sunday with a 'Save Hindu' cry. Calls were made to increase the Hindu community's numbers asking Hindus to produce 10 children each. At the same time, ironically, demand for a national population policy was raised.

BCCL

VHP official Pravin Togadia lamented that a Central law on banning cow slaughter remained elusive; the dig was directed at the BJP-led government at the Centre. Sharing the dais, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat endorsed Togadia's views. Vasudevanand Saraswati, whose status as Shankaracharya of Jyotir Mutt was legally challenged, said each Hindu should have 10 children. He also asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take a quick decision on cow slaughter ban, like he did on demonetisation.

BCCL

Vasudevanand said, "Discard the two-children norm. Have 10 instead, don't worry about who will fend for them, god will take care of your kids." He said there was a need to have more Hindus. Togadia, who has been lying low, is now frequently raising Hindutva issues.

Also present at the meet was Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadvnavis, Assam governor Banwarlilal Purohit, and city mayor Pravin Datke. Later, a nearly 4,000 strong procession was taken out from the RSS headquarters at Reshimbagh.
An Indian Catholic priest abducted from Yemen this year appealed to Pope Francis and the Union government through a purported video to secure his release from his captors.

"If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously. I am from India. I am perhaps not considered as of much value," said priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil in a weak voice in the video, aired by news channels in Kerala

"Dear Pope Francis, dear Holy Father, as a father please take care of my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating," he said in the video, a day after Christmas.

Father Uzhunnalil, who looked very weak, appeared to be reading out from a text placed before him.

The veracity of the video, which was uploaded from You tube and Facebook, could neither be independently verified nor was the period when it was shot known.

Father Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala, was abducted in March by terror group Islamic State which attacked an old-age home run by Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity in southern Yemeni city of Aden.

He claimed his captors have made many contacts with the government of India-- President and Prime Minister.

"I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in my regard," he said.

He said reports had said everything has been done to get his release, "but in reality nothing" has been done. Father Uzhunnalil said a news reporter abducted in the Middle East was released as she was from France.

"I am from India and not considered. Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all to do your might to help me to save my life. I need hospitalisation soon. Please come to my help quickly," he said.

The Union Government has said efforts are being made to secure Uzhunnalil's release, but such attempts take time. External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj had informed Parliament that Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has spoken to various countries through which contacts can be established in Yemen.

Swaraj had said it takes more time to secure release of people who are held captive and asked the MPs to keep "faith" in government's efforts to trace the abducted priest.
ISIS was planning an attack on Mother House on AJC Bose Road, the global headquarters of Missionaries of Charity, where Saint Teresa of Kolkata lies buried.

Md Masiruddin alias Musa, the 25-year-old IS suspect arrested from Burdwan station in July following the Holey Artisan Bakery attack in Dhaka, confessed Mother House was a target as it drew a large number of Western dignitaries and tourists.

IrishPost

Musa was to himself accompany the attackers in the strike, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has mentioned in its chargesheet filed at a special court. Musa made these startling confessions while being interrogated by FBI sleuths in Kolkata earlier this month at the NIA office in Salt Lake, during which local investigators were also present.

Kolkata Police has stepped up security arrangements outside Mother House.An eight-member quick response team was deployed, and another will join later. Plainclothes cops have also been strategical ly placed in the neighbhourhood to keep tabs on "suspicious" strangers. "The security arrangements will continue for the next few days," said a senior cop.

Musa reportedly told the interrogators that a blueprint for the attack on Mother House was in the works. In its chargesheet, NIA has stated that Musa (named A1) claimed an IS module had zeroed in on Mother House as a lot of foreigners visited the place.

NDTV

The strike on Mother House was one among several being planned on places frequented by Westerners, particularly the British, Americans and Russians, as their countries had been in the forefront on the attack against IS in Syria and Libya.

Investigators were surprised at the intensity of the hatred that Musa had for Westerners. Musa also told them that he had two handlers, one of whom was in Syria. The other, a member of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, is absconding. He also claimed that he wanted to carry out a lone-wolf strike as had taken place in Orlando and Nice, but did not specify the target.

He was forced to hastily alter the plans after two operatives -Saddam Hussein alias Sheikh Kalo and Sheikh Abbasuddin -were arrested by CID. Musa then decided to flee India via Nepal and head towards Syria. During the interrogation, Musa said that he had also met Muhammad Suleiman, a key Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh operative.

Investigators believe Musa would have launched an "IS-style" attack before leaving for Nepal but was caught in the nick of time. During the questioning, Musa told investigators that he had 20 email IDs, 12 Facebook accounts and eight Twitter accounts.

NDTV

"We have filed a chargesheet in the case on Friday . Musa has been slapped with charges under sections 18 (punishment for conspiracy) and 20 (punishment for being a member of a terrorist organization) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. He had connections with IS, and that has come out during investigation. It has also been found that he tried to launch terror attacks in several countries," said Shyamal Ghosh, NIA 's lawyer.
Claiming to be a socialist in his approach and conduct, CM Siddaramaiah's inclination towards a lavish lifestyle was exposed during the Hublot watch controversy. Now, in yet another development contradicting his own words, Siddaramaiah was seen using his personal assistant to wear his shoes during a function in Mysuru on Saturday.

ANI

According to sources in Mysuru, the CM visited the house of Chetan Ramarao, a veteran actor who passed away on Friday night. Paying his last respects to the sandalwood actor and interacting with the family members of Rao, Siddaramaiah came out of the house and stood near the main door as if waiting for somebody. In less than a few minutes, his personal assistant Kumar who stays at the CM's house in Mysuru picked up the CM's shoes and made him wear it with his own hands.

Even though many were surprised by the incident, the CM did not say anything. A Congress leader who was with the CM said it was very rare for the CM to have his assitants being treated like this.

ANI

"I have never seen such a situation. In fact, he discouraged such things as he always argued that all are equal," he recalled. Yet another leader from Mysuru Congress said," Siddaramaiah is the leader of the backward classes and always supported them politically. He has stood with the backward classes and always opposed servitude. But, now he himself has allowed his personal assistant to put on his shoes, that too publicly. It doesn't look good and is against the values the CM himself stands for. I was really embarrassing," he said.
In what could give a major boost to aerospace and defence industry development in the state, France-based Airbus group has shown interest in establishing a greenfield helicopter manufacturing facility in Gujarat at an estimated project cost of Rs 2,800 crore (400 million euros).

"The company, a global leader in aerospace industry, is interested in setting up a production unit in Gujarat. Although the company is among the top aircraft manufacturers in the world, a helicopter project is on its mind as far as Gujarat is concerned," said senior government officials privy to the development.

A few days back, senior officials of Airbus group met Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani and other top officials. "The company officials discussed the project and their team visited Dholera also," officials added.

BCCL

Sources further revealed that Airbus intends to make its own investment of 100 million euros (approximately Rs. 700 crore) for the factory and another 300 million euros (nearly Rs 2,100 crore) is expected to be pumped in by the company's suppliers and vendors.

"We have proposed multiple projects to kick-start a defence focused industrial ecosystem in the country (India), including an offer to build the C295W military transport aircraft alongside Tata, and a partnership with Mahindra Defence to locally manufacture military helicopters," stated Airbus group's website. The French giant's land require ment includes 900 acres for build ing the factory and another 1000 acres for its suppliers, vendors and township purposes. A special purpose vehicle formed for Dholera Special Investment Region (SIR), some 100 kms from Ahmedabad, already has 5,000 hectares of land available with it and defence is among the top priority industries in this SIR, to be developed over 22,000 hectares of land.

idrw.org

Gujarat has off late emerged as a preferred destination for defence projects. Corporate companies such Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering Company, Reliance Helicopters and Asteria Aerospace Pvt Ltd among others have been granted industrial licences to make helicopters and defence related items in the state.

The state government has also come up with new aerospace and defence policy with a slew incentives and sops to promote development of defence and aerospace industry in the state. A total 18 licences have been issued to private companies for making defence products in the state in last two years.
Andhra Pradesh's own classical dance 'Kuchipudi' found a place in the Guinness World Records yet again when a record 6,117 dancers came together to present a show at the IGMC Stadium here Sunday evening.

toi

Guinness adjudicator Rishinath declared that "Jayamu Jayamu" item presented in unison by the participants created a new record and handed over a certificate to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu.

In 2012, a similar feat was achieved when 5,900 dancers performed 'Kuchipudi' in Hyderabad.

The "Maha Brunda Natyam" (grand group dance) was organised as part of the '5th International Kuchipudi Dance Convention' organised by the state Department of Language and Culture. "Jayamu Jayamu" is one of the glorious items of 'Kuchipudi' dance choreographed by the legend Vempati China Satyam.

This 12-minute item was chosen for this year's group dance at the event.

Dancers from across the country as also from countries like US, UAE, UK, Russia, Hong Kong and Mauritius took part in it.

Union Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiah Naidu, eminent 'Kuchipudi' gurus of yesteryears Raja-Radha Reddy, Yamini Krishna Murthy and many others attended the closing ceremony. Ananda Tandavam, another hallmark 'Kuchipudi' composition by Vempati China Satyam, presented by Madhavapeddi Murthy at the event stood as the highlight.

Speaking on the occasion, Chandrababu wished their would be at-least one computer literate and one 'Kuchipudi' dancer in each family in the state.

"We will hire gurus by paying an honorarium of Rs 12,000 a month to train students in 'Kuchipudi' in the state," the Chief Minister said.

In 2010 also, over 2,500 'Kuchipudi' artistes had achieved a similar feat in Hyderabad (in then undivided Andhra Pradesh).
In its proceedings so far, the Supreme Court has dismissed documents seized by the income tax department  which Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi referred to in Mehsana on Wednesday to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi for corruption  as "zero", "fictitious" and "not authentic".

BCCL

The documents are part of a PIL filed by lawyer Prashant Bhushan alleging pay-offs by corporate houses to politicians, including Modi during his tenure as Gujarat CM. The court has said the documents were not credible enough for a probe to be ordered.

A bench of Justices JS Khehar and Arum Mishra had on November 25 asked Bhushan to furnish other "credible" evidences to substantiate the allegations against the Prime Minister.

Bhushan had alleged that the documents " reportedly revealed massive bribery " of politicians and officials by the Aditya Birla Group and Sahara over the years. He mentioned that the Sahara documents said a huge cash amount was given to the CM of Gujarat in October and November, 2013.

BCCL

"Are you relying on Sahara's documents? They never have genuine documents," Justice Khehar said. The court said, "Any suspicion that arouses conscience is a good suspicion but your documents don't arouse our conscience. We are not satisfied at all... Any corrupt person can make an entry in the name of the Prime Minister, but it cannot be treated as credible evidence."

Bhushan also alleged that the Birla group paid around Rs 7.8 crore to get environment and forest clearance during January and February, 2012 when Jayanthi Natarajan headed the ministry during UPA's rule.

BCCL

"We are not shying away from hearing the case but something authentic must be placed before us... Documents seized from the premises of Birla and Sahara groups are nothing. These are zero. You must bring credible evidence ," the court said while granting Bhushan time till December 14 to place additional evidence. Bhushan, however, failed to produce fresh evidence and sought more time.

When the case was taken up on December 16, Bhushan asked if it was proper for Justice Khehar to hear the case when the file pertaining to his elevation as Chief Justice of India was pending before the PM. The bench, thereafter, adjourned the case to January 11 but strongly disapproved Bhushan's conduct.
In what could be an embarrassing moment for Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit has junked the documents used by Rahul to accuse PM Modi of corruption. He targeted the PM over Sahara diaries bribery issue.

BJP immediately latched onto the issue, saying there cannot be double standards and that Rahul was whipping a dead horse as the apex court has already cleared the matter while parties like JD(U), RJD and NCP demanded that everyone mentioned in the diaries should be probed.

Youthtimes.in

Also Read: This Picture Of Modi Chatting With Rahul Gandhi Is Going Viral For All The Wrong Reasons

Sheila, who is also Congress chief ministerial candidate in Uttar Pradesh, strongly denied the charges and trashed the documents, saying the Supreme Court has already made its observations on them.

There is no iota of truth in the allegations. I totally reject these allegations, she said. Asked about Congress putting out the list publicly on its twitter handle, she told PTI, It surprised me. She, however, said she has nothing to do with the issue and refused to speak further saying the matter is sub-judice.

Sources close to her said she may take up the matter with the party.

Orissa Diary

Also Read:War Of Words Gets Poetic As Rahul Gandhi Quotes Urdu Couplet To Take On Modi On Demonetisation

The list has so many names. Then why are you focusing on Sheila Dikshit. I dont even remember anything like this. There are names of other chief ministers. Why dont you talk about them? Why only Sheila Dikshit? she said. BJP national Secretary Siddharth Nath Singh said, There cannot be double standards but Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and their spokespersons are making stupid mistakes time and again. A horse has died and his death has been certified by the Supreme Court.

Taking a dig at Rahul Gandhi, he said the Congress leader should have gained wisdom by now, he is no more a child.

Meanwhile, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal has also questioned the validity of the documents in a tweet.

Sheila ji saying that docs presented by Rahul Gandhi fake? https://t.co/A8tYR1tuck  Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) December 26, 2016

Also Read: Rahul Gandhi's Evidence Of Corruption Against Modi Was Called 'Fictitious' By Supreme Court

JD(U) leader K C Tyagi said, I want that the Sahara diaries should now be made public and all the people named in it should be questioned.

There are accusations against Sheila Dikshit, Raman Singh and Shivraj (Singh Chouhan) and some other leaders that they have received money from Sahara and that is why we demand that the entire list should be made public, he alleged.

RJD leader Manoj Kumar said irrespective of who has been named in the list, immediate action should be taken and a probe by a sitting judge of the Supreme Court ordered.

Because we dont want to target an individual, rather we dont want the Prime Ministers position losing its credibility in front of the entire world and this is our priority, he said.

Majeed Memon of NCP said, It does not matter if the person is from Congress or BJP or is a PM or a former CM.

If someone has committed a crime and he/she is being accused, then he/she should be dealt with in accordance with the law.

Just days earlier, Rahul Gandhi had alleged that Narendra Modi as Gujarat Chief Minister had taken money from Sahara and Birla groups and demanded an independent inquiry into it, a charge rejected by BJP.

The ruling party had said that the baseless, false, shameful and mala fide allegations were an attempt to divert attention from the AgustaWestland probe as names of Congress leaders and the family are coming up.
Rahul Gandhi is learning the art of speaking, admitted PM Narendra Modi, a couple of days back. Obviously, PM Modis remark was dripping with sarcasm, but Rahul Gandhi on another front looks like taking on Modi in a totally different style.

AFP

On Friday, while addressing a rally in Almora, Congress Vice President, Rahul Gandhi quoted an Urdu couplet from poet Bashir Badr to hit on PM Modi for devastating peoples lives through demonetisation.

"Log toot jaate hain ek ghar banane mein, Tum taras nahin khate grihastiyan jalane mein, said Rahul while beginning his speech at the rally.

Trying to strike a chord with the people of Almora on the demonetisation issue, Gandhi said,

"Modiji is asking people of this country to go cashless, but can people of Almora eat the famous bal mithai of Khim Singh Mohan Singh through Paytm," Rahul Gandhi asked a crowded audience referring to the popular sweet of the region and the problem of erratic network connectivity in the hills.

Congress scion also alleged the state has been deprived of its dues.

"Why did the Modi government not give Uttarakhand its dues of Rs 7,000 crore? The state has been robbed of its rights and important sectors such as tourism and transport have been hit. Workers from State Infrastructure and Industrial Development Corporation of Uttarakhand Ltd have been asked to leave," Gandhi said.

Reuters

He added, "Farmers buy seeds through cash, not through mobile phones. Labourers get daily wages in cash, not via credit cards. Unemployment is highest at this moment due to demonetisation." While his speech was going on, the crowd cheered and waved enthusiastically. Some also shouted slogans against the Centre. Noticing this, Gandhi told them to be restrained.

"Don't say murdabad to anyone. They do that, we don't. This is Gandhiji's party," he added.
There are ministers who only hog the limelight for the importance the world awards them and then there are ministers who don't lose an opportunity to praise the silent messiahs who hold their life at home.

RT

One such leader is the Bahraini Foreign Minister, Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, who posted this sweet message for his house help on his Instagram account.

Today we visited Layla . Who shared her life with us in Bahrain for 21 years with love , honesty and loyalty .. In her house in Kollam Kerala, India A photo posted by Khalid Alkhalifa (@khalid_bin_ahmad) on Dec 24, 2016 at 12:44am PST

He captioned the photograph with an equally wonderful message that read:

"Today we visited Layla. Who shared her life with us in Bahrain for 21 years with love, honesty and loyalty...In her house in Kollam Kerala, India."

The FM visited Layla at her native place in Kollam, Kerala during his trip to India. His gesture has garnered over 3,000 likes on the social platform and the users are all praises for him. And why not? It's not every day we see world leaders acknowledging their staff for their loyalty publicly.
Western Mexicos plague of violence has continued with the discovery of six decapitated heads in one state and the killing of seven people in another.

The Michoacan state prosecutors office said the six heads were found on Christmas Day in Jiquilpan, a municipality near the state of Jalisco in a region that has been a battleground between competing drug gangs in recent years.

AP

In a brief statement, it said the six men had not yet been identified and their bodies had not been found.

Meanwhile state security officials in the neighbouring state of Guerrero said gunmen entered a house and shot seven people dead in the municipality of Atoyac de Alvarez. Five were members of one family and two were a married couple.

Jose Luis de la Cruz/EPA

State security spokesman Roberto Alvarez Heredia said in a statement that two of the seven killed were municipal police officers and one a state police officer. The preliminary investigation suggested the gunmen wanted to kill one of the victims in a revenge attack but ended up killing them all.

Guerrero, where Acapulco is located, is one of the states most plagued by drug gang violence.
On Christmas, 54,000 Germans were evacuated from their homes after an unexploded bomb was found in Germany on Tuesday last week.

AFP

The bomb from the era of World War II, weighing 1.8 tonnes, was found at a construction site in Bavaria. The rescue authorities carried out one of the biggest operations to defuse the bomb from the city on Sunday which coincided with the occasion of Christmas.

AFP

The massive operation to mark the bomb 'safe' took 900 officers - a task that took 11 hours to finish. The residents were housed in emergency centres that were set up in schools and gymnasiums.

AFP

A 1,500-metre exclusion zone was created to allow the experts - who named the explosive 'mega bomb' - to dismantle the bomb and mark it safe. Sandbags were placed all around the perimeter and the authorities checked every house in the area to ensure that they were empty.

Bombs from World War II are often found on the German land and the last evacuation of this scale was carried out in 2011 in Koblenz.
A search operation is under way at Black Sea where its military plane crashed with all 92 people on board.

Reuters

Involved in finding remains of the plane and bodies are around 3,500 people all on jets, planes and boats near Sochi.

The Tu-154 plane was carrying soldiers, members of a famed army music ensemble and reporters, who were all going to Syria. It is till now believed that all those on board died in the crash and Monday in Russia was cordoned as a national day of mourning.

Reuters

Since the operation began, Russias Defence Ministry spokesman Maj Gen Igor Konashenkov said 11 bodies and 154 fragments have been found.

"Fragments of the Tu-154 plane of the Russian defence ministry were found 1.5km (one mile) from the Black Sea coast of the city of Sochi at a depth of 50m to 70m (165-230ft), he added.

Reuters

Ten of the bodies found and 86 fragments have now reached Moscow and will go for identification.
It isn't enough to force hundreds of thousands of North Koreans to worship him - this Christmas, dictator Kim Jong-un wants his country's Christians to forget Jesus, and worship his grandmother instead.

"Sacred Mother of the Revolution"

His grandmother, Kim Jong-Suk was incidentally born on the Christmas eve, and worked as an anti-Japanese guerrilla and Communist activist. She is now known as the "Sacred Mother of the Revolution". In the past, Kim had reportedly been furious with neighbour South Korea's plan to erect a huge Christmas tree along the border - and threatened them with war.

Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea and the seat of power here once had a Catholic bishop, but a crackdown on Christian activities led to tens of thousands of of Christians to be locked up in prisons that have been compared to concentration camps.
Grace Mugabe, the First Lady Of Zimbabwe has sent safari animals to a Chinese wildlife park to pay for military uniforms.

The 51-year-old wife of Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe reportedly sent 35 elephant calves, eight lions, a dozen hyenas and a giraffe to settle a debt for boots and uniforms bought for the Congolese military, The Times reported.

An elephant is estimated to fetch between $40,000 and $60,000

Mugabe had close ties with Congo's President Kabila. However, many fear that the elephants would be used to start an ivory-farming operation. They were flown out of the country in a Boeing 747 belonging that landed at Chimelong safari park in Guangzhou.

Zimbabwean wildlife officials said the move would ease pressure on "overburdened" parks. In 2015, the government said Zimbabwe is home to 80,000 elephants but can cope with only 42,000.

However, a local wildlife expert said that forcing young elephants to separate from their herds was "a mad act of cruelty"

Opposition groups criticised the "translocation of our elephants to strange environments". Interestingly, Mugabe's 91st birthday party saw the leader, and his party guests eat a young elephant.
The Ethiopian foreign minister did say, however, that his government is positively cooperating with Egyptian counterparts to maintain friendly relations

Ethiopian foreign minister Workenh Gebeyehu said in an interview published on Monday on the Saudi Arabian Middle East news website that his government is positively cooperating with Egyptian counterparts to maintain friendly relations, though it awaits an official response from Egypt to a request by Ethiopia that Cairo stop the activity of Ethiopian opposition groups within Egypt.

"We informed our Egyptian friends about the activities of some hostile groups that are working against the Ethiopian government in Cairo, and we requested that Egypt stop the activities of these hostile groups", Gebeyehu stated.

Ethiopian PM Hailemariam Desalegn said on Thursday in an interview with the Qatari Al-Jazeera news channel that his country demanded that the Egyptian government take clear action against "terrorist organisations" that are receiving support from "some Egyptian bodies" in Cairo.

In October, Ethiopia's communication minister Getachew Reda accused Egypt of financing and training "armed groups" operating in Ethiopia.

Reda's claims came amid demonstrations against an Ethiopian government plan to expand the boundaries of the capital Addis Ababa into the territory of the Oromo ethnic group.

Egypt's foreign ministry said at the time that Cairo completely respects Ethiopian sovereignty and non-interference in the country's internal affairs.

Ethiopian Right groups say that 500 civilians were killed during the demonstrations, with the Ethiopian government declaring a six-month state of emergency.

In 2015, Egypt dismissed Ethiopian President Mulatu Teshome's accusations that Egyptian elements are supporting armed opposition groups in his country with the aim of preventing Ethiopia from building the Ethiopian Grand Renaissance Dam, which Cairo fears could reduce its share of Nile water.

In March 2015, Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan signed a trilateral declaration of principles that guarantees that all parties will take steps to ensure the dam will not harm the interests of all parties concerned.

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In the Time of Trump, All We Have Is Each Other By Chris Hedges December 26, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " Truth Dig " - This Christmas I mourn the long, slow death of our democracy that led to the political ascendancy of Donald Trump. I fear the euphoria of those who have embraced the atavistic lust for violence and bigotry stoked by him. These nativist forces, part of the continuum of white vigilante violence directed against people of color and radical dissidents throughout American history, are once again being groomed as instruments of mass intimidation and perhaps terror. I know that our civil and political institutions, poisoned by neoliberalism and captured by the corporate state, have neither the will nor the ability to protect us. We are on our own. It wont be pleasant. A week ago in New York I spoke with Ellen Schrecker, the countrys foremost historian of McCarthyism and the author of Many Are the Crimes: McCarthyism in America, No Ivory Tower: McCarthyism & The Universities and The Lost Soul of Higher Education: Corporatization, the Assault on Academic Freedom, and the End of the American University. What am I seeing? she asked about the nations political and cultural condition. Am I seeing a replay of the McCarthy era? To a large extent some of the parallels are stunning. You can look at a figure like [Sen. Joseph] McCarthy, who symbolized a much broader repressive movement. I would say Trump plays the same role today for what really is a right-wing reactionary movement that has taken over the American government. There are a number of fairly superficial comparisons we can make, Schrecker went on. I think both McCarthy and Trump are somewhat abhorrent charactersperhaps theres a little sociopath involved there. McCarthy was a genius at working the press. He understood how to get himself on the front pages. He knew the deadlines that specific reporters had. He knew how to feed them stories. I think the parallels there are pretty obvious. Trump is a genius with regard to the media. The Wisconsin senator was, as Trump is now, very opportunistic, she said. McCarthy, a Democrat before he became a Republican, was just a little bit late in exploiting the Red Scare, Schrecker said, latching on to it in 1950, by which time the Un-American Activities Committee had been hounding Hollywood. Trump and his Christian fascist minions, sooner than most of us expect, will seek to shut down the small spaces left for free expression. Dissent will become difficult and sometimes dangerous. There will be an overt campaign of discrimination and hate crimes directed against a host of internal enemies, including undocumented workers, Muslims, African-Americans and dissidents. The Christian right will be given a license to roll back womens rights, insert their magical thinking into school curriculums and terrorize Muslims and the GBLT community. The Trump administration will hand our Christian jihadists a platform to champion a repugnant religious chauvinism that fuses the symbols and language of the Christian religion with American capitalism, imperialism and white supremacy. Repressive measures, I expect, will be implemented swiftly. Speed blinds a captive population to what is happening. Already anemic democratic traditions and institutions, including the legal system, the two major political parties and the press, will crumble under the assault. Trump will use the familiar tools that make possible the authoritarian state: mass incarceration, militarized police, crippling of the judicial system, demonization of opponents real and imagined, and obliteration of privacy and civil liberties, all foolishly promoted by the political elites on behalf of corporate power. Schrecker said the rise of Trump has been in the making for four decades. Corporations funded and established institutions to close the cultural, social and political openings made in the 1960s, especially in universities, the press, labor and the arts. These corporate forces turned government into a destructive power. America was pillaged and cannibalized for profit. We now live in a deindustrialized wasteland. This scorched-earth assault created fertile ground for a demagogue. The late Lewis Powell, a general counsel to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and later a Supreme Court justice, in 1971 wrote an eight-page memo outlining a campaign to counter what the documents title described as an Attack on American Free Enterprise System. The memo established the Business Roundtable, which generated huge monetary resources and political clout to direct government policy and mold public opinion. The Powell report listed methods that corporations could use to silence those in the college campus, the pulpit, the media, the intellectual and literary journals who were hostile to corporate interests. Powell called for the establishment of lavishly funded think tanks and conservative institutes. He proposed that ideological assaults against government regulation and environmental protection be directed at a mass audience. He advocated placing corporate-friendly academics and neoliberal economists in universities and banishing from the public sphere those who challenged unfettered corporate powerespecially Ralph Nader, whom Powell cited by name. Organizations were to be formed to monitor and pressure the media to report favorably on issues that furthered corporate interests. Pro-corporate judges were to be placed on the bench. Academics were to be controlled by pressure from right-wing watch lists, co-opted university administrators and wealthy donors. Under the prolonged assault the universities, like the press, eventually became compliant, banal and monochromatic. He spelled out a need for an alternative to academic knowledge, Schrecker said of Powell. He felt the academy had been undermined by the left. He wanted to establish an alternative source of expertise. What youre getting in the 1970s is the development of things like the American Enterprise Institute [in existence since 1938] , The Heritage Foundation, a whole bunch of think tanks on the right who people in the media can go to and get expertise. But its politically motivated. It was unbelievably successful, she said of the campaign. Its pretty bad. What were seeing today is an assault on knowledge. What came out of this are the culture wars of the late 1980s and 1990s which created a set of stereotypes of professors as deconstructionist, raging feminists who hate men, cross-dressers, and, worse, who are out of touch with reality. The ideological attack was accompanied by corporate campaigns to defund public schools and universities, along with public broadcasting and the arts. The humanities were eviscerated. Vocational training, including the expansion of the study of finance and economics in universities, replaced disciplines that provided students with cultural and historical literacy, that allowed them to step outside of themselves to feel and express empathy for the other. Students were no longer taught how to think, but what to think. Civic education died. A grotesque kind of illiteracyone exemplified by Trumpwas celebrated. Success became solely about amassing wealth. The cult of the self, the essence of corporatism, became paramount. Schrecker said that during the McCarthy era most of the Red baiting, blacklisting and censorship emanated from the government, especially J. Edgar Hoovers Federal Bureau of Investigation. Hoover and McCarthy, along with Richard Nixon and Roy Cohn, left ruined lives and reputations in the wake of their vicious inquisitions. They effectively shut down freedom of speech and freedom of thought. Cohn, who was a prosecutor in the espionage case that sent Julius and Ethel Rosenberg to the electric chair, was later Trumps lawyer and close friend for 13 years. Cohn was disbarred in 1986, shortly before his death, for what a court called unethical, unprofessional and particularly reprehensible conduct. There are  many more private entities involved in todays anti-democratic campaign, Schrecker said. Its a bit of everything. Thats why its so dangerous. Its not just Trump. Trump is clearly about to become very powerful. Nonetheless, there have been these forces, the climate deniers, the oil people, all of them are coming together at this particular point in time. We must begin again. Any hope for a restoration of civil society will come from small, local groups and community organizations. They will begin with the mundane tasks of holding back the expansion of charter schools, enforcing environmental regulations, building farmers markets, fighting for the minimum wage, giving sanctuary to undocumented workers, protesting hate crimes and electing people to local offices who will seek to mitigate the excesses of the state. We have to reconstitute a civil society, Schrecker said. Intermediary institutions like the academy and the media have been hollowed out. Certainly, journalism is on life support. We have to resuscitate organizations and institutions that have atrophied. There is an attack on the American mind, she said. A lot of what were seeing with Trump is the product of 40 years of dumbing down. A crisis is traditionally used by authoritarian and totalitarian regimes to put a country in lockdown. An economic meltdown, a large domestic terrorist attack, widespread devastation from climate change or the orchestrated escalation of hostilities with another country, perhaps Iran or China, will see Trump and his rogue generals, billionaires and conspiracy theorists plunge the United States into dystopia. War is the usual vehicle that demagogues use to justify internal repression and wield unchallenged power. If the federal government expands our wars to create new enemies, even local resistance will be impermissible. All dissent will be criminalized. Institutions, fearful and weak, will carry out purges of those few who speak out. Most of society, intimidated by a war psychosis, will be compliant to avoid being targeted. Resistance will often be tantamount to suicide. The late Rev. Daniel Berrigan declared in a 2008 conversation with me that the American empire was in irrevocable decline. He said that in the face of this dissolution we must hold fast to the non-historical values of compassion, simplicity, love and justice. The rise and fall of civilizations, he noted, is part of the cyclical nature of history. The tragedy across the globe is that we are pulling down so many others, he said. We are not falling gracefully. Many, many people are paying with their lives for this. We must not become preoccupied with the short-term effects of resistance. Failure is inevitable for many of us. Tyrants have silenced voices of conscience in the past. They will do so again. We will endure by holding fast to our integrity, by building community and by spawning new institutions in the midst of the wreckage. We will sustain each other. Perhaps enough of us will endure to begin again. Chris Hedges, spent nearly two decades as a foreign correspondent in Central America, the Middle East, Africa and the Balkans. He has reported from more than 50 countries and has worked for The Christian Science Monitor, National Public Radio, The Dallas Morning News and The New York Times, for which he was a foreign correspondent for 15 years. Robert Reich: Trumps Attack on the Freedom of the Press Op-ed - (Video) : Historically, tyrants have tried to control the press using 4 techniques that, worryingly, Donald Trump is already using. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Information Clearing House editorial policy.
Obama Allows Toothless UN Resolution Against Israeli Settlements to Pass By Zaid Jilani December 26, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " The Intercept " - The Obama Administration on Friday finally allowed the UN Security Council to call on Israel to halt its settlement expansion on Friday. The resolution essentially re-states U.S. policy that settlement activity in the West Bank is illegal and counterproductive, and that Israels security must be protected. The U.S. did not support the resolution, but it did not utilize its veto power either. In a press call Friday afternoon, White House Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications Ben Rhodes explained that the White House abstained on the resolution because it expresses a consensus international view on Israeli settlement activity. We thought that we could not in good conscience veto a resolution that expressed concerns about the very trends that are eroding, Rhodes explained. A two-state solution. The resolution is toothless  it does not, for example, authorize any form of sanctions to compel Israel to respect international law. Yet prior to its passage, a long list of both Democrats and Republicans called on the administration to veto it, including President-elect Donald Trump, New Yorks Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, and Wisconsin-based House Speaker Paul Ryan:

The resolution being considered at the United Nations Security Council regarding Israel should be vetoed.cont: https://t.co/s8rXKKZNF1  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 22, 2016

Please see my statement urging the Administration to veto the resolution being voted on today by the @UN. pic.twitter.com/RzAvw6i7oY  Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) December 23, 2016

This anti-Israel UN resolution will undermine peace and mutual cooperation. The administration should veto it. https://t.co/TFNipww0XL  Paul Ryan (@SpeakerRyan) December 23, 2016

The administrations abstention reflects a larger reality: President Obama did more to shield Israel from international pressure at the United Nations than any of his predecessors. This was the only Security Council resolution calling on Israel to respect international law that Obama ever refused to veto. Under George W. Bush, six similar resolutions were allowed through. Under H.W. Bush, nine resolutions critical of Israel were allowed through. At the same time, Obama awarded Israel with its largest military aid package ever  signing a memorandum of understanding in September that would give it $38 billion over 10 years. The pressure to veto a toothless resolution shows how constricted U.S. policy on Israel-Palestine has become in recent years, even though the American public appears to favor tougher UN action on the issue. A recent Brookings poll finds that nearly two-thirds of Americans favor UN resolutions demanding a halt to settlements and that a majority of self-identified Democrats support some form of sanctions towards Israel to bring about peace. Meanwhile, Israel has elected one of its most right-wing governments in history  with a set of cabinet ministers who openly disdain the two-state solution and plan to escalate settlement building. The president-elect plans to appoint an ambassador to Israel who favors continued expansion on Palestinian land and actually helped fund settlement work as a private citizen. The U.S. could use its economic, military, and diplomatic ties as leverage to halt settlement expansion and demand that Israel respect the human rights of Palestinians. But in a political system where politicians from both major parties  seeking favor from megadonors who demand a stridently pro-Israel policy  react in outrage to simply asking Israel to respect international law, such a solution remains off the table. Just ask Sheldon Adelson  the pro-Israel casino magnate who helped bankroll Trump.
Too Little, Too Late for US Decision on Settlements

By Cesar Chelala

December 26, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - The United States abstention on the UN Security Council (UNSC) anti-settlement resolution is a serious blow to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus policy of annexation in the West Bank. Israels Prime Minister Bureau stated that, Israel rejects the contemptible, anti-Israel UN resolution and will not subordinate itself to it. This action, the first openly critical and possibly effective one on Israels policy came, however, too late to be of long-term significance and will not probably advance the prospects for peace in the region.

Israels government immediately reacted stating that it will impose sanctions on the two states that pushed for the resolution, New Zealand and Senegal, and ordered their ambassadors for consultation. However, the Israeli government couldnt take a similar action against the two other states that called for a vote on the resolution Venezuela and Malaysia, since it doesnt have diplomatic ties with them.

The Prime Ministers Bureau lambasted President Barak Obama for not vetoing the resolution stating, The Obama administration not only failed to protect Israel against this gang-up at the UN, it colluded with it behind the scenes. Israel looks forward to working with President-elect Trump and with all our friends in Congress, Republicans and Democrats alike, to negate the harmful effects of this absurd resolution.

In an unusual move, the White House laid the responsibility of this action on the Israeli government stating that Netanyahus settlement policy is responsible for the passing of the UNSC resolution on settlements. Predictably, president-elect Donald Trump, with his characteristic insouciance, said that Things will be different after January 20.

In Israel, Meretzs leader, Zehava Galon, broke with that government line and said that she was happy at the U.S.s abstention, since the resolution was, in effect, against the policy of annexation and settlement and not against Israel, adding that the resolution was the direct result of the law to legalize settlements, with Israel having lost all its shame and the world having lost its patience.

In its three first paragraphs the UN resolution on settlements clearly states that to achieve a two-state solution through negotiations on the ground it,

Reaffirms that the establishment by Israel of settlements in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, has no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law and a major obstacle to the achievement of the two-state solution and a just, lasting and comprehensive peace; Reiterates its demand that Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, and that it fully respect all of its legal obligations in this regard; Underlines that it will not recognize any changes to the 4 June lines, including with regard to Jerusalem, other than those agreed by the parties through negotiations.

Shortly after the UNSC vote, President Barak Obamas senior adviser Ben Rhodes explained why the U.S. had not vetoed the resolution on the settlements saying that the U.S. abstention should surprise no one, especially Israels Prime Minister, saying that UNSC Resolution on settlements 2334 was Netanyahus personal failure.

The U.S.s abstention on the settlement issue is an important one that, if history is correct, will not necessarily change Israels policy of annexation, and hence the possibility of a two-state solution. The Netanyahu government should realize that not recognizing Palestinian rights goes contrary to Israels own interest for peace in the region.
Bernie Sanders Urges Congress to Stop Donald Trump Launching Nuclear Arms Race



By Charlotte England December 26, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " The Independent " - Democrat speaks out after President-elect appears to reverse decade's-old policy of disarmament



Bernie Sanders has urged Congress to stop Donald Trump launching a Cold War-style nuclear arms race.



"It's a miracle a nuclear weapon hasn't been used in war since 1945," the Vermont Senator said in a post on Twitter. "Congress can't allow the Tweeter in Chief to start a nuclear arms race."



Earlier on Friday, the US President-elect was asked to clarify the meaning behind an ambiguous tweet in an interview with MSNBC. Let it be an arms race, he is reported to have told co-host Mika Brzezinski,in a telephone call. He did not specify which country or countries he was referring to, but his post on the social media site on Thursday used very similar language to a statement made by Russian Premier Vladimir Putin just hours earlier. "The United States must greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability until such time as the world comes to its senses regarding nukes," Mr Trump said in a tweet read by some as a challenge to the former Soviet Union country. It's a miracle a nuclear weapon hasn't been used in war since 1945. Congress can't allow the Tweeter in Chief to start a nuclear arms race. https://t.co/7XODzlFaAG  Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) December 23, 2016 Laicie Heeley, a nuclear expert at the Stimson Center, a nonpartisan anti-nuclear proliferation think-tank in Washington, told AFP news agency it was reckless for Mr Trump to tweet on the topic without offering details. To make such a loaded statement without context or follow-up is irresponsible at best, she said. We could be talking about a return to the Cold War here, when the threat of a nuclear catastrophe was very real, she said. Russian rhetoric is already moving in that direction. It wouldn't take a lot to bring us back there. Minutes after Mr Trumps follow up remarks were reported on MSNBC, his secretary Sean Spicer said in several television interviews that there would be no arms race because the President-elect would make sure that other countries trying to step up their nuclear capabilities, such as Russia and China, would decide not to participate. Hes going to ensure that other countries get the message that hes not going to sit back and allow that, Mr Spicer told NBC. And whats going to happen is they will come to their senses, and we will all be just fine." In his annual news conference on Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin downplayed suggestions there was a risk of a new Cold War-style weapons race, dismissing comments made by the US President-elect as nothing new. He added that his plan to bolster Russias nuclear weapons was simply a necessary response to the US missile defence system. Its not us who have been speeding up the arms race, he said. He added that he did not have a problem with the President-elect, saying that if Mr Trump invited him, he would even visit the US. Mr Trump also made it clear that on a personal level he still feels something of an affinity with Mr Putin, quoting the Russian president in an unrelated tweet posted to his account late on Friday night. Vladimir Putin said today about Hillary and Dems: "In my opinion, it is humiliating. One must be able to lose with dignity." So true!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 24, 2016 During his election campaign, Mr Trump suggested the US expand its nuclear arsenal. He also suggested that better off other countries that are traditionally US allies, including Japan and South Korea, should have nuclear capabilities, to make them less dependent on Washington. Nine Nations Have Nukes  Here's How Many Each Country Has : the United States, Russia, United Kingdom, France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea  possess approximately 16,300 nuclear weapons. in total. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Information Clearing House editorial policy.
December 26, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " Consortium News " - Americans and the world have valid reasons to worry about Donald Trumps presidency, given his lack of experience and his refusal to recognize that his loss of the popular vote should moderate his emerging domestic policies. But Trump also could do some good things.

Particularly, Trump could break the death grip that neoconservatives and their liberal interventionist tag-team partners now have locked around the throat of U.S. foreign policy.

Trump owes little to these regime change advocates since nearly all of them supported either other Republicans or his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton. And the few who backed Trump, such as John Bolton and James Woolsey, have been largely passed over as Trump assembles his foreign policy and national security teams by relying mostly on a combination of outsiders and outcasts.

Obviously, there remains much uncertainty about what foreign policy direction a President Trump will take and the neocons/liberal-hawks in Congress are sure to mount a fierce battle to defeat or intimidate some of his nominees, particularly Exxon-Mobil chief executive Rex Tillerson for Secretary of State because of his past working relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

However, assuming that the neocon/liberal-hawk establishment fails to stop Trump from escaping Official Washingtons foreign policy group thinks, the new president could radically reorder the way the U.S. government approaches the world.

Lost Opportunity

Eight years ago, President Barack Obama had a similar opportunity but chose to accommodate the Establishment and empower the neocons and liberal hawks by appointing his infamous team of rivals: Republican Robert Gates as Defense Secretary, liberal-hawk Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State, and leaving in place President George W. Bushs military high command, including neocon-favorite Gen. David Petraeus.

Image Right: Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on May 1, 2011, watching developments in the Special Forces raid that killed Osama bin Laden. Neither played a particularly prominent role in the operation. (White House photo by Pete Souza)

For doing so, Obama won applause from the editorial and op-ed writers but he doomed his presidency to a foreign policy of continuity, rather than his promised change. Only on the edges did Obama resist the neocon/liberal-hawk pressures for war and more war, such as his decision not to bomb Syria in 2013 and his negotiations with Iran to prevent it from building a nuclear weapon in 2014.

But Obama bowed down more than he stood up. He let Secretary Clinton push a neoliberal economic agenda by supporting oligarchic interests in Latin America, such as the 2009 Honduran coup, and extend the neocon regime change strategy in the Middle East, with the brutal overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in Libya and covert support for rebels in Syria.

Even after the original team of rivals was gone at the start of his second term, Obama continued his pathetic efforts to appease the powerful, such as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by undertaking a submissive three-day tour of Israel in early 2013 and cozying up to the Saudi royals with trips to the kingdom despite intelligence that they and their Gulf state allies were financing Al Qaeda and Islamic State terrorists.

Though Obama would eventually boast about the rare moments when he defied what he called the Washington playbook of relying on military options rather than diplomatic ones, it was a case of the exception proving the rule. The rule was that Obama so wanted to be accepted by Washingtons well-dressed and well-heeled establishment that he never ventured too far from what the editorialists at The Washington Post and The New York Times deemed permissible.

Still, the neocon/liberal-hawk establishment continued to scold Americas first African-American president for not doing everything that the smart people demanded, such as escalating the U.S. role in the regime change war in Syria or fully arming Ukraines military so it could more efficiently slaughter ethnic Russian rebels on Russias border.

Power Consolidated

In the end, however, Obama did nothing to alter Official Washingtons balance of power on foreign policy. Indeed, over his eight years, the neocons and liberal hawks consolidated their power, essentially banishing the once-relevant realists from establishment circles and smearing the few anti-war and independent voices as fill-in-the-blank apologists, maybe even traitors deserving FBI investigation.

It now is clear that if Hillary Clinton had won, the drive to silence any dissent against the neocon/liberal-hawk orthodoxy would have escalated. The recently revealed strategies for isolating and punishing dissident Web sites took shape before the Nov. 8 election, not afterwards.

The U.S. government also continues programs to throw tens of millions of dollars to contractors whose job it is to counter Russian propaganda, code words for going after and harassing Web sites and other news outlets that question U.S. State Department propaganda.

For historians, there may be a reasonable debate about whether Obama was an enthusiastic supporter of these anti-democratic policies or was simply too eager to please the Establishment to resist them.

Nevertheless, despite his early promises of transparency and openness, he oversaw an administration that ruthlessly suppressed government whistleblowers and bought into the neocon/liberal-hawk manipulation of the American people via perception management or what NATO likes to call strategic communications.

Obama then sat back passively as his Democratic Party sought to replace him with Hillary Clinton who had done as much as anyone to turn his beloved motto of change into the sad reality of more of the same.

Im told that Obama privately had grave doubts about Clinton but he did nothing to encourage alternative Democratic candidates, like Senators Elizabeth Warren or Sherrod Brown, to take on the money-churning Clinton machine.

Because of Obamas miscalculations and timidity, he now will have to take part in the painful and humiliating process of handing over the keys to the White House to a man who launched his national political career by pushing the racist canard that Obama was born in Kenya.

Trumps Challenge

But the question after Jan. 20 will be whether Trump has the guts and tenacity to enact some of the change that Obama promised. Particularly, will Trump stay the course in challenging the neocon/liberal-hawk establishment that rules the roost of Washingtons foreign policy?

Saudi King Salman bids farewell to President Barack Obama at Erga Palace after a state visit to Saudi Arabia on Jan. 27, 2015. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Can Trump withstand the barrage of slings and arrows that will zero in on him if he rejects the neocons regime change ambitions and if he presses for a detente with Russia to resolve the Ukraine crisis and to present a united front against Islamic terrorism?

If Trump moves in those directions  pulling back on the New Cold War with Russia and ending the coddling of Saudi Arabia over its covert backing of jihadists across the region  he could finally put the U.S. government on a more rational track for achieving its national interests.

One of Official Washingtons favorite group thinks has been that Iran is the chief sponsor of terrorism, a formulation favored by Israel and Saudi Arabia  as part of their anti-Shiite alliance  but it is clearly a lie. Yet, to take on the Saudis over their real leading role as state sponsors of terrorism, Trump would have to take on the Israelis, a daunting prospect.

In that regard, Trumps choice of lawyer David Friedman, a staunch supporter of right-wing Israeli settlers, to be U.S. ambassador to Israel has been viewed as a major concession to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, but it could be a decidedly mixed blessing.

If Israel gets its way and further expands Jewish settlements in Palestinian territory, it will be jettisoning the longstanding false hope for a two-state solution. That means Israel will have to either become a blatantly apartheid state, holding Palestinians as stateless or second-class citizens, or accept a one-state solution, granting both Jews and Arabs equal rights, arguably the most logical and humane answer to the Israeli-Palestinian dilemma.

In other words, if Trump takes on Saudi Arabia  finally recognizing its role as the principal state sponsor of terrorism  and sweeps away the two-state solution which has been a liberal excuse for doing nothing to resolve the Israel-Palestine mess for years, he could be clearing a path to a saner U.S. policy toward the region, not one dictated by the likes of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Saudi King Salman.

Obviously, the powerful neocons and their liberal interventionist sidekicks would not sit idly by and accept such a radical challenge to their preferred options in the region, i.e. more regime changes for countries that get onto the Israeli-Saudi enemies list.

And, it is certainly possible that President Trump would retreat when he confronts the Establishments fury that would surely come. However, if he follows through on this course of action, he might finally shatter the neocon/liberal-hawk monopoly over Official Washingtons bloody foreign policy. And the world and the American people might find that a very positive thing indeed.
CIA Chief Admits the Agencys Role in the Syrian War By Paul Antonopoulos December 26, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " AMN " - The head of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Director of John Brennan said in an interview with National Public Radio (NPR) the the bloodshed in Syria was partially because of their role in the war. "I think we always like to say that we wish that we would have been able to make a difference, in a way that would have prevented the slide and the situation there," Director of John Brennan said in an interview with National Public Radio (NPR). "There's no way you can divorce yourself, emotionally or mentally, from these situations that you play a role in," Brennan said, adding that he felt some responsibility for the horrific bloodshed in the Syria war. He then went onto predict that the terrorist forces loss in Aleppo will not end the war in Syria. "This insurgency is not going to go away until there is some type of viable and genuine political process that will bring to power in Damascus a government that is representative of the Syrian people, he further stated. He then went onto admit that the USA has had little influence in being able to shape events in Syria. "As great a country  as powerful a country  as the United States is, we have, in many areas, limited ability to influence the course of events," Brennan said. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Information Clearing House editorial policy.
Former UK Ambassador to Syria Debunks Aleppo Propaganda BBC Interview Audio Posted December 26, 2016 Transcript: Presenter : Peter Ford was the UKs Ambassador to Syria from 2003 to 2006. Peter Ford, do you think its time for a re-think? Ford : Absolutely. Its way overdue. We have clung for too long to the illusion that the so-called moderate opposition would overcome Assad. Surely now, with the Governments recovery of Aleppo, the veils should fall from our eyes and we should look reality in the face: Assad is not going to be removed by force of arms or at the negotiating table. What Britain should do now is three things: we should stop supporting a failed and divided opposition; we should start to try to help the people of Syria by lifting sanctions; and we should be working with the Russians on an overdue political settlement. Presenter : But the political settlement as we know for many leaders in the Western World does not include Assad in its calculations. Boris Johnson for example, the Foreign Secretary, in September of this year saying he can have no part in the future government of Syria because as long as Assad is in power in Damascus, there will be no Syria to govern. Downing Street [the home of the UKs Prime Minister] saying just earlier this month the barbaric cruelty shown by the Syrian regime forces shows that President Bashar Assad (sic) has no place in the countrys future. Ford : Yes, but this is absurd. Its quite absurd. Assad is in control of over 80% now of the populated area of Syria. There is no reason why, in the months to come, he and his forces will not take the remaining 10, 15 and eventually 20%. He will then be in total control of the country. Of course there will be remaining groups who are not happy, after which, in the whole of recorded history has there ever been a protracted civil conflict like this that left everybody happy under one ruler? There is no Syrian [Nelson] Mandela. There is no leader. Could we even put a name to one opposition leader who would step into Assads shoes? Its absurd. Its grotesque. It shows that Boris Johnson and Theresa May have lost grip on reality. Now Donald Trump is coming in and if he carries out what he said hell carry out he will normalise relations with Russia, he will prioritise the fight against ISIS in Syria, and he will stop working for the overthrow of Assad. When are we going to smell the coffee? Presenter : Well, you have said that you are deeply concerned by Britains continued support for the so-called moderate armed opposition and indeed there have been complaints, there have been allegations of abuse on that side of the War as well. Nevertheless, if you leave aside President Assad and you sak ok, let him continue through the future diplomacy concerning Syria, wouldnt that be condoning him and all hes done up until now? Chemical weapons, for example, against his own people? Ford : Look, tonight there is a Christmas Tree in the centre of Aleppo and celebrating people. I think if Assad were removed, and the opposition were in power, you would not be seeing a Christmas Tree in Aleppo. The demonisation of the regime has been taken to ridiculous lengths. Even the end of this crisis with the green buses; there were no green buses in Gaza, there were no green buses when NATO was bombing Yugoslavia to smithereens. This Aleppo campaign has been handled in its final stages with relative humanity. Weve seen not what some allege to be a meltdown of humanity but a meltdown of sanity. Where are, wheres any evidence of the alleged atrocities, of the Guernica, of the massacres, the genocide, the holocaust? Presenter : Well, I think youll find many people will disagree with that as they have seen people fleeing Eastern Aleppo; the allegations that people have been attacked, prevented from leaving the city. You know there will be these allegations and they will be investigated. In the meantime theres criticism of both sides, yes indeed, but you are violently disagreeing with an awful lot of senior figures in governments across the World who say  and I just conclude on this  that there is no place for President Assad in the future of Syria. Just again, complete your thought and we will conclude the interview in just a few seconds. Ford : Well, this flies in the face of reality. Who are they going to put in Assads place? To try to continue to overthrow the regime in Syria, as weve overthrown regimes elsewhere  in Iraq, and Libya  leads only to more suffering on the part of the ordinary people. Presenter : Peter Ford, UK Ambassador to Syria in the 2000s, thank you very much indeed. Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08558fk The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Information Clearing House editorial policy.
President Muhammadu Buhari has commended the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, for always putting Nigerias interest above every other thing.

The President stated this on Sunday in a statement by Malam Garba Shehu to mark the Speakers 50th birthday anniversary.

President Buhari noted that he was impressed with Dogaras rising political career and his leadership style at his relatively young age, adding that the Speakers performance had reinforced his confidence in the countrys youth.

With Dogaras performance as Speaker, fears that the countrys younger politicians have been pushed into background are unfounded, the President said, adding that his administration would always encourage the younger generation.

President Buhari said that he was optimistic of closer working relationship with the legislature in order to fast track the implementation of critically important national policies and programmes.
Decision follows legal action by lawyer seeking to close the group and freeze its assets

Cairo's court for urgent matters ruled on Monday that decisions on banning and freezing the assets of the Tamarod movement do not fall within the court's jurisdiction.

The court issued the ruling after considering a legal action filed by lawyer Ashraf Farahat that sought to close the group down.

The Tamarod movement was founded in April 2013 by a group of pro-revolutionary youths, mostly from the Nasserist Popular current, aiming to oust Islamist President Mohamed Morsi.

Tamarod called for early presidential elections, collecting signatures from the public for that purpose.

While the movement no longer operates, several of its key figures, including Mahmoud Badr and Mohamed Abdel-Aziz, support current president Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi.

Badr and Abdel-Aziz were members of the 50-member committee that amended the constitution following Morsi's ouster.

Badr is currently a member of the House of Representatives.

Meanwhile, Abdel-Aziz is now a member of the recently formed presidential commission to pardon prisoners.

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The Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai has revealed that a member of the dreaded sect, Boko Haram who was fleeing the onslaught of the Nigerian Army has been arrested in Ikorodu area of Lagos State on Saturday.

The military boss made this disclosure while speaking at the re-opening of Maiduguri-Gubio-Damasak and Maiduguri-Monguno-Baga roads by Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima.

The roads closed in 2013 to curb the free flow of the insurgents were reopened due to the crushing of the Boko Haram militants by the Nigerian Army.

Buratai however, charged the troops not to relent and keep on fighting until all the terrorists who had waged a war against Nigeria since 2009 have been killed or arrested.

You must maintain the momentum of the operation. We must pursue the terrorists wherever they are. We must not allow them to regroup, the army chief said.

He said in spite of the take over of the terrorists last strong hold in the Sambisa forest as announced by President Muhammadu Buhari, we have no time to waste.

The chief of army staff described the seven-year fight against the Boko Haram terrorists as quite sober and touchy, saying that a number of officers and soldiers had lost their lives in the war.

He prayed for the repose of their souls and vowed that the army would recommit itself to the fight until remnants of the terrorists were cleared.
State governors and political leaders on Sunday called to congratulate President Muhammadu Buhari and the armed forces over takeover of the Sambisa Forest from Boko Haram terrorists.

Malam Garba Shehu, the Presidents Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, said on Sunday that the calls received by the President were from the Governors of Jigawa, Kano, Yobe, Adamawa, Borno, Katsina, Kaduna and Sokoto.

He stated that the President had also received similar congratulatory messages from governors in South-East, South-South, South-West and North Central states of the federation.

The Presidential aide said the governors commended the President on the achievement of the feat which they said has pleased the Nigerian people and is also being celebrated all over the world.

He added that the governors had assured President Buhari that the whole country was behind him to secure the country, saying there could not be any meaningful development without security.

The governors also paid tributes to the brave servicemen and women who made supreme sacrifices in the liberation of the Sambisa Forest and hoped that their services would never be forgotten.

They urged the President to mobilise resources, both human and material, to sustain the gains made so far in the fight against terrorism and economic sabotage.

The attainment of the armed forces under his leadership was something that was never in doubt at the time of his election in 2015, the governors noted.

They then urged the UN, the U.S., European Union, rich countries of Asia, the Mideast and international aid and donor agencies, to raise their support to Nigeria to quicken the pace of the resettlement and rehabilitation of the millions of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in camps across the country.
MTN Nigeria has paid N80 billion of the N330 billion fine imposed on it for failing to deactivate more than five million unregistered SIM cards.

The Minister of Communications, Mr Adebayo Shittu, in a forum organized by the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN in Abuja said that the company paid the sum as the first installment out of the three years given for the completion of the payment.

MTN was initially fined $5.2 billion dollars (N1.04 trillion) but the fine was later reduced to N330 billion.

For the first year, they paid N80 billion, after paying the initial N50 billion, and they will have to pay for three years until they will complete the N330 billion.

MTN, he said, had no choice because when the law was made, it was for every unregistered SIM card in use.

The fine, according to the law is N200, 000 and the law never anticipated that one company will be in violation to the tune of 5 million lines.

It was inconceivable, so when the thing was added 200,000 times 5.2 million lines, it came to a trillion plus.

When it happened, the MTN did four things; one they accepted that they were in default, two, they apologised for that and three they committed themselves never to allow such a thing to happen and number four, they asked for remission.

He said the government had to look at a number of factors because they might pack up if they have to pay the amount as specified.

We also knew that we invited the international community to come and invest and anything that will be done which will shake the confidence of international investors in Nigerian economy, we must avoid it.

Consequently, we must not throw away the baby with the bath water, if they had packed up and left, let us assume all their staff are not more than 5, 000, it means all of those 5,000 will lose their jobs.

Also those who made investment, who bought shares will lose their shares and the Nigeria banking sector would go into crisis, he said.

The minister said that even in the court system, if one was fined and could not pay for one reason or the other, the person would ask for reconsideration either by way of appeal or bringing a motion.
Nigerian newspaper headlines December 26, 2016.

Punch

The Defence Headquarters, Abuja, on Sunday, said the troops of the Nigerian Army were close to rescuing other Boko Haram captives in the Sambisa Forest, including the Chibok girls.

Vanguard

Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo state, yesterday, blamed past leaders who have failed in their family upbringing for the lack of peace in the country.

Guardian

The Media Rights Agenda (MRA), an NGO for protecting and promoting press freedom, on Friday called on media house owners to equip journalists with relevant trainings, to guarantee their safety.

Leadership

Governors of Jigawa, Kano, Yobe, Adamawa, Borno, Katsina, Kaduna and Sokoto state among other political leaders, have called President Muhammadu Buhari to congratulate him and the leadership of the armed forces following the recovery of Sambisa Forest from the Boko Haram terrorists.

Premium Times

A court has ordered the reinstatement of two lecturers of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, who were dismissed three years ago for alleged plagiarism.

The Sun

While the Federal and Lagos State Governments are basking in the euphoria of constructing the largest deep seaport (in Africa) in the ancient city of Badagry, the indigenes are enwrapped in the fear of the negatives, which the development will bring.

The Nation

The house of the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Works, Ephraim Inyang was on Sunday gutted by fire.
Oltre 26 milioni di americani hanno gia votato anticipatamente per le elezioni presidenziali che vedono in gara, in un testa-a-testa Donald Trump e Hillary Clinton. Si tratta di circa il doppio di quanti usarono learly voting (voto anticipato) una settimana prima delle presidenziali del 2012. A molti lentourage di Trump ha chiesto di rivotare in considerazione delle ultime rivelazioni sullex First Lady

Grazia di Clinton a Rich, file Fbi su web

LFbi ha infatti pubblicato via Twitter i documenti dellinchiesta sulla grazia concessa dallallora presidente Clinton (nellultimo giorno del suo mandato, il 20/1/2001) al finanziere Usa, Marc Rich, morto in Svizzera nel 2013, accusato di 60 reati, tra cui frode, evasione di 48 mln di tasse e traffico di petrolio con lIran. Rischiava 300 anni di carcere. I file sono stati diffusi a 7 giorni dalle elezioni e dopo la bufera scatenata dallannuncio dellFbi sullapertura di una nuova indagine sulle email della candidata Hillary Clinton.

Fbi: carte grazia Clinton note per legge

LFbi ha pero difeso la propria decisione di pubblicare a una settimana dalle presidenziali le carte di una inchiesta  archiviata  sulla controversa grazia concessa da Bill Clinton nel 2001 a un finanziere amico, Marc Rich, scappato in Svizzera per sfuggire alle accuse di evasione fiscale. Per procedura standard  spiega lFbi  questi materiali diventano disponibili per la diffusione e sono postati automaticamente ed elettronicamente nella sala di lettura pubblica dellFbi nel rispetto della legge e delle procedure

Evocato limpeachment per Hillary

Evocato anche lo spettro di una messa in stato di accusa per Hillary se fosse eletta alla Casa Bianca. Lo ha fatto il senatore repubblicano Ron Johnson, presidente della Commissione per la Sicurezza nazionale e per gli Affari governativi. Johnson ha detto al Beloit Daily News che Hillary ha deliberatamente aggirato la legge usando un server privato per trattare affari pubblici quando era Segretario di Stato. Il senatore ha accusato la candidata dem di aver intenzionalmente nascosto e distrutto materiale riguardante la difesa nazionale.

Hacker, NYT: nessun legame Trump-Putin

E Trump oggi ha piu di un motivo per sorridere. Non solo le nuove accuse alla rivale, non solo i sondaggi lo vedono in crescita, ma lFbi non ha trovato finora alcun legame diretto tra il candidato repubblicano alla Casa Bianca Trump e il governo russo.

Secondo i servizi Usa, gli attacchi di hacker contro i democratici sono volti a minare le elezioni presidenziali piu che a favorire Trump. Lo scrive il NYT, citando fonti investigative. Queste rivelazioni, se confermate, sconfesserebbero le convinzioni dei democratici sui legami Trump-Putin.
Perhaps its because of our membership of the EU, or perhaps its because of our reliance on foreign direct investment (FDI), or maybe its because we have a fragile government which can achieve almost nothing under the dispensation of new politics without some kind of nod to the tax system.

The big story at the top of the year was the appalling refugee crisis in the Mediterranean.

Even a tragedy such as this attracts a tax angle.

The German finance minister Wolfgang Schauble gave an interview during which he, reportedly, suggested introducing a petrol levy, applicable right across Europe, to provide funding to deal with the refugee crisis.

That idea disappeared quite quickly. Sadly, the refugee crisis did not.

February saw the ill-fated Brexit campaign take off in earnest in the UK, with David Cameron going to Brussels to secure what he thought might be a better EU deal for his country.

The big item on his wish-list was to dilute the provisions concerning the free movement of persons across EU member states, to ensure that Britain did not have to continue to foot a very large bill for social welfare payments to immigrants.

The particular form of UK social welfare which was facing the most strain was being given by way of a tax credit, to supplement the income of lower-paid employees.

In March, the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne gave what turned out to be his last budget speech as Chancellor.

He introduced tax breaks for oil companies.

The weakness in the price of oil on the international markets was making the UK oil industry struggle.

Remembering that it is people who actually vote, he introduced a special exemption of 1,000 from income from AirBnB lettings, and a similar small income exemption for services such as Uber.

These measures were all about the sharing economy, apparently.

Back home, during April official indecision over the future of Irish Water and water charges really came to the fore. Abolition of water charges became a real issue in the negotiations towards forming the minority government.

But the really big financial story in April was all about the Panama papers, and the revelations that many high-profile names were using financial structures offshore in Panama to conceal their ownership of assets.

It doesnt automatically follow that those assets are the proceeds of untaxed income, but the suspicion remains. Fall-out in the UK political establishment resulted in prominent politicians publishing their tax returns.

The hapless UK Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn dutifully published his as well and almost straightaway had to have it corrected for an omission.

The programme for partnership government was published here in May. It was long on tax aspiration, but short on specifics. Inheritance tax on family homes was to be reduced.

Less happily, the PAYE tax credit for high earners was also to be reduced.

There were also statements that standard allowances would not increase with inflation, in that way generating additional tax to help pay for the promised abolition of the universal social charge (USC).

In June, the brand-new Dail select committee on arrangements for Budgetary Scrutiny met for the first time. Within 15 minutes they were talking about amending the Constitution.

Nothing like getting quickly to the heart of the matter.

Later that month, the Government held a national economic dialogue to allow lobby groups and civil society put forward their ideas for budgetary formulation, short presumably of amending the constitution.

All of this domestic to-ing and fro-ing paled into insignificance compared with the outcome of the Brexit referendum on June 26.

I think time will show that this momentous decision by the UK electorate will have longer term significance in comparison with other political shocks, such as the election of Donald Trump in the US.

Brexit is for keeps. We will lose our common EU membership with our closest neighbour and trading partner once the Brexit switch is finally pulled, probably sometime in 2019.

The Governments summer statement was, itself, overshadowed by the outcome of the Brexit referendum, with figures tacked on to predict the harm Brexit might do to Irelands economic growth prospects.

It didnt make for cheerful reading, promising about 330m in tax cuts in 2017 and about 660m on spending measures.

In October, we found out what that level of Government tax cut and spend really meant  about 5 a week, at best, for most of us.

Over the summer, political attention turned to the existence of devices called Section 110 companies, which were being used as holding vehicles for the acquisition of certain types of financial asset.

Depending on how they are set up, Section 110 companies attract little or no Irish tax.

It became apparent that some of financial assets held by this type of company were linked to mortgage portfolios whose values derived from Irish land and buildings, and so the political clamour to change that regime began to build.

More clamour for corporation tax regime change came with the emergence, at the end of August, of the now infamous EU Commission state aid ruling on Apple.

The Commission ruled that the company owed 13bn in tax, which Ireland was obliged to collect.

Bizarrely, the Commission was less than clear that it was Ireland who was owed all the money, even if they were insisting that the Irish Revenue collect it.

It took a special sitting of the Dail and the best part of a week for the Government to push through a decision to appeal the ruling through the European courts.

There may have been 13 billion reasons for the Government to accept the Commissions decision, but even in our straitened circumstances, it was right for the country not to take money which does not belong to us.

This case is going to run and run.

In recent days, more details have emerged as to how the Commission arrived at its ruling, but it seems to me that the Commissions case is not nearly as strong as it seems to think.

The October budget brought more than its usual share of kite flying, with ideas ranging from increases to the price of diesel, a new sugar tax and a special tax break for returning emigrants.

None of these have come to pass; at least not yet.

I noted earlier that the budget statement itself turned out to be relatively benign.

Perhaps the only real surprise was the introduction of a help- to-buy scheme.

This might support the purchase of 3,000 to 4,000 new homes in an era when more than 20,000 completions a year are required to meet demand.

The October budget was cautious and conservative, which in the Brexit era was the most appropriate approach.

As if unsatisfied with the chaos of the Apple ruling, the EU Commission produced yet more proposals to reform Europes corporation tax regime in late October.

These turned out to be a reheat of proposals originally launched in March of 2011 which had gotten nowhere, primarily because they would have resulted in some EU member states collecting less tax than they had before.

There was nothing in the new proposals that would suggest a different outcome.

November was perhaps the month when the reality of Brexit implications for the island of Ireland really began to sink in.

The Taoiseach convened an all-island forum to discuss the issues, but as I have written on these pages before, if Brexit means Brexit, Brexit also means tax.

We should be under no illusion that one of the biggest Brexit issues for our island is the tax issue.

There will be customs duties on imports and exports crossing our borders, and that means the reintroduction of a border between North and South.

The only matter for discussion is how hard that border will be.

Nevertheless, its not all doom and gloom. There are more people employed now than for a long time.

And, 2016 was the year when we finally got back up to the level of tax receipts last experienced in 2007.

A decade is a long time to have been in a slump, but now were out of it.

On a personal note, many thanks for the kind feedback on my comments on these pages during 2016.

Wishing you all a very happy, and not too taxing, New Year.

Brian Keegan is director of taxation with Chartered Accountants Ireland
Safer than conventional cars  there were 159 fatal collisions on Irelands roads last year  self-driving cars stay patient when human drivers get stressed, and can always concentrate. Ever-vigilant cameras and sensors keep them safe.

Well, so were told. But a Google self-driving car crashed itself into a bus last Valentines Day, as it pulled out at a junction in Silicon Valley, California. Apparently, it made an incorrect assumption about where the bus would go. So much for the cars accident avoidance programme.

Since then weve had the first fatality. In Florida, on May 7, Joshua Brown was killed when the automatic braking sensors in his Tesla Model S failed and he smashed into a tractor-trailer at over 100km/h.

Small, electric driverless buses should be environmentally friendly, and cheap to operate  you dont have to pay a drivers wages. But in Holland, designers of a six-seater driverless bus (the WePod shuttle), which crawled at 8km/h for 200m beside a lake at Wageningen in January, are hesitant in operating the vehicle in what they call challenging conditions, such as rush hour traffic, bad weather, and... night time.

Championed as economical, and free from human error, driverless trains operate successfully today on Londons Docklands Light Railway.

However, during a test run in Lathen, northwest Germany, on September 22, 2006, a driverless high-speed magnetic levitation train ploughed into a maintenance truck, killing 23 people.

With no driver to alert, passengers who had gathered at the front to look through the trains panoramic window, watched in horror as it slammed into the vehicle at 170km/h.

A human presence avoided catastrophe in March 2012, when a five-year-old boy slipped between a train and the platform edge at Finchley Road Tube station, London.

The new automatic system gave the all-clear for the train to go, but a driver  who was on board only because mayor Boris Johnsons pledge to go driverless had not yet been implemented  suddenly saw a tiny hand reaching up from the track, and prevented the train moving off, saving the life of a five-year-old boy.

Unlike in trains, autopilot is routinely used in aircraft, preventing the crew from tiring. It leaves them free to look out for traffic and monitor all the planes systems. Automated adjustments are also smoother, giving passengers a more comfortable flight.

Lawrence Sperry first demonstrated autopilot to spellbound crowds in Paris in 1914, leaving the cockpit of his plane and standing on a wing. But many thought the gadget was impractical, a circus stunt.

Some air crashes since have been blamed on pilots being unable to disengage autopilot, or becoming too dependent on it. Aeroflot Flight 593 crashed into mountains in Russia on March 23, 1994.

In the cockpit were the pilots 12-year-old daughter and 16-year-old son, and one of them had turned off the system. The pilot never regained control, and all 63 passengers and 12 crew died.

Automation has proven perilous even in technology as basic as elevators. The first lift that didnt need an attendant to press the buttons was trialled in 1900. On the night of May 22 1903, 17 young people squeezed into an automatic lift at the Electric Mechanical Institute in Pittsburgh on their way to attend a ball.

Just as the lift reached the sixth floor, it began to sway, before suddenly plummeting down the shaft. Four passengers died, and the others were crushed under the massive lift weights.

Only 10 to 12 people should have been inside, but there was no attendant to tell them the lift was full. Almost 50 years passed before the public got used to automatic lifts.

The UKs first escalator (or moving staircase) at Harrods department store in Knightsbridge, London, had been introduced more cautiously in 1898.

While the company enthusiastically promoted the exhilarating device that would waft ladies and gentlemen from floor to floor, without the least effort, it was also concerned that nervous customers might be traumatised by their ordeal, and instructed shop assistants to wait at the top to offer them smelling salts and brandy.

Our love affair with robotic transport extends back to Leonardo da Vincis 17th century designs for self-propelled clockwork carts, through medieval broomsticks, to the magic carpet  the must-have driverless car of ancient myth.

The great library at Alexandria hired out small flying carpets so its readers could glide niftily from shelf to shelf.

King Solomon became so proud of his magnificent green and gold magic carpet  it measured 60 miles by 60 miles (or 96km by 96km), and was studded with precious stones  that God decided to punish him.

While flying in mid-air, he shook it, dashing 40,000 passengers to their deaths, but Solomon was spared.

Another unfortunate accident befell the Emir of Al Kharid in Year 76 of the Fifth Age, when he tragically mistook an ordinary, unenchanted, carpet for his magic one. Having jumped from a high tower at his palace, he realised, too late, that he had grabbed the wrong carpet, and plunged to his death.

Some citizens called for magic carpets to be banned, and they remained unpopular for almost a century.

Arent todays driverless cars just as far down the road?
The 10 policemen incited 100 of their peers in the tourism police to illegally protest a new work hour system, the prosecution said

A South Cairo prosecution ordered on Monday the detention of 10 lower-ranking policemen for four days pending investigations into charges including inciting illegal protest and refusing to work, a prosecution statement read.

According to the prosecution, the 10 policemen, along with seven others who are at large, incited 100 of their peers in the tourism police to illegally protest a new work hour system.

The new system stipulates that the policemen can work 12-hour shifts and take 24 hours of time off afterwards.

However, the protesting policemen were in favour of the old system, which stipulated a 24-hour shift followed by 48 hours of time off.

The working hours were changed after they were deemed ineffective, as police personnel became fatigued and unable to properly perform their duties, the prosecution statement added.

The policemen also refused to speak with officers tasked with negotiating the issue and threw rocks at them, the statement added.

An arrest warrant is out for seven other policemen who are believed to have orchestrated the strike.

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Like the rise of Soviet communism and both World Wars, the Western liberal orders apparent collapse in 2016 could turn out to be yet another historic upheaval that began in Eastern Europe.

Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbans brand of illiberal democracy was quickly adopted by Polands de facto ruler, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, and is now making inroads in the heart of the West  first with Britains Brexit referendum, and then with Donald Trumps victory in the US presidential election.

Meanwhile, Turkeys nascent democracy has already given way to Recep Tayyip Erdo?gans strongman rule, and the Philippines is now led by a populist authoritarian, Rodrigo Duterte. As we head into 2017, something is clearly rotten in the state of democracy.

It may seem unlikely that Orban and Kaczynski  both trained as lawyers under their countries communist regimes  have become globally influential political entrepreneurs. But their political project has all the features of what management research recommends for a successful innovation strategy.

Like many disruptive products and popular brands, illiberal democracy does not try to please everyone; rather, it targets a carefully selected segment of voter-customers, and gives them exactly what they want.

When Hillary Clinton called Trumps supporters a basket of deplorables, she accurately described one segment of the political market that Orbans innovation targets. But the illiberal democrat speaks not only to reactionaries eager to restore traditional social hierarchies, but also to working-class voters fearful of unemployment and downward mobility.

The rest of society  ethnic, religious, and ideological minorities, including the urban creative class  then forms the opposition.

Illiberal democracy subverts the idea  held by European social democrats and American Democrats since the Civil Rights era  that working-class and minority voters should forge a progressive alliance to counter conservatives. Intellectually, such a stronger together alliance makes sense; but it has three major flaws that Orban and Kaczynski have exploited.

First, the economic interests of white (or native) working-class voters and those of minorities are often not aligned because they are competing with one another for jobs and social benefits.

This is especially true when slow growth turns the division of the economic pie into a zero-sum game. When funds are limited, should the Hungarian government spend money on educating Roma children, or on retraining displaced ethnic Hungarian workers?

Second, working-class voters often adhere to traditional conservative values. While a farmer in Eastern Poland or a factory worker in Michigan might be persuaded to support gay rights or womens empowerment in exchange for economic redistribution, working-class voters have not supported such causes in large numbers.

Illiberal democracy is effective because it disentangles desired goods from unwanted add-ons, which is the essence of modern business innovation. Just as Airbnb allows us to find lodging without unnecessary hotel frills, illiberal democrats offer working-class voters economic help with no civil rights strings attached.

Third, in many electorates, members of a social majority seem to value vilification of minorities as an intrinsic good, irrespective of wealth transfers. And, as Yale Universitys Amy Chua and others have shown, targeting minorities can be a highly effective tool for political mobilisation.

In the business world, it is widely understood that successful products are not just useful; they also provide customers with a distinct experience. In illiberal democracy, that experience relies on the spectacle of denigrating various others.

Indeed, many businesses, such as the companies that produce violent video games and reality TV shows, have similarly exploited our basest instincts. Trumps reality TV show The Apprentice probably taught him how effective sowing division can be as a political-marketing tool.

Orbans insight, taken up by Kaczynski, was that an illiberal coalition comprising the working class and social reactionaries may be more viable than the old progressive project. Meanwhile, Hungary and Poland were ideal early adopters of this innovation, because both countries are ethnically homogeneous, which makes minorities particularly weak and vulnerable.

But illiberal-democratic politics can also win elections in diverse societies such as the US. Like many successful products, illiberal democracy offers voters a fundamentally straightforward value proposition.

Contrary to progressive agendas, the illiberal message is easy to understand, not only because it is often mendaciously simple, but also because its two target groups conservative cultural values inherently align.

Moreover, illiberal democracy can ignore issues that it considers to be non-essential, such as human rights and the rule of law: Its only imperative is to satisfy its customers. More surprisingly, illiberal democrats also do not seem to be overly concerned about economic growth.

Hungary had a relatively robust recovery after the 2008 recession, but its economy is now slowing; and in both Poland and post-Brexit UK, the high economic costs of illiberal democracy are already apparent. If Trump pursues his promised trade protectionism in 2017, he will likely push the entire world into recession.

This could be illiberal democrats fatal flaw, or it could represent their most daring political bet of all. Building a dynamic, creative economy in a closed society may not even be possible, but this does not matter if electorates in mid- and high-income countries no longer consider growth to be as important as identity.

Like a lousy seat on a low-cost airline, or the frustration of assembling Ikea furniture, illiberal-democratic electorates may regard economic stagnation as an acceptable price to pay for a more familiar world  one where the state guarantees the dominant in-groups sense of belonging and dignity, at the expense of others.

Those of us who have lived in Orban and Kaczynskis world understand illiberal democracy is no temporary aberration. It has all the hallmarks of a carefully conceived, innovative political strategy that may prove to be sustainable.

Indeed, in a few decades we might look back and wonder how liberal democracy, with all its complexities and internal tensions, managed to hold on for so long  unless, that is, progressives treat 2016 as a wake-up call, and finally start to innovate, too.

Maciej Kisilowski is an author and associate professor of Law and Public Management at Central European University.
The year 2016 will go down in European history as a time of striving to maintain the political, systemic, and social unity of the European Union as a community of countries, people, and values. It was a time of uncertainty and highly visible failures. But it was also a year marked by real achievements.

Above all, Britains vote in June to exit the EU stands out as a bitter disappointment. And yet a new pan-European consensus on the protection the EUs external borders, together with the conclusion of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with Canada, warrants cautious optimism.

Most of the problems the EU has been grappling with for some time now have not been fully resolved. The migration crisis, tensions with Russia over Ukraine, and other external and internal security threats continue to test our unity and efficiency and will continue to do so in the year ahead.

What we know from 2016 is that great change lies ahead  disconcerting, still unidentified, but nonetheless clearly palpable change. Indeed, the type of change that has been happening, and will happen in the future, is baffling political forecasters.

It has been a long time since reality made such a cruel mockery of pundits and pollsters predictions, even in the short-term context of upcoming elections or referenda. Politics has become as unpredictable as the weather in Brussels. And, as with weather forecasts, if any predictions are proved correct, they are the pessimistic ones.

The political tectonic shifts (and what else can one call a huge islands sudden lurch away from the continent?) now occurring are not just aftershocks of the 2008 financial crisis.

Their source and essence are deeper than the anger of unemployed youth or the dissatisfaction with stagnant economic growth among European and American middle classes, although no sensible person would downplay these sentiments.

But we all feel that these tremors may signal a more profound change: The end of an era, which in Europe could be called the Era of Great Stabilisation. It is an era that has lasted 70 years, sustained by three pillars.

The first is an international order, defined by the Wests ability to command respect for rules and agreements, that has protected Europe against global conflict. The second is liberal democracy. And the third is the relative prosperity of European societies.

The widespread anticipation of change should not frighten or, still less, paralyse us. As historians know all too well, it is stability, rather than crisis, that is transitional and short-lived.

And, just as it is beyond our power to prevent crises (which are, by nature, inevitable), it is not in our interest to cling to the status quo, as stabilisation sooner or later enters a phase of stagnation, when expectation of change becomes universal. This does not necessarily lead to catastrophe. But it may.

Everything depends on our collective ability to navigate stormy seas. The first prerequisite is to maintain the EUs basic unity. I will repeat this like a mantra: An internally broken EU will be incapable of rising to any of the challenges it faces, as will its member countries, including the largest.

The foundations of European solidarity remain fragile, and the real tests lie ahead. Without solidarity, Europe can bring no influence to bear over the direction of future changes, becoming their victim rather than their co-author.

To avoid this bleak scenario, we must once again seek what connects us, what we have in common, what we are ready to defend with full determination, equal to that demonstrated by our opponents. We must once again define our territory, not geographically, but in a civilisational, cultural, and perhaps even symbolic sense.

What we are observing today is that people, nations, and states are discovering the power of myth and simplification. This may foreshadow a politics that is more brutal  closer to nature than to culture.

The most important thing will be to distinguish accurately between what is shallow and unimportant in European tradition and what is lasting, valuable, and unique  what the historian Jacob Burckhardt called the freedom of spirit.

It is in culture and freedom where we will rediscover the essence of Europe. In politics, this means that we must be prepared for change, on the condition that it does not restrict freedom as a core value.

Before we overhaul the EUs structure, before we start solving fundamental dilemmas about the extent of integration, we must all agree that we want to carry the ideal of Europe as a continent of freedom from the past and into the future.

Todays world is full of barbarians for whom freedom and culture, as we understand them, have become targets to attack.

Europeans will be able to overcome their current challenges only when we agree that we will not compromise in this confrontation. Symptoms of barbarity are around us, among us, and within us.

If we give in to external pressure and internal weakness, the coming changes may thwart Europes most important political realisation: that together, and only together, can majority rule, the rule of law, and limited government guarantee human freedom and civil rights.

This is why we must bravely and consistently defy those who stand against our freedoms, whether from within or without.

Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, was prime minister of Poland from 2007 to 2014.
Business Commerce Ministry to Cut Luxury Goods Imports

A view of the industrial port terminal at the banks of the Hlaing River in Rangoon in June 2016. / Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters

NAYPYIDAW  Burmas Ministry of Commerce plans to restrict import of luxury goods including cosmetics in an effort to cut the countrys substantial trade deficit.

The ministry also plans a tax on liquor and cigarettes sold at duty-free shops in airports, ministry spokesperson U Khin Maung Lwin told The Irrawaddy.

We will run a trade deficit if we allow duty-free shops to import things as they wishthe price of some cosmetics is in the six-digits. We will not impose a ban on them, we just plan to reduce imports in order to cut the trade deficit, said U Khin Maung Lwin.

Burma runs a huge trade deficit of billions of dollars every year and restricting import of unnecessary items would effectively tackle this, he added.

Burma imported more than US$16 billion of goods in the 2014-15 fiscal year and exported just over $11 billion, leaving a deficit of more than $4.9 billion, according to the commerce ministry.

In the 2015-16 fiscal year Burmas trade volume was $27.7 billion and the export volume was $11.1 billion.

In the current 2016-17 fiscal year until Nov. 25 the countrys trade volume reached $16.7 billion but exports accounted for just $7.3 billion.

Advisor to Parami Energy Group of Companies U Tin Cho blamed Burmas lack of export products for the countrys massive trade deficit.

We dont have high-quality items to export while we have to import many items, which leads to this problem, said U Tin Cho.

He welcomed the move to control the import of luxury goods, but stressed that the ministry must deploy effective methods to deliver results.

We have to import necessary items such as pharmaceuticals, so if we spend unnecessarily on luxuries, we will be short of US dollars to purchase necessities, he said.

Burma received more than $3.2 billion in foreign investment from April to October in the current 2016-17 fiscal year, a decline of $500 million from $3.7 billion compared to the same period in the 2015-16 fiscal year, according to the Directorate of Investment and Companies Administration.
From the Archive Su Su Lwin: Not The Lady, but Rather Burmas First Lady

Su Su Lwin seen at the Union Parliament on Friday. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

On the occasion of Burmas First Lady Daw Su Su Lwin being awarded the Center for Economic and Developments Global Inspirational Leadership Award for 2016, here is The Irrawaddy profile we published earlier this year.

The world knows Burma for its Nobel laureate, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. The Lady is a prominent political figure and leader of the pro-democracy movement who spent years under house arrest. But the people of Burma have a new lady in the spotlight now, the countrys incoming first lady, Su Su Lwin.

But who is Su Su Lwin?

Before her husband, Htin Kyaw, became Burmas president-elect, people knew Su Su Lwin as the chairwoman of the Lower Houses International Relations Committee and head of the education committee in Suu Kyis National League for Democracy (NLD). She helped drafted the controversial National Education Bill, which in 2015 resulted in nationwide student protests. But her relationship with Suu Kyi and the NLD goes much deeper than that.

Even though the 63-year-old former educator wasnt a party member when the NLD was founded in the late 1980s, she was no stranger to the party. Her late father U Lwin was a former colonel in the Burma Army and a leading figure in the NLD, which he helped found and later served as party treasurer. As U Lwins daughter, she witnessed the birth of the NLD.

At that time, Su Su Lwin had a post-graduate diploma from Sydney University, a masters degree in English from the Rangoon Institute of Education and had worked for over 10 years at Burmas education research bureau.

Suu Kyi took notice of Su Su Lwins education background and asked her to teach English to NLD youth members at her home, after all schools and universities across the country were closed following the 1988 pro-democracy uprising.

According to Zaw Aung, an independent social researcher who was then an NLD youth member and a student of Su Su Lwins, there were about 20 students in the NLD English class. They were all student activists who had been involved in the 1988 demonstrations and later joined the NLD.

He remembers her as a great teacher who was very passionate about education.

Her teaching methods were different from any others I had ever received in my life, he told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday.

For Zaw Aung, Su Su Lwins student-centered approach was a new experience. The classroom was fun and interesting because Su Su Lwin was always friendly, lively and patient with the students, he said. She taught them not only language skills, but also used English novels and short stories to teach them critical thinking.

But after less than six months, the class had to stop when Suu Kyi was put under house arrest in July 1989. Su Su Lwin told her students to come to her home instead if they still wanted to learn from her. But former student Zaw Aung was also imprisoned and spent 10 years in jail.

Su Su Lwins commitment to education was noticeable to everyone around her. Suu Kyis former personal assistant, Dr. Tin Mar Aung, echoed Zaw Aungs opinion.

She is always so eager to share what she knows with others, she said.

Su Su Lwin and Dr. Tin Mar Aung worked together at Unicef for about a decade, where they became close friends. She portrayed Su Su Lwin as a caretaker who treated everyone around her like family. They each have an intimate relationship with Suu Kyi and sometimes spent time together at Suu Kyis house talking about cooking and books, she said.

Before getting involved in politics, Su Su Lwin invested most of her time in the education sector. She worked for Unicef from 1990 to 2005 and later served as a freelance consultant for monastic education programs.

She founded a local non-profit organization called Hantha Educators in 2006 that partnered with local influential monks and focused on improving traditional monastic education, early childhood care and development programs. She was concerned about the lack of education opportunities for the poor, especially in Sagaing Division and Arakan State, and the failure of many development programs to reach those most in need. Her organization stressed the importance of child-centered teaching and critical thinking.

Her former student, Zaw Aung, crossed paths with her again after his release from prison, when they both worked at Unicef and then at Hantha Educators. Zaw Aung remembers her being a vegetarian and her tendency to bring vegetarian meals to her office for colleagues.

She knows how to cook vegetables deliciously, he said.

Zaw Aung said she was kind and modest, despite growing up in an elite family, with a father who served as a minister during Gen. Ne Wins socialist regime.

[Su Su Lwin and Htin Kyaw] supported Daw Aung San Suu Kyi closely, in their own different ways, he said. And in every possible way.

They were two of Daw Aung San Suu Kyis most trusted confidantes.

She married Htin Kyaw in 1973 when she was 21-years-old. According to a 2007 interview with Htin Kyaw in local art magazine Padauk Pwint Thint, Su Su Lwin was even more familiar with Htin Kyaws father, the prominent Burmese poet Min Thu Wun, because she had translated some of his poems into English.

Despite her close relationship with Suu Kyi, she told The Irrawaddy that she officially became a NLD party member just before the 2012 by-election, when she won a seat along with dozens of fellow party loyalists. She dived into Burmese politics before her husband, and has represented Rangoons Thone Kwa constituency in Parliament ever since her 2012 victory, winning re-election to the seat last year.

While working for Unicef, she was not supposed to show any political affiliation, so she avoided being in the public eye. But as the daughter of U Lwin, she witnessed every change and development of the NLD, Zaw Aung said.

Its remarkable that not only the President-elect, but also the first lady, played historic roles in assisting Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, he added. He believes that Su Su Lwin can be more than a first lady.

Given her proven independent streak, passion for worthy causes and dedication to country, Burmas next first lady promises to be a trailblazer in her own right, breaking a mold set by recent predecessors at a time of countless firsts in a democratic transition that continues to unfold.
Burma Burma Finalizes Ethnic Census Data

Government officials and a Rangoon resident during census collecting in 2014. / The Irrawaddy

RANGOON  Burma will try to finalize census figures on its ethnic demographics by early 2017, a spokesperson from the Ministry of Labor, Immigration, and Population has said.

Due to controversial debates, figures on the countrys religious and ethnic population were withheld from publication of the 2014 census last year, which revealed the total population of the country to be more than 51 million. However, data on religion was released in late July and the ethnic population information was delayed again.

U Myint Kyaing, the ministrys permanent secretary, told The Irrawaddy on Monday that his office aims to finalize the process within the first four months of 2017, consulting with ethnic community leaders, the Union-level ethnic affairs committee, and experts for further statistical analysis.

He also said the figures will not be released in a rush, in order to avoid errors. He explained that the figures would reveal the population of each ethnic group nationwide, as well as at the state and divisional levels.

U Nyi Nyi, a director at the ministrys department of population, said negotiations among ethnic community leaders would be consulted again, along with historians, anthropologists, and cultural experts for finalized terminologies and classifications of the ethnic groups.

Many processes have yet to be finalized, he said. Terminologies and spellings varied within tribes when data was collected and these terms need to be standardized by ethnic leaders for accuracy and consistency.

Ko Naw Aung Sann, general secretary of the Council of Naga Affairs, told The Irrawaddy that his council has proposed that the Union government separate ethnic Naga from Chin in the new census.

Burma conducted its last census in 1983 and recognized 135 official ethnic groups. The statistics classified the ethnic Naga as Chin.

The [Union] government needs to recognize it officially, he said, explaining that there are 12 sub-tribes that are currently living in Burma under the ethnic Naga group.

Having many different sub-tribes under the ethnic Naga group is not a problem, he stressed. Classifying Naga identity as ethnic Chin is the main problem.

One of the most controversial issues was that an estimated 1.3 million Rohingya Muslims in western Burmas Arakan State were not counted in the 2014 census. The countrys 1982 Citizenship Lawwhich narrows citizenship eligibility along ethnic linesexcludes the Rohingya from recognition as one of the countrys ethnic groups.

The law requires unrecognized groups to prove family residency over three generationswhich is difficult for most since the majority of people in Burma went without documents prior to laws introduced in 1951 requiring registration.
Burma Govt: 10,000 Displaced Residents Return to Mong Ko

Damaged buildings in Muse Townships MongKo, northern Shan State in December. / Nang Seng Nom / The Irrawaddy

The government reported that more than 10,000 residents displaced by fighting in northern Shan State have returned to Mong Ko town of Muse Township, despite claims from aid groups that residents are reluctant to return to the area.

Altogether 10,248 residents from 2,260 households have been admitted into the town so far, state-run newspaper The Global New Light of Myanmar reported Sunday.

Yesterday [Saturday] morning, a total of 14 people, including ten males and four females, were admitted to the town, the report read, adding that residents have been returning since Dec. 9aided by the militaryafter fleeing fighting between the Burma Army and an alliance of four ethnic armed groups.

Mai Mai, a humanitarian worker from the Kachin Youth Organization in Kutkai Township in northern Shan State, said that most displaced residents havent returned home permanently as they feel it unsafe to do so.

Local administration authorities call on [displaced people] to return home and say it is safe for them to do so, said Mai Mai. Some returned but found there were break-ins, motorcycles were stolen, and houses were destroyed.

Some return only in the daytime but go to sleep in the camp [on the China border] at nighttime, she added.

According to a report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Burma released on Dec. 20, up to 15,000 people may have fled across the border into China in the past month while another 2,400 people had been displaced internally in northern Shan State.

Despite government claims that they restored stability in Mong Ko town, there are reports of ongoing fighting in and around Mong Ko and Kutkai towns.

Burma Army shells landed on a house in Kutkai town on Dec. 24 injuring five civilians and four children, according to local residents.

State media, however, blamed the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and said the five civilians were injured as KIA troops fired on vehicles traveling on the Union Highway in Kutkai Township on Saturday last week.

State media also reported that a Burma Army soldier was injured during clashes with the ethnic armed group alliance in Kutkai on Friday.

The joint forceknown as the Northern Alliancecombines troops of the KIA, Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA), the Arakan Army (AA), and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) better known as Kokang army.

The Northern Alliance launched a joint offensive against the Burma Army in northern Shan State in late November. None of the groups have signed the nationwide ceasefire agreement with the government.
News Court Verdicts Show State Counselors Battle on Land Disputes

Farmers walk in their farm outside Yebu village in Shwenyaung township, Shan State. / Wa Lone / Reuters

RANGOON  Before entering the courthouse in the capital of eastern Burmas Shan State, Maw Maw Oo said it was ominous that several blue police vans were already waiting in the parking lot.

But I dont want to guess what the courts decision will be, she told a Reuters reporter by phone.

Hours later she was jailed for a month for trespassing on what she had insisted was her own land, in a case that starkly illuminates the challenge facing Burmas leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, whose National League for Democracy (NLD) took power almost nine months ago pledging to solve the countrys land disputes.

Maw Maw Oo, 45, is a leader among the farmers from Ye Bu village, where Burmas powerful military had sued 96 residents for trespassing after they continued to work land they say was taken from them by the army.

The court in Taunggyi on Thursday last week sentenced 72 farmers to a month in prison each and fined others, making a quick solution unlikely in the dispute over the farmland, on much of which the army has sought to establish agri-businesses with private firms.

Maw Maw Oo was among those convicted and taken straight to jail in one of the vans, lawyers said, so could not be reached for comment on the verdict.

Ye Bu farmer Myo Aung said residents were considering their next steps, but vowed to fight on despite the convictions.

We will keep trying under the law to find justice, he said. We complained to the government, and also the commander-in-chief, but nothing has improved.

In some families, both parents were now behind bars, said Myo Aung, who was not convicted on Thursday but faces charges in a separate trespassing case involving a private company.

Deterrent

Across Burma there are thousands of disputes involving alleged land seizures under the junta that ruled for decades.

Many date from a military-led transition from socialism to a market-driven economy beginning in the 1990s and involve the army itself. The Ministry of Defence controls some 2 million acres, or about 5 percent of Burmas arable land, but has pledged to return any land it does not need.

Major Aung Htwe of the armys Eastern Command, who filed lawsuits against the farmers in Ye Bu, told Reuters the courts decision was correct and would act as a deterrent against farmers entering or working land they did not have rights to.

If they do something like that again, they will be punished by the law, he said on Friday.

Tim Millar, country director at Namati, a legal advocacy working on land disputes across Burma, said filing charges of trespass against farmers was a frequent tactic, although not usually on the same scale as in Ye Bu.

It is a tool used to dissuade farmers from seeking justice, he told Reuters by email. It plays on both the fear of the farmers and imposes costs on them, as they are required to travel repeatedly to court, Millar added.

David Mathieson, a senior researcher on Burma for Human Rights Watch, said the NLD would struggle with the scale of the land problem.

But it could be prioritizing legal reform that ensures land laws protect farmers, he said by email.

Nyan Win, a national-level spokesman for the NLD, said while he disagreed with the army suing farmers, the party could not interfere in the judicial process.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has established a parliamentary committee on confiscated land, but activists say it has yet to take significant action.

U Kyaw Myint, an NLD lawmaker who sits on a separate committee handling farmers affairs, said that despite being the ruling party, the NLDs individual lawmakers were too weak to confront the military over land.

The military should give up and return the lands they dont need for the military projects. They have no rights to do business in those areas, he said. But finding a solution will be very long process.
Politics USDP Proposes Building a Brick Wall Along Burma-Bangladesh Border

A fisherman walks across the tunnel near the border fence in Maungdaw, Arakan State. / Moe Myint / The Irrawaddy

RANGOON  A Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) proposal to build a solid wall along Burmas western border was recorded on parliamentary record in the Arakan State regional legislature on Monday.

U Zaw Zaw Myint, a USDP lawmaker representing Buthidaung Constituency (1), submitted the proposal last week, and a debate on the issue was held on Monday. He recommended that a brick wall 30-40 feet high and five to 10 feet thick be built to separate Burma from Bangladesh.

Border walls are being suggested as security measures in Western democracies, U Zaw Zaw Myint pointed out, as a way to prevent migrants from entering countries illegally. In the US, President-Elect Donald Trump campaigned on a promise to build a nearly 2,000-mile wall along the countrys southern border with Mexico, a proposal which has been widely criticized in the US as logistically and financially unviable, as well as inhumane.

Three Arakan State legislators came out in support of the USDP lawmakers proposal, according to parliamentarian U Hla Aung Nyunt of Minbya Township Constituency (1), who spoke to The Irrawaddy on Monday.

On behalf of the Arakan State cabinet, security and border affairs minister Col. Htein Lin suggested that the House Speaker record the proposal and explain how they are protecting the Arakan State border in Maungdaw Township; the area was the site of militant attacks on border police outposts in October, and subsequent Burma Army clearance operations.

Instead of specifying in the proposal that brick be used to construct the wall, Col. Htein Lin recommended that the wording be changed to express a general desire for a better security system. He pointed out that the Arakan State government is currently installing a barbed wire fence in Maungdaw, an initiative introduced under the countrys previous USDP-led government.

Wire fencing has been completed on a stretch of around 127 miles. Col. Htein Lin added that border patrol routes would be linked with the main road for 200 miles, and 52 checkpoints are already set up.

I am not objecting to the proposal because our work is in progress. So I would like to keep it as a record, said Col. Htein Lin.

Parliamentarian U Hla Aung Nyunt said that U Zaw Zaw Myint accepted this suggestion.

The proposer agreed to the recommendation of Col. Htein Lin and urged the parliament to keep monitoring the Maungdaw case, said U Hla Aung Nyunt.

Last week, authorities outlined a controversial plan to securitize the area in the wake of the October attacks on border police posts. Last week, border police head Brig-Gen Thura San Lwin told media of the proposed expansion of seven ethnic Arakanese communities in the Maungdaw border region in an effort to increase the Buddhist population in a predominantly Muslim area.
Egypts President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and his Djiboutian counterpart Ismail Omar Guelleh stressed the importance of enhancing economic and trade cooperation at a Monday press conference in Cairo that preceded the signing of memorandums of understanding between the two countries

El-Sisi said that his meeting with Guelleh saw fruitful talks on ways of boosting the special ties between the two countries.

El-Sisi also said that the two leaders agreed on increasing Egyptian companies activities in different fields in Djibouti, including energy, construction and medicine, as well as boosting cooperation and an exchange of experience between Egypts Suez Canal Authority and the Port of Djibouti.

Egypt and Djibouti have signed seven memorandums of understanding in the fields of exports and imports, agriculture, technical education, trade cooperation, international cooperation, health and maritime ports.

The Egyptian president also said they have both agreed on continued Egyptian support in Djibouti in the fields of education, health, and capacity building.

El-Sisi said that the meeting witnessed talks about several regional issues, including the situations in the Horn of Africa and Yemen, as well as preparations for the African Union Summit set to take place in Ethiopias Addis Ababa in January.

I would like to point to the importance of Djiboutis strategic location on the Horn of Africa and its direct relationship with the security of the Red Sea area, El-Sisi said.

Djiboutis maritime border is located on the Bab Al-Mandab Strait, through which vessels navigating Egypts Suez Canal pass.

Djibouti also hosts US, French and Japanese military bases.

Guelph stressed the deep relationship and solidarity between the two countries.

He also asserted his commitment to promoting and strengthening relations between Egypt and Djibouti so as to be better equipped to face different challenges.

Over the past month, Egypt has received multiple African leaders, including those of Kenya and Eritrea, who expressed readiness to boost bilateral cooperation with Egypt.

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Toyota Camry is remarkably one of the best selling sedans in the U.S auto market for a long time for good reasons. It is considered very reliable and also does not require buyers to break the bank to get one. Here's what every buyer should know about the 2017 Toyota Camry.

The 2017 Toyota Camry Specs

According to a report from The Car Connection, the 2017 Toyota Camry has three powertrain options. The 2017 Toyota Camry's base trim is equipped with a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine that delivers 178 horsepower paired with a six-speed automatic transmission. There is also a more powerful configuration of a 3.5-liter V6 engine that cranks out 268 horsepower. The last engine is a hybrid that is capable of 200 horsepower as reported.

The 2017 Toyota Camry Features

The 2017 Toyota Camry has its fair share of features in terms of technology and safety but the latter is where it shines the most. In fact, the 2017 Toyota Camry has nabbed the Top Safety Pick+, the highest honor in the recent Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS). According to CNET, the 2017 Toyota Camry's safety features include adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning system, blind-spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert, lane keep assist, lane departure alert, stability control and traction control.

Trims and Prices

Given the fact that the 2017 Toyota Camry is available in three different configurations, it is basically available in nine trims. The 2017 Toyota Camry starts from the base LE, SE, XLE and XSE with price tags of $23,070, $23,840 for the first two trims and $26,310 for the latter trims. The hybrid configuration is available in LE, SE and XLE trims with price tags of $26,790, $27,995 and $30,140 respectively. The top trims are the XLE V6 and XSE V6 that both have price tags of $31,370 as reported.

To Buy Or Not

The 2017 Toyota Camry is a decent car with various options to choose from. It offers good value with its different power configuration, safety features, and premium price. Of course, buyers will be the one to decide whether to buy or not at the end of the day.
The six members of the 50th crew send their Christmas greetings to all the Erthlings, as they celebrate Christmas in space. Aside from funny hats, they also enjoyed a scrumptious dehydrated meal. Crews also shared their thoughts, on how they want to make the best out of the opportunity given to each and every one of them.

There are three nations supporting the ISS namely the US, Russia and France. The six astronauts are composed of representatives from the three nations.

The astronauts and cosmonauts are Commander Shane Kimbrough from NASA and flight engineers, Andrey Borisenko, Sergey Ryzhikov , Thomas Pesquet , Peggy Whitson and Oleg Novitskiy.

The 50th crew reside on board, since the ISS began operating, with permanent occupancy by rotating crews way back from 1998. The crew living in the ISS is working together, for the benefit of all humanity.

In a video, commander Kimbrough, Peggy Whitson of NASA and Thomas Pesquet discussed their thought about Christmas. Commander Kimbrough said that, for him, Christmas is all about family.

He added that, though it is a season to think of receiving in their family, they think more about the giving aspect. Giving of many talents and resources, especially to those less fortunate.

He also said that the crew will be eating well in the ISS. They also miss their families,they want to be with them, but they surely will have a great time in the ISS.

For Peggy Whitson, celebrating Christmas in space gives a new meaning for her and emphasized the importance of coming together. According to the Universe Today, soon she will become the first woman to command the station twice.

That momentous event will happen on the early 2017 during the start of Expedition 51. She will assume the role of Space Station Commander.

Thomas Pesquet, also shared his thought, of the Christmas in space experience. He said that he misses his family, but he would like to make the best out of the opportunity that was given to him.

According to 11alive, the crew enjoyed a dehydrated feast of traditional food from each of their home towns. The Christmas in space menu includes chicken supreme with morels ox tongue and gingerbread. The typical American, potatoes, green beans, turkey and cornbread stuffing, will go along with cobbler, chocolate cake, hot cider and cocoa.
Christmas celebration was disrupted, because of a 7.6 magnitude Chile earthquake. Denise Alvarado, a resident of Southern Chile, Quellon, stated that it was the biggest scare of their lives. People were shocked by the intense loud noise and shaking.

The officials issued an order to evacuate 1000 km (621 miles), of the epicenter. After that, the order was downgraded, to a tsunami watch. Eight ports, mostly small ports, in the area were closed.

ONEMI reported that, one of the bridge in the area, is destroyed. Other roads are closed, because crews are working on restoring the electricity. There were 21,000 houses left with no electricity.

Chile National Emergency Office (ONEMI) lifted the evacuation and the tsunami watch after three hours. 5,000 people were told that they could go back to their homes.

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet said on Twitter that no one needs to mourn the death of anyone. And now the goal is to reestablish normalcy in the affected communities.

Alvarado, another citizen of Chile, stated that she was preparing to travel on the countryside with her friends, when she felt the Chile earthquake and ran out of her home.

The damage in Quellon and surrounding areas was shown on the local television. This was not the first time Chile experienced an earthquake. Being located on the so-called "Pacific Ring Of Fire," they have a long history of deadly earthquakes.

One of these is the 8.8 magnitude quake in 2010. According to the Mail Online, in 1960; 1,655 people died, because of a 9.5 magnitude quake. This was recorded by the USGS as the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in the world.

According to ABC News, Chile earthquake was felt on the other side of of Andres mountains in Argentina. But damages near the epicenter were limited.
While the open source CyanogenMod project will remain available, the company has announced that its services and OS will be discontinued next week.

Cyanogen Discontinues Its OS

On its company's blog, Cyanogen Inc. has announced that all Cyanogen-supported nightly builds and all its services will be discontinued by Dec. 31. The source code and the open source CyanogenMod will remain available, but owners of Cyanogen-powered devices such as the OnePlus One will be required to make a switch for future updates.

According to Engadget, the new Cyanogen CEO Lior Tal announced on the company's blog at the end of November that co-founder Steve Kondik left the organization. Kondik posted on Twitter on Dec. 2 that he is "happy to rebrand."

Tal also said that by the end of the year the company would consolidate into a single Palo Alto-based team focused on building add-ons for Android as it pivots towards a Modular OS future. Things are changing for CyanongenMod as it is starting a new project called Lineage.

On Saturday, the developers responded to the shutdown news on their own blog post. According to them, the loss of Cynanogen Inc. will greatly affect the CyanogenMod. The blog pays respects to the community that it served for more than eight years and explains that CyanogenMod will disappear, morphing in the next open-source Android project Lineage.

Cyanogen's History

According to CNET, the company called Cyanogen Inc. has been launched in the year 2013. The company has been created with the aim of commercializing the already popular CyanogenMod. The company tried to kill Google's Android OS but was never able to gain much mainstream appeal.

Earlier this year, in June, Cyanogen, Inc. announced that a new MOD feature has become available starting with Cyanogen OS 13.1. At the time, this was good news for the owners of a OnePlus One phone that comes with the "MOD"-ready pre-installed Cyanogen OS version 13.1.
The enormous Tasmania seal, who roamed around suburban Newstead, near Launceston, Tasmania. It weighed 300kg, citizens were advised to stay away from it. Mr. Lou-seal, is a male mayward seal that came up from a nearby river.

After spending the morning alarming residents in the area, "Mr. Lou-Seal" as they named it, slept on Penquite road. "Chilling out," is how the Tasmania Police, Sgt. Renee Stewart, described what Lou-Seal was doing.

The Tasmania seal, fell asleep on the driveway. While Mr Lou-seal was sleeping, the owner of the Toyota sedan, managed to start the car, and drive it away from the seal.

The neighborhood was very curious about the seal, but did not dare to get near it. Sgt. Stewart said that, it was good, that the neighborhood did not go near the seal to prevent more damages and keeping the seal calm, and safe.

When Mr. Lou-Seal woke up, it climb up the vehicle, a Toyota sedan, causing damage to it. After damaging the vehicle, the Tasmania seal then searched for another spot to take a nap.

The Tasmanian seal is now safe, and soon to be released in the wild, after a careful medical check-up.

According to fox25boston, Tasmania Police, thanked the citizens, for keeping themselves away from Mr. Lou-Seal. Lou-seal is now in the custody of the Parks, and Wildlife Officers.They also stated that, Mr.Lou Seal is now a sealebrity, and will be released after a medical check-up.

Mr. Lou-Seal might have came from a nearby river. The Tasmanian seal was tranquilized to prevent more damages in the area.

Tasmania is located South of Australia, along with small other islands. According to the The Australian, the specific thousand dollar damage, on the Toyota sedan, was on its wind screen and roof. Police correspondent, Sgt. Renee Stewart, stated that, they needed extra police officer, just to carry Mr. Lou-seal.
It has been a while since Microsoft said it would release new products from its Surface line but with October seeming like a distant past and 2016 just about to wrap it all up, fans may just have to wait for the next year.

Despite the broken promises, the Surface Pro 5 remains promising. Here is a wrap up of all the news, leaks, and rumors gathered about the device that is supposed to topple Apple's MacBook Pro from its pedestal.

Processor/RAM/Memory

The easy guess here is the Pro 5 will run on Kaby Lake, Intel's latest processor. This will likely be the Pro variant. The entry-level non-Pro variant will have Qualcomm Snapdragon under its hood. As for the RAM, rumors say the Pro 5 we have at least 8GB. The 16GB version will come with 1TB of internal storage.

Display

As mentioned above, there will probably be two different versions of the Pro 5. The entry-level version will have a 2K resolution while the high-end one will have 4K. The 2K version will sport the PixelSense display.

eSIM

Dr. Windows, a popular German Microsoft blog, indicated that the Surface Pro 4 successor may support eSIM which is a way to standardize SIM cards.

According to Yahoo, this rumor came about after it was discovered that the software giant has struck a deal with Transatel, a mobile provider that does business globally. The deal points to Microsoft carrying eSIM packages from Transatel in the Microsoft Store.

It must be noted that previous Surface products particularly the Pro 4 and the Surface Book do not feature eSIM. Dr. Windows implied that the Surface Pro 5 and Surface Book 2 will have eSIM.

Other Features

The upcoming Surface device will have a rechargeable Surface Pen. It will also have Type-C USB ports

Release Date

Many were disappointed that the Surface Pro 5 did not come along last October. At least that gives them something to watch out for in 2017. The guess now is that the new Surface Pro will be unveiled in next year's Windows 10 Creators Update which will supposedly happen on Mar. 17.

Inquistr, however, believes an earlier release date is more beneficial for the company. It thinks that the new Surface Pro

Price

As for the price, there's nothing but rumors and guesses out there right now. However, most estimates peg the Surface Pro 5 to be worth the same as the Pro 4 when it was first launched.

Again, these details about the hybrid laptop and tablet are just rumors for now. To now the real score, wait for Microsoft's official announcement.
Scientists and researchers are now looking into using what they refer to as an invisibility cloak to hide structures from seismic waves. Although technology and engineering are currently developing advanced solutions to collapsing building during earthquakes, scientists also suggest a natural way that can be more effective.

Invisibility cloaks might sound like a product of the future technology but its concept of it does not sound as complicated as most people might think. Skyrise buildings are now a common scene in developed cities but for regions near the pacific rim of fire, these structures would need special protection from earthquake to prevent destruction.

The elastodynamic cloak or invisibility cloak that was created by the English mathematician, William Parnell, is said to divert shock waves, leaving a building almost untouched by earthquake. The rubberized material reportedly should be wrapped around the base or the key components of any structure. By doing such, the building is expected to be spared from the severe damages brought about by an earthquake. Experts are still testing the idea but the strategy is already deemed impractical.

As the invisibility cloak might not receive wide acceptance from building owners, two alternatives were developed: a zigzag array of holes and cloak of trees. A physicist along with his colleagues from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory have been conducting studies on how buildings can be made resistant of seismic waves. The team claims it practically drilled holes of varying sizes around infrastructures, the seismic waves will be deflected.

According to their experiments, the team revealed that such strategy can reduce the effects of magnitude 7 earthquake down to magnitude 5 or even lower. The theory though has not yet been tested in real life situation and the negative effects of holes on nearby structures and the building itself are still unknown.

Following this, a more natural solution is being looked at by mathematicians from the Imperial College in London. Along with their French collaborators, the team has been looking at ways on how trees can protect buildings from earthquake effects. The team claim that by surrounding a building with a cloak of trees, the seismic waves will be deflected even before they reach the structure. Such condition is claimed to be protecting natural forests where the irregular heights and pattern of the trees serve as covering to surrounding areas.

Accurately predicting earthquakes is still not possible these days hence researchers continue to search for possible ways to protect life from such natural disaster. While the study of the invisibility cloak is still well underway, the alternative techniques of using zigzag holes and cloak of trees might be considered to protect structures and life for the mean time.


The Russian team will check security measures put in place at the airport's Terminal 2

A Russian team of airport security experts is set to arrive in Cairo on Monday evening to inspect the latest security measures adopted at Cairo International Airport ahead of the expected resumption of Russian flights to Egypt, a source at the civil aviation ministry told Ahram Arabic website.

The Russian team will check security measures put in place at the airport's Terminal 2.

The visit should pave the way for the resumption of EgyptAir flights to Moscow and Aeroflot flights to Cairo, followed by the return of Russian flights to Hurghada and Sharm El-Sheikh, Ahram Arabic website said.

The ministry source added that Terminal 2 has been equipped with the latest surveillance equipment.

A new biometric verification system has been installed to track airport staff at Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada airports, with the same system to be put in place at Cairo International Airport.

The Falcon security company is currently providing security at the three airports at the gates where Russian tourists are expected to arrive and depart.

Several foreign airlines and countries have imposed travel bans on flights to Sharm El-Sheikh after a Russian passenger jet crashed in Sinai in October 2015, killing all 224 people on board, most of them holidaymakers.

Since the deadly incident, Egypt has been putting in place tighter security measures at all its airports.

Egypt's tourism industry has been hit hard since the crash, with the number of tourists visiting Egypt dropping by 50 percent in the first half of 2016 compared to the same period last year, according to Egypt's Tourism Authority.

Earlier this month, Russias President Vladimir Putin told Egypts President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi during a telephone call that Russian flights to Egypt would soon resume.

On Friday, an EgyptAir cargo flight flew to Moscow for the first time since the downing of the Russian jet.

Negotiations between the two countries to resume flights have been ongoing for months, with multiple visits by Russian security services to Egyptian airports to monitor changes implemented by Cairo.

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A recent survey on mortality rates discovered that death due to cold is increasing in industrialized countries. The main age groups affected are the older adults and the very young but more so in the older age group.

Across the globe, between 2014 and 2015, older people are dying for about 2 to 3 months earlier. It's a small shift in the previous pattern found in death rates but it's significant enough to warrant attention from medical scientists.

The main culprit, they found, is cold weather. Intriguingly, it's not the blizzard type of cold weather that is the responsible for such deaths. Instead, it's the regular type of winter weather.

To further examine this phenomenon, a global study was conducted to ascertain a clearer picture of how serious death due to cold weather has become, Watertown Daily Times reports.

Conducted and published in The Lancet, the study was an analysis of the deaths of 74 million older people that attributed extreme weather as the cause of death. The study looked at the high and low weathers across Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, Britain, and the U.S.

Interestingly, the study finds that when it comes to killing older people, ordinary and less extreme temperatures turned out to be more serious than heat waves and cold snaps. It is responsible for 20 times more mortality than in very hot or very cold weather.

Additionally, according to the Russian States Statistic Service, the top diseases caused by ordinary cold weather are cold, flu, and pneumonia. A 5.2 percent rise in deaths due to cold weather in 2015 was recorded compared to the previous year, Psychology Today says.

So why is ordinary cold weather dangerous? Experts say it is mainly due to the stealthy characteristic of this kind of weather. In heatwaves, for example, deaths occur suddenly and dramatically. In ordinary cold weather, respiratory-related symptoms such as cold, flu, and pneumonia develop slowly but ultimately prove to be fatal.In addition to respiratory diseases, cold weather also increases the likelihood of a heart attack.

In conclusion, older people should be wary during winter weather. They should wrap themselves up, keep warm, and try to increase their resistance. Prevention is the only weapon to fight death due to cold weather.


Can adult stem cell therapy work with the tiniest, most delicate, patients? Medical pioneers from University of Maryland Medical Center are currently researching if stem cell treatment would be effective to babies with congenital heart disease.

The clinical study aims to increases chances of survival of children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) using stem cells from bone marrows of adults. HSLS is a congenital condition where the left side of the heart is not fully developed during pregnancy, affecting the normal blood flow through the heart.

The current treatment methods include heart transplant and a series of open heart reconstructive surgical procedures. However, even with extensive surgeries, babies with HSLS do not have positive outcomes and suffer lifelong complications. Only 50 to 60 percent of HSLS patients treated with surgeries survive for up to five years.

According to University of Maryland Medical Center, 30 patients will be subjected to the HLHS open label trial. Fifteen patients will receive stem cell treatment which is composed of six-to-eight stem cell injections based on the heart size. The other half would be the control group and will not receive stem cells. The families will be given the knowledge if their babies will be receiving the stem cell treatment or not.

Previously researchers gained positive results on the use of stem cell treatments to adults with heart diseases. Sunjay Kaushal, lead researcher and director of pediatric cardiac surgery at University of Maryland Medical Center explained how the stem cell treatment might work.

"The premise of this clinical trial is to boost or regenerate the right ventricle, the only ventricle in these babies, to make it pump as strongly as a normal left ventricle," he said.

The researchers gained positive results on the first two patients which are both four-months-old. "We think the young heart is able to be more responsive," Kaushal told Associated Press. It will take several years to prove if the stem cell treatment would be effective on babies. Meanwhile, researchers are also studying the possibility of using stem cells in other congenital heart problems.
Bogoslof Island is currently under close monitoring by the Alaska Volcano Observatory after a series of explosive eruptions in the uninhabited island. Experts are keeping an eye on the volcano in the eastern Aleutian islands through seismic monitors and satellite imagery.

Bogoslof Island Eruptions

The first eruption of the volcano in Bogoslof Island was noticed through satellite imagery and the pilots who were flying near the area on Dec. 21. The 10-kilometer ash plume appeared during the initial eruption but the volcanic activity did not last for a long time. The second big explosion that produced a 10.6-kilometer ash plume happened the day after, Dec. 22.

Given the isolated location of the island in the Bering Sea, the volcanic activity is only monitored through satellite imagery. A Red warning was issued after the eruption of the volcano but this was later lowered to an Orange warning after the diminished activity. Scientists do not know whether the eruption is isolated cases or if this is just the beginning in a series of eruptions.

Changes In The Aleutian Islands

Right now, volcanologists are interested in the changes brought about by the eruption of the volcano. The last recorded eruption was back in 1992 as reported by Wired. However, it was the eruptions in 1796 and 1883 that led to the formation of a new dome.

Based on the observations of the AVO scientists Michelle Coombs, the eruption of the Bogoslof volcano already produced new land although it also destroyed part of the island. As reported by KUCB, the scientists also observed that there is a new vent which is located "offshore of the little island." Due to the lack of local seismic monitoring, it would be difficult to predict the volcano's behavior.

The volcano may be in an isolated location but it can affect air traffic especially air crafts from Asia to North America. Bogoslof Island eruption is still under close monitoring to ensure everyone's safety.
The 2017 Honda Pilot and 2017 Toyota Highlander are considered two of America's best-selling midsize SUVs. Due to this, consumers often find themselves in a dilemma regarding which SUV to purchase as both have a lot to offer in different aspects. In a clash between these two SUVs however, there can only be one victor. Which one will it be?

Power And Fuel Efficiency

The 2017 Honda Pilot is equipped with a 3.5-liter V6 engine that can put out 280 horsepower. This is paired with an option of six-speed and nine-speed automatic transmission that delivers the power through a standard front wheel drive (FWD) and optional all-wheel drive (AWD) drivetrain configurations. It has a fuel efficiency rate of 19/27 and 23 miles per gallon in the city, on the highway and combined respectively.

The 2017 Toyota Highlander on the other hand is also equipped with a 3.5-liter V6 engine with more powerful configuration that cranks out 295 horsepower. This is matched with an eight-speed automatic transmission and a similar drivetrain configuration as the 2017 Honda Pilot. In terms of fuel efficiency, the 2017 Toyota Highlander is capable of 20/27/22 miles per gallon in city driving, highway and combined respectively as reported.

The Safer SUV

In terms of safety, the 2017 Honda Pilot and 2017 Toyota Highlander have similar features such as lane keep assist, automatic emergency braking and adaptive cruise control. The 2017 Honda Pilot however, has bit more advantage over the 2017 Toyota Highlander. The former has an overall safety rating of 9.3 while the latter is behind with only 8.5. This is due to additional safety features in the 2017 Honda Pilot such as the LaneWatch system that basically eliminates blind spots for the driver. In addition, the 2017 Honda Pilot has earned a Top Safety Pick+ award in the annual event of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

Comfort And Infotainment

The 2017 Honda Pilot and 2017 Toyota Highlander both have spacious cabins for a comfortable ride. In terms of legroom, the 2017 Honda Pilot's third row seat offers more comfort than the 2017 Toyota Highlander. However, the third row seat of the former can be a little difficult to access and tips the scale over to the side of the 2017 Toyota Highlander. USB port, Bluetooth hands-free calling and audio streaming are standard connectivity features of both SUVs. The 2017 Honda Pilot has its own infotainment system that supports Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The 2017 Toyota Highlander has the Entune infotainment system that also allows smartphones to be connected to the SUV.

Price Battle

In a report, it was mentioned that the 2017 Honda Pilot and Toyota Highlander are available in several trims where features can be added according to the preference of buyers. The 2017 Toyota Highlander has a base price of $30,630 for the base and $44,800 in the top trims respectively. The 2017 Honda Pilot on the other hand starts at $30,595 and maxes out at $47,070 as reported.

Which Is better?

Given the facts above, the 2017 Honda Pilot and 2017 Toyota Highlander are evenly matched. Due to this, the clash between the two SUVs will boil down to which one the consumers like most. At the end of the day, they will be the ones making the purchase and the SUV that drives out of the showroom will be the victor.
In recent years, technology has seen a remarkable boom in research regarding developing innovative technological measures in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), in particular. The recent year marked one of the most advanced ones for this field, with the launch of the Voice AI.

Including these new AI devices, is the Amazon Alexa: that is a smart speaker that acknowledges the voice commands. Not just that, it also plays music and helps to control different routine activities in one's home. However, quite recently, it has faced major competition from Google Home.

Tech Times News Inc explains the features of both in detail. Google Home has a full backup plan to support the data and company's search engine. This particular feature of Google Home is giving vigorous competition to Amazon Echo and has made it a fierce competitor in the market.

However, apart from the competition, both of them offer some qualitative features as well that are innovative and advanced in both their capacities. Speakers of both of these are quite nice and offer superb features that one is compatible with the existing system he or she is using.

Home offers an additional feature that allows one to control the television as well. A pretty amusing thing both of this offer is that they can tell jokes and respond with funny and hilarious lines. Alexa has been existing in the market from a quite a time now as compared to Google, which is why it has a solidified brand image.

But according to Fox News, Google Home is the winner of the battle. They have made the statement by the features that it is offering. Alexa is offering more "fun" features, but Google gives one ability to control the TV and group speakers, which keeps it one step ahead!
With the closing of 2016, Nostradamus followers are opening his books once again to look at his prophecies for the upcoming year. Michel de Nostredame, aka Nostradamus, was a French Philosopher and well-known seer who published a collection of prophecies. He was credited with predicting numerous major world events like the 9/11 bombing and even Trump's presidential victory. Below are some of Nostradamus' 2017 predictions:

Fall Of USA, Rise Of China

The current economic superpower will face problems due to political corruption, ideological polarization, large-scale social system failures and more. This seems quite possible with Donald Trump's takeover in 2017. Meanwhile, the "sleeping tiger" of Asia will make bold moves on the global stage. In the past years, many economists have noted China might become the world's next superpower.

Union Of North And South Korea

The divided nation might reunite again. Among Nostradamus 2017 predictions is the merger between North Korea and South Korea following the downfall of North Korea dictator Kim Jong Un who will seek refugee to Russia.

Russia And Ukraine's Peace Agreement

Nostradamus believes Russia and Ukraine will sign a peace treaty in 2017, however, the terms of the agreement are unclear. The US is going to oppose the agreement, however, other powerful nations especially the members of the European Union will accept it.

Broad Use Solar Power

The use of solar power will be more commercialized and widespread as an alternative source of energy. With the battle to climate change and rising energy costs, more nations will utilize solar power more using. It was reported previously that there is a large-scale solar power project ongoing in the US.

Commercial Space Travel

There will be more commercial space travels. Well, this is not new with Elon Musk's SpaceX venture. However, other than orbital flights the projects for the next two years will focus on asteroids and mining missions. Your News Wire reports this might also open doors to space tourism.

Wars Due To Diminishing Resources

One of the most terrifying among Nostradamus 2017 predictions is the so-called "Hot Wars." On a report from Express, the French philosopher predicted one of the greatest threats in the future include terrorism and biological warfare due to lack of natural resources caused by global warming.
At least 30 civilians were killed and many others were wounded on Sunday after IS group launched an attack in the Syrian town of al-Bab to prevent people from fleeing, the Turkish military said in a statement on Monday.

Syrian rebels supported by Turkish troops have laid siege to the Islamic State-held town for weeks under the "Euphrates Shield" operation launched by Turkey nearly four months ago to sweep the Sunni hardliners and Kurdish fighters from its Syrian border.

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VISITBRITAIN made a Twitter faux pas when it published an advent calendar graphic featuring a map of Great Britain  without the Isle of Wight.



Indignant chief executive of Visit Isle of Wight David Thornton, posted on the social media site: "Spot the missing island... @VisitBritainBiz merry Christmas from our 24x19 mile bit of England, too! Any chance of updating your graphic?"



A social media representative for the national tourist board explained the map posted on Twitter was a 'simple graphical representation of Britain.



VisitBritain swiftly updated its graphic but not before some Twitter users noticed the gaffe.



User @darrangange tweeted: "Well said David, so often omitted for no good reason."



Twitter user @EmiliaPlum1981 added: "Must mean we can now claim independence."



After VisitBritain updated the graphic to include the Isle of Wight, Mr Thornton tweeted: "Fantastic! Thanks for putting us on the map!"



Mr Thornton said: "On Monday, I awoke to the news the Isle of Wight had sunk without a trace but thanks to the power of Twitter, VisitBritain had put it back in its rightful place by the end of the day.



"I always said social media could move mountains."
Syrian troops strengthened their hold over Aleppo on Friday after retaking full control of the city, as residents anxious to return to their homes moved through its ruined streets.

The army announced on Thursday it had recaptured the former rebel stronghold of east Aleppo following a landmark evacuation deal that saw thousands of opposition fighters and residents bussed out.

It was the biggest victory for President Bashar al-Assad's forces in nearly six years of civil war and a major win for his foreign backers, with key ally Russia hailing the "very important" step.

Braving the cold, war-weary residents crossed districts that had become dangerous front lines, eager to return to neighbourhoods they had not seen in years.

Civilians wrapped in coats trekked through the cold, some rolling their belongings on wheelbarrows.

"I came to check on my house, which I haven't seen in five years," resident Khaled al-Masri said. "I really hope my home wasn't badly damaged."

The evacuation operation ended more than four years of fierce fighting in Aleppo, which had been divided between government forces in the west and rebels in the east since 2012.

Opposition forces still control an area west of Aleppo and at least six civilians were killed Friday in the first rebel rocket fire on the city since it fell under government control, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Later Friday, air raids targeting rebel territory to the west of the city killed three fighters, the Britain-based monitor said.

And near the ancient city of Palmyra, the Islamic State group killed 27 Syrian soldiers and allied militiamen in a series of attacks, the Observatory said.

The evacuation agreement was brokered by rebel backer Turkey and regime supporter Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin called Assad Friday to congratulate him on the "liberation" of Aleppo, the Kremlin said.

"This success was possible thanks to mutual efforts of all who came together in the fight with international terrorism in Syria," it said.

Earlier, Putin hailed Aleppo's recapture, calling it a "very important part of the normalisation in Syria", saying the next step would be "conclusion of a ceasefire agreement on all of Syria's territory".

The Kremlin also announced Putin had signed an order to expand Russia's naval facility in the Syrian city of Tartus, while Russian military police had been dispatched to recaptured parts of Aleppo.

"We sent in a battalion of military police yesterday evening to maintain order in the liberated territories," Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said.

On Friday morning, government fighters moved into Ansari, Al-Mashhad, and other neighbourhoods they had not entered since mid-2012.

They searched for improvised explosive devices and mines, clearing buildings to prepare the way for civilians to return, the Observatory said.

As they finished sweeping through the main streets, soldiers moved into the smaller alleyways to check for bombs, an AFP correspondent in one district said.

In Bustan al-Qasr, a heavily damaged neighbourhood near Aleppo's famed Old City, bulldozers removed rubble from the streets.

As the army moved through Al-Mayssar district, Umm Abdo, 42, said she had found her former home but it had been destroyed.

"There's nothing left... but houses can be rebuilt," she said.

Syria's war transformed Aleppo from the country's industrial hub to a worldwide symbol of bloodshed and devastation.

The army on Thursday announced "the return of security to Aleppo after its release from terrorism and terrorists".

The regime victory came after state television said the last convoy of four buses carrying rebels and civilians had left east Aleppo and arrived in the government-controlled Ramussa district south of the city.

The evacuation deal, overseen by the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Syrian Red Crescent, put an end to a month-long offensive waged on Aleppo's east by pro-government forces.

The assault was backed by pro-government militia, including powerful Lebanese Shia movement Hezbollah.

In a televised speech on Friday, Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah said the army's win in Aleppo put an end to any hopes Assad's regime would collapse.

"After Aleppo, one can comfortably say that the goal of regime downfall has failed," Nasrallah said.

The ICRC said the evacuation operation had seen 35,000 people bussed out of Aleppo and another 1,200 evacuated from Fuaa and Kafraya, two Shia-majority towns in northwest Syria besieged by rebels.

Nearly six years in, the conflict has killed more than 310,000 people and displaced half of Syria's pre-war population.

The army's win in Aleppo has put the spotlight on the role of powerbrokers Russia, Iran and Turkey, which agreed this week to guarantee new peace talks and backed expanding a ceasefire.

Repeated attempts at peace have failed, but UN envoy Staffan de Mistura has said he hopes to convene fresh talks in Geneva in February.

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Turkey on Monday called on members of the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State to provide air support for Turkey-backed troops laying siege to the Syrian town of al-Bab, held by fighters from the group.

"The international coalition must carry out its duties regarding aerial support to the battle we are fighting in al-Bab. Not giving the necessary support is unacceptable," President Tayyip Erdogan's spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, told a news conference.

Rebels supported by Turkish troops have laid siege to the town for weeks in the "Euphrates Shield" operation launched by Turkey nearly four months ago to sweep the Sunni hardliners and Kurdish fighters from its Syrian border.

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In the last two years, Forsyth County tax assessors have been determining the value of homes throughout the county.

Overall, property values in the county should increase, said county tax assessor John Burgiss, although each property is assessed individually and each property can have a different outcome.

Property value is measured by comparable home sales in a four-year period before the revaluation. For 2017, assessors looked at the 20,000 qualified home sales from 2013 through 2016.

One of the major factors in assessing the value of a home is location.

Since real estate has a fixed location and a house cant be moved, each parcel is affected by its surrounds and other propertys uses, Burgiss said.

Other factors include land and house size, age and condition, school district, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and if it has a garage or basement.

Assessors also go out to each home in the 1,300 market areas and evaluate the outside and grounds of the home.

Appraising is very much an art, not a science, Burgiss said. They use their judgment to estimate property values based on an imperfect, emotionally influenced sales market.

The state requires reappraisals every eight years, but Forsyth conducts the process every four years.

The longer you go without reappraisals, the more out of kilter the market can be, Burgiss said. A whole lot can go on in eight years.

During the last reappraisal period in 2013, assessors measured comparable home sales from 2009 through 2012. Several residents, mostly in black neighborhoods in eastern Winston-Salem, lost large amounts of property value during that revaluation.

Only 7 percent of the countys tax parcels increased in value from 2009 to 2013. Although declines were widespread across the county, the sharpest declines were concentrated in the eastern and southern parts of Winston-Salem. Many neighborhoods saw declines of more than 25 percent.

There are about 158,000 tax parcels in Forsyth County.

During the 2013 reappraisal there were four years of economic turbulence, Burgiss said. While they are few, there are times when we dont do a good job (appraising property). Thats why we have the appeal process.

Residents have the opportunity to appeal new values if they feel the reappraised value is skewed. Informally, residents can fill out the form on the countys tax website or they can write a formal appeal to the equalization and review board, the oversight committee for the tax assessors office.

In a reappraisal year, the county has up to 7,000 informal appeals and up to 5,000 formal appeals, Burgiss said.

We have a pretty low appeal rate  maybe about 5 percent, Burgiss said. Some other counties have as high as 10 percent appeal rate. About 15 percent of people who appeal their value withdraw their appeal once we explain the process and how we got to that number.

Frances Sherard, who lives on 28th Street in eastern Winston-Salem, came to Thursdays public information meeting about the reappraisal process at Malloy Jordan Public Library.

Ive been in my house since 1979 and, for the most part, we just get our bill and pay it, she said. I didnt know what the process was. Sometimes I even wondered if they even looked at the house. It helps to know that they do and that theres a reason for it all.

Sherard said that, like most people, her property value went down during the last revaluation.

Ours went down maybe 10 or 15 percent, not nearly as much as some other people I heard about, she said.

The tax office should have results of the revaluation to property owners by February.
The thing that is in Room 101 is the worst thing in the world. ... The worst thing in the world varies from individual to individual.

 George Orwell, 1984

PHILADELPHIA  For Christos and Markela Sourovelis, for whom the worst thing was losing their home, Room 101 was Courtroom 478 in City Hall. This courtrooms name is Orwellian: There was neither judge nor jury in it. There the city government enriched itself  more than $64 million in a recent 11-year span  by disregarding due process requirements in order to seize and sell the property of people who have not been accused, never mind convicted, of a crime.

The Sourovelises son, who lived at home, was arrested for selling a small amount of drugs away from home. Soon there was a knock on their door by police who said, Were here to take your house and Youre going to be living on the street and We do this every day. The Sourovelises doors were locked with screws and their utilities were cut off. They had paid off the mortgage on their $350,000 home, making it a tempting target for policing for profit.

Nationwide, proceeds from sales of seized property (homes, cars, etc.) go to the seizers. And under a federal program, state and local law enforcement can partner with federal authorities in forfeiture and reap up to 80 percent of the proceeds. This is called  more Orwellian newspeak  equitable sharing.

No crime had been committed in the Sourovelises house, but the title of the case against them was the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. 12011 Ferndale St. Somehow, a crime had been committed (BEG ITAL)by(END ITAL) the house. In civil forfeiture, it suffices that property is (BEG ITAL)suspected(END ITAL) of having been involved in a crime. Once seized, the propertys owners bear the burden of proving their propertys innocence. Sentence first  verdict afterwards, says the queen in Alice in Wonderland.

In Courtroom 478, the prosecutors usually assured people seeking to reclaim their property that they would not need lawyers. The prosecutors practiced semi-extortion, suggesting how people could regain limited control of their property: They could sell it and give half the proceeds to the city. The hearings in Courtroom 478 were often protracted over months, and missing even one hearing could result in instant forfeiture.

The Sourovelises were allowed to return to their house only after waiving their rights to statutory or constitutional defenses in a future forfeiture action. Such action was forestalled when their case came to the attention of the Institute for Justice, public interest litigators who never received the You cant fight city hall memo. It disentangled the Sourovelises from the forfeiture machine, shut down Courtroom 478, and now is seeking a court ruling to tether this machine to constitutional standards.

There might somewhere be a second prominent American who endorses todays civil forfeiture practices, but one such person is very unhappy with criticisms of it. At a 2015 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on forfeiture abuses, one senator said taking and seizing and forfeiting, through a government judicial process, illegal gains from criminal enterprises is not wrong, and neither is law enforcement enriching itself from this. In the manner of the man for whom he soon will work, this senator asserted an unverifiable number: 95 percent of forfeitures involve people who have done nothing in their lives but sell dope. This senator said it should not be more difficult for government to take money from a drug dealer than it is for a businessperson to defend themselves in a lawsuit. In seizing property suspected of involvement in a crime, government should not have a burden of proof higher than in a normal civil case.

IJs Robert Everett Johnson notes that this senator missed a few salient points: In civil forfeiture there usually is no proper judicial process. There is no way of knowing how many forfeitures involve criminals because the government takes property without even charging anyone with a crime. The governments vast prosecutorial resources are one reason it properly bears the burden of proving criminal culpability beyond a reasonable doubt. A sued businessperson does not have assets taken until he or she has lost in a trial, whereas civil forfeiture takes property without a trial and the property owner must wage a protracted, complex and expensive fight to get it returned. The Senate Judiciary Committee might want to discuss all this when considering the nominee to be the next attorney general, Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions.
About 200 bags of diapers, hygiene essentials and other related products will be available free-of-charge to expecting moms, who register for the "Shower for Life" event being held on Nov. 5, from 1-3 p.m., at St. Paul's Anglican Church, located at 316 W. Carolina Ave in Summerville. Read more'Shower for Life' calls all expecting mothers
An appeals court on Monday lifted a ban on Azamn newspaper which was forced to close in August after it published an article alleging government corruption, the paper's lawyer said.

The court also reduced prison sentences handed down by a lower court to editor-in-chief Ibrahim al-Maamari and his deputy Yousef al-Haj.

They were arrested on July 28, two days after the paper published an article accusing public officials of corruption and interfering in judicial decisions.

The authorities shut down the paper indefinitely in a decision later confirmed by judicial authorities, and the journalists were tried and sentenced to three years in prison each.

They were accused of "undermining the prestige of the state and misusing the internet", according to the charge sheet.

But on Monday, the appeals court lifted the ban on Azamn and reduced the sentences to six months in jail for Maamari and one year for Haj, lawyer Yacoub al-Harithi said.

Maamari and Haj, who were released on bail in October, will appeal the latest sentencing, sources close to the pair said.

Ten international rights groups had urged Sultan Qaboos to revoke the closure order and end a crackdown by the Omani authorities on journalists and activists.

A joint statement by the 10, including Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists, said "the harsh sentences are a clear attempt to hinder the work of journalists and to curtail the rights of freedom of expression in Oman".

Oman is ranked 125th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2016 World Press Freedom Index.

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Human Rights Watch |  

Calls Unbelievers Valid Targets

(Erbil)  Fighters with the [so-called] Islamic State [Group} (also known as ISIL) have indiscriminately attacked civilian areas in eastern Mosul with mortar rounds and explosives, and deliberately shot at fleeing residents, Human Rights Watch said today. Iraqi and coalition forces have also killed and wounded civilians by striking or deploying from homes.

Fleeing residents who spoke with Human Rights Watch said that ISIL justified the attacks on civilians because many of them had refused the groups orders to join its retreat west to areas of Mosul that it still controlled, where they feared they would be used as human shields. Residents said ISIL members told them in person, by radio, and over mosque loudspeakers that those who stayed behind were unbelievers and therefore valid targets along with the Iraqi and coalition forces.

If ISIL really cared about the people trapped in its so-called caliphate it would let them flee to safety, said Lama Fakih, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. Instead, it is indiscriminately or deliberately killing and wounding people for refusing to be human shields.

In interviews in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq in December, 2016, Human Rights Watch spoke with more than 50 residents who had fled eastern Mosul. Thirty-one of them provided firsthand accounts of 18 mortar or sniper attacks, car bombings, or detonations of improvised explosive devices by ISIL that indiscriminately or directly killed or wounded civilians. Witnesses said that some ISIL mortar attacks took place in areas where Iraqi military forces had positioned soldiers inside homes or on residential rooftops in densely populated areas. Five witnesses described what they said were three separate Iraqi or coalition airstrikes that targeted ISIL fighters similarly positioned on residential rooftops or in alleys between homes, but that also killed civilians.

The incidents took place from the third week of November into the first week of December. The witnesses said that 19 civilians were killed and dozens wounded in the attacks by both sides that they described, but that these were a fraction of the total. The United Nations reported that 926 civilians were killed and 930 wounded in November in Iraq from violence including acts of terrorism and armed conflict. Of those, 332 were killed and 114 injured in Nineveh, the governorate that includes Mosul, Iraqs second-largest city.

In the days before the Iraqi ground forces entered neighborhoods in eastern Mosul, most of those interviewed said, ISIL fighters began rounding up civilians to retreat with them. But many refused.

They were coming door-to-door, saying, Do you want to leave with us or not? said Ammar, who fled the eastern Mosul neighborhood of Intisar after being wounded in an ISIL mortar strike on December 5. We said we would not go with them and they said, You are kuffar [unbelievers].  They said, Whatever happens to you guys, you deserve it.

Ammar said that on November 30, using binoculars, he stood on a rooftop and saw an ISIL gunman on another rooftop across a nearby, two-lane highway, firing on Iraqi forces while flanked by a woman on one side and a child on the other.

The witnesses described house-to-house combat between ISIL fighters and Iraqi forces, particularly the Golden Division, the most prominent of Iraqs Special Forces, in areas still inhabited by large numbers of civilians. They said they knew ISIL was responsible for multiple mortar rounds and sniper fire because those attacks came from the direction of ISIL-controlled areas where there were no Iraqi forces.

Asma, from al-Qadisiyah al-Thaniyah neighborhood, said that an ISIL mortar shell hit and wounded her three young children  Alaa, 12, Mohamed, 10, and Rasha, 5  at about 11:30 a.m. on December 1, as they played in the familys courtyard.

The mortar [shell] hit when I had gone to get water from the [local] tank because there was no running water, she said. When I came back out Alaa hugged me and I saw that half his face was blown off.

Several witnesses said that when either ISIL or Iraqi military forces took up positions inside homes or on residential rooftops they generally did not give residents a say in the matter. The United Nations Human Rights Office also made this point, saying residents had reported that ISIL on November 11 shot dead 12 civilians in the Bakr neighborhood for refusing to let them launch rockets from their rooftops. In some cases, the witnesses told Human Rights Watch, by the time Iraqi or coalition forces attacked the ISIL positions in homes, the ISIL fighters had already left.

A dozen residents told Human Rights Watch they had to leave their homes as a result and seek shelter in nearby buildings that in some cases were also hit by ISIL mortar rounds or car bombs, or Iraqi or coalition airstrikes.

Abu Ali, 32, said an Iraqi or coalition airstrike on his home in al-Murur neighborhood, apparently targeting ISIL fighters, at about 5 or 6 p.m. on December 1, killed his wifes grandmother and wounded him, his wife, and their 4-year-old son:

The house collapsed  the ceiling fell down on us. I saw the shrapnel hit my grandmother in the head. She died immediately. I called for my wife and ran to her. She was bleeding. Shrapnel had hit her back. Then I realized my son was bleeding. Shrapnel hit his right temple and his nose. By the grace of God most of us survived. Neighbors ran to us and we dragged everyone out. But it was too dangerous to go for help at night. My wife bled all night.

Abu Ali said the neighbors told him that the airstrike killed four ISIL fighters whom they had seen drive up next to his house, leave the car, and open fire on Iraqi military forces with a machine gun from behind a wall and the rooftop of an adjacent, empty home. The strike also hit the ISIL car, which was filled with explosives, compounding the damage, they said.

ISIL should cease deliberate attacks on civilians and indiscriminate attacks and stop forcing civilians to accompany ISIL fighters, Human Rights Watch said. Directly targeting civilians or using them as human shields is a war crime. The presence of ISIL fighters among civilians does not absolve anti-ISIL forces from the obligation to target only military objectives. All warring forces should take all feasible precautions to protect civilians from harm.

Under international humanitarian law, or the laws of war, civilians and civilian structures may not be harmed disproportionately to the expected military gain. Warring parties are also required to take all feasible measures to minimize civilian harm. Iraqi military forces should avoid positioning forces inside homes in densely populated areas, thus endangering civilians and civilian objects.

Civilians are being hit from all sides in Mosul, Fakih said. ISIL atrocities do not absolve Iraqi forces and the international coalition from doing their utmost to protect civilians when attacking ISIL.

The Mosul Operations

On October 17, 2016, the Iraqi central government and Kurdistan Regional Government authorities, with the support of the international coalition, began military operations to retake Mosul, which ISIL captured in June 2014.

At least 90,000 civilians have fled the fighting in Nineveh governorate. Hundreds of thousands of civilians remain trapped in ISIL-controlled areas, including western Mosul. The city has been without electricity, and has had limited stocks of fuel, food, running water , and medicine since November 19. Most of the witnesses spoke with Human Rights Watch from West Erbil Emergency Hospital, where they were undergoing operations for injuries caused by metal fragments such as severed limbs or bullet wounds. Others spoke from sprawling camps for the displaced. Many broke down in tears as they said they could not reach family members still trapped in Mosul. Some said they watched helplessly as wounded family members or friends bled to death, trapped by the fighting, and said they or their neighbors had to bury the dead in their yards. Human Rights Watch has changed the names of those interviewed to protect them and their relatives still in ISIL-held territory from reprisal. Indiscriminate, Disproportionate, or Deliberate Attacks

The witnesses provided detailed, firsthand accounts of 10 mortar attacks, two improvised explosive device blasts, three suicide car bombings, and three sniper attacks by ISIL in eastern Mosul that killed and wounded civilians. The witnesses to 15 of the attacks said there were military objects nearby but that in the cases of sniper fire they believed they were directly targeted. Fatima, 30, said three mortars struck the familys home in the Aden neighborhood on November 25, killing her mother, shattering her left foot, and wounding four other relatives include two of her young sons. The strikes also destroyed her familys house and car. We were just finishing our breakfast and removing our plates from the table when the shelling started, she said. My mother was killed. The rest of us were injured. So many of our neighbors were killed  the elderly, women, children. Those who crossed over to areas controlled by the Iraqi forces faced ISIL sniper fire, car bombs, or improvised explosive devices. Rana said an ISIL sniper shot her, a brother-in-law, and a niece in the legs, injuring all three, as they returned at about 3:30 p.m. on December 4 to their home in al-Zuhour neighborhood after seeking clothing and other aid from Iraqi forces in nearby al-Zahra. The bullets came from the ISIL side, they were definitely from ISIL, she said. We were carrying a white flag and we think it made us targets. We stayed there for two to three hours, bleeding, until the counterterrorism forces could come for us. We had to leave everything we had brought with us in the street. Several displaced residents described fleeing attacks by one side only to be wounded in another. Ahmad told Human Rights Watch that he moved his wife and five children from their home in al-Maidan, western Mosul, in August after ISIL began using nearby homes as bomb factories. He sought refuge in the eastern Mosul neighborhood of al-Murur. But as the battle for Mosul spread to al-Murur, we were locked in our rooms, there was no electricity, water, or food. If we went outside [ISIL] snipers shot at us, he said. After a mortar coming from ISIL-held areas struck the familys house on December 2, Ahmad packed up the family again, determined to reach the Golden Division. On their way, at about 9:30 the next morning, an improvised explosive device killed his 16-year-old son, Murad, and wounded Ahmad, his 14-year-old daughter Ayisha, and his 8-month-old son Yasin. ISIL must have planted the explosives because they lay in the path of advancing Iraqi forces, which have not been using improvised explosive devices, Human Rights Watch said. Ahmad said:
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Maan News Agency |  

BETHLEHEM (Maan)  Days after the UN Security Council approved a resolution affirming the illegality of Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory and called for their construction to cease, reports emerged that Israel is set to approve thousands of new settler units in occupied East Jerusalem.

The Local Planning and Building Committee of the Jerusalem municipality is expected to approve some 5,600 housing units in East Jerusalem for illegal settlements, the Hebrew version of daily newspaper Israel Hayom reported Sunday morning.

According to Israel Hayom, the move came as a direct response to the UNSC resolution 2334, that passed with unanimous approval from 14 council members, while the US abstained from voting.

The reports said that the committee will approve 2,600 housing units in the East Jerusalem settlement of Gilo, 2,600 others in Givat HaMatos, and 400 units in the Ramat Shlomo settlement.

In response to a request for comment on the reports, a spokesperson for the Jerusalem municipality only said: Building Jerusalem is essential for the development of the city for the benefit of all residents, Jews and Arabs alike. The city will continue, with all of the tools at its disposal, to develop our capital in accordance with the citys master plan and planning and construction laws.

Israel Hayom also quoted deputy mayor of Jerusalem Meir Turjuman as saying that he did not care about the United Nations or any other entity that tries to dictate to us what to do in Jerusalem.

The deputy mayor also reportedly said he was looking forward to the incoming Donald Trump administration to make up for the shortage in construction during Obamas eight-year tenure.

Despite the US government under Barack Obama, having routinely condemned Israels settlement expansions, US officials have yet to take any concrete actions to end settlement building and instead inadvertently encouraged the enterprise through consistent inaction over Israels violation of international law and continued support of the Israeli government through inflated military aid packages.

The number of settlers living in the occupied West Bank has increased from 281,100 in 2008 to 385,900 in 2015, excluding those residing in occupied East Jerusalem. The Applied Research Institute  Jerusalem (ARIJ) estimates that between 500,000 and 600,000 Israeli settlers currently reside in West Bank and East Jerusalem settlements.

Meanwhile, plans for some 3,000 settler units were advanced since the start 2016 as of August according to Israeli settlement watchdog Peace Now, including hundreds of existing units that were retroactively legalized after formerly being considered illegal under Israeli domestic law.

Israeli leadership has reacted with outrage and defiance since the UNSC approved the resolution, which states that settlements have no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law, and call on the nations of the world to distinguish, in their relevant dealings, between the territory of the State of Israel and the territories occupied since 1967.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel would not abide by the terms of the shameful anti-Israel resolution, and reportedly summoned the ambassadors of the UN Security Council member states to personally reprimand each of them on Christmas day.

Meanwhile, Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett on Sunday morning again called for the annexation of the illegal Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim as well as all of Area C in the West Bank  the more than 60 percent of the territory currently under full Israeli military and civil control.

Maale Adumim, located just seven kilometers east of Jerusalem, is the third largest settlement in population size, that many Israelis consider it an Israeli city that would remain under Israeli control in any final status agreement reached with Palestinians as part of a two-state solution.

Human rights groups and international leaders have strongly condemned Israels settlement construction in the occupied West Bank, claiming it is a strategic maneuver to prevent the establishment of a contiguous, independent Palestinian state by changing the facts on the ground, while members of Israels parliament have repeatedly come forward announcing their support for annexing Area C.

A recent report by human rights group BTselem argued that under the guise of a temporary military occupation, Israel has been using the land as its own: robbing land, exploiting the areas natural resources for its own benefit and establishing permanent settlements, estimating that Israel had dispossessed Palestinians from some 200,000 hectares (494,211 acres) of lands in the occupied Palestinian territory over the years.

BTselem highlighted the key role of Israeli settlers in further isolating Palestinians from their lands, either through the establishment of outposts officially unrecognized by the Israeli government, or through the regular use of violence or threats of violence against Palestinians.

BTselem argued that settlers acted as envoys of Israel in pushing land grabs in the occupied Palestinian territory, allowing the government to officially detach themselves from the settlers violent and illegal actions, while avoiding or blocking any legal penalties that could be imposed on the settlers, except in the most extreme of cases.

The state helps settlers operate as a mechanism for dispossession in Palestinian space  settlers serving as a means purportedly not under state control, and settlers also use serious violence against Palestinian residents, the group explained.

The movement of Israeli settlers taking over Palestinian land, and further displacing the local Palestinian population has been a stable Israeli policy since the takeover of the West Bank and Jerusalem in 1967, BTselem concluded, underscoring that all Israeli legislative, legal, planning, funding, and defense bodies have played an active role in the dispossession of Palestinians from their lands.

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By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) |  

PM Binyamin Netanyahu of Israel and his cabinet ministers are trying to punch above their weight. He wants to punish the UN, and apparently even the United States. Netanyahu has forbidden Israeli officials to travel to 12 of the countries on the UN Security Council who voted last Friday to condemn Israeli squatter settlements in the Palestinian West Bank (including in East Jerusalem, which Israel illegally has tried to annex).

Netanyahu also summoned the ambassadors of these countries in Tel Aviv on Christmas Day, producing some irritation, according to the Guardian; one diplomat observed, What would they have said in Jerusalem if we summoned the Israeli ambassador on Yom Kippur?

This sort of temper tantrum reminds us of Donald J. Trumps petulant twitter wars with his critics. It is for the benefit of the Israeli right wing, since none of the 12 countries really cares whether Likud Party officials visit them or not.

Netanyahu also seems to have threatened to withdraw from the United Nations. What is ironic is the effort the Israeli government has put in to combating the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israels Apartheid policies toward the stateless Palestinians. IF the BDS supporters could get 12 countries to refuse to see the Israeli ambassador and could get the UN to kick Israel out, they would be ecstatic. Netanyahu is self-BDS-ing, via his tantrum.

Israel is a small country of 8 million people, only 6 million of them Jews, and its annual gross domestic product, at around $300 billion, is similar to that of Denmark and Ireland (both less populous countries, so Israel is poorer than they per capita). Nobody much really cares in world affairs if Denmark gets in a snit about something, though to be fair the Danes havent really gotten in many snits in recent centuries.

I suppose center-right Danish PM Lars Lkke Rasmussen is capable of making noise about issues he cares about, but I havent ever even once seen him on American television.

One difference between Denmark and Israel is that the US Israel lobbies have extorted from the American people something on the order of $124 billion in aid for Israel, and President Barack Obama just authorized another $38 bn for Tel Aviv over the next ten years. Israel thus has an enormous military arsenal and a stockpile of several hundred nuclear warheads. The figures do not count all the indirect ways the US aids the Israeli economy. Although the Israel lobbies maintain that the US gets security help from Israel in the Middle East in return, actually Israel has sat out the Gulf War, the Iraq War, the Afghanistan War, the recent struggle against Daesh/ ISIL in Syria and Iraq, etc., etc. It is only fair to say that the US would not have wanted Israeli participation, because its reputation is so poisonous in the region that such participation would do more harm than good. But nevertheless, if Israel couldnt help in any of these crises, it isnt actually very useful. Worse, Israels often creepy policies against the stateless Palestinians cause security problems for the United States.

BBC Monitoring translated a broadcast of Chanel 2 TV in Hebrew, quoting the words of Minister of National Infrastructure, Energy, and Water Yuval Steinitz (Likud). Steinitz fulminated, Trump-like, This is not a resolution against the settlements.

It was literally a resolution against the settlements!

Steinitz is making up his own false news. He then continued, This is an anti-Israel resolution against Israel, the Jewish people, and the state of the Jews.

The resolution isnt anti-Israel, doesnt mention anything about Jews, and doesnt challenge the Jewish state. It just points out that Israelis are not at liberty to steal Palestinian land. The United Nations Charter forbids the acquisition of territory by military force, so Israels conquest of the Palestinian West Bank in 1967 is no warrant for it to colonize said territory or to expropriate and keep in a condition of statelessness the people who live there.

Steinitz then turned to the United States role, The United States tonight simply abandoned its only friend and ally in the Middle East. This is no way to treat a friend. I do not think that Russia would abandon a friend in the Middle East this way.

So Steinitz seems to be suggesting that Israel would be better off allying with Putin. If thats how he feels, could he please give us our pledged $38 bn back? In fact, if hed please just give us back all the money weve given the Israeli government on the false pretense that Israel makes America more secure in the Middle East, that would be a nice year-end bonus for American families.

Steinitz intimated that the US should not have allowed the resolution to pass because there are more urgent issues in the Middle East, which is burning around us. This argument is pure propaganda. That there is a civil war in Syria or an air war in Yemen does not have any impact on whether the Council should speak up about illegal Israeli actions against the Palestinians. The demand that Israels crimes be dealt with last after all other issues in the region is the definition of special pleading. Most of us learned in kindergarten that two wrongs do not make a right.

Steinitzs proof that the settlement issue did not drive the resolution (against settlements!) is that the resolution affects Israeli land theft in annexed East Jerusalem. News flash: It is illegal to annex occupied territory or to flood your own citizens into such territories. Steinitz is demanding that the UN Security Council recognize an illegal act.

Steinitz owns a house. If he went on vacation and came back to find that strangers had moved into his house and were alleging that they were the real owners, he could go to the police and the courts in Israel and they would uphold his property rights. Palestinians living in the Palestinian city of al-Khalil (Hebron), however, dont have the same deal. They see Israel bringing in tens of thousands of Israelis to live in their city, disadvantaging and stealing from Palestinian owners. When Palestinians complain, they are arrested and charged with terrorism.

He criticized President Obama: The heart aches that after eight years of friendship and cooperation with the Obama Administration  a friendship that did see some disagreements over the Iranian issue and other issues  this is the parting shot; a painful, unpleasant, unfair one.

So lets see. Barack Obama sent George Mitchell out to negotiate between Netanyahus cabinet and the Palestine Authority of Mahmoud Abbas. The Palestinians asked for a settlement freeze, otherwise it would be like negotiating over a pie while the other person was eating it. Netanyahu got a settlement freeze, but then abruptly cancelled it in the fall just when the talks were getting started. The Palestinians rightly felt disrespected and the talks began collapsing. Netanyahu began announcing settlement expansion to coincide with the visit of high American officials, just to humiliate them. Later on in another round of talks, Secretary of State John Kerry was publicly insulted as messianic for trying to pursue the negotiations. In the end they collapsed. In the meantime, Netanyahu publicly humiliated President Obama on several occasions, lecturing him at a joint appearance at the White House, openly campaigning for Romney in 2012, and then trying to get Congress to derail Obamas Iran negotiations. Netanyahu actually ran the last time on the issue of no Palestinian state, and has made it clear he wants to send hundreds of thousands more Israelis into the Palestinian West Bank, where they will steal Palestinian land.

Steinitz and his colleagues have been about the most unpleasant supposed allies the US could possibly suffer with. They successfully blunted Obamas attempt at kick starting the peace process. They want annexation, Apartheid, and colonization. They are open about it.

Obama simply let the world body have a say on whether these crimes against humanity are acceptable. They are not.



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Euronews: Israels Netanyahu summonds diplomats over UN Resolution
[JURIST] Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu [official website] on Sunday summoned the ambassadors of the fourteen UN Security Council [official website] members who supported a resolution condemning Israels settlement in Palestine to rebuke them for the vote. Following the passage of this resolution, Netanyahu also ordered [Guardian report] the countrys foreign ministers to reevaluate Israels ties to the UN within the month. In addition Israels defense minister announced [Al Jazeera report] Israel is cutting civilian coordinations with Pakistan, and that Netanyahu ordered the Israeli foreign ministers to re-evaluate Israels ties with the UN within a month. The resolution stated that the settlement had no legal validity and called for Israel to immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem. Netanyahu sharply criticized the resolution [Al Jazeera report], refusing to recognize it and calling it shameful. The US abstained [JURIST report] from voting on this resolution. Israel subsequently recalled its ambassadors to New Zealand and Senegal for voting in favor of the resolution.

Recent conflicts between Israel and Palestine [HRW backgrounder] over settlements in the occupied West Bank have raised concerns over possible human rights violations. Earlier this month, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Raad Al Hussein, expressed concern [JURIST report] over proposed legislation in Israel that would retroactively legalize the Israeli outposts constructed on privately-owned Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank. Last month the Israel High Court of Justice ruled that the controversial Amona settlement in the West Bank must be dismantled [JURIST report] by December 25. Earlier the same month Israels Ministerial Committee for Legislation unanimously approved [JURIST report] the Formalization Bill to legalize the West Bank outposts, which was intended in part to stop the evacuation of Amona outpost. In March the spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed concern [JURIST report] over the apparent extra-judicial execution of a Palestinian man in the West Bank. In January Human Rights Watch urged [JURIST report] businesses to cease operations in Israel settlements. In August 2015 UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged both sides of the conflict [JURIST report] to reconcile and move towards peace after an attack occurred in the West Bank village of Duma, where Jewish extremists allegedly set fire to a Palestinian home while a family slept inside. In April 2015 HRW alleged [HRW report] that Israeli settlement farmers in the occupied West Bank were using Palestinian child laborers in dangerous conditions in violation of international laws.
US President Barack Obama [official website] on Sunday approved legislation which would provide for a single chief executive to oversee non-military, international media. The law [text], which some claim may harm journalistic independence, will restructure [RFE/RL report] the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) [official website]. Specifically, the president will now appoint an advisory board which will be without decision-making powers, giving such decision-making powers to a president-elected CEO who will require Senate approval. Those in opposition to the legislation claim the law will impinge on editorial firewalls between the outlets and the government. Despite these concerns, current BBG CEO John Lansing [official profile] has stated no change to the firewall between the federal government and the journalists of our five networks. President Obama himself, in commenting on the matter, said the law would streamline[] BBG operations and reduce[] inefficiencies, while retaining the longstanding statutory firewall, protecting against interference with and maintaining the professional independence of the BBGs journalists and broadcasters.

The Obama administration has been taking several steps to preserve its legacy before the President-elect takes office in January. Earlier this week Obama announced a ban [JURIST report] on offshore drilling as a preemptive opposition to the Trump administration. Earlier this month the Obama administration challenged [JURIST report] a federal judges decision to block the implementation of a new overtime pay rule. President-elect Trumps views on immigration have been a source of contention for many city officials. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel [official website] delivered a letter [JURIST report] in early December to US President-elect Donald Trump signed by many US mayors warning of the potential economic losses Trump could cause if he repeals Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) [official website]. In November New York Governor Andrew Cuomo [official website] unveiled statewide initiatives to combat [JURIST report] hate crime and protect civil rights in response to the increase in hate crimes following the November 8 election.
Turkey on Monday called on members of the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State to provide air support for Turkish-backed troops besieging the Syrian town of al-Bab, held by the group.

"The international coalition must carry out its duties regarding aerial support to the battle we are fighting in al-Bab. Not giving the necessary support is unacceptable," President Tayyip Erdogan's spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, told a news conference.

The Turkish army said Islamic State had on Sunday killed at least 30 civilians and wounded many others to prevent people from fleeing the northern Syrian town.

Rebels supported by Turkish troops have laid siege to the al-Bab for weeks under the "Euphrates Shield" operation launched by Turkey nearly four months ago to sweep the Sunni hardliners and Kurdish fighters from its Syrian border.

Turkish warplanes have struck hundreds of Islamic State targets in recent weeks.

Kalin told reporters a total of 226 Islamic State militants had been "neutralised" in the latest operations around al-Bab.

Kurdish-dominated militias have also been trying to take al-Bab from the Islamist militants. Turkey is determined to prevent the Kurdish YPG militia from joining up cantons it controls in Syria along the Turkish border, fearing that would embolden Kurdish separatism at home.

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Egypt's antiquities ministry has announced a 20 percent discount on passes allowing access to archaeological sites around Egypt over the Coptic Christmas period and New Year, and through the month of January.

The discounts, which apply to the Luxor Pass and Annual Visitor Pass, are aimed at encouraging more foreign visitors to visit Egypt and celebrate the feast and New Year at archaeological sites, Minister of Antiquities Khaled El-Enany told Ahram Online.

The move is also intended to lure more Egyptian visitors to archaeological sites, thus helping to boost awareness of their distinguished cultural heritage.

Somaya Benyameen, head of the ministry's financial department, told Ahram Online that the Luxor Pass provides access to all archaeological sites and museums in Luxor for a period of five consecutive days.

Benyameen said there were two main categories of Luxor Pass, with varying prices for foreign visitors.

One category, including entry to the royal tombs of Queen Nefertari and King Seti I, costs $200 or 180 before the discount, with a student rate of $100 or 90. The second category, which excludes access to the two royal tombs, normally costs $100 or 90, with students paying $50 or 45.

The Annual Visitors Passes, meanwhile, include all open archaeological sites and museums across Egypt, with several options available.

The first is for foreign diplomats and foreigners who work in international and multinational companies in Egypt. With the tombs of Queen Nefertari and King Seti I, this costs before the discount $340 or 310. Without the two royal tombs, the price drops to $240 or 220.

The second option is for foreign residents in Egypt, normally costing $390 or 360 with the two tombs, and $290 pr 260 without them.

Annual passes are also provided for Egyptians and Arab residents in Egypt, costing just EGP 400, or EGP 100 for university students. School pupils and Egyptians over 60 of age are allowed free entry.

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KEARNEY - Larry Loughry is the kind of person every parent fears, a law enforcement official said.

Loughry, 58, of Kearney was sentenced Friday in Buffalo County District Court to 18 to 40 years in prison for first-degree sexual assault of a child and 1 years to five years each for five counts of possessing child pornography. Judge John Icenogle ordered the sentences to be served successively, which means he will be serving 26 to 65 years in prison.

With good time, Loughry could be eligible for parole in 13 years and could possibly be discharged in 32 years. Loughry must also register with the Nebraska State Patrol as a convicted sex offender for the next 10 years.

Buffalo County Attorney Shawn Eatherton said Loughry was the exact person the Legislature had in mind when it wrote the sexual assault on a child statute. The statute requires penetration.

"When you put a community in fear and you put parents in fear, you should pay a price. This is a parent's worse nightmare," he said of Loughry's crime. "A message needs to be sent that if you sexually assault a child, you pay the price."

Eatherton said the same message needs to be sent to those who seek gratification from child pornography.

"It's not acceptable in any way," he said.

Loughry's public defender, Vikki Stamm of Kearney, had asked Icenogle to place her client on probation because a psychological evaluation by John Meidlinger of Grand Island showed Loughry was a low risk to re-offend. She also asked that the sentences be served simultaneously.

"While the charges are traumatic, this is not the type of person he is or how he lives his life," Stamm said.

Loughry addressed the victim's family as well as his own.

"I'm just very sorry for everything that's happened to the family and the shame that I've brought to my own family," he said as the victim's mother wept.

In August, Loughry was baby-sitting a Kearney couple's children, an infant and a girl, when he sexually assaulted the girl. When police served a search warrant on Loughry's Kearney apartment, they found hundreds of CD-ROMs containing digital photographs and movies of children younger than 18 years old engaged in sexual activities.

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Historian Mohamed Afifi will sign his new book on Shubra at the Supreme Council for Culture tonight at 6:00pm

Historian Mohamed Afifi is to launch his latest book Shubra: A Small Alexandria In Cairo on Monday 26 December at the Supreme Council for Culture in Zamalek.

The book signing event will take place in the conference room at 6:00pm.

In his book, the professor of contemporary history at Cairo University draws a picture of Shubra, the Cairene neighborhood that was once a cosmopolitan haven for foreigners in Egypt and an example of tolerance in Egypt during the first half of the 20th century.

Afifi goes on to show how it lost that trait amid the bigger transformations in Egypt over the decades.

The book has been released by the Egyptian General Book Organization.

Programme:

Monday, 26 Dec, 6:00pm

Supreme Council for Culture

Opera Grounds, Zamalek

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Sometimes the announcement that a grant has been awarded signals the start of work. Thats not the case with new funding for the effort in Lincoln to get chronically homeless people off the streets and into housing. The organizations involved already had done an impressive amount of groundwork.

The announcement that Matt Talbot had been awarded a $200,000 federal grant was followed within days that another $1.9 million federal grant had been awarded to a group of agencies led by Region V Systems, a quasi-governmental agency involving 16 southeast Nebraska counties.

The announcements are a high point in an ongoing process. The Most Vulnerable Review Team, with representatives from a dozen organizations, has been meeting every week for more than a year.

They have a list of people  it numbered 38 last week  who met the definition of chronically homeless.

We know everyone, weve assessed everyone and we have a plan for everyone, John Turner of Region V told the Journal Stars Peter Salter.

The local organizations are using the Housing First approach  housing first, services later  that has proven successful in other locations.

Last year Utah declared that it had reduced chronic homelessness by 91 percent. The effort was championed by Lloyd Pendleton, who told National Public Radio that he was someone who used to say, You lazy bums, get a job, pull yourself up by the bootstraps.

Proponents contend that putting a permanent roof over the heads of the chronically homeless actually saves money. The Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates that the annual cost to government for a homeless person is $30,000 to $50,000 for things like jail and emergency medical services. Its cheaper to put them in housing.

People arent going to get better if theyre living on the streets, said Topher Hansen of CenterPointe in Lincoln.

Now that the organizations have vouchers to put people in apartments, one of the next hurdles in the effort is to work with landlords. Region V is hoping to meet concerns by offering to pay for damages.

And some landlords are willing to try. No one imagines that ending chronic homelessness in Lincoln will be easy, but the effort in Lincoln appears to be on the verge of making substantial progress.
Bill Clinton was an elector from New York this year. After voting for his wife, Hillary, on Dec. 19, he explained her defeat: We had the Russians and the FBI, and she couldnt prevail against that.

The former president was frustrated and disappointed, and he wasnt alone. When you win the popular vote by 2.8 million, when a switch of 80,000 votes in three states would have swung the Electoral College your way, when you were absolutely convinced that victory was assured  no wonder theres so much frustration. No wonder the Democrats are playing the blame game.

They are trying to pin their defeat on a variety of outside factors: not only the Russkies and the Feds, but misguided reporters and misleading data, fake news and faithless voters. And in such a close election, all those variables certainly affected the outcome.

But heres the blunt truth that Bill Clinton and many other Democrats wont face: The main reason they lost is that they had a poor candidate who ran a poor campaign. The adage is true, that the buck stops at the presidents desk. That applies to campaigns, as well: The buck stops with the candidate. And her husband.

Hillary is right in claiming there is a vast right-wing conspiracy ready to take down the Clintons. But repeatedly, over many years, the Clintons have handed their enemies ammunition to use against them.

Yes, the Russians hacked the computers of Clinton advisers, and yes, FBI Director James Comey seriously violated Justice Department norms by resurfacing questions about Clintons email practices so close to Election Day.

But in politics, stories resonate when they play into a pre-existing narrative, and the Clintons have acquired their reputation for deceptive behavior the old-fashioned way. Theyve earned it.

Bill Clinton was first dubbed Slick Willie in 1980, when he was running for re-election as governor of Arkansas. Paul Greenberg, the local columnist who coined the nickname, once told the Washington Post, It doesnt mean liar. It means dissembler. This is a particular subspecies of lying. Its a very lawyerly, sophisticated, elastic lie.

No one made Hillary set up a private email server when she became secretary of state, and then defend her decision with a series of lawyerly, sophisticated and elastic explanations. No one made the Clintons set up a foundation that was vulnerable to charges of influence peddling.

Exit polls reflect this long history of elastic explanations: 55 percent of voters viewed Hillary Clinton unfavorably; 61 percent said she was not honest.

In hindsight, there were many warning signs that her campaign was in trouble. Long before the FBI or the Russians intruded.

Yet the Clinton campaign remained terminally complacent. They ignored all these signs because their data told them they were going to win. Trump did show up in Wisconsin and Michigan during the last week, and Clinton did not  the final mistake in a long series of missteps. The Russians and the FBI have a lot to answer for, but if the Clintons are placing blame for their defeat, they should start with themselves.
A group of strangers with nowhere to go during the holidays gathered at a farmhouse in Blockhouse, N.S., hosted by Patty McGill for Christmas Day dinner, Sunday, December 25, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adina Bresge
In this Sept. 12, 1951 photo provided by the U.S. Navy, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida, left, shakes hands with Adm. Arthur Radford, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, at Radford's headquarters overlooking Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. Yoshida made the stop in Hawaii as he was traveling back to Japan from the San Francisco conference that restored Japan's sovereignty. Yoshida is best remembered for signing the San Francisco peace treaty with the U.S. and others in 1951, allowing Japan back into international society after its war defeat. His Pearl Harbor visit, which he made on his way home from San Francisco, was largely eclipsed by the historic treaty. (U.S. Navy via AP)
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Have you heard of Dr. Kildare? When I was a kid, he was the most popular doctor in the world. He was smart, courageous, and handsome, and every week he did something amazing at Blair General Hospital.

Thanks to my mother, I grew up hearing stories about a real-life Dr. Kildare. Well call him Dr. B, and he was a legend in my home state of North Carolina.

My mother was a nurse anesthetist in the Raleigh hospitals where the Duke medical students, interns, and surgery residents trained. She said everybody viewed B as the most talented student ever to attend Duke Medical School, and on top of that, the nicest person you ever met.

This was the 1940s, a time when many of the medical school faculty left to serve in the war effort. B was such an outstanding prodigy that he was recruited to help fill this gap, functioning essentially as a faculty at the same time that he was a student. When he became a surgery intern and then a resident, hospital administrators made him their go to guy for every job that needed to be done.

My Mom said that Dr. B was a paragon of virtue and the over-achievers over-achiever. People wondered, How does he manage to do so many things, and to do them so well?

What they didnt realize is that while he was a superhero on the outside, he was suffering on the inside. He was too nice a person to say no, and the medical school and the hospitals literally worked him to death.

Early one morning the perioperative team entered the OR to discover a bizarre sight. The room had been trashed and somehow the large, steel OR table had been cut in half! Thats right. Cut into two pieces. Right down the middle.

The hospital where this happened was Dorothea Dix, one of the largest psychiatric institutions in the United States. The first thought was that a group of inmates (the term for patients in those days) had gotten a hacksaw and taken turns sawing all night long. Even with a group of men, this would be an incredible feat of passion and strength.

It turned out that all this was the work of one man, and it was not a patient. It was a surgery resident and superstar physician: Dr. B.

They hospitalized him at Butner, North Carolinas other large psychiatric hospital. A few days later he was found dead in his room. He had hanged himself.

My mother, and all those who worked with him, considered Dr. B the best there ever was. He could do any job assigned to him, and do it better than anyone else. The one thing he could not do, however, was just say no.

Dr. Bs death had a profound impact on my mother. By nature, she was a hard worker. But after Dr. Bs death, she worked on her own terms.

On at least a dozen occasions my mother told me the tragic story of Dr. B, and with it the lesson she learned:

If you do things well, you will always be asked to do more, until you reach the point where you no longer do things well. Youve got to know when to say no.

This may sound easy, but it isnt. Most doctors (and nurses, too) have the altruism gene. They get more satisfaction from helping others than from helping themselves. They get more satisfaction from having healthy patients than from being healthy themselves.

Doctors also have the over-achiever gene. Ask them to perform at a certain level, and theyll go two notches higher.

Meanwhile, health care organizations eat their young for breakfast. They take the best and the brightest  like Dr. B and they work them to death. Theyve got a fleet of Maseratis, but they treat them like clunkers. Theyre only thinking about making this months targets, so they dont take time to change the oil, check the tires, or lube the moving parts. They simply drive them into the ground.

The only thing most health executives know to do is to ask their doctors and nurses to do more. Have you ever heard of productivity quotas being lowered? Have you ever heard of new normals being lower than the old normals?

Its that shortsighted vision that killed Dr. B, and its why physicians today have the highest suicide rate of any profession. Doctors are too nice or too over-achieving to just say no. So instead they just off themselves. They just say no to their own futures.

Those who end their own lives are the tip of the iceberg. Underneath the surface is a much larger group that is contemplating a different type of suicide: career suicide. One-fourth of U.S. physicians say they are seriously considering quitting the profession they once loved. Not because they are old enough to retire, but because they are burned out, and they dont enjoy being doctors anymore. Ask them why, and theyll say that medicine has lost its soul.

Being a doctor used to be about patient care and quality of care. Now its about quantity of care. And paperwork: documentation, data entry, and meaningless CYA tests. Todays physicians spend more time typing into their laptops than talking with their patients.

Doctors are smart, so they make great data entry specialists. But this isnt why they gave up four years of their life for medical school and another 3 to 4 for internship and residency training. They want to care for sick and suffering humanity. They dont want to waste their time checking boxes on computer screens or practicing assembly-line medicine. Patients dont want this either.

As my mother never ceased to remind me, it was insanity that killed Dr. B back in 1950. Not his insanity, and not the insanity of the psychiatric patients, but the insanity of the hospital administrators and the health care system. They took the best young doctor they had and worked him to death. They killed the goose that was laying golden eggs! Who in their right mind would do such a thing?

If my mom were around today, shed say were doing it again. Except this time its on a much more massive scale. Weve got a physician suicide epidemic, a physician burnout epidemic, and physicians quitting the profession at unprecedented rates. Something dysfunctional is happening, and its time we took notice.

I have a modest proposal. I call it Take An Administrator To Work Day. One day per month, hospital and clinic administrators should turn off their iPhones and spend a day following a doctor or nurse. Theyll see how hard these clinicians work, which factors make their work effective and satisfying, and what values drive their motivation. Theyll see the difference between quality care and assembly-line medicine. Theyll realize that its not about numbers and dollars, but about patient care and public health.

Administrators who do this will earn the respect of their medical and nursing staff. Theyll learn how to do their jobs more effectively. And soon theyll find themselves pulling in the same direction as the clinicians they serve. Once they have observed and listened to their clinical colleagues, theyll even be able to share their own challenges and frustrations, values and priorities as executives and administrators.

Once these walls come down, health professionals and health administrators can begin a truly collaborative effort to build health care organizations that provide excellent care for their patients and satisfying work environments for doctors and nurses  without ignoring the bottom line.

Warren Holleman runs a wellness program for physicians and is on the editorial staff, Pulse  voices from the heart of medicine. He blogs at Work Well. Be Well.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
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It used to be that hospitals billed Medicare for the services they provided, and Medicare  I know this is crazy!  simply paid the bills.

Those days are rapidly receding into history. Soon, a significant chunk of hospital revenue will be at risk, under a series of Medicare pay-for-performance programs. The idea behind P4P (as the cool kids call it) is simple. Third-party payers, like insurance companies or the Medicare program, will monitor the quality of care offered by health care providers like hospitals. High-quality providers will receive more money than low-quality ones, thereby giving providers an incentive to improve the quality of care they provide.

Medicare has created several P4P programs which, unless they are halted by the Trump administration, are slowly coming into effect. By 2017, as I will show in a bit, these programs could put a sixth of Medicare payment at risk.

What are these programs?

One is the Hospital Value-Based Purchasing Program, or (and you have to give Medicare folks kudos for their marketing prowess) VBP. Under VBP, Medicare monitors a bunch of quality measures, like the rate of hospital-acquired infections, the number of patients falling while in the hospital and even the risk-adjusted mortality of hospitalized patients. Medicare scores each hospital based on how well it performs compared to other hospitals, and compared to its previous performance. This score determines part of a reward or punishment at the end of the year. By 2017, 2 percent of Medicare hospital payments will be redistributed according to VBP results, with money transferred from low- to high-performing hospitals.

Medicare has created another acronymically-challenged program, HRRP, which stands for Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program. The program measures how often patients with diagnoses like heart attacks, congestive heart failure, and pneumonia are readmitted to hospitals after an initial stay. The program will financially penalize hospitals that have excessive readmission rates.

Finally, under its HAC program (not named after the sound made by someone with bronchitis), Medicare is tracking how well hospitals reduce the rate of hospital-acquired conditions, like catheter-related bacterial infections. Some of these measures overlap with the VBP measures, amounting to a double counting. Thats a problem Ill talk about in a minute.

These programs are beginning to have a real impact on hospital finances. Heres an illustration from Charles Kahn and colleagues from the Federation of American Hospitals:

Some people might think these programs should be abandoned, for being too flawed for prime time. For example, the programs hit a small percent of hospitals pretty hard. According to Kahn, 10 percent of hospitals accounted for nearly half of the HRRP penalties. Moreover, the penalties have so far landed hard on teaching hospitals. Teaching hospitals are generally recognized for offering high-quality care, so there disproportionate penalties raise questions about the accuracy of Medicares measures. The penalties have also landed hard on hospitals caring for low-income populations. Its not at all clear how much of the low-quality scores these hospitals have accumulated represent poor care versus poor statistical adjustment for the underlying health and social milieu of the patients admitted to these hospitals.

But it is too soon to abandon Medicares pay-for-performance programs. As Kahn points out: hospital performance on the various programs metrics is improving. In other words, P4P seems to be doing what it expectedits motivating hospitals to improve the quality of care they provide. Rather than abandon these programs, we should improve them. Medicare needs to revise these programs, to reduce unnecessary overlap between them, to simplify hospital reporting requirements and, most importantly, to better account for the underlying characteristics of hospital populations. I dont expect or even want Medicare to go back to the old days, when it paid hospital bills without any effort to assess the quality of hospital services.

Pay-for-performance is here to stay. Hospitals better pay attention.

Peter Ubel is a physician and behavioral scientist who blogs at his self-titled site, Peter Ubel and can be reached on Twitter @PeterUbel. He is the author of Critical Decisions: How You and Your Doctor Can Make the Right Medical Choices Together. This article originally appeared in Forbes.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
Are surgical residents really doing the cases they scrub on?

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According to the Residency Review Committee for Surgery, A resident may be considered the surgeon only when he or she can document a significant role in the following aspects of management: determination or confirmation of the diagnosis, provision of preoperative care, selection, and accomplishment of the appropriate operative procedure, and direction of the postoperative care.

In nearly all instances, resident determination or confirmation of the diagnosis, provision of preoperative care, selection of the operative procedure, and direction of the postoperative care happen only in emergencies. For the majority of elective patients and same day operations, the residents do not play significant roles in most components of perioperative management.

What about accomplishment of the appropriate operative procedure? Are the residents really doing the cases they scrub on?

A recent paper from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, called Who did the case? Perceptions on resident operative participation, looked at this question in a surprisingly candid way. The authors asked residents and faculty to independently assess what percentage of the operation the resident performed.

For the 87 cases for which responses from both resident and attending surgeon were available, agreement on percent of the case performed by resident (< 25 percent, 25 to 50 percent, 50 to 75 percent, > 75 percent) occurred in 61 percent, agreement of the role the resident played (first assistant, surgeon junior year, surgeon chief resident, teaching assistant) occurred 63 percent of the time, and agreement on both percent and role occurred only 47 percent of the time.

This reminds me of a story from when I was a resident. In the surgeons locker room one day, someone asked a senior attending if the resident who scrubbed with him had done the case. The attending replied, He thinks he did.

Thats what the authors from Texas found too. In about two-thirds of the cases with disagreement about the percent of a case the residents did, the residents felt they performed larger portions of the case than did the faculty.

What constitutes a significant role is open to interpretation.

A resident once came to me and said, Im not really sure I should claim I was the surgeon for a case I scrubbed on today. Should I log myself as surgeon anyway?

I said, If you have to ask, you probably shouldnt claim it.

Surgical residents are supposed to enter the cases they do in an online database, and the RRC uses these data in its accreditation process. The American Board of Surgery mandates that residents perform specific numbers of various types of cases in order to be eligible to take their boards.

A 2016 study in the Journal of Surgical Education surveyed 82 residents from various surgical specialties at UC Irvine and found only about half of the responding residents were told how to assess what their role was, and they were often delinquent [for more than one year at times] in logging their procedures leading to inaccuracies in the logs.

The authors concluded that the way cases were being logged raised concerns about the use of the system for assessing surgical preparedness or crediting training programs.

The two papers cited above are small studies from single institutions, but in my opinion, probably reflect the reality in most residency training programs.

Submitted case log numbers may be misleading. This may be a previously unidentified factor in the crisis in confidence afflicting some graduating chief surgical residents.

Would competency-based training be better? The buzz about competency-based training has died down, and there are skeptics including the authors of this thoughtful editorial from the Journal of Graduate Medical Education.

Starting in the 2017-2018 academic year, the American Board of Surgery will require a minimum of 850 operative procedures for the five-year training period and 200 operations in the chief resident yearincreases from 750 and 150, respectively.

Will competency-based training or increasing the number of operations required help?

Not if the residents arent really doing the cases.

Skeptical Scalpel is a surgeon who blogs at his self-titled site, Skeptical Scalpel.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
HANOI, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Here's a snapshot of Vietnamese dong exchange rates in the official market and indicative SJC gold prices in Hanoi at 0119 GMT.

Dec 26 Dec 23 USD/VND mid-point 22,153 22,155

USD/VND interbank 22,755/22,764 22,755/22,764 SJC gold (mln dong/tael) 35.75/36.47 35.59/36.31

NOTES: As of Jan. 4, 2016 the State Bank of Vietnam has begun setting the mid-point rate on daily basis, allowing dollar/dong transactions to move in a band of +/- 3 percent around the mid point. The dong's exchange rate against other currencies is not restricted by a band. Interbank quotes are indicative bid/ask prices.

One tael is equivalent to 37.5 grams or 1.21 troy ounces. SJC gold prices are quoted by state-owned Saigon Jewelry Co, the gold manufacturer.

Interbank offered rates are indicative, quoted from market sources.

For Vietnam market overview click on: Vietnam's bonds market auctions: Bonds auction results: (Compiled by Hanoi Newsroom)
HANOI, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Here's a snapshot of Vietnamese dong exchange rates in the official and unofficial markets, indicative SJC gold prices in Hanoi and interbank offered rates at 0408 GMT.

Dec 26 Dec 23 USD/VND mid-point 22,153 22,155 USD/VND interbank 22,764/22,768 22,755/22,764 USD/VND unofficial 23,180/23,220 23,150/23,230 SJC gold (mln dong/tael) 35.67/36.39 35.59/36.31

Interbank offered rates Overnight 3.5-4.3 3.0-4.6

1 week 4.2-4.5 3.5-4.7

1 month 4.9-5.4 4.7-5.3

3 months 5.2-5.5 5.0-5.3

NOTES: As of Jan. 4, 2016 the State Bank of Vietnam has begun setting the mid-point rate on daily basis, allowing dollar/dong transactions to move in a band of +/- 3 percent around the mid point. The dong's exchange rate against other currencies is not restricted by a band. Interbank offered rates are the latest indicative bid/ask prices, quoted from market sources.

One tael is equivalent to 37.5 grams or 1.21 troy ounces. SJC gold prices are quoted by state-owned Saigon Jewelry Co.

For more interbank rate fixings released at 0400 GMT, click on .

For Vietnam market overview click on: Vietnam's bonds market auctions: Bonds auction results: (Compiled by Hanoi Newsroom)
BANGKOK, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Thailand plans to sell 142 billion baht ($3.95 billion) of government bonds in the January-March quarter for debt restructuring, the Finance Ministry said on Monday.

The bonds will have maturities of between six and 50 years, the ministry said in a statement.

That compares with 149 billion baht of government bond sales planned for the October-December quarter. For the bond schedule: ($1 = 35.97 baht)

(Reporting by Satawasin Staporncharnchai; Writing by Orathai Sriring; Editing by Richard Borsuk)
ISTANBUL, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Here are news, reports and events that may affect Turkish financial markets on Monday.

The lira was untraded early on Monday, with the latest bid at 3.5080 at 0454 GMT. It closed at 3.5205 on Friday.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year bond was at 11.13 percent in spot trade on Friday.

The main share index closed 0.56 percent lower at 76,972.15 points on Friday.

GLOBAL MARKETS

Key stock indexes around the world were little changed on Friday, as were the U.S. dollar and U.S. Treasury yields, in low volume trading ahead of the Christmas holiday weekend. SOCIAL MEDIA PROBE

Turkish authorities are investigating some 10,000 people on suspicion of using social media to support terrorism, the interior ministry said on Saturday, part of a wide crackdown that has alarmed rights groups and some Western allies. SYRIA INCURSION

Syrian rebels backed by Turkish warplanes killed 68 Islamic State militants in northern Syria overnight, the Turkish military said on Saturday, as intense fighting around the town of al-Bab continued. CURRENCY

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that citizens have so far sold $2 billion following his call to convert foreign exchange into liras to help limit the currency's weakness. CAPACITY UTILISATION

Capacity utilisation data for December

MANUFACTURING CONFIDENCE

Manufacturing confidence data for December

For other related news, double click on:

Turkish politics Turkish equities Turkish money Turkish debt Turkish hot stocks Forex news 7

All emerging market news All Turkish news For real-time quotes, double click on:

Istanbul National-100 stock index , interbank lira trading , lira bond trading (Reporting by David Dolan)
(New throughout, adds Kuczynski's comments on gold in reservoir)

LIMA, Dec 26 (Reuters) - President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski proposed dredging a reservoir in a dry northern region of Peru to extract what he described as "much more gold" than what the country's biggest gold mine holds, according to an interview with a local newspaper.

Kuczynski said Poechos, Peru's biggest reservoir and a key source of water for drinking and farming in the northern Piura region, could hold one gram of gold per cubic meter in 580 million cubic meters of sediment.

"It has to be dredged," Kucyznski said in a videotaped interview with financial daily Gestion.

"It has more gold than Yanacocha, much more," he added in reference to the deposit that Newmont Mining Corp and Buenaventura have tapped for more than two decades.

Sediment from the nearby River Chira that feeds Poechos has reduced the reservoir's capacity for storing water, prompting farmers to demand its ridge be raised.

Kuczynski said the sediment could be removed from Poechos for 5-6 years to extract its gold before letting it accumulate again for 20 years, a repeatable process that he said would make it "the only mine in the world that's renewable."

Kuczynski, a former investment banker who once managed a mine in West Africa for Alcoa Corp , said the same model could be used in another reservoir in Peru, Olmos, which Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP recently bought from Brazilian builder Odebrecht. Kuczynski's office confirmed the accuracy of his comments.

The governor of Piura, Reynaldo Hilbck, said his administration has been evaluating building smaller reservoirs upriver to boost regional water supplies and that a proposal for mining Poechos would have to be studied carefully.

"Poechos provides drinking water for five provinces in Piura and irrigates 110,000 hectares of farmland," Hilbck said. "It's the backbone of the economy."

Peru produced about 127 million grams of gold in the first 10 months of 2017, up 4 percent from the same period last year, thanks to surging output from wildcat miners in a rainforest region that offset dwindling production from Yanacocha.

Yanacocha produced some 17.2 million grams of gold in that period, according to data from the energy and mines ministry.

The basis for Kuczynski's estimate of gold reserves in Poechos was unclear.

Carlos Galvez, financial manager of Buenaventura and the head of the country's mining association, said he was unaware of any systemic drilling and sampling in Poechos and called Kuczynski's proposal "aggressive."

(Reporting by Mitra Taj, Additional Reporting by Marco Aquino; Editing by Leslie Adler and Dan Grebler)
Phil Quin writes:

In the unlikely event I get a say over Laila Harres likely bid for Labours nomination in New Lynn, I would enthusiastically vote for her opponent. Among the many questions todays Labour has to ask itself, Laila Harre is the answer to precisely none of them.

Not a fan obviously, but 

But I do not dispute Harres right to rejoin the Labour Party; nor do I think she should be prevented from standing because of her nominal ineligibility (party rules require at least one years continuous membership). Technicalities aside, Harre is well within her rights to present her credentials to New Lynn party members, and ask them to determine whether her re-entry to Parliament is in Labours, or the nations, best interests. Its no secret that my answer to that question is a resounding, lectern-thumping no. But I also concede there are many others within the Labour movement who support Harre for various reasons. If they prevail, and nominate Harre for New Lynn, so be it. Thems the rules. As an advocate for a broad church Labour Party, it would be churlish and hypocritical for me to issue some kind of fatwa against Harre or any other potential nominee whose politics offend me.

So Quin is saying that the whole idea of a broad church is you have people within your party that you dont agree with on issues.

Harre hates free-trade and opposed the TPPA. She regards the recently deceased Fidel Castro as a hero worthy of formal parliamentary recognition.

Would be more at home in the Greens but left them after she didnt get a good enough list promise. To date her parties have been Labour, New Labour, Alliance, Greens, Internet and now Labour again.

Labour needs to be broad enough to encompass the views of Lila Harre and people like me if it is to form a viable alternative government. And yet the partys culture and rules explicitly prohibit that kind of ideological pluralism. Its organs of power  the NZ Council and the list moderating committee, most critically  are elected on a first past the post basis, meaning that the dominant clique is able to shut out any and all dissenting voices. That New Zealand Labour has no factions is an enduring but preposterous myth. The truth is, it is a monofactional party, controlled by a handful of elites and apparatchiks determined to shape Labour in their own image. Anyone who refuses to play along is deemed, often by Little himself, as a right-wing troublemaker. But if the party provides no room for dissent, what other path do we have available to us but to express our frustrations in the public arena? By contrast, the Australian Labour Party, of which I was a member and activist for 12 years, actively encourages a diversity of views via an overtly factional system built on proportional representation. In an ALP context, both Laila Harre and David Shearer would enjoy institutional backing commensurate with their respective support among members. If, for arguments sake, Shearer and his allies were able to command 20 percent support, they could expect this to be reflected on the NZ Council and in the list selection process. This could allow them to operate freely, expressing their sincerely held views on public policy matters without fear of being ostracized or expelled by a single dominant clique who regard the mere presence of moderates like Shearer in caucus as anathema. Its the difference between power-sharing and power hogging. To my mind, it is Labours embrace of the latter, more than any other single factor, that has led to its diminution as a political force in New Zealand.

So maybe the answer in NZ is to have formal factions within Labour, to ensure the minority get representation?

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Shenandoah, IA (51601)

Today

Scattered thunderstorms early, then mainly cloudy overnight with thunderstorms likely. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. Low 42F. SSW winds shifting to NNW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms early, then mainly cloudy overnight with thunderstorms likely. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. Low 42F. SSW winds shifting to NNW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction's Engineering, Procurement and Construction division chief Kim Heon-tak, left, shakes hadnds with Uttar Pradesh State Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav during the contract signing at the Jawaharpur site in Uttar Pradesh, India, Friday. / Courtesy of Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction



By Jhoo Dong-chan

Doosan Heavy has clinched a 2.8 trillion won ($2.3 billion) deal to build coal-fired power plants in India.

According to the company, Monday, Doosan Power Systems India (DPSI), Korea's top core facility builder's local unit in India, received a Notice of Award (NOA) from the Indian State Government of Uttar Pradesh to build two thermoelectric power plants there.

"Doosan Heavy has put its utmost efforts into making inroads into India's power market. The two power plants will help satisfy the region's electricity demands," Doosan Heavy's Engineering, Procurement and Construction division chief Kim Heon-tak said.

"The deal will mark a foothold for our future operation in India. The country is expected to consume a total of 18 gigawatts of electricity a year by 2020."

Under the deal, Doosan Heavy is expected to build two 660 megawatt power generators at the Obra-C coal-fired electrical power plant in Sonebhadra and another two 660 megawatt generators at the Jawaharpur coal-fired electrical power plant in Etah.

The company said it will carry out a full-turnkey solution in building power generators at both sites where it will provide a package solution, engineering, procurement and construction, in the operation.

The Obra-C operation is expected to be completed by October 2020 and the Jawaharpur site by February 2021.

The State of Uttar Pradesh is the largest state in India with a population of nearly 200 million. It is also believed to be the center of India's culture and politics what with the famous Taj Mahal mausoleum being there.

Indian core facility builders, including BHEL and L&T, also participated in the bid, but the multi-trillion won bid was awarded to Doosan Heavy.

Separate from the deal, the company won a power plant construction contract worth 1 trillion won in Saudi Arabia through a consortium with French-based energy company Engie in October.

Earlier this month, it also clinched a 160 billion won order to build power equipment in Egypt. Under the deal, it will provide 650 megawatt gas turbines and power generators as well as their related parts for two power plants in Egypt.
Steve Barakatt

By Park Jin-hai

Canadian pianist and composer Steve Barakatt said he will write a song for Saemangeum, one of the world's biggest manmade dikes in North Jeolla Province, the Saemangeum Development and Investment Agency (SDIA) said Sunday.

Barakatt, best known here for his fusion of classical and jazz music, will compose a three-minute-long song inspired by the coast and deliver the album to the SDIA by the end of February. His best-known songs include "California Vibes," "Autumn in Quebec" and "A Night in New York City." In 2011, he wrote "He is from Seoul, She is from Pyongyang" about hope for the unification of South and North Koreas.

Barakatt recently performed in Seoul for his "Christmas Dream" holiday concert.

The SDIA said the artist visited the site in November by the invitation of the Saemangeum Committee under the prime minister's office.

"The pianist, deeply impressed by the beautiful scenery of the site, expressed to the committee his intention to write a song dedicated to the land at the time of his visit," said the agency.

His songs will be used for SDIA's promotional materials.
Special prosecutors raided the home of a former top presidential aide Monday as part of their investigation into a corruption scandal surrounding President Park Geun-hye and her confidante.

The team visited the home of Kim Ki-choon, 77, who served as presidential chief of staff from 2013 to 2015.

He is suspected of overlooking and even protecting the confidante Choi Soon-sil as she meddled in state affairs without any government post.

The team said it raided Kim's home in central Seoul around 7 a.m., securing documents related with his duty at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae.

Sources said the team is also investigating homes of several figures at South Korea's cultural ministry, as Kim is suspected of ordering the ministry to layoff six high-ranking officials, which can be charged with abuse of power.

While three of them actually left the ministry, observers suspect the request came in line with the steps to establish the Mir and K-Sports Foundations.

The two foundations, virtually controlled by Choi, collected large-sum donations from local conglomerates. Investigators suspect Choi attempted to take control of the foundations' assets.

Kim Chong, a former vice culture minister under custody, is also suspected of requesting the former top presidential aide provide a favor to an executive at the ministry who will be designated to the PyeongChang Organizing Committee for the 2018 Olympics.

Kim Ki-choon has a long history in Korean politics. He served Park Chung-hee, who was president for 18 years after seizing power in a military coup in 1961. Park, the father of President Park Geun-hye, was assassinated in 1979.

Kim's close ties with the Park family led to allegations that he was aware of Choi's meddling in state affairs.

While Kim has insisted he does not know Choi personally, he later revised the statement after the parliamentary committee came up with evidence that showed he was at least aware of the confidante. (Yonhap)
Reps. Kim Moo-sung and Yoo Seung-min of the ruling Saenuri Party talk during a party meeting at the National Assembly, Monday. They are leading a group of over 30 lawmakers who will quit the ruling party today. / Yonhap



Over 30 lawmakers will announce departure at 10 a.m.

By Choi Ha-young



Over 30 lawmakers will quit the ruling Saenuri Party today following a bitter power struggle with loyalists of President Park Geun-hye, the group said Monday.

They plan to launch a separate conservative party Jan. 24, with outgoing U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon speculated to join the new party upon returning home.

"Over 30 lawmakers will announce their departure from the Saenuri Party at 10 a.m. Several other lawmakers are also considering leaving the party although they cannot be with us, Tuesday," Rep. Oh Sin-hwan, one of the 30 lawmakers, said Monday.

"The Saenuri Party is now serving the needs of only Park loyalists. It's their party, not ours."

The group, jointly led by Reps. Kim Moo-sung and Yoo Seung-min, plans to form the new party Jan. 24 after persuading other Saenuri lawmakers to join, Oh said.

After their departure, the number of seats held by the ruling party will shrink to below 100 from the current 128 in the 300-seat National Assembly. The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea has 121 seats and the second-largest opposition People's Party has 38 seats.

Analysts said if Ban joins the party, it may prompt another exodus of lawmakers from the Saenuri Party.

"I firmly vow to recruit Ban," Rep. Yoo said on a radio interview, Monday. Yoo proposed Ban would undergo an "intense and fair process" in the new party with other presidential candidates.

Ban, largely supported by the central Chungcheong region where he was born, may attract more Saenuri Party lawmakers representing the region once he joins the new party. Ban has revealed his strong intent to run in the presidential election, with a 23.3 percent approval rating among all speculated candidates, according to Realmeter, Monday.

Rep. Chung Jin-suk, former floor leader of Saenuri Party, said he will not leave the party until Ban arrives in Seoul. "I think Ban would be able to suggest a new way for conservatives here," Chung, Ban's core associate, said in a recent media interview. Ban is expected to return in mid-January.

Meanwhile, Rep. Yoo, the new party's leading policymaker, visited his powerbase of Daegu, North Gyeongsang Province, Sunday, to persuade those not clearly backed by the Park Geun-hye loyalist faction during the general election in April. He openly mentioned three Saenuri Party figures on his list: Reps. Kwak Dae-hoon, Kim Sang-hoon and Jeong Tae-ok.

After the impeached President Park Geun-hye's loyalists occupied the leadership posts of the Saenuri Party, the anti-Park faction has accelerated its move to create a new party.

Against the anti-Park faction, the Saenuri Party is making an effort to minimize the number of lawmakers leaving. Party floor leader Rep. Chung Woo-taek, a member of the loyalist faction, convened a general meeting at the National Assembly, Monday afternoon, calling for "joining hands to renew the party instead of leaving here."

Chung emphasized his longtime ties with Ban, citing his past political activities in the Chungcheong region. "I think Ban will not join the opposition parties considering his tendencies. If the Saenuri Party completely changes for the better, we will never be defeated by the new party," he said in the meeting.

Chung estimated around 30 lawmakers will leave the party, with most of them anticipating Ban's possible choice, not Reps. Yoo or Kim's policy lines. Despite his appeal one day before the party's division, most anti-Park faction members did not show up for the meeting.
Investigators load boxes of evidence they secured during their raid of the home of former presidential chief of staff Kim Ki-choon in central Seoul into their cars, Monday, in their investigation into the corruption scandal involving President Park Geun-hye and her confidant Choi Soon-sil. / Yonhap



By Jung Min-ho

Former presidential chief of staff Kim Ki-choon Culture Minister Cho Yoon-sun

Members of the special prosecutor's team raided the homes of former presidential chief of staff Kim Ki-choon and Culture Minister Cho Yoon-sun, Monday, as part of their investigation into the presidential scandal.

They also raided 10 other places including ministry offices as part of the probe into the corruption scandal involving President Park Geun-hye and her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil.

The former top presidential secretary is suspected of abusing his power to help and protect Choi, who allegedly meddled in critical state affairs to benefit herself and her cronies, according to Lee Kyu-chul, spokesman for the independent counsel's investigation team. Kim served as presidential chief of staff from 2013 to 2015.

Former Culture Minister Yoo Jin-ryong accused Kim of pressuring then Vice Culture Minister Kim Hee-bum to strip six high-ranking officials of their posts in 2014 because their political views were "incompatible with the Park administration." Three of them ended up leaving the ministry.

It is unclear in what areas their views were "incompatible" with the government. But many suspect the officials were opposed to setting up the Mir and K-Sports foundations, which were later found to be under Choi's control.

Cho, who served as senior presidential secretary for state affairs at that time, may also have played a role in the process.












By Kang Seung-woo



U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's recent remarks about a buildup of nuclear weapons are sparking concerns that the new U.S. government may not keep North Korea's nuclear program on a short leash, analysts said, Monday.



They also said possible nonchalance from the U.S. on Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions may bring about the reclusive state modernizing its nuclear arsenal and ratcheting up tension on the Korean Peninsula.



Trump tweeted, Friday, that the United States "must greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability until such time as the world comes to its senses regarding nukes"  a response to Russian President Vladimir Putin's call for bolstering "strategic nuclear forces."



One day later, Trump doubled down on the renewed arms race, saying, "Let it be an arms race. We will outmatch them at every pass and outlast them all."



"The United States seems ready to re-launch an arms race with Russia, so it may divert Washington's attention from the North Korean nuclear issue," said Cheong Seong-chang, a senior researcher at the Sejong Institute.



"North Korea may be ignored under the new U.S. government's major policies."



Under his doctrine for a "nuclear-free world," U.S. President Barack Obama has maintained a strong and unwavering stance on North Korea's nuclear weapons program, leaving the country diplomatically isolated for its nuclear provocations  four out of its five nuclear tests were conducted while Obama was in office.



However, Trump, sick of his country acting as the world's policeman, stressed in the presidential debate in September that China should halt the North's nuclear program.



Chang Yong-seok, a senior researcher at the Institute for Peace and Unification Studies at Seoul National University, said the re-emerging arms race may weaken the justification for the U.S. push for the Kim Jong-un regime's denuclearization.



"While seeking to boost its nuclear capabilities, its move to denuclearize North Korea will lose appeal and the North will strongly resist it," Chang said.



Whenever the North carried out a nuclear test, the United Nations Security Council slapped the country with severe economic sanctions, with its lone ally China also joining the punishment of late.



However, Chang said a U.S. nuclear expansion may derail the international community's alliance against the North Korean nuclear program and lead to its advancement in the end.



"Above all, the U.S. arms race will lose China's support for the international sanctions on the North's nuclear provocations and some other countries with anti-American sentiment may break away, as well," he said.



Tensions on the peninsula are inevitably expected to heighten.



"If the United States and Russia launch their arms race, China, a rising powerhouse, will rush to build up its nuclear arsenal and Japan may also seek to go nuclear, which will inflame tensions in the region," Cheong said.



Chang also said that under the situation, North Korea is expected to seek recognition as a legitimate nuclear weapons state, so the peninsula could see permanent nuclear threats.




Travelers have a choice whether or not to submit their SNS information.

/ Courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection



By Lee Han-soo

The U.S. government is asking visitors from 32 visa waiver countries (including Korea) about SNS information, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube, according to U.S. media outlets.

The visa waiver program allows foreign nationals to visit the U.S. without a visa up to 90 days.

For them, submitting social media account information is not mandatory but "recommended."

But visitors fear that not revealing the information might stop them entering the country.

The new policy comes as the U.S. government tries to improve its ability to spot and deny entry to travelers with links to terrorist groups.

However, the policy has been under fire from tech firms and civil liberty groups.

Critics say that requiring such information, even if optional, can reveal sensitive personal information.

They also point out the move could trigger a similar reaction from other countries.
By Jun Ji-hye

Ban Ki-moon

outgoing U.N. secretary-general Kim Moo-sung

Former chairman of the ruling Saenuri Party Yoo Seong-min

Former floor leader of the ruling Saenuri Party Ahn Cheol-soo

Former co-chairman of the opposition People's Party Sohn Hak-kyu

Former Gyeonggi Province governor and opposition advisor Kim Chong-in

Former interim leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea

A proposed constitution revision could bring interested parties together from both the conservative and liberal camps, political observers say, raising the likelihood that the political circles may align with each other ahead of the 2017 presidential race.

Observers speculate that the outgoing U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Reps. Kim Moo-sung and Yoo Seong-min may band together with Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo and Sohn Hak-kyu owing to a shared interest in the proposed constitutional revision.

Rep. Kim Chong-in, former interim leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), is another political figure who could join forces with them.

Ban, who will finish his term of office at the intergovernmental organization at the end of the year, has hinted at beginning a political career after returning home in mid-January, albeit he has yet to clarify which party he will join. He has been regarded as a conservative figure backed by the ruling Saenuri Party and President Park Geun-hye, who was impeached by the National Assembly, Dec. 9, following a high-profile influence-peddling political scandal.

Reps. Kim and Yoo of the governing party are also conservatives, while Rep. Ahn of the second largest opposition People's Party and former opposition advisor Sohn are liberals.

All six potential presidential runners in the 2017 race have been behind Moon Jae-in of the DPK in opinion polls in recent weeks. However, Ban beat Moon, according to the latest survey results released Monday by pollster Realmeter, for the first time in eight weeks after the U.N. chief all but declared his bid for the South Korean presidency, Dec. 20. However, the gap between Ban and Moon's popularity was within the margin of error.

Observers has raised the possibility of solidarity among the six political figures as such solidarity is needed to hold popular candidate Moon in check before the presidential campaign begins. The six mostly support a prompt constitutional revision to change the current five-year, single-term presidential system, while Moon has so far held back on the discussion.

Following President Park's impeachment, the presidential election could take place within the first half of next year, instead of December later that year. The Constitutional Court is currently conducting the impeachment trial, and once it rules for the impeachment, Park will be completely stripped of her power as president, in which case the presidential election should take place within 60 days after the president's departure, according to the Constitution.

The proposed amendment to the Constitution has taken center stage especially after Park's impeachment, with a broad consensus among politicians that the current presidential system gave rise to the so-called "imperial presidency" that was regarded as one of the major causes of the influence-peddling scandal involving Park and her close friend Choi Soon-sil.

There have been various proposed changes to the Constitution, including a four-year, two-term presidency; parliamentary system; and semi-presidential system, under which a president would be responsible for foreign and national security affairs while a prime minister would be responsible for domestic affairs.

But the potential presidential runners have disagreed about when to conduct a full discussion about the constitutional revision, wary of such discussion's political ramifications for them.

Kim Moo-sung, Sohn Hak-kyu and Kim Chong-in are calling for an immediate discussion in an apparent effort to attract voters' attentions in the lead-up to the 2017 presidential race. On the other hand, Moon is claiming that now is not the time to begin such a discussion and that it is more appropriate for the next president to push for the revision after being sworn in.

Rep. Kim Moo-sung, who has led the Park dissenters at the governing party, said, "We need to try to resolve matters related to the Choi Soon-sil scandal and to the Constitutional revision at the same time."

He plans to launch a new conservative party, after defecting from the Saenuri Party with fellow lawmakers, including Yoo Seong-min, who shares the belief in the need for a constitutional revision.

"The current presidential system has limits," Yoo said. "Other alternatives, such as a four-year, two-term presidency, would be necessary."

But Yoo added that a cautious attitude is required in dealing with the issue.

Ban is likely to join the new conservative party once it is formed, according to observers. Though Ban was believed to have been backed by Park and her loyalists as the ruling party's presidential candidate, the U.N. chief has recently criticized the scandal-ridden leader, in an attempt to distance himself from the pro-Park faction.

Observers say there is little possibility of him joining the Saenuri Party but great possibility of him joining the new conservative party to be set up by the anti-Park faction.

Once the new party is established, Rep. Kim Moo-sung is expected to make significant efforts to expand the support base to include not only conservative voters but also centrists.

"I can hold hands with anybody except for the pro-Park faction and the pro-Moon faction," he said.

The efforts would include joining forces with Rep. Kim Chong-in of the DPK, who has also been pushing for a constitutional revision, all while criticizing Moon for his hesitance on the issue.

Though Rep. Kim Chong-in currently belongs to the opposition party, he previously worked at the Saenuri Party as a chief campaigner in the lead-up to the 2012 presidential poll.

According to sources, Reps. Kim Moo-sung and Kim Chong-in, along with Rep. Park Jie-won, the floor leader of the People's Party, either recently met with each other or talked on the phone about the proposed constitutional amendment.

Once they agree on the need for the constitutional revision, it is possible for the People's Party and its presidential runner Ahn Cheol-soo to band together with the new conservative party, observers said.

Indeed, Kim Dong-cheol, the interim leader of the People Party, earlier told reporters, "We could form a solidarity with the anti-Park faction and Ban if we share the same set of values."

Sohn has also been making efforts to find a faction to partner with upon returning to politics in October after over two years away from the political arena. He appeared to have asked Ahn to join forces, saying Ahn's political influence, which dramatically came to the fore in 2012, is still strong.

Until recently, Ahn had remained lukewarm on the constitutional revision issue but has since pushed for it.

"Presidential candidates should clearly present a method for revising the Constitution during the election and should conduct a referendum in 2018," he said Thursday.

On Friday, the People's Party officially decided to push for a revision before the presidential election next year. However, in the case that the Constitutional Court makes a decision on Park's impeachment faster than expected, the party will follow Ahn's suggestion to get the revision done in 2018.

For the revision to take effect, it should be approved by two-thirds of the 300 Assembly members and by the majority of votes among the attending citizens in the following referendum.

For his part, Moon continues to criticize those who are pushing for the revision, downplaying their move as "a political calculation."

"All talks regarding the alignment of the political circles and the solidarity of rival figures are being made under a political calculation," he said.

Moon said it is more appropriate for the next president to push for the revision in the early stages of the presidency after suggesting a method for the revision during the campaign.

But Rep. Kim Chong-in criticized Moon's comment, saying those who make such an argument are mostly nostalgic about the imperial presidency.

During the presidential election in 2012, Park, who was then a candidate of the ruling party, also pledged to push for a four-year, two-term presidency, though she reversed her support after being sworn in the following year.
By Yi Whan-woo



The government is likely to miss the Dec. 31 deadline for the establishment of a foundation aimed at addressing human rights in North Korea, according to sources Tuesday.



The Ministry of Unification planned to set up the foundation if its 12 board members were selected by the rival political parties by the end of the year. Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo, the ruling Sanuri Party and second-largest opposition People's Party picked two, five and one candidates as board members, respectively, in line with the North Korean Human Rights Act that took effect on Sept. 4.



The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), however, is delaying its decision to draft a list of its four candidates, sources said. They also said it remains uncertain when the DPK will make its decision.



Some sources speculate that that the DPK's move is seen as a protest against the method of choosing the board's two top-ranking officials _ the chief director and secretary general.



If confirmed, the 12 board members will vote for the chief director with a simple majority. The chief director then will have the right to tap the secretary general unilaterally.



The DPK has argued that it should be permitted to select either the chief director or secretary general.



It has claimed that chances are good that the two posts will be filled by pro-government figures because seven of the 12 board members were picked by Hong and the ruling party.



"Minister Hong sought to meet DPK lawmakers last and ask for their support in launching the foundation but failed," a ministry official said on condition of anonymity. "Even if the DPK picks its share of candidates, there are several steps that are required before running the foundation. It's not likely it be will be set up by the end of the year."



The official also said the government has been reluctant to accept the DPK's demands because of any possible confusion in operating the board.



The 12 board members will begin their work if National Assembly Speaker Rep. Chung Sye-kyun and the government endorse them unanimously.



It will be South Korea's first state-run foundation handling North Korean human rights, and will focus on studying Pyongyang's dire record and developing related policies.




North Korea's Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missiles / Yonhap



Activist says nuclear spies' are on the loose in Japan



Rights campaigner says scientists for Pyongyang's atomic weapon programme are openly being trained at a university in Japan



By Julian Ryall By Julian Ryall

A Japanese human rights activist has launched a campaign to stop classes on nuclear physics, advanced chemistry, robotics and electronics being taught at a North Korean-sponsored university in Tokyo, claiming the institution violates UN sanctions and benefits Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programmes.

Ken Kato, director of a group called Human Rights in Asia and a member of the International Coalition to Stop Crimes Against Humanity in North Korea, has submitted a petition to the UN panel that monitors sanctions imposed on North Korea in the aftermath of its nuclear tests and missile launches.

In his petition, Kato called on the panel to "conduct a thorough investigation into violations of United Nations sanctions by the Korea University". He said the college in Kodaira, western Tokyo, requires students to be members of the Korean Youth League in Japan, which promises to "raise youths to become true Kim Il-sung-Kim Jong-il followers".

The university, along with some kindergartens, junior and senior high schools, are operated by Chongryun, an organisation that represents Korean residents of Japan who still swear allegiance to North Korea and who are said to number tens of thousands.

The president of the university is a member of the North Korean Supreme People's Embassy who is subject to a travel ban imposed by the Japanese government, meaning he cannot re-enter Japan if he visits North Korea.

The university's course include nuclear physics, electrical engineering, electronic machinery, control engineering and advanced chemistry.

"It is very clear that these subjects fall under specialised teaching and training, which have been prohibited by paragraph 17 of [UN] resolution 2270 and paragraph 10 of resolution 2321, especially advanced electrical engineering', that has been specified in resolution 2321," Kato wrote in his UN petition.

The first resolution forbids "specialised teaching and training which could contribute to [North Korea's] proliferation-sensitive nuclear activities or the development of nuclear weapons delivery systems includes, but is not limited to, advanced materials science, advanced chemical engineering, advanced mechanical engineering, advanced electrical engineering and advanced industrial engineering".

The second section forbids "teaching or training in advanced physics, advanced computer simulation and related computer sciences, geospatial navigation, nuclear engineering, aerospace engineering, aeronautical engineering and related disciplines" for North Koreans.

Kato also accuses the college of being "a centre for North Korea's espionage activities in Japan," claiming professor Choe Hung-gi made "a great contribution to the North Korean munitions industry by creating a numerical control lathe in 1982".

Similarly, Dr Hwang Chol-hong, a former vice dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology, is now chairman of the Korean Association of Science and Technology, which the Japan National Police Agency has identified as being involved in the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

Lee Song-gi graduated from the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Tohoku University's Graduate School of Engineering and is now a research associate at Korea University.

In 2011, he received a grant from the Kim Many Yu Science Foundation  which is linked to the North Korean government  for research into "handling of heavy payloads by an industrial partner robot".

"We have to stop this sort of nuclear and industrial espionage in Japan as quickly as possible," Kato said. "Nuclear weapons are in the hands of the world's most unpredictable dictator, who could use them on a whim."

"And this is not just a threat to north-east Asia.

North Korea has shared its nuclear technology with Iran and could provide it to terrorist groups anywhere in the world. It is ridiculous that we have nuclear and industrial spies on the loose in Japan." Kato is calling on the UN panel to enforce the ban on research by professors with links to North Korea as well as the education of the government's future scientists.

The South China Morning Post contacted Korea University for comments from Professor Choe and Professor Lee. In their written reply, the two professors said "it is unworthy of making any comment" and that they have "nothing to do with such activities".

Separately, North Korea's foreign ministry has accused the South of stepping up efforts to encourage North Koreans living overseas, especially diplomats, to defect.

Ministry official Ju Wang Hwan said North Korean diplomats around the world have received emails with attachments containing articles that look like they are from the North's state media, but which have been changed to influence readers.

In a statement released by North Korea's state news agency, the foreign ministry accused the South's agents of calling and following its diplomats to try to encourage them to defect.

North Korea has been hit by several high-profile cases of its citizens defecting to South Korea this year.
By Murdock O'Mooney

As a foreigner, it's easy to consider the advantages of living in Korea. Good food, low cost of living and easy travel to other Asian countries are just a few things that come to mind. However, there are disadvantages as well. The biggest in my opinion, and by far, is air pollution.

When I first moved to Korea in 2009, I didn't think much about air quality. Back then I lived in Sinchang at the end of Seoul subway line 1. I was in the countryside and the air quality was good. I can remember I loved visiting the megalopolis of Seoul, but was always happy to get back to Sinchang, where the air was fresh and clean. I moved back to the U.S. for graduate school in 2012. Then, in late 2015 I got a job teaching at a university in Gwangju  the sixth largest city in Korea.

In Gwangju, I began to think about Korea's air pollution problem. How tragic, I thought. Such a beautiful country continually shrouded in bad air. What a burden for the Korean people and foreigners alike. I also began to hear foreigners complain about Korea's bad air. For many, this was the main reason they left the country.

Air pollution kills an estimated 5.5 million people worldwide per year and causes a whole slew of health problems including respiratory illness, heart disease, strokes and cancer. And yet, in some strange way bad air is also a signifier of Korea's economic rise. The U.K., U.S. and even Japan used to be plagued with air pollution, before their economies matured and construction slowed. After the cities were built, and growth slowed, clean air returned.

This is where things get blurry for Korea, as it has a somewhat mature economy but is still building at a ferocious pace. Everywhere I look I see high-rise apartment blocks going up and highways being built. All that construction puts carbon, dust and heavy metals directly into the air.

Then we have China to consider, Korea's western neighbor. China is in a league of its own in terms of air pollution. According to a recent article in Forbes, China used more concrete between 2011 and 2013 than the United States did in the entire 20th century. That's a lot of building, and consequently, a lot of air pollution. Coal is also used for heating in China, which is another major contributor. As Korea sits directly downwind from China, much of the aforementioned pollution makes its way here.

And yet, we cannot blame China entirely for Korea's air quality woes. Korea is a manufacturing powerhouse in it's own right, and let's not forget about the 50 million people who live here and drive vehicles. Trash burning is also still quite common in rural Korea, which adds to the problem.

So what can be done about Korea's bad air? What can we do to help? I suppose once construction slows and people become more aware of the problem, air quality will improve. On a personal level, we can discourage the burning of trash, watch how much we use our cars and motorcycles and try to educate each other about air pollution.

Personally, I will do the best I can within my sphere of influence. I will discuss the issue with my students and create a dialog. I will see what they think. I will discuss how their personal consumption habits impact air quality: that is, how the things they buy have to be made, transported, sold, kept and finally thrown away. All of this adds carbon (and thus pollution) to the air.

I recommend readers do the same, and discuss the topic with people they know. Who knows where the next great idea to help curb Korea's air pollution problem might come from. For now, it's masks on during bad air days.

Murdock O'Mooney is a traveler and writer from Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S. He currently teaches at Chosun University in Gwangju and can be reached at murdockomooney@live.com.
By Michael Breen



Foremost among the sounds which I have come to associate with the regular weekend protests against President Park Geun-hye are the amplified cries and chants of women protest leaders addressing the crowds.



It may be a false impression, or it may just be that they impress me more, but it seems to me that the female activists and entertainers at the microphone outnumber their male colleagues.



And that makes me wonder, why are more women not rallying around the first female President?



The immediate response to this question is usually that, yes, misogyny is an issue in Korea and you would expect women to back a female leader, but in this scandal the gender of the President and the gender of the protestors is irrelevant. She has offended everyone equally, conservative and progressive, young and old, men and women.



But within that picture, there are small and inconvenient truths.



One is that, among the 4 percent who the polls tell us still support the President, are some very intelligent pro-democracy people who believe that misogyny is the hidden driver of the public reaction to the scandal.



They believe that not only is the President a victim of this misogyny, but that so is Korean democracy.



As an unknown percentage of just 4 percent, these feminists represent a small number. But if they and the other 4-percenters  not of the overall population, mind you, but of adult voters  were to declare independence, they would be as large as the population of Bahrain or of Estonia.



But there is another reason not to dismiss them. That is because there is a lot of truth to the argument about the role of misogyny.



For men who have read thus far and now find themselves groaning, all I can say is, ask women about misogyny and remember that it is not just a matter of rights enshrined in law, but in social attitudes and freedom of fear. Thank you for your kind attention.



As I was saying before I interrupted myself, this issue has been run up the flagpole by commentators during the past few weeks, but it has been tugged down again as inappropriate. Just as everything is not a North Korean plot  the thinking of another portion of the 4 percent  so everything is not a plot against women.



But hold on. What is this scandal that has led to the impeachment of the President all about? It is not about lawbreaking, at least not yet because the investigations are not complete and the courts have not yet ruled on criminality. (It is entirely possible the President may be declared innocent. It is even possible that her friend Choi Soon-sil may be found guilty only of peripheral offenses that came up during the investigation.)



The scandal is political, which means it is about the ethics of power, not the law. It has inflamed political passions. The particular offense that sparked it all was the identification of a close confidant of the President who allegedly recommended two or three people for presidential appointments, edited some presidential speeches, and used her connections with the President to set up two foundations to promote Korean culture with chaebol sponsorship.



This sounds dodgy and you don't have to be a misogynist, male or female, to object to it. But what if the confidant had been Park's former professor? Would we have protested? What if said professor had degrees from Seoul National and Harvard? What if she were a he? What if he was her brother? Would these be mitigating factors? You tell me.



Let's be honest. We are where we are because the nation thinks that Choi Soon-sil is, as one female professor who does advise presidents put it to me, a "ddeokboggi ajumma." She's like the lady in the market, wearing several layers under her apron, at the steaming food stall.



If there's a deeper offense than being a woman, it's being low class and operating above your station, and that is why the women are yelling at Park and her friend too.



Michael Breen is the CEO of Insight Communications Consultants, a public relations company, and author of "The Koreans" and "Kim Jong-il: North Korea's Dear Leader."




By Frank Ching



As 2016 draws to a close, China's economic, political and military posture is higher than ever. It has challenged the United States in the South China Sea by seizing an unmanned underwater vehicle before the US navy could retrieve it, then returned it a few days later with a warning to Washington not to conduct close-in reconnaissance activities near Chinese territory.



The US says that the seizure was illegal since the incident occurred in international waters. China seems to concede that point, saying only that it occurred in "waters facing China." So China increasingly does what it wants without even the least cover of legality.



Singapore, too, is being given a dose of Chinese medicine. Its armored vehicles were seized in Hong Kong in November while being transshipped back home, after military training exercises in Taiwan. The island nation has annoyed China by siding with the US on issues such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the South China Sea.



There are signs that Hong Kong is acting under Beijing's direction. China is responsible for Hong Kong's defense and foreign affairs. Singapore troops have been training in Taiwan for decades since Singapore doesn't have the terrain for such drills.



China has also browbeaten traditionally Buddhist Mongolia, which had permitted the Dalai Lama to visit after being invited by the Gandantegchinlen Monastery. Afterward, Beijing canceled talks on soft loans and a chastised Mongolia promised never to allow the Dalai Lama to set foot on its soil again. Ironically, the now cowed Mongols had conquered China in the 13th century and ruled it for generations.



China's economic muscle also brought Norway to its knees six years after the Norwegian Nobel Committee gave the Nobel Peace Prize to Liu Xiaobo, an imprisoned dissident. China then froze relations, sales of Norwegian salmon plummeted and talks on a free trade agreement halted.



Norway has now performed the modern-day equivalent of the kowtow by saying that it "fully respects China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, attaches high importance to China's core interests and major concerns  and will do its best to avoid any future damage to the bilateral relations." Liu Xiaobo, meanwhile, remains in prison.



Norway's capitulation comes in the wake of similar abject statements by France and Denmark. Leaders of both countries had met with the Dalai Lama, who is considered a splittist by China and has lived in exile since 1959.



Closer to home, China has been increasing pressure on Taiwan. It is ending a diplomatic truce, during which it did not raid Taiwan's diplomatic allies.



However, after the impoverished African state of Sao Tome and Principe announced Dec. 20 that it would break relations with Taiwan, China immediately welcomed the move, saying it welcomes the country's "return to the right track of the one-China principle."



This is clearly a warning to Taiwan that China is prepared to strip off the island's allies one by one unless it accepts the "one China" principle that Taiwan is a part of China.



With the loss of Sao Tome, Taiwan only has 21 diplomatic partners left, of which the Vatican is by far the most important.



So, as 2017 opens, China can view the world with a certain degree of satisfaction. Its influence is felt everywhere, and, besides the US, there are few countries that have the wherewithal and the will to stand up to China.



Interestingly, in late December the Beijing newspaper Global Times published the results of a global survey that it had conducted on China's international image and influence in 2016. The respondents hailed from 15 countries, including Russia, the US, Japan, South Korea, Germany and Australia.



The survey results showed that 56.6 percent of respondents believe the US will be the most influential country in Asian affairs in the next 10 years, while 22.7 percent chose China and 10.1 percent picked Russia. The European Union came fourth, with 3.7 percent.



As for whether China is a global power, 67.9 percent responded "yes," 19.4 percent answered "not yet," 8 percent said "hard to say," while 4.7 percent answered "no."



So, already, more people think China is a global power than think that the US will dominate Asia in the next decade.



For a country that denied for decades that it had any ambition to be a superpower, the very holding of such a survey suggests that it now craves first place in Asia and the world.



China is clearly on that trajectory. The question is whether this development is one that the rest of the world will dread or welcome.



Frank Ching is a Hong Kong-based freelance journalist. Contact Frank.ching@gmail.com




The price of LITRO gas cylinders would be further reduced in the first week of November in accordance with the

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PRESS RELEASE

China Tells West: Instead of Trade Wars over Steel, Mobilize the Economy!

Dec. 24, 2016 (EIRNS)Chinese steel manufacturers are concerned about the policy of the European Union and the United States of using the "surrogate country system" measure in anti-dumping investigations, as a protectionist tool to restrict Chinese steel exports to the trans-Atlantic area. China has notified the secretariat of the World Trade Organization that it had requested dispute consultations with the United States and the EU regarding the special calculation methodology they use in anti-dumping proceedings.

Those countries already impose high tariffs on Chinese steel products, leading to a sharp fall in exports of Chinas seamless steel pipes and tubes. The European Commission, the EUs executive body, conducted 15 trade remedy investigations against Chinese goods between 2014 and February 2016, eight of which involved steel products.

"We are paying close attention and are worried about the tendency of the EU and United States toward steel protectionism," says Yao Lin, vice-president of Ansteel Group in Liaoning province.

"The EU has frequently resorted to restrictive measures since the start of 2016, as it blames Chinese steel products for its glutted industry,"

Yao says.

"It is groundless, as Europes steel woes stem from a weak economy. The EU should be rational and take an objective view, instead of adopting protectionist policies that impede competition."

Bai Ming, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, the Ministry of Commerce think tank, says:
PRESS RELEASE

Former U.K. Ambassador to Syria Accuses Foreign Office of Lying about Syria

Dec. 25, 2016 (EIRNS)The British daily Independent reported on Dec. 23 that Peter Ford, the U.K. Ambassador to Syria from 1999-2003, said that the Foreign Ministry under both Philip Hammond and Boris Johnson had judged Syria wrong "every step of the way" and are lying about it, falsely claiming Bashar Assad could not control the country when he is "well on the way to doing so."

He said:

"They told us at the beginning that Assads demise was imminent. They told us hed be gone by Christmas. But then they told us that the opposition was dominated by these so-called moderates. That proved not to be the case, and now theyre telling us another big liethat Assad cant control the rest of the country. Well Ive got news for themhes well on the way to doing so."

"We have made the situation worse," he said. "It was eminently foreseeable to anyone who was not intoxicated with wishful thinking."
American Airlines Flight 998 from Orlando, Fla., landed at Los Angeles International Airport at 8:19 a.m. on a cloudy Tuesday morning, carrying 181 passengers.

The minute the A321 jet reached the gate, teams of workers swarmed the plane with the precision of a marching band. For good reason.

In less than 80 minutes, the ground crew had to unload the passengers and their luggage, as well as cargo and mail, pump in 36,000 pounds of fuel, clean the plane, bring in a new flight crew and load 179 passengers for a return flight to Orlando.

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In aviation terms, this is called the turnaround and performing it quickly is crucial to the profitability of an airline. The adage time is money applies. The longer a plane sits at a gate, the fewer money-making routes it can fly.

Everyone who touches that plane has to be synched, said James Moses, American Airlines managing director at LAX.

But if airlines try to shrink the turnaround time too much, there is no room for errors and departure times are missed, drawing the ire of travelers.

A 2010 Federal Aviation Administration study found that delays cost the U.S. economy $32.9 billion per year, with about half of the cost borne by airline passengers due to missed connections, added lodging and food expenses.

Three years ago, Southwest Airlines tried to pack too many flights in the most popular takeoff times, but the tactic backfired and the carriers on-time performance dropped by 11 percentage points.

Southwest Airlines adjusted its turnaround time and has since improved its on-time performance to 85%, on par with its competitors.

A quick turnaround is so important  and employee performance so pivotal  that American Airlines has adopted an incentive program: If American Airlines ranks higher than its competitors in three key on-time categories, all 113,000 employees get $150 each.

Weather, air traffic control problems and late arriving flights account for about two-thirds of all flight delays, but factors within an airlines control, such as maintenance problems, baggage loading delays and fueling snags account for the rest, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The pressure especially builds during the holidays when airlines add up to 40% more flights per day than during slower times of the year.

For American Airlines, the busiest carrier at LAX, that means a daily schedule of up to 225 flights during the crush of the holiday season.

The nerve center of the airlines LAX operations is its control center on the fifth floor of Terminal 4. Resembling an air traffic control tower, with massive windows overlooking the gates used by Americans planes, its where the turnaround of Flight 998 could be tracked by the minute, as follows:

8:19 a.m.

Once the flight from Orlando landed, the dozen or so dispatchers in the control center direct the plane to Gate 45 in Terminal 4. The crew members at the control center speak with the pilots and the flight attendants to see if there were any mechanical issues that needed to be fixed before the plane gets back on the runway.

A number of smaller glitches, such as a torn seat or a broken toilet seat, can be set aside for repairs until the plane gets a longer overnight stop. A bigger problem that risks the safety of the plane, often called a no-go, such as damage to the fuselage, will ground a plane.

But Flight 998 is free of any no-gos.

8:35 a.m.

The plane pulls into Gate 45, 16 minutes ahead of schedule.

8:41 a.m.

Outside of the cabin, near the tail of the plane, Robert Williams, a 27-year veteran of American Airlines, directs his crew of two men and two women to unload about 5,000 pounds of luggage, cargo and mail.

The job has become more difficult in the last few years since airlines began to charge checked baggage fees. Travelers are now cramming more belongings into each bag to try to avoid the fees for extra bags. As a result, Williams said luggage that once weighed an average of 25 pounds now weighs 35 pounds.

The toughest job on the crew is the loader, the worker who climbs into the cargo hold to haul the luggage onto the belt that carries the bags down to a luggage trolley. The cargo hold is only about 4 feet tall, so the loader must either crouch or kneel to lift the luggage onto the conveyer belt.

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Nobody can tell you the best way to load luggage on your knees, said Williams, over the din of jet engines.

A few yards away, the fueling agent heaves a fuel nozzle to the planes tank and starts pumping about 36,000 pounds of jet fuel. Its a task that will take about 20 minutes.

8:55 a.m.

Inside the cabin, the last passenger exits the plane and a crew of four cabin cleaners begin to vacuum the carpet, pick up the trash from the floors, wipe down the tray tables and clean the three bathrooms.

9:03 a.m.

Now, cleanup crew must make way for Mike OConnell and his two workers from the catering company, Gate Gourmet, who enter the plane from the back of the cabin. The catering workers roll carts, filled with prepackaged meals, down the narrow aisles, trying to avoid the cabin cleaners.

We are always trying to work around each other, said Fay Mase, the operations manager for the cleaning crew.

Both crews have less than 20 minutes to complete their tasks, hoping to avoid any glitches that could delay the flight.

For the cleaning crew, an airsick passenger who vomited on a seat or carpeting  not an unusual occurrence  could slow the cleanup. But thats not a problem on 998.

OConnells biggest worry is that his crew will fail to load enough meals for the flight. A miscount doesnt count as a no-go, but it means an angry passenger will go without food on the next flight.

These are the types of problems that are discussed when American Airlines managers meet in a conference room twice a day to go over the days operations. In those meetings, the managers of each team must explain their miscues and how to avoid them in the future.

It gets rushed and thats why mistakes are made, OConnell said.

But both crews complete their individual tasks on time, without a glitch.

9:18 a.m.

In the front of the cabin, the planes captain calls a security meeting with his flight crew. The captain and the flight attendants have never worked together before. The captain discusses what procedures the flight attendants should take if a pilot calls for a cup of coffee or wants to leave the cockpit to use the bathroom.

9:26 a.m.

The passengers are ready to board the plane, now designated Flight 2381 to Orlando. So far, the turnaround is on schedule. But Alice Perez, the customer care manager at Gate 45, notices a few problems that could slow the boarding time.

Many of the passengers in line at the gate are making phone calls or listening to music on their cellphones. That could slow the queue when the passengers need to flash the boarding passes downloaded on those same smartphones, she worries.

9:27 a.m.

Another potential delay is brewing in the front of the passenger line. A woman with two large, hard-shell bags begins to argue with a gate agent about the size of her luggage as the queue line backs up behind her. Her bags look like they wont fit in the overhead compartment. The woman shoves the bags into the sizer, the metal cage that is used to determine the dimensions of a bag.

It fits. It fits, the woman says loudly. See? See?

Its not the sort of problem Perez wants to deal with during the busy holiday season  a time when there is an increase in unaccompanied minors. The minors, often visiting relatives across the country, can delay the boarding process because airline agents must walk children into the cabin and personally hand them off to a flight attendant.

International travelers typically cause the biggest headache because they try to carry as many belongings as possible in their carry-on bags. Business travelers are much easier, she said, because they usually carry little more than a briefcase holding a laptop computer.

9:42 a.m.

With 23 minutes until takeoff, the final boarding call goes out. Down below, the cargo hold is closed and a tug, the vehicle that pulls the plane away from the gate, moves into place.

9:55 a.m.

With 10 minutes until takeoff, the crew begins to close the cabin doors. Mario Castillo, the American Airlines agent at Gate 45, checks his computer screen and notices that two passengers have yet to check in.

If 20 or 25 passengers were unaccounted for, Castillo said he would call the control center to see if a connecting flight was delayed. But with only two passengers missing, the crew closes the doors and the plane pulls away from the gate.

9:59 a.m.

Suddenly, a catering worker rolls up to the gate with two food carts. Perez and Castillo give each other an anxious look.

Will they have to stop the plane to haul in the carts, delaying the flight?

Dont worry, the catering worker tells them, the food cart is for the next flight scheduled at that gate.

10:05 a.m.

The jet pulls away from the gate on time.

10:14 a.m.

The plane lifts off to the west, disappearing into a bank of clouds.

hugo.martin@latimes.com

To read more about the travel and tourism industries, follow @hugomartin on Twitter.

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Netflix has a new China strategy: Skip it.

In January 2016, the video-streaming service announced an ambitious global expansion. The goal was to beam American hits such as House of Cards around the world including, eventually, in China.

Today you are witnessing the birth of a new global Internet TV network, Chief Executive Reed Hastings said at a large tech conference.

Sending racy American content into a country that censors almost everything may have seemed like a leap, but Los Gatos, Calif.-based Netflix was confident. The China plan, Hastings said, was on a slow and steady path.

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Less than a year later, having launched just about everywhere else, Netflix shelved the streaming project. It opted instead to license some content to Chinese providers for modest revenues, according to a quarterly letter. (Representatives of the company declined to comment.)

For some high-flying U.S. Internet businesses, the China dream is fading; for others, it looks radically different from what they had hoped. Californias Internet companies once dreamed of liberating China with technology, thinking that the system of censorship known as the Great Firewall would inevitably crumble, paving the way for their advance in the worlds most populous nation.

But President Xi Jinping has tightened, rather than loosened, control of the Internet and increased restrictions on foreign companies. Six years after Google retreated from Chinas search-engine business over censorship and hacking concerns, U.S. firms seem more willing than ever to play the Chinese Communist Partys game  they just cant win it.

Even if they can gain a foothold, which is hard enough, there is practically no way they will be able to overtake the Chinese companies that have comfortably established themselves.

Facebooks China charm offensive, which included Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg studying Mandarin, has yielded little. Googles search business and Twitter remain blocked. LinkedIn and Microsoft censor  and still, neither is a major player in Chinas online space. Amazon.com is sputtering along against the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba. After great initial success, Apple is being overtaken by local upstarts.

Still, tech companies are pushing, and they are looking to the incoming Trump administration for help breaking in. When executives from the major U.S. technology companies met with President-elect Donald Trump on Dec. 14 at Trump Tower, they complained about a Chinese proposal that would require foreign technology companies to deposit the source code for their software with the government, according to a person who was familiar with the discussions.

Bill Bishop, a tech consultant who writes Sinocism, an influential China newsletter, said he has seen waves of confident California firms humbled by efforts to crack the China market.

Each generation believes they can find a way, but the Chinese Communist Party has upped their game in terms of censorship, and these companies that nobody has heard about 10 years ago  now they are the biggest companies in the world, he said, referring to corporate behemoths such as Alibaba, Tencent, Xiaomi and Baidu, which are sometimes called the Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Google of China.

U.S. companies are going to make a Chinese play, but not the way they imagined.

Downsized dreams

If youre looking for a symbol of downsized China dreams, it would be hard to do better than Wuzhen, the luxe but isolated resort that plays host to Chinas World Internet Conference each fall.

The summit, in its third year, brings together an oddball cast that this year included Chinese Internet regulators, pro-censorship academics, the prime minister of Cambodia and emissaries from U.S. companies such as Amazon and Facebook.

One of the most high-profile speakers was Reid Hoffman, the executive chairman of LinkedIn, who praised Xis signature infrastructure plan, a spending bonanza known as One Belt, One Road.

U.S. companies considering a China move often talk about the LinkedIn model  a model that means close local ties and full cooperation with the government.

Modest successes

Acting local  or, indeed, operating at all  means playing by local rules, even when those rules run counter to the idea of free expression and free association. LinkedIns Chinese site censors content and puts limits on forming groups. LinkedIn Chief Executive Jeff Weiner has described the companys introduction of a Chinese-language version as involving compromises that are far from ideal and can be very painful.

LinkedIn, which Microsoft acquired this year, did not agree to an interview for this article.

Unlike when Google and Yahoo officials were hauled in to testify before Congress for censoring content a decade ago, LinkedIns censorship has earned the company a small amount of bad press but has not been treated as a major story. LinkedIns bigger challenge is competing in the Chinese market. Its Chinese site has more than 20 million users  fair by U.S. standards, but diminutive for a Chinese social network, analysts said.

To better connect with young workers, it launched an app called Chitu that promises to be real and fun. The app sounds millennial-friendly  it hosts livestreams with celebrities, for instance  but faces fierce competition from home-grown challengers with a head start.

Staying relatively small, saying the right things and complying with authorities seems to be the only option.

Evernote, an organizational app, launched a China-specific version in 2012. In 2014, the app shelved a feature that Hong Kong protesters had used to share information in China. Like many other U.S. companies doing business in China, Evernote has agreed to store Chinese citizens data on Chinese servers, where authorities can access the information. The Redwood City, Calif.-based company runs its China operation in a bright, foosball-equipped office in Beijings tech district. The business is chugging along but remains small, employing a couple dozen people.

Both firms are cited as China success stories, which shows just how tough it is for U.S. businesses.

Jeremy Goldkorn, director of the media and consulting firm Danwei, summed up the best-case scenario for U.S. Internet start-ups as not getting kicked out, but not making a lot of money.

Many large U.S. tech giants, from semiconductor companies to Apple, have made impressive profits in China, but its getting harder now, said Scott Kennedy, who directs a project on Chinese business at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. This is a market that makes or breaks companies.

Titans struggles

The titans of U.S. technology are facing some of the toughest challenges yet. Google and Facebook remain at the periphery, reduced to selling ads while they angle for a Communist Party-brokered compromise that could get them in.

Over the last few years, Facebook has made a high-profile push to win over Chinas leaders.

When Chinas former Web czar, Lu Wei, toured Facebooks office in 2014, a copy of Xis book The Governance of China was visible on Zuckerbergs desk. Last March, Zuckerberg braved Beijings toxic air to take a notorious smog jog through Tiananmen Square.

Despite recent reports that Facebook is building a censorship tool to help secure access to the Chinese market, the social network remains blocked, with little chance of that changing anytime soon, according to a person familiar with the matter who declined to be identified because of its sensitivity. To comply with Chinese law and regulations, Facebook would need to drastically change its product, experts said.

Even if Facebook were to secure the requisite permits to operate  and thats a big if  its not clear the company would succeed.

In the years that Zuckerberg has been studying Mandarin, Chinas government has ramped up its focus on innovation and helped build an alternate universe where local technology rules.

Facebook would need to compete with, for instance, Tencents WeChat, a chat service with more than 800 million active users that has turned into one-stop shopping for socializing, news and e-commerce.

Read more: WeChat fuels the illicit trade of dumplings and pork knuckles in Southern California 

When I think about Facebook in China, I think, Whats their advantage? said William Bao Bean, a Shanghai-based partner at SOSV Ventures and the managing director of Chinaccelerator, which invests in start-ups. Their product is so outpaced by the local companies.

That does not mean Facebook wont try. Tim Sparapani, who was Facebooks first director of public policy and is now principal at SPQR Strategies, said entering China was part of Zuckerbergs vision and he wouldnt bet against Mark.

If Mark says he is going to connect the world, he is going to connect the world. Its about fulfilling that vision of ubiquitous worldwide connectivity.

Facebook declined a request for comment.

Carmen Chang, a partner at the Silicon Valley firm New Enterprise Associates and a longtime China dealmaker, said that ambitious companies such as Facebook will take the long view in China  strengthening their ties and waiting for new opportunities. China is too important a market for these companies to settle for a Plan B, she said. They will take what they can get and keep probing. Some companies will never give up.

Others wonder why Silicon Valley stays optimistic.

The people at the top are used to moving forward at cyber-speed, not to being pushed aside, blocked, for reasons that are not based on the technology or based on somebody having a better idea  its just foreign to their way of thinking, said Lester Ross, a managing partner at Wilmer Hale in Beijing, who advises U.S. and Chinese companies.

If you can afford it, its patience and hope that things change, he said. I dont see signs of that in front of us in the near term.

Dwoskin and Rauhala write for the Washington Post.

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Taking a swing at being a leading man in Hollywood? Risky and time-consuming.

Figuring out what to do when your window has closed? Priceless.

For a brief period around the turn of the century, Billy Crudup stood on the cusp of stardom. As he was beginning to sneakily work his way into our brains as the voice of Mastercard, Crudup enjoyed a batch of potentially star-making turns. The New York native earned indie cred in the adored scrappiness of Jesus Son, took his place in a prestige drama with father-son fable Big Fish and was quite literally a rock star in Almost Famous.

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But age  and theater digressions, studio distractedness and tabloid headlines  can take their toll. At 48, Crudup has been faced with an unusual Hollywood dilemma: What to do as the leading man who almost was?

You can stay in that pool of being a go-to actor for a year, maybe a few years, he said. But there are only what, 15, 20 people in that pool at any one time? And theyre always getting punched out. He paused. Maybe I should have done more with my opportunity. But I took my stab. Ive just had to figure out whats next.

Crudup is in a downtown restaurant here on a recent Friday afternoon, taking a break from shooting his upcoming Netflix thriller series Gypsy (his first notable TV role). As of Wednesday, a piece of his post-A-list strategy will be in evidence. The actor will have two art-house movies out simultaneously: Mike Mills semi-autobiographical 1979-set dramedy 20th Century Women, in which he plays an adrift working-class male in a sea of enlightened women, and Pablo Larrains recently released Jackie Kennedy snapshot, Jackie," as a reporter who turns up at Hyannis Port shortly after JFKs assassination to interview the grieving widow.

This in addition to the Netflix show, opposite Naomi Watts, and Ridley Scotts much-anticipated 2017 sequel Alien: Covenenant, in which he has an undisclosed supporting role. (A trailer released Christmas Eve suggests captain of the titular spaceship.)

Crudup has reinvented himself as a character actor  though not with ease and not, it should be said, without regret.

It started, more or less, where Mastercard ended. Shortly after his long run as credit-card pitchman ended a few years ago  a gig so lucrative he once addressed the audience from the stage of a Broadway play sponsored by a rival card with I wanted to say thank you American Express for tonight, and thank you Mastercard for my career  Crudup headed out to Los Angeles for a round of meetings. The idea was that the meaty indie and Broadway roles he enjoyed  he was nominated for or won a Tony four times between 2002 and 2011 wouldnt pay the bills.

More important, they wouldnt keep him in the minds of the people who could hire him for the jobs that would pay the bills.

I remember when I got out there. It was like, Hi, Im Billy Crudup, and Im still acting. Because lets face it, if youre doing a lot of theater work its tantamount to quitting or rehab.

Useful experiences

The experience proved sobering, even as it also helped chart a course for his next phase.

Those meetings  I dont know if absurdity would have been the word. If youre an actor you have to make friends with the experience of being humbled repeatedly even if you had success. But it was useful. Its made me hungry again, in a different way.

Those new appetites power his latest work. Though a far cry in more ways than one from standing atop a Topeka, Kan., house proclaiming I am a Golden God (watch that Almost Famous clip five times and try not to watch it a sixth), Crudup has earned his standout moments in these works.

In Women, he provides a complex male counterpoint to the feminism swirling around him, too macho to fully understand the changes at hand but too much a product of a counterculture not to register his ignorance. In one linchpin scene, he and a drifter bohemian played by Greta Gerwig engage in a power-shifting sexual tango that has him both evincing masculinity and coming to terms with its limits.

In another scene, he offers some dead-on lines, a number of them improvised, at a dinner-table conversation about menstruation.

Jackie offers a different forum, one in which he plays both an audience surrogate and a cat-and-mouse game in which he is most certainly not the feline. Larrain, who directed Crudup over a course of just three shooting days, said that he thought the actor subtly signaled character development in his quick-hit scenes.

The reporter character is someone who feels uncomfortable and doesnt buy everything Jackie is selling, but at the end he understood who hes in front of, just like the audience does, Larrain said by phone from his home in Chile recently. That kind of performance is what Billy does so well  not always somebody you like but someone you can come to agree with.

For all these supporting-actor moments, Crudups prospects may be somewhat dinged by his unwillingness to do press. That media reluctance has made him less of a household name  and consequently less bankable as a potential hire.

Though a charming and garrulous presence whod likely do well on the late-night and morning-show circuits, he rarely appears on them.

It always seems to me that being an actor is working really hard so people forget the person and only think of the character. And being on those shows is about reminding audiences of the person. It means you need to work that much harder [on set] to convince them of the character. And I always think, Im already working as hard as I can.

Indeed, an elusiveness trails Crudup, whose personal life and even professional choices can remain cloudy. Quick, what were the last three movies he starred in? Spotlight, The Stanford Prison Experiment and a rare leading part in school-shooter drama Rudderless is the answer, a notable trio that might prompt a forehead-slap of recognition after youve heard them but ones you might have struggled to name in the first place.

When the proprietor of the restaurant where the interview was taking place  a spot where he happened to shoot a scene in the 2005 family dramedy Trust the Man, directed by his good pal Bart Freundlich stopped by with a dessert in honor of that movie, he quipped: You could write that that kind of recognition happens all over town.

Then he added, almost sheepishly, It doesnt really happen all over town.

He also hints that his acting career may have been affected by the now-infamous tabloid stories of 2003, when he left longtime girlfriend Mary-Louise Parker for Claire Danes when Parker was pregnant with his son.

Crudup does not make explicit reference to that incident, but it, or at least its fallout, clearly still weighs on him.

I went through a period of time when I was offered a certain kind of character. Charles Manson. David Koresh. Jeffrey Dahmer, he said. I think the worst was Hitler. And I kept thinking I dont want to play the devil this time. Thanks, though. Im not interested in playing them because its not complicated. Im not interested in darkness. Im interested in the lightness through the morass.

He paused. Not that I havent behaved like an  he said, using a seven-letter synonym for jerk. Thats common to human experience, and maybe Ive done that as a public figure in a way thats hard to handle. But thats part of existence  dealing with frailties.

That typecasting as the slickster, and a general perfectionism, has led him to turn down roles, a position he has also begun to reevaluate in recent years.

Ive tried to take more agency in what I choose, so that even if something doesnt have the complexity, I tried to find the most interesting thing about it and make the material what I want it to be instead of saying I dont want to do it.

Larrain said he actually thinks Crudups edge, far from limiting him, is part of his appeal.What I like about Billy [as an actor] is hes someone whos extremely charming and at the same time he can be extremely dangerous, said the director. Hes someone whos very hard to grab and say exactly who he is.

Crudup says hes not sure that hard-to-pin-down quality has always worked to his advantage in mainstream Hollywood. But hes hopeful that hell experience some kind of midcareer renaissance just the same. I keep joking that my 50s will really be my decade.

See the most-read stories in Entertainment this hour 

On Twitter: @ZeitchikLAT

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The sheer scale of the migration crisis in Europe, the largest since World War II, can make it easy for many of us, particularly in the United States, to view the issue as a distant abstraction.

It often takes an individual tragedy, particularly one conveyed through potent imagery  like the photo of the body of Alan Kurdi, the 3-year-old Syrian boy who drowned attempting to cross to safety in Greece in 2015  to awaken public consciousness.

On Tuesday, PBS Frontline presents Exodus, a two-hour special documenting the experiences of refugees fleeing Syria, Afghanistan and Gambia for what they hope will be safety and prosperity in Europe. Directed by James Bluemel, the film provides a powerful first-person perspective of refugee journeys over many months, thousand of miles and dozens of international borders.

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Fittingly, the special arrives two days after Christmas, a holiday celebrating the birth of a child whose parents were fleeing persecution. Exodus avoids delving into the fraught politics surrounding the migration crisis, which helped fuel the United Kingdoms Brexit vote to leave the European Union and has emboldened the nationalist right across the continent. The only Islamic extremists mentioned in Exodus are the ones back in Syria.

Instead, the documentary tells intimate, personal stories of decent people caught in dire circumstances well beyond their control. It offers a vital counterpoint to often dehumanizing rhetoric about bowls of Skittles and comprehensive Muslim bans.

TV news may be increasingly substance-free these days, but Frontline continues to be the exception to the rule.

The film cuts between five subjects, who seem carefully chosen to represent an array of experiences. All are Muslim and relatively young, and most are men, but otherwise their circumstances, personalities and backgrounds vary.

Israa is a plucky 11-year-old girl whose home in Aleppo, Syria, was destroyed by bombs. She is traveling with her family, including a disabled sister and her kindly father, Tarek, who used to run a falafel shop.

She is one of three Syrians featured in the documentary. The others are Hassan, a former English teacher from Damascus, and Ahmad, a student whose wife and daughter remain in their home village, which has been overtaken by militants. Both men speak impeccable English, are well-educated and do not seem vulnerable in any particular way, except they happen to be from Syria. As Hassan observes, Anyone can become a refugee.

Exodus also includes two subjects from elsewhere in the world. Alaigie journeys to Italy from Gambia in West Africa in search of work to support his younger siblings, while Sadiq, an electrician, flees the Taliban in Afghanistan with dreams of relocating to Finland.

The film, expertly shot in large part by Bluemel, includes harrowing footage, some of it captured on smartphones by the refugees themselves, aboard overcrowded dinghies or stuffed into rickety vans with broken doors. (Smartphones play a major role in Exodus, helping the refugees track their progress and keep in touch with family members.)

Much attention has been paid to the dangers of crossing the sea, but it is just one of the obstacles faced by the refugees in Exodus. Alaigie is held for $1,000 ransom in Libya; Hassan spends months in the squalid camp known as The Jungle in Calais, France; Ahmad stows away in the back of a freight truck, sitting motionless for days to avoid detection. (Never mind the bigotry and red tape they have to deal with once theyve finally reached their destinations.)

The documentary highlights the ruthlessness of the smugglers and human traffickers who callously exploit the desperate masses. Alaigie and nearly 30 others are packed into the back of a pickup truck designed to hold 10 people for a four-day journey across the Sahara Desert. When the truck begins to sink in the sand from the excessive load, the smugglers dump the remaining water.

The word sympathy, hes not having that in his blood, Alaigie says of his driver, in broken but strangely poetic English. (Later, he observes that in Libya, gun is their food.)

As one might expect, Exodus sometimes makes for wrenching viewing. At the border between Serbia and Croatia, Israas family and hundreds of other refugees are blocked from passage and forced to sleep in the mud. Several children freeze to death. Hassan sobs recalling how he was savagely beaten by pro-government forces in Syria.

For all its emphasis on life and death, Exodus also includes moments of joy, humor and everyday trivialities. Sadiq sifts through a pile of donated clothes, casting aside articles he deems too feminine; like any preteen, Israas biggest concern is the safety of her smartphone. The true accomplishment of Exodus is that it never loses sight of what makes each of its subjects human.

TV news may be increasingly substance-free these days, but Frontline continues to be the exception to the rule, consistently producing some of the most worthwhile journalism in any medium. Exodus is yet another example of its urgent reporting.

Frontline: Exodus

Where: KOCE

When: 9 p.m. Tuesday

Rating: TV-PG (may be unsuitable for young children)

On Twitter: @MeredithBlake

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There are many ways to express your patriotism. But Thomas Ski Demski did it big.

Demski, a Long Beach Navy veteran of the Korean War and manufacturer of bumper stickers, gained national attention in 1980 by unveiling  with help from members of the armed forces and veterans  a 42-by-75-foot American flag in the street outside his home.

As The Times reported back then:

The flag Demski has been flying in front of his Long Beach home on special occasions just wasnt big enough, he said Tuesday. It was only 30 by 50 feet, or 1,500 square feet.

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So for Veterans Day, Demski decided to hoist a flag twice as large, one that would, according to flag experts, be the largest ever to fly from a pole.

It weighs about 150 pounds, cost $2,120 and took six employees of the Aureli Flag Co. in Torrance one week to make.

Demski said he will fly this gigantic Old Glory until the end of the week, then take it down and not raise it again until the American hostages are freed by Iran  unless, of course, an important national holiday should intervene ...

Demski pointed out that the metal eagle atop the pole has a 4-foot wingspan. The whole pole, he said, has been christened The Pole by a fellow Pole, Father Frank Wanek of St. Patricks Catholic Church in North Hollywood.

Demski said that some neighbors and business people in his area have complained about his penchant for flying big flags, but I just dont talk to them.

What really pleased me, Demski said, was when a little old lady came up to me when I was flying the 30-by-50 footer and said: Youve brought a new meaning to my life. Im 87 and used to never go out of my apartment. But now Ive got something to go out and look at.

Demski would commission larger flags. On June 14, 1993  Flag Day  Demski unfurled his 255-by-505-foot Super flag. The flag filled a portion of the Mall in front of the Washington Monument. At the time, the flag was the worlds largest, making the Guinness Book of World Records.

Demski died in 2002. His Los Angeles Times obituary is online: Thomas Demski, 72; Owned Largest U.S. Flag.
You help killer cops, you help killer cops!

As the chant rumbled through a packed community center in South L.A. recently, Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey stared at the people pointing their fingers at her. Youre a race traitor, one woman screamed. A betrayal, an accomplice to murder.

When she finally addressed the crowd members at a town hall meeting on race and the criminal justice system, Lacey told them she understood their anger. A little boy screamed at her from the front row, No, you dont! Her shoulders slumped and Lacey asked them to give her a chance. They booed and demanded her resignation.

The recent event illustrated the intense pressure on Lacey  the countys first black district attorney  to take a tougher stance in prosecuting police officers who use force against civilians, particularly African Americans.

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In her latest test, Lacey has to decide whether to file charges in two high-profile killings of black men by police, including one in which Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck has publicly urged her to prosecute the officer who shot an unarmed man in the back near the Venice boardwalk last year.

The decisions, and the larger issue of how prosecutors deal with police force, weigh heavily on the otherwise popular Lacey, who this year became the countys first district attorney to win reelection without a challenger in 60 years.

Her office has not filed charges against an officer in an on-duty shooting in more than 15 years, long before she took the helm. But Lacey has drawn especially forceful criticism from some African American activists who say they feel she has failed them.

For her part, Lacey says she has a deep-rooted respect for police but also a clear view of their historical abuse of black people and how that influence carries into the present. After police shootings, she said her mind often jumps to the same question: Was it racially motivated?

Who could not think about that? she said in an interview, adding that she always looks for assumptions in cases, especially those involving people of color. She recently announced new mandatory training for prosecutors in how to avoid implicit racial biases.

Some civil rights advocates say its unfair to blame Lacey, individually, for a system that trains prosecutors to view law enforcement as the good guys and then expects them to look at officers as potential suspects in force cases.

The culture of the D.A.s office is to circle the wagons around cops who you need to make your cases. Thats human nature, said longtime civil rights attorney Connie Rice, adding that she believes Lacey is one of the fairest prosecutors shes met.

Beyond that, Rice said, officers have wide latitude under the law in use-of-force encounters. Officers cant be held criminally liable if they acted reasonably and genuinely feared for their safety when they fired their weapons  an extremely tough thing for prosecutors to disprove.

Some of Laceys critics have contrasted her inaction to the decisiveness of Marilyn J. Mosby, Marylands state attorney for Baltimore. Mosby moved quickly to file criminal charges against six officers just two weeks after Freddie Gray, a young black man, suffered a fatal spinal injury while in police custody. But all of the officers were acquitted or had their charges dropped.

Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson  whose South L.A. district is considered the heart of the citys black community  said hes never heard any complaints about Lacey. The real problem, he said, is shootings by officers are investigated by their own departments.

It is the equivalent of the police stopping me and saying, Let me see your license, and me saying No, but I have it. Trust me, Harris-Dawson said.

Tritobia Ford speaks on the one-year anniversary of her son Ezell Ford, who was killed in 2014. The L.A. district attorney has yet to announce whether her office will charge two LAPD officers who shot him. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times )

But Dermot Givens, a political consultant and defense attorney, said Lacey deserves criticism. Givens said some of the citys African American residents feel betrayed by her decisions not to file charges against officers in controversial cases. Almost worse, he said, is her sluggishness in announcing whether shell file charges. The delays, Givens said, can only be explained as damage control.

Jackie Lacey is just quiet  silent  and hopes it all blows over, Givens said. Thats terrible, absolutely terrible, for an elected official.The buck stops with her.

Lacey came to power in 2012, shortly before the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, which rekindled a national debate over race and policing.

Last year, civil rights activists lambasted her for not prosecuting Daniel Andrew, a white California Highway Patrol officer seen on video repeatedly punching a mentally ill black woman on the 10 Freeway. Laceys office concluded the officer was required to use some level of force to keep Marlene Pinnock out of freeway traffic for her own safety.

Danny J. Bakewell Sr., executive publisher of the Los Angeles Sentinel, the citys largest black-owned newspaper, said at the time that her decision was unbelievable. No one who has seen the video tape needed a bias report to determine that the beating suffered by Ms. Pinnock was criminal, he told his newspaper. It was clearly a use of excessive force.

Lacey has also drawn criticism for not yet announcing whether her office will charge two LAPD officers who shot and killed Ezell Ford, a mentally ill African American man who was stopped while walking home in South L.A. The Aug. 11, 2014, shooting came just two days after the controversial killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., and stoked protests over the deaths of black men by law enforcement.

Beck, the police chief, deemed the shooting justified, saying Ford had tried to grab an officers gun during a fierce struggle. The citys Police Commission, however, decided that one of the officers had used such flawed tactics in the moments leading up to the shooting that his use of deadly force was ultimately unjustified.

Lacey has said prosecutors needed additional time to review evidence from a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Fords family before they can make a decision.

Her office is still reviewing a recommendation Beck made a year ago that Lacey prosecute Officer Clifford Proctor for shooting a 29-year-old man in Venice in May 2015. The LAPD chief said video evidence contradicted Proctors claim that he thought Brendon Glenn was reaching for his partners gun during a struggle with the officers. Glenn, who was unarmed, was shot in the back.

Civil rights activists and family members of people killed by police gather in front of the Hall of Justice to call for Jackie Laceys resignation. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times )

Lacey, 59, says her role in deciding criminal charges, as well as who she is as a person, have often been misunderstood.

She grew up in Los Angeles Crenshaw neighborhood in the 1960s and 1970s. She remembers seeing signs of violence all around  police once found a womans body on the corner near her home. She learned to look over her shoulder as she walked and said she didnt realize, until moving to Irvine for college, that not everybody had bars on their windows for protection.

In 1983  when Lacey was in her late 20s  someone spray-painted graffiti on a telephone box at her parents home. Her father painted over it and, before long, while he was mowing the lawn, someone drove by and shot him in the leg, she said. He survived, but the crime remains unsolved.

Her life experiences, Lacey said, shaped a deep respect for police.

People in the community knew, Hey, if somethings going on, call the cops, Lacey recalled.

But she also knew from a young age that it was a complicated relationship.

As a little girl, she said, she remembers watching the demonstrations led by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. on television. She said she can still see the image of police  acting as a shadow force of the Ku Klux Klan  using high-pressure fire hoses and attack dogs on African Americans.

Impossible to forget, Lacey said, wincing. Its recent, so I understand why there would be distrust of the police. I totally understand it.

Before dropping off her son at Howard University in 2000, Lacey said she sat him down for a talk. Living in Washington, D.C., would be different than the sleepy Southern California neighborhood where hed grown up. Because he was a 6-foot-4 -inch black man, she reminded him that the police would always watch him extra close. No matter what, she told him, dont challenge them.

If anything ever happens, she warned him, just please do what they say. Dont start saying, My mother is a lawyer. My mother is a prosecutor.

She returned to Los Angeles and did her best not to worry. Then, one day, she got a call from her son. He sounded shaken and told her that hed been out for a walk with friends  other black men  when police swarmed around them, forcing them to lay face down on the ground. They spread their arms, her son told her, and waited as the officers patted them down. The officers eventually told Laceys son and his friends that there had been a robbery nearby and that they had fit the description of the suspects.

I was just kind of glad he got out of that without Lacey said, stopping short of mentioning a shooting. When you think about it: They have guns and you dont.

This year, Lacey became the countys first district attorney to win reelection without a challenger in 60 years. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times )

Lacey said she also understands the publics gut reactions to police killings, especially ones captured on camera, because she, too, often finds herself making quick judgments after watching the news.

Take the South Carolina case of a white officer who fatally shot Walter Scott, a black man, in the back, while he was running away, or the choking death, of Eric Garner in New York City. Lacey said both stories disturb her, but that those cases differ from the ones in her jurisdiction in an important way: She doesnt have all the evidence.

Its one thing to judge as a human being  to look at something and have a judgment, she said. Its another thing to be the top prosecutor.

For L.A. County cases, Lacey said she feels an obligation to reserve judgment and take as much time as she needs to methodically check the facts before applying the law. So far, she said, when shes done that, shes felt compelled not to file charges.

Back at the town hall in South L.A. in October, activists demanded charges against the officers who shot Ford. They chanted his name.

As a woman handed out fliers  which read Lacey will prosecute people who leave their dogs in their car, but not Cops who Kill people!!  a group of LAPD officers watched from a few feet away. Lacey stood with her hands clasped and frequently blinked, breaking her somber expression.

When the father of a man killed by a sheriffs deputy spoke, he asked Lacey if she worked alongside Satan. And at one point, as the shouting grew louder, an organizer asked a respected pastor to bless the meeting.

Father, we ask you for justice, he prayed. Lacey, who wears a WWJD  What would Jesus do?  bracelet around her right wrist, nodded, mouthing, Amen.

When she took the microphone, it was dark outside and she was flustered.

Good afternoon, she said, catching herself. Or, good evening.

As she spoke about her job being misunderstood, the audience booed her. Her voice grew quieter, and she started to shift her weight from foot to foot  a woman told her friend that Lacey looked like a scared rabbit.

Im just one woman, she said, whos trying to follow the law, whos trying to listen, whos trying to do the right thing.

Eventually, Ebony Fay  a supporter of Black Lives Matter  took the microphone. After addressing the district attorney as Sister Lacey, Fay explained that shed voted for her in 2012 because she had faith in her and thought shed be fair. Now, Fay said, all she felt was disappointment. She had expected more empathy she told Lacey, from someone who looks like her.

Fay paused, locking eyes with Lacey: When  not if  but when this city burns, it will be your fault.

The crowd roared and Lacey stood, with her hands folded across her chest, and shot back: You have been incredibly patronizing and insulting.

Then, she walked out of her own town hall meeting.

marisa.gerber@latimes.com

For more news from the Los Angeles County courts, follow me on Twitter: @marisagerber

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When Brendon Glenn arrived in Venice, he was quickly captivated by one of L.A.s most memorable spots, an eclectic stretch of beach that has long attracted travelers like the 29-year-old.

The New York native was on a yearlong trip to find work and adventure in California, where he marveled at the abundant sunshine and fresh avocados. In Venice, he found people who, like him, loved to skateboard and spend time on the sand.

Theres a really fantastic beach, Glenn told his mother during one of their regular phone calls. Venice Beach.

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Within days, Glenn was shot and killed by a Los Angeles police officer, stirring anger far beyond the beachside community and rekindling the long-running national debate over policing. Much of that scrutiny has focused on police shootings of black and brown men. Glenn was black, as was the officer who shot him.

Glenns death prompted a $4-million legal settlement with his family and a recommendation from Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck that prosecutors charge the officer who shot him  the first time as chief that Beck has suggested criminal charges against an officer in a fatal on-duty shooting.

As the district attorneys office weighs whether to prosecute, Glenns mother and sister describe their still-lingering disbelief that he is dead, their desire to see the officer behind bars and their frustration that Glenn is largely known, at least in Los Angeles, as little more than an unarmed homeless man shot by police.

Glenn was an adventurer who wasnt afraid of a challenge, they said, someone who was willing to help or talk to just about anyone. He loved cracking jokes and Cinnamon Toast Crunch. He was close to his family, attending each of his younger sisters graduation ceremonies.

People dont seem to know what type of an individual he was, said Glenns sister, Brittany. That hurts to the core.

Brittany Glenn said the chiefs comments, along with the Police Commissions decision earlier this year that the shooting was unjustified, proved that the killing was wrong. But that doesnt change the fact that her brother is gone, she said.

Thats the part where us, the family members, are left grieving and wondering whats going to happen as a result of this, she said. What is the punishment going to be?

The night Glenn was killed, Officer Clifford Proctor and his partner responded to a complaint that a homeless man was harassing customers outside a Windward Avenue restaurant, police said. Glenn started to walk away when they first approached, so they decided not to arrest him, according to a report from Beck that was made public this year.

Then Glenn headed to a nearby bar, where he yelled at patrons and started scuffling with a bouncer, the report said. The officers walked over, planning to take Glenn into custody.

One grabbed Glenns arm and told him to turn around, the report said. Glenn refused, so the officers took him to the ground.

At one point, Proctor told investigators, he saw Glenns hand on his partners holster and thought he was trying to grab the officers gun, according to the report. Proctor then opened fire, hitting Glenn in the back.

Sheri Camprone, left, is overcome with emotion as she talks about her son Brendon Glenn, 29, who was killed last year by an LAPD officer in a shooting that continues to draw headlines. At right is Glenns sister, Brittany Glenn. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times )

But security video from the bar and statements from Proctors partner disputed his account and did not indicate Glenn was reaching for the gun, the report said. The video has not been made public.

Proctor was relieved of duty and has not returned to work since the shooting. His attorney did not return messages seeking comment.

The shooting rattled Venice, particularly the young, homeless people whom Glenn camped with on the beach. After the shooting, as investigators combed the scene, Glenns friends held signs with his name outside the yellow police tape. They later packed a town hall meeting, criticizing police.

They were scared to death, said Timothy Pardue, who worked at a drop-in center down the street from where Glenn was shot. They all thought it could happen to any of them.

Glenn stopped by the center every day for about a month, Pardue said, grabbing food or fresh clothes, using the computer and getting help with his resume. Pardue was trying to help Glenn find work around the time he was killed.

That night, Glenn stopped by a meeting at the center, Pardue said. Glenn told him he had spent most of the day drinking  it was Cinco de Mayo  but soon broke down in tears, saying he missed his mother and son.

A few hours later, Pardue said, he heard the gunshots.

They could have pepper-sprayed him. They could have tased him, Pardue said. They could have done anything but shoot him.

People who knew Brendon Glenn gathered at the yellow police tape surrounding the shooting scene hours after he was killed. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times )

They could have pepper-sprayed him. They could have tased him. They could have done anything but shoot him.  Timothy Pardue, who knew Brendon Glenn through a Venice drop-in center

Though Glenn stayed on the beach, his family rejects the idea that he was homeless. He had a place to stay with a childhood friend in San Diego, they said, and a home with his tightknit family in New York. Venice was a temporary stop.

He was also the kind of person who thrived outside, they said. Glenn and his sister went to summer camp for about a decade, she said, where he rode a mountain bike up Mt. Washington  the highest peak in the Northeast. But that wasnt enough, Brittany Glenn said. Her brother then gathered a group of boys who carved canoes out of weathered tree trunks.

He was an adventurer at heart, Brittany Glenn said. He wasnt frightened by a challenge.

Glenn left New York for California in August 2014 to find work, his family said, encouraged by the friend who lived in San Diego. After the new year, Glenn moved to a farm outside Sacramento, where he lived and worked for about three months before he left and stopped in Venice on his way back to San Diego.

Cathy Suematsu and her partner own the farm, where Glenn pruned fruit trees, built a deck at a community building and hung sheet rock in an old homesteaders cabin. He also helped take care of Suematsus young children, she said, reading them books and going on walks.

After he died, Suematsu said, people who knew him from the farm held a vigil. They also sent a letter to Beck, saying they were upset that Glenn had been killed.

I never saw him be violent or aggressive, Suematsu said. I couldnt imagine that somebody could justify killing him.

A photo of Brendon Glenn, 29, shared by his family. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times )

Sheri Camprone, 60, said her son wouldnt hesitate to help others. He shoveled their neighbors driveways when it snowed. He worked as a lifeguard in high school. When he was a teenager, he moved in with his ailing great-grandmother to help care for her.

After Glenn went to California, Camprone said, they would video chat every Sunday, when Glenns son Avery, then 3, was at her house. When he worked on the farm, Glenn had to drive a few miles just to get a signal strong enough to call.

Make sure you listen to Gigi while Im gone, Glenn would say, using Averys name for Glenns mother.

Glenn had most recently been paving and repairing roads for the city of Troy, N.Y., but was looking for work when he decided to head west. It was difficult for him to leave his son and go to California, Camprone said. But he thought the state would give him the opportunities to find good work. The plan, Camprone said, was for Glenn to stay for a year, then come home to New York.

It was tough on all of us for him to leave, she said. But it seemed like it was going to be a good thing for him.

Camprone last spoke to her son a few days before his death.

Im coming home, he told her. I miss my son too much.

All right. Come home, hon, she replied. Were here.

Camprone and her daughter said they were hurt by what they described as a lack of response from the city after Glenn was killed. They said they havent heard from the Police Department about the shooting or the investigation, despite the chiefs comments to the media.

Its like we dont exist, Camprone said.

When asked about the familys remarks, a spokesman for the LAPD said in a statement that the police chief still believes Proctor should be criminally charged over the shooting, again calling it an unjustified use of deadly force against Glenn.

The LAPD is sorry for his untimely death and deeply regrets the pain his family has suffered from this profound loss, the statement said.

The LAPD is sorry for his untimely death and deeply regrets the pain his family has suffered from this profound loss.  LAPD statement on the fatal shooting of Brendon Glenn

Brittany Glenn is now 29, the same age her brother was when he was killed. She thinks about the moments hell miss  her upcoming wedding, her future children. Camprone struggles to explain her sons death to her 4-year-old grandson, who still asks when his father is coming home.

The family left an empty chair for Brendon Glenn at the table during their Thanksgiving meal, in between his mother and sister. The tears still come without warning, they said. At Wal-Mart. Or at the grocery store.

Its the worst thing to go through in your life, to lose your child, Camprone said. Brendon didnt have to die.

Click here for a Spanish version of this story

kate.mather@latimes.com

Follow me on Twitter: @katemather

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Riverside police shot and later arrested a 24-year-old man after he attempted to ram a car into officers during a pursuit early Monday, authorities said.

Two Riverside Police Department officers were on patrol near Orange and Spruce streets about 12:15 a.m. when they attempted to stop a vehicle that had been reported stolen, according to a department press release.

The driver, Ryan Rodriguez, led police on a chase before losing control and striking a curb near Main and Spruce streets, the release said.

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The officers repeatedly ordered the driver to get out of the car, but he accelerated in reverse toward the officers, police said. An officer shot the driver, who continued driving before losing control of the vehicle again.

Police said the driver then ran away and was later found hiding inside a car in the backyard of a residence. Rodriguezs gunshot wound was non-life-threatening, police said. No officers were injured.

Rodriguez, a Riverside resident, will be charged with assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer and was booked into the Riverside County Jail, police said.

brittny.mejia@latimes.com

Twitter: @Brittny_Mejia

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Ed Reinecke, the California lieutenant governor who resigned after being convicted of perjury in a Watergate-era scandal, died Saturday in Laguna Hills.

He was 92 and died of natural causes, said his son, Mark Reinecke.



For the record: The subject of a photo that appeared with an earlier version of this obituary was incorrectly identified as Ed Reinecke. It was Robert Finch, Reineckes predecessor as Californias lieutenant governor.

Reinecke was a protege of then-Gov. Ronald Reagan, who appointed him to be the states second-in-command in 1969.

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Reinecke had risen quickly in Republican politics, winning a seat in Congress in 1964 as a 40-year-old businessman with no political experience. The plainspoken Caltech graduate, who once called the House of Representatives a posh pigeonhole, made no secret of his aspirations to be governor and ran in 1974 while still serving as lieutenant governor.

He doggedly continued his campaign after he was indicted for allegedly lying about conversations with Richard Nixons attorney general, John Mitchell, about an offer from a telecommunications company to underwrite the 1972 Republican National Convention.

By the time Reinecke was convicted on July 28, 1974, of a single count of perjury, he had lost the primary to Houston Flournoy, who was later defeated by Democrat Jerry Brown. Reinecke clung to his position as lieutenant governor until half an hour before he received an 18-month suspended sentence.

In handing down the sentence, the federal judge called Reinecke a victim of your own selfish ambition.

I still do not feel that I am guilty, Reinecke told the judge.

The conviction was eventually overturned because of a technicality: the Senate Judiciary Committee had not officially published a rule permitting a one-man quorum, and the special Watergate prosecutor had not established that more than one senator attended the hearing.

Howard Edwin Ed Reinecke was born in Medford, Ore., and grew up in Southern California, graduating from Beverly Hills High School in 1942.

After serving as a Navy radioman during World War II, he obtained a mechanical engineering degree from Caltech, then founded an irrigation manufacturing company with his siblings.

Reinecke triumphed in his first political contest in a San Fernando-Antelope Valley district where Democrats outnumbered Republicans by 40,000.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, he attributed his win to old-fashioned, handshaking, razzle-dazzle campaigning.

As lieutenant governor  a job in which it can be difficult to make news  Reinecke championed coastal protection, worked to boost aerospace employment and pushed for reforms in the University of California system.

But his accomplishments and political acumen were overshadowed by an emerging scandal.

On April 19, 1972, Reinecke testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee, which was investigating whether Mitchell knew about the $400,000 pledge from the telecommunications company ITT before the Justice Department settled three antitrust disputes with the company.

Reinecke had been lobbying for the convention to be in San Diego, where ITT Sheraton Corp. was opening a new hotel.

Mitchell told the Senate Committee that he found out about the ITT pledge from Reinecke six weeks after the antitrust settlements. Reinecke supported that account in his own testimony.

But Reinecke also acknowledged publicly that he had briefed Mitchell by phone about the ITT pledge months before the settlements. Reinecke said the discrepancy occurred because senators asked about face-to-face meetings, not phone calls.

Prosecutors argued that Reinecke lied to protect Mitchell, in hopes that Mitchell would help Reinecke become governor.

After Reineckes downfall, Reagan remained loyal to his former lieutenant, soliciting funds to help him pay his legal bills.

Im sure, like most of us, you agree that Ed was  and is  a victim of circumstances and Watergate, Reagan said in his appeal to donors. This year its our turn to help a man we all know to be a fine Christian and loyal husband.

Reinecke retreated to his Sacramento-area cattle ranch, working in real estate and running a restaurant. In 1983, he re-emerged as a political force when he was elected chairman of the state Republican Party.

At Reagans funeral in 2004, Reinecke and his wife, Jean, had a private moment with the casket before members of the public entered, an indication of the two mens closeness.

Asked to sum up the former presidents legacy, Reinecke said: I think it was the philosophy of government, that it should be of and for the people, rather than of and for the government. He just turned the whole thing around.

Reinecke is survived by four children, 11 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

cindy.chang@latimes.com

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California should pay reparations to victims of its eugenics-based sterilization programs, which took away the reproductive abilities of about 20,000 people in the first half of the 20th century, researchers said in a new study.

In particular, Mexican immigrants were disproportionately affected by those programs. And overall, an estimated 800 victims may still be alive today, according to the paper, which was released last week.

Given the advanced age and declining numbers of sterilization survivors, time is of the essence for the state to seriously consider reparations, said Alexandra Stern at the University of Michigan, the studys lead author.

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Nationwide, Virginia and North Carolina have set up funds to compensate survivors of sterilization programs that were based on the eugenics movement.

Followers of the eugenics campaign believed that people they deemed genetically unfit shouldnt be allowed to reproduce. The American movement was a model and inspiration for the atrocities that took place in Nazi Germany, experts have documented.

California led the United States in the number of sterilizations during that movement; about a third of such procedures in the nation happened there. Its unclear how active the programs were in San Diego County.

Californias law permitting the sterilizations was passed in 1909 and remained on the books until 1979. In 2003, Gov. Gray Davis issued a brief official apology on behalf of the state.

To the victims and their families of this past injustice, the people of California are deeply sorry for the suffering you endured over the years, he wrote. Our hearts are heavy for the pain caused by eugenics. It was a sad and regrettable chapter  one that must never be repeated.

Lawmakers fears of the growing numbers of Mexicans and Mexican Americans in California led to disproportionate use of sterilization on Mexican-origin youths, said Natalie Lira, a researcher on Sterns team and an assistant professor at the University of Illinois.

Stereotyping of Mexicans during the eugenics movement made its way into immigration laws, political discourse and popular media  and it persists today, Lira and Stern said. They noted that the National Origins Act, passed in 1924, was influenced by the California movement. The federal legislation created immigration quotas, including reductions in the number of people allowed into this country from areas outside of northern Europe.

Eugenicists believed young Mexican women were promiscuous and that young Mexican men were criminals by nature.

Lira said Mexican women also were thought of as hyperfertile, which added to eugenicists fears that they would have many children and harm the American gene pool. These women were frequently compared to animals, Lira said.

Young women who had children outside of marriage or who were deemed sexually promiscuous were institutionalized at places such as the Pacific Colony and State Narcotics Hospital in Pomona, as were young men who committed minor violations or crimes, including school truancy and petty theft, Lira said. Many of the institutionalized were then sterilized.

In one case, Lira and Stern found a sterilization record from Pacific Colony for Fortuna Valencia, a half Spanish, half Indian California native who had 11 children from two marriages and at some point was referred to the welfare department. Valencia had scored relatively high on her IQ test, according to the researchers analysis.

Officials justified her sterilization because she had fully demonstrated that she falls into the feeble-minded group when that group is defined by any sort of social orientation. Thus, Fortuna was sterilized for being a poor Mexican-origin woman with a large family, the researchers wrote in their paper.

What happened to the individuals that were committed to the institutions and sterilized really taught us a lot about how race and disability have been used and continue to be used to justify confinement and reproductive constraints, Lira said.

For example, the Center for Investigative Reporting has reported that at least 148 women were sterilized in state prisons between 2006 and 2010.

kate.morrissey@sduniontribune.com

Morrissey writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune.

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As a woman, astrophysicist Vera Rubin had to fight just to get access to a telescope. What she saw when she did further rattled conventions: galaxies that were rotating more quickly than predicted by the laws of physics.

This movement, she concluded, could be explained if the universe was filled with a type of mass that no one had ever seen, mysterious stuff that came to be known as dark matter.

Her once-startling theory is now an accepted part of the still-evolving story of the universe. Finding firm evidence of dark matter stands as the seminal achievement of a scientist known for breaking barriers and helping others to build on such work.

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Rubin died Sunday at 88 in the Princeton, N.J., area after a long period of declining health, according to family and colleagues. She worked for decades at the Carnegie Institution for Science, headquartered in Washington, D.C.

Although dark matter hasnt been directly observed, scientists widely accept that it makes up about 27% of the universe. That makes it far more abundant than the normal matter that makes up the stars, planets and everything else we can observe, which total 5%. (The bulk of the universe is thought to be made of another mysterious thing called dark energy.)

The concept of dark matter, though long proposed, had limited evidence behind it in the 1970s as Rubin and colleague Kent Ford were studying the subtleties of dim light reaching Earth from distant galaxies across nearly fathomless expanses of space.

They used spectroscopy to examine how quickly galaxies revolved: The light became bluer as one side of a galaxy rotated toward them (compressing the electromagnetic waves) and redder as the other side rotated away (causing the waves to stretch out). But the outer reaches of the galaxies were turning much too fast, according to the physics of gravity. Their rotation should have been much slower if they had only the small amount of mass that they appeared to contain.

This conundrum disappeared, however, if there was much, much more mass in these galaxies, mass that did not emit light and therefore was seemingly invisible, Rubin and Ford theorized in a 1978 paper. Other scientists were reaching similar conclusions through studies of radio waves.

Rubins uncovering of evidence for dark matter revealed that theres much more out there than we would expect based on our common-sense experience, said James Bullock, professor of physics and astronomy at UC Irvine. Today, the standard interpretation is that 80% of matter is in this form thats different than anything that is known to science. And without this dark matter, a lot of other things about the universe dont make sense: Galaxies themselves wouldnt exist; stars wouldnt exist, and we would not exist.

Rubin was born Vera Cooper on July 23, 1928, in Philadelphia. Her father was Pesach Kobchefski, the son of a glove maker from Vilna, Latvia, who immigrated to the United States in the early 1900s. There he became Pete Cooper and eventually an engineer at Bell Telephone, where he met Rose Applebaum, a first-generation American who gave up her career of calculating routes and costs of Bell telephone lines after their marriage.

As a child, Rubin recalled that from my bed against a window, I had a clear view to the north sky. Soon it was more interesting to watch the stars than to sleep.

Her father helped her build a telescope.

She attended Vassar College, where there were no male students to bar her access to the school telescope.

In the summer of 1947, she met Robert J. Rubin through their parents. Hed interrupted college to enlist in the Navy, which sent him to Cornell University for chemistry and officer training. He stayed to complete his doctorate. Robert and Vera married when he was 21 and she 19  and already a college graduate.

Vera Rubin earned her masters degree from Cornell and her doctorate from Georgetown University. She joined Carnegies department of terrestrial magnetism in Washington in 1965.

Standard practice at the time was to bar women from using the nations major telescopes, although one noted colleague slid in under her husbands name. Rubin became the first to break that taboo at Palomar Observatory in San Diego County.

I first observed at Palomar one long dark December night in 1965, she recalled later. My assigned bedroom was on the second floor of the dormitory, and there was a velvet rope at the first floor, blocking the stairs. When an astronomer asked why the rope was there, the answer was because Vera Rubin is upstairs.

She also pressured a club of scientists in Washington to open its doors to women, said longtime colleague Rick Carlson, Carnegies director of terrestrial magnetism.

Sandra Faber, an astronomy professor emerita at UC Santa Cruz, spent a summer working with Rubin and Ford before graduate school.

She was the first woman I encountered at that level, said Faber, a staff astronomer at the multicampus University of California Observatories. She helped me along at various crucial stages during my career. But each young person thinks they had the special relationship with Vera. She had that knack.

Rubin was proud that all four of her children earned doctorates, according to Carnegie. David Rubin is a geologist. Judy Young, who died in 2014, was an astronomer. Karl Rubin is a mathematician, and Allan Rubin is a geologist. Vera Rubins husband, Robert, a mathematician and physicist, died in 2008.

I think its no coincidence that the four children all ended up doing science, Allan wrote in a family memoir. A pervasive early memory of mine is of my mother and father with their work spread out along the very long dining room table, which wasnt used for eating unless a lot of company was expected.

Rubin was the second female astronomer elected to the National Academy of Sciences. In 1993, she received the National Medal of Science, the countrys highest scientific award.

Dont shoot for the stars; we already know whats there, Rubin said wryly in a tweet early this year. Shoot for the space in between because thats where the real mystery lies.

howard.blume@latimes.com

Twitter: @howardblume

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The University of Southern California has a health sciences campus in northeast Los Angeles thats home to the Keck School of Medicine and L.A. County-USC Medical Center but could be so much more: A bioscience hub, a medical tech incubator, an innovation center with enough lab space and support facilities to attract a critical mass of thinkers, inventors, technicians and entrepreneurs, along with the funding to turn ideas and experiments into new life-enhancing pharmaceuticals, medical devices and techniques  and jobs. As it stands now, some of the nations best talent in those fields is educated and trained here, but too often abandons L.A. for regions that offer more support and opportunities. Venture capital flees with them.

Adjacent to the health campus are two large, underused lots where Los Angeles County stores its public works equipment and parks its trucks. If only the county would trade those parcels to USC, university officials say, they could begin to build out a bioscience campus that encompasses that grander vision. Does the county want benefits for the community? Just name them, USC says, and lets work it out.

So whats the holdup?

Talk of a bioscience (or biomed, or biotech  the words are used interchangeably) cluster located in the area between Lincoln Heights and Boyle Heights has been going on (and off) for more than a decade. There have been L.A. County motions, studies and reports, but no deal.

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In that same time, distant academic institutions have joined with municipalities to build medical tech hubs in San Franciscos Mission Bay, on New Yorks Roosevelt Island, and numerous other places besides. L.A. is at risk  and by no means for the first time  of talking big talk about developing its economic and intellectual infrastructure, yet losing out to other places because local politics and arcane decision-making protocols get in the way.

Our worry is that [Solis] and the university are so far apart in their perception of what can and ought to happen...that nothing will happen at all.

Thats a shame. Much of Los Angeles academic, public and business potential is embodied in the parties to this would-be deal, and in other institutions that have much to gain if it moves forward and much to lose if it fails. L.A.s far-flung development patterns have allowed biomed innovators to emerge in various nodes around the county, from Valencia to Torrance to the San Gabriel Valley, but they are missing the benefits of a concentrated center. As it happens, USCs medical campus could be that center.

But its also on a hill, giving the impression of separation from neighboring communities. And that is, in part, the rub. It is easy to see that hill as similar to the islands and bayfronts where other cities co-sponsor tech hubs that are cut off from the adjacent neighborhoods. Although the county and USC have a long relationship through the medical center that is publicly owned but staffed by the university, residents of Boyle Heights complain that they are too often made to feel unwelcome on the rest of the health sciences campus. They have the ear of county Supervisor Hilda Solis, who represents the area and does not want the hill to become a fortress or an ivory tower that shuns its neighbors. If the county is to participate in a project that will offer education, training and employment, Solis wants to ensure that a healthy share of those opportunities go to local residents, who for too long have suffered from income and health disparities.

She makes some legitimate points, but our worry is that the supervisor and the university are so far apart in their perception of what can and ought to happen at and adjacent to the medical campus that nothing will happen at all. That would send a signal to the scientists, physicians, students, entrepreneurs and investors who are looking for the right place to stake their future: Dont look here. It would send a similar signal to other businesses and industries that Los Angeles is exactly the moribund, no-go zone they thought it was.

The good news is that Solis and USC have been meeting and talking informally. University officials say they are receptive to the supervisors concerns. The next step is for Solis and her colleagues on the board to finally open formal negotiations. That would be a signal of a different kind: that Los Angeles leaders recognize the regions potential and are ready to work to realize it.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook.
It takes at least 11 hours of flying for an American tourist to reach the National Park of American Samoa, which is enough to scare away most travelers.

But not Andrea Kalash, a 36-year-old nurse who showed up last year in Pago Pago, eager to hike and determined to complete a much larger mission: to visit every national park.

I wont spend $100 on a pair of jeans. But Ill spend money on travel, she said. Its well worth it.

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In this weird, lost corner of America, the beach of your dreams awaits in our most remote national park 

You might not spot them easily among the more than 300 million visitors who found their way onto National Park Service territory last year, but theres an unrelenting subculture of national park completists like Kalash out there.

Many are history buffs. Most are careful record-keepers who strive to keep their park passport books updated with all the newest locations. About 2,000 of them belong to the National Park Travelers Club, born in 2004.

In a typical year, by the estimate of Scott Burch, superintendent at National Park of American Samoa, about 40 visitors come to Pago Pago as part of a quest to visit all parks.

In fact, the National Park Travelers Club has now honored 43 people for visiting every unit in the system  not just parks but national monuments, seashores, recreation areas, historic districts and more. At the moment, there are 413 units.

Kalash isnt that ambitious. Her quest, begun in 2014, was merely to visit all 59 of the systems full-fledged national parks.

Mountains and flowers and glaciers make me super happy. I just want them to be part of my life. And I really love slot canyons.  Andrea Kalash

She got started when a list of the parks fell into her hands, and she realized she had already seen more than half of them without trying.

She decided to start trying  to see them all by the end of this, the NPS centennial year.

This isnt necessarily a project that family and friends expected from Kalash, who grew up in Duluth, Minn.

But that changed in 2008, when she started taking traveling nurse assignments.

Her first stop was Santa Rosa, Calif. Taking assignments that typically last 13 weeks, Kalash started spending her off-hours seeking hiking trails and open spaces.

I was going to do it for two years, she said.

But it was more absorbing than she expected.

Mountains and flowers and glaciers make me super happy, she said. I just want them to be part of my life. And I really love slot canyons.

At every new park, she found herself eager to drive all the roads and hit every high point. In American Samoa she climbed Mt. Alava, which meant scrambling up rope ladders under a drizzle.

I dont know what it is with me, she said. I always want to accomplish something or have a goal. I love that feeling.

She has been to Yosemite about 15 times. Her favorite state is Utah (which has five national parks and too many slot canyons to count).

The happiest surprise of the project was her four days in Acadia National Park in Maine, because the trails offered so much more than just pretty seashore and because Bar Harbor was such a fetching town.

In some parks she spent a single day. In others, five to seven days. Though she has taken some solo trips, she has shared most with friends or family.

Full series: Celebrating our national parks 

By the end of 2015, she had accepted nursing assignments in California, Hawaii, Utah, Alaska, Arizona, Washington, Oregon, Wyoming, North Carolina, South Carolina and Vermont. She had reached more than 50 parks in 25 states and two territories.

By spring of 2016 she had just five parks to go, all in Alaska, none reachable by road.

In June, Kalash and friend Cheryl Tippie lined up jobs in Anchorage, and Kalash started talking to bush pilots.

By Aug. 10, she had hit all but one of the 59 parks.

On Aug. 11, she and Tippie flew from Anchorage to the remote hamlet of Gustavus, caught a shuttle bus, then met up with a ranger who took them out for a boat tour of Glacier Bay National Park. Mission accomplished.

Kalash jumped in the air for a commemorative snapshot.

As fun as the quest has been, completing it was a huge weight off my shoulders, Kalash said. She estimated that the Alaska part of the project  by far the priciest  cost her close to $7,000. (She has no estimate for the project as a whole.)

She is now daydreaming again about slot canyons and Utah  to be more specific, house-boating on Lake Powell on the Utah-Arizona border. Theres a map of more than 120 slot canyons around the lakes edge, Kalash said, and I would love to see every single one of them.

Follow Reynolds on Twitter: @MrCSReynolds

See travel videos by Reynolds from around the world.

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You are planning a cruise, and you leave Los Angeles to fly to your port. Suddenly you are stuck in Chicago and your hopes of making it to your embarkation point in time are eroding with every tick of the clock. Your nightmare comes true; you dont make it. You shake your fist, literally or figuratively, at the airline and hope it knows its going to pay for what it did (or didnt do). Dont get your hopes up, but do keep your shirt on.

Getting airlines to pony up when things go wrong is challenging in the best of situations, but making them pay for goods and services you missed out on is, some would say, a fantasy.

Heres why: You signed a contract when you bought your airline ticket, and it pretty much says the carriers obligation is to get you from Point A to Point B.

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It doesnt say it will get you there on time. It doesnt even say it will get you there the same day. It doesnt say that just because you reserved Seat 9A, which has the extra legroom, that youll get Seat 9A, the one spot that will keep you from becoming a human pretzel.

Sometimes consumers forget there is an implied and agreed to contract when you fly, said Billy Sanez, founder of the new website goflymore.com, set to make its debut this week.

When we buy  we just  click the yes and dont take the time to read the fine print.

If you read these contracts (or conditions) of carriage, youll pretty quickly discover who holds all of the cards (hint: not you) and who does not (hint: you).

Here is an excerpt from the American Airlines contract. (Were not picking on American, but its contract is clearer than most):

American will endeavor to carry you and your baggage with reasonable dispatch, but times shown in timetables or elsewhere are not guaranteed and form no part of this contract.

Translation: Well try to get you and your bags there approximately when we said we would but if we dont, well, you cant really come after us.

And it goes on to add this: American is not responsible for or liable for failure to make connections, or to operate any flight according to schedule, or for a change to the schedule of any flight. Under no circumstances shall American be liable for any special, incidental or consequential damages arising from the foregoing.

Candygram.

If you read the other airlines contracts or conditions, they say some variation of the same thing, although Southwest tops its contract with this: We dont take our commitments lightly. We are dedicated to doing the right thing  .

But even doing the right thing has some limitations. Those limitations include force majeure, which includes an event no one saw coming. Southwest defines it as acts of God, meteorological events, such as storms, rain, wind, fire, fog, flooding, earthquakes, haze, or volcanic eruption.

It goes on to mention riots, wars and other unpleasantness.

Or, said another way, the world may be blown away by a storm or a hostile event, but that is not the airlines problem; it is yours.

That means if youre sitting on the ground in the Windy City in whiteout conditions and your cruise or tour bus is pulling away from the dock/embarkation point in some sunny part of the world, its nobodys fault except Mother Natures. The airlines are powerful, but theyre not powerful enough to control the weather.

But even in this situation, all is not lost. Here are some ways you may be able to salvage your trip. These points may bring you more psychic than financial relief, but that may be the better reward.

You bought your cruise/tour with the airline instead of buying it on your own.

Airfares always seem to be a bit higher when you buy them as part of a package, and some travelers will buy their own airfare to save money.

But it may not be worth it, Sanez said.

If youre booked as part of the package, the cruise or tour company (which is your advocate) usually will help you get rebooked to the next port or stop.

Airfare booked through a cruise line gives you an opportunity to call one person and to clear up everything, and that sometimes ends up being cheaper, Sanez said.

If you bought your own airfare, Sanez said, the airline may say, Well we got you there, according to the rules of carriage. If its a weather delay, we got you there as soon as we could and if it was mechanical, we got you on the next available.

This is nice, but it doesnt help if youre now faced with making reservations on short notice to, say, the Turks and Caicos in high season.

You used a travel agent/and or you bought travel insurance. What you may need most is an advocate. Besides helping you spend your money wisely, a travel agent is in your corner. Besides travel advice, theyre also being paid to help you out of a jam. Travel agents have connections you can only dream about.

Insurance companies often can help you during your trip, not just before when youve had to cancel, or after when youre trying to collect, with a person who can help when things go wrong.

In either case, make sure you have all your information with you and you have the customer service number handy. Its one of those precautions you hope you never need, but if you do, youll congratulate yourself later for making your own life easier.

Youve been given the gift of calm. Perhaps youre just tranquil by nature; perhaps youve taken anger management classes. We say this not completely in jest, especially if you have neither protection of the cruise or tour company nor the advocacy of a travel agent or insurance company.

Because in most cases, you are on your own.

Keeping your cool is going to be the key to getting your trip back on track, Sanez said.

He knows what hes talking about. Besides having about seven years of experience with the airlines, he has been that person who was desperate to get on a flight home to care for a sick wife. Very different from a trip for pleasure, of course, but the pressure mounts in either case.

Sanez was worried and tense, and it didnt help that the airline closed the flight early.

I got really mad, he said, when no one could or would help him. The gate agent looked at me and walked away, he said.

The first key to turning the tide in any situation, he said, is asking, not demanding. He often tells his kids, Daddy will get you a glass of milk if you ask me instead of telling me to do it.

One of the truths of travel is that people generally wont walk away if you ask nicely for help.

But you must have the presence of mind to stay cool and calm and say, Can you help me out, please? Helping other people usually feels good, and so does being the hero of the story.

When youre talking to a customer service person, the person on the other end of the line didnt cause it and they may not be able to solve it right away, Sanez said. But that person may be able to call a supervisor and say, Hey, listen, can we help this person out? I think its always appealing to the empathetic side of anybody, not ticking off the person whos on the other side of the line or the other side of the Tweet if youre using Twitter.

You probably wont get back a pro-rated payment for the day you missed. But theres nothing to stop you from asking for a few hundred or thousand frequent flier miles or maybe a voucher or two.

Sure, at the end of the day you are swearing you are never going to fly that airline again, so why would you want a voucher or anything that means youll have to do business with the likes of them any time in this lifetime?

Because travel trouble is like the pain of childbirth: You forget in time (probably) so why not derive some benefit from pain and suffering?

Whether youre traveling at the holidays or youre under pressure to get somewhere quickly, the stakes seem unbearably high.

We travel for a purpose, Sanez said. We dont travel to just get up to 35,000 feet. Its either a cruise or a concert you want to go see, or an event somewhere like a wedding  all of that is the reason  we go there.

The one place you dont want to go is crazy. Weve all been there, and as a destination, its the pits. So cancel that reservation. Zen is where its at.

Have a travel dilemma? Write to travel @latimes.com. We regret we cannot answer every inquiry.
LIGO discovery named Sciences 2016 Breakthrough of the Year

staff@latinoshealth.com By Aboki Basira Dec 26, 2016 02:29 AM EST

Science has announced its 2016 Breakthrough of the Year to be the discovery of tiny ripples in spacetime known as gravitational waves. It is a finding that confirmed a century-old prediction by Albert Einstein, described as a "shook the scientific world," according to staff writer Adrian Cho.

Part of the 1,000-member Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) Scientific Collaboration responsible for the discovery are, LSU faculty and graduate students are. Professor Gabriela Gonzalez of LSU department of Physics and Astronomy is the spokesperson for the LIGO international collaboration.

"When the reporters and editors sat down to discuss the big news in science, we did not take long to pick a Breakthrough of the Year," News Editor Tim Appenzeller explained.

There were lots of fantastic discoveries in 2016 including evidence of a new ninth planet and fertile eggs created from stem cells just to name a few, but the discovery of gravitational waves towered over everything. Tim added.

Einstein theorized that whirling concentrations of mass such as two stars orbiting each other would be able to radiate ripples in spacetime, but he thought the gravitational waves would be too minuscule to detect in the days before black holes and neutron stars were discovered.

In February, scientists working with LIGO announced evidence of a burst of waves that created 1.3 billion light years away, when two black holes spiraled into each other.

But physicists are more excited about what may come next, as the waves reveal the collision of two black holes. They believe that findings could provide a new way to observe the universe and also serve as a major tool for astronomers.

The instruments at the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatories, in Livingston, La., and Hanford, Wash., are the only interferometers in the world that have been able to detect gravitational waves, according to Kalb.

The setup of LIGO's two massive detectors includes two arms with mirrors at either end, housed in a large L-shaped vacuum chamber. By bouncing laser light between the mirrors, Scientist would be able to compare the arms' length with razor-sharp precision to within 1/10,000 the width of a proton. They observed the arms were stretched by different amounts, thus indicating a passing gravitational wave.

LIGO has detected a second black-hole merger and a third, weaker, signal. The interferometers resumed taking data last month, and if they are able reach their design sensitivity, they may eventually detect a black-hole merger once a day on average, Cho stated.

LIGO's discovery marks the culmination of a legendary, four-decade-long quest, as researchers have been working on developing, building and improving LIGO since the 70s, without any guarantee that they would ever detect anything.

According to Aaas, other instruments will join LIGO, including detectors from Italy, Japan and India. Three or more detectors working together should be able to detect a gravitational wave source in the sky by triangulation.

It could also help to simultaneously hone in on the same event and possibly even enable conventional telescopes to detect light and other signals from it. The approach could enable astrophysicists to do amazing and unprecedented things, such as probe the properties of neutron-star matter.

Also included in The 2016 Science Breakthrough section is the result of a readers' choice poll, where the public voted on its favorite science breakthrough and declared the human embryos growing in lab culture their winner.

The LIGO Observatories are funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and built and operated by Caltech and MIT. The LIGO Livingston observatory is situated on LSU property. LSU students and research staffs are the major contributors to the 15-nation international LIGO Science Collaboration.

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After the failure of Samsung Note 7, the company needs Galaxy S8 to be big. Samsung has a great deal on their best move with the lines of Galaxy S and the Galaxy Note. However, there are various reports that recommend about the Note 8 will not occur after all, while others guarantee that the Note 8 will be Samsung's huge comeback.

According to INQUISITR, Samsung made an awesome move to catch a huge piece of its market by giving Galaxy S mobile phone for small and conservative, and Galaxy Note phablet for those who needing an additional screen size. Samsung Galaxy Note is the bigger size of Galaxy S, though Galaxy Note 7 was the last line for Galaxy Note series that Samsung drags down a million of dollars and a few claims. However, if Samsung will release another Galaxy S handset, Galaxy Note 8 is in a little bit trouble.

There are rumors that have been circling around about the are leaks of the incoming Samsung Galaxy S8 in accordance with the South Korean sites that have the most believable source of such leaks. Forbes stated, as indicated by the report of South Korea, the standard size of Galaxy S8 will be arriving in a 5-inch display package, while the new Galaxy S8 Plus will have a 6-inch display that is larger than the Note 7 that has 5.7 inches. The said report was referring to a source within Samsung and stated that both S8 models have a curved screen and totally discarded the flat models, which in the line with the previous rumors.

Since the company has always been dependable given the Note line a chance to stand out from the S line by being the biggest phone, it is an intriguing part of Samsung's choice to run the huge S8 Plus. It is indeed that even Note 7 last year had already some negative remarks about the lines between the two lines were obscuring. Currently, the S8 Plus is going totally into Note screen size category along with the Note line's truly tarnished brand name. However, both Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus will be reveal on April in New York.
Just recently, a new tomb was unearthed in Egypt which supports claims of another unknown pharaoh that is yet to reveal himself. The remains have been found right after a portion of the ancient wall has been revealed, thanks to the efforts made by the University of Birmingham.

The recently unearthed tomb has been dated to be at least 4,200-years-old. It is also thought to be functioning as a physical support to another interconnecting tomb where the remains of two ancient Egyptian governors are also found.

Ancient Egypt is revealed once more

According to Science Daily, the recent findings suggest the very likely scenario that the tomb could still have the remains of a mummified pharaoh. To further the findings and information regarding the tomb, the team will undergo another series of excavations next year.

Hopefully next year's excavations would reveal the entirety of interconnected tombs that will open the pandora's box that every archeologist seeks to find. According to Dailymail.co.uk, another ancient encroachment has been found in the team's excavation. The structure stood 6.5 foot and is located near a visitor's pathway near the West Aswan cemetery.

Further excavations to push through

With it, it is then thought to be another structural support for other tombs that are yet to be discovered. Based on the archeological findings, the crushed pieces that were found were once parts of carinated bowls.

These carinated bowls were designed and styled to the likings of King Pepi II who ruled Ancient Egypt from 2278 - 2814 BCE. Surely, the surprising archeological findings would usher in a new era of learning and knowledge that will open us to understanding clearly how the Ancient Egyptians lived. Hopefully, more and more useful details about the excavations would improve our knowledge and wisdom about our ancestors who have helped us become who we are now.
OnePlus 2' latest software update seems to not work and activate as expected by the users. Just a few days back OnePlus rolled out an update for its OnePlus 2 Handsets Oxygen Operating system which turns the device into Oxygen OS version 3.5.5. According to numerous users after downloading and installing the update the device is witnessing frequent network dropping issues Even some have reported to face this problem more than thrice within the interval of a minute.

According to OnePlus forums, majorly an ample number of similar reports are coming from India. Many users from the country who are currently using Reliance Jio Sim in the primary sim slot of the phone and using any of Airtel or Vodafone Network's sim on the other slot (as the smartphone has dual sim slots) facing this network dropping issue terribly. When both the sims are switched on the phone is showcasing either network dropout in the first sim or in the second sim frequently. And this is happening only after enabling the 3.5.5 update.

However, as per GSMArena, there is an alternative way to avoid this terrible issue. To get a flawless network the users need to turn off any of the sims and continue work on the network of the other sim. If any of the sims is switched off while a task is progressing on another sim then this problem will not be seen. But continuing operations with both the sims being switched at once is severely disrupting the phone's network.

Well, as the reports about this issue are flooding over the official community page of OnePlus, the company has also stated their concerns on this issue. OnePlus said that it has had no clue about this network disturbance while rolling out this Oxygen 3.5.5 update.

It has even assured that this issue will be solved as soon as possible and further revealed that the company's developers' team have already started working on to fix this connectivity bug. Potential sources are even suggesting users to not to install this update now until the company rolls out any solution to solve this trouble.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were not just one of the hottest Hollywood couples but were also known to give each other the most lavish gifts. For Brad's 48th birthday and as a Christmas present, Angelina got him a waterfall. The actress knew how 'Mr. Smith' wanted the sound of waterfall and built a house over the waterfall as inspired by American architect, Frank Lloyd. Now that the two is currently embroiled in a nasty divorce and custody battle, fans of the two are asking who gets to have the waterfall house?

Perez Hilton was one of the first to speculate what will actually happen to Brad Pitt's present considering that they are bound for a divorce. The report said that the two were actually known to shower each other with expensive gifts and the waterfall mansion was just one of their presents.

Considering that this is a gift from the 'Tomb Raider' actress then Brad Pitt will surely get to keep the insane present. However it is not yet known what will happen to Angie's presents or to Brad's but what is known so far is that the two still have not settled on child custody. Dividing their assets could be far from their minds right now.

US Magazine explained that the reason why Angelina Jolie gave Brad a waterfall as a birthday present was that the 'Allied' actor always dreamt of a home with the sound of a waterfall moving from under the house. A source said that the actor wanted "to pull all the aspects of nature, light, glass and varying levels into the concept."

The 'Maleficent' actress gave this present after Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi purchased their Malibu home. This present was supposed to top all other presents that she has given him all these years.

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are currently living apart with their divorce and custody battle still at the works. Their six children are with Angelina who was given full custody but Brad is fighting for joint custody and not just therapeutic visits accompanied by a therapist.
The year of 2016 will soon end in the next few days. It would be better to take a look at natural catastrophes that happened throughout the year. There were the snow storm, flood, and so on. However, this year was also marked as the year of earthquakes as some parts of the world were shaken by seismic activity. Here is the list of natural disasters that happened in 2016.

Winter Storm Jonas: It was called "The Storm of The Century". The U.S Northeast was heavily affected by the snowstorm. Airports near Baltimore saw its snow height reaching 74 cm while the town of Glengary, West Virginia got the highest snow, reaching 107 cm. At least 49 people died due to car accidents, hypothermia, carbon monoxide poisoning, as reported by NBC.

Quake in Taiwan: a 6.4-magnitude earthquake rocked Taiwan. The quake killed 116 people, most of the fatalities were caused by the collapse of a high-rise tower, according to local disaster response team.

California Wildfire: In August, California was blazed by a summer wildfire. 565,070 acres (229,000 hectares) had been burned by 6,938 fires as of Dec. 11, based on data from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Flood in Louisiana: While California was affected by summer wildfire, Louisiana was inundated by flooding. Even the Red Cross said the flood was the worst disaster after Hurricane Sandy. There were at least six rivers that broke a record on the water level. The Amite River, for example, saw its water level reaching 1.8 meters. 13 people died from the flood.

Italy's and Myanmar's Earthquake: Still in August, Central Italy was shaken by a 6.2-magnitude quake. The tremor was even felt in Rome. At least 240 were killed. A few hours later, Myanmar was rocked by a 6.8-magnitude quake. The tremor was felt in Thailand, Bangladesh, and India. One person died.

Hurricane Matthew: Hurricane Matthew devastated the Carribean and the Southeast U.S, leading to the massive flood in North Carolina. The death toll reached 43 in the U.S and hundreds in the Carribean.

New Zealand's Quake: In November, New Zealand was trembled by a powerful 7.8-magnitude quake. The epicenter of the quake was located in northeast of Christchurch, but the quake was also felt in the country's capital Wellington. Just two hours after the main tremor, tsunami waves over 3 meters hit the coast. This is the second powerful quake that hit the tiny country. In 2011, New Zealand was hit by a 6.3 quake that killed 185 people and destroyed 100,000 buildings.

Fukushima's Quake: Just five years after the deadly quake, Japan was rocked again by a 6.9-quake on November 21, 2016. Actually, the quake was measured at 7.3 but later downgraded to 6.9, according to the USGS. This quake triggered a local authority to issue a tsunami warning.

Aceh's Earthquake: In December, Indonesia's province of Aceh was rocked by a 6.5-quake. Around 100 were killed and 136 were injured. Thousands were left homeless due to the quake. No tsunami warning was issued, but local residents were traumatic over a tsunami that hit the region in 2004.

In March this year, a 7.8 quake also hit Mentawai Island, West Sumatera. Based on Indonesia's weather agency (BMKG), the quake was measured at 8.3 and a minor tsunami was observed in the nearby locations. However, no fatalities were reported as local residents were evacuated in a higher place.

Solomon Island's Quake: Still in early December, a 7.8 earthquake shook the Solomon Island. The quake was initially measured at 8, but later dropped to 7.8. Soon after the quake, a tsunami warning was issued for Hawaii, but then the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center stated no tsunami threat affecting the island.

Chile's Quake: Christmas in Chile was disrupted by a 7.7 magnitude quake that hit off the coast of southern Chile. A tsunami warning was issued but later lifted. Around 4,000 were evacuated though no reported fatalities from the disaster, as reported by BBC. The quake also damaged bridges and roads, but it seems the damage was not that severe. Chile experienced a deadly quake in February 2010, when an 8.8-magnitude quake killed more than 700 people.
The Lehigh County Coroner's Office has identified the 27-year-old man stabbed to death early Monday morning in Allentown.

Lord Alfred Guerrero, of the first block of East Mountain Road in the city, was stabbed more than once in the body about 2:20 am. at North Sixth Street and Sumner Court, Coroner Scott Grim said in a news release.

Guerrero and another man were found wounded after a confrontation involving several people, city police said earlier Monday.

Guerrero was pronounced dead from his wounds at 2:47 a.m. at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Salisbury Township, Grim said. The other man was hospitalized and survived, police said. Police did not identify the second victim.

An autopsy on Guerrero is planned for Tuesday, although it was already determined he died from the stab wounds and that it was a homicide, the coroner's office said.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Gas prices

Gas prices at the SquareOne Exxon in Downtown Easton could go up again come the first of the year. (Tony Rhodin | For lehighvalleylive.com)

Even without talking about rising taxes, gas prices have been going up.

They rose 20 of the 21 days leading up to Dec. 19 for a net national increase of 11 cents per gallon, AAA reports. As of Monday morning, a gallon of regular cost $2.287, AAA said.

In Pennsylvania, which already has the highest state gas tax of 51.40 cents per gallon, the price is $2.467, sixth highest in the country, AAA says. That's up from $2.354 a month ago, AAA says.

New Jersey, which in November upped its once-second-lowest gas tax of 14.5 cents to 37.50 cents, still trails Pennsylvania in price per gallon at $2.374, AAA says. That's up from $2.212 a month ago.

So, there's still some motivation to cross the border to get a deal.

But that drive to travel east for cheaper gas could be fueled on Sunday by an 8-cent addition to the wholesale tax on gas in the Keystone State, according to a published report.

Act 89 -- a 2013 update the state's transportation law -- sets and calculates tax on the wholesale price of gas, The Times-Tribune of Scranton reports. The last scheduled increase goes into effect on Sunday.

While nothing says stations must pass on the wholesale tax increase to drivers, an expert contacted by the newspaper figures it's only logical.

"I've yet to find a for-profit business that's so benevolent," said Patrick DeHaan, a petroleum analyst with gas buddy.com. "Gasoline's margin is pennies per gallon, and if you use a credit card ... that's another thing that eats up margins that gas stations have available."

The law also changes the minimum wholesale price from $2.49 to $2.99 per gallon.

"The new 'floor price' is designed to protect the tax revenue from sharp declines in fuel price," the newspaper said.

The total tax bill -- including fees and the federal slice -- if you're buying gas in Pennsylvania will rise to just about 78 cents per gallon from just under 70 cents, the newspaper said. The state tax goes mostly to road construction and infrastructure maintenance.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A car trying to pass crashed into a New Jersey Department of Transportation salt truck on Saturday morning in Franklin Township, Warren County, New Jersey State Police report.

A 57-year-old woman was driving a beige Infiniti G20 at 7 a.m. as a 48-year-old man tried to turn the dump truck, which was actively salting Route 57 West near Beidlem Road, left into a parking lot, Trooper Lawrence Peele said. He did not name either driver.

As the Infiniti tried to pass on the left, it struck the driver's side of the truck, Peele said.

Neither driver was badly hurt and both declined further medical attention, Peele said. No one else was in either vehicle.

The woman was cited with careless driving, Peele said.

Franklin Township firefighters and emergency medical personnel assisted at the scene.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
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The Disney Store in Highcross is set to shut next month.

The company said its Leicester branch would cease trading in early January.

A spokeswoman for Disney said: "We are constantly evaluating our Disney Store portfolio to ensure we're in the right sites to be able to provide magical experiences for our guests.

"As a result of this, the decision has been made to close the Leicester store.

"We highly value our Disney Store guests and we look forward to welcoming them in our other Disney Stores across the UK and online."

When asked if there was a closure date set, she replied: "It looks to be early January."

Highcross boss Jo Tallack said she was unable to comment on the closure.

Shoppers in the city centre had mixed views about the possible closure.

Jenna Buttery, 32, of Thorpe Astley, regularly visits the store with her four-year-old son, Riley.

She said: "It's really sad. I came to Leicester in 2002 and I used to live in Peterborough, where they had just shut the Disney Store, so I was really happy there was one here.

"The people who work there are very helpful and happy, and they're never pushy."

Joanne and Paul Chamberlain's four-year-old son, Sam, is a big Finding Dory fan, and they took him to the shop on Friday.

Joanne, 36, said of the impending closure: "I can't believe it. It's expensive but I am surprised it's going because it's always very busy. You always see lots of people in there."

Paul added: "The sad thing is they do a lot of stuff that no one else sells.

"Sam really loves it in there."

But Terence Lakin, 65, of Glenfield, said he would not miss it if it went.

He said: "In the past I've bought lots of things there - for my wife, my daughter and my grandkids.

"But I think they're selling trash these days. I all just looks cheap and tacky now.

"The stuff they used to do for Christmas used to be really good but now it's rubbish."

If the Leicester store shuts, the nearest will be in Nottingham's Victoria Centre, and in Albion Street, Derby. There are also Disney Stores in Milton Keynes and Birmingham.
A 21-year-old man arrested for having a knife was subsequently released from garda custody and went out and tried to rob a woman with a metal bar on the very same day.

Before the circuit court was Christopher McDonagh (21), 270 The Sycamores, Edenderry, charged with attempted robbery, on September 19, 2015.

The court heard that the accused had been arrested in Edenderry that very same morning with a knife.

He was brought to Portlaoise Garda Station and then released, before going on to commit the attempted robbery.

Garda Miranda Kennedy gave evidence, with State prosecutor, Mr Will Fennelly, that the accused then came back Portlaoise Garda Station to report that he had attempted to rob the woman.

The accused said he was trying to get a lift back to Edenderry and went to Telfords, Clonminam Industrial Estate, where he saw a woman loading a fridge into her car.

He gave her assistance and said he needed a lift into town, but he had with him a metal bar he had found earlier while walking about.

While they were travelling, he produced the bar and put it to the womans shoulder and neck and demanded money.

The woman screamed and after putting the car in second gear jumped out.

The accused then fled from the car and after discarding the metal bar went to the garda station and reported what he had done.

The accused had four previous convictions, including public order offences and the possession of knives.

In a victim impact statement, the woman said she is now nervous getting into her car after its been parked somewhere, as she thinks there may be someone hiding behind the seats.

When driving in slow traffic, she said she is worried that someone could jump into her car.

She said she no longer enjoys driving and only makes necessary journeys.

The woman said that after the incident she suffered a panic attack, and felt stupid over the whole thing.

I thought this kind of thing only happened in Dublin, not Portlaoise on a Saturday afternoon, she said.

Defence for the accused said that McDonagh suffered with mental health issues and substance abuse.

In a letter of apology, the accused said: I was not in the right state of mind and Im very sorry Im very ashamed and embarrassed. It will never happen again.

In ruling, Judge Keenan Johnson said it must have been a very frightening experience for the woman, whose good deed was turned against her.

The judge described it as an unusual offence which clearly involved no premediatation.

It seems to be out of character for him, said Judge Johnson.

He went on to say that an aggravating factor was that the crime had taken place in the woman's own car, and noted that a probation report on the accused put him at a moderate risk of reoffending.

The judge imposed a three-year sentence, suspended for four years on strict conditions.

Conditions are that the accused must enter a peace bond for four years; he must remain under probation supervision for 18 months; he is to follow all directions of the medical services for his depression and addictions; he is to take up the Community Employment Scheme with the Traveller group in Navan; and he must pay 1,000 to the Portlaoise branch of St Vincent de Paul within 12 months.

The judge warned the accused that any deviation from these conditions and the court would have no hesitation in imposing the prison sentence.
A 25-year-old man committed two armed robberies in Portlaoise within a week, so frightening a taxi driver with a knife that the injured party could not even bring himself to report it to the gardai.

Patrick Dwane (25), of no fixed abode but previously residing in Portlaoise, faced two counts of robbery, and two counts of the production of an article, at the recent sitting of Portlaoise Circuit Court.

Detective Garda John Paul OBrien gave evidence, with State prosecutor, Mr Will Fennelly, that at 2am on December 22 last year, a taxi driver working a shift parked in Portlaoises Top Square was approached by Dwane, who requested being taken to the filling station on the Mountmellick Road.

In the car, Dwane produced a knife and threatened to pierce the drivers throat. The taxi driver handed over 20, which was all the cash he had.

The court heard that the taxi driver did not report the matter to the gardai.

On December 27, 2015, three males entered the Carry Out Off Licence on the Mountmellick Road, two armed with knives.

They concealed their identities and shouted and demanded money from the two staff members working, with over 1,000 handed over as well as packets of cigarettes or tobacco to the value of 250, and a bottle of Captain Morgans rum.

The men fled in the direction of Lakeglen and the panic button in the store was activated.

After viewing CCTV footage, the accused was identified by Det OBrien.

On January 4 of this year, Dwane contacted the gardai himself to make a report. When Det OBrien met him at Fairgreen, Dwane inquired after the taxi driver.

At this point, the gardai knew nothing about this robbery, and Dwane was arrested.

In interview, he fully admitted his part in the robbery of the off-licence.

He was the main culprit, he told them to empty the tills, said Det OBrien.

It was his plan, said the detective.

Dwane also gave details of the robbery of the taxi driver, and the gardai subsequently located the injured party and took a statement from him.

Det OBrien said that the taxi driver had not reported the robbery due to fear.

The detective also said that Dwane was a heroin addict at the time, and had eight previous convictions, including robbery and burglary offences.

Victim impact statements were given to the State by the employees of the off-licence, one of whom was a man in his 30s and the other a man in his mid-20s.

One of the men said he was scarred for life from the incident, and he had opened the till as quickly as he could on the night.

Ive never been as frightened in my life, he said, adding that he did not sleep the night it happened.

The other man told the gardai that he was frightened on the night.

He said that the night after the robbery he had gone out to feed animals, but just froze in the yard.

He said: I never felt fear like it and I never want to feel it again. Fear and the will to life were all mixed into one.

The taxi driver who was robbed also made a statement, saying he was frightened on the night and for a long time after.

He said he had lost trust in people and now finds it difficult taking young male passengers.

He was also at a loss of earnings of 100, having finished work early that night.

Defence for the accused said that Dwane had cooperated fully with the gardai.

Defence said that the accused had a long-standing drug addiction, and had been taking heroin and tablets at the time.

Det OBrien confirmed that the accused had a strong addiction to drugs.

The accused was homeless, said defence, and had been in Cloverhill prison since January.

Defence said that Dwane had been assessed for residential treatment at Coolmine and found suitable.

He asked the court to structure sentencing so as to leave the accused some light at the end of the tunnel.

Judge Keenan Johnson remarked that: Clearly the robbery was such a frightening experience the taxi driver couldnt even bring himself to report it.

Judge Johnson adjourned the matter to March 7 next year, saying he wanted a report confirming Coolmine would accept the accused.

Dwane was remanded in custody to that date.
Dear Sir/Madam

Through your pages can I express a sincere thank you on behalf of Gorta-Self Help Africa to the people of Leitrim for their kindness and generosity in supporting our work in the past year.

2016 was an incredible year for us.

We invested more funds, undertook more work, and reached more people than at any point in our long history during the past 12 months.

2016 saw us work with approximately 1.8 million people in nine different countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

We helped rural poor households to grow more and better food, improve their homes and earn more money for the support and care of their families.

Our projects  nearly 70 of them  also helped farming households to access vital new markets for the surplus produce they could grow, meaning that they were able to have money in their pockets to invest in their children, their homes, and their welfare.

As a result of this work  only made possible because of the generous support of the Irish public  we enabled families to put better food on the table, helped them to afford clothing and school fees for their children, and assisted people to improve their homes and small farms.

As we approach 2017 can I, on behalf of Gorta-Self Help Africa, wish all your readers a safe and a peaceful Christmas and New Year, and again say thank you for your remarkable kindness and generosity.

Yours sincerely

Ray Jordan

CEO, Gorta-Self Help Africa

www.selfhelpafrica.org
THREE men have pleaded guilty to robbing a sleeveless black leather jacket from a County Limerick man two days before he allegedly committed a murder in Murroe.

The victim of the robbery  Alan McNamara, aged 49, of Mountfune, Murroe  is due to go on trial next year for the murder of Andrew ODonoghue in Murroe on June 21, 2015.

When arraigned at Limerick Circuit Court the three defendants pleaded guilty to the robbery charge which relates to an incident which happened at Main Street, Doon on June 19, 2015.

The three defendants, who all have addresses in County Tipperary, were remanded on continuing bail pending a sentencing hearing next April.

They are Seamus Duggan, aged 51, of Ballyhane, Cappawhite; James McCormack, aged 41, of Reddans Walk, Dundrum Road, Tipperary Town and Raymond Neilon, aged 50 who has an address at Commonaline, Cappawhite.

After recording their guilty pleas, Judge Tom ODonnell adjourned the matter to April 5, next for sentence.

There was no mention of the murder of Andrew ODonoghue during the brief court hearing.

The 51-year-old father-of-one died after he was shot near the Road Tramps Motorcycle clubhouse at Mountfune, Murroe shortly before 3pm on June 21, 2015.

It is alleged he was targeted as a part of a turf war between two rival motorcycle clubs which gardai believe had escalated in the weeks before the fatal shooting.
Dec 25, 2016, 2 PM

Artist Huang Yongyu designed Chinas first Year of the Monkey stamp, issued in 1980, and he also designed the two latest Year of the Monkey stamps shown nearby.

China Post received an honorary award in the Year of the Monkey contest for stamps from other countries and Chinas administrative regions. China issued two stamps to celebrate the Year of the Monkey.

Hong Kongs Year of the Monkey issue placed second in the popularity poll. The issue included three souvenir sheets and four stamps. This $1.70 stamp design depicts a colored glass handicraft featuring a monkey.

Liechtensteins Year of the Monkey pane of four stamps shaped like a monkey was voted as most popular issue in a recent stamp poll.

Tonga made its first appearance in the top three of the popularity poll with its Year of the Monkey pane. The pane is shown unfolded. As pictured at right, it can be folded in the shape of a sedan chair.

By Dingguo Dai

Stamps from Liechtenstein, Hong Kong, and Tonga won a competition for the best Year of the Monkey stamps.

The contest included stamps from 55 countries or special administrative regions celebrating the Year of the Monkey. The stamps were issued in late 2015 or early 2016.

The Year of the Monkey began Feb. 8, 2016, and will end Jan. 27.

The contest was organized by the Chinese Shengxiao (Zodiac) Philatelic Society and was also sponsored by the weekly newspaper Philately, the Suzhou Shengxiao (Zodiac) Stamp Museum, and eight philatelic units. This is the seventh competition for the best Chinese Zodiac stamps.

The Chinese New Year, also known as the Lunar New Year, follows a 12-year cycle, with each year associated with one of the zodiac signs. The monkey is the ninth animal in the cycle of the Chinese zodiac calendar.

As with the competitions held in 2014 and 2015, voting in the Year of the Monkey competition was only open to the members of Chinese Shengxiao Philatelic Society, not to other stamp collectors.

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Chinas fastest growing philatelic society, it has more than 6,700 members, gaining 700 members in the last year.

The winning stamps were selected by these members and a jury of 24 experts. Voting took place from Sept. 15 to Oct. 20, 2016.

The members and experts were asked to select not more than three best Year of the Monkey stamps. A total of 3,028 votes from society members in Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macao, the United States, and Australia were received.

Chinas Year of the Monkey stamps were not eligible because the contest focused on stamps from other countries and special administrative regions. The panel gave the set of two 1.20-yuan stamps issued Jan. 5, 2016, an honorary award.

China Post began issuing Lunar New Year stamps in 1980 with an 8-fen Year of the Monkey stamp (Scott 1586). The 2016 Year of the Monkey issue is the first set in the forth series of Lunar New Year stamps.

The set includes two stamps. One depicts a monkey holding on to a vine with one hand and a peach in its other as a symbol of good luck. The second stamp shows an adult monkey with infants sitting to its left and right, symbolizing happiness, longevity, and family.

The designer is 92-year-old Huang Yongyu. It has been reported that he was asked to have one stamp feature a mother and infant. His design, however, features two baby monkeys kissing the mother.

Huang said he was merely keeping up with Chinas new family planning policy, which on Jan. 1, 2016, began permitting most couples to have two children rather than one, because the country formally ended its one-child policy.

Huang also designed the 1980 Year of the Monkey stamp. Nicknamed the Red Monkey, that stamp has grown in value 200,000 times more than its original price of 8 fen in the past 36 years. It has come to symbolize the strong market for collectible postage stamps in China.

Demand has made it one of the most sought-after contemporary Chinese stamps. Although the stamp was initially common, a full sheet of 80 sold for the equivalent of $192,521 at an InterAsia sale in September 2011.

Liechtenstein issued its fifth Chinese zodiac stamp Nov. 16, 2015, to celebrate the Year of the Monkey. This 1.90-franc stamp was designed as a delicate paper cut and produced using ultramodern laser technology.

The designer, Stefan Erne, chose the color red, the symbol for luck in China.

The stamps were sold in monkey-shaped panes of four.

Liechtenstein placed third in the 2012 Year of the Dragon contest, fourth in 2013 for the Year of the Snake, second in 2014 for the Year of the Horse, and third in 2015 for the Year of the Ram.

Liechtenstein finally won first place in 2016 for the Year of the Monkey contest. Its stamp received 1,820 votes, or 60 percent of the total vote.

The Chinese Shengxiao Philatelic Societys press release about the competition described the stamp as showing a small, adorable, festive monkey with typical Chinese characteristics.

Hong Kongs Lunar New Year stamps won first place four times in a row from 2012 to 2015. However, its Year of the Monkey issue of Jan. 16. 2016, placed second. This set of four stamps and three souvenir sheets received 1,662 votes, or 55 percent.

The four stamps portray monkeys in different forms of traditional Chinese arts and crafts: a colored glass handicraft, $1.70; embroidery, $2.90; silverware, $3.70; and a Beijing paper-cut opera mask, $5.

One of the three souvenir sheets from Hong Kong contains a single $10 stamp. Another is a silk souvenir sheet with a $50 stamp, the fifth such sheet in Hong Kongs Lunar New Year series. According to the certificate of authenticity, this sheet was produced using 100 percent genuine silk made in Italy.

The third Hong Kong souvenir sheet contains two $50 stamps: a Year of the Ram stamp printed using silver foil, and a 22-karat gold-foil Year of the Monkey stamp. This sheet also is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity.

Hong Kong Post began issuing stamps featuring the animals of the Chinese zodiac in 1967. The 2016 Year of the Monkey issue is the fifth set in the fourth series (each series continues for 12 years) of Lunar New Year stamps.

The press release about the contest said that Hong Kongs souvenir sheets were elegant and beautiful, bringing festive joy.

With 1,230 votes, or 41 percent, Tonga became the dark horse of the competition, coming in third place This is the first time a Tongan stamp has been one of the winners in the poll.

The South Pacific kingdom issued two stamps Sept. 25, 2015, to celebrate the Year of the Monkey.

The two diamond-shaped stamps are in a pane that can be folded into the shape of a Chinese wedding sedan chair. The sedan chair was a special transportation vehicle in ancient China, specially used to bring the bride to the grooms home on the wedding day.

The $11.30 stamp, designed by Sophia Zhang, shows a symbolic monkey in shades of green and decorated with a floral motif.

The $16.90 stamp features a Chinese calligraphy painting by Zeng Fan. Born in 1938, he paints in the traditional style, often using a monkey as his model.

This bold and distinctive do-it-yourself project is shown here unfolded and folded into the shape of a sedan chair.

In previous years, Canada placed among the top three four times: for the Year of the Tiger, Rabbit, Snake, and Ram. In this 2016 competition, Canada placed fourth, receiving 1,160 votes, only 70 votes fewer than Tonga.

Rounding out the Year of the Monkey top 10 are Guyana (fifth place, 782 votes), France (sixth, 310 votes), Singapore (seventh, 280 votes), Japan (eighth, 215 votes), New Zealand (ninth, 212 votes), and Macao (tenth, 160 votes).

The competition committee printed a postcard picturing the three top Year of the Monkey issues. Everyone who voted in the contest received this postcard Dec. 1 signed by the president of the Chinese Shengxiao Philatelic Society, Zhou Zhi-hua.

_________________

Dingguo Dai is a philatelic columnist and retired chemist living in Arizona. He writes columns for the Chinese monthly Philately, Shanghai Philately, China Philately News, and Shengxiao (Chinese Lunar Zodiac) Philately. He also was a jury member for the contests for the Year of the Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Ram, and Monkey stamps.
Dec 26, 2016, 9 AM

The Marshall Islands began a series of stamps featuring national parks in the United States with this pane of 10 issued Dec. 15, 2016. Two additional panes will be released in 2017. The National Parks Service celebrated its centennial in 2016.

The Marshall Islands will continue its series of stamps featuring national parks of the United States in 2017.

The series began Dec. 15, 2016, with 10 se-tenant 49 stamps representing national parks from Florida to California and Alaska to Hawaii.

The first row of stamps shows Denali in Alaska; Crater Lake in Oregon; Haleakala on Maui in Hawaii; Yellowstone in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho; and Glacier in Montana. The Yellowstone stamp depicts the famous Old Faithful geyser.

The second row includes the most visited and one of the least visited national parks: the Great Smokey Mountains in Tennessee and North Carolina received more than 10.7 million visitors in 2015; and Michigans Isle Royale, located in Lake Superior, received 18,604, making it the least-visited in the lower 48. Visitors to Isle Royale arrive by boat or seaplane.

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The other three stamps in the bottom row feature the Everglades in Florida, Grand Canyon in Arizona, and Yosemite in California.

D. Zoe Seemel illustrated and designed the stamps. Pioneer Printing of Cheyenne, Wyo., printed them by offset on unwatermarked gummed paper.

Each stamp measures 31 millimeters by 40mm, and the pane is 179mm by 104mm.

Two other National Parks panes are included on the Marshall Islands stamp program for 2017.

The second pane in the series is scheduled for release on May 10. The 10 49 stamps will picture scenes of Arches National Park in Utah, Glacier Bay in Alaska, Sequoia in California, Rocky Mountain in Colorado, Petrified Forest in Arizona, Olympic in Washington, Guadalupe in Texas, Badlands in South Dakota, Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, and Acadia in Maine.

The scheduled issue date for the third pane of 10 is Nov. 28. The parks selected for this pane are Bryce Canyon in Utah, Redwood in California, Katmai in Alaska, Black Canyon of Gunnison in Colorado, North Cascades in Washington, Big Bend in Texas, Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico, Biscayne in Florida, Great Basin in Nevada, and Hot Springs in Arkansas.

An Aug. 4 issue honoring the artwork of artist and stamp designer Paul Calle (1928-2010) might also include a Grand Canyon design. The program reports that the subjects for this set of 20 are tentative. Another proposed subject is President John Kennedys dream of man on the moon.

Kennedy was born May 29, 1917, in Brookline, Mass., and the Marshall Islands will commemorate his 100th birth anniversary with a souvenir sheet containing a single $1 stamp. The sheet will feature the eternal flame from Kennedys grave in Arlington Cemetery.

Less than two weeks later, on June 8, the Marshall Islands will mark the 150th birthday of architect Frank Lloyd Wright with a souvenir sheet showing Fallingwater. This house over a waterfall in southwestern Pennsylvania was designed by Wright in 1935 and constructed in 1936-38.

The Marshall Islands first issue of 2017, on Jan. 2, features photography by John Clark Helzer. Additional stamps in this Photography series will be issued April 4 and Sept. 1.

On Jan. 28, the Marshall Islands will issue a pane of four $1.20 stamps to celebrate the Year of the Rooster.

The program will continue Feb. 22 with 20 stamps featuring the art of haiku poetry.

The first of three issues with nature themes is slated for release on March 3. This Flora set will include 10 se-tenant designs.

An Oct. 4 issue called Eyes of Nature also will include 10 designs. A third set of 10 on Dec. 11 is called Recovered Species  No Longer Endangered. Making this list are the peregrine falcon, bald eagle, California condor, brown pelican, whooping crane, pipping plover, wood stork, Hawaiian goose nene, Palau ground dove, and Kirtlands warbler.

Another three issues in 2017 will show seaplanes and ships. The March 21 China Clipper set of six depicts seaplanes; an Aug. 21 set of 10 shows steamships; and a souvenir sheet on Sept. 20 commemorates the 50th anniversary of the launch of the cruise ship Queen Elizabeth II.

Jazz and blues instruments will be pictured on a pane of 10 to be issued April 25.

Scenes with children and families from around the world are shown on the World Youth pane of 20 scheduled to be issued June 29.

Ten of the 29 atolls that make up the Marshall Islands are featured in a July 13 issue: Majuro, Kwajalein, Arno, Ailinglaplap, Jaluit, Mili, Ebon, Namu, Wotje, and Maloelap.

The Marshall Islands will issue two sets of Christmas stamps on Nov. 2. A set of six domestic-rate stamps illustrates the biblical account of the birth of Jesus, and a set of four international-rate stamps will show scenes of cutting and bringing home a Christmas tree.

The Marshall Islands Postal Service reports that there might be changes in the program as announced.
Looking to stay up to date about all of the news stories and local headlines that are important to Long Islanders? We've rounded up the top coverage for all of the important topics from multiple sources around Long Island, so you can be sure you've got the most recent update on the top stories for Long Island. Have an idea for a news story? Email us at news@longisland.com

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Culture / Events

Dec 26, 2016 | By AFP Relaxnews

There are plenty of ways to spend the New Year in Europe, from dancing to electro beats in Berlin, clubbing in Glasgow or taking in the fireworks from the London Eye. But why not try something different this New Years Eve? If youre in Europe and havent quite decided where to go to celebrate, heres a selection of alternative European destinations for partying the night away on December 31:

Lisbon, Portugal

Revelers head to the Praca do Comercio (picture above) for the annual ritual of eating 12 raisins as the clock strikes midnight. Festivities usually include a light and sound show as well as a fireworks display. Traditionally, a fireworks display is also held in the Belem neighborhood, home to the Torre de Belem tower and the famous Pasteis de Belem shop, selling Portugals tasty pasteis de nata custard tarts. Celebrations start in the morning, with a 10km running race called El Corte Ingles Sao Silvestre, starting 10:30am from Avenida da Libertade.

Vienna, Austria

Visitors to Vienna can stroll through the Silvesterpfad (New Years Eve Trail), the citys annual street party, sampling various specialties. The Vienna New Years Eve Ball is another internationally renowned event, where dancing takes center stage. Viennas dance schools even offer open-air waltz lessons to help revelers brush up on their skills. The Austrian capital has a magical atmosphere through the whole holiday season. New Years celebrations start in the afternoon of December 31 in the old town. Head to Rathausplatz and the Prater. A fireworks display is held at the Rathaus (city hall). The party carries on into the next day, with a concert from Vienna philharmonic shown on a big screen while revelers tuck into a well-earned breakfast.

Geneva, Switzerland

Three stages will be set up for partygoers on the Quai du Mont-Blanc, on the shores of Lake Geneva. Music will start at 7pm and therell be something for everyone, with jazz, funk and disco. The main stage stars DJ Tim Paris, playing a set from 10pm. Electro fans can head to the Bains des Paquis, where a lounge area will offer a more chilled-out vibe. Festivities will continue until 3am. Visitors who dont fear the cold can return to Lake Geneva the following day for the traditional New Years Day swim.

Zagreb, Croatia

The Croatian capital isnt just a hotspot for summer sunshine and luxury accommodations. Visitors can see in the New Year with a trip to the ice rink at King Tomislav Square, skating around to the sound of live music. Ban Jelacic Square, the biggest public square in the Croatian capital, is a meeting point for revelers looking to party through the night.

Valletta, Malta

Visitors to Southern Europe can enjoy a musical New Years Eve in Maltas capital, Valletta. This European Capital of Culture for 2018 is once again holding a free concert in St Georges Square, with 10 local and international acts taking to the stage. Celebrations will be held on the seafront, where a fireworks and confetti display will add to the festive atmosphere.
After designing the model 657 armchair for Florence Knoll and the iconic Pollock chair in 1965, Charles Pollock stepped away from the American design scene for 47 years. He made his big comeback in 2012, creating a range of new pieces for Bernhardt Design. The Finale Collection was under development at the time of his death, August 20, 2013.

The Finale Collection features a stylish modern couch, a club armchair, as well as reissues of other pieces created for Bernhardt Design with a limited-edition matte black finish. The collection will be available from January 2017.

Charles Pollock was born in Philadelphia, USA, in 1930. His family moved to Michigan when he was 16 years old and he remained in Detroit to finish his studies. At the time, he also worked for Chrysler, producing visual ads and gaining valuable experience in product manufacturing.

After studying at the School of Art and Design at Pratt Institute in New York, he worked for the designer Donald Deskey, whose projects include the Radio City Music Hall, and George Nelson, for whom he created The Swag Leg Collection. This caught the eye of Florence Knoll, which led the pair to meet. Charles Pollock subsequently designed the 657 armchair and the Pollock chair in 1965. He later turned his attention to Europe, creating the Penelope chair in 1982.

In 2012, Pollock returned to furniture design, creating the CP Lounge chair and the CP3 table for Bernhardt Design. He died aged 83, August 20, 2013.

Bernhardt Design was founded in 1980 by the 127-year-old Bernhardt Furniture Company. Designers who have created works for the brand include Ross Lovegrove, Arik Levy, Jaime Hayon and Patrick Jouin.
A teenage blogger from Singapore has applied for political asylum in the United States after being detained last week at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.

Gail Montenegro, a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, released a statement Saturday saying Amos Yee, 18, was in federal custody while awaiting federal immigration court proceedings.

Yee, detained Dec. 16, was at the McHenry Adult Correctional Facility, an hour away from Chicago. His U.S. attorney, Sandra Grossman, said Yee was arrested because he entered the country on a tourist visa despite his intention to apply for asylum.

Rights group Human Rights Watch called on Washington to recognize Yee's asylum claim, saying Yee had been consistently harassed by the Singapore government for publicly expressing his views on politics and religion and criticizing Singapore's leaders.
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission: Emerging Challenges

by Mahi Pal

Since independence, in spite of implementing various programmes for rural development and improving the quality of life of the people, issues of poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, sanitation and hygiene, lack of skill development, problem of connectivity have been persisting as obstacles in the development trajectory of the country.

As far as rural development is concerned, the Government of India has been implementing a fleet of programmes like the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Schemes (MGNREGS) for wage employment and asset generation, Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) for road connectivity, National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) for self-employment and livelihood promotion, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gramin Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) for skill development and placement, Pradhan Mantri Awas Mission (PMAM) for housing, National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) for the welfare of vulnerable groups, watershed development programmes for water conservation and land record modernisation programme for digitalisation of land record, Swachch Bharat Mission for sanitation and solid/liquid waste management, National Rural Drinking Progrmme for potable water, National Rural Health Mission for health improvement, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan for education for holistic development of the countryside. However, lack of engagement of people through local institutions like the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs), ignoring spatial planning in creation of infrastructure and facilities and lack of convergence of various schemes/programmes have unfortunately led to these not achieving the desired impact and hence failing short to remedy the maladies like the poor standard of living, issue of rural-urban divide and migration.

It was expected that the 73rd and 74th Amend-ments to the Constitution would provide sustained institutional structure at the village, block and district levels for preparation of plans for economic development and social justice both in rural and urban areas and such plans would be consolidated at the district level by the District Planning Committee. And these, among others, would also see the spatial aspect of the plans. But with some exceptions here and there, the expected plans have not been prepared; as a result socio-economic development along with infrastructure and their spatial mapping could not take place either in the rural or urban areas.

In the late 1990s P.V. Indiresan, the former Director, IIT, Chennai, and Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, the former President of India, coined the concept of PURA which mainly aimed at providing unban amenities and facilities in a cluster of villages to trigger local human and economic development. In order to put the above concept into practice, the Ministry of Rural Development launched PURA in 2004 but this was drastically restructured in 2010. However, both the versions of PURA could not deliver the desired results as expected due to various reasons. After learning from the PURA failure, the Finance Minister in his Budget speech in July, 2014 announced the launch of the Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission (SPMRM) to develop the rural areas with the motto Shahar ki Suvidha Gaon ki Atma providing high quality urban facilities while retaining the community bond and strength of village life. This paper deals with the salient features of the SPMRM, in what way it differs from the erstwhile PURA and what are the challenges before it.

Salient Features of SPMRM

: The SPMRM aims at development of 300 rural growth clusters called Rurban Clusters. These clusters have the latent potential for growth in all the States and UTs which would trigger holistic development in the region where these are located. These clusters would be developed by provisioning economic activities, developing skills and local entrepreneurship and providing infrastructure facilities. The required amenities would be provided in these clusters through the mode of convergence of various programmes and schemes of the Centre, States and Panchayats and the deficit would be filled through the mechanism of Critical Gap Funding (CGF) under the Mission for Focused Development.

Vision:

The vision of the SPMRM is to develop a cluster of villages that preserve and nurture the essence of rural community life with the focus perceived to be essentially urban in nature, thus creating a cluster on equity and inclusiveness without compromising with the facilities perceived to be essentially urban in nature, thus creating a cluster of Rurban Villages. In other words, it would be like a body which has a soul in the form of rural norms, cultures and community feelings and structure of flesh and bone in the form of various types of infrastructure and connectivities.

Selection of the Cluster:

A Rurban cluster would be a cluster of geographically contiguous villages with a population of about 25,000 to 50,000 in plain and coastal areas and a population of 5000 to 15,000 in desert, hilly or tribal areas. As far as practicable, clusters of villages would follow administrative convergence units of Gram Panchayats and shall be within a single block/tehsil for administrative convenience.

Mission Components:

Under the SPNRM, the State Government shall identify existing Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSSs), Central Sector or State Government Schemes relevant for the development of the cluster and ensure their implementation in an integrated and time-bound manner. Fourteen components have been suggested as desirable components for inclusion in the holistic development of the cluster. These components are: (i) Skill development training linked to economic activities; (ii) Agri-services and process; (iii) Digital Literacy; (iv) 24x7 Piped Water Supply; (iv) Sanitation; (vi) Solid and Liquid Waste Management; (vii) Access to village streets with drains; (viii) Village street lights; (ix) Health; (x) Upgradation of Primary, Secondary and Higher Education; (xi) Inter-village road connectivity; (xii) Citizen service centres; (xiii) Public transport; (xiv) LPG Gas Connection. If thought inappropriate, apart from the 14 components in the local context, the State Government may also include additional components for the development of the cluster. These would be finalised after due consultation with the Gram Panchayats and should aim at addressing the unique needs of the Rurban Cluster to leverage its full economic potential.

Cluster Profile:

The existing profile of the cluster would be detailed out at two levels, namely, general profiling, which includes demography, socio-economic and administrative, and component profiling of 14 components mentioned above as envisaged under the SPMRM.

Project Funding:

The cost of a cluster will be based on the requirements identified by the Integrated Cluster Action Plan (ICAP) , prepared by the States for the cluster and approved by the Empowered Committee of the Ministry of Rural Development. A maximum of 30 per cent of the project cost will be provided as the CGF to supplement the funds mobilised through convergence of various Centrally Sponsored Schemes, Central Sector Schemes, State Sponsored Schemes and Panchayat Schemes. Further, for plain areas, the CGF will be capped at 30 per cent of the projects capital expenditure or Rs 30 crores, whichever is less. In desert, hilly and tribal areas the CGF will be capped at 30 per cent of the project capital expenditure or Rs 15 crores, whichever is less.

Integrated Cluster Action Plan:

The Integrated Cluster Action Plan (ICAP) will be an important document covering base-line studies outlining the requirements of the cluster and the main interventions needed to address identified needs and to leverage its potential. It is expected that the State governments shall prepare the ICAPs in close consultation with the District Collectors, Zila Praishads, Panchatyati Raj Institutions and to ensure participation and ownership from all concerned stakeholders. The ICAP would be based on a five-pronged action plan, namely, (i) a strategy for the cluster integrating the vision for each Gram Sabha, identified in the cluster; (ii) the desired outcomes for the cluster under the Rurban Mission; (iii) the resources under different Central, State and Panchayat Schemes; (iv) CGF required for the cluster; and (v) a detailed spatial plan for the entire cluster.

The main component of the ICAP is deficiency analysis and identification of needs of the cluster which contains four important aspects, namely, desirable components, existing situation with regard to these components, desirable levels expected to be achieved as the outcome of the implementation of the ICAP and gaps or needs which would be worked out on the basis of the existing status and desired level with respect to the identified cluster. Component-wise it is like this. Under the skill component, it is expected that at least 70 per cent households with one beneficiary in each household be skilled and linked to economic activity. In case of digital literacy, it is desired that at least one e-literate person in every household would be trained. At least 70 litres per capita per day (Ipcd) of safe drinking water for every household throughout the year would be provided. There should be 100 per cent individual household latrines and collection of waste at household as well as cluster levels. It is also expected that all village streets are to be covered with drains, provision of street lights as per norm and ensuring inter-village connectivity. One ICT enabled and Common Service Centre per two to three villages would be provided, provision is to be made for public transport to the Block from each village and provision for one LPG retail outlet per village or per 1800 households.

Based on this exercise, the convergence of different schemes, consultation with different stakeholders, CGF and finally a Detailed Project Report would be prepared, approved and implemented.

Empowered Committee:

Under the Rurban Mission, empowered committees have been constituted at the Central, State, district levels to approve the CGF for the cluster and take other necessary decisions and steps to ensure cooperation with other Central Ministries and State governments. The State-level empowered Committee is to be chaired by the Chief Secretary, which would recommend the ICAP and DPRs will also be responsible for other key decisions for effective coordination and implementation of the schemes. At the district level, a committee would be constituted with officers of the concerned line departments and president of the concerned Gram Panchayats of the cluster.

It may be seen from the above that there is no substantial difference between the PURA and SPMRM except some changes like spatial planning, involvement of PRIs and management units for implementation of the Mission at different levels. Surprisingly, gap filling was even more in the PURA than the CGF in the present dispensation.

Difference between PURA and SPMRM:

Following are the main differences between the PURA and SPMRM:

Sl. No. PURA PMRM

1. Central Sector Scheme Centrally Sponsored Scheme

2. Selection of the Cluster by Private Firm Selection of the cluster by the State

3. Selected geographically contiguous GPs Selected geographically contiguous GPs with with population from 25000 to 40000 population of 25,000 to 50,000 in plain area and 5000 to 15000 in a desert, hilly, island and tribal areas

4. Convergence of existing schemes alongwith Convergence of existing schemes for delivery add on projects by the private party of integrated project based infrastructure, development of economic activities and skill development in rural areas

5. Pilot Scheme Setting up 300 growth centres

6. Grant for the viability gap in the project Critical gap funding to the extent of 30 per cent of upto 35 per cent of the project cost or the project cost or Rs 30 crores Rs 42 crore whichever is less less to the clusters to supplement the funds available to various government schemes.

7. Mandatory components of MoRD Schemes 14 components are the mandatory components and schemes of other Ministries related of the Mission. However, State may add more to telecom, street lighting, electricity, etc keeping in view of local requirement.

8. No provision for mentor institutions No provision of Mentor Institutions

9. Private party to plan the activities Involvement of community in the planning process of ICAP

10. Only couple of Inter-Ministerial Provision for setting up of Project Management Committees at the national level Unit at Centre, State, district and cluster level and nomination of nodal officer of the cluster.

Emerging Challenges

It may be seen from the above discussion that the SPMRM is expected to create an organically inter-linked economic and infrastructural drivers which would trigger fast, viable and inclusive development of a identified cluster. However, there are some challenges before the SPMRM which should be addressed immediately to materialise the intended benefits of the programme lest it proves to be the third version of the PURA.

1. The progress of the first phase of the PURA was evaluated by the then National Institute of Rural Development revealed that even three years of its implementation the concept had not been internalised by the officers who were nodal for the projects. Now, in the view of the SPMRM, it is observed that the concept of the Mission has not only been internalised by most of the officials but also by the Presidents of the Panchayats at all tiers, Gram Sabhas and other stakeholders. It appears to be a grave area as grassroots realities revealed. There is lack of clarity about the Mission at the decentralised level. The only motivation as appeared from the field is that money is coming under the Mission. It is therefore strongly recommended that awareness and capacity-building of the officials and elected representatives of Panchayats about the Mission must be organised by the competent institutions so that the Mission is not treated as an additional cog in the wheel and the focus might be changed from khadanza and padanza (lying vertical and horizontal bricks on the streets or roads). The mind-sets of different stakeholders have to be changed so that they should become catalysts and facilitators of activities envisaged under the Mission.

2. The desired institutional set-up at the State, District and cluster levels should be constituted immediately as without the support of this set-up, it would be difficult to get the support of different stakeholders in conceiving desired projects, preparation of DPRs and their implementation in a time-bound manner. The clarity among the stakeholders has to be brought as to how to go about to implement the Mission in the identified cluster. The programme has to be implemented by a dedicated team in mission mode. Depending on the line department officials who are already short of their regular work requirement is like putting the cart before the horse. Adequate funds should be earmarked for this purpose.

3. Convergence of Programmes is the base of the Mission because of the total project cost at least 70 per cent of funds have to be mobilised from the existing schemes of the Central Government and State governments or Panchayats. Convergence among the schemes of the Ministry of Rural Development, Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation may be easily done but convergence with the schemes related to different components of the Mission is a hard nut to crack. Further, schemes of the Central Government and State governments, which are being implemented at local levels, have their different standards, norms, allocation criteria such as for vulnerable groups like SCs, STs, women, etc. In such a scenario, it is difficult to materialise convergence in the de-facto sense. It would be better if the funds earmarked under the Mission are devolved lock, stock and barrel to one institution and that may be the Panchayat Samiti (intermediate tier of the Panchayati Raj System) because the cluster is falling under its jurisdiction. The successful model of convergence should be shared with those who are the main stakeholders in the implementation of the Mission so that they have some idea of it to think and implement in local setting.

4. Gram Panchayats are the main stakeholders in the implementation of the SPMRM. As Panchayats are themselves vulnerable how can they think of innovation, convergence and spatial planning. In fact, if these institutions are strong, they themselves could prepare plans for economic development and social justice at their level. As far as spatiality is concerned, when economic development would be aiming at social justice, the spatiality angle of the plan would taken care of automatically. Hence, these institutions have to be made institutions of self-government. And for that these should be empowered functionally, financially and administratively. But here the situation is pathetic; this is evident from the fact that as per the Devolution Report 2015-16 of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj as many as in 28 States/UTs out of 32 States/UTs the devolution Index is not even 50 per cent. In nine States, the District Planning Committees are not functional. The problem is so serious that across the tiers of the Panchayats, 14 per cent of Gram Panchayats (GPs), 10 per cent of Panchayat Samitis and five per cent of district Panchayats do not have buildings to run offices. As many as 31 per cent of GPs are deprived of telephones and 58 per cent of GPs are internet-deficit. In such a situation, the Panchayati Raj is either in the personal safe of the Panchayat President or in the bag of the Panchayat Secretary. Hence, these institutions have to be made competent at their levels. Hence, it is obvious what type of role the Panchayats can play in materialising the vision and objectives of the Mission.

5. The Rurban Cluster area has to be notified as the planning area under the Town and Country Planning Act or other similar legal provision at the State level. As the Mission is an important initiative towards putting in practice the spatial planning in these clusters, relevant changes/amendments may be carried out either in the existing State Panchayat Acts or Town and Country Planning Acts so that the spatial planning will become an integral part of decentralised planning which would not only bring about proper spacing of the assets/facilities but also bring out inclusive growth and facilitate rural urban continuum. The suggestion of Professor N. Sridharan in his recent article, How Rurban Mission will change face of India, published in BW Smart Cities World in its May-June, 2016 issue, is worth considering; there he suggested a separate Spatial Planning and Spatial Data Management Ministry that can come out with the rural as well as urban development policy and strategy presently lacking in India.

To conclude, the SPMRM has been designed to create a new socio-economic system for sustain-able development in a spatial planning mode which would result in viable and pulsating growth centres across India. It is expected that the cluster of contiguous villages would access good quality of physical, social, economic, technical, knowledge, financial and social capital connectivities which would enable the cluster to optimise its growth potential. For this to happen, the challenges may be addressed urgently so that the soul of the village and amenities of urban areas may be realised under the Mission.

The author was in the Indian Economic Service. Now retired, he is presently Visiting Faculty, School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi and Adjunct Professor in the Institute of Business Management, Mangalayatan University, Aligarh. He can be contacted by e-mail at: mpal1661[at]gmail.com
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Indian Communists and the International Left on Global Canvas

by Arun Srivastava

While the fascist ultra-nationalist forces have been striving hard to occupy the centre- stage of the global polity and evolve their own variant ideology, it is heartening to note that the Communists and Left forces especially in the capitalist countries have also started asserting their existence and voice.

Probably the lone exception to this emerging trend has been the communist movement in India. The believers of Marxism and communism have refrained from asserting their distinctiveness. It is an irony that the Communists and the Left parties are yet to succeed in evolving a concrete strategy and political formulation to check the rampaging Rightist forces which have unleashed a reign of terror. They have merely been registering their protest and dissent by taking out one or two rallies, and nothing beyond that. What has been most paradoxical is that the communist leadership is yet to analyse the character of the ultra-nationalist forces, whether they are fascist or merely authoritarian.

It is an eye-opener that the Communists and social democrats even in America and Great Britain have been coming together to fight these fascist forces. In fact the American Left parties have announced the formation of a United Front. The Left-wing in the USA has been a fragmented lot and not presented a united front in decades. The Left has been in disarray and, what is worse is that it has been in a broken and divided state.

But the onslaught and spread of the ultra- Rightist and racist forces have forced them to join hands. It underlines the seriousness they have attached to the latent and doable threat from these forces in their own capitalist countries.

Nevertheless, it was a pleasant surprise to witness that the enormity of the menace has made the two far-Left parties, the American Party of Labour and the Party of Communists USA, deciding to work together. There is little doubt that the two US Left parties coming together and also the election of Kshama Sawant, a Left leader in Seattle, would usher in a new world order.

To broaden their space and reach out, the USAs Left had backed Hillary Clinton in the presidential election. This was done to usher in socialism in the political mainstream. Hailing Barack Obamas win as a victory for the working class, the Communist Party USA called on the President-elect to carry out his promises, including his noted commitment to spread the wealth. An editorial in the Peoples Weekly World, the official newspaper of the party, said the victory was for workers of all job titles, professions, shapes, colors, sizes, hair-styles and languages. But unfortunately once in office Obama did not pay proper attention to the expectations of the US Communist Party.

An e-mail sent out by the Communist Party USA to the people, however, makes it explicit that in the changed situation it intends to expand horizontally: The 2016 elections are in full swing. Many of our districts and clubs and members are actively participating in the campaign to strike a blow to the extreme Right and defeat Donald Trump and other down ballot GOP extremists. But no matter where you live you can be part of this exciting election. We can defeat Trump, oust Right-wing majorities in the Congress and statehouses while also building powerful labor-led peoples movements, advancing a progressive agenda and political independence at the grassroots.

There is absolutely no confusion that Donald Trump was a choice of the capitalist establish-ment. The victory of Trump highlights the deep intensification of the contradictions within the bourgeois system of America. It would be naive to describe the victory of Trump as an anti-establishment message of the American voters. This is Rightist, racist and ultranationalist. Interestingly those who celebrated the victory of Donald Trump are the political protagonists of fascism in Europe: From Marie Le Pen in France to the reactionary Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban, and from the far-Right Austrian Freedom Party to the Nazi-fascist Golden Dawn in Greece. In fact Le Pan supported Trump for adopting ultra-nationalism.

The presentation of Trump as an anti-establishment candidate was used as a tool in order to entrap a large number of open-minded voters. In a shrewd move, he was projected as the alternative to the political establishment.

Without having developed class conciousness and without the existence of a strong working class party, a very large part of low-income Americansespecially in the countrysidefell victim to Trumps bombastic rhetoric. They saw Trump as the alternative solution to the crooked, corrupted political system.

In this context the rise of Jeremy Corbyn in the UK and his projection as the public face of communism is worth taking note. His powerful detractors owing allegiance to Tony Blair and other Right and Centrist leaders were deter-mined to oust him from the party but they could not succeed. From the beginning they treated Jeremy Corbyn as an untouchable and a pariah. It was forecast that a Labour Party under his leadership would be washed out and lose the support it enjoyed.

The rise of Corbyn has unnerved the status quoist Labour leaders to such an extent that they launched a vicious campaign against him of planning to bring about fundamental change in the ideological character of the party. The Centrist media of Britain also turned hostile to him. They saw in him a detractor inimical to the interest of Britain. Senior Labour leader Tom Watson, worried that the Labour Party was at risk of being taken over by the hard-Left Trotsky entryists, accused those Trotskyites of twisting the arms of young members. It was also alleged that the Trots were infiltrating into Labour.

Watson said many members of the grassroots Momentum Movement, set up to support Corbyns leadership, were deeply interested in political change, in building a more equal society, and are just on a journey in politics that theyre new to.

On his part Jeremy is also trying to strengthen the Leftist base of the party by inducting radical and Left-minded youths. With Jeremy winning the crucial September leadership election, the decks have been cleared for the entry of Peter Taaffe, the veteran leader of Militant, the hard-Left group pushed out of Labour in the 1980s and now renamed the Socialist Party. It is due to Jeremys Leftist orientation that the British media has been hostile to him. But they could not inflict any damage to Jeremy.

The Labours infighting intensified after Jeremy Corbyn spoke of his admiration for Karl Marx. His Left-wing rant provoked dismay among the moderate Labour figures, who warned that the party was heading for oblivion. The Centrist and moderates nursed the opinion that the Communists and other hard-Left extremists were signing up in droves to capture and control the party.

The Socialist Workers Party has welcomed Jeremy Corbyns re-election. This is from Amy Leather, its Joint Secretary. Jeremy Corbyns victory is a boost to everyone who hates austerity and racism. Corbyns rallies have seen large and enthusiastic audiences come to cheer a socialist message. Those people must become a movement in the streets and workplaces that can block and then remove this Tory government.

There is a perceptible change in the mood of the Britons. This is manifest in their willingness to subscribe to the ideology and political line of Jeremy Corbyn. This has in fact increased his majority and his grip on the party is getting stronger. The number of people voting was just over 80,000 higher than it was in 2015. Last year Corbyn had got 59.5 per cent of first-preference votes when he was up against three candidates, Andy Burnham, Yvette Cooper and Liz Kendall. This year he got 61.8 per cent of the votes. That is in the real sense an increase.

Earlier a majority of the Labour members adopted a Centrist approach on matters of national importance. But now they advocate and support the Jeremy path. There is no doubt that within one year of his taking over as the leader of the Labur Party, he has transformed British politics. Jeremy Corbyn has attracted around 50,000 during his campaign  one of the biggest political grassroots mobilisations in Labours history. Left politics has been gradually stepping towards the centre-stage.

Jeremy Corbyn symbolised a break from the Labours past of equivocating about helping the most vulnerable in society. He also praised the new members who had been inspired to join the party. These are not bad people, these are good people. We should be proud of them and I say welcome to the Labour Party, he said.

In 2008 the world woke up to a banking crisis of epic proportions, a crisis borne of blind faith in market wisdom and an utter lack of public oversight. But surprisingly the parties who benefited from the bust were the Conservatives (the people who glibly told voters it was all the governments fault) and the xenophobes (who blamed it all on terrorists and immigrants, who steal our jobs yet are too lazy to work).

More than a century after the formation of the Labour Party, the party continued to be rooted in the organised working class. The results of the general election confirm that the party enjoys support in the working class of Britain. But howsoever bizarre it may appear before many, the fact is before Jeremy taking over the command, the careerists, the bourgeois and attorneys of capitalism dominated it. It was an irony that these very people described the true representatives of the trade unions as Trostkyites.

Those who wanted to change society, especially the young people, were feeling frustrated and alienated by the Labours pro-capitalist policies, the support for imperialist wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the corruption scandals, the introduction of tuition fees, and the general feeling of disappointment. Towards the end of the 1960s, a number of Left groups abandoned work in the Labour Party in disgust at the counter-reforms of the then Labour Government. They wrote off the party and set about building their own independent revolu-tionary parties. The market forces dictated the course of the development. The more isolated they were, the more ultra-Left they became.

With Corbyn taking over the leadership, a fresh move has been initiated to consolidate and broadbase the Left forces. Nevertheless, Corbyn and his aides came under Rightist attack. A witch-hunt was launched by the capitalist media against the Trotskyist infiltrators in the Labour Party. Their aim was to use the witch-hunt against Militant to undermine the swing to the Left in the party.

The ruling elite strove to make the party a safe forum for espousing capitalism. The crisis of capitalism was reflected in the demands for austerity everywhere. The impression gained by and large was that the Labour Party was a thoroughly bourgeois party, because in the past it was led by the bourgeoisie..

The emergence of Jeremy sent the strong message that if the Communist leadership could have sincerely implemented the Marxist philo-sophy and ideology then the Communist forces in Britain could have made substantial inroads. Jeremy likes Marx and believes in Marxism but at the same time he is not a Communist card- holder. Nevertheless in his day-to-day practice he tries a great extent to emulate the Communist line. This he has been practising in a country which has been the greatest empire and represents the legacy of capitalism.

In the backdrop of these two developments, re-assertion of the Left in the USA and the emer-gence of Jeremy in the UK, obviously the question arises: why are the Communists and Marxists in India in the present political scenario averse to propagate the communist philosophy and struggle to the people whose aspirations it embodies? The worst has been their meekly surrendering to the fundamentalists. During the last two years the RSS and Modi Government have been ruthlessly wrecking and shattering the secular and liberal forces but they have refused to rebel against the fascist forces symbolising the fundamentalists. Their confusion owes its origion to their inability to identify with the proletariat and poor. Their election compulsion has made them to waver and decide whether to support the poor or champion the cause of the urban middle class. A closer look at the functioning of the Communists and Marxists would unravel the truth that they are hankering for winning over the middle class. No doubt in the late sixties and seventies the middle class was the main force, but now in the present scenario they no more neflect the petty bourgeois political culture; instead they treat themselves as the natural ally of the capitalist and market forces.

Believing in the Marxist ideology and imple-menting it are two different issues. An individual may be an ardent subscriber to the Marxist ideology but he would find tough to practise that ideology. Marxists in India do not strictly adhere to the basic tenets of Marxism while implementing it in the domestic scenario. The failure of the Indian Communists is generally viewed in the backdrop of the collapse of the Soviet Union and it is said that with this Marxism has lost its relevance and become redundant. This presumption is entirely untrue and misleading. Had it been so, there would not have been Communists in the capitalist countries.

None else but the Indian Marxists are to be blamed for the creation of this situation. The fallacy is that the Indian Marxists, instead of owning up their mistakes or accepting their failures, shift the blame taking recourse to wrong interpretation and analysis of the existing conditions.

Except Kerala, nowhere in India was the Marxist ideology implemented in its correct perspective. The installation of the Marxist Government in Kerala in 1957 was more relevant and important than a Marxist-Leninist Govern-ment taking control of China under Mao Zedong. Keralas Marxist Government came to power under a democratic structure without a protracted Marxist-Leninist uprising as had happened in China.

It is the electoral defeat of the Marxists in West Bengal that is being cited as the classical example of the waning of Marxism as an ideology in India. Some intellectuals and academics shed tears that the national footprint of the Left has shrunk. The Left parties, which had won sizeable number of seats in the Lok Sabha in 2004, failed to maintain the tally in the later elections. The Marxists owe an explanation why they failed to check the expansion of the Mamata syndrome or saffron brigade in the State. Unfortunately they too, like the bourgeois tendency, use the electoral gains or losses to judge the rise or decline of the Communists. In 1977 the CPI-M winning the West Bengal Assembly elections was portrayed as Bengal turning into a Red citadel. People voting against the Congress were show-cased as Bengalis becoming Marxists and the State turning into a liberated zone. This undoubtedly lacked wisdom and vision. How could a person believing in Marxism and dedicated to class struggle be swayed away by such frivolous gains?

Instead of consolidating the gains the Marxist leaders indulged in distorting the Marxist doctrine and its principles. Nothing could illustrate it better than the case of land acquisition in Singur. The Supreme Court in its order on August 30 observed: In Singur the CPI-M Government exercised its eminent domain power without following the statutory provisions to acquire the land from farmers. In acquiring the vast extent of land having immense agricultural potential, the government deprived the agricultural occupation of a large number of land owners/cultivators, thereby depriving them of their constitutional and fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution of India.

The collapse of the Singur project, which led to the downfall of the 34-year-old Left Front rule in 2011, has been the case of classical failure of the CPI-M. The Marxist leadership had created an orthodox mess.

Indians have always been attracted towards Communist ideas. The primary reason for this has been the schism between the rich and poor, which has created hatred towards capitalism. No doubt during the freedom struggle the Congress leadership tried to get the support of the extremely poor and Scheduled Caste population, some leaders at the personal level succeeded too, but the Congress at the organisational level as such could not make a major stride.

A closer look at the rise of the Left in Bengal makes it explicit that this was primarily due to the leaders who were associated with the peasant movement at the grassroots. The CPI-M emerging as the dominant Communist Party after the 1964 split was also due to this factor. However, in independent India these leaders could not give shape to their movement. Yet another reason for the CPI-Ms inability to consolidate its peasant base was the projection of Jyoti Basu as the ultimate leader. He was projected as a Communist from a rich family. This was a manifestation of middle class Leftist romanticism.

Basu changed the class character of the Marxists. This was clearly visible in the matter of the land acquisition for industrialisation in Singur and Nandigram. It is a historical fact that Basu had ordered to shoot innocent peasants in Naxalbari in 1967. Had he been committed to the proletarian cause, he would certainly not have given that order.

The political and ideological struggles of the Left parties have hit a blind alley as correctly emphasised by the political resolutions of the 17th Party Congress of the CPI-M. The leadership miserably failed to identify the main enemy: whether it was the bourgeois forces represented by the Congress or the communal forces led by the BJP. It is an open secret that the communal fascism of the Sangh Parivar, with its ideology of Hindu Rashtra, now poses a grave and unprece-dented threat to the secular fabric of Indian democracy.

In recent years the younger people across the country tend to keep away from the Left political parties and political spectrum. This is in sharp contrast to what was seen in the seventies and even in the early nineties. The youth of today are more socially progressive and are looking for an activist government. Unlike the youth of yester years todays youth support social spending and are in favour of higher taxes if it means better public services. They desire to have active participation in the power mechanism and dynamics.

In 1991 when Laloo Yadav took to fighting against the hegemony of the feudal and upper caste people, the youth of the backward castes rallied behind him. They responded to Laloos call on the lines of caste affinity and identification. Even during those years the Left parties utterly failed to entice and enroll this huge population of the youth. It is worth recalling that the hard-core Naxalites belonging to the Yadav caste, elected to the State Assembly on the ticket of the IPF, a frontal organisation of the CPI(ML), switched their political allegiance and loyalty to Laloo and joined his RJD since it represented the power dynamics of the Yadav caste.

Apparently this was indicative of the end of the Indian youths romance with communism. The youth have come to nurse the opinion that communism has lost relevance in the post-liberalisation era. Maoists at their recent Congress emphasised to reach out to the youth. The party lacks new blood and young faces. Maoists ought to do serious introspection as to why the youth are not willing to join them. It is historically correct that the youth were the main force of the Left in India. The roots of the communist movement in India go back to the 1920s when the Communist Party of India was founded as an alternative to the existing Congress-led anti-imperialist movement. The movement was driven by angst against the economic injustice of the rich and wealthy class.

The youth lapped up the new idea of change and power dynamics. What is the reason that the Maoists fail to attract them? In trying to bring about radical change they missed the opportunity of changing things at the margins. The disillusionment of the youth also owes to the failure of the Communists to bring about a revolution. Thousands of youth sacrificed their lives, they were either killed by the police or by the private goons. The Left leaders in fact betrayed these youths by not spearheading the movement on the correct political line.

Yet another factor that ought to be mentioned is that the youth of the bourgeoning middle class are not inclined to lose their economic gains and comfortable life by embracing the ultra- Left. They have learnt the futility of aligning with them. Eminent Left intellectual Prabhat Patnaik felt that the appeal of the communist movement among the youth and society at large had waned, and identified three factors that contributed to it: One is the ploy of neo-liberalism supporters to direct the failings of the system towards a person or a political party instead of the basic idea itself. For instance, the huge corruption and misgovernance by the UPA is projected as the incompetence of either Prime Minister Manmohan Singh or that of the dynasty of the Congress.

The author is a senior journalist and can be contacted at sriv52[at]gmail.com
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > A memorable chapter neglected in history: Ambedkars Odyssey to the (...)

Turn in any direction you like, caste is the monster that crosses your path. You cannot have political reform; you cannot have economic reforms unless you kill the monster.  Dr B.R. Ambedkar,

Annihilation of Caste

The public parade of deplorable ignorance of some of the Members of Parliament from West Bengal about the election of Dr B.R. Ambedkar to the Constituent Assembly in 1946 while celebrating the first ever Constitution Day on November 26, 2015 in Parliament was shocking, if not expected. His election forms a memorable chapter, marked by tension, lawlessness and violence on the streets of Calcutta, besides illegal confinement of a supporting MLA by the opponents of Dr Ambedkar. The Indian National Congress had waged an all-out war, turning the whole of India against his entry into the august House that was to draft the future Constitution of the free nation. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, to cite one specific instance, led the charge against Ambedkar by publicly proclaiming that apart from the doors, even the windows of the Constituent Assembly are closed for Dr Ambedkar. Let us see how he enters into the Constituent Assembly.

This was both a formidable challenge as well as a fearful threat to the fate and fortune of 60 million untouchables. The Congress Party, then in session at Bombay, fielded its most trusted hand, Kiran Shankar Roy, to frustrate all efforts of Ambedkar for victory from Bengal. This exemplifies the bhadraloks abomination against Ambedkar who articulated the aspirations and interests of the underprivileged in the public domain.

The inherent significance of the proverb pride goes before a fall did not take time to manifest itself. The Scheduled Castes of Bengal inflicted a humiliating defeat on the iron man of India and the Congrss. In all, seven Members of the Legislative Council of Bengalfour Namasudra, two Rajbanshi and one tribalcreated the history that the glib intelligentsia shied away to record. In plain words this perhaps exposed the shallow knowledge of the parliamentarians from West Bengal about the Father of the Indian Constitution. In a rare display of political sagacity, determination and commitment, Jogendra Nath Mandal (1904-1968), a Namasudra lawyer from the district of Barisal (now in Bangladesh), then 42 years old, invited Dr Ambedkar to contest the election to the Constituent Assembly from the Jessore-Khulna constituency in Eastern Bengal when his political fate was sealed in his native province. Mandal was the solitary Member of the Legislative Council of the Scheduled Caste Federation (SFC) established by Dr Ambedkar.

Dr Ambedkar had earned unmixed aversion and hatred of the entrenched upper social strata by then through his intelligence, scholarship and research reflected in his innumerable writings. They not only felt deeply embittered and dismayed but were rendered defenseless also to counter his scholarly enunciation of sociopolitical thoughts and administrative issues. All his works that the Hindus hated were already available in public forum in print. Ambedkar had dissected caste, its social ramification and significance like a skilled surgeon, pinpointed their orthodoxy and morbidity and shaken up their belief in the pernicious chaturvarnavyavastha, ridiculed their belief in transmigration, their gods and avatars including Rama, Krishna etc. His pen did not spare Gandhiji, their avatar, who nonetheless observed that: Dr Ambedkar has every right to be bitter. That he does not break our heads is an act of self-restraint on his part. Even his bitterest enemy will admit that Ambedkar did not use an illogical argument, launched any immoral attack or uttered an undignified word against his opponents, a rare quality in political class. His forte was always sound logic, facts and information, weighty argument, and liberal outlook. He hated and attacked orthodoxy, superstitious outlook and morbid rituals.

The Constituent Assembly had 296 membersincluding 31 reserved for Scheduled Casteselected by Provincial Legislative Assemblies. The Bombay Presidency, Ambedkars home province, turned against him. Propelled by prejudice and vengeance, the Bombay Congress Premier, B.G. Khare, ensured his defeat in the election to the Constituent Assembly. The Cripps Mission brushed aside the Scheduled Caste Federation of Ambedkar as a represen-tative body of the untouchables. According to Dr David Keane of the Middlesex University, UK, the Cabinet Mission, on the request of the Congress President in 1946, met the Congress Scheduled Caste representatives including Jagjivan Ram who emphasised that the Scheduled Caste masses considered themselves as Hindus and their main disabilities were not religious or social but economic with which the Cabinet Mission agreed.1 Sinister though, this was and is the sweetest music that Hindu India wants to listen from the untouchables. Such paeans established the oppressors and tormentors of the untouchables as their heaven-born leaders2 and exclusive patrons. This was contrary to the position Dr Ambedkar adopted: social disabilities were the source of all miseries of the untouchables.

The crux of the problems of the Scheduled Caste representatives either in Assemblies or Parliament arose (still arises) from their mindless submission to subserve upper-caste Hindu interests. The bitter realisation of his irredeemable follies dawned on Babuji, as Jagjivan Ram was fondly referred to, in the dusk of his careerthat social disabilities were the curse of the untouchables. A wealthy untouchable is as much hated as a poor one because caste is the Hindus religion.

Election of Ambedkar from Jessore-Khulna Constituency of Eastern Bengal

Dr Ambedkar had visited Calcutta for soliciting support of the European Members of the Bengal Legislative Council, but they, sadly, had already resolved not only to not participate in the election but also not support any candidate in the election. Deeply disillusioned, he returned to Delhi. At this critical juncture, Jogendra Nath Mandal invited Ambedkar to contest the election from Bengal. The elections were due in just three weeks when Ambedkar reached Calcutta! Mandal had proposed Dr Ambedkars candi-dature which was seconded by the Congress MLC, Gayanath Biswas. Both were Namasudras.

The Namasudra leader, Mandal, had a history of long, uninterrupted humiliation, exploitation, injustice and caste hatred suffered by his people at the back of his mind in inviting Ambedkar to Bengal for contesting the election. About 73 years ago in 1873, we may note, the Chandals (who in 1911 were re-designated as Namasudras) of Faridpur, Barisal and Jessore had observed the first ever peaceful and non-violent move-ment, which was till then unknown to India, in protest against the low social status in which they were held by the upper castes. Their movement, officially described as general strike, was a novel state of affairs which paralysed the normal life of the 5.5 million population in those districts. A Chandal villager, rich and influential, of Barisal in January-February, 1872 had invited 10,000 guests, including Brahmans, Baidyas and Kayasthas, to a feast to mark his fathers shradh, obsequies. At the instigation of the Kayasthas, the upper-caste Hindus rejected the invitation with taunts about their women and reproaches for their conservancy services as jail prisoners which triggered the path-breaking movement. The Superintendent of Police of Faridpur (now in Bangladesh) reported after a personal investigation about the causes of the strike that the Hindus of the higher caste consider them (Chandals) only little better than beasts.3 Any Hindu worth his name shared this reprehensible perception about the Chandals anywhere in Bengal. Besides only the Chandals were made to work as sweepers as prisoners in jail while all other castes and communities enjoyed immunity. The strike hit the Hindus as well as Muslims.

The District Magistrate of Faridpur, who was also required by the higher authorities to conduct another inquiry into the factors responsible for the widespread Chandal strike, bemoaned that this unfortunate race (Chandals), generally despised, comprised a hardworking, patient, uncom-plaining people with none to say a good word for them. They were, he further noted, handi-craftsman, operative, the fisherman, and the cultivator working as boat builders, carpenters, fishermen, and watermen generally and in all trades they excel, being strong, able-bodied, patient and painstaking. This was a strike of such a body of men, who merited to be counted as valuable human resources for any society in any clime, and yet were subjected to unbridled hatred. Nonetheless, the Chandals, noted the Magistrate, were abused and ill-used. The impact assessment by the Magistrate, though cryptic, is self-explanatory: a large body of Hindus and Mohammedans came up to complain to me of the ruinous effects to them arising out of the action of the Chandals.4 (Italicised by this writer) The overall assessment was yet to be attempted.

Their peaceful strike and passive resistance had hit their oppressors though the techniques the Chandals adopted seemed yet unknown to mankind. The apostle of peace and non-violence, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, was born barely three years ago. The word boycott entered into the English lexicon seven years later in 1880. Twentyone years after the unique Chandal revolt, in 1894 Leo Tolstoy enunciated and published the noble concept of non-violence in his outstanding work, The Kingdom of God is Within You, that shaped Gandhis ideas and principles of satyagraha. In 1860 John Ruskin wrote Unto This Last which Gandhi read in 1904. It may be preposterous to believe that the illiterate Chandals were influenced and inspired by any of these great writers and philosophers in resorting to a peaceful and non-violent strike in 1873 against the Bengali upper-caste Hindus.

The MLCs who voted for Dr Ambedkar were as follows

1. Jogendra Nath Mandal (Namasudra), Barisal, Scheduled Caste Federation,

2. Mukund Behari Mallick (Namasudra), Indepen-dent, Khulna,

3. Dwarikanath Baruri (Namasudra), Congress, Faridpur,

4. Gayanath Biswas (Namasudra), Congress, Tangail,

5. Nagendra Narayan Ray (Rajbanshi), Indepen-dent, Rangpur

6. Kshetranath Singha (Rajbanshi), Congress, Rangpur; and

7. Bir Birsa (Adivasi), Congress, Murshidabad.

While Nagendra Nath Ray and Kshetranath Singha belonged to the great Rajbanshi community and Bir Birsa was a tribal leader, the remaining four were Namasudras. The Muslim League, in coalition with the Scheduled Caste Federation, had extended moral support to Ambedkar in the election. The victory of Ambedkar in the election of 1946 is fully attributable to the unity, fraternity and solidarity subsisting between the Namasudra community and depressed classes of Bengal.

On January 21, 1929, the All-Bengal Nama-sudra Association and All-Bengal Depressed Classes Association, under the leadership of Mukunda Behari Mallick, jointly deposed before the Simon Commission and gave oral evidences. The latter organisation had in writing intimated the Commission at Calcutta that they were in general agreement with the suggestions of the All Bengal Namasudra Association and we adopt the same generally.5 This was the magnitude of the friendship and solidarity between the victims of caste injustice and oppression. After 18 years, they jointly clinched a victory by electing Dr Ambedkar for the Constituent Assembly that promised to usher in a new era in their life. It is a different matter that their dreams remain unfulfilled yet.

According to Japanese scholar Prof. Masayuki Usada, Ambedkar was found to be elected by the greatest majority. This is dealt as a mere episode as well as a matter of course in Ambedkars biographies. Yet it has not come to a pass without the dedicated canvassing of the educated youth of the Bengali Scheduled Castes.6 It is no surprise that the Indian intelli-gentsia has turned a blind eye to this phase of political activites marked by tectonic shift. An army of energetic and patriotic Namasudra youths, who included Apurba Lal Majumdar, Rasiklal Biswas, Chuni Lal Biswas, Manohar Dhali, Rajkumar Mandal, Kamini Prasanna Majumdar, Sashi Bhusan Halder, Upendranath Mullick, Dr Swarnalata Maitra and Bina Samaddar from various parts of Bengal, vigorously canvassed and campaigned for Ambedkar and ultimately turned the tables on the Congress. Gayanath Biswas, interestingly, was kept in hiding, nay in illegal confinement, by Congress-men so that he did not reach the Legislative Council, Calcutta for voting. He was, however, rescued in the nick of time so as to enable him to vote for Ambedkar. Ambedkars victory from the Jessore-Khulna constituency made him the solitary political leader with an all-India appeal. None else, save Ambedkar, went beyond his/her native province to contest the election.

The magnitude of the greatest majority secured by Ambedkar merits attention: Sarat Chandra Bose had polled six votes as against seven votes secured by Ambedkar. This was the largest number of votes polled by any candidate in Bengal. The former was a towering Congress leader and elder brother of Subhas Chandra Bose, whose sparkling reputation as a patriot is legendary. On the day of the election, the Hindu goondas indulged in largescale violence in the streets of Calcutta to be countered and neutralised by the Scheduled Caste Sikh supporters of Ambedkar with swords alongside Namasudra volunteers!

The Scheduled Castes in general and the Namasudras in particular knew the high stakes involved in the election of Ambedkar to the Constituent Assembly. The psychological aggression of the Indian National Congress against the untouchables, we have noted already, was broadcast by Sardar Patel. The leading political party had no problem with the 29 Scheduled Caste Members elected on its ticket. If the untouchables were malleable, the Congress leaders nursed no apprehensions. With elastic docility they were like delicious lambs for the hungry tiger. With his knowledge, selfless sacrifice for the downtrodden and indefatigable struggles against inequality, discrimination and injustice, Ambedkar made a profound difference which his political adversaries and social opponents were not capable to counter. He had expressed his strong unhappiness and disappointment against the position the Cabinet Mission had adopted for the untouchables. He made no bones about it. According to him, They (untouchables) are bound hand and foot and handed over to the caste Hindus.7

Here is a candid and critical approbation for Ambedkars work and sacrifice. The magnitude of [Dr Ambedkars] sacrifice is great. He is absorbed in his own work. He leads a simple life. He is capable of earning one to two thousand rupees a month. He is also in a position to settle down in Europe if he so desires. But he doesnt want to stay there. He is only concerned about the welfare of the Harijans (untouchables).8 This was not an admirer speaking about him but Gandhiji, his bitterest adversary all through his life. While addressing students in Karachi in 1934, he made this observation. The entire architecture of Ambedkars mission, vision, sacrifice and indefatigable struggles glowingly emerged out before our eyes from this observation.

The Bengali untouchables, by electing him to the Constituent Assembly, provided him the platform that propelled him to merit the attention of the world as the Father of the Indian Constitution. We can be sure that without him the Constitution, that was gifted to the country, would have been an amalgamated version of the laws of Manu, Yajnavalkya, Parashar, etc. at the hands of bigoted and orthodox elements. Ambedkar precisely fore-stalled such a dreadful catastrophe. The Bengali untouchable and depressed classes MLCs did the spadework by enabling Ambedkar right in the nick of time to take his lifelong struggles to the logical conclusion.

The sacrifice of political aspirations, foresight and sagacity, besides dedication, of Jogendra Nath Mandal and other Scheduled Caste leaders and supporters were behind Ambedkar for accomplishing what he actually did and for which he will always be remembered in history. When Bengal was partitioned following the legislation of the India Independence Act 1947, the districts of Jessore and Khulna went out to East Pakistan. He, like many others, was no longer a Constituent Assembly Member. His talent, knowledge and untiring energy displayed in the Constituent Assembly led its Chairman, Dr Rajendra Prasad, to direct the Bombay Premier, B.G. Khare, for his re-election this time on the Congress ticket in the vacancy caused by the resignation of Dr Mukund Ramrao Jayakar.

Apart from any other consideration we have found Dr Ambedkars work both in the Constituent Assembly and the various committees to which he was appointed to be of such an order as to require that we should not be deprived of his services. As you know, he was elected from Bengal and after the division of the Province he has ceased to be a member of the Constituent Assembly. I am anxious that he should attend the next session of the Constituent Assembly commencing from the 14th July and it is therefore necessary that he should be elected immediately.

The country needed the meritorious services of Dr Ambedkar. His presence satisfied an urgent national deficiency. It was the defining moment for India that she narrowly averted the catastrophe that the task of Constitution-making did not fall into the hands of morbid and bigotted elements. Granville Seward Austin (1927-2014), an American historian and leading authority on the Indian Constitution, described the Consti-tution drafted by Dr Ambedkar as first and foremost a social document. Elaborating the point he noted: The majority of Indias constitutional provisions are either directly arrived at furthering the aim of social revolution or attempt to foster this revolution by estab-lishing conditions necessary for its achieve-ment. If India were to undergo a social revolution, overnight she would become a modern, vibrant and liberal nation. But a microscopic section abhors a social revolution which would throw caste, obscurantist elements and orthodoxy to the dustbin first by the nearest window.

When the Constituent Assembly was grappling with task of drafting the Constitution for free India, the bigoted elements were breathing furiously down the necks of the countrymen. In an article in Organiser, November 23, 1949just three days before the Constitution was adopted on November 26-Madhav Sadashiv Golwalkar(February 1906June 1973) bared his menacing fangs: In our Constitution there is no mention of the unique constitutional develop-ments in ancient Bharat. Manus laws were written long before Lycurgus of Sparta or Solon of Persia. To this day laws as enunciated in the Manusmriti excite the admiration of the world and elicit spontaneous obedience and confor-mity. But to our constitutional pundits that means nothing.9 He and his ilks wanted a rerun of the era of Manu.

In the early days of the twentieth century, the relations between the Namasudras and bhadralok in East Bengal deteriorated perilously. The Bengali Hindus were abhorrent. The Nama-sudras of Faridpur and Barisal have virtually declared a boycott against the Brahman, Kayastha and Baidya. There were possibilities of their being united with all other lower classes and if this happened, the happiness and honour of the higher castes would all be washed away.10

The happiness and honour of them precariously depended on the disunity of their oppressed victims! No comments.

This catastrophe of India being turned into a Hindu India was effectively and sharply pre-empted and scuttled by Dr B.R. Ambedkar. By securing victory for Ambedkar in the most crucial elections that brought him to the Consti-tuent Assembly, the Namasudras, Rajbanshis and Adivasis under the leadership of the pioneer, Jogendra Nath Mandal, created a glowing chapter in history. They checkmated the machinations of the upper castes to browbeat the untouchables. He got the granite-like foundation to bloom in the august House with charm, dignity and magnanimity and to put his scholarship and erudition to use in national interest. Those people who made it possible deserve the highest applause and appreciation but sadly, they have been forgotten. This chapter is not discussed in public lest the towering contribution towards nation-building of the Bengali chotalok (low castes), got highlighted.

Describing his historic role, Ambedkar had commented disarmingly: The Hindus wanted the Vedas, and they sent for Vyasa who was not a caste Hindu. The Hindus wanted an epic Ramayana and they sent for Valmiki who was an untouchable. The Hindus want a Constitution and they have sent for me.

Footnotes

1. David Keane, Caste-based Discrimination in International Human Rights Law, Ashgate, 2007.

2. The term heaven born leaders was coined by the All-Bengal Depressed Classes Association in its memorandum submitted to the Simon Commission in January 1929. A.K. Biswas, The Namasudras of Bengal, Blumoon, Delhi, 2000, p. 75.

3. A.K. Biswas, article captioned Chandals Rage, How a peaceful strike by Dalits paralysed life in Bengal, Outlook, August 29, 2016.

4. Letter no 44 dated April 22, 1873 from District Magistrate to the Inspector General of Jails, Lower Provinces of Bengal.

5. Biswas, A.K., The Namasudras of Bengal, Blumoon Book, Delhi, 2000.

6. Sadananda Biswas, Mahapran JogendranathBanga-bhanga O Ananya Prasango (a Bengali work), March 2004, p. 61.

7. Christophe Jaffrelot, Ambedkar and Untouchability, Permanent Black, Delhi, 2005, p. 80.

8. Jaffrelot, op cit., p. 71.

9. M.S. Golwalkar in an essay in Organiser, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) mouthpiece, November 23, 1949, p. 3.

10. Bandyopadhyay, Sekhar, Caste, Protest and Identity of Colonial IndiaThe Namasudras of Bengal, 1872-1947, OUP, 2011, p. 81.

The author, a retired IAS officer and former Vice-Chancellor, B.R. Ambedkar University, Muzaffarpur (Bihar), can be reached at biswasatulk[at]gmail.com
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Imperative Need to Protect and Promote Self-Reliance in S&T (...)

The following is the speech by Prof Ashok Parthasarathi after accepting a volume of Festschrift (collection of writings in his honour) from the Vice-President, M. Hamid Ansari, at a function in New Delhi on November 15, 2016.

It is a matter of great gratitude and gratification for me to the honoured today in my 75th year with a Festschirift. That I should have received the Festschrift from your hands, Mr VP, makes it a particularly unique honour for me.

I do not know if you remember, Mr VP, but I first met you in the mid-1980s when you were our High Commissioner to Australia. I had gone to that country as the Secretary, DOE along with the CMD of our public sector company Central Electronics Ltd. (CEL) which is pioneer in the area of solar electricity-based systems at the world level. The purpose of my visit was to conlcude an agreement with Professor Martin Green and his team at the Department of Physics of the UNSW in Sydney under which CEL would licence from UNSW its laboratory scale process to make ultra high efficiency solar cells and engineer and upscale that process into a multi-mega watt commercial production plant at CELs campus at Ghaziabad. After satisfactory concluding the agreement, I had gone to Canberra primarily to meet you and inform you of the conclusion of the agreement. Athough it was our first meeting, I remember how warm you were to me. Thereafter I have had the pleasure of knowing you when you were Vice-Chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University, Chairman of the National Commission on Minorities, and the Vice President of the nation. Your address of the first G. Parthasarathi Memorial Lecture at the JNU was a stirring one.

I first met Professor M.S. Swaminathan way back in 1968 when I was Proressor of Physics in the BITS at Pilani and he was the Head of the Genetics Division of the IARI here in Delhi working with Dr B.P. Pal, the Director General of the ICAR, and that remarkable Minister of Agriculture, Mr C. Subramaniam, to bring about the Green Revolution. As we all know, Mr Subramaniam was later to get the Bharat Ratna. Later, in 1972, when I was the S&T Adviser to our late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, I had played a major role in Indiraji appointing Dr Swaminathan as the Director General of the Indian Council of Agriculture Research in succession to Dr Pal. Within two years Dr Swaminathan gave a major boost to all ICAR Laboratories. In 1974, Dr Swaminathan proposed the government setting up a government arm for the ICAR in the form of a Department of Agricutural Research and Education (DARE). I persuaded Indiraji to accept Dr Swaminathans proposal and to appoint him as the First Secretary of DARE so that he would be Secretary, DARE and DG, ICAR. The DARE acronym was most appropriate as Dr Swaminathan was a man who really dared to do things others felt could not be done. He was also the father of the Green Revolution. I thank him warmly for his writing such a wonderful Foreword to the Festschrift volume and his kind words about me today.

Professor Roddam Narasimha and I have been close friends and colleasgues for over forty years. He is one of our most distinguished aerospace scientists and engineers. His contribution to the Festschrift volume is a sterling one. I am particularly disappointed that he is not physically with us today. However, he would have been making his first visit to New Delhi in the last three years in order to attend the function. I thank you, Roddam, for your comprehensively very kind words about me today as read out by Professor Sachin Chaturvedi.

Dr Malti Goel, my fine M.Sc (Hons.) student from the Physics Department of the BITS at Pilani, has made a set of remarks that have moved me greatly. Thank you very much, Malti, for those warm remarks.

In my opinion, an occasion like this is one on which one whould look back at ones career in S&T and the evolution of our S&T system over that period. I was brought up by my parents, my teachers and my mentors, like Dr Homi Bhabha, Dr Vikram Sarabhai, Professor M.G.K. Menon and the venerable Principal Secretary to Indiraji, Mr P.N. Haksar, to believe that our country should be self-reliant in its economy and S&T particularly. This was in the tradition of Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi. They always drew a key distinction between self-reliance and self-sufficiency. Self-reliance is the promotion of S&T and their application to the development and security of the nation means that decision-making and action in key areas of the policy, the economy and S&T should be securely in national hands. It did not mean autarchy, or closing the doors of our S&T capacity and capability to the outside world and not draw on the worlds store-house of these two inputs to nation-building and national security. It does not mean that we should aim to design and make in the country every pin, nut and bolt of a system or an equipment.

Nehru believed inindeed was obsessed withScience. But Indiraji realised that Technology was far important than Science, that Science was a body of knowledge whereas Technology was an instrument of action. Thus, while Nehru was the architect of the Scientific Policy Resolution which he drafted along with Bhabha, Mahalanobis, Bhatnagar or Kothari and got it approved by Parliament as far back as March 1958, Indiraji was the architect of the Technology Policy Statement of 1983 in the drafting of which I was privileged to play a significant role as her S&T Adviser.

Such an enunciation of self-reliance in regard to both the economy and S&T and undertaking both policy-making and execution, though first enun-ciated and launched during Indirajis governments of 1971 to 1977 and 1980 to 1984 were adopted with minor modifications by all succeeding governments from the Janata Government of 1977-80 and by Rajiv Gandhi Government of 1985-1989 and the V.P. Singh Govenment of 1989-90. However, the launching of Economic Reforms by the Narasimha Rao-Manmohan Singh Government of 1991-1995 with its credo of liberalisation, privatisation, globalisation (LPG), steep reductions in import duties, near totally free imports of technology and opening the doors to FDI dealt a body-blow to the strategy of self-reliance in both the economy and in S&T. However, the reforms retained the policy of maximising domestic production. Moreover, the strong support to promoting S&T and applying them to the Development and Security of the nation remained. This strategy and policy-frame was continued by Atal Behari Vajpayees BJP-led 24 party coalition over 1999-2004. The UPA governments of 2004 to 2014 did likewise. Consequently, the core of our S&T programmes and creating strong doemstic industrial production levels remained.

However, with the coming to power of the present government headed by Narendra Modi in 2014, the whole policy-frame has changed drastically. Except for the Space Progreame of ISRO, in all other areas, particularly Defence R&D Production, government support to the agencies and companies concerned has totally dried up. The watchword became import of not only consumer products but even Defence-related Systems and Equipment. These have come to be unncessarily imported.

The following example would illustrate this.

In early 2015, the Air Force projected to the Ministry of Defence (MoD) their requirement for 22 helicopter gunships. Accepting the requirment, the MoD floated a global tender for procurement of such gunships. The evaluation of the bids received against the tender led to the shortlisting of the Apache gunships bid by the Boeing Company of the USA and the Mi-28 gunship bid to the Millionshikor company of Russia. Further, inter-evaluation of these two by the Tender Committee led to final selection of the Apache. Meanwhile, the Army Air Corps projected to the MoD their requirment of 38 gunships of practically the same specifications as that projected earlier by the Air Force. So, the nation was set to procure some 60 helicopter gunships all of one type.

When I came to know of these developments, I contacted the Chairman of the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) and enquired from him whether HAL was familiar with the Apache and, if so, whether HAL could make such copters. He said he was familiar with the Apache and so was sure HAL could do so. I, therefore, asked him to send me, as urgently as possible, a proposal from HAL. I got a fine 25-page techno-economic proposal three weeks later. So, I asked the Chairman, HAL to formally submit the proposal to the MoD which he did.

In parallel, I took a copy of the proposal and went to see Mr Arun Jaitley, the Finance Minister who was at the time holding additional charge of the Defence Ministry. At the meeting with Mr Jaitley, I explained to him several things.

First, that the Apache was of mid-to-late 1960s vintage and had been extensively used by US forces during the Vietnam War. However, by the same token, despite several incremental improvements to its design and engineering and sub-systems and components, the basic air frame and engine were highly obsolete.

Secondly, that direct import of 60 Apache copters would result in a completely unnecessary outflow of some Rs 45,000 crores in foreign exchange.

Thirdly, as no local production of the Apache was involved, we would be perpetually dependent on Boeing for spares. Moreover, it had repeatedly been our experience that, while the initial set of spares that came with the main equipment were reasonably priced, subsequent spares were marked up in price by two, three or even five hundred per cent.

Fourthly, as the HAL proposal indicated, that company felt confident of making the copters on the basis of transfer of technology from Boeing.

Fifthly, like all other suppliers, Boeing could be entirely expected to charge us an arm and a leg for training our engineers and for deputing their engineers to solve technical problems which would inevitably come up in the course of the use of the copter by our Air Force and Army.

Sixthly, should a war with Pakistan arise, the US Government would immediately stop the supply of spares and the provision of technical assistance by Boeing.

I concluded by saying that for all these reasons, the government should set up local production based on transfer of technology by Boeing to HAL.

When I had finished, Mr Jaitley said that he was horrified by the account I had given. No one in MoD had brought these facts to his attention. He concluded by saying he would immediately stop the proposed direct finished import of the 60 copters and direct MoD to proceed on the basis of the HAL proposal which involved a foreign exchange outflow of only Rs. 10,000 crores. With that assurance, I left Mr. Jaitleys office satisfied that he would ensure that the self-reliance route was followed. Unfortunately, a month later I saw an item in the newspapers that the government had placed an order on Boeing for the import of 22 copters in fully finished form for the Air Force!

About a fortnight ago another tragic develop-ment took place. The government decided that Central Electronics Limited (CEL) should be privatised, that is, sold to the private sector. CEL is only the second company in the world to have gone into the area of solar energy way back in 1975 and of course is our lead company in the area. Over the last forty years it has designed, developed, manufactured, installed, commissioned and maintained around thirty different types of solar electricity systems falling in three categoriesrural, remote area and industrial. As on date, it has one million solar electricity systems in the fieldboth at home and abroadthe largest by any solar company in the world. As far back as 1986, it transferred its solar energy systems technology to another public sector company, Rajasthan Electronics and Instruments Ltd. (REIL) in Jaipur, which today is the second largest solar company in the country. CEL has exported its solar systems to some 15 other developing countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. It has also made exports to Germany and Italy. The company has gone further and exported complete solar energy product technology and set up manufacturing plants based on that technology in Syria, Sudan and Mozambique. What is the governments rationale for selling off such a superb performance company to the private sector? It is that a profit of Rs 30 crores on a turnover of Rs 400 crores is not enough.

The helicopter gunships and the CEL cases indicate that our scientific, technological and hi-tech industrial communities cannot depend any more, as they could in the Indira Gandhi era or even the Atal Behari Vajpayee era, on the government of the day to protect and promote their contribution to national development and security. They therefore have to pull up their socks and sensitise, educate and lobby with Parliament and the media even to stay alive. Simultaneously, they must continue to fight within the government for the same objective.

I would once again warmly thank the Vice-President for allowing this function to be held in his auditorium and to have done me the signal honour of receiving the Festschrift from his hands. I will always remember it. I am also grateful to my chela, Professor Sachin Chaturvedi, to have got the Festschrift prepared in record time and for having organised todays wonderful function. I am delighted that so many of my colleagues, associates, professional and personal friends have taken the trouble to be here today. I thank them one and all.

The author is a former Secretary to the Government of India in various Scientific Departments and erstwhile S&T Adviser to the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Historical Materialism and a Relook at the Tribal Question in (...)

by Murzban Jal

The overthrow of mother right was the world-historic defeat of the female sex. The man seized the reigns of the house also; the woman was degraded, enthralled, the slave of the mans lust, a mere instrument for breeding children.

Frederick Engels, The Origin of Private Property, Family and the State

Much that is written about the caste system has reference mostly to the caste system among the Savarna Hindus. Very little is known about the Avarna Hindus. Who are the Avarna Hindus, what is their position in Hindu society, how are they related to the Savarna Hindus are questions to which no attention has been paid. I am sure that without considering these questions no one can get a true picture of the social structure the Hindus have built. To leave out the class cleavage between the Savarna Hindus and the Avrana Hindus is to relate to Grimms Fairy Tale which leaves out the witches, the goblins and the ogres. B.R. Ambedkar, Symbols of Hinduism

On the Tribal Question

The Tribal Question like the Jewish Question in the nineteenth and twentieth century and now the Muslim Question in the age of imperialist Islamophobia, is a question of utmost importance. If we live in the age of imperialist Islamophobia where the ruling political elite have now aligned with the Zionist project of American imperialism, where Indian patriotism is measured with how much one can curse Pakistan and how much one can celebrate imaginary surgical strikes against imagined terrorists, we also live in the age of neoliberal finance capitalism where both agricultural lands and forests are being occupied by finance capitalists. And since the Indian state sees anyone opposing their neoliberal projects of so-called development as terrorists, the under-standing of the tribal question gains utmost importance.

The Jewish Question gave birth to Nazism and Zionism, what would the Tribal Question give birth to? And since the Indian state, once headed by the liberal democrat Dr Manmohan Singh, declared the struggles of the rights of tribals in India as terrorism of the highest order (the single biggest internal-security challenge ever faced by our countryto quote the good doctor), and also since the Indian state is now in the hands of the totalitarian managers of global capitalism who are militarising the South Asian region and who shall very soon escalate state-sponsored violence in the neoliberal occupation of forest lands, one needs to address this Tribal Question.

Science at the Margins

Honestly speaking democratic politics and radical social sciences in India are at the margins. The condition of being marginal is also like the condition of the woman that Engels talked of, seized by the patriarch and degraded as a mere instrument of lust. But the social sciences are also like Ambedkars narrative of the hidden Avarnas (the ati-Shudras or those labouring communities that stand outside the Hindu four-fold caste systemthose who are unknown and unspoken of). To speak of India devoid of the class cleavage1 between the Savarnas and Avarnas is thus like a horror driven nursery tale devoid of its witches, goblins and ogres. The witches, goblins and ogres are of course the ruling twice-born elites haunting India. One has therefore to talk of this class cleavage in order that the witches of Indian history may soon vaporize into the pre-history of free humanity.

In contrast to this very uncanny structure that leaves out the question of class in the understanding of the Tribal Question in particular and the social sciences in general, we have to create a type of Subaltern Studies inspired by Jyotiba Phule, Marx, Lenin, Ambedkar and Frantz Fanon,2 studies which are always rooted in the margins of the social sciences, but which continuously question and attack the centre of hegemonic discourses.

This is not merely because this genre of New Subaltern Studies locates itself in the proble-matic of marginalised communities, but primarily because the centre of social sciences is in the last resort determined by a form of academic imperialism and false consciousness. Colonial ethnography and the consequent government policies in independent India that grew from the cranium of colonial ethnography could be the best example of this form of academic imperialism. The study of tribes would be a good example of this academic imperialism. A ghost is haunting the Indian social sciences, the ghost of academic imperialism. And the states waging of war against tribal rights is a logical continuity of economic, ideological and political imperia-lism. Let us look at the ghost of imperialism. Let us also try to exorcise it.

In 2010 Kevin Anderson published his Marx at the Margins. On Nationalism, Ethnicity and Non-Western Societies.3 This work challenged not only colonial and Eurocentric discourses inherent in global social sciences, but also challenged Euro-centric methodologies inherent in anti-imperia-list and anti-elite social sciences, including some forms of Marxist studies. Margins, in this sense, is not only a metaphor for an overthrow of academic imperialism, but is primary an epistemic space that locates the scientific under-standing of non-Western subaltern societies.

Academic imperialism prevails in India for a number of reasons. They are:

1. The inability of the Indian subcontinent to create a class of organic intellectuals (prior to the advent of colonialism) that was free from the ideology of Caste Oligarchy and the Asiatic mode of production with its bureau-cratic state apparatus and so-called spiritua-list ideology that prevented the growth of radical sciences and the class of radical-subaltern scientists that could have over-thrown Brahmanical caste ideology.

2. The colonial legacy in modern India where the Anglican heritage that grew from the Macaulayean contempt for Asian societies (the James Mill-inspired writing of Indian history being one prominent form of this contempt for Indian subaltern classes) divided history into the following phantas-magorical epochs: Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim and British followed by the colonial-imperialist taxonomical methodologies. The Census (that first came up in 1871-2) by 1901 under Herbert Risley took a racist form since subaltern masses in general and tribals in particular were classified there as the hostile other.

3. The elite-nativist response to colonialism that culminated in the Hindutva school of thought.

4. The school of what I call the Established Left that published in the name of Marxism (or to be precise Marxism devoid of Marx) that did not take the idea of multilinear history from Marxs original repertoire. This school then wrongly conceptualised on a universal theory of history governed by iron laws which divided history into the following stages: primitive communism, slave society, feudalism, capitalism.......What one could call the Tribal Question was concep-tualised very mechanically in this unilinear view of history. Both Marxs way of doing philosophy as he outlined in his Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844 and his Ethnological Notebooks were not included in scientific studies. R.S. Sharmas theory of Indian feudalism is taken as the basis of the Left-inspired social sciences and both the tribes and castes are located in this unilinear idea of history. In contrast to this unilinear theory of history, the most informed work on Marxs evolution of thought with regards non-Western societies, is Andersons Marx at the Margins, which postulates a multilinear and non-reductionist reading of Marx where Marx is said to have analysed the comple-xities and differences of non-Western societies, and to have refused to bind himself into a single model of development or revolution.4

But it is not merely the case that colonial ethnography along with Right-wing nativist tradition and the Established Left understanding of history that pushed the tribal question into the backwaters of human pre-history and scientific reasoning. The master narrative that developed in the Indian social sciences was an implantation of elite Brahmanical consciousness (Georg Lukacs reified consciousness and Gopal Gurus theoretical Brahmans and empirical Shudras) within the social sciences that brought about a form of scientific blindness. What this master narrative of caste did, that as enclosed class system (as brilliantly pointed out by Ambedkar in his Castes in India), it created an enclosed class of scientific reasoning.

What also happened is that the three features of the caste system were brought in the domain of the social sciences. Let us have a look at them:

1. Since caste is understood as an enclosed, ossified and petrified class that is reified as a closed clan system with its parasitical bureaucratic system, it gave birth (and still gives birth) to an enclosed process of bureaucratic thinking. While caste manifested (and yet manifests) itself as a clan system, it created (and now also creates) the structures of extreme hierarchy, where the division of laboureres and graded inequality, essential features of the caste system, gave birth (and yet gives birth) to a division within scientific thought, whereby social sciences as a holistic and unified discipline could not develop, and in these conditions can never develop. Graded inequality, the sine qua non, of caste hierarchy gave rise to graded inequality in the sciences, whereby sociology, economics, political sciences, anthropology, etc., all fell in the sway of a divided science. In this process none of the social sciences can see eye to eye. The totem of purity and the taboo of pollution that rule the ideological guidelines of Caste Oligarchy, with economic and cultural stagnation as its two main pillars, got manifested in the social sciences. Each of the social sciences disciplines imagined that it was pure. Stagnancy in scientific thought was bound to happen.

2. I have pointed out a number of times that though caste is not equivalent to race, casteism is racism, albeit racism of a South Asian variety. What happens is that a form of racism creeps into the social sciences where the idea of race and racial superiority, along with the now known pseudo-science of eugenics form the epistemic sites of its alleged scientific structure. Herbert Risley (with his 1901 Census) and all the methods of categorizing people on racial grounds formed the basis of understanding the Indian population in colonial India. Sadly independent India never challenged this racist colonial methodology. It merely supplemented the superior status of the British colonial authorities with the now imagined superiority of the caste elites. Dalits and tribals were bound to become the hellish other in independent India. And when asked for democratic rights, the Indian state, true to its colonial logic, classified them as terrorists.

3. Since the caste system is a form of neurosis-psychosis (emerging from enclosed thinking)an idea that I have kept central to my Why We Are Not Hindus)the creation of the ideology of neurosis-psychosis in the social sciences was bound to occur. This form of neurosis-psychosis in the sciences and the public sphere is unable to generate critical thinking and a democratic culture. This stubborn refusal to create a democratic culture pushes the understanding of tribes in India as criminals and terrorists. The main thing that this new form of cultural illness does, is that it breeds contempt for other social groups.

In fact it is this structure of (1) enclosed thinking dominated by academic imperialism and the academic rituals emerging thereon, (2) Right-wing racist nativism, and (3) academic neurosis-psychosis which dominates our under-standing of all the subaltern groups in general and the tribal question in particular. The question of Criminal Tribes identified by the British colonial state after the collapse of the Asiatic Mughal state and the dislocation of producing communities from the Asiatic mode of production has now to be looked from both: (1) the enclosed-ritualistic-neurotic perspective, as well as from (2) the process in which crime has itself become a mode of production.One must note how for early capitalism in India the defining of labouring communities as criminals took place. Also note how in the present era these communities are being defined as terrorists.

It was in 1871 that the present De-notified Tribes (DNTs), also known as Vimukta Jati, were listed under the Criminal tribes Act. This classification was a complete misnomer. For the colonial authorities tribes and castes meant the hostile other that they constructed in their Orientalist imagination. What they could not classify as exotic, became criminal for them. All members of these so-called criminal tribes had to register with the local magistrate. It was declared a crime under the Indian Penal Code if they failed to register with the local magistrate. Though the Criminal Tribes Act of 1952 repealed this notification as being criminal, or in other words de-notified them, they are treated as hostile people. In slums where they usually reside, their location is marked (even by the popular classes) as dangerous areas. These communities are now treated a habitual offenders.

But what is not recognised is that the alleged criminality constructed (even in popular imagination) is to be seen as part of the Indian capitalist economy. Note the chain of crime as economic activity which further develops accumulation of capital:

The effects of the criminal on the development of productive power can be shown in detail. Would locks ever have reached their present degree of excellence had there been no thieves? Would the making of bank-notes have reached its present perfection had there been no forgers? Would the microscope have found its way into the sphere of ordinary commerce but for trading frauds? Doesnt practical chemistry owe just as much to adulteration of commodities and the efforts to show it up as to the honest zeal for production? Crime, through its constantly new methods of attack on property, constantly calls into being new methods of defence, and so is as productive as strikes for the invention of machines. And if one leaves the sphere of private crime: would the world-market ever have come into being but for national crime? Indeed, would even the nations have arisen? And hasnt the Tree of Sin been at the same time the Tree of Knowledge ever since the time of Adam?5

Somewhere else I had talked of how crime and violence become essential activities of capitalism as well as forms of spectacles that themselves become reified as commodities for sale in the international market.6 The so-called criminal tribes of India, despite being removed from the list of criminality, remain so even in independent India. This form of spectacle created by the Indian state against the subaltern classes becomes what Walter Benjamin called the metaphysics of the provocateur.7 What one gets is a terrible cycle of the commoditisation processcapitalism creates unemployment, unemployment creates crime, crime recharges capitalism by recreating the police system, lawyers and the prison system. One now has the following picture where we see how capitalism necessarily creates the estranged other, especially the figure of the imagined criminal-terrorist. This criminal, this terrorist as the hostile other is internal to capitalism. Capitalism needs this other, needs this imagined criminal and terrorist. Capitalism needs this criminal-terrorist for its very survival, as well needs it for its essential aspect of its mode of production. To recall Marx, the criminal produces not only crime but also criminal law, and with this also the professor who gives lectures on criminal law and in addition to this the inevitable compendium in which this same professor throws his lectures onto the general market as commodities.8 The cycle is long and necessarily intertwined. This imagined criminal/terrorist also becomes part of the Culture Industry of neo-liberal capitalism by producing an impression, partly moral and partly tragic, by arousing the moral and aesthetic feelings of the public producing not only penal codes and along with them legislators in this field, but also art, belles-lettres, novels, and even tragedies.9 Look at Arnab Goswami and Times Now Channel and you will see how this tragicomedy is being enacted by the neoliberal Media Industry. Secularism, so this Media Industry says, is pseudo-secularism. Socialism, so the ghostly voices speak once again, is nothing but an outdated ideology that can give rise only to Left-wing terrorism.

In contrast to these above motioned which have reified humanity as terrorists and ideatio-nally produced communities as criminal, what we are doing is going into the margins of ethnography. The idea of margins is important for two reasons: one that is scientific which understands non-Western societies from a multilinear view of history and thus breaks the hegemony of the positivist model that locates tribes as not a part of living history of humanity. What Marx so famously said is that one need not go into the stages theory of history where tribal society is located in the backyards of alleged primitivism, destined to go through capitalism to get developed. Marx says that capitalism is not an inevitable mode of production and one could skip capitalisms dreadful vicissitudes.10 For one, the misinter-pretation of Marxism as the march-past of iron laws independent of human will and conscious that was popularized by Stalinism had to be corrected, from a law-centric project to a human-centric project. Here one finds societies that are not capitalistthe pre-capitalist ager publicus (public lands) of Grundrissewhich are ripe for the direct struggle for communism. One here recalls Marxs correspondence with the Russian revolu-tionary, Vera Zasulich. Note how Marx is defending the ancient communes against capita-list development:

One should be on ones guard when reading the histories of primitive communities written by bourgeois historians. They do not stop at anything, even outright distortion. Sir Henry Maine, for example, who was an ardent active supporter of the British Government in its policy of destroying Indian communes by force, tells us hypocritically that all noble efforts on the part of the government to support these communes were thwarted by the elementary force of these laws! 11

The present situation of labeling political activism in forests as terrorism is a product of the policy of liberalisation of the economy and the fascistisation of politics. Both the liberal democrats and the fascists of neoliberal capitalism are the Henry Maines of the twenty-first century.

A Note on the Study of the Tribal Question in India

Alongside the above points on enclosed academic thinking, there are two main methodological streams are present in modern academics in India in relation to the study of tribes. These two methodologies historically follow the colonial taxonomical-ethnography made by the Orientalist understanding of India. These are the anthropological and sociological methods that tend by and large to be descriptive. The historical materialist method initiated by D.D. Kosambi which probably reached its zenith in the works of Sharad Patil is largely unused. Marxs Ethnological Notebooks is of course never read. By and large it is the anthropological and sociological methodologies that are prevalent in Indian academics. That is why the colonial baggage is obvious in contemporary social sciences in India with regards the tribal question.

If sociology is a study of modern society (Gesellschaft as distinct from Gemeinschaft or community made famous by Ferdinand Tonnies), anthropology has inevitably the study of the other, to be precise the study of the uncivilized other. The subjects of studythe nomadic tribesare either savages or barbarians. To be condemned as criminal would be the fate of what one may call after Hegel as the cunning of reason of this colonial inspired ethnography. And if the tribes are not caught in barbarous conditions involved in criminal acts, then they are understood as pre-modern timeless fetishes that has somehow escaped civilisation. Even if the colonial baggage is shrugged off, a form of empiricisation is obvious. The question of authentic science of what one may call the Tribal Question is always missing. And this is because the question is not located in concrete history. In Indian anthropology, especially in the study of tribes, the studies of Lewis Henry Morgan are almost absent. And when Morgan is referred to it is only through Engels The Origin of Family, Private Property and State. Even this text would be referred only as a text highly contaminated by the Stalinist counterrevolution which claimed that all people of the world were condemned to pass through all the stages of history, just as child was condemned to become a teenager before entering into full adulthood. The followers of the stages theory forgot that history does nothing,12 that is, abstract history devoid of real people. Instead (to recall Marx once again) it is the human, real, living humanity who does all that, who possess all that; history, is not, as it were, a person apart, using humanity as a means to achieve itsown aims; history is nothingbut human activity pursuing its aims.13

The main problem is that the science of history is not understood as historical materia-lism where the interface between the economic base of society and the political and ideological superstructure is seen in the context of proper history itself. The scientific question thus is of the dissolution of the ancient commune (the so-called primitive communist society) and the understanding of the triumph of so-called civilization with its terrible apparatuses of private property, the patriarchal family structure and the authoritarian state governing society. A proper analysis of these ancient communes, their dissolution and their survivals in modern society has to be done.

In The German Ideology Marx and Engels say that the first form of property is tribal property [Stammeigentum].14 Stamm properly speaking should be read as gens (Sanskrit: ganafrom whence the term gynocracy emerges). Any attempt to thrust a teleological reading on history, or to impose the fiction of iron laws of history that run from underdevelopment to development would be false. In the celebrated letter to Zasulich that we referred to, Marx says (quoting Morgan) that the new system towards which modern society is tending will be a revival in a superior form of an archaic type of society.15 Marx continues: One should not be too afraid of the word archaic.16

Method: Dialectical and Historical-humanist Materialism

In the same letter Marx talks of the vitality of primitive communes (which) was greater than that of the Semitic, Greek and Roman societies, etc., and a fortiori than that of modern capitalist societies.17 That is why it is important to understand that the social sciences are not merely to be defined in the genre of dialectical and historical materialism, but defined such that they include humanity at its centre. Thus it is necessary to talk of dialectical and historical-humanist materialism that questions the idea of development (as automatic teleological move-ment) itself. What we need to do is to question the idea of capitalist development which by robbing tribals of their land claims to bring in development by rescuing them from their alleged primitive status. But one also needs to critique the Stalinist model of unilinear history which merely replaces the word capitalist with the word socialist. For both (capitalists and socialists who have never bothered to understand Marx), tribals are essentially primitive and can only serve as museum pieces.

Probably no methodological statement could be as sharp and to the point as Antonio Gramsci when he defined science (or to be precise the science of Marxism) as historicism and huma-nism. What historicism and humanism has done is that it has taken a different look at history from that of the view of history that was present not only in the type of positivist historiography and historical methodology outlined by both American anthropologists and Soviet historians, but prevailing in global sociology.18 The reason is that in Asian social sciences, the universities could not shake off the yoke of positivist methods on the one hand, and Eurocentric models of explanation on the other hand. Either the unchallenged Anglo-Saxon models have taken roots in the Indian social sciences, or simple nativist reactions been appro-priated by Right-wing ideologists.

This is because the dominant methodology prevailing in the Indian social sciences (especially in the discipline of anthropology which has not shaken the yoke of Orientalism) is the colonial system of education that had been thrusted on the Indian subcontinent. We encounter two incorrect theoretical problematic: the positivist one and the colonial ethnographical one. Probably no other discipline than the anthro-pology of the Tribal Question has affected the social sciences the most.

One thus needs to stress on the transcendence of the positivist and empiricist ethnographical problematic. One needs thus to mention what Marx studied in the late 1870s and early 1880s and which came out in the form of the Ethnological Notebooks (published for the first time only in 1974 by Lawrence Krader). Marxs Ethnological Notebooks involves quite another picture to the study of the Tribal Question. This new study talks of a Direct Socialism. The Indian revolution will not be a New Democratic Revolution or other such teleological species (views held by the CPI, CPI-M and the Maoists). The revolution will be a Direct CommunistRevolution where the revolutionary archaic and the modern meet as the New Modernity. Strangely in India, Marxs radical text, the Ethnological Notebooks, is hardly referred to. Irfan Habib one of the greatest Marxist scholars had said that these Notebooks, are not available to me.19 Our theoretical problematic offers quite another picture to Indian ethnography, even a different one than offered by D.D. Kosambi, Sharad Patil, Virginius Xaxa, Sumit Guha and Syed Farid Alatas. Besides Marxs EthnologicalNotebooks, the theoretical space offered by Kevin Andersons, Marx at the Margins (where we have a nuanced reading of Marxs understanding of non-Western societies) opens a different perspective of understanding combined and uneven development in India. One also needs to refer to Harbans Mukhia,20 Aijaz Ahmad,21 and Iqbal Husain22 for alternative understanding of subaltern Indian history. What this new understanding will do is that it will take various sections of the subaltern masses like the nomadic communities which have been classified as (1) pastorals and hunter-gathers, (2) goods and service nomads, (3) entertainers, and (4) religious performers23 directly into the genre of Direct CommunistRevolution. They will not be appen-dages to some mystical vanguard.

Fate has been unkind to these subaltern communities and unlike Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, they get almost no protection by law. And when they confront law, they confront it as terrorists. Struggle for recognition is another factor. The state remains blind to their existence and fate. Many of these subaltern communities are located as DNTs (De-notified and Nomadic Tribes). Their condition varies from state to state. The Pardhis, Kanjarbhats, Shkilgars, Gadi Lohars, Ramoshis, Ghisadis, Dhangars, Vaddari, Beldars, Vaidus, Kolhatis, Uchalies, Ghantichors, Makadwales are left to the mercy of the onslaught of capitalism and the state that refuses to decolonize itself.

While the liberals claim that what needs to be done is to sensitize policy makers and the public at large for inclusive models of development that preserves their culture and heritage and yet emancipates then from hunger and penury, what actually needs being done is relate the modern and the archaic that we talked of earlier which heralds in Direct Communism.

It is in this recalling of the archaic (to be precise the revolutionary archaic) that one recalls the witches and hobgoblins of history. One also recalls the spectre of communism that haunted once Old Europe. In this recalling of the spectre of communism, one will see that the latest struggle in India will be the struggle between the witches and hobgoblins led by the neoliberals and the Indian fascists, on the one hand, and the spectre of communism, on the other hand.

Endnotes

1. The term class cleavage is Ambedkars from his proposed work Can I be a Hindu? Only one chapter was written namely, Symbols of Hinduism. See The Essential Writings of B.R. Ambedkar, ed Valerine Rodrigues, p. 105. Also see Symbols of Hinduism, in B.R. Ambedkar, Writings and Speeches, Vol. 3 (Bombay: Education Department, Government of Maharashtra, 1987), compiled by Vasant Moon, p. 147-8.

2. The subaltern from the subaltern studies that I am talking of is the subaltern that Jyotiba Phule and Ambekar had talked ofthe real history from below. It is not the school that was initiated by Ranjit Guha, nor that of Partha Chatterjee, Ashis Nandy and T.N. Madan. The school that Guha and co. represent is another rendering of history from above, to be precise the Bengali Brahmanical representation of the other.

3. See Kevin Andersons Marx at the Margins: On Nationalism, Ethnicity and Non-Western Societies (Chicago & London: The University of Chicago Press, 2010).

4. Ibid., p. 237.

5. Theories of Surplus Value, Part I (Moscow: Progress Publishers, 1975), p. 387

6. See my Strangers in the Dark. Neo-liberalism and Maoism in India, Critique, Journal of Socialist Theory (Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group), Vol. 42, Issue 4, 2014.

7. Walter Benjamin, Charles Baudelaire: A Lyric Poet in the Era of High Capitalism, trans. Harry Zohn (London: Verso, 1992), p. 14.

8. Karl Marx, op. cit.

9. Ibid. See also my Strangers in the Dark. Neo-liberalism and Maoism in India, Critique, Journal of Socialist Theory (Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group) Vol. 42, Issue 4, 2014, p. 628.

10. Karl Marx, (1970): First Draft of the Reply to V.I. Zasulichs letter, in Marx, Engels, Selected Works in Three Volumes, Volume Three (Moscow: Progress Publishers), p. 153.

11. Ibid., p. 154.

12. Karl Marx and Frederick Engels, The Holy Family (Moscow: Progress Publishers, 1980), p. 116. Please see also my The Seductions of Karl Marx (New Delhi: Aakar Books, 2010), p. 71.

13. Ibid.

14. Karl Marx and Frederick Engels, The German Ideology

(Moscow: Progress Publishers, 1976), p. 38.

15. Karl Marx (1970): First Draft of the Reply to V.I. Zasulichs Letter, p. 154.

16. Ibid.

17. Ibid.

18. Whilst the positivist methodology was critiqued by Gramsci, this critique of positivism has for some strange reasons not taken seriously in the Indian social sciences. Nor have the epistemological concerns raised by Georg Lukacs in History and Class Consciousness and later the critical philosophy of the Frankfurt School (especially Theodor Adorno, Herbert Marcuse and Jurgen Habermas) been taken seriously.

19. Irfan Habib Marxs Perception of India, in Iqbal Husain (ed.), Karl Marx: On India (New Delhi: Tulika Books, 2006), p. XXXIV, n. 84.

20. See his Marx on Pre-Colonial India: An Evaluation, in Dipendra Banerejee (ed.), Marxian Theory and the Third World (New Delhi: Sage, 1985); Mukhia and T.J. Byres (ed.), Feudalism and Non-European Societies (London: Frank Cass, 1985).

21. See his In Theory. Classes, Nations, Literatures (Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1994).

22. See his (ed.), Karl Marx: On India (New Delhi: Tulika Books, 2006).

23. See Milind Bokil, De-notified and Nomadic Tribes. A Perspective in Economic and Political Weekly, January 12, 2002, p. 151 for certain kind of classification of nomadic tribes.

The author belongs to the Indian Institute of Education, Pune. He can be contacted at e-mail: murzbanjal[at]hotmail.com
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Governance, Resources and Livelihoods of Adivasis in India

The following is the authors valedictory address at the National Seminar on Governance, Resouruces and Livelihoods of Advasis in India: Implementation of PESA and FRA, organised by the S.R. Sankaran Chair at the National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Hyderabad, November 19, 2016.

The Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996applicable to Schedule V areas in 10 Statesempowers Gram Sabhas to manage forest lands and community resources, including decision-making relating to land acquisition and development projects and implementation of social sector development projects. The Forest Rights Act of 2006 aims at correcting the historical injustice done to the Adivasis and forest-dwelling communities by granting indivi-dual/community-based tenurial rights over forest land.

This empowerment of Gram Sabhas at the hamlet or village level has aroused widespread expectations among the Adivasis and there are some encouraging cases of implementation of these Acts in some States because of civil society activism and the good work done by NGOs. But the gap between promise from the extent of empowerment under these Acts and perfor-mance or achievements on the ground is very wide. In this sense, the implementation is far from satisfactory.

A reading of the papers presented at this seminar clearly brings home the point that the Adivasis own awareness of the relevant Acts, laws, rules and regulations as well as their own initiative in taking up issues are critical for effective implementation of the provisions in these Acts. For instance, a paper presented in the seminar refers to a study done by the Planning Commission showing that not even a single village Gram Sabha was even aware of the rights over the natural resources. Therefore, better awareness and leadership from Adivasis themselves become crucial.

Historian Ramachandra Guha in his essay on Tribal Tragedies in Independent India(Democrats and Dissenters, Penguin Random House India, 2016), attributes insufficient political clout and low bargaining power of the tribals to their concentration in remote areas, unlike the Dalits who live in mixed villages alongside other castes and communities. With 10 to 20 per cent of vote, Dalits can have a decisive impact in elections even in constituencies not reserved for them. Tribal vote may matter in only 50 or 60 constituencies whereas Dalit vote matters in as many as 300 constituencies.

Discussing poor leadership capabilities among the Adivasis, Guha mentions how jobs under the Scheduled Tribe quota as well as reserved seats in prestigious colleges go to tribals in the North-East, because of their better schooling through the English medium. Due to their inade-quate representation in higher level civil services, tribals are subject to harsh treatment by other officials of forest, police, revenue and various other departments.

It is in recognition of insufficient awareness and low bargaining power of the Adivasis that the Governors have been conferred with significant powers for Schedule V areas in 10 States in matters affecting the livelihood and empower-ment of the Adivasis. But, surprisingly, the interventions by the institution of the Governor in such matters have been very few. The gap between the powers given to the Governors by PESA and their actual exercise is very wide indeed. It was expected that the Adivasis and their leaders approach the Governors seeking their intervention under the Act for rescuing and helping them. But such instances are not visible in many of these States because of lack of necessary awareness and initiatives from the grassroots.

For developing the tribal leadership we need to look at the problem with a long-term perspective of two-three decades, in view of the increasing rural-urban migration among the tribal population and feminisation of the tribal areas. Livelihood prospects from natural resources are shrinking and becoming increa-singly uncertain for tribals. While policies have to be strengthened for protecting the existing sources of livelihood for them, bold and far-reaching measures are needed to explore new avenues of livelihood.

Access to the development of human resources in general and quality education in particular through residential or Ashram schools hold the key to their prospects in future. This should enable many of them to find remune-rative jobs including in higher level services. Those of them remaining in rural areas with some education or choosing to come back would prove to be invaluable assets for providing good leadership. The present approach focusing on area develop-ment rather than human development needs to be radically changed. Also, replacing the top-down approach by micro-level planning would provide opportunities for the development of local-level leadership. Towards this end, Gram Sabhas should be entrusted with the implemen-tation of the MGNREGA and such other pro-grammes.

In the meantime, awareness-building among the tribal youth with existing literacy levels and augmenting their skills for inducting them in various services in the rural areas would better connect the administration with the tribal population and their problems by facilitating the development of local leadership. Way back in the early 1980s, in the course of my visit to the areas in Bastar when I was in the Planning Commission, I found this disjunction to be quite large primarily due to the jobs at the local level being filled by those from the plains, leading to the alienation of administration from the people at large.

Increasing feminisation of tribal agriculture calls for providing better access to services like agricultural extension and credit to women farmers by inducting women officers and workers for the provision of such services. Although in many such areas agriculture is mostly carried out by women, it is not uncommon to find male extension workers belonging to the plains spending their time by talking to men. It would also be beneficial to upgrade the skills of women engaged in certain vocations having a good market potential.

The author is an Honorary Professor, Centre for Economic and Social Studies, Hyderabad.
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Is Pakistan dividing India?

Home Minister Rajnath Singh has said that Pakistan is again trying to divide India on the basis of religion. He conveniently forgets history. Pakistan was a consequence, not the cause. The society was divided and both Hindus and Muslims had reached a point of no return. Consequently, they had marshalled themselves in two separate camps with little contacts with each other.

True, the Muslim League under the leadership of Mohammad Ali Jinnah wanted a separate sovereign Muslim state, but there was a time when he had accepted the Cabinet Mission Plan which gave the Centre three subjectsDefence, Foreign Affairs and Communications. It was Jawaharlal Nehru who said the Constituent Assembly could change anything. That made Jinnah to go back from the Cabinet Mission Plan and he openly said that he did not trust the Congress, which claimed to represent the unity of India.

Rajnath Singh would do well to change the agenda of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP): the establishment of a Hindu Rashtra. It is doing so with a vengeance. After coming to power at the Centre, the BJP has changed the top honchos of institutions because of the orders from its mentor, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

Even the Nehru Centre which imbibed the teachings of Jawaharlal Nehru, an icon representing the national freedom movement, has been drastically disturbed. Satish Sahney, the Chief Executive, is a staunch RSS follower. The students at the Film Institute in Pune have been at the receiving end after Gajendra Chauhan was appointed as its head. No amount of protests had made the government relent. Appointments in other institutions, too, had followed the same pattern.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not taken any policy decision which would reflect the Hindutva philosophy. But his speeches and actions suggest a lurch towards the Right. The society has a veneer of soft-Hindutva, whether the Prime Minister says so or not. After all, the nation had returned him with an absolute majority in the Lok Sabha and he is making the partys agenda good.

The Muslims, who are roughly 12 crore, hardly count for in the governments affairs. The Centre has only one Muslim Cabinet-ranked Minister and he, too, holds an insignificant portfolio. The community does not voice its demand any more as if it has already accepted the number two position. In fact, it is on a defensive mould blaming itself for the partition of the country.

Once I asked a Muslim luminary at the Jamia Millia at Delhi why the community was conspicuously silent. He said that it now wanted only safety for its life and property and had realised that the majority community doubted their commitment to the country. The Muslims, he said, were conscious that they were behind the countrys division and that they would be mistrusted if they were to ask anything more. Home Minister Rajnath Singhs Martyrs Day speech has only underlined the suspicion that the hard-core Hindus have about the Muslims. The average Hindu accommodates the average Muslim and both, despite prodding by the leaders, live and do business amicably. The communal riots have dramatically dipped and there are instances when the Muslims have helped the Hindus in rehabilitation and vice-versa.

India must admit that it has not been able to establish secularism in the full sense, although democracy has got planted. It is very much visible during elections. The lack of secular ethos is because of the doubtful commitment by Hindus who are in a majority. In fact, it is their duty to put the minority community at ease and give it confidence.

I was recently at Srinagar. An engineer who contacted me was a Muslim. He complained that he did not get any worthwhile job in the rest of the country because of his religion. When the private sector found that he was a Muslim, even though he had all the qualifications for the job, he was not hired. That he was a Kashmiri only aggravated the situation further.

Even other Muslims find it hard to get jobs in the rest of the country. The private sector does not normally hire them because of prejudice. And they find it difficult to score in open competitions since they have not had the education in private schools where the fee is steep. The government schools lack the facilities like good faculty and environment which only add to their woes.

I was the Delhi editor of The Statesman when a Muslim employee, who had returned to India after his education in England, complained that he did not get a house in a decent locality. To my horror, I found that he was speaking the truth and that it was not possible for a Muslim to hire on rent a good accommodation owned by a Hindu. That was in the sixties. Even today, there is hardly any change in the attitude of the majority community.

Rajnath Singh should take steps to ensure that the Muslims get accommodation in localities which have Hindus in majority. Otherwise, there are bound to be areas which are overcrowded and where the Muslims feel safe. Its of little use to have the routine Iftar parties which every government or, for that matter, party leaders have to placate the minority community.

Even in a sophisticated city like Mumbai, the Muslims had to remove their name-plates at the time of riots to hide their identity. It is a pity that Hindu neighbours could not give them enough confidence so that they feel safe and mingle with them without any inhibition. The feeling of security is what they want. It is the duty of the government to instil that.

For that the security forces would have to stay above the religious pull. It has been noticed that the force when used in riot-ridden localities tends to become parochial. The Army is often called to maintain peace because it is not contaminated.

Rajnath Singh should take steps to get rid of religious phobia in the force that he commands. Instead, he is giving speeches and blaming Pakistan for the pernicious fallouts of the countrys division.

The author is a veteran journalist renowned not only in this country but also in our neighbouring states of Pakistan and Bangladesh where his columns are widely read. His website is www.kuldipnayar.com
A heavy cold is keeping Queen Elizabeth II from attending the traditional Christmas morning church service near her Sandringham estate in rural Norfolk, England.

It is extremely rare for Elizabeth to miss the service, which is a cornerstone of the royal family's Christmas celebrations and brings the monarch into contact with local residents who gather outside for a glimpse of her.

"The Queen continues to recover from a heavy cold and will stay indoors to assist with her recovery," Buckingham Palace said. "Her Majesty will participate in the royal family Christmas celebrations during the day."

Those festivities usually include a gala lunch. In past years, the royal family would often go for extended walks in the countryside.

Elizabeth has been in generally good health and has maintained an active schedule in the last year despite traveling less often than in the past.

Her husband, 95-year-old Prince Philip, has also cut back his public schedule and his charitable works. He was also suffering from a heavy cold earlier in the week, the palace said.
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Curbing the Black Economy: Demonetisation Not the Way

Tackling the black economy is laudable. The PM has announced demonetisation of the high denomination currency notes to do that. But most analysts are of the opinion this is not the way to even dent (much less eliminating) the black economy in India. The faulty notion is a result of the incorrect understanding that black economy is all cash. The logic of the step taken is, once black money (cash) is sucked out of the economy, the black economy would get eliminated. It is as if, once oxygen is sucked out of a closed room, the bad guys sitting there would all die. But, so would the good guys. Further, what if the bad guys had oxygen masks while the good guys did not?

Political Aspects

The political fall-out of the demonetisation and its aftermath is being felt in Parliament with the Opposition largely united in opposing the move given the hardship the public (especially the poor) is facing. However, outside Parliament, there have been dissensions and the protest day on November 28 showed the cracks. The public at large, initially at least, seemed to have accepted that the government was serious about tackling black money (synonymous in the public mind with the black economy) which is the scourge of the country. Some said that the PM has levelled the ground between the rich and the poor because the former also had to stand in the queues in the banks.

Anyone who has opposed demonetisation is being branded by the ruling party as having black money. Since no one wishes to be so labelled, the political parties have hesitated to go the whole hog in opposing demonetisation. They do not as yet know how much hardship will this move cause to the public and whether the public will react in anger after the initial welcome. The government has been arguing that the pain will be short run and the PM has asked for 50 days. He has said that after that period, things will not only become normal but become better. Many analysts are also unsure whether that would indeed be the case or the effect would persist longer.

The government is also not sure of the implications of what it has started and is coming out with more and more orders and procla-mations for curbing the black economy since its moves are unable to take care of the problems arising from demonetisation. This not only suggests that the scheme had not been thought through but also that the implementation of such a complex scheme of things is difficult at the best of times. However, given the ingenuity of the black money generators and the leakiness of our bureaucracy and banking system, they are finding ways of subverting the scheme. Now there is admission that all the money demonetised will return to the banks. So, no gain is likely.

The government has hurriedly got a Taxation Law Amendment Bill passed through the Lok Sabha to tax those who are depositing money in their accounts. If all the cash comes back, certainly black cash is also being deposited. There is a surge in deposits in Jan Dhan Accounts and also in the banks. Given the haste with which this Bill has been passed, it is likely to have lacunae and may come up for challenge in the courts. Further, corresponding to the deposits in banks, people doing so may declare it as income in the preceding year for which a revised return may be filed and also in the current year for which the return has to be filed by next September. This would be perfectly legal and if not accepted by the Income Tax Department, it would be challenged in the courts.

The PM has asked the BJP legislators to give details of their bank accounts to reveal their deposits. The idea is to show to the public that there is transparency. But how does one ensure that a correct picture will be given by the declarants? After all, those generating black incomes do not give the correct picture to the authorities.

A shift in emphasis is visible. Since most of the high denomination notes seem to be coming back into the banking system, it appears even to the government that its link of elimination of black cash with elimination of the black economy may not be taking place. Thus, a new spin is being given that the move was designed to move the economy to a cashless economy which would pay high dividend. It is also being said that demonetisation is only the first step in curbing the black economy and more steps will be taken soon in this direction. There is a need to analyse these matters more carefully to understand what is going on.

Role of Money

The media is full of stories about the effect of demonetisation of 85 per cent of the currency. The pros and cons of this move need discussion. The former PM, Dr Manmohan Singh, has said that this move will lower the growth rate of the economy by at least two per cent. Those in the government have challenged this assertion. The government is saying that the pain will be temporary while there would be huge gains over time. But, according to official data, the economy was doing well and had become the fastest growing major economy of the world; so why this sudden move which threatens this achievement, even if temporarily?

The reasons are political and not economic. But the economic consequences need to be understood both in the short and the long run because they have the potential of impacting the political calculus as well.

Money is not consumed by individuals; so its shortage should not have a direct effect on them. But it is crucial in a modern economy, because it circulates incomes which people need to live. It enables people to exchange goods and services which is required for production and generation of incomes. It removes the need for a double coincidence that is essential in a barter economy. In such an economy, if I produce shoes then I need to find someone who needs them and can offer in return something that I need, maybe food. If I exchange shoes for cloth that is not good enough since I will still have to find someone who needs cloth and has food spare to give to me. All this can become very circuitous and leads to a waste of an individuals time which could be better used to produce more of the things that the person can produce. Hence, in a complex economy, barter leads to inefficiency. Presence of money simplifies exchange (there may be other complications).

Money does not mean cash alone. One can use cheques, credit and debit cards and electronic money to carry on transactions. But currency issued by the Central Bank (RBI, in our case) is the base on which the other forms of money are created. So, a shortage of currency means that the medium of exchange is in short supply and it affects production and distribution in the economy.

Impact on Growth and Output in the Economy

While money does not mean cash alone, the unorganised sectors of the economy are small and tiny units of production which largely use cash. So, a shortage of cash for their transactions has adversely affected their production and incomes. Agriculture is a large component of this sector and there are reports of farmers suffering due to shortage of cash in rural areas. There are few bank branches there so that exchanging old currency for new notes has been difficult. Further, bank branches have not had adequate supply of new notes so that rural households have not been able to acquire enough cash. This has caused difficulties in payment of wages, purchase of inputs required for the crop, etc. Reports are that the Arthiyas have not been able to make payment to farmers; so produce has not been coming to the wholesale markets.

Cottage and small producers also pay wages in cash and buy their inputs in cash. They have also had a problem in continuing production due to shortage of cash. Small traders have similarly been adversely affected. Some credit is extended for purchases but this has its limits. A shopkeeper can give some supplies to his known clients on credit for a limited time since he also has to get supplies from the wholesale dealer. These people do not have the machines for swiping cards or the smart phones to receive money transfers. Further, the workers in the unorganised sector who have bank accounts have had to spend much time trying to draw cash which has meant a loss in wages. In brief, various components of the unorganised sectors have been hit adversely by demonetisation.

The organised sector has also been hit. While it can use cheques, plastic money and even electronic transfers, it is facing a demand shortage. People, even the well-off, facing a shortage of cash have postponed their discretionary demand. The unorganised sectors also buy the product of the organised sectors; so that their loss of incomes also adversely impacts the demand for the organised sectors. As it is, major industries in India have been working at about 75 per cent capacity utilisation. With decline in demand and reports of inventories building up, production would have already been curtailed and capacity utilisation would have dropped further. Unemployment is likely to grow and become more permanent. Workers are already reported to be going back to their villages due to lack of work in urban areas. This would aggravate the crisis in rural areas. Many families depend on cash flow from migrants to urban areas. Not only would these remittances decline, the returning workers would add to the family burden.

Profitability of many industries would have already been hit, like transport, automobile, cycle, hotels, tourism, consumer durables, FMCG and a variety of services. Banking, which was already suffering due to the pile of NPAs, will find recovery of loans more difficult and that would only increase the NPAs. Demand for credit was already weak and this would further decline. These effects would be more long lasting and go beyond the immediate shortage of cash.

Investments are likely to be hit adversely due to lower capacity utilisation and build-up of the NPAs. Banks will be too busy dealing with circulation of cash and tackling cash shortage. They would have little time to do the routine job of lending. Once investment is hit and it was already on the decline, the effect would become even more long lasting. No one is yet using the term recession but there is a distinct possibility that this could happen if the above mentioned effects take effect after a month or two of disruption. Then economic recovery could take a few years.

Moving toward a Less Cash Economy

The government, to divert attention from the ill-effects of demonetisation, is arguing that its real goal was a cashless society. It feels that this will eliminate corruption. Unfortunately, they are mixing up two different things.

While many businesses and the well-off and the middle classes may use cheques or plastic cards or electronic transfers, the unorganised, small and cottage sectors, the poor and unbanked and illiterate people are not so fortunate. They use cash for their transactions. A cash shortage hits them the most. For the more fortunate also, it is a matter of habit whether they use cash or plastic money. No wonder, there are long lines at the banks to withdraw cash and these are not just the poor but also the middle classes.

In the US where plastic cards have been in wide use for many decades, use of cash continues. It is a question of habits. Further, in spite of widespread use of plastic cards and electronic money in the US, the black economy flourishes. So, a link between cash and black money is weak. Given this situation in the US and the weak infrastructure (electricity, connectivity, etc.) India cannot soon become cashless. But it can move towards a less cash economy.

If money is in short supply, gold may be used or payment made abroad or in foreign exchange, etc. Thus, the demand for gold and foreign exchange will rise in India and this was seen soon after the demonetisation was announced. Under the gold monetisation scheme, the government has issued gold coins which can be easily used. So, a less cash economy does not imply that black income generation will stop. Only the circulation of black incomes will take place differently.

Yes, the nation should move towards a less cash economy so as to reap the benefits of efficiency but that should not be confused with checking the growth of the black economy. That requires a wholly different approach. As stated earlier, black economy does not mean cash. Further, new currency is being issued; so it is not as if cash will not be available for circulation of the black economy. Even larger denomination currency (Rs 2000) than earlier is being issued. If less cash is issued than existed earlier, it may cause problems for the white economy and especially the unorganised sectors but the black economy, which is concentrated in the hands of the well-off, would not be dented.

In government departments, payments are made via cheques but bribes are extracted in a variety of ways. In private institutions, salary maybe paid via cheque but only after cash is paid to the management. Post-demonetisation, many ways of converting the stashed black money in old currency into new currency have been devised. The argument that cashless transactions will mean that the poor will receive their correct salary will not hold since they can be coerced in various ways to give back in cash. For instance, manipulation of the muster rolls is well known. Jan Dhan accounts are being widely used. If the unscrupulous deposit Rs 10,000 per account in 20 crore accounts, Rs 2 lakh crores would be converted into new currency. So, black income circulation would continue as earlier.

Currency is neither coloured black nor white. So, whatever cash is available in the economy can be used to circulate both the black and the white economies. The two economies are not parallelwhere the twain does not meetso it is not that if the money is used in one component it cannot be used in the other. Thus, the idea of demonetisation and less cash economy have little to do with the curbing of the black economy. The banking channels, share markets, informal money markets, hawala, flight of capital and so on will continue to be available to circulate the black economy. In fact, some of these ways of circulating the black incomes will become more active, leading to loss of savings to the economy. The reports are that the poor, the farmers, the small producers, big business and industry are being hurt due to the fall in demand and loss of employment.

Is a Windfall Gain Likely?

Would the government get a windfall gain as a result of some of the Rs 14 lakh crores of notes not coming back into the system? This could be used to argue that the black economy has been tamed. It may also enable the government to increase pro-poor spendinga Robin Hood syndrome could politically help the government.

When cash is deposited in the bank by an individual it goes into that persons account as saving. The bank is obliged to return that to the RBI so that the old notes may be destroyed. The banks deposits will increase above what they are required to keep with the RBI (called, CRR). The currency issued by the RBI was its liability; so, as soon as the demonetisation was announced, its liability decreased by the amount of demonetisation. But its assets did not fall. So, in its balance-sheet there is now a huge surplus. Can this be used by the government for the pro-poor schemes?

However, the RBI is obliged to give new currency in lieu of the old extinguished currency. People are going to banks to withdraw what they have deposited in their accounts so that they can carry on their transactions. The banks are obliged to give people the money they ask from their accounts and they will have to get it from the RBI. But the demand for cash will be higher than earlier since people are hoarding currency and not circulating it. So, even if some of the old money does not come back into the banking system, the RBI will have to issue more cash than earlier to maintain the credibility of the system; otherwise the cash shortage will continue with all its adverse effects.

Conclusion

In brief, black economy cannot be curbed by choking off cash via demonetisation but this move will adversely hit economic activity both in the long and the short run. What can be done to get out of the morass the economy is going into? Liquidity needs to be immediately restored, by allowing the old notes to continue to be used. Most of them are still with the banks and have not yet been destroyed. Some of the adverse effects in the economy would immediately reverse. But if cash shortage is allowed to continue for a month or more (the government says 50 days but others say shortage will continue for many months more), there would be irreversible and long lasting damage to the economy and the political fallout would be negative for the ruling coalition.

The author is a retired Professor of Economics, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He is the author of the book, The Black Economy in India, published by Penguin (India).
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Letter to PM by CPI-M General Secretary

The following is the text of a letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by CPI-M General Secretary and MP Sitaram Yechury on December 12, 2016 regarding the finalisation of the Major Defense Partner designation to India by the USA.

Dear Pradhan Mantri-ji,

I am writing to you in connection with the finalisation of the Major Defense Partner designation to India by the United States of America, as announced through a joint statement issued by your Ministry on December 8, 2016. This follows the announcement of signing of the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) between the US and Indian Defence Ministries earlier this year.

The Major Defense Partner designation is, as the statement says, a status unique to India, and brings India to a level at par with that of the United States closest allies and partners. This is a significant departure from Indias longstanding policy on defence relations and it has been done without taking Parliament into confidence.

While the US Government has placed the details of Major Defense Partner designation for approval of the US Senate as part of FY 2017 National Defense Authorisation Act (NDAA), your government has not even made a statement in Parliament about such a significant deal. The country can see the US side of the deal by reading the 2017 NDAA, but remains ignorant of the Indian commitment as a Major Defense Partner of the United States.

I would like to draw your attention to Paragraph (E) of Sec. 1292 of 2017 NDAA, which talks of mechanisms to verify the security of defense articles, defense services, and related technology, such as appropriate cyber security and end user monitoring agreements for items and technologies sold to India. Paragraph (F) thereafter states that India will align its export control and procurement regimes with those of the United States. These are significant concessions made by your government which will make Indian defence forces open to American scrutiny, and Indian defence production under the control of the United States of America.

Serious apprehensions arise about your government compromising Indias sovereignty and strategic autonomy. Paragraph (I) of Sec. 1292, 2017 NDAA makes the facts amply clear. It explicitly highlights enhanced defense and security cooperation with India in order to advance United States interests in South Asia and greater Indo-Asia-Pacific regions. This is, sadly, a commitment by your government to become a junior ally of the US in our own neighbourhood. This represents the final nail in the coffin of Indias independent foreign policy.

It is particularly galling that all these commitments, as part of the announcement of the Major Defense Partner designation, were made by the Defence Ministry when both the Houses of Parliament were, and still are, in session. This is in complete contravention of the established norms and practices of our parliamentary system.

I am further constrained to state that your government seems particularly keen on ignoring Parliament, because even the text of the LEMOA has so far not been placed before either of the Houses, or the Standing Committee on Defence. It needs no reminder that Parliament represents the people of this great country and by choosing to wilfully ignore Parliament, you are disrespecting 1.3 billion Indians.

I demand that both these texts must be tabled in Parliament and made public immediately.

I hope that as part of your governments responsibilities towards Parliament, you will place the full text of the LEMOA and the list of commitments made as part of the Major Defense Partner designation before both the Houses of Parliament immediately before this current winter session adjourns.

With regards,

Yours sincerely,

Sitaram Yechury
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > The Trump Call: Pakistan gets a jumpstart in dealing with the coming US (...)

If India was hoping to corner Pakistan on the issue of cross-border terrorism at the Heart of Asia conference on December 3-4 in Amritsar, that has been overtaken by the telephone conversation between US President-elect Donald Trump and Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif on Friday, (December 2), which dramatically shifts the kaleidoscope reflecting the sequence of elements in the Hindu Kush.

During the US presidential election campaign, Trump hardly spoke on Afghanistan. But he amply made up for it in the conversation with Sharif, giving some clues on how his mind is working on the US strategy. Interestingly, Trump is yet to speak with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. In fact, Sharif is the only South Asian leader other than PM Modi with whom Trump has interacted on phone.

The conversation with Sharif was scheduled just before the announcement came regarding Trumps choice of General James Mattis (retd) as the next US Defence Secretary. Without doubt, the Pakistan military leadership and ISI would have substantial institutional memory over Mattiss personality and professional outlook. (The tough-talking, erudite General is popularly known as Mad Dog.) Indeed, Mattis will be remembered in no small part in the GHQ of the Pakistan military in Rawalpindi and the ISI establishment in Islamabad as the then one-star General who was handpicked by the Pentagon in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks to amass forces for the US invasion of Afghanistan.

With Mattis in charge, Task Force 58, a large marine air-ground task force, got into Kandahar province on November 25, 2001. He effectively oversaw the deepest insertion of the Marines into a combat zone in US military history. Over 1000 Marines were in Kandahar within a week of the mission, which heavily depended on back-up provided by the ISI and Pakistan military. General Pervez Musharraf was ruling Pakistan at the time.

A decade later, during 2010 to 2013, Mattis returned to the region as the head of the US Central Command in overall charge of Americas wars in Afghanistan and Iranand against the Al-Qaeda. The call of duty took Mattis to Rawalpindi to cogitate with General Ashfaq Kayani, a quiet General who was also an expert on asymmetric warfare against superpowers.

Trump appears to have had a substantive conversation with Sharif. His office in New York said the two leaders had a productive conversation and that the President-elect hoped for a strong working relationship between the two countries. Trump looked forward to a lasting and strong personal relationship with Sharif.

On the other hand, Sharifs office in Islamabad emphasised that Trump paid fulsome praise to him. Trump was quoted as saying, I am ready and willing to play any role that you (Sharif) want me to play to address and find solutions to the outstanding problems. Now, that is a very big statement, given the tortuous history of the subcontinent. Pakistan is getting a jumpstart in its dealings with the incoming Trump presidency. This is one thing.

Of course, we get some useful markers here on the likely directions of Trumps approach to Afghanistan. At its core, the strategy will not be of a retrenchment. Trump is not about to order the withdrawal of US troops. Mattis record in Afghanistan and his co-authorship of the famous COIN strategy for the US military would suggest that he will be an advocate of negotiations with the Taliban from a position of strength, which means that insurgents (and their mentors) are left in no two minds about the futility of attempting a takeover in Kabul.

Trumps grit to fight terrorism is not in doubt. At a victory rally in Ohio on Friday (December 2), he asserted: We will destroy ISIS. We will partner with every nation that is willing to join us in the effort to defeat ISIS and radical Islamic terrorism. Clearly, therefore, Pakistan enjoys a key role in Trumps strategy to fight terrorist groups in Afghanistan. It is entirely conceivable that during Fridays phone conversation, Trump typically came down full-throttle stressing the high importance he attaches to relations with Pakistan. The period of drift in the US-Pakistan ties, characteristic of recent Obama years, is ending. The relationship may revert to the traditional mode of intense engagement between the two countries. The Ohio statement suggests that Trump may also avail of Chinas influence.

However, it also was during Mattis term as the chief of the Central Command that the US-Pakistan relationship began going into a death spiral. The year 2011 turned out to be a fateful period. In mid-January, a CIA contractor by name Raymond Davis, whom Pakistanis suspected to be on covert mission, was arrested in Lahore and was kept in custody till mid-March, ignoring even an intervention by President Obama seeking his release. Hardly six weeks after Davis release the biggest-ever crack in the US-Pakistan ties appeared with the SEAL commando raid on Osama bin Ladens compound in Abbottabad. Finally, the year ended on a rather bloody note when on November 26, US jets and helicopters entered Pakistani airspace in the border region of Salala in the tribal areas and slaughtered 28 Pakistani soldiers and wounded 10 others.

The relations never quite recovered after that. Pakistan retaliated by closing NATOs transit routes, and despite Mattis attempts, the blockade continued for several months until July next year when the then Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, was persuaded to tender an apology. Suffice it to say, Mattis can be trusted to have a profound insight into the root causes of terrorism in the Af-Pak region. It was during Mattis tenure in the Central Command that the then outgoing Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen, famously alleged at a Congressional hearing that the Haqqani network is a veritable arm of the ISI.

Loser is a favourite expression of Trumps. He once said: There are peopleI categorise them as lifes loserswho get their sense of accomplishment and achievement from trying to stop others. As far as Im concerned, if they had any real ability, they wouldnt be fighting me. He is also heard saying: Believe me. Youll never get bored with winning. All in all, therefore, a valiant attempt has been made by Sharifs office to present Trump as a jolly good fellow. But then, Trump timed his conversation with Sharif just before making the all-important announcement regarding Mattis nomination. Trump intends to shake off Obamas ennui in dealing with this exasperating frenemy. But he is also making an offer of re-engagement that Pakistan cannot refuse.

Ambassador M.K. Bhadrakumar served as a career diplomat in the Indian Foreign Service for over 29 years, with postings including Indias ambassador to Uzbekistan (1995-1998) and to Turkey (1998-2001).
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Populism Finds the Way: Trump, Pollsters and the Peoples Choice

by Pradeep Nair and Sandeep Sharma

In the aftermath of the American presidential elections, streets in several cities of America rocked with the slogan Not My President. This sloganeering rose against a person who went into election (and won the same) with a campaign catchphrase Make America Great Again. The protestors termed his win unusual, unexpected and unconventional and feared the ways he would realise his dream of making America great again! Mr Donald John Trump, a real estate mogul, businessman, pageant owner and a billionaire reality TV star is the new President of United States of America. Defeating all pollsters predictions, crushing the media agenda and undermining the popular votes, he surged to victory and set a new paradigm of the American character of the presidential candidate. His win should be looked at with a deeper insight and meaning crossing beyond the Democratic and Republican Party politics.

The United States of America, a nation metaphorically known as a melting pot owing to its multicultural character, is again standing at the crossroads. Trump devised a divisive campaign strategy by making division clear among rural-urban, native-immigrants, whites-blacks, and poor-rich. On the other hand, the minorities horse symbolising status-quo and American-dream lost the race against all popular expectations. Is this a new America?

The Old Rules of American Politics

This is a rare instance in the political history of America that a person with no political and military background has been chosen as the head of the Oval Office. President Trump has negligible experience in active politics as against his opponent Hillary Clinton, who has been in active politics since the last 40 years holding important positions like the Secretary of State, Senator and the First Lady of the United States. This unequivocally is the first rule that Trump interfered with.

Last year in July, several US news websites picked up a story quoting a former Texas Governor, Rick Perry, that Donald Trump is the modern day incarnation of the Know-Nothing movement. Perry supposedly based this analogical state-ment on Trumps idea of deporting all immigrants and to build a massive wall at the Mexican border. Historically speaking, xeno-phobia and racism are not new to American presidential politics. The movement against Catholics and German immigrants to pull them out from the political affairs of the United States in the 1940s in the form of Know-Nothings also supported the same theme of True Americans and was well accepted by a majority of the middle working class of the United States as a solution to their job and position struggle. The supporter of this movement, the Know Nothing party, adopted the American party as its official name in 1954. In 1956, the Know-Nothings chose former President Millard Fillmore as their nominee, but he lost the election by just winning around 21 per cent of votes. (Patrick, Pious and Ritchie, 2001)

James B. Weaver, a populist presidential candidate in the 1892 presidential election, lost the election by scoring about eight per cent of the votes. (Tarr and Benenson, 2012) Similarly another populist leader, William Jennings Bryan, one of the dominant forces in the populist wing of the Democratic Party, stood three times as the presidential candidate in the 1890, 1896, and 1908 elections and lost every time. His biographer Michael Kazin recounted: William Jennings Bryan was the first leader of a major party to argue for permanently expanding the power of the federal government to serve the welfare of ordinary Americans (Kazin, 2006). Huey Pierce Long Jr., a flamboyant populist of early twentieth century America, was considered to be a strong contender against Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1936 presidential election. However, he was assassinated on September 10, 1935. Franklin D. Roosevelt called him one of the most dangerous men in America, with good reason.

These facts tell a story of the failure of the populist leadership in the American presidential elections. In the light of these facts a New York Times columnist, David Brooks, rightly observed that making the history of populism in America is generally a history of defeat. A majority of voters reject their us versus them mentality. But this thesis too is proven wrong in the case of Donald Trump. He succeeded in persuading a majority of American voters that he would devise a mechanism whereby ordinary citizens would prevail over the privileged elite. He convinced Americans that he would find solutions to the problems like stagnating wages, shrinking numbers of good jobs, a political and media culture that treated them as though they were aliens in their own country. This election result shows that around 49 per cent of the American voters had been waiting for someone like Trump to say to them: I hear you, and I will make things right.

How was the leadership of Mr Trump romanticised by the common Americans? What kind of a sense of control and understanding of their environment was achieved by the American voters by attributing causality to a leader like Trump? The questions regarding Trumps presidential character, personality and leader-ship quality in the frame of Max Webers (1968) charismatic conception, Theodore Millons (1990) personality model and Simontons (1988) dimension of presidential style could be answered differently by political and social scientists from varying vantage points in coming times. However, the already available voluminous literature on the US presidential personality, leadership and character suggests that American voters commonly wanted a President who could and did get things done, but in a way that was consistent with the personal integrity they expected. And, while Americans wanted competence, they also wanted a President who embodied their best ideals and those of the countrya person of public stature and reputation who they could be justifiably proud of whether they fully agree with him or not. (Renshon, 1998)

America No More a Melting Pot

America has traditionally been referred to as a melting pot, welcoming people from many different countries, races and religions, all hoping to find freedom, new opportunities and a better way of lifethe American Dream. The American history also began with waves of immigrants, bringing their own cultures and traditions to a vast new country. It is this diversity that makes America what it is today and creates the challenges it faces. The result of the American elections 2016 has strengthened the claim that despite the efforts for a more diverse, liberal and integrated society, America is transforming into a society divided in compartments and the great American culture is becoming more selective. The majority-minority break-up as White and Black Americans, which was very well cashed in these elections by the Republicans, substantiates that this selective American culture is now subject to more changes in Trumps regime.

The conception that being American is not an ethnicity, but a nationality and so shouldnt be coupled with ethnicity or race, has now shifted towards the new concept of true Americans. The immigrants, who were mistaken in thinking that all the citizens of the United States are Americans, are now in an identity crisis and are trying to understand a dichotomy between the Americans of this and that side of the racial and ethnic polarities. American as a broad, elusive term will now narrow down towards a more exclusive and selective term which will have its own definition of America as a culture and a country and will have the right to determine what is un-American.

Pollsters Poor Show

George Gallup said: If democracy is about the will of the people, shouldnt someone find out what that will is? The saying was proved wrong again this time. The historical analysis of the US election data since 1948, researching technologies, and sophisticated prediction of the result of presidential politicsall were an off-ramp away from what actually happened. Pollsters like Nate Silver, Gallup and websites like Real Clear Politics (RCP), Huffington Post, New York Times failed in their pre-poll forecast as they were not able to understand and register the pulse of a large portion of the American electorate who polarised on the issue of nativity and nationalism. The pollsters failed to present a reality based political scenario and to capture the public opinion accurately and a lot of misinterpretations of polls took place every-where thus hypothetically projecting Hillary Clintons greater chance to win the election. The poll projections were not able to estimate the strength of Trumps vote and the movement he built towards his side. It was rightly said that politics is not just about numbers and data cannot capture human conditions even though the method of data collection could be scientific and methodological. Although Gallup himself has always argued that the pre-election polls do not measure the outcome of an election; they only measure who is ahead during an election campaign at the time of interviewing the electorates chosen as samples for the study. The pre-poll predictions do not answer the question who will win? but the question who was ahead when the pollsters last looked? On the contrary, a study conducted by Paul F. Lazarsfeld, Berbard Berelson, and Hazel Gaudet on the presidential election of 1944 argued that the information about who is ahead in elections helps both politicians in office and out of office in their further planning and future decision about the transition of governments and thus is critical for any democracy. It further causes crisis for individuals, upheavals for institutions, and strain on the whole democratic system. Thus publishing pre-election polls is a quite respon-sible affair and needs absolute preparation. (Lazarsfeld, Berelson and Gaudet, 1944)

The pollsters poor show in the 2016 US election made it clear that the voters choices were not clearly measured on the basis of their understanding of political issues and the stands of their favourite candidates on issues especially when they are in conflict with the voters own views. The Columbia studies and the Michigan Model of electoral studies conducted in the 1960s have very clearly evidenced that when-ever there will be more talk than debate, the poll results will show a shock of disagreement, adjustment and change in the political establishments and that is something which the pollsters have to understand to survive in the business. (Keysser, 2000) They have to under-stand that the influence of various psychological, sociological and political factors on the determination of the vote (Cambell and Khan, 1952) and on the loyalties of American voters which can at any time shift the election outcomes and bring a hardliner like Trump into office on the basis of issue positions rather than the candidates personal qualities and party identification.

A Drum Beaters Defeat

Besides pollsters, the US news media was another stakeholder in the prediction business of US presidential elections. But, what a miss, mess and a poor show it was! The big data, dazzling technology and sophisticated newsrooms could not help them at all. A majority of the US news media steered public opinion toward Hillary Clinton and emphatically claimed that shed got this. The Huffington Post had assured its readers that Clinton had a 98 per cent chance of winning while the New York Times gave her an 85 per cent chance of winning. In another instance, on October 5, BBC News reported: USA Today has broken with tradition for the first time in its 34-year history and issued a scathing editorial against Republican nominee Donald Trump, described him as a serial lair who traffics in prejudice and has coarsened the national dialogue. The USA Today editorial board wrote: This year, one of the candidatesRepublican nominee Donald Trumpis, by unanimous consensus of the Editorial Board, unfit for the Presidency. Endorsement of presidential candidates by the US news media is not a new practice in the USA. But the way the media played their part in this election have deeper and wider meaning than endorsement. Doesnt it indicate towards a fact that there is something fundamentally broken in US journalism? The arrays of media houses and eminent journalists miserably failed to gauge the popular will. They failed to present a reality-based political scenario. There was a disconnect from ground realities. They underestimated the strength of Trumps vote. Therefore Trumps victory should be also marked as a victory of the American people over the news media establishment.

The right to vote as a process of selecting governments is fundamental to any democracy as it ensures the rule of the people. In The Third Wave, Samuel P. Huntington explains why elections are the essence of democracy. He argued that even if a government elected by the people through elections may be inefficient, corrupt, shortsighted, and irresponsible and may be dominated by special interests, and may not be able to frame policies for public good, even thenit may not be termed as undemocratic. It can be an undesirable government. (Hun-tington, 1993) The same is the case of the newly elected American President Donald Trump. Through an electoral process, the people of the United States have elected their new President. Trumps election as the President has its own logic, its own justification, and is, in general, a success for the Republicans. The newly elected governments ideals, objectives and process of administration may not be in the same line of the mechanics of the American federal system as it was in the past 100 years. But one thing which stunned the political and social scientists across the globe is the major shift that has taken place in the good political habits of American voters. The carefully crafted intangible benefits of psychological associations along with being nationalist, true-American, anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim and pro-racist image of Donald Trump definitely sounds different in the context of the multi-hued, socio-politico and cultural idea of America and American democracy and this will decide how and what America will be in future.

References

Campbell, A. and Kahn, R.L. (1952), The people elect a President, Ann Arbor, Mich. : Survey Research Centre, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan.

Huntington, S. (1993), The Third Wave: Democratisation in the Late Twentieth Century, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press.

Kazin, M. (2006), A Godly Hero: The Life of William Jennings Bryan

,

Knopf.

Keysser, A. (2000), The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States, Basic Books.

Lazarsfeld, P.F., Berelson, B., and Gaudet, H. (1944), The Peoples Choice: How the Voter Makes Up his Mind in a Presidential Campaign, New York: Columbia University Press.

Millon, T. (1990), Toward a new Personlogy: An Evolutionary Model, New York: Wiley.

Patrick, J. J., Pious, M. R. and Ritchie, A. D. (2001), The Oxford Guide to the United States Government, New York: Oxford University Press.

Renshon, A.S. (1998), The Psychological Assessment of Presidential Candidates, New York: Routledge.

Simonton, D.K. (1988), Presidential Style: Personality, Biography, and Performance, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 55 (6): 928-936.

Tarr, D. and Benenson, Bob (2012), Elections A to Z, Los Angeles: Sage.

Weber, M. and Eisenstadt, S.N. (1968), Max Weber on Charisma and Institution Building: Selected Papers, Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Pradeep Nair, Ph.D, is an Associate Professor and Dean, School of Journalism, Mass Communication and New Media, Central University of Himachal Pradesh, Dharamshala. Sandeep Sharma is presently doing his Ph.D from the Department of Mass Communication and Electronic Media, Central University of Himachal Pradesh. Before shifting to academics, he worked with Dainik Bhaskar, the Hindi daily, as a Sub-Editor.
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > The Year of Unravelling

The best of times were promised, but the worst of times are here. Not in any war fought since the independence of India were so many millions seen waiting their turn in interminable lines, not before ration shops, but banks and ATMs to be granted a pittance of their own legitimate earnings. If over the year some eighty-seven soldiers have died manning the borders, a hundred and eleven at last count have lost their lives asking for their very owna consti-tutional collapse of unprecedented dimensions and import where the citizen is now denied the promissory right to her own money. As the winter sets in, we may be certain of more fatalities in the quixotic enterprise of eradicating corruption.

Tilting at the windmills, the Don Quixote of our times will not accept the stark and brutal reality that the villains are all well-placed, and only the honest millions are being ground to the dust. The scream is that only the dishonest make that argument. So, after patriotism, it is honesty of the labouring millions which is now at stake. Only the cronies are both patriotic and honest, and the nation is brazenly sought to be handed over to them via digital technologies of profit-making.

Just to note, Internet penetration in India is all of 27 per cent, and a colossal three per cent transact their payments through plastic channels. True as it is that mobile telephone penetration in India is over 80 per cent; only 17 per cent own phones that may be used for financial transactions. Not to mention the fact that India has hardly any Cyber laws in place against a reality in which the defrauding of cyber accounts is an everyday occurrence the world over. In rural India, Internet penetration is 13 per cent, and more than forty per cent Indians still remain outside the banking system, even as India has the worlds largest population of illiterates in absolute terms. Close to eighty per cent of Indias economy is in the informal sector which yields more than sixty per cent of Indias employment.

After having put the labouring, the indigent and the disempowered to the sword, of destitution, word is that all of the demonetised notes are returning to the banks, leaving one wondering whatever happened to the stock of black currency. Even more cruelly, as the people man their slots in the lines, a new firman offers those that may have black currency to come forward, jettison a half of their wealth, and happily keep the rest. The people in the meanwhile do their service by the nation in deference to the edict from the numero uno who can do no wrong.

Thus it is that the Republic is all set to tumble economically into a veritable abyss, although there is no dearth of loyal expert voices who stare down the facts every night at prime time and point to that roseate future which only they persuade themselves to see. They see the bath water being emptied; we see the baby going as well. Indeed, one does not have to be a terrific economist to know that as demand shrinks and massive job losses occur in all segments of the productive network, and as new investment will take a long while to come, the dip in the GDP is likely to be a hefty one, with all the usual consequences that must flow thereof.

Equally to the point, all the sources that generate a black economy remain in placebe it real estate, or bullion, or participatory notes in the stock market, or hawala transactions, or transactions via tax havens, clandestine moneys paid to political parties to fight elections etc. Note that there is no mention still of instituting a Lok Pal at the Centre, or bringing the funding of political parties into the ambit of the Right to Information Actomissions that suggest how little is meant to put in place institutional mechanisms as lasting watchdogs on the circulation and generation of illicit wealth.

And as the hoi polloi struggle to transact weddings sans cash, the cronies and some Ministers flash their clout in shows of wealth that must put the Great Gatsby to shame. Having promised minimum government, the nation is now set for an inspector raj of horrendous proportions at the hands of an officialdom some ninety per cent of whom are corrupt as per averment made by a top official of the Income Tax regime itself. Good governance at its peak!

Stepping back, this has truly been an annus horribilis where it concerns the security of the borders, especially along the Line of Control in Kashmir as well as the International Border between India and Pakistan. The mayhem witnessed in the Valley over five or so hellish months must remain unprecedented. And now, Kashmir seems a forgotten story altogether, as the Agenda of Alliance between the two coalition partners in the Jammu and Kashmir Government becomes a forgotten scrap of archival waste. And as the dialogue process overall internally and with Pakistan is a dead letter. The Quixotic recourse here has been to a famous surgical strike following the killing of nineteen Indian soldiers in a Brigade camp in Uri.

Even as the chest-thumping was on, it began to dawn on Indians without blinkers that the famous strike, whatever its facts, had yielded only incalculable misery. Not only have another thirty or so Indian soldiers been killed in cross-border firing, but a dozen more Indian civilians as well who live and labour along the Line of Control and the International Border. Their fields and crops destroyed, they have been obliged to migrate in droves to safer places. So nobody quite knows whether the surgical strikes are to be replicated and again announced to the world in roaring syllables. Or whether, after all, the government of the day no longer has a strategy to meet any sort of situation.

We are told demonetisation has broken the back of the terrorists; well, not quite; if anything they are now looting big and small banks for the new notes and getting away with the loot as well.. Nor have the enterprising been slow in already managing to counterfiet the new Indian currency. And with the bonanza of currency notes in the denomination of Rupees Two Thousand, it will be only half as difficult to stash away the new currency in due course. You may then well wonder what the exercise to scuttle some eightysix per cent of Indias currency was all about here as well. If anything, the brazen and bold attack on the Corp Headquarters at Nagrota some hundred miles inside from the border suggests how little the surgical strike seems to have mattered at all.

Then there is the other worryperhaps the worst of them all, since this may impact the very constitutonal order of things. While the Indian Parliament is still in session, we are witnessing a style of leadership which argues that all those in Parliament whom the the people rejected are at bottom on the side of the corrupt and therefore need not be heeded. Which is why, the crowds are told, that the leader has opted to speak directly to them, setting aside the Parliament. This begs one or two important questions: those that have been allegedly rejected by the people got some 69 per cent of the mandate in the general elections of 2014. Clearly, we are being asked to accept the view that the 31 per cent who voted for the ruling party are the only trustworthy Indians.

But more importantly, are we to understand that parliamentary Opposition and questioning renders the system of parliamentary democracy defunct? And are their secret thoughts brewing here as well as they did in the matter of demonetisation? The many famous stalwarts who stood up to the Internal Emergency of the mid-seventies must ponder this question, some of them famously now in the ranks of the ruling dispensation. Are we perhaps facing a prospect in which we are likely to be the worlds largest democracy only in name? In that context, the increasingly unlovely spat between the Executive and the Judiciary seems another ominous aspect of the situation.

In all likelihood the answer to these anxieties will be suggested by the results of the forth-coming elections to State Assemblies. While urban elites, spawned by the neo-liberal economic reforms post-Indias embrace of the Washington Consensus in 1990, are largely indifferent to democratic principles, conventions, and habits of thought, if not positively hostile, it is the vast hinterland of Indians who will have to take a call in the days and months to come; and, may one add, political forces that claim to speak on their behalf.

For now, the times could not be darker. A post-truth era the world over seeks to shame facts with slogans, analyses with national pride, and criticism, however well-meant, with treachery. And classes of people who have been the undisputed beneficiaries of capitalist democracies are heard to complain the most and to be the most ready to prop up rule by strong men as against rule by laws, systems, and principles of truth and fairplay. Had Yeats been alive, he might have seen this as truly the hour of the beast slouching towards not just Bethlehem but all world capitals, with little creatures in their uncountable billions too bewildered and powerless to defend the quotidian citadels of civil and empathetic human discourse and interdependence.

The author, who taught English literature at the University of Delhi for over four decades and is now retired, is a prominent writer and poet. A well-known commentator on politics, culture and society, he wrote the much acclaimed Dickens and the Dialectic of Growth. His latest book, The Underside of ThingsIndia and the World: A Citizens Miscellany, 2006-2011, came out in August 2012.
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Braving the Heaviest of Odds

EDITORIAL

With this issue of the Annual Number 2016, Mainstream steps into the fiftyfifth year of its modest existence.

In its inaugural issue on September 1, 1962 the Mainstream editorial clearly stated: it shall be our endeavour to try relentlessly to demolish the wall of misunderstanding, mutual suspicion and even personal pique that divides progressively sections in the country from one another. And we have kept that policy-perspective in view in all our activities since that time.

Five years ago it was conveyed in these columns in the Mainstream Annual 2011:

It has doubtless been a purposeful voyage with all the trials and tribulations it had to encounter on its path which was indeed quite arduous due to its resource-constraints in particular. The difficulties have continued to mount over the years as the nations politico-economic scenario has undergone a sea-change with money power dominating the course of events and the basic principles of the freedom struggle relegated to the background, if not jettisoned, in the name of pragmatism, a word which camouflages the betrayal of past values at the altar of profit-seeking self-serving ideas borrowed from the West. Self-reliance has given place to dependence on the sole surviving superpower which uses its brute force to crush the recalcitrant states sovereign right to shape their own destiny. In these conditions the mere survival of a periodical propagating distinctly different ideas and objectives is in itself a daunting proposition. But we have been able to sustain the publication of this journal thanks to the generous assistance and unstinted support of all those who still feel that progressive forces of all hues need to exchange views and opinions with the purpose of forging common bonds among themthe goal for which this weekly was born in the second half of 1962.

However, what it faces today has no parallel. From the time the present dispensation at the Centre seized the levers of power in mid-2014, the attack on the minoritiesin order to distort the face of India and transform the country into a Hindu Pakistan by subverting the Constitution carefully crafted under the inspiring leadership of Dr B.R. Ambedkar some 67 years agohas been unabated. (This has been lately reflected in the preposterous public statement by a BJP MP from the Capital that Muslims have never voted for us and never will as the BJP is a patriotic party; it should not also be ignored that the body of one of the alleged killers of Mohammad Akhlaquewho was lynched to death for the crime of having stored beef in his fridgewas draped in the national tricolour on his death, an honour bestowed only on national heroes.) Of course, one should not minimise the resistance to such an attempt from the civil society in general and leading intellectuals, writers, artists in particular, even if the pressure from the political parties in the Opposition was of limited value. Yet it must also be acknowledged in all candour that those currently in power in South Block are having their way as latest events conclusively prove.

The demonetisation of high-denomination currency effected by the PM from November 8 is a case in point. Narendra Modi has publicised it in a big way claiming that it was an integral part of purging the Indian economy of black money that has eaten into the nations vitals. But the reality is different. Howsoever much a middle-level RSS functionary hails it as the countrys first economic satyagraha in a bid to assert that it was a step against neo-liberalism, what has been brilliantly brought out by an AIIMS professor in an online journal on the predicament suffered by the real India of the poor people, the Bharat, whose toiling inhabitants are being bled to death in the name of cleansing the economy can barely be overlooked. What is undeniable is that all the distinguished economists of international repute have unequivocally decried the PMs move on this score with Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen assailing it as a despotic action by an authoritarian government even as Narendra Modi indulges in rampant self-advertisement projecting the kudos he is believed to have received from the poor for this bold decision! It is also a matter of grave concern that instead of explaining his governments position in Parliament in its winter session, the PM has been on an overdrive roundly condemning the Opposition parties in his public rallies for their criticism of demonetisation and characterising them as protectors of the black economy. Even a cursory observation of the political scene today would make it clear that he was consciously ignoring Parliament thereby devaluing its utility for which he needs to be taken to task as it is a serious breach of parliamentary norms.

The situation developing across the nation threatens to undermine secular democracy. This can be countered only by all secular democrats coming together and defeating the ruling dispensations endeavours in this regard.

The road before all of us is beset with manifold odds appearing insurmountable at times. But only by forging the widest possible unity of all forward-looking forces can we hope to restore the health of this vast landmass where 1.5 billion people reside, while protecting, promoting as well as reinforcing its secular democratic pluralist ethos. That indeed is the need of the hour.

In that task of paramount importance Mainstream pledges to rededicate itself, as always, to the best of its ability notwithstanding its severe constraints and limitations. But here too we shall be guided, as before, by the will of our resilient people, the actual rulers of our destiny, our real bhagya-vidhata.

December 20 S.C.
President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday he intends to dissolve his charitable foundation, which is currently under investigation in New York state, in an effort to avoid any conflicts of interest before he takes office in January.

Trump gave no timeline for closing the Donald J. Trump Foundation.

Since he won the Nov. 8 presidential election, Trump's vast portfolio of U.S. and overseas business interests as well as his foundation have come under increased scrutiny.

"The foundation has done enormous good works over the years in contributing millions of dollars to countless worthy groups, including supporting veterans, law enforcement officers and children," Trump said in a statement Saturday.

"However, to avoid even the appearance of any conflict with my role as president I have decided to continue to pursue my strong interest in philanthropy in other ways," it continued.
Karachi: Pakistan released 220 Indian fishermen from Malir jail in Karachi on Sunday. The men were arrested more than a year ago on charges of illegal fishing in Pakistans territorial waters.

We have total of 518 Indian fishermen out of which 220 are being released today as a goodwill gesture of the Pakistan government. In the next phase, 219 fishermen will be released on 5 January," police assistant superintendent Shunail Husain Shah said.
The Justice Ministry in a written opinion for the Constitutional Court on Sunday said the National Assembly bill impeaching President Park Geun-hye "meets all legal requirements."

The ministry, which has been in a pickle since prosecutors started investigating a massive corruption scandal in October that led inexorably to Parks inner sanctum, had been asked by the court to submit an opinion on the procedural integrity of the bill.

In the 40-page statement, it said the impeachment process, from the National Assembly vote to the filing of related documents, was all done by the book.
The area of land on Jeju Island owned by Chinese investors has dwindled for the first time in 12 years.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on Friday said Chinese investors now own 8.53 million sq.m of land on the resort island, down 4.7 percent from 8.95 million sq.m at the end of last year. It was the first time since 2002 that their holdings dwindled.

Since 2010, when the government started giving residence permits to foreigners who invest more than W500 million here, many Chinese investors have bought land on the island (US$1=W1,204).
Montana, we have a lot of work to do.

On January 2, 2017, the Montana Legislature will convene for the 65th session. We only get a chance every two years to pass legislation and affect policy, and our states ability to support economic growth is on the line.

JAMES GRUNKE

Full Story: http://missoulian.com/business/columns/james-grunke-session-offers-chance-to-push-economic-growth/article_ada9b73a-2b21-568d-854e-8b13d0a01536.html
U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) is encouraging President-elect Donald Trumps administration to include broadband deployment measures as a core component of any infrastructure proposals.

In a letter to the president-elect, Capito addressed the need for expanded broadband access in rural America, including in West Virginia, as well as her desire to work with the incoming Trump administration on this important issue.

Carrie Salls

Full Story: http://wvrecord.com/stories/511060556-capito-urges-trump-to-include-broadband-expansion-in-infrastructure-plans
The popularity of recreational vehicles such as SUVs and minivans keeps growing. Hyundai and its affiliate Kia sold 1.07 million such vehicles as of November this year, accounting for 32 percent of their total sales, up 12.8 percentage points from five years ago, the carmakers said Sunday.

A Hyundai spokesman said, "Despite the overall slump in the auto industry, RV sales are expected to keep rising."


Morgan County Veterans Day Parade slated Nov. 11 Audio Article The Morgan County Veterans Day Parade will be held on Friday, Nov. 11. The parade will form at the Commons, in McConnelsville, at 9:30 a.m. and set out at 10 a.m. The American Legion Post 24 will render honors at the monuments at the Commons, Riecker Building, the Square, at...

A concert with two purposes Audio Article Wednesday, Nov. 30, a concert with dual purposes is being held at the Twin City Opera House in McConnelsville, Ohio. Its a thank-you to healthcare workers, who can attend for free, and its a benefit for the Lymphoma and Leukemia Society. In September 2021, Rick Shriver contracted COVID-19. He collapsed...

BOE reminder of early voting hours and polling location change Audio Article Remaining early voting hours at the Morgan County Board of Elections are as follows: from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov, 2 through Friday, Nov. 4; 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5; from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 6; and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m....

Lions Club announces annual Wreaths Across America Audio Article On Saturday, Dec. 17, the Chesterhill Lions Club will be joining with National Wreaths Across America in the laying of wreaths at each of the seven cemeteries located in Marion Township. The mission is to honor the local veterans who have served our nation so their families can rest assured...

Governor DeWine awards $6.7 million for domestic violence survivor programs Audio Article Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has announced that he is awarding $6.7 million to support the work of the Ohio Domestic Violence Network (ODVN) to offer mobile and health advocacy services and temporary residential services for domestic violence survivors across the state. The announcement comes during National Domestic Violence Awareness Month....

CDC committee vote wont change Ohio school vaccine requirement Audio Article Ohio Department of Health Director Bruce Vanderhoff, MD, MBA has released the following statement: The CDCs Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommendation for the COVID-19 vaccine to be added to the formulary or schedule of vaccines for children does not mandate this vaccine for school children. Ohio law determines...
North Korea is the most belligerent country in the world in terms of the percentage of GDP it spends on defense.

Pyongyang's military spending accounts for a whopping 23.3 percent of GDP, according to a report released by the U.S. State Department last week. Average GDP amounted to 1.66 trillion North Korean won and average annual military spending to 386 billion won from 2004 to 2014.

The figure is more than double the proportion of the next most heavily armed nation Oman (11.4 percent).

Other dictatorships featured heavily in the top 10 with Saudi Arabia in third (8.5 percent), followed by South Sudan (8.4 percent), Eritrea (6.9 percent), Israel (6.5 percent), Jordan (6.3 percent), Burma (6.1 percent), Yemen (five percent) and the UAE. (4.9 percent).

The U.S. ranked 15th with 4.3 percent of a much vaster GDP, Russia 20th (3.8 percent), South Korea 47th (2.6 percent), China 68th (two percent), and Japan 136th (one percent).

But if only money is considered, the U.S. ranked first by a long margin with $701 billion, taking up 43 percent of the world's entire global military spending and about 8.6 times North Korea's $3.51 billion. South Korea ranked 11th with US$30.1 billion.

The North also ranks second in terms of the ratio of military personnel to the working population at 7.9 percent, only topped by Eritrea's 8.1 percent.


Thae Young-ho, the former No. 2 at the North Korean Embassy in London, has told officials here that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's aim is international recognition as a nuclear power, similar to India and Pakistan.

To achieve this, Kim plans two more nuclear tests before the next South Korean presidential election, and he has informed overseas missions to prepare for them, according to Thae. If President Park Geun-hye is impeached and the elections are brought forward, a North Korean nuclear test could take place within a matter of months.

The international community is in disarray. Russian President Vladimir Putin said last week that his forces need to strengthen their tactical nuclear capabilities, prompting U.S. president-elect Donald Trump to vow to "outmatch" any rivals. "Let it be an arms race," Trump added.

Putin and Trump's aides tried to downplay the significance of their remarks, but the damage is done. The signatories of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty are required to try and decrease their nuclear stockpiles, but Putin and Trump seem to have no interest in their obligations.

If the world is headed for a new Cold War, the international community's will to deal with North Korea's nuclear weapons program is going to weaken. The treaty, which is the main standard used to pressure the North to abandon its nuclear program, will lose what teeth it had.

Developments could play into Kim Jong-un's hands. China will not stand by as the U.S. and Russia bolster their nuclear arsenals, resulting in a domino effect and pushing the North Korean nuclear threat down on the list of international priorities. And Beijing may even feel the need to coddle North Korea and keep it as a vital buffer state against U.S. allies South Korea and Japan.

If North Korea were to be recognized as a nuclear power, Pyongyang would gain leverage in signing a peace treaty with Washington, that could weaken the Seoul-Washington alliance. These changes would pose a major challenge for South Korea.

North Korea is already trying to use political chaos in South Korea as an opportunity for further provocations. The presidential election, when it comes, will be uniquely charged. What will Seoul do if the North conducts additional nuclear tests in the coming months and initiates talks with the U.S. after announcing a nuclear moratorium? The current caretaker government is incapable of dealing with such events.

The National Security Council at Cheong Wa Dae must coordinate closely with the National Intelligence Service and the Foreign and Defense ministries to deal with any provocations. There is no room for error when it comes to national security.


A new study, published in Psychological Medicine, has added to the body of evidence pointing to a link between schizophrenia and the use of cannabis. Share on Pinterest New research finds that people with schizophrenia are more likely to smoke cannabis. Recent research suggests that not only are people who are prone to schizophrenia more likely to try cannabis, but that cannabis may also increase the risk of developing symptoms. Studies show that cannabis use is more common among people with psychosis than in the general population, and that it may also increase the risk of psychotic symptoms. Its use has been linked to symptoms of psychosis, such as paranoia and delusional thinking, in up to 40 percent of users. Earlier this year, scientists warned that young people who use cannabis could be putting themselves at risk of psychotic disorders. People with schizophrenia appear to have a higher chance of experiencing psychosis if they use cannabis. Previous warnings had voiced concerns regarding the particularly powerful strains of cannabis, such as skunk, currently circulating among young people. However, the findings were not considered definite and experts called for more research.

Genome data reveals possible link Now, Dr. Suzi Gage and team, from the School of Experimental Psychology at Bristol University in the United Kingdom, have discovered more evidence that cannabis may be particularly hazardous to people with schizophrenia, although they highlight that other factors also impact mental health. Fast facts about cannabis Around 44 percent of 12th graders have used marijuana in their lifetime

of 12th graders have used marijuana in their lifetime An estimated 46 percent of people in the United States aged 26 and over have used it

Approximately 12.8 percent of 8th graders have used the drug, with 0.7 percent using it daily. Learn more about marijuana The authors looked at genetic factors that may predict whether a person is likely to use cannabis, and whether they are likely to develop schizophrenia. The data was taken from a wide-ranging genome study. The Mendelian Randomization technique, used to analyze the data, enabled the authors to account for a range of variants. This technique was chosen because the team predicted that people who use cannabis are likely to be genetically and biologically different from those who do not in a variety of ways. Findings indicate that starting to use cannabis may increase the risk of schizophrenia, but especially that a person who is at risk of schizophrenia is more likely to use cannabis. This may be because genetic factors for schizophrenia are stronger than those for cannabis use. The study authors would like to investigate whether a genetic link might explain the extent of cannabis use, because results show that people with schizophrenia are more likely to be heavy users of cannabis. Medical News Today asked the authors why people with a risk of schizophrenia might be more likely to use the drug. Prof. Marcus Munafo, a member of the team, speculated that certain behaviors or symptoms associated with schizophrenia risk might be relieved by the effects of cannabis. In other words, cannabis use may be a kind of self-medication in this population. An alternative explanation, he said, is that people with higher risk of schizophrenia may enjoy the psychological effects of cannabis more. There is growing consensus that cannabis use might increase the risk of developing schizophrenia. Our results support this, but also suggest that those at increased risk of schizophrenia may be more likely to try cannabis in the first place. Prof. Marcu Munafo MNT asked the researchers what role cannabis might play in raising or lowering the risk of schizophrenia. Prof. Munafo pointed out that while further studies are needed, existing research suggests that two of the constituents of cannabis, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), might have an impact.
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The World Health Organization recommends a one minute wait; some other groups say it is OK to wait two minutes, or even five.A lot of oxygen-rich blood reaches the baby through the umbilical cord shortly after birth in an extra half minute, said Dr. Maria Mascola of ACOG's Committee on Obstetric Practice. Since much of the placental blood transfers in that first minute and there is an increasing evidence that it has some health benefits."While there are various recommendations regarding optimal timing for delayed umbilical cord clamping, there has been increased evidence that shows that the practice in and of itself has clear health benefits for both preterm and term infants," noted Maria A. Mascola, M.D., lead author of the committee opinion.Dr. Tonse Raju of the National Institutes of Health says that it can give a boost as the baby takes his or her first breath.In the womb, the placenta acts as the fetus' lungs. But within seconds of birth, the circulation changes and lungs gets filled with fluid and inflate as the baby inhales air.If the umbilical cord is cut too early, the baby misses the access to placental blood in the cord and the extra oxygen, too soon."Unfortunately, the value of immediate clamping has never been shown," said Raju, a perinatology specialist at NIH's National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.Babies born prematurely benefit from longer access to cord blood, with a lower risk of transfusions, anemia and bleeding in the brain.The blood supplies have important quantities of iron, which can further prevent iron deficiencies in the first year of life of the newborn.Iron deficiency can account for cognitive, motor and behavioral impairment, due to the irreversible developmental processes that it obstructs.One study showed waiting 3 minutes to cut the cord led to slightly better early brain development.The connection also facilitates immunoglobulins, as well as stem cells, which are indispensable for tissue and organ repairs.It lowers risk of transfusion in preterm infants, due to the better transitional circulation and higher levels of red cells. It also reduces incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis and intraventricular hemorrhage.Another study, published in the journal, for babies delivered via cesearean section, umbilical cord milking can be employed in improving the circulatory functions.However long the pause, should not interfere with baby's skin time with the mother. Raju recommends telling parents, "While the baby's nice and warm on your skin, we'll take our time and then clamp."Also if the baby has any respiratory distress and needs emergency intervention, doctors should not delay cutting the cord.Delayed clamping may increase risk of physiological jaundice in babies. Jaundice is a temporary yellowing of the newborn baby's skin and eyes because of excess bilirubin, a yellow pigment of red blood cells.Babies do need to be monitored for signs of jaundice and treated when necessary.The research will appear in the January issue of the journal, under the name ofSource: Medindia
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Syrian President Bashar al-Assad paid a Christmas visit Sunday to Christian orphans as his forces backed by Russia and Iran prepared new assaults in Aleppo.

Photos posted on official Syrian social media showed Assad and his fashionable wife, Asma, meeting with orphan children dressed in Santa suits and caps at a convent in Damascus.

The photo-op came as Syria entered its sixth year of civil war and Assad's forces readied new offensives in and around Aleppo, which he declared "liberated" last week following a months-long siege in which the U.S. and humanitarian groups charged that Russian and Syrian warplanes bombed hospitals, schools and aid convoys.

Assad's army backed by Iranian and Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah fighters were continuing clearing operations in Aleppo and preparing assaults on the remnants of rebel forces in Aleppo's western suburbs, Iran's Tasnim news agency reported.

In his Christmas message from the Vatican, Pope Francis called for a negotiated settlement and peace in Syria, saying "far too much blood has been spilled" in the conflict.

According to the United Nations and independent monitors, Syria's civil war has killed more than 450,000, displaced nearly half of the country's pre-war population of 23 million and triggered a refugee crisis that has destabilized governments in Europe.

Last week, the foreign ministers of Russia, Iran and U.S. NATO-ally Turkey met in Moscow to coordinate plans for Syria and a possible "cessation of hostilities." The U.S. was not invited to the meeting.

On Sunday, Turkey moved tanks and artillery to the Syrian border and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his forces were prepared to help the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in taking Raqqa, the self-proclaimed capital of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.

Erdogan said Turkish assistance was conditional on President-elect Donald Trump barring the Syrian Kurdish YPG, or Popular Mobilization Units, from taking part in the liberation of Raqqa. The YPG has proven to be the most effective of the U.S.-backed rebel groups in Syria, but Turkey considers the YPG a terrorist group looking to carve out a Kurdish state in northeastern Syria.

"We will not allow the formation of a new state in northern Syria," Erdogan said. Erdogan's spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, on Monday criticized the U.S. for withholding air support from Turkey's military which pushed into northeastern Syria earlier this year to move against ISIS strongholds, Turkey's Hurriyet newspaper reported.

"We would like to express once more that the international coalition should make a special commitment particularly to provide air support," Kalin told reporters. "We are coordinating with the international coalition. It is unacceptable that air support is not provided without a legitimate reason."

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.
Camp Lejeune Town Halls Aim to Help Those Exposed to Toxic Water. Heres How You Can Go.

Retired Marine Master Sgt. Jerry Ensminger made it his mission to tell the world that if they lived or served on Camp Lejeune...
ANN ARBOR, MI - The Jefferson.

That's the name of the new condo development Alex de Parry of Ann Arbor Builders has planned for the northeast corner of Jefferson and Ashley streets, a transition point between downtown and the Old West Side neighborhood.

The tentative design plans for the project at 116 W. Jefferson St. were submitted to the city's Design Review Board last week

Ann Arbor Builders is working with architect J. Bradley Moore & Associates and civil engineer Macon Engineering on the project.

The four-story, 23-unit condo development is planned for a site that's immediately south of the existing Ashley Mews condos, just west of Main Street. A small office building and three houses would be demolished.

Future residents of The Jefferson would have a short walk to the heart of downtown Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan campus.

Ann Arbor's main transit hub, the Blake Transit Center, also is a short walk away, so the condos would offer living options that are not car dependent.

"The Jefferson is a residential condominium project incorporating two- and three-bedroom dwelling units," the plans state.

"The design reflects the form and character of many of the buildings in the city's industrial crescent known as the First Street character area, generally following the route of the Ann Arbor Railroad through the west side. The building has been designed to enhance the southeast side of downtown area, in keeping with recent building trends in the area, while providing a unique residential living environment close to downtown and the University of Michigan campus."

The units offered range from 1,145 to 1,485 square feet. The building is organized around the corner of Ashley and Jefferson with a landscaped entry on the diagonal formed by the adjacent railroad tracks.

The site layout preserves the opportunity for inclusion in a future Allen Creek Greenway trail through the area and would incorporate public art, and the top floor would have outdoor patios, according to the plans.

The condos sit atop a parking garage level, which is nestled into the existing slope so it is fully below grade on the eastern side of the property. There is one parking space proposed for each condo.

"The facade has been intentionally designed to be in keeping with the rectangular forms of the commercial/industrial buildings in the area, many of which now house residential uses," the plans state.

All the condos would have outdoor balcony spaces. There would be a building entry at the southwest corner with large windows facing landscaping and an entry canopy, and there would be both stairways and an elevator in the building.

The Jefferson is described as an urban residential community catering to anyone who wants to live near downtown. It's expected most would be in the 25-to-65 age range and either living alone or with a partner, or with friends or kids.

The plans indicate the design is influenced by its location, lot size and irregular shape, as well as its context. That includes both the neighboring built environment and external influences such as the railroad and floodplain.

The design for The Jefferson also is inspired by The Mark, a condo building de Parry recently built on Liberty Street across from the Argus Farm Stop.

See photos of the The Mark

The map below shows the floodplain boundaries in relation to the proposed condo building.
FRASER, MI - The mayor of Fraser has declared a state of emergency as a giant sinkhole threatens several homes, according to WXYZ-TV, Channel 7.

On its website, the city north of Detroit warns both directions of 15 Mile Road are closed between Hidden Pine Drive and Hayes Road.

A row of homes was evacuated after a leaking sewer line caused the collapse of at least one home and portions of the street, according to the Detroit News.

A huge sewer pipe about 50 feet beneath the ground is to blame, according to news reports. Police received a call about 6:20 a.m. Saturday from a woman saying her house was sinking, the Detroit Free Press reported.

WDIV-TV, Channel 4, is reporting there is no question the damaged home will be "swallowed up."

A GoFundMe account has been established to help an affected family.

"My family in Fraser is homeless on Christmas Eve after a massive sinkhole opened up under their home. They only had time to grab a few items from their home before they weren't allowed back in," it reads.

The page had raised nearly $3,700 in 15 hours.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI - A sex offender used Facebook Messenger to persuade a teen to have sex with him and to send a sexually explicit photo, a federal prosecutor said.

Justin Michael Walling, 27, of Lowell, spent about six years in prison for sexual assault of a minor.

He has been indicted in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids on two counts of enticement of a minor, sexual exploitation of a child and receipt of child pornography.

He has previous convictions for two counts of attempted third-degree criminal-sexual conduct involving a 13- to 15-year-old victim and possession of child sexually abusive material, or child pornography, records showed.

A federal prosecutor said that on July 11, 2015, he "persuaded, induced, enticed, and coerced (the victim), a 13-year-old female, to create an image depicting the lascivious exhibition of her genitals."

On July 12, 2015, and July 26, 2015, he used Facebook Messenger "to persuade, induce, and entice ... a female he knew to be a minor at least 13 years of age and under 16 years of age, to meet him for the purpose of engaging in sexual penetration," Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexis Sanford wrote in the indictment.

The girl used an Apple iPhone5 to take the photo then transmitted it via Facebook Messenger, the government said in court records. Walling was charged with receipt of child pornography for receiving the photo.

Court records did not say if the defendant and victim knew each other before corresponding on the internet-based messaging platform.
DDB Every 15 Minutes 02 DILLON CORY TREMIECE AUSTIN TREMIA WHEEL

Scene of a 2009 accident in Muskegon linked to a drunken driver.

(MLive file photo)

The number of Michigan arrests for driving while drunk or high on drugs continues to decline, as do the number of crashes linked to substance abuse, according to the Michigan State Police's 2015 Drunken Driving Audit.

The annual report takes an in-depth look at drunken driving, with county-by-county data.

Below are some highlights from the State Police data.

1. The number of arrests and convictions for driving under the influence dropped 38 and 37 percent respectively between 2005 and 2015.

In 2015, 33,720 drivers were arrested and 34,333 were convicted for driving under the influence or related offenses. That compares to 54,235 arrests and 55,580 convictions in 2005.

Convictions include arrests that occurred in prior years that were adjudicated in 2005 or 2015.

One reason for the drop in the numbers: People are driving less. When arrest rates are calculated based on vehicle miles driven, the decline shrinks to 35 percent since 2005.

Another possible factor: There are 13 percent fewer police officers in Michigan today compared to 2005, according to state numbers. That means fewer road patrols and traffic stops.

2. The number of crashes involving a driver under the influence has dropped 30 percent.

There were 9,537 crashes for impaired driving in 2015 compared to 13,547 in 2005.

In those crashes, 7,982 people were injured in 2005 compared to 6,116 in 2015, a 23 percent decline.

3. The number of traffic fatalities related to alcohol and/or drugs has dropped 6 percent.

A total of 384 people died in 2015 in crashes linked to alcohol or drugs compared to 408 in 2005.

In 2015, that was 40 percent of all traffic fatalities compared to 36 percent in 2005.

4. Men comprise about three-quarters of drivers arrested for driving under the influence or related offenses.

Of the 33,720 people arrested in 2015 for driving while drunk or high, 24,746 -- 73 percent -- were men.

The ratio of men to women in regards to arrests has been fairly consistent over the past decade.

5. Crashes involving impaired drivers are much more likely to cause an injury or fatality.

In 2015, only 3.2 percent of all traffic accidents involved an impaired driver, according to state data.

But the percentage was three times as high -- 9 percent -- for crashes that caused an injury. And 39 percent of the 893 fatal crashes in 2015 involved an impaired driver, the state report shows.

See our online database

Our database shows how each county ranks among Michigan's 83 counties in 2015 crashes and arrests linked to alcohol and/or drugs. The higher the number, the higher the rate of arrests or crashes.

To see a list of the counties in ranking order, click "all counties" and then click two to see the rank from No. 1 on down or click once to see the rank starting with No. 83.

The map included in this post is based on average number of arrests between 2011 and 2015 per 10,000 licensed drivers in the county. You can click on a county to get the underlying data, and you can drag the map away from the legend if needed.

Alcohol-related crashes, arrests by county
NAPOLEON TWP., MI - Police are seeking assistance in locating a man suspected of stealing from a Napoleon Township gas station Monday morning.

Monday morning, Dec. 26, a man walked into the British Petroleum gas station at 125 S. Brooklyn Road and left with a gallon of milk without paying for it, said Napoleon Police Chief Duaine Pittman.

Reviewing surveillance footage, the man leaves the gas station in what appears to be a black or dark blue Ford Escort with large swaths of paint missing on the rear driver's side portion of the vehicle.

"The clerk said he might be a regular at the store but wasn't sure," Pittman said. "We just want to find him and talk to him."

Anyone who has seen, or knows where to locate, the vehicle's owner is asked to contact the Napoleon Police Department at 517-536-4487 or by email at dpittman@napoleontwppolice.com.

Residents may also contact the Napoleon Police Department through its Facebook page.
The following people were sentenced on Monday, Dec. 19, 2016:

Colton Raymond-Edward Collins, 27, of Muskegon, to six months in jail for two counts of possessing less than 25 grams of a controlled substance, fleeing and eluding police, habitual offender second, $1,234 court costs/fees.

Marvin McGough, 50, of Muskegon, to 12 months in jail for assault/resist/obstruction of a police officer, assault and battery, habitual offender third conviction, $1,148 court costs/fees.

Mitchell Hose Braddock, 30, of Ionia, to 14 months - 10 years for possessing a weapon in prison, habitual offender fourth, $198 court costs/fees.

Eddie Bradford III, 32, of Muskegon Heights, to 88 days in jail for assault/resist/obstruction of a police officer, habitual offender second, $1,098 court costs/fees.

Samuel Gallarzo, 41, of Muskegon, to 12 months for domestic violence third, habitual offender third, $1,098 court costs/fees.

Darion Emonte Hunter, 18, of Muskegon, to 45 days for assault/resist/obstruction of a police officer, $1,158 court costs/fees.

Christopher John Czarnik, 44, of Muskegon, to 7 - 25 years in prison for child sexually abusive commercial activity, habitual offender fourth conviction, $198 court costs/fees.

William White, 68, of North Muskegon, to 80 days for public utility fraud over $500, $3,436 in restitution and court costs/fees.
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We recently hosted Torrents Pharma (TRP) management. TRP continues to maintain focus on branded business mix from India and Brazil, which bodes well for sustainable growth in a challenging global environment for pharma sector. In India, the emphasis is on improving productivity of the field force while growing better than market. In Brazil, the company will improve its product filing rate and enhance its product portfolio size by 3x over next 5 years. USA and Germany will be vital spots within generic markets. TRP is significantly ramping up in the US with 100 filings targeted over next 3 years to scale up to USD500mn revenues in medium term. Maintain BUY with a target price of INR 1,665.



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Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. TRP has bestinclass return ratios (>30% RoCE/RoE) and rich cash flow (>5% FCF yield), despite acquisition of Elder brands, Zyg Pharma and Glochem. Around 50% of the companys revenues come from branded business, with 65% contribution to profits. Over long term (5 years), TRP plans to scale up in its focus geographies  US (2.5x, 24% of total), Germany (2.5x, 13%) and Brazil (3x, 11%). We maintain BUY/SO with TP of INR 1,665 (20x FY18E EPS). At CMP, the stock trades at 16x FY18E EPS.

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Donald Trump was not the only story at the center of Texas politics in 2016.

It may have been the offseason for the Texas Legislature, but there still were ample attention-grabbing storylines in Austin and elsewhere. From Lt. Gov. Dan Patricks turns in the national spotlight to Agriculture Commissioner Sid Milles shenanigans on social media, it was anything but a dull year for elected officials in the Lone Star State.

Here are five stories that marked 2016 in Texas politics:

1. Dan Patricks focus on social issues

Patrick, never one to shy from the spotlight, took an aggressive stance on a number of hot-button issues in 2016 that earned him national attention. Those same issues are poised to play starring roles in the upcoming legislative session, for which Patrick has already laid out 25 priorities.

First came Patricks clash with Fort Worth Independent School District Superintendent Ken Scribner  and later the Obama administration  over guidelines directing schools to let students use the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity. In Austin, the issue is far from settled, with Patrick pushing for a so-called bathroom bill to require people to use the bathroom that matches their birth gender.

Then came Patricks push for more support for police after a shooting in Dallas that left five cops dead and seven injured. The rampage led to a nationally televised town hall where Patrick had a tense nine-minute exchange with President Barack Obama over whether Obama had been properly supportive of law enforcement. Patrick later rolled out a legislative proposal to better protect first responders that includes the state buying rifle-resistant vests for nearly 60,000 patrol officers.

2. Greg Abbotts convention of states

Gov. Greg Abbott kicked off the year by announcing his support for a bold idea: a convention of states to amend the U.S. Constitution. Decrying an overreaching federal government, Abbott proposed nine amendments to give more power back to the states, a longtime rallying cry of Texas Republicans.

Abbott ratcheted up his crusade over the summer, releasing a book focused in part on the issue and crisscrossing Texas to promote it. The tour fueled speculation that Abbott has his sights set on higher office, though he said the timing made no sense if he were eyeing a White House run.

Abbott has renewed the push in recent weeks, saying a convention of states is still needed even after the unexpected election of a Republican president. Lawmakers in both chambers of the Legislature have filed resolutions calling for a convention of states, and Patrick has named the issue a priority for the upcoming session.

3. State legislative races

When it came to this yeas elections in Texas, no race could compete for the spotlight with the battle for the White House. But farther down the ballot, there were still some noteworthy developments, even if they did not drastically change the partisan makeup under the pink dome.

In the March 1 primaries and subsequent runoffs, six Republican members of the Texas House lost their bids for re-election, including two committee chairmen. Fredericksburg hardware store owner Kyle Biedermann is set to replace state Rep. Doug Miller of New Braunfels, while Deer Park attorney Briscoe Cain captured Baytown state Rep. Wayne Smiths seat.

In the general election, Democrats flipped four House seats in urban swing districts, unseating Republican state Reps. Gilbert Pena of Pasadena, John Lujan of San Antonio, Rick Galindo of San Antonio and Ken Sheets of Dallas.

The only changes in the Senate came in the 1st and 24th districts, where Republican Sens. Kevin Eltife of Tyler and Troy Fraser of Horseshoe Bay are retiring. Both are being replaced by fellow Republicans  Eltife by state Rep. Bryan Hughes of Mineola and Fraser by Austin eye surgeon Dawn Buckingham.

4. Ken Paxtons legal troubles

It was a year of ups and downs for Attorney General Ken Paxton, who found himself fighting fraud charges in multiple venues. Paxton is accused of misleading investors in a company from before his time as attorney general. In 2015, a Collin County grand jury indicted him on criminal securities fraud charges. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission brought similar civil allegations against him in April.

A federal judge dismissed the SEC case in October, giving Paxton his first major victory since the legal saga began. But two weeks later, the SEC amended its allegations against Paxton, ensuring that the federal case will not be going away anytime soon.

The situation is bleaker for Paxton in the original state case. Texas highest criminal court, the Court of Criminal Appeals, declined in October to take up a request by Paxtons lawyers to have the charges thrown out. That put Paxton, the states top lawman, on the awkward path of preparing for a criminal trial as early as this spring.

5. Sid Millers headlines

Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller never seemed far from the headlines in 2016. He gained instant notoriety in March when the Houston Chronicle reported that he had received a controversial painkilling treatment known as a Jesus Shot while on a taxpayer-funded trip to Oklahoma. The revelation sparked an investigation by the state Department of Public Safety, which ultimately declined to pursue charges.

Miller also continued to court controversy on social media, a recurring theme of his time in office. The flap that got the vocal Trump supporter in the most trouble: a tweet calling Democrat Hillary Clinton the c-word. Miller blamed the tweet, which appeared days before the election and was then quickly deleted, on a careless staffer  but not before incurring a bipartisan wave of criticism, including a rare rebuke from Abbott for a fellow Republican.

As the year wound down, Miller also found himself at the center of the post-election discussion over fake news, which has frequently found a home on his Facebook page. His defense? Im not a news organization.
"After I left the last treatment center, I knew what made me happy," Selena explains, "and it was a connection." But on the advice of her doctor, Selena's planned philanthropic visit to Kenya to see the schools she was helping to raise
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New members inducted into Institute of ...
The Obama Family During a Weekend Hike In Yosemite View Photos

President Obama was joined by First Lady Michelle Obama for the weekly address to discuss their eight years in the White House and the progress theyve made.

The Obamas were Mondays KVML Newsmaker of the Day. Here are their words:

THE PRESIDENT: Merry Christmas everybody! One of the best parts of the holiday season is spending time with the special people in your life. And for me, that means getting some help from my best friend for our annual Christmas Weekly Address.

THE FIRST LADY: Given how our first Christmas Weekly Address went, I realized that Barack needed all the help he could get.

THE FIRST LADY: Celebrating the holidays in the White House over these past eight years has been a true privilege. Weve been able to welcome over half a million guests our outstanding pastry chefs have baked 200,000 holiday cookies and Barack has treated the American people to countless dad jokes.

THE PRESIDENT: Although a few got a Frosty reception.

THE FIRST LADY: This years White House holiday theme is The Gift of the Holidays, and our decorations reflect some of our greatest gifts as a nation: from our incredible military families, to the life-changing impact of a great education.

THE PRESIDENT: And the greatest gift that Michelle and I have received over the last eight years has been the honor of serving as your President and First Lady. Together, we fought our way back from the worst recession in 80 years, and got unemployment to a nine-year low. We secured health insurance for another twenty million Americans, and new protections for folks who already had insurance. We made America more respected around the world, took on the mantle of leadership in the fight to protect this planet for our kids, and much, much more.

By so many measures, our country is stronger and more prosperous than it was when we first got here. And Im hopeful well build on the progress weve made in the years to come.

For the final time as the First Family, we will join our fellow Christians around the world to rejoice in the birth of our Savior. And as we retell His story from that Holy Night, well also remember His eternal message, one of boundless love, compassion and hope.

THE FIRST LADY: The idea that we are our brothers keeper and our sisters keeper. That we should treat others as we would want to be treated. And that we care for the sick feed the hungry and welcome the stranger no matter where they come from, or how they practice their faith.

THE PRESIDENT: Those are values that help guide not just my familys Christian faith, but that of Jewish Americans, and Muslim Americans; nonbelievers and Americans of all backgrounds. And no one better embodies that spirit of service than the men and women who wear our countrys uniform and their families.

THE FIRST LADY: As always, many of our troops are far from home this time of year, and their families are serving and sacrificing right along with them. Their courage and dedication allow the rest of us to enjoy this season. Thats why weve tried to serve them as well as theyve served this country. Go to JoiningForces.gov to see how you can honor and support the service members, veterans and military families in your community  not just during the holidays, but all year round.

THE PRESIDENT: So as we look forward to the New Year, lets resolve to recommit ourselves to the values we share. And on behalf of the all the Obamas  Michelle, Malia, Sasha, Bo, and that troublemaker Sunny  Merry Christmas, everybody.

THE FIRST LADY: And we wish you and your family a happy and healthy 2017 thanks, and God bless.

The Newsmaker of the Day is heard every weekday morning at 6;45, 7:45 and 8:45 on AM 1450 and FM 102.7 KVML.
San Andreas, CA  The Calaveras County Supervisors will vote on accepting grant money to help residents displaced by last years Butte Fire.

At Tuesdays meeting the Board will vote on accepting a $300,000 grant from the Golden State Finance Authority, which is a Joint Powers Authority that serves 33 rural counties in California. The money would help Butte Fire impacted residents pay for stable housing. Individual grants would be limited to $2,500 per household and there are stipulated requirements. For example, the household income cannot exceed $80,500 (115% of state median income).

In addition, the Supervisors will vote on extending local state of emergency declarations related to both the Butte Fire and tree mortality. Tuesdays regular session meeting, the final of 2016, will start at 9am in the Government Center at 891 Mountain Ranch Road in San Andreas.
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Two men have been arrested on suspicion of fatally stabbing a man at a Target department store in Hayward, police said Monday.

Witnesses reported an altercation between customers around 8 p.m. Saturday at the store at 2499 Whipple Road, said Sgt. Ruben Pola, a police spokesman. He said officers found the victim, a 36-year-old Hayward man, bleeding from stab wounds. He was taken to Eden Hospital, where he died later that evening, Pola said. His name is being withheld until family members are notified.
In late November work began on 11 streets between Richmond Avenue and West Alabama that's been a long time coming for residents and advocates who have been pushing for the project ever since it was first approved in 2003.

Stephen Longmire, president of First Commons Montrose Neighborhood Association said after the project was merged with Montrose Area and Midtown Drainage Project and approved over 10 years ago, it was continually "reprioritized" by the City of Houston and through several Mayoral tenures.

The mostly residential streets - but that do contain some businesses thanks to lack zoning rules in Houston - are nestled between Montrose Boulevard on the east and Spur 527 on the west.

Project NSR 467 - Montrose Area and Midtown Drainage Project as it's also called after the merger - will update sewer and drainage infrastructure, improve sidewalks and add them where they don't currently exist and reconstruct roadways and curbs according a City of Houston presentation offered to residents at a meeting Dec. 15.

Although Longmire, a resident of Montrose for over 35 years and beginning his third year as president of FMC, and other members of the neighborhood association are relieved to see the $17 million project finally get started after years of advocating to keep it on the city's agenda, they do have concerns now that they've seen the plans.

At the meeting, residents of the tightly-knit community let city officials know they were worried about the planned 72-inch storm drain along Sul Ross Street that could displace, or damage the trees in the area, some of which are 75 years old.

Urban forestry consultants have been working closely with the city and even met with Longmire and constituents prior to the official city presentation at a neighborhood gathering.

"These trees are as significant to FCM history as the bricks are to Freedman's Town and deserve the city's protection," said Longmire.

The blocks encompassed by the project slated to be complete by December 2018, also includes The High School for the Performing and Visual Arts on Stanford Street.

With street parking the norm in the historic neighborhood, said Longmire, and school buses under tight restrictions when it comes to re-routing and even the ability to operate in reverse, he is worried traffic and street-parking will come to an utter stand-still once roadways are blocked with construction crews.

He's not sure the city has properly provided sufficient temporary parking while streets are being torn up.

The presentation from the city told residents that there may be "short-term parking and driveway-access impacts" and that some may be required to park blocks from their homes and walk.

At the meeting with Public Works & Engineering, Longmire said residents were advised by engineers "to be good neighbors" and work out parking solutions among themselves.

A spokesperson for Public Works said in an email, "PWE will review and inspect every tree on the project and the community will be involved in the process," but did not respond to questions about the specific impact the storm drain could have.

But other city documents said that some trees may have to be permanently relocated due to the work.

Regarding the need for the improvements to start in earnest, Longmire said, "The last time we got a coat of blacktop was when Lee Brown wanted to be mayor, again."
At an annual ceremony Thursday, Dec. 15, the city of West University Place presented a special award to three West U police officers, three dispatchers and seven Fire Department B shift firefighters for their professionalism and service during the shooting incident in West Houston on Law and Weslayan in September of this year.

The shooter, Houston lawyer Nathan Desai, shot and injured nine people that day before he was killed by police.

Chris Peifer, city manager presented the Lifesaving Award to West U police officer Allan Gomez for his actions during the ordeal.

Gomez pulled an injured motorist from their car who had suffered a neck injury, saving the victim's life said Pefier.

"They cared when they didn't have to," said Peifer, who hosted the event. "They saved lives," he said of all the first responders involved.

He stressed that beyond representing the highest level of professionalism, the group demonstrated their commitment to being good and decent human beings.

The distinguished "Employee of the Year" award was given to Fred Brumwell.

Brumwell is an IT Technician with the city and was not present at the ceremony when he was honored. Peifer said he was, at that moment, at his wife's side while she was giving birth to his third child, and first daughter.

"The manner in which he addresses these problems is kind, tactful, tenacious, upbeat and thorough," said Peifer of Brumwell's dedication to solving problems in his department.

The city manager also recognized Brumwell's mentorship of other city personnel who aren't comfortable resolving IT issues.

Brumwell was unavailable for comment as he was out on paternity leave at the time of this story.

Peifer addressed a crowd of about 100 at the Community Center, made up mostly by other city employees.

"Each and every one of you is an unsung hero in my eyes in one fashion or another," said Peifer. "Your success and professional efforts benefit our residents and taxpayers."
The suspect in a Cleveland fraud investigation remains in the Liberty County Jail following arrests on consecutive days last week in Liberty and San Jacinto counties stemming from warrants out of three other Texas counties.

Thomas Wayne Handy, 42, faces three theft of property charges and one theft of service charge in Titus County, one theft charge in Hardin County and one theft of service charge in Nueces County.

With investigators sifting through evidence, Cleveland Police Chief Darrel Broussard said it "will be a while before we can get bank records and other evidence to charge the subject in possible fraud [and] theft cases" in Liberty County.

Some of Handy's alleged victims claim he posed as a representative of a pipeline company and hired as many as 40 employees, having them fill out new hire documents and undergo drug testing. They say they were issued payroll and sign-on bonus checks that bounced, which has left them in more of a financial bind. Police confirm these reports.

Nicholas Pilkington, one of the alleged victims, said he left a lucrative job as a project manager for a welding fabrication company to accept employment with what he believed was Handy's pipeline company. Pilkington claims he met Handy at a local welding supply store where the two struck up a conversation that ended with Pilkington being offered a job.

"He asked me what all I do and I said that I have been around pipelines all these years," he said. "We went outside and talked for another 30-40 minutes. He said he wanted me to go to work for him as a pipeline superintendent."

Pilkington claims he asked for time to discuss the job offer with his wife. Later that day, after getting his wife's approval, he met with Handy to sign a contract.

"I signed it. He signed it," Pilkington said. "After that, we went to these places and got things going. He had us working at these businesses in Cleveland where we were cleaning up their yards and getting it ready for pipe. He gave me a paycheck, which included a sign-on bonus, for $12,000, and it bounced. Now I have to pay NSF charges at my bank and I lost work right here at Christmas time."

Law enforcement authorities confirm that many of Handy's employees were being housed at the Best Western hotel in Cleveland, including some for more than two weeks.

A hotel employee, who asked not to be named, claims Handy reserved as many as 34 rooms at a time from Dec. 1-19.

"He was given a special rate for having so many rooms for so long," the employee said. "No payment was ever made. He asked if he could write a check for the balance but never gave us a signed check."

The employee claims she also fell victim to Handy when he asked her to cash a check for $1,000.

Cleveland police confirmed these reports as part of the ongoing investigation.

Handy was arrested Dec. 18 by the San Jacinto County Precinct 3 Constable's Office for the outstanding warrants. After being kept briefly at the San Jacinto County Jail, Handy was expected to be transferred to Hardin County to face charges there. While headed to Hardin County, he reportedly had a medical emergency and was transported to Cleveland Emergency Hospital.

A short time after arriving at the hospital, he walked away, authorities say.

He was arrested a second time on Dec. 20 and transported to the Liberty County Jail where he is being held without bond.

Calls for comment from Handy were not possible as he is being held in jail. No attorney of record is listed for Handy at this time.

Detectives Kevin Cooke and John Shaver with Cleveland Police Department are investigating the case. Anyone with information is asked to call them at 281-592-2622.
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A trailer load of balsam fir Memorial Wreaths made a brief stop at Sam's Club Distribution Center located on CR 686 in Dayton on Dec. 16. The Memorial Wreaths were destined for the Houston National Cemetery.

On Dec. 17, 2016, National Wreath-Laying Day, the wreaths were placed on the gravesite of American veterans.
State Rep. Mike Schofield has filed House Bill 599 to gradually end Texas' franchise tax on businesses.

"A state margins tax is one of the biggest impediments to businesses moving to a state," Scofield said in a news release. "It's one of the biggest job killers and we need to eliminate it."

In response to concerns that cutting taxes during the state's current fiscal challenge might make it harder to fund essential state services, Schofield tailored his bill to cut the franchise tax by one-third in each of the next three budget cycles in which the state's revenues increase by at least 6 percent. Once the third cut is made, the tax would be permanently repealed.

"HB 599 is designed to ensure necessary services and essential state functions are fulfilled, while lowering taxes on our job creators as we are able I believe this is a reasoned approach to phasing out the franchise tax which burdens Texas businesses," Schofield explained.

Schofield represents Texas House District 132 in Katy and Cy-Fair.

Town Hall meetings

State Rep. Mike Schofield will host two town hall meetings in House District 132 before the Legislature convenes in early January. Schofield will provide an update on issues likely to come before the House and listen to the questions and concerns of constituents.

"As an elected representative, it is vital that I get input from the folks at home. I think it is important for my neighbors to have their say before the Legislature acts, rather than just hearing a report of what we did after the fact " Schofield explained. "It's also a good chance for voters to hear what other people in the neighborhood are concerned about."

The town halls will be held:

 Wednesday, Jan. 4, at the Bridgeland Activity Center, 16919 N Bridgeland Lake Pkwy, Cypress, TX, from 7-8 p.m.

 Thursday, Jan. 5, at Katy City Hall, 901 Avenue C, Katy TX, 7-8 p.m.

"I hope people will be able to make it to either or both meetings and make sure their voice is heard," Schofield said.
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Magnolia pastor Ronald Mitchell was indicted Thursday on four felony child sexual assault charges.

Mitchell, 57, pastors Body of Christ Church near Magnolia. He was arrested Nov. 1 after SWAT team member with the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office raided the church and allegedly found evidence of the sexual assault.

The pastor is facing four second-degree felony counts of sexual assault of a child  one for every time prosecutors say Mitchell had sex with a 16-year-old congregation member over a four-month period from 2015 into 2016. He is facing up to 80 years in prison for those charges, but Montgomery County Sheriff's Office detectives believe there could be more victims.

Court documents show Mitchell had the girl staying with him at his church in the 40200 block of Garwood Court near Magnolia, telling the girl's mother that she needed to be "watched" and have "more supervision."

The first instance of the alleged sexual assault happened the weekend before Thanksgiving in 2015, the girl told investigators. About two weeks after that, Mitchell allegedly asked the girl if she was ready for more sexual encounters.

She initially said no but felt threatened by Mitchell, court records show, and eventually succumbed. The sexual assaults continued for months, court records show, including during trips to Las Vegas, San Antonio and Galveston.

Mitchell's wife would bring the girl to the Lone Star Clinic in Conroe to receive birth control shots. It is unclear if she could be charged with a crime for doing so. No charges have been filed with either the Montgomery County District Clerk or Montgomery County Clerk's office as of press time.

The girl told a fellow church member about the abuse. The church member eventually contacted Magnolia police to help retrieve the girl from the church in September, but she did not learn of the abuse until the following month.

The MCSO SWAT raided the compound Nov. 1 and found evidence of the assault, MCSO stated in a press release. They also found a large cache of weapons and ammunition, which Mitchell kept in preparation for the "dark times" and rapture, according to court records.

But Mitchell's defense attorney is asking a judge turn some of that evidence back over to the church, claiming a portion of the evidence has nothing to do with Mitchell's charges.

"Many of those items had no relation to the commission of the alleged offense of sexual assault of a child, and/or were not the property of (Mitchell)," defense attorney Joseph Labella stated in a motion, eventually adding the large cache of guns was strictly for the "protection and defense of his parishioners." He's hoping the guns and ammunition will be returned to the church soon.

A judge has yet to rule on that motion. But a judge did sign a gag order on the case, meaning that neither Labella nor the district attorney's office can comment or publicize the case in any way.

In a previous Courier article, Assistant District Attorney Tyler Dunman said the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office is handling this case like every other child sexual assault case.

"There's some complexity to that because of the nature of the church environment and his role as the pastor," Dunman said. "But at the end of the day, we're concerned for the children."

Mitchell has been in the Montgomery County Jail since his November arrest in lieu of $400,000 worth of bonds. He will be in Judge Kathleen Hamilton's 359th state District Court again Feb. 7 for an information hearing.

Anyone with information on this case is encouraged to contact the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office at 936-760-5876 or Multi-County Crime Stoppers at 800-392-STOP (7867).

Montgomery County grand jury indictments for Dec. 22:

Bernard Wilkerson, possession with intent to deliver/manufacture controlled substance (x2)

Shelton Bounds, theft from elderly individual and engaging in organized criminal activity

Shelby Cooper, asdf and engaging in organized criminal activity

Katie Keller, engaging in organized criminal activity

Nicole Cloutier, engaging in organized criminal activity

Robert Bakerm engaging in organized criminal activity

Eric Webster, engaging in organized criminal activity

James Owens, engaging in organized criminal activity

Jamie Cassard, fraudulent possession of identifying items

Jeremy Potter, asdf

Michael Martz, DWI  third or more

Raythell Fields III, theft of firearm

Sonny Prater, theft of firearm

Denise Dean, DWI  third or more

Shane Weldon, theft (x3)

Penny Scarbrough, asdf

Dyron Boone, evading arrest detention with vehicle

Amber Bailess, theft

Melissa Lacko, DWI  third or more

Jose Moreno, asdf

Tyler Beck, asdf

Angela Clayton, fraudulent possession of identifying items

Jason West, fraudulent possession of identifying items

Jere Partin, theft

Jennifer Gee, burglary of habitation

Frankie Everett, unlawful possession of firearm
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On Jan. 16, 1956, Salvador Escobedo arrived in Chicago from his native Mexico with a fourth-grade education, no English and a hunger for knowledge.

"I always had the idea to study," he said. "In Mexico, it's very hard to study because you have to pay, and if you don't have money, you don't go, period."

Escobedo, an 84-year-old South Houston resident, attends classes at Sunset Methodist Church in Pasadena as a student in the Harris County Department of Education Adult Education program.

Recently, he was one of 24 students singled out for county's adult education program's National Honor Society Outstanding Learner Award, which recognizes those who have shown commitment to furthering or completing their education despite obstacles.

For 30 years, the program has provided classes in basic literacy and math skills, GED, English as a second language and vocational training.

"Our adult students are dedicated and eager to learn when they come into our classes," said Eduardo Honold, the program's director. "There are so many success stories, but these students are recognized as leaders among their peers."

According to his teacher, Evelyn Steptoe, who submitted his nomination, Escobedo checked all those boxes.

"Salvador was in the ESL class, and came to me and asked me if I thought he could come into the GED class," Steptoe said. "I said, 'Sure because you're going to continue to learn the English and the math and then decide what you want to do.' This was the opportunity for him to do that."

Undeterred by hardships

Back in Monterey, Mexico, Escobedo had to drop out of school to help support his family, but now he's reading and writing in English through the adult education program's English as a second language course. He's working on advanced algebra formulas with a goal to earn his GED by May.

"In Mexico, I only went to four grades, which is nothing compared to here," Escobedo said.

He learned that even in the United States, not everyone completes high school.

"I'm surprised when I meet people here who don't know what nine-times-seven is, because some of them left high school for different reasons," he said. "In Mexico, we left school because we had to help our families in order to survive. Here you can do anything if you really want it."

Escobedo's lack of formal education never lessened his thirst for learning or his will to succeed or create opportunities. In Chicago, he worked at a paint factory, and by the time he moved to the Houston area in 1974, he had earned certifications in TV/radio repair and had run his own barber business.

Once in Houston, he continued to further his education with classes at Houston Community College all while working.

Escobedo, who officially became a U.S. citizen more than 25 years ago, has spent his life working - usually two jobs - to make a living for his wife and two children.

"When I studied to become a barber, it was supposed to take one year - 1,440 hours - but it took me three years. Why? Because I had to work overtime, sometimes I missed school because I had to work. It's life," he said."But I got my certificate."

Mentor to young students

Yesenia Olguin, a 20-year old student at the county's adult education program, just earned her diploma.

"I wanted to have a better education and be able to move up in the world," Olguin said.

Because of the program, Oguin said, she now looks forward to attending San Jacinto College with plans to study nursing.

"I want to be able to help out older people who may not be able to take care of themselves," she said.

Escobedo is inspired by students like Olguin.

"I love see not just young people but anyone who tries to take advantage of chances to have more knowledge, to keep studying," he said.

According to his teacher, Escobedo is a natural mentor and inspiration to other students in the program.

"When I started listening to his stories, I thought, 'I have young students who don't take advantage of the GED program.' And he does, and he keeps coming and doesn't want to miss a day," Steptoe said. "He is three-times the age of some of my students and he makes it to class, finishes what he starts."

"He's a true example, a role model for a lot of our younger students," program manager Bill Medina said.

Escobedo likes to quote a paraphrased biblical saying that his teacher uses as a class motto: "I never will perish for lack of knowledge."

"Things happen, but there is always something we can do for ourselves," he said. "I will say the best bet is to keep studying, especially the young people ... because we expect - perhaps not - bad times or critical times now, and if people are not prepared, we're going to suffer."

Escobedo recently took his practice math test and did better than he expected.

"I surprised myself because I never thought that I could do it because algebra is very hard," he said. "But I'll just go back and study for the next test."

"He's determined and not giving up," said Steptoe, who said Escobedo tutors students in math.

Escobedo understands that life can sometimes get in the way of education, but he also believes that with a will, there's an opportunity.

"I believe while we're in this world, we should learn something, and the main thing is to be educated, especially in this country," he said. "We can do anything."

Adult education classes are held in 35 community locations throughout Harris and Liberty counties, including Pasadena, Deer Park, Baytown and Galena Park. For more information on classes, go to www.hcde-texas.org/adulteducation or call 713-692-6216.
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People throughout the nation now know that Pearland resident Georgia Holloman, 6, and her family know how to have creative fun in the kitchen.

The Bay Area Christian School first-grader and her father, Wes, were recently named one of 25 finalists in the 2016 Ben's Beginners Cooking Contest, which encourages interactive family fun in the kitchen while using recipes from the Uncle Ben's brand.

"I was just really happy, I was shocked," Georgia said about learning that her and her dad's version of the Smiley-Faced Taco had ended up in the contest's final countdown.

The family's photo included Georgia and her dad in sombreros next to their dish set on a large round platter.

Two large tortilla 'eyes' use rice, black beans and cheese, a 'nose' consists of a helping of cilantro and tomatoes, with an avocado slice forms the smile.

The "Holloman Smiley Faced Taco" earned $15,000 cash for the family, and $30,000 for a cafeteria makeover at Bay Area Christian School at 4800 W. Main in League City.

The money will come in handy, said the school's lunchroom manager, Elia Medrano.

"It would be a blessing because I need another refrigerator," she said.

What benefits the kitchen, Medrano said, benefits the students.

The goals of the Ben's Beginners program is to impact both school and home life, said Peter Francis, retail operations manager for Mars Food, which manufactures food brands, including Uncle Ben's and sponsored the contest.

The program promotes a healthy lunchroom culture at school and encourages children to cook at home with adult supervision.

"In the current era, it seems everyone is into mobile phones and devices, and I think we're getting back to the table, back with your family, back to those core values," Francis said.

The finalists came from submissions that received the most votes from the public and thumbs up from a panel of judges that evaluated factors including creativity, appetite appeal, presentation and representation of family interaction in the kitchen place.

Georgia said it was fun to be famous "for a while" and that if it were up to her, the school cafeteria would get a new 'fro-yo' (frozen yogurt) machine.

This is the fifth year for the contest, in which entrants are asked to submit photos of themselves in the kitchen that show cooking and family bonding.

That was the easy part, Wes Holloman said.

"We made this dish together and entered the contest, but cooking is a part of all of our families - from grandparents to parents - and it's just a part of what we do," he said. "Georgia is only 6 years old, but she's been helping for years with her parents and grandparents."

Georgia smiled and posed for pictures with her family and with Mars representatives during a recent check presentation at the school.

"It's kind of weird," she said of all the attention.
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Through the generosity of a handful of anonymous donors, more than 250 animals at the Montgomery County Animal Shelter found homes this Christmas.

And according to new shelter Director Charles Jackson those donations will cover the cost of about 200 more adoptions for county residents looking for a new furry family member. The effort to find the shelter animals homes began Dec. 16 after Jackson was approached by several community members wanting to sponsor adoptions after he made a plea to find the shelter pets forever homes.

"It's fantastic," Jackson said adding the veterinarians are working hard to ensure all the animals are spayed or neutered before leaving the shelter ensuring they will be home for Christmas. "Animals are not allowed to leave unless they have been altered."

While some believe pets should not be given as gift, Jackson said the statistics show those animals don't have any greater return than pets adopted any other time.

"It's a huge misconception that animals that go out during holidays come back at a high rate," he said. "We still to the regular adoption process. We still screen people to make sure they are able to provide care and be responsible pet owners."

Jackson was recently hired by the county to take over direction of the shelter from interim director Dr. Todd Hayden. Following almost two years of turmoil, Jackson said he is working hard to get the shelter back on track and get more animals of the shelter alive.

Among those efforts are setting new policies and mending fences with numerous rescue and volunteer groups that stopped working with the shelter under the old management.

"There are some great employees here," he said. "It was hard for them to be successful in a system that was broken."

Jackson said the key to the shelter is the community.

"If a shelter doesn't have the support of the community, it won't be successful," he said. "If the community doesn't get engaged, we are going to fail."

To help with spay and neuter surgeries, the Montgomery County Commissioners Court approved a grant for the shelter from the PetCo Foundation in the amount of $25,000 during its meeting Tuesday.

Jackson said the grant will allow the shelter to do target spay and neuters in the areas of the county that need that assistance.

"One of the fastest and easiest ways for us to manage intake is targeted spay and neuter in the areas that need it most," he said. "Most of those zip codes are in East Montgomery County."

Precinct 3 Commissioner James Noack said he was excited about the direction of the shelter.

"They community has really stepped in and gotten behind him, and they said they would when we got the right director," Noack said. "It's awesome."

The Montgomery County Animal Shelter is located at 8535 Texas 242. For more information visit www.mcaspets.org.
As Hollywood's biggest stars take to the red carpet at the Golden Globe Awards in January, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital will be holding its own Red Carpet for Hope, a multi-city fundraising gala. Joining the major metropolitan areas of Miami, Minneapolis and Chicago in the event is none other than The Woodlands.

The red carpet will be rolled out at The Woodlands Waterway Marriott and Convention Center to host the event for the second year in a row. The gala includes a cocktail reception, a live screening of the Golden Globes as well as a live auction where donors from the various cities compete in an enthusiastic bidding war.
A 39-year-old Conroe woman was arrested and charged with two counts of assault after a deputy responded to a location on Hummingbird Place Dec. 16 in reference to an assault.

The deputy met with a male complainant who said his girlfriend was intoxicated when she arrived home and started an argument between him and her daughter. The argument led to the female suspect striking the other two in the face.

The woman was arrested and transported to jail.

District 2 South County

A 17-year-old Houston female was arrested for theft Dec. 15 after a deputy was dispatched to the 32800 block of FM 2978 in reference to a theft. The loss prevention officer had detained the suspect until the deputy arrived. The female was then arrested and transported to jail.

A 50-year-old Tomball woman was arrested for driving while intoxicated on Dec. 15 after a deputy conducted a welfare concern on a vehicle stopped at the intersection of Interstate 45 North at Sawdust Road. The female driver was passed out behind the wheel with the vehicle running and her foot on the brake. The driver was found to be intoxicated and was arrested and transported to jail.

District 6  The Woodlands

A 41-year-old woman was arrested for interference with an emergency phone call Dec. 15 after two deputies were dispatched to 12000 Sawmill Road in reference to a disturbance in progress. The woman was reported as highly intoxicated and belligerent. During the course of the disturbance, the woman had interfered with a 911 call by slapping the phone away from the complainant. The woman was arrested and transported to jail.

A 40-year-old man was arrested for forgery Dec. 15 when a deputy responded to 1255 Lake Woodlands Drive in reference to a fraud. The suspect was attempted to cash a $10,000 business check. The bank manager contacted the business owner who stated they did not write the check and would like to pursue charges. The man was arrested and transported to jail.

A 53-year-old woman was arrested for theft Dec. 15 when a deputy was dispatched to 1201 Lake Woodlands in reference to a shoplifter in custody call. The suspect attempted to take $207.75 worth of merchandise from the Macy's Department Store. The woman was arrested and transported to jail.

A 44-year-old man was arrested for driving while intoxicated and failure to stop and give information Dec. 16 when a deputy was dispatched to a multiple-vehicle accident at Research Forest and Gosling where one of the vehicles left the scene. Witnesses advised they were able to get video of the vehicle and license plate information. Another deputy checked by the address of the registered owner of the vehicle and was advises the suspect was due home any moment. The suspect arrived and parked his vehicle away from the home, then met with the deputies who noticed a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage emitting from his breath. The man was then arrested and transported to jail.

A 39-year-old man was arrested for two counts of theft and unlawful use of a criminal instrument Dec. 18 when a deputy was dispatched to 1201 Lake Woodlands in reference to a shoplifter in custody call. The suspect attempted to take $382 worth of merchandise from the Macy's Department Store. The man was arrested and transported to jail.

A 17-year-old female was arrested for theft Dec. 18 when a deputy was dispatched to 1201 Lake Woodlands in reference to a shoplifter in custody call. The suspect attempted to take $247 worth of merchandise from the JC Penney's Department Store. The female was arrested and transported to jail.
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Every Christmas for the past three decades, Pam Franks, of The Woodlands, and her family have constructed a gingerbread house. And not just any gingerbread house. Franks would tell her four children stories about its magic properties and the German elves that lived in it. The elves and her children would even exchange letters.

The stories became a family tradition. For years, Franks played with the idea of writing a children's book to share the tradition with other families, but it wasn't until last year that she put the idea into action. She wrote the children's book, "The Magic Gingerbread House," and it was published last November by Bright Sky Press. Now the book is available at Barnes and Noble, as well as online.

"We did really well with it," Franks said.

But Franks didn't want to stop with the success of the book. She hoped it would be a tool to give back to the community. For every promotional event, Franks would donate to an organization that helped two causes close to her heart: children and the military.

"We wanted to give back," Franks said.

Franks' two older children, Meghan and Mollie, who have characters based on them in the book, are both in the military. In the book, Franks wrote about children whose military parents were deployed and received encouragement from the elves that they were not forgotten or alone.

The book caught the attention of United Through Reading, a nonprofit organization founded in 1989 that endeavors to keep deployed military parents connected to their children while they're away from home. The UTR team selects a children's book and records a deployed parent reading. The video recording and the book are then delivered to the children.

Last year, UTR used 262 recording locations and distributed more than 10,000 books to military children. They estimate that the children watch the video 250 times in a 10-month deployment.

"It helps them reconnect. It eases the transition," Franks said. "The child is used to seeing the parent's face and hearing the parent's voice."

UTR had been distributing "The Night Before Christmas" book, but for the 2016 holiday season, it was hoping for something new and different. Then, UTR discovered "The Magic Gingerbread House."

Franks was excited at the opportunity for her book to benefit military families, but there was one snag. "The Magic Gingerbread House" was only available in hardcover and the UTR only used paperback books because of the additional shipping costs associated with hardcover.

But Franks was able to find a solution. She approached Dr. William Hayes of Sterling Ridge Orthopaedics in The Woodlands and found that he was willing to donate the additional funds to ship the books.

"They made it possible to send the hardbound books," Franks said.

Franks hopes that her book will not only help keep military families together while the parent is deployed, but will inspire families everywhere to start their own gingerbread house traditions.

"Everybody can create their own. There's a lot of elves looking for homes," Franks said. "It's the beautiful memories you create."

For more information about "The Magic Gingerbread House," visit magicgingerbreadhouse.com.
UPPER THUMB  Michigan high school seniors who have a passion for giving back and a desire to stay in state for college and beyond have the chance to win one of twenty $5,000 scholarships through the annual Community Choice Scholarship Program.

Since 2009, the Community Choice Scholarship Program has awarded more than $800,000 in scholarships to 160 Michigan students and remains one of the largest scholarship programs in the credit union industry both in Michigan and nationally. It was created at the height of the Great Recession as a way to combat the droves of students who were leaving Michigan to pursue their education and career elsewhere.

"Retaining Michigan's young talent is vital to the continued resurgence of our state's economy," said Steven Hernandez, Community Choice Foundation coordinator. "These scholarships not only act as a stepping stone to help students grow their careers here in Michigan, but also serve as a reminder that they have an entire organization and network back at home rooting for them as they head off to college."

To be eligible, applicants must live in Michigan, plan on attending a Michigan college or university, and must pledge to stay in Michigan after college. They must also maintain a minimum GPA of a 3.0 and have a strong record of Giving Big to their community through volunteerism or public service.

Students are encouraged to apply now. Applications are being accepted online at CommunityChoiceFoundation.com through Feb. 1.

The newest 2017 scholars will be welcomed to the group during an award presentation in April.
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STAMFORD  Winter officially started last week, when people tend to take pity on birds and set up feeders to help them survive the biting cold.

Birds in the state could use an abundance of human compassion.

The Connecticut Audubon Societys 2016 State of the Birds report, released last month, shows 37 percent of all species need protecting. The authors of the report pose a question: Do we have the will to save our birds?

When people take action, birds rebound, the report explains, but the challenge is significant.

Consider just the coastal birds. When Audubon issued its first report in 2006, three species were deemed a concern. This year, nine species made the list.

The birds most at risk live in tidal marshes. As the sea level rises, the marshes are flooding, and newborn birds are drowning in their nests. The report found the saltmarsh sparrow, a tiny speckled-brown songbird with golden orange markings, has declined in population about 9 percent a year for two decades. Without intervention, it soon will be extinct.

Among species that live in places thick with shrubs, more than 80 percent are shrinking in number, the report found. Among forest species, its 30 percent.

Theres reason to care about birds  they often are first indicators of problems in the environment.

More birds are declining in population than are increasing, said Tom Andersen, director of communications for the Connecticut Audubon Society. But there is some surprising reason to be optimistic.

Hope on the wing

Go back 40 years, for example, when the osprey, a raptor that eats live fish, was just about extinct. The pesticide DDT was in the water, ingested by fish, and consumed by ospreys.

The DDT depleted the amount of calcium in osprey eggs, and they would crack while birds were incubating, Andersen said. Finally, in the 1970s, the government banned DDT. At the time, there were fewer than 10 nests in Connecticut.

Over the years, a network of volunteers went to work, Andersen said. They put up poles so osprey could build nests. They regularly checked existing nests and looked for new ones to track the birds progress. Last year, they reported 515 nests in Connecticut.

The DDT ban took the poison out of the environment. The people created places for the ospreys to nest, Andersen said. It took both things to save them.

In the last decade, something similar has happened with the long-legged wading birds that live by the shore. You can see them in Stamford at the wildlife sanctuary in Cove Island Park and nearby at Holly Pond on Weed Avenue.

Some of those species have been holding their own or increasing, according to the report. The great blue heron, for instance, is much more abundant now than 10 years ago.

The same goes for coastal nesters such as terns, plovers and oystercatchers.

This is largely due to a tremendous conservation and protection effort by volunteers who monitor and protect the nesting beaches, the report states.

People power

Regular folks have made a difference. More than a century ago, they worked to save forests that, in Connecticut and other states, were so heavily harvested they nearly disappeared. But there was public will to save them, and Congress passed the Forest Reserve Act in 1891.

Now 60 percent of the state is covered with forest, about triple what it was 100 years ago. But not all is well for forest birds  one-third of species have declined in number.

Its because different birds depend on different stages of vegetation, such as undergrowth, but Connecticuts forests now are mostly mature. In protecting them, people interrupted their natural lifespans.

It resulted in a steep decline in shrub habitat, required by blue-winged warblers, indigo buntings, brown thrashers and many other species. Their populations have been quickly declining.

But along came a rabbit, the only one native to Connecticut.

The New England cottontail is found in areas where there are fixed shrubs, such as raspberry bushes and briar, Andersen said. That habitat was mostly gone, but nobody paid attention until the federal government started talking about listing the cottontail as endangered in 2006.

Federal and state authorities devised a conservation strategy. Since 2009, hundreds of public and private acres in Connecticut have been restored to shrub habitat, and it was determined last year the New England cottontail will not be listed as endangered.

It had a side effect. The number of brilliant-blue indigo buntings and little yellow prairie warblers  long declining  is on the rise, and there is more hope for other species.

There is more hope, too, for the Eastern meadowlark and the grasshopper sparrow, birds that live in grasslands that once dominated the Connecticut landscape but have nearly completely reverted to forests or been developed, according to the report. The state launched a decade ago a Grassland Habitat Initiative, which targeted 800 acres for conservation, and nearly 85 percent of it has been restored, according to the report.

Stamford has done its part. In 2006, at the urging of citizens and with the help of a state grant, the city converted a tree-stump dump at Cove Island Park into a bird sanctuary. It offers beach, Long Island Sound, a tidal pond, grasses, shrubs, meadows and other habitats.

Nearly 300 species have been spotted there  proof that, if you build it, birds will come. The future of birds in Connecticut, the Audubon report concludes, will depend on the public will.

To find out how to help, visit www.ctaudubon.org.

angela.carella@scni.com; 203-964-2296; stamfordadvocate.com/angelacarella
UBLY  Ubly Community Schools recently hosted its second Life Skills day.

The day is dedicated to preparing students for skills they will need to be successful in their everyday life. Students attended rotations on: health and wellness, cooking, taxes, budgets/check book balance, car repair and social media etiquette. To help with the car repair, students went out to the bus garage to learn about changing a tire, jump starting a car and checking fluid levels. Students were also given an informational sheet on the different parts of a car. At least one student plans to put the sheet in their glove compartment.

Ubly students also welcomed three Northstar Bank employees who spoke with students about budgeting and balancing a check book. Students in grades 10-12 received an information packet on how to plan and budget for everyday expenses, as well as learn how much credit card use and interest can add up.

Ubly Schools plans to host two more Life Skills days this school year.
The Telangana chief minister has said the BDJS leader from Kerala was acting on the direction of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
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One of the many roads to the finals of American Ninja Warrior in Las Vegas, and the grueling four-stage Mount Midoriyama obstacle course, will pass through San Antonio next year.

NBC Universal announced recently that the Alamo City is on the list as the second stop for the action-packed series, which follows competitors tackling challenging obstacle courses. The warrior who successfully makes it to the top of Mount Midoriyami in the finals takes home a grand prize of $1 million.

A lot of Ninjas are here in San Antonio and in Texas, Ninja Warrior veteran Brent Steffensen said. Its a major hub for a lot of the talent on American Ninja Warrior.

Texas talent includes Steffensens colleague Kacy Catanzaro, Daniel Gil of Houston and Abel Gonzales of Edinburg, to name a few.

The popular show will set up the courses March 26 and 27 to shoot two episodes in front of the Bexar County Courthouse downtown at Main Plaza, according to city officials.

Steffensen, who has competed several times for the top spot, said the decision is a great benefit not only to local athletes but to friends and family hoping to cheer them on.

A lot of people say, Come cheer me on my run with Ninja Warrior, he recalled. They invite the kids and everyone, but little do they know theyre running at 4:30 a.m.

Previous airings of the show have often commenced at sundown or at sunrise, Steffensen said, allowing the production team to manipulate the runners surroundings.

The downtown location is the perfect spot for visitors to stay in a nearby hotel, Steffensen said.

It's nice to have them close, to call them and say, I'm running soon, and they just walk over to check out their Ninja run, he said.

Before coming to San Antonio, the show will be in Los Angeles on March 7 and 8. The contest continues in Daytona, Florida, April 7-8; Kansas City, Missouri, April 24-25; Cleveland on May 8 and 9; and Denver on May 23 and 24.

The finals take place June 18-24 in Las Vegas.

American Ninja Warrior is entering its sixth season on NBC and its ninth on the Esquire Network, which will show an encore presentation after NBCs airing. The hit show, a U.S. spinoff of the popular Japanese TV series Sasuke, averaged 7.2 million viewers last season.

Athletes hoping to prove themselves have until Jan. 2 to sign up at www.anwcasting.com.

Theres a lot of people always looking for places to train, Steffensen said. I hope they put their submission videos in and hopefully a lot of locals will sign up. It would be cool to see a lot of S.A. talent represent.

jbeltran@express-news.net

Twitter: @JBfromSA
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SAN ANTONIO  The 8-year-old child who was killed in a crash Christmas night on the Northwest Side has been identified by the medical examiners office.

Jesus Ortega died shortly after 7:15 p.m. Sunday night after police found him with life-threatening injuries in the 9000 block of Wurzbach Road. The boy was transported to an area hospital, where he later died, according to a previous report.
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SAN ANTONIO  The body of a 34-year-old man found in the San Antonio River last week has been identified by the medical examiners office.

Justin Spicer was found at about 9:30 p.m. Tuesday floating in the San Antonio River under a bridge in the 100 block of Commerce Street, according to police and the medical examiners office.

RELATED: Body found floating in San Antonio River near Main Plaza

His cause of death has yet to be determined.

A river barge operator was the one who found the mans body on Tuesday along the River Walk near Main Plaza.

Spicer, according to a Facebook page believed to be his, was from San Antonio and went to Robert E. Lee High School.

On Dec. 9, the body of 37-year-old Calvin Williams was pulled from the river at Washington and East Arsenal Streets in the King William District, according to a previous report.

RELATED: Body found in S.A. River in King William ID'd as missing soldier

Williams was a National Guard member who was found about 1 mile from Liquid Monkey Lounge on Losoya Street on Dec. 2, which is where and when he was last seen.

Police have yet to release more details on the incident but this story will be updated as soon as more information is available.

Staff writers Jacob Beltran and Kelsey Bradshaw contributed to this report.

Text "Breaking" to 48421 for breaking news alerts from mySA.com

twhite@mysa.com

Twitter: @tylerlwhite
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SAN ANTONIO  A 21-year-old man in Kerr County faces federal charges after allegedly threatening to kill President Barack Obama, according to media reports.

Gavin Leonard Friedman is being held in the county jail without bond after police say he sent several letters alluding to killing the outgoing president, KSAT reports.

RELATED: Authorities identify 3 killed in crash outside Alamo Ranch movie theater

Friedman allegedly mailed four letters during the course of this year that threatened President Obama. On Jan. 22, Friedman said in a letter that Obama will be killed so that (Friedman) can be martyred in the name of Allah, the San Antonio TV station reports.

Later on April 3, Friedman said in a letter that he was going to assassinate Obama because Obama is a puppet for Zionist Organized Government.

He also sent two letter in September, one saying I am going to kill (Obama)  He is a dead (expletive) and the other saying I am going to kill (Obama) that stupid (expletive), KSAT reported.

It isn't immediately clear who the letter were sent to.

RELATED: SAPD: 35-year-old pedestrian killed in West Side crash on Christmas

Besides threats to President Obama, Friedman allegedly threatened to blow up the FBI Field Office in Houston and the White House in Washington, D.C. He also threatened in another letter to kidnap and kill the U.S. Attorney and the attorneys family. He allegedly said in the letter he hired people to kidnap and kill the U.S. Attorneys family, according to KSAT.

Friedman was in jail on other charges when he was formally arrested on the federal charges, the TV station reported. He was arrested in 2014 for felony assault on a public servant. Prior to that, he was charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child, according to online jail records.

RELATED: Police: Zero car burglaries reported at The Forum so far this season during 'Operation Grinch'

Police agencies were not available for comment due to the holidays.

Text "Breaking" to 48421 for breaking news alerts from mySA.com

twhite@mysa.com

Twitter: @tylerlwhite
SAN ANTONIO  A 21-year-old man who was killed last week in a triple shooting near Lackland Air Force Base has been identified by the medical examiners office.

Jorge Peralto Garcia died from a gunshot wound in a homicide that occurred Thursday morning in the 5400 block of Stonybrook Drive. The incident, which occurred at 3:52 a.m. Thursday, found Garcia dead on arrival and another person with a gunshot wound to the hand, according to a previous report.
A child was taken to a hospital with life-threatening injuries where he later died Sunday night after he was hit by a car in the 9000 block of Wurzbach in Northwest Side of San Antonio.

The call came in around 7:15 p.m. Christmas night, said Joe Arrington, public information officer with the San Antonio Fire Department.
In the last six weeks the liberal pundits and biased reporters of the Old Media have pulled a groin muscle trying to discredit President Trump in advance.

First they played up the recount stories to make it look like the vote totals in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania were fudged somehow.

Then they tried to play up the fact that Hillary won the popular vote and impugned the Electoral College like it had been devised by the founding fathers of the USSR.

The way the liberal Old Media saw it, their golden girl Hillary was cheated out of her rightful place in history by an antiquated, undemocratic process that needed to be blown up so the wise people of California, New York and Illinois could elect every American president from now on.

Next the Old Media tried to make it seem that Trump ---- the guy they mocked during the election for having no ground game, no staff and no hope of winning -- was taking longer than he should to name his cabinet.

They said he was going to pick a bunch of unqualified bums based on their loyalty to him. Then they worried he was picking too many generals and was acting like he wanted to be a dictator.

On and on, the Old Mainstream Media pursued angles and made criticisms of Trump as if presidential history started last month.

Previous presidents-elect were slower to name their staffs. Others chose several generals. But the Old Media didn't go out of their way to point out those inconvenient historical facts. They were after Trump.

The liberal media's latest example of historical amnesia involves the claim that Trump's buddy Vladimir Putin used his hackers to hurt Hillary and affect the election's outcome.

For the first time in history, the way the Old Media tell it, a foreign power was asked to manipulate an American election.

Of course, it was only Trump and the evil Republicans who would allegedly try such a dastardly and unprecedented crime against democracy.

Except it wasn't -- and once again the Old Media were caught being wrong and biased.

As I tried to remind everyone last week in a column for Newsmax, in 1980, and again in 1984, it was Democrats who reached out to the Soviets several times for help in affecting an American election.

In 1980, Saint Ted Kennedy, who was trying to defeat incumbent President Jimmy Carter in the Democratic primary, sent former Senator John Tunney to meet with the KGB in an attempt to sabotage American foreign policy.

According to documents later unearthed in the Soviet archives, Kennedy offered to condemn Carter's policy toward the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in exchange for KGB help.

Later that fall Saint Jimmy Carter himself tried to play the Soviet card against my father in the general election.

Trailing Ronald Reagan in the polls, he sent his pal, industrialist Armand Hammer, to meet with Soviet ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin.

Hammer asked the Soviets to help Carter win Jewish votes in key states by allowing Jewish "refuseniks" in the USSR to emigrate to Israel.

The Russkies rejected Hammer's request. But in 1984 Carter himself went to Ambassador Dobrynin to ask for help in getting my father un-elected, as did Speaker of the House, Saint Tip O'Neill.

Both Carter and O'Neill ---- Democrats, I believe -- told Dobrynin that it was in the planet's best interests to get my father out of office before he blew up the world with his dangerous massive defense buildup.

Nice.

The Soviets didn't play ball with the Democrats in 1980 or 1984. And we only know about these slimy efforts to affect American elections because the Soviet Empire collapsed and we've got a look at the KGB's archives.

President Obama has ordered a full investigation into any Russian skullduggery during the 2016 election and wants it finished before he leaves office.

When his report comes out the liberal pundits and biased reporters of the Old Media will use it to make President-elect Trump look as bad as possible.

Which is why I hope Santa Claus puts nothing in their Christmas stockings this year but a lump of West Virginia coal.

Merry Christmas.

Michael Reagan is the son of President Ronald Reagan, a political consultant, and the author of "The New Reagan Revolution" (St. Martin's Press). He is the founder of the email service reagan.com and president of The Reagan Legacy Foundation. Visit his websites at www.reagan.com and www.michaelereagan.com. Send comments to Reagan@caglecartoons.com. Follow @reaganworld on Twitter.
The fall of Aleppo just weeks before Barack Obama leaves office is a fitting stamp on his Middle East policy of retreat and withdrawal. The pitiable pictures from the devastated city showed the true cost of Obamas abdication. For which he seems to have few regrets, however. In his end-of-year news conference, Obama defended U.S. inaction with his familiar false choice: It was stand aside or order a massive Iraq-style ground invasion.

This is a transparent fiction designed to stifle debate. Five years ago, the popular uprising was ascendant. What kept a rough equilibrium was regime control of the skies. At that point, the U.S., at little risk and cost, could have declared Syria a no-fly zone, much as it did Iraqi Kurdistan for a dozen years after the Gulf War of 1991.

The U.S. could easily have destroyed the regimes planes and helicopters on the ground and so cratered its airfields as to make them unusable. That would have altered the strategic equation for the rest of the war.

And would have deterred the Russians from injecting their own air force  they would have had to challenge ours for air superiority. Facing no U.S. deterrent, Russia stepped in and decisively altered the balance, pounding the rebels in Aleppo. The Russians were particularly adept at hitting hospitals and other civilian targets, leaving the rebels with the choice between annihilation and surrender.

They surrendered.

Obama has never appreciated that the role of a superpower in a local conflict is not necessarily to intervene on the ground but to deter a rival global power from stepping in and altering the course of the war. Thats what we did during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, when Moscow threatened to send troops to support Egypt and President Nixon countered by raising Americas nuclear alert status to Defcon 3. Russia stood down.

Less dramatically but just as effectively, U.S. threats of retaliation are what kept West Germany, South Korea and Taiwan free and independent through half a century of Cold War.

Its called deterrence. Yet Obama never had the credibility to deter anything or anyone. In the end, the worlds greatest power was reduced to bitter speeches at the U.N. Are you truly incapable of shame? thundered U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power at the butchers of Aleppo. As if we dont know the answer. Indeed the shame is on us, sending our secretary of state chasing the Russians to negotiate one humiliating pretend cease-fire after another.

Even now, however, the Syria debate is not encouraging. The tone is anguished and emotional, portrayed exclusively in moral terms. Much less appreciated is the cold strategic cost.

Bashar Assad was never a friend. But today hes not even a free agent. Hes been effectively restored to his throne, but as the puppet of Iran and Russia. Syria is now a platform, a forward base, from which both these revisionist regimes can project power in the region.

Iran will use Syria to advance its drive to dominate the Arab Middle East. Russia will use its naval and air bases to bully the Sunni Arab states and to shut out American influence.

Its already happening. The foreign and defense ministers of Russia, Iran and Turkey convened in Moscow this week to begin settling the fate of Syria. Notice who wasnt there. For the first time in decades, the United States, the once dominant power in the region, is an irrelevance.

With Aleppo gone and the rebels scattered, we have a long road ahead to rebuild the influence squandered over the last eight years. President-elect Donald Trump is talking about creating safe zones. He should tread carefully. It does no good to try to do now what we should have done five years ago. Conditions are much worse. Russia and Iran rule. Maintaining the safety of safe zones will be expensive and dangerous. It will require extensive ground deployments and it risks military confrontation with Russia.

Why? Guilty conscience is not a good reason. Interventions that are purely humanitarian  from Somalia to Libya  tend to end badly. We may proclaim a responsibility to protect, but when no American interests are at stake, the engagement becomes impossible to sustain. At the first losses, we go home.

In Aleppo, the damage is done, the city destroyed, the inhabitants ethnically cleansed. For us, there is no post-facto option. If we are to regain the honor lost in Aleppo, it will have to be on a very different battlefield.

letters@charleskrauthammer.com
Compared with other animals, we humans come equipped with very little knowledge to help us navigate the world. Instead, we have a remarkable capacity to learn from the people around us to develop an understanding of the world. This task is so complex that we spend the first few decades of our lives being trained in ways to navigate the world before we are set free to make our own contribution.

To learn so much from the people around us, we assume that most of what we hear is true. That way, we can soak up knowledge as efficiently as possible. This assumption generally serves us well, because most of what we encounter really is true. It would be nearly impossible to communicate with other people if we constantly had to verify the most mundane facts.

Of course, we shouldnt trust everyone. Studies show that even young children learn who is a reliable source of information. Kids pay less attention to people who have given them wrong information in the past than to people whose information has been valuable. Adults also learn that there are some people in the world whose statements they should discount.

But our capacity to learn from others is also what makes fake news so dangerous.

Fake news is dressed in the trappings of trustworthiness. Websites that promote false stories look similar to the sites for reputable news organizations. As a result, people are inclined to take their information at face value  at least initially.

And that is the real problem. Once in your head, fake news has two effects.

Many fake news stories create an emotional response. They make you angry or upset. During the election, you might have heard fake news about a particular candidate. Later, when you thought about that candidate, you might feel angry or upset without realizing that the source of the feeling came from the fake news. That ill feeling then affects the way you interpret other actions by the candidate that can provide further justification for the negative feelings initially engendered by a false story.

In addition, research suggests that once a false story gets in your head, it continues to affect your beliefs and actions, even after you discover it is false.

The brain has no mechanism that enables you to simply erase a story you hear. Instead, the fake story will be recalled automatically whenever you are thinking about things related to it. You can learn that a story was false, but you then have to recall both the story and the additional knowledge that it was false. That is harder than just recalling the story.

This problem is compounded by the effort required to discount a story you discover is false. It takes work to realize a fake story is altering your opinions and to correct for that effect. You have to be willing to get beyond feelings stirred up by that story. Often, you are not inclined to put that amount of effort into your evaluations. As a result, even if you do note that a story is false, you may not take the time to allow that knowledge to affect what you believe.

That is why the traditional media matter so much. Despite claims of bias, the media do a great job of vetting their work and serving as a trusted source of knowledge. The best way to avoid the negative effects of fake news is to keep from being exposed to it. And for the most important choices, people must make sure they take the time to think carefully about the basis for their opinions.

Art Markman is the Annabel Irion Worsham Centennial Professor of Psychology and Marketing at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the co-host of the podcast Two Guys on Your Head and author of several books, including Brain Briefs.
We are sorely in need of some cheerful news out of Washington, so Im going to tell you Barbara Mikulskis story about the Senate bathrooms.

Almost every veteran woman legislator, in every level of government, has a story about the shortage of bathroom facilities at work. Really, there needs to be a book on this. It could have a happy ending, and none of the chapters would involve Russian attempts to manipulate an election.

Mikulski, 80, has served in Congress longer than any other woman in history. Shes retiring this month after representing Maryland for 30 years in the Senate. Before that she spent 10 years in the House. She was a social worker who got into Democratic politics during a battle to stop a planned highway that was threatening the ethnic Baltimore neighborhoods she loved. It was an unusual career route at the time, but she was an unusual person.

One of the things they said was that I didnt look the part, Mikulski, who is 4-foot-11, recalled. You know, chunky and I have a definite blue-collar style, so I wasnt to the manner born, to the trust fund inherited.

The classic way for a woman to win a seat in the Senate was to follow a famous male relative. Many of her predecessors were widows who succeeded their husbands. Nancy Kassebaum, the only other woman in the Senate when Mikulski arrived, was the daughter of Republican presidential candidate Alf Landon.

When the Senate was in session and Kassebaum needed to use the bathroom, she had to stand in line at the womens room used by tourists.

Mikulski immediately eyed a lounge that was set aside for the senators wives. It was, she recalled in an interview, a memento of the days when women would come over dressed in hats and gloves and sit adoringly listening to their husbands.

Once she explained her plight, the wives invited Mikulski and Kassebaum to use their lounge, which became their refuge until 1992. That was when four new women were elected to the Senate, making a grand total of six. The media announced the Year of the Women. It was a title that Mikulski took with, um, a grain of salt: Wow, we get our own year  like the Year of the Caribou, the Year of the Mushroom, the Year of the Asparagus.

They also got their own two-stall bathroom. By 2013 there were 20 women in the Senate and waiting lines in the loo. Mikulski recalled that the Rules Committee, which controlled such matters, wanted to create an elegant place with a chandelier and sinks with slim legs.

We wanted low cost. We didnt want anything fancy or expensive, but we wanted maximum functionality  the way women use a bathroom and not the way men think women use a bathroom, she recounted.

In the end, functionality won. The new bathroom had two more stalls, an extra sink and shelves in which each senator had a basket to store combs, brushes, makeup, whatever.

And so when I leave theyll retire my basket. Its kind of like retiring your jersey, Mikulski said, rather proudly.

In Washington, Mikulski has always exhibited a highly unusual combination of feistiness and bipartisanship. Susan Collins, a Republican senator from Maine, recalled that when she first arrived, Mikulski immediately reached out.

She didnt know me from Adam  or perhaps I should say from Eve, Collins said in a recent tribute on the Senate floor. Yet, despite the difference in our seniority, our states and our parties, she took me under her wing. I was so grateful for her kindness and her wisdom. She taught me the ropes of the appropriations process and instituted regular bipartisan dinners for the women of the Senate.

Those dinners have become famous  especially since the male side of the chamber has become more and more viciously partisan. In the beginning, they were held in a Senate room named after the late Strom Thurmond, an infamous pincher of ladies bottoms.

I know, the irony, Olympia Snowe, the former senator from Maine, once told me.

Next session, women will compose 19.5 percent of Congress.

Obviously we could do better, but on the plus side, were just a sliver away from passing Equatorial Guinea when it comes to gender diversity in the nations legislature.

Recently Mikulski and Collins invited their female colleagues for coffee, to welcome the latest generation of newcomers. It was a final gesture of outreach as Mikulski moved on into Senate history.

She deserves some kind of permanent memorial. Maybe they could put a plaque in that bathroom. Or better yet, they could rename the Strom Thurmond Room in her honor.

Gail Collins is a New York Times columnist.
ZANU PF youths have been reportedly instructed to avoid contesting for any position Robert Mugabe Jr seeks to occupy at the upcoming youth league conference, it has emerged.

Speculation is rife that the later strongman Robert Mugabes son has set his eyes on a leadership position in the youth leagues national executive

Sources in the party also said the 30-year-old is set to contest for the Zvimba East National Assembly seat currently occupied by Justice, Legal and Parliamentary affairs minister Ziyambi Ziyambi.

The idea, sources said, has excited the Zanu PF Mashonaland West leadership, with some suggesting Ziyambi could be moved to the Senate to pave way for him.

According to sources privy to developments, Robert Jr will be part of the four representatives from Mashonaland West to be voted into the national executive committee of the youth league.

He will not be contested and comrades are very comfortable with that arrangement, a party source said.

Everything has been put in place for him to become more visible at party functions and within the Mashonaland West structures so he kick starts his career in Zanu PF, the source added.

Robert Jr told journalists he has always been Zanu PF member despite the current party leaders being responsible for his fathers deposal in a military coup in 2017.

They have been very accommodative. I thought I should come and support the party, Robert Jr told reporters in Chitungwiza.

Its like the familys tradition. Since I was born all I know was Zanu PF. I am a Zanu PF child born in Zanu PF so its only right that I continue the legacy.

Despite the plan to fast track his rise, Robert Jr might be affected by the partys constitution which specifies that candidates should be fully subscribed members for a continuous period of five years.

But a senior Zanu PF official from.Mash West dismissed the reports saying: There is no truth in that, members just saw him at the rally in Chitungwiza and started the rumour, the official said.

He has not approached any local leadership of his interests. The local leadership is the one that vets and makes a recommendation.

The current executives term ends in May.

 NewZimbabwe

Breaking News via Email
Above - Charlie Purcell, Lisronagh, Clonmel, who works as tillage business manager with Glanbia, has won the Dow AgroSciences sponsored top project award in the UCD diploma course on integrated pest management. Charlie (centre) is pictured receiving the award from William Corrigan (left), national business manager of Dow AgroSciences and Dr. Tom McCabe, UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science, course co-ordinator.

Charlie Purcell from Lisronagh, Clonmel, who works as a tillage business manager with Glanbia, has won the top project award in the UCD diploma course in integrated pest management.

The award, which is sponsored by Dow AgroSciences, is an all-expenses paid trip to the intensive 'Disease Management in Wheat' course, run by the NIAB (National Institute of Agricultural Botany) in Cambridge in January.

Charlie graduated from UCD in 2013 with a degree in agricultural science.

Following a year working with his parents Jimmy and Siobhan on the familys tillage farm, he joined the Glanbia graduate programme. He was appointed manager of Glanbias tillage business in the south east last September.

Under the EU Pesticides Directive, all new pesticide advisers are required to complete the diploma course in integrated pest management.

The course is co-ordinated by Dr. Tom McCabe of the UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science.

Speaking at the presentation of the award, William Corrigan, Dow AgroSciences national business manager for Ireland, said the companys launch of two new products to the Irish market in 2017 will be of major benefit to growers in controlling weeds and insects in cereal crops.

Arylex Active, a new herbicide based on innovative chemistry, will have a wide spectrum of weed control in both winter and spring cereals.

It is the first such product to be launched on the market in over two decades.
(Natural News) An illicit, Planned Parenthood-style human organ trafficking network has been uncovered in Egypt, according to new reports, where some 45 people were recently arrested on charges of illegally buying and selling body parts harvested from humans. Yahoo! News reports that among those nabbed by authorities were doctors, nurses, organ-buyers, and their various middlemen, a dark market the likes of which Egypt has never seen.

Speaking on the record, Egypts health ministry told the media that the organ-running scheme is the largest ever brought to light in the country. An investigation conducted by Egypts Health Ministry and Administrative Control Authority, a powerful anti-corruption organization, revealed illegal organ trafficking at all levels of the nations healthcare system, including at both private hospitals and public health centers, and at both licensed and unlicensed facilities.

Every facility where illegal activity was identified has since been shut down, including some very large practices run by well-known physicians. Some of the doctors arrested even worked at two of Egypts largest universities, Cairo and Ain Shams. As the investigation continues to unfold, every operation involved has been shuttered, and all those involved taken in for questioning.

The accused who were arrested exploited the economic situation of some Egyptians and the suffering of some patients and their need for treatment to take large financial sums from them, thus breaking the law, the ministry revealed in a statement.

Millions of dollars at stake in illegal organ trade targeting vulnerable, refugees

Such a trade wouldnt even exist were it not for the huge sums of money at stake. Reports indicate that, besides the arrests, millions of dollars and gold bullion were recovered by authorities  this representing some of the highly valuable loot to be gained from the selling of organs to mostly wealthy, foreign customers.

In 2010, the World Health Organization (W.H.O.) named Egypt as one of the top five countries in the world where illegal organ trading takes place. Despite the passing of laws to help curb the problem, patients continue to be taken advantage of by unscrupulous doctors and health professionals looking to make a fast buck.

According to the United Nations (U.N.), hundreds of organ sale transactions occur annually throughout the country, oftentimes involving kidneys and livers. Many of those doing the selling are poor folks looking to pay off debts or buy food, and they have been known to target foreign migrants, including refugees, for exploit.

A former refugee agency chief at the U.N., Antonio Guterres, in 2012 accused organ traffickers of targeting migrants looking for refuge in Egypts Sinai peninsula. He told the media that many of these folks are being killed for the traffic of organs. One such trafficker told Italian prosecutors earlier this year that poor people who are unable to pay their debts are often sold into the organ trafficking trade, though these allegations have yet to be proven.

Similar organ trafficking operations have been uncovered elsewhere, including recently in Pakistan where some 24 victims were released from an apartment where they were locked up awaiting their fate. All of these victims were set to be transferred to a local medical clinic where their kidneys were slated to be harvested and sold on the black market.

Estimates put the worldwide number of commercial transplantations  transplantations that involve payment for the organ  at about 10,000 annually, roughly 10 percent of all transplantations, The Washington Post reported. Unable to obtain an organ at home, patients from rich countries might choose to travel to developing countries, where they can buy the organ and have it transplanted.

Sources for this article include:

Yahoo.com

BBC.com

WashingtonPost.com
Monday, December 26, 2016 by: Daniel Barker Tags: lawsuit , Monsanto , PCBs , pollution , toxins , Washington This article may contain statements that reflect the opinion of the author

(Natural News) The state of Washington has joined the list of those who have filed lawsuits against Monsanto over lingering environmental pollution caused by PCBs  a group of now-banned and highly toxic chemicals that the company manufactured between 1935 and 1977.

Several West Coast cities, including San Diego, Portland and at least half a dozen others, have also filed PCB lawsuits against Monsanto, but the Washington case marks the first time an entire state has entered into such litigation.

The state is seeking damages from the agribusiness giant on grounds of negligence, failure to warn the public about the dangers of PCBs, and trespass and injury of Washingtons natural resources.

Before becoming an agrichemical company, Monsanto was the sole manufacturer of PCBs, which were used as insulation for electronics and for many other industrial and commercial applications.

After PCBs were linked to cancer, birth defects, liver damage and other serious health problems, their use was finally banned in 1979. But the chemicals remain in the environment, even several decades later.

In a statement, Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson said:

PCBs have been found in bays, rivers, streams, sediment, soil and air throughout Washington state, with more than 600 suspected or confirmed contamination sites from Puget Sound to the Wenatchee River, Lake Spokane to Commencement Bay.

Monsanto lied about the dangers of PCBs for decades

Ferguson accused Monsanto of manufacturing PCBs for decades while hiding what they knew about the toxic chemicals harm to human health and the environment.

His accusation was based on documents that showed Monsanto knew from the very beginning that PCBs were toxic.

From The Associated Press:

Ferguson, a Democrat, pointed to internal Monsanto documents that show the company long knew about the danger the chemicals posed. In 1937, an internal memo said testing on animals showed systemic toxic effects from prolonged exposure by inhaling PCB fumes or ingestion.

Other committee memos from the following decades showed that the company was aware all along of the dangers associated with PCBs, but in 1969 Monsanto sent a letter to to the New Jersey Department of Conservation that said: Based on available data, manufacturing and use experience, we do not believe PCBs to be seriously toxic.

Ferguson said that there are PCBs in every waterway in the state, including the Skagit River, where Fergusons ancestors settled in the 19th century.

That river, the Skagit River, which my family depended on to a great degree in the 19th century as they homesteaded here, is now contaminated by PCBs, as are the fish, an infuriated Ferguson said. That makes me mad.

Seattles Duwamish River has been designated an EPA Superfund cleanup site  largely due to PCBs  and the state Department of Health has issued 13 fish consumption advisories for several lakes and waterways polluted by the toxic chemicals.

Not surprisingly, Monsanto has denied any wrongdoing, saying that PCBs were a lawful and useful product, and that any cleanup costs are the responsibility of third parties that used Monsantos PCBs to manufacture other useful products.

But if Monsanto lied about the dangers of PCBs  as the companys own documents indicate  then the courts may rule in favor of the plaintiff, which in this case could mean damages amounting to millions or even billions of dollars.

Monsantos toxic legacy

Its impossible to name another company that has played a bigger role in poisoning the planet than Monsanto. Between PCBs, glyphosate, DDT, Agent Orange and other toxic products, the risk of the average persons developing serious health issues has been multiplied beyond measure by a single, greedy corporation.

It appears that Monsanto can no longer hide behind its lies as easily as it once did  public awareness is increasing as new lawsuits continue to be filed and new information becomes available exposing the dangers of glyphosate, GMOs and the companys deceptive practices in general.

It may take more than a single lawsuit to put Monsanto out of business for good, but its a step in the right direction.

Sources:

TheDailySheeple.com

EcoWatch.com

APNews.com

Reuters.com
We are here. Researchers have finally developed an Ebola virus vaccine that is able to provide 100-percent protection against one particularly deadly strain of the disease based on final field tests on thousands of people in West Africa.



Though the vaccine may not have arrived to stop the 2014 outbreak that began in Guinea, it could be vital to prevent further epidemics. Public health experts have already stockpiled 300,000 doses of the drug for the next emergency.



According to Science Alert, the vaccine is known as the rVSV-EBOV and the vaccine prevented the development of Ebola in everyone it was given to during its field test. Now its makers need the regulatory approval for the drug so it can be more widely used.



Lead researcher Marie-Paule Kieny from the World Health Organization told Donald McNeil Jr. at the New York Times that we will not be defenceless when the next outbreak hits.



"The world can't afford the confusion and human disaster that came with the last epidemic," Kieny added.



According to the New York Times, occasional new cases of Ebola are still being reported with Guinea, where researchers trailled a technique called "ring vaccination." This means as soon as someone contracts the disease, the vaccine is given to those they've come into close contact with.



None of the 5,837 people who were given the vaccine had developed Ebola after 10 days, the study found. In contrast there were 23 new Ebola cases among the several thousands of people who didn't get vaccinated.



According to Science Alert, this is a hugely-promising result. However we can't completely rid of Ebola just yet. Though the rVSV-EBOV works against Zaire ebolavirus, the subtype of Ebola responsible for most human infections, it doesn't work against the four other subtypes.



The drugs also led to an unwelcome side effects, including joint pains and headaches. While these may be okay during an outbreak, it's going to put off the general population from getting vaccinated in healthier times.



The vaccine is made up of the vesicular stomatitis virus, which harms cattle but doesn't make humans sick, an an Ebola virus surface protein that prompts the human body to produce antibodies.



Now there's a new study underway to investigate its effects on children and vulnerable subjects, such as those with HIV.
We all know getting research papers published can be a bit of a pickle. But what if you could use your cat to help you write your paper? Any one of us would choose this method, and it appears someone has made it work - in 1975.



A cat named F.C.D. Willard was the co-author of a peer-reviewed physics paper called "Two-, Three-, and Four-Atom Exchange Effects in bcc ^3He."

The paper, published in Physical Review Letters, describes the results of an experiment exploring the behavior of helium-3 isotope at various temperatures.



This was conducted by Jack H. Hetherington, a professor of physics at Michigan State University. The experiment yielded important insights that are still being referenced today. However, when Hetherington tried to submit it for publication, there was a problem.



A colleague said it's fine but they'll send it right back, as Hetherington used "we" in his paper than "I." The journal specifically states that "we" cannot be used unless the paper had multiple authors.



At this point changing the paper to the impersonal seemed too difficult. And instead of just rewriting it altogether, the secretary just changed the title page to include the name of the family cat, a Siamese called Chester.



According to Sci-Tech Alert, Chester is the son of a cat named Willard, who Hetherington explained is one of the few unfixed male Siamese cats in Aspen, Colorado. He was given the pen name FDC Willard, which stands for Felis Domesticus Chester Willard.



It was miraculously accepted, and the FCD Willard from the Michigan State University physics department was an officially published cat.



Instead of sharing his work with someone else, Hetherington appeared to be not particularly interested in sharing the spotlight with someone else when he did all the work. He said he was conscious of the fact that researchers' pay and reputation is partly based on their output, and he didn't wan that diluted.He also suspected that if everyone found out the co-author was a cat, then it can be publicity.



Ten lucky friends got signed copies of the paper, and FDC Willard actually lent his paw print. However, FCD Willard was only revealed when someone asked to speak to this Willard character at Michigan State.



FCD Willard went on to publish another article on helium-3 in the French science magazine La Recherche and this time as the sole author.
Florida is home to many out-of-this world species, and the latest is an outfit-wearing alligator named Rambo who is currently residing in Lakeland.

As per United Press International, the nearly six-foot animal has been under the care of a woman named Mary Thorn, 55 for 12 years.

Because the alligator had been kept in a dark closet prior to his rescue, he had developed skin condition which made him sensitive to light. Thus, in order to prevent sunburn, Thorn had made the gator wear costumes.

Since then, Rambo had become sort of a celebrity in the area. He would often be seen in charity events, taking photos with people and doing antics to entertain people such as riding in an ATV.

However, last year, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) held an investigation because supposedly all alligators longer than four feet are required to have 2.5 acres of land available to them. Thorn's home is only about a third of an acre.

Fortunately, Thorn's lawyer, Spencer Sheehan, told ABC News on December 21 that after months of negotiating with the FWC, Thorn was finally allowed to keep Rambo. Except, Rambo is not allowed to go to exhibits and other social events anymore and that he is required to have his mouth taped whenever going out.

"It's a little unfortunate because Rambo has brought a lot of joy to the community, but [Thorn] is of course very happy she isn't losing him," Sheehan told ABC News.

Rambo will have a passive integrated transponder tag, which is used by veterinarians for identifying household pets.

Thorn meanwhile told the Sentinel she has no plans to replace him to save her business.

"I don't want people thinking they can have alligators for pets," Thorn told The Ledger in a separate interview.

"Rambo is special, he isn't like other alligators," she added.
It was not a very happy beginning to Hanukkah for the Jews of San Francisco's Chabad and those who celebrate with them.

A 6-foot-tall brass menorah was reported stolen from Washington Square Park on Christmas Day, which also was the first day of the Jewish festival of lights this year. The menorah was the property of the North Beach Chabad, run by Rabbi Peretz Mochkin and his wife, Miryum.

Chabad is a worldwide Orthodox Jewish organization in the Hasidic tradition.

Courtesy of Chabad of North Beach

The Mochkins are calling the theft a hate crime, although police think whoever took it might just want to sell the brass pieces for cash. There were no visible signs of anti-Semitism at the site of the theft. In fact, someone had also cut the power cord of lights on the Christmas tree at the same park.

"It was devastating," said Miryum Mochkin, who was notified by friends that the menorah was missing. "I was like, 'You know what, the park's big, and you just didnt see it.' I couldnt believe it at first."

Police Sgt. Michael Andraychak said the thief hauled the 100-pound menorah off sometime in the past several days. He also asked metal recyclers to be on the lookout for anyone trying to sell large pieces of brass.

Despite the theft, neighbors of multiple faiths came together in the park Monday night to light their own menorahs, rededicating the space as "a safe place where everyone can practice their religion freely and enjoy the holidays with light." Dozens of people brought their own menorahs and lit them on a picnic table covered in foil to catch the wax drippings. They sang Hanukkah songs and lit up the dark night sky.

"For somebody to take a symbol that means light and joy, they must be in a dark space in their life," Mochkin said.

A Chabad in Southern California was also targeted this Hanukkah season. In Santa Monica, the Living Torah Center Chabad was vandalized with smeared feces on the window over the weekend. It was not immediately clear what the reason was. No anti-Semitic message was left there.

"It's an awful thing, I don't know what's behind it," said Chabad of San Francisco Rabbi Yosef Langer, who is famous for lighting a gigantic menorah in Union Square every year during the holiday. His event will continue every day of Hanukkah at 4:30 p.m.

It is his daughter's Chabad that suffered the stolen menorah.

The Mochkins still held their Hanukkah event at the site of the theft, and asked anyone who wants to join to bring a small menorah of their own. They said that they won't let the light of the holiday be quashed by menorah thieves.

"In the face of this evil and whoever is trying to take this light away, we need to add light," Miryum Mochkin said.

Bill Pruzan of San Francisco agreed. "Its necessary that we be able to have celebrations that are based on being free from this vitriol and hatred," he said.

Anyone with information about the theft should call police on the anonymous tip line at 415-575-4444 or text a tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD.
Sixteen people were hurt in a bomb detonation at a Catholic Church in Philippine one day before Christmas where a huge mass had gathered at the southern island of Mindanao.

Ahead of the blast in the country security forces are on red alert due to several attacks across the world by the terrorists during Christmas and New Year holidays. In Australia and Indonesia plotted bombs were diffused before time and Malyasian officials have arrested doubted militants.

Father Jay Virador said "The blast sent the congregation fleeing."

"There was no more concluding prayers as there was a commotion," Virador said. "People hurriedly left the Church."

There has been repeated bomb blast attacks during Christmas all across the world that has killed several innocents.

Also Read:

Europe on high alert for Christmas

Berlin Attack: Suspect 'Anis Amri' shot Dead in Milan

'I was right on restraining Muslim immigrants from...
Seven people were shot, two of them fatally, in a mass shooting during a Christmas party in Chicago Sunday.

According to police, the shooting happened around 9:30 p.m. near 86th Street and Maryland in the citys East Chatham neighborhood.

According to authorities the victims were on a porch in the area when a man wearing a grey hoodie walked out of an alley and opened fire.

An 18-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene and a 21-year-old man shot in the back was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center where he later died, police said.

A 35-year-old man who suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the body was transported to Advocate Christ Medical Center in critical condition.

A fourth person, whose age was not immediately known, was taken to John. H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County in critical condition along with a 27-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman who were both shot in their legs and listed in stable condition.

A 39-year-old man also took himself to Roseland Hospital with a gunshot wound to the foot. He was last listed in good condition, according to officials.

No one was in custody for the shooting as of Monday morning. Area South Detectives are investigating.

"This is a business area, hopefully the cameras that are east of here can give police an image of the perpetrator that came through that alley," said community activist Andrew Holmes.

The shooting was one of several in the city in what has been a violent holiday weekend. As of early Monday morning, 41 people were shot, 11 fatally, making the Christmas weekend more violent than last year.
Six children were safely evacuated after a fire broke out at 96 Union in Vernon Sunday night.

Fire officials said crews were called to Union Street on reports of a fire around 5:15 p.m. Sunday.

The house sustained serious damage and crews are still working to determine what sparked the fire.

According to relatives, the parents of the children were not home at the time the fire broke out.

Fire officials said one firefighter sustained injuries after slipping on some ice.

This is a developing story. Check back wih NBC Connecticut for updates as they become available.
For Natasha Briggs and her family, faith in God is the only thing that has gotten them through the past year.

"I'm really still trying to process it all," said Briggs.

On December 26, 2015, her sister Kimberly Tippett and her nephew Kamryn Crain were driving along Interstate 30 in Garland, when a powerful EF-4 tornado crossed their path, killing them and seven others.

Monday, they joined city leaders, survivors, and the families of the other victims at John Paul Jones park, not far from the highway, to commemorate the first anniversary of that horrific day.

Tears streamed down their faces as Garland Mayor Douglas Athas read each of the victims' names aloud.

"We haven't been back here since everything happened," said Briggs. "But we came because I'm just grateful for what the city is doing and how they've just been here for us. Knowing that we have that support, it just kind of gives me peace."

Michael and Carol Barnes also came to the ceremony looking for peace. The tornado tore through their neighborhood, destroying their house and every other house on their street.

They've spent much of the past year living in hotels and apartments -- finally moving back into their completely redesigned home last month.

"My daughters already said that they were not coming back home if the house remained the same because it would keep giving them a reminder of what happened the day after Christmas," said Carol Barnes. "My first night there, I could not sleep. I stayed up all night because I was so scared. You know, it just takes some getting used to."

Despite the challenges, they're optimistic things will get better.

City leaders echoed those sentiments, stressing that the hard work is far from done -- but also praising the city's resiliance for the progress that has been made.

And in that spirit, Athas closed the ceremony by unveiling a new plaque that will be permanently installed at the park. It contains a lengthy inscription that both honors tornado victims and survivors and acknowledges several new trees planted in the park -- a symbol that Garland is on the mend.

A plaque honoring the lives lost and the rebuilding of Garland after the tornado on Dec. 26, 2015 was unveiled at John Paul Jones Park.

In Rowlett, a ceremony will unveil a 30-foot-tall memorial sculpture. The event begins at 4 p.m. at Schrade Bluebonnet Park, located at 4701 Sunnybrook Drive, Rowlett.

At 6:30 p.m., Oasis Church at Lakeview will host a candlelight vigil. You can find it at 5026 Locust Grove Road, Garland, Texas 75043.
Dallas police said a man was fatally shot at a gas station in South Dallas shortly after midnight Monday.[[408307185,R]]

According to police, the incident began as a fight between two men at the Valero gas station in the 4700 block of South Central Expressway.

Arriving officers found Onesimo Abrego, 44, injured with a gunshot wound. Paramedics took him to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced deceased.

The suspected gunman remained at large Monday morning. Crime Stoppers offered a $5,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest and indictment.

Tips can be submitted at 214-373-TIPS.
The Porras family could not have know last Christmas was the last time they would all be together.

"Such a big change in my life," said Ruben Porras, his eyes wet holding back tears. "I want to cry sometimes. It hits me."

The deadly tornado on Dec. 26, 2015 killed Porras' wife, Petra Porras. She was driving home from the hair salon on Interstate 30 at the Bush Turnpike when the EF-4 tornado hit. Porras was talking to his wife on FaceTime when it happened.

"Yeah, I talked to her about, maybe 30 seconds. It was so quick. Everything went so fast," Porras said. "Who would expect a tornado around that time right after Christmas, right? No one."

There's now a memorial at I-30 and the Bush Turnpike where nine people died that night, including Petra. Nine wooden Christmas Trees dot the landscape.

One for each victim.

"That's something that I think about all the time, you know?" Porras said. "It was so random, and I think about why her?"

Porras is raising the couple's five children alone, with the help of his wife's mother.

"She wasn't just my wife, she was my best friend" Porras said. "I had so much fun with her."

This Christmas, Porras didn't want to be home for the anniversary of the tornado. He drove his family to Disney World, far away from the memories of that fateful day.

Porras said he misses his wife every day, but there is a lesson in the loss.

"So you have to appreciate those moments that you have with your family," Porras said. "Because you never know when that time is going to come."
As NBCDFW warned of a tornado closing in on Ovilla and Glenn Heights on December 26, 2015, Zachary James, Sr. was at ground zero.

"First it got really quiet and then my wife, her ears popped, and she said 'baby, it's here!," said Glenn Heights resident Zachary James, Sr. "The whole house shook, the windows blew out."

After the twister passed over, James walked outside to see his neighborhood along Trishia Lane in ruins. Many homes were leveled by the EF3 tornado. Several vehicles were turned over. While people in other parts of North Texas had been seriously injured or killed, no one in Glenn Heights or Ovilla died as a result of the storm.

In the year since, James, Sr. had more than his own house to worry about. He is a general contractor who owns Zack's Construction Company.

"I've rebuilt 15 homes right here in Glenn Heights that were tornado damaged," said James, Sr.

Many homes have been rebuilt but where homeowners owed more on their mortgages than they had in insurance coverage, empty foundation slabs remain.

Down the street, Omar Campos was more fortunate than some of his neighbors. His reconstruction was completed last August. He and his wife watched in horror as power lines fell and transformers exploded as the tornado passed through.

"The tree ridge line [behind his house], it just literally looked like bombs were going off... blue, purple,yellow, green," said Campos.

He and his wife raced back inside and took cover in the bathroom.

"Fifteen seconds are fast but those were probably the longest 15 seconds of our lives," said Campos.

Campos' mother stayed with them at the time of the storm. She was devastated when her pet cat disappeared.. for awhile.

"It took about, almost two weeks, but she finally came back," said Campos.
It's a few days before Christmas 2016 and Julie Tomko is building gingerbread houses with her niece and nephew. She prefers to spend the holidays this way.

But on the night of Dec. 26, 2015, there was a time when she wondered when her home in Rowlett would be rebuilt.

"We turned on the TV and they said 'If you're in Rowlett, you need to take cover,'" said Tomko.

As an EF4 tornado barreled towards her home, Tomko and her husband hid in a closet.

"At one point I looked at my husband [and said] 'Do your ears feel funny?'" said Tomko. "And he said, 'Yeah.' I said, 'I don't think its a good thing.'"

Tomko heard glass breaking but didn't hear the "freight train" noise that many other tornado survivors recall. Still, the damage was clear when she stepped outside.

"The best thing I can compare it to is 'The Wizard of Oz,'" said Tomko. "It was like you walked out and everything was gray and it was so silent. Just this gray midst from the dust."

With her neighborhood in shambles, Tomko reached out to her pastor, Cole Hedgecock of First Baptist Church of Rowlett.

"We heard stories about families that really had experienced the miraculous," said Hedgecock. "There was a story of some teenagers who were home alone. And [after the tornado] they ran out of their house, and they turned around and the only part of that house that was remaining was four stairs and the bottom of the stairwell where they happened to be."

By 1 p.m. the next day the church was set up to receive donations. Donations of diapers, baby food and more items poured into the church, which coordinated relief efforts with four other churches in Rowlett.

Volunteers from as far away as California also showed up. They slept in many quarters of the church's rooms not being used for relief.

"We had people take off work from Texas, Oklahoma," said Hedgecock. "We had a guy from California come in. People literally from all over the country came in."

The church also provided counselors in addition to supplies and food.

"We had people coming in distraught," said Hedgecock. "Really, they were in shock. They didn't know where they are, where they were, what they were doing, what they needed. They left with a sense of hope. They knew that people cared about them. They knew that people loved them."

"It was a very humbling and exciting thing for us to be able to help those in need," Hedgecock added. "We always felt like we were the ones being blessed by just being in a position to help those."

Tomko also felt the generosity of strangers. She said the tiniest of gestures made a major difference.

"The people who would walk by and say 'Can I go charge your cell phone?'" said Tomko. "We didn't have any cars. Our cars were all totaled. So for someone to sit outside and charge your cell phone, that doesn't seem like a big deal. But it is a big deal in this situation."

Tomko moved into her rebuilt home just weeks ago. Many of her neighbors will return soon. She said the storm has already inspired them to have more meaningful dialogues.

"Our conversations changed," said Tomko. "It was a deeper conversation of 'Where are you going to live, what are you doing, what do you need?'"

"It was connection on a level of pure human need instead of the quaint little waves and nods as you go back and forth," she said.

_____________________________________

First Baptist Church of Rowlett still operates its relief center and will keep it open permanently. The pastor said anyone in need is welcome, their religion does not matter.

"We want it to be a constant place where people in need can come and they can receive help," said Pastor Hedgecock. "We still help people who survived the tornado. But we also have expanded this ministry to where somebody needs potatoes or chicken or macaroni and cheese; or towels or blankets or pillows. Anything from diapers or baby wipes to cleaning supplies, rakes and shovels."

Click on this sentence to link to FBC of Rowlett. The address is 4309 Main Street in Rowlett, Texas.
Snow and ice created treacherous travel for much of the country Monday, as millions of Americans embarked on the journey back home from their holiday weekend, NBC News reported.

Gusty winds on Monday blew snow and created near-zero visibility across the northern Great Plains, where heavy snow fell at a rate of up to one inch per hour on Christmas Day. Officials issued no-travel warnings for much of North Dakota.

The storm will gradually weaken over the Plains before marching on to the Northeast, where freezing rain advisories were issued for central Pennsylvania, central New York, and much of New England. Morning ice in the Northeast turned to rain by Monday afternoon and was forecast to end early Tuesday.
Christmas Eve is the time for families to come together, but one family's plans to unite with family ended in tragedy.

Airman Javier Garcia, a 22-year veteran, was driving his mother young daughter from Riverside to Mexicali Wednesday night to catch a flight. Then, in an instant, a car cut in front of them at Highway 86 in Brawley.

"All I remember was a car cutting across," Garcia told NBC 7 exclusively, "then them [first responders] taking me out with the jaws of life."

Javier's mother, Maria, was also in the car and did not survive.

 I heard him [first responder] say she doesn't have a heartbeat, Garcia said. I think I passed out from that moment.

Maria Garcia Zuniga had just beaten cancer, the same illness that took the life of her husband in 1995. The family was going to celebrate her cancer feat in Mazatlan for Christmas.

That was her wish to go back home to see her family, Garcia said.

The 22-year Airman and his daughter Delilah were rushed to San Diego area hospitals. They both suffered bleeding of the brain. Its physical pain only topped by the emotional pain of a mother and grandmother gone too soon.

If you would like to help the Garcia family, here is a link to their official Go Fund Me page.

Javier and Delilah were rushed to San Diego area hospitals. They both suffered bleeding of the brain.
A Santa Monica synagogue was vandalized just hours after the congregation celebrated the start of Hanukkah.

The vandals appeared to have struck Living Torah Center Chabad Saturday night or Sunday morning, Assistant Rabbi Dovid Tenenbaum said. The front window was smeared with rice and feces, he added.

A menorah was displayed in the window of the building on Wilshire Boulevard at the time of the vandalism, Tenenbaum said.

"This seems kind of intentional," Tenenbaum told the Los Angeles Times. "With a religious artifact in the window, we have to assume so."

No arrests were reported.

The synagogue has been targeted before, including earlier this year when a man at the syangogue shouted "Heil, Hitler" before running off.

Last year, someone left a letter in the building's mailbox that included a swastika and graffiti was found on a hut built for the Jewish festival of Sukkot.
Samsung propelled the Pink Gold variant of its well-known lead Galaxy S7 Edge in India. This rendition of Galaxy S7 Edge cell phone was reported in April this year yet it was accessible in a modest bunch of business sectors as it were. The Galaxy S7 Edge Pink Gold model is currently up for gets in India for Rs 50,900.

It is applicable to note that there is no adjustment in cost as other shading variations are likewise accessible at a similar cost.

The Galaxy S7 Edge posting on Samsung's India site expressed that the model has not been authoritatively made accessible in the nation.

The South Korean gadgets goliath had on December 8 formally reported the dispatch of 'Dark Pearl' shaded variation of the hugely well known Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge.

With this, the Galaxy S7 Edge can now be had in an aggregate of seven hues, which are: Blue Coral, Pink Gold, White Pearl, Black Onyx, Gold Platinum and Silver Titanium. Every one of them, be that as it may, may not be accessible at each retailer.

Also Read:

More entry-level smartphone players to quit market in India: Analysts

Apple ordering plastic OLED screens from Samsung for iPhone 8 s

Samsung Galaxy S8 announcement reportedly delayed to...
Each year, 20,000 teenagers drop out of high school in Los Angeles. But one group of volunteers has come up with a way to keep young people engaged in school by connecting them to homeless dogs.

One of those teens, Essence Diggs, was on the verge of dropping out of Cheviot Hills Continuation High School in Los Angeles -- until she was introduced to a program that changed everything.

"They were like do you want to train dogs for credits? Diggs said. "I'm like 'sure  I love dogs and I need to graduate.' It was perfect."

Diggs began taking part in a project called K-9 Connection. Since 2005, the non-profit program has partnered hundreds of at-risk youth in continuation high schools with homeless dogs from local shelters. They're taught how to train the animals -- to make it easier for the dogs to get adopted.

"They help us and we help them  we need them  if I wasn't in K-9 I'd probably still be ditching school or be lost or something," Diggs said.

The school's principal says it's a match made in heaven.

"As I see it, the dogs are kind of lost souls, lost puppies  and my students are lost puppies  so they bond," Mary Reid said.

By working with these rescue dogs, the teens gain confidence by learning they can be of service to others.

"I'm guiding a dog through agility and he's helping me realize there's a purpose ... you need to be here for something  don't just wake up every day and do nothing  come to school for something," Diggs said.

One hundred percent of the dogs who undergo this training program get out of the shelter and find permanent homes, according to the K-9 Connection Project Director Juliet Beynon.

"They start feeling more confident and will come to the front of their cages and be more friendly so their chances of being adopted are much higher," she said.

And the students start doing better inside the classroom as well. Lucas Hernandez, 18, is earning school credits by training Sammy, a rescue pup he met at a West Los Angeles animal shelter.

"What really got to me was when I saw Sammy locked behind a cage, I saw his face and imagined how sad he was feeling to not be able to play and run freely."

Sammy has come a long way in the past few weeks -- and Lucas is hoping his training will help the pit bull mix find a good home.

Diggs completed the K-9 Connection program, graduated from high school and now attends college on a scholarship. She's now interning with the program to help other teens succeed like she has.

"High schools don't have programs like this ... I bet these students didn't even talk to each other before ... but now they're actually friends ... making a difference in a dog's life ... everyone benefits from this," she said.
A man was killed early Monday when he crashed his four-door Chevrolet into a pole and a tree within two blocks of the start of a California Highway Patrol pursuit, authorities said.

The pursuit started at 2:32 a.m. after CHP officers weaving on streets near Firestone Boulevard and Central Avenue. Officers tried to conduct a traffic stop, suspecting the driver might have been under the influence of alcohol.

The driver didn't stop for officers, but crashed into a pole and a tree a few minutes later around on Manchester Boulevard between Central and McKinley avenues. The man driving the vehicle died at the scene.

Officers estimated the driver was traveling about 110 mph before the crash. The car appeared to hit two dips in the street before the driver lost control, according to authorities.

"I couldn't believe it," said witness Lucretia Givan. "It looked like a spacecraft to me. It didn't even look like a car."

Another witness told NBC4 the driver appeared to be racing another vehicle before the pursuit. Authorities did not confirm that the driver was involved in a race.
It has been a year and a half since a robbery and shooting left Julie Dombo of Derby, Kansas a quadruple amputee.

Now thanks to some generous donors, she's getting a new lease on life, NBC affiliate KSNW reported.

She met Mark Holden back in October when they both spoke at a Wichita Crime Commission Annual Award Dinner, where Dombo received the Citizen Hero of the Year Award.

Flash forward to Monday and Holden and his wife, Louise, gave Dombo an early Christmas gift  a new set of hands.

"I am shocked, they came out with the boxes and I'm like 'Why do you have those Touch Bionic boxes', and they said 'Merry Christmas, we bought your hands'," said Dombo.

Dombo had been learning to use the prosthetic hands since May, but they were only being loaned to her.

Read more from KSNW
A 94-year-old Bronx woman heading to her local grocery store Saturday in preparation for her traditional family Christmas meal was violently robbed by a man who threw her to the ground, according to police and a published report.

Police say the elderly victim was pushed from behind by a man at West 205th Street and Jerome Avenue at about 5 p.m. on Christmas Eve.

The thief grabbed her purse and ran away northbound on Jerome Avenue with her credit cards and cash, police said.

The woman declined medical attention at the scene, but she later told The New York Post that her cries for help from the ground were ignored.

"There was a woman walking toward me from Jerome Avenue and I was yelling, 'He stole my pocketbook, he stole my pocketbook!'" said Muriel Bernstein. "And the woman walked toward me and right past me! She didn't even look at me. Like a ghost."

Bernstein told the newspaper she got up and resumed her walk to the market, still in shock. After processing what happened, the 4-foot-8 woman walked back to her building and told her security guard what happened.

The guard, Kevea Ware, told NBC 4 New York the elderly woman appeared to be in shock.

"She was shaken up and afraid but mostly she was in shock," said Ware. "I think all she was worried about was getting back to safety, getting back into the building."

Ware said Bernstein always walks around with her shopping cart and described her as a "real independent person, a real nice person."

A friend of the victim, David Glickenstein, also described her as highly independent.

"She's short, very feisty," he told NBC 4 New York. "She goes everywhere on her own, she doesn't like to depend on other people."

The great-grandmother told The Post she has both Jewish and Christian roots, and that she was heading to the store to pick up items for her signature holiday dishes -- Italian salami rolled with sweet pickles and provolone, along with fresh seafood salad.

Bernstein said she was born in the Bronx and has lived in her building on Paul Avenue for nearly 50 years, and this was the first time she's been robbed or hurt.

It's the second time an elderly person has been violently robbed in the Bronx in just days: last week, an 87-year-old man was tied up inside his Bronx home and robbed of $10,000. Francisco Perez, while not physically injured, was shaken up and said he no longer has enough money to pay his rent.
What to Know The owner of a Mount Vernon nightclub was killed and five others were wounded in a shooting Sunday morning .

Mount Vernon police said the suspect allegedly shot the 40-year-old owner as an act of retaliation for being ejected from the club

The 36-year-old suspect has an open attempted murder case in the Bronx, in addition to charges of murder and five counts of attempted murder

The suspect in a deadly Christmas Day shooting in Mount Vernon made his first appearance in court Monday morning as family members and friends grieved the loss of a man who they say was helping to elevate the community.

The 36-year-old suspected gunman, who's from the Bronx, was arraigned in Mount Vernon City Court on charges of murder and attempted murder in the shooting that killed O'Neal Bandoo, the 40-year-old owner of The Mansion nightclub, and injured five others.

After the arraignment, Errol Hillary was remanded back to jail with no bail. He's next expected to appear in court Friday for a separate hearing on a felony charge, according to the Westchester District Attorney.

Attorney information for Hillary wasn't immediately clear.

Outside the courtroom, the victim's young daughter was in tears as she cried, "My dad."

Bandoo's father told reporters that "he was a very good man."

"He'd work all the time. The nature of what he was doing was he had to work holidays a lot," said Brian Deaver. "His job was that, taking care of people on holidays."

Deaver said his son, who lived in the University Heights section of the Bronx, had been planning a Christmas celebration at his home.

Another family friend, Bashon Reid, called O'Neil "an amazing man" who for his age "has done so many things, he's gonna live beyond his time."

"He actually elevated this community, Mount Vernon," said Reid. "He was able to employ so many people -- Mount Vernon right now needed something, needed some light brought to it. He was able to help a lot of people, employ a lot of people. He was an inspiration to many people."

"This was something that was very unexpected," he said. "He didn't deserve this."

The gunshots rang out inside The Mansion at about 4:30 a.m. Sunday. A patron, Cleveland Douse, told NBC 4 New York he was with the owner inside the club when they heard the gunfire. After Bandoo ran downstairs toward the commotion, more shots were fired.

"When I heard the shots, I ran back to the bar," said Douse. "I ran back to the bar, I come downstairs, I come outside and I saw three men on the ground."

The five injured victims suffered non-life threatening wounds to the leg, arm, chest and back and were treated at hospitals.

Security guards tackled suspect Errol Hillary to the ground immediately after shots were fired. He got away from them briefly, but was caught shortly afterward by arriving police officers.

Mount Vernon Police Captain Edward Adinaro said he belives the suspect wanted to retaliate after he was possibly ejected from the club earlier on in the evening. He said he didn't know what led to the suspect getting kicked out.

The gunman was already wanted on an open attempted murder charge in the Bronx, police said.

"It's a dark day in the city and we are all grieving," Mount Vernon Mayor Richard Thomas in a statement. "No one should ever have to endure this pain. Mr. Bandoo was a good man who as dedicated to uplifting and serving the people of Mount Vernon."
While the U.S. remains the world's dominant military and economic power, China now is the world's second-biggest economy and has the largest military. And Beijing is beginning to flex its muscles.

After hundreds of years of looking inward, China is ascerting itself regionally, building aircraft carriers, asserting its dominance over most of the disputed South China Sea and sending troops abroad.

President Xi Jinping, China's most powerful leader in decades, is sending Washington a strong message, which is that China has changed and old assumptions about global power and American dominance don't hold anymore.

As a result of an assertive Beijing, President-Elect Donald Trump will have to decide whether to continue irritating Beijing by sailing aircraft carriers in waters China claims. Beijing's willingness or unwillingness to restrain North Korea's nuclear ambitions may provoke some sort of reaction from Washington.

Trump has not wasted time in rattling Beijing's cage  that may hint at things to come.
It was March 11, 2010. A typical day where April Phillips worked from her home in Gettysburg as a transcriptionist for Hanover Hospital. Her husband, Rick Phillips, a police officer for Eastern Adams Regional Police Department, kissed his wife and two step-daughters goodbye, like he always did, and headed out to work his 5 p.m. to 3 a.m. shift.

During his dinner break, Rick called April to let her know he would be working his normal traffic enforcement for the rest of the night.

April told him to be careful and that she loved him, just like any other day.

"You just don't know about the future," April said.

Later that night, a knock on the door woke April up at 12:45 a.m. Two police officers told her Rick had been in a serious accident.

Rick, who had been a police officer for about 15 years, had been involved in a high-speed pursuit. The chase ended when he crashed into a tractor-trailer.

Rick broke facial bones and his leg and sustained a traumatic brain injury. After the crash, he wouldn't live full-time in his home again for five years, and his career as a police officer - one that he loved - would be over.

"I miss my job there a lot," he said. "I loved that job."

"Since he left, I don't think we ever really recovered," Eastern Adams Regional Police officer Shawn Cuffley said.

That night on March 11, 2010, Rick attempted to make a traffic stop but was soon in pursuit of the car he tried to pull over. While traveling on Route 30, the car ran a red light at the Route 94 intersection in Cross Keys. Rick continued through the red light, and his police cruiser crashed into a tractor-trailer. The car he was pursuing kept going.

April was in shock when she heard the news and immediately went to York Hospital with her twin 11-year-old daughters.

"Just imagine being woken up from a sleep at that time of night home alone," April said.

When April arrived at the hospital, Rick was getting a CAT scan. She was sent to the trauma waiting room. Doctors told her what they knew about his brain injury and said Rick would soon go to the operating room to have a pressure monitor placed in his head.

When she finally saw him, he was on a stretcher being wheeled to the operating room. April stood at the doorway, and she remembers the doors flying open and seeing blood everywhere. She yelled out that she loved him even though she wasn't sure if he could hear her.

After that, all she could do was cry and pray, she said.

"I still think it's a sheer miracle he woke up and can function the way he can," April said.

It took about a month for Rick to fully wake up. There were moments where he was semi-conscious and sometimes he would remember who April was, but other times he would call her Cindy, who is his sister, April said.

"Awaking from a coma is strange, not like you see in the movies," she said. "It's a gradual process."

When Rick began talking again, doctors called it "word salad," because nothing he said made sense.

It took about six months for him to be able to remember what he had just done an hour before, April said.

Even now, Rick says April knows his memory better than he does.

It took five years from the day of the accident for Rick to return home for good. He spent a total of three years and 4 months away from home. After York Hospital, he went to rehabilitation facilities in North Carolina and Philadelphia.

Rehab mainly worked on his memory issues, but he also had speech, physical and occupational therapy. Rick was also working with specialists when he was at ReMed in Paoli to help him come to terms with the changes in his life, April said.

During those five years, he missed out on a lot of holidays and family events, April said. Whenever Rick was in the Paoli area for treatment or therapy she would go see him every day, and when he wasn't in the area she would call every day.

April made a total of 20 trips to see Rick in North Carolina and drove a total of 28,782 miles when he was in Pennsylvania facilities.

"She was a very busy person," Rick said.

One Christmas, April and her twin daughters, Amber and Brianna Milliken, flew to North Carolina to spend the holiday with Rick.

"I missed my family and friends, but we are all here now though, thank goodness," Rick said.

The crash dramatically altered April's life, too. Her husband was no longer home, she had two pre-teens to raise and the dynamic of the home had changed.

"It's been a complete role reversal in the household," April said.

One of the rehab facilities suggested April seek legal guardianship so she could force Rick to stay at the facility. Otherwise, he could have left on his own, which was not safe at that point.

"It was hard, but I had to think with my mind and not my heart," April said.

Rick is still her full-time responsibility, she said. He requires 24/7 supervision.

He can't drive, and probably will never drive, April said. She has to remind him to take his medication or take a shower. If something happened to her, Rick would have to go back and live in a rehab facility since he will never be independent. She worries about the future.

"But it's all part of my wedding vows to Rick," April said.

Even now that Rick is home, he is still recovering. A therapist comes to his home during the week to take him to volunteer for a few hours.

He has become involved with his community again - after they rallied around the family in their time of need - just in a different way. He volunteers at Shining Stars and at the Brethren Home and April and Rick are looking for more ways to give back, April said.

Shining Stars in Gettysburg provides therapy through horsemanship. Rick and April volunteer together Thursday nights as side-walkers, walking alongside the horse as someone rides, and Rick volunteers during the week to help care for the horses.

"I feed them, water them, brush them, clean their buckets and their stalls," Rick said.

Rick enjoys the side-walking because he said it's fun to be around all the kids.

"It's a great program to be a part of," April said.

Before Rick was an officer in the Eastern Adams Regional Police department, he was an officer in Bendersville. That community decided to name a street after him to show their appreciation for his years of service.

Bendersville Borough Police Chief David Ogel knew Rick for years, even as far back as when Rick was a constable.

Rick knew how to have fun, Ogel said. They would play pranks on each other often.

"Rick was very thorough as a police officer, but he knew how to have fun," Ogel said.

Rick has made strides in his recovery - he still enjoys fishing like he did before - but there is no guarantee of what to expect. Doctors are able to give the family an idea of the severity and can make predictions, but no two brain injuries are the same, April said.

The experience has brought April closer to God and she became stronger in her spirituality.

"God can get you through anything," April said, "because I don't know how else you could go through something like this without having faith."

Amber learned to rely on friends and family through the hard times. Brianna said she learned to not take anything for granted.

As for Rick's future, he constantly talks about wanting to drive again, April said. He has driving tests done every six months by the rehab facility, but he hasn't passed yet.

He processes information slowly and has a slow reaction time, which he realizes, but he keeps trying.

Being able to drive is Rick's biggest goal for his future.

"Don't give up, and don't take anything for granted," Rick said.

'Justice pays'

Six years after the crash, Lance Lester Hawkes was found guilty of aggravated assault, and his sentencing will take place Jan. 9.

"Justice pays, but it just takes a long time to happen," said Rick Phillips, who was an acquaintance of Hawkes before joining the police academy.

In 2013, Hawkes' brother told police that Hawkes told him that he was the one driving the car being pursued by Rick. After he made it through the intersection he looked in his rear view mirror and saw Rick's car blow up, according to an affidavit filed with District Judge Little.

In 2015, Hawkes' brother-in-law told police Hawkes admitted to him, just days after the crash, that he was the one driving the car, the affidavit states.

Now that they know who caused the accident, the family is able to move forward with their lives, April Phillips said.
Each month the subscription beauty boxes that Jasmine Harris ordered would arrive at her home.

But she'd have to throw a lot of the products out, Minnesota Public Radio reported.

"If it was makeup, the coloring would be off," Harris said. "Lipstick, the shades would be inappropriate for my skin tone, or hair products that were not made for kinkier textured hair, like mine."

After a few too many experiments, she concluded "subscription boxes weren't thinking about people of color."

The experience galvanized Harris, along with her mother and sister, to create a new subscription service aimed at the multicultural market. The Burnsville family named their new company Hues Box.

"We want to connect people with products made for their skin tones and hair textures," Jasmine said.

"This is by people of color, for people of color  not just African-Americans, Africans," said Robin Harris, Jasmine's mother. "We're talking about Asians, Hispanics and American Indians because it's this missing component of other boxes that are out there."

The company launched over the weekend with its first shipment. More than two dozen newly subscribed customers will receive boxes containing sample personal care and beauty products.

Subscription e-commerce has grown into a multibillion-dollar industry. Just about anything  from arts and craft to dog treats  can be ordered online and delivered regularly to your doorstep.

Industry success comes from buying in bulk, said Sucharita Mulpuru, chief retail strategist for the ShopTalk retail conference. And personal care companies have huge growth targets making a push for the multicultural market less of a priority, she said.

"I think what that means for this company in Minnesota is it's a market opportunity," Mulpuru said. "It may not be billions of dollars, but there's absolutely a demand for it, and it's a unique niche that's not being addressed now."

But at its core, Hues is social enterprise. It will only feature products made by vendors of color, especially small operators without big marketing budget. As Hues accumulates subscribers around the country, it will give those obscure brands greater exposure, Robin said.

"What you'll see in our box you won't see in a store," she said. "These are small business vendors who are looking for a way to get their products out and their voices out into the broader community."

For example, in the first box, Sailor Girl, a Native American company on a reservation in Idaho, made the lip balm, and Butters by Jay, an African-American-owned business in Brooklyn Center, produced the whipped Shea butter.

Butters by Jay owner Jasmine McConnell, 28, works full time as a construction site superintendent but makes the bath-and-body products out of her home.

"New customers from the exposure would propel my business to the next level and help me reach my goal of doing this full-time," said McConnell. "This is huge for my business."

The busy Harrises funded Hues out-of-pocket as a side business. Robin, the human resources director for Minneapolis Public Housing Authority, ran for Burnsville City Council a couple of months ago. Jasmine is a sociology professor in Philadelphia. Jenae also teaches, along with running an event planning business and participating in beauty pageants.

Hues has 10 vendors and are in talks with a dozen more from around the country.

"It's awesome to see a spike in entrepreneurship in communities of color," Jenae said.

But finding these businesses has been challenging.

"Often vendors of color, just starting out, don't have the resources to have a website or don't know about search engine optimization if they do have a small website to get their businesses in a Google search results," Jenae said.

In addition to lack of resources, some vendors lack business know-how. But the Harrises are mentoring some these vendors on marketing and branding for a potential partnership.

"If you're a small business owner from a community where there's not a lot of successful entrepreneurship," Jenae said, "it makes it all the more difficult for your business to be visible and for people like us to find it."

Each month Hues box will feature four to six sample-sized products about a specific theme. Customers can pay $12 a month or subscribe for a lengthier delivery option. Subscribers will be able to buy full-size products from Hues' or the vendor's website.

The boxes will also include beauty and wellness products rooted in different ethnic traditions. For example, first box's theme is "detox" and includes a feminine hygiene tea used by Native American, Latino, African and Asian women, Jasmine said.

"There's cultural overlap between communities of color, some of our regimens are the same," Jasmine said. "It will also be an opportunity to reconnect and share lesser known traditional practices with each other."

And the Harris' hope the products will generate conversation about health.

"We'll have products to reduce stress and boost mental health  topics not discussed often in communities of color," she said. "One of our goals is to generate those conversations and that's why it's important that this is not just a makeup box."

The women have big plans, like creating a health and beauty community online for people of color and branch into kids and men's boxes.

But it's just the beginning. Hues vendors and founders are competing against businesses big and small who are hoping just the right box will help them find loyal customers. They're hoping their unique products and social mission will win them a following.

"It's very exciting to see all of this take off," Jasmine said. "And to see people of color working together on different levels to help each other." [[238430011, C]]
Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf will head into 2017 with perhaps bigger challenges than his first two years in office.

He is facing Pennsylvania's largest Republican legislative majorities in decades, the state government's stubborn post-recession deficit looks as bad as ever and Wolf's upcoming re-election campaign is in view.

Meanwhile, fear is rife in the Capitol that 2017 will bring a second drawn-out budget stalemate, similar to the record-breaking fight that ended last spring, more than nine months into Wolf's first full fiscal year as governor.

For now, Wolf is changing strategy. For the first time, Wolf will give lawmakers a budget proposal  his third  that does not include a major sales or income tax increase, he said. That has received a warm embrace from Republicans, and skepticism from Democrats that it can be done.

"I think there ought to be skepticism," Wolf told The Associated Press in an interview Wednesday.

After all, deficit-laden governments that do not raise taxes typically balance budgets by "slashing and burning and cutting" education and human services, Wolf said. "I don't think anybody I know has done a good job of streamlining government in a way that continues to serve the needs of people, but I think that's what government needs to do."

How Wolf balances the political reality of the Capitol for the next two years, but still achieves his goals, could become clearer in early February when he delivers his budget proposal to the Legislature.

"This is all going to be very interesting, because we do not yet know how Governor Wolf is going to govern in his third year, if he's looking toward re-election or if he's looking toward being a hard-line progressive and not caring about re-election," said Rep. Rob Kauffman, R-Franklin.

Wolf came into office seeking billions of dollars in tax increases to wipe out a massive budget deficit that had left Pennsylvania's credit rating among the nation's lowest and to fix school-funding disparities that are among the nation's widest.

Republicans fought off the lion's share of Wolf's tax proposals, including a refusal to impose higher taxes on the Marcellus Shale natural gas industry.

This year, the state government's budget is full of holes  tax collections are sluggish and human services programs are underfunded, Wolf administration officials say  and a deficit projected at $1.7 billion next year looms.

Pension obligations, prisons costs and providing health care for the poor are rising by more than $1 billion a year, and Republicans, for the moment, are conspicuously avoiding talking about cutting benefits or increasing taxes.

Instead, Republicans are heading into the new year emphasizing that state government must undergo difficult and far-reaching changes to control rising costs.

"These are things that won't benefit us today and may not help this year's budget," said Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman, R-Centre. "But until you start putting in that hard work and reforming these areas, you're going to be going on for the next half-decade or so talking about deficits or absorbing the tax increases that nobody wants."

Rep. Matt Bradford, D-Montgomery, said Republicans in control of the Legislature the past six years had the chance to do everything that they are talking about now, but preferred to paper over deficits or to cut aid to schools and the poor. Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, had one suggestion for Republicans wanting to balance the budget without raising taxes: raise the minimum wage.

"If we do that, I think we can save a ton of money in terms of what we are spending on public assistance," Sturla said.

Meanwhile, Wolf's drive to make Pennsylvania's school-funding system more equitable is a mixed bag. While he has made considerable concessions on his school-funding agenda, he is also declaring a victory of sorts.

"Two years ago, we were in a real hole," Wolf said. "And I came into government to try to plug that hole, to fill it in, to actually get back to at least where we were and to try to move forward, and in the last two years I've done that and I will continue to do everything I can to keep us from falling backward." [[405044415, C]]
Israel pressed forward with promises of retaliation and damage control Sunday following a U.N. vote last week on an anti-settlement resolution that passed thanks to an abstention by the U.S., Israel's close ally.

Israel's Foreign Ministry said it began summoning the ambassadors of countries who voted in favor of the resolution, including those from the permanent members of the Security Council  Russia, China, the U.K. and France.

In a highly unusual move, the U.S. Ambassador was later summoned as well, Israeli media reported.

Speaking to a weekly meeting of his Cabinet on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was also considering a "plan of action" against the U.N., without elaborating.

"We will do all it takes so Israel emerges unscathed from this shameful decision," Netanyahu said.

The resolution, which condemned Israeli settlement activities in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, sparked outrage in Israel and led to a new low in relations between Netanyahu and U.S. President Barack Obama. Israel has accused Obama of colluding with the Palestinians against the Jewish state.

"We feel betrayed, extremely frustrated. We are angry. This is not how you treat friends," said Cabinet minister Yuval Steinitz.

The resolution's immediate impact appears to be largely symbolic, but Israel fears it could open the door to an increase in international steps, including economic measures. Much of the international community considers the settlements illegal or illegitimate and an obstacle to peace.

In addition to the pledges made Sunday, Netanyahu canceled his upcoming meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May. Additionally, Israel recalled its ambassadors to New Zealand and Senegal for consultations and canceled a planned January visit to Israel by Senegal's foreign minister. A visit by Ukraine's prime minister has also been canceled in light of its support for the U.N. vote and Israel has pledged to cut millions of shekels in funding to certain U.N. agencies.
Russian president Vladimir Putin and Iran's President have greeted Syrian Army for winning Aleppo city after a rigourous fight for about five years, which was captured by the extremists.

"The Syrian army's victory sends a message that the terrorists cannot achieve their objectives. We must stop terrorists using the ceasefire to rebuild their forces and create new bases in other regions of Syria," Rouhani said, according to a statement published by state media.

Russian President also welcomed the Syrian army saying the collaboration between Moscow and Tehran will go on. "The result of this cooperation is a major victory in the fight against international terrorism,".

Syrian military captured eastern part of Aleppo earlier this week choking out the rebels in a month long battle which destructed lives of many local people.

Also Read:

Ruined city of Aleppo under control of Syrian army

To send or not to send observers for Aleppo evacuation : UN will vote

Win over Aleppo in its final stages: Syrian General
Donald Trump spent the past two years attacking rival Hillary Clinton as crooked, corrupt, and weak.

But some of those attacks seem to have already slipped into the history books.

From installing Wall Street executives in his Cabinet to avoiding news conferences, the president-elect is adopting some of the same behavior for which he criticized Clinton during their fiery presidential campaign.

Here's a look at what Trump said then  and what he's doing now:

GOLDMAN SACHS

Then: "I know the guys at Goldman Sachs," Trump said at a South Carolina rally in February, when he was locked in a fierce primary battle with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. "They have total, total control over him. Just like they have total control over Hillary Clinton."

Now: A number of former employees of the Wall Street bank will pay a key role in crafting Trump's economic policy. He's tapped Goldman Sachs president Gary Cohn to lead the White House National Economic Council. Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary nominee, spent 17 years working at Goldman Sachs and Steve Bannon, Trump's chief strategist and senior counselor, started his career as an investment banker at the firm.

Trump is following in a long political tradition, though one he derided on the campaign trail: If Cohn accepts the nomination, he'll be the third Goldman executive to run the NEC.

BIG DONORS

Then: "Crooked Hillary. Look, can you imagine another four years of the Clintons? Seriously. It's time to move on. And she's totally controlled by Wall Street and all these people that gave her millions," Trump said at a May rally in Lynden, Washington.

Now: Trump has stocked his Cabinet with six top donors  far more than any recent White House. "I want people that made a fortune. Because now they're negotiating with you, OK?" Trump said, in a December 9 speech in Des Moines.

The biggest giver? Incoming small business administrator Linda McMahon gave $7.5 million to a super PAC backing Trump, more than a third of the money collected by the political action committee.

NEWS CONFERENCES

Then: "She doesn't do news conferences, because she can't," Trump said at an August rally in Ashburn, Virginia. "She's so dishonest she doesn't want people peppering her with questions."

Now: Trump opened his last news conference on July 27, saying: "You know, I put myself through your news conferences often, not that it's fun."

He hasn't held one since.

Trump skipped the news conference a president-elect typically gives after winning the White House. Instead, he released a YouTube video of under three minutes. He also recently abruptly canceled plans to hold his first post-election news conference, opting instead to describe his plans for managing his businesses in tweets. "I will hold a press conference in the near future to discuss the business, Cabinet picks and all other topics of interest. Busy times!" he tweeted in mid-December.

FAMILY TIES:

Then: "It is impossible to figure out where the Clinton Foundation ends and the State Department begins. It is now abundantly clear that the Clintons set up a business to profit from public office. They sold access and specific actions by and really for I guess the making of large amounts of money," Trump said at an August rally in Austin.

Now: While Trump has promised to separate himself from his businesses, there is plenty of overlap between his enterprises and his immediate family. His companies will be run by his sons, Donald Jr and Eric. And his daughter, Ivanka, and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, have joined Trump at a number of meetings with world leaders of countries where the family has financial interests.

In a financial disclosure he was required to file during the campaign, Trump listed stakes in about 500 companies in at least 25 countries.

Ivanka, in particular, has been caught making early efforts to leverage her father's new position into profits. After an interview with the family appeared on "60 Minutes," her jewelry company, Ivanka Trump Fine Jewelry, blasted out an email promoting the $10,800 gold bangle bracelet that she had worn during the appearance. The company later said they were "proactively discussing new policies and procedures."

Ivanka is also auctioning off a private coffee meeting with her to benefit her brother's foundation. The meeting is valued at $50,000, with the current top bid coming in at $25,000.

"United States Secret Service will be Present for the Duration of the Experience," warns the auction site.

Trump on Saturday said he would dissolve his charitable foundation amid efforts to eliminate any conflicts of interest before he takes office next month.

CLINTON INVESTIGATIONS

Then: "If I win, I am going to instruct my attorney general to get a special prosecutor to look into your situation, because there has never been so many lies, so much deception. There has never been anything like it, and we're going to have a special prosecutor," Trump said in the October presidential debate.

Now: Since winning office, Trump has said he has no intention of pushing for an investigation into Clinton's use of a private email server as secretary of state or the workings of her family foundation. "It's just not something that I feel very strongly about," he told the New York Times.

"She went through a lot. And suffered greatly in many different ways," he said. "I'm not looking to hurt them."
The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) rescued a 50-year-old man experiencing a medical emergency on a cruise ship to the southwest of San Diego on Christmas day, U.S. Coast Guard confirmed.

Watch standers received reports from the crew on the Carnival Inspiration cruise ship that a male passenger appeared to be having a heart attack, at about 7 p.m. on Sunday, according to San Diego's sector of USCG.

The 45-foot Response Boat-Medium (RBM) crew launched after the Coast Guard duty flight surgeon requested emergency medical evaluation for the patient, said USCG officials. Once the crew arrived on scene, they safely transported the man, his wife and a nurse from the cruise ship.

At aproximately 11 p.m., the RBM crew returned to the Coast Guard's San Diego station, and the patient was taken to awaiting Emergency Medical Service (EMS), said USCG officials.

Then, the man was taken to UCSD Medical Center in Hillcrest, according to the USCG. No further information was yet available on the man's condition.
Police swarmed a University Heights neighborhood Monday night after someone reported seeing a suspicious person at a Jehovah Witness Kingdom Hall which has been plagued by recent arson attacks and vandalism.

Police and firefighters were called to the Jehovah Witness Kingdom Hall on Adams Avenue around 8 p.m. after a security guard reported seeing a silhouette on the roof and smelled something burning.

Police did not arrest a suspect and firefighters believe the charred material was probably in the dumpster from previous attempts.

The neighborhood is on high alert as the Jehovah Witness Kingdom Hall has been the target of several hate crimes and arson attacks.

Its kind of become an obsession, watching over the church for me, because if the church goes up in smoke, our house would surely be next and wed be devastated, said Neighbor Elizabeth Kraycik.

Just last week someone pried the word Jehovah off the building. The intruder allegedly poured gasoline inside the building and tried to set it on fire. The fire did not ignite, possibly because there was so much gasoline and very few items inside to catch on fire, according to firefighters.

In another incident, a vandal wrote "666 on the building.

In the first incident, a fire in the staging area of the church was reported around midnight, according to firefighters.

The suspect has not been caught and neighbors are extremely concerned.

I expect them to come back, which is why I havent let my guard down. I think that they now have an ego about it and theyre not going to let it go until they succeed, said Kraycik.

The Metro Arson Strike Team is investigating.

A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to a conviction in the case. If you have any information, you're urged to call Crime Stoppers.

Keep up to date on breaking news: Follow us on Twitter @nbcsandiego, fan us on Facebook, sign up for our breaking news e-mail alerts or text SDBREAKING to 622339 to receive text messages for local breaking news. (For more info, text HELP. To end, text STOP. Message and data rates may apply.)
A hang glider crashed into a family's backyard off Black Mountain Road on Christmas morning, San Diego Police confirmed.

The crash happened at approximately 12 p.m. Sunday on the 15200 block of Black Mountain Road when a person hiking south of Maler Road notcied the crash and called police.

Police sent out their helicopter, ABLE, to find the crashed hang glider. Authorities were notified the hang glider fell into a backyard.

The hang glider was not injured so authorities cancelled the transport to the hospital.

No further information was available.
What to Know Police said troopers from the North East barracks responded to a two vehicle collision on Pulaski Highway, where a man was killed.

While at that accident, a car plowed through a road closure, striking a SHA vehicle and MSP cruiser, injuring a police investigator.

No charges have been filed in either accident.

A Maryland State Police trooper, investigating a fatal accident in Cecil County, Maryland, was struck as another vehicle ran through a road closure, plowing through the scene Saturday night.

Police said troopers from the North East barracks responded to a two vehicle collision on Pulaski Highway, where Estel Privett, 74, of Cecil County was killed. In response to the collision, Maryland State Police and the Maryland State Highway Administration closed the roadway to allow investigators to work the scene.

About 90 minutes after the original accident, police said Kevin Roberts, 56, of Cecil County, drove through the road closure, running over multiple traffic cones and flares, and struck a SHA vehicle. Roberts vehicle continued, hitting a marked MSP cruiser, pushing it into an investigator, who was on foot.

The investigator and Roberts were transported to Christiana Hospital in Delaware.

Police said impairment by alcohol and controlled dangerous substance were contributing factors to the second collision. No charges have been filed in either collision.
After a traffic stop, giving a fake name, a car chase -- and deploying tire-deflation devices -- police in St. Mary's County, Maryland arrested a man suspected of driving drunk.

Police say 40-year-old Michael Anthony Green has been charged with driving while intoxicated, driving on a suspended license and other charges.

Police say officers received a call reporting a car wreck near Ridge, Maryland on Saturday morning and that the driver was "passed out.'' An officer responded to the scene and spoke to Green, who provided a fake name.

Police say the officer smelled alcohol and asked Green to step out of the car and he fled. A chase ensued but tire deflation devices successful disabled the car.

Police say Green still refused to leave the car and was forcibly extracted. He was taken to a local hospital with a facial injury.
One woman was killed and another person was injured when a car struck a tree in Laurel, Maryland, Monday afternoon.

Police said Sunya Smith, 58, of Baltimore, was killed when a car she was in struck a tree in the 7400 block of Summerwind Circle shortly after 1 p.m. The driver inside the car was injured.

Authorities said when they arrived on the scene, both occupants were trapped inside the vehicle. Smith, a passenger in the car, was taken to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma, where she died.

The other person was taken to the Prince Georges Hospital. Their condition and identity is not known.
The passengers from a Libyan flight that was hijacked and diverted to Malta left the Mediterranean island Saturday to return home, as authorities prepared to arraign the two hijackers who surrendered.

Afriqiyah Airways sent an aircraft to Malta to bring the more than 100 passengers back to Libya. Malta's interior minister, Carmelo Abela, said the passengers had been interviewed by police before leaving early Saturday.

The two Libyan hijackers had diverted the domestic flight Friday to demand asylum in Europe and create a new political party in honor of the late dictator Moammar Gadhafi, officials said. After hours of negotiations, the standoff ended peacefully with the hijackers freeing all 117 people on board and walking off the plane to surrender.

Police had said it was likely the hijackers, who had threatened to blow up the plane with hand grenades, would be arraigned Saturday. But police officials said no date or time had been set and that the investigation was continuing.

The hijacked aircraft remained on the tarmac of Malta's international airport, guarded by the Armed Forces of Malta.
A petition to commute the sentence of Chelsea Manning, a U.S. soldier serving 37 years for leaking classified government documents, surpassed the 100,000-signature mark late Saturday, a benchmark that should force the White House to respond, NBC News reported.

"We did it! Thank you so much for your love and support. =)," Manning said in a post to her official Twitter account on Saturday.

Manning was arrested in 2010 for leaking more than 700,000 military and State Department documents to Wikileaks and sentenced to 35 years in 2013 in military court. At the time she was known as Bradley Manning and has been held in a men's prison facility.
A Stoneham, Massachusetts bride-to-be suffered one of the worst nightmares imaginable when she says the airline lost her wedding dress as she was enroute to her wedding.

Jessica Motta says she was flying Spirit Airlines from Logan Airport to Fort Myers on Thursday for her New Year's Eve wedding, and the airline lost her luggage; makeup, vacation clothes, and the wedding dress.

According to Motta the airline mislabeled her bag and they say it ended up in Atlanta.

"The baggage attendant in Fort Myers told me not to worry and he's confident they'll find the bag," Motta said.

Motta has been in touch with Spirit Airlines and they told her the bag was to be delivered in Fort Myers on Saturday night, but it did not arrive.

"I'm not believing them," said Motta.

Motta says Spirit Airlines did offer her up to $25 a day to buy replacement items, but that will not cover the cost of her lost belongings.

"I've never had a problem before this, but now it's been hell trying to get this bag back," Motta said. "This was supposed to be a happy joyous time but I'm miserable."

Spirit Airlines has yet to respond to NBC Boston's phone message regarding this incident.

Motta says her backup plan is to shop for a white dress.

"The wedding will go on as planned," Motta said.
Hudson, New Hampshire Police investigated a suspicious package in close proximity to gas pumps on Sunday evening.

Police received a report of a suspicious package in the parking lot of 7-Eleven located at 230 Central Street and upon their arrival they discovered a piece of luggage on top of a bin for clothing donations. These bins are in close proximity to the stores gas pumps.

Based on the responding officers observations, the Nashua Police Department Bomb Squad was summoned to the scene.

The Nashua Police Department Bomb Squad utilized their robot and other equipment, and determined that the suitcase was not a danger.
Manchester fire and police are investigating a fire at a duplex that left a man severely burned.

Police say the fire at an apartment on Westerly Street started around 3:00pm. They are still trying to figure out what sparked the flames.

Neighbors quickly realized someone might be in trouble.

Thats when I saw smoke coming from the windows and what appeared to be a man yelling, Norman Rodriguez of Manchester, said.

Rodriguez launched a potentially life-saving to rescue the only person inside the apartment. He was joined by Nicholas Risley who lives in the apartment directly next to the one on fire.

We see the fire coming out of the front glass, glass is shattering all over the place and were trying to get the door open, Risley said.

I tried to open the door. It wouldnt open. So I kicked it in, Rodriguez said.

Inside they found a 22-year-old man lying on the floor, with burns all over. Flames and black smoke were closing in.

We were like we have to get him out of here. Were not just going to let him burn here and die, Risley said.

I tried to pull him out. He slipped out of my hands a couple times, Rodriguez said.

Finally they were able to get him out of the apartment and onto the front lawn.

He was completely burnt and he was screaming. They put him in an ambulance and took off, Maddie Garcia of Manchester, said.

Police say the young man was rushed to Hartford Hospital then airlifted to the burn unit at Bridgeport Hospital in critical condition.

The apartment where the fire started was heavily damaged.

There was also damage to the next door unit, number 17, where Risley lives. Hes thankful he, his mother, and step-father are okay and their thoughts are with their neighbors on this Christmas Eve.

It puts things in perspective for people you know what I mean to kind of appreciate this time of year, Risley said.

Risley and his family wont be able to stay in their apartment for now. Theyre receiving help from family members and the Red Cross.

Investigators are still trying to determine what sparked the fire.
A diverse coalition of people from very different cultural and religious backgrounds is working together to improve lives in Burlington, Vermont.

The trio is made up of a Catholic nun, a man from Syria, and a Rabbi. They share a common goal: to welcome strangers who recently moved to Vermont.

Sister Yvette Rainville, from the Daughters of the Holy Spirit, teaches English as a second language for the Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program.

"Im enriched by the culture," Rainville beamed.

The classes are overseen by Ashraf Alamatouri, who said he once faced persecution in his native Syria.

"We can make our childrens lives better," Alamatouri said.

Their host is Rabbi Amy Small of Burlingtons Ohavi Zedek Synagogue, where the English classes meet multiple times each week.

"Were all neighbors and friends and helping each other," Small told necn.

A nun, an immigrant from Syria, and a Jewish religious leader may seem like an unlikely trio, but Rainville says their alliance makes perfect sense, because their respective backgrounds have all included teachings that urged them to welcome strangers.

"Were all part of one human family," Rainville said, adding that their alliance could serve as a prototype of how people can put aside their apparent differences to work toward common goals.

"I like the teacher," said Alfani Mto, a refugee from strife-ridden Congo who said he arrived in Burlington about five months ago.

Mto said he enjoys living in Vermont, has found work washing dishes in one of Burlington's top restaurants, and appreciates the availability of the English classes, which he said are helping him improve his communication skills.

Mto is one of the roughly 7,000 refugees the resettlement program has helped since the 1980s to start new lives in Vermont.

The topic of immigration has been in the national spotlight recently.

President-elect Donald Trump, and many in his base of support, have questioned the nation's immigration policies. Trump has asked if enough safeguards are in place to keep our country safe.

Some of Trump's proposals, which have drawn the ire of many on the left, have included building a wall on the southern border and implementing a halt on Muslims immigrating to the country.

In Vermont, a plan to resettle up to 100 Syrian refugees in Rutland starting in early 2017 has left some in that city unconvinced that it's a good move.

"We just need to let it go," Sister Yvette said. "Allow ourselves to be in relationship with them."

Vermont Refugee Resettlement insists the refugees it supports are scrutinized exactingly, over a lengthy period of time, before they're allowed into the United States.

"We have to come together and live together; communicate together," Alamatouri said. "Regardless of our ethnic groups, religions, all of that."

With that driving them, this diverse coalition promises to keep working together, believing partnerships like theirs really can make America more united.

"You spread the goodness and love in the community that changes the world," Rabbi Small said, describing the friends' work.
Tracking a major storm pushing in from the west that will bring wind and freezing rain to northern New England.

Did you get new weather instruments for Christmas? Your barometer is probably reading somewhere up around 30.7 inches, almost as high as it gets. High barometer usually means low thermometer.

Our Monday starts off with sunshine, temperatures ranging from near zero in the far north to 25 along South Coast.

As the high-pressure system moves out to sea, a powerful low-pressure system is pushing into Ontario. The pressure gradient between the two systems is going to generate damaging wind in New England overnight Monday.

Most of the day is dry, with a high temperature in the 30s. Wind will be increasing from the Southwest gusting past 30 mph late in the day. We also have the possibility of some light rain developing toward sunset, with temperature still near freezing.

We are warming faster high in the sky, than down near the ground. This may result in some icing for the evening hours. For most of New England we have plain or rain overnight with temperatures climbing from the 30s into the 40s.

The exception is northern New Hampshire were freezing rain is possible, and in much of central and northern Maine where snow is likely. Wind from the south increases, sustained 25 to 30 mph, with gusts of 50 to 60 mph.

Rain showers in southern New England should end early Tuesday, followed by partial clearing. Initially mild temperatures in the 50s for southeastern New England will cool through the 40s into the 30s late in the day and in the evening.

Wednesday looks fair and seasonable. The next front on Thursday may generate a period of snow, perhaps mixed with rain in eastern New England.

Friday looks bright and brisk with temperature back down to lower 30s.

The early call on Saturday is for fading sunshine and a high temperature close to 40.

New Year's Eve may feature a period of rain or snow, especially late at night. Our New Year's Day could have a coating of snow early.

There's a lot of action this week, we will give more details as we get closer.
A Massachusetts state trooper was injured Saturday when he was struck while helping a motorist with car trouble on Interstate 95 in Attleboro.

Police said Trooper Mark Weddleton had stopped behind the broken-down car in the high-speed lane of I-95 south with his emergency lights flashing, when his cruiser was struck from behind.

Weddleton was taken by ambulance to Rhode Island Hospital in Providence to be treated for minor injuries and later released.

The trooper is the son of the late Sgt. Douglas Weddleton, who was killed in 2010 after being struck by a car on I-95 in Mansfield during a chain reaction crash.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: Four days after Income Tax officials raided two groups of real estate developers and mall owners, the investigation wing of the department said that they have unearthed undisclosed assets to the tune of `169 crore. The raids were conducted from December 23 to 26.

In a statement to the media, the Income Tax department stated that during the first raid they found that a real estate group had undisclosed property worth `143 crore and the second raid found another realty firm to have undisclosed income of `26 crore.

IT department officials refused to divulge the names of the firms.

The release stated: In the first case where `143 crore worth of assets were seized, we found that the group has indulged in providing and receiving accommodation entries to reduce the taxable income. Their names were also found to be mentioned in receipts of many property transactions.

In the case of the second group, the assesses are found to have undisclosed income to the extent of `26 crore. It was found that the assesses had not accounted for the cash received after sales and they had also disguised personal expenses as business expenses. It was also found that they had made unaccounted investments in gold and other precious jewellery, the IT officials added.

ED raids DCC bank

Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials of Bengaluru conducted a raid at the head office of Kolar Chikkaballapur District Central Cooperative (KCDCC) Bank on Monday and collected details pertaining to the deposits and disbursement of loans to various organisations, including self-help groups. Four officials visited the office to collect the details. The raid was conducted following charges that the bank has collected huge deposits of higher denomination notes post demonetisation. Sources said the officials also collected the balance sheet of the bank before and after demonetisation came into effect. They also questioned the accountant and other staffers who look after the deposits. When contacted, KCDCC president Byala Halli Govinda Gowda told Express that the officials came to the office at 10am and left by 6pm. He added that post demonetisation, a total of D28 crore was deposited in the bank within a span of four to five days and it was done as per the KYC norms and guidelines.

Of the deposits, D16 crore belongs to the Milk Union and the highest amount collected was D2,35,000, he said. On November 10 and 11, ACB sleuths had verified the bank documents.

D11.30 lakh seized in Davangere

Police arrested two youths who were trying to convert the demonetised D500 and D1,000 notes for the D2,000 currency notes and seized D11.3 lakh from them at Nijalingappa Layout in Davangere on Sunday. Police personnel were doing rounds when they found two youths with plastic bags. When the police interrogated them, they found the bags contained D11.3 lakh in D2,000 notes. The youths did not have any valid documents. The youths are Ramesh B and Shivakumar S, both residents of Vidyanagar. Police said one B G Naveen told the youths that if they gave him D11.3 lakh worth of new notes, he would give them old notes worth D12 lakh. Naveen is still on the run.

BENGALURU: Four days after Income Tax officials raided two groups of real estate developers and mall owners, the investigation wing of the department said that they have unearthed undisclosed assets to the tune of `169 crore. The raids were conducted from December 23 to 26. In a statement to the media, the Income Tax department stated that during the first raid they found that a real estate group had undisclosed property worth `143 crore and the second raid found another realty firm to have undisclosed income of `26 crore. IT department officials refused to divulge the names of the firms. The release stated: In the first case where `143 crore worth of assets were seized, we found that the group has indulged in providing and receiving accommodation entries to reduce the taxable income. Their names were also found to be mentioned in receipts of many property transactions. In the case of the second group, the assesses are found to have undisclosed income to the extent of `26 crore. It was found that the assesses had not accounted for the cash received after sales and they had also disguised personal expenses as business expenses. It was also found that they had made unaccounted investments in gold and other precious jewellery, the IT officials added. ED raids DCC bank Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials of Bengaluru conducted a raid at the head office of Kolar Chikkaballapur District Central Cooperative (KCDCC) Bank on Monday and collected details pertaining to the deposits and disbursement of loans to various organisations, including self-help groups. Four officials visited the office to collect the details. The raid was conducted following charges that the bank has collected huge deposits of higher denomination notes post demonetisation. Sources said the officials also collected the balance sheet of the bank before and after demonetisation came into effect. They also questioned the accountant and other staffers who look after the deposits. When contacted, KCDCC president Byala Halli Govinda Gowda told Express that the officials came to the office at 10am and left by 6pm. He added that post demonetisation, a total of D28 crore was deposited in the bank within a span of four to five days and it was done as per the KYC norms and guidelines. Of the deposits, D16 crore belongs to the Milk Union and the highest amount collected was D2,35,000, he said. On November 10 and 11, ACB sleuths had verified the bank documents. D11.30 lakh seized in Davangere Police arrested two youths who were trying to convert the demonetised D500 and D1,000 notes for the D2,000 currency notes and seized D11.3 lakh from them at Nijalingappa Layout in Davangere on Sunday. Police personnel were doing rounds when they found two youths with plastic bags. When the police interrogated them, they found the bags contained D11.3 lakh in D2,000 notes. The youths did not have any valid documents. The youths are Ramesh B and Shivakumar S, both residents of Vidyanagar. Police said one B G Naveen told the youths that if they gave him D11.3 lakh worth of new notes, he would give them old notes worth D12 lakh. Naveen is still on the run.
Anand ST Das By

Express News Service

PATNA: In a chilling reminder of the continuing abduction industry in Bihar, a three-year-old boy was killed within 24 hours after being kidnapped from his home because his parents failed to pay a ransom of Rs 6 lakh.

The body of Shreyansh Singh, the son of Pinku Singh, a farmer in Jamorna village in the south-western district of Kaimur, was found inside a cupboard in a deserted place near their house on Monday. Police recovered the body and sent it for post-mortem. DSP Manoj Ram said the boys neck bore strangulation marks.

Shreyansh was abducted by unknown men when he was playing in front of his house on Saturday morning, said a grieving Pinku Singh, who blamed sluggish action by police for the loss of his sons life. He had lodged a police complaint after not seeing his son anywhere in the village and nearby.

The abductors called him in the night from different mobile phone numbers and demanded Rs 6 lakh as ransom for the boys safe release. Singh had even sought five days time to pay up. But they killed the boy, said a relative of the grieving family. Shreyansh was the only son in this family of wealthy farmers.

Police reached the body after gleaning information from interrogation of a local criminal they detained. The four men who were arrested one after another by Monday evening confessed to have killed Shreyansh. They said they suspected that Pinku Singh would not pay the ransom and would instead force police to get the boy released. The boy was killed sometime late in the night, said a police official.

The boys abduction and murder pointed at the still thriving abduction industry in Bihars rural belt despite claims by the Nitish Kumar-led government of a significant decline in major crimes. Another boy abducted from his home in nearby Mohania a week ago is yet to return to safety. Police said efforts are on to trace him.

Criminals no longer fear police in Bihar because the government has lost its grip on administration, said senior BJP leader and former minister Nand Kishore Yadav. Lack of serious efforts to create employment opportunities has led the youth to ignoble acts for income, he added.

PATNA: In a chilling reminder of the continuing abduction industry in Bihar, a three-year-old boy was killed within 24 hours after being kidnapped from his home because his parents failed to pay a ransom of Rs 6 lakh. The body of Shreyansh Singh, the son of Pinku Singh, a farmer in Jamorna village in the south-western district of Kaimur, was found inside a cupboard in a deserted place near their house on Monday. Police recovered the body and sent it for post-mortem. DSP Manoj Ram said the boys neck bore strangulation marks. Shreyansh was abducted by unknown men when he was playing in front of his house on Saturday morning, said a grieving Pinku Singh, who blamed sluggish action by police for the loss of his sons life. He had lodged a police complaint after not seeing his son anywhere in the village and nearby. The abductors called him in the night from different mobile phone numbers and demanded Rs 6 lakh as ransom for the boys safe release. Singh had even sought five days time to pay up. But they killed the boy, said a relative of the grieving family. Shreyansh was the only son in this family of wealthy farmers. Police reached the body after gleaning information from interrogation of a local criminal they detained. The four men who were arrested one after another by Monday evening confessed to have killed Shreyansh. They said they suspected that Pinku Singh would not pay the ransom and would instead force police to get the boy released. The boy was killed sometime late in the night, said a police official. The boys abduction and murder pointed at the still thriving abduction industry in Bihars rural belt despite claims by the Nitish Kumar-led government of a significant decline in major crimes. Another boy abducted from his home in nearby Mohania a week ago is yet to return to safety. Police said efforts are on to trace him. Criminals no longer fear police in Bihar because the government has lost its grip on administration, said senior BJP leader and former minister Nand Kishore Yadav. Lack of serious efforts to create employment opportunities has led the youth to ignoble acts for income, he added.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: After almost three weeks after registering a case, Delhi Police arrested four accused facing allegation of gangraping a US national in April this year in a five-star hotel situated in Lutyens zone. The victim had earlier said that she is not happy with the probe Delhi police is conducting. The victim had reached Delhi on 20th December after Delhi police asked her to join probe. Accused, after questioning by Delhi police went to Nepal.

On Monday evening Delhi police arrested four accused including guide, bus driver and helper which was used to ferry tourist to places. Also we have arrested a hotel staff where the incident had taken place, Delhi Police spokesperson Dependra Pathak said.

On Dec 3, Delhi police registered FIR regarding an incident of gangrape of a US national in hotel. We have arrested four accused in the case. complainant was kind, came down to Delhi, got her statement recorded before police & court, helped in collecting evidences, Dependra Pathak said.

Meanwhile, The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has issued notice to Delhi Police demanding why the Rape Crisis Cell of the Commission was not informed when police recorded the statement of the US national. Citing orders of the High court in this regard, the Commission said it was deeply saddened to note that in this case the Delhi Police did not inform the Crisis Intervention Centre/ Rape Crisis Cell counsellor of the Commission when the victims statements were recorded by the police on December 20.

This is a very serious matter and a gross violation of the directives of the Delhi High Court in the case wherein it was ordered that the duty officer, immediately, upon receipt of the complaint/ information of a rape case, intimate the same to the Rape Crisis Cell/Crisis Intervention Centre which shall respond to calls of sexual assault at the police station and provide counselling and other support services to victims of rape.The same has been elucidated in standing order No. 303/2016 of Delhi Police, the Commission said in its notice to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi.

On December 8, the tourist guide, accused of raping her along with his accomplices, was questioned by police after his arrival from Nepal.

Police had identified the man and contacted him while he was in Nepal. The tour guide had denied his involvement in the matter and told police that the victim had given positive comments about him in the feedback form while returning to her country and that the internal inquiry by the travel agency hadn't found him guilty. The woman had alleged that she was raped by a group of men for two days in hotel. They also threatened her with dire consequences if she reported the matter to anybody. She had also stated that the accused had made a video of the act and had threatened to make it public if she reported the matter to anyone.

NEW DELHI: After almost three weeks after registering a case, Delhi Police arrested four accused facing allegation of gangraping a US national in April this year in a five-star hotel situated in Lutyens zone. The victim had earlier said that she is not happy with the probe Delhi police is conducting. The victim had reached Delhi on 20th December after Delhi police asked her to join probe. Accused, after questioning by Delhi police went to Nepal. On Monday evening Delhi police arrested four accused including guide, bus driver and helper which was used to ferry tourist to places. Also we have arrested a hotel staff where the incident had taken place, Delhi Police spokesperson Dependra Pathak said. On Dec 3, Delhi police registered FIR regarding an incident of gangrape of a US national in hotel. We have arrested four accused in the case. complainant was kind, came down to Delhi, got her statement recorded before police & court, helped in collecting evidences, Dependra Pathak said. Meanwhile, The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has issued notice to Delhi Police demanding why the Rape Crisis Cell of the Commission was not informed when police recorded the statement of the US national. Citing orders of the High court in this regard, the Commission said it was deeply saddened to note that in this case the Delhi Police did not inform the Crisis Intervention Centre/ Rape Crisis Cell counsellor of the Commission when the victims statements were recorded by the police on December 20. This is a very serious matter and a gross violation of the directives of the Delhi High Court in the case wherein it was ordered that the duty officer, immediately, upon receipt of the complaint/ information of a rape case, intimate the same to the Rape Crisis Cell/Crisis Intervention Centre which shall respond to calls of sexual assault at the police station and provide counselling and other support services to victims of rape.The same has been elucidated in standing order No. 303/2016 of Delhi Police, the Commission said in its notice to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi. On December 8, the tourist guide, accused of raping her along with his accomplices, was questioned by police after his arrival from Nepal. Police had identified the man and contacted him while he was in Nepal. The tour guide had denied his involvement in the matter and told police that the victim had given positive comments about him in the feedback form while returning to her country and that the internal inquiry by the travel agency hadn't found him guilty. The woman had alleged that she was raped by a group of men for two days in hotel. They also threatened her with dire consequences if she reported the matter to anybody. She had also stated that the accused had made a video of the act and had threatened to make it public if she reported the matter to anyone.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: A designated court on Monday granted bail to former Indian Air Force (IAF) chief S P Tyagi who was arrested on December 9 in connection with AgustaWestland chopper scam case.



Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted the relief to Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh and one surety of like amount.



Imposing certain conditions on the accused, the court directed him not to try to influence the witnesses and hamper the probe.



The bail applications of two other accused - Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan - are pending before the court is it will hear their pleas on January 4.



During the hearing of the bail plea, former IAF chiefs lawyer Maneka Guruswamy had said that her client "could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".



Guruswamy claimed before the court that in the last four years since the FIR was registered, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.



Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".



"We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," Mehta said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding that the matter has "tarnished country's name".



Meanwhile, describing S P Tyagi as a "sound professional", IAF chief Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha has said he should not have been treated like a "common criminal".

Talking to a news channel, Raha, on arrest of SP Tyagi said that the arrest "obviously" hurts the morale of the people of the armed forces.

"I can't say it doesn't dent our image or reputation. It definitely does and I am sure we will go by the law of the land. And the judicial process will be completed on the (basis of) evidence produced. I will be very happy if he can acquit himself because for the reason that he is the former chief," he said.

NEW DELHI: A designated court on Monday granted bail to former Indian Air Force (IAF) chief S P Tyagi who was arrested on December 9 in connection with AgustaWestland chopper scam case. Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted the relief to Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh and one surety of like amount. Imposing certain conditions on the accused, the court directed him not to try to influence the witnesses and hamper the probe. The bail applications of two other accused - Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan - are pending before the court is it will hear their pleas on January 4. During the hearing of the bail plea, former IAF chiefs lawyer Maneka Guruswamy had said that her client "could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete". Guruswamy claimed before the court that in the last four years since the FIR was registered, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date. Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries". "We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," Mehta said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding that the matter has "tarnished country's name". Meanwhile, describing S P Tyagi as a "sound professional", IAF chief Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha has said he should not have been treated like a "common criminal". Talking to a news channel, Raha, on arrest of SP Tyagi said that the arrest "obviously" hurts the morale of the people of the armed forces. "I can't say it doesn't dent our image or reputation. It definitely does and I am sure we will go by the law of the land. And the judicial process will be completed on the (basis of) evidence produced. I will be very happy if he can acquit himself because for the reason that he is the former chief," he said.
By ANI

DEHRADUN: As the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) summoned Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Singh Rawat for questioning in connection with a sting operation that suggested political horse trading, rebel leader and former minister Harak Singh Rawat said he was pinning his hopes on justice being delivered.



Since it is a judicial process and the CBI is one of the top most agencies, I have confidence on the agency. The Congress may allege that the CBI has become an agent of the BJP, but it was the same Congress which misused the agency, Rawat told ANI.



Everyone has seen how the chief minister, in order to save his government, tied to lure us, I was also one of them whom the chief minister tried to lure. Hence, I hope, the CBI will act accordingly, he added.



The CBI has summoned the Uttarakhand chief minister today for further questioning in New Delhi.



Harish Rawat has been summoned for the second time in the sting CD case on a preliminary enquiry registered by the CBI in the past seven months. He had earlier appeared before the agency on May 24 during which he was questioned for nearly five hours.



The CBI had registered the case in connection with a sting operation which surfaced on April 29 showing the Chief Minister talking with a news journalist about buying back the loyalties of rebel Congress legislators who had joined hands with the Opposition BJP on March 18 to bring down the Congress-led state government.

DEHRADUN: As the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) summoned Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Singh Rawat for questioning in connection with a sting operation that suggested political horse trading, rebel leader and former minister Harak Singh Rawat said he was pinning his hopes on justice being delivered. Since it is a judicial process and the CBI is one of the top most agencies, I have confidence on the agency. The Congress may allege that the CBI has become an agent of the BJP, but it was the same Congress which misused the agency, Rawat told ANI. Everyone has seen how the chief minister, in order to save his government, tied to lure us, I was also one of them whom the chief minister tried to lure. Hence, I hope, the CBI will act accordingly, he added. The CBI has summoned the Uttarakhand chief minister today for further questioning in New Delhi. Harish Rawat has been summoned for the second time in the sting CD case on a preliminary enquiry registered by the CBI in the past seven months. He had earlier appeared before the agency on May 24 during which he was questioned for nearly five hours. The CBI had registered the case in connection with a sting operation which surfaced on April 29 showing the Chief Minister talking with a news journalist about buying back the loyalties of rebel Congress legislators who had joined hands with the Opposition BJP on March 18 to bring down the Congress-led state government.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: With an aim to find a solution to the vexed issue of fishermen, a Joint Working Group (JWG) of India and Sri Lanka will hold a meeting on Saturday. Following the JWG meeting, a ministerial-level meeting between the two nations is scheduled in Colombo on January 2.

"As per the schedule agreed at the November 5 meeting between India and Sri Lanka on the fishermen issue, the ministerial meeting is to be preceded by a Joint Working Group meeting at Secretary level," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.For the last several months, both India and Sri Lanka have been taking measures to put in place a mechanism soon to resolve the fishermen issue.

Swarup maintained that the JWG, which was constituted to find a solution to the issue of fishermen of both the countries straying into each other's territorial waters, will take place here on December 31 and the ministerial meeting will be held in Colombo on January 2.

There have been several alleged incidents of Sri Lankan Navy personnel firing at Indian fishermen fishing in the Palk Strait and seizing their boats.The Palk Strait, which is a narrow strip of water separating Tamil Nadu from Sri Lanka, is a rich fishing ground for fishermen from both the countries.

Associates of fishermen from both neighbouring nations had held talks on the issue here in November where the delegation from the island nation rejected demands for relaxation of norms for fishermen from Tamil Nadu to use fishing trawlers.

NEW DELHI: With an aim to find a solution to the vexed issue of fishermen, a Joint Working Group (JWG) of India and Sri Lanka will hold a meeting on Saturday. Following the JWG meeting, a ministerial-level meeting between the two nations is scheduled in Colombo on January 2. "As per the schedule agreed at the November 5 meeting between India and Sri Lanka on the fishermen issue, the ministerial meeting is to be preceded by a Joint Working Group meeting at Secretary level," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.For the last several months, both India and Sri Lanka have been taking measures to put in place a mechanism soon to resolve the fishermen issue. Swarup maintained that the JWG, which was constituted to find a solution to the issue of fishermen of both the countries straying into each other's territorial waters, will take place here on December 31 and the ministerial meeting will be held in Colombo on January 2. There have been several alleged incidents of Sri Lankan Navy personnel firing at Indian fishermen fishing in the Palk Strait and seizing their boats.The Palk Strait, which is a narrow strip of water separating Tamil Nadu from Sri Lanka, is a rich fishing ground for fishermen from both the countries. Associates of fishermen from both neighbouring nations had held talks on the issue here in November where the delegation from the island nation rejected demands for relaxation of norms for fishermen from Tamil Nadu to use fishing trawlers.
Ejaz Kaiser By

Express News Service

RAIPUR: Chhattisgarh police on Monday arrested seven members of a civil society group in the restive district of Sukma, south Bastar and were jailed under the draconian Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act.

Those arrested included two lawyers, a student, two journalists and a couple of tribal rights activists. The members hail from Telangana were reportedly visiting the strife-torn Bastar zone to study and inquire into the existing ground reality.

However, the Chhattisgarh police allege that based on the intelligence inputs the group members were "engaged" in suspicious activities and put on surveillance.

All the seven were produced before the Sukma district court, where their bail applications were rejected. They were sent to jail.

We provided the information about them to the Telangana police and sought their cooperation. All seven were detained by Telangana police and later we arrested them under section 8 of Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act, the Sukma district additional superintendent of police Jitendra Shukla told New Indian Express.

Section 8 of the Act relates to supporting the banned organisation (Maoist) or assists in the management of an unlawful organisation or indulge in any unlawful activity of such banned group.

We have recovered some incriminating Maoist literature and Rs one lakh from them. All the currencies in their possession were in old notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000, Shukla added further.

Following the arrest, the Bastar inspector general of police SRP Kalluri told media-persons that those arrested were coercing the local villagers to get the old notes of the Maoists exchanged and also support the rebels.

Those booked included Chikud Prabhakar (48), Bala Ravindra Nath (42) (both advocates), Mohammed Nazeem (28) (student), Rajendra Prasad (30) (Journalist), R Lakshmanaiah (45) (tribal rights activist), B Durga Prasad (38) (social activist) and B Prabhakar Rao (52) (social activist and journalist).

In the virtual war zone of Bastar besides the instances of alleged human rights abuses, the reports of journalists, lawyers and activists facing intimidation and harassment by the self-style vigilante groups and the police keep surfacing. The state police, however, refute the charges of human rights violations.

The human rights organisation Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has condemned the arrest calling it illegal, unprovoked and malicious.

PUCL demands that the Chhattisgarh police immediately drops all charges against the 7-member team and release them. The NHRC should immediately intervene to ascertain facts, especially the reported untruths about the arrest of the fact finding team, who were initially arrested in Telangana but claimed to have been arrested in Chhattisgarh, and to initiate criminal prosecution against the police officials of both states, said V Suresh, PUCL national general secretary in the issued press release.

RAIPUR: Chhattisgarh police on Monday arrested seven members of a civil society group in the restive district of Sukma, south Bastar and were jailed under the draconian Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act. Those arrested included two lawyers, a student, two journalists and a couple of tribal rights activists. The members hail from Telangana were reportedly visiting the strife-torn Bastar zone to study and inquire into the existing ground reality. However, the Chhattisgarh police allege that based on the intelligence inputs the group members were "engaged" in suspicious activities and put on surveillance. All the seven were produced before the Sukma district court, where their bail applications were rejected. They were sent to jail. We provided the information about them to the Telangana police and sought their cooperation. All seven were detained by Telangana police and later we arrested them under section 8 of Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act, the Sukma district additional superintendent of police Jitendra Shukla told New Indian Express. Section 8 of the Act relates to supporting the banned organisation (Maoist) or assists in the management of an unlawful organisation or indulge in any unlawful activity of such banned group. We have recovered some incriminating Maoist literature and Rs one lakh from them. All the currencies in their possession were in old notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000, Shukla added further. Following the arrest, the Bastar inspector general of police SRP Kalluri told media-persons that those arrested were coercing the local villagers to get the old notes of the Maoists exchanged and also support the rebels. Those booked included Chikud Prabhakar (48), Bala Ravindra Nath (42) (both advocates), Mohammed Nazeem (28) (student), Rajendra Prasad (30) (Journalist), R Lakshmanaiah (45) (tribal rights activist), B Durga Prasad (38) (social activist) and B Prabhakar Rao (52) (social activist and journalist). In the virtual war zone of Bastar besides the instances of alleged human rights abuses, the reports of journalists, lawyers and activists facing intimidation and harassment by the self-style vigilante groups and the police keep surfacing. The state police, however, refute the charges of human rights violations. The human rights organisation Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has condemned the arrest calling it illegal, unprovoked and malicious. PUCL demands that the Chhattisgarh police immediately drops all charges against the 7-member team and release them. The NHRC should immediately intervene to ascertain facts, especially the reported untruths about the arrest of the fact finding team, who were initially arrested in Telangana but claimed to have been arrested in Chhattisgarh, and to initiate criminal prosecution against the police officials of both states, said V Suresh, PUCL national general secretary in the issued press release.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Almost three weeks after registering a case, the Delhi Police have arrested four persons for allegedly gang-raping a US national in April this year at a five-star hotel in Lutyens zone.

The victim had earlier said that she was not happy with the Delhi polices investigation. The victim arrived in Delhi on December 20 after the Delhi Police asked her to join the probe. After the questioning, she left for Nepal. On Monday evening, Delhi Police arrested four accused, including the guide, a bus driver and helper of a tourist bus. We have also arrested a hotel staffer, Delhi Police spokesperson Dependra Pathak said.

On December 3 Delhi Police registered a FIR over the incident. We have arrested four accused in the case. The complainant was helpful. She came down to Delhi, had her statement recorded before the police and court and also helped in collecting evidence, Pathak said.

Meanwhile, the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) issued a notice to the Delhi Police protesting that the Rape Crisis Cell was not informed after the police recorded the victims statement. Citing orders of the High Court, the commission said that it was deeply saddened that the Delhi Police did not inform the Crisis Intervention Centre/ Rape Crisis Cell counseller.

This is a very serious matter and a gross violation of the directives of the Delhi High Court in the case wherein it was ordered that the duty officer, immediately, upon receipt of the complaint/ information of a rape case, intimate the same to the Rape Crisis Cell/Crisis Intervention Centre which shall respond to calls of sexual assault and provide counselling, the commission said in its notice to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi.

On December 8, the tour guide, accused of raping the victim along with his accomplices, was questioned by the police after his arrival from Nepal.

The guide denied his involvement in the matter and told police that the victim had given positive comments about him and that the internal inquiry by the travel agency hadnt found him guilty.

The woman had alleged that she was raped by a group of men for two days in a hotel.

NEW DELHI: Almost three weeks after registering a case, the Delhi Police have arrested four persons for allegedly gang-raping a US national in April this year at a five-star hotel in Lutyens zone. The victim had earlier said that she was not happy with the Delhi polices investigation. The victim arrived in Delhi on December 20 after the Delhi Police asked her to join the probe. After the questioning, she left for Nepal. On Monday evening, Delhi Police arrested four accused, including the guide, a bus driver and helper of a tourist bus. We have also arrested a hotel staffer, Delhi Police spokesperson Dependra Pathak said. On December 3 Delhi Police registered a FIR over the incident. We have arrested four accused in the case. The complainant was helpful. She came down to Delhi, had her statement recorded before the police and court and also helped in collecting evidence, Pathak said. Meanwhile, the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) issued a notice to the Delhi Police protesting that the Rape Crisis Cell was not informed after the police recorded the victims statement. Citing orders of the High Court, the commission said that it was deeply saddened that the Delhi Police did not inform the Crisis Intervention Centre/ Rape Crisis Cell counseller. This is a very serious matter and a gross violation of the directives of the Delhi High Court in the case wherein it was ordered that the duty officer, immediately, upon receipt of the complaint/ information of a rape case, intimate the same to the Rape Crisis Cell/Crisis Intervention Centre which shall respond to calls of sexual assault and provide counselling, the commission said in its notice to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi. On December 8, the tour guide, accused of raping the victim along with his accomplices, was questioned by the police after his arrival from Nepal. The guide denied his involvement in the matter and told police that the victim had given positive comments about him and that the internal inquiry by the travel agency hadnt found him guilty. The woman had alleged that she was raped by a group of men for two days in a hotel.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The idea was to carry forward the opposition to demonetisation beyond Parliament. But, the big brotherly attitude of the Congress, that had already created cracks in the ranks, may only go on to further widen the fault lines.

Even the possibility of Congress president Sonia Gandhi coming out to address the joint Opposition meeting and presser was not persuasive enough for others like JD(U), CPI(M), BSP and SP to join the force.

While JD(U) remained ambivalent, with KC Tyagi saying he may or may not join the Tuesday meeting, the CPI (M) was rather upset that the grand old party did not bother to discuss the agenda of the joint Opposition meeting. BSP and SP chose not say a word, either way. NCP is expected to depute someone in place of Tariq Anwar, whos mother passed away.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh tried to paper over the visible cracks by saying, Those who will join the meeting, will join. Those who wont, will join later -- next meeting.

The hint being, the opposition unity is in the works. At the meeting, the adverse impact of demonetisation on the economy, as well as the alleged issue of personal corruption against Prime Minister is expected to be discussed.

The biggest issue today is demonetisation and the second issue is corruption by the Prime Minister, which will be the main issues before tomorrows meet, Jairam Ramesh said. He, however, dismissed suggestions that tomorrows meeting was a tea party like the one in 1998 which ultimately led to the downfall of the Vajpayee government.

As a curtain raiser, Rahul Gandhi held a meeting of all Congress general secretaries and State Congress presidents at his residence on Monday to discuss the situation. The attempt at forging an Opposition unity with the Congress acting as a pivot was likened to Shimla conclave of 2003, which saw Congress pitching for the unity of secular forces to oust the then NDA government led by Vajpayee.

However, many of Opposition parties, including the UP satraps, the Left and even NCP were upset that Rahul Gandhi went off to meet Modi over the issue of farmers problems, especially in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. This came a day after Rahul was projected as the face of the Opposition with around 16 parties backing him in the attack against the government.

We have decided to stay away from the press conference of Opposition parties convened by the Congress because there has been no proper consultation and coordination among parties, CPI-M general secretary Sitaram Yechury said in Kolkata on Monday. Their Bengal rival TMC will be taking part in the meeting.

NEW DELHI: The idea was to carry forward the opposition to demonetisation beyond Parliament. But, the big brotherly attitude of the Congress, that had already created cracks in the ranks, may only go on to further widen the fault lines. Even the possibility of Congress president Sonia Gandhi coming out to address the joint Opposition meeting and presser was not persuasive enough for others like JD(U), CPI(M), BSP and SP to join the force. While JD(U) remained ambivalent, with KC Tyagi saying he may or may not join the Tuesday meeting, the CPI (M) was rather upset that the grand old party did not bother to discuss the agenda of the joint Opposition meeting. BSP and SP chose not say a word, either way. NCP is expected to depute someone in place of Tariq Anwar, whos mother passed away. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh tried to paper over the visible cracks by saying, Those who will join the meeting, will join. Those who wont, will join later -- next meeting. The hint being, the opposition unity is in the works. At the meeting, the adverse impact of demonetisation on the economy, as well as the alleged issue of personal corruption against Prime Minister is expected to be discussed. The biggest issue today is demonetisation and the second issue is corruption by the Prime Minister, which will be the main issues before tomorrows meet, Jairam Ramesh said. He, however, dismissed suggestions that tomorrows meeting was a tea party like the one in 1998 which ultimately led to the downfall of the Vajpayee government. As a curtain raiser, Rahul Gandhi held a meeting of all Congress general secretaries and State Congress presidents at his residence on Monday to discuss the situation. The attempt at forging an Opposition unity with the Congress acting as a pivot was likened to Shimla conclave of 2003, which saw Congress pitching for the unity of secular forces to oust the then NDA government led by Vajpayee. However, many of Opposition parties, including the UP satraps, the Left and even NCP were upset that Rahul Gandhi went off to meet Modi over the issue of farmers problems, especially in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. This came a day after Rahul was projected as the face of the Opposition with around 16 parties backing him in the attack against the government. We have decided to stay away from the press conference of Opposition parties convened by the Congress because there has been no proper consultation and coordination among parties, CPI-M general secretary Sitaram Yechury said in Kolkata on Monday. Their Bengal rival TMC will be taking part in the meeting.
By Express News Service

VIJAYAWADA: Christmas was celebrated with religious fervour and gaiety across the city on Sunday. All churches were filled with members of the Christian community since late Saturday night. The places of worship were also decorated with flags, balloons and Christmas trees with serial lighting and all the premises were spruced up for the occasion.

A large number of Christians thronged the Gunadala Mary Matha Church, St Pauls Cathedral Church near Nirmala Convent, Patamata and, the RCM Church in One Town area in the city. The beautifully-arranged crib depicting the birth of Jesus stood out as the main attraction at Saint Peters Cathedral at Tarapet area in One Town which attracted a number of children. The Christmas tree, jingle bells and the unending carols added fun and grandeur to the festive ambience.

Gunadala Mary Matha Temple rector Fr M Chinnappa, said that over 5,000 devotees from different places gathered at the Gunadala church premises late Saturday night and offered special prayers to Christ. A procession on the streets of Gunadala was also taken between 10 pm and 11.30 pm, which was followed by the Holy Mass, cutting of Christmas cake, singing of carols and exchange of greetings.

The first prayer was conducted at 4.30 am in the presence of Bishop of Vijayawada Diocese Prakash Mallavarapu and other pastors, he said. Besides devotion, fun and frolic, the festival is also an occasion for charity. The church distributed clothes and sweets to the destitute and organized poor feeding at cathedrals. At the other end, the community leaders also pooled money and distributed new clothes and groceries to the downtrodden sections of the people at St Pauls Cathedral Church near Nirmala Convent and the RCM Church in One Town area to mark the festival.

VIJAYAWADA: Christmas was celebrated with religious fervour and gaiety across the city on Sunday. All churches were filled with members of the Christian community since late Saturday night. The places of worship were also decorated with flags, balloons and Christmas trees with serial lighting and all the premises were spruced up for the occasion. A large number of Christians thronged the Gunadala Mary Matha Church, St Pauls Cathedral Church near Nirmala Convent, Patamata and, the RCM Church in One Town area in the city. The beautifully-arranged crib depicting the birth of Jesus stood out as the main attraction at Saint Peters Cathedral at Tarapet area in One Town which attracted a number of children. The Christmas tree, jingle bells and the unending carols added fun and grandeur to the festive ambience. Gunadala Mary Matha Temple rector Fr M Chinnappa, said that over 5,000 devotees from different places gathered at the Gunadala church premises late Saturday night and offered special prayers to Christ. A procession on the streets of Gunadala was also taken between 10 pm and 11.30 pm, which was followed by the Holy Mass, cutting of Christmas cake, singing of carols and exchange of greetings. The first prayer was conducted at 4.30 am in the presence of Bishop of Vijayawada Diocese Prakash Mallavarapu and other pastors, he said. Besides devotion, fun and frolic, the festival is also an occasion for charity. The church distributed clothes and sweets to the destitute and organized poor feeding at cathedrals. At the other end, the community leaders also pooled money and distributed new clothes and groceries to the downtrodden sections of the people at St Pauls Cathedral Church near Nirmala Convent and the RCM Church in One Town area to mark the festival.
By Express News Service

VISAKHAPATNAM: Mild tension prevailed in One Town and at the Vizag airport on Monday after the family members of a 19-year-old mechanic, who died in Singapore a week ago, staged a protest, demanding reasons for the death. The family members also refused to take the body which reached the Vizag airport from Singapore on Monday.

Chinthkayala Mahesh

According to One Town inspector K Venkat Rao, Chinthkayala Mahesh (19) went to Singapore last month for a pipe fitters job which he had managed through Global Technical Training Centre, a job consultancy firm in the city. He is said to have died of cardiac arrest.

The family alleged that the death news was not communicated to them by the company where Mahesh worked, even though the latter claimed that he had died a week ago. Suspecting a foul play, the family staged a protest in the Old Post Office area, demanding a concrete reason for the death from the job consultancy firm and compensation from the company.

Sources said that the firm had offered some compensation amount, but the family was not satisfied with the amount.

VISAKHAPATNAM: Mild tension prevailed in One Town and at the Vizag airport on Monday after the family members of a 19-year-old mechanic, who died in Singapore a week ago, staged a protest, demanding reasons for the death. The family members also refused to take the body which reached the Vizag airport from Singapore on Monday. Chinthkayala MaheshAccording to One Town inspector K Venkat Rao, Chinthkayala Mahesh (19) went to Singapore last month for a pipe fitters job which he had managed through Global Technical Training Centre, a job consultancy firm in the city. He is said to have died of cardiac arrest. The family alleged that the death news was not communicated to them by the company where Mahesh worked, even though the latter claimed that he had died a week ago. Suspecting a foul play, the family staged a protest in the Old Post Office area, demanding a concrete reason for the death from the job consultancy firm and compensation from the company. Sources said that the firm had offered some compensation amount, but the family was not satisfied with the amount.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has asked personal staff members of ministers to be efficient and corruption free.

"Government will not tolerate corruption. Do not accept bribe or gifts, even if it is a small mobile phone. Don't support corruption or maintain relations with the corrupt," he told them at a specially convened meeting at the government guest house here on Monday.

The CM asked the staff to keep "agents" away from offices. Those coming with political and personal vendettas should not be entertained. "There should be coordination between departments. Staff should not intervene in the functioning of other departments," he said.

Pinarayi asked the staff to work hard and fast. He heavily criticised those who landed late for the meeting. "There are some people who are habitual latecomers. This will not be tolerated anymore," he said.Staff members should be present for work on time. "If they abstain the office on duty time exact reason should be communicated to higher officials," he said.

He advised them not to take decision based on political affiliation.  the just demands of opposition should

favourably be considered.

Pinarayi asked the staff members to have special focus on the image of the government and the department concerned. "Media reports on the department should be brought to the attention of the minister concerned," he said. The government is run by the LDF but owned by the people, he said.

General guidelines will be devised for transfer." Political interventions will not be entertained," he said.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has asked personal staff members of ministers to be efficient and corruption free. "Government will not tolerate corruption. Do not accept bribe or gifts, even if it is a small mobile phone. Don't support corruption or maintain relations with the corrupt," he told them at a specially convened meeting at the government guest house here on Monday. The CM asked the staff to keep "agents" away from offices. Those coming with political and personal vendettas should not be entertained. "There should be coordination between departments. Staff should not intervene in the functioning of other departments," he said. Pinarayi asked the staff to work hard and fast. He heavily criticised those who landed late for the meeting. "There are some people who are habitual latecomers. This will not be tolerated anymore," he said.Staff members should be present for work on time. "If they abstain the office on duty time exact reason should be communicated to higher officials," he said. He advised them not to take decision based on political affiliation.  the just demands of opposition should favourably be considered. Pinarayi asked the staff members to have special focus on the image of the government and the department concerned. "Media reports on the department should be brought to the attention of the minister concerned," he said. The government is run by the LDF but owned by the people, he said. General guidelines will be devised for transfer." Political interventions will not be entertained," he said.
By Express News Service

KOTTAYAM: Salesian priest Tomy George, alias Fr Tom Uzhannalil, who was abducted by Islamic State militants from Yemen in March 2015, has made an emotive plea to the Indian Government and the Church to take earnest efforts to free him. Fr Tom,55, made the appeal in a five-minute video that was posted on YouTube, later aired by news channels. The bearded priest, who is seen in a grey sweatshirt, looked visibly pallid in the clip.

The priest, who was abducted when IS fighters stormed the old peoples home in the port city of Aden on March 4, made a desperate prayer to the Indian President, Prime Minister as well as Pope Francis and the Christian community across the globe to work together for his release.

The new video clip, which was posted on the FB page of one Saleh Salem on Christmas Day, Fr Tom also points fingers at the Central Government and the global Catholic community for doing little for his release.

If I were a European, I would have been taken more seriously by authorities and people and would have got me released. I am a priest from India and perhaps, therefore, I am not considered of much value. I am sad about this, he said haltingly, pointing out that a French woman, reportedly kidnapped in the Yemeni city of Sanaa, had been freed because she was a Westerner.

Addressing President of India and Prime Minister he said: I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in his regard. Though there were news reports that everything is being done to get me released quickly. In reality, nothing seems to have happened, he said in a frail voice.

He added that though, he was kidnapped while working in Yemen as a priest, neither Pope Francis nor Bishop of Abu Dhabi had done anything for his release and requested his fellow Christians in India, bishops and priests to get him released.

Pope Francis, holy father, please take care of my life. All other bishops all over the world, please save my life. My health is deteriorating. I may need to be hospitalised soon, he said, requesting all the governments to take up his case on humanitarian consideration.

Authorities are yet to check the veracity of the video. Fr Uzhunnalil hails from Ramapuram in Kottayam.

KOTTAYAM: Salesian priest Tomy George, alias Fr Tom Uzhannalil, who was abducted by Islamic State militants from Yemen in March 2015, has made an emotive plea to the Indian Government and the Church to take earnest efforts to free him. Fr Tom,55, made the appeal in a five-minute video that was posted on YouTube, later aired by news channels. The bearded priest, who is seen in a grey sweatshirt, looked visibly pallid in the clip. The priest, who was abducted when IS fighters stormed the old peoples home in the port city of Aden on March 4, made a desperate prayer to the Indian President, Prime Minister as well as Pope Francis and the Christian community across the globe to work together for his release. The new video clip, which was posted on the FB page of one Saleh Salem on Christmas Day, Fr Tom also points fingers at the Central Government and the global Catholic community for doing little for his release. If I were a European, I would have been taken more seriously by authorities and people and would have got me released. I am a priest from India and perhaps, therefore, I am not considered of much value. I am sad about this, he said haltingly, pointing out that a French woman, reportedly kidnapped in the Yemeni city of Sanaa, had been freed because she was a Westerner. Addressing President of India and Prime Minister he said: I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in his regard. Though there were news reports that everything is being done to get me released quickly. In reality, nothing seems to have happened, he said in a frail voice. He added that though, he was kidnapped while working in Yemen as a priest, neither Pope Francis nor Bishop of Abu Dhabi had done anything for his release and requested his fellow Christians in India, bishops and priests to get him released. Pope Francis, holy father, please take care of my life. All other bishops all over the world, please save my life. My health is deteriorating. I may need to be hospitalised soon, he said, requesting all the governments to take up his case on humanitarian consideration. Authorities are yet to check the veracity of the video. Fr Uzhunnalil hails from Ramapuram in Kottayam.
By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: The stage is set for the fourth experimental trial of Indias most potent long range nuclear capable ballistic missile Agni-V from a defence base off Odisha coast on Monday.

Developed indigenously by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) Agni-V has the capability to strike targets anywhere in all of Asia and parts of Africa and Europe.

The missile will be fired from the launching complex-IV of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Abdul Kalam Island. A defence official said the missile has been integrated with the launcher and it will be made vertical prior to the test scheduled before noon.

According to DRDO, the missile is among the best in its class with advanced ring-laser gyros, composite rocket motors, highly accurate micro and inertial navigation systems.

Sources said the mission team has worked meticulously to achieve success with high accuracy as the weapon system is likely to be inducted in the armed forces after this test.

Since the missile has to traverse across the Indian Ocean and has the striking capabilities close to intercontinental range, all logistic issues have been fixed. The official said a number of countries has been alerted.

Security measures have been undertaken to ensure that it is not affecting the international air and maritime traffic in the test zone, he said.

Capable of being launched within minutes from road and rail mobile launchers, the three-stage, 17-metre tall, two-metre wide Agni-V weighing 50 tonnes can carry nuclear warhead of about 1.5 tonnes up to a distance of more than 5,000 km.

Earlier, the missile has been successfully tested twice from mobile launchers and once from a hermetically sealed canister.

BHUBANESWAR: The stage is set for the fourth experimental trial of Indias most potent long range nuclear capable ballistic missile Agni-V from a defence base off Odisha coast on Monday. Developed indigenously by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) Agni-V has the capability to strike targets anywhere in all of Asia and parts of Africa and Europe. The missile will be fired from the launching complex-IV of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Abdul Kalam Island. A defence official said the missile has been integrated with the launcher and it will be made vertical prior to the test scheduled before noon. According to DRDO, the missile is among the best in its class with advanced ring-laser gyros, composite rocket motors, highly accurate micro and inertial navigation systems. Sources said the mission team has worked meticulously to achieve success with high accuracy as the weapon system is likely to be inducted in the armed forces after this test. Since the missile has to traverse across the Indian Ocean and has the striking capabilities close to intercontinental range, all logistic issues have been fixed. The official said a number of countries has been alerted. Security measures have been undertaken to ensure that it is not affecting the international air and maritime traffic in the test zone, he said. Capable of being launched within minutes from road and rail mobile launchers, the three-stage, 17-metre tall, two-metre wide Agni-V weighing 50 tonnes can carry nuclear warhead of about 1.5 tonnes up to a distance of more than 5,000 km. Earlier, the missile has been successfully tested twice from mobile launchers and once from a hermetically sealed canister.
Srimoy Kar By

Express News Service

Black is the new red for Odishas ruling dispensation. Any hint of black around BJD supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is perceived as a sign of protest and resistance. So the frenzied party activists and police think and do not hesitate to retaliate instantly.

In July BJD supporters led by a party MLA unleashed an assault on hapless supporters of BJP for merely staging a black flag demonstration at Boudh. In Mayurbhanj, a few weeks ago, a demonstrator at Naveens public meeting was ruthlessly thrashed by partymen in full police view when he tried to hoist a black flag and hurl an egg at the chief minister who was on the stage at a distance.

The party activists even launched an attack on a bunch of BJP workers during the latters dawn-to-dusk Bhubaneswar bandh triggering a free-for-all on the streets of the capital last week. So much for democracy in the state. For, the party which has been in power for the 17 years has lately developed a terrible sense of intolerance towards opposition of any kind. So paranoid has become the party that its activists had the temerity to heckle two Union ministers at Sambalpur in June, something unprecedented in the state.

Call it arrogance or growing insecurity, the paranoia has had an infectious effect on the state administration which is now bending over backwards to please the political bosses.

At Bargarh and Sundargarh recently, police and the civil administration, in their bid to prevent any embarrassment to the chief minister, even forced girls and women to take out their black dupattas, jackets and scarves before entering a ground where Naveen addressed a public meeting, because anything black as part of your attire was viewed as a possible mark of protest, which might anger the supremo. That is what the state police intelligence and ruling party strategists thought.

The issue had snowballed into a huge controversy forcing Naveen to express regret on the floor of the Assembly and an inquiry was ordered into the incident. But the act was repeated by the overzealous police when men and women wearing anything black were asked to remove those at a public rally in Jeypore which Naveen addressed last Thursday.

This paranoia had its beginning last year when some members of the student wing of the Congress hurled eggs at the chief ministers carcade in Bhubaneswar.

Ever since the police have displayed a precautionary phobia that is unparalleled. The protective cover of the BJD supremo stands beefed up multifold now.

Naveen, who earlier used a bare-necessary security detail, is now cause of severe inconvenience to the public.

These days, much before he ventures out of his office or residence, everything comes to a standstill in the route he would take. A few days ago the administration foiled a farmers convention in Bhubaneswar because their leaders had once tried to block the chief ministers cavalcade.

Naveen may not be directly responsible or even aware of the antics of his overzealous administration, but they are doing him more harm than good by alienating him from the very people who gave him a historic mandate for the fourth successive time. Not known for his contact with the people, the BJD supremo could fast be losing whatever little connect he has with his voters if the trend continues.

He would do well to step back a little in time and see what his illustrious father did to tackle opposition. Years before Naveen made his foray into politics, a late Parliamentarian, Khagapati Pradhani, had shot off an angry letter to Biju Babu, then chief minister, drawing his attention to a particular incident of stone-pelting he faced from the latters partymen.

The inimitable Biju Babu was quick to respond, like only he could, with a piece of advice for the nine-time Congress MP from Nabarangpur. In politics, he replied, bouquets come along with brickbats and one must take those in ones stride.

In 1993 the late leader faced a murder bid at the Secretariat. He showed no vindictiveness. Around the same year, a youth pelted a stone at him at Bhawanipatna, leaving Biju Babu with a bloody nose. An unfazed Biju instructed the police to round up the youths involved and produce them before him next morning. After a few minutes of admonishment, all six were let off and no case was registered against them. Naveen, for once, could use the political wisdom showed by the great man whose legacy his party is carrying.

Srimoy Kar

Resident Editor, Odisha

Email: srimoy@newindianexpress.com

Black is the new red for Odishas ruling dispensation. Any hint of black around BJD supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is perceived as a sign of protest and resistance. So the frenzied party activists and police think and do not hesitate to retaliate instantly. In July BJD supporters led by a party MLA unleashed an assault on hapless supporters of BJP for merely staging a black flag demonstration at Boudh. In Mayurbhanj, a few weeks ago, a demonstrator at Naveens public meeting was ruthlessly thrashed by partymen in full police view when he tried to hoist a black flag and hurl an egg at the chief minister who was on the stage at a distance. The party activists even launched an attack on a bunch of BJP workers during the latters dawn-to-dusk Bhubaneswar bandh triggering a free-for-all on the streets of the capital last week. So much for democracy in the state. For, the party which has been in power for the 17 years has lately developed a terrible sense of intolerance towards opposition of any kind. So paranoid has become the party that its activists had the temerity to heckle two Union ministers at Sambalpur in June, something unprecedented in the state. Call it arrogance or growing insecurity, the paranoia has had an infectious effect on the state administration which is now bending over backwards to please the political bosses. At Bargarh and Sundargarh recently, police and the civil administration, in their bid to prevent any embarrassment to the chief minister, even forced girls and women to take out their black dupattas, jackets and scarves before entering a ground where Naveen addressed a public meeting, because anything black as part of your attire was viewed as a possible mark of protest, which might anger the supremo. That is what the state police intelligence and ruling party strategists thought. The issue had snowballed into a huge controversy forcing Naveen to express regret on the floor of the Assembly and an inquiry was ordered into the incident. But the act was repeated by the overzealous police when men and women wearing anything black were asked to remove those at a public rally in Jeypore which Naveen addressed last Thursday. This paranoia had its beginning last year when some members of the student wing of the Congress hurled eggs at the chief ministers carcade in Bhubaneswar. Ever since the police have displayed a precautionary phobia that is unparalleled. The protective cover of the BJD supremo stands beefed up multifold now. Naveen, who earlier used a bare-necessary security detail, is now cause of severe inconvenience to the public. These days, much before he ventures out of his office or residence, everything comes to a standstill in the route he would take. A few days ago the administration foiled a farmers convention in Bhubaneswar because their leaders had once tried to block the chief ministers cavalcade. Naveen may not be directly responsible or even aware of the antics of his overzealous administration, but they are doing him more harm than good by alienating him from the very people who gave him a historic mandate for the fourth successive time. Not known for his contact with the people, the BJD supremo could fast be losing whatever little connect he has with his voters if the trend continues. He would do well to step back a little in time and see what his illustrious father did to tackle opposition. Years before Naveen made his foray into politics, a late Parliamentarian, Khagapati Pradhani, had shot off an angry letter to Biju Babu, then chief minister, drawing his attention to a particular incident of stone-pelting he faced from the latters partymen. The inimitable Biju Babu was quick to respond, like only he could, with a piece of advice for the nine-time Congress MP from Nabarangpur. In politics, he replied, bouquets come along with brickbats and one must take those in ones stride. In 1993 the late leader faced a murder bid at the Secretariat. He showed no vindictiveness. Around the same year, a youth pelted a stone at him at Bhawanipatna, leaving Biju Babu with a bloody nose. An unfazed Biju instructed the police to round up the youths involved and produce them before him next morning. After a few minutes of admonishment, all six were let off and no case was registered against them. Naveen, for once, could use the political wisdom showed by the great man whose legacy his party is carrying. Srimoy Kar Resident Editor, Odisha Email: srimoy@newindianexpress.com
By Express News Service

KENDRAPARA: While most of the business sectors across the country have been reeling under the demonetisation aftermath, seafood exporters of the State remain unaffected by the Centre Governments digital transaction move. Since demonetisation, seafood exporters have been paying the shrimp farm owners and fish traders through bank cheque, drafts and digital payments.

A large number of fish and prawn traders are also readily accepting the cashless method as it has reduced the chances of theft.

Prior to demonetisation, the transaction was made through cash. Many a time, miscreants used to snatch away the cash.

As the transaction is now made through digital mode, the cash remains safe in our bank accounts. Besides, we would not face any problem from the income tax authorities in future as all the transactions are now recorded, said Rudra Prasan Hota, general secretary of the Seafood Exporters Association of India, Odisha region.

At least 80 percent of exported seafood from Odisha are shrimps.

Our target is to export 25,000 metric tonnes of seafood from the State at the cost of Rs 2,000 crore in 2016-17. Demonetisation has not stopped us from exporting seafood, added Hota.

Odisha has been a pioneering State for putting in place a progressive Fishery Policy in 2015 covering the entire gamut of fisheries-harvest, post-harvest, infrastructure, market support and socio-economic issues of the fishing community. Despite global slowdown, the seafood exports from Odisha had crossed 19,500 crores during 2014-15.

The State currently contributes to about five percent of the fish production in the country and about 17 percent of the value of seafood export, said Pratap Ranjan Rout, Joint Director (coastal) Fisheries Department.

KENDRAPARA: While most of the business sectors across the country have been reeling under the demonetisation aftermath, seafood exporters of the State remain unaffected by the Centre Governments digital transaction move. Since demonetisation, seafood exporters have been paying the shrimp farm owners and fish traders through bank cheque, drafts and digital payments. A large number of fish and prawn traders are also readily accepting the cashless method as it has reduced the chances of theft. Prior to demonetisation, the transaction was made through cash. Many a time, miscreants used to snatch away the cash. As the transaction is now made through digital mode, the cash remains safe in our bank accounts. Besides, we would not face any problem from the income tax authorities in future as all the transactions are now recorded, said Rudra Prasan Hota, general secretary of the Seafood Exporters Association of India, Odisha region. At least 80 percent of exported seafood from Odisha are shrimps. Our target is to export 25,000 metric tonnes of seafood from the State at the cost of Rs 2,000 crore in 2016-17. Demonetisation has not stopped us from exporting seafood, added Hota. Odisha has been a pioneering State for putting in place a progressive Fishery Policy in 2015 covering the entire gamut of fisheries-harvest, post-harvest, infrastructure, market support and socio-economic issues of the fishing community. Despite global slowdown, the seafood exports from Odisha had crossed 19,500 crores during 2014-15. The State currently contributes to about five percent of the fish production in the country and about 17 percent of the value of seafood export, said Pratap Ranjan Rout, Joint Director (coastal) Fisheries Department.
By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: Odisha Stevedores Limited (OSL) chief Mahimananda Mishra and his associate Basant Bal were detained at Bangkok by the Thai immigration authorities on intimation of Odisha Police.

On Sunday, the State Police sent a team to seek custody of the two who are accused in the murder of General Manager of Seaways Shipping Pvt Ltd Mahendra Swain earlier in October.

Director-General of Police (DGP) KB Singh told mediapersons here that deportation of Mishra and Bal would be sought after clearing the legal formalities with Thai authorities. Currently, the duo is detained at the Immigration Centre in Bangkok. After their arrival in India, the two would be formally arrested.

Addressing mediapersons, the DGP said the two had stayed in New Delhi, Gurgaon, Amritsar, Chandigarh and Bhimdutta (on the Indo-Nepal border) before moving to Kathmandu from where they went to Bangkok on December 20. The State Police had also requested the Interpol to issue a Red Corner notice against them.

BHUBANESWAR: Odisha Stevedores Limited (OSL) chief Mahimananda Mishra and his associate Basant Bal were detained at Bangkok by the Thai immigration authorities on intimation of Odisha Police. On Sunday, the State Police sent a team to seek custody of the two who are accused in the murder of General Manager of Seaways Shipping Pvt Ltd Mahendra Swain earlier in October. Director-General of Police (DGP) KB Singh told mediapersons here that deportation of Mishra and Bal would be sought after clearing the legal formalities with Thai authorities. Currently, the duo is detained at the Immigration Centre in Bangkok. After their arrival in India, the two would be formally arrested. Addressing mediapersons, the DGP said the two had stayed in New Delhi, Gurgaon, Amritsar, Chandigarh and Bhimdutta (on the Indo-Nepal border) before moving to Kathmandu from where they went to Bangkok on December 20. The State Police had also requested the Interpol to issue a Red Corner notice against them.
By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: Odisha Stevedores Limited (OSL) chief Mahimananda Mishra and his associate Basant Bal were detained at Bangkok by the Thai immigration authorities on intimation of Odisha Police.

On Sunday, the State Police sent a team to seek custody of the two who are accused in the murder of General Manager of Seaways Shipping Pvt Ltd Mahendra Swain earlier in October.

Director-General of Police (DGP) KB Singh told mediapersons here that deportation of Mishra and Bal would be sought after clearing the legal formalities with Thai authorities. Currently, the duo is detained at the Immigration Centre in Bangkok. After their arrival in India, the two would be formally arrested.

Addressing mediapersons, the DGP said the two had stayed in New Delhi, Gurgaon, Amritsar, Chandigarh and Bhimdutta (on the Indo-Nepal border) before moving to Kathmandu from where they went to Bangkok on December 20. The State Police had also requested the Interpol to issue a Red Corner notice against them.

Singh said the State Police had been tracking them but have had narrow misses. From Indo-Nepal border, they moved to Kathmandu by road and from there, they flew to Thailand by Thai Airways. When the information was received, Thai Police was contacted, the DGP said and added that national agencies such as IB, CBI and ED chipped in with help.

IG, Central Range Saumendra Priyadarshi, who has been supervising the case, said the deportation is likely to take place in the next two days. Since Indian Police has no authority in foreign shore, we will have them deported first before officially arresting the duo, he said.

On Friday, a Kujang Court had issued non-bailable warrant against Mishra and Bal in the Seaways Shipping executive murder case while Susant Sethy, an associate of the OSL chief, was arrested from Indira Gandhi International Airport.

The DGP said Sethy facilitated the logistics support for both Mishra and Bal. His credit cards were used for all the financial purposes. The day he was arrested, Sethy had just returned from Kathmandu. Swains murder was an outcome of rivalry between Paradeep Port Stevedores Association (PPSA) and Utkal Stevedores Association (USA) which is into the business for more than a year. PPSAs monopoly was challenged by USA of which Seaways was a member, he added.

Earlier in this connection, Jagatsinghpur Police had arrested seven persons, including Rakesh Choubey, Riyashat Hussain, Mohammaed Shamim, Manoj Gochhayat, Shiba and Bapi Sarkhel.

BHUBANESWAR: Odisha Stevedores Limited (OSL) chief Mahimananda Mishra and his associate Basant Bal were detained at Bangkok by the Thai immigration authorities on intimation of Odisha Police. On Sunday, the State Police sent a team to seek custody of the two who are accused in the murder of General Manager of Seaways Shipping Pvt Ltd Mahendra Swain earlier in October. Director-General of Police (DGP) KB Singh told mediapersons here that deportation of Mishra and Bal would be sought after clearing the legal formalities with Thai authorities. Currently, the duo is detained at the Immigration Centre in Bangkok. After their arrival in India, the two would be formally arrested. Addressing mediapersons, the DGP said the two had stayed in New Delhi, Gurgaon, Amritsar, Chandigarh and Bhimdutta (on the Indo-Nepal border) before moving to Kathmandu from where they went to Bangkok on December 20. The State Police had also requested the Interpol to issue a Red Corner notice against them. Singh said the State Police had been tracking them but have had narrow misses. From Indo-Nepal border, they moved to Kathmandu by road and from there, they flew to Thailand by Thai Airways. When the information was received, Thai Police was contacted, the DGP said and added that national agencies such as IB, CBI and ED chipped in with help. IG, Central Range Saumendra Priyadarshi, who has been supervising the case, said the deportation is likely to take place in the next two days. Since Indian Police has no authority in foreign shore, we will have them deported first before officially arresting the duo, he said. On Friday, a Kujang Court had issued non-bailable warrant against Mishra and Bal in the Seaways Shipping executive murder case while Susant Sethy, an associate of the OSL chief, was arrested from Indira Gandhi International Airport. The DGP said Sethy facilitated the logistics support for both Mishra and Bal. His credit cards were used for all the financial purposes. The day he was arrested, Sethy had just returned from Kathmandu. Swains murder was an outcome of rivalry between Paradeep Port Stevedores Association (PPSA) and Utkal Stevedores Association (USA) which is into the business for more than a year. PPSAs monopoly was challenged by USA of which Seaways was a member, he added. Earlier in this connection, Jagatsinghpur Police had arrested seven persons, including Rakesh Choubey, Riyashat Hussain, Mohammaed Shamim, Manoj Gochhayat, Shiba and Bapi Sarkhel.
Prabhakar T By

Express News Service

COIMBATORE: Maoists who have been camping in forests in the tri-junction of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka have shifted their camps to the Agali forests in Kerala, which is close to Annaikatti near Coimbatore, according to intelligence sources.

This follows the killing of two Maoists, Kuppu Deveraj and Ajitha, in an encounter with the Kerala police in Padukka village in the Nilambur forest division in Malappuram district of Kerala on November 24.

Immediately after the incident, they had shifted camp to the Agali forest region in Palakkad district, a bi-junction area near Coimbatore. The group now reportedly has 11 members, of whom five are women.

The tribals in the area have seen them with guns, sources told Express.

We have identified two of them  Manivasagam, a native of Dharmapuri, and Chandra, a native of Krishnagiri, the sources added.

Manivasagam has been absconding since 2008 and Chandra since 2002. Both were in an ultra-extremist organisation and later joined CPI (Maoist).

Three to five members of the group often visit tribal villages in Pillur dam area near Mettupalayam, from Agali via Mulli village by travelling through forests.

We have opened a permanent camp near Pillur dam to stop them from coming to the villages, said a senior intelligence officer.

In addition, the people in the tribal villages are being educated as part of the efforts to curb Maoist movement, said K Vijayakumar, Senior Security Adviser to the Ministry of Home Affairs.

After the encounter with the Maoists, we have strengthened the security forces in all the three states. In Tamil Nadu, there is Maoist movement in Coimbatore, Ooty and Gudalur. In Kerala, their movement has been found in five districts  Palakkad, Malappuram, Wayanad, Thrissur and Kannur. After four years of struggle, the present Maoist group in Kerala had laid a strong foundation, he said.

Maoists are struggling for the rights of the tribal people. Though we may support their demands, we cannot accept their armed struggle, which is against democracy. We request them to return to the democratic path, he added.

Vijayakumar also pointed out that legally, only security personnel could keep weapons with them.

COIMBATORE: Maoists who have been camping in forests in the tri-junction of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka have shifted their camps to the Agali forests in Kerala, which is close to Annaikatti near Coimbatore, according to intelligence sources. This follows the killing of two Maoists, Kuppu Deveraj and Ajitha, in an encounter with the Kerala police in Padukka village in the Nilambur forest division in Malappuram district of Kerala on November 24. Immediately after the incident, they had shifted camp to the Agali forest region in Palakkad district, a bi-junction area near Coimbatore. The group now reportedly has 11 members, of whom five are women. The tribals in the area have seen them with guns, sources told Express. We have identified two of them  Manivasagam, a native of Dharmapuri, and Chandra, a native of Krishnagiri, the sources added. Manivasagam has been absconding since 2008 and Chandra since 2002. Both were in an ultra-extremist organisation and later joined CPI (Maoist). Three to five members of the group often visit tribal villages in Pillur dam area near Mettupalayam, from Agali via Mulli village by travelling through forests. We have opened a permanent camp near Pillur dam to stop them from coming to the villages, said a senior intelligence officer. In addition, the people in the tribal villages are being educated as part of the efforts to curb Maoist movement, said K Vijayakumar, Senior Security Adviser to the Ministry of Home Affairs. After the encounter with the Maoists, we have strengthened the security forces in all the three states. In Tamil Nadu, there is Maoist movement in Coimbatore, Ooty and Gudalur. In Kerala, their movement has been found in five districts  Palakkad, Malappuram, Wayanad, Thrissur and Kannur. After four years of struggle, the present Maoist group in Kerala had laid a strong foundation, he said. Maoists are struggling for the rights of the tribal people. Though we may support their demands, we cannot accept their armed struggle, which is against democracy. We request them to return to the democratic path, he added. Vijayakumar also pointed out that legally, only security personnel could keep weapons with them.
By Associated Press

BEIRUT: Under different circumstances, Syrian President Bashar Assad's capture of Aleppo would project an aura of invincibility. He has survived nearly six years of revolt.

Instead, it has underscored his dependence on outside powers.

Turkey, Iran, and Russia have tilted recent events in his favor, and it is those three players  and perhaps the incoming Trump administration  that are now best placed to determine Syria's endgame.

The three nations met in Moscow last week for talks on Syria that pointedly included no Syrians, indicating they prefer to pursue a grand bargain among great powers rather than a domestic settlement between the government and the opposition.

The warming of ties between Russia and Turkey, who back opposing sides of the civil war, may prove to be a game changer, potentially helping to end a conflict that has confounded the world's top diplomats for more than five years.

Their joint efforts on Syria  there is now talk of a nationwide cease-fire  reflect a desire to establish spheres of influence. Turkey might drop its support for rebels fighting Assad in exchange for freedom of movement in a border region where its troops are battling the Islamic State group and trying to curb the advance of U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish forces.

Hassan Hassan, a Syrian analyst at the Washington-based Tahrir Institute, called the Moscow summit "a perfect example of how the Syria solution is now about a grand bargain whereby other countries negotiate on behalf of Syrians."

Syria's army was only able to win the battle of Aleppo with Russian support and the aid of thousands of Iran-backed militiamen from across the region. Turkey struck a deal with Russia to manage the rebels' surrender when they were on the verge of total defeat.

Turkey was an early backer of the rebels, allowing them to retreat and rearm across its largely porous border. But as Syrian Kurdish forces - answerable neither to Assad nor to his opponents - have expanded their canton along the border, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has come to view them as a greater threat than Assad.

Turkey sees the main Syrian Kurdish faction as an extension of the Kurdish insurgency raging in its southwest. It has also grown increasingly concerned about IS following a series of attacks. The Syrian Kurds are battling IS, but Turkey describes both as "terrorists" who must be eliminated.

In August, Turkish troops and allied Syrian forces poured across the border, and in the following weeks they drove IS from its last strongholds along the frontier and halted the Kurdish advance.

With more than 5,000 forces inside Syria and a seat at the table, Turkey seems poised to establish a "sphere of influence" in northern Syria, according to Faysal Itani, an analyst at the Washington-based Atlantic Council.

It will likely press the issue when it meets with Russia and Iran in Kazakhstan next month. The Syrian government and some conciliatory opposition groups will be there, but it's unclear whether Syria's main, armed opposition will be invited.

The U.N. has meanwhile vowed to relaunch the long-defunct Geneva negotiations between the government and the armed opposition on Feb. 8. That process has repeatedly failed to produce tangible outcomes.

The deepening involvement of the outside powers has strengthened the government, but there are still large parts of the country outside its control, and many retaken areas have been reduced to rubble. The rebuilding effort in Aleppo alone is expected to require tens of billions of dollars , and the government is unlikely to get much Western aid.

"Europe has the money for reconstruction, and not Russia and Iran, and (Western nations) have made it clear they will not legitimize the regime," said Bassam Barabandi, a political adviser to the Syrian opposition High Negotiations Committee.

Any efforts to strike a grand bargain will also need to contend with a new U.S. administration that has hinted at a major change in policy while providing few details.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has said he wants closer cooperation with Russia in order to combat IS, while also suggesting he could drop U.S. support for the armed opposition. "We have no idea who these people are," he said in a newspaper interview last month.

On the other hand, he is openly hostile toward Iran and may seek to curb its influence in Syria.

Either way, despite the government's victory in Aleppo, Syria's fate is unlikely to be determined in Damascus.

BEIRUT: Under different circumstances, Syrian President Bashar Assad's capture of Aleppo would project an aura of invincibility. He has survived nearly six years of revolt. Instead, it has underscored his dependence on outside powers. Turkey, Iran, and Russia have tilted recent events in his favor, and it is those three players  and perhaps the incoming Trump administration  that are now best placed to determine Syria's endgame. The three nations met in Moscow last week for talks on Syria that pointedly included no Syrians, indicating they prefer to pursue a grand bargain among great powers rather than a domestic settlement between the government and the opposition. The warming of ties between Russia and Turkey, who back opposing sides of the civil war, may prove to be a game changer, potentially helping to end a conflict that has confounded the world's top diplomats for more than five years. Their joint efforts on Syria  there is now talk of a nationwide cease-fire  reflect a desire to establish spheres of influence. Turkey might drop its support for rebels fighting Assad in exchange for freedom of movement in a border region where its troops are battling the Islamic State group and trying to curb the advance of U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish forces. Hassan Hassan, a Syrian analyst at the Washington-based Tahrir Institute, called the Moscow summit "a perfect example of how the Syria solution is now about a grand bargain whereby other countries negotiate on behalf of Syrians." Syria's army was only able to win the battle of Aleppo with Russian support and the aid of thousands of Iran-backed militiamen from across the region. Turkey struck a deal with Russia to manage the rebels' surrender when they were on the verge of total defeat. Turkey was an early backer of the rebels, allowing them to retreat and rearm across its largely porous border. But as Syrian Kurdish forces - answerable neither to Assad nor to his opponents - have expanded their canton along the border, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has come to view them as a greater threat than Assad. Turkey sees the main Syrian Kurdish faction as an extension of the Kurdish insurgency raging in its southwest. It has also grown increasingly concerned about IS following a series of attacks. The Syrian Kurds are battling IS, but Turkey describes both as "terrorists" who must be eliminated. In August, Turkish troops and allied Syrian forces poured across the border, and in the following weeks they drove IS from its last strongholds along the frontier and halted the Kurdish advance. With more than 5,000 forces inside Syria and a seat at the table, Turkey seems poised to establish a "sphere of influence" in northern Syria, according to Faysal Itani, an analyst at the Washington-based Atlantic Council. It will likely press the issue when it meets with Russia and Iran in Kazakhstan next month. The Syrian government and some conciliatory opposition groups will be there, but it's unclear whether Syria's main, armed opposition will be invited. The U.N. has meanwhile vowed to relaunch the long-defunct Geneva negotiations between the government and the armed opposition on Feb. 8. That process has repeatedly failed to produce tangible outcomes. The deepening involvement of the outside powers has strengthened the government, but there are still large parts of the country outside its control, and many retaken areas have been reduced to rubble. The rebuilding effort in Aleppo alone is expected to require tens of billions of dollars , and the government is unlikely to get much Western aid. "Europe has the money for reconstruction, and not Russia and Iran, and (Western nations) have made it clear they will not legitimize the regime," said Bassam Barabandi, a political adviser to the Syrian opposition High Negotiations Committee. Any efforts to strike a grand bargain will also need to contend with a new U.S. administration that has hinted at a major change in policy while providing few details. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has said he wants closer cooperation with Russia in order to combat IS, while also suggesting he could drop U.S. support for the armed opposition. "We have no idea who these people are," he said in a newspaper interview last month. On the other hand, he is openly hostile toward Iran and may seek to curb its influence in Syria. Either way, despite the government's victory in Aleppo, Syria's fate is unlikely to be determined in Damascus.
By AFP

BRAZIL: At least 19 Brazilian migrants who went missing last month are feared drowned off the Bahamas as they tried to cross illegally to the United States, officials in Brasilia said Monday.

"The fear is that the boat the Brazilians were traveling in went down in the Caribbean as it left the Bahamas," according to Brazilian authorities on the official government information website, Portal Brasil.

The migrants' families have not heard from them since November 6, the Brazilian foreign ministry said.

Brazilian media reports said there were also dozens of other migrants aboard the boat, which officials suspect went down while attempting the roughly 50-mile (80-kilometer) crossing between the Bahamas and the Florida coast.

"The Brazilian embassy in Nassau, Bahamas and the Brazilian consulate in Miami, Florida are in contact with family members and Caribbean and US authorities to try to locate the missing persons," said Portal Brasil.

The Brazilian foreign ministry said it was not ruling out the possibility that the migrants could be in prison or missing for other reasons.

BRAZIL: At least 19 Brazilian migrants who went missing last month are feared drowned off the Bahamas as they tried to cross illegally to the United States, officials in Brasilia said Monday. "The fear is that the boat the Brazilians were traveling in went down in the Caribbean as it left the Bahamas," according to Brazilian authorities on the official government information website, Portal Brasil. The migrants' families have not heard from them since November 6, the Brazilian foreign ministry said. Brazilian media reports said there were also dozens of other migrants aboard the boat, which officials suspect went down while attempting the roughly 50-mile (80-kilometer) crossing between the Bahamas and the Florida coast. "The Brazilian embassy in Nassau, Bahamas and the Brazilian consulate in Miami, Florida are in contact with family members and Caribbean and US authorities to try to locate the missing persons," said Portal Brasil. The Brazilian foreign ministry said it was not ruling out the possibility that the migrants could be in prison or missing for other reasons.
By AFP

GANNAN: Giant piles of black manure towering over cornfields, while rancid-smelling effluent from thousands of cows spills onto the land -- this is the price of a glass of milk in China today.

Large-scale dairy farms have boomed in the Asian giant, as its near 1.4 billion consumers overcame centuries of cultural reluctance to embrace the white fluid.

An economic boom and government backing transformed dairy into a $40-billion-a-year industry, shifting production away from small-scale producers towards massive megafarms with up to 10,000 cattle -- and a lot more waste.

"The smell of the manure... in the summer it's very intense," said Ren Xiangjun, a farmer in Gannan county.

Pointing at a stream of green water escaping from under a grey brick wall at the giant farm owned by agro-conglomerate Feihe International, he added: "You can see how it flows right out of the farm.

Dodging packets of animal medicine and syringes littered nearby, he explained: "The rubbish left after injections is just thrown here. My land is directly affected."

When the Feihe farm opened in 2012 in the grassy hills of the northern province of Heilongjiang it said it had 10,000 cows.

In Daxing village next door, a woman also surnamed Ren said: "You can see the manure piled up like a mountain. There are no advantages for us. There is just pollution and noise."

The dairy industry in China has posted average yearly growth rates over 12 percent since 2000, due to rising wealth and desire for the health benefits of calcium.

The ruling Communist party fanned the expansion, with former Premier Wen Jiabao in 2006 expressing a "dream" that Chinese children should enjoy a daily 0.5 kilograms of dairy products.

But a 2008 scandal over baby formula tainted with the industrial chemical melamine saw six children killed and more than 300,000 others affected, shaking confidence in the industry.

The crisis was blamed on small-scale farmers using chemicals to inflate the protein content of their milk as they scrambled to meet demand.

The Chinese government responded by demanding the creation of large-scale milk production units.

"They thought if we have scale farms they are easier to regulate and inspect," said David Mahon, founder of a Beijing-based investment firm specialising in dairy.

- Unbearable -

There are large scale farms in other countries, such as New Zealand, but rarely with more than 3,000 cows at a single facility.

By 2014 China boasted 56 farms with 10,000 cows or more, according to state media -- 80 percent of the global total -- creating a string of pollution problems in several provinces.

Estimates say that just 3,500 cows can produce 100,000 tonnes of fluid waste and effluent a year. Chinese farms are required to process it into fertiliser, but regulations are often flouted.

"There are some areas of China that it's better to visit in winter, because of the small hills of effluent. Once it thaws it's unbearable," said Mahon.

"China is learning about dairy farming and the lack of experience has resulted in such things."

In Gannan residents alleged that local officials profited from the farm and took no action against polluters. AFP was not able to verify the claims and local food officials could not be reached for comment.

But attitudes may be starting to shift. The vice-head of China's state-backed Dairy Association, Yang Liguo was cited in 2014 as saying "The bigger the scale, the bigger the environmental, pollution and biosecurity problems".

Mahon said there had been a "genuine rethink" in Beijing and the Chinese government was "looking more and more to 350 head farms".

- Like a mountain -

Packing more animals together increases the risk of illnesses such as brucellosis, which can spread to humans and cause arthritis.

Feihe employee Wang Dali, who once mucked out cowsheds at the farm in Gannan, contracted brucellosis in 2012, leaving him unable to work, and now suffers near-constant pain in his joints.

He blames his infection on poor sanitation.

"The cows were packed very close together," he said, estimating each had about 12 square metres. "There was no way to treat the manure. We dug a big hole close to the facility... now it has piled up like a mountain".

Feihe denied the residents' allegations, with a woman who answered the phone at its Gannan office saying: "These things are impossible."

Dismounting from a tractor a stone's throw from the manure piles in Daxing, one farmer said: "The pollution hasn't been cleaned up well. Of course it has an impact."

Pointing to corn stalks growing beside syringes, he added: "We don't eat these ourselves. We sell them to the market".

GANNAN: Giant piles of black manure towering over cornfields, while rancid-smelling effluent from thousands of cows spills onto the land -- this is the price of a glass of milk in China today. Large-scale dairy farms have boomed in the Asian giant, as its near 1.4 billion consumers overcame centuries of cultural reluctance to embrace the white fluid. An economic boom and government backing transformed dairy into a $40-billion-a-year industry, shifting production away from small-scale producers towards massive megafarms with up to 10,000 cattle -- and a lot more waste. "The smell of the manure... in the summer it's very intense," said Ren Xiangjun, a farmer in Gannan county. Pointing at a stream of green water escaping from under a grey brick wall at the giant farm owned by agro-conglomerate Feihe International, he added: "You can see how it flows right out of the farm. Dodging packets of animal medicine and syringes littered nearby, he explained: "The rubbish left after injections is just thrown here. My land is directly affected." When the Feihe farm opened in 2012 in the grassy hills of the northern province of Heilongjiang it said it had 10,000 cows. In Daxing village next door, a woman also surnamed Ren said: "You can see the manure piled up like a mountain. There are no advantages for us. There is just pollution and noise." The dairy industry in China has posted average yearly growth rates over 12 percent since 2000, due to rising wealth and desire for the health benefits of calcium. The ruling Communist party fanned the expansion, with former Premier Wen Jiabao in 2006 expressing a "dream" that Chinese children should enjoy a daily 0.5 kilograms of dairy products. But a 2008 scandal over baby formula tainted with the industrial chemical melamine saw six children killed and more than 300,000 others affected, shaking confidence in the industry. The crisis was blamed on small-scale farmers using chemicals to inflate the protein content of their milk as they scrambled to meet demand. The Chinese government responded by demanding the creation of large-scale milk production units. "They thought if we have scale farms they are easier to regulate and inspect," said David Mahon, founder of a Beijing-based investment firm specialising in dairy. - Unbearable - There are large scale farms in other countries, such as New Zealand, but rarely with more than 3,000 cows at a single facility. By 2014 China boasted 56 farms with 10,000 cows or more, according to state media -- 80 percent of the global total -- creating a string of pollution problems in several provinces. Estimates say that just 3,500 cows can produce 100,000 tonnes of fluid waste and effluent a year. Chinese farms are required to process it into fertiliser, but regulations are often flouted. "There are some areas of China that it's better to visit in winter, because of the small hills of effluent. Once it thaws it's unbearable," said Mahon. "China is learning about dairy farming and the lack of experience has resulted in such things." In Gannan residents alleged that local officials profited from the farm and took no action against polluters. AFP was not able to verify the claims and local food officials could not be reached for comment. But attitudes may be starting to shift. The vice-head of China's state-backed Dairy Association, Yang Liguo was cited in 2014 as saying "The bigger the scale, the bigger the environmental, pollution and biosecurity problems". Mahon said there had been a "genuine rethink" in Beijing and the Chinese government was "looking more and more to 350 head farms". - Like a mountain - Packing more animals together increases the risk of illnesses such as brucellosis, which can spread to humans and cause arthritis. Feihe employee Wang Dali, who once mucked out cowsheds at the farm in Gannan, contracted brucellosis in 2012, leaving him unable to work, and now suffers near-constant pain in his joints. He blames his infection on poor sanitation. "The cows were packed very close together," he said, estimating each had about 12 square metres. "There was no way to treat the manure. We dug a big hole close to the facility... now it has piled up like a mountain". Feihe denied the residents' allegations, with a woman who answered the phone at its Gannan office saying: "These things are impossible." Dismounting from a tractor a stone's throw from the manure piles in Daxing, one farmer said: "The pollution hasn't been cleaned up well. Of course it has an impact." Pointing to corn stalks growing beside syringes, he added: "We don't eat these ourselves. We sell them to the market".
By PTI

BEIJING: Flexing its muscles over Taiwan, China today sailed its aircraft carrier close to the estranged island amid tensions with the US following President-elect Donald Trump's telephone call with the Taiwanese president.

The first aircraft carrier, Liaoning, accompanied by five naval vessels, entered the disputed South China Sea this afternoon after passing south of Taiwan, reports said.

"Aircraft carriers are strategic tools which should be used to show China's strength to the world and shape the outside world's attitude toward China...It is not built for war only. Chinese aircraft carriers must set off on a long journey," state-run Global Times said in its editorial about the aircraft carrier conducting exercises. "China's core interests are mainly offshore, but the range of aircraft carriers must go beyond offshore areas.

The rivalry must be extended to wider areas so as to ease China's offshore pressure," it said, suggesting that Beijing should acquire more aircraft carriers. "The distant sailing of the Chinese aircraft carrier fleet is not aimed at provoking the US nor at reshaping maritime strategic structure. But if the fleet is able to enter areas where the US has core interests, the situation when the US unilaterally imposes pressure on China will change," it said.

China has also lodged diplomatic protest with the Taiwan-related section in the US National Defence Authorisation Act for Fiscal Year 2017. "We are strongly discontent with the US for signing this act," China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing today.

"The Taiwan question bears on China's sovereignty and territory integrity and falls entirely within China's domestic affairs. Although the Taiwan-related content in the US Act has no legal binding force, it still severely violates the three joint communiques and interferes in Chinas domestic affairs," she said.

"China will by no means accept this. We urge the US side to honour its commitment on the Taiwan question, put an end to military exchanges with and weapons sales to Taiwan and avoid undermining China-US relations or cross-Straits peace and stability," she said.

Also China resumed diplomatic ties with Sao Tome and Principe in Beijing today at a high profile ceremony here after the African nation cut "diplomatic ties" with the Taiwan amid allegations of check book diplomacy by China.

The establishment of diplomatic ties with the African country comes weeks after Trump had an unprecedented phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and later questioned One-China policy, which drew sharp reactions from China.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Sao Tome and Principe counterpart Urbino Botelho held talks and later signed a joint communique on resuming diplomatic relations. Sao Tome was among less than two dozen countries which had diplomatic ties with Taiwan till recently without any contacts with China.

But "excess financial difficulties" reportedly made it to turn to Beijing for economic assistance. "Sao Tome will get full support and help from a permanent member of the UN Security Council and the world's largest developing nation," Wang said after meeting with Botelho.

"China is willing to support Sao Tome's quest for socio-economic development and efforts to improve livelihoods and well-being to the best of its ability," Wang said. "We have to recognise that China plays an increasingly important role in the world, especially as a partner to promote development and its contributions protecting the interests of developing nations," Botelho said.

"Sao Tome is a small, island nation, with very friendly people. It is tranquil. It has very good conditions for developing trade and business and cooperating with Chinese companies," he said.

BEIJING: Flexing its muscles over Taiwan, China today sailed its aircraft carrier close to the estranged island amid tensions with the US following President-elect Donald Trump's telephone call with the Taiwanese president. The first aircraft carrier, Liaoning, accompanied by five naval vessels, entered the disputed South China Sea this afternoon after passing south of Taiwan, reports said. "Aircraft carriers are strategic tools which should be used to show China's strength to the world and shape the outside world's attitude toward China...It is not built for war only. Chinese aircraft carriers must set off on a long journey," state-run Global Times said in its editorial about the aircraft carrier conducting exercises. "China's core interests are mainly offshore, but the range of aircraft carriers must go beyond offshore areas. The rivalry must be extended to wider areas so as to ease China's offshore pressure," it said, suggesting that Beijing should acquire more aircraft carriers. "The distant sailing of the Chinese aircraft carrier fleet is not aimed at provoking the US nor at reshaping maritime strategic structure. But if the fleet is able to enter areas where the US has core interests, the situation when the US unilaterally imposes pressure on China will change," it said. China has also lodged diplomatic protest with the Taiwan-related section in the US National Defence Authorisation Act for Fiscal Year 2017. "We are strongly discontent with the US for signing this act," China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing today. "The Taiwan question bears on China's sovereignty and territory integrity and falls entirely within China's domestic affairs. Although the Taiwan-related content in the US Act has no legal binding force, it still severely violates the three joint communiques and interferes in Chinas domestic affairs," she said. "China will by no means accept this. We urge the US side to honour its commitment on the Taiwan question, put an end to military exchanges with and weapons sales to Taiwan and avoid undermining China-US relations or cross-Straits peace and stability," she said. Also China resumed diplomatic ties with Sao Tome and Principe in Beijing today at a high profile ceremony here after the African nation cut "diplomatic ties" with the Taiwan amid allegations of check book diplomacy by China. The establishment of diplomatic ties with the African country comes weeks after Trump had an unprecedented phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and later questioned One-China policy, which drew sharp reactions from China. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Sao Tome and Principe counterpart Urbino Botelho held talks and later signed a joint communique on resuming diplomatic relations. Sao Tome was among less than two dozen countries which had diplomatic ties with Taiwan till recently without any contacts with China. But "excess financial difficulties" reportedly made it to turn to Beijing for economic assistance. "Sao Tome will get full support and help from a permanent member of the UN Security Council and the world's largest developing nation," Wang said after meeting with Botelho. "China is willing to support Sao Tome's quest for socio-economic development and efforts to improve livelihoods and well-being to the best of its ability," Wang said. "We have to recognise that China plays an increasingly important role in the world, especially as a partner to promote development and its contributions protecting the interests of developing nations," Botelho said. "Sao Tome is a small, island nation, with very friendly people. It is tranquil. It has very good conditions for developing trade and business and cooperating with Chinese companies," he said.
By Associated Press

MOSCOW: Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov says that pilot error or a technical fault were likely to blame for Sunday's crash of a Russian Tu-154 carrying 92 passengers and crew. The military plane crashed into the Black Sea on its way from the southern Russian city of Sochi to Syria. Among its passengers were members of the world-famous Russian army choir who planned to perform at a New Year's concert at the Russian military base in Syria.

1:55 p.m.

Russia's intelligence agency FSB says it sees no signs of a possible terror plot in Sunday's plane crash over the Black Sea.

All 92 people on the Russian military plane are believed to have died when it crashed two minutes after taking off from the southern city of Sochi. The passengers included dozens of singers in Russia's world-famous military choir, nine Russian journalists and a Russian doctor known for her charity work in war zones.

The FSB said Monday in a statement quoted by Russian news agencies that it "has not found any signs or facts pointing to a possible terror attack or sabotage on board."

The intelligence agency says it is focusing the probe on possibilities including pilot error, low quality of fuel, external objects getting in the engine or an unspecified technical fault.

___

12:05 p.m.

The loss of so many talented colleagues is devastating to members of the Russian Defense Ministry choir who did not get on the plane that crashed into the Black Sea.

The choir was on its way to perform a New Year's concert at a Russian air base in Syria when their plane crashed Sunday right after takeoff from Sochi. All 92 people aboard are presumed dead.

Vadim Ananyev, a soloist for the Alexandrov Ensemble, had gotten permission to skip the concert to help his wife as they just had a new baby.

Ananyev tells The Associated Press "I have lost my friends and colleagues, all killed, all five soloists  I feel in complete disarray."

He says "it is such a shame. I have known these people for 30 years. I know their wives and children. I feel terrible for the children and for all that I have lost."

Ananyev says he has received condolences from all over Russia and from abroad.

___

11:10 a.m.

People are bringing flowers to the office of the Russian choir whose members have died in a plane crash over the Black Sea as Russia holds a day of mourning.

All 84 passengers and eight crew on the Russian military's Tu-154 plane are believed dead after it crashed shortly after takeoff from the southern Russian city of Sochi. The passengers included dozens of singers in Russia's world-famous military choir, nine Russian journalists and Russian doctor known for her work in war zones.

Red and white carnations have piled up at tables outside the Moscow office of the Alexandrov Ensemble, which was to have performed at a New Year's concert at the Russian base in Syria. Mourners also lit candles and brought flowers to Channel One and NTV, whose TV journalists were going to Syria to cover the concert, and to a charity founded by Dr. Yelizaveta Glinka, who was on the plane bringing medicines to Syria.

Russian TV channels have taken entertainment shows off their programs and outdoor seasonal celebrations have been scrapped across Russia.

___

9 a.m. Monday

Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov says a pilot error or a technical fault are likely to blame for Sunday's crash of a Russian Tu-154 carrying 92 passengers and crew. The military plane crashed into the Black Sea on its way from the southern Russian city of Sochi to Syria.

Among its passengers were members of the world-famous Russian army choir who planned to perform at a New Year's concert at the Russian military base in Syria.

___

9:55 p.m.

Russian emergency crews are aiming to work all night searching the Black Sea off Sochi for victims and plane debris after a Russian Tu-154 carrying 92 passengers and crew crashed right after takeoff before dawn.

More than 3,000 people  including over 100 divers flown in from across Russia  were working Sunday from 32 ships and several helicopters to search the crash site, the Defense Ministry said. Drones and submersibles were being used to help spot bodies and debris. Powerful spotlights were brought in so the search could go on around the clock.

Emergency crews found fragments of the plane about 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) from shore. By Sunday evening, rescue teams had recovered 11 bodies and Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said fragments of other bodies were also found.

The military plane was flying from the southern Russian city of Sochi to Syria. Among its passengers were members of the world-famous Russian army choir who planned to perform at a New Year's concert at the Russian military base in Syria.

___

7:15 p.m.

Russia's transport minister says investigators are looking into all possible reasons why a Russian military plane crashed into the Black Sea with 92 people on board, including the option of a terror attack.

Earlier, a Russian official had downplayed any suggestion of a terror attack. But on Sunday afternoon, after being asked if investigators are looking into a possible terror attack, minister Maxim Sokolov said an "entire spectrum" of possible reasons is being considered.

He added it's premature to speculate about the cause of Sunday's crash.

The Tu-154 plane belonging to the Defense Ministry crashed into the Black Sea two minutes after takeoff Sunday morning from the Russian city of Sochi. The plane was heading to Syria, carrying members of the world-famous Russian army choir to a New Year concert at the Russian military base.

All aboard are believed to have died, and so far rescuers have recovered 10 bodies.

___

4:15 p.m.

Syrian President Bashar Assad has sent a condolence letter to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, over the plane that plunged into the sea with 92 people aboard.

Assad says he received news of the crash "with deep grief and sadness."

There appeared to be no survivors after the Tu-154 passenger plane operated by the Russian Defense Ministry crashed into the Black Sea.

The jet was carrying members of the world-famous Alexandrov Ensemble army choir to a New Year's concert at the Russian military base in Syria.

Assad expressed his condolences to all the victims' families, adding that the countries are partners in the war against terrorism.

___

3:20 p.m.

The Russian Defense Ministry says rescuers are seeing no sign of any survivors of the crash of a Russian plane into the Black Sea.

Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov says that "no survivors are seen" at the crash site about 1.5 kilometers (less than a mile) from the shore.

The Tu-154 passenger plane with 92 people aboard plummeted into the sea two minutes after taking off from the city of Sochi. The plane belonging to the Russian Defense Ministry was heading to Syria, carrying members of the world-famous Russian army choir to a New Year concert at the Russian military base. The cause of the crash isn't immediately known.

Rescuers already have recovered several bodies, and dozens of ships, drones and divers are looking for more.

___

2:30 p.m.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared a nationwide day of mourning for victims of the crash of a Russian plane that plunged into the sea with 92 people aboard.

There appeared to be no survivors after the Tu-154 passenger plane operated by the Russian Defense Ministry crashed into the Black Sea Sunday minutes after taking off from Sochi. The jet was carrying members of the world-famous Russian army choir to a New Year concert at the Russian military base in Syria. The cause of the crash isn't immediately known.

Putin, speaking in televised remarks, announced there will be a day of mourning on Monday.

He says the government will "conduct a thorough investigation into the reasons and do everything to support the victims' families."

___

1:10 p.m.

Russia's Defense Ministry says a widely revered Russian charity doctor was on board a Russian plane headed to Syria that crashed into the Black Sea shortly after takeoff.

Yelizaveta Glinka, known as Doctor Liza in Russia, has won broad acclaim for charity work that included missions to the war zone in eastern Ukraine.

Her foundation, Spravedlivaya Pomoshch, or Just Help, says she was accompanying a shipment of medicines for a hospital in Syria.

The Tu-154 that belonged to the Russian Defense Minister crashed into the sea Sunday two minutes after taking off from the resort of Sochi. It was also carrying members of the Alexandrov Ensemble to a holiday concert at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria.

There is no indication anyone survived the crash.

___

11:25 a.m.

A Russian official says the crash of a Russian military passenger plane into the Black Sea could have been caused by a technical malfunction or a crew error, but he believes it could not have been terrorism because the plane was operated by the military.

Viktor Ozerov, head of the defense affairs committee at the upper house of Russian parliament, says in remarks carried by the state news agency RIA Novosti that he "totally excludes" terrorism as a possible cause of the crash.

The plane was en route to Russia's air base in Syria with 92 people on board when it crashed shortly after taking off from the resort town of Sochi. At least one body has been found and there is no word on whether anyone survived.

The Defense Ministry has released a list of the passengers. They include 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, among them its leader, Valery Khalilov. The Alexandrov Ensemble is the official choir of the Russian military, and it also includes a band and a dancing company.

___

9:45 a.m.

The Russian Defense Ministry says rescuers have found fragments of the Tu-154 plane that was carrying 91 people en route to the Russian military base in Syria.

The ministry said earlier that the plane disappeared from radars shortly after takeoff from the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Sunday. It carried eight crew and 83 passengers, including members of the world-famous Alexandrov military choir.

The ministry says rescue teams found fragments of the plane at a distance of about 1.5 kilometers (less than a mile) from shore at a depth of 50-70 meters.

MOSCOW: Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov says that pilot error or a technical fault were likely to blame for Sunday's crash of a Russian Tu-154 carrying 92 passengers and crew. The military plane crashed into the Black Sea on its way from the southern Russian city of Sochi to Syria. Among its passengers were members of the world-famous Russian army choir who planned to perform at a New Year's concert at the Russian military base in Syria. 1:55 p.m. Russia's intelligence agency FSB says it sees no signs of a possible terror plot in Sunday's plane crash over the Black Sea. All 92 people on the Russian military plane are believed to have died when it crashed two minutes after taking off from the southern city of Sochi. The passengers included dozens of singers in Russia's world-famous military choir, nine Russian journalists and a Russian doctor known for her charity work in war zones. The FSB said Monday in a statement quoted by Russian news agencies that it "has not found any signs or facts pointing to a possible terror attack or sabotage on board." The intelligence agency says it is focusing the probe on possibilities including pilot error, low quality of fuel, external objects getting in the engine or an unspecified technical fault. ___ 12:05 p.m. The loss of so many talented colleagues is devastating to members of the Russian Defense Ministry choir who did not get on the plane that crashed into the Black Sea. The choir was on its way to perform a New Year's concert at a Russian air base in Syria when their plane crashed Sunday right after takeoff from Sochi. All 92 people aboard are presumed dead. Vadim Ananyev, a soloist for the Alexandrov Ensemble, had gotten permission to skip the concert to help his wife as they just had a new baby. Ananyev tells The Associated Press "I have lost my friends and colleagues, all killed, all five soloists  I feel in complete disarray." He says "it is such a shame. I have known these people for 30 years. I know their wives and children. I feel terrible for the children and for all that I have lost." Ananyev says he has received condolences from all over Russia and from abroad. ___ 11:10 a.m. People are bringing flowers to the office of the Russian choir whose members have died in a plane crash over the Black Sea as Russia holds a day of mourning. All 84 passengers and eight crew on the Russian military's Tu-154 plane are believed dead after it crashed shortly after takeoff from the southern Russian city of Sochi. The passengers included dozens of singers in Russia's world-famous military choir, nine Russian journalists and Russian doctor known for her work in war zones. Red and white carnations have piled up at tables outside the Moscow office of the Alexandrov Ensemble, which was to have performed at a New Year's concert at the Russian base in Syria. Mourners also lit candles and brought flowers to Channel One and NTV, whose TV journalists were going to Syria to cover the concert, and to a charity founded by Dr. Yelizaveta Glinka, who was on the plane bringing medicines to Syria. Russian TV channels have taken entertainment shows off their programs and outdoor seasonal celebrations have been scrapped across Russia. ___ 9 a.m. Monday Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov says a pilot error or a technical fault are likely to blame for Sunday's crash of a Russian Tu-154 carrying 92 passengers and crew. The military plane crashed into the Black Sea on its way from the southern Russian city of Sochi to Syria. Among its passengers were members of the world-famous Russian army choir who planned to perform at a New Year's concert at the Russian military base in Syria. ___ 9:55 p.m. Russian emergency crews are aiming to work all night searching the Black Sea off Sochi for victims and plane debris after a Russian Tu-154 carrying 92 passengers and crew crashed right after takeoff before dawn. More than 3,000 people  including over 100 divers flown in from across Russia  were working Sunday from 32 ships and several helicopters to search the crash site, the Defense Ministry said. Drones and submersibles were being used to help spot bodies and debris. Powerful spotlights were brought in so the search could go on around the clock. Emergency crews found fragments of the plane about 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) from shore. By Sunday evening, rescue teams had recovered 11 bodies and Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said fragments of other bodies were also found. The military plane was flying from the southern Russian city of Sochi to Syria. Among its passengers were members of the world-famous Russian army choir who planned to perform at a New Year's concert at the Russian military base in Syria. ___ 7:15 p.m. Russia's transport minister says investigators are looking into all possible reasons why a Russian military plane crashed into the Black Sea with 92 people on board, including the option of a terror attack. Earlier, a Russian official had downplayed any suggestion of a terror attack. But on Sunday afternoon, after being asked if investigators are looking into a possible terror attack, minister Maxim Sokolov said an "entire spectrum" of possible reasons is being considered. He added it's premature to speculate about the cause of Sunday's crash. The Tu-154 plane belonging to the Defense Ministry crashed into the Black Sea two minutes after takeoff Sunday morning from the Russian city of Sochi. The plane was heading to Syria, carrying members of the world-famous Russian army choir to a New Year concert at the Russian military base. All aboard are believed to have died, and so far rescuers have recovered 10 bodies. ___ 4:15 p.m. Syrian President Bashar Assad has sent a condolence letter to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, over the plane that plunged into the sea with 92 people aboard. Assad says he received news of the crash "with deep grief and sadness." There appeared to be no survivors after the Tu-154 passenger plane operated by the Russian Defense Ministry crashed into the Black Sea. The jet was carrying members of the world-famous Alexandrov Ensemble army choir to a New Year's concert at the Russian military base in Syria. Assad expressed his condolences to all the victims' families, adding that the countries are partners in the war against terrorism. ___ 3:20 p.m. The Russian Defense Ministry says rescuers are seeing no sign of any survivors of the crash of a Russian plane into the Black Sea. Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov says that "no survivors are seen" at the crash site about 1.5 kilometers (less than a mile) from the shore. The Tu-154 passenger plane with 92 people aboard plummeted into the sea two minutes after taking off from the city of Sochi. The plane belonging to the Russian Defense Ministry was heading to Syria, carrying members of the world-famous Russian army choir to a New Year concert at the Russian military base. The cause of the crash isn't immediately known. Rescuers already have recovered several bodies, and dozens of ships, drones and divers are looking for more. ___ 2:30 p.m. Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared a nationwide day of mourning for victims of the crash of a Russian plane that plunged into the sea with 92 people aboard. There appeared to be no survivors after the Tu-154 passenger plane operated by the Russian Defense Ministry crashed into the Black Sea Sunday minutes after taking off from Sochi. The jet was carrying members of the world-famous Russian army choir to a New Year concert at the Russian military base in Syria. The cause of the crash isn't immediately known. Putin, speaking in televised remarks, announced there will be a day of mourning on Monday. He says the government will "conduct a thorough investigation into the reasons and do everything to support the victims' families." ___ 1:10 p.m. Russia's Defense Ministry says a widely revered Russian charity doctor was on board a Russian plane headed to Syria that crashed into the Black Sea shortly after takeoff. Yelizaveta Glinka, known as Doctor Liza in Russia, has won broad acclaim for charity work that included missions to the war zone in eastern Ukraine. Her foundation, Spravedlivaya Pomoshch, or Just Help, says she was accompanying a shipment of medicines for a hospital in Syria. The Tu-154 that belonged to the Russian Defense Minister crashed into the sea Sunday two minutes after taking off from the resort of Sochi. It was also carrying members of the Alexandrov Ensemble to a holiday concert at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria. There is no indication anyone survived the crash. ___ 11:25 a.m. A Russian official says the crash of a Russian military passenger plane into the Black Sea could have been caused by a technical malfunction or a crew error, but he believes it could not have been terrorism because the plane was operated by the military. Viktor Ozerov, head of the defense affairs committee at the upper house of Russian parliament, says in remarks carried by the state news agency RIA Novosti that he "totally excludes" terrorism as a possible cause of the crash. The plane was en route to Russia's air base in Syria with 92 people on board when it crashed shortly after taking off from the resort town of Sochi. At least one body has been found and there is no word on whether anyone survived. The Defense Ministry has released a list of the passengers. They include 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, among them its leader, Valery Khalilov. The Alexandrov Ensemble is the official choir of the Russian military, and it also includes a band and a dancing company. ___ 9:45 a.m. The Russian Defense Ministry says rescuers have found fragments of the Tu-154 plane that was carrying 91 people en route to the Russian military base in Syria. The ministry said earlier that the plane disappeared from radars shortly after takeoff from the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Sunday. It carried eight crew and 83 passengers, including members of the world-famous Alexandrov military choir. The ministry says rescue teams found fragments of the plane at a distance of about 1.5 kilometers (less than a mile) from shore at a depth of 50-70 meters.
By PTI

JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has summoned US Ambassador Daniel Shapiro, two days after Washington abstained in a vote on a UN resolution against Israeli settlements. Their meeting came after Israel yesterday called in 10 representatives of 14 other states that voted for the resolution.

An official Israeli source confirmed only that Netanyahu and Shapiro had met, without elaborating on the content or outcome of their discussions. The UN Security Council passed the measure Friday after the United States abstained, enabling the adoption of the first resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy. The resolution demands that "Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem".

It says settlements have "no legal validity" and are "dangerously imperilling the viability of the two-state solution." Netanyahu, who also holds the foreign ministry portfolio, had rejected the resolution as a "shameful blow against Israel". Yesterday, he repeated Israel's claim that US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry were behind it. "We have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated the drafts and demanded to pass it," the premier said at the beginning of the weekly cabinet meeting.

"This is of course in total contradiction to the traditional American policy of not trying to impose conditions of a final resolution," he said, "and of course the explicit committment of President Obama himself in 2011 to avoid such measures." The Haaretz daily's website said that for Israel to summon an American ambassador was "considered a most unusual step". "Even more unusual is the fact that unlike the other envoys who were summoned on Sunday (yesterday) to the foreign ministry, Netanyahu will conduct the conversation himself at his office," it said ahead of the meeting.

By deciding not to veto the UN move, Washington took a rare step that deeply angered Israel, which accused Obama of abandoning its closest Middle East ally in the waning days of his administration. The text was passed with support from all remaining members of the 15-member council, with applause breaking out in the chamber. The landmark vote came despite intense lobbying efforts by Israel and calls from US President-elect Donald Trump to block the text.

JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has summoned US Ambassador Daniel Shapiro, two days after Washington abstained in a vote on a UN resolution against Israeli settlements. Their meeting came after Israel yesterday called in 10 representatives of 14 other states that voted for the resolution. An official Israeli source confirmed only that Netanyahu and Shapiro had met, without elaborating on the content or outcome of their discussions. The UN Security Council passed the measure Friday after the United States abstained, enabling the adoption of the first resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy. The resolution demands that "Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem". It says settlements have "no legal validity" and are "dangerously imperilling the viability of the two-state solution." Netanyahu, who also holds the foreign ministry portfolio, had rejected the resolution as a "shameful blow against Israel". Yesterday, he repeated Israel's claim that US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry were behind it. "We have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated the drafts and demanded to pass it," the premier said at the beginning of the weekly cabinet meeting. "This is of course in total contradiction to the traditional American policy of not trying to impose conditions of a final resolution," he said, "and of course the explicit committment of President Obama himself in 2011 to avoid such measures." The Haaretz daily's website said that for Israel to summon an American ambassador was "considered a most unusual step". "Even more unusual is the fact that unlike the other envoys who were summoned on Sunday (yesterday) to the foreign ministry, Netanyahu will conduct the conversation himself at his office," it said ahead of the meeting. By deciding not to veto the UN move, Washington took a rare step that deeply angered Israel, which accused Obama of abandoning its closest Middle East ally in the waning days of his administration. The text was passed with support from all remaining members of the 15-member council, with applause breaking out in the chamber. The landmark vote came despite intense lobbying efforts by Israel and calls from US President-elect Donald Trump to block the text.
P K Balachandran By

Express News Service

COLOMBO: Female staff of the Sri Lankan parliament are barred from entering the Public Officers Box if they are wearing a sleeveless blouse, according to a report in The Sunday Times of December 25.

A trilingual notice freshly placed on the door to the Public Officers Box in Parliament stipulated the dress code for female public officers as being saree and a blouse with long-sleeves. And so, a number of female public officers who came to discharge their duties during the budget debate were barred from entering the Box and thus prevented from performing their official functions on the grounds that they were not properly dressed, the paper said.

But this is not the first time that dress became an issue in the Sri Lankan parliament.

In 2009, a Tamil National Alliance MP from Batticaloa, Thangeswary Kathiraman, was asked to leave the House because she was in Shalwar-Kameez. She had broken a rule which said that female MPs must be in a sari. Thangeswarys plea that she could not come in a sari because of a large surgical scar on her midriff was rejected.

(Traditional Sri Lankan woman in a sarong and sleeveless blouse)

Asked how the Muslim lady MP of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), A.R.Anjan Umma, was allowed to come in an Abaya and a Hijab it was said that prior permission had been obtained to enable Muslim MPs to come in their religiously prescribed dress.

Outside parliament too, some institutions have tried to impose a dress code on women. This year, St.Josephs College, a boys school in Colombo, had put up a board at the gate prescribing the acceptable dress for mothers who come to drop and pick up their children. Short skirts and revealing dresses, tights, jeans and sleeveless tops were banned on the grounds that boys would get distracted if they saw young mothers in revealing clothes. But hostile media coverage of the code resulted in the governments barring schools from prescribing dresses for mothers and other visitors.

At the height of anti-Muslim feelings in 2014, the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), an extremist Buddhist monks organization, carried out a campaign against the Abaya and Hijab, especially the Hijab which covers the entire face. Fully covered up people were seen as a security threat.

Since the BBS had the tacit support of the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime, the Muslim Council of Sri Lanka started a scheme to exchange back Abayas and Hijabs for colorful ones so that the full covered women did not appear to be threatening. The movement died out with the exit of the Rajapaksa regime in January 2015.

Seeing the Sinhalese Buddhists and Muslims adopting their own dress codes, moving away from Western modes, Sinhalese Christians, the most Westernized of Sri Lankan communities, also wanted to impose a code in tune with the emerging ideas of modesty. There were attempts to convey to congregations that women coming for service must be dressed modestly.

Not to be left behind, the Tamils too imposed a rule that women and girls attending the annual Nallur temple festival in Jaffna must follow a dress code. In 2010, the Mayor of Jaffna, Yogeswary Patkunarajah, decreed that the women should either be in a sari or an ankle length skirt with the upper part of the body fully covered. The Shalwar-Kameez ensemble was banned because it is not a Tamil dress as Patkunarajah said.

During Colonial times, Sri Lankan women dressed in a variety of ways. A few women were in saris, but most were in Western skirts and the Eastern sarongs. The post independence wave of Sinhala cultural nationalism in the mid 1950s popularized the National Dress for men, comprising a white sarong and a white full sleeved shirt with a tight collar. The idea was to combat widespread Westernization which had taken deep roots in pre-independence Sri Lanka.

And due to Indian influence, the sari was adopted as the indigenous dress of Sri Lankan women. Wearing it was made compulsory for female government servants. The men could appear in any dress, Western or national, though the national dress became a must for politicians.

Commenting on the growing fetish for dress codes in Sri Lanka, Prof.Sasanka Perera of the South Asian University at New Delhi said:  This sounds like a millenarian move couched in a mistaken sense of cultural puritanism. One hears about such moves in times of difficulties when some people would want to be seen as more culturally pure, politically correct, and more patriotic than others.

Usually, this would be justified on the basis of adhering to tradition. But the sari itself is hardly a Sri Lankan tradition. Traditionally, Sri Lankan women, barring those from the upper castes, did not cover the upper part of their bodies if we go by Colonial records. This is a historical fact.

Why do women wear sleeveless jackets? It is because they are more comfortable and also because they are considered fashionable. I cant see any reason why the State has to intervene in women's dresses in parliament unless there is some drastic informality taking place. This is hardly the kind of thing that should be at the top of the governments list of priorities. I am also intrigued why such a restrictive dress code is not imposed on men.

COLOMBO: Female staff of the Sri Lankan parliament are barred from entering the Public Officers Box if they are wearing a sleeveless blouse, according to a report in The Sunday Times of December 25. A trilingual notice freshly placed on the door to the Public Officers Box in Parliament stipulated the dress code for female public officers as being saree and a blouse with long-sleeves. And so, a number of female public officers who came to discharge their duties during the budget debate were barred from entering the Box and thus prevented from performing their official functions on the grounds that they were not properly dressed, the paper said. But this is not the first time that dress became an issue in the Sri Lankan parliament. In 2009, a Tamil National Alliance MP from Batticaloa, Thangeswary Kathiraman, was asked to leave the House because she was in Shalwar-Kameez. She had broken a rule which said that female MPs must be in a sari. Thangeswarys plea that she could not come in a sari because of a large surgical scar on her midriff was rejected. (Traditional Sri Lankan woman in a sarong and sleeveless blouse) Asked how the Muslim lady MP of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), A.R.Anjan Umma, was allowed to come in an Abaya and a Hijab it was said that prior permission had been obtained to enable Muslim MPs to come in their religiously prescribed dress. Outside parliament too, some institutions have tried to impose a dress code on women. This year, St.Josephs College, a boys school in Colombo, had put up a board at the gate prescribing the acceptable dress for mothers who come to drop and pick up their children. Short skirts and revealing dresses, tights, jeans and sleeveless tops were banned on the grounds that boys would get distracted if they saw young mothers in revealing clothes. But hostile media coverage of the code resulted in the governments barring schools from prescribing dresses for mothers and other visitors. At the height of anti-Muslim feelings in 2014, the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), an extremist Buddhist monks organization, carried out a campaign against the Abaya and Hijab, especially the Hijab which covers the entire face. Fully covered up people were seen as a security threat. Since the BBS had the tacit support of the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime, the Muslim Council of Sri Lanka started a scheme to exchange back Abayas and Hijabs for colorful ones so that the full covered women did not appear to be threatening. The movement died out with the exit of the Rajapaksa regime in January 2015. Seeing the Sinhalese Buddhists and Muslims adopting their own dress codes, moving away from Western modes, Sinhalese Christians, the most Westernized of Sri Lankan communities, also wanted to impose a code in tune with the emerging ideas of modesty. There were attempts to convey to congregations that women coming for service must be dressed modestly. Not to be left behind, the Tamils too imposed a rule that women and girls attending the annual Nallur temple festival in Jaffna must follow a dress code. In 2010, the Mayor of Jaffna, Yogeswary Patkunarajah, decreed that the women should either be in a sari or an ankle length skirt with the upper part of the body fully covered. The Shalwar-Kameez ensemble was banned because it is not a Tamil dress as Patkunarajah said. During Colonial times, Sri Lankan women dressed in a variety of ways. A few women were in saris, but most were in Western skirts and the Eastern sarongs. The post independence wave of Sinhala cultural nationalism in the mid 1950s popularized the National Dress for men, comprising a white sarong and a white full sleeved shirt with a tight collar. The idea was to combat widespread Westernization which had taken deep roots in pre-independence Sri Lanka. And due to Indian influence, the sari was adopted as the indigenous dress of Sri Lankan women. Wearing it was made compulsory for female government servants. The men could appear in any dress, Western or national, though the national dress became a must for politicians. Commenting on the growing fetish for dress codes in Sri Lanka, Prof.Sasanka Perera of the South Asian University at New Delhi said:  This sounds like a millenarian move couched in a mistaken sense of cultural puritanism. One hears about such moves in times of difficulties when some people would want to be seen as more culturally pure, politically correct, and more patriotic than others. Usually, this would be justified on the basis of adhering to tradition. But the sari itself is hardly a Sri Lankan tradition. Traditionally, Sri Lankan women, barring those from the upper castes, did not cover the upper part of their bodies if we go by Colonial records. This is a historical fact. Why do women wear sleeveless jackets? It is because they are more comfortable and also because they are considered fashionable. I cant see any reason why the State has to intervene in women's dresses in parliament unless there is some drastic informality taking place. This is hardly the kind of thing that should be at the top of the governments list of priorities. I am also intrigued why such a restrictive dress code is not imposed on men.
By PTI

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan today rejected reports regarding demonetisation of Rs 5,000 notes to curb corruption in the country.

The Ministry of Finance, in a statement, denied the reports and said the government has neither taken such a decision nor is there any justification for the discontinuation of Rs 5000 note.

"The current denomination of highest value notes in Pakistan, ie Rs 5,000, is significantly smaller compared to those of major currencies such as the USD 100 note, Euro 200 and Pound Sterling 50. During 2015-16, only 17 per cent of the notes printed were of Rs 5000 denomination," the statement further added.

It said that in view of the continuing use of cash in transactions, the discontinuation of the Rs 5,000 note will adversely affect the efficiency of exchange in commercial activities and be a source of major discomfort and anxiety for the people.

"As such the very notion of cancellation of such convenience in transactions is preposterous and unequivocally denied," it said further.

The ministry further stated that it is pursuing the National Financial Inclusion Strategy in association with the State Bank, through which digital transactions and branch-less banking will be brought to the doorstep of people that would significantly reduce the dependence on currency.

"This is the way to move forward for promoting documentation in the economy rather than by cancelling any existing denomination," it said.

There were reports that the highest denomination note in Pakistan may be cancelled as it is perceived to have made the carrying and hiding of ill-gotten money easier.

Last week, the Senate had passed a resolution calling on the government to withdraw the Rs 5,000 note from circulation. The resolution was moved by Senator Osman Saifullah Khan of the opposition Pakistan People Party.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan today rejected reports regarding demonetisation of Rs 5,000 notes to curb corruption in the country. The Ministry of Finance, in a statement, denied the reports and said the government has neither taken such a decision nor is there any justification for the discontinuation of Rs 5000 note. "The current denomination of highest value notes in Pakistan, ie Rs 5,000, is significantly smaller compared to those of major currencies such as the USD 100 note, Euro 200 and Pound Sterling 50. During 2015-16, only 17 per cent of the notes printed were of Rs 5000 denomination," the statement further added. It said that in view of the continuing use of cash in transactions, the discontinuation of the Rs 5,000 note will adversely affect the efficiency of exchange in commercial activities and be a source of major discomfort and anxiety for the people. "As such the very notion of cancellation of such convenience in transactions is preposterous and unequivocally denied," it said further. The ministry further stated that it is pursuing the National Financial Inclusion Strategy in association with the State Bank, through which digital transactions and branch-less banking will be brought to the doorstep of people that would significantly reduce the dependence on currency. "This is the way to move forward for promoting documentation in the economy rather than by cancelling any existing denomination," it said. There were reports that the highest denomination note in Pakistan may be cancelled as it is perceived to have made the carrying and hiding of ill-gotten money easier. Last week, the Senate had passed a resolution calling on the government to withdraw the Rs 5,000 note from circulation. The resolution was moved by Senator Osman Saifullah Khan of the opposition Pakistan People Party.
By AFP

MOSCOW: Russia's shock over the military plane clash that killed 92 people became all the more acute when Yelizaveta Glinka, a renowned doctor and charity worker, was on the doomed flight's passenger list.

The diminutive 54-year-old woman, affectionately known as "Dr. Liza", had boarded the same military flight to Syria as more than 60 members of the famed Red Army Choir, who were on their way to entertain troops stationed at the Hmeimim base Moscow uses to launch airstrikes in the war-scarred country.

But Glinka's objective was neither musical nor military. She was on a mission to deliver medication to a university hospital in the Syrian coastal city of Latakia.

Since Sunday's crash Muscovites have been laying flowers and candles in front of the headquarters of Fair Aid, the charity she founded in 2007 to care for the homeless, terminally-ill patients and abandoned pensioners in Russia which often offers little support to vulnerable social groups.

"She didn't live her life in vain because she did a lot of good," said 48-year-old Anna, weeping as she laid flowers on the organisation's doorstep in central Moscow.

Glinka's death sparked a national outpouring of grief that spanned the political spectrum, with the defence ministry, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and the opposition-friendly mayor of the Urals city of Yekaterinburg pledging to rename a medical facility in her honour.

But unlike the Red Army Choir, Glinka was not known internationally, humbly building her reputation as a selfless worker by assisting Russia's underprivileged.

After graduating from medical school in Moscow in 1986, Glinka and her husband Gleb emigrated to the United States where she studied palliative care.

She later returned to Russia and also lived for some time in neighbouring Ukraine, where she founded a hospice affiliated with a Kiev oncology clinic.

In Moscow she is mostly remembered for feeding, clothing and providing medical care to the homeless people who sleep in the Russian capital's sprawling train stations.

"Liza Glinka helped the people that everyone turned away," human rights activist and opposition journalist Zoya Svetova, who knew Glinka, told AFP.

"Few organisations are ready to help the homeless at train stations."

When fighting between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian separatists erupted in eastern Ukraine in 2014, Glinka -- who was also a member of the Kremlin's human rights council -- travelled to the war zone to provide emergency care to children injured as a result of the conflict.

She told Russian media in July that she had evacuated 446 children from the area since the start of the fighting and taken them to Russia to undergo medical treatment.

Glinka had travelled to Syria earlier this year where she visited a local hospital and saw it was severely lacking in medicine.

"To save the lives of others, that was her mission everywhere: in Russia, in Donbass (eastern Ukraine), Syria," the head of the Kremlin human rights council, Mikhail Fedotov, said in a statement Sunday, calling Glinka "a miracle, a heaven-sent message of virtue."

But some have criticised the doctor, even after her death, for working around conflicts many say have been exacerbated by President Vladimir Putin's policies.

"This shows us that our society is split between those who support Putin and those who don't," Svetova said. "There is no middle ground, and that's dangerous."

The journalist added that Glinka, who had received a humanitarian award from Putin this year, cooperated with the Kremlin because "without it, she wouldn't have been able to do anything."

"We are never sure that we will return alive," Glinka said upon receiving the award, referring to her travels in conflict zones.

"But we are sure that good, compassion and mercy are stronger than any weapon."

MOSCOW: Russia's shock over the military plane clash that killed 92 people became all the more acute when Yelizaveta Glinka, a renowned doctor and charity worker, was on the doomed flight's passenger list. The diminutive 54-year-old woman, affectionately known as "Dr. Liza", had boarded the same military flight to Syria as more than 60 members of the famed Red Army Choir, who were on their way to entertain troops stationed at the Hmeimim base Moscow uses to launch airstrikes in the war-scarred country. But Glinka's objective was neither musical nor military. She was on a mission to deliver medication to a university hospital in the Syrian coastal city of Latakia. Since Sunday's crash Muscovites have been laying flowers and candles in front of the headquarters of Fair Aid, the charity she founded in 2007 to care for the homeless, terminally-ill patients and abandoned pensioners in Russia which often offers little support to vulnerable social groups. "She didn't live her life in vain because she did a lot of good," said 48-year-old Anna, weeping as she laid flowers on the organisation's doorstep in central Moscow. Glinka's death sparked a national outpouring of grief that spanned the political spectrum, with the defence ministry, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and the opposition-friendly mayor of the Urals city of Yekaterinburg pledging to rename a medical facility in her honour. But unlike the Red Army Choir, Glinka was not known internationally, humbly building her reputation as a selfless worker by assisting Russia's underprivileged. After graduating from medical school in Moscow in 1986, Glinka and her husband Gleb emigrated to the United States where she studied palliative care. She later returned to Russia and also lived for some time in neighbouring Ukraine, where she founded a hospice affiliated with a Kiev oncology clinic. In Moscow she is mostly remembered for feeding, clothing and providing medical care to the homeless people who sleep in the Russian capital's sprawling train stations. "Liza Glinka helped the people that everyone turned away," human rights activist and opposition journalist Zoya Svetova, who knew Glinka, told AFP. "Few organisations are ready to help the homeless at train stations." When fighting between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian separatists erupted in eastern Ukraine in 2014, Glinka -- who was also a member of the Kremlin's human rights council -- travelled to the war zone to provide emergency care to children injured as a result of the conflict. She told Russian media in July that she had evacuated 446 children from the area since the start of the fighting and taken them to Russia to undergo medical treatment. Glinka had travelled to Syria earlier this year where she visited a local hospital and saw it was severely lacking in medicine. "To save the lives of others, that was her mission everywhere: in Russia, in Donbass (eastern Ukraine), Syria," the head of the Kremlin human rights council, Mikhail Fedotov, said in a statement Sunday, calling Glinka "a miracle, a heaven-sent message of virtue." But some have criticised the doctor, even after her death, for working around conflicts many say have been exacerbated by President Vladimir Putin's policies. "This shows us that our society is split between those who support Putin and those who don't," Svetova said. "There is no middle ground, and that's dangerous." The journalist added that Glinka, who had received a humanitarian award from Putin this year, cooperated with the Kremlin because "without it, she wouldn't have been able to do anything." "We are never sure that we will return alive," Glinka said upon receiving the award, referring to her travels in conflict zones. "But we are sure that good, compassion and mercy are stronger than any weapon."
By AFP

SEOUL: The woman at the heart of the impeachment crisis surrounding South Korean President Park Geun-Hye refused to leave her jail cell Monday for questioning by lawmakers who had convened a special hearing at her detention centre.

Choi Soon-Sil, a long-time friend of the president, has repeatedly snubbed a parliamentary committee probing a corruption scandal that triggered Park's impeachment earlier this month.

Currently on trial for extortion and abuse of power, Choi had ignored several summons to attend the committees hearings in the National Assembly -- prompting the lawmakers to come to her.

A special, televised hearing was convened in the detention centre where Choi is being held on the outskirts of Seoul, but lawmakers were left with little to do but vent their frustrations after she refused to leave her cell.

Two former top presidential aides being held in a separate facility also refused to appear for questioning.

"It's regrettable that the witnesses disregarded the authority of the people and the parliament by ignoring their obligation to attend," said committee chairman Kim Sung-Tae.

There are no legal grounds for forcing witnesses to attend a parliamentary hearing, although they can be held in contempt and face a maximum five-year prison term for not doing so.

"Choi Soon-Sil is at the core of the parliamentary probe," said Jung You-Sub, a lawmaker from Park's ruling Saenuri Party.

"Her reasons for not attending are not justified. The people want to hear the truth," Jung said.

Choi had been questioned on Sunday by special prosecutors investigating the extent of the president's alleged collusion with Choi in shaking down a number of major conglomerates to provide "donations" to two foundations she controlled.

Choi denied new allegations that she had stashed around 10 trillion won ($8.3 billion) abroad.

The National Assembly voted to impeach Park earlier this month, stripping away her substantial executive powers.

She remains president in name, pending a decision by the Constitutional Court on whether to ratify parliament's impeachment motion.

Earlier Monday, prosecutors seized documents during an early morning raid on the central Seoul residence of Kim Ki-Choon, who served as Park's chief of staff between 2013-15.

Kim has a long association with Park's family, having also served her father -- the late military strongman Park Chung-Hee who led the country for 18 years after seizing power in a 1979 military coup.

Those close ties have led to allegations that he must have been aware of the inappropriate influence that Choi -- dubbed a "female Rasputin" by the local media -- wielded over the president.

Park allegedly leaked confidential documents to her friend, and allowed her to meddle in state affairs -- including the appointments of senior officials.

SEOUL: The woman at the heart of the impeachment crisis surrounding South Korean President Park Geun-Hye refused to leave her jail cell Monday for questioning by lawmakers who had convened a special hearing at her detention centre. Choi Soon-Sil, a long-time friend of the president, has repeatedly snubbed a parliamentary committee probing a corruption scandal that triggered Park's impeachment earlier this month. Currently on trial for extortion and abuse of power, Choi had ignored several summons to attend the committees hearings in the National Assembly -- prompting the lawmakers to come to her. A special, televised hearing was convened in the detention centre where Choi is being held on the outskirts of Seoul, but lawmakers were left with little to do but vent their frustrations after she refused to leave her cell. Two former top presidential aides being held in a separate facility also refused to appear for questioning. "It's regrettable that the witnesses disregarded the authority of the people and the parliament by ignoring their obligation to attend," said committee chairman Kim Sung-Tae. There are no legal grounds for forcing witnesses to attend a parliamentary hearing, although they can be held in contempt and face a maximum five-year prison term for not doing so. "Choi Soon-Sil is at the core of the parliamentary probe," said Jung You-Sub, a lawmaker from Park's ruling Saenuri Party. "Her reasons for not attending are not justified. The people want to hear the truth," Jung said. Choi had been questioned on Sunday by special prosecutors investigating the extent of the president's alleged collusion with Choi in shaking down a number of major conglomerates to provide "donations" to two foundations she controlled. Choi denied new allegations that she had stashed around 10 trillion won ($8.3 billion) abroad. The National Assembly voted to impeach Park earlier this month, stripping away her substantial executive powers. She remains president in name, pending a decision by the Constitutional Court on whether to ratify parliament's impeachment motion. Earlier Monday, prosecutors seized documents during an early morning raid on the central Seoul residence of Kim Ki-Choon, who served as Park's chief of staff between 2013-15. Kim has a long association with Park's family, having also served her father -- the late military strongman Park Chung-Hee who led the country for 18 years after seizing power in a 1979 military coup. Those close ties have led to allegations that he must have been aware of the inappropriate influence that Choi -- dubbed a "female Rasputin" by the local media -- wielded over the president. Park allegedly leaked confidential documents to her friend, and allowed her to meddle in state affairs -- including the appointments of senior officials.
Students lose money after taking courses on how to get rich

VietNamNet Bridge - As the number of enrichment training classes have been increasing, class organisers are making big profits. But students are losing money.

As the number of enrichment training classes have been increasing, class organisers are making big profits. But students are losing money.



Enrichment courses are especially attractive to first-year university students. At universities, leaflets with advertising about enrichment courses with flowery names such as a training course to wake up riches or the not difficult to get rich training course are delivered to students.The search keywords khoa hoc lam giau (enrichment courses), lam giau nhu the nao (how to get rich) find hundreds of thousands of results.The fee is VND1-2 million at minimum. There are the training courses with the fee of VND10-20 million. Meanwhile, VIP training courses cost VND200 million.The organizers of the training courses promise that attendees will be given advice on how to start a business when still at school, how to make money when sleeping and how to get money with ones brain. They promise to return money if the students cannot get rich.Thuy Van, a student at Hanoi Economics University, she attended a three day training course.The orator gave interesting stories. But whether to get rich will depend on individuals abilities, she said.As Van did not put high hopes on training courses like these, she only registered a short-term course and spent hundreds of thousands of dong on it.Meanwhile, other students who hope they can get rich quickly after the training courses, accepted to pay millions of dong and became penniless after trying to do business as they were taught.KT, a former student at the Saigon Technology University, decided to attend a training course after reading an advertisement they can get rich without investment capital.To attend the course, I had to borrow money from relatives. They (the teachers) affirmed that we would make money right on the first day. We were told to create accounts and then we bought goods from each other, she recalled.After finishing the training course, I tried to do my business. But my business plan failed completely after one month, she said.Huynh Trong Van, director of ODS, a company which owns a data center, said the enrichment courses attract many young people who want to become rich quickly.

Tien Phong
Reporter/Columnist

Julie Wurth is a reporter covering the University of Illinois at The News-Gazette. Her email is jwurth@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@jawurth).
Champaign, IL (61820)

Today

Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. Low 58F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. Low 58F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph.
Reporter

Mary Schenk is a reporter covering police, courts and breaking news at The News-Gazette. Her email is mschenk@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@schenk).
R&D centre of Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd (CATL) in Ningde, Zhejiang province, China (Image: Reuters)

A dusty village on the outskirts of Ningde, a third-tier city in China's southeast, seems an unlikely place for the headquarters of a potential global leader in future automotive technology.Yet China's top-down industrial policy diktats - move up the value chain, clean up polluted urban skies, and shift to plug-in cars - have Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd (CATL) poised to go from hometown hero to national champion, and beyond.China's answer to Japan's Panasonic Corp and South Korea's LG Chem Ltd has tripled its production capacity for lithium-ion car batteries in the past year to keep up with a surge in China's sales of electric cars.After a second major funding round completed in October, the company's value quadrupled to 80 billion yuan ($11.5 billion), CEO Huang Shilin said last week.CATL, which hopes to list on Beijing's over-the-counter exchange as part of plans to raise at least another 30 billion yuan by 2020, could be a dominant force globally.It has already overtaken LG Chem in lithium-ion car battery output, and is chasing down Panasonic and Warren Buffett-backed BYD Co Ltd.CATL plans to grow its battery capacity sixfold by 2020 to 50 gigawatt hours, which could put it ahead of Tesla Motor Inc's gigafactory in Nevada."We continue to walk where the country guides us," Huang said. "We hope by 2020 we can achieve performance and price that lead the world."The company, founded just five years ago, is already pushing beyond China's borders, with offices in Sweden, Germany and France and plans to build a factory in Europe. Company representatives say that because of non-disclosure agreements they can only list BMW as a customer for now.Despite the ambitious expansion, the emerging segment's dependence on government policy and rapidly evolving technology is not without risk.A123, a U.S. automotive battery maker, went from IPO to bust in just three years as battery costs remained stubbornly high and orders dried up."People think we're a big successful company, but we think we're in jeopardy every day," marketing director Neill Yang said. "The market environment and technology changes so fast that if we don't follow the trend we could die in three months."To become a Chinese champion, a battery maker must first shed any foreign investment to be eligible for subsidies and other policy support, people in the industry say.Before he set up CATL, Robin Zeng had started Amperex Technology Ltd (ATL), a company now majority-owned by Japan's TDK.ATL initially had a 15 percent stake in CATL, but liquidated that holding last year, Yang said, when electric vehicle sales first started to take off. He declined to elaborate on the circumstances of that divestment.TDK separated from CATL to focus on batteries for mobile consumer electronics, but still collects royalties on some intellectual property used by CATL, a spokesman for the Japanese company said."The reason is strategic and confidential. ATL still keeps a close relationship with CATL," said a person familiar with the situation, who was not authorized to speak to the media.ATL and CATL still share a Ningde campus, although the front gate and main office bear only the ATL name.Zeng, a Ningde local with a doctorate in chemistry, appears to be the remaining link between the two companies he founded. He declined an interview request.While government support for electric cars has driven demand for components such as batteries, Beijing is also rolling out other policies that could benefit leading producers like CATL, by forcing smaller firms to consolidate or go out of business.The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MITI) said last month it is considering a rule that would increase minimum production requirements for battery makers by around 40 times to 8 gigawatt hours.Only BYD and CATL are roughly in line with that minimum, though Chinese media reports suggest Hefei Guoxuan High-Tech Power Energy Co Ltd and Tianjin Lishen Battery Joint-Stock Co Ltd may be close to or above that level by next year.Yang said subsidy support for batteries is fairly modest compared to those for producing electric vehicles, which totalled $4.5 billion last year alone.CATL has been nominated as one of three battery makers - with Guoxuan and Lishen - for incentives under China's 13th Five-Year Plan, promising around $15 million if it can meet targets, Yang said. He noted, though, that a single production line costs $40 million.Among national 2020 targets: to halve battery costs to below 1 yuan ($0.144) per kilowatt hour, and improve energy density by two-thirds.To get there, CATL is ramping up spending on research and development, where it employs more than 1,000 people with advanced science degrees."The strength of their R&D investment is quite large," said Fu Yuwu, chief of the Society of Automotive Engineers of China, adding he hopes the company can become a global leader."They have such large scale and the support of China's huge market, all the more reason they should do a good job of internationalizing," he said.
New Delhi: Union leaders have told News18 that post demonetisation banks will suffer "catastrophic losses" because deposits have increased but advances  or loans that keeps a bank functioning  have fallen down drastically.



C. J. Nandakumar, president of Bank Employees Federation of India, told News18 that banks are reeling under severe financial crisis.



"After the withdrawal of old high denomination notes, there have been an increase in deposits by 15% from the last financial year when it was in single digits but advances have fallen to 5.67% this quarter where it was growing at a rate of 14% earlier. There is no scope of advances now. It might lead to a severe economic crunch which could make the scenario catastrophic," he said.



"Banking staff which were previously designated in several divisions are all working round the clock to exchange old currency and disburse new ones. From where will we sanction loans?" Nandakumar asked.



Nandakumar added the new thrust to go digital or cashless have proven difficult for banks. "Most of the people are now making even smaller payments by cheque which has led banks to clear 3000 to 4000 cheques a month where the previous figure used to hover around 800. Even the small scale sellers who have opted for POS machines often come to banks as they don't get their money. All of this had led to a complete neglect towards the advances sector," he said.



A few bankers feel that demonetization has resulted in not only an increase in deposits but also a sudden settlement of loans which would have otherwise given banks a pathway to make profits.



D. Thomas Franco Rajendra Dev, senior vice-president of All India Bank Officers Confederation, told News18 that agricultural gold loans were majorly settled after November 8 by farmers who got cash from panchayat heads looking to dispose off their large amounts of cash in old currency.



"Agricultural gold loans are a popular thing in the south and other parts of the country. Now, panchayat heads who could not deposit their old currencies in the available bank accounts helped farmers repay all their gold loans with a promise to be paid later, and in this way they dispose off their cash with farmers being indebted to them. This way our advances are reaching a new low, which can be dangerous for the banking sector," Dev said.



"Now we have severe pressure on us to meet the needs of digital banking. SBI till now has 3.5 lakh POS machines and they have been given a target of another 2.5 lakh POS machines till March 2017 which is a very short deadline. Now our staff has been allotted to pursue shopkeepers to pay the rentals for these machines and opt for them. We have no officials left who can undertake the task of sanctioning loans or take care of investments," said Franco.



Though most officials feel the imbalance would continue even during the first quarter post the 2017 financial budget, they were unanimous to blame RBI for their low cash disbursals.



CH Venkatachalam, general secretary, All India Bank Employees Association, told News18 that the situation has only got worse since the last 40 days with RBI not giving them enough cash.



"There have been deposits worth 14 lakh crores and we are giving interests on those accounts without any way to circulate the excess deposit by means of loans. On top of that RBI is not disbursing enough cash," he said.



Nandakumar blamed the "contradictory nature" of RBI circulars which has added to the present woes. "The credibility of RBI is at stake now. They keep changing statements; first they will release figures of disbursed money and alter it after the financial secretary corrects them. This creates a very negative impression about the central bank," he said.



Dev believes that now after 46 days, RBI and the government should at least "release a roadmap" on the future. "Every day our executives are standing in lines in front of the RBI to request them to release extra cash but are often disappointed. If the loans and advances sector does not pick up, it will add to a lot of problems," he said.



Dev feels a big surprise may be in store for the banking sector in the coming few months. "We are anticipating that before the budget is announced, government might announce a plan stating that since banks have a lot of surplus cash, Mudra loans etc. must be increased and this will again create a lot of stress on the entire banking sector," he said.
: On 19 April 2012, India made its entry into the Intercontinental ballistic Missile (ICBM) club after the successful test launch of its indigenous Agni V missile. On Monday, India successfully test-fired an improved version of the missile which can hit targets in Pakistan and China with pin-point accuracy. Though, our scientists claim that Agni V has a range upto 6,000 kilometers, foreign researchers say that India has downplayed its capabilities to avoid causing concern to other countries and the missile' actual range is up to 8,000 kilometers. Here is a comparison between Agni V and other missiles of the world:Russia's R-36M (SS-18 Satan) missile is the world's longest range Intercontinental Ballistic Missile. It has a strike range of 16,000 kilometers. With a weight of 8.8 tonnes the R-36M is also the heaviest ICBM in the world.The LGM-30 Minuteman ICBM was first deployed in 1970. It has an estimated operational range of between 12,000 km to 15,000 kilometers.According to an article published in Pakistan Defence, China admitted that India's Agni-V is comparable to its DF-26 ICBM which is also nicknamed Guam Killer. The IRBM, with reported range of 3,500 km, has the ability to reach a major US base in Guam in the western Pacific.DF-26, a two-stage solid fuel rocket IRBM, measures 14 meters long with a diameter of 1.4 metre and a launch weight of 20 tonnes. It can carry a nuclear or conventional warhead that weighs 1,200-1,800 kilograms and has an estimated maximum range of more than 5,000 km.China believes Agni V, with reported range of 5,000 kilometers, is the only other missile in the world which can hit targets over 8000 kilometers with a lighter payload, making it much better missile system than DF-26.DongFeng 5A is China's longest range ICBM and is capable of striking targets within the range of 13,000 kilometers.The M51, which was inducted into service aboard the French Navy's Triomphant class submarines in 2010, has an operational range between 8,000 kilometers to 10,000 kilometers. An improved version with new nuclear warheads was commissioned in 2015. The three-stage missile weighs 50 tonnes and can carry six independently targetable re-entry vehicles with a yield of 100kt-150 kilo tonnes each.Produced by Israel Aerospace Industries, Jericho III is believed to be a three-stage solid propellant rocket with a payload capacity upto 1,300 kgs. According to reports, the missile can hit targets within a range of 4,800 to 6,500 kilometers (2,982 to 4,038 miles). The missile can be equipped with a single 750 kg nuclear warhead or two or three low yield MIRV warheads.Though, Pakistan claims that India won't be able to defend itself from its lethal missile attack, the country doesn't have a missile in its arsenal that matches Agni V.Shaheen-III ballistic missile is Pakistan's longest-range missile to date. Pakistan claims this nuclear-capable missile has a range of 2,750 km and it can hit Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal in addition to all of mainland India. Currently, Pakistan is prioritising the development and deployment of short-range missile systems armed with low-yield nuclear warheads like Nasr.
New Delhi: A special court on Monday granted bail to former IAF chief S P Tyagi who was arrested in AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam case on Rs 2 lakh surety and other usual clauses.



The court has asked Tyagi to cooperate in the case and not to leave the country. It was a 30 second thing where the judge came and said, "I couldn't decide the bail plea for Gautam Khaitan and Sanjeev Tyagi. I have granted bail to SP Tyagi".



The plea of other two accused - Sanjeev Tyagi (Julie) and lawyer Gautam Khaitan - will be decided on January 4, 2017.



The courtroom was packed with relatives and lawyers of Sanjeev and Khaitan. The former IAF chief's wife, daughter and son were also present inside the court when the order was pronounced.



Speaking on the issue D R Karthikeyan, Former Director, CBI said, "The court must have felt that proof is not strong enough against Tyagi."



Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar had reserved its order on the bail applications of Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and Khaitan and posted the matter for December 26 for pronouncing the order.



Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".



"The persons are of high ranking... The investigation is going on and we are getting support from other countries. If they get bail, they may influence witnesses, destroy evidences and hamper the ongoing probe which is at a very crucial stage.



"We have evidences where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all three accused and adding that the matter has "tarnished country's name."



However, the CBI also told the court that "it is not our argument that the accused may flee from justice."



On the court's query whether the CBI had any material regarding S P Tyagi receiving money, the agency said the former IAF chief had purchased several properties for which the sources of income were not disclosed by him and alleged that he had abused his official position.







Opposing CBI's contention, S P Tyagi's advocate Maneka Guruswamy said his client "could not be deprived from freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".



She claimed before the court that in the last four years since the FIR was registered, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.



"Even today (on December 23), the CBI has not demonstrated anything more than a statement that my client recieved some cash. He is already retired and not going to influence the probe today and there is no evidence to suggest that he tried to do so in the past," the counsel said.
"If an independent probe is held, Modiji will stand exposed," he is reported to have said at the meeting.

"We will also highlight the personal corruption by the Prime Minister... and the suffering of the common people due to demonetisation," Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.

Congress on Monday announced it will hold country-wide protests on January 5 at all district headquarters and on January 8 at the block level to highlight the common man's woes due to demonetisation and the "personal corruption" by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.At a meeting of all top Congress leaders chaired by party's vice president Rahul Gandhi it was decided to involve the commoner in the fight against demonetisation.Sources said Congress will also hold pressers across the country at the central and the state level on December 29 and 30 and later on January 2 at the district level, where the "personal corruption" by the Prime Minister and sufferings of common people will be highlighted.The meeting was attended by all party general secretaries and secretaries, PCC chiefs and other top leaders at the central and the state level.The sources said that in the first phase, Congress will agitate at district headquarters on January 5 and in the second phase, it will take this fight to the block level with Mahila Congress holding such agitations and demonstrations on January 8.Addressing the party men, Gandhi alleged demonetisation has turned out to be a "scam" and that the Prime Minister has "indulged" in corruption and has not come clean on the "Sahara diaries" bribery issue.Gandhi also asked party men to gear up for taking their fight to the public and highlight the "personal corruption" by the Prime Minister and the woes of the common man due to note ban.During the meeting, Gandhi sought feedback from state leaders on note ban woes.Starting December 29 and 30, Congress will push for widhrawal of all financial restrictions imposed on the common man post-demonetisation and ask the government to allow the public deposit and withdraw money freely from their bank accounts.The party will focus on highlighting "losses suffered by people, who lost their jobs due to demonetisation, contraction of economy and the hardships of the poor, farmers and traders".Prime Minister Narendra Modi while announcing the decision to invalidate 500 and 1000 rupee notes on November 8 had said there would some inconvenience to people for the initial 50-day period that ends on December 30.
New Delhi: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, while speaking in Baran district of Rajasthan on Monday, attacked PM Narendra Modi saying cash Ban is actually a financial lockdown.

He also slammed Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje for failing the farmers.

Earlier, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley spoke on the need for lower level of taxation, to provide services more competitive in nature.

Competition is not domestic, it is global. This is one important change you will witness while you will be in service, Jaitley had said.

Read More: Restrictions on Cash Withdrawals May Continue Beyond December 30

With less than five days to go for December 30 deadline set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ease money supply, the cash crunch continues with people lining outside banks and ATMs to withdraw their money.

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Chandigarh: A complaint of loot of Rs 5 lakh turned out to be fake with police arresting four including the complainant-- an assistant manager of a private bank in the city.



Haryana Police on Monday said it has solved the case of loot of Rs 5 lakh from near village Sinhpura in Kurukshetra district and arrested four persons, including an Assistant Manager of a private bank who happened to be the alleged gang leader.



They committed the alleged crime when currency notes were being taken from one branch of the private bank to another, police said.



As per the complaint, three motorcycle-borne youths had looted Rs 5 lakhs in new currency notes from the employees of a private bank on December 22.



A spokesman for the Police Department today said accused included Assistant Manager of Dharala village branch of HDFC Bank; Ravinder Kumar, from Kirmach village; bank security guard, Paramjit Singh; Avtar Singh, a resident of village Kaulapur; and Rajdeep, who was arrested from Kaahangarh village.



He said Ravinder Kumar had lodged a complaint that on December 22 the bank money was looted from him and security guard Paramjit Singh after throwing chilly powder in their eyes on Jhansa road near village Sinhupara.



A case was registered against three unidentified persons on the basis of this complaint.



However, on interrogation, Ravinder Kumar revealed that he himself had planned to loot the bank money to pay his debt of Rs 40,000 to Avtar Singh.



After a failed attempt on December 19, Ravinder Kumar and Paramjit Singh drove towards another branch of the bank along with the cash, in Ravinder's own car on December 22. As per the plan, Avtar Singh and Rajdeep threw chilly powder in their eyes and fled with the cash.
He said the arrest "obviously" hurts the morale of the people of the armed forces.

Describing former IAF chief S P Tyagi as a "sound professional", Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha on Tuesday said he should not have been treated like a "common criminal".Tyagi, arrested on December 9 in AgustaWestland chopper scam case, was on Monday granted bail by a special court here.Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted the relief to Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs two lakh and one surety of like amount."You know, it is sub-judice so it won't be right for me to say anything. But, it is very unfortunate, I think for sure, that a person of his stature has been indicted by the CBI and other investigating agencies. He has been put under custody," Raha told NDTV's Walk the Talk programme."I can't say it doesn't dent our image or reputation. It definitely does and I am sure we will go by the law of the land. And the judicial process will be completed on the (basis of) evidence produced. I will be very happy if he can acquit himself because for the reason that he is the former chief," he said.Talking about his personal rapport with Tyagi, Raha said he has worked under him."I have worked with him as well. So I knew him quite well. Professionally, he is very sound and it is very unfortunate that this kind of accusations are there. It does dent our reputation. We are just hoping that the thing gets settled quickly this way or the other. Whatever is the decision of the court or the judicial process, we will go by that. We will accept it," he said.Asked if he agreed that he should not have been kept with common criminals, Raha replied saying he agrees."I don't know the exact evidences that the investigating agencies have but if they could treat him a little more respectfully I would be very happy," he said.
Karachi: Local distributors of the latest Aamir Khan-starrer Dangal in Pakistan are pinning their hopes on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to give his formal approval to its release in the country and are expecting the film to be screened soon.



According to Pakistani media reports, the Ministry of Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage in association with the Ministry of Commerce, has sent an official summary to Sharif seeking his permission to release the film in Pakistan. The local distributors have rubbished reports in Indian media as "false" that the film would not be released in the country, saying its screening may get delayed by a week.



"That is false news. Yes there are hurdles that we are facing in releasing the film in Pakistan but we haven't lost hope yet. The film might get delayed by a week or so but no final decision has been taken as yet," Mohammad Nasir of Geo films said.



Pakistani cinema owners are pinning their hopes on the release of Dangal and other Indian films to be released in January to make up for the losses they suffered during a three-month voluntarily ban on screening of Indian films in Pakistan. The ban was lifted last week in a low-key fashion, but the release of Dangal still remains uncertain.



According to officials, local distributor Geo films are in direct correspondence with Aamir, who also happens to be the producer of the film, to make its release possible. A ministry source said that now only the Prime Minister can move things forward. Zoraiz Lashari, chairman of the of the Film Exhibitors Association of Pakistan, has said that they too are awaiting the Prime Minister's response.



"We have been suffering grave financial issues due to the suspension. Indian artistes and distributors want their films to be screened in Pakistan but the local distributors are hesitant to purchase new films before the government gives it a green light," he said.



"I want to make it clear that there is no ban on Indian films in Pakistan as no official notification was issued by the government," he stated.

According to industry sources, local distributors pay around rupees 80 to 100 million to Indian distributors and the buying group must earn around 200 million rupees as they also have to pay off some amount to the cinemas and make profit.



Pakistan is considered as the third largest market for Indian films. Indian movies returned to Pakistani cinema houses in 2008 after a 43-year-long hiatus imposed during the 1965 war.
Guwahati: Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said the security of the more than 200-kilometre-long Indo-Bangladesh border was a priority for the BJP government and it will be completely sealed in next one and a half years.



"We are committed to sealing the 223.7-km Indo-Bangladesh border and the process is on. It is expected to be completed within the next year and a half," Singh said addressing BJP workers.



"Bangladesh is our neighbouring country and we share a good and warm relation, which we will continue to pursue and remain committed to in the future," he said.



The Union minister, without referring to the issues of illegal migration and granting of citizenship to Hindu refugees, assured the people of Assam that BJP was committed to protect the interests of the indigenous population of the state as per Clause 6 of the Assam Accord.



"We are committed to Clause 6 of the Assam Accord and will protect it even if we have to amend the Constitution," he said.



Referring to the updating of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, Singh said the process is underway and the state government should complete it soon.



The Union minister said the Centre will make no compromise on the issue of insurgency as he claimed that violence has considerably come down in the state.



"If any people or group have any grievances, problems or issues, we are ready to talk to them... We are ready to embrace them and talk. But if there is violence, there will be no compromise," he added.
Mumbai: In a jolt to the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena in its stronghold of Dadar-Mahim area ahead of next year's municipal elections, former corporator Prakash Patankar on Sunday joined Shiv Sena.



Patankar joined Shiv Sena alongwith over 1,700 workers in the presence of Sena president Uddhav Thackeray at latter's residence,`Matoshree'.



Patankar worked as Dadar-Mahim area `Vibhag Pramukh' (area head) of MNS after he was denied a ticket by the Raj Thackeray-led party in the civic polls of 2012.



Dadar is considered to be an MNS stronghold. Raj Thackeray lives in the same area.



"MNS does not like people who work hard. It likes those who do publicity stunts," said Patankar. He clarified that he had no grievance against Raj but was upset with those who poisoned his ears.



Patankar was with Shiv Sena from 1990. He joined MNS when Raj formed the party in 2005.



He also served as a corporator for two years (2010-2012) after the sitting Sena corporator was disqualified for providing a fake caste certificate.



"I will work to ensure that all Sena candidates from Mahim Assembly constituency win in BMC polls," he said.
Patna: Taking a dig at Narendra Modi over his remark that people can punish him for demonetisation after the 50-day window, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav on Monday asked the Prime Minister to choose a "chauraha" (roundabout) where people can punish him for triggering a chaotic situation in the country.



"PM should chose his favourite 'chauraha' (roundabout) where people could punish him for leading the country to a chaotic condition in the name of demonetisation to fight black money," Lalu told reporters after flagging off Rath to drum up support for party dharna across Bihar on December 28.



Lalu reminded the PM of his utterances at Goa where he had asked people to give him 50 days for fight against black money through scrapping of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 currency notes.



Launching a scathing attack at the PM, the RJD chief said, "Madari ka khel bana diye hain kabhi notebandi to khabi cashless economy (he is re-enacting play of monkeys in the name of demonetisation and than cashless economy)."



Yadav said the PM was under "illusion" that people are appreciating him by chanting "Modi, Modi".It's a few RSS men who occupy front seats in his rallies and shout Modi, Modi which he is reading as voice of masses".

"If election is held in the country today BJP would draw a nought," the RJD chief said.



He said that the saffron party would bite dust in Uttar Pradesh poll. "BJP ka koi ata-pata nahin rahega Uttar Pradesh ke chunav mein (BJP will be no nowhere in UP polls)," he said.



The RJD chief predicted victory for Samajwadi Party in UP and said like in Bihar he and other leaders from the state would campaign for Mulayam Singh Yadav party to ensure its victory in UP.



Asked if family feud in SP would mar his chances in the election, Prasad who is related to Mulayam Singh Yadav's family, dismissed it and said minor fight happens in every family.
Jaipur: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi will address a public gathering in Baran district of Rajasthan on Monday.



His visit is said to be a part of Congress' nationwide campaign against the BJP government's decisions including demonetisation.



"Rahul has been raising people's voice against the problems they are facing due to failure of BJP government at both the Centre and states," Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee president Sachin Pilot said in a statement.



Elaborating about problems that farmers and common people were facing due to demonetisation, rampant corruption and increasing crime rate especially against women, Pilot said that Rahul will raise all these issues in the rally in Baran district.



This will be his second visit to the state this year.
Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and his uncle and Samajwadi Party's (SP) Uttar Pradesh Chief Shivpal Yadav are at loggerheads over nomination of poll candidates.



While Shivpal says indiscipline in SP won't be tolerated which may harm party's image, Akhilesh says his image and record is party's strength.



According to reports, a defiant Akhilesh ignored uncle Shivpal Yadav's list and prepared his own list of 403 candidates for UP polls.



This is Akhilesh's second power play in the last three days.



On December 24, Akhilesh met first-time MLAs at his residence and promised them to give party tickets.



On December 25 the UP chief minister defied Shivpal Yadav and give a list of 403 candidates to his father and party supreme Mulayam Singh Yadav. A beleaguered Shivpal cried foul and said name of 175 candidates were already finalised and Mulayam didn't accept Akhilesh's list.



Shivpal added that distribution of party tickets was allotted on the basis of winnability.



However, Mulayam Singh will take final call on candidates.



Speaking on the SP family feud, newly-inducted BJP leader Rita Bahuguna Joshi said the Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh has failed on every terms.



She said, "They are fighting for future leadership, they want maximum ticket distribution... They have failed on every terms".



"SP is playing a game and Prof. Ramgopal Yadav also raised this question before...They are fighting within themselves. People need an answer," she added.



However, the Congress termed the internal fighting as their "internal matter".



"This is their internal matter, there have been dispute before also," the party said.



Meanwhile, Congress has decided to go solo in Uttar Pradesh. The party will fight all 403 seats to make own government in the poll-bound state


New Delhi: Senior Congress leader Sheila Dikshit junked the Sahara diaries used by Rahul Gandhi to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi because she was upset that no one in her party came to her defence, sources close to her said on Monday.



Sources close to her told News18 that the chief ministerial face of the Congress in Uttar Pradesh has been feeling sidelined for a while on her exact role in the state.



A three-time chief minister of Delhi, she had agreed to enter the fray in UP apparently under pressure from the Gandhis as the party wanted to project a Brahmin face.



But what came as a real blow to her was Rahul's reference to the Sahara diaries which also mentioned Sheila's name among those who were beneficiaries of kickbacks.



"There is no iota of truth in the allegations. I totally reject these allegations," Dikshit said on Sunday adding that the Supreme Court has already made its observations on them.



Asked about Congress putting out the "list" publicly on its Twitter handle, she told PTI, "It surprised me".



The same documents had been used by Rahul during his speeches in UP and Gujarat last week to raise questions against PM Modi.



Sources close to her said she was hurt that she was neither kept in the loop nor defended by the party and that left her with no choice but to protect herself even at the cost of embarrassing Rahul.



Her comments on the Sahara diaries were immediately used by the BJP to hit back at the Congress.



BJP national Secretary Siddharth Nath Singh said, "There cannot be double standards but Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi and their spokespersons are making stupid mistakes time and again. A horse has died and his death has been certified by the Supreme Court."
Domestic social shopping platform LimeRoad on Saturday announced its partnership with the Madhya Pradesh government for an exclusive range of handicrafts and apparel to be made available on its platform.Towards this, LimeRoad has signed an MoU with the "Madhya Pradesh Laghu Udyog Nigam"."Platform provided by LimeRoad to our artisans will help spreading the old customs & traditions of rural Madhya Pradesh across the world," tweeted Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.LimeRoad will work with the talented artisans to blend traditional weaves with modern-day design."We welcome the talented artisans of Madhya Pradesh on to our platform. These gorgeous Chanderi, Maheshwari fabrics and saris have been around for years," said Suchi Mukherjee, Founder and CEO, LimeRoad, in a statement.
The Defence and Research Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully tested an indigenous Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon (SAAW) from an Indian Air Force aircraft, an official release said on Saturday.Designed and developed in the country, the 120-kg class smart weapon is used to destroy runways, bunkers, aircraft hangers and other reinforced structures.Its long standoff range of 100 km will allow the IAF to hit adversary airfields with high precision from a safe distance."The captive and release trials were tracked by radar and telemetry ground stations at the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur in Odisha during the entire duration of the flight. The performance of all systems was satisfactory with all mission objectives achieved," said the release.The lightweight high-precision guided bomb is one of the world class weapons systems, the release said.The government sanctioned the Rs 56.58 crore SAAW project in September 2013.DRDO Chairman Dr S. Christopher congratulated the DRDO and the IAF teams for the successful mission.In May, the DRDO conducted the first test on the weapon system from the IAF Jaguar DARIN-II aircraft in Bengaluru in Karnataka.The test was carried out by IAF's Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE).The trial mode mounting of the SAAW on Jaguar DARIN-II aircraft is manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.
Cairo: Egypt's general prosecutor's office ordered the arrest of an Al-Jazeera news producer for allegedly broadcasting "false news".



The prosecution on Sunday accused Mahmoud Hussein Gomaa of inciting hatred against state institutions and broadcasting false news with the aim of providing an adulterated version of events in Egypt, Efe news reported.



"Al-Jazeera holds Egyptian authorities responsible for the safety of Hussein and is calling for his immediate release," the Qatar-based network said in a statement.



Hussein was on holiday when he was arrested on Friday along with his two brothers by Homeland Security officials.



Al-Jazeera said that the three had been taken to an unknown place.



The Egyptian Interior Ministry arrested Hussein three days after being interrogated for 15 hours at Cairo's airport over allegations of spreading false news, documentaries and media reports, as well as posting them online in exchange for large sums of money, according to authorities.



Al-Jazeera has been from working in Egypt due to the tense relationship between Doha and Cairo, as Qatar was one of the main supporters of the former Islamist leader of the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Morsi.
Islamabad: Pakistan army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Monday said that completion of the USD 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would usher in a new era of development in the restive Balochistan province.



"The timely completion of CPEC will usher a new era of development in Balochistan and Pakistan Army is committed to this objective," Gen Bajwa said.



Addressing a passing out parade of newly recruited youth from Balochistan into army, paramilitary Frontier Corps and police, Gen Bajwa said the CPEC will ensure progress in Balochistan where it will herald a new era of development.



Without naming any country, Gen Bajwa said that enemies of Pakistan were against the development of Balochistan as its prosperity would ensure peace in the nation.



"That is why our enemies want to hinder Balochistan's bright future," he said.



Bajwa asked the ethnic Baloch militants, who are fighting for control over natural resources, to shun violence and join the mainstream for development.



"Our doors are open for those brothers who have been misguided by the enemy," the army chief said.



He said that Balochistan is the priority of the government and army supports this objective with full force.



"Army, despite limited resources, has always tried to play its positive role in the educational, societal and economic progress of the province alongside other institutions," he said.



He also said that army is representative of national unity as all provinces were represented approximately according to their populations.
Moscow: Russia on Monday said mass graves with dozens of mutilated bodies, some shot in the head, had been found in the Syrian city of Aleppo.



Aleppo was announced to be liberated last week by the Syrian army, Efe news reported.



Russian military spokesman Igor Konashenkov said some bodies in the mass graves bore signs of savage torture.



Konashenkov said it was just the beginning of the discoveries being made.
Karachi: Pakistan's former President Asif Ali Zardari is expected to announce a grand alliance of opposition parties tomorrow when he addresses a rally to commemorate the death anniversary of his wife, slain prime minister Benazir Bhutto.



Asked about media reports that he was working towards forming a grand alliance against the Nawaz Sharif government, Zardari on Monday told reporters here that he will reveal his further course of action on December 27.



The former president and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Co-Chairperson, who returned to Pakistan on Friday after 18-months in exile in Dubai and London, met with Pakistan Muslim League-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain on Tuesday, setting tongues rolling about a possible alliance against the government.



Zardari indicated that a situation could develop for early elections, with Lahore the hub of any changes. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has already called on the government to accept four demands of the party or face a grand movement.



Hussain, a former prime minister, said democracy was in danger under Sharif's leadership and a grand alliance of opposition parties was the need of the hour to save democracy.



"We will not let democracy be hijacked," he said. Sources said Hussain and Zardari have discussed the common points on which opposition parties can unite against the government.



Zardari has reportedly talked about reviving the PPP in Punjab, Pakistan's largest province and presently a stronghold of the ruling PML-N party.



Zardari, who is slated to return to Dubai this week, is also being put under pressure by the establishment as on the day of his arrival, the paramilitary rangers carried out raids at the offices and residence of his close ally and friend Anwar Majeed who has now been charged in absentia for corruption and under anti-terrorism laws.



In October 2007, a deadly attack on the motorcade and procession of former prime minister Bhutto, who had returned home from a self-imposed exile after nine years, had killed around 160 PPP activists.
After a medical call sent a paramedic out of Lynchburgs Station 1 kitchen Sunday afternoon, firefighter Dana Bischoff stepped in to finish the deviled eggs.

While public safety employees, including police, firefighters, paramedics and dispatchers, stood guard to keep Lynchburgs Christmas safe, they also squeezed in holiday celebrations.

Everyones doing a little bit, Bischoff said while spooning the egg mix into a plastic bag so he could squeeze it neatly onto the halved boiled egg whites. ... You have to be willing to get Hey youd do stuff, so Im kind of winging it with the deviled eggs.

Bischoff, who drives from his home in Durham, North Carolina, for 24-hour shifts, monitored cheesy potatoes and ham, before home and work families converged at the station Sunday evening.

The station and others often celebrate holidays with communal meals, said Master Firefighter Earl Copes who has worked for the Lynchburg Fire Department for 16 years. He and other emergency responders said their units are like second families.

Were here to some degree in a constant state of readiness at all times, but at the same time, were relaxed and its nice when you have those opportunities to include our family, Copes said. ... There are a lot of functions that we miss, a lot of school things for the kids, at times theres anniversaries and birthdays that you miss because youre here.

Lynchburg police officers working Sunday were able to stop by their families holiday festivities throughout the day as they patrolled the Hill City, such as Sgt. Bryan Williams who got to attend most of his regular church service.

He gave an appreciative nod to the public safety personnel who sit at the ready receiving emergency calls and dispatching responders.

Our dispatchers are stuck up in the dispatch center. They cant leave and go to their families house or a friends house, Williams said.

While officers on duty worked their regularly scheduled shifts, they said Chief Raul M. Diaz worked a patrol shift covering the radio Sunday so an officer could go home for his childs first Christmas.

Officer M.G. Robinson said hes never seen the head of a department do that in his 24 years in law enforcement.

That just shows he cares. Sometimes he cant do anything about the pay or us getting raises or other benefits, but he can do things, you know. Just when you show you care means more than a lot of things, Robinson said.

Diaz, who worked on Christmas last year as well, declined an interview through Williams.

With businesses closed on major holidays, most LPD calls are alcohol-related or involving domestic disputes, Williams said.

The mornings are normally quieter and as the day progresses, we get a little bit busier with those types of calls with people being disorderly or intoxicated, Williams said.

Officers also took turns visiting a department potluck hosted by an LPD officer. They didnt go all at once allowing the department to keep officers spread throughout the city, Williams said.

With her family living in Texas and her husband, Steven File, a fellow LPD officer in Qatar serving in the National Guard, Officer K.L. File said she might as well be working the holiday.

I dont really mind working on Christmas, because at this point, all these guys are like my second family, said File, who made chili for the potluck. ... Being able to bring food in and hang out and spend time together, its a great replacement in a way just because, you know, family is far away from me at this point.

Assisting both firefighters and Lynchburg Police Department in the celebrations were a steady supply of cookies and holiday desserts offered by community members showing appreciation.

If you go downstairs into our break room, youd probably see 500 cookies down there, Williams said. ... We appreciate that from them.
The third time Bill Bailey was turned down for flight school, an instructor told him he didnt have the mental dexterity to handle the rigors of flying.

More than half a century later, as Capt. William E. Bill Bailey was being inducted into the Virginia Aviation Hall of Fame, he shared that story with others at the Richmond ceremony.

Now, thats a good one for the archives, he said.

While Bailey initially was denied admission to flight school because of his complexion, he said he succeeded because of his determinationand his ability to let God lead him. Once he got the chance to get in a cockpit, he said the color of his skin didnt matter.

That was just a minor part of it, to be honest, the Stafford County man said, and none of that impacted my goal: to get through it and become an airline pilot.

Bailey met his goal and then some.

After a 20-year military careerwhich included being shot down in Vietnam, two Distinguished Flying Crosses and three Purple HeartsBailey retired as a colonel and switched his focus to jumbo jets.

He spent another 20 years as a pilot with Continental Airlines before his retirement in 2002.

Along the way to earning 25,000 flying hours in commercial planes, he also trained more than a thousand pilots. About 200 of them were AfricanAmericans, and 25 of them became airline pilots, Bailey said.

Blacks are still under-represented in military cockpits. While they make up 14 percent of those on active duty in the Air Force, less than 2 percent are pilots.

Still, Bailey contributed to shattering forever the myth that AfricanAmericans were not capable of acquiring technical flying skills, Herman Jones, a retired Army colonel and friend and fellow church member to Bailey, wrote in his nomination letter to the Hall of Fame.

Indeed, that aspect of Baileys career, along with his impressive record, attracted the attention of Virginias Aviation Hall of Fame, which was created in 1978 by the Virginia Aeronautical Historical Society.

It wasnt just the difficulty in breaking through barriers, said Linda Burdette, chairperson of the committee that reviews applications.

His skills and ability later became obvious as Bailey was chosen to fly high-ranking officers and dignitaries into combat areas during the Vietnam War.

Thats not a job you give to average pilots, she said.

Plus, Bailey has tried to encourage and inspire young people of all backgrounds to take up an interest in flying. Its gotten more expensive to take flying lessons or rent aircraft, and fewer younger people are entering aviation, Burdette said. The average age of airline pilots is about 50, according to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association.

Its really impressive when you find someone whos able to influence and encourage young people the way Bill Bailey has, Burdette said.

The committee reviews about 20 new applications per year, then looks back at previous nominees who may not have been selected because they were up against tough competition, Burdette said.

Baileys nomination quickly soared to the top of the list.

That one was pretty much a slam dunk, she said.

SEE HOW GOD WORKS

Bailey grew up on the Eastern Shore of Virginia and attended Virginia State College, where he was named an All-American wrestler.

He initially wanted to teach physical education in high school, but had joined the ROTC in college and went into the Army in 1962 to fulfill his commitment.

When others in his company were being sent to glamorous duty stations, he ended up in Germanya soldier surrounded by flying forces at Rhein-Main Air Base.

But as he said has often happened in his life, there was a purpose in him being at Rhein-Main. He became friends with an Air Force lieutenant, who often took him flying on days after the pilot had stayed out a little too late.

Hed say, Keep the airplane pointed in this direction, and he would point to the instruments, Bailey said. As soon as hed go to sleep, I would descend and climb.

The lessons werent exactly kosher, but they got Bailey interesting in flying. He studied the manuals and took the flight skills tests. He also applied to flight school and was turned down repeatedly.

Bailey eventually got reassigned to Fort Eustis near Newport News. He answered a call one day from Washington, where a unit didnt have enough pilots to meet its quota.

Bailey told the woman on the other end that hed completed all the tests but hadnt been admitted to classes. She told him to send her his paperwork, and by weeks end, he was signed up for flight school.

See how God works if you just get out of the way? he said.

JUST A GREAT GUY

Bailey is a prolific talker, yet he hes never had much to say about his time in Vietnam, where he served with the 3rd Squadron of the 5th U.S. Cavalry. He was there for two years, in 1967 and 1970, and was no stranger to being shot ator shot down.

He took bullets in the left shoulder and knee, crashed twice, and turned his chopper into a rescue vehicle when ground troops were dropping like flies.

Ive forgotten a lot of it, Ive erased it from my memory, I always figured nobody wanted to hear this stuff, Bailey said.

His friend, Jones, also served in Vietnam and hadnt mentioned much about his service, either.

If he was like me, he got off the plane, where people spit on you and threw rocks at you, Jones said. No one wanted to go there. There wasnt much for him to be proud of, until all of a sudden, hes getting recognition for it.

Thats why Jones wanted to nominate him for the Hall of Fame, to give him much-deserved credit for his part in a war people havent always honored.

This is the best thing that ever happened to him, Jones said.

Don Davenport, a retired officer who lives in Texas, agreed that Bailey was more than deserving of any honor accorded him. The two met in Kansas, flew together in Vietnamwhere Davenport risked his life to rescue Bailey after he was shot downand have been friends ever since. They keep in touch regularly, and Davenport came from Texas to see Bailey inducted into the Virginia Aviation Hall of Fame.

I do not know of anyone who has ever met Bill Bailey that Bill didnt make a lasting impression on, Davenport said. Hes just a great guy.

Bill Bailey said he comes from such a close family that when one of us gets a cold, the other ones start coughing.

His family includes his wife, Gladys, their two children and two grandchildren.

He was the seventh of eight children born to James and Alma Bailey, who lived in the small town of Boston on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. He credits his mother with instilling a love of learning and helping others.

Every morning, when shed walk into the rooms to wake up her children, she would recite: If I can help someone along the way, my living has not been in vain.

Most of his seven siblings settled in the Fredericksburg area. The oldest, Weldon Bailey, died last year after running a funeral home and serving on the Fredericksburg City Council. All four sistersSylvia Johnson, Marguerite Young, Shirley Bailey and Florence Baileyworked in education as did his brother, James, who was the assistant principal at James Monroe High School. Another brother, Eugene, retired a Navy captain.

Bill Bailey has continued to stress the importance of education, just as his parents did. Since 2002, hes worked with others in the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity to raise money for scholarships. Hes helped bring more than $7 million to his alma mater, Virginia State University.

The Baileys have two family scholarships, and Bill Bailey has done everything from secure the largest gift in the universitys history$1.5 million from the Reginald Lewis Foundationto serving as a trustee on the foundation board.

He is among the most active, if not the most active, supporters of the university in terms of fundraising activities, said Robert Turner Jr., executive director of the Virginia State University Foundation. The university and its students have benefited tremendously from his efforts.
RICHMOND  It is quiet now and a time of reflection for Sen. Tim Kaine.

Less than two months after a bruising presidential campaign in which Kaine visited more than 40 states as Hillary Clintons vice presidential running mate, he is at peace and looking forward.

The disappointment of the loss of the presidency to Republican Donald Trump is behind Kaine. He is looking ahead to a January return to the 115th Congress.

Things happen for a reason, Kaine said during a recent interview with The News Virginian. He is four years into his term as one of Virginias U.S. senators, and he plans to focus on that job. Kaine will not seek the presidency in 2020.

Kaine has carved out an impressive national security and defense niche as a member of both the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services committees.

Now he is adding to his Senate focus with a new assignment on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. That change will happen when the new Congress starts.

Part of Kaines emphasis during his Senate term has been on education, including meeting with vocational educators and business leaders in the Shenandoah Valley about workforce certification.

But there are plenty of national security concerns for Kaine as the calendar turns to 2017.

He is grappling with the issues of non-state terrorism, the cyber attack of the Democratic National Committee by Russia, and the entire threat of cyber to the United States.

Of the latter, Kaine thinks the United States needs a doctrine regarding cyber. He is concerned that the threat of a cyber attack could cripple U.S. power grids, the American financial system and other matters affecting national security.

When is a cyber attack an act of war? Kaine asked. He said having a doctrine would help determine how the United States responds to a cyber attack.

Kaine has a mixed reaction on President-elect Trumps picks for cabinet positions.

He is impressed with retired Marine Gen. John Kelly as the potential head of Homeland Security. Kaine said Kelly, who headed Southern Command for the U.S. Military, is tough, smart and compassionate.

The senator also thinks Marine Gen. James Mattis can be a very good secretary of defense. Kaine said Elaine Chao would be a strong secretary of transportation. The wife of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Chao was previously secretary of labor.

Kaine does not feel similarly about Rex Tillerson, the secretary of state nominee who has been ExxonMobil CEO. I have deep concerns, he said. He has deep personal ties to Russia. ExxonMobil has also funded climate science denial, Kaine said.

Kaine does not support Scott Pruett, the Oklahoma attorney general and Trumps nominee to head the Environmental Protection Agency. Pruett has also been an opponent of climate science.

Another nominee that Kaine has reservations about is Health and Human Services secretary nominee, Rep. Tom Price of Georgia.

He wants to change Medicaid and Medicare and is anti-Planned Parenthood, Kaine said of Price, a physician before he was elected to Congress.

As for Trump, Kaine retains hope that the president-elect will can it with the name calling. But Kaine would like to partner with the new chief executive on an infrastructure plan for the country.

Id love to work on an infrastructure package, said Kaine, who has a multitude of questions about how the plan would work. Those questions range from how the project would be financed, to what improvements would be picked across America.

Kaine worries that Trump, who has borrowed heavily to finance his business empire, may not focus enough on how to pay for an infrastructure project.

The 2016 campaign is far enough behind Kaine that he has had a chance to quietly reflect on it. He estimates that between he and wife, Anne Holton, they did more than 900 campaign events in less than four months.

What did he learn? Virginia is a good microcosm of the entire country, Kaine said. It is rural, urban and suburban, and there is high tech in Northern Virginia.

Now it is time to get back to work in the Senate. When Kaine visits his Richmond office, he can look out his ninth-floor window and see much of his political career in the distance.

Richmond City Hall is visible, where Kaine served as a member of Richmond City Council and mayor in the mid and late 1990s before campaigning for statewide office in 2001. The Virginia State Capitol can be seen, where Kaine served as both lieutenant governor and governor from 2002-2010.

But it is the U.S. Senate that Kaine must focus on now. Those other jobs are in the past, and he is not considering the presidency.

Im supposed to be a senator. A lot of people are counting on me, Kaine said. One of the books prominent in Kaines Richmond office is Robert A. Caros Master of The Senate volume on Lyndon Johnson.

Kaine counts former Virginia Sen. John Warner as a role model for his work in the Senate.

He cared about committee leadership, said Kaine. As a member of Senate Foreign Relations, Kaine brings strong expertise of the Americas and the Middle East. His next goal is work on becoming more knowledgeable about the Far East. That would mean serving on the Asia-Pacific Subcommittee and focusing on Vietnam, China and Japan.

That is a huge and important part of the world, Kaine said.
These Afghans fled to Germany for a safer, better life - now they've been sent back

KABUL, Afghanistan -Three men slumped on their cots in a clean but cramped dormitory room. They looked glum and shellshocked, as if they had suddenly found themselves in a forbidding foreign place.

In many ways, they had.

Javed Hakimi, Mohsen Amiri and Navid Mohammedi were among 45 unhappy passengers who arrived here under guard on a charter flight from Frankfurt last week. It was the first of many such flights that are expected to return thousands of Afghan asylum seekers from Germany under a European Union agreement with President Ashraf Ghani.

Across Western Europe, as many as 80,000 Afghans eventually may be repatriated after their asylum applications are rejected, under the agreement signed by Ghani and E.U. officials in October.

After the flight from Frankfurt landed, some of the passengers headed for buses home. But these three had no one waiting for them. They said their immediate families live in Germany, and that once their 10-day stay at a government rest house ends next week, they will have nowhere to go.

"I am completely alone here," said Amiri, 35, who said he survived a shipwreck off Greece in 2012 while trying to reach his mother and siblings in Germany. "I was a law-abiding person there, and I was training to be a house painter, but they rejected my asylum case and said I had to go home. This is not my home. I don't even know where to start looking."

To German officials, these were the easiest foreigners to legally remove amid a chaotic surge of refugees from Syria, Iraq and other countries that has overwhelmed many countries and generated an angry backlash across Europe. All the Afghans had arrived illegally, some had committed crimes in Germany, and none were found to qualify for political asylum.

To Afghan officials, these men will become a burden that the poor, insurgent-plagued country cannot afford. Hundreds of thousands of longtime war refugees are pouring back from next-door Pakistan; large numbers of rural families have been displaced by the Taliban and are living in camps.

"This is a real crisis for us," said Rohullah Hashimi, an official at the Afghan ministry responsible for refugees. "We pleaded with the Europeans to only send those who wanted to come voluntarily, but there was a lot of pressure for us to take back more." Many Afghans sold everything before they left their country, and they have returned penniless. With no prospects, he said, they may try to reach Europe again or even join the insurgents.

Hakimi, 57, spent more than 20 years in Germany, where he married and raised two daughters, but his criminal record made him a high priority for the new return policy. He was once convicted of drug dealing there and was imprisoned for two years, then deported to Afghanistan.

Last year, he sneaked back, paying smugglers to guide him across half a dozen countries. He was working in his brother's restaurant in Hamburg two weeks ago when he received a notice to report to the police. His lawyer said it was probably a routine matter. Instead he learned he was about to be put on a plane.

"Yes, they accused me of selling drugs, but I served my time in prison, and I wanted to be with my family again," Hakimi said. He said one man slated for the same flight had killed someone but was allowed to stay at the last minute after a church said he had converted to Christianity and repented.

Mohammedi, 21, has even fewer ties to Afghanistan, having grown up in Iran, where his family had fled to escape civil war. He said they faced harassment there and encouraged him to go and live with an uncle in Germany. In 2011, at age 16, he made the hazardous journey across mountain forests and open water, winding up at a train station in Paris late at night.

"I bought a ticket to Frankfurt and was so exhausted I fell asleep on the train," Mohammedi said. "A policeman woke me up and asked where I was from. I told him Afghanistan, and he said to me in Dari, 'Don't worry; you're safe now. You're in Germany.' "

As a minor, Mohammedi said, he was sent to school and given a multiyear visa. But several weeks ago, he said, he was suddenly informed that his asylum claim had been rejected and was asked whether he wanted to go home. "Three times I told them no, but they sent me anyway," he said. His family is still in Iran.

Until recently, Germany was sending back only Afghans who would go voluntarily, but after being flooded with nearly 900,000 migrants in 2015, the government decided to speed asylum processing for those fleeing civil wars, such as Syrians, and step up the deportation of others less likely to win asylum cases, including many Afghans.

This year, Germany has deported a record 23,750 asylum seekers. More than 200,000 foreigners have pending deportation orders, including 12,500 Afghans.

Under the E.U. agreement with Kabul, German officials said they will focus on individuals with criminal records and recent illegal entries, and avoid returning those from unsafe regions of Afghanistan. But the policy has aroused anger among Afghan expatriates, who protested at the Frankfurt airport when the first plane departed.

Afghan officials said they had little to offer the new arrivals except food and shelter for a few days, subsidized by the nonprofit International Organization for Migration, which is also providing those without homes a one-time payment of about $600.

"It's not much to start a new life," said Hashimi, the government official. "We can offer them some guidance and positive morale, but anything else is beyond our capacity."

Amiri, who was happily reunited with his family in Germany four years ago, seemed the most undone by his abrupt deportation. He recounted in vivid detail his harrowing journey from Afghanistan, when an overloaded smuggler's boat from Turkey capsized near the shores of Greece.

"It was the middle of the night, the boat was too crowded and the water was very turbulent. We all started swimming, and I finally reached the banks, but five people drowned, including three children," he said. "It was May 20, 2012. The date is engraved in my mind."

The German government was welcoming at the time, Amiri said, but when he was being deported, it was a different story. "The police searched me many times and took all my money at the airport," he said. "On the plane, there were more police than passengers, and they treated us like terrorists, even following us to the bathroom."

After this first flight, Afghan officials said, the deportations will be halted for the Christmas season. The second group will arrive in January.

afghan-deported

Washington Post News Service (DC)

12/25/2016 11:00:18 AM Central Standard Time
Of course Donald Trump thinks its ridiculous to claim the Russians rigged the election for him.

Even if Vladimir Putin confessed to the crime on Russia Today, Trump would not believe it, because to do so is not in his nature. I do not want to shock the reader, but Trump has a very high opinion of himself and a tendency to reject evidence that contradicts that opinion, combined with an eagerness to find corroboration of his self-regard wherever possible. For instance, during the campaign he could never concede that online polls werent scientific, because the results of these polls confirmed that Trump was terrific, fabulous and tremendous.

So there was nothing shocking about Trumps behavior over the weekend.

Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace asked, According to the Washington Post, the CIA has concluded that Russia intervened in the election to help you win the presidency. Your reaction?

Trumps response:

I think its ridiculous. I think its just another excuse. I dont believe it. I dont know why, and I think its just  you know, they talked about all sorts of things. Every week, its another excuse. We had a massive landslide victory, as you know, in the Electoral College. I guess the final numbers are now at 306. ... No, I dont believe that at all.

See? Wallace asked about a news report about a reported CIA finding, and Trump heard, You didnt really win the elections because of Russia. (FYI, Trumps Electoral College victory ranks as the 46th biggest  out of 58).

The good news for Trump: No credible source has claimed that the Russians won the election for the Republican candidate. To believe that, youd have to think that the Russians tricked Clinton into deploying her campaign resources disastrously, convinced her to set up her stealth server or encouraged her to give a lackluster performance on the campaign trail. How did the Russians get Clinton to ignore Wisconsin and Michigan, I wonder?

But countless credible sources have said that the Kremlin interfered with our election. Trump and his team are foolish and irresponsible to rain scorn on that. When the New York Times reported that the Russians also hacked the Republican National Committees servers but didnt leak the results, campaign aide Sean Spicer tweeted, Dont miss tomorrows [David] Sanger New York Times exclusive interview with Elvis riding his unicorn on a rainbow with Santa.

The Times story is not nearly as dispositive as Democrats claim, but it is hardly the stuff of psychedelic fantasy.

The real debate is over whether the Russian meddling  which echoes similar meddling across Europe  was intended to get Trump elected or simply to erode confidence in the democratic process. I fail to see how this is an either/or choice. The hacking could have started with mere mischief in mind and evolved into a pro-Trump effort by the end. Most experts, including those on Trumps team, didnt expect to win (contrary to a lot of post-election spin), and its doubtful that Russias psephologists are that much better than ours. So the most likely goal for the Russians was to set up a defeated Trump to denounce the validity of the election and the integrity of the political process.

But then Trump won on the merits. The great irony is that the Democrats and the media  which not long ago were denouncing any suggestion that the system is rigged  are now echoing the very talking points Putin wants.

Its a poisonous situation all around. Trump refuses to budge on his claim to a glorious, massive victory (or back off of his disturbing Putinphilia). Democrats  and much of the media  wont grapple with the fact that Clinton lost fair and square, and they are in desperate pursuit of excuses to reject Trumps legitimacy. Some are even working to give electors an intelligence briefing before they have to vote, presumably in an effort to overturn the election.

The only hope is that after Trump has been sworn in, both sides can revisit the issue of Putins clearly insidious agenda, without the specter of a do-over coloring everything people say  and everything Trump hears.

Goldberg is a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a senior editor of National Review. Email him at goldbergcolumn@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @JonahNRO.
Christmas babies everywhere

Speaking with reporters at Mt Hope, Deyalsingh said, I am grateful for my doctors and for my nurses who go beyond the call of duty to work on Christmas Day and to give excellent service. That is what we are trying to do __ to turn around the service delivery end. Deyalsingh also thanked and congratulated the private sector, especially Dr Ronnie Bhola and Dr Vijay Naraynsingh, who provided free services this Christmas, saying that it showed that there was much goodness in Trinidad and Tobago regardless of all the bad news.

I am grateful that all of Trinidad and Tobago could participate in this season of cheer and goodwill to bring relief to all our citizens of TT, whether it is in the private sector or the public sector, he said.

Ayana Thompson-George of Sangre Grande delivered one of the first babies yesterday at the Sangre Grande Hospital. The baby girl was born at 12.30 am, weighing seven pounds. Director of the Eastern Regional Health Authority, Indra Sinanan Ojah-Maharaj, congratulated Thompson-George and presented her with a hamper of baby products.

At the Port-of-Spain General, three baby girls were delivered yesterday morning. Sian-Rose Fournillier delivered her daughter, weighing six pounds, 14 ounces, at 3.48 am. Janee Constances baby was born at 8.15 am weighing in at seven pounds, eight ounces; and Shanice St Cyrs daughter, who was four pounds, ten ounces, was born at 9.10 am.

At the Mt Hope Womens Hospital, Yolande Clark from Arima delivered her fifth child, Jeremiah, at 1.02 am. He weighed six pounds, eight ounces. She said she did not want the newest addition to her family to be born on Christmas Day because she wanted to be home with her family.

However, she praised the doctors and nurses for their excellent service, saying that they didnt stick but checked on her and her son every minute. She added that she had three of her children at Mt Hope and so was personally aware of how much the service had improved.

Pettlyn Patrick, 23, of Enterprise delivered her six pounds, 14 ounce baby girl at 4.12 am; and Tricia Dindial, 28, of Couva had her six pound, 13 ounce son at 8.26 am.

The mothers received hampers of baby products from the respective Regional Health Authorities as well as the Ministry of Health.

Deyalsingh stated that this year the Ministry of Health worked very hard to reduce maternal mortality and succeeded.
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(Newser)  At just 12 years old, Collier Landry took the stand in a Mickey Mouse turtleneck to help put the man who murdered his mother behind bars: his father. Now 38, Landry is returning to what the Mansfield Journal of Ohio calls "the local trial of the century." On Nov. 13, 1989, Dr. John Boyle and his pregnant mistress began the process of purchasing a $299,000 home in Erie, Pennsylvania. Four days later, wife Noreen filed for divorce from her high-school sweetheart, citing extreme mental cruelty and gross neglect. Before the year was out, she was dead. On New Year's Eve, Boyle killed Noreen, whose body was found buried below the basement floor of that Erie home three weeks later. The Journal separately notes that in the days before the murder, Boyle rented a jackhammer and inquired about the soil under the basement floor.

On the night in question, Landry heard an argument, a scream, and a thump. Boyle had hit Noreen and suffocated her using a plastic bag, police say. Now Landrywho goes by his middle nameis an LA-based cinematographer who is working on a documentary on the case, which had some weird twists: After Boyle was sentenced to 20 years to life, he successfully appealed to have the body exhumed, arguing that based on the weight noted by the coroner, it wasn't Noreen'seven though her Rolex and gold cross were noted on the remains, reports the Columbus Dispatch. DNA testing proved it was her. Landry won't reveal much about the film, other than to say he's hoping to reconnect with little sister Elizabeth, who he hasn't seen since she was adopted by another family 26 years ago. (Read more murder trial stories.)
(Newser)  A fatal heroin overdose is almost commonplace these days. And news of a couple overdosing together isn't so unusual, either. But a case in Pennsylvania has just added another layer of tragedy to the surge in ODs. Police in Kernville say a man and woman died of a likely heroin overdose in their homeand because they weren't immediately found, their infant daughter died a few days later of starvation and dehydration in her crib, reports the Tribune-Democrat. The victims are identified as Jason Chambers, 27, Chelsea Cardaro, 19, and Summer Chambers, 5 months. All three bodies were found Thursday, Chambers in the downstairs living room, Cardaro in an upstairs bathroom, and Summer in her upstairs crib, reports WJAC. Authorities think the baby lived for three or four days after her parents died.

It's an unfortunate incident where they both possibly overdosed at the same timeand being from out of town, not having anybody in townit was too long for anybody to notice that they were missing," says Johnstown Police Capt. Chad Miller. The family moved to town in May from New York. Police are awaiting toxicology results to confirm that the adults overdosed, but they found evidence of drug use at the scene. What's more, authorities responded to the house last month and had to revive Chambers from an overdose. Child services reviewed the home after that incident and deemed it safe for the baby. (One possible reason for the spate of heroin deaths: In some places across the US, it's being cut with an elephant tranquilizer.)
(Newser)  It's going to be a happy new year for busloads of conservative judges: Donald Trump has 103 vacancies in the federal courts to fill when he becomes president, meaning he has the chance to build the foundations of a legacy immediately on issues including gun control and abortion, the Washington Post reports. That's nearly twice as many judicial appointments as Obama had to make initially, and Democrats say it is because of an "unprecedented" level of obstruction by the Senate, which almost entirely stopped confirming Obama nominees after the GOP regained control in 2015. The most important position Trump needs to fill is the Supreme Court vacated by the death of Antonin Scalia more than a year ago. Senate Republicans refused to hold a hearing on Obama's nominee, Merrick Garland, who will return to his old job next month.

The stalemate has left dozens of seats vacant so long that the nonpartisan Judicial Conference has declared them emergencies. "Republican tactics have been shameful and will forever leave a stain on the United States Senate," White House spokesman Eric Schultz tells the Post. "Republican congressional dysfunction has now metastasized to the third branch of government, and that is not a legacy to be proud of." Republicans say Democrats shouldn't complain because the 329 judicial appointments confirmed under Obama is more than the 326 under George W. Bush. Trumpwhose older sister, Maryanne Trump Barry, is a widely respected federal appeals judgemade replacing Scalia a central campaign issue and aides say that reshaping the judiciary with appointments in lower courts is also a priority. (Read more Donald Trump stories.)
(Newser)  Odds are old Saint Nick was happy to flee the North Pole to make his annual rounds this Christmas. A dirty haze has settled over this part of northern Alaska, hovering over streets named Santa Claus Lane. The New York Times pins the blame on what it calls an "only-in-Alaska" pollution problem: People use old, inefficient wood-burning stoves, and when the smoke goes out their chimneys, frigid temperatures force it back down to ground level. That results in the highest readings in the nation of a pollution measure called PM 2.5, which refers to fine-particulate matter. In fact, the area suffered a record stretch of six consecutive days earlier this month with air deemed unhealthy, reports the Fairbanks News-Miner. This ground-level pollution is seen as particularly dangerous because it can get directly into lungs.

The dirty woodstove problem is particularly pronounced in the Fairbanks-North Pole area, about the size of New Jersey. With cleaner natural gas in short supply and heating oil expensive, wood is the fuel of choice as temperatures hover around minus 20 below. Upgrading to a more efficient wood stove is expensive, even with local government assistance, and many independent Alaskans balk at the costand being told what to do. (An education campaign is trying to spread the word that upgrading is actually a wise investment, notes the Frontiersman.) Failing to comply could result in residents being fined, and the borough losing federal transportation funds if the EPA declares the area in violation of the Clean Air Act. "Both sides are digging in their heels," Mayor Karl Kassel tells the Times. (Some in China are buying Canadian air in a can.)
(Newser)  More Americans than eversome 48 milliongo online in their quest for love, signing up on dating sites increasingly tailored to them. There are sites grouped by religion, such as ChristianMingle and the Jewish-oriented JDate, or time-pressed casual users can swipe to find a match on apps like Tinder. (Even Disney fans have MouseMingle.com.) But as the New York Times reports, the business model behind these sites is rarely a happy marriage. With the exception of companies like Match Group, which has 51 sites, most of the 4,500 online dating outfits are tiny. While it is cheap to start a dating site, it has "never been more expensive to grow one," says consultant Mark Brooks. Most traffic is now going to mobile apps that suffer from low advertising revenue, and subscribers who time balk at paying for the service.

Take the case of Spark Networks, owner of 30 sites including JDate. With revenue down 22% and 55,000 fewer subscribers than in 2012, the company last summer closed its Israel office, scaled down, and sold off 16% of its stock to an investment firm. All the while, the company estimates that 70% of American Jews (1 million registered users) have some contact with JDate or its spinoff, JSwipe. "Every Jew knows someone who knows someone who met on JDate," says one former exec. Online dating execs are split over the industry's future. While Spark's Brad Goldberg thinks users, tired of swiping apps, will want "deeper interactions," a chief strategist at Match Group foresees tapping users' accounts on Instagram and the like to find their perfect mate. Then again, if Match acquires Spark, as some predict, the distinction could be moot. "I bet the world of online dating in 18 months to two years will look completely different than it does today," says Goldberg. (These are the 10 best and worst cities for singles.)
(Newser)  Christmas weekend was grim in Chicago even by this year's wretched standards for gun violence: Police say at least 41 people were shot, 11 fatally, between Friday evening and Sunday night, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. The victims include James Gill, 18, and Roy Gill, 21, who were killed when somebody came out of an alley and opened fire on a front porch during a family party, the Chicago Tribune reports. Five others were wounded in that shooting alone, two of them critically. Hours earlier, a man around 40 was pronounced dead in a South Side hospital after having been shot multiple times near the Apostolic Labor of Love church, where a pool of blood could be seen on the front step.

Chicago Police Department spokesman Jose Estrada tells the New York Times that the number of homicides in the city so far this year is 745, up from 476 at this time last year, and marking the first time since 1997 that there have been more than 700. He says the total number of shooting victims so far this year is 4,252, up 47% from 2,884 at this time in 2015. Most victims are men under 30. The number of murders in Chicago this year is on course to top that of Los Angeles and New York City combined. Police blame the high rate of gun violence on gang warfare and a "small subset" of extremely violent offenders. (Read more Chicago stories.)
(Newser)  Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who will visit Pearl Harbor with President Obama on Tuesday, wasn't even born when Japan's former leader Shigeru Yoshida went there just six years after the country's World War II surrender, by himself and feeling awkward. Yoshida is best remembered for signing the San Francisco peace treaty with the US and others in 1951, allowing Japan back into international society after its war defeat. His Pearl Harbor visit, which he made on his way home from San Francisco, was largely eclipsed by the historic treaty. Archival writings and photos unearthed by the Associated Press reconstruct Yoshida's visit, from his aim to win US trust to how he was put at ease by the US Navy commander's dog.

Yoshida arrived at Pearl Harbor on Sept. 12, 1951, shortly after requesting a courtesy visit to the office of Adm. Arthur W.R. Radford, commander of the US Pacific fleet. The office overlooked Pearl Harbor, offering a direct view of the site of the Japanese attack of Dec. 7, 1941. Yoshida, westernized and fluent in English, showed up in a white suit, wearing his trademark brimmed hat and carrying a cane, looking a bit stiff. Then Radford's dog broke the ice. His little Scottish Terrier, which was stretched out in front of Radford's desk, walked slowly to Yoshida to be patted, while sniffing around his shoes and ankles. "That started a dog conversation that took most of the visit," Radford wrote in his memoir, From Pearl Harbor to Vietnam. Years later, Yoshida told Radford's wife how he was embarrassed when he walked into the office after seeing Pearl Harbor, and how happy he was that the dog was able to settle him down. (Read more Pearl Harbor stories.)
(Newser)  For someone who has a passing familiarity with the spice saffron, a few words might come to mind: expensive, exotic, Mideast. Now researchers want to add another, more unlikely one: Vermont. As the Boston Globe reports, Dr. Margaret Skinner of the University of Vermont has been working with test crops for two years now, with surprisingly strong results. In fact, Skinner thinks saffron could become a viable supplemental crop for Vermont farmers, one that yields an eye-popping $100,000 an acre if done large-scale. Its fairly intensive for a short period of time and then, really, the growers would be able to sit back and start reaping the rewards," says Skinner. The key to her success: She grows the plants in a protective "high tunnel," which is essentially a greenhouse without heat, explains Vermont Public Radio.

The idea to test saffron actually came from her assistant, Arash Ghalehgolabbehbahani, a post-doctoral associate who hails from Iran, where the vast majority of the world's saffron is grown. "I always was thinking about saffron, the most expensive legal crop in the world," he says. Vermont's climate is similar to Iran's, but its soil is significantly richer, he says. As a result, their saffron crops have a higher yield and a quality on par with the overseas stuff. More work is necessary before saffron goes mainstream on Vermont farms: For one thing, techniques to keep small varmints away need to be perfected, but Skinner and others see big potential, especially given the spice's purported health benefits. "The results they are getting are pretty spectacular," says a former president of the Herb Society of America, which provided a $5,000 grant. (Another spice might make you smarter.)
(Newser)  In 2004, Barack Obama delivered the keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention and spoke of a united America. Now, in an exit interview published Monday, the president told one of his former advisers that had he been allowed to run for a third term in 2016, he would have harnessed that same messageand he believes he could have won with that message, the Hill reports. "I am confident in this vision [and] confident that  if I had run again and articulated it, I think I could've mobilized a majority of the American people to rally behind it," Obama told David Axelrod for the latter's "Axe Files" podcast, per CNN. "I know that in conversations that I've had with people around the country, even some people who disagreed with me, they would say the vision, the direction that you point towards, is the right one."

Although Obama said Hillary Clinton "performed wonderfully under really tough circumstances" in her run against Donald Trump, he added that her camp missed an entire segment of the population that it needed to speak tonotably, Americans still hurting from the recession. He also dug into Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other GOPers for instituting "a backlash" to Obama's vision, though he conceded McConnell's strategy was "pretty smart and well executed." But despite what he points out as missteps, as well as the contentious nature of Election 2016, Obama stuck by the assertion he made 12 years ago. "What I would argue is  the majority does buy into the notion of a one America that is tolerant and diverse and open and full of energy and dynamism," he said. (Ta-Nehisi Coates' take on Obama's presidency: "one of the greatest.")
"Medical Marijuana" dispensaries are to be issued in local counties. The application for permits will start next year.

It is reported that the application for Medical Marijuana dispensaries will be available on The Department of Health's website starting January 17. The applications submitted are being accepted by Feb. 20 and will be up until March 20. All those qualified will be issued permits by phase.

The first phase of the permits for "Medical Marijuana" dispensaries includes awarding 27 dispensary permits and 12 grower/processor permits. It is expected that there is enough competition in getting permits once this starts next year.

These "Medical Marijuana" dispensary permits are to be divided into six regions. The Department of Health is also looking at the project to be fully up and running in 2018. The dispensaries that are given permits can operate in three locations.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health already issued a press release that states of five "Medical Marijuana" dispensary permits to be issued for southwestern Pennsylvania. It is reported that two permits are to be issued in Allegheny. Butler, Washington and Westmoreland counties are to be issued one permit each.

Meanwhile, the approved "Medical Marijuana" dispensaries are allowed two secondary locations. It is reported that these locations cannot be in the same location as the main one. However, these secondary locations need to be in the same state.

To be able, to get the "Medical Marijuana" dispensary permit, the location needs to be 1000 meters away from a school or day care center. The dispensary also cannot be in another retail store. Additionally the dispensary cannot be in a doctor's office or in the same place where the plant is grown and processed. Those that are under 18 years of age can only enter a dispensary if accompanied by an adult.

There are different types of "Medical Marijuana" that can legally be taken. These are in forms of pills, oils, tinctures or ointments. It is indicated that marijuana cannot be smoked in dry leaf form.
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Goma (DR Congo):

Twenty-two civilians were killed in a massacre in Democratic Republic of Congos restive North Kivu province over the weekend, an official said on Sunday.



The bloodshed happened in Eringeti, a town 55 kilometres north of the regional hub Beni, a city plagued by a wave of attacks that have claimed more than 700 civilian lives according to regional official Amisi Kalonda, who blamed the latest violence on Ugandan rebels.



For the past two years the region around Beni has been afflicted by a series of massacres that have killed hundreds of civilians, most of whom were hacked to death.



Congolese officials have blamed the attacks on the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a group of rebels dominated by puritanical Ugandan Muslims, but several expert reports have suggested that other groups, including elements within the Congolese army, took part in some killings.

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New Delhi:

Heading towards a digital era, Haryana government on Sunday connected 100 villages with Wi-Fi services and decided to rename all common service centres (CSCs) opened in urban and rural areas as well as E-disha centres as Atal Seva Kendras at district headquarters.



This was announced by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar while launching 53 new IT services pertaining to six departments on Good Governance Day.



He also conducted a draw of the digital transaction award scheme meant to promote cashless transactions in the state. Under the scheme, 65 winners were awarded five prizes of Rs 10,000 each, 10 prizes of Rs 5,000 each and 50 prizes of Rs 1,000 each for proactively transacting cashless.



With the introduction of new IT facilities, citizens would get 170 e-services through Atal Seva Kendras in the state.



Apart from this, facilities available at CSCs would also be provided at E-disha centres.



The chief minister has earlier said that CSCs functional in rural areas would be shifted to Gram Sachivalyas so that people could get all facilities under one roof.



Khattar said students passing Class X and XII from Haryana School Education Board would get certificates through digital locker.



He also launched Knowledge Warehouse set up in Gurgaon to promote start-ups through video-conference. A single platform will be provided to 40 start-ups at this warehouse which has been set up with the joint efforts of HARTRON and NASSCOM. The number of seats would be increased from 40 to 80.



Addressing deputy commissioners through video-conference, the chief minister directed them to ensure installation of rate lists of various services being provided at CSCs. They would also ensure that village level entrepreneurs (VLE) worked from the place allotted to them so that people of the area concerned could get benefit of the schemes.



He also extended greetings to former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his birthday. While interacting with media persons, the chief minister described Vajpayee as a highly regarded and widely respected leader.

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Srinagar:

Describing tourism as the best mean to promote people-to-people engagement, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday said her government was making efforts to create a world-class tourist infrastructure.



Tourism promotes people-to-people contact and tourists become goodwill ambassadors of a place. Like the maxim seeing is believing, a tourist can testify the veracity of the claim about a place only after visiting it, she said.



She dismissed the notion that the state was unsafe for tourists in the aftermath of months-long unrest in the Valley.



Jammu and Kashmir is as safe for tourists, particularly women, as any other place in the country, she said at a meeting with a delegation of tour operators from across India.



Mehbooba said her government plans to create a world-class tourism infrastructure in the state.



Road connectivity to tourist destinations, bed capacity at tourist spots, wayside facilities etc are being improved and upgraded to address the requirements of every segment of tourists. Theme-based parks and places are being added to provide variety of attraction to tourists.



Similarly, heritage lovers and trekkers would be having more spots and treks to visit by adding new heritage sites and routes to their check list, the chief minister said.



Every region in the state has a unique attraction for tourists and they should be promoted, she said.



The states tourism department has organised a three-day familiarisation tour to the Valley for travel agents from Bangalore, Mumbai, Gujarat and Indore.



The agents, who arrived here yesterday, pitched for point-to-point rail services from Mumbai, Gujarat and Kolkata to the Valley to facilitate the travel of tourists to Kashmir, and sought subsidy in aviation fuel charges to bring down air fares.

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Karachi:

Local distributors of the latest Aamir Khan-starrer Dangal in Pakistan are pinning their hopes on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to give his formal approval to its release in the country and are expecting the film to be screened soon.

According to Pakistani media reports, the Ministry of Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage in association with the Ministry of Commerce, has sent an official summary to Sharif seeking his permission to release the film in Pakistan.

The local distributors have rubbished reports in Indian media as false that the film would not be released in the country, saying its screening may get delayed by a week.

That is false news. Yes there are hurdles that we are facing in releasing the film in Pakistan but we havent lost hope yet. The film might get delayed by a week or so but no final decision has been taken as yet, Mohammad Nasir of Geo films said.

Pakistani cinema owners are pinning their hopes on the release of Dangal and other Indian films to be released in January to make up for the losses they suffered during a three-month voluntarily ban on screening of Indian films in Pakistan.

The ban was lifted last week in a low-key fashion, but the release of Dangal still remains uncertain.

Also read: With Rs 64 crore in first two days, will Dangal be able to make it to Rs 100 crore club in first 3 days like Salman's Sultan?

According to officials, local distributor Geo films are in direct correspondence with Aamir, who also happens to be the producer of the film, to make its release possible.

A ministry source said that now only the Prime Minister can move things forward.

Zoraiz Lashari, chairman of the of the Film Exhibitors Association of Pakistan, has said that they too are awaiting the Prime Ministers response.

We have been suffering grave financial issues due to the suspension. Indian artistes and distributors want their films to be screened in Pakistan but the local distributors are hesitant to purchase new films before the government gives it a green light, he said.

I want to make it clear that there is no ban on Indian films in Pakistan as no official notification was issued by the government, he stated.

According to industry sources, local distributors pay around rupees 80 to 100 million to Indian distributors and the buying group must earn around 200 million rupees as they also have to pay off some amount to the cinemas and make profit.

Pakistan is considered as the third largest market for Indian films.

Indian movies returned to Pakistani cinema houses in 2008 after a 43-year-long hiatus imposed during the 1965 war.

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New Delhi :

A woman earning Rs 5000 monthly went into a sudden state of shock when she found out that her Jan Dhan bank account has been credited with Rs 99 crore.

Sheetal, who works in a factory went to withdraw cash on Sunday when she found out that somebody has deposited a hefty amount of Rs 99 crore in her account. Later Sheetal informed SBIs Sharda road branch but havent got any response yet.

After that, Sheetal has sought help from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and has written a mail stating that the money doesnt belong to her.

Sheetals husband also works in a private company with moderate income. So he too was amused after her wifes account got credited with 99 crores, 99 lakh, 99 thousand and 394 rupees. Till now no action has been taken against Sheetal.

Incidentally, there have been a number of similar cases after governments demonetisation move. Its been noted that a few black money hoarders are using peoples Jhan Dhan accounts to park their black money.

Later government imposed a restriction on withdrawing big amount immediately after getting credited in bank accounts.

Watch Video Here:

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Kormend :

Save us before we die from the cold, read the email in Father Zoltan Nemeths inbox. It was an appeal that this Hungarian priest could not ignore.

The SOS was sent by an asylum-seeker, one of 14 relocated from a refugee camp earmarked for closure near Budapest to what they say are freezing military tents in Kormend close to the Austrian border.

Nemeth, the Catholic parish priest in Kormend, a town of around 12,000 souls some 230 kilometres west of Budapest, quickly offered them shelter in the parish community hall.

Im not a hero, it was simply my duty as a committed Christian to help, the bespectacled and portly 61-year-old told a global news agency in the parish house next door where he lives.

But Nemeth calls his stance a lonely one in a country led by the fiercely anti-migrant Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

In 2015 Orban built fences on Hungarys borders to keep out migrants, and changed laws enabling the expulsion and jailing of illegal border crossers.

Refugee camps are being closed while a government referendum in October urged Hungarians to vote No on the EUs plan to relocate migrants around the bloc. The ballot, however, was declared invalid because of low voter turnout.

Hungary doesnt need a single migrant, Orban has said, warning that the poison of mass migration will destroy Europes Christian identity.

According to Nemeth, however, Orbans referendum campaign, with nationwide billboard posters that linked migrants to terrorism and crime, had an anti-Gospel message.

I follow Jesus, not the states leaders, he told global news agency, citing a passage from the Bible: For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat... I was a stranger and you invited me in.

The priest says his inspiration is Pope Francis who has regularly defended migrants and called on Europe to keep its doors open to those in need.

Upstairs in the parish hall, priest vestments hang on racks at one end, while mattresses and rucksacks line the walls.

Greeted with bear hugs when he goes upstairs to chat to the asylum-seekers, Nemeth says a three-year period in South America as a missionary taught him to disregard religion, race, or class, and only see the person.

The group of young men, all awaiting decisions on appeals of rejected asylum claims, is comprised of Iraqi Kurds, Afghans, Cameroonians, Nigerians, Cubans and a Congolese. They include both Christians and Muslims.

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New Delhi:

To protect the interest of Assam population, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Monday that India will completely seal the 223.7-km Indo-Bangladesh border by mid 2018. The Home Minister also said that the security of the more than 200-kilometre-long Indo-Bangladesh border was a priority for the BJP government.

We are committed to sealing the 223.7-km Indo-Bangladesh border and the process is on. It is expected to be completed within the next year and a half, Singh said addressing BJP workers in Guwahati.

Bangladesh is our neighbouring country and we share a good and warm relation, which we will continue to pursue and remain committed to in the future, he said.

The Union minister, without referring to the issues of illegal migration and granting of citizenship to Hindu refugees, assured the people of Assam that BJP was committed to protect the interests of the indigenous population of the state as per Clause 6 of the Assam Accord.

We are committed to Clause 6 of the Assam Accord and will protect it even if we have to amend the Constitution, he said.

Referring to the updating of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, Singh said the process is underway and the state government should complete it soon.

The Union minister said the Centre will make no compromise on the issue of insurgency as he claimed that violence has considerably come down in the state.

If any people or group have any grievances, problems or issues, we are ready to talk to them... We are ready to embrace them and talk. But if there is violence, there will be no compromise, he added.

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Sabarimala :

The Kerala government on Monday said that the entry of Bhumata Brigade chief Trupti Desai will not be allowed in the Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala, even as the activist plans to lead 100 odd women to the famous hill shrine in Sabarimala.

There are restrictions for the entry of women between 10-50 years of age in the temple.

The Sabarimala temple is administered by Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) and its traditions and rules are applicable to everyone, Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran told reporters in Sabarimala.

The matter with regard to entry of women of all age groups is already before the supreme court. There will be no change in the tradition and customs, until a decision is taken by the Supreme Court, he said.

The CPI(M)-led LDF governments stand comes after it had filed an affidavit in the supreme court last month informing that it favoured the entry of women of all age groups in the Sabarimala temple.

Trupti Desai had recently stated that she would be visiting the Lord Ayyappa temple next month with 100 odd activists and there was no change in her plans.

Desai had earlier campaigned for the entry of women at the Shani Shingnapur, Trimbakeshwar Shiva temple and Haji Ali dargah.

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New Delhi:

Australian pace bowler Jackson Bird struck twice just before rain ended play on the opening day of the second Test against Pakistan at the MCG on Monday.

When tea was called early due to rain, the visitors were 142 for four with opener Azhar Ali on 66 and first Test centurion Asad Shafiq on four, and that proved to be the stumps score as well.

The rain continued after tea and play was abandoned without any more action.

After winning the toss and electing to bat the visitors made a cautious start, but only Ali had been able to build an innings of substance. Bird (2-53) struck twice in quick succession just before the rain set in to give the home team the ascendancy, removing experienced duo Younis Khan (21) and Misbah-ul-Haq (11).

Khan, who had been given out LBW on three but successfully appealed the decision when replays showed the ball was missing leg stump, just looked to be finding touch when Bird snuck a ball between his bat and pad to bowl him.

Misbah got an inside edge onto his pad and short leg Nic Maddinson dived forward to take a fine catch, which was confirmed by the third umpire.

Earlier Babar Azam (23) edged the last ball of the first session from Josh Hazlewood (1-15) to Australian captain Steven Smith in slips.

Smith, who had some rare catching errors in the first Test, went low to his right and just managed to cling onto the sharp chance to reward some excellent bowling from Hazlewood.

Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat on a dry pitch, and their openers were determined to see off any early movement from the Australian fast bowlers.

Although the pair played and missed on occasions, Sami Aslam and Ali were able to negotiate the seamers, and it wasn't until the introduction of spinner Nathan Lyon that the home side tasted success.

With his third ball, the spinner had Aslam caught at first slip by Smith.

Aslam had batted with great caution for nine runs from 41 balls, but was surprised by some extra bounce and the ball caught the glove.

Ali survived a confident LBW appeal from the bowing of Hazlewood when he was on six, and was comprehensively beaten by the next ball, but steadied to anchor the innings.

Australia kept the same 11 which won the first Test of the three-match series in Brisbane by 39 runs, keeping faith in struggling rookie batsman Maddinson.

Pakistan made one change, replacing seamer Rahat Ali with Sohail Khan.
New Delhi:

The Delhi High Court on Monday asked the AAP government to decide in three days the parole plea of Manu Sharma, undergoing life term for killing model Jessica Lall in 1999.

The government of National Capital Territory of Delhi is directed to dispose of the application/representation of the petitioner (Sharma) within three days from the date of receipt of this order, Justice Pratibha Rani said.

The court said the order passed by the government should be communicated immediately to the petitioner and his counsel through the jail superintendent.

The direction came on plea by Sharma, who sought three months parole to enable him appear for LLB second semester exams from December 31, attend his Personal Contact Programme and re-establish social ties.

Advocate Amit Sahni, appearing for Sharma, said three month was required as the convict has to appear before the Registrar in Chandigarh on January 19 next year. He said the government has not yet taken any decision on the application since October this year.

Additional Standing Counsel Sanjay Lao, appearing for the government, then said the application filed by the petitioner seeking parole shall be disposed of expeditiously.

The court noted that the parole application was sent to the competent authority only on December 7, which has not yet been decided.

The convict, who has been given parole six times since September 2009, has completed a post-graduate diploma in Human Rights and is now pursuing a Bachelors in Law course from Annamalai University, Chennai.

Sharma, son of former Union Minister Venod Sharma, was awarded life imprisonment by the high court in December 2006 for killing Jessica Lall in 1999. The trial court had acquitted him, but the Delhi High Court had reversed it and the Supreme Court had upheld the life sentence in April 2010.

Lall was shot dead by Sharma after she had refused to serve him liquor at the Tamarind Court restaurant owned by socialite Bina Ramani at Qutub Colonnade in South Delhis Mehrauli on the night of April 30, 1999.

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Mumbai:

Actor Vindhu Dara Singh says superstar Akshay Kumar is baffled about doing the biopic on his late wrestler-actor father Dara Singh.

Yes, we have spoken to Akshay about the biopic. He hasnt heard the script yet. He knows we want him in the film. He is little confused, he is thinking. He is a very dedicated actor and whatever he does, he does from the heart, Vindhu told.

Vindhu who has worked with Akshay in films like Kambakkht Ishq, Mujhse Shaadi Karogi, Housefull, Housefull 2 and Joker, feels the Khiladi Kumar is the apt choice for his father Dara Singhs biopic.

Akshay thinks he needs to bulk up for the role, I dont think so. I think he needs to be like what he was in Brothers or may be ten per cent more. I think he will be wonderful as Dara Singh, he said.

Mahrukh Asad Mirza, who wrote films like Amitabh Bachchan-starrer Kasme Vaade, has written the script for the biopic of the late wrestler-actor.

From start to end I was part of the script writing, it (story) is very close to our heart and we want it to be made nicely. We want it to be wow, he said.

There were a lot of names thrown around, from Sangram Singh to Sonu Sood to John Abraham for the biopic. But Vindhu insists only he and his family can make it.

There are lot of people who want to do a film on him but they cant make it without our consent. Nobody can do a film on Dara Singh except us. He is our father, how can we just allow anyone to make the film, he said.

The 52-year-old actor plans to begin shooting for the film from 2017.

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New Delhi:

An Indian Catholic priest who was abducted by terror group Islamic State from Yemen earlier this year appealed to Pope Francis and the Union government through a purported video to secure his release from his captors.

"If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously. I am from India. I am perhaps not considered as of much value," said priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil in a weak voice in the video, aired by news channels in Kerala.

"Dear Pope Francis, dear Holy Father, as a father please take care of my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating," he said in the video, a day after Christmas.

Father Uzhunnalil, who looked very weak, appeared to be reading out from a text placed before him.

The veracity of the video, which was uploaded from You tube and Facebook, could neither be independently verified nor was the period when it was shot known.

Father Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala, was abducted in March by terror group Islamic State which attacked an old-age home run by Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity in southern Yemeni city of Aden.

He claimed his captors have made many contacts with the Government of India--President and Prime Minister. "I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in my regard," he said.

He said reports had said everything has been done to get his release, "but in reality nothing" has been done.

Father Uzhunnalil said a news reporter abducted in the Middle East was released as she was from France.

"I am from India and not considered. Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all to do your might to help me to save my life. I need hospitalisation soon. Please come to my help quickly," he said.

The Union Government has said efforts are being made to secure Uzhunnalil's release, but such attempts take time.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had informed Parliament that Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has spoken to various countries through which contacts can be established in Yemen.

Swaraj had said it takes more time to secure release of people who are held captive and asked the MPs to keep "faith" in government's efforts to trace the abducted priest.

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Manipur:

In an efforts to open national highway in Manipur that was blocked for nearly two months by a Naga group, the Centre has rushed additional 4,000 paramilitary personnel to Manipur.

With this, the total number of central security personnel deployed in the sensitive northeastern state rose to 17,500. These security personnel have been deployed to assist local administration to maintain law and order in the state.

Our top priority is now to reopen the National Highway-2 connecting Manipur (to Nagaland). While the other highway (NH-37) is reopened, we want to reopen the NH-2 too as early as possible, a senior Home Ministry official said. The security personnel were sent to the northeastern state keeping in view the security situation in the wake of violence following the economic blockade imposed by the Union Naga Council (UNC) on the National Highways since November 1.

The UNC has imposed the economic blockade on NH-2 (Imphal-Dimapur) and NH 37 (Imphal-Jiribam) that serve as lifelines for the landlocked Manipur.

Curfew has been clamped in Imphal East district for the last fortnight after a mob torched and vandalised 22 passenger vehicles on the Imphal-Ukhrul road, while curfew in Imphal West district was imposed from evening to dawn.

In a stern message, the Centre had on Friday told the Manipur government that it cant escape responsibility for the humanitarian crisis arising out of the 52-day economic blockade by a Naga group and must work to end it, while making it clear that nobody will be allowed to take political advantage out of it.

Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, who was on a day-long visit to Congress-ruled Manipur as a central emissary, said it is completely unacceptable to have such kinds of blockades in which thousands are suffering and both the central and Manipur governments will work together to end it.

The state government has not been able to end the blockade. It must end as soon as possible as law and order is the responsibility of the state government. Nobody will be allowed to take political advantage out of a humanitarian crisis where common people are suffering, he had said.

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New Delhi:

NASA delivered a message from aboard International Space Station about the experience of the crew members there. The message was regarding what Christmas meant to them when they are in Space, away from Earth.

Expedition 50 Commander Shane Kimbrough said that the holiday was about family and giving.

"We always travel typically to meet up with our family because we're dispersed all over the country. We go home to Georgia quite a bit or Florida or sometimes Colorado to meet up with all of our immediate and distant family members.

"Always a great time just to get together and share with each other. This season is typically thought of is all about getting things around Christmas but we in our family we try to think of it as the giving aspect giving of our many talents and of our resources and of our time to others less fortunate. It's also a season that I love," Kimbrough said.

NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, who is having her third mission to the ISS said that being able to have a look of the planet Earth has provided her with a different perspective on Christmas.

"Obviously friends and family are important to all of us," Whitson said. "There is another very important aspect of being on ISIS and that's seeing the planet as a whole.

"And it actually reinforces I think that the fact that we should live as one people and strive for peace."

French astronaut Thomas Pesquet of the European Space Agency talked about getting together with his family that included 25 cousins

"This year I won't be able to be there of course but I think I'll talk to them. I'll try to give them a call and catchup as much as I can and make the most of this opportunity to look at the earth reflect about what Christmas means to us as individuals, to the world in general.

"And and I think we'll we'll have we'll have a good time on board ISS and share a Christmas meal together," Pesquet said.

The crew members also talked about what their meal is going to be aboard International Space Station.

Pesquet told that he had a special meal prepared by French chefs that included chicken supreme with morel, ox tongue and gingerbread. He told that the ingredients used to prepare the meal, were the same as cooked by his grandmother and will give him a trip down the memory lane.

Whitson and Kimbrough mentioned other packed meals and drinks they will enjoy include hot cocoa and turkey with cornbread stuffing.

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New Delhi:

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee arrived in New Delhi on Monday to attend a meeting of opposition parties in their fight against Modi's govt demonetisation. TMC along with Congress, DMK, RJD and other political parties will also organise a joint press conference on Tuesday, TMC sources said.

Banerjee told reporters at the Kolkata airport, The Congress has called me for the meeting. Lets see what happens!

Mamata Banerjee will attend the media briefing at Constitution Club along with other Opposition leaders including representatives from DMK and RJD among others, sources added. Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi are expected to attend the meeting.

While the Left parties announced they are staying away, the JD(U) also gave hints that it may follow suit.

A top TMC leader said while reacting to CPI-Ms pull-out, said, It is the CPI-Ms internal matter. But we feel that it is for them to decide on which side they are. We want to highlight the hardships caused due to demonetisation across the country, a senior TMC leader claimed.

TMC chief will be in the capital for three days and expected to meet several leaders from different political hues during her stay.

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New Delhi:

Four persons have been arrested in connection with the alleged gangrape of a US national in a five-star hotel in New Delhi earlier this year.

The four accused arrested include the tour guide, driver, cleaner and a hotel staff, said a senior police officer.

The officer, however, refused to reveal the names of the arrested persons as police will be conduct an test identification parade.

The US national arrived here a few days ago to join the probe and recorded her statement in front of a judicial magistrate where she reiterated the charges she had made in her complaint.

Earlier, she had said that she was not satisfied with the probe and was ready to come to India to identify the accused.

On December 8, the tourist guide, accused of raping the woman, along with his accomplices, was questioned by police after his arrival from Nepal.

Police had identified the man and had contacted him while he was in Nepal.

The tour guide had denied his involvement in the matter and told police that the victim had given him a positive feedback in the forms.

The woman had alleged that she was raped by the men for two days. They also threatened her with dire consequences if she reported the matter to anybody.

She had also stated that the accused had made a video of the act and had threatened to make it public if she reported the matter to anyone.

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New Delhi:

BJP hit back at Congress VP Rahul Gandhi on Monday claiming that he was making untrue and baseless allegations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Further, the ruling party also said that Gandhi was frustrated due to success of the campaign against black money and corruption.

It said the Congress Vice President was afraid that the governments ongoing action against corruption will result in expose of a number of graft cases involving his party leaders. Rahul Gandhi is frustrated and desperate due to success of Modis campaign against black money and corruption. He is perhaps most hurt by demonetisation, thus levelling untrue and baseless allegations. That is why he raked up charges which the Supreme Court had refused to take note of.

Also Read: PM Narendra Modi is 'pure like Ganga', says BJP on Rahul Gandhi's allegations of corruption



 He talks about the government not disclosing the names of people having unauthorised accounts in foreign banks. We have handed over the list to the SIT. Disclosing names will only help the suspects as our government then will not get help from these countries. This is what he wants, BJP National Secretary Shrikant Sharma said.

He noted that former Union Minister Preneet Kaurs names had cropped up in one such list of foreign account holders. She has maintained that she never had such an account.Gandhi is himself out on bail in the National Herald case of corruption, he said, claiming that industry groups run by Adani brothers and Anil Ambani had run up debt of Rs 72 thousand crore and Rs 1.13 lakh crore respectively during the UPA government.

Also Read: Problems due to demonetisation won't end after December 30, says Rahul Gandhi

UPA government had waived off debts running into over Rs 36 lakh crore to corporate groups. Out government is working to recover their debts, he said, responding to the charge that the Modi government was pro-rich and pro-corporate.Addressing a public rally in Baran in Rajasthan, Gandhi alleged that the note ban decision is not against corruption but is an economic lockdown. It is not against black money but against the poor, farmers, labourers and women.

In the last two-and-a-half years, Modi only worked to create a divide in the country and functioned only for the rich, he alleged.

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New Delhi:

Airport Express Line of Delhi Metro suffered a setback as domestic low-cost carriers are not operating from Terminal 3, DMRC chief Mangu Singh has said.

Although the premium corridor has scripted a turnaround of sorts with daily ridership touching a high of 50,000 in August 2016, Singh suggested that the numbers could have been more had things panned out as per plan.

When the 23-km-long corridor was being contemplated, it was planned that complete flight operations, including domestic, will be from T3, he said, but we do not know why authorities decided to continue with Terminal 1.

This is really a setback becasue we believe that passengers of domestic carriers use public transport. T3 people mostly travel in their own vehicles. However, we are running a feeder service between the two terminals and that has helped to some extent, Singh told PTI.

At the planning stage, it was also envisaged that property development would be a major source of revenue for the corridor but low ridership was coming in its way, which prompted metro to slash fares, he said.

The idea was that when footfall increases property development will follow, Singh said.

Also Read: Delhi Metros trial run between Janakpuri West and IGI Airport stations begins

Fares were cut by up to 50 per cent in September last year to popularise the relatively expensive line that connects New Delhi Railway Station to T3.

The maximum fare has been reduced to Rs 60 from Rs 180 while the minimum is Rs 10 against Rs 50 in 2013.

As metro already had a robust system in place, operating the Airport corridor was not much of a challenge when it took over the operations from a private concessionaire in July 2013.

We had one big advantage because we were already operating a system. There were many things that we could simply absorb. Control centre was shifted here, similarly maintenance staff was shared. We could bring in a lot of efficiency as per operational and maintenance cost is concerned, he said.

As per official data, the average daily ridership figure of July, 2013, was 10,069. It subsequently rose to around 12,000 in March 2014 and further to 19,466 a year later.

On August 28, 2015 more than 32,000 people had taken the corridor, also known as Orange Line and a year later it recorded the highest-ever ridership of 50,000.

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#MBN Cable channel loses lawsuit against suspension order MBN, a cable TV channel, on Thursday lost a lawsuit against the government's order to suspend its operation for six months for accounting fraud. The Korea Communications Commis...
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RIDGEFIELD - Well before I-84, I-95, congested Route 7, and the Saw Mill Parkway, many of Ridgefields weekend and summer residents traveled by rail from New York City to the Victorian-era train station on Prospect Street.

The trains ran there from 1873 to 1962, and the tracks were torn away sometime later, but the romanticism remains. The train station sits on the five-acre parcel where the Ridgefield Supply Co., the longest continuous retail business in town, is located.

Company CEO Margaret Price said over the years train historians have visited the station, which was built in the 1870s.

She said the towns old-timers tell her, I remember as a child riding that train and then putting a penny on the tracks and seeing it flattened when the train came by, and I can remember playing on the tracks and having to get out of the way when the freight train came through. And at the other end of the spectrum, there are residents that see the building and say, I never knew there had been a train station there.

Price - a Ridgefield native whose family has been associated with the company since 1933, when her grandfather, Louis Price Sr., became a president and part-owner - said that prior to the 2008 financial crisis some civic groups had inquired about buying facility for their operations.

In 2012, Price, who has worked at the Ridgefield Supply Co. since graduating in 2000 from Wheaton College in Massachusetts, and her late father, Louis Price Jr., who was the president and CEO from 1972 to 2011, started planning a massive overhaul of the aging facility. They wanted to put roofs over more of the facility, which serves customers ranging from homeowners to building contractors, interior designers and paint contractors.

Repairs were not going to be enough, Price said. The facility was falling apart. We only had two bathrooms for 45 employees, plus customers.

She said as they embarked in 2014 on a three-year project of constructing 12 new buildings and moving another structure, local residents had the same question.

Everybody asked: What are you going to do with the train station? Price said. She said her family and the local residents both wanted the train station, which had been used for storage, to be retained.

The project manager, Mike Gulick of Gulick Construction in Norwalk, said the beams were so weak that it wasnt feasible to move the train station to another location to make room for the newer buildings. So instead, he and Price decided to replicate it on another part of the parcel.

Gulick said they searched for the oldest photos they could find and cut sections from the train station and then fabricated them so the new 1,159-square-foot structure would be identical.

We have new technology now to make it even better, he said. The train station will be used as a cutting-edge window showroom after it is completed by late winter.

Earlier this month, Rays Transportation of New Windsor, N.Y. installed tracks along the length of the train station. Price, 39, said she never recalls seeing any tracks around the old station.

By the time they complete the project next spring, Gulick and a group of local subcontractors will have built over 65,000 square feet of warehouse roofing, including a new 33,000-square-foot primary building.

He commended Price and her employees for developing the plan in phases so that her current operations and the new construction could proceed simultaneously. There have been very few glitches, he said.

He added that he has been impressed with their customer service.

Youre very comfortable walking into this place and you get treated with such respect. If you walk into other lumber yards, you have to stand there for 10 or 15 minutes before someone looks up and tries to help you. These employees go the extra mile every day.

Price credits her executive and sales teams with keeping the business vibrant following the economic recession. They service several building trades clients from nearby New York state while the Connecticut construction market has remained lackluster. In particular, she said there is currently little speculative or custom building in Connecticut.

She said the grand opening in May will mark a new era.

Well be under roof, where our products will be protected and our employees will be protected from the sun, rain and the snow, said Price. It will be a nicer place for our people to work.
UK banks, financial firms may relocate to Ireland

United Kingdom,Business/Economy, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

London, Dec 26 (IANS) Banks and more than 100 UK companies are inquiring about relocating to Ireland after Britain's historic vote to leave the European Union (EU), a media report said.

Martin Shanahan, the Chief Executive of the Industrial Development Agency (IDA), on Sunday said many of the corporations looking to move were based in London, the Guardian reported.

Shanahan said that while Ireland would try to make capital out of the UK voting to leave the EU, Brexit was not the outcome he or anyone else in Ireland favoured.

The IDA has a target to create an extra 80,000 jobs in the country by 2019, many of them from new US firms setting up their European base in Ireland.

Shanahan told the Guardian that Ireland's low 12.5 per cent corporation tax remained sacrosanct as one of the Irish Republic's key fiscal policies.

Ireland will be the only English speaking country left in the EU after Brexit, giving Shanahan and his IDA colleagues extra impetus in their attempts to woo companies, some of which are based in the UK.

He said: "We have seen a huge increase in the amount of inquiries and activities across the globe. It's not just our office in London, or our office in Dublin. We are receiving inquiries in Asia, in the US, in New York in particular. The figure that we have used to date is over 100 related inquiries."

"For the financial services sector it is the fact that they need to have access to the European market and they need a jurisdiction in which they can do that. Ireland is extremely attractive because we are English speaking, have a common law system, there is the close proximity to the UK."

Despite criticism from fellow EU nations such as France that Ireland operates sweetheart tax deals (a favourable contractual arrangement) for some of the biggest corporations on the planet, Shanahan predicted there would be no change to the 12.5 per cent corporation tax regime.

"Investors place great store in the fact that Ireland has been unwavering and consistent. They know exactly what they are getting, the fact that it is 12.5%. I do not see any circumstances, and this has been confirmed by the Minister for Finance Michael Noonan, that it will change any time in the near future, or even the long-term future for that matter," he added.

--IANS

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Arrest of Al-Jazeera journalist ordered in Egypt

Egypt,Immigration/Law/Rights,Media, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Cairo, Dec 26 (IANS) Egypt's general prosecutor's office ordered the arrest of an Al-Jazeera news producer for allegedly broadcasting "false news".

The prosecution on Sunday accused Mahmoud Hussein Gomaa of inciting hatred against state institutions and broadcasting false news with the aim of providing an adulterated version of events in Egypt, Efe news reported.

"Al-Jazeera holds Egyptian authorities responsible for the safety of Hussein and is calling for his immediate release," the Qatar-based network said in a statement.

Hussein was on holiday when he was arrested on Friday along with his two brothers by Homeland Security officials.

Al-Jazeera said that the three had been taken to an unknown place.

The Egyptian Interior Ministry arrested Hussein three days after being interrogated for 15 hours at Cairo's airport over allegations of spreading false news, documentaries and media reports, as well as posting them online in exchange for large sums of money, according to authorities.

Al-Jazeera has been from working in Egypt due to the tense relationship between Doha and Cairo, as Qatar was one of the main supporters of the former Islamist leader of the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Morsi.

--IANS

ksk
'Media exposes chaos and suffering, neglects Iraqi art and culture'

Madhya Pradesh,National,Art/Culture/Books, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Gwalior, Dec 26 (IANS) Political chaos, death, destruction and suffering dominates the media portrayal of Iraq and its culture and art scene is completely neglected, according to Iraqi musician Osama Abdulrasol.

"The media across the world only speaks of Iraq in terms of war and sadness in that land. Hundreds of artistic things have originated in Iraq but the press exposes just one segment that is the political conflicts and the negative repercussions," the composer and producer told IANS in an interview.

"...That way people forget the value of Iraqis," he said.

Abdulrasol was recently here with Turkish musician Johannus Sahin to perform at the Tansen Samaroh organised by the Madhya Pradesh Culture Ministry's Kala Parishad to celebrate the universal language of music.

According to him, politicians don't want culture to be served and if it is to be served it has to be manipulated through them.

He said: "We are trying to revive the exquisite art by performing at such festivals. Our main goal is to showcase a positive side of Iraq and bring another image through music."

It was his first tour to India. From raagas to breads, Abdulrasol had a lot to say about the country and its people.

"It was an amazing experience performing for the Indian audiences. I was extremely tired before my performance but the enthusiastic audiences completely made it up to that," he said, adding: "We got to eat fantastic food in the afternoons."

"There was this delicious dish called shahi paneer. Then there were breads...chapatis, naans etc."

Referring to the multiple problems he witnessed here in India, he said: "Chaos creates a lot of creativity. I believe that it triggers artists."

"In Iraq also, the political chaos triggers creativity. Europe is organised and thus it has less creativity," he said jokingly.

Abdulrasol cited similarities between Indian music and Iraqi music saying: "We have maqams in Iraqi music, which are similar to raagas in Indian music. Many of the Indian raagas have different names in Iraqi."

"In old times, there used to be 3,500 maqams. They unfortunately got reduced to 47 with time. We are trying to bring those old maqams back to life."

The artist works a lot on fusions and likes to bring different instruments together but doesn't support the influence of contemporary styles on classical music.

"I don't enjoy the unnecessary influence of pop and rock on classical music. I like fusion only if it's made with taste and to do so is very difficult. A lot of artists don't know how to bring it out and end up ruining it," he said, adding: "My theory is to make new roots on the ground."

Abdulrasol's instrument, the qanun is very similar to the Indian santoorr. It is played by plucking the strings with two tortoise-shell picks (one for each hand) or with fingernails.

"People across the world remain very curious to know about the instruments that we play. They always come and ask about it as they cannot really figure out how we play it using fingernails," Abdulrasol explained.

For Turkish artist Johannus Sahin, India is alive in terms of music with active audiences, who understand music.

"It is a musical country. It's much easier to play music here than to play it in the west. People are mainly listening to pop there. Classical is very strange for them. They don't have the culture and patience to enjoy it like they have in India," he said.

Sahin performed at the Jodhpur folk festival a decade ago. This was his third tour to India. He feels that the music scene in the country is flourishing.

"I see a lot of events happening in Delhi and the music scene is flourishing. You go to a bank ATM, and see images of musicians...Zakir Hussain and Ravi Shankar. That's overwhelming."

"You can never ever witness such things in Europe. They would never put the pictures of an artist. It's great that this country supports artists more than political leaders," he laughed.

(Mudita Girotra's visit was at the invitation of the Kala Parishad. She can be contacted at mudita.g@ians.in)

--IANS

mg/vm
Trump's pick for communications director declines

United States,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

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New York, Dec 26 (IANS) US President-elect Donald Trump's pick for communications director, Jason Miller declined to take up the job because his wife is pregnant, although local media reported that his refusal came for other reasons.

Miller, who is one of Trump's main spokesmen, was tapped on Thursday to be White House communications director, but he decided to decline the offer as he wanted to spend more time with his family, Efe news agency reports.

Miller's wife will give birth in January to their second child. He said in a statement that his family will be his "top priority right now" and he is at a point where he cannot take on "a new job as demanding" as White House communications director.

He will hand over his duties to Sean Spicer, the communications chief for the Republican National Committee whom Trump selected this past week to be his White House Press Secretary -- a position he will retain.

However, The Daily News reported that there were other reasons why Miller may have refused the position "after a transition team staffer posted cryptic tweets suggesting he's a philanderer" and is involved in a "sexual scandal".

--IANS

vgu/

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South Korean court to begin review of President's impeachment

South Korea,Immigration/Law/Rights,Politics, Mon, 26 Dec 2016 IANS

Seoul, Dec 26 (IANS) South Korea's Constitutional Court said on Monday that it will start the official review of the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye next week.

The National Assembly voted on December 9 to oust Park from office over a corruption and influence-peddling scandal involving her and her longtime confidante Choi Soon-sil, Yonhap news agency reported.

The top court said its preparation procedure will be complete this week after it receives the results of the prosecution's investigation into the case.

The court has around six months to come up with a final ruling. If her impeachment is confirmed, South Korea has to hold a presidential election within 60 days.

South Korean prosecutors, meanwhile, said they will hand over documents related to the investigation into the President to the Constitutional Court, which is expected to speed up the impeachment review process.

The Constitutional Court has been facing hurdles in acquiring prosecutors' documents, amid legal debate on the legitimacy of the top court's request for files on ongoing cases.

--IANS

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Police in Wyoming County are seeking a person who was caught on camera stealing and damaging Christmas wreaths at an American Legion post.

A surveillance camera caught the unidentified man outside the Six Star Post 637 in Stryersville early in the morning on December 18, WKBW-TV reported. The man could be seen damaging the wreath on the POW-MIA flagpole and stealing the wreaths on the Army and Marine Corps flagpoles.

The Wyoming County Sheriff's Office posted a video of the act on its Facebook page, asking the public to call (585) 786-2255 with any information.

We are still seeking the identification of this individual, please call the Wyoming County Sheriff's Office at 585-786-2255 if you have any information. Posted by Wyoming County Sheriff's Office on Friday, December 23, 2016

The wreaths were set up on the flag poles by Post members. As of Friday, the office had posted a message that they were still looking for the suspect.
Researchers have discovered that tantalum carbide and hafnium carbide materials can withstand scorching temperatures of nearly 4000 degrees Celsius.

Being able to withstand temperatures of nearly 4000C could pave the way for both materials to be used in ever more extreme environments, such as in heat resistant shielding for the next generation of hypersonic space vehicles.

Tantalum carbide (TaC) and hafnium carbide (HfC) are refractory ceramics, meaning they are extraordinarily resistant to heat. Their ability to withstand extremely harsh environments means that refractory ceramics could be used in thermal protection systems on high-speed vehicles and as fuel cladding in the super-heated environments of nuclear reactors. However, there hasnt been the technology available to test the melting point of TaC and HfC in the lab to determine how truly extreme an environment they could function in.

Nature Scientific Reports  Investigating the highest melting temperature materials: A laser melting study of the TaC-HfC system

TaC, HfC and their solid solutions are promising candidate materials for thermal protection structures in hypersonic vehicles because of their very high melting temperatures (over 4000 K) among other properties. The melting temperatures of slightly hypostoichiometric TaC, HfC and three solid solution compositions (Ta1xHfxC, with x = 0.8, 0.5 and 0.2) have long been identified as the highest known. In the current research, they were reassessed, for the first time in the last fifty years, using a laser heating technique. They were found to melt in the range of 40414232 K, with HfC having the highest and TaC the lowest. Spectral radiance of the hot samples was measured in situ, showing that the optical emissivity of these compounds plays a fundamental role in their heat balance. Independently, the results show that the melting point for HfC0.98, (4232  84) K, is the highest recorded for any compound studied until now.

The researchers of the study, which is published in the journal Scientific Reports, developed a new extreme heating technique using lasers to test the heat tolerance of TaC and HfC. They used the laser-heating techniques to find the point at which TaC and HfC melted, both separately and as mixed compositions of both.

They found that the mixed compound (Ta0.8Hf0.20C) was consistent with previous research, melting at 3905C, but the two compounds on their own exceeded previous recorded melting points. The compound TaC melted at 3768C and HfC melted at 3958C.

Space race

The researchers say the new findings could pave the way for the next generation of hypersonic vehicles, meaning spacecraft could become faster than ever.

Dr Omar Cedillos-Barraza, who is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Texas  El Paso, carried out the study while doing his PhD at Imperials Department of Materials.

Dr Cedillos-Barraza said: The friction involved when travelling above Mach 5  hypersonic speeds  creates very high temperatures. So far, TaC and HfC have not been potential candidates for hypersonic aircraft, but our new findings show that they can withstand even more heat than we previously thought  more than any other compound known to man. This means that they could be useful materials for new types of spacecraft that can fly through the atmosphere like a plane, before reaching hypersonic speeds to shoot out into space. These materials may enable spacecraft to withstand the extreme heat generated from leaving and re-entering the atmosphere.

Examples of potential uses for TaC and HfC could be in nose caps for spacecraft, and as the edges of external instruments that have to withstand the most friction during flight.

Currently, vehicles going over Mach 5 speeds do not carry people, but Dr Cedillos-Barraza suggests it may be possible in the future.

Dr Cedillos-Barraza added: Our tests demonstrate that these materials show real promise in the engineering of space vehicles of the future. Being able to withstand such extreme temperatures means that missions involving hypersonic spacecraft may one day be manned missions. For example, a flight from London to Sydney may take about 50 minutes at Mach 5, which could open a new world of commercial opportunities for countries around the world.

The design of next generation hypersonic flight vehicles has raised interest in the discovery and development of materials that can operate in extreme environments. Hypersonic vehicles are equipped with sharp nose tips and leading edges to maximize flight performance. However, very high temperatures and heating rates are produced at these surfaces due to extreme velocities (over 5 Mach). Thermal protection structures are required that can operate in air at temperatures that can exceed 2200 K, thus components are required to have very high melting temperatures1,2. The extreme conditions required for hypersonic applications have introduced the motivation for research and development of high temperature materials, including a group of ceramics commonly known as ultra-high temperature ceramics (UHTCs). A common definition of a UHTC is that of a ceramic that has a melting temperature above 3300 K. From a wide selection of materials that an engineer can choose only a limited number have melting temperatures above this criterion3. Tantalum carbide (TaC) and hafnium carbide (HfC) are of particular interest due to their high melting temperatures (over 4000 K) which are the highest reported among all known inorganic materials. They are known to form a continuous solid solution over the whole range of compositions.

Laser heating experiment consisted of four consecutive laser pulses, starting with a low-power pulse held for a long hold time (typically 1000 ms), and then the power of the subsequent pulses were increased but shortened in hold time (typically few hundreds ms). The pre-heating stage and the successive pulses were conceived to minimise thermal stresses and the risk of mechanical failure of the samples.

The results from this work show that HfC0.98 has the highest melting point in the TaC-HfC system at (4232  84) K, which make it the highest melting point compound, since the melting temperature of TaC was experimentally found to be lower than HfC in this work.

In mixed compositions, a local maximum melting temperature was observed for the Ta0.8Hf0.2C, in agreement with previous research. Nevertheless, the current melting temperature of HfC0.98 remains the highest of the series. The presence of a local maximum melting temperature for mixed Hf-Ta carbides has been shown to be accompanied by a spectral emissivity effect, consistent with the existence, recently proposed by Hong and van de Walle9, of a link between the melting behavior and the Fermi level position in this kind of compounds. This should boost further experimental research on Ta-Hf-C-N compositions that might display even higher melting temperatures than those assessed for the ternary Ta-Hf-C system, in line with Hong and van de Walles theoretical predictions.
Scientists have identified an unexpected cause of poor performance in a new class of flexible and cheap solar cells, bringing them closer to market.

Solar cells are the building blocks of photovoltaic solar panels. They are made from light-absorbing materials that convert sunlight into electricity. Normally the light-absorbing material is silicon, which has an energy-intensive manufacturing process.

In the new study, scientists looked at solar cells made from materials known as perovskites. These can be produced cheaply from chemicals mixed into printable or sprayable ink, which then crystallises to form light-absorbing films.

Nature Communications  Evidence for ion migration in hybrid perovskite solar cells with minimal hysteresis

However, perovskite films contain charged defects that are likely to impair their performance. Slow movement of these defects is thought to be responsible for a process known as hysteresis, which leads to irregularities in the efficiency with which light is converted to electrical current.

Light-generated electricity exits the solar cell in the form of electrons to be harnessed. This is done via contacts that sandwich the light-absorbing film. Previously, scientists have managed to remove hysteresis by using more selective contact materials that ensure a one-way flow of electrons out of the solar cell.

In theory, changing these contact materials shouldnt have any effect on the movement of the charged defects within the perovskite, so it has remained a mystery why this appeared to fix the hysteresis problem.

Now researchers from Imperial College London and collaborators have developed new experiments to follow which direction electrons move in the solar cell when they are generated with a short pulse of light.

They found that the mobile charged defects are still present even in solar cells with very efficient contact materials, despite these cells showing no hysteresis. Hysteresis was only found when cells suffered the combined effects of both the defects and poor selectivity at the contacts.

Dr Piers Barnes, from the Department of Physics at Imperial, who led the study said: Previously there was debate over whether the charged defects or the contact materials were responsible for hysteresis. A little bit like Agatha Christies Murder on the Orient Express, weve shown that they both did it.

The field has made amazing progress, and were on the right track by reducing problems with the contacts. However, the results also show that improving the contacts is only part of the solution, and we still need to be concerned about the charged defects moving inside the perovskite.

The charged defects may provide a chemical weak point which could lead to the eventual degradation of the perovskite film. This raises a potential concern over the solar cells long term stability.

Dr Barnes said: The new techniques we have designed will allow the community to assess the extent of charged defect movement to help the future research needed to improve the stability and bring this technology to market.

Now that the causes of hysteresis have been uncovered, there are a few challenges that must be overcome before perovskite solar cells can be commercialised. One concern with current perovskites is that they contain small amounts of lead in their chemical structure. A replacement metal will probably have to be found before they are deemed safe at larger scales.

Scientists will also have to reproduce their laboratory results with life-sized solar panels. However, the crucial challenge will be to find a way of improving the long-term stability of the perovskite materials.
A close friend of President Muhammadu Buhari and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Brig.Gen. Jafaru Isa (retd.), has returned ...

A close friend of President Muhammadu Buhari and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Brig.Gen. Jafaru Isa (retd.), has returned N170m to the Federal Government.Isa, who is a former military governor of Kaduna State, was arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in January for allegedly receiving N170m from the embattled former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.).He was, however, released by the EFCC after returning N100m to the commission with a promise to pay the balance of N70m.A reliable source at the EFCC stated, I can confirm to you that Jafaru Isa has returned the balance of N70m to the Federal Governments purse. This brings the total amount of money he has returned to N170m.The retired general, who was a member of Buharis 19-man transition committee, was arrested around the same time the then National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Olisa Metuh, was detained for allegedly receiving N400m from Dasuki.However, while Jafaru was released after five days in detention, Metuh spent about three weeks in the custody of the commission, causing the PDP to accuse the anti-graft agency of being partial.In his reaction to the PDPs accusation, the acting EFCC Chairman, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, had said, From the records, Metuh got over N400m. He has not said anything because we need the public money to be returned so that its going to be used for public good.Also Jafaru Isa, what Dasuki gave him was N170m. He also agreed that he collected that money. He was with us for four to five days and then he made a deposit of N100m and signed an undertaking to bring the rest. That does not mean we will not prosecute him.It, however, remained unclear if the EFCC will still prosecute Isa, who is believed to have health challenges.The former military governor launched a failed bid to become the governor of Bauchi State in 2011 on the platform of the Congress for Progressives Change, the party on whose platform Buhari equally made his third attempt to rule the country as a civilian governor.Buhari lost the 2011 election to the then incumbent, Goodluck Jonathan, but defeated Jonathan in the presidential poll of the 2015 general elections.
Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno has described the Christmas of 2016 as his best season of celebration since his assumption of office ove...

Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno has described the Christmas of 2016 as his best season of celebration since his assumption of office over five years ago.Speaking after cutting the tape to declare open some major highways in the state, Shettima said that 2016 signalled Nigerias year of victory and Borno year of hope and liberation.The highways are Maiduguri-Gubio-Damasak and the Maiduguri-Monguno-Baga roads.He said, I want start by declaring that since I became the governor of Borno state in over five years, this is the best Christmas season that I have ever witnessed.This is the best December we ever witnessed and the year 2016 is my best year so far as governor of Borno state. 2016, for me is Nigerias year of victory and Borno year of hope and resurrection.It is in 2016 that we began to have access to major roads like Gwoza, Bama, Dikwa,Monguno and Damasak, following their liberation by our gallant armed forces.It is in the year 2016 that major highways began to be reopened, it is in the year 2016 that we accelerated our major reconstruction of liberated cities.The governor also said that not only were some of the Chibok abducted school girls recovered in the year, the country established its supremacy over the Sambisa forest in 2016, where the Boko Haram terrorists had hitherto held sway.He said, It is in the year 2016 that we recovered some of our daughers abducted at Government Secondary School, Chibok in 2014.And fellow Nigerians, it is in the year 2016 that the Federal Republic of Nigeria established its supremacy over the Sambisa headquarters of the Boko Haram (terrorists).For the government and people of Borno that there is no better Christmas and New Year gift that is more precious than the conquering of Sambisa forest by our gallant armed forces.Shettima thanked President Muhammadu Buhari; Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai; Theatre Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj.-Gen. Lucky Irabor; General Officer Commanding  GOC 7 and 8 Divisions in Borno, officers and men of Nigerian army for subduing the terrorists.He also acknowledged the roles played for officers and soldiers, who paid the supreme sacrifice in course of the war to liberate the state from the insurgents and prayed for their repose of their soul.The governor described the two major roads reopened as economic life wire of Borno, where agriculture produce from the Northern part of state was being transported to other parts of the state and the country at large.It will be recalled that other major roads in Borno, including Maiduguri-Mafa-Dikwa-Ngamboru Ngala, Maiduguri-Baga and Maiduguri-Damboa roads were earlier in the year reopened.(NAN)
A businessman, Saheed Audallahi, has been arrested by the Special Fraud Unit of the Nigeria Police Force for allegedly defrauding a Chin...

A businessman, Saheed Audallahi, has been arrested by the Special Fraud Unit of the Nigeria Police Force for allegedly defrauding a Chinese company of N165, 480,000.According to the police, the suspect defrauded JI Chu Industries Nigeria Limited of the sum under the pretext of changing it to its dollars equivalent.The policemen at the Milverton, Ikoyi office of the SFU, added that when operatives stormed the suspects home at Magodo, Lagos, a shrine was discovered, while 30 passports and four cars were recovered.The SFU spokesman, Lawal Audu, said the unit received a petition from Akande and Akande Chambers, on behalf of its clients, JI Chu Industries, which manufactured foot wears at its factory in Ejigbo, Lagos.Audu, an Assistant Superintendent of Police, said,  The petitioner alleged that one Saheed Audallahi, aka Ibile, who operates under a business name, BMTC Logistics, obtained the sum of N165,480,000 under the pretext of transferring the sum of $400,000 to JI Chus business partner in China. As soon as the suspect received the said sum, he generated a fake telex transfer slip and gave same to the complainant as a proof of transfer of the money to China.The SFU spokesman further explained that when the complainant received the telex, he contacted his business partner, who denied receiving any money.It was at this point the complainant realised he had been swindled by the suspect, hence the petition, said Audu.It was gathered that detectives from SFU later arrested the suspect at a house in Magodo Phase II, Lagos, on December 17, 2016.The suspects arrest was dramatic as he tried to prevent policemen from gaining access into his home. When policemen got into his home, they made a shocking discovery of a fully equipped shrine, which is believed to be a powerful tool for deceiving his victims. Various incriminating items, such as 30 passports, four cars, different forged certificates purportedly authourising him to recruit students from Nigeria to institutions in America and Cyprus, were found Audu added.The police said further investigations revealed that the suspect was involved in numerous criminal activities, ranging from illegal bank transfers, hacking, and visa racketeering to issuance of fake foreign academic certificates.The suspect is also operating fake freight forwarding at our airports and seaports. The suspect is neither a licensed BDC operator nor a licensed customs clearing agent.It is also worthy of note that the latest fraudulent trick of these forex scammers is pretentiously paying back little amount from the whole sum that was swindled, thereby falsely building the minds of the victims that there is willingness to refund, whereas it is a pure scam.The suspect, however, denied defrauding the Chinese company.He explained that the business deal between him and the company was just a forex business that went wrong.He said, I need between three to four months to sort everything out from the UK end of the transaction.He said things started going wrong when the UK government alleged that the money could be proceeds of money laundering.He said to show good faith, he had already raised N60m, which he gave to the Chinese company.
Brig.-Gen. Rabe Abubakar The Defence Headquarters, Abuja, on Sunday, said the troops of the Nigerian Army were close to rescuing other...

Brig.-Gen. Rabe Abubakar

The Defence Headquarters, Abuja, on Sunday, said the troops of the Nigerian Army were close to rescuing other Boko Haram captives in the Sambisa Forest, including the Chibok girls.The Director, Defence Information, Brig.-Gen. Rabe Abubakar, said this in an exclusive interview, adding that whether the Chibok girls were still in Sambisa or not was information meant only for the military.He noted that the rescue of the girls and other victims was the most important thing to the general public.He said, We should allow for calm in this operation, which is still ongoing. We have yet to come to point zero. We have taken over the heart and the centre of Sambisa.The operation will culminate with Operation Rescue Finale which will end only when all the captives, including the Chibok girls have been rescued, and this would be soon.There are things we want to keep to ourselves for now. Everyone should understand that now that Sambisa is under the control of the military, there will be more rescues. We cannot say what will jeopardise the rescue operations of the troops.When asked whether Sambisa would become a settlement for people, the DDI said the military had yet to make a decision.What we will do with Sambisa is still left with us. We have completely left that as a secret. It is our secret. People shouldnt preempt us, he added.On Sunday, the Minister of Defence and other service chiefs were in Mafa, Borno State, to see troops in the frontlines.The visit, according to the MOD, was to reopen the roads in Borno State which had hitherto been shut due to Boko Haram activities.Meanwhile, the BringBackOurGirls coalition said it was monitoring the situation, noting that the takeover of the Camp Zero in the Sambisa Forest by the military was a welcome development.A member of the group, Abdulahi Abubakar, noted that it was aware that President Buhari admonished the troops to locate and rescue the remaining girls.The takeover of the Boko Haram camp is a welcome development. We support President Buharis charge to the military about the rescue of our remaining Chibok girls, the former BBOG spokesman said.
President Muhammadu Buhari has commended the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, for always putting Nigerias interes...

President Muhammadu Buhari has commended the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, for always putting Nigerias interest above every other thing.The President said this on Sunday in Abuja in a statement to mark the Speakers 50th birthday anniversary.The statement was signed by the presidents Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu.President Buhari noted that he was impressed with Mr. Dogaras rising political career and leadership style at his relatively young age.He said the Speakers performance had reinforced his confidence in the countrys youth.With Dogaras performance as Speaker, fears that the countrys younger politicians have been pushed into background are unfounded, he added.He added that his administration would always encourage the younger generation.The President said he was optimistic of closer working relationship with the legislature to fast track the implementation of critically important national policies and programmes.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described the statement credited to the State chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ek...

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described the statement credited to the State chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State, Mr Jide Awe, disparaging the person and image of the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye as a demonstration of the devilish mind-set of the party and height of political rascality, saying; denying the statement was a mere afterthought.The PDP noted that Pastor Adeboye commending the State Governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, for the governors courage and willingness to defend his people and the cause of the common man in the country was a statement of fact.Spokesperson of the PDP in the State, Mr Jackson Adebayo, in a statement on Monday, said; it is the height of crude politics for the APC to insinuate that a man of God of Pastor Adeboyes standing took bribe to commend Governor Fayose for what is obvious.He said; Pastor Adeboye is a respected man of God. He is not a politician. He only said what he saw about Governor Fayose and the only Nigerians, who wont want to accept the fact that the governor has stoutly defended Ekiti people and the common people of Nigeria, are those in the APC.Mr Adebayo, who described the rebuttal, issued late on Sunday, by the APC Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun as an afterthought, added that; The APC in Ekiti State has strong history of political intolerance such that anyone that is not with them must be condemned at all cost.
Some traders in Enugu on Monday commended Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi for paying the December salaries of workers in before Christmas, the News ...

Some traders in Enugu on Monday commended Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi for paying the December salaries of workers in before Christmas, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.Both Council and State government employees started receiving their December salaries from Dec. 19, in order to have money to shop for Christmas and New Year festivities.Speaking with NAN, the Leader of Ogbete Main Market, Chief Temple Udeh, lauded Gov. Ugwuanyi for his concern for the well-being of workers, their families and the traders they patronised.Udeh said that for the past one week, as the salaries were paid, there had been an increase in commercial activities at the Ogbete Market, Enugu. Before the beginning of last week, traders in the market were sleeping and barely made sales to cover their daily transport and feeding stipends.For about six days now, there have been influx of buyers. Even some customers we have not seen for more than six months came to the market to pick items.The surprise upsurge, which I suspected could be due to the early payment of salaries, had revitalised trading and given traders something to smile about this season, he said.The Chairman, Kenyatta Timber Market, Enugu, Chief Levi Obi, told NAN that the once dull atmosphere at the market gave way to busy periods for traders, who had to attend to their customers. More civil servants are patronising the market, which had not been happening before now.So, we traders are commending the state government for paying salaries earlier and over increased sales by traders this season, he said. A trader in Mayor Market, also in Enugu, Mr Nick Okoroafor, also acknowledged that there had been an increase in sales for some days now.The early payment of salaries is what is driving the recent upsurge in sales we are witnessing. We are grateful to the governor for this show of love not only to civil servants but to us traders they patronise, Okoroafor said.NAN also reports that Enugu State is predominantly a civil servant state, where most economic activities hover around the purchasing power of civil servants.Gov. Ugwuanyi had earlier directed the council chairmen in the state to pay full December salaries before Christmas.The state government had also cleared all outstanding pension arrears being owed pensioners as well as some arrears of salaries being owed to workers in some council areas of the state.
Satguru Maharaji, the founder of One Love Family sect, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to constitute a Price Control Board in ord...

Satguru Maharaji, the founder of One Love Family sect, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to constitute a Price Control Board in order to ameliorate the impact of the current economic recession on ordinary Nigerians.He also told newsmen in Ibadan on Sunday that a price control mechanism would strengthen the Naira.The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the sect leader spoke at a news conference which was part of activities to mark his 69th birthday.He said the government should also do the following:1. Our government should reduce the price of cement to N300 to enable the country build homes for its people and if need be, government should empower Nigerians to import cement to bring prices down.2. The Nigeria Airways should be revived with the old buildings and structures rehabilitated in order for the country to compete with small nations which have notable airlines like Ethiopia, Cameroun and Kenya, the sect leader said.3. He also called for a reduction in airfares for local travels within the country to a flat rate of N15,000.4. Maharaji ji argued that state governments should be allowed to acquire planes in partnership with stakeholders as well as oil blocks.He accused Nigerian banks of operating as traders instead of being  beacons of enterprise, reconstruction, innovation and productive activities.5. The sect leader called on government to compel all oil companies to release two percent of their gross profits for research in universities6. The local refineries built by militants should not be destroyed but improved upon since they are inventions made out of necessity.He, however, expressed gratitude to the president on the steps taken so far at  retrieving  the Ajaokuta Steel Company, saying the organisation was capable of promoting meaningful industrial progress.
The Indigenous People of Biafra on Sunday asked President Muhammadu Buhari to caution security agencies, whom it alleged were killing pro...

The Indigenous People of Biafra on Sunday asked President Muhammadu Buhari to caution security agencies, whom it alleged were killing pro-Biafra agitators without provocation.The group vowed to avenge the death of any of its member killed by the countrys security agencies henceforth.It said that nobody should take the groups non-violent philosophy for granted.In a press statement made available to our correspondent in Awka, Anambra State, by the Media and Publicity Secretary of the group, Mr. Emma Powerful, the group said the era of killing its members with without provocation had gone.It maintained that the members of the group had the right to self defence.The statement read partly, Many have paid the supreme sacrifice at Igweocha, Port Harcourt, Rivers State; Aba in Abia State, Nkpor and Onitsha in Anambra State, which Biafra and posterity will never forget. We shall honour all those that fell on this long and painful march to freedom.Having said this, we will not hesitate to invoke the right to self defence, should the government of Nigeria attempt to kill even one peaceful IPOB protester.Biafrans are, naturally, law-abiding and peaceful people without the history of conquest like any other major ethnic nationalities in Nigeria.The European Union and and other internationally-recognised institutions in the world have taken time to study IPOBs grievances and have come to the conclusion that the Nigerian government, headed by Muhamadu Buhari, is hell-bent on annihilating the people of Biafra.The group said it would not have any talk with the Federal Government under President Muhammadu Buhari until the release of their leader, Nnamdi Kanu.IPOB worldwide and its leadership are pleased with every effort people are making towards the restoration of the Biafra nation. We are highly committed to making sure Biafra comes under the command of our ordained leader and prophet, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.We wish to clarify that there will be no negotiation talks until our leader, Nnamdi Kanu, and other members detained illegally are released unconditionally as two courts of competent jurisdiction have ruled in Abuja, the statement said.
The recapturing Sambisa Forest has excited former Military President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida also known as IBB.

The recapturing Sambisa Forest has excited former Military President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida also known as IBB.Highly delighted IBB in a statement by Media Office of the former Head State said: it is a sign of relief, that the Military has finally smocked out Boko Haram terrorists from their notorious enclave of Sambisa Forest He said.General Babangida also salute the courage and determination of President Muhammadu Buhari, Army chiefs as well as armed men and women and other security personnel for their sacrifice for the painful liberation of Sambisa Forest and adjoining abode of Boko Haram.He said: May I rejoice with the government and Nigerians on the successful dislodging of Boko Haram from their base in Sambisa. Former Head of State, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida during prayers to mark his 75th birthday celebration at the Hilltop, Minna, Niger State With the successful takeover of the sambisa forest, General Babangida hoped that very soon the remaining Chibok girls will be located and reunite with their families.The former Military President, reaffirmed his earlier stand that,  President Muhammadu Buhari and the Military are capable of crushing any challenge of the territorial integrity of Nigeria.The former Military President, pay tributes to all fallen heroes for paying a supreme sacrifice in their efforts of keeping the nation from aggression.Saying:  the Labour of our heroes past, shall never been in vain. Finally, Gen. Babangida urged the military to unveil a new strategy of further defeating pockets of insurgents/terrorists, armed bandits and cattle rustlers all over the country.
Former Aviation minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, FFK, has lambasted critics who accused the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church o...

Former Aviation minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, FFK, has lambasted critics who accused the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, of collecting bribe from Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State.This is coming after the All Progressives Congress, APC in Ekiti State frowned at the comment made by Pastor Adeboye, commending Governor Fayose.Adeboye had admonished state governors in the country to emulate their Ekiti State counterpart after he commended the governors courage and willingness to defend his people and the cause of the common man in the country.But the states APC, in its reaction, said it was alarmed that a cleric of Pastor Adebayos standing could praise Governor Fayose for his persistent insults and abuses on President Muhammadu Buhari, noting that Pastor Adeboye should be seen as speaking for himself and his comment must not be seen as representing that of the entire members of the RCCG.Reacting, however, FFK took to his Twitter handle @realFFK to say: Those who accused pastor Adeboye of collecting bribe from Governor Fayose simply because he commended the governors courage, are scum.
Briley.jpg

Barbara Briley, 71, and LaMyra Briley, 5, were reported missing on Saturday by family members.

(Via Tonya Floyd)

MAYS LANDING - A family has reported a grandmother from New Jersey and her great granddaughter missing after they didn't arrive in North Carolina for Christmas as they were supposed to.

Barbara Briley, 71 from Mays Landing, was traveling from New Jersey to her mother's house in Morven, North Carolina with her 5-year-old great granddaughter, LaMyra Briley.

Barbara Briley's daughter and LaMyra Briley's grandmother, Tonya Floyd, said Monday that her mother left on Saturday morning. She was last heard from later that evening when she called from an Exxon gas station in Ruther Glen, Virginia.

Briley's children, Floyd, 47, Bryan Briley, 45 and Terri Ramseur, 49, were working with law enforcement officials to locate their relatives and they filed missing persons' reports in both New Jersey and North Carolina, Floyd said.

They were also trying to work with their mother's cellphone provider to locate her phone. Calls have been going straight to voicemail, Floyd said, as she headed out on Monday to the gas station to review its security footage.

Her mother has a lot of family in North Carolina, Floyd said, so it's a trip she has taken often and before without any problems.

Barbara Briley was driving a silver Toyota RAV 4 with a New Jersey license plate of C80-ELS. She is 5'5" and weighs 215 pounds. LaMyra Briley was last seen wearing gray sweatpants and a gray camo hoodie.

Briley has three children, six grandchildren and four great grandchildren, Floyd said.

"We don't know anything," Floyd said.

Sara Jerde may be reached at sjerde@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SaraJerde.
Scammers, con artists and crooks. Hucksters, tricksters and fraudsters.

Charlatans.

We had it all in 2016.

But some who took advantage of consumers this year were special in how they stole cash, made promises they didn't keep and how they gave consumers a red-tape runaround.

Here's a look at the seven who made it into the Bamboozled 2016 Hall of Shame.

The $30K Scammer

Gwendolyn Dixon, 82, hired Michael Solice of Clean Air USA to repair her East Orange home after it was destroyed by a fire.

But Solice, documents show, took $30,000 of insurance money and never did the work.

Gwendolyn Dixon, 82, looks at her home, destroyed by a fire. She said a contractor took money to fix the home but never did the work.

Solice didn't have much to say when we spoke to him in September, and he didn't respond to our new message.

Dixon also filed a complaint with Consumer Affairs.

"They said they would put someone on the case and they would call me but they never did," Dixon said.

We asked Consumer Affairs for an update, and it said the matter is "ongoing." It also called Dixon to update her on the case, and it told her the same thing.

In the meantime, Dixon has rented an apartment around the corner from her home, and she's found a new contractor to do the work.

She said the contractor agreed to take the remainder of the insurance money to do the job, and he's been working on it -- even though he hasn't yet been paid a dime. The insurance company won't send any more checks until the job hits certain milestones.

Construction is ongoing, and we'll keep checking in to see the status of the job.

The E-ZPass Scammer

In one of our strangest cases, a deadbeat contractor profiled in Bamboozled for bailing on a deck job was hauled in by authorities, suspected of an E-ZPass scam that involved another Bamboozled reader.

The case came together in an usual way.

It started when Richard Zaragoza started receiving violation notices from E-ZPass for a license plate that was stolen from his trailer. Even though he repeatedly showed proof to E-ZPass that the plate was not in his possession, the violations continued.

A mug shot of Erich Niemann.

There were more than 140 in all.

After we contacted E-ZPass, it eliminated all the wrongful notices.

Then we learned there was an arrest.

Erich Niemann, the contractor from that unfinished deck case, was charged with third degree theft by deception and receiving stolen property for allegedly using the stolen license plate. He racked up nearly $50,000 in unpaid tolls and fines, authorities said.

Then Consumer Affairs filed a six-count complaint against Niemann, alleging he and two of his companies -- Restore the Shore Contracting and Niemann General Contractor Builder -- worked as an unregistered contractor, performed shoddy work, left home improvement jobs unfinished and committed other consumer protection violations.

We'll keep you posted on those cases.

E-ZPass, too

While those E-ZPass troubles started with contractor Niemann's alleged actions, E-ZPass itself displayed pretty poor customer service.

"We can't prevent people from stealing license plates, but we can do a better job of communicating with victims," Tom Feeney, spokesman for the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, said at the time. "The process should not have been this difficult for him."

Feeney said the Turnpike Authority was working with management at the E-ZPass customer service center to improve customer service.

Ralph Vuolo sits with his stack of E-ZPass violations.

But that wasn't the only time a customer complained about getting E-ZPass to hear reason last year.

Bamboozled stepped in when Ralph Zuolo received dozens of wrong violation notices from E-ZPass. When he tried to contact the agency in writing, he never got a response, he said.

In the end, Vuolo learned he had a transponder problem, and he received an apology for the lack of response.

"We let Mr. Vuolo down," spokesman Feeney said. "He had every right to expect a response to his letters, and we failed to provide one."

Feeney again said E-ZPass changed some internal procedures and planned additional training "to make sure it doesn't happen again."

We asked for an update on how this was all going for E-ZPass customer service reps, and Feeney confirmed some procedures were changed and there has been additional training for employees.

Al Demola and Titan Shelters

Bamboozled readers have known Al Demola for a long time. We've covered complaints against his waterproofing businesses, including a $200,000 judgment that was never paid. Then there were complaints about a new Demola business that sold GPS units.

Demola even told Bamboozled he owned the domain names of some editors at The Star-Ledger, and he offered to sell them back to the editors. The Star-Ledger filed a lawsuit that ended with a financial settlement, Demola handing over the domain names and Demola promising to no longer engage in such activities, the newspaper said at the time.

Then there was another new business: Titan Shelters.

Al Demola in a YouTube video for one of his waterproofing companies.

Several customers told Bamboozled Demola was selling the shelters, taking payments and never delivering the product.

New Jersey took action in a seven-count civil case, and in January, settled for $177,373.

But Demola didn't pay, so the state tried something new.

"Demola's account was sent to the New Jersey Department of Treasury's Division of Revenue and Enterprise (DORE) for further collection efforts in June," a spokeswoman said in an email. "The DORE sent the delinquent account to its primary collections vendor on June 6. Typically, the vendor sends an initial demand for payment letter within one week of receiving an account."

But alas, the state said it still hasn't received any funds to reimburse customers.

Amazon

As consumers increasingly turn to online shopping, Amazon has made itself a trusted go-to destination.

But scammers have also made Amazon their go-to platform for shams and scams.

Amazon sells its own products, but also offers products from third-party sellers. These are sellers who post their wares on Amazon's site.

Nick Gladis says he fell for a scam when an Amazon third-party seller asked for payment via Amazon gift card.

But an increasing number of fake third-party sellers are showing up on Amazon, and they trick consumers to pay for their purchases outside of Amazon's payment system. First, they ask the consumer to text or email to make sure a product is in stock. Then, using a series of intricate emails that look exactly like those Amazon might send, the fake sellers instruct buyers to pay using a wire transfer or Amazon gift cards.

That's the problem.

Amazon offers guarantees to shoppers as long as they use Amazon's payment system. But when the fake sellers entice consumers to contact them via email or text, they're no longer part of the Amazon system.

After our story ran, we received dozens of emails from customers who found fake sellers on Amazon, so it seems the retail giant isn't doing much to keep its site clear of scammers.

IRS impersonation scammers

IRS scams have been rampant, and we expect to continue to see them.

Con artists call and claim a debt is owed to the IRS. To avoid arrest or other unpleasantries, the caller says the debt can be paid -- right now, over the phone.

Sometimes they tell the victim to wire money, but lately, the scammers instruct victims to buy iTunes gift cards and give the card numbers to the scammers.

Of course, once the scammers have the card numbers, they take the money and run.

The IRS will never call you about unpaid taxes or any other matter. It won't email, and it won't text, and it certainly won't contact you over social media. It will always reach out by snail mail.

Catholic hospitals

With a twist of IRS rules, Catholic hospitals are ditching their pension obligations and leaving retirees with, in some cases, nothing.

We'll find out in March if the twist will stick.

At issue is whether Catholic hospitals can define their pension plans as "church" plans, which exempt the plans from the federal laws that protect most other plans by requiring they buy insurance on the plans and follow minimum funding requirements.

Deborah and Henry Lubinski learned Deborah's pension from St. James Hospital is going bust.

The "church" status was given to the St. James pension plan, and we recently learned the plan is months away from going belly up. That means the 76 former employees who were part of the plan and counted on it for retirement benefits will get nothing for all their years of work.

Former and current employees at St. Peter's University Hospital face the same uncertainty, so they headed to court. Now they're waiting for a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to, they hope, uphold lower court rulings that said Catholic hospital pension plans should not be "church" plans.

If that's the decision, the pensioners will continue their lawsuit claiming the hospital broke federal laws that are in place to protect pensions.

And if it goes in favor of the employees, St. James pensioners could bring their own suit.

What action deserves to be in the Hall of Shame more than taking away someone's promised pension?

Shame, indeed.

Have you been Bamboozled? Reach Karin Price Mueller at Bamboozled@NJAdvanceMedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KPMueller. Find Bamboozled on Facebook. Mueller is also the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com.

Stay informed and sign up for NJMoneyHelp.com's weekly e-newsletter.
JERSEY CITY -- Officials are investigating what caused a fire at a West Side Avenue discount store Saturday morning.

The one-alarm fire was reported at Dollar Green located at 555 West Side Avenue just before 9 a.m., Jersey City spokeswoman Jennifer Morrill said.

No one was injured in the fire and the store was closed when the smoke was reported, Morrill said.

The fire was contained to the front wall of the business near the display window. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
jersey city police car.jpg

As many as a dozen Jersey City cops are expected to be arrested in January as part of a federal probe, according to law-enforcement sources. Michael Dempsey | The Jersey Journal

(Jersey Journal file photo)

JERSEY CITY -- A federal corruption probe is expected to land about a dozen Jersey City cops behind bars next month, law-enforcement sources tell The Jersey Journal.

The probe is focusing on off-duty, private security work and has already ensnared one former Jersey City police officer.

Police officers have been expecting the arrests for months, the sources said.

NBC 4 New York reported on the probe last week and said that police brass are cooperating with federal officials to identify any officers involved.

City spokeswoman Jennifer Morrill indicated that any investigation is a joint operation between the city and the feds.

"Over the last three years this administration has initiated and worked with federal authorities in several investigations to root out corruption by long term city employees," Morrill said. "We have a zero tolerance policy and employees should be aware that if they break the law they will be held accountable."

Asked to comment, Carmine Disbrow, president of the Jersey City Police Officers Benevolent Association, said in a statement, "The JCPOBA will not speculate on this matter, but will remain focused on the ongoing efforts of our members to keep Jersey City residents safe."

Jersey City police officers are permitted to work off-duty providing security for private companies, which are supposed to go through the city when seeking officers. The city charges an administrative fee of $12 an hour on top of what the company pays the officer. That fee is expected to total nearly $300,000 for the city this year.

Sources said the feds are investigating officers who cut the city out as the middleman and either performed the work under the table or took the money without working at all.

Off-duty gigs can be lucrative for cops, who receive between $35 and $65 an hour depending on the kind of work. Payroll records show one officer's payments for off-duty work this year -- a total of $129,445 since January -- were higher than his annual salary, $121,338. Three officers made more than $100,000 from off-duty work this year, the records show.

The records show officers received a total of $14,892,946 this year between Jan.1 and Nov. 17 for off-duty jobs.

Ex-cop Juan Romaniello, who was in charge of distributing off-duty jobs to officers in the city's North Precinct, admitted in federal court in November 2015 to orchestrating a scheme to accept payments from businesses directly. He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit fraud and accept corrupt payments and one count of filing a false tax return.

Romaniello's guilty plea wasn't announced until about a year later, leading some officers to worry that the feds were investigating the department that entire time.

Asked in October whether federal prosecutors are considering charges against other officers, Matthew Reilly, spokesman for U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman, said, "All I can say at this point is that no one else has been charged."

Terrence T. McDonald may be reached at tmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @terrencemcd. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.
NEW BRUNSWICK -- A Middlesex County man cleared of a conviction that landed him in prison for three years over a BB gun is suing the state for damages, which could pay out upwards of $150,000.

The wrongful conviction lawsuit was filed on Dec. 14 in Middlesex County Superior Court after the state appellate court ruled the case against 30-year-old hinged on warrantless search.

Jason Patterson's suit stems from a traffic stop in Metuchen in 2008, when the then 22-year-old who had abruptly stopped at a yellow light and ended up "a little past the intersection," the court papers say.

Police ran Patterson's plates and pulled him over on Dec. 1 for driving his Jeep, which had a faulty driver's side window, with a suspended license from an unpaid municipal fine, records show.

According to court papers, Patterson told the officer about the broken window and that one of them would have to open the door. Once the officer did, he said he spotted a "few flakes" of what he thought was marijuana and a shoelace tied in a way that looked like it had been used to shoot up. Police said they saw another syringe when Patterson got out of the SUV.

Patterson was arrested and admitted there were additional syringes and drugs in the Jeep, according to records. The officers then searched the entire Jeep finding seven syringes and 12 folds of heroin, as well as a BB-gun in the rear cargo area, tucked below a mat where the spare tire was stored.

Two years later, Patterson was convicted on a weapons charge and sentenced to three years in prison, with another three years of probation, state records show. Just before the trial, the state dismissed all of the drug charges.

In December 2014, the Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey overturned the conviction after Patterson had served his full three years in prison.

The appellate court ruled that anything found during the search, which the officers later said was to "protect the safety of others" before being towed, should have been inadmissible, except for the items in a visible area.

"Nothing needed to be done to prepare the car for towing," the ruling reads.

In the unpublished decision, the court ruled the officers should have gotten a warrant before the search, which happened during normal business hours "just feet from the police department."

Patterson's lawyers had originally filed to suppress the evidence found during the search, but his motion was denied.

The lawsuit includes reference to his Tort Notice of Claim seeking $150,000, court costs and lawyer fees, as well as any other relief deem appropriate by a jury citing state law.

In 2013, Gov. Chris Christie signed a law increasing the limit of damages someone who was wrongfully convicted can receive to $50,000 for each year in prison. Under the law, the person can is also entitled to non-monetery relief, including tuition assistance, counseling, housing assistance and health insurance.

Calls to Patterson's attorney were not returned. His indictment was vacated in on Aug. 15, 2015.

Craig McCarthy may be reached at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig and on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
LAWRENCE -- 'Twas the day after Christmas, but you might not have known it by visiting New Jersey's shopping malls.

It looked like a normal weekend day at shopping centers like Quaker Bridge Mall in Lawrence, despite projections that people would flock to the stores because many businesses observe a holiday today.

Rachel Piscopo, who came to the mall from Yardley, Pa., in search of sales, had been bracing herself for packed stores and long lines. She goes shopping every Dec. 26, and said it's usually busy.

"You expect the crowds, and you just have to have patience," she said, as her husband shopped in Lush.

This year, though, Piscopo said she was pleasantly surprised by how easy it had been to get in and out of stores like Hallmark and Vera Bradley.

Sitting in the food court with two relatives and some shopping bags, Monica Smith said she had come to Quaker Bridge in search of notoriously low post-holiday prices. She wasn't disappointed at Bath & Body Works, where the Trenton resident used a gift card her son had given her for Christmas to buy several lotions and soaps.

Julia Watson, of Yardley, Pa., said she had come to the mall to exchange shoes she had gotten for Christmas. Watson and her mom had finished their exchange at The Walking Company and were about to browse in Sur La Table.

They said they were relieved to find the mall was pretty quiet and had only come to get their exchange done. Otherwise, Watson said she tries to avoid malls on busy shopping days.

One family from Cherry Hill may have had the most unique reason for being in Quaker Bridge on Monday: Kim Gwara was waiting for her sister to text her that she was in labor.

Gwara, her husband and their son were passing time at the mall so they could get to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in Hamilton more quickly when the baby was arriving. They were able to squeeze in a little shopping while they were there and made stops at Lush and Champs Sports.

"I thought it would be a lot busier than it is," Gwara said.

Marisa Iati may be reached at miati@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @Marisa_Iati. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
An investigation into the 44 Port Authority police officers assigned to patrol PATH stations who are accused of spending hours, sometimes almost entire shifts, in the break room while on the clock may extend to the federal level, according to a published report.

Dozens of Port Authority police officers assigned to the PATH rail system are facing disciplinary action after an internal investigation showed they spent time on the clock in the break room. (Tony Kurdzuk | The Star-Ledger)

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said earlier this month the agency was "evaluating" if it would refer certain cases to local prosecutors.

An anonymous source familiar with the situation was quoted in the New York Post as saying the probe could extend beyond the local level if it's proven that some of the officers earned federal dollars.

"This could lead to charges against one or more of these cops for taking federal money," the source told the newspaper. "It is not supposed to pay them to sleep."

A Port Authority spokesman could not be immediately reached.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security distributes federal grant money to local agencies to protect against the threat of a terrorist attack. In 2015, the Port Authority received $4 million to improve transit security.

The Port Authority said in its statement announcing its internal investigation that "some of the suspected officers were assigned on overtime to heightened security details due to terror events that had occurred nationally and internationally."

A spokesman for the Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA), which handles distribution of the federal funding, told the Post that "it is possible" the probe includes the Homeland Security funding.

"But that can't be determined until the IG investigation is complete," the FEMA spokeswoman said.

The Port Authority officers are facing disciplinary action after the internal investigation found that the officers assigned to seven PATH stations in New Jersey and six stations in New York were "shirking duties."

The agency says these officers, most assigned to the midnight to 8 a.m. shift, were spending large chunks of their shifts in the breakroom. In one case, an officer spent more than seven hours of his shift off patrol, the agency said.

The agency's top commander, Robert Terrett, was reassigned in the wake of the allegations. To date, none of the accused officers have settled the disciplinary charges, and all 44 cases remain pending.

A spokesman for the Port Authority Police Benevolent Association told NJ Advance Media that the agency's low crime rates at PATH stations is proof the officers were doing their jobs.

"The PAPD is doing its job to keep our patrons safe, contrary to the Port Authority's attacks," the spokesman said.

Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Manchester fire.jpeg

The fire severely damaged a home on Newark Avenue in the Roosevelt City section of Manchester on Sunday, police said.

(Manchester Police Department)

MANCHESTER -- Officers saved a pet dog from a Christmas Day fire that severely damaged a house, but the homeowner's cat died in the blaze.

No one was inside the residence on the 1800 block of Newark Avenue in the Roosevelt City section of town when the fire started around 2:33 p.m. on Sunday, Capt. Todd Malland, of the Manchester Police Department, said.

Malland said the first officers on the scene saw flames shooting from the roof, and fallen live electrical wires and heavy smoke prevented them from entering the house.

The officers entered the home once JCP&L cut power to the lines, Malland said. Patrolmen Ryan Saul and Mark Micciulla were able to rescue a pet golden retriever from the home's garage. However, firefighters later found a dead cat in the home.

Manchester police dispatch was able to reach the homeowner, who told the dispatcher no one was inside the home.

Malland said the fire severely damaged the house and township officials are working with the homeowner to find alternate living arrangements.

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.

It is under investigation by the Manchester Police Department, with assistance from the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office and Ocean County Sheriff's Office Crime Scene Investigations unit.

Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Chris Christie

In this Oct. 18 file photo, Gov. Chris Christie addresses a gathering at a public forum in New Providence.

(AP Photo)

It is a complete injustice that our judiciary in this state has once again been denied a pay increase due to politics. It defies logic that the hard-working judges in our state should be denied their pay raise, the first in many years, because the governor wants a personal benefit, namely to profit off a book deal -- talk about a false equivalence. Also recall that our judges already got it stuck to them during this administration when they were made to pay huge additional sums in excess of $20,000 per year out of their paychecks for benefits. The current proposed raise would not come close to making up for this. We have a judiciary that is the envy of all the others states in this nation, and they deserve a lot better than this.

FRANCISCO J. RODRIGUEZ

CIVIL TRIAL ATTORNEY WITH JAVERBAUM WURGAFT HICKS KAHN WIKSTROM & SININS, P.C.

JERSEY CITY



Thank you to police at Jersey City South District

My parents as well as my family were all born and raised in Jersey City and still live here today. I would like to bring to your attention an incident that occurred Thursday night in Country Village. Approximately 6:30 p.m. an unknown individual or (individuals) for an unknown reason threw two large rocks through my parent's front windows as they sat in the front room watching television. Needless to say they were extremely rattled by the loud sound and flying glass. My mother had a massive stroke that nearly took her life a few years back, my father had a heart attack two years ago and both are in remission from cancer -- true gritty Jersey City people.



My father opened the door to see who was outside and did not see anyone. As the door was opened their dog got out and took off down the street. My mother called the police and they arrived quickly. Police officers Hauman, Philips, Cardella, and his partner (I failed to get his name) were tremendous. Hauman and Phillips stayed at the house calming my parents while Cardella and his partner went and looked for both the responsible person/people and the dog. They found and caught a very fast energetic dog to my parents' delight. Upon returning the dog Cardella and his partner went back out to see if they could find anyone acting suspiciously in the area, unfortunately with no luck. Hauman and Phillips gave my parents a file number, called for another officer to take photographs of the incident and made sure we could board the windows up to secure their home. Apparently this has happened recently a few blocks over.

I'm typically not a letter writer, but I felt the need to point out how professional and helpful these officers were on what I'm sure was one of many calls they received last night. I think it is important, especially these days, for people to know how great our police department is and how important they are to our community. I am also sending a copy of this letter to Mayor Steve Fulop and The Jersey Journal. Please feel free to forward this letter Chief Zacche and the Director of Public Safety James Shea as I could locate an email address for either of them.

MATT McMAHON

JERSEY CITY



Our government had the secrecy in election

If not for the "hacking," Americans could have elected a candidate involved in criminal activities. It took a foreign country to bring to the American people what our government was hiding.

Those involved in this conspiracy to hide criminal activities of this candidates should be impeached and or banned from holding public office.

An investigation is in order, not on a foreign country, but on Obama and his Washington cronies who knew, and hid those criminal acts. Government secrecy is always wrong, and this horrific secrecy went above the law!

VICKY DEE

JERSEY CITY

Bookmark nj.com/hudson/voices for more letters and opinion pieces brought to you by The Jersey Journal.
To the Editor:

On Dec 19, the Electoral College made its vote official for Donald Trump's election as president.

Now, Hillary Clinton's popular-election voters can stop their tantrum over the results. Russian hacking, emails that were revealed, FBI disclosures and allegedly bad press coverage of Clinton cannot change the outcome.

Trump deserves the presidency based on all of the Democrats who voted for him instead of Clinton, their party's candidate. Trump means change and, God, do we need it.

Under Trump, jobs will increase, government waste will stop and full advantage will be taken of our energy-rich country. He will also do away with politically correct stupidity and increase our national security.

Democrats are done for many years to come. By re-electing U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi as their House minority leader, they have shown that their party has no new direction. Their old bull will not work.

More African-Americans will desert the Democrats. After all they have been promised, the party has done little for them.

Perhaps -- and, I hope -- outgoing President Barack Obama will become the new face of the Democratic Party.

Luis M. Perez

Glassboro

Time was right to save N.J.-Pa. tax pact

To the Editor:

Rutgers University in Camden recently came out with a study saying that South Jersey doesn't get its fair share of New Jersey's public resources. This is nothing new, but it further underlines how important it was to save the state income tax reciprocal agreement that New Jersey has with Pennsylvania.

Canceling the agreement, as Gov. Chris Christie had proposed, would have been financially painful for a lot of families who live in New Jersey but work in Pennsylvania. It would have especially been bad for affected commuters to have to pay higher taxes on their 2017 income, starting around this time when people are stretching their budgets on gifts for their family.

I can't thank state Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester) enough for working to save the agreement. This saved a lot of money for those who would have been impacted negatively. It's good to see news like this at this time of year.

Dominic Antonini

Gibbstown

Send a letter to the editor of South Jersey Times at sjletters@njadvancemedia.com

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Recently in this space I did a little riff on the idea that elections have consequences. I was referring to the fact that President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Tom Price, a U.S. House member from Georgia, to be the new Health and Human Services secretary.

That nomination troubled me, because if he has his way, Price may well push a plan to turn Medicare into a block grant that would be turned over to the states to run. That means that each state would get a chunk of money to administer Medicare at the state level, though overall federal Medicare funding could be cut a great deal in the process.

If Medicare is turned over to the states as a block grant, one thing we should absolutely insist on is the ability of states join together to negotiate drug prices with the pharmaceutical companies. Why is this important, you ask?

It's important because right now, Medicare, which is the largest purchaser of drugs in the world, is prohibited by law from negotiating drug prices with the pharmaceutical companies.

Congress, in its infinite wisdom, passed a law ensuring that Medicare must pay 106 percent of what the drug companies claim is the "average wholesale price" of whatever drug they're peddling. Behold the power of "Big Pharma" and campaign contributions.

According to journalist and author Steven Brill in "America's Bitter Pill ..., his book about our messed-up health care system, this little nugget costs us an extra $40 billion a year. If this law preventing Medicare from negotiating with drug companies is repealed, we might pay roughly the same prices as Canada -- and Canadians pay 30 to 50 percent less than we do for the same exact meds.

Congress also killed legislation that would have allowed Americans to order drugs from Canada legally. The drug companies lobbied hard against this so as to protect their profits.

If the new administration is going to cut funding for Medicare, turn it into a block grant and hand it over to the states, they should let these states negotiate, individually or collectively, with the drug companies to get the best prices.

Regardless of whether the feds or the states administer Medicare, we shouldn't have to pay 106 percent of the "average wholesale price" -- a number that we're forced to take as a matter of faith from the very companies getting rich off of our illnesses and surgeries and diseases.

When pressed as to why they need us to pay so much money, Big Pharma tells us it's to continue research and development of the very wonder drugs that treat our ailments. Fair enough, but what happened to competition, and why are we doing the heavy lifting for the rest of the world?

If Medicare is turned over to the states as a block grant, New Jersey should be allowed to negotiate drug prices with manufacturers. And, if we don't have enough bargaining power on our own, we should be able to team up with Delaware, New York and/or Pennsylvania to negotiate as a regional block.

With Medicare being the largest purchaser of drugs in the world, that's a powerful negotiating position that would help to drive down the costs of medicine in this country. It would also level the playing field. But it can only happen if New Jersey can join with other states to flex our collective muscle in the marketplace.

I'm not in favor of cutting Medicare funding and turning over the program to the states to run. But if this block grant thing has to happen, and this is the lemon we get, we should at least be allowed to see if we can get a little lemonade out of the darned thing. Allow states to haggle in regional blocks over prices with the drug companies, or at least allow Americans to buy their meds at cheaper prices from Canada or wherever.

There was much talk this election cycle about "draining the swamp." Regardless of how things go anywhere else, if Congress continues to prevent Medicare from negotiating with the drug companies, then it's a safe bet that the swamp is still alive and well.

Albert B. Kelly is mayor of Bridgeton. Contact him by phone at 856-455-3230 Ext. 200.

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By Harlan York

Panic in the immigrant community?

No, I'm not talking about the election of Donald J. Trump but rather the signature of William J. Clinton on the Illegal Immigration and Immigrant Responsibility Act just over 20 years ago.

I remember it well. Seasoned members of the immigration bar sat in a waiting room in the Peter Rodino Federal Building in Newark. These attorneys bemoaned the way in which the Clinton administration -- "in an effort to show its toughness on immigrants during a campaign for reelection" -- unleashed the most damaging immigration legislation of the modern era.

The actual immigrant community had no idea. Nor did the American public. But those veteran immigration lawyers predicted mass deportations in 1997, and the End of the World, as far as foreign nationals in the United States were concerned.

It turns out that the attorneys were only half right. The record breaking removals did occur, but not under presidents Clinton or George W. Bush. Even after the tragic events of September 11 -- which were swiftly followed by a Muslim Registration program known as NSEERS - the United States Immigration Court continued to move at a steady pace.

In fact, under President Bush, the peak number of deportation cases nationally pending before the Immigration Court never rose above 185,000.

However, with the inauguration of President Barack Obama, that number has virtually tripled, to nearly 522,000 in eight years. This profound increase occurred due to the work of an already existing "deportation force" (as opposed to a hypothetical entity once proposed by candidate Trump on his campaign trail) known as Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE.

Even more striking is the well documented data that the current president has deported more people than any chief executive in the history of this nation. That's 2.5 million and counting, with particular emphasis on refugees, not from Syria, but Central America -- especially young children. He's rightly been dubbed the deporter-in-chief.

In fact, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh C. Johnson issued a public statement on Jan. 4: "As I have said repeatedly, our borders are not open to illegal migration; if you come here illegally, we will send you back consistent with our laws and values."

Johnson specifically named Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador in his declaration.

Why would someone like myself vote for a continuation of Obama's aggressive immigration policies? I didn't. Hillary Clinton didn't get my ballot. But, neither did Donald Trump.

While we observed Trump shift his messages on immigration as time has passed since he won the election, it begs a host of questions:

Will there be a wall? Not likely a new barrier, but likely fortification of the existing border. A fence, he has said.

Will Muslims have to place their names in a registry? Not according to a social media post by a comedian who spoke with Trump's son.

Will there be mass deportation? Not based on the president-elect's recent statements.

Even if some attempts to increase removals are effectuated, the Immigration Court will be overloaded far more than it is currently, which means many years of litigation for untold numbers of foreign nationals.

It is impossible to deport 11 million people, as many politicians -- including Trump spokesmen Chris Christie and Newt Gingrich -- have said.

The jury is still out. America may be paying attention to immigration as an issue now, but for those of us who have advocated for immigrants, we have already seen much damage inflicted on our clients by past and current presidents, particularly over the last 20 years.

We're not afraid of what Trump says he's going to do. It only matters what he does -- and what we can do about it.

Harlan York, the first attorney in New Jersey to win "Immigration Lawyer of the Year" from Best Lawyers, is former immigration chair of the NJ State Bar Association and former co-chair for the NY State Bar Association CFLS Committee on Immigration. He also served on the American Immigration Lawyers Association National Practice Management Committee and authored the 2015 book, "Three Degrees of Law." Find him on Twitter @HYORKLAW

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In this feature, which appears each week, we share a vintage photo from Salem County (along with a large number of other historic local photos in an earlier gallery) and local history tidbits taken from newspapers of a century ago.

SALEM COUNTY PICTURE FROM THE PAST

This latest vintage photo from Salem County shows the band of Liberty Fire Co. of Penns Grove. The drum spells out "Liberty Fire Co. No. 1 of Penns Grove N.J." The band is posed in front of the Penns Grove Borough Hall. We suspect this photograph is from the early 1920s or so. The members of the band, of all ages, look sharp in their uniforms. (Times File Photo)

SALEM COUNTY HISTORY

Looking back 100 years ago in Salem County for this week in 1916, these news items were included in the Salem Sunbeam.

*

A barge load of shells is due to arrive this week for the upper Pennsville road and a load of shells will be needed on the entire road from Salem to the DuPont Plant No. 2.

--

It is reported that a trapper from Quinton realized $113 for the hides and carcasses of muskrats taken from 13 visits to his traps.

--

One of the largest and most influential bodies of farmers in the East, that of the New Jersey State Grange, has adopted a resolution favoring the construction of a bridge across the Delaware River between Camden and Philadelphia.

A fire near Oakland Station in Alloway Township one day last week destroyed a lot of wood and 20 bundles of corn stalks owned by Daniel Evans. The fire was started by the passing Elmer train.

--

A new stove has been placed in the House Branch School House in Cohansey.

--

The cornerstone of the new Protestant Episcopal Church being erected on Maple Avenue in Penns Grove will be laid Jan. 19, 1917 by the Rt. Rev. Paul Matthews, D.D., bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church of the Diocese of New Jersey.

--

The 8-inch snowfall on Monday of last week caused many cars to become fast in the drifts and they had to be dug out.

--

Bill Gallo Jr. may be reached at bgallo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Bill Gallo Jr. on Twitter @bgallojr. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
This year will be remembered as the year of the great price run up, going from prices below $1.50 a gallon at the start of the year to a $2.34 average price for regular. So what does 2017 hold for drivers?

The stage is set for gas prices to increase again in 2017, but experts said they won't be the kind of pain that drivers felt in 2008 when gas prices approached $4 a gallon.

"They will definitely be higher than 2016, without question," said Tom Kloza, Oil Price Information Service global petroleum expert. "Crude oil ranges from $26 a barrel in February (2016) to where we are now, at $53. It's been one of those years where the (crude oil) price has doubled from the low."

With the average price for regular at $2.34 on Thursday, this price seen at a Route 9 Speedway in Woodbridge wasn't a bad one. Discounters were charging between $2.15 and $2.17.

Prices for crude oil, which gasoline is refined from, are predicted to be in the $40 to $62 a barrel range next year with prices averaging between $50 and $55 a barrel, Kloza said.

"It will not be a runaway market and people will talk about glut of crude oil (in storage) coming back like Freddy Kruger," he said. "We have a huge glut. It took years to build that surplus and it will take years to bring it down or something major, like a war."

That glut was at 485 million barrels of crude oil as of Thursday, according to the federal Energy Information Administration.

But what about the effect of OPEC's agreement among its oil producing members to cut crude oil production in a bid to raise prices, which starts on Jan. 1? Kloza is skeptical how many oil producing nations will adhere to the agreement, especially non-OPEC counties which signed on, such as Russia.

"Why would we think that Russia would lie about cutting crude oil production?" he said. "If Nigeria and Libya solve some of their problems, there will be more crude on the market."

Finally, there is the U.S. government, which is poised to sell off 750,000 barrels of crude oil in January currently held in the strategic oil reserves, to raise funds for the modernization of that program, Kloza said.

"That could soften the market a little bit," he said. "Still, we have to see what happens when the OPEC cuts come into play."

There are other wildcards, too.

Such events could include President-Elect Donald Trump re-imposing sanctions against Iran, which added its crude oil production to the world market last year, he said. Those events could cause a $5 to $10 a barrel bump in crude oil prices, Kloza said.

But that might not have a huge influence on prices, if other nations don't go along with it.

"Crude oil is a world market," Kloza said. "If you don't get the European countries involved in sanctions, it doesn't mean anything."



Economic instability in Venezuela might prompt the government there to make overtures to foreign oil companies which the regime kicked out of the country, Kloza said.



So where does that put gas prices in 2017?

Prices will likely be depressed in January, which matches the traditional 10 percent drop in demand for gas for the month. Kloza estimates that could bring prices to a $2.25 average for regular.

"There is the launching pad and it will take us to $2.50 to $2.75 (per gallon for regular) which will happen between St. Patrick's Day and Memorial Day," Kloza said.

The federal EIA backs up Kloza's forecast, calling for higher gas prices nationally. Also, affecting prices in N.J. is the 23 cent per gallon state gas tax increase, which went into effect in November.

"The year gets off to a slow start, but in the spring, we'll be back to talking about the Mets, the Yankees and how come gas prices are going up?" he said. "It should not be an apocalyptic year."

Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @commutinglarry. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Even though Gionee only added a midrange processor to the M2017, it is targeting business men and women that are willing to spend $1007 on the 10 mm thick designer phone. Unfortunately, it lacks support for essential LTE bands in Europe and the US.

4 Reviews

7,000 Yuan or $1007 are a lot of money for a phone with a midrange Snapdragon 653 processor, however Gionee thinks, it is the right phone for the Chinese business woman or man that needs a big, high resolution screen, many days of battery life and a professional and luxury design. Unfortunately, the phone lacks a world modem that will work in every country with fast LTE support. It does support LTE bands 1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 26 and 38 to 41 but that is not enough for Europe or the US. Apart from the limited LTE range of the modem and the midrange processor, Gionee did indeed add a lot of high-end features to the M2017.

The 5.7 inch AMOLED display features QHD-resolution, 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of expandable storage will be enough for even the most demanding tasks. Due to the 7,000 mAh battery, the phone weighs 238 grams and measures 10.78 mm in width. The 4K capable dual-cam on the back has a 12 and a 13 megapixel lens and allows for a simulated 2x zoom, similar to the dual-cam on the Apple iPhone 7 Plus. The fingerprint sensor and a 8 megapixel camera are available at the front. So far the specsheet does not reveal the WiFi standard supported on the M2017. Bluetooth 4.0 and a USB-C port with USB 2.0 speed are available.

Both the golden/black design of the Amigo 3.5 interface on top of Android 6 and the luxury design of the phone itself in either gold or black and the leather finish on the back side of the phone will surely draw attention and may justify the price for some. Even though Gionee is targeting business people with the release of the M2017, some tech freaks may also find this phone attractive thanks to its unusual design and strange combination of features. Currently Gionee does not seem to have plans to sell the phone outside of China. If you are planning on importing it from China be sure to check if it works with the LTE-bands used in your region and with your provider.




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CHESTERTON  The South Shore Line will continue giving bicyclists rides to and from Chicago next year after deeming this year's pilot bikes-on-trains program a success.

"In April, we put our toe in the water," South Shore President Michael Noland said at the railroad board's year-end meeting Dec. 16. "We didn't know what to expect."

The weekend program, which distributed six bike-hauling cars among seven trains in each direction, provided more than 1,000 rides to bikers riding from and to South Bend, Dune Park, East Chicago, Hammond, Hegewisch and the Chicago stations. The bike cars ran from April to November.

The railroad had some hiccups managing the bike rack-equipped cars, but "got to be pretty good" about deploying them at the right times on the right trains, Noland said.

The main change for 2017 will be to add a weekday train in each direction to the program. The westbound train arriving at Millennium Station at 6:55 a.m., and the eastbound train leaving Millennium at 3:57 p.m. will have cars with bike racks.

The trains make limited stops, and are early enough in rush hour to have capacity, Noland said.

Other changes will include a more robust marketing effort, and offering bike trains on some weekends they skipped last year during big events in Chicago.

Ridership numbers from 2016 suggest a similar number of Region bikers heading to Chicago, and city bikers heading to Northwest Indiana.

Westbound trains leaving Indiana in the morning and early afternoon carried about as many bikers as the westbound trains in the evening and night. And a similar mix was recorded for eastbound trains leaving Millennium Station  about as many riders left Chicago in the early part of the day as the late.
One of the traumatic impacts of slavery on the African-American community is that its members were stripped of their customs and traditions, said Gary resident Jonathan Boose.

This tragic history left a cultural vacuum that has all too often been filled with negative influences, particularly among young people, he said.

The annual Dec. 26 Kwanzaa celebration, which marks its 50th anniversary Monday, is an attempt to fill that void in positive and affirming ways.

"It was very important for African-Americans to reconnect with history and culture," Boose said.

Kwanzaa comes one day after Christmas, but is not intended as a replacement for that holiday, said Lord Cashus D., a musician and historian, who is part of a citizen committee that has put on a citywide Kwanzaa celebration in Gary for the past 12 years.

This year's event is planned for 5 p.m. Monday at the Calumet Township Multipurpose Center, 1900 W. 41st Ave.

Trinity United Church of Christ in Gary is also hosting a Kwanzaa celebration at 3 p.m. Saturday at 1276 W. 20th Ave.

Kwanzaa was created by Maulana Karenga, professor and chairman of Black Studies at California State University in the wake of the Watts riots in Los Angeles.

Karenga was searching for a way to bring African-Americans together as a community and set out to accomplish this by combining aspects of several different African harvest celebrations to form the basis of Kwanzaa.

Eddie Tarver, who is among the organizers of the Gary event, dismissed criticism of Kwanzaa because it was created in modern times.

"They were all made up at some point," he said of society's various celebrations.

The Kwanzaa celebration centers around the seven candles of the Kinara that each represent a different principle or ideal, Boose said. One candle is lit each night of the weeklong celebration by a young person to initiate a discussion about that day's principle.

The seven principles are unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith.

The candle lighting will be condensed into a single evening for Monday's ceremony, with representatives who are living out each value giving a short presentation.

"It teaches unity in our community," Tarver said. "That's the biggest thing for me."

Tarver said he has tried to instill these values in his 19-year-old daughter, Pearl Tarver. She has participated in Kwanzaa celebrations while growing up and accompanied him in his endeavors to give back to the community by sharing his skill as a business person and contractor. He believes the efforts have paid off.

"You have to exercise," he said. "It's not just a ceremony."

Henry Kemp, who will serve as greeter during this year's celebration, said he has also encouraged his children to live out the values promoted by Kwanzaa  values such peace, unity and self worthiness.

"This program has been an important gift to my family," he said.

Lloyd Fisher, who at 74 has experienced the struggles of the pre-Civil Rights era, said he became aware of Kwanzaa later in life as part of his growing awareness that the history of African-Americans goes further back and is much greater than the point when they arrived in this country as slaves.

He believes Kwanzaa holds the power to address problems in the African-American community, such as the violence occurring in nearby Chicago.
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HOBART  Work continues to update the Hobart Parks Department master plan, and residents have assisted.

City officials have been collecting surveys about the department, and about 45 residents participated in recent workshop sessions for the new five-year master plan.

City Planner Sergio Mendoza said the sessions were productive. Residents were asked to take part in a variety of exercises, including prioritizing projects they would like to see accomplished during the next five years.

Mendoza said the top desires of residents are a new splash pad, adding a dog park and incorporating more natural areas in parks facilities.

The Park Board has had numerous discussions regarding a dog park in the community, but a site hasn't yet been selected for that potential project.

Mendoza said the parks department's future looks to include increasing the number of facilities it operates.

He said the Brickie Bowl and a 6-acre parcel of property the city acquired on Lake George near Wisconsin Street are under the jurisdiction of the Board of Public Works and Safety. The plan is to include those properties in the park inventory.

The city bought the Brickie Bowl in 2013. There are projects planned, including work to add an ADA-compliant walkway, to turn the field into a venue to host concerts, sporting events and other activities.

The 6-acre parcel is expected to be left mostly natural, and the site would be used as a passive park.

Mendoza said a draft of the five-year master plan is due to the state by Jan. 15. It will be reviewed and recommendations will be provided to the city.

The final version of the document must be submitted in April, Mendoza said.
PORTAGE  Most people dont have to wait 94 years to experience their best Christmas ever.

Thats what Wes Berrier, 94, of Portage, dubbed this years holiday.

On Christmas Eve, Berrier, of Portage, was blessed by friends he has never met, who sent him wrapped packages, money, and gifts  some all the way from California.

After Berriers wife, Frances, died in June 2012 after a long bout with cancer, he found himself with bills and a two-bedroom apartment he couldnt afford.

In September 2013, Jennifer Kerr, of Westville, and her friends organized to help Berrier, then 92, move to a smaller apartment. The women also gave Berrier a new bed, bed sheets and towels, and several months of living expenses, and they hosted a Thanking Wes, party to honor the World War II veterans service.

Since then, Kerr hadnt kept in touch with Berrier, but he had recently been on her mind.

There was a week when I thought of him every day, said Kerr. I thought theres a reason why I keep thinking about him.

Through a friend who knows Berrier, Kerr learned he was once again experiencing some challenges.

Berrier had no phone and no television service, a worn-down winter coat, and often went without heat to save on energy bills. His 1994 Toyota Corolla had bald tires, no heat, broken windshield wipers, and worn shocks and struts.

Berrier uses his car to visit his disabled son each morning to get him going, and for trips to the grocery store, the Bonner Senior Center, and the Veterans Administration clinic in Crown Point, Kerr said.

Kerr put out a plea for help on Facebook and received an overwhelming response.

Things that came in were incredible, from people Ive never met before, Kerr said.

On Christmas Eve, Kerr and her mother, Vicki Kerr, brought Berrier the gifts, which included food, a new winter coat, scarves, gloves, flannel pajamas, sweaters, and a new comforter and bed sheets.

Weeks before, Kerrs father, Roger, and friends from Risch Construction, of Griffith, gave Berriers car a complete makeover with new windshield wipers, shocks and struts, heating system and tires.

Children from Three Oaks Elementary School in Michigan also sent Berrier Christmas cards, which he read to Kerr and her mother when they visited.

That just may have been the best part of his day, said Kerr. He was just so happy ... He was kissing the cards and kept saying I dont know how Ill ever be able to thank everyone.

Kerr said Berrier learned how to tough it out growing up during the Depression and was just plugging along and doing things for himself.

He thought he was just kind of forgotten for a long time. He was just a little down in the dumps, Kerr said. I think this restored his faith in people. I cant imagine being 94 years old and having nobody.

Berrier is a character, full of interesting life stories, Kerr said.

He had a very hard life, yet he was always willing to help other people, Kerr said. He keeps saying I dont understand why you want to help me, you dont know me.

Its nice to be able to give back to someone without them asking for help, Kerr said.

Kerr plans to keep in touch with Berrier and hopes to get his television fixed and a cellphone.

Although Kerr said Berrier had a bad chest cold on Christmas Eve, he said he wasnt going to let a few sniffles get him down because he now has some mighty nice friends.

Im going to enjoy one of my best Christmases ever, Berrier said.
Police say they are searching for two men after a fatal Christmas Day shooting in East Flatbush leaves a man dead.

"If you can do something like this on Christmas, that means you have no conscience, that's how I view it," said one woman who lives in the area. "I hope the family is at peace."

Police said they responded to a 911 call of a man shot and found Ramie Nesbeth, 30, with a gunshot wound to his abdomen.

He was found in front of a deli around 12:51 p.m. at the intersection of Utica Ave. and Beverly Road, according to police.

Nesbeth, who is from Canarsie, was transported to a local hospital, according to the police report, where he died.

Police said they are looking for two men who possibly fled the scene in an SUV.

One of the store's owners said Nesbeth was a regular customer from the neighborhood, who had just made a purchase, before he walked out of the store and was shot.

People who live in the area said they are shocked and that the neighborhood is typically safe.

"It's a time of giving, a time of loving, a time of caring, and to take a life on Christmas Day  which is also a Christian holiday epitomizing Christ, his life, his birth, you know, the savior of the world  to do this on this day kind of shows what our society is today," another woman said.

There are no arrests at this time, and the investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information on the case should contact the Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS, or text CRIMES and then enter TIP577, or visit www.nypdcrimestoppers.com
A 4-year-old Queens boy who miraculously survived being run over and pinned underneath a car was reunited with the first responders who rescued him. Thalia Perez filed the following report.

"It could have been much, much worse," Vinny Cresta said. "It's a different Christmas this year for us, with different meaning."

Cresta reflects on the day that changed his life forever: his son Dylan's brush with death on Nov. 19 after he was struck and trapped underneath his neighbor's car. NY1 was on the scene immediately following the accident.

"I heard the little kid screaming very loud and I heard the fence just breaking," said an eyewitness.

EMS Captain Patrick Flynn tells NY1 when he saw the four-year-old Dylan, he feared the worst.

"His arm was cut pretty badly, his face was cut up pretty badly, and his leg was broken, extremely broken," Flynn said. "So that needed to basically be put back together and stabilized before they could take him, transport him out."

Dylan was trapped under the car for about 40 minutes, and there were a number of challenges for firefighters. Firefighters credit the use of lifting devices, "hydro fusion struts," with helping save him.

Fast forward to a month later, and there was a huge welcome for the Cresta family at Engine 263, Ladder 117 in Astoria. Even Santa Claus was there as the Cresta family met the FDNY members and EMS workers who saved Dylan's life.

"It was the scariest day of my life, but I am so grateful that they were there," said Domenica Cresta, Dylan's mother. "We can't thank them enough. We feel like we're family now."

"Usually, we don't get to meet the people that we help out," FDNY Captain Michael Smith Wick said. "But, you know, it actually feels good."

Dylan's parents say there is still a long recovery road ahead for their son, but his doctors expect him to make a full recovery

"I'm really thankful for the firemen helping my brother," said Scarlett Cresta, Dylan's sister.

Meanwhile, no charges have been filed against the driver of the car.
An important world leader will be on hand as the world watches the ball drop at Times Square this New Year's Eve.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will have the honor of pressing the button to kick off the 60-second countdown to 2017.

The South Korean politician has been head of the UN for the past 10 years.

Organizers say he deserves the honor for his work to help refugees and prevent war.

Moon will push the Waterford Crystal button just before midnight on what will be his last day in office.

His successor, Portugal's Antonio Guterres, takes over as secretary-general on January 1.
New York Sen. Charles Schumer is blasting the Obama Administration for allowing the U.N. Security Council to pass a controversial resolution accusing Israel of violating international law.

Extremely frustrating, disappointing & confounding that the Administration has failed to veto the UN resolution.  Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) December 23, 2016

The United States did not veto the measure, instead abstaining from the council's 14-0 vote calling Israeli settlements in territory claimed by Palestinians "a flagrant violation of international law."

The Obama Administration has had a strained relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the settlements and their role in the peace process.

Schumer's comments appear to fall in line with his fellow New Yorker, President-elect Trump, who demanded the U.S. exercise its veto power.

Trump has signaled previously that he will be far more sympathetic to Israel's position on the disputed territories.
New York is a laggard in design-build, said Mitchell L. Moss, director of the Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management at New York University. Theres really no justification; its widely used across the country. New York hurts itself by not having it available for use in New York City.

The stakes are huge for the city, which faces an ever-growing to-do list of capital projects to address its aging and overtaxed transportation and infrastructure system. Polly Trottenberg, the citys transportation commissioner, said that if design-build were an option, her department could save as much as $330 million on a half-dozen of its biggest and most expensive road and bridge projects, including a $1.7 billion rehabilitation of a crucial 1.5-mile stretch of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.

We want to spend taxpayer dollars fixing bridges and roadways and not on change orders and procurement lawyers, she said.

Ms. Trottenberg and other supporters of design-build acknowledged that it might not be the right choice for every project, but said it should be an available option because of the potential savings in time and money.

But some state legislators, state labor leaders, construction industry groups and others have raised concerns about expanding the use of design-build. These critics say it could lead to fewer public sector jobs as more design and engineering work is contracted out by government agencies as opposed to being done in-house, and could allow for a more subjective selection process as contracts are evaluated for the best value and not simply the lowest bid.
SAN FRANCISCO  Jeff Bezos of Amazon, along with a couple of his rivals, may eventually control much of the $1 trillion global market for business computers and software.

That is because Amazon Web Services, his big-business computing division, is starting to affect more than just the world of computer servers, data storage and networking at the core of computing. Increasingly, it is also entangled with mobile phones, sensors and all sorts of other devices in the so-called Internet of Things.

Its the same story at Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Platform, the other two big cloud companies. Start-ups and giant corporations rent the core resources, along with related software, instead of owning and running their own machines.

Whats next? As innovations like artificial intelligence and connected devices become popular, customers are putting cloud components in mobile computing, home games and email marketing campaigns. In other words, the big clouds aim to be everywhere.
Poor old Ebenezer Scrooge, saddled with that sharp and ungainly first name. Even if he werent bitterness and ill will incarnate at the start of A Christmas Carol, those four unfriendly syllables would serve as a warning to his fellow human beings, and maybe the occasional spirit: Approach with caution.

But when the ghost of Jacob Marley pays an evening visit to Scrooge in Blessed Unrests A Christmas Carol, a Dickens adaptation by Matt Opatrny, this unusually benevolent Marley calls him Eb, as a good pal might. To Fred, Scrooges insistently festive nephew, he is Uncle Neezer. And Belle, the squandered love of Scrooges life, refers to him as Ebbie.

A humanizing warmth flickers through this stripped-down, six-actor A Christmas Carol, at the New Ohio Theater, where J. Stephen Brantley is a delightfully sour, unreformed Scrooge, a man who bares his teeth in place of a smile. On Christmas Day, after the ghosts have persuaded him to change his ways, he is endearingly tentative in his efforts to transform.

Its the in-between that gets tricky in this production, which feels a little saggy in this wide-open and bare playing space. Blessed Unrest specializes in physical theater, and a full-company dance number to Lady Gagas Applause is an energetic high point. But, too often, the action is strangely far away, and there is a deadening effect to the scripts insistence on emphasizing social injustice even more than Dickens does in his original story.
As with Foxs ubiquitous promotion of its slogan, conservatives appropriation of the fake news label is an effort to further erode the mainstream medias claim to be a reliable and accurate source.

What I think is so unsettling about the fake news cries now is that their audience has already sort of bought into this idea that journalism has no credibility or legitimacy, said Angelo Carusone, the president of Media Matters, a liberal group that polices the news media for bias. Therefore, by applying that term to credible outlets, it becomes much more believable.

Conservative news media are now awash in the fake news condemnations. When coverage of Mr. Trumps choice for labor secretary, Andrew F. Puzder, highlighted his opposition to minimum wage increases, the writer and radio host Erick Erickson wrote that Mr. Puzder should have been getting more credit for pointing out that such increases lead to higher unemployment. To say otherwise is to push fake news, he wrote. (The effects actually have been found to vary from city to city.)

Infowars, the website run by the conservative provocateur and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, labeled as fake news a CNN report that Ivanka Trump would move into the office in the White House normally reserved for the first lady.

Mr. Trump has used the term to deny news reports, as he did on Twitter recently after various outlets said he would stay on as the executive producer of The New Celebrity Apprentice after taking office in January. Ridiculous & untrue  FAKE NEWS! he wrote. (He will be credited as executive producer, a spokesman for the shows creator, Mark Burnett, has said. But it is unclear what work, if any, he will do on the show.)

Many conservatives are pushing back at the outrage over fake news because they believe that liberals, unwilling to accept Mr. Trumps victory, are attributing his triumph to nefarious external factors.

The left refuses to admit that the fundamental problem isnt the Russians or Jim Comey or fake news or the Electoral College, said Laura Ingraham, the author and radio host. Fake news is just another fake excuse for their failed agenda.
SAN FRANCISCO  The de Young Museum here has drawn big crowds before with shows on Oscar de la Renta, Jean Paul Gaultier and Yves Saint Laurent. But for its next big fashion extravaganza, the museum is entering new territory  and moving from gowns to hijabs, the head scarves worn by many Muslim women. The museums new director, Max Hollein, has scheduled The Fashion of Islam, the first major show developed since his arrival, for the fall of 2018.

In Australia, the traveling show Faith, Fashion, Fusion recently explored the market for modest fashion. Otherwise, few museums have touched the topic.

There are probably people who dont even think there is fashion in Islam, Mr. Hollein said. But if you look at Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Beirut, the fashion is really vibrant, and it can speak to larger political and social developments, cultural understanding and misunderstandings.

Mr. Holleins idea is to approach the subject from different perspectives, examining how Islamic styles are shaped by seemingly polar opposites: religious beliefs, which seek to avoid any appearance of extravagance and arrogance, or calling attention to oneself, and global fashion trends.
Make waves in the Mediterranean with A Bigger Splash and LAvventura. Paint a canvas with Jackson Pollock and J. M. W. Turner. Then count lifes blessings.

Whats Streaming

A BIGGER SPLASH (2016) on Amazon, iTunes and Vudu. Marianne (Tilda Swinton), a rock star recuperating from throat surgery, and her lover, Paul (Matthias Schoenaerts), find their reverie on a volcanic island interrupted when her former beau Harry (Ralph Fiennes), and his daughter, Penelope (Dakota Johnson), unexpectedly roar in. Harry is on a desperate mission, and soon Marianne and Pauls bliss has been rather violently commandeered by wandering glances and furtive caresses. The Italian director Luca Guadagnino has loosely adapted Jacques Derays 1969 New Wave thriller La Piscine, adding magnificent digs and a soundtrack throbbing with the Rolling Stones, Harry Nilsson, Verdi and 1970s Brazilian classics.
At a news conference, Mr. Wang said that the measures were temporary and that the government was working on relevant legal arrangements for those holding 70-year leases, according to a transcript of the briefing on the ministrys website. Much of Chinas residential land is covered by 70-year leases.

Land ownership rights became a focus in Wenzhou in April when the local government demanded that homeowners whose land-use rights had expired after 20 years pay fees of up to a third of the value of their homes before they could sell them. The decision provoked protests from property owners in Wenzhou, a coastal city of eight million that was one of the first areas to establish private enterprise after the Chinese government opened the economy in the late 1970s.

Xinhua, the main state news agency, hailed the governments decision as one small step for Wenzhou, one giant leap for China. Global Times, a nationalist tabloid owned by Peoples Daily, the Chinese Communist Partys official newspaper, called it the biggest news of the year.

Land-use rights are set to expire in Qingdao, Jinan and Shenzhen, Xinhua said.

The measures conform to the expectations of the masses, it said in a commentary on Saturday. For all citizens, it is transmitting springs first glow of warm air.

The number of residents affected by the 20-year land-use rights in Wenzhou is relatively small. China Youth Daily, a state-run news outlet, said about 600 households had 20-year leases expiring next year and 1,700 others had such leases expiring by 2019. But their property transactions have been in limbo because of the uncertainty over the land-use rights.
Many of the deals that perished were born of the heady ambitions that filled corporate chieftains heads during the past two years. C.E.O.s and their bankers and lawyers pursued big, risky transactions to achieve the kind of growth that they were largely unable to achieve on their own.

Assertive government regulators and recalcitrant target companies helped quash those merger dreams. Antitrust officials deemed many of these transactions unallowable because they were likely to lead to too much market concentration. Others were denied by target companies unwilling to sell themselves  at least, at the offered prices.

To be sure, plenty of major transactions have been announced in 2016, from AT&Ts $85 billion blockbuster bid for Time Warner to the German drug maker Bayers $56 billion offer for Monsanto, the American genetically modified crop giant.

Still, as the year winds down, its worth taking a moment to remember some of the most notable deals that didnt come to pass, depriving bankers, lawyers and other advisers of millions of dollars in fees.

Pfizer and Allergan

Size of Deal: $152 Billion

A union of the two pharmaceutical companies, first announced a year ago, would have been the biggest takeover in 15 years. It would have yielded Pfizer the huge takeover that it had long coveted  and, perhaps more important, given it the chance to finally relocate its corporate home abroad to lower its tax bill. Unusually, the purchase of the Botox maker Allergan would also have paved the way for Pfizer to eventually break itself in two.
Baltimore, as a matter of law, requires landlords to ensure that a home is fit for human habitation, and building officials said that includes rent-to-own landlords. But homes that are leased in rent-to-own deals can fall through the cracks because the city has so many abandoned and rundown homes.

Jason Hessler, deputy assistant commissioner for Baltimore Housing, said, The house was in violation at the time it was sold by Fannie Mae to Vision and was supposed to be unoccupied until approved by the building department. But he added that unless it was obvious that someone had moved into a house without the departments permission, building inspectors might not know.

For many poor families who want to own a house and cannot get a mortgage, nontraditional housing transactions like Ms. Bennetts have become their only option. Some do not understand what they are signing.

Dr. Lowry says that many of the families she works with do not speak English and thought they were buying a house outright. She was one of several housing officials and doctors who discussed the problems caused by seller-financed deals at a recent conference on childhood lead poisoning in Washington.

Seller-financed deals, which include contracts for deed and rent-to-own leases, are loaded with risk. They lack basic consumer protections, and residents can be easily evicted since the title to a home is not transferred until the final payment is made.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has begun to investigate whether some companies are taking advantage of consumers. State regulators in Wisconsin, New Mexico and New York have begun their own inquiries, while officials in Minnesota and Missouri have issued consumer alerts.

Poor families that buy or rent one of these rundown homes often find themselves with another problem: Because they do not technically own their house, they are ineligible for any state or local grants to help defray the cost of removing lead paint.
Advertising on the internet has never been easier. Data and automation increasingly allow companies large and small to reach millions of people every month, and to tailor ads to specific groups based on their browsing habits or demographics.

Now, however, the marketing industry is facing a moral quandary in the face of a national debate over the role that fake news played in the presidential election and the realization that many websites that promote false and misleading stories are motivated by the money they can make from online advertising.

In the zeal to follow consumers wherever they may roam on the internet, advertisers now risk bankrolling sites that are toxic to society, whether by amplifying manufactured political stories or by spreading conspiracy theories virulent enough to drive a man to walk into a Washington pizzeria with a gun. That has inserted a new ethical cost into the automated advertising equation, which promises companies large, desired audiences at low prices with little need for human intervention.

I would much rather pay a little premium as a brand and go for verified sites, Raja Rajamannar, the chief marketing officer of MasterCard, said, noting that the company mostly advertised on sites it had evaluated and approved. But its a question again of how much and where. And I think all brands are doing this soul-searching at this point in time.
Six years and contrasting personalities separated Diana Olivarez and her younger brother, Xavier.

Im very intense, said Ms. Olivarez, 29. He was just carefree, didnt take life too seriously.

Before Xavier was born, Ms. Olivarez lived in Mexico with her grandparents. Her parents had left for the United States with the intention of finding work and making enough money to eventually return to Mexico and build a house. But once Xavier was born in the United States, the plan changed: Her parents decided to make a life in the Bronx and Ms. Olivarez joined them when she was 6.

But she had difficulty adjusting. Her first winter in New York was brutally cold and dark. While her parents worked long hours, she and Xavier were handed off to babysitters.

The language barrier was another hurdle. Classmates who spoke Spanish used an unfamiliar dialect, and learning English was difficult because she could not practice it with family members at home.
This article is part of the Opinion Today newsletter. You can sign up here to receive more briefings and a guide to the section daily in your inbox.

The newsletter this week will look back on our favorite material from 2016.

On Monday well start with a few of our Op-Ed columnists. I asked each to pick a favorite column of the year and say a few words about it. Ive also listed the column written by each that attracted the largest online audience among Times subscribers. (Thanks to Samarth Bhaskar of The Times, who crunched the audience data.)

Tuesdays newsletter will include favorites from more columnists.

Image President Obama and Hillary Clinton at the Democratic National Convention. Credit... Doug Mills/The New York Times

Maureen Dowd

A favorite column: Thanks, Obama

Maureen explains: Barack Obama dismantled the Clinton machine, and then, oddly, mantled it again, setting up the excruciating loss that may wipe out his legacy.

Most read among Times subscribers: Solving the Riddle of the Slovenian Sphinx and the Pussy Bow  On Melania Trumps interesting fashion choice for a debate.
LOS ANGELES  To an outsider, a food cart in Boyle Heights might look like just another place to buy a churro or some corn on the cob. But for Jonathan Thunderbird-Olivares, street vendors are the center of a conflict between a community and its poorest members, one that touches on issues of land use, immigration and economic policy. And the best place to read about that conflict is The Boyle Heights Beat.

The Beat (Pulso de Boyle Heights, in Spanish) is a bilingual newspaper written largely by teenagers from the Boyle Heights neighborhood on the east side of Los Angeles. In the coming years, the residents of Boyle Heights may be in greater need than ever of a publication that tells their stories.

The paper was founded in 2011 by Michelle Levander, the director of the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism, and Pedro Rojas, former executive editor of the Spanish-language newspaper La Opinion, as a means of teaching young people about reporting. With financial support from the California Endowment and from private nonprofit sources, the website and the free quarterly print edition with a circulation of 33,000 is the only publication focused exclusively on Boyle Heights.
The effects of dumsor have been profound. Many businesses, unable to foot the cost of fueling the private generators that would allow them to continue operations during power failures, laid off workers. Others were forced to shut down. A think tank at the University of Ghana estimates that dumsor costs Ghana $320 million to $924 million every year in productivity and economic growth.

Worse, Ghanaians felt the government was indifferent to their suffering. A member of Parliament from the governing party was reported to have said that the effects of dumsor were being exaggerated by people who cannot afford to buy fridges or air-conditioners. During a radio interview, another legislator from the same party advised anyone unable to cope with dumsor to move to neighboring Ivory Coast. Naturally, the opposition took full advantage of the discontent over the crisis; dumsor appears 15 times in its 2016 election manifesto and not once in the governing partys.

The problem is a classic one: too much demand, too little supply. Last year, Ghanas total dependable power capacity was 2,533 megawatts, just over half of which came from hydropower. But appetite for power has been skyrocketing. Demand recently has grown more than 10 percent annually. Although it closely matched supply in 2014, Ghana now needs to find 4,000 more megawatts just to keep up. The governments programs to expand power generation, which began in 2007, have added only 35 percent of what is expected.

Ghanas generation infrastructure needs significant updating to reduce the amount of electricity lost during transmission and distribution. But its not clear where President-elect Akufo-Addo will get the money to do that. Unhelpfully, the Electricity Company of Ghana, a state-run monopoly, is comically bad at collecting money from its customers  especially from other state-run institutions like the police and the oil refinery, which are among its largest debtors. And in April 2015, Ghana had to ask the International Monetary Fund for a $900 million bailout; in return, the fund demanded an austerity program.

To meet ever rising demand, Ghana needs to get more independent power producers that use both thermal and renewable sources of energy  and fast.

This wont be easy. Taking a power plant from project development to commercial operation requires several years. You cant force such a task to fit within the constraints of a four-year election cycle. There is no guarantee the public will be understanding when the next general election comes around in 2020.
The Trump transition team asked the State Department last week to submit details of programs and jobs that focus on promoting gender equality. Maybe its for benign purposes  or better, a signal that the administration wants to make womens empowerment a cornerstone of its foreign policy. But this seems unlikely, to put it mildly, given that such a commitment was absent from Donald J. Trumps campaign, and alongside Mr. Trumps vow to defund Planned Parenthood.

Whatever the reason for their request, Mr. Trump and Rex W. Tillerson, his pick for secretary of state, should remember that womens rights are tied directly to national security. The State Departments gender equality programs are not just politically correct fluff  they deal with matters of life and death, like rape during war, genital cutting, forced marriage and access to education. The State Department provides essential funding to combat these problems.

Nongovernmental organizations around the world that work with survivors of rape and sexual violence are supported by small grants from the State Department, for example. One program in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh trained 450 imams to extol the importance of girls education in their Friday sermons and, when officiating at marriages, to ask for the brides age and proof of her consent. The United States Agency for International Development helps girls purchase books and pay fees so they can finish grade school. This kind of work is important not just for the women and girls who directly benefit from them, but also for the security of their countries.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was not the first person to argue that national security is linked to womens equality when she made it a cornerstone of American foreign policy. President George W. Bush identified respect for women as one of the nonnegotiable demands of human dignity. Even President Xi Jinping of China said in 2015 that every step taken to promote womens cause has been a giant step forward for the progress of human civilization.
On New Years Eve, Jen Pelka will open the doors to the Riddler, a snug, swanky boite in the Hayes Valley neighborhood of San Francisco. She named it after Veuve Clicquots ancient method of removing sediment in Champagne, and will offer an impressive list of by-the-glass wines and some 100 Champagnes by the half, full and magnum bottle ($40 to $2,800).

Similar to its city, the establishment is an alchemy of old and new, high and low. In what was originally a German bakery, cast-iron dumbwaiters will serve up caviar, cheese, charcuterie and Champagne in bespoke hand-cut crystal from Belarus  oh, and tater tot waffles, popcorn and ponies of Miller High Life (the Champagne of Beers), because some nights you just want $5 beer and all-you-can-eat popcorn, says Pelka, who was named a food-world It girl by Cherry Bombe magazine and has consulted Daniel Boulud, edited Gilt Taste and opened her own communications agency to represent food, wine and hospitality brands. She enlisted 32 investors, ranging from hoteliers to venture capitalists to literal tastemakers: Ruth Reichl, a former New York Times restaurant critic and editor in chief of Gourmet, was an early buy-in, and her only advice to Pelka was, You go, girl. Those supporters  all of them female  also helped curate the wine list and decorate the charming space. In the coming months, it will also be grounds for things like a ladies-only blackjack league and a book club. Pelka sees it as a place for girlfriends to gather, though she concedes the inevitable: Where ladies dress up and are a little sexy, the men will follow.

Champagne Celebration Punch

3 bottles of rose Champagne

1 cup of pomegranate liqueur, such as Pama

1 cup of pomegranate seeds

2 lemons, sliced into thin rounds, seeds removed

 cup fresh mint sprigs

1 ice block
I asked about United States Customs and Border Protections expedited clearance: O.K., Google, what is the cost of Global Entry?

One hundred dollars, Google Home said.

Next, a few rapid-fire questions. Is there Zika in Puerto Rico? Google Home answered yes and mentioned some advice from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Would I need a visa to visit Singapore? I wouldnt need a visa for a tourist visit up to 90 days, it said, quoting the United States Department of State, but I should make sure my passport was valid for at least six months beyond the date I planned to enter. All of this was faster than typing a request into Google and searching for a reliable source (Home chooses sources based on programs and formulas that Google writes, like those used to power Google Search). And Homes ability to understand my voice was notable considering how frequently Siri, the iPhone virtual assistant, and I misunderstand each other.

I moved on to flight questions. O.K., Google, what time does United Airlines Flight 97 arrive?

Home identified the flight, naming the cities and departure time. However, it didnt give an arrival time. It simply said: United Airlines 97 from San Francisco to Houston is on time and departs in five hours and 26 minutes. I asked again. It failed again to give an arrival time. I tried a flight search. O.K., Google, what is the price of a business class flight from New York to Singapore on Qatar Airways departing Dec. 29 and returning Jan. 2?

Flights on Qatar Airways from New York City to Singapore leaving Dec. 29 and coming back Jan. 2 start at $4,004. The shortest flight is about 22 hours and 25 minutes long, it said. Correct, and fast.

O.K., Google, when was Central Park created? According to Wikipedia, Home began and rattled off part of a Wikipedia entry about the founding of the park.

When I asked, Can you tell me how to get to the New York Public Library? Home replied, I dont support directions yet. A Google spokeswoman said this was mainly because directions could require a long voice response. Over time, Google said, it will probably allow users to send directions to their phone for step-by-step navigation.

Time for some music. O.K., Google, I said, play me Frank Sinatra.

All right. Check out this Frank Sinatra radio mix on YouTube.
WASHINGTON  Corey Statham had $46 in his pockets when he was arrested in Ramsey County, Minn., and charged with disorderly conduct. He was released two days later, and the charges were dismissed.

But the county kept $25 of Mr. Stathams money as a booking fee. It returned the remaining $21 on a debit card subject to an array of fees. In the end, it cost Mr. Statham $7.25 to withdraw what was left of his money.

The Supreme Court will soon consider whether to hear Mr. Stathams challenge to Ramsey Countys fund-raising efforts, which are part of a national trend to extract fees and fines from people who find themselves enmeshed in the criminal justice system.

Kentucky bills people held in its jails for the costs of incarcerating them, even if all charges are later dismissed. In Colorado, five towns raise more than 30 percent of their revenue from traffic tickets and fines. In Ferguson, Mo., city officials have consistently set maximizing revenue as the priority for Fergusons law enforcement activity, a Justice Department report found last year.
HONOLULU  President Obama expressed confidence that, if he had run for a third term, he would have defeated Donald J. Trump, according to an interview released Monday with David Axelrod, his friend and former adviser.

Im confident that if I  if I had run again and articulated it, I think I couldve mobilized a majority of the American people to rally behind it, Mr. Obama said on Mr. Axelrods podcast, The Axe Files, referring to his message of inclusion and helping middle-class Americans.

I know that in conversations that Ive had with people around the country, even some people who disagreed with me, they would say the vision, the direction that you point towards is the right one, he said.

Several hours after the interview was posted, Mr. Trump responded on Twitter. President Obama said that he thinks he would have won against me, Mr. Trump said. He should say that but I say NO WAY!  jobs leaving, ISIS, OCare, etc.
The enthusiasm was understandable at one level: Mr. Price has been a member of the A.M.A. house of delegates since 2005 and was an alternate delegate for a decade before that, according to the A.M.A. and the Medical Association of Georgia.

For those who are attacking Dr. Price, I have to ask whom you would rather have at the helm of H.H.S.  a career bureaucrat? A former governor who views doctors as a cost center to be controlled? said Dr. Robert E. Hertzka of San Diego, an anesthesiologist and former president of the California Medical Association. Tom Price may turn out to be the best friend that physicians and patients have ever had in that role.

Many doctors are not willing to take that chance. More than 750 people who identify themselves as members of the A.M.A. signed a letter to the associations board objecting to the endorsement.

The unqualified support for Mr. Price is inappropriate, the letter says, because he has been a strong opponent of so much of our clearly delineated A.M.A. policy on issues like the Affordable Care Act, contraception and gay rights. Some doctors also said patients could be hurt by major changes in Medicare and Medicaid that Mr. Price, along with other House Republicans, has advocated.

Dr. Andrea S. Christopher, 32, an internal medicine doctor at the veterans hospital in Boise, Idaho, said she had decided not to renew her A.M.A. membership over the endorsement, which she called especially upsetting to her generation of physicians. Dr. Price has been an outspoken opponent of the Affordable Care Act, which has done so much to address the needs of our most vulnerable patients and reduced the uninsured rate to the lowest level on record, Dr. Christopher said.

Dr. Kristin M. Huntoon, a 37-year-old neurosurgery resident at Ohio State University in Columbus, said the groups support for Mr. Price had increased the chances that the Affordable Care Act would be dismantled  and that has put her patients at risk.

Ohio has extended Medicaid coverage to more than 600,000 people under the federal health care law. If that expansion is reversed, Dr. Huntoon said, some patients will not receive imaging or treatment at an early stage of their disease, and they are more likely to arrive when tumors have spread to the brain. At that stage, she said, theres often nothing I can do for the patient.
The early Norwegian contacts were maintained around the personal relationships of Mr. Ramslien, an unconventional diplomat who had been a Christian missionary in Pakistan in the 1960s. He understood that the Talibans worldview was rooted in religion, and could communicate with them  and even interpret for them  in Urdu, which he speaks fluently.

During his years as a diplomat in Islamabad, stretching back to the 1990s, Mr. Ramslien had made an impression not only on the Taliban government in Afghanistan, but also on the Pakistani madrasas  the religious schools that gave birth to the Taliban movement and to this day fill its ranks with foot soldiers.

Many of those seminaries were a legacy of American funding of the Islamic insurgency against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. After the Soviet withdrawal, and after the United States virtually abandoned the region in the 1990s, Mr. Ramslien made a priority of continuing engagement with Pakistani and Afghan religious leaders  which he felt was necessary because in isolation those figures could become more dangerous.

With those credentials, it was Mr. Ramslien the Taliban approached in 2007 when they were looking for a go-between.

The initial contacts with the Taliban came with enormous risks for both sides. Norway was dealing with an illegal armed group that was not only listed by the United Nations as a terrorist group, but was also in direct conflict with a NATO force that included Norwegian troops, according to a recent report by a high-ranking commission on Norways 15-year involvement in Afghanistan.

The Taliban risked arrest by breaking United Nations travel restrictions, while holding meetings inside Pakistan would bring further scrutiny from a potential spoiler: the countrys powerful military Inter-Services Intelligence service  the ISI  which was protecting the Taliban in their Pakistani havens. Al Qaeda, too, wasnt happy about the Taliban projecting an image of independence.

They knew they had to make the ISI happy, Mr. Ramslien said of the Taliban. Then, at the same time, play another game totally independently.
BEIJING  China officially resumed diplomatic relations with Sao Tome and Principe on Monday after that African island nation abruptly severed ties with Taiwan last week.

The move is a victory for Beijing, which considers the self-governing island of Taiwan a part of Chinas territory and has been outraged by suggestions by President-elect Donald J. Trump that he could rethink American policy that acknowledges this.

Beijing and Taipei have competed for allies for much of the nearly seven decades since the end of Chinas civil war in 1949, when the defeated Nationalist government fled across the Taiwan Strait.

The Chinese foreign minister, Wang Yi, and his counterpart from Sao Tome, Urbino Botelho, appeared together on Monday at a ceremony in Beijing. Mr. Wang said that re-establishing relations would benefit both countries.
TOKYO  When President Obama made a historic visit to Hiroshima in May, there was no question that he was the first sitting American president to do so. But as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe prepares to pay his respects at Pearl Harbor on Tuesday, Japanese officials are scrambling to identify what, exactly, is unprecedented about his reciprocal visit.

Mr. Abe announced this month that he would visit Pearl Harbor. Japans Foreign Ministry, in news briefings, indicated at the time that he would be the first sitting Japanese prime minister to visit Pearl Harbor, the site of the surprise attack on a United States naval base 75 years ago.

It turns out, though, that he might not be the first, or even the second. It now appears that he is the fourth.

A few days after Mr. Abe announced his visit, news reports emerged that a predecessor, Shigeru Yoshida, had stopped in Hawaii in 1951 on his way home from signing a treaty in San Francisco and had paid a quiet visit to Pearl Harbor.
SOCHI, Russia  Russia mounted an expansive search-and-recovery operation in the Black Sea on Monday for the passengers and the fuselage of a military passenger plane that crashed a day earlier, killing all 92 people on board, including dozens of members of a storied army choir.

In Moscow, famous performers and ordinary citizens, some of them in tears, dropped flowers at the entrance to the headquarters of the choir, the Alexandrov Ensemble. Another mountain of red carnations and candles piled up outside the Ostankino television center, as a tribute to nine journalists who were accompanying the choir to the Khmeimim Air Base in Syria.

The plane was carrying 68 performers and staff members of the ensemble, including an army choir and orchestra loved for its renditions of classical Russian songs and folk tunes.

The most likely area where the plane plunged into the water moments after taking off from the southwestern resort city of Sochi has been identified, Lt. Gen. Viktor N. Bondarev, commander of the Russian Air Force, said at an early morning news conference at the airport.
Any advertising campaign needs a good slogan, and if the client is a national tourism board, the trick is to encapsulate a countrys wonders and charms in just a few words.

Some manage it better than others.

The English-language tourism slogans of more than 150 countries have been compiled by FamilyBreakFinder, a travel website, and the approaches can be as different as the deserts of Algeria (Tourism for Everybody) are from the snow-capped peaks of Nepal (Once Is Not Enough).

Many countries settle for just an alliterative adjective: Brilliant Barbados, Epic Estonia, Incredible India, Remarkable Rwanda and, at the alliterative apex, Pristine Paradise Palau.

But some strive for something a bit more majestic: Kingdom of Wonder (Cambodia), Kingdom of Unexpected Treasures (Brunei) or Kingdom in the Sky (Lesotho).
After a long night doing homework, 17-year-old Sarah Hultman tiptoes past her grandparents room and into the bedroom she shares with her parents and brother.

To say this Buena Park family is tight is both literal and a metaphor. Along with space, moneys tight, too. But so are the bonds of love.

The biggest and most used piece of furniture in the house is a black baby grand piano. The family plays together and sings together. With her mothers parents sharing their home during tough times, this multi-generational family also looks out for one another.

The mix is magic.

Hultman is an Orange County influencer not because of her success at Oxford Academy in Cypress, one of the top  and one of the academically toughest  public high schools in the nation. She is an influencer because she inspires.

She is one of six students on the board of the California State PTA and will be a featured presenter at the 2017 convention in April. I want to create a space, she says, where not just the popular kids can have a voice.

She is a dedicated volunteer, organizing a college tour panel at Oxford, partnering with Disney to help educate families about the environment, recruiting students for Knott Avenue Christian Churchs Thanksgiving for needy families.

She moves between engineering classes and the arts, and recently was awarded a scholarship for fashion design.

Heck, Hultman even plays piano and drums.

Yet one of the coolest things about this scholar is that shes already learned that true success comes when you let dreams serve as your inspiration.

Hard work is her compass, life-long learning is her ultimate destination.

I want to keep my options open, Hultman explains.

I want to be open to life, taking it wherever it wants to lead me.

WISDOM OF YOUTH

Most parents think their child is the best, as they should. But an influencer nominated by her father? Well, lets just say as I walk into the Hultman home, Im skeptical.

Thats over in two seconds.

This is a humble family where pride has no place and doing ones best with whatever tools you have is held in the highest regard.

Jon Hultman, who works in the garage writing documents for attorneys, beams and offers a solid handshake. Sarahs grandparents, immigrants from Japan, bow slightly. On a cold December night, Moms smile warms everything.

Theres hot coffee, fresh muffins and homemade chocolate chip cookies.

Grandpa is a retired minister. Mom came to the United States with little English, graduated college in Tennessee, and continued her career as a classical pianist until two back surgeries made that impossible.

Sarahs parents met at a UCLA extension class on music composition and lyrics. They continue to make music together, but decline to share their songs. After all, this visit is about Sarah.

Theres no parental boasting  just trust in a high school senior navigating her first extensive interview.

If Hultman has a secret weapon, its her passion for organization. She carries an organizer in which she plans out her day, week, month. She writes deadlines and, yes, she meets them.

Time is short, the teenager explains, and she has a lot to learn.

My mother says that the one thing that cant be taken from you is your knowledge and your education.

A GRANDFATHERS COMPASION

Discussing the complexities of time, change and goals is an adjustment when talking to a teenager. There is a tendency to chuckle at phrases that start with, Years ago

Yet the teen years are a time when children become adults. Growth between, say, 12 and 13 can be huge.

Hultman allows that she was like many of her peers when she was younger  focused on grades and ticking off accomplishments to get into the best college, followed by getting the best paying job.

But that was so last year.

My younger self was obsessed with doing something to impress.

Today, Hultman focuses on balance, on experimenting with different ideas.

In some families there is pressure to succeed in one thing from the time youre very young, she says. But my moms not that way. She says to focus on the things that you enjoy, rather than the things that youre forced to do.

Over the years, Hultman tried out ballet, marine biology, fashion design. For two years, she attended camp for marine biology. She loved it, but it didnt stick.

Fashion did.

Shes been designing dresses since she was 10, cutting cloth on the floor in the kitchen-dining-living area, sewn on a cheap machine at the kitchen table.

People think fashion is a girlie job, she says, but its backbreaking work.

Still, Hultman prefers design that looks effortless. I like showing people a finished product and not the blood, sweat and tears.

When she was 11, Hultman created original period costumes for the Nixon Librarys annual Presidents Day celebration. She came as Abigail Adams.

Last year, she enrolled at the Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles. This year, she won a scholarship from the Ginger Anderson Scholarship for Fashion Design presented by the cities of Cypress and La Palma.

For a teenager  or perhaps for any designer short of, maybe, Lady Gaga  her approach can be edgy. One example is a see-through lacy black dress complimented by a sequined bodice.

Cypress Councilwoman Stacy Berry suggests Hultmans designs were inspired by the movie, Black Swan, describing the work as a dark tonal palette (that) calls to mind (the films) stylistic pastiche of the worlds of ballet and high fashion, as well as its meditations on the nature of artistic genius and madness.

Hultman puts it this way: I like to create a character through fashion.

The next step  after the PTA event  is choosing a college. Hultman says her hope is to find a place that encourages risk even as it offers break-through thought.

Of her love for both art and engineering, Hultman says, I want to push them in opposite directions and see where I can take things.

Armed with her grandfathers compassion, Sarah is sure to bring opposites together.

Contact the writer: dwhiting@scng.com
City and county officials in Los Angeles will spend millions, including some public money, to provide legal assistance to immigrants facing deportation.

The $10 million effort, known as the L.A. Justice Fund, is the most aggressive move yet by local officials gearing up to challenge an expected crackdown on illegal immigration by the incoming administration of Donald Trump. About half of the money will come from city and county governments, with the rest from private foundations.

Officials in Los Angeles said this month that the fund is aimed at ensuring efficiency and fairness in the immigration system. People in immigration courts arent guaranteed legal counsel, and research shows that immigrants who have lawyers stand a much better chance at staying in the country.

Whatever its results, the fund is an early sign of how Democratic politicians in California might try to make good on their promise to protect undocumented immigrants from any mass deportation attempts. And the funds creation sparks different reactions from players in the immigration debate.

We dont know how far the new administration will go when it comes to our nations immigration policy, but weve all heard the rhetoric, the dangerous rhetoric of the election, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said when the fund was announced. And we are ready to support people who cant afford or who dont realize they might need a lawyer.

Others say that it provides an unfair benefit to those living in the country illegally.

The City Council is making a value judgment that says they think its more important to provide legal assistance to those who are here illegally than to provide assistance to U.S. citizens, said Dave Ray, communications director at the Federation for American Immigration Reform, a Washington, D.C.,-based group that supports immigration restrictions. Ray suggested the money could be spent to help Los Angeles residents in other costly civil proceedings, like foreclosure or child custody cases.

The fund also could put immigrant residents of Los Angeles at a distinct advantage in Southern Californias byzantine immigration detention and court system. There are no known plans to create similar defense funds in Orange, Riverside or San Bernardino counties.

More than 50,000 people face removal proceedings in the Los Angeles immigration court, which covers a vast swath of Southern California. Its unclear how many of the people have lawyers, but the national average is about 37 percent.

The lack of legal counsel is particularly acute for people held in the regions four immigrant detention facilities, which include the massive Adelanto Detention Center in San Bernardino County and three jails in Orange County. In Adelanto, which has its own court, just 13 percent of detainees have lawyers, and about three-quarters of cases end in deportation.

Without legal representation, people are extremely unlikely to make claims, even if they have them, said UCLA Law School professor Ingrid Eagly. And they are extremely unlikely to win those claims.

City and county officials in Los Angeles have not determined who will benefit from the new legal aid fund, although a motion passed by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors stated that it would be limited to immigrants with ties to the county. The Los Angeles City Council will vote on the measure next month.

However the fund is allocated, it is clear the $10 million will not cover the costs of all Los Angeles residents facing removal proceedings or any of the immigrants from other parts of Southern California who face deportation in the same immigration courts.

As grateful as we are for the philanthropy and the city and the county, it is a small amount of money in terms of the need that is out there, said Lindsay Toczylowski, executive director of the Immigrant Defenders Law Center in Los Angeles.

The disparity highlights the lack of resources available to immigrants outside of Los Angeles. More than half a million undocumented immigrants in Southern California live outside of Los Angeles, including 270,000 in Orange County, 170,000 in San Bernardino County, and 161,000 in Riverside County, according to data from the Migration Policy Institute.

It underscores how underserved this population is, said Luis Nolasco, a community engagement and policy advocate for the American Civil Liberties Union in San Bernardino. There are really no services, and very few organizations that provide legal assistance to immigrants, particularly those facing detention and deportation.

Though activists hope that the Los Angeles fund will be replicated in other parts of the state, Nolasco conceded that its unlikely local governments in Orange County and the Inland Empire will take similar steps to push back against federal immigration enforcement. Outside of Los Angeles, elected officials in Southern California have been less vocal to the incoming Republican administration about the issue.

The imbalance may be resolved at the state level. Positioning themselves as a bulwark against Trumps agenda, Democratic lawmakers in Sacramento introduced a raft of immigration-related bills this month, including measures that would allocate as much as $80million to providing legal assistance to people facing deportation.

While California immigration activists laud the new legal aid proposals, critics question whether it makes sense to spend taxpayer funds to protect those living here illegally from federal immigration enforcement, particularly when it is not yet clear what policy changes the Trump administration will pursue.

To take this pre-emptive strike, it sends the message to the incoming administration that we are in defiance of federal law, said Robin Hvidston, executive director of We the People Rising, a Claremont-based group opposed to illegal immigration. They are gearing up now for a question mark for the future.

Contact the writer: gwyler@scng.com
Age: 63

Role: Chairman and co-founder of the Yorba Linda Taxpayers Association

Bio: Decker is a professor at Whittier College and has been a consultant for organizations such as the Aids Healthcare Foundation and the Los Angeles Rescue Mission. A longtime Yorba Linda resident, Decker is married with three daughters and five grandchildren. He co-founded the Yorba Linda Taxpayers Association in 2015 to fight high-density housing developments and to challenge officials to be fiscally responsible.

Why he is an influencer: After the state handed down stricter mandates for water conservation, the Yorba Linda Water District board approved in September 2015 a $25 monthly rate increase as the district  and other water agencies across California  faced declining revenues. Decker and the Yorba Linda Taxpayers Association harnessed the groups volunteers to collect more than 5,500 signatures to block the hike many residents considered excessive. When the water board refused to rescind the increase, the association launched a recall effort and unseated two board members in November. Two more candidates backed by the association also won seats on the water board.

Biggest challenge: It took a lot of work to get the community to work together to get the recall on the ballot and to get the message out to the community of Yorba Linda.

Thoughts on activism: A year ago elected city officials at the water board and City Council didnt want to hear from us, and now we are having open discussions that might bear fruit for the benefit of the people of Yorba Linda.

Inspiration: Responsible action   Democracy works best when the people are informed and engaged.

Cant live without: Christ and family

Whats next: Keep encouraging leaders to be better financial stewards and improve the communitys quality of life.
Diana Dehm walked into the International Surfing Museum in Huntington Beach about a year ago and knew right away it was a hidden gem with a lot of potential.

I walked in and it just got me right here, the longtime surfer said, putting her hand over her heart. I just went  oh my God, this is a diamond in the rough that no one knows about.

Dehm, the museums new executive director, has big plans for the museum  but also knows she has big shoes to fill.

The museum  located on Olive Street with the worlds largest surfboard set above the parking lot greeting passersby  was started in 1987 by Natalie Kotsch, a Canadian who never surfed a day in her life but knew it was a special sport that needed recognition. Kotsch died in 2014 after a long bout with cancer.

Her whole legacy is what started this whole thing, Dehm said. Her vision was big. Her vision was to make this thing special for Surf City, USA. To be stepping in to pursue her vision, Im humbled and blessed.

Dehms first big initiative is a program called For Groms, By Groms, a program to help young surfers be involved in the museum. Shes met with a group of teens recently to brainstorm ideas on what theyd like to see at the museum.

She even had the kids think up a mission statement. They came up with: Love surfing. Healthy oceans. Helping others. Having fun.

They came up with that in a minute, isnt it the best? she said.

The teens said they wanted to learn from the legends. So the museum will host a Surf Talk series, bringing in icons to have casual conversations with PT Townend, surfings first world champion, and to talk about how they became successful.

These things are all possible through the surfing museum, Dehm said.

She also wants to incorporate ideas on how to get the youngsters to think about the planet. In addition to her work at the museum, she has a consulting practice that works with big brands to figure out how to make products sustainable. She also hosts a radio show on the same subject.

I think we can use the sport of surfing to make a difference on the planet, she said. The mission now is to preserve the history and culture of surfing while connecting to the next generation. Its so important to give them the leadership skills to move them forward.

Last month, Dehm was instrumental in bringing the International Surfboard Builders Hall of Fame awards to the Huntington Beach museum. The event brought board-building icons, some of whom flew in from across the globe, to be recognized.

It couldnt have been a better thing, she said. It was such a special event. All the greats were here, it was unbelievable.

Dehm wants to create a community center for surfing, and possibly get new murals painted on the exterior of the building. She hopes to one day put in a surf simulator where visitors can get the feel of what its like to ride a wave.

The long-term plan is to expand the location into a resource center with surf-focused classes and a meeting center for the surfing industry.

But she knows the vision takes money  and thats always a struggle for the nonprofit.

Financially, we need a lot of help. Were struggling, she said. But we are Surf City USA, so what better place to do it?

The Surf City Splash  where hundreds of people show up on New Years Day to brave the chilly water  will be a fundraiser for the museum. The museum also recently received a $4,000 grant to develop programming.

Heading the surf museum, a role Dehm has had for eight months, takes her back to her childhood growing up in Thousand Oaks. She recalls taping her surfboard to the back of her bike, a skateboard underneath, and make the long trek to Zuma Beach to surf. Summers were spent at a family beach house in New Hampshire riding waves.

About 15 years ago, a consulting job brought her to Huntington Beach, a place she now calls home.

I love Huntington, she said. Im so thankful to be here and be a part of this community.

She wants to make sure the museums past is also preserved, with a tribute to its founder.

I think we need to do something special in honoring her as we grow and expand, so people know where this came from, she said.

It may take time, but Dehm hopes her vision for the museum can become a reality.

I see us as the most revered, go-to surfing museum in the world, she said.
JERUSALEM  For years, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, a conservative, has played a double act, competing domestically with his right-wing rivals in backing the settlement project all over the occupied West Bank while professing support for a two-state solution with the Palestinians.

Now, with the stinging U.N. Security Council resolution on Friday condemning Israeli settlement construction as lacking any legal validity, Israeli politicians and analysts on the right, the left and in the political center say Netanyahus game may soon be up.

The Israeli right, feeling empowered by the advent of the Trump administration, which is expected to be more sympathetic to Israelis current policies, is pushing Netanyahu to abandon the idea of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, long considered the only viable solution to the conflict.

Naftali Bennett, the leader of the pro-settlement Jewish Home party in Netanyahus governing coalition, with whom Netanyahu and his Likud Party compete for votes, is goading him to take on more extreme positions like annexing parts of the West Bank, adding to a sense in Israel that the real Netanyahu may have to stand up and decide which side he is on.

He has to choose between the international community and Bennett, said Shlomo Avineri, a professor of political science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. It is not an easy choice, but he has to make a choice, Avineri said, adding, Is Israel going to alienate itself from the whole world for the sake of settlement activity? And it is the whole world. Is this what Zionism is about?

For a second consecutive day on Sunday, Netanyahu lambasted the departing Obama administration, publicly accusing it of having orchestrated Fridays Security Council resolution, despite denials from Washington. The United States refrained from using its veto power, as it had done many times before to shield Israel, and abstained in the 14-0 vote.

From the information that we have, we have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated on the wording and demanded that it be passed, Netanyahu said at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting.

Referring to the U.S. secretary of state, Netanyahu added, As I told John Kerry on Thursday, friends dont take friends to the Security Council, and he said he was looking forward to working with President-elect Donald Trumps administration when it takes office next month.

The Foreign Ministry summoned ambassadors of countries that had voted in favor of the resolution for personal meetings with ministry officials in Jerusalem, despite the Christmas holiday, which some of those countries celebrate.

In a highly unusual move, Netanyahu, who is also the foreign minister, summoned the U.S. ambassador to Israel, Daniel B. Shapiro, for a meeting on Sunday night.

Netanyahu also instructed his ministers to reduce their diplomatic activities and contacts with counterparts from the countries that had voted for the resolution for the next three weeks, until the U.S. administration changes, and to minimize travel to those countries, according to Israeli news reports.

In an additional step, the defense minister, Avigdor Lieberman, instructed Israels agencies to suspend contacts with Palestinian Authority representatives on unspecified civil matters, though the measure was not supposed to affect security coordination or meetings concerning water, agriculture and the economy.

With the Israeli occupation in its 50th year and the peace process frozen, Saeb Erekat, a senior Palestine Liberation Organization official and the Palestinians veteran negotiator, called on Israel to seize the opportunity, to wake up, to stop the violence, to stop settlements, and to resume negotiations. Netanyahu says he is ready for negotiations anytime, but with no preconditions.

The Security Council vote seemed to have caught Israel off-guard.

I hope for Netanyahus sake (and also for ours) that he knows the truth at least deep in his heart  it was the chronicle of a failure foretold, Ben Caspit, a political commentator, wrote in the Maariv newspaper on Sunday.

Many commentators said the Security Council vote partly reflected a history of conflict between Netanyahu and President Barack Obama over the settlements and Netanyahus anger over the Iranian nuclear deal. They also pointed to Netanyahus increasingly vocal backing for the settler cause. That includes his advancement of highly contentious legislation, known as the Regulation Bill, that would retroactively legalize settler outposts and homes built on privately owned Palestinian land and force the owners to accept compensation.

Netanyahu and his attorney general had previously warned that the bill, which recently passed a first reading in parliament, contravenes international law and could land Israeli officials in the defendant dock of the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

After he said it, he rushed to vote in favor of the bill. Why? Caspit wrote in Maariv. Because of Bennett. The fear of the possibility that he would not be able to siphon seats from Bennett next time on Election Day caused him to act like a small-time grocery owner, instead of a national leader.

Tzipi Livni, a former Israeli foreign minister and a leader of the center-left Zionist Union, wrote on Facebook after the Security Council vote, The Security Council decision is bad for Israel and it is the result of Netanyahus surrender to the extreme right.

Even Haggai Segal, a prominent settler and editor-in-chief of a right-wing newspaper, Makor Rishon, wrote in recent months that the Regulation Bill had no chance because it would be invalidated by Israels Supreme Court and would be used by the International Criminal Court to incriminate Israel for war crimes.

Segal, who served jail time as a member of the Jewish Underground that maimed and killed Palestinians in the 1980s, wrote this summer, The wise thing now is to make do with what it is possible to do, and not lose it all by insisting on impossible goals.
Age: 41

Role: Surfing instructor

Bio: Founder of the Mix Academy in Santa Ana, where his group offers 20 classes for families, from cooking to gymnastics to robotics to skateboarding. Lo grew up in Santa Ana and attended Irvine High and Biola University. He spent most of his professional career in Hawaii working in the surf industry.

Why he is an influencer: In May, Lo went to North Korea with his surfboard and a smile. Through the help of a friend in China, he got the permission of the North Korean government, a process that included numerous background checks and agreeing to not bring the DVD The Interview, the James Franco/Seth Rogen movie that features the assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Los goal was to teach North Koreans about surfing and surf culture  and to ride the wave at Majon Hotel Beach. It was even better than I thought it would be, Lo said. His effort was so successful that he went back for a second trip. When we came back, we found a beach full of surfers, he said. They caught the bug, or as surfers say, they got stoked.

Biggest challenge: Continuing friendships with the people he met in North Korea. There is difficulty with communications after leaving North Korea, where most social media are banned.

Thoughts: This trip was about unlearning what I thought I knew about North Korea.

Inspiration: Martin Luther King Jr. He was strong and led people in the most difficult times.

Cant live without: I cant live without my family  wife Line and two children, Ezekiel and Keala.

Whats next: Working with schools in Santa Ana to develop surfing and stand-up paddle teams. He plans to return to North Korea for surf instruction in 2017.
DANA POINT  Johnny Scolari couldnt contain his enthusiasm. The 4-year-old raced across the sand near the shoreline beneath the Dana Point Headlands, scampering over rocks and climbing boulders to get to tiny pools where hundreds of small ocean animals live.

Ive got one, he yelled, confidently pointing at a brownish hermit crab scaling a rock near him. Theres another one.

The Dana Point resident was on a tide pool hike with his grandmother, Gina Scolari, 53, of San Clemente. Scolari had just returned from a 600-mile trek through France and Spain and wanted to continue to enjoy nature, now with her grandson.

The docent-led tide pool hikes at the Ocean Institute are popular in winter because of the alignment of Earth, the moon and the sun and its resulting gravitational pull on the tides. The effect leads to king tides  extremely high or low tides. In winter, the low tides occur more in the middle of the day, making it easier to get out to the tide pools.

Caitlin Mouri, a naturalist with the Ocean Institute, led the hikers to a path near the headlands. Twenty minutes in, rocks flattened out and hikers got a glimpse of the shallow pools.

The marine protected area runs along 51/4 miles of shoreline under the headlands from Seacliff Drive  south of Table Rock Beach  to the Dana Point Harbor West Jetty.A sea cave at the end of the hike is visible during especially low tides.

Mouri gave safety tips and explained tide pool etiquette: Most important, dont touch the creatures, watch out for slippery and loose rocks, and test the area with the toe of your shoe to make sure you stay upright.

She took the hikers along the pools, from shallow areas where they saw hundreds of acorn barnacles, hermit crabs and sea snails camouflaged in the dry rocks, to deeper water where hikers looked for larger animals such as California sea hares that can grow up to 30 inches. The Ocean Institute has a 20-pound black sea hare in one of its research aquariums.

As you move out further in the pools, you find sea anemone that are opened up and look like little green flowers, Mouri said.

Gina Scolari and Mouri couldnt believe the heap of sea hares they found.

They were all lying on top of each other, Scolari said. Johnny was so excited. He took it all in. He was so intense.

So much so, she said, that he wanted to grab a few of the critters to take home. But he quickly learned the rules.

You cant take them out of the water or theyll die, he said after the hike. Im going to tell everyone that.

On this day, visitors saw hundreds of creatures and at least 17 species. The super moon the day before helped pull the tides back.

For Scolari, the experience was eye-opening.

I go to this location often and watch sunsets, she said. I never knew all this was here. There is so much beauty here locally. It made me respect more of what we have here.

Contact the writer: 714-796-2254 or eritchie@scng.com or on Twitter:@lagunaini
Two of the top full-time jockeys on the Southern California circuit will return from injuries Monday when Santa Anita opens it 80th racing season with four graded-stakes races, including two Grade I events.

Flavien Prats agent, Derek Lawson, reported last week that his client, sidelined since a riding mishap on Nov. 27 at Del Mar that caused bleeding in his kidneys, would be ready to go opening day. Hes named to ride in seven of Mondays nine races.

Rafael Bejarano, whos won 15 riding titles at Santa Anita, is scheduled to return with mounts in six races. Hes been sidelined since Del Mars fall meet because of a minor tendon injury on his right hand that forced him to skip the recent Los Alamitos meet.

Then theres Edwin Maldonado, another jockey whos enjoyed success locally. Hes been on the shelf nearly fourth months following a major riding accident at Del Mar on Sept. 4 in which he suffered six broken ribs and a collapsed lung.

Maldonado was scheduled to return in Mondays fifth race aboard Diamondinthecenter, a 2-year-old maiden filly trained by Jeff Bonde, but the horse was scratched, further delaying the 34-year-old Ohio natives return.

Hes eager to get back.

Im ready to ride, he said. Ive never been more ready. Im like a little kid  Im excited.

Santa Anitas marquee races during its 72-day meet are the $750,000 Grade I Santa Anita Handicap on March 11 and the $1 million Santa Anita Derby on April 8. Last years Big Cap winner Melatonin could return in this years edition, and the Bob Baffert-trained Mastery could surface in the Derby, which has been a springboard for many to the Kentucky Derby.

California Chrome used a victory in the 2014 Santa Anita Derby as a steppingstone to victories in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes, and 2015 champ Dortmund finished third in that springs Run for the Roses. Last years winner, Exaggerator, won the Preakness Stakes and Haskell Invitational.

Baffert, who has won four Kentucky Derbies, appears to have another bevy of hopefuls for the first Saturday in May.

I have a strong group, he said. I have some nice ones coming around. Thing is, you gotta keep em all healthy. We got like five really nice ones that I really like. I have some that havent started yet. But you still need a lot of luck.

Mondays opening-day schedule of stakes is highlighted by the $300,000 Grade I Malibu Stakes, a seven-furlong test for 3-year-olds on the main track. Baffert has entered a trio in the nine-horse field: Ten Blessings, Jazzy Times (3-1 co-favorite) and Mor Spirit.

Eight 3-year-old fillies were entered to run In the $300,000 Grade I La Brea Stakes at seven furlongs on the main track. Lightstream, who has shipped in from Keeneland, is the 2-1 morning-line favorite and will be ridden by Julien Leparoux.

The $200,000 Grade II Mathis Brothers Mile for 3-year-olds on the turf and the $100,000 Grade III San Simeon Handicap for older horses at 61/2 furlongs down the hillside turf course round out the days stakes lineup.

This years Pick Six for the winter meet will duplicate Del Mars single-ticket jackpot component that the seaside track used during its Bing Crosby meet. On a mandatory payout day, consolation payoffs will be made like any other day.

First post for opening day is noon. Gates will open at 10 a.m.
Learn valuable skills for home use or to prepare for a career in trades. Trades that participate are: Carpentry, Automotive, Plumbing and Electrical.

Schedule

Oct 18 - Nov 27

6 weeks (week 1 online)

Tuesday and Thursday 6 - 8 p.m.

Saturday or Sunday 8 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Kelowna Campus

Register for Step into Steel-toes
Call it the war on milk, or perhaps the war on what's not milk.

In the latest salvo in a nearly two-decades-old fight over what should and shouldn't be called milk, a group of more than 20 U.S. legislators sent a letter to the Food and Drug Administration demanding it require the makers of soy milk, almond milk and rice milk to drop "milk" from the label of anything that doesn't come directly from an animal.

This comes as Americans consume less milk from dairy cows while sales of plant-based milks continue to grow.

Rep. Peter Welch of Vermont, the home of Ben & Jerry's ice cream and more than a quarter-million cows, told The Washington Post that the bipartisan letter is about protecting dairy farmers - and telling the truth.

"There's a proliferation of other drinks, and many of them are being placed in the dairy aisle right next to milk," said Welch, a Democrat. "Dairy is really crucial in Vermont, and it's really crucial in many parts of rural America, and (dairy farmers are) hanging on by their fingernails."

He says the FDA "should enforce its regulations," which has a specific definition of milk: "the lacteal secretion . . . obtained by the complete milking of one or more healthy cows."

Nancy Chapman, executive director of the Soyfoods Association of North America, said her organization has conducted studies of shoppers and found that the "overwhelming majority" - 98 percent - don't confuse it with cow's milk. "Folks are selecting soy milk because they know it's not from dairy," she said.

The Almond Board of California has yet to respond to calls for comment that were made after business hours.

Deborah Kotz, a spokeswoman for the FDA, told The Post in an email: "We have received the letter from Congress and plan to respond directly to the lawmakers."

In the milk wars, the lacteal secretion of cows has been taking heavy losses.

According to the U.S. Agriculture Department, "total per capita consumption of fluid milk has declined because of competition from other beverages and a declining share of children in the population."

On average, Americans drink nearly 40 percent less milk than they did in 1975, according to the latest data from the USDA.

Forty years ago, per capita consumption was nearly 1 1/2 per day," The Post previously reported. "Total per capita consumption of fluid milk has declined because of competition from other beverages and a declining share of children in the population."

A CoBank study on the decline in consumption hints at Americans' cooling love affair with milk over the past four decades. "Fat content, flavorings, and added sugar have all been viewed with disdain as the country struggles with its child obesity epidemic," the report says. There are even questions about whether most humans are biologically equipped to digest milk.

In 2015, sales of almond milk continued to grow while those for cow milk fell. A Nielsen survey in March filled with nutty puns and titled "Americans Are Nuts for Almond Milk" said almond milk makers have seen a sales growth of 250 percent over the past five years.

"So why is almond milk growth going nuts? While this beverage could have a dairy godmother watching out for it, the uptrend in sales is more likely the result of current health and wellness trends," the report says. " . . . Consumers rated back-to-basics food attributes like "all natural," "no artificial colors or flavors" and "made from vegetables or fruits" the most important.

This isn't the first time the labeling of plant-based 'milks' have been contested.

In 2000 and 2010, the National Milk Producers Federation wrote the FDA to argue for a more exclusive use of the word "milk" on labels. At the time, federation spokesman Christopher Galen told USA Today, "We had to do something," which included creating a Facebook page: "They Don't Got Milk."

Nothing changed.

Even if the FDA did institute a crackdown on the makers of plant-based "milks," it's unclear whether it would do any real good for consumers, said Bruce Friedrich, the chief executive of the Good Food Institute, which supports companies and policies that promote clean meat and plant-based foods.

The institute plans to send a letter to the FDA protesting any restriction on the labeling of plant-based milk products.

"Americans are savvier and they are better able to digest nutritional information," he told The Post. "No consumer buys a carton of almond milk and thinks that there's cow's milk in the package."
The election might not have gone the way Warren Buffett preferred, but as the books close on 2016, the Berkshire Hathaway chairman and chief executive can take heart in his companys stock price: For the first time, its Class A shares topped $250,000 each.

Class B shares, which are more widely held, also logged a strong performance.

The companys stock price was headed downward until the election. From a peak of $150.72 each for Class B shares, it had dropped to $142.95 on Nov. 4. But after the election, the closing price ran as high as $167.25.

Berkshire rode a wave of post-election euphoria for many financial stocks. From the lowest point of the year  $123.55 in late January  the price is up 35.4 percent.

That makes Berkshire about fully valued, said Greggory Warren, senior equity analyst for Morningstar Inc.

Still, even as its stock has risen, some of Berkshires business operations during 2016 have faced choppy waters: The parent companys profits are being dragged down by reduced earnings at auto insurer Geico and BNSF Railway, Warren said.

Geico and other auto insurers suffered higher-than-expected damage claims, which Buffett attributed in part to low fuel prices that encouraged people to drive more.

For many insurers, said Cathy Seifert, an equities analyst with CFRA Research in New York, the frequency and severity of claims has worsened. But those might have finally turned a corner, she said, and Berkshire could even benefit indirectly if some insurance companies look for a bigger company to join and Berkshire becomes a buyer.

Energy woes

Berkshires most recent big buy, which closed early this year, was Precision Castparts Inc., a manufacturer of aircraft parts and other high-value industrial products. The more than $30 billion purchase was supposed to boost the parent corporations operating profit, but Morningstars Warren said that apparently didnt happen.

Our assumption is that its been a weaker year for them than they may have had normally, he said, possibly because lagging energy prices and troubles in emerging nations hurt aircraft sales.

Energy-related challenges put a damper on profits at another big Berkshire unit: BNSF Railway saw a continued fall in demand for coal. Demand is still lagging, and that will hurt the railroads profits until at least late next year, said analyst Warren.

This winters cold weather wont be enough to dig down the stockpiles of coal, and the industry seems to be on an unstoppable decline because of changing public attitudes and policy on energy sources, he said.

Another big buy?

Despite those slowdowns, Berkshires other businesses are adding close to $30 billion to its cash account this year  probably close to a record $90 billion.

Morningstars Warren said that doesnt necessarily mean Buffett will engineer a big acquisition in 2017. The Precision Castparts buy was announced 16 months ago before it closed in January, and no big purchases have been announced since.

Part of the reason may be that other companies also are highly valued, the Morningstar analyst said, and Berkshire typically pays extra in a purchase because it wants its deals to be friendly.

Id be happier to see them sitting on the sidelines, he said, although there may be some good, large companies that are undervalued and still worthy of a Berkshire purchase.

Streaming to the world  again

If there isnt a big acquisition in 2017, it isnt because Buffett is unknown to business owners.

The 2016 meeting of Berkshire shareholders was seen by millions of people because for the first time, Buffett agreed to live-stream the session, using Yahoo Finances website.

The usual audience is about 40,000 people attending in person. The 2015 meeting, celebrating Buffetts 50 years in control of Berkshire, drew a record 44,000; the in-person audience this year was down.

Although various shareholders and other Buffett-watchers had asked about having the meeting online in recent years, Buffett had kept the meeting open only to those in attendance, saying he hoped shareholders would come to Omaha.

What changed his mind?

Partnering with Yahoo Finance provides us with the opportunity to reach more people than ever, in key financial centers around the world, from New York to China and beyond, Buffett said in a press release last February. (The meeting was translated into Mandarin.)

Besides, he also said, shareholders deserve to see their CEO in action even if they cant make the trip to Omaha.

After the meeting Buffett declared the experience a success and said the May 6, 2017, meeting will be live-streamed, too.

Taking off

Buffett also changed his mind  or let investment lieutenants Ted Weschler and Todd Combs change it for him  with a $1.5 billion-plus investment in the four largest U.S. airlines, American, Delta, Southwest and United-Continental.

For decades Buffett has warned against investing in the airline industry because of its boom-or-bust tendencies and his past near-loss experiences with airline investments. But improvements in the industry resulted in big profits over the past few years, and Berkshire made a big bet that the trend would continue.

Scandal at Wells

But it was a long-standing investment that brought the most attention to Berkshires stock portfolio, and not in a good way: the $28 billion stake in Wells Fargo Co.

Wells Fargo paid a $185 million fine, its CEO resigned, thousands of workers were fired and its reputation was damaged because of an incentive pay scheme that encouraged employees to open phony banking and credit card accounts without customers knowledge.

Observers had called for Buffett, viewed as a protector of corporate ethics, to comment on the situation, but he waited nearly two months to comment substantively.

In that post-election interview in November, he said that former CEO John Stumpf had made a hell of a mistake and didnt act quickly to correct it when he should have, and that the banks incentive program corrupted people.

Buffett had lunch in Omaha with Wells Fargos new CEO but waited to comment on the issue until after Wells Fargo began taking steps to correct the problem so that Berkshire will remain a passive investor in Wells Fargo.

He said he doesnt want Berkshire reclassified as a bank holding company, subject to banking regulations. Taking an active, public role in Wells Fargos affairs might have indicated a less-than-passive relationship between Berkshire and Wells Fargo.

Still at the helm

For Berkshire shareholders, another result of 2016 is especially important: Buffett, 86, is still chief executive and chairman and running the company along with his right-hand man, Vice Chairman Charlie Munger, who turns 93 on Jan. 1.

George Morgan, a business professor at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, said he hasnt seen an outward change in Buffett over the past six or seven years, adding, I can see him going on for at least another 10 years, if not more.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. owns the Omaha World-Herald.
The baseball, still with its original box, has been certified by Professional Sports Authenticator, the largest third-party trading card and grading company in the world. PSA gave it a score of 8.5 on its 10-point scale. Bidding will start at $50,000.
One of two inmates who walked away from a minimum-security corrections camp in western Nebraska last week has been apprehended.

Andrew Russell, 20, was in custody in South Dakota on Sunday and efforts were underway to return him to Nebraska, according to the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services.

Charles Canaday, 35, has not been found, the department said in a press release.

The men were discovered missing from the Work Ethic Camp in McCook, Nebraska, at 10:50 p.m. Wednesday after a count of the inmates.

Russell was convicted of two drug distribution charges out of Dawes County.

Canaday was sentenced on three counts of burglary, one count of theft and one count of criminal mischief. The charges were out of Greeley, Howard, Sheridan and Valley Counties.
800 cylinders explode in succession in Chintamani, Karnataka

Bengaluru

oi-Anusha

By Anusha Ravi

Bengaluru, Dec 26: 800 gas cylinders stored near a godown exploded in succession near Chintamani in Karnataka. Three lorries stacked with 800 cylinders were reduced to ashes and the explosion left villagers trembling all night.

HP gas cylinders belonging to SLN agency were stacked up in the lorries to be transported. At around 1 AM, one of the lorries is said to have caught fire and it soon spread to all three carrying the gas cylinders. The noise and fire from the explosion could be witnessed from kilometres away. The same was captured on camera by villagers nearby.

No casualties were reported in the incident. Fire and emergency service personnel were called for help and the fire was brought under control but not before all the 800 cylinders exploded due to the fire. Investigation into how the fire started will be taken up on Monday.

OneIndia News
Have nothing to do with H Y Meti tapes, says RTI activist

Bengaluru

oi-Anusha

Rajashekhar Mulali, the RTI activist who opened the pandora's box on former Karnataka minister H Y Meti's sex tapes, said that he had nothing to do with the tapes. Speaking to OneIndia, Mulali, a native of Ballari said that he only tried to appraise the Congress high command of its minister's behaviour and had nothing to do with the tape becoming public and reaching television channels.

"A few people approached me with the video and sought help. I watched the video but told them that I will help only if it is in social interest. They left and didn't come back. After that I started receiving threat calls from Meti's supporters", he said. A self declared Anna Hazare follower, Mulali shot to fame after he spoke about a sex tape involving a Congress minister in the State. Days after he mentioned the video, a sex tape involving Meti had been received by media organisations. Incidentally, the video was released on the day Mulali arrived in Delhi.

"I went to Delhi only to meet senior Congress leaders since leaders in the state including Home Minister Dr G Parameshwar refused to give me an audience. I didn't have the video but wanted to appraise them of what Meti had done. I do not know how and why the CD was released on the same day of me being in Delhi and by whom. I have nothing to do with it", he added

[Also Read: Who was behind the making of the tape involving former K'taka minister Meti?]

Mulali had approached the local police following alleged threat calls. He however maintains that he hasn't been summoned by any investigating authority over the Meti tape scandal. "The CID hasn't summoned me. If they do I will cooperate. I have not done anything wrong."

Rajashekhar Mulali had spoken to the media from Delhi the day the CD was released to media houses. He had sought action against the then minister. He had claimed that Meti had exploited a hapless woman. However, while speaking to OneIndia he claimed that he didn't know who the woman in the CD was. He refused to divulge details of people who came to him with the CD initially.

OneIndia News
Dravidian parties look to new leadership as old guard fades away

Chennai

oi-Anusha

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam is all set to hold its general council meet on January 4, 2017. The meet that was earlier scheduled to take place in December was postponed owing to its leader M Karunanidhi's health. The highlight of the meet is expected to be M K Stalin's elevation as the party's working president. With this, a new era of leadership will begin for Dravidian parties in Tamil Nadu.

The AIADMK in its general council and executive meet is expected to make way for Sasikala Natarajan to take over the leadership of the party. The executive is likely to rewrite rules that allow a person who has been a party member for five years in succession only to run for the post of general secretary.

Whether Sasikala will take up the role of AIADMK's general secretary is still a mystery but the party will do and has been doing everything it can to urge her to become the party chief.

[Also Read: How Sasikala became the kingmaker in Tamil Nadu]

On the other hand is the DMK that needs a new leader to lead the party owing to Karunanidhi's ill health. With health complications limiting the current party chief DMK is likely to appoint Karunanidhi's son and political heir apparent Stalin as its working president. Karunanidhi will continue to lead the party on paper, but Stalin will cement his position as the second-in-command with this appointment.

Two Dravidian bigwigs are undergoing leadership change at the same time in Tamil Nadu. While the DMK had its second generation leaders in place, AIADMK is scrambling to gather consensus on who should be the next leader. While AIADMK continues to put up a united front, fissures have been witnessed within the party by political observers.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, December 26, 2016, 15:47 [IST]
Gods on the runway: Kerala airport halts flights every year to make way for temple procession

I will break your legs: SFI issues threat to principal in presence of cops in Kerala

'If I have nominated even one person using authority, I'll resign': Kerala governor on VC row

30 injured in Sabarimala stampede

India

oi-Vicky

30 persons were injured following a stampede at the Sabarimala temple in Kerala on sunday. Reports state that one is in a serious condition.

The accident took place at Malikapuram close to the shrine. All the injured persons have been admitted to the Pampa hospital. The cause of the stampede is not known as yet. Most of the injured persons are from outside Kerala.

It may be recalled that in 2011 atleast 104 Sabarimala devotees were killed and over 40 injured in a stampede when a jeep crashed into homebound pilgrims at Pulmedu in Kerala's Idukki district.

OneIndia News
AgustaWestland: SP Tyagi granted bail, asked to co-operate

India

oi-Vicky

New Delhi, Dec 26: A special CBI court on Monday granted bail to former Air chief SP Tyagi in connection with the AgustaWestland case on Monday. The court directed Tyagi to cooperate with the investigations. Futher the court also directed Tyagi to furnish a bail bond of Rs 2 lakh and also not leave Delhi until further orders.

The bail pleas of the two other accused Sanjiv Tyagi and Gautam Khaitan will be pronounced on January 4.

Tyagi's counsel during the course of arguments informed the court that all documents relevant to the case had been handed over to the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate. Banks accounts, foreign trip details and details of properties had been handed over, the counsel also submitted.

The CBI's counsel accused Tyagi of giving a step-by-step progress of the case to European middlemen Guido Haschke in connection with the AgustaWestland case.

The defence counsel had on the last date of hearing submitted that Tyagi's arrest was aimed at taking the focus away from demonetisation. The FIR was filed in 2013 and the arrest was made almost three years later. This is illogical, the counsel also submitted to the court.

OneIndia News
40 down and counting: Forces on the verge of wiping out Pakistani terrorists in Valley

Ban on Kashmir Reader set to be lifted

India

oi-Vicky

Srinagar, Dec 26: On October 2, the Jammu and Kashmir government banned the Srinagar based daily, Kashmir Reader, terming it as a threat to peace and tranquility. However, the government has now decided to go ahead and revoke the ban and a formal order in this regard is expected in a day or two.

[Also Read: Before NDTV India, Kashmir Reader faced ban and it's still on]

During the peak of the unrest in the Valley, the government had taken the decision to ban the daily. In its order, the government had said that the newspaper contains material and content that tends to incite acts of violence and disturb peace and tranquility.

While making serious allegations, the government had, however, not listed out any specific content which was a threat to peace and tranquility. Further the government had also not given the daily an opportunity to respond to the charges.

The government had only warned the daily of forfeiture of its printing press if the order was not followed.

OneIndia News

The ban on the newspaper was imposed for a period of two months. The ban has now lapsed and the government does not intend extending the same. While the Deputy Commissioner of Srinagar, Farooq Ahmed Lone had written to the government about the same, but the home department decided to allow the ban to lapse.

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Story first published: Monday, December 26, 2016, 7:04 [IST]
CBI arrests officer at Chennai for demanding Rs 25,000 bribe

India

oi-Anusha

By Anusha Ravi

The Central Bureau of Investigation arrested a Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner in Chennai over allegations of corruption. He was also discharging duty as deputy chief labour commissioner of Hyderabad.

The officer was accused of demanding a bribe of Rs 25,000 while he was on duty at Hyderabad. The bribe was allegedly demanded to favour a cement factory at Tadipatri in Ananthapur where he had arranged to conduct the inspection of the said factory. Cases under IPC section 120-B and Sections 7, 12, 13(2), 13(1)(d) of Prevention of Corruption Act.

The arrested accused was produced before a CBI Court and was remanded to Judicial Custody.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, December 26, 2016, 21:26 [IST]
DCW issues notice to Delhi Police over US tourist gangrape case

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Dec 26: The Delhi Commission for Women has issued notice to Delhi Police demanding why the Rape Crisis Cell of the Commission was not informed when police recorded the statement of the US national, who was allegedly gangraped in a five-star hotel earlier this year.

Citing orders of the High court in this regard, the Commission said it was deeply saddened to note that in this case the Delhi Police did not inform the Crisis Intervention Centre/ Rape Crisis Cell counsellor of the Commission when the victim's statements were recorded by the police on December 20.

"This is a very serious matter and a gross violation of the directives of the Delhi High Court in the case wherein it was ordered that the duty officer, immediately, upon receipt of the complaint/ information of a rape case, intimate the same to the Rape Crisis Cell/Crisis Intervention Centre which shall respond to calls of sexual assault at the police station and provide counselling and other support services to victims of rape. The same has been elucidated in standing order No. 303/2016 of Delhi Police," the Commission said in its notice to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi.

The Commission also sought the status report in the case stating that they have come to know through a news article that the victim has found the investigation process "unsatisfactory". The Commission has asked the police to submit the information by January 3, 2017, failing which they will initiate appropriate action as per law.

Four persons, a tour guide, driver, cleaner and a hotel staff were arrested in connection with the alleged gangrape of the US national. The US national arrived in the national capital a few days ago to join the probe and recorded her statement in front of a judicial magistrate where she reiterated the charges she had made in her complaint.

Earlier, she had said that she was not "satisfied" with the probe and was ready to come to India to identify the accused. The woman had alleged that she was raped by the men for two days. They also threatened her with dire consequences if she reported the matter to anybody. She had also stated that the accused had made a video of the act and had threatened to make it public if she reported the matter to anyone.

PTI
Suspended ex-Andaman chief secretary Narain claims was in Delhi on day of alleged rape

Man booked for rape of 12-year-old after video of injured girl surfaces on internet

Man rapes 8-year-old to use her blood for removing obstacles to his marriage

Delhi: Four arrested in US tourist gangrape case

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, Dec 26: Four persons, including a tourist guide, have been arrested in the national capital on charges of sexually assaulting a US tourist in March this year, police said on Monday.

Aniruddha Singh, a Rajasthan-based tourist guide, Omprakash, Maqsood and Vivek - all in their late 20s were arrested from different cities during raids conducted by Delhi Police on separate occasions.

4 accused-tour guide, driver & helper of tourist bus, hotel worker- arrested;Police remand custody will be sought for interrogation: DPathak pic.twitter.com/DZwEpAqG5A  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

"On the complaint of a Delhi-based NGO, we contacted the victim and filed a case on the basis of her statement. During our inquiry, we conducted several raids in Delhi and other cities and arrested four persons," Joint Commissioner of Police Dependra Pathak told IANS.

The 30-year-old American tourist was gangraped at a Delhi's luxurious hotel in March this year.

Delhi Police had registered an FIR early this month on the complaint of the woman as External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj intervened in the matter.

IANS
Demonetisation: 5 days to go for Dec 30 deadline, cash crunch continues

India

oi-Vicky

Bengaluru, Dec 26: With five days to go for the December 30 deadline set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, cash crunch continues at banks and ATMs. Many ATMs are still not dispensing cash and on being asked, bank officials say they have no idea when the cash crunch would ease out. It is RBI dependent a bank official stated.

In the backdrop of the current cash crunch, the PM has called an economist summit to discuss reforms on demonetisation. The summit will be organised by NITI Ayog.

Reports indicate that the restrictions on cash withdrawals will continue beyond December 30. It may be recalled that Modi had assured that cash crunch woes would end in 50 days. On December 30, it will be 50 days since the decision on demonetisation was taken.

Also read: Mann ki Baat: Cashless transactions have increased by 200 percent says Modi

Several bankers have said that the restrictions on cash withdrawals would continue even after December 30. Currently several banks are unable to even disburse the current limit of Rs 24,000 per week due to cash crunch. In the present scenario, it would be impossible to ease the restrictions after December 30, bankers have also said.

Recently, SBI Chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya had also indicated that restriction on withdrawals cannot be lifted entirely unless more cash is made available to banks. The RBI has infused Rs 5.92 lakh crore into the banking system between November 9 and December 19. This was done after 15.92 lakh crore notes were scrapped.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, December 26, 2016, 9:33 [IST]
Demonetisation: Left, JD(U) likely to skip meeting called by Congress

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Dec 26: Cracks were visible in the Opposition unity ahead of Tuesday's meeting convened by the Congress to ramp up the attack on demonetisation and alleged "personal corruption" of the Prime Minister. The Left parties and the JD(U) are unlikely to attend the meeting.

While the Left parties announced they are staying away, the JD(U) also gave hints that it may follow the suit. Congress is part of the JD(U)-led Nitish Kumar government in Bihar. There was no immediate word from SP and BSP, while NCP's Tariq Anwar, who was to attend, is unable to come to Delhi as he had to cancel his plans due to his mother's death in Patna.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh downplayed the plans of several parties skipping the Opposition meeting that will be followed by a joint press conference. He also cited local and regional compulsions for some parties not to be together on the same platform.

"Whoever comes tomorrow will come. Those who don't come tomorrow will come the next time. Those who will come, you will see tomorrow," said Ramesh striking a philosophical note. He, however, dismissed suggestions that Tuesday's meeting was a "tea party" like the one in 1998 which ultimately led to the downfall of the Vajpayee government.

Ramesh said, "The biggest issue today is demonetisation and the second issue is corruption by the Prime Minister, which will be the main issues before tomorrow's meet."

On the eve of deliberations, Rahul Gandhi on Monday held a meeting of all Congress general secretaries and state Congress presidents at his residence to discuss the situation. A senior party leader, who declined to be identified, likened Tuesday's parleys with that of the Shimla conclave in 2003 which saw Congress pitching for unity of secular forces to oust the then NDA government led by Vajpayee.

The meeting is seen as an attempt on the part of the Congress to paper over the cracks that developed when several Opposition parties skipped the joint Opposition march to Rashtrapati Bhawan on December 16 over demonetisation. They were apparently annoyed over Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi meeting the Prime Minister earlier that day on the issue of farmers' problems, especially in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.

"We have decided to stay away from the press conference of Opposition parties convened by the Congress because there has been no proper consultation and coordination among parties," CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said in Kolkata on Monday.

PTI
TRS, BJP are two sides of same coin: Rahul Gandhi in Telangana

Flashback 2016: From Rohith to Kanhaiya, the rise of student politics

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

Bengaluru, Dec 26: The country in 2016 saw a new vigour, as youth rebelled against the existing system and status quo. In these 'young' protests, two leading voices--Rohith Vemula and Kanhaiya Kumar--echoed prominently.

[Also Read: How Kanhaiya Kumar's fiery speech lifted the spirits of Indians]

Angry young men and their agitations

It all started with a heart-rending letter, precisely a suicide note written by Dalit student leader Rohith Vemula from Hyderabad. Rohith committed suicide inside the campus of the University of Hyderabad -- his alma mater -- on January 17.

The letter left behind by the 26-year-old was poetic, poignant and honest to the core. The note narrated in detail what discrimination based on caste, creed, religion and gender can do to an individual and force the person to take the extreme step of ending his/her life.

Death of a poet and a rebel

Rohith, as his friends and family say, was a bright research scholar with a promising career in science. However, he was a dreamer too, who wanted to build a class-less society. In his pursuit of justice, Rohith allegedly became a victim of caste politics, which forced him to end his life. His death was dubbed as an institutional murder.

The family and friends of Rohith allege that the 26-year- old committed suicide because of the harassment he faced at the hands of the university's Vice Chancellor Appa Rao and senior BJP leaders, including former Human Resource Development minister Smriti Irani.

Rise of youth against caste bias

Rohith's tragic story found resonance among youngsters studying in various universities across the country. From Hyderabad, Guwahati to Delhi, hundreds of young men and women took to street demanding justice for Rohith. In a couple of days after his death, the 'justice for Rohith Vemula movement' rocked the nation.

Rohith's death became a rallying point for all those who have long been saying that there exists a systematic discrimination of Dalit students in the higher educational institutions across the country.

Making of a youth icon

On the sidelines of Rohith Vemula movement, a young man from Bihar and former president of Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union, Kanhaiya Kumar, made his entry into the national politics. Kanhaiya was arrested by the Delhi police for allegedly raising 'anti-India' slogans at the JNU campus on February 9.

Post his release from the jail, as he was put behind the bars on sedition charges, Kanhaiya made a fiery speech under the open sky in the JNU campus. His speech, where he openly challenged PM Narendra Modi and his government's 'repressive'measures, was broadcasted live on television channels and watched by millions.

Song of azaadi

The student activist raised the issue of azaadi (freedom) and told the nation why we need azaadi in India, not from India.

Kanhaiya emphasised on the exigency to bring freedom from oppression, discrimination, hunger, poverty, corruption, religious bigotry, violence against women and minorities.

"The Modi government is trying to suppress JNU's voice against injustice, but they would not succeed," he said.

Fizzling out of 'young' protests

As we look back now, even after 11 months since Rohith's death, his family and friends are still waiting for justice. The protests and dharnas staged to demand justice for Rohith died a slow death. Kanhaiya too has stopped attending protest rallies and meetings.

Recently, the student leader released his book-- Bihar to Tihar. In fact, recently Kanhaiya skipped the Bangalore Literature Festival, where he was supposed to speak on the topic -- Contrarian Views -- as he has been allegedly facing threats from his opponents.

OneIndia News
Flashback 2016: A year of face-off between govt and judiciary

India

oi-Vicky

New Delhi, Dec 26: The year 2016 witnessed plenty of hostility between the government and the judiciary. It began in October 2015, with the Supreme Court striking down the National Judicial Appointment Commission Act which was introduced to increase transparency in judicial appointments. This became the pre-cursor for a bitter battle between the government and the judiciary.

[Also Read: When will judiciary fill up the 4,937 vacancies in lower courts?]

At the start of 2016, Chief Justice of India TS Thakur announced that this would be the year of appointments and promised to fill up the vacancies in the judiciary. However, in April, the country witnessed an unfortunate scene in which the CJI broke down at a public function in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He accused the government of stalling the appointments to the judiciary.

The fight begins:

Following this incident there was an all-out war between the two pillars of democracy. The government hit back at the judiciary and blamed it for stalling appointments in the high court. The Supreme Court too hit back and asked the government if it was planning on bringing the judiciary to a grinding halt.

The CJI questioned in his court why the 440 vacancies were not filled up. Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad hit back and asked why the judiciary had not filled up the 4,900 vacancies in the lower judiciary.

This was not it. Following the Independence Day address by the prime minister, the CJI said he was upset that the judicial vacancies did not find a mention in his speech. Justice Thakur went on to say that this was an important issue and he was upset that the same did not find a mention during his speech.

The year 2016 also witnessed some major verdicts passed by the Supreme Court that caused a great deal of embarrassment to the Union government. When the Harish Rawat-led Uttarakhand government was dismissed and President's rule imposed, the Supreme Court stepped in.

The SC directed that a floor test be conducted. Following the test, the Rawat government was restored.

In another confrontation, the government questioned the role of the SC during emergency. The government asked why the SC had not done enough during the emergency period and also accused it of failing the nation. The SC however shot back and cautioned the government not to cross its line.

Another major verdict was in the Arunachal Pradesh case. The Governor JP Rajkhowa had triggered of a political unrest, following which President's rule was imposed in the state. However, the intervention of the SC led to the toppling of the BJP-staged rebel government in the state.

OneIndia News
How a bullion trader used a hawala operative to deposit Rs 150 crore

India

oi-Vicky

Mumbai, Dec 26: Four banks are under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) after officials allegedly helped a trader in Mumbai bring in Rs 150 crore in demonetised currency. The cash was deposited into several shell companies that exist only on paper, the ED has learnt.

The ED also learnt that the officials in the banks accepted the currency without any questions being asked. The ED suspects that this appears to be a part of an operation between a hawala and a bullion trader.

There are various other discrepancies that have been found in this particular transaction. For one, the notes were not even counted when it was brought in. Secondly, it was found that the notes were counted only the next day.

Also read: Why RBI recommendations on demonetisation won't be made public

What is suspicious is that the notes were not counted on day one, but seemed to reflect in the accounts, the ED says. Further, the ED also sought to know why the deposit slips were issued without the notes being counted.

The bullion trader who was questioned by the ED was unable to provide the details of the customers who made these payments to him. When questioned, he told the ED officials that he had received orders over phone and handed over the gold to unknown persons. The ED, however, did not buy this version.

According to the investigations conducted by the ED, the bullion trader collected demonetised currency for a commission. He also sold the gold at a premium, the ED also learnt. The trader then went on to deposit the money into shell companies with the help of hawala operatives.

OneIndia News
How Islamic State operatives in Hyderabad covered their tracks

India

oi-Vicky

The National Investigation Agency which recently bust a module of the Islamic State in Hyderabad has learnt that applications such as Orbot and Orfox were used. These applications are used to hide a user's internet usage. This technology helped the operatives hide their tracks for a long time until the Intelligence Bureau got the better of them.

The NIA had recently charge-sheeted eight persons in connection with the Hyderabad IS module case. The operatives are believed to have been advised by their handler Shafi Ramar to use such technology to avoid detection. The NIA says that this module was planning a series of attacks on police stations.

Further, the NIA also found that the operatives had used a map application called OsmAnd+. They went about their operation by using highly encrypted applications to hide their tracks the NIA also says.

Apart from this the NIA also found that the operatives had digital documents containing three GPS co-ordinates saved in it, The police stations under their radar were at Kamathipura, Afzalganj and Bahadurpura in Hyderabad.

After gathering information the operatives sent the coordinates to Armar in Syria using an application known as Pidgin. This application, the NIA says, allows users to log into multiple chat accounts at the same time. It was also found that the operatives stayed in touch using the Nymgo application. The chat applications frequently used by them were Trillian and Chatsecure. The emails were sent out through an Tutanota.

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Story first published: Monday, December 26, 2016, 16:04 [IST]
How the Syrian revenge against Russia was plotted in Kolkata

India

oi-Vicky

Kolkata, Dec 26: West Bengal may have beaten Kerala to become the most fertile ground for terrorists to breed. The state may have not witnessed a major terror attack, but anti-nationals continue to breed in large numbers and the Intelligence Bureau has blamed this on a soft policy coupled with appeasement.

[Also Read: Debris from missing Russian military plane found in Black Sea]

In this backdrop, a probe by the National Investigation Agency goes on to show how an Islamic State operative was plotting revenge against the Russians, Americans and the British for bombing operatives of the outfit in Syria and Libya.

The Burdhwan blasts of October 2014 were a huge wake up call for the agencies. The Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, Bangladesh, had set up a module to prepare over 500 bombs which were meant to be exploded in West Bengal and Bangladesh. A huge operation was in the making, and had it succeeded, the number of lives lost would be countless.

While the busting of the Burdhwan module was a success thanks to Central agencies, the state police didn't not do a good enough job during the follow up. A year passed, and then came the IS surge. The terror group tied up with the JMB to set up the Bengal Caliphate, and this was the beginning of a new era for terror in West Bengal.

Plotting revenge against the Russians:

The NIA, while conducting a nation-wide raid in January 2015 picked up several operatives from West Bengal as well. The July 2016 Dhaka Cafe attack was another grim reminder of how members of the JMB and the IS came together to stage a horrific attack.

During the course of investigations, the NIA arrested an operative by the name Mohammad Musa. His plan was to target sites in Kolkata which was frequented by foreign tourists, especially Russians, Britishers and Americans.

Following his arrest on July 4, Musa told the NIA that he planned on attacking the headquarters of the Missionaries of Charity in central Kolkata. He explained to the NIA that his aim was to target the Russians, Americans and Russians who regularly visited the Mother House. This was in retaliation to the bombing of the IS operatives in Syria and Libya, he also explained.

An NIA transcript details the conversation that Musa had with his Bangladesh handler. He says that he had selected the Mother Teresa House and tells the handler about the large number of foreign tourists who visit this place.

The handler tells Musa to go ahead with the plan.

"To avoid detection, you must stay in disguise as a non-Muslim," the handler tells Musa. "Such an attack will attract worldwide attention the handler also tells him.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, December 26, 2016, 10:51 [IST]
Comedian Atul Khatri's joke on seatbelt becomes one on him as Mumbai Police responds

'Ram Setu' 1st week box office collection: Here's how much Akshay-starrer earned, so far

Maharashtra: BJP launches Vikas Raths' to showcase its achievements

India

oi-PTI

Mumbai, Dec 26: BJP's Mumbai unit on Monday launched Vikas Nirman Raths' to highlight developmental work of the BJP-led Maharashtra government, ahead of the crucial Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai elections, which are due early next year.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis launched the chariots' at his official residence, Varsha', in south Mumbai. These chariots, which are suitably modified vans, will show films on developmental work of the Fadnavis government.

Vikas Raths' will help propagate BJP-led government's initiatives during the last two years among people, Mumbai BJP president Ashish Shelar said.

"The Prime Minister and the Chief Minister have asked us to work for welfare of people," he said, in an apparent reference to the ally Shiv Sena supporting the farmers from Shahapur who are agitating against the CM's ambitious Mumbai-Nagpur expressway project.

"As far as development is concerned, we won't budge even an inch. We won't retreat from the path of development," Shelar said.

Project-affected farmers from Shahapur, Kalyan and Bhivandi tehsils met Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray seeking changes in 712-km highway project, worth Rs 30,000 crore. Thackeray offered his party's support to them, though Sena is a part of the government.

PTI
MEA says efforts are on to secure safe release of Father Tom Uzhunnalil

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Dec 26: India on Monday said it was in regular touch with Yemeni authorities and Saudi Arabia regarding the safe release of Father Tom Uzhunnalil, who was abducted nearly nine months ago from war-torn Yemen. A video of the priest pleading for help became viral earlier in the day.

Pres. & PM,I'm sad nothing done seriously in my regard-Father Tom Uzhunnalil, Indian priest abducted by ISIS in March,in video posted on web  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

If I was a European priest then I might hv been taken more seriously by authorities and ppl would have got me released-Father Tom Uzhunnalil  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

I am from India and therefore I am perhaps not considered of much value, I'm sad: Father Tom Uzhunnalil in a video posted on web.  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

However, the veracity of the video could not be ascertained.

The Ministry of External Affairs, in a clarification, said efforts to secure release of Father Uzhunnalil were on.

"You are aware of the circumstances currently prevailing in Yemen where fighting is going on with no central authority in that country. With regard to the safe release of Father Tom who was abducted some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard," MEA Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

In the video, uploaded on Facebook, Tom was seen as pleading for help from Indian government and fellow Christians including Pope Francis.

He also said "several months have gone by and my captors have made many contacts with the government of India to get me released. Uzhunnalil was abducted from the port city of Aden in March 4 by militant group ISIS.

PTI
National Herald case: Court rejects petition asking for documents from Congress

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

A Delhi court on Monday rejected a petition that sought documents from the Congress party in connection with the National Herald case. A petition filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy sought documents and ledger books from the Congress and Associated Journals Limited, the complainant. The court has set the next date of hearing to February 10.

Swamy in his petition alleged that the Congress president Sonia Gandhi and her son and party vice- president, Rahul Gandhi got hold of Associated Journals through dishonest means which pertains to criminal misappropriation and criminal breach of trust.

The defence counsel however said that Swamy filed a complaint in July 2013 which had no reference to the loan borrowed from the Congress.

The defence also contended that Swamy neither made the Congress an accused nor he alleged that no office were authorised to lend the loan.

Swamy however argued that 'they have been saying that I do not have a case'. "How can that be when the court has issued summons to them. They are trying to buy time and delaying proceedings, but they will not escape," he argued.

OneIndia News
Rift in BJP? War of words between Parrikar, Naik over Madkaikar's entry in the party

India

oi-PTI

Panaji, Dec 26: The entry of former Congress legislator Pandurang Madkaikar into Goa BJP, has led to a war of words between two union ministers Manohar Parrikar and Sripad Naik, with the latter claiming that he was not consulted on the latest induction.

[Also Read: If you want news, we will give you: Parrikar to media]

"I was not consulted before taking decision to allow Madkaikar enter the party. I was just told at the last minute. I was not in favour of the decision," Naik told PTI on Monday.

Naik is apparently upset as his son Siddhesh was hopeful for a ticket from Cumbharjua constituency which was represented by Madkaikar before joining the BJP. Madkaikar joined the party last week after which Parrikar had addressed the Vijay Sankalp rally in Cumbharjua constituency during which he amply made it clear that the three-time MLA (Madkaikar) would be contesting on the BJP ticket from that constituency.

However, Parrikar claimed, talking to mediamen on Sunday that "as far as Sripad Naik is concerned he was totally taken into confidence before the decision (of Madkaikar's entry) was taken."

Naik, who is union AYUSH minister, however, claimed that he was consulted just as a formality. He said he was informed after the decision was taken. "Such induction is against the principles of the party. I will take up the matter before party leaders in Delhi," Naik said.

Madkaikar, a former BJP minister, had left the party to join the Congress. He left the Congress last week claiming that the party had no future in Goa.

PTI
Sushma Swaraj shuts down a troll who said she will be remembered like Sheila Dikshit

Delhi loses two of its former CMs in span of two weeks

Final Goodbye: From Sushma Swaraj to Sheila Dikshit - A look at politicians that India lost in 2019

Sahara diary case: 'Ball is in PMO's court', says Sheila Dikshit

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, Dec 26: Congress's Uttar Pradesh Chief Ministerial candidate Sheila Dikshit on Monday said that she had said what she had to in the Sahara diary case, and now it was for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to respond.

I have said what I had to. The ball is in the court of the @PMOIndia & others now. Will he respond and come out clean? #SaharaBirlaDiaries  Sheila Dikshit (@SheilaDikshit) December 26, 2016

The Congress has demanded an "independent probe" into the "Sahara diaries", in which names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Ministers of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh and also Dikshit have figured.

Rejecting the allegations, Dikshit had said she "does not recall anything" about the diary and asserted she has "nothing to do" with it.

Meanwhile, news agency ANI reported that Dikshit has also rubbished reports of withdrawing as Chief Ministerial candidate in UP.

#FLASH Sheila Dikshit denies report of withdrawing her name as Congress UP CM candidate after her name appeared on Sahara list.  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

According to the list, Rs 1 crore in cash was given to Dikshit on September 23, 2013, in Delhi. She was the Delhi Chief Minister until December 2013.

IANS
Man rapes 8-year-old to use her blood for removing obstacles to his marriage

WB: 3 youth Congress workers arrested for trying to forcibly enter BJP office

India

oi-PTI

Kolkata, Dec 27: Three youth Congress activists were on Monday arrested after they forcibly tried to enter the West Bengal BJP office during a protest rally against demonetisation, the police said.

State Youth Congress president Arindam Bhattacharya on Monday led a protest rally outside BJP state headquarters protesting against the demonetisation move of the Centre.

An effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was burnt during the rally.

According to the police, the youth Congress activists tried to enter the lane where the BJP office is located.

"When they tried to forcibly enter the lane where the office is located and cross the police barricade, we used force to disperse the crowd. We have arrested three youth Congress activists," a police officer said. The three activists were later released.

PTI
International news brief: Series of earthquakes rattle Hawaii and more

500 Turkish special forces sent to Syria to combat ISIS

International

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Ankara, Dec 26: The Turkish military has sent 500 Special Forces soldiers to Syria to speed up its operations against the ISIS in the northern city of al-Bab, authorities said on Monday.

Yeni Safak, close to the Turkish government, said that the number of soldiers deployed around al-Bab amounted to about 1,100, Efe news reported.

The Free Syrian Army, Syria's main opposition group that fights alongside the Turkish troops in northern Syria, has also sent 1,400 fighters from Aleppo province, which has recently fallen into the hands of the Syrian regime army, to al-Bab.

The Turkish army entered northern Syria in mid-August to liberate numerous cities that were under the control of the ISIS.

According to Yeni Safak, in addition to the 500 soldiers, Turkey has also sent several tanks and armoured vehicles to the Syrian city.

IANS
US says Syria making new chemical weapons despite 2013 deal

What does the US actually want in Syria?

Bashar Assad visits Christian orphanage on Christmas Day

International

oi-PTI

Beirut, Dec 26: Syrian President Bashar Assad had visited a Christian orphanage near the capital Damascus on Christmas Day. Photographs posted on the Syrian presidency's Facebook page showed the president along with his wife, Asma, standing with nuns and orphans in the Damascus suburb of Sednaya.

In the northern city of Aleppo, Christians celebrated Christmas for the first time in four years with the country's largest city now under full control of government forces.

The rebel withdrawal from east Aleppo last week marked Assad's biggest victory since Syria's crisis began in 2011. Christians, one of the largest religious minorities at about 10 percent of Syria's pre-war 23 million-strong population, have tried to stay on the sidelines of the conflict.

However, the opposition's increasingly outspoken Islamism has kept many leaning toward Assad's government.

PTI
Watch: Car in flames after it rams into gate of Russian embassy

Fuselage of crashed Russian plane found in Black Sea

International

oi-PTI

Mocow, Dec 26: The Russian divers on Monday found the main body of the military plane that crashed in the Black Sea , an official told Russian news agencies.

"Divers... have found the fuselage of the plane that crashed yesterday in the Black Sea," agencies quoted a member of the emergency ministry's Sochi-based search and rescue team as saying.

The Russian military aircraft, with 92 persons on board, went off the radar and crashed over the black sea on Sunday.

"Fragments of the Tu-154 plane of the Russian defence ministry were found 1.5 kilometres from the Black Sea coast of the city of Sochi at a depth of 50 to 70 metres," the Russian defence ministry had said.

The plane had disappeared from the radar screens shortly after taking off at 5:40 AM (0810 IST) from the southern city of Adler, south of the Black Sea resort city of Sochi on December 25.

It was conducting a routine flight to Russia's Hmeimim airbase outside the coastal Syrian city of Latakia, the ministry said. The ministry said the plane was carrying Russian servicemen as well as members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, the army's official musical group, who were headed to Syria to participate in New Year celebrations at the base. There were nine members of the media on board, the ministry had said.

PTI
What does the US actually want in Syria?

IS kills 30 civilians in Syria

International

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Damascus, Dec 26: At least 30 civilians who made an attempt to escape from Syria's al-Bab were killed by the Islamic State militant group, Turkish military said on Monday.

Read More: Hyderabad ISIS module inspired by Zakir Naik, says NIA

The IS has been threatening civilians in al-Bab and trying to push them to stay in the city where the roads and streets have been blocked by the terror group, Xinhua news agency reported.

Meanwhile, a Turkish soldier who was injured in al-Bab during a clash with the IS, died on Monday.

At least 16 Turkish soldiers were killed in an IS attack on December 21 in al-Bab as Turkish troops and Ankara-backed Syrian rebels battle to take the town from jihadists, Turkish Defence Minister Fikri Isik said.

According to Isik, three Turkish soldiers were also abducted by the IS in northern Syria.

The Turkish Army on August 24 launched the Euphrates Shield Operation against the IS and the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units, the military wing of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party.

Turkish President Recap Tayyip Erdogan said the operation was meant to end the rule of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Turkey lists the YPG and the PYD as terrorist organisations due to their links to the PKK.

IANS


Never asked Raheel Sharif to help me leave the country: Musharraf

International

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Islamabad, Dec 27: A week after an interview that made headlines, former Pakistan President General (retd) Pervez Musharraf on Monday said he never sent a "request" to ex-army chief General Raheel Sharif to help him leave the country.

"No one approached me, not did I approach anyone... Raheel Sharif did not discuss anything with me, nor did I send him any request," Musharraf told Channel 92, adding it was all "conjecture" and that his statement to Dunya News was being "distorted" by media outlets.

Musharraf was referring to a talk show on Dunya News last week where he had said: "Well he (Raheel Sharif) did help me and I am absolutely clear and grateful. I have been his boss and I have been the army chief before him... He helped out, because the cases are politicised, they put me on the ECL, they turned it into a political issue."

Asked about the military's influence on domestic politics, he said: "All institutions in Pakistan work together with each other... I've served in the army for over 40 years."

"There is a sense of solidarity between the army and me, and it will always remain like that," the former president added, saying he stands by the statement he made on Dunya News.

Referring to a minister's statement about Musharraf's return, he said he has no knowledge of any such timeline wherein he was asked to return within four to six weeks of his departure.

"There is nothing of the sort in the court's judgement," Musharraf added.

Asked to explain by the host last week how the recently retired army chief helped him, Musharraf had responded saying by "influencing the courts".

Musharraf had left the country for Dubai in March earlier this year hours after the interior ministry issued a notification to remove his name from the exit control list (ECL).

The government notification followed the Supreme Court's order to lift the ban on his foreign travel.

But the order from the top court had come with the rider that the federal government or the three-judge special court trying the retired general for treason was free to make decisions to regulate his custody or restrict his movement.

Apart from murder cases of Benazir Bhutto, Nawab Akbar Bugti and Ghazi Abdul Rasheed, the retired general is facing treason charges for imposing emergency rule in November 2007, arresting judges and limiting their powers. His name was kept on the Exit Control List for more than 20 months.

Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan had said in March that Musharraf had committed to facing all cases against him in court and had "promised to return in four to six weeks".

IANS
Ukraine grain deal: UN says shipments are still going out

Russia: 3 train stations evacuated over bomb threats

International

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Moscow, Dec 27: Thousands were evacuated from three train stations in Moscow over a bomb warning, local media reported. After receiving a telephone call alerting of a suspected explosive device, the police of the Russian capital immediately evacuated the stations of Leningradskaya, Yaroslavskaya and Kazanskaya on Monday, Efe reports.

The last major terrorist attack in Russia took place in December 2013, when two suicide bombers killed 34 people at the Volgograd railway station.

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a tightening of security measures inside and outside the country following the assassination of the country's ambassador to Ankara and the attack in Berlin.

The Russian Federal Security Service ruled out the possibility of a terrorist motive behind the crash of the defence ministry's Tu-154 plane in the Black Sea on Sunday with 92 people abroad.

IANS
What's the reason behind Miller's refusal to become Trump's communications director?

International

oi-IANS

By Ians English

New York, Dec 26: US President-elect Donald Trump's pick for communications director, Jason Miller declined to take up the job because his wife is pregnant, although local media reported that his refusal came for other reasons.

[Also Read: Flashback 2016: Donald Trump's craziest quotes]

Miller, who is one of Trump's main spokesmen, was tapped on Thursday to be White House communications director, but he decided to decline the offer as he wanted to spend more time with his family, Efe news agency reports.

Miller's wife will give birth in January to their second child. He said in a statement that his family will be his "top priority right now" and he is at a point where he cannot take on "a new job as demanding" as White House communications director.

He will hand over his duties to Sean Spicer, the communications chief for the Republican National Committee whom Trump selected this past week to be his White House Press Secretary -- a position he will retain.

However, The Daily News reported that there were other reasons why Miller may have refused the position "after a transition team staffer posted cryptic tweets suggesting he's a philanderer" and is involved in a "sexual scandal".

IANS
IS suspect held in Mangaluru, released after questioning

Mangalore

oi-Vicky

Mangaluru, Dec 26: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) which arrested a 40-year-old native of Kerala in Mangaluru for allegedly trying to join the Islamic State has been released. He was questioned and released after he furnished a bond.

Also read: Terror suspect detained at Mangaluru

Munaf Rehman was detained on Sunday for questioning by the NIA. A resident of Kerala, Rehman was apprehended by officials when he was trying to board a flight with his wife and five children at the Mangaluru International Airport.

Rehman was alleged to have been attracted to the Islamic State ideology and wanted to join the group. He had visited his wife's home in Pandeshwar, Mangaluru. The NIA had issued a look out circular against him based on which he was stopped by immigration authorities at the airport.

NIA officials questioned him for several hours. However, Rehman was released after he furnished a bond.

OneIndia News
Who will be the next CBI boss- These are the probable candidates

New Delhi

oi-Vicky

New Delhi, Dec 26: A meeting of the collegium headed by the Prime Minister will be held on January 4 where a final decision on the next CBI chief will be taken. A list of senior police officials from the 1979 to 1982 batch has already been prepared and during the meet on January 4 the name of the CBI chief will be finalised and later announced.

Sources tell OneIndia that there are several names doing the rounds. The list includes, Delhi police commissioner, Alok Verma, director general of the Sashastra Seema Bal, Archana Ramasundram, director general of the Bureau of Police Research and Development, Dr M C Borwankar, ITBP director general Krishna Chaudhary, union home ministry special secretary R.K. Dutta and Maharashtra DGP Satish Mathur.

Sources, however, indicate that Verma is a front runner to the post and in all probability his name would be announced. The collegium headed by the Prime Minister will also comprise other members including the leader of the opposition.

The CBI is currently headed by Rakesh Asthana who is holding additional charge of the post. His appointment as the interim chief of the CBI is already under challenge before the Supreme Court.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, December 26, 2016, 9:02 [IST]
In a shocking video, gold worth 90 lakh was looted on gunpoint in Gujarat. At least 5kg of gold jewellery worth Rs 90 lakh was allegedly looted at gun point by three unidentified persons from a branch of a gold financing company, Muthoot Finance, in Dhoraji town of Gujarat's Rajkot.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was caught on camera getting his shoe laces tied by his personal assistant in Mysuru. This video has generated lot interest among twitterati who got appalled by the CM's action. Such VIP elitism is not new. Earlier this year chief minister of MP Shivraj singh chauhan came under fire after he a flood hit district in Madhya Pradesh But he was carreid by others.
Winter makes an early entry in Kashmir with snowfall, heavy rain

Mehbooba Mufti gets notice to vacate official bungalow 'meant for J&K CMs'

Accession Day: Valley lights up on this day when J&K became part of India

2 non-local labourers shot at by terrorist in J&K's Anantnag

J&K: Man shot dead by terrorists in Baramulla

Srinagar

oi-PTI

Srinagar, Dec 26: Suspected terrorists shot dead a person in north Kashmir's Baramulla district on Sunday night, police said.

Nazir Ahmad Mir was shot at by suspected terrorists near his residence at Bahrampora in Dangiwacha area of the district, a police official said.

Mir was rushed to a hospital where he was declared brought dead, the official said.

A case has been registered and a hunt is on to nab the assailants, police said.

Jammu and KAshmir witnessed a long period of unrest this year. The unrest, that lasted for over 70 days began after the killing of Hizbul militant Burhan Wani.

PTI

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Story first published: Monday, December 26, 2016, 7:18 [IST]
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How Could This Have Happened in the United States?

The reasons are complex, some peculiar to the U.S. and some that are common to both the U.S. and Europe. The most significant that applies as well to Europe as here is the economic situation. There is very high unemployment, especially among younger people and the marginalized. In France, overall unemployment is higher than in the U.S. That being said, the true unemployment rate in the U.S. is much higher than the official figures. In both the U.S. and France, there is a tendency among many to blame immigrants and minorities for it. They are also often seen as sapping the country in terms of social services that particularly strain local units of government.

External entities are also held responsible. In the U.S. it is trade pacts like NAFTA that encourage employers to chase after low-wage industrial workers abroad (even though there are plenty of low-wage service workers in the U.S.). In Europe, it is the European Union that is seen as an unaccountable, undemocratic arrangement that forces austerity policies upon the individual countries to the detriment of the general population, and to the advantage of the upper, capitalist classes. All of these factors produce high emotions of fear and anger, of ultranationalism and the attribution of otherness to minorities and immigrants, and to despair with the status quo and the hope that far-right parties, usually with charismatic leaders, can save them from the calamity that they feel they are living.

Another interesting dimension to this is religion. In Poland and in the Slavic countries of Eastern Europe, the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox churches respectively are playing a major role in supporting right-wing politics. In France, a conservative Catholic bloc has been manifesting itself in the conservative Republican Party and can be seen in the programs of former President Nicolas Sarkosy and in the present Republican presidential candidacy of Francois Fillon. Gay marriage, abortion, and even secularism in public institutions, especially the schools, which has been a mainstay of French republicanism, have newly become major issues in the mainstream of French politics. This resembles, on a smaller scale, Trump's appeal to the white evangelical voters in the American South and Mid-West. The big issue for them is who will be appointed to the Supreme Court and be voting on civil rights issues for women, minorities, and the LGBT population. The European right, in both Western and Eastern Europe, has taken up the battle over cultural and social issues (the culture wars) that the American right has engaged in for along time and that Trump has been playing so effectively.

But there are other variables that accounted for Trump's victory that are not so easily comparable to what is happening in Europe recently. The first is the electoral college. If Trump and Clinton had been French, Clinton would have won because she had a sizeable lead in the popular vote, over two million more votes than Trump.

Aside from this, there was the difference between the two candidates themselves. Clinton was clearly the more politically experienced and qualified. She discussed policy issues in a serious way. And she would have been the first woman president, following the first African-American president. That was both a plus and a minus. A plus for those who valued diversity in political life, a negative to those who despised "identity politics."

Even some on the left felt that she should have devoted more time to addressing the serious economic plight of many Americans than in stressing the breaking of the glass ceiling imposed by males. While this is not necessarily an either/or, many Democrats who supported Bernie Sanders in the primary felt that Clinton did not come across as sincerely attentive to the economic plight of so many people where industry had disappeared. Fairly or not, the association that was made between her and her husband's support of NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement), and her hesitation in coming out against Obama's Trans-Pacific trade agreement, made her unpopular both on the left and on the populist right. Her vote for the Iraq War and other more hawkish positions also alienated progressives on the left and noninterventionists on the right. Her use of a personal server for public business when she was Secretary of State came back to haunt her. And her closeness to Wall Street when she was the Senator from New York, and refusal to release the content of speeches she gave to investment bankers for large fees, did not help her on either wing of the political spectrum.

Trump, on the other hand, has had no political experience that could be held against him. His business dealings were marred by frequent bankruptcies, by refusal to pay for services provided by contractors, by a constant stream of threats and lawsuits against people and institutions. He broke tradition by being the first presidential candidate to refuse to release his tax returns. Instead of seriously discussing policy issues, he offered a series of ad libs to please his crowd. He vilified all of his opponents in both the primary and the general elections. He referred to Clinton as "crooked Hillary" who should be criminally prosecuted. He refused to say that he would accept the result of the election. He degraded women, Mexicans and Moslems. He even ridiculed the physical gestures of a paralyzed reporter who asked a question at a press conference.

Our next president has bragged about molesting women and been accused by a number of women of doing so. He has encouraged violence against protestors at his rallies. He has defended the use of torture. Since the election, he has appointed to be his attorney general Senator Sessions, who has spoken favorably of the Ku Klux Klan and opposed civil-rights legislation. His special adviser, with an office in the White House, will be Stephen Bannon, the former head of Breitbart, a far-right "news" outlet that has diffused racist and anti-Semitic material, and which intends to establish an office in Paris. His national-security advisor is going to be former Lt. General Michael Flynn, who has spread abusive and scurrilous stories about Clinton on social media. His Trump-employed son went so far as sending out messages contending that Hillary Clinton was involved with child sex rings.

In Europe, you have had your Le Pens and your Berlusconi, whose sexual vulgarity equals Trump's. The former were established party leaders. Trump has captured a party. What he has behind him are largely the economically hard hit who are willing to forgive his sins in the hope that he will be their salvation, and white supremacists who see him as their vindication and leader. Trump is an actor who has created politics as a one-man spectacle, combining Mussolini's oratorical style and facial gestures with a skilled use of Twitter, which the cable news media has retransmitted instantaneously to the public.

Indeed, the closer historical analogy to the spectacular Trump are the Nazis, who used the technology of radio to mobilize the masses in their living rooms, vilified and crushed political opponents, dehumanized ethnic and religious groups, and repeated lie after lie with the assurance that their followers would believe them and that establishment politicians and business leaders would be afraid to confront them. It is precisely this complex of factors that foreshadowed the first totalitarian state in Western Europe in the late 1930s, which began with an electoral victory and which too few took seriously enough until it was too late.

I say to my French friends, please do not be taken in the way we Americans have been.
When: December 27, 2016, 9AM

Where: Entrance to Arizona Memorial, Route 99, Honolulu, Hawaii

For the meeting of President Obama and Japan's Prime Minister Abe at the Arizona Memorial on December 27, members of Veterans for Peace, Hawaii Peace and Justice, Revolution Books, World Can't Wait and other concerned organizations will gather to remind both heads of government of the need to preserve Article 9, the NO WAR article of the Japanese Constitution to prevent Japan from joining the U.S. wars of choice.

53,000 U.S. military personnel (39,000 onshore and 14,000 afloat in nearby waters), 43,000 dependents, and 5,000 Department of Defense civilian employees live in Japan. Okinawa hosts a disproportionate share of the U.S. military presence with 50% of all facilities used by U.S. Forces Japan and about half of the U.S. military personnel are located in Okinawa, which comprises less than 1% of Japan's total land area.

We will remind both heads of government of the dangerous US military aircraft, the widow-maker, the Osprey that crashed twice last week in Okinawa and that has crashed several times in Hawaii.

Concerned citizens also will have signs for issues concerning the U.S. military on Okinawa: "Save Henoko Bay from US military runways," "Save Takai from Ospreys" and "Close Futenma Air Base."

We will urge President Obama to Close Guantanamo Prison, Grant Clemency to Chelsea Manning and Pardon Leonard Peltier and Mumia Abu Jamal.

For more information, please contact:

Ann Wright, retired US Army Reserve Colonel (retired) and former US diplomat who resigned in opposition to the 2003 war on Iraq)

Phone: 808-741-1141; email: annw1946@gmail.com
From Capitol Hill Blue



Kentucky mall to ban woman for racist, vulgar tirade

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An obscenity-shouting white woman in Louisville, Kentucky, this week screamed at a an apparent Hispanic customer at the J.C. Penney store in Jefferson Mall to "go back to wherever the f--k you come from, lady!"

The target of her wrath ignored her taunts so the bigot turned her anger on the store's cashier, yelling; "hey, tell them to go back where they belong."

The vile rant apparently began when a friend of the Hispanic woman brought her some additional items as she was checking out at the busy store.

"You're nobodies," she yelled. "You're nobody, as far as I'm concerned! Probably on welfare! The taxpayers probably paid for all that stuff!"

Another customer in the store captured the tirade and posted it on Facebook, where it went viral.

Such behavior is becoming all too common. In Chicago in late November, another loud bigot screamed at a black employee in a Michaels store. When the store asked her to leave, the white woman claimed she was being discriminated against.

Her tirade, captured on video:

"And I voted for Trump! So there! What, you want to kick me out because of that? And look who won! And look who won! And look who won!"

Jesse Grady, shopping for a Santa hat for her young daughter, saw the incident and filmed it.

"It sounded like a disgruntled customer for a second," Grady told The Washington Post. "And then she made a homophobic slur, then starting cussing the manager, all sorts of things. It just kind of got out of control. So I waited, but it was like, when she starting yelling African American women are discriminating against me, that's when I pulled out my phone."

In Florida, real estate remodeler David Sanguesa claimed he was a victim of "anti-white discrimination" when he lashed out at a barista at a Starbucks coffee shop.

"We want nothing to do with you," Sanguesa screamed at the brista. "You're trash!"

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If you wanted to know what life was really like in the Cold War Soviet Union, you might take the word of an emigre Russian writer. You might even take the word of Ayn Rand, as the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) did during the Red Scare, though Rand had not lived in her native country since 1926. Nonetheless, as you can see above, she testified with confidence about the daily lives of post-war Soviet citizens. Rand also testified, with equal confidence, about the nefarious influence of Communist writers and directors in her adopted home of Hollywood, where she had more recent experience working in the film industry.

The 1947 HUAC hearings, writes the blog Aphelis, led to the systematic blacklisting of Hollywood artists. Among the witnesses deemed friendly to capitalism were Gary Cooper, Walt Disney, and Ayn Rand. Prior to her testimony, the FBI had consulted Rand for an enormous, 13,533-page report entitled Communist Infiltration of the Motion Picture Industry (find it online here), which quoted from a pamphlet published by her group:

The purpose of the Communists in Hollywood is not the production of political movies openly advocating Communism. Their purpose is to corrupt non-political movies  by introducing small, casual bits of propaganda into innocent stories and to make people absorb the basic principles of Collectivism by indirection and implication. Few people would take Communism straight, but a constant stream of hints, lines, touches and suggestions battering the public from the screen will act like drops of water that split a rock if continued long enough. The rock that they are trying to split is Americanism.

Rand and her associates helped design a film regime that dissected other post-war movies like William Wylers The Best Years of Our Lives and George Cukors Keeper of the Flame. These McCarthy-era film critics sought to root out ideological termites in the industry; they were especially distrustful of movies that elevated what Rand called, with contempt, the little man. One of the films identified as particularly pernicious to the rock of Americanism was Frank Capras classic Its a Wonderful Life, a movie that today seems built on bedrock U.S. nationalist valuescommitment to family, redemption through faith, contentment with modest small-town living.









Listening to Capras motivation for the filmas quoted in The Los Angeles Timesmakes it hard to believe he had anything like promoting a workers paradise in mind: There are just two things that are important, he said, One is to strengthen the individuals belief in himself, and the other, even more important right now, is to combat a modern trend toward atheism.

But in the FBIs analysisand possibly Rands, though its not clear how much, if any, of the report she authored directlythe tale of George Bailey manifested several subversive tendencies. Flavorwire sums up the charges succinctly: Written by Communist sympathizers, Attempting to instigate class warfare, and Demonizing bankers.

We live in odd times, such that this rhetoricwhich seemed so quaint just a couple short decades or so agosounds jarringly contemporary again as the politics of the mid-20th century reappear everywhere. The charges against the seemingly innocuous Capra film hinged in part on the alleged Communist ties of its principle screenwriters, Francis Goodrich and Albert Hackett. In their report, part of which you can see above, the FBI wrote that the screen writers practically lived with known Communists and were observed eating luncheon daily with such Communists as Lester Cole, screen writer, and Earl Robinson. Palling around, as it were.

In addition to naming the writers acquaintances and lunch buddies, the report quotes a redacted individual who stated that, in his opinion, this picture deliberately maligned the upper class. Another blacked-out source stated in substance that the film represented a rather obvious attempt to discredit bankers by casting Lionel Barrymore as a scrooge-type so that he would be the most hated man in the picture. This, according to these sources, is a common trick used by Communists. Finally, a third redacted source compares the plot of Capras movie with that of a Russian film called The Letter, screened in the U.S. fifteen years earlier.

We cannot say for certain, but its reasonable to assume that many of these hidden FBI sources were associates of Rand. In any case, Randin vogue after the success of her novel The Fountainheadappeared before HUAC and re-iterated many of the general claims made in the report. During her testimony, she focused on a 1944 film called Song of Russia (you can hear her mention it briefly in the short clip at the top). She chiefly critiques the film for its idealized portrait of life in the Soviet Union, hence her enumeration of the many evils of actual life there.

Curiously, many critical treatments of Its A Wonderful Life have said more or less the same thing of that work, calling the film sentimental hogwash, for example, and a representative of American capitalist ideology. These readings seem persuasive to me, but for those like Rand and her followers, as well as J. Edgar Hoover and his paranoid underlings, no film it seemsno matter how celebratory of U.S. nationalist mythologycould go far enough in glorifying heroic capitalists, ignoring class conflict, and minimizing the struggles of the little man.

As Raw Story notes, testimony from others at the HUAC hearings brought redemption of an odd sort for Capras movie, which has been more than redeemed as it slowly became a sentimental and beloved holiday perennial. But even if Its A Wonderful Life may now look like apple pie on celluloid, Flavorwire points out that its still liable to raise suspicions among certain aggressive pundits and culture warriors who push a war on Christmas narrative and see socialist subversion even in acts of charity, like those displayed so extravagantly in the films mushy ending (above).

Its A Wonderful Life is a holiday movie that doesnt mention Christmas until the 99-minute mark. It takes a mostly secular reading of the holiday as a time to take stock of your life, of the true blessings of family and friends. To those obsessed with the preferred holiday greeting or the color of Santas skin this must sound like quite the Communist subversion indeed.

Read much more about the HUAC investigation of Hollywood at Aphelis, who include links to a redacted version of the FBI Communist Infiltration report and many other fascinating documents.

Related Content:

How the CIA Secretly Funded Abstract Expressionism During the Cold War

When Ayn Rand Collected Social Security & Medicare, After Years of Opposing Benefit Programs

Free Audio: Ayn Rands 1938 Dystopian Novella Anthem

The CIAs Style Manual & Writers Guide: 185 Pages of Tips for Writing Like a Spy

Bertolt Brecht Testifies Before the House Un-American Activities Committee (1947)

Josh Jones is a writer and musician based in Durham, NC. Follow him at @jdmagness
Vehicle Security System Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Forecast 2016 - 2024

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Global Vehicle Security System Market: OverviewThe global vehicle security system market is projected to grow at a robust pace between 2016 and 2024. Globally, the demand for hybrid vehicles has risen considerably, boosting vehicle manufacturing worldwide. Due to increase in the sales and production of vehicles, instances of hijacking and car theft have also increased. This, in turn, is fuelling the demand for vehicle security systems.Get Sample Report Copy :Vehicle security systems such as alarms, central locking, remote keyless entry, passive entry systems, and immobilizers are designed to protect cars from hijacking or theft. Recent technologies such as RFID, GPS, and RTLS have also come to into use for tracking down stolen cars. Regionally, Asia Pacific has been showing attractive opportunities for the market, trailed by North America and Europe. Growing awareness about vehicle safety and the increasing installation of state-of-the-art safety gadgets in vehicles have been driving the global vehicle security system market.The report provides a comprehensive overview of the global vehicle security system market. It covers the prevailing trends influencing the market and its growth prospects between 2016 and 2024. Revenue generated from the sale of vehicles across various categories has been considered in order to calculate the markets size. The report also compiles exhaustive information relating to the impact of the latest technological advancements in market. Some of the leading enterprises operating in the market are also profiled in the report to present a holistic overview of the competitive landscape.Global Vehicle Security System Market: Opportunities and Market SegmentationBased on vehicle type, the global vehicle security system market can be segmented into commercial vehicles, passenger vehicles, and off-highway vehicles. On the basis of product type, the market is expected to witness increasing demand for immobilizers and remote keyless entry. In terms of technology, the market can be segmented into global positioning systems, real-time location systems, face detection systems, and GPS. Of these, the demand for face detection and face positioning systems is expected to increase at a robust pace.Regionally, Asia Pacific is expected to emerge as the leading segment. The expansion of the automotive industry in China is expected to drive the Asia Pacific market for vehicle security systems. Despite witnessing robust growth around the world, the high cost of premium security features will restrain its growth to an extent. Additionally, irrespective of the utilities they offer to users, developing security features such as passive entry systems is a costly affair. This also reflects negatively on the overall market sales. This is mainly because developing these systems requires a customized approach for each vehicle model, besides a complex process of installation.Nevertheless, the introduction of the latest technological advancements will provide lucrative opportunities for enterprises in the market to capitalize on. The pressing need to ensure adequate vehicle security to theft will also fuel demand from the global vehicle security system market.Global Vehicle Security System Market: Competitive InsightBrowse Market Research Report with ToC & Free Analysis :To study the competition prevailing in the market, the report also profiles companies such as Robert Bosch GmbH, Delphi Automotive, and Mitsubishi Electric. The products offered by these companies are driver assistance systems and components mainly for passenger and commercial vehicles. Using SWOT analysis, the report weighs out strengths and weaknesses of the companies profiled. The analysis also provides insights into the opportunities and threats that these companies could witness in the near future.About Us :Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.TMRs data repository is continuously updated and revised by a team of research experts so that it always reflects the latest trends and information. With extensive research and analysis capabilities, Transparency Market Research employs rigorous primary and secondary research techniques to develop distinctive data sets and research material for business reports.Contact Us :-Transparency Market ResearchState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Global Cellulose Acetate Market  Share, Growth, Segment, Trends and Forecast, 2015  2021

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Global Cellulose Acetate Market (Cellulose Acetate Tow and Cellulose Acetate Filament) for Cigarette Filters, Textile & Apparel, Photographic Films, Tapes & Labels, Extrusion & Molding and Other Applications  Global Industry Perspective, Comprehensive Analysis and Forecast, 2015  2021Global cellulose acetate market to reach USD 7.01 billion in 2021, increasing at a CAGR of around 3.6% between 2016 and 2021.The report covers detailed analysis and forecast for the cellulose acetate market on a global and regional level from 2015 to 2021. The study offers historic data of 2015 along with a forecast from 2016 to 2021 based on both volumes and revenue. The study includes a comprehensive view of the market with the help of market drivers, restraint, and opportunities. It also offers the level of impact of drivers and restraints on the cellulose acetate market between 2015 and 2021.Request Sample Report:The study included a detailed competitive scenario and product portfolio of key vendors. The report evaluates Porters Five Forces model to analyze the different factors affecting the growth of the cellulose acetate market. Moreover, the study encompasses market attractiveness analysis, which provides information on the most attractive and least attractive market segments in the cellulose acetate market by product, application, and region.The report includes detailed segmentation of cellulose acetate market based on product, application, and region. Cellulose acetate tow and cellulose acetate filaments are the key products in the cellulose acetate market. On the basis of application segment, the market can be classified into cigarette filters, textile & apparel, photographic films, tapes & labels, extrusion & molding, and other applications. Major regional segment analyzed in this report include North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East & Africa with its further bifurcation into major countries including U.S. Germany, France, UK, China, Japan, India, and Brazil.Browse detail report at:The report provides detailed competitive outlook including market share and company profiles of the key players operating in the global market. Some of the key participants in the report include Celanese Corporation, Daicel Chemical Industries, Eastman Chemical Company, Mitsubishi Rayon Company Limited, Rhodia Acetow GmbH, SK Chemicals Co. Ltd, Borregaard, Rayonier, Sappi, Tembec, Chinese National Tobacco Corp, Imperial Tobacco Group, Rotuba Extruders, Philip Morris International, Acordis Acetate and Primester.The report segments the global cellulose acetate market into:Global Cellulose Acetate Market: Product Segment AnalysisCellulose acetate towCellulose acetate filamentGlobal Cellulose Acetate Market: Application Segment AnalysisCigarette filtersTextile & apparelPhotographic filmsTapes & labelsExtrusion & moldingOtherGlobal Cellulose Acetate Market: Regional Segment AnalysisRead Report TOC:North AmericaU.S.EuropeGermanyFranceUKAsia PacificChinaJapanIndiaLatin AmericaBrazilMiddle East and AfricaAbout A to Z ResearchA to Z Research is a single destination for all the industry, company and country reports. We feature large repository of latest industry reports, leading and niche company profiles, and market statistics released by reputed private publishers and public organizations. A to Z Research is the comprehensive collection of market intelligence products and services available on air. We have market research reports from number of leading publishers and update our collection daily to provide our clients with the instant online access to our database. With access to this database, our clients will be able to benefit from expert insights on global industries, products, and market trends.Contact US3422 SW 15 Street,Suit #8138,Deerfield Beach,Florida 33442, USATel: +1-386-310-3803GMTTel: +49-322 210 92714USA/Canada Toll Free No.1-855-465-465Email: martin@atozresearch.comWebsite:
Global Market for Automotive Wire and Cable Materials Double-Digit Growth

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The report covers forecast and analysis for the Automotive Wire and Cable Materials market on a global and regional level. The study provides historic data of 2015 along with a forecast from 2016 to 2021 based on volume and revenue (USD Million). The study includes drivers and restraints for the market along with the impact they have on the demand over the forecast period. Additionally, the report includes the study of opportunities available in the Automotive Wire and Cable Materials market on a global level.Get a copy of free Sample Report @In order to give the users of this report a comprehensive view on the Automotive Wire and Cable Materials market, we have included a detailed competitive scenario and product portfolio of key vendors. To understand the competitive landscape in the market, an analysis of Porters five forces model for the Automotive Wire and Cable Materials market has also been included, strategic development along with patents analysis is included in this report. The study encompasses a market attractiveness analysis, wherein type segments are benchmarked based on their market size, growth rate, and general attractiveness.Inquire more before buying this report @PVC, XLPE, TPU, PPE, and Others are the major types of Automotive Wire and Cable Materials. All the segments have been analyzed based on present and future trends and the market is estimated from 2015 to 2021.The regional segmentation includes the current and forecast demand for North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East and Africa with its further bifurcation into major countries including U.S. Germany, France, UK, China, Japan, India, and Brazil.Browse detail report @/market-analysis/automotive-wire-and-cable-materials-market.htmlThe report covers detailed competitive outlook including company profiles of the key participants operating in the global market. Key players profiled in the report include Leoni AG, Coficab Tunisie SA, Yazaki Corporation, Draka Holding N.V., and Sumitomo Electric Industry.This report segments the Automotive Wire and Cable Materials market as follows:Automotive Wire and Cable MaterialsMarket: Type Segment AnalysisPVCXLPETPUPPEOthersAutomotive Wire and Cable Materials Market: Regional Segment AnalysisNorth AmericaU.S.EuropeUKFranceGermanyAsia PacificChinaJapanIndiaLatin AmericaBrazilMiddle East and AfricaAbout Us:Syndicate Market Research provides a range of marketing and business research solutions designed for our clients specific needs based on our expert resources. The business scopes of Syndicate Market Research cover more than 30 industries including energy, new materials, transportation, daily consumer goods, chemicals, etc. We provide our clients with the one-stop solution for all the research requirements.Contact Us:Joel John3422 SW 15 Street, Suite #8138Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803Email: sales@syndicatemarketresearch.comWebsite:
Global NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Market 2016:Sensorair (Sweden), Dynament (UK), CityTechnology Ltd (UK), E2V (UK)

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Global NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Industry 2016Market Research Report Provides Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis: Sensorair (Sweden), Dynament (UK), CityTechnology Ltd (UK), E2V (UK), HEIMANN (Germany), Alphasense (UK), SmartGAS (Germany), Emerson (America), GE (America) & more -with detail like Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base and Competitors.The report provides a basic overview of NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers industry including definitions, applications and industry chain structure. Global market analysis and Chinese domestic market analysis are provided with a focus on history, developments, trends and competitive landscape of the market. A comparison between the international and Chinese situation is also offered.Global NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Industry Research Report 2016 also focuses on development policies and plans for the industry as well as a consideration of a cost structure analysis. Capacity production, market share analysis, import and export consumption and price cost production value gross margins are discussed.Get Free Sample@A key feature of this report is it focus on major industry players, providing an overview, product specification, product capacity, production price and contact information for Global Top15 companies. This enables end users to gain a comprehensive insight into the structure of the international and Chinese NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers industry. Development proposals and the feasibility of new investments are also analyzed. Companies and individuals interested in the structure and value of the NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers industry should consult this report for guidance and direction.The report begins with a brief overview of the Global NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers market and then moves on to evaluate the key trends of the market. The key trends shaping the dynamics of the Global NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers market have been scrutinized along with the related current events, which is impacting the market. Drivers, restraints, opportunities, and threats of the Global NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers market have been analyzed in the report. Moreover, the key segments and the sub-segments that constitutes the market is also explained in the report.Inquiry For Buying@Table of ContentsChapter One NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Industry Overview1.1 NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Definition(Product Picture and Specifications)1.2 NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Classification and Application1.3 NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Industry Chain Structure1.4 NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Industry Overview1.5 NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Industry History1.6 NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Industry Competitive Landscape1.7 NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Industry International and China Development ComparisonChapter Two NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Market Data Analysis2.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Price List2.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Gross Margin List2.3 2016 Global Key Manufacturers NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Capacity and Market Share List2.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Production and Market Share List2.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Production Value and Market Share ListGet Complete Report With TOC@Chapter Three NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Technical Data Analysis3.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Product Quality List3.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Product Line Capacity and Commercial Production Date3.3 2016 Manufacturing Base(Factory) Global Regional Distribution3.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers R&D Status and Technology Sources3.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Equipment Investment and Performance3.6 2016 Global Key Manufacturers NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Raw Materials Sources AnalysisChapter Four NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Government Policy and News4.1 Government Related Policy Analysis4.2 Industry News Analysis4.3 NDIR Infrared Gas Analyzers Industry Development TrendAbout Us:MarketResearchStore.com is a single destination for all the industry, company and country reports. We feature large repository of latest industry reports, leading and niche company profiles, and market statistics released by reputed private publishers and public organizations.Contact US:Joel JohnSuite #8138, 3422 SW 15 Street,Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803
Global M42 High Speed Steel Market 2016:Sandvik AB, Nachi-Fujikoshi, OSG, Kennametal, YG-1 Tool, Walter AG

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Global M42 High Speed Steel Industry 2016Market Research Report Provides Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis: Sandvik AB, Nachi-Fujikoshi, OSG, Kennametal, YG-1 Tool, Walter AG, Tiangong International, Shanghai Tool Works, Sumitomo Electric Industries & more -with detail like Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base and Competitors.The report provides a basic overview of M42 High Speed Steel industry including definitions, applications and industry chain structure. Global market analysis and Chinese domestic market analysis are provided with a focus on history, developments, trends and competitive landscape of the market. A comparison between the international and Chinese situation is also offered.Global M42 High Speed Steel Industry Research Report 2016 also focuses on development policies and plans for the industry as well as a consideration of a cost structure analysis. Capacity production, market share analysis, import and export consumption and price cost production value gross margins are discussed.Get Free Sample@A key feature of this report is it focus on major industry players, providing an overview, product specification, product capacity, production price and contact information for Global Top15 companies. This enables end users to gain a comprehensive insight into the structure of the international and Chinese M42 High Speed Steel industry. Development proposals and the feasibility of new investments are also analyzed. Companies and individuals interested in the structure and value of the M42 High Speed Steel industry should consult this report for guidance and direction.The report begins with a brief overview of the Global M42 High Speed Steel market and then moves on to evaluate the key trends of the market. The key trends shaping the dynamics of the Global M42 High Speed Steel market have been scrutinized along with the related current events, which is impacting the market. Drivers, restraints, opportunities, and threats of the Global M42 High Speed Steel market have been analyzed in the report. Moreover, the key segments and the sub-segments that constitutes the market is also explained in the report.Inquiry For Buying@Table of ContentsChapter One M42 High Speed Steel Industry Overview1.1 M42 High Speed Steel Definition(Product Picture and Specifications)1.2 M42 High Speed Steel Classification and Application1.3 M42 High Speed Steel Industry Chain Structure1.4 M42 High Speed Steel Industry Overview1.5 M42 High Speed Steel Industry History1.6 M42 High Speed Steel Industry Competitive Landscape1.7 M42 High Speed Steel Industry International and China Development ComparisonChapter Two M42 High Speed Steel Market Data Analysis2.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers M42 High Speed Steel Price List2.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers M42 High Speed Steel Gross Margin List2.3 2016 Global Key Manufacturers M42 High Speed Steel Capacity and Market Share List2.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers M42 High Speed Steel Production and Market Share List2.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers M42 High Speed Steel Production Value and Market Share ListGet Complete Report With TOC@Chapter Three M42 High Speed Steel Technical Data Analysis3.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers M42 High Speed Steel Product Quality List3.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers M42 High Speed Steel Product Line Capacity and Commercial Production Date3.3 2016 Manufacturing Base(Factory) Global Regional Distribution3.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers M42 High Speed Steel R&D Status and Technology Sources3.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers M42 High Speed Steel Equipment Investment and Performance3.6 2016 Global Key Manufacturers M42 High Speed Steel Raw Materials Sources AnalysisChapter Four M42 High Speed Steel Government Policy and News4.1 Government Related Policy Analysis4.2 Industry News Analysis4.3 M42 High Speed Steel Industry Development TrendAbout Us:MarketResearchStore.com is a single destination for all the industry, company and country reports. We feature large repository of latest industry reports, leading and niche company profiles, and market statistics released by reputed private publishers and public organizations.Contact US:Joel JohnSuite #8138, 3422 SW 15 Street,Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803
Global Anatomical Models Market 2016:3B Scientific, GPI Anatomicals, Laerdal, Honglian Medical Tech

Anatomical Models

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Global Anatomical Models Industry 2016Market Research Report Provides Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis: 3B Scientific, GPI Anatomicals, Laerdal, Honglian Medical Tech, frasaco, Xincheng, Simulaids, A. Algeo, PRODONT-HOLLIGER, Adam, Rouilly, Erler-Zimmer, PRODONT-HOLLIGER & more -with detail like Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base and Competitors.The report provides a basic overview of Anatomical Models industry including definitions, applications and industry chain structure. Global market analysis and Chinese domestic market analysis are provided with a focus on history, developments, trends and competitive landscape of the market. A comparison between the international and Chinese situation is also offered.Global Anatomical Models Industry Research Report 2016 also focuses on development policies and plans for the industry as well as a consideration of a cost structure analysis. Capacity production, market share analysis, import and export consumption and price cost production value gross margins are discussed.Get Free Sample@A key feature of this report is it focus on major industry players, providing an overview, product specification, product capacity, production price and contact information for Global Top15 companies. This enables end users to gain a comprehensive insight into the structure of the international and Chinese Anatomical Models industry. Development proposals and the feasibility of new investments are also analyzed. Companies and individuals interested in the structure and value of the Anatomical Models industry should consult this report for guidance and direction.The report begins with a brief overview of the Global Anatomical Models market and then moves on to evaluate the key trends of the market. The key trends shaping the dynamics of the Global Anatomical Models market have been scrutinized along with the related current events, which is impacting the market. Drivers, restraints, opportunities, and threats of the Global Anatomical Models market have been analyzed in the report. Moreover, the key segments and the sub-segments that constitutes the market is also explained in the report.Inquiry For Buying@Table of ContentsChapter One Anatomical Models Industry Overview1.1 Anatomical Models Definition(Product Picture and Specifications)1.2 Anatomical Models Classification and Application1.3 Anatomical Models Industry Chain Structure1.4 Anatomical Models Industry Overview1.5 Anatomical Models Industry History1.6 Anatomical Models Industry Competitive Landscape1.7 Anatomical Models Industry International and China Development ComparisonChapter Two Anatomical Models Market Data Analysis2.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Anatomical Models Price List2.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Anatomical Models Gross Margin List2.3 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Anatomical Models Capacity and Market Share List2.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Anatomical Models Production and Market Share List2.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Anatomical Models Production Value and Market Share ListGet Complete Report With TOC@Chapter Three Anatomical Models Technical Data Analysis3.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Anatomical Models Product Quality List3.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Anatomical Models Product Line Capacity and Commercial Production Date3.3 2016 Manufacturing Base(Factory) Global Regional Distribution3.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Anatomical Models R&D Status and Technology Sources3.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Anatomical Models Equipment Investment and Performance3.6 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Anatomical Models Raw Materials Sources AnalysisChapter Four Anatomical Models Government Policy and News4.1 Government Related Policy Analysis4.2 Industry News Analysis4.3 Anatomical Models Industry Development TrendAbout Us:MarketResearchStore.com is a single destination for all the industry, company and country reports. We feature large repository of latest industry reports, leading and niche company profiles, and market statistics released by reputed private publishers and public organizations.Contact US:Joel JohnSuite #8138, 3422 SW 15 Street,Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803
Global Tachometer Generators Market 2016:Marsh Bellofram, Baumer Hubner, Baldor, SANYO DENKI, Tamagawa seiki, Herman H Sticht

Tachometer Generators

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https://goo.gl/nEdZ9e

https://goo.gl/i09N6y

Global Tachometer Generators Industry 2016Market Research Report Provides Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis: Marsh Bellofram, Baumer Hubner, Baldor, SANYO DENKI, Tamagawa seiki, Herman H Sticht, FAULHABER, RHEINTACHO MESSTECHNIK, NORIS, BROOK CROMPTON, Weifen Motor & more -with detail like Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base and Competitors.The report provides a basic overview of Tachometer Generators industry including definitions, applications and industry chain structure. Global market analysis and Chinese domestic market analysis are provided with a focus on history, developments, trends and competitive landscape of the market. A comparison between the international and Chinese situation is also offered.Global Tachometer Generators Industry Research Report 2016 also focuses on development policies and plans for the industry as well as a consideration of a cost structure analysis. Capacity production, market share analysis, import and export consumption and price cost production value gross margins are discussed.Get Free Sample@A key feature of this report is it focus on major industry players, providing an overview, product specification, product capacity, production price and contact information for Global Top15 companies. This enables end users to gain a comprehensive insight into the structure of the international and Chinese Tachometer Generators industry. Development proposals and the feasibility of new investments are also analyzed. Companies and individuals interested in the structure and value of the Tachometer Generators industry should consult this report for guidance and direction.The report begins with a brief overview of the Global Tachometer Generators market and then moves on to evaluate the key trends of the market. The key trends shaping the dynamics of the Global Tachometer Generators market have been scrutinized along with the related current events, which is impacting the market. Drivers, restraints, opportunities, and threats of the Global Tachometer Generators market have been analyzed in the report. Moreover, the key segments and the sub-segments that constitutes the market is also explained in the report.Inquiry For Buying@Table of ContentsChapter One Tachometer Generators Industry Overview1.1 Tachometer Generators Definition(Product Picture and Specifications)1.2 Tachometer Generators Classification and Application1.3 Tachometer Generators Industry Chain Structure1.4 Tachometer Generators Industry Overview1.5 Tachometer Generators Industry History1.6 Tachometer Generators Industry Competitive Landscape1.7 Tachometer Generators Industry International and China Development ComparisonChapter Two Tachometer Generators Market Data Analysis2.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Tachometer Generators Price List2.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Tachometer Generators Gross Margin List2.3 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Tachometer Generators Capacity and Market Share List2.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Tachometer Generators Production and Market Share List2.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Tachometer Generators Production Value and Market Share ListGet Complete Report With TOC@Chapter Three Tachometer Generators Technical Data Analysis3.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Tachometer Generators Product Quality List3.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Tachometer Generators Product Line Capacity and Commercial Production Date3.3 2016 Manufacturing Base(Factory) Global Regional Distribution3.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Tachometer Generators R&D Status and Technology Sources3.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Tachometer Generators Equipment Investment and Performance3.6 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Tachometer Generators Raw Materials Sources AnalysisChapter Four Tachometer Generators Government Policy and News4.1 Government Related Policy Analysis4.2 Industry News Analysis4.3 Tachometer Generators Industry Development TrendAbout Us:MarketResearchStore.com is a single destination for all the industry, company and country reports. We feature large repository of latest industry reports, leading and niche company profiles, and market statistics released by reputed private publishers and public organizations.Contact US:Joel JohnSuite #8138, 3422 SW 15 Street,Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803
Global Spirulina Market 2016:DIC, Cyanotech, Parry Nutraceuticals, Hydrolina Biotech, King Dnarmsa, CBN

Spirulina

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https://goo.gl/XBBBhD

Global Spirulina Industry 2016Market Research Report Provides Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis: DIC, Cyanotech, Parry Nutraceuticals, Hydrolina Biotech, King Dnarmsa, CBN, Green-A, Spirin, Chenghai Bao ER, Shenliu, SBD & more -with detail like Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base and Competitors.The report provides a basic overview of Spirulina industry including definitions, applications and industry chain structure. Global market analysis and Chinese domestic market analysis are provided with a focus on history, developments, trends and competitive landscape of the market. A comparison between the international and Chinese situation is also offered.Global Spirulina Industry Research Report 2016 also focuses on development policies and plans for the industry as well as a consideration of a cost structure analysis. Capacity production, market share analysis, import and export consumption and price cost production value gross margins are discussed.Get Free Sample@A key feature of this report is it focus on major industry players, providing an overview, product specification, product capacity, production price and contact information for Global Top15 companies. This enables end users to gain a comprehensive insight into the structure of the international and Chinese Spirulina industry. Development proposals and the feasibility of new investments are also analyzed. Companies and individuals interested in the structure and value of the Spirulina industry should consult this report for guidance and direction.The report begins with a brief overview of the Global Spirulina market and then moves on to evaluate the key trends of the market. The key trends shaping the dynamics of the Global Spirulina market have been scrutinized along with the related current events, which is impacting the market. Drivers, restraints, opportunities, and threats of the Global Spirulina market have been analyzed in the report. Moreover, the key segments and the sub-segments that constitutes the market is also explained in the report.Inquiry For Buying@Table of ContentsChapter One Spirulina Industry Overview1.1 Spirulina Definition(Product Picture and Specifications)1.2 Spirulina Classification and Application1.3 Spirulina Industry Chain Structure1.4 Spirulina Industry Overview1.5 Spirulina Industry History1.6 Spirulina Industry Competitive Landscape1.7 Spirulina Industry International and China Development ComparisonChapter Two Spirulina Market Data Analysis2.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Spirulina Price List2.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Spirulina Gross Margin List2.3 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Spirulina Capacity and Market Share List2.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Spirulina Production and Market Share List2.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Spirulina Production Value and Market Share ListGet Complete Report With TOC@Chapter Three Spirulina Technical Data Analysis3.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Spirulina Product Quality List3.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Spirulina Product Line Capacity and Commercial Production Date3.3 2016 Manufacturing Base(Factory) Global Regional Distribution3.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Spirulina R&D Status and Technology Sources3.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Spirulina Equipment Investment and Performance3.6 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Spirulina Raw Materials Sources AnalysisChapter Four Spirulina Government Policy and News4.1 Government Related Policy Analysis4.2 Industry News Analysis4.3 Spirulina Industry Development TrendAbout Us:MarketResearchStore.com is a single destination for all the industry, company and country reports. We feature large repository of latest industry reports, leading and niche company profiles, and market statistics released by reputed private publishers and public organizations.Contact US:Joel JohnSuite #8138, 3422 SW 15 Street,Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803
Global Plant Extracts Market 2016:Martin Bauer, Aovca, IndenaSPA, Tsumura&Co, Natural Remedies, Naturex

Plant Extracts

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https://goo.gl/Jr1B6T

https://goo.gl/X9Zy8X

Global Plant Extracts Industry 2016Market Research Report Provides Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis: Martin Bauer, Aovca, IndenaSPA, Tsumura&Co, Natural Remedies, Naturex, Sabinsa, Schwabe, Euromed, Provital Group, Bioprex Labs, Rainbow, BGG, Organic Herb Inc, Active Ingredients Group, Gaoke Group, Green-Health, JiaHerb & more -with detail like Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base and Competitors.The report provides a basic overview of Plant Extracts industry including definitions, applications and industry chain structure. Global market analysis and Chinese domestic market analysis are provided with a focus on history, developments, trends and competitive landscape of the market. A comparison between the international and Chinese situation is also offered.Global Plant Extracts Industry Research Report 2016 also focuses on development policies and plans for the industry as well as a consideration of a cost structure analysis. Capacity production, market share analysis, import and export consumption and price cost production value gross margins are discussed.Get Free Sample@A key feature of this report is it focus on major industry players, providing an overview, product specification, product capacity, production price and contact information for Global Top15 companies. This enables end users to gain a comprehensive insight into the structure of the international and Chinese Plant Extracts industry. Development proposals and the feasibility of new investments are also analyzed. Companies and individuals interested in the structure and value of the Plant Extracts industry should consult this report for guidance and direction.The report begins with a brief overview of the Global Plant Extracts market and then moves on to evaluate the key trends of the market. The key trends shaping the dynamics of the Global Plant Extracts market have been scrutinized along with the related current events, which is impacting the market. Drivers, restraints, opportunities, and threats of the Global Plant Extracts market have been analyzed in the report. Moreover, the key segments and the sub-segments that constitutes the market is also explained in the report.Inquiry For Buying@Table of ContentsChapter One Plant Extracts Industry Overview1.1 Plant Extracts Definition(Product Picture and Specifications)1.2 Plant Extracts Classification and Application1.3 Plant Extracts Industry Chain Structure1.4 Plant Extracts Industry Overview1.5 Plant Extracts Industry History1.6 Plant Extracts Industry Competitive Landscape1.7 Plant Extracts Industry International and China Development ComparisonChapter Two Plant Extracts Market Data Analysis2.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Plant Extracts Price List2.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Plant Extracts Gross Margin List2.3 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Plant Extracts Capacity and Market Share List2.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Plant Extracts Production and Market Share List2.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Plant Extracts Production Value and Market Share ListGet Complete Report With TOC@Chapter Three Plant Extracts Technical Data Analysis3.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Plant Extracts Product Quality List3.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Plant Extracts Product Line Capacity and Commercial Production Date3.3 2016 Manufacturing Base(Factory) Global Regional Distribution3.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Plant Extracts R&D Status and Technology Sources3.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Plant Extracts Equipment Investment and Performance3.6 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Plant Extracts Raw Materials Sources AnalysisChapter Four Plant Extracts Government Policy and News4.1 Government Related Policy Analysis4.2 Industry News Analysis4.3 Plant Extracts Industry Development TrendAbout Us:MarketResearchStore.com is a single destination for all the industry, company and country reports. We feature large repository of latest industry reports, leading and niche company profiles, and market statistics released by reputed private publishers and public organizations.Contact US:Joel JohnSuite #8138, 3422 SW 15 Street,Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803
Global Calorimeter Market 2016:TA, Netzsch, Mettler-Toledo, IKA, Malvern, Shimadzu, Setaram, Leco, Parr

Calorimeter

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https://goo.gl/3y4ZWg

Global Calorimeter Industry 2016Market Research Report Provides Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis: TA, Netzsch, Mettler-Toledo, IKA, Malvern, Shimadzu, Setaram, Leco, Parr, HITACHI, Linseis, Kaiyuan, Sundy & more -with detail like Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base and Competitors.The report provides a basic overview of Calorimeter industry including definitions, applications and industry chain structure. Global market analysis and Chinese domestic market analysis are provided with a focus on history, developments, trends and competitive landscape of the market. A comparison between the international and Chinese situation is also offered.Global Calorimeter Industry Research Report 2016 also focuses on development policies and plans for the industry as well as a consideration of a cost structure analysis. Capacity production, market share analysis, import and export consumption and price cost production value gross margins are discussed.Get Free Sample@A key feature of this report is it focus on major industry players, providing an overview, product specification, product capacity, production price and contact information for Global Top15 companies. This enables end users to gain a comprehensive insight into the structure of the international and Chinese Calorimeter industry. Development proposals and the feasibility of new investments are also analyzed. Companies and individuals interested in the structure and value of the Calorimeter industry should consult this report for guidance and direction.The report begins with a brief overview of the Global Calorimeter market and then moves on to evaluate the key trends of the market. The key trends shaping the dynamics of the Global Calorimeter market have been scrutinized along with the related current events, which is impacting the market. Drivers, restraints, opportunities, and threats of the Global Calorimeter market have been analyzed in the report. Moreover, the key segments and the sub-segments that constitutes the market is also explained in the report.Inquiry For Buying@Table of ContentsChapter One Calorimeter Industry Overview1.1 Calorimeter Definition(Product Picture and Specifications)1.2 Calorimeter Classification and Application1.3 Calorimeter Industry Chain Structure1.4 Calorimeter Industry Overview1.5 Calorimeter Industry History1.6 Calorimeter Industry Competitive Landscape1.7 Calorimeter Industry International and China Development ComparisonChapter Two Calorimeter Market Data Analysis2.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Calorimeter Price List2.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Calorimeter Gross Margin List2.3 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Calorimeter Capacity and Market Share List2.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Calorimeter Production and Market Share List2.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Calorimeter Production Value and Market Share ListGet Complete Report With TOC@Chapter Three Calorimeter Technical Data Analysis3.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Calorimeter Product Quality List3.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Calorimeter Product Line Capacity and Commercial Production Date3.3 2016 Manufacturing Base(Factory) Global Regional Distribution3.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Calorimeter R&D Status and Technology Sources3.5 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Calorimeter Equipment Investment and Performance3.6 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Calorimeter Raw Materials Sources AnalysisChapter Four Calorimeter Government Policy and News4.1 Government Related Policy Analysis4.2 Industry News Analysis4.3 Calorimeter Industry Development TrendAbout Us:MarketResearchStore.com is a single destination for all the industry, company and country reports. We feature large repository of latest industry reports, leading and niche company profiles, and market statistics released by reputed private publishers and public organizations.Contact US:Joel JohnSuite #8138, 3422 SW 15 Street,Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803
Pipe Threading Machine Market is Expected to Witness Significant Growth Over the Period 2016 - 2026

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/11326

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/11326

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/

Pipe threading machines are the tools used to thread the ends of a pipe in order to mount the pipefittings and joints such as elbows, tees, flanges and reducers among other pipefittings. The pipe threading machines are widely used across different industries such as process, mining, construction among other industries where the piping and instrumentation is an integral part of the industries. It is also used for the small plumbing works in the household. In the current scenario, there is an increased demand for automated tools in the industries to increase work efficiency, the availability of automated pipe threading machines is further prospering the global market for pipe threading machine.Request to view Sample Report @The global pipe threading machine market is primarily driven by the increasing mining activities and growth in the process industries such as chemicals, petrochemicals and pharmaceuticals where the piping and instrumentation is a core part and requires maintenance time to time. The demand from the construction industry is also expected to propel the market for pipe threading machines with new commercial and residential building being built in the developed and developing regions. There are availability of new pipe threading machine in the market capable of threading and cutting the pipe using a single tool, further it can be used for threading of different sizes of pipes. However, the regular requirement of maintenance for pipe threading machines might pose as a restraint for the market.Global Pipe Threading Machine Market: Market SegmentationBased on operation, the global pipe threading machine market can be segmented into:ManualAutomaticBased on operation, the global pipe threading machine market can be segmented into:Pillar TypeBed TypeBased on end-use industries, the global pipe threading machine market can be segmented into:MiningChemicalPharmaceuticalsConstructionBased on the geographic regions, global pipe threading machine market is segmented into seven key market segments namely North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, APEJ, Japan, and Middle East & Africa. Among the aforementioned regions, the APEJ market dominates the global market for pipe threading machine due to the rapid industrialization in the region. The dominance of mining industries in the North America and Latina America region can be attributed to the growth of pipe threading machines market in these regions. The construction activities in the Middle East region is expected to propel demand for pipe threading machines in the Middle East region. Overall, the global market for pipe threading machine will register a single digit CAGR over the forecast period.Request to view Table of content @Some of the key players identified in the global pipe threading machine market are W.W. Grainger, Inc., United Machine Tools India, Superior Threading Inc., Industrial Machinery Corporation, Hangzhou Hongli Pipe Machinery Co., Ltd., and Wheeler-Rex Inc. among others.The research report presents a comprehensive assessment of the market and contains thoughtful insights, facts, historical data, and statistically supported and industry-validated market data. It also contains projections using a suitable set of assumptions and methodologies. The research report provides analysis and information according to categories such as market segments, geographies, types, technology and applications.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) 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. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each PMR Syndicated Research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemical, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With a wider scope and stratified research methodology, our syndicated reports strive to serve clients and satisfy their overall research requirement.For information regarding permissions, contact:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway,7th FloorNew York City, NY 10007United StatesTel: +1 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWebsite:media@persistencemarketresearch.com
Organic Fertilizer Market to Register a Strong Growth By 2026

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/11950

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/11950

With increase in demand for green products and pollution free agricultural products, the term organic has become an irresistible trend of modern agriculture and is creating a buzz in the global fertilizers market. Rapid development of organic agriculture coupled with augmenting demand for organic food is expected to increase the demand for organic fertilizers.Request to view Sample Report @Organic fertilizers are derived or made from human waste, animal waste or vegetable matter (usually rotten or non-consumable by humans). Naturally-occurring organic fertilizers consist of animal matter from meat processing industries, peat, slurries, manures and guano. As organic fertilizers are extracted from naturally-occurring substances, the risk of environmental damage is low. Use of organic fertilizers also reduces the risk of diseases in humans, as many fertilizers find their way to human food. Prominent organic fertilizers available in the market include blood meal, bone meal, composites, earthworm castings, bat guano, fish emulsion, alfalfa meal, feather meal and rock phosphate. Selection of organic fertilizers is usually done after determining the nutrients required from the crop.The global market for organic fertilizer has witnessed steady growth in the recent past owing to government support and favorable perception among farmers and end-users. The efficiency of organic fertilizers is slow and long time. As compared to chemical fertilizers, the production of organic fertilizers has less investment and high benefits. This factor is expected to augment the global organic fertilizers market over the forecast period. Owing to the eco-friendly nature of organic fertilizers, governments in many countries have subsidised the prices, making it easier for farmers to use it.Government and environmental policies minimizing wastage and reduction in the consumption of non-biodegradable raw materials has led to an increased production of organic fertilizers. Regulations are also emphasizing more on human safety, so are supporting markets like organic fertilizers to reduce risk to human life and the environment.The organic fertilizers market is dependent upon the weather (rains/water supply) of that region or area; hence, weather conditions can hamper the growth of organic fertilizer market. Another concern with organic fertilizers is that a majority of them have lesser nutrient ratio than chemical fertilizers, which can massively impact farm produce.Request to view Table of content @The global organic fertilizer market can be segmented into seven geographical locations -- North America, Latin America, Western and Eastern Europe, APEJ, Japan and Middle East and Africa. North America and Europe are expected to dominate the global organic fertilizers market throughout the forecast period. The market in North America and Europe is anticipated to grow robustly owing to conducive climatic conditions and the ample availability of land for farming. In the APAC region, strong government policies and rules are expected to contribute to the growth of organic fertilizer market. Owing to large agricultural land in India, the organic fertilizers market is anticipated to increase at a significant rate over the forecast period.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Cage Free Eggs Market is Expected to Gain Popularity Across the Globe

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/11086

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/11086

Cage free eggs or eggs labeled as cage free are those eggs which are laid by hens that are allowed to roam in a room or in an open area. Except to the feed products provided to them, they are also allowed to eat wild plants and insects. These hens are free to engage in some of their natural behaviors which may include walking and nesting. Cage free eggs are gaining importance as the hens which are in cage are given high antibiotics while cage free hens lay eggs naturally. Thus naturally laid eggs are protein rich and healthy option which is expected to drive the market growth over the forecast period.View Sample Report @Cage free eggs market has been segmented on the basis of size which includes medium size and jumbo size. Among both of these segment medium size is expected to contribute major share in terms of value as it is more economical. However, jumbo size is expected to show a favorable growth over the forecast period.Cage free eggs market is also segmented on the basis of type which includes cage free white and cage free brown. Cage free white egg is expected to contribute major share in terms of revenue during the forecast period. However, cage free white is expected to show a robust growth over the forecast period. In food industry consumers are getting more inclined towards brown, as such brown bread, brown sugar and others. Thus this trend may support the demand of cage free brown egg over the forecast period.Consumption of cage free eggs are considered to be safer option as that of caged hens. This is because caged hens have a high chances of being infected by salmonella. Consumption of these types of eggs has become a most common cause of hospitalization and deaths in the North America. This has also led the people to opt for cage free eggs driving the market growth in North America region. In the U.S. consumers are concerned for what they are eating and from where it has been come from. This is expected to be a driving factor for the market growth in the country. In Canada there is a high demand coming from restaurants and even household consumers which is further expected to fuel the market growth in the country.Many companies in the region has decided to use cage free eggs in manufacturing their products which is expected to support the demand of cage free eggs in the country. For instance major food and retail chains such as McDonald's, Costco Wholesale Corporation and others has been declaring a shift to buying only cage free eggs. In addition McDonalds has decided switch completely to cage free eggs in the U.S. and Canada over the next decade. Moreover, recently other companies such as DENNYS CORP a major franchised full-service restaurant chains , in January 2016 announced that they will source and serve hundred percent cage-free eggs in all of its U.S. restaurants by 2026. In January 2016 Quiznos another quick service restaurant announced that they are planning to complete the transition to 100 percent cage-free eggs by 2025 in all of their restaurants present in North America.The growing sensitivity among customers to animal welfare issues in the region is expected to drive the market growth over the forecast period. Rising demand from various quick service restaurants, confectionery manufacturers and retail chains is further expected to support the demand of cage free eggs in the near future. Moreover increased government intervention such as in California, a law has been passed according to which egg-laying hens should be given enough space to stretch, turn around and flap their wings, is further expected to support market demand during the forecast period.Request TOC (desk of content material), Figures and Tables of the report:Some of the key players operating in cage free egg market includes Eggland's Best, LLC, Rabbit River Farms, Herbruck's Poultry Ranch, Inc., Rembrandt Enterprises, NESTFRESH EGGS, INC. Hillandale Farms among others.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a U.S.-based full-service mar-ket intelligence firm specializing in syndicated research, custom re-search, and consulting services. PMR boasts market research exper-tise across the Healthcare, Chemicals and Materials, Technology and Media, Energy and Mining, Food and Beverages, Semiconductor and Electronics, Consumer Goods, and Shipping and Transportation in-dustries. The company draws from its multi-disciplinary capabilities and high-pedigree team of analysts to share data that precisely corre-sponds to clients business needs.PMR stands committed to bringing more accuracy and speed to cli-ents business decisions. From ready-to-purchase market research reports to customized research solutions, PMRs engagement models are highly flexible without compromising on its deep-seated research values.ContactPersistence Market Research Pvt. Ltd305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.com
Pyridine Market is Expected Accounting for US$ 1,741.4 Million by 2025

Pyridine Market, Pyridine

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/pyridine-market/toc

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/checkout/3521

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The global pyridine market is estimated to reach US$ 1,741.4 Mn by 2025 from US$ 786.4 Mn in 2015.Pyridine is a toxic and soluble flammable liquid base with a distinct, strong odor. It is often considered the parent compound of several naturally occurring organic compounds. It is the preferred choice as a precursor to agrochemicals and pharmaceuticals. Initially, pyridine was extracted from coal tar or obtained as a by-product of coal gasification. The process was very expensive and inefficient as coal tar constituted only 0.10.2% of pyridine after extraction. Currently, pyridine and its derivatives are produced synthetically. The most commonly used reactions for pyridine synthesis are Chichibabin synthesis, Bonnemann cyclization, and Cobalt-catalyzed alkyne-nitrile cyclotrimerization, etc.By region, the market in Asia Pacific has been estimated to account for 51.6% volume share of the overall pyridine market by 2015 end, followed by Europe and North America. Due to increase in usage of pyridine and its derivatives in agrochemicals and pharmaceuticals segments in Asia Pacific, the pyridine market in the region is projected to expand at a higher than average CAGR of 9.9% over 20152025 in terms of revenue. The U.S. pyridine market, which has been estimated to account for 89.5% revenue share of the overall market in North America by 2015 end, is expected to be driven by increasing adoption of pyridine and its derivatives in chemicals and pharmaceuticals segments. The pyridine market in the Middle East & Africa is estimated to register increased revenue due to a growth of pharmaceuticals and chemicals segments in the region. Europe market is anticipated to witness lower revenue growth in the coming years as compared to other regions due to the economic downturn in the region.Globally, pyridine N-oxide segment volume is estimated to expand at a lower than average CAGR of 7.4% over 20152025. Demand for 2-Methyl-5-Ethylpyridine (MEP) and gamma-picoline is expected grow significantly due to increasing application of these product types in chemicals segment. Alpha picoline finds wide application as a solvent in chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and food industries. The segment is projected to exhibit moderate growth over the forecast period. Key growth contributor for alpha picoline segment is 2-vinylpyridine, which is used as a raw material for styrene-butadiene-2-vinylpyridine terpolymer latexes (SBV latexes). Beta picoline is used to produce Vitamin B3. In terms of value, beta picoline segment is projected to experience significant growth rate over the forecast period. This is mainly attributed to rising demand for niacin in developing regions such as APAC and Middle East & Africa.Request to view Table of Content @Asia Pacific is the most attractive region in terms of CAGR and market share in the global pyridine market. India has been estimated to account for 24.4 % of the total APAC pyridine market by 2015 end due to expected increase in domestic pyridine production by 40%. In terms of value, gamma-picoline segment is expected to experience the highest growth rate during the forecast period in the Asia Pacific market. The Middle East & Africa accounts for the smallest market share. However, it is expected to expand at a CAGR of 9.9% in terms of value over the forecast period. Food segment is expected to expand at the highest CAGR in terms of volume during the forecast period in the Middle East & Africa market. Pyridine manufacturers are strengthening their presence in the regulated markets of Japan, North America and Europe as well as in key emerging markets. They are also focusing on local tie-ups and out-licensing of local companies in order to strengthen their regional presence.To Buy Full Report for a Single User @By Product Type: Pyridine N-oxide Alpha Picoline Beta Picoline Gamma Picoline 2-Methyl-5-Ethylpyridine (MEP)By Application: Agrochemicals Pharmaceuticals Chemicals Food Others (Dyestuffs, Alcohol)By Region: North America Europe APAC The Middle East & Africa Latin AmericaAbout UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a full-service market intelligence firm specializing in syndicated research, custom research, and consulting services. PMR boasts market research expertise across the Healthcare, Chemicals and Materials, Technology and Media, Energy and Mining, Food and Beverages, Semiconductor and Electronics, Consumer Goods, and Shipping and Transportation industries. The company draws from its multi-disciplinary capabilities and high-pedigree team of analysts to share data that precisely corresponds to clients business needs.PMR stands committed to bringing more accuracy and speed to clients business decisions. From ready-to-purchase market research reports to customized research solutions, PMRs engagement models are highly flexible without compromising on its deep-seated research values.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Market Study on Hemp Protein market

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/11983

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/11983

Hemp protein refers to the industrial by product of hemp seeds. Hemp seeds have a composition of approximately 45 percent oil, 35 percent protein and 10 percent carbohydrates. Hemp seed is very eco- friendly, as it can be grown without using herbicides, fungicides, and pesticides. Also, it can efficiently absorbs carbon dioxide. Hemp protein is a rich source of all essential amino acids that are necessary to meet the protein needs of humans. Hemp protein cannot be considered as a pure protein supplement owing to its composition of 10% fatty acids and higher fiber content. Owing to the higher fiber content, hemp proteins lowers the risk for constipation, heart disease, type-2 diabetes, and diverticular disease. Hemp proteins are easily digestible, and are used as an active ingredient in shakes and smoothies. Health benefits of hemp proteins includes anti-fatigue properties, enhances immune system, and have kidney protective effects. The growth of hemp protein market is propelled by improved economic conditions coupled with increase in household wealth, due to which consumers have shown willingness to spend on food products that are rich in hemp proteins so as to maintain their health.View Sample Report @Owing to the high nutritional benefits of hemp protein, the market is expected to witness modest growth in coming years. The growth of hemp protein market is driven by increasing demand of hempseed oil, growing health consciousness among consumers, rising demand for nutritional food products, new product developments, and improved supply chain to ensure the product availability. Hemp protein market is characterized by the stringent regulations laid by various regulatory bodies that govern and inspect the food products and issues guidelines for food processing.Hemp protein market is segmented on the basis of form, application and geography. Based upon form, hemp protein market is segmented into powdered form, and liquid form. Hemp protein in the powdered form is expected to witness high demand over the forecast period. Based upon application, hemp protein market is segmented into pharmaceutical, food & beverages, cosmetics, industrial, and others. Food & beverages is expected to be the largest application segment in global hemp protein market. High demand of hemp protein in food & beverages segment can be attributed to its high fiber content. Rise in the health concerns among consumers escalates the demand of hemp protein over the forecast period. Pharmaceutical application segment is poised to witness fastest growth in the global hemp protein market owing to the increased application scope in ailment of various cognitive diseases, diabetes, and health diseases. Owing to the combination of essential fatty acids and fiber, it is used in cosmetic products to maintain healthy skin and hair.Based on geography, hemp protein market is segmented into seven different regions namely North America, Middle East and Africa, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, and Japan. North America is expected to lead the regional market for hemp proteins during the reviewed period. The high market share can be attributed to the strong demand from U.S. Western Europe is expected to hold second largest market share in global hemp protein market over the forecast period while Asia Pacific is projected to be the fastest growing region in the global hemp protein market owing to the increased demand from China and India. Leading manufacturers in the hemp protein market focus to leverage opportunities posed by emerging economies like India and China to expand their revenue base.Request TOC (desk of content material), Figures and Tables of the report:Some of the key players in the hemp protein market include Navitas Naturals, Hemp Oil Canada, North American Hemp & Grain Co., Hempco, Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods, Cosucra Groupe Warcoing SA, CHII Naturally Pure Hemp, GFR Ingredients Inc., and Green Source Organics among others.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a U.S.-based full-service mar-ket intelligence firm specializing in syndicated research, custom re-search, and consulting services. PMR boasts market research exper-tise across the Healthcare, Chemicals and Materials, Technology and Media, Energy and Mining, Food and Beverages, Semiconductor and Electronics, Consumer Goods, and Shipping and Transportation in-dustries. The company draws from its multi-disciplinary capabilities and high-pedigree team of analysts to share data that precisely corre-sponds to clients business needs.PMR stands committed to bringing more accuracy and speed to cli-ents business decisions. From ready-to-purchase market research reports to customized research solutions, PMRs engagement models are highly flexible without compromising on its deep-seated research values.ContactPersistence Market Research Pvt. Ltd305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Future of Global Pecan Market: 2016 - 2024

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/12652

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/12652

Pecans are edible tree-nut crop which is cultivated for its delicious and buttery yet rich flavour, which contains minerals, vitamins, antioxidants, and health beneficial nutrients. Pecan contains 690 calories/100g which makes them good source of energy, regular consumption of pecan helps to decrease cholesterol level in the blood. Pecan contain polyphenolic antioxidant ellagic acid, vitamin E, beta-carotene, lutein and zea-xanthin, which makes them rich source of many phyto-chemicals and helps to remove toxic like oxygen-free radicals that helps to decrease the risk of diseases like cancer as well as help to prevent body from various infections.Pecan mainly produced in Georgia, followed by New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona. According to National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), in 2014, Georgia produced 76 million pounds of pecan. Whereas, New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona produced 67 million pounds, 61 million pounds, 21 million pounds of pecan, which is 17% low from previous year for Georgia, and 7% for New Mexico and Arizona.View Sample Report @According to FAS, in 2014, The U.S. exports of pecan increased by 28% in comparison to previous year. In 2014, the U.S. exports of pecan was valued more than US$ 445 million and imports are valued at US$ 370.6 million which is 52% higher than previous year. In 2014, Canada was largest market for shelled pecans valued at more than US$ 45 million. In 2015, Mexico produced 270,535.4 Mn pounds of pecan, which is 400,000 lbs higher than previous year.According to USDA's Economic Research Service, in 2014, per capita consumption of pecan was ranging from 0.3 pounds to 0.6 pounds.Global pecan market is segmented on the basis of application and region. Based on the application, global pecan market is segmented into bakery, snacks, beverages, confectionary, and others. Among the application segments bakery and confectionery products collectively contribute to more than 50.0% market share. On the basis of region, global pecan market is segmented into five regions, North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa.The factors driving the pecan market are high nutritional value of pecan nuts, increasing focus towards preventive care, consumers are rapidly shifting towards consumption of healthy food. Increasing urge of the consumers for living a healthy lifestyle, coupled with increased usage of edible nuts as an ingredient by various food industries such as bakery & confectionery, dairy, snacks and others. Increasing concern regarding side effects of chemicals and synthetic additives used in food and beverages is fuelling demand for natural alternatives like pecan in the market. However, lack of product quality standard and uniform packaging and quality standards will act as a barrier for global pecan market. In recent years, pecan industry is dealing instability due to uneven supply.The global pecan market is anticipated to expand at a healthy CAGR in terms of value and volume, during the forecast period (20162024). Currently, the major trends witnessed in the global pecan market are: increased consumption of nut based spreads and shifting consumer preference towards plant based beverages. Pecan provides a good and easy option for snacking, different coated, flavoured and seasoned pecans are available in retail market.Request TOC (desk of content material), Figures and Tables of the report:Some of the key participating player in global pecan market are Pecan Producers International, Missouri Northern Pecan Growers, Linwood Nursery, Navarro Pecan Company Inc., The Green Valley Pecan Company, SA Pecans, Kalahari Desert Products (Pty) Ltd., Hudson Pecan Company, and others.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a U.S.-based full-service mar-ket intelligence firm specializing in syndicated research, custom re-search, and consulting services. PMR boasts market research exper-tise across the Healthcare, Chemicals and Materials, Technology and Media, Energy and Mining, Food and Beverages, Semiconductor and Electronics, Consumer Goods, and Shipping and Transportation in-dustries. The company draws from its multi-disciplinary capabilities and high-pedigree team of analysts to share data that precisely corre-sponds to clients business needs.PMR stands committed to bringing more accuracy and speed to cli-ents business decisions. From ready-to-purchase market research reports to customized research solutions, PMRs engagement models are highly flexible without compromising on its deep-seated research values.ContactPersistence Market Research Pvt. Ltd305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.com
Fillings and Toppings Market is Expected to Gain Popularity Across the Globe

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/12721

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/12721

Fillings and toppings are mainly used in the confectionary products, beverage applications, dairy products and desserts. Fillings and toppings are two different things which are used to enhance the appearance, taste, flavor and consistency of the product.View Sample Report @Different types of food use different fillings or toppings depending on the nature of the food. Depending of the type of topical the market is segmented into Dairy food and Bakery food fillings and toppings.Dairy food fillings and toppingsButtercreamIce-creamChocolate sauceOthersBakery Food fillings and toppingsVegetarian fillings and toppingsNon-vegetarian fillings and toppingsOthersFilling and topping market is mainly driven by change of eating habits, disposable income and increase in the demand of dairy and bakery products, high consumption of junk food are leading and driving the filling and topping market. Rise in the snaking habit in young population is also one of the reasons for driving the filling and topping market. In some cases, the shelf life of the product or eatable is increased till certain limit which is one of the key factor for driving the filling and topping market. Other important factor that increases the growth of the filling and topping market is use of low calorie filling or use of low sugar toppings on the food products for the health conscious consumers. Non-genetically modified organisms are used in the bakery industry nowadays which is driving the filling and topping market due to health oriented food consumers.Filling and topping market is segmented depending upon the type and application of the filling and topping.On the basis of type, the topping can be done with syrup (chocolate/ fruit), sauces, nuts, fruits, creams, sprinklers and other toppings. Similarly, filling can be done with fruits, vegetables, chicken, fish and other eatables. Sometimes the combination of filling and toppings is used depending on the type of product and consumers choice. Fruit flavor segment is on the high demand in filling and topping market, also nut filling and topping has seen rising since couple of years and expected to grow in near future.On the basis of application, it can used in different food types like confectionary products, bakery products, dairy products, convenience foods and beverages etc. Each of the topping and filling varies depending on the choice of the consumer as well as the type of the product.Filling and Topping market is further segmented depending on the basis of regions as, Europe followed by Asia-Pacific. European countries like Germany, Italy, France and United Kingdom seem to drive the market for the Europe due to increase in demand for fillings and toppings in bakery products. Asia-Pacific is also seen to grow with highest CAGR due to rise in population, per capita income, rapid growth in technologies and increase in market opportunities for dairy and bakery industries. North America is one of the dominant market for the bakery products in terms of consumption of the products. Latin America and Africa are some of upcoming countries in the filling and topping market.Request TOC (desk of content material), Figures and Tables of the report:The fillings and toppings market is dominated by players like Cargill, Archer Daniels Midland Company, Barry Callebaut, Tate & Lyle PLC, Agrana, Associated British Foods plc, Tech Food Sdn Bhd., EFCO Products, Inc., Dawn Food Products, Inc. Baker Food Processors Ltd., Trisco Foods etc.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a U.S.-based full-service mar-ket intelligence firm specializing in syndicated research, custom re-search, and consulting services. PMR boasts market research exper-tise across the Healthcare, Chemicals and Materials, Technology and Media, Energy and Mining, Food and Beverages, Semiconductor and Electronics, Consumer Goods, and Shipping and Transportation in-dustries. The company draws from its multi-disciplinary capabilities and high-pedigree team of analysts to share data that precisely corre-sponds to clients business needs.PMR stands committed to bringing more accuracy and speed to cli-ents business decisions. From ready-to-purchase market research reports to customized research solutions, PMRs engagement models are highly flexible without compromising on its deep-seated research values.ContactPersistence Market Research Pvt. Ltd305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Cellular Imaging Market Is Expected to Witness a Steady Growth By 2020

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/3217

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/3217

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Cellular imaging is a technology used to detect and analyze organelles and macromolecules with the help of microscopy and computer programming. It also helps in measuring properties of cells including shape, size and protein presence. Cellular imaging also helps in knowing biomolecules nature. Confocal laser scanning microscopy, fluroscence resonance energy transfer and multiphoton are some of the advanced cellular imaging techniques which helps in understanding molecular and functional systems in the cell. Hospitals, academic institutions, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology companies uses cellular imaging systems as an important tool for drug discovery, research and diagnosis. Cellular imaging also helps in generating high throughput mode to discover the biomarkers and drug target candidates. Microscopic and macroscopic techniques are two types of intravital cellular imaging technologies.Request to view Sample Report @North America is the largest market for cellular imaging followed by Europe due to increasing incidence of cancer and rising number of R&D activities. Asia is expected to experience high growth rate in next few years due to rising government investments for cell based research activities. In addition, growing demand for outsourcing of drug discovery services is also fuelling the growth of cellular imaging market in Asia.In recent times there is increased use of cellular imaging due to increasing cancer treatment and diagnostics. Improved accuracy of cellular analysis, cellular imaging and rise in government funding for cell based research activities are some of the key factors driving the growth of global cellular imaging market. In addition, growing healthcare and medical spending is also fuelling the growth of cellular imaging market. However, huge capital requirements and lack of skilled personnel for carrying out the high content screening process are some of the major factors restraining the growth of global cellular imaging market.Availability of less number of skilled and knowledgeable professionals poses major challenge for the global cellular imaging market. Adoption of cell analysis for cell identification and cell signaling pathways and rising number of contract research organization are some of the key opportunities for the global cellular imaging market.Request to view Table of content @Some of the major companies operating in global cellular imaging market are Agilent Technologies, Inc., Beckton, Dickinson and Company, Danaher Corporation, Olympus Corporation, GE Healthcare, Promega Corporation and Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Market study on expected growth for Cell Separation Technologies by 2020

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/3225

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/3225

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com

Cell separation technologies are used to separate cells from group of various cells. The separations of cells are based on their physical properties such as shape, size and protein expression. Cell separation techniques play a vital role in the treatment of chronic diseases, such as AIDS and cancer. In addition, it is widely used in stem cell research and cancer research.Request to view Sample Report @The global cell separation technologies market is categorized based on various types of technology and by applications. The technology segment is further sub-segmented into gradient centrifugation, Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorting (FACS) and Magnetic Activated Cell Sorting (MACS). MACS is most commonly used cell separation technology. The application segment includes stem cell research, immunology research, neuroscience research and cancer research. Stem cell research is key application segment of the global cell separation technologies market.In terms of geographic, North America dominates the global cell separation technologies market due to improved research infrastructure. In addition, increased government funding in life science arena is also supporting in growth of the cell separation technologies market in the region. The U.S. represents the largest market for cell separation technologies followed by Canada in North America. However, Asia is expected to show high growth rates in the next five years in global cell separation technologies market due to improving healthcare infrastructure. In addition, increasing prevalence of chronic diseases is also supporting in the growth of cell separation technologies market in Asia. China and India are expected to be the fastest growing cell separation technologies markets in Asia.In recent time, increasing prevalence of chronic diseases and increased cell therapy based research activities are some of the major drivers for global cell separation technologies market. In addition, increased government spending in biotechnology area and advancement in separation technologies are also supporting in growth of global cell separation technologies market. However, lack of skilled healthcare professionals and regulatory issues obstructs the growth of global cell separation technologies market. Increased demand of stem cells in stem cell therapy develops opportunity for the global cell separation technologies market. Rising focus of manufacturing companies on clinical research is key trend for global cell separation technologies market.Request to view Table of content @Some of the major companies operating in the global cell separation technologies market are Terumo BCT, Inc., STEMCELL Technologies, Inc., pluriSelect GmbH, Miltenyi Biotec GmbH, Merck Millipore, Life Technologies Corporation and BD Biosciences.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Bone Marrow Transplant Market to Approach 96,099 Units by 2021

Bone Marrow Transplant Market, Bone Marrow Transplant, Bone Marrow

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/bone-marrow-transplantation-market/toc

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/checkout/4288

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Revenue from the global bone marrow transplant market is anticipated to expand at a CAGR of 4.1% during the forecast period. By procedure type, the market is divided into segments viz. autologous bone marrow transplant and allogeneic bone marrow transplant. Allogeneic bone marrow transplant procedure segment accounted for a highest revenue share of 63.4% in 2014, and revenue from this segment is expected to expand at CAGR of 4.4%, thereby accounting for market share to 65.7%. However, in terms of volume, the autologous bone marrow transplant procedure segment is expected to continue to lead the global bone marrow transplant market as a result of increasing adoption of the procedure owing to low chances of side effects. On the basis of disease indications, the leukemia segment is expected to remain the leading segment and is expected to be valued at US$ 2,679.6 Mn by the end of 2021. By disease indication, lymphoma segment currently ranks second in terms of both value and volume.By end user, the market is segmented into hospitals, multispecialty clinics, and ambulatory surgical centers (ASC). Among these, hospital end user segment leads the global bone marrow transplant market, accounting for over 91% volume share of global bone marrow transplant market in 2014. This is partly attributed to requirement for advanced healthcare infrastructure for conducting the procedure. The multispecialty clinics segment is expected to register highest CAGR of 4.8% during the forecast period, with 1.4X increase in procedural count.Market growth is primarily driven by factors such as global increase in prevalence of blood cancers, expansion of bone marrow transplant registry, growing investment in logistic services, and improvement in survival rate after treatment. Being a procedure with the likelihood of highest success rate for the treatment of leukemia and other blood cancers, adoption of bone marrow transplant procedures is increasing, and is expected to fuel market growth to a significant extent over the forecast period. However, high cost of the treatment, scarcity of bone marrow donors, and uncertainty of reimbursement in several developing countries are factors expected to hamper growth of the global bone marrow transplant market over the forecast period.This report covers trends in the global market as well as trends for each segment, and offers analysis of market potential. Globally, the market in Europe is expected to remain dominant among other markets in the global bone marrow transplant market, accounting for over 59% revenue share. This is attributed to high density of bone marrow transplant centers in the region and expanding bone marrow registries. The market in Latin America is anticipated to witness rapid increase growth in terms of volume owing to high number of potential candidates for the procedure.Request to view Table of Content @The report begins with the evolution of the bone marrow transplant procedure, offering an overview of the global bone marrow transplant market in terms of value and volume. Comparative analysis of bone marrow transplant centers and number of procedures being conducted annually in regions such as North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, and Middle East & Africa explains the reasons for gaps in the market.To Buy Full Report for a Single User @Key market players covered in this report include Lonza Group Ltd., Merck Millipore Corporation, Sanofi-Aventis LLC, AllCells LLC, STEMCELL Technologies, and American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) Inc.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a full-service market intelligence firm specializing in syndicated research, custom research, and consulting services. PMR boasts market research expertise across the Healthcare, Chemicals and Materials, Technology and Media, Energy and Mining, Food and Beverages, Semiconductor and Electronics, Consumer Goods, and Shipping and Transportation industries. The company draws from its multi-disciplinary capabilities and high-pedigree team of analysts to share data that precisely corresponds to clients business needs.PMR stands committed to bringing more accuracy and speed to clients business decisions. From ready-to-purchase market research reports to customized research solutions, PMRs engagement models are highly flexible without compromising on its deep-seated research values.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Organic Peroxide Market : Global Market Snapshot by 2026

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/11704

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/11704

An organic compound that is having two oxygen atoms together is known as an organic peroxide. Organic peroxide undergoes self-accelerating decomposition and thus, result in rapid burning and explosive decomposition. Organic peroxide is available in various forms including solid, pastes or liquids. Few materials such as mineral spirits (odourless in nature), water and some of the phthalate esters do not react with organic peroxide. These materials are used to dilute organic peroxide. Diluted organic peroxides offer stability when exposed to physical shock or heat, as compared to the undiluted organic peroxides. Moreover, diluted organic peroxides are safer to handle, produce and use for further applications. In addition, organic peroxide is used as curing agent, high polymer initiator, cross-linking agent, accelerator, catalyst, hardener, activator and promoter. However, usage of activator and accelerator needs to be checked as these substances might result in accident, when mixed with organic peroxide.Request to view Sample Report @Organic peroxide application as a chemical in various industries has increased significantly in the recent past. Globally, companies are engaged in development of efficient organic peroxide solutions catering to the varied needs of consumers across different applications of organic peroxide. For instance, Arkema Inc. offers a range of organic peroxide under Luperox Solar to ensure fast crosslinking of encapsulating resins. Rubber and plastic industry are among the top users of organic peroxide. Owing to increasing research and development leading towards product development, the organic peroxide market is expected to witness significant growth in the next five to six years.Organic peroxide market segmentation includes organic peroxide classes, application and region. On the basis of organic peroxide classes, the segmentation includes ketone peroxides, dialkyl peroxides, diacyl peroxides, peroxyesters (peresters), hydroperoxides, peroxydicarbonates (percarbonates) and peroxyketals. Based on various applications, the organic peroxide market is segmented into paints, coatings and adhesives, construction, consumer goods, construction, cosmetics, automotive and transportation, packaging and paper, plastics and chemicals, electrical and electronics and renewable energy.Geographically, organic peroxides market is segmented into Western Europe, North America, Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific excluding Japan, Japan, Latin America, and Middle East and Africa (MEA). Asia Pacific excluding Japan is expected to witness significant growth in the near future. This is attributed to rising demand for organic peroxide in packaging and paper along with chemical industry. Also, China is anticipated to account for maximum demand for organic peroxide in Asia Pacific region. Rising demand for organic peroxides in applications such as adhesives, coatings and plastics primarily in North America is bolstering the market growth, which is expected to be dominant over the next five to six years.Increasing demand for renewable raw materials owing to demand for clean and safe environment as well as product development is fuelling the organic peroxide market growth. In addition, growing chemical industry in countries such as China, Indonesia and India is anticipated to bolster the demand for organic peroxide in the next five to six years. Advancements in processing industry are expected to fuel the organic peroxide market growth in the near future. In addition, industralisation is one of the prominent factor leading towards growing demand for paper and textiles, coating adhesives, and plastic and chemical.Safety, handling and transportation of organic peroxide is a major concern restricting the market growth. However, companies are focused on developing varied packaging options for organic peroxide handling in order to avoid any hazardous while transportation.Request to view Table of content @Some of the players in the organic peroxides market include Arkema SA, Akzo Nobel N.V., Vanderbilt Chemicals, LLC, Suzhou Hualun Chemical Company Ltd, Akpa Kimya Ambalaj Sanayi Ve Ticaret Ltd STI, Novichem, United Initiators, Pergan GmbH, MPI Chemie BV and Solvay SA. Developing smooth and safe supply chain resulting in less lead times is a key focus area for organic peroxide companies across the globe.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Viral Molecular Diagnostics Market Is Expecting Worldwide Growth By 2020  Persistence Market Research Study

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Molecular diagnostics refers to a technique used to detect and identify the presence of genetic material or proteins associated with a specific health condition or disease. Viral molecular diagnostic helps in diagnosis of infectious diseases caused by virus. Viral molecular diagnostics has varied applications in hospitals, academics institutions, laboratories and others. On the basis of application, viral molecular diagnostics can be segmented into infectious diseases, genetics, blood screening, microbiology and others. On the basis of infectious diseases, viral molecular diagnostics market can be segmented into hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) human papillomavirus (HPV) and others. On the basis of technology, viral molecular diagnostics market can be segmented into polymerase chain reaction (PCR), isothermal nucleic acid amplification technology (INAAT), microarrays, in situ hybridization and others.Request to view Sample Report @North America, followed by Europe, has the largest market for viral molecular diagnostics due to developed healthcare infrastructure, accessibility and affordability of diagnostic tests for viral infectious diseases in this region. Asia is expected to show high growth rate in the viral molecular diagnostics market in next few years due to high incidence of viral infectious diseases and rise in awareness about treatments and disease diagnosis in the region.Increasing demand for advanced molecular diagnostic tests, rise in the incidence for viral infection diseases, technological advancement in molecular diagnostics are expected to drive the market for viral molecular diagnostics. In addition, rise in awareness about viral infections and available diagnostic tests for viral infectious diseases are expected to drive the market for viral molecular diagnostics. However, lack of skilled professionals and high cost of molecular diagnostics are some of the major factors restraining the growth for global viral molecular diagnostics market.Growing demographics and economies in the developing countries such as India and China is expected to lead the growth in viral molecular diagnostics market. In addition, innovations and development of advanced molecular diagnostic tests for viral infections and increasing awareness about the infectious diseases and diseases diagnosis are expected to offer new opportunities for global viral molecular diagnostics market. Increasing number of collaborations and partnerships and new product launches are some of the latest trends that have been observed in global viral molecular diagnostics market.Request to view Table of content @Some of the major companies operating in the global viral molecular diagnostics market are Abbott Laboraories, Inc., Bio-Rad Laboratories, Becton, Dickinson and Company, F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Roche Diagnostics, Qiagen, Olympus Corporation, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. and Gen-Probe, Inc.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
U.S. Glucose Testing Market Is Expected to Witness a Steady Growth By 2020

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Diabetes is the chronic condition associated with abnormally high level of glucose in the blood. Insufficient or non production of insulin in pancreas causes diabetes. Globally the incidence of diabetes is increasing significantly and it is becoming a major burden. It is one of the leading causes of death in the U.S. It is diagnosed by blood glucose testing. Early detection through regular monitoring can improve the treatment and control of the disease. Glucose testing is to measure amount of in a sample of blood. Deviation in blood glucose level from the normal range results in disorders such as hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia. There are various types of glucose tests such as fasting blood sugar, random blood sugar, two hour postprandial blood sugar, glycohemoglobin A1c and oral glucose tolerance test. Glucose testing is done to monitor treatment of diabetes, check for diabetes and pre diabetes and to determine abnormally low blood glucose level.Request to view Sample Report @Glucose testing market can be segmented in various segments such as point of care instruments for professional setting and home testing devices for diabetes management. Glucose testing market can also be segmented as minimal invasive testing and non-invasive testing.In recent times there is increased use of glucose testing due to increasing aging population. Increasing obese population, increasing lifestyle associated diseases and increasing prevalence of diabetes are some of the key factors driving the growth for the U.S. glucose testing market. In addition, increasing healthcare awareness is also fuelling the growth of the U.S. glucose testing market. However, limited reimbursement and availability of alternative technologies are some of the major factors restraining the growth for U.S. glucose testing market.In addition, new analytical technologies and developments in diabetes treatment would develop opportunity for the U.S. glucose testing market. However, high healthcare expenditure could lead a challenge for the U.S. glucose testing market. Some of the trends for the U.S. glucose testing market are telemedicine device, improving OTC blood glucose meters, biosensor technology and fructosamine test.Request to view Table of content @Some of the major companies operating in the U.S. glucose testing market are Johnson & Johnson, Roche Diagnostics, Bayer AG, Siemens AG, Abbott Laboratories, Beckman Coulter, Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc., Medtronic, B. Braun Melsungen, ACON Laboratories, AgaMatrix and Echo therapeutics Inc.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
HIV-AIDS Testing Market will generate new growth opportunities by 2020

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HIV-AIDS is a chronic disease caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). HIV virus damages human immune system, which results weakness of immune system and loss ability to fight with organism that causes disease. HIV-AIDS most often spread through unprotected sex with HIV infected person. In addition, HIV-AIDS can also be spread from infected mother to child during pregnancy, infected blood and sharing needles with someone who has HIV-AIDS. Some of the symptoms of HIV include slight fever, swollen glands, muscle aches, headaches and fatigue. HIV-AIDS has no cure but there are treatments which help to reduce AIDS deaths. HIV-AIDS can be treated by nucleoside/ nucleotide reverse transcriptase inhibitor, integrase inhibitor, HIV-1 protease inhibitor, non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor, pharmacokinetic enhancer and entry inhibitor. Some of the drugs for HIV -AIDS treatment include atripla, epzicom, prezista, truvada, kaletra, isentress, reyataz and viread. HIV testing and diagnostics include early detection, treatment swatching, On the basis of diagnosis HIV-AIDS market can be classified into HIV antibody assay, western blot, antigen-antibody immunoassay, HIV home-testing kit, rapid HIV antibody test, polymerase chain reaction test and HIV p24 antigen test.Request to view Sample Report @Europe, followed by North America, has the largest market for HIV-AIDS testing due to affordability and accessibility of expensive tests for HIV-AIDS and innovations in drug therapies in this region. Asia is expected to show high growth rate in the HIV-AIDS testing market in next few years due to increasing number of HIV-AIDS population and increasing research activities for developing HIV drugs and vaccines in the region.Increasing number of HIV patients, technological advancement in HIV-AIDS diagnosis, increasing incidence of infectious diseases, rise in research activities for developing HIV vaccines and lack of awareness about the modes of transmission of the virus are expected to drive the market for HIV-AIDS testing. In addition, increasing awareness about HIV aids treatment options available in the market and cost effective drug therapies for HIV is expected to drive the HIV-AIDS testing market. However, rapid replacement of HIV-AIDS drugs and therapies by new drugs and therapies and patient protection losses are some of the factors restraining the growth for global HIV-AIDS testing market.Growing demographics and economies in the developing countries such as India and China is expected to lead the growth in HIV-AIDS testing market in Asia. In addition, rise in awareness about HIV-AIDS treatment and innovations in technologies related to HIV-AIDS testing are expected to offer new opportunity to global HIV-AIDS testing market. Companies involved in new product launch is one the recent trends have been observed in global HIV-AIDS testing market.Request to view Table of content @Some of the major companies operating in the global HIV AIDS market are Abbott Laboratories Inc., Hologic Inc., Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics Inc., Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc., Roche Diagnostics Inc. and Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics Inc.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Future Trends and Competitive Landscape of MicroRNA Tools and Services Market by 2020

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Molecular diagnostics is a vast field that comprises of techniques and methods to analyze biomarkers in genetic code. It helps in encoding genomes and proteomes that are required for studying and detecting the disease, and thus help in deciding the best therapy for an individual. MicroRNA tools and services market is experiencing a significant growth due to increased R&D and rising government initiatives in this field. MicroRNA tools market is further segmented into quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), microarrays, and functional tools. Of which, qRT-PCR segments remains the largest and the fastest growing segment. MicroRNA services market is further segmented into phenotypic analysis and expression profiling and analysis.Request to view Sample Report @North America dominates the global microRNA tools and services market due to increased government initiatives and broad technical applications of microRNA tools and services in the region. Europe, followed by Asia, is expected to experience high growth rate in the next few years in global microRNA tools and services market. China and India are expected to be the fastest growing microRNA tools and services market in Asian region. This is due to increased investments from foreign companies in these countries. Some of the key driving forces for microRNA tools and services market in emerging countries are increasing R&D investment, improved healthcare facilities and rising government funding.Various factors such as growing awareness about microRNA technology, increasing government initiatives and accuracy of the results obtained have been driving the microRNA tools and services market. In addition, increased funding from various government and non-government organizations and increased availability of this technology has been driving the microRNA tools and services market. However, high cost involved and lack of experienced professionals has been restraining the growth of microRNA tools and services market.Increased R&D and innovation of some new technology with better efficiency is expected to offer good opportunity for microRNA tools and services market. In addition, emerging markets hold a great potential for growth microRNA tools and services market. Some of the latest trends that have been observed in microRNA tools and services market are companies involved in partnerships and collaboration for R&D of novel products.Request to view Table of content @Some of the major companies dealing in microRNA tools and services market include Qiagen, Life Technologies, Exiqon, GeneCopoeia, Inc and Mirus Bio. Some other companies dealing in microRNA tools and services market include Biomatik, Asurgen, Inc and Cell Biolabs Inc.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Oligonucleotide Synthesis Market : Market Sizing with Competitive Landscape by 2020

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Oligonucleotides are single-stranded and short RNA or DNA molecule that have a wide range of applications in research forensics and genetic testing. Oligonucleotides are made by chemical synthesis in the laboratory. Oligonucleotide synthesis has its application in therapeutics, human identification test, cell cultures, library preparations, human identity testing. Oligonucleotides also have its application in nucleic acid array based technology, diagnostics, genetic engineering, next-generation sequencing, synthetic biology, genomics, cloning and nucleic acid based detection. Oligonucleotides synthesis market is segmented on the basis of end users as pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, academic research institutes and diagnostic laboratories.Request to view Sample Report @North America dominates the global market for oligonucleotide synthesis due increasing R&D expenditure in biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. Asia is expected to show high growth rates in the next five years in global oligonucleotide synthesis market. China and India are expected to be the fastest growing oligonucleotide synthesis markets in Asia-Pacific region. Some of the key driving forces for oligonucleotide synthesis market in emerging countries are increasing R&D activity, increasing government funding and growing the availability of synthesized oligonucleotide.In recent times, there is increased use of oligonucleotide synthesis due to increasing R&D expenditure in pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Rise importance of personalized medicine, rising innovation in genomics and increasing demand for synthetic genes are some of the key factors driving the growth for global oligonucleotide synthesis market. In addition, increasing researches in molecular biology is also fuelling the growth of global oligonucleotide synthesis market. However, stringent regulations and continuous downward price pressure are some of the major factors restraining the growth for global oligonucleotide synthesis market.Increasing R&D investment of pharmaceutical companies would lead to growth in oligonucleotide synthesis market in Asia. In addition, rising field of next-generation sequencing to increase demand for next generation sequencing-grade oligos would develop the opportunity for the global oligonucleotide synthesis market. However, manufacturing high-quality RNA-interference oligos and large scale synthesis of oligonucleotides could lead challenges for the global oligonucleotide synthesis market.Request to view Table of content @Some of the major companies operating in the global oligonucleotide synthesis market are Biosearch Technologies, Inc., Trilink Biotechnologies, Inc., Bioautomation Corporation, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc., Eurofins Genomics, Genedesign, Inc., Sigma-Aldrich Corporation, Eurogentec, Genedesign, Inc., Integrated Dna Technologies and GE Healthcare.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
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Global Wearable Computing Devices Market: New Growth Opportunities By 2020

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Wearable computing devices are computer-based devices which are worn by a user. It includes clothes, glasses, watches and shoes. These wearable computing devices are used to take and view pictures and video. They are also capable to read text messages and emails and responds to voice commands. These devices also play a pivotal role in heart rate monitoring and logic calculation.The global wearable computing devices market is categorized based on various consumer and non-consumer applications. The consumer application segment is further sub-segmented into activity trackers, smart glasses, wearable cameras, smart clothing, smart watches and gaming devices. The non-consumer application segment is divided healthcare, industrial and defense.In terms of geographic, North America and Europe dominates the global wearable computing devices market due to increased awareness among people towards these devices. Raised awareness among people towards wearable computing technology has increased the adoption rate of these devices in the region. The U.S. represents the largest market for wearable computing devices followed by Canada in North America. In Europe, France, Germany, Spain and the U.K. holds major share of wearable computing devices market. However, Asia is expected to show high growth rates in the next five years in global wearable computing devices market. China and India are expected to be the fastest growing wearable computing devices markets in Asia.In recent time, advanced features of these devices is key driver for the global wearable computing devices market. Advanced features, such as light weight and data monitoring applications attract end users to adopt wearable computing devices. In addition, technological advancements in material sciences and information technology have also fueled the growth of global wearable computing devices market. However, high cost of wearable devices and privacy concerns are some of the major restraints for the global wearable computing devices market. In addition, less battery back-up of these devices also obstructs the growth of global wearable computing devices market.Request for Sample Report and Table of content @:Some of the major companies operating in the global wearable computing devices market are Contour, GoPro, NanoSonic, Weartech, Textronics, Himax Technology, Invensense Inc., CSR plc., Zephyr Technology Corporation, Smart Life Technology Co., Ltd., Silicon Micro Display, AiQ Smart Clothing Inc., Apple Inc., Ascension Technology Corporation, Carl Zeiss Inc., Casio Computer Company Ltd., GE Healthcare, Medtronic Inc., Siemens Healthcare and Samsung Electronics.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Global Air Cargo Security and Screening Systems Market: Set to Grow Exponentially by 2020

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Aviation security has been one of the key concerns in the aviation industry. The need for air cargo security and screening systems has become even more pronounced after the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center. The customary security and screening practice in this area include physical inspection and canine methods (detection through trained dogs) which are not error-free. The new technologies in this area reduce the potential threats from terrorist activities and ensure safety by tracking explosives inside the air cargo. The air cargo industry and international and national regulatory authorities have been continuously making efforts to increase the screening levels of the air cargos with minimum of shipping hindrance through known shipper programs. These programs allow known shippers to screen their own cargo and check that they adhere to a common set of standards.The enhanced security programs carry certain limitations in the form of large size of the industry and high costs incurring in the enhancements. However, the dire need to increased security has been compelling the industry to include air cargo security and screening systems. The expansion of these security measures across the supply chain lays significant business opportunities for the manufacturers of air cargo and security and screening systems. The screening process in the air cargo and screening systems include screening systems based on x-ray, explosives trace detection (ETD) and explosives detection systems (EDS) technologies. The air cargo security and screening systems based on x-ray screens the entire shipment swiftly and accurately.X-ray based screening produces high penetration of detection in products ranging from meats, fish, paper, liquid and metals. ETD is the most popular technology used by the aviation industry and freight forwarders for screening air cargo. In this technology, samples of particles are collected from the pieces of cargo being screened which are then screened for traces of explosives or vapors which explosives may release. ETDs are relatively cheaper than its counterpart technologies are cost about USD 10,000. For screening efficiency with ETDs, the cargo needs to be divided into smallest packaging components. EDS system consists of an apparatus which examines the physical characteristics of an object; and a software component that processes the images and data to analyze the mass and density of that object. In EDS a rotating-ray source is used to take large numbers of images in order to give a visual presentation of the objects contained in the examined piece. EDS are costlier than its counterparts and its maintenance charges are also high, however, its automated nature makes its less-labor intensive. With the scarcity of skilled labor, EDS is expected to be a fast growing segment of air cargo security and screening systems market.Request for Sample Report and Table of content @:Among the regions, North America dominated the global air cargo security and screening systems in 2013 followed by Europe. The dominance of North America is due to its large aviation industry and increasing industrialization and trade. Asia Pacific is also witnessing high growth due to increase in trade activities and industrialization in the region. The key companies in air cargo security and screening systems include American Science and Engineering, L-3 Security Detection Systems, Morpho Detection Rockwell Collins, Rapiscan Systems, 3DX-RAY, Armstrong Monitoring, Astrophysics, AUTOCLEAR, CEIA, Gilardoni, Nuctech and Smiths Detection.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Harrows Market: industry Trends and Developments By 2024

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Harrows are basically the agricultural tools which are used for smoothing out and breaking up the surface of soil. Harrowing is always carried out on the agricultural field to track the rough finish left by ploughing operations. The purpose of harrowing is generally to breakup lumps of soil, thereby providing a good tilth, finer finish soil structure that are suitable for seedbed use. Harrowing are also used to remove cover seed and weeds after sowing.Request for Sample Report:The rising demand for agricultural farm machinery is one of the prominent factors which is driving the harrows market demand worldwide. This is majorly supported by the growing demand for food which is expected to rise substantially owing to the significant increase in global population during the forecast period. Rising food demand has encouraged the adoption of advanced farming practices to increase crop yields which is further resulting in the demand for agricultural machinery globally. The global harrows market is driven by increasing adoption of farm machinery for mechanization of farming operations which resulted in increased production and profitability by achieving timeliness in farming operations. This in turn helps farmers in optimum utilization of costly inputs such as fertilizers, seeds, and irrigation among others. Farm mechanization also helps in the preservation of the farm produce, which further improves profitability and cost effectiveness by reducing post-harvest losses. Similarly, increasing awareness about the importance of technology in agriculture is also an important factor which is fueling the growth of the harrows market globally. This increasing awareness can be attributed to rising adoption of farm tractors and other agricultural machinery which yields high productivity gains. Moreover, Low purchasing power and high cost with low technology adoption is currently challenging the wide-scale adoption of farm machinery tools including harrows. The market growth is also inhibited by growing urbanization and decreasing farmlands. In order to counter this restraint, governments worldwide are promoting and encouraging the adoption of farm machinery tools by providing subsidies on this equipment, thereby allowing manufacturers to offer the equipment at lower rates.Harrows Market can be segmented on the basis of type as follows:Disk HarrowTine HarrowThe global harrows market can be segmented on the basis of types, and various geographical regions. Based on different harrows types, the market has been segmented into disc harrow, chain harrow, tine harrow, and chain disk harrows. Based on various geographical regions, the market is classified into North America, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa, and Latin America. In Asia Pacific, countries such as India and China are witnessing the shift in overall population. Growing population is responsible for increasing food demand in Asia Pacific, which in turn will fuel the demand for harrows for effective farm production in this region. In North America, rising need for enhanced productivity is also one of the major factors that are triggering the market growth. Likewise, in European countries such as Germany, governments are offering subsidies on agriculture and farm machinery, to promote the use of technology in farm production. This is further reinforced by increasing technical expertise, intense competition, and the presence of a large domestic market is expected to boost the harrows sales in Europe.Request for Table of content:Some of the key players in the global harrows market include S.P. Industries, Deere & Company, AGCO Corporation, Iseki & Co., Ltd., HARROWS DARTS, Kelly Engineering, and Agroking Implements Industries, among others.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Asia Pacific Cancer Immunotherapy Market Value Share Analysis 2016 to 2024

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Global Cancer Immunotherapy Market: SnapshotThe global cancer immunotherapy market is expected to experience a very high rate of growth over the coming years, owing to the increase in the number of patients suffering from various types of cancer. In terms of the treatment options for cancer, cancer immunotherapy is expected to make serious headway due to its proven greater efficiency over conventional treatment methods. The market is also expected to show a high growth rate over the coming years due to a highly promising treatments pipeline. However, the global cancer immunotherapy market is expected to be hindered by factors such as the high level of attrition within the development cycles of its several product types, and the overall lack of awareness of immunotherapy as a better option to conventional treatment in multiple regions of the world.In 2015, the global cancer immunotherapy market was valued at US$37.50 bn. With its revenue expected to progress at a very strong CAGR of 14.6% within a forecast period from 2016 to 2024, the global cancer immunotherapy market is expected to reach US$124.88 bn by the end of 2024.Request a PDF Brochure with Report Analysis:Monoclonal Antibodies Continue Being Top Cancer ImmunotherapyIn terms of types of therapies, the global cancer immunotherapy market can be segmented into cancer vaccines, immune system modulators, immune checkpoint inhibitors, and monoclonal antibodies. Monoclonal antibodies have so far been the leading choice of treatment methods for a large portion of the global healthcare industry, giving it a high lead over other segments. This therapy type has been more affordable than the other types, allowing it to gain greater popularity. However, the global cancer immunotherapy market is expected to witness a spike in the demand for immune checkpoint inhibitors due to their greater percentages of success rates and higher overall efficiency.In terms of area of therapy, the global cancer immunotherapy market can be segmented into blood cancer, melanoma, prostate cancer, breast cancer, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, and other minor areas. Of these, breast cancer has been the leading area of immunotherapy. Lung cancer is also showing a very high increase in rate of demand owing to the growing population of smokers and the higher overall air pollution in urban areas.Developed Economies Show Higher Development Rates in Cancer ImmunotherapyFrom a geographical perspective, the global cancer immunotherapy market can be segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the rest of the world. The markets past has more or less been written within the developed economies of the world. North America and Europe have been base for several of the top level research and development efforts in the global cancer immunotherapy market so far. Both regions have also shown a great deal of demand for cancer immunotherapy owing to a more aware population and a better overall healthcare outreach. At the same time, the growing rate of awareness in other parts of the world  especially in Asia Pacific  is expected to guide the global cancer immunotherapy market in the coming years. Asia Pacific especially shows a very highly favorable rate of growth in cancer immunotherapy adoption due to an increasing density in urban populations, growing awareness rates of common cancer types such as prostate and breast cancers, and the booming industry of medical tourism.The leading players that have so far been in operation within the global cancer immunotherapy market include Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Amgen, Inc., AstraZeneca Plc., Eli Lilly and Company, GlaxoSmithKline Plc., F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., Merck & Co., Inc., Janssen Biotech, Inc., Pfizer, Inc., Novartis AG, Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Sanofi, and Takeda Pharmaceuticals.Browse Full Research Report on Cancer Immunotherapy Market:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) 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. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who us e proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Browse market research blog:
Global Geothermal Heat Pumps Industry Will Grow at a CAGR of 13.1% CAGR During 2014 - 2020

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Researchmoz added Most up-to-date research on "Geothermal Heat Pumps Market By Technology (Closed Loop and Open Loop), For Residential and Commercial (New Build and Retrofit) and End-Use Applications - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast 2014 - 2020" to its huge collection of research reports.This research study is designed to analyze the market for geothermal heat pump globally, in terms of both installed capacity (MWt) and cumulative revenue (USD Billion). The market for geothermal heat pumps has been segmented on the basis of technology and end-users. Closed loop technology of geothermal heat pumps has been further sub-segmented into loop configurations in order to gain a robust understanding of the market. A similar approach has been followed for the other segmentation chapter where each end-user category was further sub-segmented into its constituent installation types. The global market for geothermal heat pumps has also been segmented at a regional level. The regional segments provided are North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific. The report features a detailed regional segmentation with market growth forecasts for the 2014 to 2020 period. Similar detailed projections have also been provided for the technology and end-user segments, as well as for their respective sub-segments. For this market study, 2013 has been taken as the base year while all forecasts are for the 2014 to 2020 period.The report includes key market dynamics affecting the demand for geothermal heat pumps globally. As a part of our market dynamics analysis, we have analyzed the market drivers, market restraints, and market opportunities. The report also provides a detailed industry analysis of the global geothermal heat pump market with the help of PorterTo Get Sample Copy of Report visit @Table Of ContentChapter 1 Preface1.1 Report Description1.2 Research Scope1.3 Market Segmentation1.4 Research MethodologyChapter 2 Executive Summary2.1 Global Geothermal Heat Pump MarketChapter 3 Geothermal Heat Pump Market  Industry Analysis3.1 Introduction3.2 Value Chain Analysis: Geothermal Heat Pump Market3.3 Market Drivers3.3.1 Rising Oil and Electricity Prices Resulting in Consumer Focus Shifting Towards Low Cost Energy Alternatives3.3.1.1 Global Crude Oil Prices, By Grade (USD/Barrel)3.3.1.2 Annual Cost of Heating and Cooling, by Fuel (USD)3.3.2 Significant Cost Savings Coupled with Environmental Benefits render Geothermal Heat Pumps as an Attractive Investment3.3.3 Attractive Payback Periods Associated with Installing These Systems in Newly-built Homes3.3.4 Highly Reliable Nature of the Overall System and Easy Financing Options Available for Customers3.4 Market Restraints3.4.1 Incorrect Estimation of Heat Pump Size and Faulty Installations may Have a Detrimental Impact on owners3.4.2 Higher Upfront Investment Required May Deter Small Residential Customers From Opting For These Systems3.5 Market Opportunities3.5.1 Attractive Incentive Structure and Lower Sensitivity Towards Upfront Cost May Render the Commercial Sector as a Rapidly Growing Market3.6 Porters five forces analysis: Geothermal Heat Pumps3.6.1 Bargaining power of suppliers3.6.2 Bargaining power of buyers3.6.3 Threat from new entrants3.6.4 Degree of competition3.6.5 Threat from substitutes3.7 Site evaluation analysis: Geothermal Heat Pumps3.7.1.1 Factors Influencing Geothermal Heat Pump System Cost3.7.1.2 Factors Affecting Choice of Heat Pump System and Ground Loop Design3.8 Regulatory framework analysis: Geothermal Heat Pumps3.8.1 Renewable heat incentive (RHI) scheme: U.K.3.8.1.1 Renewable heat incentive (RHI) Scheme for Domestic Consumers, by Technology (pence/kWH)3.8.1.2 Applications and Accreditations for the Domestic RHI Scheme, by technology3.8.1.3 Various Incentive Payments Under the Domestic RHI Scheme for a Constant Test Case3.8.2 Federal Income Tax Credit Scheme: The U.S.3.9 Market Attractiveness Analysis Of The Geothermal Heat Pump Market, By Region, 2013Chapter 4 Geothermal Heat Pump Market: Technology Analysis4.1 Geothermal Heat Pump Market: Technology Overview4.1.1 Global Geothermal Heat Pump Market, volume share by Technology segment, 2013 and 20204.2 Closed Loop System4.2.1 Global Closed Loop System market estimates and forecast, 2013  2020 (MWt) (USD Billion)4.2.1.1 Global Closed Loop Geothermal Heat Pump market estimate and forecast, by region, 2013  2020, (MWt) (USD Billion)4.2.2 Horizontal Closed Loop Systems4.2.2.1 Global Horizontal Closed Loop System market estimates and forecast, 2013  2020 (MWt) (USD Billion)4.2.2.2 GlobalHorizontal Closed Loop Geothermal Heat Pump market estimate and forecast, by region, 2013  2020, (MWt) (USD Billion)4.2.3 Vertical Closed Loop Systems4.2.3.1 Global Vertical Closed Loop System market estimates and forecast, 2013  2020 (MWt) (USD Billion)4.2.3.2 GlobalVertical Closed Loop Geothermal Heat Pump market estimate and forecast, by region, 2013  2020, (MWt) (USD Billion)4.2.4 Pond/Lake Closed Loop Systems4.2.4.1 Global Pond/Lake Closed Loop System market estimates and forecast, 2013  2020 (MWt) (USD Billion)4.2.4.2 GlobalPond/Lake Closed Loop Geothermal Heat Pump market estimate and forecast, by region, 2013  2020, (MWt) (USD Billion)4.3 Open Loop System4.3.1 Global Open Loop System market estimates and forecast, 2013  2020 (MWt) (USD Billion)4.3.1.1 Global Open Loop Geothermal Heat Pump market estimate and forecast, by region, 2013  2020, (MWt) (USD Billion)Make an Enquiry of this report @About ResearchMozResearchMoz is the one stop online destination to find and buy market research reports & Industry Analysis. We fulfill all your research needs spanning across industry verticals with our huge collection of market research reports. We provide our services to all sizes of organizations and across all industry verticals and markets. Our Research Coordinators have in-depth knowledge of reports as well as publishers and will assist you in making an informed decision by giving you unbiased and deep insights on which reports will satisfy your needs at the best price.Mr. NachiketState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesEmail: sales@researchmoz.usWebsite @Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Follow us on LinkedIn @
Global Adhesive Films Industry Will Grow at 6.0% CAGR from 2014 to 2020 | Researchmoz

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Researchmoz added Most up-to-date research on "Adhesive Films (Acrylic, Polyvinyl Acetate (PVAc), Polyurethane, Polyvinyl Butyral (PVB), Epoxy and Others) Market by Technology (Pressure Sensitive, Hot-melt, Light-cured and Others), by End-user Industries (Packaging, Automotive, Medical, Electronics And Other) For Tapes, Labels, Graphics and Other Applications - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast, 2014 - 2020" to its huge collection of research reports.Adhesive films are sheets, films and tapes of materials such as plastic, polymers, textiles and paper with a thin layer of adhesive in one or both surfaces. This helps them stick to the surfaces. Adhesive films essentially act as joints between two surfaces. These films are used in tapes, labels, graphic wraps, protective films, glazing, tinting, masking, insulating and specialty films, among others. Adhesive films offer benefits such as lower material usage, easy usage and disposal, quick application and versatility according to the end-user utility. These advantages make adhesive films the material of choice over alternatives such as screw and clamps. Adhesive films have been adopted as preferred materials by a wide array of industries including packaging, electronics, medical, automotive, construction, footwear, furniture, aerospace and several consumer goods among others.This report provides a detailed description of the global adhesive films market based on volume share (kilo tons) and revenue (US$ Mn) for the period of 2014 to 2020. It highlights the factors contributing to the growth of the market and the restraints that impede the market. Detailed forecast for adhesive films from 2014 to 2020 has been given separately for better understanding of the market scenario. The adhesive films market is described with respect to various segments along with the expected opportunities in the next six years.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @In terms of geography, the global adhesive films market has been segmented into regions such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Rest of the World. The adhesive films market has been segmented based on the following technology types: pressure sensitive, light-cured, hot-melt and others (including heat-cured, chemical-cured and self-cured). The study also classifies the market based on the following product types: acrylic, polyvinyl acetate (PVAc), polyurethane, polyvinyl butyral (PVB), epoxy and others (including ethyl vinyl acetate (EVA), silicone, styrene butadiene copolymer (SBC), and polyesters).The study segments the market based on applications into tapes, labels, graphics and others (including specialty films, protective films, glazing and tinting). It provides forecasts and estimates for each application segment in terms of revenue and volume during the forecast period from 2014 to 2020. The study also bifurcates the market based on the following end-user industries: packaging, automotive, medical, electronics and others (including construction, footwear, furniture, and aerospace). It also analyzes market attractiveness for all end-users of adhesive films with the help of the market attractiveness tool.Rising demand for adhesive films in key end-user industries such as medical, electronics, automotive and packaging is projected to boost the global market for these films. However, volatility in prices of feedstock for petroleum-based adhesive films and regulations against volatile organic compounds (VOC) from adhesive films are likely to hamper market growth. Companies, especially in the developed regions such as North America and Europe, are committing a substantial part of their investments for sustainable growth that ensures safety of the environment. Industry players are making significant investments for developing bio-based materials for manufacturing adhesive films. This is projected to offer prospective growth opportunities for the market players in the near future.Value chain analysis and Porters five forces model have been provided for a comprehensive view of the market. These would also help understand the specifics of the industry structure besides giving an overview of the degree of competitiveness. The report also includes detailed profiles of key players such as 3M Company, H.B. Fuller Company, Henkel AG & Company KGaA, Avery Dennison Corporation, BASF SE, Eastman Chemical Company and Ashland, Inc. Detailed description of players includes parameters such as company overview, financial overview, business strategies, upcoming facilities, capacity addition, mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures, new products and recent developments.The report segments the global adhesive films market as:Adhesive Films Market - Technology Analysis-Pressure sensitive-Light-cured-Hot-melt-Others (Including heat-cure, chemical-cured and self-cured)Adhesive Films Market - Product Segment Analysis-Acrylic-Polyvinyl acetate (PVAc)-Polyurethane-Polyvinyl butyral (PVB)-Epoxy-Others (Including EVA, silicone, polyesters, and SBC)Adhesive Films Market - Application Analysis-Tapes-Labels-Graphics-Others (Including specialty films, protective films, glazing, and tinting)Adhesive Films Market - End-user Analysis-Packaging-Automotive-Medical-Electronics-Others (Including construction, footwear, furniture, and aerospace)Adhesive Films Market - Regional Analysis-North America-Europe-Asia Pacific-Rest of the WorldMake an Enquiry of this report @About ResearchMozResearchMoz is the one stop online destination to find and buy market research reports & Industry Analysis. We fulfill all your research needs spanning across industry verticals with our huge collection of market research reports. We provide our services to all sizes of organizations and across all industry verticals and markets. Our Research Coordinators have in-depth knowledge of reports as well as publishers and will assist you in making an informed decision by giving you unbiased and deep insights on which reports will satisfy your needs at the best price.Mr. NachiketState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesEmail: sales@researchmoz.usWebsite @Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Follow us on LinkedIn @
Feminine Hygiene Products Industry in Latin America Will Grow at a 9.6% CAGR | Researchmoz

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Researchmoz added Most up-to-date research on "Feminine Hygiene Products Market - Latin America Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast 2014 - 2020" to its huge collection of research reports.At present, growing concern for hygiene is increasing the demand for feminine hygiene products globally. Due to globalization and increasing awareness towards healthy living, feminine hygiene products market across Latin America is witnessing rapid changes. Thus, feminine hygiene products market is experiencing varied trends across Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Peru.Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Peru are covered in the scope of this report. The report also presents an insight into value (USD, ARS, BRL, CLP, PEN million) and volume (UNITS-million) of feminine hygiene product usage in Latin America. The study provides the present and future market trends over the forecast period.The scope of the Latin America feminine hygiene products market report covers five types of feminine hygiene products namely internal cleansers and sprays, pantiliners and shields, sanitary pads, tampons and women's disposable razors and blades. Changing lifestyle, spurt in the number of working women population and growing preferences for convenient products are fueling the demand for feminine hygiene products across Latin America. The report also provides an idea how the market for feminine hygiene products had witnessed rapid change over the past few years due to hygiene consciousness. Increasing consumer preference for fashion and convenience is fueling the demand for feminine hygiene products in Latin America.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @Brazil dominates the feminine hygiene products market across the Latin America followed by Argentina. Brazil with its huge population has been showing strong acceptance for sanitary products. Brazilian consumers prefer premium sanitary protection products over general products such as pantiliners, shields and tampons. Keeping an eye on the market trend manufacturers are continuously making investments and launching products with added features to meet the consumers demand. The consumers in Argentina have become more rational in choosing mid range feminine hygiene products due to low purchasing power. With the ongoing market scenario, manufacturers are focusing on introducing new products at low packaging to attract consumers. Consumers in Chile show strong preference for internal cleansers and sprays due to rising concerns for health and hygiene. With changing mind set and rising disposable income, consumers are shifting towards premium feminine hygiene products.Furthermore, sanitary pads are preferred over other sanitary protection products in Peru and are expected to maintain its position in coming years. Peruvian consumers show strong preference for ultra thin sanitary pads which is invisible and convenient and also provides extra leakage protection. Manufacturers are anchoring on aggressive advertisements and campaigns for making sanitary products more attractive and accessible to lower and middle class households. Manufacturers are also focusing on small packaging format for the sanitary pads to meet the consumer demand. Fashion consciousness and demand for using easy and comfortable products is making a positive impact on the demand of feminine hygiene products. Growing hygiene consciousness and rising awareness towards cleanliness and beauty is fueling the demand for feminine hygiene products across the countries in Latin America. The report provides manufacturers, distributors and suppliers a clear idea about the present and future market scenario and helps them to formulate their business strategies accordingly. Consumer concerns towards beauty and healthy living along with increasing product availability through major distribution channels would further fuel the growth of feminine hygiene products across Latin America market.Feminine hygiene products in Latin America are sold through various channels. Distribution of products is another area of significant value addition. Dollar stores, variety store and general merchandise retailers, cash & carries & warehouse clubs, department stores, convenience stores, hypermarkets and supermarkets (incl. discounters) and other general retailers are the key channels for the distribution of feminine hygiene products. Hypermarkets and supermarkets, convenience stores, drug stores & pharmacies and health & beauty stores have become major channels for the feminine hygiene products across the Latin America and are expected to maintain its leading position over the forecast period. With active and busy lifestyle, consumers are opting for distribution channels for purchasing their necessary goods in order to save time and money.Make an Enquiry of this report @About ResearchMozResearchMoz is the one stop online destination to find and buy market research reports & Industry Analysis. We fulfill all your research needs spanning across industry verticals with our huge collection of market research reports. We provide our services to all sizes of organizations and across all industry verticals and markets. Our Research Coordinators have in-depth knowledge of reports as well as publishers and will assist you in making an informed decision by giving you unbiased and deep insights on which reports will satisfy your needs at the best price.Mr. NachiketState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesEmail: sales@researchmoz.usWebsite @Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Follow us on LinkedIn @
A2P SMS Market: Technological Breakthroughs, Value chain and Stakeholder Analysis by 2024

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The global A2P SMS market revenue stood at US$57.27 bn in 2015 and is expected to reach US$83.03 bn by 2024, expanding at a CAGR of 4.2% therein. The volume is projected to augment at a 4.1% CAGR from 2016 to 2024.A2P SMS Market: Scope and MethodologyThe A2P SMS market report provides an in-depth analysis of the global A2P SMS market for the period 2014  2024, wherein 2015 is the base year and the years from 2016 to 2024 is the forecast period. Data for 2014 has been included as historical information. The report covers all the prevalent trends playing a major role in the growth of the A2P SMS market over the forecast period. It also highlights various drivers, restraints, and opportunities expected to influence the markets growth during the forecast period.Download PDF Brochure atThe study provides a holistic perspective on market growth in terms of revenue estimates (in US$ Bn) and volume estimates (Bn SMSs) , across different geographies, which include North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), Middle East & Africa (MEA), and South America. The report provides cross-sectional analysis of the global A2P SMS market in terms of market estimates and projections for all the segments across different geographic regions. The report also covers profiles of major players, their growth strategies, their market positioning, and the various recent developments, and includes market positioning analysis of key players operating in the A2P SMS market.Rapid Economic Growth across End-use Industries Spurs Adoption of A2P SMSsThe considerable expansion of the mobile subscriber base is perhaps the most important factor driving the global A2P SMS market. As of May 2014, there were an estimated 7 bn mobile subscriptions globally. This, according to the International Telecommunication Union, is equivalent to 95.5% of the worlds population. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) noted that the number of telecom subscribers in India alone rose from 931.95 mn in February 2014 to 933.00 mn in the following month, with a monthly growth of 0.11%.Rapid economic growth around the globe, especially in the banking sector, in advertising, and the e-commerce business, has resulted in the increased use of A2P SMS, thereby fueling the global market, the report states.Other factors driving the market include rapid growth in mobile marketing activities by application developers and marketers and the proliferation in mobile banking, mobile health services, and mobile payments.In contrast, technical irregularities overshadowing bulk SMSs, the presence of illegitimate routes denting the revenue of telecom operators, and the increasing occurrence of mobile messaging spams, phishing, and malware threaten the further expansion of the A2P SMS market.About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) 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. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Smart Electricity Meters Market - Advanced Technologies & Growth Opportunities In Global Industry By 2024

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Smart electricity meters are an electric device that is used to calculate the amount of energy consumed. Smart electricity meters come with monitors so that energy usage can be easily measured. The monitoring is used to measure the quality of power so that it can lower the energy cost and extend the machines life.Smart electricity meters market is raising significantly due to growing role of Cloud services in smart metering operations. Smart electricity meters provide significant advantages in various applications such as industrial, commercial and residential among others. The factor driving the growth of the market is the rising demand for efficient data monitoring systems. In addition, renewable energy integration to smart grid infrastructure is the other factor contributing towards the market growth.The rising numbers of smart cities are anticipated to boost the demand for smart electricity meters, which further add to the overall revenue. Smart electricity meter has several advantages such as responding and identifying to power outages, launching innovative service models, preventing energy thefts, remotely deactivating and activating subscription, implementing innovative tariff schemes, facilitating secured communication and hacking identification among others.Smart electricity meters are used in various sectors such as automobile, oil & gas, mining, water treatment, chemical & petrochemical, pulp & paper, food & beverage and power generation among others. In addition, consumption of smart electricity meters gains momentum in industrial & commercial sectors is set to bolster the global smart electricity meters market. Industrial growth in developing nations of Asia Pacific is one of the major factors driving the market for smart electricity meter. Increase in penetration of advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) is boosting the demand for smart electricity market, globally.PDF Sample For Full Details with Technological breakthroughs is @Based on phase, the smart electricity meters market is segmented into three phase and single phase. Among different phase types, three phase have received extensive acceptance in the last few years due to rapid commercialization and industrialization. The three-phase is anticipated to rise at the highest rate. In addition, single phase is the second largest market in phase category in the smart electricity meters market in terms of revenue.Based on the various end use types, the smart electricity meters market is segmented into industrial, commercial and residential. In 2015, the residential segment expected to be the leading market. There are several major factors driving the market for smart electric meters in the residential sector such as a surge in demand for smart end-users which includes energy proficient lighting, nanotechnologies, home control network and electric heat pump among others. Urbanized economies in Europe and North America are spending huge amounts to swap the old meters with the new smart electric meters. They are also taking initiatives to save energy by alerting and notifying the consumers about their usage of electricity. The smart electricity meters is used in various industry such as automobile, oil & gas, mining, water treatment, chemical and petrochemical, pulp and paper, food & beverage, power generation, general machineries, semiconductors and among others.Under communication technology types, the market is segmented into power line communication, radio frequency and cellular. Power line communication is anticipated to grow at the maximum growth rate during the estimate period.Based on the regions, the smart electricity meters market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Rest of the World (RoW). Asia Pacific grips the major market share trailed by North America. China is the major contributors to the smart electricity meters market in Asia Pacific. Smart electricity meters is high in Asia Pacific is due to huge appetite for electricity and rapid industrialization. However, the market for smart electricity meters has seen the growth in product innovation from companies like Environmental Manufacturing, Inc. (Emi), Heitman Laboratories, Inc., Kws Manufacturing Company Ltd., Kmb Systems and S.R.O. among others nearly one hundred others company. In addition, Asia Pacific is also a lucrative market for air conditioners, washing machines, digital camera and automobiles which in turn, are fueling the growth of Smart electricity meters market. China held the biggest share of the Asia Pacific market in 2014. Smart Electricity Meters are attached with various electronic devices to automate several functions.Market Insight can be Viewed @Some of the important players in the smart electric meter market includes are Siemens AG (Germany), Itron (U.S.), Schneider Electric SE (France), Wasion Group (China), Aclara Technologies LLC (U.S.). These top players are trying to penetrate rising economies and are adopting different methods to boost their market share. Some of the others players are Aclara Technologies LLC, Atmel Corporation, Genus Power Infrastructure Ltd., Honeywell International Inc, Holley Metering, Genus Power Infrastructure Ltd., Jiangsu Linyang Electronics Co., Ltd., Networked Energy Services (NES) Corporation and Toshiba Corporation among others.Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a global 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. TMRs experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.Transparency Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Thermal Flow Meter Market - Advanced Technologies & Growth Opportunities In Global Industry By 2024

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Thermal Flow Meter Market: OverviewThermal flow meters are comprised of family of instruments for the measurement of flow of gas through closed conduits and channels. Thermal flow meter introduces heat into the flow stream and measures the dissipation using one or more than one temperature sensors. This method is best suitable for measurement of gas flow considering the variability of heat absorption rate of liquids. There are two key techniques to measure the amount of heat dissipated; however, thermal flow meters uses heat to measure the flow stream. The thermal flow meter primarily finds application in oil and gas, water and waste water treatment and chemical industries among others.Thermal Flow Meter Market: Growth EnablersThe major factor driving the growth of thermal flow meter market is due to the increasing demand for continuous emissions monitoring systems (CEMS). Continuous emission monitoring systems is used to continuously record, collect and report the required data related to emission of gasses. Increased government regulations and policies to check environment pollution is driving the demand for continuous emission monitoring systems. This is further leading to the growth of the thermal flow meter market during the forecast period. Moreover, demand for technologically advanced thermal flow meters by end user industries is paving new opportunities for various players in the market.PDF Sample For Technological breakthroughs is @Need for effective product differentiation is considered as the major challenge faced by various players in the market. This is also considered as a major factor restraining the growth of the market during the forecast period. However the overall thermal flow meter is expected to grow during the forecast period owing to the increased expenditure on oil & gas, chemical and other industries.Thermal Flow Meter Market: SegmentationThe market is segmented on the basis of end users by: oil & gas industries, water and waste treatment, food and beverages industry, chemical and petrochemical industries, pulp and paper industries and others. Increasing application of thermal flow meters from various industries is further driving the overall growth of the market. The market can be further segmented on the basis of type into: insertion thermal flow meter, portable thermal flow meters, portable thermal flow meters and Inline thermal flow meters. The sensors used in thermal flow meters includes temperature sensors and flow sensors.The market is segmented on the basis of geography into four broad segments: North America, Asia pacific, Europe and Rest of the World (ROW). Presently, Asia Pacific is a major contributor to the thermal flow meter market in terms of revenue and is expected to see robust growth during the forecast period. The growth in this region is attributed to the increasing number of industries in the region. Furthermore, increasing expenditure on infrastructure in this region is driving the market growth.Thermal Flow Meter Market: Key PlayersThe key players in this market are: ABB Ltd., Emerson Electric Co., GE Electric Co., Bronkhorst High-Tech B.V, Eldridge Products, Inc., Sage Metering Inc., Sierra Instruments Inc., Kurz Instruments Inc., Thermal Instrument Company, Fluid Components International LLC, Fox Thermal Instruments, Inc., Aalborg Instruments & Controls, Inc., Brooks Instruments, LLC, TSI Incorporated, and Vogtlin Instruments AG.Market Insight can be Viewed @Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a global 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. TMRs experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.Transparency Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Safety Sensors Market - Advanced Technologies & Growth Opportunities In Global Industry By 2024

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Safety Sensors Market: Overview and Growth EnablersSafety sensors are used to monitor the work place environment and provide timely indications in order to prevent accidents. These sensors are widely applicable in construction, manufacturing, healthcare and defense industry among others. The market is expected to grow during the forecast period.The global safety sensors market is driven by the increasing awareness for the safety of workers in the manufacturing industry. Moreover, the stringent government regulations for safety at the workplace are also aiding the growth of this market. In addition, the technological advancements across all the sectors are creating a demand for automation. Sensors play an important role in the automation process. Hence, the demand for automation is in return fueling the growth for global safety sensors market. Furthermore, safety in manufacturing and industrial applications is not required for the workers but also to prevent the wear and tear or damage to the good being manufactured. This factor is also acting as a driver for the market.PDF Sample For Technological breakthroughs is @However, the installation charge for safety sensors is very high which is acting as a restraint for the market. Moreover, the safety sensors are automated in nature and can malfunction by giving false indications which can lead to confusion at the workplace. This, in return is hindering the market from growth.Safety Sensors Market: SegmentationSafety sensors are increasingly being applied across several sectors such as manufacturing, construction, defense and automobiles. In the future, these sensors are expected to be applied in the cars in the form of radar sensors, nigh vision, adaptive cruise control systems and driver assistances such as driver monitoring. The application of these will ensure enhanced safety for vehicle drivers.The market can be segmented on the basis of sensor types, application, and geography. By sensors type, the market is segmented into accelerometers which include capacitive, Hall Effect sensors, heat transfers and MEMS; biosensors include methane, microbial and BOD sensors among others; image sensors include CMOS and CCD image sensors; and motion detectors.By application, the market is divided into construction, oil and gas, mining, healthcare, defense, manufacturing, logistics, and food and beverages among others.Safety Sensors Market: Region-wise InsightIn terms of geography, the market has been divided into four regions: North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Rest of the world. North America and Europe are known to be adapters of new technology. However, Asia Pacific is the largest market for safety sensors. The reason for their dominance is due to the large presence of manufacturing industries in countries, like Philippines, China and India.With factory workers putting in long hours and lacking adequate safety knowledge, the Asia Pacific region has now begun to see a growing demand for safety systems. This has also been the result of stringent safety regulations applied by governments in various countries. This factor has fuelled the growth by extensive application of safety sensors in this region. Moreover, the region has a wide numbers of sensor manufacturers which is also aiding to the regions dominance.Safety Sensors Market: Key PlayersThe key players in this market include Allen Bradley, Keyence Corporation, Omron Corporation, IFM Efector GmbH, Siemens, ABB ltd, Baumer Limited, Panasonic Corporation, AMETEK Factory Automation, Asteel Sensor and Delphi among others.Market Insight can be Viewed @Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a global 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. TMRs experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.Transparency Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Global Industry Analysis for Atomic Emission Spectrometry Market by Forecast 2015 - 2023

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Use of intensity of light emitted from plasma, flame, spark or arc at a specific wavelength for chemical analysis of the sample is referred as atomic emission spectrometry (AES). Atomic emission spectrometry is used for quantitative analysis of an element in the chemical sample. Identity of the element depends on the wavelength of the atomic spectral line and quantity of the detected element depends upon intensity of the light emitted. Atomic emission spectrometry (AES) is widely used in life science, food and drug safety, petrochemical and forensic science industry for analysis of the samples for quality.Get Sample Report:Development in the technology is resulting in increased availability of the portable and user friendly atomic spectroscopy instruments. In addition, technology advancement is also resulting in expansion of the application area of the atomic emission spectrometry (AES) market into biotechnology, pharmaceutical chemistry, environmental testing, and clinical applications including proteomics, tissue analysis and toxicology. Thus, technology advancement is observed to be the prime driver for the growth of the global atomic emission spectrometry market. While on the other hand, stringent regulatory norms and requirement of skilled personnel are some of the factors that are observed to be limiting the growth of the global atomic emission spectrometry market. Based on the type, the global atomic emission spectrometry market has been segmented as follows:Flame Emission Spectroscopy (FES)Spark Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (SAES)Arc Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (AES)Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-AES)OthersGeographically, the global atomic emission spectrometry market has been segmented into four major geographies namely, North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Rest of the World (RoW). North America comprises cumulative atomic emission spectrometry market for the U.S and Canada. Europe comprises cumulative market of atomic emission spectrometry in Germany, Italy, France, Spain, and Rest of Europe (RoE). Asia Pacific comprises cumulative market of atomic emission spectrometry in China, India, Australia, New Zealand and rest of Asia Pacific (RoAPAC). Rest of the World (RoW) comprises atomic emission spectrometry market in Latin America, Middle East and Russia. Currently, Europe and North America are leading the global atomic emission spectrometry market. Highly developed research infrastructure, higher healthcare spending, availability of government funding and skilled professionals to perform the analytical process are some of the factors that are driving the atomic emission spectrometry market in Europe and North America. Asia Pacific atomic emission spectrometry market is anticipated to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period 2014 to 2020.Rapidly developing research and development (R&D) infrastructure, government support to boost the growth of the medical, biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors in the respective country and increasing spending capacity are some of the factors that are anticipated to drive the growth of the atomic emission spectrometry market in Asia Pacific. China, India, Japan, Australia and New Zealand are the most attractive market for atomic emission spectrometry in the Asia Pacific owing to relatively developed regulatory framework, availability of skilled personnel and high awareness about the technique. Latin American countries including Mexico, Brazil and Argentina are anticipated to show significant growth compared to other economies in the RoW region. Some of the key players contributing to the global atomic emission spectrometry market include, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc., Perkin Elmer, Inc., Agilent Technologies, Inc., Bruker Corporation, Waters Corporation, Shimadzu Corporation, AB Sciex and others.Browse Research Report:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) 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. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who us e proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Browse market research blog:
Increased Application of LVADs to Reflect Positively on Ventricular Assist Device Market Sales

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North America Ventricular Assist Device Market: SnapshotOf late, the market for ventricular assist devices (VADs) is witnessing an exceptional rise in North America on account of the increasing incidence of cardiac arrest and heart failure in various economies in this region, specifically in the U.S. and Canada. The escalating pool of heart patients, boosted by the growing base of the geriatric and the obese population, is having the most prominent impact on the augmenting demand for VADs in this region and is likely to continue to influence this market in the coming years.As per Transparency Market Research (TMR), the North America market for ventricular assist devices offered an opportunity worth US$0.49 bn in 2015. Expanding at an impressive CAGR of 9.20% during the period from 2016 to 2024, the market is projected to reach US$1.07 bn by 2024.Download Complete Healthcare Analytical Brochure:LVADs to Continue Witnessing Strong DemandRight ventricular assist devices (RVADs), left ventricular assist devices (LAVDs), bi-ventricular assist devices (Bi-VADs), and total artificial hearts (TAHs) are the main products available in the North America VAD market.LVADs have been witnessing a higher demand than other devices used for ventricular assistance across the world. This scenario is likely to remain the same in the near future with the opportunity for LVADs in North America rising at a CAGR of 9.60% between 2016 and 2024. TAHs are also expected to experience a significant surge in their demand over the forthcoming years due to their augmenting popularity as one of the most efficient devices used in destination therapy and bridge to transplant.Increase in Clinical Trials and Awareness Initiatives to Ensure Dominance of the U.S.The prime domestic markets for ventricular assist devices in North America are U.S. and Canada. With a contribution of US$446 mn, the U.S. surfaced as the key contributor to the overall market in 2015. Researchers predict this domestic market to continue to lead throughout the forecast period, thanks to the significant increase in clinical studies, awareness initiatives, and patient assistance.On the other hand, Canada, which accounts for a smaller share of the overall market, is poised to witness a sturdy rise and create substantial opportunities for the markets growth in this region over the next few years. The increasing prevalence of cardiovascular disorders among people and the presence of a favorable reimbursement scenario are likely to fuel the usage of VADs for the treatment of cardiac arrest, heart failure, and other cardiovascular disorders in the years to come, leading to substantial growth of VAD market in Canada. In addition, the low level of competition between players is anticipated to boost the interest of multinational participants in the Canada VAD market in the near future.The North America VAD market demonstrates a highly competitive landscape due to the intense rivalry between the leading players, namely, Berlin Heart GmbH, SynCardia Systems LLC, Sunshine Heart Inc., St. Jude Medical, Heart Ware International Inc., and Abiomed. Hitherto, they relied upon product innovation for business development; however, their focus is likely to shift towards strategic alliances with new entrants to minimize the competition within the market.Browse Full Research Report on Ventricular Assist Device Market:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) 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. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who us e proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Browse market research blog:
Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle Converters Market by Full Size Vehicle, 2016  2024

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The North America wheelchair accessible vehicle (WAV) converters market is consolidated, with the top three players  BraunAbility, Vantage Mobility International, and Mobility Ventures LLC  accounting for over 65% in 2015. Transparency Market Research has observed that WAV manufacturers and vehicle converters are increasingly focusing on strengthening their distribution networks, developing a steady sales force, and conducting awareness programs in order to increase the adoption of WAVs over the forecast period.Transportation companies are also looking to capitalize on the opportunities presented by this market through WAV taxi services. For instance, in July 2015, Uber Technologies, Inc. announced the launch of UberACCESS, which provides mobility vehicles for disabled customers. Wheelchair accessible vehicle taxi services are gaining traction in the U.S. and this is expected to give the WAV converters market a considerable boost in the coming years.The value of the North America wheelchair accessible vehicle converters market was pegged at US$781.8 mn in 2015 and is expected to reach US$1.9 bn by 2024, registering a CAGR of 11.1% therein.Request a PDF Brochure with Report Analysis:By Entry Modality, Ramps Present Most Lucrative Opportunities for PlayersOn the basis of size of vehicle, full-sized vehicles are expected to account for a 73.1% share in the wheelchair accessible vehicle converters market by 2024. Small-sized vehicles, on the other hand, form the most attractive segment. This segment is projected to expand at a strong CAGR of 11.4% from 2016 to 2024.By entry modality, ramps form the leading segment of the wheelchair accessible vehicle converters market in North America and this segment is anticipated to exhibit high growth through the forecast period.From a geographical standpoint, the U.S. market is estimated to account for an 88.3% revenue share by 2024, emerging as the clear leader in the North America wheelchair accessible vehicle converters market. The U.S. is also projected to be the most lucrative segment by 2024.Introduction of Preemptive Accommodations by WAV Manufacturers a Key Marketing StrategyOne of the key factors driving the North America market for wheelchair accessible vehicle converters is the significant prevalence of people with disabilities. A recent study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that one out of every five adults in the U.S. has a disability. This translates to roughly 53 million adults currently living with some form of disability. Disabled World, an independent news portal, reveals that an estimated 6.8 million community-resident Americans use mobility assistive devices, of which, at least 1.7 million individuals are wheelchair or scooter riders. With the number of people living from disabilities on the rise, the demand for wheelchair accessible vehicle converters is bound to grow, the TMR analyst states.Looking to increase the adoption rate of wheelchair accessible vehicles and offer more benefits to customers, WAV manufacturers are focusing on integrating advanced technologies with their products. The introduction of preemptive accommodations is one such example, wherein WAV manufacturing companies are partnering with parking authorities in major cities to notify WAV users regarding the availability of parking spaces. Developments such as these are sure to boost the wheelchair accessible vehicle converters market in North America.On the flip side, the high cost of wheelchair accessible vehicles and low awareness among potential customers are expected to significantly hamper the adoption rate of mobility vehicles, thereby hurting the wheelchair accessible vehicle converters market in North America.Browse Full Research Report on Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle Converters Market:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) 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. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who us e proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA  Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Browse market research blog:
Global Latex Medical Disposables Market : Opportunity Map and Trends 2024

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Latex Medical Disposables Market: SnapshotThe global latex medical disposables market has witnessed significant growth over the last decade primarily owing to the urgent need for infection control. The demand for latex medical disposables is not just limited to super specialty hospitals but has, of late, expanded to rural hospitals and clinics.The opportunity in the global latex medical disposables market is expected to amount to US$6.4 bn by 2024, rising from a value of US$4.1 bn in 2015 at a modest CAGR of 4.9% therein. The growth in this market can be attributed to an expanding medical tourism industry across developing countries, vigorous growth of the healthcare sector, rising focus of the government toward the medical devices market, and growing healthcare awareness among the population.Download Complete Healthcare Analytical Brochure:Hospitals Emerge as Leading End User of Latex Medical DisposablesBy product, latex gloves emerged as the leading segment of the latex medical disposables market, accounting for a 60.4% share in terms of revenue in 2015. Latex foley catheters and latex probe covers also show significant scope for growth and the trend is likely to continue through 2024.The key end users latex medical disposables include hospitals (private and public), ambulatory surgical centers, clinics, and diagnostic centers. Hospitals formed the dominant segment in terms of revenue in 2015, attributed to a significantly high demand. The consumption of latex medical disposables is high in hospitals because of the increased number of procedures carried out and the growing preference of patients toward public and private hospitals. The hospital segment is expected to account for a 28.7% share in 2024, closely followed by diagnostic centers.Developing Markets of Asia Pacific and Latin America Show Immense PromiseNorth America leads the global latex medical disposables market and factors such as the increasing geriatric population and the introduction of new material variants by global players for the betterment of healthcare professionals can be attributed to the regions dominance in the global market. In addition, a rise in infection control awareness has played a vital role in increasing healthcare expenditure in the region. The U.S. accounts for a major share in the North America as well as worldwide latex medical disposables market.Europe is also a prominent contributor to the global latex medical disposables market due to a well-established healthcare network in the region. The demand for latex disposables is increasing owing to the rising number of ambulatory surgical centers as well as their growing use in home-care settings. Despite the ongoing debate about latex allergies, the size of this market is likely to expand during the course of the forecast period.The Asia Pacific latex medical disposables market is projected to expand at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period, with China as its lead contributor. Increasing population and consumption of latex products in the country is expected to provide lucrative opportunities for global players. Moreover, a rise in the demand for other latex products such as probe covers and foley catheters in Japan and India is likely to complement the growth of the latex medical disposables market in Asia Pacific.Players in the latex medical disposables market have been focused on strengthening their presence in Latin America due to the rising number of private hospitals in Brazil, Mexico and other countries in the region.Key players in the latex medical disposables market include B. Braun Melsungen, Medtronic plc. (Covidien), C.R. Bard, Ansell, Hartalega Holdings Bhd., Top Glove Corporation, Supermax Corporation Berhad, and Dynarex Corporation.Browse Full Research Report on Latex Medical Disposables Market:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) 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. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who us e proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA  Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Browse market research blog:
Automotive Fasteners Market - Wurth, Araymond, ITW, KAMAX, STANLEY

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The Global Automotive Fasteners Market 2016 Industry Research Report focused on major manufacturers, regions, type as well as application of the Automotive Fasteners Market industry. Automotive fasteners are a collection of products that are used in automotive and vehicle assembly. They are usually designed for specific models of vehicles.Scope of the Report:This report focuses on the Automotive Fasteners in Global market, especially in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East and Africa. This report categorizes the market based on manufacturers, regions, type and application.For free sample of report visit atMarket Segment by Manufacturers, this report coversWurthAraymondITWKAMAXSTANLEYAoyama SeisakushoMeidohLISINORMANifcoMeiraZF TRWPrecision CastpartsCorp.TopuraChunyuBoltunFontanaSundram FastenersSFS intecSamjinKeller & KalmbachPiolaxB?llhoffEJOT GroupGEM-YEARRUIBIAOShenzhen AERO FastenersDongfeng Auto FastenersChongqing Standard FastenersChangshu Standard PartsDetail overview of report visit atMarket Segment by Regions, regional analysis coversNorth America (USA, Canada and Mexico)Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)South America, Middle East and AfricaMarket Segment by Type, coversThreaded FastenersNon-Threaded FastenersMarket Segment by Applications, can be divided intoAutomotive OEMAftermarketThis Automotive Fasteners Market Industry report also states Company Profile, sales, Automotive Fasteners Market revenue, and price, market share, Contact Information and gross margin by regions.Finally, the feasibility of new investment projects is assessed, and methodology of the report are offered.About Us:"MarketInsights.Biz offer reports from top publishers and update to serve you with immediate on-line access to professional insights on global industries, companies, products, and trends. Customers can buys different reports across various categories such as Chemical and Material, Biotechnology, Healthcare, Food and beverages, Automobile and various sectors. Our Website offers safe and secure online ordering experience, convenient payment options.Contact US:Frank ValadezDirector of Business DevelopmentWebsite:Email:sales@marketinsights.biz
The National Guard Bureau earlier this month ordered units across the country to end all public events in armories contaminated with lead dust.

The Dec. 6 order came two decades after a Department of Defense audit flagged the problem and urged action, and four days after The Oregonian/OregonLive published "Toxic Armories," which revealed that the widespread problem persisted.

So which armories have problems? Search our database and find out.

Reporter Rob Davis asked every state for records of all inspections since 2012 at armories that contained indoor firing ranges, the primary source of lead contamination. He identified 1,300 National Guard armories this way and obtained recent reports for 464. Download them from our site.

You may find your state did not provide information we requested. At more than 700 armories, officials did not perform inspections, despite Guard requirements they test former ranges annually and active ranges every two years.

You can press Guard leaders for answers. We've provided contact information in every state.

One round of inspections and cleanings began in 2015, when The Oregonian/OregonLive's request for inspection reports prompted the National Guard Bureau to order inspections in all states.

Toxic Armories

Every time a soldier pulled the trigger inside a National Guard gun range, a bullet cast off bits of lead. The Guard's neglect allowed the toxic dust to spread outside the range, endangering families who attended weddings, school sleepovers and Cub Scout meetings in America's armories.

READ THE SERIES

At least seven states shut down armories as a result.

For example, Michigan's Port Huron armory closed to the public following an inspection that found lead on areas including the kitchen, locker room and drill floor. The Michigan National Guard re-opened the facility after new test results Nov. 22 showed lead levels were under control, The Times Herald newspaper reported.

Indiana's Connersville, Shelbyville, Richmond and Winchester armories were temporarily closed to the public in 2015, the Connersville News Examiner reported.

The New Hampshire Guard cleaned armories with firing ranges in 2002 but failed to inspect them again until this past year, reported the New Hampshire Union Leader. Elevated levels were found at the Manchester, N.H., armory. The facility is being cleaned, a Guard spokesman told the newspaper.

-- The Oregonian
There's no good place to start a nuclear arms race -- and Twitter is an especially bad venue. So it's unfortunate that President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday tweeted his desire for the U.S. to "greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability," then followed up on Friday morning by saying, "Let it be an arms race."

It's hard to know exactly what Trump means -- such are the limitations of communication via 140 characters or off-the-air phone calls to morning-TV hosts -- but it's possible he is simply referring to the need to continue the U.S.'s nuclear modernization program. In the 2016 federal budget, President Barack Obama laid the groundwork for a $1 trillion overhaul of the nation's nuclear arsenal: warheads, missiles, bombers, submarines, targeting systems and the Department of Energy's huge research and development system.

The plan has some flaws. Not all three legs of the "nuclear triad" (missiles on subs, planes and buried in the ground) are in need of an upgrade, for example: Intercontinental ballistic missiles are part of a Cold War deterrence strategy based on mutually assured destruction. Meanwhile, the accuracy of submarine-based missiles has vastly improved in the last several decades. And a plan to create a new nuclear cruise missile that could be launched from a bomber and directed at a target up to 1,500 miles away may be too risky.

For the most part, however, the plan is well conceived and necessary, to deter both major powers such as Russia and China and hostile smaller nations intent on joining the nuclear club such as Iran.

It would leave the U.S. with 700 deployed ICBMs, subs and bombers capable of delivering nuclear warheads -- the maximum allowed under the second Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty with Russia, which is set to go into force in 2018.

Russian President Vladimir Putin responded to Trump by saying that, if the U.S. started an arms race, Russia would respond. Yet he, too, is already embarking on a rebuilding of what were the Soviet Union's nuclear forces.

One tweet does not official U.S. policy make -- at least not yet. When Trump does begin to translate his statements about nuclear weapons into actual plans, he could do worse than staying the course that Obama has set.

(c) 2016, Bloomberg View
TRUMP29.JPG

President-elect Donald Trump

(AP Photo/File)

In a recent Opinion essay ("Potential for a bloodless coup isn't so far-fetched," Dec. 23), Carrie Leonetti suggests that military personnel who fail to obey an order to launch a pre-emptive nuclear strike would be staging a coup.

The Uniform Code of Military Justice, which provides the legal framework for the military, requires someone in the military to obey not every order, but a lawful order, or an order which it is his duty to obey. The UCMJ also specifies that murder is a criminal offense. Thus, an order to murder someone is an unlawful order and need not be obeyed.

Since a nuclear attack should be preceded by a declaration of war, it would be entirely appropriate for commanders to question an order apparently based on a whim.

A coup is a takeover of government by force or rebellion. Refusing an unlawful order which carries enormous destructive potential does not replace the government, and in fact might save it.

Charles Bates, Portland
Trump25.JPG

Donald Trump

(AP Photo/File)

By John Wagnern and Abby Phillip

WASHINGTON - Donald Trump's sudden embrace last week of a nuclear arms race - and his staff's scramble to minimize the fallout - underscored an emerging modus operandi for the president-elect: governance by chaos.

Since winning the election, Trump has seemed to revel in tossing firecrackers in all directions, often using Twitter to offer brief but provocative pronouncements on foreign and domestic policies alike - and leaving it to others to flesh out his true intentions.

In the last week alone, Trump has publicly pitted two military contractors against one another, sowed confusion about the scope of his proposed ban on foreign Muslims and needled China following its seizure of a U.S. underwater drone.

But nothing has created more consternation for many foreign policy experts than Trump's assertion on Twitter on Thursday that the country should "greatly strengthen and expand" its nuclear capability.

Last Friday, after his staff had tried to temper his comments, Trump doubled down - telling a television talk show host that in an arms race against any competitor, the United States would "outmatch them at every pass."

Trump has pledged to shake up both Washington and the world order, and boosters argue that a degree of unpredictability can be useful, particularly when it comes to foreign policy. But the mixed messages and erratic nature of his pronouncements have alarmed even some Republicans, who say it's important to know how seriously to take the leader of the free world.

"We're just operating in this world where you cannot believe the things he says," said Eliot Cohen, a foreign policy expert and former George W. Bush administration official at the State Department. "It will have large consequences for our allies and our adversaries, and it's going to greatly magnify the danger of miscalculation by all kinds of people."

Trump's team has struggled with the new resonance that becoming president-elect has given Trump's Twitter habit. They have repeatedly said that his statements on social media do not necessarily reflect his official policy and have at times sought to play down the import of his actions.

But Trump supporters say the rest of Washington is going to have to get used to his more freewheeling style.

"People who expect the past are going to be shocked that there's a new way of doing things," said Barry Bennett, a Republican strategist who served as an adviser to Trump during the general election campaign. "This is a glimpse of where he's headed, and in a way, it's highly transparent, but just not the way Washington has done business for the past 40 or 50 years."

But others warn that Democrats and Republicans alike on Capitol Hill could have a hard time reading Trump and discerning his true priorities if he continues to operate as he has during the transition.

"It's difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff - what comes out that he really wants and what's just said at the spur of the moment," said Jim Manley, a former longtime aide to Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. "In the past, a president-elect doing something like this would have been unfathomable."

The imbroglio over nuclear arms began Thursday with a tweet from Trump in which he said the United States "must greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability until such time as the world comes to its senses regarding nukes."

Trump made no mention of what spurred his thoughts, but the tweet followed an address by Russian President Vladimir Putin in which he said his country's nuclear stockpile needs fortifying.

Trump's tweet seemed to signal a break with four decades of policy charted by presidents of both parties - and it sent his staff scrambling to explain his thinking.

In a television interview Thursday night, Kellyanne Conway - named counselor to the president earlier in the day - downplayed its sweep.

"He's not trying to change a policy through Twitter," Conway told MSNBC's Rachel Maddow. "What he's merely saying is that he wants us to be ready to defend ourselves."

Conway said Trump's tweet was not necessarily aimed at Russia but directed at "a regime that would do us harm or a rogue nation."

Trump was not backing down Friday morning, however. On MSNBC's "Morning Joe," co-host Mika Brzezinski relayed a conversation she had with Trump in which he reportedly said, "Let it be an arms race. We will outmatch them at every pass."

As they discussed Trump's nuclear vow, Brzezinski and host Joe Scarborough, a former congressman from Florida, were both dressed in pajamas as they sat in front of a fireplace on their final show before Christmas.

Shortly after the segment aired, Sean Spicer, who was named Trump's White House press secretary on Thursday, suggested Trump was describing a hypothetical situation and speaking about what would happen if other countries don't "come to their senses."

"If another country wants to expand their nuclear capability, the U.S. is not going to sit back and idly by," Spicer said on NBC's "Today" show. "But just to be clear: The president isn't saying we're going to do this. He said unless they come to their senses. It's a warning to them that this president's going to take action."

Democrats, meanwhile, chided Trump for being cavalier about a topic as sensitive as nuclear weapons.

Taking to Twitter himself, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., wrote Friday afternoon that "Congress must not allow the Tweeter in Chief to unleash a dangerous and costly nuclear arms race."

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., tweeted: "Dear Donald Trump. You're new to this so here's a list of things to tweet about instead of nuclear weapons. 1.) Literally anything."

In an interview, Schiff said that in his view, "this just isn't a way to conduct business, certainly not as president of president-elect. It's dangerous."

Doug Wilson, a former assistant secretary of defense for public affairs in President Barack Obama's administration, said it remained unclear to him and many others in the national security establishment what Trump was trying to convey.

"I'm not sure if he's talking about expanding the nuclear arsenal or he's mistaken that for modernizing the nuclear force," Wilson said.

Wilson said there can be foreign policy advantages to being unpredictable, but that "there is a difference in being strategically unpredictable and foolishly unpredictable." He said it's too early to know in which camp to place Trump.

On a range of other issues during the campaign and in recent weeks, Trump has made statements that his aides have immediately walked back or softened.

In a brief appearance before reporters this week, he seemed to suggest that two of his most controversial campaign proposals - to ban foreign Muslims from entering the United States and to register those who are here - had been vindicated by recent terror attacks in Europe.

Later, Conway insisted that a ban on Muslims was no longer Trump's plan.

After meeting this week with the CEOs of two of the largest defense contractors, Boeing and Lockheed Martin, Trump announced on Twitter that he had asked Boeing to price out the cost of a F-18 fighter jet - which could replace the F-35 jet developed by Lockheed Martin due to cost overruns.

The tweet sent Boeing's stock up and Lockheed Martin's stock plummeting - shaving some $1.2 billion off of the company's value.

Some conservatives praised Trump for using his platform to pursue cost savings for taxpayers.

But on foreign affairs in particular, experts warned that Twitter is not the best venue to pursue new policy - even if the aim is disruption.

Thomas Nichols, a U.S. Naval War College professor who is currently writing a book on U.S. nuclear policy, noted that Trump and his staff have now offered multiple explanations for what he meant in his nuclear weapons tweet.

"It's worse than not having one explanation," said Nichols, who said he was speaking in his personal capacity. "If you're going to change policy, then that requires a kind of steely consistency and a lot of disciplined messaging."

"We're all spending a lot of time," he added, "trying to devise the future of America's nuclear policy out of 140 characters."

(c) 2016, The Washington Post
The Oregon State Police asked for privacy for the family of a state trooper shot by a homicide suspect Sunday night, but the agency invited the public to send well wishes.

Trooper Nic Cederberg was in critical condition after surgery Monday after he was shot several times during the encounter with James Tylka, who was fatally wounded by officers, police said.

Police said Tylka shot and killed a woman in King City, his estranged wife. Tylka then then led officers on a vehicle chase that ended at the site of the shootout, south of the city of Sherwood.

The state police said messages could be sent by email to ospsocial@state.or.us, or by mail:

Oregon State Police

Attn: Trooper Cederberg

3565 Trelstad Ave SE

Salem, OR 97317

-- The Oregonian/OregonLive
Kimberly Houston, a trusted voice of reason whose sage leadership helped Delta College navigate through some difficult times, has called it a career after serving as a Midland County trustee on the colleges board of trustees since 2005.

Houston, a longtime Dow Corning Corp. executive, opted not to seek re-election in November, opening the door for newly elected Andre Buckley to fill her shoes at the community college. Houston, in her customary diligent fashion, wanted to ensure a smooth transition of power on her way out. As former Midland County trustees Richard Dolinski and Smallwood Holoman did for her, Houston supported the younger Buckleys candidacy and offered the newcomer some advice prior to his beginning a six-year term in January.

Listen, ask questions and learn about Delta Colleges mission and strategic plan, Houston said. Bring forward your ideas and provide thoughtful direction to Deltas leadership as they focus on the myriad issues facing community colleges in the state and our nation. And finally, share your unique and authentic leadership gifts, talent and voice toward the good stewardship of Delta College.

The December board meeting marked the final one for both Houston and Bay County Trustee Dee Dee Wacksman. The college loses a combined 30 years of leadership experience with the departure of these two longtime trustees.

President Jean Goodnow offered high praise for Houston.

Kimberly has been an advisor, a mentor, a thoughtful leader, and friend to me over the years, she said. She is a wise thinker.

Houston had a knack for spot-on analysis that helped break through the noise and clutter on even the most contentious and complex issues.

I always looked forward to her comments at the end of a board meeting, Goodnow said. She eloquently summarizes the evening and provides us with her wisdom and positive reflections on our college.

Houston, who retired from Dow Corning after a 32-year career in 2012, said, I decided not to seek re-election after reflecting on my future goals, past contributions to Delta College and Baby Boomer status as I approach my 60th year. Ideally, I wanted to role model an orderly leadership succession and enhance board diversity through support for a younger candidate. Dr. Richard (Dick) Dolinski and Smallwood Holoman similarly supported my candidacy in 2004.

Houston served as board chair during a two-year period (2009-2010) that she described as an extremely challenging time.

Thats when the college had to manage multiple and consecutive lawsuits filed by a board member (Kim Higgs). As an elected leader, I was able to bring temperance, organizational agility, engagement and stability to our board operations. This tension-filled time frame unfortunately served to distract the colleges exemplary employees and community from Deltas primary goal of student success.

During Houstons tenure, she pointed to two critical investment decisions she said will positively impact the regions long-term future: the renovation of the Health Professions Building and, most recently, support for a new $12.7 million downtown Saginaw campus. Houston views the Saginaw Center, scheduled to open in 2018, as a pivotal piece of the regions economic and educational growth strategies.

The new Saginaw Center supports the citys economic development and the regions workforce needs by serving as an educational anchor in the city along with CMUs College of Medicine, she said.

Houston and Delta officials, buoyed by research and analysis, are convinced a satellite campus in Saginaw will succeed, largely because it will attract students from the city who havent been provided with sufficient access to education. Houston said Delta is remaining true to its ideals by expanding its presence in Saginaws urban core. A stellar faculty, she said, will help these new students succeed.

The strategic mission of Delta and the nations 1,600-plus community colleges is to provide full access to education for American citizens, she said. Community colleges meet students where they are and transform citizens lives each day to fuel regional and state growth.

Houston noted that some 38 percent of Michigan residents hold a college degree, compared to only 22 percent for Saginaw residents. A new Saginaw center, based on Deltas demographic assessment, can be a major factor in increasing the number of city residents with college degrees, Houston said.

Goodnow said Houston, who has been part of nearly 700 action items during her time on the board, never stood pat as a trustee.

Kimberly recognizes the importance of trustee development and regularly attended conferences and workshops to learn more about community colleges and about being an effective member of the board.

Goodnow recalled one such national conference in New York City. Since lodging is so expensive there, the two, attempting to be as frugal as possible, decided to room together.

It was the smallest hotel room on earth, Goodnow said. As you can imagine, we really bonded during the meeting  and had a lot of laughs while tripping over each other.

Houston considers Delta a regional gem, noting how many lives it has directly and indirectly impacted through its array of programs and services.

Delta is one of the areas hallmarks for regionalism, she said. From dual enrolled course offerings for high school students, to workforce development training in manufacturing, STEM and health care, to certificate and degree programs, Delta is important to the region.

She added: It has been a privilege to serve as one of Midland Countys elected representatives to Delta since 2005. I humbly thank the citizens of Midland, Bay and Saginaw counties for their support, perspectives and advocacy for Delta.
Saginaw Valley State University has announced that Marc Peretz has been chosen to serve as dean of the College of Arts and Behavioral Sciences. He had been serving as interim dean since July 2015.

Peretz joined the SVSU music faculty in 1989 and served nearly 20 years as department chair. In addition to serving as interim dean, he has held the position of associate provost for international and advanced studies since 2014. During this time, SVSUs English Language Program earned national accreditation and international enrollment increased.

From 2010 to 2014, Peretz served as SVSUs accreditation liaison officer, in advance of an eventual successful re-accreditation by the Higher Learning Commission.

Marc brought a great deal of administrative experience to his appointment as interim dean and has been effective in that role for nearly 18 months, said Deb Huntley, SVSU provost and vice president for academic affairs. After conducting an extensive national search, we concluded we had the right person serving in that role. Marc enjoys the support of his colleagues within the college and that will be important as we work to enhance student success through innovative teaching in the arts, humanities and social sciences.

Students in SVSUs College of Arts and Behavioral Sciences have enjoyed a banner fall in academic competition.

The SVSU moot court program is sending four teams to the American Moot Court Association national tournament in Gulfport, Florida, Jan. 6-7. Only two colleges or universities  out of more than 350 nationally  qualified more students to attend the contest. In all, 80 teams with 160 students will compete.

A total of nine SVSU students have qualified for the national forensics tournament April 13-17 at the University of Wisconsin Eau-Claire.

Student Erik Breidinger earned top honors for presenting his community-minded research on the Kawkawlin River. A communication and geography double major from Auburn, he won first place in the undergraduate paper presentation category at the American Association of Geographers East Lakes/West Lakes conference in October.

Prior to SVSU, Peretz taught at Ball State University and the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga. He completed a doctor of musical arts degree at Temple University.

A resident of Midland, Peretz has administrative experience outside of his college, as well. While serving in the provosts office, he filled temporary appointments as associate dean for the colleges of Education, and Health and Human Services.

He officially begins his new duties Jan. 1.
A Coleman man has been sentenced to intensive probation and to pay for the cost of clean up on charges related to a methamphetamine lab found at his home.

Frank Herbert Olmsted III, 51, was charged with second-offense operating or maintaining a methamphetamine lab, second-offense delivery or manufacture of methamphetamine and second-offense possession of meth as a result of an investigation after a 911 call reporting a meth lab in the garage of his Murphy Street home.

He appeared in Midland County Circuit Court recently to make a plea in the case and be sentenced. Court records show Olmsted entered a guilty plea to second-offense delivery or manufacture of methamphetamine, in exchange for the dismissal of the remaining charges. As part of the plea, Olmsted is to pay for the cost of the meth clean up.

Judge Stephen P. Carras also levied 180 days in jail with credit for 121 days, $1,750 fines and costs, and five years probation in the MI Hope probation program. Olmsted is to be held in jail until treatment is available, and restitution was left open in the case.

Affidavits filed in the case state Midland County sheriffs deputies responded to 402 Murphy St. after a 911 call reporting meth activity and a person wanted on a warrant at the home on July 18. A suspect was arrested on two Midland County warrants as well as a warrant originating in Florida, and was found with a meth pipe.

Deputies found components used to make the drug in the garage, as well as two active one pot cooks, as well as some of the finished drug. A one pot cook is a method of making the drug using a plastic bottle.

Olmsted previously was convicted of using marijuana on Aug. 21, 2006, and July 5, 2011, accounting for the second-offense notices on the charges. The second offense notices double the penalties for each charge, making the maximum penalty up to 40 years in prison for operating a lab involving meth and delivery or manufacture of meth, and up to 20 years for possession of meth.

Attorney Dan Duke of Midland was appointed to represent Olmsted.
It has become a Daily News tradition to publish, on Christmas day, an excerpt from the Bible on the birth of Jesus so that people can know the true origins of what is being celebrated today. Here is the story, according to the Gospel of Luke:

In the sixth month of Elizabeths pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!

Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. Dont be frightened, Mary, the angel told her, for God has decided to bless you! You will become pregnant and have a son, and you are to name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!

Mary asked the angel, But how can I have a baby? I am a virgin.

The angel replied, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby born to you will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. Whats more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but shes already in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.

Mary responded, I am the Lords servant, and I am willing to accept whatever he wants. May everything you have said come true. And then the angel left.

A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. At the sound of Marys greeting, Elizabeths child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.

Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, You are blessed by God above all other women, and your child is blessed. What an honor this is, that the mother of my Lord should visit me! When you came in and greeted me, my baby jumped for joy the instant I heard your voice! You are blessed, because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.

Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home.

At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, Davids ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancee, who was obviously pregnant by this time.

And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the village inn.
An Arkansas school district has been found to be liable for violating a federal act following its decision to remove three students with HIV concerns. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has cited that the Pea Ridge School District failed to uphold Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 2013 when it sent the students home on Sept. 13, 2013.

According to Arkansas Online, the students were part of the foster care system whose documents showed that they have families with HIV. They were barred from attending school for four days until they took HIV tests themselves. Thus, they missed school activities because of the exclusion.

Superintendent Rick Neal said that they only followed the advice of David Matthews, the district attorney at that time. There was a concern of HIV exposure among the teaching staff and students, THV11 reports.

Arkansas Online further reports that Matthews discussed during the board meeting that took place also in September 2013 that HIV, primarily a sexually transmitted disease, could be "spread in other ways." But these belong to the "less common" situation, according to the CDC.

Benton County (AR) school District, Pea Ridge, cited by the DOJ for removing three students with #HIV in 2013. https://t.co/NqrkkNezKU  Haley (@dxingwithhaley) December 23, 2016

But the Department of Justice sent a letter to the school district last Dec. 13 citing the violation of Title II. "A student's HIV status, actual or perceived, is not a permissible basis for the exclusion of a student from a public school setting," the letter written by its Civil Rights Division Chief Rebecca Bond stated, according to ADA.

Bond is also asking the school district to revise their policy on students with HIV concerns in written form. The said policy should not make school exclusion a requirement and its school staff must also be educated and trained about non-discrimination. The school district must also designate employees assigned to foster compliance of the ADA. The DOJ also ruled the payment of compensatory damages among the students involved, the NWA reports.
Legendary actress Carrie Fisher spent her Christmas in the intensive care unit. The former "Star Wars" actress suffered from a major heart attack during her flight to Los Angeles.

Carrie Fisher was on her way to visit her family in Los Angeles over the holidays after she was hit with a heart attack. The actress suffered a heart attack during the flight and passengers rushed to help her by performing CPR. According to Variety, the legendary actress was on an 11-hour flight from London to Los Angeles, which led her to spend her Christmas in the Intensive Care Unit under her daughter's watch.

As of the recent updates in regards to the actress' health update, it was mentioned that main cause of her heart attack is not yet revealed. Fisher was revived aboard the plane by a fellow passenger who turned out to be a nurse. The 60-year-old actress reportedly stopped breathing for 10 minutes.

"United 935, I need the nature of your medical emergency, and also the sex of the patient and if there is medical personnel at the gate," the recording acquired from the airlines discussed the pilot's conversation with the control tower. "Yeah, we've coordinated medical personnel for the gate, we have some passengers, nurses, assisting the... unresponsive passenger,' the pilot replied. So they're working on her right now, we're going to have her seated in about two minutes and we should hopefully be on the deck in about five."



TMZ reports that the entire rescue procedure took place for about 15 minutes before the team were able to get a pulse and revived the actress. It was mentioned that Carrie Fisher came from a hectic week as she was busy promoting her memoir, The Princess Diarist."

Fans and fellow Hollywood stars sent out their love through twitter as they wished the "Star Wars" actress well. Even Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill also shared their sentiments in regards to Carrie Fisher's health condition.
Obligatory link to context: Ann Althouse (with links in her own post), BBC (containing the claim that Obama orchestrated the resolution), a tweetstorm by Omri Ceren.

Just before Christmas, the UN passed a resolution condemning Israeli settlement in the West Bank and East Jerusalem as in violation of international law, and reiterating the demand that Israel must withdraw from all lands taken from Jordan in 1967, and all Jewish residents as well. Not only did the U.S. abstain from voting rather than using its veto, but Israel accuses the U.S. government of having orchestrated the resolution behind the scenes. This resolution is not a binding resolution in the sense that certain Security Council resolutions contain the threat of action against the violator, but Legal Insurrection reports that there are worries that an upcoming peace conference in France on January 15 will produce a hasty passed-before-Inauguration-Day peace deal that will be imposed by force rather than negotiation.

So:

First, why now?

The Obama administrations justification for standing back rather than vetoing is simply a hey, Netanyahu brought it on himself by refusing to stop the settlements; he left us no choice as well as a certain distancing of the U.S., that all the administration did is stand back while other countries voted. But it seems improbable that a major change in U.S. policy happened, by pure coincidence, just before Obama leaves office. Did Obama orchestrate the resolution? Im no expert, but it seems to have come out of nowhere, and it seems to me that there must have at least been some signalling that, this time around, the U.S. wouldnt veto it.

Second, what did Obama hope to accomplish?

Sure, in the were just bystanders scenario, Obama had no expectation of accomplishing anything, but was simply standing back and letting other countries do their thing. But thats unlikely. Did Obama think that this action would have a real shot at furthering the peace process? (No, not a rhetorical question  a real question for readers.)

Third, what will the ultimate consequences be?

At this point, I happen to be of the opinion that, in all likelihood, my grandchildren will someday be reading about the latest developments in the Peace Process. My opinion is that there should be a true return to 1967 borders in that the West Bank goes back to Jordan, but that individual Jewish property owners retain their property rights under Jordanian rule, rather than being ethnically cleansed, and that Israel retains Jerusalem because, well, its Jerusalem.

But the consequences of this particular resolution?

Look, the UN, and all kinds of other governments and other bodies have condemned the war in Syria. Its all talk. Will this resolution be any different?

Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AThe_Western_Wall_and_Dome_of_the_rock_in_the_old_city_of_Jerusalem.jpg; By Yourway-to-israel (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
More than 50 days on hunger strike: Iranian political prisoners are slowly dying

12/26/16

Source: ZAMAANEH_URL

As the number of political prisoners on hunger strikes are increasing in Iranian prisons, three prisoners who have been on hunger strike for the past seven weeks are slowly dying: Arash Sadeghi, Morteza Moradpour and Ali Shariati.

Aside from the three, Saeed Shirzad, children rights activist serving a 5 year sentence, has sewed his lips in order to refuse food. Shirzad has been on hunger strike as of 7 Dec 2016. Nizar Zakka, a Lebanese citizen and U.S. permanent resident, who is serving a 10 year sentence related to alleged espionage charges, has also joined the striking group.





Ali Shariati



Ali Shariati, a reformist political prisoner has been in and out of prison since 2009 protests against presidency of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He is currently serving a five year sentence for taking part in a 2014 protests in support of victims of acid attacks in Iran. Shariati refused food to demand a phone call with his family as of 31 Oct 2016. The prison has denied his visitation rights for weeks. He is continuing his strike and was taken to hospital on 9 December when his body shutdown and his heartbeat slowed significantly.



Arash Sadeghi who has been refusing to eat since 24 October 2016 had to be taken to hospital on 17 December following complications concerning his heart, blood pressure and gastrointestinal bleeding. He was transferred back to Ward 8 of Evin prison on the same day, after he refused to receive parenteral nutrition intravenously.





Arash Sadeghi and Golrokh Iraeee





Arash Sadeghi has been protesting the unlawful arrest of his wife, Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee, for an unpublished story. On the night that Iranian authorities raided Iraee and Sadeghi's house to arrest Sadeghi, they found an unpublished fictional story that Iraee had written on the subject of adultery and stoning. Iraee has received a six year prison sentence for writing this story and some of her online activism. Sadeghi demands the reversal of this judgment.Arash Sadeghi has been protesting the unlawful arrest of his wife, Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee, for an unpublished story. On the night that Iranian authorities raided Iraee and Sadeghi's house to arrest Sadeghi, they found an unpublished fictional story that Iraee had written on the subject of adultery and stoning. Iraee has received a six year prison sentence for writing this story and some of her online activism. Sadeghi demands the reversal of this judgment.



In an open letter from prison Sadeghi calls Iraee "the love of his life," stating that until her prison sentence is reversed, he will continue his hunger strike. Sadeghi has been in and out of prison since the 2009 protests disputing the results of presidential election in Iran. He is currently serving a 15-year prison related to his civil activism. The prison authorities have told him that he can join his wife after death.



On 24 Dec, Saeed Shirzad who has dedicated his life to the rights of children wrote a letter from Rajai Shahr prison, in Karaj. In that letter Shirzad stated that the prison official routinely violate prisoner's basic human rights, systematically neglecting the medical needs of prisoners.





Saeed Shirzad





Shirzad who started his strike on 17 December has demanded an end to neglect for prisoners' health and medical needs.



Shirzad too has been in and out of prison since 2012. His first detention was in August 2012, when he went to East Azerbaijan, to help the affected children after an earthquake. Shirzad is currently serving a five year prison sentence handed to him in 2015 for his campaigns to help with the educational needs of the children of political prisons.



Morteza Moradpoir an Azeri Ethnic prisoner has been on hunger strike since 25 Oct 2016 in Tabriz prison. He is demanding his own release after serving two years of a three year sentence in prison which makes him eligible for parole.





Morteza Moradpour before and after the hunger strike





Morteza and his brother Fardin Moradpour as well as several other Azerbaijani activists were arrested in 2009 for taking part in a rally. They were demanding their ethnic rights including the right to education in one's own language.



Morteza's health has been affected greatly by his hunger strike specially because he refuses the intake of sugar and he has lost more than 30 Kilograms.



Hassan Rastegari Majd, Iranian-Turkish citizen who is serving a 15 year sentence for involvement with Kurdish opposition groups in Urmia prison. He has been relocated to solitary confinement since the onset of the strike on 3 Dec 2016.



Lavin Karimi is another prisoner who has been arrested on charges of involvement with opposition Kurdish groups and sentenced to five years in prison. There are some unconfirmed reports of Karimi joining the prison-wide hunger strikes in Iran because she has been denied medical care for a bleeding stomach ulcer. Karimi has been on hunger strike as of 23 December 2016, but Zamaneh could not independently confirm this with her family.
Iran resumes carpet exports to U.S. in post-sanctions era

12/26/16

Source: Mehr News Agency

Head of the Iranian National Carpet Center has announced the resumption of Iran's hand-woven carpet export to the US during post-sanctions era. Hamid Karegar, speaking in a meeting with Qazvin Governor General Fereidoun Hemmati on Sunday, said that Iran resumed carpet exports to the US in the wake of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).





file photo by Yunes Khani, Mehr News Agency



"Carpet exports to the US in the eight months of the current Iranian year was set on $50 million compared to zero in the previous year," he underlined.



Kargar stated that Iranian carpet exporters have not been present in American market for five years as a result of which Indian carpets have taken the place of Iranian rugs.



He further emphasized that before the imposition of international sanctions against Iranian carpets in 2010, the US remained as the top importer of Persian Carpet with a share of more than 16.5 per cent worth 82 million dollars.







Noting that carpet exports to China have also increased in recent years, Karegar said that over the past five years, carpet exports to China has raised to eight million dollars from previous 8000 dollars.



Sanctions on the country's carpet industry imposed negative impacts on its exports, Kargar said, adding after JCPOA we have seen openings in sales of Iranian goods to the customers in foreign countries.



Iran's carpet industry dates back to 3,000 years ago and currently, one million artists are engaged in the industry, Karegar noted.



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Leaders of several African-American organizations in the Inland Empire are calling on Riverside County to establish a citizens committee to review policies governing the use of the sheriffs body-worn video cameras and availability of the footage to the public.

In absence of the committee, the leaders said, unspecified community groups should be able to view videos of serious or potentially controversial incidents such as shootings by deputies.

The leaders and the Sheriffs Department say they plan to meet sometime in January. Deputy Michael Vasquez, a sheriffs spokesman, said the department is reserving comment on the leaders requests until after the meeting.

Sheriff Stan Sniff said in September that all of its patrol deputies would be outfitted with the cameras, which also record audio, within two years. But the videos will be considered evidence and released to the public only upon a subpoena or court order, Chief Deputy Kevin Vest has said.

I dont think we will accept no-access under the guise of investigation and under the guise of privacy because this is a public agency, the public is paying for this stuff and therefore it should be public, said Corey Jackson, who heads Moreno Valley-based nonprofit organization Sigma Beta Xi, which offers mentoring and youth development programs.

Pastor Benjamin F. Briggs II, of the Greater Light Community Church in Perris, said When you inject secrecy, then it brings back the suspicion. We have an opportunity to expose truth.

Willie W. Williams, president of 100 Black Men of America Inland Empire chapter, said an oversight committee meeting could serve as a forum for residents to express concerns.

If we have a platform for that, and direct access to the sheriff, then we are more likely to avoid problems with police-community tensions, Williams said.

HOT-BUTTON ISSUE

The leaders trace their call for oversight to fatal shooting of black teenager Michael Brown by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014 that sparked protests around the nation and turned up the volume on demands for better accountability of officers use of force,

Its the hot-button issue throughout the nation in terms of the African-American community, Jackson said. I think it will be helpful for us to tell our story to the community so they can understand how concerned we are when our young people are out in the community and what may happen to them when they interact with law enforcement.

Jackson said the oversight is particularly important with the Sheriffs Department because, he said, it patrols two county areas with large black populations: Moreno Valley and Perris.

Regina Patton-Stell, first vice president of the Riverside chapter of the NAACP, said it is important to have understandings and alliances in place before a serious incident happens.

We dont consider ourselves protected. We want to be proactive, she said.

Policy points important to the group, Jackson said, include when a deputy is required to turn on the camera and what the penalties are for failing to do so. And he wants to eliminate situations where a shooting occurs and it turns out that the camera somehow malfunctioned.

Just like every police officer Im sure checks to see if his gun is working property before they go out, Im sure that they can make sure their body camera is working properly as well, he said.

SPREADING THE WORD

Jackson urged other Inland law enforcement agencies that are using or testing the cameras to establish a citizens committee or make provisions for public access to the videos.

In Riverside, where officers are expected to begin wearing the cameras department-wide this spring, Police Chief Sergio Diaz asked the independent Community Police Review Commission for input on policy.

The CPRC investigates officer-involved deaths and community members complaints against officers, and it makes non-binding recommendations on policy.

Commissioners will receive full videos of critical incidents, according to Lt. Bruce Loftus and CPRC manager Frank Hauptman. Before the CPRC publishes online its public, voluminous report on whether an officer acted with policy, the moment of lethal force will be edited out.

Diaz gave commissioners a draft copy of the policy several weeks before he discussed it at the CPRCs Dec. 14 meeting.

The commissioners were pleased with the way in which it was presented. They didnt have any recommendations they wanted to provide, Hauptman said.

Contact the writer: brokos@scng.com or 951-368-9569
When California voters approved Prop. 66 in November, limiting the amount of time to complete automatic death penalty appeals to five years, Becky Evans had hope that her family would not suffer the decades-long waits for sentences to be carried out that some other families have endured.

Evans uncle, Good Hope resident Lupe Delgadillo, 85, was carjacked, stuffed in his trunk, shot and his body dumped in 2008. Two men were convicted of murder and sentenced to death, one in 2012 and the other in 2015.

But now, after the state Supreme Court on Dec. 20, blocked the implementation of Prop. 66 to give justices time to consider a lawsuit challenging the measure, Evans and some others whose loved ones were killed by people assigned to Death Row in the past few years are concerned that the relatively swift justice promised by the law may be delayed or denied.

I was hoping that it would move along the process, said Evans, a Corona resident. Those on death row would get their justice, and justice for the families.

Twenty of the 89 Death Row inmates from Riverside County, and three of the 40 Death Row inmates from San Bernardino County, have been on hold at San Quentin State Prison for five years or less. For families of the prisoners victims, theres hope to an early end to the legal nightmare.

A handful of the 750 inmates on Death Row have been there for at least 35 years. No one has been executed since 2006.

Its unfortunate that families of these victims have had to wait so long, Evans said.

The lawsuit claims that Prop. 66 would disrupt the courts, cost more money and limit the ability to mount proper appeals. It says the deadlines would set an inordinately short timeline for the courts to review those complex cases and result in attorneys cutting corners in their investigations.

TROUBLING DELAYS

Joe Bonaminio said he is frustrated at such obstacles to implementing the death penalty. This week, there was a new hurdle: Wednesday, the state Office of Administrative Law rejected a new proposal from state officials to execute death row inmates using one of four different drugs or the gas chamber.

The man who murdered Riverside police Officer Ryan Bonaminio, 27, in 2010 arrived at San Quentin in July 2012.

Earl Green belongs in the dirt, and I dont know why we have to go through this process every time something comes up on the death penalty, Bonaminio said. I was hoping (Prop. 66) would speed things up.  I believe the public and the people have spoken through the elections system and say they want Prop. 66. It just makes no sense to me.

Many of the inmates committed their offenses when relatively young and could face decades on Death Row. But some of the victims survivors do not have the luxury of time. Bonaminio is 72 and his wife, Gerri, is 68.

My life clock isnt exactly on the good side, he said. My life clock is working the other way. I will never know the difference if I were taken tomorrow. Same goes for other survivors. And its not fair to the survivors to have to go on and on and on like this. These people have a right to have their justice done.

Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin, who along with John Aki prosecuted Green, said its not unusual for a judge to delay implementation of a law while challenges are heard. Still, as someone who supported Prop. 66, Hestrin said he is concerned.

The will of the voters should be honored, he said.

DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES

Opponents of Prop. 66 say it should never have become law in the first place. In an argument against the measure published on the Secretary of States website and signed by among others former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, foes said speeding up executions would put innocent people to death. All the consequences of Prop. 66 are unknown, they argued, and the measure would add costly layers of government.

Not everyone is troubled by the delay brought on by the lawsuit.

Gabriel Delgadillo, of Riverside, is Lupe Delgadillos nephew and Becky Evans brother. He said he wasnt sure how he voted on Prop. 66. He was in court when Juan Ramon Coronado Jr. was sentenced to death.

I saw him squirm and cry, Delgadillo said. That gave me a lot of satisfaction. Im satisfied to let him rot in jail. I think that is more punishment (than death).

Riverside resident Kermit Alexander has emotionally distanced himself from the 31-year wait for the execution of Tiequon Cox, who killed his mother, sister and two nephews in 1984, said his wife, Tami.

Kermit Alexander helped put Prop. 66 on the ballot and was one of its leading voices.

Were not panicked at all. We expected a legal challenge, Tami Alexander said. Its just a matter of working it through the courts.

What bothers her is that one of the lawsuits plaintiffs is John Van de Camp, a former state attorney general. She wonders how someone who fought for justice can turn away from the voters wishes.

And so, we continue to fight, Alexander said.

Contact the writer: brokos@scng.com or 951-368-9569
Adee Diaz was shocked last year when she got a call from her daughters counselor on the second day of school.

Yuridia Nava, the counselor, knew McKenna Diaz needed to get her grades up fast or she wouldnt get into college. She suggested summer school and online classes to help the girl catch up.

McKenna Diaz, now a senior, is a leader at Riversides Poly High School, pushing younger kids to excel.

If it wasnt for her, I wouldnt be where I am right now, said McKenna Diaz, 17, who plans to attend a four-year university next year. When Im down and going through personal stuff, she helps me. She sees my potential even if I cant see it.

The praise for Nava flows freely at Poly, where the 31-year-old Fontana resident is in her second year.

Nava won distinction as the states top counselor and was a top five finalist this year for the national award from the American School Counselor Association. She is set to be honored at a White House ceremony in early January.

When you look at someone who helps students with their social and emotional needs, in addition to college planning, theres no one better, Poly Principal Michael Roe said. Its a real vindication of the work that counselors in our high schools do on a daily basis that is constantly underappreciated.

Education runs in Navas family.

Her mom was a teacher and her father a principal in Durango, a state in northern Mexico. They set up schools in rural areas. Her father helped Huichol Indians get a formal education.

Humble beginnings

The couple left everything behind to come to the United States in pursuit of the American dream when Nava was 3.

They settled in a one-bedroom apartment in Los Angeles, struggling to get by on her fathers earnings as a construction worker.

Her mom stayed at home and taught Nava nouns, synonyms and history in Spanish at the kitchen table. She picked up English right away at school.

Since they were teachers, they made the house like the classroom, Nava recalled. I was the only student who could read and write when I started kindergarten.

When Nava was in fifth grade, the family moved to Fontana. During her freshman year at Fontana High School, she met counselor Mark Quick, who encouraged her to enroll in a program that lets high school students take classes at Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga.

Im overjoyed and full of pride, Quick, now a counselor at Jurupa Hills High School in Fontana, said of Navas success. She has that enthusiasm for life and education and learning.

Navas mom, Silvia Guzman Carrete, also took classes at Chaffey, sometimes with Nava. Carrete went on to earn a bachelors, masters and doctorate and is now an assistant principal at Ruble Middle School in Fontana.

Nava said Quick not only told her to fill out forms and look for resources, but showed how her to do it  something she took to heart when she became a counselor.

Passionate advocate

Every time I talked to him he would treat me like I was a valedictorian, said Nava, whose husband, Robert Nava, is a counselor at Jurupa Hills High School. I want to do that with my students.

After graduating from college and earning a counseling credential, she got a job at Notre Dame High School, a Catholic school in Riverside. In five years there, she helped develop a program for special-needs students to receive a modified curriculum and formal testing. She took psychology classes at La Sierra University in Riverside to better understand how to meet special education students needs.

It was a loss for her to go to Poly, Notre Dame Principal Matthew Luttringer said. She was a passionate advocate for students who need extra help and had genuine concern for them to consistently be the best.

Nava decided to return to public school because she felt she could make a bigger difference because fewer students there have college-educated parents and know how the system works. Nava arrived at Poly after a year at Date Elementary School in Fontana.

Her caseload of 490 students includes English learners and foster youths, but shes available for anyone.

Above and beyond

Spanish teacher Blanca Garcia said Nava pushes English learners to enroll in physics, higher-level math and more advanced classes theyre not used to taking. All the while, she sets them up with tutoring to help them succeed.

She provides nurturing, care and scolding, Garcia said. She goes above and beyond for anybody.

Ludwing Castillo, a 17-year-old senior, showed up at the front office one day looking for help with immigration paperwork. Born in Guatemala, he came to the United States at a young age and qualifies for an Obama administration program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, that provides work authorization and temporary protection from deportation for certain undocumented immigrants.

Castillos counselor wasnt around. So he was referred to Nava, who put him in touch with the office of Rep. Mark Takano, D-Riverside, for assistance.

Her being an Hispanic counselor, she knows the difficulties we go through, Castillo said. Most counselors, since they have hundreds of kids, they basically see you as a number. She has a name for you.

Nava said her babies can text, email or call her anytime.

And she will respond.

I believe in every single one of my kids, she said. Theyre going to do something positive with their life. Thats the biggest message I want to convey to them.

Contact the writer: 951-368-9292 orstwall@scng.comTwitter: @pe_swall
Some Inland residents got the rare treat of a white Christmas Day after the weekends winter storm left a heavy blanket of snow as far down as Oak Glen.

Some made a spur-of-the moment decision to drive up to the hillside community known primarily for its apple orchards to play in the snow on a clear sunny day. The community got 4 inches of snow, the National Weather Service reported.

We saw the snow from my house and decided to come, said Hector Pulido, a 40-year-old Beaumont resident said as he watched sons Hector, 8, and Jesus, 21, sled down a small roadside hill.

The town was shut down Sunday, Dec. 25, as its orchards and businesses were closed for the holiday, but visitors stopped along the narrow, winding Oak Glen Road to sled, hurl snow balls and pose for pictures.

The community can usually count on light snow and frost during the winter but the weekend storm brought more than usual, said Jeff Pinkerton, a 53-year-old Oak Glen resident enjoying a walk with his dog Sunday morning.

I think we got seven inches, he said. It snowed straight six hours.

Renay Anderson, 44, and her boyfriend, Edgar Alamo, 44, drove from their Monrovia home, hoping to see snow.

Its just beautiful, said Anderson, who stopped to make a snowman. In California, you dont see a lot of snow.

Beaumont residents Andrea Davidson, 38, and her husband Chris Davidson, 42, brought their children Nathaniel, 5, and Elizabeth, 3, to play in the snow. The kids tossed a few snowballs at their parents. Nathaniel laid on his back to make a snow angel.

They hadnt planned on driving there, but after a friend who was there the day before showed them pictures her response was We gotta go up, Andrea Davidson said.

Eric Arguello, a 34-year-old Lakewood resident, said his wife and their three kids had spent Christmas Eve at his mothers Yucaipa home and were planning to go to Big Bear on Sunday. They didnt need to go that high, after all.

His sons, Jacob, 8, Dominic, 9 and daughter Stephania, 12, rode down an embankment using their skateboard decks like snow boards.

Im practicing how to slide on my skateboard so I can get to go down the hill, Jacob said.

Natalie Arguello, 31, said it made for a fun Christmas Day for the family.

Theyre having so much fun, she said. Theyre super excited.

Contact the writer: 951-368-9558 orighori@scng.comTwitter: @ImranGhori1
I called Nana Akufo-Addo on Friday Morning and said Nana, I am maaaad! That was the confession of journalist Abdul Malik Kweku Baako about the NPPs electoral victory.



Mr. Baako said he was excited that Mr. Akufo-Addo had finally ascended to the presidency after almost two decades of trying.



He has really fought for it  the resilience, the endurance, the commitment [eventually paid], he said.



Kweku Baako was speaking on the final edition of Joy FM/MultiTVs news analysis show Newsfile, Saturday, December 24, 2016.



He recounted his relationship with the veteran politician and celebrated lawyer in the heady days of military rule in Ghana.



Ive known Nana Akufo-Addo for about forty years. I was a foot soldier of the PMFJ (Peoples Movement for Freedom and Justice) when he was General Secretary. Ive been with him as a colleague in the AFC (Alliance For Change). I know him. He defended the media [in court] pro-bono (for free). He stood by us (media), he really contributed to this countrys development, he narrated.



The Editor-in-Chief of the New Crusading Guide expressed his pain about the vilification the NPP leader, now president-elect, suffered at the hands of his political opponents.



With the insults, the character assassination and those things, it was so worrying how one man could be criminalised, bastardised, demonised. So when the good people of this country decided to give him that emphatic victory, for me, it was a clean, clear vindication of what he has stood for all the time, he stated.



I was damn happy, Kweku Baako stressed. Nana Akufo-Addos triumph over incumbent President John Mahama with more than a million vote difference was the best moment for Kweku Baako in the year 2016, he revealed.



The second high moment, he said, was when the Supreme Court granted an application filed by anti-corruption campaigner, Martin Amidu, asking to be allowed to orally examine businessman Alfred Agbesi Woyome in respect of the whereabouts of some 51.2 million wrongfully paid to him by the state.



I danced. I danced! Of course, my wife has warned me never to do that again but I danced. These two things made me very happy, he noted.



For his low point in the year, Kweku Baako cited the tripping over of chiefs to endorse various presidential candidates prior to the elections. He is also unhappy that after more than a decade, Parliament has once again failed to pass the Right to Information Bill into Law.



He said it was disappointing that the Bill had remained unattended to despite the vigorous advocacy by civil society groups.

Video below-

Source: myjoyonline.com









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If you thought Australias temperamental weather system was going to let 2016 go without a fight, you are sorely, sorely mistaken. First torrential rain came to the red centre, and now it looks like Sydneys going to swelter through a painful heatwave for the rest of the year.

It was a hot Christmas, and itll be a hotter new year, with the rest of the year possibly handing Sydney three consecutive days with temperatures hitting over 40 degrees. On Thursday itll probably hit 43 degrees out west. That is too hot, imo.

Its expected that the temperatures in Penrith and Richmond on Friday will be the hottest December weather on record in the area.

As expected temperatures like that are a headache for fire brigades across the city. Whenever there are hot conditions, anything can happen, RFS spokesman John Redman told The Daily Telegraph.

We have 74,000 volunteers right across NSW and every brigade will be manned and if something does happen they will respond immediately.

If youre a city-dweller in Sydney youll be spared the worst of it  the mercury will likely only rise as high as 39 degrees over the coming week. Only. Small mercies.

Get your sopping wet tea towels out, folks.

Source: Sydney Morning Herald.

Photo: The Simpsons.
Uluru national park has been closed after record-breaking rain caused flash flooding in the area  and created some pretty you beaut images of rain cascading down the rockface.

Due to an extreme weather event, Uluru-Kata Tjuta national park has been closed until further notice, Parks Austalia said in a statement. Our rangers are checking the condition of the roads every hour in a bid to reopen as soon as it is safe to do so.

The ABC ran some pretty spectacular video of the intense rain in the usually dry red centre.

Amazing footage has emerged after #Uluru National Park was closed today due to heavy rain. Please send us your photos if youre there! pic.twitter.com/n1HyCcPn0I  ABC News 24 (@ABCNews24) December 26, 2016

Reports from the Bureau of Meteorology suggest a deep low-pressure system moved south-east across the Territory today, bringing destructive winds and rain.

Peak wind gusts reached up to 125km/h and the Walungurru district recorded 232mm of rain in 24 hours. The weather system will move into South Australia on Tuesday.

Source: The Guardian.

Photo: Parks Service.
LOS ANGELES -- "Star Wars" actress Carrie Fisher spent Christmas in intensive care two days after a "cardiac episode" during a flight from London to Los Angeles.

Fisher's mother, entertainer Debbie Reynolds, said on Twitter Sunday that her daughter was stable and that the family would share any updates on her daughter's condition

. She also

thanked the public for its "prayers & good wishes."

Carrie is in stable condition.If there is a change,we will share it. For all her fans & friends. I thank you for your prayers & good wishes. pic.twitter.com/isXJqqFEB6  Debbie Reynolds (@DebbieReynolds1) December 25, 2016

Earlier in the day, Oscar winner Sally Field tweeted that she was thinking of the "Star Wars" actress with all her "heart and soul."

Fisher, 60, was taken to the University of California, Los Angeles, Medical Center shortly after noon Friday, after her 11-hour flight touched down at Los Angeles International Airport.



Hospital officials have not provided any details about Fisher's condition. But family members have suggested doctors have been able to stabilize her.



"She's obviously a very tough girl who's survived many things," Todd Fisher, Carrie Fisher's brother, told KABC-TV. "I encourage everyone to pray for her."

A statement released by United Airlines said that medical personnel met Flight 935 from London on arrival Friday.



Just before the plane arrived in L.A., a pilot told the control tower that passengers who were nurses were attending to an "unresponsive" passenger.



Fisher, who rose to stardom as Princess Leia on "Star Wars," recently published an autobiography titled "The Princess Diarist," her eighth book.



She is the daughter of Hollywood couple Reynolds and Eddie Fisher.



Fisher, who has written and spoken openly about her struggles in the movie business, is considered Hollywood royalty. She took on her prickly relationship with her mother in the book-to-movie "Postcards From the Edge." She's also been outspoken about her mental health issues and the solution she found: radical-sounding electroshock therapy.



News of Fisher's condition sparked an outpouring of support and sympathy on social media.



Many of her "Star Wars" co-stars wished her well on Twitter, including Peter Mayhew, who played Chewbacca; Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker; Anthony Daniels, who played C-3PO; Dave Prowse, who played Darth Vader; and Billy Dee Williams, who played Lando Calrissian.



"I'm shocked and saddened to hear the news about my dear friend. Our thoughts are with Carrie, her family and friends," co-star Harrison Ford said.

-- By Richard Winton and Joseph Serna, Los Angeles Times

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Fish kill

A glitch at Brunner Island in January killed more than 1,100 fish in the Susquehanna River.

(Submitted by Jim Hurd)

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is investigating a fish kill in the Susquehanna River.

State regulators on Monday received reports of a fish kill near Brunner Island Steam Electric Station in northern York County.

It is unclear if the York Haven power plant is involved in the fish kill.

"An inspector is on the scene, has observed dead fish in the water, and is investigating," said DEP spokesman John Repetz.

A spokesman for Talen Energy, the owner of Brunner Island, could not be reached.

Brunner Island was fined $25,000 in April for an operational glitch that killed more than 1,100 fish.

The coal-powered plant typically discharges warm water into the Susquehanna, attracting certain fish to those higher temperatures. On Jan. 30, a brief shutdown caused colder water to be dumped into the river, shocking the fish.
PIRATE PARROT LADY.jpg

A supporter of the Pirate Party in Reykjavik, Iceland. AP Photo/Frank Augstein

By Andrea Ballatore and Simone Natale

We blame the internet for a lot of things, and now the list has grown to include our politics.

In a turbulent year marked by the U.K.'s decision to leave the European Union and the election of Donald Trump, some have started to wonder to what extent the recent events have to do with the technology that most defines our age.

In the aftermath of Trump's victory, commentators accused Facebook of being indirectly responsible for his election.

Specifically, they point to the role of social media in spreading virulent political propaganda and fake news. The internet has been increasingly presented as a possible cause for the post-truth culture that allegedly characterizes contemporary democracies.

These reactions are a reminder that new technologies often stimulate both hopes and fears about their impact on society and culture.

The internet has been seen as both the harbinger of political participation and the main culprit for the decline of democracy.

The network of networks is now more than a mere vehicle of political communication: It has become a powerful rhetorical symbol people are using to achieve political goals.

This is currently visible in Europe, where movements such as the Pirate Parties and the Italian Five Star Movement, which we have studied, build their political messages around the internet. To them, the internet is a catalyst for radical and democratic change that channels growing dissatisfaction with traditional political parties.

Web utopias and dystopias

The emergence of political enthusiasm for the internet owes much to U.S. culture in the 1990s. Internet connectivity was spreading from universities and corporations to an increasingly large portion of the population. During the Clinton administration, Vice President Al Gore made the "Information Superhighway" a flagship concept. He linked the development of a high-speed digital telecommunication network to a new era of enlightened market democracy.

President Clinton and Vice President Al Gore joined volunteer efforts to wire schools to the internet in 1997. AP Photo/Greg Gibson

The enthusiasm for information technology and free-market economics spread from Silicon Valley and was dubbed Californian Ideology. It inspired a generation of digital entrepreneurs, technologists, politicians and activists in Silicon Valley and beyond. The 2000 dot-com crash only temporarily curbed the hype.

In the 2000s, the rise of sharing platforms and social media - often labeled as "Web 2.0" - supported the idea of a new era of increased participation of common citizens in the production of cultural content, software development and even political revolutions against authoritarian regimes.

The promise of the unrestrained flow of information also engendered deep fears. In 1990s, the web was already seen by critics as a vehicle for poor-quality information, hate speech and extreme pornography. We knew then that the Information Superhighway's dark side was worryingly difficult to regulate.

Paradoxically, the promise of decentralization has resulted in few massive advertising empires like Facebook and Google, employing sophisticated mass surveillance techniques. Web-based companies like Uber and Airbnb bring new efficient services to millions of customers, but are also seen as potential monopolists that threaten local economies and squeeze profits out of impoverished communities.

The public's views on digital media are rapidly shifting. In less than 10 years, the stories we tell about the internet have moved from praising its democratic potential to imagining it as a dangerous source of extreme politics, polarized echo chambers and a hive of misogynist and racist trolls.

Cyber-optimism in Europe

While cyber-utopian views have lost appeal in the U.S., the idea of the internet as a promise of radical reorganization of society has survived. In fact, it has become a defining element of political movements that thrive in Western Europe.

In Italy, an anti-establishment party know as the Five Star Movement became the second most-voted for party in Italy in the 2013 national elections. According to some polls, it might soon even win general elections in Italy.

The Five Star Movement's Virginia Raggi, 37, was elected as Rome's first female and youngest mayor in June. AP Photo/Fabio Frustaci

In our research, we analyzed how the Italian Five Star Movement uses a mythical idea of the internet as a catalyst for its political message. In the party's rhetoric, declining and corrupt mainstream parties are allied with newspapers and television. By contrast, the movement claims to harness the power of the web to "kill" old politics and bring about direct democracy, efficiency and transparency in governance.

Similarly in Iceland, the Pirate Party is now poised to lead a coalition government. Throughout the few last years, other Pirate Parties have emerged and have been at times quite successful in other European countries, including Germany and Sweden. While they differ in many ways from the Five Star Movement, their leaders also insist that the internet will help enable new forms of democratic participation. Their success was made possible by the powerful vision of a new direct democracy facilitated by online technologies.

A vision of change

Many politicians all over the world run campaigns on the promise of change, communicating a positive message to potential voters. The rise of forces such as the Five Star Movement and the Pirate Parties in Europe is an example of how the rhetoric of political change and the rhetoric of the digital revolution can interact with each other, merging into a unique, coherent discourse.

In thinking about the impact of the internet in politics, we usually consider how social media, websites and other online resources are used as a vehicle of political communication. Yet, its impact as a symbol and a powerful narrative is equally strong.

Andrea Ballatore is a lecturer in Geographic Information Science, Birkbeck, University of London. Simone Natale is a lecturer in Communication and Media Studies, Loughborough University. They wrote this piece for The Conversation, where it first appeared.
Jeff Sessions

In this Nov. 29, 2016 photo, Attorney General nominee Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., is shown while meeting with Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Capitol Hill in Washington. A failed voting fraud prosecution from more than 30 years ago is likely to re-emerge as a contentious issue during Jeff Sessions' confirmation hearing for attorney general. The 1985 prosecution involved three black civil rights activists accused of tampering with large numbers of absentee ballots in rural Perry County, Alabama. The defendants argued that they were assisting voters who were poor and uneducated. They were acquitted within hours. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)

(Molly Riley)

By George F. Will

"The thing that is in Room 101 is the worst thing in the world. . . . The worst thing in the world varies from individual to individual."

-- George Orwell, "1984"

PHILADELPHIA -- For Christos and Markela Sourovelis, for whom the worst thing was losing their home, "Room 101" was Courtroom 478 in City Hall. This "courtroom's" name is Orwellian: There was neither judge nor jury in it. There the city government enriched itself -- more than $64 million in a recent 11-year span -- by disregarding due process requirements in order to seize and sell the property of people who have not been accused, never mind convicted, of a crime.

George Will

The Sourovelises' son, who lived at home, was arrested for selling a small amount of drugs away from home. Soon there was a knock on their door by police who said, "We're here to take your house" and "You're going to be living on the street" and "We do this every day." The Sourovelises' doors were locked with screws, and their utilities were cut off. They had paid off the mortgage on their $350,000 home, making it a tempting target for policing for profit.

Nationwide, proceeds from sales of seized property (homes, cars, etc.) go to the seizers. And under a federal program, state and local law enforcement can partner with federal authorities in forfeiture and reap up to 80 percent of the proceeds. This is called -- more Orwellian newspeak -- "equitable sharing."

No crime had been committed in the Sourovelises' house, but the title of the case against them was Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. 12011 Ferndale St. Somehow, a crime had been committed by the house.

In civil forfeiture, it suffices that property is suspected of having been involved in a crime. Once seized, the property's owners bear the burden of proving their property's innocence. "Sentence first -- verdict afterwards," says the queen in "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland."

In Courtroom 478, the prosecutors usually assured people seeking to reclaim their property that they would not need lawyers. The prosecutors practiced semi-extortion, suggesting how people could regain limited control of their property: They could sell it and give half the proceeds to the city.

The "hearings" in Courtroom 478 were often protracted over months, and missing even one hearing could result in instant forfeiture.

The Sourovelises were allowed to return to their house only after waiving their rights to statutory or constitutional defenses in a future forfeiture action. Such action was forestalled when their case came to the attention of the Institute for Justice (IJ), public-interest litigators who never received the "You can't fight city hall" memo. It disentangled the Sourovelises from the forfeiture machine, shut down Courtroom 478 and now is seeking a court ruling to tether this machine to constitutional standards.

There might somewhere be a second prominent American who endorses today's civil forfeiture practices, but one such person is "very unhappy" with criticisms of it. At a 2015 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on forfeiture abuses, one senator said "taking and seizing and forfeiting, through a government judicial process, illegal gains from criminal enterprises is not wrong," and neither is law enforcement enriching itself from this.

In the manner of the man for whom he soon will work, this senator asserted an unverifiable number: "95 percent" of forfeitures involve people who have "done nothing in their lives but sell dope."

This senator said it should not be more difficult for "government to take money from a drug dealer than it is for a businessperson to defend themselves in a lawsuit." In seizing property suspected of involvement in a crime, government "should not have a burden of proof higher than in a normal civil case."

IJ's Robert Everett Johnson notes that this senator missed a few salient points: In civil forfeiture there usually is no proper "judicial process."

There is no way of knowing how many forfeitures involve criminals because the government takes property without even charging anyone with a crime. The government's vast prosecutorial resources are one reason it properly bears the burden of proving criminal culpability "beyond a reasonable doubt."

A sued businessperson does not have assets taken until he or she has lost in a trial, whereas civil forfeiture takes property without a trial and the property owner must wage a protracted, complex and expensive fight to get it returned. The Senate Judiciary Committee might want to discuss all this when considering the nominee to be the next attorney general, Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions.

George F. Will is a columnist for The Washington Post. His work appears on Mondays on PennLive.
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PDVSA secretly mortgaged 49.9% of US Citgo to Russia's Rosneft



Venezuela has just mortgaged the remaining 51.1% of Citgo Holding Inc. as collateral to induce $2.8 billion of holders of PDVSA debt maturing within the year to extend into a new 4 year amortizing bond.

CARACAS

Petroleumworld.com 12 26 2016

A Delaware Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) filing against Citgo parent PDV Holding, Inc. on November 30 reveals that Venezuela has secretly mortgaged their Citgo refineries in the United States to Russia's state-controlled oil company Rosneft.



Redd Intelligence uncovered the UCC filing and broke the news.



CITGO - A Strategic Asset?



PDV Holding Inc., owned by Venezuela state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA), owns Citgo Holding Inc., which in turn, owns Citgo Petroleum Corporation, which has 3 refineries and pipelines throughout the United States.



The lien means that should Citgo or PDVSA default, Russia's state controlled oil company Rosneft could end up owning strategically important oil refineries and pipelines in the United States.



Citgo owns oil and gas pipelines throughout the country as well as oil refineries in Corpus Christi, Texas; Lake Charles, Louisiana; and Lemont, Illinois (outside of Chicago). Citgo's refineries can refine 749,000 barrels per day and the Lake Charles refinery is the sixth-largest refining facility in the U.S.



UCC FILING



The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) filing is used to protect creditors and let other potential creditors know that they have an interest in the asset.



According to the copy obtained by the Latin American Herald Tribune , the UCC "Financing Statement" was filed by "secured creditor" "Rosneft Trading S.A., Place du Lac, 2, Geneva, Switzerland" on November 30 against 49.9% of the shares of Citgo Holding Inc.



Steven Bodzin, one of the leading investigative reporters on Latin America who uncovered the filing and broke the story for REDD Intelligence, reported that cash-strapped PDVSA mortgaged 49.9% of Citgo to Rosneft for a $1.5 billion loan.



CITGO MORTGAGES 50.1%



In October, in addition to a 20% bonus, PDVSA used 50.1% of Citgo Holding Inc. as collateral to induce $2.8 billion of holders of PDVSA debt maturing within the year to extend into a new 4 year amortizing bond. As a result, should PDVSA default, the holders of the new $3.4 billion PDVSA 8.5% of 2020 would be able to take 50.1% of Citgo Holding Inc.



The Rosneft filing means that 100% of Citgo Holding is now encumbered and potentially at risk.

Russ Dallen of the Venezuela Opportunity Fund , who helped investigate the secret investment, points out that on November 30, Venezuela's reserves went up $891 million and that analysts have been unable to account for where the money came from, leading to the possibility that it could have been the remainder of the loan from Rosneft. PDVSA was late paying the almost $3 billion in bond debt that it owed in November, with the last $146 million that was due on November 17 being paid to bondholders two weeks late on November 30 and December 1.



Dallen also noted that PDVSA hinted and foreshadowed during a conference call with potential investors that he participated in for the new collateralized PDVSA 2020 in October that Venezuela was free to utilize the other 49.9% of Citgo Holding in response to a question.



Eulogio del Pino, PDVSA head and Venezuela Oil Minister, along with Venezuelan Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez met on November 20 with the head of Russia's Rosneft Igor Sechin to "strengthen the cooperation agenda between the two oil companies."



We continue consolidating strategic alliances between Pdvsa and Rosneft. Important meetings will be held in the next hours, Del Pino posted on his Twitter account.



Del Pino also met with Rosneft Vice-President Eric Maurice Liron to track joint projects, according to Venezuela's state-run news agency AVN.



Rosneft is a minority shareholder in five joint crude oil-producing companies in Venezuela: Petro Miranda, Petro Victoria, Petro Perija, Petro Monagas and Boqueron.



RUSSIA'S EXPANDING ENERGY FOOTHOLD



In 2010, Venezuela President Hugo Chavez sold PDVSA's stakes in 4 Ruhr oil refineries in Germany to Rosneft for $1.6 billion, giving Rosneft a key foothold in the European market.



Founded in 1992, Rosenft became the world's biggest oil and gas producer by volume (5.2 million barrels per day) through acquiring others. In 2004, Rosneft took over competitor Yukos after Vladimir Putin jailed Yukos head Mikhail Khodorkovsky and in 2013 Rosneft took over TNK.



In 2014, Rosneft took over Bashneft after its owner, too, was arrested.



BP owns 19.75% and a consortium of mining and trading firm Glencore and the Qatar Investment Authority just paid Russia $11.3 billion for 19.5% of Rosneft. Another 10.75% floats on the Russian stock exchange.



The Russian government owns the remaining 50% of Rosneft, and Rosneft head Igor Sechin is a long-time ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.



In October, Rosneft acquired Indian refiner Essar Oil in a $13 billion deal. The transaction included India's second-largest refinery at Vadinar (400,000 bpd), as well as port terminals, power plants and pumps.



Earlier this month, Rosneft acquired 30% of the Shourouk concession in Egypt and its supergiant offshore Zohr gas field from Italy's Eni SPA for $1.575 billion.



In spite of European and U.S. sanctions on Rosneft and its head Sechin over the annexation of Crimea, Dallen points out that Rosneft has made billions of dollars in overseas acquisitions this year in addition to raising billions from an equity sale to Glencore and Qatar.



"Even as sanctions against them continue to be renewed, it is clear that the Russians are using Rosneft to further Putin's geopolitical ambitions," says Dallen. "But will the U.S. government stand for a country with which we have an increasingly adversarial relationship owning strategic energy assets in the United States? It could be an early test for a Trump administration that has seemingly conflicting viewpoints and relationships with Russia."



Dallen pointed out that this deal was signed after Trump was elected.



CITGO SUED FOR FRAUDULENT TRANSFER



Citgo is already being sued in Delaware in separate suits by both ConocoPhillips and Crystallex under Delaware's Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act, alleging that Citgo, PDVSA and Venezuela "fraudulently transferred" $2.8 billion in Citgo assets out of the U.S.A. to avoid billions of dollars of claims by creditors. The lawsuits are ongoing.



REDD Intelligence is a specialized and investigative news source available by subscription which often reports on news and investigations that the mainstream press is unable to get access to.

Citgo UCC filed by Rosneft by Latin American Herald Tribune on Scribd.








Was TT's PM Rowley misled on the Venezuela Dragon gas deal?



Questions over the Dragon gas deal signed on Dec. 5, 2016

CARACAS

Petroleumworld.com 12 26 2016

Trinidad and Tobago's former energy minister Kevin Ramnarine has warned Trinidad & Tobago latest gas deal with Venezuela could be subject to major political risk in Venezuela. "It seems that this agreement was not agreed to by the National Assembly of Venezuela [as required]," Ramnarine, has told Interfax Natural Gas Daily last week.

As Petroleumworld reported last week Ramnarine has warned the country's deal to buy gas from Venezuela's giant offshore Dragon field could be jeopardized by Venezuela's fragile political situation.

Furthermore, Ramnarine is raising eyebrows of what was really sign between PM Rowley and the Venezuelan government I "have gotten many questions about the Dragon field since something was signed in Caracas last week.

I say something because no one is quite sure what was signed. " Ramnarine told The Trinidad Guardian last week.

Questions have arisen because PM Rowley did not sign the agreement with President Nicolas Maduro. The document was signed by PM Rowley and Eulogio Del Pino, Minister of Petroleum and PDVSA CEO.

The big question is "Why didn't Maduro sign the agreement?" asked Ramnarine in his weekly column in the Trinidad Guardian newspaper.

Also, there is the issue of Venezuela's National Assembly. As reported by Petroleumworld, Elias Matta, vice president of Venezuela's Energy and Petroleum Commission, claimed last week that the agreement for Dragon violated the Venezuelan constitution, because President Nicolas Maduro had not consulted the National Assembly. Matta, who is a member of the opposition A New Era' (UNT) party, called for the agreement to be annulled.

Ramnarine stated to Petroleumworld that there is no doubt that the Dragon gas deal is good for both countries where the natural gas from Venezuela will come to T&T to be monetized and Venezuela gets a fast ROI on its natural resources.

However, the question still linger.. Was Prime Minister Rowley misled on the Dragon gas deal?






It's the holiday season, and they're counting who's been naughty, who's been nice  and who could lose their Obamacare soon.

Two new reports out this week offer fresh details about the millions of people who have benefited from the expansion of health coverage under the Affordable Care Act, and who are at risk of losing it under President-elect Donald Trump if he seeks repeal of the ACA as planned.

Both reports come from researchers at the Urban Institute, which has been assembling a slew of data as potential ammunition for Obamacare defenders next year  when the Republican-controlled Congress is expected to push for a repeal-and-replace plan for the ACA.

The data underscore the potential political fallout that Trump and his fellow Republicans could face if their ultimate replacement plan leads to significant decreases in the number of Americans with health insurance coverage. Those Americans include millions of kids who have become insured via Obamacare programs.

One report found that 19.2 million nonelderly adults gained health insurance from 2010, when the ACA first began having some effect, up to 2015.

"A large majority (87 percent) of adults gaining coverage from 2010 to 2016 did not have a college degree," said that report, which was conducted with assistance from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

And 8.2 million or them, or 43 percent, were non-Hispanic whites.

Among voting groups, whites and people without college degrees were more likely to support Trump in the presidential election than they were to cast their ballot for his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton.

About 6.2 million adults who gained coverage under Obamacare were Hispanics. Another 2.8 million were black non-Hispanics. The remaining 2 million were other non-Hispanics, the report said.

The institute has previously estimated that a total of 30 million people could lose health coverage if Obamacare was partially repealed  which would include defunding subsidies for individual insurance plans  without replacement legislation also being implemented.

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That tally is higher than the 19.2 million who gained coverage under the ACA because it reflects, among other things, what is projected to be a near-total collapse of the individual insurance market.

The other Urban Institute report released this week focused on the coverage implications for parents and children if there were to be a "partial repeal of the ACA" through a process known as reconciliation.

Congress, by a simple majority vote, can pass without threat of a filibuster a budget measure, such as one that would defund key parts of Obamacare. Opponents of Obamacare are prepared to use that method early next year to do just that.

The Urban institute looked at several potential scenarios for estimating the effect of repeal on kids.

The first scenario examined partial repeal without a replacement plan. Although Congress could easily repeal funding for key Obamacare programs, it is not clear that Republicans will be able to obtain what likely will be needed Democratic support for a replacement plan for the ACA  even if the repeal is suspended for several years.

Under that scenario  one with no replacement  the number of uninsured children in 2019 would be 4.4 million greater than it would be under the ACA, the Urban Institute report said.

The number of uninsured parents would be 7.6 million greater, the report found. That would raise the uninsured rate for adults from a projected 10.7 percent under the ACA to 22.8 percent.

The second scenario examined was one involving partial repeal, combined with a previous Republican proposal that could lead states to lower the eligibility limits for children to be covered under Medicaid, the government-run program for the poor.

Under that scenario, nearly 9 million kids would be at risk of losing coverage, the report found.

House Speaker Paul Ryan , R-Wis., and other congressional Republicans have said they intend for a transition period between votes to repeal Obamacare and implementation of a replacement plan, a period that would maintain current levels of coverage for people who have benefited from the ACA.

But the American Academy of Actuaries, whose members help set the prices for Obamacare health plans, warned earlier this month that if the creation and adoption of the plan is delayed, it could wreak havoc on the individual health insurance plan market, where more than 12 million people have coverage.

The academy, in a letter to Ryan, said that insurers could flee the individual market because of uncertainty over its long-term prospects, and that premium rates could soar to unaffordable levels for many customers.

The chance that could happen, and the scenarios outlined by the Urban Institute and others, has worried state governors.

Earlier this week, New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, a Republican, wrote several GOP House members to warn that repeal without a replacement plan "could cause considerable harm" to her state's residents, Politico Pro reported.

The Democratic Governors Association on Wednesday wrote Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying that in addition to potentially 30 million people losing insurance if Obamacare is repealed, states may also be hit with almost $69 billion in costs from so-called uncompensated care over the next decade.

Uncompensated care is medical treatment provided to people who are not insured. State funding to hospitals and other providers for uncompensated care has decreased as a result of coverage expansion under the ACA.
A female Freeport, NY, police officer killed herself in her patrol car Thursday night, reports Patch.com.

Sources said the officer, who was going through a bad divorce, shot herself in her patrol car at about 8 p.m. Thursday while the car was parked on a public street in Long Island.
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*The following is an opinion column by R Muse*

According to one dictionary definition of the word shock, it is something that suddenly causes emotional distress, and one would add that the only reason a human being would experience sudden emotional distress is due to a surprise. This column regularly acknowledges the level of stupidity affecting a significant segment of American society, but a report from CNN informs that even when some Americans were told incessantly what their fascist hero running for president was going to do, they are suddenly shocked when he pledges to fulfill his promise.

One of the things Donald Trump pledged to do immediately on entering the White House was to levy tariffs on imported goods, an action that now the American business community is shocked is actually being debated within the new administration. CNN reported that two sources representing Washington business interests are shocked and alarmed that Trumps transition team is vehemently defending new tariffs as part of the confirmation murder board practice of Wilbur Ross, Trumps selection for the next commerce secretary.

Apparently, one of those business community sources said the community viewed Trumps idea of imposing crippling tariffs was a just a trial balloon when first raised, and possibly another campaign lie to incite the nativist yokel class to vote for Trump. The source believed that given the strong negative reaction to import tariffs from the business community meant that Trumps ridiculous idea was dead on arrival. Now that the absurd idea is gaining traction and still alive and well, the community is experiencing shock and alarm.

They are shocked, obviously, that Trump wasnt lying about imposing import tariffs and alarmed at the economic damage everyone and their dog warned those tariffs would wreak on all American consumers, job seekers, and of course the vaunted business community whose unwavering support helped put the Trump in the White House.

Now, Kevin Drum at Mother Jones said he kind of felt sorry for all the working-class folks who voted for Trump because they fell for his con, even though they knew he promised to punish foreign exporters shipping their cheap goods to America as much as was anxious to punish Muslims, people of color and immigrants. This author feels no sorrow for the working-class idiots who voted for Trump any more than the business community that supported him because they wanted outrageous tax cuts, the end of labor unions, and a ban on regulations.

If anything, the business community should have understood that Trump will swindle any and everyone he can and they were duly conned because they believed they were smarter than regular folk. Now that it appears the pledge to impose tariffs is a reality, the business community should be alarmed that maybe Trumps promise to punish companies outsourcing jobs will also come to pass. He may also stop immigration that provides the business community with all that cheap, disposable labor force; another boneheaded move that will damage the economy, and businesses.

There is a possibility that Congress will block Trumps attempt to wreck the economy with tariffs on imports because Republicans claim, like their feckless leader Trump, they are the business communitys greatest friend. But this is Trump and it is curious that the super-rich, educated folks running the business community knew damn well what kind of unqualified, egotistical and vindictive malcontent Trump was and yet they still supported him for his promise of outrageous tax cuts and deregulation. They may get their tax cuts and regulatory cuts, but they will also likely get a healthy dose of Trumponomics that every economist on Earth has predicted will wreak serious damage on Americas economy and that includes the American business community supporting Trump that deserves whatever damage the cretin Trump imposes on them.
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*The following is an opinion column by R Muse*

It is no stretch to claim that over the past few months there has been a dearth of good news for anyone but the uber-rich, evangelical zealots, and extreme racists. It is noteworthy that what little good news there has been was provided by, and courtesy of, Americas outgoing President Barack Obama. This past week, there were two items that were sparsely covered by the media and one, in particular, was not only incredibly good news, it was a historical action that provided constitutional protections to a segment of the population commonly and systematically demonized as un-American.

President Obama signed into law the Frank Wolf International Religious Freedom Act that, among many other things, protects atheists, humanists, and other freethinkers around the world [including America] from religious persecution. What that means for American Secular Humanists, agnostics, atheists and other nonreligious persons is that they are now explicitly named as a class protected by an Act that was quietly and unceremoniously signed into law last week. The new law was an update, and a much-needed upgrade, to the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act that states:

The freedom of thought, conscience, and religion is understood to protect theistic and non-theistic beliefs as well as the right not to profess or practice any religion.

Of particular note is the Acts explicit condemnation of any group or government entity that specifically targets non-theists, humanists, and atheists because of their beliefs as well as attempts to forcibly legislate or compel non-believers or non-theists to recant their beliefs or to convert.

The reason this is so important in America is that each and every one of the Republicans calling themselves social conservatives (evangelical fanatics) who attempt to force other Americans to bend to their religious will are imposing their evangelical religion on the entire population. Now women, atheists, Muslims, and the LGBTQ community have a law that prevents religious Republicans from legislating or compelling other Americans to comply according to the social conservatives bastardized interpretation of Christianity.

While the rest of the country was mesmerized by the Trumps lies, childish fits of anger and incompetence, nearly all secular humanists, atheists, and even law professors remarked about the historical significance of a new religious liberty law that specifically protects the non-religious.

A law professor at the University of Miami, Caroline Mala Corbin commented on the new law and noted that the Presidents signature expanded the view of religious liberty around the world and particularly at home. Ms. Corbin said:

The new law has some really interesting language in it. It takes an expansive view of religious liberty, saying freedom of religion is not just about the right to practice religion. It is also about the right to have your own views about religion including being agnostic and atheistic.

As the professor remarked, this new law means the religious rights claim that Americans opposed to complying with the religious Republicans insane proposals and practices can no longer claim that opposition to evangelical extremism is a form of persecution; that includes the patently absurd claim that not shouting Merry Christmas is an attack on the Christians or Christianity, or a war on their silly Santa holiday festivities.

The executive director of the American Humanist Association, Roy Speckhardt, issued a statement saying:

The American Humanist Association is proud to see this historic legislation signed into law and looks forward to working with the US Department of State to ensure religious liberty for non-theists and religious minorities abroad. That non-theists are now recognized as a protected class is a significant step toward full acceptance and inclusion for non-religious individuals, who are still far too often stigmatized and persecuted around the world.

Indeed, although it is difficult for non-believers of all sorts in America, around the world atheism, in particular, has even been equated with terrorism. Although that was not quite the case in America yet, the incoming theocratic administration led by soon-to-be vice-president and preacher Mike Pence poses a very significant threat to non-believers. Americans have no idea what the religious right is intending now that a renowned and acknowledged theocrat and avowed Christian supremacist like Pence has Trumps ear and a willing religious Republican Congress panting to do the churchs bidding.

President Obama provided yet another firewall to guarantee that like it or not, Christian fanatics will have to accept that America will, going forward, hew to its Constitutional mandate that all Americans enjoy freedom of, and more importantly, freedom from religion. It is something that Americans are seriously going to need with an incoming administration Hell-bent on making America great by making it a de facto Christian theocracy. It is noteworthy that like any fundamentalist religion, a religious right American theocracy will impact every American, including the wrong kind of Christians. It is just another reason to be grateful that Barack Obama is still President and is still providing protections for all Americans and a bit of good news in some seriously dark times.
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It looks like its going to be a rough four years for the United Nations, as the U.S. forsakes every other country on earth to blindly follow wherever Benjamin Netanyahu leads. In fact, this might be the only sticking point between Donald Trump and his puppet master in Moscow, Vladimir Putin.

Before Christmas, Trump tweeted an ominous,

As to the U.N., things will be different after Jan. 20th.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2016

Trumps former rival, a now bootlicking Texas Senator named Ted Cruz, waited just a day to offer a foretaste of what to expect, tweeting a holiday message to the UN:

Spoke w/ Israeli PM @netanyahu tonight to wish him Happy Chanukah & assure him of strong support in Congress. No US $ for UN until reversed.  Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) December 24, 2016

Even before the vote, rejecting investigation of Russian interference in our elections, Speaker Paul Ryan showed himself more concerned with Israels democratic process than our own, claiming,



These stunts at the UN serve only one purposeto defame and delegitimize the democratic State of Israel.

So there can be little doubt that in this, at least, Ryan would back Trump.

Frequent Trump critic Bill Kristol caught the tone of Trumps message and translated it for all:

Resolution 2334 was intended to help in the delegitimization of Israel. It could instead be a key moment in the delegitimization of the UN.  Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) December 24, 2016

Never mind that the vote by the UN is in alignment with decades of US foreign policy in the region, which supports a two-state solution. By building settlements on occupied territories in violation of treaty, Israel had earned the reprimand.

Naturally, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, refusing to separate religion from policy, sees the vote as an example of anti-Semitism:

The organization is increasingly viewed as anti-Semitic and seems to have lost all sense of proportionality. I will do everything in my power, working with the new administration and Congress, to leave no doubt about where America stands when it comes to the peace process and where we stand with the only true democracy in the Middle East.

Though the White House refused to comment, Reuters reported that U.S. officials have voiced growing fears that a two-state solution is imperiled by Israeli settlement building and have been more willing to voice open criticism, including, the two Western officials said, via Thursdays planned vote.

Trump, naturally, drew the wrong conclusion, tweeting that it is not the illegal settlements that are a threat to peace but censuring Israel for building illegal settlements:



The big loss yesterday for Israel in the United Nations will make it much harder to negotiate peace.Too bad, but we will get it done anyway!

Cruz is no doubt right: cutting funding to the UN will be the least of Trumps responses. After all, Israel has already cut funding, which all but obligates Trump to do the same. Israel has also summoned home its ambassadors from each of the countries that voted for the resolution.

Kristol is also likely right. At least from US eyes. The problem is that the United States exists in a community of nations, whether it likes how those other nations think or not.

The bigger threat is not the delegitimization of the UN, but the delegitimization of the United States in the eyes of much of that world. It remains to be seen whether Trumps business interests will offer a breaker on his reactions against the UN. His thirst for profits might be the only consistent thing in an already erratic but highly reactive foreign policy.

The United States became a pariah nation under the last Republican president. Donald Trump seems intent on following in the footsteps, not of our most successful modern president, Barack H. Obama, but rather the least, George W. Bush.

And this is taking place as he plans to start a new nuclear arms race.
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The massive amount is unusual for a local school board race  and thousands more than any of the other 31 candidates have managed to raise. Read moreA CCSD board candidate has raised almost $100K in campaign funds
"Between the ice and snow, and winds howling like crazy, there will be nothing moving"

CHICAGO (AP) -- It's been a white  but slick and messy  Christmas for the northern Plains and some Western states.

Most of the Dakotas and southwest Minnesota had turned into a slippery mess due to freezing rain Sunday morning before snow arrived later in the day as temperatures fell.

The storm also brought on widespread power outages in the Dakotas and Nebraska.

As of 11:15 p.m., the South Dakota Rural Electric Association was reporting 11,079 "member-consumer-owners" were without power. In Nebraska, high winds were cited for hundreds of power outages in central and eastern portions of the state.

"Between the ice and snow, and winds howling like crazy, there will be nothing moving" until late afternoon Monday, said National Weather Service meteorologist Greg Gust in Grand Forks, North Dakota. "Then it's dig-out time."

Gust's advice to holiday travelers: "Stay put."

For more news videos visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS and Android.

A blizzard warning was in effect for most of North Dakota, western South Dakota and a small section of eastern Montana through Monday, with expected snow totals of 8 to 15 inches and winds up to 55 mph.

The South Dakota Department of Transportation announced the closing Sunday night of Interstate 90 from the Wyoming border to Chamberlain  a stretch of about 260 miles. "The freezing rain from earlier today and dropping temps have created icy and slushy roadways; falling snow and increasing winds are creating zero visibility conditions in the west," the department said in a statement.

The North Dakota Transportation Department closed a 240-mile stretch of Interstate 94 Sunday night, from the Montana border to Jamestown. A 100-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 83 between Bismarck and Minot also was closed due to drifting snow and near-zero visibility.

Up to a  inch of ice could accumulate in central Minnesota, and the weather service has said anyone who "must travel" should have an extra flashlight, food and water.

The NWS office in Aberdeen, South Dakota, issued a flash flood warning for Brown County Sunday night due to the combination of rain and melting snow. As of shortly after 6 p.m., flooding was reported at several major intersections in Aberdeen.
Deanna Pan is an enterprise reporter for The Post and Courier, where she writes about education and other issues. She grew up in the suburbs of Cincinnati and graduated with a degree in English from Ohio State University in 2012.
As parts of South Carolina continue to struggle with the effects of one of the strongest, costliest American storms on record, some automakers appear poised to destabilize one of the most important and effective public safety tools being used in the states recovery efforts. Read moreCommentary: Hurricane Ian a reminder of the importance of AM car radios
This undated photo provided by Mimecast Ltd. shows CEO Peter Bauer. What began as a South African startup, Mimecast Ltd., a specialist in email filtering and security, is now a global company with a market value of more than $1 billion. (Mimecast Ltd. via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) -- Email has become a crucial part of how companies communicate, but those systems are constantly being attacked by everything from inbox-clogging spam to phishing emails looking to steal secrets and money.

Mimecast Ltd. tries to tackle that as a specialist in email filtering and security. What began as a South African startup is now a global company with a market value of more than $1 billion.

Peter Bauer, Mimecast's CEO, spoke with The Associated Press recently about the company's growth since going public in November 2015 and the security threats that businesses currently face. Questions and answers have been edited for clarity and length.

Q: What's your first year as a public company been like?

A: All of our quarterly results have been well received. We're now trading at more than double our initial issue price, so we're feeling really good.

Q: Where has your growth come from? Have you gotten a boost from the rise of ransomware, where hackers use malware to lock up a victim's hard drive if they don't pay up, and spearfishing attacks, where hackers use personal details to supercharge fake emails to steal money or personal information? What about impersonation attacks such as spoofing emails from a finance chief to get payroll records?

A: For many years, we felt like we were toiling in obscurity. And now, the last couple of years, it's become really interesting again, with us IPOing and a real shift in the threat landscape. So many providers were not prepared for that and were just taking for granted that email security was just about spam and viruses. With ransomware, with spearfishing and with impersonation attacks it has really become important to have better solutions.

Q: What kinds of changes have you seen in the threats against businesses?

A: Impersonation attacks really picked up over the past year. Beforehand, attackers were targeting larger organizations. Now they've realized how successful they can be at taking smaller amounts of money or data off smaller organizations.

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Q: How big a part of your business are mid-sized companies like these?

A: About 75 percent of our revenue is coming from 100- to 5,000-seat organizations, so we're focused on that massive mid-market, which is under resourced. They don't have the budgets or the sophistication to have lots of different things on the go, so we do a lot of educational webinars to help customers learn about this stuff.

Q: Do you see cybersecurity IPOs picking up in 2017?

A: Some of the shine has come off security companies from an investor point of view, but I think that's coming back as investors are trying to figure out who the darling stocks are. I don't think we're the bellwether by any stretch, but I think other companies look at us and see what's possible.
There are five candidates vying for three open seats on Clemson City Council. We asked the two incumbents and three newcomers what they think is most important for Clemson's residents and council. Read moreMeet the candidates: 5 vying for 3 seats on Clemson City Council
ST. LOUIS  The soon-to-be 11-year-old left the Washington University School of Medicine lab with an instruction manual for her new robotic arm.

Don't get it wet.

Turn it off when not in use.

Change the two 9-volt batteries.

But for a girl who has adapted to living a life with a left arm that ends just past her elbow, there's no instruction manual for how to incorporate this new technology into her day. That will be up to her to figure out.

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And researchers at the biomaterials laboratory will be studying her, trying to figure it out, too.

Delanie Gallagher of Spanish Lake is the first of 10 children researchers plan to enroll in a study trying to determine how to develop a prosthetic that is useful for children born with all or part of a limb missing, or who lose a limb through trauma or surgery.

Most end up living without a prosthetic because it lacks function and only gets in the way. Of the more than 540,000 Americans living with upper limb amputations, only about 20 percent use a prosthetic.

Low-cost and lightweight device

Delanie's new arm incorporates myoelectric technology  sensors that detect when muscles in the stump contract and signal parts in the prosthetic to move. Prosthetics with this technology typically cost from $25,000 to $50,000, making them unfeasible for fast-growing children.

The WashU lab created a hard plastic arm using a 3-D printer at a cost of just a few hundred dollars. The myoelectric technology was kept simple enough to keep the prosthetic low-cost and lightweight, with one sensor that signals the hand to either open or close, or the wrist to turn.

Nick Thompson, a scientist in the lab, hopes the simple route will make arm prostheses more accessible and useful to children.

"Tons of people are doing this now, but they are reaching for the fruit high in the tree, trying to develop something with the most functionality that is the closest you can get to your biological limb," Thompson said. "We are going the opposite. We are looking for something quick that can be made and modified quickly. That is our goal."

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But the big question is how useful it will be. Delanie is proof of how children overcome. She had difficulty thinking of something that she can't already do.

What does she hope her new prosthetic will help her do?

"I don't know," Delanie said. "I don't know what I can do."

Adaptation

Delanie's mom, Janet Gallagher, remembered when Delanie was a baby and got her first prosthetic to help her crawl. "She just dragged it along," Gallagher said. It was quickly tossed aside.

Delanie has had two other prostheses, used only to help her steady and steer her bike, hold up a fishing pole or brace her bow and arrow.

"It didn't help her," Gallagher said. "She could do better without it."

Using her stump, Delanie figured out how to color, use scissors, tie her shoes, braid her hair, put her hair in a ponytail and play the piano.

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On a recent day at school at the Gateway Science Academy in south St. Louis, she needed no help. She carried her books in a shoulder bag rather than a backpack. She held a pencil sharpener in the crook of her elbow as she turned her pencil.

She played with a piece of clay, molding it into a flower between her stump and hand. She twirled her hair with her stump, raised it high when the teacher sought answers from the class.

At lunch, Delanie ripped open bags with her teeth and braced her Capri Sun against her body so she could stab it with a straw.

When the English teacher read a book aloud, no one batted an eye at a quote by a character who lost part of her leg from a land mine: "Every day, I wished I had it back."

'Rosy pink petunia'

Delanie's fifth-grade classmates say they are excited about her new robotic arm, but they are used to how she is. "It's going to be cool, but she does so much without it," her best friend, Georgia Collier, said. "It's going to be different."

Gallagher said Delanie sometimes worries about her future. She wonders how she will drive a car, if she will be able to take care of children.

As she enters her preteen years, she's figuring out new things like how to hold a blow dryer, put on makeup and curl her hair.

Delanie definitely likes how the new arm looks. She asked that it be pink, engraved with her initials. She named it Rosy Pink Petunia Gallagher.

Dr. Charles Goldfarb, a WashU orthopedic surgeon at St. Louis Children's Hospital who cares for children with amputated limbs, said a prosthetic can have social benefits.

"Can we help her do more things a little similar to her peers?" Goldfarb said. That may become more important as she gets older. "A teenager wants to be like any other teenager," he said.

'Sydney Syndrome'

The Minimally Invasive Surgery Biomaterials Lab opened on the medical campus just over three years ago. Its focus was using a 3-D printer to create and test bioabsorbable surgical mesh.

In 2014, the lab learned of three engineering students whose senior project involved using a 3-D printer to create a prosthetic for 13-year-old Sydney Kendall who had lost her arm six years earlier in a boating accident.

That sparked the start of the lab's work with prosthetic arms. "We asked, 'Can we take this up and improve what the students have worked on?'" Thompson said.

A wire in the arm the students created for Sydney was connected to a sensor in her shoulder. Shrugging her shoulder caused the hand to open or close. The wire was cumbersome, she told the scientists, and difficult to use.

So, the lab printed a prosthetic with a myoelectric sensor inside its socket that could move the hand and wrist and gave it to Sydney. She found it needed a stronger grip and was heavy. They refined it again, printing her another last spring. The process offered promise.

"It justified to do this type of study on pediatric patients," Thompson said. "That's where we are now."

Scientists hope a study of more children will give them feedback on how to overcome what they refer to as "Sydney Syndrome"  the prosthetic sitting in a drawer collecting dust.

Participants will complete questionnaires three months, six months and a year after getting their prostheses.

"Now we feel we have a design that is of high enough utility to try on multiple patients to see if there's any benefit from using them," Thompson said. "The patients will tell us what directions we need to go in to make it better."
It was pretty peaceful Sunday in the communications center at the city-county Government Center in Rochester, but the team of dispatchers working the holiday knew that could change with a single phone call.

In fact, when a reporter asked if the day was particularly quiet, the supervisor shook her head as the others looked on.

"We pretty much never say the 'q' word," she said. Call it a fear of jinxing an otherwise calm moment.

Southeastern Minnesota is full of people who don't get to spend holidays with their family, from medical personnel to those in the service industry to the people who work in public safety.

The Post Bulletin often visits with the employees who drew the short straw, are lowest on the seniority list or volunteered to work so others can have the day off.

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For the four people answering emergency calls for law enforcement, fire and ambulance crews, as well as non-emergency calls, Christmas this year happened to fall within their set of scheduled shifts.

They answered our questions between calls that reported sick family members, suspicious vehicles, people walking in the roadway and more.

Is it true that holidays are the busiest times for you?

They can be. Saturday, Christmas Eve, brought multiple custody dispute calls and domestic assaults. The domestic disputes get worse as the day goes on, thanks to close quarters, family issues and, of course, alcohol.

How many 911 calls come in every day?

It depends on the day. The majority of the calls aren't actually emergencies; they're made by people who probably should have called the non-emergency number: 328-6800. It, too, is answered all day, every day. When in doubt, though, call 911.

Non-emergency calls aside, does your heart still jump a little when you pick up the line?

Not with the average call. When you answer and all you hear is screaming, and you can't get an answer, that's when it changes a little.

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How many people are on a shift?

There are four teams, with six people on each team: a supervisor and five dispatchers dividing up the duties. On Sunday, two of the "A Team" had requested the day off, so the supervisor stepped in to share the responsibilities.

Do you take turns answering the phones?

Sort of. Each person has a specific role each shift; the roles, too, rotate. To over-simplify it: One person is call-taker  answering the 911 law enforcement calls; another oversees the fire department calls  and is the backup 911 call-taker; one person handles all of the radio traffic, dispatching the information taken by the call-takers to the appropriate agency; one person handles the calls on the non-emergency line.

Each desk holds a bank of eight computer screens, displaying everything from maps to calls in progress to the officers on duty and more.

How much training does it take the average person before he's ready to step into a dispatcher role?

The goal is 3 to 5 months; if they can't get it by 5 months, they likely won't. It's an incredible amount of multi-tasking. Everyone is cross-trained so that anybody can fill in at any position.

How accurate is the system when it comes to finding the caller's location?

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A landline in a home or business will be concise, with the caller's name and address. Cell phones, while valuable for their mobility, can be off by as much as a mile. A recent call indicated a specific Rochester address  giving an accuracy measurement of within 30 feet  that was actually a half-mile away. The technology to be more precise is available, but not here, not yet.

Dispatchers have had to play the "hot-cold" game, especially if callers don't know where they are. Recently, a driver who fell asleep at the wheel went through the median, across the two opposite lanes of traffic and vaulted into a wooded area, coming to rest on the north side of Interstate 90. When he called 911, however, he said he'd ended up south of the interstate. Pinned inside his car, he remained on the phone and listened for sirens as responders drove both sides of the freeway. It took nearly 45 minutes to find him.

Other than that, have cell phones affected your job?

After a long pause, one dispatcher said that while helping with emergencies, the phones have "complicated" it. Though they field many "pocket dials" or unintentional calls to 911, they hate to think of not being able to get help as quickly as possible to crash sites or other incidents where landlines aren't nearby.

What hours do you work?

Shifts are 12 hours, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. for day shifts, 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. for night duty.

You're often talking to people who are having the worst day of their life. How does that affect you? Do you take it home?

It's a stressful job. During training, employees are provided a list of resources available if they choose to seek help; peer counseling is also available. A couple of dispatchers spoke in generalities about particularly memorable calls, clearly still affected by the interactions. Another said the things she takes home are the things she may have done differently while handling a call.

Why do you ask so many questions? Can't you just send help?

Help is sent as soon as they know where it's needed. First and foremost is providing accurate information to the responders, and ensuring their safety. They need to see if the address has a history of problems with law enforcement, for example, or if there are weapons involved. "Believe me, we don't care who your boyfriend is. We just want to know exactly what's going on."

How do you deal with people who are angry or upset and take it out on you?

Well, screaming back at them never helps...

What's something every 911 caller should know?

Know where you are, and teach your kids to always know where they are. The idea that your cell phone's location will direct emergency care to you is "a huge misconception." If you're driving, know what road you're on. Remember landmarks you've passed and the direction you're traveling.

"We're good, but we're not that good."
LA CRESCENT  No one was hurt this morning after a vehicle slid off an icy highway in Houston County before rolling into the Mississippi River, according to the Minnesota State Patrol.

Jeremy Rissman, 45, of Waukon, Iowa, was traveling east on Minnesota Highway 61 south of Winona at 7:15 a.m. when he lost control on the icy road, crossed four lanes of traffic  including the median  before rolling down an embankment and coming to rest upside down in the river, according to the Stat Patrol's incident report. The incident occurred near the Interstate 90 bridge to Wisconsin, but a mile marker was not recorded in State Patrol's report.

Rissman and his passenger, 42-year-old Michael Hitchcock, of Waukon, Iowa, were able to escape the partially submerged vehicle on their own before authorities arrived.

Hitchcock suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was transported to Gunderson Health System in La Crosse, Wis., for care. A condition update was not immediately available. Rissman was not injured and declined medical assistance at the scene.

The La Crescent Police Department assisted at the scene.
WINONA  One only needs to look at nearly every vote taken concerning the issue of the frac sand mining ban to see how the issue divided Winona County.

Three-to-two. Three-to-two. Three-to-two, and on it went until Nov. 22, when the Winona County Board of Commissioners voted  3-2  to ban the mining of silica sand for industrial purposes. The industrial purpose mentioned in the language of the ban: hydraulic fracturing. Companies also cannot store, process or transport silica sand for fracking.

The county-wide ban became the first of its kind in Minnesota, and, according to an article in EcoWatch, an environmental news organization, is believed to be the first in the nation.

A drive through Winona County showed evidence of the fight that pitted neighbor against neighbor and the interests of some rural landowners against urban residents in places like St. Charles and Winona. Signs imploring "No Frac Sand" dotted the landscape along with signs favoring the re-election of County Commissioner Steve Jacob, who along with Commissioner Marcia Ward, opposed the ban.

"When the board changes, all this hard work will be undone," Jacob said at the Oct. 25 meeting where the ban was initially passed.

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Jacob, who had proposed an alternative plan to limit frac sand mining in the county  regulating the industry to a maximum of six frac sand mines no larger than 40 acres per mine  made the claim based on past experience. The county board had been tilted against a ban until the 2014 election of Marie Kovecsi, who replaced Wayne Valentine. Kovecsi stated during the campaign that banning frac sand mining was her top reason for running.

Kovecsi, along with board members Jim Pomeroy and Greg Olson, consistently voted for the ban.

While the ban was the biggest story in Southeast Minnesota outside of Rochester in 2016, it is a story that has been brewing for at least the last five years as bans have been considered in Houston, Goodhue and Wabasha counties in the region as well.

The Winona County ban began to take form at the April 12 board meeting when the board agreed to put discussion of a ban on a future agenda. Up to that point, the issue only came up during the public comment period of each board meeting when people would use their two minutes to advocate for a ban.

By April 26, the board had voted  3-2  to ask County Attorney Karin Sonneman and other county staff to look into the legality and feasibility of a ban. Particularly, the board focused on a sample ban written by the Land Stewardship Project, a nonprofit organization that advocated for a ban.

The ban from LSP, though, was met with skepticism from Jacob, who worried that a ban would not hold up in court, thereby getting overturned and burdening the county's taxpayers with the legal defense. "(LSP has) come to the conclusion that the easiest step is at the county board level to convince three people we need a ban," Jacob said at the time. "And if we're sued, it's the Winona County taxpayers defending that."

When Sonneman came back with a modified ordinance on June 15, Ward brought Mason jars of silica sand  some unprocessed, some processed for fracking  to the board meeting, noting that the same sand is mined for many purposes. "I don't understand how you can make the distinction that one sand is evil, and one sand is OK," she said.

Jacob, who listed several purposes including the manufacture of glass for solar panels, said, "We can say this isn't singling out one business, but it is." In a rare 4-1 vote, Jacob sided with the other three commissioners simply to get the public input started.

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However, public input, no matter the venue or method, seemed to favor a ban. At a June 30 public meeting at the Tau Center, 80 percent of the 74 people who spoke favored a ban. When 109 people stepped up to the microphone at an Oct. 13 public meeting, the pro-ban contingent was only 60 percent of those who spoke. Several solicitations for comments online or via mail to the county were also heavily in favor of a ban.

A couple of weeks later, Johanna Rupprecht, a policy organizer for the LSP, said the time had come. "They've been hearing from people long enough," she said.

Commissioner Olson agreed. "After sitting through every public heading and reviewing all submitted documents, I am ready to make a decision," Olson said.

On Oct 25, two weeks before the election where Olson and Jacob both faced challengers with opposing points of view concerning frac sand mining, the county board voted 3-2 to ban the mining, processing and storage of frac sand in Winona County. The only frac sand that can be transported through the county is that which was mined and processed elsewhere and won't be stopping on county land on its way elsewhere.

"In politics, you rarely get a clear mandate like this," Rupprecht said after the ban was initially passed. "Clearly this is the will of the people."
Could 2017 be the year that Minnesota lawmakers lift the ban on Sunday liquor store sales?

Republican House Speaker Kurt Daudt thinks so. During a recent legislative preview forum sponsored by Forum News Service, Daudt told reporters he expects a bill getting rid of the ban to pass the Minnesota House in 2017.

"It's just past time. If a liquor store doesn't want to be open on Sunday, they don't have to," Daudt said.

Incoming Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka, R-Nisswa, also left the door open to the ban being lifted.

"I've generally been no on Sunday sales, but I really want to see what our caucus thinks on that. Stay tuned," Gazelka said.

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This past year, the House came as close as it every has to lifting the ban. Lawmakers rejected a proposal to allow municipalities to decide whether to let liquor stores be open on Sundays by a vote of 70 to 56. The Senate defeated a Sunday liquor store sales measure by a vote of 35 to 28 in 2015.

But this year could be different. For starters, there will be a lot of new faces at the Capitol this year. A total of 23 new House members and 21 new senators will be taking the oath of office on Jan. 3. In addition, groups in support of lifting the ban have been ramping up their lobbying efforts. Supporters argue that the state law is antiquated and that consumers should have the option of buying liquor on Sundays.

The push to allow Sunday liquor sales also faces fierce opposition. Some argue it would hurt mom and pop liquor stores struggling to compete with big box retailers. They also worry it could hurt city owned liquor stores that will have to compete with private businesses seven days a week instead of six.

What do local lawmakers think?

Rep.-elect Duane Sauke, DFL-Rochester, said he has not been convinced that there is a need to get rid of the Sunday sales ban. He said his impression is that only a small segment of the population really cares about this issue and most people don't have strong feelings about it.

"The argument to change would have to be very strong and convincing, and probably I would have to be convinced that society really cares about it," Sauke said.

Sen.-elect Mike Goggin, R-Red Wing, said he has not decided yet where he stands on the issue. He said he would be open to lifting the ban if cities or counties get the final say on whether stores can be open on Sundays or not.

"(Cities and counties) have a better understanding of their communities than the state does. I'd rather see something along those lines where the cities and counties have control over that," Goggin said.

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Sen. Dan Sparks, DFL-Austin, said he has watched as public opinion on the issue has shifted in favor of getting rid of the ban. While he has opposed allowing Sunday liquor store sales in the past, Sparks said he is now open to support it.

"I'm going to keep an open mind and listen to the debate," Sparks said. "If it has a chance, it's probably closer now than ever."

Trump and conflicts of interest

First District DFL Rep. Tim Walz is calling on Congress to make sure incoming President Donald Trump complies with a federal ban against insider trading.

Walz sent a letter to leaders of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform last week encouraging them to make sure the Republican adheres to the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge or STOCK Act  a bill Walz sponsored. That legislation, which passed in 2012, prevents the president and from "using nonpublic information for private profit, engaging in insider trading or intentionally influencing an employment decision or practice of private entity solely on the basis of partisan political affiliation."

In the letter, Walz referred to comments by Trump dismissing concerns about possible conflicts of interest.

"Congress has a constitutional responsibility to provide oversight of the actions of the executive branch and investigate into those actions when necessary. I fully expect that the Committee will not treat this serious ethical matter any differently," Walz wrote.
Blizzards, ice storms wreak havoc across northern plains

CHICAGO  Travel conditions remain hazardous across much of the northern Great Plains as a winter storm continues to sweep across the region.

The combination of freezing rain, snow and high winds that forced the shutdown Sunday of vast stretches of highways in the Dakotas was forecast to continue into Monday morning.

The storm also has caused widespread power outages in the Dakotas, Nebraska and western Iowa.

As of 1 a.m. Monday, the South Dakota Rural Electric Association was reporting 10,231 "member-consumer-owners" were without power. In Nebraska, high winds were cited for hundreds of power outages in central and eastern portions of the state.

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"Between the ice and snow, and winds howling like crazy, there will be nothing moving" until late afternoon Monday, said National Weather Service meteorologist Greg Gust in Grand Forks, North Dakota. "Then it's dig-out time."

Gust's advice to travelers: "Stay put."

The weather service office in Bismarck, North Dakota, predicted snow accumulations of 8 to 15 inches in western parts of the state and thunderstorms in the central region.

The North Dakota Transportation Department closed most of a 240-mile stretch of Interstate 94 Sunday night, from the Montana border to Jamestown. Portions of U.S. Highways 2, 52 and 281 were also closed because of snow, ice and "near zero visibility."

Bismarck Police Chief Dan Donlin issued a no travel advisory for the North Dakota capital, where stranded vehicles blocked roadways and intersections.

Authorities in South Dakota shut down Interstate 90 from the Wyoming border to Chamberlain  a distance of about 260 miles.

Icy conditions in Aberdeen, South Dakota, prompted the Brown County Sheriff's Office to issue a no travel advisory. Aberdeen was also under a weather service flash flood warning after rain and snowmelt flooded major intersections in the city.

The weather service warned anyone who "must travel" on icy roads in central Minnesota to have an extra flashlight, food and water.

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Minnesota teacher accused of sexual contact with student

NEW YORK MILLS  A Minnesota teacher is accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a student.

Otter Tail County court documents show that 37-year-old Kris Koll, of New York Mills, is charged with fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct in a position of authority.

Court documents accuse Koll of having a number of encounters with the student that involved sexual contact. The alleged victim told investigators that she began babysitting for Koll's family last year and was one of Koll's students in the 8th and 10th grades.

New York Mills Superintendent Blaine Novak tells KFGO radio that Koll has been placed on administrative leave.

If convicted, Koll faces up to 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. Court documents do not list an attorney for Koll.

Over 250 Minnesota residents apply to set legislators' pay

ST. PAUL  More than 200 Minnesota residents from all walks of life want a say in how much state legislators get paid.

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Only 16 of the 270 applicants will be chosen to be inaugural members of the Legislative Salary Council, Minnesota Public Radio reported .

Theirs will be a duty that used to be the Legislature's until voters in the Nov. 8 election overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment to change it.

Democratic-Farmer-Labor Gov. Mark Dayton will pick half of the members, and Supreme Court Chief Justice Lorie Gildea will choose the rest. Half of the seats will go Democrats and half to Republicans.

Dayton, who supports raising salaries, said he won't make salary increase a precondition of his selections.

"This is new territory but we'll proceed," he said.

Dayton said he would like a commission with people who are responsible, have good judgment and will make their own decisions.

Supporters of the new process tried to put distance between the decision-makers and those with strong Capitol presence. Sitting and former lawmakers, their spouses, lobbyists, judges and legislative staff can't be part of the council.

The council must be appointed by Jan. 2; its first meeting will come later that month. The panel must decide by March if the $31,000 annual salary for 201 legislators stays put, goes up or declines.

US Sen. Klobuchar to run for re-election, not governor

MINNEAPOLIS  Democratic U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar says she'll run for a third term in 2018, meaning she won't run for Minnesota governor.

Klobuchar told the Star Tribune that many Democrats asked her to run for governor, but that she felt it was more important to try to find ways to work with Republicans in Washington during the Donald Trump administration.

She said she's been "able to get through the gridlock" before and "can't just walk away when it's an ugly time."

Gov. Mark Dayton isn't running for re-election. Two Democrats, St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman and state Rep. Erin Murphy of St. Paul, have declared their candidacy.

State Republican Party chairman Keith Downey said the GOP will "fight hard" to try to beat Klobuchar and win the governor's office.

 Associated Press
FILE - In this Aug. 31, 1951, file photo, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida, center right, accompanied by his daughter, Kazuko, center left, is greeted by Adm. Arthur Radford, left, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, and Joseph R. Farrington, who serves as a delegate of the U.S. Congress for the Territory of Hawaii, during an arrival ceremony for Yoshida in Honolulu, Hawaii. Yoshida is best remembered for signing the San Francisco peace treaty with the U.S. and others in 1951, allowing Japan back into international society after its war defeat. His Pearl Harbor visit, which he made on his way home from San Francisco, was largely eclipsed by the historic treaty. (AP Photo/File)

TOKYO (AP)  Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who will visit Pearl Harbor with President Barack Obama on Tuesday, wasn't even born when Japan's former leader Shigeru Yoshida went there just six years after the country's World War II surrender, by himself and feeling awkward.

Yoshida is best remembered for signing the San Francisco peace treaty with the U.S. and others in 1951, allowing Japan back into international society after its war defeat. His Pearl Harbor visit, which he made on his way home from San Francisco, was largely eclipsed by the historic treaty.

Archival writings and photos unearthed by The Associated Press reconstruct Yoshida's visit, from his aim to win U.S. trust to how he was put at ease by the U.S. Navy commander's dog.

Yoshida arrived at Pearl Harbor on Sept. 12, 1951, shortly after requesting a courtesy visit to the office of Adm. Arthur W.R. Radford, commander of the U.S. Pacific fleet. The office overlooked Pearl Harbor, offering a direct view of the site of the Japanese attack of Dec. 7, 1941.

Radford recalled that he thought Yoshida might feel uncomfortable because of his office's location. "I could almost see the wreck of Arizona" out of the window, he wrote in his memoir, "From Pearl Harbor to Vietnam," referring to a battleship that sank in the attack.

Yoshida, westernized and fluent in English, showed up in a white suit, wearing his trademark brimmed hat and carrying a cane, apparently looking a bit stiff.

Then Radford's dog broke the ice.

His little Scottish Terrier, which was stretched out in front of Radford's desk, walked slowly to Yoshida to be patted, while sniffing around his shoes and ankles.

"That started a dog conversation that took most of the visit," Radford wrote.

Yoshida was a dog fancier, and had bought terrier puppies just before leaving San Francisco, his grandson Taro Aso, currently Japan's finance minister, has said. Yoshida named the pair "San" and "Fran" after his successful trip.

Story continues

Years later, Yoshida told Radford's wife how he was embarrassed when he walked into the office after seeing Pearl Harbor, and how happy he was that the dog was able to settle him down.

A Navy archival photo obtained by the AP shows the two men shaking hands, with a smiling Yoshida looking up at the much taller Radford. Yoshida spent about 20 minutes at the office, according to an AP story from Sept. 13, 1951.

Yoshida's visit to Pearl Harbor was actually on his second Hawaii stopover, having stopped there on his way to San Francisco as well.

But he was more relaxed the second time after completing the important mission in San Francisco, where he also signed the original Japan-U.S. security pact.

On his way to California, Yoshida landed in Honolulu on Aug. 31, 1951, when Japan was still technically an enemy.

During that visit, he laid flowers for the war dead at Honolulu's National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, a military cemetery better known as Punchbowl. Three other Japanese prime ministers have since followed suit. A local Hawaii newspaper recently reported that two others also had visited Pearl Harbor later in the 1950s.

Yoshida's daughter, Kazuko Aso, who was traveling with him, recalled that security was extremely tight in Hawaii on his first stopover, before the peace treaty was signed, and that Yoshida, who stayed on the top floor of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, was instructed not to leave the hotel for safety reasons.

"But that old man insisted he wanted to go out ... to pay tribute to the war dead," Aso said in an interview published in the Bungei Shunju monthly magazine weeks after the trip.

She said the Japanese delegation unexpectedly received a warm welcome. Photos in the Japanese newspaper Mainichi showed Yoshida's face nearly buried in Hawaiian flower necklaces because he had received so many of them at the airport.

At the Sept. 12, 1951, reception attended by U.S. military and Hawaiian officials, Yoshida sought further U.S. economic assistance and cooperation to reconstruct his war-devastated country and pledged to never use aggression.

Two days later, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin welcomed his speech as "a notably frank admission of Japan's war guilt and a pledge that Japan will do everything possible to repair the enormous damage done by her armies, navy and air force."

___

Associated Press writer Audrey McAvoy in Honolulu contributed to this report.
VATICAN CITY  The Order of Malta, the ancient Roman Catholic aristocratic lay order, has told Pope Francis that his decision to launch an investigation into the ouster of a top official over an old condom scandal is "unacceptable."

In an extraordinary rebuke of the pontiff, the group said late Friday that the replacement of its grand chancellor was an "act of internal governmental administration of the Sovereign Order of Malta and consequently falls solely within its competence."

Francis on Thursday appointed a five-member commission to investigate the Dec. 8 ouster of Albrecht von Boeselager amid suggestions that Francis' own envoy to the group, conservative Cardinal Raymond Burke, helped engineer it without his blessing. Burke, who served as the bishop of the La Crosse, Wis., Diocese from 1995 to 2003, has emerged as one of Francis' top critics.

One charge used against von Boeselager concerned a program that the order's Malteser International aid group had participated in several years ago with other aid groups to help sex slaves in Myanmar, including giving them condoms to protect them from HIV infection.

Church teaching bars the use of artificial contraception. Von Boeselager has said as soon as the order's headquarters in Rome learned of the condom distribution, two of the projects were immediately halted. A third continued, he said, so as not to deprive a poor region of Myanmar of all basic medical services. The project eventually ended after the Vatican's doctrine office intervened.

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Burke is a hardliner on enforcing church teaching on sexual morals. As a result, the dispute roiling the order reflects the broader ideological divisions in the Catholic Church that have intensified during Francis' papacy, which has emphasized the merciful side of the church over its doctrinaire side.

Von Boeselager has said he was asked, and then ordered to resign Dec. 6 during a meeting with Burke and the order's leader, who suggested that the resignation was "in accordance with the wishes of the Holy See." He said he subsequently learned that the Holy See had made no such request.

In its statement, the Knights of Malta said the pope's decision to appoint a commission to investigate von Boeselager's replacement was a result of a misunderstanding with the Vatican's secretariat of state.

The Order of Malta has many trappings of a sovereign state, issuing its own stamps, passports and license plates and holding diplomatic relations with 106 states, the Holy See included.

The Holy See, however, has a unique relationship with the order since the pope appoints a cardinal to "promote the spiritual interests" of the order and its relationship with the Vatican. Francis appointed Burke to that position in 2014 after removing him as the Vatican's supreme court justice.

Kurt Martens, professor of canon law at The Catholic University of America in Washington, says the pope's investigation was complicated, given the sovereign nature of both the order and the Holy See under international law.

"The way it has been perceived, it's as if they're looking into the order, and that's why there is the backlash from the order," he said in a phone interview.

Martens also suggested that nominating Knights of Malta members as part of the pope's commission could be problematic.

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"It makes sense that you ask members" because they are familiar with the order, he said. "But then you have a huge conflict of interest because they are investigating their 'head of state.'"

The knights trace their history to the 11th-century Crusades with the establishment of an infirmary in Jerusalem that cared for people of all faiths. It now counts 13,500 members and 100,000 staff and volunteers who provide health care in hospitals and clinics around the world.
President-elect Donald Trump's phone call with the president of Taiwan early this month shattered the tired political wisdom of the Washington establishment regarding China and the island the mainland considers a breakaway province.

It sent a powerful message to Beijing that major change is coming in America's foreign policy.

Trump's conversation with the Taiwanese president was startling but not naive. In fact, his exchange with President Tsai Ing-wen has paved the way for new and hopeful ties between Washington and key allies.

Realities can be stubborn friends or enemies, and the facts surrounding America's relationship with China show it's been a one-way arrangement for many years, particularly for the last eight. It is time for America to respond more firmly to China's aggressive and unproductive behavior.

The evidence is beyond dispute. China has proven time and again that it is an untrustworthy partner for the United States.

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Despite acquiring permanent, normal trade relation status, China continues currency manipulation and other unacceptable behaviors. Just recently, the U.S. criticized China for its lack of transparency and charged it with violating tariff quota agreements on corn, wheat and rice.

Further, Chinese state-sponsored and state-owned companies have maintained aggressive cyberattacks against the U.S.

Millions of Americans' most personal and sensitive financial information are now in the hands of the Chinese.

That's not to mention economic espionage, including the attempted stealing of trade secrets of U.S. companies, persists. China does not suitably protect intellectual property. Who knows how they'll use that sensitive information in the future.

China defies international laws and norms with its aggressive expansionist agenda in the South China Sea. It builds up islands and then claims territorial rights. China in recent weeks has claimed to have militarized the Spratly Islands.

Perhaps most significantly, Beijing has done nothing to control the renegade state of North Korea.

Today, North Korea has ballistic missile technology. Realistically, if nothing changes, North Korea will within a few years have miniaturized its nuclear warheads to fit onto ballistic missiles that will have the capacity to hit America's west coast.

Our friends and allies in Asia are seriously concerned by what is happening in the region. They recognize the current U.S. strategy toward China and North Korea is in shambles and are eagerly awaiting the opportunity to partner with the U.S. to develop a new long-term approach to bring security and economic prosperity to the region.

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Americans who have had their personal data stolen by the Chinese or have lost their jobs to unfair competition from the Chinese are thankful for Trump's strong approach.

He is leading America to take the initiative to develop strategic policies that will address China's inappropriate behavior and hold its leaders accountable.

Another effect of Trump's approach will be improved ties between the U.S. and countries in the region such as Japan, South Korea and Indonesia, among others.

They've been yearning for an America that will lead and work with them in a collaborative way to deal more effectively with the emerging threats emanating from China.

Sure, it was just one small conversation by phone. But it also was one giant wake-up call.

A former chairman of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee, Pete Hoekstra is the author of "Architects of Disaster: The Destruction of Libya."
Yesterday the Associated Press published an article by its Jerusalem bureau chief, Josef Federman, on Benjamin Netanyahus reaction to President Obamas betrayal of Israel in the U.N. The article is an opinion piecea virulent one, in fact. It is suitable for publication in, say, the New York Times, as an anti-Israel op-ed. The piece is headlined Israel: humbled Netanyahu places hopes in Trump. It begins:

The Israeli governments furious reaction to the U.N. Security Councils adoption of a resolution opposing Jewish settlements in occupied territory underscores its fundamental and bitter dispute with the international community about the future of the West Bank and east Jerusalem. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists that there is nothing wrong with his controversial policy of building Jewish towns in occupied areas that the Palestinians, with overwhelming world support, claim for their state. But Fridays U.N. rebuke was a stark reminder that the rest of the world considers it a crime. The embattled leader is now placing his hopes in the incoming administration of Donald Trump, which is shaping up as the first major player to embrace Israels nationalist right and its West Bank settlements.

Those are perhaps defensible statements of opinion, although I would argue that they are mostly incorrect. The overall thrust of the opening paragraphsthat the entire world other than Netanyahus administration and Israels nationalist right considers it a crime for Jews to live in their Biblical home of Judea Samaria, and that Donald Trump is the first major player to disagree, is blatantly false.

There is much more, for example:

In a series of statements, Netanyahu has criticized the Obama Administration for letting Resolution 2334 pass Friday by abstaining, using unprecedented language that has turned a policy disagreement into a personal vendetta.

Netanyahus language was unprecedented? What, did he call Obama a chickens*t? And was not Obamas betrayal, coordinated with the Arabs and timed to avoid accountability to Congress or the voters, the culmination of a vendetta that included interference in Israels election to try to defeat the Prime Minister? That wasnt a vendetta because, I suppose, Federman welcomed it.

Federman has opinions about Trump, too:

The recent diplomatic defeat would be much more damaging if not for a potential remaining and rather major ace in Netanyahus hand: the incoming Trump Administration. In a striking departure from past policy of incumbent [Ed.: sic] presidents waiting on the sidelines, Trump tried to scuttle the resolution and called for a U.S. veto. After the vote, Trump vowed that things will be different after Jan. 20th.

So its Netanyahu and Trump who have disrupted the natural order of things by smashing precedents. How about this, Mr. Federman: whats the precedent for a lame-duck president executing a major change in American foreign policy, against the wishes of Congress and the American people, less than 30 days before leaving office, in the face of no crisis or emergency, or even a change in circumstances?

Critically, he has appointed an outspoken supporter and donor to the settlements, his longtime attorney David Friedman, as ambassador to Israel. And aides say Trump is serious about a promise to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which even many Israelis fear could spark violence. The Palestinians claim east Jerusalem, home to sensitive religious sites, as the capital of the future state to which they aspire.

Sensitive religious sites like Temple Mount, the Mount of Olives and the Jewish Quarter of the Old City. Moving the U.S. embassy to Israels capital has been part of the Republican Partys platform for a long time. The suggestion that having the U.S. embassy on Jerusalem, along with the Knesset, Israels Supreme Court and other organs of Israels government could spark violence is sheer editorializing.

Mr. Federmans article is a typical expression of the international Lefts pro-Palestinian view of the situation in Judea and Samaria. It is, as I said, an op-ed that could easily appear in a liberal organ like the New York Times. But there is not a shred of news anywhere in it. It is merely a recitation of Federmans opinions, with the opinions of Netanyahu, Trump and their allies erected as straw men to be struck down by others.

This conclusion was so obvious that I thought the AP must have designated the Federman article an opinion piece. But no: it went out on the wire as a straight news story. In fact, as I understand the APs position, it doesnt publish opinion pieces. In fact, it cautions its reporters against expressing opinions at all:

EXPRESSIONS OF OPINION: Anyone who works for the AP must be mindful that opinions they express may damage the APs reputation as an unbiased source of news. They must refrain from declaring their views on contentious public issues in any public forum, whether in Web logs, chat rooms, letters to the editor, petitions, bumper stickers or lapel buttons, and must not take part in demonstrations in support of causes or movements.

How about expressions of opinion in AP news stories? That, apparently, is fine, as long as the opinions are on the left.
Charles Hill is a research fellow at the Hoover Institution as well as Brady-Johnson Distinguished Fellow in Grand Strategy, Senior Lecturer in International Studies, and Senior Lecturer in Humanities at Yale, where he is one of the principal teachers and presiding spirits in the Directed Studies program for freshmen as well as the year-long course on Grand Strategy for university students. Before undertaking his career as a teacher, Professor Hill compiled an incredibly distinguished record in the foreign service and in the State Department, where he rose to chief of staff. Among Professor Hills many awards deriving from his service in the government are the Presidential Distinguished Service Award in 1987 and 1989 and the Secretary of States Medal in 1989. I wrote to ask Professor Hill if he would comment on what President Obama has just done in the United Nations. I am grateful to Professor Hill for his permission to share his comment with our readers:

The first thing Obama did when entering office was to derail all hopes for an Israeli-Palestinian agreement by declaring all settlements to be illegal. Now the last thing (if only) hes done is to enshrine that anti-Israel position into international law in language that can be followed up with sanctions to delegitimize Israels existence itself. From anti-settlement to anti-Zionism to anti-Israel to anti-Semitic is the logic chain at work here.

And all this as the Arab-Islamic realm is engaged in the greatest Muslim mass slaughter of Muslims in history while the international community does nothing. The reality undergirding the two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians is that there must be, in direct negotiations, an agreed trade-off between a major curtailment of Israeli settlement activity in the West Bank east of Jerusalem and a major curtailment of the Palestinian Right of Return to the land of Israel west of Jerusalem. Obama has done just about all he can to make that negotiated agreement impossible.
One of the silliest post-election phenomena is the Democrats attempt to blame their losses on fake news appearing mostly, I take it, on Facebook. They are distraught, apparently, at losing their monopoly. Still, lame or not, the fake news theme is spreading.

The German government, which may be cruising for a defeat in upcoming elections, is preemptively blaming fake news:

The German government is seeking to create a center of defense against disinformation ahead of next years elections, in the wake of ongoing fake news and Russian hackers hysteria generated during the election cycle in the United States. The Federal Press Office in the Chancellery, which has a staff of over 500 professionals, will take the leading role in establishing the fake news defense center, Der Spiegel reported quoting a note from an anonymous Interior Ministry staff member. According to the Interior Ministry plan, the center will focus on offering intensification of political education work with groups susceptible to fake news  namely Russian-Germans as well as Turkish-speaking people.

German officials are threatening Facebook, specifically, with reprisals if Facebook doesnt crack down on fake news.

Historical societies are using the concept of fake news as yet another means of slandering America. Scholars team up to dispel 400-year-old fake news about US:

Fake news, quadricentennial edition: Americas early settlers were all pious. The native people were savages. Freedom and liberty were available to all from Day One. As the U.S. gears up to mark the 400th anniversary of its roots as a nation, leading scholars from around the globe are teaming up to dispel myths and challenge long-held assumptions about how the country was settled.

Seriously? The early settlers were all pious? The natives were savages? (Well, some of them were pretty savage, actually, but your kids wont learn that in school.) Freedom and liberty were available to all from Day One? Sure, thats why we never had to fight a civil war.

Good luck finding anyone who believes these long-held assumptions; certainly no one who has attended high school or college in recent decades, or paid even passing attention to popular culture, has absorbed any such fake news.

Finally, the Associated Press reports that the government of Pakistan has yet to catch on to fake news:

A fake news story has touched off a tense Twitter confrontation between nuclear power Pakistan and Israel, widely believed to have a nuclear arsenal of its own, in an episode that underlines the potentially harmful impact of such stories in sensitive global affairs In an apparent response to a fake story claiming Israels former defense minister threatened a nuclear attack against Pakistan if it sends troops to Syria, Pakistans Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif reminded Israel that Pakistan is a nuclear state too. Israels Defense Ministry tweeted back Saturday, saying the original story on the site AWD News was totally fictitious. AWD has been identified by fact-checking organizations as a fake news site.

Its a sign of the times: a tense Twitter confrontation triggered by fake news.

I thought fake news was a flash in the pan, but it is starting to look as though the phrase will be thrust upon us for some time to come.
The New York Times reports that at least 27 people were shot, at seven of them fatally, during a 48-hour period over Christmas weekend. The seven fatal shootings brought the total number of homicides in Chicago so far this year to 745, a 56 percent increase from the number at the same time last year. According to the Chicago Tribune, this year is the first in nearly two decades that more than 700 homicides have been recorded in the city.

Blacks made up around 78 percent of the homicide victims; Hispanics around 17 percent.

As for shootings in Chicago, the total now stands at 4,252. Thats an increase of 47 percent from the same time in 2015.

According to this source, the Chicago police have shot 25 people so far this year, killing 11 of them. Both numbers are somewhat lower than usual.

Chicago has long been administered by liberal Democrats. It has among the toughest gun laws in the United States, although these laws apparently are often not backed up by tough criminal sentencing.

Spare a thought for Chicago this Christmas season.
In case you missed it last Friday in the run-up to Christmas, Brian Kennedy of the American Strategy Group offered up an extremely lucid analysis of the complete absurdity of the thesis that Putins Russia hacked into our election process with the deliberate intent to help Donald Trump win. To be sure, Trumps equivocal statements about Putin lend some superficial plausibility to this ideaif youre six years old. Or a Democrat and a media hack.

Do read the whole thing, but here are two of the more persuasive paragraphs about the illogic of the Putin-Loves-Trump theme:

We are being asked now to believe that the Russians wished to influence a U.S. presidential election. This master stroke of statecraft by Putin was designed, however, to bring to power a man, Donald J. Trump, who has pledged to rebuild the United States militarily and economically. Trump has detailed his intent to build a national missile defense, modernize our strategic arsenal to match that of Russia and China, ensure our ability to dominate the high seas with an expanded and more technologically advanced navy, guarantee our ability to project power with an improved air force, and have an intelligence and cyber capability second to none. How any of this is in the Russian strategic interest is yet to be explained. By contrast, Hillary Clinton, following the policies of Barack Obama, stated she would, by not building missile defensesno small strategic mattercontinue the policy of vulnerability to Russian, Chinese, and Iranian ballistic missiles; delay the upkeep and modernization of our nuclear weaponry; and, pursue a reduction of our conventional military forces. On traditional strategic grounds, it defies logic that Putin would have preferred Trump to Clinton.

JOHN adds: We noted here that the Russians enthusiastically hailed the election of Barack Obama. Why? Because he was a Democrat and an internationalist, while [a]ll Republican presidents have always defended national interests. Is there any reason to think the Russians have changed that view in the last eight years? No.
(New throughout, adds Kuczynski's comments on gold in reservoir)

LIMA, Dec 26 (Reuters) - President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski proposed dredging a reservoir in a dry northern region of Peru to extract what he described as "much more gold" than what the country's biggest gold mine holds, according to an interview with a local newspaper.

Kuczynski said Poechos, Peru's biggest reservoir and a key source of water for drinking and farming in the northern Piura region, could hold one gram of gold per cubic meter in 580 million cubic meters of sediment.

"It has to be dredged," Kucyznski said in a videotaped interview with financial daily Gestion.

"It has more gold than Yanacocha, much more," he added in reference to the deposit that Newmont Mining Corp and Buenaventura have tapped for more than two decades.

Sediment from the nearby River Chira that feeds Poechos has reduced the reservoir's capacity for storing water, prompting farmers to demand its ridge be raised.

Kuczynski said the sediment could be removed from Poechos for 5-6 years to extract its gold before letting it accumulate again for 20 years, a repeatable process that he said would make it "the only mine in the world that's renewable."

Kuczynski, a former investment banker who once managed a mine in West Africa for Alcoa Corp, said the same model could be used in another reservoir in Peru, Olmos, which Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP recently bought from Brazilian builder Odebrecht.

Kuczynski's office confirmed the accuracy of his comments.

The governor of Piura, Reynaldo Hilbck, said his administration has been evaluating building smaller reservoirs upriver to boost regional water supplies and that a proposal for mining Poechos would have to be studied carefully.

"Poechos provides drinking water for five provinces in Piura and irrigates 110,000 hectares of farmland," Hilbck said. "It's the backbone of the economy."

Peru produced about 127 million grams of gold in the first 10 months of 2017, up 4 percent from the same period last year, thanks to surging output from wildcat miners in a rainforest region that offset dwindling production from Yanacocha.

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Yanacocha produced some 17.2 million grams of gold in that period, according to data from the energy and mines ministry.

The basis for Kuczynski's estimate of gold reserves in Poechos was unclear.

Carlos Galvez, financial manager of Buenaventura and the head of the country's mining association, said he was unaware of any systemic drilling and sampling in Poechos and called Kuczynski's proposal "aggressive."

(Reporting by Mitra Taj, Additional Reporting by Marco Aquino; Editing by Leslie Adler and Dan Grebler)
As Kannywood reflects on the giant strides of 2016, it is also worth looking back at some of the major controversies that rocked the industry. Here, we break down Kannywoods 5 biggest controversies of 2016.

1  Rahama Sadaus expulsion from Kannywood

After an emergency meeting on October 2, The Motion pictures Practitioners Association of Nigeria, MOPPAN, expelled Kannywood hit actress, Rahama Sadau, from the industry.

MOPPAN is a coalition of associations that set rules and regulations governing the conduct of actors and actresses, as well as production of movies in northern Nigeria.

Sadaus offence was that she featured in a 4 minute 19 seconds romantic musical video by ClassiQ. Reactions poured in immediately the video went viral on social media, with some fans of the popular actress criticising her role in it.

Since the release of the song, it has garnered 220,394 views on YouTube.

Cleary Kannywoods breakout star, Sadaus career has taken a new dimension since her expulsion. Aside from foraying into Nollywood, she also clinched a role in a Hollywood film.

2  Homosexuality in the Kannywood  On August 13, Kannywood star Actors, Adam Zango and Mustapha Naburaska, denied being homosexuals. While Zango denied being gay by swearing with a Quran on Desmims Independent Television talk show in Kaduna, Naburaska took to his Instagram account to state that he was innocent of the accusations. The actors came under attack from Muslim clerics and residents of mostly Kano and Kaduna states, accusing entertainers of indulging in sodomy.

3  Battle for supremacy between Nafisa Abdullahi and Rahama Sadau

Top Kannywood actress, Nafisa Abdullahi, openly revealed her long-term rivalry with fellow actress, Rahama Sadau.

Although it is a known fact that Nafisa and Rahama have been at loggerheads for a very long time, their rivalry became very obvious in 2016. Speaking in an interview in October, Nafeesa said she cared less about the judgment MOPPAN meted out to Rahama. She also added that her embattled colleague is capable of handling her predicament herself. She made a reference to 2013 when Rahama was suspended and nobody stood by her side.

4  Between Kano Censors Board and Filmmakers 

In 2016, filmmakers had a running battle with the Censors Board. The filmmakers accused the board of being selective in its judgments and rewards. This year, some filmmakers also staged a peaceful protest and accused the censors board of giving preferential treatment to some films while denying others for no just reason.

5  Adam Zango quitting Kannywood Adam Zango, announced his decision to quit, Kannywood in late 2016 in a post on his Instagram page.

He wrote, I am writing this message to you all fans, producers, actors, directors and to also beg that you forgive me, from today I have quit acting. I will now only concentrate on singing and producing songs.

It became a topic for discussion in the industry considering his clout in the industry. According to reports, Adam could not stand the humiliation of not having a degree, especially since his colleagues were graduates. After so much public outcry from his fans, Zango said he was not quitting but taking time off movies to concentrate on his music career.
Few weeks after passengers who flew Arik airline had to wait for days to get their luggage, a similar scenario has happened to passengers of Medview airline.

The passengers of the London-Lagos Medview airline flight have thus been told to exercise patience following delay in arrival of their luggage.

In a statement signed on Sunday by its media consultant, Oyibhota Obuke, Medview said it dispatched a special flight to London on Saturday to airlift the left over baggage.

It said, unfortunately, the aircraft returned without the affected baggage.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, the airline said the incident was due to the inability of Gatwick Airport authorities to screen them.

Gatwick Airport had on arrival of the aircraft said it had no capacity to screen the baggage as only a handful of its workforce was on duty because of holiday.

We thought by Sunday we would have resolved the left over baggage issue if not for Gatwick Airport authorities, the statement quoted the airlines Chief Operating Officer, Lookman Animashaun, as saying.

Medview said another flight would leave for London on Monday to bring back the left over baggage. It, however, appealed to the affected passengers to be calm and thanked them for their understanding.

The airline regrets the inconveniences caused the affected passengers whose left over baggage are still in London by this unhealthy development, the statement said.

Few weeks ago, when the Arik incident happened, the airline was at loggerheads with about 40 passengers over the non-arrival of their baggage, five days after their flight landed in Nigeria from London.

The aggrieved passengers disrupted the airlines operations and also damaged its check-in counter at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

In its reaction, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, on December 7 directed Arik to return all delayed baggage and compensate the affected passengers with $150 each for their troubles.

Consequently, the Consumer Protection Council also summoned the management of Arik before it. The council said it received complaints from the public and passengers alleging that the flight arrived Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja, Lagos Nigeria, without the passengers luggage and prior notice.
Two Gaddafi loyalists who hijacked a plane in Libya with 117 on board before diverting it to Malta were charged to court in Valletta on Sunday.

Under heavy police escort, Moussa Saha and Ahmed Ali, pleaded not guilty as they were charged with a number of crimes in the Maltese capital.

On Friday, the two men hijacked an Afriqiyah Airways Airbus A320 on an internal Libyan flight between Sebha in southern Libya and Tripoli and threatened to blow it up with a hand grenade.

After a four-hour standoff in Malta, the hijackers released the 111 passengers and six crew members, before surrendering to soldiers. They were later found to have made use of fake weapons.

The charges against them included hijacking, using violence on board the flight, holding people against their will, making threats of violence and attempting to cause instability for a government.

They will remain in custody pending a judgment. If convicted for hijacking they could be sentenced to life imprisonment.

No request for their extradition was made by the Libyan authorities and contrary to several media reports, the two did not claim political asylum.

Citing police sources, the Times of Malta newspaper said the two men had reportedly not replied to any questions about their motives.

During the standoff, the hijackers said they were supporters of slain Libyan leader Moamer Gaddafi, who was overthrown in 2011.

All passengers and crew members were flown to Libya on Saturday

.

(dpa/NAN)
At least six people were killed early Sunday when armed persons invaded Goska, a village in Jemaa Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

As the details of the attack on an area placed on 24 hours curfew emerge, the News Agency of Nigeria reports that one of the victims is a teenage secondary school student.

Gimbia Morik, an SSS 2 student and daughter of Gideon Morik, former Deputy Speaker of Kaduna House of Assembly was among the victims of the attack suspected to have been carried out by herdsmen on a revenge mission.

The attackers just stormed the village and started shooting; they killed six people including my daughter, and five others, Mr. Morik, a former chairman of Jemaa local government told the News Agency of Nigeria in Kafanchan on Sunday.

He said that the attackers injured many others and burnt many houses.

Jemaa and two other local governments  Kaura and Zango-Kataf  were placed on 24-hour curfew by the Kaduna State Government following incessant attacks by gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen.

No group has, however, claimed responsibility for the Christmas Day attack.

Ethnic clashes in Jemaa and other parts of Southern Kaduna between migrating herdsmen and host communities have caused the death of scores of people in 2016.

The curfew by the state government was put in place to prevent such attacks during the Christmas and was approved by President Muhammadu Buhari.

A senior police officer, who confirmed the early Sunday attack , described the destruction at Gioskas as very devastating.

He said that the corpses had been deposited at the Kafanchan General Hospital where the injured were also being treated.

Already, Governor Nasir El-Rufai has condemned the attacks, and vowed to fish out those that invaded Goska.

Mr. El-Rufai, in a statement on Sunday by his spokesman, Samuel Aruwan, expressed sympathy with the families that lost loved ones in the renewed attack.

Although the details of the attacks and the casualty were not stated, the governor charged security agencies to bring the perpetrators to justice.

While the government and security agencies were working assiduously to block all windows to ensure that citizens throughout the three local government areas and the state at large are protected, these forces of darkness that represent evil and inhumanity struck again, killed innocent citizens, burnt their houses, injured some and terrified many, the governor stated.

Government and security agencies will not be deterred, we will continue to be resilient, up and doing and courageous in tackling this unfortunate situation.

Their tactics are to create a chasm, divide people, breed hate and prejudice and plunge the state into chaos but we will triumph over these evil forces by the grace of almighty God.

Mr. El-Rufai said the government would continue to be firm and decisive in its efforts to suppress the attackers and restore peace in the state.

He urged the people of the state to come together irrespective of religion, ethnicity and political inclinations to confront the attackers.

They become stronger only when our people are divided instead of coming together to weaken and neutralize them and the evil they represent and to free our humanity from their devilish act, he stressed.

It is also clear that resorting to self-help compounds the precarious situation thereby, breeding the cycle of vicious killings. It must be clear to all by now that inciting of tit-for-tat does not help our security agencies and communities attain our quest for peace and those calling for that will also be brought to justice.

He said he had directed the State Emergency Management Agency to take inventory of those affected and also bring relief materials to assist the victims of the attack.

Our deep empathy and prayers go to the families that lost their loved ones and those that lost their homes and properties. May their souls rest in peace and may God see us through this challenging time, he said.
The communication giant, MTN, has paid N80 billion of the N330 billion fine imposed on it by the Nigerian government for failing to deactivate more than five million unregistered SIM cards.

Nigerias Minister of Communications, Adebayo Shittu, disclosed this at the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Forum in Abuja.

He said the payment was for this first year and is the first tranche of the total payment.

MTN, Nigerias largest mobile operator, was initially fined 5.2 billion dollars (N1.04 trillion) for failing to deactivate more than five million unregistered SIM cards.

The fine on the South Africa-owned company was later reduced to N330 billion.

For the first year, they paid N80 billion, after paying the initial N50 billion, and they will have to pay for three years until they will complete the N330 billion.

MTN does not have a choice, when the law was made, it said for every unregistered SIM card in use, the fine is N200, 000, the law never anticipated that one company will be in violation to the tune of millions of lines.

It was inconceivable, so when the thing was added 200,000 times 5.2 million lines, it came to a trillion plus.

When it happened, the MTN did four things; one they accepted that they were in default, two, they apologised for that and three they committed themselves never to allow such a thing to happen and number four, they asked for remission.

Government had to look at a number of factors because if they have to pay this amount; they will pack up.

We also knew that we invited the international community to come and invest and anything that will be done which will shake the confidence of international investors in Nigerian economy, we must avoid it.

The reduction of the fine was initially condemned by Nigerians leading to an enquiry by the Nigerian parliament.

Mr. Shittu, however, stuck to his guns, insisting the government acted right in the deal.

We must not throw away the baby with the bath water. If they had packed up and left, let us assume all their staff are not more than 5,000, it means all of those 5,000 will lose their jobs, he said on Monday.

Also those who made investment, who bought shares will lose their shares and the Nigeria banking sector would go into crisis.

The minister said that even in the court system, if one was fined and could not pay for one reason or the other, the person would ask for reconsideration either by way of appeal or bringing a motion.
Three days after they arrived Borno to celebrate the holidays in their community, the recently freed 21 Chibok schoolgirls were not allowed to spend the Christmas with or see their parents, residents have said.

The girls were said to have arrived Chibok amidst tight security on Saturday but were not immediately allowed to meet their parents.

A resident told PREMIUM TIMES that the girls were kept in the home of the member representing Chibok in the Borno State House of Assembly.

Residents were told the girls would not meet with their parents until the Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima, arrives Chibok to officially present them to their parents.

A school teacher in Chibok, told PREMIUM TIMES on phone that most of the parents were agitated by the fact that their daughters were in town yet they had to celebrate Christmas without them.

There is tension everywhere now in Chibok, he said. The security is tight around Chibok town as I am speaking to you.

The girls were brought in three days ago and none of the parents could meet them. We thought they are here to celebrate the Christmas but they were locked up in the home of the House of Assembly member, pending the arrival of the state governor.

He said residents of Chibok are gathered at Chibok Central Primary school where the governor is expected to address them on Monday afternoon.

The governor is then expected to formally hand over the girls to their family.

The 21 out of the 208 abducted Chibok schoolgirls were freed in October this year following a deal between Boko Haram and officials of the Nigerian government.

The details of the deal were marred in controversy, but the government has denied it paid ransom or freed Boko Haram detainees to free the girls.

Since their release, the 21 girls have been in the custody of the Nigeria government.

In reaction to what the residents said, the spokesman of the Borno State governor, Isa Gusau, said the state government did not deny the parents the opportunity to spend Christmas with the girls.

To the best of my knowledge, the 21 freed Chibok schoolgirls are still under the custody of the federal government. And when they arrived Yola three days ago, on their way home, they were received by the chairman of Chibok local government as well as chairman of abducted Chibok girls association as we all saw them on the national television.

I am not sure they were denied access to their parents because that was the essence of them being taken to Chibok in the first place. If you say their movements were restricted for security reasons and for their safety, I think that makes sense.

And I am not aware the governor has to be in Chibok before the girls meet with their parents. The governor is visiting parts of southern Borno as part of his earlier plans to celebrate the Yuletide with the people and also to inspect some ongoing projects there. He would definitely meet with members of the Chibok community and also say hi to the freed girls.
President Muhammadu Buhari is silent on the ongoing violence in southern part of Kaduna State because the state governor, Nasir El-Rufai, is handling it, presidential spokesperson, Femi Adesina, has said.

Mr. Adesina stated this Monday morning on Channels Television during its Sunrise Daily programme.

At least six persons were killed in Goska village, Jemaa local Government Area in the early hours of Christmas.

The victims included a teenage secondary school student, Gimbia Morik, daughter of a former council chairman in Jemaa.

The killings, by suspected herdsmen, occurred despite Jemaa and two other local governments  Kaura and Zango Kataf  being under a 24-hour curfew.

The state government after a meeting of heads of various security agencies in the state, had on December 21 imposed the 24-hour curfew to prevent violence during the festive season.

Scores of people have been killed in ethno-religious violence in Southern Kaduna in 2016.

As the killings continue, Mr. Buhari had come under criticism from Nigerians for his silence.

Citing Nigerias federal structure, Mr. Adesina said there was no need for Mr. Buhari to speak since Mr. El-Rufai is on top of the matter.

The presidential aide said as the chief security officer of his state, it rests on Mr. El-Rufai, who has pledged to bring perpetrators to book, to deal with the matter.

You dont have to hear from the president on that matter. When it pays us, we talk about federalism and true federalism; yet you want the president and presidency to talk about everything, Mr. Adesina said.

He also said when a thing like this happens in a state, there is a chief security officer and he is supposed to be on top of the matter.

Governor El-Rufai Rufai was at the villa on Thursday to brief the president, so why should the president then be talking about it?

True federalism is the governor should be in charge and he is in charge of it, he said.

LOCAL MATTER

The killings in Southern Kaduna are suspected to be due to violence between the locals and migrating Fulani herdsmen.

Apart from Kaduna, similar violence between locals, mainly farmers, and migrating herdsmen has caused the death of hundreds of people in several other states including Benue and Taraba.

Mr. Adesina on Monday said local authorities must play a crucial role in stopping the violence.

He said state and local governments have a major role to play in dealing with herdsmen crisis.

He said Mr. Buhari is always in constant touch with governors whenever an attack occurs to get timely updates.

The spokesperson said Mr. Buhari has consistently maintained that the best way to stop the killings is through collaboration between the states and the grassroots leaders in local governments.

The federal government has roles to play but not as much as the state and local governments, he said.
The Federal Government says the country will achieve the 30 per cent national broadband penetration by 2018 as projected in the countrys National Broadband Plan.

The Minister of Communications, Adebayo Shittu, disclosed this when he featured at the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Forum in Abuja.

Mr. Shittu said the country had so far achieved between 18 to 20 per cent penetration as a result of private sector initiatives.

The minister said government was encouraging all GSM and ICT companies to invest in the communication sector to expand the broadband penetration.

He said the government was also encouraging a number of initiatives, including foreign companies coming to invest in the country, who had expressed interest.

I have had the privilege of attending a number of international platforms where I met a lot of them as the chief marketer of the industry.

The ministry of communications is not into business, government has no business in business, what the ministry does is to provide an enabling environment for operators and industry entrepreneurs to be encouraged to invest.

When I say entrepreneur, it is not only Nigerian entrepreneurs even the foreign entrepreneurs.

Already, the rate at which we are now, we are about 18 to 20 per cent penetration and all of this is mostly as a result of private sector initiative.

I am very confident that by the Grace of God within the next two years, we will reach the target of 30 per cent, he said.

On the recent proposed data tariff increase, Mr. Shittu said the matter was almost sorted out.

He said that he was not part of the initiative as the issue was between the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, and the companies.

When it happened, a lot of people accused me of taking money from these companies, so I have to explain the role I played and you would recall that the Senate because of the uproar that greeted the issue called stakeholders meeting.

The minister said that it was at that meeting that it became clear that what was said to be newly introduced had actually been the rate suspended years ago.

The rate was agreed three years ago but perhaps because of uproar at the time it was suspended. The rate was 90 kobo and what is in operation is now is 55kobo.

And a lot of people out of mischief said that it was a 250 per cent increase but it was from 55 kobo to 90 kobo and if you dont use it at all you dont pay anything.

Mr. Shittu said it was after the Senate summoned all stakeholders and they provided facts and information that it became clear that data issue was on before it was later suspended.

According to him, the GSM companies said they were groaning under the burden of debt, that was why they needed the increase.

The Senate understood that and said NCC and others ought to have engaged with members of the public and put all information in the public domain before announcing the increase, he said.

(NAN)
The Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, has urged Nigerians to double efforts at bridging gaps in the country, saying what unites the people is more important than things that divide them.

Speaking in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, when he joined two other Muslim northern governors to take part in festivities to commemorate this years Christmas, Mr. Tambuwal said Nigerias diversity is a source of strength which should be cherished and nurtured for the benefit of the people.

The other governors in the entourage were Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara and Abubakar Bagudu of Kebbi.

The three joined Governor Udom Emmanuel to felicitate with him over the birth of Christ and as well commiserate with him over the recent tragedy which claimed scores of lives after a church building collapsed in Uyo early this month.

Speaking when he met with Mr. Emmanuel, Mr. Yari, who is also the chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum, NGF, described the tragedy as unfortunate.

He said the decision to set up an investigative panel to unravel the causes of the collapse is a right move in the right direction.

Your Excellencys miraculous escape from death in the sad incident is surely one of Gods wonders.

We at the Governors Forum received with shock, the sad news of the churchs collapse and we want to send message of solidarity to the people and government of Akwa Ibom over this unfortunate incident. Our prayers are with those who lost loved ones, and those who sustained injuries, Mr. Yari added.

Responding, Mr. Emmanuel thanked the visiting governors especially for choosing a holy day like the Christmas day to visit Akwa Ibom.

He described Nigerian Governors as a big and important family, saying the unity exhibited by the visit will further cement the cordial relationship between the peoples of Nigeria.
President-elect Donald Trump announced on Saturday that he would dissolve the charity bearing his name, which has been embroiled in an ongoing controversy over potential conflicts of interest as he prepares to enter the Oval Office.



In a statement, Trump said that the Donald J. Trump Foundation has done "enormous good works over the years in contributing millions of dollars to countless worthy groups, including supporting veterans, law enforcement officers and children."

The foundation has been part of a wide ranging discussion about Trump's business and personal entanglements, which some experts have cited as being fraught with potential conflicts with his new role as commander in chief. In New York, the Trump Foundation has been under scrutiny, and was ordered in October by NY State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to stop raising funds.

Indeed, Schneiderman's office released a terse statement on Saturday that cast doubt on Trump's ability to close the charity down, and raised the specter of a legal battle between the two camps.

"The Trump Foundation is still under investigation by this office and cannot legally dissolve until that investigation is complete," the New York Attorney General's office said in statement, giving no further details.



The shuttering of the charity is part of the Trump family's political offensive before the president-elect is inaugurated next month. Left open is the question of how Trump will disentangle himself from his sprawling business empiresomething Trump recently stated he would address in a press conference before postponing the event.

Separately, his son Eric also announced last week that he would terminate his own Eric J. Trump Foundation.

With controversy swirling, "to avoid even the appearance of any conflict with my role as President I have decided to continue to pursue my strong interest in philanthropy in other ways," the president-elect said in a statement. The real-estate mogul has told his legal team to "take the necessary steps to effectuate the dissolution."

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Earlier this year, The New York Times reported that the Trump Foundation did not appear on charity registers in numerous states, suggesting it was not legally sanctioned to raise funds as a nonprofit. In his statement, the president-elect appeared to defend the charity's activities.

"I am very proud of the money that has been raised for many organizations in need, and I am also very proud of the fact that the Foundation has operated at essentially no cost for decades, with 100 percent of the money going to charity," Trump said on Saturday.

However, "because I will be devoting so much time and energy to the Presidency and solving the many problems facing our country and the world, I don't want to allow good work to be associated with a possible conflict of interest."
The Registrar, Pharmacists Council of Nigeria, PCN, Elijah Mohammed, has restated the Federal Governments commitment to ending open drug hawking by August 1, 2017.

Mr. Mohammed gave the assurance in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, on Monday in Abuja. He described this as part of efforts to regulate drug distribution system in the country.

He said the move would assist in curtailing the menace of open drug sale.

Mr. Mohammed attributed major challenges in the health system to open drug hawking.

He added that a lot of the hawkers sold fake and adulterated drugs.

The registrar stated that coordinated wholesale centres are currently being built in four states of the federation where open sale of drugs is predominant.

H said that the drug dealers would be relocated to the centres to enable them to carry out their activities in a coordinated manner.

According to him, the centres would go a long way to curtailing drug hawking, among others, as there would be strict regulation of drug distribution and sales at the centres.

NAN reports that open drugs marketers or dealers are unlicensed medicines sellers in and around the streets and major markets like Idumota in Lagos, Onitsha over head bridges, Sabongari in Kano, Nyanya in Abuja, motor parks among others.

Noting the locations of the centres as Kano, Lagos, Onitsha, and Aba, Mr. Mohammed however said that construction of those facilities are currently on-going.

He said all dealers would be relocated to those centres to carry out their activities and would be properly regulated.

The registrar said anyone cut operating outside those centres after the specified date would be arrested and prosecuted by security agency.

The issue of open drug market will come to an end by Aug 1st next year and we are working toward that and have put in place necessary measures to take care of that which is the coordinated wholesale centres.

The coordinated wholesale centre in Onitsha which is situated in Oba will take care of the Onitsha overhead bridge. And we have inspected the location and been granted approval and development has started.

We have just four centres to address the major open drug market and we have only one centre in each of the states where those operations are predominant because it was only one open drug market that have been identified, Mr. Mohammed said.

(NAN)
The National Association of Resident Doctors, NARD, has urged the Federal Government to urgently intervene in the lingering crises in the health sector to avert an impending strike by doctors.

The News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, recalls that NARD had issued a three-week strike notice that is expected to end on Jan. 2, 2017.

The Public Relations Officer of the association, Ugoeze Asinobi, told NAN in Yenagoa on Monday that the doctors had shelved the planned strike three times in the past four months and were bent on going n strike from January 2.

Resident doctors are agitating for a uniform template for the Residency Programme, infrastructure for tertiary health facilities, proper grading of doctors and payment of outstanding salaries amongst other issues

We dont want strikes but we are going to have to resort to it again, the residency programme is fundamental to effective healthy care given the dearth of manpower as the country has less than 20 per cent of required experts.

Each time the ultimatum expired we shift it in the hope that things will be made right within the time given but it is now obvious the ministry officials are insincere.

The issues we go on strike for are always the same issues and we are resolute to withdraw services come January 2 if our concerns are not addressed..

One wonders if health ministry officials are sabotaging the efforts of President Buhari on purpose as their brazen and blatant disregard to the most basic institutional needs of the major workhorses of the health sector leaves a lot to be desired.

Their attitude leaves one bewildered as sabotage appears to be the only logical explanation, Mr. Asinobi said.

He alleged that officials of Federal Ministry of Health were playing politics with the lives of Nigerians and accused them of being insensitive and disconnected from the realities the masses are facing in their daily lives.

Mr. Asinobi said that NARD frowned at the wastage in building new primary health centres rather than rehabilitating, equipping and staffing existing ones with requisite manpower.

The NARD spokesman explained that resident doctors had always embraced dialogue and discussions in finding lasting peace, but regretted that their commitment to peace and industrial harmony was yet to be reciprocated.

He said that the present executive of NARD remains committed to end the myriad of problems adversely affecting the welfare of resident doctors.

He appealed to the federal government to wade into the industrial dispute in the overall interest of Nigerians

(NAN)
Two female suicide bombers on Monday caused heavy explosion outside the gate of Maiduguri cattle market leading to the death of one of them.

The second was lynched and eventually died, witnesses and an official said.

The deafening explosion thundered across Maiduguri causing panic among residents.

The blast was heard at about 8.40 a.m. when two young girls, in their teens, tried to invade the usually crowded cattle market.

The Borno police spokesperson, Victor Isuku, confirmed the incident via a WhatsApp message.

At about 0840hrs today, explosion by two female suicide bombers occurred at kasuwa shanu market Maiduguri.

One of the bombers was instantly killed in the explosion, while the second was lynched by irate mob in the vicinity. EOD team and other security forces mobilized to the scene and detonated the unexploded IED.

Normalcy restored to the area while security has been beefed up within the area and other parts of the city!

One other person was injured from the blast.

Sundays suicide attempt occurred a day after President Muhammadu Buhari announced that the Nigeria Army had liberated Sambisa Forest, the former stronghold of the Boko Haram insurgents.

The army also warned that fleeing Boko Haram members were escaping the forest to civilian territories around Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states.
Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno has described the Christmas of 2016 as his best season of celebration since his assumption of office over five years ago.

Speaking after cutting the tape to declare open some major highways in the state, Mr. Shettima said that 2016 signalled Nigerias year of victory and Borno year of hope and liberation.

The highways are Maiduguri-Gubio-Damasak and the Maiduguri-Monguno-Baga roads.

I want start by declaring that since I became the governor of Borno State in over five years, this is the best Christmas season that I have ever witnessed.

This is the best December we ever witnessed and the year 2016 is my best year so far as governor of Borno state. 2016, for me ,is Nigerias year of victory and Borno year of hope and resurrection.

It is in 2016 that we began to have access to major roads like Gwoza, Bama, Dikwa, Monguno and Damasak, following their liberation by our gallant armed forces.

It is in the year 2016 that major highways began to be reopened, it is in the year 2016 that we accelerated our major reconstruction of liberated cities.

The governor also said that not only were some of the Chibok abducted school girls recovered in the year, the country established its supremacy over the Sambisa forest in 2016, where the Boko Haram terrorists had hitherto held sway.

It is in the year 2016 that we recovered some of our daughters abducted at Government Secondary School, Chibok in 2014.

And fellow Nigerians, it is in the year 2016 that the Federal Republic of Nigeria established its supremacy over the Sambisa headquarters of the Boko Haram (terrorists).

For the government and people of Borno, there is no better Christmas and New Year gift that is more precious than the conquering of Sambisa forest by our gallant armed forces.

Mr. Shettima thanked President Muhammadu Buhari; Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai; Theatre Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole, Lucky Irabor; General Officer Commanding  GOC 7 and 8 Divisions in Borno, and other officials of the Nigerian army for subduing the terrorists.

He also acknowledged the roles played by officers and soldiers, who paid the supreme sacrifice in course of the war to liberate the state from the insurgents; and prayed for their repose of their soul.

The governor described the two major roads reopened as economic heartbeat of Borno, where agriculture produce from the northern part of the state were transported to other parts of the state and the country at large.

It will be recalled that other major roads in Borno, including Maiduguri-Mafa-Dikwa-Ngamboru Ngala, Maiduguri-Baga and Maiduguri-Damboa roads were earlier in the year reopened.

(NAN)
The Federal Government has called for increased vigilance among Nigerians, as Boko Haram escapees seek to integrate themselves into communities, after being dispossessed of their Sambisa fortress.

The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, who made the call in a statement issued on Monday in Lagos, stressed that eternal vigilance is the price of freedom.

We urge Nigerians to keep our gallant and victorious troops in their prayers.

Nigerians should also imbibe the mantra of if you see something, say something as a way of ensuring that no escaped terrorist is able to wreak havoc in their communities.

It is also important to know that now that they have been dispossessed of their fortress, the Boko Haram escapees will intensify their cowardly attacks on vulnerable targets if only to maintain an illusion of terror.

There should be no panic because the worst is over, he said.

The minister congratulated the troops of the Nigerian military for finally seizing the Sambisa Forest from the Boko Haram terrorists and securing the north-east.

He said the feat had paved the way for Sundays re-opening of two strategic roads in Borno.

Mr. Mohammed appealed to Nigerians to continue to support the troops as they clear the remnants of the terrorists who are now on the run.

We commend the military for the re-opening of the Maiduguri-Gubio-Damasak road and the Maiduguri-Mungono-Baga road, which link Nigeria with neighbouring countries.

The Federal Government also commends Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima, for his unwavering support for the military and his administrations determination to quickly restore normalcy across the state, he said.

The minister said it was in recognition and celebration of the great feat by the military that he decided to lead over 30 Nigerian and international journalists to join the Minister of Defence, the Service Chiefs and Borno Governor at the opening of the roads.

Unfortunately, due to bad weather, our flight to Maiduguri from Abuja was cancelled after several hours of waiting at the airport in Abuja.

However, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, accompanied by the top brass of the military, re-opened the two arterial roads.

This is very significant because the two major roads, which were closed due to the activities of the terrorists in the area, are of strategic importance to the economy of the Lake Chad Region, he said.

The minister noted that the exceptional leadership provided by President Muhammadu Buhari provided the much-needed impetus for the militarys victory in the North-east.

He urged Nigerians to continue to give their unalloyed support to the President in his untiring efforts to restore peace and security across the country and also revamp the economy.

(NAN)
Presidential Palace (photo by Andrzej Hrechorowicz /KPRP)

Polish President Andrzej Duda has sent condolences to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin after a Russian military plane with more than 90 people on board crashed into the Black Sea on Sunday.

"On my own behalf and on behalf of the Polish people, I would like to express my sympathy to the Russian people, primarily to the families of the victims," Andrzej Duda said in his message to Vladimir Putin on Sunday.

President Duda also said that the tragic death of almost all the members of Russias famous Alexandrov Ensemble who were on board the plane was "an irreparable loss for Russian culture."

The plane was carrying 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, the official choir of the Russian armed forces, in addition to other passengers and eight crew members. There were no reports of survivors. (PAP)
After months of waiting, local Uber drivers are eager for Gov. Chris Christie to sign into law a bill that would put in place statewide regulations on ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Lyft.

Were certainly happy to see that finally coming to fruition, because its been a long time, said Lance Zeaman, a local Uber driver.

Lack of statewide regulation has prompted some towns, such as Atlantic City and Sea Isle City, to ticket Uber drivers for operating without a proper license.

The bill, which sets safety standards and consumer protections on the companies and their drivers who use apps to pick up passengers for transportation, was introduced in the spring. It was approved last week by both the Assembly, 68-7, and the Senate, 29-5, and awaits Christies signature.

Zeaman was speaking on behalf of United Drivers for Uber South Jersey, an informal alliance of about 180 drivers from Atlantic and Cape May counties, who communicate privately via Facebook.

Its something to begin the year off by being able to give Atlantic City, finally, the freedom of choice, Zeaman said. This is a good thing for all of us, and certainly were hoping that Gov. Christie will expedite this.

Uber spokesman Craig Ewer thanked the Legislature for passing what he called comprehensive ridesharing legislation.

Their efforts will further Ubers mission of improving mobility and extending economic opportunity across New Jersey, Ewer said.

According to Uber, with the governors signature, New Jersey will become the 37th state in the country with a statewide ride-hailing law.

In 2016, there are more than 13,000 New Jersey residents driving with Uber and more than 700,000 riders across the state, the company said.

The rapid growth in the use of ridesharing companies such as Uber and Lyft has created concerns about safety regulations and some confusion about who is responsible for setting and enforcing standards to protect consumers and safeguard customers, said Sen. Paul Sarlo, a primary sponsor of the bill.

Bill sponsor Sen. Joseph Kyrillos said the legislators worked with Uber and Lyft, as well as law-enforcement officials to draft the law.

The legislation requires criminal background checks and standards for drivers, which would disqualify them from driving if they receive more than three moving violations, have a suspended or revoked license, a DUI or a reckless-driving offense.

The bill does not contain the controversial fingerprinting background checks, which Uber has opposed. Instead, it allows the companies to submit background testing methods to the attorney general for approval. If the attorney general does not approve of the method, the State Police will perform the checks.

Taxi drivers in the area have been vocal in opposition to Uber and other ride-hailing companies. Atlantic City Yellow Cab Co. owner Murray Rosenberg could not be reached for comment Monday.

Last month, Rosenberg said he believes the companies are too similar to taxi cabs to not be treated like taxis, which are required to carry a medallion and pay annual fees.

What were looking for is a level playing field, he said.
GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP  Alex Hampson, 22, graduated from Stockton University in December 2015 and immediately went to work in the accounting department at Urban Outfitters in Philadelphia.

He wrote a paper on the company as a final project for his finance degree, which he said helped him get the job.

I knew their processes and what they wanted, he said.

But the commute was long, and he wanted a job that had more personal meaning for him.

So after six months he found himself back at Stockton, working in the Alumni Affairs department on records and database management.

I thought Id want to be in a big business, but then I realized its not for me, he said.

The job market is improving for college graduates, with almost 85 percent of graduates in the class of 2015 having jobs or enrolled in graduate school within six months of graduation, according to a survey from the National Association of Colleges and Employers, or NACE.

Where Stockton students are going after graduation GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP  Almost nine out of 10 students who graduated from Stockton University in

But there are still challenges. A NACE survey released in November found employers plan to hire about 6 percent more new graduates during 2016-17 than they did the prior year But that rate is fairly flat.

While employers had initially anticipated hiring 11 percent more class of 2016 college graduates, they ended the cycle instead with a 5 percent increase according to NACE data.

Christy Cunningham, associate director of the Stockton Career Center, said students who were proactive while in college have the most success. Those students explore careers and do internships.

Some students still do think that just having the degree will get them a job, she said. But students who have experiences and can share stories of things they have done are more likely to make an impression.

Even students taking a less traditional approach can benefit from preparation while in college.

Cameron Glover, 23, graduated in May of 2015 with a degree in literature with a concentration in creative writing. She is a full-time freelance writer, a job that she says gives her lots of freedom and earns enough to pay the bills.

I like to be freelance rather than working for someone else, she said.

She started freelancing while still in college, which gave her time to research, learn the process, and make connections. She did an internship that involved learning to code, which got her interested in technology. This has helped her find writing jobs.

My goal at first was just to get paid, even if it was just $25 or $50, she said.

Stockton students learn why food and beverage is a business that never sleeps ATLANTIC CITY  Looking for a job that will be exciting and different every day but also req

She pitches stories and also interacts with friends and other writers.

Im a naturally curious person, she said. It is kind of scary to have to do everything on my own, but I have a good support system of other writers.

Cunningham said graduates should not expect to get their dream job right out of college. While some jobs will require a masters degree, she suggests if possible getting a job first.

They should make sure its something they want to do, she said. And maybe they can also get their employer to help pay for the graduate degree.

Kiyle Osgood, 24, of West Amwell, thought he had found a dream job with Vanguard, but realized after less than a year that he did not enjoy the large corporate environment. He was able to find another job with Walkers and Associates as an associate financial adviser.

A finance major, he said his term as a student trustee on the Stockton Board of Trustees was invaluable.

My experience on the board helped a lot, he said. I know how to talk to and interact with other professionals.

Osgood is happy in his new job and glad he made the switch. He has already bought a home, viewing it as a good investment because of high rental rates where he lives.
This story was originally posted on Tuesday, Dec. 6.

You cant stop the beat and it doesnt look like you can stop Helene Britany either.

The 21-year-old South Jersey native will perform as Shelley, one of the nicest kids in town, on Hairspray Live! which broadcast for the first time on NBC on Dec. 7 and will air again on Monday at 8 p.m.

Beginning with dance lessons at the Ventnor City Cultural Arts Center at age three, Britanys singing and dancing never stopped.

She took dance every year, said her mother, Carol Seitchick-Alan, of Galloway Township. I credit her teachers, who from the very beginning were so supportive of her.

Seitchick-Alan said throughout the years, Britany received vocal and dance training in South Jersey.

The teachers she worked with included Tony Picciotti and his wife and daughter who run Absecon Academy Performing Arts, Cori Jack at Dance Forum South in Galloway,Victoria Clark from Ventnor Cultural Arts Center. The vocals from Susan Pieretti Frizzell who has a degree in music from Shenandoah University, Seitchick-Alan said. She attended Reeds Road School, and was supported by Principal Dr. William Zipparo and many teachers as well. My daughter got the best training locally.

As she entered her teen years, the family decided Britany moving to Los Angeles would help her with auditions. She has secured two record deals over the years and as a part of the duo Maliibu N Helene, had a song called Starin at It featured in a Ford commercial throughout last year. The duo has music videos and Britanys cover songs can be found online.

Through networking and meeting people in L.A., Britany recently worked on a new Jennifer Lopez video as well while attending dance classes and recording her own music.

Britany said landing the part in Hairspray Live!, however, was unlike anything shed experienced before.

Getting that news was probably one of the best moments of my life so far, Britany said. The audition process was amazing and just felt great from the start, then the callback happened and I had such a good feeling about it but didnt want to jinx anything so I just kept my fingers crossed.

The NBC productions cast includes Harvey Fierstein, Jennifer Hudson, Ariana Grande, Rosie ODonnell, Martin Short, Derek Hough and more.

The rehearsals have been absolutely a dream come true, Britany said. Everyone clicked from the very start, and we knew we had something special together. It just felt so right. We started rehearsals in mid-October, and they have been crazy intense. We had the whole show done in about three weeks, and from then on it was just perfecting it.

Seitchick-Alan said landing big gigs is possible with enough determination, connections and staying true to yourself.

There are a lot of talented people from New Jersey. You just cant give up, she said. Helene wants to be a role model for girls and be natural. Its not for the faint of heart, but if you want to pursue it you can make a career for yourself.

For Seitchick-Alan, there couldnt be a better time for the message behind the 1960s-set Hairspray. Relevance can still be found today in the central theme of integrating an all-white fictional Corny Collins Show.

The whole cast was talking about that, Seitchick-Alan said. Helene was a first-time voter and it was really important to her to get to vote and for me it was a life moment, my daughter voting next to me in this really important election. Its eerie that this is from the 1960s, but it applies today.

Britany said after doing Hairspray Live! she would like to get more involved in theater in the future, perhaps on Broadway.

From a very young age I knew exactly what I loved and wanted to do with my life, so from there I just worked on my craft and did everything I could to get to this point, she said. For me, this is just the start.
A cold ocean on New Years day will be a perfect beach day for the thousands of people expected to plunge into the water for charity and for fun.

In Ocean City, the annual Hero Plunge benefits the HERO Campaign, a local program to curb drunk driving and promote designated drivers.

Theres no formal registration, because it is a free event, said Glenn Davilla, of the HERO Campaign. But we can tell every year it has grown.

This year, the HERO Campaign is offering a warm up zone in the Ocean City Music Pier.

Participants can register online as a team or individual fundraiser at herocampaign.donor drive.com.

Also Sunday, the Atlantic City Polar Bear Club will raise money for the Multiple Sclerosis Association of America.

The club will meet on the Boardwalk at Resorts Casino to plunge at noon. Information is at atlantic citypolarbearclub.com.

In Brigantine, the 16th annual New Years Day Polar Bear Plunge will take place at noon, too.

Plungers will meet to register at 10 a.m. at Laguna Grill and Rum Bar at 1400 Ocean Ave. Money raised for Brigantines plunge supports the Fisher House Foundation, which provides fund for wounded military and their families.

On Jan. 14, the Law Enforcement Polar Bear Plunge will take place in Wildwood. People will trek the beach at 1 p.m. to jump into the ocean to raise money for Special Olympics of America. More information can be found at NJPolar Plunge.com.

More plunges are planned in February in Manasquan, Long Beach Island, Sea Isle City and North Wildwood.
HAMILTON TOWNSHIP  Police are still searching for a great-grandmother and her great-granddaughter who went missing Saturday.

According to a release from the Caroline Country Sheriff's Office, surveillance footage shows Barbara Briley, 71, entering the Exxon station at 23087 Rogers Clark Blvd in Ruther Glen, Virginia.

Briley enters the store the store at 5:39 p.m., walks out six minutes later. She re-enters five minutes later, then leaves at 5:53 p.m.

Briley's silver 2014 Toyota Rav 4, with New Jersey license plates C80ELS, was seen leaving the gas station parking lot at 6:03 p.m.

Briley's great-granddaughter, LaMyra Briley, 5, was not seen in the footage. Police say they were traveling to visit family in North Carolina for a planned holiday visit.

A missing persons report was filed Sunday. The Caroline County Sheriff's office does not believe any criminal acts have occurred.

Hamilton Township police are working with New Jersey State Police, Virginia State Police and the Morven Police Department in North Carolina to locate the pair.

Anyone with information can contact Detective Michael Robison 609-625-2700, ext. 578.
MILLVILLE  Coast Guard recruits took a break from basic training Sunday to load up on desserts and to call family and friends.

Dozens of volunteers from Elks Lodge 580 prepared Christmas dinner for more than 100 recruits stationed at U.S. Coast Guard Training Center Cape May.

Coast Guard commissions new cutter commemorating WWII hero CAPE MAY  The crew of the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Rollin Fritch marched about the ship Satu

Members of the Elks made ham, mashed potatoes, corn, sweet potatoes, salad, macaroni and cheese, and other comfort foods for the recruits, many of whom were spending their first Christmas away from family.

Its weird not being with your family for Christmas, said Jonathan Bainbridge, 19, of Austin, Texas.

Bainbridge, who is two weeks into the eight-week training program, said hes not allowed to eat sweets or use a cellphone at the training center.

We cant have that until week six, I think, he said, motioning to the dessert table. The desserts are always there, but you cant grab them.

Those rules were relaxed Sunday at the Elks Lodge.

Jimmy Johnson, 83, of Millville, a member of the Elks, remembers his second week as a Coast Guard recruit back in 1952.

Rough, he said. Youd get a lot of exercises, pushups and all that.

A few of the recruits said they are still settling into life at the training center.

It takes some adjustments, said Shane Holmes, 23, who lives near Boston. Youve got to get acclimated to the lifestyle.

Some of the recruits said they werent sure where they were going when they boarded the bus to leave the training center earlier in the day.

I was definitely surprised, said Erin Hughes, 20, of St. Augustine, Florida. There were so many people here, and I wasnt expecting that at all.

Recruits played pool, cornhole and other games. The Elks set up a projector to play Christmas films, including Elf.

Its the second year the Millville lodge has hosted the Coast Guard.

We are on the list to make this an annual thing every year, said Arleen Hickman, activities chairwoman.
ATLANTIC CITY  Authorities charged a city man with murder Thursday in the shooting death of a woman with whom he shared an apartment, the Atlantic County Prosecutors Office announced Saturday.

Joseph McCoy, 43, is accused of killing Jacqueline Hoyle, 23, who was found dead at 4:22 a.m. in their apartment on North Tennessee Avenue. Authorities had not found or arrested McCoy, prosecutors spokesman Jay McKeen said.

An autopsy performed Thursday found Hoyle died of a single gunshot wound.

Detectives charged McCoy with murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon. Bail has been set at $750,000 full cash with no bond.

A conviction on the murder charge carries a sentence of 30 years to life.

Anyone with information on McCoy is asked to call the prosecutors Major Crimes Unit at 609-909-7666 or the police Investigations Division at 609-347-5766.
There has been a need lately for too many stories about a certain type of courage.

Its the courage of families to publicly tell their cautionary tales or turn their grief into action after a son, daughter or other loved one becomes another name on the growing list of heroin and opioid overdoses.

Anything that can reasonably be done to stem this tide of addiction and death should be embraced.

Assemblyman Vince Mazzeo wants acting Atlantic County Prosecutor Diane Ruberton to direct all local police officers to carry the opioid antidote naloxone while on duty. Police departments and municipalities  and not just in Atlantic County  should find a way to make this happen.

There are questions about cost, and the argument that it would be better to have EMS personnel carry the antidote, commonly sold by the brand name Narcan, as is done now in Egg Harbor Township and Absecon.

But the costs are not that prohibitive. Mazzeo points out that the price of $37.50 per dose makes his proposed effort to save lives not only completely warranted, but essential. New Jersey already has renewed a deal with a California-based pharmaceutical company to obtain naloxone at a discounted price through a rebate program for police departments and first responders.

Ruberton says she supports the use of Narcan by law enforcement and has authorized the use of forfeiture money to obtain the drug, usually administered as a nasal spray to quickly counteract an overdose. Her office prefers to let individual agencies decide the best way to implement policy  but whether it is mandated or not, having both police officers and EMS personnel would be a good practice.

State statistics show naloxone was administered 718 times between January 2015 and this June, with law enforcement giving 84 of the doses. Those stats on lives saved show the value of equipping both EMS personnel and officers.

No single course of action will end the heroin/opioid epidemic that killed 50,000 people last year across the country, so attacking it with as many assets as possible is necessary.

Mazzeos chief of staff says he has been in contact with a company that has offered to give a free carton of Narcan to any high school that requests it. Ocean Country already has supplied all its high school nurses with it.

These are positive steps, but of course, naloxone is only a part of the broad range of actions needed in this effort, including education and treatment.

The Legislature is working to strengthen the states Prescription Monitoring Program, which seeks to halt the abuse of prescription drugs, a common precursor of heroin use. And Gov. Chris Christie deserves credit for keeping drug treatment and addiction assistance as a key part of his agenda. At a recent vigil outside the State House, he called for an end to the shame associated with drug addiction, which it is important to remember is a medical problem, not a moral failing. The governor also is part of radio ads encouraging people to call the states addiction-support hotline, 211, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

On the private side, there are people such as Tammy and Bill Schmincke, who founded the sober-living home Stevens Place in Pleasantville in memory of their son, who died of a heroin overdose in March.

They are among those courageous people who we wish never needed to become part of the solution to this problem. But since they have, we owe it to them to do all we can to help.
FINEST KIND CLINIC AND FISHMARKET.... Discussing medicine, culture, and the joys of cooking Pansit.
For the New World Order, a world government is just the beginning. Once in place they can engage their plan to exterminate 80% of the world's population, while enabling the "elites" to live forever with the aid of advanced technology. For the first time, crusading filmmaker ALEX JONES reveals their secret plan for humanity's extermination: Operation ENDGAME.

Jones chronicles the history of the global elite's bloody rise to power and reveals how they have funded dictators and financed the bloodiest warscreating order out of chaos to pave the way for the first true world empire.

Watch as Jones and his team track the elusive Bilderberg Group to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III.





to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. Learn about the formation of the North America transportation control grid, which will end U.S. sovereignty forever.





Discover how the practitioners of the pseudo-science eugenics have taken control of governments worldwide as a means to carry out depopulation.





View the progress of the coming collapse of the United States and the formation of the North American Union.

Never before has a documentary assembled all the pieces of the globalists' dark agenda. Endgame's compelling look at past atrocities committed by those attempting to steer the future delivers information that the controlling media has meticulously censored for over 60 years. It fully reveals the elite's program to dominate the earth and carry out the wicked plan in all of human history.

Endgame is not conspiracy theory, it is documented fact in the elite's own words.




PUNE, India, December 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The report "Aerospace Robotics Market by Type (Scara, Cylindrical, Articulated, Catesian), Component (Controller, Processor, End Effector, Drive, Sensor) Technology (Traditional, Collaborative), Application and Region - Global Forecast to 2022", published by MarketsandMarkets, the market is projected to grow from USD 1.81 Billion in 2016 to USD 4.54 Billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 16.55% during the forecast period.

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Browse 90 market data Tables and 52 Figures spread through 157 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Aerospace Robotics Market"

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Factors such as increasing use of robots for efficient aircraft production, growing use of robotics to handle aircraft orders backlog, and increasing labor costs are expected to drive the growth of the aerospace robotics market.

Articulated segment estimated to witness the highest growth during the forecast period

By type, the articulated segment of the Aerospace Robotics Market is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Articulated robots are used for various functions, for instance drilling, fastening, and painting, among others. They are the most preferred and widely used robots in the aerospace industry because of the wide range of applications for which they can be used. Articulated robots dominate the automated world in terms of speed and agility.

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Sensors segment estimated to witness the highest growth during the forecast period

Based on component, the sensors segment of the aerospace robotics market is estimated to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period, owing to the increasing use of robotic sensors to provide essential inputs about an object's motion, location, velocity, and temperature, among others.

Collaborative segment estimated to witness the highest growth during the forecast period

Based on technology, the collaborative segment of the aerospace robotics market is estimated to witness the highest growth during the forecast period. This segment's growth is driven by the increasing demand for human safety while working alongside robots, in the aerospace industry. Customers/manufacturers in the aerospace industry are showing an interest in collaborative robots, as these robots can safely work alongside humans.

Asia-Pacific market is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period

Asia-Pacific is the fastest-growing markets for aerospace robotics, due to increase in the number of aircraft deliveries in the region. The region's major economies, such as India, China, and Japan are increasingly investing in automation solution for aircraft manufacturing. These countries are also expected to increase their acquisition of robotic systems and invest in research & development in aerospace manufacturing.

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Some of the major players in the aerospace robotics market include Yaskawa Electric Corporation (Japan), Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (Japan), and FANUC Corporation (Japan).

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Tongji University professor and leading management science expert You Jianxin talks about how the development of new mobility models that take the environment into account is the first step

SHANGHAI, Dec. 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- You Jianxin, professor at the School of Economics & Management, Tongji University, and one of China's leading management science experts, attended the 12th China (Shanghai) Service Outsourcing International Forum (2016) - Innovation & Entrepreneurship in the Field of Sustainable Transportation and Environmentally Responsible Tourism, where he led a discussion on the importance of sustainable and environmentally-friendly mobility models. His message: based on the desire on behalf of every human being to live in a healthy environment and to have access to a healthy lifestyle, he pointed out the two key words that need to be part and parcel of the conversation when discussing transportation and that takes responsibility for the environment into account: ecology and habits.

Ecology: At a minimum, three key aspects of the underlying infrastructure necessitate a close look: the physical (the transportation network, the vehicles themselves and the role of the Internet), the overall system (establishing systems that ensure green development and the development of a market-oriented ecosystem that encourages sustainable transportation) and the cultural (making people aware of the importance of adopting an environmentally-responsible lifestyle and arriving at a definition of what it means to adopt such a lifestyle based on consensus. For example, whether the development and adoption of new energy vehicles can serve as a guideline that defines the standards for low energy consumption and low emissions, or what would be the rules that define the successful development and deployment of an intelligent transportation network).

Habits: The fostering of habits that lead to environmentally-responsible behavior among individuals, groups and organizations. Sustainable transport is closely linked to the behavioral habits of individuals and organizations. However, this will first necessitate going through a process which enhances awareness and the development of the behavioral habits. For example, can public transportation become the primary choice for the vast majority of the traveling public? Can low-energy consumption and low-emission vehicles become the preference for most car buyers when completing a purchase? Efforts are clearly afoot to accelerate this process, to achieve sustainable transportation and expand eco-friendly transportation. Changing people's transportation and business habits and getting governments to do the same can help the general population in making the choice to adopt a healthier lifestyle, and to do so sooner rather than later.

Based on the above discussion, it is necessary to recognize that sustainable transportation and eco-friendly transportation originate from the general expectations for a healthier lifestyle. People are faced with unprecedented challenges when they make the choice to adopt a healthier lifestyle, as they must change their current behavior both at the individual and organizational level. It behooves governments to play a leadership role in encouraging and supporting the changes in behavior, such as providing a competitive yet fair environment for the development of sustainable transportation and environmentally responsible tourism, imposing a high cost of high-emission vehicles and on any system, network or infrastructure that consumes high amounts of harmful energy, and reducing unnecessary risks for innovative companies which invest in green development. This is the awareness that needs to be raised as the first step in getting the world to adopt a healthier lifestyle.

Related Links

http://sem.tongji.edu.cn/semen



SOURCE Tongji SEM
ALBANY, New York, December 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

According to the research report, the global sheet face masks market is expected to reach a valuation of US$336.7 mn by the end of 2024 as against US$160.4 mn in 2015. During the forecast period of 2016 and 2024, the global market is expected to exhibit a CAGR of 8.7%.

Massive Population Base Boosts Asia Pacific Sheet Face Masks Market

In terms of fabric used for making sheet face masks, the global market is segmented into non-woven, hydrogel, bio-cellulose, and cotton. Of these, the bio-cellulose fabric masks are expected show a remarkable progress during the forecast period. Their growing demand will be a result of ease of availability and cost effectiveness. This segment is projected to rise at a CAGR of 8.8% during the forecast period. In terms of regions, Asia Pacific dominated the global market with a share of 37.9% in 2015. Analysts anticipate that the region will continue its dominance in the coming years due to a huge population base with a rising purchasing power.

Download Exclusive Sample of this report: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=B&rep_id=17687

Improving Purchasing Power in Emerging Economies to Spike Demand

The global sheet face masks market has been witnessing a tremendous growth due to high adoption of sheet face masks in the personal care industry. The exhaustive and extensive research and development in making innovative sheet face masks is also expected to drive the growth of the overall market. Several manufacturing companies are focusing on developing products to cater to the needs of consumers, which is also expected to have a positive impact on the global market. The demand for sheet face masks is also expected to rise due to the growing need for these products amongst the elderly population. These masks promise to repair several signs of aging such as pores, wrinkles, dry lines, sagging skin, and blemishes amongst others.

Analysts have identified emerging economies such as Indonesia, Argentina, China, Brazil, and India as lucrative markets for sheet face masks for the next few years. The strengthening economies of these countries, growing disposable incomes, and changing lifestyles are all expected to make a significant contribution to the rising revenue of the global market. These markets will also benefit from the increasingly strong presence of manufacturers in the region. Another important driver for the global sheet face masks market is the growing number of men taking a keen interest in grooming. Urbanization and impactful marketing campaigns are also expected to determine the demand for these products in the coming few years.

Browse Regional PR: http://www.europlat.org/global-sheet-face-masks-market.htm

High Cost of Masks to Deter Market Growth

The global market, however, is likely to challenged by the poor availability of sheet face masks. The high cost of these products is also expected to hamper the growth of the market in the coming years. For instance, the aging population is the key consumer base of this market who might not have the purchasing power to buy these products. Thus, the market faces the tough challenge of catering to all types of consumers with varying budgets and needs.

The top three companies in the global sheet face masks market held a share of 36.5% in the overall market in 2015. Sephora Collection, Starskin, and Estee Lauder are the leading companies in the global market. These players are expected to focus on the introduction of new products in order to strengthen their position across the globe. "Players are expected to launch skincare innovations by merging science and beauty products," states the lead author of this research report.

This review is based on Transparency Market Research's report, titled "Sheet Face Masks Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2016 - 2024."

Global Sheet Face Masks market can be segmented as follows:-

Global Sheet Face Masks Market, by Fabric Type

Non-Woven

Cotton

Hydrogel

Bio-Cellulose

Others

Global Sheet Face Masks Market, by Category Type

Premium Sheet Face Masks

Mass Sheet Face Masks

Global Sheet Face Masks Market, by Geography

North America

U.S.

Rest of North America

Europe

U.K.

Germany

France

Italy

Rest of Europe

Asia Pacific

China

Japan

India

Rest of APAC

Latin America

Brazil

Argentina

Rest of Latin America

Middle East and Africa

U.A.E.

Saudi Arabia

South Africa

Rest of Middle East & Africa

Recent Research Reports by TMR:

Skin Care Products Market:

http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/medicated-skin-care-products.html

Cosmetic Skin Care Market:

http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/cosmetic-skin-care-market.html

About Us

Transparency Market Research (TMR) 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. TMR's experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.

Each TMR syndicated research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With wider scope and stratified research methodology, TMR's syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.

US Office Contact

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Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.com



Website: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com

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SOURCE Transparency Market Research
ONTARIO, Calif., Dec. 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- CES, where all the latest in consumer technologies and innovations are on display, is once again gaining the attention of all tech and gadget enthusiasts. ANTOP Antenna will be on-hand at CES '17 to exhibit the latest in digital antenna technology and design.

ANTOP Antenna has been an antenna manufacturer for more than 35 years and continues to manufacture for some of the most popular antenna companies today. A leader in design, engineering, and manufacturing of TV antennas, ANTOP Antenna, located at booth #21449 (LV CC South Hall 1), will be displaying their most popular indoor and outdoor HDTV antennas, as well as introducing new products.

This is the first year ANTOP Antenna will display its own brand and product line at CES. "With all the excitement that goes on during the show and attention CES receives from consumer and media, we felt that this is the perfect environment to debut the ANTOP brand," said Eric Jiang, ANTOP Antenna president. "Our brand growth will be focused on providing superior customer service and offering the best over-the-air TV signal reception solutions for consumers."

On Display at CES

Flat Panel Outdoor Antenna series -- nine different models, multi-direction coverage pattern, High Gain digital qualities ensure less blind spots and maximum reception, reception range beginning at 60 miles and continuing up to 80 miles from the broadcast origination point, includes built in 4G LTE Filter

Popular Paper Thin Antennas -- product line of 26 different models featuring sleek, lightweight and ultra-thin, .02 of an inch, compact designs made for easy installation, but still delivering on the ANTOP promise of a quality HDTV viewing experience by utilizing the latest in antenna technology.

Smart Antenna Series -- Currently in the final stages of development, the Smart Antenna is Wi-Fi capable and allows for a wireless approach to streaming and receiving local over-the-air TV signals. The idea for this product line came about when ANTOP re-engineered a Yagi antenna to fit in a box and become a flat panel antenna.

As US consumers increasingly cut-the-cord on cable and satellite, ANTOP will continue to provide a full suite of over-the-air antenna options for everyone to enjoy the freedom of no-cost free broadcast TV.

About: Established in 1980, ANTOP is one of the largest manufacturers of digital indoor and outdoor TV antennas. Visit www.antopantenna.com.

SOURCE ANTOP Antenna

Related Links

http://www.antopantenna.com


AUBURN, Ala., Dec. 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Chicken Salad Chick, the nation's only southern inspired, fast casual chicken salad restaurant concept, announced today it will be expanding in Tennessee with its first location in Hendersonville. The new restaurant will open on Monday, Jan.9 and is located on 217 Indian Lake Blvd. This company-owned location marks the fourth Chicken Salad Chick restaurant in Tennessee.

During grand opening week, guests will enjoy southern hospitality through giveaways and specials at the new Chicken Salad Chick restaurant:

Monday, Jan.9  Free Chicken Salad for a Year - The first guest will win one large Quick Chick of chicken salad per week for an entire year; the next 99 guests receive a large Quick Chick of chicken salad per month.*

Tuesday, Jan.10  Tote-ally Tuesday - The first 50 guests at the opening and the first 50 guests at 6 p.m. will receive a free, limited edition Chicken Salad Chick tote bag.

will receive a free, limited edition Chicken Salad Chick tote bag. Wednesday, Jan.11  Water Bottle Wednesday - The first 100 guests to spend at least $30 will receive a complimentary Chicken Salad Chick water bottle.**

will receive a complimentary Chicken Salad Chick water bottle.** Thursday, Jan.12  Thirsty Thursday - The first 100 guests to purchase a Chick Special will receive a free large drink and a Chick Coozie.

Friday, Jan.13  Free Scoop Friday - The first 100 customers will receive a free scoop of Classic Carol chicken salad.

Saturday, Jan.14  Kids Eat Free Saturday - Kids will receive one free kids meal with the purchase of a Chick Special.***

"To kick off the start of 2017, we are thrilled to announce the opening of our second Nashville-area restaurant as we continue to grow the Chicken Salad Chick brand across the Southeast," said Scott Deviney, chief operating officer of Chicken Salad Chick. "We look forward to further propelling our brand's presence in Tennessee and are eager to serve the vibrant, thriving community of Hendersonville with our custom-fit chicken salad experience and southern hospitality."

The Chicken Salad Chick concept, born in Auburn, Ala., was established in 2008 in the kitchen of founder, Stacy Brown. When Stacy discovered that the local county health department would not allow her to continue making and selling her delicious recipes out of her home kitchen, she overcame that obstacle by launching her first restaurant with the business expertise of her future husband and fellow founder, Kevin Brown. Together, they opened a small takeout restaurant, which quickly grew; the company now has more than 60 restaurants across the Southeast.

Chicken Salad Chick in Hendersonville will be open Monday  Saturday from 10 a.m.  8 p.m. For more information, visit http://www.chickensaladchick.com, or call 615-447-3006. Follow Chicken Salad Chick on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for the latest news and trends.

*Eligible winners must be over 16 years of age and are required to download the CravingCredits app.

**Limit 1 per customer per $30 order.

***Must be 12 years of age or under.

About Chicken Salad Chick

Chicken Salad Chick puts an edgy twist on a Southern classic, offering guests a "custom fit" chicken salad experience, with 15 original flavors to choose from, as well as gourmet soups, flavorful side salads and freshly-baked desserts. Chicken Salad Chick serves southern style chicken salad with heart and strives to spread joy, enrich lives and serve others every day. Today, the brand has more than 60 locations across the Southeast, and has currently sold 146 franchises to be developed across the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Louisiana and Texas. The brand was recently named as the top chicken salad in the country to try in the 2015 March/April issue of Cooking with Paula Deen, as well as one of FastCasual.com's top Movers and Shakers and one of NRN's 2015 Breakout Brands. Chicken Salad Chick also ranked #37 on Inc.'s annual list of the 500 fastest-growing companies in the U.S. Corporate offices are located at 724 North Dean Road in Auburn, Alabama. See www.chickensaladchick.com for additional information.

Contact:

Tiffany Trilli

Fish Consulting

954-893-9150

[email protected]

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20151005/274280LOGO

SOURCE Chicken Salad Chick

Related Links

http://www.chickensaladchick.com


SHANGHAI, Dec. 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. ("JinkoSolar" or the "Company") (NYSE:JKS), a global leader in the photovoltaic ("PV") industry, today announced that all shareholders resolutions proposed at the Company's 2016 annual general meeting held today were duly passed. Specifically, the shareholders passed the following resolutions approving:

The re-election of Mr. Kangping Chen as a director of the Company; The re-election of Mr. Xianhua Li as a director of the Company; The ratification of the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers Zhong Tian LLP as auditors of the Company for the fiscal year of 2016; The authorization of the directors of the Company to determine the remuneration of the auditors; and The authorization of each of the directors of the Company to take any and all action that might be necessary to effect the forgoing resolutions 1 to 4 as such director, in his or her absolute discretion, thinks fit.

About JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.

JinkoSolar (NYSE: JKS) is a global leader in the solar industry. JinkoSolar distributes its solar products and sells its solutions and services to a diversified international utility, commercial and residential customer base in China, the United States, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, Chile, South Africa, India, Mexico, Brazil, the United Arab Emirates, Italy, Spain, France, Belgium, and other countries and regions. JinkoSolar has built a vertically integrated solar product value chain, with an integrated annual capacity of 4.5 GW for silicon ingots and wafers, 3.7 GW for solar cells, and 6.5 GW for solar modules, as of September 30, 2016.

JinkoSolar has over 15,000 employees across its 6 productions facilities in Jiangxi, Zhejiang and Xinjiang Provinces, China, Malaysia, Portugal and South Africa, 16 oversea subsidiaries in Japan (2), Singapore, India, Turkey, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Australia and South Africa. 18 global sales offices in China (2) ,United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Egypt, Morocco, Ghana, Kenya, Costa Rica, Colombia, Brazil and Mexico.

To find out more, please see: www.jinkosolar.com

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements constitute "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, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends, "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements. Among other things, the quotations from management in this press release and the Company's operations and business outlook, contain forward-looking statements. Such statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in JinkoSolar's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual report on Form 20-F. Except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

In China:

Mr. Sebastian Liu

JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.

Tel: +86 21-5183-3056

Email: [email protected]

Mr. Christian Arnell

Christensen, Beijing

Tel: +86 10 5900 2940

Email: [email protected]

In the U.S.:

Ms. Linda Bergkamp

Christensen, Scottsdale, Arizona

Tel: +1-480-614-3004

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.

Related Links

http://www.jinkosolar.com


SHANGHAI, Dec. 25, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- You Jianxin, professor at the School of Economics & Management, Tongji University, and one of China's leading management science experts, attended the 12th China (Shanghai) Service Outsourcing International Forum (2016) - Innovation & Entrepreneurship in the Field of Sustainable Transportation and Environmentally Responsible Tourism, where he led a discussion on the importance of sustainable and environmentally-friendly mobility models. His message: based on the desire on behalf of every human being to live in a healthy environment and to have access to a healthy lifestyle, he pointed out the two key words that need to be part and parcel of the conversation when discussing transportation and that takes responsibility for the environment into account: ecology and habits.

Ecology: At a minimum, three key aspects of the underlying infrastructure necessitate a close look: the physical (the transportation network, the vehicles themselves and the role of the Internet), the overall system (establishing systems that ensure green development and the development of a market-oriented ecosystem that encourages sustainable transportation) and the cultural (making people aware of the importance of adopting an environmentally-responsible lifestyle and arriving at a definition of what it means to adopt such a lifestyle based on consensus. For example, whether the development and adoption of new energy vehicles can serve as a guideline that defines the standards for low energy consumption and low emissions, or what would be the rules that define the successful development and deployment of an intelligent transportation network).

Habits: The fostering of habits that lead to environmentally-responsible behavior among individuals, groups and organizations. Sustainable transport is closely linked to the behavioral habits of individuals and organizations. However, this will first necessitate going through a process which enhances awareness and the development of the behavioral habits. For example, can public transportation become the primary choice for the vast majority of the traveling public? Can low-energy consumption and low-emission vehicles become the preference for most car buyers when completing a purchase? Efforts are clearly afoot to accelerate this process, to achieve sustainable transportation and expand eco-friendly transportation. Changing people's transportation and business habits and getting governments to do the same can help the general population in making the choice to adopt a healthier lifestyle, and to do so sooner rather than later.

Based on the above discussion, it is necessary to recognize that sustainable transportation and eco-friendly transportation originate from the general expectations for a healthier lifestyle. People are faced with unprecedented challenges when they make the choice to adopt a healthier lifestyle, as they must change their current behavior both at the individual and organizational level. It behooves governments to play a leadership role in encouraging and supporting the changes in behavior, such as providing a competitive yet fair environment for the development of sustainable transportation and environmentally responsible tourism, imposing a high cost of high-emission vehicles and on any system, network or infrastructure that consumes high amounts of harmful energy, and reducing unnecessary risks for innovative companies which invest in green development. This is the awareness that needs to be raised as the first step in getting the world to adopt a healthier lifestyle.

SOURCE Tongji SEM

Related Links

http://sem.tongji.edu.cn/semen


Prof. GU Xianglin, Vice President of Tongji University gave full recognition to SEM's achievement in the international accreditations and development, " SEM has created management knowledge and develop leading professionals for the society who are capable of solving practical problems with strong social responsibilities, especially in the fields of urban development and service management ." Prof. JIN Fu'an briefed the development of SEM over the past one year regarding new faculty recruitment, output of scientific research, social contributions, alumni, international cooperation and rankings. Prof. JIN also responded to the issues raised by advisory members last year on its marketing, in which the school has established its own marketing department. When the school got the EQUIS and AACSB accreditations, hundreds of foreign and local media reported this great news. SEM has received " Best Contribution for CSR Spread " award in 2016 from PR Newswire.

The panel discussion focused on the internationalization of SEM's education under the national strategy of "One Belt One Road". Prof. CHEN Song first introduced the background of this national strategy of "One Belt One Road" and SEM's willingness to help train and educate relative professionals for Chinese and international companies. Prof. REZA shared Babson's programs in China, Russia and India which provided students with global insights and the abilities of coping with intercultural communications. Prof. WANG Guangbin suggested that SEM should work closely with big state-owned companies such as China Railway, who need management professionals while setting up oversea business. Mr. LI Ruicheng said that an academic team of SEM taking its advantages to give consultation for those companies will be much appreciated. Prof. HUO Jiazhen advised SEM IEDP Program to give management training for employees with engineering background in oversea companies. Mr. SHEN Xuejun shared SIMENS' experience to collaborate with Malaysia and Bangladesh companies that basic foreign culture background and local law regulations should be learned before starting business to ensure smooth communication.

SOURCE Tongji University SEM
SAN JOSE, Calif., Dec. 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, San Jose-based management consulting firm, Voler Strategic Advisors, announced that the National Minority Supplier Development Council has certified them as a Minority Business Enterprise (MBE).

"As an organization that promotes diversity and inclusion, we understand the power of being able to access different points of view," stated Perla Rodriguez, Chief Executive Officer, Voler Strategic Advisors. "This certification connects us to a network of companies equally committed to increasing supplier diversity."

Earlier this year, Voler Strategic Advisors was certified as a California Small Business by the California Department of General Services.

With a mix of PhDs, JDs, MPAs and MBAs within its ranks, Voler Strategic Advisors is a firm that puts an emphasis on leveraging its collective intellectual capital to help clients build capacity, facilitate change, and achieve their objectives.

About Voler Strategic Advisors: Headquartered in the Silicon Valley, Voler Strategic Advisors is a management consulting firm offering effective, creative solutions to complex problems. Our team of distinguished, diverse, highly experienced, and skilled professionals serve many organizations and industries throughout the country.

For more information, visit our website at: www.volersa.com.

SOURCE Voler Strategic Advisors

Related Links

http://www.volersa.com


Zaful's customers and subscribers can now get hot updates on latest fashion trends, celebrity styles and fashion trends. Apart from that, readers and customers can also get latest product recommendations and shopping suggestions from Zaful empanelled experts. They can also get healthy living and lifestyle tips from the professional bloggers and guest bloggers of Zaful who are committed to educate readers about latest fashion trends in the world.

Another exciting feature is that Zaful customers can also get commissions from Zaful by joining their affiliate program. Joining Zaful affiliate program is easy and customers can simply share Zaful blogs and report the articles published in Zaful blog to get started.

Apart from knowing about latest fashion trends, Zaful users can also derive information about fashion shows worldwide, star street snaps and supermodel street snaps. They can also watch videos and read articles and receive hot updates, including hot sales and arrivals, recent programs and promotional campaigns. The additional option to join Zaful AFF program, which is the website's own affiliate program can bring more excitement to the buyers as they can earn money by reposting content from the fashion blog that Zaful has just introduced. Customers also have this option to share content on social media.

Introducing a separate blog section is a strategic move as it will increase brand awareness and hopefully enhance user interaction and engagement too.

About Zaful

Zaful provides the latest in designs for the fashion conscious people for affordable prices along with exceptional value, quality and a superb customer service. Zaful's exciting brands consist of emerging new designers who give the best to suit discerning buyers looking for a style they can call their own. Find out more about Zaful on the website http://www.zaful.com

Related Link

ZAFUL Bloghttp://www.zaful.com/blog?lkid=10255323

ZAFUL AFFhttp://affiliate.zaful.com/?lkid=10259638

Media contact:

Mark Evans

support(at)zaful(dot)com

(503) 928-7482

SOURCE Zaful

Related Links

http://www.zaful.com


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
Agartala/Aizawl, Dec 23 : Maintaining fuel supplies to trouble-torn Manipur has led to a shortage of petrol, diesel and cooking gas supply to two other states - Tripura and Mizoram, officials said on Friday.

Officials of the state-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) that supplies these fuel to the northeast from its refineries in Assam, however, said in Agartala that the crisis would be over within a week.

"On the direction of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry, priority has been given to maintain the supply to Manipur resulting in some fuel crisis in other North-eastern states," a senior IOC official told IANS on condition of anonymity.

He said that IOC-owned four refineries of Digboi, Guwahati, Numaligarh and Bongaigaon in Assam from where diesel, petrol and LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) was supplied mostly by road to the northeast.

The Manipur-based United Naga Council (UNC) had imposed road blockade since November 1, to protest the state government's unilateral decision to create new districts out of traditional Naga territory.

The Congress-led Manipur government had decided to create seven new districts, including Jiribam district out of Imphal East and Sadar Hills district out of Senapati district, that was hugely protested by Naga rights groups .

The blockade on national highway (NH-2) had disrupted the supply of essentials -- food grains and fuel to Manipur.

Inadequate supply of essentials were then maintained through alternative highways linking Assam to Manipur.

In Tripura, in view of the short supply of transport fuel, long queues of two-wheelers and other vehicles were seen in front of all petrol pumps across the state.

People were also facing a tough time arranging LPG cylinders from distributors.

A Tripura Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department official said that the state government has asked the IOCL to take urgent steps to bring normalcy in the availability.

"Chief Secretary Yashpal Singh held a meeting with the IOC and Food Department officials here on Thursday and reviewed the situation.

"The Chief Secretary has asked the IOCL officials to improve the situation at the earliest," the official added.

In Mizoram, most filling stations in the state were running dry even as Christmas, the main festival in the Christian-majority state was around the corner.

A large number of vehicles lined up at petrol pumps across the state for the past few days were greeted with 'No Petrol' signs.

Leaders of the Young Mizo Association, a powerful NGO has alleged in a statement that petrol pumps in Mizoram were indulging in black marketing, taking advantage of the prevailing situation.
Panaji, Dec 23 : A few days after the Aam Aadmi Party named him as its chief ministerial candidate in Goa, former bureaucrat Elvis Gomes has been summoned by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of the Goa Police in connection with a housing scam case.

The AAP Goa convener has accused the BJP-led coalition government of the state of victimisation and has demanded that all land acquisition procedures which were initiated and subsequently dropped over the last few years, should be probed.

Gomes, along with Nilkanth Halarnkar, a former Minister for Housing in the erstwhile Congress-NCP alliance government, has been summoned to report before the investigating officer on December 26, a senior ACB official told IANS on Friday.

"They have been asked to report before the ACB on December 26," a senior police official said on the condition of anonymity.

Gomes and Halarnkar were booked under Sections 420 (cheating) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) in February this year, while Gomes was still a serving bureaucrat.

The duo has been accused of scrapping official acquisition procedure for a piece of land measuring 30,256 sq metres in South Goa's Margao, and again without following procedure, giving an opportunity for vested interests to purchase the land subsequently.

During his visit to Goa last week, Delhi Chief Minister and AAP co-convener Arvind Kejriwal described Gomes as an honest officer and nominated him as the party's Chief Ministerial candidate in the state, which will go to polls early next year.

Gomes has in the past called the accusation his "political victimisation", with an eye on the state assembly elections and has said that he has committed no illegality.

Gomes has also claimed that he was not even holding office when the land acquisition process was moved.

"We demand that all land acquisition procedures which were initiated and dropped in the last ten years, during the respective tenure of the governments led by the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party combine and the current BJP-led coalition should be probed," Gomes said.

The AAP leader also said that in one specific land acquisition deal involving a tract of land meant for parking at the Dabolim airport, which was later reverted to private ownership, opposition BJP politicians as well as those from the Congress-NCP ruling coalition had received kickbacks.
Chandigarh, Dec 26 : Mild to dense fog returned to parts of Punjab and Haryana on Monday, a day after the region witnessed the first rainfall of the winter season.

Visibility in Amritsar city and other parts of the district was reduced to 50 metres, Met officials said.

In Ludhiana, the fog situation was a little better with visibility of 750 metres.

In neighboiuring Haryana, Hisar town witnessed fog, with visibility being reduced to 150 metres.

However, Chandigarh, Karnal, Patiala and Ambala saw sunshine on Monday morning with some haze.

The maximum temperatures had dipped at most places on Sunday following rainfall on Christmas Day.

Chandigarh received 8.9 mm rain in the city while the airport area received 17 mm rain.

The city also saw a maximum temperature of 17.4 degrees, four degrees below normal.

In Haryana, the maximum temperature hovered between 15 to 19 degrees.

Met department officials have predicted dense fog in the region during morning hours in coming days.
Chennai, Dec 26 : The team of upcoming Tamil actioner and Jayam Ravi-starrer "Vanamagan" have successfully wrapped up a nearly two-week-long schedule in Vietnam and Thailand.

"Back to Chennai after 11 days of shoot in Vietnam and Thailand for 'Vanamagan' with director Vijay, Jayam Ravi and Prabhudheva," cinematographer Tirru shared on his Twitter page on Monday.

In the film, Ravi plays a tribal character, and he is paired with Sayyeshaa, who is making her Tamil debut.

Harris Jayaraj is composing the music, while Vijay is producing the film under his home banner, Think Big Studio.

It is rumoured that Prabhudheva is the co-producer. He had produced Vijay's last Tamil directorial "Devi".
New Delhi, Dec 26 : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of "victimising" AAP's Goa chief ministerial candidate Elvis Gomes.

"Elvis Gomes is known all over Goa for his honesty. (He is) being victimised by the BJP government," Kejriwal tweeted.

Kejriwal's remarks came after Gomes was summoned by the Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) of the Goa Police for his alleged involvement in a housing scam.

"People of Goa will give a befitting reply to the BJP" in the state assembly elections next year, Kejriwal said, adding "Goa will vote for honesty".

Gomes, a former Inspector General of Prisons, was last week declared AAP's Chief Ministerial candidate in the state.

On Friday, Gomes along with Nilkanth Halarnkar, a former Minister of Goa for Housing in the erstwhile Congress-NCP alliance government, was summoned to report before the ACB on Monday.
Madrid, Dec 26 : Spains Gil Parrondo, an Academy Award winning art director for "Patton" and "Nicholas and Alexandra", is no more. He was 95.

Parrando breathed his last on December 23.

"He had no other illness than his age," his nephew Oscar Parrondo, told Spanish news agency Efe.

Parrondo's two Oscars were the largest recognition for a generation of Spaniards who made their way to hold key crew positions as Hollywood's big budget productions came to Spain to use its scenery and competitive prices.

Born in Luarca in Spain's northern Asturias on June 17, 1921, Parrondo's big break came relatively early. He scored his first job on 1939's "Los cuatro Robinsones", assisting set decorator Sigfrido Burmann with whom he worked for a decade.

Parrondo worked for the first time as art director in 1951 on Antonio del Amo's "Dia tras DAa", and then headed set decoration on Orson Welles' 1955 "Confidential Report".

His two Oscars were won with director Franklin Schaffner. He bagged a further nomination for "Travels With my Aunt", directed by George Cukor.
New Delhi, Dec 26 : Panasonic India on Monday announced the winners of Panasonic Open-Innovation contest "Mobivation 2016" that was initiated in August.

Students of IIT Roorkee emerged as overall winners of the five-month long contest and received a cash prize of Rs 1,00,000 and Panasonic smartphones.

"The winners were selected from over 218 nominations. The Panasonic Open-Innovation contest aimed to help these students relate concepts they learn in the classroom to real world," said Pankaj Rana, Business Head -Mobility Division, Panasonic India in a statement.

The contest is an innovation challenge for students studying in IIT Delhi, IIT Roorkee, Delhi Technological University (DTU) Delhi and NSIT Delhi.

The winners in the software category were Shubham Goyal, Chirag Maheshwari and Rahul Babbar from the team CodeSquad from IIT Roorkee.

Prempal Singh and Pranav Gulati, students of DTU, were the winners of the hardware category.

"Such initiatives help students understand the industry's requirements as well as push their own boundaries to come up with innovative solutions," Rana added.
Baran (Rajasthan), Dec 26 : Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Monday again criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the demonetisation issue and said he had divided the country into two.

He said the November 8 demonetisation -- wherein old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes were scrapped -- was not against corruption but against the poor and other sections of society.

"Modi ji has divided the country between one per cent super-rich people and 99 per cent honest people. All black money is not in cash and all cash is not black money," Gandhi said at a big rally in this tribal belt in the desert state.

He said the cash lying with 99 per cent Indians is not black money. "About 94 per cent of the black money is lying in Swiss bank accounts, gold and real estate. Just six per cent of the black money is in cash," the Congress leader said.

He demanded that the Modi government release in Parliament the list of names of those who hold black money in Swiss banks.

Targeting Modi over turning India cashless, Gandhi said: "A farmer buys seeds not through mobile. He purchases in cash. When a labourer works, he does not get payment in credit card but in cash. Modi ji, you hit them. You also hit small traders."

The Congress leader said some big corporates hold money in Swiss bank accounts and whenever Modi ji travels to Australia, Japan, China and other nations, some of these super-rich people travel with him, claiming that Modi gets them contracts.

"(Rajasthan Chief Minister) Vasundhara Raje does the same in the state," he added.

In September 2015, the Congress had demanded Raje's resignation over an alleged scam of Rs 45,000 crore in the allocation of mines in the state. The party said she was guilty of allocation of 653 mines in contravention of the Centre's policy on the matter.

"The Congress is against corruption; and if the government takes action against removing corruption, we (Congress) will support the government fully, the Congress leader said.

"But Modi ji, 'notebandi' is not against corruption. It is against the poor, labourers, women, farmers and middle-income families," he said.

"Modi ji, during (2014 general) election campaign, used to say he is going to get black money stashed abroad and deposit Rs 15 lakh in each bank account. Did you get the money?," he asked.

"The Modi government has completed over two and a half years at the Centre whereas the Raje government has completed three years in power in the state. Give me one instance they have done something for the benefit of the poor," Gandhi said.

He said the people and the Congress wants three things from Modi and Raje -- waiving of loans of farmers, lower electricity tariff and right price for agricultural produce to farmers.

"Farmers are committing suicide; the governments -- both at the Centre and the state -- have done nothing for the farmers.

"The maximum number of atrocities against scheduled castes and tribes happen in Rajasthan and the Chief Minister is doing nothing," the Congress leader said.
New Delhi, Dec 26 : Remembering the great saint, poet and composer Tyagaraja, the Sangeet Natak Akademi has organised "Pratha Parv" -- a cultural fest which celebrates the folk, tribal and traditional cultural expressions of India.

The festival, which began on Monday, comprises of presentations of various performing art forms and film screenings sourced from the archives of the Akademi.

It also includes exhibition and dissemination of various musical instruments, folk and traditional, from various states of the country especially the northeast, Odisha, Kerala and Uttarakhand.

Besides, the festival would also have an interactive session with artists who would share their traditional methodologies.

Artists like Malini Awasthi, Warsi Brothers, Shazia Bashir, Prabhat Sharma, Teejan Bai, Fakira Khan, Sayeed Sabri Jaipuri and many others will be seen performing.

The first edition of the festival which is being held at the Meghdoot Complex in Rabindra Bhawan here, would continue till December 30.
Gurugram, Dec 26 : Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Monday said his government is firm on its stand on the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal issue and the state's people should get their rightful share in the Ravi-Beas waters.

He said since the Supreme Court had declared as unconstitutional a 2004 law passed by the Punjab assembly on the water agreements, an old agreement on the matter will be implemented.

The Chief Minister was interacting with the media after attending the first-ever' DigiDhan Mela' organised here to promote cashless transactions.

As for the 2017 Punjab assembly elections, he said he will visit the neighbouring state to campaign for the Bharatiya Janata Party, which is an ally of the Shiromani Akali Dal, if the party asked him to.

About 'DigiDhan Mela', Khattar said that accounts of more than 3,000 persons were opened and about 7,000 others imparted training during the first such event.

As many as 100 similar events will be organised throughout the country up to April 14, 2017. Awards will be given to encourage cashless transactions, he added.

On November 30, the Supreme Court had ordered a status quo on the land acquired for the construction of the canal's stretch in Punjab and appointed the Union Home Secretary, Punjab's Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police as receivers.

The court order came on a plea by the Haryana government that sought status quo ante in the wake of the Punjab government's decision to denotify the acquired land and restore it to its original owners.
New Delhi, Dec 26 : With Father Thomas Uzhunnallil, the Indian priest who was kidnapped by Islamic State terrorists in Yemen earlier this year, appealing for help from the Indian government and Pope Francis, the External Affairs Ministry said on Monday that efforts continue to secure his release.

"Because I was working as a priest of the Christian religion, I was kidnapped in the month of March," Father Uzhunnallil said in a video released by his captors.

"Several months have gone by and my captors have made many contacts with the government of India to get me released," said the priest who has now a long white beard and looks fatigued.

"Honourable President and Prime Minister of India, I am sad that nothing has been done."

On March 4, the Salesian Order priest from Kerala was kidnapped after IS terrorists barged into a Missionaries of Charity care home in Aden of which he was the caretaker and shot dead many people, including four nuns, one of them from India.

"You are aware of the circumstances currently prevailing in Yemen where fighting is going on with no central authority in that country," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said following the release of the video.

"With regard to the safe release of Father Tom who was abducted some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard," he said.

In the video, Uzhunnallil said that there have been reports in the media that everything was being done to secure his release "but in reality nothing seems to have happened".

"I am very sad and depressed. I request also my fellow Christians in India, the bishops and priests, to do their might to help me get released," he appealed.

Addressing "fellow Christian people", he said that nothing has been done by Pope Francis and the Bishop of Abu Dhabi to get him released in spite of his captors making contact.

"If I were an European priest, I would have been taken more seriously by authorities and people and would have got me released," he said, claiming that since he was Indian, he was "perhaps am not considered of much value".

He referred to a French woman journalist who was kidnapped from Sanaa sometime back but was free today "because she is from France".

"Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all, to do your might to help to save my life".

Addressing Pope Francis, he appealed to the pontiff to "please take care of my life".

"I request also the other bishops all over the world to come to my help, to save my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating and I may need hospitilisation soon."

He also requested help from governments of different countries.
Bhubaneswar, Dec 26 : Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday requested Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda to include Odia language as a medium of examination in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for medical colleages.

Pradhan requested an additional option to the students to appear in either English or Odia in the NEET examination.

"This will ensure meritorious students from the state are not adversely affected on account of their lack of expertise in English," he said in a letter to his cabinet colleague.

The Health Ministry has included six regional languages as a medium of examination in NEET. These are Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, Tamil, and Telugu.

Slamming the Odisha government for failing to protect the interest of the students in the state, Pradhan said the exclusion of the Odia language is solely attributable to the state government which failed to protect the interest of the state's students.

"Though the decision to this effect was taken by your Ministry through an elaborate consultative process, the government of Odisha did not avail of the opportunities in articulating the aspirations of the students from Odisha.

"To cover up their failure in this regard, the state government has resorted to raising the matter with the Central government at this stage and thereby, misleading the people of the state," he said in his letter.
Ankara, Dec 26 : The Turkish military has sent 500 Special Forces soldiers to Syria to speed up its operations against the Islamic State (IS) terror organisation in the northern city of al-Bab, authorities said on Monday.

Yeni Safak, close to the Turkish government, said that the number of soldiers deployed around al-Bab amounted to about 1,100, Efe news reported.

The Free Syrian Army, Syria's main opposition group that fights alongside the Turkish troops in northern Syria, has also sent 1,400 fighters from Aleppo province, which has recently fallen into the hands of the Syrian regime army, to al-Bab.

The Turkish army entered northern Syria in mid-August to liberate numerous cities that were under the control of the IS group.

According to Yeni Safak, in addition to the 500 soldiers, Turkey has also sent several tanks and armoured vehicles to the Syrian city.
New Delhi, Dec 26 : Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti on Monday handed over a Rs 1,981 crore cheque to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu for the Polavaram irrigation project.

Bharti, in a function here, also presented a cheque worth Rs 3,274 crore (including Polavaram) for other irrigation projects in Gujarat and Maharashtra, an official statement.

The current year's liability of the Polavaram Project is Rs 2,981.54 crore of which Rs 1,981.54 crore has been released.

Polavaram Project, a multi-purpose irrigation project, has an assessed command area of 2.91 lakh hectares and power generation potential of 960 MW. It was declared a national project in 2014.

Speaking on the occasion, Bharti said that government has declared it as a national project and all future expenditure on it would be borne by the central government.

She said all irrigation projects under the central government's irrigation scheme --Prime Minister Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) and Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) including Polavaram would completed by the year 2019.

The minister said that the project will help in clearance of additional 80 lakh hct. agricultural land.

"It also has a provision for supply of 23.44 thousand Million Cubic Feet (TMC) water as drinking water supply to Vishakhapatnam city and other areas, as also industrial water supply to Vishakhapatnam Steel Plant. An inter basin transfer of 80 TMC water annually to Krishna River Basin is also envisaged," she said, according to a statement.

Bharti said 26 irrigation projects, most in drought prone districts of Maharashtra, would be completed by 2018.

The financial assistance was given in presence of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu.
New Delhi, Dec 26 : Four persons, including a tourist guide, have been arrested here on charges of sexually assaulting a US tourist here in March this year, police said on Monday.

Aniruddha Singh, a Nepal-based tourist guide, Omprakash, Maqsood and Vivek -- all in their late 20s were arrested from different cities during raids conducted by Delhi Police on separate occasions.

"On the complaint of a Delhi-based NGO, we contacted the victim and filed a case on the basis of her statement. During our inquiry, we conducted several raids in Delhi and other cities and arrested four persons," Joint Commissioner of Police Dependra Pathak told IANS.

Pathak said that police registered the case just two hours after the victim gave a statement through email. "We investigated the case professionally and recorded the victim's statement last week when she arrived in Delhi from America. We analyzed the case and re-examined the sequence of crime with the victim," he said.

Among the other accused, Omprakash was a driver, Maqsood a helper and Vivek a bellboy at the hotel where the crime occurred. Police initially identified Vivek by the duty register of room service as he was first to enter the victim's room on the day of crime, police said.

Initially, police could not get much leads as the CCTV cameras were not installed at the floor where the victim's room was, police said.

The 30-year-old American tourist was gang-raped at a luxury hotel in March this year.

Delhi Police had registered an FIR early this month on the complaint of the woman as External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj intervened in the matter.

Meanwhile the victim's advocate Mritunjay, who had earlier said that both he and his client were unhappy with the status of the probe, told IANS that he was still "not happy" with police's efforts.

"There is a delay in arrests even as the accused were identified by police in the initial days (after the complaint). The accused persons should have been arrested earlier. There were five accused as per my client's statement in the case and the fifth one is moving free now."
Lucknow, Dec 26 : In an indication of of hostilities returning within the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP), its state unit President Shivpal Singh Yadav on Monday revoked Biswa legislator Rampal Yadav's expulsion.

Rampal was expelled from the party by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in April when the latter was the state SP chief following complaints of encroachment on government land in the state capital.

In a statement here, Shivpal said the party had considered the MLA's expulsion and decided to take him back in the party fold.

Not only was the MLA expelled, but an alleged illegal construction raised by him was razed by the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA).

In the melee that ensued, supporters of Rampal Yadav engaged in a scuffle with the LDA squad. One of his supporters even brandished a pistol at a senior LDA official.

Rampal along with his relatives and supporters was arrested and expelled from the Samajwadi Party.
Islamabad, Dec 26 : A week after an interview that made headlines, former Pakistan President General (retd) Pervez Musharraf said on Monday he never sent a "request" to ex-army chief General Raheel Sharif to help him leave the country by keeping the government from pressuring the courts.

"No one approached me, not did I approach anyone... Raheel Sharif did not discuss anything with me, nor did I send him any request," Musharraf told Channel 92, adding it was all "conjecture" and that his statement to Dunya News was being "distorted" by media outlets.

Musharraf was referring to a talk show on Dunya News last week where he had said: "Well he (Raheel Sharif) did help me and I am absolutely clear and grateful. I have been his boss and I have been the army chief before him... He helped out, because the cases are politicised, they put me on the ECL, they turned it into a political issue."

Asked about the military's influence on domestic politics, he said: "All institutions in Pakistan work together with each other... I've served in the army for over 40 years."

"There is a sense of solidarity between the army and me, and it will always remain like that," the former president added, saying he stands by the statement he made on Dunya News.

Referring to a minister's statement about Musharraf's return, he said he has no knowledge of any such timeline wherein he was asked to return within four to six weeks of his departure.

"There is nothing of the sort in the court's judgement," Musharraf added.

Asked to explain by the host last week how the recently retired army chief helped him, Musharraf had responded saying by "influencing the courts".

Musharraf had left the country for Dubai in March earlier this year hours after the interior ministry issued a notification to remove his name from the exit control list (ECL).

The government notification followed the Supreme Court's order to lift the ban on his foreign travel.

But the order from the top court had come with the rider that the federal government or the three-judge special court trying the retired general for treason was free to make decisions to regulate his custody or restrict his movement.

Apart from murder cases of Benazir Bhutto, Nawab Akbar Bugti and Ghazi Abdul Rasheed, the retired general is facing treason charges for imposing emergency rule in November 2007, arresting judges and limiting their powers. His name was kept on the Exit Control List for more than 20 months.

Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan had said in March that Musharraf had committed to facing all cases against him in court and had "promised to return in four to six weeks".
New Delhi, Dec 26 : Congress's Uttar Pradesh Chief Ministerial candidate Sheila Dikshit seems to have been left by the party to fend for herself in the battle to prove her innocence in the Sahara diary case, where her name featured as an alleged receiver of kickbacks.

Although Dikshit has rejected the charges in no uncertain terms, sources in the party said she has to come clean herself on the allegations.

The Congress has demanded an "independent probe" into the "Sahara diaries", in which names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Ministers of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh and also Dikshit have figured.

Addressing the media, Congress leader and former Union Minister Jairam Ramesh said: "There are many names in the list, including that of the Chief Ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. All the names should be investigated."

"If there is a name, there should be an inquiry. Some names may turn out to be wrong, some names may turn out to be right. Why is the government shying away from an impartial, independent probe," he asked.

Rejecting the allegations, Dikshit said she "does not recall anything" about the diary and asserted she has "nothing to do" with it.

According to the list, Rs 1 crore in cash was given to Dikshit on September 23, 2013, in Delhi. She was the Delhi Chief Minister until December 2013.

A Congress leader said: "Her name is there in the list... This is for her to answer and reply."

Congress had tweeted the list, in which her name had figured. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi had accused Prime Minister Modi of taking Rs 40 crore in kickbacks from Sahara as Gujarat Chief Minister, based on the same list of entries.

Asked what would be Dikshit's role in view of reports of a possible alliance between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh, a Congress leader said: "I don't think an alliance is happening. Had there been an alliance, there would have been consultations and talks."

Another Congress leader, asked if it was a conspiracy to remove her as the CM candidate, said:

"If there was a conspiracy to remove her, why would we have selected her as the CM candidate in the first place? So far there have been no talks on alliance. She will be our CM candidate."

Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha told IANS that all names featuring in the documents should be scrutinised.

"Whether any Congress leader is named or not, is not material. What matters is that the Prime Minister's name is there," he said.

Asked if the party wants the matter to be probed even at the cost of Dikshit, Jha said: "All the political parties, all the leaders featuring in the documents should be scrutinised, starting with the Prime Minister."
Kabul, Dec 26 : Kabul voiced displeasure over the planned trilateral meeting between China, Russia and Pakistan on Afghanistan in Moscow on Tuesday.

Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Ahmad Shekib Mustaghni said on Monday that the agenda of the meeting was a matter of concern, Tolo News reported.

Despite Afghanistan being the focus of their agenda, Kabul was not consulted, he said.

"Talking on Afghanistan without consulting the country raises serious questions for the Afghan people. We are worried that what are the reasons behind the meeting and want the relevant parties to explain," the report quoted Mustaghni as saying.

Parliament members, meanwhile, said the holding of such a meeting on Afghanistan, without consulting the incumbent government, was an obvious interference in internal issues.

"We are worried about holding such meetings and the security situation next year," said Abdul Raouf Ibrahimi, speaker of the house.

"Our politicians only sit on seats, but others talk about Afghanistan in Moscow. It is shameful," said MP Saleh Mohammad Saleh.

The report went on to say that the expansion of insurgent activities in Afghanistan, however, has always been a key concern for Russia and central Asian countries.

According to statistics from the National Security Council (NSC), nearly 11,000 foreign fighters are believed to be in the country.

"Russia and China think that America wants to settle cross-border terrorist groups in Afghanistan," Abdul Shokor Salangi, international affairs analyst was quoted as saying..

A source from the Defence Ministry also said that currently around 40,000 insurgents were active in the country, while Afghan President Ashraf Ghani had said in the past that more than 30 terrorist groups were active in Afghanistan.
New Delhi, Dec 26 : Congress's Uttar Pradesh Chief Ministerial candidate Sheila Dikshit on Monday said that she had said what she had to in the Sahara diary case, and now it was for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to respond.

"I have said what I had to. The ball is in the court of the @PMOIndia and others now. Will he respond and come out clean? #SaharaBirlaDiaries," Dikshit tweeted on her official Twitter account.

The Congress has demanded an "independent probe" into the "Sahara diaries", in which names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Ministers of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh and also Dikshit have figured.

Rejecting the allegations, Dikshit had said she "does not recall anything" about the diary and asserted she has "nothing to do" with it.

According to the list, Rs 1 crore in cash was given to Dikshit on September 23, 2013, in Delhi. She was the Delhi Chief Minister until December 2013.
New Delhi, Dec 26 : Congress on Monday sought to know from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah what connections did they have with Gujarat businessman Mahesh Shah, who had declared Rs 13,860 crore of black money under the Income Declaration Scheme (IDS).

Income Tax department is considering criminal action against Shah and his CA Tehmul Sethna for the false declaration.

"First question we would like to ask who is Mahesh Shah and what connection does he have BJP leaders," said Congress leader Jairam Ramesh at a press briefing.

"Former Chief Minister of Gujarat Suresh Mehta of BJP had said that Mahesh Shah used to visit Modi when he was Gujarat CM quite often without any restrictions. He enjoyed a green channel to the corridors of power in Gujarat.

"Is Modi going to tell the people what is the truth behind Rs 13,860 crore. Is he doing any probe into it?" he asked.

Congress also demanded a probe into how within two days after demonetisation, Rs 500 crore was deposited in the Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank of which Amit Shah is the director.

The party also asked how cash worth Rs 10 crore in old currencies was found in a private car in Maharashtra in a case where state ministers Pankaja Munde, Subhash Deshmukh and MP Pritam Munde are allegedly linked.

"It is clear case of money laundering," said Ramesh and sought to know if all these cases are being investigated.
Taipei, Dec 27 : Taiwan will closely monitor the movements of Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning, sailing southwest in the waters of the South China Sea, the Ministry of National Defence announced.

The ministry said the Taiwanese armed forces have carried out reconnaissance missions but did not divulge any more details, Efe news agency reported.

However, according to local media reports, two F-16 jets and two RF-16 reconnaissance airplanes were sent from the Hualien air base in eastern Taiwan.

On Monday, the Chinese aircraft carrier sailed near some islands, which are administered by Taiwan but claimed by China.

According to China's defence ministry, Liaoning set sail on Saturday towards Western Pacific waters to carry out routine military manoeuvres in the region.
Moscow, Dec 27 : Thousands were evacuated from three train stations here over a bomb warning, local media reported.

After receiving a telephone call alerting of a suspected explosive device, the police of the Russian capital immediately evacuated the stations of Leningradskaya, Yaroslavskaya and Kazanskaya on Monday, Efe reports.

The last major terrorist attack in Russia took place in December 2013, when two suicide bombers killed 34 people at the Volgograd railway station.

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a tightening of security measures inside and outside the country following the assassination of the country's ambassador to Ankara and the attack in Berlin.

The Russian Federal Security Service ruled out the possibility of a terrorist motive behind the crash of the defence ministry's Tu-154 plane in the Black Sea on Sunday with 92 people abroad.
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The locomotives are powered by a 16-cylinder diesel engine, and entered service in 2002. However, due to the harsh, hot and dusty environmental conditions, only a limited number of the original locomotives are still in use.

RAI wants to bring the complete fleet back into operation again through a repowering project which comprises the re-engineering of the locomotive, the supply, installation and commissioning of ABC 12DZC engines, and the installation of air intake filtration.
Russian court upholds detention for defendant in Rusnano embezzlement case

MOSCOW, December 26 (RAPSI)  The Moscow City Court has upheld the detention of the alleged beneficial owner of NTpharma Rustam Ataullakhanov charged with embezzling one billion rubles ($15.5 million) from state-owned technology corporation Rusnano, a court official told RAPSI on Monday.

An appeal filed by Ataullkakhanovs lawyer was dismissed.

Investigators believe that in 2011 Ataullakhanov and head of NTpharma Evgeny Sultanov, who is also a defendant in this case, purchased a land plot from a firm belonging to mayor of Pereslavl-Zalessky, Denis Koshurnikov, allegedly involved in the embezzlement as well, to give the appearance of handling of work on the project realization.

As the acquired plot is located within the national park Pleshcheevo, permit issuing for the construction was inadmissible. However, Koshurnikov, then head of Pereslavl region, gave such permit.

Investigators claim thay Ataullakhanov as a founder of NTpharma has completed control over the company and ordered Sultanov to transfer funds to accounts of controlled firms. Ataullakhanovs lawyer said that his client has never been a founder of NTpharma and that there is no evidence of embezzlement. Ataullakhanov denies guilt.

According to case papers, Rusnano invested over one billion rubles in the construction of NTpharma pharmaceutical complex in Pereslavl-Zalessky, 150 kilometers (85 miles) northeast of Moscow, since 2010. The object had to be completed in September 2012, but the project company repeatedly rescheduled the facility commissioning.

Investigators along with the Interior Ministry and Russias Federal Security Service found that construction works at the object had not been conducted for years. However, funds received by NTpharma from Rusnano have been embezzled.

Therefore, the facility has not been put into service yet.

Sultanov and Ataullakhanov have been arrested on suspicion of embezzling funds allocated by Rusnano for the pharmaceutical complex construction. On November 18, Sultanov was placed under house arrest; Ataullakhanov was put in detention as well as Koshurnikov.
Investigators seize repair documents on crashed Russian plane bound for Syria

Context Criminal case launched over crash of military plane bound for Syria

MOSCOW, December 26 (RAPSI)  Investigators have seized repair documentation on TU-154 military plane crashed into the Black Sea near Sochi from the Russian Aviacor manufacturer, RIA Novosti reported Monday.

Collection of engineering document information is a standard procedure in such cases. The plant has submitted all proper documents to investigators, according to the statement of Russian Machines holding, which owns Aviacor aviation plant.

The plane, which was carrying out a planned flight to Syria with 8 crew members and 84 passengers on board including journalists, musicians from the famous Alexandrov military ensemble and Elizaveta Glinka, widely known as Doctor Liza, the Fair Aid charity executive director and the inaugural winner of Russia's state prize for achievements in human rights, crashed into the Black Sea on December 25. The aircraft refueled at Adlers airport and shortly after disappeared from radars.

As Major General Igor Konashenkov, the Defense Ministrys spokesman, told journalists, no one survived in the crash.

Searches for the crash site are being conducted by rescue services of the Defense Ministry and Ministry of Emergency Situations. Investigative measures are currently underway.
For some, like the Berlin suspect, radicalisation came only once they were in European jails: Anis Amri spent four years in an Italian cell before moving to Germany. His case is evidence of an increasingly common link between criminality and radicalisation, the two communities often overlap in recruitment.
What better a place to murder faceless others than in a new country? The 5,000 ISIS volunteers from Europe found murdering people in Iraq and Syria so easy because they had convinced themselves that these victims, such as Yazidis, Shia and Kurds were subhumans. This understanding of 19th century anarchism's crimes is key to understanding terrorism today.
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The scene where a person was shot Dec. 26, 2016, near the intersection of South Hermitage Avenue and West 45th Street in Chicago. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)

Seven people were killed in shootings on Christmas Day across Chicago, police said, including two men killed at a party in East Chatham.

The two men were on a front porch during a family party with several others about 9:20 p.m. in the 8600 block of South Maryland Avenue, police and witnesses said. Someone came out of the south alley and opened fire, shooting seven people.

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A man whose age was not immediately available was shot and pronounced dead on the porch. Another man, 21, was shot in the back and taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he also was pronounced dead.

Family members at the scene identified them as James Gill, 18, and Roy Gill, 21.

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Five other people were taken to area hospitals, two in critical condition.

A man or boy whose age was not immediately available was taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition. A 35-year-old man was shot multiple times and taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center, also in critical condition.

In addition, a 27-year-old man a 21-year-old woman each were shot in the leg. Both went to Stroger Hospital, and their conditions were stabilized.

Later, a 39-year-old man got himself to Roseland Community Hospital with a gunshot wound to the foot from the same shooting, police said.

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 13 Members of the Chicago Police Department investigate the scene on Dec. 26, 2016, where seven people were shot the previous evening, two fatally, in Chicago's East Chatham neighborhood. Brothers James Gill, 18, and Roy Gill, 21, were both killed. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)

Earlier, just before 4:30 p.m., a man was found in the 2800 block of East 79th Street in Avalon Park with bullet wounds to the back, leg and head, authorities said. He was taken to South Shore Hospital and pronounced dead.

He was identified as Jamil Farley, 25, of the 9900 block of South Clyde Avenue, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

Police initially said the man was about 40 years old.

Five shell casings were found near the entrance of Labor of Love Apostolic Church on the corner of Burnham Avenue and 79th Street. A pool of blood could be seen on the church's front step near a pair of orange medical gloves.

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Detectives walked up and down the street, shining flashlights on nearby homes in search of evidence. Passersby hurried past the crime scene. Calls to the church and its pastor were not immediately returned.

At 1:45 p.m, a 22-year-old man was fatally shot in West Humboldt Park. He was in a vehicle in the 4400 block of West Chicago Avenue when a black truck drove by and someone inside opened fire, shooting the man multiple times. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

He was identified as Jerry Thomas of the 1200 block of South Kolin Avenue, according to the medical examiner's office.

Just before 9:55 a.m., a 24-year-old man was shot and killed in Morgan Park. Officers responded to the 1100 block of West 112th Place to find him with multiple gunshot wounds to the body. He was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in critical condition and later pronounced dead.

The medical examiner's office identified him as David McClure of the same block where he was killed.

In addition, two people were killed in separate shootings during the early hours of Christmas Day.

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Nonfatal shootings:

About 3:50 a.m. Monday, a 31-year-old man got himself to Rush University Medical Center with a gunshot wound to the buttocks after being shot in the 2700 block of West Adams Street, police said. The circumstances of the shooting were not immediately available.

About the same time, a 26-year-old woman was shot in the Old Irving Park neighborhood during what may have been a domestic-related incident, police said. She was driving in the 4100 block of North Kedvale Avenue when a man in his 40s approached and fired a gunshot. She was shot in the hand and went to Swedish Covenant Hospital in good condition.

About 11:30 p.m. Sunday, a 22-year-old man was shot in the South Shore neighborhood. He was on the sidewalk in the 7400 block of South Chappel Avenue when someone exited a nearby gray vehicle and started firing shots, hitting him in the head. The man was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in critical condition.

At 2:45 p.m., a 21-year-old man was driving on the 7100 block of South Seeley Avenue in West Englewood when he was shot at by some unknown occupants in a GMC vehicle, police said. He was shot in the side and drove himself to Holy Cross Hospital. He was later transported to Mount Sinai, where he was listed in stable condition.
You did that thing again this year. That thing where you put off making New Years Eve plans and now, days away from the big event, youre scrambling to lock something down. Weve all been there. Instead of contemplating whether or not that $2,000 bottle service package is worth it (its not), check out our guide to last-minute events and alternative plans.

NO RESERVATIONS

These restaurants and bars understand your procrastinating ways and offer no-stress options for last-minute planners.

Green Street Smoked Meats

112 N. Green St. 312-754-0431

The West Loop barbecue joint offers a whiskey-fueled countdown to midnight, no tickets required. Guests will enjoy a live feed of the ball dropping on an 18-foot cinema screen, curated vinyl jams and complimentary Doughnut Vault desserts and pickleback shots at midnight. 11 a.m.-1 a.m. Table reservations begin at 8 p.m. Walk-ins welcome, or email events@greenstreetmeats.com to reserve a picnic table.

GMan Tavern

3740 N. Clark. 773-549-2050

The Wrigleyville bar teams up with RedEye music reporter Josh Terry for their annual music-filled New Year's Free party. Yes, free. Get there early to see DJ sets from members of Homme, NE-HI, Twin Peaks and Whitney, not to mention some special guests. 9 p.m.-3 a.m. A suggested (no pressure) $10 donation goes to the Lakeview Pantry.

WonFun and 2Fun Chinese

905 W. Randolph St. 312-877-5967

West Loop's new bi-level Chinese spot is throwing a big ol' party, complete with karaoke, foie gras and champagne. WonFun, the restaurant on the first floor, is still accepting dinner reservations via funfunchinese.com. After stuffing your face with foie gras fried rice, head upstairs to 2Fun for karaoke and a champagne toast at midnight. 5 p.m.-3 a.m.

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Berkshire Room (Taylor Glascock / Chicago Tribune)

The Berkshire Room

15 E. Ohio St. 312-894-0945

Ring in the New Year with large-format cocktails and champagne available by the glass at the dazzling River North cocktail bar. 4 p.m.-3 a.m.

Ema

74 W. Illinois St. 312-527-5586

Eat your way to midnight with chef CJ Jacobsons four-course prix-fixe menu ($79.95) packed with house favorites such as stracciatella with charred Spanish chorizo and veal short rib with chickpea and pumpkin tagine. A complimentary champagne toast and party favors are available for those who are around when the ball drops. 4 p.m.-1 a.m. Reservations recommended.

Cruz Blanca (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)

Cruz Blanca

904 W. Randolph St. 312-733-1975

Party like Rick Bayless. His West Loop taqueria and brewery offers one hell of a deal: $50 gets you three drinks, passed tostaditas and a choice of Oaxacan specialty including a taco plate, cheesy shrimp encamaronadas or tlayuda (Mexican pizza). Plus, the folks behind the bar will be tapping new specialty beers every hour until midnight. 8 p.m.-1 a.m. Tickets: CruzBlancaNYE.eventbrite.com

The Sixth

2200 W. Lawrence Ave. 773-433-5959

If quality cocktails are a priority, head to the Lincoln Square bar for innovative sips such as the Silly Rabbit with Trix-flavored ice cubes, a sidecar cocktail with gin, simple syrup, lemon juice and soda, and mint bitters ($12). 5 p.m.-3 a.m.

Troquet

111 W. Huron St. 312-202-9900

Venture out to the River North spot for a classic celebration, which includes a champagne toast, music from a DJ, heavy appetizers, party favors and an open bar with craft beer, wine and mixed drinks. 9 p.m.-2 a.m. $80. Tickets are available at the door or online at troquetrivernorth.com.

Izakaya Lounge at Momotaro

820 W. Lake St. 312-733-4818

Even procrastinators deserve to treat themselves. If you're looking for a luxe last-minute ticket, the West Loop subterranean speakeasy offers heavy passed hors d'oeuvres, DJ jams and a four-hour premium bar with wine, beer, sake, champagne and cocktails. 9 p.m.-1 a.m. $130. Tickets: izakayanye2017.brownpapertickets.com

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Timothy O'Toole's Pub

622 N. Fairbanks Court 312-642-0700

Forget the frills and hunker down at the Streeterville bar for good old-fashioned fun: $15 gets you a split of champagne or a Miller High Life tallboy, party favors and music from a guest DJ. Watch the countdown on more than 70 screens and order off the late-night menu when hunger strikes. 9 p.m.-4 a.m.

Slippery Slope and Heavy Feather

2357 N. Milwaukee Ave. 773-799-8504

Two words you never see associated with New Year's Eve: No cover. But the stacked Logan Square bars are making your dreams a reality with DJ sets downstairs at Slippery Slope and a sparkling cocktail menu upstairs at The Heavy Feather. Enjoy a champagne toast and balloon drop on both floors. 7 p.m.-3 a.m.

Lowcountry

3343 N. Clark St. 773-996-9997

Bib up and get things started early in Wrigleyville. The seafood boil spot hosts a loaded brunch buffet ($55) with all the good stuff, including snow crabs and shrimp, plus an optional $15 mimosa package. Noon-5 p.m.

Imperial Lamian

6 W. Hubbard St. 312-595-9440

Walk-ins are welcome to savor a decadent four-course menu ($50) at the River North Chinese restaurant. Selections include fan favorites such as jasmine tea-smoked ribs, crispy duck salad and pineapple cake. Reservations are available by phone or online at imperial-lamian.com.

WHEN IN DOUBT, ORDER DELIVERY

If you cant be bothered to go out, make the food come to you. Our top choice is Honey Butter Fried Chickens outrageously awesome Fancy Pack, which is available for delivery or pickup and includes eight pieces of fried chicken, truffle-honey butter, cheddar-chive corn muffins, bacon-pimento mac n cheese, duck fat smash potatoes with champagne gravy and chocolate toffee sandwich cookies with vanilla bean filling ($85, order for delivery starting Dec. 24 at trycaviar.com or call 773-478-4000 for pickup).

GETTING AROUND

Finally, whatever you do for New Year's Eve, please don't drink and drive. We put together a handy-dandy guide for navigating the city's public transit and rideshare options, making it easy to get around without getting behind the wheel.
At the start of 2016, HDFC Bank, Infosys, ICICI Bank, L&T and Axis Bank were the top five picks of fund managers, reports Chandan Krishna Kant.

The top 10 stock preferences of India's equity fund managers have remained the same over the past one year despite volatility.

The investment stood at Rs 1 lakh crore (Rs 1 trillion) in November, compared to around Rs 94,200 crore (Rs 942 billion) at the end of last year.

However, the stocks in question shifted places.

For instance, at the start of the year, HDFC Bank, Infosys, ICICI Bank, Larsen & Toubro and Axis Bank were the top five picks.

After the latest allegations of financial improprieties by its employees, Axis Bank lost its place in the top five, while Larsen & Toubro slipped to fifth place from fourth.

Further, India's largest lender, State Bank of India, went up to fourth place from sixth.

IT major Infosys lost its second position to ICICI Bank.

"There have been phases of uncertainty. During such times, it's not advisable to look beyond a certain set of companies as part of your core portfolio," said the chief investment officer of a mid-sized fund house.

Other fund managers are of the same view.

"The IT sector had a poor outlook. We did not have many from it in our core portfolio. Infosys is the only representative from the sector. Despite tough times we chose not to liquidate Infosys because we expect a re-rating of the firm," the equity head of a foreign mutual fund house said.

"If the stock has come one notch down among the top holdings, it is because of the fall in Infosys' share prices," he added.

Sun Pharmaceuticals, among the worst-hit pharma stocks due to regulatory pressure, was up on the fund managers' list.

The counter jumped from 10th position a year ago to 7th while the allocation of equity assets increased to 1.67% from 1.31%.

The shares of Axis Bank were sold the most among the banking stocks during most of the middle part of the year.

This pushed the stock from 5th last year to 8th position.

The allocation to it declined to 1.62% against 2.44% last year.

Fund managers throughout the year encouraged them to stay invested despite sharp volatility.

Prashant Jain of HDFC Mutual Fund, S Naren of ICICI Prudential AMC and Sunil Singhania from Reliance Mutual Fund have asked investors to be patient.

IMAGE: Actress Shilpa Shetty with the BSE bull. Photograph: Abhijit Mhamunkar
The government is understood to be mulling an ordinance to impose penalties on anyone possessing the junked Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes beyond December 30 when the deadline to deposit them in banks expires.

There was no official word on the move which is likely to come up before the Cabinet on Wednesday but sources said penalties may be imposed on anyone holding more than 10 notes each of the old currency after December 30.

The ordinance may also extinguish the liability of the government and the Reserve Bank of India towards the promise to pay the bearer of these notes their value because of a statutory requirement.

In 1978 a similar ordinance was issued to end the government's liability after Rs 1,000, Rs 5,000 and Rs 10,000 notes were demonetised by the Janata Party government under Morarji Desai.

The government had while announcing the demonetisation of the old currency allowed holders to either exchange them or deposit in bank and post office accounts. While the facility to exchange the old notes has since been withdrawn, depositors have time till Friday to deposit the holding in their accounts.

For those depositing any accounted funds, or black money, it has offered them an amnesty provided they paid 50 per cent of it as tax and penalties and parked a quarter of it in a zero-interest bearing deposit for four years.

Reports said that there could be a cap of holding no more than 10 notes of each after December 30 and violation of the rule could draw a fine of a minimum of Rs 50,000 or 5 times the amount in question -- whichever is higher, but there was no confirmation.

Holders of such currency have an option to deposit them in the RBI by March 31 but even that period may be curtailed, they said.

Out of the Rs 15.44 lakh crore worth of 500 and 1000 rupee notes in circulation on November 8, close to Rs 13 lakh crore have been deposited in accounts or exchanged for valid currency.
Rama Mohana Rao's son became director of 7 companies after he became chief secretary.

N Sundaresha Subramanian reports.

On May 16, the day J Jayalalithaa assumed office in Tamil Nadu's capital after returning to power in 2011, P Rama Mohana Rao was appointed secretary in the Chief Minister's Office.

Five years later, after she won the re-election, Rao was made the government's chief secretary.

Between these two days, his son Vivek Papisetty, now 34, who did not have a corporate footprint earlier, became the director of seven companies, show Union ministry of corporate affairs filings.

While he had since resigned one of those, he continues to be on the board of the others.

Logistics and staffing are the two key areas these entities have focused on. Many of these are based in Chennai's Nandanam area, where the income tax department conducted searches last week.

The searches at around a dozen places in two states against the son and some relatives of Rao are said to have yielded a haul of Rs 18 lakh (Rs 1.8 million) in cash and gold bars.

The I-T action was in connection with the case related to the biggest haul of new notes after demonetisation.

This was after the department raided some sand mining operators of Tamil Nadu, including Tirumala Tirupati Desvasthanam trustee Shekar Reddy. The raids continued on Thursday in the offices of Papisetty and other locations.

Papisetty's journey in the corporate sector started seven months after his father became secretary in Jayalalithaa's office.

He incorporated 3lok Infra and Logistics in neighbouring Karnataka in February 2012. He had a 51% in this company, which had a capital of Rs 1 lakh, with sister Abhinandana holding 49%.

The company had plans to take up infrastructure projects and run a transport business; it is yet to file a balance sheet.

Another company the son floated was Swan Facility, in October 2013. It has also not filed any accounts so far.

Papisetty then seems to have gone the inorganic way. Blue Ocean Personnel and Allied Services was floated by Arun Anbazhagan and two others with a capital of Rs 1 lakh in 2009.

In November 2013, Papisetty bought a 95% stake and became a director. Anbazhagan, who held 60 per cent, was reduced to 5%.

In February 2015, Papisetty brought in further money, taking the paid up capital to Rs 25 lakh (Rs 2.5 million).

For the year ended March 2015, Blue Ocean had revenue of Rs 17.5 crore (Rs 175 million), on which it booked a profit of Rs 37.7 lakh (Rs 3.77 million).

With Anbazhagan as a partner, he also got into the transport business.

Trans Earth Logistics, incorporated in 2013, booked a profit of Rs 6.7 lakh (Rs 670,000) in its first financial year ending March 2014, on revenue of Rs 6.3 crore (Rs 63 million).

For a freight transport business started with a capital of Rs 9 lakh (Rs 900,000), of which Papisetty had a 51% stake, with Anbazhagan holding the rest, that was an impressive start.

It had also built an impressive client list. Trade receivables totalled Rs 2 crore (Rs 20 million).

The debtors included Chennai Ferrous, GVR Infrastructures, OPG Power, Sri Pathy Associates, Suryadev Power, TG Logistics and Maximus Crushers.

The following year, revenue doubled to Rs 12.5 crore (Rs 125 million), but the company reported a loss of Rs 8.6 lakh (Rs 860,000).

Two other logistics companies have been floated since, Trans Earth Logistics Tech solutions and TEL Karaikal Logistics.

Papisetty also became director of a company called SYS Two Analytics & Research (India) in February 2014, but ceased to hold that position a year later.
The television channel is in hot water for not having made a public announcement in 2009 of a 'change of control' of the company.

N Sundaresha Subramanian reports.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India has initiated proceedings against Gurgaon-based Vishvapradhan Commercial, for not having made a public announcement in 2009 of a 'change of control' in the television company NDTV.

The markets regulator told the Delhi high court last week that proceedings had been approved under the Sebi takeover regulations and relevant provisions of the Sebi Act. The show cause notice is yet to be issued.

This was in response to a petition from Delhi-based Quantum Securities, a minority shareholder of NDTV, after the court directed Sebi on November 28 to file a status report.

After taking the affidavit on record, Judge Sanjeev Sachdeva posted the matter to January 17.

Business Standard had reported earlier that the regulator had said the change of control issue was under examination, in an August 22 status report.

'In an affidavit dated December 15, Sebi has said that after due examination, proceedings against Vishvapradhan had been approved on September 6, for "violation of Regulation 12, read with Regulation 14, of the SAST Regulations, 1997".'

'The affidavit referred to proceedings under sections 11(1), 11 (4) and 11B of the Sebi Act, and Regulations 44 and 45 of SAST (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeover) Regulations, 1997. These will be read along with corresponding regulations 32 and 35 of the new 2011 takeover code,' Sebi added.

In the 1997 regulations, in force at that time, 'Irrespective of whether or not there has been any acquisition of shares or voting rights in a company, no acquirer shall acquire control over the target company, unless such person makes a public announcement to acquire shares and acquires such shares in accordance with the regulations.'

The Sebi powers under regulation 44, cited, include 'directing the person concerned, who has failed to make a public offer or delayed the making of a public offer in terms of these regulations, to pay to the shareholders, whose shares have been accepted in the public offer made after the delay, the consideration amount along with interest at the rate not less than the applicable rate of interest payable by banks on fixed deposits.'

The transaction under the Sebi probe concerns a loan agreement of July 2009.

Under which, Rs 403.85 crore (Rs 4.0385 billion) was lent interest-free to RRPR Holding, a promoter group entity of NDTV.

RRPR, fully owned by senior journalists Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy, has a 29.18% stake in NDTV and is its largest shareholder.

Under the terms, Vishvapradhan had the option to convert the debentures issued as part of the loan agreement into equity shares, amounting to 99.99% of the fully divested equity share capital of RRPR Holdings.

An e-mail to the NDTV spokesperson on Thursday, besides calls, text messages and subsequent e-mail reminders marked to the Roys, did not elicit a response.

In April, responding to Business Standard for a report on an income tax notice of transactions, including the Vishvapradhan loan, an RRPR representative had said, 'The transactions carried out by RRPR, both with VCPL and its shareholders, are valid and legal transactions, entered into within the four corners of the law.'

'Further, the promoters of NDTV continue to exercise control over the affairs of NDTV, which they have been exercising independently and without interference by any third party, in the best interests of all the stakeholders of NDTV.'

As on July 21, 2009, NDTV shares closed at a price of Rs 127.2 a piece. This Friday, they did so at Rs 69.95.

The ownership of Vishvapradhan has changed several times since the transaction.

According to the annual return of August 2009, Ashwin Khasgiwala and Atul Tandon were directors of this company.

Subhgami Trading and Visvamukh Trading, two companies based in the Shreeram Mills office in Worli, Mumbai, where Vishvapradhan was also based then, held 50% each in Vishvapradhan, as on the date of the loan agreement.

On August 29, 2009, Subhgami and Vishvamukh sold their shares to Shinano Retail and Teesta Retail, based in Dhobi Talao, Mumbai.

After changing hands a couple of times, the ownership of Vishvapradhan is now with a Gurgaon-based company called Nextwave Televentures.

Vishvapradhan and Nextwave shared a common mail ID. An e-mail sent on Wednesday did not elicit a response.

According to its FY16 balance sheet, Vishvapradhan remained a Rs 100,000 capital company, but has shifted its registered office to Gurgaon.

It continued to hold the important figure of Rs 403.85 crore on both sides of its balance sheet.

On the assets side, it had long-term advances of Rs 403.85 crore.

'The company had given an interest-free convertible loan amounting to Rs 4,038,500,000 for a period of 10 years from the draw-down date. The lender has an option to convert either part or all of the loan into equity shares at par at any time before the maturity date. These are broadly the terms between VCPL and RRPR.'

On the liabilities side, it showed long-term borrowings of Rs 403.85 crore.

However, the terms were slightly different, as it said the conversion price would be fixed on the fair value.

Explaining the entry, a note to the accounts said, 'The company has issued 403,85,000 zero-coupon fully convertible debentures of Rs 100 each, to be converted at the option of the holder, into such number of equity shares, based on higher of fair value (to be determined by independent valuer) or face value of equity shares.'
In a few days time, it will be a year since terrorists attacked the IAF base in Pathankot.

Since that attack, terrorists have targeted other military installations, most recently in Uri and Nagrota.

'More needs to be done in less time,' says Vivek Gumaste.

'A sense of urgency is crucial if the BJP wishes to fulfil its promise of tough, no-nonsense, governance in matters of security.'

We can vociferously condemn in the harshest possible terms the wanton savagery of the cowardly terrorists who attack our military installations with impunity targeting even women and children; we can seethe with self-righteous anger at the diabolical treachery of Pakistan and exult in our moral superiority; we can shed rivers of tears for our martyred soldiers and sing high sounding paeans to the exceptional valour of our fallen jawans.

But at the end of the day we cannot escape the reality; we cannot deny the truth that stares unblinkingly back at us.

Like the child in the famous Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale, The Emperors New Clothes who drops all pretenses and blurts out: 'The emperor has no clothes,' it is time for us to do the same in face of the recent spate of terror attacks on military installations at Nagrota, Pathankot and Uri.

It is time for us to drop political correctness and shed emotional inhibitions to call the situation as it is: Our security infrastructure, both internal and external, is woefully deficient, endangers our security to a degree that is unacceptable and is in dire need of rectification.

A review of other high profile military/security operations over the last two decades is a tale of embarrassing process failures and humiliating outcomes.

Kargil was an intelligence failure of colossal proportions, the IC-814 fiasco pointed to a lack of an established and executable protocol for hijackings and 26/11 was a pathetic display of chaotic coordination and underlined an ambiguity in the chain of command.

Time and again our valiant jawans have risen to the occasion, overcoming great odds (outdated equipment and ragged personal gear) to restore dignity and pride to our nation.

But these have been salvage operations designed to pull us out of a rut of our own making.

So at the outset let me make one thing clear. This is not an indictment of our brave soldiers. This is an attempt to flush out systemic errors that have conspired to bring us to this sorry pass.

The rot runs deep; one that begins with an entrenched civilisational flaw in our psyche and stretches across the full ambit of our security establishment to include strategic inadequacy, logistic deficiencies and above all poor gubernatorial oversight.

Intrinsic to us as Indians is a grave mental defect: Stark indecisiveness and a lack of urgency; a trait that pervades all walks of our lives but proves to be disastrous in security matters.

Paralytic indecision, procrastination and failure to execute promptly are our guiding principles.

Post the Uri attack, we witnessed a welcome change in a 'surgical strike' which was a step in the right direction; it indicated an assertiveness that contrasted sharply with our tradition of overcautious pusillanimity.

Moreover, the surgical strike assured the army that it was not shackled to waging a lop-sided battle with its hands tied behind its back.

Former home minister P Chidambaram's contention (The Indian Express, December 3) that 'to imagine that surgical strike will put an end to cross-border action has been disproved by what has happened in Nagrota' is a premature and erroneous inference.

Retired Northern Army Commander Lieutenant General D S Hooda correctly averred: 'If we look at everything from a two-month perspective, we will end up adopting a short-term view. That will be counter-productive in terms of dealing with Pakistan.' (Kashmir will be a 'long war,' Hindustan Times, December 1)

So, this is not the time to scale back.

We must ratchet up the pressure in an incremental fashion to drive up the cost to the enemy to levels that would no longer make terror attacks cost effective.

Offensive as well as defensive measures are vital.

While a surgical strike fulfils our offensive need, defensive measures like improved fortification around military bases leave much to be desired.

Here again we see a lack of urgency.

After the Nagrota attack, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar remarked (Hindustan Times, December 3) 'The Defence Research and Development Organisation has been asked to try fences of different kinds -- microwave, laser, smart fence that can pick vibration and CCTV cameras that can pick movement at 1 km.'

But this process should have been initiated nearly 11 months ago after the Pathankot attack and corrective measures implemented post haste.

Had this been done Uri and Nagrota could possibly have been averted. But this did not happen.

An inquiry committee led by former army vice-chief Lieutenant General Philip Campose (retd) constituted after the Pathankot attack did submit its report by mid-May, but little action has followed.

'Since the report was submitted to Parrikar in mid-May, few concrete steps have been taken. There were some general discussions.' (The Times of India, November 30)

Acquisition of up-to-date modern equipment is another area of concern.

Hampered by well-intentioned but crippling rules and regulations, our army has been in an unenviable position of making do with sub-par equipment compromising their performance.

This was especially problematic during the tenure of A K Antony, India's longest serving and arguably its worst defence minister:

'Under Antony, decision-making in the ministry has slowed to a crawl. It has had catastrophic consequences for defence preparedness, with India's military machine-still equipped with tanks, fighter jets and warships acquired mostly in the 1980s-in limbo. Howitzers have not been bought since 1987, new submarines have been delayed by over five years and fighter jet proposals are pending since 1999. This is why Rear Admiral (retired) K Raja Menon calls Antony the "worst defence minister ever".' (India Today, March 7, 2014)

The current defence minister has acknowledged this shortcoming of a complex and tardy bureaucracy.

Procedural hurdles as an excuse, however, is untenable.

Wherever the deficiency lies and whatever the cause, it is the duty of the government to rectify this pronto especially in times of red alert.

The military leadership also cannot absolve itself of all responsibility by pointing a finger at the government.

There are chinks in strategy that fall under its purview and need to be addressed. The Indian Army is the third largest in the world and a well-trained unit. Its functional efficiency must match its size. The military top brass needs to pull up its socks.

The ultimate responsibility for ensuring the effectiveness of our military and security infrastructure lies with the government.

Parrikar has tried to rectify past shortcomings endemic to Antony's tenure, but the pace, degree and extent of change still falls short of what is required.

More needs to be done in less time, in other words a sense of urgency is crucial if the Bharatiya Janata Party wishes to fulfil its promise of tough, no-nonsense governance in matters of security.
An Indian Catholic priest abducted from Yemen this year appealed to Pope Francis and the Union government through a purported video to secure his release from his captors.

If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously. I am from India. I am perhaps not considered as of much value, said priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil in a weak voice in the video, aired by news channels in Kerala.

Dear Pope Francis, dear Holy Father, as a father please take care of my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating, he said in the video, a day after Christmas.

Father Uzhunnalil, who looked very weak, appeared to be reading out from a text placed before him.

The veracity of the video, which was uploaded from YouTube and Facebook, could neither be independently verified nor was the period when it was shot known.

Father Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala, was abducted in March by terror group Islamic State which attacked an old-age home run by Mother Teresas Missionaries of Charity in southern Yemeni city of Aden.

He claimed his captors have made many contacts with the government of India--president and prime minister.

I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in my regard, he said.

He said reports had said everything has been done to get his release, but in reality nothing has been done.

Father Uzhunnalil said a news reporter abducted in the Middle East was released as she was from France.

I am from India and not considered. Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all to do your might to help me to save my life. I need hospitalisation soon. Please come to my help quickly, he said.

The Union government has said efforts are being made to secure Uzhunnalils release, but such attempts take time.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had informed Parliament that Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has spoken to various countries through which contacts can be established in Yemen.

Swaraj had said it takes more time to secure release of people who are held captive and asked the MPs to keep faith in governments efforts to trace the abducted priest.
Flexing its muscles over Taiwan, China on Monday sailed its aircraft carrier close to the estranged island amid tensions with the US following President-elect Donald Trump's telephone call with the Taiwanese president.

The first aircraft carrier, Liaoning, accompanied by five naval vessels, entered the disputed South China Sea on Monday afternoon after passing south of Taiwan, reports said.

"Aircraft carriers are strategic tools which should be used to show China's strength to the world and shape the outside world's attitude toward China... It is not built for war only. Chinese aircraft carriers must set off on a long journey," state-run Global Times said in its editorial about the aircraft carrier conducting exercises.

"China's core interests are mainly offshore, but the range of aircraft carriers must go beyond offshore areas. The rivalry must be extended to wider areas so as to ease China's offshore pressure," it said, suggesting that Beijing should acquire more aircraft carriers.

"The distant sailing of the Chinese aircraft carrier fleet is not aimed at provoking the US nor at reshaping maritime strategic structure. But if the fleet is able to enter areas where the US has core interests, the situation when the US unilaterally imposes pressure on China will change," it said.

China has also lodged diplomatic protest with the Taiwan-related section in the US National Defence Authorisation Act for Fiscal Year 2017.

"We are strongly discontent with the US for signing this act," China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing on Monday.

"The Taiwan question bears on China's sovereignty and territory integrity and falls entirely within China's domestic affairs. Although the Taiwan-related content in the US Act has no legal binding force, it still severely violates the three joint communiques and interferes in Chinas domestic affairs," she said.

"China will by no means accept this. We urge the US side to honour its commitment on the Taiwan question, put an end to military exchanges with and weapons sales to Taiwan and avoid undermining China-US relations or cross-Straits peace and stability," she said.

Also China resumed diplomatic ties with Sao Tome and Principe in Beijing on Monday at a high-profile ceremony in Beijing after the African nation cut "diplomatic ties" with Taiwan amid allegations of check book diplomacy by China.

The establishment of diplomatic ties with the African country comes weeks after Trump had an unprecedented phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and later questioned One-China policy, which drew sharp reactions from China.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Sao Tome and Principe counterpart Urbino Botelho held talks and later signed a joint communique on resuming diplomatic relations.

Sao Tome was among less than two dozen countries which had diplomatic ties with Taiwan till recently without any contacts with China.

But "excess financial difficulties" reportedly made it to turn to Beijing for economic assistance.

"Sao Tome will get full support and help from a permanent member of the UN Security Council and the world's largest developing nation," Wang said after meeting with Botelho.

"China is willing to support Sao Tome's quest for socio-economic development and efforts to improve livelihoods and well-being to the best of its ability," Wang said.

"We have to recognise that China plays an increasingly important role in the world, especially as a partner to promote development and its contributions protecting the

interests of developing nations," Botelho said.

"Sao Tome is a small, island nation, with very friendly people. It is tranquil. It has very good conditions for developing trade and business and cooperating with Chinese companies," he said.
Ex-Indian Air Force chief S P Tyagi, arrested on December 9 in the AgustaWestland chopper scam, was on Monday granted bail by a special court in New Delhi which said the CBI has failed to state the alleged bribe amount and when it was paid.

Tyagi, 72, who was interrogated by the CBI in its custody for seven days, has been asked by special CBI judge Arvind Kumar to furnish a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh and one surety of like amount as pre-requisites for his release on bail.

The court asked Tyagi not to leave the National Capital Region without its permission and ordered him not to tamper with the evidence or try to influence the witnesses.

"The CBI failed to state as to how much cash was paid to the accused and when it was paid. Admittedly, the CBI has seized the documents regarding properties in 2013 and more than three years and nine months have passed but could not conduct probe in this regard...

"Accused was arrested after about three years and nine months, LOC was withdrawn by the CBI, his accounts were defrozed after the agency gave 'no objection' and accused was allowed to travel abroad," the court, in its order, said.

It noted that Tyagi has joined the investigation as and when the CBI called him and it was not the case that he either tampered with evidence after registration of the FIR or influenced witnesses in the case.

"CBI's apprehension that accused may tamper with the evidence is without any basis... Accused has been a senior government servant. The correctness or otherwise of the allegation as to whether the accused has taken any kickbacks and in what manner he was connected with the same, can only be looked into during the course of trial," it said.

While granting the relief, the court took note of Tyagi's advancing age and his health conditions and said no purpose would be served by keeping him behind the bars.

Tyagi, who retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by the CBI in connection with the case which relates to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime.

The court would now decide on January 4 the bail pleas of Sanjeev Tyagi and Khaitan.

During the hearing, Tyagi's advocate Manger Guruswamy had said her client "could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".

She claimed that in last four years after registration of the FIR, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.

Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".

"We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding the matter has "tarnished country's name".

On the court's query whether the CBI had any material regarding S P Tyagi receiving money, the agency replied the former IAF chief had purchased several properties for which the sources of income were not disclosed by him and alleged that he had abused his official position.

Advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, counsel for Khaitan, had also countered CBI's argument, claiming that the agency was trying to sensationalise the matter and there was no allegation that his client had not joined the probe or tried to influence it.

Sanjeev Tyagi's counsel Manav Gupta also opposed CBI's contention saying there was no reason to claim that if granted the relief, his client would hamper the probe.

The accused sought bail on the grounds that the evidence was documentary in nature and had already been seized by CBI and they have cooperated with the probe agency.

The court had on December 17 sent all the three accused to judicial custody till December 30.

The CBI had said it was a "very serious" and "a very high-profile" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as the "interest of the nation was compromised".

Tyagi's counsel had earlier claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office was also a part of it.
Nearly 1,500 akansha petis (boxes of aspirations) have been placed in colleges for students to reveal what they expect from a BJP government.

While demonetisation figured high in villages, BJP strategist Siddharth Sikka says city youth were "more concerned" about law and order and sanitation.

Radhika Ramaseshan reports.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has claimed to have beaten the demonetisation 'blues' in Uttar Pradesh, convinced that its political adversaries, the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, were in "trouble" with their "hollowed out coffers."

"The Samajwadi is registering its presence only through official functions hosted by (Chief Minister) Akhilesh Yadav. Mayawati (the BSP chief) is not seen anywhere after an initial flurry of rallies," said Abhishek Kaushik, a top aide to Sunil Bansal, the BJP's Uttar Pradesh general secretary (organisation) and the principal conduit between Lucknow and Delhi.

"Our campaigns and mobilisation are on course. We have not tweaked, downplayed or deleted any part of our pre-poll blueprint," Kaushik added. "Our parivartan (transformation) yatra is rolling on schedule, the prime minister and other top leaders are addressing the pre-planned rallies."

Minted from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's student pool of activism, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, Kaushik helms the BJP's social media department housed inside a war room at the party's Lucknow headquarters.

The war room was conceptualised and put in place in 2014 by Prashant Kishore, a former consultant to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

As Kishore's role in the Congress, that hired out him to lift it from the two-decade morass it sunk into, remained ambiguous, his protege Siddharth Sikka, who remained with the BJP, was emphatic about how he would deliver on his mandate in the 2017 state elections.

"Our discourse is aspirational and critical," Sikka, an IIT-Kanpur engineer, explained. "Every slogan that hits out at the Akhilesh Yadav government and sounds negative is juxtaposed with the vision of change that a BJP dispensation will unveil."

For example, one slogan that recalled the boldly confrontation between the Uttar Pradesh police and squatters at Mathura's Jawahar Bagh in June 2016 was accompanied by one highlighting the 'benefits' brought to the poor by the Centre's flagship 'Ujwala' and 'Mudra' schemes.

The 'aspirational' motif was reinforced in other ways too.

Nearly 1,500 akansha petis (boxes of aspirations) have been placed in colleges for students to reveal what they expected from a BJP government.

While demonetisation-related issues figured high on the agenda in provincial places and villages, Sikka claimed city youth were "more concerned" about law and order and sanitation.

"These issues are fodder for our campaign against the SP," said Kaushik.

Ironically, it was not the anti-Samajwadi tirade on the BJP's social media sites that drew as many 'likes' -- 1,498,797 in a month -- as a visual, depicting BSP leader Mayawati against a backdrop of the monuments of Dalit icons she had put up in Lucknow and Noida in her last stint as the chief minister.

Mayawati was lambasted for the drain on the state exchequer that the Dalit memorials allegedly cost.

"Our job against Mayawati is done. We have only to remind voters of her corruption and they get put off," maintained a UP BJP official.

As the BJP's riders on the 1,650 motorbikes it purchased recently for Rs 6 crore (Rs 60 million) -- "payment only by cheque" and "fuel bought by Bharat Petroleum's petrocard," stressed Kaushik -- fanned out into the villages to purvey the messages of Mayawati's 'corruption' and Akhilesh's 'patronage of criminals' from December 18, away from the glare, the BSP has charted out its social and political trajectory.

"This is the BJP and RSS' disinformation that the BSP has no money after the 'notebandi. We don't need money. We only need to follow the methodologies crafted by our founder, Kanshi Ram," said a member of Mayawati's team of strategists.

Among the facets of the BSP's template were classifying the voters into upper castes, backward castes and minorities (the party assumed Dalits were its mainstay) and reaching out to these groupings through the bhaichara samitis (brotherhood committees) that Mayawati had first set up in 2006 to enlarge her social base before the 2007 elections and a campaign themed on law and order, demonetisation and the absence of a CM face in BJP, in that order.

Mayawati's aide also said she will declare no more monuments or memorials will be raised.

IMAGE: A policeman stands guard as a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh volunteer looks on beside a hoarding featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah in Allahabad. Photograph: Jitendra Prakash/Reuters
Alleged terrorist Mohd Mosiuddin was plotting Islamic State-style chilling execution of foreigners, especially those from the United States, Russia and the Unityed Kingdom, visiting the Mother House in Kolkata as it would be a "heart pleasing" experience for him, the National Investigation Agency has claimed.

The NIA, in a chargesheet filed before a special court in Kolkata recently, claimed that Mosiuddin alias Musa was planning to stab and kill foreigners, a style frequently chosen by the IS to eliminate its targets.

The Mother House in West Bengal capital is the headquarters of Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity.

In its chargesheet, the anti-terror probe agency has said Musa termed the militants operating in Kashmir as "Mujahids (holy warriors) with impure ideologies" who were fighting for Kashmiri land when they should have fought in support of Sharia, the Islamic canonical law based on the teachings of the Koran and the traditions of the Prophet (Hadith and Sunna).

The agency has provided Musa's photographs in Kashmir to buttress its claim that the terrorist had visited the Valley.

The NIA alleged it had proof of his having bought a big knife to commit the terror crimes before fleeing away.

He also allegedly procured pepper spray from Snapdeal, an online marketplace to facilitate his proposed criminal acts as the intended target would be rendered temporarily blinded by it.

The chargesheet alleged that Musa discussed plans for conducting such attacks at the Mother House, which is frequented by foreigners from the US, Russia and the UK. Armed forces of these countries are locked in fierce battles with the IS in many nations.

Musa had discussed with some others the exact location of the Mother House and was claimed to have told them that foreigners, particularly Russians, Britishers and Americans often visited the place. He wanted them killed as the governments of their countries had bombarded the IS in Syria and Libya, the charge sheet alleged.

The NIA had taken over investigation in the case from Howrah police on July 22.

During Musa' arrest, a .38 bore six-chamber revolver, three rounds of ammunition, a knife, a Samsung mobile phone and other incriminating articles were seized.

Subsequently, one Apple Macbook and a sword were seized from his residence at Tiruppur, Tamilnadu.

During investigation, two more accused, namely Saddam Hossain alias Kalu and Abbasudin Sk alias Amin were arrested by West Bengal CID.

"Mosiuddin was found involved in furthering the illegal activities of the IS in India and Bangladesh and had been in touch with Shafi Armar...and was also linked to the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh operatives in Bangladesh," the NIA had said in a statement.

Armar is a former Indian Mujahideen operative who was later claimed to have joined the IS. It was Armar who had radicalised him by sending the links of jihadi sites like Jihadology.net, Al-Shabab media and Just-Paste-it links, etc.

Armar also allegedly sent him videos released by Ansar Ut Tawid which included footages of the war between the IS and Iraqi forces. The videos and speeches of 'Anwar ul Awlaki', a jihadist ideologue and preacher who was killed in a US drone attack in Yemen, were also sent to him by Armar, a native of Bhatkal in Karnataka and one of the main recruiters for IS in India.

Abu Suleiman, a Bangladeshi IS/JMB operative, visited India to meet Musa twice in March, 2015, and May, 2016. He encouraged Musa to use encrypted chat applications like Telegram, Surespot, Threema, Chatsecure, to communicate with him and other IS operatives, the NIA has alleged.
The Manipur government's plan to carve out 7 new districts in the hill areas has ignited old resentments between Naga and non-Naga ethnic groups, leading to clashes and a month-long economic blockade.

Supratim Dey reports.

The prices of essential commodities such as petrol, diesel and LPG have shot up in Manipur because of the month-long economic blockade arising out of the state government's decision to create seven districts and the resultant ethnic conflict.

The blockade is on its two national highways, by which goods are ferried to various parts of the state. Railway penetration in Manipur is negligible.

The valley districts, in which Imphal falls, have been affected. There have been violent protests against the blockade in the Imphal valley.

Protesters blocked the roads towards the hill districts. On December 18, in the Imphal valley, 22 vehicles were burned.

Reports said vehicles carrying Nagas were targeted. Curfew had to be imposed successively in many areas.

Blockade-supporters in the hill districts, on their part, have torched trucks and set fire to government offices.

The government created seven districts by realigning the boundaries all the five hill districts and two valley districts.

The Nagas did not like the decision and said the idea was to divide them. They complained that their Hill Area Committees were not consulted by the state government in this matter.

The state governments position that the decision was an administrative one could not mollify the Nagas.

Manipur's ethnic communities include the Meities, residing in the valley, and the Nagas, who are mostly in the hill districts, which encircle the valley.

Most of the chief ministers of the state have been from the Meiti community.

The two communities have a history of discord, in which the reasons for the current unrest lie.

The Hill Area Committees have constitutional sanction and have been formed to protect the rights of the hill people. The legal stipulation is that they must be consulted on matters relating to the tribal people of Manipur.

On November 1, the United Naga Council, the umbrella organisation of the Naga community, had imposed an indefinite economic blockade on NH 2 and 37.

The two NHs, which enter Manipur from Nagaland and Assam, respectively, pass through the hill districts before reaching the valley.

The UNC on Sunday demanded President's rule in the state.

Meanwhile, Nagaland Chief Minister T R Zeliang asked both the Centre and the state government to ensure that the Nagas were safe. He has sought the Centre's intervention in defusing the crisis.

IMAGE: A charred bus burnt down by United Naga Council supporters at Senapati, Manipur. Photograph: PTI Photo
IMAGE: Devotees gather at the Sabarimala temple in Kerala on Sunday. Photographs: PTI Photo



As many as 31 persons were injured, two of them seriously, in the stampede at the Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala, Kerala, Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran said on Monday and maintained that there was no lapse on the part of police.

"Eight of the injured have been admitted to Kottayam medical college hospital, three in Pathanamthitta Government hospital, two in Pamba and 18 at Sannidhanam hospital, he told reporters.

An action plan would also be formulated to ensure that such incidents do not recur, he said, adding there was no lapse on the part of police.

There was sufficient police at Sannidhanam. There were about 700 policemen on duty, he said.

The minister said that barricades would be strengthened in the coming three days when the shrine will remain closed.

A joint inspection with police, Devaswom officials and the minister was held at the mishap site on Monday morning.

The temple had witnessed heavy rush on Sunday, the penultimate day of the 41-day pilgrimage season, which concludes today with Mandala Pooja.

A rope barricade gave way at Malaikappuram following which some of them fell down causing injuries to the pilgrims, who were mostly from Andhra Pradesh, TN and Telangana.

IMAGE: An injured devotee being taken to the hospital in Pamba.



One of the injured is from Kerala.

Meanwhile, Director General of Police Loknath Behara said a huge tragedy was averted at Sabarimala due to police intervention and denied reports that the stampede was due to ineffective police presence on Sunday, despite a heavy rush of pilgrims.

Stampede was not due to the lapse of police, he said.

Behara said that Inspector General D Sreejit, in charge of Sabarimala security, has been asked to file a report on the stampede on Monday itself.

I have asked Sreejit to immediately enquire and download the CCTV visuals and file a report today itself, Behara said.

Sreejit said there were nine policemen at the spot and it was due to their presence that a calamity was averted.

It was due to their intervention that a big mishap was averted, Sreejit said.

He said within 100 metres, there were 70 policemen, including the National Disaster Response Force.

Following the incident, security has been strengthened and entry of pilgrims is being restricted.
From note ban result to Delhi's next L-G, a few things to look forward to.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com

There is much to look forward to in the run-up to the new year.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 50-day limit of demonetisation pain will end on December 31.

Some major announcements are expected on January 2 when he addresses a public meeting in Lucknow to mark the end of the Bharatiya Janata Party's Parivartan Yatra -- the campaign rally for the Uttar Pradesh elections.

Preparations for these announcements will be done this week. The PM may announce that people who have Jan Dhan accounts will receive a gift of some sort to mark the beginning of the new year to reward them for the difficulties they have faced.

As most officials have been told to stay in Delhi over the week, chances are that administrative work will proceed apace.

Search for Delhi's next Lieutenant Governor

The hunt for a successor to Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung will begin this week.

BJP MP Subramanian Swamy could count Jung's scalp as the second, after he forced then Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan out of his job.

In August, the MP had tweeted: 'In my opinion, this LG of Delhi Mr Jung is unsuited for this high post. He is another 420 like Kejri. We need a Sangh person in Delhi (sic).'

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejrwial gave Jung the benefit of the doubt when he said it was not Jung who was a bad man, but the Prime Minister's Office which kept interfering in his work.

Now that Jung is gone, a politically affiliated person is likely to be appointed. That process might come to an end in the new year with an announcement.

Prez to visit Hyderabad

President Pranab Mukherjee is in Hyderabad for his South India sojourn, customary in the winter. He will attend a meeting of the Indian Economic Association at Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University in Hyderabad on December 27.

He will also participate in the Aayutha Chandi Yagam to be performed by Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao at his farm house in neighbouring Medak district.

The CM held a similar yagam earlier, but a fire broke out in the venue and the President cancelled his plan to visit.

PM to meet economists

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to meet economists on Tuesday, December 27, to discuss the state of the economy.

They will meet Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in the first half of that day and spend the second half with the PM.

This is the PM's first meeting with economists after he announced that Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes would become pieces of paper.
Center for Performance is finished, more to do at Hall of Fame Village

local
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has strongly condemned the deportation of Ukrainian citizens from Russian occupied regions in southern and southeastern Ukraine.

"The Russian occupation administration has begun mass forced relocation of residents of the left bank [of the Dnieper River] of the Kherson region...to the territory of the temporarily occupied Crimea or the Russian Federation," the ministry said in a statement on November 3.



Similar deportations are also being carried out by Russia in the Zaporizhzhya, Luhansk, and Donetsk regions, as well as in Crimea, the ministry said.



Volodymyr Saldo, the Russian-appointed head of Kherson, announced on October 31 an expansion of what Russia has called the evacuation of Ukrainian citizens.

Saldo said he was moving people further into the region or to Russia because of the risks of a "massive missile attack."



Just three days earlier, Russian-installed officials announced that the evacuation process in Kherson region had ended.

Kyiv reiterated on November 3 that it saw the move as a "deportation." It also said reports continue circulating about the alleged mining of the Nova Kakhovska hydroelectric power plant by Russian troops.



Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy previously said that Ukraine suspected Russia had mined the dam and units of the power plant on the Dnieper River in southern Ukraine, and if it were blown up, more than 80 settlements, including Kherson, would be in danger of flooding.



The Foreign Ministry statement also accused Russian troops of looting industrial, cultural, educational, and medical institutions, as well as private houses and apartments.



The ministry called on the international community to condemn the forced relocation, to introduce new sanctions against Russia, and to increase military aid to Ukraine for the liberation of its occupied territories.

Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.

The Ukrainian military's General Staff also said on November 3 that Russian forces continued the so-called evacuation of the local population in the Kherson region and accused them of taking away civilian and communal property, even equipment from hospitals, as they carried out the evacuation.



Russian forces also removed the roadblocks in Kherson. The head of the Kherson regional military administration, Yaroslav Yanushevich, believes that they did this to create an illusion that they have left the city.



It was also reported that the Russian flag was removed from the Kherson regional administration building. The head of the joint coordination press center of the Defense Forces of Southern Ukraine, Natalya Humenyuk, said that this could be a provocation.



Russian troops captured Kherson in March in the early days of the war. Its loss to Ukrainian troops would signal a significant retreat.



U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, asked to comment on the battlefield situation in southern Ukraine, said Ukrainian forces in the Kherson region "have the capacity" to retake the territory on the west side of the Dnieper River and Kherson city from Russian troops.



Austin, speaking at a news conference at the Pentagon, did not answer a question about whether Russian forces were preparing to leave, but he expressed confidence in the Ukrainian troops' ability to beat back Russian forces.

With reporting by Reuters
In 2014, the world was gripped by news of two deadly epidemics.

Both were bloody, vicious afflictions that killed many who came in contact with them. Local populations were being devastated, but so, too, were foreigners who traveled to affected areas to help. Fears spread quickly that both would cross borders, infect cities, and threaten major events. There was panic on TV and in world capitals as politicians and pundits debated shutting borders or even denying travel to people from affected countries.

One, the Ebola virus, has been largely contained geographically and combated with proper equipment and training, and no longer captures headlines. It is a terrifying killer that has claimed around 15,000 lives since its detection in 1976. But it is arguably less devastating on a global scale than, say, HIV/AIDS, which has killed more than 3 million people since its identification in 1981, or malaria, which kills hundreds of thousands of people each year. Simply put, Ebola has so far been isolated and made to burn itself out.

The other affliction, the extremist ideology of Islamic State (IS), shares some attributes with Ebola hemorrhagic fever. Both kill victims in terrifying, public, and cruel manners. While Ebola's victims often bleed to death, IS has crucified, beheaded, or burned its victims alive, among other methods. It is the stuff of nightmares.

But by sheer numbers, IS has killed relatively few people worldwide. The University of Maryland's National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism has estimated that more than 33,000 people were killed by IS or other terrorist groups loyal to IS between 2002 and 2013. For perspective: There are estimates that as many as 1 million people have been killed in Syria between 2011 and 2016 -- only a tiny fraction of them by IS.

Just as Ebola essentially disappeared from public debate in the past year, major news outlets may not be talking about IS a year from now. Also as with Ebola, media attention could snap right back to 24-hour panic mode if fears arise of a new outbreak.

But more troublingly, in the case of IS, such a focus could lead to complacency about an arguably more dangerous threat: the growing cloud of Al-Qaeda, which has benefited tremendously from the events of the last few years.

The Collapse Of The Physical State

The "dawla," or "state" -- the physical territory controlled by IS -- once stretched from just west of Baghdad, Iraq, to just east of Aleppo, Syria. The region has essentially operated as a quasi-state, run by extremists -- with local governance, tax collection, industry, law and order, border control, and a multifaceted intelligence apparatus, to say nothing of the obvious: a military.

And today the "dawla" looks to be in total collapse.

On the eastern front, a U.S.-backed coalition of Iraqi Shi'ite militias, the Kurdish Peshmerga, the Iraqi government, a collection of international air forces, and U.S. special forces are hammering away at IS in Iraq. Ramadi and Fallujah have fallen to this coalition, which has now set its sights on Mosul. Once that northern Iraqi city is retaken, IS will have lost its de facto capital in Iraq. Only weaker pockets of surrounded IS fighters will remain.

At IS's center, the U.S.-backed Syrian Defense Force (SDF) has pushed from northern Syria down like a dagger toward Raqqa, the heart of IS territory. Mostly comprising Kurdish forces aligned with the Kurdish People's Protection Units, or YPG (considered a terrorist group in Turkey), the SDF has captured the most territory from IS over the last two years. Throughout the summer, the SDF also pushed west of the Euphrates River, capturing territory along the Turkey-Syria border.

It appears to have been SDF progress that prompted another country -- Turkey -- to intervene on IS's western front. Since the Turkish government considers the YPG to be an enemy of the Turkish state, the loss of the border to the Kurdish group is something that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was clearly unwilling to accept.

Less than a month after Turkey's failed coup on July 15, Erdogan met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Then, on August 24, Turkish military units crossed the border into IS-controlled territory, capturing key towns near the border that seemed bound to fall to the SDF without Turkish intervention.

Turkey continues to advance. In October, Turkish forces attacked the town of Dabiq. While not militarily important, Dabiq was a sufficiently important symbol for IS's English-language propaganda magazine to have been named after the town. According to the Hadith, an ancient text that reportedly recorded some of the teachings and acts of the Prophet Muhammad, a great apocalyptic battle between the followers of Islam and non-believers was to take place there.

What better symbol could there be for the Ebola of geopolitics than control of the city from which the apocalypse starts? And yet IS fighters left the town without a fight, a symbol to some that the collapse of the "state" was inevitable and might accelerate.

Now, Turkish forces and moderate Syrian rebels are besieging the IS stronghold of Al-Bab, once a symbol of the rebellion against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, which was held by moderate rebels backed by Turkey and the United States before IS seized it in the summer of 2013.

This fight on the western edge of the would-be caliphate, like those on the eastern front in Mosul and in Raqqa, will be a tough one. But IS's military defeat in all three places is all but certain. In all likelihood, the territorial "Islamic State" as we have come to know it will be gone by the close of 2017.

But does that really mean the extremist group IS will simply disappear?

The Evolution Of A Disease

Despite media reports touting the imminent death of Islamic State, not a single expert interviewed for this article said they believed that the recapturing of IS territory in Iraq and Syria would mark the end of that group. There's a simple reason for this: history. IS has been militarily defeated before -- under a different name -- and it came back more virulent than ever.

In their book, ISIS: Inside The Army Of Terror, Michael Weiss and Hassan Hassan trace the beginnings of IS back to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Zarqawi, a Jordanian-Palestinian who became an uneasy ally of Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in the lead-up to 9/11 and the 2001 U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. Even then, there were clear tensions between the two leaders.

Like the organizations they founded, each leader subscribed to a radical jihadist ideology. Shiraz Maher, a senior research fellow at King's College London's International Center for the Study of Radicalization, has described the brand of Salafi-Jihadism that Al-Qaeda and IS follow as seeking a return to the practice of Islam in its purest form, as was seen in the earliest days of the religion. As Maher lays out in his new book, Salafi-Jihadism: The History Of An Idea, the goal of these fundamentalist organizations, then, is to create a caliphate, a kingdom on earth to bring about this radical purification.

Kyle Orton, research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society, summarizes Maher's writing by saying that Salafi-Jihadism rests on five pillars:

According to Mr. Maher, Salafi-jihadists all adhere to five ideological pillars, and learning to identify them will help us understand an enemy that has shown itself to be highly adaptable. The first of these pillars is jihad, the method by which the Salafi-jihadists' millenarian vision is to be realized, upending the existing world order and creating a utopia. Liberal interpreters of Islam would explain jihad as an internal struggle or an overcoming of the self. But to Salafi-jihadists, it is a military matter and an obligation second only to accepting the faith itself, and must continue until the end of time.

In order to endure, however, revolutions must define an in-group. Jihadists do this through adherence to the pillars of tawhid (the oneness of God) and hakimiyya (God's sovereignty), which define the limits of belief and the nature of legitimate authority. Those who don't belong to the in-group must be shunned, according to the pillar of al-wala wa-l-bara, based on the concepts of al-wala (devotion to god and his believers) and al-bara (the disavowal of and severance from the disbelievers). The final pillar identifies internal corrupters, who must be subject to takfir, or excommunication.

Bin Laden and Zarqawi, and now Al-Qaeda and IS, portrayed themselves as holy warriors fighting to protect Islam from enemies that include imperial powers like Russia, whose troops under Soviet rule occupied Afghanistan, and the United States, which toppled the Taliban and attempted to hunt down Al-Qaeda's leadership after the 9/11 attacks.

Far Versus Near Enemies

But there were significant differences between the two men. Bin Laden was principally concerned with targeting the "far enemy," the foreign "occupiers," non-adherents to Islam, and members of decadent and corrupt societies that had deployed their militaries to what bin Laden regarded as Islamic lands. Zarqawi, on the other hand, was a takfiri, focused on those (including other Muslims) who he believed were undermining Islam itself. Zarqawi considered the Muslim governments that had cooperated with the United States to be a "near enemy" worth killing. In Zarqawi's vision, the "murtad," apostates who betray Islam, are worthy targets of holy war.

Crucially, that interpretation of "murtad" includes not only allies of the West who call themselves Muslims but also all who practice what Zarqawi defined as impure Islam -- including all non-Sunnis.

To bin Laden, this was unacceptable for several reasons. First, bin Laden's mother was a Syrian Alawite -- a sect of Shi'ite Islam -- not Sunni, and so while his theological beliefs likely included Shi'a in the column of people who were not practicing pure Islam, they were not an immediate concern. Second, bin Laden was far more practical, and believed it would be hard to rally fellow Muslims around the cause of toppling domestic, Islamic governments, killing innocent Muslims in the process.

Paving The Way For A Caliphate

Clearly, bin Laden's more pressing target was the non-Muslim foreigners who might be driven from Muslim lands by a concerted effort of bin Laden and those who would follow him. In that sense, zealots might describe bin Laden as someone who was clearing the way for the creation of the caliphate.

Through his works and example, bin Laden hoped to inspire a movement that would eventually become an Islamic state; in order to pave the way, he believed he needed to stand up to foreign powers, principally the United States.

Bin Laden's Al-Qaeda was focused on sending a message, through terrorism, that the United States should withdraw its troops from the Middle East. The death of innocents was not the goal but a method to help achieve that goal. Killing Muslims was acceptable if they died as collateral victims of bin Laden's jihad or if they were working directly with the Americans.

Ideological Purity

Zarqawi and the organization he founded have concerned themselves with their versions of ideological purity now, the immediate creation of a caliphate, a physical state, and a spiritual state of ideological purity. The deaths of non-believers and impure Muslims has been the goal, and terrorism one method of advancing that goal.

Zarqawi's theology, then, was far too radical -- far too "rigid," to use bin Laden's term -- and far too impractical for it to be compatible with bin Laden's vision.

And yet takfirism -- alleging apostasy by fellow Muslims -- would find the perfect opportunities to take root, first in Iraq and then in Syria.

Zarqawi went to Iraq as early as October 2002, when the United States was already debating the invasion and forcible removal of Saddam Hussein. Bin Laden saw Iraq as an opportunity to bog the United States down in a different conflict, relieving the pressure against his organization in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Zarqawi was more than willing to accept the assignment, as it was a near-perfect breeding ground for his deeply sectarian worldview. Just barely more than half of Iraqis are Shi'a, but a long line of Sunnis had controlled that country since soon after the end of World War I.

Zarqawi exploited that sectarian dynamic, planting seeds of distrust between Sunnis and Shi'a, conducting terrorist attacks to exploit and widen these tensions, and ultimately seizing control of large parts of the country in order to resist both the foreign invaders and the local Shi'ite government that rose to power after Hussein's removal.

The results are seemingly obvious. Al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), which eventually became Islamic State of Iraq, had captured large parts of the country by 2006. By their reckoning, the caliphate was at hand. But it was not meant to be. Between 2006 and 2008, the United States boosted the number of troops it had on the ground and rallied the local Sunni population to rise up and defeat this radical organization. U.S. officials were able to convince Sunnis that it was AQI's radical theology, its brutal methods, that had destroyed the country: AQI's apocalyptic death cult and its pursuit of ideological purity at any cost ruined the lives of the very people it was supposed to save. It was time for AQI to end.

The levels of violence dropped significantly during that period, frequently referred to as the "Sunni awakening." Groups like the Iraq Body Count, which attempt to monitor the numbers of civilian deaths in the conflict, went from reporting more than 3,000 deaths per month in 2006 to reporting fewer than 500 per month in 2009. The Obama administration, following a document drafted by the Bush administration, withdrew U.S. combat troops from Iraq between 2009 and 2011. As Retired Colonel Peter Mansoor told NPR: "All of the intelligence that we had gathered, all of the results of the surge, all of the detainees we had in our detention system, all of the information we had coming to us from people on the ground, from the tribes, indicated that Al-Qaeda in Iraq was defeated."

But Al-Qaeda in Iraq was not defeated. Like Ebola, the outbreak was over but conditions on the ground that led to the outbreak only worsened between 2011 and 2013. By 2013, the organization that eventually became Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (greater Syria) and, ultimately, Islamic State, had found new breeding grounds just across the border.

With Enough Death, Propaganda Becomes Truth

Early on in the Syrian uprising, protesters in the streets of western and southern Syria were not calling for the removal of the regime. The protesters were demanding reform from the Assad government, which had been in power for 40 years.

What happened next is well documented. Protesters were pushed around by police, but the crowds grew. Then came the tear gas, the beatings, and arrests. The protests spread. By the summer of 2011, the Assad security apparatus had begun to fire into crowds of protesters with live ammunition, and it was soon deploying armored vehicles to Syrian cities like Homs.

In time, many of Assad's soldiers refused to fire on peaceful crowds. Those soldiers were then themselves fired upon, and a peaceful protest movement turned into a revolution, started initially not by the protesters themselves but by those who had been ordered to kill to preserve the regime.

In the early days, a sectarian dynamic was not the defining characteristic of the events in Syria. Yes, Syria, a majority-Sunni state, had been ruled by Shi'ite leaders for four decades. But there were plenty of reasons to be frustrated with Assad that went beyond sectarianism.

Protesters in Hama whom I interviewed in 2011, for example, told me that after witnessing the sectarian madness of Iraq, they were working to avoid encouraging any narrative that would further divide the country or push it toward civil war. But while the opposition movement -- from the grassroots level to the Syrian National Council, a government formed in exile in August of 2011 -- tried to push back against the sectarian narrative, the Assad regime adopted it from the start, branding anyone who opposed Assad's rule as a Sunni terrorist despite the presence within the movement of Kurds, Christians, Shi'a, and Druze.

That is history, however. Current events tell a different tale. In the last four years, the Syrian military and its allies have leveled Sunni neighborhoods and forcibly relocated civilians, and pro-Assad militias have conducted massacres of Sunni villagers in rural areas of the Homs and Hama provinces. It is perhaps unsurprising, then, that the ideology of Zarqawi and the fighters who follow it decided to make a home in Syria.

Like a perverted phoenix, the ideology of AQI reemerged from the ashes of its defeat in Iraq. Video that appeared during the summer of 2013 showed convoys of armed men crossing the border from Iraq near Al-Bukamal. Soon, the group that would come to be known as IS imposed its strict Shari'a law across large parts of eastern Syria. And while the Syrian government has killed far more people in Syria than IS has, the extremist group has been hauntingly and myopically sectarian.

Iraq, Iran, Hizballah fighters from Lebanon, and extremists from all over the globe have flocked to Syria in order to advance sectarian goals. Predominantly Sunni states like Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar have seemingly backed rebel groups out of sectarian interests. Shi'a-dominated Iran is currently fighting proxy wars against the Sunni Gulf states in both Syria and Yemen. There is no denying that what is going on in Syria and Iraq has become a sectarian land grab that will have consequences for years to come.

Such sectarianism might appear to reinforce Zarqawi's original vision. Sunni extremists are locked in an existential struggle against Shi'ite Muslims, backed by foreign powers (including the United States) and Kurds. Sunni rebels who have opposed IS are locked in a desperate struggle against the Shi'ite Syrian regime backed by Iran's Shi'ite Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), Shi'ite Hizballah extremists from Lebanon, Shi'ite Iraqi militias, and the might of the Russian military. Civilians, mostly Sunnis, are caught in the crossfire, and in Aleppo and many other places across Syria they are being actively hunted by the pro-Assad coalition.

Those are some of the dynamics that enabled IS to build what it regards as its caliphate, and absolutely none of this will change when IS's caliphate crumbles.

Al-Qaeda's Silent Threat

IS in many ways embodies the worst fears of counterterrorism experts and government officials. It is the complete package, as they say. First, it features an ideology that is far more radical and apocalyptic than that of its predecessor, Al-Qaeda.

Second, IS has been able to control large swaths of territory. This has enabled it to use the economic resources of a small quasi-state to fuel its larger ambitions, and it has provided IS with a physical, palpable symbol -- a seeming embodiment of its ideology. With access to oil pipelines and captured U.S. firepower, by some measures the physical territory poses a greater threat than the Taliban's control of Afghanistan prior to September 11, 2001, which Al-Qaeda utilized to launch its attacks on the other side of the globe.

Third, IS has managed to inspire others, worldwide, to either travel to the Middle East to join the organization or, perhaps more troublingly, to conduct terrorist attacks in their homelands. That syndication effect is neither new nor unique to IS, or even to its rival Al-Qaeda. But what is new is the number of IS sympathizers who have proven willing to make themselves martyrs for Islamic State, and the scale of the violence that has ensued. Insurgencies fueled by IS franchises can be found in Egypt and Libya, across large parts of sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. But terrorists who have declared allegiance to IS have conducted attacks in the United States, France, Belgium, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and elsewhere.

In other words, Islamic State is arguably more dangerous and effective than Al-Qaeda ever was. It is also potentially the next stage of evolution for a radical, violent form of Salafism that has been developing for decades.

Multiple experts consulted by RFE/RL said that Islamic State is likely to see a massive military defeat this year. As with Ebola, however, there could be new outbreaks. Hassan Hassan, a weekly columnist for The National newspaper in Abu Dhabi who is from Al-Bukamal, scene of IS's entrance into Syria from Iraq, warned that the recent Islamic State victory in Palmyra is an excellent example of how the group is likely to go underground rather than go away. "They'll operate as bands until they can take over areas again," Hassan said.

The real and unaddressed problem, however, is that while IS has been burning out, Al-Qaeda -- the ideological construct that was ultimately responsible for the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil in history -- is going strong. Since Al-Qaeda has not generated the same kind of international response as IS has, it has escaped the latter's fate.

Benefiting From Brutality

Again, as with Ebola, those infected with IS's virulent strain of Salafi-Jihadism frequently die quickly. In IS's case, the brutality of its actions has alienated many Sunni Muslims and scared Muslims and non-Muslims of many sects and nationalities into joining the fight and defeating the movement.

But in an odd way, IS has also seemingly advanced Al-Qaeda's goals. Many who do not subscribe to Salafism have fled the Middle East. World powers are afraid of intervening in the region. And IS's extreme levels of violence have normalized Al-Qaeda's (slightly) less radical approach. "Al-Qaeda -- and, more importantly, the Salafi-jihadist ideology and movement -- is spreading; probably the fastest-growing Islamic trend right now," Kyle Orton told RFE/RL.

Unlike Ebola -- but rather akin to AIDS or malaria -- Al-Qaeda's ideology has spread to a much wider population, particularly in Syria. Al-Qaeda elements have even allied themselves with non-radical elements of Syrian society. During the siege of Aleppo, for instance, a massacre conducted by the pro-Assad coalition in which Russia played a role has been front-page news in every corner of the globe.

And yet while world powers have failed to stop the bombing campaigns of the Russian and Syrian air forces, Al-Qaeda elements have played a crucial role in trying to break the siege of the city from the outside. Over the summer, they nearly succeeded when Al-Qaeda suicide bombers blew apart military bases that had been besieged by moderate rebel forces since 2012, nearly reversing the momentum of the Assad regime's military campaign in the north.

Nasser Weddady -- a consultant and influential behind-the-scenes player who was raised in Syria and has worked to combat extremism and find a solution to the conflict -- put it succinctly. By avoiding the kinds of terrifying behavior for which Islamic State is infamous, Al-Qaeda has also avoided alienating Syrians in the same way IS has. And with many thousands of civilians trapped in Aleppo, Al-Qaeda was free to bill itself to the Syrian people as the only effective power that was willing to risk it all to stop the killing.

In the eyes of many Syrians, Weddady told RFE/RL, Al-Qaeda-linked rebel groups "became the saviors, and the West allowed this to happen."

"At the end of the day, you, America, the civilized world, the UN Security Council -- where were you?" Weddady said.

Syrians, Weddady argued, are not "duped" by Al-Qaeda but "they are like a firefighter who comes to your home while your house is on fire: You're not going to tell them to shut off the hose because you disagree with them, or even because you hate them. The world, through inaction or whatever you call it, handed Al-Qaeda a gift on a silver platter, the gift of really defending the people in their hour of need."

Faysal Itani, a resident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, agreed. Itani has written extensively about how the sectarian nature of the military campaign against IS has jeopardized the fight against the extremist group's ideology. "I think we will see Islamic State bottled up as soon as we have an actual ground force component that we are willing to back without compromising other core interests," he told RFE/RL. "Al-Qaeda is more pernicious and quieter."

He added: "As a whole, the Syrian war might teach people that these people were more trouble than they were worth, but the lesson to outsiders may be lost. I don't know whether [Al-Qaeda] is growing, but it doesn't seem to be receding."

The views expressed in this blog post do not necessarily reflect the views of RFE/RL
Macedonia's two main political parties are each vowing to try to form the next government, potentially extending the Balkan country's political crisis, despite a parliamentary election and rerun of a potentially game-changing local vote that awarded victory to the country's long-ruling conservatives.

The VMRO-DPMNE, led by former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, has been confirmed as winning 51 parliamentary seats in early elections held on December 11, even after losing a December 25 rerun of the vote in the village of Tearce.

Had the opposition Social Democrats (SDSM) improved sufficiently in its oroginal showing in the re-vote, it could have gained a 50th seat at the expense of the VMRO-DPMNE and prevented it from forming a coalition government.

"As winners of the elections, we will remain dedicated to the future steps of forming a new government," the VMRO-DPME said in a release shortly after the Tearce win.

The victory appears to put the VMRO-DPMNE in position to work with Gruevskis long-time ethnic-Albanian allies in the Democratic Union (DUI), which controls 10 seats, to create a 61-seat parliamentary majority -- the smallest possible majority in the 120-seat parliament.

But the Social Democrats, too, are indicating that they plan on leading the next government.

"The new government will be led by SDSM," Reuters quoted a spokesman for the party as saying on December 26. "Macedonia will have a responsible government ... that will bring democratic changes."

The developments have the potential to extend a political crisis that dates back to early 2015, when the Social Democrats accused the ruling VMRO-DPMNE, led by then-Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, of illegally wiretapping the telephones of tens of thousands of civilians and political opponents.

The scandal eventually led to massive street protests that prompted EU mediation, Gruevski's resignation, the installation of an interim government, and the early December 11 elections.

With the results, a new government is expected to be in place by February.

'Symbolic' Results

Petre Shilegov, a parliamentarian for the Social Democrats, dismissed the results of the Tearce rerun as "symbolic."

"The people of Tearce, like the rest of the Macedonian voters, opted for change and a better future," he was quoted as saying by the Sarajevo-based BalkanInsight.com.

State election officials ordered the December 25 rerun in Tearce, about 50 kilometers northwest of the capital Skopje, after the Social Democrats complained of voting irregularities there during the original December 11 ballot.

Election results posted on the web of Macedonia's Election Commission show the Social Democrats won 245 votes in the rerun compared to 149 for Gruevski's VMRO-DPMNE party.

But the Social Democrats had needed to secure 307 votes in the village to gain a 50th seat.

Out of 714 registered voters in Tearce, only 402 cast ballots on December 25. The remaining eight votes were split among ethnic Albanian parties.

In the annulled December 11 vote in Tearce, 404 registered voters had cast ballots -- with the VMRO-DPMNE winning 91 votes compared to 87 for the Social Democrats. The rest were split among four ethnic-Albanian parties.

With reporting by RFE/RL's Balkan Service, AP, Reuters, Balkan Insight, and Independent MK
Reports from Pakistan say at least 10 people have been killed and more injured as a result of road accidents in the midst of thick fog to the south of Islamabad in Punjab Province.



Authorities say six people were killed and 10 injured on December 25 when a bus overturned in Hafizabad because of poor visibility.



On the same day, a man was killed and seven others injured when two trucks and a bus collided in the Khanewal District near Multan.



A motorcyclist was also killed and a passenger injured when a car hit their motorcycle in Manawala near Faisalabad.



Another motorcyclist was killed and two women passengers injured when a truck hit them to the east of Multan.



In Lahore, fog forced the airport to close late on December 24 and early on December 25, disrupting air traffic and causing a backlog of flights during much of the weekend.



Pakistani weather experts say thick fog also hung over the plains of upper Sindh Province, disrupting traffic.

Based on reporting by Dawn.com and Geo.tv
Russia's Defense Ministry said on December 26 that its troops had found mass graves in the Syrian city of Aleppo with bodies showing signs of torture and mutilation.

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov said that dozens of bodies have been uncovered, some of them bearing gunshot wounds.

Human rights observers and the media have recorded many examples of massacres and organized torture carried out by the government, opposition, and the extremist Islamic State group in Syria.

The Russian Air Force helped the Syrian army recapture Aleppo on December 22, months after a major offensive to retake the city was launched in September.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on December 25 that at least 63 Syrian soldiers and militiamen have been killed by booby traps in Aleppo.

Russia had accused the rebels of laying multiple booby traps and mines across the city.

Based on reporting by AP and TASS


Ukrainian forces are facing Russian attacks in multiple locations, where heavy shelling and air strikes damaged infrastructure as Moscow stepped up its offensive, the Ukrainian military said on November 3.

Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.

The Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine was again disconnected from the power grid after shelling damaged the remaining high voltage lines, leaving it with just diesel generators, Ukraine's nuclear firm Enerhoatom said.

Enerhoatom said it believes Russia will soon try to repair and connect Europe's largest nuclear station toward the Russia-occupied Crimea and Donbas regions.

The General Staff of the Ukrainian armed forces said in its November 3 briefing that heavy fighting was under way in the east, with Russian troops conducting offensive operations in the Bakhmut, Avdiyivka, and Novopavlivka areas of the Donetsk region.

Russia launched attacks on 12 settlements in Donetsk and the neighboring Luhansk region. Ukrainian forces repelled the attacks, the military said.

In Luhansk, the Ukrainian military accused Russian forces are using civilians as human shields. The claim could not be independently confirmed.

Russian strikes were also reported in the central area of Kryviy Rih and in the northeast in Sumy and Kharkiv.

"The enemy is trying to keep the temporarily captured territories, concentrating its efforts on restraining the actions of the defense forces in certain areas," Ukraine's military said.

Russia has targeted Ukrainian civilian and energy infrastructure in recent weeks, prompting power and water outages and causing casualties among civilians.

Russia keeps denying targeting civilians, though the conflict has killed thousands, displaced millions, and razed some Ukrainian cities to the ground.

In the south, Ukraine's counteroffensive has left Russian forces fighting to hold their ground around the city of Kherson, on the right bank of the Dnieper River.

Moscow-installed authorities are urging residents to evacuate, the Ukrainian military said.



Residents of the town of Nova Zburiyvka had been given three days to leave and were told that evacuation would be obligatory from November 5, it said.

Russian authorities have repeatedly said Ukraine could be preparing to attack the massive Kakhovka dam on the Dnieper and flood the region. Kyiv denies that.

Russia and Ukraine will each hand over 107 captured fighters on November 3 in the latest prisoner exchange between the two sides, Denis Pushilin, the Moscow-installed administrator of Russian-controlled parts of Ukraine's Donetsk region, said in a post on his Telegram channel. He said 65 of those released by Ukraine will be separatist fighters from Donetsk and Luhansk.

Seven ships carrying agricultural products left Ukrainian Black Sea ports on November 3, a day after the resumption of a grain deal aimed at delivering Ukrainian food to foreign markets, the Infrastructure Ministry said.

The vessels were loaded with 290,000 tons of food products and were headed toward European and Asian countries, the ministry said in a statement without elaborating.

The British ambassador arrived at the Russian Foreign Ministry in Moscow on November 3, Reuters reported, after she was summoned to discuss Moscow's claims that Britain was involved in a Ukrainian drone strike on Russia's Black Sea Fleet in Crimea.

WATCH: RFE/RL asked people in Moscow how they thought the war in Ukraine -- which Russian President Vladimir Putin maintains is a "special military operation" -- is going.

Russia's Defense Ministry has said the attack was carried out under the guidance and leadership of British Navy specialists, an assertion Britain has dismissed as false.

Meanwhile, two U.S. officials told CBS News on November 2 that senior Russian military leaders discussed last month how and when they might use nuclear weapons on the battlefield in Ukraine.

President Vladimir Putin was not involved in the talks, they told CBS News.

The White House said it has grown "increasingly concerned" about the potential use of nuclear weapons in the past few months. But it stressed Washington saw no signs of Russia preparing for such use.



In September, Putin escalated his nuclear and anti-Western rhetoric, mentioning that Russia could use all means at its disposal to protect itself and the occupied Ukrainian territories.

With reporting by Reuters and BBC
A new cease-fire negotiated between Ukraine's government and Russia-backed separatists in the east held by a thread for a third day as both sides reported clashes near the strategic town of Debaltseve.

The two sides agreed to the so-called "indefinite" cease-fire last week, with the help of mediation from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said the agreement reached on December 21 was a sign that his war-weary nation is on a road to lasting peace after nine previously negotiated cease-fires came unraveled.

Mortar and artillery fire has continued without any casualties.

"Our positions have come under attack 33 times since early Sunday," the Ukrainian military said in a statement.

Russian-backed separatists said their side had come under fire from Ukrainian grenade launchers 62 times in the past day.

The truce came after a battle for control of Debaltseve, which sits on a key rail link between the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.

The two sides agreed to a similar holiday truce last year. It lasted for several weeks before fighting slowly resumed.

As of December 1, the UN's "conservative estimate" of the death toll among civilians and combatants since the conflict erupted in April 2014 is 9,758, with another 22,779 people injured.

Based on reporting by AFP and Interfax


ROANOKE  Shes no muckety-muck. Not a CEO or a developer or a college president or a wealthy philanthropist. Roanokes 2016 Citizen of the Year lives in public housing.

She works a third shift call center job and raises five kids, two of whom are disabled, with her husband of 18 years, who also is disabled.

But Jamice Rudd is also the heartbeat of a grass-roots effort that has pulled in $115,000 in grant funds and supplied more than 250 of Roanokes elderly poor with dental work, dentures and eyeglasses when government health care would not.

Between being a mother and her full-time job, she has driven people to Bedford and Charlottesville in her own van at her own expense.

And with that, she perfectly suited the Roanoke City Councils desire to use the Citizen of the Year award to honor not only those influential on a grand scale, but, as Mayor Sherman Lea put it, those doing what they can with what they have.

Every day can be a struggle around here, but someone else is always struggling more than we are, said Rudd, 40. Im just a person like everyone else. I would like to think what I do, someone else would do if they had the opportunity.

Rudd grew up in Washington state, near the Canadian border.

She arrived in Roanoke nearly 20 years ago, 19 years old, pregnant and looking for a place to start over. She had family in Waynesboro, and learned Virginia Western Community College might be a good spot to start her education.

Rudd met her husband in Roanoke and had four more children. Theyve lived in public housing during most of her time here while she worked through her bachelors degree in criminal justice and most of the way through a masters in accounting, both from Liberty University.

In 2008, her husband was in a car crash that left him permanently disabled.

Before that we were quite the team, Rudd said.

They worked opposite hours to care for the five children, with ages ranging from 7 to 20. Rudds oldest son is disabled from a traumatic brain injury, she said, but he graduated from William Fleming High School and has a full-time job at a car wash. Her 15-year-old daughter, a freshman at Fleming, suffers from lung disease.

Rudd works nights from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. taking calls for HSN, the online and television retailer.

Between all that, she works 20 to 30 hours a week for the resident council at Roanoke Redevelopment and Housing Authoritys Bluestone apartments, of which she is president, and for the authoritys Joint Residents Council, of which she is treasurer and outreach coordinator. Both groups are composed of residents of citys public housing developments.

It was through the nonprofit JRC that she got involved with helping seniors with their dentures and eyeglasses.

About two years ago, members of the council noticed how many elderly neighbors needed dentures and eyeglasses but couldnt afford them because Medicaid and Medicare wouldnt cover them.

So the group set out to help. They won a $40,000 grant from the Foundation for Roanoke Valley that could be spent exclusively on dentures and glasses for public housing residents, sought out providers who would do the work for patients at a discount, and organized transportation.

The program was so successful, the Foundation for Roanoke Valley awarded a second grant of $75,000 fund it for another year and expand it to other Roanoke-area residents.

Rudd said the group has done some additional fundraising to defray operating costs.

Its just been a blessing to see the faces of the people who really have the need and to hear their stories, to see that it really helps change somebodys life, Rudd said.

Seniors who had become reclusive slowly return to society when they have these needs met, Rudd said.

They dont believe theyre getting free help. Theyre like, Are you guys for real? Rudd said.

In July, the program was among the recipients of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials award for resident and client services.

The program is an example of all kinds of good things, said RRHA Executive Director Glenda Edwards Goh, who made the nomination.
The Virginia Tech Program in Real Estate would like to welcome new Industry Advisory Board member Eric Robison, Senior Vice President at Thalhimer, who specializes in institutional grade office and industrial and retail properties. Mr. Robison is returning to his alma mater where he received his Bachelor of Science in both Management Information Systems and Marketing. As a member of the Industry Advisory Board, Eric will serve on the Academic Advisory Committee which provides strategic input for developing courses and curricular enhancement experiences. The Virginia Tech Program in Real Estate is thrilled to have an experienced industry professional on the board to provide perspective on industry trends and be a resource to both faculty and students.Rory Halligan, Virginia Tech
A proposal requiring Virginia schools to notify parents annually of sexually explicit material and allow students to receive alternate assignments has revived the censorship debate and raised questions of transparency.

Along with the annual notice, the proposed change in the Virginia Department of Educations regulations also directs school systems to have clear procedures for providing non-explicit material should any parents request alternatives.

The amendment is nearly identical to the Beloved bill vetoed earlier this year by Gov. Terry McAuliffe. Objections to themes in Toni Morrisons post-Civil War novel gave the bill its moniker.

In his veto message, McAuliffe indicated that he believed that school boards are best positioned to ensure that students are exposed to appropriate literary and artistic works.

Supporters of the proposal contend that it allows parents to stay informed, while critics argue that it raises First Amendment and transparency concerns.

The bottom line is that there will be uniformity across the board in terms of having policies in place. The requirement is uniform across the state. But they will have flexibility of what those policies are, state Secretary of Education Dietra Trent said.

State Sen. Amanda F. Chase, R-Chesterfield, supported the vetoed Beloved bill and now backs the proposed Department of Education amendments.

Recently on her radio show, Cut to the Chase with Senator Amanda Chase, she said that the amendments arent about banning or burning books, but what Chesterfield County, for example, wants to promote.

In Chesterfield, there are core values of honesty and responsibility, and these books, many of them, are controversial and violate the very principles that we try to espouse, she said. If the kids came to school with a T-shirt that had on it printed any of the material thats in these books, they would be suspended from school. If they spoke it in class to a fellow schoolmate, they would be sent home. Its so hypocritical and so intolerable, and I congratulate the Virginia Department of Education for, in my opinion, equipping parents to be involved in their kids education.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia and a host of free speech groups penned a letter to the Board of Education expressing their opposition. The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, American Booksellers for Free Expression, Association of American Publishers, Authors Guild and PEN America all co-signed the letter.

The term sexually explicit is vague and potentially prejudicial, the letter reads. It could be used to describe classic works of literature such as Romeo and Juliet, The Diary of Anne Frank, Slaughterhouse Five and Brave New World, it continues.

The groups argued that such red-flagging of books could lead to a regime of labeling that will leave few books unaffected. They cited the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Texas v. Johnson, which prohibits schools from discriminating against the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea offensive or disagreeable.

Once a book is declared sexually explicit, students will lose sight of the books other themes, the letter reads.

The groups also took issue with the way the change has been proposed.

By burying this regulation deep within a lengthy and scantly publicized document or proposals, DOE officials are preventing voters and local communities from meaningfully considering this controversial issue, the letter reads.

The debate comes not long after similar ones in Chesterfield and Accomack counties.

Following a controversy sparked by parents concerns over some books listed on the school systems summer reading list, Chesterfield schools Superintendent James Lane said in September that the challenged books would remain on shelves but the criteria for selecting library books would be reviewed. He also said future summer reading lists simply would share lists of nationally recognized books, and schools that assign a particular book for the summer should have an alternative assignment available for students who express concern.

Accomack Countys school district leaders faced backlash after they followed their protocol and temporarily pulled To Kill A Mockingbird and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from bookshelves after some parents expressed concerns over racial slurs in the classic novels. The district recently formed a committee to re-examine how to handle such complaints.

The Board of Education made its first review of the proposal last month and plans to take it up again Jan. 26. Afterward, it goes to governor, attorney general and the Virginia Department of Planning and Budget for review.
Richmond police are investigating after an armed robbery was reported early Monday in the city's Carver neighborhood near Virginia Commonwealth University.

According to a VCU alert, the robbery happened shortly after 5 a.m. in the 900 block of Catherine Street when a man armed with a handgun took personal items from the victim.

The suspect is described as a black male; 25 to 30 years old; 5 feet, 10 inches to 6 feet tall; and weighing about 150 to 180 pounds. He was last seen wearing a black hoodie and blue jeans.

The victim was not injured, according to the alert.
In the shadow of a public health emergency declaration, state health officials are trying to legalize a program that could stifle the potential outbreak of two deadly infections.

The Virginia Department of Health has drafted a bill that would legalize syringe services programs in the state as part of the departments effort to prevent the opioid epidemic from creating an outbreak of HIV or hepatitis C.

Syringe services programs  otherwise known as needle exchange programs  provide clean equipment such as needles, hypodermic syringes and other injection supplies to drug users who meet certain criteria.

The syringes and needles would be provided for free and would be distributed by organizations approved by the Department of Health. Funding would come from nongovernmental organizations.

The clean equipment likely would prevent HIV and hepatitis C from spreading between injection drug users. Both are bloodborne pathogens that can be transferred when users share needles and syringes.

Dr. S. Hughes Melton, the chief deputy commissioner for public health and preparedness with the department, said the legislation has been drafted and is being shared with stakeholders, such as health care providers and law enforcement officials.

We have received pretty much unanimous support for the legislation and the concept as a whole, he said of the stakeholders response.

The department is determining patrons for the bill. The General Assembly session starts Jan. 11.

At a Board of Health meeting this month, the states health commissioner, Dr. Marissa Levine, said the opioid epidemic likely would cause HIV and hepatitis C to rear their ugly heads.

She cited syringe services programs  currently illegal in Virginia  as a key defense against the widespread outbreak of the two infections.

There were 800 fatal opioid overdoses in Virginia in 2015, and the first half of 2016 marked a 35 percent increase in the number of fatal overdoses compared with the same period in 2015.

Last month, Levine declared the states opioid addiction crisis a public health emergency.

The Department of Health proposed similar legislation last year, sponsored by Del. John M. OBannon III, R-Henrico, that would have legalized syringe services programs during public health emergencies. The proposal did not make it through the House Courts of Justice Committee.

Melton did not comment as to why last years legislation died but said he thinks this years bill could be helped by a better understanding of the epidemic.

I do believe the understanding of the disease of addiction as a chronic brain disease and the severity of the problem has changed, he said. Those are two of the dynamics at work that we are hopeful will make it more likely that this legislative proposal will see success.

Diana Jordan, the director of the departments division of disease prevention, pointed out that several states near Virginia have legalized syringe services programs, including North Carolina, West Virginia and Maryland, plus Washington, D.C.

Its important to recognize where we stand today, and to know that our neighboring states have already taken action, so we want to be able to address this need, as well, she said.

Not only will the newly drafted legislation make its way through the General Assembly while the state operates within a public health emergency, but federal agencies also have noted that some counties in Virginia are especially vulnerable to an HIV outbreak.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this year released an outline of the counties in the U.S. that are most likely to go through what Scott County, Ind., did in 2015, when the countys opioid problem caused a sudden HIV outbreak, preceded by a hepatitis C outbreak.

Eight of Virginias counties were included on the CDCs list: Buchanan, Dickenson, Russell, Lee, Wise, Tazewell, Patrick and Wythe.

Jordan said Virginia already has seen a spike in hepatitis C cases.

In 2014, more than 6,600 cases of hepatitis C were reported to the Department of Health. Last year, more than 8,000 cases were reported, suggesting that a spike in HIV may be threatening as well, though the numbers have yet to reflect that.

Jordan said the department will implement syringe services programs only in localities that meet certain criteria, which are created by looking at information including morbidity data; cases of hepatitis C within each county; and overdose rates.

Especially if were seeing hepatitis C in young people, thats highly associated with injection drug use, she said. We take a look at HIV data as well, and then there are some socioeconomic factors that would increase a communitys risk even further.

A summary of last years proposed legislation estimated that providing six months of syringe services to 100 people who inject drugs would cost about $76,296.

But that cost is offset by the savings of preventing new cases of HIV and hepatitis C, the summary contends. The average lifetime cost of caring for someone with HIV is $391,223, and costs ranges from $31,452 to $238,000 for hepatitis C cases.

Melton said the syringe services programs would do more than provide clean equipment to prevent HIV, hepatitis C and other diseases associated with injection drug use.

It also gets people, if they already have a condition like HIV or hepatitis C, into treatment  because treatment works for those conditions, he said. And ... it gets them into treatment for their underlying disease of addiction.

It gives us an opportunity to educate the individual about the disease of addiction and offer them treatment.
WASHINGTON

The fall of Aleppo just weeks before Barack Obama leaves office is a fitting stamp on his Middle East policy of retreat and withdrawal. The pitiable pictures from the devastated city showed the true cost of Obamas abdication. For which he seems to have few regrets, however. In his end-of-year news conference, Obama defended U.S. inaction with his familiar false choice: It was either stand aside or order a massive Iraq-style ground invasion.

This is a transparent fiction designed to stifle debate. Five years ago, the popular uprising was ascendant. What kept a rough equilibrium was regime control of the skies. At that point, the U.S., at little risk and cost, could have declared Syria a no-fly zone, much as it did Iraqi Kurdistan for a dozen years after the Gulf War of 1991.

The U.S. could easily have destroyed the regimes planes and helicopters on the ground and so cratered its airfields as to make them unusable. That would have altered the strategic equation for the rest of the war.

And would have deterred the Russians from injecting their own air force  they would have had to challenge ours for air superiority.

Facing no U.S. deterrent, Russia stepped in and decisively altered the balance, pounding the rebels in Aleppo to oblivion. The Russians were particularly adept at hitting hospitals and other civilian targets, leaving the rebels with the choice between annihilation and surrender.

They surrendered.

Obama has never appreciated that the role of a superpower in a local conflict is not necessarily to intervene on the ground, but to deter a rival global power from stepping in and altering the course of the war.

Thats what we did during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, when Moscow threatened to send troops to support Egypt and President Nixon countered by raising Americas nuclear alert status to Defcon 3. Russia stood down.

Less dramatically but just as effectively, American threats of retaliation are what kept West Germany, South Korea and Taiwan free and independent through half a century of Cold War.

Its called deterrence. Yet Obama never had the credibility to deter anything or anyone.

In the end, the worlds greatest power was reduced to bitter speeches at the U.N. Are you truly incapable of shame? thundered U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power at the butchers of Aleppo.

As if we dont know the answer. Indeed the shame is on us for terminal naivete, sending our secretary of state chasing the Russians to negotiate one humiliating pretend cease-fire after another.

Even now, however, the Syria debate is not encouraging. The tone is anguished and emotional, portrayed exclusively in moral terms. Much less appreciated is the cold strategic cost.

Assad was never a friend. But today hes not even a free agent. Hes been effectively restored to his throne, but as the puppet of Iran and Russia.

Syria is now a platform, a forward base, from which both these revisionist regimes can project power in the region.

Iran will use Syria to advance its drive to dominate the Arab Middle East. Russia will use its naval and air bases to bully the Sunni Arab states, and to shut out American influence.

Its already happening. The foreign and defense ministers of Russia, Iran and Turkey convened in Moscow last week to begin settling the fate of Syria. Notice who wasnt there. For the first time in four decades, the United States, the once dominant power in the region, is an irrelevance.

With Aleppo gone and the rebels scattered, we have a long road ahead to rebuild the influence squandered over the past eight years. President-elect Donald Trump is talking about creating safe zones. He should tread carefully. It does no good to try to do now what we should have done five years ago. Conditions are much worse. Russia and Iran rule.

Maintaining the safety of safe zones will be expensive and dangerous. It will require extensive ground deployments and it risks military confrontation with Russia.

And why? Guilty conscience is not a good reason. Interventions that are purely humanitarian  from Somalia to Libya  tend to end badly.

We may proclaim a responsibility to protect, but when no American interests are at stake, the engagement becomes impossible to sustain. At the first losses, we go home.

In Aleppo, the damage is done, the city destroyed, the inhabitants ethnically cleansed.

For us, there is no post-facto option. If we are to regain the honor lost in Aleppo, it will have to be on a very different battlefield.
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
If you were driving around the Roanoke-Blacksburg Regional Airport this past year, it would have been easy to spot one of the students at Star Flight Training. You just had to look up.

With one year in the books, the Star Flight saw more than 300 people take their first flight. The school calls these discovery flights, and theyre designed to show what flying in a small plane is like.

While a lot of students came aboard this way, discovery flights are available to anyone willing to pay for one.

Star Flight never just wanted to be a place to train pilots, but to introduce aviation to the Roanoke community, where few other flight schools are within easy traveling distance.

After a year of heavy social media marketing, a friendly relationship with the airport next door and good word-of-mouth, Star Flight has continued to expand its student base and its visibility.

This year more than two dozen students received their pilots license, and flights at the facility clocked several thousand hours in the sky.

For their efforts at training the countrys next pilots, Star Flights operators were awarded Best New Business by the Roanoke Regional Chamber, an honor they proudly display on a banner stretching across part of their small hangar.

General manager Jon Beard has spent more than 20 years flying planes and now works as an instructor.

Unlike most instructors who become commercial pilots, Beard said he will continue to teach.

Its always amazing to watch the folks mature, he said.

He enjoys watching them turn into pilots. This includes Maggie Avellar, 18, of Floyd, who began training in June. She was intrigued by the thought of learning to fly, citing its adventure and romantic notions of traveling the world. She has now clocked enough hours to fly solo.

Beard serves as a mentor to many of the students, said Star Flight owner Danny Kane, who opened Star Flight at the beginning of the year hoping to fill a niche in the community. He is an aviation enthusiast, and he was passionate about keeping a flight school in Roanoke.

Star Flight started off the year with just a handful of students who had trained at the flight school that was previously at the same location.

Now, about 40 students come regularly. The business went from three full-time instructors to four earlier this year. However, one was recently hired away by an airline, so Beard is searching for a replacement.

But instructors leaving for pilot jobs is one of the goals of the school. The country is facing a massive pilot shortage as a mix of retirements and an increase in training requirements kicks in. Kane opened Star Flight with the goal of easing that burden.

In May, the business partnered with Virginia Western Community College to help students who wanted to earn their pilots license. Beard said the program is still developing.

He is looking to broaden the types of flight training the school offers, including possibly adding helicopter flight training. He also plans to seek grants for specific types of training.

Last spring, Kane invested in a flying simulator for the school. It was an expensive endeavor, but it allows pilots to train without being in an actual plane. He also increased the number of planes used by the school from five to eight by the end of the year.

The planes are modern and fuel-efficient, impressive to Roanoke-Blacksburg airport Executive Director Tim Bradshaw.

A few other flight schools had been based over the years at the current Star Flight location on Waypoint Drive, but Bradshaw said the quality and passion of the operation thats there now has made it a great airport tenant.

Weve seen such a turn-around from anything there before, Bradshaw said.

Many of the pilots become customers of the airport, which owns much of the land surround the airport itself.

Some of the students have bought planes and used hangars at the airport. The increase in take-offs and landings at Star Flight also helps the airport with grant eligibility, since it shows an increase in flight activity at the airport.

Flight schools, Bradshaw said, are not known to be money-makers. So having a successful one requires a group of people with a passion for aviation, which is what he believes is there now.
WENTWORTH and Dearne MP John Healey has pledged that Labour will end homelessness, saying it was not inevitable in a country like the UK.

Branding the problem of rough sleeping a national shame, Mr Healry said a Labour government would double the number of homes ring-fenced for people who have slept on the streets.

Under Labour's plan, 4,000 permanent new reserved flats or houses would be created, and a scheme providing housing for the formerly homeless in London extended beyond the capital.

In addition to setting up new clearing houseschemes in cities like Birmingham, Bristol, Liverpool and Manchester, Mr Healey also wants to see Ministers backing charities to expand street outreach teams for people sleeping rough.

The shadow housing minister said: Homelessness is not inevitable in a country as decent and well off as ours.

This problem can be solved but it demands a new national will to do so.

The rapidly rising number of people sleeping in doorways and on park benches shames us all.

There can be no excuses  it must end. Full stop.

This growing homelessness should shame the government most of all.

The spiralling rise in street homelessness results directly from decisions made by Ministers since 2010 on housing, and on funding for charities and councils.

Mr Healey said the last Labour government had worked hard to cut rough sleeping but the number of homeless had doubled since 2010.

A Labour government would put a stop to this national shame and provide homeless people with a place to call home and rebuild their lives, he said.

Mr Healey said that since a change in the law in 2011, homeless people were increasingly housed in insecure private rented homes, making it more likely that they would end up back on the streets.

Figures show the number of rough sleepers has doubled  with 3,569 people recorded in 2015 under a new annual measure introduced in 2010  although charities say the true number is probably much higher.

The Government announced a new 40 million programme in October pledging to provide an innovative approach to tackling homelessness.

Prime Minister Theresa May said the aim was to focus on the underlying issues which can lead to somebody losing their home.

A new 10 million rough sleeping prevention fund will be set up and homeless people will be offered help in finding a job and education, the Department for Communities and Local Government said.

Local authorities will also be able to tap into 20 million for local authorities to trial new initiatives aimed at preventing homelessness in their areas and a 10 million Social Impact Bond programme has also been launched to help long-term rough sleepers address underlying issues such as poor mental health or substance abuse to help stop them from living on, and returning to, the streets.

The Prime Minister said: We know there is no single cause of homelessness but I am determined to do more to prevent it happening by supporting those facing challenging issues like domestic abuse, addiction, mental health issues or redundancy, whilst also being prepared to offer a safety net to catch those who might simply be struggling to get by.
A Belgian diamond expert Filip van Laere, who advised Harare on ensuring compliance with the Kimberley Process (KP) said in September 2010 that diamond output from Marange fields were expected to reach 40 million carats by 2013, helping the country generate about $2 billion in revenue per year.

"Zimbabwe has been propelled to the number one spot as the world's most important player and it will be number three in value, he was quoted as saying at the time by Reuters.

Van Laere even richly said that Zimbabwe could outshine leading diamond producers like Russia, Botswana and South Africa.

Dear reader, I am sure you probably fell from your chair as you read the aforementioned projection.

Looking at the predictions in hindsight makes one wonder if these were made under the influence.

Clearly under the hex of such toxic advise, the then mines minister Obert Mpofu announced boldly to the world that Zimbabwe was poised to earn $2 billion per annum from its diamonds in Marange and would never beg anyone for help.

We are going to unleash our worthiness to the world. Zimbabwe wont be begging to anyone, he said after the lifting of the KP embargo.

"Our current diamond production is estimated by volume, to be in excess of 25 percent of the world production, and going by the values realised to date per carat, Zimbabwe is set to earn in excess of $2 billion annually in gross revenues."

Chaim Even-Zohar, president of the Tel Aviv-based diamond consulting service, Tacy also said in November 2012 when I sat down with him in Victoria Falls that Zimbabwe had the potential to produce eight to 10 percent of the global gem production.

Some unnamed geologists cited by a local Member of Parliament, Eddie Cross, who claimed to have done a thorough research on Marange, reported that the fields contained between 2 and 7 billion carats of raw diamonds.

Not to be outdone, Charles Stanley Securities of the UK said in February 2012 that Zimbabwes huge diamond reserves were set to shape the global diamond industry over the next few years.

Kieron Hodgson, a commodities analyst with a UK securities firm, was quoted by New Ziana news agency as saying that although the exact resource base of the Marange diamond fields remained unknown, official figures pegged it between 60 000 and 70 000 hectares.

Zimbabwe really does have the potential to upset the applecart, he said at the time.

Hodgson said the southern African country was also expected to produce between two and three million carats per month at peak for around 20 years.

Failure

However, Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe said recently that diamond mining in the country had failed.

Diamonds are a failure, he was quoted as saying recently to a group of former freedom fighters.

This tacit admission of failure, in what some say was a massive plunder of the countrys diamonds, makes a sad reading.

Mugabe claimed earlier this year that illicit trade in Zimbabwean diamonds cost the economy more than $13 billion, forcing the state to create a new company, the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company.

He said without providing a timeframe that the state had earned about $2 billion from gems worth about $15 billion that were generated by the industry.

Lots of smuggling and swindling has taken place and the companies that have been mining, I want to say robbed us of our wealth, Mugabe told a state television station.

That is why we decided that this area should be a monopoly area and only the state should be able to do the mining in that area.

Mugabes admission of the pillaging of Marange diamonds left many a people livid as they had hoped that the gems would help resuscitate the comatose economy.

So what caused this epic failure in Marange?

Firstly, revenue was salted away, while state coffers remained largely dry.

No efforts were made to invest in machinery for underground mining, unlike the alluvial mining they were involved in that is not capital intensive.

The mining companies often clashed with the then finance minister in the unity government, Tendai Biti, over the diamond revenue.

Strangely officials from Mugabes party appeared to side with the mining companies, only to start complaining of truncated diamond revenue when they took control of the government after the 2013 elections.

Secondly, the country allowed too many companies, some of them fly-by-night, to mine in Marange, making it a fertile ground for looting.

There were eight miners in Marange, including Anjin Investments, Diamond Mining Company, Jinan, Kusena, Marange Resources and Mbada Diamonds.

Thirdly, the trade embargo by KP and sanctions imposed by the U.S and EU didnt help matters, as officials often threw a blanket over diamond mining in the country and revenue accrued in fear of sanctions.

This promoted nocturnal diamond dealings and smuggling.

However, having noted these factors, its not far-fetched to say that is still hope.

With political will, right policies, exploration and reputable mining companies (in partnership with the state as is the case in Angola, Botswana and Namibia) willing to go underground, something can be salvaged from this mess.

Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished




Having 60 years of industrial diamond mining experience under its belt, ALROSA has long been successfully operating in several African countries, which are applying its expertise to a full extent. In 2012, the company formulated its Strategy for Developing Projects in Africa, which is being used as a guideline to explore and develop diamond deposits in Angola, Botswana and Zimbabwe considered to be priority projects by the Geological Research Unit of ALROSA. In an interview to Rough&Polished, Victor Ustinov, Doctor of Geological and Mineralogical Sciences, who is also heading the companys Department for Evaluation of New Areas (based in Saint-Petersburg), talks about the search for diamonds in the Republic of Botswana in 2016.

Could you tell us about the search for diamond deposits carried out by ALROSA in Botswana?

ALROSA has been involved in diamond exploration in Botswana since 2014 within the framework of a joint venture with Botswana Diamonds, which is Sunland Minerals.

Sunland Minerals was established in 2013 based on the decision of ALROSAs Executive Committee with the aim to identify primary diamond deposits in Botswana. This joint venture has two shareholders, which are ALROSA (50%) and Botswana Diamonds (50%).

The establishment of the joint venture was preceded by research performed by the Department for Evaluation of New Areas under the Agreement on Technical Cooperation between the geological services of the two companies signed in December 2011.

The main intended purpose of these studies was a comprehensive assessment of Botswanas potential diamondiferous capacity, the selection of promising areas to identify primary diamond deposits and thus ensure long-term planning of geological exploration for ALROSA in the southern African region.

And who is supervising the activities of the joint venture?

The managerial body is represented by the Board of Directors consisting of four people - two representatives from ALROSA and two representatives from Botswana Diamonds, who supervise the activities free of charge. ALROSA is represented in Sunland Minerals by Sergey Mityukhin and Viktor Ustinov and Botswana Diamonds by John Teeling (Ireland) and Kobelo Moholo (Botswana). Decisions within the joint venture are taken by majority vote.

Each year, the Board of Directors reviews and discusses the Work Program and Budget for the next year. Documents are initially agreed with the top management of Botswana Diamonds, and then with the top management of ALROSA. After agreeing on the main directions of work and budget, the partners develop a Program of Work (draft) for the first half of the year. Depending on the types and volumes of work the joint venture hires experts for temporary work (usually for two months) on a contract basis.

Proceeding from the results obtained during exploration in the first half of the year, the partners compile a program and budget for the second half. The works performed by the company are highly dynamic and rapidly adjusted according to current results obtained (taking into account new anomalies that require immediate verification, the need to drill exploration targets, and so on).

Field works are led by the Chief Geologist, who is also the Project Manager. In fact, this person is the joint ventures Geology Director, whose candidacy is previously agreed by the Board of Directors. Decisions on hiring highly qualified personnel are also taken if agreed by both parties.

The joint venture submits financial statements in line with the national standards of Botswana on an annual basis. Also, the company is subject to external auditing, which takes place every year.

What can you say about Botswana Diamonds?

Botswana Diamonds was established for geological exploration in Botswana, Zimbabwe and Cameroon and was listed on the London Stock Exchange in February 2011. The companys largest shareholders include its directors, JPMorgan and investment firm Investec.

A major achievement of Botswana Diamonds is the prospecting performed by its predecessor, African Diamonds, of the AK 6 kimberlite pipe (Karowe) in the Orapa area, which was previously considered uneconomic to develop. This allowed us to estimate the reserves of the diamond field at 24 million carats, which subsequently led to the sale of this business and deposit to Canada-based Lucara. It is known that at present diamonds recovered from this deposit appear to be the most expensive in the world and one recently discovered stone weighing 1,109 carats (Lesedi La Rona or Our light) became the world's second largest diamond after the famous Cullinan.

The President of Botswana Diamonds is John Teeling, a well-known businessman, while the companys Geological Survey Service is headed by James Campbell, who has more than 30 years of experience in the field of exploration and development of diamond deposits.

How is Sunland Minerals operating in Botswana?

The work of the joint venture is usually carried out in two stages during the year within the budget approved by ALROSA and Botswana Diamonds, which is financed on a pro rata basis, i.e. 50 to 50 per cent. The duration of each stage is about 6 months. Each stage includes drawing up a program of work and budget, which are reviewed and approved by the Board of Directors of the joint venture; the organization of exploration; its implementation; subsequent data processing; and developing recommendations for the next stage.

Field works are performed by lead experts (geologists, mineralogists, geophysicists) from ALROSA, Severalmaz and Botswana Diamonds. Field works continue about four months in a year. Geologists and geophysicists working on their sites live in tents. Daily air temperatures reach almost 40-50C in the shade. The mineralogical laboratory works on the basis of the joint venture in Letlhakane. The presence of qualified mineralogists in the field allows you to quickly perform sample analysis and thereby adjust the activity of geoscientists to study anomalous objects. Along with such experienced Botswanan geologists as Benjamin Mosigi, who has been engaged in the diamond geology for many years, there are young Botswanan professionals at Sunland Minerals, some of whom have received higher education in Russian universities.

The joint venture has no permanent administrative personnel, thus saving significant funds, while the company employs staff only to perform certain types of work.

The projects done by Sunland Minerals are a good example of ALROSAs effective work overseas. It is noteworthy that this is the first experience of performing exploration by ALROSA along "Western" standards. There is no doubt that the company will discover new diamond pipes and its work will bring good results.

How would you formulate the main results of prospecting?

During 2014-2016, the works were carried out on 15 license areas of over 3,000 square kilometers. I would like to specify the following as examples of major results achieved:

- The company developed an optimal method of searching for buried kimberlites in Botswana.

- There were established mineralogical and geophysical prospecting models of kimberlite pipes.

- Based on the created models the company carried out grading of hundreds of objects by their prospectivity. Dozens of them were used for ground geophysical works and sampling, permitting to identify six most promising anomalies.

- Six complex anomalies were verified by way of drilling.

- There were stripped kimberlite-related rocks at the AN210-1 anomaly, which were represented by picrites.

- Fifteen sites were explored with minimal financial investments.

- The company is revaluating the kimberlite pipes in the Orapa diamond field.

- The company achieved a high speed of prospecting operations (unlike other companies, which are used to work on the same area for years with no results) - such speed, efficiency and quality of work are significantly increasing the likelihood of new diamond discoveries.

Some of the results produced by the joint work of ALROSA and Botswana Diamonds will be presented at the XI International Kimberlite Conference to be held in Botswana in 2017.

Could you describe what was achieved by Sunland Minerals in Botswana in 2016?

In 2016, Sunland Minerals performed a great amount of exploration within a tight schedule covering 10 license areas (1,912 square kilometers) in the well-known diamond mining regions of Botswana: the Orapa Kimberlite Field (Blocks PL 260, PL 085 and PL 210), including such diamond deposits as Orapa, Damtshaa, Karowe, Letlhakane, the Gope kimberlite field (PL 135, PL 136, PL 137, PL 235 and PL 232) containing the Gagu diamond deposit, as well as in the area of a new kimberlite field, Zuve (PL 233 and PL 234) so far represented by a single pipe, which is KX 36.

Exploration works included geological and geomorphological routes, placer testing of sediments belonging to the platform cover (Kalahari Group) within the ranges of mineralogical and geophysical anomalies; integrated geophysical ground works; mineralogical studies; verification of geophysical anomalies by way of core-drilling; and laboratory analysis.

The company verified three complex geophysical anomalies by way of drilling; two of these anomalies are located in the Orapa field and one in the Gope field in central Botswana. The kimberlite bodies were not stripped. The anomalies are defined by dolerite bodies, similar in morphology and geophysical characteristics to kimberlites. The total volume of drilling in 2016 reached more than 2,500 meters.

An important part of the work done was sampling of multifaceted surface sediments in order to highlight the distribution areas of close-range transportation kimberlite minerals. It was found that at least 25% of the known kimberlites in Botswana do not appear in the geophysical fields. Therefore, the identification of distribution areas of kimberlite indicator minerals from their pipes is an essential element of exploration. And to identify kimberlite bodies we need to have a sampling density network of 200 x 200 m and larger.

The evaluation of diamond grade in the AK 21 kimberlite pipe turned to be an important part of the companys exploration work. It included the study of the structure and material composition of the body by way of small-diameter core drilling (HQ-NQ), large-diameter drilling (300 mm) with reverse circulation, bulk sampling and beneficiation of samples for the purpose of identifying diamonds within fractions of +0.5 mm. Currently, the analysis of beneficiated samples continues.

In order to study the morphology and structure of the AK22 kimberlite pipe the company made ground geophysical surveys (magnetic electric surveys), as well as core drilling. Samples were selected for thermochemical decomposition to be performed by MSA in South Africa. While examining the beneficiated kimberlite core samples, Sunland Minerals mineralogists discovered a diamond splinter in a fraction of -1 + 0.5 mm.

What was the most important in 2016 and what are the companys work plans in Botswana in 2017?

The important thing was that the company performed a very large amount of scheduled work in a relatively short period of time. In 2016, it was the first time that the exploration areas and Sunland Minerals base was visited by a commission of managers and experts of the Ministry of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources (MMEWR) headed by Harold Melaetsa, Lesego Ungwang and Banabose Makosha. As a result of this inspection, it was noted that the work was being done with high intensity, based on modern technology and without remarks.

One of the main activities of Sunland Minerals in the coming year will be evaluation of the diamond grade of kimberlites in the Orapa area on Block PL260. It should be taken into account that cost-effective pipes in the Orapa kimberlite field include only those which contain $ 10-12 worth of diamonds per 1 tonne of ore, while their recovery costs stay at $ 8 per tonne of ore. Therefore, those pipes, which were previously considered non-commercial, may turn to be economically viable for development.

In addition, the company plans airborne geophysical operations in the licensed areas located within the Gope field, a set of ground geophysical surveys and placer sampling along with larger-size sampling of superficial deposits, as well as field mineralogical surveys.

Based on the decision of its Board of Directors, Sunland Minerals also plans to increase the number of license areas in new promising territories.

How do you see further organization of works at ALROSA on African projects?

It is clear that to maintain the leading position of ALROSA in the world the company will need permanent replenishment of its diamond resources and reserves not only in Russia, but also from new territories outside the country.

I believe that the company needs constructive transformations regarding its activities in Africa. Overseas territories and Africa should become a separate and important activity of ALROSA.

Along with such areas as Angola and Botswana, where ALROSA is currently engaged in exploration, there are other areas in Africa which are promising in terms of finding primary diamond deposits (Tanzania, Lesotho and others).

Cooperation with geological survey agencies in other countries and with major exploration companies appears to be an important aspect of work performed by ALROSA on new promising areas. In 2017, the company will continue its activity in Africa.

Galina Semyonova for Rough&Polished




Gemfields to auction 187,775-carat cluster of emeralds Gemfields is set to auction a 187,775-carat cluster of emeralds discovered at its 75%-owned Kagem mine in Zambia in March 2020. Viewing of the Kafubu Cluster commenced on 31 October and bidding will close on 17 November.

Tiffany jewellery pieces to highlight Jewels & Jadeite auction in Hong Kong Jewellery pieces by Tiffany & Co, including those by renowned designer Jean Schlumberger, are among the highlights of Bonhams Jewels and Jadeite auction in Hong Kong on November 26, 2022.

Osino receives 20-year mining licence for Namibia project Osino Resources has received a 20-year mining licence for its wholly-owned Twin Hills gold project, in Namibia. The mining licence is subject to the fulfilment of several customary conditions which include adherence to an agreed work programme, conclusion...

Newmont announces third quarter 2022 results Newmont Corporation announced third quarter 2022 results. The company produced 1.49 million attributable ounces of gold and 299.000 attributable gold equivalent ounces from co-products.
Chow Tai Fook, the largest jewelry brand in China and one of Asias leading jewelers, will be sending a delegation of executives to the International Diamond Week in Israel (IDWI), February 13  16, 2017, says a Press note from IDE.

Chow Tai Fook has over 2,000 points of sale in Greater China, Malaysia and Singapore. Founded over 80 years ago, the company employs a vertically integrated business model from raw materials procurement to retail sales. Managing Director Kent Wong, Executive Director Bobby Liu and Executive Director Peter Suen will represent the company at the event.

Israel Diamond Exchange (IDE) President Yoram Dvash said, We are very excited to again welcome senior representatives of Chow Tai Fook, which is such a significant factor in Asia, one of our key export markets. Asia represents over one-third of all of our polished diamond sales, and our presence there has grown steadily over the past decade. The participation of Chow Tai Fook in our showcase event once again underscores the strength of our ties to the diamond and jewelry industry in Asia, especially in Hong Kong and China.

During IDWI, Chow Tai Fook representatives will meet with leading members of the Israeli Diamond Industry for a discussion of recent trends in the Asian jewelry market and directions for the future.



Aruna Gaitonde, Editor-in-Chief of Asian Bureau, Rough & Polished




Rockwell sealed a deal to sell its Remhoogte and Saxendrift diamond mines to Nelesco Proprietary 318 as part of its recently announced strategic repositioning and business turnaround plans. The diamond miner is expected to receive a cash payment of R45 million. The sale will involve the transfer of 98 employees.

In a statement released last week Rockwell said the payment will be made in three tranches, the first being R20 million upon the completion of certain suspensive conditions, expected by January 31, 2017, the second being R15 million due on completion of the registration of the Saxendrift farm in the name of Nelesco, and the balance of R10 million upon the completion of and consents to assign certain contracts, the Section 11 transfer approval of the mineral properties to the name of Nelesco as well as the consent of the Takeover Regulation Panel of South Africa.

During the period up to completion of all conditions, Nelesco will operate on a contract mining basis with a royalty payable to the Company of 2.5% of revenue from diamonds recovered from properties covered by the transaction and be responsible for any related rehabilitation liabilities.

In addition, the transaction provides for the lease of the Saxendrift office and accommodation complex back to the Company for a period of twenty years as well as access to water. The Company will provide electricity to Nelesco at cost.

This transaction represents a significant milestone in our repositioning plans for the new Rockwell, explains the CEO Tjaart Willemse. It not only brings in cash in addition to the recently announced funding by two of the key shareholders and a third party, but also disposes of non-core assets and associated liabilities, leaving the new Rockwell to focus on completing the next phase and ramp up of the Wouterspan mine and processing plant and advance its portfolio of development and exploration properties. The transfer of 98 employees also assists with our employee right sizing initiative and reduces the number of retrenchees.

I am very appreciative of the support we are getting from our investors and commercial suppliers and particularly our employees during this challenging time, and with this transaction now well advanced to completion stage, and our plant expansion and commissioning in progress, we are excited by what the new Rockwell will deliver, he added.

Theodor Lisovoy, Rough&Polished, Moscow


Roundup: Army, popular forces win victory over Saudi







By Ali Ahsan



SANA'A, Dec. 26 (Saba)  The army and popular forces advanced in several battle fronts over the past 24 hours, achieving great victory in border fronts against enemy Saudi , military officials told Saba on Monday.



The national forces fired locally-modified ballistic missile, Zilzal 2, on Saudi al-Talah military camp and fired Katyusha rockets on Saudi soldiers at al-Shabakah military base in Najran province.



Also in Najran, dozens of enemy Saudi troops were killed when the army and popular forces' rockets hit their gatherings off al-Khadhara border crossing.



Moreover, the national army's snipers shot dead six Saudi soldiers in al-Talah military sites and in al-Shaja military base in Najran.



Separately, in Jizan province, the army's rocketry forces fired Katyusha missiles on Saudi military bases of Quza, al-Sharqan, Abu Madh and al-Salabah.



Meanwhile, the army and popular forces advanced into two Saudi force's military headquarters of al-Samanah and Afarah. Dozens of Saudi soldiers were killed during the operations of Jizan.



The artillery of the national army also struck gatherings of the aggression army in al-Mantazah and al-Kars military bases, also in Jizan.



In Asir province, the army's rockets blasted newly-established military sites in several areas.



In Sana'a province, a total of 18 Saudi-paid aggression mercenaries were killed and others wounded when the army and popular forces foiled the mercenaries' attempt to infiltrate towards Nehm district.



The national forces artillery in Malah area of Nehm killed about 17 Saudi-paid mercenaries and injured 23 others. More 13 mercenaries were killed when their military vehicle were bombed by a planted roadside bomb, also in Malah area.



In the meantime, the national rocketry forces fired ballistic missile, Zilzal 2, on the mercenary groups on the northeast edge of Malah area.



In Taiz province, three mercenaries were killed and other scores wounded when the army forces hit their gatherings at al-Sayer village in Bair Basha, the air defense hilltop and neighboring al-Saqar club. A number of mercenary military vehicles were devastated in the operations.



In Mareb province, tens of mercenaries were killed and others wounded when the national army destroyed their armored personnel carrier in al-Matar hilltop in northern Serwah district.



In Hajja province, a number of the enemy's top mercenary commanders were killed when the army and popular forces' artillery shelled the enemy sites in Medi district.



In Jawf province, the army and popular forces hit mercenaries' sites in al-Maton district, killing two mercenary men.





AA/ZaK

SABA

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[26/December/2016]
A first-of-its-kind journey along India and Pakistan border

What binds the two most talked about nations - India and Pakistan together? What makes the
Schwan's announces further expansion at Salina facility

The distribution center, in addition to the 400,000-square-foot pizza expansion, will bring the Salina Schwan's site to over 1 million square feet.
It seems that Christmas is not just another day, even for the homeless.

My first clue was the abundance of smiles. Given the pain, the deprivation, the disease that causes and accompanies living on a sidewalk, you just dont see homeless people smiling much.

But Sunday was different. There was a lot of love on display on this particularly cold, San Diego morning.

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Christmas by yourself is really depressing, said Mike Murphy, who woke up on a 7th Avenue sidewalk with Dark Fire, his fiancee. I got her, so thats what matters to me.

Along with their Shih Tzu dog Coco, a gift who helps with Dark Fires anxiety and seizure disorder, the little family was enjoying a breakfast of pizza, pasta and pecan pie.

Well-wishers had been delivering goodies throughout Christmas Eve. Coco got a one-gallon bag of dog food and treats. The couple especially cherished a backpack full of socks.

People are so nice, Dark Fire said. They planned to hand out surplus stuff to homeless neighbors. Then, to celebrate, they were getting a hotel room. Murphy knew somebody who would lend him $100.

It was the first homeless Christmas for Dark Fire, who has struggled to maintain housing, off and on, for five years or so.

Not so for Murphy, a schizophrenic who hears and sees things that arent there, and homeless for 20 years. I cant really remember how many holiday seasons hes passed alone outdoors, he said. Ive been gone a long time.

The native San Diegans met and fell in love in El Cajon. Precisely when is less clear. Two years ago, Dark Fire said. No, it was three or four months ago, Murphy gently corrected her. Then they both laughed in the easy way that enforces the bonds of companionship.

Homeless version of the lottery

A few blocks away, in a parking lot bracketed by F Street and 8th Avenue, Jennifer Anderson was also smiling in the company of friends.

Anderson, an Oceanside native whos been diagnosed with mental issues, said she ran out of money and became homeless in downtown San Diego about three years ago.

Yet Anderson sought help and received it, in the form of a taxpayer-subsidized voucher that, for the last four months, has funded a studio apartment at Island Village on Market Street.

I was out here for two years and it was awful, she said, explaining that she came out to spend Christmas Eve with homeless friends and ended up staying past dawn.

Ive made a complete transformation, Anderson said. Now Ive got a home, I have a bicycle, and I got a dog. Ive gotten past that homeless stage.

Indeed, Anderson has hit the homeless version of the lottery. Sure, the odds arent as impossible as the real lottery, but the most vulnerable people are, almost by definition, too mentally disabled to navigate the rules and paperwork required to stand a chance.

On an endless waiting list

San Diegos shelters are entirely full. As for subsidized permanent housing, city officials, who hand out 15,000 federal vouchers a year, say the waiting list has swelled to 60,000 applicants from 45,000 two years ago.

Still, most applicants are able to function while they wait. The numbers of hard-core chronic homeless, about 1,100 people countywide, are much smaller  albeit growing rapidly.

While other major cities have seen encouraging declines in their populations of chronic unsheltered homeless, federal data point to a 54 percent increase in San Diego County over the last decade.

Worse, the number of deaths have recently doubled in the city of San Diego, to 117 in the year that ended Sept. 30 from 54 over the same 12 months in 2014.

Clearly, something is wrong.

Taxpayers seem to be spending plenty; nearly $400 million this year countywide from local, state and federal sources, officials say. Yet most of that money goes to homeless prevention, a broad category that includes everything from food stamps to certain infrastructure projects in low-income neighborhoods. Nobody can say precisely how much goes directly to the homeless, but the amount is a small fraction of the total.

Ive called for city officials to more intelligently triage this funding to those in greatest need. Im still waiting.

City plan due in January

On the bright side, Mayor Kevin Faulconers Housing Our Heroes program has helped about 500 veterans find housing this year under an existing voucher system from the Veterans Administration. Yet such gains are swamped by rising overall numbers of other types of homeless.

To his credit, Faulconer recently hired a senior advisor with marching orders to improve results. A broad plan is due in January.

Helping the most vulnerable people first is not only the moral priority, its also fiscally sound. Multiple national studies, including one conducted in San Diego by National University, show that getting the chronic homeless into apartments with full social services is cheaper by millions of dollars than the alternative  regular visits to jails, shelters and emergency rooms.

Housing the homeless saves money, no human decency required.

Besides, despite the surge in numbers, there still appears to be just 1,100 or so chronically homeless people in San Diego at any given time.

In a county of 3 million, surely we can get 1,100 people off the streets. If anything, Faulconers success with veterans demonstrates the potential.

Then again, San Diegos leaders have a history of unveiling programs, only to see them fade or collapse during the next budget crunch.

A question of help

So what can the rest of us do in the meantime?

Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person, said Mother Teresa, who was later made a saint.

Whenever I write about the homeless, I get calls and messages from dozens of people asking how they can help. Its a tough question, but here are some answers, in reverse order of convenience.

For openers, you could always take one home.

After all, my long recovery from addiction and other mental illness, which included brief episodes of homelessness 25 years ago, began when a retired Episcopal priest named Robert Cornelison took me into his home, along with other deeply damaged people.

It was not light duty by any means. A few days after Bob allowed his first crazy to sleep on a couch, he returned home from the grocery store to find his house effectively burned to the ground.

Yet he persisted at his next house, to my great benefit. Between jail, rehab and an abandoned building, I had spent three consecutive Christmas seasons without family. Now I havent missed one in 19 years. Bobs investment was key, but strenuous efforts on my behalf came from police, counselors, judges and a salesman named Joe.

To be sure, I havent been nearly as heroic. I helped an indigent former dentist who refused conventional treatment endure a nasty detox from vodka and opiates, then let him stay in a spare bedroom for six months before I threw him out. He stayed sober, and so did I. He burned up a pan, but not my house.

Testing limits of medicine

Experience shows that hard cases like me can return to sane, productive lives. But many never recover. Sadly, medical science cant reliably distinguish between viable prospects and the doomed.

Thankfully, other people have dedicated their professional lives to helping both. So if you cant offer a home, the next best thing is cash, given until it hurts.

San Diego is home to effective organizations that wouldnt exist without private funding. Major ones include San Diego Rescue Mission, Father Joes Villages, Alpha Project and Salvation Army. In North County, there is Interfaith, Solutions for Change, Bread of Life and Brother Bennos.

By no means is that a comprehensive list. Theres more information at www.211SanDiego.org. I also recommend checking charity financial disclosures at guidestar.org.

In addition to cash, most of these outfits need professional services. Dentists, doctors, social workers and even financial planners can usually donate time to great effect.

As for stuff, most are happy to provide a wish list. For example, Alpha Project needs blankets and jackets to supply its outreach workers, who track down homeless people in parks, canyons and sidewalks to check on them and assist with basic survival.

Less clear is how to help those who wont go to shelters or enroll in recovery programs.

Enabling versus assisting

If I deliver tents and meals to the homeless, Im helping them live outdoors and refuse organized programs that offer a path back to conventional society. Even worse, that $20 in cash handout could buy the dose of cheap bourbon or heroin that kills somebody.

Given the moral complexity of enabling, it seems wise to follow ones conscience. San Diego has no room at the inn.

We have largely outsourced our compassion to local government, and government is failing our homeless. Until officials build, buy or rent enough units to lift these people from our streets, its hard to argue against blankets, meals and baby wipes.

If direct assistance doesnt suit you, theres always political activism. Here again, the spectrum is broad. In the 1980s, Mitch Synder shamed public officials in Washington, D.C. into action with hunger strikes and demonstrations.

At the other extreme, officials are very good at ignoring phone calls and emails these days. They pay more attention to organized groups and, especially, to conditional campaign contributions.

I also think optimism is important. Extreme reductions in Salt Lake City, Houston and other big cities prove that leaders can get and keep their hardest cases off the streets.

Stand up and be proud

Besides, many homeless are far from hopeless.

To me, this is only for a minute, said Alex Morales, an Army veteran who spent his first homeless Christmas Day smiling and cheering his fellows near San Diegos Gaslamp district. He was dressed to the nines in a black overcoat, suit, blue shirt and matching tie.

Thats what the military teaches you; how to stand up and be proud, Morales said.

A native of Compton, Morales moved to San Diego in 1999 for work. After 17 years in the shipyards working as a machinist and electrician, he went on leave about six months ago with back problems that a doctor suggested may have stemmed from too many parachute jumps.

He said his back is better now. Yet Morales is having trouble navigating the health care bureaucracy at the Veterans Administration that is necessary to get a medical release so he can return to work.

I cant afford the $5 round-trip ticket to the V.A. hospital, he said. And he refused the suggestion of a social worker to tap retirement accounts. So when his money ran out less than a week ago, Morales spent his last $14 on a used tent and camped out.

Then he went to the Neil Good homeless center to sign up for assistance, part of his plan to leave the streets for good. To pass the time, hes been volunteering at the nonprofit Streets of Hope, helping open bags and serve the homeless.

I said OK, Im here, I fell, Morales said Sunday, smiling. I have to trust in God. He has me here for a reason.

dan.mcswain@sduniontribune.com (619) 293-1280 Twitter: @McSwainUT
A new year brings the prospect of change. That feels especially true as we look forward to 2017 and the start of the administration of President Donald J. Trump and his Labor Secretary-designee, Carls Jr. CEO Andrew Puzder. What changes are in store in the law of the workplace?

No. 1: No increase in federal minimum wage. On Jan. 1, 2017, the minimum hourly wage in California will go up to $10.50. The same day, the minimum wage in San Diego will jump to $11.50. On Jan. 1, 2017, the federal minimum hourly wage will be $7.25, as it has been since 2009. On Dec. 31, 2017, the federal minimum wage will be $7.25 and not heading higher. Period.

No. 2: No federal paid sick leave law. According to The Work and Family Legal Center, as of last month, there are seven states, 29 cities, and Washington, D.C. that require private employers to provide paid sick leave to their workers. California alone has seven cities, including San Diego, that have enacted paid sick leave ordinances that are broader than Californias state law. Some see it as inevitable that Congress will enact a similar law. No, it isnt.

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No. 3: No California law prohibiting bullying in the workplace. California law prohibits harassment because of such things as race and gender, or because an employee blew the whistle. But an employee who is subject to general bullying has no claim under the law of California  or any other state, according to the Workplace Bullying Institute. California does require that employers of 50 or more address generalized abusive conduct in periodic mandatory sexual harassment training of their supervisors. But many argue that a legal claim of bullying would be too easy to make and too hard to define. An effort nonetheless will be made in the new year to authorize such claims. And that effort will fail.

No. 4: The U.S. Department of Labor will abandon defense of a new federal regulation expanding overtime eligibility. A new rule developed by Obamas Labor Department would have required that those exempt from overtime pay for more than 40 hours a week of work be paid a salary of at least $47,476, up from the current minimum of $23,660 effective Dec. 1. Over 4 million workers would have been affected. Last month, a Texas federal judge appointed by Obama issued a preliminary nationwide order blocking the new rule, pending further order of the court. The judge concluded that the Labor Department had exceeded its authority under the federal wage law. The Labor Department naturally filed a quick appeal. But look for incoming Labor Secretary Puzder to order the appeal dropped, leaving the original order intact. It could have taken years to unravel the rule through the ordinary process of new rule-making, more precisely un-rule-making. Abandoning the appeal supplies a quick escape from a rule business fiercely opposed.

No. 5: Major court ruling defining the scope of Californias Fair Pay Act: In 2015, the California legislature passed a law prohibiting employers from paying men and women different wages for substantially similar work, unless the employer could show that any difference was justified by a factor other than sex, such as a system that determines pay based on quantity or quality of production or that resulted from differences in education, training, or experience. This past year, the provisions of that law were extended to wage differences traceable to workers race and ethnicity. Watch for a major court ruling in 2017 in a California state or federal court making it clear just how hard it is for an employer to meet that burden.

Watch this space in the coming year as these predictions come -- or dont come -- to pass.

Dan Eaton is a partner with the San Diego law firm of Seltzer Caplan McMahon Vitek where his practice focuses on defending and advising employers. He also is an instructor at the San Diego State University College of Business Administration where he teaches classes in business ethics and employment law. He may be reached at eaton@scmv.com. His Twitter handle is @DanEatonlaw.
Alan Braynin is the CEO of Aya Healthcare, which provides staffing for travel nurses in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia and the Virgin Islands. A UC-San Diego graduate, Braynin has led Aya Healthcare since 2001. The company has been featured in two television shows  13 Weeks: The Travel Nursing Reality Show and MTVs Scrubbing In.

Braynin sat down with the Union-Tribune to discuss his leadership philosophy. The interview has been edited for space and clarity.

How do you define leadership?

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Essentially, leadership is about finding a pathway from Point A to Point B. Its really attention to detail while youre thinking about the big picture. A lot of folks say, We have this audacious goal. But if you have this audacious goal and think somehow all the details will work themselves out, it doesnt work. Certainly you want to find leaders that think about those details but you have to have a mechanism to identify how gaps develop and zap those gaps. Essentially, your job as a leader is to find a way to produce more leaders that have the same vision and passion about delivering whatever it is your company does with the same zeal and dedication. So the job becomes really about developing other people.

What does that lead to  a place where employees feel theyre not just a cog in the wheel?

We purposely dont hire cogs. If I hear, Oh this person can do the job, thats a sign we shouldnt hire the person. Were in very rapid growth mode. For the last three years weve doubled in size every year, and so we need people who can at least move up one level at minimum, if not multiple levels. So if someone says, We have a nice machine and this person can be a cog, that cant work for us because we need people to grow with the organization. So its purposeful, its thoughtful in terms of what we do to develop folks. Were not approaching it randomly.

When you started your career did you think a lot about leadership?

I may have read a lot of books but that doesnt really mean much. Most of the things Ive learned, especially about this business, I learned the other way around, meaning I saw what works. And some of the things happened by accident. Meaning, were just trying to solve a business problem.

Can you give me an example?

A number of years ago when we were much smaller, we had vending machines in the office. Our employees would get food they didnt really want but it was their only option. I also noticed we got bills from the vending machine company, to pay for having the machine, because I guess we werent buying enough junk food. So I said, this is peculiar. For the total cost between the employees and us paying for this, it would be more effective to buy the food we want and make it freely available in the office. So we did that and the food was really good  organic produce, fruits and vegetables, salads and deli meats. All of a sudden we went into fully stocked kitchens and we ended up hiring a nutritionist. There were these signals along the way that employees were a lot more engaged. Its a very small investment that had this really great effect. We stumbled across this. And we said, we have offices in Northern California, Los Angeles, the East Coast and Michigan, why dont we do this everywhere? Someone might say youre wasting a bunch of money for free food but the intangible benefit has turned into this valuable thing. But all this didnt come from a philosophy. Theres probably a hundred things we just stumbled upon and we just kind of said, well, this is a good thing and lets do more of that.

Whats the difference between a leader and a manager?

A manager in my view manages the status quo. So we actually dont want managers.

I think the best things weve ever done have come from employee ideas and employee initiatives or employee feedback. Thats one of the critical jobs a leader has, especially when an organization gets bigger. Your employees touch the customers, they really touch all your constituents and my biggest concern is making sure our leaders continue to listen to employees. Yes, its good to come up with your own ideas but you really have to vet them out with people touching the customer and doing all the work. I see a lot of organizations, they get a theory about how the world is but its not vetted through the people doing the work. I think this is how organizations go into left field and you get a kind of dissension among the ranks.

rob.nikolewski@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1251 Twitter: @robnikolewski
Lemon Grove is seeking applicants for three positions on its new Community Advisory Commission.

The commission will provide feedback to the City Council on an assignment-by-assignment basis. If requested, the Community Advisory Commission will also advise the City Council about any amendments or revisions to the General Plan.

Each of the three commission positions will eventually have a three-year term, but for its beginning stages, the City Council decided staggered terms of one, two and three years will be offered to help ensure continuity on the commission.

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Applicants must live in Lemon Grove.

Ad hoc members will be added depending on the topic. Positions will be open to Lemon Grove residents, business owners and property owners.

The commission will have a city staff member as a liaison designated to help with any administrative work and be the commissions link with other city employees.

The City Council created the Advisory Commission in September 2015 to act as a resident focus group, in part to take the place of the citys Planning Commission.

The council voted 3-2 in May 2015 to eliminate the Planning Commission because it felt it was costing the city too much money and that Lemon Grove did not need it. The two no votes were cast by former planning commissioners Racquel Vasquez, now the mayor, and Jennifer Mendoza.

Lemon Grove planning commissioners earned $75 per meeting; the five-member commission met on average five times a year.

Community Advisory Commission meetings will be open to the public and are tentatively scheduled for 7 p.m. on the second Monday of each month. The group will meet at the Lemon Grove Community Center at 3146 School Lane.

Applications are available at Lemon Grove City Hall, 3232 Main St., and on the citys website. Applications are due by 5 p.m., Jan. 9.
Racquel Vasquez is the new mayor of Lemon Grove, replacing Mary Sessom, who led the city of about 25,000 for the past 20 years.

Vasquez, 47, is San Diego Countys first female African-American mayor.

She started as a Planning Commissioner in Lemon Grove in 2007 and was elected to the City Council in 2012. In last months election, she beat fellow City Councilman George Gastil and medical credentialing specialist Teresa Rosiak.

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Vasquez is originally from Los Angeles and attended Cal State Northridge. She moved to Lemon Grove in 2001. She has been married for 23 years and has two children.

A public information officer for the city of San Diego for nearly 17 years, she took time to answer some questions from the Union-Tribune.

Q. What are some of your goals and your hopes for the future of Lemon Grove?

A. My vision is to make Lemon Grove a thriving, safe and business-friendly city, offering arts, culture and recreational opportunities for everyone to enjoy, which is what I heard from residents and business owners. I will protect community services, eliminate government waste, support economic growth and neighborhood improvements for the city.

Q. You are San Diego Countys first elected female African-American mayor. What does that mean to you?

A. I am grateful to everyone who supported my campaign for mayor of Lemon Grove and the residents who voted for me in this election. It will be an honor to serve as a role model for future leaders.

Q. Who are some of your biggest influences?

A. Women take a particularly notable and honorable role in our society, and there is no description broad or deep enough to describe the details of their daily contributions. Women are mothers, doctors, educators, scientists, celebrities, sisters, human rights activists and politicians. My mother, Lottie Rose, is my biggest influence and my inspiration. She is courageous, resilient, smart, honest, beautiful and my best friend. I feel fortunate to have her in my life.

Q. What is Lemon Grove doing well that you want to see continue?

A. Lemon Grove strives to balance the publics interests, city operational needs along with its resources. As a result, we have maintained operating efficiency and developed plans to improve our streets, infrastructure and overall quality of life.

Q. What does Lemon Grove need to do better?

A. For the past decade, residents have endured drastic cuts to community services as well as park and recreation programs. We have unfunded infrastructure needs from aging buildings, roads and street lights to long-deferred maintenance projects. If we want to see better improvements, we need to make a significant investment in the upkeep of our city.

While Lemon Groves economy is improving, there is more we can do to expand economic development and job growth within the city. As mayor, I will prioritize economic development in our city so we can generate the revenue we need to keep up with the expense of running our city. I will foster a proactive approach to business expansion, attraction and retention efforts, and serve as an advocate for federal, state and local grant funding opportunities.
Last August, District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis sent a short letter to San Diego Countys criminal defense lawyers.

Addressed Dear Counsel, the 1-page letter discussed changes in how some DNA samples  those that were a mixture of biological material from two or more people  were being interpreted by crime labs.

Guidelines for analyzing that evidence had changed in 2010 when a national scientific group that works on forensic DNA testing issues had recommended new standards.

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The letter invited attorneys who believed they had a case from before 2010 that could be affected by the change to contact the Conviction Review Unit, a new division Dumanis established this year to examine innocence claims from convicted criminals.

What the letter didnt say was that five years earlier the San Diego Police Department lab had told the District Attorneys Office in a memo about the changes in the guidelines.

That May 2011 memo noted that it was likely the new SDPD guidelines will result in more samples that cannot be interpreted to say an individuals DNA was found.

Dumanis office informed the regions defense lawyers about the memo this past summer  weeks after a defense attorney seeking a new trial for a gang member convicted of murder in 2011 won a ruling that may reopen his clients conviction, based in part on the changed DNA guidelines.

The lawyer, Matthew Speredelozzi, contends the District Attorneys Office concealed the memo.

The DA suppressed this information and this issue because they do not want to have to review old cases, Speredelozzi said.

In an emailed statement, Dumanis spokeswoman Tanya Sierra said that was not the case. She said the new guidelines by the Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods were well publicized in 2010 in the defense and scientific communities.

Our letter earlier this year was simply a reminder to the defense bar and part of an ongoing, increasing effort to review convictions thoroughly and work cooperatively with them, Sierra said. The timing of the letter has no relationship to the Dominguez case.

Sierra said the District Attorneys Office has received only one request from a defense attorney seeking a recalculation of mixture DNA, and that came before Dumanis letter this year.

Speredelozzi said the change in the guidelines can affect cases in two ways. Samples previously deemed to have the DNA of a suspect would now be considered to be inconclusive. In addition, population frequencies  the statistic that gives the odds that someone other than the suspect could be the DNA source  would be lower.

In both instances, the new guidelines are more conservative and can benefit the defense.

Speredelozzi is trying to get a new trial for Florencio Dominguez, who was convicted in April 2011 of murdering 13-year-old Moises Lopez in Mountain View Park. Dominguez was sentenced to 50 years to life for the killing.

Speredelozzi represented Dominguez at the trial. He said the key piece of evidence against his client was a blood-soaked glove found at the scene.

It had the victims blood on the outside, and inside it was DNA from four individuals  one major contributor, and three minor contributors.

Police criminalist Shawn Montpetit testified at the trial that Dominguez was one of the minor contributors. His testimony came right at the time in April 2011 when the Police Departments lab changed how it interpreted mixed DNA samples to conform with the new guidelines promoted by the national scientific group in 2010.

But Speredelozzi said he did not realize the change was made until years later  in 2014, when he was working on a different case.

As he began to work on a new appeal for Dominguez, his investigation turned up through a state Public Records Act request the May 4, 2011, memo from the crime lab to the District Attorneys Office.

I never knew, Speredelozzi said. No one ever told me.

He wasnt alone. Domenic Lombardo, a veteran San Diego defense lawyer, said the changed guidelines were not generally known among defense lawyers until Speredelozzi wrote a short article for a criminal defense attorneys website this past July. Lombardo is on the board of directors of the Criminal Defense Bar Association and the Criminal Defense Lawyers Club, the two major professional associations for defense lawyers in San Diego.

The disclosure that mixed-sample rules changed five years earlier, and that this was known to the Office of the District Attorney the entire time, was treated as breaking news in the criminal defense community, Lombardo said. The DAs Office may have been disclosing this evidence earlier on a case-by-case basis, but I dont think it occurred in many cases. I say this because the defense tends to share exonerating information in email exchanges, list-serves, continuing education events and publications so that we can avoid miscarriages of justice.

In a signed declaration in October 2015 for Speredelozzis bid for a new trial for his client, Montpetit said if he were to testify today under the new guidelines he could not say Dominguez was a minor contributor and could not provide any statistical odds.

But this past February, Montpetit gave another declaration to prosecutors fighting to keep Dominguez in prison, saying the new DNA guidelines dont render his conclusions at the trial invalid. The new guidelines are just more conservative, the criminalist said.

Prosecutors also argue there was other evidence for guilt, including a witness who testified he saw Dominguez beat and then shoot the victim, and a beer bottle found near the teens body had Dominguezs DNA.

Deputy District Attorney Mark Amador argued in court papers that the evidence was strong and that allowing Dominguez to continue to try to reopen his case was a waste of time and resources.

But in June, Superior Court Judge Charles Rogers said Speredelozzi had made a strong enough argument to allow the case to move forward. A hearing with testimony on the issue may be the next step, Rogers said.

The change in DNA interpretation thats at issue in this case is also surfacing in other parts of the country. Earlier this year, Texas began systematically reviewing thousands of cases that could be affected by the new interpretation guidelines.

Prosecutors, defense lawyers and crime labs around the state are working together, said Lynn Garcia of the Texas Forensic Science Commission, which is coordinating the work. Theyve even gone so far as to post notices in state prison libraries to inform inmates about the issue and telling them how to contact officials if they think it might affect their cases.

Every prosecutor Ive talked to here feels they need to get the notice out there, Garcia said. The feeling is DNA is the gold standard, and we want to make sure it stays that way.

In court papers, Speredelozzi wrote that is the approach prosecutors here should take but have not. Instead of launching an investigation to determine and identify those affected, it has responded by denying that a problem even exists, he wrote.

Twitter: @gregmoran

greg.moran@sduniontribune.com
A New York-based Jewish news organization has named San Diego State University as one of the worst college campuses for Jewish students in the nation.

Dovid Efune, editor in chief of The Algemeiner, said the list was the first of its kind and involved months of research, interviews and data analysis in its methodology.

The head of a local chapter of Hillel, an international organization devoted to fostering Jewish life on campus, called the list absurd on a Facebook post.

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SDSU was listed at 19 out of 40 schools, with Columbia University topping the list.

In 2015, the David Horowitz Freedom Center ranked SDSU as among the nations worst campuses for anti-Semitic activities, a claim also disputed by Hillel as well as the Anti-Defamation League.

In the new list of worst schools for Jewish students, The Algemeiner recalled another incident involving Horowitz, who earlier this year placed on campus posters that identified some students as allied with Palestinean terrorists.

When SDSU President Elliot Hirshman declined to condemn the posters, angry students surrounded him in a campus confrontation that lasted about two hours.

The Algemeiner described the students as anti-Israel activists who ambushed the university president and imprisoned him in a police vehicle.

The publication also noted that a resolution supporting the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel was supported by a majority of the student government, but failed because it needed two-third support.

Michael Rabkin, executive direct of the local Hillel chapter, wrote on Facebook that the list was absurd because there is no credible method for generating such a list. What purpose does it serve, I wonder?

Efune said the list was intended to be aspirational, with the hope that college administrators will consider how to better understand the needs and concerns of Jewish students and recognize the difference between hate speech and free speech.

A statement e-mailed from the universitys communications office Friday said SDSU is accepting of all people and encourages discussion and debate of relevant issues without endorsing one point of view.

We have a robust support system for students and work year-round to create a campus environment where students have the ability to learn about multiple perspectives and feel safe creating and expressing ones own views, which is an important part of the educational process, the statement read.

gary.warth@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @GaryWarthUT

760-529-4939
Valerie Jarrett has played a unique role in the Obama administration.

She was both a senior advisor to the president throughout his eight-year administration  it is extremely rare for White House staffers to stay for the duration  and a close friend of President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama. The three have been allies and confidants for 25 years, leading Jarrett to sometimes be called their first friend.

On Wednesday, with less than a month to go before the Obamas leave the White House, Jarrett reflected on the last eight years while giving few clues about what her future holds.

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Jarrett spoke from Chicagos Kenwood neighborhood, where she is spending Christmas with her 88-year-old mother, Barbara, whose residence is a short walk from the Obamas Chicago home.

She said that after the Obamas leave the White House she plans to relax and get reacquainted with relatives. She said she had no firm professional plans but expects to roam between Chicago, Washington and perhaps two or three other places.

Well see, Jarrett said. I havent made any firm plans on what Im going to do next.

The president and the first lady have said they will stay in the capital until their youngest daughter, Sasha, 15, graduates from high school in 2019. Jarretts only child, Laura Jarrett, became a Washington-based reporter for CNN last September, so the capital still will have a big tug, she said.

Jarrett, who is known to be circumspect, said she had not made any decisions whatsoever about whether shell run for office herself someday, adding, I have not given it a moments thought. Nor would she say whether she plans to write a memoir.

Youre asking me questions I havent even considered yet, so well see. Well see. Well see what I have an appetite for, she said.

Jarrett, who celebrated her 60th birthday last month, figures to have no shortage of job offers after leaving the White House, and also could hit the lecture circuit.

For now shes finishing official business, citing a recent national summit for the White Houses My Brothers Keeper initiative, which aims to empower boys and young men of color.

Im not allowing myself the luxury of focusing on the future until Jan. 20, she said, and then I will.

In Chicago, Jarrett worked under Mayors Harold Washington and Richard M. Daley. She said the rough and tumble politics of Chicago was nothing compared with what she saw in the capital, pointing to Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnells upfront desire to see Obama fail and the entrenched special interests with a political and financial interest in maintaining the status quo.

We have tried to be forces for good.  Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to President Obama

The lowest point by far of her tenure was the 2012 massacre of 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. I remember it like it was yesterday, said Jarrett, who recently attended a memorial to mark the events fourth anniversary.

She said that she was pained as a mother, and that the attack also brought back memories of a personal tragedy from 46 years ago, when her grandfather James E. Bowman was murdered during a robbery attempt in his Washington dental office. The fatal shooting took place just before Christmas in 1970.

She said she regretted that there was no congressional action on gun control after Sandy Hook.

Jarrett said the high points of her White House years include the passage of the Affordable Care Act, which President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to repeal. She said shed lost count of the times Congress has voted unsuccessfully to repeal Obamacare but has yet to see a replacement measure that keeps intact its key provisions.

She said she wouldnt prejudge what Trump might do about the healthcare act, but hoped he would retain the goal of seeing that all Americans have affordable insurance.

As to other key achievements of the Obama White House, she cited the Supreme Court decision to legalize same-sex marriage and the repeal of the ban to let gays and lesbians serve openly in the military.

When the high court ruled on gay marriage in 2015, she was in a meeting and an aide slipped her a note: We won. Jarrett said she ran down to the Oval Office, but found Obama was not there. Chief of Staff Denis McDonough asked Jarrett whether she had called him.

Oh, good point, she replied. She reached the president as he was preparing the eulogy for Clementa Pinckney, the pastor slain in a mass shooting at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C. I had the honor of telling him we had won that case, she said.

Not long after that, the president, Jarrett and others were off to Charleston, where she recalls Obamas eulogy in which he led the congregation in singing Amazing Grace.

They were back in Washington before dusk and on the North Portico of the White House, watching the sun come down and seeing the Executive Mansion bathed in a rainbow of colored lights to mark the Supreme Court decision.

Extraordinary, she said, crediting White House staffer Jeff Tiller with proposing the light display.

During her long tenure, some took to calling Jarrett the Night Stalker because she could visit with the Obamas in the familys private quarters at the end of the day. There was occasional infighting with colleagues, including Rahm Emanuel, Obamas first chief of staff and now Chicagos mayor.

Jarrett downplayed her disputes with Emanuel, saying they had a very comfortable relationship and were direct with one another. They continued to engage after he became mayor of Chicago and with her role as director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.

Jarrett said shed miss the high platform from which we have tried to be forces for good and bending that arc of the moral universe closer to justice.

She said she wouldnt miss the coarseness of the dialogue on social media. I think we can do better than that. It is unnecessarily harsh and oftentimes personal, she said.

Trumps victory was shocking, Jarrett said. She said she had met Trump once, in 2011 when he attended (and was lampooned by speakers at) the annual White House Correspondents Dinner. The two recognized each other. He couldnt have been more gracious and said nice things, and I told him it was a pleasure to meet him, she said. It was a very brief encounter.

If she has any fears about what his administration will bring, shes characteristically tight-lipped. Instead she recalls how diligent President George W. Bush and his aides were in preparing Obama for his transition. Obamas White House, which stood firm for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, is following suit to assist Trump with his transition, she said.

Mystery, for now, may shroud Jarretts next steps. But she is unequivocal about her loyalty to her boss. Asked whether she would work on behalf of the future Obama Presidential Center on the South Side, she said: I will help President Obama for the rest of my life in any way I can, including [at] his center.

Skiba writes for the Chicago Tribune.

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The decision by several Democrats in the California Legislature to already start pushing their 2017 housing proposals is a welcome sign that they grasp the cost of housing is the biggest issue in California, responsible for the Golden States emergence as the center of poverty in America and a constant, never-ending problem for the poor and much of the middle class alike.

Unfortunately, even if all the proposals made it into law, the cumulative effect is unlikely to be nearly as positive as what would have happened had the Legislature approved Gov. Jerry Browns rejected proposal to streamline regulatory approvals of market-rate housing in residential-zoned areas. So far, state lawmakers are not rising to the occasion.

Assembly housing committee Chairman David Chiu, D-San Francisco, Assembly Speaker pro Tem Kevin Mullin, D-San Mateo, Assemblyman Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, Assemblywoman Anna Caballero, D-Salinas, and Miguel Santiago, D-Los Angeles, have proposed four housing-related bills.

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The measure that got the most attention would end the mortgage-interest deduction tax break for second homes, freeing up $300 million for a state program that pays for affordable-housing construction. The measure that may have the most potential would provide funding to the Attorney Generals Office with the intent of getting it to begin enforcing existing state laws obligating local communities to approve housing. The other measures would create incentives for local approval of high-density, transit-oriented infill housing and create a state program to fund housing for chronically homeless individuals on Medi-Cal who receive county-funded services.

On the Senate side, the most notable housing legislation to emerge is from Sen. Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, and Sen. Jim Beall, D-San Jose, who have revived the idea of adding a $75 fee to real estate transactions to generate funding for low-income housing construction. They also propose asking state voters in 2018 to approve a $3 billion bond to finance low-income housing.

The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board accepts the good intentions of these lawmakers  but not their appreciation of history. Whether or not theyre robustly funded, housing strategies that heavily rely on state-subsidized construction have no record of broadly addressing affordable housing because they dont create nearly enough new housing stock. A McKinsey Global Institute report says California needs an additional 3.5 million homes by 2025 but is on track to only add 1 million.

Yet of all the states high-profile Democrats, only Gov. Brown seems willing to jump-start the needed construction boom by weakening environmental laws to automatically approve properly zoned residential projects that set aside as few as 5 percent of their units as affordable. Instead, these Democrats heed the wishes of two of their most powerful factions  unions and environmentalists  who have long used these laws to extract concessions or payoffs for their pet causes or to block projects that wont pay union-scale construction wages or are found unacceptable.

This conundrum at some point needs to trigger genuine soul-searching among California Democrats. If they believe in social and economic justice as much as they say, how can they tolerate a housing situation statewide thats so extraordinarily punitive to so many struggling families? Thats going to force many young residents to leave the state? That imposes a constant, gnawing pressure on millions of Californians?

Good intentions wont begin to address a problem thats becoming insurmountable. That will take something much different: political courage.

Twitter: @sdutIdeas

Facebook: UTOpinion
The fish report is weekly. Its accuracy depends on marina operators, tackle shops and local fishermen we contact. Anglers catching large fish should send the information to Outdoor News Service, P.O. Box 9007, San Bernardino 92427, or telephone 909-887-3444, so it can be included in this report. Faxes can be sent to 909-887-8180. Email messages or fishing reports can also be posted to Jim Matthews at odwriter@verizon.net.

MATTHEWS PICKS OF THE WEEK

1. The California Aqueduct at Taft stays in the top spot. The striper bite is simply wide open with fish to 40 pounds reported this past week. The best bite continues to be on live jumbo minnows with most anglers getting bit on every cast. These fish are mostly running from sub-catchable (less than 18-inches) up to eight pounds, with more of the bigger fish on bigger baits. Sand worms and blood worms are second choice baits. For an update on this action, call Bobs Bait in Bakersfield at 661-833-8657.

The California Aqueduct at Taft stays in the top spot. The striper bite is simply wide open with fish to 40 pounds reported this past week. The best bite continues to be on live jumbo minnows with most anglers getting bit on every cast. These fish are mostly running from sub-catchable (less than 18-inches) up to eight pounds, with more of the bigger fish on bigger baits. Sand worms and blood worms are second choice baits. For an update on this action, call Bobs Bait in Bakersfield at 661-833-8657. 2. The Lake Elsinore crappie bite broke wide open this past week with a lot of nice catches of fish up into the two-plus-pound range for anglers fishing small jigs in the shallow stickups in less than six feet of water. Limits of 25 fish have not been uncommon. For an update on the bite and tips on where to fish, call Williams Bait, Tackle, and Boat Rental at 951-642-0640.

The Lake Elsinore crappie bite broke wide open this past week with a lot of nice catches of fish up into the two-plus-pound range for anglers fishing small jigs in the shallow stickups in less than six feet of water. Limits of 25 fish have not been uncommon. For an update on the bite and tips on where to fish, call Williams Bait, Tackle, and Boat Rental at 951-642-0640. 3.With so many good largemouth bass bites and the hot urban trout action, picking Big Bear Lake as the No. 3 pick might seem surprising. But the trout action has been good to excellent along the north shore and most of the landings will be opening this weekend for boat anglers. Limits of one to three-pound fish have been common and fish to just over 10 pounds have been reported. For an update on the bite call Big Bear Sporting Goods at 909-866-3222.

FRESHWATER HOT SPOTS

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TROUT: The planted trout scene remains good to excellent throughout Southern California at all of the stocked waters. Top bets are western Riverside Countys Corona Lake, the Orange County trio of Laguna Niguel Park Lake, Irvine Lake, and Santa Ana River Lakes and both the High Desert waters of Hesperia Lake and Jess Ranch. In San Diego County, Poway, Jennings, Cuyamaca, Morena, Dixon, and Wohlford are all pretty good bets. Other top bets include all the San Bernardino County Park Lakes. Check the water-by-water reports for details, but the bites are good just about everywhere trout are planted now. For a more wild experience, Big Bear Lake has broken open with a very good bite along the north shore and in most bays. Another good bet is the fly action in the Eastern Sierras year around waters -- especially the Upper Owens on fish up to four pounds and the East Walker River.

The planted trout scene remains good to excellent throughout Southern California at all of the stocked waters. Top bets are western Riverside Countys Corona Lake, the Orange County trio of Laguna Niguel Park Lake, Irvine Lake, and Santa Ana River Lakes and both the High Desert waters of Hesperia Lake and Jess Ranch. In San Diego County, Poway, Jennings, Cuyamaca, Morena, Dixon, and Wohlford are all pretty good bets. Other top bets include all the San Bernardino County Park Lakes. Check the water-by-water reports for details, but the bites are good just about everywhere trout are planted now. For a more wild experience, Big Bear Lake has broken open with a very good bite along the north shore and in most bays. Another good bet is the fly action in the Eastern Sierras year around waters -- especially the Upper Owens on fish up to four pounds and the East Walker River. BLACK BASS: Finally decent weather. The bass action has been wide open most places this week with the fish still in the shallows in full-on spawn modes most places. The bite is hot most places on plastics, reaction baits, and swim baits. Top best include Sutherland, Hodges, Lower Otay, Perris, Diamond Valley, Casitas, and the whole lower Colorado River. Cachuma and Santa Margarita, and even the higher elevation waters like Piru and Pyramid are turning on. For anglers who want a big bass, check the DFG trout plants and hit those places planted this week with your big swimbaits.

Finally decent weather. The bass action has been wide open most places this week with the fish still in the shallows in full-on spawn modes most places. The bite is hot most places on plastics, reaction baits, and swim baits. Top best include Sutherland, Hodges, Lower Otay, Perris, Diamond Valley, Casitas, and the whole lower Colorado River. Cachuma and Santa Margarita, and even the higher elevation waters like Piru and Pyramid are turning on. For anglers who want a big bass, check the DFG trout plants and hit those places planted this week with your big swimbaits. STRIPED BASS: The top pick is again the California aqueduct near Taft which cranked out a 40-pound fish this past week. This bite broke wide open over a month ago and just seems to be getting better each week. Lake Silverwood has been surprisingly good, but the striper bite has been slow to fair at Diamond Valley again this past week mostly on big swimbaits. Elsewhere, the striper bites all are very spotty right now. There are still fish showing at all the usual places -- Castaic and Skinner -- but the bite is mostly tough. Pyramid was showing signs of breaking open this past week with some good scores for trollers. On the Colorado River, the Willow Beach bite is still an option, but not a lot of big fish this past week. Mojave and Havasu are both slowish in the main bodies of both lakes, with the fish stacked up toward the dam and mostly in deep water, but that has been changing this week with more fish showing at other places in both lakes.

The top pick is again the California aqueduct near Taft which cranked out a 40-pound fish this past week. This bite broke wide open over a month ago and just seems to be getting better each week. Lake Silverwood has been surprisingly good, but the striper bite has been slow to fair at Diamond Valley again this past week mostly on big swimbaits. Elsewhere, the striper bites all are very spotty right now. There are still fish showing at all the usual places -- Castaic and Skinner -- but the bite is mostly tough. Pyramid was showing signs of breaking open this past week with some good scores for trollers. On the Colorado River, the Willow Beach bite is still an option, but not a lot of big fish this past week. Mojave and Havasu are both slowish in the main bodies of both lakes, with the fish stacked up toward the dam and mostly in deep water, but that has been changing this week with more fish showing at other places in both lakes. PANFISH: The Salton Sea tilapia bite came back on this week with the full ice-chest mode starting to kick in again. The crappie bite at Lake Elsinore also broke wide open this week with some fish topping two pounds. Other panfish bites worth noting is a fair bite on redear and bluegill at Lake Perris. Other crappie bites worth noting are the continuing bites at Silverwood and Hodges, and the less consistent action at Henshaw and Nacimiento.

The Salton Sea tilapia bite came back on this week with the full ice-chest mode starting to kick in again. The crappie bite at Lake Elsinore also broke wide open this week with some fish topping two pounds. Other panfish bites worth noting is a fair bite on redear and bluegill at Lake Perris. Other crappie bites worth noting are the continuing bites at Silverwood and Hodges, and the less consistent action at Henshaw and Nacimiento. CATFISH:The flathead catfish bite on the Colorado River seems to be tuning up early this year with several more fish from 10 to 30 pounds reported from Blythe south again this past week. The channel cats are also on a pretty good bite. Outside of the river, most of the action has been very spotty, but a few big cats are starting to show throughout the region. This weeks sleeper pick would be Hesperia Lake, which got a big catfish plant this week.

SAN DIEGO AREA LAKES

BARRETT: The lake will open to fishing in May. Reservations will be made through Ticketmaster starting on Tuesday, April 10, by calling 800-745-3000 or www.ticketmaster.com. Lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/.

The lake will open to fishing in May. Reservations will be made through Ticketmaster starting on Tuesday, April 10, by calling 800-745-3000 or www.ticketmaster.com. Lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. HODGES: The bass bite remains very good. There were 35 anglers checked this past week who caught 170 bass, 40 crappie, and five bluegill. The lake is open to fishing on a Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday schedule. Rental boat and concession information: 760-432-2023.

The bass bite remains very good. There were 35 anglers checked this past week who caught 170 bass, 40 crappie, and five bluegill. The lake is open to fishing on a Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday schedule. Rental boat and concession information: 760-432-2023. EL CAPITAN: There were DFG trout plants last week and four weeks ago. No trout reports. There were eight anglers checked who caught 21 bass. Bowfishing for carp is now allowed here. The lake is open Thursday through Monday with boat rentals available all five days (closed to fishing on Sundays). General lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. Rental boat and concession information: 619-443-4110.

There were DFG trout plants last week and four weeks ago. No trout reports. There were eight anglers checked who caught 21 bass. Bowfishing for carp is now allowed here. The lake is open Thursday through Monday with boat rentals available all five days (closed to fishing on Sundays). General lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. Rental boat and concession information: 619-443-4110. LOWER OTAY: The bass bite remains fair to good with more quality fish showing. There were 106 anglers checked who landed 158 bass and five bluegill. Top bass was a 12.1-pounder, and the top bluegill was a 1.2-pounder. Also a few crappie showing. Bowfishing for carp is now allowed here. The lake is open on a Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday schedule and boat rentals are available all three days. General lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. Rental boat and concession information: 619-397-5212.

The bass bite remains fair to good with more quality fish showing. There were 106 anglers checked who landed 158 bass and five bluegill. Top bass was a 12.1-pounder, and the top bluegill was a 1.2-pounder. Also a few crappie showing. Bowfishing for carp is now allowed here. The lake is open on a Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday schedule and boat rentals are available all three days. General lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. Rental boat and concession information: 619-397-5212. UPPER OTAY: There were 10 anglers checked this past week who caught 24 bass to 3.65 pounds. The lake is open on a Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday for catch-and-release fishing (only artificial lures with single, barbless hooks), sunrise to sunset. The road to Upper Otay is closed, but anglers can still walk in. Lake information: 619-465-3474 (recording) or 619-397-5212 (concession) or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/.

There were 10 anglers checked this past week who caught 24 bass to 3.65 pounds. The lake is open on a Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday for catch-and-release fishing (only artificial lures with single, barbless hooks), sunrise to sunset. The road to Upper Otay is closed, but anglers can still walk in. Lake information: 619-465-3474 (recording) or 619-397-5212 (concession) or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. MURRAY: Continued fair trout action with DFG plants this week and two weeks ago. The bass action remains fair. There were 123 anglers who reported 75 bass, 42 bluegill, and just nine trout. Top bass was an 11.55-pounder caught by Jerry Thoresen, Bishop, on a Rago Swim Bait. Lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. There are boat rentals Friday through Sunday and the new concession number is 619-466-4847.

Continued fair trout action with DFG plants this week and two weeks ago. The bass action remains fair. There were 123 anglers who reported 75 bass, 42 bluegill, and just nine trout. Top bass was an 11.55-pounder caught by Jerry Thoresen, Bishop, on a Rago Swim Bait. Lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. There are boat rentals Friday through Sunday and the new concession number is 619-466-4847. MIRAMAR: There were 21 anglers checked who had 29 bass to 5.1 pounds. The lake is open for fishing seven days a week. Rental boats are available on Saturday and Sunday. Lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. New boat rental and concession information: 858-527-1722.

There were 21 anglers checked who had 29 bass to 5.1 pounds. The lake is open for fishing seven days a week. Rental boats are available on Saturday and Sunday. Lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. New boat rental and concession information: 858-527-1722. SUTHERLAND: There were a total of 122 anglers who caught 559 bass in an excellent bite. There were also 42 crappie, 15 bluegill, and three channel cats landed. Top bass was a 5.6-pounder caught by David Brown, San Diego, on a Brush Hog. Lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. Rental boat reservations: 619-668-2050 or ssmith@sandiego.gov.

There were a total of 122 anglers who caught 559 bass in an excellent bite. There were also 42 crappie, 15 bluegill, and three channel cats landed. Top bass was a 5.6-pounder caught by David Brown, San Diego, on a Brush Hog. Lake information: 619-465-3474 or www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/. Rental boat reservations: 619-668-2050 or ssmith@sandiego.gov. WOHLFORD: The trout action has been fair to good and another plant is slated for this week. The best bite has been in Boat Dock Cove and along the Senior Shoreline. Paul Eddo, Escondido, landed a 7.6-pound rainbow in Oakvale Cove on rainbow PowerBait. The bass bite has been very good with most fish on beds in shallow water around much of the shoreline. Phaykhily Saykam, Escondido, landed a 7-4 bass in Oakvale Cove on a nightcrawler, while Richard Fridell, Escondod, had a 5.45-pound on a pumpkin plastic at Bass Point. The crappie are also starting to show in much better numbers as the fish move into the spawn, and the best action has been on small jigs at Crappie Rock and other structure. Also improved catfish bite with warmer weather this week. Jeff Greer, Escondido, landed an 11.45-pound catfish at the west buoy line on an anchovy. Slow other species. Fishing is allowed seven days a week. Private boat launching is not allowed because of Quagga mussel fears. Information: 760-839-4346 or www.wohlfordlake.com.

The trout action has been fair to good and another plant is slated for this week. The best bite has been in Boat Dock Cove and along the Senior Shoreline. Paul Eddo, Escondido, landed a 7.6-pound rainbow in Oakvale Cove on rainbow PowerBait. The bass bite has been very good with most fish on beds in shallow water around much of the shoreline. Phaykhily Saykam, Escondido, landed a 7-4 bass in Oakvale Cove on a nightcrawler, while Richard Fridell, Escondod, had a 5.45-pound on a pumpkin plastic at Bass Point. The crappie are also starting to show in much better numbers as the fish move into the spawn, and the best action has been on small jigs at Crappie Rock and other structure. Also improved catfish bite with warmer weather this week. Jeff Greer, Escondido, landed an 11.45-pound catfish at the west buoy line on an anchovy. Slow other species. Fishing is allowed seven days a week. Private boat launching is not allowed because of Quagga mussel fears. Information: 760-839-4346 or www.wohlfordlake.com. DOANE POND: No recent DFG plants.

No recent DFG plants. DIXON LAKE: The trout bite was slow this past week, but a plant of 1,500 pounds of Nebraska Tailwalkers on Wednesday this week should perk the bite. Best action has been on PowerBait in yellow, rainbow, and green, but PowerWorms and small jigs or spinners are also catching fish. The bass bite has really started to turn on with the fish all over the shallows in the spawn. No catfish or panfish reports. No State fishing license required here. Lake information: 760-839-4680 or www.dixonlake.com.

The trout bite was slow this past week, but a plant of 1,500 pounds of Nebraska Tailwalkers on Wednesday this week should perk the bite. Best action has been on PowerBait in yellow, rainbow, and green, but PowerWorms and small jigs or spinners are also catching fish. The bass bite has really started to turn on with the fish all over the shallows in the spawn. No catfish or panfish reports. No State fishing license required here. Lake information: 760-839-4680 or www.dixonlake.com. POWAY: Very good trout action after plants this week and two weeks ago. The boat bite has been best with the trollers finally starting to get limits on the flasher-nightcrawler rigs. Shore anglers are getting fish around much of the lake, but Half Moon Bay and Hidden Bay are the top spots. Ron Capati, La Mesa, landed a nine-pound rainbow on PowerBait in Half Moon Bay. The bass and bluegill-redear bites are also both starting to take off with the bass especially good in the shallows where the fish are on beds. Small plastics and reaction baits have been the best bet. Bob Freet, La Mesa, landed a 1-12 bluegill while fly-fishing.

Very good trout action after plants this week and two weeks ago. The boat bite has been best with the trollers finally starting to get limits on the flasher-nightcrawler rigs. Shore anglers are getting fish around much of the lake, but Half Moon Bay and Hidden Bay are the top spots. Ron Capati, La Mesa, landed a nine-pound rainbow on PowerBait in Half Moon Bay. The bass and bluegill-redear bites are also both starting to take off with the bass especially good in the shallows where the fish are on beds. Small plastics and reaction baits have been the best bet. Bob Freet, La Mesa, landed a 1-12 bluegill while fly-fishing. The lake is normally open Wednesday through Sunday. A state fishing license no longer required here. Lake information: 858-668-4772, tackle shop recording 858-486-1234, or www.poway.org.

JENNINGS: The trout bite has been fair with some limits reported by trollers. Hermit Cove and at Eagle Point are the top spots for shore anglers and nightcrawlers, PowerWorms and PowerBait are the top bets. The bass action has been the best bet with the fish stacked up in the shallows in less than 10 feet of water and showing on jigs, Creature Baits, and other plastics. The catfish action is slow to fair, but a few fish are showing at the buoy line on cut baits. Other species slow. The lake is open Friday through Sunday, and shore fishing below the campground is available Monday through Thursday with permits available at the campground. Information: 619-390-1300 or www.lakejennings.org.

The trout bite has been fair with some limits reported by trollers. Hermit Cove and at Eagle Point are the top spots for shore anglers and nightcrawlers, PowerWorms and PowerBait are the top bets. The bass action has been the best bet with the fish stacked up in the shallows in less than 10 feet of water and showing on jigs, Creature Baits, and other plastics. The catfish action is slow to fair, but a few fish are showing at the buoy line on cut baits. Other species slow. The lake is open Friday through Sunday, and shore fishing below the campground is available Monday through Thursday with permits available at the campground. Information: 619-390-1300 or www.lakejennings.org. MORENA: No report. Information: 24-hour fishing update line 619-478-5473, ranger station 619-579-4101, or lakemorena.com.

No report. Information: 24-hour fishing update line 619-478-5473, ranger station 619-579-4101, or lakemorena.com. CUYAMACA: The trout bite has been very good this past week after the first Mt. Lassen Trout Farm plant of the season last Tuesday, including trophy trout from three to eight pounds, along with a plant of Jess Ranch rainbows to five pounds. DFG trout are on the list for this week. There have been limits daily. Top fish was a 7-8 rainbow caught by Rudy Badua, San Diego, on an inflated nightcrawler, while Joe Woof, Lakeside, landed a 5-12 to top off his limit. Few reports of other species. Private boats are allowed on the lake, including canoes and kayaks, but the boats must be sprayed for quagga mussels by a high-pressure heated wash prior to entering the lake. The cost is $10 for the spraying and it lasts for multiple trips to Cuyamaca as long as the boat is not used in another reservoir. The decontamination wash down station is for all craft and items used in the water, including boats, motors, kayak, canoes, float tubes and waders. Information: 760-765-0515 or www.lakecuyamaca.org.

The trout bite has been very good this past week after the first Mt. Lassen Trout Farm plant of the season last Tuesday, including trophy trout from three to eight pounds, along with a plant of Jess Ranch rainbows to five pounds. DFG trout are on the list for this week. There have been limits daily. Top fish was a 7-8 rainbow caught by Rudy Badua, San Diego, on an inflated nightcrawler, while Joe Woof, Lakeside, landed a 5-12 to top off his limit. Few reports of other species. Private boats are allowed on the lake, including canoes and kayaks, but the boats must be sprayed for quagga mussels by a high-pressure heated wash prior to entering the lake. The cost is $10 for the spraying and it lasts for multiple trips to Cuyamaca as long as the boat is not used in another reservoir. The decontamination wash down station is for all craft and items used in the water, including boats, motors, kayak, canoes, float tubes and waders. Information: 760-765-0515 or www.lakecuyamaca.org. HENSHAW:No report. All private boats must be checked and washed down for zebra and quagga mussels. Information: 760-782-3501.

RIVERSIDE COUNTY

DIAMOND VALLEY: The bass action has been wide open this past week with the fish in the shallows all around the lake and many anglers reporting 20-plus fish catch-and-release days. The bite has been good on plastics, jigs, swimbaits, and reaction baits with most fish in less than 10 feet of water. Top fish reported was a 9.36-pounder landed by Ed Proulx, Dalton Gardens, Idaho, on a plastic worm. Patrick Hamman, Yucaipa, landed a nine-pound bass on a drop-shot plastic from the shore. In a weekend bass event, it took 39 pounds for five fish to win the event. The trout action has been spotty with some fish for shore anglers on PowerBaits Power worms, and small jigs, but a Mt. Lassen plant is slated for next Tuesday (April 10). The striper bite is still fair at best with only some three to five-pound fish showing on cutbaits and a few bigger stripers on trout-like swimbaits. The crappie, bluegill, and redear bites are all still mostly slow, but it may be more for lack of fishing pressure than a slow bite. Catfish still slow. Private boats must be inspected for zebra and quagga mussels. Boats with wet lower units will be turned away. For general lake and launch information, call 800-590-LAKE. For fishing and boat rental info call the marina at 951-926-7201 or www.dvmarina.com or Last Chance Bait and Tackle at 951-658-7410 or www.lastchancetackle.com.

The bass action has been wide open this past week with the fish in the shallows all around the lake and many anglers reporting 20-plus fish catch-and-release days. The bite has been good on plastics, jigs, swimbaits, and reaction baits with most fish in less than 10 feet of water. Top fish reported was a 9.36-pounder landed by Ed Proulx, Dalton Gardens, Idaho, on a plastic worm. Patrick Hamman, Yucaipa, landed a nine-pound bass on a drop-shot plastic from the shore. In a weekend bass event, it took 39 pounds for five fish to win the event. The trout action has been spotty with some fish for shore anglers on PowerBaits Power worms, and small jigs, but a Mt. Lassen plant is slated for next Tuesday (April 10). The striper bite is still fair at best with only some three to five-pound fish showing on cutbaits and a few bigger stripers on trout-like swimbaits. The crappie, bluegill, and redear bites are all still mostly slow, but it may be more for lack of fishing pressure than a slow bite. Catfish still slow. Private boats must be inspected for zebra and quagga mussels. Boats with wet lower units will be turned away. For general lake and launch information, call 800-590-LAKE. For fishing and boat rental info call the marina at 951-926-7201 or www.dvmarina.com or Last Chance Bait and Tackle at 951-658-7410 or www.lastchancetackle.com. PERRIS: The bass action has remained very good with the fish packed into the shallows in two to 14 feet of water. Lots of fish on beds and whacking jigs, plastics, swimbaits, and spinnerbaits. Not a lot of big fish, but lots of fish to three pounds. Brennan Mankin, Riverside, had five bass to 2-8 on trout plastics in the marina. The trout bite has also been good after a DFG plant two weeks ago. The best bite has been in the east end no more than 40 feet off shore on garlic Power Bait or inflated garlic nightcrawlers. Christopher Mitchell, Redlands, had three trout to two pounds on Roostertails. The redear and bluegill bites have improved this past week with more and more fish showing in the marina, behind the island, and in the east end in just five to 10 feet of water. Lorenzo Martinez, Moreno Valley, had 25 redear to 1-8 on trout worms fishing around the island. No carp or catfish reports. The park and marina are is now open seven days a week again. Hours are 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Marina hours 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Information: marina 951-657-2179, state park 951-940-5600.

The bass action has remained very good with the fish packed into the shallows in two to 14 feet of water. Lots of fish on beds and whacking jigs, plastics, swimbaits, and spinnerbaits. Not a lot of big fish, but lots of fish to three pounds. Brennan Mankin, Riverside, had five bass to 2-8 on trout plastics in the marina. The trout bite has also been good after a DFG plant two weeks ago. The best bite has been in the east end no more than 40 feet off shore on garlic Power Bait or inflated garlic nightcrawlers. Christopher Mitchell, Redlands, had three trout to two pounds on Roostertails. The redear and bluegill bites have improved this past week with more and more fish showing in the marina, behind the island, and in the east end in just five to 10 feet of water. Lorenzo Martinez, Moreno Valley, had 25 redear to 1-8 on trout worms fishing around the island. No carp or catfish reports. The park and marina are is now open seven days a week again. Hours are 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Marina hours 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Information: marina 951-657-2179, state park 951-940-5600. SKINNER: The final county trout plant of the season was two weeks ago, but the bite has remained pretty good in the east end, around the launch ramps, and at the inlet. The best action has been on PowerBait in chartreuse, corn, garlic, and rainbow, trout plastics, and small jigs. Scott Kozik, Winchester, landed a 3-8 rainbow on a nightcrawler in the east end, while Matthew and Michelle Toste, Murrieta, had six trout around a pound each on PowerBait at the inlet. Raymon Vasques, Temecula, landed three rainbows to two pounds. The striped bass are fair to good at the dam, the inlet, and between ramps No. 1 and 2 on chicken liver and anchovies. The largemouth bass are packed into the shallows and are on beds in most of the lakes shallow areas. Nightcrawlers, plastics, blades and crank baits are all working. A few bluegill are starting to show on meal worms, nightcrawler pieces, and red worms. No catfish, crappie or carp reports. Information: store 951-926-1505 or marina 951-926-8515.

The final county trout plant of the season was two weeks ago, but the bite has remained pretty good in the east end, around the launch ramps, and at the inlet. The best action has been on PowerBait in chartreuse, corn, garlic, and rainbow, trout plastics, and small jigs. Scott Kozik, Winchester, landed a 3-8 rainbow on a nightcrawler in the east end, while Matthew and Michelle Toste, Murrieta, had six trout around a pound each on PowerBait at the inlet. Raymon Vasques, Temecula, landed three rainbows to two pounds. The striped bass are fair to good at the dam, the inlet, and between ramps No. 1 and 2 on chicken liver and anchovies. The largemouth bass are packed into the shallows and are on beds in most of the lakes shallow areas. Nightcrawlers, plastics, blades and crank baits are all working. A few bluegill are starting to show on meal worms, nightcrawler pieces, and red worms. No catfish, crappie or carp reports. Information: store 951-926-1505 or marina 951-926-8515. ELSINORE: The crappie bite broke wide open this past week with a lot of nice catches of fish up into the two-plus-pound range. Most of the fish are right up in the stick-ups in less than six feet of water and the action has been on small jigs fished under a bobber. The carp bite is also very good on dough baits and corn with fish to eight pounds reported again this week. Few bass, catfish, or wipers reported, but the bluegill are also starting to turn on with the warmer weather. For more information, call Williams Bait, Tackle, and Boat Rental at 951-642-0640 or go to www.williamsboatandtackle.com.

The crappie bite broke wide open this past week with a lot of nice catches of fish up into the two-plus-pound range. Most of the fish are right up in the stick-ups in less than six feet of water and the action has been on small jigs fished under a bobber. The carp bite is also very good on dough baits and corn with fish to eight pounds reported again this week. Few bass, catfish, or wipers reported, but the bluegill are also starting to turn on with the warmer weather. For more information, call Williams Bait, Tackle, and Boat Rental at 951-642-0640 or go to www.williamsboatandtackle.com. CORONA LAKE: Jimmy Ruiz, Chino, landed a 16 3/4-pound rainbow trout fishing a pink PowerWorm on two-pound test to make the catch. Overall, the trout bite has been very good after plants of trophy Mt. Lassen rainbows and Sierra Bows this past week. The trout have been best on a wide variety of floating dough baits in bright colors, especially those impregnated or doused with garlic scent. The Berkley Mice Tails, small artificial trout worms, and small jigs have also been good bets this week. The homemade mouse featuring a nightcrawler or half a trout worm tail and a head of dough bait are also popular. The best bite continues to be on light line with the baits fished just off the bottom. An 8 1/2-pound rainbow was reported as the top fish on a five-fish stringer landed by Nathan and Kyle Vigil, Riverside. The pair had three trout and two bluegill fishing mid-lake on green floating bait. Russel Cortez, Rancho Cucamonga, also had an 8 1/2-pounder on green floating boat. An eight-pounder was caught by Mike Abila, Ontario, on a Shawns Smoking Jigz. The crappie continue to show in the south end of the lake in the flooded brush with fish up to two pounds or better reported on small jigs. The catfish bite is really kicking into gear after a plant of blue catfish two weeks ago. The few anglers targeting the cats are seeing good action on nightcrawlers and cut baits. Daniel Rodriguez, Highland Park, had eight cats to three pounds each fishing mackerel at the dam. Trout plants are weekly. No state fishing license is required here. Information: 951-277-3321 or log on at www.fishinglakes.com.

Jimmy Ruiz, Chino, landed a 16 3/4-pound rainbow trout fishing a pink PowerWorm on two-pound test to make the catch. Overall, the trout bite has been very good after plants of trophy Mt. Lassen rainbows and Sierra Bows this past week. The trout have been best on a wide variety of floating dough baits in bright colors, especially those impregnated or doused with garlic scent. The Berkley Mice Tails, small artificial trout worms, and small jigs have also been good bets this week. The homemade mouse featuring a nightcrawler or half a trout worm tail and a head of dough bait are also popular. The best bite continues to be on light line with the baits fished just off the bottom. An 8 1/2-pound rainbow was reported as the top fish on a five-fish stringer landed by Nathan and Kyle Vigil, Riverside. The pair had three trout and two bluegill fishing mid-lake on green floating bait. Russel Cortez, Rancho Cucamonga, also had an 8 1/2-pounder on green floating boat. An eight-pounder was caught by Mike Abila, Ontario, on a Shawns Smoking Jigz. The crappie continue to show in the south end of the lake in the flooded brush with fish up to two pounds or better reported on small jigs. The catfish bite is really kicking into gear after a plant of blue catfish two weeks ago. The few anglers targeting the cats are seeing good action on nightcrawlers and cut baits. Daniel Rodriguez, Highland Park, had eight cats to three pounds each fishing mackerel at the dam. Trout plants are weekly. No state fishing license is required here. Information: 951-277-3321 or log on at www.fishinglakes.com. EVANS LAKE: Few reports. But a few bass are showing on small reaction baits and plastics with the fish are starting to cruise the shoreline. Panfish, catfish, and carp all very slow. Trout will not be planted in the lake this year because of fears the plants could somehow harm endangered Santa Ana River suckers below the small lake.

Few reports. But a few bass are showing on small reaction baits and plastics with the fish are starting to cruise the shoreline. Panfish, catfish, and carp all very slow. Trout will not be planted in the lake this year because of fears the plants could somehow harm endangered Santa Ana River suckers below the small lake. RANCHO JURUPA: No report. There were both county and DFG plants two and four weeks ago. Information: 951-684-7032.

No report. There were both county and DFG plants two and four weeks ago. Information: 951-684-7032. FISHERMANS RETREAT: Fair to good trout action and a plant is slated for this week. Plants are every two weeks the rest of the season with derbies the Saturday following the plant. Warmwater species are also starting to show in better numbers as the water temps climb. Information: 909-795-0171.

Fair to good trout action and a plant is slated for this week. Plants are every two weeks the rest of the season with derbies the Saturday following the plant. Warmwater species are also starting to show in better numbers as the water temps climb. Information: 909-795-0171. LITTLE LAKE: Fair to good trout action with DFG plants last week and three weeks ago. A few catfish and bluegill also being landed. Entrance fee is $10 per person, with a $3 per angler fishing fee. Kids five to 12 pay only a $5 entry fee. Kids under five only have to pay the fishing fee if they fish. A state fishing license is required to fish here and regular state limits apply. The lake phone is 530-526-7937.

Fair to good trout action with DFG plants last week and three weeks ago. A few catfish and bluegill also being landed. Entrance fee is $10 per person, with a $3 per angler fishing fee. Kids five to 12 pay only a $5 entry fee. Kids under five only have to pay the fishing fee if they fish. A state fishing license is required to fish here and regular state limits apply. The lake phone is 530-526-7937. REFLECTION LAKE: Information: 951-654-7906 or www.reflectionlakerv.com.

Information: 951-654-7906 or www.reflectionlakerv.com. JEANS CHANNEL CATS:The catfish bite has been good to excellent after the first plant of the season last Thursday. The action is very good on nightcrawlers with the fish averaging about two pounds. The trout are few and far between now. The lake is open only on weekends. No state fishing license is required to fish here. Information: 951-679-6562.

SAN JACINTO MOUNTAIN WATERS

LAKE HEMET: The trout bite has been good, and DFG plants went in last week and three weeks ago. Most anglers fishing from shore are casting spinners or small tube baits, and bait anglers are fishing Power Bait. Best trolling action has been from the point east to the marina. Bluegill, bass, catfish and carp are all slow. Carp bowfishing is allowed Monday through Thursday but bowfishermen must check in first. Lake open daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Boat inspections for quagga mussels are $7 and banding is $3. Half-price boat rentals weekdays. Information: Lake Hemet campground 951-659-2680 or www.lakehemetcampground.com.

The trout bite has been good, and DFG plants went in last week and three weeks ago. Most anglers fishing from shore are casting spinners or small tube baits, and bait anglers are fishing Power Bait. Best trolling action has been from the point east to the marina. Bluegill, bass, catfish and carp are all slow. Carp bowfishing is allowed Monday through Thursday but bowfishermen must check in first. Lake open daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Boat inspections for quagga mussels are $7 and banding is $3. Half-price boat rentals weekdays. Information: Lake Hemet campground 951-659-2680 or www.lakehemetcampground.com. LAKE FULMORE:DFG trout plants this week and two weeks ago at Lake Fulmore and nearby Strawberry Creek. Information: 951-659-2117.

SAN BERNARDINO MOUNTAIN LAKES

SILVERWOOD: The trout and striped bass bites are fair to good, the largemouth bass and crappie also have been pretty fair. The most recent trout plant was two weeks ago, but trout are scheduled to be planted this week in Miller Canyon Creek. The best trout action has been on small lures and PowerBait in Miller and Cleghorn canyons, but fish are showing around much of the lake, but especially in coves where water is running into the lake. The stripers have continued to improve with a lot of four to six-pound fish being landed on big cranks, jerkbaits, and swimbaits. Dave Gosney, Victorville, had three stripers that weighed 22.44 pounds total, including an 8-13, all on Lucky Craft jerk baits from Outhouse Cove and the ski beach. Art Guttierrez, Alta Loma, had a pair of stripers at eight and 6 1/2 pounds on big lures, and Dennis Garrahan, Crestline, landed stripers at six and five pounds, and a five-pound largemouth, on swimbaits at the marina rocks. The largemouth bite has improved dramatically over the past week with fish finally starting to move up out of the depths. Ross May, Moreno Valley, had a 5-12 on a crappie jig off the marina docks, while Tim Milligan, Lytle Creek, landed a four-pounder on a grub at Las Animas Point. The best crappie bite is still off the marina docks with the fish running a half- to three-quarter pound with a few bigger. Most are showing on small jigs. Jim Whiner, Victorville, had 12 crappie to 3/4-pound on jigs tipped with Crappie Nibbles. No reports on catfish or bluegill this week, but George Hernandez, Rancho Cucamonga, landed two carp to two pounds on nightcrawlers off the dock. Dock fishing is allowed for $3 for adults, $2 for kids and seniors. The park is closed on Wednesday and Thursday each week now through March (walk-in fishing still allowed). Hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. There is a petition at the Silverwood Country Store to get the lake opened back up those two days. Information: marina 760-389-2299, state park 760-389-2281, Silverwood Country store 760-389-2423.

The trout and striped bass bites are fair to good, the largemouth bass and crappie also have been pretty fair. The most recent trout plant was two weeks ago, but trout are scheduled to be planted this week in Miller Canyon Creek. The best trout action has been on small lures and PowerBait in Miller and Cleghorn canyons, but fish are showing around much of the lake, but especially in coves where water is running into the lake. The stripers have continued to improve with a lot of four to six-pound fish being landed on big cranks, jerkbaits, and swimbaits. Dave Gosney, Victorville, had three stripers that weighed 22.44 pounds total, including an 8-13, all on Lucky Craft jerk baits from Outhouse Cove and the ski beach. Art Guttierrez, Alta Loma, had a pair of stripers at eight and 6 1/2 pounds on big lures, and Dennis Garrahan, Crestline, landed stripers at six and five pounds, and a five-pound largemouth, on swimbaits at the marina rocks. The largemouth bite has improved dramatically over the past week with fish finally starting to move up out of the depths. Ross May, Moreno Valley, had a 5-12 on a crappie jig off the marina docks, while Tim Milligan, Lytle Creek, landed a four-pounder on a grub at Las Animas Point. The best crappie bite is still off the marina docks with the fish running a half- to three-quarter pound with a few bigger. Most are showing on small jigs. Jim Whiner, Victorville, had 12 crappie to 3/4-pound on jigs tipped with Crappie Nibbles. No reports on catfish or bluegill this week, but George Hernandez, Rancho Cucamonga, landed two carp to two pounds on nightcrawlers off the dock. Dock fishing is allowed for $3 for adults, $2 for kids and seniors. The park is closed on Wednesday and Thursday each week now through March (walk-in fishing still allowed). Hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. There is a petition at the Silverwood Country Store to get the lake opened back up those two days. Information: marina 760-389-2299, state park 760-389-2281, Silverwood Country store 760-389-2423. BIG BEAR LAKE: Very good trout action this past week with the fish starting to stack up in the bays where streams are entering the lake and along the whole north shore from the dam to Stanfield cutoff. Boulder Bay has been very good. The best bite has been on floating baits in eight to 12 feet of water with a two to three foot leader. Top PowerBaits have been chunky cheese garlic, salmon egg red, and chartreuse garlic, with the purple nymph color good early in the morning. The fish are averaging about a pound or a little better but there have been a lot of three to five-pound fish and a 10-11 was landed off Windy Point two weeks ago. The BBMWD opened the east end launch ramp this past week (quagga mussel inspections required), and most of the private marinas should be open by the weekend. The May Trout Classic will be held May 19-20, and there will be a $5,000 tagged trout this season. Applications for entry are available now and only the first 500 entries will be accepted. Cost is $65 per person and all money will go toward the cast payout for the top nine biggest trout or into a fund to plant the lake with more rainbow trout, including trophy fish. For more information on the classic: www.maytroutclassic.com or e-mail Jacque Hall at jacque@maytroutclassic.com. Other species are still mostly slow, but a few small bass and catfish have been reported in the bays on nightcrawlers. For fishing information: Big Bear Sporting Goods 909-866-3222.

Very good trout action this past week with the fish starting to stack up in the bays where streams are entering the lake and along the whole north shore from the dam to Stanfield cutoff. Boulder Bay has been very good. The best bite has been on floating baits in eight to 12 feet of water with a two to three foot leader. Top PowerBaits have been chunky cheese garlic, salmon egg red, and chartreuse garlic, with the purple nymph color good early in the morning. The fish are averaging about a pound or a little better but there have been a lot of three to five-pound fish and a 10-11 was landed off Windy Point two weeks ago. The BBMWD opened the east end launch ramp this past week (quagga mussel inspections required), and most of the private marinas should be open by the weekend. The May Trout Classic will be held May 19-20, and there will be a $5,000 tagged trout this season. Applications for entry are available now and only the first 500 entries will be accepted. Cost is $65 per person and all money will go toward the cast payout for the top nine biggest trout or into a fund to plant the lake with more rainbow trout, including trophy fish. For more information on the classic: www.maytroutclassic.com or e-mail Jacque Hall at jacque@maytroutclassic.com. Other species are still mostly slow, but a few small bass and catfish have been reported in the bays on nightcrawlers. For fishing information: Big Bear Sporting Goods 909-866-3222. GREGORY: First DFG trout plant of the season this week. For more information, call the Lake Gregory boathouse at 909-338-2233.

First DFG trout plant of the season this week. For more information, call the Lake Gregory boathouse at 909-338-2233. GREEN VALLEY: No report. Recorded information: 909-867-2009 and the new website is www.gvlfishing.com.

No report. Recorded information: 909-867-2009 and the new website is www.gvlfishing.com. ARROWBEAR: First DFG trout plant of the season this week.

First DFG trout plant of the season this week. JENKS LAKE REGION:Mostly slow action with just a few trout showing. Parking area should open soon, but anglers can still walk in and fish for holdover fish. No DFG plants yet this season. The first trout plants of the season in the Santa Ana River and the South Fork went in last week. Jenks Lake: 909-747-5098. General Information: Mill Creek Ranger Station at 909-382-2881.

HIGH DESERT LAKES

HESPERIA: The hot trout action continues with another plant on Tuesday this week, and a catfish stocking on Wednesday. The trout have been planted each week all season and the bite has been good on inflated nightcrawlers, PowerBait, and trout plastics. Big fish this past week was an 18-pound rainbow landed by Dale Michaels, Riverside, on a nightcrawler, while David Flores, Costa Mesa, had a 16-8. Brad Cantrel, Los Angeles, landed rainbows at 15 pounds and 13-8, while Scott Addel, Brea, landed a 13-12, and Catheryn Stoly, Las Vegas, caught a 12-pounder. The catfish had been spotty until this weeks plant and the bite immediately kicked in on cut baits and nightcrawlers. A few sturgeon also continue to show. Lake hours are 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. with the night session from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. Cost is $15 per angler. No state fishing license is required here. Information: 800-521-6332 or 760-244-5951.

The hot trout action continues with another plant on Tuesday this week, and a catfish stocking on Wednesday. The trout have been planted each week all season and the bite has been good on inflated nightcrawlers, PowerBait, and trout plastics. Big fish this past week was an 18-pound rainbow landed by Dale Michaels, Riverside, on a nightcrawler, while David Flores, Costa Mesa, had a 16-8. Brad Cantrel, Los Angeles, landed rainbows at 15 pounds and 13-8, while Scott Addel, Brea, landed a 13-12, and Catheryn Stoly, Las Vegas, caught a 12-pounder. The catfish had been spotty until this weeks plant and the bite immediately kicked in on cut baits and nightcrawlers. A few sturgeon also continue to show. Lake hours are 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. with the night session from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. Cost is $15 per angler. No state fishing license is required here. Information: 800-521-6332 or 760-244-5951. JESS RANCH: Trout action has remained very good here with the best bite on PowerBait in salmon peach, garlic, spring green, and orange, inflated nightcrawlers, trout jigs, and small trout plastics. Lots of limits of fish averaging around two pounds or a little better. Top fish this week were fish at 8-9 and 4-9 and caught by Dave Ochoa, Hesperia on orange Power Bait and a gold Kastmaster. Mike Renshaw, Apple Valley, had a 4-5 rainbow, while Gerald Hartz, North Edwards, had a 3-14. The bass and bluegill bites are both starting to kick into gear with the fish starting to move into the shallows. Also a few catfish to five pound showing on cut baits. The lake complex is open every Friday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and it is stocked with trout each week on Friday from its own hatchery. Lake information: 760-240-1107 or www.jessranchlakesnews.com.

Trout action has remained very good here with the best bite on PowerBait in salmon peach, garlic, spring green, and orange, inflated nightcrawlers, trout jigs, and small trout plastics. Lots of limits of fish averaging around two pounds or a little better. Top fish this week were fish at 8-9 and 4-9 and caught by Dave Ochoa, Hesperia on orange Power Bait and a gold Kastmaster. Mike Renshaw, Apple Valley, had a 4-5 rainbow, while Gerald Hartz, North Edwards, had a 3-14. The bass and bluegill bites are both starting to kick into gear with the fish starting to move into the shallows. Also a few catfish to five pound showing on cut baits. The lake complex is open every Friday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and it is stocked with trout each week on Friday from its own hatchery. Lake information: 760-240-1107 or www.jessranchlakesnews.com. MOJAVE NARROWS:County trout plants are weekly, and there were DFG plants this week and two weeks ago. Horseshoe Lake is still closed due to flood damage. Pelican Lake is remains open. For lake information: 760-245-2226.

INLAND VALLEY LAKES

SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY

CUCAMONGA-GUASTI: County trout are planted each week and the DFG also planted trout last week and three weeks ago. Information: 909-481-4205.

County trout are planted each week and the DFG also planted trout last week and three weeks ago. Information: 909-481-4205. PRADO: County trout plants are each week and the DFG planted last week and three weeks ago. Small boats (non-inflatable with a hard bottom) under 16 feet with electric motors are allowed. Information: 909-597-4260.

County trout plants are each week and the DFG planted last week and three weeks ago. Small boats (non-inflatable with a hard bottom) under 16 feet with electric motors are allowed. Information: 909-597-4260. YUCAIPA: County trout plants each week and DFG trout were planted this week and two weeks ago. Lake information: 909-790-3127.

County trout plants each week and DFG trout were planted this week and two weeks ago. Lake information: 909-790-3127. GLEN HELEN: County trout plants are weekly, and there were DFG trout plants this week and two weeks ago. The last event in the San Bernardino County Park trout derby series will be held here April 14. Information: 909-887-7540.

County trout plants are weekly, and there were DFG trout plants this week and two weeks ago. The last event in the San Bernardino County Park trout derby series will be held here April 14. Information: 909-887-7540. MOUNT BALDY TROUT POOLS: The heavily stocked pools are open every Saturday and Sunday. No fishing license is needed. Information: 909-982-4246.

The heavily stocked pools are open every Saturday and Sunday. No fishing license is needed. Information: 909-982-4246. SECCOMBE LAKE:DFG trout plants last week and four weeks ago. Few reports. Information: 909-384-5233.

ORANGE COUNTY LAKES

SANTA ANA RIVER LAKES: Good trout action thanks to plants of Sierra Bows and another load of Super Trout this past Thursday. The big fish was a 19-pound, three-ounce rainbow landed by Dave Beaver, Anaheim, fishing a Lip RipperZ jig with garlic Love Sauce near the boat dock in the big lake. He also had a 4-13 rainbow. Sean Scott, Los Angeles, landed a 13 1/4-pound rainbow and a 7 3/4-pound trout, both on a trout mouse off La Palma Point. Lin Silan, Placentia, was fishing a white and orange Power Mice Tail off the sandy beach to get his 10 1/2-pound rainbow. Armando Leyva, East Los Angeles, landed a 9-6 rainbow on chartreuse dough bait at La Palma Point, while Israel Rangel, Indio, caught an eight-pound rainbow to top off his four-fish, 15-pound stringer, all on garlic dough bait off Levitz Corner. The best action continues to be on floating dough baits in chartreuse and rainbow colors with garlic scent impregnated or added to the baits or Berkley Power Mice. Home-made mice with a nightcrawler or plastic trout worm tail and a floating bait head have also been very good. The usual array of small trout jigs and trout plastics, especially in bright colors, have also been good for the trout. The catfish bite continues to improve as more anglers try for the big blue cats planted two weeks ago. Joseph Collins, Compton, had a 9 1/2-pound cat fishing in Chris Pond with mackerel. Other than float tubes, no water craft are allowed due to fears of invasive quagga mussels being introduced into the water system. No state fishing license is required here. Information: 714-632-7851 or log on at www.fishinglakes.com.

Good trout action thanks to plants of Sierra Bows and another load of Super Trout this past Thursday. The big fish was a 19-pound, three-ounce rainbow landed by Dave Beaver, Anaheim, fishing a Lip RipperZ jig with garlic Love Sauce near the boat dock in the big lake. He also had a 4-13 rainbow. Sean Scott, Los Angeles, landed a 13 1/4-pound rainbow and a 7 3/4-pound trout, both on a trout mouse off La Palma Point. Lin Silan, Placentia, was fishing a white and orange Power Mice Tail off the sandy beach to get his 10 1/2-pound rainbow. Armando Leyva, East Los Angeles, landed a 9-6 rainbow on chartreuse dough bait at La Palma Point, while Israel Rangel, Indio, caught an eight-pound rainbow to top off his four-fish, 15-pound stringer, all on garlic dough bait off Levitz Corner. The best action continues to be on floating dough baits in chartreuse and rainbow colors with garlic scent impregnated or added to the baits or Berkley Power Mice. Home-made mice with a nightcrawler or plastic trout worm tail and a floating bait head have also been very good. The usual array of small trout jigs and trout plastics, especially in bright colors, have also been good for the trout. The catfish bite continues to improve as more anglers try for the big blue cats planted two weeks ago. Joseph Collins, Compton, had a 9 1/2-pound cat fishing in Chris Pond with mackerel. Other than float tubes, no water craft are allowed due to fears of invasive quagga mussels being introduced into the water system. No state fishing license is required here. Information: 714-632-7851 or log on at www.fishinglakes.com. ANAHEIM LAKE: Closed. Anaheim Lake only opens when Santa Ana River Lakes is closed for cleaning and maintenance. Information: 714-996-3508 or www.fishinglakes.com.

Closed. Anaheim Lake only opens when Santa Ana River Lakes is closed for cleaning and maintenance. Information: 714-996-3508 or www.fishinglakes.com. IRVINE LAKE: For the second week in a row, a rainbow trout topping 20 pounds was caught by an angler here. This weeks big fish was a 20-6 landed by Wes Kurz, Lake Elsinore, fishing a hand-crafter Power Mouse off the west shoreline on just four-pound test. Clint Blokdyk, Westminster, had a 10-poujnd rainbow on PowerBait off the west shoreline. The top fish in the Berkley Cup was a 5-4 landed by Larry Cassidy, Corona, to capture the $1,000 top prize and a $500 Berkley gift certificate. The bass bite may be hotter than the very good trout action with the fish still in the shallows in the spawn. The bass are showing on swimbaits, plastics, and a wide variety of reaction baits. Anglers are still having 15 to 30 fish days, along with a few quality fish. Jimmy Getty, Silverado, landed a 10-2 on a Huddleston, while Vic Gallardo, Orange, had a 7-6 bass on a drop-shot plastic. The crappie bite is also fair, but few anglers are targeting them, with most showing up on trout trollers stringers. Ricky Oliver, La Mirada, landed a 1-8 crappie. The catfish bite is also starting to pick up, mostly on the flats and in Sierra Cove. Steve Hathaway, Los Angeles, landed a 3-8 channel on shrimp. No state fishing license is required here. Lake information: 714-649-9111 or www.irvinelake.net.

LAGUNA NIGUEL:The trout action remains good to excellent with 2,000-pound plants this Tuesday and last week, including trophy rainbows. The big fish was a 10-8 rainbow landed by Miguel Valencia, Santa Ana, on a chartreuse Power Bait while Ted Ohashi, Corona, had a 10-3 on a PowerBait-nightcrawler combo. Fly angler Chris Sebourn, San Juan Capistrano, landed a 10-2 rainbow on a zebra midge, while Mike OMally, Santa Monica, had a 10-pounder on a chartreuse Mini Jig. Ichiro Shitsubo, Irvine, landed a 10-pounder on a Trout King worm, while Liz Fortuna, Montebello, had a 10-pound rainbow on a Roostertail. The largemouth bass bite is also very good with bass to 12-pound caught and released. The fish are in the shallows and on beds and some anglers are catching and releasing more than 20 fish a day on plastics. Crappie have also taken off with small fish along the shorelines and slabs to three pound showing around deeper structure on small jigs. Information: 949-362-3885 or www.lagunaniguellake.com.

LOS ANGELES AREA LAKES

CACHUMA: The trout bite slowed down for shore anglers, but anglers trolling in Santa Cruz Bay with CD 5 or CD7 Rapalas continue to see limits if they are patient. Only a few fish from shore were reported in Harveys and E Point on nightcrawlers. Another 4,500-pound plant of Nebraska Tailwalkers was slated for this week followed by a 4,000-pound stocks from Calaveras on April 13, just before the annual Cachuma Lake Trout Derby April 14-15. The trick for the trollers has been to fish two colors of leadcore and a nightcrawler-flasher combo or one of a variety of shad-like baits. The crappie bite also popped back on with a pretty good bite in the narrows and Cachuma Bay, but each cold front has knocked that bite in the ear. Bow-fishing for carp has also been pretty good on warm, sunny days with quite a few double-digit fish arrowed this past week. Free bowfishing permits are available at the entrance gate. For quagga mussel and the boat launching information, log on at https://www.sbparks.org/DOCS/Cachuma.html. The marina is open with rental boats available. The boat launch remains open, but boats must get a quagga mussel inspection. Information: 805-688-4040.

The trout bite slowed down for shore anglers, but anglers trolling in Santa Cruz Bay with CD 5 or CD7 Rapalas continue to see limits if they are patient. Only a few fish from shore were reported in Harveys and E Point on nightcrawlers. Another 4,500-pound plant of Nebraska Tailwalkers was slated for this week followed by a 4,000-pound stocks from Calaveras on April 13, just before the annual Cachuma Lake Trout Derby April 14-15. The trick for the trollers has been to fish two colors of leadcore and a nightcrawler-flasher combo or one of a variety of shad-like baits. The crappie bite also popped back on with a pretty good bite in the narrows and Cachuma Bay, but each cold front has knocked that bite in the ear. Bow-fishing for carp has also been pretty good on warm, sunny days with quite a few double-digit fish arrowed this past week. Free bowfishing permits are available at the entrance gate. For quagga mussel and the boat launching information, log on at https://www.sbparks.org/DOCS/Cachuma.html. The marina is open with rental boats available. The boat launch remains open, but boats must get a quagga mussel inspection. Information: 805-688-4040. CASITAS: The bass bite has been very good this past week, but the crappie bite slowed some with few fish reports. The trout action has remained pretty good for anglers drifting nightcrawlers or trolling. For the bass, the action has been mostly on plastics in two to 12 feet of water with a lot of male fish under three pounds in the shallows on beds. The crappie action has been mostly along the west shoreline, with some fish over two pounds. The trout have been pretty good for shore anglers fishing Power Bait and inflated nightcrawlers and for trollers. Ralph Stam, Camarillo, split his time between trolling Needlefish and drifting nightcrawlers and had a limit of rainbows to four pounds. The trout plant two weeks ago was the final one of this season. Private boats must be inspected for quagga mussels and face a 10-day dry dock requirement before being allowed to launch. The lake is open every day, including all holidays. Information: 805-649-2043.

The bass bite has been very good this past week, but the crappie bite slowed some with few fish reports. The trout action has remained pretty good for anglers drifting nightcrawlers or trolling. For the bass, the action has been mostly on plastics in two to 12 feet of water with a lot of male fish under three pounds in the shallows on beds. The crappie action has been mostly along the west shoreline, with some fish over two pounds. The trout have been pretty good for shore anglers fishing Power Bait and inflated nightcrawlers and for trollers. Ralph Stam, Camarillo, split his time between trolling Needlefish and drifting nightcrawlers and had a limit of rainbows to four pounds. The trout plant two weeks ago was the final one of this season. Private boats must be inspected for quagga mussels and face a 10-day dry dock requirement before being allowed to launch. The lake is open every day, including all holidays. Information: 805-649-2043. CASTAIC: The largemouth bass bite has been very good with the fish stacked up in the shallows. The bite has been good on plastics, nightcrawlers, and reaction baits in two to 15 feet of water. Dan Knight, San Fernando, caught and released 16 bass to five-pounds on drop-shot Robo Worms in the Fish Arm. There are also quite a few smallmouth showing, but they are in a little deeper water. The bass bite has also been good in the lagoon on plastic worms and Senkos. Catfish remain fair in 80 feet of water at the buoy line on cutbaits, but the stripers continue to be tough, with only the odd fish showing in deep water on jigging spoons or ice jigs under baitfish. Information: 661-775-6232 or www.CastaicLake.com.

The largemouth bass bite has been very good with the fish stacked up in the shallows. The bite has been good on plastics, nightcrawlers, and reaction baits in two to 15 feet of water. Dan Knight, San Fernando, caught and released 16 bass to five-pounds on drop-shot Robo Worms in the Fish Arm. There are also quite a few smallmouth showing, but they are in a little deeper water. The bass bite has also been good in the lagoon on plastic worms and Senkos. Catfish remain fair in 80 feet of water at the buoy line on cutbaits, but the stripers continue to be tough, with only the odd fish showing in deep water on jigging spoons or ice jigs under baitfish. Information: 661-775-6232 or www.CastaicLake.com. PIRU: The bass and crappie bites have both been very good over the past week and many anglers have been reporting limits of bass (five) and crappie (25). The bass are stacked up in the shallows in the spawn and showing on plastics, reaction baits, and nightcrawlers with a lot of fish up to four pounds. Matthew Walker, Moorpark, landed a six-pound bass fishing from shore. The crappie have been best around structure on small jigs. The bluegill and redear are also starting to bite on red worms or nightcrawler pieces. Other species still slow. Information: main office at 805-521-1500, x208, the gatehouse at x500, or at www.camplakepiru.com.

The bass and crappie bites have both been very good over the past week and many anglers have been reporting limits of bass (five) and crappie (25). The bass are stacked up in the shallows in the spawn and showing on plastics, reaction baits, and nightcrawlers with a lot of fish up to four pounds. Matthew Walker, Moorpark, landed a six-pound bass fishing from shore. The crappie have been best around structure on small jigs. The bluegill and redear are also starting to bite on red worms or nightcrawler pieces. Other species still slow. Information: main office at 805-521-1500, x208, the gatehouse at x500, or at www.camplakepiru.com. PYRAMID: The striper bite has been steadily improving with fair to good action this past week. The best bite is for trollers, but the bait bite has been nearly as good with the fish still in deeper water. Most of the fish are from two to four pounds. The black bass action has been generally good with the fish moving shallow for the spawn. Both smallmouth and largemouth have been showing, and a weekend tournament was limit-style fishing for all the teams. Best action on plastics and reaction baits. The catfish are also starting to show in the coves on cut baits, but that is still mostly slow to fair. Trout have been pretty good and a DFG plants went in this week and two weeks ago. Also quite a few holdover rainbows to four pounds showing in the Vaquero area, off Spanish Point, and at the dam on floating baits, trout plastics, and small jigs. There will be a night-time fishing event April 14 for boat anglers only. Information: Emigrant Landing entrance booth at 661-295-7155 or the web site at campone.com.

The striper bite has been steadily improving with fair to good action this past week. The best bite is for trollers, but the bait bite has been nearly as good with the fish still in deeper water. Most of the fish are from two to four pounds. The black bass action has been generally good with the fish moving shallow for the spawn. Both smallmouth and largemouth have been showing, and a weekend tournament was limit-style fishing for all the teams. Best action on plastics and reaction baits. The catfish are also starting to show in the coves on cut baits, but that is still mostly slow to fair. Trout have been pretty good and a DFG plants went in this week and two weeks ago. Also quite a few holdover rainbows to four pounds showing in the Vaquero area, off Spanish Point, and at the dam on floating baits, trout plastics, and small jigs. There will be a night-time fishing event April 14 for boat anglers only. Information: Emigrant Landing entrance booth at 661-295-7155 or the web site at campone.com. QUAIL LAKE: No reports.

No reports. PUDDINGSTONE: The bite has been tough overall this past week because of stained water, but anglers can catch lots of small redear along most shorelines. The trout action is also fair with some limits showing for anglers fishing inflated nightcrawlers or floating baits off the north shore at the umbrellas near the end of the ski beach. DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. The bass and catfish have been tough, but anglers targeting the carp are seeing fair action. Park and lake fishing information: 909-599-8411 or www.bonellipark.org.

The bite has been tough overall this past week because of stained water, but anglers can catch lots of small redear along most shorelines. The trout action is also fair with some limits showing for anglers fishing inflated nightcrawlers or floating baits off the north shore at the umbrellas near the end of the ski beach. DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. The bass and catfish have been tough, but anglers targeting the carp are seeing fair action. Park and lake fishing information: 909-599-8411 or www.bonellipark.org. SANTA FE DAM: DFG trout plants this week and two weeks ago. Information: 626-334-1065.

DFG trout plants this week and two weeks ago. Information: 626-334-1065. ALONDRA PARK LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. BALBOA PARK LAKE: No recent DFG plants. Carp fishing has been slow.

No recent DFG plants. Carp fishing has been slow. BELVEDERE PARK LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. CERRITOS PARK LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. DOWNEY WILDERNESS PARK: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. ECHO PARK LAKE: No recent DFG plants.

No recent DFG plants. EL DORADO PARK LAKE: DFG trout plants this week and two weeks ago.

DFG trout plants this week and two weeks ago. ELIZABETH LAKE: DFG trout plants this week and two weeks ago.

DFG trout plants this week and two weeks ago. HANSEN DAM LAKE: DFG trout plant this week. Information: 888-527-2757 or 818-899-3779.

DFG trout plant this week. Information: 888-527-2757 or 818-899-3779. HOLLENBECK LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. Information: 213-261-0113.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. Information: 213-261-0113. JOHN FORD PARK LAKE: No recent DFG plants.

No recent DFG plants. KENNETH HAHN PARK LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. LA MIRADA PARK LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. LEGG LAKES: DFG trout plant this week and two weeks ago.

DFG trout plant this week and two weeks ago. LINCOLN PARK LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. MAGIC JOHNSON LAKE: No recent DFG plants.

No recent DFG plants. MACARTHUR PARK LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. PECK ROAD PARK LAKE:DFG trout plants this week and two weeks ago. Information: 818-448-7317.

COLORADO RIVER

ARIZONA FISHING REPORTS:The Arizona Game and Fish Department compiles a weekly report for most waters in the state, including the Colorado Rivers. Anglers can read the report at this direct link: https://azgfd.net/artman/publish/FishingReport/.

FLOW INFORMATION:Reservoir elevation levels and flow releases for the entire lower Colorado River are available at this web site with information updated hourly: www.usbr.gov/lc/region/g4000/hourly/rivops.html.

LAKE MEAD: The striper action has been tough with the best bite at night during dark moon phases under lights with anchovies or sardines under balls of shad. Some fish for trollers morning and evening. Most fish under four pounds. The largemouth and smallmouth bass are slow to fair with the best action on slow presentation. The fish are still mostly in 20 to 30 feet of water with few moving up shallow yet. Redear and bluegill bite is fair with most fish in six to 20 feet of water. Catfish also very spotty with some on cut baits. Water level is about 40 feet above the level at this time last year with lots of flooded brush, even if fairly deep water. Thats where the bass and panfish have been hanging out to ambush the shad.

The striper action has been tough with the best bite at night during dark moon phases under lights with anchovies or sardines under balls of shad. Some fish for trollers morning and evening. Most fish under four pounds. The largemouth and smallmouth bass are slow to fair with the best action on slow presentation. The fish are still mostly in 20 to 30 feet of water with few moving up shallow yet. Redear and bluegill bite is fair with most fish in six to 20 feet of water. Catfish also very spotty with some on cut baits. Water level is about 40 feet above the level at this time last year with lots of flooded brush, even if fairly deep water. Thats where the bass and panfish have been hanging out to ambush the shad. WILLOW BEACH: The striped bass action has been just fair this past week with fewer stripers than previous week. The best action is still in the stretch between mile markers 49 to 52, with the big trout-like plugs and swimbaits the best bet. The trout bite remains good on salmon eggs, Power Bait, worms, Super Dupers and other small lures and jigs after the weekly plants of 3,000 rainbows. Lots of limits reported. Information: Willow Beach Resort at 928-767-4747.

The striped bass action has been just fair this past week with fewer stripers than previous week. The best action is still in the stretch between mile markers 49 to 52, with the big trout-like plugs and swimbaits the best bet. The trout bite remains good on salmon eggs, Power Bait, worms, Super Dupers and other small lures and jigs after the weekly plants of 3,000 rainbows. Lots of limits reported. Information: Willow Beach Resort at 928-767-4747. LAKE MOHAVE: The black bass are starting to move up out of the depths and have been pretty decent on plastics, grubs, and jigs. Some stripers are showing for trollers working anchovies in 30 to 50 feet with a few fish to 10 pounds reported in Cottonwood Basin and at the Power Lines near the dam. The stripers showing in the dam area are in the two to four-pound range. The catfish bite has been improving in the bays and off the points on cut baits. No panfish reports. Information: Cottonwood Cove at 702-297-1464, Katherines Landing at 928-754-3245. Interesting web site for Willow Beach and Lake Mohave striper anglers: https://lakemohavestripers.com.

The black bass are starting to move up out of the depths and have been pretty decent on plastics, grubs, and jigs. Some stripers are showing for trollers working anchovies in 30 to 50 feet with a few fish to 10 pounds reported in Cottonwood Basin and at the Power Lines near the dam. The stripers showing in the dam area are in the two to four-pound range. The catfish bite has been improving in the bays and off the points on cut baits. No panfish reports. Information: Cottonwood Cove at 702-297-1464, Katherines Landing at 928-754-3245. Interesting web site for Willow Beach and Lake Mohave striper anglers: https://lakemohavestripers.com. LAUGHLIN-BULLHEAD AREA: The trout action has remained good after the seasons last plant March 13. The best action has been at Davis Camp and Rotary Park. Most of the rainbows are pan-sized, but some holdover fish to four pounds are showing each week. The bass action has improved with both the largemouth and smallmouth moving shallow to spawn, and more bluegill and redear are being landed. Some stripers being landed in the Rotary Park area with fish to six pounds this week. Information: Riviera Marina at 928-763-8550.

The trout action has remained good after the seasons last plant March 13. The best action has been at Davis Camp and Rotary Park. Most of the rainbows are pan-sized, but some holdover fish to four pounds are showing each week. The bass action has improved with both the largemouth and smallmouth moving shallow to spawn, and more bluegill and redear are being landed. Some stripers being landed in the Rotary Park area with fish to six pounds this week. Information: Riviera Marina at 928-763-8550. NEEDLES AREA: Very spotty fishing in this stretch of river. A few smallmouths are showing along rip-rap with the action better the further south you go. Also the striper are starting to show on cut baits and cranks along with the occasional catfish. Information: Needles Marina at 760-326-2197.

Very spotty fishing in this stretch of river. A few smallmouths are showing along rip-rap with the action better the further south you go. Also the striper are starting to show on cut baits and cranks along with the occasional catfish. Information: Needles Marina at 760-326-2197. TOPOCK AREA: Good to excellent action throughout the gorge region on smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, redear, and bluegill. Both smallmouth and largemouth have really turned on with a lot of two to three-pound fish showing on nightcrawlers, plastics, and reaction baits. The panfish are good in the gorge and marsh on nightcrawlers. Striper action remains sluggish and no catfish have been reported. Topock Marsh can be accessed by boat at North Dike, Catfish Paradise, and Five-Mile Landing. Information: Phils Western Trader at 928-768-4954 or Capt. Doyles Fun Fishing guide service at 928-768-2667.

Good to excellent action throughout the gorge region on smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, redear, and bluegill. Both smallmouth and largemouth have really turned on with a lot of two to three-pound fish showing on nightcrawlers, plastics, and reaction baits. The panfish are good in the gorge and marsh on nightcrawlers. Striper action remains sluggish and no catfish have been reported. Topock Marsh can be accessed by boat at North Dike, Catfish Paradise, and Five-Mile Landing. Information: Phils Western Trader at 928-768-4954 or Capt. Doyles Fun Fishing guide service at 928-768-2667. HAVASU: The black bass bite has continued to be good with the fish still in a spawn mode with most of the bass still on beds. The smallmouth and largemouth are showing up in water as shallow as four feet with the best action on plastics, reaction baits, and swimbaits. Also a lot of fish showing on modified Alabama rigs (to make them Arizona-legal with just two hooks). While the stripers remain mostly slow, there is some sign the fish are starting to spread throughout the lake. The best action is still mostly in the south end of the lake at the dam and in the Havasu Springs area where the shad a schooled up. Other species have also been very slow, with few reports of redear or catfish. The only redear reports have been up into the river in Topoc Gorge in the sun-warmed backwaters, mostly on nightcrawlers. Information: Bass Tackle Master at 928-854-2277.

The black bass bite has continued to be good with the fish still in a spawn mode with most of the bass still on beds. The smallmouth and largemouth are showing up in water as shallow as four feet with the best action on plastics, reaction baits, and swimbaits. Also a lot of fish showing on modified Alabama rigs (to make them Arizona-legal with just two hooks). While the stripers remain mostly slow, there is some sign the fish are starting to spread throughout the lake. The best action is still mostly in the south end of the lake at the dam and in the Havasu Springs area where the shad a schooled up. Other species have also been very slow, with few reports of redear or catfish. The only redear reports have been up into the river in Topoc Gorge in the sun-warmed backwaters, mostly on nightcrawlers. Information: Bass Tackle Master at 928-854-2277. PARKER STRIP: Fair to good smallmouth bass along the rip-rap on small cranks, plastics, and jigs. The catfish are fair to good on cut baits in the bigger pools and eddies. Bluegill and redear are good in the backwaters and quiet water in the main river. No flathead reports.

Fair to good smallmouth bass along the rip-rap on small cranks, plastics, and jigs. The catfish are fair to good on cut baits in the bigger pools and eddies. Bluegill and redear are good in the backwaters and quiet water in the main river. No flathead reports. BLYTHE: Good action on flatheads, channels, and largemouth bass. The bass are mostly in the shallows in a spawn mode with the best bite on plastics, jigs, nightcrawlers, and reaction baits. The catfish have been good, mostly on cut baits and live bluegill or goldfish. The smallmouth bass are fair and improving on crawdad-like crankbaits and plastics in the main river along the rip-rap. The tilapia and panfish bites have been getting better by the day. Few striper reports. Information: B&B Bait 760-921-2248.

Good action on flatheads, channels, and largemouth bass. The bass are mostly in the shallows in a spawn mode with the best bite on plastics, jigs, nightcrawlers, and reaction baits. The catfish have been good, mostly on cut baits and live bluegill or goldfish. The smallmouth bass are fair and improving on crawdad-like crankbaits and plastics in the main river along the rip-rap. The tilapia and panfish bites have been getting better by the day. Few striper reports. Information: B&B Bait 760-921-2248. PALO VERDE: The bass largemouth bass bite is pretty good with the fish in the shallows on beds. The smallmouth action in the main river is very good on small reaction baits, cranks, and jigs. The catfish action is also really starting to take off with good reports from both the main river and lagoon this past week. The panfish bite is already kicking into gear with some good catches of half-pound bluegill. Cibola Lake, a popular fishing backwater lake on the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge, reopens to fishing March 15 with a very good bass bite before the weekend weather. Information: Walters Camp 760-854-3322 Thursday through Monday.

The bass largemouth bass bite is pretty good with the fish in the shallows on beds. The smallmouth action in the main river is very good on small reaction baits, cranks, and jigs. The catfish action is also really starting to take off with good reports from both the main river and lagoon this past week. The panfish bite is already kicking into gear with some good catches of half-pound bluegill. Cibola Lake, a popular fishing backwater lake on the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge, reopens to fishing March 15 with a very good bass bite before the weekend weather. Information: Walters Camp 760-854-3322 Thursday through Monday. PICACHO AREA: The bass are good on plastics and live baits with some fish still showing on reaction baits. Generally fair and improving action on catfish, and the bluegill bite is starting to improve, especially in the sun-warmed backwaters.

The bass are good on plastics and live baits with some fish still showing on reaction baits. Generally fair and improving action on catfish, and the bluegill bite is starting to improve, especially in the sun-warmed backwaters. MARTINEZ LAKE AREA: Largemouth bass action has been good on plastics, jigs, and live bait, as more and more fish move shallow for the spawn. Channel catfish action is fair to good on stink baits, and the quality flathead action is picking up with some nice fish to 20-pounds-plus this past week. Bluegill are fair and improving, too, but still no crappie reports. Information: 928-783-9589 Thursday through Monday or www.martinezlake.com.

Largemouth bass action has been good on plastics, jigs, and live bait, as more and more fish move shallow for the spawn. Channel catfish action is fair to good on stink baits, and the quality flathead action is picking up with some nice fish to 20-pounds-plus this past week. Bluegill are fair and improving, too, but still no crappie reports. Information: 928-783-9589 Thursday through Monday or www.martinezlake.com. YUMA AREA:Largemouth bass action is good and getting better by the day with the best action on plastics, nightcrawlers and reaction baits in the warmer backwaters with some fish already in shallow water on beds for the spawn. The channel catfish action also fair to good. Flatheads also fair on live bluegill, tilapia, or goldfish. Fair bluegill bite in most backwaters and this bite is getting better by the day.

LOWER DESERT WATERS

SALTON SEA: The tilapia action has been good to excellent this past week with many anglers filling ice chests with tilapia from 1/2-pound to 1 1/4 pounds. As always, the bite has been on small nightcrawlers pieces fished right on or near the bottom. All the reports right now are still coming from the jetty at the State Park headquarters and the free fishing jetty at the refurbished Salton Sea Yacht Club. Information: Visitor Center (open daily 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) at 760-393-3810, Salton Sea State Recreation Area main office at 760-393-3059, or the ranger station kiosk at 760-393-3052 (or mobile phone at 760-331-9944).

The tilapia action has been good to excellent this past week with many anglers filling ice chests with tilapia from 1/2-pound to 1 1/4 pounds. As always, the bite has been on small nightcrawlers pieces fished right on or near the bottom. All the reports right now are still coming from the jetty at the State Park headquarters and the free fishing jetty at the refurbished Salton Sea Yacht Club. Information: Visitor Center (open daily 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) at 760-393-3810, Salton Sea State Recreation Area main office at 760-393-3059, or the ranger station kiosk at 760-393-3052 (or mobile phone at 760-331-9944). ALAMO RIVER: No reports.

No reports. COACHELLA, HIGHLINE CANALS: No reports.

No reports. ALL AMERICAN CANAL: No reports.

No reports. FINNEY-RAMER: No reports.

No reports. WEIST LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. Information: 760-352-3308.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. Information: 760-352-3308. SUNBEAM LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago.

DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. LAKE CAHUILLA:DFG trout plants two and four weeks ago. Information: 760-564-4712.

EASTERN SIERRA

General trout season will reopen April 28 on all waters in this region. For up-to-date road and campground information by region, call the following U.S. Forest Service offices: For the Big Pine to Lone Pine region, call 760-876-6222; for the Bishop Region, call 760-873-2500; for the Mammoth Lakes region, call 760-924-5500; for the Lee Vining region, call 760-647-3044; and for the Bridgeport region call 760-932-7070. Lodging and guide information: Bishop Chamber of Commerce 760-873-8405 or www.bishopvisitor.com, Mono County Tourism 760-924-1743. Top Eastern Sierra fishing report web sites are: www.KensSport.com (Bridgeport region), www.TheTroutFly.com, and www.SierraDrifters.com.

BRIDGEPORT REGION: The East Walker River continues to be very good even with flows fluctuating a little this past week, but staying down (around 40 cfs). Overcast days have had good dry fly action, but the nymph bite has been the hot ticket. The trout are averaging 14 to 16 inches, but fish 18 inches or better are showing each day. Information: Kens Sporting Goods 760-932-7707 or www.kenssport.com.

The East Walker River continues to be very good even with flows fluctuating a little this past week, but staying down (around 40 cfs). Overcast days have had good dry fly action, but the nymph bite has been the hot ticket. The trout are averaging 14 to 16 inches, but fish 18 inches or better are showing each day. Information: Kens Sporting Goods 760-932-7707 or www.kenssport.com. MAMMOTH AREA: The fishing has remained good on the Upper Owens with nymphs, streamers, and egg patterns. There are still quite a few big lake-run rainbows to 26 inches (most 16 to 20 inches) and a few browns showing in the river. Hot Creek remains very good for fly anglers with daily mayfly and caddis activity, midges in the evenings, and nymph fishing all day. Information: The Troutfitter at 760-934-2517.

The fishing has remained good on the Upper Owens with nymphs, streamers, and egg patterns. There are still quite a few big lake-run rainbows to 26 inches (most 16 to 20 inches) and a few browns showing in the river. Hot Creek remains very good for fly anglers with daily mayfly and caddis activity, midges in the evenings, and nymph fishing all day. Information: The Troutfitter at 760-934-2517. BISHOP AREA: Trout plants in Pleasant Valley Reservoir this week and two weeks ago have made for good action. The lower Owens has been very good with nymph, streamer and dry fly anglers all scoring. There were DFG plants in the Owens River last week and three weeks ago below Tinemaha. Fishing information: Sierra Drifters Guide Service 760-935-4250, Sierra Trout Magnet Fly Shop 760-873-0010, Culveris 760-872-8361, Brockis 760-872-3581.

Trout plants in Pleasant Valley Reservoir this week and two weeks ago have made for good action. The lower Owens has been very good with nymph, streamer and dry fly anglers all scoring. There were DFG plants in the Owens River last week and three weeks ago below Tinemaha. Fishing information: Sierra Drifters Guide Service 760-935-4250, Sierra Trout Magnet Fly Shop 760-873-0010, Culveris 760-872-8361, Brockis 760-872-3581. LONE PINE-INDEPENDENCE AREA:The early trout season on the small streams on the west side of Highway 395 from Independence Creek on the north to Cottonwood Creek continues fair to good, and there were DFG plants last week and three weeks ago all the usual spots -- Cottonwood Creek, Diaz Lake, Georges Creek, Independence Creek, Lone Pine Creek, Shepherd Creek, Symmes Creek, and Tuttle Creek. Information from the Lone Pine Chamber of Commerce at 760-876-4444 (or www.LonePineChamber.com). Fishing information: Long Pine Sporting Goods at 760-876-5365 or High Sierra Outfitters at 760-876-9994.

WESTERN SIERRA

LAKE ISABELLA: Three of the $10,000 tagged trout were caught during the 23rd Annual Isabella Lake Fishing Derby held this past Saturday through Monday, and the total prize payout was $49,800. There were 6,294 entries and 153 of the 1,000 tagged trout landed. Walter Manwell, Lake Isabella, caught the $10,000 tag sponsored by the Central Valley Sportsman Show. Jeffrey Cook, Lancaster, landed the $10,000 Budweiser tagged trout, and David Gil, Sunnyvale, caught the California Land Managerment $10,000 tagged fish. The longest trout winner was Lohnnie Day, Lancaster, who had the top two fish at 22 1/2 and 22 3/8 inches to claim the $1,000 and $500 prizes for the top two spots, while Sam Silapachie, Visalia, and David Jowett, La Mirada, split the combined prize for third and fourth place with 21 1/2-inch rainbows, each winning $225. For anglers who entered the derby the seven remaining $10,000 tagged trout and the $20,000 tagged fish will still be worth $100 and $1,000 respectively if caught by a derby entrant by Sept. 3. They must be taken to Isabella Supermarket for validation. Complete derby information is available at www.isabellafishingderby.com or www.kvsun.com. The fish are showing in very good numbers around much of the lake on floating dough baits, Power Mice Tails, and inflated nightcrawlers. The $10,000 fish were caught in French Gulch, Boulder Gulch, and off of Old Isabella Road. The catfish bite has also picked up with most of the action in the bays in 10 to 15 feet of water on clams and cut baits. Few reports on crappie, and the bass and bluegill action is just starting to turn around. For fishing information: Bobs Bait 661-833-8657.

Three of the $10,000 tagged trout were caught during the 23rd Annual Isabella Lake Fishing Derby held this past Saturday through Monday, and the total prize payout was $49,800. There were 6,294 entries and 153 of the 1,000 tagged trout landed. Walter Manwell, Lake Isabella, caught the $10,000 tag sponsored by the Central Valley Sportsman Show. Jeffrey Cook, Lancaster, landed the $10,000 Budweiser tagged trout, and David Gil, Sunnyvale, caught the California Land Managerment $10,000 tagged fish. The longest trout winner was Lohnnie Day, Lancaster, who had the top two fish at 22 1/2 and 22 3/8 inches to claim the $1,000 and $500 prizes for the top two spots, while Sam Silapachie, Visalia, and David Jowett, La Mirada, split the combined prize for third and fourth place with 21 1/2-inch rainbows, each winning $225. For anglers who entered the derby the seven remaining $10,000 tagged trout and the $20,000 tagged fish will still be worth $100 and $1,000 respectively if caught by a derby entrant by Sept. 3. They must be taken to Isabella Supermarket for validation. Complete derby information is available at www.isabellafishingderby.com or www.kvsun.com. The fish are showing in very good numbers around much of the lake on floating dough baits, Power Mice Tails, and inflated nightcrawlers. The $10,000 fish were caught in French Gulch, Boulder Gulch, and off of Old Isabella Road. The catfish bite has also picked up with most of the action in the bays in 10 to 15 feet of water on clams and cut baits. Few reports on crappie, and the bass and bluegill action is just starting to turn around. For fishing information: Bobs Bait 661-833-8657. KERN RIVER: Trout action is fair to good on the upper river, but there havent been DFG plants for two weeks in a row. The best action has been on salmon eggs, crickets, and nightcrawlers. Fly anglers are also seeing fair to good action in the stretch just above Kernville with some sporadic mid-day to early afternoon hatches of midges, small mayflies, and stones. Water temps are still pretty cold, but the river is below 400 cfs and very fishable. In the lower river flows are right around 400 cfs and the trout bite has been pretty fair and there were plants two weeks ago. The smallmouth are slow. Information: Kern River Fly Shop 760-376-2040 (or www.kernriverflyfishing.com) or James Store 760-376-2424.

Trout action is fair to good on the upper river, but there havent been DFG plants for two weeks in a row. The best action has been on salmon eggs, crickets, and nightcrawlers. Fly anglers are also seeing fair to good action in the stretch just above Kernville with some sporadic mid-day to early afternoon hatches of midges, small mayflies, and stones. Water temps are still pretty cold, but the river is below 400 cfs and very fishable. In the lower river flows are right around 400 cfs and the trout bite has been pretty fair and there were plants two weeks ago. The smallmouth are slow. Information: Kern River Fly Shop 760-376-2040 (or www.kernriverflyfishing.com) or James Store 760-376-2424. AQUEDUCT NEAR TAFT: Gary Wuebeen, Castiac, landed a 40-pound striper last Thursday on a homemade one-ounce shad-style lipless crankbait. The striper bite has been wide open this past week. The best action has been on jumbo minnows with many anglers reporting almost instant strikes on the big baits. Smaller minnows, sand worms, and blood worms arent as good, but still producing a lot of fish. Some stripers are also showing on bigger artificials (mostly swimbaits and cranks). Most of the fish being reported are from five to seven pounds and over the 18-inch minimum size, but the smaller baits are still getting undersize fish that need to be released. Information: Bobs Bait 661-833-8657.

Gary Wuebeen, Castiac, landed a 40-pound striper last Thursday on a homemade one-ounce shad-style lipless crankbait. The striper bite has been wide open this past week. The best action has been on jumbo minnows with many anglers reporting almost instant strikes on the big baits. Smaller minnows, sand worms, and blood worms arent as good, but still producing a lot of fish. Some stripers are also showing on bigger artificials (mostly swimbaits and cranks). Most of the fish being reported are from five to seven pounds and over the 18-inch minimum size, but the smaller baits are still getting undersize fish that need to be released. Information: Bobs Bait 661-833-8657. MILL CREEK PARK: Mostly slow action with the odd catfish showing, and some improvement in the bass and bluegill action.

Mostly slow action with the odd catfish showing, and some improvement in the bass and bluegill action. HART PARK LAKE: No DFG plants for two weeks and the bite has slowed down. The best action remains on PowerBait with garlic, Mice Tails, and inflated nightcrawlers. The bass action has also been pretty good with a lot of fish well into the spawn. Nightcrawlers and plastics have been top bets. More and more bluegill are also starting to show, but carp and catfish still slow.

No DFG plants for two weeks and the bite has slowed down. The best action remains on PowerBait with garlic, Mice Tails, and inflated nightcrawlers. The bass action has also been pretty good with a lot of fish well into the spawn. Nightcrawlers and plastics have been top bets. More and more bluegill are also starting to show, but carp and catfish still slow. TRUXTUN LAKE: Most recent DFG trout plant was two weeks ago and the action has been just fair on garlic floating baits, Mice Tails, and nightcrawlers. The bass action is fair to good with most of the fish in shallow and showing on plastics, nightcrawlers, and small reaction baits. The bluegill bite is also beginning to kick into gear.

Most recent DFG trout plant was two weeks ago and the action has been just fair on garlic floating baits, Mice Tails, and nightcrawlers. The bass action is fair to good with most of the fish in shallow and showing on plastics, nightcrawlers, and small reaction baits. The bluegill bite is also beginning to kick into gear. RIVER WALK PARK: Trout action is slow to fair with the most recent DFG plant two weeks ago. The usual array of PowerBaits, Mice Tails, Power Eggs, and nightcrawlers have been getting the most trout. The best action has been for the bass which have flooded into the shallows to spawn, and the bluegill and carp bites are also improving with each warm day.

Trout action is slow to fair with the most recent DFG plant two weeks ago. The usual array of PowerBaits, Mice Tails, Power Eggs, and nightcrawlers have been getting the most trout. The best action has been for the bass which have flooded into the shallows to spawn, and the bluegill and carp bites are also improving with each warm day. MING LAKE: The bass bite has been pretty good with a lot of fish showing on plastic worms and Brush Hogs with the fish all over the shallows in the spawn. Also quite a few bluegill starting to show in red worms, wax worms, and meal worms. The most recent trout plant was two weeks ago and this bite has slowed with a few fish showing on garlic PowerBait, Mice Tails, and garlic-enhanced nightcrawlers.

The bass bite has been pretty good with a lot of fish showing on plastic worms and Brush Hogs with the fish all over the shallows in the spawn. Also quite a few bluegill starting to show in red worms, wax worms, and meal worms. The most recent trout plant was two weeks ago and this bite has slowed with a few fish showing on garlic PowerBait, Mice Tails, and garlic-enhanced nightcrawlers. BRITE LAKE: Slow to fair trout action with the most recent DFG plant two weeks ago. Orange PowerBait and Power Mice Tails have been the best bet.

Slow to fair trout action with the most recent DFG plant two weeks ago. Orange PowerBait and Power Mice Tails have been the best bet. BUENA VISTA LAKES: The largemouth bass bite is good with the fish all over the shallows in the spawn. Best action on plastics, Brush Hogs, Senkos, and nightcrawlers. The last trout plant was over a month ago and few rainbows are being reported. The bluegill action is also starting to turn on for anglers fishing meal worms, red worms, and nightcrawler pieces. Catfish slow. Information: Bobs Bait 661-833-8657.

The largemouth bass bite is good with the fish all over the shallows in the spawn. Best action on plastics, Brush Hogs, Senkos, and nightcrawlers. The last trout plant was over a month ago and few rainbows are being reported. The bluegill action is also starting to turn on for anglers fishing meal worms, red worms, and nightcrawler pieces. Catfish slow. Information: Bobs Bait 661-833-8657. WOOLLOMES LAKE: There has been fair to good action on bass and the bluegill bite is also starting to kick into gear. The bass have been best on a wide variety of plastics or nightcrawlers, while the bluegill are showing on red worms, nightcrawlers, wax worms, and meal worms. No recent DFG trout plants, but the odd trout is still showing on floating bait.

There has been fair to good action on bass and the bluegill bite is also starting to kick into gear. The bass have been best on a wide variety of plastics or nightcrawlers, while the bluegill are showing on red worms, nightcrawlers, wax worms, and meal worms. No recent DFG trout plants, but the odd trout is still showing on floating
Award-winning Canadian novelist Joseph Boyden is defending his right to identify as an indigenous person, after an aboriginal publication raised questions about his background and name-callers on Twitter labelled him a pretendian.I once said that, A small part of me is Indigenous, but it is a huge part of who I am, the Giller Prize-winning author wrote in a statement published on Twitter. This remains true to me to this day. I do belong.The statement came in response to a 2,700-word article probing his background, published two days earlier on the website of the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network. The article says Mr. Boydens indigenous heritage has been an ever shifting, evolving thing. Over the years, Boyden has variously claimed his familys roots extended to the Metis, Mikmaq, Ojibway and Nipmuc peoples. The article does not reach firm conclusions, but says it is difficult to pinpoint where his aboriginal heritage began on either his mothers or fathers sides of the family.That article appears to be part of a broader debate over who may identify as indigenous. Theres a robust social phenomenon in our society at the moment whereby white Canadians with 200-and-300+-year-old Indigenous ancestry are claiming to be Indigenous, Darryl Leroux, a sociology professor at Saint Marys University in Halifax, said in an e-mail to The Globe. Or as he tweeted , citing the APTN article about Mr. Boyden, Does limited Indigenous ancestry (i.e., 17/18th century) = Indigenous identity today?The APTN article begins with an account of a Macleans report from the 1950s on an uncle of Mr. Boyden who went by the nickname Injun Joe and sold indigenous wares in eastern Ontario, though he hasnt a drop of Indian blood. The article also cites genealogical research from ancestry.ca, and published descriptions of Mr. Boydens background in news articles published since 2005 by Quill and Quire, The Globe and Mail and others.Separately, a Montreal entrepreneur, Robert Jago, published a video while guest-hosting an indigenous Twitter account last week in which he mocks Mr. Boydens identity as an indigenous person. In a published article Saturday on the website Canadaland, he likens Mr. Boyden to Grey Owl, a noted 20th-century Canadian author of British birth who turned out to be a native impersonator. Mr. Jago called Mr. Boyden a darling of Non-Native Canada who drowns out other indigenous voices.Mr. Boyden, 50, won the Giller Prize in 2008 for, part of a trilogy that began with, about two Cree soldiers in the First World War. Last year he was named to the Order of Canada. Governor-General David Johnston cited his contributions as an author and his social engagement, notably in support of First Nations.In his four-paragraph Twitter statement, Mr. Boyden says he is partly to blame for confusion over his indigenous identity, because he has used the term Metis, though he doesnt trace his roots to the historic Red River settlement in Manitoba, where the term has been most commonly used. (A Supreme Court ruling on Metis rights this year said the term can refer to the community in Red River or be used as a general term for anyone with mixed European and aboriginal heritage.)Mr. Boyden said he is from a mixed blood background of mostly Celtic heritage, but also Nipmuc roots from Dartmouth, Massachusetts on my fathers side and Ojibwe roots from Nottawasaga Bay traced to the 1800s on my mothers side. He said he doesnt believe he has ever called himself Mikmaq, but that in interviews some may have misheard Nipmuc as Mikmaq. Nipmuc refers to Algonquian people from the northeastern United States.He drew on his uncle Erl, who was featured in Macleans as Injun Joe, to explain why he insists on being public about his indigenous identity: Erl knew his roots but denied them, he said in his Twitter statement.This was common practice in the 1940s and 1950s. I dont believe anyone should ever be made to feel shame in their identity, or to feel as if they are being prosecuted for speaking up proudly for themselves and for past generations who couldnt or wouldnt.Boyden has requestedorganize a sharing circle with its Elder-in-Residence to create a safe and sacred environment for the author to answer questions about his heritage.fun fact:This guyis a big juicy fan of our PM
First, Essie Horne lost her husband to gun violence in Lincoln Park in 2006. Now her twin brother is gone.

The 38-year-old mother, like many other people in the neighborhood, is tired of the recurrent shootings.

Very tired, Horne said. Theres no words to explain how tired.

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She was vocal about the need for change and spoke out against violence Friday night at a vigil outside the home on Manomet Street where her brother, Johnnie Horne, 38, was shot and killed Wednesday.

He was remembered as a funny and happy person.

The candlelight vigil is to not have my brothers name go out in vain, Essie said afterward.

Too often, she said, shootings and murders are forgotten about. But violence is here. Its here in our community, and we dont want it to stay. We want it out. We want positivity here.

Her husband, Andre Mahan, was shot by someone who entered their apartment near Imperial Avenue and 47th Street. He was 31, and his murder remains unsolved.

Its very important for our community to understand it takes everybody  all hands, feet  to make positive movements in our community.

Standing in the driveway during the vigil, steps in front of the bullet holes in the garage, Essie recounted to friends, family and community leaders how her brother was shot.

Those congregated around her lit candles at 7:21 p.m., the approximate time a man in a passing car got out and fired several rounds at Johnnie and a friend, who suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

Johnnie died at a hospital.

He didnt do anything to deserve this, and nobody deserves to be shot and killed for no reason, Essie said, adding her brother, like her husband, was not a gang member.

Her 11-year-old son, Andre Mahan, whose uncle was like a father to him, had tears streaming down his cheeks during the vigil. He said after that he would miss their fishing trips to the Embarcadero the most.

To end the night, Rev. Shane Harris, president of the San Diego chapter of the National Action Network, led a prayer, in which he, too, asked for peace.

Johnnie is survived by a 6-year-old daughter. He was divorced.
The scientists detected a new series of six Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) or radio signals from the deep space, far beyond the Milky Way. This baffled the astronomers and some speculate that extraterrestrial intelligence would like to make contact.

The first signals were received in Puerto Rico at the Arecibo radio telescope within just 10 minutes of each other. The researchers from McGill University in Canada also reported the signals from the same location, in the Auriga constellation, which is about 2 billion lightyears away from Earth. There were already 18 FRBs detected and recorded since 2007. The scientists are searching for the probable source of the repeating signals.

The findings of the discovery were printed in The Astrophysical Journal on Dec. 20, 2016. The scientists said that they report on radio and X-ray observations of the only known repeating fast radio burst source, FRB 121102. They further said that they have detected six additional radio bursts from this source: five with the Green Bank Telescope at 2 GHz and one at 1.4 GHz with the Arecibo Observatory, for a total of 17 bursts from this source.

Science Alert reports that these fast radio bursts (FRBs) are some of the hardest to pin down and the most explosive signals ever detected from space. They only last milliseconds and generate much energy as the Sun in the whole day. Scientists are puzzled of what causes them.

The team also cannot figure out the exact location of FRB 121102. On the other hand, based on the way their lower frequencies are slowed, the team thought that they might come from far beyond the Milky Way. This could give hints of what trigger the events.

Meanwhile, the team said that whether FRB 121102 is a unique object in the currently known sample of FRBs, or all FRBs are capable of repeating, its characterization is extremely important to understanding fast extragalactic radio transients. Scientists have been keen on detecting more of these FRBs and are trying to identify where they come from that would later give insights into the mysteries of the universe.
NASA runs highly advanced space exploration programs round the year. These programs are highly technical, and the output of these experiments is often out of comprehension of common people. In order to broaden its horizons and touch the lives of masses, NASA social media department was launched. This part of NASA takes care of public campaigning of space programs and posting live updates from the International Space Station (ISS), data collected from NASA Curiosity rover and other satellites orbiting the Earth.

NASA first started using social media in 2008, in an effort to make itself more engaging in public point of view. Veronica McGregor, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory's head of communication, said that when she heard about Twitter, she got the idea of using it as a platform to generate public interest on the "Phoenix Lander," which was then going to touch down Mars. "At the spur of the moment I decided I would tweet as the lander in the first person," McGregor said.

Since then, there has been a steep increase in the level of public interest regarding the everyday achievements and developments of NASA. Everyday people wake up and check NASA social media updates on Earth and the space, Engadget reported.

John Yembrick, NASA social-media manager, informed that currently, NASA has a team of social media experts, who handle 500 accounts on various social media platforms including Facebook, Tumblr and, of course, Twitter.

According to warc, the posts made by NASA get millions of likes and shares and were attributed to the humor and pop culture references reflected in them. Presently, NASA social media platforms together have 123.7 million regular followers who receive constant updates in the form of images and videos.

This has also provided a chance to the common people to get a glimpse of the zero gravity life of the crew aboard the International Space Station and the controversial signatures of extinct life on Mars.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 fiasco has indeed made customers feel that it is too risky to rely on Samsung smartphones especially the Note series. However, the Korean tech giant has been trying hard to reassure customers that they need not worry about the explosion issue in their existing as well as upcoming flagship devices. A number of rumors and speculations have been going on around Samsung Galaxy Note 8. One of such rumors suggests that the company may be joining hands with LG for coming up with better batteries in its upcoming smartphones.

Samsung Collaborates With LG

Samsung had to recall its Galaxy Note 8 smartphones for the fact that the flagship devices had battery issues. Recent reports say that Samsung is going to collaborate with LG to find a solution to this issue. It is notable that LG is one of the top rivals of Samsung. Similar to Samsung's previous partnership with LG for battery support for LG phablets, now LG is going to be Samsung's battery partner, as reported by Christian post.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Specs & Features

Rumors suggest that the upcoming Note 8 will be powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 830 processor with a monstrous 256 GB memory space. The phone is expected to feature a RAM space of 4GB or 6GB. The flagship device is also expected to carry a standard fingerprint sensor and Samsung's OLED display, as reported by MobileNApps.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Release Date

Rumors suggest that Samsung will wind up the production of Note 8 by the end of 2017. Hence, the phablet device could be out as early as 2017 or in 2018. The company is working hard to ensure the safety and security of the device and hence it is said that the release of the phone will not happen anytime sooner unlike the usual Samsung style quick release.
yeah right...The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is refusing to fully comply with a subpoena from Science Committee chair Lamar Smith that would shed light on the 15 year "pause" in warming.The agency cites "confidentiality" in refusing to turn over documents.Professor Phil Jones, the director of the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia. Hacked emails suggest he helped to cover up flaws in temperature data from China that underpinned his research on the strength of recent global warming.In an interview with the science journal Nature, Phil Jones, the head of the Climate Research Unit (CRU) at the University East Anglia, admitted it was "not acceptable" that records underpinning a 1990 global warming study have been lost.The missing records make it impossible to verify claims that rural weather stations in developing China were not significantly moved, as it states in the 1990 paper, which was published in Nature. "It's not acceptable ... [it's] not best practice," Jones said.its the global warming liars which are disappearing and /or hiding the original data because it tells the truth about who is lying...and of course the liars grant money is about to evapourate"...Smith defended his investigation, saying NOAAs work is clearly political.It was inconvenient for this administration that climate data has clearly showed no warming for the past two decades, he said in a statement. The American people have every right to be suspicious when NOAA alters data to get the politically correct results they want and then refuses to reveal how those decisions were made.Smith also said NOAAs assertion of confidentiality is incorrect.The agency has yet to identify any legal basis for withholding these documents, he said, adding that his panel would use all tools at its disposal to continue investigating.It shouldn't surprise us that the NOAA refuses to release data on how they reached the conclusion that the earth was, indeed, warming. It is the only study showing an increase in temps over the last 15 years, thus any debunking would be injurious to the climate change cause.Aside from the shocking arrogance in defying a subpoena from Congress, it's pretty obvious that the NOAA doesn't want to release the data because it will either show they cooked the books, or, as they've done in the past, misinterpreted the data. Smith can go to court, but by the time the issue is adjudicated, the next Congress will be sitting."Congress: Obama admin fired top scientist to advance climate change plans
The Fremont After 5 Connection will meet at 6:45 p.m. Jan. 9 at Midland Universitys dining hall, Ninth and Pebble streets.

Misty Dvorak will give a presentation by the Fremont Hope Center for Kids. Denette Lickiss of Indianola, Iowa, will speak on Finding Stability in a Changing World. As the wife of a Navy pilot, they moved 13 times in 12 years. She has two children.

The cost for the evening is $14 for a buffet. Call Merrilee at 402-721-2827 for reservations by Jan. 3. Honoring your reservation is necessary.
Seatrade Cruise Review's December issue recounts the 25 most-read stories of the year, as reported by Seatrade Cruise News.

The most popular items filed by Seatrade's global news team ranged from a Cruise Lines International Association delegation's visit to see the life-changing work of Mercy Ships in Madagascar early in the year to the rendezvous of the world's three largest cruise ships in the Caribbean in late 2016.

A sampling of some of the other hot news items include Fathom's approval to sail to Cuba, Fincantieri's joint venture with China State Shipbuilding to build cruise ships in China for a Carnival Corp. joint venture, Royal Caribbean's fifth Oasis-class ship and two more Edge vessels at STX France, Genting Hong Kong's shipyard acquisitions and Crystal Cruises' newbuilds, the most luxurious ship ever built and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings' new destination Harvest Caye.

As always, top executives' views on timely subjects like Brexit and China, plus leadership changes across a number of companies, have sparked interest, too.

Seatrade Cruise Review subscribers can see the full list in December's digital issue. Or a sample copy can be downloaded here.

In her editor's note, Mary Bond hones in on the 10 most frequently reported words of 2016 in Seatrade Cruise News. Aside from common terms like ship, port and passenger, the key words of the year have been:

1. China, 2. newbuilds, 3. Cuba, 4. Caribbean, 5. Australia, 6. Asia, 7. expedition, 8. adventure, 9. America and 10. large (as in ships).
Our changing society  Multiculturalism, secularism and group identity

1. The Government should continue to move away from multiculturalism and instead emphasise individual rights and social cohesion. A multi-faith approach should be avoided.

2. The UK is a secularised society which upholds freedom of and from religion. We urge politicians to consider this, and refrain from using "Christian country" rhetoric.

The role of religion in schools

Faith schools

3. There should be a moratorium on the opening of any new publicly funded faith schools.

4. Government policy should ultimately move towards a truly inclusive secular education system in which religious organisations play no formal role in the state education system.

5. Religion should be approached in schools like politics: with neutrality, in a way that informs impartially and does not teach views.

6. Ultimately, no publicly funded school should be statutorily permitted, as they currently are, to promote a particular religious position or seek to inculcate pupils into a particular faith.

7. In the meantime, pupils should have a statutory entitlement to education in a non-religiously affiliated school.

8. No publicly funded school should be permitted to prioritise pupils in admissions on the basis of baptism, religious affiliation or the religious activities of a child's parent(s).

9. Schools should not be able to discriminate against staff on the basis of religion or belief, sexual orientation or any other protected characteristics.

Religious education

10. Faith schools should lose their ability to teach about religion from their own exclusive viewpoint and the law should be amended to reflect this.

11. The Government should undertake a review of Religious Education with a view to reforming the way religion and belief is taught in all schools.

12. The teaching of religion should not be prioritised over the teaching of non-religious worldviews, and secular philosophical approaches.

13. The Government should consider making religion and belief education a constituent part of another area of the curriculum or consider a new national subject for all pupils that ensures all pupils study of a broad range of religious and non-religious worldviews, possibly including basic philosophy.

14. The way in which the RE curriculum is constructed by Standing Advisory Councils on Religious Education (SACREs) is unique, and seriously outdated. The construction and content of any subject covering religion or belief should be determined by the same process as other subjects after consultation with teachers, subject communities, academics, employers, higher education institutions and other interested parties (who should have no undue influence or veto).

Sex and relationships education

15. All children and young people, including pupils at faith schools, should have a statutory entitlement to impartial and age-appropriate sex and relationships education, from which they cannot be withdrawn.

Collective worship

16. The legal requirement on schools to provide Collective Worship should be abolished.

17. The Equality Act exception related to school worship should be repealed. Schools should be under a duty to ensure that all aspects of the school day are inclusive.

18. Both the law and guidance should be clear that under no circumstances should pupils be compelled to worship and children's right to religious freedom should be fully respected by all schools.

19. Where schools do hold acts of worship pupils should themselves be free to choose not to take part.

20. If there are concerns that the abolition of the duty to provide collective worship would signal the end of assemblies, the Government may wish to consider replacing the requirement to provide worship with a requirement to hold inclusive assemblies that further pupils' 'spiritual, moral, social and cultural education'.

Independent schooling

21. All schools should be registered with the Department for Education and as a condition of registration must meet standards set out in regulations.

22. Government must ensure that councils are identifying suspected illegal, unregistered religious schools so that Ofsted can inspect them. The state must have an accurate register of where every child is being educated.

Freedom of expression - Freedom of expression, blasphemy and the media

23. Any judicial or administrative attempt to further restrict free expression on the grounds of 'combatting extremism' should be resisted. Threatening behaviour and incitement to violence is already prohibited by law. Further measures would be an illiberal restriction of others' right to freedom of expression. They are also likely to be counterproductive by insulating extremist views from the most effective deterrents: counterargument and criticism.

24. Proscriptions of "blasphemy" must not be introduced by stealth, legislation, fear or on the spurious grounds of 'offence'. There can be no right to be protected from offence in an open and free secular society.

25. The fundamental value of free speech should be instilled throughout the education system and in all schools.

26. Universities and other further education bodies should be reminded of their statutory obligations to protect freedom of expression under the Education (No 2) Act 1986.

Religion and the law

Civil rights, 'conscience clauses' and religious freedom

27. We are opposed in principle to the creation of a 'conscience clause' which would permit discrimination against (primarily) LGBT people. This is of particular concern in Northern Ireland.

28. Religious freedom must not be taken to mean or include a right to discriminate. Businesses providing goods and services, regardless of owners' religious views, must obey the law.

29. Equality legislation must not be rolled back in order to appease a minority of religious believers whose views are out-of-touch with the majority of the general public and their co-religionists.

30. The UK Government should impose changes on the rest of the UK in order to comply with Human Rights obligations. Every endeavour should be made by to extend same sex marriage and abortion access to Northern Ireland.

Conscience 'opt-outs' in healthcare

31. Efforts to unreasonably extend the legal concept of 'reasonable accommodation' and conscience to give greater protection in healthcare to those expressing a (normally religious) objection should be resisted.

32. Conscience opt-outs should not be granted where their operation impinges adversely on the rights of others.

33. Pharmacists' codes should not permit conscience opts out for pharmacists that result in denial of service, as this may cause harm. NHS contracts should reflect this.

34. Consideration should be given to legislative changes to enforce the changes to pharmacists codes recommended above.

The use of tribunals by religious minorities

35. The legal system must not be undermined. Action must be taken to ensure that none of the councils currently in operation misrepresent themselves as sources of legal authority.

36. Work should be undertaken by local authorities to identify sharia councils, and official figures should be made available to measure the number of sharia councils in the UK to help understand the extent of their influence.

37. There needs to be a continuing review by the Government of the extent to which religious 'law', including religious marriage without civil marriage, is undermining human rights and/or becoming de facto law. The Government must be proactive in proposing solutions to ensure all citizens are able to access their legal rights.

38. All schools should promote understanding of citizenship and legal rights under UK law so that people  particularly Muslim women and girls  are aware of and able to access their legal rights and do not regard religious 'courts' as sources of genuine legal authority.

Religious exemptions from animal welfare laws

39. Laws intended to minimise animal suffering should not be the subject of religious exemptions. Non-stun slaughter should be prohibited and existing welfare at slaughter legislation should apply without exception.

40. For as long as non-stun slaughter is permitted, all meat and meat products derived from animals killed under the religious exemption should be obliged to show the method of slaughter.

41. In public institutions it should be unlawful not to provide a stunned alternative to non-stun meat produce.

Religion and public services

Social action by religious organisations

42. The Equality Act should be amended to suspend the exemptions for religious groups when they are working under public contract on behalf of the state.

43. Legislation should be introduced so that contractors delivering general public services on behalf of a public authority are defined as public authorities explicitly for those activities, making them subject to the Human Rights Act legislation.

44. It should be mandatory for all contracts with religious providers of publicly-funded services to have unambiguous equality, non-discrimination and non-proselytising clauses in them.

45. Public records of contracts with religious groups should be maintained and appropriate measures for monitoring their compliance with equality and human rights legislation should be put in place.

46. There should be an enforcement mechanism for the above, which would for example receive and adjudicate on complaints without complainants having to take legal action.

Hospital chaplaincy

47. Religious care should not be funded through NHS budgets.

48. No NHS post should be conditional on the patronage of religious authorities, nor subject directly or indirectly to discriminatory provisions, for example on sexual orientation or marital status.

49. Alternative funding, such as via a charitable trust, could be explored if religions wish to retain their representation in hospitals.

50. Hospitals wishing to employ staff to provide pastoral, emotional and spiritual care for patients, families and staff should do so within a secular context.

Institutions and public ceremonies

Disestablishment

51. The Church of England should be disestablished

52. The Bishops' Bench should be removed from the House of Lords. Any future Second Chamber should have no representation for religion whether ex-officio or appointed, whether of Christian denominations or any other faith. This does not amount to a ban on clerics; they would eligible for selection on the same basis as others.

Remembrance

53. The Remembrance Day commemoration ceremony at the Cenotaph should become secular in character. Ceremonies should be led by national or civic leaders and there should be a period of silence for participants to remember the fallen in their own way, be that religious or not.

Monarchy and religion

54. The ceremony to mark the accession of a new head of state should take place in the seat of representative secular democracy, such as in Westminster Hall and should not be religious.

55. The monarch should no longer be required to be in communion with the Church of England nor ex officio be Supreme Governor of the Church of England, and the title "Defender of the Faith" should not be retained.

Parliamentary prayers

56. We believe Parliament should reflect the country as it is today and remove acts of worship from the formal business of the House.

Local democracy and religious observance

57. Acts of religious worship should play no part in the formal business of parliamentary or local authority meetings.

Public broadcasting, the BBC and religion

58. The BBC should rename Thought for the Day 'Religious thought for the day' and move it away from Radio 4's flagship news programme and into a more suitable timeslot reflecting its niche status. Alternatively it could reform it and open it up to non-religious contributors.

59. The extent and nature of religious programming should reflect the religion and belief demographics of the UK.
From creepy burials to sunken ships, Bronze Age ancestors of Rodin's "The Thinker" and "speaking" mummies, this year offered extraordinary insight into the past. But 2016 has also been a year of disappointments. Egyptian authorities faced embarrassment after supporting the theory that a secret room existed in the tomb of King Tut. Such a room would have concealed "one of the most important finds of the century" - the tomb of Queen Nefertiti. After much excitement, more detailed scans earlier this year showed that no secret room existed in the tomb of the boy pharaoh. Still in Egypt, experts raised doubts over a claim that the Great Pyramid at Giza contains two unknown voids or cavities. Investigations using innovative techniques such as infrared thermography, and "cosmic ray" muon detectors are expected further explore that claim in 2017. Here are some of our favorite archaeology stories of this year. Egypt's Oldest Writings

Despite some disappointments, Egypt remained an archaeological hot spot in 2016. Authorities unveiled 30 papyri which contain the oldest known examples of Egyptian writing, dating back 4,500 years. Found within caves in the ancient Red Sea port of Wadi al-Jarf, the papyri provide insight into the lives of workers in the port during the reign of fourth dynasty King Khufu, also known as Cheops, for whom the Great Pyramid of Giza was built as a tomb. The hieroglyphs reveal that workers and employees at Wadi al-Jarf participated in the construction of the pyramid. Other findings included the remains of a 4,500-year-old funerary boat which was uncovered near the Abusir pyramids, a 3000-year-old mummy resting inside a perfectly preserved brightly colored wooden sarcophagus and a remarkable 3,400-year-old necropolis. Consisting of dozens of rock-cut tombs, it was unearthed at the quarry site of Gebel el Sisila, north of Aswan. King Tut's Blade Made of Meteorite

Some of the most intriguing finds of 2016 were made in labs outside Egypt. Using non-invasive, portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, a team of Italian and Egyptian researchers found that King Tut was buried with a dagger made of an iron that literally came from space. They confirmed that iron of the dagger placed on the right thigh of King Tut's mummified body has meteoric origins. Queen Nefertari's Dismembered Legs

In another breakthrough, a pair of 3,200-year-old mummified legs were identified as belonging to Queen Nefertari. She was the first and favorite wife of the mighty warrior pharaoh Ramses II. The legs had been on display at the Egyptian Museum in Turin, Italy when an international team of researchers led by Frank Ruhli, head of the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich in Switzerland, made the stunning identification. Nefertari's mummy was ripped to pieces and tossed around by ancient robbers, so her remains were believed to have been lost forever. Nefertari is the only queen from the Ramesside era to have been identified so far. 'Britain's Pompeii'



A Bronze Age settlement in the UK county of Cambridgeshire stands as one of the most compelling finds of 2016. Dubbed Britain's "Pompeii," the site provided vivid insight into domestic life 3,000 years ago. The settlement was home to several families who lived in a number of circular wooden houses built on stilts above a river. It was abandoned in haste 3,000 years ago as a giant fire destroyed the houses. The dwellings fell into the river, where thick silt and clay preserved the contents. The archaeologists found an extraordinary time capsule buried just over six feet below the ground surface. Finds include clothing, jewelry, tools, furniture, textiles, abandoned meals still in the cooking pots and the the oldest, largest, most complete wheel ever found in Britain. 3,000-Year-Old Cooking Mistake



Food was again in the spotlight in 2016. Evidence for one of the most common mistakes in the kitchen - burning food - was found in a 3,000-year-old clay pot that was excavated in central Jutland, Denmark, at the bottom of what was once a waste pit. The clay vessel, in near mint condition, contained burned cheese and was possibly thrown in a moment of anger over the cooking mistake. Such cooking accidents were likely avoided by those using the "Cumanae testae" or "Cumanae patellae" - pans produced more than 2,000 years ago in the from the city of Cumae, about 12 miles west of Naples. Archaeologists found the site where such pottery, featuring a red coating that prevented food from sticking to the pan, was produced. They were the precursors of non-stick pans.

While 340-year-old Roquefort cheese was found in a Swedish shipwreck on the bed of the Baltic, turf cutters working in an Irish peat bog unearthed a 2,000-year-old lump of butter, which also smelled like a strong cheese. Chemical analysis of prehistoric hearths, revealed that salmon has been on the American menu for 11,800 years. The dating confirms central Alaska as the earliest site of salmon consumption in the Americas. As for drinking, researchers analyzing ancient pottery jars in China, found that barley might have been the "secret ingredient" in a 5,000-year-old beer recipe. Oldest Known Dress



Among the list of world's firsts discovered this year were the oldest known dress, a stained shirt produced more than 5,000 years ago, and the oldest ground-edge stone axe, whose discovery in Australia pushed back the Aborigenal technology to between 45,000 to 49,000 years ago. The year also brought the discoveries of the world's oldest gold artifact - a tiny bead unearthed in Bulgaria which archaeologists believe is 6,500 years old - and the oldest snowshoe. Found in the Italian Alps, it looks amazingly modern even though it dates back 5,800 years. Huge Ancient Ship Graveyard



A discovery in a small Greek archipelago stands as this year's most significant finding in underwater archaeology. Investigation of the Fourni archipelago, a collection of 13 islands and islets located between the eastern Aegean islands of Samos and Icaria, revealed 23 ancient wrecks, which add to 22 other wrecks identified in 2015. The discovery confirms the Greek site as the ancient shipwreck capital of the world. Still in Greece, archaeologists unearthed a human skeleton dating back to 2,000 years ago on the Antikythera shipwreck. Dubbed the "Titanic of the ancient world," the vessel sank more than 2,000 years ago off the remote island of Antikythera, in southern Greece. Found by Greek sponge divers more than 100 years ago, the wreck contained a mysterious "Antikythera mechanism" - a complex, geared astronomical calculator known as the world's oldest computer. The remains, which most likely belonged to a young man, could yield the first DNA from an ancient shipwreck victim. Otzi the Iceman's Voice



Mummy research produced important findings for modern clinical medicine. Researchers rewrote the history of smallpox by analyzing the mummified remains of a 17th-century child from Vilnius, Lithuania. The disease had long been thought to have appeared in human populations thousands of years ago, but the child mummy, which turned to contain the oldest known sample of the variola virus that causes smallpox, now challenges that timeline,placing it between 1643 and 1665. One of the most spectacular investigations involved Otzi the Iceman, whose voice was reconstructed by scientists with the "best possible approximation." Presented during a major congress to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the discovery of the 5,300-year-old mummy, the experiment aimed to discover the tone of the Iceman's Stone Age vowels. Otzi broke his silence with a deep male voice. He spoke Italian - but just vowels, as you can hear here Shackle-Bound Skeleton in Etruscan Burial


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One of the Bay Areas wealthiest communities has a small uprising on its hands: a group of millionaires angry about water rates. And local leaders are moving to quash it.

Attorneys for the town of Hillsborough filed court documents this month defending the practice of hitting residents with higher water rates when they use more of the stuff, a policy that helps encourage conservation.

But nine people in the town, where homes go for an average $4.3 million and historically consume three times as much water as elsewhere, say the bigger bills dont reflect the cost of providing the water  and are therefore unconstitutional. Theyre suing the town in an attempt to lower prices and recoup their payments.

The lawsuit in San Mateo County Superior Court takes aim not only at tiered water rates, which have been challenged in a handful of California cities, but Hillsboroughs penalties for excessive water use. The suit alleges that fines, which have been common across the state as cities push for water savings during five years of drought, should also correlate with costs.

All theyre really doing is charging extra for extra water use, said Beau Burbidge, the attorney representing the Hillsborough residents. Its kind of a tier over the tiers itself.

We understand the drought is severe and water use needs to be cut, he said, but we have to do that in a matter thats consistent with the law.

The dispute over water rates follows a complex decision last year by a Southern California appellate court, which struck down tiered pricing in the Orange County city of San Juan Capistrano. The court said the city was illegally charging customers more for a public service than what it cost to provide the service.

While the ruling didnt invalidate all tiered-rate policies  just those that are out of sync with a suppliers costs  it created confusion for many water agencies about how to effectively and legally price water during dry times. The Hillsborough case, and its challenge to penalties, could make things even murkier.

We hope the courts can provide some clarity, said Michael Lauffer, chief counsel for the State Water Resources Control Board, who believes water pricing is an important tool for leveraging savings. Until we get a good court decision from the Supreme Court or other courts of appeal, it makes it difficult to actually advance the law in this area.

The state water board has been the driving force for statewide conservation throughout the drought, demanding that suppliers like Hillsborough reduce consumption through any number of methods, including pricing and penalties.

Until recently, Hillsborough faced one of the states most aggressive directives, a 36 percent water cutback over its 2013 consumption. If the town didnt hit the target, it would face potential penalties.

The mandate prompted Hillsborough to initiate fines for excessive water use on top of tiered pricing. Starting in June 2015, customers were allotted a certain amount of water based on the size of their parcel and household, and charged an extra $30 for every 748 gallons they went over the allowance.

The fines, which have since been dropped as water shortages have eased, brought in about $600,000, according to those suing the town.

Among the plaintiffs are venture capitalist David Marquardt, wealth manager Eldridge Gray and oral surgeon Charles Syers. Brad and Kathy Baruh, Charles Bolton, John Lockton, Paul Rochester and Arthur Stromberg are also in the fight.

Many have large homes with sprawling landscapes requiring heavy watering, as is typical of the San Francisco suburb. The town of 11,500, tucked in the Peninsula hills west of San Mateo, boasts a median household income of $229,000, according to census data, making it one of the nations richest places.

The November lawsuit, like cases against water rates elsewhere in the state including San Juan Capistrano, is based on Proposition 218. The voter-approved measure doesnt allow public agencies to charge more for a service than what it costs them to provide the service.

Since Hillsboroughs water department buys its water at a fixed cost from the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, the town is in violation of the law, the suit alleges.

The town rejected this allegation in its Dec. 14 court filing, saying its water rates appropriately reflect its costs  not just for buying the water but for delivering it  which go up with consumption.

Your system has to be sized sufficiently for enough water to flow through the system to serve the demand at the peak hour on the peak day, explained Kelly Salt, an attorney working under contract for Hillsborough. The more water you use, the bigger you have to size your pipes, your reservoirs, your pumping station.

Yes, tiered rates have the incidental effect of encouraging conservation, she said. But ultimately the tiers are designed to cover the incremental costs.

Salt dismissed the claim that excessive-use penalties have to be commensurate with expenses, as did the lawyer for the state water board.

There are a lot of clever attorneys out there who will push these arguments, Lauffer said, noting that Prop. 218 applies to property-related fees but not civil fines.

The lawsuit alleges that because the fine is related to property ownership, its actually a fee. But according to Lauffer, such limitations were never the intent of the proposition.

These constitutional amendments get put on the ballot, and they may feel good, he said. But they often have far-reaching and unintended consequences.

Kurtis Alexander is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kalexander@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kurtisalexander
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Its taken a mix of political concessions and financial commitments  along with five years time  for a developer to line up support for a proposed condo and hotel project at 950 Market St. in San Francisco.

The developer, Group I, has gained the backing of unions, affordable housing advocates, the City Planning Commission and Mayor Ed Lee, but theres one segment it has been unable to appease: a coalition that wants the area recognized as a transgender historic district.

The development calls for a white concrete and glass flatiron building with 242 condo units and 232 hotel rooms to be built on a site that would require the demolition of four buildings that were central in LGBTQ history.

The Transgender Intersex Justice Project, along with two other organizations, filed an appeal to the project with the Board of Supervisors, arguing that the environmental study that assessed the impacts to the neighborhood was inaccurate and inadequate.

The appeal says that the study failed to assess the role the buildings played in the meat rack  a district bounded by Turk, Taylor, Market and Mason streets that from the 1950s through the early 1970s was worked by transgender hustlers, many of whom lived in Tenderloin residential hotels.

The proposed project would cause substantial adverse change to LGBTQ historic resources in San Francisco, attorney Victor Marquez states in the appeal.

Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

Two early gay bars  the Old Crow and the Rainbow Tavern  occupied 950-964 Market St., a two-story structure also known as the Dean Building, which was also a popular site for transgender prostitutes. Another building, the three-story corner structure with entrances at 974 Market St. and 67 Turk St., was home to the Silver Rail, another gay bar.

In particular, the appellants have argued that the developer failed to study the basements under the block, a jumbled network of dank hallways and junk-strewn rooms they say provided hiding places and escape routes during police raids on the gay bars upstairs. They point to a 2000 Chronicle article in which a historian is quoted as saying that the block was home to an intact underground tunnel system that patrons used to escape police raids.

Nate Albee, a political organizer who is leading the charge for the appeal, said, We want to get into the building and explore it in a serious way.

We want documentation, he said. The developer has taken the stand that there is nothing worthy of preserving. We think historians should be looking at these buildings and looking at whether there are tunnels.

Concerns that a network of tunnels exists on the block prompted the developer to hire preservation architect Page & Turnbull to do a study. In addition, Group I took city planners, journalists, planning commissioners and others into the basement.

A tour of the subterranean spaces in all four buildings found a jumbled warren of junk-filled spaces. Graffiti-covered plaster walls give way to cinder blocks, which give way to gypsum board; old wood-clad partitions are up against newer plywood; staircases dead-end at cemented-over openings. Homeless people have taken up residence in the spaces and use them to store scavenged scrap metals and other recyclable goods.

During the tour of the basement, one of its non-rent-paying residents told a reporter: Welcome to my world. Hope you like it.

But while there were some interesting squatters and artifacts  some dusty bottles of rum and whiskey from the 1950s and 1960s  Page & Turnbull concluded that there is no evidence of an intact network of tunnels or passageways.

It is ... feasible that patrons of the Old Crow could have fled into the basement storage areas and utility spaces during police raids, but existing materials within the building do not present intact evidence that tunnels or a network of passageways existed specifically to aid in patrons escape.

While the appeal is focused specifically on the whether the environmental study adequately looked at the historical importance of the buildings, lurking in the background is a broader concern, according to several project opponents: the impact the development would have on the marginalized transgender community that is still rooted in the neighborhood.

Janetta Johnson, an African American trans woman who is executive director of transgender advocacy group TGI Justice, said the Tenderloin is the center of the trans community.

This is a place that people come to find supportive services, Johnson said. Anytime they renovate or develop a property, its no longer for the people like us. As long as people are living there complaining about conditions  they dont fix anything. As soon as they fix it up, they want us out.

Stephany Ashley, who heads up St. James Infirmary  a health clinic for former and current sex workers  said the proposed project at 950 Market St. is going to open the floodgates of gentrification on the edge of the Tenderloin, which remains one of the citys last affordable neighborhoods.

That is already starting to happen, and this is going to very quickly take our community spaces away, she said.

Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

Even if the appeal is rejected, the appellant group has a broader mission: to establish Comptons Cultural District, named after Comptons Cafe, the diner that stood at 111 Taylor St., where in the summer of 1966, transgender and queer patrons rioted against police harassment. Supervisor Jane Kim is working on legislation to create the district.

Tenderloin Housing Clinic Director Randy Shaw called the appeal a shakedown, and said the people pushing for it have done nothing to try to take over the site of Comptons. He said Tenderloin residents will benefit from the development with jobs, housing and safer streets.

These delays really cost a lot of money and for what? They dont have a specific demand. We have the votes for this project. They are not going to win their appeal. So what is this all about?

Shaw, whose organization owns and manages several dozen residential hotels, accused the opponents of using fake news of the tunnels to hold up the development.

People who live here dont want to have a deserted block, he said. Its not safe. This project is one of the first hotel developments weve seen in the Tenderloin in decades. That means jobs, and we are going to make sure Tenderloin residents are trained for those jobs and get those jobs.

J.K. Dineen is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jdineen@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @sfjkdineen
On Christmas, horror came to the zoo.

The Chronicles front page from Dec. 26, 2007, covers a tiger attack at the San Francisco Zoo that ended with a teenager and the big cat dead.

One zoo visitor was mauled to death and two others severely injured when a Siberian tiger escaped from its grotto at the San Francisco Zoo early on Christmas evening and went on a bloody rampage in front of terrified zoo patrons, the story read.

The 350-pound female Siberian tiger, Tatiana, clawed her way out of her enclosure and chased down and killed Carlos Sousa Jr., 17, before pursuing brothers Paul Dhaliwal, 19, and Kulbir Dhaliwal, 23, of San Jose.

The tiger  the same animal that chewed a keepers arm during an attack last December  was shot to death outside a zoo cafe by four officers who managed to distract the animal as it mauled one of its victims, read the story by The Chronicles Steve Rubenstein.

The horrifying violence, which occurred just after the zoos 5 p.m. closing time while dozens of patrons were still inside, began when the tiger somehow managed to gain its liberty from the grotto.

The zoo settled lawsuits with the brothers in 2009 for $900,000 and with Souzas family for an undisclosed amount. Major safety upgrades were made to the tiger enclosure, including a higher fence around the grotto and signs warning visitors not to taunt the animals.

See more front pages: Go to SFChronicle.com/covers to search a database of hundreds of Chronicle Covers articles that showcase the newspapers history.

Chronicle Covers highlighting one classic Chronicle newspaper page from our archive every day for 366 days. Library director Bill Van Niekerken and producers Kimberly Chua, Alexandra Irving and Jillian Sullivan contributed to the project. Tim ORourke is the executive producer and editor of SFChronicle.com. Email: torourke@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TimothyORourke

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El Sobrante was a predominantly white town when Becki Cohn-Vargas and her family moved there almost three decades ago.

Inside her house she found a stack of old newspapers. One had a derogatory headline about Japanese families moving into nearby Richmond.

A lot has changed in El Sobrante, an unincorporated city of about 13,000 residents, as people have gravitated to it in search of affordable housing. According to the 2010 census, the racial breakdown in El Sobrante is 50 percent white, 16 percent Asian, 13 percent African American and 8 percent mixed race. Twenty-four percent of the population is of Hispanic origin. Hispanics are included in multiple categories because they can be of any race, according to the Census Bureau.

Its got this amazing diversity, Cohn-Vargas, 64, told me. I feel like its one of the best-kept secrets in the Bay Area.

Her neighborhood of three-bedroom, flat-top houses is rich with culture. Cohn-Vargas, a former Oakland Unified School District teacher and principal, is white and Jewish. Her parents were Holocaust survivors, which has influenced her lifelong pursuit of social justice. Her husband is Nicaraguan.

Some of their neighbors are Mexican American, Guatemalan American, Filipino American, Indian American, African American and European American.

The killing last month of William Sims, a black man, has upset a town where its not odd to see a horse and rider clomping up the street.

Cohn-Vargas lives within walking distance of the Jack in the Box on San Pablo Dam Road, the restaurant Sims told a friend he was stopping at on his way home.

Sims, 28, a local musician and Richmond native, never made it home after a night of karaoke and bar-hopping with a friend. He was found barely conscious on the street outside the Capri Club on Appian Way. He had been beaten, and there was a gunshot wound to his forehead.

Three suspects  Daniel Porter-Kelley, 31, of Richmond; Ray Simons, 32, of Hercules; and Daniel Ortega, 31, of Novato  have been charged with murder, robbery and a hate-crime enhancement that could get the death penalty.

It was shocking that it was right in my backyard, said Cohn-Vargas, the director of Not in Our Schools, a program of Not in Our Town, an organization that advocates for inclusive communities. I was really upset.

So were the hundreds who, like Vargas, attended an antihate forum on Dec. 10 at the Boys and Girls Club of El Sobrante. The forum was held in response to the increase of hate and intolerance since the presidential election. The wave of hate has made this part of Contra Costa County sensitive after the slaying of Sims  which occurred the weekend after the presidential election  and the beating of Maan Khalsa, a Sikh man who was attacked Sept. 25 after leaving a Richmond Walmart.

The assault left Khalsa with sheared hair, nerve damage, a black eye and broken teeth. A pinkie finger was amputated.

People dont want to be characterized as a community that allows racism and hate to prevail, said Cohn-Vargas, an author who has lectured on identity safety in schools. Its our community speaking up.

Keith Passmore, who has lived in the neighborhood across the street from the Capri Club for six years, agreed.

You dont want to push it under the cover, said Passmore, who is black. Everybody needs to talk about it, because so much has surfaced.

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Because the prosecution has revealed little about what led to the hate crime charges, something Ive been reporting on, residents have been left to circulate rumors on social media sites.

El Sobrante is a languid, semirural town of auto body shops, pet groomers and beauty parlors. There isnt a vociferous mayor like Tom Butt in Richmond. And there isnt a take-to-the-streets attitude of action like in Oakland. But residents did stop mansions from being built on Clark Road.

At the El Sobrante Stroll, the annual 23-year-old event that shuts down San Pablo Dam Road, there are more than 150 vendors. Churches, environmentalists and the local schools share in the festivities with the Hells Angels and the National Rifle Association.

On a recent visit, I stopped at Thrift Town on San Pablo Dam Road, a store that boasts processing an unbelievable 4,000 items per day. In small towns, thrift stores provide a snapshot of the community. Thrift Town is where Cohn-Vargas husband shops for stuffed animals their dogs can shred.

There was a drop-top Mercedes in the parking lot. Inside, Cat Stevens version of Sam Cookes Another Saturday Night and James Browns Get on the Good Foot played on the stereo. A woman in a headscarf shopped with her family as a few older black and white women shuffled behind carts. Several Latino employees rang up coupon-clutching shoppers.

I bought a vintage, flower-print shirt for $3. As I walked to my car, I overheard a conversation between a black man and a white woman  employees taking a smoke break together, standing just a little cozier than friends might. He was complaining about his girlfriend.

San Francisco Chronicle columnist Otis R. Taylor Jr. appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Email: otaylor@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @otisrtaylorjr
After a rancorous yearlong process, community outrage and lawsuits, San Franciscos Police Commission approved a new use-of-force policy that would prohibit the citys police officers from shooting at moving vehicles or using carotid restraints.

Two days later, the San Francisco police officers union asked a Superior Court judge to grant a restraining order that would prevent the new policy from moving forward.

The unions argument is that the Police Commission violated the unions collective bargaining rights by going forward with policies that affect the officers working conditions.

In court Friday, the city argued that under case law, these changes fall under management discretion and are not within the scope of bargaining. It also argued that it negotiated the changes to the policy that affect working conditions  including police discipline and training.

In past cases, the courts have determined that the use of deadly force doesnt fall under the scope of representation related to employment conditions.

Given the importance of legal precedent, it seems unlikely for the judge to rule otherwise in this case.

But the court battle is another way to slow down a badly needed reform by which the S.F. Police Officers Association has decided it shouldnt have to abide.

There are few good policy reasons for the police force to continue shooting at moving vehicles or to use carotid restraints.

Shooting at moving vehicles is incredibly dangerous for officers, suspects and the public. Moving vehicles that are out of control can easily lead to unnecessary bystander injuries; experts also recommend restricting the practice because it creates situations where officers are forced to shoot their way out.

Many of the countrys largest city police departments have already prohibited the practice. The U.S. Department of Justice recommends doing so as well.

Similarly, using a carotid hold against a suspect can easily  too easily  shift into a fatal choke hold.

The Police Commissions restriction includes a caveat  inserted in response to officer concerns  that officers can break the vehicle policy in an extraordinary circumstance, like a terrorist attack. Thats appropriate, and it should be more than enough.

Weve urged the Police Commission to expand officers less-lethal force options by approving the use of Tasers, and we will continue to do so. But we simply cant support the idea that San Franciscos Police Department should not be following national best practices on policing.

The community outrage that greeted a string of fatal officer-involved shootings over the past two years suggests that San Franciscans cant support that idea, either. Its past time for the SFPOA to accept needed reforms that will repair the departments relationship with the people it serves.
Over the objections of Gov. Jerry Brown, California voters passed Proposition 51, a $9 billion bond measure to construct and modernize the states public school, charter school and community college facilities. Now the governor is redoubling his efforts to reform the states costly and convoluted school bond system, worrying school districts that construction project funds might be delayed or denied.

We understand communities desperate need for new and modernized school facilities after 10 years without new bond funding  thats why The Chronicle supported Prop. 51. But the governor is right. California needs to find more fair, cheaper and faster ways to finance school and community college facility construction.

School districts and Prop. 51s sponsor, Californias Coalition for Adequate School Housing, are nervous about changing the rules because so much rides on obtaining the funds: students need modern facilities; construction workers need jobs and the municipal bond industry needs business. San Francisco Unified School District, for example, has 23 modernization projects dependent on Prop. 51 funding, including projects at Washington and Lincoln high schools, and A.P. Giannini and Denman middle schools. While enrollment statewide is flat or declining, some districts, including Dublin and Fremont, need new schools to accommodate growth.

The governors office swept aside last week concerns around delaying fund distribution or reordering the queue. We are going to implement Prop. 51, said H.D. Palmer, spokesman for the state Department of Finance. The people spoke; it is the law of the state.

The governor however is calling together stakeholders  school districts, builders, the financial industry and state agencies involved with funding applications  to figure out a new system going forward. His concerns are:

Cost: Prop. 51 loads an additional $500 million onto the $2.4 billion the state is paying annually to retire old school bonds.

Efficiency: 10 state agencies must approve bond funding, resulting in long time lines and fragmented oversight.

Fairness: Larger districts that can afford personnel to bird-dog the applications tend to get funding, leaving out smaller or poorer districts with significant need but less ability to compete.

Flexibility: Current standards can result in costly new construction when maybe public dollars are better spent on educational programs or different kinds of facilities. Districts need more flexibility in how they raise and spend funds.

It is in every Californians interest to keep borrowing costs low. Repaying Prop. 51 bond principal and interest crowds out general fund spending on other needs  affordable housing, transportation and water infrastructure, pensions. And everyone benefits when students have facilities to prepare them well for 21st century jobs. Prop. 51 addressed the short-term needs; now we should support the governors efforts to address the long-term concerns that affect our states future.
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The Brainwash Cafe and Laundromat, beloved for its salads, eclectic burgers and cheap suds, is stuck in a bit of a spin cycle thanks to a huge construction project on Folsom Street between Seventh and Eighth streets.

At the end of 2017, the business could be the most profitable its ever been  if it survives.

But, its owner says, it may be forced to close within months, ending a nearly 30-year run in the South of Market area.

The issue is the nearly block-long construction project for 99 Rausch, a 112-unit residential complex being built next door. Since work began in late February, Brainwashs business has slowed to a crawl, due in part to the construction debris, the sounds of jack-hammers and increased truck traffic.

We need the housing in this city, Brainwash owner Jeff Zalles said. I get it. I just didnt expect it to be this bad.

Paul Chinn/The Chronicle

Brainwashs situation will sound familiar to San Franciscans  a small business with razor-thin profit margins cant outlast a nearby construction project that could eventually bring it new customers.

Susan Schindler founded Brainwash in 1989 before selling it to Zalles a few years later. Over the decades, she watched musicians, college students, day laborers and startup CEOs walk through the door.

She still owns the two-story building, the bottom floor of which is occupied by Brainwash. And for the first time since she took over the property, shes having trouble finding tenants for upstairs office units.

Schindler said its because of the construction.

Her real estate broker advised her to lower rent for the spaces by 20 percent, which she eventually did. They remain empty, despite the building having a history of 100 percent occupancy.

It is a sad irony to me that the business which helped make a depressed neighborhood more desirable is now being destroyed by the gentrification it inadvertently helped to create, she said.

Zalles said he knew there would be slow months once construction began. The 5 percent decline in revenue earlier in the year was expected, he said. It wasnt until the site moved beyond foundation work to above-ground construction that problems surfaced.

This year has been a blur of traffic cones, work trucks and storage containers. A makeshift tunnel of pipes and wooden panels was built, extending past the construction zone to Brainwash to shield pedestrians.

On a recent Friday afternoon, there were more construction workers sitting in Brainwashs patio area than customers.

In October, Brainwash revenue was down by more than 20 percent  about $27,000  compared with October 2015. From November through mid-December, it was down 18 percent.

The location has lost $47,000 in the last two months, said Zalles, and could end 2016 with a deficit of close to $200,000.

Ive poured my savings into this place just to stay afloat, Zalles said. But Im tapped out now.

The city doesnt have construction mitigation policies in place concerning private projects and the short-term impact they have on small business.

This month, Zalles sent a letter to the city, specifically to Supervisor Jane Kim, who represents his district, explaining his situation.

The residential complex is a private development. And while the city doesnt usually get involved in these types of projects once they are approved, there are plans for officials to have a bigger role when it comes to construction mitigation, according to Gloria Chan of the Office of Economic and Workforce Development. For now, though, the city just maintains the lines of communication between construction companies, marketing agencies and business owners.

Its important that private developers work in good faith within the community to support local businesses so that they can continue to thrive throughout the short-term construction impacts and beyond, Chan said.

Zalles said the conversations, while helpful, must lead to some type of change, and the change needs to happen immediately. Brainwash, he said, is struggling to make the rent for the first time in its existence.

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Zalles met this month with Angela Cheung, president and broker for Pillar Capital, which represents the developer for 99 Rausch. After the meeting, Cheung took action to aid Brainwash as construction continued.

Paul Chinn/The Chronicle

A temporary storage shed was relocated away from the Brainwash patio.

Lights were added to the temporary walkway leading to Brainwash to help illuminate it at night. A broken streetlight was fixed near the site. And a banner was hung, directing drivers to the open-during-construction Brainwash.

Finally, Cheung instituted a system in which the developer, Belrich Partners LLC, would purchase $1,000 worth of food from Brainwash each month in the form of Brainwash bucks to be be handed out to subcontractors and local businesses.

Pillar Capital is also trying to establish relationships with other nearby businesses, including the Bike Connection shop just a half block away from the site. The complex is expected to have storage for at least 104 bikes.

Our goal is to help give business to the neighbors as much as we could, Cheung said in an email. After the new condos are being occupied, we expect that would help boost our neighbors businesses and the overall neighborhood.

The complex wont be complete until late next year, and as hundreds of bedrooms continue to take shape on the upper floors, construction will only increase in the coming months.

Zalles said all he can hope to do is weather the storm.

This isnt anyones fault, Zalles said. For me, its just wrong place, wrong time.

Justin Phillips is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email jphillips@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JustMrPhillips
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Biologists who explore the Earth and oceans are constantly aware that the life around us is both profligate in variety and vital for the planets sustenance.

The California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco has just released a summary of the new life forms its researchers have discovered worldwide and reported in scientific journals this past year. The discoveries are varied indeed:

Forty-three new species of ants, 36 species of beetles, 24 fishes, six plants, five fossil sea urchins and four spiders. In addition, a new species of sand wasp, an eel, a shark, a coral, a skate, a lizard, a bee fly and a fossil sand dollar. These are among the results of the academys scientific forays into the remote and nearby parts of the natural world, where unknown life abounds.

To most academy visitors the images of those creatures, and sometimes the living examples themselves, can evoke amazement, curiosity, delight, and even revulsion.

But to scientists they offer new insights into the amazing variety of life on Earth, the remarkable ways that evolution has enabled life to adapt to challenging changes, and the urgent need to protect Earths biodiversity for the future.

One new fish species the academys scientists have found, for example, is a colorful little perch-like swimmer called a groppo. It was discovered during a major seafaring expedition to a region called the Coral Triangle in the Philippines. Academy curator Luiz Rocha, working with Bishop Museum scientist Brian Greene, spotted the fish flashing pink and yellow in the light of their dive lamps as they swam at 487 feet beneath the surface. It was the deepest fish discovery humans had ever made.

The scientists were exploring the oceans twilight zone, at the murky depths where ordinary scuba divers cannot go and where professionals like Rocha need specialized equipment like rebreathers to survive.

Fish live there permanently with their eyes adapted through millions of years of evolution to semidarkness, Rocha said. Its an unexplored habitat where different species of cryptic fish can hide, and we need to understand their role in the ecology of those depths, he said.

Brian Fisher, a leading ant biologist, has long explored the island nation of Madagascar off the coast of East Africa, where decades of resource exploitation is fast destroying natural habitats.

In the past year alone, Fisher and Flavia Esteves, his postdoctoral student, reported discovering 43 new species of ants  including a group named Stigmatomma, or Dracula ants, that stab the larvae in their own colonies and drink their blood even as the ants also prey on centipedes and beetle larvae.

The ants are essential parts of Madagascars environment, and their lives are threatened, the scientists said. We fear that the unique environmental niche they occupy will go unfilled once these ants are gone, Esteves said.

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Fisher added: We still have so much to learn from those specialized soil dwellers.

Only about 10 percent of the worlds inhabitants have been discovered so far, said Terry Gosliner, the academys veteran curator of invertebrate zoology, who reported finding seven new species of nudibranchs  better known as sea slugs  last year in the Philippine region called the Verde Island Passage.

Species are the basic units of life, and we need to know the roles each one plays, whether its to understand how life evolves, or how to set goals for conservation, or to find out how they might yield new medicines or crops, Gosliner said.

David Perlman is the San Francisco Chronicles science editor. Email: dperlman@sfchronicle.com
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Before the children and the move to the suburbs, Joanne Hall checked out a copy of Atlas Shrugged from the local library. The due date was stamped in the front cover: July 13, 1983.

The book is now 33 years overdue. Hall, 62, was recently rummaging through storage boxes in the attic of her Pleasanton home when she found it, tucked in a slippery plastic book jacket. SFPL, read a stamp on the spine. She flipped through its pages, feeling shocked and embarrassed.

It looked like a library book, but I couldnt remember what library I had checked it out of, Hall said. I was 29 back then. I moved around a lot, and I had this book packed in a box. It came with me, and no one could read it over those 33 years. I feel so badly about that.

Hall is among an estimated 55,000 book fugitives who have been granted amnesty from the San Francisco Public Library system. From Jan. 3 to Feb. 14, if they return their overdue materials, their fines will be forgiven  along with any previously incurred fines, upon request.

The library caps all fines on overdue items at $5, whether the items are out a year or decades. But even with the cap, library officials say $4.5 million is owed them. They estimate that theyll forgive between $40,725 and $203,775  including Halls $10 fine  during the amnesty period.

Its a bargain, they say, because the value of the materials theyll recover in exchange will be greater.

In 2009, the library tried a similar fine forgiveness program with the slogan Whats your excuse? Over two weeks, more than 30,000 overdue items valued at $730,000 were returned. About $50,000 in fines was forgiven.

The slogan this time is We want you back.

This is the nature of people being very busy, said City Librarian Luis Herrera. You check out materials and forget to return them. Our goal is to have those items come back to us, and, more importantly, to eliminate barriers for folks who have accrued fines to the point that their library cards have been suspended.

The fines disproportionately affect low-income patrons, who need library services the most, Herrera said. City data show that the highest fine amounts are concentrated in historically impoverished neighborhoods. Tenderloin patrons owe $302,376, Mission residents are $227,722 in the red, and a Bayview, Hunters Point and Visitacion Valley ZIP code owes $253,302.

In comparison, Financial District residents owe $8,347 and Presidio residents owe $6,495. But any San Franciscan can earn back card privileges by dropping off late materials at one of the librarys 27 branches during the six-week campaign.

The program helps clear the stigma of having an overdue book, said Jen Schwartz, 29, of the Richmond, who has at least one overdue book. Paying a fine is not the deterrent, she said. Its admitting the transgression to a librarian and feeling her body prickle with guilt, shame and embarrassment, she said.

I have a fear that I am going to walk in to turn in the late book, and theyll see I have done this many, many times, Schwartz said. Are they going to think Im lazy and careless? Thats what Im assuming theyre thinking in the back of their minds. I am a repeat offender.

Her current overdue book has sat on her bookshelf for at least a year, she said. Its been there for so many months that she cant even remember the title. She plans to return it on Jan. 3, the first day of the fine forgiveness program.

Now I have no excuse not to march my butt right down to the library, Schwartz said. And Ill probably make a donation since I dont have to pay a fine.

But no one should plan on waiting for the next fine forgiveness program to return a load of overdue books. It might be years before the program is instituted again. Making the program sporadic discourages people from relying on it to avoid paying fees, Herrera said.

We are hoping to have a steady stream of people in here taking advantage of it, he said. Consider it part of your New Years resolution. Thats a no-brainer.

Hall said she will be one of the first patrons at the library. After 33 years with Atlas Shrugged, which she did eventually finish, it was time to return the novel.

Ive been a fugitive because of it all that time, she said. It belongs to the people of San Francisco.

Lizzie Johnson is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: ljohnson@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LizzieJohnsonnn
Travel may never get old, but there are a few places around the world that rise and fall in popularity over time.

While Paris, London and Rome remain the "classics," there are 17 neighborhoods within cities from around the world that have grown in popularity, and travel home rental site Airbnb compiled and ranked the 17 trendiest neighborhoods in the world. They based their ranking on the travel patterns of more than 140 million guest arrivals at 3 million homes on Airbnb.
LEVITTOWN, N.Y.  To untold numbers of children, hes simply Uncle Tim.

Nearly 3,300 babies across the country who otherwise might have been abandoned and perhaps died have found homes in the past 17 years, thanks in part to the efforts of Tim Jaccard, a retired New York police ambulance medic who grew weary of responding to calls of dead infants abandoned in trash cans and alleys.

To hold a newborn infant in your arms and have to pronounce that child dead is heart-wrenching, said the 66-year-old father and grandfather from Long Island. My gut feeling was that I was being sent on these particular calls to try and see whats going on and change it. I had to stop this insanity.

Not only did he help spearhead a movement in all 50 states to enact safe haven laws that give mothers in crisis the option of leaving their newborns at police stations, hospitals or firehouses without fear of prosecution, he also founded the national Baby Safe Haven organization that acts as a go-between to make such drop-offs as safe as possible.

Leaving a newborn at a firehouse door in the freezing cold, for example, could still be dangerous. Mothers can instead call a national hotline (1-888-510-2229) and arrange a safe handover. Some give birth at a hospital and surrender the child to Baby Safe Haven representatives who work with local social services agencies.

Jaccards eyes redden when he talks of the tragic abandonments he dealt with in his 37 years as a medic. But there are also the more hopeful cases he documents on a bulletin board jammed with dozens of snapshots of the children relinquished through Baby Safe Haven.

What hes doing is ensuring that mothers are able to move forward with their lives, said Tracey Johnson, executive director of the National Safe Haven Alliance in Washington, D.C. And the kids get the gift of life.

According to the alliance, 3,298 babies had been turned over with the help of Baby Safe Haven nationwide in 17 years, including 167 this year.

The holiday season often sees an increase in the numbers. In one memorable case from last year, Jaccard said a distraught mother had called the Baby Safe Haven hotline seeking information about New Yorks law just minutes before a healthy newborn boy was left at the manger of a Nativity scene at New York City church.

The reasons for such cases are as varied as the children, Johnson said, dispelling a notion that the mothers and fathers are young teenagers. Some are college students reluctant to tell their parents and cant raise a child alone. Many are women in abusive relationships who want to shield a new baby from that fate.
DALLAS  Dozens of Fort Worth and Arlington pastors say the recent arrest of a black mother and her two teenage daughters by a white officer was racist despite other characterizations from city officials.

The pastors gathered on Christmas Eve at Beth Eden Baptist Church to ask the black community to remain calm while an internal investigation is completed. Several pastors said the community has lost faith in the ability of the officer, who hasnt been named and is on paid restricted duty, to police the area.
LAGUNA HILLS, Orange County  Ed Reinecke, who was lieutenant governor of California under Gov. Ronald Reagan but resigned after a perjury conviction tied to the investigation of the Watergate scandal, has died at age 92.

Lt. Gov. Reinecke, who also served in Congress and ran to succeed Reagan as governor in 1974, died of natural causes Saturday in Laguna Hills, son Mark Reinecke told the Los Angeles Times.

He was a protege of Reagan, who appointed him as his second-in-command in 1969. Lt. Gov. Reinecke was running for governor when he became ensnared in the wide-ranging Watergate investigation of the Nixon administration.

He was indicted for lying about a 1972 phone call with John Mitchell, President Richard Nixons attorney general and a key figure in the scandal. The perjury charge stemmed from conversations between Lt. Gov. Reinecke and Mitchell about telecommunication company ITTs offer to underwrite the 1972 Republican Convention.

The Senate Judiciary Committee was investigating whether Mitchell knew about a $400,000 pledge from the company before Mitchells Justice Department settled antitrust disputes with ITT.

Prosecutors suggested that in exchange for Lt. Gov. Reinecke lying to investigators, Mitchell would help him in his bid for governor.

Between the indictment and his 1974 conviction, he lost the Republican primary to Houston Flournoy, who would go on to lose the governors race to Democrat Jerry Brown.

He received an 18-month suspended sentence from a federal judge, who called him a victim of his own selfish ambition.

Reagan stood by his friend and protege, seeking to get donors to pay his legal bills.

Im sure, like most of us, you agree that Ed was  and is  a victim of circumstances and Watergate, Reagan said in his appeal to donors at the time. This year its our turn to help a man we all know to be a fine Christian and loyal husband.

The conviction would later be overturned on a technicality. It could not be proved there were enough senators present at his Judiciary Committee hearing to make its decision legal.

Lt. Gov. Reinecke was born in Medford, Ore., and raised in Beverly Hills. He served as a Navy radioman during World War II, then got an engineering degree from the California Institute of Technology.

After his conviction in 1974, he moved to a Sacramento-area cattle ranch and worked in real estate.
ISLAMABAD, Top Foreign Ministry officials from China, Pakistan and Russia will meet in Moscow on December 27 to review what they perceive as a "gradually growing" threat to their frontiers posed by Islamic State extremists in Afghanistan.

"This is an existing forum for undertaking informal discussions on issues of regional peace and stability, including the situation in Afghanistan," Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Nafees Zakaria said.

Pakistan's foreign secretary, Aizaz Chaudhry, will lead Islamabad's delegation, he added. Officials say future meetings could include Iran.

Chinese, Pakistani and Russian officials say they were driven to joint action by the efforts of IS affiliates to establish a foothold in Afghanistan.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's national unity government has reportedly questioned the motives of the trilateral dialogue, which will take place without Kabul being represented.

Russian officials maintain the "working group on Afghanistan" is one of several initiatives Moscow has undertaken with regional countries, including Afghanistan, to develop a "wider partnership" for containing IS influence.

Beijing, Islamabad and Moscow say the three-way talks will also explore ways to bring the Taliban to the table for peace talks with the Afghan government. All three governments maintain overt contacts with the insurgent group.

Russia and officials in Pakistan argue that military operations by the U.S.-led international forces and their Afghan partners have not weakened the Taliban but instead created ungoverned areas where terrorist groups like IS, also known as Daesh, can establish a foothold.

Russia's ambassador to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, told the U.N. Security Council last week that the deteriorating security situation has encouraged IS militants fleeing Syria and Iraq to look at Afghanistan for shelter. He said they will eventually pose a threat to Russia through neighboring central Asian states.

Using another acronym for IS, he said, "There is also information about the presence in Afghanistan of ISIL camps and safe harbors where people from central Asian states and northern Caucasus republics are being trained and where 700 terrorist families from Syria have already arrived."

Churkin again rejected Afghan and U.S. concerns that Moscow's overt ties to the Taliban are meant to undermine international efforts aimed at establishing peace and stability in Afghanistan.

"Our contacts with representatives of Taliban are limited to the task of providing for the security of Russian nationals in Afghanistan and also aimed at moving the Taliban towards joining with the process of national reconciliation," he said.

Pakistani officials say Russia is eager to include Iran in future meetings of the tripartite "working group" and that the issue will be taken up at Tuesday's meeting. Iran borders both Afghanistan and Iraq, where IS is present, and is fighting Islamist insurgents among other anti-regime forces in Syria.

While U.S. counterterrorism forces in partnership with Afghan forces have conducted major operations against IS fighters, the Taliban have also engaged in clashes with the rival group to deny it space in Afghanistan. Russian officials say they are developing ties with the Taliban to prevent IS influence from spreading into Afghan border provinces.

Washington and Kabul point out that Afghan security forces have effectively prevented the Taliban from overrunning any urban center during this year's fighting, despite repeated assaults in northern, southern and eastern Afghanistan.

The U.S. commander of the international forces in Afghanistan, General John Nicholson, earlier this month voiced concern over what he called "overt legitimacy" being granted the Taliban by Russia and neighboring Iran.

"Their [Russia's] narrative goes something like this: That the Taliban are the ones fighting Islamic State, not the Afghan government. And of course the Afghan government and the U.S. counterterrorism effort are the ones achieving the greatest effect against Islamic State," Nicholson said.

He said the public legitimacy Russia has lent to the Taliban is "not helpful," arguing that, "It is used as a way to essentially undermine the Afghan government and the NATO effort and bolster the belligerents."

Afghan and U.S. officials also charge that Pakistan's ties to the Taliban and militants of the Haqqani terrorist network are prolonging the war and have helped the insurgents extend their influence in Afghanistan since most international combat troops left the country about two years ago.

Islamabad rejects the allegations as baseless and insists it is promoting Afghan peace and stability by acting to ensure stability in Pakistan, which shares a porous 2,600-kilometer border with the strife-torn country.

"It is self-defeating to cover up failures in Afghanistan by leveling allegations against Pakistan," said Pakistani Foreign Secretary Chaudhry in an interview with state-run television ahead of Tuesday's talks in Moscow.

-- Written by Ayaz Gul for Voice of America.
avid_creative / Getty Images

The San Francisco Police Department's bomb squad responded this morning to a report of a suspicious object left on a sidewalk in the city's Cow Hollow neighborhood.

At around 7:55 a.m., officers responded to 2700 block of Green Street, police said.
When Iowa Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds received her degree from Iowa State University on Dec. 17 at age 57, she completed a years-long journey and joined the vast majority of state officials with at least a four-year college degree.

In the Iowa Legislature, however, where Reynolds served for two years, state lawmakers without a four-year degree are not uncommon. When the Legislature convenes in a few weeks, 1 in 5 state senators will not possess a four-year degree.

But Reynolds and other state officials, both with and without a four-year degree, say possessing one is not required to adequately perform legislative duties.

Thats not the message Im trying to send (by earning a four-year degree), Reynolds said this week.

Reynolds, a Republican, said in addition to the years she spent taking classes to earn her bachelors degree, she also learned on the job by observing those around her and studying Iowa law. She was a pharmacists assistant and worked in the Clarke County treasurers office before her career in public office, where she has served as Clarke County treasurer, state senator and lieutenant governor.

I learned every day from the people and the job and the people Ive encountered, the people that I worked with like Gov. (Terry) Branstad. What a phenomenal on-the-job training Ive had from Day 1 partnering with him, Reynolds said. I utilized many educational facilities and institutions to get this done.

The rate of four-year degree-holders in the Iowa Legislature vastly outpaces the states general population.

Among Iowans 25 years and older, 26.7 percent have a bachelors degree or higher, according to Census data.

In the Iowa Legislature, 80 percent of senators and 86 percent of representatives possess at least a bachelors.

Senators are responsible for voting on public funding for the states colleges and confirming appointees to the Board of Regents  the state panel that governs Iowas public universities, including the University of Iowa, Iowa State and the University of Northern Iowa.

Thats not a problem, said Iowa Sen. Jeff Danielson, a Democrat from Waterloo whose district includes the UNI campus and who possesses two degrees from the school.

I like Thomas Jeffersons approach to an informed electorate, and that means having an organic feel for, not just the laws that are made in Des Moines, but being able to come back and be a part of your community and be able to communicate why those things are important. That doesnt necessarily require a college degree, Danielson said.

Because of how common it is for farmers to go straight from high school to full-time work on the farm, they comprise five of the 10 Iowa senators and roughly a third of the 14 representatives without a four-year degree. Four senators and seven representatives without four-year degrees have business or professional careers.

Danielson said he would like to see the states public universities acknowledge life experience as credit toward acquiring a degree. He said he experienced it first-hand when none of his experience serving in the U.S. Navy was recognized for college credit.

I want people to achieve being a lifelong learner, and I think we can improve the way in which he recognize that experience, Danielson said. Thankfully, weve changed some of those laws.

Iowa Rep. Walt Rogers, a Republican from Cedar Falls who holds a degree from UNI and will be chairman of the Iowa House committee on education starting in 2017, said, while he believes post-high school education is important, he also believes Reynolds learned just as much  if not more  from her professional and political experience.

It depends on your perspective, I guess. Practically, I dont think Kim is going to act any differently other than being proud she was able to accomplish that, Rogers said. Obviously 98-99 percent of what she knows about government shes learned on the job. All of us, we learn mostly from experience.

Reynolds attended Northwest Missouri State University and majored in business administration and marketing, but she did not complete her degree there. Over the years, she also took classes at a pair of community colleges. In 2012, she focused on obtaining her degree through Iowa State.

It was a personal goal of mine, has been for a long time. I dont like starting something and not finishing it, Reynolds said. So, it really just was an important goal. I wanted my grandchildren to see that its never too late, and, really, Iowans to see that its never too late.

A non-traditional student himself, Danielson applauded Reynolds achievement and said he hopes more Iowans do the same, that the states universities should do what they can to make that easier, and reiterated those who do not possess a four-year degree can draw on their experiences to serve as state legislators.

Weve got a lot of work to do helping people understand the school of hard knocks and higher education are not opposing concepts, Danielson said. What I want is a well-rounded life experience, and we ought to honor both. Our capitol should reflect that. You dont need a college degree to figure out how to help people.
ROCKWELL  An ATM machine was stolen from a bank in Rockwell early Christmas, the Cerro Gordo County Sheriff reports.

The cash machine was taken from First Security Bank a little after 3 a.m. Sunday. Property to the bank sustained extensive damage, the report said.

It was not reported how much cash the machine contained.

The case remains under investigation, the Sheriffs Department said. Anyone with information about the investigation is asked to contact the Sheriffs Department.

The Iowa State Patrol assisted with the response to the event.
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Social media swiftly reacted to a Christmas statement released by the Republican National Committee, as many debated over whether a reference to a "new King" was to Donald Trump.

The press release was released on Sunday, and in it RNC chair Reince Priebus and co-chair Sharon Day asked Americans to "celebrate the good news":

"Merry Christmas to all! Over two millennia ago, a new hope was born into the world, a Savior who would offer the promise of salvation to all mankind. Just as the three wise men did on that night, this Christmas heralds a time to celebrate the good news of a new King. We hope Americans celebrating Christmas today will enjoy a day of festivities and a renewed closeness with family and friends."

Plenty of people took a negative stance on the statement, saying it likens Trump to Jesus Christ.

Others took it as obviously meaning Christ, and not Trump. Because there's no way.

RNC spokesman Sean Spicer took to Twitter to say the "King" referenced is talking about Jesus Christ ... and shame on you for thinking otherwise!

Spicer also apparently responded to a request for comment from BuzzFeed, telling the site via email, "I hope you are kidding. Christ is the King in the Christian faith. To ask this on Christmas is frankly offensive."

Spicer went on to call the story an "attack on Christ" and further wrote that the news site should apologize.

Last year's RNC Christmas statement did not make a reference to a king of any sort, as other news outlets have mentioned. (In case you were wondering.)

If you're not fully convinced in either direction, The Intercept's Glenn Greenwald referenced last year's social media debate on the color of a wedding dress, saying, "This is like the blue/black dress."

While we're on the subject of Christmas, don't even think about saying "Happy holidays" rather than "Merry Christmas":

To read the full statement from the RNC, head here.
Roughly 288,000 Iowans rely on private water supplies but may not know what is in their water because their wells water quality is unregulated.

Moreover, many well owners IowaWatch spoke with during an investigation this past year in counties across southwest Iowa said they largely were unconcerned about their wells, even though tests revealed high levels of nitrates and bacteria in some of their wells.

That could put their health, and the health of their families at risk.

Arsenic testing recommended for Cerro Gordo County wells Arsenic is a naturally occurring element found in bedrock, soil and groundwater across Iowa and, if ingested over a long period of time, is as

IowaWatch found while researching and testing wells in a 10-month investigation a large percentage of wells with high nitrate and bacteria levels. Nitrate levels in 28 wells IowaWatch, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization, tested in May and June ranged from the acceptable level of less than 1 milligrams per liter to, at one rural home, 168 milligrams per liter.

The State Hygienic Lab measures nitrogen levels using nitrate (NO3) and the acceptable level for that under U.S. Environmental Protection Agency health standards is 45 milligrams per liter, although the level usually referenced for nitrogen is 10 milligrams per liter.

Eleven of the wells IowaWatch tested in May and June had nitrate levels above 45 milligrams per liter. Two more tested at 43. Fifteen wells showed unsafe bacteria levels but a handful also had trace amounts of arsenic and lead.

Many county sanitarians who test well water for common contaminants like bacteria and nitrogen said they struggle to get well owners to understand the importance of testing their water regularly, even if it looks, smells and tastes fine.

Whats out of sight is out of mind, said Sherry Storjohann, an environmental health specialist who has been testing wells in Crawford and Carroll counties for the past 25 years.

I have so many people with hand-dug wells that say theyve got the best tasting water, the clearest water, the coldest water, she said. Yet what they realize after they test is just how unsafe that water is.

While some contaminants  like bacteria  may not necessarily be a health concern, they are an indicator of a well susceptible to contamination from the outside. Outside contaminants can include runoff from agricultural fields, septic system leaks and animal infestations, such as when mice, snakes or other creatures crawl into an unsealed well. In some cases, natural events like flooding can also pose a risk to a well.

High levels of nitrogen pose a health risk to infants in the form of blue-baby syndrome and some studies have shown increased risks for some types of cancers, reproductive issues, diabetes and thyroid conditions.

Arsenic and lead both pose a largely unknown risk at low levels. The Environmental Protection Agency puts maximum contaminant level goals, at which there is no known or expected health risk, at zero for both arsenic and lead.

Iowans who wish to test their well may so through a number of different channels, including requesting a kit from a laboratory like the State Hygienic Lab at the University of Iowa, taking a sample and sending it in. Or, in 98 of Iowas 99 counties, they can go through their county sanitarian and use a program called the Iowa Grants to Counties Program.

TESTING, JUST TO BE SAFE

When Jenny and Craig Melvin moved into their home outside Farragut, they tested their well through their local county sanitarian. Results came back with high nitrogen levels  74 milligrams per liter  and total coliform bacteria present. They shocked the well, which cleared up the bacteria, but the nitrates still were there. With one infant in the house both Jenny Melvin and the newborn used bottled water.

He was a preemie, so I just wanted to be extra careful, Jenny Melvin said. And whatever I take in, he takes in.

IowaWatch testing also showed the Melvins had slightly elevated levels of arsenic and lead in their water  0.002 milligrams per liter for both contaminants. Although the goal would be to have these contaminant levels at zero, the action level for lead in regulated, public water supplies is 0.015 milligrams per liter, and for arsenic the maximum contaminant level is 0.010 milligrams per liter.

Water from their well comes straight into the house without filtration. Craig Melvin said hes not the type to get too concerned about the water, although he pointed to the location of the well as cause for some concern. Its about 800 feet from the house in a low point in the landscape, surrounded by fields, near a runoff ditch.

It doesnt smell bad or taste bad, so Im not too worried about it, which isnt necessarily the best thing, Craig Melvin said. We should probably be more concerned about whats in it.

GRANTS TO COUNTIES

Iowas Grants to Counties Program, established in 1987 when the state Legislature passed the Iowa Groundwater Protection Act, provides funds for local county health departments to be used for an array of well-related services.

The program has several players, including the Bureau of Environmental Health Services in the Iowa Department of Public Health, which takes care of the financial administration, and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, which takes care of some of the technical aspects like well contractor certification and maintaining a database of wells and water test results.

All but one of Iowas 99 counties  Marshall County  participate. Carmily Stone, bureau chief of the Bureau of Environmental Health Services in the Iowa Department of Public Health, said the program was among her favorites of the services she oversees.

In public health, we prevent a lot of things and so we cant necessarily see the impact because prevention means it never happens, right?, she said. But for this one, you can see the water tests being done. You can see the results that come back. You can see the wells that are plugged. You can see all of that good work happening.

Counties also can use a grant to cover well-related training expenses up to $1,000, up to $500 for the cost of supplies and up to $1,000 for advertising and promotions to let people know about the availability of the well services. The grant does not cover expenses for water treatment systems.

Some counties may choose to put all of the money into testing and services like plugging or reconstruction, while some divvy up the funds for supplies, training and promotional expenses as well.

As science has yielded a better understanding of the potential for contaminants in wells and the impact those contaminants can have on health, the challenge is keeping people updated and informed on the importance of testing.

Storjohann said both her parents and her grandparents followed the common practice of never testing their wells. They were of the adage: Weve been drinking it this long, you know. Its never harmed us, she said.

As kids, Storjohann and she and others used to drink from the hydrant of the shallow well on her grandparents farm.

I cant imagine what we probably drank, she said.

Richard and Ruth Miller said theyd heard about other people with contaminated wells and thought they should get their well checked, especially since they have grandkids coming over every week. The Millers live near Silver City in Mills County. IowaWatch tests this past summer showed bacterial unsafe levels of coliform bacteria at their home but barely a trace of nitrogen and no e.coli.

Although they test, they said they dont worry much about their water.

Nothing beats good old country water, Ruth Miller said.
CLEAR LAKE | On Jan. 9, 2015, Donald Trump told a crowd at the Surf Ballroom that the days of the silent majority are over.

"What we have here is a noisy majority," he said, and the 1,700 who packed the place hooted and hollered their approval.

On Jan. 20, 2017, a little over a year after his Clear Lake appearance, Trump will be inaugurated as president of the United States.

He didn't win the Iowa caucuses -- he finished second to Sen. Ted Cruz, the Texas conservative -- but his appearance proved a point that Iowans have known for a long time: If you live in Iowa, you have the chance to meet the next president. The Iowa caucuses provide that opportunity.

The caucuses kicked off a busy year in North Iowa politics -- from the highest echelons of national government to local elections in the smallest of cities and counties.

Many politicians and pundits said the Trump influence was a big factor on down-ballot races.

In a state legislative race, Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal of Council Bluffs, in the Legislature for 30 years, lost to his Republican opponent, Dan Dawson, a political newcomer.

In North Iowa, Republicans dominated the winner's circle.

In Cerro Gordo County, Democratic supervisors Jay Urdahl and Phil Dougherty, in office for 28 years and 16 years, respectively, lost to Republicans Tim Latham and Chris Watts, neither of whom has held public office.

In Worth County, two incumbent Democrats fell. Supervisor Dave Haugen lost by five votes to Republican Mark Smeby. Democrat Sheriff Jay Langenbau was defeated by his chief deputy, Republican Dan Fank.

Also in Northwood, Jane Bloomingdale, the Republican mayor, defeated Democrat Tim Hejhal for a seat in the Legislature.

Floyd County Democrats also felt the impact. Democrat Roy Schwickerath, an incumbent supervisor, lost to Republican Linda Tjaelen.

In Senate District 26, which covers several North Iowa counties, Republican Waylon Brown defeated the Democrat incumbent, Mary Jo Wilhelm.

Two North Iowa Democrats managed to not be swept up by the Republican surge.

State Rep. Sharon Steckman of Mason City defeated her Republican challenger, Barbara Hovland of Mason City. State Rep. Todd Prichard of Charles City held on to his House seat, defeating Republican Stacie Stokes.

In a city election unrelated to party politics, Paul Adams was elected to the Mason City Council in December, defeating Andy O'Brien in a runoff. O'Brien and Adams finished one-two in a September general election involving eight candidates. No one got more than 50 percent of the vote, prompting the runoff.

The election was necessary to fill the council seat left vacant by the July 15 death of Alex Kuhn.
Does America have a religion? It seems a strange question to ask. Some Americans have one religion, others another; many have none at all. If there is one conviction about religion that nearly all Americans share, it is that religion is a private matter that each of us is free to arrange as he or she thinks best. But our shared commitment to the separation of church and state can hardly be called a religion itself.

That government should stay out of religion, and religion out of government, is a principle as deeply entrenched in the American way of life as that of free expression, to which it is closely allied. Like others, I hold the principle dear. But I also have great sympathy for those who long for an America whose citizens are joined by more than rights and duties or shared material ends. And I believe this is not an empty dream -- that America is, in fact, already held together by a common spiritual ideal, though it is not always recognized as such.

Walt Whitman described this ideal in his 1871 essay "Democratic Vistas." A fervent democrat, Whitman believed in government of, by and for the people. He was also a fierce champion of diversity.

But the diversity that Whitman loved was not the group-based kind we think of today. It was the endless diversity of individuals that Whitman revered. Indeed, "revered" is too weak a word to describe Whitman's awestruck wonder at the uniqueness of every individual he encountered, from the "pimply" prostitute plying her trade on the streets to the president and his Cabinet in their stately gatherings. In each of these he saw an infinitely complex human being like no other on Earth.

Whitman also believed that every individual makes a singular contribution to the story of the world and thereby shares, in a limited way, in the eternity of the world. He had a single word to express all these convictions. He insisted that every individual is "divine." We rarely see the divinity in others, or even in ourselves. But the deepest truth, according to Whitman, is that we are all expressions of the one everlasting God of the world.

The true end of American democracy, he declared, is to establish a system of laws which treat all of us alike so that we have the freedom and security to begin to explore the divine diversity that sets us apart, not group by group, but individual by individual. The attainment of this higher goal lies in the distant future, beyond democracy and equality, beyond the rule of law and the principle of tolerance. But it is something even better than all of these. Whitman called it America's "religious" ideal.

Whitman's use of that word is bound to strike some as strange.

For most Americans, religion means the Abrahamic faiths. These all rest on the belief that the world was created from nothing by a God beyond the world and time. From this perspective, the greatest heresy imaginable is the claim that the world itself is eternal. But this is just what Whitman believed. Unlike many atheists, Whitman was convinced that we are awash in a sea of divinity. But unlike every Christian, Jew and Muslim, he also believed that the eternity that resides in even the least conspicuous corner of the world is not the gift of a God beyond it, but the world's own possession -- indeed, that "world" and "God" are two different words for the very same thing.

Although Whitman's religion has sometimes been described as a form of pantheism, his reverence for the individual has no counterpart in the pantheistic philosophies of pagan antiquity, or those of the East for that matter. It is the bequest -- the afterglow -- of Abrahamic belief, which first conferred on the individuality of every man and woman the infinite value that Whitman assigns it. A better name for his religion would be born-again paganism: a reaffirmation of the unity of God and the world, enriched by the central teaching of the three creationist religions that insist so vehemently on their separation.

Born-again paganism gives spiritual depth to America's culture of individualism. It explains our reverence for diversity in a way that avoids the worst excesses of identity politics. And it gives us a God that is magnified, not threatened, by the restless drive to explain all things that is such a striking feature of our national character.

In these respects, born-again paganism suits us well. It is the right religion for America.

No one can be compelled to embrace it, of course, but those who do may find it easier to see that, despite our proud commitment to the separation of church and state, we are one nation under God after all.
NEW DELHI: The Defence and Research Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully tested an indigenous Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon (SAAW) from an Indian Air Force aircraft, an official release said on Saturday.

Designed and developed in the country, the 120-kg class smart weapon is used to destroy runways, bunkers, aircraft hangers and other reinforced structures.

Its long standoff range of 100 km will allow the IAF to hit adversary airfields with high precision from a safe distance.

"The captive and release trials were tracked by radar and telemetry ground stations at the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur in Odisha during the entire duration of the flight. The performance of all systems was satisfactory with all mission objectives achieved," said the release.

The lightweight high-precision guided bomb is one of the world class weapons systems, the release said.

The government sanctioned the Rs 56.58 crore SAAW project in September 2013.

DRDO Chairman Dr S. Christopher congratulated the DRDO and the IAF teams for the successful mission.

In May, the DRDO conducted the first test on the weapon system from the IAF Jaguar DARIN-II aircraft in Bengaluru in Karnataka.

The test was carried out by IAF's Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE).

The trial mode mounting of the SAAW on Jaguar DARIN-II aircraft is manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.

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NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday announced lucky draw schemes for people who use digital payment methods including e-banking, mobile banking and e-wallets.

In his monthly radio address to the nation 'Mann Ki Baat', Modi on the occasion of Christmas said 15,000 people who use digital payment modes will be given a reward of 1,000 each by a lucky draw under 'Lucky Grahak Yojana'. This amount will be transferred to their accounts.

"This scheme will last for 100 days (from Sunday). As such lakhs of people will get crores of rupees," Modi said.

The Prime Minister said there will be one big draw every week with winning price in lakhs.

"On the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti -- April 14, 2017 -- we will be conducting a bumper draw in which the winning price will be in crores."

To promote cashless business among the traders across the country, Modi also announced 'Digi Dhan Vyapar Yojana' which will only be for traders.

Modi also announced tax rebate for the traders doing cashless business.

"To encourage cashless business in the country, the government has taken a major decision. All businessmen adopting digital transactions will get rebate in income tax," Modi announced in the 27th edition of 'Mann Ki Baat'.

The Prime Minister appealed the traders to join the schemes and also encourage people to adopt cashless transactions.

"This scheme is to benefit all sections especially poor and lower middle income groups. Hence, only transactions between 50 and 3,000 will be rewarded," Modi said.

Modi said that even poorest of the poor through USSD (unstructured supplementary service data ) can use ordinary feature phone for digital transactions and become eligible for reward scheme. In rural areas people can use AEPS (Aadhaar Enabled Payment System) for digital payments.

Modi added that people would be able to take benefit of these schemes only if they use mobile banking, e-banking, RuPay cards, USSD, Unified Payment Interface (UPI) or other digital payment modes.

He said that there has been tremendous increase in awareness about digital transactions, cashless business.

"In the last few days, cashless business has seen 200 to 300 per cent rise. I am sure people will enthusiastically participate in these schemes," Modi said.

Modi also lauded the efforts of all the states and Union Territories for promoting the campaign of cashless trading and digital transactions.

"I was told that Assam government has decided to give 10 pct rebate on property tax and 'vyapar lisence fee' if paid through digital transactions. I congratulate Assam government for such initiatives," PM said.

Modi said that out of 30 crore RuPay cards, 20 crores cards belong to poor families.

"These 30 crore people can join this reward scheme right away. We should be at the forefront of using digital means to make payments and transactions," he added.

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MUMBAI: In the backdrop of the SBI Colony at Nerul in Navi Mumbai going fully cashless, the State Bank of India has now selected Shirki village in Pen Taluka, Maharashtra, for driving Aadhaar-based merchant payments.

The Nerul-located colony, housing over 1,000 families of SBI officials, went on to earn the distinction of becoming the first cashless colony on December 18.

Within a week, the largest public sector lender has selected Shirki village -- with 2,000 households -- in Pen Taluka, Maharashtra, for driving the Aadhaar-based merchant payments, the bank said in a statement on Saturday here.

Under this initiative, bank volunteers have been meeting the families in the village and enabling them to open bank accounts and link those to their Aadhaar numbers, the statement said.

The merchants in the village have been provided with simple Android phones with a USB-based fingerprint capture device.

The merchant needs to download the Aadhaar Payment App and register with his/her bank using the mobile app. The consumer only needs to have a bank account with his Aadhaar number linked to it.

The consumer needs to pay the merchant by selecting the bank name (in the app) where he/she has an account and provide the fingerprint in the biometric device attached to the mobile phone.

The transaction is completed instantaneously and the consumer's account is debited by the value of the goods or service purchased and the merchant's bank account is duly credited.

"The consumer does not have to struggle with any technology -- just remember any password or PIN to make an instantaneous payment. We plan to drive this initiative across villages pan India," SBI Deputy Managing Director and CIO Mrutyunjay Mahapatra said.

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - Nothing beats having a weekday off after a holiday, and this year many shoppers are not only taking advantage of the time off to return gifts, but also to purchase more items.

With many retailers offering sales ranging from 20-50% off, shoppers set out early to return some holiday gifts for the correct size or merely just a complete exchange. For others, the sparse crowds offered a peaceful opportunity to peruse the racks for sales.

"It was very quiet," says Lois Lordo who ventured out to the stores early. "I'm returning a Keuring [coffeemaker], two pairs of boots and using some gift cards I received," she added.

For Joseph DiFede, his two excursions were quick and painless as he returned a damaged pair of Ugg boots and picked up a birthday gift.

"They're not really that crazy," he said. "I was in and out of both stores in less than 10 minutes ... so I think I did pretty good."

For some folks like Linda and Dominick Largo, the morning shopping at Target in New Springville was just the beginning; The two planned another shopping trip to Peddler's Village shopping outlet in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

While some racks were either empty or disheveled, they say there's another shopping holiday on the horizon.

"They're trying to get Valentine's Day stuff out already," said Dominick Largo with a chuckle.
Castorina.jpg

Assemblyman Ron Castorina Jr. isn't afraid to be a conservative voice in a Democrat-controlled Assembly. (Staten Island Advance/Jan Somma-Hammel)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - As one of two New York City Republicans in the Assembly, Ron Castorina Jr. has embraced his role as an outspoken minority.

First winning an uncontested April special election, the assemblyman was elected to a full two-year team last month after winning a contentious Republican primary in September.

Castorina noted that because he and Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis are the only members of the GOP from the city in their house, they play a special role.

"I have a very unique opportunity to represent a very unique voice," he said. For the representative of the South Shore district, that means taking a strong conservative stance.

"I certainly go against the grain and against the tide when I'm in Albany on a variety of issues," he said. "But I'm OK with that. Matter of fact, I enjoy that, it's an opportunity for me to fight, and to make a voice that's not very much heard, to make that voice heard."

He made enemies and headlines less than two months after taking office when referring to the high abortion rate among black women as tantamount to "African-American genocide."

A black woman is almost five times more likely to have an abortion than a white woman, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Castorina stood on the Assembly floor and refused to yield to other lawmakers seeking to interrupt, arguing that the high abortion rate is due to a lack of options for black women. Instead of encouraging abortions, he argued, government should help women women pay for raising children.

It got his name recognized by his peers, some of whom staged a walkout while he was speaking, and was an issue he felt his constituents would largely agree on.

Government should find out why so many women choose abortions instead of choosing life, he said.

"A lot of the choice is colored by economics and lack of resources," Castorina said.

Instead, crisis pregnancy centers should get more government funding, he argued.

If the state spent half as much as they spent on Planned Parenthood, "they would save hundreds of thousands of lives."

FIGHT OVER MUNICIPAL IDs

Castorina recently made headlines again when he and Malliotakis filed a lawsuit against the city to prevent officials from destroying documents associated with its municipal ID program, IDNYC.

City officials cite what they fear are plans by Donald Trump's administration to deport undocumented immigrants as reason for destroying the documents.

Trump has said he would seek to deport around 3 million undocumented immigrants who have committed crimes while in the country.

The two Assembly members got a Staten Island judge to issue a temporary restraining order to prevent the city from destroying records while the suit plays out in court.

In response, Mayor Bill de Blasio changed the city's policy to no longer retain any records when issuing the documents. Going forward, there would be no documents to argue over in court.

But so far, almost 900,000 people have gotten the ID cards and what happens to their documents provided to the city continues to be the subject of the suit.

Castorina wants to amend the suit to reflect the city's change in policy, seeking to prohibit the city from changing its policy regarding the documents.

The judge in the case on Wednesday extended the temporary restraining order to Jan. 5, when the parties are due in court, and has asked that de Blasio and Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito attend. It's unclear whether they will.

While de Blasio and Mark-Viverito argue this is an immigration issue, Castorina insists it's about using the documents to help law enforcement should they be necessary for a criminal investigation.

It's not about deporting people en mass.

"I would never support that," Castorina. "In fact, I'm in favor of a pathway to citizenship."

He argues if the federal government wanted information to find and deport people, they could get it more easily through other municipal agencies like the Education Department and Medicaid.

He believes city officials are fear mongering so undocumented immigrants see de Blasio and others as saving them from a perceived threat by Trump.

"This seems to me this is about votes," Castorina said. "Bill de Blasio wants to be their savior."

PLANS FOR THE NEW SESSION

Entering his first full term, Castorina has a long list of bills he hopes to pursue, including reintroducing one that would require all yellow lights in the state to be at least four seconds long, preventing red-light cameras from catching drivers at short lights.

He will introduce a bill that would give seniors a break on their taxes, freezing their property taxes when they're 65.

"This will hopefully keep more seniors in their homes," he said.

Castorina sponsored a Blue Lives Matter bill last session and will reintroduce it again next session, seeking to make targeted assaults of police officers a hate crime.

He is a co-sponsor on a bill posed by Mallioatakis to prevent drug dealers from attending drug treatment instead of spending time in jail.

Castorina also plans on introducing a bill to create a drug dealer registry similar to one for sex offenders. Doing so would prohibit them from living close to schools and playgrounds, and notifications would go out to residents when a dealer moves into the community.

He will also reintroduce a bill from last session that didn't make it out of committee that would make it easier to prosecute dealers of fentanyl and fentanyl-laced drugs.

He wants more state resources to fight the heroin epidemic as well as to address mental health needs, which he sees as related issues.

"They have not gotten the attention they truly require," he said of mental health needs.

Visiting Camelot Counseling on Staten Island recently, he asked a group of 30 to 40 addicts why they started using heroin.

He said that about 80 percent said they had a traumatic experience -- loss of loved one, loss of a job.

"Their coping skills were so lacking that they ended up using drugs," he said.

With more of an emphasis on mental health, maybe addiction can be prevented, he argues.

He would like to see the state start a campaign to fight the stigma of mental health and make people more comfortable seeking help.

"The SAFE Act was a knee-jerk reaction to the Sandy Hook incident and immediately was focused on guns," he said. "But the truth is little or nothing was done with respect to mental health, and that individual was mentally ill who killed all those little kids."

The investment should be large and it should be soon, he said.

"It touches so many other areas."
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.-- Police are searching for a male suspect in connection with a shooting Monday afternoon in Stapleton.

The victim was shot at about 1 p.m. on the 100 block of Broad Street and transported by ambulance to Richmond University Medical Center, according to police and a FDNY spokesman.

Police are searching for a black man, about six-feet-tall, wearing a black jacket, blue jeans, a black hat and gray, black and white sneakers in connection with the incident, according to radio transmissions.

Police had cordoned off a section of sidewalk on Broad Street in front of four businesses, from 171 to 183 Broad Street. It was uncertain at the time exactly where on the block the man was shot, according to an officer on scene.

A man who works at the Broad Street Supermarket across the street said he recognized the victim as a man who frequents the area and who he has given money to in the past.

"I give him a dollar just about every other day, and he gets his coffee," said the man, who identified himself as Ralph. "That should have never happened to him. Of all the people out here, him?"

Ralph said he came outside after hearing someone yelling and saw a woman in front of the New Way Convenience Store, attempting to place the victim's jacket under his head.

"She was like hysterical, saying 'I don't know what to do, what should I do'" he said.

This is a breaking story, for updates check back at silive.com
Todd Ettlinger.jpg

Todd W. Ettlinger of Rajakaruna & Ettlinger PC, located in Charleston, is being honored with a Louis R. Miller Leadership Award. (Photo courtesy of the Chamber of Commerce/Steve White)

( )

By Joyce Venezia Suss

for the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Todd W. Ettlinger is quite proud that his family's surveying and engineering business on Staten Island has survived fluctuating business cycles for more than 100 years.

His role in the business started at a very young age: "Every Saturday, my father would take me to work, so I guess you could say I started surveying at age 5. I really enjoyed the variety of types of projects. My father prepared the final maps for over 60 percent of Staten Island ... and over the years prepared over 95,000 jobs."

After Ettlinger's father retired, he became partners with Lalith Rajakaruna. The business office for Rajakaruna & Ettlinger PC is located in Charleston.

Ettlinger himself has had a hand in many local projects, including work on: All three LNG Tanks; one of the South Street Seaport ships at Caddel Dry Dock; many New York City schools and parks; Co-op City.

Now that the metropolitan area is mostly developed, "the only way to grow is to provide work for various agencies," Ettlinger said. "With over 140,000 records in our office, our firm has evolved into a smaller company providing services for the title industry and the smaller building projects."

Ettlinger is being honored with a Louis R. Miller Leadership Award in the master category. The awards -- co-sponsored by the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce and the Staten Island Advance -- are presented in honor of Louis Miller, a businessman and West Brighton resident who was also a community leader.

Recipients of the Louis R. Miller Awards are recognized as effective business leaders, and for their outstanding contributions to the local community. Awards are given out in four categories: Emerging, Established, Master, and Not-For-Profit.

The honorees will be recognized during the annual Louis R. Miller Business Leadership Awards Breakfast on Feb. 15.

Below, Ettlinger shares more about his goals, job, and life.

Past occupations: Appointed a city surveyor in 1971; became a partner in the family business in 1981; after his father retired, he became partners in 1995 with Rajakaruna. Ettlinger is currently a New York State professional engineer (civil and environmental), a New York State land surveyor and New York City surveyor. He is also licensed in New Jersey as a professional engineer and land surveyor.

Community involvement: Past president of the City Surveyors Association of New York City; officer of the Staten Island Zoological Society for 20 years; past president of Cedar Grove Beach Club; exempt member of Richmond Engine Company #1 as firefighter and EMT.

Some of my goals: To continue working with very few employees and only do the work I want, such as small title surveys, architect surveys and professional court testimony for cases involving wetlands and condemnation.

I am most proud of: My daughters and the mother who raised them. And the fact that I helped the family surveying and engineering firms survive more than 104 years.

The best part of my job: At my age, I do what I want. But in the past, the most difficult part was management of the firm. My father almost lost the company keeping people employed. My grandfather, father and myself never liked laying off employees.

My best (and worst) quality: To survive in this business so long, you must be a little stubborn. I just don't know when to quit. I also have been told that I have a bit, a smidgen, of a temper. I really try to do a good job, and always will. I also have a good sense of humor.

Interests and hobbies: Flying; old cars and trucks; canoeing; a cabin on the Hudson River; photography.
Merrick Garland - 2 -.jpg

Judge Merrick Garland (left), who was nominated by President Obama to fill a Supreme Court vacancy, walks on Capitol Hill with Sen. Charles Schumer, D-NY., a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

(AP file photo)

In his March 16 remarks nominating Merrick Garland to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, President Obama described him as "widely recognized not only as one of America's sharpest legal minds, but someone who brings to his work a spirit of decency, modesty, integrity, even-handedness, and excellence." Despite acknowledging that Garland had been repeatedly recommended to him through the years as a potential Supreme Court nominee, Obama bypassed him twice when given the chance to fill prior vacancies on the court.

His first opportunity came in 2009, following the retirement of Justice David Souter. Obama chose, instead, to play politics, pandering to Hispanic voters by nominating the obviously inferior, indeed barely qualified, Sonia Sotomayor. Setting the tone for the Democrats political ploy, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, warned Republicans, "Let no one demean this extraordinary woman."

A year later, the retirement of Justice John Paul Stevens gave Obama a second opportunity to nominate Garland. Once again, however, he opted to play politics, choosing Elena Kagan, who had no judicial experience whatsoever, and had joined an unsuccessful lawsuit designed to keep military recruiters out of colleges. Two years later, Kagan, speaking at the University of Tennessee, candidly admitted that she likely would not have been nominated had she not been a woman.

The Bork nomination

So those bemoaning the absence of Merrick Garland's talent on the Supreme Court can blame Obama, who twice could have nominated him and gotten him confirmed, but didn't. The obvious retort is that Obama did eventually get around to nominating him this year, only to have the Republican-controlled Senate refuse to consider him. Republican inaction can't be viewed in a vacuum, however, but rather, as the natural, indeed, inevitable progression of what Democrats themselves have wrought over the years.

There was a time when Supreme Court nominees were regularly confirmed so long as they hadn't exposed themselves in public or done similarly unseemly things. The Democrats changed all that in 1987 when President Ronald Reagan nominated Robert Bork to replace the retiring Justice Lewis Powell. Bork, a former Yale Law School professor and U.S. Solicitor General, was, like Garland, a judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. But while his legal qualifications were never in dispute, Democrats seized on his originalist philosophy to excoriate him. Sen. Ted Kennedy, for example, declared: "Bork's America is a land in which....blacks would sit at segregated lunch counters [and] rogue police could break down citizens' doors in midnight raids..."

The treatment accorded Bork, whose nomination was ultimately defeated, was so unprecedented and so scurrilous that it gave rise to the verb "bork." It's defined by the Oxford Dictionary as "Obstruct (someone, especially a candidate for public office) by systematically defaming or vilifying them."

Democratic warnings

The Democrats profited immensely from their disgraceful behavior toward Bork when, in his place and stead, Reagan nominated Anthony Kennedy. He, of course, has increasingly voted with the court's liberal wing to produce a series of key victories for the left.

Fast forward to June 1992 when Sen. Joe Biden, then Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, warned President George H.W. Bush not to make any Supreme Court nominations pending the results of the November elections. Otherwise, Biden continued, his committee "would seriously consider not holding a hearing." Sound familiar? A similar statement was made by Sen. Chuck Schumer in July 2007, a full 16 months before the Nov. 2008 elections.

In 2003, Senate Democrats used the filibuster for the first time in the nation's history to defeat a nomination to the U.S. Court of Appeals. Their victim was the superbly-qualified Miguel Estrada who, having come to the United States as an 8-year-old from Honduras, went on to graduate magna cum laude from Columbia College and, thereafter, Harvard Law School, where he was editor of its Law Review. Despite receiving the American Bar Association's highest approval rating, Estrada's nomination by President George W. Bush to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit was successfully filibustered by Democrats simply because they viewed him as too conservative.

Nuclear Option

In November 2013, with the Democrats in control of the Senate, Majority Leader Harry Reid and his fellow Democrats invoked the so-called "nuclear option," doing away with the filibuster to prevent Republicans from blocking Obama's judicial nominees the way they had blocked Bush's. As a direct consequence of this unprecedented action, Obama was able to make three fast, controversial appointments to the D.C. Circuit, thus giving Democratic judges a 7-4 advantage on what is often called "the second highest court" in the country.

In kinder times, Merrick Garland would have been confirmed. The Scalia vacancy is a game-changer, however, and Democrats gave Republicans all the lousy precedent they needed to play to win. If the tables were turned, there isn't a scintilla of doubt that Democrats would be playing the same way.

[Daniel Leddy's column appears each Tuesday on the Advance Editorial Page. His e-mail address is column@danielleddylaw.com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/LegalHotShots.]
Lolaergasheva wrote:

Fossils of a whale that beached on an African shore more than a million years ago and was subsequently butchered by hominids have been recovered by paleontologists.



A. that beached on an African shore more than a million years ago and was subsequently butchered by hominids have



B. that beached on an African shore more than a million years ago and then was subsequently butchered by hominids has



C. that beached on an African shore more than a million years ago, which was subsequently butchered by hominids, has



D. having been beached on an African shore more than a million years ago and subsequently butchered by hominids, have



E. having beached on an African shore more than a million years ago and then subsequently were butchered by hominids have

Meaning is crucial to solving this problem:

Concepts tested here: Subject-Verb Agreement + Meaning + Parallelism + Verb Forms + Awkwardness/Redundancy

A:

B:

C:

D:

E:

Hence, A is the best answer choice.

Dear Friends,Here is a detailed explanation to this question-Understanding the intended meaning is key to solving this question; the intended meaning is that a whale beached on an African shore more than a million years ago and was subsequently butchered by hominids, and its fossils have been recovered by paleontologists. The simple past tense is used to refer to actions that concluded in the past. Any elements linked by a conjunction ("and then" in this sentence) must be parallel. "which/who/whose/where" when preceded by a comma, refer to the noun just before the comma.Correct. This answer choice correctly refers to the plural noun "Fossils" with the plural verb "have been recovered" and to the singular noun "whale" with the singular verb "was butchered". Further, Option A uses the phrase "and was subsequently butchered by hominids", conveying the intended meaning - that the whale was subsequently butchered by hominids. Additionally, Option A correctly uses the simple past tense verbs "beached" and "was butchered" to refer to actions that concluded in the past. Option A also maintains parallelism between "beached on an African shore more than a million years ago" and "was subsequently butchered by hominids". Besides, Option A is free of any awkwardness or redundancy.This answer choice incorrectly refers to the plural noun "Fossils" with the singular verb "has been recovered". Further, Option B redundantly uses "then" alongside "subsequently", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.This answer choice incorrectly refers to the plural noun "Fossils" with the singular verb "has been recovered". Further, Option C incorrectly modifies "more than a million years ago" with the phrase "which was subsequently butchered by hominids", producing an incoherent meaning; the intended meaning is that the whale was subsequently butchered by hominids; remember, "which/who/whose/where" when preceded by a comma, refer to the noun just before the comma.This answer choice incorrectly refers to actions that concluded in the past with the present participle ("verb+ing" - "having" in this sentence) phrases "having been beached" and "having been...butchered"; remember, the simple past tense is used to refer to actions that concluded in the past.This answer choice incorrectly refers to the singular noun "whale with the plural verb "were butchered". Further, Option E fails to maintain parallelism between "having beached on an African shore more than a million years ago" and "were butchered by hominids"; remember, any elements linked by a conjunction ("and then" in this sentence) must be parallel. Additionally, Option E redundantly uses "then" alongside "subsequently", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.To understand the concept of "Simple Tenses" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~2 minutes):To understand the concept of "Which, Who, Whose, and Where" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):All the best!Team_________________
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shivamkumar07 wrote:

Hi Jeffreyadcom,



Specific reason for Canada is, its 3 year work permit and PR Policies its friendly Immigration polices. and also the low cost tution fees compared to US.

I want to settle down in Canada after my MBA.





Thanks

per firm

Hi shivamkumar07,From what I've seen the top Canadian programs are Desautels, Ivey, Queen's, and Rotman. D and R are two year programs. I would check those four out. For PE/VC I've read, anecdotally, that Ivey and Q are good options (Many Canadian PE/VC firms don't provide internships: due to size of funds(?)). Rotman's two year format and Toronto location are positive attributes for anyone seeking a job which requires an internship (BB banks, I'd guess). Toronto, by the way, is Canada's main financial center.Language considerations:Many employers place emphasis on language skills for front office employees (representing the firm). This means a highly refined command of English. You should get to a native level by, say, halfway through your MBA, at the latest. If you additionally have studied French before; Desautels' Quebec location provides a great opportunity to improve your French while attending the program.Desautels' recent stats say 50% Montreal and 28% Toronto--with the rest placing internationally. That's a super strong point about Desautels; All Canadian placements were in Montreal or Toronto. ALL of them in two cities. I mean, wow. That's serious placement power.For any of these programs, you probably want to heavily network from the start of the program (or earlier). I would guess you will be competing with Canadians who studied in the US and are coming back. Also, the small size of the Canadian economy means there are fewer jobs in Canada. I am not sure how much competition there is for those positions, but would put networking number one on my list of priorities if attending any one of these programs. With this networking time frame in mind, you really want to get your English to a native level as soon as you possibly can. That way you can start forming an impression in front-office recruiters' minds of someone (you) who will convince clients theirs is a refined financial firm.On the GMAT, you will be competing with other Indians, and those guys tend to score higher than others, so you probably want to get a score at the 75th percentile of the typical class score for these programs to be on the safe side. I'm guessing that's at least 720.There is a lot to like about Canada, so good luck!
Jerusalem  A fake news story has touched off a tense Twitter confrontation between nuclear power Pakistan and Israel, widely believed to have a nuclear arsenal of its own, in an episode that underlines the potentially harmful impact of such stories in sensitive global affairs. In an apparent response to a fake story claiming Israel's former defense minister threatened a nuclear attack against Pakistan if it sends troops to Syria, Pakistan's Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif reminded Israel that "Pakistan is a nuclear state, too." Israel's Defense Ministry tweeted back Saturday, saying the original story on the site AWD News was "totally fictitious." AWD has been identified by fact-checking organizations as a fake news site. Israel maintains a policy of nuclear ambiguity, neither confirming nor denying the existence of an arsenal. Pakistan became a nuclear power in 1998. The countries have no diplomatic ties.
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Forecasted to bring in the new year in the capital is a string of 30-plus days and warm nights, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

Severe to extreme heatwave conditions are forecast for the entire eastern NSW coastline on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

The beach will be a popular place to be in Perth on Saturday with the temperature expected to hit 40 degrees. Credit:Justin McManus

In the ACT, a low-intensity heatwave is expected to pass over Monday and Tuesday, Weatherzone meteorologist Kim Westcott said.

From Tuesday to Thursday, a severe heatwave is expected to arrive, if not Canberra itself, to the north and east, she said.
Uber drivers are being urged to ensure they hold the correct licence and insurances or face a fine. Credit:AP "What people will notice from day one is the ability to move money between participating bank accounts in a matter of seconds, and that'll be 24/7, 365 days a year," the NPP's chief executive, Adrian Lovney, says. "There'll be no concept of a weekend or a public holiday, it'll work all the time." "Whether it's a $2.50 cup of coffee, or a $2.5 million property settlement, the money will move between banks ESA [exchange settlement accounts] accounts in real time," he says. But aside from greater speed, what will consumers notice?

Despite expectations of an 'Uber-like' experience, Australians still face a payments landscape filled with friction and inefficiency executive general manager of NAB Labs, Jonathan Davey Here are three ways electronic payments could be overhauled the system being launched in the second half of this year. 1. You can forget about BSBs At the moment, sending someone cash electronically requires knowing their BSB number and account number. That can be a hassle and it's often simpler to use cash instead. Under the new system, BSB and account numbers will still exist, but you won't need to know them in order to send someone money.

Instead, people can nominate some other "identifier" such as mobile number or email address. You'll only need that identifier to send money to a friend, pay a business, or have someone else pay you. Banks believe this change will remove "pain-points" in the payments model, which has had little change in the last 15 years. The goal is to make everyday payments more like a transaction with Uber - where paying the driver is taken care of automatically when you arrive at the destination. It's not what we get today when sending money to a friend - but that is what many of us would expect. "Despite expectations of an 'Uber-like' experience, Australians still face a payments landscape filled with friction and inefficiency," the executive general manager of NAB Labs, Jonathan Davey, said in a recent report.

2. Expect to see more time-saving apps Giving people one "identifier" for their payments opens up all sorts of possibilities to develop apps that can allow people to spend less time on hassles such as paying multiple bills. Developers will be able to invent these apps and on the NPP, even if they are not banks. Consider all the payments involved in owning a car, for instance. There is registration, tolls, parking, insurance, fuel and maintenance. Lovney says a savvy developer might invent a system could be arranged to automatically deduct payments when your car's number plate went through toll booths, or parking fees when you went into parking stations.

Alan Shields, a payments expert at RFi Group, says the NPP could also streamline the various transactions customers make when buying a car. As well as buying the car itself, there's also often a need to buy insurance, get a loan, and if it's second-hand, conduct an online search to make sure a previous owner doesn't still owe money on the car. "You could feasibly have a service where all of these things happen seamlessly," Shields says. The first NPP service will also you to send "request to pay" notices - which can simply be agreed to by consumers, without having to agree to direct debits. 3. Voting with your feet will get easier

The nuts and bolts of payments is not exactly a hot political topic. However, it is probably one reason why banking is less competitive than many politicians would like. Today's system makes splitting up with your bank complicated and messy. There is a service that transfers all of a transaction account's direct debits and credits, but it is only used by about 40 people a week and takes up to two weeks to complete the process. It does not affect payments on credit or debit cards, either.

Under the NPP, if you want to change banks, you'll no longer have to notify all the billers about money coming out, and people you pay you about money coming in. That is because those payments would be linked to an "identifier" that won't change, such as a mobile number. That won't make it any easier to change direct debits from credit or debit cards, but is being touted as a step towards less "sticky" customers. However, there are limitations to its impact on competition. Shields points out that take-up of fast payment apps in the UK have been low, with only about 3 per cent of consumers bothering to use these services. Also, just because it becomes easier to switch banks it doesn't mean people will do it.
Less than a week before the lucrative NSW solar bonus scheme ends, there is still "mass confusion" among the 146,000 affected households, industry figures say.

The scheme, which was launched in 2011 to encourage the uptake of renewable energy, handed homeowners 60 or 20 "feed-in" tariffs per kilowatt hour, for the solar energy they put back into the grid.

But from December 31 those homeowners are set to face "bill shock", when their tariff rates drop to around 6, which is less than the amount they will be charged for accessing electricity from the grid.

The biggest change for all affected consumers has been the need to switch from a gross meter to a net meter, a process that has been beset by lengthy delays.
Businesses close for many reasons. For Shakeera Wallis, the decision to close her S.Wallis boutique in Malvern Road, Hawksburn, may have come down to a tank top.

"I remember women agonising over these $19.95 tanks on the sale racks. Fashion has become more about occasion shopping, or everyday stuff," she said.

Going, gone ... Shakeera Wallis is closing her S.Wallis boutique at the end of the month to focus on expanding her business elsewhere. Credit:Wayne Taylor

Finding herself caught between the chain stores' perpetual discounting and the high-end designers, Ms Wallis will close her store after three years, on December 29.

"There are not as many people shopping in the village as before," she said, adding that the impact of school holidays also hurts independents.
Global investment funds say 2016 should serve as a wake-up call for Australian boards on the issue of executive pay, with some company executives paying themselves too well.

In the wake of a string of "first strikes" this year, the usually passive investment funds are waking up to the issue of pay, warning boards to rein it in or face further backlash from large shareholders and the general public.

In a trend that is seeing the emergence of the "sleeping giants" into a discussion about inequality in the broader community, the world's biggest funds say more needs to be done to justify big pay in 2017.

Pru Bennett, head of BlackRock's Investment Stewardship team, says Australian boards are out of touch when it comes to changes in the global economy that has seen wage stagnate and inequality grow.
London: US President-elect Donald Trump's new trade chief has urged Britain's rivals to take advantage of the "God-given opportunity" of Brexit to take business away from the UK, according to a report.

Wilbur Ross, the US commerce secretary designate, said Britain was facing a "period of confusion" following the vote to leave the EU and that it was "inevitable" there would be "relocations", according to The Times.

Commerce Secretary-designate Wilbur Ross waits for an elevator at Trump Tower in New York. Credit:AP

The billionaire businessman will be responsible for negotiating a free trade deal with the UK and his reported comments will raise concerns the incoming US administration will seek to exploit Britain's isolation following Brexit.

Mr Ross made his comments to an audience of Cypriot financiers in the days following last June's referendum vote - before he had been appointed to Trump's cabinet.
It's just six months after the federal election and a few long days before 2017 begins. And I realise now it's not possible to hope for any politician from any major party  or even minor  to be a conviction politician.

Yes, I know we usually identify conviction politicians with those who have conservative values. Thatcher. Reagan. They are the ones who jump to mind. What I'd very much like is an Australian conviction politician with progressive values. One who didn't pander to fear of refugees. One who didn't think it was OK to sponsor a program which holds asylum seekers in detention centres. Or ones who focus on the protection of the funding of private schools at existing levels. One who didn't sign off on cutting welfare for single parents.

It's got to the stage now where I hear the word bipartisan and it makes me feel queasy. It means that the politicians have colluded to come to some appalling consensus where no one's happy. Or, as that noted social philosopher and former NSW premier Barrie Unsworth said about a dispute on Sunday trading: "I think everybody walked away slightly unhappy and I have always said that's usually a good compromise."

But in the case of politics, compromise means we are often compromised. And so I can't see where I am going to find a conviction politician, which makes it really hard for me to act on one particular new year's resolution of mine. Yes, this year, no matter which election I'm voting in: local, state, federal, any association, organisation or union of which I'm a member, I plan to be a conviction voter.
gmatbull wrote:



important public policy issues that are grounded in science often get reframed in, for example, economic terms,

for most adults have trouble grasping scientific concepts. Greater familiarity with science is necessary for these

adults because having it would enable them to finally understand the policies that affect their lives.



The scientists argument above makes which of the following assumptions?



A. Adults who are familiar with science take different positions on public policy issues than do adults who are not

familiar with science.

B. Not using other terms to reframe public policy issues grounded in science will improve citizens understanding

of those issues.

C. To be a good and effective citizen, an adult must be able to understand basic concepts in both science and

economics.

D. When public policy issues grounded in science are reframed in other terms, those reframed versions do not

provide adults with a true understanding of those issues.

E. Most adults understand economic concepts better than they do scientific concepts.



OA Show Spoiler only after sharing ideas Scientist: Understanding public policy is as much a part of being a good and effective citizen as voting is. Currently,important public policy issues that are grounded in science often get reframed in, for example, economic terms,for most adults have trouble grasping scientific concepts. Greater familiarity with science is necessary for theseadults because having it would enable them to finally understand the policies that affect their lives.The scientists argument above makes which of the following assumptions?A. Adults who are familiar with science take different positions on public policy issues than do adults who are notfamiliar with science.B. Not using other terms to reframe public policy issues grounded in science will improve citizens understandingof those issues.C. To be a good and effective citizen, an adult must be able to understand basic concepts in both science andeconomics.D. When public policy issues grounded in science are reframed in other terms, those reframed versions do notprovide adults with a true understanding of those issues.E. Most adults understand economic concepts better than they do scientific concepts.OA

Understanding public policy is as much a part of being a good and effective citizen as voting is

Currently, important public policy issues that are grounded in science often get reframed in, for example, economic terms, for most adults have trouble grasping scientific concepts

Greater familiarity with science is necessary for these adults because having it would enable them to finally understand the policies that affect their lives

conclusion of the passage

necessary

The passage doesn't talk about positions taken by adults. It's about understanding by adults. Understanding may or may not lead to change in position.

This is very close to the assumption we figured out. This could be the answer. Let's explore other options

Some of my fellows have selected this option. However, this is incorrect. The passage doesn't say this, doesn't assume this and also doesn't lead to this. To be good and effective citizen, one requires an understanding of public policies. Understanding of policies grounded in science may require one to understand basic principles (familiarity) of science. One can derive from this that "To be a good and effective citizen, an adult must be able to understand basic concepts in science". However, it is an inference. The statement is not an assumption built in the passage.

Even if we talk of inference, we can't infer the other part of this statement that "To be a good .... in economics"

This is also very close to the assumption we figured out. We'll need to reread the passage to figure out between option B and D.

It's not assumed in the passage. It could be an inference, nto assumption

finally understand

Correct answer should be D. It's a close call between B and D; however, D seems the best choice. Let' see how.. - It's an opinion which lays down the context for the remaining statements. It basically says that a citizen should understand public policy. (i.e. it's good for a citizen to understand public policy). - Reframing this we get, " important public policy issues that are grounded in science often get reframed in economic terms because most adults have trouble grasping scientific concepts".The statement has two parts:1. Greater familiarity with science is necessary for these adults2. because having it would enable them to finally understand the policies that affect their livesFirst part is thewhich is supported by the second part. So, it says that greater familiarity with science is necessary for adults. BUT WHY?Because that would enable them to finally understand the policies that affect their lives.But the previous statement said that public issues can be reframed in economic terms to help adults understand them. Then, why does the author says that "familiarity with science" isto understand the policies. Doesn't this reframing help? It seems that the author is making an assumption that reframing those policies in economic terms would not be helping the adults in understanding them; otherwise there would be no need of greater familiarity with science.Now, let's consider the options:A. Adults who are familiar with science take different positions on public policy issues than do adults who are notfamiliar with science. -B. Not using other terms to reframe public policy issues grounded in science will improve citizens understandingof those issues. -C. To be a good and effective citizen, an adult must be able to understand basic concepts in both science and economics. -D. When public policy issues grounded in science are reframed in other terms, those reframed versions do not provide adults with a true understanding of those issues. -E. Most adults understand economic concepts better than they do scientific concepts. -The difference between option B and D is that B says means reframed versions reduce understanding (therefore not using them will improve understanding) while D says that reframed versions do not provide true understanding.To decide between these, we need to read the last line of the passage "because having it would enable them tothe policies that affect their lives". It says that "finally understand", not "improve understanding".Thus, option D is the best choice.If anyone has any queries, please feel free to ask.Regards,CJ_________________
Sometimes fiction is much more illuminating than fact. A case in point is a new novel by Michael Wilding, one of the stalwarts of Australian contemporary fiction. The Sydney writer's In the Valley of the Weed, released this week, examines some key issues and implications of the move to decriminalise marijuana, a hot topic nowadays.

One of the leading characters of Wilding's deeply subversive novel is Tim Vicars  an academic suspended because of his politically incorrect emails, who disappears. Then there's Plant, the private detective hired to find him. Vicars' major research project is on the implications of decriminalising marijuana. The novel's conspiracy theorist, Fullalove, explains: "This is going to be like tobacco. Or alcohol.

In the Valley of the Weed takes time to compare and contrast medical and recreational marijuana.

"This isn't legalisation. This is monopoly control and regulation. The lobby for decriminalising isn't about growing your own half dozen plants in the back yard. That'll still be illegal. It's all about profit for the monopolies and government revenue-raising through excise tax. The tobacco companies are desperate.

"They need a new product. Marijuana's their last hope of staying in business. Think of all the investors. Think of the potential profit. This is about paving the way for government, Big Pharma and the tobacco companies to make money by monopoly control." Fullalove then outlines some of the problems.
It's hard to argue against the fence around Parliament House in Canberra, because we don't know what the security agencies advocating it know, and they won't tell us.

We can note, however, that the proposal for a 2.6-metre fence around the national Parliament's perimeter has been met with dismay. Additional security measures for the building have been rushed through both houses in the closing sessions of the year; the fence is expected to be erected over the summer.

Hundreds rolled down the lawns of Parliament House to protest against the fence proposal. Credit:Rohan Thomson

It seems children will no longer be able to roll down the celebrated grassy slopes; nor will joggers be able to bust their guts sprinting up them. But we don't know exactly what it will look like, because the blueprints are being kept under wraps as a matter of national security. Nor has the justification for the security upgrade been adequately explained.

That leaves it to leading architects like Glenn Murcutt to declare the security upgrade a "knee-jerk reaction".
It's a good time for resolutions, and mine is to get a grip. Write with focus. Unfortunately this column's often become so absorbed in the detail occurring around us that it's missing the big trends. A New Year offers an opportunity to change that; frame objectives; and achieve them. But if we're going to accomplish anything it's necessary to understand our environment first. So some predictions for the year ahead.

Malcolm Turnbull will go. Not immediately perhaps, but even he's clever enough to realise it's been more than a decade since a prime minister who led a party to victory has been given the opportunity to lead his colleagues to the subsequent election. He's finished. The only issue still to be determined is the manner of his going. Personally, I think he'll grow bored as soon as he understands his impotence to achieve anything.

Bill Shorten will go. His party won't give him the credit for destroying Tony Abbott or Turnbull: they think both were demolished by their own flaws. Now Labor realises its next leader will become PM, the manoeuvring has already begun. Nothing's firm, yet, however Shorten's prolonged run of poor polling (despite the government's incompetence) condemns him.

The deficit will remain untouched. Although economic issues  and particularly spendthrift governments  have been at the centre of our political disillusionment since the crisis of 2008 became apparent, neither party will be willing to make the bold calls necessary to deal with these. Yet until this occurs the country will continue drifting. Politicians will be too afraid to risk the wrath of the electorate to take the vital decisions that are urgently necessary if people are to believe Australia offers an inclusive future for everyone.
In 2016 the place to be was Belvoir. From Jasper Jones to Faith Healer, via The Events, Eamon Flack's revival of Stephen Sewell's political drama The Blind Giant is Dancing (featuring a fine and final appearance on the Belvoir stage by Russell Kiefel), Lally Katz's Back at the Dojo and Leah Purcell's The Drover's Wife, pretty much everything clicked, save for its lacklustre The Great Fire and an oddball Twelfth Night.

The Sydney Theatre Company's season lacked vitality by comparison. Stagings of Tom Stoppard's Arcadia, Noel Coward's Hay Fever and Andrew Upton's new version of Georges Feydeaux's A Flea in her Ear looked grand  the latter, especially  but none flew as high as they might. Only incoming artistic director Kip Williams' stark productions of Louis Nowra's The Golden Age and Arthur Miller's All My Sons really gripped.

Marta Dusseldorp played a fading actress in Gloria. Credit:Brett Boardman

After much concern about its funding, Griffin Theatre had a good year with Lee Lewis' productions of Justin Fleming's The Literati and Benedict Andrews' Gloria. Bell Shakespeare (Romeo and Juliet, Othello) not so much.

The Ensemble struck gold with Tribes and Good People, as did the Eternity Playhouse with its spare and beautifully made Sydney premiere of Northern Territory writer Mary Anne Butler's Broken.
Sydney is headed for a scorching end to 2016 as tropics-like heat and humidity push their way into Australia's south-east.

Some of that warm, moist air has delivered record levels of rain to parts of the interior and closed the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park until further notice.

For Sydney, near ideal summer conditions should prevail for Tuesday and Wednesday, with tops of 29-30 degrees under partly-cloudy skies, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

The western suburbs, however, continue to bake with maximums of 35-37 degrees expected for those two days.
"And each time I rang, I got a message saying they were experiencing high call demand and to call back later and then they hung up," the 60-something Tasmanian said.

Three weeks after putting in his Medicare claim and hearing nothing, and with more medical expenses on the way, Barry picked up the phone and called the helpline.

Department of Human Services general manager Hank Jongen denies there is a backlog of Medicare claims. Credit:Jim Rice

"You speak to others at this age and they are all saying the same thing. There was a letter to the editor in the paper today saying it wasn't a problem, but it must be.

"There are no offices anymore, you can't talk to anyone about it at the Centrelink where there is the drop box and if you ring the Medicare number they hang up on you.

"Not everyone can afford to pay on the day. This is a real problem for a lot of people."

Fairfax has seen complaints from people who have contacted local MPs after waiting more than a month for their refund, from across the nation.
Nine days before he died, a young Sudanese refugee's exasperation at what he saw as the inaction of the health providers at the Manus Island detention centre reached breaking point.

In broken English, Faysal Ishak Ahmed filled out a complaint form, demanding to know why more than 20 visits to the centre's clinic had not produced a diagnosis of his ailments, let alone a treatment plan.

Memorial service for Faysal Ahmed who died after being airlifted from Manus Island.

For six months he had been complaining of chest pains, swollen arms and fingers, breathing problems, high blood pressure and a "problem at the back of my head".

"One thing I want to know about my healthy [sic] is are you guys able to treat me or if no tell me in write [written] form," he asked.
Health administrations are spending thousands on locums and salaried staff are working overtime to compensate for a seasonal exodus of junior doctors.

As hospitals prepare for the predictable spike in emergency admissions during the Christmas period, junior doctors working as senior resident medical officers have resigned from some hospitals, leaving their colleagues to cover the shifts.

As Christmas gears up, some doctors are leaving early. Credit:Nicolas Walker

These junior doctors begin their specialist training in February and there is usually a slow drift of people who decide to take a summer break before starting their new jobs.

Several local health districts confirmed the early resignation of senior residents this year, including Northern Sydney, Western Sydney, South Western Sydney, Nepean Blue Mountains and Illawarra Shoalhaven.
Despite the train network chaos on Christmas Day, Transport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said he is confident crew shortages "won't be an issue that will cause cancellations" on New Year's weekend.

"I want to stress the advice that I'm getting on an updated basis, reflecting on experiences of last few days, is reassuring," he said.

Minister for Transport Stirling Hinchliffe said he is reassured services will run as normal over the New Year's weekend. Credit:Bradley Kanaris

"I've got the initial advice that demonstrates a level of confidence around the number of crew that will be in place for New Year's Eve and New Year's Day."

Mr Hinchliffe said the change to a school holiday timetable with reduced services as well as the different set of circumstances around New Year's weekend are "initially satisfying".
Estimados amigos,

Les doy cordialmente la bienvenida a este Blog informativo con articulos, analisis y comentarios de publicaciones especializadas y especialmente seleccionadas, principalmente sobre temas economicos, financieros y politicos de actualidad, que esperamos y deseamos, sean de su maximo interes, utilidad y conveniencia.

Pensamos que solo comprendiendo cabalmente el presente, es que podemos proyectarnos acertadamente hacia el futuro.

Las convicciones son mas peligrosos enemigos de la verdad que las mentiras.

There are decades when nothing happens and there are weeks when decades happen.

You only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out.

No soy alguien que sabe, sino alguien que busca.

Only Gold is money. Everything else is debt.

Las grandes almas tienen voluntades; las debiles tan solo deseos.

Quien no lo ha dado todo no ha dado nada.

History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.

If you know the other and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.

We are travelers on a cosmic journey, stardust, swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity. Life is eternal. We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share.This is a precious moment. It is a little parenthesis in eternity.
After decades of fruitless scanning the skies for alien messages, scientists say it's time to try a basic rule of etiquette: Say "hello" first.

A new San Francisco-based organisation called METI, or Messaging Extra Terrestrial Intelligence, plans to send signals to distant planets, rather than waiting for them to call Earth.

Could a planet outside our solar system be filled with life just waiting for a sign from others? Credit:NASA

By the end of 2018, the project aims to send some conversation-starters via radio or laser signals to a rocky planet circling Proxima Centauri, the nearest star other than the sun, and then to more distant destinations, hundreds or thousands of light years away.

It would be the first effort to send powerful, repeated and intentional messages into space, targeting the same stars over months or years.
Pieces of an expensive boat have washed ashore along the Mornington Peninsula after the vessel capsized on Monday morning.

Witnesses spotted the boat drifting towards the shore in rough surf shortly after 8am.

Witnesses inspect the damaged boat after it washed ashore. Credit:Twitter/@georgiamain7

Fortunately, no one was trapped inside the boat after it capsized.

However, the three fisherman aboard the vessel were forced to swim to safety.
A computer store has gone up in flames, threatening nearby buildings and homes in Ballarat.

Firefighters were called to Leading Edge Computers, on the corner on Grant and Armstrong streets at 2.40am on Tuesday.

The computer store was badly damaged by the blaze.

With not much chance of saving the building, Ballarat City Fire Brigade incident controller Scott Gambino said the priority was to protect the Federation University Australia building next door and a house behind the store.

"On arrival, we found the building was fully alight threatening the Federation Uni building and houses," he said.
WA Police and the State Emergency Services have ramped up their efforts in a search for a 78-year-old man who went missing after his car became bogged on a remote WA road.

Juraj Zdunic was last seen around 4pm on Wednesday afternoon when he left his Doubleview home.

Juraj Zdunic has not been seen since Wednesday, December 21.

His car was found two days later on Reserve Road, near Great Northern Highway in Muchea.

Eighty SES volunteers and 20 police officers have been deployed in an effort to locate Mr Zdunic and are currently searching dense bushland on both sides of Reserve Road.
WA Police have been out in full force over the holiday season, and their social media reports suggest local law-breakers have been keeping them busy around the state on Christmas Day.

Cunderdin Police took to Twitter to post about a run-in with the driver of a Toyota Landcruiser caught doing 155 kilometres in a 110 zone, with two babies on board.

Meanwhile, Broome Police posted about their experiences pulling over a driver who registered a blood alcohol level of 0.189.
Paris: The Tunisian suspect behind the truck attack that killed 12 people in a Berlin Christmas market last week appears to have passed through Lyon in France as he fled to Italy, a French judicial source said on Monday.

Video surveillance footage showed Anis Amri at the Lyon-Part-Dieu train station on Thursday, and officials believe it was at the station that he bought a ticket for Chambery, the source said, between Lyon and the Italian border, in order to avoid a direct route.

Amri was shot dead near Milan in Italy in the early hours of Friday after he pulled a gun on police who had asked for his identification papers.

French media reported police found two train tickets on him, one for the Lyon-Turin leg of the journey, another for Turin-Milan. The tickets, they said, were bought at Lyon-Part-Dieu.
Jakarta: Indonesian police say that suspected terrorists who were arrested and killed on Christmas Day had been plotting to attack a police post in West Java on New Year's Eve.

Two suspected militants were shot dead in a floating house on the Jatiluhur dam in West Java on Sunday after attacking police officers with machetes.

The police had been led to the floating house after arresting two other men in nearby Cibinong.

Police had earlier warned of potentially catastrophic results if they had intended to target Jatiluhur dam, which could have caused massive flooding.
Claim: Former CIA Director John Brennan is a Muslim who converted to Islam while stationed in Saudi Arabia. Rating: About this rating Unproven

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On 8 March 2013, John Brennan was sworn in as CIA Director. He was nominated by President Barack Obama on 7 January 2013, and in February of that year a rumor began to circulate about Brennan's purported conversion to Islam while he was stationed in Saudi Arabia in the 1990s:

Objections were raised to Brennan's nomination by lawmakers such as Rand Paul, who filibustered Brennan's confirmation over his prior sanctioning of the use of drones. But a fringe objection echoed outside the Beltway, where Brennan's fitness to serve was questioned due to his supposedly becoming a Muslim while stationed in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The claim's fire was fueled after Brennan was sworn in to his office not on a Bible but on a copy of the Constitution.

The rumor about Brennan's conversion to Islam coalesced after a 9 February 2013 radio broadcast during which former FBI agent John Guandolo levied the accusation. The most relevant portion of the interview has been excerpted below:

On 13 February 2013, talk show host Glenn Beck repeated the claim in his frequently employed "just asking questions" style. According to Beck, the assertion was "plausible" simply by merit of having been uttered aloud at one point in the not too distant past, and it was therefore reasonable to speculate as to whether Brennan had in fact converted to Islam:

Beck acknowledged he had no evidence to offer in support of such a claim:

I will tell you, I don't know if this is true or not. I will tell you that there is so much in John Brennan's background that should be questioned that this is plausible. Now, if somebody makes a charge like that, shouldn't we at least explore it before we put him as the chief of all intelligence? It seems that we can't ask reasonable questions any more.

Different versions of the "Brennan is a Muslim" claim have a single thing in common: ex-FBI agent John Guandolo. Guandolo resigned from his position with the Bureau in December 2008 after he was caught engaging in a sexual relationship with a key confidential source in the midst of a corruption investigation of a Louisiana politician. Since then, he has created a burgeoning second career training law enforcement groups to identify potential covert Islamic threats to the United States.

However, Guandolo's credibility in this area has been questioned, one example being an NPR segment that primarily focused on Jordanian-American Omar al-Omari. Guandolo was central to the segment due his insinuation during a law enforcement training course that Omari was connected to a vague cabal of "terrorists":

One of the trainers in Ohio that day was a man named John Guandolo. He's a former FBI agent and former Marine. According to people in the training class that day and Guandolo himself, a photograph of Omari with members of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a local Muslim advocacy group, was put up on the screen. According to the people who were there, Guandolo and the other visiting trainers didn't say outright Omari was a terrorist, but they suggested that he had links to bad people  people who were members of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas and even al-Qaida. "I stand by what I said that day about Omari," Guandolo told me, though he declined to say so on tape. "The facts are on my side." Guandolo suggested when I interviewed him on the phone that there were things he knew about Omari that the FBI didn't. "We know we have our facts right, because we have to," Guandolo said. (Nearly a dozen sources contacted by NPR in the intelligence community, the FBI and at the Department of Homeland Security said Omari has no links to terrorists or terrorism. They said the accusations against him are unfounded.) There is no certification process to vet [terrorism] experts [such as Guandolo]. They simply present their resumes and, often through word of mouth, they get hired. The trainers tend to be former government officials. Sometimes they have had key roles in the federal government fighting terrorism. Just as often, they have not. There's growing evidence that many of these training sessions are providing officers at the grass roots with a biased view of Muslims in America. That is what appears to have happened to Omari.

Guandolo remains the sole source we've found for this claim about John Brennan's being a Muslim, with no versions of it tracing back to any source other than him. The only thing approaching proof the former FBI agent had cited in support of his claim is the fact that Brennan once said during a speech that he had "marveled at the majesty of the Hajj." Since the Hajj is an annual pilgrimage undertaken by Muslims to Mecca, a holy city that non-Muslims not are allowed to enter, Guandolo arrived at the extremely far-fetched conclusion that Brennan himself must be a Muslim in order to have marveled at it. But Brennan didn't say he had ever taken part in such a pilgrimage or visited Mecca himself, and quite obviously someone with his extensive background in Middle Eastern affairs could know (and have seen) something of the Hajj without having participated in it:

I did spend time as an undergraduate at the American University in Cairo in the 1970s. And time spent with classmates from Egypt, from Jordan, from Palestine, and around the world who taught me that whatever our differences of nationality or race or religion or language, there are certain aspirations that we all share: to get an education. To provide for our families. To practice our faith freely. To live in peace and security. And during a 25-year career in government, I was privileged to serve in positions across the Middle East  as a political officer with the State Department and as a CIA station chief in Saudi Arabia. In Saudi Arabia, I saw how our Saudi partners fulfilled their duty as custodians of the two holy mosques of Mecca and Medina. I marveled at the majesty of the Hajj and the devotion of those who fulfilled their duty as Muslims by making that privilege  that pilgrimage.

Guandolo's claim is not only unfounded but problematic. Even if Guandolo's demonstrated inclination to make claims without factual basis were not considered, his statements constitute a conflict of interest due to his post-FBI career: Guandolo markets the idea of an imminent, pervasive threat to security in the United States has resulted from a conspiracy by Muslims to infiltrate the government at its highest levels and is paid for his "expertise" through his being hired to provide lectures and training classes on the subject.

Aside from Guandolo's shaky accusation, the one other scanty piece of evidence cited in support of this claim is that the movie Zero Dark Thirty, about the U.S. intelligence and military operation to track down and kill Osama bin Laden in Pakistan, featured a top-level CIA character known as "The Wolf" who was depicted in the film as a practicing Muslim and shown praying in his office. Some who have heard the rumor about Brennan have speculated this character was intended to represent him, but the personal details of the real-life man on whom the character was based (known only as "Roger") aren't a match for Brennan. And Brennan, who at the time was the White House counterterrorism adviser, was represented in the film by a composite character known only as "National Security Advisor," portrayed by a different actor than the one who filled the "Wolf" role.

While it is true that John Brennan was sworn into office using a copy of the U.S. Constitution rather than a Bible, that fact alone is not definitive proof of any particular religious sentiment. Had he sought to conceal his Islamic faith, it's just as likely he would have opted to use a Bible (particularly if he had no intent to uphold the very Constitution on which he swore his oath). And if we are to believe that John Brennan is a closeted Muslim, then we would also have to believe that either no one in the highest levels of the U.S. government has the least bit of concern about that fact (not enough to speak up about it, anyway), or that Brennan has managed to successfully hide his religious beliefs from the entirety of the vast intelligence network that he heads. The more logical answer is that John Brennan could very well have no faith at all, or that he holds the ideals of the Constitution higher than the ideals of religion in relation to his duties as head of the CIA.

In January 2017, John Brennan was succeeded as CIA Director by Mike Pompeo.
A guide to voter rights in Indiana. What you need to know before you cast a ballot

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There is a major reason why many flock to the Grand Strand to play 18 holes on our various golf courses. Many options are available which include scenic, challenging or even courses that the beginner would enjoy. Read moreTee off: Plan your next golf outing along the South Strand
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A heartless thief walked into a Long Island wildlife rehab center and stole a falcon earlier this week, but fortunately the bird was returned unharmed a couple of days after the theft.

Buster, a 14-year-old American kestrel falcon, was stolen from Volunteers for Wildlife, an animal rehab center, on the afternoon of December 23rd. After his birdnapping the rehab center put up a Facebook message describing Buster as imprinted on humans, meaning he identifies as a human and not a bird, and unable to survive in the wild. The center merely asked that Buster be returned, no questions asked.

According to Newsday, that's exactly what happened on Christmas: Buster was found in a box at the door of the center, apparently unharmed but "very hungry."

And while Volunteers for Wildlife won't be pressing charges over the birdnapping, whoever did it may have known a thing or two about bird stealing. Board member Jim Jones told Newsday that the thief would have to have been familiar with how to remove Buster from his jess, a thin leather strap that attaches him to his perch.
The JunoCam aboard NASA's Juno probe instrument snapped this photo of Jupiter during a close flyby of the gas giant. The first science results from the mission are expected to appear in 2017.

2016 has been a bountiful year for space science. Before the calendar runs out, here's our list of the biggest space stories and events of the past 12 months.

There were monumental new discoveries, including the first-ever direct detection of gravitational waves, which gives scientists access to a whole new realm of information about cosmic events. This year, scientists also discovered a potentially habitable planet orbiting the star nearest to Earth's sun.

As always, there were also hurdles and setbacks. The ExoMars mission sent both an orbiter and a lander to the Red Planet, but the lander crashed into the planet's surface before it could begin its science mission. And multiple studies searching for signs of a particle that could explain mysterious dark matter turned up empty.

As the year winds down, 2016 also leaves us with some tantalizing possibilities for 2017, like the potential observation of a ninth planet beyond Pluto orbiting our sun. But before we look ahead, let's look back. Here are the biggest and best space science stories of 2016.

First-ever direct detection of gravitational waves

In February, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO) collaboration made physics history when it announced the first direct detection of gravitational waves  ripples that stretch and compress space itself. Albert Einstein showed that space and time are fundamentally linked, so gravitational waves actually pass through the cosmic fabric known as space-time.

The direct detection of gravitational waves opens up an entirely new realm for astronomy because these waves carry information about the objects and events that create them, and this information is not conveyed by any other means. Right now, scientists can study the universe by collecting light from distant objects (and, in some cases, other kinds of particles), but gravitational waves are not created by the same mechanisms that create light. LIGO made two gravitational-wave detections this year (the second was announced in June), and in both instances, the waves came from two black holes swirling around each other and colliding. Those mergers would have been invisible to astronomers were it not for gravitational waves. As LIGO continues to study the sky, scientists are eager to see what other cosmic treasures it uncovers.

[Further Reading: Gravitational Waves Detected by LIGO: Complete Coverage]

This artist's impression shows what it might look like on the surface of Proxima b, a planet that orbits the star nearest to Earth's sun. (Image credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser)

A planet around the nearest star to Earth's sun

The star Proxima Centauri lies just 4.2 light-years from Earth's sun  a stone's throw, cosmologically speaking. In August, scientists discovered a planet orbiting in Proxima Centauri's habitable zone, or the region where liquid water might exist on the planet's surface (and thus boosting the odds that life might have evolved there). This newly discovered planet, dubbed Proxima b, has a minimum mass of about 1.27 times Earth's mass, further increasing the possibility that this planet could be habitable.

Shortly after the discovery was announced, a group called Project Blue started fundraising to build a space telescope with the targeted mission of studying Proxima b and looking for signs of life there.

In April, the Breakthrough Foundation  whose board members include physicist Stephen Hawking, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and entrepreneur Yuri Milner  announced an initiative called Breakthrough Starshot, which will aim to send a microchip-size spacecraft to another star. With the discovery of Proxima b, the Starshot project organizers announced that they would target this newfound planet, and potentially search for signs of life. The spacecraft would be accelerated with a massive (and expensive) laser system, and would still take about 20 to 25 years to reach Proxima b.

[Further Reading: New Planet 2016: Complete Coverage of Proxima b's Discovery]

Ice deposit on Mars is bigger than Lake Superior

A massive ice deposit spanning a region the size of New Mexico was discovered in Mars' mid-northern latitudes. The deposit lies between 3 and 33 feet (1 to 10 meters) below the Red Planet's surface, it's between 50 and 85 percent water (the rest is dirt), and its total volume is about the same as that of Lake Superior, which holds about 2,900 cubic miles (12,100 cubic kilometers) of water.

The ice deposit could be useful if humans eventually settle on Mars. The region where the deposit was found, called Utopia Planitia, could be easily accessible by spacecraft because it is relatively flat and low-lying. The ice deposit was discovered using the Shallow Radar (SHARAD) instrument aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

[Further Reading: Photos: The Search for Water on Mars]

Images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope of Jupiter's moon Europa contain what appear to be water plumes erupting from the moon's surface. The images were taken in 2014, but the results of the analysis were not released until 2016. (Image credit: NASA, ESA, W. Sparks (STScI))

Hubble spies potential water plumes on Europa

The Hubble Space Telescope has spied what appear to be plumes of water erupting from the surface of Jupiter's moon Europa. This icy satellite may harbor a liquid water ocean deep below its surface, and scientists think that ocean could have the right ingredients for life. NASA is currently planning to send an orbiting probe to study Europa in the 2020s.

If Europa is indeed spewing water from its ocean into space, that opens up the door for an orbiting mission to sample the water (without having to drill into the ice or even land) and look for hints of biology there. The Hubble telescope had spotted a plume erupting from Europa in 2012, but that detection seemed like it might have been a rare outlier, because no plume activity was observed in the intervening years.

[Watch This Video for More: Possible Water Vapor Plumes on Europa Spotted by Hubble Again (Video)]

Dark-matter search comes up empty

Four studies released this year came up empty in a search for a particle that could possibly compose the mysterious substance known as dark matter. Although dark matter does not radiate, reflect or block light (and is thus invisible in the traditional sense), dark matter's gravity can bend light, giving scientists the opportunity to detect it. There are various other bits of evidence that indicate dark matter not only exists but is five times more common in the universe than "regular" matter (the stuff that makes up stars, planets and people).

The first study came from the incredibly sensitive Large Underground Xenon dark matter experiment, which failed to detect signs of a hypothetical particle called a weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP). The negative results don't rule out WIMPs, but they do put new restraints on the potential characteristics of a WIMP dark matter particle. Two additional searches for WIMPs were conducted using data from the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, which collects high-energy particles from the universe. Those searches also came up empty. A final study looked for signs of another hypothetical particle, called an axion, using Fermi data from one particular galaxy, but it turned up no such evidence.

[Further Reading: The Search for Dark Matter in Images]

Tabby's Star saga continues

In 2011 and 2013, a distant star known as KIC 8462852 (also known as Tabby's Star) appeared to dip in brightness as seen from Earth. This kind of brightness change can occur when an object such as a planet passes in front of a star, but planets orbit their parent stars on a regular time loop, and the changes in brightness coming from Tabby's Star were highly irregular. In 2015, a hypothesis emerged that captured the public imagination: Maybe an alien civilization had built some kind of megastructure around Tabby's Star, periodically blocking the star's light as seen from Earth. Alternative explanations (all of which seem far more likely) were produced, but there's not enough evidence to fully explain the mystery.

In 2016, the saga of Tabby's Star continued. New evidence suggested that the star's sporadic dimming might have been going on for a century. That makes it unlikely that the source of the dimming is a swarm of comets, but it could also make it unlikely that an alien megastructure is to blame. Further observations revealed that the star not only demonstrated periods of rapid brightening but was apparently decreasing in brightness overall.

That hasn't discouraged people from investigating the star further. The Breakthrough Listen initiative, which will spend $100 million over the next 10 years to hunt for signals possibly produced by alien civilizations, plans to study Tabby's Star with the 330-foot-wide (100 m) Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia. Astronomer Tabetha "Tabby" Boyajian of Yale University (for whom the star is nicknamed) was part of the team that originally identified the star's irregular behavior. Boyajian and her colleagues collected more than $100,000 through a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign, and they plan to use those funds to pay for telescope time to study Tabby's Star further.

[Further Reading: Alien Megastructure? 'Tabby's Star' Continues to Baffle Scientists]

The dwarf planet Makemake that orbits the sun beyond Pluto was discovered to have a tiny companion satellite. (Image credit: NASA, ESA, and A. Parker and M. Buie (SwRI))

Dwarf planet Makemake has its own moon!

The dwarf planet known as Makemake lies even farther out in the cold reaches of the Kuiper Belt than Pluto, at about 45 times the distance between the Earth and the sun. But it's not alone out there: Earlier this year, scientists using the Hubble Space Telescope discovered a small moon orbiting Makemake (pronounced MAH-kay-MAH-kay). This miniature companion is thought to be about 100 miles (160 km) wide. (Makemake itself is about 870 miles, or 1,400 km, wide  or a little more than half the diameter of Earth's moon.) Scientists will watch the orbital dynamics of Makemake and its moon to learn more about the dwarf planet, including its density.

[Further Reading: Dwarf Planet Makemake Has a Moon | Video, Dwarf Planet Makemake: An Icy Wonder in Pictures]

Exciting Developments in 2016:

In addition to the above science results, 2016 gave ys some tantalizing hints about new science we can expect to hear about in 2017 and the years ahead.

Juno arrives at Jupiter

NASA's Juno spacecraft arrived at Jupiter on July 4, and settled into its unique orbit with the giant planet. The plan was to have Juno make a close approach of Jupiter every two weeks, but a thruster problem forced the probe to stay in a longer orbit and instead make a close approach of Jupiter every 53 days.

Even though no major science results have been produced by the Juno science team yet, the JunoCam instrument has been sending back stunning images of the Jovian giant, providing an unprecedented look at this gaseous monster. Juno principal investigator Scott Bolton said the images are already providing tantalizing hints about the science that Juno will produce.

[Further Reading: Photos of NASA's Juno Mission to Jupiter]

ExoMars arrives at the Red Planet

The ExoMars mission, a collaboration between the European Space Agency and Russia's Roscosmos, was designed with two parts: an orbiting satellite and a surface lander. But the lander met an early end when the landing technology malfunctioned, causing the probe to crash into the Martian surface.

But the orbiter remains operational, and it's gathering information that will help inform the next phase of the ExoMars project: sending a rover to the Martian surface. The rover will include a drill that will dig to depths of up to 6.5 feet (2 m) into Mars' dirt and soil.

[Watch This Video for More: Red But Not Dead - ExoMars Orbiter to Look for Water and Life | Video]

This artist's concept shows a SpaceX uncrewed Dragon capsule on the surface of Mars. This year, the private spaceflight company announced plans to send capsules to Mars as early as 2018. (Image credit: SpaceX)

SpaceX plans to visit Mars by 2018

In September, SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk delivered a long-awaited speech outlining the company's plans to eventually build human colonies on Mars. But before SpaceX starts sending humans to the Red Planet, it could help serve various science objectives, such as returning dirt samples collected by NASA's Mars 2020 rover (scheduled to launch in 2020).

In April, Musk announced on Twitter that the company plans to send uncrewed landers to the surface of Mars as early as 2018. Although NASA will offer technical support for SpaceX's first missions to the Red Planet, the agency announced this month that it will not send science equipment on the very first SpaceX missions. Instead, the agency will wait until SpaceX has proved out the technology.

[Further Reading: SpaceX's Interplanetary Transport for Mars in Images]

'Planet Nine' may lurk beyond Pluto

Early this year, a group of scientists announced that they had found significant evidence to suggest that there is a planet the size of Neptune beyond Pluto, orbiting our sun. The so-called Planet Nine hasn't been observed directly yet, but the movement of other bodies in that outer part of the solar system indicates the presence of a massive body, the researchers said.

The group, led by Mike Brown of the California Institute of Technology, produced more evidence later in the year, as they looked at more data tracking the precise motion of small bodies in the Kuiper Belt (the region of the solar system beyond Neptune that is filled with small, rocky, icy bodies). Theories have also emerged about where the planet came from and how it arrived at its distant  and likely very tilted  orbit around the sun. The authors of the paper also have proposed ways that the planet could be spotted by modern telescopes, as well as the general region where they say the planet should be orbiting. Perhaps 2017 will be the year Planet Nine is found.

[Further Reading: Planet Nine: Theories About the Hypothetical Planet]

Follow Calla Cofield @callacofield. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
A false color image of the impact crater Occator shows the intriguing bright spots now known to be highly reflective salts.

Ceres, the largest body in the main asteroid belt, is pocketed with cold, dark craters, several of which are layered in ice, raising the prospects that this frigid dwarf planet once had perhaps an ocean's worth of liquid water early in its history when the solar system was still forming.

Scientists from NASA's Dawn mission to Ceres and Vesta presented these findings last week at the American Geophysical Union's annual fall meeting in San Francisco.

Dawn began its extended mission phase at Ceres in July, following a visit to the neighboring protoplanet Vesta, and has been sending back copious amounts of data that have allowed mission scientists to create a more intricate picture of the surface and subsurface environments. As the closest dwarf planet to the sun and about a third the size of our moon, Ceres is considered a bridge between the inner and outer solar system and offers a window into the role of water in the evolution of the planets. [Amazing Photos of Dwarf Planet Ceres]

"The Dawn mission is trying to look back in time to the very earliest stage of the solar system. We're interested in what happened right up to when Ceres accreted water and it separated from the granular material," said Carol Raymond, the deputy principal investigator of the Dawn mission at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

"We can't investigate the habitable environment of Ceres other than to look for chemical fingerprints on the surface or shallow subsurface," Raymond added. "We have ample evidence to say the presence of an ocean on the surface was likely."

Raymond said newly published research is supporting the theory that ice separated from rock early on in Ceres' past and formed a rocky core covered by an ice-rich crystal layer that has persisted throughout its history. Water, of course, is an essential ingredient for life as we know it, and finding evidence of water-rich bodies from the distant past can offer clues to where life might have existed in the early solar system.

As a comparison, Vesta, dry and rocky, is more akin to the stony, terrestrial planets that comprise the inner solar system, while Ceres is more akin to icy moons like Europa in the outer solar system, Raymond said.

Using Dawn's gamma ray and neutron detector instrument (GraND), scientists were able to determine that Ceres' poles are abundant in hydrogen, likely in the form of frozen water mixed into the pores of rocky materials, rather than a solid icy layer. The uniformity of the hydrogen layer suggests that the processes that produced it once acted globally across the dwarf planet, researchers said.

Ceres has an accumulation of hydrogen at its poles, an indication of ice mixed in with rocky materials. Blue shows where hydrogen levels are highest. (Image credit: Planetary Science Institute)

In the far northern hemisphere of Ceres, scientists also closely examined several cold, dark craters called "cold traps" and found that bright spots residing there are comprised of ice. Persistent shadowing casts these spots in near universal darkness, making them so chilly at minus 250 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 157 degrees Celsius) that very little of the ice would have turned into vapor over the course of a billion years, mission team members said.

Norbert Schorghofer, an astronomer at the University of Hawaii, Manoa, who studied the cold traps, said he's uncertain whether the ice came from Ceres' own ice-rich crust or whether it was delivered from space by impacting bodies, as is believed to have occurred in small ice traps on Earth's moon and on Mercury.

Artists concept of NASA's Dawn spacecraft traveling from the giant protoplanet Vesta (in a Dawn photo at lower right) to dwarf planet Ceres (upper left). (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

"In any case, Ceres shows us that ice does get caught in these cold traps," he said.

Perhaps the best-known area on Ceres is the 57-mile-wide (92 kilometers) crater Occator, where scientists have discovered the source of the bright spots as highly reflective salts. "The question is, where is the material in this impact coming from?" said Ralph Jaumann, a planetary scientist at the German Aerospace Center. He speculates that the impact that created the crater could have triggered an upwelling of a briny liquid from inside Ceres, which flowed out, froze and then vaporized, leaving behind the salts.

Dawn entered orbit around Ceres in March 2015, reaching its lowest altitude that December at 240 miles (400 km), where it was able to photograph 90 percent of the surface. Dawn is currently on its sixth science orbit at more than 4,500 miles (7,240 km) above the surface, a vantage point that's allowing the measurement of cosmic rays. The main purpose is to eliminate the "noise" radiation from space to allow for more accurate GRaND detector measurements, mission team members said.

This story was provided by Astrobiology Magazine, a web-based publication sponsored by the NASA astrobiology program. Follow Space.com @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Story posted on Space.com.
An artist's concept of Europa's surface. On the moon's still-unknown terrain, a mobile lander could have trouble moving away from a contaminated site, scientists say.

Searching for signs of life, or life's precursors, on the surface of Jupiter's moon Europa could spoil the hunt before it begins  which is why many scientists advocate going underground.

An ocean containing twice as much water as all of Earth's seas is thought to slosh beneath Europa's 10-to-15-mile-thick (15 to 25 kilometers) ice shell. For this reason, astrobiologists regard the 1,900-mile-wide (3,100 km) Jovian moon as one of the solar system's best bets to host extraterrestrial life.

Furthermore, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has spotted evidence of water-vapor plumes emanating from Europa's south polar region, suggesting that material from the ocean may fall back onto the moon's icy surface. [Europa May Harbor Simple Life-Forms (Video)]

That's an exciting prospect for NASA, which aims to put a lander on Europa in the 2020s to look for chemical evidence that the moon could support life. (NASA's Europa mission began as a flyby-only affair, but the U.S. Congress ordered the inclusion of a lander late last year.)

However, the very landing could complicate this search greatly. Firing thrusters to slow the spacecraft's descent "will be like hosing down the ground with ammonia, and this is a very inconvenient thing to do," said Ralph Lorenz, a planetary scientist at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Maryland.

It's inconvenient because ammonia contains nitrogen, he said. "Everything in our body has nitrogen," Lorenz told Space.com. "If you are interested in nitrogen as a prerequisite for life, then finding even traces of it at Europa is important, and so even a little thruster contamination matters a lot."

If such contamination were to occur, scientists would struggle to figure out if nitrogen detected at Europa was native or imported from Earth, he said.

In a study published in the journal Planetary and Space Science this past August, Lorenz found that putting a 440-lb. (200 kilograms) spacecraft down on Europa would disturb the surface out to 30 feet (9 meters) around the lander. He concluded this after studying images of past surface disturbances caused by spacecraft landings on Earth's moon and Mars.

Scientists cannot assume that the Europa lander will be able to move away from such a contaminated site. NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has wheels, so it drove away from its Red Planet landing site back in 2012. But scientists know little about the hazards on Europa's surface, Lorenz said.

"The distribution of rocks could cause a lander to tip over, or it could fall into a crevasse," Lorenz said. "In space exploration, it's not good enough to speculate that this will work. Why throw 1 [billion] or 2 billion [dollars] into it?"

The issue of nitrogen contamination on Europa is more problematic than it is on Mars or Earth's moon because the Jovian satellite is much colder than these other worlds, Lorenz said. At its warmest, temperatures on Europa don't rise above minus 260 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 160 degrees Celsius). Under such frigid conditions, ammonia is more likely to stick to Europa's surface, allowing it to interact with other molecules and perhaps make a mess of observations, Lorenz said.

Other researchers think that sampling Europa's surface is important, but that the best samples lie deeper. "We have to go down, beneath the surface," said Britney Schmidt, a planetary scientist at the Georgia Institute of Technology who has worked on NASA's Europa lander mission concept.

This means drilling into Europa's ice. Schmidt thinks a mission needs to drill at least 4 inches (10 centimeters) down, to a place where the thrusters haven't contaminated the ice and space radiation hasn't destroyed biogenic molecules  the stuff necessary for life's processes to take place.

"If we get 10 centimeters, or a meter [about 3 feet], down, this area hasn't been blasted with the thrusters," Schmidt told Space.com. "Maybe a portion, but the confidence for getting a pristine sample goes up the further you go down."

The Europa lander won't just be looking for ammonia or nitrogen, stressed Peter Willis, a chemist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

Still, he said, the Europa lander mission will take precautions; the lander will likely bore into the ice, Willis said. NASA also plans to employ the sky-crane landing method, which put Curiosity down on Mars, with the Europa craft, he added. After descending toward Europa, a hovering spacecraft will fire thrusters into the air to stay aloft while it uses a cord to lower the lander down to the surface. Then, it will let go. [How Curiosity's Sky Crane Landing Worked (Infographic)]

In such a case, "the spacecraft actually falls, but we hope not too far," Willis said.

Limiting the amount of Earthly organics being sprayed on Europa's surface will help NASA's quest to find extraterrestrial life  even if what researchers are looking for doesn't walk or swim, Schmidt said.

"People want us to drill into Europa and find a fish," she said. "But right now, this is not realistic; the hope is to land there and detect biogenic molecules, the molecules essential for life."

Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
This is a trailer for the upcoming science fiction short film The Camera Hack.









The Norwegian short will be exclusively hosted on YouTube, but no official date has been revealed at this time. Check out the synopsis and trailer below.




The long-awaited first leg of the Second Avenue Subway from 72nd Street to 96th Street won't be open to the public until January 1stand with reduced service, at that. But Governor Andrew Cuomo is not one to miss an infrastructure-related photo opportunity, hence the inaugural New Year's Eve ride planned for Saturday, December 31st.

The tripreserved for press and co-hosted by organizations including the Central Park Conservancy, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce, and the Metropolitan Museum of Artwill depart from 72nd Street at 10:30 p.m. with stops at each new station, according to the Governor's Office. MTA Chairman Thomas Prendergast will join the ride, along with Governor Cuomo. Mayor Bill de Blasio, who declined an invitation to the press tour at 96th Street last week, will also join the New Year's Eve party train, according to spokesman Eric Phillips.

Plebeians, meanwhile, will be stuck nursing their subway-related complaints.

Here's to confronting delays to the Second Avenue Subway's Harlem extension in the cold, sober light of 2017.

[Update 3:00 p.m.]: A spokesman for Governor Cuomo confirmed Mayor de Blasio's invitation and added that community members and business owners along the line will also be in attendance.
STAMFORD  Archie Elam is known locally as commander of the Fairfield County branch of Connecticuts Veterans for Foreign Wars.

But the longtime business executive also played a crucial role in the U.S. militarys invasion of Iraq in 1990.

For the past nine months, Elam has been an executive fellow at the University of Connecticut School of Public Policy, a program for future senior executives in non-profits.

Elam, 61, who graduated the U.S. Military Academy in 1976, offered his thoughts about his military career, issues facing veterans, and his recent induction into the Connecticut Veterans Hall of Fame.

Q: What are your thoughts about being elected to the states Veterans Hall of Fame?

A: Im blown away and honored by it all. I think to be considered for it among the many thousands of veterans weve got doing things in the state is pretty humbling.

Q: What prompted you to apply to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point? Did you have a lot of military experience in your family?

A: Because I like this country and because I think serving your country is something you should look to do. Was it popular to do back in the Vietnam era? No. Was it the right thing for me? Definitely. My dad started in World War II driving trucks and spent 27 years in uniform, becoming an infantry senior sergeant. He went to the Korean War and Vietnam twice. My little sister and I went to the Gulf War at the same time; she was in the reserves and I was in active duty...Ive got a family tree with a lot of dog tags on it.

Q: Can you talk about your military career and your time working at the Pentagon and then as operations commander of a division during Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm?

A: In 1979, I was a first lieutenant and was sent to Germany. As our plane arrived, we were literally held because a terrorist had fired a rocket into a car trying to kill the four-star general in command of all the U.S. troops in Europe. While I was there, we lost nine soldiers in our brigade to car bombs ... Terrorism was a very real thing to us along with the Cold War threats of the Soviet Union being right on our border. I remember the first patrol I walked along the Berlin Wall, I counted 14 white crosses in the space between their barbed wire and ours where people died trying to leave East Germany. The meaning of freedom became very clear at that point.

In 1984, the Army put me into a graduate program (Logistics Management College) in Virginia, studying applied mathematics, and I was assigned to the Pentagon. I spent the first half of my tour in the office of the Secretary of the Army, developing computers and software to be used in strategy and program analysis for senior Army leadership.

I spent the rest operating the system I helped build. It was a massive piece of technology that ran on a super computer in the Pentagon with tens of thousands of formulas in it. It answered questions like how many people do we have and what should the Army look like and what do we need to do with it?

In Iraq, my title was chief of current operations for the 24th Infantry Division of the 18th Airborne Corp. The connection between what I did in the Pentagon and what I did in Iraq was I went from answering the questions of how many troops we should have and what kinds, to directing the efforts of 36,000 soldiers in their conduct of combat operations. My principal job was to assure that the battle plan got executed.

What you realize immediately is the speed, messiness and complexity of modern war. It is not John Wayne Hollywood stuff that sometimes people use to describe it. It is fast ugly stuff  real ugly.

Q: As commander of the Fairfield County branch of the Connecticut Veterans of Foreign Wars, how does the group help former soldiers and sailors?

A: For our younger veterans, the VFW does a number of things. We do a student veteran scholarship program, so we can get them into college and trade schools. As we do for all our veterans, we help them get education, benefits, disability claims and that sort of thing done. We also have an auxiliary in the VFW that is open to their families as well. We work with a lot of veteran associations at schools like UConn and NCC and we help those groups navigate paperwork at no cost.

Q: How did your military career end?

A: It was 1995. I had a very, very, very serious back injury on a joint exercise. After a series of surgeries, I retired.

I got my masters of business at Duke University School of Business. Coming out of there, I had a number of job offers in different places and I accepted a role with GE Capital and that brought me to Connecticut.

Q: What do you think of President-elect Donald Trumps picks for Michael T. Flynn as national security adviser, and JamesMad Dog Mattis as secretary of defense?

A: General Flynn was an intelligence general while I was on the operations side of the Army. I know when Gen. Powell had that role, the national security advisor was big time because they brief the president everyday on national security. Your background in the military helps you understand the inside of what youre looking at, but the advisor role is a broader, wider skill set than just being a general.

In the selection of General Mattis for the Secretary of Defense, I believe he is the first military guy since Gen. George C. Marshall to be in that position. In terms of his ability and intellect on the military side, it is unquestioned  he is a very, very smart brilliant guy.

We are in a very dangerous time. Russia, China, North Korea, terrorism and stuff in Africa  there are a lot of pots boiling on the national security side. It is not the kind of environment that is well served by people kicking each other under the table to get things done.
W hile the Citys attention was focused on the Chancellors Autumn Statement on Wednesday afternoon, one of the joint bidders in a 2.2 billion takeover battle quietly changed its boss.

Nothing wrong with that you might say.

Hmmm. Im scratching my head to recall the last time the predators chief executive was replaced mid-takeover (more extreme than that, actually  the switch was made only 24 hours before the bid deadline expires). But then these would-be buyers are different.

Ahmad al-Sayed was ousted from the top of the Qatar Investment Authority, the 200 billion sovereign wealth fund that holds large stakes in Barclays and Credit Suisse, owns Harrods, and wanted to purchase Canary Wharf. His successor is Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Saud al-Thani, a member of the Qatari royal family.

The QIA and its Canadian partner, Brookfield Group, had made an offer for Songbird Estates, majority owner of Canary Wharf. To say the personnel change threw the QIA-Brookfield camp into confusion is an understatement.

They did not know whether they were coming or going, literally. Some saw it as a signal that the crack at Canary Wharf was over, that they were not prepared to pay the 400p a share that Songbird was thought to want, versus their 295p.

Others were less sure. In fact, if anything al-Sayeds removal highlighted how the QIA operated on a different plane, to another set of norms. In the absence of any terrible misdeed  and there is no sign of any  no one else would dream of sacking their chief executive in such circumstances.

The Qataris, however, can afford to do as they please  Canary Wharf might be large in our eyes but to them, with their vast resources, its neither here nor there.

A row has erupted, with the bidders seizing on Songbirds triple net asset value as evidence their 295p was close to the correct valuation. But triple net asset value is an accounting measure normally only used on the demerger of a business, after all debts and liabilities are settled, and theres no suggestion the Qataris and Brookfield want to break-up Canary Wharf. Rather, they would want to take it to the next stage of its expansion.

No one should be that shocked either by al-Sayeds abrupt departure. Certainly, they should not expect an explanation.

Consultants at GeoEconomica, recently published a study of sovereign wealth funds and their corporate governance. They based their report on the Santiago Principles, a voluntary set of standards. Of the 31 funds that had signed up to the code, one was on its own at the bottom.

Said GeoEconomica: We note that, for now, only the governance and financial disclosure policies of the Qatar Investment Authority do not comply with the Principles.

We may have seen the Autumn Statement as a good day to bury bad news.

The Qataris might well have been asking: what Autumn Statement?
P olice are appealing for help to find a university student who failed to turn up to her family's home for Christmas.

Twenty-one-year-old Isabel Gayther, who lives in halls of residence on Goodwood Road in New Cross, south east London, was last seen at about 11.30am on Christmas Eve.

A Met Police spokesman said: "This is extremely out of character for her and officers and her family are extremely concerned for her safety and wellbeing."

The spokesman added Miss Gayther was known to go to places popular with students in both New Cross and Deptford. She has family in Oxford.

It is believed she has her phone with her but has not been answering calls.

The spokesman said: "It is not known at this time if she has access to money or transport."

She is described as white, with olive skin and long dark hair, a slim build and was last seen wearing a dark coloured dress.
A motorcyclist died on Christmas day after a colliding with a car in a "horrible" crash on a busy north London road.

The 34-year-old motorbike rider was left with critical head injuries after crashing with a vehicle on Holloway Road on Christmas Eve.

He was rushed to hospital but doctors could not save him and he died on Christmas Day.

Dramatic pictures taken from the roadside shortly after the crash show clothes strewn across the carriageway and a mangled motorbike as witnesses told of horrible scenes.

Emergency services including police, ambulance and London's Air Ambulance were scrambled to the crash site on the junction with Jackson Road just after 1pm on Saturday.

Holloway Road: Emergency services rushed to the scene but the man later died in hospital / PA

Police are now appealing for information about the crash and are asking for anyone who witnessed it to come forward.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman told the Standard: Officers attended and found the 34-year-old motorcyclist with a head injury.

He was taken to an east London hospital where he died on 25 December.

Next of kin have been informed, but officers await formal identification and a post-mortem examination.

The driver of the car stopped at the scene. There has been no arrest.

Detectives are appealing for anyone who may have witnessed the collision, or the events leading up to the collision, to come forward and assist them with their enquires.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Serious Collision Investigation Unit at Alperton Traffic Garage on 020 8991 9555.
A taxi driver was allegedly beaten up and left unconscious in a "brutal" attack carried out by a man who refused to pay.

The alleged attack, believed to have happened in Romford, took place after a minicab passenger refused to pay the cost of the taxi trip.

He instead head-butted and punched the driver, knocking him to the floor, before continuing to beat him unconscious.

The victim, 52, was left with a broken nose and jaw and had two teeth knocked out.

Suspected attacker: Police have released CCTV footage of the man moments before he got into the taxi / Metropolitan Police

Detectives have now released CCTV footage of a man wanted in connection with the horrific attack.

The footage, taken on the night of the incident in August, shows a man, believed to be the suspect.

He is shown on camera on Upper Rainham Road, Rainham just moments before he got into the taxi where the alleged assault is believed to have happened.

Detective constable Phil Stokes said: "This was a brutal attack on a minicab driver following a dispute over a fare.

If you recognise the man shown in the image please get in contact with police.

Havering police released a statement saying: Police were called at approximately 3.45am on August 10 after the 52-year-old man was assaulted by a passenger at the rear of A1 minicabs in South Street, Romford.

The attack happened after the suspect refused to pay his fare. He head butted the victim before punching him several time.

The driver fell to the floor and was further assaulted, eventually losing consciousness.

The victim was to taken to an east London hospital and treated for a broken nose and jaw - he also had two teeth knocked out.

The suspect is described as a black man aged in his mid 20s with short dark hair.

Anyone with information or any witnesses are urged to call police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
It's almost 2017, but on Monday and Wednesday, the Museum at Eldridge Street promises to take you back to the early 20th century with a walking tour of the Lower East Side. The tour visits multiple streets and sites featured in their Jewish Ghetto in Postcards exhibition and revisits a time when the Lower East Side was home to the world's largest Jewish populationand there'll be plenty of cider to keep you warm. They'll also be paying a visit to The Pickle Guys and other local treat vendors along the way. You can purchase Monday tickets ($30) here and Wednesday tickets ($30) here.

If you're looking to get a start to your year-end festivities ahead of time, Williamsburg's Little Choc Apothecary is celebrating an early Russian-style New Year with a five-course meal on Thursday. The totally vegan menu includes a traditional Russian herring salad, latkes with dill creme fraiche and rainbow caviar, and quinoa "pork"-stuffed cabbage rolls with tomato broth, honey carrot french fries, and horseradish mashed potato. The dessertalso veganis a Russian "anthill" cake with clotted cream and peppermint chocolate. Oh, and there's plenty of wine, too. You can purchase tickets ($65 - $85) here.

On Thursday, Magnolia Bakery on the Upper West Side is hosting a 21-plus cupcake decorating classfeel free to bring your own wine. They'll be teaching you how to decorate and ice cupcakes with their signature swirl, sprinkles, decorations, and more. When you're done, you'll be able to take home six of the cupcakes you madein both vanilla and buttercream flavorsplus more sprinkles and decorations, and an icing kit. Tickets are $60 and are going fast.

Also on Thursday, The Regal is hosting Mussel Mania, a mussel-eating extravaganza. For $25, you get two full pounds of steamed mussels served with garlic bread, fries, and a beer. There are a few options: classic with white wine, herbs, and garlic; coconut curry with lemongrass, coconut milk, and red chili; Brooklyn ale, steamed with shallots, pancetta, kale, and red peppers; drunken mussels with vodka sauce; and lobster mussels with chunks of Maine lobster and a spicy red sauce. You purchase tickets here, or make a reservation by calling 718-388-4626.
CHICAGO  Property owners can take comfort, but shouldnt lapse into negligence, now that the Illinois Supreme Court has clarified a 1979 state law protecting them from some slip-and-fall lawsuits.

The high court reaffirmed earlier this month that the Snow and Ice Removal Act shields property owners from liability if someone gets hurt because they didnt do a good enough job of shoveling, but only when the snow or ice was the result of natural conditions.

The court ruled Dec. 1 that when lawmakers passed the law nearly four decades ago, they meant to protect property owners from injury claims resulting from inadequate shoveling. The law, the court said, was intended to encourage people to voluntarily clear their sidewalks.

But property owners arent free to ignore hazardous unnatural accumulations of ice and snow, the court said.

The case stems from a suburban Chicago woman who fell on an icy sidewalk outside her Carol Stream condo building in 2011, breaking her leg, knee and hip. Pamela Murphy-Hylton claims that inadequate drainage and the placement of downspouts caused the icy patch. Shes seeking damages from the condominium association and the property management company.

Attorneys for Klein Creek Condominium Association and Lieberman Management Services had argued that the law gave them immunity, winning a summary judgment in trial court that was reversed on appeal.

The Illinois Supreme Court, in a unanimous opinion written by Justice Mary Jane Theis, affirmed the appellate courts judgment and sent the case back to the trial court.

The Snow and Ice Removal Act ... provides immunity to residential property owners from claims of liability for injuries allegedly caused by icy sidewalks that result from negligent snow and ice removal efforts, but it does not extend to immunize them from claims of liability for injuries allegedly caused by icy sidewalks that result from an otherwise negligent failure to maintain the premises, Theis wrote.

Attorney Kristina K. Green said her client has steep medical bills  possibly totaling $1 million  and is ready to resolve the case, either through mediation or at trial.

The statutes intent was you cant get in trouble for attempts to clear the ice and snow, Green said. The ice that our client slipped on wasnt the result of snow and ice removal efforts. The ice formed because there were defects in the property.

The Illinois Supreme Court ruling aligns with the way the law was intended, Green said. We think it was the right decision obviously.

A phone message left for the attorney for the property manager was not immediately returned.
The 80-year-old woman , who has dementia, was suffering from health problems including high blood pressure and weakness from weight loss. Police had issued the endangered silver advisory Sunday evening after she hadn't been seen or heard from since she left her house sometime earlier that day.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.  Missouri lawmakers hope that the upcoming session will finally produce a ban on lobbyist gifts, thanks to support from Republican Gov.-elect Eric Greitens.

It's among the top priorities for House Speaker Todd Richardson, who said he was personally disappointed when an ethics bills didn't pass last session.

Some lawmakers say a compromise might be needed, perhaps a cap instead of an outright ban.

If they fail to deliver in the 2017 session, it'll break a campaign promise from Greitens, who largely focused on how he'd tackle corruption in the Capitol.
I took my children into the voting booth with me and later my grandchildren so they could learn the procedure and why it is so important.
CRESTON, Mont.  Maranda Johnson stood on the stepladder, nine months pregnant, and poured a trickle of water from a huge jug into the vat. Next to her, her husband Michael Johnson operated a 1-horsepower mixer, emulsifying the collection of organic oils and water into a thick mixture.

They stood in the workshop of their house, where all the products in their business, The Good Stuff Botanicals, are born. It's more of a modern apothecary's nook than workshop, with jars of raw, organic treats from nature lining the walls, while others held oils in which seeds or other materials marinate for a year at a time.

Inside the vat was the mixture that changed the course of this couple's life, compelling them to quit their jobs and take on the business of botanicals full-time, reported the Flathead Beacon.

"We found an old Romanian Gypsy recipe," Maranda said. "We tinkered with it for two years until it really started working."

The resulting Gypsy Cream has put The Good Stuff Botanicals on the map, and now the couple's wares are in 70 stores across the country, including the organic Huckleberry's section of 16 Rosauers grocery stores.

Like many good ideas, the recipe for Gypsy Cream was developed out of necessity. Before they knew about the cream, Michael had been struggling with psoriasis, and the medications he'd been prescribed were not cutting it. By the time he and Maranda met, he'd tried nearly everything to soothe and heal his skin.

"Steroids were not the answer for us," he said.

They were already interested in natural remedies, so Maranda explored apothecary and other natural-remedy books for a solution. When they found the recipe, they experimented until it was effective for Michael. The Good Stuff's products use raw and organic materials, harvested in the local forests if possible, and never include GMOs, parabens, sulfates, chemicals, fragrance, or dyes.

"We started in our kitchen, in a blender," Michael said.

"We were going through blenders . " Maranda started.

" . every week," Michael finished.

The cream proved so effective for Michael's skin that the couple began giving it away as gifts. When their first child was born, they gave the NICU nurses at Kalispell Regional Medical Center a jar of Gypsy Cream as a thank you. It worked so well for the NICU's patients' diaper rash that it replaced another product, and the Johnsons continue to donate cream to the hospital.

Hemp oil is one of the main reasons the cream can heal and soothe so quickly, Michael said. Molecularly, it's relatively small when compared to coconut butter, so it's absorbed through the pores instead of clogging them, he said. They also tout the water they use in their products, which comes from a local hot spring with a high silica content and a favorable pH.

Gypsy Cream began to sell, and the couple worked three farmers markets a week all summer. Eventually, their botanical product line grew to include 15 items, ranging from creams to toners to bath salts. A production line that once put out perhaps 12 bottles of cream at a time now makes 12 cases of 24 bottles a week.

They aren't technically certified organic, but that's only because they didn't think the USDA's rules went far enough. They spent almost a year filling out the paperwork and getting visits from inspectors, but when the final paperwork arrived, the USDA said they needed to include some parabens so the product has a two-year shelf life. They rejected the USDA, Maranda said, and continue to use all organic, raw products.

"We sell fresh peaches," Michael said, "not canned peaches."

Even the process of using the mixer to emulsify the wax and the water is part of it, they said, because otherwise they would have to use an emulsifying wax that they don't want in their product.

While they still peddle their botanicals at farmers markets, the product is stocked in many local shops, such as Withey's Health Foods, Sykes' Market, Sage & Cedar, and more.

Even big names like Saks Fifth Avenue and the hit show, "Shark Tank," have come calling, but the Johnsons aren't interested in being on TV. Their next step is finding a bigger workspace, perhaps a co-op of makers and artists, to expand.

Until then, they'll continue in their home, letting the business grow organically. But before all of that, Maranda needs to give birth. Luckily, the couple has all the diaper-rash cream they could need.

"A little bit of Gypsy Cream goes a long way," Maranda said.

For more information on The Good Stuff Botanicals, including a list of Montana retailers, visit www.thegoodstuffbotanicals.com.
Following the previous announcement of changes and appointments in Caterpillar's Executive Office, and due to the retirement of two long-serving vice presidents, Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) announced today its Board of Directors has appointed three new vice presidents.

Kent Adams to RetireAfter more than 38 years with Caterpillar, Kent Adams, 62, president and Chief Executive Officer of Caterpillar Financial Services Corporation and Caterpillar vice president of the Financial Products Division, has elected to retire.

"Under Kent's guidance since 2005, Cat Financial has been a stable source of earnings through challenging business cycles, including the global financial crisis," said Jim Umpleby, Caterpillar CEO-elect. "Kent leaves a lasting legacy for Caterpillar through his relentless focus on improving the customer experience as well as developing and nurturing a people-focused culture for employees working for Cat Financial."

Adams joined Caterpillar in 1979 and performed various finance functions in positions of increasing leadership at Caterpillar Americas Co., the North American Commercial Division, Caterpillar Asia Pte. Ltd. and Caterpillar Brasil Ltda. before joining Cat Financial in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1998 as vice president responsible for European operations and marine vessel finance. He was a member of the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association Board of Directors, the Financial Services Roundtable, the Nashville branch of the Federal Reserve Board of Atlanta, the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and the Board of the United Way of Metropolitan Nashville.

Mike DeWalt to RetireAfter more than 35 years with the company, Mike DeWalt, 59, vice president of the Finance Services Division, has elected to retire.

"For more than 10 years, Mike has been the trusted face and voice of Caterpillar for the investment community, leading our Investor Relations group with a steady hand and a deep knowledge of every part of the company's global operations and the markets we serve," Umpleby said. "Mike has provided effective leadership for a number of financial activities, including Corporate Treasury, Economics, Business Risk Management, Competitive Analysis, Strategic Planning and Strategic Investments," Umpleby added.

DeWalt joined Caterpillar in 1981 as an accountant and progressed to a series of positions with increasing responsibilities in accounting and finance areas. From 19962001, DeWalt was the senior finance leader for F.G. Wilson in Northern Ireland and Perkins Engine Company in Peterborough, U.K.  both wholly owned subsidiaries of Caterpillar. Following those assignments, he was named director of Strategic Investments, leading Caterpillar's corporate mergers and acquisitions group, and was the director of Investor Relations from 20052012. In 2012, DeWalt became the corporate controller, and in 2013, he was appointed vice president of the Strategic Services Division.

Joe Creed Appointed Vice President of Finance Services DivisionThe company's Board of Directors has appointed Joe Creed, 41, to replace DeWalt as vice president of the Finance Services Division. Creed is currently chief financial officer for Energy & Transportation.

"Joe brings deep expertise in the areas of financial reporting and accounting to this role," Umpleby said. "Over the course of his nearly 20 years with Caterpillar, Joe has held leadership positions in accounting and finance with increasing levels of responsibility at the corporate level, as well as with business units in both our engine and machine businesses," Umpleby added.

Creed has a bachelor's degree in accounting from Western Illinois University. He will assume his new duties January 1, 2017.

Zack Kauk Appointed Vice President of Excavation Division Following the previous announcement that Bob De Lange will become group president of Construction Industries, Caterpillar's Board of Directors has appointed Zack Kauk, 49, vice president of the Excavation Division.

Kauk is a 27-year veteran of Caterpillar, and during his career has held multiple leadership positions in engineering and product management roles in Europe, Asia and the United States. He is currently worldwide product manager for medium excavators and is based in Singapore.

"Zack and his team have delivered innovative solutions to enable our customers to maximize productivity. He brings an extensive global product management and engineering background to his new role as the leader of the Excavation Division," Umpleby said.

Kauk has a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Kansas and an MBA from Bradley University. He will assume his new duties January 1, 2017.

Dave Walton Appointed Vice President of Financial Products DivisionThe company's Board of Directors has appointed Dave Walton, 54, to replace Adams as president and CEO of Caterpillar Financial Services Corporation and Caterpillar vice president of the Financial Products Division.

Walton is a 28-year Cat Financial veteran and is currently vice president of Cat Financial Services Corporation with administrative responsibility for North America Sales, Cat Mining Finance and Cat Financial Commercial Accounts.

"During his career, Dave has held leadership positions with Cat Financial serving customers across Europe, Asia and the Americas, giving him the broad global perspective required to lead the Financial Products Division. Dave has become known for his dedication to helping our customers succeed," Umpleby said.

Walton has a bachelor's degree in accounting from Indiana University and an MBA from Keller Graduate School in Chicago. He has served on the Asia Pacific Board of Directors for Junior Achievement International. He will assume his new duties April 1, 2017, and will relocate to the Financial Products Division headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee.

Jill Daugherty Appointed Chief Audit OfficerThe Board of Directors has appointed Jill Daugherty, 46, currently Caterpillar's corporate controller, as chief audit officer. In this role, Daugherty will work with the Board Audit Committee and Caterpillar Executive Office to ensure a strong internal control environment. Daugherty joined Caterpillar as an intern in 1990. She has held a series of positions with increasing responsibility in accounting and business support, including senior roles in Asia, Europe and the United States.

Daugherty has a bachelor's degree in accounting from Purdue University and an MBA from Indiana Wesleyan University. She is a certified public accountant. Daugherty will assume her new position January 1, 2017. The current chief audit officer, Kim Doe, will assume a leadership role within Resource Industries.

Kyle Epley Appointed Corporate ControllerFollowing the announcement that Jill Daugherty has been appointed chief audit officer, Caterpillar's Board of Directors has appointed Kyle Epley, 44, currently chief financial officer for Customer & Dealer Support, as corporate controller. In this role, Epley will have responsibility for business analysis, business risk management, competitive analysis, economics, strategic planning and strategic investments. Epley joined Caterpillar in 1996 and held a series of positions with growing responsibilities in accounting and finance. Epley has a bachelor's degree in accounting from Bradley University and is a certified public accountant. He will assume his new position January 1, 2017.
Joseph Campbell didn't deny killing his neighbor. It was the circumstances surrounding the killing he debated.

For three weeks earlier this year, the saga of strife at the Diamond Bar X subdivision outside of Augusta was aired during a trial. Campbell faced a charge of deliberate homicide for killing Timothy Newman.

Much of the testimony consisted of the ongoing contempt between Campbell and Newman. Their main issue was land access.

Campbell said he shot in self-defense in 2013. He testified in trial he killed Newman as the two argued across a fence. He said it was Newman who drew his gun first.

Prosecutors argued Campbell was the aggressor.

After testimony from about 50 witnesses, the case went to the jury. Following 12 hours of deliberation, jurors informed the judge they could not reach a unanimous verdict and a mistrial was declared on March 4.

Facing another trial, Campbell opted to take a plea deal in May. The 70-year-old pleaded no contest to a lesser charge of negligent homicide.

As part of the plea agreement, he is not allowed to return to the subdivision where the shooting occurred on Oct. 18, 2013. Campbell is banned from being within 10 miles of the subdivision outside of Augusta he once called home.

The conditions on the sentence also include that Campbell must be on probation, and he is prohibited from owning firearms.

Campbell admitted to shooting 53-year-old Newman in the back. During his deliberate homicide trial earlier this year, Campbell said he shot in self-defense, though the plea states he did not see Newman's gun at the time he fired.

While prosecutors said they believed in the deliberate homicide charge, another hung jury was possible in a re-trial. If that happened again, Campbell would have been free to return to the neighborhood with no accountability for his actions. The agreement resolved the conflict with neighbors, they said.
MEXICO CITY, Dec. 26, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TV Azteca, S.A.B. de C.V. (BMV:AZTECA) (Latibex:XTZA), one of the two largest producers of Spanish-language television programming in the world, announced today that company shareholders, directly or indirectly, agreed to provide US$60 million to be invested in Azteca Comunicaciones Colombia  the TV Azteca telecommunications business in that country  in accordance with the terms defined in the General Ordinary Shareholders Meeting of November 16.

As previously announced, the Board of Directors of TV Azteca asked the CEO to update the valuation and prospects of telecommunications investments in South America in order to clarify the long-term strategic focus of the company.

The conclusion was that Azteca Comunicaciones Colombia requires a US$100 million short-term investment to develop last-mile infrastructure and reach a breakeven point, which could result in positive EBITDA going forward. TV Azteca has recently invested US$40 million in the business, thus, the additional capitalization required is US$60 million.

The company indicated it has alternative uses of cash in order to focus on its broadcast television business in Mexico, as well as in meeting future financial obligations.

Derived from this process, during the shareholders meeting of November 16 it was approved that all of the shareholders of TV Azteca who chose, could participate in the capitalization of Azteca Comunicaciones Colombia privately, and through the mechanism that TV Azteca determined for that purpose. Such participation in the investment could be up to 60% of the telecommunications company, and each shareholder could participate in the investment in proportion to their share in the capital of TV Azteca.

Shareholders agreed to provide US$60 million for such investment, and TV Azteca, which has recently invested US$40 million, will remain with a 40% equity stake of Azteca Comunicaciones Colombia.

As a result, the company will be able to further strengthen its efforts in the broadcast television business, which has encouraging perspectives, and improve its positioning in the Mexican media market.

Company Profile

TV Azteca is one of the two largest producers of Spanish-language television programming in the world, operating two national television networks in Mexico, Azteca Trece and Azteca 7, through more than 300 owned and operated stations across the country. TV Azteca affiliates include Azteca US, a broadcast television network focused on the rapidly growing U.S. Hispanic market, and Azteca Web, an Internet company for North American Spanish speakers.

TV Azteca is a Grupo Salinas company (www.gruposalinas.com), a group of dynamic, fast-growing, and technologically advanced companies focused on creating shareholder value, contributing to build the middle class of the countries in which they operate and improving society through excellence. Created by Mexican entrepreneur Ricardo B. Salinas (www.ricardosalinas.com), Grupo Salinas operates as a management development and decision forum for the top leaders of member companies. The companies include TV Azteca (www.tvazteca.com; www.irtvazteca.com), Azteca US (us.azteca.com), Grupo Elektra (www.elektra.com.mx; www.grupoelektra.com.mx), Banco Azteca (www.bancoazteca.com.mx), Advance America (www.advanceamerica.net), Afore Azteca (www.aforeazteca.com.mx), Seguros Azteca (www.segurosazteca.com.mx), Totalplay (www.totalplay.com.mx) and Enlace TP (enlacetp.mx). Each of the Grupo Salinas companies operates independently, with its own management, board of directors and shareholders. Grupo Salinas has no equity holdings. However, the member companies share a common vision, values and strategies for achieving rapid growth, superior results and world-class performance.

Except for historical information, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Other risks that may affect TV Azteca and its subsidiaries are identified in documents sent to securities authorities.

Investor Relations: Bruno RangelGrupo SalinasTel. +52 (55) 1720-9167 [email protected] Rolando VillarrealTV Azteca, S.A.B. de C.V.Tel. +52 (55) 1720-9167 [email protected]

Press Relations: Luciano PascoeGrupo SalinasTel. +52 (55) 1720-1313 ext. 36553 [email protected] Daniel McCoshGrupo SalinasTel. +52 (55) 1720-0059 [email protected]

Source: TV Azteca, SAB de CV
On a dreary morning in Franklin Square along K Street in Northwest Washington layers of donated clothes keep the homeless warm. Finding shelter and food defines their day. Dawud Proctor knows the struggle of homelessness all too well.

Yeah its tough. I see people laugh at the homeless and might look down on them but if you really look at it a lot of people are just one step away from being this way, says Proctor.

Franklin Square is one of the many places in the nations capital inhabited by those without a home. It sits two blocks from two very different houses: The White House to the west and Mayur Kabab House to the east. Mayur Kabab owner Kazi Mannan came in early on this particular day.

With every dish the magic is how much you have to stir it, says Mannan.

He and his staff are preparing a special feast for customers at his Pakistani-Indian restaurant along K Street in Northwest Washington.

Mannan says on the menu will be, Potato and cauliflower, chicken tandoori, naan bread, chick peas and vegetable biryani.

But these dishes are destined for an audience thats rarely welcome in elegant eateries. You see, for the past few months Mannan has opened his restaurant to the homeless.

Mannan says, Sometimes they come 15-20. Sometimes nobody. We are waiting God please send somebody, you know.

For lunch on this day nearly 20 people who have no home came in from the elements to eat. And theyre treated like any other guest expect for one key difference. They eat for free.

Yes its shocking to me because I didnt think there were brothers out there who would help support the needs of the homeless, says Proctor.

Darren Staton, who has been homeless for a couple years, says this meal and Mannans gesture is a blessing from God.

So we appreciate this guy bringing this food down here for us to eat. Sometimes on Sundays it is slow. Sometimes we got to go around and beg or we get a cup and try to make money to try to find a way to eat and survive out here, says Staton.

Mannan responds by telling everyone in the restaurant, You guys are the most important guests for me.

Mannans boundless optimism and love of food wasnt cultivated at a high-profile culinary institute. His desire to provide stems from a painful uncertainty that defined his childhood. Kazi Mannan grew up on a farm in a small village in Pakistan one of 10 children.

Mannan says,We didnt have any electricity. We didnt have any running water. The school, believe it or not, was under the tree. My elementary tree we didnt have a building. I study under the tree. When the really hard rain starts my teacher says go home because there is no building.

To support his family he went to work at 12 selling ice and vegetables. The best school was four miles away. So thats how far he walked to get a formal education. In 1996, at the age of 25, Mannan says his visa was approved so he borrowed money for a plane ticket to America. He started as a cashier, earning $3 an hour, at a gas station in one of the Districts toughest neighborhoods.

When I arrive in America I had just $3, just $3 and I started my life with basically nothing, says Mannan.

Hard work would alter the arc of his life. He says he worked double shifts, then multiple jobs. He saved up enough money to buy one limousine. The idea that a kid who came from nothing could one day drive the rich and powerful around in luxury inspired him even more. He says one limo turned into a fleet of vehicles. His business flourished enough that some twenty years later he opened his own restaurant.

Mannan says,Thats called American dream. This is the only country where you say American dream.

When we told some of his homeless patrons about Mannans back story they were touched.

Wow! For real? So he kinda understands. Thats a good thing. It makes sense now. Makes a lot of sense. Wow!, says Darren Staton.

But to fully understand Kazi Mannan you should know one more thing.

I love to prepare this food for the homeless shelter, says Mannan.

Every Sunday Mannan makes extra food and delivers it himself to the Georgetown Ministry Center where he serves lunch to dozens of homeless men and women. He connected a few months ago on social media with volunteers who spend Sundays dishing out hot meals to the less fortunate like Ron Verquer.

And they make you feel like you are valued, says Verquer.

Kazi Mannan says a skeptic recently told him if he gives away his food hell surely go out of business in no time. Mannan believes the more he gives away the more God will bless him.

Mannan says, I think this is all from God because my mission is from God.

And he says hell never forget what his mother told him about holding tightly to his faith in the face of despair. She said if you share even when you dont have God will take you from darkness to light.

Before Dawud Proctor returned to his spot in Franklin Square he told us, Thats the whole answer to life to be blessed by God and God will help you and I know he will. You just got to make the first step. He wont do everything for you.

Kazi Mannan tells us he hopes to one day return to Pakistan and open up empowerment centers for women and schools for children.
As Ray Reed, director of the Montana Military Museum, gazes over the collection of artifacts, he reflects on what gives a display impact. It's not so much the items themselves but what they represent.

"We can take in all the objects, but it's the stories that connect them and make them important," Reed said. "That's what we look for -- we look for the stories."

When it came to taking on new exhibits, the museum on Fort Harrison welcomed one centered around the Vietnam Women's Memorial in Washington, D.C. The display is especially fitting because the woman who began the project lives in Helena.

Diane Carlson Evans, a registered nurse who served in the war, is the founder and president of the Vietnam Women's Memorial Foundation.

"Our stories are so important," Carlson Evans said.

It took years to rally enough support to have the bronze statue depicting three Vietnam-era women, including one tending to a wounded male soldier, come to fruition. The statue honoring the more than 265,000 women who served during the Vietnam War both in uniform and in civilian support roles was dedicated in 1993.

The display, one of the latest at the museum, shows the story of the statue itself and the struggle to have it be a reality.

"I served in Vietnam in '68 and '69. Those years I took care of injured soldiers," she said. "It's a special bond between the wounded and the nurses."

The exhibit remains in progress but is available to visitors of the museum, which is open Thursday and by appointment.

The Montana Military Museum showcases events starting with the Lewis and Clark Expedition all the way up to the most current wars and conflicts.

Another new item on display is a World War II Jeep. The project was a labor of love and took the last year.

"We decided we needed to get a Jeep in here," said Jim Duffy, president of the museum's foundation. "It was a big part of World War II."

Reed said volunteers had discussed the addition of a Jeep in the collection. Then a museum board member mentioned a family member had one in Conrad. It was in poor shape and needed some extreme refurbishing. The board raised the money to bring the vehicle back to its former glory.

It took about $13,000 and the handy work of a local veteran. The 1942 Jeep now welcomes visitors to the World War II exhibit in the museum.

Reed said the Jeep serves as a two-fold homage.

"It's a tribute to our veterans and also our volunteers," he said. The museum currently has about 17 volunteers, and Reed says it can always use more.

"Our key is the volunteers. It wouldn't happen without them," Reed added.
With a mighty blast of its horn, the largest cruise ship to ever visit New Zealand Ovation of the Seas announced its arrival into the Port of Tauranga.

The USD $1 billion (NZD $1.4B) Royal Caribbean ship which is longer than three rugby fields (348m), has a gross tonnage of 168,666 and is bringing 4905 passengers and 1500 crew to the city pulled into port shortly after 6.15am and plans to depart tonight at 6pm.

To welcome the fourth largest cruise ship in the world to Tauranga this morning were helicopter pilots Sue Miller of Velcocity2Aviation Taupo and Ross Maule of Tauranga Helicopter Training.

Wed planned on going out a few days ago when we learnt Ovation was coming in. Was a beautiful morning, as it normally is in the Bay, a lot of people on the base track, plenty of boats around, says Ross.

It was a special occasion, being the biggest liner to come into port yet, and was a spectacular sight seeing the ship back dropped by Mauao.

Tauranga is one of only six ports in the country able to accommodate the Ovation, and todaysarrival was made possible by the dredging of Tauranga Harbour earlier this year.

To mark the maiden voyage, a ceremony will be held on board with the captain to present the Port of Tauranga with a plaque to commemorate the landmark event. This will be attended by Tauranga City Mayor Greg Brownless, Tourism Bay of Plenty chairman Des Hammond and Kristin Dunne.



Video: Bernie Roodt/YouTube

Kristin says the introduction of bigger vessels shows the confidence that cruise companies have in New Zealand as a destination.

Tauranga rates time and time again as one of New Zealands most popular New Zealand destinations. We look forward to sharing it with our global guests aboard the Ovation of the Seas.

Following its stop in Tauranga, Ovation of the Seas will head to Auckland before returning to Tauranga on February 5, berthing alongside Emerald Princess for a double ship day, bringing an estimated combined 9500 visitors.

Ovation of the Seas visit is part of the biggest cruise ship season on record for the Bay of Plenty, with 83 ship visits scheduled, carrying 153,000 passengers  including five ships berthing overnight in Tauranga.

Have you taken photos or video of Ovation of the Seas that you want to share with your fellow SunLive readers? Send them to newsroom@thesun.co.nz or post them to our Facebook page.



A small crowd gathered on the Mauao base track to watch Ovation of the Seas arrival into the Port of Tauranga this morning. Photo: Caitlyn Ward.



Photo: Caitlyn Ward.

Photo: Tauranga Helicopter Training/Velocity2Aviation

Photo: Tauranga Helicopter Training/Velocity2Aviation



Photo: Bob Ricketts

Photo: Tauranga Moana Outrigger Canoe Club
Police are appealing to the community for any information that will help them locate a Hamilton man whos been missing for more than a week.

Marama Hill, 50, was last seen on December 18 by a family member and has not made contact with family and friends since then.

Marama is described as being 172 cm tall and of medium build.

If you have seen Marama Hill in the last week of have any information on his whereabouts please contact Hamilton Police on 07 858 6200.
Consumer NZ and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade are offering advice to would-be travellers for the holiday period.

The pair are joining forces to remind Kiwis to take out travel insurance if theyre heading overseas for their holidays.

The organisations have produced a plain English guide to travel insurance, which uses real-life stories to illustrate the importance of cover.

If you suffer a mishap overseas, comprehensive travel insurance can cover your medical expenses and personal liability, says Consumer NZ chief executive Sue Chetwin.

It can also compensate you if your luggage goes walkabout or you need to alter a travel booking.

MFAT consular divisional manager Lyndal Walker says New Zealand embassies and consulates can provide assistance if you run into trouble, but travellers need to be aware the Government wont pay their bills.

If youre heading overseas, its important you make your own arrangements to meet any unforeseen costs, says Lyndal.

The guide highlights cases where travellers have faced medical bills for tens of thousands of dollars following mishaps overseas.

In one instance, a passenger on a cruise ship became critically ill and required hospital care. Without cover, he had to pay $60,000 in bills, including the cost of a medical escort for his flight home.

So if youre heading overseas, take these steps to ensure a successful trip.

WHEN PLANNING YOUR TRIP:



Check the MFAT website safetravel.govt.nz for the latest travel advice about your planned destination.

Take out comprehensive travel insurance as soon as you finalise your travel arrangements. If you intend on using credit card travel insurance, make sure you meet the requirements for cover before completing your bookings.

Ensure you have the necessary visas and a valid passport. Some countries require passports to be valid six months beyond your visit. Your travel agent or the embassies of the countries you intend to visit or transit through can explain the visa and passport requirements.

Consult a doctor about vaccinations and a medical kit for your planned destinations six to eight weeks before you leave. Some categories of prescription medicines should be carried with a medical certificate signed by a doctor.

BEFORE DEPARTURE:

Register your travel details on safetravel.govt.nz. During a major overseas incident, those registered as being in the vicinity of the incident are contacted first by MFAT to confirm their safety and wellbeing.

Note contact details of the nearest New Zealand embassy, high commission or consulate in your planned destination.

Give a family member or friend your travel information, such as accommodation details and photocopies of your itinerary, passport and certificate of insurance

Prepare a mixture of payment options for your trip, such as a credit card and cash (including foreign currency for your transit and arrival). Ask your bank about your destinations ATM facilities and inform it youll be using your cards overseas.

To get the Consumer Guide to Travel Insurance, as well as thousands of tests and research articles, see: consumer.org.nz
Enthusiastic and appreciative groups of people from vantage points as far as Plummers Point watched as the Ovation of the Sea left port on Monday evening.

It was a flying visit for the ship which is longer than three rugby fields (348m), has a gross tonnage of 168,666 and brought 4905 passengers and 1500 crew to Tauranga, pulling into port 12 hours earlier.

The USD $1 billion (NZD $1.4B) Royal Caribbean vessel is the fourth largest cruise ship in the world, and the largest to visit New Zealand.



A large crowd gathered to faewell Ovation of the Seas on Monday evening. Photo: Larissa Loveridge.



Photo: Katie Rickard

Her visit is part of the biggest cruise ship season on record for the Bay of Plenty, with 83 ship visits scheduled, carrying 153,000 passengers  including five ships berthing overnight in Tauranga.

Ovation is returning to Tauranga on February 5 and will berth alongside Emerald Princess for a double ship day, bringing an estimated combined 9500 visitors.
Police are concerned for the welfare of a father and daughter who are travelling by catamaran to the Bay of Islands from Kawhia Harbour in the Waikato.

Alan Langdon, 49, and his daughter Que Langdon, 6, left Kawhia Harbour on Saturday, December 17, for the Bay of Islands but their family have had no contact with them since they left.

Police have grave concerns for their wellbeing and are seeking information from other boaties who may have seen them over the past few days.

The boat is described as a catamaran, 6 metres (21ft) in length and sail ID number T878.

The catamaran is white with blue anti-fouling paint under the waterline.

If you have seen this pair or had contact with them since December 17 please contact your local Police station immediately.
Half a year has now passed but the UK government is yet to outline a plan for leaving the European Union

Tusk (left) and May (right). EFE

Waking early on the morning of 24 June this year, the day after the UK voted on whether or not to remain in the European Union, I received a text from a distressed friend in London: WE ARE LEAVING THE EU. The world has gone mad.

Though the capital was for staying in Europe (60% Remain), the country as a whole wanted out, voting in favour of Brexit by 52% to 48%, with a 72% turnout.

David Cameron resigned in its aftermath, handing the top job to the rather dour Theresa May, a Remainer like her predecessor.

Today, exactly half a year since the referendum, are we any closer to knowing what kind of departure from Brussels will be pursued?

The pressing matter of how Brexit will affect the status of Britons living overseas and EU citizens in the UK is becoming contentious. At the end of last month, 81 mostly Conservative MPs and peers wrote a pointlessly antagonistic letter to Donald Tusk, president of the European Council. They urged Tusk to open discussions about the rights of UK expatriates and EU overseas residents as soon as possible.

An irritated reply from the president stated that such talks can only start when the UK triggers Article 50, thereby starting the formal two-year period of negotiations that will conclude with its departure from the EU.

All May has said is that this process will start before the end of March next year and that, when it does, the status of UK citizens living abroad and EU citizens in the UK will be top of the agenda. The details remain undisclosed - possibly because they dont exist yet.

One thing we do know is that the legalities of Brexit will be formidably complex. Last month, the UK High Court ruled that triggering Article 50 is a matter for parliament to decide, not just the government.

Many were critical of the decision, arguing that it was an attempt to delay or even prevent Brexit. The government appealed in the Supreme Court earlier this month, its lawyers claiming that the mandate to execute Brexit came directly from the referendum result. Experts predict that the verdict - due in January - will go against the prime minister.

In the run-up to the referendum, both Remainers and Leavers campaigned hard for what they perceived as the best result for Britain.

The defeated Stronger in Europe movement is now called Open Britain (OB), and its busy pushing what it sees as the optimum Brexit. OB calls for an unprecedentedly generous, bespoke trading arrangement between the UK and the EU that would enable it to remain in the Single Market despite quitting the EU.

Not only that, but the UK should seek to negotiate continued influence over regulatory decision making within the Single Market, according to its literature.

The campaign also recommends a unique UK-EU deal of unprecedented depth on security matters and mending not ending free movement.

This sounds more like a renegotiated membership of the EU than a departure from it, but Joe Carberry, OBs co-executive director, claims in an interview that its the approach favoured behind the closed doors of government: There was all this tough talk about complete dislocation, that well be outside of the European Court of Justice in a brave new world etc.

Now, I think the reality is dawning within Whitehall that the EU is more valuable than they perhaps realised before. Theyre realising they do need a close relationship with the EU in certain areas.

There are indications that Carberry is correct. Brexit Minister David Davis recently announced that the UK could contribute to the EU budget for access to the Single Market after leaving. And a remark of Mays earlier this week was interpreted as implying that the UK will pay into the EU post-Brexit, although it could just as well have implied the opposite, such is her flair for the elliptical. Carberry is far from alone in thinking that this apparent backtracking serves to underline the duplicity of the Leave campaign.

In opposition to OBs recommendations, Economists for Brexit (EfB) argue that exiting the Single Market will be liberating, a chance to break away from its incubus and the EUs protectionism, according to a report on its website.

Barrister Martin Howe QC, EfBs legal consultant and an expert on sovereignty and the EU, tells me over the phone that the alternative - leaving the EU but staying in the Single Market - is unthinkable: It would be utter, utter madness. The Single Market regulates your entire economy - its not just a trade agreement. The only precedent for countries that are inside the Single Market but not EU members are Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein. They have to apply the whole corpus of EU regulations, not just those directly relating to trade. Whats more, they have to follow changes to those, even though they have no vote - and thats the real killer.

For many who favour a hard Brexit such as this, it is the only one that would deliver what the UK really asked for. As Howe puts it: The British people took a decision, and that decision must mean ending European law controlling what we do.

The barrister wryly suggests a more accurate label for Open Britain: Britain Locked into The EU. Their name is a complete misnomer.

It is time for May to release detail about what kind of separation from the EU is being planned in Whitehall. Brexit means Brexit, says the prime minister - just the kind of soundbite speechwriters love but which, upon inspection, prove devoid of content. It could refer to either - or neither - of two radically different types of divorce from Brussels. In the meantime, May has said that the UK government will provide no running commentary on the departure process.

But as Carberry points out, this doesnt stop people talking: There is a running commentary - and its called The Media. If you dont have a running commentary [from government], then you end up with things leaking and people briefing. No running commentary, I think, means having no grip - and that needs to change.
Thank Montanas two senators next year for less of a delay when going through security at Helena Regional Airport.

The airport is slated to have the metal detector thats been used since March 2013, when the full-body scanner was removed for use elsewhere in the nation, replaced with a state-of-the-art full-body scanner, said Jeff Wadekamper, the airports director.

With the scanner will come more efficiency and the need for fewer people to be subject to additional screening as happens because of prosthetic devices, he explained.

Wadekamper said hes hoping it will be installed before summer when flights are fuller with people coming and going for vacations.

His update for Airport Authority commissioners was that Transportation Security Administration would be installing it in May.

Sens. Steve Daines, a Republican, and Jon Tester, a Democrat, helped both Helena and Great Falls to be added to the list of airports that would receive scanners, Wadekamper said.

During a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing, Tester again discussed the need for modernized passenger screening equipment at airports in Helena and Great Falls, according to an April 5 news release from his office.

Both airports recently made infrastructure improvements to create space for new screening equipment, but the Transportation Security Administration has not delivered it.

An April 11 news release from Testers office noted that the Transportation Security Administration prioritizes installing full body scanners in urban airports, which has left airports in Helena and Great Falls without the most up-to-date security equipment.

The news release said he successfully added an amendment to the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill to study the feasibility of installing full body scanners in every airport across the country.

The scanner that had been at the airport was installed in 2012 before being removed 11 months later and shipped to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

Helena Regional Airport spent about $125,000 on remodeling to accommodate the scanner and for some ancillary expenses not entirely related to its installation, an airport official at that time had said.

Scanner technology has advanced since the early models that displayed an invasive image of a person, Wadekamper said, and the one that will be installed in Helena will produce an outline of a human image.

The scanned will identify areas on the body image that require further investigation by security staff, he explained.

Cost for the scanner is paid by Transportation Security Administration and not the airport. Because the location where it will be installed at the airport has already been wired, installation should take only a day.

A site survey team from the Transportation Security Administration came to inspect the location, Wadekamper noted.

The installation could occur between the early morning and early afternoon flights which would allow about five hours for the work.
LENOX, N.Y. -- A Verona man is behind bars after state police say he broke into the office of a non-profit agency in the town of Lenox and stole money.

Troopers tied Craig R. Bean, 30, of Happy Valley Road, to the scene of the crime using footprints left in the snow outside the office, which matched Bean's footwear, police said.

Police were called to the Community Action Partnership office around 8 a.m. Friday, where they were told by employees that someone had entered the building overnight through a window and had taken a quantity of cash.

Troopers located Bean and transported him to the state police barracks in Oneida, where police say Bean eventually confessed to the crime.

Bean was charged with felony third-degree burglary, arraigned in Lenox Town Court and sent to the Madison County Jail on $15,000 cash bail.

According to its website, Community Action Partnership, which was founded in 1983, provides education, guidance, and accessibility to low- and moderate-income families and children in Madison County.
PORT BYRON, N.Y. -- Deputies with the Cayuga County Sheriff's Office are investigating a grand larceny incident after several tools were stolen from a construction site over the weekend, the office announced today.

A suspect forced their way into a locked job trailer at a construction site near 78 Utica St./ Highway 31 in Port Byron, deputies said. The person stole construction tools, a generator, and other equipment from inside.

The theft is believed to have happened sometime between 4 p.m. Friday and noon Monday when workers realized the items were missing, according to the sheriff's office.

The items were being used to build a new Dollar General Store in the area and are predominantly used for concrete construction, deputies said.

There is no suspect information currently available.

While deputies did not say how much the stolen items were worth, grand larceny charges are brought against someone when the value of stolen property exceeds $1,000, according to New York State law.

The Cayuga County Sheriff's Office asks anyone with information on the theft to call Detective Josh Blanchard at (315) 253-3902, or submit a tip online.


Wegmans.JPG

Wegmans Great Northern store on Route 31 in Clay.

(Kevin Tampone | ktampone@syracuse.com)

Wegmans is being sued by employees who claim the company invaded their privacy and violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act by conducting consumer background reports on them.

The Rochester-based grocery chain failed to give proper notification to job applicants before conducting consumer reports on them, according to a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York. The suit was brought by Ashleigh Wheeler of Rochester, who was hired in 2013, and Jerah Brewster of Ithaca, who was hired in 2015, the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle reported.

"Using the services of a third party, Wegmans routinely obtains and relies on information in the consumer report to evaluate prospective and current employees," says the lawsuit.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires prospective employers to disclose to a job applicant that they will be the subject of a consumer report. This disclosure must be provided on a document solely for that purpose.

The lawsuit claims that Wegmans disclosure document also releases the company, former employers and all other persons or entities contacted by Wegmans from all liabilities related to the release of information related to the check. The plaintiffs claim that information is extraneous to the disclosure, and is a violation of the FCRA.

Wheeler and Brewster claim that the addition of this information on the disclosure document misled them about the nature of the consent they were giving, and caused them to have their privacy invaded.

The lawsuit claims Wegmans "acted willfully and in deliberate or reckless disregard of its obligations and the rights of plaintiffs Wheeler, Brewster and other class members without making the required disclosure," the D&C reported.

Wegmans' vice president of media relations Jo Natale told the D&C, "We are confident that our process for screening job applicants, including the disclosure that a background check will be conducted, fully complies with federal law."

The plaintiffs are being represented by Thomas & Solomon law firm in Rochester. The suit has been filed on behalf of all employees and job applicants in the country who were the subjects of consumer reports obtained by Wegmans in the past five years.

It seeks no less than $100 and not more than $1,000 for each alleged violation.
The Child and Family Services workers who deal directly with children will have to wait until next October to get a new computer program that handles casework. But the Department of Public Health and Human Services says the delay will be worth it.

A replacement for the antiquated Child and Adult Protective System, which was implemented 20 years ago, was first scheduled to be completed this fall. But that was pushed back to next October after DPHHS, which runs the CFS, determined it needed to roll out a program with more functions than originally planned.

As the number of children who enter CFS annually has doubled over the last five years, the department has struggled to hire and keep employees who face increasingly high workloads, up to four times the amount recommended by national watchdog groups. Lowering the amount of time spent on data entry and struggling to navigate an out-of-date computer system could alleviate that.

CAPS is what the employees who answer the Child Abuse Hotline and specialists who do investigations, or fieldwork, use to input and manage cases. The new program is called Montana Family Safety Information System.

Erica Johnston, operations management officer for the department, said Wednesday that the first phase of the new program was initially planned to handle only the intake process. But the system that eventually rolls out will cover everything from intake to assigning a case for investigation, completing the investigation, reporting on work done and documenting if a child is removed from a home.

While it may feel like the project is delayed, its really about a broadening of what we included in Phase 1 and what we really thought we could have in the hands of workers, she said.

Department spokesman Jon Ebelt said the first part of the project is over half complete.

The department is going from a system with a black background and green text that uses F keys to navigate to a web-based program that is device-responsive, meaning it will adjust to fit on screens any size from a desktop to a smartphone, which CPS specialists are equipped with when they go out into the field.

The state's Information Technology Services Division, which is providing the development and graphic design in conjunction with the department, reached out to CFS employees about what they wanted in a new system. The old system was a struggle for an increasingly younger workforce to use.

If you can just imagine being a professional that grew up in the age of technology with web-based services and instant gratification with information, coming into your career trying to learn a mainframe system, it's just not intuitive, Johnston said.

One of the biggest challenges with CAPS was finding information about people related to a case, such as siblings. The new system will show all of that on one screen and tell employees about possible family relations they might not have known about.

I cant even come up with a word for how much better it is, Johnston said.

The team working on the project couldnt come up with an estimate of how much faster an employee will be able to enter case information, but Johnston said the change is incredibly valuable.

It will be immeasurable, just in the ability to know and understand and quickly learn the system. While it may not reduce the time that a caseworker spends on a case, itll improve the allocation of time that worker spends on a case, and that's really the goal.

The department plans to create an entirely new system over the next several years, but is doing it in a modular way to get a new tool out to workers as soon as possible, Johnston said.

Part of the reason for the delay is because the department thought it could use more pieces from the system the Department of Corrections uses to manage offender information. While that system provided the framework for what CFS will use, developers had to build more from scratch than expected.

It also took longer to get federal approval for the system, which must be built to regulations governing how it functions and what sort of information it collects.

Johnston said by January shed have a better idea of when employees around the state would start testing the intake component. CFS offices statewide will test new components as they are ready.

During the 2013 legislative session, the department received $350,000 to research what it would take to replace the old CAPS system. It learned that a new system would be too expensive to buy from a vendor, so in 2015 the department instead choose to ask the Legislature for money to build its own version. The department received about $4 million. Of that, $750,000 goes to this project, which is matched by federal funds for $1.5 million. The state funding renews each biennium.

Johnston said the money is enough to support the department's work.

Later phases of the project will include pulling data out of the system to use to make better management decisions.

Getting information from CAPS is difficult and time-consuming. Numbers from CAPS were also dated, so supervisors couldnt get a real-time picture of, for example, the number of calls for service or caseloads of employees. In later phases of the update, the new system will have a dashboard with programmed searches to more easily provide that type of information.

Johnston said as employees start testing the system, they might see things that need fixing or changed, which could push back the timeline, but added that with the level of involvement from employees so far she doesnt anticipate a lot of problems.
2016 really was a year like no other. We had yet another election defined by the misuse of analytics  and folks seem to be getting worse rather than better at this. We had a rush to robotics, particularly self-driving cars, and some firms even leaped ahead to self-flying, people-delivering drones (which we called flying cars just a few years back).

We had a wave of fake news, mostly paid for by Google, because that company, as always, has no compass. It appears to be shaming nations into regulating it, suggesting it has no sense, either. We also had a lot of interesting products, but I think one stood out as the next iPod, and it didnt come from Apple.

Ill go further into all of that this week, as you recover from what I hope was a wonderful Christmas day full of presents, family, and a sense of dread for January, when we all have to go back to work. Sorry, that was my inner Scrooge.

Analytics Miss

If one thing stood out for me this past year, it was the election. After two elections in which Obama, a Democrat, out-executed his Republican rivals with analytics, we had Trump do the same thing to Clinton in the last 10 days of the election. That was in spite of the fact that Clinton was the candidate tech loved, suggesting someone really missed a meeting.

This takes me back to the oft-heard criticisms of Clintons opponents who maintained she showed bad judgment. The lesson here is that tech cant fix bad judgment, and it is a force multiplier. So, if you have bad judgment, it likely will make things worse. You know, it still strikes me that if folks spent more time understanding why someone screwed up so badly rather than just finding folks to blame and shoot, things might improve over time. Just saying

Bad Judgment

Speaking of bad judgment, Meg Whitman likely takes the cake. She came out late against Donald Trump and for Hillary Clinton, even though she is tied at the hip to the Republican Party. Maybe it would have resulted in a minor cabinet post for Whitman had Clinton won, but getting this wrong made her look not only like a traitor to her party, but also like a foolish one.

This is the sad part: HPE sells analytics products, suggesting Whitman has no better handle on that technology  even though her firm sells it  than Clinton does. I guess this means shell have to go back to executing a strategy that will make HPE small enough to fit in the garage it started from.

Good Judgment

Peter Thiel stands out as the tech executive of the year, largely because he was the only one who saw that there were enough people in both parties who were sick of politicians to get Trump elected.

Unlike virtually every other tech exec, he focused on tech, which is what he knows  not politics. Thiel has had a material and largely positive impact on Trumps agenda, so much so that at a meeting earlier this month, Trump asked what he could do to help tech firms rather than yelling at them for their lack of support.

In the end, I think Thiel may showcase how tech and government should work together to make the U.S. a better place. It wont be by donating money, as tech leaders did with Clinton, but by sharing and using the very technology they sell to make the nation better  and that should be a bipartisan goal. Sadly, Thiel is the exception and not the rule, but the industry learns from example and he is one hell of an example.

Fixing Judgment

That is a sharp contrast on judgment. Intel CEO Brian Krzanich, backed by my old friend Genevieve Bell, earlier this year made a timely announcement on focusing AI to help folks with their judgment. Both Clinton and Whitman should sign up for the alpha test.

This is really the eventual promise of analytics. Its not a tool that multiplies the impact of a decision, good or bad, but a tool that helps people ensure their decisions are good ones. I think we all could use a tool that would help us with our judgment from time to time.

Dell Technology

In 2016, we saw the birth of the new super-company in tech, Dell Technologies. Instead of mucking around with politics, Michael Dell buckled down and took EMC private, saving Joe Tuccis legacy and creating the most powerful hardware company in tech.

This is important in a market increasingly defined by cloud companies like Amazon, Google, and now even Microsoft. It still strikes me that Dell has the best acquisition and merger process, yet largely stands alone when using it. However, I did talk to an Intel exec who told me Intel recently adopted something similar, so thats good news for you folks in smaller tech firms. If this is a trend, you are less likely to get a surprise layoff in 2017 due to a bad acquisition.

Product of the Year Runners-Up

Dells XPS 13: This was my go-to laptop for much of the year, though I actually came to prefer the XPS15, largely because it was better for playing Ashes of the Singularity, my new favorite strategy game. The XPS 13 is a nice balance of size, style, battery life and functionality, with the only downside being the lack of a good fingerprint reader.

Dell XPS 13

Lenovo Yoga Book: At launch, this was a breakout product  ultra-thin, ultra-portable and very reasonably priced. Artists raved over it. It reminds me a lot of the Courier tablet that Microsofts advanced development team came up with, which effectively led to its being disbanded. Sadly, Im not an artist  it is best for those who are.

Lenovo Yoga Book

Varonis: As I noted last week, this product and its entire class of intrusion and behavior monitoring tools could have changed the U.S. election outcome, had both the U.S. government and DNC had used them. Varonis would have prevented the hack of the DNC (and other) email servers. However, it wasnt used and didnt have the impact it should have had (granted, if it had, we never would have known).

(By the way, Varonis has posted a series of videos on how to secure your home for the holidays that is worth watching, and its free.)

BlackBerry DTEK 60: This phone showcased that you actually could have a secure BlackBerry. Thin and with glass on both sides, a decent camera, a fingerprint sensor (sensibly placed on the back of the camera, not the front), and a full Android implementation, this is the phone that BlackBerry should have made a long time ago, and it has been serving me as my primary phone ever since I got it. In a world increasingly defined by breaches, this phone is a godsend because it is secure.

BlackBerry DTEK60

Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 Solution: This was big  the only ARM solution that has been blessed by Microsoft for Windows. Microsoft hadnt considered another platform since the 1980s, and to make the jump to Snapdragon was a huge win for Qualcomm and for users who want laptops with battery life comparable to tablets.

It also suggests that Apple is likely close to a similar decision, since its rumored that it has been exploring the same jump for MacBooks. However, products wont show up until 2017, suggesting well revisit this next year.

Mercedes GLA 45 AMG: I liked this car so much I bought it. The car has been a dream  Mercedes not so much. First, we had a trip from hell to pick it up in Germany. Then, to make it up to me, the company put me through its advanced driver course. However, Mercedes so overburdened the instructors that the thing became unsafe as a consequence, and there was an accident. Finally, Mercedes actually configured my car wrong, making a last-minute change that eliminated one of the features I expressly had ordered and paid for. Its a great car, but I think Im done with Mercedes.

AMD RX-460 Card: We are ramping to VR, but the best solutions are way too expensive as you jump from a US$100 dollar range headset for your smartphone to a $3,000 solution for a full PC with an HTC Vive or Oculus Rift solution. Well, AMD pushed back and brought out its Radeon 460 card, which dramatically lowered the cost of entry for those wanting to get in on VR.

Nvidia Drive PX2: Perhaps the greatest sleeper product in the market was the Nvidia Drive PX2. Basically it is an AI system in a box, and Im convinced it is capable of much more than driving cars. This product and its predecessor vaulted Nvidia into the lead with autonomous cars, and likely will help move it into autonomous aircraft at some point. There no doubt will be other circumstances where having an AI in a box that can see and make decisions would be useful.

The Amazon Echo Dot is the product Apple should have built. The Dot and its siblings have everyone from Google to Microsoft and Intel, among others, looking to build similar offerings. It is the critical link between homeowners and their IoT future, and it has cut through the market like a hot knife through butter.

The Dot was my go-to gift to relatives this year, and at under $50. it remains one of the true bargains available. I think the Amazon Echo is this decades iPod, and well soon see if Amazon can do as good a job locking everyone else out of the market as Apple did.

It is licensing the technology, suggesting that next year we could be up to our armpits in Echo clones and competitors. Overall, though, the Echo has become the core driver for in-home IoT. When a product spins a market on its head, that showcases true market power, and my product of the year needs to showcase leadership and power.

Amazon did that  first with the Echo, and now with the Echo Dot, making the Echo Dot my product of the year. Congratulations, Amazon and thanks also for offering it in bundles of six, because I now have one in nearly every room of the house.
Earlier this year, Microsoft famously employed aggressive tactics when promoting its free Windows 10 upgrade offer. Now, the company's Chief Marketing Officer, Chris Capossela, admits there was a moment when the campaign's heavy-handed methods went too far.

As it attempted to get more users to upgrade, Microsoft started overwhelming people with popups, made Windows 10 a recommended update rather than an optional one, and automatically forced unwanted installations onto PCs without first informing users. One California travel agency operator was awarded $10,000 through a lawsuit after a forced installation caused her PC to become slow and unusable.

Despite all this, Capossela said in an interview with Windows Weekly that the company didn't step over the line of being too aggressive in its marketing campaign. But he admitted there was one moment when it went too far.

Back in May, the company was accused of deceiving people into upgrading by deploying "malware-like" methods. Microsoft's Get Windows 10 (GWX) pop-up had offered users the choices of "Upgrade Now" or "Start Download, Upgrade later," meaning those who didn't want the newest OS had to close the pop-up using the standard X in the corner of the box. But the company changed this by introducing a small and easily missed link for rescheduling or changing the upgrade. Following the alteration, anyone who clicked on the corner X was unwittingly giving consent for the upgrade to take place at the scheduled time.

"There was one particular moment ... where the red 'x' in the dialog box, which typically means, you know, 'cancel,' didn't mean cancel," said Capossela. "And within a couple of hours of that hitting the world, with the listening systems we have, we knew that we had gone too far."

"And then, of course, it takes us some time to roll out the update that changed that behavior," he added. "And those two weeks were pretty painful, and clearly a lowlight for us. And we learned a lot from it, obviously."

The free upgrade offer and its nags ended in July. As the promotion drew to a close, Microsoft started pushing out full-screen announcements reminding people that time was running out.

It's taken Microsoft a long time to admit that it went too far in forcing Windows 10 onto people, but hopefully it will learn from the experience. The vast majority of users are fans of the latest operating system, but nobody likes deceptive and annoying marketing.
The publisher of a white supremacist website is offering to call off a proposed armed march in Whitefish next month.

Andrew Anglin runs The Daily Stormer, a site that recently called for a troll storm against people who objected to the work of Richard Spencer, who heads the white supremacist National Policy Institute and who lives part of the year in the ski resort town. Spencer gained notoriety when, shortly after the election, he spoke at a white nationalist rally in Washington where some raised their arms in Nazi-style salutes when he said, Hail, Trump.

The Stormer claimed that members of Love Lives Here, an organization founded in 2009 in response to screenings of pro-Hitler films by a white separatist group, had harmed the Whitefish business of Spencers mother. Last week, it posted photos of members of the group with Stars of David with the word Jude -- German for Jewish -- superimposed on their clothing. The post included their phone numbers, addresses and social media information, and urged Stormer followers to harass them.

Anglin followed that up with a post Thursday that added more names to the list, along with names and contact information.

And, he warned, For the next phase of our plan  we are planning an armed protest in Whitefish. Montana has extremely liberal open carry laws, so my lawyer is telling me we can easily march through the center of the town carrying high-powered rifles.

Anglin estimated he could attract 200 followers from his march, which will be against Jews, Jewish businesses and everyone who supports either. We will be busing in skinheads from the Bay Area. As for a date, he said only that the march would be held in the second week in January.

But on Friday he appeared to back down, posting about a monumental breakthrough in which, among other things, he quoted an Associated Press report in which Love Lives Here head Will Randall reiterated that his group had never tried to pressure Spencers mother about her business.

And he offered to call off his march if various terms were met, including a promise that any protest actions you take in the future against Richard Spencer will not involve his family members.
Public health officials announced on Thursday, Dec. 22, that a veterinarian working at a New York animal shelter may have contracted a rare form of the bird flu virus while treating sick cats. If the case is confirmed, it will be first instance of cat-to-human transmission of the virus.

According to New York City's Health and Mental Hygiene Department, a rare strain of the flu virus was detected in at least 45 cats at an animal shelter in Manhattan.

Laboratory tests conducted at the University of Wisconsin revealed that the infection was caused by the H7N2 virus, which appears to have jumped from birds into cats.

Dr. Jay Varma from the New York City health department explained that they get very concerned whenever a virus adapts to a new carrier animal since there is a likelihood that the infection could be transmitted from the sick animal to the people that care for them.

Cat-To-Human Bird Flu Transmission

While cats have contracted the bird flu virus before, Thursday's announcement marks the first time when the H7N2 viral strain was transmitted from infected cats to humans.

Health officials believe the veterinarian may have gotten the virus from a frail, 12-year-old cat that was taken to the animal shelter. They suspect that it may have come in contact with a sick pigeon or another cat that already had the infection.

Varma said the cat developed mild illness at first, which eventually progressed to pneumonia. The animal was later euthanized because the infection had become severe.

"It was the humane thing to do," Varma said.

Most of the other cats at the animal shelter that tested positive for the rare bird flu virus have only shown mild symptoms of the infections. The city health department said the animals are expected to recover from the illness and that the likelihood of further transmission is very low.

The vet was the only one that showed symptoms of the H7N2 infection out of the dozens of people screened.

The patient had been exposed to respiratory secretions from sick cats while working at the Manhattan shelter of the Animal Care Centers of NYC. Officials said the vet had since recovered from the mild illness.

The New York City health department said individuals who show flu-like symptoms are likely to have seasonal influenza or other respiratory-related infections commonly associated with winter. H7N2 and seasonal influenza both have similar symptoms and are treated using the same medications.

Both illnesses are particularly devastating to pregnant women and individuals with existing health problems or weakened immune systems.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
In November 2015, a Canadian entrepreneur decided to help 50 Syrian refugee families relocate to Canada. Jim Estill calculated that each family would require about $25,000 to $30,000 to survive their first year of settlement in their new home. Using this formula, he realized he would need to donate $1.5 million in cash.

For Estill, donating this amount is simply "the right thing to do." The idea to lend help stemmed from the fact that "things were so slow and that nothing was happening. It needed to be done so that's why I'm doing it."

Who Is Jim Estill?

Estill is a former director of Research in Motion, a telecommunications company known for producing a line of BlackBerry devices. The entrepreneur started his career by reselling computers from the trunk of his car in Waterloo during the 1970s.

From this humble beginnings, he founded EMJ Data and turned it into a wildly successful company which he sold off to Synnex for $350 million. He also became the latter's Chief Executive Officer for five years.

Estill came out of semi-retirement in 2015 when he became the CEO and president of Danby, a home appliance company that makes $400 million sales per year. Estill is known for his pragmatic and no-nonsense personality, and likes to dispense business advice whenever her can-this can be evidenced from his Ted Talk, his Twitter account, and his blog.

How It All Started

In the summer of 2015, images of families fleeing Syria filled the news. Estill called up local religious groups and aid organizations to set up a meeting regarding the refugee crisis in Syria. On September 29, 2015, he made a presentation titled "Refugees: The Right Thing to Do" and enlisted the help of those who were present during the meeting.

Hundreds of sponsors came streaming in and volunteered their support after Estill's cause was reported in the media. Some of the volunteers were Vietnamese boat people who arrived on Guelph as refugees themselves during the 1970s and wanted to give back.

How Does One Choose Whom To Save?

One of the biggest challenges that Estill faced was getting to choose which Syrian family to help move to Canada. Estill has a short profile and description of the many Syrian families who are applying for his assistance. From these profiles, he will have to choose which families to sponsor.

Estill focused on applicants that he think would have a shot at succeeding in Canada, focusing on families that have members who were capable of earning an income.

Those who were old and single were not as fortunate.

"I had to play God," Estill said in an interview. "It was like encountering a thousand beggars. Who do you help? How do you choose who starves?"

Despite this setback, the Canadian entrepreneur remains steadfast in providing assistance. Estill has been awarded with the Order of Ontario in recognition of his extraordinary generosity.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
A Kansas deputy sheriff has come under fire from the public after a disturbing video of him using a Taser gun on an elderly Alzheimer's sufferer went viral on the internet.

Ottawa County deputy sheriff Russ Thornton and his colleague were called to the Good Samaritan Nursing Center in Minneapolis back in March to assist in accosting one of the patients, who had reportedly assaulted his fellow resident.

The officers were trying to convince the old man, referred to only as "Lee," to go to the doctor when the incident occurred.

Sheriff's Deputy Using A Taser On An Alzheimer's Patient

According to an investigation by the sheriff's office at the time, Lee suddenly became violent while Thornton and his colleague were trying to coax him to come with them for a doctor's appointment. This led to the officers using force to subdue the elderly patient.

In a two-minute video that surfaced on LiveLeak.com, Lee can be seen repeatedly refusing requests from the officers to leave the nursing home.

"OK Lee, now's the time that you have to go with us," one of the deputies told the elderly patient. "So, why don't you just go ahead and stand up so we can go."

Lee seemingly ignored the officer's request and then made a comment about being hungry.

The sheriff's deputy told him that he can eat later but that he had to go with them to the doctor first.

Another deputy told Lee that he needs to follow their instructions and that they didn't want to hurt him.

However, Lee still didn't pay attention to what the officers were telling him and briskly walked away. This was when Thornton took out his Taser gun and used it on the old man.

Lee fell to the floor screaming in pain as staff from the nursing home watched in shock at what was going on. The officers tried to calm him down before placing him in handcuffs and taking him out on a stretcher.

Excessive Force?

Following the incident at the Good Samaritan Nursing Center, the Ottawa County Sheriff's Office conducted an investigation to find out if there had been any wrongdoing in the part of the deputies.

The sheriff's office said Lee was combative and refused to comply to the deputies' request, forcing them to use the Taser gun to subdue him.

However, Lee's family said the incident left the old man with a broken wrist. It also served to weaken his heart, supposedly contributing to his death two months later.

The Ottawa County Sheriff's Office has yet to issue a statement regarding the leaked video.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Notwithstanding NASA's skepticism about the "reactionless space" engine, China has revealed that is going ahead with a working prototype of EmDrive space propulsion technology, signaling the technology's success.

According to reports that quoted China's Ministry of Science and Technology, the "key technology research" has been on for many years and expansion into "engineering applications" is imminent.

Adoption In Satellites

Announcing the details at a press conference in Beijing, the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) leaders explained the progress in the ongoing engagement with the EmDrive in which National research institutions have done repeated tests and drew an encouraging response. It was a loud assertion that China is taking the technology forward.

"We have successfully developed several specifications of multiple prototype principles. The establishment of an experimental verification platform to complete the milli-level micro thrust measurement test, as well as several years of repeated experiments and investigations into corresponding interference factors, confirm that in this type of thruster, thrust exists," added Chen Yue, China's head of the communication satellite division.

Experts said the technology gained good traction and is at a testing stage aboard the Tiangong-2 space laboratory. The liberal funding from China's space agency is making sure that its early incorporation in Chinese satellites is a priority.

Aiming High

According to CAST communications satellite designer Li Feng, the prototype has already generated a few millinewtons of thrust.

According to the Feng, the agency is aiming to reach higher levels of thrust between 100 millinewtons to 1 newton to garner better control and rule out any collapse of the satellite into the orbit by looking to improve the placement of the thruster on satellites.

Noting the innovations ahead, CAST officials said they need to improve the cavity design to cut down electrical losses from the material the cavity is made of and position the microwave thruster to balance the temperature of the cavity for the desired thrust levels.

Road Ahead

With China testifying to the success of the 'impossible' and 'reactionless' space engine, EmDrive is ahead with a new milestone.

The pioneering efforts of British electrical engineer Roger Shawyer in EmDrive through his company Satellite Propulsion Research Ltd are also contested by many scientists.

The thruster designed in 2001 was intended for space travel and named Electromagnetic Drive (EmDrive) with an anisotropic electromagnetic field created in the microwave cavity, relying on a directional field to induce movement.

However, a section of the scientific community is appalled and says EmDrive is unwieldy as it breaches Newton's third law of motion that says every action would trigger an equal and opposite reaction. In EmDrive's case, fuel ejections are not happening.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The Moto X Pure Edition, known as the Moto X Style for users outside the United States, was spotted on the GFXBench processor benchmark test website running Android 7.1.1 Nougat.

Motorola previously revealed that the Moto X Pure Edition, which is currently running on Android 6.0 Marshmallow, will soon receive an update to the latest version of Google's mobile operating system. With the GFXBench sighting, could the Android 7.1.1 Nougat launch for the smartphone be drawing nearer?

Moto X Smartphones On Android 7.1.1 Nougat

Earlier in the month, the Moto X Pure Edition's cousin, the Moto X Play, was also spotted on GFXBench with Android 7.1.1 Nougat installed.

Motorola has previously rolled out Android 7.0 Nougat for only two of its smartphones, namely the Moto Z and the fourth-generation Moto G. It seems that, with the GFXBench sightings, Motorola is skipping to release Android 7.0 Nougat in other smartphones and jumping directly into Android 7.1.1 Nougat.

With the latest sighting of Android 7.1.1 Nougat on GFXBench, it seems like the Moto X Pure and the Moto X Play will soon be upgraded to the latest version of Android. The question is when the update will be rolled out, and which of the two smartphones will receive it first.

Motorola And The Moto X Line

The Moto X Pure Edition is the last Moto X device released by Motorola in 2015, with the line being the company's flagship series before it rolled out the Moto Z smartphones.

The first Moto X smartphone was released in August 2013, and for the line, Motorola unconventionally focused on software optimization instead of high-powered specifications. The decision worked incredibly well for Motorola, and while later products in the line slightly deviated from the concept, the Moto X line remains one of the most iconic series of Android smartphones ever.

The Moto X Pure has been the subject of several sales over the course of the year, with the 16 GB version being sold at only $299.99 for both Mother's Day and Father's Day.

Android 7.1.1 Nougat Release

Earlier in the month, the Android 7.1.1 Nougat update was said to be imminent for the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge, with the Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 edge, Galaxy S6 edge plus, and the Galaxy Note 5 to follow. However, a recent report revealed that not all devices will skip directly to Android 7.1.1 Nougat, as some regions will be receiving an Android 7.0 Nougat update instead.

For Google Pixel and Pixel XL owners, the Android 7.1.1 Nougat is also said to be fixing certain coonectivity problems that users have been experiencing.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Meizu M5S Spotted On Tenaa; Revealed In Two Listings | TechTree.com

Chinese smartphone company Meizu is once again in the rumour mill making rounds about, what we expect to be, two different smartphones. However, both listings spotted online recently on TENAA reveal similar technical specifications, and thus, few reports also claim that both listings represent the same device.

Listed as M612Q and M612M, according to GSMArena, it is being said that the smartphone may be dubbed as the Meizu M5S.

According to the listings, the phone features a 1.3 GHz octa core processor, while a 5.2 inch HD display screen is included as well. Also, a 13 MP rear and 5 MP front facing camera completes the smartphone package, according to reports.

Additionally, the smartphone is expected to come in 3 variants: 2, 3, and 4 GB RAM, and 16, 32, and 64 GB ROM, while Android 6.0 Marshmallow operating system comes out-of-the-box.

Also, the smartphone is expected to come with a 2,930 mAh battery and the device may come in Gray, Gold, and Rose Gold color schemes.

However, we still do not know whether these two different listings depict different smartphones completely or one device. We may have to wait for more such speculations and leaks to know a little bit more about this device.

TAGS: Meizu
10 Things You Didnt Know About The Greatest Inventor, Nikola Tesla

Billed as archrival of Thomas Alva Edison, Nikola Tesla is considered to the greatest inventor to walk on Earth. Tesla was a Serbian-American inventor, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, physicist, and futurist best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current (AC) electricity supply system.

Born on July 10, 1856, in Smiljan (now Croatia), Nikola Tesla died a poor mans death on 7th January 1943. Tesla spent his entire lifetime inventing things but the AC electric supply system stands out as his major contribution to science and our daily life.

When he was alive, Tesla remained unrecognized due to his rivalry with Edison but after his death, his reputation and inventions have seen a popular resurgence. In 1960, the General Conference on Weights and Measures introduced the term tesla to the International System of Units for the SI unit measure for magnetic field strength.

You may learn everything about Nikola Tesla from various web resources including Wikipedia. But there are some interesting things about Tesla that even Wiki doesnt know.

Here are the 10 interesting things about Tesla that you didnt know:

#1 Tesla was born during a lightning storm

Tesla was born in Smiljan (now Croatia) during a violent lightning storm. As his mother was having labor pains, the midwife assisting her pregnancy told her after seeing the continued violent lightening that this meant Tesla would be a child of darkness. Teslas mom had other ideas about Tesla and replied: No. He will be a child of light.

#2. Tesla thought of wireless internet a hundred years ago in 1901

Tesla was pretty prolific with his inventions but he couldnt convert all his ideas into one. Wireless Internet was one of them. While developing transatlantic radio, he envisioned a system of collecting information, encoding it and broadcasting that information to a hand-held device. This is the Internet-enabled smartphone that we have today. He wrote in the magazine that, one day it would be possible to transmit wireless messages all over the world.Seth Porges, the magazines technology editor, disclosed Teslas prediction at a presentation, titled 108 years of futurism, to industry figures in 2010 in New York.

3. Tesla was an environmentalist

This would elate the greens around the world. Tesla was much concerned about how we were consuming the Earths resources and was an advocate of renewable fuel. He researched methods of using natural energy from the ground and the sky to minimize the human impact of fossil fuel consumption. In order to help the environment, Tesla created artificial lightning in his own lab.

4. Tesla was a humanist

Tesla was a humanist to the core. In those days of black apartheid in the United States, Tesla believed everybodys equal right to the Earths resources. As a humanist, he also tried to improve human conditions without thinking about profits. This is the prime reason that Tesla died a poor man while his competitor Edison was minting money in Wall Street.

5. Tesla was Eidetic: He had a strong capacity for memory

Teslas memory was eidetic. Which means that he had a sharp photographic memory and recall entire books in great detail. According to studies, he allegedly used his potent imagination to temper the vivid nightmares he had as a child.

6. The U.S. Government has classified Teslas possessions

When Tesla died, the Office of Alien Property seized all of his possessions.It is said that this was done due to pressure from Edison on the American government. Some of the possessions were eventually released most of his possessions to his family. The family in turn donated a few items to the Tesla Museum in Belgrade. The government is yet to release some of his personal documents more than 74 years after his death.

7. Tesla may have had obsessive compulsive behavior and insomnia

Tesla was an incurable insomniac and claimed that he needed only two hours of sleep a night. He also got frightening nightmares and would often go without sleep in his lab. Tesla was also obsessed with the number 3, and used 18 napkins (a number divisible by 3) to clean his dining room before eating his evening meals. His strange fixation can be noted from the fact that he detested round objects, jewelry, and touching hair.

8. Edison and Tesla were not arch-rivals

There is a perception among the science community that Edison and Tesla as bitter enemies, constantly one-upping each other with their latest inventions. But it is pertinent to note that they collaborated in designing direct current generators before Tesla quit to pursue his dream of the alternate current induction motor. It has been said that Edison made him quit but Tesla never acknowledged his enmity with Edison.

9. Tesla had an interesting challenge for renowned author Mark Twain

Tesla had invented an earthquake machine or a high-frequency oscillator. The oscillator would shake his building every time he started it for experiments. Once Tesla invited Mark Twain to a friendly challenge to Twain knowing about the bovel issues Twain had. Tesla challenged Twain to stand on the platform while the oscillator was switched on. After 90 seconds, Twain quickly dashed off to empty his bowels.

10. You can get free Wi-Fi from Tesla

There is a seven-foot-tall statue of Tesla in Palo Alto, California with a time capsule as well as free public Wi-Fi hotspot for anybody to use. The statue was unveiled in December 2013 after web comic creator Matthew Inman to raised funds for The Tesla Science Center. Inman managed to raise $1.37 million from the IndieGoGo campaign for the statue. It was matched by a grant from New York State and the Tesla Science Center was purchased in May 2013.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro assured on Thursday that the time has come for his country to return to the Andean Community of Nations with all the productive and commercial capacities... | Read More
Ocean Trail is the first road east of the junction of U.S. 36, Illinois 121 and Airport Road that goes over the railroad.

What attracts so many cars to Ocean Trail Road? The name? Maybe a bypass for U.S. 36 or Illinois 105?

Cars travel Ocean Trail Road to turn on 70th Street, go north to Illinois 105 or south to U.S. 36. The next crossroad is Prairie View. This road goes north to 105 or south to 36. Continuing, Ocean Trail comes to a T, the Piatt County Line. It goes north to Illinois 105 or south to U.S. 36. Maybe Ocean Trail is a possible short cut? Why not go across Airport Road to Illinois 105 or stay on 36 and be on a major highway?

Killed approximately at 8:30 p.m. Nov. 3, the family's miniature Australian Shepherd dog, Brandy, eight months old, just past the corner of Esther Avenue. I know how far headlights beam out at a reasonable speed; perhaps this could have been avoided. I live just past the corner. I have witnessed cars bounce across this intersection due to speed. There also have been fatalities at Ocean Trail Road and 70th Street. Many times, I have seen cars run the stop sign going north and south. People have died at this intersection.

As you turn on Ocean Trail Road, several subdivisions are passed and then basically open road. Pedal to the metal. Is there a need for speed? Who or what will be next? This can happen anywhere. Speed kills. If you are going to be late, slow down. If you have to stop for some reason, the party may be over. Neither man nor animal had or has to suffer or die. Think about it.

Norman Ross, Decatur
Six months after alleging that federal child porn charges against him are the result of a "selective and vindictive" prosecution, the war of words between Baton Rouge lawyer and former state liquor lobbyist Christopher Young and prosecutors rages on in court filings.

Young, the brother of former Jefferson Parish President John Young, claims the only reason he's being prosecuted in U.S. District Court in Baton Rouge is because he refused to cooperate with federal authorities in a public corruption probe.

Federal prosecutors counter that nothing could be further from the truth. The truth, they say, is that a Baton Rouge federal grand jury indicted Christopher Young in May on possession of child pornography and distribution of child pornography charges because he forwarded videos of boys engaging in sex acts with donkeys to friends, family, clients and others in 2013 and 2015.

U.S. District Judge John deGravelles held hearings in September and October on Young's motion to dismiss the federal charges but hasn't issued a ruling.

In court documents filed since the hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cam Le and Rene Salomon insist there's "no improper motive" behind the prosecution of Young.

Young's attorneys  Billy Gibbens, Marci Blaize and Taylor Townsend  beg to differ and say federal authorities were interested in Young only because of his lobbying activities before the Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control and his relationship with former ATC Commissioner Troy Hebert.

"Rhetoric aside, Young knows that he is being prosecuted because he engaged in illegal child sexual exploitation by repeatedly distributing, over a two-year period of time, graphic child pornography bestiality videos to his friends, family, clients and colleagues," the prosecutors argue in asking deGravelles to deny Young's motion.

Just because Young claims he had no lustful interest when he distributed and possessed the videos doesn't mean he should be shielded from federal prosecution, the government attorneys add.

Le and Salomon note that the investigation arose out of an unsolicited referral from a local lawyer to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

"Subsequent forensic analysis revealed that Young  distributed child pornography bestiality videos, on 33 separate occasions, to 38 different individuals," the prosecutors state.

Young's attorneys argue that what began as a child porn investigation quickly morphed into a public corruption probe when the federal government learned of Young's lobbying activities and his friendship with Hebert.

"It took a child pornography case that it normally would not have prosecuted and used it to try to force Mr. Young to become a government agent in a fishing expedition for public corruption," his lawyers contend.

Not true, according to Le and Salomon, who say Young's decision not to cooperate with law enforcement "was not the motivation for the Government's decision to seek an indictment."

"Defendants regularly reject plea agreements; there is no evidence that Young's choice to do so here made prosecutors retaliate against him," the prosecutors argue.

Young testified in deGravelles' courtroom in September that FBI agent Maurice Hattier Jr. told him that "whatever is on that phone doesn't have to become public if you cooperate with us in a public corruption investigation."

Hattier also testified and denied making that statement to Young. The agent also said his previous investigation into the ATC had been closed without charges.

Hebert, who recently unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate, has said he's proud of his service as ATC commissioner. He said he aggressively cleaned up the agency and industry by rooting out fraud, tax evasion, drug sales and prostitution at some of the establishments he regulated.

+2 Baton Rouge lawyer says 'crude joke' led to child porn charges A Baton Rouge lawyer and former state liquor lobbyist on Thursday characterized as a "crude 

Young, in his federal court testimony, described as a "crude joke" his forwarding of the unsolicited videos on his cellphone.

Young's attorneys maintain their client "refused to be extorted" by federal authorities, and now he's fighting child porn charges that could land him in federal prison if he's convicted.

"The reason the government treated Mr. Young differently is that he exercised his constitutional rights to lobby the ATC, and as a result held value to the government's public corruption squad," Gibbins, Blaize and Townsend argue.

Le and Salomon claim that a "patient prosecution  gave Young multiple opportunities to carefully consider his predicament and options" before an indictment was sought.

"In short  Young is not facing any unfairness; he is simply facing the 'unpleasant alternative' that he chose after his serial rejection of the Government's plea offers," the prosecutors say.

Young's attorneys dispute that scenario.

"Mr. Young was not prosecuted because he refused to accept a plea bargain, but because he refused to 'wire up' or otherwise participate in a wholly separate campaign against public officials," his lawyers charge. "The government's threat was not a plea offer."

"Threatening prosecution unless a target can 'produce' something for an unrelated investigation is not acceptable," they add.

Young's attorneys also allege that federal authorities did nothing to those who sent the videos to Young, nor did they investigate to see whether those who received the videos from Young forwarded them to others.
If Christmas carries a religious message of hope reborn, and New Year is a secular celebration of the same thing, then these should be optimistic days. But as 2016 morphs into 2017, few can claim that is the case.

Next year will be Donald Trump's first as the most powerful politician in the world. Who knows what he will do with that power. Marine Le Pen, of France's far-right National Front, stands a real chance of winning the French presidency in May; Geert Wilders' anti-immigrant Freedom Party could end up the largest in the Dutch Parliament in March; and Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Turkey, Rodrigo Duterte in the Philippines, Vladimir Putin in Russia and Bashar al-Assad in Syria all go into the new year as poster boys for how the bloody consolidation of power entrenches authoritarian leaders even more firmly at the top.

Much remains unknown about how Donald Trump will use his power. Credit:AP

In Australia, the political success over decades of hardline, anti-refugee policies has made our country a forerunner and exemplar for Mr Trump and the Brexiteers. And now, having cut a swath through Malcolm Turnbull's credibility with their demands, right-wingers Cory Bernardi and George Christensen are sufficiently emboldened that they are considering setting up in competition to him.

Even in Victoria, Australia's most left-wing state, 10 per cent of voters express support for One Nation. The Victorian Liberal Party, the party of Rupert Hamer, is being urged to pivot to the hard right.
The US ambassador to the UN Samantha Power addresses the UN Nations Security Council, after the council voted on condemning Israel's settlements. Credit:UN/AP Both Labor and Likud governments have funded settlers, many religious extremists, and gifted them the best land. Meanwhile, Palestinians are denied building approval for homes, even a chicken coop. If in Area C they throw up a granny flat it's promptly demolished by army bulldozers. If Israel is really open to giving the land back in a peace deal why allow settlements in the first place? That's the question, if I'd been sharper, I would have put to my interlocutor. And settlements not just along the border. Thirty-five per cent are now being approved deep in the territory everyone sees as an ultimate Palestinian state. This is the essence of the boiling US frustration that resulted in America refusing to veto Friday's Security Council resolution.

John Kerry told the Senate Foreign Relations committee that within days of a peace deal in 2014 along came an announcement of 700 new settlement units. "Poof!" he said, the deal got blown sky high. Barack Obama's envoy and former US ambassador to Israel, Martin Indyk, confirms settlements destroyed the deal. Obama has said the same. Hence this parting gift by the outgoing President to a headstrong Israel. Historically the aged and corrupt Palestinian leadership has to bear some responsibility. They've let their people down. But right now the Palestinians are offering a demilitarised state  a Palestine without an army  and Western peacekeepers within their borders. It is hard to imagine more explicit security guarantees. Sixty per cent of the Netanyahu cabinet  the most chauvinist in the nation's history  are on record opposing a two-state solution. In other words, they want an indefinite occupation. Settlements are vital to their design  backed by demolitions and land confiscation, nothing less than a creeping annexation. That means a majority Arab population  83 per cent of the West Bank  being ruled by a racial and religious minority of 17 per cent.

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz referred this year to "the evil winds of racism and nationalism sweeping Israel". General Yair Golan, Israel's No.2 soldier, said the tone of the nation reminds him of Europe between the wars, and he was talking at a Holocaust commemoration. Two former prime ministers, Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert, have warned their country risks getting saddled with apartheid, proving again that searching argument and criticism are among Israel's most resilient features. But often nations under stress end up adopting the policies their enemies would most want. In this spirit Benjamin Netanyahu is sleepwalking to a nasty denouement: a Greater Israel, with an Arab population living under different laws, above all, with no right to vote. Israeli Labor policies are not a jot different. The Security Council resolution demands that the world now treat settlements differently from the rest of Israel. Europe was already mandating identification of products from settlement industries, giving consumers in Ireland or France the opportunity to decide whether they want to support illegal activities when they chose a product on a supermarket shelf.

The resolution has undermined the nationalist strategy that says Israel can lose Europe but enjoy new partnerships in Asia and Africa and with Vladimir Putin. In the end not only France and Britain but Russia and China voted to brand settlements flagrantly illegal. Netanyahu is left vowing retaliation against plucky little New Zealand and Senegal. Donald Trump can tweet and bluster. But the resolution stands as international law, to be taken seriously by cabinets and bind the International Criminal Court. After years of provocation by Israeli hawks that's the genius of what Obama and Kerry have pulled off. If Israel responds with more settlements, or annexes slabs of the West Bank, then UN agencies and member states have to decide how to react. Leave that "how" to another day. In the meantime consider the following motion, an elegantly simple one: "Given that Israel continues to defy the 2016 resolution of the Security Council and spreads settlements so that a Palestinian state is no longer possible we move that every resident of Greater Israel be afforded equal rights. This includes the right to vote in national elections."
Just when it seemed that 2016 was done with felling some of the world's most revered pop culture icons, it's taken away George Michael, at the age of 53, on Christmas Day of all days.

Social media has flooded with tributes from celebrity friends and fans alike who will no doubt be listening to Wham's festive season hit Last Christmas with new sadness today.

In a statement released Monday morning, his publicist wrote, "it is with great sadness that we can confirm our beloved son, brother and friend George passed away peacefully at home over the Christmas period.

"The family would ask that their privacy be respected at this difficult and emotional time. There will be no further comment at this stage."
MATTOON  In the final days before winter break, Williams Elementary School students headed to the Brookstone Estates facility for senior citizens to visit with the residents living there as a part of a monthly Fit-2-Serve program.

Last week, a kindergarten and fourth-grade class took a trip to Brookstone to interact with the seniors, some of whom do not see many visitors. There, they talked, sang carols in time for Christmas, and made fleece tie blankets that were later be donated to Mattoon Area PADS (Public Action to Deliver Shelter), Salvation Army, Choices Pregnancy Center and Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA).

This, however, was not their first time visiting the facility, which was evident by some of those in the home showing an interest in seeing the elementary school students.

They have visited before in previous months as part of the Project Lifespan program, and for those like Mary Hill Dobb, Brookstone resident, it has been something to look forward to.

Weve all got grands and greats scattered around but we don't get to see them, she said.

As part of the program, Williams fourth-graders and kindergartners, along Mattoon High School Family Consumer Science and Child Care Occupations students, see residents of six senior living facilities once a month, Fit-2-Serve Director Bill Duey said.

The companionship with the kids is enlightening for those in the retirement home, said Bev Cobble, Brookstone program activities coordinator. She said many of them either don't see their family or don't have any so these activities with the youth are meaningful for them.

Beyond the benefit of company for those in the home, the program is meant to serve the students as well.

The program started in September. In partnership with Williams, Duey said he and others saw an opportunity to set up a scenario where intergenerational learning can take place. This would be a scenario in which both the younger and older would get something out of talking with one another.

Hill Dobb said when they come, she gets reinvigorated in their generation's future, recalling a moment she saw during one of their visits.

I was amazed at this one little guy, how giving he was, she said. They were passing out some treats and there wasn't enough to go around. All of a sudden, it ran out and he took his and gave it to the next person How do you comprehend that a kindergartner has this insight?

Duey said the plan is for this program to continue each month. He noted he hopes this ignites interest in these students to actively seek out more community involvement later in life, potentially even by visiting a senior living facility to visit with some of those they might have spoken with.
At the risk of restating what your social media feeds have made downright tiresome, 2016 has really created one hell of a supergroup of the dead. Leonard Cohen, Sharon Jones, Glenn Frey, Jon English, Rick Parfitt, Vanity, Merle Haggard, Leon Russell, Phife Dawg

And, of course, three men who were as well known for their very individual takes on masculinity as they were for the music they made: David Bowie in January, Prince in April, and George Michael on Christmas Day.

All three were basically gods to me when I was growing up. All three lived on my bedroom wall at one time or another during the 80s. And all three taught me that being a bloke wasn't as straightforward - or as stifling - as most of popular culture would have had me believe.

I was born in the year that David Bowie unleashed his Ziggy Stardust persona, so he was always the ultimate rock star as far as I was concerned.
A 52-year-old woman has been charged after she allegedly ran down a man with a car, pinning him against a fence in a domestic violence incident in Goulburn on Christmas Day.

Police said the 64-year-old man was walking on Valley Walk about 7:30 pm Sunday when he was hit by the car.

The domestic violence incident happened on Christmas night.

The woman, known to the man, then allegedly got out of the car and assaulted the man before getting back inside the vehicle.

A bystander intervened and removed the keys from the ignition.
More than 30 cars were significantly damaged in a Christmas night vandalism spree in some of the best streets in Balwyn, in Melbourne's east.

Police have said that cars with the prestige European brand Audi was a target in the spree, warning residents to park in their garage or driveway if possible, and to remove service books and valet keys from their vehicles.

One of the vandalised cars. Credit:Victoria Police

The affected streets were Yarrbat Avenue  where three bedroom homes have sold for more than $2 million in the past year  Knutsford Street, Burroughs Road and Nungerner Street.

The damage was revealed in a Facebook post on a Victoria Police community page on Monday afternoon, which urged people to come forward with information about the crime spree.
A grinch has stolen a Jeep filled with children's presents on Christmas Day in Melbourne's outer north-east.

The children had opened the presents before the family left them in the black 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT while they attended a Christmas party in Doreen, about 3.30pm.

Ashley Garraway and his children Miller, seven, and Kade, 10, who had their Christmas presents stolen when a thief took the family's car in Doreen. Credit:Jason South

The jeep, with registration HKM 314, was left parked in the driveway of the Laurimar Hill Drive address.

The family returned to find the car and presents gone.
Two extreme cases of drink-driving have ended in a costly fashion for two Victorian motorists caught by police at Myrtleford in the state's north east. A 44-year-old Myrtleford man was more than four times over the legal limit when he failed to stop at a stop sign and was pulled over by police. Police have expressed disappointment after two severe cases of drink-driving in the state's north east. Credit:Cathryn Tremain Police said the man recorded a positive reading of 0.208, and had his driver's licence suspended. Another driver, a 45-year-old man from Hawthorn, recorded a breath alcohol reading of 0.187 after he was intercepted by Wangaratta Highway Patrol officers on Christmas Eve.

Police said the Hawthorn man was intercepted after numerous calls were made to Triple Zero (000) warning of erratic driving. "The car was reportedly crossing double-lines into oncoming traffic," a police statement said. The second driver also had his driving licence suspended immediately. Both men now have an appointment at the Myrtleford Magistrates Court at a later date. Sergeant Michael Connors blasted the drink drivers, saying he was extremely disappointed with the two incidents. "On both of these occasions the drivers put themselves and other road users at risk," Sergeant Connors said. "This is a time of year for celebration and our message is simple  please enjoy yourself, but if you plan on drinking, don't drive. We simply won't tolerate dangerous and irresponsible driving on our roads," he said.
Owners of the Lacrosse tower are claiming more than $15 million from L.U. Simon Builders, saying combustible cladding installed on the apartment complex by the construction company was responsible for the spread of a major blaze.

Fairfax Media has obtained details of the damage bill following the 2014 fire at the Docklands building, and details of an ongoing case between the builder and owners of at least 140 apartments.

Firefighters at the scene of the Lacrosse building. Credit:Wayne Taylor

Work fixing damaged units has already cost more than $6.5 million, including almost $700,000 to dry out the building, according to documents filed with the Victorian Civil Administrative Tribunal.

And it is estimated that it will cost another $8.6 million to remove and replace the remaining unburnt cladding, to comply with a Melbourne City Council order.
A man in his 20s has died after a collision between a ute and a petrol tanker in Corio late on Monday afternoon.

The male driver of the ute died at the scene of the horror crash, and his female passenger was taken by air ambulance to the Alfred Hospital.

Police believe the petrol tanker was travelling north on Broderick Road shortly before 5pm when it collided with a dark-coloured ute travelling east at the intersection of Heales Road.

The man's death brings the Victorian road toll to 283, compared to 247 for the same period last year.
A missing three-year-old girl and her mother from Taylors Hill in Melbourne's north-west have been found, following a police search.

Sela Mason and her daughter, Nevaeh Barbaro, showed up at Sunshine Police Station on Tuesday evening.

Nevaeh Barbaro, aged 3, and her mother Sela Mason were last seen in Kings Park on Monday. Credit:Victoria Police

Victoria Police spokeswoman Belinda Batty had said earlier that police had concerns for their welfare as they had not made contact with anyone.

They had last been seen at Kings Park on Monday.
Giving Transurban the go-ahead to build toll road exit ramps through a huge parcel of public land next to Docklands will destroy a major urban renewal opportunity for Melbourne, a residents group says.

Since 2009, the Victorian government has been planning a major residential and commercial redevelopment of what it calls "E-Gate"  20 hectares of largely disused railway land wedged between North Melbourne railway station and Docklands.

Anthony McKee is among a group of residents whose homes overlook the old North Melbourne railway yards Credit:Jason South

But plans to redevelop the publicly owned land were put on hold last year, when the Andrews government said it would build a major new toll road with Transurban through Melbourne's west.

The toll road will have three city exit ramps pumping traffic into the CBD. Two of these ramps will dissect the E-Gate site. The government argues the off-ramps will merely skirt the edges of the site. Residents, though, say it will have a major impact.
New Braunfels, TX (78130)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening followed by increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Low 71F. Winds SSE at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening followed by increasing clouds with showers developing after midnight. Low 71F. Winds SSE at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 60%.
One of porns biggest stars is calling out one of the adult industrys biggest companies over a scene she alleges went way too far.

In a series of tweets last Tuesday, Nikki Benz described how she went into shock on set and cried for the first time in her 13-year career. The 35-year-old was shooting a sex scene for Brazzers, a popular porn production company, when she claims that the films director, Tony T, intervened and stomped on her head before violently choking her. Benz says that she begged him to cut and said no, adding that she was not ok with this, but her objections fell on deaf ears.

It wasnt supposed to be a rape scene, she wrote, suggesting that Tony T and Brazzers were complicit in her sexual assault and bullying. (Benz could not be reached for comment.)

If that werent enough, Benz is the literal face of Brazzers, having served as the companys official brand ambassador since June. The company that should have had my back from day one, @Brazzers failed me, she said. What happened to me could happen [to] any girl in my industry.

In an attempt to distance themselves from the controversial shoot, Brazzers first issued a press release on sister site Trendzz, stating: We do not produce content ourselves but commission producers to do so on our behalf. We understand that this particular scene was an unscripted scene with the artistic direction left open to the producers discretion. When this was met with considerable backlash, the company announced that theyd cut ties with Tony T. Benz subsequently labeled the canned statement and the firing a PR stunt, maintaining that Brazzers had yet to apologize to her.

Former Brazzers contract star Shawna Lenee, however, says she doesnt buy into the companys third-party producer claims, adding that shes also had problems with Tony T on set. Lenee signed a six-month exclusive contract in 2014 with Brazzers, and says her first shoot with them after a four-and-a-half-year hiatus from porn almost made her quit altogether. Tony T was yelling at the crew and throwing things. He has a temper problem. He was emotionally abusive, says Lenee. I told the production manager at Brazzers what happened and it just seemed like that was normal, that was just how Tony is. Everyone had to deal with it.

Lenee alleges that shes been speaking out about this for two years but no one was listening. She felt like Brazzers didnt care about her well-being as a performer. I never got an apology. The most I got from Tony T was, as we were leaving the set, he said, I dont think youre ever going to speak to me again, and I said, I probably wont. He knows. I was told by a crew member he wont stop until someone stands up to him. (Tony T could not be reached for comment.)

Adult actress Gen Padova recalled what it was like working with Tony T back in the mid-2000s, at a time when rough scenes were so normal I didnt think anything about it being borderline abusive. Padova says there was an uneasy vibe the first time she performed with Tony T, recalling his frustration as he got more aggressive throughout the scene when she didnt give much of a reaction to the rough treatment. During those years, Padova says she wanted to develop a reputation for being a good, reliable performer so shed keep getting hired. I was being business-savvy, she says. I wasnt concerned about someone being too aggressive or taking it personally, but now Id put my foot down and say this is a no-no.

As a former porn star, Ive done scenes that were so brutal I could barely drive home. Id spend the next day curled up in a ball on my couch not wanting to move, unable to eat because everything hurt so much. Some of those scenes were with Tony T. I never blamed him at the time, because I knew itd be rough and I assumed thats just how porn was. Thats how a lot of women thought back then: we accepted the status quo without knowing we shouldnt. Complaining meant risking your job. We said we were empowered women having sex for money, but were we really? Sometimes, sure.

Male performers arent the only ones taking things too far. Certain directors have reputations for preying on unsuspecting newbies, coercing them into sex with promises of future work.

It was a well-known director for a big company. I was only a few months in so I didn't know how to handle it, says adult actress Tara Lynn Foxx. It was 2009. It was on set after my scene. The director lured me into the other room. I froze up and didnt try to stop him because I was scared I wouldnt get paid or not get hired again.

That was the first time something like that happened to her, but not the last. The few people Foxx confided in told her to keep quiet. Years later, one of the directors even apologized.

As for Benz, she left her friends and fans with the following message:
The way this happened, Mrs. Dexter was in San Diego and I was sitting in front of the television set, splitting a chicken pot pie with Walter. He has not got the hang of eating off a fork, but he only gets to use the silverware when Mrs. Dexter is out of town, so he doesnt get much practice. We were in the kitchen and the pot pie was too hot and Walter, who leaps before he looks when it comes to food, opened his mouth, made a coughing noise and dropped a yellow gob of it on the floor. Its one of the things that dogs know that you dont: food cools faster on the floor than on your plate.

In any case, the television set was on, and the star of Fox News, Bill OReilly, was crowingI dont use that word much, by the way, except if theres a rooster aroundabout the phenomenal financial success of his latest best seller, Killing the Rising Sun.

An epic sagaif you read the book jacketof page-turning style that details the final moments of World War II like never before. The people who write book jackets are as a rule the editors, who as a rule cant write, or the publicists, who as a rule wont read.

And the pot pie cooled. Killing the Rising Sun, OReilly reminded his audience, was still number one on bestseller lists all over the world. Just as it was last night when he said so six times, and the night before that when he said so five times, and the four times he has already said it tonight.

A fair piece of these reminders always come in toward the end of the show, in the segment devoted to letters from viewers (Dear Mr. OReilly, I think your book should be mandatory reading for every high school student in America and Dear Mr. O, Killing the Rising Sun is by far the best book I ever read), letters that sound very much like the letters from last week, and are followed by a Tip of the Day: Todays tip, for instance, is that Christmas is coming and the Killing books all make great stocking stuffers. (In defense of OReillys integrity, it is possible that the letters are all chosen and edited by the same person, as opposed to written by the same person, which could account for their similarity.)

Walter yawnedthe truth is, we were both waiting for Megyn Kelly, whose show follows OReillys on Fox News. Megyn is everything Bill is not: beautiful, smart, funny, and you know somehow that she smells good, but for Walter and me its more than that. She cackles. Maybe you have heard this noise yourself, and also longed to be the one who caused it, who lit the fuse.

Megyn took the night off. This is not to say Walter and I have wasted our time. Back when the pot pie was still too hot to eat and Walter spit his out, something also dropped from OReillys pie hole that may never be topped. I am talking now about all-time OReillyisms. And you can never be sure of these things at the moment, but I think that of all the self-aggrandizing, self-congratulating, half-true, less-than-half-true shitburgers that OReilly has served up over all the years onto kitchen tables across America, this is the one.

Forcefully reminding viewers once again that Killing the Rising Sun is the best-selling book in the world, OReilly made his complaint: that only two outletsnewspapers and magazines and maybe National Public Radiohad shown the respect to review it.

He paused for a moment, letting the injustice sink in.

I should admit that Mr. OReillys timing could have been better. That same week Mrs. Dexter was out of town, I was reading a flawlessly beautiful book called Hemingways Boat, written by a guy named Paul Hendrickson who also teaches at the University of Pennsylvania. The book was published five years ago and I hadnt read it, hadnt even heard of it. Admittedly, this might have more to do with my reading habits than the publicists at Knopf, but it is still some measure of where the business of writing and publishing books is.

But Mr. O wants a review, and he is entitled.

The book is a mess. OReilly and his co-writer Martin Dugard write sentences without lifeflat, passive, riddled with cliches, sometimes four or five of them crammed into a single short paragraph. OReilly moves mindlessly from the present tense to the past and then back again, possibly it was someones idea of a cure for dead sentences.

His researchwhat he calls the truthisnt fresh, but then, real historians and writers have spent years studying and dramatizing the war in the Pacific. What OReilly has done is read the Cliffs Notes and written your term paper for thirty bucks.

More telling, OReillys research has the taste of pornography.

He has gone through cherry-picking bloated bodies, stacked bodies, rotting bodies, and the stench of internal organs spilling from the gash in a torrent.

Legs and heads fly through the air, more internal organs spill and the beaches rot with bloated bodies. Bloated bodies, bloated skin. Thats what the man says, bloated skin. No bad odor is left unobserved. A few favorite quotes and then Ill quit. An unnamed marine: With terrible clarity I saw the head and one leg fly into the air.

And:

The island smells of decomposition as dead bodies turn black and bloat in the sun. Land crabs feed on the corpses at night. Blowflies ingest so much flesh and flood that they become too heavy to fly. The stench of rotting food and diarrhea adds to the fetid odors.

And:

Japanese soldiers would recount for years to come how much they enjoyed raping Chinese children and grandmothers.

But dont worry, the Japanese would pay. We dropped the big bombs and we won.

And the once arrogant and bloodthirsty prime minister is reduced to a broken man.

The Japanese surrendered and therefore America did not invade Japan and OReillys father, an ensign aboard the USS Oneida, did not die, although later he was pretty sure he would have.

And in this way, OReilly concludes his epic saga (250 pages or so, not counting pictures) on a personal note: He writes: Not usually introspective, my father was convinced of one certainty, which he shared with me on a few occasionsthat his very existence, and therefore my life as well, was likely saved by a terrible bomb and a gut-wrenching presidential decision that is still being debated to this day.

But for the young ensign and his present-day son, there really is no debate, only a stark reality. Had the A-bombs not been used, you would very likely not be reading this book.

And true to his cover jacket, Bill OReilly has brought the war home like never before.
MOSCOWDozens of special military units in red berets lined up in the sun, waiting for the transport to move them to what they gently referred to as Shama, which in their Chechen mother tongue means the Holy Land in Syria.

Their faces looked weathered from years spent in the mountain wind. Some of them had missing teeth. Some had blank eyes that had seen death too close. One of the soldiers featured in the recently released video, which was aired by Top Donbas News in the pro-Russian rebel-controlled part of eastern Ukraine, says that he is going to Syria to help people in a difficult moment.

Chechnya, a North Caucasus republic that fought and lost two separatist wars against Russia in 1994-1996 and 1999-2006, is now sending hundreds of its sons to the Middle East to fight against Islamist groups, including the so-called Islamic State, where many soldiers and some leaders are Chechen, too. Various Russian reports mention from 3,500 to 5,000 Chechens enlisted with extremist groups in Syria and Iraq.

It is one thing to tell the world that Russian President Vladimir Putin brought peace to Aleppo in Syria, and a completely different story to maintain control over pro-Moscow regions on the ground. The Kremlin is strengthening its aviation and land troop bases in Latakia. The Russian military, meanwhile, sees an advantage in Syria, a chance for officers to get under fire, to grow more experienced.

Such are the tensions created by the conflict that on Sunday, when a Russian military transport crashed into the Black Sea, killing 92 people, including many members of the Red Army Choir and the country's beloved philanthropist Yelizaveta P. Glinka, known as Doctor Liza, the incident provoked instant speculation about a terrorist connection. That subsequently was discounted by government investigators, and on Monday, all Russia's entertaining event were cancelled to mourn the victims of the Sochi aviation catastrophe. The tragedy appears to have been a terrible accident, not a sinister plot.

What cant be doubted, however, is that Russias war in Syria, already hideous, is about to get a whole lot more painful. Russia is paying a high price there, and people fear that the price for the war will grow even greater.

Chechen commanders have been recruiting soldiers for the Syrian special units for several months, Novaya Gazeta, the Russian independent newspaper, reported on Tuesday.

This year ends in the best way for Moscow, beyond its wildest dreams, Sergei Markov, a Russian official and adviser to the government, told The Daily Beast. President Putin has won his battles on many fields, including Syrias Aleppo, America and the EU. More and more people agree that he is right, that Russias power and rightness is growing, said Markov. The agenda for Chechens is secret but most probably they will be participating in combat against ISIS in Raqqa [the ISIS capital] in the north of Syria.

The Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov spent a lot of effort building special units, widely known as death squads, of men fearless, merciless, experienced in warfare in the streets and in the mountains.

My cousins son worked for certain law enforcement structures in Chechnya, Kheda Saratova, a pro-government activist, told The Daily Beast. He volunteered to go to Syria. Our entire family gathered to say goodbye to him.

In a video report by a local Chechen TV channel Kadyrov personally reviewed his soldiers.

Kadyrov told me back in 2014 it was a matter of honor to bring Chechens back home from ISIS. He said that he personally traveled to Syria to consult with Bashar Assads military and help Chechen relatives find their daughters and sons in Syria.

Carnegie Moscow Center has argued that the issue of Chechens in ISIS is a crucial test for Kadyrovs power: Islamists have already promised to support a revolution in Chechnya and even offered a $25 million reward for the heads of Kadyrov and his associates.

Life in Chechnya balances between war and peace. Last weekend, police special units and Islamist rebels, who Kadyrov calls shaitans (devils) fired at each other near the Chechen capital, Grozny. At least 11 militants were killed.

Chechen special unit soldiers proved they could fulfill any task and Sunni and Russian commanders might see them as useful in the [Syrian] regions where the population is terrified by Alawites, says Yekaterina Sokirianskaya, the International Crises Groups Project Director for Russia and North Caucasus. It is scary to see these Chechen units on their way to Syria, as some awkward laboratory experiment on breaking peoples spirits. They have no choice, they cannot say no, their job is to be loyal to the Kremlin.

Not everybody in Chechnya fully understands why Sunni soldiers are being thrown into one more war against Sunni Muslims.

Many women cry when they see our soldiers leave because we know that the war in Syria is not over, pro-government activist Saratova told The Daily Beast. I personally cannot stop crying every time I see Aleppo, my memories of destroyed Grozny immediately come back.

It seems that at the end of 2016, Putins Russia is in a hurry to fight and keep its ground on many fronts.

Inspired by success in Syria, Putin reportedly plans to undermine the UN-backed government in Libya and support a strong military leader, Khalifa Haftar (who once was reputedly in bed with the American CIA). Ukraine continues to blame Russia for attacking its military. And another hacker scandal erupted in the past week: this time the Ukrainian military claimed that its soldiers cell phones were hacked by a Moscow group.

Thursdays report by a U.S. cyber security company added evidence linking Fancy Bear, already famous for the attack on the U.S. Democratic National Committee, with Russian military intelligence. The report found the same computer code used by one of the Russian GRUs cyber-operation units in Ukraine and the DNC hack.

The Russian government denied the allegations. All American intelligence agencies grab at any threat to save themselves from going to jail. There is nobody to listen to in Obamas agencies, Markov insisted.

It looked like the Kremlin was planning raise glasses in many victorious toasts as the New Year arrived, but whether Russia is actually going to enjoy prosperity and a sense of security next year is not clear.

We celebrate Trump and the growing number of our allies in the EU, but the anti-Russian sanctions still have not been cancelled, Markov noted. Ukraine is still governed by an anti-Russian junta. We need to capitalize on our success. So far, we have not seen any benefits from our victories.
MAIDUGURI, NigeriaOn a week when a number of local airlines either cancelled or rescheduled flights owing to a scarcity of aviation fuel, all 21 recently released schoolgirls kidnapped in 2014 by Boko Haram militants in the northeastern town of Chibok managed to board a flight from Nigerias capital, Abuja, and travel back to the scene of their abduction.

Their return was portrayed by the government as a kind of victory lap at a time when, it is said., no area in the region is held by the jihadists. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari announced on Friday that Boko Harams last remaining camp in the dense Sambisa Forest had being seized by Nigerian forces, although the so-called Islamic State, with which one faction of Boko Haram is allied, claimed on the same day that it had "killed and wounded many" in an attack on an army barracks in Yobe, another state in the northeast.

The jihadists may have lost their last major stronghold, but those who run either of the two factions of the sect are still alive. Militants loyal to erstwhile leader Abubakar Shekau, and those loyal to the new ISIS-appointed leader, Abu Musab al-Barnawi, are rumored to still have hideouts in the northeast, and they certainly do have bases in neighboring Niger, Chad and Cameroon.

Of the 100 men named in the most-wanted terrorists list released by the army last year, only a handful have been captured. The others continue to run both factions, and only the 21 who travelled to Chibok on Thursday have been released this year. The worldwide #bringbackourgirls campaign that focused on the liberation of more than 200 young women from Chibok still has a long way to go.

* * *

Since their release in October, the 21 have been treated like VIPs. They visited Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari days after a deal brokered by the International Red Cross and the Swiss government was reached with Boko Haram for their release, and they got the presidents assurance that the government will assume the responsibility for their personal, educational and professional goals and ambitions in life.

From the time they regained their freedom the girls have lived under tight vigilance in Abuja, and have received much attention from the government and the media. Even when they arrived in Yola on Dec. 23, they were accompanied by CNN correspondent Isha Sesay and received by Adamawa State Governor Mohammed Jibrilla.

In far away Washington, D.C., two previously kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls, who escaped from the militants in April 2014 and are currently studying in the U.S. on a scholarship, visited the White House on Dec. 17 to look at Christmas decorations.

Although its been a beautiful Christmas so far for these students, about 197 other Chibok schoolgirls still remain with the militants and the world is clamoring for their return.

But those arent the only schoolchildren abducted in northeastern Nigeria by Boko Haram. Far from it.

* * *

There are hundreds of school kidsmany far younger than the Chibok girls still held by the militants. Yet no one is talking about them.

Borom Mohammeds four sonsAudu, Babagana, Mustapha and Bulamawere all kidnapped from their Islamic school by Boko Haram militants in March 2015 in the north-eastern town of Damasak in Borno state. That same day, Boroms husband, Mallam Goni, also was seized by the insurgents when they stormed her compound. She and her three little daughters escaped.

Its been over a year since that fateful day in which Boko Haram militants kidnapped hundreds of school children in Damasak, and Borom has not begun to recover.

She cries each time she sees young people around her, says Bukkar Hassan, her neighbor in Damasak, whose two female cousins were kidnapped by Boko Haram on the same day as Boroms sons and husband. Young people remind her of her missing boys.

Its now nearly two years since Boroms sons and husband were seized by the militants, and there have been no words from their captors concerning their whereabouts, and no comment from the government regarding the issue.

On that same day they were kidnapped, Boko Haram militants seized hundreds of other school children in Damasak, according to a report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) released in March.

HRW said the militants occupied Zanna Mobarti Primary School in Damasak in November 2014 after taking control of the town. This was mmore than six months after the Chibok kidnappings.

At least 300 students were in the building, and in the months that followed, the insurgents forced the captured children to learn the Quran. When coalition forces from Chad and Niger closed in on Damasak in March 2015, the jihadists fled the town, taking along the 300 schoolchildren.

But those were not all.

As Boko Haram left Damasak, students who attended the Mohammed Goni Primary School and the Al Manil Islamic School. where Boroms children received their education also were taken. Among them, according to Hassan, were his cousins Umrama, 8, and Yachalu, 13.

They were captured on their way back from school, says Hassan, who now lives in Maiduguri. Up til this moment, no one has heard anything about them.

Students who attended the Government Secondary School (GSS), Damasak, also were kidnapped by Boko Haram on that same day at their homes, according to staff of GSS who spoke to The Daily Beast. The school had closed for the session at the time of the invasion.

Mallam Abubakar, a school teacher at GSS, said the insurgents did storm the school on that day with the hope of abducting school children, but they found just a few teachers, including Abubakar. in the building. Luckily, all the teachers escaped into the river close to the Nigerien border town of Diffa.

Policemen also escaped into the river, Abubakar said. It was hard to immediately contact the media or anyone [to report the incident] because telephone lines were not functional in Damasak.

Abubakar who now lives in Maiduguri, said many of the captives may never be recovered as the jihadists moved them to neighboring Niger.

"Two of my female students who escaped from Boko Haram told me they were taken along with other children to Diffa in Niger," he said. "The girls said some of their friends were married out to the militants."

The numbers of school children taken by Boko Haram in Damasak exceed the 276 schoolgirls who were kidnapped from Chibok in April 2014. But unlike the Chibok abductions which gained global attention and massive calls for action, the Damasak kidnappings was hardly reported in the media. And while the 'Bring Back Our Girls' movement that has been pressuring the government to rescue the missing Chibok girls continues to be heard, there has been no pressure group doing same for the kidnapped Damasak students.

* * *

A community organizer in Maiduguri told me he and a few friends thought about starting a movement to put pressure on the government of former President Goodluck Jonathan to rescue the Damasak children, but were discouraged by local administrators who said the focus of the government was on the Chibok girls, and so, no one would listen to them.

When they brought back the idea months after President Muhammadu Buhari took office and with nothing coming from the government concerning the missing children, they were discouraged by local politicians who warned them against embarrassing the president who comes from the same northern region.

The first time they [local administrators] said we should wait until the government rescues the Chibok girls before we can talk about Damasak, said the man who did not want to be identified for fear of being victimized by local authorities. When we brought it up again they [local politicians] said we will be unfair to our person [Buhari].

On the day the militants fled Damasak, they not only took away the school children and the other captives held for months at the Zanna Mobarti Primary School, they also moved round the town, kidnapping children who were under 15 years of age including Hassans two sisters, Aisha, 9, and Falmata, 13.

I have lost sisters and cousins, who should be in schoo,l to Boko Haram, said Hassan, whose house was also burned down during the raid. I lost everything, and I havent being myself since then.

Hassan didnt just lose his house and relatives to Boko Haram, he said he knows over 10 other people abducted in Damasak by the militants, and their families are still grieving over their kidnap.

Borom [Mohammed] in particular is inconsolable, he said. Every male figure in her life has been seized from her.

Unlike the abducted Chibok schoolgirls whom the Nigerian government says it is in contact with their captors for their release, authorities are yet to speak about the Damasak kidnappings.

The Daily Beast tried to contact presidential media adviser Femi Adesina for comments on the issue, but emails sent directly to him and to the governments media office were not answered.

More than a year after the abductions, activists have called on the government to take urgent steps to secure the release of these victims.

Three hundred children have been missing for a year, and yet there has been not a word from the Nigerian government, Mausi Segun, a researcher at HRW, said in the organizations report on the incident. The authorities need to wake up and find out where the Damasak children and other captives areand take urgent steps to free them.
I refuse to join any club that will have me as a member, Groucho Marx famously said.

We insist on joining the club that refuses to have us as members might as well be the mantra of some aspiring Jewish adherents of the racist alt-right.

A nebulous collective of internet trolls, neoreactionaries, and outright white supremacists, the alt-right has drawn widespread fascination in the wake of Donald Trumps presidential election victory, which it helped propel. Contemptuous of mainstream conservativism and explicitly embracing white identity politics, alt-righters are in many ways the mirror image of the racial minority and woke liberal activists they gleefully antagonize. This likeness is implicitly acknowledged by the alt-rights use of the term identitarian, a designation that seeks to politicize whiteness.

Needless to say, these guys arent exactly fans of the Jews. One of alt-rights leading voices, Kevin MacDonald, has written entire books positing that Judaism is a group evolutionary strategy aimed at undermining white, Christian civilization.

But none of this seems to faze denizens of The Jewish Alternative, a newly launched website and podcast purporting to represent The Voice of Dissident Jewry. The alt-right, they say, is the only force willing to protect western civilizationand, by implication, Jewsfrom the hordes of Muslims, Black Lives Matter activists, and campus totalitarians trying to destroy it.

Joshua Seidel, one of the sites proprietors and an occasional Twitter antagonist of mine, related in an interview that he went through a pretty typical progression in his politics. Starting out as a leftist in college, he became a neocon after 9/11 before winding up where he is today as a wannabe member of the alt-right (or, alt-light as he puts it, acknowledging that hes not as extreme as some of the movements more vocal spokesmen, who take pleasure in photoshopping Jewish journalistsincluding yours trulyinto gas chambers).

The problem is that, while Seidel desperately wants to join the alt-right club, the feelings arent exactly reciprocal.

In August, Seidel wrote a piece for the Forward, a Jewish newspaper, entitled, Im a Jew, and Im a Member of the Alt-Right. Seidels self-profession of alt-right membership brought to mind Margaret Thatchers imperishable observation about being a lady: If you have to tell people you are, you arent.

For while the alt-right is an amorphous movement without any official membership roll, there do seem to be some ground rules, one of which is Jews Need Not Apply. Alt-Right is explicitly white and jews are not white, an individual known by the handle EthnoSwede wrote in the comments beneath Seidels article, which the Forward eventually disabled once they started to resemble a sewer more befitting Breitbart.com. Youre not welcome. Another commenter noted that there is no such thing as a Jewish alt-righter as the movement is centered around the fundamental truth that Jews have been a cancer upon European civilization since the classical era. A blunter message was delivered by one Alan S. Nackbarr: Since youre versed in the alt-right I assume youre going to put yourself in the oven?

Seidel isnt the only alt-right-curious Jew having the door slammed shut in his face. Breitbarts Milo Yiannopoulos, who claims Jewish ancestry, was recently targeted by a neo-Nazi website as the single greatest threat our movement has at this time.

Nevertheless, Seidel still wants in. His persistence might be attributable to the strange fact that one of the alt-rights founders is himself a Jew. Paul Gottfried, a retired academic, is credited with coining the term alt-right along with a man named Richard Spencer way back in 2008. Then, the movement was more closely identified with the paleoconservative ideas espoused by Pat Buchanan: economic nationalism, isolationism and a belief that Western European racial identity is intrinsic to American nationhood. (The alt-right is the direct heir of the paleoconservatives, writes Jacob Siegel, author of an extensive profile Tablet magazine profile of Gottfried). Only recently, with the rise of Trump and the crass, internet meme-culture that rallied around him, has the alt-right become notorious for anti-Semitism.

The alt-rights embrace of anti-Semitism might also have something to do with the increasing influence of Spencer, who has effectively become leader of the alt-right. Unlike his cranky mentor, Spencer is a self-described revolutionary who seeks to transform America into a white ethno-state devoid of Jews, not return it to some idyllic, pre-Civil Rights era past. When I asked Seidel about the recent Washington, DC convention put on by Spencers National Policy Institute, where the 38-year-old white nationalist yelled Hail Trump! amidst a room full of fashy haircut-sporting young men, Seidel was nonplussed. There was, he said, a tremendous media overreaction to five people giving a sieg heil salute. A similarly willful denial of reality permeates a manifesto written by Seidel and posted on The Jewish Alternatives website. While left-wing and Muslim anti-Semitism is permanent and pervasive, he argues, right-wing anti-Semitism is largely overblown and provoked by Jews themselves. (That Jews, or their state, are responsible for the hatred directed against them is, of course, the same excuse one often hears for left-wing and Muslim anti-Semitism). Commenting on The Passion of the Christ, which many critics (Jewish and gentile alike) accused of promoting the contention that the Jews killed Jesus, Seidel asks, Would Mel Gibson EVER have become an anti-Semitic icon had Jews not protested his work, calling him an anti-Semite before he had spoken on the subject? Indeed, who among us, upon being picked up for drunk driving in Malibu, wouldnt also declare that the Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world?

The Jewish Alternatives podcast, entitled The Skype Chat, appropriates what some alt-Reichers, hoping to evade Twitter censorship, have adopted as a code word for Jews. Jew/kike=skype, Spic/Mexican = yahoo, gay (men) = butterfly, explains one handy alt-right glossary. It joins the ranks of other alt-right podcasts like The Daily Shoah and Fash the Nation, something that must surely give nachas to the bubbies of its hosts, who go by the pseudonyms, Ari ben Canaan (the Zionist hero of Exodus played by Paul Newman) and Reactionary Jew. Ari sounds distressingly like Seth Rogen, if Seth Rogen dropped terms like remove kebab, (alt-right slang for ethnically cleansing Muslims), and mused about African immigrants slinging their excrement on the Arc de Triomphe.

Asked how Jews could make their peace with a movement that explicitly embraces an exclusionary white identity, Reactionary Jew responded that he actually doesnt want his fellow Members of the Tribe to think of themselves as white; they are fundamentally an other who should nonetheless ally with white Christendom. Disclaiming white identity also has the benefit of annoying and confusing the left, which, according to Ari, sees us as the whitest of the white due to Jews cultural and political influence, high rates of educational attainment and wealth. Ironically, this way of thinking is very much in line with that of leading alt-right activists like the aforementioned Spencer, whom, when I once asked if Jews are white, cautiously replied, Jews are Jews.

The problem with this race obsessionand this goes for all people, not just Jewsis that it can obscure individual humanity. Despite their ideological antagonism, the hard left and alt-right display a similar mode of collectivist thinking when it comes to the Chosen People: There are good Jews and bad Jews. For the extreme left, the only good Jews are anti-Zionists, committed to gauzy notions of universalism; bad Jews are those who defend Israel or their own cultural heritage too vigorously. For the (non-Nazi) alt-right, the dichotomy is reversed: Good Jews are those who embrace their appointed role as tip of the spear in the civilizational struggle against the Muslim hordes, while bad Jews are those embracing liberal, non-racial pluralism.

Both of these options are nuts. Of all people, Jews should know that their well-being is best assured in societies that respect religious and ethnic diversity, pluralism, democratic values and the rule of law. Thats why Jews have so far succeeded in the United States of America. And its what makes the enthusiasm for Donald Trumpa man who waged the most divisive, authoritarian, scapegoating and conspiracy-peddling presidential campaign in modern historyamong self-described Jewish alt-righters so noxious. In warming up to an explicitly racist and anti-democratic movement that frankly doesnt want them, they are mimicking some of the most self-destructive behaviors in the tragic history of the Jews.
Donald Trumps victory was thoroughly unexpected, and since Election Day hundreds of reporters and commentators have tried to explain how he won and what his victory means for the nation and the world.

Explanations vary. Some blame meddling by FBI Director James Comey and Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Others attribute his win to tactical and strategic blunders by the Clinton campaign. One line of argument blames intractable white prejudice against immigrants and African-Americans. Another says the Clinton campaign didnt spend enough time cultivating white voters. And nearly everyone blames the media.

If you are sure you know why Donald Trump became President you owe it to yourself to explore another point of viewespecially after an election dominated by false news and ever narrower partisan feedback loops.

Below is some of the best writing about the election and what comes next:

Alec MacGillis and Chris Arnade looked at the campaign from the outside in, spent considerable time with working class voters in the Midwest and asked why they voted for Trump. Their answers defy simple characterizations.

Glenn Thrush examined the campaign from the inside out in a deeply sourced piece. Joshua Green and Sasha Issenberg talked with the Trump data nerds, and Edward-Isaac Dovere looked at the Clinton campaigns mistakes in Michigan.

Ta-Nehisi Coates argued that Trump was the price we paid for Obama and blamed his victory on a racist backlash. Greg Sargent wrote that the election was a culture war, and the Democrats lost. Susan Faludi exposed the deep pain some women felt at Clintons loss, and detailed the challenges that feminists have in reaching out to working class women.

Dan Balz made clear that Trump upended decades of Republican policy orthodoxy and essentially ran as an independent on the Republican line.

Mike Konczal listened to a lot of Donald Trump speeches and wrote up what he heard: Jobs, Jobs, Jobs!

Lionel Barber put it in a global context2016 was a good year for demagogues and strongmen, as anti-establishment forces gained strength from the U.K. to the Philippines

Craig Silverman writes a real story about fake news, demonstrating that by election day more Americans were reading ersatz stories on Facebook than the real thing

Eric Lipton led a team at The New York Times in detailing how Putin bested America and undermined our election. Chilling and infuriating. Rich Lowry argued that the Russian hack and the Comey letter didnt defeat Clintonshe was a flawed, ethically challenged candidate from the start.

Noah Rothman and Edward Luce give some context on why Putin thought he could test Obama and get away with it. Too many red lines ignored, too much naive weakness displayed. The Economist showed how politicians have failed to respond as patriots first. Leon Wieseltier advises us to remain angry and channel our rage.

Foreign Affairs showed that democracies die not with a bang but with a whimper. Alana Newhouse and Yehudah Mirsky captured why so many Jews are so nervous.

Yale Professor Timothy Snyder and Russian journalist Masha Gessen give tips on how to resist. Larry Diamond, James Traub and Sasha Polakow-Suransky look ahead to the significant pressures that Germany and France will face from Russia as they hold elections next year.

How might Trump govern? Buzzfeed found an interview that Steve Bannon gave at a Vatican conference in 2014 and explained his view of the world. Some of it will surprise you. How should Democrats in Congress react to Trump? Michael Tomasky and Jonathan Chait say Just Say Nooppose everything and give no quarter, while Annie Karni reports that Chuck Schumer has a different strategy Amanda Hess at the New York Times discovered the Hillary Clinton selfie Rorschach test. And Eric Garland offered a somewhat gonzo but somewhat brilliant history of the last two decades

Finally, Jonathan Alter sums it all up: it was all of the above!
BAGHDAD, IraqThe general commanding coalition forces in Iraq predicts it will take two years of hard work to clear the so-called Islamic State from its twin capitals of Mosul and Raqqa, and then to burn out the remnants that will likely flee to the vast empty desert between Syria and Iraq.

In a Christmas Day sit-down with The Daily Beast at his headquarters, Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend would not put specific timelines on the battle. But he mapped out a grinding campaign that he thinks is going slowly but as well as can be expected, considering how much time ISIS had to prepare and how brutal its fighters are willing to be.

A fighter walking out of a building will hold a child over his head so we can see him through ISR until he reaches another building, he said, using the military acronym for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.

The grim battle against ISIS is taking place against a backdrop of continuing sectarian tension in Iraq, which could get worse if newly empowered militia groups let their influence go to their heads. A new Iraqi law that goes into force this week makes militia forces here legal. Such groupsespecially Iranian backed Shiite armed forceshave been accused of war crimes against Iraqs Sunni minority. The U.S. has ordinarily eyed these units warily.

But Townsend, in an unusual statement for an American commander, said these militias been been remarkably disciplined allies since he arrived. That assessment marks a stark contrast with his previous tours, when deadly Iranian-manufactured bombs almost hit his vehicle, and took the lives of many of his troops.

The coalition footprint is much smaller than the 100,000-plus of Townsends previous tours in Iraqsomewhere south of 10,000 when troops on short term duty are added to the count. At the headquarters compound, soldiers were taking a brief break from work on Christmas to stage a spoon relay race in a hallway. One soldier dressed as Santa cheered competitors to the finish line, while those watching swigged nonalcoholic cider for some semblance of Christmas cheer.

The headquarters is tucked inside the sprawling Green Zone which the U.S. used to run, now turned over to Iraqi control. The Americans feel very much like visitors. U.S. authority extends to the gate of the compoundall outside is done with Iraqi government permission. Townsends team is very aware they are there to help, not to lead.

The Baghdad team, together with the northern based task force of special operations and conventional forces, feed a steady stream of intelligence from overhead drones to Iraqi forces on the ground. Most advisors are at Iraqi headquarters, though special ops trainers have joined their Iraqi advisees on missions, and the U.S. troops are also allowed to do unilateral raids with Iraqi permission.

In the process, Townsends forces are exposed to sights they will never forget.

Beheading with a knife isnt good enough anymore, Townsend said of ISISs fighters. He said they use blow torches, chainsaws, and even bulldozers to crush rows of people. The coalition tries to stop such macabre displays by striking targets nearby, but that seldom helps.

A key challenge is to assist without causing insult. Sometimes, that means getting stuck between being honest with the U.S. media, while Iraqi generals are being less than forthcoming in a country where openly admitting mistakes or difficulties is not the done thing.

For instance, in the last couple of weeks, Iraqi generals told the local press that they were not pausing the Mosul assault.

But Townsend said Iraqi forces had indeed paused in their charge into Mosul over the past week or so, 60 days into their campaign, to take stock and resupply, with casualties in some units as high as 30 percent. Its something U.S. advisors had warned them they might have to do.

People need to rest. They need to assess how things are going because they are not going as fast as we thought, he said.

The Iraqis are now moving in fresh reinforcements, ammunition, and taking time to repair vehicles broken in the headlong onslaught into western Mosulall things the U.S. Army did in its 2003 charge on Baghdad when it paused on its way to taking the capital, Townsend said.

He said Iraqi generals commanding the fight met for a lessons learned session last week, and were forthright about what was working and what failed in battle.

The largest threat the Iraqi forces face comes from armored car bombs. Townsend showed a photo of onea 2015 Jeep Cherokee that had been professionally armored and even fitted with a gun turret. There was even a platform on the back of the vehicle where suicide vest bombers can hang on until they reach the target.

The Iraqi army is learning to send its tanks into battle into the citysomething Townsend said U.S. forces had to learn the hard way after fighting inside Iraqi urban areas.

Quite honestly, I dont think we trained them to do that, he said. They are learning to do it in combat.

He said now the Iraqi ground forces are learning to clear houses alongside tank units, with the tank units protecting their progress from armored car bombs, or blasting holes in the side of houses so ground forces can pour in to clear them without going through booby trapped doors.

Townsend had praise for the rapid progress of the so-called Popular Mobilization Forcesmostly Shiite militias who stormed up to the outskirts of ISIS stronghold Tel Afar, west of Mosul, keeping off fighters from traveling back and forth with supplies or information.

The PMF did advance more rapidly than we expected and theyve done a good job, he said.

The PMF are made up of several dozen irregular militia groups of every religious and political stripe in Iraq including Sunni and even Christian, but the majority are Shiite. Some groups formed to fight the U.S. after the 2003 invasion, and others formed after Iraqs top Shiite cleric, Ayatollah Ali al Sistani, issued a fatwa or religious order calling on Iraqis to take up arms after ISIS seized large parts of Iraq in 2014.

Iraqs Parliament recently passed a law making such groups legal, and placing them under the umbrella of the Iraqi armed forces, though answering directly to Iraqs Prime Minister Haidar al Abadi.

Spokesman for the PMF Ahmad Al Asady told The Daily Beast that the law goes into force on Monday, and will help professionalize the groups. Some have been accused of committing atrocities and holding Iraqis, especially minority Sunnis, in illegal detention by the hundredsa charge Asady denies.

He said the PMF have been holding training sessions for a year to teach their fighters how to fight according to the Geneva Conventions, including workshops with the International Committee of the Red Cross and other humanitarian agencies. The ICRC in Baghdad confirmed theyd held training sessions.

Asady said they will answer directly to the Prime Minister, though he conceded his forces get significant help including battlefield advisors from Iran.

Townsend said from what hes seen, the disparate PMF groups are acting professionally.

Before I got here, I read all kinds of things about the PMF, and I got here and I havent observed that behavior, he said. Were not having allegations of bad behavior or misconduct, and that includes absolutely no threats to U.S. personnel.

Their internal and external comms are to keep disciplined and follow the orders of the government, he said. Theyre saying that and thats what were seeing.

Townsend believes the new law, and the newly legalized forces, could make Iraq more secureif they become a national guard-like force, and not a puppet of Iran, which he says is what Irans Quds Force commander Qasem Suleimani would likely prefer.

The ugly alternative would be if the PMF becomes like the Quds ForceTehrans proxy forces for its wars in Syria and Yemenwhere it is an arm of Iran, an Iraqi security force that does what Iran wants it to do, he said.

The PMF law is only a page and a half long, and very vaguely written.

Our government is going to try to shape it, he said. I hope the Iraqis choose a smart path.

He said there are no plans to dispatch U.S. advisors to the mostly Shiite units, however.

The war is grinding on against a backdrop of continuing sectarian strife in Baghdad, and a cynicism that political change is possible.

At St. Georges Catholic Church in Baghdad, where several hundred Christians gathered to celebrate Christmas, a prominent Shiite politician spoke of unity.

Our choice after ISIS is not civil war, is not killing each other, said Ammar Al-Hakim, one of Iraq's most powerful Shiite politicians. The only option we have is to live together and this requires... a national reconciliation project. We will patch our wounds together.

But hes attended similar church services over the years, and Iraqs Christian community has continued to dwindle from a high of 1.5 million before the U.S.-led invasion to roughly half a million now. ISIS has only made that worse, said St. Georges Father Meyassr Behnam.

Families are leaving, maybe 100 a month, from Baghdad, and its worse in the north where Christian villages have been razed by ISIS.

Outside his church was a creche set up in what looked like a house destroyed by ISIS, and next to it, the model of a famous church in the northern Christian city of Qaraqosh, defamed by ISIS graffiti. He pointed out that the graffiti has been artfully drawn over, changing just a few letters to transform the phrase, Islamic State in Iraq & the Levant to Peace is born in Iraq & the Levant.
Karen Khachatryan and his family have been raising rabbits in Alaverdi, a town in Armenias northern Lori Province, for the past eight years.

Mr. Khachatryan says theres a great market demand for rabbit meat, and sells his product in Alaverdi, the neighboring town of Vanadzor, and the capital Yerevan. He says market demand is high during the holidays. Many of his clients suffering from diabetes prefer the lean meat. Roasted rabbit is also replacing the traditional chicken legs at festive wedding tables.

Karen enjoys his work, even though it is time consuming. The entire family pitches in  his wife Nouneh, son Albert, and daughter Youlya. Albert, a ninth grader with hearing and seeing problems, is particularly active in caring for the animals.

My son, who is great at math in school, helps out a lot. Hes really fussy when it comes to cleaning out the pens and doesnt let me take a break until that chore is finished, says Karen. Albert closely follows my talk with his father.

Karen goes to the rabbit shed every morning at seven. He cleans the pens and feeds the rabbits. The animals also require clean water.

Many just sit and home complaining about the lack of work. People you meet in Alaverdi say that there are no jobs at the copper smelter. Can that factory provide work to everyone in the town? People have to use their brains and create something, the businessman explains.

When asked if he receives help from the government, Karens reply is curt, The government doesnt hinder me, thats support in itself.

It was pure happenstance that got the family raising rabbits. Albert was a child. My friend in Yeghegnadzor gave me two rabbits. After bring them home, one died. My daughter said it was a shame for the remaining one to be on its own. So, we got another one. We purchased another from a guy in Alaverdi. We expanded the garage. They produced five females. We didnt kill them out of pity. Thats how it all started, says Karen.

Mr. Khachatryan took out a $4,000 bank loan four years ago to get the business up and running. Hes since paid it back. Hes also invested the money, made by moving cargo with the car he inherited from his father, into the business. He now has 200 rabbits.

Before breeding rabbits, Karen tried his hand at fish farming. This was back in the early to mid-1990s; known throughout Armenia as the cold and dark years. Due to the frequent power cuts, the fish died off. Karens losses were substantial.

Karen says that raising rabbits is more interesting than fish farming. Rabbits are clever animals. They recognize the person feeding them. Theres a rabbit here who demands my immediate caress the first thing after entering the shack. If I dont, he gets angry and knocks over the water bowl. Its simple jealousy, says Karen.

The family also owns two pigs. My daughter would help, washing and combing the animals. If you dont feed a pig on time, the entire neighborhood will hear its yelps. Rabbits can go without eating for two days. Theyre very quiet, but also very fearful. Thats why their meat is so special, says Karen, adding that rabbit feed is very expensive.

He buys the feed from the flour factory in Akhtala. After doing some research, Karen says that raising rabbits is far more profitable in Russia.

In Russia, one sack of feed costs 1,800 AMD. One kilo of rabbit meat fetches 3,800 AMD. In Armenia, its just the opposite. A sack of feed costs 4,200 AMD, and one kilo of meat goes for 3,000 AMD, says Karen.

All the rabbits spend their lives in cages. The litters are kept in special ones. Those about to give birth are also kept separately. Karen has names for the most active rabbits.

Theft is unheard of at the rabbit shack. Karens dogs leashed outside make sure of that.

During the cold winter months, Nouneh and Youlya wear their rabbit coats, sewn in Vanadzor, to keep warm. Karen says hes ready to sell his rabbit furs to those wanting to make similar coats.

Karen would like to expand the business, but only after the price of feed goes down a bit.

Every month, 200,000 AMD of the income goes to purchasing feed. Im left with 100,000 profit. It should be the opposite. One 25 kilo sack of feed should cost 2,500 AMD. We have a yard to build a new shack if the price goes down, says Karen.
Parabiosis, or the practice of having younger peoples blood transfused into ones veins in order to prolong life, sounds unsavoryvampiric, even. It may conjure up images of the sci-fi film The Matrix, where tens of thousands of synthetic humans are hardwired into pods, their energy mined to power futuristic machines, or a dystopian society where the rich and powerful subsist on the blood of the poor. But as far as anti-aging studies go, parabiosis appears promising. According to Inc., a company called Ambrosia in Monterey, California, is conducting clinical trials wherein participants 35 and older agree to pay $8,000 apiece to receive a transfusion of blood from those aged 16-25, and then have their blood monitored over the next two years to determine if theres been any improvement in the patients health.

The effects seem to be almost permanent, Ambrosia founder Jesse Karmazin, a Stanford-trained anti-aging expert, told Inc. Its almost like theres a resetting of gene expression.

The study made headlines in August when it was revealed that Peter Thiel, a venture capitalist and Facebook angel investoras well as a surrogate for President-elect Trump and key member of his transition teamhad inquired about Ambrosias parabiosis study as a potential health treatment for himself.

Im not convinced yet weve found a single panacea that works. Its possible there exist single-point things that could work. Im looking into parabiosis stuff, which I think is really interesting, he told Inc. This is where they did the young blood into older mice and they found that had a massive rejuvenating effect. And so thats... that is one that... again, its one of these very odd things where people had done these studies in the 1950s and then it got dropped altogether. I think there are a lot of these things that have been strangely underexplored.

Anne Rice, the celebrated vampire novelist behind The Vampire Chronicles series of books, is fascinated by parabiosis, too.

I dont know why that needs to involve the hyper-rich. I have read about that, and it sounds extremely promising and interesting and worth experimenting with, she tells me of parabiosis.

Blood is something that everybody has to give. I dont see why it has to involve only rich people. It seems to me that there are probably millions of young people who would share their blood for a reasonable price, and that it neednt be such an expensive commodity, adds Rice. After all, blood regenerates. Its not like you have a limited amount of blood. Its not like giving up an organ where you only have one of that organ and it wont ever be replaced. Blood, again, regenerates, so thats a field of research that could benefit hundreds of thousands of people on all economic levels.

The bestselling authors daughter, Michele, was diagnosed with acute granulocytic leukemia in 1970. She passed away two years later from the disease, shortly before her sixth birthday. Rice channeled her grief on the page, penning her debut novel Interview with the Vampire in just five weeks, and included the character of Claudia, a five-year-old vampire with an insatiable thirst for life-sustaining blood, as a tribute to Michele. So the topic of blood transfusions is a very personal one for Rice.

Maybe that will be very, very helpful to people, she says. Its one of the more interesting and helpful and promising areas of study Ive heard about because everybody has blood to give.
ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP)  Jill Stein's bid to recount votes in Pennsylvania was in trouble even before a federal judge shot it down Dec. 12. That's because the Green Party candidate's effort stood almost no chance of detecting potential fraud or error in the vote  there was basically nothing to recount.

Pennsylvania is one of 11 states where the majority of voters use antiquated machines that store votes electronically, without printed ballots or other paper-based backups that could be used to double-check the balloting. There's almost no way to know if they've accurately recorded individual votes  or if anyone tampered with the count.

More than 80 percent of Pennsylvanians who voted Nov. 8 cast their ballots on such machines, according to VotePA, a nonprofit seeking their replacement. A recount would, in the words of VotePA's Marybeth Kuznik, a veteran election judge, essentially amount to this: "You go to the computer and you say, 'OK, computer, you counted this a week-and-a-half ago. Were you right the first time?'"

These paperless digital voting machines, used by roughly 1 in 5 U.S. voters last month, present one of the most glaring dangers to the security of the rickety, underfunded U.S. election system. Like many electronic voting machines, they are vulnerable to hacking. But other machines typically leave a paper trail that could be manually checked. The paperless digital machines open the door to potential election rigging that might not ever be detected.

What's more, their prevalence magnifies other risks in the election system, such as the possibility that hackers might compromise the computers that tally votes, by making failures or attacks harder to catch. And like other voting machines adopted since the 2000 election, the paperless systems are nearing the end of their useful life  yet there is no comprehensive plan to replace them.

"If I were going to hack this election, I would go for the paperless machines because they are so hard to check," said Barbara Simons, a former IBM researcher and co-author of "Broken Ballots," a history of the unlearned lessons of flawed U.S. voting technology.

FRAUD AND THE U.S. VOTING SYSTEM

Although Stein premised her recount effort on the need to ensure that the 2016 election wasn't tainted by hacking or fraud, there's no evidence of either so far  a fact federal judge Paul Diamond cited prominently in his decision halting the Pennsylvania recount. "Suspicion of a 'hacked' Pennsylvania election borders on the irrational," the judge wrote in his opinion.

Stein also pursued recounts in Wisconsin and Michigan, to little avail. Those states use more reliable paper-based voting technologies. (The Electoral College certified Republican Donald Trump's presidential victory last week.)

But a cadre of computer scientists from major universities backed Stein's recounts to underscore the vulnerability of U.S. elections. These researchers have been successfully hacking e-voting machines for more than a decade in tests commissioned by New York, California, Ohio and other states.

Stein and her witnesses said their fraud concerns were justified given U.S. charges that Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential campaign. Emails of top Democrats were hacked and leaked in what U.S. intelligence officials called Russian subterfuge against Democrat Hillary Clinton. Over the summer, hackers also tried to breach the voter registration databases of Arizona and Illinois using Russian-based servers, U.S. officials said. Election networks in at least 20 states were probed for vulnerabilities.

"It's a target-rich environment," said Rice University computer scientist Dan Wallach. Researchers would like to see the U.S. move entirely to computer-scannable paper ballots, since paper can't be hacked. Many advanced democracies require paper ballots, including Germany, Britain, Japan and Singapore.

Green Party lawyers seeking the Pennsylvania recount called the state's election system "a national disgrace" in a federal lawsuit, noting that many states outlaw paperless voting. They asked a judge to order a forensic examination of a sampling of the electronic machines, saying that's the only way to know for sure that votes weren't altered.

That would involve examination of all of the systems involved in the election  voting-machine computer chips and memory cards that store operating software and ballots, the computers that program the ballots, and even the machine vendors' source code  to detect any "bugs, holes or back doors" a hacker could have exploited, said Daniel Lopresti, chairman of the Lehigh University computer-science department.

But forensic analyses aren't foolproof, especially if hackers were good at covering their tracks. "What you're hoping for is some evidence that was left, some degree of clumsiness or carelessness, a belief by the individual that we won't dig quite that deep," Lopresti said.

PENNSYLVANIA: A PERFECT TARGET

The U.S. voting system  a loosely regulated, locally managed patchwork of more than 3,000 jurisdictions overseen by the states  employs more than two dozen types of machinery from 15 manufacturers. Elections officials across the nation say they take great care to secure their machines from tampering. They are locked away when not in use and sealed to prevent tampering.

All that makes national elections very difficult to steal without getting caught. "It would take a 'large conspiracy' to hack the results of a presidential election," said Kay Stimson, speaking for the National Association of Secretaries of State.

But difficult is not impossible. Wallach and his colleagues believe a crafty team of pros could strike surgically, focusing on select counties in a few battleground states where "a small nudge might be decisive," he said.

As a battleground state with paperless voting machines, Pennsylvania is a perfect candidate. In affidavits for the recount, computer scientist J. Alex Halderman of the University of Michigan laid out how attackers could conduct a successful hack:

Probe election offices well in advance to determine how to break into computers.

After identifying battleground states, infect voting machines in targeted counties with malware that would shift a small percentage of the vote to a desired candidate.

After silently altering electronic tallies, erase digital tracks to leave no trace.

Just because the machines aren't on the internet doesn't mean they can't be hacked. Election workers could be duped or bribed into installing malware that sat dormant until Election Day. Locks could be picked to gain access to the machines, seals compromised with razor blades and acetone.

Studies by Halderman, Wallach and others proved years ago that it's possible to infect voting machines in an entire precinct via the compact flash cards used to load electronic ballots.

An infected machine "could do anything you can imagine," said Wallach. "It could flip votes from one candidate to another. It could delete votes. It could cast write-in votes for Mickey Mouse for president."

HACKING THE COUNT

Vote-tallying systems, typically at the county level, are also tempting targets. They tend to be little more than PCs running a database.

Tabulation databases at the county level, which collect results from individual precincts, are supposed to be "airgapped," or disconnected from the internet at all times  though experts say they sometimes get connected anyway. They're considered insecure for other reasons; many have USB ports where malware could be introduced.

Vulnerabilities notwithstanding, there are no known cases of U.S. tallying systems being hacked. But it is not uncommon for candidates who have lost elections involving electronic voting to challenge results, claiming irregularities they blame on fraud, or human or mechanical errors.

Shelby County, Tennessee, home to Memphis, has seen a flood of lawsuits related to alleged tabulation errors, the most recent stemming from a 2015 court clerk race. "Nearly every election cycle in the county in recent memory has been plagued by a myriad of errors and complaints of wrongdoing," Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett wrote in a 2012 letter to the state comptroller recently obtained by The Associated Press.

OLD AND GETTING OLDER

Most voting machines in the U.S. are at or near the end of their expected lifespans. Forty-three states use machines more than a decade old. Most run on vintage operating systems such as Windows 2000 that pre-date the iPhone and are no longer updated with security patches. Old, stockpiled machines get cannibalized; when they can't supply parts, officials scrounge on eBay.

On Nov. 8, election officials across the U.S. handled numerous complaints of aging touchscreens losing calibration and casting votes for the wrong candidate. Such "vote flipping" tends to get exaggerated attention on social media and has become so familiar it's been enshrined in a TV episode of "The Simpsons."

But while many experts agree the U.S. voting system needs an upgrade, no one wants to pay to fix it.

From the private-sector perspective, it's a tiny market. University of Iowa computer scientist Douglas Jones estimates that voting-equipment makers pull in total annual revenues of less than $200 million  roughly what Google generates in a day. The biggest player, ES&S, is private and has just 450 full-time employees. (Researchers worry that smaller companies like these are also much more vulnerable to hacking by sophisticated state actors.)

The sector boomed after the 2000 Florida recount debacle, when punch-card technology was discredited by hanging chads and a poor "butterfly" ballot design. Congress appropriated $4 billion for election upgrades, and the states raced to replace punch cards and lever machines with digital technology.

But when that money ran out, so did many states' ability to address security concerns they'd overlooked in their initial rush. Four in 5 U.S. election officials polled by New York University's Brennan Center last year said they are desperate to replace equipment but lack the cash.

DISPARATE IMPACT

Voters in poorer areas suffer disproportionately, the center found. The Stein campaign complained in a letter Friday to Attorney General Loretta Lynch that minority communities are also particularly vulnerable. Among irregularities it cited were 87 ballot-scanning machines that suffered malfunctions in Detroit on Election Day.

Data collected by Brennan Center researchers suggests the poor are more apt to encounter failing machines. Six Minnesota counties buying new machines had household median incomes more than $20,000 higher than jurisdictions not making purchases, the center found.

In Virginia, wealthier counties near Washington have upgraded to more trustworthy technology while lower-income counties in the state's southwest have not been able to afford it, said Edgardo Cortes, the state elections commissioner.

"The federal money is not there and in most instances state money is not being made available, either," said Cortes. "So the entire cost is falling to local governments."

Just as Congress delivered a death blow to punch cards, it should also outlaw paperless touchscreen voting machines and pay for their replacement, said Andrew Appel, a Princeton University computer scientist.

But even counties that can afford better voting tech face problems.

The clerk of Travis County, Texas, Dana DeBeauvoir, has been trying for a decade to build a bulletproof electronic voting system , because even the scanners that count paper ballots can be hacked. (Of course, such hacking could be detected and remedied by recounting paper ballots manually.)

The Travis County system would have a paper trail and use encryption systems to let voters confirm online that their vote counted and wasn't subject to tampering. For transparency, DeBeauvoir wants to use open source software that anyone can examine, not the proprietary code the industry uses.

None of the major vendors has shown interest, she says. "I don't think it fits their profit model."

____

Bajak reported from Houston. Associated Press writers Tami Abdollah in Washington and Adrian Sainz in Memphis, Tennessee, contributed to this report.

___

Online:

AP interactive on electronic voting: http://interactives.ap.org/2016/hack-the-vote/
Trump administration must ensure its transparency

The incoming Trump administration threatens our country with opportunities for unprecedented corruption and crony capitalism. Already, political pressure forced the embassy of Kuwait to cancel its National Day celebration at the Four Seasons Hotel and rent space at Trump's new Washington, D.C. hotel instead.

The president is supposed to serve America, not use his position to enrich himself and his children. As House Speaker Republican Paul Ryan declared in July, "No one should be above the rules, no one should be above the law, and that's what we're looking for, equality. So that people should be held to the same set of standards. That's the problem with Washington, is people think there's self-dealing and they think that everybody is being held to different standards."

To understand the potential conflicts of interest, congressional Republicans and Democrats first should demand that Donald Trump fully and completely account for all his business interests. Trump repeatedly has promised to release his income tax returns and repeatedly failed to release them. The Wall Street Journal recently reported many of his overseas holdings appear deliberately designed to confuse and hide, not reveal his activities.

Second, Congress should insist that president-elect Trump and his family members advising him in the White House fully divest their business holdings. Otherwise, every action will be perceived through the lens of "how does this benefit Trump?"

This is not a Democratic or Republican issue; it's an issue of honesty, integrity, and transparency of the federal government. But if congressional Republicans view their priority as protecting a Republican president instead of protecting the interests of America, then when the resulting corruption and crony capitalism occur they, too, will be tarred.

JONATHAN COOPERSMITH

College Station

President Trump must reject white nationalist forcefully

The white nationalists want to carve out a separate state for European Americans in America while ethnically cleansing the immigrant community. America is demographically a multi ethnic society composed of every denizen from the globe.

Foreign-born physicians represent 25 percent of the health care industry. International students dominate engineering graduate programs and contributed more than $30.5 billion to the U.S. economy in 2015. Recent research has shown that foreign-born faculty play a critical role in doctoral education, producing more peer-reviewed articles than U.S.-born peers, the harbinger leading to more research grants and patents.

The Latino community is younger, more educated and more entrepreneurial and is a big driver of economic growth, wielding more than $1.3 trillion in buying power, according to the Selig Center for Economic Growth.

Slavery in America heralded the arrival of Muslims from Africa in the 17th century and scholars estimate that 1/4th to 1/3rd of them were Muslims. The DinaStandard, a growth strategy research and advisory firm, estimated that the American Muslim population was 5.7 million in 2013 and is expected to grow as the single largest minority religious community. Their disposable income was estimated at $98 billion in 2013 and is part of a fast growing global population with $2 trillion in faith-based consumption.

The Pentagon estimates that nearly 6,000 members of the U.S. Army are Muslims.

The black community has endured years of serfdom and prejudice by the majority white population and yet have grown to 45.7 million with a buying power expected to reach $1.2 billion in 2016.

The ethnic cleansing of non-European Americans is not only anathema to the U.S. Constitution but will torpedo economic growth and bedevil world peace.

We hope President Donald Trump forcefully will repudiate and reject this preposterous proposition by the white supremacists.

MOHAMED LATHEEF

College Station
Workers on Pigg River remove the base of the Power Dam on Day 21 of the dam removal project.

After 100 years, the Pigg River is now flowing like it should.

Dams and other structures choked Southwest Virginias Pigg River for more than a century.

However, now its oldest and last remaining dam has been breached. Now the Piggs waters rise freely from Five Mile Mountain and flow a winding 75 miles east to Leesville Reservoir near its confluence with the Roanoke River.

As Friends of the Rivers of Virginia (FORVA) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service highlight the completion of Power Dam demolition, local officials and conservationists look forward to reduced flooding risks, the opportunity to extend the Pigg River blueway for canoeing, kayaking and fishing, and improved river habitat for wildlife including the federally endangered Roanoke logperch and declining Roanoke bass, orangefin madtom and bigeye jumprock populations.

Partners have shifted focus to monitoring the rivers response to the demolition. As expected, the banks and channel within the restoration area are adjusting, a process which may take a year or more.

The restoration project, administered by FORVA, was possible with over $1 million of voluntary restoration funding from Duke Energy to breach the dam, monitor results and restore river habitat. Studies guiding the project were funded by the Service with assistance from FishAmerica Foundation.

The possible failure of Power Dam was a looming concern for the Town of Rocky Mount, whose main supply line to the towns wastewater treatment plant lies downstream, and for the Virginia Department of Transportation, whose downstream bridge crossing faced potential damage. Dam removal has protected these community assets.

The project is the latest of many upper Roanoke River basin restoration efforts by the Service and partners. These include the 2013 removal of Veterans Memorial Park dam in Rocky Mount, the 2009 Wasena dam removal and 2010 Wiley Drive bridge replacement in the City of Roanoke, and numerous riverbank restoration projects throughout the Roanoke River area to reduce sediment loading.

These steps are key to improving water quality and have reconnected Roanoke logperch populations divided by dams, moving the endangered darter closer to recovery, a press release states. Additionally, the efforts join a national trend to remove obsolete dams and restore rivers, with the Service and partners removing more than 1,600 barriers to fish passage over the past two decades.

This project culminates over a decade

of hard work by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and our partners, whose support makes this restoration work possible, said David Byrd, fish and wildlife biologist for the Service.

We all benefit from this projects environmental, recreational, economic and other benefits.

River restoration is FORVAs primary mission, so we are happy to see this project near completion, said Bill Tanger, chairman of FORVA. We thank Duke Energy for joining us with strategic support, cooperation and funding. The Pigg River now runs free again!

Duke Energy is committed to the long-term protection of waterways in this region, said Davis Montgomery, Duke Energy district manager for the Dan River Basin and surrounding region. Protecting these natural treasures, and the wildlife that depend on them, is important to ensuring these resources continue to thrive, and are enjoyed today and for years to come.

In addition to improving fish habitat, the breaching of the dam will open up nearly five miles of river for recreation, said Paul Chapman, director of Franklin County Parks and Recreation. Access to waterways is consistently one of the highest ranking recreational needs in Franklin County. When complete, paddlers will be able to travel on the Pigg River from Lynch Park in Rocky Mount to the new boat launch on Power Dam Road. Developing our lakes and rivers for people to enjoy promotes economic development as people and businesses see Franklin County as a great place to work and play.

Other partners in the dam removal include the Town of Rocky Mount; Franklin County, Virginia; Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries; USFWS Fish and Aquatic Conservation Program; FishAmerica Foundation; and Franklin County Historical Society.
Conservation board tables property lease program, examines deficit

The Des Moines County Conservation Board on Wednesday tabled a proposed program that would have generated revenue for the conservation department.
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NORWALK  While Norwalk Public Schools scramble to build a new school and expand facilities to deal with an overabundance of students, Fairfield County school districts as a whole have struggled with declining enrollment and have been forced to make agonizing decisions about closing schools.

But with a release of some new telling growth data some are starting to rethink their plans.

A number of districts that had prepared for a decline have added classes instead.

Younger families are moving in, offsetting some of the problems created by a Connecticut birth rate that declined 7.2 percent from 2010 to 2015.

The real estate market is improving in Fairfield County, adding families with school-aged children, said Mike Zuba, director of planing for Milone and MacBroom, a consulting firm that prepares enrollment projections.

This is good news for Fairfield County schools where the enrollment is starting to stabilize or at least not decrease as sharply as the rest of the state.

Norwalk has remained somewhat of an outlier in the county, as its schools have been filled to the brim and in some cases overflowing.

The district is currently short roughly 750 seats, a number that is expected to grow to nearly 1,000 by 2025. Nearly 400 kids are also stationed in 15 portable classrooms across the district, many of which are nearing the end of their lifespans.

More Information 5-Year Net Migration Trends total % change Connecticut -16,342 -0.50% Fairfield County 13,815 1.50% Hartford County -5,716 -0.60% Litchfield County -4,588 -2.40% Middlesex County -1,262 -0.80% New Haven County -9,854 -1.10% New London County -4,063 -1.50% Tolland County -1,822 -1.20% Windham County -2,852 -2.40% Net out-migration is occurring across Connecticut, hitting the most rural counties hardest Fairfield County is a clear exception as the only region experiencing net in-migration To measure of the impact of migration on specific districts, the ratio of births five years ago to Kindergarten enrollments today is a key indicator Source: Cooperative Educational Services (CES) See More Collapse

We kind of have a unique story, said Mike Barbis, Board of Education member and chair of the Facilities Committee, at a recent board meeting. Most (Connecticut) school districts are in decline population-wise and we are growing.

In the 2015-16 school year, Norwalk Public Schools enrolled roughly 11,322 pre-K-12 students. That number, according to Milone and MacBroom, is expected to grow steadily to 11,612 by the 2025-26 school year.

K-5 and 6-8 grade levels are expected to dip some throughout that 10 year span, but K-5 looks to grow overall, with larger growth at the high school level driving overall numbers.

The most likely scenario, according to consultants, will be an overall 3 percent growth in student population over the next 10 years.

The districts growth has centered on South Norwalk. The main factor of growth there has been high birth rates as opposed to people moving in.

There are a lot of misconceptions, Barbis said. Even though we are kind of a bedroom community of New york City, there is this perception that immigration has driven a lot of our population growth when in fact it is local birth rate.

He said about 75 percent of the babies born in Norwalk stay in Norwalk and tend to end up in the school district for kindergarten.

To deal with the growth, the school district is in the process of pushing through plans to construct a new pre-K-8 magnet school in South Norwalk and expand Ponus ridge Middle School to a full-fledged pre-K-8 magnet school campus.

Fairfield County bucking the trend

Connecticuts net student enrollment for the past five years is down 16,342, or a decrease of about 0.5 percent. However, Fairfield County has gained a net of 13,815 in that time, or an increase of about 1.5 percent, according to a report prepared by Milone and MacBroom.

Fairfield County is kind of bucking the trend, Zuba said.

Most of the movement into Fairfield County is coming from out-of-state or other countries, Zuba said.

Zuba credits the move to the jobs available in the New York City and the surrounding area. Fairfield Countys economy is more tied into the metro economy, compared to the rest of the state, which is more stagnant.

The northeastern and northwestern parts of Connecticut have been hit the hardest with declining school enrollment because the economy hasnt recovered there yet, the population is aging more rapidly, and the housing market has been slow to recover, Zuba said.

Litchfield County lost a net of about 4,600 people in the past five years, which is a decrease of about 2.4 percent.

Danbury Superintendent of Schools Sal Pascarella said they have seen an enrollment increase of 1.5 percent to 2 percent annually for the past decade.

Were growing, he said.

He said its been hard to find space for the growing student population. Its also presented challenges with resources and made it hard for the teachers, who have students enrolling after the school year started.

While Danburys enrollment growth has been driven by immigration, Zuba said Fairfield County suburbs are starting to see growth from young families who are choosing suburban life.

Were seeing the number of people moving into suburban towns is more than it was 10 years ago, Zuba said.
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Linkedin Safrin La Batu (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

Four men apprehended in Purwakarta on Sunday for allegedly planning an act of terror during the New Year celebrations are allegedly affiliated with Jamaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD), a terrorist organization that supports the Islamic State (IS) group, the National Police have said.

National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Rikwanto said on Monday the police were still investigating how the four men were connected to JAD leader Bahrun Naim, who is now waging war with IS in Syria.

He stressed, however, that the four were clearly affiliated with JAD. "It is clear that the four men have an affiliation with JAD," Rikwanto said.

(Read Also: Terrorist suspects arrested in W. Java planned to attack police)

National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) chief Comr. Gen Suhardi Alius previously said Bahrun-linked terrorists were the most dangerous group in the country.

Rikwanto said police officers found some religious books during the raid on the four men's temporary homestay at a Jatiluhur dam in Purwakarta. He said the foiled attack was to be directed against the police, not civilians.

"For them, the police are thogut," Rikwanto said, adding that terror attacks are sometimes directed against the police because the police are often considered an enemy for foiling planned attacks.

In Islamic theology, the word thogut or taghut refers to those who worship anything except Allah.

The Densus 88 counterterrorism squad on Sunday fatally shot two of the four men and arrested the two others. (bbn)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

One of two alleged terrorists arrested at a houseboat on Jatiluhur reservoir in Purwakarta, West Java on Sunday, is being treated at Bhayangkara Police hospital in East Jakarta.

Tribunnews.com reported the suspect arrived at the hospital on Sunday evening walking with a limp and with his face covered with a black cloth.

Earlier in the day, the National Police's counterterrorism squad, Densus 88, arrested the suspects identified as Rizal alias Abu Marham, 29, and Ivan Rahmat Syarif, 28, who were residents of Ngamprah, West Bandung regency.

(Read also: Two alleged terrorists shot dead on Jatiluhur dam, W. Java)

The Densus 88 personnel also shot dead two accomplices, identified as Abu Sovi alias Abi Azis alias Mas Brow from Kampung Tipar, Kutawaringin distrct, Bandung regency, and Abu Faiz from Padalarang, West Bandung regency, for resisting arrest.

Their bodies also arrived at the hospital on Sunday evening for post-mortem examination.

The police earlier claimed that the alleged terrorists had planned to conduct acts of terror during Christmas and New Year's Eve celebrations.

Besides the arrests at Jatiluhur reservoir, the police have recently nabbed several alleged terrorists in various places across the country, including in Bekasi, West Java, South Tangerang, Banten and Medan, North Sumatra. (jun)
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Linkedin Djemi Amnifu (The Jakarta Post) Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara  Mon, December 26, 2016

East Nusa Tenggara people have asked President Joko Jokowi Widodo to cancel his planned to visit Australia next year in protest at the lack of a Montara oil spill settlement.

The Australian government keeps avoiding responsibility for the Timor Sea pollution, said Ferdi Tanoni, the mandate holder of the customary rights in the Timor Sea, on Monday.

An example, Ferdi said, was Foreign Minister Julie Bishops statement that Australia did not have jurisdiction and the Indonesian government had yet to approach Australia to help the people in dealing with the pollution.

The fact was, Ferdi said, the Indonesian government had sent a letter to Australia seeking cooperation and help for the victims of the pollution.

The Australian Embassy in Jakarta told The Sydney Morning Herald earlier this month that the Australian government had shared all relevant information about the spill with the Indonesian government including Australian response efforts. We have also shared long-term operational monitoring reports and environmental monitoring studies undertaken in Australian waters since 2009.

The Indonesian government agreed that the Australian government was not legally responsible but nonetheless said it could at least tell the Montara oil rig operator, PTTEP Australasia, to act in good faith.

For the sake of Indonesias dignity and sovereignty, we ask President Jokowi to cancel his Australian visit, Ferdi said. (evi)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

Dozens of female supporters of Jakarta gubernatorial candidate Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama conducted a clean-up activity in a densely populated area in Cipete, South Jakarta, on Monday.

Wearing t-shirts emblazoned with Gadis Ahok (Ahoks girl), the women cleaned roads and gutters in the area in an activity aimed at raising awareness among residents of the importance of keeping the neighborhood clean.

So if suddenly, we face flooding, we wont blame our leader. Have we cleaned our neighborhood? Gadis Ahok spokeswoman Dee Adnan said as quoted by tribunnews.com.

(Read also: Ahok campaign headquarters books Rp 1.8b since beginning operations)

Dee said the activity was also part of the groups support for Ahok, who is currently being tried at the North Jakarta District Court for an alleged blasphemous statement he made at an event in Thousand Islands regency in September.

You can show support without necessarily attending the trial, cant you? she added.

Residents appreciated the activity. Its good to remind us to clean our neighborhood, Dian, a resident of Jl. Teladan, Cipete said.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

A Go-Jek driver foiled a suspected attempt to send a package of crystal methamphetamine in Cilandak, South Jakarta, on Christmas Eve, after handing over a suspicious package to a police station.

Cilandak Police chief Comr. Sujanto said Monday that the Fatmawati Police station received the package from the driver, IP, who said he took the delivery order on Saturday night.

However, after becoming suspicious about the contents he handed it in to the police in Fatmawati, Sujanto said as quoted by Warta Kota.

The police opened the package, which contained what they suspect to be two packets of crystal methamphetamine, locally known as sabu sabu.

We are still hunting for the person who ordered the ojek [motorcycle taxi], he said. (evi)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

National Monument square in Jakarta, which is a tourist destination, was closed during the Christmas holiday, disappointing those visiting the city.

Im very disappointed with this situation. Its a holiday season but its closed. I came a long way and my children have never seen Monas, Toto, 45, who came from Pemalang, Central Java, said on Monday.

At the entrance to Monas a sign revealed that the area was closed on Monday for maintenance and would be reopened on Tuesday.

Jakarta civil servants, like other civil servants, took collective leave as ordered by the central government.

I cannot go here tomorrow because were going home this afternoon, he said as quoted by Warta Kota.

Another visitor, Andi, 40, was also disappointed when he and his little daughter could not enter the square.

A pity we cannot go in. Lets go here again tomorrow, he told his daughter.

He said that although he only lived in Kelapa Gading in North Jakarta, not so far away from Monas, he was still disappointed that the public space closed.

Were disappointed because we have relatives from Tasikmalaya [West Java] who visited Jakarta to see Monas but they could not see it, he said. (evi)
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Linkedin Fadli (The Jakarta Post) Batam  Mon, December 26, 2016

Six alleged pirates operating in the Malacca Straits were caught by Western Fleet Quick Response Team from the Indonesian Navys Tanjung Pinang base on Monday in Batam waters in Riau Islands.

The group was suspected of plotting attacks on tankers passing through eastern Malaysia.

The Tanjung Pinang Navy base commander, Comm. S. Irawan, said the arrest came about following a tip-off from an informant with information about criminal activities in the Malacca Straits.

The team followed it up by intercepting the group at sea, Irawan said. The team managed to detain the boat, which had the six suspects on it. From the six, three are known to have engaged in piracy.

During questioning they said they wanted to attack ships in Malaysian territory, he said.

The six have been identified as: Piyan Sinaga, the boat owner, Angki, the skipper, Feri S. Lubis, an assistant to the skipper, and Udin Ali, Teguh Adrianto, and Riswan, crewmembers.

Irawan said Udin Ali had a piracy record stretching back to 2012 and had been sentenced to four-and-a-half years in Tanjung Pinang prison for piracy. Teguh also has a record. (evi)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

The National Transportation Safety Commission (KNKT) has started its investigation into a Wings Air plane that overshot the runway at Ahmad Yani Airport in Semarang on Sunday evening.

Ahmad Yani Airport general manager Oriyo Jatmiko said the incident involving the ATR 72-600 plane, which was operated by the Lion Air subsidiary, had occurred during heavy rain and strong winds. According to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), winds reached 16 knots at that time.

The cause will be determined by the KNKT, which will look at the black box. It has already carried out its preliminary investigation, Priyo said in Semarang on Sunday night as reported by kompas.com.

He said the KNKT had taken the black box and would soon determine the cause of the accident.

(Read also: Wings Air plane overshoots runway in Semarang)

The plane, arriving from Bandung, was carrying 68 passengers and four flight crew members. All of the passengers and crew were safely evacuated from the plane.

"At 6:24 p.m., a Wings Air IW-1896 plane en route from Bandung to Semarang experienced an overshoot at Semarang during landing," Lion Air Group president director Edward Sirait said in a statement. (jun)
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Linkedin Safrin La Batu (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

The police are currently investigating social media accounts that allegedly have been spreading rumors about the influx of millions of Chinese workers into Indonesia in response to President Joko "Jokowi" Widodos call to have the people spreading the rumors caught.

The police had immediately followed up the President's instruction by probing suspected accounts on social media, said Jakarta Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Awi Setiono, after a joint press conference with National Police spokesperson Brig. Gen. Rikwanto on Monday.

"A police team has been investigating [the case] for four days now. We want to find out who first spread the rumors. We are on the suspects' trail," Awi said.

(Read also: Jokowi dismisses concerns over Chinese workers in Indonesia)

Jokowi has been irked by rumors on social media that claim some 10 million Chinese workers have been allowed to enter Indonesia. He said such rumors potentially created unnecessary hysteria within society.

Jokowi said it was illogical that the number of Chinese workers was as high as 10 million because that number was far above the number of Indonesian workers in Malaysia, which only reached 2 million. He said currently only 21,000 Chinese workers were working in Indonesia. (bbn)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

Achmad Yani International Airport in Semarang, Central Java, reopened at 7:41 a.m. on Monday after being temporarily closed following an accident involving a Wings Air plane on Sunday.

With the reopening, the normal flight schedule has resumed, airport spokesman Agus Subagio said on Monday as reported by kompas.com.

(Read also: KNKT investigates Wing Airs plane accident in Semarang)

However, Agus called on all relevant parties to remain alert and to provide a good service to passengers.

There are potential delays as a result of shifting slots because of the temporary closure earlier, he said.

The airport was closed after the plan, operated by the subsidiary Lion Air, overshot the runway as it landed in heavy rain and strong wind.

The plane has been moved to the airports Apron F to allow officers from the National Transportation Safety Commission (KNKT) to investigate the accident.

The aircrafts black box has been removed and will be examined to determine the cause of the accident.

The ART 72-600 plane, arriving from Bandung, West Java, was carrying 68 passengers and four flight crew members. All of the passengers and crew were safely evacuated from the plane. (jun)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

Four suspected terrorists, who were arrested on Sunday, had been renting a floating house at Jatiluhur reservoir in Purwakarta regency, West Java, for two days purportedly for fishing.

The four people came here on Saturday. They said they wanted to fish, the floating house owner Oman, 56, said on Monday as reported by kompas.com.

Oman claimed that he was not suspicious as the suspected terrorists brought fishing equipment like any other anglers.

So, thats why I was not suspicious. I rented the house, he said, adding the suspects also carried three backpacks.

(Read also: Alleged West Java terrorist treated at police hospital)

Oman said he visited the house on Sunday and met the suspects. Oman then accompanied two of the suspects to buy breakfast away from the reservoir. But Oman was surprised when officers from the National Polices counterterrorism squad Densus 88 raided the house few hours later.

The officers shot dead two of the men, identified as Abu Sovi, aka Abu Azis, from Bandung, West Java, and Abu Faiz from West Bandung regency and arrested the remaining two, identified as Rizal, alias Abu Marham, and Ivan Rahmat Syarif who were residents of Ngamprah, West Bandung.

Police said earlier that the suspects were believed to be planning to blow up Jatiluhur dam, one of the largest dams in the country during the Christmas and New Year Eve celebrations.

The bodies of the suspects have been sent to Bhayangkara Police Hospital in East Java for post mortem examinations.

Last week, police shot dead three suspected terrorists in South Tangerang, Banten, who were also believed to be planning to carry out acts of terrorism during the Christmas and New Year Eve celebrations. (jun)
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Linkedin Safrin La Batu (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

The four suspected terrorists apprehended on a houseboat at Jatiluhur reservoir in Purwakarta, West Java, on Sunday had planned to carry out an attack against the police during the New Year's Eve festivities, the National Police said on Monday.

National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Rikwanto said the four men had planned to carry out their attack using machetes and knives because they regarded the police as their enemy for foiling several of their attack plans.

"They consider police as thogut [people who disobey God's rules]," Rikwanto said.

On Sunday, the polices Densus 88 antiterrorism squad shot dead two suspected terrorists and arrested two others on board a houseboat at Jatiluhur reservoir in Purwakarta, West Java. The two men shot dead were identified as Abu Sovi and Abu Fais, the alleged leader of the group, while the two men arrested have been named as Rizal and Ivan Rahmat Syarif.

Police said the two suspects were shot dead because they ignored five warning shots and tried to attack officers.

The police are currently questioning Rizal and Ivan to learn more about the group.

The four suspected terrorists had planned their attack in detail with each being assigned a role. Rikwanto said two of the men were assigned to carry out the attack in a police station while the two others were to be on standby outside so the four could easily escape after the attack. (evi)
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Linkedin (Associated Press) Vatican City  Mon, December 26, 2016

The following is the Vatican's official translation of Pope's Francis' traditional "Urbi et Orbi" Christmas day message, delivered in Italian from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica Sunday:

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Happy Christmas!

Today the Church once more experiences the wonder of the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Joseph and the shepherds of Bethlehem, as they contemplate the newborn child laid in a manger: Jesus, the Savior. On this day full of light, the prophetic proclamation resounds: "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given. And the government will be upon his shoulder; and his name will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Is 9:6)

The power of this Child, Son of God and Son of Mary, is not the power of this world, based on might and wealth; it is the power of love. It is the power that created the heavens and the earth, and gives life to all creation: to minerals, plants and animals.

It is the force that attracts man and woman, and makes them one flesh, one single existence. It is the power that gives new birth, forgives sin, reconciles enemies, and transforms evil into good. It is the power of God.

This power of love led Jesus Christ to strip himself of his glory and become man; it led him to give his life on the cross and to rise from the dead. It is the power of service, which inaugurates in our world the Kingdom of God, a kingdom of justice and peace.

For this reason, the birth of Jesus was accompanied by the angels' song as they proclaimed: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased!" (Lk 2:14).

Today this message goes out to the ends of the earth to reach all peoples, especially those scarred by war and harsh conflicts that seem stronger than the yearning for peace.

Peace to men and women in the war-torn land of Syria, where far too much blood has been spilled. Particularly in Aleppo, the site of horrendous fighting in recent weeks, it is most urgent that, in respect for humanitarian law, assistance and support be guaranteed to the sorely tried civilian population, who continue to live in desperate straits and immense suffering and need. It is time for weapons to be still forever, and the international community to seek actively a negotiated solution, so that civil coexistence can be restored in the country.

Peace to the women and men of the beloved Holy Land, the land chosen and favored by God. May Israelis and Palestinians have the courage and determination to write a new page of history, where hate and revenge give way to the will to build together a future of mutual understanding and harmony.

May Iraq, Libya and Yemen - whose peoples suffer war and the brutality of terrorism - be able once again to find unity and concord.

Peace to the men and women in various parts of Africa, especially in Nigeria, where fundamentalist terrorism exploits even children in order to perpetrate horror and death. Peace in South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, so that divisions may be healed and all people of good will may strive to undertake the path of development and sharing, preferring the culture of dialogue to the mindset of conflict.

Peace to women and men who to this day suffer the consequences of the conflict in Eastern Ukraine, where there is urgent need for a common desire to bring relief to the civil population and to put into practice the commitments which have been assumed.

We implore harmony for the dear people of Colombia, which seeks to embark on a new and courageous path of dialogue and reconciliation. May such courage also motivate the beloved country of Venezuela to undertake the necessary steps to put an end to current tensions, and build together a future of hope for the whole population.

Peace to all who, in different areas, are enduring sufferings due to constant dangers and persistent injustice.

May Myanmar consolidate its efforts to promote peaceful coexistence and, with the assistance of the international community, provide necessary protection and humanitarian assistance to all those so gravely and urgently in need of it. May the Korean peninsula see the tensions it is experiencing overcome in a renewed spirit of collaboration.

Peace to all who have been injured or have suffered the loss of a loved one due to the brutal acts of terrorism that have sown fear and death in the heart of many countries and cities.

Peace - not merely the word, but real and concrete peace - to our abandoned and excluded brothers and sisters, to those who suffer hunger and to all the victims of violence.

Peace to exiles, migrants and refugees, to all those who in our day are subject to human trafficking.

Peace to the peoples who suffer because of the economic ambitions of a few, because of sheer greed and the idolatry of money, which leads to slavery.

Peace to those affected by social and economic unrest, and to those who endure the consequences of earthquakes or other natural catastrophes.

And peace to the children, on this special day on which God became a child, above all those deprived of the joys of childhood because of hunger, wars or the selfishness of adults.

Peace on earth to men and women of goodwill, who work quietly and patiently each day, in their families and in society, to build a more humane and just world, sustained by the conviction that only with peace is there the possibility of a more prosperous future for all.

Dear brothers and sisters, "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;" he is the "prince of peace." Let us welcome him!
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Linkedin Walter Sim (The Straits Times/ANN) Tokyo  Mon, December 26, 2016

There is a new shine these days to Ginza, the luxury shopping district in Tokyo named after a silver coin mint in the 1600s.

At least two new projects have sprung up this year, and three others are slated to open next year.

In March, Tokyu Plaza Ginza, which boasts an airport-style duty-free shop, was opened. This was followed by the fancy Ginza Place building, which houses the Nissan Motor showroom, in September.

Ginza's neon lights are set to shine brighter with new offerings next year, including a mega-mall touted to be the biggest in the area when it opens in April.

Before that, in March, the Printemps Ginza department store will be renamed Marronnier Gate Ginza after major renovations, while the Ginza Asahi building is due to open later next year with two floors of shops and the Hyatt Centric Hotel taking up 10 other floors.

Beyond Ginza, new malls are also on the cards in Shibuya and Ueno.

The slew of new malls is part of the city's move to jazz up its retail scene and comes as locals and tourists spend less on shopping in Japan.

A report this month by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry indicates a downward trend in retail sales, which for last year came in at 140.7 trillion yen ($1.1 trillion), down 0.4 per cent from 2014. Meanwhile, retail sales until October this year stood at 114.7 trillion yen, which is down 0.9 per cent over the same period last year.

It is not just Japan's penny-pinching millennials who are spending less, but high net-worth individuals as well. Compounding the issue is the fact that tourists are starting to spend less, although their arrivals have continued to hit new highs.

Figures from the Japan National Tourism Agency show that in the third quarter of this year, tourist receipts totalled 971.7 billion yen  a 2.9 per cent drop over the same period last year and the first such decline since 2011. Even then, tourist arrivals surged 17.1 per cent over the same period last year.

Tokyo needs to continually keep its retail scene fresh and original for shoppers, Naoki Nomura, retail industry adviser for the Japan External Trade Organisation's Invest Japan Department, told The Sunday Times. Not only do retailers have to grapple with a culture of suppressed spending, but they also face competition from other tourist markets and e-commerce.

"Depending on the price range of the product, there is a pattern of seeing things at the store and then purchasing them on the Internet. There is a lower tendency for shopping on weekends," noted Nomura. "It is not sufficient for shopping malls to only 'sell' items now, but they have to provide a total lifestyle experience that grasps and caters to customer needs."

This "total lifestyle experience" has been the focus of the new and upcoming malls in Tokyo.

Mr Kuniharu Nakamura, president of trading house Sumitomo Corporation, an investor of the new Ginza Six mega-mall that will open on April 20, recognises this. He said at a news conference that given the growth of e-commerce, shopping facilities that merely sell products now "face a tougher time".

Ginza Six will have a gross floor area of 148,700 sq m, slightly larger than Singapore's VivoCity. It will have 241 stores across 15 storeys, including 122 flagship brands. Eleven labels will be making their Japanese debut, including Kwanpen, a Singapore luxury bag brand. Besides shops, the complex will also be used for a traditional noh theatre, art shows, offices and a bus terminal.

New malls will also rise up outside Ginza. In Ueno, the redeveloped Matsuzakaya Ueno South Building is due to reopen at the end of next year, having closed in 2014. It will have a Parco department store, a cineplex and 10 floors of office space.

In Shibuya, where redevelopment works are ongoing to spruce up the district under a 10-year masterplan, the Shibuya Cast complex is set to open in spring in the trendy Cat Street. It will have 18 floors, with boutiques, cafes and restaurants, as well as shared offices, housing units and serviced apartments for travellers and a square ideal for flea markets.

All this is good news to Ryoko Shimodaira, who can spend up to 100,000 yen a month on lifestyle and fashion items. The 51-year-old, who works in finance, said the new malls will offer more diverse options. "I don't get bored because I can enjoy shopping in many different districts in Tokyo, each with its own charm and items."
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 26, 2016

A plane operated by Wings Air  a subsidiary of politically wired Rusdi Kiranas company Lion Air  overshot the runway at Ahmad Yani Airport, Semarang, on Sunday evening.

"At 6:24 p.m., a Wings Air IW-1896 plane en route from Bandung to Semarang experienced an overshoot at Semarang during landing," Lion Air Group president director Edward Sirait said in a statement.

The ATR 72-600 plane, arriving from Bandung, was carrying 68 passengers and four flight crew members. All of the passengers and crew were safely evacuated from the plane.

(Read also: Love it or hate it: Lion Air is taking off)

At the moment, he further said, it was rainy in Semarang. However, the company will have to wait for the results of the National Transportation Safety Commission's (KNKT) investigation into the incident.

Based on its latest report, the KNKT investigated 41 flight incidents in 2016, compared to only 28 incidents last year, indicating worsening conditions in the aviation industry. Todays incident increases that number to 42 cases. (ags)
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Linkedin Tama Salim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Tue, December 27 2016

Indonesia has sent back home a total of 220 of its citizens from Turkey since the beginning of 2015, following the latest deportation of three Indonesians suspected of trying to cross into Syria to join up as foreign terrorist fighters with the Islamic State (IS) group.

Lalu Muhammad Iqbal, the Foreign Ministrys director for the protection of Indonesian nationals and entities abroad, said two dozen Indonesians had been deported from Turkey throughout the year.

Twenty four people [were deported] in 2016, Iqbal told The Jakarta Post on Monday. The remaining [cases] occurred last year.

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Linkedin Indra Budiari, Syamsul Huda M. Suhari and Ganug Nugroho Adi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta/Gorontalo/Surakarta  Tue, December 27, 2016

The country celebrated a peaceful Christmas on Sunday with people sharing the joy and warmth of Christmas under the high alert of security personnel amid growing intolerance and terrorist activities shrouding the country.

In Jakarta, thousands of parishioners visited the Jakarta Cathedral on Saturday and Sunday for Christmas Mass that highlighted peace and tolerance. It was also the first time management of the church opted for Betawi-themed decorations. Churchgoers were greeted with delman (horse-drawn carriage), ondel-ondel (giant Betawi effigies) and other ornaments of Betawi culture, a Jakarta native ethnic group strongly associated with the Islamic faith.

Jakarta Archbishop Mgr. Ignatius Suharyo, who led the Christmas Mass at the cathedral on Sunday, pointed out during a press conference that ethnicity, religion and racial sentiments had emerged and stirred unease among residents. However, he expressed hope that the spirit of Christmas could contribute in bringing a sense of peace and maintaining the unity of the state.

It is time to release ourselves from negative paradigms and religious and racial sentiments, Suharyo said.

(Read also: Christmas safety guaranteed)

Christmas for all: Wearing a Santa costume, a prominent artist from Yogyakarta, Tejo Badut, stands among passers by in Malioboro, Yogyakarta, on Sunday. He holds a sign written with a popular phrase "Om Telolet Om" (sir, honk your honk, sir), which has taken the Internet by storm.(JP/Tarko Sudiarno)

Located just beside Indonesias largest mosque, Istiqlal, the two houses of worship continued their decades-long display of interfaith harmony by sharing parking lots during the Christmas service. For many years, Istiqlal employees and members of Muslim organizations were also deployed to secure the church area during Christmas and Easter.

Even though we have different beliefs to Catholic followers at the cathedral, we have a strong relationship with them. Our parking and security officers are also ready to help our brothers in the cathedral, Istiqlal public relations officer Abu Hurairah told The Jakarta Post.

Several acts of intolerance emerged prior to Christmas, including in Bandung, West Java, where churchgoers under the Spiritual Awakening Service (KKR) community had to cancel their Christmas service earlier this month following protests from Islamic hard-line groups. More recently, members of the Islam Defenders Front (FPI), escorted by the police, visited malls in Surabaya, East Java, demanding managements to follow an Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) fatwa to not ask Muslim employees to wear Christmas attributes. The intolerant acts had somewhat gained ground following large-scale protests against Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama over his allegedly blasphemous remarks.

However, the National Police previously stated that they would heighten security measures at churches throughout the country for Christmas and New Years celebrations in order to maintain security. The police had also conducted crackdowns on terrorist cells in several areas to give a reassurance of peaceful year-end celebrations.

(Read also: Bandung Mayor attends Christmas service, apologizes for intolerance)

Thousands of congregation members of Catholic Church Santa Perawan Maria Ratu Rosario Suci or the Semarang Cathedral in Central Java join the Christmas Eve service on the night of Dec. 24. (JP/Suherdjoko)

On Christmas Eve, National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian, Indonesian Military (TNI) commander Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo and Jakarta acting governor Soni Sumarsono visited several churches in Jakarta in a move to help guarantee safety during the religious activities.

Meanwhile, interfaith tolerance was high during Christmas celebrations in Banuroja village, Randangan district in Pohuwato regency, Gorontalo. Christians celebrated Christmas along with their fellow Muslims and Hindu residents in the village of 1,000 people.

A safe Christmas was also observed in Surakarta, Central Java, where thousands of parishioners celebrated Christmas with their families under high security by the police and the TNI. Dozens of security vehicles conducted patrols with personnel, guarding all the churches in the city where several alleged terrorists were arrested recently during crackdowns by the National Polices Densus 88 counterterrorism squad.

The patrols were meant to provide security to all residents, especially those celebrating Christmas, Surakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Ahmad Luthfi said.

The measures sent a stern message that Christmas safety was fully guaranteed.

We were glad the government was really hands on with the security. As the minority [group] we were happy to get protection and comfort, said churchgoer Vincent Bramantyo.
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Batam  Tue, December 27 2016

The Riau Islands Police have said the body of a Singaporean found floating in Karimun waters is that of a Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore employee.

Police spokesman Adj.Sr.Cmr. Erlangga Saptono said the Singaporean, identified as Ilzam bin Odit, died after falling as he was putting mooring rope on a boat in Singaporean waters.

On early morning of Thursday during bad weather, he fell into the ocean while he was trying to tie the rope. His fellow crew members looked for him but to no avail. It was the next day that his body was found in Karimun waters, Erlangga told The Jakarta Post.

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Linkedin Nirarta Samadhi and Simon Tay (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta/Singapore  Tue, December 27 2016

United States president-elect Donald Trump may have labeled climate change a hoax, but that has not stalled the momentum behind last months Conference of the Parties (COP 22) in Marrakech, Morocco.

Less than one year after its adoption, the Paris Agreement has entered into force, with some 175 countries already on board. The next step will be to begin implementing the commitments each country has made. In Southeast Asia in particular, a great deal of international cooperation will be required to address certain issues that transcend national boundaries.

One of the largest obstacles to climate change efforts in Southeast Asia remains Indonesias forest and peatland fires. Though these fires are perhaps most notorious as the source of the annual haze that blankets our region, the issue is not only about regional air pollution, but rightly framed as a global concern about carbon emissions.

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Linkedin Stefani Ribka (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Tue, December 27 2016

Shipments of tea, coffee and spices saw an unusual drop in November owing to the prolonged rainy season that has hurt crops amid rising prices  defying an increase in overall exports during the month.

Tea, coffee and spice exports altogether dropped 9.9 percent to US$208.5 million month-on-month (mom) to $208.5 million in November, while overall exports rose 6.04 percent to $12.39 billion.

From January to November, exports of tea, coffee and spices plunged 17.91 percent to $1.68 billion, steeper than overall exports 1.96 percent drop during the period to $118.79 billion.

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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post)  Tue, December 27 2016

Big risks are already inherent within the mining sector without policy inconsistency. But the more strategic objective of maintaining export earnings and income streams from taxes and royalties for the central and regional governments and preventing massive worker layoffs may force another inconsistency in mining policy.

The government has been considering another five-year postponement of the full-fledged enforcement of the 2009 Mining Law that requires the domestic processing (smelting) of mineral ores. This planned policy change will be the second after the one made in January 2014, when the administration of then president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, also concerned about the devastating impact of a total export ban on all mineral ores, decided to lower the purity levels of exportable mineral products.

The government in 2014 totally banned the export of nickel ore and bauxite but still allowed the export of copper concentrate and other unprocessed minerals with purity levels ranging from 15 to 62 percent subject to a progressive export tax rate of 20 percent, which gradually increased to 60 percent last July. Certainly, an export tax as high as 60 percent will make the export of semifinished minerals commercially unfeasible because not a single commodity is able to provide a profit margin of over 60 percent.

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Linkedin Aie Balagtas-See (Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN) Manila  Mon, December 26, 2016

After what happened on the night of Nov. 8, 11-year-old John Ryan and his nine siblings are spending their first Christmas as orphans.

They were all asleep when armed men barged into their shanty at the Market 3 area of the Navotas Fish Port Complex and grabbed Joaquin Garbo. The siblings saw how their father was dragged out of the house while still in his underwear.

John Ryans mother and eldest sister, aged 17, immediately went to the Station Anti-illegal Drugs (SAID) unit of the Navotas police, but the officer who faced them said Garbo wasnt there.

Yet according to Garbos sister Melody, my niece and her mother heard (Joaquins) voice at the station, pleading with the police not to hurt him.

Hours later, around 4 am, Joaquin was found dead on Kanduli Street in Barangay (village) North Bay Boulevard South, his hands tied behind his back.

An official report by PO3 Allan Joey Ogatia III said the victim died of multiple gunshots. Chief Inspector Shirleen Ballete, chief of the Northern Police District crime laboratory, said three sachets of suspected shabu (methamphetamine hydrochloride) were found in Joaquins possession.

I Will Avenge Papa

Melody, who was in Palawan province when she learned of Garbos death, admitted that her slain brother served as a drug pushers runner or courier while employed at the port as a stevedore. But more than a month after the family tragedy, she said shes most worried about John Ryan, who had become detached, brooding, and given to tears.

The boy, she said, would often say: Igaganti ko si Papa. Pinatay nila, kinuha nila; natutulog lang (I will avenge Papa. They killed him. They took him while he was asleep.

He has said that four times already, the aunt said in an interview last week. Hes just a boy and maybe he says things he doesnt really mean.

She recently saw John Ryan playing with a toy gun and aiming it at some imaginary target. She took it off his hand, telling him to stop: Thats bad!

But its just a toy, the boy replied. Its not even mine. Its just plastic  not like what they used to kill Papa. The toy gun, which the boy got from a neighbour, ended up in the trash heap.

Beyond Expectations

While the police and the media keep count of the suspects killed in the Duterte administrations six-month-old war on drugs, the number of children who have lost parents as a result remains a matter of extrapolation.

Hope Hervilla, assistant secretary for protective services at the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), could only make a conservative estimate: About 18,000, the DSWD official said in an Inquirer interview. This is beyond our expectations. We did not expect it to be this big.

Eighteen thousand children can fill up around 450 standard-size classrooms, 300 buses, or 900 jeepneys. If they are to be gathered inside Araneta Coliseum, the place would be jam-packed and about 1,500 additional seats would be required.

Grim Computation

Hervilla said she arrived at the figure by multiplying 6,000  the number of people reported killed in the drug war from July to December, assuming they are all parents  by three, which she cited as the average number of children per Filipino couple.

The latest tally released by the Philippine National Police showed that its nationwide operations have killed 2,138 drug personalities from July 1 to December 23. Going by the DSWD officials formula, this results in 6,414 children left without a parent because of police operations.

The number of deaths under investigation (DUIs) as what the PNP calls cases like Garbos  stands at 3,993 as of December 12.

States Responsibility

Hervilla said the DSWD would start collating data about the drug war orphans this January. An interagency meeting is set to discuss the childrens needs, the official said, as she acknowledged that there is still no government programme specifically designed for such orphans.

The children, they are the states responsibility, Hervilla stressed.

Danilo Tuazon, a forensic neuro-psychologist and psychology professor, said such minors need immediate care and psychological intervention, especially if they saw how their parents were killed.

Immediate means treatment should start right after the killing, habang nakaratay pa magulang nila (while the parents wake is ongoing). The children need to immediately understand what happened.

It should include anger management and stress debriefing so the child may eventually cope, Tuazon said. Without it, the damage will last a lifetime.

How do you tell a child that his or her parents were killed because of drug pushing but at the same time tell the kid that killing is wrong?

Children in the prepubescent stage are most fragile, he stressed. It is during this time that their brains are being wired on what they should become or how they should view society.

They Will Never Be Okay

At first they would seem okay, of course, because they are kids  but they are not okay. They will never be okay. Chances are they would nurse deep anger inside their hearts and it would affect them as they grow up.

Told of John Ryans story, Tuazon sees a big possibility of retaliation, but explained that its the normal reaction when you are in deep pain and angry. When youre suffering, you want others to feel your pain, too.

Orphans like them may need a new environment to fully recover, he said.

Which is what Melody, John Ryans aunt, had in mind for her 10 nieces and nephews. She wanted all of them out of their neighbourhood, blaming it for their fathers involvement in drugs and his violent death.

Time to Leave Town

With the familys main breadwinner gone, John Ryan was forced to find work as a harvester of mussels (tahong) in Navotas. But on December 22, Melody finally decided he should no longer remain there after the boy was caught stealing fish from one of the trucks at the port.

When scolded, the boy explained that he just wanted to help feed his siblings.

With a friends help, Melody was able to secure a space for the boy on a ship going to Palawan. He was crying when we left. He kept asking me: Who will feed my brothers and sisters?

Thanks to another relative, three of the Garbo siblings are spending Christmas in Masbate province, while two had been adopted by one of the Garbos neighbours in Navotas.

Melody said she hopes to return this January for John Ryans three younger sisters  aged 12, 7 and 4  and move them to Palawan as well.

As to their widowed mother, Melody said she too urgently needs counselling. I cant even talk to her properly anymore.

Still at the Navotas fish port community, the Inquirer also encountered Sam, a 12-year-old boy who last saw his mother on the day she was arrested along with several other residents for alleged drug peddling. The woman died of sickness while in jail.

Can We Watch Tokhang?

Sam wants to be a policeman someday so he can discipline the force.

As the interview ended and this reporter was about to leave, Sam suddenly started singing a Christmas carol, swaying his head to his own tune. This was the same boy who had just confided that I dont cry anymore, that he had shed his last tears at his mothers funeral.

Beside Sam was a 9-year-old playmate who had watched the interview. This other boy noticed this reporters smartphone and asked: Ate, can we watch Tokhang on your phone?

Oplan Tokhang refers to the PNP campaign that has compelled thousands of suspected drug users and pushers to surrender and be registered so they can be referred for rehabilitation and other government interventions.

Many surrenderers, however, would later die  either at the hands of the police or unidentified gunmen. The 9-year-old apparently had this in mind, where Tokhang had taken a different meaning: Its fun watching people get shot and fall dead.

This article appeared on the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
The Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerces Executive Public Policy Committee released a statement congratulating Jason Dov Greenblatt Esq. upon his appointment as special representative for international negotiations in the Trump administration, with a special focus on the Middle East peace process and Cuba policy.

Mr. Greenblatt, an Orthodox Jewish father of six who resides in Teaneck, has worked for Mr. Trump for nearly twenty years, and currently serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of The Trump Organization.

The statement read:

Over the past year, the Chamber has had the fortune of developing a close personal relationship with Mr. Greenblatt, and weve held high level meetings with him in Trump Tower throughout the presidential campaign to discuss pertinent issues. Mr. Greenblatt also delivered a special address at the Chambers 2016 J-Biz Expo and Business Conference.

During all our interactions, weve seen firsthand a man of incredible character, wisdom, experience and compassion towards his fellow Jews. May Hashem bless Jason and his family with success in this consequential new endeavor. We are confident that Jason will be a tremendous asset to the Trump administration, and we look forward to continue working together on issues of importance to the Jewish community and its economic success.

[TLS]
A Syrian refugee who started learning English in 2014 has scored extremely high in Australias school leaver exams.

Saad Al-Kassab, 18, and his brother Omar fled the city of Homs in Syria to the safety of Melbourne and less than two years later, Saad scored 96.65 in his Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) exam results  the highest in his school. The top rank achievable is 99.95.

Saad and Omar recently gave a TEDx talk in Canberra where they spoke about their journey to Australia from war-torn Syria. They also talked extensively about an English-Arabic dictionary which was their fathers and the importance it holds in their lives.

According to ABC News Australia, Saad, who is a long-term member of the Scout movement, has been offered a scholarship at Monash University. In a video from Scouts Victoria, the brothers describe the movement as their second family.

Also in the video, Omar describes his capture and torture at the hands of the Syrian regime, his familys escape to Lebanon, then Egypt, and the eventual granting of visas to move to Australia.
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Girl, 14, suffers minor injuries after pickup plunges into Phuket canal

PHUKET: A 14-year-old girl suffered minor injuries when the pickup truck she was travelling in plunged into a canal in Koh Kaew on Saturday night ( Dec 24). The driver and two other passengers walked away from the accident without injury.

accidentshealthpolicetransport

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Monday 26 December 2016, 11:31AM

The driver of the pickup told police that when she drove round a badly lit bend she lost control of her vehicle and crashed into the canal. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

The driver of the pickup told police that when she drove round a badly lit bend she lost control of her vehicle and crashed into the canal. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

The driver of the pickup told police that when she drove round a badly lit bend she lost control of her vehicle and crashed into the canal. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Phuket City Police were notified by the Kusoldharm Foundation at 8pm on Saturday that a pickup truck had crashed into a canal in Koh Kaew with four people inside the vehicle.

Col Santi Pragobpan of the Phuket City Traffic Police went to the scene, on the BangkuNanai Rd which runs behind Land and House, Koh Kaew, to find a black pickup truck lying on its side in the canal.

Police were told that a 14-year-old girl had suffered minor injuries in the crash and had been taken to Phuket International Hospital. The driver and two other passengers escaped uninjured.

The driver of the pickup truck, named by police as Ponthida, told police that she was driving to Thalang and wanted to avoid traffic in Koh Keaw so took the back route.

She said that when she drove round a badly lit bend she lost control of her vehicle and crashed into the canal.

Locals residents who witnessed the accident assisted in getting the driver and passengers out of the vehicle.

It took rescue workers around an hour to remove the vehicle from the canal using a crane.

Police are still investigating the incident to see whether any charges will be pressed.
Indians arrested on murder charges

BANGKOK: Police have arrested a wealthy Indian businessman and his associate in Bangkoks Pratunam area for allegedly being behind the sensational murder of a business rival back home in October.

crimeimmigrationmurderviolencepolice

By Bangkok Post

Monday 26 December 2016, 09:00AM

Wealthy Indian stevedoring tycoon Mahimananda Mishra (left and right, above) and an accused accomplice were arrested over a sensational murder in Odisha. Photo: Bangkok Post

Mahimananda Mishra, the 63-year-old owner of Orissa Stevedores Limited, which provides labour for the loading and unloading of cargo  stevedoreing  at Indias eastern port of Paradip, and the firms director Basanta Kumar Bal, 69, were arrested at Amari Watergate Hotel yesterday (Dec 25).

The pair are wanted under arrest warrants issued by an Indian court for premeditated murder and illegal possession of firearms and explosives.

The charges in India allege Mr Mishra and others organised large armed gangs of up to 20 members to intimidate or murder business rivals in the docking business.

Mr Mishra is extremely wealthy, and his firm owns a private plane.

Immigration Bureau Chief Nathathorn Prousoontorn said his agency was notified by Indian authorities and Interpol about the arrival of the suspects in Thailand.

The pair travelled from Nepal to Thailand on 15-day tourist visas.

The two came with their family members along with five or six bodyguards, Lt Gen Nathathorn said, noting the group was comprised of about 10 people.

Shortly after being notified, investigators were deployed to track the group in Chonburi and when their arrest warrants were sent from India, officers captured them at the hotel, he said.

During the arrest, the two conceded they were the subjects of the arrest warrants, Lt Gen Nathathorn said, adding the pair will be deported to India today (Dec 26).

Their family members also told officers they wanted to return to India with the suspects, he said.

Information about their bodyguards will also be sought for the deportation.

The suspects will have their visas revoked on the grounds they could pose a risk to society and will be blacklisted from entering Thailand, he said.

As the festive New Year approaches, the bureau is stepping up efforts to keep out people with dubious backgrounds to ensure peace and security, the bureau chief said.

Lt Gen Nathathorn said Mr Mishra is believed to have at least 50 gunmen under his control and Mr Bal is his close aide.

On Oct 26, Mahendra Swain, an executive of Seaways Shipping and Logistics Limited (SSL), was killed in a gun and bomb attack, which also left scores injured.

According to Indian media outlets, the business conflict started in April last year, when Jindal Steel and Power Ltd cancelled its stevedoring contract with Mr Mishra at the port and awarded it to a consortium of three companies, including the Hyderabad-based SSL.

The three firms then formed the separate Utkal Stevedores Association to challenge Mr Mishras Paradip Port Stevedores Association, which had controlled all cargo operations at the port for more than three decades.

The challenge is believed to have riled Mr Mishra as Paradip port is Indias second-largest, which handles 76 million tonnes of cargo a year.

In October, SSL was awarded a two-year contract from the Steel Authority of India Ltd to handle 800,000 metric tonnes of limestone imports at Paradip port.

This is believed to have triggered the murder.

It was found that Swain had sought protection from Paradip Police before his murder.

Lt Gen Nathathorn said the perpetrators who hurled the bomb and opened fire at Swain had been arrested and they claimed the two suspects nabbed by Thai police hired them.

The pair fled from India to Nepal before entering Thailand on Dec 20, he said.

Officers are still on the lookout for others believed to have fled to Thailand with the pair, the bureau chief said.

Read original story here.
Phuket Governor repeats warning to illegal hotels: register, or face legal action

PHUKET: The Governor of Phuket, Chockchai Dejamornthan, has reiterated his warning to operators illegally providing accommodation to tenants for periods of 30 days or less to register by January 31 or face legal action.

tourismconstructioneconomicscrime

By The Phuket News

Monday 26 December 2016, 09:18AM

Phuket Governor Chockchai Dejamornthan warned illegal hotels ro register by January 31, or face legal action. Photo: PR Dept

The warning came in an official notice issued by the Phuket Provincial Office yesterday (Dec 23).

Gov Chockchai noted that so far 300 illegal operators had registered since the January 31 deadline was handed down earlier this month. (See story here.)

However, he also pointed out that a provincial investigative committee had identified a total of 1,366 venues illegally providing short-term rentals.

The same committee noted that only 424 hotels on the island were operating legally, he added.

All illegal accommodations must be registered by January 31, 2017 and begin renovations so their properties can be legally registered in accordance with the the Hotel Act of 2004, Gov Chockchai said.

If any of them dont follow the provincial notice within the deadline, they will face legal action, he warned.

The deadline to register properties as hotels follows the Ministry of Interior on August 19 issuing a new regulation to make it easier for more property owners to obtain a hotel license.

The regulation  called the Ministerial Regulation Prescribing Descriptions of Other Types of Building Used for a Hotel Business Operation 2016 under the Building Control Act (1979)  will remain in effect for five years.

However, it applies only to buildings that existed before it came into force and whose owners desire to use the property as Hotel as defined by the Hotel Act. (See story here.)
Phuket motorists stop for yellow

PHUKET: Hundreds of people over the weekend pulled up along the bypass road to walk among a field of yellow flowers in full bloom planted to honour the late HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej and to welcome visitors to Phuket.

agriculturenatural-resourcestourism

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Monday 26 December 2016, 04:15PM

Hundreds of have stopped by to enjoy the field of yellow in full bloom. Photo: Alan Buchi

Piyaporn Udomsub planted the flowers so they would bloom for Christmas and New Year as a gift to people and visitors  and to honour HM Bhumibol Adulyadej. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Hundreds of have stopped by to enjoy the field of yellow in full bloom. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Hundreds of have stopped by to enjoy the field of yellow in full bloom. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Hundreds of have stopped by to enjoy the field of yellow in full bloom. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Hundreds of have stopped by to enjoy the field of yellow in full bloom. Photo: Alan Buchi

Piyaporn Udomsub who owns the 22-rai plot, explained that the flowers planted are sun hemp, known as Por Turng in Thai.

I planted these flowers about three months ago, so they would bloom for Christmas and New Year as a gift to people and visitors  and to honour HM Bhumibol Adulyadej, she said.

The flowers have grown naturally, without the use of any chemicals or soil additives, she added.

I am very glad that lots of people have come to see them. It makes me very happy that people are so interested to stop and enjoy them

All are welcome to come and take a look  and photos. There is no entry fee and the flowers should remain in bloom for a couple of months, Ms Piyaporn said.
Phuket Prison releases 147 inmates for Christmas under royal pardon

PHUKET: Phuket Prison released 174 prisoners for good behaviour yesterday, Christmas morning (Dec 25), under a royal pardon gifted by HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun.

crime

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Monday 26 December 2016, 11:45AM

Family and friends wait outside Phuket Prison for their loved ones to be released. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Officers process the 130 male and 17 female prisoners for release from Phuket Prison. All inmates freed under the pardon were serving light sentences only. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Officers process the 130 male and 17 female prisoners for release from Phuket Prison. All inmates freed under the pardon were serving light sentences only. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Officers process the 130 male and 17 female prisoners for release from Phuket Prison. All inmates freed under the pardon were serving light sentences only. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Children and a prison guard wait at the gate for the inmates to walk beyond the walls to freedom. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

The 130 male and 17 female prisoners released were welcomed by hundreds of friends and family members waiting outside the prison gate, Prison Director Somkid Khamang explained.

They embraced each other and wept with joy, he added.

The mass release of the inmates was a gift from HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn after he ascended the throne in November, Chief Somkid noted.

He also pointed out that the the inmates released were light offenders only.

All the prisoners released were handed down sentences of no more than one third of the maximum penalty, he noted.

And nearly all them were serving short sentences for drugs, light criminal offences, sex offences and theft, Chief Somkid added.

However, none of those released from Phuket Prison were foreigners, he noted.

Under the decree announcing the royal pardon, eligible inmates are those sentenced to no more than three months in jail for minor offences, prisoners who do community or public service instead of paying fines, and prisoners released on parole, as well as the disabled and blind, those suffering from cancer, leprosy, HIV, chronic kidney failure, mental disorders, and first-time prisoners who are not 20 years of age on the day the decree comes into effect.

Around 100,000 prisoners nationwide qualified for the royal pardon, as announced on Dec 11, with 30,000 likely to be released. The other 70,000 will see their sentences reduced. (See story here.)

Meanwhile, there are currently 1,590 inmates still incarcerated at the prison, Chief Somkid noted.
Rousing start to the Sydney to Hobart yacht race

AUSTRALIA: The great race is underway. The 2016 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, featuring an international fleet of 88 yachts, commenced at 1pm local time on a perfect Sydney summers day.



By The Phuket News

Monday 26 December 2016, 05:21PM

Jen Kellinghusens Ker 56 Varuna is one of 12 overseas entries taking part in the 2016 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race. Photo: Rolex

Maxi CQS (right) heels over as the Maxis start to pass through Sydney Heads. Photo: Rolex

Current record holder Wild Oats XI is harbouring ambitions of arriving first in Hobart and claiming line honours as fastest finisher. Photo: Rolex

The combination of excellent weather conditions, the sight of the competing yachts sailing full force under spinnaker on the passage through Sydney Heads, and shorelines packed with spectators, set the scene for one of the more memorable race starts in recent times.

The fleet comprises four 100-ft Maxis  CQS, Perpetual LOYAL, Scallywag and Wild Oats XI  all harbouring the ambition of arriving first in Hobart and claiming line honours as fastest finisher. Their hopes have been boosted by the promise of strong conditions.

We are excited by the forecast and that records may be challenged, revealed John Markos, Commodore of organisers the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia (CYCA).

Of the Maxis, Perpetual LOYAL was first to clear Sydney Heads and gain an early psychological advantage over her rivals. In close pursuit was the 80-ft Beau Geste and Seng Huang Lees 100-ft Hong Kong entry Scallywag.

Fourth to pass the Heads was eight-time line honours winner Wild Oats XI who recovered impressively after an uncharacteristically sluggish start. Given the heavy conditions forecast and need for extra weight on board, Wild Oats XI is carrying a record crew of 22 sailors.

All four Maxis are going to have their moments, explained Wild Oats XI skipper Mark Richards.

We dont know the history of CQS as she is new with a radical design. The Scallywag team have done a lot of yachting this year, their teamwork is good, and they are a different animal to what we have raced against in the last few editions. Perpetual LOYAL are a great team with more talent onboard this year, he added.

Anthony Bell, owner/skipper of Perpetual LOYAL, was in a confident frame of mind as he prepared for the start. I think one of the Maxis will break the race record. A lot will come down to what happens when we reach the Tasman coast but a time just inside the current race record is likely, he predicted.

Ludde Ingvall has twice won Rolex Sydney Hobart line honours, the last time some 12 years ago on the original version of his current yacht. His much revamped CQS has provided great intrigue. Of the Maxis, CQS suffered the most difficult start and she now finds herself playing catch up as the fleet travel down the New South Wales coast of the Tasman Sea.

The current race record stands at the 1 day, 18 hours, 23 minutes and 12 seconds set by Wild Oats XI in 2012.

While the focus during the early hours of the race is on line honours, the contest for the races most significant prize, overall victory on race handicap, is the principle target for the competing yachts.

Andrew Saies, owner of the 40-ft Two True, won the Rolex Sydney Hobart in 2009 and is returning this year after following the last few editions from the comfort of dry land.

The weather forecast points to a great sail, but perhaps not ideal for our size of boat. To win this race you need a set of particular conditions to come together for your boat to win. Its extremely hard to win this race.

The fleet is rich and diverse, featuring yachts as small as 30-ft, seasoned campaigners setting personal records and those like the predominantly Swedish-crewed Matador, taking part for the first time.

It has taken a year of preparation and a great challenge getting everything sorted, revealed owner Jonas Grander. This is a legendary race and one weve read about so many times. Its my dream to take part.

The final number of starters was confirmed as 88 following the late withdrawal of Jason Bonds Beneteau 47.7, Enigma.
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In-Room VDO
Six years ago, Mark Prokschs life took a Hollywood fairy tale turn. The writers for The Office saw the viral videos in which he punked local news shows by portraying supposed yo-yo master Kenny K-Strass Strasser, who actually had no yo-yo skills. He got the call-up from The Office, enlisted to portray Nate, the new maintenance man at Dunder Mifflin.

To start with, Proksch expected hed be on The Office for four episodes or so, but he went on to appear in at least 19 episodes from 2010 to the shows finale in 2013, and his career as an actor has taken on a decidedly upward arc since then. Among the couple dozen roles hes had in TV series, specials and movies, hes been in three episodes of AMCs Better Call Saul and has been on most episodes of Foxs new Sunday night comedy, Son of Zorn, playing Todd, an office co-worker of Zorn, an animated, sword-wielding He-Man-like character trying to adapt to life in suburban Orange County, Calif.

And things are on the verge of breaking even bigger for Proksch, an Onalaska High School graduate.

When he was reached by phone recently to chat about Son of Zorn and the other adventures hes had since 2010, Proksch mentioned that he had just finished editing the pilot episode of a sitcom he wrote and stars in for Comedy Central.

The show has a working title of Terry, named for the main character, a man who gains viral fame on the web and moves to Los Angeles to parlay that fame into a career. Sound familiar? Wait, theres a twist.

The show, Proksch explained, takes place five years after Terrys initial moment in the sun and his hoped-for fame and fortune have failed to materialize. Hes left floundering, trying to figure out what to do to get another taste of that celebrity status. Its sort of an alternate version of Prokschs own story, a version that corresponds more closely with reality than what happened to him.

There are so many real viral video stars that are, for lack of a better word, morons, Proksch said. These internet celebrities quickly fade from view. Theyre kind of left alone, wondering what just happened.

While there might be some basic parallels between Prokschs story and the situation in Terry, the lead character in the sitcom is quite unlike Proksch, who oozes humility, gratitude, good sense and good cheer.

Terry, Proksch said, is an arrogant idiot. He thinks hes just one phone call away from achieving stardom again. He has a little bit of Quixote in him and is quite delusional in his own way.

Its a cautionary comedy, a reminder that theres no easy path to the kind of success Proksch has had in Hollywood. Talent, preparation, intelligence, hard work and persistence all factor in somehow, but theres also an element of dumb luck, meeting the right people and clicking with them, being available at the right time, treating people with respect.

Ive been more fortunate than a lot of people who come out to L.A., Proksch said. Ive been really fortunate. Im not being falsely modest. A lot of it is having a lot of good friends who help you when you need it or being at the right audition at the right time. Im very lucky that people find me amusing.

Foot in the door

For Proksch, theres no question that The Office was huge for him. For one thing, he married one of the writers, Amelie Gillette, whom he had known before his K-Strass videos went viral, when she was writing for The Onion.

He also made a lot of friends among the cast of The Office, something he wasnt sure would happen. After all, bringing a new character into a show could only mean less screen time for existing characters, but Proksch said he found no territoriality and everybody was great to work with. Proksch clicked especially well with Rainn Wilson, who played Dwight.

Rainn has been a real champion of mine, Proksch said. He was so welcoming and warm. They were all very nice.

In fact, Proksch said, contrary to what many might think, there arent a lot of difficult people in show business. If youre difficult, you dont get far. I havent had to work with anyone who was rude or disrespectful or had ego issues, he said.

Personal connections really help, and there was an especially personal connection for Son of Zorn as Gillette is one of the shows writers. Not that him being on the show was all her doing.

Proksch said the creators of the show wanted him for the role of Todd even before Gillette was hired as a writer, but he couldnt be a regular on the show because he was under contract to Comedy Central for Terry. However, they persisted and found a way to get him for Zorn by making him a guest star.

This arrangement has meant less character development for Prokschs role because the writers dont know if Proksch will have to jump ship if his own show gets picked up by Comedy Central. Still, its been fun for Proksch and a new acting challenge in his scenes with the animated Zorn, who is voiced by former Saturday Night Live cast member Jason Sudeikis, who records his dialogue on the other side of the country in New York. A lot of times, all Proksch has to interact with in his scenes is a piece of tape, indicating where Zorns eyes would be.

Acting with a green screen is really fun and interesting, Proksch said. You act to nothing, really. You pretend theres someone there, which is fun and kind of challenging.

Fox bought 13 episodes of Son of Zorn for the first season and Proksch is eagerly awaiting word that it has been picked up for a second season, and not only for his role. If the show is renewed, his wife gets to keep her writing gig, too.

If the show comes back, which were all hoping, hopefully Todd will have a little larger part, Proksch said.

Its a really fun show to work on and its a great concept, he added. I think they really hit their stride with the show. I think theyve hit it on the head. Theyre able to take on topics because of Zorns Zephyrian nationality, topics of race and sex, in ways you really havent seen before.

The big show

Of course, if Comedy Central decides to produce Terry, Proksch is not going to have time for Todd. Proksch already has beaten the odds by, first, getting Comedy Central to buy his script, and, second, getting the network to pay for filming the pilot. He estimated only 10 percent of the scripts Comedy Central buys actually have pilot episodes made.

Comedy Central bought a script from Proksch before and made it into a pilot but didnt end up going anywhere with it, so he knows very well that he doesnt have his show yet. Comedy Central has six months to make a decision, during which time the network will test screen the show and weigh the potential market for Terry.

On the plus side, Comedy Central got a great director for the pilot and Proksch thinks the pilot got a great production. In any case, Proksch said, he enjoys working with the people at Comedy Central. Theyre very friendly with your creative choices, he said. It doesnt always mean that theyll pick it up, of course, but they had enough confidence to put in the money to make our silly show.

Besides the potential for more episodes of Son of Zorn, Proksch is still hoping he might get written back into Better Call Saul, a Breaking Bad spinoff on AMC. His character, Pryce, is an IT guy for a pharmaceutical company who steals inventory to sell on the black market, enlisting Breaking Bad character Mike Ehrmantraut (played by Jonathan Banks, who looks a bit like Prokschs high school principal, Paul Neman) as his muscle. Pryce has been used in Better Call Saul as a sort of comic relief, as his cluelessness is laughable.

Id really like to go back because its such a fun show. I wasnt killed, which is always a good sign, said Proksch, who got some Emmy Award consideration in the guest star category for his portrayal of Pryce. It was very nice of AMC to put me up for that. None of this is really making sense to me.

Proksch auditioned for a different character early in the first season of Better Call Saul, which he didnt get, but he made a good enough impression that they called him back for the Pryce role.

Roles have come to Proksch in all kinds of ways. For the episode of Portlandia he was in, the shows executive producer and director had worked with him on an episode of Kroll Show and had Proksch in mind from the beginning.

In Portlandia, he plays a tax lawyer and the boyfriend of the shows star, Carrie Brownstein, who thought a tax lawyer would be a great choice of boyfriend because she was tired of dating musicians. Prokschs character, naturally, has a strong desire to play bass guitar in a band and Brownstein recruits real-life music stars St. Vincent and Duff McKagan (original bassist for Guns n Roses) to talk him out of it.

That was neat because I love the show and Im a big fan of Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein, Proksch said.

Other highlights of Prokschs last six years of acting include appearances on Modern Family, New Girl, Eagleheart, Drunk History, Bobs Burgers, Dream Corp LLC, Decker, On Cinema, Hello Ladies, TripTank, Marry Me, Selfie, Comedy Bang! Bang! and several TV movies.

Hes especially excited about an indie movie project, Another Evil, which should be released sometime in 2017.

I play kind of a very troubled moron exorcist who comes to a guys house to get rid of the ghost but then ends up staying there needing a friend. When the guy tries to get rid of me, I end up having a breakdown. Its kind of dark but kind of funny, Proksch said.

Im proud of that movie, he continued. I think we created something new, something of a twist on horror movies on the independent scale that we havent seen yet.

Prokschs work as K-Strass on The Office was directly responsible for him getting cast in Another Evil, which was filmed two years ago in Arizona and was shown last spring at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas. The movies writer was a fan and sought him out, and it turned out that the writers manager was a good friend of Proksch and Gillette, which made things even easier.

Thats just another illustration of how good things have come to Proksch in unexpected ways, and hes deeply grateful for the chances hes gotten to do what he dreamed of doing as a kid. He put the dream on the back burner for a while, working at a bank in San Francisco before moving back to the Midwest and getting involved in the Found Footage Festival, which led to K-Strass and opened the hidden door.

Its been incredibly fun. Im getting to do what I always wanted to do but I didnt know how to get to do it, Proksch said. There is no road map and there is no formula, and a lot of people dont want to hear that. You work hard and you keep going and people will take notice if you have something to offer.
Southern Wisconsin is under a wind advisory from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, with gusts expected up to 45 miles per hour, according to forecasters.

Strong southwest to west winds will develop at 20-30 mph and gust to 40-45 mph as a strong low pressure producing a blizzard and ice storm for much of the northern Great Plains moves north of Lake Superior, the National Weather Service said.

The Associated Press reported in this story that the storm forced authorities to close vast stretches of highways in the Dakotas, including Interstates 90 and 94, and also caused widespread power outages in the Dakotas, Nebraska and western Iowa.

Bismarck Police Chief Dan Donlin issued a no travel advisory for the North Dakota capital, where stranded vehicles blocked roadways and intersections.

In Madison on Monday, theres a 20 percent chance of precipitation in the form of isolated showers before 7 a.m., patchy fog giving way to mostly sunny skies, and a high near 44 by 9 a.m. then falling to around 32 during the remainder of the day as southwest winds blow at 20 to 25 mph in the afternoon and gust as high as 45 mph., the Weather Service said

The overnight low should fall to around 21, with winds gusting as high as 40 mph before falling to 10 to 15 mph.

Tuesday should be partly sunny, with a high near 28 and west winds at 10 to 15 mph.

Mostly quiet weather should follow, with the Weather Service predicting just a 20 percent chance for show Thursday from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. as 2016 ends.

Skies over Madison should be partly sunny Wednesday, mostly cloudy Thursday, mostly sunny Friday, mostly cloudy Saturday, and mostly sunny on New Year's Day, with highs near 39, 31, 27, 33 and 30, and lows Wednesday night through New Years Eve around 27, 18, 20 and 20.

27 Storm Track meteorologist Star Derry also forecasts winds gusting as high as 45 mph on Monday, then quiet weather for the next week, with some flurries Thursday, possible flurries Saturday, and rain showers next Monday, with highs near 43, 32, 37, 29, 29, 34, 32 and 45, and overnight lows around 21, 22, 25, 17, 24, 21, 31 and 22.

Sundays high in Madison was 37 at 11:59 p.m., 9 degrees above the normal high and 19 degrees below the record high of 56 for Dec. 25, set in 1982.

Sundays low in Madison was 32 at 7:27 a.m., 19 degrees above the normal low and 53 degrees above the record low of 21 below for Dec. 25, set in 2000.

Officially, 0.28 inches of precipitation was recorded at the Dane County Regional Airport on Sunday, boosting Madisons December and meteorological winter (December through February) precipitation total (rain plus snow converted to liquid) to 1.92 inches, 0.44 inches above normal. For the year, Madison has received 45.45 inches of precipitation, 11.23 inches above normal.

Madisons record precipitation for Dec. 25 is 0.67 inches in 1876.

With no snow on Sunday, Madisons December and meteorological winter total stayed at 22.7 inches, 11.7 inches above normal. For the snow season (since July 1), Madisons total stayed at 22.7 inches, 7.6 inches above normal.

Madisons snow depth is 7 inches.

Madisons record snowfall for Dec. 25 is 4.8 inches, set in 1950.
After 20 years as the Codington County auditor, Cindy Brugman retires

Codington County Auditor Cindy Brugman will see through one more election night ballot count before passing her title down to Brenda Hanten.
The number of local businesses and community organizations supporting Madison public schools through an adopt-a-school program reached an all-time high this year.

There are now 70 partners in the program, with some of them adopting more than one school, said Mary Bartzen of the nonprofit Foundation for Madisons Public Schools, which started the program in 2008. The district has 50 schools.

This was a particularly strong year for the program, with 21 new partners coming on board, Bartzen said. That compares to 13 new partners in 2015.

The value of the partnerships could be seen Wednesday at Black Hawk Middle School, 1402 Wyoming Way. A deafening roar erupted from students during an assembly as a giant check for $62,743 was presented to the school.

The money came from Great Lakes Higher Education Corp., which is in its third year of adopting both Gompers Elementary School and Black Hawk. The two schools share a North Side campus.

In the first year of the partnership, Great Lakes gave $68,000 toward new playground equipment for the campus. The second year, the company donated $64,171 to help renovate the Gompers library.

The amount of money Great Lakes donates to the schools each year matches the amount the companys Madison employees contribute to the community through the annual United Way of Dane County campaign.

This years money will be used by Black Hawk to transform seven classrooms into what are called flexible, active learning spaces, said Jamie Sims, the schools assistant principal. In February, Black Hawk will be among the next wave of schools to get Chromebook laptops for each student through the districts technology plan. That news also brought cheers at the assembly.

The Great Lakes money will pay for technology-related furniture, such as movable tables and chairs, that will promote opportunities for collaboration, creativity and discovery, Sims said.

(The people at Great Lakes) dont see you every day, but they care about you every day, and they care about your education, Sims told the students at the assembly.

He said Great Lakes gives many thousands of dollars more each year in donated school supplies and snacks.

Partners in the adopt-a-school program represent all segments of the community, Bartzen said, including businesses, faith-based organizations, government agencies and service groups. Partners added this year include Blackhawk Church (Falk Elementary School), WEA Trust (Nuestro Mundo Community School), and Madison-Kipp Corp. (East High School).

Each partner is asked to make a commitment of at least one year and to make a contribution of some sort, whether human, financial or material, Bartzen said. A financial donation is not a requirement for participation, she said.

Partners provide many things, such as tutors, mentors, in-kind donations, guest speakers, lunch buddies and off-site space for occasional school-related functions.

The small things are just as important as the big things, Bartzen said. It really is all about developing long-term relationships. If a financial piece is possible, thats wonderful, but a donation of the size given by Great Lakes is not the norm.

For more information on adopting a school or donating to the foundation, go to fmps.org.
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Late next month, the brainchild of a team of UW-Madison students will be loaded into a trailer and driven across country to a site south of Los Angeles, home to the headquarters of tech titan Elon Musk's company, SpaceX.

The 12-foot-long vehicle, which looks like a cross between a NASCAR racer and a walking pill bug, will be strapped onto an accelerator and thrown down a mile-long vacuum tube at speeds that will top out over 200 mph. A complex propulsion system that was built on campus will use an array of magnets to levitate the vehicle and keep it from losing speed. And at the end of the run, its brakes and a set of Goodyear tires will bring it to a stop, one mile and about 30 seconds after the trip began.

The high-speed run will be the culmination of months of work by more than 150 UW-Madison students, whose efforts could help bring Musk's idea for a Hyperloop  a revolutionary transportation system that would whisk people and freight around the country at hundreds of miles per hour  closer to reality.

Judges from SpaceX, the space transportation company Musk founded to one day enable people to live on other planets, will evaluate how the UW team's pod performed, comparing it to vehicles built by groups from colleges across the country and around the world.

David Van Veen, the president of Badgerloop, as the UW team is called, can remember hearing about Musk's Hyperloop concept when he introduced it in 2013. But while the senior engineering student from McFarland thought the idea was interesting  supporters say it could revolutionize transportation as we know it  Van Veen hardly considered the Hyperloop something he might play a role in creating.

"There's no way that I could actually help to build something like that," he said. "That's just a crazy idea."

But that's exactly what the Badgerloop team  and Musk  hope they will do.

Although the Tesla Motors CEO and PayPal executive introduced the concept, Musk hasn't actually gone about developing a Hyperloop system himself. Instead, he has opened up his idea to anyone who wants to go about creating it, and several companies not affiliated with SpaceX or its founder have sought to do just that  with varying levels of success.

In 2015, SpaceX invited college students and engineering teams to design and build their own Hyperloop pods, with the goal of "helping accelerate development of a functional Hyperloop prototype," the company said.

'Shooting for the stars'

A group of engineering students at UW-Madison answered the call that summer and founded Badgerloop.

Since then, the UW group has grown to include engineers, business students and a marketing team. Members have sold sponsorships and struck agreements with companies for equipment and financial support; developed virtual reality experiences to show the public what their transportation system could one day look like; and built the pod itself, a process that involved perfecting equipment to function while hurtling through a vacuum at high speed.

Badgerloop did not receive student organization funding for the project, Van Veen said. And while the group has a faculty adviser and members sought help from other professors to build the pod, Badgerloop was led by full-time students, most of them undergraduates.

At a SpaceX competition last January, the design concepts for Badgerloop's pod placed third among international competition, losing out to teams from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.

Calling to mind the showy product launches of Silicon Valley, the students revealed their carbon-fiber prototype pod Dec. 6 at the Wisconsin Institutes of Discovery with a dramatic video and professional lighting.

"You're shooting for the stars with a project like this," said Jon Barker, who helped design the pod's power systems.

Next test in summer

The SpaceX competition weekend Jan. 27-29 in Hawthorne, California, will be the first test run for Badgerloop's pod.

Members are hoping for a good showing there, Van Veen said, and are already planning for the next phase of SpaceX's competition: This summer, the company will hold another round of test runs to see who can design the fastest pod. The UW team will build a lightweight prototype that they hope makes their 200-mph run in January seem downright sluggish.

Members say they're excited to work on a project that could one day take travelers from Madison to Chicago in less than 30 minutes. And for now, they're also happy to have spent time applying the skills from their classes to a real-world product.

"Being able to physically build and test those components is something that you would never see in a classroom," said Eric Amikam, one of Badgerloop's co-founders. "That has been by far the most valuable experience."
LETTER: Instead of dropping 'The Ode,' find another way to honour Labrador

Many writers to the Telegram have chimed in, some with vitriol, on the decision by MUN not to sing "The Ode to Newfoundland" at the recent or future graduation convocations. I am astonished, however, at the number who see no problem with changing its ...
But the tribe has a long way to go
Ahead of Vibrant Gujarat 2017, on Monday, top industrial houses of Gujarat rallied behind the state government and said that the implementation rate of the projects for which MoUs were done during previous summits were pretty good.

The support, on expected lines, comes at a time when the Gujarat govt is faced with criticism over the rate of implementation of the projects and the actual investment that has come in the state ever since the first summit, which was held in 2003.

To back their statements, the industrialists gave various figures. Chairman and managing director of Zydus Cadila, Pankaj Patel, said that the record of commissioning of projects had gone up and if the projects were signed under 'Vibrant Gujarat', they got preference. Patel, who is also FICCI president, said that biennial event gave industrialists an opportunity to plan long term.

Group president (corporate affairs) of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Parimal Nathwani, shared RIL's rate of implementation and said that there would be no impact of demonetization on 2017 summit. It is a temporary phase, he said.

Questioned as to why there was a need to reiterate about Gujarat's good business environment when state chief secretary J. N. Singh had recently given details of the rate of implementation and other facts, Patel said that it was because we are Gujaratis and are proud about it. Companies also gave their own implementation data, quipped Nathwani.

Rajiv Agrawal, managing director and CEO of Essar, said that an implementation rate of 66 per cent was not a small achievement. He further said that in Gujarat, the investors got the benefits of business minded approach. Gujarat, he said, also provided good port and land connectivity.

Pranav Adani of Adani Group, Chitan Thaker from Wellspun and Jayesh Desai from Torrent also spoke.
Union transport minister Nithin Gadkari, on Monday, released a document constituting a task force to promote cruise tourism under the umbrella of Sagarmala Project.

The minister said that the Sagarmala development company, tasked to identify port-led development programmes under the Sagarmala programme, has moved from planning to the implementation stage.

While many of the details would involve aspects of industrial growth, creation of jobs and ushering of prosperity by converting the coastal regions into manufacturing hubs and the use of ports as catalysts, the fun element that comprises this focus on cruise tourism will enable foreign flag vessels carrying passengers to call at Indian ports without obtainining license -- till February 2024.

The government has also appointed a consultant for preparation of an action plan for the development of cruise tourism in the country. Terminals for this purpose will be developed at the Chennai and Mormugao port trust.
An Indian Catholic priest abducted from Yemen appealed to Pope Francis and the union government through a purported video to secure his release from his captors.

"If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously. I am from India. Perhaps I am not considered to be of as much value," said priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil in a weak voice in the video, aired by news channels in Kerala.

Father Tom Uzhunnalil after his capture | Facebook

"Dear Pope Francis, dear Holy Father, please take care of my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating," he said in the video, a day after Christmas.

Father Uzhunnalil, who looked very weak, appeared to be reading out from a text placed before him.

The veracity of the video, which was uploaded on YouTube and Facebook, could neither be independently verified nor was the period when it was shot known.

Father Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala, was abducted in March by terror group Islamic State, which attacked an old-age home run by Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity in southern Yemeni city of Aden.

He claimed his captors have made many contacts with the Government of India--President and Prime Minister.

"I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in my regard," he said.

He said reports had said everything has been done to get his release, but in reality "nothing has been done".

Father Uzhunnalil said a news reporter abducted in the Middle East was released as she was from France.

"I am from India and not considered. Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all to do your might to help me to save my life. I need hospitalisation soon. Please come to my help quickly," he said.

The Union Government has said efforts are being made to secure Uzhunnalil's release, but such attempts take time.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had informed Parliament that Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has spoken to various countries through which contacts can be established in Yemen.

Swaraj had said it took time to secure release of people who were held captive and asked the MPs to keep faith in government's efforts to trace the abducted priest.
The National Investigation Agency said on Sunday that the Islamic State had planned to attack Missionaries of Charity office in Kolkata when the house would be cramped with lot of foreign Christian visitors.

In a chargheesheet submitted to a sessions court in Kolkata, the NIA said the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh leader and IS sympathiser Musa, who had been recently arrested from a hideout in West Bengal, revealed that the IS leadership in the Middle East had approved such a plan.

Accordingly, we planned the attack at Missionaries of Charity office in Kolkata. We were also giving tasks to leaders to carry out the operation. But we were waiting for right time when a lot of foreign visitors would be attending the big office in Kolkata, Musa was quoted as saying by an NIA officer.

Musa was one of the kingpins in Khargargh blast in October 2014, which had exposed the terror module of newly emerging JMB groups of Bangladesh in West Bengal. Though more than 20 terrorists have been arrested so far in connection with the terror rackets of JMB, several senior leaders have yet to be nabbed.

JMB is known to be the nodal group of the IS in Bangladesh and eastern India including West Bengal, Bihar and northeastern states like Assam.

After Musa's revelations, West Bengal government is considering putting a security ring around the Mother House, the headquarters of the Missionaries of Charity, on Kolkatas AJC Bose road. Although there is a police deployment near the house, Charitys buildings are largely vulnerable to attacks. The house is open to anybody during the working hour.

The Missionaries of Charity has not yet responded to the latest developments.

It would be, according to insiders, unlikely that MC would accept intense security inside the house as it would contradict the philosophy of Mother Teresa.

However, a security ring outside, would be welcomed, said a priest close to charity house.
Dane County residents who are unhappy about the roar of F-16 military jets through the skies say they are worried the noise could grow louder if F-35 warplanes are based at Madisons Truax Field.

The Air Force maintains that the new jets usually produce sound levels that are roughly equivalent to that generated by aircraft like the F-16, but there may be fewer flights at least initially and the new jets could be quieter on takeoff because they dont need to use afterburners as frequently as the older aircraft do.

But a full answer isnt possible until noise studies that take into account conditions at Truax are completed next year, an Air Force spokeswoman said.

Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce president Zach Brandon is leading an effort to persuade the Air Force to select Truax over four other finalists because of the economic benefits of the hundreds of jobs at the base.

Brandon said the economic benefits and the need for communities to contribute to national defense outweigh any inconvenience of jet noise.

Noise studies comparing six bases previously considered for F-35s found that in some cases F35s would generate higher noise levels than the military jets they would be replacing, while in others the noise levels would be lower.

For three of the bases, the Air Forces 2013 Environmental Impact Statement used computer models to compare the F-35 to F-16s like those at Truax.

The Air Force cautions that those results would not apply to any other airfield due to differences in flight profiles, altitudes, speeds, and weather.

The results found the F-35 produced noise levels from two decibels to 35 decibels higher depending on the base, the type of sound measurement and the type of flight.

At three other bases that had fighter jets equipped with a louder engine, the comparisons were mixed, with the F-35 producing less noise in some cases.

Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek said bases that become home to the F-35 are able to take steps to reduce the impact of noise, for example, by adjusting takeoff and landing paths and by limiting night flights and afterburner use.

If there are community concerns, that is definitely something, depending on mission requirements, that can be worked out with the local community, Stefanek said.

Steve Klafka, an environmental engineer who lives on the Isthmus, said he has tried for years to persuade officials to do something about noise from the airport, especially the military jets.

As an active resident and environmental professional I thought I could make a difference, but have learned that airports and airplanes are in a class by themselves, Klafka said. The noise exposure standards for protecting the public are over 30 years old and are based on annoying people, not health or educational effects. And these outdated standards dont even apply to the deafening military aircraft.

Sara Petzold has lived in several Madison neighborhoods, including an East Side area flown over regularly by passenger jets from Dane County Regional Airport.

But she was surprised last year at the way the windows rattled in her current house on the North Side when military jets from Truax Field fly over.

Melanie Foxcroft has brought her East Side neighborhood organizations complaints to an Airport Commission subcommittee, but shes seen no indication that anything will change.

When you are outside, its absolutely ear shattering, Foxcroft said. All conversation has to be suspended. Its so intrusive.

The Air Forces Stefanek said the F-35 might actually be experienced as quieter than the F-16.

Depending on the type of flight operation, and other variables, an F-35 can be quieter or louder than legacy jet fighters, Stefanek said. Additionally, the noise from an F-35 may sound different than previous military jets, and this difference could cause people to perceive the noise as being louder, even if the measured noise levels are essentially the same, Stefanek said.

F-35 pilots for at least the next few years will do more training in simulators than F-16 pilots do, because its sometimes the only way to practice with all the new jets high-tech equipment, said Air Force spokesman Capt. Mark Graff
Bhumata Brigade leader Trupti Desai's plan to lead a march to the Sabarimala temple suffered a major setback with the Kerala government deciding not to allow any woman inside the shrine till the Supreme Court delivers its verdict.

Desai had on Saturday said that she would lead 100 women activists to the famous forest temple in mid-January to protest against the centuries-old tradition which bars women aged between 10 and 50 from entering the shrine. The Constitution guarentees equal right to men and women and my fight is for those rights, Desai had said.

However, the state government on Sunday made it clear that the existing tradition and rules in the temple could not be altered unless through a court ruling. A case regarding this is pending in the Supreme Court. Until the court delivered its verdict, everybody was bound to obey the tradition, said Devaswom Minister Kadakampalli Surendran.

The CPI(M)-led government had earlier filed an affidavit in the top court saying it was not against allowing women to enter the temple. This was a clear shift from the stand taken by the previous UDF government which had opposed the women's entry saying temple board was the final authority to modify traditions.

The Lord Ayyappa temple in the Pathanamthitta district has been in the limelight ever since Desai and a group of activists successfully led a campaign for women's right to enter the Shani Shignapur temple and Haji Ali Dargah in Maharashtra.
It is no coincidence that notebandi, the demonetisation of high-value notes by the Narendra Modi government, sounds a lot like nasbandi, the infamous sterilisation drive during the Emergency under Indira Gandhi. With long queues outside ATMs that seemed perpetually dry, the country has almost been cashless since Modi announced the demonetisation of 500- and 1,000-rupee notes on November 8. Curiously, that timed perfectly with his campaign for a cashless India or, as he twisted it, a less-cash India.

As cashless economy became the main focus, the talk of black money and counterfeit currency took a second place in the governments scheme of things. The benefits to the economy and people of buying, borrowing, paying and selling without currency notes became the discourse from South Block, the Reserve Bank and the NITI Aayog. Indians, who had almost entirely been dependent on cash, were hurtled into a digital financial future, and most of them were caught unprepared.

Indians in cities have been using credit and debit cards, net banking, and even e-wallets to shop online, book train and flight tickets, make hotel reservations and pay the cabby, and even the maid and driver. It is those in Bharat, who are feeling let down, as in many cases their livelihood is threatened. Modiji ne kaha ki amiron ko, paise walon ko line mein khada kar diya..lekin hum hi line mein khade hai,aur paisa hai hi nahi. (Modiji said he has made the rich stand in line, but it is we who are in the line, and there is no money.) One hears it very often in rural India.

Modi, indeed, said that. It was intended to get audience cheer him at a rally where he commended the way people were supporting him despite facing difficulties because of demonetisation. The villagers, however, seemed concerned more about reality rather than heroismno money in their hands for any of their needs. And they started calling it notebandi.

In fact, the government has been headed towards a cashless economy for quite a while, with the Reserve Bank creating a technology-driven payment and settlement ecosystem. Staying the course with Aadhaar cards, then opening Jan Dhan accounts and initiating a series of steps around the mobile phone were aimed at moving from cash to less cash. Promoting mobile and digital banking to spur financial inclusion has been a vision of the governments Digital India programme.

A study by the payment technologies company Visa, which was submitted to the NITI Aayog just before the demonetisation, said using cash was costly for the country. It cost 1.7 per cent of Indias real gross domestic product in 2014-15, said the study. Another study, done in 2014 by the Institute for Business in the Global Context, part of The Fletcher School at Tufts University in the US, pointed out that most Indians lacked the means to do non-cash payments even if they wanted to.

The study said people mostly used cards to withdraw cash from ATMs rather than making cashless payments. Though there is a fiercely competitive telecommunication sector in India, fewer than 2 per cent of mobile phone users had used a mobile phone to make a payment. Aadhaar, said the study, would reduce costs of serving Indias unbanked population. It made another interesting pointthough people did not pay anything to transact with cash, as they did with cards, they spent time on fetching cash. Delhis 11 million inhabitants collectively spend some 6 million hours per month fetching cash; Hyderabads 6.8 million spend 1.8 million hours, it said.

These and many more reasons were adduced to say one thingit is high time India moved to a less cash economy. But does that justify a demonetisation announcement with a four-hour notice?

Demonetisation has hit the agricultural sector worse than a third continuous drought could have, said food policy analyst Devinder Sharma. More than 70 per cent of India has been hit where it hurts the most. In the cities, people will only have to stand in queues to get their money; in the countryside, there is no income for farmers who toiled for six months and were hoping for revival of livelihoods given the good monsoon.

Wholesale prices of most of the major crops, vegetables and flowers had slumped, he said. Tomato growers in Chhattisgarh were offered 25 paise for a kilo for their crop and potato growers in Himachal Pradesh a rupee for a kilo. In Amritsar, farmers growing peas are getting Rs 7 a kilo; it was Rs 30 last year. On November 8, I supported the prime ministers move against black money. But in two days, I began receiving audio messages, photos and phone calls from farmers all over the countrythey were in tears, said Sharma. The worst hit have been the farm labourers.

Dr Sunil Sinha, principal economist and director of the rating agency India Ratings, said agriculture had been affected in multiple ways. Demonetisation happened when kharif procurement season was on. Most of the buying and selling happens in cash. Because of the liquidity crunch, farmers could not get fair price for their produce and even had to resort to distress sales. Post harvest earnings have gone down which has also impacted their credit repaying ability. Now, the government has started the cashless drive. But, for people like these who do not understand cards and plastic money, it is going to be very difficult, he said.

India Ratings has revised the GDP outlook for the financial year. Earlier, we had put it at 7.8 per cent; but post demonetisation we think the overall GDP will grow by only 6.8 per cent, a 100 bps decline, he said.

Many experts see the late-found focus on cashless economy as an eyewash. It is an act of desperation when they introduce even lottery incentives, when they found they had no way of meeting the cash deficit, said Sharma.

Many people who initially supported demonetisation have changed their stand as there hasnt been any sign of improvement in the cash flow. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, who heads a committee appointed by the Central government to look into demonetisation issues and was a proponent of the move, recently voiced concerns about things not improving.

NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, however, is happy with the way people are moving towards cashless methods. There has been a huge spurt in digital transactions since November 9. The use of RuPay has gone up by 316 per cent, e-wallets by 271 per cent, UPI by 119 per cent and USSD by 1,202 per cent, he said. But there is a catchonly 5 per cent of the total population uses digital cash.

People clearly are resorting to cashless methods because they have been deprived of notes. Low-value payments through debit cards have increased, and there is a substantial increase in the number of debit card transactions as opposed to credit card, said Murali Nair, senior vice-president (market development), South Asia, of the payment technology company Mastercard.

Much like retail stores attracting people with draw of lots during the festive season, the NITI Aayog rolled out draws that offer cash-backs to lucky consumers. With a low transaction amount range (from Rs 50 to Rs 3,000) and the platforms chosen for the schemeRuPay, Aadhaar-based payments, Unified Payment Interface and Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (a mobile banking platform for feature phone users)the target group is clearly those living in villages and small towns.

Rather than incentives, however, the need of the hour is ramping up the digital infrastructure in the country. Last-mile connectivity is a huge problem, said Thyagarajan Seshadri, president of banking relations at Electronic Payment and Services Private Ltd. We have 6 lakh villages; only 2.5 lakh of these have a bank or an ATM. A lot of benefits will accrue once India Post Payments Bank is formally launched.

For now, the vulnerable sections everywhere have been rendered moneyless. Take, for instance, Delhiite Sanjay Ahir. He wore a dirty kurta and said he did not have the money to buy a detergent soap. He has been looking for a job after being fired as a parking boy. Parking has been made free because people have no cash. The contractor is not making money, so why would he pay me, he said. Ahir used to earn Rs 300 a day. He has never used his bank account and has no clue what Paytm is.

In the tea estates of Assam, workers get cheques as salaries. They have to travel long distances to encash them. Apparently women are affected more than men. Said Ratna Vishwanathan, CEO of Microfinance Institutions Network, The government is talking about smartphone-based transactions. But while most of the microfinance borrowers are women, the phones are generally with male members of the family. Also, the no-frills Jan Dhan accounts do not come with chequebooks.

The urban middle class and the elite, on the other hand, are more or less insulated from the trouble as they use plastic money and digital wallets. So the winter vacation, the Christmas and New Year parties and the gifting happen without a hitch. But there is a slight change in the shopping habitthe cash crunch has resulted in losses for the standalone luxury stores and high-end malls, while the e-commerce sites have gained. Customers who earlier preferred to go to brick-and-mortar stores are now coming online. Mobile wallets have been influencers in making people go online because of the cash-backs and discount coupons. We have seen 50 per cent growth in transactions through Paytm, said Amit Dutta, co-founder of Luxehues.com, a luxury portal..

A few new urban businesses appear to have benefited by the cashless drive. Sakshi Vij, founder and CEO of Myles, a rent-a-car service, said people had started using digital cash more frequently and smartly. A lot of people earlier were buying cars and would pay a large component in cash. Now, they prefer to hire a car and pay rent by card, he said. This should make a stronger case for premium segment vehicles, as nobody wants to be caught spending on luxury, with the income tax department keeping a close watch.

The tax sleuths, in fact, have been working overtime since the demonetisation announcement. There was a spate of large recoveries in Kolkata, Bengaluru and New Delhi, including in bundles of the new 2,000-rupee notes. And the governments claims about pumping into circulation some Rs 4 lakh crore of new legal tender sounded hollow as people found it almost impossible to lay hands on it.

Where has all the cash gone? A bank manager in Delhi said, before demonetisation if people withdrew Rs 1 crore a day, they also deposited about Rs 80 lakh or Rs 85 lakh. Now they take new currency, even if much less than in the past, and would spend it here and there. But some people should be depositing also. That is not happening. From November 9 to December 16, the cash deposit (other than the demonetised currency) in his branch was just Rs 5,000. His hunch is, it is going into the kitty from where some people will exchange old black money for a 30 to 40 per cent commission.

There are whispers that the immediate gainers of demonetisation have been crony capitalists running digital businesses. And it remains to be seen if people believed that Modi fought and won his war against black money. According to the government, the black money disclosed under the Income Declaration Scheme was Rs 67,382 crore. It was peanuts compared with the quantum in its estimates, making a restive nation ask whether their pains were worth the gains.

It was then that the narrative seemed to lose its fizz and the focus moved to cashless India. Ironically, a large part of India has gone literally cashlessboth digital and real.

WITH VANDANA
At 7:30 a.m. Sunday, John Haines began making a Christmas Day meal. As this years lead cook, his task was to coordinate the efforts to feed hundreds of people at an annual free Christmas meal at First United Methodist Church in Downtown Madison.

As a person who has experienced homelessness, Haines said the majority of the visitors are homeless and know theyll get a square meal, talking and friendship out of the event. An estimated 360 people were expected to eat at the 34th annual meal, which included turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, stuffing, salad and dessert served to anyone who showed up.

I wish other people would understand about the homeless. Theres nothing wrong with them. They just need help, Haines said. Were all the same. We all bleed red. We all breathe the same air. Were all still human beings.

At First United Methodist, 203 Wisconsin Ave., homeless individuals receive help in various ways throughout the year with a food pantry, weekly meals or in an overflow shelter for homeless men. But on Christmas Day, the meal represents more than food, said Karen Andro, the churchs director of outreach ministries.

It sets the table with something bigger and greater than the food thats on that table, because its really love, Andro said. Its love and acceptance.

In the past, Andro said shes looked for people with a social justice background to head the meal each year, leading her to ask Haines, who has volunteered at the church for more than two years. After some uncertainty of whether he would be available, Andro said she was grateful he was able to head the holiday meal.

For other homeless individuals like himself, Peter Campbell said the meal creates a good opportunity to go somewhere on a day when most businesses are closed.

Having a hot meal really makes a difference, he said.

New to Madison, Michael Davis said it was his first time at the Christmas meal. Although he is homeless, Davis said the event was a good chance to bring good-hearted people from all backgrounds together as a community.

To make this years event happen, Andro said around 100 people have put in time to serve, cook and plan, adding its not difficult to recruit volunteers as theres often an outpouring of interested people.

Mary Buie has volunteered at First United Methodist during previous Christmases. Although she received a computer for a present this year, she said this is my Christmas gift.

Standing behind a long table of desserts, Linda Laurenzi said shes participated for the past few years. Her favorite part of volunteering is just being able to smile and talk to those coming to eat, she said.

The gift that I would wish for today would be a gift for all to appreciate the people who are in their lives right now, Andro said. This is so much more than a meal.
Once again frum travelers landing in Tel Aviv on Shabbos found themselves in a difficult place as El Al flight 320 from Paris to Tel Aviv landed on erev Shabbos at 4:18PM. Candle lighting in Bnei Brak was 4:19PM.

Some of the passengers on board spoke with Kol Berama Radio host Noam Zeigman on Sunday, 25 Kislev, explaining what took place. The report the flight left Paris two hours late due to inclement weather. Some of the frum passengers spoke with airline officials during the waiting period, concerned as they saw Shabbos nearing while they had yet to take off. They explain airline representatives told them that if the flight cannot land by 3:15PM, it will not leave Paris.

Hearing these words, they were comfortable with the situation and when the flight took off, they were confident they would have an hour from landing to get to their destination. However, this was not the case as reported above. Making things worse, the Shabbos protocol was not implemented, permitting the religious Jews to move ahead of the lines to reach their destinations.

Kol Berama spoke with El Al and its version of events is somewhat different. The airline insists no one promised to land by 3:15PM, but passengers were promised to land before Shabbos and this is what occurred. The airline apologized for not implementing the Shabbos protocol which they admit should have been implemented.

Musicians Ohad Moskowitz and Gershon Freishtat were among the passengers and they were among the lucky ones, having a place to go in Kfar Chabad. They reportedly took a cab for about five minutes and then walks for over 40 minutes until reaching Kfar Chabad, where they spent Shabbos.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Shlomo Weissfish explains it will be a difficult Chanukah for him and the family as his tatte is jailed in Israel for protesting outside the home of Kiryat Gat Chief Rabbi HaGaon HaRav Moshe Havlin Shlita.

Weissfish has been ordered held without bail for his actions in the protests. Askanim from the Eida are working to arrange his release to house arrest with an electronic ankle bracelet but so far, efforts have been unsuccessful as Weissfish refuses to wear the electronic device on Shabbos for fear of chilul Shabbos. Officials explain is he would wear the electronic bracelet he can be released to house arrest by the Ashkelon court.

Weissfish and others arrested were taking part in illegal protests outside Rav Havlins home in protest over Chabad rabbonim signing an agreement with the IDF by which talmidim will serve after reaching their early 20s. Rav Havlin, the chief rabbi of his city, is also a prominent Chabad rov, one of the rabbonim who signed the agreement with the IDF.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Joining the critics against US President Barak Obama, who decided not to use Americas veto power, permitting Resolution 2334 to pass in the Security Council, is Housing Minister (Kulanu) Yoav Galant.

Galant spoke with Ynet on Sunday morning 25 Kislev, explaining during his (President Obama) eight years in office, he did not manage to realize who are his allies and enemies in the Middle East. I do not rule out all the good things, the important things from the outgoing administration, but there is no doubt we are looking towards the incoming president.

Galant feels the latest Security Council resolution against Israel is a back door effort to renew that black era of equating Zionism with racism, adding the one ally we have abandoned us in the battle field.

Galant, a retired IDF major-general, calls on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to hold a special cabinet meeting in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City opposite the Kosel to send a clear message in response to UN efforts to try to create new facts on the ground.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
The Israeli governments furious reaction to the U.N. Security Councils adoption of a resolution opposing Jewish settlements underscores its fundamental and bitter dispute with the international community about the future of the West Bank and east Jerusalem.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists that there is nothing wrong with his controversial policy of building Jewish towns that the Palestinians claim for their state. But Fridays U.N. rebuke was a stark reminder that the rest of the world considers it a crime. The embattled leader is now placing his hopes in the incoming administration of Donald Trump, which is shaping up as the first major player to embrace Israels nationalist right and its settlements.

In a series of statements, Netanyahu has criticized the Obama Administration for letting Resolution 2334 pass Friday by abstaining, using unprecedented language that has turned a policy disagreement into a personal vendetta.

From the information that we have, we have no doubt that the Obama Administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated on the wording and demanded that it be passed, Netanyahu told his Cabinet on Sunday.

In turning his anger toward Israels closest and most important ally, Netanyahu has underplayed the embarrassment that all 14 other nations on the Security Council voted in favor of the measure. Those votes came from countries that Netanyahu loves to boast of cultivating relations with, including Russia and China and nations across the developing world.

This is the same prime minister who told us dozens of states are on board with us, former Prime Minister Ehud Barak told Channel 2 TV on Saturday. I looked for Russia, China, England, France. Where are all the friends that were meant to stand with us?

Netanyahu routinely dismisses international criticism of the settlements, saying that the dispute with the Palestinians goes back to long before the 1967 war.

He also notes that when Israel dismantled its Gaza settlements in 2005, Hamas terrorists responded by firing rockets and subsequently seizing control of the territory from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

With Fridays resolution, however, the world sent a strong message that it rejects these arguments. The resolution said the settlements have no legal validity and constitute a flagrant violation of international law. It also urged all states to distinguish between Israel and the territories occupied since 1967.

In the short term, the resolution is largely symbolic. It did not include talk of sanctions or any other punitive measures against Israel.

The importance of the resolution is to remind Israel, at least at the rhetorical level, that the international community is not completely happy, to say the least, with the ongoing status quo, said Arie Kacowicz, a professor of international relations at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

Riad Malki, the Palestinian foreign minister, said Netanyahu was being disingenuous by calling the resolution anti-Israel.

This resolution is about settlement activities, the two-state solution and ending the occupation, he said. Netanyahu, by his statements and his actions, is isolating Israel for the sake of settlements.

Malki said the Palestinians hoped the resolution would bolster their case at the International Criminal Court, which has launched a preliminary investigation into the settlements. He also said he hoped it would encourage European countries to follow up on an EU recommendation to clearly label products manufactured in settlements, and encourage other countries to do the same.

On Jan. 15, days before Obama leaves office, France is expected to host a Mideast conference where dozens of countries may endorse an international framework for peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Netanyahu vehemently opposes such activity, saying it undermines the negotiating process.

The recent diplomatic defeat would be much more damaging if not for a potential remaining and rather major ace in Netanyahus hand: the incoming Trump Administration.

In a striking departure from past policy of incumbent presidents waiting on the sidelines, Trump tried to scuttle the resolution and called for a U.S. veto. After the vote, Trump vowed that things will be different after Jan. 20th.

Critically, he has appointed an outspoken supporter and donor to the settlements, his longtime attorney David Friedman, as ambassador to Israel. And aides say Trump is serious about a promise to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which even many Israelis fear could spark violence. The Palestinians claim east Jerusalem as the capital of the future state to which they aspire.

After Fridays vote, Netanyahus office said he looked forward to working with Trump to negate the harmful effects of this absurd resolution.

Netanyahu has since gone on a campaign to punish the countries that took part in the resolution. He has canceled a slew of diplomatic visits and summoned ambassadors from Security Council countries, including the U.S., on Sunday, in protest.

It remains unclear what Trump might be able to do. While he will be able to wield the U.S. veto to prevent further action against Israel in the council, mustering enough votes to overturn Fridays decision appears to be impossible.

The basis for the resolution is found in the Geneva conventions, which forbid the settling of areas captured in war from another country. Israel has said the law doesnt apply because the territory was captured from Jordan, which has renounced all claims to the land. Israel has also defended the occupation on religious and security grounds.

(AP)
Chinas first aircraft carrier has set off for the Western Pacific for an open-sea training exercise, the Defense Ministry said.

State media said Sunday that it is the first time that the Liaoning, which was commissioned by the Chinese navy in 2012, has headed to distant sea waters. The Western Pacific region stretches from China to New Zealand and encompasses countries in the Pacific, Oceania and parts of Asia.

The statement said a navy formation including the Liaoning set off Saturday for training in the Western Pacific, without elaborating on the location, as part of an annual training plan.

The exercise takes place at a time of tension between China and the United States, the Pacific Oceans dominant power, over the sensitive issue of Taiwan, a self-governing island that Beijing claims as its territory.

President-elect Donald Trump took a congratulatory Dec. 2 phone call with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, marking the first time an American president or president-elect has publicly spoken to Taiwans leader since Washington broke of its formal diplomatic relationship with Taiwan in 1979. To outrage in Beijing, Trump later suggested he could reevaluate U.S. policy on Taiwan.

China seized a U.S. Navy underwater glider in the South China Sea on Dec. 16 in what was seen by Chinese analysts as a warning to Trump.

China said last month that its aircraft carrier, purchased as an incomplete hull from Ukraine more than a decade ago, was ready to engage in combat. The Liaoning recently completed its first live-fire exercise along with fighters in the Bohai Sea in eastern China and, on Friday, the military announced it had carried out a series of fighter launch, recovery and air combat exercises slightly farther afield in the Yellow Sea.

On Saturday morning, the Liaoning carried out training in the East China Sea, according to footage shown on state broadcaster China Central Television. A separate statement from the Defense Ministry said that several carrier-based fighter jets and helicopters took off one after another and returned after completing an air tactical confrontation and air refueling exercise.

The Japanese Defense Ministry said it spotted the Liaoning as part of a fleet of eight Chinese warships that included destroyers and frigates, in the central part of the East China Sea for the first time. It said there was no incursion into Japanese waters.

China hasnt described specifically how it intends to use the Liaoning, but it is seen as helping reinforce Chinas increasingly assertive claims over almost all of the South China Sea, which is home to key shipping lanes, rich fishing grounds and a potential wealth of mineral resources.

Five other governments claim the maritime space either in part or in whole, and the Philippines and Vietnam in particular have sought assistance from the U.S. and others in beefing up their ability to resist China, including its construction of seven islands by piling sand atop coral reefs.

(AP)
If President-elect Donald Trump wanted to show he planned to obliterate President Barack Obamas approach to Israel, he may have found his man to deliver that message in David Friedman, his pick for U.S. ambassador.

The bankruptcy lawyer and son of an Orthodox rabbi is everything Obama is not: a fervent supporter of Israeli settlements, opponent of Palestinian statehood and unrelenting defender of Israels government. So far to the right is Friedman that even many Israel supporters worry he could push Israels hawkish Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to be more extreme, scuttling prospects for peace with Palestinians in the process.

The heated debate over Friedmans selection is playing out just as fresh tensions erupt between the U.S. and Israel, punctuated last Friday by the Obama administrations stunning move to allow a U.N. Security Council resolution to pass condemning Israeli settlements as illegal. The move to abstain, rather than veto, defied years of U.S. tradition of shielding Israel from such resolutions, and elicited angry condemnation from Israel, lawmakers of both parties, and especially Trump.

Things will be different after Jan. 20th, when hes sworn in, Trump vowed on Twitter.

Friedman, certainly, is different.

Presidents of both parties have long called for a two-state solution that envisions eventual Palestinian statehood, and Netanyahu says he agrees. Friedman does not. Hes called the two-state solution a mere narrative that must end.

Under Obama, the U.S. has worked closely with J Street, an Israel advocacy group sharply critical of Netanyahu. Not Friedman. He accuses Obama of blatant anti-Semitism and calls J Street worse than kapos, a reference to Jews who helped the Nazis imprison fellow Jews during the Holocaust.

For decades the U.S. has opposed Israeli settlement-building in lands it seized in the 1967 Mideast War. Friedman runs a nonprofit that raises millions of dollars for Beit El Yeshiva.

So its unsurprising that Friedmans nomination has already sharpened the borders of a growing balkanization of American Jews, between those who want the U.S. to push Israel toward peace and those who believe Obamas approach abandoned Americas closest Mideast ally.

Its a debate playing out even at Temple Hillel, near the Long Island-Queens border, where Friedmans father was rabbi for almost half a century.

Clearly, Davids opinions do not appeal to everybody in the synagogue, and they appeal to others in the synagogue, said Ken Fink, the synagogues president and longtime congregant. But theres a huge amount of pride for the hometown boy.

Thirty-two years before Trumps election, President Ronald Reagan donned a yarmulke and noshed on chicken cutlets and noodle pudding at Rabbi Morris Friedmans home, after a speech at Temple Hillel affirming the separation between church and state. Coming just two weeks before Reagans re-election, the attempt to woo Jewish voters struck some as opportunistic, and they protested on the streets of the heavily Jewish town of North Woodmere.

Seated at the Sabbath table with Reagan was David Melech Friedman  his middle name means king in Hebrew. The rabbis son went on to become Trumps bankruptcy lawyer, a vocal advocate for far-right policies on Israel, and now, Trumps choice for ambassador, despite having no diplomatic experience.

In announcing his pick, Trump pointed out that Friedmans bar mitzvah 45 years ago was at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, where Friedman now owns a home. Though his father was an Orthodox rabbi, the synagogue belongs to the more moderate Conservative denomination, making the Friedmans more observant than many of the congregants.

Cindy Grosz, who said shed known Friedman for nearly 50 years, recalled big parties with boisterous debates about Jewish issues held in his familys sukkah, the outdoor hut Jews build during the harvest festival Sukkot.

He still has the same best friends hes had for over 30 years. That hasnt changed, Grosz said.

At his midtown Manhattan law firm, Friedman opens up his offices to those in mourning who need a minyan  a quorum of 10 men in Orthodox Judaism  to say the Mourners Kaddish, a prayer observant Jews say daily for one year after a parents death.

And it was a parents death, in a way, that brought Friedman and Trump closer together. Over the years, Friedman has told friends the story of how the billionaire real estate mogul defied an oppressive snowstorm that had kept others away to sit shiva for Friedmans father during the Jewish mourning period.

Educated at Columbia University and NYU School of Law, Friedman developed a reputation as an aggressive, high-stakes bankruptcy attorney, representing Trump when his Atlantic City casinos went through bankruptcy.

In the courtroom, hes known as a formidable opponent, said attorney Tariq Mundiya, Friedmans adversary in several cases. He said hed been aware of Friedmans advocacy on Israel but added, When youre in the fog of war with David, the last thing youre talking about is the Middle East.

If confirmed, Friedman is expected to be the face of Trumps dramatic shift in posture. While Obamas relationship with Netanyahu was famously fraught, Friedman has said Trump will take his cues from Israels wishes.

Both Friedman and Trump are particularly focused on moving the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, breaking with decades of U.S. reluctance to acknowledge Jerusalem as Israels capital in light of Palestinians claim to east Jerusalem.

Enraged by Trumps pick, left-leaning groups and Palestinian officials have suggested his confirmation could spell the end of any serious discussions about peace.

Friedman and Trumps transition team didnt respond to requests for comment.

Netanyahu has stayed publicly quiet about Trumps pick. But individuals close to the prime minister said he was pleased with the appointment because he knows Friedman has a direct line to Trump. The individuals werent authorized to comment by name and requested anonymity.

(AP)
[VIDEO IN EXTENDED ARTICLE]

[By Rabbi Yair Hoffman]

It is one of those Chassidish Chanukah Minhagim that Litvaks generally dont really go for. Nonetheless, it is a genuine Minhag that dates back hundreds of years. In a nutshell, this is what is done:

In Chassidish communities of Poland and Hungary, it has been the custom when the Shamash is ready to light the Chanukah candles in shul, for children and others to throw hand towels and other items at him both before and during the lighting.

The custom is still practiced today in numerous Chassidish minyanim.

One can understain why Litvaks would not appreciate this particular custom. The Eliyahu Rabbah writes that talking to someone in the middle of a bracha may constitute Lifnei Iver  certainly throwing items at a person may cause a person to lose focus. There is the other issue of decorum within a shul and Beis Midrash as well.

Yet, on the other hand, is said that the Tzeshinover Rebbe was informed that one city that formerly had the practice had abolished it. He remarked, Who knows what shall become of this city. It is brought down that the Jewish community in that city was decimated rl (See Pninei Chassidus [Vishnitz] page 31).

What is the reason for this custom and where does it come from?

The custom is cited in the name of the Sanzer Rav, but quite feasibly could have dated before this as well. The Halichos Chaim, written by Rabbi Aharon Kluger cites the minhagim of the Klausenberger Rebbe Rav Yekusiel Halbershtam (Chanukah p.18) and explains that the purpose of this custom was to vividly demonstrate how things were during the time of the Greeks and the Hellenists when a Jew wished to perform a Mitzvah. He was laughed and jeered at, unless the Mitzvah was performed in their specific Hellenizing way.

Yet another given for this custom by the Klausenberger Rebbe is that on the chance that the Shamash feels a sense of empowerment and haughtiness in fulfilling this Mitzvah so publicly. The clothing and towels are thrown at him to demonstrate that he has accomplished nothing (See Yehi Ohr 5733 p.67).

Yet a third reason is that both Lag BaOmer and Chanukah are connected to the Neshama of Rabbi Shimon Br Yochai. Tzaddikim are a type of Ohr HaMakif  all-encompassing light, according to the writings of the AriZal. Clothing signify this, therefore the custom is to throw clothing which signifies the all-encompassing light of Tzaddikim in this world (See Ben Yehoyada Sanhedrin 102a as cited in Nachalas Sadeh VaYikrah page 611).

The custom to light in shul only dates to the times of the late Rishonim. It is interesting to note that neither the Rambam, the Rif, the Rosh, the Ohr Zaruah, the Eshkol, Rashi, nor the Machzor Vitri mentions the custom of lighting in shul. The earliest authority to mention the custom is the Baal HaIttur. Indeed, the first to mention that a blessing is recited is Rav Yitzchok Perfet, the Rivash (1326-1408). The Maharam Shick (YD) stated that the Chasam Sofer actually did not recite a blessing when lighting in shul.

As far as lighting in shul in general, there are two reasons brought down. The Chayei Odom (154:17) explains that we light and recite the blessing in the synagogue because of Pirsumei Nisah  publicizing the miracle. The Levush (#8) gives a different reason. He says that it is so that guests who have no place to stay could also see the Chanukah lights. Dayan Weiss (Minchas Yitzchok Vol. VI 65:1) explains that according to the first reason a child who has reached the age of Chinuch may light in the Synagogue; while according to the Levushs reason he may not. Rav Elyashiv ztl (as cited in Yashiv Moshe p.86) states that according to either reason a child may not light in shul. Rav Elyashiv made no mention, however, about children throwing towels at the shamash. It is likely that he would not have been happy with this custom.

The author can be reached at [email protected]

ARTICLE PUBLISHED BY 5TJT
As the Obama administration is preparing to leave office, many things are becoming clear including the presidents decision not to veto the vote on UN Security Council Resolution 2334.

What is also quite clear is that outgoing Secretary of State John Kerry cannot be counted among the true allies of Israel, nor will he be included among the Secretary of States who championed the challenges and complexities of the region by trying to advance dialogue between Israel and its neighbors. In fact, most would agree that Kerry has shown a profound lack of understanding of the region, its workings and possibly most importantly from a US perspective, which countries are truly US allies and which are hostile towards America.

As Kerry prepares to step down the PA (Palestinian Authority) Al-Quds newspaper reports he is formulating a draft document that he envisions will serve as the basis of future resumed talks between Israel and the PA. Kerry plans to submit this document at the Paris peace summit, which was canceled by France after Israel made it clear it was not going to attend. However, there are now renewed fears that Paris, with encouragement from Kerry and the White House, will announce the conference will be held as the outgoing US administration may take additional steps against Israel.

The basics contained in the Kerry document is the establishment of the State of Palestine based on pre-1967 borders, land exchanges with the PA towards permitting 80-85% of settlements to remain under Israeli rule. The PA would recognize Israel as a Jewish nation and Israel would recognize the PA and the eastern area of Jerusalem as its capital.

Clearly Mr. Kerry prepares to depart from office as clueless to Mideast realities as the day he entered.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Israel says its ambassador to Ukraine has been summoned by the foreign ministry in Kiev following Israels decision to cancel a planned visit by the Ukrainian prime minister.

Israel over the weekend called off the upcoming visit by Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman after Ukraine voted in favor of a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Israeli settlement construction in occupied lands.

It was one of a number of steps Israel has taken in response to the measure, which passed 14-0 with an American abstention. On Sunday, Israel summoned ambassadors from council members, including the U.S., to protest.

In a statement, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said Eli Belotsercovsky, the ambassador to Ukraine, was summoned Monday in Kiev following Israels decision regarding the visit of Ukraines prime minister.

(AP)
The following is via ABC News:

Cities across the U.S. are heightening security after a series of deadly incidents abroad, including an attack in Berlin, where a truck plowed into a crowd at a busy Christmas market.

Additional police officers are being deployed in New York and Chicago, with emphasis on crowded public areas and holiday gatherings. Both cities cautioned that the increased presence of law enforcement was a preventive measure and that no specific threats were received.

The NYPD is monitoring the events in Germany and around the world today, the New York Police Department said in a statement Monday. The department has moved highly trained teams, including the critical response command, to high-profile locations around New York City.

In a statement, the Chicago Police Department said it is adding police resources to Daley Plaza, including additional foot and bike patrols and specialized units. Daley Plaza in the Loop, a busy commercial neighborhood in the city, hosts a holiday marketplace as well.

In Berlin on Monday evening, 11 people were killed after a truck plowed through Breitscheidplatz, a public square hosting a Christmas market. A 12th victim was discovered dead in the cabin of the truck, and at least 48 others were injured. German Chancellor Angela Merkel later said, We must assume that it was a terrorist attack.

The incident capped a deadly day, as earlier on Monday, the Russian ambassador to Turkey was assassinated at a museum in the Turkish capital, Ankara, by a man who appeared to be protesting Russias involvement in the Syrian civil war. Also on Monday, three people were wounded after a gunman opened fire at an Islamic center in Zurich, Switzerland.

In a memo distributed last month, U.S. intelligence officials noted the possibility of holiday celebrations being targeted by terrorist organizations.

A joint intelligence bulletin distributed by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security on Nov. 18 read, Law enforcement, military and security personnel are reminded to remain vigilant and aware of upcoming public and private events this holiday season and during the presidential inauguration.

We continue to monitor threats with an unspecified attack date emanating from foreign terrorist organizations  in the event that these groups advance their plotting efforts in the near term to coincide with the holidays, read the bulletin. Based on historical precedence during past holiday seasons and presidential transition periods, we expect to see an increase in threat reporting between now and the end of January 2017.

In addition to the NYPD, police departments in Chicago, Boston and Washington, D.C., indicated that they would continue to monitor events in Berlin and elsewhere around the world as they continue to prepare for possible residual effects in those cities.

The NYPD said it will look to learn more about what occurred to inform operations, deployments and training of officers.

(ABC News)
A six-vehicle pileup on Interstate 90/39 near Janesville blocked one lane of traffic for about an hour and a half on Monday and left three people injured, but none seriously hurt, according to the Wisconsin State Patrol.

The crash happened around noon, near mile marker 173, in northbound traffic, blocking the left lane. Five wreckers were called to the scene to haul away the damaged vehicles. The lane was reopened at about 1:30 p.m.

The State Patrol said the cause of the accident is under investigation.
I have learned the hard way not to put my personal life on the Internet. But suffice it to say that, God willing, things should be pretty much back to norm...

3 weeks ago
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Letter to the Editor:

There was a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the reclamation, renaming and rededication of the Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground Nov. 12. The cemetery, where the event took place, is located on 46th Avenue, between 164th Street and 165th Street in Flushing, opposite Flushing Cemetery. The Conservancy for this 19th century cemetery co-sponsored the event with Council member Peter Koo.

During the last 10 years, the Conservancy has worked to ensure the burial ground is maintained, appropriate signage is installed at all of the gates leading into this cemetery and fitting memorial stones are erected at the site to honor the approximately 1,000 souls resting there.

Especially important to the Conservancy is recognition that is due for four of the people interred there  the four people who actually had headstones on site.

Unfortunately, those headstones were removed and destroyed nearly 80 years ago by the city of New York in an act of indifference and intolerance.

Graves were disturbed when a playground and wading pool were built over the cemetery in the 1930s. Bones were dug up during excavations and the remains were treated with great disrespect and dishonor.

Most buried there are Native Americans and African Americans. Many were buried in this cemetery when their lives were taken during the epidemics of the 1800s. A large percentage of the interred are children.

Today, the site is a beautiful, peaceful and meditative area. However, for the Conservancy, there is still much to accomplish, including placement of memorial stones.

The Conservancy will be reviewing New York City Parks and New York City Design Commission plans for memorial stones in January. We are thankful to Queens Borough President Melinda Katz and former Borough President Helen Marshall for setting aside funds for the memorial stones.

The recent ceremony at the cemetery was well-attended, with the color guard by Boy Scout Troop 253 and Boy Scout Troop 888. Chief Sonny Little Fox, a Matinecock Tribe leader, gave special Native American blessings to open the ceremony.

Andrew Jackson, retired director of Langston Hughes Library, poured libation and read poetry to honor the departed.

There were praise dancers from Community Baptist Church of Brooklyn and a wonderful members Ed Braunstein and Ron Kim were among the elected officials who were present.

Former city Comptroller John Liu gave the compelling keynote address.

He was a leading force in making sure that the burial ground was recognized and refurbished when he served as a Council member. We also cite the contributions of former Council and Assembly member Julia Harrison.

We thank Queens Community Board 7 as well for their help. We also send a special thank you to PIX 11 TV, which is taking a special interest in the site.

Some descendants of those buried at the cemetery also spoke at the event. Additionally, Queens Historian Jack Eichenbaum and representatives of the Queens Preservation Council and the Auburndale Improvement Association were present at the ceremony.

Also attending was Kenneth Cohen, president of the Northeast Chapter of the NAACP; members of the Queens College Queens Memory Project; and Holly Civic members and supporters.

The ceremony concluded with special prayers and chants from the Buddhist Light and IBPS. It was an amazing event, with some parts broadcast by NY 1.

The Conservancy looks forward to working with the Parks Department, the Design Commission, elected leaders, local residents and others to ensure that those resting at the Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground are treated with the respect and dignity that they deserve.

Mandingo Osceola Tshaka and Robbie Garrison

Co-Chairs, Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground Conservancy
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by Naeisha Rose

As science, technology, engineering and math courses dominate curriculums across the country, art programs are being cut from many schools, but not at the Rachel Carson Magnet School for the Arts (IS 237) in Flushing.

Since the mid-2000s, state examination prep courses and STEM classes have slowly been pushing out art programs, resulting in only 59 percent of middle-schoolers finishing the eighth grade with an art class requirement.

For IS 237 Principal Judith Friedman, the arts are just as important as any other subject, if not more so, and that is why she fought to keep the language and arts program at her school alive through the Winter Arts Festival held Dec. 8.

The event showcased students artwork and performances with string, brass and wood instrument as well as voice.

We firmly believe that art is an integral part of education for every child and it is very integral to a New York City education because of all of our cultural institutions, said Friedman.

Topics like English and Social Studies have set objectives, but the arts allow students to explore what they are capable of and help them to learn beyond a classroom setting in a different way than those areas.

Its different from the academic subjects because there is a specific set of learning goals, and the arts are more expansive and allow children to really have that freedom of expression and we want to encourage that, said Friedman.

Nancy Genovese, 52, from Flushing could not imagine sending her kids and grandson to a school without a music program.

One of my kids, Eric who loves music, singing, dancing and performing went here, my grandson is doing this now, and my younger son took up the drums while he was here, said Genovese.

Having music in their lives gives them something else to do and makes them better people and better students.

Her grandson, Darryl Mancotta, helped to put away chairs after the festival for extra credit.

Her eldest son, Eric, is now a professional performance artist at 19.

When I was in this program, it opened my eyes to the arts and music, and I elaborated on my love for music by becoming a dancer, Eric Genovese said.

Later, he went to the Larenz Latin Dance Studio in Corona and joined a dance company in Manhattan.

According to DoSom ethin g.org , a youth and young adult social justice organization, children are four times more likely to be recognized for their academic performance and three times more likely to do well in attendance when their school has an art program.

Despite performing professionally with the likes of Pat Benatar, Carly Simon and Bruce Springsteen, Choral Director Peter Valentine has learned a thing or two after teaching for 10 years at IS 237.

Weve sung so far in Punjabi, Mandarin, weve sung in Japanese, weve sung in Spanish and we rapped in Korean, and the kids are the one who taught me Mandarin,  said Valentine.

Together, Valentine and the students perform gospel, classical and pop pieces. At the Winter Arts Festival the kids performed Christmas carols and sang hits by Michael Jackson.

One thing about this school is that its not just about test scores and numbers, its about the arts experience and every kid gets a talent, which is very important to our principal, said Barbara Sirris, an eighth grade English & Language Arts teacher.
Albany

In mid-December, New York Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli proposed reforms to tighten oversight and transparency at quasi-government organizations in the wake of the explosive federal criminal charges alleging a pay-to-play bribery scheme involving millions of dollars in state economic development contracts.

But four years ago, DiNapoli's office reviewed one of the organizations at the center of the scandal, an economic development arm of SUNY Polytechnic Institute, and praised the internal controls of the entity then headed by CEO Alain Kaloyeros, who was snared in the criminal case and has since been removed from his position.

The comptroller's audit of SUNY Poly's nonprofit development corporation, Fuller Road Management, focused on a three-year period ending in 2012 and concluded it operated in "an ethical business climate." The review said the real estate holding corporation's internal controls safeguarded against fraud, and that it helped ensure "compliance with applicable laws, rules and regulations"  despite details of bid-rigging, in addition to the federal bribery case, that have since been laid bare in a separate criminal case filed by the state attorney general's office.

The comptroller's office defended its final audit released in January 2013, telling the Times Union it wouldn't have been able to ascertain if people were working behind the scenes to subvert the internal controls it was reviewing.

"The alleged wrongdoing at FRMC happened, according to the criminal complaint, because those at the top took actions to override and circumvent the system of internal controls that were in place," DiNapoli's communications director, Jennifer Freeman, said in a written response. "When those at the top deliberately cover up their actions or engage in criminal activity, internal controls may not always flag the wrongdoing or raise red flags."

John Kaehny, executive director at Reinvent Albany, a nonprofit watchdog group, said a quick look at Fuller Road by any auditor should have signaled an alarm. For example, internal controls were already compromised because Fuller Road and Fort Schuyler Corp., another SUNY Poly non-profit run by Kaloyeros, were supposed to be separate entities but shared the same staff, Kaehny said.

"I would describe (the audit) as a whitewash and toothless and a complete failure," Kaehny said. "A thorough audit might not have found the bid rigging, but it would have found the corruption risk."

The state attorney general's indictment filed in September alleges Kaloyeros, who was also chairman of the Fuller Road board, provided a contract to a developer of NanoFab West in exchange for promises of a $50 million loan from the developer. Also, the developer said it would provide a $3 million research grant that would have paved the way for Kaloyeros to get a boost in his salary.

The state's complaint says Kayoleros was negotiating such a deal with the developer between 2010 and 2011  the same time during which DiNapoli's audit declared that Fuller Road Management had accurate monitoring in place and "control activities generally specify the separation of duties among employees that is necessary to ensure that no single individual has inordinate control over a financial transaction," according to the nine-page audit. The audit notes that it not only reviewed Fuller Road's written policies and financial statements, but interviewed officials there as well.

Kaloyeros, who has maintained his innocence, also faces charges of allegedly colluding with Columbia Development President Joseph Nicolla to ensure Columbia won a bid for building dorms next to SUNY Poly's Albany campus. Those alleged activities happened after the audit, in 2014 and 2015. Kaloyeros is also facing charges under a federal indictment for bid-rigging involving Buffalo and Syracuse developers and the Fort Schuyler Corp., SUNY Poly's non-profit arm that helmed economic development projects in Western and Central New York.

As part of the state charges, the complaint says that several Fuller Road employees told investigators that Kaloyeros sat on the nonprofit's request-for-proposals committee "and exerted strong influence over the RFP process ... sometimes even unilaterally overruling the selection made by a majority of the committee."

In 2013, Kaloyeros provided a short response to the Fuller Road audit that said the corporation was "delighted" the review found Fuller Road's practices ethical. "FRMC accepts the report as written in its entirety and acknowledges its flawless coherence to and full compliance with the commitment of the (Office of State Comptroller)..." Kaloyeros wrote.

Michael C. Miller, a New York City attorney representing Kaloyeros in the criminal complaints, said he had no comment about the audit.

One of the only criticisms in the audit was that Fuller Road did not disclose in its 2010 tax filings that two board members had potential business or financial conflicts. Carl A. Florio and George M. Phillip at the time also served on the board of First Niagara Financial Group, when First Niagara received more than $100,000 from Fuller Road in transaction fees. The audit described it as "an exception to an otherwise strong internal control environment."

The comptroller's office further defended its position by saying the 2013 audit was meant to only review internal control policies, and not Fuller Road's procurement process.

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DiNapoli was hampered from doing a complete review that might have unearthed such wrongdoing, Freeman said, because in 2011 the state had taken away the ability for the comptroller to also review State University of New York construction-related contracts. At the time, Fuller Road was overseeing hundreds of millions of dollars of construction on its main campus, including construction of the NanoFab West and ZEN buildings.

Former assistant comptroller Jerry Barber, who is listed on the audit as part of the Comptroller's Division of State Government Accountability, became Fuller Road Management's president later that year in 2013. After word got out earlier this year about the state and federal investigations into Fuller Road and Fort Schuyler's business practices, Barber led an overhaul of SUNY Poly's bidding processes and corporate governance rules. Barber then left his Fuller Road post about a month before the federal and state indictments were filed. There is no indication that Barber was the target of any of the investigations.

The comptroller's office would not comment on why Barber moved over to Fuller Road right after the audit, only confirming Barber retired from the comptroller's office in late 2013 after 37 years there. Barber couldn't be reached for comment.

Empire State Development has since assumed oversight of Fuller Road Management Corp. In November, ESD announced reforms it was instituting at Fort Schuyler Management. The agency said it did Fort Schuyler first because most of SUNY Poly's current construction projects are through that entity; reforms to Fuller Road Management's policies and procedures are forthcoming, said ESD spokesman Jason Conwall.

On Dec. 13, DiNapoli's office proposed a series of reforms that include restoring the comptroller's independent oversight for contracts related to the State University of New York, City University of New York and the Office of General Services, as well as prohibiting the use of nonprofits to execute state contracts.

"The comptroller's office contract oversight and payment audit functions that provide key lines of defense were missing from the system by design," Freeman, DiNapoli's spokeswoman, wrote in her response to the Times Union. "This created a gap in the control system allowing significant risks to develop undetected."

lstanforth@timesunion.com  518-454-5697
A total of 70 people took part in the first of this year's Nenagh Rail Community Partnership's annual train trip to Limerick on Ice.

The trip took place on Thursday, December 29, with 60 people boarding at Cloughjordan and a further 10 getting on at Nenagh, which has organised its own day out for this coming Tuesday, January 3.

The rail group has been organising the trips for over a decade, with Irish Rail and Limerick on Ice giving reduced prices for those who take part.

Cloughjordan is organising two trips, but people are reminded that they can travel on any of the days to avail of these great reductions once they produce a rail ticket at the Limerick on Ice ticket office.

On Tuesday, January 3, the train will leave Nenagh railway station at 10.55am and return from Limerick at 16.55. Once again there will be a reduced rate at 10 to skate and a return rail ticket at 6 return for adults and 3 for children. Skating is from 1pm to 2pm, and this hour always proves to be a special community event.

The contact for Nenagh is Virginia O'Dowd, 086-8185520.

The Cloughjordan group iwill travel again on Wednesday, January 4. The train leaves Cloughjordan at 10.45am and returns from Limerick at 16.55. The cost remains at 6 / 3 return for the train and 10 for the skating, which again is booked from 1pm to 2pm. The contact for Cloughjordan is Duncan Martin, 086-8377906.

People from Roscrea, Newport and the general Ballina area are welcome to take part by joining the train at their local station. Please check train times.

You don't have to book in advance. Just turn up at the individual stations on the day.
This year is likely to be a bumper Christmas, with Retail Ireland expecting core retail sales for December to reach 4.05 billion, an increase of 3.5 per cent on last years figure.

They also say that personal spending on core retail goods in December will be 2,580 per household, about 700 more than in any other month of the year.

Even during the bust, Christmas spending in Ireland held up with Christmas spending in Ireland the highest in Europe, with France coming second. One survey from the Irish League of Credit Unions published in recent weeks suggests that Irish consumers will splash out an average of 763 on Christmas. This figure is per person rather than per household. Eighty per cent of those polled in that survey said we spend too much over the festive season. So if people are aware that spending gets out of hand at Christmas, why does it continue?

Overspending at Christmas can easily happen during this season of generosity and giving, but the payback time will come in January, and then reality will set in and we wonder what got us into all this unnecessary debt and worry.

For those on low incomes, many borrow money to tide them over this extravagant period, leaving it hard to pay back debts when the New Year arrives. We must all ask ourselves is this essential, or are there other ways of celebrating the festive season and the birth of Christ? In all the panic buying and the hustle and bustle that follows, we often find that things that cost nothing and mean the most, are lost. Instead of spending time thinking about and buying gifts, would it not be time better spent calling and sitting down and having a chat and keeping friendships alive? Except for young children who still want Santa to call, spending time is the most valuable gift of all to give. For the vast majority, they have their needs met with ample food and heat, so sharing time and stories are far more beneficial to their wellbeing.

Owing money, that will be difficult to repay, only cause anxiety and frustration at what should be a joyful time. The root cause is often the pressure of spending too much money on Christmas  gifts, food and drinks, parties and nights out. January is often a miserable month as people struggle to pay for overspending at Christmas. Think practical, think realistic. Instead of asking  What do you want for Christmas?  work out how much you can afford to spend and then ask Whats the best possible Christmas we can have on our budget?

Recognise that our children may put us under pressure for the next new gadget  but the best gift we can give them is our time, attention, love, security and peace in the home. Keeping a record of your spending and sticking to your budget is one way of not owing money, as most of us are likely to underestimate our spending.

Plan your Christmas menu in advance. The amount of food wasted over the Christmas period is unacceptable when so many are hungry and homeless. Dont leave the Christmas shopping until Christmas Eve!

Work out how much you really want to eat and drink, and dont buy more than you need that will end up being thrown away. The shops will reopen again a couple of days after Christmas, some the very next day. So what is all the stocking up about?

Stop giving unnecessary presents especially if you must go in debt to pay for them. What about a family gift that can be used like fuel, or buy the ham or turkey to save expense on someone else. Only buy what you have the cash to pay for, and leave the credit card at home when you go shopping.

Even though we have more people in employment and there is more money in circulation, Christmas is a time when we feed our wants over our needs. This causes much upset to many and as research shows often leads to domestic violence on a large scale.

Christmas is a wonderful time of the year  the scent of Christmas trees in the air, decorations, lighting up towns and cities and many loved ones returning home. Instead of the over- consuming of alcohol and other drugs, why not enjoy a winters walk or catch up with family or friends by calling and spending time with them.

Always aim to use time constructively and prioritise wisely in the run up to Christmas, that way Christmas will be more relaxed and happy.

 Make a list of what needs to be done and tick off once completed.

 Assign tasks to family members and write down what tasks to be done on Christmas eve and Christmas day. These small things help to be organised.

But to look at the reality for many people who dread Christmas and all the furore that goes with it, lets us look at some startling statistics and ponder on their lives in the midst of so much extravagance. Social Justice Ireland has found the following figures in the midst of all the excesses of Christmas:

18% of adults living in poverty are employed  which it called the working poor

The top 10% of households receives 24% of Irelands total disposable income, while the bottom 10% of households only receives 3%

Almost one in five children live in households with incomes below the poverty line. Most weekly social assistance rates paid to single people are 30 below the poverty line.

More than 57% of those in poverty are not connected to the labour market; they are people who are retired, students, people in caring roles or people who are ill or people with a disability.

Sean Healy, of Social Justice, Ireland told TheJournal.ie that almost one in five of those who are living in poverty are people with jobs and 57% of our citizens fall into the poverty trap. So, in these time when people are more prone to giving, remembering these figures may allow a fairer distribution of charity to those who are poor and under the radar.

We all recognise the need for helping those who are considered poor and disadvantaged, but the above statistics should broaden our minds as to the many that live on the minimalist amount of money and are never thought about at this time. Many are proud and will never ask for help, even though they may live on small pensions and appear to well able to manage. Some are not and should be sought out.

At this time of year, as we celebrate the birth of Christ, this should be the foremost cause for celebration. Of the 84% who stated they were Catholics in the last Census, it behoves them to remember what Christmas is all about.

Peg Hanafin, MSc.

Author of Getting More out of life and

Thoughts for your Journey
[December 26, 2016] TEDA - Leading the Way for China's Industrial Transformation

China faces a historic challenge. It is moving from making large quantities of simple items for export at great cost to the environment to becoming a global leader in innovation, high-end manufacturing and product design. It is doing this because the country is no longer cheap enough for low-end manufacturing to keep driving economic growth. China's leaders also see greater sophistication as a way of achieving their goal of the "great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." The vision is clear, but making it reality requires a profound shift. The challenge is not just to create Silicon Valley equivalents full of promising start-ups but also to apply innovation to traditional manufacturing so it becomes greener, more efficient and competitive. This is where the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA) comes in. TEDA was the country's first dedicated industrial park, set up to pioneer the country's then new reform and opening up policy, which has brought great wealth and development in just a few decades. Located in Tianjin, a traditional seat of heavy industry and a major international port, the park has a long experience of developing Chinese industry and introducing it to international best practices. It produces goods worth about $45bn a year and has developed clusters in key areas from petrochemicals to wearable technology. Now TEDA - consistently ranked China's top industrial park - is stepping up to lead the way once again. If it is successful in transforming its companies into clean, efficient and globally competitive outfits, its achievements will in turn become a blueprint for companies in the rest of China. "New technologies are fuelling a revolution in industrial processes, with lots of disruptive innovations emerging," says Xu Hongxing, head of TEDA's CPC (News - Alert) Working Committee. "It is an opportunity similar in scale to the opportunity that presented itself at the beginning of reform and opening up over 30 years ago and whoever makes the most of it will gain an unparalleled edge." The key is to upgrade those traditional industries that have a future, such as the petrochemical sector, while also bringing in firms specializing in new technologies and business practices. The two groups of firms have a symbiotic relationship - big companies in industries ripe for modernization are eager for the kind of solutions new technology firms have to offer. TEDA's role is to bring them together and find ways to support their transformation and growth. "At TEDA we have both incumbent industries and newer sectors that are brought to the region. But they are not two separate layers of skin," says TEDA official Wang Xuejia. "We are making great efforts to create cross-pollination opportunities between the two, rather than having one replace the other." There are expected to be 10,000 small and medium-sized technology companies in TEDA by 2020. The park has also set up 15 business incubators. Master Kong shows the way Founded in TEDA 26 years ago, instant noode-maker Master Kong is an old-school manufacturer. Yet people are still visiting its facilities to see how the company operates because of the level of automation it has achieved.



Throughout the manufacturing process - from flour mixing, maturation, composite rolling, continuous rolling, wire forming, cutting, cooking, cutting into quantities and drying to finally packaging the product - very few workers can be seen making it all happen. Whereas before up to 50 workers were needed on each production line, there are just 16 workers on each line today. Meanwhile production has doubled, efficiency has gone up by a quarter and per-capita productivity has tripled, the company says, making the TEDA factory the biggest single instant noodle-producing plant in the world.

Master Kong has benefited from new know-how in the fields of robotics and automation and Ms. Wang says TEDA is now on the lookout for firms that can provide the kind of solutions that have helped Master Kong thrive in today's ever more competitive world. "TEDA is searching for the best new innovators in order to help address specific problems presented by longstanding companies as particularly hard nuts to crack," she says. "In this way, we connect them with entrepreneurs who can help solve their real world problems." Ms. Wang says this shift in thinking means people in the region now see enterprise as the main driver for innovation. This in turn means innovators and entrepreneurs are concentrating on solving the day-to-day business issues and challenges companies face. "This helps startups focus on the real world and means their ideas are more likely to be tested by the market, by the real world," says Ms. Wang. The TEDA branch of Dicastal, a Chinese auto parts maker, has also been able to use high-tech business processes as a way of achieving renewed prosperity. A deal with longstanding TEDA tenant company Toyota saw Dicastal build a state of the art plant that receives orders in real-time and produces custom-made small-volume parts exactly according to client demand, meaning it does not maintain any inventory stock. Managing change Big multinational firms such as Toyota have long provided business for local firms such as Dicastal - but what happens if the big firms disappear? That is what happened to Jinya, which used to make components in the millions for mobile phone maker Motorola (News - Alert), which was once one of TEDA's highest-profile tenants and the basis for a wide-ranging industrial chain covering much of the region. But the mobile phones business has changed, Motorola no longer has anything like the market share it once had and companies such as Jinya have had to rely on their insight into which products will be in demand in the future to survive. This they have successfully done, expanding into remote control systems, dashboard circuit boards, seat heating and massage systems for cars and LED lighting systems. TEDA has funded a corporate transformation and upgrade program to help companies such as Jinya adapt to changing realities, according to Sun Qijun, deputy director of TEDA's trade promotion bureau. More than 1,700 companies have participated in the program, with about 500 focusing on management capabilities, 450 focusing on technical upgrades and the rest concentrating on research and development, developing emerging industries and mergers, e-commerce and acquisitions. Using what's left behind TEDA is also focusing on managing another aspect of change - the infrastructure left behind by companies that outgrow it or whose time is up. By renovating old buildings, TEDA can save new companies and start-ups large sums of money and time compared to the investment needed to build new facilities from scratch. One of TEDA's big new economy tenant companies is online classified advertising company 58.com, a firm that employs more people than the average internet business. So far more than 2,800 people are working in the 58.com building, which has been repurposed since previous occupier Samsung (News - Alert) moved into different premises. Another building previously occupied by a manufacturing company is now being transformed into a new home for TEDA's Industrial Park for Intelligent Unmanned System. The new premises will enable collaboration between robotics research and end users as well as containing an exhibition area, shared laboratory and software platforms and intelligent manufacturing facilities. Singapore's GLP group has also signed a deal to transform part of TEDA into a new facility boasting advanced manufacturing and research capabilities to host tech companies relocating out of Beijing under central government plans to integrate the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Work on the physical infrastructure is being matched by activity in virtual infrastructure for companies too. TEDA has relaunched its e-government portal offering back office services such as corporate registration, administration, taxation and legal functions in one integrated online hub. According to Wang Sheng, chairman of TEDA's administrative committee, this all means tenant companies are freed up to spend more time on what they do best, be it develop innovative new technologies or manufacture in-demand goods. "We are creating an ecosystem that matches supply of new technology with demand from established manufacturing firms and we pride ourselves on making things as easy and cost-effective as possible for our companies, whichever side of the equation they are on," he says. "This has become vital for our own continued success as a forward-looking industrial park and for the success of the Chinese economy as a whole." View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161226005015/en/

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[December 26, 2016] iEx.ec Blockchain Cloud Computing Platform Releases Its Whitepaper







LYON, France, Dec. 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- iEx.ec has released the very first version of its whitepaper showcasing the future of Internet. The document offers a detailed description of iEx.ec's vision, the market, development roadmap and the upcoming crowd sale of its tokens scheduled for January 17, 2017. iEx.ec which stands for "I Execute" is a French/Chinese company headquartered in Lyon, France with an office provided by Tsinghua University X-elerator. The platform was first introduced at the Ethereum Devcon2 conference held in Shanghai, China in September 2016. The team also successfully showcased a demo of the platform at the Super Computing Exhibition 2016 held in Salt Lake City, USA. With the platform, iEx.ec aims to provide blockchain based distributed applications a scalable, secure and easy access to the computing resources required for their execution. It uses the blockchain to organize a market network where everyone can monetize their servers, applications, and data-sets. This technology extends the Ethereum smart contracts allowing the creation of virtual Cloud infrastructure that provides High-Performance Computing (HPC) services on-demand. iEx.ec leverages a set of research technologies that have been developed at the INRIA and CNRS research institutes in the field f Distributed and Parallel computing. iEx.ec relies on XtremWeb-HEP, a mature, solid, and open-source software which implements all the needed features viz. fault-tolerance, multi-applications, multi-users, hybrid public/private infrastructure, deployment of virtual images, data management, security and accountability, and more.



The new Proof-of-Contribution protocol being developed by iEx.ec allows off-chain consensus. With the Proof-of-Contribution protocol, external resource providers can have their resource usage certified directly on the Blockchain. iEx.ec aims to deploy a scalable, high-performance, secure and manageable infrastructure sidechain that will promote a new form of distributed governance, implying key HPC, Big Data, and Cloud industry leaders. The team believes in a future of decentralized infrastructure and market network, where Big Data, HPC, IoT, and AI applications, highly valued datasets, and computing resources (storage, CPU, GPU etc.) will be monetized on the Blockchain with the highest level of transparency, resiliency, and security. iEx.ec will be the key platform powering this future.

About iEx.ec iEx.ec is a follow-up to the CloudPower project, which was supported by the French National Research Agency (French), the University of Lyon, the French National Institute for Research in Computer Science (INRIA), the University of Paris XI, and the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS). Learn more about iEx.ec at  http://iex.ec

iEx.ec on YouTube  https://youtu.be/kUM0qR2cmZY Media Contact Contact Name: Gilles Fedak

Contact Email: [email protected]

Contact Phone: 33630905448

Location: Lyon, France iEX.ec is the source of this content. Virtual currency is not legal tender, is not backed by the government, and accounts and value balances are not subject to consumer protections. This press release is for informational purposes only. The information does not constitute investment advice or an offer to invest. Related Links Bitcoin PR Buzz iEx.ec Related Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUM0qR2cmZY This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com/.





To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/iexec-blockchain-cloud-computing-platform-releases-its-whitepaper-300383566.html SOURCE iEx.ec

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FM Tsakalotos argued that an agreement is possible even without the IMFs participation in Greeces bailout program

Greeces economy, which will present positive growth rates for a third consecutive quarter, needs a clear passage for the years to follow. This is why an agreement in January will allow us to be included in the quantitative easing (QE) program, preventing a new cycle of uncertainty, said Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos in an interview with Efimerida ton Syntakton newspaper.

FM Tsakalotos also argued that an agreement is possible even without the IMFs participation in Greeces bailout program. Referring to the stance of his German counterpart Wolfgang Schauble, he stressed that the democratic deficit endangers euro, which reminds him of the old English saying: Be careful what you wish for. A two-tier euro system is not a realistic scenario, he said adding, Without a more democratic and socially fair solution, the euro is in danger.

When asked about the governments benchmark regarding the completion of the second bailout program review, Mr. Tsakalotos expressed his estimation that the negotiation will be concluded at the Eurogroup of January 26th.

Read more here.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
For the second time this year, the Greek National Council on Foreign Policy, presided over by Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias, met on Friday to discuss the Cyprus issue

For the second time this year, the Greek National Council on Foreign Policy, presided over by Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias, met on Friday to discuss the Cyprus issue.

After Thursdays meeting between Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot President Mustafa Akinci, Mr. Anastasiades stated that some progress has been made on certain issues, while other remain outstanding. President Akinci fully supported Ankaras stance, according to which Turkey should remain guarantor power after the Cyprus issue is settled. The next meeting of Presidents Anastasiades and Akinci has been scheduled for January 4th, with a possibility of another meeting on January 7th.

Read more here.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
Greeks are conflicted about the benefits of European Union membership and a very substantial majority is unhappy with direction the EU is going

Greeks are conflicted about the benefits of European Union membership and a very substantial majority is unhappy with direction the EU is going, according to the results of a nationwide survey released by Palmos Analysis on Sunday. The survey was commissioned by ruling SYRIZA's group in the European Parliament.

A whopping 84 pct of Greeks consider that the EU is "moving in the wrong direction" but opinions are evenly split on whether the country's EU membership is positive (44 pct) or negative (45 pct). At the same time, six in 10 favour membership of the Eurozone.

Most Greeks cannot recall any reference to the European Parliament in the media they generally follow during the past month, while seven in 10 consider that they are not adequately informed about the activities of the EuroParliament. By contrast, four in 10 say they are not adequately informed about the activities of the Greek Parliament.

Greek citizens want the EU to have greater powers on a series of issues, with percentages ranging from 47 pct (for control of state budgets) up to 86 pct (on the refugee crisis). Asked about the measures for Greece's public debt decided at the last Eurogroup, one in three considers them 'positive but not adequate' and four in 10 considers them bad. Roughly half of Greeks want the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in the Greek programme, either as a creditor or as a technical advisor.

Only one in four Greeks considers that the country's MEPs adequately represent the country in the EuroParliament, while two in four disagree. At the same time, most individual MEPs have a net positive balance of positive versus negative opinions.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report

Source: ANA-MPA
The authorities have held 3,710 people for questioning in the last six months

Turkey is investigating 10,000 people on suspicion of using social media to support terrorism, its interior ministry has said.

They are accused of insulting government officials online, or what the ministry called terror-related activity on the internet. The ministry said the fight against terrorism was being carried out with determination on social media.

The authorities have held 3,710 people for questioning in the last six months. Of those, 1,656 have been formally arrested and 84 are still being questioned.

Calculated blackouts

Access to social media sites like Twitter and Facebook is often blocked in Turkey, especially after bombings. Internet monitoring groups believe the outages are calculated blackouts designed to block the spread of militant propaganda.

Turkey denies this, and has blamed past episodes on spikes in internet usage after major events. Internet use was severely disrupted after Russias ambassador to Turkey was shot dead on Monday.

Reports suggest Twitter and YouTube have also slowed down since Thursday, when a video emerged allegedly showing two Turkish soldiers being burned alive by the so-called Islamic State.

Activists and foreign powers have raised repeated concerns about repression in Turkey since the summer.

After a coup failed to unseat him in July, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared a state of emergency and began purging officials, soldiers, teachers, police and judges who were perceived as anti-government.

Critics say the president is using the state of emergency to tighten his grip on power and stifle opponents.

Since the attempted coup, more than 150 media outlets have been shut down and 140 journalists arrested. As of November, more than 125,000 state employees had been sacked or suspended.

Read more here.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
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Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) has signed a partnership agreement with Innovation Park Muscat (IPM) to support Omani entrepreneurs and solve key production and technical challenges.



Innovation Park Muscat is one of the major initiatives by The Research Council (TRC) in a bid to encourage scientific research, innovation and activate collaboration between the academic, private and the diverse industry sectors of local and international communities.



Under the terms of a memorandum of understanding (MoU), the partners will work together on a number of important economic, energy and environmental matters to support the sultanates development, said a statement from PDO.



There will be concerted effort by both sides to support the development and competitiveness of the small and medium enterprise (SME) sector, with local companies who work with PDO being encouraged to start their own research and development with IPM, it said.



They will encourage SMEs to carry out their basic technological research, test-proof their conceptual thoughts and innovation ideas and conduct the early-stage technology development in IPM prior to the mass production of their goods, it added.



Both will also work to stimulate international companies to support and transfer technology and innovation to local companies and SMEs that are based in IPM. The aim is to encourage local Omani companies and entrepreneurs to embrace innovation and new technologies to sustain their future growth and become more competitive locally and regionally, said a statement.



PDO will share with IPM some of the major challenges facing the oil and gas industry as a means of spurring innovation and research.



Specifically, IPM will work on developing solutions in priority areas of enhanced oil recovery, water management and energy efficiency.



PDO managing director Raoul Restucci, said: This agreement will strengthen the aspirations of both parties to promote and enhance the sultanates economic, entrepreneurial and knowledge base in areas of competitive advantage.



We fully support Innovation Park Muscat in its excellent work to promote and enhance the Sultanates entrepreneurial and knowledge base by supporting the growth of innovative Omani companies in areas that include energy, he said.



We are confident that it can help us as we seek to resolve or complex technical challenges, reduce costs, increase production and reserves, and operate in a safer and greener environment, he added.



Both partners are committed to increasing in-country value, so that more of our industrys wealth is retained within Oman, by supporting local communities and entrepreneurs and adding value through the promotion of R&D and technology transfer, Restucci said.



This is the latest move by our company to strengthen our valued relationships with our research and development partners to build up the Omani knowledge economy, support SMEs and address some of our key challenges, he concluded.  TradeArabia News Service
Gulf Markets International (GMI), which represents companies from around the world bringing their expertise to the region, will display strong portfolio of international brand products at the upcoming Gulf Industry Fair 2017 in Bahrain.



The Northern Gulfs leading annual industrial expo takes place from February 7 to 9 at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre under the patronage of HRH Prince Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain.



Gulf Industry Fair is the leading Industrial expo for the GCC that is dedicated to promoting Bahrains industrial sectors. Our balanced optimistic vision for the business future in Bahrain and our geographic presence in the GCC means that our commitment to support Gulf Industry Fair is an integral part of our marketing strategy, said Alain Arida, CEO of Gulf Markets International, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.



Gulf Markets International has expanded its business activities to include building materials, agriculture, lifts, medical equipment and industrial materials, equipment and solutions.GMI has successfully built a sourcing platform hosting more than 40 companies as part of its portfolio, from around the world, in particular from Europe, Canada, the US, India, China and the GCC.



We have focused our exhibitions to promote Bahrain as the business architect across a number of strategic business sectors, said Jubran Abdulrahman, managing director of Hilal Conferences and Exhibitions, organizers of the show.



The participation of Gulf Markets International is fully aligned with the aims of Gulf Industry Fair, which are to promote the Gulfs industrial and economical capabilities and ambitions.



Gulf Industry Fair 2017 is strategically sponsored by the Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco) in association with Noga and Aluminium Bahrain (Alba). The Industrial Facilities zone is sponsored by Majaal and Naffco will be leading the Fire and Safety zone during the event.



Supporting organisations for GIF 2017 includes Bahrain Industrial Association, AHK Saudi Arabia, the German Saudi Arabian Liaison for Economic Affairs, the Saudi British Economic Offset Programme and Indias PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry.  TradeArabia News Service
Flynas, the Saudi national carrier, has started direct operation between Abu Dhabi, UAE and Dammam, Saudi Arabia with the touching down of a flight at Abu Dhabi International Airport.



Flynas will fly four flights from King Fahd International Airport in Dammam to Abu Dhabi International Airport, on Sundays, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.



With the launching of this flight from Dammam Airport, the third base operation of flynas, the number of flynas weekly flights between cities of the Kingdom to the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi, increases to 25 flights, through 14 weekly flights from Riyadh and 7 weekly flights from Jeddah, along with the new flights from King Fahd International Airport in Dammam.



The new flights will use Airbus A320, which provides both Economy and Business class seats, to offer wider range of options.  TradeArabia News Service
Africa is a continent known for its wild animal encounters, dramatic landscapes, exotic cultures, and stunning beaches. It's a travel experience that will creep under your skin, compelling you to return again and again. However, traveling around Africa can be a difficult and daunting experience for travelers.

Africa has been really blessed with truly amazing sites for travelers. However, the beauty of the places in Africa is not the issue but the safety of the travelers. According to Afrika News, now that South Africa have imposed their new Visa Procedures, travelers are asking, is it safe in Africa?

The new Visa procedure for South Africa is made in response to New Zealand not allowing South African Nationals in their border. This new measure would be taking effect this January 16. it is important that travelers must be aware of these changes in order to avoid inconvenience.

With safeties as the topmost concern for travelers, they must be well aware of the places they are traveling and to any changes in the traveling procedures to these places. Here are some useful tips for travelers that could be used not only in traveling to Africa but to wherever places they'll be visiting.

First is for travelers to wear a money belt or only take a day's worth of money. He must be aware of the surroundings when taking money out at an ATM. If something seems suspicious, he must move along quickly says Intrepid Travel.

Same applies to jewelry, these things are really not needed during travel so travelers must leave them somewhere safe. Travelers must also be discreet with their camera, especially large DSLRs. They must be kept locked in a backpack until needed or kept securely while holding them.

While many places in Africa are safe for tourists (as long as they do precautions) some places in North and Central Africa are a little more complicated and unstable. In order for travelers to be guided, they must follow government travel advisory warnings and any guide books.

Communicating with experienced travelers could also be very helpful. Fellow travelers and expats have the real-life experience on the field and they could give the exact and specific news about your travel especially about the safety of the place you are heading.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
Madrid is the capital of Spain where you can find classy structures and its enticing repositories of European art. Living or visiting Madrid is definitely going to be a wonderful experience, and there are a handful of reasons to visit Madrid and we will be mentioning the top five reasons.

Visiting in the capital of Spain would certainly make your vacation experience exquisite, and unforgettable. The classical structures and unique pieces of European art of Madrid can leave you breathless, and there are more things you will not forget from Madrid. This includes its boulevards and parks such as the Buen Retiro. The Royal Palace and Armory is an elegant structure that is displaying antique and historic weaponry.

According to Telegraph, Plaza Mayor is one of the reasons why you should visit Madrid. The Plaza Mayor is one of Madrid's famed landmarks, which was built in 1617 and presents the slate roofs and spires typical of the Habsburg dynasty. The landmark also has programs of activities which includes theater, concerts, and exhibitions. In addition, there is also a hotel planned for the Casa de la Carniceria, and for that, the Plaza Mayor lands on our Top 1 in the list.

Our Top 2 in the list is the Only You Atocha Hotel, which is located in the Arts District. The hotel is quite near the Plaza Mayor, Plaza Santa Ana, Puerto Del Sol and also Retiro Park. The hotel has a spectacular design on its massive lobby which also has a cocktail bar, restaurant, leather sofas, and a rugged vibe which will surely make people stop in their tracks. This is a hotel that is certainly worth visiting for in Madrid.

According to Teach & Travel Spain, one of the reasons to visit or live in Madrid is the nightlife fiestas. Madrid has one of the best nightclubs, cocktail lounges, pubs, taverns, and much more. This is also one of the best reasons why Madrid is so famous, and can actually match up with New York and Miami when it comes to nightlife. The nightlife fiestas of Madrid earn our Top 3 in the list.

Of course, shopping will be on our top list, and on our Top 4 is Madrid's fantastic shopping option. From exquisite designer labels on Calle Serrano to the rare products, you can find just by strolling through the Rastro Flea market. There are so many shopping areas in Madrid, and they have different varieties of products that are budget friendly.

Our Top 5 and last on the list is Madrid's famed museums. The Prado and Reina Sofia are just two of the world's well-known museums, and the people of Madrid enjoy their free access at different hours throughout an entire week. The magnificent exhibitions are so impressive and would certainly get your attention. There are also other great museums in the city which includes The Romanticismo Museum and El Museo del Traje.

What do you think about our Top 5 reasons to visit Madrid? Watch the video below for some of the musts-see attractions of Madrid, and subscribe for more updates!

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The year 2016 has left a lot of people, stressed, angry, and confused due to events such as Donald Trump becoming U.S. president, the problem in Syria and more. So for 2017, it's important to start the year fresh and there a wellness-inspired travel can help with that.

The co-founder of travel company Black Company Tom Marchant told CNN that with people being constantly connected online, people tend to become overstimulated and exhausted. "Mindfulness and emotional well-being have become increasingly important" during this time, he said.

He adds that traveling and mindfulness "go hand-in-hand" because being mindful encourages people "to be present in the moment." So to start 2017, it's important for people to realign "for a clean slate."

Health and Fitness Travel adds that wellness retreats usually offer programs that will help people feel rejuvenated. Samples of the program they offer include detox, reduce their stress, loss weight, and more.

So for those who are looking to start 2017 fresh, a wellness retreat center is the destination for you. Here are five wellness retreats centers from around the world that people can go to.

First among the list is the Six Senses Douro Valley in Lamego, Portugal. This manor house will be hosting two four-day retreats in 2017 (Jan. 26 - 30 & Mar. 26 - 30) called Stress-Free Success retreats that will teach participants techniques that will help them handle stress caused by physical, psychological, and external influences.

The second is the Lefay Resort & Spa Lago di Garda at Gargnano BS, Italy. It is a luxury spa that uses spa treatments that combine the latest Western techniques with ancient Chinese medicine to offer the people a great and unique wellness experience. Their treatments include helping people lose weight, improve their posture, lose weight, and more.

The third is the Amanbagh in Rajasthan, India. The wellness center has a seven to 21-day retreat that offers preventive medicine that came from the ancient teachings of Ayurveda and anti-aging. People who will participate in this retreat can also experience Yoga and meditation sessions in a 17th-century temple, a great place for people to clear their mind and have a relaxing time.

The fourth is The Farm at San Benito located in Lipa City, Batangas, Philippines. The wellness retreat center is known for its back-to-nature approach and offers treatments that are healthy and detoxifying, food that is nutritious, and an emotional and guidance support. It's an ideal destination for a rejuvenating and anti-aging holiday.

The last center is the Kamalaya Koh Samui in Surat Thani, Thailand. It is an award-winning holistic spa that offers great wellness programs, accommodating and dedicated staff, and luxurious grounds. The spa is known to stimulate an environment that would encourage visitors to transform their long-term health and personal development, a great center indeed for people who wants to start their 2017 fresh.

For people who are still looking for a stress-free Christmas experience, there are still five destinations that people can visit for this kind of experience. Visit Travelers Today to learn more.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
Sweden is now the most reputable country in 2016, dethroning Canada. Having a good reputation can help influence a country's foreign policy and if people would like to go visit there. To know more what it's like to live in a reputable country, here it from the people who live there.

According to BBC, residents are saying that Sweden is a great country for being welcoming, safe, and beautiful. Dr. Ernest Adams, who lives in Sweden as a senior lecturer at Uppsala University and a part-time consultant, said that the country is one of the most welcoming European countries in Europe to refugees.

And this is something that's not only happening now, as Sweden even helped most of the Jews in Denmark during the war. One caveat on Sweden is that residents would mostly like to keep to themselves, according to resident and author of "An English Mamma in Stockholm" Kat Trigarszky.

As for the second place Canada, its residents continuously defend their country for also being welcoming to Syrian refugees. Native Canadian and a frequent Quora author on life in Canada Jeremy Arnold said that there's concern among Canadians to ensure that "those who have suffered so much" will be able to rebuild their lives properly in Canada.

The third most reputable country is Switzerland and according to former resident Jason Li, the country has a lot of wealth and culture. He said that 20 percent of residents are expats and most of them are working in the hospitality and tourism industry, which is good for the industry as these people are accustomed to dealing with foreigners.

Australia is the fourth most reputable country in the world and residents love the country for the safety, peacefulness, and security that it provides. A resident who lives in Melbourne Ganesh Krishnan said that Australia banned gun a few decades ago, which means "gun violence is minimal." The country's large and extensive public transport system also makes it one of the most livable cities.

The fifth most reputable country is Norway, which is considered as a safe and scenic country. Barbara Schwendtner, a resident from Oslo, Austria and a guide from Your Local Cousin, people from Norway are beautiful, the country values gender equality, and it provides great scenery for everyone. Expats also fit well, as residents don't really treat locals and foreigners differently.

To view the top 20 most reputable countries in the world for 2016, visit the photo slideshow that Forbes has created. For tourists who want to visit Sweden, they might also want to check out the country's latest attraction, its Icehotel.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
Paris is one of the dream destinations of many. It is one of the finest countries to go in our lifetime. In this country, you will find the finest culture in terms of art, fashion, food, and literature ideas. Planning to go to Paris is no longer a problem today. All you need to do is to do the planning ahead of time. There are certain tips that you can do when going to such place. Here are the essential tips that you can do for your first Parisian trip.

1. Decide the date of vacation - According to Go Paris, it is important to identify the date that you wish to visit the said country. It is important to know whether you will be in Paris for a summer or fall adventure. Doing so will also help you identify the activities that you will be doing during your stay. This will also help you book your accommodations ahead of time.

2. Look for travel packages and deals - When planning for a Parisian getaway, one of the things that you can do is to look for travel packages. This is the best thing to do in order to have a Parisian trip hassle-free. There are highly recommended travel sites that you can approach for your trip.

3. Figure out your hotel accommodation - Prior to the trip, make sure to have your hotel ready for booking. You can look for websites where you can find best hotels to stay in Paris. Rick Steves encourage travellers to read reviews about hotels and best places to stay in a most affordable rate in Paris.

4. Have you Visa and Passport ready - These are two of the essential things that must be prepared. Make sure to have this ready before booking everything for your Parisian trip. International travels, especially in Paris, require tight security in terms of travel documents like these.

5. Learn about the city's geography - The final thing that you need to do is to be familiar with the location and geography of Paris. You can spend time learning about Paris through reading views and visiting certain websites online.

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Disney's new film "Moana," revolves on an island life full of spectacular beaches and crystal clear waters. These picturesque natural wonders were actually inspired the Pacific Islands, so for the beach lovers out there who want to experience wading in the beautiful salty waters inspired by Moana, here are the islands you can check out:

Fiji is anyone's total beach paradise. Nestled in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean, this small island country offers tons of exhilarating beach experiences you couldn't get anywhere else, which makes it a perfect inspiration for Moana.

It is made up of 332 islands, spread out over 7000 square miles. However,  of the population resides in Fiji's two biggest islands, Viti Levu and Vanua Levu. Locals here still enjoy the native beach village life, despite their modernization. Succulent seafood and pristine waves can be enjoyed in this beautiful country, made up of friendly locals and top-notch resorts.

You could really feel as though you're in the actual "Moana" setting when you set foot in Samoa. Locals live in their unique culture and traditions, which is a refreshing change of pace compared to usual hustle and bustle of a normal city life.

All the beaches and natural wonders surrounding Samoa are nothing short of magical. In addition, their local cuisine is so good it may even surpass top Michelin-starred restaurants! They are living in what they call "Fa'a Samoa", the Samoan way. People here enjoy their culture- just like Moana- so if you pay a visit, make sure to experience their enriching way of living, and respect their local traditions.

Surrounded by a lagoon and a barrier reef, Bora-bora could not be any more perfect. Although it's already a famous tourist destination, you can still enjoy the tranquility and peace in this island.

Resorts here typically feature Water Villas as their accommodation, and this paradise is known for being a destination for honeymooners. Utterly secluded, you could enjoy a week here with your loved ones and let the waves of Bora-bora melt your stress away.

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With only a week left before the New Year's Eve, people are so excited about knowing where will they be watching a good fireworks display. To cut down their choices of where will they be spending the special evening, here is how fireworks display is done in the very famous New York City.

One of the New York's finest is their New Year countdown held every New Year's Eve. Families and friends are all gathered to attend the special event held in the London Eye, and in the center of the arena are the boxes of very beautiful fireworks. Indeed, the best thing that people wait during the countdown is the fireworks display.

The Telegraph UK reported that yearly, there are at least 250,000 residents and tourists from all the world attending the celebration. It started in 2014 and now on its third year, the government is expecting for more visitors to check on the extravagant fireworks display. The ticket system will be implemented to those who would want to come near the center of the London Eye where the view is at its best.

The admission of ticketed individuals will start at 10:00 in the evening, two hours before the official 1st of January. As per the advice of the event organizers, those who are unfortunate for getting tickets to go inside the area could just search for bars and restaurants with rooftops to check on the fireworks than joining the ticketed crowd to avoid having a stampede.

All updates regarding the ticketing system and other details regarding the New Year countdown in the London Eye will be released by the office of the Mayor of the New York City, and can also be viewed in their official social media accounts. For their Twitter account, official updates will be posted at @LDN_gov.

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Christmas is a worldwide tradition people celebrate all over the world. Christmas trees, twinkling lights and Christmas feasts are common, but did you know there are other Christmas traditions that's kind of, well, weird?

To foreigners, they may be bizarre, but to the locals, they're perfectly normal. Take a look at some of the unique Christmas traditions of other countries you don't know that exist:

Submerging A Cherry Tree Branch In Water In Czech Republic. This country may be a beautiful place to wander for a culturally-starved traveler, but they also have some few quirks about Christmas as well.

It is a famous tradition for Czech girls to put a cherry tree branch underwater during Dec 4th. If the cherry blooms before Christmas Eve, then it means the girls will marry within a year. We don't know the history behind this superstition, but to the Czech people it seems legit.

Krampus In Austria. Aside from being merry and festive, Austrians also celebrate Christmas with a scary twist by whipping out Santa Claus' evil twin, Krampus. Every Christmas, tons of locals dress up as Krampus and scare the people in the streets.

Krampus is an urban legend where he targets the naughty children during Christmas, and drags them away from their families. Not very Christmas-y.

Nisse, A Naughty Christmas Gnome In Denmark. Christmas Elves are a common sight during Christmas, but in Denmark, there is one particular gnome they have to watch out for, whose name is Nisse.

Apparently, Nisse loves to play pranks on people during Christmas. Therefore, Danish families must always leave a bowl of porridge for him so that they wouldn't get victimized. Or else, he will take all the children's presents. Better to be safe then.

Polar Bear Plunge in Britain. Despite the freezing temperature of the rivers and oceans during winter, some brave souls do what is commonly called "The Polar Bear Plunge", where they dive in the freezing waters during Christmas.

Although nowadays, people who participate in this icy tradition often do it in the name of charity. It is also practiced in the US, Canada, Ireland, and France.

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After the continuation of terrorist attacks in Jordan, the U.S. Department of State has issued a warning to all American citizens planning to travel to Jordan in the coming weeks. Deadly terrorist attacks have been plaguing the country and are starting to become unsafe for travelers.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) was the terrorist group responsible for the recent attack on December 18 which left several officers, local civilians and one Canadian tourist dead. The deadly encounter lasted several hours in the Karak castle, a famous tourist destination.

Because of this, the US issued a press warning, and certain areas in Jordan, most especially the country border between Syria and Iraq, must be avoided at all costs, to prevent an unfortunate encounter with the terrorists.

Travelers and locals as well are reminded to be wary of their surroundings, and places like malls, hotels, or other densely populated areas are warned to be a "soft target" for terrorists, therefore constant vigilance must always be ensured.

Apparently, terrorists are still plotting series of attacks in the state. Also, a travel warning was issued to Egypt, because of similar attacks that happened there.

According to their statement, The U.S. Department of State said: "Travelers to Jordan should avoid the country's border with Syria and Iraq given the continued threat of cross-border attacks. All U.S. government personnel on official travel must receive prior permission to visit any area within 10 km from the Jordan-Syria border, which includes the town of Ramtha.

"The 10 km area does not include the tourist site of Umm Qais or the city of Irbid. U.S. government personnel must also have permission for official travel on Highway 10 east of the town of Ruwayshid toward the Iraq border. U.S. government employees on personal travel are not permitted to visit the border areas or refugee camps, and the embassy advises U.S. citizens to avoid both."

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Nitin Jain

THE voters of Chandigarh have given their mandate, and now, it is over to the newly-elected municipal councillors. Chandigarhians have voted for the BJP which recorded an unprecedented landslide victory by winning 20 of the 22 MC seats it fought. Its alliance partner SAD, however, managed to win only one of the four seats it contested. The Congress faced decimation by getting only 4 seats while others, the BSP, Left and the Independents, found no place to sit in the new MC House. The lone winner, Independent candidate, Dalip Sharma, is also a BJP rebel.

Whether it was a vote for NaMo or stamp of approval on DeMo, something the saffron partys top leadership claims but the main Opposition Congress vehemently dismisses, the task is cut out for the BJP-SAD alliance having a two-third majority in the new House. They have no choice but to do what the Chandigarhians want, finish the unfinished agenda, and come up to the expectations of the people. After winning the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, this is the second big and consecutive win for the saffron party in the City Beautiful.

With everyone right from top to bottom on their side, the newly-elected BJP-SAD councillors would have no one to blame if they fail to discharge their duties. From MP to PM, all are from BJP, and this should make their task easy and goals achievable. They are left with no option but to perform.

With bijli, sadak and pani  the three basic civic amenities  still remaining below the mark in Indias first planned city, the new MC House should raise the level and standard of the three services by ensuring uninterrupted power and water supply and pothole-free and well-lit roads and streets.

If at all these need a reminder, ensuring cleanliness, coping with ever-increasing vehicular traffic, reducing the pain of parking pangs, checking mushrooming vendors, removing illegal encroachments and providing efficient and time-bound public delivery system pose quite a challenge.

How saffronist councillors and their local and national leaders take this rather unexpected landslide victory and how much they live up to the peoples expectations, only time will tell. But the newly elected councilors will be doing themselves a service to keep in mind that if voters have made you this time, they can also break you the next time, should you fail to deliver.
Ramkrishan Upadhyay

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 26

The last meeting of the general House of the Municipal Corporation was no different from the other as it witnessed heated arguments, frequent intervals and boycott from Congress councillors after Subhash Chawla, former Mayor and party councillor, was denied permission to speak in the House by Mayor Arun Sood.

Chawla alleged that the Mayor supported imposition of the entry tax on commercial vehicles in the city and failed to bring additional water from Kajauli this year.

The allegations led to heated arguments as the Mayor countered the charges and said Chawla had made a wrong statement. After Chawla was not allowed to speak, all Congress councillors boycotted the meeting for around 20 minutes. Later, they came inside the House with clippings of newspapers showing the statements of the Mayor in favour of the entry tax. However, Sood denied them permission to speak.

Opposing this, Congress councillors, including Pradeep Chhabra, Mukesh Bassi, Gurbax Rawat, HC Kalyan and Darshan Garg, reached near the chair of the Mayor and raised slogans such as Dhakkashahi nahin chalegi against him. Chhabra said the decision to levy the entry tax was taken at a meeting of the STA chaired by MP Kirron Kher. He said the BJP was putting burden on city residents.

Later, Sood denied having ever promised to impose entry tax on commercial vehicles. He said the matter was brought only for discussion to increase the revenue of the MC.

Sood said additional water supply from Kajauli would be started next year and work on the projects had already begun. He accused the Congress councillors of raising insignificant issues.

Outgoing councillors later recalled their fond memories of the House and thanked officers for their cooperation. Nominated councillors were also present at the meeting. Kirron Kher did not attend the meeting due to a meeting of the party in New Delhi. Newly elected councillors also witnessed the meeting and were later given a rousing welcome by the Mayor and the councillors. First-timers eager to learn

A majority of the councillors, who have been elected for the first time, believe in healthy discussions in the House and say they are eager to learn.

Farmila Devi, councillor from Ward No. 6, says she is eager to participate in discussions in the House. She says she will come fully prepared in the House and raise issues concerning her ward. Shakti Prakash Devshali feels the poor strength of the Opposition will help them pass development agenda without resistance. Bharat Kumar, elected from Ward No. 23, says the House is a temple of democracy and he will maintain its dignity.
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 26

Two snatching incidents were reported from the city today. Snatchers targeted a woman and snatched her purse while in the second incident, a mobile phone was snatched from a youth.

Sources said two motorcycle-borne miscreants snatched a mobile phone from a youth in Sector 20 this evening. The victim, Rahul, a resident of Sector 20, was holding the mobile phone in his hand when the miscreants, riding a Splendor motorcycle, snatched it.

They sped away from the spot. The victim failed to note down the registration number of the motorcycle.

In the other incident, snatchers targeted a woman, Vinod Kumari, and snatched her purse in Sector 41.

The purse contained Rs 1,000 and some documents. The police visited the spot. A case has been registered at the Sector 39 police station. The rising number of snatching incidents has caused fear among residents.
Amarji Bhullar

AFTER the concerns raised by the opposition and the farmers' organisation, the Union Minister of Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan has finally announced that the zero-import duty on wheat is a short-time window to cool down the wheat price that is higher by 3 per cent as compared to three months ago. The dip in the buffer stocks from 268 million tonne a year ago to 165 million tonne has also forced the government to completely remove the import duty. There is some weight in the arguments given by the Food Minister but the government should be very mindful and keep a day-to-day watch on the situation. Otherwise, a small time lapse on the part of government may result in large-scale imports, adversely affecting the domestic producers. The international wheat prices are witnessing a decreasing trend as shown in the table given alongside. Protecting the wheat economy in the short as well as long run is in the profound interest of India.

Why protecting wheat production is so important? Wheat is the main food crop and is the staple food of millions of Indians, particularly in the northern and north-western parts of the country. It is rich in proteins and carbohydrates and provides balanced food. India is the fourth-largest producer of wheat in the world, after Russia, the USA and China. India accounts for about 9 per cent of the world's total production of wheat. The production of wheat has increased by 30 per cent in the last 10 years. Among the foodgrain crops, wheat is the most stable crop with minimal year-to-year fluctuations in the production. The water requirement per acre of wheat production is almost one-fifth as compared to rice and almost equivalent to maize. Unlike rice, wheat is the natural crop of the many agricultural regions of India.

Protecting wheat economy is a must to guard the long-run food security and food sovereignty of the country. The vastly complicated financialisation or corporatisation of agricultural trade has its own implications for the developing countries, especially for the hugely populated countries like India. Since 2007, the global food prices has witnessed three spikes and all were partly fuelled by the speculation.

If the food policy managers failed to take appropriate steps, the global food dynamics can shake the Indian food economy and weaken its food sovereignty that can potentially dwindle the political sovereignty of the country. Global forces are acting and interacting in a way that the countries having food shortages become vulnerable to the pushes and pulls of the global political and economic contests.

The global market for wheat is of oligopolistic nature, that means there are only few exporters. The oligopolistic markets have a tendency to move towards monopolisation through open cartelisation or some understanding/agreements among the few players. And now these players are not the less-commercialised traditional commodity boards but the highly commercialised large corporations. Four countries Canada, United States, Australia and France account for about 55 per cent of the world wheat exports.

How is wheat trade privatised and moves in the hands of corporations? The Australian Wheat Board Limited was a government body responsible for the marketing of wheat until July 1, 1999, when it was transformed into a private company, owned by wheat growers. In 2010, it was acquired by a Canadian firm. In 2011, another big multinational corporation acquired this commodity-management business. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission decided not to oppose the acquisition.

The Canadian Wheat Board was a marketing board, established by an act passed by the parliament in 1935. Its obligation was to pay the farmers a base price for their grain, find markets, negotiate the best price, supply the goods, issue advance cheques and make final payment after the crop was sold. In 2012, it was changed to a grain company by government's legislation. In 2015, 50.1 per cent share in the company was acquired by private players.

Secondly, wheat is not only a food and feed commodity in these days. If world wheat production rises and there is possibility of the decrease in the international price of wheat, exporting countries can divert some quantity of wheat to produce ethanol (biofuel), thus reducing the world wheat supply. It has happened in the very first decade of this century.

A World Bank study found that large increases in biofuels production in the United States and Europe was the main reason behind the steep rise in global food prices between June 2002 and June 2008. An OECD study in 2008 reported that if biofuel support measures continued, the biofuel production alone will increase average wheat prices by about 5 percent, maize by around 7 per cent and vegetable oil by about 19 per cent over the next 10 years.

This compelled the World Bank former President Robert Zoellick to say that While many worry about filling their gas tanks, many others around the world are struggling to fill their stomachs. And it's getting more and more difficult every day. So for the first time in the first decade of this century, the fuel tanks started competing with the human and animal stomachs.

So the global market of wheat is becoming volatile and prone to influences. The decline in the international price can potentially allow the large scale imports hitting the wheat economy at a point of time and later on the same market can turn out to be extracting. So better-safe-than sorry approach needs to be followed.

The writer teaches economics at University of Northern British Columbia, Canada.
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 ridesymbolic of the shows content as a fun ride that takes audiences from point A to point B. Gabina VOAs main goal is Enlightening young people, introducing them to cutting-edge technological innovations, exposing them to new processes and ideas so they can be productive, informed and self-governing citizens.
Maj Gen Ashok K Mehta (retd)

EVERY successive year, for over a decade now, New Delhi is rated in surveys as the most popular country in Afghanistan. This year, it bagged 64 per cent of the vote. Afghan Ambassador to India, Shaida Abdali, calls India a national partner. At this months Heart of Asia conference at Amritsar, in the presence of the Pakistan delegation led by de facto foreign minister Sartaj Aziz, President Ghani lambasted Pakistan for waging an undeclared war on Afghanistan by covertly supporting terrorist groups, including the Taliban. By suggesting that Pakistan should use the $500 m aid pledged to Afghanistan for combating terrorist networks on its soil, he struck at the heart of the problem: cross-border terrorism. The latest biannual Pentagon report states: Afghanistan-oriented militant groups, including Taliban and the Haqqani network senior leadership retain freedom of action from safe havens inside Pakistan.

President Ghani reignited the old idea of non-interference (by regional players) through an international or regional mechanism  whichever was acceptable to Pakistan  to verify terrorist intrusions and their activities inside Afghanistan. This is a total U-turn in Afghan policy towards Pakistan, a country whom Ghani would generally pay obeisance to. Now, he sounds like his predecessor, Mr Karzai, the famous Pakistan and US baiter. This reset has enhanced India-Pakistan combativeness in Pakistan.

Other strategic alignments are shaping in the region. With the US footprint likely to diminish (despite two Generals, John Mattis and Michael Flynn, being appointed Defence Secretary and National Security Adviser), regional ambitions are on the rise among Pakistan, Iran, Russia and China. A new grouping of Russia, China and Pakistan has emerged which wants to revive the peace process which died under the watch of the US-China-Afghanistan-Pakistan quadrilateral. Russia and China will not get involved proactively, except in activating the reconciliation process.

In 2013, Chinese interlocutors sounded diffident about Chinas policy in Afghanistan. It was characterised by five nos: no interference in internal affairs; no criticism of US; no objection to Taliban legally entering power-sharing agreements; no use of the Northern Distribution Network; no boots on the ground. Coupled with Pakistan what has changed is Beijings deep involvement in Afghanistans political and peace process. China brings to the region elaborate connectivity programmes like the OBOR and CPEC. Last month, some 300 trucks from Chinese mainland delivered their cargo in Gwadar for onward journey to Africa. Pakistan has offered Afghanistan a connect with the CPEC through Chaman for access to Gwadar. Similarly, it has invited Russia to use the corridor.

For India, the recent Russia-Pakistan engagement is disconcerting. In September, the two countries held their first-ever military exercise in Pakistan, followed by a dialogue of officials on subjects of mutual interest, including connectivity, trade and economic cooperation. While Moscow is committed to selling four Mi-35 attack helicopters, Islamabad wants to buy Su-35 combat jets.

Russia and Iran have been talking to the Taliban for years and quietly providing material support. Russia, Iran and Pakistan are keen to alter the focus of combat in Afghanistan, from fighting the Taliban to fighting the IS, which is bound to complicate the ground situation. Russia calling the Taliban a national military and political movement ignores the red lines imposed on the organisation by the international community. New Delhi wants the Taliban to eschew violence and follow democratic norms before it is invited to the high table. This will put two old allies, India and Russia, at odds with each other.

Little is known about the peace process other than back-channel efforts to get authentic Taliban representatives to engage in direct talks with Afghans without Pakistani presence. The Taliban has its own terms for talks with Kabul  acknowledging its political office in Doha, removal of its leaders from the sanctions list and withdrawal of foreign forces.

On the ground, there is a stalemate with the Taliban in control of one-third of the territory without any provincial or major district headquarters in its possession. According to the US commander in Afghanistan, Gen John Nicholson, who was in New Delhi last week, almost 70 per cent of the population lives under government control. A defeat of the Taliban is out of the question, as is any strategic collapse of Kabul. Afghanistan is confronted with the problem of terrorist sanctuaries in Pakistan. Only the US could have dismantled the Quetta and Peshawar Shuras but President Obama was cautious. Of the 292 drones used against terrorists, only two were used on Pakistani soil. Can Trump force Pakistan to cooperate in Pakistan? Pakistan will stick to its concept of strategic depth in Afghanistan which has been partially achieved by the Taliban controlling swathes of land contiguous with Pakistan. It also translates into a friendly government in Kabul which would allow the Taliban holding key posts in Kabul.

No dramatic change is likely. According to Afghans, the insurgents are losing 100 fighters and the government 25 soldiers a day, losses which cant be sustained. At the last Heart of Asia conference in Islamabad, Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj had pledged to strengthen the Afghan National Security Forces. After Pakistan let down the US and Afghanistan, the US has taken a belated hard line on Pakistan: making $400 m coalition support funds conditional on action against the Taliban and Haqqani Network, and urging India to step up military assistance to the ANSF  unthinkable two years ago.

Till recently, as the fifth largest donor  now $3 bn (the maximum India has given any country)  India used its soft power of development cooperation and capacity building. It has expanded its military training programmes for the ANSF in India. Besides non-lethal equipment, military hardware is to be provided in accordance with provisions of the 2011 strategic agreement. India should spare no effort to bolster the fighting capacity of the ANSF. It should consider doing more: deploying training teams and medical facilities in the vicinity and employing covert means to deter Pakistans neo-colonial concept of strategic depth. Cross-border terrorism has to be fought at source, if not in Pakistan, at least in Afghanistan which has sought our help.

 The writer attended a regional conference on Afghanistan in Berlin recently
US President Barack Obama is determined to preserve some key aspects of the international order before Donald Trump steps into his shoes on January 20. The surprise US abstention from a UN Security Council resolution condemning Israel for promoting illegal settlements on Palestinian territory is part of that piece. Under a rightwing administration, Israel has spurned the option of dialogue with the Palestinians. It has ignored worldwide appeals for settling Jews in occupied Palestinian territories. This not only pushes back any hopes of a solution based on a two-nation approach but also violates the Geneva Convention, which prohibits an occupying power from settling its own civilian population into occupied territory.

By helping the UNSC approve the resolution, Obama sent out an unequivocal message about the need to preserve the possibility of a two state solution. Israels reaction suggests the way ahead is long and hard. The resolution does not impose a solution to the conflict but Israel has lashed out by recalling envoys in two of the four countries that sponsored the resolution. It is not as if Obama has been less than charitable towards Israel. His administration stood up for Tel Aviv when required, provided the largest military assistance package in history and opposed unilateral boycotts targeting Israel. As US Secretary of State John Kerry put it: We hope the parties will see this as a moment to urgently advance the peaceful and prosperous future they each deserve.

Obama is setting out the US position before Trump arrives, with his wrecking ball in David Friedman, the US Ambassador-designate to Israel. No moderation can be expected from a man who raised funds for an illegal settlement on Palestinian land. What is more, Trump had also contributed to that fund. The duo now provocatively promises to move the US embassy to Jerusalem, thus recognising Israeli sovereignty over the city. That is why the US abstention can be described as a conscience vote. The first US deviation from the norm in 36 years at UNSC aims to preempt any precipitate move by the Trump administration to upset an already uneasy balance in the Middle East.
Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif is the latest political luminary to fall for a hoax on social media. Asif was furious on learning that Israel had threatened a nuclear strike for Pakistan's role in Syria against ISIS. Without caring to do research on such a sensitive matter, the Pakistani minister threateningly reminded Israel that his country also possessed nuclear weapons. Not too long back, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had caused a sensation when he suggested that Hafiz Saeed was supporting the protesting students on the JNU campus. His suggestion was based on a tweet from a parody account of the Pakistani militant leader. Both Asif and Singh never bothered with a retraction. Asif went quiet after being mocked over social media. Singh was blase. His ministry maintained that his remark was based on intelligence inputs.

Because of the exponential rise in this tendency on social media, Oxford dictionary selected post-truth as the word of the year. Facebook has promised to introduce tools that prevent its platform from becoming the disseminator of fake news stories. Post-truth stands for the grey area between truth and lie and honesty and dishonesty. A lie is stated with such conviction that it appears to be true. Rajnath and Khawaja Asif did not contribute to post-truth. But they did misspeak on delicate issues without bothering to do background checks. Khawaja could have been doubly careful; only recently a post-truth article had triggered a political firestorm in Pakistan by claiming the new Pakistan army chief was from a minority community.

Pakistan and Israel are separated by distance. Therefore, the after-effect of Khawajas not-so-veiled warning was limited to social media. But unsubstantiated verbal skirmishing between adversarial neighbours such as India and Pakistan has the potential of translating into something nasty on the ground. Our world is in the middle of unprecedented disorder where trust has been an early victim. Political leaders must lead the orderly reshaping of our reflex and response mechanisms to the explosion of largely unverifiable information on the Internet. The need for caution before reacting holds true not just for public leaders but all of us.
Deepender Deswal

Tribune News Service

Hisar, December 26

A delay in payment of compensation to aggrieved farmers, who suffered losses to their kharif crops, under the crop insurance scheme is hampering the drive to cover rabi crops under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) in the district.

Sources said even as the process to settle claims on the part of the authorities concerned and the insurance company had completed, the farmers, who had suffered losses, were unable to get the payment of the relief. The reason is that the state and the Central governments were yet to pay their share of premium to the insurance firm.

The issue was discussed with the higher authorities during a state-level videoconferencing of district officials recently. The sources said the officials from many districts urged the state authorities to expedite the payment of compensation for the losses during the kharif season.

The payment of compensation for the kharif crop loss would encourage farmers. The district authorities and the insurance firm can showcase the kharif compensation settlement cases while motivating them in getting their crops covered under the PMFBY, said a district official.

The sources said a total of 1,135 farmers of Hisar had claimed compensation for crop failure during the kharif season. But none of the farmers got any compensation even as the kharif season is over. Now, the farmers are shying away from crop insurance for the fear that it would again prove to be a wasteful expenditure, said Dayanand Singh, a farmer leader.

Rahul, an insurance firm official, however, said the claims had been processed and the compensation would be awarded as soon as the firm got the premium due from the state and Central governments. The official claimed that they had been holding awareness camps in villages and getting better response from farmers in comparison to the kharif season.

A district official said they had urged the state government to provide the contract copies of the insurance to every farmer this time so that the farmers have a document in their hands in lieu of the insurance premium they had paid.
Sumedha Sharma

Tribune News Service

Gurugram, December 26

Mafuza Alam, a 47-year-old maid, went through the worst time in her life for a month. Other than the obvious cash crunch, her inability to go cashless had virtually crippled her life as she was among thousands without a bank account.

But, this is not the case anymore. After an almost hour-long wait, she managed to get an account opened at a local bank stall in the nations first Digi Dhan Mela here today.

My life is nothing but hand-to-mouth existence. I am paid in cash and it is exhausted by the end of the month. Whatever I save is in cash. I never felt the need for a bank account. Everything changed suddenly and there was no money, said Alam.

My employers wanted to transfer money, but I had no account. I had no way of getting an online wallet. I went to a bank to open an account, but the staff turned me away despite many visits as they did not have time. Another maid told me about this fair. Here I am with a bank account and a passbook, she said.

Mafuza is among the 5,000-odd persons who got new accounts opened on the spot during the Digi Dhan Mela here.

The response has been very encouraging. The key initiative during the fair was not only to get people to do cashless purchase as a symbolic gesture, but to make it a way of life. The middle and upper classes already have e-wallets and credit and debit cards. Migrants and the poor need to be empowered. The response that we got today shows that we have done it, said TL Satyaprakash, Deputy Commissioner.

The state Information Technology Department, NITI Aayog and district administration organised the mela. There were over a hundred stalls ranging from vegetables to handicraft and horticulture products, all accepting payment through digital mode. The fertiliser and seed stall clicked the most with visitors.

I have come from Mewat with farmers of five other villages. The fertiliser vendor in the district does not have card-swiping facility. The local administration informed us about the mela. We hired a bus, came here and got everything we wanted. My wife and daughter are at an awareness stall, learning to use the credits cards I got made for them, said Hanif Mewati of the Nagina block.

Terming the event a success, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said, Today is Udham Singh Jayanti. What better day than this to start the digital revolution. The night of November 8 was not less than the night of Independence as we took a step towards freedom from corruption and black money.

Initially, we had thought of starting this move from Bengaluru, but decided on Gurugram. India witnessed three major revolutions  e-voting, mobile revolution and now, demonetisation and digitisation. Corporate honchos have said digitisation has achieved in three years what was meant to be done in 10 years, said Ananth Kumar, Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers.

When Haryana was formed in 1966, people doubted that it would ever be self-dependent. Look at us now. We are proud to lead the digitisation drive, said Rao Inderjit Singh, Union Minister for Planning, Urban Development, Housing and Poverty Alleviation (Independent Charge).
Ravinder Saini

Tribune News Service

Jhajjar, December 26

The Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) has put hundreds of people residing in various localities of Bahadurgarh town here on notice for constructing buildings and other structures under high-voltage electricity lines in violation of the Indian Electricity Rules 1956.

Sources said the power utility had also directed the residents to either remove the buildings/structures within the next 15 days or face action as per rules. The development has created a stir among the residents, who have decided to organise a demonstration in the town tomorrow to protest the UHBVN move.

The residents argue that they had been residing there for a long time and had obtained power and water connections in a legal way. How can the nigam ask them to demolish their buildings? They are also paying house tax to the Municipal Council, Bahadurgarh.

Nigam officials, on the other hand, said the notices were being served following the directives of the High Court in this respect.

The notice stated that the creation of any permanent/temporary structure beneath electricity wires/lines without permission was illegal; the person concerned had to give a notice to the nigam for shifting the lines before initiating any construction work. The nigam would then shift the lines after recovering the estimated cost of alteration from the person.

It has been observed that you (notice receiver) have never bothered to give a notice to the nigam regarding construction of structures under the power lines, which is violation of minimum vertical and horizontal clearances required. By violating the norms, you have also endangered human life and property; hence, you will be solely responsible if any accident happens on this account, stated the SDO (Operation), UHBVN, in the notice.

The SDO also asked the residents to remove the unauthorised structures within 15 days, failing which action would be initiated for removal of those illegal structures through Executive Magistrate.

Vazir Rathi, chief of High Tension Wires Hatao Sangharsh Samiti, said they would resist the UHBVN move as it was illogical. The nigam should have taken action when the construction was being done, he added.

SG Vats, Executive Engineer, UHBVN, said the notices had been issued on the directives of the High Court, which had asked the nigam to caution those who had built or were constructing structures under the electricity wires as the practice was dangerous to human life and property. The court directives were for the entire state, he added.
Tribune News Service

Solan, December 26

Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare JP Nadda today said the Centre was making ample funds available for various development works, but the state government had failed to utilise them.

The Union minister was in Baddi to attend Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Training Programme organised for the ST Morcha of the state BJP.

Nadda said the Union Government was trying to strengthen the road network in the state by announcing 61 new national highways, but the state government had adopted an indifferent attitude towards the project. Several projects in the health sector were also languishing in the state as little interest was shown by the state government. He said a super-speciality hospital had been approved for Shimla, but no land had been made available for it.

He said demonetisation was a historic decision which was being supported by the common man and its positive results would be visible in the near future. It will prove to be a landmark decision in the countrys history. While there were barely 3 crore bank account holders till 2014, now the figure has crossed the 25-crore mark. The common man will directly benefit from the subsidies of various Central schemes as the funds will be credited to their accounts while earlier this subsidy was grabbed by the middlemen, the minister said. He gave details of various Central schemes.

Nadda said earlier 18,000 villagers were without power in the country, but the figure had now reduced to around 8,000. He said various government departments should work for the welfare of the ST communities.

State BJP president Satpal Satti exhorted party workers to expose the corruption prevailing in the state and also disseminate information about the achievements of the Union government. He said the BJP would launch a mass campaign to expose the corruption in the state government. The present tenure of the state government is dismal where no new development project has been drawn for the common man and the Chief minister is busy defending himself, Nadda said.

Organising secretary Pawan Rana and MLA, Kasauli, Rajiv Sehgal also addressed the workers. ST Morchas state head Surat Negi was also present on the occasion.
Our Correspondent

Kangra, December 26

Transport Minister GS Bali today asked Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh to find out why he was denied entry on the dais during Congress Vice-president Rahul Gandhis rally in Dharamsala recently.

He was addressing a press conference at his residence here today. He said he along with Health Minister Kaul Singh Thakur and Rajya Sabha member Viplove Thakur reached the venue at Dharamsala but officials of the Special Protection Group (SPG) stopped him, despite a valid pass for the entry. He said there were 45 persons on the dais, but he was singled out and was not allowed to enter the stage. He said he had approached Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh to initiate an inquiry into the incident.

Bali said the state-level function was held for celebrating the completion of four years of the Congress government of which he was a part. He said the Chief Minister must find out who was responsible for deleting his name.

Was it a deliberate attempt or an inadvertent act to delete his name from the list? Bali quizzed. He said if it was as deliberate act then it was a very serious issue and needs to be looked into by the Chief Minister personally. He said only 34 CLP members and 11 other senior functionaries had seating arrangement on the dais.
M Aamir Khan

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, December 25

Tour operators from across the country were unanimous in promoting tourism in Kashmir but had apprehensions about the safety of visiting tourists because of the uncertain situation. However, their fears were allayed by the Kashmiri hoteliers and other stakeholders in tourism.

The sector had taken a hit during the unrest sparked by the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani on July 8, and now that the situation is improving, the government has invited leading tour operators of the country on a Fam (familiarisation) Tour as part of its efforts to woo tourists. Send us an (official) e-mail as an assurance we can show it to tourists so that they tour Kashmir. Also invite journalists of the national media so that they see the ground situation, said Pramod Dalvi of Kesari Tours during a function held for the delegates of the Fam Tour who are on a three-day visit to Kashmir.

He said this in reference to the comments of the tourism officials that the media was blowing the situation out of proportion, leading to a scare among tourists. Prabhubhai Joshi, vice-president of Maharashtra Tour Operators Association, said: We will jointly have to make efforts you have to make tourists feel safe keep hotel rates low and we assure we will promote tourism.

Urging the tour operators to give priority to J&K tourism, Secretary Tourism Farooq Shah pointed out that the yatris and tourists on a visit to Kashmir during the unrest were not harmed.

Pertinently, the separatists too had recently invited tourists to visit Kashmir amid repeated assertions of Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti that Kashmir is the safest destination, especially for women.

Shah said the government would organise several events in winter followed by the Tulip Festival in spring while assuring that all support would be provided to tourists. He said the government would soon launch a media campaign to attract tourists to Kashmir.

Director, Tourism, Kashmir Mahmood Shah said the tour operators were invited so that they could get a firsthand account of the situation in Kashmir. All preparations are in place. The focus is on winter activities, which will be held in Gulmarg and Pahalgam, he added.
Hyderabad, December 26

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan on Monday encouraged young students to listen to their heart and do what they like, to avoid regrets about career choice later in life.

When you become a person of my age or your parents age or your teachers age, somewhere that regret will be there that why I did not do that (as a career). I just want to tell every boy and girl that do where your heart is, he said.

Shah Rukh had a pep talk with students of Maulana Azad National Urdu University here where he was conferred an honorary doctorate for his contribution towards promotion of Urdu language and culture.

The actor recalled that his (late) father, though financially not so well-off, taught him various things in life.

He used to play chess with the head priest of a Hanuman temple, he said.

The 51-year-old actor said the lessons he was taught included how to work with others and that one has to step back, sometimes, to move ahead in life.

Nobody is small. You have to respect all, he said.

He gave me a typewriter. You have to be very diligent in typing. When I learnt typing, I realised that practice makes you perfect. Whatever you do in life, do it with diligence as if it is the last chance to do it, he said.

Shah Rukh said his father told him to retain a sense of humour and childlike innocence.

Life will be better if you look at things with a sense of humour, he said.

Observing that creative expression in any form would be a good outlet for ones feelings, he said such a habit would give solace in times of feeling lonely.

I am a bad poet. But, I still write something...When I write, I get peace, he said.

The actor also suggested the students to respect and enjoy the gift of life, through good or bad times.

Earlier, Chancellor Zafar Sareshwala conferred the honoris causa (doctor of letters) on Khan and Rekhta Foundation founder Sanjiv Saraf at the sixth convocation of the university, for their contribution in the promotion of Urdu language and culture.

Expressing happiness on being conferred the honorary doctorate, Khan said the honour would make his father happy as he was a freedom fighter and held Maulana Azad and also education in high esteem.

The actor said he would try to live up to the responsibility bestowed on him.  PTI
Kochi, December 26

An Indian Catholic priest abducted from Yemen this year appealed to Pope Francis and the Union government through a purported video to secure his release from his captors.

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"If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously. I am from India. I am perhaps not considered as of much value," said priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil in a weak voice in the video, aired by news channels in Kerala.

"Dear Pope Francis, dear Holy Father, as a father please take care of my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating," he said in the video, a day after Christmas.

Father Uzhunnalil, who looked very weak, appeared to be reading out from a text placed before him.

The veracity of the video, which was uploaded from YouTube and Facebook, could neither be independently verified nor was the period when it was shot known.

Father Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala, was abducted in March by terror group Islamic State which attacked an old-age home run by Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity in southern Yemeni city of Aden.

He claimed his captors have made many contacts with the Government of India -- President and Prime Minister.

"I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in my regard," he said.

He said reports had said everything has been done to get his release, "but in reality nothing" has been done.

Father Uzhunnalil said a news reporter abducted in the Middle East was released as she was from France.

"I am from India and not considered. Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all to do your might to help me to save my life. I need hospitalisation soon. Please come to my help quickly," he said.

The Union government has said efforts are being made to secure Uzhunnalil's release, but such attempts take time.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had informed Parliament that Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has spoken to various countries through which contacts can be established in Yemen.

Swaraj had said it takes more time to secure release of people who are held captive and asked the MPs to keep "faith" in government's efforts to trace the abducted priest.  PTI
New Delhi, December 26

A local court granted bail to former Indian Air Force chief SP Tyagi on Monday in a case connected to the multi-crore rupees VVIP choppers corruption scandal.

Tyagi has to provide a bond of Rs 2 lakh and surety of just as much money. He has also been warned off against trying to influence witnesses or stalling investigations into the scandal.

The court still has to give its verdict on bail applications of two other suspects in the case  Tyagis cousin Sanjeev Tagi and a lawyer, Gautam Kahitan.

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Tyagi argued in court that investigations were taking a long time  it has been four years since the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered an FIR in the case, he claimed  and he could not be kept in prison until they were done.

Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared for the CBI, claimed Tyagi could hamper "multi-layered investigations by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".

"We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding that the matter has "tarnished country's name".

Tyagi (71) retired from the armed services in 2007. He was arrested with his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan on December 9.

Tyagi has been accused of influencing the deal in favour of Agustawestland during his tenure as the IAF chief.

In March 2013, the CBI had registered a case in the deal. Based on the CBI complaint, ED officials had booked Air Marshal Tyagi and some members of his family. And in July 2014, the Enforcement Directorate registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act against Tyagi and 20 others in the Rs 3,600-crore deal.

In October 2014, a lower court had convicted Orsi and Spagnolini of falsifying invoices but acquitted them of corruption. Both appealed against the conviction, while the prosecution appealed against the acquittal on the corruption charge.

On January 1, 2014, India scrapped the contract with Finmeccanicas British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW101 VVIP choppers to the Indian Air Force (IAF) over alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of paying kickbacks to the tune of Rs 360 crore by it for securing the deal.  Agencies
New Delhi, December 26

Former IAF chief SP Tyagi, arrested on December 9 in AgustaWestland chopper scam case, was today granted bail by a special court here.

Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted the relief to Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs two lakh and one surety of like amount. The court, however, imposed certain conditions on the accused and asked him not to try to influence the witnesses and hamper the probe.

The bail applications of other two accused  Tyagis cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan  are pending before the court which said it would decide both the pleas on January 4.

During the hearing of the bail plea, SP Tyagis advocate Maneka Guruswamy had said that her client could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete.

She had claimed before the court that in the last four years since the FIR was registered, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.

Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries.

We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed, he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding that the matter has tarnished the countrys name.

On the courts query whether the CBI had any material regarding SP Tyagi receiving money, the agency told the court that the former IAF chief had purchased several properties for which the sources of income were not disclosed by him and alleged that he had abused his official position.  PTI
Ravi S Singh

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 26

The Centre today handed over the first tranche of its monetary assistance for the ambitious Polavaram project, located in Andhra Pradesh, to states Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu.

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley used the occasion to home in Prime Minister Narendra Modi governments sincerity to help the state as a step to bolster the ethos of federal polity (read cooperative federalism).

This is more than symbolism. This is Central governments fulfilment of its promise, Jaitley said.

This is in the wake of Naidu, whose Telugu Desam Party (TDP) is a founding member of the NDA coalition, sent flutters in political circles on account of his reported statements against demonetisation. It is also seen as Centres move to scotch any speculation of a rift in the NDA over demonetisation.

Soon after the completion of 40 days of ban on old currency notes by Modi, Naidu reportedly said although he supported demonetisation, the problem in its aftermath continued and the solution was still elusive. Naidu heads a 13-member committee constituted by the Centre to look into the problems emanating from the demonetisation.

Minister for Water Resources Uma Bharti and senior minister Venkaiah Naidu were also present.

On his party, the Andhra Chief Minister was effusive in his praise of Modi and Jaitley. He lauded the Centre for its focus on improving the agriculture and irrigation system of the country.

I was earlier Chief Minister for nine years. But the state did not receive funds from the Centre for irrigation projects, he said.

Atal Behari Vajpayee had devised a scheme to link rivers when he was the Prime Minister. He had also constituted a task force. But the succeeding UPA government scrapped it, he added.

A cheque for Rs 1,981 crore was handed over to Naidu for the project. Besides, cheques for Rs 830 crore and Rs 563 crore for irrigation projects in Maharashtra and Gujarat, respectively, were handed over to ministers from the respective states.

The foundation stone for Polavaram was laid in the early 80s. But works could not take off.

Uma Bharti said all 99 irrigation projects covered under Centres PMKSY-AIBP scheme and the Polavaram would be completed within three years. They have the capacity to irrigate additional 80 hectares.
New Delhi, December 26

Cracks were visible in the Opposition unity ahead of Tuesday's meeting convened by the Congress to ramp up attack on demonetisation and alleged "personal corruption" of the Prime Minister, with Left parties and JD(U) unlikely to attend it.

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While the Left parties announced they are staying away, the JD(U) also gave hints that it may follow suit. Congress is part of the JD(U)-led Nitish Kumar government in Bihar.

There was no immediate word from SP and BSP, while NCP's Tariq Anwar, who was to attend, is unable to come to Delhi as he had to cancel his plans due to his mother's death in Patna.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh downplayed the plans of several parties skipping the Opposition meeting that will be followed by a joint press conference. He also cited local and regional compulsions for some parties not to be together on the same platform.

"Whoever comes tomorrow will come. Those who don't come tomorrow will come the next time. Those who will come, you will see tomorrow," said Ramesh striking a philosophical note.

He, however, dismissed suggestions that tomorrow's meeting was a "tea party" like the one in 1998 which ultimately led to the downfall of the Vajpayee government.

Ramesh said, "The biggest issue today is demonetisation and the second issue is corruption by the Prime Minister, which will be the main issues before tomorrow's meet."

On the eve of deliberations, Rahul Gandhi today held a meeting of all Congress general secretaries and State Congress presidents at his residence to discuss the situation.

A senior party leader, who declined to be identified, likened tomorrow's parleys with that of the Shimla conclave in 2003 which saw Congress pitching for unity of secular forces to oust the then NDA government led by Vajpayee.

The meeting is seen as an attempt on the part of the Congress to paper over the cracks that developed when several Opposition parties skipped the joint Opposition march to Rashtrapati Bhawan on December 16 over demonetisation.

They were apparently annoyed over Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi meeting the Prime Minister earlier that day on the issue of farmers' problems, especially in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.

"We have decided to stay away from the press conference of Opposition parties convened by the Congress because there has been no proper consultation and coordination among parties," CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said in Kolkata today.

Mamata arrives in Delhi

West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, who has been vocal against demonetisation, will attend tomorrow's meeting. She arrived in Delhi today evening.

She will attend the briefing at Constitution Club along with other Opposition leaders, including representatives from DMK and RJD.

Banerjee told reporters at the Kolkata airport, "The Congress has called me for the meeting. Let's see what happens!"

Yechury said, "Most of the parties were neither consulted nor informed about what will be the agenda of the meeting.

Several Opposition parties have reservation about the way the meeting has been convened."

CPI national secretary D Raja said there should have been "more prior consultations on the date and agenda" of the meeting of Opposition parties.

"Lack of such prior consultation and discussion has caused difficulties. We could have got an opportunity to discuss within our parties and taking a position," he said, adding that all parties have already made their own plans.

JD(U) spokesperson K C Tyagi said, "The meeting has no agenda, not even a common minimum programme. It is unlikely to arrive at any conclusion."

He did not give a direct reply on whether his party will attend the exercise. Sources, however, said the Nitish Kumar-led party won't attend it. Tyagi noted that Mamata Banerjee-led TMC, which will attend the meeting, has a different view on demonetisation than other parties'.

He also dismissed murmurs in Opposition camp over Nitish Kumar's support to demonetisation, saying his party has been at the forefront of opposition unity and cited the example of Bihar Assembly polls.

The Opposition meet is being held at a time when the Narendra Modi dispensation has completed half its term and the ruling BJP is going whole hog to capture key Uttar Pradesh, where Assembly polls will take place in few months.

The Congress is striving for uniting the Opposition on the issue of Rahul Gandhi's charge of "personal corruption" against the Prime Minister and plans are afoot for a joint press conference by its President Sonia Gandhi and opposition leaders on December 27.

Unity balloon has burst: BJP

Meanwhile, taking potshots at the Congress over decisions of several parties to keep away from the meeting, the BJP said the balloon of their "so-called unity" has burst even before it could have floated.

"It was never a positive move but an outcome of negative politics against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It only shows that even Opposition parties have rejected Rahul Gandhi whose credibility has already gone down among the masses," its national secretary Shrikant Sharma said.  PTI
Our Correspondent

Baran (Rajasthan), December 27

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Monday called Prime Minister Narendra Modis decision to invalidate old banknotes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 economic lockdown, as he continued his tirade against the measure.

Addressing a rally at a college ground in Rajasthans Baran, Gandhi, who took on the BJP in Chief Minister Vasundhara Rajes home turf, said: Modiji is talking and making India cashless. I tell you, India's cash would go into the hands of 50 companies directly.

Gandhi accused the central government of being callous to the publics suffering.

What 99% of Indias population has is not black money, Gandhi said, claiming that farmers were hit the hardest by the central governments decision.

He also asked Modi to make public the names of Indians holding Swiss bank accounts.

Swiss government has send a list of Swiss Bank acc holders to Indian government. Why didn't Modi put them before Parliament? When will he do it? Gandhi said.

He also claimed the BJPs central government did nothing to ease farmers plight.

Farmers commit suicide everyday in the country but still government paid no heed to their demands, Gandhi claimed.  (With agencies input)
Hyderabad, December 26

Five employees of an ATM maintenance firm have been arrested for allegedly withdrawing money to the tune of Rs 1.88 crore from various ATMs in a fraudulent manner, police said on Monday.

The five persons allegedly colluded and removed cash from various ATMs fraudulently to the tune of Rs 1.88 crore, stated a police release today.

The investigation followed after their company hired the arrested men as 'cash custodians' for different ATMs, it added.  PTI
Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 25

The story of the Rs 10,000-crore chit fund scam is as much about gullible investors and shrewd company directors as it is about government apathy and police indifference.

Investigations and FIRs have revealed that the accused directors of the Crown Credit Cooperative Society not only duped the investors on the promise of doubling their money, but also hoodwinked them later on the pretext of making efforts to return the promised amount.

The police either did not register FIRs promptly on the complaints of the investors or did not act on these. The latest FIR  on the recommendation of a Special Investigation Team formed on the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court  was lodged on October 19 at the State Crime Branch police station, Mohali, but was not made public.

Over 30 persons were named, but no one has been arrested, nor any tangible effort made to arrest them. Investors allege that the accused are roaming freely, some of them government employees who continue to attend office and others who have gone abroad. On the basis of the 35 FIRs registered across the state since August 2015,

only four accused were arrested. Investors allege police protection and political patronage made the directors and agents of the company easily go about their business all this while.

Maninder Singh, an investor from Patiala who is under severe debt, claims the Patiala police have not yet registered an FIR on his seven months old complaint.

Some of the main accused, including Managing Director Jagjit Singh, Punjab head Jaswinder Singh and co-head Avtar Singh, were arrested only once in September last year. They got out on the basis of an assurance to investors and the High Court that they will return the money. The promise was never kept. Now, the Crown Chit Fund Company Sangharsh Committee is petitioning for contempt of court. The police and court files reveal that when the MD and others were arrested last year, they prevailed upon the investors to get them out of jail as they could not arrange funds otherwise.

Police officials and investors said the accused floated a new scheme asking the investors to deposit Rs 25,000 each so that they could recover the losses and pay them back. Later, the directors asked the investors to pay Rs 1,100 each to make the balance-sheets look good for a tie-up with an international company. The gullible investors were taken in again.

The accused kept floating new companies to lure the investors and befool the government. Yet, their activities went unnoticed or were ignored. While the police completed the formality of registering a few FIRs, the investors themselves collected information about the new properties of the directors and agents and their lifestyle. Yet, they could not manage to get them arrested, or get their money back.

SIT head Jaskaran Singh, however, is confident of arresting the culprits soon. They cannot escape us. The investigation by the Crime Branch and the FIR lodged by us is based on a water-tight investigation. No one will be spared. (Concluded)
Balasore (Odisha), December 26

Indias strategic capabilities on Monday took a leap forward as it successfully test-fired Agni-V, the country's most lethal nuclear-capable inter-continental ballistic missile with a range of over 5,000 km that covers entire China.

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Today's successful test-firing will pave the way for user trial of the missile and its eventual induction into the Strategic Forces Command (SFC), Defence sources said.

"Agni 5 was successfully flight tested by DRDO at 1100 hours from Dr Abdul Kalam Island, Odisha. The full range test-flight of the missile has further boosted the indigenous missile capabilities and deterrence level of the country," a statement by the Defence Ministry said.

It added that all the radars, tracking systems and range stations tracked and monitored the flight performance and all the mission objectives were successfully met.

This was the fourth test of Agni-V missile and the second one from a canister on a road mobile launcher. All the four missions have been successful.

President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar congratulated the DRDO scientists, saying it will add tremendous strength to the country's strategic defence and deterrence capabilities.

"Successful test-firing of Agni V makes every Indian very proud. It will add tremendous strength to our strategic defence," Modi said.

At present, India possesses Agni-I with a range of 700 km, Agni-II with 2,000 km range, Agni-III and Agni-IV with 2,500 km to more than 3,500 km range in its armoury of Agni missile series.

Agni-V missile has a range of over 5,000 km and covers the whole of China, a country seen as a strategic challenge in India.

It has advantages of higher reliability, longer shelf life, less maintenance and enhanced mobility.

The three-stage, solid propellant surface-to-surface missile was test-fired from a mobile launcher from launch complex-4 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at about 1105 hours, DRDO sources said.

About 17-metre long and weighing over 50 tonne, the missile majestically rose from the confines of its canister flawlessly and achieved all targets, sources in Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) said.

It is the fourth developmental and second canisterised trial of the missile, integrated with a sophisticated mobile launcher in its deliverable configuration that enables launch of the missile with a very short preparation time as compared to an open launch, they said.

While the first test of Agni-V was conducted on April 19, 2012, the second was on September 15, 2013 and the third on January 31, 2015 from the same base.

Among the missiles of Agni series, the latest Agni-V is the most advanced having some new technologies incorporated with it in terms of navigation and guidance, warhead and engine, the sources said.

Lot of new technologies developed indigenously were successfully tested in the trial. The very high accuracy Ring Laser Gyro based Inertial Navigation System (RINS) and the most modern and accurate Micro Navigation System (MINS) had ensured the missile reached the target point within few meters of accuracy, they said.  PTI
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 25

West Bengal Chief Minister will be in Delhi on December 27 to meet the leaders of Opposition to discuss the way forward on demonetisation.

A PTI report from Kolkata quoted a senior TMC leader as saying that Banerjee will attend a joint meeting of the Opposition on demonetisation this Tuesday.

TMC sources added that the Bengal Chief Minister will also meet other Opposition leaders separately besides holding discussions with her Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal.

It is still unclear what the shape of this meeting will be with the Congress learnt to be leading the effort. However, no Congress leader has confirmed the meeting so far.
Shiv Kumar

Tribune News Service

Mumbai, December 26

Raj Thackerays Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) has altered the shape of its symbol yet again in a bid to reverse its sliding fortunes.

The Election Commission had earlier this month allowed the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena to change the direction of its election symbol, a railway engine, from right to left.

The changed election symbol will become effective immediately and be used in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)

elections, party leader Shirish Sawant told reporters here today.

The MNS had originally contested the 2009 Maharashtra Assembly polls with the symbol of a railway engine running from right to left. The party had then bagged 13 seats in the state legislature.

In the 2008 elections to the Mumbai municipal corporation, the MNS won 28 seats on the same symbol.

However, after several commentators pointed out that the symbol indicated the partys backward outlook, the MNS got the direction of the engine changed from left to right in 2012.

The complete washout in the 2014 Assembly elections forced a rethink and the party leadership gave the green signal to get the engine running leftwards.

With several corporators from the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leaving the party, Raj Thackerays supporters are hoping that the original symbol will help the outfit in the forthcoming civic polls.
Our Correspondent

Baran (Rajasthan), Dec 26

Continuing his tirade against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi today described demonetisation as aarthik talabandi (economic lockdown) of the country.

Speaking at a government college in Baran, the political turf of Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, Rahul alleged: Modiji is making India cashless. Indias whole cash would go into the hands of 50 companies directly.

The note ban has hit skilled labourers, farmers and artisans bad, he said, adding had Modis decision been taken against corruption and black money, the Congress would have been the first to join the hands with the NDA government.

Accompanied by Pradesh Congress Committee chief Sachin Pilot and AICC general secretary Gurdas Kamat, Rahul said the note-ban decision raised doubts as only 6 per cent of black money was in cash and the rest was in real state, gold and Swiss Bank accounts.

He targeted the Prime Minister for not making public the names of black money holders in Swiss accounts as they are 50 super-rich families close to him.

The Congress vice-president blamed Modi for dividing the nation into two classes of super-rich, who got 60 per cent of money, and Aaam Admi, whos struggling for daily wages.

Rahul said, All cash is not black money. Ninety-nine percent cash is white and is of ordinary men and women who earned it honestly.

The poor and honest working class people spent money in cash, how could they go for cashless or digital transfer, Gandhi questioned.
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 25

Seeking to downplay the Oppositions ongoing tirade against demonetisation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today described the move as just the beginning of the fight against corruption and said a strong benami property law was on its way.

Launching two new schemes  Lucky Grahak Yojana and Digi Dhan Yojana  to reward customers and traders, respectively, for switching to cashless transaction mode, the Prime Minister, in a veiled dig at the Opposition, said: Those who cant support corruption directly are blaming the government.

In his Mann ki Baat address, the PM backed the governments decisions to tweak demonetisation rules 59 times, saying these changes reflected a responsive regime. We changed the rules to reduce the problems of people. We took constant feedback from people. The government is sensitive, Modi said trashing as rumours recent insinuations that political party funds wont be subject to demonetisation rules.

He said 90 per cent responses listeners sent to his programme this time pertained to demonetisation with a section of people asking him to fight on.

To these people, Modi said, This is just the beginning. This is not a full stop. There is no question of retreat. We have revived the Benami Property Bill, 1988, which had been lying in cold storage. We are coming out with a very strong law which will do its work.

Acknowledging inconveniences people faced after demonetisation, he thanked everyone for their excited participation in the pursuit of a higher goal, adding, I had said on November 8 that this is an unprecedented fight.

On Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhis personal attack on him over demonetisation, he said public support was with him.

People gave a befitting answer to all those who spread rumours post-announcement. Some said salt prices have risen, some said all currency notes will be withdrawn. Despite rumour mongering of the highest order, people did not get unsettled. Attempts were also made to communalise the move but people showed that nothing is impossible when they decide to support something, the PM said, citing a range of recent global reports (World Bank, UNCTAD and others) which indicate significant progress India has made.

Earlier in his address, Modi wished a happy birthday to former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and a Merry Christmas to all.

Cashless reward schemes get going
Jitendra K Shrivastava

Tribune News Services

Patna, December 25

With the consent of Patna Sahib Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, at least nine langars have kicked off their services to Sikh devotees congregated in Patna from around the world to mark the celebration on the 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh.

Langar is being served at all points where devotees have stayed during celebrations. Though some started serving a week ago, all spots became fully functional today, said Jeet Singh, a member of the celebration committee.

Amritsar resident Tejinder Singh said: After Golden Temple, we feel that Patna Sahib Gurdwara is much more important not only in rank but in facilities too. I have come here with my family and staying at the gurdwara guest house. We feel blessed to be here. The credit goes to the Bihar Government.

The main function will be organised at Gandhi Maidan tent city on January 5 next year. At least 18,000 devotees, mainly from overseas, will stay during the celebration.

Two big langars  Sant Baba Maan Singh Pihwa Wale and Sant Baba Seva Singh Kar Seva Khadur Sahib Zila Tarn Taran  kicked off their services today, a week before official function that would start on January 1 and continue until January 7.

Sant Baba Dilbag Singh Ji of Gurdwara Sri Loh Langar, Anandpur Sahib of Punjab, has installed his langar at the bypass road tent city where 32,000 devotees are staying. It is the second nearest tent city after Kangan Ghat tent city to Takht Sri Harmandir Ji Patna Sahib. Additional tent city besides the main tent city with the capacity to house 5,000 devotees is being constructed.

Two langars have become functional here as more devotees are expected to take their services because of its proximity to Patna Sahib Gurdwara. Sant Baba Labh Singh of Kila Anadgarh Sahib of Anandpur Sahib along with Bhai Saheb Bhai Mohinder Singh Nishkam Sevak Jattha of the United Kingdom and Sant Baba Baljinder Singh of Mukhi Sampraday of Rada Sahib made their langars functional at Kangan Ghat tent city.

Langars have also become functional at Takht Sri Harmandir Ji Gurdwara, Gaighat Gurdwara and Guru ka Bagh Gurdwara providing their services to not only Sikh devotees but all those who reached at the pandals. At least 10,000 sewadars from across the country have reached here to serve round the clock.

We have served around 50,000 devotees, mostly non-Sikh. We are committed to serving all those devotees coming to the darbar of our tenth and last Guru Gobind Singh, said sewadar Rabind Singh.
Sarbjit Dhaliwal

Tribune News Service

Sangrur, December 25

Chhota Singh has anxiety writ large on his face. He is unable to find a way to return the money he had borrowed from relatives for his grandsons marriage. The banks refuse to make payments owing to the cash crunch. How am I to return the money? he asks, adding he has never felt so belittled before.

A resident of Akalia village near Mansa, he is not the only one in this predicament.

Malkiat Singh of the same village says most farmers have yet to receive cash for the paddy sold some weeks ago. The money has been deposited in our accounts, but banks refuse to make payments, he says.

Mahan Singh grows vegetables. He has approached the local bank branch several times. Each time I am told to come after a week. He says he has been carrying the cheques in his pocket for the past four weeks. The functioning of cooperative banks, that cater to the rural population, has come to a near-standstill owing to the restrictions placed by the RBI.

Vegetable prices have plunged. Green pea is selling for Rs 5-6 per kg in the wholesale market, cauliflower Re 1, says Mahan Singh, who had to turn his cauliflower crop into green fodder.

Ajit Singh, a panchayat member of Grachaon village, says it has become a norm for villagers to queue up outside the bank past midnight. However, the cash invariably dries up by noon. The consequences could be disastrous with the suicide rate among farmers going up drastically, warns Malkeet Singh.

As the Centre pushes for a cashless economy, the companies that procure milk have started paying via cheques. But to encash these is a Herculean task, rues Buta Singh.

Starved of cash, farmers have stopped hiring daily wagers. We have yet to pay for the combine harvesters hired for paddy, says Ranjit Singh. Farmers would earlier earn additional income by selling dry wheat fodder, but there are no buyers now.
Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 26

The future of Sheila Dikshit as Congress' Uttar Pradesh chief ministerial candidate has become uncertain even as the party is unfazed by her presence on the list of politicians who allegedly received kickbacks from industrialists as revealed by the Sahara diaries.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has cited these diaries to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi as personally corrupt and asked him to face an independent probe and come clean.

The Congress, it is learnt, is ready to sacrifice Dikshit, 78, in pursuit of the higher goal of demanding PM Modis personal accountability. Chief Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, when asked to comment on Congress leaders mentioned in the diaries, said, Anyone mentioned in the diaries should be investigated by an independent agency, whoever it is.

Congress insiders say the party leadership was aware of consequences of seeking PMs probity on Sahara diary revelations when the matter was internally discussed. Gandhi personally is said to have taken a call to go ahead with anti-PM allegations knowing well that the diaries contained an entry in the name of then Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit.

A senior Congress leader said, When we were debating merits of this issue, we knew that there will be collateral damages. We were prepared.

PTI adds: In a tweet late tonight, Dikshit said the onus was on the PM to come out clean on the charges. I have said what I had to. The ball is in the court of the @PMOIndia & others now. Will he respond and come out clean? #SaharaBirlaDiaries (sic), she tweeted. Rejecting the allegations ealier, Dikshit said she does not recall anything about the diary and asserted she has nothing to do with any such diary.

According to the list, Rs 1 crore in cash was given to Dikshit on September 23, 2013, in Delhi. She was the Delhi CM until December 2013.

But the Congress is insisting on the need for Modi to come clean. Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha said, Whether any Congress leader is named or not, is not material. What is material is that the PM's name is there. Modi is accused at the moment based on those documents and he should suo motu call for an investigation..
Moscow, December 25

A Russian military plane carrying 92 persons, including dozens of Red Army Choir members, crashed into the Black Sea on its way to Syria today, killing all on board, the Russian authorities said.

The Russian Defence Ministry said one of its TU-154 Tupolev planes disappeared from the radar screens at 5:25 am (0755 IST), two minutes after take-off from Sochi in southern Russia, where it had stopped for refuelling.

Maj Gen Igor Konashenkov said: The area of the crash site has been established. No survivors have been spotted. A ministry source said no life rafts had been found while another said the plane had not sent an SOS signal.

President Vladimir Putin has declared a national mourning on December 26.

The jet, a Soviet-era Tupolev plane built in 1983, was carrying 84 passengers and eight crew members.

At least 60 were members of Alexandrov Ensemble, better known as the Red Army Choir, were being flown to Russias Hmeymim airbase in Syria to entertain troops in the run-up to the New Year. It is from this airbase that Russia launches airstrikes against Syrian rebels. Konashenkov said fragments of the plane had been found at a depth of about 70 metres in the Black Sea, 1.5 km off the coast near the city of Sochi. Preliminary information indicated that the plane had crashed because of a technical malfunction or a pilot error. Another source told Russian agencies that the possibility of a militant act had been ruled out.

The plane had undergone major repairs in December 2014. The pilot too was an experienced one.  Reuters
Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 26

With Assembly elections round the corner, influential political families remain a key to the electoral success of the Congress with the party again fielding a host of candidates representing dynasties.

Leading the list is Capt Amarinder Singh, Punjab Congress president, whose wife and sitting Patiala MLA Preneet Kaur withdrew in his favour.

In Nawashahr, MLA Guriqbal Babli willingly passed on the baton to son Angad Saini who at 25 years became the youngest Congress candidate.

In Qadian, MLA Charanjit Bajwa sacrificed her seat for brother-in-law Fatehjang Bajwa, the brother of former Punjab Congress president Partap Singh Bajwa.

Fatehjang previously lost two elections from segments other than Qadian, considered a family seat of Bajwas.

The first list of 61 Congress candidates for Punjab has many examples of political families retaining their segments themselves or getting in their wards.

Sukhwinder Danny, a candidate from Jandiala reserved segment, is the son of ex-minister Sardool Singh.

Re-nominated MLAs Sukhjinder Randhawa from Dera Baba Nanak and Tript Rajinder Bajwa from Fatehgarh Churian come from acclaimed political families.

Sitting Khanna MLA Gurkirat Kotli, the grandson of former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh, has been fielded again to defend the seat.

Former Union Minister Manish Tewari, in the race for Ludhiana East ticket, also has a rich family history of politics.

Insiders say the Congress attempted to reform the practice of overdose of dynasties this time by sticking to the one ticket per family rule.

This rule however triggered a new wave of applications with several members of one political family applying for the same seat to make sure it remains with them.

So among Khem Karan seat applicants were three of the well known local Congress family of Bhullars. GS Bhullar, the patriarch, and past contestant from here, applied so did his elder son Anoop Singh and younger son Sukhpal Singh. Congress gave the ticket to Sukhpal Singh against Bhullars wishes.

In Kartarpur SC segment, Congress leaders admit to fielding Surender Singh, the son of late Dalit leader Jagjit Singh, as there were no other potential candidates.

In Sham Chaurasi SC seat, ex-union MoS Santosh Choudhry is an applicant along with her daughter.

In Lehra, sitting MLA and former Chief Minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal wanted her son fielded but the party re-nominated her.

Similarly in Sanaur, MLA Lal Singh continues to pitch for his son as a candidate plus a seat swap for him to Samana.

The Congress is concerned if they shift Lal Singh or his son elsewhere, who will defend Sanaur for the party.

The problem is these people from dynasties have not groomed anyone for the future, says a senior leader.

Even Congress new candidate from Gurdaspur Barinderjit Pahra comes from a political family. His grandfather was an MLA and a senior Akali leader.

Asked how dynasties will fare in Punjab given the new wave of politics unleashed by the Aam Aadmi Party, a Congress insider said, The importance of political families in Congress stems from the fact that Congress is a movement born from struggles, Its not a cadre based party. While there is no harm in fielding active wards of political dynasts, one does not know how these candidates will fare.

The AAP has fielded common people with mass appeal among voters. After all no one had heard of Dharamvir Gandhi until he decimated Preneet Kaur in Patiala Lok Sabha elections.
Surinder Bhardwaj

Fatehgarh Sahib, Dec 26

Leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) today appealed to the people of the state not to waste the coming opportunity to dethrone the corrupt Akali Dal.

Addressing their political conference at Shaheedi Jor Mela, the leaders told the voters: This is the golden chance to form your own government. Both Congress and the SAD have ruled and looted the state turn by turn. Dont trust any of them.

Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann claimed that there was a clear indication that AAP was going to form the next government as for the first time even the common man was keenly waiting for the imposition of the poll code. The people wanted to teach a lesson to the corrupt, he said.

The MP said villagers in Malwa had put up sign boards barring the entry of Akali and Congress leaders.

Lashing out at Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal for getting himself the title of farmers messiah from the President, he said it was unfortunate that farmers and their families were committing suicide in the state and Badal was claiming himself to be the champion of their cause.

Badal camped in Delhi for nine days to get his daughter-in-law inducted in the Union Cabinet, but he could not spare a day for the cause of the farmers, riverwaters or the riot-hit Sikh families, he alleged.

Sukhpal Khaira said out of 55 government departments, 28 were being ruled by the Badals and their relatives. The family had full control over liquor, cable TV, transport, hotel, mining and other big businesses, he alleged.

HS Phoolka said in 1984, the Hindus did not kill Sikhs, rather Congress-backed Hindus killed them and non-Congress parties saved them.

Jarnail Singh, co-observer, alleged Badal destroyed the tenets of Sikhism and did not even spare the institution of Akal Takht by getting the Panj Pyaras suspended whom the Gurus would treat as supreme.
Anirudh Gupta

Ferozepur, December 25

The long tussle over the status of 44 villages belonging to Kanugo circle Mahmujohiya, which falls under Guruharsahai sub-division of this border district, has become a headache for the residents.

Even the lawyers of Guruharsahai (Ferozepur district) and Jalalabad (Fazilka district) are at loggerheads over the issue. They have been resorting to all kinds of protests for the past several months to push their own cause.

Since Fazilka district was carved out of Ferozepur several years ago, this matter is caught up in a jurisdiction row, ostensibly triggered by vested political interests. These 44 villages come under Ferozepur district for matters pertaining to police, health, education, PWD and other departments. But for civil and revenue cases, these were attached to Fazilka district.

At the time of bifurcation of Ferozepur district in 2011, the three sub-divisions  Abohar, Fazilka and Jalalabad  were transferred to the new Fazilka district while Zira, Ferozepur and the newly created Guruharsahai sub-divisions remained with Ferozepur.

Since the Mahmujohiya block came under Guruharsahai sub-division, these villages were attached to Ferozepur district for all intent and purposes.

Later, at the time of the Assembly poll in 2012, these villages were again attached to Jalalabad for civil and revenue work from where SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal was to re-contest.

Ever since, these villages have become a bone of contention between the lawyers from Jalalabad and Guruharsahai.

We have been sandwiched between Fazilka and Ferozepur districts just for political reasons, said farmer Randhir Singh. For civil work, we report to Deputy Commissioner Fazilka, but for policing and other departments, we have to knock on the doors of SSP Ferozepur. The situation has created confusion for the residents of these 44 villages, he added.

While Jalalabad lawyers are demanding the criminal judicial work pertaining to these villages should also be brought under their sub-division, lawyers of Guruharsahai have resorted to a strike reiterating their demand to attach these villages with Ferozepur for civil and revenue work.

During his recent visit to Guruharsahai, Sukhbir had assured the protesting lawyers that the 44 villages would be attached to Amir Khas which will be made sub-tehsil and further attached to Guruharsahai. But till date, no notification has been issued, said Sukhchain Singh Sodhi, president of the bar.

Sodhi said that the panchayats of more than 35 villages have already passed resolutions demanding that they should be attached to Guruharsahai.

However, due to the pressure of Jalalabad lawyers from where Sukhbir is likely to contest, the decision is still pending, said Sodhi.
Amaninder Pal

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 25

Contrary to the belief that only four items belonging to martyr Udham Singh  a revolver, ammunition, a cobblers knife and diaries  are in the possession of the British government, a recent RTI query has revealed that at least 31 various articles of the martyr are in possession of the British authorities for the past over 76 years.

British documents mentioned such articles as list of properties found in possession of prisoner Mohammad Singh Azad. The martyrs birthday will be observed in Punjab on Monday.

The information came to the fore after Union Ministry of External Affairs recently disclosed the copies of the communication the Indian High Commission in the UK had with the British government seeking details of the martyrs belongings.

The copies have been recently provided in response to an RTI query filed by Banur-based RTI activist Karnvir Shetty Thamman.

However, in its communication to the Indian High Commission, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, London, in 2004, revealed that of the total items, only diaries, revolver, cobblers knife and ammunition were in the possession of the Metropolitan Police. But barring the four items, the whereabouts of other belongings were not revealed.

In the same communication, the British authorities had said: The Metropolitan Police do not hold other personal effects listed and do not know of their whereabouts.

All such items were recovered from Udham Singh after his arrest in 1940 when he shot dead Michael ODwyer in Caxton Hall, UK, in 1940. Meanwhile, belying claims of the SAD-BJP government over its efforts to bring the martyrs belongings back, another RTI reply by Ministry of External Affairs to Sunam-based RTI activist Jatinder Jain revealed that the latest effort by the Punjab Government in this regard was made in 2004.

No official communication has been sent to the UK by the Punjab government after that.
Bharat Khanna

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, December 25

A murderous attack survivor, an eyewitness in the case and the man convicted of the crime  all from Mansas Jhabbar village  joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) here today. It was only later in the day that AAP, in a damage-control move, expelled the convict.

Bant Singh Jhabbar, a CPI(ML) leader who lost his arms and a leg in a deadly assault, had launched a struggle against caste bias and oppression in 2006, making him an icon of Dalit upsurge.

He had recently refused an award by AAPs Delhi Government, saying he would not accept money from any party.

Not only Bant Singh, but his assaulter Navdeep Singh, a local Congress leader and Jat Mahasabha general secretary, as well as eyewitness Surjit Singh, now a panchayat member, also joined AAP today.

The three were seen with AAP leader Sanjay Singh, who was here to meet Mansa traders. Bant Singh alleged he had been let down by his party (CPI-ML) leaders. They did not come to my rescue

when my land was acquired by local Akali leaders. I have joined AAP now as the party promises to work for the welfare of labourers and Dalits, he said.

Addressing the traders, Sanjay Singh described the community as the backbone of economy. He promised business-friendly environment in the state. For prompt clearance to new ventures, a single-window system will be introduced and Inspector Raj abolished.

The Kejriwal government in Delhi has cut VAT on several items. Similar measures will be initiated in Punjab, if elected, he told the traders.

Demonetisation, he said, was a conspiracy to benefit big industrial houses by waiving corporate loans, while warning the people not to fall a prey to the BJP propaganda.
Tribune News Service

Haridwar December 26

City legislator Madan Kaushik today held a meeting with party district and city unit office-bearers regarding the preparations for Prime Minister Narendra Modis rally to be held tomorrow in Dehradun where he will be launching the all-weather Char Dham mega road project.

At Shubharambh Palace, city legislator Madan Kaushik, senior leader Mukesh Kaushik and city Assembly party affairs in-charge Vikas Tiwari addressed the party leaders and workers.

Briefing about the rally venue and the mode of participation, Mukesh Kaushik said the maximum number of party workers would go by buses, which had already been booked and would be available at Rishikul ground.

Madan Kaushik claimed that about 5,000 party workers from the city would participate in the rally which would herald a change in the regime as people wanted the BJP-led government in the state too.

He added that back to back rallies first by party national president Amit Shah and now Prime Minister Narendra Modi has created shivers in the Congress.

Vikas Tiwari said there was huge enthusiasm among party workers for Modis rally in Dehradun.
Vatican City, December 25

Pope Francis on Sunday offered a Christmas hope for peace in a world lacerated by war and terrorism, urging people to remember migrants, refugees and those hit by economic instability caused by idolatry of money.

The 80-year-old Argentine, marking the fourth Christmas season since his election in 2013, also urged Palestinians and Israelis, facing renewed tension after a UN resolution condemning Israeli settlements on occupied land, to have the courage to put aside hate and revenge and write a new page of history.

His traditional Urbi et Orbi (to the city and the world) message was linked by a common thread of war, violence and suffering at a time that should be defined by harmony and peace symbolised by the infant Jesus. Peace to those who have lost a person dear to them as a result of brutal acts of terrorism, which have sown fear and death into the hearts of so many countries and cities, he told some 40,000 people gathered in St Peters Square.

Security was heightened for the Christmas weekend in Italy and at the Vatican after Italian police killed the man believed to be responsible for the Berlin market truck attack while other European cities kept forces on high alert.

Today this message (of peace) goes out to the ends of the earth to reach all peoples, especially those scarred by war and harsh conflicts that seem stronger than the yearning for peace, he said.

He called for peace in Syria, urging immediate assistance to the exhausted population of the city of Aleppo. It is time for weapons to be still forever (in Syria), and the international community to actively seek a negotiated solution, so that civil co-existence can be restored in the country, he said. Peace to the people who suffer because of the economic ambitions of the few, because of the sheer greed and the idolatry of money, which leads to slavery, he said.  Agencies
One former PNM stalwart says there is only one fit to head the political entity and it's not
Winners: Portugal

Cristiano Ronaldo's touchline exploits, substitute Eder's shot, the hosts' agony  a pulsating evening in Paris on 10 July climaxed with Portugal hoisting aloft the first major trophy in their history.

Team of the Tournament

Rui Patricio; Kimmich, Boateng, Pepe, Raphael Guerreiro; Kroos, Joe Allen; Griezmann, Ramsey, Payet; Ronaldo.

Who makes your Team of the Year?

Golden Boot and Player of the Tournament: Antoine Griezmann

The France forward may have lost his second major final of the year (remember the first?), but his six goals  second only to Michel Platini's 1984 tally of nine for a single finals  and two assists meant he claimed the adidas Golden Boot and Player of the Tournament awards.

Watch your Goal of the Tournament

Goal of the Tournament: Zoltan Gera

With 32% of the vote, Hungary's 37-year-old talisman beat off competition from Cristiano Ronaldo's back-heel and Xherdan Shaqiri's bicycle kick to land the prize thanks to his splendid strike against Portugal.

Top of the Player Barometer: Dimitri Payet

France's Dimitri Payet finished UEFA EURO 2016 where he had started it, on top of our form tracker  the Player Barometer.

Ronaldo's record-breaking EURO

Highest EURO finals scorer: check. Most EURO finals appearances: check. Portugal's most-capped player: check. First player to score in four EURO final tournaments: check. All-time EURO leading scorer: check.

Young Player of the Tournament: Renato Sanches

Aged 18 years and 328 days, Renato Sanches broke Ronaldo's record (set in 2004) for youngest player to feature in a EURO final before capping a sensational breakthrough season with the SOCAR Young Player of the Tournament accolade.

Bayern lead the way

Sanches made it 19 players to have picked up EURO winners' medals while playing for Bayern Munchen  three more than the next best, Real Madrid.

Getty Images

AFP/Getty Images

Panoramic

Getty Images
110 Ukrainians are held captive on the territory of Ukraine, occupied by the Russian troops, while another ten people are held captive on the territory of Russia.

Advisor to the Chief of the Security Service of Ukraine Yuri Tandyt said this on the air of Inter TV channel.

"According to official data of the Security Service, 110 people, who are illegally held in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, are considered to be captives. Moreover, another ten Ukrainians are illegally held on the territory of the Russian Federation. There is no difference between them, there is a certain procedure," Tandyt said.

He reminded that Ukraine would soon release 15 people, who are on the list, obtained from the representatives of certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

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No Ukrainian soldiers were killed, but five servicemen were wounded in the anti-terrorist operation area in eastern Ukraine in last day.

Ukrainian Defense Ministry's Spokesperson for ATO Colonel Andriy Lysenko said this at a press briefing in Kyiv, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"No Ukrainian soldiers were killed, but five servicemen were wounded in the ATO area in eastern Ukraine over the past day," Lysenko said.

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Battle losses of the Ukrainian army in 2016 have amounted to 211 servicepersons.

This is reported by the press service of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in response to an information inquiry from BBC.

"The number of losses in 2016: battle losses  211 servicepersons, non-battle losses  256 servicepersons," the statement reads.

The Armed Forces also reported on equipment losses: "More than 100 units of military equipment have been lost as a result of combat damages."

December 6, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Viktor Muzhenko said that 3,064 representatives of all security agencies, including 2,636 servicepersons, had been killed in eastern Ukraine since the onset of Donbas conflict.

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Being creative is an excellent way for someone to be able to express themselves well, and it can be a great outlet of stress and also a great source of happiness. But aside from these helpful benefits, creativity can also reduce a person's fear of death.

According to a study published in the Journal of Creative Behavior, creativity seems to work like a security blanket. And that people who are creative are less likely to feel worried about death.

Dr. Rotem Perach, a psychology Ph.D student at the University of Kent, told The Huffington Post about symbolic immortality as a way to stay alive in a certain culture even after passing away. Symbolic immortality is a term used by psychologists to refer to the legacy that an individual has created impacting a culture even after he is dead.

The team of researchers from the university conducted the study among 108 students who were asked to fill out a questionnaire assessing their creativity. In this experiment, the researchers found out that those participants who had more creative accomplishments feel less worried or concerned about death even if they were forced to imagine their passing away.

The researchers explained this event called "terror management theory" which means that the fear of a death is a vital human motivator. It means that a person copes with the awareness of his own mortality by either believing about something that provides them a sense of meaning, just like religion; or trying to live up to the standards set by his culture.

In general, the researchers concluded that people have the tendency to think that even if our lives are temporary in this world, and even if we all die one day, we will still be leaving a part of us behind.
Moto 360 2 has been receiving a huge positive feedbacks from customers. The latest revamped smartwatch by Motorola gets a few upgrades with some drawbacks to take note.

Moto 360 2nd Gen Review: Specs and Design

Moto 360 2nd gen runs Android Wear with 4 GB of built-in storage. The 400 mAh battery could last up to a day and a half. A Snapdragon 400 powers the timepiece with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth as the connectivity.

As far as the design is concerned, the scratch-resistant Moto 360 2nd gen gets its protection from Corning Gorilla Glass 3. It's got a thin flat-tire-like bezel which has created opinion split between the worshipper and the mocker.

A few upgrades seen in the smartwatch include higher pixel density which improves the visual experience; fast wireless-charging feature and replaceable straps, and smaller model available.

Moto 360 2nd Gen Review: The Drawbacks

1. Battery life

While the design looks sleeker and better, Motorola does not seem to bother improving the battery life. It does getting a pump but for a smartwatch as good as Moto 360, it should up the capacity higher than 400 mAh.

2. Trouble recognizing 'Ok Google'

A few users reported the Moto 360 troublesome in recognizing 'Ok Google'. Lenovo Forum has a few customers complaining about the failure to activate voice command on the smartwatch.

3. Flat tire design

Albeit the more attractive build, many have questioned why the flat tire design is back on Moto 360 2nd gen. The bezel does make the timepiece less appealing.

4. Limited iPhone compatibility

When Google announced that Android Wear will be compatible with iPhone, as told by The Fortune, the tech crowds was glad and sad as the company limits the pairing compatibility features. The performance is reportedly slow and there is no significant change from Moto 360, in term of the limitations.

As of this day, Motorola Moto 360 remains one of the most popular Android Wear smartwatches.
George Washington University has announced a strange change in its requirements for history majors. Apparently, students majoring in history will no longer be required to take up the U.S. history course.

The College Fix reported that George Washington University has changed its requirements for history majors in order to give students more flexibility. The department has removed requirements in U.S., North American as well as European history.

History majors will also no longer be required to learn a foreign language. It is entirely possible for students to major in history at the institution without taking a course on the history of the United States.

The new requirements specify that students should take at least one introductory course with the choices of American history, World History and European civilization. However, the introductory course requirement may be bypassed if a student scored a 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement exams for U.S. History AP, European History AP or World History AP.

Last July, it was noted that top universities in the nation are no longer requiring history majors to take up a U.S. history course. The American Council of Trustees and Alumni warned that this would not help the ignorance of the coming generations over historical facts.

It was added that only 23 undergraduate history programs at 76 top universities require students to take up any U.S. history course. Scholars dismissed the warning, though, since they saw that most students still enroll in U.S. history classes whether or not it's required.

According to The GW Hatchet, this change is part of efforts to attract more students to take up history. Katrin Schultheiss, the chair of the history department, noted that they are trying to become more flexible and responsive to students' interests in order to recruit more majors.

The department had 153 majors in 2011. However, in 2015, the figure dropped to 75 undergraduate students and 83 for 2016.
Jewish student union has denied anti-Semitism in universities in the U.K. This comes after Ruth Deech, Britain's first higher education adjudicator, claimed that some students are avoiding some institutions because of anti-Semitism.

The Guardian reported that the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) dismissed Deech's claim. The group clarified that the adjudicator's claim did not reflect what the majority of students experienced. They did acknowledge that there has been a recent rise of high-profile anti-Semitic events, though.

The union said that it is important to be aware of the worrying spate in anti-Semitism in campuses in the U.K. They expressed their gratitude to Baroness Deech for shedding light on the issue.

However, they explained that the adjudicator's comments did a "disservice to the thousands who are able to freely express their Jewish identities in whichever way they choose." According to Telegraph, Deech has said that universities may be failing to address the prejudice against Jews since they may be scared of offending potential benefactors from Gulf states.

This came after some Jewish students from top universities claimed that they were verbally abused or even physically attacked. Speaking to the publication, Deech noted that the levels of hostility towards Jews at universities throughout the nation can actually equate to anti-Semitism.

Deech was a senior proctor at Oxford University and principal of St. Anne's College. She is now a crossbench peer after being U.K.'s first higher education adjudicator from 2004 to 2008.

BBC added that Universities UK, representing the sector, has explained that higher education should not be tainted with unlawful discrimination. The UJS also noted that universities in the U.K. have a lot of active and open Jewish student populations.

The group represents about 8,500 Jewish students. Moreover, they clarified that they are not discouraging Jewish students to apply at a certain university for anti-Semitism.

Jewish groups at Manchester and Oxford, both of which were mentioned by Deech, did express their concern about racism on British campuses. The institutions denied, though, that they were no-go zones for students.
Makerere University is set to begin classes again next month. This comes after the school was forced to shut down operations because of student and staff protests.

It was previously reported that Uganda president Yoweri Museveni ordered Makerere University to be shut down. The directive by the president was issued on the evening of Nov. 1. The university was closed "with immediate effect, until further notice, in order to guarantee s afety of persons and property."

Makerere University, known as Uganda's highest learning institution, was shut down after protests by its academic staff and students. The school's educators went on strike in late October and refused to teach.

Apparently, the government has not paid professors their allowances. They decided to go on strike until the government pays their incentive arrears in full. The current outstanding payment has reached about 30 billion Ugandian shillings, which is equivalent to over $8.3 million.

The school's temporary closure has had a negative impact on the business community surrounding it. This issue may soon be solved as Makerere University is set to resume operations next month.

According to New Vision, the Makerere University Council has confirmed that the university had been opened effective immediately. All staff members will resume work soon.

Students will be able to continue their first semester on Jan. 2, 2017. They will be required to fully comply with the tuition policy, which needs them to finish paying all fees by the 12th week of the semester - approximately two weeks after resumption of studies which is on Jan. 16, 2017.

Students who have already paid their dues will not have to pay anything. Council chairperson Eng. Dr. Charles Wana-Etyem explained that arrangements were made to make sure that students will not lose any more time as a result of the school's closure.

Lecturers have been paid for their service for November and December. They have decided to return to class. Graduation ceremonies are still expected to be held in March.
It may sound like a commercial, but television promos, radio and highway billboard ads are blasting a very blunt message. It says "Finish what you started."

This is particularly directed to Tennessean adults who have dropped out of college. There is a program available that offers incentives to adult college dropouts without a degree, as reported by Wall Street Journal. The effort is to boost the number of graduates. According to reports, state education representatives have started Tennessee Reconnect which cost them $1 million to produce.

It aims to bring college drop outs back to school. And the education officials have took it upon themselves to dig up private and public records to call college drop outs and bring them back to higher education.

Mike Krause, the executive director of the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, said that they are doing everything they can to increase the rate of adults with college degrees in Tennessee. They are aiming for 55 percent by 2025, compared to 38 percent this year.

The state also wants to produce a much more educated workforce. According to reports, there are almost 37 million working adults in the United States with some college credits but did not graduate with a degree.

One insurance account manager from Nashville called Tennessee Reconnect to find out more about this free education. He was guided by an adviser and he then signed up for online classes at Columbia State Community College. He is nearing the end of his course to receive an associate's degree in business administration. He did not shell out a single dime. His tuition is fully covered by scholarship and state grants.

For those who are interested to finish a degree, they just need to accomplish a few simple steps. Questions such as transferring credits or courses can be answered by a Tennessee Reconnect guide or through the TN Reconnect official website.

Check out the video below to learn more about Tennessee Reconnect:
Professor Nancy Shurtz from the University of Oregon wore a black face mask to a Halloween Party. To celebrate the spirit of Halloween, she came dressed as one of her favorite authors which was a black man.

According to reports, she was unaware of the term "black face." After being tagged as violating the school's harassment policies, the professor was then suspended. It appears that although her actions were done off campus, her actions were shown to be negative and may reflect badly upon the school, as reported by USA Today.

Now, Professor Nancy Shurtz is fighting back. She points at the University of Oregon as publicly shaming her and calls it a supreme public retaliation after the school published a report, as told by Seattle Times.

In a statement released last week, Shurtz said that the investigative report is equivalent to publich shaming. She has now contacted an attorney to consult on the next steps. According to reports, Shurtz wanted to correct the information before it was released. Because of the report issued, her actions were allegedly taken out of context.

Nancy Shurtz still insists that she went to the party dressed as Dr. Damon Tweedy, an African-American psychiatrist. He was the author of the memoir "Black Man in a White Coat." The book detailed his experiences with racism while studying in medical school. While she admits that her costume was intended to provoke a discussion about racism, she stresses that she did not mean to violate any harassment policies. There were 13 students, 3 university staff members and 2 alumni present at the party. All of them allegedly did not approach her about her choice of costume.

Other reports indicate that although this happened off-campus, the University of Oregon still feels responsible for maintaining a balanced atmosphere. News reports surrounding the controversy also indicate that her actions had caused serious damage to race relations at the law school.

In related news, check out this video below where a student encountered three people in blackface walking around the University of Oregon campus:
The exclusive global manufacturer and distributor for upcoming BlackBerry-branded smartphones TCL will be showcasing its new BlackBerry Smartphone on Jan. 5, 2017 at CES trade show. What are the phones' new features and specifications are still in a blur as of today.

However, in a recent press release from the company, it highlighted the unveiling of an evolutionary first in the mobile industry. The company pointed out that it will divulge more news at CES around its plans, showcasing the legacy of the BlackBerry smartphone brand, while also giving a glimpse into what new Black Berry smartphones will offer as part of the company's bold new brand portfolio within TCT, GS Marena has learned.

TCL Communication said that the CES presentation will include a first look at how the BlackBerry brand legacy will live on in a new generation of smartphones. Reports said that the development is a building block of the new growth strategy the company is trailing, Gadgets 360 reported. TCL, however, teased consumers that there will be more news to be announced next year during the trade show.

The source also added that the new TCL-made BlackBerry QWERTY device is expected to be the rumored BlackBerry Mercury, whose specifications were leaked online and touted to have a fingerprint sensor integrated into the space bar

It is also seen to have a 3GB of RAM, 32GB of inbuilt storage, a 3400mAh battery, an 18-megapixel rear camera, and an 8-megapixel front-facing camera. . It is also expected to be powered by the Snapdragon 625 CPU, and house a 4.5-inch display. Rumors also circulating that it will run an Android 7.0 Nougat with BlackBerry's own customizations for security.

It is worth noting that China's TCL Communication Technology Holdings Ltd is now the fourth-largest handset maker in North America after BlackBerry Ltd took off its global brand rights. This is the first licensing deal made by BlackBerry since its transition to a software company.


Laughter is the best medicine and there's nothing more therapeutic than sharing it with your friends. However, a recent study revealed that not all laughs are genuine and you can now tell the difference between a fake laugh and a real one.

The study, which involved 966 individuals from 24 different cultures across the globe, tasked the individuals to listen to different sound clips of two people - either friends or strangers - laughing together. Some of those who participated included the Hadza people from Tanzania and rural inhabitants of Peru. Sixty-one percent of the participants guessed accurately.

The reason for the involvement of a diverse range of cultures is to make sure that laughter doesn't have different meanings no matter the society.

Greg Bryant, the co-author of the study and a cognitive psychologist at the University of California, Los Angeles Center for Behavior, Evolution and Culture, said that laughter is not just about communication but could also be an unconscious signal sent to those who are outside the group.

Bryant also added that laughter is an important element in the evolution of cooperative human societies. Outsiders can use the laughter they hear in a group to assess how they are going to integrate themselves in the group.

He added that laughter has different "acoustic features" which clearly indicate if it is spontaneous as with friends. Some of the most obvious features include loudness and pitch. People who have a closer relationship with each other will naturally produce a more aroused laughter as opposed to fake laughter, and this is what the listeners can hear and take note of.

Robert R. Provine, a neuroscientist at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, said that by studying laughter, scientists will be able to unlock different aspects of the human behavior.
Genetic editing is hailed as the future of medicine as it holds a lot of promise in eradicating the world's most dangerous diseases, such as cancer and leukemia. In fact, China and the United States will have its large-scale trials to treat cancer patients using gene editing. While this holds a lot of promise, there are also warnings regarding its use and one of those threats include the extinction of geniuses in the future.

Just in November this year, a cancer patient in China became the first recipient of modified immune cells which were genetically engineered to kill his lung cancer using the new technology CRISPR. What it does is cut out those unhealthy cells and replace them with new instructions to build better cells.

At present, cancer is the main focus of gene editing but scientists say that the same method will be applied to other genetic diseases in the future.

However, Dr Jim Kozubek, author of Modern Prometheus: Editing the Human Genome with Crispr-Cas9, issued a warning saying that if Aspergers, schizophrenia, or autism will be eliminated it will also eradicate geniuses, like Thomas Edison. That's because most of these illnesses are often associated with creativity and higher intelligence.

Kozubek further added that writers are ten times more likely to be bipolar than the average people while poets have a likelihood of 40 times than the average human being.

He then cited Tennessee Williams almost came into the verge of madness when he was a teenager because he was afraid of the "process of thought." Edison, on the other hand, was kicked out of school because he had a hard time focusing. However, these two men became two of the most brilliant minds in history.

He concluded that such genetic variants are very important elements of the creative process. Furthermore, the positive effects of such genetic traits outweigh the negative.
By: Harry Handley

In May 2015, Vietnam became the first nation to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) with the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union (EEU)  which also includes Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Over a year after it was signed, the FTA finally came into force on October 6th, 2016. Previous Russia Briefing and Vietnam Briefing articles have discussed the background of the deal; now, it is important to assess the impact the FTA is having and will have in future.

Which goods does the FTA cover?

At its core, the Vietnam  EEU FTA will reduce tariffs on 90 percent of goods, with the tariff on 56 percent of goods already having been removed completely as soon as the agreement came into effect. Remaining tariffs will be reduced gradually over a number of years. The table below highlights the reductions in a number of key export categories for Vietnamese companies. All changes are effective immediately unless otherwise stated.

RELATED: Dezan Shira & Associates Corporate Establishment Services

Current Trade Levels

According to data provided by Vietnamese General Department of Customs, in the first 11 months of 2016, Vietnam exported US$1.5 billion worth of goods to Russia (up to date figures regarding the other EEU members are unavailable). Despite an 11 percent increase from the 2015 level, exports to Russia still account for less than one percent of Vietnams total exports which are expected to reach US$170 billion by the end of 2016.

In the two months since the FTA came into force, Vietnamese companies have exported almost US$332 million worth of goods to Russia. Compared to the same two months in 2015, in which US$281 million were exported, this is an 18 percent increase. Even more impressively, the figure since the FTA became active is 27 percent higher than the two months prior to its introduction (US$262 million of exports in August and September 2016). Although it is difficult to say whether this drastic increase is as a direct result of the FTA, it shows promising signs for Vietnamese firms and their trade relationship with Russia.

So far in 2016, 24 categories of goods have been exported to Russia in substantial quantities. Telephones, mobile phones and their constituent parts have been the largest segment, with US$682.5 million in exports (45 percent of total exports to Russia). This is followed by coffee (US$108 million; 7 percent), textiles and garments (US$99 million; 6.6 percent), computers and electrical products (US$94 million; 6.2 percent), footwear (US$92.5 million; 6 percent) and fishery products (US$86 million; 5.7 percent).

The most up to date data available for the remaining EEU members (except Kyrgyzstan which has no data available) is from 2014. Kazakhstan received by far the most exports from Vietnam in 2014, with US$220 million; followed by Armenia (US$21.5 million) and Belarus (US$14 million). According to the Vietnam News Agency, Kazakhstans demand for Vietnams agriproducts makes up a majority of the trade between the two nations.

Making Use of Shareholder Meetings in Vietnam

Expected Trade Levels

Ambitiously, Russian and Vietnamese officials have set a target of achieving US$10 billion of bilateral trade annually by 2020. As the graph below shows, trade growth rate will have to increase significantly if this target is to be met. At current levels of growth (26 percent year-on-year), bilateral trade will surpass US$7.5 billion per year in 2020 but will miss the target by over US$2 billion. In order to reach the goal set, trade will have to average 35 percent annual growth over the coming four years; a tall task, but a feasible one according to officials on both sides.

Although the FTA removes tariffs on a vast majority of goods traded between Vietnam and the EEU, it does not solve the issue of non-tariff barriers. A number of experts from the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) have highlighted these as limiting factors to the growth potential of the FTA. For example, the quarantine of Vietnamese farm produce and food safety regulations may restrict the amount of foodstuffs successfully exported to the EEU member states. This makes it increasingly difficult to achieve the target of US$10 billion of bilateral trade by 2020.

What does the FTA mean for Vietnamese businesses?

The EEU presents a market of 181 million consumers which Vietnamese businesses can now access tariff-free; this is expected to increase demand and create savings of up to US$10 million for exporters each year. The influx of imports and competition in the domestic market will also drive Vietnamese firms to be more innovative, hence, increasing their chances overseas.

However, according to the Vietnam Investment Review, technical barriers imposed by the EU and EEU, together with commitments to social responsibility, environmental protection and procedures to enjoy tax preferences, will increase business costs. Consequently, these increasing costs may ultimately offset the savings afforded by the FTA.

Although exports to the EEU currently make up only a small proportion of Vietnams total exports, this is an important agreement for both sides. The Vietnam  EEU FTA could prove to be the catalyst that builds on historic ties to strengthen trade ties and propel the partnership towards the US$10 billion trade target. Only time will tell if trade will grow at a sufficient rate to hit the target and if the removal of tariffs will be enough to overcome the non-tariff barriers that still restrict the trade relationship between Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union.



About Us Asia Briefing Ltd. is a subsidiary of Dezan Shira & Associates. Dezan Shira is a specialist foreign direct investment practice, providing corporate establishment, business advisory, tax advisory and compliance, accounting, payroll, due diligence and financial review services to multinationals investing in China, Hong Kong, India, Vietnam, Singapore and the rest of ASEAN. For further information, please email vietnam@dezshira.com or visit www.dezshira.com. Stay up to date with the latest business and investment trends in Asia by subscribing to our complimentary update service featuring news, commentary and regulatory insight. 

Annual Audit and Compliance in Vietnam 2016

In this issue of Vietnam Briefing, we address pressing changes to audit procedures in 2016, and provide guidance on how to ensure that compliance tasks are completed in an efficient and effective manner. We highlight the continued convergence of VAS with IFRS, discuss the emergence of e-filing, and provide step-by-step instructions on audit and compliance procedures for Foreign Owned Enterprises (FOEs) as well as Representative Offices (ROs).

Navigating the Vietnam Supply Chain

In this edition of Vietnam Briefing, we discuss the advantages of the Vietnamese market over its regional competition and highlight where and how to implement successful investment projects. We examine tariff reduction schedules within the ACFTA and TPP, highlight considerations with regard to rules of origin, and outline the benefits of investing in Vietnams growing economic zones. Finally, we provide expert insight into the issues surrounding the creation of 100 percent Foreign Owned Enterprise in Vietnam.

Tax, Accounting and Audit in Vietnam 2016 (2nd Edition)

This edition of Tax, Accounting, and Audit in Vietnam, updated for 2016, offers a comprehensive overview of the major taxes foreign investors are likely to encounter when establishing or operating a business in Vietnam, as well as other tax-relevant obligations. This concise, detailed, yet pragmatic guide is ideal for CFOs, compliance officers and heads of accounting who must navigate Vietnams complex tax and accounting landscape in order to effectively manage and strategically plan their Vietnam operations.
Can Tho Officials Award Contract for US$47 million Waste plant

Can Tho city officials have granted China Everbright International Limited, a Hong Kong based environmental services firm, the rights to build a US$47 million waste-to-energy plant. The solid waste disposal plant is being designed to process 400 tons of daily household waste and generate electricity for the national grid. The company would implement its in-house technology including a grate furnace system, gas emission treatment system and leachate treatment system. The construction of the 53 hectare plant in Truong Xuan commune (to be located in Thoi Lai District) will commence from February 2017 with operations starting from February 2018. This is the first project in Vietnam funded by China Everbright International.

Vo Thanh Thong, Chairman of the Municipal Peoples Committee stated that the company was selected from seven other investors after a visit by the citys delegation of their Chinese projects. According to Chen Xiao Ping, Director General of China Everbright International, the company currently has 68 waste-to-energy plants with a capacity of 55,000 tons garbage per day and is committed to making this an environmentally friendly project following Vietnams environmental standards.



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Vietnam to Start E-visas Services from 2017

The Vietnam National Assembly has approved a resolution to offer electronic visas from February 1, 2017, for a trial period of two years. As per the new scheme, foreign tourists can apply online for a single entry, 30 day visa by paying a non-refundable fee. Currently, the Vietnamese government is finalizing nations eligible for the scheme. Vietnam, at present, has a visa-free policy for ASEAN countries along with Japan, South Korea, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, and Russia. In 2015, Vietnam attracted almost eight million tourists with China, South Korea and Japan leading among the visiting countries.

The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism has welcomed the resolution stating the move will boost the domestic tourism industry and attract more tourists. The e-visa facility will ease the process for tourists and provide the local immigration control over entry as well. Funds collected from the scheme will also allow for subsidizing the tourism promotion program. Vietnam aims to attract a revenue of US$18 billion to US$19 billion and around 10 million foreign tourists each year by 2020.

RELATED: Making Use of Shareholder Meetings in Vietnam

Vietnam Climbs 11 Places in World Banks Tax Rankings

Vietnam climbed 11 places to 167th position in terms of paying taxes according to the World Banks 2016 Doing Business report. The World Bank uses criteria of paying taxes to rank 189 countries on the ease of doing business. The Finance Ministry and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry highlighted the ranking during a dialogue on November 28 in Hanoi.

Recent changes in the tax administrative and payment procedures contributed to the climb in rankings. The sector abolished 32 administrative procedures and streamlined 40 other processes leading to efficiency. The General Department of Taxation also signed agreements with 41 commercial banks for carrying out nationwide e-tax payments and in turn reducing time to pay taxes from 537 hours to 117 hours a year, a reduction of around 78 percent. Changes implemented by the General Department of Vietnam Customs in clearance time from 21 days to 14 days for exported goods and to 13 days for imports also contributed to the rise.



About Us Asia Briefing Ltd. is a subsidiary of Dezan Shira & Associates. Dezan Shira is a specialist foreign direct investment practice, providing corporate establishment, business advisory, tax advisory and compliance, accounting, payroll, due diligence and financial review services to multinationals investing in China, Hong Kong, India, Vietnam, Singapore and the rest of ASEAN. For further information, please email vietnam@dezshira.com or visit www.dezshira.com. Stay up to date with the latest business and investment trends in Asia by subscribing to our complimentary update service featuring news, commentary and regulatory insight. 

Annual Audit and Compliance in Vietnam 2016

In this issue of Vietnam Briefing, we address pressing changes to audit procedures in 2016, and provide guidance on how to ensure that compliance tasks are completed in an efficient and effective manner. We highlight the continued convergence of VAS with IFRS, discuss the emergence of e-filing, and provide step-by-step instructions on audit and compliance procedures for Foreign Owned Enterprises (FOEs) as well as Representative Offices (ROs).

Navigating the Vietnam Supply Chain

In this edition of Vietnam Briefing, we discuss the advantages of the Vietnamese market over its regional competition and highlight where and how to implement successful investment projects. We examine tariff reduction schedules within the ACFTA and TPP, highlight considerations with regard to rules of origin, and outline the benefits of investing in Vietnams growing economic zones. Finally, we provide expert insight into the issues surrounding the creation of 100 percent Foreign Owned Enterprise in Vietnam.

Tax, Accounting and Audit in Vietnam 2016 (2nd Edition)

This edition of Tax, Accounting, and Audit in Vietnam, updated for 2016, offers a comprehensive overview of the major taxes foreign investors are likely to encounter when establishing or operating a business in Vietnam, as well as other tax-relevant obligations. This concise, detailed, yet pragmatic guide is ideal for CFOs, compliance officers and heads of accounting who must navigate Vietnams complex tax and accounting landscape in order to effectively manage and strategically plan their Vietnam operations.
Vu Quang Hai has submitted his resignation to the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Photo vietnamnet.vn

On December 22, the ministry got a report from its State budget management unit about Hais resignation. He had submitted the letter to Sabecos board of directors informing them that he wished to resign from his position as a member of the board.

The ministry will direct the State budget management units response to Hais letter in accordance with the laws and the companys regulations.

The ministry has decided to ask Nguyen Thanh Nam, incumbent Sabeco Deputy General Director, to join the companys board of directors and be the representative of the companys State budget capital.

Hai, 29, is the son of Vu Huy Hoang, former Minister of Industry and Trade. In November, the Party Central Committee Secretariat ordered disciplinary action against Hoang on charges of nepotism. Hoang had appointed Hai as an inspector of Viet Nam National Tobacco Corporation, allowed him to join Sabecos board of directors and become its deputy general director.

The 63-year-old, a former member of the Party Central Committee, incorrectly directed and implemented regulations by presenting the Hero of Labour title to PetroVietnam Construction Corporation and rewarding third-class Labour Order to ang Vu Ngoan, rector of HCM City University of Food Industry.

He has also been accused of not keeping a close check on the ministrys units, allowing them to break rules related to personnel recruitment, evaluation and appointments.

As per the conclusions drawn by the Party Central Committees Inspection Commission, the party committee of the ministry was irresponsible and lax in its leadership and direction, violating a number of regulations, procedures and criteria in personnel work, resulting in serious consequences.
Deputy PM Vuong Dinh Hue (L) shakes hands wih a delegate at the forum on empowering economically women to launch business start-up and agriculture production in favor of gender equality, Ha Noi, December 26, 2016 - Photo: VGP/Thanh Chung

Deputy PM Hue underlined the point on Monday in Ha Noi at a forum on empowering economically women to launch business start-up and agriculture production in favor of gender equality.

The event was jointly hosted by the Viet Nam Women's Union and the Embassy of the Netherlands.

String of business start-up policies

Addressing the forum, Deputy PM Hue praised the operation of the Association and its cooperation with the Netherlands Embassy to host the event in favor of business development and gender equality.

Especially, a project on Supporting female business start-up in the 2017-2027 period would be optimistic as over 110,000 firms were founded in 2016 and the number of resumed businesses surged over 43% in 2016.

The Deputy PM said the Government looks to listen to comments with a view to assessing the economic regulations and pushing business start-up in general and those run by women in particular.

The Deputy PM also revealed that the Government had already submitted a draft law on supporting SMEs to the National Assembly in an effort to composing pro-SMEs programs, especially micro and difficult enterprises in accessing credit, capital, labor, and input factors without the States assistance.

However, the Government only backs winning enterprises, not weak ones, he affirmed.

In addition, the Cabinet will support start-up and creative businesses which are eager for technology and IT applications.

Moreover, household businesses will be encouraged to convert into businesses.

The Government will amend economic regulations to attractive more investment into agricultural sector.

Thus, Deputy PM Hue suggested the Association create favorable ways for women to join the business start-up campaign and boost agricultural production.

Women to own a third of businesses

The Association reported that females accounted for nearly a half of the labor force in almost all sectors and industries.

In agriculture, women contributed remarkably to turn Viet Nam into an exporter with over ten items earning over US$ 1 billion annually.

Especially, over 100,000 enterprises (over 20% of national businesses) have been led by women. They generated over 1.63 million jobs.

President of the Viet Nam Women's Union Nguyen Thi Thu Ha announced that the Association was crafting the project on Supporting female business start-up in the 2017-2027 period and would submit it to the Government soon. The project set a goal that businesswomen would account for 35% of the total one million enterprises by 2020.
GEs manufacturing unit worked 24 hours a day to meet the production schedule for the Son La plant

The Lai Chau success

Construction of Lai Chau Hydropower Plant started on January 5, 2011, with three units planned with a designed capacity of 1,200 megawatts (MW). When it fully comes into operation, it will provide about 4.7 billion kWh per year to the national grid. This is one of the four hydropower plants planned on the Da River.

In terms of scale, the plant is the third biggest hydropower plant in Southeast Asia, only after 2,400MW Son La Hydropower Plant and the 1,920MW Hoa Binh Hydropower Plant.

At Lai Chau Hydropower Plant, GE was responsible for the design, supplying, guiding the installation, and commissioning of three 400MW Francis hydro turbines, the generator, speed governor, as well as the static excitation and plant control systems.

The equipment and system used for the plant, namely the ALSPA system for the speed governor, excitation system, and plant control system, is the most advanced technology available at the moment. In Vietnam, this technology has been applied in Son La, Huoi Quang, Lai Chau, Da Nhim, Dai Ninh, Sesan 4 hydropower plants and will also be continued for Thac Mo Extension and Tri An Hydropower Plant.

According to Fabio Nossaes, general manager of Hydro at GE Renewable Energy, the project was completed one year ahead of schedule in a big part thanks to the experience the group acquired after working on Son La Hydropower Plant, the last unit of which started operation in 2012.

The Lai Chau plant uses the same technical parameters as the Son La plant, making it unnecessary to re-do the hydraulic study, as well as the development and model tests. This shortened the time needed to carry out the project by six months, said Nossaes.

Right after the project started, GE got to work on strategic planning for the design, material procurement, manufacture, and shipment.

The components have big dimension and weight, so they must be transported by waterways through the Da River which cannot accommodate ships from January to June every year. Therefore, GE had to optimise the manufacturing and transportation plans to deliver the goods to Haiphong Port at the appropriate time, he explained.

Therefore, the company gave priority for the manufacturing of equipment for the Lai Chau plant in its factory. At critical moments the management made quick decisions enabling the manufactory workshop to keep to the schedule.

Moreover, because the team working on the Lai Chau plant was the same that was earlier involved in equipping the Son La plant, it made the process a lot easier.

This was very important as it allowed smooth communication among GE departments, the external customer, and technical design and consultancy teams, Nossaes said.

The early completion brings a lot of benefits to the country. Besides the additional 4.7 billion kWh, the shortened construction time meant savings, pushing total benefits to VND7 trillion ($307 million).

Building a legacy

GEs success at the Lai Chau plant followed earlier success at the Son La plant, which the team had achieved under even tougher conditions. The Son La plant was the most important and biggest hydropower project in Vietnam as it would contribute about 10 per cent of the national grids total capacity.

Time was very tight - three years from when the contract became effective to when the first unit started generation. It put significant pressure on EVN, GE, and all construction partners, Nossaes recalled.

Meanwhile, information on the interface between the civil work and the equipment sides took a longer time to proceed. On top of these challenges, some local policies and standards were not presented in the contract. For example, for the arrangement of the plants fire fighting system, there is a big difference between international standards and local standards. GE had to modify the design to adapt to local regulations.

Vietnamese standards often follow Russian ones, which were very different from international and GE standards, he explained.

GE identified quality assurance and delivery on time as its top priorities. Being greenlighted by the management of GE, we decided to start the hydraulic study in advance to develop the most advanced model for the plant, and to purchase the steel plates for the fabrication of the stay ring and the spiral case - the vital parts - in advance because the time between finishing one unit and the next was only 40 days in the contract, much shorter than the usual 120 days, said Nossaes

Finally, the model was proved high performance and very stable and GE delivered six units of stay rings and spiral cases earlier than scheduled.

Time was not the only constraint for the team. Again, due to the limitation of the road from Haiphong Port to the Son La plant site, certain heavy and big components, such as the turbine runner, shaft, and turbine head cover, had to be transported by waterway. However, the water level in Da River is very low in the dry season - between January and June - effectively closing it off.

GE knew it had to have a very good fabrication and delivery plan. It was critical to manufacture and deliver Unit 6s turbine runner within a very limited time window due to restrictions on transportation. Therefore, GE set up a special team that would focus on the fabrication and worked 24 hours a day for two months.

Moreover, to ensure the progress of site installation, GE time and again arranged urgent delivery by truck through the border between China and Vietnam. Thanks to these initiatives, GE successfully finished the Son La plant on time.

Sharing his thoughts on these two projects, Nguyen Cuong Lam, vice general director of EVN said: We understand that the plant capacity increase is an urgent task to be accomplished when primary power sources are gradually dwindling and hydropower potential is almost fully exploited. Lai Chau Hydropower Plants completion one year ahead of schedule is a remarkable achievement that will result in numerous socio-economic benefits for the areas and the country. We look forward to having more fruitful partnership with GE for many more future successes.

According to Nossaes, the success of first Son La then Lai Chau reconfirmed to EVN and the Vietnamese government that GE is a committed company that respects the customer and strives to deliver the project in full according to its commitment.

To take part in these two projects, we are asserting our engagement to grow in tandem with Vietnam. As renewable energy is emerging worldwide, we are present here in Vietnam to help Vietnamese approach to cleaner and greener energy for sustainable development, Nossaes said.
Deputy PM Vuong Dinh Hue attended a ceremony to announce the master scheme on Nui Coc Lake National Tourism Area by 2025 with a vision towards 2030, Thai Nguyen, December 25, 2016 - Photo: VGP/Thanh Chung

The event drew the attendance of National Assembly Vice Chairman Uong Chu Luu and Tribunal President of the Supreme People's Court Nguyen Hoa Binh.

Addressing the event, Deputy PM Vuong Dinh Hue affirmed that the Party always considers tourism as a spearhead of the country.

He suggested Thai Nguyen develop ecological tourism culture and source tourism to optimize its advantages of tea culture, the third largest human training hub (after Ha Noi and HCM City), Nui Coc Lake beautiful site, ATK Dinh Hoa national relic site.

The PM passed the master scheme with a view to assisting the northern province in seizing its potentials and advantages.

The Deputy PM tasked Thai Nguyen province to stick with the approved regulations; develop tourism and preserve natural resources and ecological environment.

The same day, Deputy PM Hue partook in a ceremony to announce the PMs decision on a master scheme for Thai Nguyen city (Thai Nguyen province) by 2035 and the groundbreaking ceremony of anti-flood system in Cau River.

The Deputy PM tasked the local authorities to combine economic development and settlement of social issues, resettlement, job generation.
South Korean Solum Vina Company inaugurates its factory in the northern Vinh Phuc Province.-Photo baovinhphuc.vn

The wholly foreign-invested company began construction in April. Covering an area of 40,000sq.m., the US$20 million project produces and outsources electronic spare parts for TVs, computer screens, mobile phones and electronic parts for large companies, such as SamSung, Appo, Panasonic and Sony.

The factory has total capacity of 10 million products per month.

In August, the company completed the factorys construction and became operational. It has created jobs for some 1,500 people.

Solum Vina Company is expected to reach a turnover of $300 million, contributing $1.5 million to the State budget in 2017. Vinh Phucs IPs management board said the province attracted 159 FDI projects from 13 countries and territories with total registered capital of $2.9 billion in 2016.

South Korea took the lead among foreign investors in the province, with 70 projects and $974.9 million worth total investment. The inflow from South Korean firms into Vinh Phucs IPs has significantly contributed to the provinces socio-economic development over the past few years.

Last week, Fuhua Co Ltd of Taiwan (mainland China) also commenced construction of 17 workshops for rent in the Binh Xuyen 2 IP.
Residents sit in a truck after the local government implemented pre-emptive evacuations at Barangay Matnog, Daraga, Albay province, due to the approaching typhoon Nock-Ten. (AFP Photo)

Typhoon Nock-Ten made landfall in the eastern island province of Catanduanes at 6:30pm, the state weather service said.

There were no immediate official reports of damage or casualties from the storm, one of the strongest this year to hit the disaster-prone archipelago on the Pacific Rim.

The military and local governments earlier moved at least 102,000 people from the coasts and other hazardous areas of Catanduanes and the nearby Bicol peninsula, provincial officials said, after experts warned of possible huge waves, floods and landslides.

The typhoon was forecast to sweep west and threaten the country's most densely populated areas including the capital Manila on Monday morning.

"It would pass over land overnight and we hope that would dissipate the typhoon's strength somewhat," state weather forecaster Lorie de la Cruz told AFP.

She said maximum sustained winds were 185 kph at 0900 GMT but the agency did not have the figure during landfall itself.

In the Bicol region in the south of the main island of Luzon, babies, toddlers and old people were loaded onto military trucks in pouring rain earlier Sunday as the weather service warned of possible storm surges up to 2.5-metres (eight-feet) high, landslides and flash floods.

Nock-Ten, named after a bird found in Laos, struck on one of the biggest holidays in the mainly Christian nation, and one provincial governor offered roast pig at evacuation centres to entice people to abandon celebrations at home.

"Floods terrify me. Each time I hear about a coming typhoon I want to throw up," Criselda Buenvenuto, 68, told AFP as she joined neighbours sheltering at a school in the town of Santo Domingo in Bicol.

'FORCED' EVACUATION

The hunchbacked widow lived alone in the kitchen of her house after the rest of it was destroyed during a typhoon 10 years ago that killed more than a thousand people.

In the village of Alcala on the slopes of the active Mayon volcano, about 100 babies, toddlers, parents and elderly people were the first to be trucked off to another school as rain and strong winds shook trees.

"There are large ash deposits on the slopes (of Mayon). Heavy rain can dislodge them and bury our homes in mud," said Alberto Lindo, an official in the farming village of 3,300 people.

The government forced more than 12,000 residents to move away from the Catanduanes coast, provincial vice governor Shirley Abundo said on ABS-CBN television.

In Camarines Sur province near Catanduanes, governor Miguel Villafuerte said on his Facebook page that nearly 90,000 residents were moved out of their homes as part of his "zero casualty" goal.

"Please evacuate, we will offer roast pig at the evacuation centres," he said in another post on Twitter.

Civil defence officials in Bicol said earlier nearly half a million people in the region were in harm's way and needed to be moved out.

The military and local governments sent trucks on Christmas Day to clear people from coastal communities and other areas hit by landslides or flash floods in previous storms.

CLEAR THE BEACHES

Some 20 typhoons or lesser storms strike the Philippines each year, routinely killing hundreds of people, and Bicol is often the first region to be hit.

It prides itself on having sharpened its disaster response to minimise casualties, and all ferry services and commercial flights in Bicol were suspended.

Rescue workers in Manila and the flood-prone central Luzon plains to the north have been put on standby, evacuation centres opened and food and other rations stocked.

The coastguard on Sunday ordered the beaches south of Manila to be cleared of holidaymakers by Monday, while residents of the capital's seaside slums were warned to leave their homes.

Mammoth tsunami-like waves devastated the city of Tacloban and nearby areas when super typhoon Haiyan struck the central Philippines in November 2013, leaving 7,350 people dead or missing.


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The push to restrict refugee resettlements and immigration in the U.S. that figured so prominently in Donald Trump's election is now headed to states that are preparing to convene their legislative sessions early next year, immigration advocates said.



In Montana, which took in just nine refugee families from January to early December, about a dozen bill requests related to refugees, immigration and terrorism have been filed ahead of next month's session. The measures include requiring resettlement agencies to carry insurance that would defray the cost of prosecuting refugees who commit violent crimes and allowing towns and cities to request a moratorium on resettlements in their communities.



Refugee rights advocates say those measures are a sign of what is to come as the anti-refugee rhetoric that featured prominently in the presidential election spills over to statehouses and local governments.



"It's pretty widely known that this is going to be a hard year for those of us who are seeking to protect the rights of refugees and immigrants,'' said S.K. Rossi, advocacy and policy director for the ACLU of Montana.



The president-elect campaigned on building a border wall with Mexico to stop illegal immigration, deporting immigrants who are in the nation illegally and halting the resettlement of refugees to strengthen the federal program that vets them.



Some down-ticket conservative candidates took Trump's cue and integrated the anti-refugee platform into their campaigns. Montana Rep. Ryan Zinke, for example, spoke multiple times about the possibility of child terrorists slipping into the U.S.



Empowered by the issue's prominence, anti-immigrant groups have state and local governments in their sights as targets to push restrictive measures in addition to whatever changes may happen at the federal level, said Michele McKenzie, deputy director of the Minneapolis organization The Advocates for Human Rights.



That would lead to further manipulation of the deeply visceral fear of newcomers to the U.S. that was exposed during the election campaigns, McKenzie said.



"It absolutely does not end with the presidential election,'' McKenzie said. "It's a national strategy by a small but organized group of anti-immigration advocates and anti-refugee advocates.''



It's unclear if Trump will make good on his pledges. But his election appears to be enough for an Indiana legislative panel led by state Sen. Mike Delph, which didn't recommend any legislation after it spent eight months reviewing illegal immigration.



Delph said after the election that the U.S. government's actions may make immigration less of a problem for the states.



Conservative lawmakers in other states such as Montana aren't waiting to find out, and are instead looking at measures to give towns and cities a larger voice in the federal resettlement process.



"We need to get serious,'' said Nancy Ballance, a Republican state representative from Ravalli County.



Ballance said refugees are a "gigantic issue'' in her southwestern Montana county, just south of the liberal college city of Missoula. "People expect to see some legislation brought,'' she said.



Missoula has taken in all of the state's refugees this year and has been approved to accept another 150 through September. That makes leaders in rural surrounding areas nervous that people will settle in their towns, where housing and job opportunities are limited.



"If Missoula wants to have their soft-landing program, that's fine,'' said Bob Keenan, a Republican state senator from Bigfork, a town north of Missoula on Flathead Lake. ``Those communities may not be as willing to expend their social service dollars for a soft landing.''



Soft Landing Missoula and the International Rescue Committee have been the main organizations working with the federal and state governments to resettle the refugees, who come from Congo, Iraq and Eritrea.



Mary Poole, Soft Landing Missoula's director, said much of the legislation being proposed in Montana is based on misinformation. Some measures  such as requiring surveys of communities' capacity to take refugees  already are part of the federal process, she said.



"I hope people are still open to talking to us and getting accurate information,'' Poole said. "Our doors are definitely open for conversation.''



Other state-level bills conflict with federal refugee laws and will lead to lawsuits, Rossi said.



Just the act of introducing these measures sustains the anti-refugee fear and xenophobia that grew during the election, the ACLU lobbyist said.



"Filing this and making it a public conversation automatically undermines the refugee process,'' Rossi said. "They can't legally undermine the process, but they can socially undermine the process.''
China and Sao Tome and Principe have officially resumed diplomatic relations after the African island nation abruptly broke away from Beijing's rival, Taiwan.

Representatives from both sides, including Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, signed books at a ceremony in front of their flags in Beijing on Monday.

The move is a victory for China, which considers the self-governing island of Taiwan a part of its territory. Most of the world does not formally recognize Taiwan as a condition of maintaining relations with China.

Beijing and Taipei have competed for allies for much of the nearly seven decades since the end of China's civil war in 1949, when the defeated Nationalist government fled across the Taiwan Strait.

Sao Tome and Taiwan broke ties last week.
Throughout the former Soviet Union, Belarus was famous for making tractors at the state-run Minsk Tractor Works, which this year celebrated its 70th anniversary. Since the collapse of the USSR 25 years ago this month, Belarus has struggled to reform its state-run economic model, which critics say is failing. But there are also hopeful signs of local, high-tech innovation battling its way into global markets, as VOAs Daniel Schearf reports from Minsk.
The Central African Republic is getting a New Year's present of sorts: trained soldiers, the first in what the government hopes will be a rebuilt national army.

It's only 170 men, a small fraction of the number needed to stabilize the crisis-wracked CAR; but, authorities were pleased with what they saw last week, when the troops, after 14 weeks of training from a European Union mission, showed off a hostage rescue simulation, rope climbing and other skills for senior military leaders at a military camp in Bangui.

Today, Im satisfied, said Joseph Yakete, Central African Republics minister of defense. The people of the Central African Republic have seen today the fruit of the work that has been done.

A divided nation



The CAR has not had a national army since 2013, when rebels overthrew the president and the country descended into widespread violence, much of it between Muslims and Christian militias. Hundreds of thousands of people were forced from their homes, with many Muslims fleeing the country.

The European Union Council decided in April 2016 to work to reform the CAR's security forces in order to stabilize the situation in support of the political process."

The 170 troops  who will make up the first company of the CAR's 3rd Infantry Battalion  were the first to complete the EU Training Mission's course. The young men were selected to serve in the army because of their physical health, intellectual capacity and age, according to the CAR's military chief of staff, Brigadier General Cema Ludovic Ngaifei.

European soldiers instructed the trainees in physical fitness, communications, close quarters combat, topography, first aid, weapons training, and other skills necessary for combat.

Without an ability to ensure peace and security, Yakete said, the country will never develop economically.

Its our mission to restore and consolidate a climate of peace, he said. You must have permanent security to enable the government to regain control of its national territory.

The governments forces lack control in much of the countryside with armed groups holding mineral-rich areas and taxing trade along the roads.

More training coming



The EU will start training two more companies in January, allowing the countrys first battalion to be fully operational within a few months. The trainers plan to certify two to three battalions of troops before their mission ends in September 2018.

The Europeans would train more soldiers if they had more time and resources.

You would like your country to be rebuilt overnight with the snap of a finger, Major General Eric Hautecloque-Raysz, the EU Training Mission commander, told the media. Well, the reconstruction of the Central African Republic today requires time and requires patience. This work we are doing, we are trying to build something solid, built on concrete, not sand, so that it lasts.

A United Nations Security Council arms embargo implemented in late 2013 limits the ability of the Central African Republic soldiers. The government has repeatedly called for the lifting of the embargo so their troops can be operationally effective.

The army is permitted to acquire some weapons, if granted permission by the United Nations sanctions committee.

Hautecloque-Raysz told VOA hes quite sure that the certification of these newly-trained Central African Republic soldiers is a good reason for the partial lifting of the embargo.

If the Central African government is requesting the partial lift to equip that corps, it will be done, he continued.

The French general, however, said the Central African Republic army will likely require donors to actually pay for the new weapons.

At the certification ceremony, Hautecloque-Raysz told the graduating troops that this was a great day for the Central African army and that he took great pride in being part of its professionalization.

The soldiers themselves were looking forward to serving. One of the younger soldiers told the visiting dignitaries that Its what we do in the field that matters. He concluded his speech with shouts of Long live the EUTM! Long live the Central African Republic army!
A year after losing its status as the world's top destination for foreign investment, China is taking market-opening steps to make the country more appealing to investors; but, with a hostile new administration preparing to take office in Washington, analysts question whether the steps are too little and too late.

China's National Development and Reform Commission announced earlier this month it has removed one-third of the items from a "negative list" that bars or restricts foreign investment in certain industries. The number of regulations restricting foreign investment was also slashed, from 93 to 62.

Among the industries that were opened to foreign investors for the first time were passenger transport, railway equipment, electric vehicle batteries and lithium mining.

Many analysts say the rule changes fail to address the main concerns of foreign investors and are unlikely to provide the economic boost that Beijing wants.

China has only superficially opened up more sectors to foreign investment. The broader environment is still highly restrictive, with wide swaths of the economy either off limits to foreign investors or with ownership caps that require foreign investors to engage in joint ventures with Chinese partners, said Scott Kennedy, director of the Project on Chinese Business and Political Economy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.

Industry lobbies such as the American Chamber of Commerce in China and the European Chamber of Commerce report that their member companies are losing interest in new investments and business expansion during China's economic slowdown. Few foreign businesses are likely to act on the market-opening measures, analysts said.

Lofty goals or tactics?

Though some of the limited revisions are welcomed by some of our members, the number of openings falls far short of what would be necessary to reinvigorate diminishing foreign industry confidence in the China market, said Jake Parker, vice president of the U.S.-China Business Council, in remarks to local media.

The NDRC said the opening had two goals  to improve transparency of policymaking" and to let foreign capital play a positive role in China's economic development, industry transformation, and reform and innovation.

Analysts discern a third objective  to persuade the World Trade Organization to declare China a market economy. That would help the country to offset declining foreign investment and prepare for any aggressive trade moves by the incoming administration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in Washington.

The United States, and to a lesser extent the European Union, have been resisting China's efforts to earn the market economy label from the WTO. Opening up the investment market is a good way for China to make a case that it subscribes to free-market principles.

Conceding to India

The Ministry of Commerce recently forecast that foreign direct investment (FDI) will be down in 2016, the second consecutive year of decline.

The country lost its position as the top investment destination to India in 2015, when FDI slowed 23 percent to $56.6 billion. The number of foreign-financed projects dropped by 16 percent that year.

The big FDI story of the past year is India. After a long period of trailing behind China, the South Asian country is now racing past its formidable rival. India was the highest ranked country by capital investment in 2015, with $63 billion worth of FDI projects announced, said Courtney Fingar, head of content with London-based fDi Intelligence, while releasing the group's 2016 report.

U.S.-China dispute

U.S. President Barack Obama recently blocked a Chinese company's purchase of German chip equipment manufacturer Aixtron SE on national security grounds. Separately, the U.S. Trade Representative blacklisted Taobao, the online shopping site of China's Alibaba Group, as a notorious marketplace for counterfeit goods.

Much tougher U.S. action is possible once Trump takes charge. Trump recently named a harsh China critic, Peter Navarro, as head of the White House-based National Trade Council to advise him on trade policy. Chinese media have said this is a sign Trump is preparing to follow through on campaign promises to take adverse action on Chinese trade and investments.

Beijing-based analysts see the latest opening to investment as a move to counter Trump's arguments that China is an unfair trading partner. Some Chinese experts have publicly urged their government to retaliate against any trade action from Washington.

U.S.-China commercial relations are in for a rough ride in the coming months, as the Trump administration aggressively pushes China to open its markets further to American imports and investment and applies a more critical eye to Chinese investment in the United States," Kennedy said. "This is likely to induce countermeasures from China, and as a result, two-way trade and investment flows could very well fall substantially.
Top Foreign Ministry officials from China, Pakistan and Russia will meet in Moscow on Tuesday to review what they perceive as a "gradually growing" threat to their frontiers posed by Islamic State extremists in Afghanistan.



"This is an existing forum for undertaking informal discussions on issues of regional peace and stability, including the situation in Afghanistan," Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Nafees Zakaria told VOA.



Pakistan's foreign secretary, Aizaz Chaudhry, will lead Islamabad's delegation, he added. Officials say future meetings could include Iran.



Chinese, Pakistani and Russian officials say they were driven to joint action by the efforts of IS affiliates to establish a foothold in Afghanistan.



Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's national unity government has reportedly questioned the motives of the trilateral dialogue, which will take place without Kabul being represented.



Russian officials maintain the "working group on Afghanistan" is one of several initiatives Moscow has undertaken with regional countries, including Afghanistan, to develop a "wider partnership" for containing IS influence.



Beijing, Islamabad and Moscow say the three-way talks will also explore ways to bring the Taliban to the table for peace talks with the Afghan government. All three governments maintain overt contacts with the insurgent group.



Russia and officials in Pakistan argue that military operations by the U.S.-led international forces and their Afghan partners have not weakened the Taliban but instead created ungoverned areas where terrorist groups like IS, also known as Daesh, can establish a foothold.



Russia's ambassador to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, told the U.N. Security Council last week that the deteriorating security situation has encouraged IS militants fleeing Syria and Iraq to look at Afghanistan for shelter. He said they will eventually pose a threat to Russia through neighboring central Asian states.



Using another acronym for IS, he said, "There is also information about the presence in Afghanistan of ISIL camps and safe harbors where people from central Asian states and northern Caucasus republics are being trained and where 700 terrorist families from Syria have already arrived."



Churkin again rejected Afghan and U.S. concerns that Moscow's overt ties to the Taliban are meant to undermine international efforts aimed at establishing peace and stability in Afghanistan.



"Our contacts with representatives of Taliban are limited to the task of providing for the security of Russian nationals in Afghanistan and also aimed at moving the Taliban towards joining with the process of national reconciliation," he said.



Pakistani officials say Russia is eager to include Iran in future meetings of the tripartite "working group" and that the issue will be taken up at Tuesday's meeting. Iran borders both Afghanistan and Iraq, where IS is present, and is fighting Islamist insurgents among other anti-regime forces in Syria.



While U.S. counterterrorism forces in partnership with Afghan forces have conducted major operations against IS fighters, the Taliban have also engaged in clashes with the rival group to deny it space in Afghanistan. Russian officials say they are developing ties with the Taliban to prevent IS influence from spreading into Afghan border provinces.





Washington and Kabul point out that Afghan security forces have effectively prevented the Taliban from overrunning any urban center during this year's fighting, despite repeated assaults in northern, southern and eastern Afghanistan.



The U.S. commander of the international forces in Afghanistan, Gen. John Nicholson, earlier this month voiced concern over what he called "overt legitimacy" being granted the Taliban by Russia and neighboring Iran.



"Their [Russia's] narrative goes something like this: That the Taliban are the ones fighting Islamic State, not the Afghan government.And of course the Afghan government and the U.S. counterterrorism effort are the ones achieving the greatest effect against Islamic State," Nicholson said.



He said the public legitimacy Russia has lent to the Taliban is "not helpful," arguing that, "It is used as a way to essentially undermine the Afghan government and the NATO effort and bolster the belligerents."



Afghan and U.S. officials also charge that Pakistan's ties to the Taliban and militants of the Haqqani terrorist network are prolonging the war and have helped the insurgents extend their influence in Afghanistan since most international combat troops left the country about two years ago.



Islamabad rejects the allegations as baseless and insists it is promoting Afghan peace and stability by acting to ensure stability in Pakistan, which shares a porous 2,600-kilometer border with the strife-torn country.



"It is self-defeating to cover up failures in Afghanistan by leveling allegations against Pakistan," said Pakistani Foreign Secretary Chaudhry in an interview with state-run television ahead of Tuesday's talks in Moscow.
The governor of the Far North region of Cameroon says a local self-defense group was able to prevent an attack by Boko Haram against Christians getting ready to celebrate Christmas, a sign that the militant group remains a danger in the region.

Governor Midjiyawa Bakari said members of a self-defense group detected a suspected Boko Haram fighter riding his bicycle toward an area in the town of Mora, on Cameroon's northern border with Nigeria, where Christians were assembling for Christmas Mass on Sunday.

Bakari said when the vigilantes tried to search the man, he immediately detonated his explosives, killing himself and a nearby civilian by the name of Ibrahim Mahama.

He said two members of the self-defense group were also killed. One died at the scene while another died later at a hospital. He said at least eight other people were also wounded in the suicide bomb attack.

Local media also reported three other armed attacks occurred on Sunday at Fotokol, Belgede and Madam, all on Cameroons northern border with Nigeria. The attacks reportedly left several wounded.

The fresh violence comes two days after Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari announced troops had chased Boko Haram militants out of their key remaining base in the Sambisa forest. The forest straddles Cameroons border with Nigeria.

While Buhari said the militants have been crushed in northeast Nigeria, towns just across the border in northern Cameroon saw a string of attacks, underscoring the continued threat, Bakari said.





He urged residents to remain vigilant to the threat posed by Boko Haram and used as an example the string of attacks.

Bakari said the suicide bomber would have attacked a church had he not been identified and stopped by the local self-defense group.

However, in a sign of progress against the Boko Haram militants, Cameroon and Nigeria earlier this month pointed to the reopening of the border between the two countries  for the first time in three years.

Boko Haram's six-year insurgency has killed more than 25,000 people and displaced nearly 2.3 million, according to rights groups and the United Nations.
A statement from China that daily civilian charter flights would serve the contested sea off its south coast raises the growing profile of civilians as a tool for governments to bolster their claims in Asias most widespread sovereignty dispute.

The launch Thursday of flights from Haikou in southern China to Woody Island in the South China Sea, as reported by Beijings state-run Xinhua News Agency, extends Beijings broader campaign to build up the surrounding Paracel archipelago with military and other civilian presence.

That expansion has angered rival Paracel claimant Vietnam.

Disputed region

But the flights mark just the latest move among five governments to position civilians in the disputed sea of about 3.5 million square kilometers (1.4 million square miles). China, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam and the Philippines have let nonmilitary people occupy some of the seas roughly 500 tiny land features to date.

Civilians on site add credibility to sovereignty claims and deter any designs by one claimant to attack another, analysts say.

A human shield is probably an extreme way to put it, but if you have your own populations on these islands, it raises the political cost of conflict for anyone else who tries to take them over, said Euan Graham, international security director with the Lowy Institute for International Policy in Sydney.

Malaysia caught the first wave of attention for civilian use of the South China Sea in 1989 for opening its artificial Layang-Layang Island in the Spratly chain to tourists. Originally built for naval use, the island has a 53-room diving resort and gets direct flights from the Borneo side of Malaysia.

About 200 people live on Taiping Island, the largest feature in the Spratly chain, to support the Taiwan coast guard. Taiwan has also flown journalists to the islet, which has a clinic and a solar energy system.

Elsewhere in the Spratlys, the Philippines has posted about 100 civilians, along with military personnel, on the second-largest land feature Thitu Island, according to the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative under U.S. think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies. Most of the civilians are civil servants and their families, the initiative says.

Woody Island claims

China established Sansha City on Woody Island in 2012 and at least 1,000 people work there in fishing, paramilitary jobs and local commerce. Vietnamese people run schools, a clinic and military installations on their governments South China Sea holdings. Both allow tourism, and China says the charter flights will further that cause.

For the most part, the civilian populations on many of the features in the South China Sea are either working for or otherwise supported by their respective governments, said Jonathan Spangler, director of the South China Sea Think Tank in Taipei.

Tourism has been limited in the South China Sea for practical, economic and political reasons, Spangler added. Even so, both China and Vietnam have organized cruise ship tours to their occupied features, and some Philippine officials have advocated doing the same.

Civilian use of the islets shores up a respective governments effective control under international law, said Oh Ei Sun, international studies instructor at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University. Other countries will see Chinas civilian flights as a renewal of claims to the Paracels, he said, but less severely than a show of military force.

The foreign ministry in Vietnam called Chinese flights to Woody Island a serious violation of Vietnamese sovereignty over the Paracels, according to the countrys online news service, VnExpress.net.

South China Sea stakes

Countries with stakes in the South China Sea value its fisheries, shipping lanes, and possible undersea reserves of gas and oil. Beijings expansion into the sea since 2010, plus its sweeping claim to about 95 percent of its waters, has put the other claimants on guard.

Because there are rival claims by other Southeast Asian nations ... of course they would see (charter flights) as Chinas assertion of sovereignty over those parts of the South China Sea over which they may have overlapping claims, Oh said. But on the other hand, its civilian use. Its much more preferable to, lets say, China projecting its military presence, projecting its military prowess in in the same part of (the) South China Sea.

Civilians often get sent to help military installations, however, and analysts believe China uses private fishing boats as a stand-in for patrolling waters disputed by other countries.

Civilian access to the Paracel Islands may excite the Chinese public, said Graham, of the Lowy Institute. Chinese feel strongly about their governments disputed claims to Tibet and Taiwan in part because they are occupied, he added.

Giving (civilians) direct access to these features is also a way of selling the message about importance of sovereignty to their own populations, Graham said.
Alex Romero was delighted when President Barack Obama came to Havana in March bearing the promise of a bright new future.



Like so many other Cubans, the 42-year-old state photography shop employee thrilled at the president's vision of restored ties between the U.S. and Cuba. Families would reunite. A flood of American business would lift the stagnant centrally planned economy, fueling its slow path toward reform. Even as Obama spoke, an 80 percent surge in U.S. visitors was drenching state-run and private businesses with hundreds of millions of desperately needed dollars.



Nine months later, the world seen from Havana looks very different.



President Raul Castro faces what could be his toughest year since he took power in 2006. 2017 brings a possible economic recession and a U.S. president-elect who has promised to undo Obama's normalization unless the Cuban government makes new concessions on civil rights. Resistance to pressure from Washington is a founding principle for the Cuban communist system, making domestic concessions in exchange for continued detente a virtual impossibility.



"People expected that after Obama came there would be changes in the relationship between the U.S. and Cuba but that we could keep the best of what we have, the benefits for the people," Romero said. "Trump's not going to be able to get what he wants, another type of Cuba. If the world's number one power takes us on, 2017 is going to be really bad for us."



Castro must manage these twin economic and diplomatic challenges during a year of transition. The 85-year-old general has promised to hand over the office in early 2018 to a successor, widely expected to be Miguel Diaz-Canel, a 56-year-old official with neither the Castro name nor revolutionary credentials. The change will occur without Castro's older brother Fidel, the revolutionary leader whose largely unseen presence endowed the system he created with historical weight and credibility in the eyes of many Cubans before he died last month at 90.



"Even if those two events hadn't taken place - Trump's victory and Fidel's death - 2017 was going to be a very difficult year for Cuba," said Cuban economist Omar Everleny Perez, a visiting professor at Keio University in Tokyo.



Cuba publishes few credible economic statistics, but experts expect the country to end this year with gross domestic product growth of 1 percent or less. It maintained a rate close to 3 percent from 2011-2015.



One bright spot is tourism, booming since Obama and Castro's Dec. 17, 2014, detente announcement set off a surge in overall visitor numbers, up more than 15 percent in 2015 and again this year.



"I've never seen as many tourists as I have this year," said Magalys Pupo, a street-corner pastry vendor in Old Havana. "They're everywhere and they're the income that we need in this country."



The slowness of macroeconomic growth despite a surge of interest in foreign investment and the greatest tourism boom in decades attests to both long-term mismanagement of the Cuban economy and the depth of the crisis in other sectors, particularly aid from Venezuelan in the form of deeply subsidized oil.



Analysts believe that as Venezuela's Cuba-inspired socialist economy has disintegrated, exports to Cuba has dropped from 115,000 barrels daily in 2008 to 90,000 in recent years to 40,000 a day over the last few months.



Venezuela was the prime destination alongside Brazil for Cuban doctors and other professionals whose salaries go directly to the Cuban government, providing another vital source of hard currency believed to be slackening in recent years. Nickel, another of Cuba's main exports, has seen a sharp price drop this year.



The revenue drop may be creating a vicious cycle for Cuba's state-run industries. Experts say cutbacks in imported industrial inputs this year will lead to lower productivity in Cuba's few domestic industries in 2017 and make zero growth or recession highly likely.



"Raul Castro's government has a year left and it should be planning what needs to be done," said Pavel Vidal, a Cuban economist at the Universidad Javeriana in Cali, Colombia. "Above all, it will be managing a crisis."



The government cut back summer working hours and gas rations for state-owned vehicles and has so far avoided any sustained power outages. But a crackdown on black-market gasoline sales to taxi drivers led them to increase prices, causing drivers to raise their prices, squeezing many Cubans already struggling to get by on state salaries of about $30 a month. Many Cubans say, however, that worsening conditions could drive them to rally around the government rather than against it.



"It's going to be a tough year," said Antenor Stevens, a 66-year-old retired public water specialist. "We're a people who've suffered a lot. We've felt a lot of need, but there's still a revolutionary consciousness."



One cushion will be remittances from Cuban expatriates in the United States and other countries, estimated by some experts to be in excess of $3 billion a year and rising as Cubans flood to the United States in fear that they may soon lose special immigration privileges.



Another bright spot is Cuba's growing private sector, particularly businesses boosted by increased demand from tourists.



While rising food prices are a constant problem for ordinary Cubans, many of those investing in food production are finding success.



Fernando Funes, owner of a farm that supplies vegetables to about 30 private restaurants in Havana, most with tourist clienteles, has nearly doubled his workforce from 12 to 20 in recent years, all earning about $25 a week. Five have begun cultivating their own plots of land alongside to produce food for sale to similar clients.



"We have a lot more opportunities to start projects these days," Funes said. "Personally I'm optimistic about 2017."
News channel Al-Jazeera is accusing Egypt of making up "fabricated charges" against one of its producers who is being detained in the country.

In a statement Monday, Al-Jazeera  a broadcaster partly funded by the ruling family of Qatar  said the allegations brought by Egypt against Mahmoud Hussain "contain a number of malicious and false accusations, which we categorically deny."

Egypt confirmed Monday that it arrested Hussain on charges of disturbing security and spreading false news accounts. The Interior Ministry said in a statement that Hussain was instructed by his network to broadcast "false news."

Egyptian officials say Hussain will be held for 15 days pending an investigation.

Al-Jazeera, which is not allowed to operate inside Egypt, demanded Hussain's immediate release and noted that Hussain was in Egypt on vacation to visit his family, and not for work.

"Had Mr. Hussain intended to commit any unlawful acts, as alleged in the statement, he would not have entered the country through its international airport," Al-Jazeera said.

The broadcaster said it will take all legal action necessary to "remedy the violations committed by the Egyptian authorities."

"These violations include incarcerating Hussain in unknown whereabouts; coercing false confession from him while under duress; prohibiting him from communicating with his lawyer or his family members; and conducting a malicious smear campaign against him across numerous state media in Egypt ahead of any fair trial," it said.

The detention is the latest in a series of Egyptian arrests of Al-Jazeera journalists, further raising concerns over the freedom of journalists working in the country.

Egypt drew international condemnation when it arrested three Al-Jazeera journalists  a Canadian, an Australian and an Egyptian  in 2013 and sentenced them to jail time. The three were later released.

In May, a court in Cairo sentenced two Al-Jazeera reporters, charged in absentia, to death for leaking state secrets to Qatar.

Al-Jazeera's news coverage in the years following Egypt's 2011 Arab Spring revolution and the 2013 overthrow of President Mohammed Morsi was intensely criticized by the Egyptian government.
Indian police say they've arrested four men on suspicion of raping an American tourist who came to New Delhi alone earlier this year, in another incident of sexual violence to stir outrage.

Police Officer Rakesh Kumar says the suspects  a tour guide and his associate, a car driver and a hotel worker  were arrested Monday.

The woman said in her police complaint that the four men raped her after she was drugged in a hotel room in April. They denied the accusations.

The woman went back to the U.S. and registered a complaint through an email to New Delhi's police commissioner. She returned to the Indian capital earlier this month to pursue the case.

It highlights the persistent violence against women in India despite tougher laws against sexual assault imposed after the 2012 death of a young woman who was gang-raped on a bus in New Delhi.
India has successfully carried out a fourth test of its nuclear-capable, intercontinental Agni-V missile, which can hit targets more than 5,000 kilometers away, effectively putting China's northernmost areas within range of Indian nuclear weapons.

The 17.5-meter-long, 50-ton surface-to-surface missile was test fired Monday from Abdul Kalam Island, off the coast of the eastern Odisha state, and splashed down near Australian waters.



Ajay Lele, at New Delhis Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses, says the test ensured the Agni-V missile is operational.



After this, the missile will be handed over for the operationalization of it to Indias strategic forces command and they will undertake two tests and subsequently the missile will come into Indias armory, said Lele.





Longer range



Earlier generations of Agni missiles, developed over the last decade, are capable of striking anywhere in Pakistan, India's neighbor and South Asian rival. The two countries have fought three wars and tensions continue to run high. Pakistan also possesses nuclear weapons.



Defense analysts say the longer-range Agni-V missile has been developed with an eye on China, which New Delhi also views as a threat.

India and China fought a brief war in 1962 and have an unresolved boundary dispute in the Himalayas. New Delhi also remains wary of Chinas close ties with Islamabad and bid to increase its influence in the Indian Ocean.



The Agni missile adds considerable heft to Indias nuclear capability and its aspirations to be viewed as a regional power. Only China, France, Russia the United States and Britain have long-range nuclear weapons.



Scientists said the latest missile incorporates new technology for navigation and guidance.

Indian leaders welcomed the successful test of the Agni, which means "fire" in Hindi and Sanskrit.



Congratulating the scientists, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that the [s]uccessful test firing of Agni-V makes every Indian very proud. It will add tremendous strength to our strategic defense.



The missile was launched from a mobile platform, which gives the armed forces flexibility to transport and fire it swiftly from anywhere they want.

However, Lele noted that India's nuclear doctrine emphasizes a no-first-use policy and that New Delhis official position is that its nuclear deterrence is not country-specific.

It is essentially to make a point that yes, we have a sufficient amount of arsenal. If somebody attacks us by using nuclear weapons, we can respond effectively, he said.
Indonesian authorities say they are planning more counterterrorism operations after killing two militants who were suspected of planning an attack on a police post during a shootout on Christmas Day.

National police spokesman Rikwanto said investigators are trying to get more information about planned attacks from at least 14 suspected terrorists with connections to Islamic State who have been arrested in recent weeks.

"We believe there are still group members that plan to carry out such deeds to disrupt events such as Christmas and New Year's," Rikwanto told reporters Monday in Jakarta.

The latest plot was foiled after police arrested two militants who led them to their hideout, where police fatally shot two other militants after police said they tried to attack the officers with machetes. Rikwanto said the four militants planned to attack a police post in Purwakarta, an area about 100 kilometers east of the capital of Jakarta.

The raid was the latest in recent weeks that disrupted planned attacks, increasing concern that militants in the world's largest Muslim-majority country are becoming more fearless.

Police said last week that the suspected terrorists in custody are being questioned about plots to bomb the presidential palace in Jakarta and another facility in an undisclosed location. Both plots involved female suicide bombers, a new strategy for militants in Indonesia.

Police are still trying to determine whether the militants involved in the plot that was disrupted Sunday were trying to make explosive devices.

The suspects were members of Jamaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD), a group that supports Islamic State.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will visit Pearl Harbor with President Barack Obama on Tuesday to "express the value of reconciliation between Japan and the United States," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said earlier this month.

The White House has said Abe's visit would highlight the alliance between the former wartime enemies.

Abe will be the first Japanese incumbent prime minister at Pearl Harbor since a brief stopover by Japans former leader Shigeru Yoshida on September 12, 1951.

The visit Tuesday comes 75 years after the attack that thrust the United States into World War II, and less than four weeks before Donald Trump becomes the United States' 45th president.

Last month, Abe became the first world leader to meet Trump after the election. Following their hastily arranged meeting in New York, Abe called Trump a "trustworthy leader.

Abe will not apologize for the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, that killed more than 2,000 military personnel, a Japanese government spokesman said.

In a similar move, Obama did not apologize for the U.S. atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki that killed hundreds of thousands of civilians in 1945.
Eight human traffickers found guilty of torturing and chopping off the hands of two laborers have received life prison sentences and hefty fines, a prosecutor said on Sunday, hoping the severity of the punishment would deter others.

Prosecutor Dhirendra Nath Patra said the court in Bhubaneswar heard how the traffickers chopped off the hands of Nilambar Dhangdamajhi and Dayalu Nial in Odisha state on Dec. 15, 2013.

The two men were among of a group of 12 laborers who had taken money from labor agent Parvesh Duni in exchange for working for him but quickly realized he had trapped them.

When the men found out they were being taken to Andhra Pradesh in southeastern India instead of Chhattisgarh state in central India as expected they tried to escape but were caught and locked up for hours before their hands were chopped off.

News of the torture and confinement triggered widespread outrage and made national headlines in India which is estimated to have the highest number of modern day slaves of any country.

Dhangdamajhi died on Sept. 21 this year after years of illness.

"Under the sentence Parvesh Duni and other traffickers will serve a life term in prison. They will also have to pay fines," the prosecutor told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. "This is a lesson for all."

Amidst the publicity, in 2014 the Supreme Court intervened and asked the Odisha government to fast track charges against the traffickers and provide rehabilitation for the two men whose stories are typical of many trapped in debt bondage in India.

Modern slavery has become a catch-all term to describe human trafficking, debt bondage, forced marriage and other slave-like exploitation with an estimated 46 million people in slavery around the world.

Dhangdamajhi was 32 when he took a loan of 14,000 rupees ($209) from labor agent Duni and agreed to work at a brick kiln in 2013.

But he was taken to a paddy field, kept under house arrest and made to work for his traffickers who demanded he pay back the advance taken by all 12 laborers if he wanted to go home.

Dayalu, who was 17 years old at the time, earlier told the Thomson Reuters Foundation that they were asked if they would rather have their hands or legs chopped off not agreeing to the new terms of contract.

Patra said nine men were accused of the abuse and eight of these were arrested and were now in jail.

A ninth man absconded ahead of the hearing that started in October last year and finished in March this year but he had been arrested recently and would now face trial.

Authorities have freed around 282,000 workers trapped in bonded labor in 18 states in India since 1978, according to government data, although non-government organizations question these figures and the real extent of debt bondage in India.
Hundreds of people gathered to light the National Menorah at a park in Washington, D.C., on Sunday night, the first day of Hanukkah.

The American Friends of Lubavitch hosted the annual menorah lighting. The giant menorah has been erected at the Ellipse, a park located between the White House and the National Mall.

"We are celebrating Hanukkah now, for almost 24 hours. Today is the first day and soon we'll light the second light. That is actually the message of Hanukkah to increase in light with every passing day," Rabbi Levi Shemtov, executive vice president of the group, said during the ceremony. "There are many things in the world that are dark and uncertain. And our response to those things needs to be with illumination, clarity and decency."

Adam Szubin, acting under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence at the Treasury department, also helped light the giant candles. In his speech, he said he hoped Hanukkah's message would be an inspiration.

My hope is that our lights steadily increase, until the world is illuminated by a continual and unwavering light," Zubin said, according to WTOP news in Washington, D.C.

Hanukkah, known as the Jewish Festival of Lights, is celebrated for eight days. It commemorates a victory by outnumbered Jewish forces over Syrian occupation and the reclaiming of the second Temple of Jerusalem in the second century.

In Rome, hundreds of people also had gathered to see the giant menorah lit in Barberini Square.

Mayor Virginia Raggi told the crowd it's a difficult time in history and "even more necessary to be close to each other."

Her message was delivered hours after Pope Francis' Christmas Day sermon, in which he called for the guns to fall silent in Syria, where he said "far too much blood has been spilled." He also appealed to Israeli and Palestinian leaders to "have the courage and the determination to write a new page of history."

The menorah was first lit in Rome in 1987, as an initiative of the Jewish movement Chabad-Lubavitch. The event has continued to be held in Barberini Square.

Late Saturday in Istanbul, a large crowd attended a Christmas Eve Mass at Istanbul's largest Catholic church, while in another part of the city, members of Istanbul's Jewish community lit a menorah to mark the beginning of the festival of Hanukkah.
For hundreds of protesters, it was cause to cheer when the Obama administration this month declined to issue an easement for the Dakota Access pipeline's final segment. But that elation was dampened by the uncertainty of what comes next: a Donald Trump-led White House that might be far less attuned to issues affecting Native Americans.

"With Trump coming into office, you just can't celebrate," said Laundi Germaine Keepseagle, who is 28 and from the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, where the demonstrators have been camped out near the North Dakota-South Dakota border.

Anxiety over the 1,200-mile pipeline illustrates a broader uncertainty over how tribes will fare under Trump following what many in Indian Country consider a landmark eight years.

President Barack Obama has won accolades among Native Americans for breaking through a gridlock of inaction on tribal issues and for putting a spotlight on their concerns with yearly meetings with tribal leaders.

Under his administration, lawmakers cemented a tribal health care law that includes more preventive care and mental health resources and addresses recruiting and retaining physicians throughout Indian Country.

The Interior Department restored tribal homelands by placing more than 500,000 acres under tribes' control - more than any other recent administration - while the Justice Department charted a process approved by Congress for tribes to prosecute and sentence more cases involving non-Native Americans who assault Native American women. Before Obama, a gap in the laws allowed for such crimes to go unpunished.

In addition, the federal government settled decades-old lawsuits involving Native Americans, including class-action cases over the government's mismanagement of royalties for oil, gas, timber and grazing leases and its discrimination against tribal members seeking farm loans.

"In my opinion, President Obama has been the greatest president in dealing with Native Americans," said Brian Cladoosby, chairman of the Swinomish Tribe north of Seattle and president of the nonpartisan National Congress of American Indians, based in Washington, D.C. "The last eight years give us hope going forward with the relationships we have on both sides of the aisle."

Trump, meanwhile, rarely acknowledged Native Americans during his campaign and hasn't publicly outlined how he would improve or manage the United States' longstanding relationships with tribes.

His Interior secretary pick, Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke of Montana, sponsored legislation that he says would have given tribes more control over coal and other fossil fuel development on their lands.

But some of Trump's biggest campaign pledges - including repealing health care legislation and building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border - would collide with tribal interests.

In Arizona, Tohono O'odham Nation leaders have vowed to oppose any plans for a wall along the 75-mile portion of the border that runs parallel to their reservation. And the nonprofit National Indian Health Board in Washington says it's aiming to work with lawmakers to ensure the Indian Health Care Improvement Act remains intact.

The law, which guarantees funding for care through the federal Indian Health Services agency, was embedded in Obama's health care overhaul after consultation with tribes.

The government's role figures prominently in Native Americans' daily lives because treaties and other binding agreements often require the U.S. to manage tribal health care, law enforcement and education.

Some tribal members say they're unsure how much Trump understands or cares about their unique relationship with the federal government.

"I think there was a great hope that we had here in Indian Country with the direct dialogue that President Obama had established with tribal nations," said Duane "Chili" Yazzie, president of the Navajo Nation's Shiprock Chapter. "If a similar effort to communicate with us were carried on by the Trump administration, I would be surprised."

Though most reservations lean Democratic in presidential elections, Trump does have some supporters in Indian Country. They hope the businessman can turn around lagging economies in rural reservations, such as the 27,000-square-mile Navajo Nation, which covers parts of Utah, New Mexico and Arizona.

"Trump is pro-job growth, and tribes need a healthy dose of business creation," said Deswood Tome, a former spokesman for the tribe from Window Rock, Arizona. "To do that, a lot of federal barriers must be removed. We're the only ethnic group who have so much federal control in our lives."

The Dakota Access pipeline illustrates another chasm between Obama and Trump.

This fall, the pipeline dispute led Obama's administration to begin tackling a final piece of its Indian Country agenda: guidelines for how cabinet departments should consult with tribes on major infrastructure projects.

A top complaint from the Standing Rock Sioux was that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers failed to properly consult with them before initially approving a pipeline route that ran beneath Lake Oahe, the tribe's primary source of drinking water.

After the administration halted construction on the project in September to review the complaint, it held seven meetings with tribal leaders and began drafting a report on how federal officials should consult with tribes.

U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said the report will be completed before Obama leaves office, and she expects it to have a lasting impact, even with an incoming administration that promises to undo some of the president's policies.

What's unclear is whether Trump, who once owned stock in the pipeline builder, will seek to reverse the Army's decision this month to explore alternate routes.

A spokesman said only that the president-elect plans to review the move after he takes office. However, Trump's transition team said in a recent memo to campaign supporters and congressional staff that he supports the pipeline's completion.

In the meantime, Standing Rock Sioux Chairman David Archambault has begun lobbying for a meeting with Trump to make a case for his tribe's opposition to the project, which the chairman says threatens not just water but sacred cultural sites.

"You have to respect Mother Earth; she's precious," Archambault said. "You can still believe in capitalism, and you can still invest in infrastructure projects, but these infrastructure projects should be focused toward renewable energy rather than fossil fuel development."
At least four people were killed as Typhoon Nock-Ten, which disrupted Christmas festivities in parts of the Philippines, brought heavy winds and rains to Manila on Monday, officials said. Among them, a couple who police say were swept away in a flash flood in Albay province, southeast of Manila.



The typhoon made landfall Sunday evening on the remote island of Catanduanes with wind gusts of up to 255 kilometers per hour. Known locally as Typhoon Nina, the storm moved westward across mountainous and island provinces, damaging homes, uprooting trees and knocking down communications. A weakened system then headed out over the South China Sea.



As many as 200,000 people were under evacuation orders, but officials say it has been difficult to get them to leave their homes because of the Christmas holiday, which is a major celebration in the largely Roman Catholic nation.



Cedric Daep, a disaster response official in Albay, told the Associated Press that shopping malls and stores were told to close early on Christmas Day and officials urged people to remain indoors while others were asked to evacuate.



"Some residents just refused to leave their homes even when I warned them that you can face what amounts to a death penalty," Daep said over the phone.



"But at the height of [the] typhoon, many cars were still being driven around and people were out walking," he said. "We warned them enough, but we just can't control their mind."



More than 80 domestic and international flights were canceled, civil defense officials said. They warned that Manila could see "heavy to intense rains, flashfloods and severe winds" when the storm struck.



"Our local disaster councils are on red alert. We have pre-positioned relief supplies and rescue and ((road)) clearing equipment in metro Manila," Mina Marasigan, spokeswoman for the country's disaster monitoring council, told the French news agency.



The eastern region of Bicol felt the brunt of the storm on Sunday, with homes damaged by flooding and heavy winds, officials said.



Energy Minister Alfonso Cusi promised that power would be restored quickly in badly hit Camarines and Albay provinces.



"We've prepared for it and we are currently on the ground to assess the damage and quickly restore compromised energy facilities," Cusi told the Reuters news agency.



The Philippines has a history of typhoons striking near the end of the year.



In November 2013, Typhoon Haiyan plowed into the Philippines as one of the deadliest tropical cyclones on record. Also known in the Philippines as Typhoon Yolanda, the storm killed 7,800 people, according to national emergency management officials.



The Philippines' weather agency says seven Christmas Day typhoons have struck the nation over the past 65 years.



The country is lashed by about 20 typhoons and storms each year.
Authorities in northeastern Congo say Ugandan rebels have hacked more than two dozen people to death in a Christmas massacre.

Bernard Amisi Kalonda, administrator for the Beni area, blames rebels belonging to the group known as the Allied Democratic Forces, or ADF. He said they attacked several villages on Christmas Eve, killing at least 25 people with machetes.

Officials say Congolese and U.N. forces are hunting down the assailants.

The ADF rebel movement has been active since the 1990s but intensified its attacks inside Congo several years ago. Human rights groups say hundreds have been killed since 2014.

While the group's members are mainly Muslim, experts say there are no proven links between the ADF rebels and other extremist organizations in Africa.
A group of Chinese warships led by the countrys sole aircraft carrier entered the South China Sea on Monday after passing south of Taiwan, the self-ruled islands defense ministry said.

The ministry said the carrier, accompanied by five vessels, passed southeast of the Pratas Islands, which are controlled by Taiwan, heading south-west. The carrier group earlier passed 90 nautical miles (167km) south of Taiwans southernmost point via the Bashi channel, between Taiwan and the Philippines.

Ministry spokesman Chen Chung-chi declined to say whether fighter jets were scrambled or if submarines had been deployed, but added: Staying vigilant and flexible has always been the normal method of maintaining airspace security.

Chen said the ministry was continuing to monitor and grasp the situation.

The move, which China called a routine exercise, comes amid renewed tension over Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own, following U.S. President-elect Donald Trumps telephone call with the islands president.

Chinas Soviet-built Liaoning aircraft carrier has taken part in previous exercises, including some in the South China Sea, but China is years away from perfecting carrier operations similar to those the United States has practiced for decades.

Johnny Chiang, a senior Taiwan opposition Nationalist lawmaker, said the Liaoning exercise was Chinas signal to the U.S. that it had broken through the first island chain, an area that includes Japans Ryukyu Islands and Taiwan.

The U.S. state department on Monday said its position had not changed since July, when it said it was continuing to monitor Chinas military modernization and that it expected nations conducting defense exercises to comply with the law. Representatives for the Pentagon declined to comment.

Hope Hicks, a spokeswoman for Trump, said the incoming team had no comment on Chinas move. Trump takes office on January 20, and has already made headlines over a series of statements on China and Taiwan.

Beijing: Carrier within the law

In Beijing, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said people should not read too much into what the carrier was up to, because its movements were within the law.

Our Liaoning should enjoy in accordance with the law freedom of navigation and overflight as set by international law, and we hope all sides can respect this right of Chinas, she told a daily news briefing.

Influential state-run Chinese tabloid the Global Times said the exercise showed how the carrier was improving its combat capabilities and that it should now sail even further afield. The Chinese fleet will cruise to the eastern Pacific sooner or later. When Chinas aircraft carrier fleet appears in offshore areas of the U.S. one day, it will trigger intense thinking about maritime rules, the newspapers editorial said.

China has been angered recently by U.S. naval patrols near islands that China claims in the South China Sea. This month, a Chinese navy ship seized a U.S. underwater drone in the South China Sea. China later returned it.

Monitoring by Japan

Japan said late Sunday it had spotted six Chinese naval vessels including the Liaoning traveling through the passage between Miyako and Okinawa and into the Pacific. A Japanese government spokesman said Monday the voyage showed Chinas expanding military capability and Japan was closely monitoring it.

Chinas air force conducted long-range drills this month above the East and South China Seas that rattled Japan and Taiwan. China said those exercises were also routine.

In December last year, the defense ministry confirmed China was building a second aircraft carrier but its launch date is unclear. The aircraft carrier program is a state secret.

Beijing could build multiple aircraft carriers over the next 15 years, the Pentagon said in a report last year.
Russia held a national day of mourning Monday to honor the 92 people who died Sunday when the military plane they were on crashed into the Black Sea on its way from Sochi to a Russian military base in Syria.

There were no survivors when the 33-year-old Tu-154 aircraft fell from the sky. The cause of the crash is not yet known, but Russian officials said it was not likely the result of terrorism.

Among the victims were 68 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, a military choir, orchestra and dance group that was to give a New Years performance for Russian airmen at the military base near Latakia.

Mourners in Moscow lit candles and left flowers outside a concert hall where the group performed.

A Russian video news agency showed mourners gathered on the Black Sea coast laying flowers, lighting candles, and dropping cloves into the water during a vigil on the Grafskaya piers in Sevastopol to honor the victims of the disaster.

Vladimir Kuznetsov, a former member of the Alexandrov Ensemble, came to pay his respects to the victims.

"I know all of them. I cannot believe it, can't collect myself," Kuznetsov told AFP.

"They knew us all over the world, we went everywhere," he said of the group, while holding a candle in a plastic cup.

Russia state television cancelled entertainment programs and broadcast black-and-white pictures of the victims.

Journalists, activist among victims

Nine Russian journalists and a well-known human rights activist, Elizaveta Glinka, known as "Dr. Liza," were among those killed.Glinka was said to be taking medical supplies to help victims of the nearly six-year Syrian conflict.

Remains of victims began returning to Russia on Monday as a massive search operation involving dozens of ships and aircraft was underway for recovering wreckage.

Mechanical problems or human error suspected

Russian media reports speculated on possible causes such as a technical problem or human error, or that the plane may have been overloaded.

The Tu-154 has not been manufactured for quite a while and the Ministry of Defense was practically the only user of the aircraft, said Maxim Pyadushkin, managing director of Air Transport Observer magazine.

But the Defense Ministry stated that it had passed through the capital maintenance, that means its condition was under control. We can't so far state whether there were some technical issues. The results of the investigation will show. It is difficult to say so far how adequately the pilots were acting. The results of the investigation, as well as the black boxes deciphering, will show that.

Russian officials were quick to rule out a terrorist attack, despite concerns that Russias intervention in Syria has made it more a target for extremists.

Russias ambassador to Turkey was assassinated last Tuesday in Ankara by a police officer apparently motivated by the Russia-backed assault on Aleppo by Syrian forces.

Russia has defended its backing Syrian forces as a fight against terrorism, while critics say rebels opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad were the main target.

Some Russian media reports said victims of Sundays crash were found in lifejackets, indicating that a sudden explosion from a bomb was unlikely.

A version about a terrorist act is so far a mere assumption, said Pyadushkin. Only investigation could provide some proof. One would like to hope that the Russian aviation commission together with the military could conduct an efficient investigation of the catastrophe.
Al-Shabab Islamist militants shot dead a military prosecutor in Somalia's semi-autonomous Puntland region on Sunday, witnesses and officials said, the type of targeted killing that Al Qaeda-allied gunmen frequently commit throughout Somalia.

Al-Shabab's insurgency aims to drive out African Union peacekeepers, topple Somalia's Western-backed government and impose its strict version of Islam on the Horn of Africa state.

On Sunday, Abdikarim Hassan Firdiye was shot dead as he got out of his car outside a restaurant in Puntland's largest city, Bosasso.

Just a few days ago, a regional official's aide was killed in a similar and targeted attack and, days before that, al-Shabab gunmen killed the region's deputy police commander outside a hotel.

"Two teenagers armed with pistols shot him in the head after he got off his car," Hassan Ahmed, a waiter at the restaurant, told Reuters.

"His bodyguards fired back but the killers had already disappeared by then," he said.

Abdifatah Haji Aden, Chairman of Puntland's military court, said: "We believe it was the same militants who killed the other two officials last week that also killed him. We shall pursue them."

Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the killing.

"Today, we killed a prosecutor who had sentenced many teenagers - many boys and girls - to their deaths for alleged links to al-Shabab," said Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, the group's military operations spokesman.

The al-Shabaab insurgency persists in Somalia as the country struggles to restore order and rebuild infrastructure after more than two decades of conflict and chaos that have left the nation in tatters.

Somalis have been voting for weeks for a new parliament and will vote for a new president on Dec. 28.
The man who hosted the meeting that ended the Soviet Union is proud to say he was first to sign the declaration, known as the Belavezha Accords, followed by Russias Boris Yeltsin and Ukraines Leonid Kravchuk.

I did not think about it when I was signing, but when I studied the 'Yugoslavia variant,' I am pretty convinced that we prevented civil war on the territory of the Soviet Union, says Stanislav Shushkevich to VOA in his home office.

Surrounded by books and photos of former world leaders, Shushkevich flips through photo albums from the time, recalling why he convened the meeting 25 years ago. The problem is that we got together not at all to adopt such a document. We had to solve the most vital and tough issue, how to survive during the winter of 1991-92. And I invited Yeltsin to the Belovezhskaya Puscha (park) for hunting. Well, it was clear that it was not just for hunting, but to convince him to supply us with oil and gas.

As the men were looking at the legal obstacles to making such an energy deal, Shushkevich says Gennady Burbulis, later deputy prime minister of the Russian Federation, suggested an easy solution, declaring the USSR no longer exists.

The Soviet Unions last leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, told Russias Interfax news agency this month the men wanted to get rid of him and were power hungry.

Complete rubbish! I was never obsessed to hold power, says Shushkevich. And believe me, I could have maintained power, but I would have acted against my conscience.

Sushkevich became the first leader and head of state of independent Belarus, but in 1994 lost in the presidential election to Alexander Lukashenko, who has been president ever since.

Russias President Vladimir Putin has called the collapse of the Soviet Union the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century.

It is not the Soviet Empire that he wants to restore, but the Russian one, argues Shushkevich. He wants to make Russia dominate those lands and those countries that it used to dominate.

Many in former Soviet bloc states worry that Putins actions in Ukraine show how far he is willing to go.

Russia defends its annexation of Crimea as following the will of the people there, and denies meddling in its neighbors' affairs.

"I am absolutely not concerned about that (here), says Shushkevich. Because it was already done in Belarus. Russia has got all the tools of power here and manages our illegitimate president (Alexander Lukashenko) the way it wants.

Shushkevich cites the Russian military operating in Belarus as well as continued dependence on Russian oil and gas.

President Lukashenko and his staff weren't available to discuss Shushkevich's views when VOA requested interviews. But his supporters say Lukashenko is balancing relations with Russia and the West to the benefit of Belarus by negotiating supplies of cheaper energy and access to international financing.

The availability of Russian state television, with its pro-Kremlin, anti-West stance, in Belarus also affects public perceptions of Russia and the former Soviet Union.

As long as Russian state propaganda continues, says Shushkevich, it will be difficult for the region to come to terms with the Soviet Unions collapse and develop the countrys politics.

Belarusians live in a [political] situation that is pretty similar to that of the Soviet Union, he says. It is possible here to be a dissident, but normal opposition activities are impossible because it is called a crime and weve had very many political prisoners.
George Michael's death brought back memories in China of the heady 1980s when Wham! was the first major Western band to play in the country after the death of Mao Zedong and decades of cultural isolation.



Many Chinese who had never even heard of the band lined up for hours to buy $1.75 tickets to the groundbreaking April 1985 concert at the People's Gymnasium, the biggest stadium in Beijing at the time.



Inside the 12,000-strong stadium seated spectators watched in bewilderment as Michael and Andrew Ridgeley danced in big-shouldered jackets with bleached and feathered hair. The backing dancers' strapless costumes and polka-dot miniskirts also stunned the audience in China at a time when people still dressed in similar shades of green and gray.



"It was the first time a Western band had come to China, everyone was ready to make some noise and stand," said Li Ji, a restaurant owner who went to the concert in his 20s. "But there were so many police officers there, people didn't dare to."

WATCH: 'Foreign Skies' is a documentary about Wham! in China



Wham!'s manager Simon Napier-Bell had spent 18 months persuading the Chinese government to let them in and secure their place as one of the world's biggest bands by telling them it would help them attract foreign investment.



The police had warned spectators to stay seated, worried that they would be unable to control the crowds and that there might even be riots. Some young Chinese who got up to dance were hauled away by security officers.



The Wham! concert influenced Chinese musicians, who had never seen electric guitars played on stage and began to get interested in rock `n' roll.



Huang Wen, a music writer, said that the performance had an impact on big-name musicians, including the godfather of Chinese rock, Cui Jian. "In the early 1980s, pop songs from Hong Kong were very popular in mainland China and after the concert college students and people in the music industry started to get interested in rock `n' roll," she said.



Li said the army department that his parents worked for had given out tickets as a benefit. He attended the concert along with his parents' colleagues and their kids.



"I remember there was a little incident during the concert, the main lights went out because there was a problem with the electricity, so the bassist danced a little break dance," Li said. "It was the first time people saw that and it was so popular, people liked it."



State media said Monday that the concert "was a sensation."



While young Chinese today don't know the names George Michael or Wham!, many instantly recognize his well-loved songs "Last Christmas" and "Careless Whisper." The latter song had already been translated into Chinese and sung in several versions before the 1985 concert.
Pope Francis offered a Christmas Day wish for peace to a world scarred by wars and the threat of terrorism.

Speaking from the balcony of Saint Peter's Basilica, Francis spoke of those suffering through the Syrian war, especially in the "most awful battles" in Aleppo, and urged the international community to find a negotiated solution to the conflict.

Addressing tens of thousands who had gathered in Saint Peter's Square for his annual "Urbi et Orbi" (To the City and the World) address, Francis said that terrorism is sowing "fear and death" in cities and countries around the world.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the spiritual leader of the Church of England and the global communion of 85 million Anglican Christians, sounded a similar note in addressing the anxiety many are feeling around the world.

In a statement prepared for delivery in London later Sunday, he said, "The end of 2016 finds us all in a different kind of world; one less predictable and certain, which feels more awash with fear and division."

Tight security



Security forces were deployed near churches and cathedrals across Europe, on high alert amid warnings that Islamist terrorists might be planning attacks on Christians as they mark their religion's most popular festival.

Elsewhere, Christians carried out traditional rituals marking the day on which they celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, whom they worship as the son of God.

In the West Bank city of Bethlehem, pews were packed at the Church of the Nativity, built on the spot where Christians believe Jesus was born. The acting Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa led the service. Thousands of pilgrims and tourists trek to the church each year to celebrate Christmas.

In Iraq, several hundred Christians attended Mass in their hometown near Mosul as a sign of hope and defiance.

Once home to thousands of Assyrian Christians, Bartella fell to Islamic State (IS) militants in August 2014, but was recently recaptured. Worshippers were bused to the town Christmas Eve from the Kurdish regional capital of Irbil, where they have been living.

As bells pealed before the service, women joyously ululated when they stepped into the church. Almost everyone held a lit candle during the service, which was conducted in Aramaic and Arabic.

In Pakistan, more than 1,000 congregants attended midnight Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral, the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese in Karachi. Father Mario Rodrigues emphasized that Christmas is a time to strive for peace around the world.

U.S. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama celebrated the occasion in Hawaii, where they are vacationing with their two daughters, Sasha and Malia.

As she has in past years, Mrs. Obama took phone calls Saturday from American children expecting gifts from Santa Claus, whom children believe leaves the North Pole every Christmas Eve to deliver presents around the world in a flying sleigh pulled by reindeer.

The calls are coordinated by the U.S. military's North American Aerospace Defense Command, NORAD, which every Christmas shifts from its normal job of watching the northern skies for incoming nuclear missiles to delivering reports on Santa's journey from the Pole.

Among other gifts, some of the children told Mrs. Obama they were expecting a drone, a hoverboard and a hedgehog.

President Obama, for his part, spent Christmas eve with Sasha and Malia visiting attractions near Waikiki Beach and dining with friends in Honolulu.

President-elect Donald Trump and his wife, Melania, attended midnight services at the Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea, an Episcopal church in Palm Beach, Florida, where they were married in 2005.

Earlier, the president-elect tweeted wishes for a "Happy Hanukkah," a traditional Jewish holiday which this year began on Saturday evening.
Bloggers Trend Show at IMM. A lot has happened since I shared my last update on the blog, and in only three weeks I will travel back to Germany to bring the project to live.

Its only last month I travelled to Cologne to talk about designing my own booth for theat IMM. A lot has happened since I shared myon the blog, and in only three weeks I will travel back to Germany to bring the project to live.



With arranging everything over mail, there is a lot of multitasking involved with the 23 brands I chose to work with, but I really love it and it is especially fun to go beyond just the black and white I use at home. I cant wait to see the furniture I chose mixed with some of my personal memories and travel stories come together in one place.
Photo: Bennett Raglin/BET/Getty Images

New Yorkbased rapper Troy Ave was shot twice on Christmas in Brooklyn, reports the New York Times. He was driving a red Maserati when an unidentified gunman fired bullets at the car. Though Troy, whose real name is Roland Collins, received bullet wounds in his arm and a graze wound to his head, and consequently crashed his car after the gunfire, his lawyer says he is in stable condition  none of his injuries were life-threatening. The troubled rapper came into the spotlight last May when he was charged with attempted second-degree murder after a shooting backstage at Manhattan concert venue Irving Plaza. Troy was slated to perform with T.I. when gunfire erupted and resulted in injuries to three people, including Troy, while his bodyguard Ronald Banga McPhatter was killed. Troy has maintained his innocence in the deadly incident, blaming lax security at the venue.
The Bureau of Metrology is forecasting Perth will kick off the New Year with a top of at least 32 degrees, and the warm weather looks set to be repeated across the state.

BOM duty forecaster Jonathan How said there was also a high chance Perth may exceed its current predicted maximum.

"We're going for a top of 32 degrees, but it could possibly be even warmer," he said.

The warm easterly winds will bring higher temperatures for the Perth metropolitan area over the New Year period, and regional WA will also feel their effects.
By Brooke Wiles, FNB Bank Dec. 23, 2018 | 07:54 AM | MAYFIELD

During the month of December, FNB Bank made a $1,500 Christmas donation to two worthy charities on behalf of their customers and community members.Both the Community Christmas Connection Toy Drive for Mayfield and Graves County students and the Mayfield-Graves County Needline/Food Pantry received $750 donations to assist with daily necessities and expenses.

It is our gift to give back this Christmas by assisting worthy charities that generously serve and make a difference in the lives of our community members, stated Brooke Wiles, FNB Marketing Director. We are confident that the Community Christmas Connection efforts, along with the everyday mission of the Needline/Food Pantry are vital services that positively impact Mayfield-Graves County.

In addition to the banks monetary Christmas donation to the Community Christmas Connection Toy Drive, FNB employees and customers donated over 65 toys to the cause, resulting in an additional $650 in donated gifts.
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

Dec. 25, 2016 | MAYFIELD, KY

By West Kentucky Star Staff Dec. 25, 2016 | 05:18 PM | MAYFIELD, KY

A Graves County woman faces drug and kidnapping charges after an investigation in two states.



According to the Graves County Sheriff's Office, 38-year-old Yolanda Gray Hendley of Mayfield has been the focus of an illegal methamphetamine trafficking case, and drug detectives obtained enough evidence to obtain a warrant for her arrest. After the arrest warrant was granted, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services obtained an order for her to release her guardianship over a two-year-old boy and 10-month-old girl. She had been declared their guardian five months ago.



Officers attempted to arrest Hendley on Thursday, but learned she was out-of-state. A detective spoke with her by phone but Hendley refused to say where the children could be found. She promised to return them on Thursday, but didn't.



On Friday morning, deputies learned that Hendley was in Union City, Tennessee. Police went to a home and found Hendley and the two-year-old boy. Hendley was arrested and taken to the Obion County Jail. She's charged with kidnapping, trafficking in methamphetamine and custodial interference.



Family Services sent a representative to Union City to get the child. During their investigation, police learned that the 10-month old girl was in Mayfield, so deputies went to that location and found the child. She was released to Family Services without incident.
By West Kentucky Star Staff Dec. 25, 2016 | 07:51 PM | CANTON, KY

Work is progressing on the new Lake Barkley bridge at Canton.According to Keith Todd with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, the contractor has completed assembly of the arch and is moving ahead with placement of girders for the east approach spans. Concrete continues to be poured on several of the piers and it continues to be an active work zone through the winter months.

Todd said the contractor tentatively plans to move the arch into place on the main piers sometime in early to mid- February. Meanwhile, with cooperation from the weather, the multi-use path on Eggners Ferry Bridge is expected to be ready to open by New Year's weekend.

The multi-use trail across Eggners Ferry Bridge will interconnect with the Land Between The Lakes trail system and will connect with a trail that will run across the New Lake Barkley Bridge at Canton.

PCL Civil Constructors of Denver is the prime contractor on the $128.3 million project. The target completion date for moving two-lane traffic to the new bridge is late 2017.

The existing bridge carries approximately 3,800 vehicles across Lake Barkley and the Cumberland River in an average day. For more info on the Lakes Bridges Project go to www.lakebridges.com
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 26/12/2016 (2138 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A former branch manager at the Winnipeg office of Wellington West Capital Inc., which is now known as National Bank Financial Ltd., has been fined $30,000 for failing to adequately supervise 18 client accounts.

The fine against Walter Nick Silicz was part of a settlement agreement Silicz recently reached with the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada, which is the national, self-regulatory organization that oversees investment dealers and trading activity on debt and equity markets in Canada.

The agreement included a two-year suspension from acting in a supervisory capacity for Silicz, who the regulator said now works as a registered representative and portfolio manager with the Winnipeg branch.

He agreed to pay $10,000 in costs.

The regulator said Silicz admitted he had failed to effectively exercise supervisory responsibilities over certain client accounts of Donald Earl Phillips, a registered representative in the companys Winnipeg branch.

Phillips was fined $100,000 last year and suspended for 18 months for investing a portion of the retirement savings of 11 of his clients in high-risk flow-through shares without their knowledge.

The investments were made from May 2006 to August 2008, and eight of the clients lost a significant amount of money as a result, the regulator said in February 2015.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 26/12/2016 (2138 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg developer is so pleased with the results of its first apartment project in more than 30 years that its planning to do another one in the same area.

The newest development by the Lount Corp. is a 13-unit, four-storey, luxury apartment block it hopes to build on the corner of Nassau Street North and River Avenue.

The project has received the blessing of city planners and the city centre community committee, but must be approved by city council. If approved, construction is expected to get underway in June and take about a year to complete.

supplied

The site of the new project  93 Nassau St. North  is one block west of the Conrad House luxury-apartment building the Lount Corp. completed last summer.

It is also a four-storey building, but it has 37 suites because it was built on two adjoining lots rather than a single lot, which is the case with the new Nassau Street project.

Company vice-president Ben Lount told a Dec. 13 meeting of the city centre community committee that the company used Conrad House as a template when designing the Nassau Street complex.

As it did with Conrad House, the company also followed the development guidelines set out in the Osborne Village Neighbourhood Plan, Lount said, so we feel weve been able to create something that fits into the neighbourhood.

Community committee member Jenny Gerbasi, who is the councillor for Osborne Village, noted the company made an effort to consult with the community and worked with city planners in drawing up the design. She said it fits within the neighbourhoods development guidelines.

It appears to be a high-quality design, and it adds density to the area, she added. So its a good-news story.

The Lount family has a long history developing apartment blocks in Osborne Village. Some of the other buildings it built in the 1960s and early 1970s include 55 Nassau, Sussex House and Fountain House.

Lount said one of the reasons the company resumed building in the Village is because of its neighbourhood development plan.

I feel Coun. Jenny Gerbasi and the Osborne Village city planners have done a very good job of putting together a plan that is good for the neighbourhood and is also very reasonable for developers, he said. So as long as you design within the guidelines of the plan, the (likelihood) of your proposed development being passed is much greater.

He said the success of Conrad House was another reason the company wanted to build another luxury-apartment complex in the area.

It went extremely well. It exceeded our expectations as far as how quickly we could lease the suites. I was able to lease up the entire building in just a few months, and the feedback from the community has been extremely positive.

Although the new building will have only about one-third as many units as Conrad House, Lount said the new units will be larger.

The seven one-bedroom suites will be just under 900 square feet, and the six two-bedroom suites will be 1,250 square feet.

The units in Conrad House are 650 to 1,050 square feet.

Lount said theyre making them bigger because the projects target market will be mainly downsizing baby boomers, and some of them prefer larger suites.

I felt that during the lease-up of Conrad House, we lost quite a few potential renters based on size, not the actual rental rate, he explained. Im just sort of finding that most developers are developing fairly small rental suites, and I feel there is a market for larger, more luxurious spaces in Winnipeg.

It exceeded our expectations as far as how quickly we could lease the suites. I was able to lease up the entire building in just a few months, and the feedbackfrom the community has been extremely positive Ben Lount, on a new condo project  Conrad House  at 93 Nassau St. North (above)

He said rental rates in the new building will be $1,800 to $2,500 per month, which includes utilities and cable. Parking in the enclosed main-floor parkade is $125 per month. Other amenities include in-suite laundry and storage, a private balcony, quartz countertops, and top-end appliances, he said.

The Nassau Street project is only the second project the company has tackled since resuming apartment development. It wont be the last.

Lount said the company intends to build a multi-family residential complex on a riverside property it owns on Togo Street, in the south Osborne Street area. It just hasnt decided what it will be.

Its a beautiful site, and we want to make sure we do the right thing. We believe (a seniors centre) may be the right thing to do on that site, he said. But were not sure at this point.

The company would like to develop more apartments in Osborne Village if the right properties become available.

Im always looking for opportunities, especially in the Village. Its such a sought-after area. Thats definitely where we want to be, but (development sites) are hard to come by.

The Lount Corp. also owns the former Gios nightclub property on Smith Street and York Avenue, which was converted into La Roca, a Mexican lounge, earlier this year.

Its doing well, Lount said of the new eatery. The owner is very happy.

He said its a good time to open a restaurant downtown.

There is a lot going on down there, with the convention centre (expansion), the Jets and True North Square.

The latter is a $400-million, four-tower development that will have office, retail, hotel and residential space as well as a parkade and public plaza. Its under construction on both sides of Carlton Street between Graham and St. Mary avenues.

Know of any newsworthy or interesting trends or developments in the local office, retail, industrial or multi-family- residential sectors? Let real estate reporter Murray McNeill know at the email address below, or at 204-697-7254.

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 26/12/2016 (2138 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

How does a volunteer position as an English tutor lead to a paid job in the field of water treatment?

Briana Osmachenko knows the answer to that question.

The 19-year-old North Kildonan resident was volunteering her time teaching English to newcomers to Canada through Winnipeg School Divisions adult English as an additional language program earlier this year. Heather Rempel, who ran the program at the time, told her husband, Bob, about Osmachenko when he said he was looking to hire someone for his business, Accurate Water Treatment Inc.

TREVOR HAGAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Briana Osmachenko was a volunteer with the Winnipeg School Division.

Theres a world of difference between helping people with their English and treating water, but Rempel knew Osmachenko would be a good fit for the job.

Osmachenko began working for Accurate in August. She services water-treatment chemistries for HVAC systems and does analytical work on all sorts of systems, including boilers and cooling systems.

Every system I look at is different, so it keeps me on my toes, Osmachenko says. I never get bored.

After graduating from River East Collegiate in 2015, Osmachenko enrolled in a program at Herzing College, where she trained to become a community support worker.

When the depression she has journeyed with since the age of 14 became especially bad this past April, she dropped out of school.

It was definitely pretty disappointing, says Osmachenko, who was getting good grades and holding down a part-time job. Everything was going fine, its just that depression comes when it wants to come I think I drove myself to the point where my brain had had enough, and I just couldnt do it anymore.

After some time off, Osmachenko decided to volunteer. Thats when she found the English as an additional language program program via a Google search.

It was really good, she says of the experience. A lot of people have different views on newcomers to Canada, so it was interesting having a first-hand view and working side by side with them.

They were so grateful to have me there, she adds. It was definitely nice to have that sense of thankfulness from them.

Osmachenko never would have guessed that volunteering with the program would lead to a job in water treatment, but now she sees herself working in the field long term. Its definitely something I want to stick with, she says. Its something I can make a career out of.

Bob Rempel is glad his wife told him about Osmachenko.

Weve hired ourselves a very sharp, intelligent woman, Rempel says, adding that Osmachenko is good at working with customers, problem-solving and studying the wide array of systems that her job demands she be familiar with. Shes an extremely good fit.

For Osmachenko and Rempel, its been a lesson in the value of volunteering.

She wouldnt (have this job) if she hadnt volunteered, Rempel says. So, I think theres a lot to be said for getting out into the community and doing things for others.

If you know a special volunteer, please contact aaron.epp@gmail.com.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 26/12/2016 (2138 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A local ice-shack rental company is devastated after one of its shacks was stolen off of Lake Winnipeg Saturday night.

Lake Winnipeg Ice Fishing Shack Rentals co-owner Curtis Beyak said he woke up Christmas morning to find that one of his companys five shacks was missing, with the base of the structure still in place on the lakes surface.

For someone to haul our shack off on Christmas is just dirty, Beyak said. But Im not surprised by it.

Supplied Lake Winnipeg Ice Fishing Shack Rentals officially opened Dec. 17, only to have one of their shacks stolen on Christmas.

The shack, eight feet by eight feet and maroon in colour, was likely attached to a vehicle and towed off overnight, Beyak said. However, a snow drift covered up any tracks made by the thieves as they drove away.

When something like this happens, the fishing community really helps each other out, added Beyak, who estimates the cost of each shack to be about $2,500.

Beyak and his business partner Terry Roth launched the shack-rental company this month after spending over a year developing their business plan and building the shacks themselves.

Since officially opening for business Dec. 17, Beyak and Roth have received several weeks worth of reservations, but until the stolen one is found or returned, the company will lose a significant chunk of business.

Beyak and Roth, who live in the Sunset Beach area, say that their business has been attracting fishers from outside Manitoba.

About 85 per cent of bookings have been from the United States, and Beyak thinks the influx of fishers can be a boon to other local businesses.

It can have a ripple effect, he said.

In a post on the companys Facebook page, Beyak expressed his disappointment in the theft.

Cant even provide a service to people without some jackass thief stealing one of our shacks, he wrote.

Beyak asks anybody with information about the shack to contact the police, RCMP and the rental company through its Facebook page, Lake Winnipeg Ice Fishing Shack Rentals.

ben.waldman@freepress.mb.ca
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is launching a new conservation effort to boost the monarch butterfly population through habitat improvements.

The program will allow landowners to enroll up to 50,000 acres of farmland in the Conservation Reserve Program, through which the government pays farmers to remove environmentally sensitive land from production.

This is a huge win for conservation in Wisconsin, said Patty Edelburg, state executive director of the Farm Service Agency. While participation in CRP programs is down, Edelburg said the agency in recent years has had to turn away farmers looking to put their lands into conservation.

In order to qualify, land must have been planted with crops for at least four of the past six years. If accepted into the program, landowners agree to follow a conservation plan that calls for a mix of grasses and flowering plants  including milkweed  that monarchs, bees and other pollinators feed on.

These insects are critical to the production of dozens of common foods, from apples to vanilla.

Pollinators are the lifeline between us and the foods we eat, said Brandon Soldner, a conservation program specialist with the FSA.

Bright orange with black and white markings, monarch butterflies are found throughout North America, mostly east of the Rocky Mountains. During the summer they are found as far north as Canada. Beginning in August, they make a two-month journey south to a handful of sites in Mexico, where they spend the winter before returning to mate in the spring.

Two decades ago, about a billion monarchs occupied a winter habitat of 44.5 acres, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. By 2013-14, that had fallen to about 37 million butterflies.

More than 90 percent of those butterflies feed on common milkweed, much of which has been eradicated by modern farming and landscape practices, said Kurt Waterstradt, Wisconsin private lands coordinator for the Fish and Wildlife Service.

Planting 50,000 acres of Wisconsin in milkweed could boost the population by 750,000 butterflies, Waterstradt said.

Its imperiled, he said. We dont want to put it on the Endangered Species List.

Available to landowners in the southern two-thirds of the state, the monarch program is modeled on an existing one that was aimed at improving habitat for the endangered Karner blue butterfly in Jackson and Eau Claire counties.

With about 350 acres enrolled, the Karner blue program in Jackson County is full. Julie Dokkestul, executive director for the FSA in Jackson and Trempealeau counties, said there are landowners who couldnt get into that program will likely flock to the monarch program.

Dokkestul notes that seeds for the monarch program will be more affordable than those for Karners.

CRP rents vary based on location, land quality and other factors. In 2015, Wisconsins average rents ranged from $25 an acre in Florence County to $148 in Grant, with an overall average of about $80 an acre, according to FSA data.

Standard cropland rents for an average of $109 an acre in Wisconsin, and about $200 an acre for irrigated land, according to data from the National Agricultural Statistics Service.

The FSA expects to begin accepting applications this winter. Planting would begin in spring of 2018.

Participation in CRP programs plummeted over the past decade, largely driven by rising commodity prices that had farmers looking to plant more corn.

Between 2005 and 2015, Wisconsin lost 61 percent of its conservation acres. Minnesota lost 35 percent. Thats nearly 988,000 acres of land in the two states combined that was taken out of conservation. Farmers in parts of Wisconsins hilly Driftless area  including Jackson, Trempealeau and Vernon counties  took more 3/4 of conservation acres out of the program.

When crop prices are really really good people dont want to put land into conservation cover, said Kim Iczkowski, a spokeswoman for the agency. When prices fall conservation becomes more of a viable option.
Why did all those Economically Anxious Trump voters reject policies that would have helped relieve their economic anxiety?

Maybe they believed any Big Government expansions would disproportionately go to the wrong kinds of people  that is, people unlike themselves.

Hillary Clintons unexpected loss, particularly in traditionally blue strongholds, has led to lots of rumination about what the Democrats must do to reclaim their political territory. Smarter marketing, smoother organization, greater outreach and fresher faces are among the most commonly cited remedies.

But there seems to be universal agreement, at least among the Democratic politicians and strategists Ive interviewed, that the partys actual ideas are the right ones.

Democrats, they note, pushed for expansion of health-insurance subsidies for low- and middle-income Americans; investments in education and retraining; middle-class tax cuts; and a higher minimum wage. These are core, standard-of-living improving policies. They would do far more to help the economically precarious  including and especially white working-class voters  than Donald Trumps top-heavy tax cuts and trade wars ever could.

Heres the problem. These Democratic policies probably would help the white working class. But the white working class doesnt seem to buy that theyre the ones whod really benefit.

Across rural America, the Rust Belt, Coal Country and other hotbeds of Trumpism, voters have repeatedly expressed frustration that the lazy and less deserving are getting a bigger chunk of government cheese.

In Kentucky, consumers receiving federal subsidies through the Obamacare exchanges complain that neighbors who are less responsible are receiving nearly free insurance through Medicaid.

They can go to the emergency room for a headache, one woman told Voxs Sarah Kliff.

In Ohio, white working-class focus group participants decried that women who pop out babies like Pez dispensers with different baby daddies get welfare every month and their housing paid for, their food. These women seem to live large, one participant said, while people like herself are struggling to put food on the table.

Participants in this focus group, held by the Institute for Family Studies, were also skeptical of efforts to raise the minimum wage.

Opponents argued either that higher pay wasnt justified for lower-skilled, less intense work or that raising the minimum wage would unfairly narrow the pay gap between diligent folks such as themselves and people whod made worse life choices.

In Wisconsin, rural whites are similarly eager to stop the flow of resources to people who are undeserving, says Katherine J. Cramer, author of The Politics of Resentment: Rural Consciousness in Wisconsin and the Rise of Scott Walker.

The people Cramer interviewed for her book often named a (white) welfare-receiving neighbor or relative as someone who belonged in that basket of undeservings  but also immigrants, minorities and inner-city elites who were allegedly siphoning off more government funds than they contributed.

More broadly, a recent YouGov/Huffington Post survey found that Trump voters are five times more likely to believe that average Americans have gotten less than they deserve in recent years than to believe that blacks have gotten less than they deserve. (African Americans dont count as average Americans, apparently.)

None of this should be particularly surprising.

Weve known for a long time, through the work of Martin Gilens, Suzanne Mettler and other social scientists, that Americans (A) generally associate government spending with undeserving, nonworking, nonwhite people; and (B) are really bad at recognizing when they personally benefit from government programs.

Hence those oblivious demands to keep your government hands off my Medicare, and the tea partyers who get farm subsidies, and the widespread opposition to expanded transfer payments in word if not in deed.

Rhetoric this election cycle caricaturing our government as rigged, and anyone who pays into it as a chump, has only reinforced these misperceptions about who benefits from government programs and how much.

Its no wonder then that Democrats emphasis on downwardly redistributive economic policies has been met with suspicion, even from those who would be on the receiving end of such redistribution. And likewise, its no wonder that Trumps promises  to re-create millions of (technologically displaced) jobs and to punish all those non-self-sufficient moochers  seem much more enticing.

No American likes the idea of getting a handout  especially if they believe that handout is secretly being rerouted to their layabout neighbor anyway.
On Jan. 21 at 7 p.m. the Columbus High School music program will be hosting its 14th annual Jazz Cabaret in the CHS gymnasium. Jazz Lab I, Jazz Lab II and La Voce will be performing.

The guest jazz instrumentalist will be Michael Shults, professor of saxophone from UW-Eau Claire. In addition, vocalist Rebecca Brooks will be featured on one of the selections with the Jazz Lab I.

The three- to four-course meal will include different BBQs from around the world.

Tickets for adult meals with the concert will be $25. Meal and concert tickets for children under 10 years old will cost $10. Concert only tickets may be purchased at $8 per seat.

Tickets can be bought until Jan. 10 from a student in the music program or by contacting Tim Meinholz by email at tmeinholz@columbus.k12.wi.us. Payments should be made out to CHS and can be dropped off in the CHS office.
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company discovers, develops, licenses, manufactures, and markets biopharmaceutical products worldwide. It offers products for hematology, oncology, cardiovascular, immunology, fibrotic, neuroscience, and covid-19 diseases. The company's products include Revlimid, an oral immunomodulatory drug for the treatment of multiple myeloma; Eliquis, an oral inhibitor for reduction in risk of stroke/systemic embolism in NVAF, and for the treatment of DVT/PE; Opdivo for anti-cancer indications; Pomalyst/Imnovid indicated for patients with multiple myeloma; and Orencia for adult patients with active RA and psoriatic arthritis. It also provides Sprycel for the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia; Yervoy for the treatment of patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma; Abraxane, a protein-bound chemotherapy product; Reblozyl for the treatment of anemia in adult patients with beta thalassemia; and Empliciti for the treatment of multiple myeloma. In addition, the company offers Zeposia to treat relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis; Breyanzi, a CD19-directed genetically modified autologous T cell immunotherapy for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma; Inrebic, an oral kinase inhibitor indicated for the treatment of adult patients with myelofibrosis; and Onureg for the treatment of adult patients with AML. It sells products to wholesalers, distributors, pharmacies, retailers, hospitals, clinics, and government agencies. The company was formerly known as Bristol-Myers Company. The company was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in New York, New York.
The following companies are subsidiares of Illinois Tool Works: A V Co 1 Limited, A V Co 2 Limited, A V Co 3 Limited, ACCU-LUBE Manufacturing GmbH - Schmiermittel und -gerate -, AIP/BI Holdings Inc., Accessories Marketing Holding Corp., Advanced Molding Company Inc., Allen France SAS, Alpine Engineered Products, Alpine Systems Corporation, Anaerobicos S.r.l., AppliChem GmbH, Avery Berkel France, Avery India Limited, Avery Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Avery Weigh Tronix, Avery Weigh-Tronix Finance Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix International Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix LLC, Avery Weigh-Tronix Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix Properties Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix Suzhou Weighing Technology Co. Ltd., Azon Limited, B.C. Immo, Beijing Miller Electric Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Berkel Ireland Limited, Berrington UK, Brapenta Eletronica Ltda., Brooks Instrument B.V., Brooks Instrument GmbH, Brooks Instrument KFT, Brooks Instrument Korea Ltd., Brooks Instrument LLC, Brooks Instrument Shanghai Co. Ltd, Buell Industries Inc., CCI Realty Company, CFC Europe GmbH, CS Australia Pty Limited, CS Mexico Holding Company S DE RL DE CV, Calvia Spolka z Ograniczona Odpowiedzialnosci, Capital Ventures Australasia S.a r.l, Capmax Logistica S.A. de C.V., Celeste Industries Corporation, Coeur, Coeur Asia Limited, Coeur Holding Company, Coeur Inc., Coeur Shanghai Medical Appliance Trading Co. Ltd, Compagnie Hobart, Compagnie de Materiel et d'Equipements Techniques-Comet, Constructions Isothermiques Bontami C.I.B., Crane Carrier Company, Denison Mayes Group Limited, Despatch Industries, Diagraph Corporation Sdn. Bhd, Diagraph ITW Mexico S. de R.L. De C.V., Diagraph Mexico S.A. DE C.V., Dongguan Ark-Les Electric Components Co. Ltd., Dongguan CK Branding Co. Ltd., Duo Fast de Espana S.A.U., Duo-Fast Korea Co. Ltd., Duo-Fast LLC, E.C.S. d.o.o., E2M Production B.V.., E2M Technologies B.V.., E2M Technologies Inc.., ECS Cable Protection Sp. Zoo, ELRO Grosskuchen GmbH, ELRO Holding AG, ELRO-WERKE AG, Elro Group, Eltex-Elektrostatik-Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Envases Multipac S.A. de C.V., Eurotec Srl, Exhibit 21, FEG Investments L.L.C., Filtertek De Mexico Holding Inc., Filtertek De Mexico S.A. de C.V., Filtertek SAS, GC Financement SA, Gamko B.V., Gun Hwa Platech Taicang Co. Ltd., HOBART Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Hartness International, Hobart Andina S.A.S., Hobart Belgium B.V., Hobart Brothers International Chile Limitada, Hobart Brothers LLC, Hobart Dayton Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Hobart Food Equipment Co. Ltd., Hobart International Singapore Pte. Ltd., Hobart Japan K.K., Hobart Korea LLC, Hobart LLC, Hobart Nederland B.V., Hobart Sales & Service Inc., Hobart Scandinavia ApS, Hobart Techniek B.V., Horis, ILC Investments Holdings Inc., ITW AEP LLC, ITW AOC LLC, ITW Aircraft Investments Inc., ITW Ampang Industries Philippines Inc., ITW Appliance Components EOOD, ITW Appliance Components S.A. de C.V., ITW Appliance Components S.r.l.a, ITW Appliance Components d.o.o., ITW Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, ITW Australia Property Holdings Pty Ltd., ITW Australia Pty Ltd, ITW Automotive Components Chongqing Co. Ltd., ITW Automotive Components Langfang Co. Ltd., ITW Automotive Japan K.K., ITW Automotive Korea LLC, ITW Automotive Parts Shanghai Co. Ltd, ITW Automotive Products GmbH, ITW Automotive Products Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Bailly Comte, ITW Befestigungssysteme GmbH, ITW Belgium B.V., ITW Brazilian Nominee L.L.C., ITW Building Components Group Inc., ITW CER, ITW CP Distribution Center Holland BV, ITW CS UK Ltd., ITW Canada Inc., ITW Celeste Inc., ITW Chemical Products Ltda, ITW Chemical Products Scandinavia ApS, ITW China Investment Company Limited, ITW Colombia S.A.S., ITW Construction Products AB, ITW Construction Products AS, ITW Construction Products ApS, ITW Construction Products CZ s.r.o., ITW Construction Products Italy Srl, ITW Construction Products OU, ITW Construction Products OY, ITW Construction Products Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW Construction Products Singapore Pte. Ltd., ITW Construction Services Manila Inc., ITW Contamination Control B.V., ITW Contamination Control Wujiang Co. Ltd., ITW Covid Security Group Inc., ITW DS Investments Inc., ITW DelFast do Brasil Ltda., ITW Denmark ApS, ITW Deutschland GmbH, ITW Diagraph GmbH, ITW Dynatec, ITW Dynatec Adhesive Equipment Suzhou Co. Ltd., ITW Dynatec GmbH, ITW Dynatec Kabushiki Kaisha, ITW EAE B.V., ITW EAE Mexico S de RL de CV, ITW EF&C France SAS, ITW EF&C Selb GmbH, ITW EU Holdings Ltd., ITW Electronic Business Asia Co. Limited, ITW Electronic Components/Products Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW Electronics Suzhou Co. Ltd., ITW Epsilon Sarl, ITW Espana S.L., ITW European Finance Co. Ltd., ITW European Finance II Co. Ltd., ITW European Finance III Co. Ltd., ITW FEG Hong Kong Limited, ITW FEG do Brasil Industria e Comercio Ltda., ITW Fastener Products GmbH, ITW Fluids and Hygiene Solutions Ltda., ITW Food Equipment Group LLC, ITW GH LLC, ITW GSE ApS, ITW GSE Inc., ITW Gamma Sarl, ITW German Management LLC, ITW Global Investments Holdings LLC, ITW Global Investments Holdings Y Compania Sociedad en Comandita por Acciones, ITW Global Investments Inc., ITW Global Tire Repair Europe GmbH, ITW Global Tire Repair Inc., ITW Global Tire Repair Japan K.K., ITW Graphics Asia Limited, ITW Graphics Thailand Ltd., ITW Great Britain Investment & Licensing Holding Company, ITW Group France Luxembourg S.ar.l., ITW HLP Thailand Co. Ltd., ITW Holding Quimica B.C. S.L. Sole Shareholder Company, ITW Holdings Australia L.P., ITW Holdings I Limited, ITW Holdings II Limited, ITW Holdings III Limited, ITW Holdings IV Limited, ITW Holdings IX Limited, ITW Holdings Inc., ITW Holdings V Limited, ITW Holdings VI Limited, ITW Holdings VII Limited, ITW Holdings VIII Limited, ITW Holdings X Limited, ITW Holdings XI Limited, ITW ILC Holdings I Inc., ITW IPG Investments LLC, ITW Imaden Industria e Comercio Ltda., ITW India Private Limited, ITW International Holdings LLC, ITW Invest Holding GmbH, ITW Ireland Holdings Unlimited Company, ITW Ireland Unlimited Company, ITW Italy Holding Srl, ITW Japan Ltd., ITW Korea LLC, ITW LLC & Co. KG, ITW Limited, ITW Lys Fusion S.r.l., ITW Materials Technology Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW Meritex Sdn. Bhd., ITW Metal Fasteners S.L., ITW Mexico Holding Company S. De R.L. de C.V., ITW Mexico Holdings LLC, ITW Morlock GmbH, ITW Mortgage Investments II Inc., ITW Mortgage Investments III Inc., ITW Mortgage Investments IV Inc., ITW Netherlands Administration BV, ITW Netherlands Beta B.V., ITW Netherlands Finance Alpha BV, ITW New Universal LLC, ITW New Zealand, ITW Ningbo Components & Fastenings Systems Co. Ltd., ITW Novadan Sp. Z.o.o., ITW PPF Brasil Adesivos Ltda., ITW Packaging Technology China Co. Ltd., ITW Participations S.a r.l., ITW Pension Funds Trustee Company, ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids Japan Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids Korea Limited, ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids OOO, ITW Performance Polymers ApS, ITW Performance Polymers Wujiang Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers and Fluids Group FZE, ITW Peru S.A.C., ITW Poly Mex S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Polymers Sealants North America Inc., ITW Pronovia s.r.o., ITW Pte. Ltd., ITW Qufu Automotive Cooling Systems Co. Ltd., ITW Real Estate Germany GmbH, ITW Residuals III L.L.C., ITW Residuals IV L.L.C., ITW Rivex, ITW SMPI, ITW SPG Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Simco-Ion Shenzhen Co. Ltd., ITW Slovakia s.r.o., ITW Spain Holdings S.L., ITW Specialty Film LLC, ITW Specialty Films France, ITW Specialty Materials Suzhou Co. Ltd., ITW Sverige AB, ITW Sweden Holding AB, ITW Test & Measurement Equipment Shanghai Co. Ltd, ITW Test & Measurement GmbH, ITW Test and Measurement Italia Srl, ITW Test and Measurement Services Industry and Trade Ltd., ITW Texwipe Philippines Inc., ITW Thermal Films Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW UK, ITW UK Finance Beta Limited, ITW UK Finance Delta Limited, ITW UK Finance Gamma Limited, ITW UK Finance Limited, ITW UK Finance Zeta Ltd., ITW UK II Limited, ITW Universal II LLC, ITW Welding, ITW Welding AB, ITW Welding GmbH, ITW Welding Products B.V., ITW Welding Products Group FZE, ITW Welding Products Group S. DE R.L. De C.V., ITW Welding Products Italy Srl, ITW Welding Products Limited Liability Company, ITW Welding Produtos Para Solgdagem Ltda., ITW Welding Singapore Pte. Ltd., ITW de France, ITW do Brasil Industrial e Comercial Ltda., Illinois Tool Works Chile Limitada, Illinois Tool Works ITW Nederland B.V., Illinois Tool Works Inc., Impar Comercio E Representacoes Ltda., Industrie Plastic Elsasser GmbH, Inmobiliaria Cit. S.A. de C.F., Innova Temperlite Servicios S.A. de C.V., Innovacion y Transformacion Automotriz S.A. de C.V., Instron Brasil Equipamentos Cientificos Ltda., Instron Foreign Sales Corp. Limited, Instron France S.A.S., Instron GmbH, Instron Japan Company Ltd., Instron Korea LLC, Instron Shanghai Ltd., Instron Thailand Limited, International Leasing Company LLC, Isolenge - ITW Sistemas de Isolamento Termico Ltda., Itw Spraytec, KCPL Mauritius Holdings, Kester, Kleinmann GmbH, Krafft S.L., Loma Systems, Loma Systems BV, Loma Systems Canada Inc., Loma Systems sro, Lombard Pressings Limited, Lumex Inc., Lys Fusion Poland Sp. z.o.o., M&C Specialties Co., MAGNAFLUX GmbH, MEHB Holdings Limited, MGHG Property LLC, MTS 2 LLC., MTS 3 LLC., MTS China Holdings LLC, MTS Europe Holdings LLC, MTS Holdings France S.a.r.l., MTS Japan Ltd.., MTS Korea Inc.., MTS Systems China Co. Ltd., MTS Systems Corporation, MTS Systems Danmark ApS., MTS Systems Europe B.V., MTS Systems Finance C.V.., MTS Systems Germany GmbH, MTS Systems Holding B.V.., MTS Systems Hong Kong Incorporated, MTS Systems Limited, MTS Systems Norden Aktiebolag, MTS Systems S.r.l, MTS Systems., MTS Systems.., MTS Sytems Do Brazil, MTS Testing Solutions India Private Limited., MTS Testing Systems Canada Ltd., Manufacturing Avancee S.A., Meritex Technology Suzhou Co. Ltd., Meurer Verpackungssysteme GmbH, Miller Electric Mfg. LLC, Miller Insurance Ltd., NDT Holding LLC, NOVADAN APS, North Star Imaging Inc., Nova Chimica S.r.l., Orbitalum Tools GmbH, PENTA-91 OOO, PR. A. I. Srl, PT ITW Construction Products Indonesia, Pacific Concept Industries Limited Enping, Panreac Quimica S.L., Paslode Fasteners Shanghai Co. Ltd., Peerless Machinery Corp., Polyrey, Premark FEG L.L.C., Premark HII Holdings LLC, Premark International, Premark International LLC, Prolex Sociedad Anonima, QSA Global Inc., Quimica Industrial Mediterranea S.L., R&D Engineering A/S., R&D Prague s.r.o., R&D Steel ApS., R&D Test Systems A/S., R&D Tools and Structures A/S., RDGDK Engineering Private Limited, Ramset Fasteners Hong Kong Ltd., Rapid Cook LLC, Refrigeration France, S.E.E. Sistemas Industria E Comercio Ltda., ST Mexico Holdings LLC, Sealant Systems International Inc., Sentinel Asia Yuhan Hoesa, Shanghai ITW Plastic & Metal Co. Ltd, Simco Japan Inc., Simco Nederland B.V., Societe de Prospection et dInventions Techniques  SPIT, Speedline Holdings I Inc., Speedline Holdings I LLC, Speedline Technologies GmbH, Speedline Technologies Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Speedline Technologies Mexico Services S. de R.L. de C.V., Stokvis Celix Portugal Unipessoal LDA, Stokvis Danmark ApS, Stokvis Holdings S.A.R.L., Stokvis Promi s.r.o, Stokvis Prostick Tapes Private Limited, Stokvis Tapes B.V., Stokvis Tapes Benelux B.V., Stokvis Tapes Deutschland GmbH, Stokvis Tapes France, Stokvis Tapes Hong Kong Co. Limited, Stokvis Tapes Italia s.r.l., Stokvis Tapes Limited, Stokvis Tapes Limited Liability Company, Stokvis Tapes Norge AS, Stokvis Tapes Oy, Stokvis Tapes Polska Sp Z.O.O., Stokvis Tapes Shanghai Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes Sverige AB, Stokvis Tapes Taiwan Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes Tianjin Co. Ltd., Stolvis Holdings II S.A.R.L., Subsidiaries, Technopack Industria Comercio Consultoria e Representacoes Ltda., Teknek China Limited, Teknek Japan Limited, Teksaleco Ltd., The Miller Group Ltd, Thirode Grandes Cuisines Poligny, Tien Tai Electrode Co. Ltd., Tien Tai Electrode Kunshan Co. Ltd., Unichemicals Industria e Comercio Ltda., VR-Leasing Sarita GmbH & Co. Immobilien KG, VS European Holdco BV, Valeron Strength Films B.V., Veneta Decalcogomme S.r.l., Versachem Chile S.A., Vesta, Vesta Global Limited, Vesta Guangzhou Catering Equipment Co. Ltd, Viltronics Soltec, Vitronics Soltec B.V., Wachs Canada Ltd., Wachs Subsea LLC, Weigh-Tronix Canada ULC, Weigh-Tronix UK Limited, Wilsonart International Holdings LLC, Wynn Oil South Africa Pty Ltd., Wynn's Automotive France, Wynn's Belgium BVBA, Wynn's Italia Srl, Wynn's Mekuba India Pvt Ltd, and Zip-Pak International B.V..

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Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. engages in designing, building, overhauling, and repairing military ships in the United States. It operates through three segments: Ingalls Shipbuilding, Newport News Shipbuilding, and Technical Solutions. The company is involved in the design and construction of non-nuclear ships comprising amphibious assault ships; expeditionary warfare ships; surface combatants; and national security cutters for the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard. It also provides nuclear-powered ships, such as aircraft carriers and submarines, as well as refueling and overhaul, and inactivation services of ships. In addition, the company offers naval nuclear support services, including fleet services comprising design, construction, maintenance, and disposal activities for in-service the U.S. Navy nuclear ships; and maintenance services on nuclear reactor prototypes. Further, it provides life-cycle sustainment services to the U.S. Navy fleet and other maritime customers; high-end information technology and mission-based solutions for Department of Defense (DoD), intelligence, and federal civilian customers; nuclear management and operations and environmental management services for the Department of Energy, DoD, state and local governments, and private sector companies; defense and federal solutions; and unmanned systems. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. was founded in 1886 and is headquartered in Newport News, Virginia.
EMCOR Group, Inc. provides electrical and mechanical construction, and facilities services primarily in the United States and the United Kingdom. It offers design, integration, installation, starts-up, operation, and maintenance services related to electrical power transmission, distribution, and generation systems; energy solutions; premises electrical and lighting systems; process instrumentation in the refining, chemical processing, and food processing industries; low-voltage systems, such as fire alarm, security, and process control systems; voice and data communications systems; roadway and transit lighting, signaling, and fiber optic lines; heating, ventilation, air conditioning, refrigeration, and geothermal solutions; clean-room process ventilation systems; fire protection and suppression systems; plumbing, process, and high-purity piping systems; controls and filtration systems; water and wastewater treatment systems; central plant heating and cooling systems; crane and rigging services; millwright services; and steel fabrication, erection, and welding services. The company also provides building services that cover commercial and government site-based operations and maintenance; facility management, maintenance, and services; outage services to utilities and industrial plants; military base operations support services; mobile mechanical maintenance and services; services for indoor air quality; floor care and janitorial services; landscaping, lot sweeping, and snow removal services; vendor management and call center services; installation and support for building systems; program development, management, and maintenance for energy systems; technical consulting and diagnostic services; infrastructure and building projects; small modification and retrofit projects; and other building services. It offers industrial services to oil, gas, and petrochemical industries. EMCOR Group, Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.
The following companies are subsidiares of PepsiCo: Alimentos Quaker Oats y Compania Limitada, Alimentos del Istmo S.A., Amavale Agricola Ltda., Anderson Hill Insurance Limited, Asia Bottlers Limited, BAESA Capital Corporation Ltd., BFY Brands, BFY Brands LLC, BFY Brands Limited, BUG de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Balmoral Industries LLC, Bare Foods Co., Barrhead LLC, Be & Cheery, Beaman Bottling Company, Bebidas Sudamerica S.A., Beech Limited, Bell Taco Funding Syndicate, Bendler Investments II Ltd, Bendler Investments S.a r.l, Beverage Services Limited, Beverages Foods & Service Industries Inc., Bishkeksut OJSC, Blaue NC S. de R.L. de C.V., Blue Cloud Distribution Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Arizona Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Arkansas Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Colorado Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Florida Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Georgia Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Illinois Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Indiana Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Iowa Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Kentucky Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Louisiana Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Minnesota Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Mississippi Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Missouri Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Nebraska Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Nevada Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of North Carolina Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Ohio Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Oklahoma Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Pennsylvania Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of South Carolina Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Tennessee Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Texas Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Virginia Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Wisconsin Inc., Blue Ridge Sales LLC, Bluebird Foods Limited, Bluecan Holdings Unlimited Company, Bokomo Zambia Limited, Bolsherechensky Molkombinat JSC, Boquitas Fiestas LLC, Boquitas Fiestas S.R.L., Bottling Group Financing LLC, Bottling Group Holdings LLC, Bottling Group LLC, Bronte Industries Ltd, C & I Leasing Inc., CB Manufacturing Company Inc., CEME Holdings LLC, CMC Investment Company, Caroni Investments LLC, Centro-Mediterranea de Bebidas Carbonicas PepsiCo S.L., Ceres Fruit Juices Pty Ltd, ChampBev Inc., China Concentrate Holdings Hong Kong Limited, Chipsy International for Food Industries S.A.E., Chipsy for Food Industries S.A.E., Chitos Internacional y Cia Ltda, Cipa Industrial de Produtos Alimentares Ltda., Cipa Nordeste Industrial de Produtos Alimentares Ltda., Cocina Autentica Inc., Comercializadora CMC Investment y Compania Limitada, Comercializadora Nacional SAS Ltda., Comercializadora PepsiCo Mexico S de R.L. de C.V., Compania de Bebidas PepsiCo S.L., Concentrate Holding Uruguay Pte. Ltd., Concentrate Manufacturing Singapore Pte. Ltd., Confiteria Alegro S. de R.L. de C.V., Copella Fruit Juices Limited, Copper Beech International LLC, Corina Snacks Limited, Corporativo Internacional Mexicano S. de R.L. de C.V., CytoSport Holdings Inc., CytoSport Inc., Davlyn Realty Corporation, Defosto Holdings Limited, Desarrollo Inmobiliario Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Dilexis S.A., Donon Holdings Limited, Drinkfinity USA Inc., Drinkstation Inc., Drinkstation Innovation Co. Ltd., Drinkstation Limited, Dutch Snacks Holding S.A. de C.V., Duyvis Production B.V., EPIC Enterprises Inc., Echo Bay Holdings Inc., Elaboradora Argentina de Cereales S.R.L., Enter Logistica LLC, Environ at Inverrary Partnership, Environ of Inverrary Inc., Eridanus Investments S.a r.l, Evercrisp Snack Productos de Chile S.A., FL Transportation Inc., FLI Andean LLC, FLI Colombia LLC, FLI Snacks Andean GP LLC, Fabrica PepsiCo Mexicali S. de R.L. de C.V., Fabrica de Productos Alimenticios Rene y Cia S.C.A., Fairlight International SRL, Far East Bottlers Hong Kong Limited, Food Concepts Pioneer Ltd., Forest Akers Nederland B.V., Forty-Six Peaks Holding Inc., Fovarosi Asvanyviz es Uditoipari Zartkoruen Mukodo Reszvenytarsasag, Freshwater International B.V., Frito Lay Gida Sanayi Ve Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Frito Lay Poland Sp. z o.o., Frito Lay Sp. z o.o., Frito Lay de Guatemala y Compania Limitada, Frito-Lay Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Frito-Lay Dip Company Inc., Frito-Lay Dominicana S.A., Frito-Lay Global Investments B.V., Frito-Lay Inc., Frito-Lay Investments B.V., Frito-Lay Manufacturing LLC, Frito-Lay Netherlands Holding B.V., Frito-Lay North America Inc., Frito-Lay Sales Inc., Frito-Lay Trading Company Europe GmbH, Frito-Lay Trading Company GmbH, Frito-Lay Trading Company Poland GmbH, Frito-Lay Trinidad Unlimited, Fruko Mesrubat Sanayi Limited Sirketi, GB Czech LLC, GB International Inc., GB Russia LLC, GB Slovak LLC, GMP Manufacturing Inc., Gambrinus Investments Limited, Gamesa LLC, Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Gas Natural de Merida S. A. de C. V., Gatorade Puerto Rico Company, General Bottlers of Hungary Inc., Golden Grain Company, Goveh S.R.L., Grayhawk Leasing LLC, Green Hemlock International LLC, Grupo Frito Lay y Compania Limitada, Grupo Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Grupo Mabel, Grupo Sabritas S. de R.L. de C.V., Gulkevichskiy Maslozavod JSC, Hangzhou Baicaowei Corporate Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Hangzhou Haomusi Food Co, Hangzhou Haomusi Food Co. Ltd., Hangzhou Tao Dao Technology Co. Ltd., Health Warrior, Health Warrior Inc., Heathland LP, Helioscope Limited, Hillbrook Inc., Hillgrove Inc., Hillwood Bottling LLC, Hogganfield Limited Partnership, Holding Company "Opolie" JSC, Homefinding Company of Texas, Hudson Valley Insurance Company, IC Equities Inc., IZZE Beverage Co., Inmobiliaria Interamericana S.A. De C.V., Integrated Beverage Services Bangladesh Limited, Integrated Foods & Beverages Pvt. Ltd., International Bottlers Management Co. LLC, International KAS Aktiengesellschaft, Inversiones Borneo S.R.L., Inversiones PFI Chile Limitada, Inviting Foods Holdings Inc., Inviting Foods LLC, KAS Anorthosis S.a r.l, KAS S.L., KFC, Kevita Inc., Kinvara LLC, Kungursky Molkombinat JSC, Larragana S.L., Latin American Holdings Ltd., Latin American Snack Foods ApS, Latin Foods International LLC, Lebedyansky, Lebedyansky Holdings LLC, Lebedyansky LLC, Limited Liability Company "Sandora", Linkbay Limited, Lithuanian Snacks UAB, Mabel, Marbo Product d.o.o. Beograd, Marbo d.o.o. Laktasi, Matudis - Comercio de Produtos Alimentares Limitada, Matutano - Sociedade de Produtos Alimentares Lda., Mid-America Improvement Corporation, Mountainview Insurance Company Inc., Muscle Milk, NCJV LLC, New Bern Transport Corporation, New Century Beverage Company LLC, Noble Leasing LLC, Northeast Hot-Fill Co-op Inc., Office at Solyanka LLC, Onbiso Inversiones S.L., One World Enterprises LLC, One World Investors Inc., P-A Barbados Bottling Company LLC, P-A Bottlers Barbados SRL, P-Americas LLC, PAS Luxembourg S.a r.l, PAS Netherlands B.V., PBG Canada Holdings II LLC, PBG Canada Holdings Inc., PBG Cyprus Holdings Limited, PBG Investment Partnership, PBG Midwest Holdings S.a r.l, PBG Soda Can Holdings S.a r.l, PCBL LLC, PCNA Manufacturing Inc., PR Beverages Cyprus Holding Limited, PR Beverages Cyprus Russia Holding Limited, PRB Luxembourg S.a r.l, PRS Inc., PSAS Inversiones LLC, PSE Logistica S.R.L., PT Quaker Indonesia, Papas Chips S.A., Pei N.V., Pep Trade LLC, Pepsi B.V., Pepsi Beverages Holdings Inc., Pepsi Bottling Group Global Finance LLC, Pepsi Bottling Group GmbH, Pepsi Bottling Group Hoosiers B.V., Pepsi Bottling Holdings Inc., Pepsi Bugshan Investments S.A.E., Pepsi Cola Colombia Ltda, Pepsi Cola Egypt S.A.E., Pepsi Cola Panamericana S.R.L., Pepsi Cola Servis Ve Dagitim Limited Sirketi, Pepsi Cola Trading Ireland, Pepsi Logistics Company Inc., Pepsi Northwest Beverages LLC, Pepsi Overseas Investments Partnership, Pepsi Promotions Inc., Pepsi-Cola Advertising and Marketing Inc., Pepsi-Cola Bermuda Limited, Pepsi-Cola Bottlers Holding C.V., Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company Of St. Louis Inc., Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company of Ft. Lauderdale-Palm Beach LLC, Pepsi-Cola Company, Pepsi-Cola Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Pepsi-Cola Far East Trade Development Co. Inc., Pepsi-Cola Finance LLC, Pepsi-Cola General Bottlers Poland Sp. z o.o., Pepsi-Cola Industrial da Amazonia Ltda., Pepsi-Cola International Cork, Pepsi-Cola International LLC, Pepsi-Cola International Limited, Pepsi-Cola International Limited U.S.A., Pepsi-Cola International Private Limited, Pepsi-Cola Korea Co. Ltd., Pepsi-Cola Management and Administrative Services Inc., Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing Company Of Uruguay S.R.L., Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing International Limited, Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing Mediterranean Limited, Pepsi-Cola Marketing Corp. Of P.R. Inc., Pepsi-Cola Mediterranean Ltd., Pepsi-Cola Metropolitan Bottling Company Inc., Pepsi-Cola Mexicana Holdings LLC, Pepsi-Cola Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Pepsi-Cola National Marketing LLC, Pepsi-Cola Operating Company Of Chesapeake And Indianapolis, Pepsi-Cola Sales and Distribution Inc., Pepsi-Cola Technical Operations Inc., Pepsi-Cola Thai Trading Co. Ltd., Pepsi-Cola de Honduras S.R.L., Pepsi-Cola of Corvallis Inc., PepsiAmericas Nemzetkozi Szolgaltato Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, PepsiCo ANZ Holdings Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Alimentos Antioquia Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Colombia Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Ecuador Cia. Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Z.F. Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos de Bolivia S.R.L., PepsiCo Amacoco Bebidas Do Brasil Ltda., PepsiCo Asia Research & Development Center Company Limited, PepsiCo Australia Financing Cyprus Limited, PepsiCo Australia Financing Limited Partnership, PepsiCo Australia Financing Partner 1 LLC, PepsiCo Australia Financing Partner 2 LLC, PepsiCo Australia Financing Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Australia Holdings Pty Limited, PepsiCo Australia International, PepsiCo Austria Services GmbH, PepsiCo Azerbaijan Limited Liability Company, PepsiCo BeLux BV, PepsiCo Beverage Sales LLC, PepsiCo Beverage Singapore Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Beverages Bermuda Limited, PepsiCo Beverages Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo Beverages International Limited, PepsiCo Beverages Italia Societa' A Responsabilita' Limitata, PepsiCo Canada Finance LLC, PepsiCo Canada Holdings ULC, PepsiCo Canada Investment ULC, PepsiCo Canada ULC, PepsiCo Captive Holdings Inc., PepsiCo Caribbean Inc., PepsiCo China Limited, PepsiCo Consulting Polska Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo De Bolivia S.R.L., PepsiCo Del Paraguay S.R.L., PepsiCo Deutschland GmbH, PepsiCo Eesti AS, PepsiCo Euro Bermuda Limited, PepsiCo Euro Finance Antilles B.V., PepsiCo Europe Support Center S.L., PepsiCo Finance Americas Company, PepsiCo Finance Antilles A N.V., PepsiCo Finance Antilles B N.V., PepsiCo Finance South Africa Proprietary Limited, PepsiCo Financial Shared Services Inc., PepsiCo Food & Beverage Holdings Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo Foods A.I.E., PepsiCo Foods China Company Limited, PepsiCo Foods Group Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Foods Guangdong Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Nigeria Limited, PepsiCo Foods Private Limited, PepsiCo Foods Sichuan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Taiwan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Vietnam Company, PepsiCo France SAS, PepsiCo Global Business Services India LLP, PepsiCo Global Business Services Poland Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo Global Holdings Limited, PepsiCo Global Investments B.V., PepsiCo Global Investments S.a r.l, PepsiCo Global Mobility LLC, PepsiCo Global Real Estate Inc., PepsiCo Global Trading Solutions Unlimited Company, PepsiCo Golden Holdings Inc., PepsiCo Group Finance International B.V., PepsiCo Group Holdings International B.V., PepsiCo Group Spotswood Holdings S.a r.l, PepsiCo Gulf International FZE, PepsiCo Hellas Single Member Industrial and Commercial Societe Anonyme, PepsiCo Holding de Espana S.L., PepsiCo Holdings, PepsiCo Holdings LLC, PepsiCo Holdings Toshkent LLC, PepsiCo Hong Kong LLC, PepsiCo Iberia Servicios Centrales S.L., PepsiCo India Holdings Private Limited, PepsiCo India Sales Private Limited, PepsiCo Internacional Mexico S. de R. L. de C. V., PepsiCo International Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo International Limited, PepsiCo International Pte Ltd., PepsiCo Investments Europe I B.V., PepsiCo Investments Ltd., PepsiCo Ireland Food & Beverages Unlimited Company, PepsiCo Japan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Light B.V., PepsiCo Logistyka Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., PepsiCo Management Services SAS, PepsiCo Manufacturing A.I.E., PepsiCo Max B.V., PepsiCo Mexico Holdings S. de R.L. de C.V., PepsiCo Nederland B.V., PepsiCo Nordic Denmark ApS, PepsiCo Nordic Finland Oy, PepsiCo Nordic Norway AS, PepsiCo Nutrition Trading DMCC, PepsiCo One B.V., PepsiCo Overseas Corporation, PepsiCo Overseas Financing Partnership, PepsiCo Panimex Inc, PepsiCo Products B.V., PepsiCo Products FLLC, PepsiCo Puerto Rico Inc., PepsiCo Sales Inc., PepsiCo Sales LLC, PepsiCo Services Asia Ltd., PepsiCo Services CZ s.r.o., PepsiCo Services LLC, PepsiCo Twist B.V., PepsiCo UK Pension Plan Trustee Limited, PepsiCo Ventures B.V., PepsiCo Wave Holdings LLC, PepsiCo World Trading Company Inc., PepsiCo Y LLC, PepsiCo de Argentina S.R.L., PepsiCo de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., PepsiCo do Brasil Industria e Comercio de Alimentos Ltda., PepsiCo do Brasil Ltda., PepsiCola Interamericana de Guatemala S.A., Pet Iberia S.L., Pete & Johnny Limited, Pine International LLC, Pine International Limited, Pinstripe Leasing LLC, Pioneer Food Group Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Groceries Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Group Ltd., Pioneer Foods Holdings Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods UK Ltd, Pioneer Foods Wellingtons Pty Ltd, Pipers Crisps Limited, PlayCo Inc., Pop corners, PopCorners Holdings Inc., Portfolio Concentrate Solutions Unlimited Company, Premier Nutrition Trading L.L.C., Prestwick LLC, Prev PepsiCo Sociedade Previdenciaria, Productos Alimenticios Rene LLC, Productos S.A.S. C.V., Productos SAS Management B.V., Punch N.V., Punica Getranke GmbH, Q O Puerto Rico Inc., QFL OHQ Sdn. Bhd., QTG Development Inc., QTG Services Inc., Quadrant - Amroq Beverages S.R.L., Quaker Development B.V., Quaker European Beverages LLC, Quaker European Investments B.V., Quaker Foods, Quaker Global Investments B.V., Quaker Holdings UK Limited, Quaker Manufacturing LLC, Quaker Oats Asia Inc., Quaker Oats Australia Pty Ltd, Quaker Oats B.V., Quaker Oats Capital Corporation, Quaker Oats Europe Inc., Quaker Oats Europe LLC, Quaker Oats Limited, Quaker Sales & Distribution Inc, Raptas Finance S.a r.l., Rare Fare Foods LLC, Rare Fare Holdings Inc., Reading Industries Ltd, Real Estate Holdings LLC, Rockstar Energy Drink, Rolling Frito-Lay Sales LP, S & T of Mississippi Inc., SIH International LLC, SVC Logistics Inc., SVC Manufacturing Inc., SVE Russia Holdings GmbH, Sabritas LLC, Sabritas S. de R.L. de C.V., Sabritas Snacks America Latina de Nicaragua y Cia Ltda, Sabritas de Costa Rica S. de R.L., Sabritas y Cia. S en C de C.V., Sakata Rice Snacks Australia Pty Ltd, Sandora Holdings B.V., Saudi Snack Foods Company Limited, Sea Eagle International SRL, Seepoint Holdings Ltd., Senselet Food Processing PLC, Senselet Holding B.V., Servicios GBF Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada, Servicios GFLG y Compania Limitada, Servicios Gamesa Puerto Rico L.L.C., Servicios SYC S. de R.L. de C.V., Seven-Up Asia Inc., Seven-Up Light B.V., Seven-Up Nederland B.V., Shanghai PepsiCo Snack Company Limited, Shanghai YuHo Agricultural Development Co. Ltd, Shoebill LLC, Simba (Proprietary) Limited, Simba Proprietary Limited, Sitka Spruce, Smartfoods Inc., Smiles and Bites Holdings S.de R.L. de C.V., Smiths Crisps Limited, Snack Food Investments GmbH, Snack Food Investments II GmbH, Snack Food Investments Limited, Snack Food-Beverage Asia Products Limited, Snacks America Latina S.R.L., Snacks Guatemala Ltd., So Spark Ltd., Soda-Club CO2 Atlantic GmbH, Soda-Club CO2 GmbH, Soda-Club CO2 Ltd., Soda-Club Switzerland GmbH, Soda-Club Worldwide B.V., SodaStream, SodaStream Australia Pty Ltd, SodaStream CO2 SA, SodaStream Canada Ltd., SodaStream Enterprises N.V., SodaStream France SAS, SodaStream GmbH, SodaStream Iberia S.L., SodaStream Industries Ltd., SodaStream International B.V., SodaStream International Ltd., SodaStream Israel Ltd., SodaStream K.K., SodaStream New Zealand Ltd., SodaStream Nordics AB, SodaStream Poland Sp. z o.o., SodaStream SA Pty Ltd., SodaStream Switzerland GmbH, SodaStream USA Inc., SodaStream Osterreich GmbH, South Beach Beverage Company Inc., South Properties Inc., Spitz International Inc., Sportmex Internacional S.A. de C.V., Springboig Industries Ltd, Spruce Limited, Stacy's Pita Chip Company Incorporated, Star Foods E.M. S.R.L., Stokely-Van Camp Inc., Stratosphere Communications Pty Ltd, Stratosphere Holdings 2018 Limited, Streamfoods Ltd, TFL Holdings LLC, Tasman Finance S.a r.l, The Gatorade Company, The Good Carb Food Company Ltd., The Pepsi Bottling Group Canada ULC, The Quaker Oats Company, The Smith's Snackfood Company Pty Limited, Thomond Group Holdings Limited, Tobago Snack Holdings LLC, Tropicana Alvalle S.L., Tropicana Beverages Limited, Tropicana Europe N.V., Tropicana United Kingdom Limited, Troya-Ultra LLC, United Foods Companies Restaurantes S.A., V-Water, VentureCo Israel Ltd, Veurne Snack Foods BV, Vitamin Brands Ltd., Walkers Crisps Limited, Walkers Group Limited, Walkers Snack Foods Limited, Walkers Snacks Distribution Limited, Walkers Snacks Limited, Whitman Corporation, Whitman Insurance Co. Ltd., Wimm-Bill-Dann Beverages JSC, Wimm-Bill-Dann Brands Co. Ltd., Wimm-Bill-Dann Central Asia-Almaty LLP, Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods LLC, Wimm-Bill-Dann Georgia Ltd., Wimm-Bill-Dann JSC, and Wimm-Bill-Dann Ukraine PJSC.

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Black Hills Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company in the United States. It operates in two segments, Electric Utilities and Gas Utilities. The Electric Utilities segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 218,000 electric utility customers in Colorado, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and owns and operates 1,481.5 megawatts of generation capacity and 8,892 miles of electric transmission and distribution lines. The Gas Utilities segment distributes natural gas to approximately 1,094,000 natural gas utility customers in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming; owns and operates 4,732 miles of intrastate gas transmission pipelines; 41,644 miles of gas distribution mains and service lines; six natural gas storage sites; and approximately 50,000 horsepower of compression and 515 miles of gathering lines. The company also constructs and maintains gas infrastructure facilities for gas transportation customers; and provides appliance repair services to residential utility customers, as well as electrical system construction services to large industrial customers. In addition, it produces electric power through wind, natural gas, and coal-fired generating plants; and coal at its coal mine located near Gillette, Wyoming. The company was incorporated in 1941 and is headquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is the 5th largest bank in the world and the largest in the U.S. The current company is the result of a series of mergers that began in the earliest days of American banking history and include more than 1,200 original banks. The oldest predecessor is The Bank Of The Manhattan Company which was founded in 1799 by Aaron Burr. At the time, The Bank Of The Manhattan Company was the 3rd oldest bank in the U.S. and the 31st oldest in the world. The Chase Manhattan Bank, a precursor to JPMorgan Chase, was later formed when The Bank Of Manhattan Company purchased Chase Bank which was established in 1877.

JPMorgan & Co came to life in 1895 in order to finance the United States Steel Corporation. Itself a result of merger, the company also financed other early American businesses as well as aided the federal government by backing a bond offering. It wasnt until the year 2000 and after several more mergers that JPMorgan Chase & Co was born. It will be four more years before the merger with Bank One which is notable because it brings CEO Jamie Dimon into the picture.

JPMorgan Chase & Co was instrumental in aiding the US government during the 2008 financial crisis. It backed the accounts of several major banks including Bear Stearns and eventually took over their operations. Today, JPMorgan Chase & Co operates as a financial services company worldwide with operations on every continent and in more than 60 countries.

JPMorgan Chase & Co operates through four segments that are Consumer & Community Banking (CCB), Corporate & Investment Bank (CIB), Commercial Banking (CB), and Asset & Wealth Management (AWM). Services are available in branches in 48 of the 50 US states and around the world. Services are available via ATM, online, mobile, and telephone.

The CCB segment offers traditional banking services to consumers that include but are not limited to deposits, loans, mortgages, and lines of credit. The CIB segment provides investment banking products and services to businesses, institutions, and governments that range from prime brokerage, insurance, corporate strategy, and access to capital markets, to lending, cross-border financing, and derivative instruments. The CB segment provides financial services for small, medium, and large businesses including commercial real estate banking of all types.

The AWM segment provides investment management solutions to institutional and retail investors. This segment also provides retirement products, brokerage, trusts and estates, and investment management products.
The following companies are subsidiares of Lloyds Banking Group: A G Finance Ltd, A.C.L. Ltd, ACL Autolease Holdings Ltd, ADF No.1 Pty Ltd, Addison Social Housing Holdings Ltd, Alex Lawrie Factors Ltd, Alex. Lawrie Receivables Financing Ltd, Amberdate Ltd, Anglo Scottish Utilities Partnership 1, Aquilus Ltd, Automobile Association Personal Finance Ltd, BOS (Ireland) Property Services 2 Ltd, BOS (Ireland) Property Services Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages (Scotland) No. 2) Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages (Scotland) No. 3) Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages (Scotland)) Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 1 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 2 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 3 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 4 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 5 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 6 plc, BOS (USA) Fund Investments Inc., BOS (USA) Inc., BOS Edinburgh No 1 Ltd, BOS Mistral Ltd, BOS Personal Lending Ltd, BOSSAF Rail Ltd, Bank of Scotland (B G S) Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland (Stanlife) London Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Branch Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Central Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Edinburgh Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Equipment Finance Ltd, Bank of Scotland Foundation, Bank of Scotland LNG Leasing (No 1) Ltd, Bank of Scotland London Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Nominees (Unit Trusts) Ltd, Bank of Scotland P.E.P. Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Structured Asset Finance Ltd, Bank of Scotland Transport Finance 1 Ltd, Bank of Scotland plc, Bank of Wales Ltd, Barents Leasing Ltd, Barnwood Mortgages Ltd, Birchcrown Finance Ltd, Birmingham Midshires Financial Services Ltd, Birmingham Midshires Land Development Ltd, Birmingham Midshires Mortgage Services Ltd, Black Horse (TRF) Ltd, Black Horse Executive Mortgages Ltd, Black Horse Finance Holdings Ltd, Black Horse Finance Management Ltd, Black Horse Group Ltd, Black Horse Ltd, Black Horse Offshore Ltd, Black Horse Property Services Ltd, Boltro Nominees Ltd, British Linen Leasing (London) Ltd, British Linen Leasing Ltd, British Linen Shipping Ltd, C.T.S.B. Leasing Ltd, CBRail S.A.R.L., CF Asset Finance Ltd, CF1 Ltd, CM Venture Investments Ltd, Cancara Asset Securitisation Ltd, Capital 1945 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 12 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 3 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 5 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 9 Ltd, Capital Bank Property Investments (3) Ltd, Capital Personal Finance Ltd, Cardiff Auto Receivables Securitisation 2018-1 Plc, Cardiff Auto Receivables Securitisation 2019-1 Plc, Cardiff Auto Receivables Securitisation Holdings Ltd, Cardnet Merchant Services Ltd, Cashfriday Ltd, Cashpoint Ltd, Caveminster Ltd, Cedar Holdings Ltd, Celsius European Lux 2 S.A.R.L., Central Mortgage Finance Ltd, Chariot Finance Ltd, Cheltenham & Gloucester plc, Cheltenham II Securities 2020 DAC, Cheltenham Securities 2017 Ltd, Chepstow Blue Holdings Ltd, Chepstow Blue plc, Chester Asset Options No.2 Ltd, Chester Asset Options No.3 Ltd, Chester Asset Receivables Dealings Issuer Ltd, Chester Asset Securitisation Holdings Ltd, Chester Asset Securitisation Holdings No.2 Ltd, Chiswell Stockbrokers Ltd, Clerical Medical Finance plc, Clerical Medical Financial Services Ltd, Clerical Medical International Holdings B.V., Clerical Medical Investment Fund Managers Ltd, Clerical Medical Managed Funds Ltd, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Guadalix Hold Co BV, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Guadalix Spanish Prop Co SL, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Megapark Hold Co BV, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Megapark Prop Co SA, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Property Company S.A.R.L., Cloak Lane Funding S.A.R.L., Cloak Lane Investments S.A.R.L., Conquest Securities Ltd, Corbiere Asset Investments Ltd, Create Services Ltd, Credit Card Securitisation Europe Ltd, Dalkeith Corporation, Deva Financing Holdings Ltd, Deva Financing plc, Deva One Ltd, Deva Three Ltd, Deva Two Ltd, Dunstan Investments (UK) Ltd, Edgbaston RMBS 2010-1 plc, Edgbaston RMBS Holdings Ltd, Elland RMBS 2018 plc, Elland RMBS Holdings Ltd, Eurolead Services Holdings Ltd, First Retail Finance (Chester) Ltd, Fontwell Securities 2016 Ltd, Forthright Finance Ltd, France Industrial Premises Holding Company, General Leasing (No. 12) Ltd, General Reversionary and Investment Company, Gresham Nominee 1 Ltd, Gresham Nominee 2 Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 1) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 10) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 11) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 12) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 13) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 14) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 15) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 16) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 19) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 20) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 21) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 22) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 23) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 24) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 25) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 26) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 27) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 28) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 29) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 3) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 30) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 31) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 32) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 33) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 34) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 35) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 36) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 37) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 38) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 39) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 40) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 41) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 44) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 45) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 46) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 47) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 48) UK Ltd, Guildhall Asset Purchasing Company (No 3) Ltd, Guildhall Asset Purchasing Company (No.11) UK Ltd, HBOS Covered Bonds LLP, HBOS Final Salary Trust Ltd, HBOS Financial Services Ltd, HBOS Insurance & Investment Group Ltd, HBOS International Financial Services Holdings Ltd, HBOS Investment Fund Managers Ltd, HBOS Social Housing Covered Bonds LLP, HBOS UK Ltd, HBOS plc, HSDL Nominees Ltd, HVF Ltd, Halifax Credit Card Ltd, Halifax Financial Brokers Ltd, Halifax Financial Services (Holdings) Ltd, Halifax Financial Services Ltd, Halifax General Insurance Services Ltd, Halifax Group Ltd, Halifax Investment Services Ltd, Halifax Leasing (June) Ltd, Halifax Leasing (March No.2) Ltd, Halifax Leasing (September) Ltd, Halifax Life Ltd, Halifax Loans Ltd, Halifax Ltd, Halifax Mortgage Services Ltd, Halifax Nominees Ltd, Halifax Pension Nominees Ltd, Halifax Premises Ltd, Halifax Share Dealing Ltd, Halifax Vehicle Leasing (1998) Ltd, Heidi Finance Holdings (UK) Ltd, Hill Samuel Bank Ltd, Hill Samuel Finance Ltd, Hill Samuel Leasing Co. Ltd, Home Shopping Personal Finance Ltd, Horizon Capital 2000 Ltd, Housing Association Risk Transfer 2019 DAC, Housing Growth Partnership GP LLP, Housing Growth Partnership LP, Housing Growth Partnership Ltd, Housing Growth Partnership Manager Ltd, Hyundai Car Finance Ltd, IBOS Finance Ltd, ICC Enterprise Partners Ltd, ICC Equity Partners Ltd, ICC Holdings Unlimited Company, Inchcape Financial Services Ltd, Intelligent Finance Financial Services Ltd, Intelligent Finance Software Ltd, International Motors Finance Ltd, Kanaalstraat Funding C.V., Katrine Leasing Ltd, LB Healthcare Trustee Ltd, LB Motorent Ltd, LB Quest Ltd, LB Share Schemes Trustees Ltd, LBCF Ltd, LBG Brasil Administracao LTDA, LBG Capital Holdings Ltd, LBG Equity Investments Ltd, LBI Leasing Ltd, LDC (General Partner) Ltd, LDC (Managers) Ltd, LDC (Nominees) Ltd, LDC GP LLP, LDC I LP, LDC II LP, LDC III LP, LDC IV LP, LDC Parallel (Nominees) Ltd, LDC V LP, LDC VI LP, LDC VII LP, LDC VIII LP, LTGP Limited Partnership Incorporated, Legacy Renewal Company Ltd, Leicester Securities 2014 Ltd, Lex Autolease (CH) Ltd, Lex Autolease (VC) Ltd, Lex Autolease Carselect Ltd, Lex Autolease Ltd, Lex Vehicle Finance 2 Ltd, Lex Vehicle Leasing (Holdings) Ltd, Lex Vehicle Leasing Ltd, Lime Street (Funding) Ltd, Lingfield 2014 I Holdings Ltd, Lingfield 2014 I plc, Lloyds (Gresham) Ltd, Lloyds (Gresham) No. 1 Ltd, Lloyds (Nimrod) Specialist Finance Ltd, Lloyds America Securities Corporation1, Lloyds Asset Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Branches) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Colonial & Foreign) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Fountainbridge 1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Fountainbridge 2) Ltd, Lloyds Bank (I.D.) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank (International Services) Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Stock Exchange Branch) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank Asset Finance Ltd, Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance Ltd, Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance Scotland Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (HP) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.2) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.3) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.4) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Wertpapierhandelsbank GmbH, Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets plc, Lloyds Bank Covered Bonds (Holdings) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Covered Bonds (LM) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Covered Bonds LLP, Lloyds Bank Equipment Leasing (No. 1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Equipment Leasing (No. 7) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Equipment Leasing (No. 9) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Financial Services (Holdings) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Foundation for England & Wales, Lloyds Bank Foundation for the Channel Islands, Lloyds Bank General Insurance Holdings Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Insurance Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 11) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 17) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 20) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 3) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 5) Ltd, Lloyds Bank GmbH, Lloyds Bank Hill Samuel Holding Company Ltd, Lloyds Bank Insurance Services Ltd, Lloyds Bank International Ltd, Lloyds Bank Leasing (No. 6) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Leasing (No. 8) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Bank MTCH Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No. 10) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No. 13) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No. 17) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No.16) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank Offshore Pension Trust Ltd, Lloyds Bank Pension ABCS (No. 1) LLP, Lloyds Bank Pension ABCS (No. 2) LLP, Lloyds Bank Pension Trust (No. 1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Pension Trust (No. 2) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Pensions Property (Guernsey) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Properties Ltd, Lloyds Bank Property Company Ltd, Lloyds Bank S.F. Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank Subsidiaries Ltd, Lloyds Bank Trustee Services Ltd, Lloyds Bank plc, Lloyds Banking Group Pensions Trustees Ltd, Lloyds Capital GP Ltd, Lloyds Commercial Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Commercial Properties Ltd, Lloyds Commercial Property Investments Ltd, Lloyds Corporate Services (Jersey) Ltd, Lloyds Development Capital (Holdings) Ltd, Lloyds Engine Capital (No.1) U.S LLC, Lloyds Far East S.A.R.L., Lloyds General Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Group Holdings (Jersey) Ltd, Lloyds Holdings (Jersey) Ltd, Lloyds Hypotheken B.V., Lloyds Industrial Leasing Ltd, Lloyds International Pty Ltd, Lloyds Investment Bonds Ltd, Lloyds Investment Fund Managers Ltd, Lloyds Investment Securities No.5 Ltd, Lloyds Leasing (North Sea Transport) Ltd1, Lloyds Leasing Developments Ltd, Lloyds Nominees (Guernsey) Ltd, Lloyds Offshore Global Services Private Ltd, Lloyds Plant Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Portfolio Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Premises Investments Ltd, Lloyds Project Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Property Investment Company No. 3 Ltd, Lloyds Property Investment Company No. 4 Ltd, Lloyds Property Investment Company No.5 Ltd, Lloyds Secretaries Ltd, Lloyds Securities Inc., Lloyds TSB Pacific Ltd, Lloyds UDT Asset Leasing Ltd, Lloyds UDT Asset Rentals Ltd, Lloyds UDT Hiring Ltd, Lloyds UDT Leasing Ltd, Lloyds UDT Ltd, Lloyds Your Tomorrow Trustee Ltd, Loans.co.uk Ltd, London Taxi Finance Ltd, London Uberior (L.A.S. Group) Nominees Ltd, Lotus Finance Ltd, MBNA, MBNA Direct Ltd, MBNA Europe Finance Ltd, MBNA Europe Holdings Ltd, MBNA General Foundation, MBNA Global Services Ltd, MBNA Indian Services Private Ltd, MBNA Ltd, MBNA R & L S.A.R.L., MBNA Receivables Ltd, Mainsearch Company Ltd, Maritime Leasing (No. 19) Ltd, Membership Services Finance Ltd, Mitre Street Funding S.A.R.L., Molineux RMBS 2016-1 plc, Molineux RMBS Holdings Ltd, Moor Lane Holdings Ltd, NFU Mutual Finance Ltd, NWS Trust Ltd, Nominees (Jersey) Ltd, Nordic Leasing Ltd, Ocean Leasing (July) Ltd, Oystercatcher Nominees Ltd, Oystercatcher Residential Ltd, PIPS Asset Investments Ltd, Pacific Leasing Ltd, Penarth Asset Securitisation Holdings Ltd, Penarth Funding 1 Ltd, Penarth Funding 2 Ltd, Penarth Master Issuer plc, Penarth Receivables Trustee Ltd, Pensions Management (S.W.F.) Ltd, Peony Eastern Leasing Ltd, Peony Leasing Ltd, Peony Western Leasing Ltd, Permanent Funding (No. 1) Ltd, Permanent Funding (No. 2) Ltd, Permanent Holdings Ltd, Permanent Master Issuer plc, Permanent Mortgages Trustee Ltd, Permanent PECOH Holdings Ltd, Permanent PECOH Ltd, Perry Nominees Ltd, Prestonfield Investments Ltd, Proton Finance Ltd, R.F. Spencer And Company Ltd, Ranelagh Nominees Ltd, Retail Revival (Burgess Hill) Investments Ltd, SARL Coliseum, SARL Hiram, SAS Compagnie Fonciere De France, SCI Astoria Invest, SCI De LHorloge, SCI Equinoxe, SCI Rambuteau CFF, SW Funding plc, SW No.1 Ltd, SWAMF (GP) Ltd, SWAMF Nominee (1) Ltd, SWAMF Nominee (2) Ltd, Saint Michel Holding Company No1, Saint Michel Investment Property, Saint Witz 2 Holding Company No1, Saint Witz 2 Investment Property, Salisbury II Securities 2016 Ltd, Salisbury II-A Securities 2017 Ltd, Salisbury III Securities 2019 DAC, Salisbury Securities 2015 Ltd, Sandown 2012-2 Holdings Ltd, Sandown 2012-2 plc, Sandown Gold 2012-1 Holdings Ltd, Sandown Gold 2012-1 plc, Savban Leasing Ltd, Scotland International Finance B.V., Scottish Widows Administration Services (Nominees) Ltd, Scottish Widows Administration Services Ltd, Scottish Widows Annuities Ltd, Scottish Widows Auto Enrolment Services Ltd, Scottish Widows Europe, Scottish Widows Financial Services Holdings, Scottish Widows Group Ltd, Scottish Widows Industrial Properties Europe B.V., Scottish Widows Ltd, Scottish Widows Pension Trustees Ltd, Scottish Widows Property Management Ltd, Scottish Widows Schroder Personal Wealth (ACD) Ltd, Scottish Widows Schroder Personal Wealth Ltd, Scottish Widows Schroder Wealth Holdings Ltd, Scottish Widows Services Ltd, Scottish Widows Trustees Ltd, Scottish Widows Unit Funds Ltd, Scottish Widows Unit Trust Managers Ltd, Scottish Widows Fund and Life Assurance Society, Seabreeze Leasing Ltd, Seaspirit Leasing Ltd, Share Dealing Nominees Ltd, Shogun Finance Ltd, Silentdale Ltd, St Andrews Group Ltd, St Andrews Insurance plc, St Andrews Life Assurance plc, St. Marys Court Investments, Standard Property Investment (1987) Ltd, Standard Property Investment Ltd, Sussex County Homes Ltd, Suzuki Financial Services Ltd, Swan Funding 2 Ltd, Syon Securities 2019 DAC, The Agricultural Mortgage Corporation Plc, The British Linen Company Ltd, The Halifax Foundation for Northern Ireland, The Mortgage Business plc, Thistle Financing Holdings Ltd, Thistle Investments (AMC) Ltd, Thistle Investments (ERM) Ltd, Thistle Leasing, Three Copthall Avenue Ltd, Tower Hill Property Investments (10) Ltd, Tower Hill Property Investments (7) Ltd, Tranquility Leasing Ltd, Trinity Financing plc, UDT Budget Leasing Ltd, UDT Sales Finance Ltd, Uberior (Moorfield) Ltd, Uberior Co-Investments Ltd, Uberior ENA Ltd, Uberior Equity Ltd, Uberior Europe Ltd, Uberior Fund Investments Ltd, Uberior Infrastructure Investments (No.2) Ltd, Uberior Infrastructure Investments Ltd, Uberior Investments Ltd, Uberior Nominees Ltd, Uberior Trading Ltd, Uberior Trustees Ltd, Uberior Ventures Australia Pty Ltd, Uberior Ventures Ltd, United Dominions Leasing Ltd, United Dominions Trust Ltd, Universe The CMI Global Network Fund, Upsaala Ltd, Vine Street IX LP, WCS Ltd, Ward Nominees (Abingdon) Ltd, Ward Nominees (Birmingham) Ltd 1, Ward Nominees (Bristol) Ltd 1, Ward Nominees Ltd 1, Waverley  Fund II Investor LLC, Waverley  Fund III Investor LLC, Waymark Asset Investments Ltd, West Craigs Ltd, Wetherby II Securities 2018 DAC, Wetherby III Securities 2019 DAC, Wetherby Securities 2017 Ltd, Wood Street Leasing Ltd, and Zurich Insurance Group - UK Workplace Pensions and Savings Business.

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National Retail Properties is a REIT focused on retail-oriented properties across the United States. The company invests in high-quality retail properties subject to long-term leases that generate stable, consistent, predictable income. The company laid claim to 3,305 properties enclosing 33.8 million square feet of space in 48 states leased to 380 tenants engaged in 37 trades as of October 2022.

National Retail Properties was formed in 1984 as Golden Corral Realty Corporation. The company was intended as a means for employees to invest in Golden Corral but it soon took on a life of its own. The company split from its parent in 1993 and then became a REIT in 1998. Since then a number of mergers and acquisitions resulted in the company that is traded today.

National Retail Properties seeks to generate returns for shareholders through capital appreciation and dividends and is one of the most stable dividend payers in the REIT universe. The company made its 33rd consecutive distribution increase in 2022 ranking it 3rd on the list of REITs with sustained annual dividend increases. In regard to all publicly listed companies, there are less than 90 which have increased their payout for as many years or more as National Retail Properties. The compound annual growth rate runs in the range of 4% to 5%.

National Retail Properties is not limited in scope to the type of business it will lease to. The top four sectors occupying its space, however, are convenience stores, automotive-related, full-service, and limited-service restaurants which command a lions share of retail dollars. These segments made up nearly 49% of the portfolio in 2022 with no tenant making up more than 5% of the total income.

The top three tenants at the time are 7-11, Mister Car Wash, and Camping World followed by L.A. Fitness, GPM Investments (convenience), and Dave & Busters. The firm's average lease runs in the range of 10.6 years and occupancy runs high and above 99%. Properties are all single-occupier and leased on a net basis. Most properties are leased on a triple-net basis which means National Retail Properties is insulated from taxes, maintenance, and insurance costs. Other notable tenants include Yum! Brands and Wendys.

National Retail Properties uses leverage to enhance its returns. The companys debt ratio is low however and its debt carries an investment-grade rating from Standard & Poors and Moodys.
The following companies are subsidiares of Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft: ABFS I Incorporated, ABS MB Ltd., Alex. Brown Financial Services Incorporated, Alex. Brown Investments Incorporated, Alfred Herrhausen Gesellschaft mbH, Ambidexter GmbH i.L., Argent Incorporated, BHW - Gesellschaft fur Wohnungswirtschaft mbH, BHW Bausparkasse Aktiengesellschaft, BHW Holding GmbH, BT Globenet Nominees Limited, Bainpro Nominees Pty Ltd, Baldur Mortgages Limited, Bankers Trust Investments Limited, Bayan Delinquent Loan Recovery 1 (SPV-AMC) Inc., Berkshire Mortgage Finance, Betriebs-Center fur Banken AG, Better Financial Services GmbH, Better Payment Germany GmbH, Borfield Sociedad Anonima, Breaking Wave DB Limited, Cardales UK Limited, Cardea Real Estate S.r.l., Cathay Advisory (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Cathay Asset Management Company Limited, Cathay Capital Company (No 2) Limited, Cedar (Luxembourg) S.a. r.l., Chapel Funding, China Recovery Fund LLC, Consumo Srl in Liquidazione, D B Investments (GB) Limited, D&M Turnaround Partners Godo Kaisha, DB (Barbados) SRL, DB (Malaysia) Nominee (Asing) Sdn. Bhd., DB (Malaysia) Nominee (Tempatan) Sendirian Berhad, DB Alex. Brown Holdings Incorporated, DB Aotearoa Investments Limited, DB Beteiligungs-Holding GmbH, DB Boracay LLC, DB Capital Markets (Deutschland) GmbH, DB Cartera de lnmuebles 1 S.A.U., DB Chestnut Holdings Limited, DB Corporate Advisory (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., DB Delaware Holdings (Europe) Limited, DB Direkt GmbH, DB Elara LLC, DB Energy Trading LLC, DB Equipment Leasing Inc., DB Equity Limited, DB Finance (Delaware) LLC, DB Global Technology Inc., DB Global Technology SRL, DB Group Services (UK) Limited, DB HR Solutions GmbH, DB Holdings (New York) Inc., DB IROC Leasing Corp., DB Impact Investment Fund I. LP., DB Industrial Holdings Beteiligungs GmbH & Co. KG, DB Industrial Holdings GmbH, DB Intermezzo LLC, DB International (Asia) Limited, DB International Investments Limited, DB International Trust (Singapore) Limited, DB Investment Managers Inc., DB Investment Partners Inc., DB Investment Partners Limited, DB Investment Resources (US) Corporation, DB Investment Resources Holdings Corp., DB Investment Services GmbH, DB London (Investor Services) Nominees Limited, DB Management Support GmbH, DB Nominees (Hong Kong) Limited, DB Nominees (Jersey) Limited, DB Nominees (Singapore) Pte Ltd, DB Omega BTV S.C.S., DB Omega Holdings LLC, DB Omega Ltd., DB Omega S.C.S., DB Operaciones y Servicios lnteractivos Agrupacicm de lnteres Econemico, DB Overseas Finance Delaware Inc., DB Overseas Holdings Limited, DB Print GmbH, DB Private Clients Corp., DB Private Wealth Mortgage Ltd., DB Re S.A., DB Service Centre Limited, DB Service Uruguay S.A., DB Services (Jersey) Limited, DB Services Americas. Inc., DB Servizi Amministrativi S.r.l., DB Strategic Advisors Inc., DB Structured Derivative Products LLC, DB Structured Products Inc., DB Trustee Services Limited, DB Trustees (Hong Kong) Limited, DB UK Bank Limited, DB UK Holdings Limited, DB UK PCAM Holdings Limited, DB US Financial Markets Holding Corporation, DB USA Core Corporation, DB USA Corporation, DB Valoren S.a. r.l., DB Value S.a.r.l., DB VersicherungsManager GmbH, DB Vita SA., DB lmmobilienfonds 5 Wieland KG i.L., DB lo LP, DBAH Capital. LLC, DBCIBZ1, DBFIC Inc., DBNZ Overseas Investments (No.1) Limited, DBOI Global Services (UK) Limited, DBR Investments Co. Limited, DBRE Global Real Estate Management 18 Ltd., DBRMS4, DBRMSGP1, DBUK PCAM Limited, DBUSBZ1 LLC, DBUSBZ2 S.a. r.l., DBX Advisers LLC, DEBEKO lmmobilien GmbH & Co Grundbesitz OHG, DEE Deutsche Erneuerbare Energien GmbH, DEUKONA Versicherungs-Vermittlungs-GmbH, DEUTSCHE BANK AS., DI Deutsche lmmobilien Treuhandgesellschaft mbH, DISCA Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, DWS Alternatives France, DWS Alternatives Global Limited, DWS Alternatives GmbH, DWS Asset Management (Korea) Company Limited, DWS Beteiligungs GmbH, DWS CH AG, DWS Distributors Inc., DWS Far Eastern Investments Limited, DWS Group GmbH & Co. KGaA, DWS Group Services UK Limited, DWS Grundbesitz GmbH, DWS International GmbH, DWS Investment GmbH, DWS Investment Management Americas Inc., DWS Investment S.A., DWS Investments Australia Limited, DWS Investments Hong Kong Limited, DWS Investments Japan Limited, DWS Investments Shanghai Limited, DWS Investments Singapore Limited, DWS Investments UK Limited, DWS Management GmbH, DWS Real Estate GmbH, DWS Service Company, DWS Shanghai Private Equity Fund Management Limited, DWS Trust Company, DWS USA Corporation, Deposit Solutions, Deutsche (Aotearoa) Capital Holdings New Zealand, Deutsche (Aotearoa) Foreign Investments New Zealand, Deutsche (New Munster) Holdings New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Access Investments Limited, Deutsche Aeolia Power Production Societe Anonyme, Deutsche Alternative Asset Management (UK) Limited, Deutsche Asia Pacific Holdings Pte Ltd, Deutsche Asset Management (India) Private Limited, Deutsche Australia Limited, Deutsche Bank (Cayman) Limited, Deutsche Bank (China) Co. Ltd., Deutsche Bank (Malaysia) Berhad, Deutsche Bank (Suisse) SA, Deutsche Bank (Uruguay) Sociedad Anenima lnstitucien Financiera Externa, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft, Deutsche Bank Americas Holding Corp., Deutsche Bank Europe GmbH, Deutsche Bank Financial Company, Deutsche Bank Holdings Inc., Deutsche Bank Insurance Agency Incorporated, Deutsche Bank Luxembourg S.A., Deutsche Bank Mutui S.p.A., Deutsche Bank Mexico. S.A., Deutsche Bank National Trust Company, Deutsche Bank Polska Spelka Akcyjna, Deutsche Bank Representative Office Nigeria Limited, Deutsche Bank S.A, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., Deutsche Bank Securities Limited, Deutsche Bank Societe per Azioni, Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas, Deutsche Bank Trust Company Delaware, Deutsche Bank Trust Company National Association, Deutsche Bank Trust Corporation, Deutsche Bank. Sociedad Anenima Espanola, Deutsche CIB Centre Private Limited, Deutsche Capital Finance (2000) Limited, Deutsche Capital Hong Kong Limited, Deutsche Capital Markets Australia Limited, Deutsche Capital Partners China Limited, Deutsche Cayman Ltd., Deutsche Custody N.V., Deutsche Domus New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Equities India Private Limited, Deutsche Finance No. 2 Limited, Deutsche Foras New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Gesellschaft fur lmmobilien-Leasing mit beschrenkter Haftung, Deutsche Global Markets Limited, Deutsche Group Holdings (SA) Proprietary Limited, Deutsche Group Services Pty Limited, Deutsche Grundbesitz Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., Deutsche Grundbesitz-Anlagegesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Deutsche Holdings (BTI) Limited, Deutsche Holdings (Grand Duchy), Deutsche Holdings (Luxembourg) S.El r.l., Deutsche Holdings Limited, Deutsche Holdings No. 2 Limited, Deutsche Holdings No. 3 Limited, Deutsche Holdings No. 4 Limited, Deutsche India Holdings Private Limited, Deutsche India Private Limited, Deutsche International Corporate Services (Ireland) Limited, Deutsche International Corporate Services Limited, Deutsche International Custodial Services Limited, Deutsche Investments (Netherlands) N.V., Deutsche Investments India Private Limited, Deutsche Investor Services Private Limited, Deutsche Knowledge Services Pte. Ltd., Deutsche Leasing New York Corp., Deutsche Mexico Holdings S.a. r.|., Deutsche Morgan Grenfell Group Limited, Deutsche Mortgage & Asset Receiving Corporation, Deutsche Nederland N.V., Deutsche New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Nominees Limited, Deutsche Oppenheim Family Office AG, Deutsche Overseas Issuance New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Postbank, Deutsche Postbank Finance Center Objekt GmbH, Deutsche Private Asset Management Limited, Deutsche Securities (India) Private Limited, Deutsche Securities (Proprietary) Limited, Deutsche Securities (SA) (Proprietary) Limited, Deutsche Securities Asia Limited, Deutsche Securities Australia Limited, Deutsche Securities Inc., Deutsche Securities Israel Ltd., Deutsche Securities Korea Co., Deutsche Securities Mauritius Limited, Deutsche Securities SA. de C.V.. Casla de Bolsa, Deutsche Securities Saudi Arabia, Deutsche Services (Cl) Limited, Deutsche Services Polska Sp. z o.o., Deutsche StiftungsTrust GmbH, Deutsche Strategic Investment Holdings Yugen Kaisha, Deutsche Trustee Company Limited, Deutsche Trustee Services (India) Private Limited, Deutsche Trustees Malaysia Berhad, Deutsche Wealth Management S.G.I.I.C. SA., Deutsche lmmobilien Leasing GmbH, Deutsches lnstitut fur Altersvorsorge GmbH, Durian (Luxembourg) S.a. r.l., EC EUROPA IMMOBILIEN FONDS NR. 3 GmbH & CO. KG i.l., Elizabethan Holdings Limited, Elizabethan Management Limited, European Value Added I (Alternate GP.) LLP, Fiduciaria Sant Andrea S.r.l., Finanzberatungsgesellschaft mbH der Deutschen Bank, Funfte SAB Treuhand und Verwaltung GmbH & Co. Suhl "Rimbachzentrum" KG, G Finance Holding Corp., German American Capital Corporation, Grundstucksgesellschaft Frankfurt Bockenheimer LandstraBe GbR, Grundstucksgesellschaft Miesbaden LuisenstraBe/Kirchgasse GbR, Hollandsche Bank-Unie, ISTRON Beteiligungs- und Verwaltungs-GmbH, IVAF l Manager S.a.r.l., Immobilienfonds Buro-Center Erfurt am Flughafen Bindersleben I GbR, J R Nominees (Pty) Ltd, Joint Stock Company Deutsche Bank DBU, Jyogashima Godo Kaisha, KEBA Gesellschaft fur interne Services mbH, Kidson Pte Ltd, Konsul lnkasso GmbH, LA Water Holdings Limited, LAWL Pte. Ltd., Leasing Verwaltungsgesellschaft Waltersdorf mbH, Leonardo lll Initial GP Limited, MEF I Manager. S. a r.|., MIT Holdings Inc., Maher Terminals Holdings (Toronto) Limited, Morgan Grenfell & Company, MortgageIT, MortgagelT Inc., MortgagelT Securities Corp., OOO "Deutsche Bank TechCentIe", OOO "Deutsche Bank", OPB Verwaltungs- und Treuhand GmbH, OPB-Oktava GmbH, OPB-Quarta GmbH, OPPENHEIM Capital Advisory GmbH, OPPENHEIM PRIVATE EQUITY Manager GmbH, OPPENHEIM PRIVATE EQUITY Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, PADUS Grundstcks-VermietungsgeseIlschaft mbH, PB Factoring GmbH, PB Spezial-lnvestmentaktiengesellschatt mit Teilgesellschaftsvermogen, PCC Services GmbH der Deutschen Bank, PT Deutsche Sekuritas Indonesia, Pan Australian Nominees Pty Ltd, Plantation Bay. Inc., Postbank Akademie und Service GmbH, Postbank Beteiligungen GmbH, Postbank Direkt GmbH, Postbank Filialvertrieb AG, Postbank Finanzberatung AG, Postbank Leasing GmbH, Postbank lmmobilien GmbH, Quantiguous, R.B.M. Nominees Pty Ltd, RREEF, RREEF America LLC., RREEF China REIT Management Limited, RREEF European Value Added I (G.P.) Limited, RREEF Fund Holding Co., RREEF India Advisers Private Limited, RREEF Management LLC., RoPro U.S. Holding Inc., Route 28 Receivables. LLC, SAB Real Estate Verwaltungs GmbH, SAGITA Grundstucks-Vermielungsgesellschaft mbH, SAPIO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, Sal. Oppenheim, Sal. Oppenheim jr. & Cie. Beteiligungs GmbH, Sharps SP l LLC, Stelvio lmmobiliare S.r.l., Suddeutsche Vermeigensvewvaitung Gesellschaft mit beschrenkter Haftung, TELO Beleiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Tempurrite Leasing Limited, Thai Asset Enforcement and Recovery Asset Management Company Limited, Treuinvest Service GmbH, Triplereason Umited, VOB-ZVD Processing GmbH, WEPLA Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Wealthspur Investment Ltd., World Trading (Delaware) Inc., lmmobilienfonds BuroCenter Erfurt am Flughafen Bindersleben II GbR, lmmobilienfonds Wohn- und Gescheftshaus Koln-Blumenberg V GbR, and norisbank GmbH.

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NASDAQ is an acronym for the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations. The NASDAQ stock exchange is owned by Nasdaq, Inc. and serves as an international electronic marketplace where investors can buy and sell securities. It is the second largest stock exchange in the world.

The NASDAQ exchange lists stocks from virtually every sector of the economy. Although they are heavily weighted in technology, you will also see them as a leader in fields such as healthcare and biotech, energy and industrials and financial services.

And the NASDAQ is also an index which is referred to as the NASDAQ Composite. When you hear that the NASDAQ was up or down, they are referring to the index.

This index measures over 3,000 stocks listed on the NASDAQ exchange and includes the worlds leading tech stocks including the FAANG stocks. The index is a mathematical average of the stocks that are listed. The NASDAQ index cant be traded. However, investors can purchase an index fund that is similar to a mutual fund or an ETF and is made up of the stocks in the index.

The purpose of this article is to provide a brief history of the NASDAQ, explain how its different from the NYSE and the Dow Jones Index, and why the NASDAQ is important to investors.

What Were the Origins of the NASDAQ?

The NASDAQ started trading on February 8, 1971. It was created as an alternative to the NYSE so as to give new, emerging companies a way into the stock market. Since the NYSE is made up of primarily blue-chip companies with a large market capitalization, many financially sound companies with modest assets had to look for alternate means to raise capital.

At first, the NASDAQ only provided quotations and matched buyers and sellers with dealers. As it started trading, it became a source for speculative, over-the-counter (OTC) stocks to raise capital. However, when it became the first U.S. stock market to conduct online trading, it soon became the go-to exchange for technology stocks that saw it as a more modern way to list their stocks. In a way, it reflected the innovation that those companies represented.

What Are the Listing Requirements for the NASDAQ?

For starters, the NASDAQ is a company. So every company that wishes to be listed on the NASDAQ has to pay an initial listing fee. This fee can be between $50,000 and $75,000. In addition, there is an annual fee to remain as a member. This fee can be as lows as $42,000 or as high as $155,000 depending on the companys size.

But being part of an exchange is not just a matter of paying dues. To be listed, a company must meet a set of requirements. These include but are not limited to:

Quantitative financial requirements (earnings, market cap, and assets)

Corporate governance standards that give clear guidance about issues like shareholder rights and annual meetings

Once a stock is listed, they must continue to meet regulatory requirements by making financial information about the company and the stock available to the public. And, the companies listed on the NASDAQ must meet SEC requirements, including the filing of financial reports. All of this is done to provide transparency to investors. For this reason, as the NASDAQ has grown up it is no longer the domain of speculative over-the-counter stocks.

How is the NASDAQ Different from the NYSE?

Initially, the primary difference between the NYSE and NASDAQ was in the way trades were conducted. The NYSE is an auction market. As the word auction implies, trades occur between buyers who offer a bid price for a stock and sellers who have an ask price. The highest bidding price is matched with the lowest asking price. The NASDAQ, by contrast, started as a dealers market where these dealers served as middlemen between buyers and sellers.

With the advent of trading technology, the difference in methodology between the two exchanges is more subtle. The NASDAQ now automatically matches buyers and sellers similar to an auction system. And the NYSE relies heavily on computers to facilitate their trades. One of the differences remains the presence of human brokers who still man the trading floor of the NYSE.

Another subtle difference comes with how the exchanges ensure liquidity and security. On the NYSE, each security has a Designated Market Maker (DMM) who serves as an auctioneer of sorts. Unlike the NYSE, each security on the NASDAQ has multiple Market Makers to help ensure liquidity. Apple, for example, has 54 registered Market Makers.

Yet another difference can be found in the size and profile of the companies listed with each exchange. As of June 2022, the NYSE includes approximately 2,400 companies with a market capitalization of over $28.2 trillion. The NASDAQ has over 3,300 listings with a total market capitalization of $11 trillion dollars. Why is this significant? The NYSE has been around since 1792 making it the oldest stock exchange and for almost 200 years the only game in town. As a result, it is home to many of what are seen as the blue-chip companies. The NASDAQ, by comparison, generally consists of stocks that are more volatile and growth oriented. In recent years, it is for housing the FAANG stocks (Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google/Alphabet).

How is the NASDAQ Different from the Dow?

Both the Dow and the NASDAQ are predictive indicators of the market direction. In the case of the Dow, the stocks can be listed on the NYSE or the NASDAQ exchanges.

The Dow Jones (also known as The Dow) is an index of what are considered the 30 biggest companies in terms of scale and firm returns. When stock reports are given you usually hear reference to The Dow was up X number of points or The Dow was down X number of points. This is referring to the average of these 30 stocks. It is considered to be a broad view of the market in general. You may also hear the phrase advancers versus decliners. This refers to how many stocks in the Dow 30 made gains for the day (advancers) and how many had losses (decliners).

The companies in the Dow 30 make up the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA). Some investors may buy an index fund which contains only the securities that make up the Dow 30.

The NASDAQ is also an index, but it is also an exchange that is made up of over 3,400 individual securities. Many of these securities are in the technology sector. Some of these securities may be part of the Dow 30, but the index as a whole is separate from the Dow. Like the Dow, many investors choose to invest in index funds that are tailored to stocks in the NASDAQ. The USAA NASDAQ 100 Index Fund (USNQX) is one such fund. This fund includes the 100 biggest stocks (non-financial) that are listed on the NASDAQ exchange.

What Does the NASDAQ Say About Investor Sentiment?

The NASDAQ offers growth investors a cue to how much risk the market is willing to absorb at a given moment. For example, when you hear that the Dow is up (which usually means the NYSE is up), it typically signals a time of where investors may be less inclined to take risks. But when the NASDAQ is up and the Dow is down or trailing, it usually signifies that investors are more confident about the overall economy and are willing to assume more risk.

And as we stated earlier, the NASDAQ still plays a critical role in how many young companies go public. There were 34 initial public offerings (IPOs) posted on the NYSE in 2016. This was just three percent of the total volume of IPOs worldwide. By contrast, in that same year, the NASDAQ held 77 IPOs which was seven percent of global IPOs, more than double that of the NYSE.

Some Final Thoughts on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange

The arrival of the NASDAQ stock exchange in the 1970s created a choice for investors that meant more than just choosing Coke or Pepsi. By offering a lower cost of entry and welcoming start-ups with a focus on innovation, the NASDAQ gave these companies a stock exchange that looked like them.

Today, the NASDAQ is the largest electronic stock market with over 3,000 companies listed. And ironically, the five largest companies in terms of market cap are listed on the NASDAQ. However, although this stock exchange has grown up a bit, it still retains its rebellious cache. With its focus on technology stocks, many of the worlds most nimble and innovative companies look to get listed on the NASDAQ as a way to raise capital. It is almost synonymous with technology and serves as a predictor of the broader markets appetite for risk.
Ashford Hospitality Trust is a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on the hospitality industry. The companys portfolio is concentrated in upper upscale, full-service hotels across the US. The portfolio strategy seeks to optimize total returns by maximizing the value of new acquisitions while paying dividends over time. The company boasts a geographically diversified portfolio of dominant branded full-service hotels. Ashford Inc externally advises Ashford Hospitality Trust.

Ashford Hospitality Trust is the culmination of decades of real estate experience dating back to the 1960s. Now based in Dallas, TX, the company was founded and went public in 2003. The company is geared to withstand the ups and downs of the hospitality and hotel cycles. The company is committed to disciplined capital market activities, has a successful transaction track record, and brings value-added asset management to the table.

Ashford Hospitality Trust is guided by five principles that best describe the company. These are Ethical, Innovative, Profitable, Engaging, and Tenacious and all key components of its reputation for integrity.

The companys portfolio is well-diversified across brands and includes but is not limited to Courtyard, Crown Plaza, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn, Hilton, Marriot, Ritz-Carlton, and Sheraton. Properties are located in 25 of the 50 US states and Washington, D.C. targeting the top 25 markets in the nation. The company also owns a number of private and boutique names as well.

Ashford Hospitality Trust was founded by Monty J. Bennet who is the Chairman of the Board as well as Chairman, CEO, and President of Ashford, Inc which also trades on the NYSE. Mr. Bennet has more than 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry including owning and operating major hotels.
Dollar General Corporation, a discount retailer, provides various merchandise products in the southern, southwestern, Midwestern, and eastern United States. It offers consumable products, including paper and cleaning products, such as paper towels, bath tissues, paper dinnerware, trash and storage bags, disinfectants, and laundry products; packaged food comprising cereals, pasta, canned soups, fruits and vegetables, condiments, spices, sugar, and flour; and perishables that include milk, eggs, bread, refrigerated and frozen food, beer, and wine. The company's consumable products also comprise snacks, such as candies, cookies, crackers, salty snacks, and carbonated beverages; health and beauty products, including over-the-counter medicines and personal care products, such as soaps, body washes, shampoos, cosmetics, and dental hygiene and foot care products; pet supplies and pet food; and tobacco products. In addition, it offers seasonal products comprising holiday items, toys, batteries, small electronics, greeting cards, stationery, prepaid phones and accessories, gardening supplies, hardware, and automotive and home office supplies; and home products that include kitchen supplies, cookware, small appliances, light bulbs, storage containers, frames, candles, craft supplies and kitchen, and bed and bath soft goods. Further, the company provides apparel, which comprise casual everyday apparel for infants, toddlers, girls, boys, women, and men, as well as socks, underwear, disposable diapers, shoes, and accessories. As of February 25, 2022, it operated 18,190 stores in 47 states in the United States. The company was formerly known as J.L. Turner & Son, Inc. and changed its name to Dollar General Corporation in 1968. Dollar General Corporation was founded in 1939 and is based in Goodlettsville, Tennessee.
West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells containment and delivery systems for injectable drugs and healthcare products in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in two segments, Proprietary Products and Contract-Manufactured Products. The Proprietary Products segment offers stoppers and seals for injectable packaging systems; syringe and cartridge components, including custom solutions for the needs of injectable drug applications, as well as administration systems that enhance the safe delivery of drugs through advanced reconstitution, mixing, and transfer technologies; and films, coatings, washing, and vision inspection and sterilization processes and services to enhance the quality of packaging components. It also provides drug containment solutions, including Crystal Zenith, a cyclic olefin polymer in the form of vials, syringes, and cartridges; and self-injection devices, as well as a range of integrated solutions, including analytical lab services, pre-approval primary packaging support and engineering development, regulatory expertise, and after-sales technical support. This segment serves biologic, generic, and pharmaceutical drug companies. The Contract-Manufactured Products segment is involved in the design, manufacture, and automated assembly of devices used in surgical, diagnostic, ophthalmic, injectable, and other drug delivery systems, as well as consumer products. It serves pharmaceutical, diagnostic, and medical device companies. The company distributes its products through its sales force and distribution network, as well as contract sales agents and regional distributors. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. was incorporated in 1923 and is headquartered in Exton, Pennsylvania.




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Le Mornes isolation in Mauritius made it an ideal place to escape to for many slaves in East Africa in the 1700s and 1800s. Le Morne Mountain and the Maroon Republic is a United nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site, recognized for its historical importance in the slave trade. The site is a testimony to the maroon movement, wherein slaves escaped oppression in search for freedom.

5. Geography of Le Morne -

Le Morne Mountain is a massif rising to 556 meters on the southwestern edge of the island nation of Mauritius. The massif is located on a peninsular surrounded by a lagoon. The rugged mountain stands isolated, with many cliffs as well as caves. Its terrain is characterized by fissures, ravines, and steep slopes which made the mountains cliffs and caves inaccessible. The slaves braved the hazardous journey up the massif to escape captivity. The massif resembles a natural fortress, where the slaves formed settlements in its summit and foothills.

4. The 'Maroon Republic', Haven for Runaway Slaves -

As more and more slaves ran away to the mountain, the maroon population became so significant that the massif became known as the Maroon Republic.' From the 1700s until slavery was abolished, many slaves ran away from their masters to the mountain, which had become a symbol of freedom from the oppressive life they led. The slave population in Mauritius became large as a result, and by the early 19th Century, Maroons made up about 85% of the total islands population. The island eventually gained the title of the Maroon Republic due to the numerous settlements on Le Morne Mountain.

3. Educational Significance and Legacy -

Le Morne Mountain is an outstanding example of the maroon movement, championed by slaves around the world. The site stands as a witness to slaves suffering and their corresponding fight for emancipation. The massif is a testament to the maroons consciousness, as they resisted oppression being aware of the existence of freedom. The site further illustrates the impact of maroon and colonial oppression. The mountain is closely associated with maroon oral traditions as they pertain to slavery and resistance. Songs, oral stories, and traditions of the Maroons are still told practiced in Mauritius. Folktales of how slaves jumped to their deaths at the sight of British officers approaching the summit to tell them that slavery had been abolished are often told in the countrys modern society. The mountain serves as a cultural and historical monument beyond its geographical location.

2. Mountain Habitats and Biodiversity -

The Mountain is home to numerous endemic and near-endemic flora species, including the Trochetia boutonania, Bois Chevre, and Hibiscus fragilis. The ebony trees on the mountain support abundant bird populations as well.

1. Environmental Threats and Conservation Efforts -

The site consists of a "Core" zone and a "Buffer" zone. The Ministry of Land and Housing in Mauritius controls developments on both of the zones to ensure the site retains its integrity. The Le Morne Heritage Trust Fund Board is mandated with the conservation of the site. The board is guided by the Le Morne Heritage Trust Fund Act (2004).
The Vietnam War started as a result of the United States' strategy of "containment", which was intended to minimize the spread of communism throughout the world during the Cold War. Vietnam was a temporarily separated into the North Communist and South anti-communist after the signing of Geneva treaty in 1954 which also brought an end to the French Colony. The French lost control of Vietnam towards the end of the Korean War. With the U.S. fearing that Vietnam will also fall under the control of the Communists intervened to try and keep the South Vietnam from falling. Their intervention led to the outbreak of several battles which have been collectively referred to as the Vietnam War.

10. Battle of Ia Drang -

The Battle of la Drang is considered to be the first major engagement between the U.S. Army and the Vietnams People Army (PAVN). It was a two-part battle which took place from November 14 to 18, 1965 at the la Drang Valley, South Vietnam. Both sides suffered major casualties with both claiming victory of their own. The Battle of la Drang was considered essential because it sets up a change of tactics for both troops during the conflict. The U.S. Army used air mobility and artillery to achieve their objectives while the Vietnam Army neutralized the U.S. Army by fighting at close range.

9. Battle of Khe Sanh -

The Battle of Khe Sanh took place at Khe Sanh in South Vietnam in the province of Quang Tri. The engagement took place from January 21, 1968, to April 9, 1968. The engagement began when the Peoples Army of Vietnam (PAVN) bombarded the U.S. Marine garrison leading to an extensive battle which lasted 77 days until Operation Pegasus ended the engagement. The Battle of Khe Sanh was among the longest battles to be fought during the Vietnam War. The U.S. Army had to abandon the battle for the first time because of the pressure from the enemy. Despite the heavy casualty, both sides claimed victory.

8. Tet Offensive -

The Tet Offensive was a large military offensive during the Vietnam War which was initiated at the end of January in 1968. The engagement was launched by the Viet Cog and the North Vietnamese (PAVN) against the South Vietnamese Army (ARVN) troops and those of the U.S. The initial attacks stunned the U.S. and the ARVN causing them to lose control of several cities. However, they quickly regrouped and launched an offensive which inflicted heavy casualty on the PAVN army. The battle was fought for two months ending on March 28, 1968. The Tet Offensive had a profound effect on the U.S. Government and its citizens because they had been made to believe that the PAVN had been weakened and was unable to launch such an aggressive military operation.

7. Battle of Hue -

The Battle of Hue was one of the bloodiest and longest battles fought during the Vietnam War. During the battle, the forces of the U.S. Army, ARVN, and the U.S. Marine Corps fought and defeated the PAVN and the Viet Cong. Hue was an important city for the U.S. Army and its allies because Highway 1 which passed through the city was an important supply line. The city was also a base for U.S. Navy supply boat. However, the Hue was poorly defended and had few fortifications. The Viet Cong had attacked and occupied several cities including the Hue while the ARVN army concentrated on the cancellation of the Tet. Over the next month, from January 31, 1968, to February 28, 1968, the PAVN and Viet Cong armies were driven out in an intense fighting with the Allies declaring victory. However, the city of Hue was destroyed with 5,000 civilians killed.

6. Operation Rolling Thunder -

Operation Rolling Thunder was a progressive and sustained aerial campaign carried out by the 2nd Air Division of the U.S. Navy and the South Vietnam Air Force (VNAF) forces against the North Vietnamese from March until November of 1968. The objective of Operation Rolling Thunder was to uplift the spirit of the Saigon Regime in North Vietnam, to convince North Vietnam to withdraw its support for the communist army in South Vietnam, to cut-off the transportation system of the North Vietnam, and to stop the material flow into South Vietnam. The operation was the most intense battle ever conducted during the Cold War. Most of the air-to-air lose for the U.S. Army was due to the unseen attacks from the rear.

5. Battle of Hamburger Hill -

The Battle of Hamburger Hill was fought between the ARVN with U.S. Army support against the PAVN for eleven days from May 10th through May 20th in 1969. The engagement was conducted on Hill 937 which was renamed Hamburger Hill due to its grinding nature. The Battle of Hamburger Hill was a part of the Operation Apache Snow whose goal was to clear the PAVN forces from Shau Valley. Despite the hill being of little strategic value to the U.S., it caused unnecessary casualties. The Battle of Hamburger Hill also led to the diminishing of the popularity of the conflict since many felt that the battle was pointless and many doubted whether or not the U.S. should be involved in Vietnam further.

4. Easter Offensive of 1972 -

The Easter Offensive was conducted by the PAVN against the ARVN and the U.S. troops between March and October of 1972 in the wake of the failed Operation Lam Son 719 of 1971. It was launched partly to influence the 1972 U.S. Presidential Election, and also to improve North Vietnams negotiating position during the peace talks in Paris. The attack was launched by the PAVN in three fronts simultaneously. PAVNs success was hindered by the heavy casualty and the U.S.'s destructive air power. The ARVN forces managed to recapture Quang Tri and other bases from the PAVN forces. However, the North Vietnam gained a better bargaining power despite the defeat.

3. Operations Linebacker I & II -

Operations Linebacker I & II were U.S. Air Force and Navy campaigns which were conducted against the North Vietnamese at the latter period of the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Operations Linebacker I was held from May to October 1972 while Operations Linebacker II was held from December 18 to 29, 1972. The first operation was held to slow transportation of material for the Easter Offensive while the second operation was to major target complexes in Hanoi area. The attacks led to severe damage to the North Vietnam infrastructure. Millions of gallons of petroleum products were also destroyed in the process.

2. Battle of Xuan Loc -

The Battle of Xuan Loc was the final major battle to be fought during the Vietnam War. It was fought between April 9th and April 20th of 1975 in and around the town of Xuan Loc. It was the last effort by the last ARVN military to stop the progress of the PAVN troops and save the South Vietnam after its major defeat in the city of Hue. The ARVN troops were forced to withdraw from the battle line due to the isolation of the town. The Battle of Xuan Loc was a blow to the ARVN and South Vietnams leadership leading to the resignation of President Thieu. The gateway to Saigon was finally opened for the PAVN forces.

1. Fall of Saigon -

The victory at Xuan Loc opened up the door for the PAVN forces to conquer Saigon, the South Vietnamese capital. Over 100,000 troops of the PAVN surrounded the city by April 27, 1975, with only 60,000 ARVN troops left to defend their capital. However, most of the ARVN troops joined the people who were walking out of the city. The fall of Saigon was sealed by the evacuation of the U.S. Forces bringing an end to the Vietnam War on April 30, 1975, and leading to the reunification of Vietnam and the strengthening of communism throughout the entire country.
(Scroll down for video) Passengers on a flight from Canada to the United Kingdom, were shocked to see a young girl falling unconscious.

The incident unfolded on Saturday, after the Air Canada flight took off from Toronto around 1:00 p.m.

The 10-year-old girl was traveling with three adult siblings when she began to feel ill. Her condition quickly deteriorated and she fell unconscious.

Three medical professionals were on board Flight AC-868 from Toronto to London. They tried to revive the girl who suffered from cardiac arrest.

The pilot requested an emergency landing at the Shannon Airport in Ireland.

An ambulance waited at the airport, and the girl was rushed to the University Hospital Limerick, where she was pronounced dead.

A coroner will determine the cause of death. Police in Ireland and Canada have launched separate investigations into the incident.
A mother became extremely angry when her young children decided to open their Christmas presents too early, according to police in Indiana.

Hancock County police said that they have arrested 36-year-old Sascha Collins, after being accused of beating her two children, who are 7 and 9 years old.

Collins has been charged with two counts of battery. If convicted, she faces up to 12 years in prison. According to the criminal complaint, the incident unfolded in the family home on Sunday.

The boysa sister came home in the morning, and found her two brothers upset and crying.

The boys told their sister that they were beaten with a belt and thrown against a wall for opening the Christmas presents that were hidden in their mothers closet.

Collins also bit one of the kids. Collinsa teenage daughter called the police. The girl told police that her mother is an alcoholic and did drugs on Saturday night.

Collins allegedly admitted to assaulting her two sons.
Suzette Ann Hall

By: Chan Yuan WorldWideWeirdNews.com

A woman who loves giving haircuts while being topless, was caught being married to two men at the same time, according to police in Colorado.

Boulder County police said that they have arrested 48-year-old Suzette Ann Hall, after marrying a man while being married.

Hall has been charged with bigamy and two counts of violating bond. If convicted, she faces up to 18 months in prison. In an unrelated case, Hall has been charged with practicing cosmetology and massaging without a license.

She was booked into the Boulder County Jail, and her bail has been set at $20,000. According to the criminal complaint, Hall is married to at least two men and is having a sexual relationship with a third man.

Hall was caught after submitting a recent marriage application in which she claimed that her former husband died. Police also received a call from one of the husbands who was trying to annul his marriage to Hall.

Another husband told police that Hall had moved to Wyoming to run a brothel and a business called Five Star Hair. Hall became famous for giving haircuts while being topless.
20 New Welsh Ambulance Emergency Medical Technicians Hit The Road

This article is old - Published: Monday, Dec 26th, 2016

The Welsh Ambulance Service has welcomed a group of newly-qualified Emergency Medical Technicians into its fold.

The 20 new recruits, who undertook their training at Swanseas National Ambulance Training College, hit the road on Friday 23 December 2016.

The group will work across four of the seven health board areas in Wales; Betsi Cadwaladr, Hywel Dda, Abertawe Bro Morgannwg and Aneurin Bevan.

Last week was the cohorts formal attainment ceremony in Swansea, and the Trusts Director of Operations Richard Lee and Executive Director of Workforce and Organisational Development Claire Vaughan popped in to say congratulations.

Richard said: Wed like to extend our warmest congratulations and well wishes to our new recruits who have spent the last 14 weeks training hard in order to qualify.

Were very grateful that you picked the Welsh Ambulance Service to be a part of and we look forward to the skills and know-how you will bring to our workforce.

Thanks should go to the Trusts Learning and Development Team who have supported our new EMTs through their training.

Welcome to the best job in the world.

Claire added: We were delighted to have been invited to celebrate this wondrous achievement. Well done and welcome to #TeamWAST.

Emergency Medical Technicians work alongside Paramedics to deliver pre-hospital care to those patients in need.

Please visit the NHS Jobs website to view the latest vacancies at the Welsh Ambulance Service.

You can also keep abreast of recruitment news by following the Welsh Ambulance Service on Twitter @WelshAmbulance and by liking its Facebook page: Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust
TALLAHASSEE, FL. (WTXL) -- Police have identified the victim and other parties involved in an fatal hit and run in Tallahassee.

The Tallahassee Police Department said that Tyriq Roberts was the man who was killed in a three car accident Monday morning.

They said that Deontae Johnson was driving on Tennessee around midnight, when he ran a red light and hit Roberts at the intersection at Appleyard Drive, causing him to then hit Breanna Cotton's car.

Police said that Johnson and the unidentified passenger with him fled the scene.

Roberts, who Leon County Schools confirmed was a student at Rickards High School, was pronounced dead on the scene. Cotton and her passenger, Kristal Haynes, were transported to the hospital for serious injuries.

Police are asking anyone with information to call (850)891-4200.
As'ad's Bio

As'ad AbuKhalil, born March 16, 1960. From Tyre, Lebanon, grew up in Beirut. Received his BA and MA from American University of Beirut in pol sc. Came to US in 1983 and received his PhD in comparative government from Georgetown University. Taught at Tufts University, Georgetown University, George Washington University, Colorado College, and Randolph-Macon Woman's College. Served as a Scholar-in-Residence at Middle East Institute in Washington DC. He served as free-lance Middle East consultant for NBC News and ABC News, an experience that only served to increase his disdain for maintream US media. He is now professor of political science at California State University, Stanislaus. His favorite food is fried eggplants.
The world is hurting over the situation in Aleppo . Emotional articles and posts are being published here and there. Syrian President Bashar Assad and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah are extremely moved. They know that no one will lift a finger to help. Interior Minister Aryeh Deri has asked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to turn to the United Nations. Oh, come on.

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US Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power delivered a firm and moving speech in a recent Security Council briefing. "Are you truly incapable of shame? she asked. Is there no execution of a child that gets under your skin?" She knows how to speak. There were even tears. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei were unmoved.

Refugees feeling Aleppo. The Nigerians and Somalis situation is much worse than the Syrians situation, but they dont have any Internet access, so no one is moved (Photo: AFP)

The massacre wont stop without action. And those who are getting all emotional, might I remind you, usually lead the camp that is against action. They lauded and praised US President Barack Obama for not intervening, even when it may have been possible to stop the bloodbath.

These emotions are the result of exposure to information. Because there are much greater tragedies occurring in other places as we speak. On the border between Nigeria, Chad, Niger and Cameroon, there are 1.4 million children who have become refugees, and 75,000 of them are on the verge of starvation. In Somalia, 200,000 have already died because the local jihad organization, al-Shabaab, has halted food deliveries, and 38,000 children under the age of five are in danger of starving. The Nigerians and Somalis situation is much worse than the Syrians situation. But they dont have any Internet access, and no one there has heard about social media. So no one is moved.

Only a week ago, 38 people were slaughtered in Istanbul, 25 Coptic people in Cairo, 48 in the Yemeni city of Aden, 56 in a busy market in Madagali, Nigeria, by two girls with explosive belts, and finally, 29 more in Mogadishu, Somalia. They were all killed by suicide bombers. Apart from Turkey, all these horrors have one thing in common: Global jihad. Most of these terror attacks were not mentioned by the worlds leading media outlets. Who cares? If it happened in Helsinki, the world would go wild, and Sweden's foreign minister would say that it happened because of the occupation.

We cant prevent what is happening in Syria or in Somalia. We can prevent a similar future in Israel. We must remember that this huge bloodbath is the outcome, among other things, of hostile populations placed in a pressure cooker of one state. If it wont work between Muslims and Muslims, why does anyone think it can work between Jews and Arabs?

The two-state formula is irrelevant considering the regional circumstances. Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan dont want a Palestinian state either, as it will quickly turn into another jihadi base. The right wing is right about this, but the conclusion is not one state. There is a large range of possibilities between the two options. For example, the commanders outline, which includes both a demographic separation and ongoing security control.

One thing is clear: We should take a look at the mixture of populations in the Muslim arena. The Coptic people are not occupying anyone, but they are being persecuted and murdered. The Nigerians and the Somalis have done nothing wrong. Nonetheless, the local jihad branches are massacring them. The bloodbath and the horrors could reach Israel, as soon as the one state materializes here. The anti-Zionist left wants it. The anti-Zionist right is fulfilling it.

Here are a few of comments made by the racist right, which is rearing its head in the West: The Arabs are a kingdom of evil The Muslim behavior is the result of pure evil, sadistic evil, evil for the sake of evil Peace activists who are cooperating with the Palestinians are selling their soul to the devil The Muslims are behaving in an inhumane manner because they act out of a feeling of racial supremacy. I can go on. There is more. Is this racism? Of course it is.

And lets assume that these comments were made about Jews and/or about Israel rather than about Muslims. Could they be defined as anti-Semitism? Of course they could. Well, these things, almost word for word, have been written by Jews, mainly in Haaretz newspaper, against the Jews in Israel.

British Prime Minister Theresa May (R) with Deputy Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely. Israel has to learn from her (Photo: John Rifkin)

Earlier this month it was British Prime Minister Theresa May, who courageously announced that she was adopting the official anti-Semitism definition penned by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA). These are some of the things included in that definition: Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor; applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation; drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis. And there is more.

The definition has undergone changes. It had already been submitted to the European Union in 2004. At first it was accepted, and then rejected, which was welcomed by the BDS campaign supporters. They know why. The definition clarifies what has already been known: Its an anti-Semitic campaign. The definition was later on accepted by different bodies, including the US State Department. After announcing the adoption of the definition, the BDS rushed to publish an article condemning the British prime minister.

American journalist Thomas Friedman, who cannot be suspected of overly sympathizing with the Israeli Right, wrote the following words: Criticizing Israel is not anti-Semitic, and saying so is vile. But singling out Israel for opprobrium and international sanction  out of all proportion to any other party in the Middle East  is anti-Semitic, and not saying so is dishonest. This was written in 2002, when the anti-Israel demonization and boycotts were just beginning on US campuses. It still applies today.

The British prime minister has adopted the proper definition of anti-Semitism. She doesnt have to learn a thing from Israel. On the contrary, Israel has to learn from her.
When foreign celebrities visit Jerusalem, there are only a handful of hotels they would stay at: the King David, the David Citadel, the Inbal, and, most recently, the Mamilla. But regardless of where they might sleep, most of them invariably end up eating at some point at the latters rooftop restaurant, with the eponymous name Rooftop. The primary attraction is the venues view of the citys ancient walls; located opposite Jaffa Gate, it is likely the closest restaurant with a vantage point overlooking the Old City.

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Quickly enough, however, the attention focuses on the food, as the kitchen is helmed by the executive chef of the hotel, Koby Bachar, formerly sous-chef of Mul Yam, widely acknowledged as one of the best restaurants in Israel before it burned down last year.

A good way to start a meal at Rooftop is with one of the restaurants eight specialty cocktails. The Mexican Verde, for example, packs a dual wallop: this blend of spicy tequila, triple sec, passion fruit, lemon, and mint, garnished with large slices of cucumber, is both piquant and alcoholic.

The bilingual menu comprises no fewer than 14 appetizers and 10 main courses. Just glancing at the detailed descriptions of the dishes will dazzle with the exotic nature and combinations of the ingredients, not to mention the exacting methods of preparation.

A prime example is the intriguingly named appetizer Capuccino: warm lentils salad, Turkish spinach, ratte potato, bok choy, lentils veloute, and curry lime foam. The frothy foam made for an interesting presentation, and the dish as a whole is a tasty vegetarian option.

The raw tabbouleh features sliced raw fish, fresh herbs, almonds and puffed bulgur. The freshness of the sea fish was evident, with the ingredients representing a nice interplay of flavors and textures.

The sirloin tataki with fresh tomatoes, kalamata olives, preserved lemon, garlic confit and deep-fried pita bread featured thin slices of steak with rosy centers. The meat was absolutely succulent.

Our last appetizer was the goose liver panko with shallot marmalade, a red wine reduction, and Jerusalem artichoke cream scented with vanilla. The goose liver was expertly prepared -- seared, then deep fried in panko. The Japanese bread crumbs added crunch to the soft foie gras, while the slight sweetness of the onion marmalade cut the exquisite richness of the delicacy.

Our first main course was the catch of the day: crusted sea bream with lemon and herbs, zucchini cream, snow peas, broccoli and peppadew pepper. The moist and flavorful fish was perfectly cooked, while the pepper left a pleasant tingle of heat in the mouth.

This dish was a reminder that the Mamilla knows how to do fish right: the hotels other restaurant is The Happy Fish, which specializes in both sea and freshwater fish, offering a wide range of fresh catches served with a smorgasbord of delicious mezze.

Another worthy main course at the Rooftop is the roasted goose breast, cooked sous-vide, with asparagus, spring onion and bok choy. The vacuum method of cooking insured that the poultry, basted with maple caramel sauce, was juicy; a unique finishing touch on this dish was sprinklings of Valrhona chocolate snow, for a juxtaposition of flavors that was outstanding.

The wine list here is quite possibly the most extensive in Israel: it can draw on the entire inventory of the hotels wine boutiqueWinerywhich boasts more than 60 different wines from the best wineries in the country.

Of the six desserts on the menu, we particularly enjoyed the charcoal grilled pineapple with polenta sable, mango yuzu sorbet and coriander salsa. The caramelized pineapple on a polenta wafer, accompanied by a scoop of sweet-and-tart sorbet on top of an herbed salsa, added up to a very refreshing dessert that hit all of the taste buds right spots.

The Rooftop is open-air dining at its finest for most of the year, and enclosed and heated during the winterwith transparent walls for preserving the unparalleled view all year round.

Rooftop

Kosher

The Mamilla Hotel

11 King Solomon St., Jerusalem
The office of the President of Taiwan ordered an investigation into an incident in which students at a Hsinchu City high school dressed as Nazi soldiers, waved swastika-draped flags, and shouted "Sieg Heil!"

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In pictures circulated on the web, the students' teacher is seen dressed as Adolf Hitler, leading the parade in a cardboard tank.

"We feel it is disrespectful to the Jewish people, who were victims of repression during the war, but most importantly, this highlights an ignorance of history," read the statement from the President's Office.

Photo: EPA

It is deplorable and shocking that seven decades only after the world had witnessed the horrors of the Holocaust, a high school in Taiwan is supporting such an outrageous action as we witnessed at Hsinchu Kuang Fu Senior High School, Israeli Representative to Taiwan Asher Yarden wrote on the missions Facebook page.

We strongly condemn this tasteless occurrence and call on the Taiwanese authorities, in all levels, to initiate educational programs which would introduce the meaning of the Holocaust and teach its history and universal meaning.

Photo: EPA

The German Institute Taipei also issued a statement on Facebook.

Sadly, the students clearly do not understand that the Nazi symbol stands for disregard for human rights and oppression, it said.

Taiwan's Minister of Education, Pan Wen-Chong expressed astonishment and regret and apologized for the incident, urging all schools in Taiwan to learn a lesson from it.

The minister said it would visit the school to look into the incident, assist in improving education programs and punish the school over an administrative negligence of duty.
Twelve Mossad members received awards for excellence on Sunday evening, including two operatives and a collections officer responsible for remarkable achievements on behalf of the Mossad.

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The recipientsmen, women, young and old alikecome from all areas of the Mossad. They were carefully selected by an administrative committee made of senior officials and on the basis of their work and contributions to the Mossad and the State of Israel.

The ceremony placed an emphasis on the integration of all departments within the Mossad, including operations, technology, research and logistics.

President Rivlin, Prime Minister Netanyahu and Mossad director Cohen at the ceremony (Photo: Koby Gideon, GPO)

President Reuvlin Rivlin praised the recipients, saying that the security establishment is improving constantly in dealing with the threats it faces while making quick and efficient adjustments to future threats, such as those of cyber warfare.

"We must recognize that Israel stands a stable island in the heart of a turbulent area. If we think that this stability will last forever and the security envelope we've built will be hermetically sealed, we may pay a heavy price," said Rivlin. "This is a time of heavenly mercy for Israeli security and we must do everything we can to exploit the future before the storm comes."

Mossad director Yossi Cohen, left sitting, and President Reuven Rivlin, right sitting, at the ceremony (Photo: Koby Gideon, GPO)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the recipients that he is asked to green-light daring and imaginative operations more and more often.

"We're fighting a very complex campaign. There are technological and human elements, and the need to combine the two. You are doing this in the best possible way," Netanyahu said. "You're an integral part. You're doing holy work in gathering intelligence that is critical for the security and future of the State of Israel. 'For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war,' and I add 'For by wise counsel thou shalt prevent thy war.'"

Mossad director Yossi Cohen praised the 12 recipients. "The excelling recipients are professional and thorough, creative and imaginative, courageous and daring of thought, dedicated and hard working. They represent a big part of the Mossad's fields of operations and create a chain with every link strong and of high quality. The Mossad works as one fist, on one front, while combining all of its capabilities," he said.
US Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro has asked the State Department to remain in Israel as a private citizen so his daughter could finish the school year.

Shapiro, who became an ambassador to Israel in July 2011, was expected to stay on had Hillary Clinton won the US presidential elections. But Donald Trump has appointed a new ambassador, David Friedman, meaning Shapiro will have to return to the US.

His daughter is in the 11th grade and currently taking the Israeli matriculation exams.

If allowed to stay, Shapiro will have to leave the ambassador's residence in Herzliya so Friedman could move in upon his approval by February or March.
Several months before the US presidential election, Republican candidate Donald Trump summoned a group of reporters from Jewish media outlets. They sat in front of him at his elegant bureau in New Yorks Trump Tower. He sat at the head of the table, alongside the Trump Organizations chief legal officer, Jason Greenblatt, a real estate expert, an Orthodox Jew, the son of refugees from Hungary who had fled the Nazis and arrived in New York.

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At some point, a correspondent for influential Jewish magazine The Forward asked Trump which definition he preferred to use when talking about the territories east of the Green Line, West Bank or Judea and Samaria? Trump seemed baffled by the question. He gestured to Greenblatt and said, Jason, how would you respond to that?

Jason Greenblatt. My philosophy is that bringing people together and working to unite is the strongest path to success (Photo: Getty Images)

When he was later asked if he had an advisor on Israel and Jewish affairs, he unhesitatingly pointed his finger at his lawyer and confidant and said: Hes the advisor. That was how Greenblatt became the Republican presidential hopefuls advisor on matters related to Jews and Israel.

This past weekend, he was appointed as the president-elects special representative for international negotiations, with a focus on Israel-Palestinian peace talks, trade agreements and the diplomatic ties between the United States and Cuba.

After the appointment was made public, Greenblatt said in a statement: My philosophy, in both business and in life, is that bringing people together and working to unite, rather than to divide, is the strongest path to success. I truly believe that this approach is one that can yield results for the United States in matters all over the world."

Interview with Jason Greenblatt (Video and production: Idan Arbeli) ( :  )

X

Greenblatt was born in 1967 and grew up in Queens, New York City. After graduating from Yeshiva University, he studied law and started a cappuccino coffee company with pod machines at airports, but the initiative failed due to the rise of Starbucks.

He resumed his career as a lawyer, working in a well-known New York company specializing in real estate. He began working for Trump in 1997 and became executive vice president and chief legal officer to the business mogul and the Trump Organization. He has written three travel books, one of them about a family trip to Israel. He visits Israel several times a year with his own family. His wife is a psychiatrist and they have six children.

During the campaign, Trump had another advisor on Israel and Jewish affairs , attorney David Friedman, who has recently been appointed US ambassador to Israel , subject to Congress approval. The two worked in coordination with Jared Kushner, Trumps Jewish son-in-law. Friedman escorted Trumps daughter, Ivanka, in her conversion process and even traveled with her to Israel a few years ago in a bid to buy a hotel in Tel Aviv that would be given the name Trump. The deal did not materialize after all.

Greenblatt said several times during the campaign that he was in favor of the two-state solution, but that the solution should be reached through negotiations between the two sides rather than be forced by the United Nations or any other international element. In the same breath, he said that the settlements were not an obstacle to peace.

In his new position, Greenblatt is expected to travel between Jerusalem and Ramallah in an attempt to find a way to restart the negotiations, which are currently nowhere on the horizon, but he plans to put a lot of effort into that mission and start working shortly after Trumps inauguration on January 20.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu added further retaliatory moves against the United Nations on Sunday night following the passing of a resolution that calls to halt settlement construction.

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Israel plans to target the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which Jerusalem says is investing a great deal of manpower and resources in moves meant to undermine and harm the State of Israel.

According to the Israeli government, there is evidence to indicate teachers and other workers in the agency regularly incite the Palestinian population against Israel.

Prime Minister Netanyahu (Photo: Gil Yohanan)

Israel will also seek to adjourn the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP), which Jerusalem says is a UN body whose entire purpose to "preserve the Palestinian narrative." With this, Israeli officials claim, the UN is actually taking sides in the conflict.

CEIRPP often pushes anti-Israeli resolutions at the UN, accusing it of "ethnically cleansing the Palestinians" and blaming it for the violence that has plagued Israel for over a year.

Israel will also work to cancel appointments of anti-Israeli officials at the UN who regularly make statements against Israel, at times using anti-Semitic language. So far, Israel's calls to dismiss these officials have fallen on deaf ears, but Jerusalem hopes the new US administration of Donald Trump would be able to assist on the matter.

Israel will promote a UN resolution that would set rules of conduct for UN employees, including employees of the UN's different agencies, so they would be made accountable for any statements that exceed their mandate, including ones that incite to violence or are anti-Semitic in nature. As a result of breaking the rules of conduct, the UN employees would be faced with personal sanctions, including dismissal.

Israel will work to cancel the funding for a March 2016 decision made by the UN Human Rights Council to compile a "black list" of businesses operating in Israel, which the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions Movement (BDS) could use for measures against Israel.

Finally, Israel will cut funding to different UN agencies.

Israel accuses the United Nations of being biased against it, and earlier this month, outgoing Secretary General Ban Ki-moon confirmed this assertion. "Over the last decade, I have argued that we cannot have a bias against Israel at the UN," Ban told the UN Security Council.

"Decades of political maneuvering have created a disproportionate number of resolutions, reports and committees against Israel. In many cases, instead of helping the Palestinian issue, this reality has foiled the ability of the UN to fulfill its role effectively."

Israel hopes the new Trump administration will be able to help facilitate these moves. The United States has a lot of influence over the international organization as it funds 22.4 percent of its budget.

Trump's choice for next US ambassador to the UN is Nikki Haley, the governor of South Carolina, a known Israel supporter. She was the first governor to pass legislation against the BDS Movement in her state and has made many pro-Israel comments throughout her career.

In addition to moves against the UN, Prime Minister Netanyahu also instructed the Foreign Ministry to suspend any Israeli diplomatic trips to the countries that supported the resolution and reduce contact with their embassies.

He also instructed government ministers not to hold meetings with ministers from these countries including Britain, France, Spain, Japan, Ukraine and Russianor travel there.
Meni Naftali , former chief caretaker of the prime ministers residence in Jerusalem, was arrested Saturday during a protest outside Attorney General Avichai Mandelblits home. According to eyewitnesses, he was beaten by the police despite not doing anything.

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About 40 protestors gathered outside Mandelblits home in Petah Tikva on Saturday evening, demanding that he launch a criminal investigation against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over his decision to purchase three submarines for the Israeli Navy from a German shipyard

Meni Naftali's arrest (Photo: Doron Tsabari)

The police were impatient, said director Doron Tsabari, who arrived to document the demonstration. Without any reason, while he was just standing on the side, five policemen came over and just grabbed Meni Naftali using unexplained violence, jumped him and beat him up in front of everyone while he was on the floor, then they handcuffed him and put him in a police car. He wasnt speaking or doing anything. I demanded to know why he was arrested, and they said that he had violated the demonstration conditions by using a loudspeaker during the protest. It was an extremely violent show.

Attorney Daniel Haklai, who represents Naftali together with attorney Yair Yefet, said Saturday that in light of testimonies that have been sent to me, I am looking into an initial suspicion of alleged police violence against him.

Attorney Nava Pinchuk-Alexander, Naftalis representative in his lawsuit against the state over the treatment he received from Prime Minister Netanyahu's wife Sara, was furious. This arrest is outrageous, she said.

The Israel Police offered the following response: During a demonstration in Petah Tikva, the protestors violated its conditions and disregarded the polices attempts to talk to them. After the protest was declared a forbidden gathering, its organizer was arrested and two other participants were detained for disrupting a policeman performing his duties. The Israel Police will allow the freedom of assembly as long as the protest meets its conditions and the requirements of the law.
Residents of the Netiv Haavot outpost in Gush Etzion, which is slated for evacuation following a High Court petition, have declared a boycott on a Palestinian garage owner who was among the petitioners.

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After Amona , Netiv Haavot will likely be next in line for evacuation. The High Court has ruled that because the outpost was built on privately-owned Palestinian land, it must be demolished by March 2018. Although its still far off, the 50 families living in the outpost have already launched a battle against the future evacuation.

Call for boycott. Before fixing our vehicles at Alis garage, lets fix the injustice at Netiv Haavot

The High Court petition was filed by the Peace Now movement and joined by eight petitioners, including Ali Mohammed Issa from the Palestinian town of al-Khader. Issa is the owner of Alis Garage, which is located in the area and serves the residents of nearby communities, including quite a lot of settlers.

Upon learning that Issa was one of the petitioners, the outposts residents decided to stop using his services and urged other residents of the area to do the same. We sat with him a few times, we offered him money and alternative land, but because of pressure from the Palestinian Authority, he refused, says Netiv Haavot resident Yochai Shalev. The goal is to pressure him financially to pull the petition. Its unthinkable that we would provide work to a man who wants to remove us from our home.

Acting Gush Etzion Regional Council head Moshe Seville says that the boycott is understandable and that joining it would be an obvious human act. There is nothing more reasonable than residents helping their neighbors and protesting against a person threatening their home, he explains.

Alis garage. They are stooping to a low level (Photo: Amit Shabi)

Issa is concerned about the boycott, fearing serious financial damage. They are stooping to a low level. Such a boycott affects the food I bring my children. Its my livelihood. They robbed me of my land and now they want to take away my livelihood. How can anyone do such a thing?

In 2009, the Civil Administration issued a demolition order against his garage, claiming it was built illegally. Ali petitioned the decision and an interim order was issued, leaving the situation unchanged. To this very day, the state has yet to submit its response to the issue.

"This is how delinquency is rewarded, says Ovad Arad, director of field operations at the Regavim movement, which monitors illegal Arab construction.

Peace Now, which initiated the petition, slammed the boycott against the Palestinian land owner.

Its a despicable act, the movement said in a statement. They robbed his land and are now trying to rob him of his livelihood. If the Gush Etzion settlers stand behind their declarations of cooperating with their neighbors, they should let him be. His only sin is wanting to regain possession of his land.
While the Kinneret has risen 18cm since the beginning of the month, making it the strongest December since 2013, officials at the Water Authority say it's just not enough as this major source of freshwater is still about 4.5 meters below the upper red line, which indicates full capacity.

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The Kinneret has only risen 2cm since Saturday, as rains fell mostly on the coastlinefrom Netanya to Ashkelonand did not reach the Galilee and Golan areas.

"Considering it's the end of December, a 2cm rise is not a particularly sharp one," said Dr. Amir Givati of the Water Authority.

Winter in Tel Aviv (Photo: Nayman Shubash)

"We hoped the precipitation would be more extensive and reach the Kinneret as well. It may have felt like winter, but the rain didn't come in large volumes to areas we need it inlike the Galilee and the Golan, where the streams drain into the Kinneret. Maybe we'll have snow on the Hermon Mountain and then we'll have a better flow of the streams."

Snow on Mount Hermon (Photo: Mount Hermon ski site)

Dr. Givati noted that as rain is forecasted to continue into the weekend, Water Authority officials hope it would reach all areas of the country.

Local rainfall continued on Monday morning in northern and central Israel and in the Judea mountains. Most of the rain has been falling in and north of Zikhron Yaakov, in the Tel Aviv area, and in inner parts of the country, but it is relatively weak compared to the night before.

The rain in central Israel is expected to abate by the late afternoon and evening time and resume during the night both in the center and in the north. During the night, the rain is expected to spread south towards the northern Negev and will be accompanied by thunderstorms and high winds.
Three Israeli men were indicted on Monday on suspicion they were involved in organ trade.

According to the indictment, the three menfrom Ashdod, Sha'arei Tikva and Herzliyapaid citizens of the former Soviet Union for organs and organized illegal transplant operations abroad for kidney failure patients.
Haim Yavin, who was one of Israels leading news anchors , has been accused of sexual harassment by several women who worked with him at the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA). The complaints follow a controversial interview he gave Yedioth Ahronoths weekend supplement.

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During the interview, Yavin addressed the change in societys attitude towards sexual harassment. Once there was a much freer atmosphere, he said. If you said something, or patted or hugged or even kissed, it was semi-legitimate. Today, we would have all been accused of harassment. But l was fonder of womens reactions back then. If you grabbed a womans behind, she would slap you in the face. Today, they run to a lawyer. Im in favor of being slapped and getting it over with The bastards changed the rules.

Haim Yavin. He fondled my buttocks while I was applying makeup on him (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)

The comments sparked strong public criticism, especially on social media. His remarks are outrageous, and they harm his own image before anything, one person wrote. Lets strike a deal: You wont grab a womans behind and we wont seek a lawyer, another responder wrote.

Following the interview, several women turned to emergency hotlines for victims of sexual assault and complained of inappropriate behavior by the former news presenter. Every woman encountered these behaviors. He used to touch and talk, said a former senior IBA employee.

When I saw the interview, I said, Oh, man, why didnt he just keep his mouth shut? one of the complainants said. When I arrived at the IBA and he started hitting on me, I was really amused  because he was Mr. Television, and with all due respect, he could be my father. The first time he saw me, he said: Oh, youre the one Ive been waiting for. Youre the one Ive been looking for. Then another time, he impudently fondled my buttocks while I was applying makeup on him. I jumped backwards and said: Get your hand away from there.

Another former employee said: Some woman came in with a very tight sweater, and he said: 'Oh, that gives you very nice tits. Luckily, she didnt hear that because she had turned on the hairdryer. And I said to him: Mr. Yavin, I find these comments unacceptable. He turned pretty pale, Mr. Television. Since then, he became very polite. There was not a single woman who didnt receive a comment or a touch from him. He would fondle girls buttocks, and someone told him that he had better be careful because she would complain.

He would harass in a very sophisticated way, another former IBA worker told Ynet. He was able to identify the girls weaknesses and attack them. I was afraid. Who would dare speak out against such a person? I needed the money, the job. I would say to him, Leave me alone, and he would shout at me, hurt me in an unbelievable manner. He would follow me, and he used his hands too." The woman eventually quit her job at the IBA.

MK Shelly Yachimovich (Zionist Union) wrote in response to the complaints on Sunday: When I was a little girl, Yavin was a god speaking out of the machine. Its hard to explain his power and fame with a 100 percent rating. There was no woman who could actually slap him.

Yavin, meanwhile, denied all of the allegations. They never happened. In the Yedioth Ahronoth interview, I pointed to a trend that existed at the time. Its very good that things have changed since then. I live and respect and support full equality between women and men with all rights. If I hurt any man or any woman, I apologize.

He added that there was a freer atmosphere, but I didnt cross the line. I dont know whats feeding these attacks, I dont understand the complainants motivation. Im just reiterating my denial. Those things never happened.

Yavin stressed that he welcomed the change in society. We are in a different era. I see women as equal to men  in their performance in the media, in all their rights and in their duties as well. They are equal in everything they do, and this equality is welcomed.
After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu canceled a visit by Ukraine's prime minister to Israel, the Foreign Ministry in Kiev expressed hope on Monday that relations between the two nations won't be affected by Ukraine's support of a UN Security Council resolution against the settlements.

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"We are confident that active and emotional internal debates in Israel will not impact traditionally friendly Ukrainian-Israeli relationship, based on mutual respect and joint interests," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Ukraine stressed that over the years, it has "adhered to the consistent and balanced position" on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, noting "We stand for peaceful coexistence of two independent States  Israel and Palestine."

Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu and Ukraine's Prime Minister Groysman (Photos: Emil Salman, AP)

While Israel views UN Security Council Resolution 2334 as an attempt to dictate conditions for a peace accord with the Palestinians, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stressed "the need for direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations."

"Ukraine, as well as other permanent and non-permanent members of the UN Security Council and also the UN Secretary-General, for its part more than once condemned the settlement activities of the State of Israel, because it is contrary to the international law," the statement went on to say, adding "We also condemn the violence and incitement to it from the Palestinian side."

Ukraines decision to vote in favor of the resolution appears to demonstrate the extent to which US President Barack Obama was behind the decision.

According to officials in Israel, Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, a Jew who is thought of as one of Israels main supporters, wanted that his country not be involved in the consultations held on the resolution.

However, Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko decided to vote in favor of its passage following a telephone conversation with US Vice President Joe Biden.

"The text of the resolution is balanced," Kiev asserted. "It calls for taking measures necessary for peaceful solution from both Israeli and Palestinian sides: Israel should stop its settlement activities while Palestinian authorities  to take effective measures toward fighting against terrorism."

"Our country consistently advocates the respect for the international law by everyone and everywhere as has experienced itself the tragic consequences brought by its violation," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry added.

Ukraine was among the 14 members of the Security Council that supported the resolution. The US was the only one to abstain, while none voted against. In an unusual movefor the first time since 1980the US decided not to veto a resolution against Israel.
The Russian Defense Ministry says its troops have found mass graves in Aleppo with bodies showing signs of torture and mutilation.

Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said in an emailed statement on Monday that the Russians found "found mass graves of several dozens of Syrians who suffered atrocious torture and massacre."

Konashenkov said some of the bodies have been mutilated and some had gunshot wounds.
ISTANBUL - Turkey on Monday called on members of the US-led coalition against Islamic State to provide air support for Turkey-backed troops laying siege to the Syrian town of al-Bab, held by fighters from the group.

"The international coalition must carry out its duties regarding aerial support to the battle we are fighting in al-Bab. Not giving the necessary support is unacceptable," President Tayyip Erdogan's spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, told a news conference.

Rebels supported by Turkish troops have laid siege to the town for weeks in the "Euphrates Shield" operation launched by Turkey nearly four months ago to sweep the Sunni hardliners and Kurdish fighters from its Syrian border.
Anti-Semitic and racist graffiti were discovered Sunday afternoon outside a Jewish school in France. Police have launched an investigation into the incident.

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The writings Juden verboten (Jews forbidden) and Sales juifs et Roms (Filthy Jewish and Romani people), alongside Stars of David and swastikas, were spray-painted on the gate and mailbox of the Anne Frank school in Montreuil, an eastern suburb of Paris in the Seine-Saint-Denis region.

The Anne Frank school in Montreui, Sunday

The Montreui police commissioner visited the school while evidence was being collected. According to local reports, there were no security cameras in the area to document the incident.

Such comments should not exist in Montreuil, which is a quiet and peaceful town, Deputy Mayor Gaylord de Chequer told AFP. We have always favored a dialogue over violence. Mayor Patrice Bessac firmly condemned the incident.

'Additional graffiti on the school gate. 'Such comments should not exist in Montreuil'

The mayor added that the inscriptions would be removed first thing Monday morning, and that the Montreui Municipality had filed a complaint with the police to show its determination to prevent similar acts in the future.

Those who allow themselves to cross the red line must know that they will be exposed to severe punishment, Bessac said. There was no school on Sunday due to the Christmas vacation.

Juliette Timsit, the former principal, said she was shocked by the graffiti outside the school. When one of her neighbors told her about it, she grabbed a camera, documented the writings and posted the pictures on Facebook.

This is the school that was targeted, particularly because of its name, Anne Frank, she wrote, telling the story of the Dutch Jewish girl who died in the Holocaust. I was very proud to be a principal in this school. I love it, she said excitedly. I am deeply affected by this and can barely hold back the tears.

Additional graffiti were discovered later on other walls of the Jewish school. The police collected testimonies and evidence before the inscriptions were removed by the authorities.
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Monday slammed France's peace summit scheduled for next month, calling it "a modern day Dreyfus trial."

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"There's only one difference," he asserted, "this time, instead of the defendant being one Jew, it will be the entire nation of Israel and the State of Israel."

He criticized the timing of the summit, which was scheduled for December but postpone to January 15five days before US President Barack Obama leaves office. Outgoing American Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to attend the summit.

Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman (Photo: Gil Yohanan)

"With France going to elections soon, this is not time for a peace summit, it's a tribunal against the State of Israel," he said at the beginning of the Yisrael Beytenu party meeting. "This summit's entire purpose is to undermine the State of Israel's security and tarnish its good name."

Lieberman also pointed to France's recent votes against Israel at international organizations recently, saying "it adds to the difficult climate that exists in France anyway against Jews."

Mentioning the recent terror attacks in France, Lieberman wondered, "Perhaps it's time to tell the Jews of Francethis isn't your country, this isn't your land. Leave France and come to Israel. That's the only response to this plot (the summit) ... if you want to remain Jews and keep your children and grandchildren Jewish, leave France and make aliyah to Israel."

Israel has repeatedly expressed objection to the peace conference, saying only direct negotiations between the sides can lead to an accord between the two sides.

The Palestinian Authority prefers the French initiative to those of Egypt or Russia as it supports Abbas's strategy to bring the conflict to the international level on the assertion that only international pressure could cause Israel to change its policies.

In early June, the French held an initial conference in Paris without the presence of the two warring sides in an effort to prepare the ground for the planned summit. The conference was attended by foreign ministers from the European Union, along with officials from the UN and from Arab States.

During that conference, Saudi Arabia called for the adoption of the Arab peace initiative from 2002, which would lead to the normalization of ties between Israel and Arab nations.
US President-elect Donald Trumps Jewish grandchildren lit their Hanukkah candles in Hawaii this year. Trumps daughter Ivanka, whose Hebrew name is Yael Kushner, has shared a photo of the first Jewish family lighting the first Hanukkah candle, which was likely taken Saturday evening.

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This year is one of the rare and special occasions where Hanukkah and Christmas coincide, she wrote. As we light the candles, sending love from our family to yours this holiday season! Merry Christmas & Happy Hanukkah!

The Kushners celebrate Hanukkah

Ivanka, her husband and their three childrenArabella, Joseph and Theodoreare spending the holiday in Hawaii. On their way to their vacation, the family was verbally attacked by a fellow passenger on a JetBlue flight.

According to TMZ, the man yelled at Ivanka, Your father is ruining the country. Why is she on our flight? She should be flying private. He was then escorted off the flight.

Ivanka Trump is considered the strongest woman in the president-elects business and election campaign. She converted to Judaism eight years ago before marrying Jewish businessman Jared Kushner in a process performed by Rabbi Haskel Lookstein of Manhattan. Ivanka belongs to his congregation and says she lives as an Orthodox Jew, observing Shabbat and kashrut laws. She has said in past interviews that her father supported her decision to convert.

Several days before Election Day, she visited the grave of the Lubavitcher rabbi to pray for her fathers success. She was accompanied by her husband and by Trumps advisor on Israel, Jason Greenblatt.
VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis paid tribute on Monday to Middle East Christians who have clung to their faith during persecution by Islamist militants, saying there are more Christians martyrs now than in the Church's early days.

The pope spoke to thousands of people in St. Peter's Square for his holiday blessing on the feast of St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr.

He mentioned the persecution of Christians in Iraq, many of whom where able to spend their first Christmas since 2013 in churches after towns and cities were retaken from Islamic State.

"This was an example of fidelity to the Gospel," he said. "Despite trials and dangers, they courageously show that they belong to Christ," he said.

"Today, we want to think of them and be close to them with our affection, our prayers and even our tears," the pope said.
ISTANBUL - Turkish authorities have arrested the cafeteria manager of the opposition Cumhuriyet newspaper for insulting the president after he said he would not serve tea to Tayyip Erdogan, one of the manager's lawyers told Reuters on Monday.

Senol Buran, who runs the cafeteria at the Istanbul office of Cumhuriyet, was taken into custody after police raided his home late on Saturday, lawyer Ozgur Urfa said. The newspaper is among the few still critical of the government.

Insulting the president is a crime punishable by up to four years in prison in Turkey.
MK Basel Ghattas (Joint List) had his arrest extended on Monday evening by 24 hours on suspicion of smuggling cellphones to Palestinian prisoners in Israel

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The decision, taken by the Rishon LeZion Magistrate's Court, was made despite the police requesting that he remain in remand for an additional four days.

MK Basel Ghattas in Rishon LeZion Magistrates' Court

The extension also comes three days after his arrest was extended for the first time on Friday morning when, appearing before Judge Menachem Mizrachi, he refused to divulge who provided him with the phones that he is believed to have smuggled to the prisoners, on the grounds that "he does not want to be a snitch."

Judge Mizrachi commented on his decision following the conclusion of Monday's court proceedings.

It could be said that there is a significant development in the investigation. It is a difficult to decision to extend the arrest of an MK, he said. I will say that if it had been a different suspect I would have extended the arrest for many more days. When you are speaking about an MK, requests should be granted sparingly.

Photo: Motti Kimchi

Standing in solidarity with Ghattas, fellow Joint List MKs Jamal Zahalka and Hanin Zoabi showed up for the discussion as they had done on Friday. Moreover, outside the court dozens of Balad party activists protested carrying placards saying Release Ghattas and Stop the political witch hunt.

Upon entering the courtroom, Ghattas said, When I am released you better believe that I will speak. Before the discussions were drawn to a close however, he turned to the media to share his thoughts. I have thought a lot about what to say in the turbulent and particularly noisy sea of the past week of racism and incitement. In this sea, I still have hope that the courts and the honorable judge are an island of sanity and common sense, he said.

With a hand on your heart, did I really need to stay in prison for four days without being asked a single question?

One of these days was Christmas. Would the police have behaved this way with someone else? he asked. Would they have sought an extension if I was not an Arab? There have been rapists and thieves and immunity has not been taken from themharassers, generals and officers. I feel there is a double standard. I dont expect fairness from the police. This is a rare characteristic, especially towards an Arab who is guilty until proven innocent."

He added that he spent his time behind bars writing poetry. I wrote them a song and I want to give it to them."
Former foreign affairs minister David Levy asked Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon (Kulanu) Sunday to speak with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and ask him to stop with the retaliatory sanctions he issued in response to the United Nations' recent resolution number 2334, which defines all settlements built by Israel as illegal, including all construction in eastern Jerusalem.

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The request was made during an event held at the Menachem Begin heritage Center in Jerusalem behind the event's podium admonishes the settlement expansion.

Levy reportedly said to Kahlon, "Tell the prime minister to cut it out with the sanctions," explaining that "You can't be singing Africa's praises just two weeks ago, about how it accepted us, and then move forward with sanctions."





David Levy (L) and Moshe Kahlon

"We know what the situation is with other nations," Levy told him. "There are interests at work. We need diplomats for these things. We shouldn't drop it all now. And if you do lash out, strike the big leaguers, too: China, France, Britain and also the US."

Levy also cautioned Kahlon to move strategically. "Take things one at a time, and do it wisely. I remember what we did when we gained control of the government to strengthen Israel's standing among the nations, and there was a great deal of success in renewed relations with countries that broke away from us in the past."

Levy ended by saying, "I apologize if I overstepped here, but I look at what I said as advice. There comes an age when you dispense advice."

Levy and Netanyahu had a contentious relationship during their years spent together in the Likud party, with the prime minister eventually defeating Levy for the party's leadership. Levy's daughter, Orly Levy-Abekasis is currently the only independent MK in the government: until recently, she belonged to the rightist party Yisrael Beytenu under Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman. However, she left Yisrael Beytenu upon its joining the government last May , citing the government's failure to promote social justice issues.

Netanyahu has already announced a long list of countermeasures in light of the UN resolution. These include recalling the Israeli ambassadors to both New Zealand and Senegal, who were among the four countries to submit the resolution (Israel has no diplomatic ties with the other twoMalaysia and Venezuela). The response to Senegal will also include cutting Israeli aid going toward helping the African country develop a more advanced agricultural system.

Another response has been the reprimanding of all 14 representatives of the counties that voted in favor of the resolution in the UN Security Council vote. The ambassadors were summoned to Jerusalem on Sundaytheir day of rest, which also happened to fall on Christmas Dayand as such, some sent their deputies.

In a highly unusual move, US Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro was also summoned for a stern meeting by Netanyahu, who met him at the Prime Minister's Office. The US was the only member of the Security Council not to vote in favor of the resolution; instead, it abstained, a move that nevertheless allowed the resolution to pass. This move drastically broke with precedent, as the US regularly vetoes any anti-Israeli motions in the UN.

Netanyahu also announced to his cabinet members that he will not be meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May during the financial summit that will be held next month in the Swiss town of Davos given that Britian was among those who voted in favor of the resolution, despite May being an outspoken pro-Israeli advocate and a devoted supporter of the British Jewish community

US Secretary of State John Kerry (Photo: Reuters)

The Palestinian daily newspaper 'al-Quds' reported Monday morning that US Secretary of State John Kerry is currently drafting a document that he hopes will serve as the framework for a future agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

The document details setting a separation along the 1967 border while leaving 7580 percent of the settlers under Israeli sovereignity. Palestinians will agree to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, the plan envisions, and in return Israel will agree to recognize a Palestinian state whose capital is in east Jerusalem.
China and Sao Tome and Principe officially resumed diplomatic relations Monday in a triumph for Beijing over rival Taiwan after the African island nation abruptly broke away from the self-ruled island last week. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his counterpart from Sao Tome, Urbino Botelho, signed books at a ceremony in front of their flags at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing. Wang said the re-establishment of relations would bring benefits to both countries and they would hold exchanges in tourism, the media and other areas.

The move is a victory for Beijing, which considers the self-governing island of Taiwan a part of China's territory and has been outraged by suggestions by President-elect Donald Trump that he could rethink US policy that acknowledges this. Beijing and Taipei have competed for allies for much of the nearly seven decades since the end of China's civil war in 1949, when the defeated Nationalist government fled across the Taiwan Strait.

Most of the world does not formally recognize Taiwan as a condition of maintaining relations with China. Sao Tome and Taiwan broke ties last week, leaving 21 countries and governments, mostly in Latin America and the Caribbean, that have official ties with Taiwan. Taiwanese Foreign Minister David Lee last week accused Sao Tome of demanding "an astronomical amount of financial help," though he did not say how much.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu elaborated on his new financial plan to invigorate the north on Monday, focusingamong other issueson the price of housing in the region.

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The prime ministers speech came during a ministerial visit to the northern city of Ma'alot-Tarshiha.

"A few years agoand you, my minister friends must remember thiswe said and I said down south, 'Buy apartments, not just in Be'er Sheva, buy apartments in Dimona, in Yeruham. Buy apartments.' Some heeded the call and did so, and some did not."

Netanyahu during the event up north (Photo: Effi Sharir)

Netanyahu added that "I am telling all the residents of the north, and particularly the very young. Buy apartments, invest in the Galilee, invest in it for it is the future."

He told the audience that he routinely has finance-related conversations with other world leaders. "I always ask them what the GNP (gross national producted) per person is," he said. "What the defecit is, what the debt-to-GDP ratio is. I more or less ask this like a doctor measures your pulse and blood pressure, but I always ask another questionthe big one, whose answer lets you know whether the place is on the rise or the decline: I ask them how much a square foot costs."

Netanyahu was joined by Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon (Kulanu) and Internal Affairs Minister Gilad Erdan (Likud) in presenting the government's new plan to develop the Galilee region, an area which has remained on Israel's economic periphery since the stat'es inception.

He unveiled his plan to "do in the north what we did in the south, and we mean that. We want to build a future here, and the future is young people, the future is employment. We want to combine governmental infrastructure with entrepreneurship and an open market. We're talking about security plants that will relocate to the north, which will produce innovation and advanced equipment."

Carmiel (Photo: Doron Golan)

The new plan's budget will cost an estimated NIS 15 billion, and includes NIS 12 billion for infrastructure and transportation, as well as NIS 1 billion for health and welfare, with the remainder being allocated to education, encouraging investments, developing high-quality employment opportunities and the like.

Netanyahu further pledged that "We will invest billions of shekels in the medical system up north. We'll increase the number of beds and strengthen the hospitals' infrastructure. We want to emphasize progress, research, industry, the economy. The most important thing to look out for is the return of immigration to the Galilee. It's happening right now in the south and it'll happen in the north."

A special analysis done by real estate website Madlen for Ynet found that housing prices have continued to rise during 2016, averaging a 10% increase among new apartments.

Tel Aviv-Jaffa was found to be the most expensive city to offer a new, four-room apartment at an average on NIS 3.7 million. In second place was Herzliya averaging at NIS 2.8 million, followed by Givatayim which would set buyers back by around NIS 2.5 million.

A survey published by the Real Estate Appraisers Association in Israel last month found that apartment prices in 2016 experienced a sharp rise of nine percent, compared with the same period during the previous year. What is more, no city saw a decrease in housing prices.

Additional projects discussed during Monday's event are also due to recieve funding, independent of the above-mentioned project, from both the ministries of interior and finance. These include allocating army bases and building a new international airport. The sum total of these projects will receive an investment injection of NIS 20 billion.
Turkey on Monday called on members of the US-led coalition against ISIS to provide air support for Turkish-backed troops besieging the Syrian town of al-Bab, held by the group.

"The international coalition must carry out its duties regarding aerial support to the battle we are fighting in al-Bab. Not giving the necessary support is unacceptable," President Tayyip Erdogan's spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, told a news conference.

The Turkish army said ISIS had on Sunday killed at least 30 civilians and wounded many others to prevent people from fleeing the northern Syrian town.
News

Washington, DC - As the tax filing season approaches, the Internal Revenue Service reminds taxpayers that an appointment is required for in-person tax help at all IRS Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TAC).

IRS TACs continue to be a vital part of the service IRS provides when a tax issue cannot be resolved on-line or by phone. All IRS TACs now provide face-to-face service by-appointment. Instead of taxpayers going directly to their local TAC, they can call 844-545-5640 to reach an IRS representative, who is trained to either help them resolve their issue or schedule an appointment for them to get the help they need.

The Contact Your Local Office tool on IRS.gov helps taxpayers find the closest IRS TAC, the days and hours of operation, and a list of services provided. The IRS said studies show most taxpayers visit a TAC to make payments, inquire about a notice, ask about a refund, get a transcript or obtain a tax form. Many of these issues can be resolved at IRS.gov without traveling to an IRS office.

Check Publication 5136, the IRS Services Guide for additional information on available services.

Dont Wait In Line



Between January and mid-May 2016, taxpayers used IRS.gov nearly 349 million times to find tax information and assistance on IRS.gov. But many taxpayers are not aware that in addition to various interactive tools, IRS.gov has resources and answers about many tax matters, some in Spanish.

Tax help is just a keystroke away using the Interactive Tax Assistant or Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax, a comprehensive tax guide for individuals. The IRS Tax Map allows taxpayers to search by topic or keyword for information.

For more information, visit IRS.Gov/GetReady.
Health News

Rochester, Minnesota - The 96 year old inventor of the Heimlich maneuver, Dr. Henry Heimlich, died Sat., Dec. 17. Well-known for his determination to develop an emergency procedure that could save people from choking, his method became famous and was implemented around the world. Below you can learn more about the importance of abdominal thrusts (Heimlich maneuver).

To perform abdominal thrusts (Heimlich maneuver) on someone else:

Stand behind the person. Wrap your arms around the waist. Tip the person forward slightly.

Make a fist with one hand. Position it slightly above the person's navel.

Grasp the fist with the other hand. Press hard into the abdomen with a quick, upward thrust  as if trying to lift the person up.

Perform a total of 5 abdominal thrusts, if needed. If the blockage still isn't dislodged, repeat the five-and-five cycle.

If you're the only rescuer, perform back blows and abdominal thrusts before calling 911 or your local emergency number for help. If another person is available, have that person call for help while you perform first aid.

The American Heart Association doesn't teach the back blow technique, only the abdominal thrust procedures. It's OK not to use back blows, if you haven't learned the technique. Both approaches are acceptable.

If the person becomes unconscious, perform standard CPR with chest compressions and rescue breaths.

First, if you're alone and choking, call 911 or your local emergency number immediately. Then, although you'll be unable to effectively deliver back blows to yourself, you can still perform abdominal thrusts to dislodge the item.

Place a fist slightly above your navel.

Grasp your fist with the other hand and bend over a hard surface  a countertop or chair will do.

Shove your fist inward and upward.

To clear the airway of a pregnant woman or obese person:

Position your hands a little bit higher than with a normal Heimlich maneuver, at the base of the breastbone, just above the joining of the lowest ribs.

Proceed as with the Heimlich maneuver, pressing hard into the chest, with a quick thrust.

Repeat until the food or other blockage is dislodged or the person becomes unconscious.

To clear the airway of an unconscious person:

Lower the person on his or her back onto the floor.

Clear the airway. If a blockage is visible at the back of the throat or high in the throat, reach a finger into the mouth and sweep out the cause of the blockage. Be careful not to push the food or object deeper into the airway, which can happen easily in young children.

Begin cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) if the object remains lodged and the person doesn't respond after you take the above measures. The chest compressions used in CPR may dislodge the object. Remember to recheck the mouth periodically.

To clear the airway of a choking infant younger than age 1:

Assume a seated position and hold the infant facedown on your forearm, which is resting on your thigh.

Thump the infant gently but firmly five times on the middle of the back using the heel of your hand. The combination of gravity and the back blows should release the blocking object.

Hold the infant faceup on your forearm with the head lower than the trunk if the above doesn't work. Using two fingers placed at the center of the infant's breastbone, give five quick chest compressions.

Repeat the back blows and chest thrusts if breathing doesn't resume. Call for emergency medical help.

Begin infant CPR if one of these techniques opens the airway but the infant doesn't resume breathing.

If the child is older than age 1, give abdominal thrusts only.

To prepare yourself for these situations, learn the Heimlich maneuver and CPR in a certified first-aid training course.
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Washington, DC - As the tax filing season approaches, the Internal Revenue Service reminds low- and moderate-income workers that they can take steps now to save for retirement and earn a special tax credit in 2016 and years ahead.

The savers credit helps offset part of the first $2,000 workers voluntarily contribute to IRAs and 401(k) plans and similar workplace retirement programs. Also known as the retirement savings contributions credit, the savers credit is available in addition to any other tax savings that apply.

Eligible workers still have time to make qualifying retirement contributions and get the savers credit on their 2016 tax returns. People have until the due date for filing their 2016 return (April 18, 2017), to set up a new individual retirement arrangement or add money to an existing IRA for 2016. This includes the Treasury Departments myRA. However, elective deferrals (contributions) must be made by the end of the year to a 401(k) plan or similar workplace program, such as a 403(b) plan for employees of public schools and certain tax-exempt organizations, a governmental 457 plan for state or local government employees, or the Thrift Savings Plan for federal employees.

Employees who are unable to set aside money for this year may want to schedule their 2017 contributions soon so their employer can begin withholding them in January.

The savers credit can be claimed by:

Married couples filing jointly with incomes up to $61,500 in 2016 or $62,000 in 2017;





Heads of Household with incomes up to $46,125 in 2016 or $46,500 in 2017; and





Married individuals filing separately and singles with incomes up to $30,750 in 2016 or $31,000 in 2017.

Like other tax credits, the savers credit can increase a taxpayers refund or reduce the tax owed. Though the maximum savers credit is $1,000 ($2,000 for married couples), the IRS cautioned that it is often much less and, due in part to the impact of other deductions and credits, may, in fact, be zero for some taxpayers.

A taxpayers credit amount is based on his or her filing status, adjusted gross income, tax liability and amount contributed to qualifying retirement programs. Form 8880 is used to claim the savers credit, and its instructions have details on figuring the credit correctly.

In tax year 2014, the most recent year for which complete figures are available, savers credits totaling nearly $1.4 billion were claimed on more than 7.9 million individual income tax returns.

The savers credit supplements other tax benefits available to people who set money aside for retirement. For example, most workers may deduct their contributions to a traditional IRA. Though Roth IRA contributions are not deductible, qualifying withdrawals, usually after retirement, are tax-free. Normally, contributions to 401(k) and similar workplace plans are not taxed until withdrawn.

Other special rules that apply to the savers credit include the following:

Eligible taxpayers must be at least 18 years of age.





Anyone claimed as a dependent on someone elses return cannot take the credit.





A student cannot take the credit. A person enrolled as a full-time student during any part of 5 calendar months during the year is considered a student.
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 26 (PTI) An estimated one lakh paramilitary personnel along with state police forces are likely to be deployed in the upcoming assembly elections in five states, including politically crucial Uttar Pradesh.

Election Commission (EC) has asked the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to make available 1,000 companies (100 personnel in each company) for the assembly elections expected to be held in next two months.

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The EC has made the request during a recent meeting with the top officials of the MHA which discussed various aspects of security during the polling, official sources said.

In addition to the Central forces, police forces of all states will be deployed for the election duties.

Sources said that the MHA is expected to accede to the request of the EC and convey its decision to the poll body soon.

Assembly elections in Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur are expected to be held in single phase while in Uttar Pradesh it is likely to be multi-phased.

The schedule for the polls is likely to be announced by the EC anytime between December 28 and January 4. PTI ACB RG

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Even after twelve years, 400 unidentified bodies of the victims of the 2004 Tsunami tragedy still remain in Thailand.

By Reuters: At least 400 victims of Asia's 2004 tsunami that killed 226,000 people remain unidentified in Thailand 12 years on.

The 9.15 magnitude December 26 earthquake triggered a tsunami across the Indian Ocean in one of the biggest natural disasters in history.

Thailand, Indonesia, India and Sri Lanka were among the worst hit countries. Some 5,395 people were killed in Thailand, among them about 2,000 foreign tourists.

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"Since the 2004 tsunami, authorities have contacted between 4,000 to 5,000 relatives to come and receive bodies. There are about 400 bodies that we cannot identify," Anand Boonkerkaew, deputy superintendent of Takua Pa district police in Phang Nga province, told Reuters.

Thailand's tourist high season is in full swing and in much of the area affected by the tsunami, it is business as usual. New hotels have replaced those flattened by the wall of water.

Thailand expects a record 32.4 million foreign tourists this year.

Critics have said Thailand's tsunami warning system remains inadequate, partly because it isn't maintained properly. However, the government has said it is in good order.

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New Delhi: A special court on Monday granted bail to former Indian Air Force chief SP Tyagi arrested in AgustaWestland chopper deal case.

Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) special judge Arvind Kumar allowed Tyagi`s bail application and asked him to furnish a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh and one surety of like amount.

The court has further asked 72-year-old Tyagi -- the first chief of any wing of the armed forces to be arrested in the country -- not to leave Delhi without prior permission, and not to try to influence the witnesses and hamper the probe.

"He (Tyagi) was in custody for 18 days. No purpose will be served by keeping (the) accused behind the bars," the court said.



The judge granted bail to Tyagi after considering his age and medical condition.



The court observed that the case was based on documents and Tyagi had earlier joined the investigation as and when called by the CBI and was also interrogated in custody.



It noted as unfounded the CBI apprehensions that the former Indian Air Force chief may tamper with evidences or influence the witnesses who had been subordinate to him during the tenure of his service.

The bail applications of other two accused - Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and a Delhi-based lawyer Gautam Khaitan - are pending before the court which said it will decide both the pleas on January 4.

During the hearing of the bail plea, SP Tyagi's advocate Maneka Guruswamy had said that her client "could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".

She had claimed before the court that in the last four years since the FIR was registered, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.

Must Watch: AgustaWestland scam: SP Tyagi blames then PMO; Manmohan Singh may be questioned

Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".

"We have evidence where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all the three accused and adding that the matter has "tarnished country's name".

On the court's query whether the CBI had any material regarding SP Tyagi receiving money, the agency told the court that the former IAF chief had purchased several properties for which the sources of income were not disclosed by him and alleged that he had abused his official position.

Advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, counsel for Khaitan, had also countered CBI's argument, claiming that the agency was trying to sensationalise the matter and there was no allegation that his client had not joined the probe or tried to influence it.

Also Read: AgustaWestland case: Met former IAF chief SP Tyagi but never Sonia Gandhi or Manmohan Singh, says middleman Christian Michel

Sanjeev Tyagi's counsel Manav Gupta also opposed the CBI's contention, saying there was no reason to claim that if granted the relief, his client would hamper the probe.

The accused sought bail on the grounds that the evidence was documentary in nature and had already been seized by the CBI and they have cooperated with the probe agency.

The court had on December 17 sent all the three accused to judicial custody till December 30.

71-year old Tyagi, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by the agency in connection with the case. The case relates to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime.

The accused have alleged that the "CBI was trying to extract the confession using force". The defence counsel had also claimed that there was no apprehension of them fleeing from justice or tampering with evidence.

The CBI had said it was a "very serious" and "a very high-profile" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as the "interest of the nation was compromised".

It had submitted that "one part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land."

Tyagi's counsel had earlier claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office (PMO) was also a part of it.

(With Agency inputs)
By PTI: Cairo, Dec 26 (PTI) In a "stunning" discovery, archaeologists have found compelling evidence of new pharaonic tombs behind a 4,200-year-old wall unearthed in Egypt.

The two-metre high ancient encroachment wall has been found below a visitors pathway in the West Aswan cemetery at Qubbet el-Hawa, Egypts Ministry of Antiquities said.

The wall is thought to indicate the architectural support for the known tombs of the first upper terrace, including those of Harkhuf and Heqaib, who were governors of Elephantine Island during the Old Kingdom.

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Owing to the landscape of Qubbet el-Hawa, the support wall helped to secure the hillside, and thus lower lying tombs, which were accessible by a causeway leading to a second terrace, according to the archaeological mission directed by Dr Martin Bommas of the University of Birmingham in the UK.

"The findings are dramatically altering our understanding of the funerary landscape in this area during the Old Kingdom and First Intermediate Period in 2278-2184 BC," Carl Graves, a PhD student who worked alongside Bommas on the project, said.

"I dont think anyone yet knows who the tombs might have belonged to," Graves said.

Nasr Salama, General Director of Aswan and Nubia Antiquities, described the discovery as "stunning" saying it is now only a matter of time until new tombs are uncovered within the important cemetery.

Eman Khalifa, director of the pottery project within the Qubbet el-Hawa Research Project Group (QHRP), told Egypt Independent that the stone wall was dated by the pottery shreds embedded within the mortar used to build it.

The crushed pieces include parts of carinated bowls, executed in a style typical of the reign of King Pepi II from the Sixth Dynasty (2278-2184 BCE), she said. PTI SAR SAR

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New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday taunted the ongoing feud between Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and his bete noire uncle Shivpal Yadav, saying the first family of the Samajwadi Party should resolve the `mahabharat` and focus on law and order, corruption and lack of administration in the politically crucial state.

BJP spokesperson Nalin Kohli also used the occasion to take a jibe at reports suggesting about the possibility of a `mahagathbandhan` in the run up to next year`s Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls.

"However, in the first family of the Samajwadi Party of Uttar Pradesh a `mahabharat` is already on for quite some time. Now, it appears that there are multiple lists - one by the uncle, one by the nephew who is the Chief Minister and there are all sorts of disputes. They should resolve that," Kohli told ANI.

"As far as the people of Uttar Pradesh are concerned, they are obviously going to vote on the track record of the Samajwadi Party. The substantial issues are law and order, corruption and the lack of administration," he added.

The tussle in Uttar Pradesh`s ruling family reignited yesterday after Akhilesh drew up his own list of poll candidates and submitted it to Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, bypassing his uncle and state president Shivpal Yadav.

The Chief Minister`s surprise move angered Shivpal, who is officially in-charge of ticket distribution in consultation with the party president.Shivpal tweeted that ticket distribution would be decided by "victory potential".

"The party will not tolerate any indiscipline that might hurt the party`s image," he tweeted.According to sources, Akhilesh while reviewing the list of candidates for 403 assembly seats expressed concern over the party giving 181 tickets to `tainted` persons.

This is not the first time that Akhilesh and his uncle have clashed over tickets distribution. The Chief Minister, who is of the view that his image and record is party`s strength, had earlier this month expressed displeasure over the decision to field don-turned politicians Atiq Ahmed and Mukhtar Ansari`s brother Sibaqtullah Ansari for next year`s elections.

The Ansari brothers belong to Quami Ekta Dal, which recently merged with the party despite opposition from Akhilesh.Mulayam has so far made all attempts to engineer a truce between his son and brother, but seat allotment has remained a thorny issue in the Samajwadi Party.
New Delhi: Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat will not appear before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday.

The appearance of the CM was in connection with the probe into the sting operation that purportedly features him.

The CBI had summoned Rawat on December 23.

It had registered the preliminary inquiry on April 29 to probe the video.

What's the case?

The video purportedly shows Rawat offering bribes to rebel Congress MLAs in exchange for their support in the assembly floor test.

Rawat had dismissed the video as being faked after it was released by rebel Congress MLAs but later admitted that he was in the clip.

The Uttarakhand High Court on Sunday set aside the Chief Minister`s plea seeking a stay on his appearance before the CBI.

Rawat had made an oral plea before the bench to allow him for the time being, not to make an appearance before the CBI as a petition challenging the justification of the CBI probe into the alleged sting CD is already pending before the court.

Setting aside the plea, the court decided that the next date of hearing would be January 7 as fixed earlier.

The CBI had earlier summoned the chief minister on May 9, 2016 but he had sought more time.

After Rawat`s victory in the floor test, the state cabinet on May 15 withdrew the notification recommending a CBI probe and decided to set up a special investigation team to go into the case.
London: At least 34 civilians have been killed by Militias in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo over the weekend.

According to local activists, the mounting violence stokes concerns over political instability as attacks have surged across the country in the past week alongside violent protests over President Joseph Kabila`s failure to step down at the end of his constitutional mandate on Tuesday, reports the Guardian.

However, it is not clear that all the violence is related to Kabila failing to step down.According to local activist Innocent Gasigwa, an ethnic Nande militia killed at least 13 Hutu civilians on Sunday in the eastern town of Nyanzale with guns and machetes in an apparent revenge attack for the deaths of Nande civilians last week.

"This must be the response for last time," Gasigwa said, referring to an attack on Thursday by Nyatura, an ethnic Hutu militia that killed at least 17 civilians in a nearby village.

According to media reports, on Saturday, 21 civilians and four militiamen were killed in attacks near the city of Beni, 300km (185 miles) north of Nyanzale.

While the government blames the Alllied Democratic Forces (ADF), a Ugandan Islamist group, other reports suggest that other groups, including elements of the Congolese army, may have taken part.

Meanwhile, at least 40 people died last week in protests against Kabila`s refusal to step down at the end of his constitutional mandate last Tuesday.

The government says it will remain in office until an election is organised in 2018.Millions have died between 1996 and 2003 in regional wars in the country. The central African nation has not achieved a peaceful transfer of power since independence in 1960.
Beijing: China has tested the latest version of its fifth-generation stealth fighter, state media reported on Monday, as it tries to end the West`s monopoly on the world`s most advanced warplanes.

The test comes as the nation flexes its military muscles, sending its sole aircraft carrier the Liaoning into the western Pacific in recent days to lead drills there for the first time.

The newest version of the J-31 -- now renamed the FC-31 Gyrfalcon -- took to the air for the first time on Friday, the China Daily reported.

The so-called "fifth-generation" twin-engine jet is China`s answer to the US F-35, the world`s most technically advanced fighter.

The new FC-31 has "better stealth capabilities, improved electronic equipment and a larger payload capacity" than the previous version which debuted in October 2012, the newspaper said, quoting aviation expert Wu Peixin.

"Changes were made to the airframe, wings and vertical tails which make it leaner, lighter and more manoeuvrable," Wu told the paper.

The jet is manufactured by Shenyang Aircraft Corp., a subsidiary of the Aviation Industry Corp of China (AVIC).

The fighter is expected to sell for around $70 million, the article said, aiming to take market share away from more expensive fourth-generation fighters like the Eurofighter Typhoon.

AVIC has said that the FC-31 will "put an end to some nations` monopolies on the fifth-generation fighter jet", the China Daily reported.

China is aggressively moving to develop its domestic weapons industry, from drones and anti-aircraft systems to homegrown jet engines.

In the past, it has been accused of copying designs from Russian fighters, and some analysts say the FC-31 bears a close resemblance to the F-35.

When completed the FC-31 will become the country`s second fifth-generation fighter after the J-20, which put on its first public performance at the Zhuhai Air Show in November.
Seoul: The woman at the heart of the impeachment crisis surrounding South Korean President Park Geun-Hye refused to leave her jail cell on Monday for questioning by lawmakers who had convened a special hearing at her detention centre.

Choi Soon-Sil, a long-time friend of the president, has repeatedly snubbed a parliamentary committee probing a corruption scandal that triggered Park`s impeachment earlier this month.

Currently on trial for extortion and abuse of power, Choi had ignored several summons to attend the committee`s hearings in the National Assembly -- prompting the lawmakers to come to her.

A special, televised hearing was convened in the detention centre where Choi is being held on the outskirts of Seoul, but lawmakers were left with little to do but vent their frustrations after she refused to leave her cell.

Two former top presidential aides being held in a separate facility also refused to appear for questioning.

"It`s regrettable that the witnesses disregarded the authority of the people and the parliament by ignoring their obligation to attend," said committee chairman Kim Sung-Tae.

There are no legal grounds for forcing witnesses to attend a parliamentary hearing, although they can be held in contempt and face a maximum five-year prison term for not doing so.

"Choi Soon-Sil is at the core of the parliamentary probe," said Jung You-Sub, a lawmaker from Park`s ruling Saenuri Party.

"Her reasons for not attending are not justified. The people want to hear the truth," Jung said.

Choi had been questioned on Sunday by special prosecutors investigating the extent of the president`s alleged collusion with Choi in shaking down a number of major conglomerates to provide "donations" to two foundations she controlled.

Choi denied new allegations that she had stashed around 10 trillion won ($8.3 billion) abroad.

The National Assembly voted to impeach Park earlier this month, stripping away her substantial executive powers.

She remains president in name, pending a decision by the Constitutional Court on whether to ratify parliament`s impeachment motion.

Earlier Monday, prosecutors seized documents during an early morning raid on the central Seoul residence of Kim Ki-Choon, who served as Park`s chief of staff between 2013-15.

Kim has a long association with Park`s family, having also served her father -- the late military strongman Park Chung-Hee who led the country for 18 years after seizing power in a 1979 military coup.

Those close ties have led to allegations that he must have been aware of the inappropriate influence that Choi -- dubbed a "female Rasputin" by the local media -- wielded over the president.

Park allegedly leaked confidential documents to her friend, and allowed her to meddle in state affairs -- including the appointments of senior officials.
New York: US President-elect Donald Trump`s pick for communications director, Jason Miller declined to take up the job because his wife is pregnant, although local media reported that his refusal came for other reasons.



Miller, who is one of Trump`s main spokesmen, was tapped on Thursday to be White House communications director, but he decided to decline the offer as he wanted to spend more time with his family, Efe news agency reports.

Miller`s wife will give birth in January to their second child. He said in a statement that his family will be his "top priority right now" and he is at a point where he cannot take on "a new job as demanding" as White House communications director.

He will hand over his duties to Sean Spicer, the communications chief for the Republican National Committee whom Trump selected this past week to be his White House Press Secretary -- a position he will retain.

However, The Daily News reported that there were other reasons why Miller may have refused the position "after a transition team staffer posted cryptic tweets suggesting he`s a philanderer" and is involved in a "sexual scandal".
By PTI: Sattur (TN) Dec 26 (PTI) Five workers, including three women, were charred to death and four others seriously injured today after a fire broke out at a fireworks factory at nearby Naranapuram in the district, police said.

Police said all of them were working in the unit when the fire broke out and spread quickly.

The flames were doused by fire fighting units from Virudhunagar and other areas, they said.

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The factory owner is absconding and a search is on to nab him, police said.

Police said investigations are underway to ascertain the cause of the fire. PTI COR SSN APR KJ

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Four out of nine injured women are MNREGA workers. One is said to be in a critical condition.

By Manjeet Sehgal: A total nine women were injured in an acid attack reported in Bhui village located near Kapurthala, Punjab today morning, police said.

Four out of nine injured women are MNREGA workers. They have been admitted to Kapurthala civil hospital. The injured also include village headman's wife, who has been admitted to Jalandhar hospital. Doctors said the acid attack victims received 20 to 25 percent burn injuries. The condition of one of the victim's is serious.

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Police said village headman Vinod Sehgal and four MNREGA workers were working at a construction site located on a disputed land. He was allegedly stopped by one Nirmal Singh and his wife Rajwider Kaur. Vinod then allegedly called his wife Reena and others. Following a scuffle between the two groups both the parties have been accused of throwing acid on each other.

"A total nine women were injured in the acid attack. We are investigating the case .We will take action against the guilty," SHO, Kapurthala, Sikandar Singh said.

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See UPDATING at bottom of page

New Zealand's role in promoting a UN Security Council resolution against Israel may have some economic payoff , a foreign policy analyst says.

"New Zealand also trades with the Arab states, is about to sign a free trade agreement with the Gulf Co-operation Council. There's huge profits being made to export lamb and other dairy products, other food products to the Arab states. If there was to be a big trade payoff, the calculations would be in favour of going with the Arab and the Muslim countries." [ emphasis added

A few years ago, after the successful Bougainville peace talks, New Zealand imagined a role for itself as an international peace broker. It was a nice idea that turned out to be harder than it sounded, but it marked an increased New Zealand confidence to act independently, for good purpose.This week's action is a further brave step from New Zealand. It has no obvious ulterior motives, but instead seems an attempt to simply do the right thing. [ emph. added; Phil Smith, Radio New Zealand , 24 December 2016

O ne of the closed-door discussions between United States Secretary of State John Kerry and the New Zealand Government today was a potential resolution by the United Nations Security Council on a two-state solution for the Israel - Palestinian conflict. After the talks, Foreign Minister Murray McCully even raised the possibility of the US or New Zealand sponsoring a resolution.

In the 20th and 21st centuries, Peace is the refuge of scoundrels. It is the excuse for all sorts of aggressive diplomatic moves and sometimes it is even the excuse for military attacks. In September 1939, after Nazi Germany and the Communist Soviet Union, under Hitler and Stalin respectively had invaded Poland and while the ruins were still burning, both of these aggressor powers issued a joint statement that they were engaged in a "struggle for peace." Likewise, after the racist anti-Jewish vote at the Security Council, the White House spokesman, Ben Rhodes claimed that US abstention --effective support for the racist anti-Israel resolution, which he acknowledged-- was meant to help bring peace. Nothing new under the sun.No doubt New Zealand would make that same claim, perhaps adding a devotion to justice. But maybe there were other motives for New Zealand's bigoted vote at the UN SC. Indeed, a New Zealand foreign policy expert explained the business advantages that New Zealand would receive on account of this mendacious pro-Arab vote. An item on the site of Radio New Zealand on 25 December 2016 tells us:The expert, one Steve Hoadley, reassures his countrymen that New Zealand will not suffer from any Israeli retaliation on account of the vote:So there is big money to be made by New Zealand in trade with Arab and Muslim countries.OK. Make your money but don't tell us you are acting in the name of peace and justice. Nevertheless, a commentator , also on Radio New Zealand, praises his country as a "peacemaker":It seems that our two commentators contradict each other. Was the vote made for mercenary benefit or for the sake of ''peace" and the "right thing"? Maybe they would claim for both reasons and say that there is no contradiction. But New Zealand has been selling sheep, both already butchered and live --for certain Muslim festivals that require a sheep be slaughtered on the spot-- to the Arabs for many many years, and after all a country needs a market. Even a country that is the epitome of a European colony founded far away from Europe in a land which Europeans had never seen let alone lived in until a few hundred years ago (unlike Israel, a land where Jewish roots go back thousands of years) and is now settled in its overwhelming majority by European settlers.They say that New Zealand is very English, maybe more English than England itself is today. One thing that the New Zealanders brought with them from Europe is hypocrisy. A good European should never be without some egregious and saccharine sweet sanctimonious hypocrisy.- - - - - - - - - - -UPDATING12-28-2016 13 November 2016 ) reported that Kerry was in the New Zealand capital in mid-November talking with the prime minister and foreign minister. New Zealand is a strong partisan of the Arabs. For those concerned about such things New Zealand is a European, British colony. As I wrote above, it is "a country that is the epitome of a European colony founded far away from Europe in a land which Europeans had never seen let alone lived in until a few hundred years ago (unlike Israel, a land where Jewish roots go back thousands of years) and is now settled in its overwhelming majority by European settlers." The New Zealanders, who belong to a colony, have no shame criticizing Israel for building settlements. Here is what is important in the article from 13 November 2016:So Kerry and the NZ foreign minister discussed sponsoring a pro-Arab resolution. This contradicts US government spokesman Mark Toner who shamefully lied when denying any US collusion in the resolution produced in the Security Council the other day.

Labels: anti-Zionism, antisemitism, UN, United Nations, United States
NEW YORK, Dec. 26, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Rio Tinto plc (Rio Tinto or the Company) (NYSE:RIO) and certain of its officers. The class action, filed in United States District Court, Southern District of New York, and docketed under 16-cv-09572, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired Rio Tinto American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) between March 16, 2012 and November 14, 2016, both dates inclusive (the Class Period), seeking to recover compensable damages caused by defendants violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.



If you are a shareholder who purchased Rio Tinto ADRs during the Class Period, you have until February 10, 2017 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com. To discuss this action, contact Robert S. Willoughby at rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll free, ext. 9980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and number of shares purchased.

[Click here to join this class action]

Rio Tinto, a mining and metals company, finds, mines, and processes mineral resources. The Company mines and produces aluminum products, including bauxite, alumina, and aluminum; copper, gold, silver, and molybdenum, as well as nickel; diamonds, titanium dioxide feedstocks, borates, and salt, as well as high purity iron, metal powders, zircon, and rutile; uranium; iron ore; and thermal coal, and coking or metallurgical coal. Rio Tinto has operations in Australia, North America, Asia, Europe, Africa, and South America. At all relevant times, Rio Tinto has held a significant stake in the Simandou iron mine, located in southern Guinea.

The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Companys business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) Rio Tinto violated anti-corruption laws in connection with its operations with respect to the Simandou project; (ii) the foregoing violations would expose the Company to significant scrutiny and large fines; and (iii) as a result of the foregoing, Rio Tintos public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant time

On November 9, 2016, Rio Tinto announced that on August 29, 2016, Rio Tinto became aware of email correspondence from 2011 relating to contractual payments totalling US$10.5 million made to a consultant providing advisory services on the Simandou project in Guinea, that the Company had suspended Energy & Minerals chief executive Alan Davies, and that the Companys Legal & Regulatory Affairs group executive Debra Valentine had resigned from her role.

On November 14, 2016, post-market, Bloomberg News published an article entitled Rio CEO Says Staff Shocked by Probe That May Take Years. On this news, as the market processed the significance and scope of the investigation that the Company faced, Rio Tintos ADR price fell $1.52, or 3.83%, to close at $38.13 on November 15, 2016, the following trading day.

On November 15, 2016, post-market, Rio Tinto announced the termination of Mr. Davies and Ms. Valentine. On this news, Rio Tintos ADR price fell $0.77, or 2.02%, to close at $37.36 on November 16, 2016.

On November 18, 2016, pre-market, Bloomberg News reported that Guineas Mines and Geology Minister, Abdoulaye Magassouba, had written a letter to Rio Tintos Chief Executive Officer, Jean-Sebastian Jacques, asking him to provide details of the internal inquiry. On November 18, 2016, pre-market, Bloomberg News also published an article entitled Rio Tinto Offered Bribe for Mine, Ex-Guinea Minister Says, reporting that the head of Rio Tintos Guinea operation had offered the countrys former mining minister a bribe in connection with the Simandou project.

On these disclosures, Rio Tintos ADR price fell $1.01, or 2.69%, to close at $36.55 on November 18, 2016.

The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Florida, and Los Angeles, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com
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MEXICO CITY, Dec. 26, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TV Azteca, S.A.B. de C.V. (BMV:AZTECA) (Latibex:XTZA), one of the two largest producers of Spanish-language television programming in the world, announced today that company shareholders, directly or indirectly, agreed to provide US$60 million to be invested in Azteca Comunicaciones Colombia  the TV Azteca telecommunications business in that country  in accordance with the terms defined in the General Ordinary Shareholders Meeting of November 16.



As previously announced, the Board of Directors of TV Azteca asked the CEO to update the valuation and prospects of telecommunications investments in South America in order to clarify the long-term strategic focus of the company.

The conclusion was that Azteca Comunicaciones Colombia requires a US$100 million short-term investment to develop last-mile infrastructure and reach a breakeven point, which could result in positive EBITDA going forward. TV Azteca has recently invested US$40 million in the business, thus, the additional capitalization required is US$60 million.

The company indicated it has alternative uses of cash in order to focus on its broadcast television business in Mexico, as well as in meeting future financial obligations.

Derived from this process, during the shareholders meeting of November 16 it was approved that all of the shareholders of TV Azteca who chose, could participate in the capitalization of Azteca Comunicaciones Colombia privately, and through the mechanism that TV Azteca determined for that purpose. Such participation in the investment could be up to 60% of the telecommunications company, and each shareholder could participate in the investment in proportion to their share in the capital of TV Azteca.

Shareholders agreed to provide US$60 million for such investment, and TV Azteca, which has recently invested US$40 million, will remain with a 40% equity stake of Azteca Comunicaciones Colombia.

As a result, the company will be able to further strengthen its efforts in the broadcast television business, which has encouraging perspectives, and improve its positioning in the Mexican media market.

Company Profile

TV Azteca is one of the two largest producers of Spanish-language television programming in the world, operating two national television networks in Mexico, Azteca Trece and Azteca 7, through more than 300 owned and operated stations across the country. TV Azteca affiliates include Azteca US, a broadcast television network focused on the rapidly growing U.S. Hispanic market, and Azteca Web, an Internet company for North American Spanish speakers.

TV Azteca is a Grupo Salinas company (www.gruposalinas.com), a group of dynamic, fast-growing, and technologically advanced companies focused on creating shareholder value, contributing to build the middle class of the countries in which they operate and improving society through excellence. Created by Mexican entrepreneur Ricardo B. Salinas (www.ricardosalinas.com), Grupo Salinas operates as a management development and decision forum for the top leaders of member companies. The companies include TV Azteca (www.tvazteca.com; www.irtvazteca.com), Azteca US (us.azteca.com), Grupo Elektra (www.elektra.com.mx; www.grupoelektra.com.mx), Banco Azteca (www.bancoazteca.com.mx), Advance America (www.advanceamerica.net), Afore Azteca (www.aforeazteca.com.mx), Seguros Azteca (www.segurosazteca.com.mx), Totalplay (www.totalplay.com.mx) and Enlace TP (enlacetp.mx). Each of the Grupo Salinas companies operates independently, with its own management, board of directors and shareholders. Grupo Salinas has no equity holdings. However, the member companies share a common vision, values and strategies for achieving rapid growth, superior results and world-class performance.

Except for historical information, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Other risks that may affect TV Azteca and its subsidiaries are identified in documents sent to securities authorities.

Investor Relations: Bruno Rangel

Grupo Salinas

Tel. +52 (55) 1720-9167

jrangelk@gruposalinas.com.mx Rolando Villarreal

TV Azteca, S.A.B. de C.V.

Tel. +52 (55) 1720-9167

rvillarreal@gruposalinas.com.mx





Press Relations: Luciano Pascoe

Grupo Salinas

Tel. +52 (55) 1720-1313 ext. 36553

lpascoe@gruposalinas.com.mx Daniel McCosh

Grupo Salinas

Tel. +52 (55) 1720-0059

dmccosh@gruposalinas.com.mx




As of August 26th, 2021 Yahoo India will no longer be publishing content. Your Yahoo Account Mail and Search experiences will not be affected in any way and will operate as usual. We thank you for your support and readership. For more information on Yahoo India, please visit the FAQ
By Manjeet Negi: Agni 5, India's longest range and indigenously-developed nuclear capable missile, was launched off Odisha coast today.

The ballistic missile with a range of 6000 km had its crucial user trial from Wheeler Island off the Odisha coast in eastern India today.

The indigenously-developed intercontinental surface-to-surface nuclear capable missile can hit targets in north China.

With the successful test, the missile becomes part of the Indian military arsenal and restore some of the missile balance that is in China's favour.

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Agni 5 is a three-stage solid fueled missile with composite motor casing in the third stage. Agni 5 will be able to carry multiple warheads and would also display countermeasures against anti-ballistic missile systems.

HERE'S ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE MISSILE: The three stage, solid propellant missile is to be test-fired from a mobile launcher from the launch complex-4 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR). It will be the fourth developmental and second canisterised trial of the long range missile. While the first test was conducted on April 19, 2012, the second test was carried out on September 15, 2013 and the third on January 31, 2015 from the same base. Agni-5 is capable of striking a target more than 5,000 km. It is about 17-metre long, 2-metre wide and has launch weight of around 50 tonnes. Unlike other missiles of Agni series, the latest one Agni-5 is the most advanced having some new technologies incorporated with it in terms of navigation and guidance, warhead and engine.

India has at present in its armoury of Agni series, Agni-1 with 700 km range, Agni-2 with 2,000 km range, Agni-3 and Agni-4 with with 2,500 km to more than 3500 km range. After some few more trials, Agni-5 will be inducted into the services.

ALSO READ:

Ballistic missile Agni-I successfully test-fired from Abdul Kalam Island

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In April 2017, Russia plans to sign a final agreement with Norway on exploration in the disputed area of the Arctic shelf, Natural Resources Minister Sergei Donskoi said, RIA Novosti reported.

"In April, we plan to sign a final agreement on information exchange and exploration in the disputed area," Donskoi said.

The draft agreement was discussed during Russian-Norwegian consultations in October.

In 2010, Russia and Norway signed an agreement to delimitate the grey zone in the Barents Sea, which entered into force in July 2011. The pact gave Russia and Norway the opportunity to freely explore a part of the Arctic shelf. In 2013, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) reported that resources in the southeastern part of the Barents Sea, controlled by Norway under the agreement, will account for a 15-percent growth of all estimated reserves on the Norwegian shelf.

In August 2015, Russia submitted to the UN a revised application on extending the continental shelf boundaries in the Arctic to include the Lomonosov Ridge and other formations of a continental nature. Projected reserves of hydrocarbons in these areas amount to 4.9 billion tons of reference fuel.
China claims that India is concealing facts about Agni 5, saying it can hit targets as far as 8,000km.

By India Today Web Desk: Agni 5, India's most lethal nuclear-capable missile was successfully test-fired at Kalam Island off Odisha coast. The surface-to-surface intercontinental missile can hit targets over 5,000km away, a fact that has neighbouring China worried.

Pakistan's new nuke threat: Why India has to worry

China had even claimed that India is concealing facts about Agni 5 and that it can hit targets as far as 8,000km.

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WHY CHINA IS ANXIOUS OVER AGNI 5

India has at present in its armoury of Agni series, Agni-1 with 700 km range, Agni 2 with 2,000 km range, Agni 3 and Agni 4 with with 2,500 km to more than 3500 km range. After some few more trials, Agni 5 will be inducted into the services. Developed by the the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the 17-metre long missile can carry a warhead of 1000kg. Being a ballistic missile, Agni 5 can not be detected by most of radar systems presently in use by defence forces across the globe. Agni 5, which weighs about 50 tonnes, can target almost entire China and Pakistan. It can even reach targets in Europe. Reports say that India has 110-120 nuclear-capable missiles in its armoury. Missiles such as Pritvi 2 (350km), Agni 1 (700km), Agni 2 (2000km) and Agni 3 (3000km) have already been inducted into country's defence system. Pakistan has about 130-140 nuclear-capable missiles which include Shaheen and Ghauri series of missiles which Islamabad has developed with the help of China and North Korea. Pakistan, however, is yet to add inter-continental missiles to its arsenal. On the other hand, China has a huge stock of nearly 250 nuclear missiles, including the (DongFeng) DF series. Unconfirmed reports say the DF 31A missile has the capability of striking targets over 10,000km. The Agni 5 is the most advanced version of the indigenously built Agni series, part of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) that started in the 1960s and was once overseen by late President APJ Abdul Kalam. India joined the elite club of countries like US, Russia, the UK, France and China, which boast Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) capabilities, when it first tested the Agni-V in 2012. Agni 5's test launch is the first such missile test since India joined 34-nation Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) in July, 2016. MTCR membership enabled India to buy high-end missile technology and also enhance its joint ventures with Russia. DRDO is also working on Agni 6, which will have far more lethal strirking capabilities than its predecessor.

ALSO READ:

Agni 5 nuclear capable missile with 6000-km range - India's longest - launched off Odisha coast

Here's how India's Tejas steals the 'thunder' from JF-17 jointly developed by Pakistan, China

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Last week, sources in the government said the Income Tax slab is likely to be increased from a minimum of Rs 2.5 lakh per annum to Rs 4 lakh.

By India Today Web Desk: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said that India now needs to move to a lower level of taxation to be globally competitive.

"What you need is lower level of taxation, to provide services more competitive in nature. Competition is not domestic, it is global. This is one important change you will witness while you will be in service," Jaitley said.

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Last week, sources in the government said the Income Tax slab is likely to be increased from a minimum of Rs 2.5 lakh per annum to Rs 4 lakh.

ALSO READ | Suspended BJP leader Kirti Azad calls Arun Jaitley 'inefficient', demands resignation over note ban

"Payment of legitimate taxes is part of a citizen's duty, and non-payment is visited with severe consequences. We've lived through last seven decades in India under the impression that if avoidance could be done of government revenue, there wasn't anything immoral. That was considered to be commercial smartness. Some people were visited with very serious consequences," he said.

"The India that we foresee in next future decades will be an India where voluntary compliances will have to increase," Jaitley added.

The Finance Minister was addressing the officers at the inauguration of professional training of 68th batch of Internal Revenue Service (IRS) (C&CE) Officers at National Academy of Customs Excise and Narcotics in Faridabad.

The Union Budget is expected to be presented on February 1 next year.

ALSO READ | Jaitley clarifies Modi's tax remark, says government has no intention to target long-term investors

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Incidents of violence are continuing to pour in from various parts of Bengal, where a TMC worker was murdered on Sunday night and party members engaged with BJP workers in violent clashes in a separate incident.

By Manogya Loiwal : Incidents of violence are continuing to pour in from various parts of Bengal, with the latest being the murder of a Trinamool Congress worker in South Dinajpur on Sunday.

Tensions between TMC and the Bhartiya Janata Party are also at an all time high, with disputes amid party workers turning violent on Sunday, The situation remains is under control for now, but the threat of violence flaring up continues.

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TMC WORKER MURDERED

In a separate incident in South Dinajpur district, 40-year-old TMC worker Saifuddin Minya was murdered in Nandanpur village late Sunday night, while he was on a Christmas picnic for with fellow workers.

A TMC worker is being suspected to have murdered Saifuddin.

"We do not know the reason behind the murder yet. The suspected who has been arrested had been associated with the CPM since long, and had recently become a part of TMC. I want to request the administration to look into the matter as there is a huge conspiracy behind the murder. I feel the murder was all planned and the picnic was a set up. If it was a matter between friends, it would have not led to murder. The administration must definitely look into matter and find the reasons," said TMC worker Mojiruddi Mondal.

Police has arrested the suspect and is investigating the matter to find the main culprit and reason behind the murder.

HOUSES BURNED DOWN

In West Bengal's Cooch Behar district, TMC and BJP workers have been sparring over the construction of a road by the Public Works Department (PWD) in the Poapurkuthi village.

The disputes turned violent on Sunday evening, when houses of two TMC workers were burned down.

"The BJP party workers generally come here for meetings. The workers along with other people started to destroy our houses and even put our houses on fire. As you can see, one such house is burnt here, there is another house they burnt down the lane. All of us are really scared as they are also bringing people from outside to create tension. The administration is here, they are looking into the matter and the damage that has been caused. Two people have been admitted to the hospital among us TMC workers," said TMC worker Saddam Hussain.

TMC workers have filed a complaint in the Dinhata police station against BJP workers for spreading violence and burning down houses. BJP workers, on the other hand, have justified the move, saying TMC members have also been violent against them.

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(With inputs from Prabir Kundu in Cooch Behar and Mridul Hore in South Dinajpur)

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AMDs first Ryzen chips are expected to ship in 2017, and the company has said that the octa-core, desktop-class processors are competitive with some of Intels most powerful desktop chips.

Now a leaked set of benchmark results from a French publication suggest that AMD isnt kidding.

But Intel also has some new chips coming in 2017. BenchLife has spilled the beans on some changes in Intels roadmap, suggesting we could see some new desktop class processors unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.

AMD Ryzen

AMD had already demonstrated the 95 watt processors ability to keep up with or surpass a 140 watt Intel Core i7-6900K processor in some tasks.

But youd expect the company to cherry-pick the tests that show its processor in the most positive light.

It looks like French magazine Canard PC got a chance to run their own tests, and theyve found that that the Ryzen processor offers performance somewhere between that of a Core i7-6800K and Core i7-6900K chip in most tests involving video and graphics encoding.

When it comes to gaming, the Ryzen processor is closer to a Core i5-6500 or Core i5-6600 chip. That said, while Intel still has the edge in raw horsepower, AMDs chip should be cheaper and more efficient while still offering competitive performance something that hasnt always been true of AMDs chips in recent years.

Intel Kaby Lake

According to documents obtained by BenchLife, Intel will show off its Kaby Lake-S and Kaby-Lake H processors at the Consumer Electronics Show.

H typically stands for high-power, or high-performance in Intel speak, while S means performance optimized, or fast but not as fast (or power-hungry).

BenchLife says Intel has apparently scrapped the 18 watt Kaby Lake chips that had been planned for notebooks.

But the company is bringing back its R series processor line with new hexa-core 7th-gen Kaby Lake-R processors. As far as I can tell, the last time Intel released R series chips was with for its 4th-gen Core Haswell processors with chips like the Core i7-4770R, described as a desktop processor based on a BGA1364 (mobile) package with high performance graphics.

via TechPowerUp


Ronald Reagan

The value of a man should be seen in what he gives and not in what he is able to receive.

Albert Einstein

If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time - a tremendous whack.

Winston Churchill





It isnt so much that liberals are ignorant. Its just that they know so many things that arent so.

With integrity nothing else counts; Without integrity nothing else counts.

Winston Churchill





Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life, but define yourself.

Harvey S. Firestone





It is inaccurate to say that I hate everything. I am strongly in favor of common sense, common honesty, and common decency. This makes me forever ineligible for public office. H. L. Menken



Referenda insure all have a voice in land use decisions.

U.S. Supreme Court

Listen carefully to first criticism of your work. Note just what it is about your work the critics don't like - then cultivate it. That's the only part of your work that's individual and worth keeping.

Jean Cocteau
Important stuff you won't get from the liberal media! We do the surfing so you can be informed AND have a life!
By PTI: From Sajjad Hussain

Islamabad, Dec 26 (PTI) Pakistan army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa today said that completion of the USD 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would usher in a new era of development in the restive Balochistan province.

"The timely completion of CPEC will usher a new era of development in Balochistan and Pakistan Army is committed to this objective," Gen Bajwa said.

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Addressing a passing out parade of newly recruited youth from Balochistan into army, paramilitary Frontier Corps and police, Gen Bajwa said the CPEC will ensure progress in Balochistan where it will herald a new era of development.

Without naming any country, Gen Bajwa said that enemies of Pakistan were against the development of Balochistan as its prosperity would ensure peace in the nation.

"That is why our enemies want to hinder Balochistans bright future," he said.

Bajwa asked the ethnic Baloch militants, who are fighting for control over natural resources, to shun violence and join the mainstream for development.

"Our doors are open for those brothers who have been misguided by the enemy," the army chief said.

He said that Balochistan is the priority of the government and army supports this objective with full force.

"Army, despite limited resources, has always tried to play its positive role in the educational, societal and economic progress of the province alongside other institutions," he said.

He also said that army is representative of national unity as all provinces were represented approximately according to their populations. PTI SH ZH

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Portugal is considering abandoning golden visa scheme

Biden and Erdogan to meet at G-20 summit

NATO supports normalization of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and welcomes EU efforts

Bank of England raises interest rates by largest amount since 1989

Scholz says Berlin must change its attitude toward China

Cavusoglu and Stoltenberg disagree over Sweden's and Finland's fulfillment of commitments

Turkish Vice President to visit Azerbaijan and occupied Shushi

Britain buys 250 million pounds worth of oil from Azerbaijan from July 2021 to June 2022

Yair Lapid congratulates Benjamin Netanyahu on winning election

Armenian MOD: Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense spreads another disinformation

ENISA: War in Ukraine, geopolitics fuel cyberattacks

Armenian MFA: Yerevan and Baku agree to speed up work on agreeing procedure of Commissions' activities

Zelenskyy will not participate in G20 summit if Putin participates in it

WP: Man who attacked Pelosi's husband was in the U.S. illegally

At Upper Lars, 30 cars are allowed through per day instead of previous 300: What are authorities doing?

Bloomberg: Turkey unlikely to sign Sweden's bid for NATO membership before the end of the year

Military servicemen in Armenia to be attested: Discussion at parliamentary standing committee

IEA calls for urgent action on gas shortages in Europe

French Senate to consider resolution demanding immediate withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenian territory

Papikyan: The final number of dead will be published after the identification is complete

Armen Grigoryan presents to Patrushev consequences of Azerbaijani aggression

Indonesia reveals its own kamikaze drones

UN: Russia resumes participation in inspection of ships in Black Sea

Grigoryan: Armenia interested in using communication routes through Azerbaijan

Investigative Committee: 10 officers charged in Armenia

FT: Azerbaijan demands EU funding and long-term contracts for gas supplies

Security Council Secretary: Azerbaijani troops must leave Armenian territory

US becomes 2nd largest gas supplier to EU

Russian Defense Ministry reports release of 107 Russian servicemen from Ukrainian captivity

How U.S supports Azerbaijan in 20 years by suspending 907th Amendment?

Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs will receive less funds in 2023 than in previous two years

German government urges its citizens to leave Iran

Armenian MFA: Unblocking infrastructures is one of the main directions of talks

Armenia MFA: We expect positive results in relations with Turkey in near future

Armenia to open diplomatic representations in several countries in 2023: Uruguay among them

Former Pakistani Prime Minister injured in shooting of election motorcade

Russian MFA: Great Britain transferred underwater drones to Ukraine

Armenia FM: International community has sent very clear signal to Azerbaijan

Prime Minister receives Arin Karapet, Swedish MP

Dollar, euro drop in Armenia

Armenia FM: In few days there will be meeting between me, Bayramov, Blinken in Washington

IRNA: Iran's IRGC eliminated a group that was planning attacks on government agencies

Lawcoster 'Pobeda' to resume flights to Armenia at end of this year

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan: One cannot despair, struggle must continue

Deputy FM: Armenia can make some progress in simplifying visa regime with EU

Turkey says Russia assures not to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine

CSTO deputy chief: Armenia-Azerbaijan escalation, confrontation risk remains

Armenian MFA: Cautious optimism in restoration of diplomatic relations with Hungary

Uzbekistan refuses to resume operation of Mir cards in country

Belarus Council: If Poland unleashes aggression, war will spread throughout Eastern Europe

Peskov: It is up to the Ministry of Defense to increase the term of military service

Valerie Boyer: Corrupt, racist Azerbaijan is attacking Armenia borders, seeking to continue ethnic cleansing, genocide

Meeting of CIS Security Councils chiefs kicks off in Moscow

Charles III travels with teddy bear and toilet seat

EU plans to finance programs in Armenia for AMD 55 billion 747 mln

Economy minister: Armenia and Iran are making efforts to jointly sell goods to third countries

Azerbaijani Armed Forces practice capturing borders during exercises on border with Iran

Storm in Philippines leaves 150 people killed

Inflation in Turkey is up to 85.51% in October

Armenia economy minister on Central Bank: First they said increase would be 4%t, then 1%, then 6%

Borrell thanks UN and Turkey for facilitating Russia's return to the grain deal

Foreign direct investments in Armenia last year totals AMD 129.2bln

Minister: Examination of Armenian soldiers' bodies continues

Jaguar station wagon from Elizabeth II fleet to be sold at auction

IMF plans to provide more than $165 million to Armenia

Marukyan: Baku says Karabakh Armenians should either stay on Azerbaijan terms or leave for 3rd country

Minister of Economy: Armenia's role in Eurasian Economic Union grows

Biden says U.S. troops will stay in Europe for a long time

Vahan Hunanyan: Yerevan and Tehran have no disagreements on most issues

Armenia, Russia to collaborate in information security

Artsakh State Minister: There are many principal disagreements with Armenian authorities

Public TV Company of Armenia to make purchase worth AMD 2 698.6mln for Junior Eurovision 2022

Armenian-Russian trade turnover up by 71.7%, Economy Minister

Secretaries of CIS Security Councils to discuss nuclear security

Economy minister: Armenia exports to other EEU countries increased 2 times

Outgoing Artsakh Minister Artak Beglaryan to take position in state government system

Japan Coast Guard reports 3 North Korean missile launches in a day

Pashinyan says Armenian government did a lot for revival of Armenian aviation

Oil falls in price

Patrushev comments on Zelenskiy's statement about preventive nuclear strike

WSJ: Americans favor Republicans over Democrats

Turkey announces normalization of grain corridor

Gold prices are down

Putin calls on CIS countries security councils to use all their security capabilities

SPRING PR founders were awarded the 'Global PR Leader of the year'

Copper prices are rising

State Duma member proposes to extend term of military service in Russia

Iranian MPs: Powerful Iran will never tolerate changing of its borders

Turkey to complete construction of pipeline in Black Sea in November

Newspaper: Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty to be signed in Georgia

US delivers more than 200 artillery systems to Ukraine since February

Secretary of Armenian Security Council to visit Moscow

Switzerland to direct $100 million to repair energy infrastructure in Ukraine

Study: Blue whales eat 10 million particles of microplastics a day

Microsoft president warns of shortage of staff to fight climate change

Latvia extends state of emergency on Belarus border

WSJ: UAE tried to convince Saudi Arabia not to cut oil production

Cavusoglu: Greece must stop arming the demilitarized islands in the Aegean Sea

Moody's downgrades outlook for banks in Germany, Italy, and 4 other countries to negative

About 40 international companies to announce their relocation to UAE by end of year
YEREVAN.  The Government of Armenia is again discussing the matter of relocating some ministries to Gyumri, Territorial Administration and Development Minister Davit Lokyan said at Mondays year-end press conference.

We are calculating the expenses of administrative buildings, the staff relocation costs, said Lokyan. We want to find out whether the employees can relocate, and who can be invited from Gyumri itself. The government has instructed us to prepare a justification, which we will complete next year.

The relocation of several Armenian ministries was discussed seven to eight years ago, too. Accordingly, the Ministry of Culture as well as the then Ministry of Urban Development were planned to be relocated.

Even though the respective construction will be completed in the coming year, the issue remains on the agenda.

We are thinking about these two ministries as well as the Ministry of Agriculture, and another one, added the minister.
YEREVAN.  The view that Armenia cannot develop without a speedy resolution of the Karabakh issue is a fundamental error or a result of a sincere delusion, former Armenian Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan said in a statement.

He, in particular, presented its position on the Karabakh conflict.

In his opinion, Armenia is obliged to find a formula for a decent peace with its neighbors, including Azerbaijan.

To do this, you need to use the resources and efforts of our nation and the entire Armenian people. A lot of efforts are needed in this direction, and, of course, there are people and circles who will implement it, said Ohanyan.

He also believes that there should be a new formula for the development of the country and decent peace, taking into account the factor of constant external threat, regional and international developments, as well as different interests of global powers.

The opinion that Armenia cannot develop without a speedy resolution of the Karabakh issue is a fundamental error or a sincere delusion. This view is not only far from reality, but also weakens the position of Armenia in the negotiation process. We need to ensure that the development of Armenia is not a rapid solution achieved at any cost, and Armenia should develop, so that it could be possible to resolve the Karabakh issue, thereby ensuring long-term peace, he said.

Ohanyan believes that the unilateral concessions or unreasonable hastily reached mutual concessions will not provide peace, but will increase the likelihood the resumption of war.

He also noted the great efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group and separate countries to resolve this conflict. However, according to Ohanyan, the key to solution is in Yerevan and Stepanakert, and they together with Baku should find an option for the accord.

The former official believes developing and competitive economy is needed to substantially increase the Armenian and Karabakh security.

I believe that the Karabakh conflict can be resolved through negotiations. We can reach mutual accord with Azerbaijan and we must work in this direction. However, till there is no atmosphere of mutual trust between the conflicting parties, it will be difficult to reach substantive progress in the negotiation process, he said.

Ohanyan considers scenarios of mutual concessions that are on the table illogical and unacceptable, especially when official Baku for its part, does not speak about any concessions.

Mutual agreement will be possible only if Azerbaijan gives up its aggressive, expansionist intentions of and will accept the right of the Armenians of Artsakh to self-determination. This is the formula of peaceful coexistence between our two peoples, he wrote.
YEREVAN.  Armenia's Ombudsman has addressed his Russian colleague Tatyana Moskalkova in connection with the case of Hracya Harutyunyan, an Armenian driver convicted of causing a major traffic accident in Russia that killed 18 people.

Media reports about the conditions of detention and the health of Harutyunyan appeared on December 24. In this connection, the Armenian human rights defender addressed his Russian colleague, and an arrangement that Russian Ombudswoman's representatives would visit Harutyunyan has been reached.

Armenian citizen Hrachya Harutyunyan had pleaded guilty to causing a major traffic accident in Russia. The truck he was driving had crashed into a passenger bus in July 2013, outside capital city Moscow. The impact of the crash was so powerful that the bus, which was carrying 64 passengers, had split in two. The accident had claimed 18 lives and injured more than 40 others.

In April 2015, a Moscow district court sentenced Harutyunyan to 6 years and 9 months in prison on charges of violating traffic and vehicle operation rules and causing death. And the Moscow Municipal Court upheld this verdict.

For the past one year, however, the Armenian side is seeking to have Hrachya Harutyunyan extradited to Armenia.
YEREVAN.  After the presidential elections in the US and France, an activeness is likely to be observed in the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group co-chair countries (i.e. Russia, US, and France) efforts toward resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Head of the Political Affairs Bureau and the Armenian Cause Office of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Dashnaktsutyun Party, Giro Manoyan, stated about the aforementioned at a press conference on Monday.

He said it is also considered that a parliamentary election will be conducted in Armenia at the end of the first quarter of the coming year, and therefore there can be political changes, too.

I believe big changes should not be expected in the first half of next year, added Manoyan. But, in the second half, there is reason to believe that quite active processes will take place in the matter of the Karabakh conflict.
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 26 (PTI) Cracks were visible in the Opposition unity ahead of tomorrows meeting convened by Congress to ramp up attack on demonetisation and alleged "personal corruption" of the Prime Minister, with Left parties and JD(U) unlikely to attend it.

While the Left parties announced they are staying away, the JD(U) also gave hints that it may follow suit. Congress is part of the JD(U)-led Nitish Kumar government in Bihar.

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There was no immediate word from SP and BSP, while NCPs Tariq Anwar, who was to attend, is unable to come to Delhi as he had to cancel his plans due to his mothers death in Patna.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh downplayed the plans of several parties skipping the Opposition meeting that will be followed by a joint press conference. He also cited local and regional compulsions for some parties not to be together on the same platform.

"Whoever comes tomorrow will come. Those who dont come tomorrow will come the next time. Those who will come, you will see tomorrow," said Ramesh striking a philosophical note.

He, however, dismissed suggestions that tomorrows meeting was a "tea party" like the one in 1998 which ultimately led to the downfall of the Vajpayee government.

Ramesh said, "The biggest issue today is demonetisation and the second issue is corruption by the Prime Minister, which will be the main issues before tomorrows meet."

On the eve of deliberations, Rahul Gandhi today held a meeting of all Congress general secretaries and State Congress presidents at his residence to discuss the situation.

A senior party leader, who declined to be identified, likened tomorrows parleys with that of the Shimla conclave in 2003 which saw Congress pitching for unity of secular forces to oust the then NDA government led by Vajpayee.

The meeting is seen as an attempt on the part of the Congress to paper over the cracks that developed when several Opposition parties skipped the joint Opposition march to Rashtrapati Bhawan on December 16 over demonetisation.

They were apparently annoyed over Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi meeting the Prime Minister earlier that day on the issue of farmers problems, especially in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. "We have decided to stay away from the press conference of Opposition parties convened by the Congress because there has been no proper consultation and coordination among parties," CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said in Kolkata today. (MORE) PTI SKC SPG KR ARC VSC TIR

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YEREVAN. - Armenian Union of Operators, a union of legal persons which is officially registered in Armenia on December 20, aims to attract ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) regional center to Armenia.

Executive director of the Union, Vahan Hovsepyan, told the aforementioned at the meeting with reporters.

The World Congress of Information Technology (WCIT) will take place in Armenia in 2019. Thus, our partners and we must have a comprehensive program which will give certain benefits to us. We want to have a result, for instance, the prospect of opening the branch of a large international company in Armenia. But this cannot be carried out by one event. It is necessary to use all the Armenian and foreign events to arouse the wish to open a branch in Armenia, Hovespyan said.

Referring to the reasons behind establishing the Union, the founding director of the Armenian Union of Operators said that the union was established to solve narrow sphere issues, as well as get ready for modern challenges.

The most important one of the current challenges is that we are at the threshold of the second digital revolution, whose integral parts are the development of the telecommunication sphere, as well as introduction of technological standards. The existing associations do not consider these programs as priority ones, thus we decided to set up the union, which will come to compete not only with the Union of Information Technology Enterprises (UITE) and other similar associations but also fill in the gap, why not cooperating and joining them as a member, Hovsepyan concluded.

Aranea, Arpinest, Arminco, Hybrid Solutions, Intelink, Smile Systems and Ashtarak Elite companies have already joined the Armenian Union of Operators. JNC-Alfa LLC has already submitted a membership application and involved in the union.

By the end of the year, the number of the union members is expected to reach 20.
YEREVAN. - A candlelight vigil in memory of the victims of crashed Tu-154 plane of the Russian Defense Ministry was held outside the Russian Embassy in Armenia Monday.

A group of young men and citizens lit candles and laid flowers in front of the embassy in memory of the crash victims. The organizers of the event also wrote a letter of sympathy in the condolence book of the embassy.

One of the event participants, Hayk Mamijanyan, told reporters that the participants share the pain of the victims families.

The young men want to show that the human pain recognizes no nationality, he said.

The candlelight vigil was held upon the initiative of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) Youth Organization.

Russian Tu-154 military plane, which was heading for Syria, crashed in the Balck Sea Sunday morning. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, there were 95 people on board, including eight members and 84 passengers. None of them has survived. A criminal case has been launched into the crash.
Over 900 gas cylinders stored in two trucks exploded on Sunday in Karnataka's Chikkaballapura district.

By India Today Web Desk: More than 900 gas cylinders stored in two trucks exploded on Sunday near Chintamani in Karnataka's Chikkaballapura district.

HERE'S ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW:

As per reports, the incident took place last night due to short circuit of battery. The blast led to huge fire that engulfed two trucks and a Bolero vehicle. However, no casualties have been reported so far. Properties worth around Rs 70 lakh gutted in the fire. The fire tenders reached the spot to douse the flame and as of now the situation is under control. The police and fire department have also reached the spot to take stock of the situation.

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President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan is sure that the Eurasian Economic Union has a promising future.

He said the aforementioned, making an address at the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council session held in Saint Petersburg.

Our meeting today is a good opportunity to sum up the results of the two-year activity of the Eurasian Economic Union and identify our achievements, which, we think, are not few. I also think it is necessary to focus our attention on problematic issues hindering the full-scale functioning of our common economic space. Of course, it would be desirable that these pressing issues be discussed with the participation of our colleagues, he said.

According to the President, the positive results of the Unions functioning include decline in the rate of mutual trade reduction over the current year. Positive dynamics has also been observed in the agricultural production. Sarsgyan expressed hope that a number of decisions on the market of medicines and medical products, liberalization of the service sector by 2026 and conceptions on forming common markets of gas, oil and oil products will approve themselves in the near mid-term perspective.

Sargsyan also noted that thanks to the foundation laid by the Eurasian integration project, they have managed to significantly weaken the destructive consequences of the foreign economic shocks. Furthermore, he lauded the launch and functioning of the rotation mechanism for all the officials.

However, along with this, the potential of the Union is fulfilled insufficiently in terms of responding to the social and economic challenges, he noted.

In Sargsyans words, the Union must advance in two key directions. First, it should remove the remaining obstacles on the path to full liberalization of four freedoms and development of integration within the Union. Second, the national economies of member-states and the Union should be efficiently involved in the global trade system.

In this context, the adoption of the Tax Code is a weighty step on the way to our further integration, since it outlines the shift to a common customs regulation in the entire territory of the economic union. It is important that the Code sets out leading approaches in line with the international standards. The application of the mentioned approaches will facilitate the procedure of taking goods across the EAEU border, making it transparent, including through the system of electronic declaration, which is our task, Sargsyan stressed.

He noted that in this context, the Armenian side exerts consistent efforts toward applying the single window principle in the sphere of public services in order to liberalize the sector of trade of services.

In our country, the sector of informational technologies is among the leading ones: significant experience has been accumulated, which it is important to use in the digital transformation of economic sectors during the formation of the Unions digital market. To participate in the modern world labor division and receive results in the sphere of digital economy, it is necessary to have a significant voice. Thus, we are interested in agreed efforts and implementation of joint projects, as well as development and implementation of strategic directions of the development of the EAEU digital economy in 2017. In our opinion, the implementation of initiatives in the transportation and logistics system, energy, agriculture and microelectronics can become especially important. Armenia is ready to take an active part in their implementation, the Armenian President noted.

He also attached importance to conducting a coordinated transportation policy. Armenia seriously faces the issue of ensuring continuous communication with the EAEU member-states. In the absence of a common border with the EAEU states, our trade and economic communication is carried out via the territory of Georgia, through the Upper Lars checkpoint. But, unfortunately, due to a number of circumstancesweather conditions and bureaucratic proceduresthe work of this checkpoint is periodically interrupted, inflicting serious losses on our economic operators. In this context, we attach great importance to the creation of a separate passage for transportation means belonging to the EAEU member-states, which will significantly facilitate cargo transportations. This will give the business representatives of our countries a real feeling of the usefulness of our Unions functioning, he added.

Touching on the international activity of the EAEU, Sargsyan noted that the interest towards the Union is growing in the world: during the entire year issues of cooperation with China, Iran, India, Singapore and other countries were intensively discussed, this definitely expanding the possibilities of the international involvement and growth of the role of the EAEU on the international platform.

During the recent visit of the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Armenia, we discussed in detail the prospects for deepening the trade and economic ties between the EAEU and Iran, including the issue of creating a free trade zone. In particular, the wide opportunities of mutually beneficial cooperation, which will open for the economic operators of our country and Iran, were presented. The President of Iran expressed interest in signing a temporary agreement with the EAEU, leading to the formation of a free trade zone, he noted.

Sarsgyan also added that Armenia is actively contributing to the negotiation process between the Eurasian Economic Commission and Iran, aiming to reach the signing of the aforementioned agreement as soon as possible.
Gutter Cleaning Company Cited For Fall Protection Violation after Worker Falls from Garage

The New Jersey contractor has been cited twice in 11 months for fall hazards

Ned Stevens Gutter Cleaning and General Contracting of Massachusetts Inc. has been cited a repeat violation of fall protection requirements, according to a news release.

The citation was given after an employee fell 9 feet from a garage roof and was injured. It is the second fall-related incident in less than a year for the New Jersey-based company.

"This is a disturbing pattern - two falls, two incidents - in which this employer did not provide its employees with the proper and required safeguards. The seriousness of fall hazards cannot be understated. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports 10 workers in Massachusetts died in falls in 2014. While the workers in these two incidents were not killed, the threat of death or disabling injuries was real and present. Ned Stevens must act to protect its employees against this common but preventable hazard at all its jobsites," said Anthony Covello, OSHA's area director for Middlesex and Essex counties.
Washington State's Paid Sick Leave Law One Year Away

The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries will adopt rules in 2017 to enforce the new requirement, including procedures for notification to employees and reporting regarding sick leave, and protecting employees from retaliation for the lawful use of sick leave.

Washington state's minimum wage is rising to $11 an hour starting on Jan. 1, 2017, thanks to voters' passing Initiative 1433. The new minimum wage applies to all jobs, including those in agriculture, but workers under 16 can be paid 85 percent of the adult minimum wage, or $9.35 per hour, in 2017.

The initiative also addressed paid sick leave -- it requires employers to provide paid sick leave starting Jan. 1, 2018.

The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries must adopt rules to enforce the new requirement, including "procedures for notification to employees and reporting regarding sick leave, and protecting employees from retaliation for the lawful use of sick leave," according to the initiative.

L&I announced that the official rulemaking process will include public comment opportunities and will be done during 2017.

Seattle, Tacoma, and the city of SeaTac already have higher minimum wage rates in place for 2017, so for employers in those areas, the local minimum wage rate will apply as long as it is higher than the state minimum. The new law does not change minimum wage exemptions or regulations regarding overtime pay. Since 1998, L&I has been responsible for calculating the state's minimum wage each September; under Initiative 1433, the minimum wage will increase to $13.50 by 2020.
As the winter season in northern India is heading to its peak, air pollution level have entered severe zone in Delhi, especially in bordering areas like Anand Vihar and Punjabi Bagh.

By Ashutosh Mishra: As the winter season in northern India is heading to its peak, air pollution level have entered severe zone in Delhi, especially in bordering areas like Anand Vihar and Punjabi Bagh. Delhi Environment Department officials reviewed concentration of PM 2.5 and PM 10 levels in these areas.

Delhi Environment Minister Imran Hussain today directed all agencies to take up urgent measures to look into the situation. Meanwhile, Delhi Environment Department has released a comparative data from November 1 onwards, showing gradual increasing in level from PM 2.5 to PM 10. As per the environment department data released by Delhi government shows that different pollutants--non- dispersal of pollutants with low temperature and low wind speed--led to an increase in pollution levels on December 23 and December 24 due to. However, since yesterday, ambient air quality has improved due to better wind speed in the NCR.

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The increased levels of PM 2.5 and PM 10 around bordering areas like Anand Vihar and Punjabi Bagh made it into worst breathing zone.

In the review meet on Monday, Kejriwal government directed the Environment Department to ask the DDA, NDMC, North MCD, South MCD, East MCD, PWD, Transport and Revenue Departments, Delhi Traffic Police and Delhi Cantonment Board to intensify urgent air pollution controlling measures in Anand Vihar and Punjabi Bagh areas including sprinkling of water, mechanical sweeping of roads, strict vigil to check burning of leaves, garbage and dust generated due to constructional activities. Government further directed enforcement agencies to take stringent action against plying of vehicles without valid PUC, visibly polluting vehicles, overloaded vehicles, non-destined vehicles.

Also Read

What's polluting Delhi's air?

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Inventory needs to be managed and managed well, or you are going to get in recurring trouble, and lose your credibility and hard-earned conversions, whether 

Read more
Whether rubbing shoulders with the locals, admiring landscapes or packing in exciting excursions, vacations and the lasting memories they create are shaped by experiences. Here's a look at some of the countries on Lonely Planet's Best in Travel 2017 list where travelers can expect an authentic travel experience.

Mongolia

> Celebrate the Mongolian New Year with the locals

Travelers heading to Mongolia will no doubt be in search of authenticity. Try visiting around the time of the Mongolian New Year, or Tsagaan Sar, a three-day festival in January or February (depending on the lunar calendar). It's the perfect time to experience life with a Mongolian family as they exchange gifts, enjoy culinary specialties such as meat-filled dumplings, and take part in traditional celebrations. On the morning of Tsagaan Sar, a cup of tea with milk is traditionally offered to the gods by throwing it out of the window.

Oman

> Marine life in the south of the Sultanate

The Middle East is a promising region for tourism in the future. For a memorable experience, head to the south of the Sultanate, to the Arabian Sea, which is home to whales. Boat trips are organized from the fishing villages of Sadah, Mirbat and Hasik. The luckiest visitors will be able to spot dolphins from the beach or see turtles come ashore to lay their eggs.

Myanmar (Burma)

> Check out one-legged paddling on Inle Lake

In the east of the country, the Tibeto-Burman Intha people intrigue travelers when they head out fishing on Inle Lake. The fishermen paddle their boats in a surprising way, using one leg to control their oar. This gives them the freedom to seize their cone-shaped nets and gather fish from the depths of the lake's waters.

Ethiopia

> Bargain hunting at Bahir Dar market

Travelers can experience Ethiopia, flying the flag for Africa's future in tourism, at the colorful market of Bahir Dar, on the southern shore of Lake Tana. It's a great way to catch a glimpse of the everyday life and traditions of authentic Ethiopia.

Due to recent unrest in the Oromo and Amhara regions, the US State Department has issued a travel warning for Ethiopia. Be sure to check government advice before traveling.
FILE - In this March 21, 2016 file photo, Cuban President Raul Castro, right, lifts up the arm of U.S. President Barack Obama, at the conclusion of their joint news conference at the Palace of the Revolution, in Havana, Cuba. Next year will likely be Castros toughest year in office since he took power in 2006, as the 85-year-old general faces a possible economic recession alongside a hostile new U.S. administration promising to undo measures that gave many Cubans expectations of a better future. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa, File)

HAVANA (AP)  Alex Romero was delighted when President Barack Obama came to Havana in March bearing the promise of a bright new future.

Like so many other Cubans, the 42-year-old state photography shop employee thrilled at the president's vision of restored ties between the U.S. and Cuba. Families would reunite. A flood of American business would lift the stagnant centrally planned economy, fueling its slow path toward reform. Even as Obama spoke, an 80 percent surge in U.S. visitors was drenching state-run and private businesses with hundreds of millions of desperately needed dollars.

Nine months later, the world seen from Havana looks very different.

President Raul Castro faces what could be his toughest year since he took power in 2006. 2017 brings a possible economic recession and a U.S. president-elect who has promised to undo Obama's normalization unless the Cuban government makes new concessions on civil rights. Resistance to pressure from Washington is a founding principle for the Cuban communist system, making domestic concessions in exchange for continued detente a virtual impossibility.

"People expected that after Obama came there would be changes in the relationship between the U.S. and Cuba but that we could keep the best of what we have, the benefits for the people," Romero said. "Trump's not going to be able to get what he wants, another type of Cuba. If the world's number one power takes us on, 2017 is going to be really bad for us."

Castro must manage these twin economic and diplomatic challenges during a year of transition. The 85-year-old general has promised to hand over the office in early 2018 to a successor, widely expected to be Miguel Diaz-Canel, a 56-year-old official with neither the Castro name nor revolutionary credentials. The change will occur without Castro's older brother Fidel, the revolutionary leader whose largely unseen presence endowed the system he created with historical weight and credibility in the eyes of many Cubans before he died last month at 90.

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"Even if those two events hadn't taken place  Trump's victory and Fidel's death  2017 was going to be a very difficult year for Cuba," said Cuban economist Omar Everleny Perez, a visiting professor at Keio University in Tokyo.

Cuba publishes few credible economic statistics, but experts expect the country to end this year with gross domestic product growth of 1 percent or less. It maintained a rate close to 3 percent from 2011-2015.

One bright spot is tourism, booming since Obama and Castro's Dec. 17, 2014, detente announcement set off a surge in overall visitor numbers, up more than 15 percent in 2015 and again this year.

"I've never seen as many tourists as I have this year," said Magalys Pupo, a street-corner pastry vendor in Old Havana. "They're everywhere and they're the income that we need in this country."

The slowness of macroeconomic growth despite a surge of interest in foreign investment and the greatest tourism boom in decades attests to both long-term mismanagement of the Cuban economy and the depth of the crisis in other sectors, particularly aid from Venezuelan in the form of deeply subsidized oil.

Analysts believe that as Venezuela's Cuba-inspired socialist economy has disintegrated, exports to Cuba has dropped from 115,000 barrels daily in 2008 to 90,000 in recent years to 40,000 a day over the last few months.

Venezuela was the prime destination alongside Brazil for Cuban doctors and other professionals whose salaries go directly to the Cuban government, providing another vital source of hard currency believed to be slackening in recent years. Nickel, another of Cuba's main exports, has seen a sharp price drop this year.

The revenue drop may be creating a vicious cycle for Cuba's state-run industries. Experts say cutbacks in imported industrial inputs this year will lead to lower productivity in Cuba's few domestic industries in 2017 and make zero growth or recession highly likely.

"Raul Castro's government has a year left and it should be planning what needs to be done," said Pavel Vidal, a Cuban economist at the Universidad Javeriana in Cali, Colombia. "Above all, it will be managing a crisis."

The government cut back summer working hours and gas rations for state-owned vehicles and has so far avoided any sustained power outages. But a crackdown on black-market gasoline sales to taxi drivers led them to increase prices, causing drivers to raise their prices, squeezing many Cubans already struggling to get by on state salaries of about $30 a month. Many Cubans say, however, that worsening conditions could drive them to rally around the government rather than against it.

"It's going to be a tough year," said Antenor Stevens, a 66-year-old retired public water specialist. "We're a people who've suffered a lot. We've felt a lot of need, but there's still a revolutionary consciousness."

One cushion will be remittances from Cuban expatriates in the United States and other countries, estimated by some experts to be in excess of $3 billion a year and rising as Cubans flood to the United States in fear that they may soon lose special immigration privileges.

Another bright spot is Cuba's growing private sector, particularly businesses boosted by increased demand from tourists.

While rising food prices are a constant problem for ordinary Cubans, many of those investing in food production are finding success.

Fernando Funes, owner of a farm that supplies vegetables to about 30 private restaurants in Havana, most with tourist clienteles, has nearly doubled his workforce from 12 to 20 in recent years, all earning about $25 a week. Five have begun cultivating their own plots of land alongside to produce food for sale to similar clients.

"We have a lot more opportunities to start projects these days," Funes said. "Personally I'm optimistic about 2017."

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Associated Press writer Michael Weissenstein contributed to this report.

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Andrea Rodriguez on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ARodriguezAP

Michael Weissenstein on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mweissenstein
In this Saturday, Dec. 10, 2016 photo, a group of children and adults gather around a bore-hole in the Bidi bidi refugee settlement in Bidi bidi, Uganda. About 440,000 people have fled South Sudan's spiraling civil war into Uganda this year alone, creating refugee settlements that have become some of the world's largest in just six months. Many local Ugandans who were once refugees themselves see the newcomers as welcome. (AP Photo/Justin Lynch)

BIDI BIDI CAMP, Uganda (AP)  "I don't want to go back," James Issac declared, just minutes after becoming a refugee. "I don't want to die."

For two days, the slender 30-year-old from South Sudan's Equatoria region navigated his way out of civil war, riding a motorcycle along dirt roads and avoiding government soldiers who, according to accounts by refugees to The Associated Press, have taken aim at civilians.

In his last steps on South Sudanese soil, Issac passed a group of rag-tag rebel soldiers and crossed a rickety bridge into Uganda, and safety.

"I am happy," he said, as Ugandan soldiers searched his belongings for contraband. "There (are) no problems here."

He is one of 440,000 refugees who have fled South Sudan's spiraling conflict into Uganda this year alone, creating some of the world's largest refugee camps in just six months' time.

More than one million refugees have fled South Sudan, spilling across borders in East Africa as the international community warns that the conflict and its ethnic violence could destabilize the region.

Since fighting erupted in South Sudan's capital, Juba, in July and left a peace agreement in tatters, the world's youngest country has experienced ethnic cleansing and teeters on the brink of genocide, according to the United Nations.

Those fleeing have turned Uganda's northwest from an empty bushland into a sprawling complex of refugee settlements. The largest, Bidi Bidi, is a pop-up city that holds roughly 260,000 people weary of war. Last week the U.N. announced the Bidi Bidi camp had stopped taking new arrivals because it was full, and it directed South Sudanese to nearby locations.

The refugees "were in critical condition. Bullets remaining in their legs. Others had come with parts amputated. Others were severely bleeding," recalled Rufaaaya Asiyati, a nutrition specialist working at the border crossing for the Ugandan government. Roughly 20 percent of those under 5 years old are severely malnourished, she said. Most of the refugees are women and children.

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When the refugees arrive in settlements set up by the U.N, some like 18-year-old Harriet Guo are alone and must fend for themselves. The refugees are given supplies to build shelters and must set them up themselves.

Like others in the camp, Guo tells stories of brutal violence that forced her to flee South Sudan.

"There is war there, and here there is peace," she said.

Many of the refugees come from Yei, where the AP visited in November and heard stories of government soldiers killing, raping and arresting civilians based on their ethnicity. Some civilians also said that rebel soldiers would take money or phones from people fleeing to Uganda.

"There are so many people who are shot dead by unknown gunmen, and when you are arrested by armed personnel your whereabouts cannot be found," said Taban Jackson, a community leader in the Bidi Bidi camp and a former municipal official in Yei.

Unlike other counties in the region, Uganda has embraced the refugees, according to Charlie Yaxley, a spokesman for the U.N. refugee agency.

"Many Ugandans themselves have previously been refugees, and you typically hear expressions of solidarity from the Ugandan people," Yaxley said.

Maliki Drakuma is one of them. The town clerk of the local Yumbe government and the owner of a mobile phone store near the refugee settlements, he said the sudden influx of South Sudanese has brought economic development to the barren region.

He acknowledged that some services have been stressed by the sudden flow of refugees, and police now carry out more patrols.

But Drakuma compared the nearby border to a "two-way street" because he and many other Ugandans had been refugees themselves.

"We would love the refugees to stay for longer," he said.
Ansu Sanyang was ready. Sick of providing so little for his parents and sisters with any work he could find, the young Gambian resolved to take the migrant route through Libya to Europe. Then on Friday, December 1, he hesitated, hanging back to cast his vote in a presidential election that felt different to previous years. "I changed my mind," said Sanyang, a couple of days after longtime President Yahya Jammeh accepted defeat and seemed willing to leave office after 22 years. "I was glad, very glad, because I had hoped that that man (would) get this," the 25-year-old added, referring to the unexpected election victory of self-made real estate developer Adama Barrow. Weeks later, the elation Sanyang felt has turned to uncertainty over the vote's disputed outcome, while his life and those of thousands of other Gambians are left hanging in the balance. A nation of fewer than two million people, The Gambia accounts for the highest number of migrants per capita of any nationality crossing the sands of the Sahara through Niger to Libya where they board rickety boats that ply the Mediterranean to Italy. That a man like Barrow, who struggled financially before establishing himself as a businessman, could one day become Gambian president had lit a small flame of hope for the young in this poor west African country. "There is a crisis in The Gambia, that's why everyone is taking the Back Way (migrant route)," Barrow told AFP earlier this month. Combining study with grinding work as a security guard in London, Barrow has lived the migrant experience himself. "You hear the name Europe, you think it's heaven. It's never like that," he said. Jammeh however has taken a different line. "Anybody who wants to migrate, let them migrate," he said recently. "It's a matter of taste, migration is a choice, it's not because of poverty." - 'All gone the Back Way' - On a bad day, Sanyang earns as little as 250 dalasis (about $6 / 5.6 euros). One recent day he was helping fishermen bring in their catch, and took home 1,000 dalasis -- a really good haul. When he isn't helping on the boats, Sanyang breaks bricks at construction sites, or does whatever job he is told is available that morning in the neighbourhood, labouring until nightfall. There was resignation in his voice as he admitted he was once again thinking of leaving, after it became clear Jammeh would not go without a fight. Desperate Gambians feel they have no time to waste. "Decades before, Gambians were not travelling across Africa, but now you see kids aged 12, 13, 14 joining them," said student Mbembe Kuyateh, 25, after Friday prayers in the Westfield district on the outskirts of the capital, Banjul. "Many of my friends left The Gambia. Some drowned in the Mediterranean Sea and some made it to Europe," Kuyateh said. Others describe the villages upriver where there are almost no men aged between their late teens and early 40s. "I couldn't believe it, they had all gone the Back Way," said one Banjul-based diplomat who passed through such a village on a recent trip. - 'He wouldn't give up' - The scars left by the departed who never reached the shores of Italy are visible all around The Gambia. Samba Mbengu, a mechanic, recalls the endless fights he had with his brother, Ali "Mille Franc" Mbengu, a rising star on the wrestling circuit who worked as a tailor by day. "He insisted he wanted to travel and in order to convince him (to stay) I bought him a sewing machine, but even after all that he wouldn't give up," Mbengu recalled. After months of arguing, Mbengu agreed to finance the trip, and stayed in close contact with his brother as he made his way through to Libya. "I never anticipated I was going to spend this much money," he told AFP, refusing to give a precise figure but admitting it was more than 100,000 dalasis ($2,300). "He called me telling me how much pressure they came under from the agents over there, and how sometimes they could be maltreated if the money isn't sent on time," Mbengu added. One week in November, his brother's usual phone calls stopped. Looking up at the ceiling of the tailor shop to compose himself, Mbengu recalled the moment one of his brother's fellow travellers told him Ali had drowned. "It has traumatised us... that's all I can say," the mechanic added, looking away. - 'Only me and God' - The first time he had readied himself to leave, Sanyang didn't even tell his closest family about his decision, describing the deep shame he felt at being the eldest son, the breadwinner, but unable to provide enough so his parents could stop working. "I don't like my mum crying, they dont want you to go," he said. "We have no help, only me and God." The Gambian economy has suffered several blows in the last three years, making life extremely hard for those without connections to the ruling party or family in Europe sending back remittances. A 2013 drought was followed by the region's Ebola crisis, which despite never actually touching The Gambia itself scared off tourists who account for 20 percent of GDP. Then a dispute over tariffs with Senegal, whose territory surrounds The Gambia, effectively cut the country off from supplies for months. Sanyang believes that betting his life on a journey to Europe may still be worth it. "I have a lot of friends telling me I should do it. I must do something for the family," Sanyang said. "It's no good for me to sit here."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu summoned US Ambassador Daniel Shapiro Sunday two days after Washington abstained in a vote on a UN resolution against Israeli settlements. Their meeting came after Israel earlier Sunday called in 10 representatives of 14 other states that voted for the resolution. An official Israeli source confirmed only that Netanyahu and Shapiro had met, without elaborating on the content or outcome of their discussions. The UN Security Council passed the measure Friday after the United States abstained, enabling the adoption of the first resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy. The resolution demands that "Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem". It says settlements have "no legal validity" and are "dangerously imperilling the viability of the two-state solution." Netanyahu, who also holds the foreign ministry portfolio, had rejected the resolution as a "shameful blow against Israel". On Sunday, he repeated Israel's claim that US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry were behind it. "We have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated the drafts and demanded to pass it," the premier said at the beginning of the weekly cabinet meeting. - 'Total contradiction' - "This is of course in total contradiction to the traditional American policy of not trying to impose conditions of a final resolution," he said, "and of course the explicit committment of President Obama himself in 2011 to avoid such measures." The Haaretz daily's website said that for Israel to summon an American ambassador was "considered a most unusual step". "Even more unusual is the fact that unlike the other envoys who were summoned on Sunday to the foreign ministry, Netanyahu will conduct the conversation himself at his office," it said ahead of the meeting. By deciding not to veto the UN move, Washington took a rare step that deeply angered Israel, which accused Obama of abandoning its closest Middle East ally in the waning days of his administration. The text was passed with support from all remaining members of the 15-member council, with applause breaking out in the chamber. The landmark vote came despite intense lobbying efforts by Israel and calls from US President-elect Donald Trump to block the text. On Sunday evening Netanyahu visited the Wailing Wall in the Old City of annexed east Jerusalem to light a candle marking the Jewish feast of Hanukkah. "I ask those same countries that wish us a Happy Hanukkah how they could vote for a UN resolution which says that this place, in which we are now celebrating Hanukkah, is occupied territory. "The Western Wall is not occupied. The Jewish Quarter is not occupied... Therefore, we do not accept, nor can we accept, this resolution. We are certain of our future just as we are certain of our past," he said. - 'New era' coming - While Friday's UN resolution contains no sanctions, Israeli officials are concerned that it could widen the possibility of prosecution at the International Criminal Court. They also worry that it could encourage some countries to impose sanctions against Israeli settlers and goods produced in the settlements. Netanyahu earlier called the resolution "part of the swan song of the old world that is biased against Israel, but, my friends, we are entering a new era," he said of Trump's imminent presidency. Trump reacted after the vote by promising change. "As to the UN, things will be different after Jan. 20th," he tweeted, referring to the date of his inauguration. Earlier Sunday, army radio reported that Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman ordered the Israeli security establishment to cease all cooperation on civilian matters with the Palestinians, while retaining security coordination. The reported measures join Netanyahu's order to review engagements at the United Nations, including funding for UN agencies and the presence of UN representatives in Israel. Rightwing Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan said Saturday that Israel should "announce a full annexation of settlement blocs" in response to the UN resolution. Education Minister Naftali Bennett of the far-right Jewish Home told army radio his party would "soon propose a bill to annex Maale Adumim", a settlement city east of Jerusalem. There have been growing warnings that settlement expansion is fast eroding the possibility of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Settlements are built on land the Palestinians view as part of their future state and are seen as illegal under international law.
2016 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #52

Posted on 25 December 2016 by John Hartz

Story of the Week... SkS Highlights... Toon of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Poster of the Week... Climate Feedback Reviews... SkS Week in Review... 97 Hours of Consensus...

Merry Christmas!

Original cartoon by John Cook

Story of the Week...

Arctic heatwave could break records

Temperatures at the North Pole could be up to 20 degrees higher than average this Christmas Eve, in what scientists say is a record-breaking heatwave.

Climate scientists say these unseasonably warm weather patterns in the Arctic region are directly linked to man-made climate change.

Temperatures throughout November and December were 5C higher than average.

It follows a summer during which Arctic sea ice reached the second-lowest extent ever recorded by satellites.

Arctic sea ice extent is monitored and measured by satellite imaging

Dr Friederike Otto, a senior researcher at Oxford's Environmental Change Institute told BBC News that in pre-industrial times "a heatwave like this would have been extremely rare - we would expect it to occur about every 1,000 years".

Dr Otto added that scientists are "very confident" that the weather patterns were linked to anthropogenic climate change.

"We have used several different climate modelling approaches and observations," she told BBC News.

Arctic heatwave could break records by Victoria Gill, BBC News, Dec 24, 2016

SkS Highlights...

Russian email hackers keep playing us for fools by Dana Nuccitelli (Climate Consensus - the 97%) has generated quite a bit of chatter on its comment thread. If you have not already done so, check out the article and take part in the lively conversation.

Toon of the Week...

Coming Soon on SkS...

Skeptical Science at AGU 2016 (Baerbel, John Cook, Dana)

(Baerbel, John Cook, Dana) Facts matter, and on climate change, Trump's picks get them wrong (Dana)

(Dana) Record-breaking Arctic warmth extremely unlikely without climate change (Roz Pidcock)

(Roz Pidcock) Guest Post (John Abraham)

(John Abraham) What could the rest of the world do if Trump pulls the US out of the Paris Agreement on climate change? (Henrik Selen, Adil Najam)

(Henrik Selen, Adil Najam) 2016 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #53 (John Hartz)

(John Hartz) 2016 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Waming Digest #53 (John Hartz)

Poster of the Week...

Climate Feedback Reviews...

Climate Feedback asked its network of scientists to review the newspaper article, Arctic ice melt already affecting weather patterns where you live right now' by Damien Carrington, Guardian, Dec 19, 2016. Six scientists analyzed the article and estimated its overall scientific credibility to be neutral to high.

Click here to access the detailed review.

SkS Week in Review...

97 Hours of Consensus...

Quote source
Skeptical Science at AGU 2016 - a recap

Posted on 26 December 2016 by BaerbelW , John Cook, dana1981

This year's Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) has come and gone and quite a lot happened during the week from Dec. 12 to 16. As mentioned in our earlier post, several SkS teammembers were actively involved with giving talks and/or presenting posters while others were there to take it all in as was the case for me with attending AGU for the very first time.

This post is a (long) recap divided into the following sections:

SkS presentations

Denial101x featured in a poster session

Rally to stand up for Science

ERL's 10th anniversary reception

NCSE Friend of the Planet awards

Interviewing Stephan Lewandowsky

Further Reading

Some impressions from AGU 2016 (photos: Baerbel Winkler)

SkS presentations

John Cook presented a talk A Brief History of Consensus (PPT 6.8Mb), outlining the misinformation campaign against consensus, the studies quantifying the level of scientific agreement and how to neutralise misinformation.

Dana Nuccitelli presented a talk on climate model accuracy  comparing past global temperature projections to observations, and effectively debunking associated myths. The model-data comparisons can be seen in the video below.

Sarah Green presented a poster on Monday afternoon where she showed how well - or not so well - chemistry text books mention climate change: Matter and energy flows in climate education - Climate topics in undergraduate chemistry textbooks (ED13B-0939)

On Tuesday, it was Keah Schuenemann's turn to present a poster: Country Contributions to Climate Change (ED21A-0761)

On Thursday, Mark Richardson was one of the conveners for Climate Sensitivity and Feedbacks: Advances and New Paradigms II (A41K) and he presented Cloud properties retrieved from the OCO-2 A-band spectrometer (A44A-08).

The final session by a teammember at this year's AGU meeting was presented by Zeke Hausfather on Friday afternoon: Assessing Recent Warming Using Instrumentally-Homogeneous Sea Surface Temperature Records (GC53H-07).

Denial101x featured in a poster session

John Cook presented a poster about our Denial101x MOOC in a session on science communication through curricula (ED13A-0923) on Monday afternoon.

Throughout the afternoon several people stopped by to chat with John about Denial101x and how to debunk misinformation. The general gist of the conversations was how important and appreciated this MOOC is.

We also had a chance to get pictures of several of the lecturers (and one forum moderator) in front of the poster:

Clockwise: John Cook, Peter Jacobs, Keah Schuenemann, Dana Nuccitelli, Sarah Green and in the middle: Mark Richardson, Daniel Bedford, Baerbel Winkler, John Cook

You can download the poster at the following link: full PDF 28Mb

Rally to stand up for Science

Shortly after noon on Tuesday about 500 people came together for a rally on Jesse square just a stone's throw away from the Moscone Center. The rally was organised by The Natural History Museum and ClimateTruth.org Action to set a sign against the incoming US-adminstration's apparent anti-science stance and to urge scientists to "get out of the lab and into the street". Several scientists as well as indigenous leaders spoke at the event and Collin Maessen's video provides a neat summary:

ERL's 10th anniversary reception

On Wednesday, the journal Environmental Research Letters (ERL) hosted a reception at their booth in Moscone North exhibitors' hall in celebration of their 10th anniversary. This was a great opportunity for some of the Cook et al. (2013) authors to meet and talk with the journal's Editor-in-Chief Daniel Kammen and Executive Editor Guillaume Wright. Our consensus study gets a couple of mentions in the 10th anniversary booklet ERL handed out at their booth. You can download the booklet from ERL's website.

NCSE Friend of the Planet Awards

In May, the National Center for Science Education (NCSE) had announced this year's recipients of their Friend of the Planet Awards with our Skeptical Science team being one of them. It was decided that the awards would be presented at the "SkS-Shindig", held on Monday evening when those from the SkS-team attending AGU come together with many others interested in climate science. The other recipients of the NCSE award, Katharine Hayhoe, John Abraham and Dana Nuccitelli were also there to receive their awards. At around 8pm Ann Reid from NCSE started the proceedings and soon after all four recipients held their awards in their hands:

From the left: John Cook, Katharine Hayhoe, Dana Nuccitelli, Ann Reid, John Abraham (photo: )

As about a dozen folks from the SkS- and Denial101x-team were at the shindig we used the opportunity to also get a group picture:

From the left: Mark Richardson, Howard Lee, John Mashey, Collin Maessen, John Cook, Baerbel Winkler, Peter Jacobs, Rob Honeycutt, Sarah Green, Dana Nuccitelli, Keah Schuenemann, Dan Bedford

Interviewing Stephan Lewandowsky

During the weekend after the AGU Fall, John Cook had the opportunity to briefly interview Stephan Lewandowsky in the same manner as his 2014 interview with Dana Nuccitelli (aka a bunch of the smart-alec questions). Just as his penetrating 2014 interview had Nuccitelli admitting he was in fact a cyborg, this latest incisive interview had Lewandowsky confessing that he was indeed the puppet master who runs the world:

Further reading

If this blog post isn't detailed enough for your liking and you need more of an AGU-2016-fix, here are links to some other articles about what all happened there:

Collin Maessen has posts for each day of AGU on his RealSkeptic blog:

AGU Fall meeting Day 1 - Education and Science Outreach

Collin also shares extended video material from Tuesday's rally in this playlist.

Dana Nuccitelli published a Guardian blog post about Tuesday's rally:

This is not normal - climate researchers take to the street to protect science

Let me end with a personal note:

For me, attending AGU turned out to be a fascinating combination of information overload - from trying to take in as much as possible from many sessions - mixed with lots of fun hanging out with about a dozen members of the Skeptical Science team, who I've been working with virtually for many years and now finally had the chance to meet in real life. Thanks all, for a very interesting week and experience!
Two persons on a motorbike signalled a car about oil leakage from the engine and when the driver got down to check, they stole the gold bricks from rear seat.

By Mail Today Bureau: Delhi Police has busted a 'thak thak' gang of robbers with the arrest of two persons, including a juvenile, involved in stealing 3 kg gold from an Uttarakhand-based dealer.

The incident took place on December 23, when the gold dealer, Rachit Gupta, came to Janakpuri here to buy three gold bricks weighing 1kg each. While returning in a car, he was followed by the accused. After some time, two persons on one motorbike overtook the car and signalled about oil leakage from the engine.

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HOW DID THE GANG STEAL

"The driver parked the car on roadside and he, along with Gupta, came out to inspect the vehicle. They saw black oil trace come out of the front side but engine was working fine. They came back inside and when they were about to resume the journey, Gupta checked that the bag of gold was missing from the rear seat of the car," said Vijay Kumar DCP west district Delhi.

Also read: Gangs, wars and muscle of Gurugram

Also read: How gangs use sports tournaments as cover to smuggle children to Europe

Sensing the gravity of crime, the police come out with the list of history sheeters of similar crimes in adjoining JJ colony and Madangir.

"We have raided the hideouts of suspects and apprehended gang members. Following sustained interrogation, they have revealed that two persons of a particular gang are planning to dispose off gold bricks. Accordingly, a trap was laid on Sunday night and the two accused were apprehended," the DCP said.

Also read: Delhiites beware! Gangs using social media, dating sites to lure people and then extort money

One of the accused Somu, a resident of Madangir has confessed that both of them along with five others including kingpin of gang leader used to roam on the streets on motorbikes in search of suitable prey.

They hit the car from behind, puncture wheels with the help of pokers or by throwing engine oil on the bonnet and radiator. The accused explained the process in which the 'thak thak' gang distracts their prey in order to steal.

--- ENDS ---
I just had an angel deal collapse because the investors wanted the founder to change the compensation structure of the top management team as a condition of investing, and the founder said no. This company provides a good example of the difference in how top management is compensated differently in an externally-funded startup from a bootstrapped one.

The company is generating revenue of approximately $900,000 per year and could triple that next year with an investment of $250,000. A group of angels and micro venture capital funds was interested in investing the $250,000.

When the potential investors looked at the companys financial projections, however, they showed that the company would experience significant negative cash flow in 2017. The cause of the negative cash flow was compensation. The company had four top managers, including the founder, who were going to be paid a total of $500.000. Most angel and VC-backed startups at this stage would have a top management team of three, paid a total of $180,000. The top managers wouldnt be making market salaries but would be compensated through a big capital gain from their shares and stock options when the company was acquired or went public.

The investor group suggested that the founder restructure compensation to boost stock options and reduce salary of the top four managers to $250,000 in total. The founder and the team discussed the alternative and turned down the external financing to keep the compensation structure.

This decision illustrates the complementarities that exist between ways of financing startups and top management team compensation. The term complementarity refers to a situation in which the value of something increases the value of something else. In this case, the value of an investment in a startup is higher if the startup compensates its top managers largely through capital gains rather than through salaries.

The Salary-Equity Trade Off

This company faced a strategic choice: It could grow more slowly by paying its top management team higher salaries and not take on external financing or it could grow more quickly by paying its top management team lower salaries (providing compensation in the form of shares and stock options) and taking on external investors. What it could not do is take on external investment and pay its top management team higher salaries.

The founders decision to grow more slowly and not raise external capital is a fair strategy. The strategy cant be criticized.

But the founder did make a mistake in the process of implementing her strategy. She spent a bunch of time trying to raise money from investors. That was an error. If you do not want to compensate your top management team in the way that is appropriate for external investors, you should not waste time talking to them.

A founders time has a high opportunity cost. Whatever an entrepreneur spends time on comes at the expense of other activities. In this case, the founder could have closed another customer sale or two in the time she spent talking to investors about an investment that would not work for the company.

The lesson here is simple: Before you think of raising money from investors, think of all the changes that an external investment would impose on your company. Dont talk to investors if you wouldnt be willing to make those changes. As an entrepreneur, your time is too valuable to waste.
Robert Gilpin, R.I.P. - The Washington Post : His greatest book was written in 1981, but the main theory in it is perhaps more trenchant now...
The Mysterious Year for Phil Ivey

December 26 2016 Katie Callahan

Phil Ivey has had an interesting year. The poker pro has been largely missed at poker events, only making headlines when it comes to his proclivity for edge sorting.

A Single Cash

Many wonder whether hes missing in action, having checked his Hendon Mob profile only to find a single event listed: the $196,000 + $4,000 No Limit Holdem Triton Super High Roller Series Event #3. The 10-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner placed fifth in this 2016 World Poker Tour National Event in the Philippines, raking in $656,500.

He did return to the World Series of Poker Main Event this year:

I've been quite busy and I haven't played any tournaments.

"You know I love this event," he told PokerNews about the WSOP Main Event. "This is the biggest tournament of the year for all poker players and I try to make it back if I can for it.

I've been quite busy and I haven't played any tournaments, he said of the 2016 WSOP. This is my first one and, honestly, I'm happy I was able to get back and play this one.

Heartbreak would follow him though, due to his noticeable absence on the circuit.

I am a little rusty from not playing tournaments, Ivey said. But that has nothing to do with how I'm doing right now. Hopefully I'll turn it around.

Social Media Absense

While Ivey still still ranks fifth in the All Time Money List and remains the second-most popular player in poker according to The Hendon Mob, hes remained quiet on social media, only logging in to talk sports, talk to other poker players and to promote his poker training site, Ivey League.

Even more fitting, he hit his Instagram account to post a #FlashbackFriday that now seems to be a long time coming, leaving the poker world to wonder, when will we see Ivey hit the felt again?

His last post on Twitter was back in September and his last post on Instagram was back in August of this year. Nothing more than his cover photo for his Facebook page has been changed (Dec. 19) since September.

Bellagio Action

Ivey was spotted back in August by Daniel Negreanu, who published a blog on his experience with Ivey and Gus Hansen, who both met him at the tables of the Bellagio for a $1,500-3,000 mixed game (stakes were bumped later to $2,000-4,000). Negreanu succumbed to Ivey after Ivey laid down a two pair in a stud hand.

With the other players on a short break, it was three handed for just a moment with Phil Ivey bringing it in for $500 with the . Gus Hansen raised with the . I looked down at ( ) and decided to 3-bet Gus. Gus is going to raise with any Ace in this situation and my 77 are going to be the best hand a high percentage of the time. Phil Ivey then re-raised and Gus folded. I called. With Ivey re-raising here, his most likely hand is a pair in the hole. When you know that your opponent likely has a pair in the hole, you have the added benefit of seeing if they ever make two pair until 6th street and can play perfectly despite being pretty sure you are chasing. I didn't plan on folding my buried pair unless Phil broke out into an open pair. On 4th street Phil caught the and I caught the . Not the worst card in the deck for me as I now had a 3 card straight draw. He bet I called. On 5th street our boards look like this: Phil Ivey: Daniel Negreanu: Great card for me so I bet, expecting Phil to either fold or call. Pairing your door card is quite powerful as the likelihood of you having trips is pretty high. To my surprise, Ivey raised!

He wasn't in Las Vegas during the summer because he was in Asia playing high-stakes cash games.

Negreanu said that Ivey hasnt actually fallen off the poker circuit grid, but that he has been playing mixed games regularly in Bobbys Room.

I think the big omission for most people from his 2016 resume is tournaments, specifically the WSOP which he really enjoys playing, Negreanu said to PokerNews. He wasn't in Las Vegas during the summer because he was in Asia playing high-stakes cash games.

Legal Issues

Most recently, Ivey has been stuck in court, arguing about his ability to edge sort in casinos in the UK and in the United States.

In the UK, Ivey went to Gentings Casino UKs Crockfords Casino and ended up losing his case and having to return his earnings.

As I said in court, it's not in my nature to cheat  and I would never do anything to risk my reputation, Ivey said in a statement after the ruling on Crockfords.

A judge recently ordered that in the 2012 case against the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa that Ivey and his associate return their winnings, of $10.1 million, to the casino for breaching the casino contract, despite clearing his name for fraud.

His lawyer spoke on his behalf regarding this ruling and stated that Ivey planned to appeal the ruling soon.

What this ruling says is a player is prohibited from combining his skill and intellect and visual acuity to beat the casino at its own game, Ed Jacobs, Iveys attorney, said to The Associated Press. The casino agreed to every single accommodation requested by Phil Ivey in his four visits because they were eager to try to win his money.

As this ruling came out in the third week of December, Ivey has had his hands full.

Iveys live earnings on have him at over $23 million, with his best live cash being the $3,582,753 he earned in the Aussie Millions $250,000 Challenge in 2014

The Greatest?

His poker training site dubs him one of the greatest players alive; the question lingers of whether hell continue to hold that title while remaining so far removed from the tournament circuit for so long.

Sharelines The Mysterious Year for Phil Ivey: Ivey has been largely removed from the poker scene this year.
NDJAMENA, Chad  Forces from Chad and Niger opened a new front in the regional military fight against the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram, as army vehicles full of soldiers crossed the border into northeast Nigeria, officials and witnesses said Monday.

The escalation in a joint military campaign against the Nigeria-based Boko Haram comes just weeks before Nigerians head to the polls for an election which many fear will turn violent, and after the militants have attacked neighboring countries who have pledged to help Nigeria defeat the extremists.

Chadian Brig. Gen. Zakaria Ngobongue said Monday that his soldiers, alongside troops from Niger, had entered Nigeria. He declined to give details about the ongoing operation. Already Chadian forces had crossed into northeastern Nigeria from Cameroon to fight the jihadists, he said.

Boko Haram has been fighting a nearly 6-year insurgency against the Nigerian government, and on Saturday declared their allegiance to the extremist Islamic State group in the Middle East, raising fears that the conflict could be internationalized with IS fighters from North Africa. Boko Haram has carried out mass kidnappings, including of schoolgirls.

They are bandits and criminals who have nothing to do with religion, Ngobongue said. He spoke to reporters after the closing ceremony for Flintlock, a training in counter-terrorism tactics that included U.S. special forces and involved 20 countries.

Witnesses in the Niger town of Bosso reported about 200 military vehicles crossing over into Nigeria since Saturday. Adam Boukarna, one resident, said the deployment was followed by loud detonations, signaling heavy combat with Boko Haram.

Describing the stepped-up military activity, Nigerian military spokesman Brig. Gen. Chris Olukolade said Sunday night that there were some pre-emptive manoeuvers along an axis in the theater. Nigerian forces were also involved.

Military spokesmen from Nigeria and Niger could not immediately be reached for further comment Monday.

Cameroons minister of defense, Edgard Alain Mebe Ngoo, said troops from Nigeria and Chad would fight Boko Haram while soldiers from Cameroon and Niger would guard their borders to prevent the militants from escaping. Boko Haram has been using Cameroon as an escape and supply route.

Residents in potential conflict zones in Cameroon have been asked to leave, the minister said.

Tens of thousands of Nigerians have taken refuge in the area, among 1.6 million people driven from their homes by the insurgency.

International concern has increased along with the casualties. About 10,000 people were killed in Boko Harams uprising last year, compared to about 2,000 in the four previous years, according to the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations.

The United States, Britain, France and the European Union are backing the formation of a multinational force of 8,750 troops led by Nigeria and Chad with contingents from Cameroon, Niger and Benin. Several other countries also have pledged to help.

On Saturday, Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau reportedly pledged his groups allegiance to the Islamic State group, raising fears that the conflict largely restricted to northeast Nigeria and its neighbors borders could be internationalized.



Mamane reported from Niamey, Niger. Associated Press reporter Edwin Kindzeka Moki contributed to this report from Yaounde, Cameroon.
Energy developers are tapping into New Mexicos billowing wind energy potential, with plans to double installed generating capacity from wind farms throughout the states gusty eastern plains in the next few years.

Generous federal subsidies and major improvements in wind technology have combined to make wind-generated electricity a low-cost option today for utilities and corporations seeking renewable energy. Thats generating a surge in wind projects, here and in other states.

More than a gigawatt of wind capacity is now under construction or planned in New Mexico, said Jeremy Lewis, bureau chief for the energy, conservation and management division at the state Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department.

If all that comes online, it would be enough electricity to potentially supply nearly 700,000 homes every year, up from about 350,000 now, according to the American Wind Energy Association.

The costs for wind and solar have dropped precipitously, allowing a lot more renewable energy to move onto the grid, Lewis said. Well see a lot more wind energy connected to our economy moving forward.

Still, with federal subsidies scheduled to ratchet down starting next year, and then phase out altogether by 2020, its unclear whether todays surge in wind development is a short-term gust of energy, or whether costs will remain competitive compared with other resources in the future. And with President-elect Donald Trumps incoming administration expected to pursue fossil-fuel development over renewables, uncertainty reigns on how long the industry can sustain its momentum.

Thats particularly true in New Mexico, where a lot more transmission must be developed, adding to the cost of new projects beyond the ones already planned now.

But at least for the next few years, wind energy has entered a boom cycle.

Todays tax credits have brought down the costs to make wind energy very economical, said David Hudson, president of Xcel Energy New Mexico, which serves eastern New Mexico and West Texas through its subsidiary, Southwestern Public Service Co. Its an opportune time to acquire wind-generated electricity.

The federal production tax credit, which currently pays 2.3 cents for every kilowatt-hour of electricity from wind farms, has contributed to rapid deployment of new wind facilities across the nation in the past decade. Developers installed a total of nearly 75 gigawatts of electricity nationwide as of 2015, or enough to power about 20 million homes, according to the Wind Energy Association.

Ongoing battles in Congress over annual renewal of tax credits created industry uncertainty in recent years. But last December, the federal government extended tax credits by a full five years, on the condition that they be phased out by 20 percent per year through 2020. That eliminated industry uncertainty, at least for now, causing an unprecedented surge in wind projects nationwide as developers scramble to take advantage of subsidies before they ratchet down.

As of last summer, the wind association reported 20 GW of wind projects in advanced construction or planning nationwide, nearly three times the level in 2015.

Were seeing near-record development, said John Hensley, association manager for industry data and analysis. Many companies want to increase their holdings to lock in low, stable wind prices now.

Those trends are lifting New Mexicos sails, with massive wind farms either planned or under construction in Torrance and Curry counties. That includes two interrelated projects near Clovis totaling 497 MW of generating capacity.

A 298-MW project near Moriarty, El Cabo Wind Farm, will open next year. And three other projects ranging from 30 MW to 250 MW are in the planning stages.

Taken together, those projects would double New Mexicos wind generation from 13 wind facilities with 1.1 GW now to nearly 20 wind farms with 2.2 GW of installed capacity.

El Cabo, a $500 million project by Oregon-based Avangrid Renewables, will be the states largest wind farm when it opens next year.

Were very impressed with the price point for wind now under current economics, especially in robust wind areas like New Mexico and Texas, said Jesse Gronner, Avangrids vice president of business development . Its very cost competitive, and manufacturers continue to improve technology and efficiency.

Apart from tax credits, technological advances have significantly cut costs, pushing prices down by 66 percent in the past five years, according to the wind association. Manufacturers are making taller turbines and bigger blades with larger rotary diameters, allowing facilities to tap a lot more wind energy. More transmission lines closer to markets also help.

Utilities can procure wind-generated electricity now at prices lower than natural gas, said Hudson of Xcel Energy. Thats led Southwestern Public Service to procure more wind generation for its grid than other utilities, including the 250 MW Roosevelt Wind Project that EDF Renewable Energy opened last December to supply SPS.

About 19 percent of SPSs generation in New Mexico and Texas now comes from wind, said customer relations Director Brooke Trammell.

The wind resources in eastern New Mexico and the Texas Panhandle make this area prime real estate for wind generation, Trammell said. Wind resources are truly abundant here.

New Mexicos eastern plains have enough wind energy potential to generate 11 GW of electricity, or about 75 times more than the state needs, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado. As a result, most newly planned wind farms will supply customers in other states.

But to do that, New Mexico needs a lot more transmission, since current lines operated by the states largest utility, Public Service Company of New Mexico, can only accommodate another 1 GW of capacity, or the amount of new wind energy already under development, said Jeff Mechenbier, PNM director of transmission, distribution and planning contracts.

About 1,000 MW is all the future development capacity we have now, and its being exhausted, Mechenbier said. To get more wind energy out of eastern New Mexico, we need more transmission, whether its built by PNM or merchant developers.

Five large-scale transmission projects are currently in different stages of development, including the massive, 515-mile SunZia line that will carry 3,000 MW or more of wind-generated electricity from central New Mexico to Arizona.

But those are long-term projects that depend on out-of-state markets to sell their electricity. Construction depends of how competitive wind remains in the long-term.

Industry leaders differ on post-subsidy prospects. Some say few options remain to improve technology and efficiency. Others say prices can be lowered a lot more.

We expect cost declines to continue, whether its better software to optimize operations, better siting, or better turbines and blades to capture more wind, Hensley said.

In addition, despite changing conditions in Washington, the broad investment and job opportunities generated by wind could still earn state, and possibly even federal, support going forward, Hensley added. About 88,000 people are currently employed in wind-related business nationwide.

I think we have a great story to tell, one that includes huge investments in rural development, Hensley said. It generates higher property taxes that support public services, lease payments for public and private landholders, and lots of new jobs.
The Albuquerque chapter of the American Institute of Architects called out eight projects in its 2016 Architecture Design Awards earlier this month.

The projects were selected for quality design, innovative approaches and sustainability, according to the organization.

An Honor Award went to Sam Sterling Architecture for the Wilway Addition in the small architectural project category. Stefanie Luna and Jeff Tomlinson are the owners of the Albuquerque home, which saw extensive interior and exterior remodeling and design. Sunbelt Properties was the contractor.

Other projects receiving awards were:

 Sarabande Bed and Breakfast, Merit Award for Remodel and Adaptive Reuse, Jon Anderson Architects. Nancy Klion, owner. Sunbelt Properties, contractor.

 Ernie Pyle Middle School Fine Arts Renovation, Merit Award for Remodel and Adaptive Reuse, Baker Architecture + Design. Albuquerque Public Schools, owner. Thompson Construction, contractor.

 San Juan College of Energy, Citation Award for General Design, Dekker/Perich/Sabatini. San Juan College, owner. Jaynes Corp., contractor.

 CNM Main Campus Wayfinding, Citation Award for General Design, Studio Collaboration. Central New Mexico Community College, owner. Bradbury Stamm Construction, contractor.

 New Belen Family School, Citation Award for General Design, Vigil & Associates Architectural Group. Belen Consolidated Schools, owner. ESA Construction, contractor.

 Urenco College Campus, Citation Award for General Design, Dekker/Perich/Sabatini. Urenco-USA, owner. Jaynes Corp., contractor.

 Albuquerque Main Library, Citation 25-Year Award, SMPC Architects. Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Library System, owners. George A. Rutherford, contractor.

AIA Albuquerque will be hosting an open house Feb. 2 for those wanting to see the award-winning design boards. More details: 505.242.9800.

Business way out of town: Todd Clarke, CEO of NM Apartment Advisors, is always happy to talk up investment opportunities in the Albuquerque multi-family market. In fact, hell travel far to plant the seed for future business.

Clarke recently made a presentation at a Korean investment forum on deals to be had in the U.S. and ABQ in particular. He also taught a course for the CCIM Institute in Korea, a commercial real estate training organization.

I think this is a long game, the first step in establishing a relationship (with Korean investors), said Clarke. Hopefully, this will be followed tours of the market and maybe, just maybe, new money in our market.

Gemini Rosemont office deal: Santa Fe-based Gemini Rosemont Commercial Real Estate wrapped up the year with a major office building acquisition in the Seattle area.

The property is One Twelfth @ Twelfth, a three-building campus just off of Interstate 405 on the north edge of downtown in the tech-heavy Seattle submarket of Bellevue.

Officials of Gemini Rosemont announced that it had bought One Twelfth in a partnership with Hong Kong-based Gemini Investments but did not say how much they paid. The price was revealed recently when King County recorded the transaction.

According to the Puget Sound Business Journal, the building sold for nearly $202.7 million. The newspaper identified the seller as Des Moines, Iowa-based Principal Global Investors, the real estate arm of Principal Financial Group, which paid $134.1 million for the property 12 years ago. The value of the 480,389-square-foot campus shot up earlier this year when the buildings became fully leased.

BitTitan and VoiceBox Technologies rented a total of 127,400 square feet in separate deals, according to the newspaper.

Earlier this year, Gemini scooped up Class A office buildings in Raleigh-Durham and San Diego.

A company spokesman said the company expects additional acquisitions in Washington States Emerald city in the near future.
Earlier this month, the Journal reported on an effort to expand New Mexicos ban-the-box legislation.

Current law prohibits the state, counties and municipalities from including a yes/no box about criminal convictions on an initial application for employment. Only after an applicant is selected as a finalist can the public employer ask whether he or she has ever been convicted of a crime.

The proposed bipartisan legislation would extend the prohibition to private employers, too. As one of its sponsors, Rep. Alonzo Baldonado, R-Los Lunas, told the Journal, The idea is to give someone a fair shake who has truly changed their life and is headed in a better direction. By delaying inquiry into criminal records, ban-the-box measures provide the reformed offender with the opportunity to make a good first impression, getting past that crucial initial screening.

The online magazine Aeon recently ran an article by an ex-addict named Marc Lewis who got clean in his 20s. He went to college, earned a doctorate in developmental psychology and taught neuroscience at universities in Canada and Europe while conducting important research into the nature of addiction, which he summarized in his piece. A career like that might easily have been derailed at the beginning by a felony drug conviction. Giving recovered addicts and genuinely rehabilitated criminals a second (or sometimes first) chance can only benefit society in the long run, allowing them to become financially self-sufficient while doing things that benefit others, whether advancing scientific knowledge or more humbly by adding to a companys bottom line.

But is ban-the-box really an effective way to achieve that goal?

According to a recent paper from the National Employment Law Project (NELP), public employers have dramatically increased their hiring of people with criminal records following the enactment of ban-the-box legislation around the country. But, the report notes, the vast majority of all ban-the-box laws apply only to public employers. New Mexico would be moving into relatively uncharted waters if it extends the prohibition to private employers.

While the purpose of the law is to remove negative information from applications submitted by ex-offenders, it also has the effect of removing positive information from the initial applications of those with clean records. With respect to entry-level jobs, in particular, its always difficult enough for any given applicant to stand out from the crowd. Its not self-evident why people with clean records should be prevented from leading with that positive fact about themselves.

Those with criminal records seeking employment in New Mexico face an additional heavy burden that has nothing to do with boxes on initial employment applications. A column from last June described the twin New Mexico torts of negligent hiring and negligent retention. In simplest terms, those torts hold that if an employer knows or should have known that an employee has a criminal history but chooses to hire (or refrain from firing) him or her anyway, then in some circumstances, the company can be liable for the workers future criminal acts. The key phrase is should have known. An employer cannot shield itself from tort liability by failing to discover the workers criminal history. Sometimes, indeed, tort law imposes on the company an affirmative duty to conduct a criminal background check.

In practical effect, the recognition of those torts in New Mexicos courts means that an employer that hires someone with a criminal record takes on an added financial risk. The tort law gives employers a big financial reason to ask about criminal records, conduct an independent background check, and then, all else being even roughly equal, to choose the applicant with the clean record.

If expressed in terms of public policy regarding the hiring of rehabilitated offenders, the judicial branch is strongly opposed to giving them a second chance. Realistically, of course, our appellate judges werent thinking in those big-picture terms when they recognized the torts of negligent hiring and retention. Most likely, they were merely looking for some plausible mechanism to compensate the injured New Mexicans who brought those particular lawsuits. But decisions that have one effect within the highly artificial miniature world of the courtroom often have quite different effects when loosed on the wide world.

Its not clear how the proposed legislation would be enforced, but presumably by lawsuit. Without protection from tort liability, then, the legislation would create a situation in which an employer runs the risk of being sued for discrimination if it asks about an applicants criminal history but runs the risk of being sued in tort if it fails to do so.

Unfortunately, running up legal fees in the name of a good cause isnt always the same as advancing that cause. Lawsuits about the placement of boxes on application forms might be worthwhile if they ultimately wind up helping rehabilitated prisoners gain a toehold in the job market. But not if they benefit only the lawyers involved.

If the Legislature were to extend the ban-the-box law to private employers without simultaneously protecting them from tort liability for negligent hiring and retention, it would accomplish nothing of substance.

The NELP paper emphasizes that the ultimate goal of ban-the-box measures is to counteract the unprecedented fallout from decades of mass incarceration. If the underlying problem is that the United States locks up way too many people, making New Mexico employers jump through a prescribed set of hoops is, at best, an indirect attempt at a solution. It makes far more sense to address the problem itself, in a direct and meaningful way, than to reformat job applications in the hope of mitigating some of its remote effects.

Joel Jacobsen is an author and has recently retired from a 29-year legal career. If there are topics you would like to see covered in future columns, please write him at legal.column.tips@gmail.com
NEW YORK  When shoppers walk into JAM Paper, they can choose from hundreds of holiday bows, rolls of wrapping paper and gift bags, in addition to thousands of everyday stationery items. Yet the store will account for just 2 percent of the companys business this year.

JAM Paper now gets so much of its revenue online that the company has scaled back from five stores to a single Manhattan location, owner Andrew Jacobs says.

The second we launched the website in 2007, we became national, Jacobs says. He estimates that online sales will be up 30 percent this year, while the store located near the East Village neighborhood is likely to have just an incremental increase.

Some small and independent retailers feeling the impact of the growing preference for online shopping have adapted by focusing more on their web business, including diverting more advertising dollars to those areas. Online and mail-order sales nationwide rose 11 percent in October from a year earlier, compared with less than 2 percent growth in overall retail sales, the latest Commerce Department figures show.

Theres room for both types of retailing, but the increasing competition means store owners must be able to meet customers demands for the right merchandise, convenience, good service and an enjoyable experience whether its in a store or on a website, says Bob Phibbs, CEO of The Retail Doctor, a consulting company based in Coxsackie, New York.

No channel you want to sell in is going to be easy, Phibbs says.

Retailers also must make sure both their stores and websites can help bring sales in for each other. Jacobs, with an eye to that necessity, says hes not planning to close the remaining JAM Paper location.

I almost look at my retail store as billboard advertising, he says. Some customers come into the store, buy a number of items, and then place a larger order online.

Antique dealers used to make most of their sales in stores or at trade shows. Now, when customers visit a store, they are very likely there to inspect in person items they already checked out on the retailers website.

But customers of M.S. Rau Antiques are also willing to spend even millions of dollars on an antique or artwork they see only online because theyre able to view multiple photos of an item from different angles and zoom in to examine it closely, owner Bill Rau says. So the 104-year-old retailer, which operates a store in New Orleans French Quarter, has shifted its advertising budget to online from magazines and other print publications.

The trend toward online becomes more pronounced this time of the year. Rau sees visits to his website surge 20 percent during the holidays, although foot traffic to the New Orleans store is little changed.

We made four sales this week from the web, going from $2,000 to $60,000, and I love it, says Rau, whose antiques include jewelry, furniture, ceramics, silver and paintings. It obviously reaches the whole world.

I still look at it as manna from heaven, he says of the internet.

There remains a place for small retailers who give customers the service and emotional experience they want, says David Clarke, a retail consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers. Stores where sales associates are friendly and take time to explain the merchandise can appeal even to customers who buy online because its cheaper and/or more convenient, Clarke says.

Magic Beans, a chain that sells baby merchandise, gets 25 percent of its sales online, owner Eli Gurock says. That figure hasnt changed much over the past few years because many parents, especially those with a baby on the way, need information and reassurance as well as strollers, cribs, bottles and other items.

We need to give them an experience that is better than online, better than Amazon, says Gurock, who has five Boston-area stores and one in Fairfield, Conn.

Gurock anticipates that as Magic Beans increases its online marketing, its internet sales will grow. And as with antiques, many people see merchandise online and then come to the stores to look at it in person before they buy. So hell keep devoting time to both types of stores.
After being left out for three consecutive years, Delhi tableau will finally return to Rajpath on Republic Day 2017.

By India Today Web Desk: Delhi tableau will finally be in the limelight in 2017 when India will celebrate its 68th Republic Day.

After not making it to the list for three years, Delhi tableau will finally showcase Delhi during the Republic day celebrations and will represent Delhi's improving education sector.

The model schools project, skill development center, parent teacher training programme and the mega parent-teacher meetings taken up by the AAP government are the prime enterprises that will be displayed next year.

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Delhi is among 15 other selected states and a special theme song on education will also be prepared, reported Hindustan Times .

The proposed tableau will have a replica of the Jantar Mantar and will show the importance of excursions in education.

The Delhi tableau last participated in the parade in 2013 with the theme 'the cultural hub of the country' as the city is a home to people from different cultures and religions.

--- ENDS ---
LOS ANGELES  Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher spent Christmas in intensive care two days after a cardiac episode during a flight from London to Los Angeles.

Fishers mother, entertainer Debbie Reynolds, said on Twitter Sunday that her daughter was stable.

Fisher, 60, was taken to the University of California, Los Angeles, Medical Center shortly after noon Friday, after her 11-hour flight touched down at Los Angeles International Airport.

Hospital officials have not provided any details about Fishers condition. But family members have suggested doctors have been able to stabilize her.

Shes obviously a very tough girl whos survived many things, Todd Fisher, Carrie Fishers brother, told KABC-TV. I encourage everyone to pray for her.

A statement released by United Airlines said that medical personnel met Flight 935 from London on arrival Friday.

Just before the plane arrived in L.A., a pilot told the control tower that passengers who were nurses were attending to an unresponsive passenger.

Fisher, who rose to stardom as Princess Leia on Star Wars, recently published an autobiography titled The Princess Diarist, her eighth book.

She is the daughter of Hollywood couple Reynolds and Eddie Fisher.

Fisher, who has written and spoken openly about her struggles in the movie business, is considered Hollywood royalty. She took on her prickly relationship with her mother in the book-to-movie Postcards From the Edge. Shes also been outspoken about her mental health issues and the solution she found: radical-sounding electroshock therapy.

News of Fishers condition sparked an outpouring of support and sympathy on social media.

Many of her Star Wars co-stars wished her well on Twitter, including Peter Mayhew, who played Chewbacca; Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker; Anthony Daniels, who played C-3PO; Dave Prowse, who played Darth Vader; and Billy Dee Williams, who played Lando Calrissian.

Im shocked and saddened to hear the news about my dear friend. Our thoughts are with Carrie, her family and friends, co-star Harrison Ford said.
BERNALILLO  Fourth-graders at Bernalillo Elementary got a taste of environmental science recently as part of a hands-on learning event held at five schools in the U.S. and Latin America.

Teacher Amber Braden led her 22 students outside the classroom for a walk along a nearby arroyo to measure humidity, ambient temperature and GPS position.

The experiment was possible thanks to four Labdisc data loggers  devices about the size of smoke detectors with 14 wireless sensors.

Boxlight, the manufacturer, donated the $550 data loggers as part of its new STEM Day initiative, which aims to bring science and technology curriculum to low-income schools.

Bradens class participated along with students in Tucson, Ariz.; Coweta County, Ga.; Jalisco, Mexico; and Sacatepequez, Guatemala.

This is really a gift to our school, Braden said. Were getting these kids excited about science and math, and giving them opportunities that wouldnt be available to a school like us during this budget crunch.

Albuquerque education company Team 1st Technologies worked with Boxlight to coordinate the experiment and trained Braden on the Labdisc system.

Team 1st Technologies founder Trisha Dworsky, a former teacher, said its rewarding to see children get excited about science, technology, engineering and math, high-paying fields with strong job markets.

They have been amazing in their interest, Dworsky said. If we can get these kiddos to know this stuff by the time they get to high school, they will be ahead.

During the walk, the students noted temperature changes from shade to sun and higher humidity near a creek.

Its a cooler way to learn than just reading a textbook, according to 10-year-old Nathan Encinias Jr.

I like actually doing science, said Encinias, who particularly enjoys studying bugs.

Alyssa Baldonado started thinking about career options after the data-collection walk.

Some people have to know about humidity and temperature for their jobs, she said.

Back in the classroom, Dworsky and Team 1st Technologies trainer Carmen Trujillo charted the students data and helped them come up with hypotheses.

For instance, could kids body temperatures impact the readings?

This is inquiry-based, Trujillo said. Its about making learning real.
Despite a constitutional requirement that the state provide any indigent accused of a crime with legal representation, the New Mexico Office of the Public Defender  like many state agencies  is having trouble meeting its mandate because of the states dismal financial straits.

But theres an essential difference: The Public Defender is not like any other state agency. It is entrusted with providing representation regardless of a clients ability to pay for a defense. Thats a cornerstone of justice.

But its time for the Legislature to make some reasoned decisions about which defendants are entitled to representation at taxpayer expense.

Under the state Constitution, the defenders office is required to represent clients in all criminal misdemeanor, juvenile and felony cases, start to finish. Eligibility for a public defender is based on factors including household income and assets, and those deemed capable of paying something toward their legal fees are charged on a sliding scale. Taxpayers pick up the rest.

But the public defenders office is chronically underfunded, and that under-funding is coming to a head.

Ben Baur, the states chief public defender, warned lawmakers in September his office would have to start declining cases in certain parts of the state due to a lack of funding. A month later, a public defender in Lea County announced that inadequate funding meant his office could not take on any new cases in the adult courts for 90 days.

Baur wrote in court documents that felony cases in Lea County have more than doubled in the last five years, and that four attorneys were struggling to handle more than 1,000 cases. Two of the offices contract attorneys handle an additional 300 to 400 cases.

Meanwhile, judges are forced to continue assigning indigent cases to public defenders. Baur correctly notes there are only two solutions: More money to pay for additional public defenders, or fewer cases. With state lawmakers scrambling to fill a projected $69 million shortfall in just this fiscal years budget, the former solution is, at least for the short term, a nonstarter.

And that leaves lawmakers with the unenviable task of finding ways to curtail the number of cases the Public Defenders Office is required to handle. That, in turn, is likely to require redefining indigent or narrowing the scope of criminal cases deemed misdemeanor, juvenile and felony.

And while Margaret Strickland, president-elect of the New Mexico Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, wrote in an op-ed this month that a judicial system tilted against the defense can turn into wrongful convictions and unnecessarily long prison sentences, the bottom line is something has to give.

Such as should a person temporarily out of work who gets a first-offense DWI, a misdemeanor unlikely to end in a jail term, be defended entirely on public funds? Or should a former high-end homebuilder, charged with fraud and embezzlement, receive, as one judge said, whatever resources are necessary for his defense simply because his debts exceed the $42,128 salary he subsequently makes as a teacher?

While there are no good arguments for ineffective counsel for truly poor defendants facing real jail time, its clear the system currently in place is not sustainable. When members of the judiciary themselves say the system is heading down a dangerous path, its imperative solutions be found quickly.

As said, in January state lawmakers face an unenviable, but entirely necessary, task.

This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.
WHY ARE THE PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE LIGHTS STILL OUT? Before Balloon Fiesta, R.M. called to point out many of the blue lights along the Jefferson pedestrian bridge across I-25 were out.

They still are.

And they have been since March 2014, when the bridge was new and the city had to ship many of the $327,000 in blue lights back to the manufacturer in New York to figure out why they were failing. Sherri Brueggemann, manager of the citys Public Art Urban Enhancement Program, says the manufacturer went out of business that same year and the repairs the manufacturer attempted to complete did not solve the problem.

The lights are supposed to be a celebration of water running through the Bear Canyon Arroyo in the Northeast Heights.

Brueggemann says, The Public Art Program is in discussion with a local lighting manufacturer exploring new light fixtures that can be retrofitted onto the existing light unit brackets so that replacement can happen without unnecessary lane closures having to be incurred.

We are working to figure out a replacement solution for the entire deck portion of the bridge, she explains. We will be able to re-use the lights still working on the deck as replacements along the ramps. Those that have lasted appear to have the fabrication durability that is required and they can be integrated back into other areas as needed.

WHY DID THE SILVER STOP LIGHTS GO? Bernard Freeman, who works Downtown, emails that this fall the stoplights on Silver SW were replaced with stop signs. It looks like a temporary situation because the stoplight poles were not removed (and) the vehicle and walking lights (were just) covered. I do not (see) any devices measuring traffic, so the question becomes, why? 

Melanie Chapman, program manager and public information officer for the citys Department of Municipal Development, says, We are taking feedback from the public and observing traffic conditions. We will continue monitoring the situation during the trial period. The trial period is expected to last approximately six months, but it may be extended to observe conditions during different seasons of the year. Following the completion of the trial period, the existing traffic signal equipment may be permanently removed or placed back into operation.

ARE THE ACADEMY/BURLISON MEDIANS GETTING RIPPED UP? L.S. called recently to ask about the red flags on the Academy and Burlison medians, saying neighbors were concerned that landscaping that had recently been done was going to be ripped up.

James Dunn, city irrigation program coordinator, says that in July 2014 the Solid Waste Departments Clean City team took over responsibility for city medians more than two years old (the first two years the contractor takes care of them are under warranty). At that time we also assumed areas that were in substandard condition. Many of the medians had areas where plant material died as a result of age or irrigation malfunctions. The red flags designate areas that Clean City is making improvements. These improvements are part of Clean Citys Median Sustainability program. It includes capping bubblers that are no longer required to conserve water, and replanting areas that are suitable and meet current Median Prototype standards.

Assistant editorial page editor DVal Westphal tackles commuter issues for the Metro area on Mondays. Reach her at 823-3858; road@abqjournal.com; or P.O. Drawer J, Albuquerque, N.M. 87103.
Recognition for heroism has been a long time coming for one master sergeant with the 512th Rescue Squadron.

Master Sgt. Greg Gibbs will be awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross on Jan. 13.

The Distinguished Flying Cross is the oldest and highest military aviation award.

Its important to recognize his actions, especially all these years later, said Staff Sgt. Mathew Hawkins, with the 512th Rescue Squadron, the medal ceremony coordinator.

Gibbs is being recognized for actions he took five years ago on a rescue mission in Shorbak District, Kandahar Province, Afghanistan.

Gibbs was a door gunner on an HH-60G Pave Hawk during the mission to rescue a squad of Army Pathfinders who had been decimated by improvised explosive devices.

On the last evacuation, the aircraft lost power, and Gibbs guided the pilots down the valley to land just a few feet outside the minefield. Once the aircraft was operational again, Gibbs calculated that they could fly the patient to higher medical care on emergency fuel.

When the patient was transferred to the hospital, the aircraft had only five minutes of fuel left.

This is a good learning opportunity for students, who will soon graduate and potentially be asked to do these same types of missions within months, Hawkins said.

Lt. Gen. Darryl Roberson, commander of the Air Education and Training Command, is going to present the award at the 58th Special Operations Wing Hangar 1001.

Throughout the time we have been planning the ceremony, we havent told Master Sgt. Gibbs what we are doing. He knows he is getting this award and that the squadron commander is not the one presenting it, Hawkins said.

He said help from the protocol offices for the 58th SOW and 377th Air Base Wing have provided excellent support for this event.

Created 80 years ago, the medals elements use the cross to show sacrifice, propellers for flight and five sunburst rays at each angle for the glory and splendor of the actions for which the award is earned.

President Calvin Coolidge presented the first medal in 1927 to Charles Lindbergh.

The presentation ceremony is open to all of Team Kirtland.
CIUDAD JUAREZ  A black ball cap with FBI stitched in yellow sits on the top shelf of this citys new prosecutor.

Jorge Nava Lopez, 34 years old, moved into the ground floor office of the Chihuahua state prosecutors office here in October, where he is in charge of state-level prosecutions for a city of 1.3 million people that only recently has recovered from a brutal drug war.

The office windows have translucent glass so he cant see out, nor can anyone see in. Nava Lopez keeps the cap and certificates from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Colombias National Police on display  emblems of a man whose career has been molded in an era of drug wars and evidence of the law enforcement links between the United States and key drug-producing nations.

The month he arrived in Ciudad Juarez, homicides spiked to their highest level in years: 96 in October, up from about 30 a month in the first quarter of the year. Local drug gangs were fighting over points of sale, he said, and took advantage of a power vacuum in the wake of July elections and the October turnover of governments.

What we wanted to do was send a clear message, and fast, that were working, he said. We didnt come here to learn, and were working with all levels of government. What needs to be highlighted is that in just one month we contained the crime trend.

Last year, Nava Lopez graduated from an FBI training program for international law enforcement in Quantico, Va. He says training is key to earning the trust of U.S. authorities and continuing cooperation on drug violence  which is everybodys problem, he said.

There is total coordination with U.S. authorities, he said, citing regular meetings that bring together the U.S. Marshals, FBI, Mexican state and federal prosecutors offices and other law enforcement entities.

For the U.S. authorities to give us information or ask for information, they have a strict protocol to trust authorities in other countries, he said. All of us who were present (at the last border law enforcement meeting) have been through a vetting process with U.S. authorities, specifically so we can exchange information.

Taking office in the midst of a spike in drug-related homicides, Nava Lopez said he reinforced his narcotics investigation unit with additional investigators and set up an intelligence unit to help investigate and prosecute drug-related homicides  the kind that ravaged the city between 2008 and 2011.

Its the kind of crime that alarms residents, especially given the conditions in which the murders happen  many times in rush hour, in popular places, in front of restaurants, vehicle to vehicle, he said. These are people that do these things when they can; they dont study their victims and they dont care how much damage they cause.

Homicides dropped to 35 in November and were on pace to end in December around that level, but the city is ending 2016 with the first increase in murders  to more than 500  since the waning days of a drug war that killed some 10,000 people in Ciudad Juarez in four years.

Nava Lopez led a statewide anti-kidnapping force for seven years before taking the job in Ciudad Juarez. Those were years when criminal organizations made kidnapping their bread and butter, a source of income to line their pockets and finance their turf war.

Over that time, more than 700 people were incarcerated in Chihuahua state for kidnapping  about 300 of whom have been sentenced, while the rest are in jail on kidnapping charges.

The years between 2009 and 2011 were the worst, he said, with more than 400 reports of kidnapping in three years. After numerous arrests and the dismantling of some 130 crime rings, he said, there were four reports of kidnapping in 2016. Arrests were made in all four cases and the alleged perpetrators are being prosecuted, he said.

Today, Nava Lopez is tasked with going after crime bosses and gang leaders, assassins and drug dealers, in a country where fewer than 5 percent of crimes prosecuted result in convictions, according to the 2016 Global Impunity Index produced by the Center for Impunity and Justice Studies at the University of the Americas in Puebla, Mexico.

Experts on the Mexican justice system routinely point to the impunity rate  the percentage of crimes that go unpunished  to show that arrests rarely result in convictions. That fact alone calls into question statistics on the number of people incarcerated on a given charge, like kidnapping.

And the publics reporting of crimes is known to be very low. The Center for Impunity and Justice Studies reports that, in Mexico, just seven in 100 crimes is reported to law enforcement.

Still, its Nava Lopezs job to enforce the rule of law in an imperfect system, in a country where top cops, judges and prosecutors have too often been fatally targeted by criminal organizations for trying to do their job.

Is he afraid?

There is a feeling of being on alert that we should all have, he said, but it doesnt stop our work.

UpFront is a daily front-page news and opinion column. Comment directly to Lauren Villagran in Las Cruces at lvillagran@abqjournal.com. Go to www.abqjournal.com/letters/new to submit a letter to the editor.
CIUDAD JUAREZ  The murder toll in this border city is expected to rise this year for the first time since the waning days of a bloody drug war five years ago.

A spike in homicides between July and October will push the citys murder rate to more than 500 for the year despite a decline in murders in the last two months, according to statistics from the Chihuahua state prosecutors office.

Homicides in the city had fallen each year since 2010 to an eight-year low in 2015, below the 500 mark.

Forty-five miles south of Las Cruces, this gritty town was known mostly for its assembly factories that produce goods destined for the U.S. market  printer cartridges, computers, refrigerators, auto parts and medical devices  until it became infamous as the most violent city in the world.

Between 2008 and 2011, rival criminal organizations  the Sinaloa and Juarez cartels  battled for control of lucrative drug trafficking routes and plunged the city into murderous chaos.

Monthly homicides in the metropolitan area surged to more than 350 at the peak of the violence in 2010, when the annual murder toll topped 3,600, according to the state prosecutors office.

Law enforcement on both sides of the border attribute the midyear spike in homicides to several factors.

Elections in July ushered in new city and state governments. New political parties at both levels took office in October  which in Mexico can mean a significant vacuum of power.

We had a considerable spike in crime in October, especially in execution-style murders, said Jorge Nava Lopez, Chihuahuas top prosecutor in Ciudad Juarez. Organized crime does take advantage of the vacuum of power that exists during that month when there is a transition in government. That is real. The justice system keeps working, but there are no leaders in the structure.

Criminal organizations continue to operate on both sides of the border but carry out the bulk of their violence on the Mexican side, where institutions are not as strong. Law enforcement and other experts say gangs are fighting not just for control of the plaza, but also for the local drug market.

Some of the violence going on is still the Sinaloa and Juarez cartels in battles, said Will Glaspy, special agent in charge of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration in West Texas and New Mexico. Some of it is possibly due to methamphetamine being distributed in Ciudad Juarez. Some of that we think, too, is infighting within the Juarez cartel.

Molly Molloy, a research librarian and border specialist at New Mexico State University, for years has documented trends in violence in Ciudad Juarez.

When something happens, like a spate of gang fights, the consequences are exacerbated by the citys fundamental flaws, she said: the lack of rule of law, adequate infrastructure, education, housing and good-paying jobs.

Violence hits a place like Juarez hard because its extremely vulnerable, she said.
ALLENTOWN, Pa.  Jill Steins bid to recount votes in Pennsylvania was in trouble even before a federal judge shot it down Dec. 12. Thats because the Green Party candidates effort stood almost no chance of detecting potential fraud or error in the vote  there was basically nothing to recount.

Pennsylvania is one of 11 states where the majority of voters use antiquated machines that store votes electronically, without printed ballots or other paper-based backups that could be used to double-check the balloting. Theres almost no way to know if theyve accurately recorded individual votes  or if anyone tampered with the count.

More than 80 percent of Pennsylvanians who voted Nov. 8 cast their ballots on such machines, according to VotePA, a nonprofit seeking their replacement. A recount would, in the words of VotePAs Marybeth Kuznik, a veteran election judge, essentially amount to this: You go to the computer and you say, OK, computer, you counted this a week-and-a-half ago. Were you right the first time?'

These paperless digital voting machines, used by roughly 1 in 5 U.S. voters last month, present one of the most glaring dangers to the security of the rickety, underfunded U.S. election system. Like many electronic voting machines, they are vulnerable to hacking. But other machines typically leave a paper trail that could be manually checked. The paperless digital machines open the door to potential election rigging that might not ever be detected.

Whats more, their prevalence magnifies other risks in the election system, such as the possibility that hackers might compromise the computers that tally votes, by making failures or attacks harder to catch. And like other voting machines adopted since the 2000 election, the paperless systems are nearing the end of their useful life  yet there is no comprehensive plan to replace them.

If I were going to hack this election, I would go for the paperless machines because they are so hard to check, said Barbara Simons, a former IBM executive and co-author of Broken Ballots, a history of the unlearned lessons of flawed U.S. voting technology.

FRAUD AND THE U.S. VOTING SYSTEM

Although Stein premised her recount effort on the need to ensure that the 2016 election wasnt tainted by hacking or fraud, theres no evidence of either so far  a fact federal judge Paul Diamond cited prominently in his decision halting the Pennsylvania recount . Suspicion of a hacked Pennsylvania election borders on the irrational, the judge wrote in his opinion.

Stein also pursued recounts in Wisconsin and Michigan, to little avail. Those states use more reliable paper-based voting technologies. (The Electoral College certified Republican Donald Trumps presidential victory last week.)

But a cadre of computer scientists from major universities backed Steins recounts to underscore the vulnerability of U.S. elections. These researchers have been successfully hacking e-voting machines for more than a decade in tests commissioned by New York, California, Ohio and other states.

Stein and her witnesses said their fraud concerns were justified given U.S. charges that Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential campaign. Emails of top Democrats were hacked and leaked in what U.S. intelligence officials called Russian subterfuge against Democrat Hillary Clinton. Over the summer, hackers also tried to breach the voter registration databases of Arizona and Illinois using Russian-based servers, U.S. officials said. Election networks in at least 20 states were probed for vulnerabilities.

Its a target-rich environment, said Rice University computer scientist Dan Wallach. Researchers would like to see the U.S. move entirely to computer-scannable paper ballots, since paper cant be hacked. Many advanced democracies require paper ballots, including Germany, Britain, Japan and Singapore.

Green Party lawyers seeking the Pennsylvania recount called the states election system a national disgrace in a federal lawsuit, noting that many states outlaw paperless voting. They asked a judge to order a forensic examination of a sampling of the electronic machines, saying thats the only way to know for sure that votes werent altered.

That would involve examination of all of the systems involved in the election  voting-machine computer chips and memory cards that store operating software and ballots, the computers that program the ballots, and even the machine vendors source code  to detect any bugs, holes or back doors a hacker could have exploited, said Daniel Lopresti, chairman of the Lehigh University computer-science department.

But forensic analyses arent foolproof, especially if hackers were good at covering their tracks. What youre hoping for is some evidence that was left, some degree of clumsiness or carelessness, a belief by the individual that we wont dig quite that deep, Lopresti said.

PENNSYLVANIA: A PERFECT TARGET

The U.S. voting system  a loosely regulated, locally managed patchwork of more than 3,000 jurisdictions overseen by the states  employs more than two dozen types of machinery from 15 manufacturers. Elections officials across the nation say they take great care to secure their machines from tampering. They are locked away when not in use and sealed to prevent tampering.

All that makes national elections very difficult to steal without getting caught. It would take a large conspiracy to hack the results of a presidential election, said Kay Stimson, speaking for the National Association of Secretaries of State.

But difficult is not impossible. Wallach and his colleagues believe a crafty team of pros could strike surgically, focusing on select counties in a few battleground states where a small nudge might be decisive, he said.

As a battleground state with paperless voting machines, Pennsylvania is a perfect candidate. In affidavits for the recount, computer scientist J. Alex Halderman of the University of Michigan laid out how attackers could conduct a successful hack:

Probe election offices well in advance to determine how to break into computers.

After identifying battleground states, infect voting machines in targeted counties with malware that would shift a small percentage of the vote to a desired candidate.

After silently altering electronic tallies, erase digital tracks to leave no trace.

Just because the machines arent on the internet doesnt mean they cant be hacked. Election workers could be duped or bribed into installing malware that sat dormant until Election Day. Locks could be picked to gain access to the machines, seals compromised with razor blades and acetone.

Studies by Halderman, Wallach and others proved years ago that its possible to infect voting machines in an entire precinct via the compact flash cards used to load electronic ballots.

An infected machine could do anything you can imagine, said Wallach. It could flip votes from one candidate to another. It could delete votes. It could cast write-in votes for Mickey Mouse for president.

HACKING THE COUNT

Vote-tallying systems, typically at the county level, are also tempting targets. They tend to be little more than PCs running a database.

Tabulation databases at the county level, which collect results from individual precincts, are supposed to be airgapped, or disconnected from the internet at all times  though experts say they sometimes get connected anyway. Theyre considered insecure for other reasons; many have USB ports where malware could be introduced.

Vulnerabilities notwithstanding, there are no known cases of U.S. tallying systems being hacked. But it is not uncommon for candidates who have lost elections involving electronic voting to challenge results, claiming irregularities they blame on fraud, or human or mechanical errors.

Shelby County, Tennessee, home to Memphis, has seen a flood of lawsuits related to alleged tabulation errors, the most recent stemming from a 2015 court clerk race. Nearly every election cycle in the county in recent memory has been plagued by a myriad of errors and complaints of wrongdoing, Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett wrote in a 2012 letter to the state comptroller recently obtained by The Associated Press.

OLD AND GETTING OLDER

Most voting machines in the U.S. are at or near the end of their expected lifespans . Forty-three states use machines more than a decade old. Most run on vintage operating systems such as Windows 2000 that pre-date the iPhone and are no longer updated with security patches. Old, stockpiled machines get cannibalized; when they cant supply parts, officials scrounge on eBay.

On Nov. 8, election officials across the U.S. handled numerous complaints of aging touchscreens losing calibration and casting votes for the wrong candidate. Such vote flipping tends to get exaggerated attention on social media and has become so familiar its been enshrined in a TV episode of The Simpsons.

But while many experts agree the U.S. voting system needs an upgrade, no one wants to pay to fix it.

From the private-sector perspective, its a tiny market. University of Iowa computer scientist Douglas Jones estimates that voting-equipment makers pull in total annual revenues of less than $200 million  roughly what Google generates in a day. The biggest player, ES&S, is private and has just 450 full-time employees. (Researchers worry that smaller companies like these are also much more vulnerable to hacking by sophisticated state actors.)

The sector boomed after the 2000 Florida recount debacle, when punch-card technology was discredited by hanging chads and a poor butterfly ballot design. Congress appropriated $4 billion for election upgrades, and the states raced to replace punch cards and lever machines with digital technology.

But when that money ran out, so did many states ability to address security concerns theyd overlooked in their initial rush. Four in 5 U.S. election officials polled by New York Universitys Brennan Center last year said they are desperate to replace equipment but lack the cash.

DISPARATE IMPACT

Voters in poorer areas suffer disproportionately, the center found. The Stein campaign complained in a letter Friday to Attorney General Loretta Lynch that minority communities are also particularly vulnerable. Among irregularities it cited were 87 ballot-scanning machines that suffered malfunctions in Detroit on Election Day.

Data collected by Brennan Center researchers suggests the poor are more apt to encounter failing machines. Six Minnesota counties buying new machines had household median incomes more than $20,000 higher than jurisdictions not making purchases, the center found.

In Virginia, wealthier counties near Washington have upgraded to more trustworthy technology while lower-income counties in the states southwest have not been able to afford it, said Edgardo Cortes, the state elections commissioner.

The federal money is not there and in most instances state money is not being made available, either, said Cortes. So the entire cost is falling to local governments.

Just as Congress delivered a death blow to punch cards, it should also outlaw paperless touchscreen voting machines and pay for their replacement, said Andrew Appel, a Princeton University computer scientist.

But even counties that can afford better voting tech face problems.

The clerk of Travis County, Texas, Dana DeBeauvoir, has been trying for a decade to build a bulletproof electronic voting system , because even the scanners that count paper ballots can be hacked. (Of course, such hacking could be detected and remedied by recounting paper ballots manually.)

The Travis County system would have a paper trail and use encryption systems to let voters confirm online that their vote counted and wasnt subject to tampering. For transparency, DeBeauvoir wants to use open source software that anyone can examine, not the proprietary code the industry uses.

None of the major vendors has shown interest, she says. I dont think it fits their profit model.

____

Bajak reported from Houston. Associated Press writers Tami Abdollah in Washington and Adrian Sainz in Memphis, Tennessee, contributed to this report.

___

Online:

AP interactive on electronic voting: http://interactives.ap.org/2016/hack-the-vote/
SANTA FE, N.M.  A Democratic lawmaker wants to ask voters in New Mexico to approve a proposal that would abolish the job of the states education secretary.

The Santa Fe New Mexican reports (http://bit.ly/2i7AXJY) that the proposal by Sen. Michael Padilla of Albuquerque would ask voters to amend the states Constitution to eliminate the job and resurrect an elected state board of education to oversee public schools.

His proposal, if approved by both houses of the state Legislature, would go before voters in November 2018.

It would allow the education board to hire and fire a state school superintendent at will.

Padilla introduced a similar bill to eliminate the secretary of public education in 2013, but it stalled on the Senate floor.

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Information from: The Santa Fe New Mexican, http://www.sfnewmexican.com
TUCSON, Ariz.  A Tucson police officer caught up in an investigation into a prostitution ring has given up his certification to serve as an officer in Arizona.

The Arizona Daily Star reports (http://bit.ly/2hoRHzm) that the board that oversees police certifications has accepted a consent agreement with Oscar Ramos. He was one of eight police employees who were fired or resigned after an investigation revealed they were customers of or had knowledge of illegal massage parlors.

Documents from the board say Ramos acknowledged he used these services, knowing they offered sex acts in exchange for additional money. Ramos also acknowledged paying for massages from one of the women that ended with sexual contact on more than one occasion.

The board agreed to a three-month suspension of Officer Vincent Valenzuelas certification.

Documents say an investigation revealed Valenzuela had a personal relationship with the alleged operator of a massage business that authorities say offered sexual acts.

During the investigation, detectives learned that in April 2014 Valenzuela used his work computer to run the alleged operators name through state and federal law enforcement databases for no valid law enforcement reason.

When asked about the incident, he told investigators that he didnt remember doing that.

The documents from the board say Valenzuela assisted in serving a search warrant on the alleged operators home without notifying his supervisor of their personal relationship.

Valenzuela had been fired in August 2015, but appealed his termination with the citys Civil Service Commission, which overturned the departments decision and reinstated Valenzuela to the force.

Police began investigation the prostitution ring in 2011 and over the next four years learned that a former employee of the ring had started her own company.

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Information from: Arizona Daily Star, http://www.tucson.com
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 24 (PTI) CBI has registered case against a Surat-based financier Kishore Bhajiawala in connection with recovery last week of Rs 1 crore in new currency notes during searches by the Income Tax department on him and others.

The agency, sources said, during the searches conducted at his residence and office seized another lot of currency notes totalling Rs 11.02 lakh.

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The sources said a case of criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery under Indian Penal Code and provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against Bhajiawala, his two sons and Pankaj Bhatt, the Manager of Surat Peoples Cooperative Bank.

The case emerges from an action carried out by the I-T department against Bhajiawala last week, as part of its anti-black money operations post-demonetisation, when they had seized alleged unaccounted assets worth Rs 10.50 crore from him.

The I-T sleuths had recovered Rs 1.45 crore, with Rs 1.05 crore in new currency notes, bullion worth Rs 1.49 crore, gold jewellery valued at Rs 4.92 crore, other ornaments worth Rs 1.39 crore and silver ingots priced at Rs 1.28 crore.

"The total value of the assets seized from the financier, who earlier worked as a chaiwala, is Rs 10.50 crore," I-T sources had said.

The department had also searched over 13 of his bank lockers. PTI ABS NES TIR

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A Carlsbad man arrested last year for 26 counts of child pornography was sentenced to probation on Dec. 9 after pleading no contest.

Brandon Cummings was found guilty in New Mexico Fifth District Court on each count, which carried a potential sentence of up to nine years incarceration.

The sentence was suspended for each incident.

Cummings faced 25 counts of sexual exploitation of a child: manufacturing visual media, and one count of possession of visual media. He was also charged with tampering with evidence, according to court records.

Records show Cummings was sentenced to one year of house arrest and five to 20 years of probation for his crimes.

He was also ordered to complete a psychiatric evaluation, have no internet access for one year and register as a sex offender.

Cummings court fees totaled to $2,260.

He was arrested in November 2015 for the crimes that occurred earlier that May.

At the time of his arrest, Cummings told police the media was shared with a group of about 25 other people.

The files reportedly contained images of male and female minors engaged in sexual activity.

Cummings was an employee of Intrepid Potash LLC at the time, and police acting on cyber tip were able to track the files to his work computer.



2016 the Carlsbad Current-Argus (Carlsbad, N.M.)

Visit the Carlsbad Current-Argus (Carlsbad, N.M.) at www.currentargus.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

_____
DALLAS  The Texas Department of State Health Services is sending letter to attendees of four cheerleading competitions in North Texas, warning they may have been exposed to mumps.

KXAS reports (http://bit.ly/2i2MxX0 ) that the department is warning attendees of competitions in November and December in Dallas, Frisco and Arlington that those contests could have been the originator of some of the cases in the states worst outbreak of mumps in years.

The number of mumps cases in North Texas has jumped to more than 50 in recent weeks with cases reported in Johnson, Dallas, Collin, Denton and Tarrant counties.

Health officials say symptoms of mumps generally develop within two weeks but can take up to 25 days to surface.

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Information from: KXAS-TV, http://www.nbcdfw.com
DENVER  Authorities say a 14-year-old boy is in critical condition after being shot inside a Jefferson County home.

The Denver Post reports (http://dpo.st/2inrAcc ) that deputies had arrived at the residence Friday to find the teen suffering from a gunshot wound. He remains hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.

Sheriffs office spokesman Mark Techmeyer says the victims 15-year-old friend has been taken into custody after deputies tracked him down miles from the home.

Authorities had still not recovered a weapon Friday night.

The shooting remains under investigation.

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Information from: The Denver Post, http://www.denverpost.com
MOSCOW  Russia on Monday played down the likelihood that terrorism was behind the crash of a Soviet-era military jet that killed 92 people on Christmas Day, a disaster that prompted a national day of mourning and added to concerns that Russias role in the war in Syria is increasingly making it a target.

Russias Federal Security Service told the Interfax news service that there is no evidence yet indicating the possibility of a terrorist attack or an act of sabotage on board the Tu-154 jet, which lost contact with air traffic controllers just one minute after taking off from the southern Russian city of Sochi on Sunday.

The crash site was pinpointed Monday about a mile off the Black Sea coast, where divers found the fuselage and other parts of the plane strewn over a distance of about 500 yards, Russias Defense Ministry said. The plane initially took off from a heavily guarded military airfield in Moscow, officials said, and was under close watch during refueling in Sochi, making it unlikely someone placed a bomb on board.

Divers on Monday discovered the bodies of at least 11 people who were aboard the flight; others may have been swept out to sea with the current.

Russian investigators said they were considering a number of technical and other accidental causes for the crash, including foreign objects getting into the engine, low-quality fuel and pilot or mechanical error.

The crash of the Tu-154 jet, which was carrying military officers, musicians, journalists and others to Syria, was the single deadliest incident tied to Russias intervention there since a passenger jet exploded over the Sinai Peninsula in November 2015, killing all 224 people aboard.

An Islamic State affiliate claimed responsibility for that attack and linked it to Russias intervention in Syria. Russian authorities later said an explosive device had been smuggled on board.

In televised comments, Russian President Vladimir Putin called for a full investigation and declared Monday a national day of mourning for the crew and passengers of the flight.

Among the dead were more than 60 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, also known as the Red Army Choir, which had recently gained widespread recognition for its rendition of the James Bond theme song Skyfall. The group was traveling to Syria to hold a concert for Russian soldiers and airmen deployed there.

russia-plane-1stld-writethru
MOSCOW  Both the Ukrainian government and Russia-backed rebels in the east of the country said on Saturday a new cease-fire that was to come into effect midnight on Friday has been violated.

Separatist mouthpiece Donetsk News Agency on Saturday accused government troops of shelling rebel positions at least 140 times since the time both parties had agreed to cease fire.

The Ukrainian government initially reported no violations across the front line, but its operational headquarters later said the rebels opened fire four times at three different locations.

One Ukrainian soldier was wounded, said the government spokesman for the operation in the east, Andriy Lysenko, in a statement indicating that the rebels used heavy artillery. Eight government troops have died this week. The conflict that began in 2014 has so far claimed more than 9,600 lives.

This weeks uptick in fighting had pushed the government and the separatists to agree on the cease-fire deal on Wednesday. The presidents of Ukraine, Russia and the rebels have voiced their commitment to the truce.
PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii  Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe laid wreaths at various cemeteries and memorials Monday ahead of a visit to the site of the 1941 bombing that plunged the United States into World War II.

Abe landed at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and then headed to National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, where he laid a wreath. He stood for a moment of silence at the cemetery near downtown Honolulu, which is known as Punchbowl.

He later visited a nearby memorial for nine boys and men who died when a U.S. Navy submarine collided with their Japanese fishing vessel in 2001. At the Ehime Maru Memorial, he again laid a wreath and bowed his head. Abe finished his day with a reception dinner at the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu where he spoke about his visit.

On Tuesday, hell be the first Japanese prime minister to visit the memorial that honors sailors and Marines killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Japans former leader Shigeru Yoshida went to Pearl Harbor six years after the countrys World War II surrender, but that was before the USS Arizona Memorial was built. Yoshida arrived at Pearl Harbor in 1951, shortly after requesting a courtesy visit to the office of Adm. Arthur W.R. Radford, commander of the U.S. Pacific fleet. The office overlooked Pearl Harbor, offering a direct view of the attack site.

Two other Japanese prime ministers have also visited Pearl Harbor. Ichiro Hatoyama spent time here in 1956 and Nobusuke Kishi in 1957. The Japanese government confirmed the visits by Hatoyama and Kishi this week after a Japanese language newspaper in Hawaii pointed them out.

The memorial will be closed to the public Tuesday when Abe visits the historic site, joined by U.S. President Barack Obama, who is vacationing in Hawaii with his family.

The importance of the visit may be mostly symbolic for two countries that, in a remarkable transformation, have grown into close allies in the decades since they faced off in brutal conflict. At the same time, its significant that it took more than 70 years for U.S.-Japanese relations to get to this point.

Abe wont apologize for Japans attack when he visits, a government spokesman said earlier this month.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said that the purpose of the upcoming visit is to pay respects for the war dead and not to offer an apology.

The visit comes six months after Obama became the first sitting American president to visit Hiroshima for victims of the U.S. atomic bombing of that city at the end of the same war.

Pearl Harbor survivor Alfred Rodrigues said Monday he welcomes the visit by Japans top leader to Hawaii.

Im glad hes coming to show that were all peaceful now and you know, we were doing what we were supposed to do and they were doing what they were supposed to do, he told The Associated Press.

Remembering the day of the attack in 1941, Rodrigues said that he had just sat down to have breakfast when the alarm sounded and the word got out, Man your battle stations, this is not a drill, he recalled.

We all ran out to the armory to get rifles and ammunition and we could see the planes up above with the red circles on the bottom. We knew it was the Japanese planes, Rodrigues said.

Rodrigues says he doesnt think Abe should apologize. War is war. I mean, they were doing what they were supposed to do and we were doing what we were supposed to do. I have no animosity at all towards them.

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Associated Press writer Mari Yamaguchi contributed to this report from Tokyo.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 19, ARMENPRESS. By the decision of the Armenian Ministry of Culture and the Directorate of Pan-Armenian (Hamazgayin) Theatre after Sos Sargsyan, director, scriptwriter Vigen Chaldranyan was appointed creative director of the Theatre, Culture Minister Armen Amiryan told reporters on December 19, reports Armenpress.

By respecting and appreciating the memory of a great master, Sos Sargsyan, we want to give a new impetus to the Theatre, fresh repertoire and bring it out to international arena. I am convinced that Chaldranyan with his experience and high professional skills will have his significant contribution to the Theatre, the Minister said.

Director of the Pan-Armenian (Hamazgayin) Theatre Vardan Mkrtchyan said after Sos Sargsyan - founder of the Theatre  it seemed impossible the presence of another creative director since Sargsyan played a key role in their life. I think we have found the right person who can bear this heavy burden. I congratulate Vigen Chaldranyan and want to say that we have many expectations from him, Vardan Mkrtchyan said.

I assume a mission rather than a post. I want to create a healthy family and work towards the way of art together with this creative staff. I can fulfill my mission through the support of all of you, Chaldranyan said. He said he is well familiar with the majority of Theatre members. I want the Pan-Armenian Theatre to become healthy, competitive theatre. For me theatre is a health resort. The audience must watch the performance, become healthy and then do his/her remaining works, if it isnt so, this means that it doesnt serve its goal, he said.

Speaking about the building of the Theatre, Armen Amiryan said the issue is at the discussion stage, and they already have options, however, the decision is not yet approved, therefore, he didnt want to present details.

Chaldranyan didnt want to present details on his future plans, but he said he is going to prepare performances including the Armenian and foreign classical works. He said he is really happy for assuming this post and feels a great responsibility both ahead of the theatre staff and the audience.
With just a few days to go to the December 30 deadline, the cash crisis in the capital has improved, but only slightly.

By Ilma Hasan: With just a few days to go to the December 30 deadline, the cash crisis in the capital has improved, but only slightly. A visit across various banks and ATMs in Delhi shows the lines may have reduced, but most ATMs are stil not functioning.

India Today spoke to Delhiites in the heart of the capital -- Connaught Place -- and most said they came to central Delhi because the ATMs in their neighbourhoods either didn't have cash to dispense, or ran out quickly.

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Here's everything we found out:

"I see the lines are shorter now, but we're in the poshest part of Delhi. There is still a lot of suffering, my friend from a village in UP called saying he has no money to even eat. So I've come from an hour away to withdraw for him," said a local. On ground, however, there is still a mixed response from people. While some are losing their patience, many continue to believe the cash crisis will normalise after December 30 as promised. Standing outside HDFC Bank in Lajpat Nagar, a representative was seen reassuring people standing in lines that the situation would normalise in the next 5 days. Reports now suggest that withdrawal limit in banks might not increase in the next few days -- which could continue to keep people cash strapped. The Assistant General Manager of Indian Bank in CP however remained hopeful. "We have been giving Rs 24,000 since the beginning without rationing. If the government increases the limit, I think we will be able to handle it," he said.

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The Enforcement Directorate is finding it difficult to dig out crucial evidence against a top Mumbai-based hawala trader as he used intercom services to connect with his clients.

By Virendrasingh Ghunawat: Since last two weeks, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has been struggling to connect the dots to get crucial evidences against bullion-cum-hawala trader Manoj Punamiya who has converted his illegal money into legal post demonetisation.

Till now, the agency has been successful only to find a complex web of shell companies with bogus addresses, which were used to deposit and withdrawal of Rs 150-300 crore by Punamiya.

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"We have come across at least 3-4 layers of around 50 shell companies. The multilayer is quite complex, which ultimately reaches to the beneficiaries", the source told Indiatoday.in

During investigation, it was found that most of the directors of these bogus companies were office-bearers and lower level staff of Balaji group of companies, owned by Punamiya. For this purpose, at least 50 bank accounts in four private banks had been opened.

The agency has directed all the banks to submit the complete details of account-holders and an explanation too on how such big transactions went unnoticed by bank officials.

Bullion traders misusing telecom loopholes

What is giving sleepless nights to investigators is, there is no crucial evidence in hand to prove that Punamiya had purchased gold from a bullion merchant.

Thanks to the intercom facilities available within bullion fraternity in Zaveri Bazaar and Kalbadevi area, not a single conversation on telephone ever gets recorded.

Unlike landline service, telephonic conversations done via intercom (meant for internal communication) between two parties does not get recorded. "Therefore, getting call data recordings (CDRs) of Punamiya and other bullion traders is highly impossible", the source said.

Few bullion traders at Zaveri Bazaar explained Indiatoday.in that within the radius of 2-3 kilometre of Zaveri Bazaar all the trade-related talks takes place only on intercom instruments. These services are provided by local private operators, charging Rs 1500-2000 on monthly basis.

"A cable has been laid in Zaveri Bazaar. Every customer has been given four digit numbers for identification. Each intercom facility could cover a range of 500 metre. It means, a bullion trader could speak to atleast 100-200 traders in that range, without getting noticed by any agencies," a bullion trader said.

Interestingly, the intercom facility which was meant for internal communication within the shop is now getting used for all legal and illegal activities by bullion and hawala traders.

Punamiya claimed that he had received purchase orders on phone and handed over gold to unknown persons. When examined by the ED, nothing got reflected in book of accounts.

Moreover, nothing was found in CDRs of mobile phone or landline calls (where searches were conducted) as every business conversations was done on intercom.

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How money got deposited?

The ED suspects that bullion traders, in early November, sold US dollars and gold at a hefty premium in exchange for old currency notes worth Rs 70 crore.

"The US dollars were sold at Rs 100 or more against the then existing rates of around Rs 67. All the transactions were done through RTGS (Real time gross settlement system)," the source said.

After getting credible information, offices of Punamiya and Sanjay Jain of Aabhushan were raided after ED detected unusual flow of funds into two accounts run by the three traders at the Zaveri Bazaar branches.

Funds worth Rs 70 crore were deposited into these accounts within a span of 10 days and then transferred to several other accounts soon after (within 2-3 days).

Intention was to bring in demonetised currency of around Rs 150-300 crore into legal channels using fictitious transactions, with the local support of bank officials.

The case has been registered under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

The agency has issued summon to Manoj Punamiya for the questioning in ED office.

ALSO READ:

Demonetisation effect: Hawala operations come to a grinding halt

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Demonetisation hits money laundering market in Delhi; only 5 per cent hawala survived note ban

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Modified On Dec 26, 2016 03:45 PM By Arun

2016 sure was packed with a lot of high octane, adrenaline pumping automobiles. And, on the face of it, 2017 promises to be just as good. For all the performance car junkies out there, here's what you can expect in the coming year.

Audi

S5

Audi recently showcased the latest avatar of its sport-spec Sportback  the S5. Backed by sharper looks, bumped up power and some weight-shedding compared to the outgoing model, the new S5 Sportback is bound to replace the current generation in India.

Spec Check: 3.0-litre turbocharged V6 | 354PS / 500Nm | 0-100kmph: 4.7 seconds

SQ7

Who would've thought a big diesel would be featured on this list? The world's most powerful diesel SUV definitely earns its spot here, courtesy its mega performance. Based on the same platform as the regular Q7, the SQ7 gets a few brushed silver accents, bigger wheels and enough torque to spin the earth the other way round.

Spec Check: 4.0-litre biturbo V8 | 435PS / 900Nm | 0-100kmph: 4.8 seconds

TT RS

The standard TT coupe is a lot of fun by itself, courtesy its compact proportions and a punchy turbo-petrol motor. The boffins at Audi's RS division clearly weren't content with that recipe. The result is the TT RS which is as quick as the original R8 V10 in the dash to 100kmph. With the added RS goodies (read: aggressive bumpers, carbon inlays for the interior and a fixed spoiler), the TT looks dressed to kill too!

Spec Check: 2.5-litre in-line five | 400PS / 480Nm | 0-100kmph: 3.7 seconds

R8 V10 Spyder

The R8 V10 Plus Coupe ranks among the fastest cars we've ever driven. We belted one on an airstrip no less and came back grinning ear to ear. Audi is planning on widening that grin this time round, with the Spyder (aka convertible) version of its flagship supercar. While the topless version isn't available in the bonkers 'Plus' version, we think the 'standard' V10 is good enough for some hair-raising action.

Spec Check: 5.2-litre V10 | 540PS / 540Nm | 0-100kmph: 3.6 seconds

Mercedes-AMG

CLA 45

Mercedes debuted the 2017 CLA a few weeks back. Naturally, the facelifted CLA 45 will be on the cards for next year. The AMG carries over the updates made to the standard CLA, that includes a pair of new LED headlamps and tail lamps, and a few aerodynamic tweaks as well.

Spec Check: 2.0-litre turbocharged inline-four | 381PS / 475Nm | 0-100kmph: 4.2 seconds

E 43

The bridge between the sober office-going E-Class and the mental E63, the E43 combines everyday usability with some track-lapping ability. With the new E-Class due early next year, it is only a matter of time before the hotter E43 finds itself in Mercedes-Benz's India line-up.

Spec Check: 3.0-litre biturbo V6 | 401PS / 520Nm | 0-100kmph: 4.6 seconds

E 63 S

The most powerful E-Class is on the cards as well, in all its power sliding glory. The top-of-the-food-chain E 63, with its flared wheel arches, angrier styling and the sonorous V8 rumble will lock horns with the BMW M5.

Spec Check: 4.0-litre biturbo V8 | 612PS / 850Nm | 0-100kmph: 3.4 seconds

GT C

The topless version of Mercedes-AMG's supercar, the GT is expected to go on sale in 2017 as well. The GT C is based on the beefed-up version of the coupe (called the GT S), and made its first public appearance earlier this year at the Paris Motor Show. We wouldn't mind a fire-breathing AMG GT-R either, just in case anyone at AMG is listening.

Spec Check: 4.0-litre bitubro V8 | 557PS / 680Nm | 0-100kmph: 3.7 seconds

Volvo

S60 Polestar

At the sober end of things is Volvo's hot S60  the Polestar. Once here, it will take on the new Mercedes-AMG C 43, along with the Audi S5 Sportback. Just like its rivals, it combines the everyday usability of a plush sedan, with the thrill of a powerful motor and a sporty ride.

Spec Check: 2.0-litre turbocharged inline-four | 367PS / 470Nm | 0-100kmph: 4.7 seconds

BMW

M2

The youngest member of the M family is touted to make its India debut in 2017. The replacement for the lovable BMW 1M will be the most affordable M car to be put on sale in India. The tiny dimensions, components from bigger M cars, and the punchy six-cylinder motor is sure to make it a hoot and a half!

Spec Check: 3.0-litre turbocharged inline-six | 370PS / 480Nm | 0-100kmph: 4.5 seconds

Porsche

718 Cayman

The mid-life facelift of Porsche's entry level sportscar was on cue for a 2016 launch. While that hasn't happened just as yet, we expect Porsche to launch the two-door pocket rocket in early 2017. The biggest talking point here is the new flat-four motor, which Porsche claims to be better than the outgoing flat-six.

Spec Check: 2.0-litre flat-four | 300PS / 380Nm | 0-100kmph: 5.1 seconds

718 Boxster

The Cayman's topless cousin, the Boxster is likely to join the coupe on Porsche showroom floors as well. It incorporates the same new flat-four motor, and the same set of updates that include a revised exterior design and a sportier set-up of the chassis.

Spec Check: 2.0-litre flat-four | 300PS / 380Nm | 0-100kmph: 5.1 seconds

Lamborghini

Aventador S

The updated iteration of the Bolognese bull god is en route to India. Called the 'Aventador S', the flagship Lamborghini gets more power, four-wheel steering and styling tweaks to keep it in tune with the times. We expect the V12-equipped maniac to hit Indian streets as early as April 2017.

Spec Check: 6.5-litre V12 | 740PS / 690Nm | 0-100kmph: 2.9 seconds

Ferrari

GTC4Lusso

Ferrari's replacement for the FF, the GTC4Lusso will join the likes of the Ferrari California T and the Ferrari 488GTB in India. The Italian supercar maker recently debuted the V8 version of the 2+2 supercar, which we reckon will be on offer as well.

Spec Check: 6.2-litre V12 | 690PS / 700Nm | 0-100kmph: 3.4 seconds

Like we said, 2017 promises a lot of exotic machinery, a lot of horsepower and a lot of glorious exhaust notes. We wouldn't mind one bit if more cars got added to the list!
Published On Dec 26, 2016 05:58 PM By Rachit Shad

The partnership will help impart specially designed curriculum and on-the-job training to students

Indias second-largest carmaker Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) today launched its partnership with the Industrial Training Institute (ITI) in West Bengal, in partnership with the Ramakrishna Mission ITI at Narendrapur, Kolkata. This Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative comes after the South Korean car firm joined hands with Chandigarh Polytechnic College (CPC), to enhance education standards in line with the latest technologies, in November 2016.

Committed to contributing towards the Government of Indias Skill India initiative, HMIL had recently announced a collaboration with 25 ITIs in the country. Just like the tie-up with CPC, HMIL says that the main aim of this CSR initiative is to ensure the development of the community through the enhancement of education standards with the use of latest technologies.

To impart efficient education, HMIL will offer students a specially designed curriculum, training material, car, gearbox, engine, and other learning aids. This is because getting to see, unscrew and then putting everything back on an actual working machine will help students gain practical knowledge, which is vital once they are equipped with the theoretical know-how. The course content developed by the carmaker will be part of the syllabus of the institutes second year students who have enrolled for the Motor Mechanic Vehicle (MMV) programme.

HMIL says that the course structure will offer students much-needed exposure to modern automobile technologies which, once they apply for jobs, will help increase employment opportunities and prospects. Additionally, the car firm will also impart On Job Training (OJT) at its dealerships, which will add practical experience and help hone students domain knowledge further.

This isnt the first time that Hyundai has joined hands with ITI. The pilot programme was launched in 2012 across five locations, and the results were very promising. Almost 95 per cent of the students who graduated from the Skill Development Program (2012-2015) were hired by Hyundai dealerships in 2016. The company says that the programme has already benefited over 1,000 students who enrolled for the specialised course across the country in centres located at Mumbai, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Bhubaneswar, Sangli, Dehradun, Ludhiana, Vizag, Cochin, Sonepat, etc.
A day ahead of the Opposition's much hyped meeting in New Delhi against demonetisation, the JDU has red-flagged the very purpose of this new found unity against the Modi government.

By Supriya Bhardwaj: As many as 16 opposition parties are trying to present a united front against demonetisation decision of the Modi government.

A united Opposition has called a meeting of the leaders of parties in New Delhi on Tuesday to chalk a workable strategy to take the political battle against demonetisation to states.

But, Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal Dal (United) does not look very convinced with the idea. JDU leader KC Tyagi spelt out his party's position on the issue of note ban and explained where it differed from the other opposition parties.

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WHAT KC TYAGI SAID: On the issue of Opposition meet against demonetisation, Tyagi said, "16 opposition parties including the JDU were together in Parliament. Now, tomorrow's meet is of leaders of various political parties and not of parliamentary party leaders. Therefore, a common minimum agenda should have been cleared." "We don't know about the real spirit behind this move (meeting against demonetisation). We have not received a common agenda, which is a minimum requirement for an Opposition meet," Tyagi said. But, will the JDU attend the meeting of the parties? "So far we have not decided whether to attend or not to attend the meet," Tyagi responded as his party kept everyone guessing. JDU is not on the same page as the Trinamool Congress. Tyagi said, "Mamata Banerjee wants roll back (of demonetisation), we don't want that." Is Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar with Prime Minister Narendra Modi? "Nitish Kumar has been misunderstood by some jealous leaders of Opposition. He supported the good cause of demonetisation," Tyagi clarified. Tyagi also said, "We did not support Modi on other issues. We are in favour of action against black money and corruption." Responding to allegations of money paid to various political parties by a business conglomerate, Tyagi said, "The money has been taken by political parties for election or for their personal benefits. There should be some motive behind it." "If the money has gone to party fund then it is white money; no harm in it. But, if individuals took money then it is a serious matter," Tyagi said about the allegations leveled by Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi. Spelling out JDU's stand on UP politics in the wake of internal feud within the Samajwadi Party, Tyagi said, "We want the SP as a party and (Mulayam Singh) Yadav clan to stay together." "The BJP wants SP-Congress alliance. We believe that if SP or BSP leads a secular alliance in UP, it will not be due to the pressure of the BJP," Tyagi said.

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Citigroup Inc. is one of the worlds largest financial institutions. It is the 13th largest bank globally by assets and 8th by market cap with operations in consumer and institutional banking. In the US, Citigroup is the 3rd largest bank by assets and one of the Big Four deemed systemically important and too big to fail.

Citigroup Inc. was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York. The bank was run by Samuel Osgood who led the company with success for many years, even throughout the War of 1812. The bank was later renamed the National City Bank of New York in 1865 and by 1895 is the largest bank in the US. In 1913 it was the first contributor to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and a few years later it began to expand into overseas territories.

The bank became the First National City Bank of New York after another merger in 1955 and then later, the New York part was dropped off as part of the 150th-anniversary celebration. By 1974 the company is known as Citicorp which is still the operational branch of the business and a global banking powerhouse. A merger with Travelers insurance group in 1998 resulted in the name Citigroup but the joint venture did not last. By 2002 Travelers was publicly traded once again but Citigroup retained the new name.

Today, the company is headquartered in New York, New York but boasts more than 200 million customer accounts in 160 countries worldwide. As of mid-2022, it operated 2,649 branches in the United States, Mexico, and Asia. The company reports nearly 725 branches in the US and 1499 in Mexico with the rest scattered throughout its territory. Total annual revenue topped $75 billion in 2022.

Citigroup is a diversified financial services holding company that owns Citicorp among other assets. The companys mission is to serve as a trusted partner providing responsible financial solutions to its clients. Citigroup provides financial products and services to consumers, corporations, governments, and institutions. The company operates in two segments, Global Consumer Banking (GCB) and Institutional Clients Group (ICG).

The GCB segment offers traditional banking services including deposit and saving accounts, credit cards, personal loans, home loans, and investment services. This segment operates through local branches and digital means. The ICG segment offers wholesale banking products and services to corporate, institutional, public sector, and high-net-worth clients.
BOSTON - The Affordable Care Act (ACA) instituted financial penalties against hospitals with high rates of readmissions for Medicare patients with certain health conditions. A new analysis led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Massachusetts General Hospital has found that the penalties levied under the law's Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program were associated with reduced readmissions rates and that the poorest performing hospitals achieved the greatest reductions. The research appears online in The Annals of Internal Medicine on December 27, 2016.

The Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program was enacted into law in 2010 and implemented in 2012 in response to the high numbers of patients who were readmitted within 30 days of their initial discharge from the hospital after treatment for several common conditions -- including heart failure, pneumonia and acute myocardial infarction (heart attack). While some readmissions may be unavoidable, there was evidence of wide variation in hospitals' readmission rates before the ACA, suggesting that patients admitted to certain hospitals were more likely to experience readmissions compared to other hospitals.

"Hospital readmissions represent a significant portion of potentially preventable medical expenditures, and they can take a physical and emotional toll on patients and their families," said co-senior author Robert W. Yeh, MD, MBA, Director of the Smith Center for Outcomes Research in Cardiology at BIDMC and Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. "The Affordable Care Act sought to introduce financial incentives to motivate hospitals, especially the poorest performing ones, to reduce their readmission rates, and only the data could tell us if and how well it worked."

"We know that the national hospital readmission rate has been declining since passage of the Affordable Care Act, and our team wanted to assess whether this improvement was driven by the best-performing hospitals alone, or if all groups improved," said first author Jason H. Wasfy, MD, MPhil, who is Director of Quality and Analytics at the Massachusetts General Hospital Heart Center and Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

The researchers examined Medicare fee-for-service hospitalization data from more than 2,800 hospitals across the country between 2000 and 2013. Based on 30-day readmission rates after initial hospitalization for acute myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure or pneumonia, the researchers categorized hospitals into one of four groups based on the penalties they had incurred under the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program: highest performance (0% penalty), average performance (greater than 0% but less than 0.5% penalty), low performance (equal to or greater than 0.5% but less than 0.99% penalty), and lowest performance (equal to or greater than 0.99% penalty).

"We analyzed data from more than 15 million Medicare discharges," said co-senior author Francesca Dominici, PhD, Professor of Biostatistics and Senior Associate Dean for Research at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. "We implemented Bayesian hierarchical models to estimate readmission rates for each hospital, accounting for differences in each hospital's patient population. We then used pre-post analysis methods to assess whether there were accelerated reductions in readmission rates within each group after the passage of the reform. It turned out that all groups of hospitals improved to some degree. Notably, we found that it was the hospitals that were the lowest performers before passage of the Affordable Care Act that went on to improve the most after being penalized financially."

"For every 10,000 patients discharged per year, the worst performing hospitals - which were penalized the most - avoided 95 readmissions they would have had if they'd continued along their current trajectory before the implementation of the law," added Dominici. "It's a testament to the fact that hospitals do respond to financial penalties, in particular when these penalties are also tied to publicly reported performance goals."

"Paying hospitals not just for what they do, but for how well they do - that's still a relatively new way of reimbursing hospitals, and it looks to be effective," Yeh added.

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This work was funded, in part, by grants from the National Institutes of Health (P01 CA 134294, R01 GM111339, R01 ES024332 and K23 HL 118138-01), as well as support from the Massachusetts General Hospital Cardiology Division's Hassenfeld Scholars Program.

Co-authors also include Corwin Matthew Zigler, PhD, Christine Choirat, PhD and Yun Wang, PhD, all of the Department of Biostatistics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

About Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center is a patient care, teaching and research affiliate of Harvard Medical School and consistently ranks as a national leader among independent hospitals in National Institutes of Health funding.

BIDMC is in the community with Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Milton, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Needham, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Plymouth, Anna Jaques Hospital, Cambridge Health Alliance, Lawrence General Hospital, MetroWest Medical Center, Signature Healthcare, Beth Israel Deaconess HealthCare, Community Care Alliance and Atrius Health. BIDMC is also clinically affiliated with the Joslin Diabetes Center and Hebrew Rehabilitation Center and is a research partner of Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center and the Jackson Laboratory. BIDMC is the official hospital of the Boston Red Sox. For more information, visit http://www.bidmc.org.
Menlo Park, Calif. -- Scientists at Stanford University and the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have discovered a way to use diamondoids - the smallest possible bits of diamond - to assemble atoms into the thinnest possible electrical wires, just three atoms wide.

By grabbing various types of atoms and putting them together LEGO-style, the new technique could potentially be used to build tiny wires for a wide range of applications, including fabrics that generate electricity, optoelectronic devices that employ both electricity and light, and superconducting materials that conduct electricity without any loss. The scientists reported their results today in Nature Materials.

"What we have shown here is that we can make tiny, conductive wires of the smallest possible size that essentially assemble themselves," said Hao Yan, a Stanford postdoctoral researcher and lead author of the paper. "The process is a simple, one-pot synthesis. You dump the ingredients together and you can get results in half an hour. It's almost as if the diamondoids know where they want to go."

The Smaller the Better

Although there are other ways to get materials to self-assemble, this is the first one shown to make a nanowire with a solid, crystalline core that has good electronic properties, said study co-author Nicholas Melosh, an associate professor at SLAC and Stanford and investigator with SIMES, the Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Sciences at SLAC.

The needle-like wires have a semiconducting core - a combination of copper and sulfur known as a chalcogenide - surrounded by the attached diamondoids, which form an insulating shell.

Their minuscule size is important, Melosh said, because a material that exists in just one or two dimensions - as atomic-scale dots, wires or sheets - can have very different, extraordinary properties compared to the same material made in bulk. The new method allows researchers to assemble those materials with atom-by-atom precision and control.

The diamondoids they used as assembly tools are tiny, interlocking cages of carbon and hydrogen. Found naturally in petroleum fluids, they are extracted and separated by size and geometry in a SLAC laboratory. Over the past decade, a SIMES research program led by Melosh and SLAC/Stanford Professor Zhi-Xun Shen has found a number of potential uses for the little diamonds, including improving electron microscope images and making tiny electronic gadgets.

Constructive Attraction

For this study, the research team took advantage of the fact that diamondoids are strongly attracted to each other, through what are known as van der Waals forces. (This attraction is what makes the microscopic diamondoids clump together into sugar-like crystals, which is the only reason you can see them with the naked eye.)

They started with the smallest possible diamondoids - single cages that contain just 10 carbon atoms - and attached a sulfur atom to each. Floating in a solution, each sulfur atom bonded with a single copper ion. This created the basic nanowire building block.

The building blocks then drifted toward each other, drawn by the van der Waals attraction between the diamondoids, and attached to the growing tip of the nanowire.

"Much like LEGO blocks, they only fit together in certain ways that are determined by their size and shape," said Stanford graduate student Fei Hua Li, who played a critical role in synthesizing the tiny wires and figuring out how they grew. "The copper and sulfur atoms of each building block wound up in the middle, forming the conductive core of the wire, and the bulkier diamondoids wound up on the outside, forming the insulating shell."

A Versatile Toolkit for Creating Novel Materials

The team has already used diamondoids to make one-dimensional nanowires based on cadmium, zinc, iron and silver, including some that grew long enough to see without a microscope, and they have experimented with carrying out the reactions in different solvents and with other types of rigid, cage-like molecules, such as carboranes.

The cadmium-based wires are similar to materials used in optoelectronics, such as light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and the zinc-based ones are like those used in solar applications and in piezoelectric energy generators, which convert motion into electricity.

"You can imagine weaving those into fabrics to generate energy," Melosh said. "This method gives us a versatile toolkit where we can tinker with a number of ingredients and experimental conditions to create new materials with finely tuned electronic properties and interesting physics."

Theorists led by SIMES Director Thomas Devereaux modeled and predicted the electronic properties of the nanowires, which were examined with X-rays at SLAC's Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource, a DOE Office of Science User Facility, to determine their structure and other characteristics.

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The team also included researchers from the Stanford Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and Justus-Liebig University in Germany. Parts of the research were carried out at Berkeley Lab's Advanced Light Source (ALS) and National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), both DOE Office of Science User Facilities. The work was funded by the DOE Office of Science and the German Research Foundation.

SLAC is a multi-program laboratory exploring frontier questions in photon science, astrophysics, particle physics and accelerator research. Located in Menlo Park, California,

SLAC is operated by Stanford University for the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science. To learn more, please visit http://www.slac.stanford.edu.

SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is supported by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy. The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit science.energy.gov.
Officials said they were astonished to find huge cash of about Rs 15-17 crore being deposited every other day.

By Shivendra Srivastava: The Enforcement Directorate today detected cash deposits totalling over Rs.104 crore in an account belonging to the BSP and Rs 1.43 crore in an account belonging to party supremo Mayawati's brother Anand in a branch of United Bank of India, sources in the Enforcement Directorate said.

WHAT THE ENFORCEMENT DIRECTORATE FOUND

Officials said the agency, Enforcement Directorate, as part of its routine survey and enquiry operations to check suspicious and huge cash deposits in banks, today visited the Karol Bagh branch of the UBI and found huge deposits made in these two accounts post-demonetisation. Attempts to elicit a response from BSP on the issue failed.

They said the sleuths called for the records of the deposits made in the BSP account and found that while Rs 102 crore was deposited in Rs 1,000 notes, the rest Rs 3 crore was deposited in the old Rs 500 notes.

Officials said they were astonished to find huge cash of about Rs 15-17 crore being deposited every other day.

The agency also detected another account in the same branch belonging to Anand, brother of BSP chief Mayawati, where a total of Rs 1.43 crore funds was found.

A sum of 18.98 lakh came into account using the old notes after the ban.

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The ED has sought full details about the two accounts from the bank even as it is understood that the agency will write to the Income Tax department which has the powers to go into the legality of donations and contributions made to political parties.

The ED has also asked the bank to provide to it CCTV footage and KYC documents used to open the accounts, they said.

With regard to Anand's accounts, it is understood, that the agency will soon issue notices to him and also intimate the I-T sleuths for investigation under anti-tax evasion laws.

The agency has been carrying out enquiry operations at over 50 bank branches to check possible instances of hawala dealings and money laundering after the government scrapped the two high value currencies of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 on November 8.

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A new way to regulate protein levels and functions could be the answer to treating devastating neurological conditions

New details learned about a key cellular protein could lead to treatments for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson's, Huntington's, Alzheimer's, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

At their root, these disorders are triggered by misbehaving proteins in the brain. The proteins misfold and accumulate in neurons, inflicting damage and eventually killing the cells. In a new study, researchers in the laboratory of Steven Finkbeiner, MD, PhD, at the Gladstone Institutes used a different protein, Nrf2, to restore levels of the disease-causing proteins to a normal, healthy range, thereby preventing cell death.

The researchers tested Nrf2 in two models of Parkinson's disease: cells with mutations in the proteins LRRK2 and -synuclein. By activating Nrf2, the researchers turned on several "house-cleaning" mechanisms in the cell to remove excess LRRK2 and -synuclein.

"Nrf2 coordinates a whole program of gene expression, but we didn't know how important it was for regulating protein levels until now," explained first author Gaia Skibinski, PhD, a staff research scientist at Gladstone. "Overexpressing Nrf2 in cellular models of Parkinson's disease resulted in a huge effect. In fact, it protects cells against the disease better than anything else we've found."

In the study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the scientists used both rat neurons and human neurons created from induced pluripotent stem cells. They then programmed the neurons to express Nrf2 and either mutant LRRK2 or -synuclein. Using a one-of-a-kind robotic microscope developed by the Finkbeiner laboratory, the researchers tagged and tracked individual neurons over time to monitor their protein levels and overall health. They took thousands of images of the cells over the course of a week, measuring the development and demise of each one.

The scientists discovered that Nrf2 worked in different ways to help remove either mutant LRRK2 or -synuclein from the cells. For mutant LRRK2, Nrf2 drove the protein to gather into incidental clumps that can remain in the cell without damaging it. For -synuclein, Nrf2 accelerated the breakdown and clearance of the protein, reducing its levels in the cell.

"I am very enthusiastic about this strategy for treating neurodegenerative diseases," said Finkbeiner, a senior investigator at Gladstone and senior author on the paper. "We've tested Nrf2 in models of Huntington's disease, Parkinson's disease, and ALS, and it is the most protective thing we've ever found. Based on the magnitude and the breadth of the effect, we really want to understand Nrf2 and its role in protein regulation better."

The scientists say that Nrf2 itself may be difficult to target with a drug because it is involved in so many cellular processes, so they are now focusing on some of its downstream effects. They hope to identify other players in the protein regulation pathway that interact with Nrf2 to improve cell health and that may be easier to drug.

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Other Gladstone scientists on the study include Vicky Hwang, D. Michael Ando, Aaron Daub, Alicia Lee, Abinaya Ravisankar, Sara Modan, and Mariel Finucane. Benjamin Shaby from Penn State University also took part in the research.

Funding was provided by the National Institutes of Mental Health, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Human Genome Research Institute, California Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Taube/Koret Center, Michael J. Fox Foundation, ALS Association, National Center for Research Resources, and the Betty Brown family. The work is dedicated to the memory of Nita Hirsch.
The human brain, the most complex object in the universe, has 86 billion neurons with trillions of yet-unmapped connections. Understanding how it generates behavior is a problem that has beguiled humankind for millennia, and is critical for developing effective therapies for the psychiatric disorders that incur heavy costs on individuals and on society. The roundworm C elegans, measuring a mere 1 millimeter, is a powerful model system for understanding how nervous systems produce behaviors. Unlike the human brain, it has only 302 neurons, and has completely mapped neural wiring of 6,000 connections, making it the closest thing to a computer circuit board in biology. Despite its relative simplicity, the roundworm exhibits behaviors ranging from simple reflexes to the more complex, such as searching for food when hungry, learning to avoid food that previously made it ill, and social behavior.

Understanding how this dramatically simpler nervous system works will give insights into how our vastly more complex brains function and is the subject of a paper published on December 26, 2016, in Nature Methods.

Specifically, in electrical and computer engineering, circuits are designed and studied using breadboards that allow circuit elements to be easily added, removed, and modified. Likewise, in order to understand how the neural circuits in brains generate behavior, scientists need to manipulate the activity of individual neurons, turning them on and off at will. To do this, researchers have developed robust tools (transgenic actuators), that use drugs or light to activate or silence the neurons in which they are expressed. At present, these cell-specific systems need to be custom-made for each neuron and actuator combination a researcher may be interested in.

Navin Pokala, Ph.D., assistant professor of Life Sciences at New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) College of Arts and Sciences, with researchers at Caltech, adapted the GAL4-UAS system for expressing transgenes in the nematode C elegans. This system, which uses a gene regulatory protein from yeast, greatly reduces the work required for making cell-specific perturbations. Instead of constructing new DNA and transgenic animals for each cell and actuator, new cell-actuator combinations can be generated by simply mating already-constructed animals, dramatically reducing the time and cost.

Pokala and his collaborators plan on exploring variations to the GAL4-UAS system that allow more precise control of actuator gene expression than is currently possible. The newfound ease of transgenic animal construction allows for systematic perturbation of the cells in the nervous system, allowing Pokala and colleagues to build a database linking neural perturbations to behaviors. When combined with the previously mapped circuit wiring, this database will be a valuable resource for developing and testing models of nervous system function.

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The work is described in Nature Methods was funded by The Howard Hughes Medical Institute and The G. Harold and Leila Y. Mathers Charitable Foundation.

Navin Pokala can be reached at Navin.pokala@nyit.edu; (516) 686-7771. navinpokala.org

About NYIT

New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) offers 90 degree programs, including undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees, in more than 50 fields of study, including architecture and design; arts and sciences; education; engineering and computing sciences; health professions; management; and osteopathic medicine. A non-profit independent, private institution of higher education, NYIT has 12,000 students attending campuses on Long Island and Manhattan, online, and at its global campuses.

Led by President Edward Guiliano, NYIT is guided by its mission to provide career-oriented professional education, offer access to opportunity to all qualified students, and support applications-oriented research that benefits the larger world. To date, 100,000 graduates have received degrees from NYIT. For more information, visit nyit.edu.
Emotional experiences can induce physiological and internal brain states that persist for long periods of time after the emotional events have ended, a team of New York University scientists has found. This study, which appears in the journal Nature Neuroscience, also shows that this emotional "hangover" influences how we attend to and remember future experiences.

"How we remember events is not just a consequence of the external world we experience, but is also strongly influenced by our internal states--and these internal states can persist and color future experiences," explains Lila Davachi, an associate professor in NYU's Department of Psychology and Center for Neural Science and senior author of the study.

" 'Emotion' is a state of mind," Davachi continues. "These findings make clear that our cognition is highly influenced by preceding experiences and, specifically, that emotional brain states can persist for long periods of time."

We have known for quite some time that emotional experiences are better remembered than non-emotional ones. However, in the Nature Neuroscience study, the researchers demonstrated that non-emotional experiences that followed emotional ones were also better remembered on a later memory test.

To do so, subjects viewed a series of scene images that contained emotional content and elicited arousal. Approximately 10 to 30 minutes later, one group then also viewed a series of non-emotional, ordinary scene images. Another group of subjects viewed the non-emotional scenes first followed by the emotional ones. Both physiological arousal, measured in skin conductance, and brain activity, using fMRI, were monitored in both groups of subjects. Six hours later, the subjects were administered a memory test of the images previously viewed.

The results showed that the subjects who were exposed to the emotion-evoking stimuli first had better long-term recall of the neutral images subsequently presented compared to the group who were exposed to the same neutral images first, before the emotional images.

The fMRI results pointed to an explanation for this outcome.

Specifically, these data showed that the brain states associated with emotional experiences carried over for 20 to 30 minutes and influenced the way the subjects processed and remembered future experiences that are not emotional.

"We see that memory for non-emotional experiences is better if they are encountered after an emotional event," observes Davachi.

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The study's other authors were Arielle Tambini, an NYU doctoral student at the time of the study and now a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, Berkeley, Ulrike Rimmele, an NYU postdoctoral fellow at the time of the study and now a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Geneva, and Elizabeth Phelps, a professor in NYU's Center for Neural Science and Department of Psychology.

The work was supported by Dart Neuroscience, along with grants from the National Institute of Mental Health, part of the National Institutes of Health (MH074692, MH062104, MH092055), the Swiss National Science Foundation (DFG RI 1894/2-1), the German Research Foundation (DFG RI 1894/2-1), and the European Community Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013).

DOI: 10.1038/nn.4468
MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, Mass. (December 26, 2016) -- Tufts University engineers have created a new format of solids made from silk protein that can be preprogrammed with biological, chemical, or optical functions, such as mechanical components that change color with strain, deliver drugs, or respond to light, according to a paper published online this week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Using a water-based fabrication method based on protein self-assembly, the researchers generated three-dimensional bulk materials out of silk fibroin, the protein that gives silk its durability. Then they manipulated the bulk materials with water-soluble molecules to create multiple solid forms, from the nano- to the micro-scale, that have embedded, pre-designed functions.

For example, the researchers created a surgical pin that changes color as it nears its mechanical limits and is about to fail, functional screws that can be heated on demand in response to infrared light, and a biocompatible component that enables the sustained release of bioactive agents, such as enzymes.

Although more research is needed, additional applications could include new mechanical components for orthopedics that can be embedded with growth factors or enzymes, a surgical screw that changes color as it reaches its torque limits, hardware such as nuts and bolts that sense and report on the environmental conditions of their surroundings, or household goods that can be remolded or reshaped.

Silk's unique crystalline structure makes it one of nature's toughest materials. Fibroin, an insoluble protein found in silk, has a remarkable ability to protect other materials while being fully biocompatible and biodegradable.

"The ability to embed functional elements in biopolymers, control their self-assembly, and modify their ultimate form creates significant opportunities for bio-inspired fabrication of high-performing multifunctional materials," said senior and corresponding study author Fiorenzo G. Omenetto, Ph.D. Omenetto is the Frank C. Doble Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Tufts University's School of Engineering and also has an appointment in the Department of Physics in the School of Arts and Sciences.

###

Paper authors also included Benedetto Marelli, Ph.D., formerly a post-doctoral associate in the Omenetto laboratory and now at MIT; Nereus Patel, formerly a graduate student in the Tufts Biomedical Engineering program and now working for Ecoseal in Australia; Thomas Duggan, visiting artist in residence, Silklab; Giovanni Perotto, Ph.D., Silklab; Elijah Shirman, Ph.D., Silklab; and David L. Kaplan, Ph.D., Stern Family Professor of Engineering, Tufts University. Kaplan also holds Tufts faculty appointments in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, School of Medicine, School of Dental Medicine and Department of Chemistry in the School of Arts and Sciences.

Marelli, Omenetto and Kaplan are listed as inventors in a patent application based on the technology described in the manuscript.

The work was supported by the Office of Naval Research (N00014-13-1-0596).

Benedetto Marelli, Nereus Patel, Thomas Duggan, Giovanni Perotto, Elijah Shirman, David L. Kaplan, and Fiorenzo G. Omenetto, "Directed self-assembly of silk fibroin into bulk materials: Programming function into mechanical forms from the nano- to macroscale," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, published online Dec. 26. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1612063114.

About Tufts University's School of Engineering

Located on Tufts' Medford/Somerville campus, the School of Engineering offers a rigorous engineering education in a unique environment that blends the intellectual and technological resources of a world-class research university with the strengths of a top-ranked liberal arts college. Close partnerships with Tufts' excellent undergraduate, graduate and professional schools, coupled with a long tradition of collaboration, provide a strong platform for interdisciplinary education and scholarship. The School of Engineering's mission is to educate engineers committed to the innovative and ethical application of science and technology in addressing the most pressing societal needs, to develop and nurture twenty-first century leadership qualities in its students, faculty, and alumni, and to create and disseminate transformational new knowledge and technologies that further the well-being and sustainability of society in such cross-cutting areas as human health, environmental sustainability, alternative energy, and the human-technology interface.




Haiti - Social : Rain of greetings on Haiti...





President de facto Jocelerme Privert :

 I wish all Haitians and Haitians a Merry Christmas in Peace and Love. May these festivities offer us the opportunity to come closer and unite for the emergence of a new Haiti,  Jocelerme Privert.



Prime Minister Enex Jean Charles :

 Christmas is the time of reconciliation... Christmas is the time of forgiveness and redemption... The spirit of Christmas is that of solidarity and of living together...



On behalf of all members of the Government and on my own behalf, I wish you a Merry Christmas 2016 and tackle 2017 in Peace, calm and in this spirit of patriotic unity and hope for the welfare of the common homeland. 



The Minister of Justice :

 I wish you and your families a beautiful and merry Christmas!  Camille Edouard Jr, Minister of Justice and Public Security.



Ministry of Communication :

 The Ministry of Communication wishes you a Merry Christmas 2016 and a Happy New Year 2017! 



Cholzer Chancy :

 In these times of political turmoil, I would like to wish you a good Christmas in sharing, Peace and serenity. Happy New Year celebrations and good 2017,  Cholzer Chancy, President of the Chamber of Deputies.



Deputy Gary Bodeau :

 I wish a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2017 to all. I take this opportunity to invite the political actors to respect the verdict of the balots, , deputy of Delmas, Gary Bodeau.



City Council of les Cayes :

 In this holiday season, the Municipal Council of Les Cayes takes pleasure in conveying its wishes for a Christmas of peace and a year 2017 full of solidarity and filled with happiness and success. 



Jovenel Moise :

 Best wishes to all of you! That the same momentum unites us to build the future of Haiti  Jovenel Moise and his wife Martine Moise.



Jude Celestin :

 Nwel se fet ke kontan, lanmou ak pataj, mwen pataje moso lanmou mwen genyen pou Ayiti ak nou pandan nou tout ap kontinye travay pou li pi bel e pou tout ayisyen ka viv Nwel la pi byen.

Ann nou chak lonje men bay lot pou fet nwel la ka pi bel ane sa. 



Consulate General of the Republic of Haiti in Miami :

 At the end of 2016, the Consul General and Mrs Gandy Thomas joined the Consulate team in wishing you a Merry Christmas 2016 and a Happy New Year 2017 in joy, serenity, peace and love . 



Consulate General of Haiti in Chicago :

 The Consulate General of Haiti in Chicago wishes you a Merry Christmas 2016. 



Consulate General of Haiti in Montreal :

 The year 2016 was particularly challenging for our people. Once again, Mother Nature showed us how ruthless it can be. Fortunately, this holiday season announces renewal and opens the way to hope, sharing and harmony [...] The Consulate General of Haiti in Montreal and its staff, under the direction of the Chief of Post a.i., Justin Viard, would like to wish everyone a wonderful holiday season. May this new year bring health, peace and joy, serenity and happiness in every family.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2017 



Embassy of Haiti in Brussels :

 The Embassy of Haiti in Brussels wishes you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. 



Embassy of Mexico in Haiti :

 Ambassador Jose Luis Alvarado and the team of the Embassy of Mexico in Haiti wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2017. 



Embassy of the United States in Haiti :

 We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year ! 



The Embassy of France in Haiti :

 LThe Embassy of France in Haiti wishes you a Merry Christmas ! 



PNH :

 The Haitian National Police (PNH) wishes a Merry Christmas 2016 and a Happy New Year 2017 to the entire Haitian population. 



CONATEL :

 The General Directorate of the Executive Board of the National Telecommunications Council (CONATEL) thanks you for your cooperation during the year 2016 and wishes you all the best for the new year  Jean-Marie Altema, Director General.



The Tourism Association of Haiti :

 The Tourism Association of Haiti (ATH) wishes you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2017. Let each of us cultivates this spirit of Christmas in our hearts and share the Love, Joy and Peace all over this new Year. 



CFI :

 The Center for Investment Facilitation (CFI) wishes a Merry Christmas 2016 and a Happy New Year 2017 to all the people of Haiti and abroad ! 



Le BHDA :

 The Haitian Copyright Office (BHDA) whishes that the Christmas 2016 to be the announcement of a growing happiness in joy and peace for all Haitians in general and the staff of the office in particular [...] BHDA hopes that this year will bring us many satisfactions and that everyone, as a multidimensional, global and integrated being, can offer the best of ourselves to our community.



This new year is a great opportunity to show all our dedication to each other and to wish that all our dearest wishes will be realized for 2017. Together we will accomplish feats. May God bless Haiti! 



BONFED :

 The Office of the National Authorizing Officer of the European Development Fund (BONFED) wishes you and your family a Merry Christmas 2016 and a year 2017 filled with success, health, serenity and happiness. 



OCHA Haiti :

 The United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) team in Haiti wishes all government partners, United Nations agencies, donors, NGOs and civil society a happy holiday season and a successful year 2017 in achieving the goals of humanitarian action. The OCHA team in Haiti remains committed to the most vulnerable populations and serving the wider humanitarian community. 



Sophia and Michel Martelly :

 NWe wish each of you Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year 2017, in Peace and Serenity. 



Dr. Louis G. Lamothe Foundation :

 The Dr. Louis G. Lamothe Foundation invites everyone to celebrate Christmas in a spirit of Peace, Love, Sharing and Transcendence in order to facilitate the emergence of an inclusive and united Haiti in 2017 : Let's transform Haiti into an island of love for Christmas and New Year. 



Youth Government of Haiti :

 No opportunity is not conducive to tell you how the Young President of Haiti, Amos Cincir and the Young Prime Minister Nathanael Noel, as well as all the members of the Youth Government of Haiti, have appreciated your unconditional and titanic supporters as part of our mission as a structure that promotes Responsible Leadership and Citizen Engagement in Youth Haitian [...]



May the serenity of the holiday season, Christmas, be a happy prelude to the new year 2017 that is coming. The Youth Government of Haiti wishes you a very Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year filled with Happiness, Health and Prosperity. Thank you. 



Sport Center for Hope Haiti :

The Sport Center for Hope wishes its  Best Wishes of Merry Christmas & Happy New Year. Friendships and warm wishes for the holiday season ! 



Pan American Development Foundation - Haiti :

 The whole Pan American Development Foundation (PADF) family in Haiti wishes you a happy holiday and a 2017 year full of opportunity for all. 



Plan International Haiti :

 Our wishes for this year: Together we work for the well-being of our children, respect for their rights and especially for the development of our daughters. Merry Christmas 2016 & Happy New Year 2017 to all 



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Kolkata : A chargesheet has been filed against Mohammad Musa, a suspected ISIS man who had allegedly been tasked with killing foreigners visiting Kolkata. The chargesheet reveals that he was drawing up plans to attack Missionaries of Charity Headquarters in Kolkata since many foreigners congregate there.

Investigators say that he had intended to carry out lone wolf attack, as in the Orlando in the US and Frances Nice.

Mother House is the resting place of Mother Teresa, who was canonised on September 4. Mother Teresa worked throughout her life from the premises and her tomb draws many international visitors.

Officers of the National Investigation agency said Musa had close contact with Bangladesh-based Jamat Ul Mujahideen Bangladesh or JMB, which is said to be responsible for the attack on Dhakas Holey Artisan cafe that killed 20 people, including an Indian student, in July this year.

Investigators from Bangladesh have already interrogated him about his links to Abu Suleman, the mastermind of the Dhaka bakery attack. He had earlier revealed that Abu Suleman had visited Kolkata.

Musa had been also been interrogated recently by the Federal Bureau of Investigation from the US regarding his links with the ISIS.

A resident of Bengals Birbhum district, Musa was arrested in July from the Burdwan railway station in July. Officials said he had been radicalised through social media.

The NIA is still trying to identify his ISIS handler, who, they say, had instructed him to carry out attacks on foreigners, primarily US and British citizens, as revenge for the war in Syria.

Source : MSN
In the left photo, lawmakers leave a detention center in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province, after questioning Choi Soon-sil there as part of their investigation into corruption allegations surrounding her and President Park Geun-hye, Monday. The detention center allowed the questioning on condition that the lawmakers would not take a photograph of her. In the right photo, lawmakers question Park's former aides An Chong-bum, left, and Jeong Ho-seong  who are also key suspects in the scandal  at a different detention center in Seoul the same day. / Yonhap



By Yi Whan-woo

Choi Soon-sil

Choi Soon-sil, the central figure in a corruption scandal surrounding her and President Park Geun-hye, denied any alleged links to other key suspects during lawmakers' questioning, Monday.

She answered "No" when the lawmakers asked her whether she knew Park's three former senior aides  Kim Ki-choon, Woo Byung-woo and Ahn Jong-beom  who are suspected of being involved in Choi's meddling into state affairs to make illicit gains.

Choi also said she did not know Kim Jang-ja, Woo's mother-in-law who is believed to have used her friendship with Choi for her son-in-law to become Park's senior secretary for civil affairs.

Regarding a tablet PC that contained evidence of the allegations, she said she first learned about the device in 2012, and does not know how to use such computers.

The National Assembly special committee looking into the scandal questioned Choi for 150 minutes in a detention center where she is being held in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province.

They visited the center to question her after she repeatedly rejected appearing before the parliamentary hearing. The detention center prohibited airing of the questioning and even taking photographs of Choi, prompting protests from the lawmakers. But they were able to question Choi after promising not to take photographs and conduct the interrogation in private.

Led by Rep. Kim Sung-tae of the ruling Saenuri Party, the committee members visited Choi amid lingering suspicions over the scandal despite five hearings that took place at the National Assembly through Dec. 22.

Choi refused to admit charges that she colluded with President Park, although she said she was "ready to serve a life sentence."

She denied other allegations as well, such as keeping hidden wealth in Germany after extorting Samsung and other major Korean conglomerates and controlling two organizations  the Mir and K-Sports foundations  to raise illegal funds.

Choi said she did not want to talk about the President, adding that her body and mind were "too weary and complicated."












By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 24 (PTI) Social networking giant Facebook received 6,324 requests from Indian government agencies for 8,290 users/accounts in the first half of 2016.

This is the second highest after the US, which made 23,854 requests for 38,951 users/accounts during January-June 2016, according to Facebooks Government Requests Report.

Requests from India have increased, a trend seen globally as well from the previous period. Indian agencies had made 5,561 requests for 7,018 users/accounts in July-December 2015 period.

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Facebook said it was able to produce "some data" in 53.59 per cent of the cases in the first half of 2016, compared to just over 50 per cent in the July-December 2015 period.

Government requests for account data increased by 27 per cent globally compared to the last half of 2015, increasing from 46,710 to 59,229 requests, Facebook Deputy General Counsel Chris Sonderby said.

"As we have previously emphasized, we apply a rigorous approach to every government request we receive to protect the information of the people who use our services. We scrutinise each request for legal sufficiency, no matter which country is making the request, and challenge those that are deficient or overly broad," he added.

Sonderby emphasised that Facebook does not provide governments with "back doors" or direct access to peoples information.

"Well also keep working with partners in industry and civil society to push governments around the world to reform surveillance in a way that protects their citizens? safety and security while respecting their rights and freedoms," he said. PTI SR MKJ

--- ENDS ---
By Yi Whan-woo



The United States Forces Korea (USFK) has pushed back the complete relocation of its major bases to Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, by two years to the end of 2018, according to military and provincial officials, Sunday.



In cooperation with the government, the U.S. planned to move the USFK and Eighth Army headquarters from Yongsan Garrison in central Seoul as well as the 2nd Infantry Division (2ID) in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province, to Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek by December.



But the relocation project, which began on Jan. 24, 2005, has been delayed partly due to a change in the moving schedules of the related American troops, officials said.



They said the pushback was also caused by a delay in the construction of the buildings, warehouses, roads, sewage facilities and other infrastructure that are needed to accommodate the increased number of troops at Camp Humphreys.



The USFK was not available for comment, while the Ministry of Defense assured that the relocation will be finished by 2018.



"We decided play safe and extended the relocation project although some 93 percent of building work has been completed," a ministry official said on condition of anonymity. "For instance, as part of the project, we need to pay the construction companies and complete paperwork with Pyeongtaek city officials. And these tasks should be carried out in a prudent manner."



The official also said the USFK headquarters and the Eighth Army are scheduled to fully move into Camp Humphreys around June and August 2017.



A different official said, "Most of the buildings that are still under construction at Camp Humphreys are accommodation for generals and other high-ranking officers."



"The number of such officers is lower than that of soldiers so we'll be able to complete building their new homes sometime in 2017. Moreover, it's the soldiers who will immediately need places to stay once their troops begin to move out from their current bases."



Under the $10.8 billion relocation project, South Korea pays for moving the USFK headquarters and the Eighth Army while the USFK pays for redeploying 2ID.



Defense Ministry spokesman Moon Sang-gyun downplayed concerns that the extension will increase the financial burden for both sides, saying "It won't be too problematic."



Moon also put aside speculation the postponement in the transfer of the U.S. wartime operational control (OPCON) of South Korean forces to Seoul is attributed to delay in the relocation project.



The two allies initially agreed to complete the OPCON transfer by December 2015, but later postponed the move to an unspecified date in the mid-2020s.



A military expert said it will be still "good for national security" to relocate the U.S. military bases as early as possible.



"I believe the postponement of the transfer of OPCON led to the delayed relocation of the American troops. Minimizing such a delay is critical in maintaining a perfect readiness posture against North Korea amid Pyongyang's growing military threats," said Yang Uk, a senior researcher at the Korea Defense and Security Forum.



Once completed, the size of Camp Humphreys will be increase from 1,041 acres to 3,453 acres.



It will be able to accommodate approximately 42,000 soldiers and their family members.




By PTI: option

Gurgaon, Dec 26 (PTI) Union Chemicals and Fertilisers Minister Ananth Kumar today assured that within the next two months, financial transactions of retailers and dealers of fertilisers would be in digital format.

While farmers would be provided fertilisers and seeds on cash payments, they would also have the option of making digital payments, he said at the first DigiDhan Mela held here to promote cashless transaction.

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Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Union Minister of State for Planning (Independent Charge) Rao Inderjit Singh, were also present at the event.

Lauding the Chief Minister for introducing e-culture in Haryana, which is predominantly an agrarian state, the Union Minister said the state has emerged as an example for the rest of the country through successful implementation of Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao programme.

DigiDhan Mela would be organised in 100 cities throughout the country till April 14 next year, he said.

Demonetisation under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which has put an end to funding of terrorism, Ananth Kumar said.

Asserting that demonetisation has exposed black money and curbed counterfeiting notes, black marketing and corruption, Khattar said the country is moving towards be coming a cashless society.

As many as 170 services such as e-Registration, e-Return File, e-Mutation, e-C Form and e-Locker are being provided in the state, he said.

The Chief Minister also paid tributes to Shaheed Udham Singh on his birth anniversary.

Speaking on the occasion, Rao Inderjit Singh said Haryana has made a name for itself in terms of e-culture as well as agriculture and culture. PTI VJ NSD

--- ENDS ---
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This year marks the centenary of the creation of the legendary Trans-Siberian railway of Russia. By an ironic twist of fate, this falls right in the middle of an epochal change in geopolitical and geo-economical scenarios, whose main powers involved are also responding by creating and planning great infrastructure works. There is actually no doubt that in the profiled context the continental infrastructures constitute an essential moment for recovery, able to affect both technological modernisation processes and foreign affairs stability. This is true if one considers a nation's economic development, and by effect its geopolitical clout on a global scale, depends heavily on 'voluntary geography' improvement via implementing a modern, technologically advanced transport infrastructure system able to face and overcome the 'distance' factor.

As well as works broadening the Suez Canal and Panama, which surely highlighted the role maritime connections are playing, one must in no way ignore the importance of the land ones, which see the Asian continent as one of the main players. Asia is actually the continent most concerned and involved in these projects foreseeing the creation of Roads, tunnels and railways that should pass it from one line to another. And for some years now China - playing a main role in this process - has got down to creating some.

The economic power developed in the latest periods by the Chinese colossus is actually supported a series of strategic infrastructural projects that are useful in accompanying, protecting and raising the Country's spread ability. These surely include the great land and sea 'New Silk Road' project, devised by Peking and with the main objective of bringing China closer to the rest of the Euro-Asian continental mass, as well as developing the inland zones that are still behind the coast band. There is no doubt that full realisation of such an ambitious project will have weighty geopolitical repercussions if one just considers it aims to link Europe and Asia in infrastructure and economy and at the same time contrast US replacement on the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

These routes are split through the middle by the Trans-Siberian, which is weekly passed by tens of freight trains, leaving Moscow to reach the Chinese city of Manzohuli and vice versa, and generating a 700% increase in container traffic coming from China and heading for Europe, according to data provided by the Russian State.

As well as China, the Indian government is also seeing to setting up new transport infrastructures, useful in propelling the Country to an industrial economy. It was recently reported that New Deli is working on developing a vast infrastructure network able to link India to Central-Southern Europe, passing through Iran, Central Asia and Russia, so circumventing Pakistan, a historically rival State, whose geographical position constitutes a heavy obstacle for the Ganges Country. This project would let one save various days' travel, allowing Indian freights to reach European markets swiftly.

Russia is doing no less: it is still busy creating the Razvite megaproject, which recovers the tradition of Great Plans to promote Russia's industrialisation in the last century and also aims to recompose the European-Asian continent as the foremost active subject on the worldwide scene.

More in detail, this is the project for a multi-infrastructural corridor, to be created over 20 years, aiming to link via a completely new system the Pacific Coast with the Baltic Sea and Atlantic, involving countries like China and Japan in the East and numerous European states in the West. This corridor will cross the European-Asian continent and will be made up of a mix of rail, road and motorway links, electric lines, cable lines, petrol and gas conducts, and water channels; moreover, the path will be accompanied by the foundation of technological parks and (at least 10) new cities. This project faces ambitious challenges and aims for environmental sustainability. These ambitions will be supported by a technological platform with its terminals in the East, in China and Japan, with lengthenings in South East Asia, aiming to express real change prospects, relating to development and exchange dynamics, like in fact those expressed in its time with the Trans-Siberian and Suez Canal creation. In 2013, Moscow also placed 17 billion dollars to modernise the Baikal-Amur tract of the Trans-Siberian itself, aiming to raise and increase the business exchange volume.

Beyond the lasting mega dilema pinned down by prof. Anis Bajrektarevic as the (Trans-Siberian/Maglev train of) Heartland or (Mare Liberum of) Rimland?, this current development should be seen as an opener not a dividing line. No doubt, these projects could be a good opportunity for Europe too, and in particular more so for the enterprise system, including those operating in the technological sector, which could work for modern infrastructure creation, smart cities and technological poles the project foresees.

For Europe, especially the Mediterranean, it could also turn out to be a valuable chance to finalise its infrastructural projects, including the TEN T corridors. This completion would make the European transport network more organic and would especially help develop outskirts areas, including the Balkans, via interconnection. Improving transborder connections with this area could indeed favour both its concrete, real stabilisation and integration with Europe's Eastern part, and work as a bridge to the effervescent European-Asian area and the Pacific which, as is known, are living a period of unstoppable growth and expansion.

Filippo Romeo: Director of the Infrastructure and Territorial Development Programme, IsAG Rome.
Ghanaian Preacher, Rev. Moses Bennisan in partnership with Nubian Accessories has fed over five hundred (500) inmates at the Male Prisons Nsawam on Wednesday, December 21.

The refreshment which has come as a way of putting smiles on the faces of the inmate also seeks to celebrate them after they had successfully underwent certificate and diploma Bible course at the Rabicon Bible School in the prisons.

The core mandate for the establishment of the Bible School is to teach inmates to know and accept Christ while serving their jail terms and become transformed people.

Speaking at the event, Mrs. Juliana Asabea Duah-Kujar, CEO of Nubian Accessories cautioned the inmates who went through the Bible School to pay adherence to all teachings and knowledge they have acquired. She also tasked them to pray daily and apply faith in everything they do.

Rev Derrick Antwi, a lecturer at the Bible School who taught them the course Ministerial Character Building reminded his students now grandaunts that their lives and way of living should reflect that of Christ quotingBy their fruits, You shall know them.

The excited inmates who were so much enthused by the love and benevolent acts expressed their profound gratitude to the organizers; they also prayed the blessings of God replenish every penny used to feed them.

One inmate (name withheld) remarked that, this meal they just received would serve as diner for most of them with a scriptural verse from Matthew 25: 35

What you have just done for us is simply awesome and the food we just received will serve as diner for most of us here as we do not have food to eat.

Rev. Moses Bennisan, president of Family Altar who had a week earlier donated copies of his two newly launched books Financial Independence and Raising Billionaires again reminded them not allow their stay in prison to hinder their careers.

He cited some personalities who came out of prison and became presidents of nations. Joseph in the bible and Former South African President Nelson Mandela spent many years in prison but eventually they become Prime Minister and President respectively.

Having observed with keen interest on how the inmates seem happy while in prison, Rev. Moses Bennisan finally came into conclusion that some prisoners are even happier than most people out there who have all the freedoms.

Oh my God, I am so enthused by the way these prisoners are happy without any worries. Most people out there with all the freedoms arent happy like this.

He finally brought the event curtains down, prayed for the inmates and invoked the mercies of God upon their lives.

Among the food items were, packed jollof and fried rice, bottled H2O drinking water and bottled soft drinks. The prisons officers were not left out of the refreshment though.

The organizers have also revealed their plans to refresh the Female inmates at the Nsawam Prisons last week in January, 2017.

Meanwhile there is a call on corporate bodies, religious institutions and meaningful individuals to come on board as sponsors and partners of the prisons ministry.

See Photos below


26.12.2016 LISTEN

The 2016 presidential campaign confirms what Marx wrote : all the events and personalities of great importance in world history occur, as it were, twice the first time as tragedy, the second as farce. Karl, not Groucho, Marx.

We enter the realm of farce. Its the economy, Stupid!

We are experiencing a reprise of the political paralysis of the 1970s, stagnation replacing stagflation. Jimmy Carter tackled the malaise in widely noted speech on July 15, 1979. This was later derided as his great MEOW (Moral Equivalent Of War):

The threat is nearly invisible in ordinary ways. It is a crisis of confidence. It is a crisis that strikes at the very heart and soul and spirit of our national will. We can see this crisis in the growing doubt about the meaning of our own lives and in the loss of a unity of purpose for our nation.

The erosion of our confidence in the future is threatening to destroy the social and the political fabric of America.

The confidence that we have always had as a people is not simply some romantic dream or a proverb in a dusty book that we read just on the Fourth of July.



The symptoms of this crisis of the American spirit are all around us. For the first time in the history of our country a majority of our people believe that the next five years will be worse than the past five years. Two-thirds of our people do not even vote. The productivity of American workers is actually dropping, and the willingness of Americans to save for the future has fallen below that of all other people in the Western world.

As you know, there is a growing disrespect for government and for churches and for schools, the news media, and other institutions. This is not a message of happiness or reassurance, but it is the truth and it is a warning.

Carter then discredited himself with a series of utterly feckless measures. None worked.

The farce is not funny. Its cringeworthy how the national elites can be so oblivious to the obvious. The political and economic elites are just not grasping that economic stagnation, painfully obvious to the voters, is at the root of our political woes.

David Leonhardt, in The New York Times, gets it. He does an extraordinary great job of recognizing and framing the central challenge of our time in his debut column A Great Fight For Our Times :

When progress is the norm, it feeds on itself. People can trust that their own sacrifices will usually pay off. They can endure hard times without becoming cynical and can be generous toward others.

Now, imagine a different reality: one in which your family  or whole community  had known scant progress for decades.

You couldnt tell stories of upward mobility, because they wouldnt be true. Instead, you would be frustrated, about hard work gone unrewarded, and anxious, for your future and your children.

Such stagnation is the reality for much of the countrys population  roughly one third by many measures, closer to half by others. Some of the statistics are familiar. But as a group, theyre chilling.

The typical household, amazingly, has a net worth 14 percent lower than the typical one did in 1984, according to a forthcoming Russell Sage Foundation publication. The life-expectancy gap between the affluent and everyone else is growing . The number of children living with only one parent or none has doubled since the 1970s (to 30 percent). The obesity rate has nearly tripled (to 38 percent). About eight million people have spent time behind bars at some point in their life, up from 1.5 million 40 years ago. While college enrollment has grown, the norm for middle-class and poor students is to leave without a four-year degree.

This column is my first for the Op-Ed page, which is why Im devoting it to the great American stagnation. That stagnation is a central challenge of our time.

And we dont feel nearly enough urgency about it.

Of course I disagree with Leonhardts call for raising taxes  by which presumably he means tax rates  on the upper middle class and the wealthy as part of the remedy for stagnation. History  from JFK to Reagan to Bill Clinton -- shows how cutting tax rates is a key, although not only, piece of the recipe for resolving stagnation. The other key is good monetary policy.

David? Read Kudlow and Domitrovics new best seller, JFK and the Reagan Revolution: A Secret History of American Prosperity , on just that matter. Nevertheless Leonhardt is exceptional in getting the issue, its ramifications, and its key importance exactly right:

Yet even for [those with a rising standard of living], the stagnation looms over life. It breeds political dysfunction, and it helps explain why so many Americans arent swayed by facts. When you have been struggling for decades, you tend to lose faith in societys institutions and their sober-minded experts.

I have some confidence that if the politicos just get the question right eventually  with a spirited argument conducted in good faith  the right answer will emerge. President Reagans 1986 tax reform cutting the top rate to 28% carried the Senate 97-3. Just now, however, both presidential nominees have taken their eye off the ball.

Hillary Clinton, something of a social justice warrior, broke left. She proposed whopping tax increases. She took a daft position on monetary policy, The Fed Can Do No Wrong" and is above criticism other than her demand for more socioeconomic and ethnic diversity on the governing boards of the regional Federal Reserve banks. Neither stand would help the economy get back to its historically higher growth levels, the kind facilitated by President Clinton 1.0. That made him popular. Easy to love a politician who gives us twice as much prosperity than has either party for the past 16 years.

Donald Trump showed promise with a reformulated tax rate cut along the lines of the new Ryan-Brady tax plan . Trump allowed his original sketch of a tax plan to be refined by Supply-Side stalwarts Arthur Laffer, Larry Kudlow and Steve Moore. Trump also showed he might put monetary policy into play by the proxy of criticizing the Fed and even hinted, twice, at favoring the best monetary policy of them all, the gold standard. Then Trump pivoted to promoting his economically most problematic planks: walls  whether physical or tariff  deportations, and punitive treatment of companies exporting jobs. Corporations are expatriating because Uncle Sam is ruining Americas business climate. Fix that and jobs will flood back into the United States.

Meanwhile its puzzling. Both candidates promoted, with different emphases, the American Dream of prosperity and economic justice for all. Yet neither are really owning it.

The real enemy is neither the left nor the right. Its not Democrats or Republicans. It's stagnation. Too many political leaders, of both parties, have a blind spot as to a credible cure.

How to resolve the stagnation and restore the American Dream?

Stay tuned.

Originating at Forbes.com
On my arrival at the Accra Kotoka International Airport on 20 November 2016 at about 20:00 hours aboard a British Airways flight, I immediately noticed two problems of which I conveyed them to the publics attention through a publication put out on both Ghanaweb and Modernghana. The problems were, or are, about the non-existence of a Transit Hall at the airport and the non-internationally-conforming standard of checking out landed air passengers at the immigration desks.

http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/features/Undesirable-problems-at-the-Arrival-Hall-of-Kotoka-International-Airport-489491

On my return to London on 20 December 2016 at about 22:00 hours, I noticed a similar but far worse problem at the departure (immigration) post than that of the arrival posts. There is a huge architectural building or structural pillar that obstructs the queuing departing passengers in the front of the queue from seeing the immigration desks to their left hand side. All the immigration desks on their left hand side are on their blind spot. They have no way of telling when a desk becomes vacant and that the first person in the queue must proceed to that post unless alerted by an immigration officer standing by the queue.

These immigration officers standing by the queue do not very often immediately become aware of a post becoming vacant. They collect the passports of passengers, examine them, and ask them to proceed to available immigration posts once they become aware of such posts becoming vacant.

I do not understand the repetition of checking a passengers travelling documents and details both in the queue and at the immigration desk. This is by the way not the crux of my write-up today but the delay caused by passengers not being aware that an immigration desk has become available for them to proceed to the desk to be attended to because of such desks/posts being on their blind.

This problem, needlessly, delays or obstructs the free flow of passengers during checking out or in at arrivals and departures, respectively.

I would like to see this problem resolved to bring the treatment of air passengers at the Accra Kotoka Airport to an acceptable international standard. The one thing I hate to see is for people to be treated anyhow in what is usually Ghana deE saa (this is the way of doing things in Ghana) attitude.

I shall make it a personal duty to ensure that this deplorable attitude at the Kotoka airport is dealt with to bring about decency in dealing with our arrived or departing air passengers.

As once suggested in my previous publication on same subject, counter/cabin controllers in the form of Call Forward Systems  (These systems inform the head of a queue which teller or reception position is free next. This makes serving customers much more efficient) are to be installed at both the arrival and departure (immigration) posts to facilitate the unhitched flow of passengers.

At Accra Kotoka International Airport, the immigration cabins/desks are arranged such that most of them are on the blind spot of queuing arrived/departing air passengers.

I would like to suggest to the management of the airport to install automated queue forward controllers that will announce, "next person please go to counter number 1, 2 or 3" when the immigration officer in a vacant cabin presses a button. This will help facilitate the flow of passengers in a more professional way than the immigration officers beckoning to the next customer to come to their vacant cabins which method is often not observed by the customer being called.

Additionally, the arrangements of the immigration cabins at the arrival hall with one cabin behind the other and on the queuing passengers blind spot do not make it convenient serving passengers in a professional manner. At the departure side, although the cabins are differently arranged, most of them are still on the blind spot of passengers.

I could see the immigration officers whose posts were vacant chatting among themselves while passengers were still in the queue waiting to be served or attended to. They could not be bothered. This is not on. This observation was made on my return trip to London on 20 December 2016 as mentioned earlier.

When I arrived at London on 21 December 2016 at about 05:20 hours, I took time to observe the immigration posts and the conduct of the immigration officers at London Heathrow Airport to be able to advise or suggest to the Management of Kotoka Airport what to do to better the treatment of arrived or departing air passengers.

At London Heathrow Terminal 3 arrival hall, I could see the Tensabarriers (Retractable Belt Barriers) complexly, but expertly arranged to take arriving air passengers to within two to three metres from the immigration cabins. The cabins are arranged in the order of 2 x 3 and are all in client facing order. They are about two to three metres away from the first person in the queue and once a post becomes vacant, the immigration officer announces, next to the hearing of the next person in the front of the queue. There is no way that one will miss his/her chance or will not see when a post becomes vacant.

I suggest we either arrange our Ghana tensabarriers so expertly to take passengers to the immigration posts without any cabin being on the blind spot of a passenger in the queue or we install Call Forward Systems.

I shall make getting this problem resolved my baby. I shall go all the way to the future Minister of Roads, Transport and Aviation to ensure this reported inconvenience at Kotoka Airport is gotten rid of.

I believe in perseverance to conquering this annoying chronic problem at the Kotoka airport. We cannot continue to stagnate in doing things the usual Ghana deE saa way. No way!!!

Rockson Adofo, the proud son of Kumawu and, or Asiampa will make sure this disgusting problem is solved even if it should take appealing to President-elect Nana Akufo Addo in the near future to get it done.

Rockson Adofo

(Written on Sunday 25 December 2016)
Dear President-elect,

I want to first of congratulate you on your victory in the just ended general elections. Your victory is an indication of the growing restlessness of majority of ghanaians to see a new leadership style that will ensure that we as a nation head towards the path of restoration and hope. I also want to express my hope that you will use your new office to push radically for the liberation of the populace from the subjugation of the political elite and establishment. Anything less than that would leave much to be desired.

Mr. President, teachers are one of the most unappreciated professionals in this country considering the effort and sacrifices that the make towards the progress of the country.

Mr. President during the campaign season, you promised to reinstate nurses and teacher trainee allowances. Irrespective of whether that decision is prudent or not in the longer is not a matter of discussion. What is need ed is the support of ghanaians to see that such policy succedes. However, there are two delicate and pressing issues i wish to draw your attention to.

Mr president, teachers are one of the most unappreciated group of professionals in the country. People still believe that teachers' reward are in heaven hence there is no need to reward them on earth. What worsens the situation is that the states seems to have inculcated this negative mentality into it's policy framework.

The mahama led government placed injunction payment of arears to teachers and payed them three months out of the total period of arears due them. After much pressure put on the government by teacher's associations, gov't lifted the suspension and resume full payment. However due to the election, there are still teachers who yet to recieve their arrears.

I want to appeal to you to resume payment upon your assumption to office. If trainees who do not merit their 'allawa' will recieve it, how much more teachers who worked for their arrears. Another issue that needs your attention is the payment of 'allawa' of agric. college students. Most people are not aware that agric.
A police officer has been shot dead by suspected armed robbers at Wechiau in Wa West in the Upper East region.

Constable Edmund Kokovi who was on duty at the DCEs residence was killed around 10pm Saturday while returning to post after going to purchase phone credit in town.

The suspects, according an eyewitness, Daniel Dortuo, were returning from a robbery operation on two motorbikes and thought the police officer, who was also a passenger on a motorbike, was chasing them.

They opened fire after the officer beckoned their speeding motorbikes to slow down because there was a church convention ahead.

The body has since been deposited at the Wa regional hospital while investigations are yet to begin.
The two women, who are sisters, also tried to damage the CCTV camera set up in front of their flat in order to conceal the crime.

By Ashish Pandey: Two women stabbed a security guard stationed at the residential society where they resided, after he asked them not to make noise past midnight. The accused, daughters of a retired police inspector, have not been arrested as yet.

The incident took place at Vivekanada Nagar in Kukatpally on the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday when the guard went to the flat of the women after one of the residents complained of noise.

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The guard Bisaiah asked them not to make noise as other people were disturbed and had complained about the noise. This led to an argument between the guard and the women, G Sunitha (40) and Sailaja (39).

HERE IS WHAT HAPPENED The three were arguing over the issue when in a fit of rage, one of the women overpowered Bisaiah and attacked him with a knife. The panic-stricken guard ran in an attempt to save himself. Neighbours informed the police, which rushed the watchman to a private hospital. "Two sisters Sunitha and Sailaja stabbed the guard with a knife on being asked not to make noise. We have registered a case. However, we have not arrested them as both appear mentally unstable. Further investigation is on," said Kukatpally sub-inspector P Suresh. The sisters also tried to damage the CCTV camera set up in front of their flat in order to conceal the crime. Police has recovered the CCTV footage which shows that one of the women was throwing water at the CCTV camera, while the other was stabbing the guard.

Also read

Patna: ATM security guard hacked to death for foiling robbery

Pune techie chased and stabbed multiple times to death while she screamed for help

Woman stabbed by stalker for over 30 times in Burari

--- ENDS ---
Bishop Charles Agyinasare has advised Christians to desist from the persistent desire for prophetic word.

According to the founder of the Perez Chapel International, an unmeasured quest for miracles could affect the Christians spiritual growth and relationship with God.

In a Christmas message at the Perez Dome at Dzorwulu in Accra, the renowned preacher urged Christians to value their personal relationship with God and quit shopping for prophesies.

 Some of you that have been set free by God, this is your place, stop roaming about. Stop contaminating [yourselves].  Some of you, you have too many prophets, too many apostles, too many bishops in your life  so somebody is saying: The Lord says you should go east, another one is saying you should go west [and] another one is saying you should go north.  [It is all so confusing], he said, adding that: The word has become too much. And some of you, any pastor you meet: Do you have a word for me? What word again are you looking for?.

He continued : If you go through Scripture, there are 365 fear nots, one dose for every day. There are times when you go to see the doctor and you are deficient of certain vitamins, they tell you: Take some vitamins. Probably Vitamin C, or Vitamin D or Vitamin something; they say take a dose every day. I came today to inoculate you with the dose of faith so that your fear will leave you in Jesus name.

We are serving a God who can do the impossible. In fact, He says that he can turn stones even into children.
26.12.2016 LISTEN

President-elect, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has said the chieftaincy institution needs reform to make it more meaningful in our current governance system.

He said there is still an obstacle bars the active participation of traditional authorities in the governance of the country and his administration would work closely with traditional authorities to address this concern.

Nana Akufo Addo said it is the intention of his administration to reform the chieftaincy institution for traditional authorities to play effective roles in the governance system of the country.

Nana Akufo-Addo said this at a special meeting of the Upper West Regional House of Chiefs, held to thank the people of the region and to assure them of his preparedness and commitment to deliver on his campaign promises.

He said the revival and modernisation of agriculture, the industrialisation development effort, restructuring of Savannah Accelerated Development Authority and making it a genuine instrument of progress for the people in the northern part of Ghana would be pursued vigorously.

Nana Akufo-Addo said the provision of dams and other irrigation facilities would enable people in the communities to undertake all-year-round agricultural production to make the nation food sufficient.

He expressed concern that some neighbouring countries with less favourable climatic conditions have been able to modernise their agriculture sector and are now exporting vegetables and other produce.

He said Ghana could do it better and it was based on this that the NPP promised to provide dams in the communities for the people to put their energies and spare times into productive ventures to produce more for the society and for export.

Vice President elect, Alhaji (Dr) Mahamud Bawumia, National Women Organiser of the NPP, Afusah Atiko Adjaba, Ambrose Dery, Member of Parliament for Nandom, and Bugri Nabu, Northern Regional Chairman of the NPP among others accompanied Nana Akufo- Addo.
The Head of Mental Health Authority, Dr. Akwasi Osei, has emphasized the need to bridge the existing gap in mental health treatment by extending services to all parts of the country.

He noted in an interview with the B&FT, that mental health services in the country have been limited to only a section of the public to the neglect of others who equally need the services, adding that until the matter is addressed, more mentally challenged persons will occupy the streets.

According to Dr. Osei, the countrys mental health service delivery has over 90 percent treatment gap, which means that for every hundred people who required mental health care, less than ten are getting the adequate care because all the services are limited to only the three major psychiatric hospitals located in Accra, Ankaful, and Pantang.

There are many people who will go to prayer camps and be put in chains and whipped in the name of exorcising the evil spirit from them because they are not getting proper health care, and others will also be on the streets.

So, when people say that they are seeing more mental patients on the streets, it is part of the problem; they are not getting the care, he said.

He further added that: The new approach towards mental healthcare is to decentralise and to be community-oriented, as we want to remove the emphasis from the three areas and spread access throughout the country.

We need to spread nationwide so that if somebody is at Zabzugu Tatale, he can still get the proper care he requires as if he were in Accra, he explained.

By decentralizing, Dr. Osei also advocates that a mental health wing be instituted in every regional hospital, and further be integrated into general healthcare.

He indicated that the only bottleneck that is hindering the smooth delivery of mental healthcare in the country remains the absence of the Legislative Instrument (LI) which will ensure the operationalization of the Mental Health Act of 2012 (Act 846).

The passage, he said, will allow for the implementation of the details of the Act, which among other things, will specify a mental health levy that will go into a fund to facilitate the existence of all other resources needed for quality delivery of mental health services.

We are beginning to lay down the structures that will enable the take-off of all that, but what is hindering us is the passage of the enabling legislative instrument.

We hope that by the first quarter or latest the first half of next year, we should pass it and begin to get the money. Putting all that together, come the next 5 years, things would be different and improved, he added.
Throughout our stay in various universities in China, the Ghanaian and Chinese professors actually cannot understand why Ghana is still struggling to move from poverty, with all her strong relationship with the People's Republic of China.

Some of us here can attest to the fact that China is fast developing and our country can learn a lot based on the good diplomatic relationship between these two countries and it will take a leader, someone who knows the terrain of lobbying for direct foreign investment in China to perform such a task. We the Ghanaian youth in China believe that Prof. Gyansah is the best man to make the dream of our great leader and the President elect, Nana Addo to come to pass as the Ghana Ambassador to China. Our country Ghana is lacking a holistic and a futuristic development because for some time now we have been led by visionless leaders with poor lobbying skills, absence of rule of law and others but with Prof. Gyansah leading the Ghana mission in China, we see a great future where our country is will prosper with more foreign investments in Ghana, good welfare of Ghanaians in China and the NPP fraternity at large.

In view of these we are appealing strongly to the President elect and his able team to consider Prof. Lawrence Gyansah for the position of Ghana Ambassador to China, where good diplomatic relations between China and Ghana can be deepened. We believe Ghana can learn so many things from China to make the implementation of the one district one factory policy which is the vision of our President Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo and his running mate Dr. Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia easily.

In fact, these vision will seem to be impossible for those with myopic brains but with Prof. Gyansah, it is possible.

China is now an industrial giant in the world because of its visionary leaders. It is for this reason that we the youth of the China branch of NPP think, Ghana needs hard working, vibrant, results oriented, tried and tested individuals who have achieve a lot in their field of endeavors and who have excellent knowledge of business dynamics as well as the industrial zones in China and is well connected internationally to serve as an Ambassador. Ghana is tired of exporting agricultural products. It is about time we begin exporting industrial and manufacturing products into the world market and to do this, we need more Foreign direct investments. These can only happen if we have somebody with the kind of links that can make this a reality.

In China we can boast of so many Ghanaians who are capable and have the required track records to work in this capacity to meet the demand of this position, who is also a true blue party men and understands the vision of Nana Addo Dankwah Akuffo Addo and the NPP at large. These brings to mind Prof. Lawrence Gyansah, a Ghanaian who is living in China, a strong supporter of our great party, whose contribution to our party has been enormous. He has served in various capacities to help our party as being a deputy communications director for the China branch.

He is very strong, optimistic, encouraging and promise fulfilling when it comes to party issues. He has dedicated his whole life both private and political to serve Ghanaians and the party with humility. Professor Lawrence Gyansah, is a philosopher, an initiator and a researcher from W.V.S Tubman University, college of Engineering and Technology.

He was born in Asiakwa, in the Eastern Region of Ghana in the year 1979. Between 2009 and 2012, he served as a director and a supervisor to positron Engineering Services limited and JAGOKS engineering and Trading limited respectively.

From 2011 to 2013, he was a professional service provider to Rutgers University of New Jersey, USA and Professor to the University of Liberia, T.J.R Faulkner college of science and Technology, Division of Engineering, Liberia which was sponsored by USAID.

He is also a member of a lot of professional bodies such as Association of Engineering Doctorates(AEngD). From 2008 to 2010, lectured at the University of mines and Technology and Regional Maritime University, Accra, Ghana. He served as an ROV Pilot in Offshore Engineering Company at Scotland in 2011. His research interest includes fatigue analysis of structures, finite element modeling, gradient materials and Nanotechnology.

Professor Lawrence Gyansah is an author and co-author of numerous referred research publications in international Journals and international conferences. He has won various International awards and has served in various boards with both local and International capacities. All these while he was very instrumental in organizing the party at the grassroots both home and abroad. China is a country that is blessed with talent and has a huge population to serve as a big domestic market for Chinese companies.

Now because of Globalization, all companies in the world and for that matter Chinese companies are looking forward to invest in countries but because of various barriers and lack of political will of host countries to give friendly environment to these companies, they are often afraid to do so especially when it comes to investing in some parts of Africa.

With Ghana advancing in democracy, there is a stable political atmosphere. With Nana Addo Steering the affairs of the country, we are going to see good governance and rule of law. We believe Ghana will be a preferred investment destination in Africa and the world within the next few months ahead of us for Chinese companies. This is the time we need highly spirited men like Prof. Gyansah to serve Ghana as an Ambassador.

Over the years Ghana has not been taking full advantage of China-Ghana relationship. But we believe with Nana Addo and His Running Mate Steering the affairs of the country, there is going to be a paradigm shift and Prof. Gyansah is ever ready to persuade more investors from China to invest in all sectors of the economy.

This is what he is into and is not going to be difficult for him to be given this appointment because he is poised for this position. Almost all Ghanaian students in China feels at home because of him. He is always seeking the welfare of Ghanaian students in various universities, moving from campus to campus to make sure things are in order for some of us.

Negotiating for scholarships for students both Partial and Full and a lot more. We believe if such a person is appointed as an Ambassador, Ghanaian communities in China will be more than happy than ever.

With the one district one factory initiative which is the vision of our leader, we believe we can contribute a lot to make that a reality. Ghana has a lot of bilateral agreements with China with both countries having a friendly relationship. In fact, the amount of economic support both countries receive from each other is beyond imagination, in terms of trade, technology and so on. We believe this is the time we transform these relations into developments.

......Signed..........

Philip Agyei Peprah

(Press Secretary)

Tel: 008617857180156

Mr. Moses Antwi

(2nd Vice Chairman NPP China Branch)

Tel: 008618353224318

Andrews Baidoo.

(Dept. Press Secretary)

Tel: 008615528360044.

Bright Nkrumah

(Communication Director)

Tel: 008613259757735

Boakye Joseph Danquah

(Team Coordinator)

Tel: 008615735462728
Guwahati: All Assam Students Union (Aasu), which is more known as the prime mover of six years long Assam agitation against illegal Bangladeshi migrants in Eighties, observed on 25 December the completion of hundredth years of the birth of the student organisation in the State.

The central function was organized by All Guwahati Students Union (Agsu) at Latashil playground in the city, where the first student body of Assam named Asom Chatra Sanmilon was on 25 December 1916 under the presidentship of Sahityarathi Rasaraj Lakshminath Bezbaruah. In presence of hundreds distinguished personalities from different sections in the society at Latashil, the centenary flag was hoisted by Gauhati University vice-chancellor Dr Mridul Hazarika.

It was followed by the tribute-paying ceremony in honour of the doyens of Assamese society by everyone present at Latashil braving the morning sunshine including Aasu advisor Samujjal Bhattacharya, its president Dipangko Kumar Nath & general secretary Lurinjyoti Gogoi, Agsu leader Bipul Rabha along with others.

Addressing the gathering, Bhattacharya opined that the students'movement in Assam was always for the all-round development of the State. He remembered the contributions of all pioneering efforts generated by Bezbaruah, Chandranath Sarma with others at the auspicious moment. Bhattacharya also asserted that maintaining its non-political character, the Aasu would continue working for the genuine rights & privilege for all indigenous communities of Assam.

To commemorate the day, various branches of Aasu today unfurled 100 flags in different parts of the State. The centenary flag was designed by noted Assamese artist Biren Singha, who was also present on the occasion at Latashil playground.
Police officers in the Upper West Region are on a manhunt for suspected robbers who shot and killed a police officer over the weekend.

The deceased, Constable Edmund Kokovi, was said to have been reporting to his post at the District Chief Executive's residence at Wechiau when he was killed.

The Crime officer for the Upper West Regional Police Service, Superintendent Alhaji Fuseini Musa Awenaba said his outfit would be counting on cooperation from residents of the area to apprehend the perpetrators of the murder.

Speaking to Citi News, Superintendent Awenaba said we have left information around with people in the communities. Maybe they might have seen such people during the night.

For now, we don't have concrete information that will lead to the arrest of the people but we believe that with the enthusiasm showed by the people in the community, they are going to help us to trace the culprits involved and get them arrested, he added.

The incident

Superintendent Awenaba earlier narrated the incident to Citi News indicating that the suspected robbers were speeding on a motorbike when the now deceased officer tried to stop them.

They were on top speed so he was flashing his touch light for them to slow down. But instead of slowing down, the two motorbikes got ahead him and he got down to warn them. As soon as he got down one of the suspects shot him from the bush because they saw that he was a Policeman.

He added that the suspects run into a nearby bush and that an eyewitness later reported the incident to the Police.

The person who picked him sensed danger so he turned and came back to the Police to alert his colleagues to go to his aid. But when they got there he was lying down in a pool of blood. They rushed him to the District hospital and he was confirmed dead. As at now the body has been deposited at the Wa Regional Hospital mortuary for autopsy and preservation, the Crime Officer added.



By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonine.com/Ghana
It is only appropriate to wish Nana Akufo Addo, the most incorruptible but sadly equally the most maliciously maltreated or mocked politician in the annals of Ghanas politics, a meritorious seasonal greetings at this time of the year.

His enemies and the enemies of Ghana plotted, colluded and desired to see his defeat at every election to permanently deny him the ascension to Ghanas presidency. However, as man proposes, God disposes.

All the evil plans and intents by his political rivals have been made nonsense by the Good Almighty God that he continually trusts in and surrounds himself and his political career wholeheartedly.

It is therefore imperative upon me to wish him not only a Merry Christmas but also, a Successful New Year with the wisdom of biblical King Solomon, the fear and love of God of King David and the longevity of Methuselah.

The incoming President must still let the Good God that he worships and believes in to guide him throughout his presidency. He has to be firm, fair and friendly. He should let the law which is no respecter of persons take its due course without interfering with it with the aim of twisting it in favour of whomever as seen to be done by the outing-President Mahama and his NDC-led government hence the practice of selective justice becoming the order of the day in Ghana.

Finally, be it reiterated to President-elect Nana Akufo Addo to beware of 7 January 2017. He is not to be HUGGED by anyone be they his wife, foreign or local dignitaries, former or outgoing Presidents. NOBOBY means no person.

When one visits a blacksmiths workshop and finds him repeatedly hammering at a particular section of his metalwork, it is that portion that matters most to him, so a saying goes. This is the third time I have put out a publication advising Nana Akufo Addo to beware of 7 January 2017 in the same manner that Julius Caesar was warned to beware of the ides (15th) of March but which he did ignore and subsequently met his untimely death at the hands of friends whom he trusted hence turning to Brutus to say, Et tu Brute? Was Brutus not his best friend but in the end becoming one of his assassins?

I extend my warmest Christmas greetings to President-elect Nana Akufo Addo, his entire family and all NPP faithful and Ghanaians.

Rockson Adofo

(Written on 26 December 2016)
Goma (DR Congo) (AFP) - A militia from DR Congo's Nande ethnic group has killed thirteen civilians from the Hutu community in the restive North Kivu province, an official told AFP Monday.

A military operation to put an end to the Christmas Day killing spree left three Nande fighters dead, said local official Alphonse Mahano.

The violence came after 13 members of the Nande ethnic group were killed Thursday by Hutu militia forces in the same region.
Accra, Dec. 26, GNA - The Convention Peoples Party (CPP), has called on Ghanaians to use the Christmas season to reflect and confront issues in the coming years with objectivity to promote love and understanding.

'When issues arise to be solved, we must do so with love, objectivity and speak the truth to correct what is wrong and build each other up.

'This will save us from magnifying trifles into issues, which will disturb the peace of those who ought to be brothers and sisters," the CPP said in a statement signed by Professor Edmund Delle the party Chairman and Leader and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Sunday.

The CPP Christmas message also tasked Ghanaians to make conscious effort this Christmas to change their negative attitudes and to promote peace.

"It is enacting this interpretation of peace and goodwill towards our fellow human beings that will make our country better than we came to find it. We must strive to improve upon our standard of living through legitimate means,' the statement said.

The CPP urged Christians to reflect soberly on their moral, religious and social lives to enable them to correct their short falls in the coming years.

GNA
Accra, Dec. 26 GNA - Pastor Emmanuel Boateng, an Associate Pastor of the Trinity Baptist Church, has called on Christians to adhere to the word of God to change from the old ways of doing things as it is the essence of the celebration of Christmas.

Preaching from the Gospel of Luke Chapter 1: 26 to 35; Pastor Boateng, said Jesus' mission on earth was to take way the effect of sins and make things new for humankind and it was through the Father that we could have eternal life.

'The celebration of the birth is not only merry making but an event that took place that there would be a change from old ways to new ways,' he stressed.

Pastor Boateng said this in a Christmas message on the theme: "The Supreme Jesus," at the Trinity Baptist in Accra on Sunday to commemorate to the birth of Christ.

He said Christmas was a season to reflect and act upon the 'blessings and opportunities we have because of the birth, life, atonement, and resurrection of the saviour, Jesus Christ.

He, therefore, urged Christians to re-dedicate their lives to the service of God and mankind.

The in house-Choir- Spirit of Inspiration entertained guests with melodious Christmas hymns, which elicited applause after every delivery.

GNA

By Kwamina Tandoh, GNA
By PTI: Balasore (Odisha), Dec 26 (PTI) Indias strategic capabilities today took a leap forward as it successfully test-fired Agni-V, the countrys most lethal nuclear-capable inter-continental ballistic missile with a range of over 5,000 kms that covers entire China.

Todays successful test-firing will pave the way for user trial of the missile and its eventual induction into the Strategic Forces Command (SFC), Defence sources said.

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"Agni 5 was successfully flight tested by DRDO at 1100 hours from Dr Abdul Kalam Island, Odisha. The full range test-flight of the missile has further boosted the indigenous missile capabilities and deterrence level of the country," a statement by the Defence Ministry said.

It added that all the radars, tracking systems and range stations tracked and monitored the flight performance and all the mission objectives were successfully met.

This was the fourth test of Agni-V missile and the second one from a canister on a road mobile launcher. All the four missions have been successful. President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar congratulated the DRDO scientists, saying it will add tremendous strength to the countrys strategic defence and deterrence capabilities. "Successful test-firing of Agni V makes every Indian very proud. It will add tremendous strength to our strategic defence," Modi said.

At present, India possesses Agni-I with a range of 700 kms, Agni-II with 2,000 kms range, Agni-III and Agni-IV with 2,500 km to more than 3,500 range in its armoury of Agni missile series. Agni-V missile has a range of over 5,000 kms and covers the whole of China, a country seen as a strategic challenge in India. It has advantages of higher reliability, longer shelf life, less maintenance and enhanced mobility. The three-stage, solid propellant surface-to-surface missile was test-fired from a mobile launcher from launch complex-4 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at about 1105 hours, DRDO sources said.

About 17-metre long and weighing over 50 tonne, the missile majestically rose from the confines of its canister flawlessly and achieved all targets, sources in Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) said.

It is the fourth developmental and second canisterised trial of the missile, integrated with a sophisticated mobile launcher in its deliverable configuration that enables launch of the missile with a very short preparation time as compared to an open launch, they said. While the first test of Agni-V was conducted on April 19, 2012, the second was on September 15, 2013 and the third on January 31, 2015 from the same base.

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Among the missiles of Agni series, the latest Agni-V is the most advanced having some new technologies incorporated with it in terms of navigation and guidance, warhead and engine, the sources said.

Lot of new technologies developed indigenously were successfully tested in the trial. The very high accuracy Ring Laser Gyro based Inertial Navigation System (RINS) and the most modern and accurate Micro Navigation System (MINS) had ensured the missile reached the target point within few meters of accuracy, they said. PTI COR SKN SAP RT RG AKK

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Takoradi, Dec. 26, GNA - The Most Reverend John Bonaventure Kwofie, the Bishop of the Sekondi-Takoradi Diocese of the Catholic Church, has charged Christians to let the peace Christ's birth brings to the world resonates in their homes.

He said Isaiah, the Prophet, prophesied about the coming Messiah's birth that he would be the Prince of Peace and His kingdom would reign forever.

He, therefore, urged Christians to trust in Jesus Christ in order to be liberated from the shackles of sin and bondage.

Most Rev Kwofie said this in a sermon on Christmas Sunday at the Star of the Sea Cathedral in Takoradi.

The church was full to capacity with many of the congregation clad in white to signify their joy for the birth of Christ.

He entreated Christians to pray ceaselessly because prayer was a powerful tool that could conquer all challenges in life.

He warned that persons who engaged in occultism would suffer God's judgement and thus, warned them to refrain from their evil deeds to avert the wrath.

Most Rev Kwofie commended the Electoral Commission, the political parties, the security agencies, the media and Ghanaians for ensuring successful elections.

He noted that the country's democracy had come of age in view of the maturity exhibited by all the election stakeholders and the country's democratic credentials would be a benchmark for other African countries and the rest of the world.

The Bishop of the Sekondi-Takoradi Catholic Diocese also commended President John Mahama and the President-elect Nana Akufo-Addo for the maturity and mutual respect shown towards each other and asked Ghanaians to learn from them.

He led the congregation to pray for sustained peace for the country and God's wisdom and guidance for the leadership of the country in order to ensure economic wellbeing for the entire citizenry.

At the Fire Glory Chapel in Tanokrom, Reverend Samuel Kwesi Abraham called on Christians to value the birth of Christ through righteous living.

He said living righteous meant that Christians should eschew covetousness and become more content with what God had blessed them with.

Rev Abraham drawing a parable from Luke 12:12-20 also reminded this generation to acknowledge and appreciate him in that manner.

He prayed for the congregation for forgiveness and the favour of God in 2017.

GNA

By Godwill Arthur-Mensah/ Mildred Siabi-Mensah, GNA
Tema, Dec. 25, GNA - Reverend Canon Patrick Okaija-Bortier, Parish Priest of the Christ the King Anglican Church at Sakomono,Tema, has admonished Christians to see the birth of Jesus Christ as a time to awaken their spirituality.

He said even though Christ was born in the obscurity of darkness, his spirit took centre stage in the humankind as he personified total humility and self-denial.

The parish priest made these remarks in a homely on Christmas day on Sunday to mark the birth of Christ.

Parishioners, most of whom were clad in white apparels were in a jubilant mood as they sang and danced joyfully to carols.

Canon Patrick Okaijah-Bortier said Christmas he had over the time become seemingly mundane as many had downplayed its significance.

He said even though Christmas is celebrated as the day of the birth of Christ, it also symbolised deeply the true significance of spiritual life as Christ is the personification of divinity.

Christ, he further indicated, was born at a time when ignorance, superstition, greed, hatred and hypocrisy prevailed, and said purity had been forgotten and morality, neglected lately.

"If the seeker must enter into a new life of spiritual aspiration, purity and development, then the Christ-spirit must take its birth within his heart" he added.

He admonished parishioners to embrace Christ and see him as the wonderful counselor, all powerful and most divine who knew the encumbrances of those he had dominion over.

He decried the acts of some fatherly figures who had become incorrigible and irresponsible as they had neglected their fatherly roles, and said Christ had become an everlasting father for the deserted and marginalised.

He described Jesus as the Prince of Peace whose rebirth should give Christians some reassurance of his endless love, saying "the celebration of Christ as an embodiment of peace will grant us redemption, restoration and renewed fortification".

An education fund, Christ the King Anglican Church Education Fund, was inaugurated and members inducted to provide a scholarship scheme for brilliant but needy children in second cycle and tertiary institutions.

With an initial seed capital of GHC 50,000, the fund as envisioned, would alleviate the genuine hardship of members who were unable to take their wards through school.

The chairperson of the fund, Dr Victoria Barnnor, expressed appreciation to the parish and pledged to work assiduously with other members to effectively.

She further pledged the fund would be transparent and called for shared responsibility by all parishioners to ensure that funds were used judiciously.

GNA

By James Amoh Jnr, GNA
Takoradi, Dec. 25, GNA - The Takoradi and Kwesimintsim Hospitals in the Western Region recorded seven deliveries comprising three boys and four girls on the eve of Christmas, December 24, 2016.

Madam Adrenalina Lartey, the mid-wife in-charge of the Maternity Ward at the Takoradi Hospital, told the Ghana News Agency that, there were three males and two females and that all the deliveries were normal and the babies weighed between 2.6 and 3.6 kilogram.

At the time of the visit, all the mothers who delivered had been discharged.

At the Kwesimintsim Hospital, Madam Elizabeth Appiah, the mid-wife in-charge of the facility, indicated that only two deliveries were recorded on the Christmas Eve both of whom were females weighing 2.7 and 3.4 kilogram respectively.

However, she said, one of the deliveries was conducted through caesarean session and that both the mother and the baby were doing well. GNA

By Godwill Arthur-Mensah, GNA
Goma (DR Congo) (AFP) - Attacks in villages and fighting between militias killed at least 35 people over the Christmas weekend in North Kivu, a majority Christian area in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The bloodshed began in Eringeti -- a town 55 kilometres (35 miles) north of the regional hub Beni, which for two years has been hit by massacres killing hundreds, many of whom were hacked to death.

Rebels from The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) -- dominated by puritanical Ugandan Muslims -- killed 22 people after storming Eringeti on Saturday, regional official Amisi Kalonda told AFP.

The toll climbed to 35 on Monday with the announcement that at least 13 Hutu civilians, mostly women and an eight-year-old girl, were killed on Sunday by a militia from the Nande ethnic group.

"The victims were all Hutu. There was an eight-year-old girl, a father and the rest were women," said local official Alphonse Mahano.

They were killed around the village of Nyanzale, a Hutu majority community.

Democratic Republic of Congo

The Nande and some other ethnic groups regard the Hutus as outsiders because of their attachment to the majority ethnic group in neighbouring Rwanda.

A string of attacks in the past year by both Hutu and Nande militia forces has deepened hatred between the communities.

Hutu farmers have also been forced to abandon land further south because of high property costs and under pressure from major landowners.

Relentless bloodshed

Although Congolese officials have blamed the attacks on the ADF, several expert reports have suggested that other groups, including elements within the Congolese army, took part in some killings.

When the Beni massacres began in October 2014, the ADF was quickly branded the culprit by both DR Congo authorities and MONUSCO, the UN mission in DR Congo.

More than two years on, Congolese authorities and the UN have been unable to protect civilians and the ADF remains the only official explanation -- with the government insisting on a jihadist link to the killings.

It comes as relations with the international community have soured over President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step down despite his term ending on December 20.

Separately, the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) announced Monday that its troops had killed 10 soldiers from neighbouring Burundi after they crossed the border last week in pursuit of rebels.

The Democratic Republic of Congo

"There were 10 deaths," Major Dieudonne Kajibwami, told AFP, following a previous statement that five bodies had been taken to Uvira, a lakeside town in the eastern South Kivu province.

Kivu is rich in natural, mainly mineral resources, such as gold, coltan and cassiterite, coveted by the telecommunications industry. Both south and north Kivu have rich agricultural and forestry resources.

North Kivu is one of the DRC's most densely populated areas.

Tiny compared to the vast size of the country, the two provinces suffer not only because of fighting over their mineral resources but because of their proximity to an unstable border with Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda, along with Tanzania.
At least 10 persons have been confirmed dead with several houses razed as gunmen attacked as Goska village in Kaninkon Chiefdom of Jemaa in Kaduna State despite of 24 hours curfew imposed on three Kaduna State Local Government Areas of Jemaa, Kaura and Zango Kataf.

File photo of destruction in Kaduna

According to a local, the Fulani herdsmen had earlier informed the community that they will launch an attack on it. We didnt take it seriously until when they came at about 5pm on Saturday. They encircled the village and started shooting anybody at sight.

READ ALSO: Why Nigerians are still patient with Buhari

That shooting continued through the night. They killed one of the daughters of two term member of Kaduna State House of Assembly and a one time Chairman of Jemaa local government, Gideon Yakubu Morik and burnt his house and several other houses. Only a very few houses are left. As I speak with you, we can still hear the gunshot.

It was very pathetic. It was a serious attack. While that was ongoing, they released their cattle to feed on beans yet to be harvested. We tried to call security people around who were outskirt of the village but we discovered that they dont have bullets. So, we are only in the hand of God, the local was quoted by The Nation.

Speaking on the attack, governor Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai condemned the attack, describing it as inhumane and handiwork of forces of darkness.

READ ALSO: Nigeria should have only 6 states, one National Assembly chamber

El-Rufai empathised with the families that lost their loved ones and charged security agencies to redouble their efforts.

He said the attackers will not know peace as they will be chased to their hideouts and brought to justice.

Watch related video

Source: Legit.ng
"If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously. I am from India. I am perhaps not considered as of much value," Father Tom Uzhunnalil said in a video.

By Revathi Rajeevan: Father Tom Uzhunnalil, who was abducted by Islamic State from Yemen in March this year has appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pope Francis to secure his release from the terror group.

In a video message, Uzhunnalil, who belongs to Kerala, said since he was an Indian, he was being ignored by the concerned Christian authorities.

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The authenticity of the video, which made it to YouTube and Facebook a day after Christmas,could not be verified.

HERE'S WHAT FATHER TOM UZHUNNALIL SAID IN THE VIDEO:

If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously. I am from India. I am perhaps not considered as of much value.

Dear Pope Francis, dear Holy Father, as a father please take care of my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating.

"I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously in my regard," he said while claiming that his abductors contacted the government on several occasions but nothing has been done so far.

"Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all to do your might to help me to save my life. I need hospitalisation soon. Please come to my help quickly," he said.

EFFORTS CONTINUE TO RESCUE FATHER TOM: GOVT

Responding to the video, the government said it is doing everything possible to help Father Tom.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup said,"You are aware of the circumstances currently prevailing in Yemen where fighting is going on with no central authority in that country. With regard to the safe release of Father Tom who was abducted some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard."

WHAT FOREIGN MINISTER SUSHMA SWARAJ HAD SAID:

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had told Lok Sabha that PM Modi himself has spoken to various countries through which contacts can be established in Yemen where India does not have an Embassy of its own.

"Abduction of Father Tom Uzhunnalil is a matter of grave concern for us. Yemen is a war-torn country. We do not have Embassy there but we are looking for ways to reach him. Not only me, but the Prime Minister during his overseas visits has spoken to various countries through which contacts can be established with Yemen," Swaraj had told Parliament in July.

Watch the video here:

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ALSO READ:

Sushma Swaraj: Indian embassy in Yemen closed, search for abducted Indian continues

4 Indian nuns killed in Yemen, Sushma Swaraj urges all Indians in 'danger zones' to return

--- ENDS ---
- The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) have sent a key message to its members

- IPOB wants its members to remain steadfast

- The group believes its agitation for Biafra will pay off soon

IPOB has asked its members to be steadfast

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) have asked its members to remain steadfast in their agitation for a sovereign state of Biafra.

The group urged its members to be mentally and spiritually strong in the struggle, adding that freedom fighting is not a child's play.

In a statement sent to Legit.ng and signed by its spokesman, Powerful Emma, IPOB reiterated its commitment to making sure Biafra becomes a reality.

Part of the statement read: Freedom fighting is not a child's play, if one is not mentally and spiritually strong or has the toughness to stay the course that person is advised to stay away.

We are hitting the target and we want to restore Biafra to stop the suffering of this generation and those unborn from the hands of Hausa Fulani Islamic fundamentalists.

The mission of IPOB is to get Biafra regardless of the human and material cost. We want a nation of free people where our people will be unshackled from the chains of slavery.

We IPOB wish to clarify again that there will be no talk of negotiation until our leader prophet Nnamdi Kanu and other IPOB members detained illegally are released unconditionally as two courts of competent jurisdiction have ruled in Abuja.

The group however restated its resolve not to resolve to violence no matter the provocation from federal agents.

Nevertheless, as long as anyone or group of people are genuinely and wholeheartedly fighting for the freedom of our people we must expect some challenges.

Our leader prophet Nnamdi Kanu is making his own sacrifices for the sake of 70 million Biafrans worldwide. We the followers of his gospel of restoration of Biafra must make our own sacrifices in one way or the other in order for Biafra to come.

With our peaceful approach, IPOB will continue to expose the corrupt edifice that Nigeria has become internationally. No aspect of this corrupt enterprise will be left unchallenged because we are all over the world with a potent media to drive home our message.

IPOB will maintain the non-violent approach come 2017 as long as the shoot to kill policy of Buhari is put to an end. We shall continue to peacefully protest and agitate for our freedom and that of our leader.

Nigeria will never know peace until all those illegally kidnapped and detained are released and an international panel of enquiry constituted to investigate the various massacres carried out by the Nigerian Army at the orders of Buhari, the statement concluded.

Meanwhile, IPOB recently listed its conditions for peace talks with the federal government.

They are:

1. Buhari must release the leader of IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, along with other Biafran detainees.

Other political detainees including Ibrahim Yaqoub El Zakzaky and Sambo Dasuki must also be released.

2. Buhari must announce a date for Biafrexit Referendum, and

3. Buhari must convene a public inquiry into the massacre of IPOB family members as documented by Amnesty International.

In a related development, The Imo state governor Rochas Okorocha has said that the lack of peace among past leaders and families led to discord among Nigerians.

Speaking at a Christmas service at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Ideato South, Imo state, Okorocha said families fail to preach peace to members and thus the emergence of various agitating groups in the country.

He said: If peace and love had flown from the families in the country since the nations independence there would not have been the Civil War or Boko Haram or IPOB or Niger-Delta Avengers

Source: Legit.ng
- Prophet Olagorioye Faleyimu says President Buhari is not the Messiah but was sent to punish those ruining Nigeria and he will do that for 8 years.

- Faleyimu warns Governor Fayose to be careful and watch his mouth so as not to end his political career in jail

- The cleric urges Funke Akindele to be deeply involved in prayers so as to have children

Prophet Faleyimu has said President Buhari was sent to punish those ruining Nigeria.

The founder of Mountain of Blessing and Miracle Church of Christ, Dr. Olagorioye Faleyimu, has predicted the death popular televangelist, TB Joshua among other doom prophecies for the year 2017.

READ ALSO: Recession: Maharaji seeks price control, ban on luxury goods

Daily Post reports that Faleyimu who made the predictions on Sunday, December 25, in his church in Lagos said Joshuas time is near.

T.B Joshua should be prayerful so as not to lose a child before he goes because his time is near, the cleric said.

He also made some alarming predictions on other personalities including President Muhammadu Buhari, Ooni of Ife, Governor Fayose of Ekiti state and actress Funke Akindele.

On his prediction on Buhari, the Faleyimu said President Buhari is not the Messiah but was sent to punish those ruining Nigeria and he will do that for 8 years.

He said God told him to caution Governor Fayose to be careful and watch his mouth so as not to end his political career in jail

The cleric urged Funke Akindele to be deeply involved in prayers so as to have children.

He said without such special prayers, the actress wont have a child before she dies because she is destined to be wealthy and famous but not destined to have a child and stable husband.

READ ALSO: Killings in southern Kaduna: El-Rufai is on top of things - Femi Adesina

The prophet also made other alarming predictions on governors and the economic condition of Nigeria.

Read below all the predictions of Olagorioye Faleyimu according to the Daily Post:

"There is a big tree in the industry disturbing them and this tree has to be cut off before they could be set free. Just look back, some years ago, you hardly heard about showbiz stars dying but there is something amidst them now which is seriously disturbing and it must be removed.

It is a battle though. They need to pray like never before so as not to lose another 2 stars before the year runs out.

A popular actress in Nollywood, Funke Akindele who was once in the Yoruba movie industry should pray deeply so as to have children. Without special prayers, she wont have a child before she dies because she is destined to be wealthy and famous but not destined to have a child and stable husband until she engages herself in the special prayer.

Whosoever marries her must have another reason because the issue of not having a child will keep coming up and it will scatter the marriage.

If she refuses to do the prayer, she will end up adopting a child and by that time, she will be living alone without husband. Another grace she has is to marry a pastor who can fight the battle on her behalf with prayers.

Nigerian traditional rulers also need serious prayers because many of them will be kidnapped and they will die in kidnappers dens.

Many things will happen before the year comes to an end especially from terrorists. Heavy rain will fall this year and it will destroy so many things. It will demolish houses while many people will lose their lives in the process. So, everyone should be prayerful.

God told me to tell Governor Fayose of Ekiti State to be careful and he shouldnt turn himself to God.

God said he should watch his mouth so as not to end his political career in jail. PDP will never rule Nigeria again no matter how much they try. Their governors will win some states but they cant win presidency again. APC has 8 years to rule and they have spent just 1 year. APC wont rule Nigeria again after 2023.

Yoruba and the North will soon form a new party that will take over from APC. The senate president will finish his tenure before the world black powers will push him away because they are the ones ruling Nigeria presently.

The world black powers have declared Nigeria as their target and their spirit is what is ruling the country. Most of the pastors in Nigeria belong to this secret society because that is where they get powers to perform miracles.

God said we are not worshiping him in Nigeria but worshiping money. People will realize their mistakes when the chosen one shows up to rescue Nigeria.

Buhari isnt the Messiah. He is sent to punish those ruining Nigeria and he will do that for 8 years. The Messiah is a man of God and he is not in politics yet. He said peace will reign in Nigeria in 2025.

God said nobody should criticize Buharis government because his mission is to set the pace for the Messiah. God said APC and Buhari should be careful because they are not the ones to rescue us.

I have said it before that Buhari cant face the world black powers, These powers held their meeting in South Africa to decide on how Buharis government will be. I said it earlier this year that only the rich ones will be favored in Buharis government because cash wont flow.

Some of the Nigerian dignitaries wont witness 2019 elections because the world black powers have listed 150 of them to be eliminated before 2019 and that is why they should all be prayerful.

T.B Joshua should be prayerful so as not to lose a child before he goes because his time is near.

There will be more increment in some food items before the year runs out. Boko Haram will not stop this year, they consume the numbers of the blood and the powerful ones have agreed with the world black powers because they are the ones using Boko Haram.

Three former and present governors should pray against sudden death before the year ends.

The Ooni of Ife should also pray so as not to lose his father in early 2017. Buhari will not succeed in the agriculture initiation he engaged in because he is not the one to use that idea; the idea is for the Messiah. Nigerians should not expect change from anyone in government.

Without changing the flag of Nigeria, the Messiah will change it. God said the present flag we are using is a symbol of suffering.

Any government that organizes prayer for Nigeria will keep seeing disappointment because there is nothing disturbing Nigeria from progressing because God has given us the resources to use.

One of the 7 points the Messiah will use is to stop prayers and engage in praises. Newspaper publishers should also pray so that they wont lose 2 of them this year.

Journalists generally should pray against hardship this year because it will be difficult for them but next year, things may change for better."

Source: Legit.ng
The NIA chargesheet against the eight suspected operatives of Islamic State module, busted in June in Hyderabad, presents a detailed account of the activities of the terror group in India.

By Ashish Pandey: The chargesheet filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Islamic State module case in Hyderabad has revealed many appalling facts.

One of the arrested suspects, who is an engineer, told the NIA that his handler directed him to carry out 'lone wolf attack'.

READ| NIA files charge sheet against 8 in Hyderabad ISIS module case

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WHAT ELSE NIA CHARGESHEET SAYS: The NIA chargesheet mentions that the engineer-turned-suspected Islamic State operative was told by his handler that if 'you are unable to kill them, if you fail to carry out attacks, spit on their faces'. On December 22, the investigating agency filed a chargesheet against Abdullah Bin Ahmed Al Amoodi, Mohammed Ibrahim Yazdani, Habeeb Mohammed, Mohammed Ilyas Yazdani, Muzaffar Hussain Rizwan, Yasir Naimathullah, Mohammed Attaullah Rahman and Abdul Raoof- all suspected members of Hyderabad ISIS module busted in June this year. As per the Investigative agency an unknown handler was in constant touch with one of the accused, Ibrahim Yazdani. The handler motivated Hyderabad-based eight-member group to carry out different kinds of terror activities and attacks across the country. Investigation revealed that a Jordanian national identified as Al Suhagan Al Abudi played a crucial role and radicalised India-based Ibrahim Yazdani. Abudi made Ibrahim listen Syrian President Bashar Al Asaad's 'anti-Sunni' speeches and comments several time and convinced him to join Islamic state, says NIA chargesheet. NIA probe also revealed that one of the handlers of Ibrahim, identified as Abu Issa Al Amriki further convinced him to carry out terror strikes across India. NIA has also named Amriki as an accused along with another Syria based unnamed handler. NIA chargesheet also says that Ibrahim tried to go to Syria twice through Greece- first time in 2015, when he was denied a visa. In January 2016, lbrahim Yazdani made yet another attempt to go to the lSlS controlled area. He applied for admission into the Aydin University, Turkey for a Master's Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering. NIA also recovered a note in which accused persons pledged Bay'ah (allegiance) to the Caliphate of Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi, the leader of the lSlS.

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-A woman has been arrested for killing her husband on the ground that he did not provide for the family

Woman stabs husband to death on Christmas day

A woman has stabbed her husband to death in the Ikorodu area of Lagos state because he did not provide Christmas money for the family, Daily Post reports.

READ ALSO: This is our worst Christmas - Lagos prostitutes

The woman, identified as Iya Bose, committed the crime in Majidun Awori area of Lagos state on Christmas Day.

The state's police spokesperson Dolapo Badmos confirmed the incident, saying the woman who has since been arrested will be charged to court as soon as investigation is completed.

Meanwhile, a policeman went berserk in Kaduna on Friday, December 23 and shot dead three people in Zaria, including a colleague of his.

He was subdued by a shot to the leg from other police officers before the crowd pounced on him.

Source: Legit.ng
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. The Defense Ministry of Nagorno Karabakh told Armenpress, the Azerbaijani forces violated the ceasefire regime over 35 times from various caliber weapons across the Nagorno Karabakh-Azerbaijan line of contact.

The Ministry issued an announcement which reads:

Overnight December 25-26 the Azerbaijani side violated the ceasefire regime over 35 times by firing more than 300 shots from various caliber weapons at the Armenian positions across the Nagorno Karabakh-Azerbaijan line of contact.

The Defense Army forces didnt take countermeasures and continued confidently fulfilling their military tasks.
A Chennai based NGO has alleged that former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's close attache and expected heir to property VK Sasikala has been involved in many land grabbing incidents.

By Pramod Madhav: A Chennai based NGO has alleged that former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's close attache and expected heir to property VK Sasikala was involved in a considerable number of land grabbing incidents in the past.

"What we are doing right now is exposing the dark secrets of Sasikala and the famous Mannarkudi mafia. Our acquired documents reveal that about 43 companies are run through benami names in Tamil Nadu. Using that they have acquired more than 5000 crore worth of real estate," explained the NGO's Secretary Chandramohan.

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ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW Arappor Iyakkam has uploaded a video on their Facebook account detailing how, Sudhakaran -- the son who was adopted, and later disowned by Jayalalitha -- was key in acquiring land across the state. Arappor Iyakkam alleged that Music Maestro Ilayaraja's brother Gangai Amaran was also threatened, and his 22-acre land was grabbed by Sudhakaran in 1994. "What Sasikala and her family do is that they go on a drive, they see a bungalow on the way, they buy it. That's exactly what happened with Gangai Amaran," he said. According to Chandramohan, Sudhakaran had visited Gangai Amaran's house with survey officers and threatened him. Amaran was made to sell the land worth crores for Rs 13.4 lakh. The NGO's co-convenor Jahir Hussain claims that Amaran went to court as a witness number on the matter, but everything fell on deaf years. The video carries information of the documents, survey numbers and a transcript of Amaran's testimony in court. Chandramohan said that Arappor Iyakkam is determined to reveal more details of Sasikala and her family's illegal activities in the near future.

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By PTI: Mumbai, Dec 26 (PTI) Sudheendra Kulkarni, who served as a close aide to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, has in his new book mooted the idea of establishing an India-Pakistan-Bangladesh confederation before 2047.

Kulkarnis book "August Voices - What they said on 14-15 August 1947 and its relevance for India-Pakistan- Bangladesh Confederation, will be released by Vice President Hamid Ansari here on December 28.

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"As India and Pakistan celebrate the 70th anniversary of their independence in 2017, both countries should boost efforts to normalise their relations in the new year," Kulkarni told PTI.

"They have a responsibility to future generations to prove that their ties are not destined to be permanently marred by mistrust, hostility and conflict," Kulkarni, who heads the Mumbai-based think tank Observer Research Foundation, said.

Kulkarni, a columnist and independent socio-political activist, said, "India?s bloody partition in 1947, and the creation of Pakistan on the basis of the baseless and toxic ?Two-Nation? theory, was highly unnatural. Because it was unnatural, it predictably led to Pakistan?s own bloody partition in 1971 with the liberation of Bangladesh."

"These two partitions have created multiple problems for all three countries," he said.

Kulkarni, who resigned from the BJP in 2013 after a close association with the party for 16 years, said, "The existence of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh as three separate, independent and sovereign countries is a reality that cannot be altered."

"Partition cannot be undone. But its negative outcomes can and must be undone jointly by the peoples and governments of India and Pakistan and Bangladesh. The beginning should be made by India and Pakistan arriving at a just, amicable, peaceful and compromise-based solution to the long-pending Kashmir dispute," he said.

"For this to happen, Pakistan must completely eliminate the scourge of terrorism, fuelled by religious extremism, from its soil," he said. MORE PTI VT DK DK

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Residents of the eastern city of Benghazi marched Wednesday in protest against Islamist militias, the citys dominant force for years, in a burst of public fury a day after the Islamist fighters seized a local special forces base. Residents marched to a hospital, temporarily routing fighters from the extremist militia Ansar al-Shariah, who had been providing security for the hospital. But the militiamen fired on the civilians when they tried to approach the special forces base, scattering the demonstrations. Protesters said they were especially angered after the leader of Ansar al-Shariah declared Wednesday on the radio that Benghazi was an Islamic emirate. Violence in Libya has sharply escalated in recent weeks, in Benghazi and in the capital, Tripoli, where rival militias have been fighting for control of the international airport. Several countries have closed their diplomatic missions, and thousands of Libyans have fled to neighboring Tunisia in recent days.
Of course theres nothing wrong with shredded Russet potatoes fried to a golden crisp in a bubbling pool of schmaltz. Its just that looking around the world, theres more to the Hanukkah menutraditional foods that mark the eight-day Jewish Festival of Lightsthan the humble potato pancake, known by its Yiddish name, the latke.

But because most American Jews are Ashkenazi Jews, tracing their origins to Eastern Europe or Russia, its Ashkenazi foods that dominate the Jewish holidays. Think: latkes, brisket, kugel, and matzah ball soup. This cuisine is rich, kid-friendly, and a bit too sweet, at least for some us defectors.

Theres more to Jewish food, with its lesser-known repertoire for the December holiday. Chances are you havent feasted on zalabia or loukoumades for Hanukkah, or fried chicken, couscous, and leek fritters. For Sephardi Jews, whose roots lie around the Mediterranean, in Spain, Portugal, North Africa, and the Middle East, theres nary a latke for Hanukkah. Sephardi food is Mediterranean food in all its variety and complexity: fresh herbs, ground nuts, and sour flavors that evoke the recipes from Yotam Ottolenghis bestselling books.

Hanukkah is a minor event, its true, made into a much bigger deal by the proximity (and temptations) of Christmas. This year, the first night of the Jewish holiday falls on Christmas Eve, which only happens three or four times a century. Hanukkah commemorates events that took place more than 2100 years ago, when a group of Jews, led by Judah Maccabee, overthrew their Syrian-Greek occupiers, regained control of Jerusalem, and rededicated the citys Temple. The Maccabees found enough oil in the temples lamps to last 24 hours, but miraculously, the lights glowed for eight days and eight nights. With its message of perseverance, Hanukkah is a classic Jewish story. To remember the oil that kept burning, tradition calls for preparing and eating fried foods, such as latkes.

Or, Bumuelos de Hanuka, fritters made with yeasted dough and aromatic seasonings like anise and fennel seeds, served steaming hot and smeared with honey. Food historians have traced the origins of the bumuelo to Moorish Spain. In the Ottoman Empire, Jewish cooks replaced the seeds in the classic recipe with anise-flavored liqueur, kneading a couple tablespoons of raki, arak, or ouzo into the dough. Claudia Roden, the James Beard Award-winning food writer, explains that Hanukkah fritters in syrup were enjoyed across the Sephardi world. At least a half a dozen names and variations exist, including zalabia in Egypt and loukoumades in Greece. Rodens masterpiece, The Book of Jewish Food: An Odyssey from Samarkand to New York, weaves together recipes, history, and memoir, covering the cuisine of a people scattered across six continents. But the book tilts toward her own Sephardi culture, which is now concentrated in Israel and France, and to a lesser extent, the U.S. and Argentina, and whose members number 2.2 million, or 16 percent of todays Jewish population.

While Roden has lived in London for more than 50 years, she remembers the Cairo of her childhood, where Jews from Yemen and North Africa commingled with Jews from the Ottoman Empire, the Balkans, Italy, Syria, and Iraq. Rodens native Cairo was multicultural and polyglot; its Jewish residents might have switched languages a few times a day, depending on the company. There is no one Sephardi history, Roden demonstrates, and no unifying Sephardi cuisine. By and large, Italian Jewish food is Italian food, says Joyce Goldstein, an authority on Sephardi cooking. Jewish food from what was the Ottoman Empire is very close to Greek and Turkish food, and Jewish Moroccan food is Moroccan food.

Hanukkah is a case in point. Baghdadi Jews marked the holiday with pudding (halwa), cooked into a creamy paste with cornstarch, sugar, and oil and scooped up with bread. Jennifer Felicia Abadi, whose memoir features recipes from her Syrian-Jewish family, associates the holiday with crunchy fried turnips tucked into warm pita. The Jewish communities of Istanbul and Izmir celebrated the last night of Hanukkah with a potluck dinner called merenda, a fried food fest that often included keftes, or leek patties, served with tart Turkish-style yogurt. Guests gathered around the menorah as the head of the household lit all eight candles.

According to old cookbooks, Italian Jews have been frying chicken for Hanukkah for at least two centuries. Today fried chicken is everywhere: buttermilk-soaked, Katsu-style, and ultra-crispy Korean. But an old Italian recipe has faded from popular memory. In Livorno, a bustling port city that was once home to a thriving Jewish community, cooks marinated chicken in olive oil and lemon juice and fried the flour-dredged pieces. Serious Eats unearthed this history last summer, publishing a recipe called Pollo Fritto per Chanukka (Fried Chicken for Hanukkah). Some Tuscan Jews ate fried chicken for the holiday, accompanied by fried vegetables, while others savored a fritto misto that included chicken wings, but also sweetbreads, brains, and tiny lamb chops.

Tunisian Jews had their own riff on fried chicken called poulet en beignets. The bird, cut into eight parts, sat in a mixture of olive oil, garlic, parsley, salt, and pepper. Cooks then swirled the pieces in an eggy batter, fried them, and served the chicken piping hot with lemon quarters. In Morocco, Couscous Sucre recalled the lesser-known Hanukkah ritual of eating dairy, which derives from the legend of Judith, the story of a beautiful heroine who was alleged to have defeated a Greek general after plying him cheese and wine. Rodens book provides a sweet, dairy-laden Moroccan Hanukkah recipe: couscous cooked with butter, served in bowls with wooden spoons alongside buttermilk-filled tea glasses. Libyan Jews also took Hanukkah fare to mean dessert. Yeasted almond doughnuts called sfenz (from the Arabic word for sponge), bathed in orange blossom honey or date molasses, were a typical holiday treat.

Because theres nothing required for the Jewish holiday beyond lighting the menorah, Hanukkah is mostly about the food. A penchant for latkes is nothing to dismiss, its just that dinner doesnt have to end with fried potatoes. Jews from Alsace, on Frances border with Germany, even ate goose, a habit adopted from Christmas dinner. Foods for the holiday are just as varied as the people who eat them. In every Hanukkah recipe lies their story.

Recommended Reading

Claudia Roden, The Book of Jewish Food: An Odyssey from Samarkind to New York Joyce Goldstein, The New Mediterranean Jewish Table: Old World Recipes for the Modern Home Stella Cohen, Stellas Sephardic Table: Jewish Family Recipes from the Mediterranean Island of Rhodes

Daniela Blei is a book editor, historian, and writer. Her essays have appeared in The New Republic, Smithsonian, Narratively, The Bold Italic, Foreign Policy, and elsewhere. She lives in San Francisco and thinks $4 toast is OK. Tweet her @tothelastpage.

Loukoumades photo by Alpha CC BY-SA
So much for Donald Trumps neutrality on Israel-Palestine. In another act of open cronyism, the President-elect has nominated bankruptcy lawyer David Friedmanwho the New York Times notes has done legal work for Mr. Trump since at least 2001, when he handled negotiations with bondholders on Mr. Trumps struggling casinos in Atlantic Cityas the United States ambassador to Israel. In addition to having no experience relevant to the position for which hes been tapped (a seeming prerequisite in Trumpland), Friedman is a dogmatic Zionist of the Alan Dershowitz variety, which is to say he scarcely bothers to feign coherence (let alone objectivity) while attempting to deny or rationalize Israels abominable human rights record. Indeed, he appears to wear his prejudice as a badge of honor.

Friedman has, for instance, charged the Obama administration with blatant anti-Semitism. Such a charge is warranted, he writes, because the president occasionally acknowledges that Palestinian attacks on Israeli soldiers and settlers are part of a cycle of violencemeaning they should perhaps be understood according to the context in which they take place. That Obama unilaterally vetoed a 2011 UN Security Council resolution condemning Israeli settlements in the Occupied Territories, or that he responded blithely to the IDFs murderous assault on Gaza in 2014 by citing Israels right to defend itself, matters not: as far as Friedman is concerned, Obama hates the Jews. Which means that a new term will have to be coinedSuper anti-Semite?to besmirch leaders of the other fourteen member states of the UN Security Council, who all voted in favor of the 2011 resolution. And well need another term on top of that to describe people who are actually, you know, hostile to Jews.

Demonstrating further contempt for logic and common sense, Friedman has argued that supporters of J Street, a liberal Zionist organization that believes Israel should be the national home of the Jewish people, are far worse than kaposJews who turned in their fellow Jews in the Nazi death camps. Leaving aside the inane comparison, what are J Streets crimes? Per Friedman, who evidently struggles with syntax: They are just smug advocates of Israels destruction delivered from the comfort of their secure American sofasits hard to imagine anyone worse. (The advocates themselves are delivered from their sofas? To whom? By what means?) It seems that J Street had better update their mission statement; as of now it fails to convey their yearning for Israels destruction.

The prospective ambassador is also, naturally enough, a staunch advocate of Israels illegal settlement activity in the Occupied Territoriesa salient feature of which is the mass demolition via bulldozer of Palestinian homes, basic human rights be damnedand went so far as to suggest that a total annexation of the West Bank might not be so problematic a thing. After all, nobody really knows how many Arabs are living thereexcept that they do: the CIA puts the West Banks Palestinian population at approximately 2.7 million, compared to about 371,000 Israeli settlers, all of whom are living there in violation of international law.

It is owing to this sort of blind zealotry and disdain for reality that Judy Maltz of Haaretz describes David Friedman as being positioned on the far right of the Israeli political mapmore hardline in his views than Prime Mininster Benjamin Netanyahu. No mean feat, that.

As if to prove Maltzs point, Friedman marked the occasion of his ambassadorship nomination by releasing a statement in which it is taken for granted that, under Trump, the US embassy in Israel will be transferred from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

I intend to work tirelessly, Friedman said, to strengthen the unbreakable bond between our two countries and advance the cause of peace within the region, and look forward to doing this from the US Embassy in Israels eternal capital, Jerusalem.

Jerusalem, of course, has been a flashpoint of the Israel-Palestine conflict for decades, ever since the formers illegal annexation of the eastern part of the city (Palestinian territory under international law) in 1967. Indeed, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon cites as obstacles to peace continued Israeli evictions and house demolitions in East Jerusalem  closure of Palestinian institutions there, and the expansion of settlements contrary to international law and the Roadmap peace plan espoused by the QuartetUN, the European Union, Russia and the United Statesthat seeks a two-State solution to the conflict. Despite being both legally and morally indefensible, house demolitions in East Jerusalem are routine. According to a report by the Council for Arab-British Understanding, Israel demolished 112 Palestinian structures in East Jerusalem in the first eight months of 2016thats in addition to 614 demolitions in the West Bank. The report goes on to state that [d]emolitions in and around Jerusalem are designed to ensure that Israel can take the entire city for itself and pressure the Palestinians to leave.

Nevertheless, the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995, which came to pass under President Bill Clinton, asserts, among other things, that [s]ince 1967, Jerusalem has been a united city administered by Israel, and persons of all religious faiths have been guaranteed full access to holy sites within the city. Accordingly, the bills express purpose is [t]o provide for the relocation of the United States Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.

So far no president has been stupid enough to effect the relocation, perhaps sensing that to do so would be to provoke a new wave of extreme anti-American sentiment throughout the Islamic world. Furthermore, if the US government does actually move the embassy, it can no longer even pretend (as it does now, albeit without a particle of credibility) to condemn Israels expansionist policies and support a peaceful resolution to the fifty-year-long conflict. Palestinian authorities have been clear on this point. Saeb Erekat, secretary general of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, asserted that relocation of the embassy would signal the destruction of the peace process as a whole and bring more chaos, lawlessness and extremism to the region. Equally unequivocal was Palestinian ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour, who warned that if Trump makes good on his promise to move the embassy, nobody should blame us for unleashing all of the weapons that we have in the UN to defend ourselves, and we have a lot of weapons in the UN.

No doubt David Friedman would point to the forgoing comments as evidence of the malicious anti-Semitism informing Palestinian culture. As a dedicated apologist for Israel, its his job to find anti-Semitism behind every bush, burning or otherwise. Remember: included on his list of Jew-haters are Barack Obama and the kapos over at J Street. Its curious, thenis it not?that Friedman refuses to even acknowledge the truly anti-Semitic strain running through a sector of Donald Trumps supporters.

Asked in October about the neo-Nazi tendencies at the heart of the alt-right movementwhich gave Trump the full weight of its support throughout his campaignFriedman was dismissive, declaring irrelevantly that there is anti-Semitic sentiment among Clintons supporters. The danger [for Jews] in the US is on the left, not on the right, he added. Im not saying that there arent neo-Nazis floating around in the United States, because Im sure there are. But the movement we ought to be concerned about is on the left.

Whence cometh Friedmans blase attitude in the face of classical anti-Jewish bigotry? How can he charge Barack Obama with blatant anti-Semitism while trivializing, or altogether denying, the alt-rights neo-Nazism? This sort of contradiction, as it turns out, is nothing new. Nor is it difficult to understand. In his 2005 book Beyond Chutzpah, Israel-Palestine scholar Norman Finkelstein explains that:

Domestically, as institutionalized anti-Semitism all but vanished and American Jews prospered, the bonds linking Jews to their erstwhile natural allies on the left and among other discriminated-against minorities eroded. American Jewish elites increasingly acted to preserve and protect their class, and even white, privilege. Internationally, as Israels political intransigence and brutal occupation alienated public opinion and its alignment with the right in the United States (as elsewhere) deepened, American Jewish elites found themselves increasingly at odds with the political center and in league with the right.

In their new role as hardline neocons, American Zionists found the charge of anti-Semitism to be a powerful, and versatile, instrument of propaganda. It had the dual purpose of shoring up the state of Israel and demonizing the political left. Practically, Finkelstein writes, this meant pinning the epithet anti-Semitic on domestic challenges to Jewish class privilege and political power as well as on global challenges to Israeli hegemony. The enterprise was a most unpalatable one: American Jewish elites were, in effect and in plain sight, cynically appropriating anti-Semitisma historical phenomenon replete with suffering and martyrdom, on the one hand, and hatred and genocide, on the otheras an ideological weapon to defend and facilitate ethnic aggrandizement.

This is the sordid tradition in which our next ambassador to Israel is working; indeed, Friedman embodies the cynical appropriation Finkelstein speaks of. That such an ideologically compromised hack will have real influence over one of the worlds most pressing and flammable affairs is nothing short of a scandal. But then again, Donald Trump is our next president. Part of me is still waiting to wake up.
Bajaj Auto had launched the Pulsar 200 NS in India back 2012. But, due to undisclosed reasons, the manufacturer discontinued the motorcycle from India. Though on sale in export markets, the reason behind discontinuing 200 NS was always a mystery. Enthusiasts were angry.

Earlier this year, Bajaj Auto finally re-launched the new Pulsar 200 NS. The 2017 Bajaj Pulsar 200 NS is now on sale across Bajaj dealerships for a starting price of INR 98,000, ex-showroom. At that time, only a single variant was launched. Now, another variant has been added. It comes with a single channel ABS and is priced from INR 1.09 lakh, ex-showroom.

As is the case with recent Pulsar variant launches, Bajaj is yet to officially announce the launch, but some of their dealers have already started accepting bookings. Bajaj dealers will offer test rides of Pulsar 200 NS.

In India, the new Pulsar NS200 is powered by the same 199.5 cc engine which powers the AS200. This engine is good for 23 hp and 18.3 Nm of torque. Transmission is taken care by a 6 speed unit. Kerb weight stays at 145 kgs. The 17 inch alloys are shodded with MRF NyloGrip tyres while it gets the new AHO (Always Headlamp On) feature. Three colour are on offer  Wild Red, Mirage White and Graphite Black. The engine delivers 23.5 PS at 9500 rpm and 18.3 Nm of torque at 8000 rpm, the same as before.

Visually, the refreshed Pulsar 200 NS comes with new styling kits, along with new dual-tone color schemes, and a relocated pulsar logo. Positioned below the Pulsar RS 200. It will continue to be a cheaper alternative to the KTM Duke 200. In terms of rivalry, it will compete head on with the new Apache 200 which is priced from INR 94,015 and Yamaha FZ25 which is priced from INR 1.2 lakh.

Management Speak

Earlier this year, when the NS200 was launched, Mr. Eric Vas, President Motorcycle Business, Bajaj Auto Ltd. had said The 2017 range of Pulsar NS200 gives the Indian motorcyclist the latest international technology in performance motorcycling. Bajaj is proud to lead the introduction of the most advanced motorcycling technologies in the Indian market. With our new 2017 Pulsar range we offer discerning motorcyclists a combination of sporty responsive performance, high quality finish, and unbeatable speed & handling that reaffirms the Pulsars product leadership.

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Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE:ARE), an S&P 500<sup></sup> urban office real estate investment trust ("REIT"), is the first, longest-tenured, and pioneering owner, operator, and developer uniquely focused on collaborative life science, technology, and agtech campuses in AAA innovation cluster locations, with a total market capitalization of $31.9 billion as of December 31, 2020, and an asset base in North America of 49.7 million square feet ("SF"). The asset base in North America includes 31.9 million RSF of operating properties and 3.3 million RSF of Class A properties undergoing construction, 7.1 million RSF of near-term and intermediate-term development and redevelopment projects, and 7.4 million SF of future development projects. Founded in 1994, Alexandria pioneered this niche and has since established a significant market presence in key locations, including Greater Boston, San Francisco, New York City, San Diego, Seattle, Maryland, and Research Triangle. Alexandria has a longstanding and proven track record of developing Class A properties clustered in urban life science, technology, and agtech campuses that provide our innovative tenants with highly dynamic and collaborative environments that enhance their ability to successfully recruit and retain world-class talent and inspire productivity, efficiency, creativity, and success. Alexandria also provides strategic capital to transformative life science, technology, and agtech companies through our venture capital platform. We believe our unique business model and diligent underwriting ensure a high-quality and diverse tenant base that results in higher occupancy levels, longer lease terms, higher rental income, higher returns, and greater long-term asset value.
As the 50 days period ends in next 4 days, Lalu has warned Prime Minister Modi to walk the talk and select his favourite "chauraha" in the country so that people could punish him for a failed demonetisation exercise.

By Rohit Kumar Singh: After scrapping high denomination currency of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 on November 8, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had sought a time period of 50 days from the people of the country and promised that ground situation would improve following completion of demonetisation exercise and if that did not happen then he was ready to face any kind of punishment from the people standing at any 'chauraha' (roundabout) in the country.

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With the time period of 50 days expiring in next 4 days and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav has warned Prime Minister Narendra Modi to get ready to face punishment from the people of the country. Ever since demonetisation exercise has started in the country, Lalu has vociferously asserted that this entire demonetisation exercise was a flop-show and a failure.

Lalu believes because of demonetisation the country has witnessed massive chaotic scenes troubling the aam aadmi in which more than 100 people have also lost their lives.

So, as the 50 days period ends in next 4 days, Lalu has warned Prime Minister Modi to walk the talk and select his favourite "chauraha" in the country so that people could punish him for a failed demonetisation exercise.

"Prime Minister Modi should choose his favourite "chauraha" where people can punish him for creating chaotic condition in the name of demonetisation to fight black money," Lalu tweeted.

It may be remembered that in order to pressurise the central government, Lalu's RJD has also called for a statewide dharna on December 28 to oppose demonetisation.

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This is a current list of the top 250 companies by market capitalization on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Learn more .

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is one of the largest, and most recognizable, stock exchanges in the world. The NYSE is in New York City, New York at 11 Wall Street. The NYSE has been in existence since the earliest days of the United States becoming a nation, in 1792 and is primarily made up of blue-chip companies with large market capitalizations. In fact, many of the stocks that make up the Dow Jones Composite Index (i.e. The Dow) are listed on the NYSE.

This article gives a brief history of the New York Stock Exchange. In addition, it covers topics such as what kind of stocks trade on the exchange, what are the listing requirements, how trading is performed, and what the daily price movement of the NYSE tells investors about investor sentiment.

What Were the Origins of the NYSE?

Today, the New York Stock Exchange is known as the center of the financial universe. However, the exchanges origin is far more humble. On May 17, 1792, 24 stockbrokers signed the Buttonwood Agreement creating a centralized exchange to help provide order to the securities market in what was still a young nation. The "Buttonwood Agreement comes from the tree of the same name under which the founders signed the agreement.

An initial benefit of the exchange was how it removed the need for auctioneers when trading commodities like wheat and tobacco and to set a commission rate. The exchange initially focused on government bonds.

However, the exchange had no formal home. Business was usually conducted informally in the local coffeehouses. In 1817, the exchange changed its name to the New York Stock & Exchange Board which later became the New York Stock Exchange. At this time, the exchange adopted a constitution that set the rules for trading. A group of stockbrokers met twice a day at 40 Wall Street to trade 30 stocks and bonds.

Over time, the exchange moved became the financial hub of the country and moved to its current location in 1865.

What Kind of Stocks Trade on the NYSE?

As of June 2022, the NYSE includes approximately 2,400 companies with a market capitalization of over $28.2 trillion. Although the NYSE trades stocks of all market capitalizations, its best known for trading the stocks of large cap companies. These have the benefit of being mature companies in mature industries. And many of these companies reward shareholders with dividends.

However, that also means that many of these companies are better suited for value investors as opposed to growth investors. In bear markets this stability can be a benefit for investors as these stocks tend to perform less bad than more volatile stocks. But in a bull market, these stocks are not likely to provide investors with the growth that they look for.

An interesting fact about how the NYSE and NASDAQ operate is that the companies with the five largest market caps on the NYSE are also listed on the NASDAQ exchange.

What Are the Listing Requirements For the NYSE?

The NYSE has strict guidelines that govern the types of companies that can list on the exchange. Here are the major requirements that all companies must meet:

The company must have at least 2,200 shareholders

The company must trade over 100,000 shares per month

The company must have a market valuation of over $100 million

The company must generate more than $75 million in annual revenue

However, there is at least one advantage of having such stringent requirements. That is the companies that meet the requirements generally find it easier to get more investors funds when they hold their initial public offering (IPO).

Once a company begins trading on the NYSE, it must continue to meet these requirements. If it doesnt it can be delisted. In addition to these requirements, the stock must continue to trade above $1. If the price of a stock drops below $1 for more than 29 consecutive trading days, the stock receives an Initial Price Violation Notice.

At that point, the company has 10 days to provide the exchange with a plan for bringing their shares above $1.

How are Trades Executed on the NYSE?

For over a century, the floor of the NYSE was the place for investors to be. This meant trades were conducted by traders who ran buy and sell orders across the trading floor looking to broker a deal for their clients. But with the birth of the NASDAQ exchange in 1971, the New York Stock Exchange began conducting electronic trading.

However, the NYSE continues to conduct trades in an auction style. Brokers purchase stocks on behalf of their clients or firms. Every order features a broker who will enter the order electronically and a specialist who serves as the market maker for that stock. The specialist posts bid and ask prices and manages the actual execution of the trades. And there are still a handful of stockbrokers who still traffic buy and sell orders physically on the floor of the exchange.

How Does the NYSE Signal Investor Sentiment?

Like its counterpart, the NASDAQ, the NYSE measures the risk appetite of investors. When the NYSE is moving higher over a length of time, it signals that a risk on environment. Conversely when the NYSE moves lower over a significant period, it signals that investors are moving to a risk off position.

Some Final Thoughts on the NYSE

Financial news networks plan their programming schedule around the opening and closing bell of the New York Stock Exchange. Its still considered a distinguished honor when individuals or groups are invited to ring the opening bell. In fact, Warren Buffett is attributed with saying that in the short term, the stock market acts like a voting machine. A fact that many U.S. presidents will attest to.

The NYSE is the oldest and most recognizable of all the stock exchanges. It also has the most stringent requirements for inclusion. And those requirements must be maintained even after a stock begins publicly trading on the exchange.

Although the NYSE still has a small in-person Trading Floor, much of the trading is done electronically to provide traders with the speed to execute trades.
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By PTI: Kokrajhar (Assam), Dec 26 (PTI) A woman militant of proscribed NDFB(S) along with a linkman were apprehended by security forces in Assams Kokrajhar district, police said today.

The security forces also seized 152 rounds of ammunitions of AK-47 rifle and two mobile phones from them, they said.

A joint team of police and army apprehended the two from Ultapani area along the Indo-Bhutan border of the district, Bodoland Territorial Area District IGP L R Bishnoi said.

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The duo have been identified, Bishnoi added. PTI DG SBN KK KJ

--- ENDS ---
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. operates as an omni-channel specialty retailer of various products for home. It offers cooking, dining, and entertaining products, such as cookware, tools, electrics, cutlery, tabletop and bar, outdoor, furniture, and a library of cookbooks under the Williams Sonoma Home brand, as well as home furnishings and decorative accessories under the Williams Sonoma lifestyle brand; and furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, table essentials, and decorative accessories under the Pottery Barn brand. The company also provides home decor products under the West Elm brand; kids accessories under the Pottery Barn Kids brand; and an organic bedding to multi-purpose furniture under the Pottery Barn Teen brand. In addition, it offers made-to-order lighting, hardware, furniture, and home decors inspired by history under the Rejuvenation brand; and women's and men's accessories, travel, entertaining and bar, home decor, and seasonal items under the Mark and Graham brand, as well as operates a 3-D imaging and augmented reality platform for the home furnishings and decor industry. The company markets its products through e-commerce websites, direct-mail catalogs, and retail stores. It operates 544 stores comprising 502 stores in 41states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico; 20 stores in Canada; 19 stores in Australia; 3 stores in the United Kingdom; and 139 franchised stores, as well as e-commerce websites in various countries in the Middle East, the Philippines, Mexico, South Korea, and India. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. was founded in 1956 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.
When the Moxy Hotel opens in San Diego next year, the rooms will be stocked with the usual amenities  alarm clocks, hair dryers, writing desks and televisions.

But you wont find Bibles in the bedside nightstands.

Marriott International, the worlds largest hotel company, supplies a Bible and the Book of Mormon in the rooms of every other hotel in the franchise. But the company recently decided that no religious materials should be offered at two of its newest millennial-oriented hotel brands, Moxy and Edition hotels.

Its because the religious books dont fit the personality of the brands, said Marriott spokeswoman Felicia Farrar McLemore.

Marriotts decision mirrors others in the industry that are phasing out the long-held tradition of providing religious material in hotel rooms.

It is difficult to measure how many of the countrys 53,000 hotels still put Bibles in the rooms because most major hotel franchise companies let individual hotel owners and managers decide whether to make the books standard amenities.

But a recent survey by STR, a hospitality analytics company, found that the percentage of hotels that offer religious materials in rooms has dropped significantly over the past decade, from 95 per cent of hotels in 2006 to 48 per cent this year.

Among the reasons for the change, according to industry experts, is a need to appeal to younger American travellers who are less devout than their parents or grandparents, and to avoid offending international travellers such as Muslims or Buddhists.

And then there is this practical issue: Many newer hotel brands install shelves rather than nightstands with drawers next to the bed, making it difficult to be discreet about offering Bibles. A Bible on a bedside shelf makes a more pronounced statement than a Bible slipped into a drawer.

In an era of not offending anyone, I think hotels have a conundrum, said Carl Winston, director of San Diego State Universitys L. Robert Payne School of Hospitality and Tourism Management program.

Hotels also have been under pressure lately from atheist groups.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation wrote to 15 major hotel companies last year, asking them to keep Bibles out of hotel rooms.

The group succeeded in the last year in getting hotels operated by Arizona State University and Northern Illinois University to remove all Bibles from their rooms.

The foundation also created a sticker that reads: Warning: Literal belief in this book may endanger your health and life. The group has encouraged its supporters to affix the stickers on any hotel room Bible they find.

We are trying to educate the hotel industry that a quarter of our population is not religious, said Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the group.

STR officials cautioned about reading too much into its survey, noting that managers representing only 2,600 of the more than 8,000 hotels responding to the survey answered the question about religious material in rooms. Still, industry experts say the changing demographics in America and the surge of international travellers in the U.S. are creating more reasons to keep religious materials out of hotel rooms.

A lot of international hotels are trying to reach a very diverse group of travellers, and religion now has become a really sensitive topic, said Linchi Kwok, an assistant professor at the Collins College of Hospitality Management at Cal Poly Pomona.

Bibles started to become a hotel standard in the late 1800s when three travelling businessmen founded Gideons International with a plan by placing Bibles in hotel rooms across the country.

The non-profit group now has about 270,000 members in 200 countries. In its latest fiscal year, Gideon International spent about $100 million (U.S.) to distribute Bibles to hotels, prisons, hospitals and other locations, about the same amount as in 2015, according to the groups financial statements.

Jeff Pack, Gideons Internationals director of communications, said he isnt sure why the STR survey shows a decline in religious materials in hotel rooms, considering that the distribution of Bibles by his group hasnt dropped.

The decline of religious materials in hotels, as cited in the survey, is reflective of increasing secularism and independence in the world, he said. This has resulted in an erosion of spiritual awareness.

Two years ago, TraveLodge hotels in Britain removed Bibles from their rooms in order not to discriminate against any religion, the company said. Still, the hotels kept copies at the front desk where guests could borrow them.

The parent company of TraveLodge, the Wyndham Hotel Group, said the company does not require Bibles in any of its 15 hotel brands worldwide.

Marriott International, which was founded by a devout Mormon, decided this year to keep the Bible and the Book of Mormon out of four new brands, AC, Moxy, Protea and Edition hotels, said McLemore, the spokeswoman. But company executives reconsidered, she said, and instead moved to keep religious materials out of only the Moxy and Edition hotels because the AC and Protea hotels are geared toward more traditional travellers.

Marriott has opened nine Moxy hotels, with at least 40 more hotels under construction or in the planning phase. Four Edition hotels are open and nine others are set to open in the future.

Intercontinental Hotel Group, the British company that operates the Holiday Inn brand, among others, doesnt require managers of its more than 5,000 hotels in nearly 100 countries to put Bibles in each room.

Our hotels have the flexibility to offer religious materials to their guests if they choose to do so, spokeswoman Caroline Huston said.

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Oneika Raymond has spent years documenting her globe-trotting adventures online, but the Canadian travel blogger says broadcasting her experiences live has brought a whole new dimension to digital storytelling.

The Toronto-raised, New York-based Raymond has visited more than 90 countries and lived in London, France, Hong Kong and Mexico. In addition to publishing photos, articles and travel diaries, Raymond has been producing videos as a way to bring viewers along on her travels, while also encouraging them to embark on their own adventures.

Since adding livestreaming to her digital tool kit, Raymond has been enthralled by the ability to broadcast to her more than 28,000 Facebook followers with a few taps on her smartphone.

Theres something about visual storytelling via video that I think is so authentic and so real, said Raymond, the blogger behind the website Oneika the Traveller.

For me, livestreaming on social media  particularly on Facebook  has been exhilarating, she added. (People) can send you hearts and likes and questions, and the interactivity is, quite frankly, like nothing Ive ever seen before.

With Facebook and Instagram adopting the livestreaming trend in 2016, the social networking sites joined Twitters Periscope app among the tools helping to widen access to on-demand broadcasts.

Facebook Live was described as having a TV camera in your pocket during its April launch, but few could have anticipated the powerful ways the tool would be put to use.

After Philando Castile was fatally shot during a traffic stop in Minnesota in July, his girlfriend Diamond Reynolds livestreamed the grisly aftermath.

I think it speaks to the impact that technology can have on the public consciousness, and how it can be used in a good way, to a certain extent, because it makes people aware of issues and systemic problems, said Patrick ORourke, senior editor for the Canadian tech website MobileSyrup.

Beyond offering a platform for journalists, politicians and activists to bring attention to conflicts, protests and notable causes, livestreaming has also been embraced many seeking to share more light-hearted moments, from footage of kids parties to cooking demonstrations.

Candace Payne became an instant celebrity in May after a Facebook Live video of her trying on a Star Wars Chewbacca mask went viral. The Chewbacca Mom video has since been viewed more than 164 million times, and got her an invite to Facebook headquarters from founder Mark Zuckerberg.

All you need is a phone and an app and you can livestream now, and that wasnt the case even a few years ago, said ORourke.

According to Facebook, nearly 80 per cent of Canadians have watched a Live video on the social network, and the equivalent of more than 11 years worth of Live video is watched daily in Canada.

Facebook product director Daniel Danker said Live has overwhelmingly been a mobile experience, and one that continues to evolve heading into 2017. Users now have the ability to add in friends during a broadcast, and to share immersive stories with 360-degree video from a variety of angles. Another new addition centres on audio.

They can connect without even having the camera on, which is a different form of storytelling, Danker said from San Francisco.

Were seeing authors and radio personalities and others taking it up ... but you cant always predict how these things will get used. I think were going to find some interesting ways that gets used.

University of Ottawa law professor Michael Geist said the popularity of livestreaming is unsurprising given the immediacy it offers. The technology is also appealing for use in other settings, like enabling connectivity in classrooms, he added. At the same time, there is a significant impact from a privacy perspective.

We, frankly, long ago reached the point that the cameras are always on, said Geist, who holds the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law.

We have, I think, at this stage, an expectation that regardless of the event, regardless of the venue that someone will have recorded something. And that world is one that, at least up until fairly recently, people thought about I think with a fair amount of trepidation.

The Big Brother kinds of feelings that people often had envisioned government as being the all-seeing entity. It turns out were doing governments job for it.

An August survey from Toronto-based Solutions Research Group showed teens and millennials outpacing Generation X and boomers in their live video use, such as Skype, Google Hangouts, FaceTime and Periscope.

In the poll, 59 per cent of teens and 55 per cent of millennials had made use of live video within the last month, compared to 43 per cent of GenXers and 22 per cent of boomers.

Theres no question that extending two or three years out, in-the-moment live video is going to be very commonplace for people to use. Youre already seeing a lot of use right now, said SRG president Kaan Yigit.

I have to believe that every social platform will have a one-touch live broadcast capability within the next six to eight months.

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When Christopher Callahan examines older patients, he often hears a similar refrain.

Im tired, doctor. Its hard to get up and about. Ive been feeling kind of down, but I know Im getting old and I just have to live with it.

This fatalistic stance relies on widely held but mistaken assumptions about what constitutes normal aging.

In fact, fatigue, weakness and depression arent to-be-expected consequences of growing older, said Callahan, director of the Center for Aging Research at Indiana University School of Medicine.

Instead, theyre a signal that something is wrong and a medical evaluation is in order.

People have a perception ... that aging equals decline, said Jeanne Wei, a geriatrician who directs the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Thats just wrong.

Of course, peoples bodies do change as they get older. But this is a gradual process. If you suddenly find your thinking is cloudy and your memory unreliable, if youre overcome by dizziness and your balance is out of whack, if you find yourself tossing and turning at night and running urgently to the bathroom, dont chalk it up to normal aging.

Go see your physician. The earlier you identify and deal with these problems, the better.

Here are four common concerns that should spark attention  only a partial list of issues that can arise:

Fatigue. You have no energy. Youre tired all the time.

Dont underestimate the impact: Chronically weary older adults are at risk of losing their independence and becoming socially isolated.

Nearly one-third of people age 51 and older experience fatigue, according to a 2010 study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. (Other estimates are lower.) There are plenty of potential culprits: Sleep problems, pain, gastrointestinal reflux and medications for blood pressure can induce fatigue, as can infections, arthritis and other conditions, an underactive thyroid, poor nutrition and alcohol use.

All can be addressed, doctors say. Perhaps most important is ensuring that older adults remain physically active and dont become sedentary.

If someone comes into my office walking at a snails pace and tells me, Im old; Im just slowing down, Im, like, No, that isnt right,  said Lee Ann Lindquist, a professor of geriatrics at Northwestern Universitys Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.

You need to start moving around more, get physical therapy or occupational therapy and push yourself to do just a little bit more every day, she said.

Appetite loss. You dont feel like eating, and youve been losing weight.

This puts you at risk of developing nutritional deficiencies and frailty, and it raises the prospect of an earlier-than-expected death. Between 15 and 30 per cent of older adults are believed to have whats known as the anorexia of aging.

Physical changes associated with aging  notable declines in vision, taste and smell, all of which make food attractive  can contribute. So can other conditions: decreased saliva production (a medication-induced problem that affects about one-third of older adults); constipation (affecting up to 40 per cent of seniors); depression; social isolation (people dont like to eat alone); dental problems; illnesses and infections; and medications (which can cause nausea and reduced taste and smell).

If you had a pretty good appetite before and that has now changed, pay attention, said Lucy Guerra, director of general internal medicine at the University of South Florida in Tampa. Treating dental problems and other conditions, adding spices to food, adjusting medications and sharing meals with others can all make eating a more enjoyable and healthy experience.

Depression. Youre sad, apathetic and irritable for weeks or months at a time.

Depression in later life can have profound consequences, compounding the effects of chronic illnesses such as heart disease, leading to disability, affecting cognition and, in extreme cases, resulting in suicide.

Half a century ago, it was believed that melancholia was common in later life and that seniors naturally withdrew from the world as they realized that their days were limited, Callahan explained. Since then, researchers have shown that older adults tend to be happier than people in other age groups: Only 15 per cent have major depression or minor variants.

Late-life depression is typically associated with a serious illness such as diabetes, cancer, arthritis or stroke; deteriorating hearing or vision; and life changes such as retirement or the loss of a spouse. While grief is normal, persistent sadness that is accompanied by apathy, withdrawal from social activities, disturbed sleep and self-neglect is not, Callahan said.

With treatments such as cognitive behavioural therapy and antidepressants, 50 to 80 per cent of seniors can expect to recover.

Weakness. You cant rise easily from a chair, screw the top off a jar or lift a can from the pantry shelf.

You may have sarcopenia  a notable loss of muscle mass and strength that affects about 10 per cent of adults older than 60. If untreated, sarcopenia will affect your balance, mobility and stamina, and raise the risk of falling, becoming frail and losing independence.

Age-related muscle atrophy, which begins when people reach their 40s and accelerates when theyre in their 70s, is part of the problem. Muscle strength declines even more rapidly  slipping about 15 per cent per decade starting around age 50.

The solution: exercise, including resistance and strength training exercises, and good nutrition, including getting adequate amounts of protein.

Other causes of weakness can include inflammation, hormonal changes, infections and problems with the nervous system.

Watch for sudden changes. If youre not as strong as you were yesterday, thats not right, Wei said. Also, watch for weakness on only one side, especially if its accompanied by speech or vision changes. That could be a sign of a stroke, which would require immediate medical attention.

Taking steps to address weakness doesnt mean youll have the same strength and endurance as when you were in your 20s or 30s. But it may mean that doctors catch a serious or preventable problem early and forestall further decline.

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Muhammed Harrat had a ticking bomb in his body. Doctors said the Syrian man was going to have a heart attack at any moment with blockages in three major arteries.

In fact, the state of his heart was so bad that he was admitted for emergency quadruple bypass surgery at St. Mikes Hospital when he went in for a routine checkup after he and his family were resettled in Toronto in September through a sponsorship by the Canadian government.

Although he is Muslim and does not celebrate Christmas, Harrat said he has plenty to be grateful for this holiday season after he was given a new lease on life with a five-hour operation recently by heart surgeon Dr. Bobby Yanagawa.

Thank the doctor very much for saving my life. My heart felt like a 14-year-old again, Harrat, a teacher of the Quran, said through an interpreter during a visit at the hospital in December.

Yanagawa said it was a miracle that Harrat had not had a heart attack during the gruelling transit to Canada from Turkey, where he and his family had remained for three years after fleeing their home in Aleppo in 2013.

This man has had daily pain with critical coronary artery disease for several months while in transit, trying to find refuge, Yanagawa said.

Canadians have done a lot to help the Syrians. We have hundreds of volunteers helping them with their language and get jobs, but we also do world class, high-end heart surgeries and they are treated here just like any other Canadian.

Yanagawa believes Harrat was predisposed to coronary disease due to his genetic history, diabetes and being a former smoker and cancer survivor, and that the uprooting by the war and separation of his family  his two sons, who are 29 and 30, are in refuge in Dubai  had taken a toll on him.

The stress and sadness really exacerbated it, Yanagawa said.

At the recent checkup, Harrat said his breathing was still laboured, he continued to feel fatigued and the constant pain in his chest has made it impossible for him to sleep or eat.

His cough does not stop. His breathing is not normal. He cries in the middle of the night because of the sharp pain, Harrats wife, Hene Kittan Gazel, told the doctor anxiously. He is very tired all the time. His legs are swollen.

He looks good. His lungs sound good, said Yanagawa, pulling down Harrats undershirt and checking on the six-inch red scar on his chest. He had a big surgery. It takes three months to recover. I dont want you to worry too much. I want you to smile.

Gazels lips lifted into a smile: We feel very safe when we see you. We are not worried because you are good.

While the surgery has helped restore his physical health, Harrat said he is still heartbroken by the loss of his home in Syria and the separation of his family.

I want to feel better so I can see my sons to join us in Canada. I want to go back to teaching the Quran, said the Mississauga man, whose family is looking for a community sponsor for his sons, who are both single.

I used to walk 10 kilometres each day in Syria. I want to be able to do that again.

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BARTELLA, IRAQFor the 300 Christians who braved wind and rain to attend Christmass Eve Mass in their hometown, the ceremony evoked both holiday cheer and grim reminders of the war raging around their northern Iraqi town, and the distant prospect of moving back home.

Displaced when Daesh, also known as the Islamic State, seized their town, Bartella, in August 2014, the Christians were bused into town from Irbil, capital of the self-ruled Kurdish region where they have lived for more than two years, to attend the lunchtime service in the Assyrian Orthodox church of Mart Shmoni.

The church was torched by Daesh militants, but volunteers recently cleaned it up after government forces retook Bartella as part of an ongoing campaign to liberate the nearby city of Mosul and surrounding areas in Nineveh province. However, the church is still missing its icons, electrical wiring hangs perilously from its ceiling and most light fixtures are gone. The headless statue of a late patriarch stands in the front yard, its pedestal surrounded by shards of glass.

On Saturday, women joyously ululated when they stepped into the marble-walled church. Almost everyone held a lit candle. Many took photos with their mobile phones. A handful of gas heaters were brought in, but they did little to warm the place on a wet and windy December day.

For many of them, the sight of their hometown in almost complete ruin was shocking. Only a few homes in the once-vibrant town of some 25,000 people stand unscathed. Most have been damaged by shelling or blackened by fire.

On one street wall, ISs black banner remains visible under the white paint. Next to it, someone wrote: Christ is the light of the world. Bartella is Christian.

Our joy is bigger than our sadness, said university student Nevine Ibrahim, 20, who was in Bartella Saturday for the first time since she, her parents and four siblings left in 2014. They found their house badly damaged. Everything they owned was gone.

I dont think we can return. The house can be fixed but the pain inside us cannot, she said, seated among three of her siblings. Who will protect us?

Halfway through the service, conducted in Assyrian and Arabic, it became something of a wartime mass. Roughly a dozen U.S. military servicemen and a 100-man contingent from the Iraqi military led by several top generals descended on the church in a show of solidarity.

Unlike their Americans counterparts, the Iraqi troops came armed. Iraqi soldiers  with one wearing a skull-face balaclava  searched people coming into the church. Inside, soldiers frisked anyone moving close to the Iraqi generals, who arrived in some two dozen armoured SUVs and Humvees.

The distant thud of explosions could be heard after mass. But none of that seemed to dampen the worshippers joyous spirit.

The soldiers photographed each other and took selfies. Many of them held lit candles, and the congregation warmly applauded when Bishop Mussa Al-Shamani thanked the Iraqi military for liberating Bartella.

The Christians of Nineveh are members of an ancient and once-vibrant community. They enjoyed protection under Saddam Hussein, but their numbers rapidly dwindled after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq toppled the regime of the late dictator in 2003.

Since 2003, Sunni militants have targeted Christians and their churches, terrorizing the community and forcing many of its members to flee to the West, neighbouring nations or the northern Kurdish region. Daeshs onslaught across northern Iraq in 2014 devastated the unique communities of Christian-majority towns like Karamlis, Bartella and Qaraqosh  all in the Nineveh plains. Of the estimated 1.5 million Christians who lived in Iraq on the eve of the U.S.-led invasion, about 500,000 are left.

This is the mass of defiance, Assyrian priest Yacoub Saady told the congregation at the end of the service. We, the Christians, are the oldest component of this country. We are staying put and no power can force us to leave.

His words, however, were more hopeful than realistic. The Bartella Christians attending Saturdays Christmas Mass spoke of the communitys woes and their slim hopes of returning home.

With the central Baghdad government strapped for cash because of low oil prices and the spiralling cost of the war against Daesh, it is unlikely that monetary compensation will be dispensed to residents who lost their homes, or that large scale reconstruction will be undertaken in Bartella anytime soon.

Residents also have deep security concerns, arising mostly from the Iraqi military and security forces meltdown in the face of Daeshs blitz across northern and western Iraq in the summer of 2014.

People must first be compensated and services like water and electricity restored before they come back to live here, said Ramsen Matti, a 28-year-old accountant who now lives in Irbil with his wife and their only child, a daughter born in Bartella less than two months before they fled the town.

Altar boy Masar Jalal arrived with his father on Saturday, the 16-year-olds first visit to Bartella since he fled with his family to Irbil in 2014.

I cried for what has become of the town, said Jalal. I will only come back to live here if there is security.

He found some of his old clothes when he visited the family home, but the furniture was gone. The clothes I found are too small for me now, but I also found a mug with my photo that a cousin of mine snapped. No one took that.

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PEARL HARBOR, HAWAIIJapanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe laid wreaths at various cemeteries and memorials Monday ahead of a visit to the site of the 1941 bombing that plunged the United States into World War II.

Abe landed at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and then headed to National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, where he laid a wreath. He stood for a moment of silence at the cemetery near downtown Honolulu, which is known as Punchbowl.

He later visited a nearby memorial for nine boys and men who died when a U.S. navy submarine collided with their Japanese fishing vessel in 2001. At the Ehime Maru Memorial, he again laid a wreath and bowed his head.

On Tuesday, hell be the first Japanese prime minister to visit the memorial that honours sailors and Marines killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Japans former leader Shigeru Yoshida went to Pearl Harbor six years after the countrys World War II surrender, but that was before the USS Arizona Memorial was built. Yoshida arrived at Pearl Harbor in 1951, shortly after requesting a courtesy visit to the office of Adm. Arthur W.R. Radford, commander of the U.S. Pacific fleet. The office overlooked Pearl Harbor, offering a direct view of the attack site.

The memorial will be closed to the public Tuesday when Abe visits the historic site, joined by U.S. President Barack Obama, who is vacationing in Hawaii with his family.

The importance of the visit may be mostly symbolic for two countries that, in a remarkable transformation, have grown into close allies in the decades since they faced off in brutal conflict. At the same time, its significant that it took more than 70 years for U.S.-Japanese relations to get to this point.

Abe wont apologize for Japans attack when he visits, a government spokesman said earlier this month.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said that the purpose of the upcoming visit is to pay respects for the war dead and not to offer an apology.

The visit comes six months after Obama became the first sitting American president to visit Hiroshima for victims of the U.S. atomic bombing of that city at the end of the same war.

Pearl Harbor survivor Alfred Rodrigues said Monday he welcomes the visit by Japans top leader to Hawaii.

Im glad hes coming to show that were all peaceful now and you know, we were doing what we were supposed to do and they were doing what they were supposed to do, he told The Associated Press.

Remembering the day of the attack in 1941, Rodrigues said that he had just sat down to have breakfast when the alarm sounded and the word got out, Man your battle stations, this is not a drill, he recalled.

We all ran out to the armoury to get rifles and ammunition and we could see the planes up above with the red circles on the bottom. We knew it was the Japanese planes, Rodrigues said.

Rodrigues says he doesnt think Abe should apologize. War is war. I mean, they were doing what they were supposed to do and we were doing what we were supposed to do. I have no animosity at all towards them.

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By PTI: Lucknow, Dec 25 (PTI) Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav today appointed controversial Uttar Pradesh Cabinet minister Gayatri Prasad Prajapati as the partys national secretary.

Prajapati has been appointed Samajwadi Partys national secretary, a senior party leader said here.

Prajapati is the Cabinet minister holding the Transport portfolio department in the Akhilesh Yadav government.

He was sacked by Akhilesh in September after complaints of corruption in the mining department which was under his charge, but was again inducted a few days later.

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Prajapati is considered close to Mulayam Singh Yadav. PTI ABN NSD

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A Drexel University professor has been summoned to a meeting with school officials after he tweeted a Christmas Eve message that appeared to support white genocide.

George Ciccariello-Maher, who is white and an associate professor of politics at the Philadelphia, Pa., university, told The Associated Press by email Monday that his Christmas Eve message to nearly 11,000 Twitter followers  All I Want for Christmas is White Genocide  was meant to be satirical.

Drexel was not amused, condemning Ciccariello-Mahers tweet and saying in a statement it was taking this situation very seriously.

While the University recognizes the right of its faculty to freely express their thoughts and opinions in public debate, Professor Ciccariello-Mahers comments are utterly reprehensible, deeply disturbing, and do not in any way reflect the values of the University, Drexel said.

Ciccariello-Maher, whose online biography says his academic specialties include race and racism, said Drexel apparently didnt understand the content or the context of his tweets. The professor told The Associated Press he was mocking what he called the imaginary concept of white genocide, which he says was invented by white supremacists.

It is a figment of the racist imagination, it should be mocked, and Im glad to have mocked it, he said.

Ciccariello-Maher followed up his initial tweet by praising the massacre of whites in Haiti during the countrys slave uprising and revolution more than two centuries ago.

Though his Twitter account is private, he is a prolific tweeter and his weekend messages spread quickly online. He said he has received hundreds of death threats. The professor said Drexels statement sends a chilling message.

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BENI, CONGO  Authorities in northeastern Congo say Ugandan rebels have hacked more than two dozen people to death in a Christmas massacre.

Bernard Amisi Kalonda, administrator for the Beni area, blames rebels belonging to the group known as the Allied Democratic Forces, or ADF. He says they attacked several villages on Christmas Eve, killing at least 25 people with machetes.

Officials say Congolese and UN forces are hunting down the assailants.

The ADF rebel movement has been active since the 1990s but intensified its attacks inside Congo several years ago. Human rights groups say hundreds have been killed since 2014.

While the groups members are mainly Muslim, experts say there are no proven links between the ADF rebels and other extremist organizations in Africa.

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WASHINGTON The first woman president was supposed to make history by accumulating such deep experience that few could deny her ability to serve as commander in chief.

Hillary Clinton did that, and lost. Now women politicians and those working to elect them Democrats and Republicans alike are sifting through her defeat to understand what her loss means for future women candidates and to find a future path.

Their effort is complicated by the very things that made Clintons nomination both inevitable and troubled: her singular standing and unique negatives.

While the number of women elected to office has grown markedly over the decades, polling shows that in a race for the White House they still must demonstrate they are capable of commanding the government and in particular the U.S. military, a masculine institution despite its own gender strides.

That inevitably conflicts with another voter demand: for a fresh face like that, say, of President Barack Obama, who defeated Clinton in the Democratic primaries in 2008 in part because he appealed to voters desire for change.

You cant get those qualifications, get that resume, while also being able to present yourself as a change candidate, said Kelly Dittmar, an assistant professor of political science at Rutgers University-Camden and a scholar at Rutgers Center for American Women and Politics.

Men arent held to the same standard of proving their credentials.

Clintons experience won her plaudits from voters who throughout the campaign saw her as best prepared to assume the presidency. That may have helped her win the popular vote, but she lost the electoral college to a man who had never before run for elective office or served in government.

Most damaging, she was unable to fully benefit from the advantages that usually flow to a woman candidate being seen by voters as more honest, trustworthy and both a unifier and the one who most cares about constituents concerns.

That has left a puzzle: How much of the loss reflected Clintons particular vulnerabilities, how much involved opposition that any future woman candidate may face?

Unquestionably, Clinton faced unique problems: her decision as secretary of state to use a private email server, which led to extended controversies; media coverage of separate Democratic emails now believed to have been hacked by Russian operatives; and a relentless line of assault casting her as corrupt, first by primary challenger Bernie Sanders and later by Donald Trump.

She also faced a unique opponent, Trump, whose image of swashbuckling masculinity shaped the campaign more than any of Clintons milder efforts to use gender to her advantage.

Clintons supporters have been left counting smaller victories, like the fact that she won more votes than any candidate ever, apart from Obama.

They are also casting Clintons reach for history as part of a decades long effort that, by definition, includes stumbles.

Its been a struggle, its always been a struggle thats the nature of the fight for equality, said Sen. Barbara Boxer, the California Democrat who was elected in 1992, a year when the number of women senators tripled.

The fact that we got to have first woman nominee of a major party is an enormous breakthrough, and well build on that, she said.

But others suggest that this years campaign portends trouble for whichever women come next.

At a recent panel discussion at Harvards Institute of Politics, which included representatives from both campaigns, Trumps manager, Kellyanne Conway, argued that the country was ready to elect a woman president just not this particular woman in a year in which voters demanded change.

On gender, it wasnt a hypothetical, she said of voters options. It was Hillary. So its not just a woman; its one that people had lived with for quite a while.

That drew a pained response from Clintons media strategist, Mandy Grunwald, who suggested that Clinton had rare standing to be seen as a potential commander in chief, given her tenure as secretary of state, U.S. senator from New York and as a first lady deeply involved in policy matters.

You may think the country is ready for a woman, any old woman, just a different one. There are very few people who will ever meet that test, Grunwald said, adding: I hope I am wrong.

Clintons campaign was a real-world test that shined a bright light at some of the downsides of womens candidacies.

The degree of punishment she took from voters concerned about perceived ethical lapses was one of those. Throughout the campaign, prompted by broadsides from Sanders and Trump, voters were sharply critical of Clinton when it came to honesty and truthfulness.

The virulence of their sentiments suggested that women, usually held in high regard on those fronts, suffer more than male candidates when seen as not meeting that standard.

For women candidates, that fall from the pedestal may be longer and harder, said Dittmar.

Clintons perceived ethical difficulties, she noted, took more of a toll than Trumps arguably larger constellation of problems, which included repetitive falsehoods, wrongdoing by his foundation, tax issues and the fraud case levelled against Trump University.

One reason could be that we expected it, she said. We expect that men have those issues.

And while Clinton benefited to some extent from the prospect of being a historic first, Trump successfully made gender arguments of his own.

He made gender-based gibes at Clinton throughout his campaign, much as he had sought to diminish his primary opponents by mocking their height or lack of combativeness or, in the case of Republican candidate Carly Fiorina, her looks.

He talked tough, invoking the spectre of violence, repeatedly and on a range of issues. His official health report listed his testosterone level, an atypical disclosure that stood out given the lack of detail he released on other health questions. His campaign did nothing to push back against vulgar references to women on T-shirts and campaign buttons at his events.

Whatever the motive for that style, it appealed to concerns that many voters still have about a woman commander in chief and womens role in society.

An April poll by PRRI/The Atlantic asked whether Americans felt society has become too soft and feminine. Two in five voters said that it had; among Trump supporters, 68 per cent said so.

In response to another question, two in five voters said society was better off when men and women hewed to traditional gender roles.

In October the height of the controversy over Trumps treatment of women another PRRI/The Atlantic poll showed 56 per cent of Americans believed society seems to punish men just for acting like men.

Sentiments like that serve as a negative starting point for the next high-level candidacies by women.

Women currently hold one-fifth of the seats in the Senate and the House, as well as six governorships, positions that serve as one form of entree to a White House bid. Women hold prominent positions in business, which Trump demonstrated can be a launching pad.

Ironically, Trump himself may go a long way in clarifying the future path for women candidates. A successful Trump presidency could enhance the odds for a woman candidate with a business or military background. A failed Trump presidency could reinforce the desire for someone with more political or governmental experience, more empathy or the reams of policy proposals that gained Clinton little traction.

Key for the next round of women presidential candidates will be finding the balance that eluded Clinton, between experience and freshness, between empathy and toughness.

They will have one benefit: They will not have been a symbol of cultural tumult, as Clinton and her generation of women candidates have been, perhaps giving them more latitude to navigate the nations views.

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Lets face it: 2016 had way more than its share of appalling news.

It began with Donald Trump beating on his Republican rivals like so many cheap pinatas. Amazingly, appallingly, it ended with  Donald Trump, days away from taking the oath as the 45th president of the United States.

It was the year of Brexit and Ghomeshi and Pokemon. And, tragically, it was the year the world stood by and watched as an ancient city and its people were pounded into dust by the bombs of a murderous regime. Aleppo joined a long list of martyred cities, alongside such tragic names as Guernica and Sarajevo.

In Canada, it was a more hopeful year. Justin Trudeau strode the land, his bright shiny government floating on a wave of popularity, the New York Times hailing Canada as newly hip under its dynamic young leader. Everything was going swimmingly  until suddenly it wasnt with hard questions about cash-for-access and election reform.

Some things, though, never change, and the Stars annual end-of-year Darts and Laurels for the goats and heroes of the year are among them. Heres our modest selection for a year we certainly wont be missing:

Laurel: To teenage swimming sensation Penny Oleksiak. She won a gold, a silver and two bronze medals in Rio, was the youngest Olympic medalist in Canadian history and the most decorated Canadian athlete ever in a single Summer Games. Bravo!

Laurel: To Bonnie and Clyde, the cuddly capybaras who captured the citys imagination when they escaped from the High Park Zoo in May. The rascally rodents spent weeks on the lam, dodging zoo staff and eluding a professional capybara chaser.

Dart: To Donald Trump. For everything. Just everything. All of it.

Laurel: To Toronto councillor Giorgio Mammoliti, for remaining refreshingly silent for most of 2016. City councils biggest blowhard kept a low profile until the very end of the year when he emerged to wage a losing one-man campaign against road tolls. Too bad: you were on a roll as long as you kept your mouth shut.

Dart: To Bombardier Inc., for playing with our emotions. You delivered just enough of those spanking new low-floor streetcars to whet our appetite for 21st-century transit  then kept missing deadline after deadline for getting more of them on Toronto streets. Why are you toying with us?

Dart: To Sheldon Wolf, the Calgary businessman who responded to pointed questions about his credit repair companies by creating a website to attack the Star and investigative reporter David Bruser. We know the news media are taking it from all sides these days, but thats a bit much.

Laurel: To the good folks at the Toronto Wildlife Centre, who rescued tiny Scoop the raccoon from her perch on a fourth-floor ledge of the Toronto Star building and nursed her back to health. In a year of disastrous news for the media, we finally had something to cheer.

Laurel: To culture whiz Jeff Melanson and french-fry heiress Eleanor McCain, for providing the juiciest marriage-gone-wrong saga of this year, or maybe any year. Hope it all works out for you, kids.

Laurel: To Premier Kathleen Wynne, for showing how to execute a well-timed flip-flop by changing her mind about cash-for-access fundraisers.

Dart: To Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, for stubbornly sticking with cash-for-access fundraisers in the face of criticism from all sides (including this page). Heres a tip: give Premier Wynne a call and get some expert advice on how to reverse field elegantly on this issue.

Laurel: To Drake, for being a world-class ambassador of a city desperate to be thought of as world-class. Hes given The 6 a lot, including the nickname The 6. We may not actually use it, but we really like that other people might.

Dart: To New Democrats, for flubbing the leadership test. They gave poor Tom Mulcair the back of their hand in a confidence vote, but after eight months not a single candidate has stepped forward to succeed him. This is getting seriously embarrassing.

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Gildan Activewear Inc. manufactures and sells various apparel products in the United States, North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. It provides various activewear products, including T-shirts, fleece tops and bottoms, and sports shirts under the Gildan, Gildan Performance, Gildan Hammer, Comfort Colors, American Apparel, Alstyle, and GoldToe brands. The company also offers hosiery products comprising athletic; dress; and casual, liner, therapeutic, and workwear socks, as well as sheer pantyhose, tights, and leggings under the Gildan, Under Armour, GoldToe, PowerSox, Signature Gold by Goldtoe, Peds, MediPeds, Therapy Plus, All Pro, Secret, Silks, Secret Silky, and American Apparel brands. In addition, it provides men's and boys' underwear products, and ladies panties under the Gildan and Gildan Platinum brands; and ladies' shapewear, intimates, and accessories under the Secret and Secret Silky brands. The company sells its products to wholesale distributors, screen printers, and embellishers, as well as to retailers and lifestyle brand companies. The company was formerly known as Textiles Gildan Inc. and changed its name to Gildan Activewear Inc. in March 1995. Gildan Activewear Inc. was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada.
By Saurabh Vaktania: The dance bars in Mumbai and outskirts are still operating by flouting all rules and regulations of demonetisation. The dance bars are already celebrating New Year, a week before December 31 due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's demonetisation decision.

Following India Today's sting operation Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has ordered an inquiry.

In our investigations, it was found that the dance bars are taking old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 rupees. The sources told us that this is done so as that the money can come into dance bars properly like every year and the same can be deposited or exchange in the banks by December 31.

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A source in one of the dance bar in Mumbai said, "Huge amount of money flows into dance bars during the December 31 party event. This year we are taking old currency of 500 and 1000 and celebrating 31st almost a week early. This will give us sufficient time to deposit or exchange the old currency in banks."

According to sources every year on December 31 a lot of parties are organised by the dance bar owners. This party goes on till late in the morning. Also the bar girl who earns maximum, that bar girl is given special gift by the dance bar owner. Some of the bar girls earn in lakhs.

Transcript of the conversation with one of the bar girl:

Bar girl: Mein puch rahi thi, aap kaha pe

Reporter: 31st kab mana re

Bar girl: Pakka 31st aaj he mana re hai.

Reporter: To 31st ko ni bana re

Bar girl: Section garam hoga. Pata nai lekin aaj he mana re baad ka pata nai.

Bar girl: Mein aisa bol rahi hu, mein ne pucha abhi Seth se ki wo bol ra hai apni hotel chalu hai, abhi police ka section aisa hai band be kar de lekin chalu hai late tak.

Reporter: Lekin 500 le re hai, purane wale.

Bar girl:haan 500 le re, chalu hai.

Reporter: Bill mein total mein 500 lenge na

Bar girl: Haan haan lenge na bola na, abhi do do baar mein ne pucha

Reporter: Aaj 31st bana re na, aur highest collection ka?

Bar girl - Haan lekin pata ni kya de re.

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Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited, a pharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes generic medicines, specialty medicines, and biopharmaceutical products in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company offers sterile products, hormones, high-potency drugs, and cytotoxic substances in various dosage forms, including tablets, capsules, injectables, inhalants, liquids, transdermal patches, ointments, and creams. It also develops, manufactures, and sells active pharmaceutical ingredients. In addition, it focuses on the central nervous system, pain, respiratory, and oncology areas. Its products in the central nervous system include Copaxone for the treatment of relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis; AJOVY for the preventive treatment of migraine; and AUSTEDO for the treatment of tardive dyskinesia and chorea associated with Huntington disease. The company's products in the respiratory market comprise ProAir, QVAR, ProAir Digihaler, AirDuo Digihaler, and ArmonAir Digihaler, BRALTUS, CINQAIR/CINQAERO, DuoResp Spiromax, and AirDuo RespiClick/ArmonAir RespiClick for the treatment of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Its products in the oncology market include Bendeka, Treanda, Granix, Trisenox, Lonquex, and Tevagrastim/Ratiograstim. Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited has a collaboration MedinCell for the development and commercialization of multiple long-acting injectable products, a risperidone suspension for the treatment of patients with schizophrenia. The company was founded in 1901 and is headquartered in Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel.
The Progressive Corporation, an insurance holding company, provides personal and commercial auto, personal residential and commercial property, general liability, and other specialty property-casualty insurance products and related services in the United States. It operates in three segments: Personal Lines, Commercial Lines, and Property. The Personal Lines segment writes insurance for personal autos and recreational vehicles (RV). This segment's products include personal auto insurance; and special lines products, including insurance for motorcycles, ATVs, RVs, watercrafts, snowmobiles, and related products. The Commercial Lines segment provides auto-related primary liability and physical damage insurance, and business-related general liability and property insurance for autos, vans, pick-up trucks, and dump trucks used by small businesses; tractors, trailers, and straight trucks primarily used by regional general freight and expeditor-type businesses, and long-haul operators; dump trucks, log trucks, and garbage trucks used by dirt, sand and gravel, logging, and coal-type businesses; and tow trucks and wreckers used in towing services and gas/service station businesses; as well as non-fleet and airport taxis, and black-car services. The Property segment writes residential property insurance for homeowners, other property owners, and renters, as well as offers personal umbrella insurance, and primary and excess flood insurance. The company also offers policy issuance and claims adjusting services; and acts as an agent to homeowner general liability, workers' compensation insurance, and other products. In addition, it provides reinsurance services. The company sells its products through independent insurance agencies, as well as directly on Internet through mobile devices, and over the phone. The Progressive Corporation was founded in 1937 and is headquartered in Mayfield, Ohio.
By PTI: Kathmandu, Dec 26 (PTI) Nepals national carrier today said it plans to restart flights to its northern neighbour China after the service was suspended nearly a decade ago.

The airlines, a state-owned entity, has sought a landing permit from Chinese authority at Guangzhou international airport as it plans to re-enter the Chinese mainland.

The Nepal Airlines Corporation, had long been operating flights to the Hong Kong, China, until 2008, when it had to suspend flights owing to shortage of aircrafts.

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With addition of two more planes over the last two years, the airlines planned to reenter the Chinese airfield given the growing tourist arrivals from the northern neighbour in recent years. China is the second largest source market for Nepals tourism after India.

"We are expecting the landing permit from Chinese authority in the next few weeks and we have got information that the process is in the final phase. Maybe, we will get green signal to operate flight to Guangzhou from Kathmandu in a couple of months," said NAC Managing Director Sugat Ratna Kansakar.

Guangzhou destination in China is the region from where most of the Nepalese traders import Chinese goods and they have been requesting for air service from NAC for a long time.

"As it is also the destination for conducting many international connecting flights, there is also the possibility of inflow of more Chinese tourists," said Kansakar. PTI SBP UZM

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The Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the United Nations has issued a statement, explaining its decision to support the UN Security Council resolution, calling on Israel to halt settlement construction in the Palestinian territories.

The statement is posted on the Missions Facebook page.

The search for the conflict settlement is now almost in the deepest crisis throughout its history. The lack of prospects for the resuscitation of the peace process between Israel and Palestine results in the escalation of the security situation in Israel and the West Bank on an almost daily basis. Against this background, the unprecedented Israeli settlement activity in the Palestinian territories is unlikely to help tackle violence," the statement reads, UNIAN reports.

The initial draft of the resolution was much tougher in relation to Israel. It was later reworked and balanced significantly, with the inclusion several requirements, the Mission reports. "But the final text of the resolution has been reduced to the repetition of many of the provisions already adopted by the UN Security Council. The call for Israel to stop its settlement activities as a necessary condition for the settlement of the conflict with the Palestinians on the basis of the principle of coexistence of the two states is nothing new," reads the statement.

It is also noted that for Ukraine, any vote but "Yes" for a resolution calling for an end to illegal activities in the territories, which, under international law, have the status of the occupied areas, would not go in line with the fight on the diplomatic front against the temporary occupation of Crimea and parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions by the Russian aggressor.

"There are fundamental state issues, on which the position cannot and must not change depending on the political situation. There are national interests that do not always coincide with the interests of our partners, in particular Israel. From these interests, one cant either "abstain", or even more so, vote against," the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the UN says.

ol
Background:

Colima volcano is one of the most active in North America and one of the potentially most dangerous ones. It has had more than 30 periods of eruptions since 1585, including several significant eruptions in the late 1990s. Scientific monitoring of the volcano began 20 years ago.The Colima volcanic complex is the most prominent volcanic center of the western Mexican Volcanic Belt. It consists of two southward-younging volcanoes, Nevado de Colima (the 4320 m high point of the complex) on the north and the 3850-m-high historically active Volcan de Colima at the south.A group of cinder cones of probable late-Pleistocene age is located on the floor of the Colima graben west and east of the Colima complex. Volcan de Colima (also known as Volcan Fuego) is a youthful stratovolcano constructed within a 5-km-wide caldera, breached to the south, that has been the source of large debris avalanches. Major slope failures have occurred repeatedly from both the Nevado and Colima cones, and have produced a thick apron of debris-avalanche deposits on three sides of the complex. Frequent historical eruptions date back to the 16th century. Occasional major explosive eruptions (most recently in 1913) have destroyed the summit and left a deep, steep-sided crater that was slowly refilled and then overtopped by lava dome growth.---
Did you know that there are at least 15 active volcanoes in China? The last eruption was from the Kunlun volcano in 1951.
With the exception of credit-card use and self-fueling stations, the process of buying gasoline has changed little since the days of Henry Ford. So with gas prices rising again, seasoned technology innovators see an opportunity to change how people pay at the pump.

Even those who represent gas stations say the sector is ripe for innovation.

People will drive out of their way to save money on gas, even if they have to spend extra money on gas to get there, said Jeff Lenard, vice president of strategic initiatives at the National Association of Convenience Stores, a trade association for gas stations. Its a great feeling among consumers to take control of something they previously didnt have control of.

One team hoping to reinvent the market is Upside, a new 13-person company operating out of a co-working space in the Districts Chinatown. Founders Alex Kinnier and Wayne Lin once worked at Google before heading east to help build Opower, the Arlington-based home energy analytics firm. Opower became a D.C. success story when it sold to Oracle for $532 million earlier this year.

Upside is getting money and advice from some of Silicon Valleys most exclusive corners. It received an undisclosed amount of seed capital from Formation 8, a venture firm founded by former Facebook chief technology officer Gideon Yu. It is also getting counsel and funding from Hal Varian, a widely published academic who is Googles chief economist.

The companys secret sauce: exploiting a quirk in how gas stations compete for customers.

Upside negotiates discounts on the price of gasoline sold at individual stations and posts them on a map accessible from a smartphone app. Users claim their savings by taking a picture of their receipt, much like the mobile check-deposit services many banks now use.

Other apps, such as GasBuddy, have done this sort of thing for years. Where Upside stands out is on the supply side of the retail equation.

Individual gas stations tend to compete for prices on a corner-by-corner, highway-exit-by-highway-exit basis. Prices can be widely variant from one side of town to the other, but stations that cluster near one another in areas of heavy traffic often compete closely on pricing. If a gas station on a crowded block cuts its price by even one cent, the others tend to quickly follow suit, not wanting to lose any incremental customers.

Upside exploits that competition by offering its services to just one station in each cluster (whichever reaches out to Upside first), shutting the others out so that competitors have no idea what the true price of gas is at that station.

Upside further obscures what the price is by offering a different discount to each user. This reduces the possibility of a price war breaking out; rival stations would have a difficult time figuring out how much they are being undercut.

The D.C. areas fuel market has less competition than, say, an exit on an interstate highway, as stations tend to be less tightly packed. But that has not stopped 650 gas stations in the District, Maryland and Virginia from signing up. Kinnier says Upside is already turning down station owners whose neighbors beat them to the punch.

The company makes money by keeping for itself a small portion of what consumers save when they use the app, an undisclosed cut that represents a few percentage points of the customers total savings.

The service is too new to know whether it will be a success. It is only beginning to draw a following. As of Friday, the app had about 5,000 downloads in the Google Play Store and had an average user rating of 4.2 stars out of 5. The company says it has tens of thousands of users in total.

The companys founders persuaded a contact at Ubers D.C. office to send an email blast to its D.C.-area drivers, as part of an unpaid partnership that has given the app some devoted users among Uber drivers.

With the help of Hal Varians economic mind, the company wants to adapt the idea to other markets. The company is laser-focused on the fuel market for now, Kinnier says, but might try to expand to grocery stores later.

The common thread will be using mobile technology to exploit micro-level competition among individual retailers, saving consumers money and taking a cut of the savings.

The company plans to stick to markets for necessities; costs people have to incur on a regular basis to live. That would differentiate Upside from the daily deals market cornered by Groupon, which has seen consolidation in recent years after initially high hopes.

Its about helping people do better with the basic necessities in their life, Kinnier said.


George Michael performs in Amsterdam in June 2007. (Evert Elzinga/AFP/Getty Images)

George Michael was given only 53 years in this world, but he made them count. He was still a teenager in 1982 when he began triggering worldwide endorphin-rushes as a member of Wham! Five years and a few hairstyles later, he went solo, wiggled the backside of his Levis on MTV and became a global sex symbol. By the time 2004 rolled around, he was staging a big comeback at age 40, and he divulged the riddle of his craft that year in the pages of British GQ: People have always thought I wanted to be seen as a serious musician, but I didnt, I just wanted people to know that I was absolutely serious about pop music.

He had recently issued what would be his fifth and final studio album, Patience, a sensuous, sprawling meditation on sex, war, grief and commitment. Playful one moment and contemplative the next, the album seemed to give Michael an opportunity to sort out some important truths about pop itself: that our pleasure is not frivolous, and that heavy ideas travel further when theyre floating on bright melodies.

Now  after the British superstar died of heart failure in his home on Christmas Day  Michaels legacy seems to run in poignant parallel to those of other pop gods we lost in 2016. Like Prince, he sang about the transcendental potential of human sexuality, and like David Bowie, he sought liberation through reinvention. In 1987, Michael donned an iconic leather jacket in the music video for Faith. Three years later, he was burning it on a coat hanger in his video for Freedom 90. Fantastic.



George Michael leaves a news conference for the film George Michael  A Different Story in Berlin in February 2005. (Tobias Schwarz/Reuters)

And if freedom was what Michael was preaching in 1990, freedom is what we were hearing on Patience in 2004. In the years leading up to the album, he broke ranks with other zip-lipped superstars, writing and performing antiwar songs, including Shoot the Dog, a dance floor satire that skewered Tony Blair and George W. Bush. But in the context of Patience, the teasing mood of Shoot the Dog clashed powerfully with the albums title track, a ballad about feeling blinkered by the war machine. Fingertips barely touching the piano, Michael asks, Is it my imagination, or did God already leave the table?

Thats the kind of lyric that sends you scrambling back through an artists songbook, searching for everything you missed the first time around. (And about that: Has there ever been an opening line more deliciously flirty than, Well, I guess it would be nice if I could touch your body?)

1 of 18 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  A look back at the career of George Michael View Photos The British singer who rocketed to fame in the 1980s duo Wham! before embarking on a solo career, died at 53. Caption The British singer who rocketed to fame in the 1980s duo Wham! before embarking on a solo career, died at 53. April 7, 1985 The pop duo Wham! performs in Beijing before a capacity audience of Chinese and foreign fans. Neal Ulevich/AP Wait 1 second to continue.

Of course, this was entirely by design. Because I did my little bit of campaigning against the war, I had a feeling that it might make people listen a little more intently than they did before, Michael said in a 2004 interview with MTV.

Patience was a bigger hit in Europe than it was in the States, so if you werent listening then, please listen now. Youll hear songs about ecstatic bonds (Amazing), perilous romances (Cars and Trains), dark family secrets (My Mother Had a Brother), courageous dream chasers (Flawless (Go to the City)), deceased lovers (Please Send Me Someone (Anselmos Song)) and more. Its dizzying, just like life, and the entire thing is held together by the intimacy of Michaels vocal delivery  that warm, sandpapery pillow-talk that could soar without warning.

Michael once said that Patience captured his most confident songwriting since his rookie days in Wham!, and across these songs, the man sounds more absolutely serious about pop music than he ever did. He also promised that it would be his last album. Nobody wanted to believe him  then or now.
By PTI: Kathmandu, Dec 26 (PTI) Nepali Congress, which is part of the ruling coalition, today floated a four-point proposal to end the political deadlock in Nepal and decided to engage in talks with other stakeholders to reach an agreement.

Party parliamentary office-bearers and central members held a meeting under the leadership of party president Sher Bahadur Deuba at the parliamentary party office Singha Durbar.

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They decided to further intensify talks with the ruling partners and the oppositions to forge a consensus on the proposal.

The Nepali Congress (NC), the largest party in the Legislature-Parliament, proposed to announce the date for local poll immediately, endorse the election-related bills, resume the House proceedings and give a full shape to the Election Commission (EC).

It hoped that it will help find a ground to break the existing political deadlock, local media reported.

Party General Secretary Shashank Koirala told reporters after the meeting that the proposal was discussed.

However, the meeting did not mentioned the ground for holding the local level election (either in the existing structure or as per the new constitution).

The main opposition CPN (UML), which has obstructed the House since the registration of the Constitution amendment proposal on November 29, said it is ready to let the House resume business if political parties become committed to endorsing the local poll-related bill.

Likewise, three election-related bills are in the waiting for an approval at the Parliament while posts for three commissioners at the EC are lying vacant.

"A delay in opening the House business will prolong transition," Koirala said.

Senior party leader also Ramchandra Poudel spoke of the need of taking the country towards election phase to find a way out to the existing political imbroglio, saying the party would make initiative to forge a political agreement on holding the election. PTI SAI

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View of the cured and finished buds as well as growing medical marijuana plants propagated at a medical marijuana-growing operation in Washington. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post)

Medical marijuana could finally become a reality next year in Maryland, one of the states slowest to make the drug available for purchase after legalizing sales.

In 2016, regulators awarded long-awaited licenses to grow, process and sell cannabis while grappling with fallout from those shut out of the potentially lucrative industry. Now selected businesses are racing to set up facilities and pass final inspections so the first seeds can be planted and flowers can hit the shelves by the end of 2017, four years after lawmakers legalized marijuana for medicinal purposes.

For many of us who have been along this journey for a long time, that we have seen licenses issued is a light at the end of the tunnel for patient access, said Darrell Carrington, a medical marijuana lobbyist who leads the Maryland Cannabis Industry Association.

But ongoing litigation from three companies denied growing licenses, and looming legislation to address the lack of minority-owned marijuana firms, could delay the program.

As in 26 other states and the District of Columbia, the legal medical marijuana program in Maryland also hinges on the federal governments continuing to turn a blind eye to businesses that are violating the federal marijuana prohibition. Its unclear whether that will change in the presidency of Donald Trump, who has supported medical marijuana but tapped marijuana legalization opponent Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) as his attorney general.

Patrick Jameson, executive director of the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission, left, talks to reporters in November after the commission gave initial approval to 102 marijuana dispensaries in the state. Harry "Buddy" Robshaw, comission vice chairman of the commission, is standing at center, with panel chairman Paul Davies at right. (Brian Witte/AP)

Maryland marijuana regulators say the time spent exhaustively vetting businesses and developing strict oversight of their operations will end in one of the nations most reputable legal pot programs.

Its no secret that marijuana has a long-documented black market history, said Patrick Jameson, executive director of the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission and a former state trooper. The Commission understands that medical cannabis can be controversial, but it intends to make Marylands program a high-functioning, professional, industry-leading medical program.

Officials say they will closely monitor marijuana at every stage of the marketplace, from how much is grown to how much is sold, using a tracking system in place in Colorado meant to stop illegal diversions of the drug and cash.

In addition, Maryland is one of few states to require that marijuana be tested by an independent laboratory before it can be sold, an attempt to avoid poor-quality cannabis containing excessive amounts of pesticides.

The Commission and I understand that people are suffering, and we want to make the program operational as soon as possible, said Paul Davies, who chairs the 16-member marijuana commission. Hopefully, during the summer of 2017 medical cannabis will become available to patients.

He and others said it is not yet clear how the program could be affected by legislation proposed during the General Assembly session that begins Jan. 11 in Annapolis.

Del. Cheryl D. Glenn (D-Baltimore), who rallied black lawmakers behind the medical marijuana cause, is angry that no companies led by African Americans won grower licenses even after she pushed for legislative language to ensure minority participation.

She is using her new perch as head of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland to push for an overhaul of the cannabis commission and the diversification of the industry.

Glenn says she wants to void existing licenses and create a quicker, race-conscious process for approving marijuana growers  changes that advocates of medical cannabis warn could spur further delays.

Unfortunately, Maryland has had one of the slowest rollouts of a program like this in the country, said Kate Bell, a lobbyist for the Marijuana Policy Project. There are already patients who passed away waiting for this program. For very sick people, any delay can be significant.

It remains unclear what role Del. Dan K. Morhaim (D-Baltimore County) will play in supporting or opposing any new legislation. Morhaim, who was the legislatures chief proponent for medical cannabis, is affiliated with a marijuana company and has faced scrutiny from his legislative colleagues over his dual roles. He did not respond to a request for comment on the Black Caucuss efforts, or his legislative priorities for the coming year.

Maryland lawmakers first passed a law in 2013 allowing academic medical marijuana programs. The state authorized private medical marijuana businesses the next year, after no universities expressed interest in participating in the 2013 effort.

Other states have moved more quickly to get businesses up and running, advocates say. New York and Minnesota, for example, legalized medical marijuana in 2014, and already have the drug available for purchase with a doctors recommendation.

Glenn insists that her efforts to diversify the industry will not drive further delays. The issue is personal for her  the cannabis commission is named after her mother, Natalie LaPrade, who died of cancer before she could use medical marijuana to alleviate her pain.

I had my mothers picture with me when the bill was signed into law; I never forget the pain and suffering that people go through every day, Glenn said. We can get medicine in the hands of our patients, but we can do it with the correct amount of diversity.

Commission officials have defended their process for awarding licenses, and plan to hire a diversity consultant to advise them on ways to help boost minority participation in the industry.

Any attempts to redistribute or expand the number of licenses probably will face resistance from the companies that have won approval to grow and process.

Michael Bronfein, a prolific donor to Maryland Democrats who is chief executive of Curio Wellness, has been recruiting growers and processors to form a trade association and hire lobbyists to represent their interests in Annapolis.

At an October panel in Baltimore, he opposed expanding the number of cannabis growers in the coming year, according to news reports. He declined to comment for this article, citing a busy schedule.

Marijuana regulators say the success of the program depends on interest from patients and their doctors  and the quality of the businesses supplying them.

As of December, just 171 physicians have signed up to recommend medical cannabis  a number regulators expect to grow once the drug is available.

Other medical professionals  including nurse practitioners, dentists and podiatrists  can start signing up in June.

Those who want to purchase medical marijuana will have to enroll in a patient registry that will also be set up in 2017. Patients must have a Maryland physician registered with the commission and a qualifying medical condition, including cancer, post-traumatic stress disorder and seizures.

Commission officials warn that businesses currently trying to sell medical marijuana patient identification cards are scams.

After all of the politics, said Jameson, this program is about supply and demand.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) wants the state to spend $10 million over the next three years on a voucher program that allows low-income students to attend private schools. (Patrick Semansky/AP)

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogans plan to double the amount of money the state spends to provide scholarships for students to attend private schools is not sitting well with top legislative leaders.

Hogan (R) announced this month that he wants the state to spend $10 million over the next three years on Broadening Options and Opportunities for Students Today, or BOOST, a voucher program that allows low-income students to attend private schools.

The General Assembly agreed early this year to spend $5 million on the program, but it is unclear whether it will approve additional funds during the 2017 session, which begins Jan. 11.

Del. Maggie L. McIntosh (D-Baltimore), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, who supported the initial funding for the scholarship, said she is concerned about the states budget shortfall, the amount of money that will be given to public schools, and whether the new scholarship program is working as intended.

I think its premature, McIntosh said during a recent interview. I think we need to see how the money was used.

Sen. Richard S. Madaleno Jr. (D-Montgomery) said he considered it outrageous and irresponsible for Hogan to move toward more investment in private schools when the fate of the public school system is uncertain under a Trump administration. President-elect Donald Trump picked Betsy DeVos, a school-choice activist who has no professional experience with public schools, as his education secretary.

Doug Mayer, a spokesman for Hogan, said the governor wants to increase funding for the program now because its working and it helps kids and families that need help. . . . We need to look for alternative, creative and outside-the-box ideas to help the students who need it most.

The General Assembly approved BOOST as part of a budget compromise during the 2016 legislative session.

For the 2016-17 school year, the state awarded 2,464 private-school scholarships, totaling $4.8 million, to students who are eligible for free and reduced-price meals, an indication of poverty. The majority of the students are from Baltimore City, and Baltimore and Montgomery counties. About 960 of the students receiving scholarships are white, 937 are African American, and 346 are Hispanic. More than 1,900 BOOST scholarship students were enrolled in private school during the 2015-16 school year, according to the state Department of Education.

McIntosh said she would be concerned if religious organizations reduced the amount they would normally spend on scholarships, and instead used their own money elsewhere.

She said there are too many questions that need to be answered before moving forward.

Hogan has been a champion of school choice. He pushed for a scholarship program that would have provided tax credits to companies that contribute to the education of needy students at private schools. Similar legislation passed the Senate in previous years, but it died in the House, with fierce opposition from House Speaker Michael E. Busch (D-Anne Arundel).

Earlier this year, Busch said he was softening to the idea after hearing from a growing number of Democratic lawmakers from Baltimore and parts of Prince Georges County  urban areas with some of the states lowest-performing schools  that students need more educational options.

But Sean Johnson, assistant executive director for the Maryland State Education Association, which represents teachers, has long fought against vouchers, calling the existence of the program misguided. Doubling its funding would be a bad idea, given the tremendous unmet needs in our public schools, Johnson said.

The debate over scholarships and public school funding is shaping up to be a key wedge issue during the 2018 gubernatorial campaign.

Prince Georges County Executive Rushern L. Baker III (D), who is considering a run for governor, recently called an increase in spending the wrong approach.

Governor Hogans proposal to spend $10 million on private school vouchers sends the wrong message about Marylands commitment to a great public education for every child, Baker said in a statement.

Mayer said the governor has increased public education spending in each of his budgets and is committed to funding education at historic levels. He said the governor would pursue outside-the-box alternative means to help students and families. We can do both in Maryland. The only ones who arent willing are the political operatives at the teachers union.

A recent state report looking at Marylands investment in public schools found that the state needs to spend $2.9 billion more to meet the systems long-term needs.

Everyone needs to understand that when we have such massive unmet needs, any dollar dedicated to the private schools, whether its 5 million, 10 million or one dollar, it keeps us from meeting those needs, Johnson said.
A woman was killed and a man critically injured after their car hit a tree in Laurel on Monday afternoon, police said.

Sunya Smith, 58, of Baltimore died at Prince Georges Hospital Center after being extricated from the car by emergency officials, Laurel police spokeswoman Audrey Barnes said. The driver, a man, is in critical condition at the same facility.

Smith was visiting one of her three sons, her aunt Mona Herbert said. Smith, a retired Baltimore city employee, also had three grandsons.

She was a good mother, she was a Christian mother, she was a good grandmother, Herbert said.

The accident occurred just after 1 p.m. on Summerwind Circle off Sandy Spring Road. Police could not say what caused the crash, which involved no other vehicles.
Mohammad Masiuddin alias Musa, 26, wanted to launch attacks similar to the one Nice, France, at Missionaries of Charity headquarters to target foreigners.

Mohammad Masiuddin alias Musa has been charged by the NIA with planning a terror attack.

By Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu: Mohammad Masiuddin alias Musa, 26-year-old Birbhum man, who was charged by National Investigation agency (NIA) on December 23, has become the face of possibly India's first ever 'lone wolf' attacker when he planned to attack British, Russian and American nationals.

Musa planned to launch an attack akin to the one in Nice and Orlando at resting place of recently-canonized Saint Teresa and Missionaries of Charity headquarters to target the foreigners frequenting the place in a bid to avenge the bombardment on IS-held areas in Syria and Libya.

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Musa was arrested with the help of West Bengal CID on July 4 this year at Burdhwan station. Later, two of his associates Sheikh Abbasuddin alias Aamin and Saddam alias Kalo were also arrested.

The NIA chargesheet unravels that how terror groups are now transnational and transorganisational.

HOW THE CONSPIRACY WAS UNRAVELLED

The NIA chargesheet unravels the conspiracy: "Accused-1 (Musa) discusses the plan of action and selects the Missionaries of Charity as the target for a terrorist attack in Kolkata since foreigners (British, Russians, Americans) are easily found there."

"Accused 1 discusses with the member on the other side about the locations of Mother Teresa House in Kolkata that is at Ripon Street, Sealdah Railway Station, Park Circus and tells him that the foreigners viz. Russians, Britishers and Americans often visit that place and they can be attacked since they had bombarded ISIS in Syria and Libya. He tells that the ISIS is accruing loss and advises the member to remain in disguise as a non-Muslim," the NIA document reads further.

The chargesheet also mentions how Musa was in constant touch with two handlers - Dhaka's Holey Artisan Bakery attack mastermind, Abu Sulaiman, who is associated with the IS and Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and IS handler Shafi Armar, who had also worked for Indian Mujahideen, through mobile app Telegram that allows encrypted messages.

A terror plan in mind, he carefully picked targets in Jammu and Kashmir and West Bengal . The NIA chargesheet mentions of how he appears in one of the video's on YouTube, raising the ISIS flag in downtown Srinagar.

Musa, the chargesheet states, had allegedly planned to behead his neighbour Malay Chatterjee in Labhpur and also rape his daughter.

A PDF file on "How to survive in the west Mujahideen Explosive handout" was also recovered from him. Musa is from Birbhum, West Bengal, but worked in a shop in Tirupur in Tamil Nadu. Like many of the ISIS terror accused, got radicalised online.

Bangladeshi investigative agencies and the Federal Bureau of Investigation of the United States have already interrogated Musa.

ALSO READ:

Jaipur: Top anti-terror officer, woman found dead inside SUV

--- ENDS ---
Jason Miller, one of President-elect Donald Trump's top campaign advisers, said Saturday he would not take a job overseeing White House communications strategy. (Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images)

Twitter messages apparently posted by one of President-elect Donald Trumps aides have added some intrigue to the sudden resignation of Jason Miller, Trumps choice for communications director.

A tweet from the account of A.J. Delgado, an adviser to Trumps campaign and a member of the transition team, appeared Thursday with the message: Congratulations to the baby-daddy on being named WH Comms Director! Delgado also appeared to call Miller The 2016 version of John Edwards, a reference to the former U.S. senator and Democratic presidential candidate who carried on an extramarital affair with his campaign videographer. Two other tweets called on Miller to resign  which he did.

When people need to resign graciously and refuse to, its a bit . . . spooky, one tweet read. It was followed by another saying Miller needed to resign . . . yesterday.

Delgado deactivated her Twitter account Saturday and could not be reached for comment Sunday.

Miller, who had been named Thursday to the high-level post of overseeing White House communications strategy, unexpectedly announced Christmas Eve that the West Wing job would be too demanding and he wanted to focus on his family.

1 of 35 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  Heres a look at Trumps administration so far View Photos President-elect Donald Trump faces a challenge as he prepares for his move to the White House: selecting the men and women who will fill his administration. Caption The men and women the president-elect has selected for his Cabinet and White House team. Scott Gottlieb, nominee for commissioner of FDA President Trump is set to nominate Scott Gottlieb, a conservative physician and businessman with deep ties to the pharmaceutical industry, to be commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, a White House official said. Courtesy of American Enterprise Institute/via Reuters Wait 1 second to continue.

The departure of Miller, one of Trumps top campaign advisers and a leading spokesman for his transition efforts, has been an unwelcome distraction for the transition team as it assembles a government.

After spending this past week with my family, the most amount of time I have been able to spend with them since March 2015, it is clear they need to be my top priority right now and this is not the right time to start a new job as demanding as White House Communications Director, Miller said in a statement.

He added: My wife and I are also excited about the arrival of our second daughter in January, and I need to put them in front of my career. I look forward to continuing to support the President-elect from outside after my work on the Transition concludes.

Contacted on Sunday about the Twitter messages, Miller said in an email that Ill let my previous statement stand at this time.

Delgado, an attorney, is a former columnist for Mediaite and was one of Trumps staunchest defenders during the campaign. In early October, as some Republicans abandoned Trump after a videotape revealed lewd talk years earlier by the GOP nominee, Delgado tweeted: Trumps talk has zero impact on how his policies would affect Americans. But sure, lets waste a day in the Ivory Tower feigning outrage. She frequently defended him in TV appearances during the campaign.

Sean Spicer, a veteran GOP operative who was named White House press secretary, will take over what were expected to be Millers duties and will also have the title of communications director, Miller said in the statement.

According to the New York Post, Delgado, Miller and another Trump aide were seen in a Las Vegas Strip club on the night before the final presidential debate in October with three employees from CNN, NBC and ABC.

(Deirdra O'Regan/The Washington Post)

Miller, who has worked as a political consultant at Jamestown Associates, has a long history in GOP politics.

Miller joined Trumps campaign as senior communications adviser shortly before the Republican National Convention, after serving as a top communications aide for the presidential campaign of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.). He oversaw the Trump campaigns communications throughout the general election. He continued in that role during the transition, sharing lead spokesman duties with Spicer.
ILLINOIS

A violent holiday weekend in Chicago

More than 40 people were shot over the holiday weekend and more than three dozen guns were seized, Chicago police said Monday.

The shooting tally included violence at a family Christmas party on the citys South Side at which two people were killed and several others wounded.

Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said the majority of shootings and homicides from Friday afternoon through Monday morning were targeted attacks by gangs against potential rivals who were at holiday gatherings.

He said 45 guns had been seized since Friday afternoon, slightly more than a typical weekend.

Violence over the holiday weekend comes during a surge in city violence. More than 700 homicides have been reported this year. Last year, fewer than 500 homicides were reported.

 Associated Press

PENNSYLVANIA

Drexel to meet with professor after tweet

A Drexel University professor has been summoned to a meeting with school officials after he tweeted a Christmas Eve message that appeared to support white genocide.

George Ciccariello-Maher, who is white and an associate professor of politics at the Philadelphia university, told the Associated Press by email Monday that his Christmas Eve message to nearly 11,000 Twitter followers  All I Want for Christmas is White Genocide  was meant to be satirical.

Drexel was not amused, condemning Ciccariello-Mahers tweet and saying in a statement that it was taking this situation very seriously.

Ciccariello-Maher, whose online biography says his academic specialties include race and racism, said Drexel apparently didnt understand the content or the context of his tweet. The professor said he was mocking what he called the imaginary concept of white genocide, which he says was invented by white supremacists.

Ciccariello-Maher followed up his initial tweet by praising the massacre of whites in Haiti during the countrys slave uprising and revolution more than two centuries ago.

His weekend messages spread quickly online. He said he has received hundreds of death threats.

 Associated Press

Prison inmates escape by removing toilet from wall: Authorities in Tennessee are searching for four inmates who broke out of jail on Christmas. Media reports quoted the Cocke County Sheriffs Department as saying six inmates escaped early Sunday after removing a toilet from a wall and going through a hole behind it that led outside. The reports said that two inmates were caught by Christmas evening and that four remain at large.

 Associated Press
CONGO

34 reportedly killed, fueling instability fears

Militias in eastern Congo killed at least 34 civilians over the weekend, the army and local activists said, and the violence stoked concerns about political instability.

Attacks have surged across the nation in the past week alongside protests over President Joseph Kabilas failure to step down at the end of his constitutional mandate on Tuesday.

Although it is not clear that all the violence is related, analysts fear that political instability over Kabilas tenure is stoking localized conflicts by creating security vacuums.

An ethnic Nande militia killed at least 13 Hutu civilians on Sunday in the eastern town of Nyanzale in an apparent revenge attack for the deaths of Nande civilians last week at the hands of an ethnic Hutu militia, local activist Innocent Gasigwa said.

On Saturday, 21 civilians and four militiamen were killed near the city of Beni, 185 miles north of Nyanzale, a local army spokesman said.

At least 40 people died last week in protests against Kabilas refusal to step down. The government says he will remain in office until an election can be organized in 2018.

African and Western powers fear that the violence could spark a new conflict in a country where millions died between 1996 and 2003 in regional wars.

 Reuters

PHILIPPINES

Major typhoon spoils Christmas holiday

A powerful typhoon slammed into the eastern Philippines on Christmas Day, spoiling the biggest holiday in Asias largest Catholic nation, where a governor offered roast pig to entice villagers to abandon family celebrations for emergency shelters.

Typhoon Nock-Ten was packing maximum sustained winds of 114 mph and gusts of up to 158 mph when it made landfall Sunday night in Catanduanes province, where fierce winds and rain knocked down the islands power and communications, officials said. There were no reports of injuries.

After Catanduanes, the typhoon was expected to barge westward across the mountainous southern plank of the Philippiness main island of Luzon and blow close to the capital, Manila, on Monday, before starting to exit toward the South China Sea.

Heavy rainfall, destructive winds and battering waves were threatening heavily populated rural and urban regions, where the national weather agency raised typhoon warnings, stranding thousands of people in ports as airlines canceled flights and ferries were prevented from sailing. Officials warned of storm surges in coastal villages, flash floods and landslides, and asked villagers to move to safer ground.

Gov. Miguel Villafuerte of Camarines Sur province, which is in the typhoons expected path, offered roast pig, a popular Christmas delicacy, to entice villagers to head to emergency shelters.

Camarines Sur officials had targeted about 50,000 families  about 250,000 people  for evacuation by Saturday night, but the number of those who responded was initially far below expectations.

 Associated Press

Unwell British queen misses Christmas service: A bad cold kept Queen Elizabeth II from attending the traditional Christmas morning church service near her Sandringham estate in rural Norfolk, England, raising some concerns about her health. It is rare for Elizabeth, 90, to miss the service, which is a cornerstone of the British royal familys Christmas celebrations. Elizabeth has been in generally good health and has maintained an active schedule in the past year despite traveling less often than in the past.

2 Libyans charged in Malta with hijacking flight: Two Libyan men have been arraigned in a Maltese court on charges of hijacking a domestic Libyan flight to the Mediterranean island of Malta. Moussa Saha and Ahmed Ali entered pleas of innocence and face up to life in prison. The hijacking standoff Friday at Valletta airport ended peacefully after negotiations. Those on board the hijacked Afriqiyah Airways plane returned to Libya on a different aircraft Saturday.

Pakistan releases Indian fishermen: Pakistani officials said 220 Indian fishermen have been released from a prison in the port city of Karachi and will be handed over to Indian authorities. Prison official Shunail Shah said that about 500 Indian fishermen had been imprisoned over the past year for fishing illegally in Pakistani territorial waters. Shah said that the first batch of fishermen have left prison and that 219 will be released next week.

 From news services
HAVING HELD partial or controlling stakes in companies ranging from Phillips Petroleum to American Railcar Industries, billionaire investor Carl Icahn certainly knows a thing or two about how federal regulators deal with business. He also is, at 80, a successful, intelligent, deeply experienced investment pro. Whether his is the ideal resume for a special adviser to the president on regulatory reform is less clear. Foxes are experts on chicken coops, it is true.

Federal safety, environmental and financial regulations necessarily involve balancing of costs and benefits to the public. The Obama administrations approach frequently struck the balance in favor of more rules, and there is a reasonable case to be made that pruning regulatory overgrowth could, indeed, help the economy  which, by the way, is doing reasonably well. But Mr. Icahns sweeping indictments of the regulatory agencies, voiced repeatedly during the campaign, suggest he would urge President-elect Donald Trump to swing wildly in the opposite direction. You almost get enraged by some of the stuff, he told CNBC on Thursday.

The Trump transition teams statement announcing Mr. Icahns new role quoted him as saying that under President Obama, Americas business owners have been crippled by over $1 trillion in new regulations. We dont know where that number comes from, though we did find an estimate from the conservative regulation skeptics at American Action Forum, a think tank, that puts the total cost of major new regulation imposed since the beginning of the second term of George W. Bushs presidency at $1 trillion. Notably, that study also mentioned $745 billion worth of offsetting social benefits.

No doubt Mr. Icahn speaks from genuine principle. But if someone were to charge him with talking his own book, it would be a hard accusation to refute, because his many companies are so frequently and conflictually embroiled with regulators. Mr. Icahn helped vet Mr. Trumps nominee to head the Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Pruitt, even though Mr. Icahn controls an EPA-regulated oil refiner, CVR Energy, according to the Wall Street Journal. Mr. Icahns American Railcar Industries is suing the Federal Railroad Administration for allegedly unlawfully requiring it to test tank cars for leaks.

How, exactly, are Mr. Icahn and, more importantly, Mr. Trump to be held accountable for the inherent conflicts in this situation? The transition team said Mr. Icahn will be advising the President in his individual capacity and will not be serving as a federal employee or a Special Government Employee and will not have any specific duties. Nor will he get a salary. Mr. Icahn told CNBC there is no problem because he will not be making policy, just basically talking to Donald as Ive talked before. If anything, this proposed status only compounds the problematic lack of an institutional check on what Mr. Icahn does when Donald is president, with the power to move markets.

Mr. Trump praised Mr. Icahn, extravagantly, as someone who is innately able to predict the future especially having to do with finances and economies. Perhaps. Neither man, however, seems able to foresee the quite obvious ethical problems they may be creating for the next administration  and themselves.
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 26 (PTI) State-owned NTPC today said that its wholly-owned arm NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam has signed power purchase pact with Nepal Electricity Authority to supply 160 MW power for January-May 2017.

"NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Limited (NVVN)...has signed Power Purchase Agreement(PPA) with Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) for supply of up to 160 MW power for the period January 2017 to May 2017 through Muzaffarpur-Dhalkebar transmission line," the company said in a statement.

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The agreement was signed by Arun Kumar Garg, CEO, NVVN and Kul Man Ghising Managing Director, NEA, the statement said.

NVVN is the only government company in the power sector engaged in the business of power trading. PTI SID BAL

--- ENDS ---
The horrific stories from Aleppo  the bombings of pediatric hospitals, the executions of fleeing women and children, the thousands of men disappeared or press-ganged into military service  have obscured something of a good news story unfolding just a couple of hundred miles away across the Syria-Iraq border, in Mosul.

Humanitarian agencies and human rights monitors say they have been shocked  in a good way  by the behavior of the U.S.-backed Iraqi forces that are slowly recapturing the city from the Islamic State. Elite counter-terrorism troops are moving street by street through tightly packed neighborhoods where hundreds of thousands of people are still living  only slightly more than 100,000 of Mosuls more than 1 million people have fled to camps outside the city. Facing scores of suicide bombers, barrages of rockets and deadly snipers, the Iraqis are taking heavy casualties  so much so that the government protested when the United Nations reported that nearly 2,000 security force members were killed in November alone.

Yet so far at least, the invading force has sought to protect rather than slaughter the local population. There is no indiscriminate bombing or shelling of apartment buildings; no executions of women and children; no mass disappearances of men. In the camps, a majority of refugees are saying that their needs are mostly being met and that they are better off than they were under the Islamic State, according to a survey by the Norwegian Refugee Council. Its remarkable how well civilians have been treated, says Belkis Wille, the Iraq researcher at Human Rights Watch. The Iraqi security forces are behaving well.

This is not to say that civilians are not being harmed. The U.N. reported that nearly 900 were killed in and around Mosul in October and November. But most of the casualties have been inflicted by the Islamic State. In contrast, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says it has documented 19,000 killed and wounded in Aleppo since April, including 1,600 civilians killed by Russian and Syrian government airstrikes.

The Mosul difference may not last: The fight is an ugly one that could go on for months. For now, though, the world is witnessing two radically different models for the recapture of Arab cities. In Aleppo, there is the scorched-earth, indiscriminate-massacre paradigm of Russia, Iran and the regime of Bashar al-Assad; and in Mosul there is the civilian protection strategy embraced by the Iraqi government of Haidar al-Abadi under U.S. tutelage.

Several questions arise from this. Apart from the large savings in human lives, will the different strategies lead to different political outcomes? Will the humane treatment of Sunnis in Iraq create a chance for political reconciliation that Syria does not have? And will the disparity between Russian-Iranian brutality and U.S.-Iraqi humaneness make any difference to other Arab regimes, global opinion or, for that matter, incoming president Donald Trump?

In Iraq, its hard to be optimistic that the Shiite-led government will come to terms with the Sunni and Kurdish minorities after the Islamic State is defeated. A recent report by the Institute for the Study of War says a new Sunni insurgency could rise up after Mosul is recaptured, perhaps led by a revived version of Saddam Husseins Baathist movement, or by al-Qaeda. Thats because the military restraint of the Abadi government in Mosul has not been accompanied by meaningful political outreach to Sunni leaders.

Still, international monitors in Mosul see hopeful signs. The Norwegian Refugee Council said its interviews in the camps outside Mosul showed that the majority of displaced people were upbeat and believed their families would live in comfort and safety in Iraq in the future. A slight majority of respondents said they expected more conflict in Iraq rather than peace and security, but the council said that looked good compared with the overwhelming consensus on conflict it expected.

Wille says that the decent treatment of Mosul civilians is reinforcing the belief of those just out of ISIS control that the state is indeed there to protect and care for them . . . which bodes better for the social contract going forward. Mosuls post-Islamic State leaders could have the leeway to work with the Abadi government without appearing traitorous to the locals.

Trumps early decisions about the Middle East could reinforce or reverse the positive trend. Will he stick with the slow-but-humane strategy in Mosul, or will he demand that the city and its terrorist defenders be bombed, Putin style? Will he leave U.S. forces in Iraq after Mosul is recaptured, or withdraw and leave another vacuum for Iran or al-Qaeda? Will he join Russias scorched-earth campaign in Syria? The humanitarians quietly celebrating Mosul now have much to fear in the near future.

Read more from Jackson Diehls archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Regarding Sen. John McCains (R-Ariz.) Dec. 23 op-ed Our empty witness in Syria:

I am disappointed that Mr. McCain provided no policy options for U.S. action in Syria, instead saying that the United States should do something.

The war in Syria is a tragedy that demands policymakers attention, but criticizing the Obama administrations response without an examination of alternative policy options and the risks involved betrays a lack of serious thinking about the United States stake in Syria. Should the United States deploy ground forces to Syria? Should we do so in the absence of a U.N. resolution? Should the United States engage Russian and Syrian air defenses to implement a no-fly zone? It is disappointing that Mr. McCain seems unwilling to address these questions after close to six years of conflict.

It is also disappointing that Mr. McCain addresses violence in Syria but has not taken an equally strong stance on violence in the United States. Approximately 180,000 Americans have been killed from gun-related violence, and hundreds of thousands more injured, in the United States since the crisis in Syria started, far outpacing the threat from Islamic State-inspired terrorists. I hope Mr. McCain can find some time to lend his stature to advocating for gun control that can start to reduce this terrible statistic while making sure the next San Bernardino-style attack is not enabled by easy access to firearms.

Nicholas Reinhold, New York

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) is rightly appalled at the carnage and suffering in Aleppo, Syria, inflicted by the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad aided by Russia and Iran. If their targeting of hospitals and civilians does not constitute a war crime, then the phrase has little meaning. Mr. McCain does not mention our efforts at arming the anti-government rebels in this civil war, but that oversight is excusable because that approach was only calculated to prolong the war, not to end it.

But Mr. McCain failed to provide a military strategy, or even a concept, that has any chance of working in a theater with multiple combatants, virtually none of whom are aligned with our interests. Should we send in ground troops to fight multiple radical Islamist terrorist groups, the Islamic State, the Syrian government, Russia and Iran? If we invade, what is our definition of success and when can we leave? We are currently bombing the Islamic State in Syria; should we redirect our firepower to the Syrian and Russian militaries? To be clear, that would constitute an act of war.

The current administration and the American people are painfully aware of the humanitarian catastrophe in Syria. What is Mr. McCains military solution?

Michael Curry, Austin

Charles Krauthammer is at it again. Rather than condemning President Obama for his policies with regard to Syria, we should reward our president for what amounts to U.S. prudence in Aleppo [Aleppo and American decline, op-ed, Dec. 23]. Neoconservative-style intervention almost always costs more than wise discretion.

The only mistake Mr. Obama has made in Syria was drawing a so-called red line he could not enforce. Other than that, it is good that we did not get any more involved in the Syrian quagmire than we did.

I doubt the Russians, for all their efforts to intervene, will enjoy it much.

Panos Kakaviatos, Arlington
Christine Emba is the editor of In Theory, and she writes about ideas for The Washington Posts Opinions section. Follow her @christineemba

Since 2013, Rev. Russell Moore has been president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, this countrys biggest Protestant denomination. While deeply conservative on traditionally religious issues such as abortion, gay marriage and religious freedom, Moore was one of the few prominent evangelicals this election season to remain an outspoken critic of Donald Trump throughout the presidential campaign. He challenged the candidate on issues that seemed fairly obvious to any practicing Christian (the serial lying, immoral business practices, questionable sexual ethics, etc.) in surprising contrast to many others on the religious right who ignored or even made excuses for the candidates behavior.

Trump won 81 percent of the white evangelical vote. And for his trouble, Moore is now under fire from prominent voices within his own church. According to reporting from the Wall Street Journal, a number of Baptist pastors are considering cutting funding to the organization he heads in a potentially dramatic rebuke for his behavior. Since Dr. Moore has taken over [the ERLC], there are a lot of things that are being said on various issues that the Southern Baptist people at large dont agree with, one pastor told NPR.

The criticism being leveled at Moore by his religious counterparts says more about what the evangelical establishment mistakenly values today than it does about anything that Moore has done wrong. And it misunderstands the true role that Christians could  and should  play in the public square under a president who is likely to be dismissive of their cause.

So what is it that Moore said that these ostensible moral leaders dont agree with? The statement that if character matters, character matters? His argument that if social conservatives were willing to argue against Bill Clinton in the 1990s, evangelical voters today should ask hard questions about a potential presidents personal morality and fitness for office?

Perhaps it was that he pointed out how it was a scandal and a disgrace that when the sexually predatory Access Hollywood tapes were released, virtually all of the reaffirmations of support for Trump came from religious conservative leaders.

Or maybe it was Moores writing that what affects black and Hispanic and Asian Christians ought to affect white Christians. As one conservative Christian friend of mine observed, nothing says white identity comes before Christian identity quite like a prominent evangelical organization trying to oust an otherwise-orthodox pastor for daring to promote racial reconciliation.

Really, what the majority of Moores statements have in common (apart from being, well, correct  at least according to traditional, values-first Christian teaching) is that they might offend those being criticized, the president-elect included. That, in turn, might result in  gasp  a loss of political power.

And thats what his Christian critics seem to be responding to. Hes going to have no access, basically, to President Trump, was the observation of one of the pastors considering yanking Moores funding. Because  and how did we miss this?  access is now the end goal of Christians in Washington.

The thing is, even when religious groups have bowed and kowtowed enough to think they have the ear of a president, it rarely works out as expected: Christian leaders who think that having access means that theyll be taken seriously when it comes to policymaking have been disappointed, including during the tenures of self-declared Christian presidents like the evangelical George W. Bush or Barack Obama. David Kuo, the now-deceased deputy director of the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives under Bush, recalled in 2006 how quickly his office dropped down the presidents list of priorities. Evangelical ethicist David Gushee, who was in frequent contact with Obamas team, called the presidents advisers useful idiots. Under President-elect Trump, its hard to imagine that the results would be any better.

Evangelical Christians still make up a healthy swath of the U.S. population, but theyre firmly in the minority and shrinking fast. Some scholars argue that the rising number of people who have decided against affiliating with any religion is due to a rejection of how Christianity especially often finds itself amorally entangled with conservative politics.

Many Christian leaders have made the bet that, as their numbers dwindle, their best hope for promoting the ethically sound policies on topics such as abortion, marriage and gender is maintaining access and influence where it counts  the White House and the Supreme Court.

But where Christian leaders should be seeking influence, especially in a rapidly secularizing society in which their views seem ever more countercultural, is in trying to remain a respected moral voice worth engaging with  not by setting aside their most distinctive values in a grab for shifting political power. The most persuasive religious leaders will be those who, like Russell Moore, remain distinguishable from everyone else. Attacking the most principled among themselves is an attack on Christians best chance for survival in the public square.
In his Dec. 22 letter, Probe the Russia connection? The public wont care, Fred Kranz pointed out that a published survey showed only half of the public was offended by the cyber-intrusion of Russia in our election, claiming that the public will quickly lose interest and move on to other priorities. The president-elect said that he could shoot someone in the street and not lose a supporter. The first is against the law and so would be the second. It is truly frightening that half the people and the president-elect evince little concern about the rule of law. Fortunately for the United States, we do not rely on voters to enforce our laws.

Craig Hoogstra, Washington
Donald Trump is set to inherit an uncommon number of vacancies in the federal courts in addition to the open Supreme Court seat, giving the president-elect a monumental opportunity to reshape the judiciary after taking office.

The estimated 103 judicial vacancies that President Obama is expected to hand over to Trump in the Jan. 20 transition of power is nearly double the 54 openings Obama found eight years ago following George W. Bushs presidency.

Confirmation of Obamas judicial nominees slowed to a crawl after Republicans took control of the Senate in 2015. Obama White House officials blame Senate Republicans for what they characterize as an unprecedented level of obstruction in blocking the Democratic presidents court picks.

The result is a multitude of openings throughout the federal circuit and district courts that will allow the new Republican president to quickly make a wide array of lifetime appointments.

State gun control laws, abortion restrictions, voter laws, anti-discrimination measures and immigrant issues are all matters that are increasingly heard by federal judges and will be influenced by the new composition of the courts. Trump has vowed to choose ideologues in the mold of the late Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia, a conservative icon  a prospect that has activists on the right giddy.

1 of 35 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  Heres a look at Trumps administration so far View Photos The men and women the president-elect has selected for his Cabinet and White House team. Caption The men and women the president-elect has selected for his Cabinet and White House team. Scott Gottlieb, nominee for commissioner of FDA President Trump is set to nominate Scott Gottlieb, a conservative physician and businessman with deep ties to the pharmaceutical industry, to be commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, a White House official said. Courtesy of American Enterprise Institute/via Reuters Wait 1 second to continue.

Im optimistic hell come at this right out of the gate, said Carrie Severino, chief counsel and policy director of the Judicial Crisis Network, a conservative group that has opposed many of Obamas court choices.

Every president can expect to make a huge impact, Severino added. [Trump] is unique in having campaigned really hard on this issue  the significance of the courts, and of the Supreme Court in particular.

The Supreme Court vacancy created by Scalias death in February was a motivating issue for many conservative voters, especially evangelical Christians, to turn out for Trump. Senate Republicans refused to hold even a hearing on Obamas nomination of Merrick Garland, the chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, for the Scalia seat.

[Trumps victory has enormous consequences for the Supreme Court]

Democrats accuse Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), chairman of the Judiciary Committee, of intentionally denying Obamas nominees a fair hearing and running out the clock in hopes that a Republican would succeed him, as Trump has.

Twenty-five of Obamas court nominees were pending on the Senate floor, after having been approved out of the committee with bipartisan support, but did not get a vote before the Senate ended its two-year term before the holidays, according to White House spokesman Eric Schultz.

Republican tactics have been shameful and will forever leave a stain on the United States Senate, Schultz said. Republican congressional dysfunction has now metastasized to the third branch of government, and that is not a legacy to be proud of.

(elyse samuels/The Washington Post)

Trump spoke frequently about his intentions to put forward a more conservative Supreme Court nominee as a way to galvanize the right.

The replacement of our beloved Justice Scalia will be a person of similar views, principles and judicial philosophies, Trump said in his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention. Very important. This will be one of the most important issues decided by this election.

Although Trump spoke little on the campaign trail about the many vacancies on lower courts, remaking the federal judiciary overall has been a priority of his and of Vice President-elect Mike Pence, aides said.

Trumps older sister, Maryanne Trump Barry, is a senior judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit. First appointed to the federal bench by President Ronald Reagan, Barry was later elevated to the circuit court by President Bill Clinton and is known for her relative moderation. She has spoken out against womens claims of sexual harassment yet also struck down a New Jersey law banning late-term abortions as unconstitutional.

Trump transition officials declined to comment on the process of selecting nominees, but incoming White House Counsel Don McGahn is expected to play a key role. Such groups as the Federalist Society and the Heritage Foundation have been working with the Trump team to suggest possible candidates.

The judiciary also is a top priority for McConnell, who stands ready to help the Trump White House identify candidates and grease the sometimes-laborious Senate confirmation process.

The Trump administration and the Senate will be under pressure to quickly install judges in courts around the country where cases are severely backlogged because of long-vacant seats.

There are 38 so-called judicial emergencies, according to the nonpartisan Judicial Conference, including in Texas, where seven seats have sat empty for more than one year. The Obama administration and the states two conservative Republican senators could not come to an agreement on nominees for the many openings.

There is a real impact on real people, said W. Neil Eggleston, Obamas White House counsel. There are people and companies who are not having their cases heard because there are no judges around.

The politics surrounding judicial vacancies are more poisonous than at any time in recent memory, as the Garland episode has shown, with Democrats and Republicans at loggerheads for much of the two years since McConnell took leadership of the Senate.

[Supreme Court to begin new term short-handed as its ideological balance hinges on fall vote]

Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (Vt.), the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, issued a 4,200-word statement this month saying that by blocking Garland, Republicans had committed the most outrageous act of obstruction and irresponsibility that he had seen in his 42 years in the Senate.

Speaking more generally about circuit and district court vacancies, Leahy added: Despite the fact that there are dozens of qualified, consensus nominees pending on the Senate floor right now, we will finish this Congress having confirmed just 22 judicial nominees in two years. That is the lowest number since Harry Truman was president.

As with many subjects, judicial nomination data can be subject to interpretation. Judicial vacancies ebb and flow somewhat randomly, considering judges serve lifetime appointments until they choose to retire or die.

It is a challenge to make apples-to-apples comparisons at the end of a term because vacancies dont happen in the same regular basis as they do in the Senate or the White House, said Don Stewart, a spokesman for McConnell. To make an apples-to-apples comparison on a snapshot in time doesnt work.

Despite Obamas difficulty winning confirmation for his nominees, the Senate has confirmed more of his nominees during his eight years as president, 329, than it did Bushs during his eight years in office, 326.

Beth Levine, a spokeswoman for Grassley, said, The White House has very little to complain about because no matter how they spin it, the fact is that President Obama had more judicial nominees confirmed than President Bush.

Obama has used his nominations to systematically diversify the federal courts to look more like the fast-changing country. He appointed far more female and minority judges than any other president in history, and he has paid particular attention to sexual orientation. When Obama took office, there was only one openly gay or lesbian judge, and he appointed 11 more.

The president, my predecessors and I spent a significant amount of time looking for all different kinds of diversity  racial, sexual orientation, gender and professional background, Eggleston said.

[Obama pushing to diversity federal judiciary amid GOP delays]

When Obama took office, only one of the 13 regional circuit courts had a majority of Democratic-nominated judges, and as he leaves, nine do. While the Supreme Court hears roughly 75 cases a year, tens of thousands are decided at the circuit court level, affecting all who live in the states within those circuits.

Russell Wheeler, an expert on judicial nominations at the Brookings Institution, said Trump has a great opportunity to change the partisan split in the federal courts. He predicted that by mid-2020, Republican appointees would hold about half of the 673 district judgeships, as opposed to the current 34 percent. And among the 179 circuit court judgeships, Democratic appointees now hold a slim majority, 51 percent, but that could fall to about 43 percent.

But Wheeler warned that there are important limitations to Trumps power. For one thing, many of the judges most likely to leave their appointments in the coming years were appointed by Republican presidents, meaning there will be fewer opportunities to shift the partisan makeup.

And perhaps more importantly, 28 of the 50 states will be represented by at least one Democratic senator, including large ones such as California, Florida and New York. Senate leaders have a tradition of considering nominees only if they are supported by both senators representing their state  and Democratic senators are expected to bargain hard with the Trump administration, just as Republican senators did with Obamas.

The president doesnt always get exactly who he wants, Wheeler said.


Burundian U.N. peacekeepers patrol the Castors neighborhood in Bangui, Central African Republic, in February. Critics say the United Nations should no longer accept peacekeepers from Burundi because its security forces have been linked to human rights violations during a political crisis in that country. (Jane Hahn/For The Washington Post)

The three officers had received blue badges and slipped blue covers over their helmets. They were now U.N. peacekeepers, sent from Burundi to help protect victims of a brutal war in the Central African Republic.

But each of them had a past the United Nations was unaware of. When the deployments became public, Burundian activists were aghast.

One of the officers had run a military jail where beatings and torture occurred, according to civil-society groups and former prisoners. Another had committed human rights violations when anti-government demonstrations erupted in Burundi last year, U.N. officials would eventually learn. The third had served as the spokesman for the Burundian army, publicly defending an institution accused of abuses.

They set out for the Central African Republic in different U.N. deployments over the past year. In each case, U.N. officials soon determined that the allegations against the soldiers and their units were credible enough to send them home.

The three cases point to a deeper problem: Even as the United Nations peacekeeping responsibilities grow, it has proven incapable of excluding potential human rights violators from its ranks. The United Nations is managing 16 peacekeeping missions around the globe, with over 100,000 uniformed personnel and an annual $8 billion budget, more than 25 percent of it paid by the United States.

As the world body scrambles to fulfill its commitments, it is recruiting some peacekeepers from militaries that have records of abuse or serve repressive governments. Yet the United Nations does not have an effective system to weed out those with violence-stained backgrounds. That puts the institution at risk of deploying peacekeepers who will tarnish its credibility and even harm the people they were meant to protect.

The United Nations has faced a growing crisis over allegations of sexual abuse by its forces. Since 2008, U.N. troops, police and civilian officials have been accused of more than 700 cases of sexual abuse and exploitation, as well as other crimes, according to its records.

In Burundi, the government has used its security forces  including the military  to punish its political opponents, a U.N.-appointed team of human rights experts warned in September, adding that the forces were committing gross violations of human rights. The team recommended that the world body phase out its use of Burundian peacekeepers.

A senior U.N. spokesman, Farhan Haq, announced in June that it would not accept more Burundian police as peacekeepers in the Central African Republic after the 280-person contingent finished its tour, given the current allegations of serious and ongoing human rights violations in Burundi.





However, the United Nations continues to employ more than 800 Burundian soldiers in the Central African Republic, where senior officials say the troops are necessary to keep the peace. The United Nations also supports 5,400 Burundian troops through the African Unions mission in Somalia. Over the years, those missions have provided millions of dollars to the Burundian government for supplying the troops.



The Washington Post traced the cases of the three Burundian officers  Maj. Pierre Niyonzima, Lt. Col. Alfred Mayuyu and Col. Gaspard Baratuza  through interviews with U.N. officials, human rights groups and former Burundian soldiers and dissidents in that country and in exile. Government and military officials in Burundi did not respond to messages about the cases. Ernest Ndabashinze, Burundis ambassador to Washington, defended the professionalism of his countrys peacekeepers and said the accusations against the men were part of a campaign of misinformation directed by his countrys political opposition.

Human rights groups say the United Nations failure to properly vet its forces undermines its mandate.

The weakest and most vulnerable around the world rely on the U.N. to protect them, but it wont be able to fulfill their expectations if its members send protectors who are known abusers back home, said Akshaya Kumar, deputy U.N. director at Human Rights Watch.

Screening at home

In Burundi, as elsewhere, the United Nations relies on the government that is contributing peacekeepers to screen them.

The United Nations does not have dedicated resources to carry out human rights screening of individual contingent members, nor do we have the means to assess the records of individuals, the U.N. spokesman Haq said in an email.

That might not be a problem in most countries  and indeed the Burundian military was once considered a relatively disciplined fighting force. But by the time Niyonzima was dispatched as a U.N. peacekeeper in December 2015, the situation in his country had changed.

Eight months earlier, Burundian President Pierre Nkurunzizas party had nominated him for a third term, prompting angry demonstrations by citizens who deemed the move unconstitutional. A failed military attempt to overthrow the government in May added to the turmoil.

Security forces opened fire on protesters, killing and injuring scores of people, and cracked down on suspected government foes, arresting hundreds, according to Human Rights Watch and other international groups. Most of the abuses were attributed to the police and government intelligence officers, but news reports cited witnesses as saying some soldiers used live ammunition against demonstrators.

After Niyonzima was deployed, the United Nations learned of allegations that he and two other Burundian peacekeepers had committed abuses in their homeland.

The U.N. human rights office has raised serious concerns about alleged human rights violations committed by the officers during the violent demonstrations which started in Burundi since April 2015, said a memo obtained by The Post dated Feb. 5, 2016, and issued by Lt. Gen. Maqsood Ahmed of the U.N. peacekeeping office in New York. The memo, which ordered the repatriation of Niyonzima and the two other men, was first disclosed by New York-based Inner City Press.

The U.N. did a background check that revealed allegations of his [Niyonzimas] direct implication in serious human rights violations in Burundi, a senior U.N. peacekeeping official in New York said in an email. He spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case.

The official did not provide details. But two former military officers who broke with the government, and are now refugees in Rwanda, said members of Niyonzimas unit had fired into a crowd of unarmed protesters in the capital in May 2015.

And this is the guy they send? asked one of the men, a 32-year-old former army captain, in an interview in Butare, Rwanda, near the border with Burundi.

The former captain and another ex-officer claimed that, in the same month, they saw Niyonzima among a group of soldiers and police who stormed a hospital in the capital where wounded coup supporters were being treated. Media reports after the attack on the Bumerec hospital showed bullet marks in the walls and blood on the floors. The security forces exchanged gunfire with people inside the hospital before detaining two wounded soldiers and one of their colleagues, according to Human Rights Watch.

Like several other witnesses and government critics who spoke to The Post, the former officers who provided the accounts spoke on the condition of anonymity, citing concerns about their security and the safety of relatives still in Burundi.



A former Burundian soldier, now in exile in Rwanda, shows scars from a gunshot wound and other injuries that he said he sustained when police and soldiers stormed Bumerec hospital in the Burundian capital in May 2015. The soldier said that Pierre Niyonzima was among the security forces involved in the attack. (Jane Hahn/For The Washington Post)

Niyonzima did not respond to emails from The Post seeking comment. Ndabashinze, the ambassador, said the allegations against the Burundian military and the soldiers it nominates as peacekeepers are part of a strategy of manipulating the international community.

He also said that Burundi vets its prospective peacekeeping troops.

The results are there, he said. When they are deployed, they do their jobs in a professional manner.

Beyond Burundi

Burundis military isnt the only one that supplies peacekeepers despite a widely criticized human rights record.

Congo sent 850 peacekeepers to the Central African Republic as part of an A.U. mission that in 2014 was absorbed by the United Nations. For years, Congos military has been accused by human rights groups of raping and killing civilians during a civil war.

The United Nations announced in January that it was ending Congos role in the mission in the Central African Republic, after finding that incoming troops failed to meet U.N. standards for vetting, training and equipment. U.N. officials said privately that the move was also in response to abuse allegations against the Congolese peacekeepers. At least 21 of them have been accused of raping or exploiting women and children during their assignments in the Central African Republic, according to the United Nations.

In many developing countries, peacekeeping assignments are considered a reward. In Burundi, a lieutenant makes about $500 per year but can earn more than $12,000 as a U.N. peacekeeper, according to interviews with eight former Burundian soldiers.

Current and former soldiers said the Burundian government frequently reserved the coveted peacekeeping nominations for loyalists.

You have no chance unless youre seen as protecting the regime, said one army captain who fled Burundi after the coup attempt.

Mayuyu was a government loyalist, an officer who had run a military detention center in Bujumbura where military and civilian dissidents were sent after the coup attempt, according to Burundian civil-society groups and eight men, interviewed separately, who spent time in the prison.

In August, a journalist asked at a U.N. news briefing in New York whether Mayuyu was being deployed as a peacekeeper, adding that the soldier had been linked to a unit that was involved in torture and other abuse in Burundi. The response was no.

Then, weeks later, Stephane Dujarric, the U.N. secretary generals spokesman, acknowledged to reporters that Mayuyu had been serving as a U.N. military observer in the Central African Republic since July, but added that he was being repatriated with immediate effect.

According to U.N. officials, Mayuyu had failed to disclose his role in the military police in his paperwork.

He had served in one of the units implicated in human rights abuses, but he had omitted that information, said the U.N. official in New York, speaking on the condition of anonymity. He did not elaborate.

Four of the former prisoners said they had been tortured or beaten in Mayuyus jail. One, a 28-year-old former military officer, said that during an interrogation, soldiers tied his arms behind his back and placed a wrench on his testicles. As he was questioned, the soldiers twisted the wrench, he said. Mayuyu wasnt one of the torturers, he said, but he was responsible for the detention center.

Another prisoner, a 29-year-old former army captain, said interrogators stabbed him in the thigh with a steak knife as he sat in a chair, his hands tied behind his back.

Over and over, he said, adding that Mayuyu did not administer the torture and was not present at the time. The two prisoners, who have been convicted of supporting the coup attempt, spoke by phone from a different jail in central Burundi.

It was not possible to independently confirm their accounts.

Reached by phone, Mayuyu said he was sent home based on rumors and denied the allegations of torture. He acknowledged that he commanded the military police unit but said there was no prison on his base. He said he didnt think it was relevant to list his unit on his U.N. forms.

Acts of violence

The United Nations and human rights groups have become increasingly alarmed about the Burundian security forces role in the violence in their country. In January, Amnesty International said it had found evidence of what appeared to be five mass graves near the Burundian capital, suggesting a deliberate effort by the authorities to cover up the extent of the killings by their security forces. In a report that month, the United Nations accused Burundian security forces of raping women in neighborhoods sympathetic to the opposition.

Willy Nyamitwe, the Burundian government spokesman, said in September that criticism of the countrys human rights record consisted of gratuitous assertions based on flying rumors and gossip.





Every month, the United Nations pays Burundi $1,300 for each soldier deployed to a peacekeeping mission, and the government keeps about $200, using the rest for the individuals salary, according to interviews with seven current and former Burundian troops. The United Nations permits such a practice, and a number of other countries do something similar.

But Burundian human rights groups have expressed concern that the funds are benefiting the financially troubled government.

In addition to its 800-member military contingent in the Central African Republic, Burundi has 5,400 troops in Somalia. They are attached to an A.U. mission, which is responsible for vetting the soldiers. The mission, however, is supported financially and logistically by the United Nations, United States and European Union. The E.U. is planning to start paying the Burundian troops in Somalia directly, to avoid funding their government, according to a senior E.U. official who spoke on the condition of anonymity for diplomatic reasons.

It is inconceivable that the United Nations and African Union want to protect peace in Somalia and other parts of the world by funding the repression in Burundi and rewarding criminals, said Pacifique Nininahazwe, the president of the Forum for Awareness and Development, a Burundian human rights organization.

The United Nations has struggled to find countries willing to send their troops to violent, remote regions, including some in sub-Saharan Africa.

Its so hard to generate troops to go to CAR that we cant afford to lose the Burundians, said a second U.N. peacekeeping official in New York.

Haq, the U.N. spokesman, said that removing the Burundian troops, who are based near the Central African Republics capital and close to an area controlled by armed groups, would create a security vacuum in a strategically sensitive location. As for U.N. money benefiting the Burundian government, we do not have the means by which to control the use by a government of reimbursements made to it, the spokesman said. But he added that the deployment of the Burundians was under constant review.

Complaints multiply

As more Burundian troops have served in the Central African Republic, more complaints against them have emerged. In July, a soldier was accused of sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl in Kemo prefecture. Another allegedly raped and impregnated a 13-year-old in the capital, Bangui. This month, the United Nations announced that it had identified 25 Burundian peacekeepers in the Central African Republic who were possible perpetrators of sexual abuse against women and girls in the past two years in Kemo. It has not released the names of the accused.

They are sending us guys who shouldnt be here, said one senior U.N. official in the country, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of diplomatic sensitivities.

In theory, if the United Nations has doubts about a countrys vetting procedures, it can conduct its own background checks. But in Burundi, such checks rarely occur, according to U.N. officials, because the U.N. agencies and watchdog organizations that would normally gather such information have been prevented from working.

Perhaps the most jarring illustration of the feeble U.N. vetting system was the case of Baratuza. In mid-December 2015, he set out for the Central African Republic, chosen by his country to serve as the new spokesman for the U.N. peacekeeping mission. Burundian civic activists erupted in outrage, launching a Twitter campaign with the hashtag #SendBaratuzaBack.



Col. Gaspard Baratuza, a spokesman for Burundis army, addresses reporters in Cibitoke in 2014. When he was chosen for U.N. duty, civic activists were outraged. They launched a Twitter campaign to stop him. (Renovat Ndabashinze/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

A simple Internet search would have shown that Baratuza had defended aggressive Burundian military operations while serving as army spokesman. What especially infuriated the activists was his comment that 79 enemies had been killed by government forces on Dec. 11, 2015, after attacks by armed men on several military installations in Bujumbura. Amnesty International reported that the deaths occurred as security forces raided neighborhoods sympathetic to the political opposition, dragging young men from their homes and executing them.

Dujarric, the U.N. spokesman, told a media briefing on Dec. 17, 2015, that Baratuzas deployment had been suspended. He was repatriated even before arriving in the Central African Republic, during a stopover in Uganda, officials said. He did not respond to messages from The Post.

The United Nations did not comment publicly on what went wrong. But privately, the senior U.N. peacekeeping official in New York called the episode a significant error and a demonstration of the limitation of our recruitment and screening.

Read more:

The growing U.N. scandal over sex abuse and peacekeeper babies

They survived Boko Haram. Now, millions in Nigeria face a new threat: starvation.

They were freed from Boko Harams rape camps. But their nightmare isnt over.

Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. The summits of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) will be held on December 26 in St. Petersburg, reports TASS.

The heads of Armenia, Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan will summarize the results of the Unions first two years work and will outline the further development paths of that integration Union during the Supreme Eurasian Economic Councils session.

The major event of the summit will be the signing of the agreement on the EAEU new Customs Code. It is expected to adopt a number of multilateral documents that mainly aim at moving forward the process of forming common Eurasian market of goods and services. Moreover, the heads of states will approve the major directions of the Unions international activity for 2017 and will discuss the EAEUs various aspects of cooperation with key trade-economic partners.

During the CSTO Collective Security Councils sitting, the heads of Armenia, Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan will discuss the actual sectors of allied mutual cooperation within the organization. Exchange of opinions is expected on key issues of global and regional agenda, including combating terrorism and extremism threats, the fight against illegal circulation of drugs and weapons.
Despite desperate efforts by the Congress and the Trinamool Congress, the Opposition stands divided over demonetisation as the CPI-M, JD-U and NCP have decided to stay away from Tuesday's meet in New Delhi.

By Indo-Asian News Service: Cracks seem to have appeared in the opposition's concerted campaign against demonetisation as several parties have pulled out of a joint press conference called by the Congress in New Delhi on Tuesday over the contentious issue.

Many important partners of the anti-demonetisation campaign, such as Janata Dal-United (JD-U), the Left, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Samajwadi Party (SP), on Monday refused to attend the joint press conference scheduled to be held at the Constitution Club in the national capital.

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WHERE DOES OPPOSITION STAND Communist Party of India Marxist (CPI-M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said at a press conference on Monday: "The Congress should know that in a combined effort, prior understanding and consultations are a must." "Till now, there was coordination among different opposition parties' parliamentary groups. If you have to elevate it to the party level, you must do it with prior consultation," Yechury added. JD-U leader KC Tyagi said: "We were not sounded out; we don't know what is the agenda of the press briefing; there is no common minimum programme. So how can we participate?" Senior NCP leader DP Tripathi said although the "opposition is united over the wrong implementation" of the November 8 demonetisation, his party won't be going to the presser. "Many parties are not coming; so we are not coming too," Tripathi said. The Samajwadi Party, too, was undecided on the issue. "We have not decided... at least, I am not going. You may contact neta ji (Mulayam Singh Yadav) for more details," SP leader Naresh Agrawal said. However, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), a coalition partner of JD-U in Bihar, confirmed participation. Trinamool Congress leader Sukehndu Shekhar Roy said his party is "most likely" to participate. Several opposition parties were left red faced after a Congress delegation led by its Vice-President Rahul Gandhi went to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 16, the last day of the winter session of Parliament, without even informing them. The entire opposition had tried to corner the government over the demonetisation issue and stalled Parliament proceedings for the entire session that began on November 16. A few days back, the Congress reached out to several opposition parties to rally support once again over the issue. However, not all parties seem convinced with the Congress initiative this time around.

Watch the video here:

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Landscape along the road from Xining to Yushu in Qinghai province. (Giulia Marchi/For The Washington Post)

 High in western Chinas Sichuan province, in the shadow of holy mountains, the Liqi River flows through a lush, grassy valley dotted with grazing yaks, small Tibetan villages and

a Buddhist temple. But theres poison here.

A large lithium mine not only desecrates the sacred grasslands, villagers say, but spawns deadly pollution. The river used to be full of fish. Today, there are hardly any. Hundreds of yaks, the villagers say, have died in the past few years after drinking river water.

Chinas thirst for mineral resources  and its desire to exploit the rich deposits under the Tibetan plateau  have spread environmental pollution and anguish for many of the herders whose ancestors lived here for thousands of years.

The land they worship is under assault, and their way of life is threatened without their consent, the herders say.

Old people, we see the mines and we cry, a 67-year-old yak herder said, requesting anonymity for fear of retribution. What are the future generations going to do? How are they going to survive?

A local environmentalist, who also declined to be named to avoid backlash from the authorities, said he had done an oral survey of local opinion and found that Tibetans would oppose mining projects even if companies promised to share profits with local communities, to fill in mines after they were exhausted, and to return sites to their natural state.

God is in the mountains and the rivers, these are the places that spirits live, he said. When mining comes and the grassland is dug up, people believe worse disasters will come. It destroys the mountain god.



Salt deposits at the Jiajika lithium mine in Tagong township in Chinas western Sichuan province, seen in August. Local herders have protested at least twice against the mine, saying it has polluted the Liqi River and killed fish and yaks downstream. (Simon Denyer/The Washington Post)

We just knew they had lied

Dead fish are seen in May, 2016. A Free Tibet protest against the Jiajika lithium mine in Dartsedo County in May, 2016. (Courtesy of Free Tibet)

It was in 2009 that toxic chemicals from the Ganzizhou Rongda Lithium mine first leaked into the river, locals say, killing their livestock and poisoning the fish.

The whole river stank, and it was full of dead yaks and dead fish, said one man downstream in the village of Balang, who declined to be named for fear of retribution. Another pollution outbreak and a protest by villagers in 2013 forced the government to order production temporarily stopped, locals said.

[In your phone, in their air]

Then . . . officials came to the village to try to persuade people, the man said. They said we have to have the mine but promised they would take time to fix the pollution problem before reopening it.

But in April, just after mining restarted, fish began dying again, locals said. Thats when we just knew they had lied, the man said.

In May, residents staged a second protest, scattering dead fish on a road in the nearby town of Tagong. The protesters were surrounded by dozens of baton-wielding riot police. Again the government stepped in, issuing a statement to solemnly promise that the plant would not reopen until the environmental issues were solved.

But the problem at the Jiajika mine is not an isolated one. Across Tibetan parts of China, protests regularly erupt against mineral extraction, according to a 2015 report by Tibet Watch.





China is focused on copper and gold extraction from Tibet but is also exploiting a whole range of minerals with increasing intensity, including chromium, iron, lithium, iron, mercury, uranium and zinc  as well as fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas, the report said.

Although China boasts of its development work in western regions where Tibetans live  hauling millions out of poverty and nearly doubling life expectancy over the past five decades  the report argued that much of the transport and other infrastructure in the region is aimed at extracting minerals rather than benefiting residents. Projects usually import workers from other parts of China, seldom employing Tibetans in significant numbers.

When protests break out, Chinas response has generally been heavy-handed, with authorities seeking to politicize the protests, Tibet Watch wrote.

Understanding those risks, Tibetan communities sometimes use creative ways to get their message across.

When hundreds of people gathered in August 2013 in Zadoi county in Qinghai province to protest against mining on what they considered to be a holy mountain, they flew Chinese flags to demonstrate their loyalty to the state and erected posters and placards quoting President Xi Jinpings words on the need to balance economic growth and environmental protection.

It didnt help. Police and paramilitary forces arrived in large numbers and fired bullets above the crowd, according to campaigners at Free Tibet. The group said eight people were arrested and many more injured.



A camp at a lead and zinc mine in the high-altitude village of Xingniangda in the southern part of Qinghai province. Only Han Chinese work there. (Giulia Marchi/For The Washington Post)



The entrance to a lead and zinc mine near Xingniangda. (Giulia Marchi/For The Washington Post)

In the villages outside Xiaosumang township in Qinghai, residents blame a lead and zinc mine for the deterioration of the grasslands for miles around, and even for falling harvests of caterpillar fungus, a highly prized health cure that is the backbone of the local economy.

Contaminated water from the mine, residents said in a joint letter to the authorities in 2010, not only killed their livestock but also caused people who drank it to die of cancer, they said.

Over the years, many herders would sigh and say: Life cant go on like this anymore. Even drinking has become a big issue for people living on the grasslands,  the letter said.

A May 2009 protest in the village of Xizha prompted a severe crackdown, the letter said, with guns and tear gas used, seven women severely beaten, and 12 men blindfolded, detained and tortured.

Authorities threatened to cancel poverty-alleviation grants, including income and housing subsidies, if anyone in the region brought up the issue of environmental protection again, the letter said, adding that the crackdown caused great fear to spread in our hearts.

Whether the mine is truly the culprit for all the grasslands ills is another matter  climate change, for example, is probably an important factor. But that doesnt soothe local anger.

When I was young, there was more grass, more flowers, it was really beautiful here, said a 27-year-old man in a valley downstream from the lead and zinc mine. Now you see its less beautiful every year. People see all this and they are not really sure what happened, so they think it must be the mine.



A woman washes clothes near the Jiajika lithium mine in Tagong township in Chinas western Sichuan province. Local say the mine has polluted the Liqi River and killed fish and yaks. (Simon Denyer/The Washington Post)

A conflict without end

In Jiajika, 300 miles to the southeast, the commercial pressure to reopen the lithium mine is mounting. The element is a vital component in rechargeable batteries used in cars, smartphones, laptops and other electronic and electrical items. Demand  and prices  are skyrocketing.

Last January, Youngy Co. Ltd., the parent company of Ganzizhou Rongda Lithium, promised investors that the local government would step up efforts to reopen the mine in March.

That same month, an article in the local Ganzi Daily newspaper outlined the authorities dream of making the area Chinas lithium capital, calling Jiajika the biggest lithium mine in the world with proven reserves of 1.89 million metric tons and even greater potential. Three companies, including Rongda, will invest 3.4 billion yuan ($510 million) in the site by 2020, the article said.

He Chengkun, Youngys media officer, said an official investigation had established that the plant was not responsible for killing fish in 2013 or this year.

The local government has made it clear it is nothing to do with our company, he said. They are looking into it and have already zoomed in on some suspects.

He said the plant has been closed since late 2013 because of problems relating to land acquisition and denied that it had restarted operations in April, as locals claimed.

Nevertheless, across the Tibetan plateau, resource extraction, land grabs and environmental destruction remain flash points for conflict between Tibetans and the authorities, said Free Tibet Director Eleanor Byrne-Rosengren, reflecting both local grievances and the wider problem that Tibetans do not have the right to decide what happens to Tibet and its resources.

Those resources feed the demands of Chinese industry instead of the needs of the Tibetan people, she said. That is why their environment is put at risk and their rights are trampled upon, and why we can expect to see this conflict played out repeatedly in the future.

Xu Yanjingjing contributed to this report.

Read more

Himalayan Viagra: Tibets gold rush may be coming to an end

Chinas plan to liberate a cradle of Tibetan culture

China tried to drive a furry mammal to extinction. Maybe that wasnt such a good idea.

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world
Russia on Monday played down the likelihood that terrorism was behind the crash of a Soviet-era military jet that killed 92 people on Christmas Day, a disaster that prompted a national day of mourning and that has drawn added scrutiny as Russias role in the war in Syria increasingly marks it as a target.

Russias Federal Security Service told the Interfax news agency that there has been no evidence indicating the possibility of a terrorist attack or an act of sabotage on board the Tu-154 jet, which lost contact with air traffic controllers Sunday just one minute after taking off from the southern Russian city of Sochi.

The crash site was pinpointed Monday about a mile off the Black Sea coast, where divers found the fuselage and other parts of the plane strewn over a distance of about 500 yards, Russias Defense Ministry said. The plane initially took off from a heavily guarded military airfield in Moscow, officials said, and was under close watch during refueling in Sochi, making it unlikely that someone placed a bomb onboard.

[Russian jets keep crashing, and it may be an aircraft carriers fault]

By late Monday, divers had recovered parts of at least 80 bodies of those aboard the flight; other victims may have been swept out to sea with the current.

Rescuers carry fragments and remains found at the site of the Tu-154 plane crash Sunday near the Black Sea Russian city of Sochi. No survivors have been found, and the remains of at least 11 people have been recovered. (Yevgeny Reutov/European Pressphoto Agency)

Russian investigators said they were considering a number of technical and other accidental causes, including foreign objects getting into the engine, low-

quality fuel and pilot or mechanical error.



The crash of the Tu-154, which was carrying military officers, musicians, journalists and others to Syria, was the single deadliest incident tied to Russias intervention there since a passenger jet exploded over the Sinai Peninsula in November 2015, killing all 224 people aboard.

An Islamic State affiliate claimed responsibility for that attack and linked it to Russias intervention in Syria. Russian authorities later said an explosive device had been smuggled onboard.

In televised comments, Russian President Vladimir Putin called for a full investigation and declared Monday a national day of mourning for the crew and passengers.

Among the dead were more than 60 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, also known as the Red Army Choir, which had recently gained widespread recognition for its rendition of the James Bond theme song Skyfall. The group was traveling to Syria to hold a concert for Russian soldiers and airmen deployed there.

Read more

Turkish police officer, invoking Aleppo, guns down Russian ambassador in Ankara

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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Al-Qaedas affiliate in the Arabian Peninsula threatened to kill an American hostage in Yemen after U.S. commandos launched a rescue operation to free him, according to a video posted Wednesday.

Luke Somers, 33, was abducted in September 2013 on a busy street in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa. He had been trying to make money by doing freelance photography and other work in Yemen before his abduction, friends said.

Last week, U.S. Special Operations forces and Yemeni troops attempted to free Somers, who was being held in a remote part of the country, but they narrowly missed him, U.S. officials said. The joint force managed to save several hostages, including some Yemenis, but Somers apparently had been moved.

In the video, Somers makes a brief appearance and pleads for his life: Its now been well over a year since Ive been kidnapped in Sanaa. Basically, Im looking for any help that can get me out of this situation. Im certain that my life is in danger. So as I sit here now, I ask if anything can be done, please, let it be done. Thank you very much.

An al-Qaeda official said Somers will meet his inevitable fate if the United States doesnt meet the groups demands in three days. The demands were not outlined in the video, which was obtained Wednesday by SITE Intelligence Group.

We warn Obama and the American government of the consequences of proceeding ahead in any other foolish action, the al-Qaeda official said in the video.

The three-minute video says that al-Qaeda fighters were killed during the rescue operation in the eastern province of Hadramawt. 

Somerss kidnapping has received relatively little attention because of family wishes not to publicize his case. A message left on the answering machine of Somerss mother was not immediately returned.

Friends say Somers, who was born in Britain and has American citizenship, was intensely private but had a love for the Yemeni people. His Facebook page, which says he studied at Beloit College in Wisconsin, reveals little about his life in Yemen. Another Facebook page pushing for his release shows pictures of Somers in Yemen.

One of his friends said he traveled to Yemen in 2010 and was planning to head home to see his family in the United States before he was kidnapped.

The details of his abduction remain murky. It's not clear if he was snatched and sold to al-Qaeda or taken by the terrorist group at the outset.
(Photo: Andrew Matthews/PA Images via Getty)

Princess Kate, Prince William and their children Prince George and Princess Charlotte brought a dose of royal Christmas cheer to Englefield, England, when they attended a holiday church service near Kates childhood home in Bucklebury.

Kate, William and their two tots were spotted walking to St. Marks church in Englefield with the Middleton family. Kate looked glamorous in a burgundy coat with matching fur trim while William kept it conservative in a suit and navy blue coat. Meanwhile, the children looked adorable in their Christmas church ensembles  George in a knee-length coat with coordinating knee socks and Charlotte in a dark coat with red tights and a matching bow. George also wore maroon shorts under his coats  matching dads tie.

Both of the children were spotted sucking on candy canes as they held their parents hands outside the church. At one point, Charlotte tried to use her tiny candy cane like a walking cane.

(Photo: Andrew Matthews/PA Images via Getty)

Pippa Middleton also attended church with her family and was joined by her fiance James Matthews.

The Cambridges decided to skip the annual tradition of spending Christmas at Sandringham, Queen Elizabeths winter estate, which is about 170 miles northwest from Buckebury. Typically, the entire royal family walks together to St. Mary Magdalene church, which is located on the Sandringham estate, on Christmas Day. However, this year was very different, aside from the Cambridges absence.

(Photo: Andrew Matthews/PA Images via Getty)

The Queen was forced to pull out of the annual walk at the last minute on Sunday as she continues to battle a heavy cold.

RELATED VIDEO: Prince George and Princess Charlotte at a Childrens Party Is the Most Adorable Thing Ever

Her Majesty The Queen will not attend Church at Sandringham this morning, a Palace spokesperson said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE. The Queen continues to recover from a heavy cold and will stay indoors to assist with her recovery. Her Majesty will participate in the Royal Family Christmas celebrations during the day.

Story continues

(Photo: Andrew Matthews/PA)

Earlier in the day, Prince Philip, who is also still under the weather; Prince Harry; Prince Charles; Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall; Sophie, Countess of Wessex; Prince Edward and Princess Eugenie were spotted walking to the church. Typically, the entire royal family walks together to a church service in the late morning but the royals chose to go to an earlier service on Sunday.

Noticeably absent from the group at Sandringham was Zara Tindall, the Queens granddaughter and daughter of Princess Anne. On Saturday, Tindall revealed that she had suffered a miscarriage. She and husband Mike Tindall were expecting their second child.

For more celebrity videos visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS and Android.
Harrison Ford is thinking of his Star Wars co-star Carrie Fisher this Christmas.

The Han Solo actor, who last appeared by her side on the big screen in 2015s Star Wars: The Force Awakens, released a statement on the situation Saturday, joining Mark Hamill and a number of other Hollywood stars voicing their support for the iconic actress and screenwriter.

Im shocked and saddened to hear the news about my dear friend, Ford said in a statement released to the media. Our thoughts are with Carrie, her family and friends.

Also Read: Carrie Fisher Regrets Revealing Harrison Ford Affair: 'It Was a Mistake' (Video

Fisher, who most famously played princess-turned-general Leia in the Star Wars franchise, suffered a heart attack on a transatlantic flight Friday. Her brother, Todd Fisher, said that same day that she was out of emergency and in stable condition at the UCLA Medical Center, where she was transferred to the Intensive Care Unit, Todd told CNN late Friday.

Other Star Wars cast members, new and old, took to Twitter to react to the news.

as if 2016 couldn't get any worse sending all our love to @carrieffisher  Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) December 23, 2016

Thoughts and prayers for our friend and everyone's favorite princess right now.. @carrieffisher  Peter Mayhew (@TheWookieeRoars) December 23, 2016

@carrieffisher The whole world is sending you so much love! Sending you the universes most powerful Force XXXXX  Gwendoline Christie (@lovegwendoline) December 23, 2016

Also Read: Carrie Fisher Recalls 'Intense' Affair With Harrison Ford During 'Star Wars' Shoot

Story continues

Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Erik Scott told TheWrap on Friday after the incident that at 12:11 p.m., the LAFD responded to LAX International Airport gate 74 for a patient on an inbound flight on cardiac arrest. Paramedics were standing by for the planes arrival and provided advanced life support and aggressively treated and transported patient to a nearby hospital.

In a statement to TheWrap, United Airlines said, Medical personnel met United flight 935 from London to Los Angeles upon arrival today after the crew reported that a passenger was unresponsive. Our thoughts are with our customer at this time and any requests for additional information should be directed to local authorities.

Other passengers on the plane took to social media to confirm the passenger was indeed Fisher, the daughter of Hollywood couple Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher.

I'm in complete shock. @AnnaAkana and I sat in front of Carrie Fisher on our flight from London and she was just taken off the plane by EMTs  Brad Gage (@bradgage) December 23, 2016

Don't know how else to process this but Carrie Fisher stopped breathing on the flight home. Hope she's gonna be OK ????  Anna Akana (@AnnaAkana) December 23, 2016

Also Read: Carrie Fisher Denies Calling Harrison Ford 'Bad in Bed'

Representatives for Fisher have not yet responded to TheWraps request for comment.

Related stories from TheWrap:

Carrie Fisher's Dog 'Tweets' Heartbreaking Photo: 'I'll Be Waiting Right Here Mommy'

Carrie Fisher 'Out of Emergency,' In Stable Condition (Report)

Carrie Fisher Heart Attack Prompts Hollywood Outpouring
There was a time when British Olympic medal winners became household names because there were so few of them. But the 67 medals at this years Games in Rio and 147 at the Paralympics meant that the GB medallists reception at Buckingham Palace was a crowded and happy event. Throughout the Commonwealth there were equally joyful celebrations. Grenada, the Bahamas, Jamaica and New Zealand won more medals per head of population than any other countries.

Many of this years winners spoke of being inspired by athletes of previous generations. Inspiration fed their aspiration; and having discovered abilities they scarcely knew they had, these athletes are now inspiring others.

A few months ago, I saw inspiration of a different kind when I opened the new Cambridge base of the East Anglian Air Ambulance, where Prince William works as a helicopter pilot. It was not hard to be moved by the dedication of the highly skilled doctors, paramedics and crew, who are called-out on average five times a day.

But to be inspirational you dont have to save lives or win medals. I often draw strength from meeting ordinary people doing extraordinary things: volunteers, carers, community organizers and good neighbors; unsung heroes whose quiet dedication makes them special.

They are an inspiration to those who know them, and their lives frequently embody a truth expressed by Mother Teresa, from this year Saint Teresa of Calcutta. She once said, Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.

This has been the experience of two remarkable organizations, The Duke of Edinburghs Award and the Princes Trust, which are sixty and forty years old this year. These started as small initiatives but have grown beyond any expectations, and continue to transform young peoples lives.

To mark my 90th birthday, volunteers and supporters of the six hundred charities of which I have been patron came to a lunch in The Mall. Many of these organizations are modest in size but inspire me with the work they do. From giving friendship and support to our veterans, the elderly or the bereaved; to championing music and dance; providing animal welfare; or protecting our fields and forests, their selfless devotion and generosity of spirit is an example to us all.

When people face a challenge they sometimes talk about taking a deep breath to find courage or strength. In fact, the word inspire literally means to breathe in. But even with the inspiration of others, its understandable that we sometimes think the worlds problems are so big that we can do little to help. On our own, we cannot end wars or wipe out injustice, but the cumulative impact of thousands of small acts of goodness can be bigger than we imagine.

At Christmas, our attention is drawn to the birth of a baby some two thousand years ago. It was the humblest of beginnings, and his parents, Joseph and Mary, did not think they were important.

Jesus Christ lived obscurely for most of his life, and never travelled far. He was maligned and rejected by many, though he had done no wrong. And yet, billions of people now follow his teaching and find in him the guiding light for their lives. I am one of them because Christs example helps me see the value of doing small things with great love, whoever does them and whatever they themselves believe.

The message of Christmas reminds us that inspiration is a gift to be given as well as received, and that love begins small but always grows.

I wish you all a very happy Christmas.
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 26 (PTI) The multi-purpose Polavaram project is the "lifeline" of Andhra Pradesh and it is not going to affect any other state, Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu said here today.

Addressing an event, in which NABARD issued a cheque of Rs 1,981 crore to Andhra Pradesh as assistance for the project, Naidu said "misgivings or fears", if any, about the project will be discussed in due course of time.

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Odisha has reportedly raised objections over the design and back water calculations of the project.

"It is the lifeline of Andhra Pradesh. It is not going to affect any other state. If there are any other misgivings or fears, we will discuss those in due course of time," the Union Minister said.

On reports of Odisha opposing the project, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, who too attended the event, said both the Centre and the state government are "completing formalities" and refused to speak more on the issue.

The Odisha government has been reportedly raising objections over design flood and back water calculations of the project, which the Andhra Pradesh government plans to complete by 2018. PTI ENM NSD

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Goma (DR Congo) (AFP) - Attacks in villages and fighting between militias killed at least 35 people over the Christmas weekend in North Kivu, a majority Christian area in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The bloodshed began in Eringeti -- a town 55 kilometres (35 miles) north of the regional hub Beni, which for two years has been hit by massacres killing hundreds, many of whom were hacked to death.

Rebels from The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) -- dominated by puritanical Ugandan Muslims -- killed 22 people after storming Eringeti on Saturday, regional official Amisi Kalonda told AFP.

The toll climbed to 35 on Monday with the announcement that at least 13 Hutu civilians, mostly women and an eight-year-old girl, were killed on Sunday by a militia from the Nande ethnic group.

"The victims were all Hutu. There was an eight-year-old girl, a father and the rest were women," said local official Alphonse Mahano.

They were killed around the village of Nyanzale, a Hutu majority community.

The Nande and some other ethnic groups regard the Hutus as outsiders because of their attachment to the majority ethnic group in neighbouring Rwanda.

A string of attacks in the past year by both Hutu and Nande militia forces has deepened hatred between the communities.

Hutu farmers have also been forced to abandon land further south because of high property costs and under pressure from major landowners.

- Relentless bloodshed -

Although Congolese officials have blamed the attacks on the ADF, several expert reports have suggested that other groups, including elements within the Congolese army, took part in some killings.

When the Beni massacres began in October 2014, the ADF was quickly branded the culprit by both DR Congo authorities and MONUSCO, the UN mission in DR Congo.

More than two years on, Congolese authorities and the UN have been unable to protect civilians and the ADF remains the only official explanation -- with the government insisting on a jihadist link to the killings.

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It comes as relations with the international community have soured over President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step down despite his term ending on December 20.

Separately, the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) announced Monday that its troops had killed 10 soldiers from neighbouring Burundi after they crossed the border last week in pursuit of rebels.

"There were 10 deaths," Major Dieudonne Kajibwami, told AFP, following a previous statement that five bodies had been taken to Uvira, a lakeside town in the eastern South Kivu province.

Kivu is rich in natural, mainly mineral resources, such as gold, coltan and cassiterite, coveted by the telecommunications industry. Both south and north Kivu have rich agricultural and forestry resources.

North Kivu is one of the DRC's most densely populated areas.

Tiny compared to the vast size of the country, the two provinces suffer not only because of fighting over their mineral resources but because of their proximity to an unstable border with Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda, along with Tanzania.
Twenty years ago a 911 call reporting a missing and possibly kidnapped 6-year-old girl launched a murder mystery  one that continues to endure, fascinate and perplex.

In their Boulder, Colorado, home on the morning of Dec. 26, 1996, parents John and Patsy Ramsey found a ransom note handwritten on a pad with a black Sharpie that belonged to the family. It demanded $118,000  the exact amount of a bonus recently received by John  for the return of JonBenet, the couples blonde, child-pageant princess daughter.

Later that morning JonBenets body, beaten and strangled with a garrote around her neck and duct tape covering her mouth, was found in the basement of the familys Tudor brick home.

Police are still looking for the killer.

At least 37 books have explored the crime, along with at least a dozen TV programs and movies. None have helped resolve the cold case.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

John and Patsy  among more than 140 suspects  have been investigated. The Boulder County District Attorney at the time said there was insufficient evidence to bring charges after grand jurors voted to indict the parents in 1998 for child abuse resulting in death and accessory to a crime.

More recently, a CBS docuseries this past fall presented a case against JonBenets brother Burke, then aged 9, as the likely killer, prompting the familys attorney to announce his intent to file a libel suit on Burkes behalf against the network. CBS issued a statement saying it stands by its report.

The Ramseys attorney, L. Lin Wood, tells PEOPLE he believes there is still a clear path to finding the murderer. The answer lies in the DNA profile drawn from apparent saliva he says was identified in the crotch of JonBenets underwear after she was found.

That profile is the profile of the killer, Wood says. The question is whether well ever get a match.

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It clearly does not match Burke Ramsey, Wood says.

In a court filing in October, Wood accused forensic pathologist Dr. Werner Spitz of libeling Burke by stating that Burke killed JonBenet. Spitzs attorneys have since moved to dismiss the suit, which seeks damages in excess of $150 million and is based upon comments Spitz made to a Detroit radio station after participating in the CBS docuseries.

Spitz attorneys responded in court papers by saying that his comments about Burke amount to free speech protected by the First Amendment, and arise from the public discussion about theories involving one of the major unsolved crimes of the 20th Century.

Wood disagrees.

The United States Supreme Court has made it very clear that the First Amendment does not provide blanket protection to all statements characterized as opinion, Wood said in a written response to Spitzs motion to dismiss the case. Spitzs statements conveyed that Burke Ramsey killed his sister. That accusation is capable of being objectively proven to be false.

Further, Spitzs accusation was based on undisclosed facts and more importantly, false and distorted facts, Wood said. Simply stated, Spitzs accusation is legally viewed as a statement of fact, not a protected opinion.

 Pick up PEOPLEs special edition True Crime Stories: Cases That Shocked America,on sale now, for the latest on Casey Anthony, JonBenet Ramsey and more.

In a statement to PEOPLE, the network said after the two-part The Case of: JonBenet Ramsey, aired in September, CBS stands by the broadcast and will do so in court.

Wood points to just one statement about JonBenets mother early in the broadcast that he says undermines the entire series claim of accuracy.

The broadcast starts off by stating that Patsy Ramsey developed Stage 4 ovarian cancer a couple of years after JonBenets death, he says. Patsy Ramsey was diagnosed with Stage 4 ovarian cancer in 1993, three years before JonBenet was murdered.

If you cant get the little facts right, he says, be very careful about what that person says about the big facts.

Two decades after JonBenets death, however, the facts as they are known have yet to move the case toward closure or criminal charges.

Controversial Letter of Apology to Ramsey Family

Investigators continue to review whether JonBenet was murdered by an outside intruder or by someone within her own family. A 2008 statement by then-Boulder District Attorney Mary Lacy, who publicly apologized to the family for placing them under suspicion and announced that evidence cleared JonBenets brother and parents, failed to halt debate.

Earlier this month, current Boulder District Attorney Stan Garnett reiterated his belief that his predecessor erred in declaring anyone to be innocent.

When any district attorney goes around and starts issuing exonerations based on a particular piece of evidence, that can be very misleading to the public about the nature of the case, Garnett told PEOPLE.

Citing the infamously compromised crime scene, he said, The state of the evidence is not one where you could really say anything definitively.

But Garnett does not now lay blame on the parents or anyone in the Ramsey family, who are totally covered by the presumption of innocence, he said. If we ever change our opinion about that with regard to the Ramseys or anyone else, we will file charges and say what we have to say about the case in open court.

Patsy died in 2006. John, 72 and remarried, owns a promotional marketing firm and lives in Charlevoix, Mich., and Las Vegas. Burke, 29, is a software developer in Indianapolis.

Burke ended his long public silence about the case last September in a three-part broadcast interview with Dr. Phil McGraw, stating he had not killed his sister and that his parents had not covered for him. I know thats not what happened.  Look at the evidence. Or lack thereof, he said.

John shared his own account in a 2000 book written with Patsy, The Death of Innocence: The Untold Story of JonBenets Murder and How Its Exploitation Compromised the Pursuit of Truth. (In 2012 he also wrote The Other Side of Suffering: The Father of JonBenet Ramsey Tells the Story of His Journey from Grief to Grace, chronicling his loss of JonBenet, Patsy, and a daughter, Beth, from an earlier marriage who was killed in a 1992 car accident.)

On Dec. 14, Boulder police announced they are working with the Colorado Bureau of Investigations to again apply the latest DNA testing technology on evidence in the unsolved case to determine if this new technology could further this investigation.

Garnett told PEOPLE: I dont anticipate that its going to lead to any dramatic developments in the case, but obviously we would love to solve it.

Asked how the years without any resolution have affected John, the Ramseys attorney Wood tells PEOPLE: Im hesitant to try to put words into Johns mouth. Only he can express his feelings accurately, because hes had to live the experience.

Im sure that there is a mixture of emotions that John experiences. It probably goes from frustration to hope, perhaps at times to anger, he says. But I think that Johns predominant position has always been one of hope that one day the killer of his daughter will be identified. He is still involved in efforts to himself aid in the investigation.

John, says Wood, is a man of deep faith, and I think thats what has helped him survive.




San Diego's warm climate allows visitors to explore all that nature has to offer year-round. Whether you want to take a leisurely stroll in an urban park or embark on a rigorous hike to a coastal vista, this city has something for everyone to enjoy. So grab your sunglasses and get your camera ready: Here are the five beautiful outdoor spaces locals say you have to visit the next time you're in San Diego.

Balboa Park

If you only have time to visit one park, experts agree that Balboa Park is a must-see. Many visitors know the park as the home of several museums and the San Diego Zoo, but it also has 65 miles of trails that cut through canyons or wind past cultural venues. The various routes and trails are marked, so visitors know the distance and degree of difficulty. Edna Gutierrez, public relations manager at the San Diego Tourism Authority, recommends taking one of the free guided hiking tours. "They're great for families," she says.

[Read: 6 Off-the-Beaten-Path Neighborhoods to Visit in San Diego.]

Robert Marks, head concierge at the Omni San Diego Hotel, says the large, grassy lawns are great for tossing around a ball or having a picnic. There are also five playgrounds, each geared toward a different age group.

Andrew Tellez, head concierge at The Westin San Diego, suggests seeking out a vantage point for glimpses of the downtown skyline. "It's so beautiful there," he says.

The Balboa Park grounds are open 24 hours a day, and the visitors center is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve

Experts agree that Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve, named for the rare tree that grows there, provides one of the most beautiful views of the Pacific Ocean and coastal San Diego. Brett Hamblen, head concierge at the Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa, says this park is "probably the prettiest place in Southern California."

Cathy Gomez, head concierge at the Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego, says, "Torrey Pines State Park showcases the only Torrey pines on the West Coast with picturesque views of the Pacific."

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Justin Robbins, head concierge at the Fairmont Grand Del Mar, says that exploring the rugged bluffs of the park is a "great approachable hike for all levels."

The park, located in Del Mar, offers free guided walks on weekends and holidays. The park is open year-round from 7:15 a.m. until sunset (the park posts the exact closing time at the South Beach parking entrance). Visitors pay an on-site parking fee of between $10 and $20, depending on the day and time of year.

Mission Trails Regional Park

One of the largest urban parks in the United States, Mission Trails Regional Park spans 7,220 acres and offers a variety of hiking trails. One of the most recommended trails is Cowles Mountain. As the highest point in the city of San Diego, the summit is nearly 1,600 feet above sea level and offers views of downtown, Coronado, the coastline and even the hills of Mexico. The moderate-intensity trail is about 3 miles round-trip, and dogs on leashes are welcome.

[Read: 6 San Diego Tours First-Time Visitors Should Experience.]

Mission Trails Regional Park has an almost 15,000 square-foot visitors center, where hikers can get a map of the trails, learn about the animals in the area, purchase supplies and even buy a souvenir. Hikers should head out early in the morning to avoid the crowds and, in the summer, the heat. A lower-intensity option is the walking path around beautiful Lake Murray, where visitors can fish and rent boats.

Kate Sessions Park

Mark Peak, chief concierge at The US Grant, calls Kate Sessions Park in La Jolla a "hidden gem" that's great for families. The community park has plenty of room for children to run free, fly kites or toss a ball or Frisbee, as well as for couples to enjoy a picnic and the spectacular views of Mission Bay, the city and the ocean. From there, you can even see and hear the SeaWorld fireworks.

Picnic tables and barbecues are available, and leashed dogs are welcome. Alcoholic beverages are permitted between noon and 8 p.m.

Cabrillo National Monument

Marking the spot where 16th century explorer Juan Cabrillo discovered San Diego, Cabrillo National Monument offers "spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean as well as the islands of Mexico in the distance," Peak says. It is also the perfect place to spot migrating gray whales in the winter months. Children in particular enjoy seeing the marine life in the tide pools at the monument.

Visitors to the Point Loma monument can also walk along the 2-mile trail to see stunning views of the San Diego Bay and Harbor, or they can visit the 161-year-old lighthouse, one of the first built on the West Coast. History buffs should also stop by the military history exhibit that explains the role Point Loma played in World Wars I and II.

[Read: The Best Things to Do in San Diego.]

The park is open year-round from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Certain attractions close earlier, so check the website. The entrance fee is $10 per car, $7 per motorcycle or $5 per person if entry is on foot or by bicycle.

To experience more of what San Diego has to offer, check out the U.S. News Travel guide.

Darcie Czajkowski is a freelance writer based in San Diego.
Snap Inc. and Spotify are poised to go public in the new year. They have stolen the spotlight as two of the tech worlds most consumer-facing brands, but a handful of other innovative private companies could outshine them in the coming months. And millions of dollars provided by big backers may propel them to the public market as early as 2017.

In 2016, 105 companies went public  the lowest number of IPOs since 2009. Recently, a lot of attention has surrounded shiny household names like Uber, whose financial picture, it turns out, doesnt live up to its sexy image, with the ride-hailing company losing more than $800 million in the third quarter alone, despite its $69 billion valuation. Ubers just one example of an incredibly well-funded company whose real worth may not live up to its hyped valuation.

However, there has been renewed interest in IPO exits since Twilio (TWLO), Apptio (APTI) and The Trade Desk (TTD) went public, according to venture capital financing database CB Insights.

The number of IPO exits will be well positioned to rebound heading into 2017, according to CB Insights and KPMGs quarterly Venture Pulse report.

With fewer companies hitting the public market, investors have been focused on private behemoths that have raised mind-boggling amounts of venture capital. In the third quarter alone, VC-backed companies raised $24.1 billion globally, $14.4 billion of which was raised in the US. Here are a few companies that have raised the most capital and are ready for center stage in the new year:

Magic Leap

Though taking pride in being the worlds most secretive startup, Magic Leap raised $794 million in its last round of funding and $1.4 billion to date, from backers like Google (GOOG, GOOGL) and Alibaba (BABA). That values the company at $4.5 billion. Based in Florida, Magic Leaps technology is hard to describe (or imagine), because it has yet to release a product.

What we do know is its a mixed reality experience, which will give you the ability to superimpose 3D images on the image of reality. This year we may finally see a product hit the market. Even if the price point is steep, well be able to get a glimpse into Magic Leaps vision.

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WeWork

The New York City-based co-working startup had a whirlwind year, raising $430 million, which has brought its valuation to $16 billion. WeWork opened 58 new locations in 11 new markets, including China, launched its co-living concept, WeLive, in DC and NYC, and grew WeWork Enterprise to more than 450 big-company members, like Dell and Sprint (S). With such a ubiquitous presence, WeWorks accelerated growth will likely continue in 2017 and its regional competitors may not be able to lure freelancers away from the convenience of having a passport to WeWorks global locations.

Slack

The internal office communication platform has also become a mainstay for consumers. User friendly, intuitive, and widely adopted, the messaging app raised $200 million and is now worth $3.8 billion. Slack is now the messaging service of choice for 4 million (and counting) daily users and 1.25 million paying users. The app will only continue to gain traction, as its the perfect hybrid of g-chatting and emailing. Slacks founder and CEO Stewart Butterfield also co-founded photo-sharing site Flickr, which he sold to Yahoo Finances parent company Yahoo (YHOO) for $35 million. Butterfield is highly regarded among his peers as well as his employees, which is indubitably a factor in getting investors to believe in him and the company hes built.

Affirm

San Francisco-based Affirm is another startup that boasts a successful serial entrepreneur as founder. Max Levchin, the co-founder of PayPal (PYPL), secured $100 million in funding this year. One of his biggest backers? Fellow PayPal co-founder and Trump adviser Peter Thiel. Levchin started Affirm four years ago to provide loans to people looking to make big-ticket purchases. Though the company has yet to achieve unicorn status, its quickly inching toward the $1 billion benchmark  its now valued at $800 million. With Wall Street heavyweights growing increasingly interested in backing alternative lending platforms  Morgan Stanley (MS) is providing a $100 million credit line for Affirm  this is a startup that may gain more traction in 2017.

Thrive Market

Two-year-old organic grocery delivery service Thrive Market raised $111 million this year and a total of $141 million. After being rejected by over 50 venture capital firms, the founders Gunnar Lovelace and Nick Green reached out to self-help speaker Tony Robbins, fitness celebrity Jillian Michaels, and New Age health guru Deepak Chopra, who were the companys first investors.

Now, targeting middle-class Americans who live in places without a Whole Foods (WFM) around the corner, the company guarantees its products cost 25% to 50% less than what you would see at a normal health foods store. Thrive Market has been able to carve out a space in the e-commerce delivery market, dominated by incumbents like Amazon (AMZN). But as it grows its private label offerings, more families may be opting to choose Thrive.

Unicorn status wont be as critical in 2017

Though it was a banner year for these aforementioned startups, other once-promising startups fell from grace in 2016. Dead unicorns, or companies that have fallen from their $1 billion + valuations, have proliferated the market. Once valued at $9 billion, Theranos has experienced a complete fall from grace, after its revolutionary technology was debunked as faulty. Evernote, the note-taking and archiving technology company, has had tumultuous executive turnover as it prepares to go public.

But if its any consolation for the smaller players that arent getting heavily funded, the Venture Pulse report notes that unicorn status is becoming less critical. In 2015, companies fought to achieve unicorn status, when perhaps their real valuations did not warrant it, the report stated. The impact of failed unicorns and unicorns not being able to achieve their private sector valuations upon IPO led to a dearth of unicorns in the first 3 quarters of 2016.

Instead, companies are getting more realistic valuations that reflect their current value, to avoid any hyped exuberance when they do go public. On the investment side, with the clamor to find the next unicorn decreasing, the report stated, investors are becoming more tactical with their investments.

Jules Walker, director of venture capital practice at KPMG, added: VC investors are taking more time to evaluate deals than they had in the past. They are scrutinizing the benefits and risks associated with every deal and undergoing far more due diligence. While fewer deals may be completed  the most promising companies are still finding investors.

One things for sure: Silicon Valley is no longer the only hub of innovation. Magic Leap, one of startups that received impressive funding and buzz this year, is based in Florida. Silicon Alley (New York), Silicon Beach (Los Angeles) and Silicon River (Boston) are no longer on the margins of innovation. 2017 will be the year for entrepreneurs to further shake up the status quo.

Disclosure: Yahoo Finance parent Yahoo owns shares in Alibaba.

Melody Hahm is a writer at Yahoo Finance, covering entrepreneurship, technology and real estate. Read more from Melody here & follow her on Twitter @melodyhahm.
Mexico saw no thaw in its gang-related violence on Christmas Day  the chilling remains of six decapitated heads were discovered in a town in the western part of the country.

In a brief statement, Michoacan state prosecutors office said that police have not yet identified the victims and have also been unable to find their bodies. The heads were discovered on Sunday in a municipality near the state of Jalisco in Jiquilpan, a region with a history of violence in recent years due to competing drug gangs, according to the Associated Press (AP).

In another two separate incidents, also on Christmas but in other regions, a total of 16 people were killed in gun-related violence presumed to have been motivated by drug-related violence.

Of the 16, seven people were massacred in the municipality of Atoyac de Alvarez, in the southern state of Guerrero. The victims included five men from the same family, as gunmen enter the house where the victims were gearing up to celebrate Christmas. Three brothers, their father and their uncle were shot dead according, to AP. A married couple who had been invited to lunch with the family were also killed.

Out of the seven that were killed, two were municipal police officers and one a state police officer, according to state security spokesman Roberto Alvarez Heredia. Preliminary investigations suggest that the gunmen were motivated by revenge and had attempted to target only one individual but eventually ended up killing bystanders.

In another incident on Christmas, nine people were killed in Chihuahua state. The report by Agence France-Presse news agency also added that the five of the nine, including three women who were killed in Ciudad Juarez, were tortured first.

Guerrero and Acapulco in particular have for decades been known to add to Mexico's reputation as a notoriously unsafe place due to drug-related violence. In the five years since former Mexican president Felipe Calderon began to use the military to combat the country's powerful drug cartels, some 50,000 people have been killed.

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File photo of Tunisia's special forces securing the beachside of the Imperial Marhaba resort, while British, French, German and Tunisia's interior minister arrive to pay their tribute in front of a makeshift memorial in Sousse, Tunisia, June 29, 2015. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra

The prime suspect in the German Christmas market attack was from a north African country that has become a breeding ground for extremism and is one of the top exporters of jihadists.

Tunisia was once thought to be an Arab Spring success story  it was called the "sole democratic success" of the uprisings that swept the Middle East starting in 2010.

But the country has been struggling with an extremism problem that was exacerbated with the arrival of the terrorist group ISIS, which has attracted thousands of Tunisian recruits. A 2015 study by The Soufan Group, a strategic security firm, found that Tunisia supplied more foreign fighters to ISIS than any other country, between 6,000 and 7,000 as of October of that year.

One Tunisian ISIS supporter drove a truck through a Christmas market in Berlin earlier this week, killing 12 people and injuring dozens more, according to authorities. Tunisia native Anis Amri, who was killed in a Friday shootout with police, was German authorities' prime suspect in the attack. Officials had been investigating Amri, but after surveilling him for months, they couldn't find any evidence of a specific plot.

ISIS claimed credit for the attack.

Amri left Tunisia for Italy after the 2011 revolution. He arrived in Germany in July 2015, but his application for asylum was rejected this June.

He had a criminal history  he spent time in an Italian prison for setting fire to a school and was known to be a small-time drug dealer  and reportedly tried to buy a gun from a German informant earlier this year. He was also thought to have had contact with a suspected ISIS recruiter who was arrested in November.

Amri's story was similar to that of other Tunisians who have joined jihadist groups.

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George Packer, a staff writer for the New Yorker, visited Tunisia earlier this year to investigate the spread of extremism there.

He explained: "Before the revolution, Tunisia had been kept rigidly secular. Now the black flag of radical Islam flew over many buildings, and hard-liners known as Salafis  the word refers to the original followers of the Prophet Muhammad  took advantage of the new openness and tried to impose Sharia in their neighborhoods."

When Tunisia cracked down on these Salafis, they simply went underground, according to Packer.

And with a nearby ISIS outpost in neighboring Libya, young people with few options for a prosperous future in Tunisia feel that traveling to join the terrorist group could lead to a better life for them.

An unemployed telecommunications engineer, Nabil Selliti, said he joined ISIS because it offered him opportunities in his career field, according to the New Yorker.

"I cant build anything in this country," he said. "But the Islamic State gives us the chance to create, to build bombs, to use technology."

Touhami, a young graduate, arrives on his motorcycle at his job on a dates farm in Jemna, southern Tunisia October 17, 2016. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi

Some young people in Tunisia feel that the revolution did not significantly improve their lives. One young person lamented to Packer that "the rich in Tunisia get richer, and the poor get poorer."

And terrorist attacks inside the country have hurt Tunisia's tourism industry, which previously provided thousands of jobs and accounted for 8% of the country's GDP, according to Reuters.

Henry Wismayer visited Tunisia earlier this year for Vice to look into how a major terror attack on a beach and hotel had affected the country.

He explained: " The abrupt decline of Tunisia's tourist industry, many say, feels like a betrayal of the optimism that accompanied the Arab Spring in 2011. ... Tunisia's new-found pluralism has turned it into a target for extremists, hell-bent on creating an Islamic world under the boot heel of Sharia law."

Still, not every Tunisian ISIS supporter is compelled to join a terrorist group because of poverty or lack of opportunity. ISIS' core ideology seems to hold appeal for some, even those who have means.

A 27-year-old architecture student, Ahmed Amine Jebri, told Yaroslav Trofimov of The Wall Street Journal earlier this year that "so many people have left from here, and quite a few of them were rather well-off."

"Some in the neighborhood believe these guys are fools who had gone to Syria to get killed," he said. "But many others say they are now in paradise with the virgins."

Moncef Marzouki, a human-rights activist who was democratic Tunisia's first president from 2011 to 2014, told the Journal that popular disappointment is spreading in Tunisia.

"It's not the matter of tackling socioeconomic roots," he said. "You have to go deeper and understand that these guys have a dream  and we don't. We had a dream  our dream was called the Arab Spring. And our dream is now turning into a nightmare. But the young people need a dream, and the only dream available to them now is the caliphate."

Jake Kanter contributed to this report.

NOW WATCH: This is what it's really like at Trump Tower  which is disrupting life in New York





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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  Qatar-based satellite news channel Al-Jazeera accused Egypt on Monday of detaining one of its producers on "fabricated charges," its latest newsroom employee to be entangled in their bitter dispute.

The broadcaster issued a statement describing the allegations levied by Egypt's Interior Ministry against Mahmoud Hussein as containing "an alarming number of false facts and allegations."

Egypt said Sunday it detained Hussein at a home in Cairo. It said he was instructed by his Doha-based employer to publish "false rumors" about the country.

Al-Jazeera said Hussein didn't work as a "correspondent supervisor as alleged," but as a producer for its Arabic-language channel.

"Mahmoud went to Egypt to visit his family during his vacation with full confidence in himself, his profession and his integrity," the broadcaster said.

It's unclear if Hussein has a lawyer. Egyptian officials have said he'll be held for 15 days pending an investigation.

This is the latest arrest by Egypt targeting the state-funded broadcaster, whose coverage in the years after the country's 2011 Arab Spring revolution and 2013 military overthrow of elected President Mohammed Morsi has drawn intense government criticism.

Three Al-Jazeera English employees were convicted and imprisoned in June 2014 over allegations of collaborating with the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood, a case that drew international condemnation. Qatar's conservative rulers had strong ties to the Brotherhood, of which Morsi belonged.

One of the journalists, Australian Peter Greste, was deported from Egypt in February 2015. The other two, Canadian-Egyptian Mohammed Fahmy and Egyptian Baher Mohammed, received presidential pardons in September 2015.

Al-Jazeera Arabic reporter Abdullah Elshamy, who also was held for 10 months without charge, was later released after a hunger strike. Meanwhile, two separate Al-Jazeera employees were sentenced to death in absentia this June for passing secret state documents to Qatar, renewing tensions between the two nations.
The Daily Beast

GettyRussia announced Wednesday that it views Norways work with other countries in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as provocative, warning that Norways efforts to bolster its military in response to Russias invasion of Ukraine this year will likely be the death knell for Oslo-Moscow relations moving forward.Oslo is now among the most active supporters of NATO's involvement in the Arctic, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Wednesday, according to TASS. We cons
Delhi Police is having a tough time crunching data from over 60,000 IP addresses provided to them by the Internet Service Provider (ISP) for investigating the hacks of high-profile, verified Twitter accounts, including that of Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi's.

By Shashank Shekhar: It seems the investigation into the hacking of Twitter accounts of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and several senior journalists has hit a roadblock as the Delhi Police are busy crunching data from over 60,000 IP addresses furnished to them by the Internet Service Provider (ISP).

Hacking group 'Legion', which claimed responsibility for the act, is still out of police reach but investigators suspect one of the group members to be an Indian. Rahul Gandhi's Twitter account was hacked on November 30, flooded with a series of abusive tweets. A day later, the official handle of the Congress party was hacked.

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According to a senior officer, the Delhi Police had written to Twitter and the ISP to get the log of devices and locations used to access the compromised accounts. But the data furnished to the police have left them even more puzzled as now they have to filter their targets from a huge cache of data.

Economic Offence Wing of the Delhi Police is investigating the case of Rahul Gandhi, while the crime branch is looking after the cases of senior journalists.

According to an officer investigating the case, Twitter had initially given a log of 250 IP addresses for the period when these accounts were compromised. On further investigation, police zeroed down five IP addresses, a few generating from foreign countries while others from India.

"When we demanded details of IP from ISP network, they gave us over 60,000 logs as same IP is being used by multiple users. Now, it has become a very difficult task to filter this data," the officer said.

Cyber experts claim that it is the duty of ISP networks to maintain unique identity of each user but through Network Address Translation (NAT), they remap one IP address space into another creating further complication for investigators.

"It should be the responsibility of ISPs to maintain and decode these logs but they simply pass on to the investigating agencies. Criminals can be nabbed only after getting details of the source and destination port but in this case, it is not clear," the officer said.

The officer claims that Legion has also used proxy server for hacking as in the case of Rahul Gandhi's account, it was accessed from five countries -Sweden, Romania, the US, Canada and Thailand -which do not fall under the Delhi Police jurisdiction.

"These hackers are smart. They don't take advantage of proxies alone but also know the geo-political relationships and privacy-friendly nations to find safe havens. Tracking requires multinational coordination to draw connections between the proxies and reach out to the original source, which India lacks," said cyber crime expert Dhruv Soi of Torrid Networks Limited.

Legion has claimed to have hacked all Twitter handles, including that of liquor baron Vijay Mallya's. The group has gone silent for the past two weeks but had earlier claimed that they would come up with more hacks and make it public too.

--- ENDS ---

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(Recasts; adds details of ministry reorganization, background on Argentina's economy)

By Luc Cohen and Jorge Otaola

BUENOS AIRES, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Argentine President Mauricio Macri has asked Finance Minister Alfonso Prat-Gay to step down, cabinet chief Marcos Pena said on Monday, citing disagreements over management style and the structure of the team charged with handling economic policy.

Prat-Gay's departure is part of a reorganization under which the Finance Ministry will be split in two as the economy remains in recession with a wide fiscal deficit a year into Macri's term.

The Finance Ministry will be split into a treasury division led by economist Nicolas Dujovne and a finance division led by current finance secretary Luis Caputo, who has reported to Prat-Gay.

Pena said Macri's decision to ask Prat-Gay to leave was related to management issues rather than disagreements over economic policy. Macri has sought to close Argentina's gaping fiscal deficit, but the government has steered away from a sharp austerity approach to avoid worsening a deep recession.

"Due to the disagreements that there were at times over the design and functioning of the team, we thought it was best for the team at this stage to make a change," Pena said at a news conference.

Dujovne will be in charge of the federal government's budget and leading Argentina on "a path to a fiscal balance," Pena said, while Caputo will oversee government finance and sales of sovereign debt, as well as improving Argentina's domestic financial system.

Rumors about Prat-Gay's future had swirled in recent weeks after an income tax proposal crucial to the government's deficit reduction targets failed in Congress, forcing the government to renegotiate a new deal with the opposition.

The change was announced on a U.S. market holiday, and the reaction in Argentina's currency and stock markets was limited, a trader said.

Latin America's No. 3 economy continues to suffer through inflation seen reaching 40 percent in 2016, while economists see the economy shrinking 2.3 percent. The government has promised a return to growth in 2017, driven largely by public works spending.

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The 2017 budget presented by Prat-Gay in September foresees a deficit of 4.2 percent of gross domestic product, higher than the 3.3 percent originally anticipated.

Prat-Gay will remain in place until the end of the week, Pena said, and was flying to the southwestern Argentine city of Villa la Angostura to have lunch with Macri, who is on vacation.

Prat-Gay was instrumental in lifting Argentina's currency controls and negotiating a deal with holdout creditors over debt that Argentina defaulted on in 2002, two of the center-right Macri administration's main achievements after taking office last December, ending more than a decade of populist rule.

Caputo also played a crucial role in the deal with holdouts, which paved the way for Argentina's return to international credit markets for the first time in more than a decade.

(Editing by Bill Trott and Leslie Adler)
This is how astronauts celebrate Christmas in space, in case you were wondering

We all having our holiday traditions: caroling, baking cookies, floating around at zero gravity. Wait, what? At least, thats how astronauts celebrate Christmas on a space station. And, TBH, it sounds pretty awesome.

Among the group currently on board the International Space Station is the oldest woman to go to space, NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson. She and two other astronauts, Shane Kimbrough and Thomas Pesquet, appeared in a NASA video last week and discussed their celebration. They ate a special meal, just like the ISS astronauts celebrated Christmas in 2015. On the menu was some standard holiday fare, like turkey, cornbread stuffing, and gingerbread. Even out of pouches and cans, it still sounds tasty.

Whitson also shared a beautiful sentiment about the experience of celebrating from space. I think being on board the ISS gives us a slightly different perspective of Christmas. besides funny hats there is another very important aspect of being on [the] ISS, and thats seeing the planet as a whole, and it actually reinforces, I think, that the fact that we should live as one people and strive for peace.

Apart from the no gravity thing, the astronauts at the ISS actually have a pretty typical Christmas. They got the day off; in fact, since they always have Sundays off, they got today off, too!

Kimbrough began celebrations by tweeting on Christmas Eve. Its a stunning photo of the Earth, along with a Merry Christmas wish.

The astronauts on the ISS obviously dont get to be with their families, but they do get gifts. In fact, a Japanese cargo supply ship delivered presents to them in early December. (So they basically experienced a different version of eyeing gifts sitting under the tree and wanting to open them right away.)

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They also got dressed festively. Whitson shared a photo of herself in holiday socks and a Santa hat on Twitter. Oh, and shes just floating around weightlessly, NBD.

In the Christmas Spirit! pic.twitter.com/OHxAPcL48q  Peggy Whitson (@AstroPeggy) December 22, 2016

It certainly seems that celebrating the holidays in space would be pretty cool. Of course, we know the astronauts there have made a lot of sacrifices. Were just glad they got to have an extra day off, a special meal, and gifts from home.

The post This is how astronauts celebrate Christmas in space, in case you were wondering appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Australian seamer Jackson Bird claimed two crucial wickets just before rain stopped play on the opening day of the second Test against Pakistan at the MCG on Monday.

When tea was called early due to rain, the visitors were 142 for four with opener Azhar Ali on 66 and first Test centurion Asad Shafiq on four, and that proved to be the stumps score as well.

The rain continued after tea and play was abandoned without any more action.

After winning the toss and choosing to bat the visitors made a cautious start but only Ali was able to build an innings of substance.

Bird (2-53) struck twice in quick succession just before the rain set in to give the home team the ascendancy, removing experienced duo Younis Khan (21) and Misbah-ul-Haq (11).

Khan, who had been given out lbw on three but successfully appealed, looked to be finding his touch when Bird sneaked a ball between his bat and pad to bowl him.

Misbah got an inside edge onto his pad and short leg Nic Maddinson dived forward to take a fine catch which was confirmed by the third umpire.

However, Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur was comfortable with the decision to bat first, saying the pitch would remain difficult to bat on.

"I think the wicket was tough," Arthur said.

"It was really tough to bat on for a period, if you got the ball in the right area there was just enough there for the bowlers.

"We're comfortable that will continue, and when you win the toss and bat you always rationalise that decision against what could happen in the fourth innings.

"We think that in the fourth innings that it will be tough to score, history says it is... we've still got a hell of a lot of work to do in getting some runs and then bowling very well when we get first crack with the ball."

Pakistan's openers Sami Aslam and Ali played and missed on occasion but were able to negotiate the seamers, and it was not until the introduction of off-spinner Nathan Lyon that the home side tasted success.

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Aslam had batted with great caution for nine from 41 balls but was surprised by some extra bounce off the third ball from Lyon. It caught the glove and Australian captain Steven Smith took the catch at first slip.

Ali survived a confident lbw appeal from the bowing of Josh Hazlewood when he was on six and was comprehensively beaten by the next ball, but steadied to anchor the innings.

But Hazlewood (1-15) struck with the last ball of the morning session, with Babar Azam (23) edging to Smith in the slips.

Smith, who made some rare catching errors in the first Test, went low to his right and just managed to cling onto the sharp chance to reward some excellent bowling from Hazlewood.

Australia kept the same side which won the first Test of the three-match series in Brisbane by 39 runs, keeping faith in struggling rookie batsman Maddinson.

Pakistan made one change, replacing seamer Rahat Ali with Sohail Khan.
Belgrade (AFP) - Illegal deportations of migrants seeking to reach western Europe along the so-called Balkans route have been on the rise, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) warned Monday.

Some 1,000 people from the Middle East, Asia and Africa "were expelled in November alone along the Balkans route... more than before", the UNHCR spokeswoman in Serbia, Mirjana Milenkovska, told AFP.

Hundreds of thousands of migrants took the Balkans route through Macedonia and Serbia, Croatia and Hungary as they tried to reach western Europe from Greece before it was largely shut down in March.

Non-governmental human rights organisations and activists also warned that an increasing number of legally-registered migrants were being "illegally deported" from Serbia to Bulgaria and Macedonia.

On December 17 "a seven-member Syrian family, including a two-year old child, 16-year old girl and two women almost froze after being left in a forest in -11 Celsius degrees (12.2 Fahrenheit) to walk towards Bulgaria some one kilometre (half a mile) away," an activist said.

"The family was registered in Belgrade and on its way to a refugee centre, when they were taken off the bus by a police or army unit that tore their documents," said Gordan Paunovic of the Info Park group that provides help to refugees.

They were eventually rescued by a regular police officer from a nearby town who was alerted by activists, Paunovic said.

The Belgrade Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) that represents the family said that the bus driver confirmed the information.

Serbian Defence Minister Zoran Djordjevic denied army involvement in the incident.

Some 7,000 migrants are currently in Serbia. Most are lodged in 13 official reception centres, while some 1,000 are sleeping rough in downtown Belgrade, Milenkovska said.

Some 109 people were reportedly deported in November to Macedonia from Serbia's border migrant transit centre at Presevo.

"They all came back to Belgrade and told us the same story: they were awakened at 4 am, put in a police van and than driven to a field in the middle of a forest on the border with Macedonia," Paunovic said.

Members of Macedonian Youth Lawyers Association (MYLA), who provide legal help to migrants in Macedonia, also "have recorded cases of persons who have been pushed back to Macedonia, although they had asylum papers from Serbia."
Did you rock black or navy lipstick in 2016? Or crimp your hair? We take a look at the beauty trends that took hold over the past 12 months.

Dark lippy

From Kylie Jenner to Katy Perry, all the biggest stars in the beauty business pushed a dark lip at some point during 2016. The look first appeared during the Autumn/Winter 2016 ready-to-wear shows but was quickly adopted by celebrities everywhere, with Rihanna and Taylor Swift amongst those who shunned conventional reds and pinks, choosing to fly the flag for black or navy lipstick instead.

Orange is the new black

Of course every trend needs a counter-trend, and the dark lipstick movement was no different. Orange made a comeback in a big way, championed by the likes of Amal Clooney, who debuted a sunset shade at the Cannes Film Festival, and Olivia Munn, who showed up at the Oscars in a bold tangerine hue. Gigi Hadid was also a fan of the look.

No-makeup makeup

At the other end of the spectrum was the 'no-makeup makeup look', which became more sophisticated than ever, thanks to innovative strobing and highlighting products. A hint of shimmer was the go-to look at many of the Autumn/Winter and Spring/Summer shows, tying in with the barefaced beauty movement that has been championed this year by Alicia Keys, Cindy Crawford and Cameron Diaz.

Curls, curls, curls

In keeping with the growing appetite for natural beauty, curls ruled the catwalks of 2016. Elsewhere, model Jasmine Sanders saw her profile skyrocket after being unveiled as the face of Moroccan Oil's new curly hair care range, while stars such as Jennifer Lawrence and Anne Hathaway embraced a Victoria's Secret-worthy curly wave for red carpet events.

All that glitters

There was a definite trend towards shimmery eyes in bright metallics this year -- a look that was seen on catwalks from Chanel to Versace. Reese Witherspoon, Barbara Palvin and Emma Stone were just some of the stars to take the low-maintenance look to the red carpet over the course of the year.
By Adam Jourdan

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - When her father's lung cancer worsened, Yin Min, a 51-year-old financial broker from Shanghai, faced a choice: pay nearly $3,000 a month for an approved drug or pay a fraction of the price for a generic drug not approved for use in China.

Yin, like many families in China, turned to the increasingly popular, unregulated market of online pharmacies, agents and peer groups for drugs.

She bought a generic version of Iressa, not approved for use in China, directly from a manufacturer in India.

"With this sort of misfortune, it's hard to put into words the financial pressure you feel," Yin told Reuters.

Of 30 cancer patients interviewed by Reuters over the past year, two thirds took routes similar to Yin's, pushed by China's high drug prices and a lack of access to newer drugs. The patients were aged between 32 and 81, had varying income levels and suffered from a variety of cancers.

There is no official data on how many cancer patients in China turn to unregulated channels, but research indicates an increase globally in the use of grey and counterfeit markets.

Liu Xuemei, a 61-year-old carcinoma patient from Beijing, said she went through a pharmacy agent to get a cheaper alternative to the approved Zadaxin, while Zhao Xiaohua, who has lung cancer, said he found a cheaper treatment through a patients group recommended by his doctor. Patients Reuters spoke to said doctors often turn a blind eye to them accessing drugs through the grey market, and some actively help them do this.

Medicines bought through unofficial channels are not necessarily harmful, and some of the Indian generics available online are approved for use in other markets. But they can include drugs that are ineffective or fake.

The reason patients in China turn to these unregulated channels are largely financial.

Low average salaries, a chasm between urban and rural wealth, and creaking state reimbursement schemes mean serious disease is among the leading causes of poverty, creating a major social burden and rising debt.

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In Yin's case, the generic drug she bought was 13 times less expensive than the China-approved branded Tarceva.

But Chinese also turn to unofficial channels because of bottlenecks in China's drug approvals, which pharmaceutical executives say can mean drugs lag markets like the United States by 5-10 years. China requires all new drugs to be tested and approved in the country, but has a shortage of specialists for this work.

The national drug reimbursement list, the main catalog of medicines covered by state health insurance, is being updated for the first time since 2009. That means even if a drug has been approved, patients can often only access it if they pay for it themselves.

China's health ministry did not respond to Reuters' questions about patients turning to unregulated channels to buy medicines, or the lack of access to new drugs.

The high cost of drugs is not confined to China, and there has been a jump globally in so-called 'buyers clubs'  informal patient groups sourcing drugs via the grey market to help those with HIV and hepatitis access drugs at more affordable prices.

LIMITED OPTIONS

China last year had four million new cancer cases, according to official data, and the nation's personal healthcare bill is set to soar almost fourfold to 12.7 trillion yuan ($1.84 trillion) by 2025, according to Boston Consulting Group.

For many Chinese, being left outside the health system at a time of need is in sharp contrast to the 'iron rice bowl' concept of state benefits and guarantees for life.

"If we can't buy the drug in China or we can't afford to buy it, then what other options do we have?" asked Duan Guangping, a banker in Chongqing, whose mother got lung cancer in 2011. He bought a drug for her from Bangladesh.

China has sought to increase insurance coverage for serious diseases, and encourage drug makers to lower their prices to gain better market access. It has also tried to speed up the regulatory approval process by thinning out the waiting list, forcing manufacturers to withdraw new drugs where trial data isn't strong enough.

But change has been slow.

"A lot of new oncology drugs were approved in the U.S. and UK, but in China there's a 5-7 year delay," said Li Tiantian, a former doctor and founder of medical platform DXY.com. "A lot of patients with cancer cannot wait."

The overall 5-year survival rate for cancer in China is just over 30 percent, less than half the level in the United States, according to Deutsche Bank.

LEGAL RISK

Turning to unofficial channels can also carry a legal risk.

Leukemia patient Lu Yong, a prominent member of a local 'buyers club', was arrested last year and charged with selling unapproved drugs and credit card fraud. He was later released after a public outcry.

In 2004, after buying a generic version of Iressa from India, Lu helped set up an online group for leukemia patients, who wanted the same drugs he was getting at a fraction of the price of the approved drug in China.

The generic started at around 3,000 yuan ($435) and the price slowly dropped over the years, Lu said - to a long way below the price of the approved drug from AstraZeneca.

"There was no other option, so we took this path even though what we were doing was against the law," Lu told Reuters before his arrest.

Lu declined to comment to Reuters after his release, but in his earlier interview he said he never profited from the transactions and only helped other patients to make the complicated overseas payments.

"It's because of problems with China's public health insurance system that so many seriously ill patients aren't able to survive," he said then.

(Reporting by Adam Jourdan and SHANGHAI newsroom; Editing by Ian Geoghegan)
German carmaker BMW is expected to recall nearly 200,000 vehicles in China over defective airbags, the countrys General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) said Friday. This follows a November recall by the luxury automobile company in the U.S. over problems with its vehicles fuel pumps.

The latest recall affects 168,861 imported vehicles manufactured between December 2005 and December 2011, and 24,750 cars produced locally between July 2005 and December 2011, AQSIQ said, according to Agence France-Presse. Gas generators in the faulty airbags are at risk of breaking unexpectedly, forming debris that could possibly harm drivers.

BMW will replace the defective gas generators in the airbags for free, the agency added.

In October, BMW USA recalled some 154,000 vehicles over fuel pump problems. The smallest problem created by the issue could be fuel leakages, and the biggest risk would be crashes. Loose wiring in the cars was likely to melt a connector, triggering the leakage bringing the vehicles to a halt. This could have increased the risk of crashes. The recall affected 26 different BMW models.

In June, the German automaker recalled nearly 200,000 X3 and X4 crossover SUVs for problems with the child seat anchors. In February, about 840,000 vehicles were recalled due to implications from the massive Takata airbag recall.

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German luxury carmaker BMW will recall nearly 200,000 vehicles in China because of flawed airbags, according to the country's quality regulator and the company.

Some 168,861 imported cars produced between December 2005 and December 2011, and 24,750 vehicles produced locally between July 2005 and December 2011 will be recalled, according to a statement posted Friday on the official website of China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (ASDIQ).

Gas generators in the defective airbags of the recalled cars could break unexpectedly, creating debris that poses a threat to riders' safety, ASDIQ said.

The company will replace the flawed gas generators in the airbags for free, it said.

Earlier this month, BMW China said they would recall some 22,543 imported BMW and Rolls-Royce vehicles also with flawed airbags.

The airbags in some imported BMW and Rolls-Royce cars produced between 2011 and 2012 might not deploy properly due to a programming error, the company said.
Kanye West received the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard award at the 2015 VMAs, which fits because he's an icon but it's also curious: he's arguably never been a video-driven artist. That is, he's made some great videos, but only a handful of them played a large part in his own legend.

Think about it, what would his iconic "Thriller" moment have been? Rocking the shutter shades in "Stronger" was perhaps as close as his videos have come to influencing the surrounding world, and "Runaway" was unquestionably his attempt to make a Jackson-sized opus, but videos never mattered to the Yeezus legacy the way they did for Madonna or Eminem or Lady Gaga.

That's not to say he doesn't have plenty of worthy ones, and it was curious from the get-go what a modest presence he played in his own work; his debut "Through the Wire" was recorded with his jaw wired shut (what a thing to imagine today) and the polaroid-and-surgery-filled clip was hardly an earth-shaking entrance. He'd eventually make such impacts with his videography, and here are ten times his cinema lived up to any of his other highest heights.

11. "Bound 2," Yeezus (2013)

Kanye's tribute to his beloved wife (who co-stars in "Bound 2") was much-derided becausewhy exactly? It's just as corny as the valentine you'd make your spouse if you had the budget to unleash horses in the wild and ride a motorbike with them accompanying naked and hair blowing in the wind. It's fittingly as awkward and Kanye-esque as a paean with lines like, "I turn the plane around, your ass keep complaining" or "Have you ever asked your bitch for other bitches?" deserves.

10. "The New Workout Plan," The College Dropout (2004)

A deeply silly song that deserved its deeply silly clip, "The New Workout Plan" shares very little with the rest of Kanye's discography or any other rappers. It featured "hip-hop violinist" Miri Ben-Ari and Anna Nicole Smith, had kind of a four-on-the-floor workout dance beat, and it served as an exercise infomercial parody that both mocked and indulged in the ridiculous objectification of its subject. The clip itself could've been far more offensive, so blessedly it focused on what made the song funny: see onscreen text "Dude With a Car" or the woman who checks the whole class' weaves before they continue the obstacle course.

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9. "Can't Tell Me Nothing [Zack Galifianakis Version]" Graduation (2007)

Graduation's first single is more or less the Rosetta Stone for Kanye, a clenched claw of soundbites that would go on to define him: "I dreamed I could buy my way to heaven / When I awoke I spent it on a necklace," "I felt the pressure, under more scrutiny / And what'd I do? Act more stupidly," and especially the slant-rhyme "Don't ever fix your lips like collagen / And say something when you gon' end up apologing." While it's loaded with self-deprecation, it's probably the most soul-baring metatext he'll ever release, and its original clip is a little too on-the-nose for this kind of soul-searching.

Enter Zack Galifianakis and Will Oldham, whose bizarre, "Amish Paradise"-esque take from Funny or Die finds the two facially furry oddballs lip-synching the tune straight-faced while driving tractors and herding cows. It somehow makes a perfect song a little more perfect.

8. "Good Life," Graduation (2007)

They say good artists copy, but great artists steal, and so when Kanye saw Jonas & Francois and So Me's brightly colored, design-heavy video for Justice's "D.A.N.C.E." in 2007, he decided he wanted one of those. So the same team put together "Good Life," which is virtually a carbon copy, only without the T-shirt concept. 'Ye and T-Pain cavort in black and white while the lyrics to the song come to life and everything around the duo is rendered kaleidoscopic and eye-popping. The real question is whether it's a total coincidence that "D.A.N.C.E" was a Michael Jackson tribute, while "Good Life" samples "P.Y.T.," one of the many songs referenced in the Justice hit.

7. "All Falls Down," The College Dropout (2004)

It takes almost a minute into the suspiciously Kanye-free "All Falls Down" clip before you realize the one-shot camera is actually him, when you see his reflection rapping in the window of the limousine Stacey Dash just exited. It's incredible how different he looked then, dressed in decent-not-luxurious clothes and rapping in the mirror about material possessions with mustard on his shirt. But the innovation of the vid's POV following Dash hurrying through the airport in slow motion really comes into full focus after he jumps into the airport scanner and raps as a skeleton through the x-ray. While he wasn't yet portraying himself as the center of the universe, this was clearly a guy with new ideas.

6. "Mercy," Cruel Summer (2012)

There's not a ton to say about "Mercy," even though it's certainly one of Kanye's best videos -- and easily his most stylish clip, gorgeous and ominous in black and white, side-scrolling in a garage while the man and his A-list posse skulk around in occasional leather. (Possibly as a sideways homage to "Bad," as the Jackson-obsessed rapper is wont.) It's almost enough to distract from some of Kanye's douchiest lines, like "My bitch make your bitch look like Precious." Fool Gabourey is beautiful.

5. "Jesus Walks [Version 2,]" The College Dropout (2004)

"Jesus Walks" was probably the moment when it became clear that Kanye West was more than just a great producer who scored a great solo debut. "Through the Wire," "All Falls Down," and "Slow Jamz" were strong, funny, soulful singles given memorable visual treatment, but the second and most well-known clip for "Jesus Walks" was West's first unforgettable video. The stark contrast of his blinding white suit up against the dirt-yellow, pre-Breaking Bad desert car chase, jump-roping adolescent girls, and gritty, O Brother, Where Art Thou-styled chain-gang imagery throughout made for a larger-than-life coronation when combined with the song's militant beat and religious themes.

And none of that prepares for the shock of the Klansmen and burning crosses that arrive at the end of the video, around the time West exclaims "If I talk about God, my record won't get played!" Oh, how wrong he was. And when he performed "Jesus Walks" with a marching band in Dave Chappelle's Block Party (and with a full gospel choir at awards show appearances), he almost brought the whole crazy video to life.

4. "Otis," Watch the Throne (2011)

Watch the Throne was blown off in some corners by fans who were fed up with Kanye and Jay Z's crass materialism and back-slapping. But as the video for its first true single "Otis" shows -- unlike with the frightening billionaire class about to enter the White House -- there is no darkness in black wealth. The two icons smile their way through Spike Jonze's wondrous, simple clip, racing around in a doorless, windowless Maybach (with some lucky passengers) in front of our grand old flag. As Nov. 8th showed, this isn't America. But it's a sweet reminder of what we want it to be.

3. "Flashing Lights," Graduation (2007)

One of Kanye's best-ever songs and an even better visual, "Flashing Lights" sounds like nothing else in his catalog, like a film score with rave-synth accompaniment, and its desolate clip is appropriately barren and haunting to match. A Playboy model drives out to the desert, strips down to her designer skivvies, pops the trunk to reveal a beleaguered, bound-and-gagged Kanye, and the camera pans away as she bludgeons him with a shovel multiple times. Then it ends. It serves as both a self-deprecating fever dream (one of the rare instances of co-ed violence in a Kanye work where he ends up on the losing end) and one of his usual, disturbing conflations of sex and death. It was a harbinger of the beautiful dark twisted fantasies to come.

2. "Runaway," My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010)

This is the big epic: 34 minutes of groundbreaking, legend-cementing short film incorporating every single track on the crowning My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy culminating in graceful ballet dancers on red and teal backdrops while our perpetually-white-suited hero plinks a piano and sings about dick pics and being gifted at finding what he doesn't like, all while a Last Supper-esque dinner party remains frozen in tableaux. And let's not forget the man's date, a beautiful and hapless phoenix who elicits the best sequence in the whole thing:

"Your girlfriend is really beautiful."

"Thank you."

"Do you know she is a bird?"

"No, I never noticed that."

1. "Monster," My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010)

"Monster" is probably Kanye's best video and one of his definitive works all around. It was nowhere near as large as "Thriller," but it's comparable as a sequence of stunning, disturbing visual after stunning, disturbing visual. There's Mr. West holding a model's severed head and arranging dead-appearing women in a bed to have one's arm around another. There's Jay Z at his flashiest in a suit and shades with another beautiful corpse behind him. And best of all, fanged and vampiric brunette Nicki Minaj torturing a pink-coiffed victim Nicki Minaj, as she annihilates what's possibly the verse of the the decade. The only thing that ruins it is the absurd suppressive disclaimer at the beginning insisting the clip is to be in no way interpreted as misogynistic. Even the greats have no say in how we process their work.
Mistry's departure - and the reinstatement of the 78-year-old Tata as interim chairman - has triggered a bitter, public spat that has contributed to nearly a $10 billion decline in the market value of Tata's many listed companies.

By Reuters: When Ratan Tata retired as chairman of Tata Sons Ltd in 2012, he proposed a change in the laws governing the relationship between India's largest conglomerate and its key shareholder, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Until then, the Tata Trusts - public charities owning two-thirds of the company - had easily protected its investment. A Tata family member had for decades held the chairmanship at both the Trusts and the company, whose businesses include cars, software and steel.

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But an outsider, Cyrus Mistry, had just taken the top job at Tata Sons. Tata wanted to make sure the Trusts, that rely on Tata Sons for dividends to fund their charitable work, could keep having a major say in company decisions, the sources said.

Mistry agreed, and in doing so sowed the seeds of his ouster from the company last October, according to interviews with more than half-a-dozen current and former Tata executives and advisors, and a review of meeting minutes, emails and a court petition that Mistry has filed against Tata Sons.

Mistry's departure - and the reinstatement of the 78-year-old Tata as interim chairman - has triggered a bitter, public spat that has contributed to nearly a USD 10 billion decline in the market value of Tata's many listed companies.

Even if the conflict is resolved, the company could face future governance issues as the structure remains unchanged, which means it could weigh on any new chairman. "It is going to be very difficult for an external person to take the role," said Shriram Subramanian, founder of proxy advisory firm InGovern Research.

Mistry wrote in a letter to the Tata Sons board on October 26 that Tata improperly used the change in bylaws to interfere in the affairs of the company and created an alternate power center at the group, which made it hard for him to do his job.

Tata Sons spokesman Debasis Ray said Tata asked Mistry to do only what was in the bylaws and got involved in the company's affairs when he was asked. Tata Sons has cited Mistry's performance as the main reason for firing him, holding him responsible for rising expenses and impairment provisions.

Still, interviews with sources on both sides and the review of documents show that the changes in bylaws helped create the conditions that caused friction between Mistry and Tata and increasingly hindered smooth functioning of the group.

Over the past 30 months, Mistry met Tata - often along with fellow trustee Noshir Soonawala - more than two dozen times to update them on deals and other strategic decisions at group companies. In several cases, the meetings and explanations led to disagreements, the sources said.

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CHANGES TO BYLAWS

The changes in bylaws, which were finalised in 2014 after more than a year of discussions, substantially increased the accountability of the chairman of Tata Sons to the directors nominated by the Trusts.

The Trusts can nominate one-third of Tata Sons' directors. The new bylaws require major decisions, such as deals and changes to the company's capital structure, be approved by a majority of the Trusts' nominees.

The chairman was also now required to present five-year and annual business plans to the board and have them approved by a majority of the nominees, the bylaws show.

The chairman, though, was not directly accountable to any of the trustees, including Tata. The Trusts' nominees were expected to represent their interests on the Tata Sons board, sources familiar with the rules on both sides of the conflict said.

Mistry said in his letter that the family's patriarch nevertheless continued to directly interfere in the conglomerate's affairs and called the nominees "postmen" who did Tata's bidding.

Mistry also wrote that Tata's interference "severely constrained" his ability to make the necessary changes to turn around many of the conglomerate's loss-making businesses.

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Of the three nominees of the Trusts on the nine-member Tata Sons board at the time of Mistry's ousting, one declined to comment and two others could not be reached.

Tata Sons' Ray denied that Tata interfered with operational matters after stepping down. Tata never attended the group's board meetings and any interaction between Tata and Mistry was at Mistry's behest, Ray said.

The dispute is now being litigated. Mistry filed a petition on December 20 at the National Company Law Tribunal, a quasi-judicial body that deals with corporate grievances in India.

In his petition, Mistry has asked the court to stop Tata and the trustees from interfering in the affairs of the company, replace the entire Tata Sons board and order an investigation into the role of the trustees.

Tata Sons has called his accusations baseless and malicious and said it believes that Mistry's petition is not maintainable in law.

MANY MEETINGS

While the extent of Tata's influence remains in dispute, sources on both sides acknowledged that Tata and Mistry often met to talk about the affairs of the company, and sometimes disagreed on the best course of action.

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For example, when Tata Power decided to buy USD 1.4 billion worth of renewable energy assets from rival Welspun Energy this summer, Tata and Soonawala - who is also a former Tata group finance chief and close confidante of the family's patriarch - got involved.

Emails from early July between Mistry and Soonawala show that Soonawala had ideas about how the deal should be structured that were different from the proposals made by bankers who were advising the group.

Soonawala also told Mistry to get Tata's sign off before finalising the deal, two sources close to Mistry said, adding that the involvement of the two men led to the deal being delayed by several weeks.

Ray said Soonawala, 81, got involved because he was asked by Mistry to do so. Another Tata Sons spokesman said "there were no delays because of consultation with the trustees". Sources close to Mistry deny he asked for Soonawala's advice.

Reuters could not independently confirm whether such a request was ever made.

In another instance, just weeks before an Indian telecom airwaves auction in the autumn, Mistry met Tata and Soonawala on three separate occasions to discuss Tata Teleservices' bidding strategy, two sources close to Mistry said. They said the meetings lasted for hours, as the two sides disagreed on how much extra spectrum Tata Teleservices should buy.

Reuters could not independently determine who asked for the meetings.

Tata and Soonawala wanted the purchase to be kept at a minimum because the company was already bleeding, but Mistry and Tata Teleservices executives wanted to buy more, arguing it could help increase value and draw interest from suitors, the sources said.

Tata Teleservices ended up paying 46.2 billion rupees (USD 681 million) for some of the spectrum being sold, government data showed.

What is not clear is who prevailed in the internal argument over the bidding.

--- ENDS ---
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Troy Ave nearly became the latest celebrity victim of 2016 when he was shot multiple times Sunday evening. According to early reports, Troy Ave, real name Roland Collins, was shot twice while on his way to see his family in Brooklyn for Christmas. A lawyer for the rapper says his injuries are not life-threatening and that he drove himself to an area hospital for immediate treatment.

A tweet from the New York City Alerts account reports Troy was shot in the arm and grazed in the head while driving his Maserati in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn around 5 PM tonight.

Brooklyn: Rapper Troy Ave was shot in the arm & grazed in the head while driving Maserati on East 91st St & Linden Blvd. @AllisonPapson pic.twitter.com/2k2RrKiBqR  New York City Alerts (@NYCityAlerts) December 26, 2016

Rapper @TroyAve shot twice in Brooklyn while going to meet his family for Christmas. His attorney said injuries not life threatening  Aaron Katersky (@AaronKatersky) December 26, 2016

This is Troy Aves second brush with death this year. The rapper was at the center of the now infamous Irving Plaza concert shooting in May that saw one person dead and several injured. Troy reportedly shot himself in the leg during all the chaos and was charged with one count of attempted second-degree murder and four counts of criminal possession of a weapon. The case is still ongoing.
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The addition of Touch ID on phones meant to add peace of mind for consumers. Ideally, this prevents anyone from taking control over a strangers phone or  even worse  authorizing purchases from the device. However, one mom learned the hard way that this fingerprint approval can hook you into an unexpected bill, especially if ones child happens to be as crafty as Bethany Howells 6-year-old daughter, Ashlynd.

The Wall Street Journal was the first to report on this cautionary tale, which culminated with the sounding of alarms at a $250 charge for Pokemon toys on the Howells credit card bill. What had happened was both awesome and disturbing, as Ashlynd had grabbed her napping mothers hand about a week prior to Christmas. She embarked upon her own Amazon shopping spree and went buck wild with Pokemon toys:

After Ashlynds parents received 13 order confirmations for Pokemon items, they initially thought theyd been hacked. No, Mommy, I was shopping. But dont worry  everything that I ordered is coming straight to the house.

Yeah, maybe its time to switch back to a good, old-fashioned passcode, but Ashlynd will probably figure that out too. Amazon has agreed to refund four of the childs purchases, but her parents decided to use Santa as a good excuse for the rest: Well, Santa found out and that is what Santa is going to bring you for Christmas. Good plan, and they may as well use that excuse while the kid still believes in Santa because it wont be long before she takes over the world.

(Via Gizmodo & Wall Street Journal)
By Humeyra Pamuk ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish authorities have arrested the cafeteria manager of the opposition Cumhuriyet newspaper for insulting the president after he said he would not serve tea to Tayyip Erdogan, one of the manager's lawyers told Reuters on Monday. Senol Buran, who runs the cafeteria at the Istanbul office of Cumhuriyet, was taken into custody after police raided his home late on Saturday, lawyer Ozgur Urfa said. The newspaper is among the few still critical of the government. Insulting the president is a crime punishable by up to four years in prison in Turkey. Lawyers for Erdogan, who has dominated Turkish politics for more than a decade, have filed more than 1,800 cases against people including cartoonists, a former Miss Turkey winner and schoolchildren on accusations of insulting him. Following a failed coup in July, Erdogan said he would drop the outstanding suits, in a one-off gesture of national unity. Buran is jailed pending trial and the court date, if any, has not yet been announced. The Justice Ministry would need to approve the launch of a court case. Buran was detained after a police officer providing security for the newspaper said he heard him use a derogatory term to describe Erdogan and say he would refuse to serve the president tea if he ever visited the cafeteria, his lawyer said. According to court documents obtained by Reuters, Buran has denied using an insulting term, while confirming that he had said he would refuse to serve the president tea. He also said he had a dispute with the police officer two years ago. The judge at an Istanbul court on Sunday ordered Buran's arrest pending trial, citing "strong suspicion of crime committed" and saying the suspect might otherwise put pressure on witnesses, the documents showed. The Cumhuriyet has confirmed that Buran was arrested. Ten Cumhuriyet staff including its top editor and senior executives were jailed in November pending trial on suspicion of crimes on behalf of Kurdish militants and U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is accused of instigating the failed July 15 coup. The newspaper's previous editor, Can Dundar, was jailed last year for publishing state secrets involving Turkey's support for Syrian rebels. He was later released and is now overseas. Since the July coup, more than 110,000 people have been sacked or suspended and 40,000 jailed pending trial. Western allies and rights groups say they fear Erdogan is using the coup attempt to crush dissent. Turkish authorities last week froze assets of 54 journalists who have been under investigation and some already jailed over suspected links to what Ankara calls the "Gulenist Terror Organisation", according to Hurriyet newspaper. Gulen has said the charges against him are false and has condemned the coup. (Editing by David Dolan and Ruth Pitchford)
Carrie Fisher is in stable condition after suffering a major heart attack.

The actress' mother, Debbie Reynolds, tweeted the update to family, friends and fans on Sunday.

EXCLUSIVE: Carrie Fisher In Intensive Care Unit After Heart Attack, Brother Says: 'We Hope For the Best'

"Carrie is in stable condition. If there is a change,we will share it," the 84-year-old actress wrote alongside a photo of her daughter. "For all her fans & friends. I thank you for your prayers & good wishes."

Carrie is in stable condition.If there is a change,we will share it. For all her fans & friends. I thank you for your prayers & good wishes. pic.twitter.com/isXJqqFEB6  Debbie Reynolds (@DebbieReynolds1) December 25, 2016

Carrie's half-sister, Joely Fisher, rewteeted Debbie's Christmas update, writing "MamaDebs" alonsgide a heart emoji.



Carrie, 60, suffered a heart attack while aboard an airplane flying from London to Los Angeles on Friday.

ET spoke with her brother, Todd Fisher, on Friday, when her condition was then unknown.

"She is in the intensive care unit, she is being well looked after," Todd said at the time. "If everyone could just pray for her that would be good. The doctors are doing their thing and we don't want to bug them. We are waiting by patiently."

RELATED: Harrison Ford, 'Star Wars' Co-Stars and Family Share Send Prayers to Carrie Fisher

Shortly after the news broke, Joely took to Twitter to send prayers to Carrie.

"Use the force babe," she wrote alongside a photo of her sister, adding lip and heart emojis.

Then on Saturday, the 49-year-old actress tweeted another message to Carrie. She posted a photo of the two with their other sister, Tricia, writing, "Fisher Girls...your love and prayers are deeply felt...@TriciaLFisher @carrieffisher @Gary_TheDog."

Story continues

WATCH: Carrie Fisher Suffers Major Heart Attack on Plane

Tricia shared the same photo but captioned hers, "Thank you all for the prayers for my sister. Please keep them coming. Much love."

She also retweeted a heartbreaking photo of Carrie's beloved dog, Gary, looking out the window. The caption, posted by Gary's Twitter account, read, "I'll be waiting right here mommy. #CarrieFisher @carrieffisher #princessleia."

For more on Carrie's health situation, watch the video below.

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The Center for Public Integrity spent 2016 like we've spent every year since 1989: revealing abuses of power, corruption and betrayal of public trust by powerful public and private institutions.

Here are some of our best investigations involving powerful corperations and shady business practices from the past year.

This story is part of Inside Publici. Stories were working on, the impact of our investigations, news about our fundraising efforts, and other issues that shape our work. Click here to read more stories in this topic.

Don't miss another Inside Publici investigation: Sign up for the Center for Public Integrity's Watchdog email.





With the federal government in a seemingly undending state of gridlock, more and more companies are turning their attention  and influence  to state governments.

The number of registered lobbyists in Washington, D.C., is on the decline but for every state lawmaker active between 2010 and 2014 there were an average of six companies, trade associations, unions or other groups vying for their attention.

This influence yields results for everything from pharmacutical companies and big tobacco to newcomers like Uber.

Keep reading





The Center for Public Integrity requested the annual reports from some of the country's largest auto-title lenders (which offer high-interest loans similar to payday loans) as part of our investigating auto-title lenders back in 2015. Similar documents are public records in other states, but TitleMax, Loan Max and and Fast Auto Loans fought back the Center's request in Virginia.

The companies argued before the Virginia State Corporation Commission that their annual reports were subject to the same privacy rights as an individual's personal financial information. The commission agreed.

Virginians, and costumers in other states where high interest lending is still legal, turn to auto-title lenders for fast cash put their car up for collateral and are saddled with interests rates up to 300 percent on terms that can be misleading or, critics say, downright abusive.

Story continues

Keep reading





Don't miss another Inside Publici investigation: Sign up for the Center for Public Integrity's Watchdog email.





Anyone willing to pay for it can get access to fast internet, right? Not exactly.

Low income neighborhoods  those with median household incomes below $34,800  are five times more likely not to have access to broadband internet than neighborhoods with a median income above $80,700.

In an increasingly connected economy, internet inequality is more than an inconvenience. For many households in the U.S. tools like online jobs, health care and education sites and banking services are out of reach.

It would be like when you are in a hole, it would be that nice rope ladder being lowered down to you so you can get yourself out, Curtis Brown Jr. told the Center for Public Integrity. Thats exactly what it would feel like for us.

Keep reading





Since 2010, more than 46,000 struggling homeowners have filed written complaints against law firms that promised foreclosure relief but instead bilked their clients out of over $100 million.

The scam grew out of a well-meaning government program called loan modification. Some purported law firms were little more than telemarketing companies using rubber-stamp approval from lawyers to put a new spin on an old scam targeting minorities and struggling borrowers.

They take $3,000 from someone who only has that much, not from a population with a lot of wealth, Michael Tanglis, of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, told the Center back in July.

Keep reading





This story is part of Inside Publici. Stories were working on, the impact of our investigations, news about our fundraising efforts, and other issues that shape our work. Click here to read more stories in this topic.

Copyright 2016 The Center for Public Integrity. This story was published by The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative news organization in Washington, D.C.
JOHANNESBURG (AP)  Amid population declines for many wildlife species in Africa, conservationists are sounding alarm bells for the cheetah, the fastest animal on land.

An estimated 7,100 cheetahs remain in the wild across Africa and in a small area of Iran, and human encroachment has pushed the wide-ranging predator out of 91 percent of its historic habitat, according to a study published on Monday.

Consequently, the cheetah should be defined as "endangered" instead of the less serious "vulnerable" on an official watch list of threatened species worldwide, the study said.

"This period is really crunch time for species like cheetah that need these big areas," said Sarah Durant, a cheetah specialist at the Zoological Society of London and the lead author of the report published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

About 77 percent of cheetah habitats fall outside wildlife reserves and other protected areas, the study said, requiring outreach to governments and villages to promote tolerance for a carnivore that sometimes hunts livestock.

Besides habitat loss, cheetahs face attacks from villagers, loss of antelope and other prey that are killed by people for their meat, an illegal trade in cheetah cubs, the trafficking of cheetah skins and the threat of getting hit by speeding vehicles.

A cheetah has been recorded running at a speed of 29 meters (95 feet) per second. The species may move more slowly while hunting and it can only maintain top speeds for a few hundred meters.

More than half of the world's cheetahs live in southern Africa, including in Namibia and Botswana, which have relatively sparse human populations. Cheetahs have been virtually wiped out in Asia, save for fewer than 50 in Iran, according to the study, whose contributors included the Panthera group and the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Durant said there was uncertainty over the 7,100 number, which was based on data from experts in areas where cheetahs live and estimates for other areas. Cheetahs are difficult to find because they move over vast regions, she said.

Story continues

Durant also led a previous assessment of nearly 6,700 cheetahs published last year by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which keeps a watch list of threatened species. Since then, experts have provided new information and refined counting methods, contrasting with rough estimates in the 10,000-range in recent decades.

The cheetah population in Zimbabwe declined from an estimated 1,500 in 1999 to between 150 and 170, according to a survey conducted between 2013 and 2015 by a group called Cheetah Conservation Project Zimbabwe. The group solicited cheetah photographs and reports of sightings from tourists, safari guides and others and interviewed more than 1,000 people, including village heads and cattle managers.

Cheetah experts note that Angola is developing a plan to protect cheetahs and African wild dogs. That could yield better data on cheetah numbers in a country where information has been thin, said Rosemary Groom, a conservationist who participated in an October workshop on the subject in Angola's Quicama National Park.

Despite habitat loss across the continent, the Mara area in southwest Kenya and in the adjacent Serengeti National Park in Tanzania still offers a refuge, said Femke Broekhuis, head of the Mara Cheetah Project. Recent data from a GPS collar on one Mara cheetah showed that it traveled 19 kilometers (12 miles) overnight, she said.

Cheetahs often roam alone, though on Monday morning Broekhuis saw a rare sight: five male cheetahs, together.

___

Follow Christopher Torchia on Twitter at www.twitter.com/torchiachris
A Chinese aircraft carrier led a group of warships Monday through disputed South China Sea waters near Taiwan, escalating already mounted tensions between Beijing and its self-ruled rival. China's only aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, and five warships passed approximately 90 miles south of the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands in what China called a routine exercise.

The move resulted in air and naval forces being put on high-alert in Taiwan, which Beijing considers part of its territory, and drew a response from Taiwanese officials. "Staying vigilant and flexible has always been the normal method of maintaining airspace security," said Taiwanese defense ministry spokesperson Chen Chung-chi, according to Reuters.

The political conflict between China and Taiwan was reignited earlier this month when President-elect Donald Trump spoke on the phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. Since 1979, the U.S. has officially acknowledged China's claim to Taiwan and has forgone any formal diplomatic relations with the island.

Trump's hardline rhetoric toward China's trade policies has Beijing concerned that the billionaire real estate tycoon-turned-politician could upset the current state of U.S.-China relations and Beijing launched a formal complaint following news of the telephone conversation. Relations between the U.S. and China were further strained when a Chinese naval vessel seized a U.S. underwater drone last week.

China also concerned U.S. allies Sunday when its Soviet-built aircraft carrier set sail for the Western Pacific toward Japan in the carrier's first operation in "distant sea waters." Though Japan stated its borders had not been breached, China's vast territorial claims in the East China Sea, near Japan's southern islands and the Koreas, and the South China Sea, near Taiwan, Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, have created a point of contention between Beijing, regional players and Washington.

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By Ben Blanchard BEIJING (Reuters) - China promised strong support on Monday for its newest friend in Africa, the former Taiwan ally Sao Tome and Principe, whose foreign minister made a pitch for Chinese firms to invest in his "tranquil" country as the two re-established ties. Taiwan, claimed by China as its own, has accused Beijing of taking advantage of Sao Tome's financial woes to push the move and that Taipei will not engage in "dollar diplomacy". China has previously dismissed those claims and Sao Tome has denied reports it approached Taiwan for money. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, speaking to reporters after signing the deal to set up ties with Sao Tome, said the move would be good for both countries. "Sao Tome will get full support and help from a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council and the world's largest developing nation," he said, with Sao Tome Foreign Minister Urbino Botelho standing at his side. "China is willing to support Sao Tome's quest for socio-economic development and efforts to improve livelihoods and well-being to the best of its ability," Wang said, without giving details on what aid or trade deals China may offer. Botelho, speaking in Portuguese in comments translated into Chinese, said Sao Tome had made up for the mistakes of the past and made friends with China, which cut ties with Sao Tome in 1997 after it recognized Taiwan. "We have to recognize that China plays an increasingly important role in the world, especially as a partner to promote development and its contributions protecting the interests of developing nations," Botelho said. "Sao Tome is a small, island nation, with very friendly people. It is tranquil. It has very good conditions for developing trade and business and cooperating with Chinese companies." Sao Tome has beautiful scenery for tourists, a strategic location in the Gulf of Guinea and potential for investment in mining, agriculture and the building of ports and airports, Botelho said. "We hope that interested Chinese companies can join in this discussion." Taiwan, which China considers a breakaway province ineligible for state-to-state relations, had as many as 30 diplomatic allies in the mid-1990s, but now has formal relations with just 21, mostly smaller and poorer nations in Latin America and the Pacific. The former Portuguese colony's tiny island economy is heavily dependent on cocoa exports but its position in the middle of the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea has raised interest in its potential as a possible oil and gas producer. China and Taiwan have over the years tried to poach each other's allies, often dangling generous aid packages in front of developing nations. China is deeply suspicious of Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, who it thinks wants to push for the island's formal independence, though she says she wants to maintain peace with China. China's claim to Taiwan has shot back into the spotlight since U.S. President-elect Donald Trump broke diplomatic protocol and spoke with Tsai this month, angering Beijing. Trump has also questioned the "one China" policy which the United States has followed since establishing relations with Beijing in 1979, under which the United States acknowledges the Chinese position that Taiwan is part of China. (Editing by Nick Macfie)
BEIJING (AP)  China and Sao Tome and Principe officially resumed diplomatic relations Monday in a triumph for Beijing over rival Taiwan after the African island nation abruptly broke away from the self-ruled island last week.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his counterpart from Sao Tome, Urbino Botelho, signed books at a ceremony in front of their flags at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing. Wang said the re-establishment of relations would bring benefits to both countries and they would hold exchanges in tourism, the media and other areas.

The move is a victory for Beijing, which considers the self-governing island of Taiwan a part of China's territory and has been outraged by suggestions by President-elect Donald Trump that he could rethink U.S. policy that acknowledges this. Beijing and Taipei have competed for allies for much of the nearly seven decades since the end of China's civil war in 1949, when the defeated Nationalist government fled across the Taiwan Strait.

Most of the world does not formally recognize Taiwan as a condition of maintaining relations with China. Sao Tome and Taiwan broke ties last week, leaving 21 countries and governments, mostly in Latin America and the Caribbean, that have official ties with Taiwan. Taiwanese Foreign Minister David Lee last week accused Sao Tome of demanding "an astronomical amount of financial help," though he did not say how much.

Sao Tome and Principe is an island nation off the coast of west-central Africa with a population of almost 200,000. The impoverished former Portuguese colony relies heavily on foreign aid. Beijing suspended its relationship with Sao Tome in 1997 after the island nation established diplomatic ties with Taiwan.

In re-establishing relations with Beijing, Botelho said Monday, "We want to redeem our mistakes in the past." He said he hoped that more Chinese businesses would invest in his country and more Chinese tourists would visit.

Story continues

Taiwan's Foreign Ministry in a statement expressed its "strong disappointment and regret that Sao Tome has been confused by the diplomatic money campaign of mainland China and ignored the years of our great contributions to the health and wellbeing of the people of Sao Tome."

As its economic, military and political clout has grown, China has become more successful in pulling away governments in a bid to diplomatically isolate Taiwan, though some countries, including the United States, maintain strong unofficial ties with Taipei.

Relations have worsened between Beijing and Taipei since independence-leaning Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen was elected in January.

In March, China established formal diplomatic ties with the small African nation of Gambia, which had severed relations with Taiwan in 2013. That was seen as a move toward abandoning the unspoken diplomatic truce between the sides that lasted eight years under Tsai's China-friendly predecessor.

Beijing suspended contact with the main Taiwan liaison body in June, blaming Tsai's refusal to endorse the concept of a single Chinese nation.

While just a few countries and governments still have official ties with Taiwan, Beijing is eager to play up its latest addition after Trump suggested he might not adhere to the policy that recognizes only one China unless the U.S. gains trade or other benefits, analysts say.

Wang Dong, a professor of international relations at Peking University, said Monday's re-establishment of diplomatic ties was a warning to Taiwan that Beijing has "a lot of counter-measures" up its sleeve should they pursue independence, as well as a warning to the United States.

"The U.S. won't gain anything if they play with the one-China policy," he said. "It is also a warning to those in the U.S. who tolerate and support the Taiwanese independence forces."

___

Associated Press researcher Yu Bing contributed to this report.
Former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit has reasons to be unhappy these days. Her own party has listed her as among politicians, who received payments from Sahara Group.

By Kumar Vikrant Singh: Embarrassed by her own party's tweet on Sahara diary, which lists payments to several politicians, Congress leader and former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit is not ready to offer any comment on record.

Sheila Dikshit told Aaj Tak that she would not speak anything about Congress party's tweet on 'Sahara diary' but insisted that she had 'nothing to do with the case, please do not drag my name in this.'

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The Congress party tweeted from its official handle seeking response from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP over alleged payment received by the then chief minister of Gujarat and other BJP CMs in 2013.

READ| Dikshit junks Sahara documents, BJP says its double standards

The tweet also had an entry against the then Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit.

SHEILA-SAHARA CONNECTION: THINGS TO KNOW Sheila Dikshit told Aaj Tak: Mujhe Is Par Koi Comment Nahin Karna Hai. Mujhe Recall Nahin Hota Is Baare Mein. (I don't have to offer any comment on this matter (Sahara diary). I don't recall anything in this regard.) "Mera Koi Lena Dena Nahin. Kaun Si Diary? Kiski Diary? Mujhe Nahin Pata, Usmein Kisne Kya Likha (I have nothing to do with this. Which diary? Whose diary? I don't know what is written in the diary)," Sheila Dikshit said. "Kiska Naam Likha, Mujhe Kya Maloom? Bas Mujhe Is Par Kuchh Nahin Kehna. Mera Naam Mat Ghaseetiye. Main Camera Par Koi Baat Nahin Karna Chahti, (How do I know, whose name is written in the diary? Just, I don't have to say anything. Don't drag my name in this. I don't want to say anything on camera)," Sheila Dikshit said. Earlier, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi accused Narendra Modi of receiving payment of Rs 40 crore from Sahara group. On Friday, the Congress party put out a tweet to substantiate Rahul Gandhi's allegations. The tweet contained the list of politicians including several chief ministers, who allegedly received payments from Sahara in 2013 and 2014. Among others, the list contained an entry against the then Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit. The diary entry showed that Rs 1 crore in cash was paid to the Delhi chief minister on September 23, 2013. Sheila Dikshit was the chief minister of Delhi until December 2013, when elections were held and Aam Aadmi Party went on to form government. The Supreme Court is hearing a PIL, which also alleges payment to several politicians on the basis of Sahara diary entries. The apex court has, however, held the Sahara diary entry as 'fictitious'.

The controversial list tweeted by the Congress party. (Photo: @INCIndia)

--- ENDS ---
By Ben Blanchard BEIJING (Reuters) - China promised strong support on Monday for its newest friend in Africa, the former Taiwan ally Sao Tome and Principe, whose foreign minister made a pitch for Chinese firms to invest in his "tranquil" country as the two re-established ties. Taiwan, claimed by China as its own, has accused Beijing of taking advantage of Sao Tome's financial woes to push the move and that Taipei will not engage in "dollar diplomacy". China has previously dismissed those claims and Sao Tome has denied reports it approached Taiwan for money. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, speaking to reporters after signing the deal to set up ties with Sao Tome, said the move would be good for both countries. "Sao Tome will get full support and help from a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council and the world's largest developing nation," he said, with Sao Tome Foreign Minister Urbino Botelho standing at his side. "China is willing to support Sao Tome's quest for socio-economic development and efforts to improve livelihoods and well-being to the best of its ability," Wang said, without giving details on what aid or trade deals China may offer. Botelho, speaking in Portuguese in comments translated into Chinese, said Sao Tome had made up for the mistakes of the past and made friends with China, which cut ties with Sao Tome in 1997 after it recognised Taiwan. "We have to recognise that China plays an increasingly important role in the world, especially as a partner to promote development and its contributions protecting the interests of developing nations," Botelho said. "Sao Tome is a small, island nation, with very friendly people. It is tranquil. It has very good conditions for developing trade and business and cooperating with Chinese companies." Sao Tome has beautiful scenery for tourists, a strategic location in the Gulf of Guinea and potential for investment in mining, agriculture and the building of ports and airports, Botelho said. "We hope that interested Chinese companies can join in this discussion." Taiwan, which China considers a breakaway province ineligible for state-to-state relations, had as many as 30 diplomatic allies in the mid-1990s, but now has formal relations with just 21, mostly smaller and poorer nations in Latin America and the Pacific. The former Portuguese colony's tiny island economy is heavily dependent on cocoa exports but its position in the middle of the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea has raised interest in its potential as a possible oil and gas producer. China and Taiwan have over the years tried to poach each other's allies, often dangling generous aid packages in front of developing nations. China is deeply suspicious of Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, who it thinks wants to push for the island's formal independence, though she says she wants to maintain peace with China. China's claim to Taiwan has shot back into the spotlight since U.S. President-elect Donald Trump broke diplomatic protocol and spoke with Tsai this month, angering Beijing. Trump has also questioned the "one China" policy which the United States has followed since establishing relations with Beijing in 1979, under which the United States acknowledges the Chinese position that Taiwan is part of China. (Editing by Nick Macfie)
BEIJING (AP)  China's first aircraft carrier and five other warships passed by Taiwan and sailed into the contested South China Sea on Monday, Taiwan's Defense Ministry said.

The ships, led by the Liaoning, sailed past the Pratas Islands, also known as the Dongsha Islands, a Taiwan-controlled atoll in the northern part of the South China Sea, according to the ministry.

China's Defense Ministry said Saturday that the Liaoning had set off for a routine open-sea exercise in the Western Pacific as part of its annual training. But its entering into the politically sensitive South China Sea follows rising tensions between Beijing and Taipei over the status of the self-ruled island.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen has refused to endorse Beijing's concept that Taiwan is a part of China. Beijing claims the self-governing island as its own territory and says failing to endorse the one-China principle would destabilize relations.

The Taiwanese ministry said the Liaoning and warships had on Sunday sailed 90 nautical miles south of Taiwan in the Bashi Channel, a waterway between Taiwan and the Philippines.

Tensions have mounted in the South China Sea, where the U.S. and China accuse each other of engaging in a dangerous military buildup. China claims nearly all of the sea and is pitted against smaller neighbors in multiple disputes over islands, coral reefs and lagoons.

The U.S.-based Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative think tank said this month that satellite imagery showed China building large anti-aircraft guns on artificial islands in the contested waters, where China has also laid airstrips, built communications facilities and deployed suspected missiles.

China has characterized its moves as defensive in nature and accused U.S. warships of making provocative passes through the region.

The Liaoning, commissioned by the Chinese navy in 2012, first sailed to the South China Sea in 2013, when it docked at a navy base near the Chinese holiday resort of Sanya. The vessel at the time was not outfitted with a full aircraft complement.
A powerful typhoon swept through the Philippines on Christmas Day, forcing thousands of residents from their homes and claiming at least four lives in the majority Christian nation. Typhoon Nock-ten, known in the Philippines as typhoon Nina, began pummeling the eastern province of Catanduanes at around 8 p.m. local time.

Trees were uprooted from the ground, power and telecommunications lines were shut down and roughly 200,000 residents were forced to wait out the storm at evacuation centers instead of spending the major Christian holiday with family and friends. Dozens of domestic and international flights were canceled.

"Even if it weakens, 150km/h winds are still very strong," said Tess Bayombong, program director of CARE in the Philippines, an aid agency, before the storm reached Manila, home to about 13 million people. "And things may still change for the worse."

A farmer in Quezon province was killed after being pinned by a fallen tree. Meanwhile, three other villagers, including a couple, were killed in a flash flood in Albay province.

"We continue to pray, stay positive and stay alert. Brownout in a lot of areas already," Camarines Sur Gov. Miguel Luis Villafuerte said in a post on his Instagram account.

NASA said the storm had been at "super typhoon" strength, but weakened after moving over southern Luzon. By Monday, many were assessing the damage and returning home, even as Manila waited to see if the storm would hit the capital.

"They have left the evacuation centers and we're seeing the sun again," said Ann Ongjoco, mayor of Guinobatan town in Albay province, one of five provinces that lost electricity. "Many houses made of light materials were destroyed."

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Meteorologist Philip Klotzbach at Colorado State University estimated it was the strongest typhoon the Philippines had seen on record. More than 6000 people were killed and 200,000 homes destroyed in 2013 after Typhoon Haiyan, the strongest-ever storm to hit the Philippines, left paths of destruction in the central islands of Leyte and Samar. The Philippines sees about 20 major typhoons each year and Christmas storms are not unprecedented. Since 1948, at least seven have struck the island nation during the Christmas holiday.

Manila's civil defense office warned that the capital could be hit Monday by "heavy to intense rains, flash floods and severe winds." "Our local disaster councils are on red alert," said Mina Marasigan, spokeswoman of the country's disaster monitoring council. "We have pre-positioned relief supplies and rescue and (road) clearing equipment in Metro Manila," she added.

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Photo: Reuters

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Photo: Reuters

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Two people lost their lives in a shooting in a packed nightclub in Mount Vernon, New York, on Christmas Day. Four others were also injured in the shooting incident at the popular Mansion Night Club and are currently recuperating in a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, according to the Journal News.

O'Neil Bandoo, the co-owner of the nightclub, was pronounced dead at the scene, Mayor Richard Thomas confirmed during a press conference. The 36-year-old father-of-two was shot and killed in the lobby leading to the club as he was rejecting a group of rowdy customers from a late-night Christmas party, according to New York Daily News.

"The guy was getting rough inside of the club, so they let him outThe guy retaliated and came back and just started shooting at them in the front, just shooting on all of them. This is the worst Christmas ever." Patrick Merchant, Bandoo's father-in-law, told the Daily News, describing what led to the incident.

According to News 12 Westchester, a 36-year-old Bronx man who was removed from the club after creating trouble returned to the club and began shooting. The suspect has a prior rap sheet as he faces an attempted murder charge in a separate incident in the Bronx on from May 15.

Mount Vernon Police said they were the first responders on the scene after reports of shots being fired in the vicinity of the nightclub on North Third Avenue at 4.26 a.m. EST. Mount Vernon Police Captain Edward Adinaro said the unidentified suspect was eventually subdued and taken into police custody.

"Security personnel immediately tackled himHe was able to free himself, and with the officers on the scene, they were able to further subdue him," police captain Adinaro said, adding that the police recovered a handgun from the scene of crime, according to CBS New York.

Another victim succumbed to the injuries sustained from the Sunday afternoon, according to the mayors office, the Associated Press reported. The name of the victim is being withheld till the family is notified.

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"It's a dark day in our cityToday is a day we're supposed to spend with our family, not extend condolences. No person and no family should ever spend Christmas like this," said Mayor Thomas, who was accompanied by Bandoo's wife Natasha Tender Bandoo.

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Chicago (AFP) - Police in Chicago said Monday they were investigating 27 shootings -- 12 of them deadly -- that occurred on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, a remarkable spasm of violence there in what already has been a historically bloody year.

Chicago police superintendent Eddie Johnson told reporters that many of the recent shootings appeared to be gang-related.

"We now know the majority of these shootings and homicides were targeted attacks by gangs against potential rival gang members and groups who were at holiday gatherings," Johnson said at a press conference.

"These were deliberate and planned shootings by one gang against another. They were targeted knowing full well that individuals would be at the homes of family and friends celebrating the holiday," Johnson said.

The Christmas weekend violence occurred during a year of record bloodshed in America's third-largest city.

With a week to go before the year is over, more than 750 people have been killed in Chicago in 2016, marking the first time in nearly two decades that the number of homicides has exceeded 700, according to the Chicago Tribune newspaper, which has been tracking the violence.

There have been more murders in America's third-largest city than in the two largest -- Los Angeles and New York -- combined.

The city is awash in illegally obtained guns, a major contributor to the problem, law enforcement officials say.

Chicago is planning to hire nearly 1,000 additional police officers over the next two years to help combat the rise in crime.
Photo credit: The Winstead Family

From Cosmopolitan

Trent Winstead, 88, was first admitted to a Nashville, Tennessee, hospital on December 5 with kidney failure and though his wife Dolores, 83, accompanied him perfectly healthy, she suffered a fatal brain hemorrhage while there. Trent died of a broken heart hours after his wife died, his daughter Sheryl told the Washington Post.



The couple, who was married close to 64 years, never did anything without the other. They first met in the 1950s, shortly before Trent left to serve in the Korean War, and they wrote long letters to each other throughout his service. Trent proposed to Dolores almost immediately after returning and together they had two children, three grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren. Christmas was reportedly both of their favorite time of year.

Photo credit: The Winstead Family

According to WKRN, Dolores was placed in a separate hospital room from her husband when she required a ventilator to keep breathing after the hemorrhage. The separation made Trent too anxious, so hospital staff broke protocol and eventually rolled her into his room so they could be together as her condition worsened.

The couples son Eddie told the station his father asked his children to ask God to wake her up. He can create a miracle, Trent reportedly said. He then explained I dont know who Im going to sit on the couch with and watch the news anymore. Though he was growing increasingly weak, he kept asking his kids if his wife was still breathing.

The pair was holding hands when Dolores died, the Post reports, and when Eddie told Trent Dolores had died, he watched his "spirit just [change]." Trent blew Dolores a kiss and told his children you need to get her a pink casket, and a pink dress, because thats what she wanted. He died just a few hours later.

Because she was gone, he just could not handle it, Sheryl said. We just watched him die.

The family held a joint funeral for the Winsteads on December 16: her casket pink, his blue.

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LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / December 26, 2016 / California-based entrepreneur and prominent leader in the digital marketing industry, Daniel Yomtobian, CEO and Founder of Advertise.com, is rightly seen among companies internationally as a major innovator of online advertising. Understanding the significance of smaller businesses being able to afford promotion across all online platforms, Yomtobian developed a new format known as contextual advertising, which targets audiences based on the content that they are already engaged with.



A shift on the view of online marketing has taken place over the last few years. Daniel Yomtobian understands that using the process of pay-per-click on banner and text ads reduces the costs for smaller businesses, which are trying to keep up with larger companies. It is not just about what is shown in an advertisement, but the value on who is looking at the ad and why. This is how contextual advertising successfully increases engagement within its audience; ads are shown that are contextually relevant to the websites subject matter. Advertise.com uses the same text ad format as other major search engines, such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing, and while it doesnt replace regular search advertising entirely, it is a huge additional source of advertising to include in an online advertising portfolio.



































Advertise.com takes great pride in helping businesses produce powerful, thought-provoking advertisements at a more affordable cost than they would at other larger search engines. Yomtobians patented ClickShield technology ensures that every ad is monitored at all times to guarantee only the highest quality site visitors. Through a user-friendly interface, advertisers bid on the most popular keywords that the Advertise.com Keyword Marketplace supplies, and offers the contextual advertisement to the appropriate target audience through a range of several products including but not limited to: in-text, content, mobile, toolbar, domain parking, interstitials, email, search, and retargeting.



Founded in 2001 by Daniel Yomtobian, Advertise.com has grown into the world's largest privately held keyword pay-per-click (PPC) network. Today, Daniel is considered a major forerunner in the industry of online marketing, and was recently described by C-Suite Quarterly as a "...young leader [who] will continue to play an important role in shaping the online world of tomorrow." Yomtobian is proud of his company's success, "We launched Advertise.com to provide advertisers and publishers a new value proposition -- effective, affordable, and easy-to-use advertising campaigns all under one roof. From his early start as a web designer and Internet marketer, Daniel Yomtobian has helped thousands of businesses drive targeted visitors to their websites.



Daniel Yomtobian - Ernst Entrepreneur of Online Advertising: http://www.DanielYomtobianInfo.com

Daniel Yomtobian - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Daniel-Yomtobian-174812072662757/

Daniel Yomtobian - CEO & Founder @ Advertise.com - crunchbase: https://www.crunchbase.com/person/daniel-yomtobian

Daniel Yomtobian Interview: SES New York - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2fvpsHCFg0



Contact Information:

DanielYomtobianInfo.com

www.danielyomtobianinfo.com

Daniel@danielyomtobianinfo.com





Source: Daniel Yomtobian
By Hardeep Dugal: Salman Khan has had a stellar 2016. He received both critical and commercial success for his film Sultan, he topped the Forbes list of the 100 highest earning celebrities of 2016 and even strengthened his friendship with both Shah Rukh and Aamir Khan. And what better way to celebrate personal and professional success in the year gone by than with a bonanza 51st birthday bash on December 27 with his near and dear ones. This at his Panvel farmhouse on the outskirts of Mumbai, much like last year.

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ALSO READ: Dangal better than Sultan, hate Aamir but also love him, says Salman Khan

ALSO READ: Salman with ladylove Iulia spend time with sister Arpita and family

Festivities are likely to continue for a week with friends and family bringing in the New Year together. What makes this birthday a tad more special is the fact that the actor plans to launch his app called 'Being In Touch' for his fans the same day.

So who all are on the guest list? His rumoured lady love Iulia Vantur is a definite on the list apart from the entire Khandaan including brothers Arbaaz and Sohail. Close friends like Karisma and Kareena Kapoor Khan along with husband Saif Ali Khan, Sonakshi Sinha who recently joined the actor on Big Boss Season 10, co-stars Asin and Neelam Kothari and old flames including Sangeeta Bijlani are likely to be on the guest list. The big surprise will be Katrina Kaif and SRK if and when they turn up for the big bash.

Over the last few years Salman Khan has delivered back-to-back 100 crore films including Kick in 2014, Bajrangi Bhaijaan in 2015 and Sultan in 2016. Salman can also boast of a plump line up that includes Kabir Khan's next Tubelight and Ali Abbas Zafar's Tiger Zinda Hai which is a sequel to the 2012 blockbuster Ek Tha Tiger with rumoured ex-girlfriend Katrina Kaif.

His appearance with his brothers on the Koffee with Karan season 5 made heads turn and his camaraderie with SRK at a recent award function won him a new fan base altogether. His gesture of accepting Dangal to be a better film than Sultan too was quite overwhelming. The actor also made headlines as the Goodwill Ambassador for Rio Olympics 2016 and was recently named BMC's face for their anti open defecation drive. But the only thing that seems to have gone against him this year was the Rajasthan Govt's appeal in the Supreme Court against his acquittal in the 1998 chinkara poaching case. But like they say, not everyone's life is perfect.

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Bukavu (DR Congo) (AFP) - Democratic Republic of Congo troops killed 10 soldiers from neighbouring Burundi after they crossed the border last week in pursuit of rebels, the Congolese army said Monday.

The Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) initially announced the death of five Burundian soldiers who had entered the country overnight on December 21, in the first known clash since the end of the Second Congo War in 2003.

"There were 10 deaths," Major Dieudonne Kajibwami, told AFP on Monday following a previous statement that five bodies had been taken to Uvira, a lakeside town in the eastern South Kivu province.

"In their flight, they didn't manage to recover the five other bodies," added Kajibwami, the military spokesman in South Kivu, much of which lies across Lake Tanganyika from Burundi.

Questioned by AFP, the Burundian army declined to comment on the incident.

Burundian medical sources said that wounded soldiers were admitted on Thursday to the military hospital in the capital Bujumbura, which lies on the north shore of the lake, across from Uvira. The hospital also took in dead bodies, but the sources gave no number for the injured.

According to Kajibwami, Congolese soldiers opened fire on the Burundian troops when they crossed the border after midnight on Wednesday in pursuit of rebels from the ethnic Hutu National Forces of Liberation (FNL).

"Normally, there is cooperation between the two armies," another Congolese army officer told AFP, asking not to be named. He mentioned a tacit agreement between Bujumbura and Kinshasa to let Burundian soldiers act in pursuit of FNL rebels when they fall back after a raid into Burundi.

"The reason for this glitch" lay in the absence of the military commander of the sector and an ignorance among the soldiers of "the deal between the two sides," this officer added.

Congolese soldiers "opened fire because they have strict instructions at this moment of tension in the country," he said, six days after President Joseph Kabila defied his political foes by retaining power beyond his constitutional mandate.

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Kinshasa has never acknowledged authorising a right of pursuit to Burundian soldiers.

The FNL established rear bases in Congo at the start of the Burundian civil war, a partly ethnic conflict that began in 1993 and ended in 2006. The rebels refused to sign the Arusha peace accord that led to an end of the bloodshed.

The FNL is believed to have about 500 fighters based in South Kivu.
MILAN (Reuters) - The European Central Bank has told Monte dei Paschi it needs to plug a capital shortfall of 8.8 billion euros ($9.2 billion), higher than a previous 5 billion euro gap estimated by the bank, the lender said on Monday, confirming what sources told Reuters.

Last Friday the Italian government approved a decree to bail out Monte dei Paschi (BMPS.MI) after Italy's No. 3 lender failed to win investor backing for a desperately needed 5 billion euro capital increase.

The bank said on Monday it had officially asked the ECB last Friday for go ahead for a "precautionary recapitalization".

A precautionary recapitalization is a type of state intervention in a struggling bank that is still solvent. It means only a modest bail-in of investors though the government can buy shares or bonds only on market terms endorsed by EU state aid officials in Brussels.

In its reply, the ECB said it had calculated the capital it believed the bank needed on the basis of a shortfall emerging from European stress test of large lenders earlier this year.

In those tests Monte dei Paschi was the only Italian bank to come short under an adverse scenario.

The ECB said the lender was solvent but signaled the bank's liquidity position had rapidly deteriorated between the end of November and December 21, Monte dei Paschi said.

"The bank has quickly started talks with the competent authorities to understand the methodologies underlying the ECB's calculations and introduce the measures for a precautionary recapitalization...," it said.

The bank's problems date back several years but successive Italian governments have failed to tackle the issue, which became a political taboo this year with new EU rules banning state bailouts unless private investors take losses first.

The European Commission said on Friday it would work with Rome to establish conditions were met for a bailout of Monte dei Paschi.

But on Monday ECB policymaker Jens Weidmann said plans for a state bailout of Monte dei Paschi should be weighed carefully as many questions remain to be answered.

Italy's market watchdog Consob said last week the bank's shares and securities would be suspended from trading until the conditions of a state bailout become clear.

(Reporting by Silvia Aloisi, writing by Stephen Jewkes)
Maryland mother Tyshika Brittens Christmas wishes came true after she wrote a plea on Craigslist, asking for help to give her six kids an enjoyable holiday season as they were on the brink of eviction. After the story went viral, they receive a trove of gifts from various donors and a check for $10,000 from one generous star: Pearl Jams Eddie Vedder.

I was just so moved by the story and what this mother did for her children. I thought those kids must be so proud of their mother for reaching out. That takes a lot of courage, Vedder told The Washington Post, mentioning that the letter reminded him of his own past. There were years there were toys from Santa, but they were used and they came from garage sales and they didnt always work.

In addition to her Craigslist ad, Britten created a GoFundMe page seeking a $6,000; the campaign has earned over $18,000 as of this posting. After Brittens ad, many UPS trucks came by the house and dropped off packages sent by benevolent strangers. The kids received new electronics, Legos, winter clothes, and more.

Some social media users have criticized Britten for exposing her family. But thats not a point she acknowledges.

I am a proud mother of six. I love my children. And I will take care of them, and I will get them what they need, any way I can, she told the Post. This year, they got everything they wanted.
One of the smartest things Tesla did to help boost sales of the Model S was to rollout an all encompassing Supercharger network which enabled Tesla owners to recharge their vehicles for free during long drives. This move from Tesla was nothing short of brilliant as it addressed previously valid concerns that the Model S wasnt an ideal car for road trips and perhaps even for long commutes.

Don't Miss: Watch the eerie first trailer for Alien: Covenant right here

Over the past few years, Tesla has continued to expand the footprint of its Supercharger network and today there are already more than 769 Supercharger stations strategically located across most of the United States and other locations across the globe. Now seeing as how Tesla has never been a company known for resting on its laurels, word emerged over the weekend that the company has ambitious plans to dramatically improve the Supercharger experience.

Responding to a tweet about upcoming Supercharger enhancements, Tesla CEO Elon Musk not only touched on the companys plans to eventually incorporate solar arrays at Supercharger stations, he also teased that the third-generation version of Tesla Supercharger technology will be a huge leap forward.

When asked about the power of Teslas next-gen Supercharger technology, Musk coyly hinted that even 350 kW would be akin to a childrens toy. As a point of reference, most Supercharger stations have a capacity of 120 kW.

Incidentally, because the number of Tesla owners has skyrocketed in recent years, Supercharging stations have increasingly become more and more crowded. As a result, Tesla just last month announced that Tesla vehicles purchased in 2017 will receive 1,000 miles worth of Supercharger credits. Following that, Tesla owners will have to pay for Supercharger access, albeit a relatively small fee. For what its worth, Tesla said that it will still cost less than the price of filling up a comparable gas car.

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Russias Ministry of Emergency Situations said on December 25 that nine vessels and 48 divers were involved in a search for a military plane that crashed into the Black Sea two minutes after taking off from Sochi, Russia, that morning.

The Tu-154 plane was carrying 92 people, including military personnel, members of the press, and 64 members of a Russian army song and dance group, the Alexandrov Ensemble, according to a list of passengers and crew released by the Russian defense ministry.

Airplane debris and four bodies had been found by early afternoon on December 25, Russian officials said. A large recovery operation was under way involving the Russian defense and emergency ministries.

A technical fault was the probable cause, while pilot error and terrorism were unlikely, according to the Russian defense ministry.

The Russian emergencies ministry said it had sent divers who were approved to operate at depth of 20 to 90 meters, and deep-water search apparatus called Falcon, which could operate at depths of 80 to 110 meters. Credit: Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations via Storyful
Jeffrey Wright, who has been acting for over 25 years in such films as Basquiat, The Manchurian Candidate, Casino Royale and, most recently, the Hunger Games franchise, is staking his claim on television with HBO's popular sci-fi series Westworld, which was recently nominated for a Golden Globe for Best TV Series -- Drama. While he's appeared in a handful of TV episodes over the years and won an Emmy for his performance on the 2003 HBO miniseries Angels in America, it wasn't until he had a major recurring role on Boardwalk Empire during its final two seasons that TV became a real possibility for him.

"The Boardwalk experience really opened my eyes to the possibility of these longform dramas," Wright tells ET. Assuming he would be bored by playing the same character season after season, Wright admits he would have balked at the idea of doing TV years ago. But his time on the HBO drama opened his eyes to a new dynamic he had been unfamiliar with. "There are these sympathetic exchanges between writer and actor as you go forward. You begin to inform one another, which is really an unusual dynamic and I found it deeply satisfying."

So by the time Jonathan Nolan reached out to Wright about a new series he had created with wife Lisa Joy, adapted from Michael Crichton's 1973 film, the actor was intrigued. "I was curious by the opportunity of taking the risk of starting at the ground floor, as opposed to Boardwalk, where everybody else built the building and then I moved into the penthouse," he explains. "I wanted to help shape the unknown."

A fan of the script ("It had a wonderful poetry to it"), it didn't take long for Wright to respond to Nolan. "Yes, I will attend your party," Wright recalls pressing send on the email to him.

MORE: James Marsden Says 'Westworld' Season 2 Talk Is 'Pure Speculation'

Soon, Wright was playing Bernard Lowe, the head of programming at an amusement park called Westworld, where the attraction is interacting with lifelike androids (or "hosts") living in the old West. However, it's revealed late in the first season that Bernard isn't the human he believed himself to be. He is also a host, created by the park's co-founder Robert Ford (Anthony Hopkins) based on the likeness of his dead partner, Arnold.

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The reveal was one of the show's many twists and turns that shocked fans, but it was a secret Wright knew soon after filming the pilot in August of 2014. Without that knowledge, Wright says, "my work wouldn't have made any sense. It's really complex stuff that we're working with."

While Wright knew of the revelation, not many others in the cast did. There were no indications in the script as to who Wright was portraying in a particular scene: Arnold in a flashback or Bernard in the present. "I became confident about where the arcs were going, so it was very clear to me," Wright reveals.

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But he wasn't the only one holding on to a secret. Many of the other actors had their own revelations -- information they kept close to the vest. "It wasn't for the sake of deceit," Wright says. "It was because they didn't need to know. Jonah [Nolan] and Lisa were pretty cautious with the material and, having seen it now, you can appreciate that. I think it keeps us more in the moment of where we were in these long arcs."

That's not to say it didn't stop the cast from trying to figure out the truth. Evan Rachel Wood, who plays the show's central character, a host named Dolores Abernathy, was the only one aware of all the truths. "I can say unequivocally that Evan knew more than everybody else at all times," Jimmi Simpson, who played William in the flashbacks, told ET following the finale.

When it came to season one's last episode, Wright was eventually forced turned to Wood for clarity. "When I got the first script, that scene was redacted," he says, revealing that he texted his co-star for about five minutes before picking up the phone to call. "She told me, because her script hadn't been redacted."

MORE: Jimmi Simpson Talks 'Beautiful, Devastating' 'Westworld' Finale

The redacted scene was the final moments of the episode, when Dolores confronts her maker, Robert, with a loaded pistol. "My head started spinning like Linda Blair," Wright says. "That was a big one."

While the storytelling was full of big reveals, Wright was focused on the nuances of the performance. Many of his scenes were opposite Wood, as the two sat across from each other, deep in conversation or a "dual mediation," as Wright puts it. "Those scenes were very subtle. We were attuned to one another and worked together to treat it gently," he says, applauding Wood as a phenomenal actor. And when he wasn't with her, many of Wright's other scenes were one-on-one with Hopkins. "With Evan and Tony, I found out immediately if it was going to work and I think they discovered that too."

Even though Wright was comfortable with both of his on-screen partners, he was surprised to see the evolution while watching a clip from the first episode. "It's funny looking at it. It's a different relationship that we had as actors," Wright says. "It was a scene we shot the first day, and there's an assumption of trust. But then the trust is proven over time."

"They're just great partners," Wright adds of them both. "I've been doing this work for a long time and I've learned to appreciate a good thing when I find it."

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Minutes after the Obama administration abstained from a crucial U.N. Security Council resolution vote on Israel condemning settlement activity, the collective jaw of the sole democracy in the Middle East dropped.

Imagine that just a day before Christmas Eve and Hannukah, President Obama was busy not trying to help innocent Syrians who are getting murdered in Aleppo, or dealing with the emergency humanitarian crisis, but instead was working to undermine Israel, said Danny Ayalon former Israeli Ambassador to the United States.

In a FOX Business exclusive interview Christmas Eve in Jerusalem, Ayalon, who served as ambassador to the U.S. from 2002 to 2006, told FBN that the abstention is particularly stunning considering other, more pressing global issues have taken center stage.

Youve got a million killed in Syria, a brutal, autocratic regime in Iran.

You have (Turkish President) Erdogan arresting justices, terror in Libya, the Russians invading Ukraine, taking Crimea, and no resolutions against any of them.

Theres one yardstick for Israel. Another for the rest of the world.

Ayalon said whats perhaps most shocking is the U.S.s change in tone toward the Jewish nation that, since 1948, has fought off numerous attacks by Arab nations. From Harry Truman to Ronald Reagan to Bill Clinton, never has an American president taken such a sharp turn away from Israel. Ayalon says during his own entire stint as Israeli ambassador to the United States, President George W. Bush always made it clear that he and America stood with and for Israel. Whats ironic, Ayalon told FBN, is that President-elect Donald Trump, who intervened Thursday and successfully convinced the Egyptians who had floated the original resolution to back down, may very well win at the Middle East peace game that has been so elusive to Barack Obama.

Israelis believe that finally we have a U.S. president who not only keeps his promises and is very smart but is also is someone who thinks outside of the box. (Trump) may have a better chance than any president in the last 40 years to bring both sides together. If the Palestinians and the Arabs understand that he will not bend on (the settlement) thing, and if they dont accept that, hell refuse to back down on things like moving the embassy to Jerusalem.

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If they come to their senses, they will want to cut a deal before things like the embassy issue become irreversible. Then you might have a new reality in the region.

Mollie Hemingway, Senior Editor of the Federalist told FOX News the Obama administration is playing a dangerous game by abstaining on the vote which was eventually brought by New Zealand, Senegal and Venezuela after the Egyptians were prompted by Trump to abandon the resolution.

This is moral cowardice on behalf of the U.S. and gives Palestinians false hope. In just a few weeks (when President-elect Trump is sworn in) policy will revert to what it has always been in the U.S.

Democrats from Sherrod Brown of Ohio to New Yorks Chuck Schumer rushed to side with Israel.

"Whatever ones views are on settlements, anyone who cares about the future of Israel and peace in the region knows that the UN, with its one sidedness, is exactly the wrong forum to bring about peace," Schumer said. "An abstention is not good enough. The administration must veto this resolution."

Former DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman-Schultz issued a statement saying, I condemn this reckless abstention while the Obama Administration pushed back. Settlement construction puts a two-state solution at risk, Ben Rhodes, deputy national security advisor for strategic communications, told the Jerusalem Post in a phone interview.

What is perhaps one of the most unusual developments since the Thursday night passage of Resolution 2334 is that Arab sources and intelligence reportedly informed Israel that the U.S. worked behind Israels back, drafting and promoting the anti-Israel resolution. While theres no official evidence of such dealings, Republican members of Congress led by Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) are now demanding discussions be opened to defund the United Nations. The United States funding pays an outsized 22% of the UNs budget.

As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu moved quickly to call back Israeli Ambassadors from the resolutions promoting countries of New Zealand and Senegal, Ayalon says Israelis are searching for the reason President Obama made such a controversial, anti-Israel move.

I think he wanted to leave the legacy that he is the guy who pushed the 2-state solution and be that guy who stood up to Israel. Hell then become a celebrity in Europe and be invited to give speeches for thousands of dollars. Thats his motivation.

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When it comes to Netflix's hit series, Orange Is the New Black, there's no one star, with each of its ensemble players -- including Taylor Schilling, Samira Wiley and Uzo Aduba -- taking turns as the lead or stealing scenes. And Yael Stone, who plays the hopelessly romantic Lorna Morello, is no different.

"I just try to play my note in the orchestra as well as I can," Stone tells ET, adding that she was really proud of season four, which saw Lorna become troubled by her marriage to prison fanatic Vince Muccio (John Magaro). And in one chilling scene over the phone, Lorna turned her playful delusion into reality, convincing herself that he's cheating. "I'm proud to be a small part of such an incredibly challenging, funny, heartfelt show that's not afraid of addressing some serious social issues."

MORE: HBO's 'High Maintenance' Elevated by Eclectic Cast of Guest Stars

But Stone's moment to shine wasn't limited to the prison dramedy. This year, she switched sides of the law to play a detective investigating the brutal murder of a gay man, uncovering a series of unexplained deaths in Stone's native country of Australia on the series Deep Water, which recently found its way stateside via Acorn TV. Stone is barely recognizable as Tori, shedding Lorna's Natalie Wood-inspired makeup and harsh Boston accent for the gritty crime drama. "That's my first really strong lead," Stone says of the role that's akin to Elisabeth Moss' turn on Top of the Lake. "That's pretty intimidating for me."

And as a dog walker named Beth on HBO's High Maintenance, which debuted on the premium network in September after six seasons online, Stone dealt with the unexpected emotion of losing her own dog. The episode, "Grandpa," was told from the perspective of a sensitive dog that falls in love with Beth, leading him on his own adventure through New York City.

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"It was totally therapeutic," Stone says, revealing that her childhood dog had died suddenly in Australia just a week before co-creators Ben Sinclair and Katja Blichfeld offered her the part. Stuck in New York, where she films Orange Is the New Black, Stone was unable to say goodbye. "I was completely devastated. I was just in love with her, the way you fall in love with dogs."

On a lighter note, the role also gave Stone another chance to change her appearance onscreen. Embracing her inner hipster, Beth comes armed with big grandma glasses, a visor and fanny pack. "I guess what you're referring to is a lot of my own clothes. In my natural dress, I have a slight tendency toward the eccentric," Stone says of the costumes, revealing one slight downfall: "But now I kind of have blown my cover on the subway. My quirky grandma glasses that keep me well disguised are not going to be so much of a disguise anymore."

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This means that girls would not be allowed to wear their favourite dresses and colours to college. According to the college principal Dr Ranjana Agnihotri, the decision has been taken considering a long pending demand of students.

By Hemender Sharma: Students of Sarojini Naidu Government Girls PG College in Bhopal are up in arms against the management's decision to impose a dress code from January 1, 2017.

College management has made it mandatory for every girl to wear a pink and brown kurta with white stripes and a light brown salwar.

This means that girls would not be allowed to wear their favourite dresses and colours to college. According to the college principal Dr Ranjana Agnihotri, the decision has been taken considering a long pending demand of students.

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"We have taken the feedback of students and we have this feedback in writing with us in which students have demanded a dress code for themselves," Dr Ranjana Agnihotri said.

WHY WASTE MONEY, SAY FINAL YEAR STUDENTS

The girls, particularly final year students, however, are not impressed with the management's argument.

"Final year students will just have three months in college after January 1, so what's the point in buying this new dress. It is wastage of money as the uniform would not be of any use after three months," a final year student said.

The rejection of the dress code is not limited to just final year students.

"All throughout school we have been wearing uniforms. In college we want some independence. At least we should be allowed comfortable clothes that we want to wear," a second year student said.

The management, however, is adamant and has put a mannequin with the new college dress at the main gate. The notice attached to the mannequin reads that the kurta should of knee length. "The students do not really have any choice now. They have to wear the new uniform that has been prescribed or else leave the college," a member of the college management said.

TO GET OVER THE DIVIDE

Several students have already made a representation to the college principal against the new dress code but to no avail. The management is also arguing that the new uniform will abolish the rich-poor divide.

"We have students from almost all levels of our society. So some students come wearing top end branded clothes while the poor students wear locally made clothes. This obviously makes a distinction between the rich and the poor visible to everyone. We want to get rid of this. Once everyone wears the same uniform no one would be able to distinguish between students and no one will fear inferior. Also there would no snob value based on the price of clothes," a member of the college management said.

The Sarojini Naidu Government Girls PG college is affiliated to the Barkathullah University and though it is an autonomous college for the past 12 years it works under the administrative control of the higher education department of the government of Madhya Pradesh. Also Read: Kerala Medical College's bizarre dress code bars girls from wearing jeans, 'noisy ornaments' Strict dress codes, beard bans, heavy fines: Here's why Bengaluru's Christ University students are protesting on campus

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The Giudice family celebrated Christmas over the weekend  but one important member was missing.

Teresa Giudice took to Instagram to share several photos from their holiday family gathering while her husband of 17 years, Joe, is nine months into his 41-month sentence for bankruptcy fraud, which hes currently serving at the Federal Correctional Institution in Fort Dix, New Jersey.

Merry Christmas Eve #thelovesofmylife, gushed Teresa, 44, in her caption of a photo of the couples four daughters: Gia, 15, Gabriella, 12, Milania, 10, and Audriana, 7.

The Real Housewives of New Jersey star also shared a picture of herself alongside her four girls in front of their Christmas tree on Christmas Eve.

The Bravo stars brother Joe Gorga was also in attendance for the get-together, as well as his wife Melissa and their three kids.

The kids enjoyed an evening of fun and games in the playroom.

The celebrations continued into Christmas Day, and Teresa shared several more pictures of her daughters opening their presents and playing with their dog in their holiday pajamas.

Also in attendance was Teresas longtime BFF Dina Manzo, who lives on the West Coast now.

Christmas stop at the Giudices, Manzo, 44, captioned a picture of herself alongside her goddaughter Audriana. My little peanut Audriana is getting so big and even more beautiful.

Teresa also shared a few shots of the familys holiday card.

A message of love and peace from our home to yours, she captioned a professional photo of her four girls. The Giudice Family 2016.

And in addition to the holidays, the weekend marked a particularly important milestone for Teresa: The one-year anniversary since she reunited with her family on Dec. 23, 2015, after spending nearly a year in prison.

One year after her release, her attorney James J. Leonard Jr. recently told PEOPLE the star is thriving, though she misses Joe a lot.

Looking back, Teresa is glad that her life is getting back to normal.

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I think the last year was a whirlwind for Teresa, said Leonard. She left Danbury at 5 a.m. and was filming Real Housewives of New Jersey less than two hours later. Her book Turning The Tables: From Housewife to Inmate and Back came out in February and made The New York Times bestseller list and then Joe went away in March. So this has been a very eventful year full of highs and lows, but she is doing amazing.

A source also told PEOPLE she and Joe keep in frequent touch and that she visits him every week.

They talk by phone and email each other every day, said the insider. He talks to the girls all the time, too.




By Tom Allard and Kanupriya Kapoor JAKARTA (Reuters) - As the world battles a spike in assaults and plots by Islamist militants, Indonesia's anti-terrorism unit is drawing praise for stemming a wave of bloody attacks in the sprawling Muslim-majority nation. Indonesia has foiled at least 15 attacks this year alone and made more than 150 arrests, disrupting plots ranging from suicide attacks in Jakarta to a rocket attack from Indonesia's Batam island targeting Singapore. Going back to 2010, a Reuters analysis of data shows the elite unit, Special Detachment 88 (Densus 88), has prevented at last 54 plots or attacks in the nation of 250 million people, the world's fourth largest. "Densus 88 has become better than pretty well any other counter-terrorism group in the world," said Greg Barton, a terrorism export and research professor in Global Islamic Politics at Alfred Deakin Institute in Melbourne. "They have had an incredible workload and they have become remarkably good at what they do." In the last six years, there has been only one major attack in Indonesia that caused civilian deaths, when assailants hit a Jakarta mall and police post with gunfire and bombs, resulting in the deaths of three Indonesians and a dual Algerian-Canadian national. All four attackers were also killed in the January 2016 attack. Between 2002 to 2009, there were nine major attacks by militants, leaving 295 dead and hundreds of others wounded. Since its formation in 2002, the unit has put a premium on clandestine intelligence gathering. Now much of that intelligence work is done online, by infiltrating and monitoring chat rooms, social media and messaging apps popular with militants. SELF-SUFFICIENT Few details about Densus 88 are publicly available. "We built our organization to learn from the enemy," said a senior counter-terrorism officer who provided some insight into the working of the unit but spoke on condition of anonymity. Created in the aftermath of the deadly 2002 Bali bombings that killed more than 200 people, Densus 88 has about 400 to 500 members, state-of-the-art weaponry and training, said another official. It has received more than $200 million of funding from Western allies such as Australia and the United States. The unit is headed by a task force, a core of 30 or so senior members, said the Indonesian law enforcement source. "Many of them possess doctorates and have specialties like psychology and social behavior," the source added. "They are not like regular police." The black clad, heavily armed members of Densus 88 sometimes seen during raids on suspected militant hideouts make up a small proportion of the unit, officials say. Far more personnel are dedicated to gathering intelligence in the field and monitoring communications and online activity. There is also a large team of investigators analyzing that intelligence and forensically examining explosives and other evidence. Sidney Jones, the director of Institute for Policy Aanalysis of Conflict (IPAC), said the key to Densus 88's success lies in its intelligence gathering. "They know the radical networks and have a good set of informers," she said. "It is unparalleled in terms of its ability to understand the sources of possible threats." STRATEGIC INTERROGATION Densus 88 has long been accused by human rights groups of abuses, including beatings of alleged separatists and Islamist suspects. Indonesia's National Human Rights Commission has identified 121 terrorism suspects who have died in custody since 2007 but the police routinely deny using torture or inappropriate force in interrogation. Amnesty International said earlier this year there was an "endemic culture of impunity" in Indonesia's police service and a need for an investigation into the "torture" of suspects by Densus 88. However, Barton said the unit has adopted a unique, "strategic" approach to interrogations that aids intelligence gathering. Suspects were kept at police stations rather than in jails and allowed to meet their families. "They sit down and listen to their story," Barton said. "They get them talking and that's an effective way of getting intelligence." Despite Densus 88's recent successes, the worry is that the militant threat to Indonesia is mounting as Islamic State fighters return battle-hardened from Syria and Iraq. The ultra-radical group also commands support from some Indonesians who have stayed at home. About 800 Indonesians have traveled to Syria to join Islamic State and 169 have been stopped en route and deported, according to Indonesia's national counter-terrorism agency. In the past two months alone, there have been 40 arrests, and at least six attacks foiled, according to the Reuters study, which collated data with the assistance of IPAC staff. At least two of the attacks were planned for New Year's Eve, police said. Many of these plots have been linked to Islamic State, with police alleging they were inspired, if not directed, by Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant who fled to Syria about two years ago. "These new homegrown terrorists and the local jihadists have never gone abroad. But with the advent of the Internet age and technologies like social media, it's easier to make bombs and explosives to do operations," said the law enforcement source. Authorities remain deeply worried about an attack during the holiday season. In the longer term, the worry is the possible return of hardened Islamic State fighters like Naim to the region. "They will be a different type of terrorist and the police are going to have a lot more problems," said Indonesian analyst Rakyan Adibrata. (Editing by Ed Davies and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
For movie buffs, spoilers typically refer to details that give away key plot details before audiences have had a chance to see a movie for themselves. But in the case of Monster Trucks, expectations have been crushed by two pieces of news released by the studio responsible. First, Paramount warned its shareholders to anticipate a massive bomb, having already taken a $115 million write-down against the movies projected losses. And second, it got out that the concept was developed in conversations between Adam Goodman (who has since lost his job as president) and his then-four-year-old son (who has since aged out of the target demographic  thats how long this project has taken to reach the screen).

Like it sounds, Monster Trucks is a lame kids movie reverse-engineered from a worse pun: What if those massive custom 4x4s that kick up dust and crush old cars at heartland truck rallies were really alive? And what if they were powered by giant, gas-guzzling monsters where their motors should be?

Thats not to say there isnt some way to take that setup and spin it into a successful studio franchise, the way Pixar did with Cars. And there are probably worse ideas than hiring Chris Wedge (director of Ice Age and Robots) and screenwriter Derek Connolly (Jurassic World) to make it work on the big screen. But the concept was never good enough to support a movie of this scale, and those early-word spoilers have destroyed what little enthusiasm there might have been for such a movie  which is sort of a shame, since the creative team managed to assemble a sturdy forbidden-friendship movie, where men in black want to separate a well-meaning human from his misunderstood pet.

Here, the human in question is a hunky, yet awkward high school student named Tripp (Texas-born Lucas Till, who plays Havok in the X-Men movies). Looking old enough to be in graduate school, teenage Tripp lives with his single mom (Amy Ryan) and works at a small-town junkyard (for a wheelchair-bound Danny Glover), where he hopes to one day get his run-down Dodge pickup running again. At this point, the old heap is basically just rust and turquoise paint  though that doesnt keep Tripp from sitting behind the wheel and pretending to drive, making engine noises with his mouth as he fake-swerves to avoid imaginary obstacles.

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Lately, mom has been dating the local sheriff (Barry Pepper), while Tripps deadbeat dad, who walked out on his family years earlier, holds a job with a shady oil and gas company called Terravex. Operating a few miles outside town, Terravex is sitting on what could be the largest oil reserve in the continental United States. Theres just one problem: Between the companys state-of-the-art drilling operation and all that sweet crude is an entire ecosystem  an elaborate network of underground lakes and caves  that has been undisturbed for thousands, if not millions of years. Oh, and theres something living down there.

Before you can say I drink your milkshake, Terravexs eco-ambivalent boss (Rob Lowe, looking especially waxy) has ordered his team to tap into their claim, releasing three giant CG monsters from the depths. In a horror movie, these potentially menacing creatures, with their long squid-like tentacles and rows of shark-like teeth, would proceed to teach mankind a lesson about the dangers of corporate greed. But Monster Trucks was made for babies, and so these beasties turn out to be glorified pets with an appetite for oil and the ability to operate engine-less fossil-fuel-burning vehicles  like the pickup Tripp happens to have handy.

For this hackneyed dynamic to work, the filmmakers only really need to establish one thing: That the bond between Tripp and his monster is strong enough that being stuffed inside tn old truck qualifies as friendship  because its hardly as majestic as flying on the back of a luck dragon, as in The NeverEnding Story, or biking across the moon, a la E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. Such movies belong to a genre Hollywood did best about 30 years ago, and as such, Monster Trucks feels like a throwback to the era of a boy and his (magical) dog movies  though these stories have significantly lost their charm since the industry switched from practical to digital effects.

Those classics look clunky now, with their old-school animatronics and puppet tricks, and yet, they invited a certain suspension of disbelief all but missing from a film like Monster Trucks, in which its all too evident that an effects house has gone in after the fact to add digital tentacles to scenes in which big trucks are bouncing across mountain terrain (science-nerd classmate Jane Levy and corporate conscience Tom Lennon thrown in, more because the monster trio craves additional drivers than for additional human interest).

Still, the movie does have a few entertaining set pieces up its chassis, including a chase in which Tripps truck climbs a wall and bounds across the rooftops of his small towns retro Main Street. And in an inspired touch, the monsters glow when they make contact with water, and the resulting phosphorescent green feels distinct from previous creature features. But surely there was something more interesting to do than rescuing two monsters from captivity, stashing them in trucks of their own, and racing to stop Lowe and his goons from poisoning their habitat.

Monster Trucks marks Wedges live-action debut, and like other directors whove hailed from the animation sphere (including John Carter helmer Andrew Stanton and The Chronicles of Narnias Andrew Adamson), he seems overwhelmed by the transition, resulting in exaggerated acting and clunky staging. Instead of hiring someone with CG experience to treat these projects as tentpoles, studio execs should look to indie directors with something to prove (the way David Lowery elevated Petes Dragon above its B-movie origins).

And, of course, they should have spent much, much less: Had it been made on the shoestring scale of something like Sharknado or an old-school Roger Corman picture, Monster Trucks could have been a phenomenon  instead of a glorified SuperBowl commercial for Dodge trucks. Younger audiences may not find it so strange that nearly all the movies hero trucks are Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram vehicles (the other product with significant on-screen placement is Texas-based Big Red soda, also featured in Paramounts Transformers series). But theres something not just paradoxical, but downright sinister about a movie that treats an imaginary petroleum company as the enemy, while hyping some of the least fuel-conscious SUVs on the market.

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The trailer for the forthcoming season of the British science fiction series introduces Bill Potts, who takes over from Clara as the Doctor's traveling companion.

This weekend, the BBC presented two gifts to fans of "Doctor Who". A year after the broadcast of the final episode of the ninth season, television viewers were offered the traditional Christmas episode, and a foretaste of the Doctor's antics in 2017 in the form of a trailer for the tenth season.

In the trailer, we learn that Bill (Pearl Mackie) used to serve French fries before joining the Doctor in his time-travel adventures.

The first episode of season 10 of "Doctor Who" will be broadcast in April 2017.

Watch the trailer at https://youtu.be/j4e50iHelW8.
Here is a selection of five big-screen actors to watch out for in movie theaters next year.

Tom Holland

The 20-year-old British actor and dancer will once again take on the role of Spider-Man in the latest reboot of the superhero story, "Spider-Man: Homecoming". In 2017 he will also feature in James Gray's "The Lost City of Z" along with Robert Pattinson and Sienna Miller, and in the historical drama, "The Current War", with Benedict Cumberbatch and Michael Shannon.

Donald Glover

Also cast in the latest Spider-Man, Glover's exact role in the superhero story has yet to be revealed. For the American actor, next year will be marked by the shooting of the "Star Wars" Han Solo spin-off. And let's not forget the second series of "Atlanta", which is set to air on FX in the autumn. Glover is the creator and the star of the critically acclaimed comedy drama, which has received two nominations for the Golden Globes, including a best actor nomination for Glover.

Dane DeHaan

Having emerged as Green Goblin in "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" and in the drama "Life", where he played the role of James Dean, in 2017, the 30-year-old American is set to star in the Luc Besson science fiction movie "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" alongside British top model Cara Delevingne. He and Delevingne will also feature with Alicia Vikander and Christoph Waltz in the period romance "Tulip Fever", directed by Justin Chadwick.

Casey Affleck

Ben Affleck's younger brother will likely make headlines in 2017. The American is a favorite to win Best Actor in next February's Oscars for his role in "Manchester by the Sea". If he does it will be the first Academy Award of his career, which is already marked by a 2008 nomination for best supporting actor in "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford". Affleck will also feature in "The Old Man and the Gun" with Robert Redford and Sissy Spacek, and "A Ghost Story" with Rooney Mara. In 2017, Affleck is further expected to direct and star in the survival drama "Light of my Life", which is based on his own script.

Charlie Hunnam

The hero of the "Sons of Anarchy" series (2008-2014), Charlie Hunnam will be in the news for Guy Ritchie's "King Arthur: Legend of the Sword", which is due for release in March. In the adventure epic, the English actor stars as King Arthur, along with a cast that also features Jude Law and Eric Bana. Hunnam's talents will also be on show in James Gray's "The Lost City of Z" and "Zoe", in which he will feature opposite French actress Lea Seydoux.
From San Francisco to Bangkok, let's take a look at the chefs who stood out internationally in 2016.

In Europe

> Massimo Bottura

The title of "Best Restaurant in the World" has moved from Spain (El Cellar de Can Roca) to Italy. The internationally-renowned chef Massimo Bottura was awarded the title by Restaurant magazine which drew up a list of the "World's 50 Best Restaurants".

"La Liste", the French list of the best restaurants in the world based on agregated guide recommendations, named Osteria Francescana the best restaurant in Italy back in December 2015. Bottura also attracted a lot of media attention during the Rio Olympics, when he turned leftovers from the Olympic village into balanced meals.

> Rene Redzepi

Year after year, the man behind Copenhagen's Noma remains one of the world's top chefs. In addition to the pop-up restaurants which have become his trademark, transporting Noma to Australia in 2016 and to Mexico City in 2017, Rene Redzepi opened a more casual restaurant in the Danish capital, to make his cuisine more accessible.

It was recently been announced that Noma is set to relocate to an urban farm in 2017, in an attempt to bring food from the farm directly to the restaurant table.

In the US

> Dominique Crenn

The first female chef in the US to have been awarded two Michelin stars was named "The World's Best Female Chef" by Restaurant magazine. The Brittany native, who is the chef at San Francisco's Atelier Crenn, attracted a lot of attention by taking part in the second season of the Netflix series "Chef's Table". Her latest plan is to open a wine bar in 2017.

> Jose Andres

The Spanish chef, who is particularly well known in the US, was awarded two stars in the very first Michelin Guide for Washington. The former Ferran Adria disciple was also named one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in 2012.

Andres does not shy away from the political arena and he sees the culinary world as a driver for economic growth. He has also been in the news in recent months due to a battle with Donald Trump following the latter's remarks about immigration during his presidential campaign. The chef withdrew from a luxury hotel project in Washington, headed by Trump, where he was to open a restaurant.

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In Asia

> Gaggan

Gaggan Anand has become the most sought-after chef in Thailand. The Calcutta native, owner of progressive Indian restaurant Gaggan, learnt his modern cuisine technique from Ferran Adria in Spain, and proved his skills by winning the top spot in "Asia's 50 Best Restaurants" list. Just a few days later, he announced that he intends to close his restaurant in 2020 and may be relocating to Japan.
BIDI BIDI CAMP, Uganda (AP)  "I don't want to go back," James Issac declared, just minutes after becoming a refugee. "I don't want to die."

For two days, the slender 30-year-old from South Sudan's Equatoria region navigated his way out of civil war, riding a motorcycle along dirt roads and avoiding government soldiers who, according to accounts by refugees to The Associated Press, have taken aim at civilians.

In his last steps on South Sudanese soil, Issac passed a group of rag-tag rebel soldiers and crossed a rickety bridge into Uganda, and safety.

"I am happy," he said, as Ugandan soldiers searched his belongings for contraband. "There (are) no problems here."

He is one of 440,000 refugees who have fled South Sudan's spiraling conflict into Uganda this year alone, creating some of the world's largest refugee camps in just six months' time.

More than one million refugees have fled South Sudan, spilling across borders in East Africa as the international community warns that the conflict and its ethnic violence could destabilize the region.

Since fighting erupted in South Sudan's capital, Juba, in July and left a peace agreement in tatters, the world's youngest country has experienced ethnic cleansing and teeters on the brink of genocide, according to the United Nations.

Those fleeing have turned Uganda's northwest from an empty bushland into a sprawling complex of refugee settlements. The largest, Bidi Bidi, is a pop-up city that holds roughly 260,000 people weary of war. Last week the U.N. announced the Bidi Bidi camp had stopped taking new arrivals because it was full, and it directed South Sudanese to nearby locations.

The refugees "were in critical condition. Bullets remaining in their legs. Others had come with parts amputated. Others were severely bleeding," recalled Rufaaaya Asiyati, a nutrition specialist working at the border crossing for the Ugandan government. Roughly 20 percent of those under 5 years old are severely malnourished, she said. Most of the refugees are women and children.

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When the refugees arrive in settlements set up by the U.N, some like 18-year-old Harriet Guo are alone and must fend for themselves. The refugees are given supplies to build shelters and must set them up themselves.

Like others in the camp, Guo tells stories of brutal violence that forced her to flee South Sudan.

"There is war there, and here there is peace," she said.

Many of the refugees come from Yei, where the AP visited in November and heard stories of government soldiers killing, raping and arresting civilians based on their ethnicity. Some civilians also said that rebel soldiers would take money or phones from people fleeing to Uganda.

"There are so many people who are shot dead by unknown gunmen, and when you are arrested by armed personnel your whereabouts cannot be found," said Taban Jackson, a community leader in the Bidi Bidi camp and a former municipal official in Yei.

Unlike other counties in the region, Uganda has embraced the refugees, according to Charlie Yaxley, a spokesman for the U.N. refugee agency.

"Many Ugandans themselves have previously been refugees, and you typically hear expressions of solidarity from the Ugandan people," Yaxley said.

Maliki Drakuma is one of them. The town clerk of the local Yumbe government and the owner of a mobile phone store near the refugee settlements, he said the sudden influx of South Sudanese has brought economic development to the barren region.

He acknowledged that some services have been stressed by the sudden flow of refugees, and police now carry out more patrols.

But Drakuma compared the nearby border to a "two-way street" because he and many other Ugandans had been refugees themselves.

"We would love the refugees to stay for longer," he said.
Kiev (AFP) - A new indefinite truce in Ukraine held by a thread for a third day Monday as both pro-Russian insurgents and Kiev reported clashes near a prized railroad hub but no deaths.

Ukraine and Russia -- two ex-Soviet neighbours that are now sworn foes -- agreed to the armistice Wednesday with the help of mediation from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

The rebels signed on to the ceasefire Friday after some deliberation.

Yet mortar and artillery fire has continued unabated without claiming any lives.

"Our positions came under attack 33 times since early Sunday," the Ukranian military said in a statement.

The insurgents' website said their side had come under fire from Ukrainian grenade launchers 62 times in the past day.

Such weapons have been banned by a February 2015 peace agreement that both sides have long ignored.

Kiev and its Western allies view the eastern separatists as Russian proxies who have been fighting for 31 months to destabilise the Ukrainian government and keep it dependent on the Kremlin's whims.

Moscow denies interfering in the conflict but international monitors have seen tanks and other heavy military equipment enter the Ukrainian war zone from Russia throughout the war.

March 2014 saw Russia annex Ukraine's Crimea peninsula in apparent retaliation for Kiev's ouster of the Moscow-backed president the preceding month.

The latest truce came shortly after a week-long battle for control of positions near Debaltseve -- a railway hub that links the pro-Russian regions of Lugasnk and Donetsk.

Details are disputed but Kiev appears to have won back control of most regions around the town after an initial rebel assault.

Kiev lost eight soldiers in the battles while the rebels stuck their custom of not disclosing their deaths.

- Battles before truce -

Ukranian General Anatoliy Petrenko -- charged with military contacts with his counterpart from Moscow -- told the Ukrainska Pravda website that he had asked the militias to stop their assault on Kiev-held villages near Debaltseve more than 800 times.

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"They agreed on 415 occasions," Petrenko was quotes as saying

Debaltseve itself has been under separatist control since an immense January 2015 battle prompted Germany and France to step in and force all sides to agree to a peace deal the following month.

But the war in the European Union's back yard has raged on and now claimed nearly 10,000 lives.

Some analysts and officials feel this truce may last longer than the others because of its indefinite nature.

Nearly all the ceasefires agreed by the two sides had earlier been fixed to specific events such as the start of the school year or religious holidays.

An end to Ukrainian fighting would come as great relief to EU leaders who are grappling with an upsurge in populist parties and Britains slow and painful exit from the bloc.
Brest (France) (AFP) - Frenchman Thomas Coville was given a hero's welcome on his return to the French port of Brest on Monday after slashing the record for a solo non-stop circumnavigation of the world.

Coville broke the record on Sunday, completing his journey in 49 days, three hours, seven minutes and 38 seconds on his trimaran Sodebo Ultim.

"I am very happy to have achieved this dream," said a tearful Coville, who had tried and failed on four previous occasions to beat the round-the-world record.

The 48-year-old Breton sailor reached the finish line off France's Atlantic coast at 1557 GMT on Christmas Day and spent a final night on his giant trimaran "unwinding".

"The biggest dreams don't come true at the first time of asking," he added as he was greeted by thousands of fans on a sunny day in the Brittany city.

Coville, whose wife and children joined him on board for the triumphal return to land on Monday morning, shaved an incredible eight days off the previous record set by Francis Joyon, of 57 days and 13 hours.

"Physically, I couldn't go any further. Several times I was within a whisker of not doing it.

"What I'll take from this isn't the 49 days, it's the journey I've travelled to achieve it, to have tried, to have dared and not to have given up.

"And today, it's paid off."

"He's a hero," said Denis Gourlan, 64, among the crowd quayside to welcome Coville.

"It's really extraordinary what he's done," he added.

Joyon had initially set the record for the single-handed round the world effort in 2004 before Britain's Ellen MacArthur beat his mark the following year. Joyon then reclaimed the mark in 2008.

Coville's record will stand at least until next year when his compatriot, Francois Gabart, the winner of the 2012/2013 Vendee globe, will set out to lower his impressive record.
Acapulco (Mexico) (AFP) - Sixteen people were killed during Christmas holiday celebrations in Mexico's main drug-trafficking states and six human heads were found in one location, officials said.

A gang slaughtered seven people -- including three police officers -- at a family celebration in the violent southern state of Guerrero, police told AFP.

The massacre occurred early Christmas Day outside a house in the village of Puente del Rey, where the gunmen shot dead the six men and one woman, aged 24 to 54.

Those killed were three brothers, their father, their uncle, and a man and a woman who had been invited to the home.

Three of the victims were police officers, a regional security ministry official said.

In Chihuahua -- which borders the United States and has, like Guerrero, endured brutal drug-related violence -- nine people were killed during Christmas celebrations, authorities said.

Five of them died in Ciudad Juarez, including three women who were first tortured and a man whose dismembered remains were found in an abandoned trunk.

In the western state of Michoacan six human heads were found, according to the local prosecutor's office.

Authorities have not identified the remains, which have been transferred to a forensic office for analysis.

The heads were found near the border with Jalisco, where the powerful Jalisco Nueva Generacion cartel operates.

That gang is known for clashing with rival criminals in neighboring Michoacan state, where the Knights Templar drug cartel once held sway.

Cartels have been burying their victims in hidden graves across the country for years, and authorities regularly find human remains.

Guerrero recently earned international infamy as a region where 43 students in 2014 went missing, and were presumably murdered, at the hands of corrupt police working for criminals.

The government says that since 2006 more than 170,000 people have been killed and more than 28,000 have been reported missing. The data does not indicate which cases are related to organized crime.
By Javed M. Ansari : Former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit is contemplating to withdraw from the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election campaign. According to sources, the former Delhi chief minister is upset at being systematically sidelined and not being consulted by those in-charge of running the party's affairs at the centrestage.

Earlier, she was being considered as the chief ministerial face of the party in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly election. However, she has almost disappeared from the campaign. Her absence at Rahul Gandhi's rally in Bahraich was conspicuous. Dikshit feels she is being sidelined in the matters related to campaign. She was also not consulted about the alliance with the Samajwadi Party for the election.

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The 78-year-old three-time chief minister of Delhi, allowed herself to be persuaded to come out of retirement and be catapulted as the party's face in UP. However, now she finds herself sidelined as the party inches closer to stitching up an electoral alliance with the SP.

Her political managers say she finds it particularly upsetting, is that all this is happening under the nose of her party leadership.

DISSAPPOINTED SHEILA

Sheila Dixit has been resisting the temptation to rail against her party leadership, at least publicly. But those who have interacted with her in the past few days can sense the disappointment and the feeling of being let down. "I did not ask to be sent to Uttar Pradesh, the party leadership appealed me to take up the assignment in order to help the party. I was also given to understand that Priyanka Gandhi would campaign vigorously before and during the elections," she reportedly told a UP leader who called on her recently.

The former chief minister is miffed that not only has she been kept in the dark about the negotiations with the SP, but also the way the party has gone about the whole thing which has made her position extremely untenable. From being the face of the party in UP, she has disappeared from the party's posters and the campaign. If the party does indeed manage to work out an alliance with the SP, it would mean that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav will be the face of the alliance and not her. "I cannot be expected to work like this," she has reportedly told some of her supporters.

SAHARA DIARY

Her name figures in the same "Sahara Diaries" that Rahul Gandhi has been using to accuse the Prime Minister of corruption. She has had to rubbish the diaries in order to defend herself, but as a consequence it has put her at odds with the entire high decibel campaign that her party vice president has been trying to build against the Prime Minister.

Embarrassed by her own party's tweet on Sahara diary, which lists payments to several politicians, Congress leader and former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit is not ready to offer any comment on record.

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Sheila Dikshit told Aaj Tak that she would not speak anything about Congress party's tweet on 'Sahara diary' but insisted that she had 'nothing to do with the case, please do not drag my name in this.'

The Congress party tweeted from its official handle seeking response from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP over alleged payment received by the then chief minister of Gujarat and other BJP CMs in 2013.Watch the video here:

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By Cate Cadell BEIJING (Reuters) - It was strangely muted when George Michael, as part of the British pop duo Wham!, took the stage at the Workers Gymnasium in Beijing in April 1985, recalled one of those who attended that now legendary first Western pop act in Communist China. Around 15,000 concert-goers watched Michael and bandmate Andrew Ridgeley sing hits such as "Careless Whisper" and "Wake Me Up Before You Go Go"  as police grimly stared at them. "I'd never seen so many police in my life," Mao Danqing, a now well-known Chinese writer who attended the concert, told Reuters on Monday. The security presence was so intimidating people were too timid to make any noise during the songs, Mao said. "When you see that many police you feel terrified. Everyone sat in separate sections and each section had police lined up in front, facing the crowd," Mao said. Michael, who became one of the pop idols of the 1980s with Wham! and then forged a career as a successful solo artist with sometimes sexually provocative lyrics, died at his home in England on Sunday. He was 53. CHINA OPENING UP China maintained strict controls on Western music and film in the 1980s, just a few years after adopting historic economic reforms in 1978 following the chaos of the Cultural Revolution. The music of Wham! and their contemporaries remained banned and authorities tightly controlled reports of the concert. The group's manager at the time, Simon Napier-Bell, said it took 18 months to negotiate the two performances on Wham!'s two-week tour - the other concert was in Guangzhou. Napier-Bell said in a book published on the 20th anniversary of the tour, "I'm Coming to Take You to Lunch", that he undermined Queen's candidacy for the tour by presenting Michael as a more "wholesome" alternative to Queen's frontman, Freddie Mercury. The book's title was a reference to Napier-Bell's relentless wooing of Chinese authorities with lunch meetings. A film documenting the tour called "Foreign Skies: Wham! in China" is available on YouTube. It shows Michael and Ridgeley getting chased by photographers along the Great Wall, chatting about cricket at a British Embassy cocktail reception, touring a traditional market and playing an impromptu game of soccer. Mao, the Chinese writer, received his concert ticket from his university  one of several that were given allocations of tickets for students studying literature. "We were like blank pages back then. I'd never seen anything like this before in my life, said Mao, who said he was seated behind students from North Korea. "In front of me, the foreign students jumped up to dance, the police quickly came and told them to sit down," Mao said. 'HE CHANGED CHINA' Despite the tense atmosphere, the Beijing concert has since become legendary among China's rock royalty. They certainly had an impact on China, said Kaiser Kuo, the front man of a popular Chinese metal band in the 1980s called the Tang Dynasty. "Everyone knew Wham! songs, even people who would go on to play music that diverged starkly from pop." Chinese took to social media on Monday to mourn Michael, whose 1984 hit "Careless Whisper" was particularly popular in China. "That performance marked the beginning of China's opening up its gate (to Western music)," said one user. "He changed China!" Michael said in music video for the release of Wham!'s single "Freedom" in 1985 that "nobody had any idea what to expect from Chinese audiences". "I did feel that although we were very privileged to actually be put in the position, that we were acting as ambassadors of a sort." (Reporting by Cate Cadell; Editing by Bill Tarrant and Alex Richardson)
Berlin (AFP) - Calls grew in Germany on Monday for the government to posthumously honour the Polish truck driver who is believed to have saved many lives during the Christmas market attack.

More than 33,000 people had signed an online petition at Change.org by Monday afternoon, demanding that Lukasz Urban be awarded the Federal Cross of Merit, the highest civilian honour, by German President Joachim Gauck.

Opposition Greens party lawmaker Omid Nouripour meanwhile called on Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier to honour Urban with the national Order of Merit.

Police say Urban was shot dead by the suspected jihadist attacker, Tunisian Anis Amri, shortly after Amri had ploughed Urban's 40-tonne truck through a crowd of revellers at a Berlin Christmas market on December 19.

Twelve people were killed and dozens injured, but investigators believe Urban prevented even more casualties by grabbing the steering wheel in a struggle with Amri and directing the truck back out of the crowd.

The Change.org petition said that "according to current reports, the autopsy shows that he struggled with the perpetrator and was severely injured and eventually killed by him".

"With this heroic act, he probably saved many lives ... For this bravery, he deserves Germany's highest decoration."

Amri is believed to have overpowered Urban in the hours before the attack, commandeering his lorry while holding him captive in the passenger seat, where the Polish driver was later found dead with a gunshot wound.

Amri went on the run after the deadly rampage and was the focus of a Europe-wide manhunt before he was shot dead by Italian police in Milan four days later after opening fire first.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP)  If South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is confirmed as President-elect Donald Trump's pick for United Nations ambassador, her successor will be an entrenched veteran of the state's GOP who as attorney general decided not to prosecute then-Gov. Mark Sanford for his spending after his disappearance to rendezvous with his mistress.

Lt. Gov. Henry McMaster, a 69-year-old known for his ability to disagree affably, would get the job he's long wanted in the governorship. His leadership offers a sharp contrast in style if not in substance from Haley, the daughter of Indian immigrants and the nation's youngest governor at 44, who hasn't hesitated to publicly bash legislators who differed with her.

McMaster also was the nation's first statewide officeholder to back Trump for president, in an endorsement before the state's first-in-the-South presidential primary. The move stunned political observers, but McMaster's support never wavered, despite Democrats' calls to withdraw it.

He told The Associated Press last month he never regretted the endorsement.

"No ma'am, the more it went on, the more confident I was he was the man for the job," he said in his characteristic, genteel drawl. He's revealed little about what he would do as governor, and his office said he wasn't available for an interview.

But as a savvy political insider, McMaster has forged strong relationships statewide.

He's "a commonsense conservative  very reasonable, never abrasive," said House Judiciary Chairman Greg Delleney, R-Chester. "He's a realist, and he's a gentleman, and I think he's going to work with the General Assembly to get things done."

Legislators hope McMaster's entry could finally lead to passage of a comprehensive road-funding bill. Haley's threats to veto anything with a gas tax increase stymied efforts for years.

Questioned by reporters after a meeting earlier this month, McMaster said, "We will make progress, great progress," but gave no specifics.

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In the 2010 GOP primary, Haley trounced McMaster and two other better-known men partly by running against the "good ol' boy" network. Yet days after taking a 32-percentage-point beating, McMaster endorsed Haley with an exuberant "I'm all in!" and has been a close ally since. Beyond campaigning with her statewide, he arranged a series of private meetings between Haley and skeptical business leaders a week after she publicly chided the state Chamber of Commerce as a fan of bailouts and corporate welfare.

Bakari Sellers, a Democrat who lost to McMaster in the 2014 lieutenant governor's race, contends McMaster "exemplifies the good ol' boy network in South Carolina."

"Henry's been around a very long time. He's the status quo," said Sellers, a former state House member. "Courageous and visionary are not adjectives you use to describe Henry McMaster."

Other longtime political adversaries applaud McMaster's impending move.

"Henry is somebody who wants to do the right thing and move the state forward," said former state Democratic Party Chairman Dick Harpootlian, who's not one to pull punches. "If a good ol' boy means somebody who remembers his friends and has a genial approach to governing, then I would take that as a compliment. He's not going to rant and rave and pick fights. He's not going to denigrate people publicly."

McMaster began his political career in 1973 as an aide to then-U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond. He led the state Republican Party for 10 years, while the GOP took control of the Legislature.

He frequently boasts of being President Ronald Reagan's first appointment for U.S. attorney in 1981 and launched "Operation Jackpot," an investigation into international drug smuggling that resulted in more than 100 convictions.

As state attorney general, he created a task force of officers posing as children to catch online sex predators and built an attorney network to prosecute criminal domestic violence. In 2010, he helped lead a multi-state challenge of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul that allowed states to opt out of its intended Medicaid expansion  as South Carolina has steadfastly done.

In 2009, McMaster asked the state Ethics Commission to investigate Sanford after his disappearance to rendezvous with his mistress in Argentina brought scrutiny to his travels.

After Sanford paid $74,000 to resolve 37 civil charges, McMaster opted not to pursue criminal charges, saying Sanford's use of first-class tickets, travel on state aircraft and questionable campaign reimbursements didn't rise to a criminal level  and it was time for the state to move on.

A month after that announcement, McMaster lost to Haley.

Legislators say his decades-long relationship with many of them is an asset. GOP Senate Education Chairman John Courson, who met McMaster while at the University of South Carolina in the 1960s, said it helps that McMaster "understands the personalities in the Senate."

"Across the board, among Democrats and Republicans, everybody is excited about him coming in  with the belief that he will have a desire to get things done and the ability to do so," said House Minority Leader Todd Rutherford, D-Columbia.

Rep. James Smith, D-Columbia, said as a college student in the 1980s, he put out yard signs for McMaster.

"I think people who say he's a good ol' boy are missing what Henry's all about," he said. "Really, he's about building strong relationships and treating people with respect and working for the future of our state."
This case was featured on Monday nights People Magazine Investigates. Now learn more with PEOPLEs complete digital coverage.

The victims were all young vulnerable black women who lived in south Los Angeles and struggled with drug addiction. Their naked or partially clothed bodies were all dumped in the filthy neighborhood alleyways, left to rot under garbage and debris. They were shot at close range with a .25-caliber pistol, or strangled, or both.

For years, their cases lacked justice  or even an arrest.

But in May, following three months of testimony in Los Angeles Superior Court, Lonnie Franklin Jr., the Grim Sleeper serial killer who prosecutors say stalked L.A. for more than 20 years, was found guilty of murdering 10 women.

Franklin was also found guilty of the attempted murder of Enietra Washington, who testified that he shot her, sexually assaulted her and took a Polaroid picture of her before pushing her out of his car 27 years ago.

Franklin has since been sentenced to death. Here are five things to know about his case.

1. Prosecutors Say Franklin Is a Sexual Predator

At his murder trial, prosecutors painted Franklin, a former corporal in the United States Army, as a sexual predator who killed women who werent submissive enough. These crimes were about power and control, prosecutor Beth Silverman told the jury during her closing arguments.

It is clear the defendant got pleasure from killing these young women because thats how they all ended up, Silverman said. He definitely wanted to degrade these women by dumping their bodies like trash. He got off on that too and that is why he did it over and over. It gave him gratification.

 Related Story: How Reporter Christine Pelisek Helped Catch a Serial Killer

AP Pool/Nick Ut,Pool

2. Franklin Allegedly Bragged About His Sexual Conquests

Franklins longtime friend Ray Davis testified that Franklins conquests were a common topic of conversation between them. Franklin took photos of various women and joked that he had names for all the girls in the photos depending on what their breasts looked like, Davis told the jury.

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He also said that even though Franklin didnt smoke marijuana, he kept a supply on hand for his various girlfriends.

 Watch our new true crime show, People Magazine Investigates, which continues on Mondays at 10 p.m. ET on Investigation Discovery.

3. Franklin Was Convicted This Spring

Franklin was convicted in May of the murder of 10 women  Debra Jackson, Henrietta Wright, Mary Lowe, Bernita Sparks, Barbara Ware, Lachrica Jefferson, Monique Alexander, Princess Berthomieux, Valerie McCorvey and Janecia Peters  and the attempted murder of another during a 23-year murder spree that began in 1984.

Franklins last victim was 25-year-old Peters on Jan. 1, 2007. His youngest victim was Berthomieux, a15-year-old runaway, who was found strangled in an alley in Inglewood, California, in 2002.

The apparent gaps in his violent slayings, from the late 80s to early 00s, led to his nickname.

4. Police Arrested Franklin After Years of Investigation  Via DNA Evidence

The murder spree stumped detectives for more than two decades, and it wasnt until the Los Angeles Police Department started its cold case unit that authorities realized the killer of seven women in the 80s was linked through DNA and ballistics to deaths in 2002, 2003 and 2007.

However, the killers DNA profile was not in CODIS, the national database for DNA. Franklin was finally caught in July 2010 through familial DNA testing after his 28-year-old son, Christopher, was arrested for carrying a weapon in the summer of 2009 and had to give up a DNA swab.

 Related Story: How the Grim Sleeper Got His Nickname

Once it was determined that Christopher was related to the killer, detectives followed the elder Franklin to a pizza place in Buena Park. As Franklin finished his meal, a detective who posed as a busboy collected a fork, two plastic cups, a plate and a pizza slice left by Franklin.

A few days later, DNA taken from the pizza slice came back as a match to DNA.

5. Authorities Allegedly Found Souvenirs of Victims in Franklins Home

During the three-day search of Franklin s property, investigators allegedly found womens necklaces, rings, earrings and watches as well as more than 500 photographs of various women  many of them naked or engaged in sex acts.

In one of Franklins bedrooms, criminalist Rafael Garcia discovered a F.I.E Titan .25-caliber semiautomatic handgun, otherwise known as a pocket pistol. It was later determined to be the gun used to kill Janecia Peters.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

In a backyard garage, an LAPD firearms examiner found a Polaroid photograph of survivor Enietra Washington, who later testified against Franklin at his trial.

Also found was a photo of Peters. In the same envelope, they also found the school identification card of 18-year-old Ayellah Marshall and the Nevada drivers license of Rolenia Morris, 29. Both women had been reported missing in February and September 2005, respectively. Both women were last seen in the vicinity of Franklins home at 81st and Western Avenues.

Their bodies were never found.

People Magazine Investigates airs Mondays (10 p.m. ET) on Investigation Discovery.




When President Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe meet in Honolulu Tuesday and pay a visit to the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, the trip will mark one of the first visits by a sitting Japanese leader to the location famous as the site of the 1941 Japanese attack that ultimately provoked the U.S. to enter World War II. The two leaders visit will showcase the power of reconciliation that has turned former adversaries into the closest of allies, the White House said in a statement.

Just as was the case when Obama visited Hiroshima earlier in the yearas the first sitting U.S. President to go to the site of the atomic bombingthe visit by Abe comes after many years of debate in the U.S., Japan and elsewhere about how the two nations should come to terms with the legacy of World War II.

In 1991, when the world marked the 50th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, TIME examined the way Japan talkedor failed to talkabout the attack and the rest of World War II, in an article by Barry Hillenbrand and James Walsh. Americans remember Dec. 7 as a day of infamy. Japanese, when they think of Dec. 8 at all, tend to dismiss the date as mizu ni nagasu: water under the bridge, the article noted. Many people found that stance problematic:

[For] many nations, what remains troubling about Japan is a sense that its economic engines are escaping history at full steam. They fear that the lessons of Pearl Harbor and the other traumas that attended Japanese militarism have never been squarely faced, let alone digested. All nations embroider their history to some extent. In Hungary schoolchildren are taught that Attila the Hun, hardly historys most sympathetic character, introduced uplifting elements of Roman culture to his court. Britain turned the painful retreat from Dunkirk into a triumph of the spirit. Americans remember the Alamo as a heroic episode, though the war for Texas was a land grab by gringo interlopers. In recent decades Japanese officials, abetted by political and business conservatives, have subtly but systematically diluted the facts about Japanese aggression in Asia from 1931 to 1945. The tampering is reflected in school textbooks and popular literature, films and television, and has rendered some of the wars tragedies almost benign. Japans ruthless invasion of China is termed an advance. The 1937 rape of Nanking, in which imperial troops massacred thousands of Chinese civilians, is deemed problematic because of muddled factual data. Other harsh episodes like the Bataan death march are wholly ignored, perhaps in hopes that dodging the unpleasant will somehow make it disappear. But the bitter memories will not go away, and Japan is too pivotal and wealthy a global power to be allowedor to allow itselfthe luxury of historical amnesia. Increasingly, Asian neighbors demand that it deal more forthrightly with its past, especially if it hopes to play a leading regional role. Many Japanese scholars, exasperated by Tokyos studied forgetfulness, are joining foreign critics in insisting on the same thing. Without a deep understanding of the many facets of the war, says Makoto Ooka, a prominent poet, the Japanese people cannot regain their sense of dignity in the world.

One reason for that situation, suggested the president of Tokyo Womens University at the time, was that a century of movement toward modernization in Japan had discouraged any culture of reflecting on the past. As an example of that stance, Walsh and Hillenbrand cite the response of an unnamed official, on the subject of Pearl Harbors anniversary: Its a historical fact. We cant deny it, but lets move on.

Get your history fix in one place: sign up for the weekly TIME History newsletter

At the time, the relationship between the U.S. and Japan was a tense one, for very different reasons than had been the case a half-century before. Though surveys showed that a majority of Japanese people admired the U.S., much ink was spilled over the idea that a rising tide of anti-Americanism was about to sweep the nation. Meanwhile, American politicians and consumers alike fretted over competition with the growing Japanese economy and disagreement over Japans response to American military efforts in the Persian Gulf.

But, when it came to acknowledging the past, things were already beginning to change: that year, while marking the anniversary of the atomic bombing of his city, Hiroshimas mayor Takashi Hiraoka had publicly noted the horror that began with Pearl Harbor.

Another 25 years have passed since then, and its clear that, in the U.S. and in Japan alike, time has done much to help nations and individuals see the events of World War II with a new perspective.

We must never repeat the horror of war, Abe said at the time that the Pearl Harbor visit was announced. I want to express that determination as we look to the future, and at the same time send a message about the value of U.S.-Japanese reconciliation.
Police in New Delhi, India, announced Monday they had arrested four men over drugging and raping an U.S. tourist at her five-star-hotel on April 9. The woman in her early thirties, who had been sightseeing in India with a tour group, told local police that her tour guide gave her a spiked water bottle, which sedated her, and raped her inside her hotel room along with four other men, the Associated Press reported Monday.

"We arrested four of them a few hours ago. And they, as in the tour guide, driver, cleaner and another hotel employee, have been charged with rape," Delhi police spokesman Dependra Pathak told Agance France Presse.

The woman flew back to India last week to answer questions from police authorities regarding the case, and would be able to return to the U.S. in a matter of days after she identifies her rapists in custody, said Pathak. Local police launched a formal investigation into the case this month after she aired her grievances to an American charity.

But she told media in India that she couldnt remember much about the incident for three months after its occurrence since she had been heavily intoxicated.

"The first two nights I was drugged, physically assaulted and sexually assaulted," the victim can be seen telling a local news network while wearing a scarf on her face to protect her identity.

"I had no memory of what happened to me while I was in India. I regained my memory three months later around the end of July and that's when I took action, she continued.

The rate of reported rapes in Indias capital city was four times greater than that of the national average, according to the latest information from the National Crime Records Bureau in India from 2015.

The gang rape in April represented the latest in a string of sexual assault cases targeting foreign women in India. A 25-year-old Indian man was arrested on Nov. 26 for raping a 35-year-old tourist from Japan in the southern Indian city of Karnataka, Huffington Post India reported on Nov. 27.

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The Indian government introduced harsh laws in an attempt to curb the high level of sexual violence against women in the country after a student was fatally gang-raped in December 2012.

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Ahmedabad (India) (AFP) - An Indian diamond trader has thrown a mass wedding for more than 200 fatherless brides and given each of them gifts worth thousands of dollars, to help poor women start a new life.

Mahesh Savani performed the Hindu wedding ritual of 'Kanyadaan' -- the practice of giving away one's daughter in marriage -- for 236 fatherless brides from poor families at a mega-wedding event in the western state of Gujarat at Christmas.

Savani, who believes that giving away brides is a blessing from God, has been organising similar mass weddings every year since 2012.

"With Sunday's mass wedding, I have become (a) proud father to have performed 'kanyadaan' of over 700 girls," he told AFP.

Hundreds of brides in colourful ethnic attire and ornate jewellery performed their wedding rituals in front of thousands of guests in the city of Surat, a hub for the diamond polishing industry.

The tycoon also gave gifts of gold and household items, including sofas and beds, worth 500,000 rupees ($7,400) to each of the brides to help them start married life.

Two of the grooms at the mass wedding were his own sons.

"This year my two sons also got married during the mass wedding event. So, in all there were 238 marriages," said Savani.

Savani said he began his charitable campaign in 2008 when one of his own employees died just days before his daughter's wedding.

It is not known how much the giant ceremony cost.

Indian weddings are famous for their lavish scale with multi-course feasts, decorated horses, brass bands and huge tents to entertain hundreds or even thousands of guests.
By now most people know that when The Boeing Co. (BA) or Airbus or any other commercial plane manufacturer announces a firm contract, the total value of the contract is reported at the full list price of the planes in the order. But nobody pays list prices.

And especially nobody who orders 80 planes pays list price. Iran's deputy transport minister made that clear on Sunday.

According to a report at Iran's state news agency, Asghar Fakhrieh-Kashan said:

Boeing has announced that its IranAir contract is worth $16.6 billion. However, considering the nature of our order and its choice possibilities, the purchase contract for 80 Boeing aircraft is worth about 50 percent of that amount.

ALSO READ: Cities With the Highest Poverty Rates

The order, which was first revealed in June, is made up of 50 737 MAX 8s, 15 777-300ERs and 15 777-9s. In September Boeing received a license from the Treasury Department to sell up to 109 new airplanes to Iran, the 80 referred to here plus 29 others that Boeing will acquire from leasing companies.

Iran's purchase of 100 planes from Airbus was valued at around $18 to $20 billion at list prices, but Iran Air's CEO said the value of the contract would not exceed $10 billion.

Because the headline numbers on these orders are so large, the Iranian government was facing some criticism from its opponents on the massive costs of upgrading the country's airlines according to a report from Reuters. Announcing the approximate value of the contracts was intended to deflect some of that criticism.

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JERUSALEM (AP)  The Israeli governments furious reaction to the U.N. Security Councils adoption of a resolution opposing Jewish settlements in occupied territory underscores its fundamental and bitter dispute with the international community about the future of the West Bank and east Jerusalem.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists that there is nothing wrong with his controversial policy of building Jewish towns in occupied areas that the Palestinians, with overwhelming world support, claim for their state. But Fridays U.N. rebuke was a stark reminder that the rest of the world considers it a crime. The embattled leader is now placing his hopes in the incoming administration of Donald Trump, which is shaping up as the first major player to embrace Israels nationalist right and its West Bank settlements.

In a series of statements, Netanyahu has criticized the Obama Administration for letting Resolution 2334 pass Friday by abstaining, using unprecedented language that has turned a policy disagreement into a personal vendetta.

From the information that we have, we have no doubt that the Obama Administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated on the wording and demanded that it be passed, Netanyahu told his Cabinet on Sunday.

In turning his anger toward Israels closest and most important ally, Netanyahu has underplayed the embarrassment that all 14 other nations on the Security Council voted in favor of the measure. Those votes came from countries that Netanyahu loves to boast of cultivating relations with, including Russia and China and nations across the developing world.

This is the same prime minister who told us dozens of states are on board with us, former Prime Minister Ehud Barak told Channel 2 TV on Saturday. I looked for Russia, China, England, France. Where are all the friends that were meant to stand with us?

The resolution marked a sharp international rebuke of Israeli settlement policies in the West Bank and east Jerusalem  territories captured in the 1967 Mideast war and claimed by the Palestinians as parts of a future independent state. Some 600,000 Israelis now live in the two areas, complicating any partition of the land between Israel and a future Palestine.

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Netanyahu routinely dismisses international criticism of the settlements, saying that the dispute with the Palestinians goes back to long before the 1967 war.

He also notes that when Israel dismantled its Gaza settlements in 2005, Hamas militants responded by firing rockets and subsequently seizing control of the territory from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

With Fridays resolution, however, the world sent a strong message that it rejects these arguments. The resolution said the settlements have no legal validity and constitute a flagrant violation of international law. It also urged all states to distinguish between Israel and the territories occupied since 1967.

In the short term, the resolution is largely symbolic. It did not include talk of sanctions or any other punitive measures against Israel.

The importance of the resolution is to remind Israel, at least at the rhetorical level, that the international community is not completely happy, to say the least, with the ongoing status quo, said Arie Kacowicz, a professor of international relations at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

Riad Malki, the Palestinian foreign minister, said Netanyahu was being disingenuous by calling the resolution anti-Israel.

This resolution is about settlement activities, the two-state solution and ending the occupation, he said. Netanyahu, by his statements and his actions, is isolating Israel for the sake of settlements.

Malki said the Palestinians hoped the resolution would bolster their case at the International Criminal Court, which has launched a preliminary investigation into the settlements. He also said he hoped it would encourage European countries to follow up on an EU recommendation to clearly label products manufactured in settlements, and encourage other countries to do the same.

On Jan. 15, days before Obama leaves office, France is expected to host a Mideast conference where dozens of countries may endorse an international framework for peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Netanyahu vehemently opposes such activity, saying it undermines the negotiating process.

The recent diplomatic defeat would be much more damaging if not for a potential remaining and rather major ace in Netanyahus hand: the incoming Trump Administration.

In a striking departure from past policy of incumbent presidents waiting on the sidelines, Trump tried to scuttle the resolution and called for a U.S. veto. After the vote, Trump vowed that things will be different after Jan. 20th.

Critically, he has appointed an outspoken supporter and donor to the settlements, his longtime attorney David Friedman, as ambassador to Israel. And aides say Trump is serious about a promise to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which even many Israelis fear could spark violence. The Palestinians claim east Jerusalem, home to sensitive religious sites, as the capital of the future state to which they aspire.

After Fridays vote, Netanyahus office said he looked forward to working with Trump to negate the harmful effects of this absurd resolution.

Netanyahu has since gone on a campaign to punish the countries that took part in the resolution. He has canceled a slew of diplomatic visits and summoned ambassadors from Security Council countries, including the U.S., on Sunday, Christmas Day, in protest. According to an Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter, Netanyahu also canceled an upcoming meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May.

It remains unclear what Trump might be able to do. While he will be able to wield the U.S. veto to prevent further action against Israel in the council, mustering enough votes to overturn Fridays decision appears to be impossible.

The basis for the resolution is found in the Geneva conventions, which forbid the settling of areas captured in war from another country. Israel has said the law doesnt apply because the territory was captured from Jordan, which has renounced all claims to the land. Israel has also defended the occupation on religious and security grounds.

When Netanyahus rivals in Israel oppose the settlements, it is not necessarily due to a conviction that could be peace could be at hand, but rather for concern for Israels democracy. If Israel becomes inseparable from the West Bank, it will have to grant its 2.5 million Palestinians voting rights, or increasingly be unable to call itself a democracy.

The country is toxically divided on the issue, and key sectors of society, including intellectual elites and much of its security establishment, want to see settlements end. Many of them welcome  some openly, and many more quietly  any world pressure to bring that about.

Dan Miodownik, a professor of political science and international relations at Hebrew University, said there were actually some positive elements for Israel in the resolution.

He said it endorsed the idea of territorial swaps, meaning that Israel could keep some settlements as part of a negotiated peace deal. And the differentiation between Israel proper and the settlements signaled that unlike in the past, Israel was no longer being forced to defend its right to exist.
Jerusalem (AFP) - Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Monday criticised an upcoming Middle East peace conference organised by France, calling it a new "Dreyfus trial" and urged French Jews to move to Israel.

Representatives of around 70 countries are due to attend the January 15 conference aimed at restarting long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts.

Israel has strongly opposed it, instead calling for direct talks with the Palestinians.

"This is not a peace conference. It's a tribunal against the state of Israel," Lieberman told members of his Yisrael Beitenu party, according to a recording released by the party.

"A conference whose whole point is to harm the security of Israel, its good name -- a trial against Israel."

"It's a Dreyfus trial in a modern version, what they're preparing there in Paris for January 15, with one difference. Instead of one Jew being on trial, it will be the entire Jewish people and the state of Israel."

Alfred Dreyfus was a French Jewish army captain wrongly convicted in 1894 of espionage and treason whose ordeal became a symbol of injustice and anti-Semitism.

On Sunday, Lieberman also urged French Jews to move to Israel, saying it would be the most appropriate and "only answer we can give that plot (conference)".

After naming recent attacks in France targeting Jewish residents, he said the conference "adds to that atmosphere, and it might be time to tell the Jews of France: 'That's not your country, it's not your land, leave France and come to Israel'."

"If you want to stay Jewish and keep your children and grandchildren Jewish, leave France and move to Israel."

Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat, a former peace negotiator, told AFP that France aims through the conference to revive the peace process and throw its weight behind "a two-state solution".

The conference will follow Friday's UN Security Council resolution demanding that Israel halt settlement building in Palestinian territory, a vote that has deeply angered the Israeli government.

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials have responded with especially harsh language to the resolution which passed after the United States abstained from voting.

By deciding not to veto the move, the United States enabled the adoption of the first UN resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

Peace efforts have been at a standstill since a US-led initiative collapsed in April 2014.

The Palestinians have more recently pursued international diplomacy, saying years of talks with the Israelis have not ended the near-50-year occupation of the West Bank.

Many have warned that Israeli settlement building is fast eroding the possibility of a two-state solution to the conflict.
Claiming that the Taj Mahal was the tourism icon of India, Agra Tourism Guild Vice Chairman Mahtim Singh said that to say that the other monuments are being neglected because of the Taj Mahal was not correct as while forts and palaces of different architecture and periods were present everywhere in the worl

By Siraj Qureshi: Following PM Modi's appeal to the Archaeological Survey of India and the tourism department to also promote ancient forts and other historical monuments of the country instead of just focusing on the Taj Mahal, the Agra tourism industry has come out with a mixed response to this appeal.

Claiming that the Taj Mahal was the tourism icon of India, Agra Tourism Guild Vice Chairman Mahtim Singh said that to say that the other monuments are being neglected because of the Taj Mahal was not correct as while forts and palaces of different architecture and periods were present everywhere in the world, the Taj Mahal was a unique structure that had no match anywhere in the world.

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He said that every world leader coming to India made it a point to visit the Taj Mahal. In fact, the former US President Bill Clinton once famously said that there are two kinds of people in the world, those who have seen the Taj Mahal and those who haven't. Clinton visited the Taj Mahal twice, while US President Barack Obama still regrets that he could not visit the Taj on his India visit. Such sentiment has not been shown by any world leader about other monuments in India, which clearly outlined the importance of the Taj Mahal on the global tourism map.Also Read: Visiting Taj Mahal? You won't be able to see the main dome for a year

Agra Tourist Welfare Chamber Secretary Vishal Sharma said that PM Modi's appeal for and equal promotion of lesser known monuments of India along with the Taj Mahal is something that the Chamber has been demanding for decades. The demand had actually been placed before the PM before and after assuming the post. Similar demands have also been made to the Tourism and Heritage Ministries, so it was a welcome move by the PM to actually ask the ministries to throw a spotlight on these lesser known forts and palaces around the country, of which Agra had many. In fact, he said, Agra had over 200 lesser-known monuments that were begging for tourist attention for their survival and this change of tourism promotion strategy by the government could be of great help in this direction.

Muslim leader Mohd. Akbar Qureshi was, however, critical of PM Modi's views demanding to know if Modi has seen any monument that was even comparable to the Taj Mahal on his numerous foreign visits. He said that the PM's statement that the tourism industry should shift its focus from the Taj was highly deplorable and reeked of vote bank politics.

He said that if the Taj Mahal had not been important, former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee would not have chosen Agra to hold the historic summit between India and Pakistan with former Pakistani president Parvez Musharraf. Instead of praising the Taj Mahal's beauty and doing something for the development of tourism in Agra, the PM is trying to discredit the Taj Mahal entirely, which will not be tolerated.Also Read: Taj Mahal in Agra, but airport for Akhilesh's hometown, tourism officials resentful

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Jerusalem (AFP) - Israeli ministers have approved a bill that would allow a court to order sites such as Facebook and YouTube to remove material found to be "incitement," which they say contributes to Palestinian violence.

A panel of ministers approved the legislation on Sunday and it will now be taken up by the country's parliament.

Government watchdogs have expressed concern such a law could be abused and harm free speech.

The legislation, known as the "Facebook bill" in Israel, would allow the government to petition a court to have online material it considers incitement removed.

It would be removed in cases where it poses "a real risk to the security of a person, the public or the state," Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said in a statement.

Israel has previously held discussions with Facebook officials to stop what it calls online incitement.

In September, Shaked said that the social network giant had removed 95 percent of the posts Israel had referred to it.

Shaked said Sunday that in 2016, 71 percent of the 1,755 requests Israel filed to internet companies requesting they remove content were fully complied with.

She noted the ongoing collaboration with the internet companies, but stressed that it was "important this cooperation will be obligatory".

Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan, who also pushed for the bill, accused Facebook and other internet companies of not removing "inciting content" every time police ask them, or not doing so swiftly enough "despite the fact that incitement leads to terror."

"The new law is essential in order to give us the tools to immediately act to remove content that could lead to acts of terror and murder," Erdan said on Sunday.

But the possibility for error was seen in September, when Facebook apologised after temporarily disabling accounts linked to two Palestinian news sites critical of Israel.

The move drew concern over the potential for online censorship.

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The Israel Democracy Institute think-tank said the bill was "unprecedented" in its current form when compared to similar legislation in other countries.

It said it would be difficult to enforce and would "facilitate a disproportionate amount of censorship."

"The Facebook bill needs to be substantially revised so as to create a series of tools that can effectively cope with the serious problem of incitement on the internet," the institute's Tehilla Shwartz Altshuler said in a position paper to the ministers.

Palestinians say they fear the Israeli campaign will lead to censorship of legitimate information and suspect the closures in September were linked to it.

Israeli and American victims of Palestinian attacks filed a $1 billion lawsuit against Facebook in July over allegations it was used by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas to organise violence.
Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel has postponed this week's visit of Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman following a landmark UN Security Council vote demanding a halt to Israeli settlement building, officials said Monday.

The move was the latest by Israel targeting countries that supported Friday's resolution which deeply angered Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government.

Ukraine, currently a non-permanent member of the Security Council, in turn summoned the Israeli ambassador in Kiev for further discussion, the foreign ministries of both countries said.

It was unclear when or if the visit would occur following the postponement.

Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon confirmed the visit had been postponed, while also issuing a statement saying that "our ambassador Eli Belotsercovsky was summoned to the foreign ministry in Kiev" over the issue.

Ukraine's foreign ministry said it "expressed disappointment with the emotional reaction of individual Israeli officials and politicians concerning the vote in New York".

It added in its statement that it wanted to continue good relations with Israel.

Netanyahu and other Israeli officials have responded with especially harsh language to the Security Council resolution which passed after the United States abstained from voting.

Netanyahu has alleged that US President Barack Obama "colluded" to see the "shameful" resolution through.

By deciding not to veto the move, the United States enabled the adoption of the first UN resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

The text was passed with support from all remaining members of the 15-member council.

There have also been reports that Israel cancelled a planned meeting at next month's World Economic Forum in Davos between Netanyahu and British Prime Minister Theresa May.

It was unclear, however, whether there was any official meeting planned and if it was indeed called off.

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British deputy ambassador to Israel Tony Kay declined to comment in detail.

"We want to have conversations with our Israeli counterparts at all levels... to talk about regional and other security challenges and opportunities and to develop the very, very strong UK-Israel bilateral relationship," he told AFP.

Israel summoned ambassadors of countries that voted for the resolution on Sunday -- Christmas day -- while Netanyahu also met with US ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro.

On Monday, Netanyahu defended his response to the UN vote in the face of criticism that he was overreacting, saying "we do not turn the other cheek".

"Not only will our relations with the nations of the world not be harmed, over time they will only improve because the nations of the world respect strong countries that stand up for themselves and do not respect weak ingratiating countries that bow their heads," he told a conference.
Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, speaking at a rally in San Antonio. (Photo: Rick Bowmer/AP)

President Barack Obama said he initially doubted whether the Yes We Can slogan or now iconic Obama logo would be successful when he was preparing for his 2008 presidential campaign.

In conversation with David Axelrod, chief strategist for both Obama presidential campaigns, the commander in chief explained that he thought the phrase Yes We Can was too simplistic and that the logo, reminiscent of the Pepsi brand, looked altogether too corporate.

Obama was contrasting his experiences at the Democratic National Conventions in 2000 and 2004 on Mondays episode of Axelrods The Axe Files podcast. At the 2000 convention, few people even knew Obamas name, and he had a difficult time getting in the hall. Just four years later, he was delivering the keynote speech that would propel him to political stardom.

According to Obama, this tremendous change was due partly to the randomness of politics and forces that were beyond his control. He said he hitched his wagon to a broader spirit and a broader set of trends and a broader set of traditions.

And he credited the team around him for key components of his whirlwind presidential campaign that he might have nixed if left completely up to him.

Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama speaking at a rally in Jersey City, N.J., Jan. 9, 2008. (Photo: Seth Wenig/AP)

When we came up with the phrase Yes We Can, which again, to give you credit, I was a little skeptical of. It felt a little simplistic when we first started, Obama said.

You didnt like the logo either, but thats a different discussion, Axelrod added.

The logo I thought was a loser. It looked like the Pepsi logo, and I thought, That seems a little corporate to me, Obama said.

Thats what you said. It became more iconic than the Apple insignia. So Im glad we straightened this out, Axelrod chuckled. Ive gotten everything I wanted out of this podcast now.

Graphic designer Sol Sender led the small team, which had never worked on a political campaign before, to create the logo in late 2006. In an interview for his current design agency, VSA Partners, he explained that Obamas core appeal of change lent itself nicely to breaking from traditional designs, which typically only feature a last name and the election year.

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A supporter with Obama signs during the 2008 presidential campaign. (Photo: Rick Bowmer/AP)

My firm had never worked on a political identity, and I think that gave us an advantage, because the design expression was so constrained and so bland for so many years in politics. I think that we had a fresh approach, because we had not ever worked on a campaign before, he said.

According to Sender, he always preferred the design that would ultimately become the Obama logo, but that it was less clear for the client and some of his colleagues.

We always from the start were very jazzed about this as a possibility. That it could stand alone as a symbol of support for the candidate, he said.

The logo was debuted when Obama officially declared his candidacy for president in Springfield, Ill., in February 2007. It became one of the most recognizable in 21st-century politics, and was used again for Obamas reelection campaign in 2012.

Obama debuted the phrase Yes We Can at the end of his 13-minute speech in January 2008, after losing the New Hampshire primary to then rival Hillary Clinton.

Then presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama. (Photo: Rick Bowmer/AP)

For when we have faced down impossible odds, when weve been told were not ready or that we shouldnt try or that we cant, generations of Americans have responded with a simple creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes we can. Yes we can. Yes we can, he said.

The audience in attendance started chanting those three words immediately. Then Obama outlined a somewhat mythical history of the United States, in which the phrase was a central creed to heroic figures: Founding Fathers writing the nations founding documents, slaves and abolitionists fighting for freedom, immigrants reaching American shores, pioneers pushing westward, workers organizing, suffragettes fighting for voting rights, President John F. Kennedy supporting the Apollo program to send astronauts to the moon and Martin Luther King Jr. advocating for civil rights.

Despite being a concession speech, it was among the most famous Obama ever delivered, and was transformed into a successful song and music video by will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas.
james-ellsworth-raw.jpg

WWE Network

One of the strangest and most strangely wonderful stories of pro wrestling in 2016 was the meteoric rise of James Ellsworth, a puny dork who captured the hearts and minds of wrestling fans. He nabbed a WWE contract and a best-selling shirt (before wrestlers like Alexa Bliss or Dana Brooke ever had any merchandise at all), and became a fixture of Smackdown Live, simply by being the best in the world at portraying a hapless jobber loser. (Thats a compliment.)

Jim Ross believes that Ellsworths 15 minutes are nearly up, which may be true, but he likely still has a Royal Rumble hope and/or comedy spot coming his way before all is said and done. And retired former WWE Intercontinental Champion Santino Marella, who now runs Battle Arts Academy in Canada, explained on a recent episode of The Steve Austin Show how Ellsworth might be setting unrealistic expectations for undersized wrestlers who are trying to break into the business.

I have a couple of kids who are great, talented, 511, 60. You cant walk around and show up at 160 [lbs.]. You cant show up at 138 lbs. Just, youre going to get hurt and Id be doing you a disservice if I said you wouldnt. And Ive become brutally honest with these guys. There [are] guys like, right now, James Ellsworth or Spike Dudley, and just having them kept that hope alive, so there is a chance because those guys have been there and from time to time they get these little, scrawny guys and it sets up a lot of these kids for disappointment.

In my experience, wrestling schools have always been pretty upfront with explaining to undersized trainees that theyve got an extremely steep uphill climb ahead of them. But I understand where Marella is coming from, now that he has students who see Ellsworth on television every week. Heck, the cruiserweight division might also be giving smaller aspiring wrestlers some increased hopes, but its pretty easy to point to the last decade of pro wrestling and count the number of scrawny wrestlers on one hand  and heck, even Colin Delaney was close enough to 510 to fake being taller  and weighed about 170 pounds.

Marellas doing the right thing by harshly tempering expectations, and I hope other trainers are scrupulous enough to do the same. Meanwhile, we can continue to be happy for Ellsworth, who (despite how his storyline seems to be playing out) is one of the better underdog success stories in recent pro wrestling history.

(h/t Wrestling Inc. for the transcription)
TOKYO (AP)  Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who will visit Pearl Harbor with President Barack Obama on Tuesday, wasn't even born when Japan's former leader Shigeru Yoshida went there just six years after the country's World War II surrender, by himself and feeling awkward.

Yoshida is best remembered for signing the San Francisco peace treaty with the U.S. and others in 1951, allowing Japan back into international society after its war defeat. His Pearl Harbor visit, which he made on his way home from San Francisco, was largely eclipsed by the historic treaty.

Archival writings and photos unearthed by The Associated Press reconstruct Yoshida's visit, from his aim to win U.S. trust to how he was put at ease by the U.S. Navy commander's dog.

Yoshida arrived at Pearl Harbor on Sept. 12, 1951, shortly after requesting a courtesy visit to the office of Adm. Arthur W.R. Radford, commander of the U.S. Pacific fleet. The office overlooked Pearl Harbor, offering a direct view of the site of the Japanese attack of Dec. 7, 1941.

Radford recalled that he thought Yoshida might feel uncomfortable because of his office's location. "I could almost see the wreck of Arizona" out of the window, he wrote in his memoir, "From Pearl Harbor to Vietnam," referring to a battleship that sank in the attack.

Yoshida, westernized and fluent in English, showed up in a white suit, wearing his trademark brimmed hat and carrying a cane, apparently looking a bit stiff.

Then Radford's dog broke the ice.

His little Scottish Terrier, which was stretched out in front of Radford's desk, walked slowly to Yoshida to be patted, while sniffing around his shoes and ankles.

"That started a dog conversation that took most of the visit," Radford wrote.

Yoshida was a dog fancier, and had bought terrier puppies just before leaving San Francisco, his grandson Taro Aso, currently Japan's finance minister, has said. Yoshida named the pair "San" and "Fran" after his successful trip.

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Years later, Yoshida told Radford's wife how he was embarrassed when he walked into the office after seeing Pearl Harbor, and how happy he was that the dog was able to settle him down.

A Navy archival photo obtained by the AP shows the two men shaking hands, with a smiling Yoshida looking up at the much taller Radford. Yoshida spent about 20 minutes at the office, according to an AP story from Sept. 13, 1951.

Yoshida's visit to Pearl Harbor was actually on his second Hawaii stopover, having stopped there on his way to San Francisco as well.

But he was more relaxed the second time after completing the important mission in San Francisco, where he also signed the original Japan-U.S. security pact.

On his way to California, Yoshida landed in Honolulu on Aug. 31, 1951, when Japan was still technically an enemy.

During that visit, he laid flowers for the war dead at Honolulu's National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, a military cemetery better known as Punchbowl. Three other Japanese prime ministers have since followed suit. A local Hawaii newspaper recently reported that two others also had visited Pearl Harbor later in the 1950s.

Yoshida's daughter, Kazuko Aso, who was traveling with him, recalled that security was extremely tight in Hawaii on his first stopover, before the peace treaty was signed, and that Yoshida, who stayed on the top floor of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, was instructed not to leave the hotel for safety reasons.

"But that old man insisted he wanted to go out ... to pay tribute to the war dead," Aso said in an interview published in the Bungei Shunju monthly magazine weeks after the trip.

She said the Japanese delegation unexpectedly received a warm welcome. Photos in the Japanese newspaper Mainichi showed Yoshida's face nearly buried in Hawaiian flower necklaces because he had received so many of them at the airport.

At the Sept. 12, 1951, reception attended by U.S. military and Hawaiian officials, Yoshida sought further U.S. economic assistance and cooperation to reconstruct his war-devastated country and pledged to never use aggression.

Two days later, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin welcomed his speech as "a notably frank admission of Japan's war guilt and a pledge that Japan will do everything possible to repair the enormous damage done by her armies, navy and air force."

___

Associated Press writer Audrey McAvoy in Honolulu contributed to this report.
In the light of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abes upcoming visit to Pearl Harbor with President Barack Obama Tuesday, here are some facts about the deadly attack that prompted the U.S. to join World War II on Dec. 7, 1941. The attack lasted for less than two hours, from 7:55 a.m. until 9:45 a.m., on Dec. 7, 2015. A total of 353 Japanese planes in two separate waves of offensives wounded 1,000 more American servicemen and destroyed roughly 20 ships and more than 300 airplanes. Almost half of those who lost their lives that day did so onboard the naval battleship the USS Arizona, which had been hit by Japanese bomber planes on four separate occasions.

Abe said Monday he was traveling to the USS Arizona Memorial site at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, to show reconciliation between the two nations 70 years after the surprise Japanese aerial assault that resulted in the deaths of 2,335 U.S. servicemen and 68 civilians, the New York Times reported Saturday. Abe labeled the Tuesday visit, which will come in the midst of a summit meeting with President Barack Obama, as a potentially historic one where he hopes to send the message that Japan would never again perform such a wartime atrocity.

"The alliance between Japan and the United States is one with hope in dealing with various problems in the world," Abe said while addressing a group of Japanese business lobbyist, Reuters reported Monday.

The White House said this week's meeting between the two world leaders would show "the power of reconciliation that has turned former adversaries into the closest of allies, united by common interests and shared values."

The World War II conflict between the U.S. and Japan ended four years later when Washingon dropped an atomic bomb on the vital Japanese port cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which caused the death of roughly 150,000 Japanese civilians in Hiroshima and 75,000 in Nagasaki, according to a University of California-Los Angeles study from Oct. 10, 2007.

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Abe will not apologize for the Japanese attack during his visit, according to a Japanese government spokesman. Similarly, Obama chose not to apologize when he visited the drop site in Hiroshima on May 27, 2016, alongside Abe.

Since 1982, the U.S. Navy has allowed crewmembers who survived the attack to be buried at the USS Arizona to rest among their fallen servicemen, according to the Huffington Post on Dec. 7, 2016. There have been 30 Arizona crewmen who have had their cremated ashes placed among the underwater wreckage that makes up the memorial site. To do so, the incinerated remains are put into an urn, which is then brought down to the Arizona by scubadivers who place it under one of the former navy ships gun turrets. There were only 18 service members still alive out of the 355 who survived the attack as of November 2011.

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Tokyo (AFP) - Prime Minister Shinzo Abe departed Monday for Hawaii where he will visit Pearl Harbour with US President Barack Obama as the two countries highlight decades of post-World War II reconciliation.

Abe's visit to the site, which was bombed by Japan in a surprise attack in December 1941 that drew the United States into World World II, was announced earlier this month.

It follows a journey Obama made with him in May to the city of Hiroshima where a US plane dropped the world's first atom bomb as the war drew to a close in 1945.

"I am visiting Pearl Harbor in Hawaii to commemorate victims as the prime minister of Japan, as the representative of the Japanese people," Abe told reporters at Tokyo's Haneda airport.

"We must not repeat the horror of war ever again. Together with President Obama, I would like to express to the world this pledge for the future and the value of reconciliation."

The two leaders hope that their joint visits will underscore the alliance between their two nations forged in the years following the war.

They will meet Tuesday in Honolulu for a summit before venturing together to Pearl Harbour to visit the wreck of the USS Arizona, where 1,177 sailors and Marines died. The ship's rusting remains are now a memorial.

The two-hour attack killed 2,403 Americans in all, injured more than 1,100 others and sank or heavily damaged eight US battleships.

Officials have said that the purpose of Abe's visit is not to apologise but rather to pay homage to the victims and encourage historical reflection, as Obama did in Hiroshima.

It also comes at a delicate time with Obama due to hand over power to US President-elect Donald Trump next month.

The New York real-estate magnate sent shockwaves through Japan during the campaign when he appeared to question the US-Japan security alliance.

He said that Japan should pay more to support US troops stationed in the country and could even consider developing its own nuclear weapons.

Though he later walked back on the comments, they jolted public opinion in the world's only country to ever be attacked with atomic bombs.

Abe became the first world leader to meet Trump after the election, rushing to New York to confirm the importance of the relationship.
The leaders of war-time enemies America and Japan made a poignant joint pilgrimage to Pearl Harbor Tuesday, issuing symbolic declarations about the power of reconciliation and warning against the drumbeat of conflict.

Seventy-five years after Japanese pilots brought war to idyllic Hawaii and dragged the United States into World War II, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe offered his "sincere and everlasting condolences."

Abe and US President Barack Obama paid homage to the more than 2,400 Americans killed on December 7, 1941, delivering a wreath of peace lilies and standing in silence before a shrine to those lost on the USS Arizona -- roughly half of all those killed.

Abe's visit is a high-profile mark of contrition by a leader for whom Japan's wartime past is often a sensitive domestic issue.

"We must never repeat the horrors of war," he said. "What has bonded us together is the power of reconciliation, made possible through the spirit of tolerance."

Obama -- who last May made a solemn pilgrimage to Hiroshima, the target of a US nuclear bomb that effectively ended the war -- issued remarks that rang with history and America's current hypercharged politics.

"I welcome you here in the spirit of friendship," he told Abe. "I hope that, together, we send a message to the world that there is more to be won in peace than in war, that reconciliation carries more rewards than retribution."

"Even when hatred burns hottest, even when the tug of tribalism is at its most primal, we must resist the urge to turn inward," Obama said against the backdrop of the USS Arizona.

"We must resist the urge to demonize those who are different."

- Changing of the guard -

The meeting comes as Obama prepares to leave office and with Abe leading Japan into uncharted waters after remarks by incoming US president Donald Trump clouded US-Japanese relations.

Trump, who takes office on January 20, appeared during his campaign to suggest Japan break a taboo and develop its own nuclear weapons.

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He caused consternation again last week when he threatened to revive the global nuclear arms race.

The US president-elect has also declared his opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, effectively killing a major trade deal that Obama championed and Abe put at the heart of his economic strategy.

And -- on the campaign trail at least -- Trump called into question US security guarantees that shielded Japan through the Cold War and later the rise of an increasingly confident China.

What he will do in office is unknown.

Three Japanese prime ministers, including Abe's grandfather, visited Hawaii in the 1950s but Abe is the first sitting PM to pay his respects at the USS Arizona Memorial, which was built in the 1960s.

In an emotive speech on the waterfront, he imagined the long-silent voices of American victims chatting about their futures and their dreams, praying for as-yet unborn children before the carnage.

"All of that was brought to an end," he said in Japanese. "When I contemplate that solemn reality, I am rendered entirely speechless."

- Japanese shrine controversy -

Meanwhile, in Tokyo, cabinet minister Masahiro Imamura offered prayers at the Yasukuni war shrine that has been a flashpoint for criticism by countries that suffered under Japanese aggression in the first half of the 20th century.

"I reported about work to the gods and prayed for our country's peace and prosperity," he said, according to the Asahi Shimbun daily, stressing that the visit had "nothing to do with" Abe's trip to Pearl Harbor.

Those honored by the controversial shrine include senior military and political figures convicted of war crimes.

In 1941, the legendary Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto maneuvered six aircraft carriers to within 240 miles (385 kilometers) of Oahu and unleashed two waves of dive bombers.

The US Pacific fleet, formerly Japan's main rival in the region, lost 21 warships and 328 planes.

After Pearl Harbor, the US Congress declared war on Japan. Three days later, Japan's European ally Nazi Germany declared war on the United States in turn.

"Here at Pearl Harbor, America's first battle of the Second World War roused a nation," Obama said. "Here in so many ways, America came of age."

Three quarters of a century on, he added, the alliance between the United States and Japan "has never been stronger."

Only five of the USS Arizona's crewmen are still alive. While the memorial remains a tourist draw, in Hawaii -- Obama's home state -- the divisions of war have given way to a shared present.

"Hawaii has a very multi-ethnic population with a very large Japanese population," Stanley Chang, a Democratic state senator, told AFP.

"I don't think there is any feeling of antipathy toward the Japanese 75 years after the attack."
By Emily Stephenson HONOLULU (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday stopped at several memorials in Hawaii, one day before he will visit the site of the 1941 bombing of Pearl Harbor during a trip intended to show a strong alliance between his country and the United States. Abe made no public remarks and stood in silence before a wreath of flowers at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, a memorial to people who died while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. Abe, joined by two of his Cabinet members, bowed his head before wreaths of white flowers and greenery laid at the feet of stone monuments at Makiki Cemetery in Honolulu dedicated to Japanese who settled in Hawaii in the 1800s. The crowning event of the trip comes Tuesday, when Abe and U.S. President Barack Obama will visit Pearl Harbor, the site of the Japanese attack 75 years ago that drew the United States into World War II. Obama, who was born in Hawaii, is spending his winter vacation there. Abe does not plan to apologize for the 1941 attack but to console the souls of those who died in the war, his aides said this month. Japan hopes to present a strong alliance with the United States amid concerns about China's expanding military capability. Japan was monitoring a group of Chinese warships that entered the top half of the South China Sea earlier on Monday. Japanese leaders hope to send a unity message as well to President-elect Donald Trump, who triggered concerns before his Nov. 8 election by opposing the U.S.-led Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact and threatening to force allied countries to pay more to host U.S. forces. Amid wind and rain on Monday, Abe presented a wreath at the armed forces memorial located at Honolulu's Punchbowl Crater. After a moment of silence, he signed a guestbook and then stopped at the grave of former U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye, who fought in World War II in Europe and whose parents were Japanese. He died in 2012. Abe's visit will come seven months after Obama became the first serving U.S. president to visit the Japanese city of Hiroshima, where the United States dropped an atomic bomb in the closing days of the war in 1945. (Reporting by Emily Stephenson, additional reporting by Hugh Gentry; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
By PTI: Pune, Dec 26 (PTI) Investigators probing the brutal murder of a 23-year-old woman IT professional in Talawade near here today questioned a youth in Bengaluru, after her parents expressed suspicion that he could have been stalking her.

"Our team called the youth for questioning in Bengaluru in connection with the probe. He is cooperating," a police officer, attached to the local crime branch, said here.

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Antara Das was attacked with a sharp weapon near Kanbay Chowk in Talawade on the outskirts of the city on Friday, barely 500 metres from her workplace.

The murder of the techie, who hailed from Bengal, had sent shockwaves across the city and among IT employees.

Das parents suspect the youth, who was with her during her training in Bengaluru, may have been stalking her.

Police are investigating various angles, including an affair or unrequited love, and analysing the call details of Das, the officer said.

Another police team today combed the area near the spot of the crime.

"The area alongside the road, where the assailant was said to have escaped after the incident, has large number of trees and bushes and a search has been launched to look for any clue," said another police officer. PTI SPK NSK ABH

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The Kardashian ladies had what looks like the most fun Christmas Eve ever based on these Snapchats

Christmas Eve is a time to be with family and celebrate, and no family celebrates quite like the Kardashians. On Christmas Eve, even Kim Kardashian celebrated at Kris Jenners fabulous party, and they all looked like they had a blast. Kim has naturally been laying low after the terrifying robbery she survived this summer.

But in classic Kim K. fashion, when she hits the party, she still knows how to steal the show. Kim was featured in a number of Snaps with sisters Khloe and Kourtney. Kylie and Kendall Jenner attended as well, and everyone danced the holiday night away.

Kourtney and Khloe Kardashian showed off some serious skills on the dance floor.

A video posted by Khloe Kardashian Snapchats (@khloesnapchats) on Dec 25, 2016 at 1:35am PST

WOW, that is some Dancing with the Stars level of skill as Khloe picks Kourtney up and spins her around. Its awesome to see these ladies having so much fun.

And Kim Kardashian showed off some serious fashion.

A video posted by Khloe Kardashian Snapchats (@khloesnapchats) on Dec 25, 2016 at 1:22am PST

Naturally, Kim glittered throughout the whole room in this stunning gold gown. We can even hear Khloe on the camera saying, You are a badass bitch, Kim. And we agree, she does look pretty badass festive.

The stunning ladies also grabbed microphones for some pretty epic lip syncing.

A video posted by Khloe Kardashian Snapchats (@khloesnapchats) on Dec 25, 2016 at 1:41am PST

A video posted by Khloe Kardashian Snapchats (@khloesnapchats) on Dec 25, 2016 at 1:35am PST

Um, can we just say that lip synching like pop stars at a party is also one of our favorite activities? Were so glad that the Kardashians share our silly love for that particular party activity.

Even North West made an appearance at the party, looking adorably fabulous.

A video posted by Khloe Kardashian Snapchats (@khloesnapchats) on Dec 25, 2016 at 1:22am PST

OMG, too sweet! And of course little North wore a custom-made Alexander Wang dress becausethe holidays.

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We can definitely say that these fabulous women know how to party!

A video posted by Khloe Kardashian Snapchats (@khloesnapchats) on Dec 25, 2016 at 1:39am PST

And Kris Jenners bash was obviously THE place to celebrate with family on Christmas Eve!

The post The Kardashian ladies had what looks like the most fun Christmas Eve ever based on these Snapchats appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Kuwait City (AFP) - A Kuwaiti court on Monday sentenced a Filipino woman to 10 years in jail after convicting her of joining the Islamic State jihadist group and plotting attacks.

The ruling, which is not final, also calls for deporting the 32-year old after serving her term.

The woman was arrested in August, two months after arriving in the oil-rich Gulf state to work as a domestic helper.

At the time, the interior ministry said she had confessed to being a member of the Islamic State group and was plotting terrorist attacks in the emirate.

The woman told interrogators that her husband was an active fighter with IS in Libya and he had asked her to come to Kuwait from the Philippines as a domestic helper, according to the ministry.

An IS-affiliated group in the Philippines has conduced a string of bombings as well as kidnappings for ransom of foreign tourists and Christian missionaries in the country.

Kuwaiti courts have sentenced to various jail terms a number of members, sympathisers and financiers of the IS group.

In October, Kuwait police arrested an Egyptian driver suspected of being a member of the IS, after he rammed a garbage truck into a pick-up carrying five Americans.

Authorities in July said they had dismantled three IS cells plotting attacks, including a suicide bombing against a Shiite mosque and against an interior ministry target.

An IS-linked suicide bomber killed 26 worshippers in June last year when he blew himself up in a mosque of Kuwait's Shiite minority, in the worst such attack in the Gulf state's history.
A handful of South Korean lawmakers on Monday finally got to question the woman at the heart of the impeachment crisis surrounding President Park Geun-Hye, after she snubbed a televised hearing at her detention centre.

Choi Soon-Sil, a long-time friend of the president, has repeatedly ignored several summons to appear before a parliamentary committee probing a corruption scandal that triggered Park's impeachment earlier this month.

So the lawmakers came to her, with the committee organising a special hearing Monday morning -- with TV cameras -- inside the detention facility where Choi is awaiting trial on charges of extortion and abuse of power.

Choi initially refused to leave her cell, but eventually agreed to meet eight selected members of the committee behind closed doors.

Citing the lawmakers, Yonhap news agency reported that Choi denied all her charges, including allegations that she colluded with the president and set up two dubious foundations that were later used for her personal gain.

Choi, however, said she was prepared to serve a life sentence and apologised to the public for "causing confusion", according to Yonhap.

She said she was feeling "dizzy" both physically and mentally and refused to answer most of the lawmakers' questions during the meeting that lasted nearly three hours, Yonhap said.

Two former top presidential aides being held in a separate facility also refused to appear for questioning.

There are no legal grounds for forcing witnesses to attend a parliamentary hearing, although they can be held in contempt and face a maximum five-year prison term for not doing so.

The National Assembly voted to impeach Park earlier this month, stripping away her substantial executive powers.

She remains president in name, pending a decision by the Constitutional Court on whether to ratify parliament's impeachment motion.

Earlier Monday, prosecutors seized documents during an early-morning raid on the central Seoul residence of Kim Ki-Choon, who served as Park's chief of staff between 2013-15.

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Kim has a long association with Park's family, having also served her father -- the late military strongman Park Chung-Hee who led the country for 18 years after seizing power in a 1961 military coup.

Those close ties have led to allegations that he must have been aware of the inappropriate influence that Choi -- dubbed a "female Rasputin" by the local media -- wielded over the president.

Park allegedly leaked confidential documents to her friend, and allowed her to meddle in state affairs -- including the appointments of senior officials.
These little girls received teddy bears with recordings of their late grandfathers voice for Christmas, and their reactions are so beautiful

Christmas may be over, but that doesnt mean that holiday miracles are over yet. The Internet is abuzz with news about gift-giving that has made so many of us tear up with bittersweet joy, reminding us of what really makes holidays like Christmas special. There are few things that can bring joy quite like a thoughtful Christmas present  and this teddy bear honoring a late grandfather proves just that.

Last year, the Ramos family in Oklahoma suffered a great loss when their beloved grandfather, Florencio Jimenez, died of a stroke following a car wash robbery. Though the family found justice after the culprits were charged with murder and robbery, the Ramos are still feeling a great loss  especially now around the holidays.

But even with the heaviness of the loss on everyones mind, Christmas Eve brought an unexpected surprise for Florencios granddaughters  16-year-old Jennifer and younger sisters Mariana and Sarahy.

The two youngest girls received special teddy bears that had special audio messages from their late grandfather. When they squeezed the teddy bears, they heard their grandfathers voice.

Ramos captured the heartwarming moment on Twitter, and its been shared by thousands of people already.

so my grandpa passed away tragically about a year ago and my aunt got my sisters a teddy bear that has a recording of my grandpas voice  pic.twitter.com/zdjUaghISr  yenn (@y_jennifer2974) December 25, 2016

Seeing the joy that these girls are able to have after the loss of their grandfather gives us hope that Christmas miracles are real. Pass the tissues.

The post These little girls received teddy bears with recordings of their late grandfathers voice for Christmas, and their reactions are so beautiful appeared first on HelloGiggles.
GAO, Mali (AP)  As the sun starts to fall, the call to prayer at the mosque echoes throughout Gao, a predominantly Muslim town in northern Mali. At that same moment, a small church bell nearby also rings.

Its a reminder that even in a town where just four years ago strict Islamic law was in force, some Christians have returned to rebuild their congregation, which fled the jihadist occupation.

This is the first Christmas theyve been able to hold a service at the Catholic church, which was torched in 2012 by the al-Qaida-linked militants who took over the major towns in northern Mali that year.

Yet even as they celebrate, the fear of persecution is still widespread. Police stood by to protect the church as worshippers met Saturday and they returned again Sunday for the morning service. In a sign of the dangers that lurk, a Swiss aid worker was abducted from her home by armed men on Christmas Eve.

The turnout this year at the Saturday night service was only several dozen people. In total, there are now about 125 to 150 Christians who have come back  though that is still only half of what the population once was, says Philippe Omore, president of the Christian community in Gao.

The congregants have been fearful  they dont want to come to the church yet so we must raise awareness, he said.

Inside the church on Christmas Eve, a small choir of 10 people sang hymns in front of a tree lit up with colorful lights that was set next to a small nativity scene. After the two-hour service, church members met in a dining area on site to share sandwiches and salad.

Many of the extremists who ruled Gao in 2012 came from outside the country  Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt and Mauritania  and they enforced their strict interpretation of Islam upon the local community, where tolerance had long reigned between Muslims and Christians.

While the West African country is overwhelmingly Muslim, some Malians converted to Christianity during colonialism when the country was ruled by predominantly Catholic France.

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French forces ultimately liberated the town in 2013 but Christians who had fled to central and southern Mali waited about a year to make sure the peace would hold before they returned. Next they had to rebuild the church that had been destroyed by jihadists.

Christmas brings us joy in spite of the security threats, said the Rev. Afeku Anthero, a priest from Uganda. On this night, God sent us his son as the prince of peace. Peace should reign in our hearts, in the Christian community and in our country. This is especially important for Mali where we need peace and where it has been difficult to reconcile and unite us.

Still, Omore says life remains tenuous for the Christians who have returned, and peace is a dream at this point.

Before the crisis, we could go walk on the sand dunes outside of Gao but today because of the security situation that is no longer possible. We miss it, and we want to live as we did in the past  free and without fear for our safety.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. Armenpress has talked with former OSCE Minsk Group Russian Co-Chair, head of Russias mediatory mission, Plenipotentiary Representative of the Russian President for Political Settlement of the Conflict over Nagorno Karabakh Vladimir Kazimirov over the existing issues, solution prospects on the peaceful settlement of the NK conflict, as well as the Apri four-day war.

-Mr. Kazimirov, what were the expectations over the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict when you were Co-Chair? Whether the freeze of the conflict sooner or later would not bring to another clash?

-In summer, 1996 when leaving the post of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair, I still had hopes that there would be a progress over the Karabakh conflict settlement. From the one hand it seemed that the settlement dynamic of the previous years is not lost, and from the other hand, the Lisbon deadlock (Lisbon summit, 1996) emerged, however, the new co-chairmanship with the participation of US, France and Russia provided new hopes. During that time few could predict that there will be long-term freeze of the conflict full of numerous incidents.

-Within the years it seems that nothing has changed, except from political figures, over the Karabakh issue, moreover, the scenario is being repeated which we witnessed in April. Why?

-I think that except from figures, the approaches of mediators on solving separate issues of settlement were regularly changed to some extent. Nevertheless, the tough stances of the conflicting sides remained almost unchanged, there is a lack of constructivism.

-As for the April war, what do you think to what extent it was expected and what was the reason?

-The April military operations were hardly expected in such a scale. Nevertheless, the reason of it was the desire of Baku leadership to show in every way that they are not accepting the results of 1991-1994 war.

-Mr. Kazimirov, although numerous statements were made after the April events, however, it was not clearly stated who has started the attack. Dont you think that it is important?

-The desire of mediators, officials and public leaders to remain neutral in such situations, and especially that of the media is not justified.

-After a short period of time, recently Azerbaijan against tries to escalate the situation, what is the guarantee that Azerbaijani will not again unleash another attack?

-Both reporters and Co-Chairs must be ready to that.

-The Co-Chairs have repeatedly said and continue saying that the conflict must be solved through political, peaceful means, however, it is more than 20 years the situation is quite the contrary, Azerbaijans stance didnt change so much during those years, what can you say on this?

-I think the judgments of the Co-Chairs are right in this regard. Bakus insatiable desire to bring back what they have lost during the war years obviously due to wrong calculations, can lead to only a certain remorse or compassion, but not to the Co-Chairs approval. The Azerbaijani elite will need much time to reach the reality.

-It is not ruled out that the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan will meet in near future. Taking into account that the previous meetings didnt provide anything to the conflict solution due to Azerbaijans unconstructive stance, what can one expect from the possible meeting?

-I think that such meetings deserve support, even if in practice they provide very little.

-What do you think, bringing Karabakh to the negotiation table would have any impact on the process?

-This is fundamentally important issue. The fate of Nagorno Karabakh cannot be decided without its participation even if it will not lead to desirable results.

-Mr. Kazimirov, eventually, according to you what is the solution of this conflict and what are the solution mechanisms?

-I remain committed to the view that was mentioned by the Council of the CIS heads of states on April 15, 1994 a month before the ceasefire. During that time, the heads of states, including Heydar Aliyev and Levon Ter-Petrosyan supported the fact that it is necessary to eliminate the consequences of the tragic confrontation only after the reliable strengthening of the ceasefire, rather than simply a ceasefire. But whether this today exists? Where is it now? The reliable strengthening of the ceasefire is the way on solving the Karabakh conflict. Without that, it is impossible to achieve progress on the issue.

Interview by Syuzi Muradyan
The newlyweds, who are on their long-awaited European honeymoon, had loads of fun on Christmas.

By India Today Web Desk: Divyanka Tripathi and Vivek Dahiya are having the time of their life in Paris. The newlyweds, who have been chilling in Paris for about a week now, had a memorable Christmas in the beautiful city.

"It's a Disney kind of Christmas where Santa came on his sleigh along with Mickey-Minnie and their friends. Will share more soon, until then-Merry Christmas to each of you," wrote Vivek on his Instagram page.

Picture courtesy: Instagram/Vivek Dahiya

Picture courtesy: Instagram/Vivek Dahiya

Picture courtesy: Instagram/Vivek Dahiya

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The couple seem to be spending some relaxed moments there. They are also making the most of their time by visiting the landmarks of Paris like Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum and the famous cabaret Moulin Rouge.

Divek's next stop would be London where they will be bringing in the New Year. Since Vivek has stayed in UK for a couple of years, the couple will not need any tourist guide.

Check out the pictures of the happy couple:

Picture courtesy: Instagram/Vivek Dahiya

Picture courtesy: Instagram/Vivek Dahiya

Picture courtesy: Instagram/Vivek Dahiya

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Following the passing of the historic United Nations Security Council resolution Friday that demanded an end to Israeli settlement-building in Palestinian territories, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded by vowing to reevaluate his country's ties to the U.N., cutting its civilian ties with Pakistan and summoning the U.S. ambassador and other foreign envoys to lodge protests against their support for the resolution.

Notwithstanding Netanyahu's response, the resolution is largely symbolic as it does not include sanctions or punitive measures against Israel, according to the Associated Press. But it raises an interesting question  how many settlements would Israel have to dismantle in order to do justice in the eyes of the international community?

From 1967 to late 2013, Israel built 125 settlements in the West Bank that have been recognized by the Ministry of the Interior as communities, according to B'TSELEM  the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories.

The settler population in the West Bank is estimated to be upwards of 547,000: in late 2013 the population of the West Bank settlements was 350,010; in late 2012 there were 196,890 individuals living in Israeli neighborhoods in East Jerusalem, the B'TSELEM report said.

Apart from this, the human rights group also noted several other settlements in the form of outposts (estimated to be nearly 100) and other settler enclaves in the heart of Palestinian neighborhoods in East Jerusalem. Some Palestinian neighborhoods annexed in 1967, the report said, were brought under Jerusalems jurisdiction.

The U.N. resolution urges all states to distinguish between Israel and "the territories occupied since 1967" and calls the existence of the settlements a "flagrant violation" of international law which has "no legal validity." It also declares the settlements are "dangerously imperilling the viability of the two-state solution".

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The U.S. typically uses its veto power in the Security Council to support its ally Israel, but marked a departure from its usual strategy when it abstained from the vote on the resolution. The 15-member council passed the resolution  which was proposed by Malaysia, New Zealand, Senegal and Venezuela after Egypt was pressurized into dropping it  with 14 votes in favor and none against.

In the aftermath of the vote, Netanyahu accused the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama of colluding with the Palestinians to push for the resolution's adoption in a weekly cabinet meeting.

"According to our information, we have no doubt the Obama administration initiated it (the resolution), stood behind it, coordinated the wording and demanded it be passed," Netanyahu told the cabinet in public remarks, according to Reuters.

The White House denied the allegation. But Netanyahu found an ally in president-elect Donald Trump who tweeted on Saturday: "The big loss yesterday for Israel in the United Nations will make it much harder to negotiate peace. Too bad, but we will get it done anyway!"

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DALLAS, TX / ACCESSWIRE / December 26, 2016 / For more than thirty years, internationally acclaimed real estate mogul and philanthropist and Chairman and CEO of Western Rim Property Services, Marcus Hiles has been developing astoundingly lavish yet affordable rental communities across Texas, making an upscale home style a dreams-come-true reality for American families. Sophisticated and unprecedented in contemporary design and resort-style conveniences, the townhomes and apartments he has developed throughout his professional career as a leading expert in real estate business are highly regarded for their cutting-edge, energy-efficient amenities. Staying on top innovations in contemporary smart house technologies, Hiles has had firsthand experience with the next wave of fully programmable appliances that give users previously unavailable levels of customization and controland all by cell phone. The growing consumer market for state-of-the-art smart machines has proven to be cost effective and offer convenience like never before. Hiles shares his astute views about the latest additions to the network of the "Internet of Things," and their potential for ushering in an easier lifestyle.

https://www.crunchbase.com/person/marcus-hiles

Upgrades begin right at the front door. App-controlled deadbolts let users decide how they want to open up their homes and to whom: entry codes can be preset for different family members or even issued on a temporary basis for visiting workers like pet sitters and cleaning people. Many smart locks send an alert that a guest has arrived, while an HD camera with microphone provides a live feed, allowing hosts to communicate with waiting company, even when not actually on the property to receive them. Wi-Fi doorbells are a true evolution in both safety and power: residents can even utilize the high-definition stream for night vision views in darker environments, and to protect their privacy by engaging a quiet mode when wishing to remain undisturbed. The latter function is particularly useful for keeping a resting newborn happy or preserving a Saturday afternoon nap. Marcus Hiles says that even our beds are getting smarter: sleepers for newborns play music, shine soothing lights, and lightly rock babies with automated settings; while adult mattresses track behavior patterns and analyze the data to improve sleep quality by adjusting the position.



Our living space has been revolutionized by connected lighting systems, remote automation connections and learning thermostats. Bulbs react to movement to shut off and save energy, or set to slowly shift from soft to bright light, while anything from a TV to a coffeemaker can be activated from an app with the use of smart outlets. Humidity monitors sense condensation and automatically take steps to improve the quality of air, while new thermostats allow for extremely specific temperature controls, utilizing warmer and chillier settings for different rooms. In the kitchen, web-linked refrigerators with touchscreens make it simple for families to coordinate schedules, and interior cameras snap email-ready photos to streamline grocery shopping. Much as cellphones have made cameras ubiquitous, their presence lets us watch over our homes and loved ones from anywhere in the world using home security systems. As the market continues to evolve, these products will work better together, interface across brands with more ease and ultimately, give users more piece of mind.



Marcus Hiles is a prominent real estate investor and philanthropist who has helped to transform the upmarket rental landscape throughout Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin and San Antonio. His passion for the environment has resulted in an ongoing campaign to increase the states shade tree canopy by planting a total of 30,000 trees during the last 10 years and donating over 59 acres of parkland to preserve wildlife habitats and accessible green spaces. The Pepperdine and Rice Universities alums strong commitment to education has moved Hiles to give more than $2.5 million to public and private K-12 initiatives, after school programs, university career services and job placement programs.



Marcus Hiles - Chairman & CEO of Western Rim Property Services: http://www.MarcusHiles-News.com

Western Rim Property Services- Marcus Hiles - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Western-Rim-Property-Services-Marcus-Hiles-1013270532051763/

Marcus Hiles (@marcus_hiles) - Twitter: https://twitter.com/marcus_hiles

Marcus Hiles - New Luxury Apartments in Frisco, TX - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmsJNbfOh-g



Contact Information

MarcusHiles-News.com

www.MarcusHiles-News.com

marcus@marcushiles-news.com





Source: Marcus Hiles
Watford (United Kingdom) (AFP) - Sam Allardyce's sense of humour failed him on Monday after the Watford mascot dived when Wilfried Zaha went over to applaud the Crystal Palace fans following the 1-1 draw.

The Palace winger had been booked for diving in the second-half of the Premier League clash -- former England manager Allardyce's first in charge of Palace since replacing Alan Pardew.

The hosts' mascot -- dressed as a Hornet after the club's nickname -- performed a comedy dive in front of Zaha when the winger went to his fans after the final whistle.

Zaha had also had a penalty appeal turned down late in the match when he went down in the box.

"The mascot is out of order, isn't he? If someone is diving, they don't get that angry," fumed Allardyce.

Allardyce, who had to step down as England manager after just one match when he made ill-judged remarks to undercover reporters earlier this year, said he didn't know whether Zaha was being punished by referees because of his reputation for going down too easily.

"You'll have to ask the referees, ask (referees' chief) Mike Riley. If they are refereeing on reputation and not fact or incident, that's a black mark against them."

Zaha is reportedly in a tug of war between the Ivory Coast and England who both want him to play for them.
A 17-year-old daughter was arrested Monday for fatally stabbing her 45-year-old mother in Clinton Township, a Detroit, Michigan, a suburb roughly 21 miles north of the city center, on Christmas night, local police said. The suspect was apprehended at a 7-Eleven in the town of Frasier, which is in Clinton Township, after police received a call about a deceased woman at the apartment Sunday night around 10:00 p.m.

The teen daughter had yet to be charged. But police said they were investigating the case as a murder.

The name of the daughter was not released, but neighbors in the apartment building where she reportedly had been living said they were aware of children also being housed there, according to local reports. Prior to Mondays arrest, police had been called to that apartment over domestic abuse inquiries in which the teen suspect was the supposed offender. Local police did not say whether the 17-year-old in question was the children's primary caretaker.

There is literally three of them, Nikki Dawson, who lives above the suspect, told local reporters. I see them all the time when I do my laundry. Thats my question: Where are the kids? Because, I know they live with her.

Neighbors told other local reporters the woman who had died had been in a wheelchair. Delano Erwin, who said he had been living in the apartment complex for three years, told local reporters he had seen police at the daughters unit before, but was shocked by the alleged killing.

You wouldnt think that would happen right next door to your house, he said.

Investigators said an autopsy would be performed to find out what had caused the womans death.

Stephanie Nies, another Michigan woman, took her own life on Dec. 5 after killing her father after he allegedly euthanized her dog that morning. Nies was found dead in her car from a single gunshot wound roughly 5 miles from her parents house after police received a phone call from her where she said she killed Rayton Dale Nies with her loaded weapon.

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By Shwe Yee Saw Myint YANGON (Reuters) - A man has been found dead with stab wounds in Myanmar's Rakhine State, in what the government said on Monday was the second murder in under a week of a Rohingya who cooperated with authorities as they crack down on suspected insurgents. Coordinated attacks on Oct. 9 killed nine police officers and sparked a military operation in northern Rakhine. The government of predominantly Buddhist Myanmar blamed Muslim Rohingyas supported by foreign militants. State media has reported at least 86 deaths and the United Nations says 34,000 people have fled to Bangladesh. The violence poses a challenge to Aung San Suu Kyi's government and has renewed international criticism that the Nobel laureate has done too little to help the Rohingya, who are denied citizenship in Myanmar. Residents and rights groups say soldiers have raped Rohingya women, burnt homes and killed civilians during the operation near the frontier with Bangladesh. The government denies the accusations, and has launched a social media campaign in an effort to demonstrate that security forces are acting properly in Rakhine. An administrator in Yae Twin Kyun village, named as Rawphi, was found dead with knife wounds on Sunday, Lieutenant Colonel Aung San Win of the local border guard police told Reuters. He said the killing of the 28-year-old Muslim might be "related to terrorism". Myanmar's state counselor's office said on Monday evening on its Facebook page that the victim had been "cooperating with members of security forces in administration duties." The case is the second murder in Rakhine where authorities have highlighted the victim's cooperation with the government, appearing to point the finger at Rohingya insurgents. On Friday, the state counselor's office said a Muslim man was decapitated after he had denied stories of Myanmar military abuse when speaking to reporters. "He told media that there was no case of arson by the military and police forces, no rape and no unjust arrests," said a Facebook post accompanied by a picture of a headless body with English text that read: "truth teller beheaded". Neither the police nor the state counselor's office have said who was responsible for the decapitation. A Rohingya community leader, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals, told Reuters many Muslims were skeptical about the government's account of the beheading. A report by the International Crisis Group said insurgents calling themselves Harakah al-Yaqin were responsible for the attacks on Oct. 9 that sparked the crackdown. The group also have killed Rohingyas who threatened to inform on them to authorities, the ICG said. Reuters could not independently verify the government accounts as access for independent journalists to northern Rakhine has been prohibited since security forces locked down the area. (Reporting By Shwe Yee Saw Myint and Simon Lewis; Writing by Yimou Lee; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f329704%2f20019c24-1478-4273-9677-cd896a458c96

Mike Pence's neighbors would like to welcome him to the neighborhood  with loud expressions of dissent.

Residents of Pence's new 'hood in Chevy Chase, Maryland, recently posted signs on their lawn that read, "This neighborhood trusts women." The signs are courtesy of NARAL Pro-Choice America, one of the nation's leading advocacy groups focusing on women's reproductive rights.

SEE ALSO: Donald Trump's war on LGBTQ people has already begun

One such sign even appears directly across the street from Pence's new house.

When group members knocked on local doors to see if they would post signs, most residents were more than happy to participate, DCIst reports.

"They were glad to have a way to show their resistance to the anti-choice and anti-woman agenda," deputy field organizer Anne Bailey told DCIst.

Just 6.5 percent of the district voted for Trump.

We canvassed Mike Pences new neighborhood in NW DCand wouldnt you know it, most of his neighbors #TrustWomen! A photo posted by NARAL Pro-Choice America (@prochoiceamerica) on Dec 23, 2016 at 12:38pm PST

As governor of Indiana, Pence helped to sign some of the most restrictive anti-choice legislation in the country and has been a staunch advocate for de-funding Planned Parenthood. In 2011 he told Politico: As long as they aspire to [provide abortion care], Ill be after them.

That was the year he said on the floor of the House: "I long for the day that Roe v. Wade is sent to the ash heap of history."

Earlier this month, Vice President-elect Pence's neighbors posted gay pride flags all around the neighborhood to celebrate his arrival. Pence, recently named "Homophobe of the Year" by All Out members, voted against legislation that would protect LBGT folks from employment discrimination. An active opponent of same-sex marriage, Pence has also expressed support for conversion therapy.

Welcome to the neighborhood, Vice President-Elect Pence.

BONUS: Ridiculous Fox anchor to Teen Vogue writer: 'stick to the thigh-high boots'
By PTI: Srinagar, Dec 26 (PTI) Two police officials were injured today when a gas cylinder exploded inside a family quarter at a police station in Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir.

"Leakage of gas caused an explosion of the gas cylinder inside the family quarters of police station Kupwara, resulting in injuries to two constables," a police official said here.

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He said the injured constables were rushed to hospital where doctors referred one of them to Srinagar.

The building also suffered some damage due to the explosion, the official said. PTI MIJ ASV

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It's a party of five!

Nick and Vanessa Lachey got a very merry holiday surprise when their third child decided to make an early entrance into the world on Christmas Eve.

WATCH: Vanessa Lachey Radiantly Flaunts Baby Bump While Celebrating Her Birthday With Girlfriends

Vanessa, 36, gave birth to son Phoenix Robert Lachey on Saturday. The proud parents shared the good news with fans via Instagram on Monday, with both posting the same sweet photo of their newborn holding onto his mom's hand.

It's a very Merry Christmas indeed! We had our Christmas Miracle. Phoenix Robert Lachey decided to show up early and was born on Christmas Eve. Mommy, Daddy, Camden & Brooklyn LOVE You very much! #LacheyPartyOf5 A photo posted by Vanessa Lachey (@vanessalachey) on Dec 26, 2016 at 6:15am PST

The pair announced that they were expecting again in September and revealed baby No. 3's gender last month. Nick, 43, and Vanessa are already parents to 4-year-old son Camden and 23-month-old daughter Brooklyn.

RELATED: Vanessa and Nick Lachey Reveal They're Having a Baby Boy in Adorable Instagram Video

Judging from the actress' social media posts, Christmas is a special time for Vanessa. She's been posting lots of adorable snaps of her growing brood over the last few weeks, including Camden sending a letter off to Santa, Brooklyn adorably sitting on her dad's shoulders as they braved the snow, and some of the decorations at her home (including peeks at the baby bump!).

 A photo posted by Vanessa Lachey (@vanessalachey) on Nov 26, 2016 at 1:19pm PST

So in LOVE with these two!  A photo posted by Vanessa Lachey (@vanessalachey) on Nov 26, 2016 at 8:00pm PST

Congratulations to Nick and Vanessa!

Story continues

WATCH: Nick and Vanessa Lachey Take Their Kids to Disneyland

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Lagos (AFP) - Nigerian troops on Monday foiled an attempt by two female suicide bombers to attack a cattle market in the restive city of Maiduguri, a frequent target of Boko Haram jihadists, the emergency service said.

Ibrahim Abdulkadir of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) in the northeastern city said one of the bombers was killed, while the other was arrested.

"The incident happened at Kasuwar Shanu cattle market this morning. There were two suicide bombers. One accidentally blew herself up while the other was arrested by vigilant soldiers," he said.

No one was killed in the explosion, but several people were injured.

"We have taken those wounded to the hospitals," he said, adding that security forces have cordoned off the area.

Boko Haram's seven-year insurgency began in Maiduguri, though it has since spread beyond Nigeria's borders to Chad, Cameroon and Niger.

Monday's attack comes two days after President Muhammadu Buhari claimed the military had finally routed Boko Haram from their Sambisa Forest stronghold.

The government in Abuja and the military have frequently claimed victories against the Islamic State group affiliate but access to the epicentre of the conflict in Borno state -- where Maiduguri is located -- is strictly controlled.

That has made independent verification of official statements about victories virtually impossible.

And while a regional counter-insurgency has clawed back some territory, Boko Haram has responded by stepping up guerrilla tactics, ambushing troops when it can and terrorising civilians when it cannot.

On December 9, at least 45 people were killed and scores wounded when two female suicide bombers detonated their explosives in a crowded market in Madagali in Adamawa state, also in northeastern Nigeria.

Boko Haram's insurgency has left at least 20,000 dead and forced some 2.6 million others to flee their homes.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has reportedly replaced Christmas with celebrations honoring his deceased grandmother. While Christians remain a minority in North Korea, Kim has declared Dec. 25 a holiday to pay tribute to Kim Jong Suk, who died in 1949, according to media reports Sunday.

Kim's grandmother was born on Christmas Eve in 1919. Known as the Sacred Mother of the Revolution, she was the wife of former North Korean leader Kim Il Sung and a Communist activist. To honor her birthday, many North Koreans visit her tomb on Dec. 25 each year.

North Korea has prevously banned Christmas trees and Kim has upheld his family's anti-Christmas beliefs. In 2014, he threatened war against South Korea after it announced it would erect a Christmas tree along the border.

"The DPRK ostentatiously treats anyone of faith, but especially Christians, as hostile," wrote Doug Bandow, a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank in Washington, D.C. "Believers place loyalty to God before that of the North Korean state. Churches allow people to act and organize outside of state entities. Christianity also has ties to a world seen as almost uniformly threatening by Pyongyang."

Christian celebrations, including decorating Christmas trees, were banned in 1950s, but some of the nation's estimated 70,000 Christians continue to put up holiday decoratons each December, especialy in upscale shops and restaurants. In recent decades, however, North Korea has sent some Christians to prisons because of their religion.

"Under the rule of Kim Jong-Un, North Korea remains among the worlds most repressive countries. All basic freedoms have been severely restricted under the Kim familys political dynasty. A 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry found that abuses in North Korea were without parallel in the contemporary world. They include extermination, murder, enslavement, torture, imprisonment, rape, forced abortions, and other sexual violence," Human Rights Watch wrote in its most recent report on North Korea.

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President Barack Obama continued his Christmas Day tradition of addressing troops on Sunday, thanking hundreds of men and women at the base on Kaneohe Bay in Hawaii for their service.

The president and First Lady Michelle Obama told the Marines that their Christmas visit was one of their beloved traditions.

This is one of our favorite things to do because its one of those circumstances where you get a chance to not just say thank you to our incredible men and women in uniform, but oftentimes we also get a chance to see some families, said Mr. Obama.

The president said it has been the privilege of my life to serve as the commander in chief of the U.S. military, and reminded the troops how appreciated they are.

Yesterday I called, as I do every Christmas, some of our folks that are stationed overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan, and some in some very remote spots, he said. Some of them who as we speak are carrying out missions to defeat ISIL, carrying out missions to protect us from all manner of threat, and just to remind them that as tough as it is to be deployed, the people here in America, back home, understand that every single day that theyre serving, they are fighting for our freedom, theyre fighting to keep us safe and fighting to maintain our way of life.

Related Video: President Obama Delivers His Final State of the Union Address

Mr. Obama said that although it was his final time addressing them while in the White House, his gratitude for those in service would never end before he and the first lady spent about an hour greeting the troops.

Its impossible for us to fully repay what youve done and the sacrifices that youve made, but at least its important to hear from us that what you do matters, he said. And although this will be my last time addressing you as president, I want you to know that as a citizen my gratitude will remain and our commitment to standing by you every step of the way  that wont stop.




Fake news isnt just something your out-of-touch uncle gets riled up over; Pakistans defense minister apparently cant tell the difference between false narratives and reality either. Khawaja Muhammad Asif took to Twitter to respond to what he thought was a legitimate news article about Israels defense minister threatening Pakistan with a nuclear attack. Assuming the worst, Asif then threatened Israel with nuclear retaliation.

The New York Times identified the fake news story and sourced it to a poorly-written article on a website that deals in entirely false facts. Other headlines on the site in question include fake quotes from Vladimir Putin threatening the illuminati, and other similar nonsense.

Hundreds of Twitter users replied to Asifs tweet, and many of them are attempting to explain to the minister that the story and the quote he is reacting to is in fact completely false. However, as of the time of this writing, Asifs nuclear threat has yet to be deleted.

A Twitter account claiming to be the official social media presence of the Israeli Defense Ministry issued a statement to dispel the rumor that the quote had ever been said.

No matter what your stance on how fake news articles may have affected the 2016 presidential election, its fair to say that false stories that cause nuclear-capable nations to openly threaten each other because they can no longer tell what is real is a pretty serious situation. Combined with conspiracy theories that prompt gunmen to investigate ridiculous claims from online forums, its clear that something needs to be done to curb the lies before a person is shot or a nation is nuked.

Trending right now:

See the original version of this article on BGR.com
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's state oil firm Pemex urged motorists in the central state of San Luis Potosi against "panic buys" on Sunday, after the state suffered fuel shortages due to rampant thefts.

"Pemex earnestly asks the population of San Luis Potosi to avoid making panic buys of fuel," the company said on Twitter, adding there was a sufficient supply.

On Saturday the company said inclement weather in the port city of Tuxpan and various thefts on the highway between the cities of Salamanca and Leon in the state of Guanajuato had reduced its inventory.

Fuel thefts through illegal taps in the company's sprawling network of pipelines have been an ongoing problem at Pemex, which reported more than 5,000 robberies of fuel in 2015.

(Reporting by Natalie Schachar; Editing by Sandra Maler)
By Ian Simpson

(Reuters) - A Drexel University professor, whose tweet that he wanted a "white genocide" for Christmas sparked a fire storm of criticism from the school and social media users, said on Monday his comment was satirical.

George Ciccariello-Maher, a white assistant professor of history and politics at the Philadelphia university, posted "All I Want for Christmas is White Genocide" on Twitter on Christmas Eve, according to media reports.

He followed up on Sunday by tweeting, "To clarify: when the whites were massacred during the Haitian revolution, that was a good thing indeed."

Condemnation lit up Twitter after the comments from Ciccariello-Maher, an expert on Latin American social movements, were picked up by such conservative news sites as Breitbart News and The Daily Caller.

"What rock did this cretin crawl out from under?" Sean O'Reilly tweeted. Twitter user Camz wrote, "You want a white genocide, why not be the one who starts it and see where you end up. You coward."

Drexel University, a private school with about 26,000 students, said in a statement on Sunday that it had contacted Ciccariello-Maher to schedule a meeting about the tweets.

Drexel said that although it recognized the right of faculty members to express their views, the comments were "utterly reprehensible, deeply disturbing, and do not in any way reflect the values of the University."

Ciccariello-Maher said in an email on Monday that the tweets were only aimed at poking fun at white supremacists and that he and Drexel had become targets of a smear campaign.

He said that the concept of "white genocide" was used by white nationalists to denounce everything from interracial relationships to policies aimed at promoting multiple cultures.

"It is a figment of the racist imagination, it should be mocked, and I'm glad to have mocked it," Ciccariello-Maher wrote. Access to his Twitter account had been restricted on Monday.

Story continues

He has drawn online support, with a Change.org petition backing him generating almost 3,000 signatures by Monday.

"Let Drexel know - in the midst of the deafening, organized troll-storm - that racist trolls deserve no platform in dictating academic discourse, let alone the off-duty tweets of academics," the petition said.

(Reporting by Ian Simpson in Washington; Editing by Dan Grebler)
The largest police union in the United States has asked Amazon to stop selling T-shirts with the words Bulletproof: Black Lives Matter emblazoned on them, the Guardian reported Friday. The national Fraternal Order of Police President Chuck Canterbury penned an open letter to Amazons chief executive Jeff Bezos urging the online retail giant to remove the shirt from its website, claiming its message insinuated violence against law enforcement officers.

Canterbury told the Guardian that Amazon was a pretty liberal marketer and hoped that eradicating the shirt would result in increasing the bonds of trust between the men and women of law enforcement and the communities they serve.

The police union had sent a similar note to officials at Walmart Tuesday, which had been selling shirts and hooded sweatshirts with the same message written on them. Canterbury said the moves from his department were necessary due to the amount of violence demonstrated at Black Lives Matter marches and the fact that eight police officers had been assassinated while protecting Black Lives Matter protests.

Canterbury was referring to two incidents this summer in which mulitiple police officers were shot in Dallas, Texas, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Sgt. Demetrick Pennie, 38, of the Dallas Police Force who is also the president of the Dallas Fallen Officer Foundation, has sued Black Lives Matter over the Dallas incident. In a phone interview with the International Business Times, he called Black Lives Matter a domestic hate group.

The pro-Black Lives Matter shirt was still available for purchase on Amazon as of Monday morning. But Walmart announced Tuesday it would stop selling the T-shits and hooded sweatshirts in its stores nationwide.

An article published last week by the conservative Breitbart news website condemned Walmart for selling the pro Black Lives Matter merchandise after it had stopped selling products that displayed images of the Confederate flag in June 2015.

Story continues

Roughly 40 percent of people across the United States said they supported the Black Lives Matter movement, while about 30 percent of those who were familiar with the group said they didnt know its ultimate objectives, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted between Feb. 29 and May 8.

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While Samajwadi party claims there is no tussle within the family, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has undermined his uncle and the party's UP Chief Shivpal Yadav yet again.

By Kumar Abhishek: The rift within Uttar Pradesh's Samajwadi clan refuses to die down with Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav undermining uncle Shivpal yet again.

Soon after party boss Mulayam Yadav said that SP is not going to enter into an alliance ahead of the upcoming Assembly polls in the state, Akhilesh submitted a list of candidates for 403 Assembly seats to him. The list doesn't include name of several leaders considered close to Shivpal.

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HERE'S THE LATEST DEVELOPMENT:

Mulayam Yadav says his party will go solo in the Assembly elections in the state due in less than four months. Following this, Akhilesh Yadav handed his father a list of candidates for all 403 Assembly seats. Interestingly, Akhilesh's list does not include names of leaders like Amanmani Tripathi, Ansari brothers (Mukhtar, Sibaktullah and Afzal) and Ateek Ahmed who have criminal records. Also, nearly 40 sitting ministers and MLAs are not included Akhilesh's list. Almost all the leaders are considered closee to Akhilesh's uncle Shivpal. A furious Shivpal took to Twitter saying no 'indiscipline' will be tolerated in the the party. "Distribution of tickets will be done on the basis of past win record. So far, 175 candidates have been given party ticket," Shivpal, Samajwadi Party's state president, said. During the past months, the Samajwadi Party witnessed massive showdown between Akhilesh and Shivpal forcing Mulayam to play the role of a referee on a number of occasions. Akhilesh had also stripped Shivpal of key portfolios in October. Akhilesh also removed Amar Singhs close aide and film actor Jaya Prada from the position of vice-chairperson of the UP film development corporation. The UP CM had openly held Amar Singh responsible for the feud in the family.

SP, CONGRESS WORKING ON ALLIANCE?

While Mulayam has rubbished reports of an alliance, sources say Samajwadi Party and Congress have been negotiating behind the scenes for almost a fortnight and are close to completing a seat sharing arrangement.

ALSO READ: Can Mulayam manage to keep Akhilesh, Shivpal united till poll ticket distribution?

Sources say senior Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad and Raj Babbar have held several rounds of meetings with SP supremo Mulayam Singh. The alliance, many say, will have a significant impact on the battle for Uttar Pradesh.

Sources say, top leaders of both parties have had to overcome misgivings and give up their inhibitions in order to make the alliance happen. It is common knowledge that SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav has viewed the Congress with suspicion and has been reluctant to tie up with it out of fear of reviving the grand old party in the state.

ALSO READ:

Samajwadi Party crisis: All is well, Akhilesh remains CM, says Mulayam

Pari-war impact on Uttar Pradesh elections: A split will hit Akhilesh, Samajwadi Party

WATCH: Akhilesh Yadav to India Today: Not worrying about things out of my control

--- ENDS ---
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis paid tribute on Monday to Middle East Christians who have clung to their faith during persecution by Islamist militants, saying there are more Christians martyrs now than in the Church's early days. The pope spoke to thousands of people in St. Peter's Square for his holiday blessing on the feast of St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr. He mentioned the persecution of Christians in Iraq, many of whom where able to spend their first Christmas since 2013 in churches after towns and cities were retaken from Islamic State. "This was an example of fidelity to the Gospel," he said. "Despite trials and dangers, they courageously show that they belong to Christ," he said. "Today, we want to think of them and be close to them with our affection, our prayers and even our tears," the pope said. Christians in northern regions of Iraq held by Islamic State were given an ultimatum: pay a tax, convert to Islam, or die by the sword. Most of them fled to the autonomous Kurdish region to the east. Leaders of various churches, including the Coptic Church in Egypt, whose members have been beheaded and churches bombed, have called the fact that Christians of all denominations were being killed in the Middle East an "ecumenism (unity) of blood." "There are more Christian martyrs today than in the first centuries," said the pope, who has often denounced Islamic State and condemned the concept of killing in God's name. (Reporting by Philip Pullella; editing by David Clarke)
By Jake Spring

NINGDE, China (Reuters) - A dusty village on the outskirts of Ningde, a third-tier city in China's southeast, seems an unlikely place for the headquarters of a potential global leader in future automotive technology.

Yet China's top-down industrial policy diktats - move up the value chain, clean up polluted urban skies, and shift to plug-in cars - have Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd (CATL) poised to go from hometown hero to national champion, and beyond.

China's answer to Japan's Panasonic Corp and South Korea's LG Chem Ltd has tripled its production capacity for lithium-ion car batteries in the past year to keep up with a surge in China's sales of electric cars.

After a second major funding round completed in October, the company's value quadrupled to 80 billion yuan ($11.5 billion), CEO Huang Shilin said last week.

CATL, which hopes to list on Beijing's over-the-counter exchange as part of plans to raise at least another 30 billion yuan by 2020, could be a dominant force globally.

It has already overtaken LG Chem in lithium-ion car battery output, and is chasing down Panasonic and Warren Buffett-backed BYD Co Ltd.

CATL plans to grow its battery capacity sixfold by 2020 to 50 gigawatt hours, which could put it ahead of Tesla Motor Inc's gigafactory in Nevada.

"We continue to walk where the country guides us," Huang said. "We hope by 2020 we can achieve performance and price that lead the world."

The company, founded just five years ago, is already pushing beyond China's borders, with offices in Sweden, Germany and France and plans to build a factory in Europe. Company representatives say that because of non-disclosure agreements they can only list BMW as a customer for now.

Despite the ambitious expansion, the emerging segment's dependence on government policy and rapidly evolving technology is not without risk.

A123, a U.S. automotive battery maker, went from IPO to bust in just three years as battery costs remained stubbornly high and orders dried up.

Story continues

"People think we're a big successful company, but we think we're in jeopardy every day," marketing director Neill Yang said. "The market environment and technology changes so fast that if we don't follow the trend we could die in three months."

BUILDING A CHAMPION

To become a Chinese champion, a battery maker must first shed any foreign investment to be eligible for subsidies and other policy support, people in the industry say.

Before he set up CATL, Robin Zeng had started Amperex Technology Ltd (ATL), a company now majority-owned by Japan's TDK.

ATL initially had a 15 percent stake in CATL, but liquidated that holding last year, Yang said, when electric vehicle sales first started to take off. He declined to elaborate on the circumstances of that divestment.

TDK separated from CATL to focus on batteries for mobile consumer electronics, but still collects royalties on some intellectual property used by CATL, a spokesman for the Japanese company said.

"The reason is strategic and confidential. ATL still keeps a close relationship with CATL," said a person familiar with the situation, who was not authorized to speak to the media.

ATL and CATL still share a Ningde campus, although the front gate and main office bear only the ATL name.

Zeng, a Ningde local with a doctorate in chemistry, appears to be the remaining link between the two companies he founded. He declined an interview request.

POLICY SUPPORT

While government support for electric cars has driven demand for components such as batteries, Beijing is also rolling out other policies that could benefit leading producers like CATL, by forcing smaller firms to consolidate or go out of business.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MITI) said last month it is considering a rule that would increase minimum production requirements for battery makers by around 40 times to 8 gigawatt hours.

Only BYD and CATL are roughly in line with that minimum, though Chinese media reports suggest Hefei Guoxuan High-Tech Power Energy Co Ltd and Tianjin Lishen Battery Joint-Stock Co Ltd may be close to or above that level by next year.

Yang said subsidy support for batteries is fairly modest compared to those for producing electric vehicles, which totaled $4.5 billion last year alone.

CATL has been nominated as one of three battery makers - with Guoxuan and Lishen - for incentives under China's 13th Five-Year Plan, promising around $15 million if it can meet targets, Yang said. He noted, though, that a single production line costs $40 million.

Among national 2020 targets: to halve battery costs to below 1 yuan ($0.144) per kilowatt hour, and improve energy density by two-thirds.

To get there, CATL is ramping up spending on research and development, where it employs more than 1,000 people with advanced science degrees.

"The strength of their R&D investment is quite large," said Fu Yuwu, chief of the Society of Automotive Engineers of China, adding he hopes the company can become a global leader.

"They have such large scale and the support of China's huge market, all the more reason they should do a good job of internationalizing," he said.

(Reporting by Jake Spring, with additional reporting by Sijia Jiang in HONG KONG, Norihiko Shirouzu in BEIJING and Adam Jourdan in SHANGHAI; Editing by Ian Geoghegan)
- By Sangara Narayanan





This year turned out to be the year when Procter & Gamble (PG) turned things around. The world's largest consumer goods company went through a painful transition period which saw the company sell off many of its brand and tighten its portfolio of products. P&G understood that it had to shrink itself into a more efficient and lithe entity if it wanted to find a path to grow under the current market conditions, and it was in 2016 that all of those efforts started paying off for the company.





Net sales had been declining since 2013, reaching $65.299 billion in 2016, but margins significantly improved from 11.7% in 2015 to 15.4% in 2016, thanks to the company's decision to whittle their portfolio to 65 brands in 10 business segments. This is down from more than 200 brands the company had at one point. P&G divested its battery business, sold several beauty brands to Coty Inc. and also got rid of its Pet Care business. The sharp trimming of brands was aimed at holding onto business lines that P&G thought had better growth prospects and provided better returns to the bottom line.

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But the transition phase cannot go on forever. The company has divested whatever it can and has shaved off billions of dollars worth of sales in exchange for higher margins. The market has responded favorably to those moves, boosting the stock by nearly 10% in the last 12 months. With the transition now complete, P&G will have to return to growth for the stock rally to continue.

"We're maintaining our organic sales and core earnings per share outlook for this fiscal year. The first quarter was a good start, but comps get more difficult and we continue to face a relatively slow growth volatile world. We're expecting organic sales growth of around 2% for the year. This includes between 0.5 point and a point of headwind from the portfolio rationalization and strengthening work within the ongoing 10 product categories," said Jon R. Moeller, CFO of Procter & Gamble, during the Q1 2017 earnings call.

Story continues

During the first quarter of the current fiscal, P&G reported sales of $16.518 billion compared to $16.527 billion in the prior period - nearly flat growth. Organic sales grew by 3% during the quarter, thanks to 3% organic sales growth in the U.S., 2% in China and 2% in Russia. The U.K. was the only one of 10 markets where organic sales declined. Overall, this is great news for the company and a huge validation of their efforts at strategic amputations.

DAy5XtxiqQx3HNGGV3zlKwAtlYg7L0ZtX6zqMmlg

P&G now expects organic sales growth of 2% for the full year, with a net sales growth expectation of 1%. The next two quarterly results, especially the direction that organic sales takes in major markets around the world, will give us the clear signal that the transformation is over, and we can expect P&G to start its slow and steady progress towards top line growth.

7gKC5Xf0wCEG7XcAh1h5WLUFG2YDbpZiS37CLoxD

Disclosure: I have no positions in the stock mentioned above and no intention to initiate a position in the next 72 hours.

Start a free seven-day trial of Premium Membership to GuruFocus.

This article first appeared on GuruFocus.






Donald Trumps campaign promise to repeal and replace Obamacare helped him garner the support of Republicans in Washington, D.C., who have repeatedly vowed to shut down President Barack Obamas major health care overhaul ever since it passed in 2010 without a single Republican vote. How they plan on doing so now that Trump has been elected the next president of the United States, however, remains unclear.

Republicans face unprecedented challenges in fulfilling the goal of dismantling Obamacare. For starters, only 26 percent of Americans support fully repealing the legislation, which has insured 22 million more Americans across the country and includes a series of widely-popular components, including health care coverage on family plans for children 26-years-old and under and disallowing health care providers from rejecting patients with pre-existing conditions.

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Photo: Reuters

Moreover, a report published Monday by the Associated Press detailed the several factions of Republicans who are in sharp disagreement over their plans for the fate of Obamas key program. While some of the most conservative elected officials wish to "pull Obamacare up by the roots as if it never existed," according to GOP consultant Frank Luntz, a number of Republicans are hoping to simply revise some of the legislations mandates. Those include the requirement that all Americans must carry healthcare insurance or be subjected to a fine each year.

Trump seemed to soften his harsh rhetoric against Obamacare after being elected Nov. 8, and meeting with Obama for a White House visit two days later. Trump has since stated hed keep some parts of the bill, citing Obamas urges to reconsider repealing it entirely.

Story continues

"Either Obamacare will be amended, or repealed and replaced," Trump said in a post-election interview with Wall Street Journal. "I told [Obama] I will look at his suggestions, and out of respect I will do that."

RTS96X3

Photo: Reuters

Kevin Brady, House Ways and Means chairman, said major changes are on the way for Obamacare, though it may take time for the Republican effort to take effect.

"Its like tax reform," he told the Associated Press. "Unlike Obamacare, which ripped up the individual market, this will be done deliberately, in an appropriate timetable."

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Photo credit: Getty

From Cosmopolitan

This morning, Prince George and Princess Charlotte attended their first-ever Christmas church service, the Telegraph reports. They went to St. Mark's Church in Englefield, Berkshire, with their parents and the rest of the Middleton family. Also, they are perfect.



The entire family was dressed in a burgundy and gray color scheme, as evidenced by Charlottes little tights and Georges little socks. (For those wondering, Kate is in a Hobbs fur-trimmed coat, WWD reports - one she first wore in 2013).

The babies looked less thrilled about church than they do the candy canes theyre eating on their way out, but alas. We can only ask so much of these bbs.

In more serious news, Queen Elizabeth skipped this particular service for the first time due to a heavy cold, according to CNN, though shes expected to participate in the rest of the royal Christmas festivities once the family returns from church.

Photos of the gorgeous family (if you can even) below:

Photo credit: Getty

Photo credit: Getty

Photo credit: Getty

Photo credit: Getty

Photo credit: Getty

Follow Tess on Twitter.

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Photo credit: WPA Poolundefined

From ELLE

Prince George and Princess Charlotte attended their very first Christmas church service at St Mark's Church in Englefield, Berkshire, the Telegraph is reporting. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge broke with tradition, joining Kate Middleton's parents for the holiday instead of joining the rest of the royal family at Sandringham.

Photo credit: undefined

Everyone dressed to to the nines for the occasion. According to WWD, Kate Middleton wore a belted and fur-trimmed burgundy coat by Hobbes, and little Princess Charlotte coordinated with her mom in red tights and a red barrette.

Photo credit: WPA Poolundefined

Prince George wore the most adorable princely coat and knee socks.

Photo credit: undefined

But he seemed way more interested in this candy cane.

Photo credit: undefined

Same.

Photo credit: WPA Poolundefined

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Kate Middleton and Prince William skipped the royal family's annual church service at Sandringham on Sunday to visit the Duchess of Cambridge's parents in Berkshire. This is the royal couple's first Christmas away from Sandringham since Prince George, 3, and Princess Charlotte, 19 months, were born.

Sunday morning, Kate was photographed along with her husband and two children at a local church in Englefield. Prince William held Prince Georges hand as Kate carried Princess Charlotte in the church. Photos showed the two kids holding a candy cane while their parents spoke to the local priest.

Kate looked stunning in a long brown coat with fur lining for the service at St. Marks Church while Charlotte sported maroon tights and a blue coat, with her hair clipped away from her face. Prince William opted for a long, navy jacket with a red tie while Prince George was pictured in a long gray jacket and knee-high blue socks.

Kate's parents and brother, James, as well as her sister, Pippa Middleton, along with her fiance James Matthews, were also present for the morning services. Pippa and Matthews are reportedly getting married in the same church in Englefield, Berkshire, in May 2017.

Since the royal couple got married in 2011, this is the second time they visited the Middletons on Christmas. The last time was when Kate was pregnant with George and suffered acute morning sickness.

Meanwhile, this Christmas was the first time when Queen Elizabeth II missed the Christmas church service. The queen, who was suffering from a bad cold, used her annual pre-recorded Christmas Day message to praise British Olympic and Paralympic athletes and others who inspired her during her annual speech.

"To be inspirational, you don't have to save lives or win medals. I often draw strength from meeting ordinary people doing extraordinary things  volunteers, carers, community organizers and good neighbors. Unsung heroes whose quiet dedication makes them special," she said.

Story continues

Below are photos shared on social media of the royal family's Christmas celebrations:

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Moscow (AFP) - Russia's shock over the military plane crash that killed 92 people became all the more acute when Yelizaveta Glinka, a renowned doctor and charity worker, was on the doomed flight's passenger list.

The diminutive 54-year-old woman, affectionately known as "Dr. Liza", had boarded the same military flight to Syria as more than 60 members of the famed Red Army Choir, who were on their way to entertain troops stationed at the Hmeimim base Moscow uses to launch airstrikes in the war-scarred country.

But Glinka's objective was neither musical nor military. She was on a mission to deliver medication to a university hospital in the Syrian coastal city of Latakia.

Since Sunday's crash Muscovites have been laying flowers and candles in front of the headquarters of Fair Aid, the charity she founded in 2007 to care for the homeless, terminally-ill patients and abandoned pensioners in Russia which often offers little support to vulnerable social groups.

"She didn't live her life in vain because she did a lot of good," said 48-year-old Anna, weeping as she laid flowers on the organisation's doorstep in central Moscow.

Glinka's death sparked a national outpouring of grief that spanned the political spectrum, with the defence ministry, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and the opposition-friendly mayor of the Urals city of Yekaterinburg pledging to rename a medical facility in her honour.

But unlike the Red Army Choir, Glinka was not known internationally, humbly building her reputation as a selfless worker by assisting Russia's underprivileged.

- 'Heaven-sent virtue' -

After graduating from medical school in Moscow in 1986, Glinka and her husband Gleb emigrated to the United States where she studied palliative care.

She later returned to Russia and also lived for some time in neighbouring Ukraine, where she founded a hospice affiliated with a Kiev oncology clinic.

In Moscow she is mostly remembered for feeding, clothing and providing medical care to the homeless people who sleep in the Russian capital's sprawling train stations.

Story continues

"Liza Glinka helped the people that everyone turned away," human rights activist and opposition journalist Zoya Svetova, who knew Glinka, told AFP.

"Few organisations are ready to help the homeless at train stations."

When fighting between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian separatists erupted in eastern Ukraine in 2014, Glinka -- who was also a member of the Kremlin's human rights council -- travelled to the war zone to provide emergency care to children injured as a result of the conflict.

She told Russian media in July that she had evacuated 446 children from the area since the start of the fighting and taken them to Russia to undergo medical treatment.

Glinka had travelled to Syria earlier this year where she visited a local hospital and saw it was severely lacking in medicine.

"To save the lives of others, that was her mission everywhere: in Russia, in Donbass (eastern Ukraine), Syria," the head of the Kremlin human rights council, Mikhail Fedotov, said in a statement Sunday, calling Glinka "a miracle, a heaven-sent message of virtue."

- 'Stronger than any weapon' -

But some have criticised the doctor, even after her death, for working around conflicts many say have been exacerbated by President Vladimir Putin's policies.

"This shows us that our society is split between those who support Putin and those who don't," Svetova said. "There is no middle ground, and that's dangerous."

The journalist added that Glinka, who had received a humanitarian award from Putin this year, cooperated with the Kremlin because "without it, she wouldn't have been able to do anything."

"We are never sure that we will return alive," Glinka said upon receiving the award, referring to her travels in conflict zones.

"But we are sure that good, compassion and mercy are stronger than any weapon."
Russia's defense ministry announced Monday that human and technical error were among the prevailing theories of what caused a Syria-bound Russian military plane to crash, resulting in the likely deaths of all 92 people on board, as bodies and debris were recovered in the Black Sea, Russian media reported.

The Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft was carrying Sunday eight crewmembers and 84 passengers, including a number of journalists and musicians preparing for Christmas and New Years celebrations for Russian troops stationed in the Syrian governorate of Latakia, when it redirected its flight path from Mozdok in North Ossetia to Sochi for refueling. Soon after departing the Russian coastal city, aviation authorities lost contact with the flight.

A massive search and rescue operation was launched immediately, however, Russian authorities mentioned early on that finding any survivors would be unlikely. Divers and submersibles were so far able to recover at least four pieces of debris, 11 bodies and 86 body fragments. The 3,500-personnel effort would be expanded in hopes of locating more bodies and crucial equipment such as the aircraft's black box, according to the defense ministry.

RTX2WH0B

Photo: Reuters

While authorities said all possibilities were being taken into account, Russia's security service stated that no signs of foul play were identified and that the likelihood of terrorism was "nowhere near the top of the list." The four main potential causes for the crash being considered were a foreign object entering the engine, poor quality fuel causing engine failure, human error on the part of the pilot or a yet unknown technical issue.

A Russian flight departing from Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, last year was brought down by an explosive. The attack killed all 224 people, mostly Russian tourists, on board and was claimed by the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS, which opposes Russian intervention in Syria's war. The last notable crash involving the Soviet-era Tu-154 killed Polish President Lech Kaczynski and a number of his country's political elite in 2010.

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The victims of Sunday's crash included 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, the official choir of the Russian army, nine journalists, servicemembers and a prominent activist named Elizaveta Glinka who sat on President Vladimir Putin's advisory human rights council.

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(Refiles to fix time references in paragraphs 1, 6)

* Off-duty policeman, 22, gunned down Russian ambassador

* Home town is on Turkey's Aegean coast

* Remembered as quiet, lonely youth

* Some worry about spillover from Syria crisis

By Tuvan Gumrukcu

SOKE, Turkey, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Those in the small Turkish town of Soke who knew Mevlut Altintas, the smartly dressed, clean-shaven young man who shot dead Russia's ambassador last week, recall a lonely taciturn boy twice rejected by university before leaving home and joining the police.

Altintas was 22 when he shot Andrei Karlov in the back at an Ankara art gallery before being himself gunned down by police. Few in Soke would have recognised the figure in black suit and tie who stood over the diplomat's body screaming jihadi slogans.

For his family, as for Karlov's, it was a tragedy.

"I have always admired their son," said a next-door neighbour, who spoke to Reuters from behind her closed door and from time to time broke down in tears. "He was respectful and calm, a very nice young man.

"When the police arrived at the door, we assumed he had been killed on duty and they were here to tell the family of his martyrdom. The mother was devastated when she heard," the neighbour said.

The Dec. 20 killing, for many, illustrated the turmoil in a country that has been transformed under Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey has to contend with conflicts across the border in Syria and Iraq, and Kurdish insurrection and attacks by Islamic State at home.

The police force Altintas served, as a member of the riot squad, is also in some tumult, its command and rank-and-file purged of what Erdogan calls traitors and terrorists after a failed coup against him in July. The Turkish police has long had secret networks and allegiances in its ranks, both Islamist and nationalist.

Although constitutionally secular, the Turkish state has long relied on the "twin pillars" of Sunni Islam and nationalism, said Halil Karaveli, managing editor of The Turkey Analyst, a policy journal.

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"The religious element was always very important in the recruitment and the formation of the cadres of the Turkish state, especially in the security services - not in the army - but in the police."

EXILED CLERIC

Erdogan said the assassin was a follower of exiled Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, a former ally, who had built a wide network in the police. Gulen denies this.

Soke is in one of the most secular regions of Turkey, in the south-west. But Celtikci, the Soke neighbourhood where the Altintas family live, is filled with run-down buildings, where the paint is peeling and the walls are scarred by graffiti, often nationalist or religious.

"Islam is the only way," reads one, "God should be bestowed upon Turks," says another.

Altintas' family lives on the fourth floor and laundry could still be seen hanging out on the balcony, two days after police detained them for questioning. Media said they were later released.

His father, Israfil Altintas, said he had spoken to his son by phone on the day of the attack. The young man's behaviour started changing after he became friends at police academy with a man identified as Sercan B.

"As far as I know, he was not a member of any terrorist organisation, religious network or group," Israfil Altintas told police, according to Turkish broadcaster Haberturk.

"However, he started becoming focused on his prayers, more introverted and silent after he became a policeman."

Israfil said his son had ignored his suggestion that he should remain in Izmir and had gone with Sercan to Ankara, where they lived in the same house.

His mother, Hamidiye Altintas, said she had also called her son on the day of the attack.

"He asked, 'What are you doing, Mom?', and I told him I was on a visit and would call him when I was available. He then hung up, saying 'Alright Mom, be in God's care, give me your blessing'.

"My son was an introverted and silent boy," she said.

Former acquaintances of Altintas recall a distant figure who spent much of his time with his step-sister and grandmother. No-one seemed to know of any open allegiance to Gulen in young adulthood.

"He was always in need of help," said Bahri Gokciyel, who was from the same neighbourhood and now works at a teahouse in Soke, a lower middle-class town of 117,000 overshadowed by the upscale resorts that dot the Aegean coast.

"He was a silent kid who had no friends all through school," he said, adding that Altintas twice failed to get a place at university.

Whatever his academic shortcomings, Altintas planned the killing meticulously, scouting out the gallery in advance, calling in sick on the day of the attack and using his police ID to bypass security checks and get into the venue with a gun.

While the slogans Altintas shouted suggest he was sympathetic to radical Islamist ideology, Gulen preaches interfaith dialogue. Whatever the motive, the killing capped a violent year for Turkey that includes a string of deadly bombings blamed on both Kurdish militants and Islamic State.

Since the attempted coup, authorities have dismissed or suspended more than 100,000 people suspected of links to the cleric, and fired 40,000.

NEIGHBOURS

Although Altintas lived in Ankara, he came home from time to time and was seen by neighbours.

"Mert stayed with his grandmother a lot, and we used to see him on the street when we played games," said 22-year-old Tolga Tosun, who grew up with Altintas, and now is involved in local politics for the main secular opposition party, the CHP, the dominant party in Soke.

"He never joined, and he never spoke to anyone. He was always alone and silent," Tosun added.

National feeling also runs strong in Soke, with the nationalist opposition also boasting a solid presence.

Tosun said Altintas' family were affiliated with the nationalist party and relatively pious. However, other neighbours could not confirm that and the local head of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) said the family were not members.

SPILLOVER

Altintas' actions have also raised questions about the potential spillover from the Syrian crisis to Turkey.

Some pious Turks, who for years have listened to Erdogan talk about the need to save Syria from President Bashar al-Assad, are now puzzled by his closer ties with Russia, Assad's main backer.

"Since 2011, the high-pitched government rhetoric on Syria has shaped a Turkish constituency that is very sensitive to the tragedies unfolding in Syria," said Sinan Ulgen, a former Turkish diplomat and analyst at Carnegie Europe.

"That constituency is becoming very uncertain and almost disillusioned."

But in Soke, some of the locals see the dark hand of Gulen, which the government refers to as the "Gulenist Terror Organisation".

Gokciyel, the former neighbour, said he believed that Altintas used Gulenist connections to enter the police academy. The government has long said Gulen's followers have used their affiliated schools to infiltrate the civil service and police.

Whatever happens next, the people of Soke, like many Turks, feel things have been irreparably changed by the assassination.

"Killing an ambassador is shameful. Not just for the killer, but also for our country," said Yurdakos Elgun, an official at the local office of the CHP, the secular opposition.

"Our ancestors have always said that no cruelty can be done to guests." (Additional reporting by Gulsen Solaker in Ankara; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Giles Elgood)
In her complaint, she claimed that the five gained entry to her room on pretext of talking to her about travel details.

By Tanseem Haider: The Delhi Police today arrested four accused in the alleged gangrape case of US national.

Aniruddha Singh, a Rajasthan-based tourist guide, Omprakash, Maqsood and Vivek - all in their late 20s were arrested from different cities during raids conducted by Delhi Police on separate occasions.

"On the complaint of a Delhi-based NGO, we contacted the victim and filed a case on the basis of her statement. During our inquiry, we conducted several raids in Delhi and other cities and arrested four persons," Joint Commissioner of Police Dependra Pathak said.

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In her complaint, she claimed that the five gained entry to her room on pretext of talking to her about travel details.

She said she felt drowsy after drinking water they offered her, adding that the tour guide, attendant, guide's cousin and two others sexually assaulted her for two days.

The 30-year-old American woman who was allegedly gangraped in a Delhi hotel earlier this year, told India Today that she was not happy the way Delhi Police was handling the case.

In an exclusive interview to India Today, she said, "I feel there should be a stronger law for protecting tourists from rape in India."

Watch the video here:

--- ENDS ---
ALTOMUENSTER, Germany (AP)  It was filthy, cramped and in major disarray, but when art historian Eva Lindqvist Sandgren entered the library in Altomuenster Abbey, off-limits to all but the German monastery's nuns for more than five centuries, she immediately knew she was looking at a major treasure.

The dusty shelves held at least 500 books, by her estimate, including precious illuminated manuscripts from the 16th century, chants used by the uniquely women-led Bridgettine Order and processionals bursting with colorful religious and ornamental decoration in their margins.

Unlike most Bridgettine libraries, the tomes had survived the Protestant Reformation, the 30 Years War and Germany's "secularization," when the state took most church property. It represents the most complete collection of the order known today.

"I had entered a time capsule," said Lindqvist Sandgren, a senior lecturer at Sweden's Uppsala University.

Surprised by the spontaneous decision by Altomuenster's last remaining nun, Sister Apollonia Buchinger, to open the library, 20 scholars including Sandgren made plans to return and meticulously catalog the remarkable collection. But before they could, the Vatican ordered the abbey in the Bavarian town of 7,500 closed and locked up the library, which also contains some 2,300 statues, paintings and other works of art.

If plans go ahead to close it down, all of the abbey's property  the books, the artworks, the city block-sized abbey and the acres of forests and fields that make up the monastery grounds  would be turned over to the dioceses of Munich and Freising.

Altomuenster is the end of a subway line from Munich, one of Germany's most expensive cities, and its land alone is thought to be worth tens of millions of euros (dollars)  assets that Sister Apollonia thinks the dioceses are eager to get their hands on.

Since 1496, the former Benedictine abbey in Altomuenster has housed a female religious order founded by Saint Bridget in Sweden in the 14th century. It is one of three monasteries of the original branch of the scholarly, monastic order operating today. But with its numbers in decline, Sister Apollonia now lives there alone. The Vatican requires at least three nuns to train novices to become nuns, prompting the decision to shut the abbey down.

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The Franciscan nun the Vatican put in charge of the abbey's closure, Sister Gabriele Konrad, says the library's collection is just being kept safe but she's refused to grant the scholars or anyone else access to the books.

"The value of the library is the ensemble, because it's never been taken apart," said Corine Schlief, an art historian at Arizona State University who visited the library with Sandgren. "If this should be taken apart and divided up between books that collectors would give tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for and those only of interest to scholars, it would lose a lot of its value."

Schlief, Sandgren and other academics have written an open letter to the Vatican, Sister Gabriele and the Munich dioceses urging that the library be kept together and made available to the public and offering to catalog it.

Sister Gabriele and the Munich dioceses insist there is no plan to sell the books, and that their experts are perfectly qualified to handle them. Munich-Freising Vicar General Msgr. Peter Beer dismissed speculation of any land-and-treasures grab by the dioceses.

"There's a false impression that we're taking in riches and gems and gold and everything imaginable  that's nonsense," he told the AP at his office in Munich. "We are taking on costs more than anything."

His office also downplayed the library's potential value or historical significance, telling the AP it includes "a large number of antiphonaries from the 18th century, most in very used and some in damaged condition," and that six antiphonaries  books containing religious chants  from the Middle Ages have "already been studied by scholars."

That's made the group of scholars who wrote the open letter and others even more suspicious. From the hundreds of photographs they took, they know there's much more  including an illuminated manuscript from the 1500s in Belgium, which might be expected to fetch 100,000 euros ($105,000) or more if sold to a private collector, said Schier.

Volker Schier, another expert from Arizona State University, noted that even financially insignificant books are historically important. Ledgers, cookbooks and even antiphonaries help tell how the nuns lived over the centuries.

"Altomuenster is the holy grail," he said.

Beer bristled at the offer of help from the group of scholars.

"You can be assured that we do not need any help from the U.S.A. to understand how to treat cultural assets of significance for Europe. We have a slightly longer history and slightly longer experience," Beer said.

The dioceses plan to digitize all books dating from before 1803 and make them available online for researchers  but Schlief says that's not enough.

"Digitization is laudable, but it never replaces the books themselves, which now need to be carefully studied and catalogued," she said.

For her part, Sister Apollonia said if the Vatican decides to give her more time in the monastery, she'd be more than happy to open the library to the scholars again.

"They need to be made available to the public," Sister Apollonia said. "Maybe we could charge a fee and it could be a source of income."

___

Follow David Rising on Twitter at https://twitter.com/davidrising
Even TV actors need some vacation. The cast of CBS show Criminal Minds celebrated Christmas and enjoyed their holidays in a variety of ways. Some headed to Mexico, others danced with their family and another took their precious fur ball for a walk.

Shemar Moore, who played Derek Morgan in Criminal Minds until last season, uploaded a photo of his glittering Christmas tree surrounded by gifts. He wished fans a merry Christmas and happy holidays. Then he uploaded three videos in which he and his family, including his groovy mom, are dancing to various songs. Shemars family definitely has some swagger.

While Moore hit the dance floor with his family, Thomas Gibson, who played Hotch and was unexpectedly fired from Criminal Minds in Season 12, chose to spend the Christmas weekend spending time with his dog Hazel. He took his adorable pup for a walk at the beach. He also shared a photo of his unshaven face enjoying his carefree walk.

Earlier this month, Gibson shared pictures of his daughter performing the Nutcracker musical.

New Criminal Minds Season 12 cast Adam Rodriguez chose to spend his days off by traveling to Ensenada in Mexico. He enjoyed a sumptuous lunch at El Jefe. Later, much like Gibson, Rodriguez chose to take a walk on the beach and relished the experience. The actor plays Luke Alvez on the CBS series.

Meanwhile, Matthew Gray Gubler, who plays Dr. Spencer Reid, shared a throwback picture of him celebrating Christmas with his family.

Criminal Minds Season 12 returns on Wednesday, Jan. 4 with episode 9 in which Rossi (David Rossi) receives a call from a serial killer while teaching a profiling course on his birthday. Titled Profiling 202, this serial killer is Rossis arch enemy. Catch the episode at 9 p.m. EST on CBS.

Criminal Minds

Photo: CBS

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Photo credit: Instagram/Twitter

From Seventeen

While at home with their families for the holidays, both Selena Gomez and Jennifer Lawrence visited local children's hospitals on Christmas Eve.

Selena spent time with about 14 kids at Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas, a source told E! News. She hung out in the hospital's play area and decorated cookies.

"She was very sweet and amazing with the kids!" the source said. "There were some tears, so it was pretty emotional for some patients."

One of the patients she visited was Madison Ramsey, who has Post-Transplant Lymphoma Disease and is undergoing chemotherapy. On Instagram, her mom explained that Madison and her sister Shelby have both been Selena fans for years, following her from Barney and Friends to Wizards of Waverly Place to her music career. "Such a great gift of kindness she showed us today!!" she wrote.

"The hospital was so thankful she took time away from her family to visit children who can't be home this Christmas," the source added.

Meanwhile, Jennifer spent time at Norton Children's Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky, where she visited patients.

Reasons to love Jennifer Lawrence: pic.twitter.com/HWjqAt1nKE - lydia  (@districtmeadow) December 24, 2016

Alert: A holiday treat to @NortonChildrens as #Louisville native & movie star Jennifer Lawrence visited made a visit to staff & patients. pic.twitter.com/NYYYYoFzax - Aaron Ellis (@aaronellis01) December 24, 2016

Jennifer has special ties to Norton Children's Hospital. The Courier-Journal reported that she's made surprise Christmas visits there every year since 2013, and this past February, she donated $2 million for the Jennifer Lawrence Foundation Cardiac Intensive Care Unit.

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I'm so proud to call Jennifer Lawrence my idol 



2013 - 2014 - 2015 - 2016 pic.twitter.com/Lt1OTwfBfv - Elli  (@imcrazyforjen) December 24, 2016

Both stars' visits are beautiful reminders that if you're able to spread holiday cheer, there's no better time to do it.

Hannah Orenstein is the assistant features editor at Seventeen.com. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram!

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IRVINE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / December 26, 2016 / Khang & Khang LLP (the "Firm") announces the filing of a class action lawsuit against Rio Tinto plc ("Rio Tinto" or the "Company") (RIO). Investors, who purchased or otherwise acquired shares between March 16, 2012 and November 14, 2016 inclusive (the "Class Period"), are encouraged to contact the Firm prior to the February 10, 2017 lead plaintiff motion deadline.



If you purchased shares of Rio Tinto during the Class Period, please contact Joon M. Khang, Esquire, of Khang & Khang, 18101 Von Karman Avenue, 3rd Floor, Irvine, CA 92612, by telephone: (949) 419-3834, or via e-mail at joon@khanglaw.com.



There has been no class certification in this case. Until certification occurs, you are not represented by an attorney. You may choose to take no action and remain a passive class member.



The Complaint claims that during the Class Period, Rio Tinto issued materially false and misleading statements to investors and/or failed to disclose that: the Company violated anti-corruption laws in the Simandou project; that these violations would subject Rio Tinto to fines and negative comments; and that due to the forgoing, Rio Tinto's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times. When this information was revealed to the public, the value of Rio Tinto fell, causing investors severe harm.



If you wish to learn more about this lawsuit, at no charge, or if you have questions concerning this notice or your rights, please contact Joon M. Khang, a prominent litigator for almost two decades, by telephone: (949) 419-3834, or via e-mail at joon@khanglaw.com.



This press release may constitute Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions.



Contact:

Khang & Khang LLP

Joon M. Khang, Esq.

Telephone: 949-419-3834

Facsimile: 949-225-4474

joon@khanglaw.com





Source: Khang & Khang LLP
MADRID  Spains Gil Parrondo, an Academy Award winning art director for Patton and Nicholas and Alexandra, died on Saturday in Madrid. He was 95. He had no other illness than his age, his nephew, Oscar Parrondo, told Spanish news agency Efe.

Given to one of Spains last links with its cinema of the 1930s, Parrondos two Oscars was the largest recognition for a generation of Spaniards who worked their way up the ranks to key crew positions as Hollywood brought its big budget productions to Spain, making avail of its scenery, highly competitive prices and dictator Francisco Francos opposition to foreign companies repatriation of profits.

Born in Luarca in Spains northern Asturias on June 17, 1921, Parrondos big break came relatively early. He scored his first job on 1939s Los cuatro Robinsones, assisting set decorator Sigfrido Burmann with whom he worked for 10 years, including on films by Spanish studio Cifesa whose patriotic historical epics were remarkable for the ambition, scale and sobriety of their sets, as if these served to emphasise the importance of the stories they framed.

Parrondo worked for the first time as art director in 1951 on Antonio del Amos Dia tras Dia, then headed up set decoration on Orson Welles 1955 Confidential Report, where he marvelled at how Welles achieved large visual effects with very little money. He served a further apprenticeship working in the art direction departments on a string of big-budget U.S. shoots in Spain, from Stanley Kramers 1957 The Pride and the Passion, where he secured the cannon for the shoot, to Samuel Bronstons historical epics shot in studios just outside Madrid over 1961 to 1964, to David Leans 1962 Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago in 1965, where he worked with production designer John Box.

Parrondos two Oscars were won with director Franklin Schaffner. He snagged a further nomination for Travels With my Aunt, directed by George Cukor.

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But Parrondo may have been happiest working as art director/production designer with Richard Lester, a director who adored him, on 1976s Robin and Marian, Cuba (1979) and The Return of the Musketeers (1989). Lester marvelled at Parrondos encyclopedic knowledge of the landscapes of Spain, and his lack of ego.

You need to have production designer who is thinking: What do we want out of this? How can I provide it for the director? And Ive never met anyone better than Gil at doing that and with less fuss, Lester commented in the 2012 documentary, Gil Parrondo, desde mi ventana.

Parrondo brought his cheery courtesy and enthusiasm to over 200 movies. In a near-80-year career, at the time of his death, he was working on 33 Days, Carlos Sauras upcoming movie on Picassos painting go Guernica, starring Antonio Banderas.

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Whats Bill Gates reading now? Were taking a guess. (Gates Foundation Photo)

Geeks and books go together like athletes and balls, but just as there are different sports, there are different types of geek reading. Weve put together a top-10 list of books on a wide spectrum of geeky topics, all published over the past year.

Some of these picks should help you prepare for what promises to be a  well, lets call it an interesting year for geeks and everyone else. Others will provide an opportunity for respite and reflection, with a few geeky tweaks.

In addition to the list you see here, check out our list of 21 science books for the holidays in 2016, plus this years top five reads from Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. And dont be surprised if some of these top 10 for 2017 end up on Gates reading list during the coming year.

Tools of Titans: The Tactics, Routines and Habits of Billionaires, Icons and World-Class Performers: Tech investor/author/podcaster Timothy Ferriss pulls together words of wisdom from interviews hes conducted with celebrities, entrepreneurs  and yes, titans of industry. Heres an example from Peter Thiel, who co-founded PayPal and now serves as Donald Trumps top tech adviser: If you have a 10-year plan of how to get somewhere, you should ask: Why cant you do this in six months? Perfect to read while youre waiting to meet with your new angel investor. And for what its worth, GeekWire Deals has a Tools of Titans giveaway going on.

Hood: Trailblazer of the Genomics Age: Veteran Seattle biotech journalist Luke Timmerman chronicles the complicated life of Leroy Hood, who pioneered DNA sequencing, went on to the University of Washington and the Institute for Systems Biology, and co-founded Arivale, an innovative personal health startup. GeekWire co-founder and editor Todd Bishop says the book is not just a historical record but a foundation for understanding breakthroughs still to come.

I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life: Science writer Ed Yongs book about microbes and how they basically rule the biosphere is one book that we know for sure is on Bill Gates reading list. Its also recommended in our holiday book guide, so you have no excuse. But if youve already read I Contain Multitudes, heres an alternate selection: This Is Your Brain on Parasites

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Magic and Loss: The Internet as Art: Can the Internet and smartphone apps evoke sentiments on a scale with Nabokov and Nietzsche? They do for New York Times Magazine writer Virginia Heffernan. Shes been documenting the Internets development for decades, yet still manages to bring a beginners mind to the task. Tentatively, avidly, or kicking and screaming, nearly 2 billion of us have taken up residence on the Internet, and were still adjusting to it, she writes. Alternate selection: The Jazz of Physics.

The Revenge of Analog: Real Things and Why They Matter: One of the lessons of the past year is that physical storefronts still matter, even for an online retail juggernaut like Seattles own Amazon. David Sax, who writes about business and culture for Bloomberg Businessweek, The New Yorker and other publications, tells the stories of innovators who take advantage of analog tools ranging from pen and paper, to board games and vinyl records, to brick and mortar.

The Terranauts: T.C. Boyles latest novel plays to one of his favorite themes: how human foibles come to the fore despite our (seemingly) best intentions. The setting is based on the real-life Biosphere 2 project in Arizona, but Boyle turns the dial up to 11 with withering wit. Its easy to imagine this saga of grand ideals, backstabbing and sexual politics taking place on Mars someday. (And in case youre wondering, T.C. is no close relative of mine.)

How to Make a Spaceship: A Band of Renegades, an Epic Race and the Birth of Private Spaceflight: Bay Area journalist Julian Guthrie tells the story of space commercialization mostly from the perspective of XPRIZE entrepreneur Peter Diamandis, but youll also find revelations about the longstanding space ambitions of SpaceX founder Elon Musk, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and Virgin founder Richard Branson. Even space geek Stephen Hawking weighs in with an afterword. Alternate selection: Whats It Like in Space? Stories From Astronauts Whove Been There.

The War on Science: Whos Waging It, Why It Matters, What We Can Do About It: The next four years could be a rocky time for science, based on President-elect Donald Trumps picks and pronouncements. Trump has said climate change is a hoax, Vice President-elect Mike Pences views on evolution are murky at best, and Trumps choice for budget chief has questioned the need for government-funded research. For years, Shawn Lawrence Otto has kept his eye on the intersection of science and politics as a co-founder of ScienceDebate.org. Ottos book on the subject, The War on Science, is a more urgent read now than it was when it was published in May.

The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture: Whats a list of geek books without a nod to comic-book culture? Sure, there are plenty of compendiums out there, such as Marvel: Absolutely Everything You Need to Know, but the thoughtful comic-book nerd will gravitate toward this meta-saga about the Batman saga and what it says about American society, written by NPR book critic Glen Weldon.

Sun Moon Earth: The History of Solar Eclipses From Omens of Doom to Einstein and Exoplanets: Tyler Nordgren, an astronomer whos also an artist and an author, gets you ready for next years total solar eclipse. On Aug. 21, totality will be visible from a tiny slice of the United States stretching from the Oregon coast to South Carolina. Even if youre content with the partial phase, which will be visible everywhere in the Lower 48, Nordgrens book will give you a sense of the awesomeness and geekery behind the eclipse.

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Kingston upon Hull (United Kingdom) (AFP) - Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola offered a reassuring prognosis on the injury that curtailed John Stones's involvement in his side's 3-0 win at Hull City on Monday.

Back in the starting XI following two games on the bench, Stones was forced off after just 17 minutes at the KCOM Stadium, with Aleksandar Kolarov taking his place.

But Guardiola said the England international had simply taken a kick to the knee and would "hopefully" be fit for City's trip to Premier League title rivals Liverpool on New Year's Eve.

"We were a little bit worried about that, but it is just a kick," Guardiola told the BBC.

"Hopefully OK for Liverpool. A kick, not ligaments or something like that."

City's win, courtesy of second-half goals by Yaya Toure and Kelechi Iheanacho and an injury-time Curtis Davies own goal, left them in second place, seven points below leaders Chelsea.
Queen Silvia of Sweden was home for Christmas despite an illness that landed her in the hospital for two nights.

The queen is back on her feet and feels well, given the circumstances, the Swedish royal court said in a statement obtained by Hello magazine on Christmas morning.

According to a previous statement from the royal court, Silvia, 73, was taken to Karolinska University Hospital late Friday night due to dizziness brought on by a lasting cold. They later announced she was taken to Danderyd Hospital near Stockholm.

In a statement sent out on Saturday morning, the royal court said, The queen has been taken to hospital late last night. The queen has had a cold for a time and was hit during Friday evening of dizziness. The queen is still in hospital for observation and sampling and feels well under the circumstances.

Princess Madeleine traveled to the hospital with her mother and remained with her overnight. Other family members, including Silvias children Prince Carl Philip and Crown Princess Victoria, also visited during her hospital stay, according to Hello.

RELATED VIDEO: See the Dreamy New Photos of Prince Carl Philip, Princess Sofia and Their Newborn Son!

Queen Silvia married King Carl XVI Gustaf in June 1976 after meeting at the 1972 Summer Olympic Games in Munich. They have three children and five grandchildren together. She celebrated her 73rd birthday on Friday.

Silvia isnt the only monarch battling illness over Christmas. Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip are both suffering from heavy colds  leading Elizabeth to cancel her annual walk to church on Christmas Day on Sunday.




A Texas man charged with fatally slashing the throats of his wife and infant son allegedly told co-workers he heard voices telling him to kill people and had dreamed of hurting his spouse, according to a newly released police affidavit obtained by PEOPLE.

The accusations detail suspect Craig Vandeweges bizarre behavior before and after his 36-year-old wife, Shanna Vandewege, and their 3-month-old son, Diederick, were found dead in Fort Worth, Texas, on Dec. 15.

Before he was detained last week in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, Craig, 35, allegedly told a man he met inside a 7-Eleven that he was bound for Las Vegas  where, he allegedly said, he planned to meet with President-elect Donald Trump to talk about the killings.

Forth Worth police allege Craig told the unnamed man at the gas station that he was on the run and that the government was trying to conspire against him by saying he had killed his family. He also allegedly said he was getting together with Trump to work it out with him.

On Wednesday, police were dispatched to the 7-Eleven in Glenwood Springs on reports of an individual acting suspiciously. The officers arrived just as Craig drove off.

Police tailed Craigs vehicle and initiated a traffic stop soon after the car exceeded the posted speed limit, according to the police affidavit.

He allegedly showed no emotion as he explained to the arresting officers it had been a long week and his wife and kid were murdered in Fort Worth, Texas, the affidavit states. Shanna and Diederick were found in the master bedroom of their home with apparent knife wounds to their necks, authorities have said.

Before taking him into custody in Colorado, local police searched Craig and found a loaded pistol in his waistband, another gun in an ankle holster, and a number of condoms in his pockets, according to the affidavit He was also carrying a wedding ring

Inside his vehicle, officers recovered camouflage, clothing, numerous bottles of medication and an AR-style rifle.

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Craig was arrested for allegedly speeding and not having proof of insurance. At the time of his arrest, Fort Worth authorities had prepared an arrest warrant for him on capital murder charges.

He is awaiting extradition to Texas, but authorities have not provided a timeline for when he may be returned from Colorado.

He has yet to enter a plea to the charges against him and his attorney, Leslie Barrows, was not available Monday for comment.

The Only Way He Could Tolerate His Wife Was by Drinking

Fort Worth detectives have interviewed several of Craigs co-workers since the Dec. 15 killings and learned that Craig allegedly often complained about his wife and her appearance and made statements about harming her, according to the affidavit.

Days before the slayings, Craig allegedly told a co-worker hed had a dream in which he sliced the heads of his wife and father like bologna. 

Soon after learning Shanna was pregnant, he allegedly told the same co-worker he wished he could push her down the stairs and kill her that way. Craig also told co-workers he was taking prescriptions that made him hear voices that tell him to kill people, police allege in the affidavit.

His wife could not do anything right and she dressed and wore her hair poorly and the only way he could tolerate his wife was by drinking, Craig allegedly said at work.

The affidavit characterizes his interactions with investigators as overly calm and notes that trace amounts of blood were detected on the rims of two sinks in the Vandewege home, suggesting someone attempted to clean the crime scene. Investigators further allege someone took steps to stage a robbery of the familys home.

Shannas friends previously told PEOPLE she and Craig moved from Colorado in May after he got a promotion at work. Shanna was a registered nurse at a nearby hospital but was on maternity leave.

In an email to PEOPLE, childhood friend Monica Vance wrote,  had wanted a family since she was a little girl. She planned it out, including names, before she was 12.

Longtime friend Cindy Prevatt said, Shanna was wonderful, adding, I can not think of one single thing that she ever did wrong. We are heartbroken, confused and angry.

Mark Riddle, Shannas father, told ABC8 that the couple had three miscarriages prior to having their son.




By PTI: The government on several occasions, including during the

The government on several occasions, including during the Budget Session of the assembly, stated that it had no such plans.

As it appeared that the worst was over for the PDP-BJP government, Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani -- who had become the poster boy of militancy in Kashmir -- was killed in an encounter with security forces on July 8.

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As the news of his death spread, there was an unprecedented outpour of outrage on the streets of the Valley as rumours were abound that the 21-year-old militant was killed when he was unarmed. The security forces dismissed the allegations.

However, violent street protests and clashes between protestors and security forces across the Valley over the next several months left 86 people dead and hundreds -- including 5000 security forces personnel -- injured.

For the first time in the past 26 years of turmoil in Kashmir, over 300 people were blinded as security forces fired pellet guns to quell the protests, leading to calls from various quarters to ban its use.

Authorities imposed curfew across Kashmir valley, snapped mobile and Internet services, banned newspapers for three days and took several news channels off air in an attempt to end the street violence but protests continued unabated.

The separatists, sensing an opportunity, jumped in and started issuing weekly agitation calendars as they did in 2010.

Almost all separatist leaders including Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik were either arrested or put under house arrest. More than 8000 people were also arrested on the charges of stone-pelting or incitement to violence.

Curfew and shutdowns brought life in Kashmir valley to a standstill as schools remained closed, businesses shut and transport off the roads.

The deadly attack at Uri, close to Line of Control, on September 18 prompted perhaps the strongest peacetime reaction from the armed forces against the militants.

As many as 19 soldiers were killed at Uri before the Army eliminated the four intruders, who had crossed the LoC just a day before launching the attack.

The special forces crossing the LoC into PoK and destroying several militant camps in which over 40 ultras and their sympathisers were killed was a departure from the traditional policy of exercising restraint after every ceasefire violation or an attack on security installation.

As the Valley was going through its worst unrest in 26 years, there was an increase in hostilities along the LoC between armies of India and Pakistan. Both sides accused each other of violating the ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir along the LoC and the international border.

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The surgical strike led to more skirmishes and exchange or artillery fire between the two sides till November, leading to fears among people here of outbreak of full blown war between the two countries. (MORE) PTI MIJ ZMN ASV

--- ENDS ---
It's a line you'll hear in almost any crime show after someone finds the body  the detective turns to the medical examiner and asks, "Time of death?" But in real life, medical examiners don't have a very precise method for figuring out how long ago someone died.

Now, researchers say they could use the bacteria found on the body to provide a more accurate way to pinpoint the time of death, according to a new study.

In the study, published today (Dec. 22) in the journal PLOS ONE, researchers examined the "necrobiomes" of 21 cadavers. The necrobiome, or the community of bacteria found on a dead body, changes considerably as time passes after death and the body decomposes, according to the study. [The Science of Death: 10 Tales from the Crypt and Beyond]

Currently, medical examiners estimate the time of death by physically inspecting the body for signs of early-phase decomposition and, in later stages of decomposition, by looking at the insects present on the body, the researchers wrote. But "these techniques are notoriously unreliable," thanks to factors such as temperature, weather conditions and geographic location, the researchers wrote.

But "by knowing which microbes take over a dead body and how long it takes, forensic scientists might be able to use [the necrobiome] to determine time of death or other aspects of a crime scene," Robert DeSalle, curator of molecular systematics at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, said in a statement. DeSalle was not involved in the study.

In the study, the researchers took samples of bacteria from the ear and nasal canals of the cadavers, which were at the Anthropological Research Facility at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The cadavers were placed outdoors, in a temperate, deciduous forest, and were left to decompose naturally over the course of several weeks.

The researchers sequenced the DNA of the bacteria, and used their findings to construct a model that could predict a body's time of death to up to 55 "accumulated degree-days," which is equal to about two summer days.

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Accumulated degree-days are a way to measure the passage of time and temperature simultaneously, said senior study author Nathan Lents, a professor of microbiology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice at The City University of New York.

Because human decomposition is strictly dependent on both time and temperature, scientists cannot consider the passage of time alone, Lents told Live Science. "When it comes to rates of decay, one day in summer time is like two weeks in winter time," he said.

A dynamic ecosystem

The bacterial communities found on a dead body change over time, Lents said.

"Think about a decomposing vertebrate as an ecosystem" teeming with various life-forms, Lents said. "The ecosystem is very dynamic because the environment of the decomposing host is in a state of wild changes."

For example, cycles of high and low oxygen levels play a role in which bacteria are present, as oxygen is consumed and carbon dioxide builds up in the body. But the body's tissues eventually rupture, and oxygen flows back in, changing the environment again. There are also cycles of high and low nutrient richness, Lents said; nutrient levels may be low until a tissue ruptures and nutrients spill out.

Ultimately, "the environment is a feeding frenzy for alternating groups of organisms, setting up a succession of bacteria that proliferate when their time comes," Lents said. [Ear Maggots and Brain Amoeba: 5 Creepy Flesh-Eating Critters]

But researchers still have a great deal to learn about this ecosystem, Lents added.

The new study is "a very promising proof of concept," Lents said in a statement. Still, the method could be improved by adding more data, from a larger study at multiple locations, and involving bacteria from additional parts of the body, they wrote in the study.

Originally published on Live Science.

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Earlier this month, actor Tom Arnold made claims to Dori Monson's Seattle-based radio show that he has unreleased recordings of president-elect Donald Trump making racist, lewd and inflammatory statements when he was host of The Apprentice. Arnold said the tapes allegedly feature Trump using "the N-word," "the C-word" and that he can be heard calling his son a "retard."

On Christmas Day, Arnold took to Twitter to update followers on where the tapes currently are and what needs to happen to have them released.

The actor, who had previously taken to Twitter to say that Trump's camp had contacted him about a defamation suit over the claims, laid out a litany of tweets regarding the tapes in response to a question from fellow actor Michael Rapaport concerning the recordings. "Tom, you talking sideways. Where Dem Tapes At?" Rapaport tweeted.

"1. I'm going 2 explain cause I know U rode Trump's butt for the 5 yrs it took him 2 confirm Obama's legitimacy. I received tape via program," Arnold wrote in a response.

Arnold went on to address the privacy of the tapes, tweeting they "had a limited password" and that when he "received [the tapes] no one thought Trump would be Pres."

Read more: Arnold Schwarzenegger Says Trump "Has No Interest in Being Involved" With 'Apprentice,' Would Still Take His Advice

Also referenced in Arnold's tweets were Putin, JFK, the Russian hacking scandal, John McCain's POW internment and Trump's "playmate girlfriends." Arnold also tweeted about his own personal "risk" in bringing up the existence of the tapes, calling it a "terrible career move."

In conclusion, Arnold assured his followers that "all will be revealed soon" and that "Watergate level journalists are on top of this."

On Monday, it appeared the two actors connected off social media, as Rapaport tweeted that he spoke to Arnold in private and that the release of the tapes "isn't as easy as one would think," He then added, "It's not over."

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I wanna say I spoke to @TomArnold in private & as much as

I Want Dem Tapes,this isn't as easy as one would think & it's not over.- MichaelRapaport (@MichaelRapaport) December 26, 2016

Read all of Arnold's tweets below.

1. I'm going 2 explain cause I know U rode Trump's butt for the 5 yrs it took him 2 confirm Obama's legitimacy. I received tape via program https://t.co/scvnHYpEuV

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

2. Used in our biz 2 prevent piracy. Had a limited time password. When I received no one thought Trump would be Pres. When it became real https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

3. People got scared. Can't blame them. Me & my fam get threatened by Alt Right nuts a lot plus only Billy Bush's career was hurt by "grab https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

4. Her by the pussy" tape. Normally I don't think a persons private life should affect job. Didn't say anything about Natl Enquirer paying https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

5. Off Trumps playmate girlfriends. Plus he'd always been nice to me but he became a bully. John McCain's POW heroism, Cruz's dad killing https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

6. JFK Etc. Not the guy I knew & he was stoking racism. Lying. Basically saying anything to get elected contradicting himself. Then the https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

7. Russian hack happened. That and him lying about releasing his taxes. I knew he'd spoken to Putin 2013 in Moscow during Miss Universe https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

8. Contest from NBC guy that was with him. I shot a movie "produced" by one of his bus partners & Putin pal. Very chatty. This was 2015 so https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

9. Of course he didn't think he was telling tales about what happened in 2013 to a US President. You have to see his taxes. These tapes https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

10. Are disgusting but not illegal. I'm not going to out the little guy but I personally confronted 7 powerful Hollywood people who have https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

11. Everything. They hate me now. Terrible career move but I believe if Russia has something they can blackmail our president with its worth https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

12. The risk to me. Plus I'm a 57 year old father of 1 & 3 yr olds. I want to do all I can so there's a safe America for them. Call me & I https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

13. Will give you the names of the 7 big shots and you can risk your livelihood and confront them too. All will be reviewed soon. Smart https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

14. Watergate level journalists are ontop of this. https://t.co/scvnHY836l

- Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 26, 2016

Read more: Tom Arnold: I Have "Racist" Trump Outtakes From 'The Apprentice'
SEOUL, South Korea (AP)  Dozens of lawmakers split from South Korea's ruling party Tuesday over the corruption scandal involving impeached President Park Geun-hye in a move that could shape presidential elections that might take place in just months. The 29 anti-Park lawmakers who left the Saenuri Party planned to create a new conservative party that will likely try to lure outgoing United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as its presidential candidate. There's a possibility of more lawmakers leaving Saenuri in coming weeks over rifts with Park loyalists who continue to occupy the party's leadership. Choung Byoung-gug, one of the lawmakers who left Saenuri, accused the loyalists of "neglecting the values of real conservatism" and "shamelessly defending the infringement of constitutional values" as they continued to support the scandal-hit president.

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP)  With somewhere around 4,000 artists and staff, the Mansudae Art Studio, a huge complex of nondescript concrete buildings on a sprawling, walled-off campus with armed guards in the heart of Pyongyang, churns out everything from watercolor tigers to mosaics so large they seem to depict a race from another, taller planet. But its statues  the really big, bronze, monumental ones on foreign shores  are what appear to have caught the attention of the U.N. Security Council. In one of the odder items on the list of things North Korea can't export under United Nations' sanctions, statues were explicitly listed for the first time last month when the Security Council approved a raft of punishments in response to Pyongyang's latest nuclear test, which it conducted in September.

BEIJING (AP)  China vowed Tuesday to speed up the development of its space industry as it set out its plans to become the first country to soft land a probe on the far side of the moon, around 2018, and launch its first Mars probe by 2020. "To explore the vast cosmos, develop the space industry and build China into a space power is a dream we pursue unremittingly," read a white paper setting out the country's space strategy for the next five years. It says China aims to use space for peaceful purposes and to guarantee national security, and to carry out cutting edge scientific research.

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TOKYO (AP)  Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who will visit Pearl Harbor with President Barack Obama on Tuesday, wasn't even born when Japan's former leader Shigeru Yoshida went there just six years after the country's World War II surrender, by himself and feeling awkward. Yoshida is best remembered for signing the San Francisco peace treaty with the U.S. and others in 1951, allowing Japan back into international society after its war defeat. His Pearl Harbor visit, which he made on his way home from San Francisco, was largely eclipsed by the historic treaty. Archival writings and photos unearthed by The Associated Press reconstruct Yoshida's visit, from his aim to win U.S.

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP)  An Indonesian court has ruled that the blasphemy trial of the minority Christian governor of the country's capital will proceed. A North Jakarta District Court judge told the court Tuesday that the panel did not accept Gov. Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama's argument that the indictment is inaccurate and should be annulled. The blasphemy controversy erupted when a video circulated online in which Ahok lightheartedly said that people were being deceived if they believed his detractors who asserted that the Quran prohibits Muslims from having a non-Muslim leader. Ahok is seeking a second term as governor in elections due in February.

BATANGAS, Philippines (AP)  A powerful typhoon blew out of the northern Philippines on Monday after killing at least six people and spoiling Christmas in several provinces, where more than 380,000 people abandoned celebrations at home to reach emergency shelters and other safer grounds. Typhoon Nock-Ten cut power to five entire provinces due to toppled electric posts and trees, dimming Christmas revelries in Asia's largest Catholic nation. More than 300 flights were delayed or re-scheduled and ferries were barred from sailing, stranding more than 12,000 holiday travelers. Six people died from drowning or by being pinned by fallen trees, poles and a collapsed concrete wall in the provinces of Quezon and Albay, southeast of Manila, after the typhoon made landfall in Catanduanes province Sunday night, officials said.

BEIJING (AP)  China and Sao Tome and Principe officially resumed diplomatic relations Monday in a triumph for Beijing over rival Taiwan after the African island nation abruptly broke away from the self-ruled island last week. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his counterpart from Sao Tome, Urbino Botelho, signed books at a ceremony in front of their flags at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing. Wang said the re-establishment of relations would bring benefits to both countries and they would hold exchanges in tourism, the media and other areas. The move is a victory for Beijing, which considers the self-governing island of Taiwan a part of China's territory and has been outraged by suggestions by President-elect Donald Trump that he could rethink U.S.

BEIJING (AP)  China's first aircraft carrier and five other warships passed by Taiwan and sailed into the contested South China Sea on Monday, Taiwan's Defense Ministry said. The ships, led by the Liaoning, sailed past the Pratas Islands, also known as the Dongsha Islands, a Taiwan-controlled atoll in the northern part of the South China Sea, according to the ministry. China's Defense Ministry said Saturday that the Liaoning had set off for a routine open-sea exercise in the Western Pacific as part of its annual training. But its entering into the politically sensitive South China Sea follows rising tensions between Beijing and Taipei over the status of the self-ruled island.

BANGKOK (AP)  Police in Thailand on Monday charged a suspect with participating in recent hacking attacks on government computers that were billed as a protest against a restrictive law governing internet use. Natdanai Kongdee, 19, was one of nine people arrested in connection with the attacks that blocked access to some websites and accessed non-public files, Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said. Police said he was a low-level hacker rather than a leader and had confessed to participating in the attacks. They said he belonged to several online groups specializing in hacking activities. Natdanai was present at Monday's news conference but did not speak.

BANGKOK (AP)  A look at recent developments in the South China Sea, where China is pitted against smaller neighbors in multiple disputes over islands, coral reefs and lagoons in waters crucial for global commerce and rich in fish and potential oil and gas reserves: ___ EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a weekly look at the latest developments in the South China Sea, home to several territorial conflicts that have raised tensions in the region. ___ PHILIPPINES TO PUT BOTH U.S. AND CHINA ON NOTICE OVER GLIDER INCIDENT After China returned an underwater glider it seized from the U.S. Navy off the coast of the Philippines, the Philippine defense secretary said his government would put both Washington and Beijing on notice against what he called their unauthorized presence in the country's 200-mile exclusive economic zone.
Tracey Neilsons brutal slaying has haunted investigators in Oklahoma for nearly four decades. But the search for the truth  and ultimately, closure for those the Oklahoma State University student and young wife left behind  continues still, as detectives hunt down new leads and turn to the public for assistance in solving one of the states oldest cold cases.

Neilson was killed on Jan. 5, 1981  her 21st birthday. According to authorities, she was stabbed repeatedly in the chest and neck.

Her husband, Jeff Neilson, returned home hours later, carrying a birthday card and a bottle of perfume, to find her dead body laying across their bed. (He spent his wifes birthday taking classes at the University of Oklahoma, where he was studying medicine, and that he was ruled out early on as a suspect in Traceys killing, according to investigators.)

In the ensuing years, authorities have had precious few leads to go on, other than a still-unidentified fingerprint recovered from the scene, a cable TV repair ticket found at the apartment, signed by a still-unidentified repairman, and eyewitness accounts of a white male seen near the Neilsons front door.

 For much more on the cold case investigation, subscribe to PEOPLE or pick up this weeks issue, on newsstands now.

According to police, there were no signs of forced entry at the home in Moore, Oklahoma, and Traceys remains showed no signs she had been sexually assaulted.

But detectives hope that a recently released piece of evidence  Traceys keychain, which her killer may have taken as a trophy  could generate new tips in the case.

Peoples relationships change over time, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Francia Thompson tells PEOPLE. If anyone, a former girlfriend or ex-wife, might recognize it and knew that it was taken from a crime scene, it could provide the lead we need.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

Thompson says solving the case means a lot to me and it needs to be solved for Traceys mourning loved ones.

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These case never go unforgotten, she says. People think it sits on shelf and it is forgotten. Everyone has that one case you want to solve, and this is mine. Her family deserves the truth.

Those with any information about the case are asked to call the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation at 800-522-8017.

 Reporting by JOHNNY DODD




Dec 26 (Reuters) - Republic of Congo President Denis Sassou plans to meet with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday to discuss the ongoing political turmoil crisis in Libya and other African issues, Sassou's spokesman said on Monday.

Sassou's spokesman Thierry Moungalla, in a post on Twitter, noted that the two men were meeting to discuss ways to the end the Libyan crisis as well other broader issues affecting the continent, according to a statement attached to the tweet. He did not give any other details about the meeting plans.

Representatives for Trump's team did not immediately respond to a request for comment seeking to confirm the meeting with the incoming Republican president, who takes office Jan. 20 and is spending this week at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

Libya is grappling with continuing political turmoil as rival governments split the nation's East and West, and other armed factions also compete for power. The United Nations earlier this month also cited an ongoing human rights crisis affecting migrants there.

Trump, a New York businessman who has never held elected office, has been holding an ongoing stream of meetings at his property in Palm Beach as well as Trump Tower in New York City as he prepares to assume the White House from Democratic U.S. President Barack Obama.

Most of his meetings have centered on possible candidates to serve in his administration, including his Cabinet.

In November, Trump met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and, according to a report, the two plan to meet again Jan. 27.

Trump has also fielded numerous calls from a number of world leaders since winning the U.S. presidential election Nov. 8 against his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.

(Reporting by Tim Cocks in Senegal and Melissa Fares in Palm Beach, Florida; editing by Diane Craft)
Istanbul (AFP) - Turkey on Monday said it wanted international air support for its army's assault on the jihadist-held Syrian town of Al Bab where the military is facing tough resistance from Islamic State (IS) extremists.

Turkish forces have for weeks joined pro-Ankara Syrian rebels in fierce fighting for Al Bab, taking increasing casualties as they approach closer to the centre.

Turkey is part of the US-led coalition against IS jihadists in Syria and lets Western war planes use its Incirlik air base as a hub for air raids.

"As for our operations in Al Bab, the international coalition should assume its responsibilities, especially where air support is concerned," presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said in televised comments in Ankara.

"The weather conditions can sometimes entail delays," Kalin acknowledged. "But the absence of air support when there is no valid reason is unacceptable," he added.

The US and its allies have been conducting their own air strikes against IS targets in Syria but there have been no reports of them specifically aiding the Turkish operation.

Turkey at the weekend deployed more tanks and artillery to the border and also has sent 500 elite commandos to Al Bab in readiness for a final fight for the town, reports said.

A Britain-based monitoring group has accused Turkey of killing 88 civilians in air strikes on Al-Bab. However the army has unequivocally denied such claims.

Thirty-six Turkish soldiers have died so far in the operation inside Syria -- dubbed Euphrates Shield -- since it was launched on August 24.

Islamic State jihadists last week circulated a video purportedly showing two Turkish soldiers captured by the extremists in Syria being burned alive.

The authenticity of the video cannot be confirmed and Turkey's leadership has made no mention of the images.

Turkey's Defence Minister Fikri Isik has said three Turkish soldiers are being held by IS, without giving further detail. The issue was evoked at Kalin's televised news conference but the spokesman did not give any comment.

Users in Turkey had reported severe problems with social media after the video emerged. However by Monday access to Twitter was fully restored after three days of disruption.
ANKARA (Reuters) - At least 30 civilians were killed and many others were wounded on Sunday after Islamic State launched an attack in the Syrian town of al-Bab to prevent people from fleeing, the Turkish military said in a statement on Monday. Syrian rebels supported by Turkish troops have laid siege to the Islamic State-held town for weeks under the "Euphrates Shield" operation launched by Turkey nearly four months ago to sweep the Sunni hardliners and Kurdish fighters from its Syrian border. (Reporting by Orhan Coskun; Writing by Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by David Dolan)
MANILA (Reuters) - A typhoon weakened as it cut across the Philippines on Monday after bringing down trees and power lines, and authorities warned of flash floods and mudslides although casualties were few with police reporting only two deaths. Typhoon Nock-ten's wind speed eased to 130 kph (80 mph) as it headed west toward the South China Sea, passing through provinces south of the capital Manila at a speed of 20 kph. Land, sea and air transport slowly resumed operations, but the weather bureau said stormy weather would affect parts of the country for another 36 hours or so, until the storm moved away toward southern Vietnam. Energy Minister Alfonso Cusi promised that power would be restored quickly in badly hit Camarines and Albay provinces. "We've prepared for it and we are currently on the ground to assess the damage and quickly restore compromised energy facilities," he said. The Philippines is one of the world's worst-affected countries when it comes to typhoons, with an average of 20 a year passing or hitting the archipelago of more than 7,000 islands. More than 300,000 people in the predominantly Christian country spent Christmas in shelters after authorities moved them to safety on higher ground, said Mina Narasigan, spokeswoman for the national disaster agency. Police reported two deaths, in Camarines and Quezon provinces, while the coastguard was investigating reports that a small ferry had been swamped by giant waves. Radio DZBB reported a boy was killed in Quezon province when he was pinned down by a coconut tree and another girl injured in Camarines Sur when a house collapsed. The reports could not be immediately verified. Emergency workers were mobilized to clear roads of debris, like fallen trees and power lines in the coconut-growing region, with some central areas plunged into darkness. The weather bureau said the typhoon made its eighth and last landfall at 1 p.m. on Lubang island after first arriving in Catanduanes province late on Sunday. (Reporting by Manuel Mogato; Editing by Martin Petty, Robert Birsel)
SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Total E&P do Brasil, the local unit of France's Total SA (TOTF.PA), plans annual investments of $1 billion (814.85 million pounds) in Latin America's largest economy, Maxime Rabilloud, who heads the Brazilian operation, told the Monday edition of Valor Economico.

The decision to expand operations in Brazil comes on the heels of Total agreeing to acquire assets worth $2.2 billion from Brazil's state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA (PETR4.SA).

As announced by the companies last week, Total bought stakes in oilfields and thermal power stations from Petrobras as part of the latter company's asset sales programme.

Valor quoted Rabilloud as saying Total and Petrobras will keep in contact regarding the possibility of making other deals and forging future partnerships.

(Reporting by Ana Mano Editing by W Simon)
NEW YORK (AP)  United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will perform one last ceremonial duty before ending his 10-year leadership of the world body.

Organizers of the Times Square New Year's Eve celebration announced Monday that Ban will push the Waterford crystal button to begin the official 60-second countdown to 2017.

The South Korean statesman was elected as the eighth secretary-general by the United Nations General Assembly in October 2006. Dec. 31 will be his last day in office. Antonio Guterres, of Portugal, will take over on Jan. 1.

Times Square Alliance head Tim Tompkins praised Ban's legacy of "bringing people and nations together, supporting refugee relief efforts and opposing war."

Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to watch the ball drop at midnight Saturday in Times Square.
Washington (AFP) - The White House orchestrated a "gang-up" against Israel on last week's UN settlement vote, its ambassador to Washington said Monday, in the latest sign of anger between the longtime allies.

Israel's ambassador Ron Dermer said in an interview with CNN that his government plans to show evidence of the alleged US maneuvering in due time.

"What is outrageous is that the United States was actually behind that gang-up. I think it was a very sad day, really a shameful chapter," the Israeli diplomat told CNN.

"We have clear evidence of it. We will present that evidence to the new administration through the appropriate channels. And if they want to share it with the US people they're welcome to do it," Dermer said, adding that the Israeli government is "deeply disappointed" with Washington over the UN vote.

On Friday, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding that "Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem."

The United States -- which has a veto --refrained from casting its vote, enabling the adoption of the measure, the first resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

Dermer accused the Obama administration of helping Palestinians "wage a diplomatic and legal war against Israel."

They do not want to negotiate peace with us, which is why they've avoided negotiations for eight years," he said.

"What do the Palestinians want? What they want is to blame Israel for the lack of peace and to internationalize the conflict," Dermer continued.

"What this resolution just did is it gave the Palestinians ammunition in their diplomatic and legal war against Israel. And the US not only didn't stop it, they were behind it."

Obama's soon-to-be successor, president-elect Donald Trump, who has campaigned on a promise to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, slammed the position taken by the White House.

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Trump, who last week said Washington should have used its veto to block the resolution, has chosen as ambassador to Israel the hardliner David Friedman, who has said Washington will not pressure Israel to curtail settlement building in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu summoned US Ambassador Daniel Shapiro Sunday to express his displeasure.

An official Israeli source confirmed only that Netanyahu and Shapiro had met, without elaborating on the content nor outcome of their discussions.

The text was passed with support from all remaining members of the 15-member council, with applause breaking out in the chamber.

The Haaretz daily's website said that for Israel to summon an American ambassador was "considered a most unusual step."

"Even more unusual is the fact that unlike the other envoys who were summoned on Sunday to the foreign ministry, Netanyahu will conduct the conversation himself at his office," it said ahead of the meeting.
CONAKRY (Reuters) - Workers at an AngloGold Ashanti gold mine in eastern Guinea are on strike in a dispute over year-end bonuses, Saadou Nimaga, secretary general of the ministry of mines, said on Sunday. "The strike was triggered about a week ago but we are organising negotiations," Nimaga told Reuters. Miners at Siguiri, around 800 km (500 miles) east of the capital Conakry, barricaded the plant's entrances and stopped a plane loaded with gold from taking off, in pursuit of their demand for a two-month bonus rather than 50 days, a worker said. "We are demanding the departure of the mine's director general," a worker told Reuters. Bonuses are normally paid at the end of the year. It was unclear why workers did not publicise the strike sooner. There was no immediate comment from AngloGold, Guinea's largest gold producer with an annual output of 300,000 ounces. Siguiri is a multiple open-pit oxide gold mine and AngloGold's sole operation in Guinea. The South African company holds an 85 percent stake, according to its website, with the government holding the balance. (Reporting by Saliou Samb; Writing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg; Editing by Ruth Pitchford)
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Cheetahs, the world's fastest land animals, are racing to the edge of extinction, conservationists say.

Only about 7,100 cheetahs remain in the wild, according to a new analysis of the cheetah population. The carnivores have lost about 91 percent of their historic range in Africa and Asia.

Researchers said the latest figures show the cheetah may be more imperiled than previously thought.

SEE ALSO: Giant rats could help fight wildlife smuggling in Africa

"We've just hit the reset button in our understanding of how close cheetahs are to extinction," Kim Young-Overton, who directs the cheetah program at conservation group Panthera, said in a statement.

Panthera, the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Zoological Society of London led the cheetah research, which was published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The study follows similarly grim reports about other iconic species, such as giraffes and elephants.

In early December, a global group of conservationists and governments put giraffes on the official watch list of globally threatened and endangered species.

The world's tallest land animals are now considered "vulnerable" after their population shrank nearly 40 percent in just 30 years, from roughly 163,000 giraffes in 1985 to roughly 97,500 in 2015, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Scientists blamed habitat loss, poaching and disease for the giraffe's decline.

An 11- day-old giraffe calf.

Image: Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty Images

Elephants are also rapidly dwindling as poachers slaughter them for their tusks and humans encroach on the wild landscape. The IUCN in September adopted a resolution to ban all domestic ivory sales in an effort to save the pachyderms from extinction.

Cheetahs are similarly threatened by widespread habitat loss and illegal trafficking.

But conservationists say the lightning-fast cats are especially hard to protect because they roam stealthily across long distances that span multiple borders and government jurisdictions.

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"Given the secretive nature of this elusive cat, it has been difficult to gather hard information on the species, leading to its plight being overlooked," Sarah Durant, the study's lead author, said in a news release.

Cheetahs walk across a savannah at the Mashatu game reserve in Botswana, July 24, 2010.

Image: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Cheetahs are among the most wide-ranging carnivores, with documented home ranges of more than 3,000 square kilometers, or about 1,160 square miles.

The researchers found that over 75 percent of cheetahs' current range lies outside of officially protected areas. For cheetahs, this means most of the places where they hunt, breed and sleep are likely spots for habitat destruction, poaching, or the overhunting of cheetahs' prey.

Such threats have already had devastating consequences for cheetahs in Asia.

Cheetahs have been driven out of 98 percent of their historical range on the continent. Iran is now the only country with a known population of Asiatic Cheetahs, with fewer than 50 individuals spread across just three areas, researchers said.

Image: Win Mcnamee/Getty Images

The rest of the world's cheetahs live in Africa, where they face growing threats from rising human populations and land-use changes.

In Zimbabwe, for instance, about 85 percent of the country's cheetah population has disappeared in the last 16 years, from about 1,200 cheetahs to no more than 170, according to Monday's study.

Durant and her colleagues urged the IUCN to "up-list" the cheetah from "vulnerable" to "endangered" on its Red List of Threatened Species.

The move would put the cats just two steps away from being declared "extinct in the wild."
Every generation gets the wild card it deserves. For this era, the artist born Jeffery Williams narrowly beat out the refreshingly sardonic Tyler, the Creator by embracing gender fluidity rather than homophobic slurs, opting for creaky sing-rap rather than increasingly thorny boom-bap, and somehow landing on a few genuine pop hits in the process. His very first order of business was giving himself the inauspicious name Young Thug, to ensure everything he did after would surprise. Then he stayed unpredictable. Here are ten shining examples.

"Picacho," 1017 Thug (2013)

Arguably still Thugger's greatest song, "Picacho" was the moment the world took notice that something very interesting was going on with Brick Squad's new protege. The squishy, toy-like beat was so bright and inviting while the MC himself rapped in the cadence of an indignant old man stricken with dementia, claiming his diamonds "they say Pikachu" and making slightly more sense with the punchline, "they gonna wink at you." It's hard to get one's head around even today, though it remains addictive, and he'd only go on to be weirder.

"Danny Glover," Black Portland (2014)

Another of Thug's finest, "Danny Glover" is where he hit his stride as a melodist weirdo, threading together some truly bizarre images: "I'ma save her, yes, like Danny Glover," "Money stand eight feet just like two midgets," "I'ma call my papi for her, f-ck her mother." It was underwritten by a Marilyn Manson-esque video that only made it more of a mystery for the Rap Internet to figure out whom it was dealing with.

Wearing a tunic on Instagram (2014)

Young Thug's boldest moves as a budding icon have concerned gender roles, and he shocked the rap world by sporting a leopard-spotted dress from the children's section on his Instagram. He'd go on to explain this year in a Billboard interview that his father would "whoop" him when he was 12 for wearing his sister's glitter shoes and make him stay home from school lest he embarrass the family. Doesn't get more punk than becoming famous for doing the thing your father told you not to do, and not many rappers as successful as Thugger have ever thrown such traditional roles of gender and sexuality to the wind as he has.

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"Lifestyle," Rich Gang (2014)

Sure, he finally broke the mainstream with the murmured "Stoner," but the victorious Top 20 hit "Lifestyle," by Thug's short-lived Rich Gang team-up with Rich Homie Quan and Birdman is where it's really at, with a surprisingly elegant beat, and unforgettable hook that's nonetheless as confusing as anything the rapper had yet done. His stretchy whine unrolls ribbons of seemingly nonsense syllables that can be parsed (if you squint) into pretty great poetry about "living life like a volcano" and "puffing on clouds." The word "volcano" later revealed to probably be "beginner," but the beauty of Thug is you can prefer the interpretation you heard first.

His performance of "About the Money" with T.I. on Fallon

Thug's fashion choices have been a cause celebre in themselves, sporting pink skintight jeans for Rich Gang's BET Awards performance, and obviously the spotted little girl's dress that made him a notorious enemy of previous masculine ideals in rap. But it was the brown, waiter-like jacket he wore on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to perform "About the Money" when the world of television was first wracked by this unflappably confounding character, who didn't look or act like any rappers before him.

His 2014-2015 interviews (2014-2015)

Don't let anyone tell you Young Thug isn't the newest Bob Dylan; when this journalist chased him down for weeks, he eventually spoke one syllable into the phone and handed it back to his assistant. He'd later claim to me over email that he won $25,000 in a craps game as a child, and tell Rolling Stone he got kicked out of middle school for breaking his teacher's arm, while balancing his toddler daughter on a knee in a smoke-filled room. The most revealing profile of all may have been GQ's last year, where he revealed he "doesn't have feelings," prefers to not eat for days (his waist is 26 inches), and mentioned his desire to work with Adele.

The saga of Barter 6's title (2015)

Thugger once described his three favorite rappers as "Lil Wayne, Lil Wayne, and Lil Wayne," so it's no surprise that during his hero's absence from releasing official albums, the young successor naturally decided to pay tribute by naming his first mixtape of 2015, Carter 6, and releasing the cover art, featuring a naked Thug. Sadly, Tunechi himself expressed displeasure at the homage, telling a Mississippi crowd, "I want y'all to do me a favor and stop listening to songs of niggas that pose naked on they motherfucking album cover."

Complicating matters, obviously, was the news to come out that Wayne would be suing his longtime mentor and label head Birdman -- who was in Rich Gang with Thugger and appears on the finished release -- but the title sounded more like an homage than a diss. Nevertheless, Young Thug changed the title to Barter 6 immediately following Wayne's comments, and released it to increased national attention.

Announcing his tour via horseback (2016)

While Thugger's supposed "debut album" Hy!UN35 may never actually arrive, he keeps fans pretty busy with three mixtapes a year these days, and no shortage of stunts -- like announcing his tour not with a press release but by riding a horse around the Plaza Theatre in Atlanta, Paul Revere-style. One bemused witness tweeted "If that's not peak Atlanta and peak Midtown I don't know what is."

Jeffery, especially the cover (2016)

Whether longtime fans admit it or not, this fall's Jeffery is the culmination of our collective, long-term investment in a very fractious artist who'd done all kinds of things prior, but not necessarily something for everyone. Some believe Thug's increasingly esoteric Slime Season releases were approaching a peak, others prefer the early oddness of 1017 Thug.

But Jeffery is unabashedly pop, focusing its melodies in a direction to actually be sung along to, and with the tropical-flavored Travis Scott smash "Pick Up the Phone" bringing up the rear to show for it. The best thing about it though, is the much-discussed cover art, featuring Thugger in a frilly gown and conical hat best described by Billboard's own Chris Martins as "geisha couture meets Mortal Kombat's Raiden." Considering his promise that "there will be two brides" at his own betrothal to swimwear designer Jerrika Karlae, it's the perfect image to sum up a pop enigma who's finally made good on the "pop" there for a whole record.

When your mama make u go to the airport and apologize ---- sorry love ones....

A photo posted by ""JEFFERY"" (@thuggerthugger1) on Dec 13, 2016 at 9:41am PST

His mom making him apologize to the airport workers he mocked (2016)

Young Thug's reputation, despite a fairly destructive lifestyle and a near-sociopathic difficulty in bonding with other human beings, has remained fairly positive, even when he drew criticism for his comments on the racist horrors of Ferguson in 2014. But this month, he posted video footage of himself on social media calling two black women who worked at Alaska Airlines "peasants" and "ants" and offering them $15,000 apiece to quit their jobs.

The backlash was swift, as it tends to be, and it seemed like Thug's amusingly alien manner of speaking to other human beings had finally gotten him in trouble. Somehow he managed to make his retribution charming, though, by claiming on Instagram that his mom sent him back to the airport to apologize to the women. As with everything he does, the story could be totally fabricated, but Jeffery's life is such a bizarre fantasy that it could also be totally real. Either way, there likely won't be any shortage of crazy Young Thug news as we enter 2017.
Queen Elizabeth IIs granddaughter Zara Tindall suffered a miscarriage, according to a representative. She and her husband Mike Tindall announced the pregnancy three weeks ago, saying they would welcome their second baby in the spring.

Very sadly, Zara and Mike Tindall have lost their baby, the couples representative said. At this difficult time, we ask that everyone respects their privacy.

The representative did not say what led to the miscarriage.

The Tindalls baby would have been the queens sixth great-grandchild. The couple, who exchanged vows in 2011, is already parents to Mia, who will turn three in January.

Buckingham Palace did not comment on the matter, calling it the couples private matter.

The 35-year-old Zara and 38-year-old Mike were last seen in public Dec. 20, in a car heading to a Christmas lunch hosted by the queen for the royal family members at Buckingham Palace, London.

Zara does not hold a royal title. Her mother is the queens daughter Anne, Princess Royal, who is second of her four children. Zara was reported to have spent Christmas with her family at their Gatcombe Park country estate home in Gloucestershire, which is Annes residence.

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Many of us are ecstatic to see 2016 come to a close, but the end of a month means a new selection of content is being removed from Netflix. Thankfully, the list isnt especially long for January 2017, but there are definitely a few gems on there youre going to want to get to before they disappear for good.

Don't Miss: Watch the first trailer for Attack on Titan season 2

You have less than a week left to watch these movies, but considering its the week after Christmas, theres a good chance you have some free time to sit down in front of the computer or the TV and waste a few hours.

These are our picks for the ten best movies departing Netflix streaming on January 1st:

Crash

Dazed and Confused

Ghost Town

Maid in Manhattan

Miracle on 34th Street

South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut

The Italian Job

Sixteen Candles

Saving Private Ryan

The Fast and the Furious

Often times, it can be hard to any worthwhile inclusions for this list (hence the occasional absence of the list from our monthly slate of articles), but this month, it was genuinely hard to pick just ten.

Not only did we have to leave off another fast, furious movie (Tokyo Drift), but we also couldnt make room for some a the fantastic 30 for 30 documentaries that are being taken off of Netflix at the beginning of the year. Honestly, its worth going through the whole list we shared earlier this month.

Dont forget to check out all of the new movies and TV shows being added to Netflix in January.

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See the original version of this article on BGR.com
The industry saw so many fights, all almost an attempt to trip the companies like Apple, Google, Samsung, Sony and HTC that were hoping to make it large in the market. Every time there was a company that seemed to surge in the market, one of its competitors filed a patent.

By Javed Anwer: Deja vu. One look at the current fight that has broken out between Apple and Nokia and that is the feeling you will get it. We have seen it in the phone market in the last several years. Again and again. The patent fights, including the one with Apple and Nokia -- at that time Nokia also used to make phones -- started after 2008 when it became clear that the smartphone market was going to be hot. The industry saw so many fights, all almost an attempt to trip the companies like Apple, Google, Samsung, Sony and HTC that were hoping to make it large in the market. Every time there was a company that seemed to surge in the market, one of its competitors filed a patent. Soon almost all major tech companies were part of patent fights. Nokia was fighting several, including Apple. Apple was fighting many, including Samsung.

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The industry's phone fights looked like this:

Image courtesy: Droid Life

But then as the years rolled on, the patent fights started to go down in intensity. The companies got tired, or rather realised that they couldn't trip their competitor using patents. At the same time, companies like Google which seemed on the backfoot gathered patents at a record breaking pace and spend billions of dollars in acquiring old phone patents -- Motorola was bought by Google for patents. This restored the balance in the industry and companies realised that patent fights would be kind of useless. Even Nokia and Apple settled in 2011. That is until a few days ago, when the two companies started the fight again.

Also Read: BlackBerry will rise from the ashes in January, Nokia in February

But if the history is any indication, this is a meaningless fight. Although before we talk about it, a quick recap of the latest Nokia vs Apple patent fight.

-- It is important to understand that there is more to this fight than what meets the eye. For one, Apple's fight is against a couple of Nokia subsidiaries. These subsidiaries have lots of Nokia's old patents. But they don't make networking equipment or phones. Instead, they are like patent trolls. They sue companies, hoping to extract some money using the patents they hold. And Apple has called them patent trolls, although before you say that Apple is the good guy here, remember that in the past Apple has used same patent troll tactics against Apple.

-- Apple fired first salvo this time by filing a lawsuit against Nokia related companies. In response, Nokia filed 32 cases against Apple in various countries.

-- Apple's argument is the classic argument that phone companies, which are at the receiving end of patent trolls employ. It says that the patents that Nokia related companies hold fall under FRAND. This means these patents have to be made available to any company at a reasonable rate because these are essential patents behind technology that powers smartphones. For long the FRAND has a been a bone of contention between the companies that have them and between those who don't. According to rules FRAND patents are available to all companies at a reasonable fee, however this is not something that FRAND patent holders like because they want more money in lieu of making the patents available to other companies.

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-- It is important to note that the Nokia and Apple fight comes just weeks before Nokia-branded Android phones hit the market in 2017. Although, it is also important to note that this fight is between Nokia, which makes network equipment, and Apple. HMD, which will make Nokia branded phones in 2017, is not the company that has been sued by Apple. Neither HMD is the company that is suing Apple.

All of it is meaningless

The most famous patent fight of all time is the fight between Apple and Samsung. The cases that the companies fought against each other are yet to reach their conclusion even though it has been nearly 5 years since they the two companies went after each other. Apple has tasted a lot of success in its fight but none that matters. Initially when Samsung was told to give over $1 billion in damages to Apple it seemed as if the US company had won big time. But that was in a lower court. As the fight reached higher courts, the damages that courts awarded shrunk. Just a few weeks however, the Supreme Court of the US overturned the decision of a lower court that had asked Samsung to pay $400 million. The case has been now sent back to the lower court for retrial.

Also Read: Nokia and Apple fight patent war ahead of Nokia's Android phone launch

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But the money was not something that was at the centre of the fight. The objective of the patent fight was to slow down the competitor. On that count neither Apple has succeeded, nor Samsung. Apple is the world's most profitable smartphone maker. Samsung is world's biggest phone maker in terms of volume. It still sells and makes the same kind of phones, only better, that it was making in 2012. All Apple phones, despite Samsung's countersuits, have the same features, only better now, that they had in 2012.

It is safe to say that for both Samsung and Apple, their big patent fight has been nothing but an unnecessary distraction that gives them no tangible gain. And the same I suspect will be the case with the Nokia and the Apple patent fight. The patent fights between two companies that can spend millions of dollars in courts never reach any conclusion that will satisfy any party.

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So, why are the Apple and Nokia fighting? The answer is that they have money, and that they want better terms when they negotiate again for patents. Especially after what we have seen in the last decade, this patent fight may have started with a bang but it will fizzle out in a couple of years with neither Apple nor Nokia gaining anything from it.

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Natdanai Kongdee, third from right, is interviewed at the police headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, Dec 26, 2016. Police in Thailand have charged 19-year-old Kongdee in connection with a series of recent hacking attacks on government computers that were billed as a protest against a restrictive law governing internet use. (AP Photo/Tassanee Vejpongsa)

BANGKOK (AP)  Police in Thailand on Monday charged a suspect with participating in recent hacking attacks on government computers that were billed as a protest against a restrictive law governing internet use.

Natdanai Kongdee, 19, was one of nine people arrested in connection with the attacks that blocked access to some websites and accessed non-public files, Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said.

Police said he was a low-level hacker rather than a leader and had confessed to participating in the attacks. They said he belonged to several online groups specializing in hacking activities.

Natdanai was present at Monday's news conference but did not speak. He was charged with gaining unauthorized access to police data, along with illegal possession of firearms and marijuana, allegedly found when police searched his house.

The legal status of the other people arrested was not explained.

Groups promoting the attacks say they are in protest of passage of revisions to Thailand's Computer Crime Act, which would restrict freedom of speech and facilitate targeting political dissidents. The new law would allow Thai authorities to intercept private communication and to censor websites without a court order.

In addition to the leaking of documents, government sites have been subject to distributed denial of service, or DDoS, attacks, where access is denied by overloading the online server with requests. A Facebook group encouraged a simple version of such attacks by suggesting people repeatedly reload them by pressing the F5 key.

"He (Natdanai) was naive to believe the (Facebook) group and hack into the system," Siripong Timula of the police's technology department said.

The Facebook group, with the name Citizens Against Single Gateway, earlier this month called for a "cyberwar."

Its name reflects activists' concerns about plans for a single gateway through which all international internet traffic would pass. The government claims such a system is necessary for national security, but opposition from many sectors has made the government evasive about whether it plans to implement a single gateway.

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The group on Dec. 19 claimed responsibility for temporarily bringing down the Thai defense ministry's website.

Since then, it has claimed to have brought down websites for Thailand's military, customs department, police, foreign affairs ministry and additional government websites. Other hackers, operating as part of the informal activist network Anonymous, have been posting data they say is from government computers.

Police said Monday that their systems are still "well protected" and that the attacks constitute minor hacks.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said, "If we do not have any laws or write it down to make it clearer and if they continue to do this, what can we do?" Should hackers simply be allowed to poke into personal data, he asked reporters rhetorically.

"We've talked about it many times. Everything is passed. Talk about something else," said Prayuth, who is noted for his brusque manner of speaking.
Thailand's broadly-worded bill bans people from uploading anything deemed "in breach of good morality" and empowers a new committee to take down websites (AFP Photo/Pornchai Kittiwongsakul) (AFP/File)

Thai authorities have detained at least nine people on suspicion of hacking, a senior junta official said Monday, following days of disruption to government websites sparked by the passing of a controversial cyber censorship law.

Earlier this month Thailand's rubber-stamp parliament unanimously approved a new security law that will make it much easier for the junta to scrub the web of content it dislikes.

The broadly-worded bill bans people from uploading anything deemed "in breach of good morality" and empowers a new committee to take down websites.

Since the bill's passing, hactivists have targeted Thai government websites.

Some have been temporarily disabled by so-called denial of service attacks -- a type of assault that overwhelms a website using networks of computers -- while some hackers claim to have breached government databases and made off with sensitive material.

Rumours had swirled for days that the military had made some arrests. But official confirmation only came on Monday.

"We have arrested some hackers, there were about nine people and we will continue arresting them," deputy prime minister Prawit Wongsuwan, the junta's number two, told reporters.

Since the generals seized power in 2014 national security offences are primarily handled by the military, with confirmation of detentions often only coming days after someone disappears.

On Monday police in Bangkok paraded a 19-year-old hacking suspect who had been handed to them by the military after undergoing interrogation for an unspecified number of days.

"The suspect confessed that he faked an identity and accessed the system (of) the royal police office," Supaset Chokchai, commander of the national police's computer crimes unit, told reporters.

Rights groups and cyber activists have vowed to challenge the new law in the courts.

Thailand already has a string of laws that opponents say curbs debate, including a draconian lese majeste offence outlawing criticism of the monarchy and sweeping legislation on criminal defamation.

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The new cyber law is itself an update of the 2007 Computer Crimes Act which was initially drawn up to target criminals using the web for scams, but later morphed into a tool to pursue critics.

Many of those charged with royal defamation in recent years have found themselves simultaneously hit with computer crime charges.

Thailand's junta have largely curbed public dissent by banning political gatherings and arresting those who demonstrate.

As a result the internet remains one of the few areas where discussion can take place but often at great risk.

Royal defamation, sedition and computer crime cases have skyrocketed under military rule, often for comments made on social media.

Critics say the new cyber law will also do little to further the junta's stated aim of turning the kingdom into a regional digital hub.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. Based on the information of the mass media, concerns were spread on December 24 over the imprisonment conditions and health status of Armenian citizen Hrachya Harutyunyan who is serving sentence in Russia.

Taking into account this Armenias Ombudsman Arman Tatoyan held a phone conversation with High Commissioner for Human Rights of Russia Tatiana Moskalkova over this issue, the Armenian Ombudsmans office told Armenpress.

Agreement was reached that the representatives of the Russian High Commissioner for Human Rights will pay a special visit to Hrachya Harutyunyan in order to clarify whether the above-mentioned issues correspond to reality.
Freedom fighter or terrorist?

One question ITT has asked again and again: Who are the real terrorists? In a July 1985 essay on the hijacking of TWA Flight 847 by Islamist groups, Noam Chomsky writes, The term terrorism has lost all meaning as administration propaganda has redefined it to omit acts by its friends.  For the powerful, the weapons of the weak are an abomination, while their own wholesale terrorism is merely the prerogative of more civilized people. The current scene offers little that is new, apart, perhaps, from the depths of cynicism that have been revealed.

That cynicism is on full display in the torture manuals developed and used throughout the 1980s by the School of the Americas, a U.S. training school for Latin American military personnel. After a hard-won fight by human rights activists, the manuals were made public in 1996, and as Lisa Haugaard writes in October of that year, they regard basic exercises of democracy as tools of terrorists. As one manual states, Many terrorists  use the [democratic process] to advance their causes. Haugaard concludes that this paint-all-dissent-as-terrorism tactic was effectively exported to justify killing thousands of religious leaders, students, union members and human rights activists.

This early attention to the political versatility of the word has made ITT particularly effective in the post-9/11 world. ITTs war-rhetoric radar was attuned as world leaders rushed to tar every threat as terrorist in order to gain U.S. support for their pet invasions. Peace and anti-war movements struggled to maintain a sense of global solidarity and restraint, and turned to this magazine for guidance, connection and insight.

Tom Tomorrow, from a 2002 issue of In These Times

Woven through all of this are U.S. economic interests operating hand in glove with political interests. We see this right up through Operation Enduring Freedom, the Bush administrations invasion and occupation of Iraq. While many in the peace movement focused on the wrongness of the invasionno weapons of mass destruction, no connection to 9/11, no nuclear smoking gunAntonia Juhasz, in a January 2007 ITT article, quotes the CIAs senior expert on al-Qaeda, who quit in disgust in 2004, saying, The U.S. invasion of Iraq was  an avaricious, premeditated, unprovoked war against a foe who posed no immediate threat but whose defeat did offer economic advantages. Smack down! Juhasz then explains how the U.S. got its hands on that sweet Iraqi oil, negotiating the U.S.-Middle East Free Trade Area with a shocked and awed region in no position to deal from strength.

We bring the bomb to life

When it comes to whos a terrorist and whose human rights matter, why does the United States get to be the great definer? Our bloated nuclear arsenal cant hurt. In These Times sees this more clearly than most and covers nuclear weapons, nuclear power and the anti-nuclear movement with considered depth.

As a child of the anti-nuclear movement, I particularly appreciate the reportingforeign and domesticon that movements tensions, shortcomings and victories. Here it is, covered like what it isnews! This point was driven home by a series of articles about the merger of two very different anti-nuclear organizations in 1987. It is not quite the breathless coverage of Bayers bid to buy Monsanto, but the pros and cons of consolidating FREEZEs strong grassroots presence and ability to mobilize thousands with SANEs more top-down, Beltway-focused expertise are weighed and debated within ITTs pages over several months, culminating in December 1987s The Sane/Freeze Merger by Dennis Sadowski, which recounts the 201-1 vote to merge.

ITT also appreciates that the anti-nuclear movement goes beyond the superpower capitals. In the October 1983 article Third World Crisis is Nuclear Trigger, James Petras and Morris Morley express frustration that Western anti-nuclear activists werent centering the concerns of those in the Global South, who, the piece argues, are likely to suffer most in the next nuclear war. This message has been carried through the decades and, thankfully, heard loud and clear by the international activist community.

As a resident of the Submarine Capital of the WorldGroton, Conn.my favorite nuclear article (never thought Id write that phrase) is Daze of Dolphins by Joel Schechter in June 1990, a tongue-in-cheek imagining of a World War III started by dolphins trained to protect nuclear subs, who use their snout-mounted guns to take over Moscow and Washington. We still have to laugh; ITT gets that.

Four more years of empire?

Big media has changed in the last 40 years. It has consolidated, constricted, gotten faster and more superficial. But the tendency to tell only one story at a time has not changed. I am happy to report that In These Times bucked this trend. There are so many stories herefrom every corner of the globe. Richly reported, full of vivid detail and embroidered with critique and hope. That attention to the craft of reporting and writing must be maintained even as the publics attention span degrades.

Looking forward 40 years, what will we need from independent progressive media?

A perpetual wake-up call! Even the most horrific tragedies get old, and we need to be reminded to keep paying attention to Afghanistanyou know, that war weve been embroiled in for the past 15 years. How about abuses of executive power, torture and indefinite detention, bombings? We need a call to rebuild a peace movement that can take on all of thisand so much more.
The applicant's sign

Is a figurative sign representing a hand with a raised middle finger contrary to morality and public order?





This is the question that the Swedish Patent and Registration Office (PRV) had to address in an interesting application concerning a sign of this kind [see also here for another commentary on this case]





Katfriend Nedim Malovic (Sandart & Partners) explains how things went.





Here's what Nedim writes:





"Mr Daza (the applicant) had submitted an application to the Patent- och Registreringsverket (PRV) to have a figurative mark registered for goods and services in Class 35 (information regarding consumer demand, commercial trade and consumer information; consumer goods; products for consumers) of the Nice Classification.





The figurative sign reproduced features and colours somewhat similar to that of a Facebook like button. However, instead of a thumbs up, it portrayed a hand with a raised middle finger [see above, on the right] .





The applicant argued that it was not evident or defined that it was actually the middle finger pointing up and that just showing the middle finger does not violate any law. Either way, showing the middle finger cannot be regarded as intended to offend, but rather something to express dissatisfaction. Denying the mark registration would be contrary to freedom of expression.





The assessment





Chapter 2-7 of the Swedish Trade Mark Act states that a mark cannot be registered if it is contrary to morality or public order. Chapter 2-18 of the same Act states that an application should be rejected if an obstacle to registration subsists, either before or after the applicant has submitted his/her application.





held The figurative mark in question contains a hand where a middle finger is raised. Such gesture was said to be immediately perceived by the general public as offensive: the PRV therefore that registering this would be contrary to morality and public order.





Offensive Kat

A couple of observations





Je suis Charlie





Despite the applicant seeking to convey a message of dissatisfaction through that figurative mark, the decision of the PRV is not really surprising, and is in line with existing office practices and case law on absolute grounds for refusal relating to morality/public order.





In relation to morality/public order it may be worth recalling the recent discussion  also reported on this blog (see here and here ) Je suis Charlie mark and whether that mark could be considered ineligible for registration on such grounds. In January 2016 the EUIPO (at the time still OHIM) issued a  regarding themark and whether that mark could be considered ineligible for registration on such grounds. In January 2016 the EUIPO (at the time still OHIM) issued a statement concerning speculative trade mark applications for the phrase Je suis Charlie. There the Office stated that:





An application which consisted of or which contained the phrase "Je suis Charlie" would probably be subject to an objection under Article 7 (1) (f) of the Community Trade Mark Regulation [now EU Trade Mark Regulation] , due to the fact that the registration of such a trade mark could be considered "contrary to public policy or to accepted principles of morality" and also on the basis of Artice 7(1)(b) as being devoid of distinctive character.





Overlooking the fact that Je suis Charlie may be devoid of distinctive character and focusing instead on the actual notion of morality and public order it would appear that such notions depend on the specific circumstances at hand and are conditional on what at the time of the relevant application appears to be appropriate. The question one could raise is whether the Je suis Charlie word mark could be regarded as being contrary to morality and public order many years after the tragic events that took place in Paris in 2015.





The "Screw you" application

Does public morality and order change over time?





The question whether morality and public orders are notions that change over time is not an academic one, and offices (including the UK Intellectual Property Office and EUIPO) have been asked to address it a number of times.





A notorious example is the one concerning the phrase "Screw you".





In 2006 Mr Kenneth failed to register the term Screw you as a Community trade mark (now EU trade mark) because of its offensive nature. The trade mark had been initially designated for a wide variety of goods and services. The OHIM examiner turned down the original application on the basis that it did not comply with principles of morality. The examiner in question also stated that the word screw equated to the word f**k and was therefore insulting.





stated The OHIM Grand Board of Appeal later that the term was not equally offensive, but confirmed that it was a profanity. Public swearing was more acceptable then than it had been 30 years before, but that the liberties extended to artistic expression were not necessarily to be extended to commercial expression. It did however permit registration in relation to some of the goods encompassed by the original application, eg goods sold in sex shops such as sex toys and condoms.





Finally





[see here instead for a different outcome in the recent US litigation between Louis Vuitton and My Other Bag] The PRV rejected finger application at the application stage, but it might be interesting to consider what would have happened should have the office allowed publication of the application. It is hardly conceivable that registration of the sign at hand would have eventually been obtained, also considering its apparent similarities with the signs of other, better-known undertakings, and also the fact that in trade mark law parodies do not really have a place, at least in Europe "




By James Kunstler on 26 December 2016 for Kunstler.com -

Image above: An egret on the back of an alligator in a kind of partnership. From ( http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/blogs/swamp-birds-sacrifice-babies-alligator-bodyguards ).

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SUBHEAD: Obama was a bird with elegant plumage that sang a song every sunrise to the reptiles who stirred in the mud.By now, anyone in this country still of sound mind knows that Barack Obama presided through eight years of remarkable continuity  of changeless conditions that left a great many hopeless. As the days of his tenure dwindle, what do we make of the departing 44president?He played the role with cool-headed decorum, but that raises the question: was he just playing a role?From the get-go, he made himself hostage to some of the most sinister puppeteers of the Deep State:Robert Rubin, Larry Summers, and Tim Geithner on the money side, and the Beltway Neocon war party infestation on the foreign affairs side. Im convinced that the top dogs of both these gangs worked Obama over woodshed-style sometime after the 2008 election and told him to stick with the program, or else.What was the program? On the money side, it was to float the banks and the whole groaning daisy chain of their dependents in shadow finance, real estate, and insurance, at all costs.Hence, the extension of Bush Twos bailout policy with the trillion-dollar shovel-ready stimulus, the rescue of the car-makers, and a much greater and surreptitious multi-trillion dollar hand-off from the Federal Reserve to backstop the European banks with counter-party obligations to US banks.In April of 2009, Obamas new SEC appointees, strong-armed by bank lobbyists, pushed the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) into suspending their crucial Rule 157, which had required publically-held companies to report their asset holdings based on standard market-based valuation procedures  called mark-to-market.After that, companies like Too-Big-Too-Fail banks could just make shit up.This opened the door to the pervasive accounting fraud that allowed the financial sector to pretend it was healthy for the eight years that followed. The net effect of their criminal fakery was to only make the financial sector artificially larger, more dangerously fragile, and more prone to cataclysmic collapse.Another feature of life on the money-side of the Obama presidency was that nobody paid a personal price for financial misconduct. This established the basic ethos of Obama-era finance:. All the regulators looked the other way most of the time.And when forced to act by egregious behavior, they made deals that let banking executives off-the-hook while their companies shelled out fines that amounted to the mere cost of doing business. It happened again and again.The poster boy for this kind of policy  or just plain racketeering  was Jon Corzine, the head of the commodities brokerage MF Global, whose company looted segregated customer accounts to the tune of nearly a billion dollars in the fall of 2011. Corzine was never prosecuted and remains at large to this day.Another signal failure in the money realm was Obamas response to the 2010 Citizen United Supreme Court decision, which declared that the alleged legal personhood of corporations entitled them to exercise free speech by giving as much money as they wanted to political candidates for election. Big business no longer had to just rent congressmen and senators, they could buy them outright with cash.A conservative Supreme Court made the call, but Obama could have acted forcefully in the face of it. The former constitutional law professor-turned-politician could have marshaled a response in his Democratic Party-controlled congress to draft legislation, or a constitutional amendment, that would properly redefine the personhood of corporations.It should be obvious, for instance, that corporations, unlike human citizens, do not have duties, obligations, and responsibilities to the public interest; by legal charter they have only to answer to their shareholders and boards of directors.How does this confer the kind of political free speech rights that the court allowed them to claim?And how did the Obama and his allies in the legislative branch roll over to allow this disgraceful affront to the constitution to stand?And how is that almost nobody in the mainstream press or academic law even pressed these issues? Thanks to all of them, weve set up the primary means for establishing a fascist Deep State: the official marriage of corporate money and politics.Finally, in foreign affairs, there is Obamas mystifying campaign against the Russian Federation. The US had an agreement with Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union that we would not expand NATO if they gave us a quantity of nuclear material that was in danger of falling into questionable hands in the disorder that followed the collapse. Russia complied.What did we do?We expanded NATO to include most of the former eastern European countries (except the remnants of Yugoslavia), and then under Obama, NATO began holding war games on Russias border.For what reason? The fictitious notion that Russia wanted to take back these nations  as if they needed to adopt a host of dependents that had only recently bankrupted the Soviet state. Any reasonable analysis would call these war games naked aggression by the West.Then there was the 2014 US State Department-sponsored coup against Ukraines elected government and the ousting of President Viktor Yanukovych. Why? Because his government wanted to join the Russian-led Eurasian Customs Union instead of an association with European Union.We didnt like that and we decided to oppose it by subverting the Ukrainian government. In the violence and disorder that ensued, Russia took back the Crimea  which had been gifted to the former Ukraine Soviet Socialist Republic (a province of Soviet Russia) one drunken night by the Ukraine-born Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. What did we expect after turning Ukraine into another failed state?The Crimean peninsula had been part of Russia for longer than the US had been a country. Its only warm water naval ports were located there. They held a referendum and the Crimean people voted overwhelmingly to return to Russia. So, President Obama decided to punish Russia with economic sanctions.Then there was Syria, a battleground between the different branches of Islam, their sponsors (Iran and Saudi Arabia), and their proxies, (Hezbollah and the various Salafist jihad armies). The US solution was to sponsor the downfall of the legitimate Syrian government under Bashar al-Assad.We apparently still favored foreign relations based on creating failed states  after our experience in Iraq, Somalia, Libya, and Ukraine. President Obama completely muffed his initial attempt at intervention  the line-in-the-sand moment  and then decided to send arms and money to the various Salafist jihadi groups fighting Assad, claiming that our bad guys were moderates.Meanwhile, Russia stepped in to prop up Assads government, apparently based on the idea that the Middle East didnt need yet another failed state. We castigated Russia for that.The idiotic behavior of the US toward Russia in these matters led to the most dangerous state of relations between the two since the heart of the Cold War. It culminated in the ridiculous campaign this fall to blame Russia for the defeat of Hillary Clinton. And here we are.I didnt vote for Hillary or Donald Trump (I wrote-in David Stockman). Im not happy to see Donald Trump become president. But Ive had enough of Mr. Obama. He put up a good front. He seemed congenial and intelligent.But in the end, he appears to be a kind of stooge for the darker forces in Americas overgrown bureaucratic Deep State racketeering operation. Washington truly is a swamp that needs to be drained.Barack Obama was not one of the alligators in it, but he was some kind of bird with elegant plumage that sang a song of greeting at every sunrise to the reptiles who stirred in the mud.And now he is flying away.
As Israel seeks help from Trump, Netanyahu spox accuses Obama of orchestrating UN resolution

Speaking to Fox News on Sunday, David Keyes said Arab sources, among others, had informed Jerusalem of Obamas alleged involvement in advancing the resolution.

We have rather ironclad information from sources in both the Arab world and internationally that this was a deliberate push by the United States and in fact they helped create the resolution in the first place, Keyes told the US media outlet.

The White House has adamantly denied cooking up the resolution, rejecting accusations by Netanyahu to that effect.

We did not draft this resolution; we did not introduce this resolution. we made this decision when it came up for a vote, said Obamas deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes on Friday. But because of its opposition to settlement activity and concern for what it could mean for the region, the US could not in good conscience veto, he added.

Netanyahu is now reaching out to the incoming Trump administration, which takes office on January 20, and to friends in Congress, in the hope of deterring what he sees as further potential Obama administration-led diplomatic action against Israel, the Channel 2 report said. His aim is for the Trump team to make plain that his administration will economically hurt those countries that voted against Israel in the UN and that do so in the future.

Netanyahus fear is that Secretary of State John Kerry will set out principles or parameters for a Palestinian state in a speech that he has said he will deliver in the next few days on his Middle East vision. The prime minister fears that, in its final days, the Obama administration will seek to have a resolution enshrining those parameters adopted by the UN Security Council, the report said.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Netanyahu with what's described as ' ironclad intelligence ' is accusing the Obama administration of orchestrating the introduction and passage of UN Security Council Resolution 2334 on Friday.I'd believe just about anyone before I'd believe Ben Meanwhile, Israel is seeking help from President-elect Donald Trump There are three questions here. First, can Trump deter other nations from cooperating with Obama by threatening them economically? Second, is he willing to use that power if he has it? And third, what price will Israel have to pay in order to get to Trump to act?In the meantime, hundreds of Syrians are dying daily on Obama's watch, but hey, no Jews involved so what difference does it make?Oh and by the way, as bad as this situation is, can you imagine how much worse it would be if the President elect were Hillary Clinton?

Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Binyamin Netanyahu, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, United Nations Security Council, United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334
About Me

Name: Carl in Jerusalem Location: Jerusalem, Israel

I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com

View my complete profile
Obama's hatred of Israel isn't just personal animus against Netanyahu

Mr. Obamas animus toward Prime Minister Netanyahu is well known. Apparently Mr. Obama took it as an affront that the President-elect would express an opinion about this weeks U.N. resolution.

It is important, though, to see this U.S. abstention as more significant than merely Mr. Obamas petulance. What it reveals clearly is the Obama Administrations animus against the state of Israel itself. No longer needing Jewish votes, Mr. Obama was free, finally, to punish the Jewish state in a way no previous President has done.

I call upon the Obama administration to veto this resolution against Israel at the UNSC.>>    (@yairlapid) December 23, 2016

The nations of the world should know that on this issue there is no coalition or opposition in Israel.>>    (@yairlapid) December 23, 2016

A decision like this will provide a tailwind for terror and violence. It won't advance negotiations, it will only obstruct them.    (@yairlapid) December 23, 2016

No effort to rescind the resolution, which calls the settlements a violation of international law, will succeed because of Russias and Chinas vetoes.

Instead, the resolution will live on as Barack Obamas cats paw, offering support in every European capital, international institution and U.S. university campus to bully Israel with the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.

At the cabinet meeting yesterday the experts on foreign affairs presented a scenario in which Obama could even on his last day in office cause harm to Israel.

The concern is that Obama may promote a move in the UN Security Council giving guidelines for a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians and the establishment of a Palestinian state. Israel would find it hard to present an alternative model after these guidelines are set.

The experts on foreign affairs also posed another concern regarding the Paris conference which is supposed to take place during the course of February. At the conference a pro-Palestinian peace initiative may be presented and could be viewed as authoritative if it is adopted.

When Barack Hussein Obama ordered his UN ambassador to abstain in Friday's vote against the 'settlements' at the United Nations, it wasn't just personal animus against Prime Minister Netanyahu.What Obama did on Friday went against the views of the vast majority of the US Congress, the vast majority of the American people, and of course, the vast majority of Israelis - including the sane part of the Israeli Left.For those who speak Hebrew, there's a video of Lapid blasting the resolution on Saturday here What Obama did on Friday will permanently cloud the possibility of any kind of peace. This is from the first link, a Wall Street Journal editorial.Here in Israel, there's a palpable fear that the mamzer in the White House isn't done ' punishing ' us yet.I'm less concerned about what could happen in February - when Donald Trump is President - than I am about what could happen in the next three weeks.Obama has earned the title    - may his name and memory be obliterated. May God Bring that about speedily and in our time.

Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, BDS, Binyamin Netanyahu, China, Russia, two-state solution, United Nations Security Council, United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334, Yair Lapid
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. Former Defense Minister of Armenia Seyran Ohanyan presented his stances over the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement.

Armenpress presents his stances:

I deeply believe that every figure submitting an application for political activity in Armenia has to first of all present his/her stance on the Karabakh conflict which is very important for the regions security. And I want to present my principled stance clearly and without ambiguities.

1. Armenia must find an honorable peace formula with its neighbors, including Azerbaijan. The resources and efforts of our state and entire Armenian people must be served for that purpose. 10-million-strong Armenians are capable of ensuring the development and security of Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh. The understanding of this idea and the associated activities significantly change our weight both in the South Caucasus and international arena. Huge works must be carried out on that path, and, of course, there are people and circles who can implement it.

2. We, those who have passed the military path, know at best the price of peace. In order to achieve countrys development and honorable peace, it is necessary to develop a new formula taking into account the factor of constant foreign threat, regional and international developments, various interests of global powers and conflicts of interests. Thus, we must be vigilant.

3. The Karabakh issue is not an obstacle on the way of having developing and secure Armenian statehood, rather it is quite the contrary. The view that Armenia cannot develop without the quick solution of the Karabakh conflict, is fundamentally wrong. This is not only far from reality, but it simply weakens Armenias positions in the negotiation process. We must develop Armenia in order to solve the Karabakh issue and ensure lasting peace.

4. Our unilateral concessions or quick and unjustified mutual concessions will increase the possibility of restoring the war rather than ensuring peace, and in that case we will have an unfavorable starting point from military point of view.

5. The OSCE Minsk Group, separate states, first of all, Russia, the international community carry out important mediatory mission by trying to find the formula of peaceful settlement. In my opinion, the key of solution of the Karabakh issue is in Yerevan and Stepanakert which must find an option of agreement with Baku.

6. It is necessary to develop relations with allies and partners which is possible only by raising the weight and rating of your own country.

7. In order to significantly increase the security level of Armenia and the NKR and act from the positions of strong in the negotiation process, it is necessary to create a developing and competitive economic system. Our country must have a sustainable development, an atmosphere of tolerance and fair competition must be established in the country, a real progress must be achieved in all sectors of life.

8. The only guarantors for the security of Armenia and the NKR are our soldiers and officers, the Armenian Army.

9. I believe that the Karabakh conflict can be solved through negotiations, peaceful means. We can have mutual agreement with Azerbaijan and we must work on it. As long as the atmosphere of mutual trust is not formed between the conflicting sides, it is difficult to achieve progress in the negotiation process.

Mutual agreement will be possible only in case when Azerbaijan will refuse from aggressive-expansionist ambitions by accepting the result of self-determination of the Karabakh-Armenians, the existence of the Karabakh state. This is the formula of peaceful existence between our two peoples.

10. Having a free and dignified citizen is the main guarantee of ensuring the security of the two Armenian states. All Armenia-centered forces must make efforts to reach positive changes in the domestic life and forming a society comprised of that quality citizens.
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YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. The Iranian Presidents visit to Armenia affirmed the further development opportunities of the Armenian-Iranian close relations, Director of the International Secretariat of the ARF Bureau Giro Manoyan told reporters summarizing the years regional developments, reports Armenpress.

The general foreign political issues, a number of regional developments presented for Armenia both challenges and opportunities. The opportunities related to especially the Armenian-Iranian relations. The agreements reached during the Presidents visit, the fact of the visit itself speak about the Armenian-Iranian close relations. The events in Turkey created certain uncertainties for Armenia since Turkey, in fact, is the country that allows itself to conduct military operations beyond its borders without being invited. We must be vigilant on this issue, he said.

Speaking about the Armenian-Russian relations, Manoyan said the fact that the promised Russian ammunition has arrived in Armenia quite later can be considered as progress.

Our fair expectation over the appointment of one of the Armenian figures as CSTO Secretary General didnt come true. This shows that the CSTO member states are not so enthusiastic about the Armenian achievements to be recorded in that path. As for the US, it is still unknown what the President-elect will do concerning the regional states while assuming his post, Giro Manoyan said.
People will get a chance to record their views Friday on a controversial new death penalty protocol.

While Attorney General Doug Peterson called the scheduled administrative hearing just part of the required process, Department of Correctional Services Director Scott Frakes last week promised to keep an open mind about testimony during the scheduled five-hour hearing.

ACLU of Nebraska and Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers are expected to weigh in with their objections. And the Nebraska Pharmacists Association will send a letter with that group's concerns.

The protocol was developed within weeks after three-fifths of voting Nebraskans nullified the Legislature's 2015 repeal of the death penalty. It comes at a time when death sentences nationwide are down 39 percent in 2016 from the record low set last year.

The new protocol proposes flexibility in what lethal injection drugs are used, by not designating those drugs. And the type and quantity of drugs would not be disclosed to a condemned prisoner until 60 days before a request for a death warrant.

The new execution protocol was crafted by an attorney for the Department of Correctional Services, Julie Smith, using the current protocol as a guide. At present, it calls for three specific drugs to be used: sodium thiopental, pancuronium bromide and potassium chloride.

When Smith wrote the proposed changes, she apparently did it without drafts, and no written communication with Gov. Pete Ricketts' office, Attorney General Doug Peterson's office, Director Scott Frakes, outside experts or other states' officials. No paper trails whatsoever.

A Freedom of Information request for copies of emails, documents or correspondence related to development of the new protocol, or information exchanged with Director Scott Frakes, Department of Corrections employees, the Department of Administrative Services, the governor's office or his policy office, or anyone outside of state government, yielded two emails and two news releases.

The emails were brief and related to setting up the Dec. 30 hearing and a request from a person in the governor's policy office for the public notice of the protocol.

Julie Smith said no drafts or revisions, and no records of consultation with anyone exist. And she did not answer more informal questions about who she consulted with and how she wrote the protocol.

Frakes said last week he worked with Smith on the protocol. But most of it was just a matter of her removing past language, and adding other language.

She made changes to 43 of 53 section descriptors and subsections of the protocol.

Substantial changes were made in what drugs would be used, who will be notified of the type of drugs and when, and the process of carrying out the execution.

Communications Director Dawn-Renee Smith also said there were no drafts in creating the new protocol to show the director or anyone else, and no written communication about it.

"It is what it is, and what you now see," she said.

Frakes said he depended on his department attorneys to help guide him in the protocol process.

"But in the end it will be my signature that is on that protocol," he said.

"This is a process. That's why we have a hearing, so we'll see what the results of the hearing are and if any additional changes have to be made.

"I've got to have an open mind on this."

The pharmacists association has concerns about the protocol as it is written, said Joni Cover, association chief executive officer. The organization hasn't taken a stand on the death penalty itself, she said.

"But we do have lots of concerns about including a pharmacist without any sort of immunity legislation," Cover said.

The protocol says a pharmacist or pharmaceutical chemist could deliver the drugs to the execution chamber, and does not mention immunity. But the lethal injection law does say a licensing board cannot discipline a pharmacist for participating in a court-ordered execution.

It appears to be silent, however, on immunity from lawsuits.

Cover said another concern is the vagueness about the types of drugs and how they are to be procured. And by state law, a pharmacist has to have a prescription or medical order to prepare, dispense or administer a medication. The lethal injection law says the drug may be dispensed without a prescription upon written request of the Corrections director.

The pharmacists also have concerns about the drug compounding language in the protocol, she said.

"I'm not sure, when this was drafted, if there was any discussion with a medical professional," Cover said.

Sen. Ernie Chambers said recently he intends to go to Friday's hearing, and is concerned about the lack of transparency the protocol allows.

Anything the government does in the name of and on behalf of the people should be done in plain sight, he said, without camouflaging and making it seem like it's something that it's not.

Chambers, too, takes exception to giving people, such as the pharmacists, who are guided by a code of ethics when they enter the profession a shield to knowingly violate their ethics. It is just another corrupting factor associated with the death penalty, he said, to throw principles out the window and turn normally honest people into intentional violators of their own ethics.

"The state can't make it right by saying a person is shielded by sanctions from its licensing board," he said.

He sees flaws in the protocol that rise to a constitutional level, he said.

ACLU of Nebraska has been seeking signatures on an online petition that calls for transparency, not to hide important parts of the protocol from the public. As of Friday, about 1,400 signatures had been collected. The organization will submit the petition at this week's hearing.
Bill Clinton has figured out why his wife lost the presidential election. It was angry white men, the Russians and FBI director James Comey. More nearly, in fact, it was angry white women, Americans and Bubba himself.

Clinton revealed his own angry conclusions in an impromptu session at a New York bookstore, calling Donald Trump dumb except in his ability to get presumably dumber white men to vote for him.

Many did, of course, but the unexpected voter whammy for Hillary Clinton  at one point happily set to be the first woman president, espousing feminist causes every other minute and shown in polls to be killing Trump with the female vote  was what white women actually did at the ballot box.

Trump got 53 percent of their votes. Inevitable Hillary turned out to be disposable Hillary because many in the white middle class of both genders felt let down and left out. Much of this has been revealed in surveys showing concern, for instance, about the future of beloved children and how once-glowing opportunities have turned dim.

And the electoral effect of Clinton campaign emails that were supposedly supplied to WikiLeaks by Russians cheering for Trump? There is no way of knowing for sure, but a safe bet is that it was somewhere between nil and very little.

As Bill Clinton himself used to say about what wins and loses elections, its the economy, stupid. And here was Trump talking about turning things upside down for the sake of economic oomph while Hillary Clinton preached same old, same old. It probably did not impress some Americans much when she also called them names during one of her endless huddles with rich donors likely convinced they were making a sound investment in maintaining the status quo.

Now we get to Comey, beloved by Democrats when he let Hillary Clinton off the prosecutorial hook even as he revealed how incredibly careless she had been with national security information as secretary of state. The infatuation turned to fury when it became public through a letter to Congress that he was reopening the investigation with 11 days left before the election.

The news likely hurt, but other things were hurting more, such as new information on Obamacare costs, and, at any rate, Bill Clinton can be seen as being as much the villain as Comey in this announcement.

Comey could have been stopped. Attorney General Loretta Lynch had authority to do it. It was her call. She had in fact made clear to Comey that she did not want him to do what he did, that she thought it violated Justice Department protocols. So why didnt she flat-out say no?

Perhaps because she had been compromised? Bill Clinton had gone out of his way at an airport to sneakily visit her on her private plane. This was when the investigation was going on, and both had to know that, if the chat time became publicized, they would be seen as secretly conniving on how to save Hillary.

To go ahead with it anyway suggests Clinton thought it was worth the risk to keep his wife out of trouble. And the possibility of such a discovery did not stop Lynch. Why not? Maybe she was just taken by surprise and temporarily befuddled about what to do. She later said how much she regretted the meeting.

At any rate, here is my surmise. When she could have stopped Comey, she did not because she knew everyone would point to the airplane confab and assume she had come to a political understanding. Her reputation would be in shreds. Forever after, she would be identified as politically corrupt. Many would not see it as her legal expertise and conscience at work but as Bill Clinton at work. You be the jury.

Obviously much more was at play in the election outcome than the factors mentioned above, but ongoing Clintonian duplicity is surely part of what defeated Hillary.
In a country where 30 percent of the population still believes that man-made climate change is a myth, President Obama has made a daring effort to help fix the damage our country has already inflicted on our planet. By creating The Clean Power Plan weve taken a step in the right direction as a country. The action that we take to limit our emissions within the next 10 years will likely determine the course of the rest of our existence.

In our current situation humanity has no choice other than to act, and act quickly. We have passed the point of proactivity and have entered a time period of catching up. And we have a lot of catching up to do.

Climate change is not only one of the most controversial topics of our generation, but also one of the most important problems we need to solve. Our window of opportunity to act is getting smaller everyday. Many of the projected consequences of climate change are predicted for 2050, a mere 34 years away.

President Obama has created and proposed the Clean Power Plan in an effort to take action. His plan aims to reduce Americas emissions by 32 percent by 2030. This would put us below our emission levels from 2005.

Reducing the carbon emissions from power plants in our country alone will prevent up to 3,600 premature deaths, 1,700 heart attacks, 90,000 asthma attacks in children, and 300,000 missed work and school days according to ucsusa.org.

The economic impact will also be beneficial to our country. The transition to renewable energy will create tens of thousands of American jobs, which will come at a crucial time for our country.

Renewable energy has also already proven to be economical and switching over to more renewable sources will lower the cost even more.

Ucsusa.org estimates that the Clean Power Plan could save the average American family nearly $85 per year on energy bills by 2030 and would save enough energy to power over 30 million homes.

The Clean Power Plan has been criticized for not being extensive enough. In a country where some of the most influential politicians believe that anthropogenic climate change is a hoax or that were just experiencing global cyclical warming periods, any progressive piece of legislation in the green energy sector is monumental. Obama has had to work across bipartisan lines and has shown great leadership and compromise skills in making this piece of legislation. We live in a country where we are given the opportunity to participate in the political process, and we should take pride in having the ability to support politicians that are working to reduce the damage humans are inflicting on our planet.

President Obamas plan has also been criticized for not being realistic, but many states have already proven that they are interested and dedicated to the idea of transferring over to green energy. Twenty-nine states already have policies in place to increase electricity from renewable sources like wind and solar.

State level responsibility has proven to be crucial with other pieces of legislation such as the Clean Air Act. States are more familiar with the unique problems they face and can have a better understanding of how to solve them. The Clean Power Plan allows for flexibility within the states and cooperation with other states to meet their goals. This is important and will increase the plans chance of success.

By allowing states to set flexible, unique goals for themselves but also allowing for cooperation among states it will do more than just reduce our global impact. I believe this plan allows for our country to unify and work towards a common goal while also embedding a sense of patriotism that our country needs. Americans can take pride in being world leaders in the fight against global warming. We can proudly set the example for other nations to follow.

Our planets climate has no boundaries and changes will affect everyone living here on Earth. Our world leaders need to step up and set the standard for global mindfulness and cooperation. Obama is making progressive strides towards this by implementing the Clean Power Plan. It is also vital that as constituents, we support government officials and legislation that promotes green energy and global awareness. I believe that the Clean Power Plan will go down in history as one of the most impactful actions of our generation.
I too, like Erin Krause, am concerned about Donald Trump's nomination of an enemy of the environment to head the EPA (" Fischer owes explanation ," Dec. 15). Do none of these people realize this is the only planet we have? Perhaps not.

My concerns led me to write a letter to Nebraska's Attorney General, Doug Peterson, who has expressed his desire to work with Scott Pruitt, as has Sen. Deb Fischer ("Fischer supports rollback of EPA rules, other nominees," Dec. 9). Two weeks or so have passed and I am not surprised that the Attorney General has not responded to me as I requested. I shouldn't be surprised that so many high-ranking Republicans have little or no regard for the planet. Have they no children or grandchildren who will be forced to live in a world in which the water and the air will be tainted? Lord help us through the next four years and beyond, where some of us will have to clean up the mess.
SIOUX CITY, Iowa  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is proposing a new Missouri River habitat for the endangered pallid sturgeon and sandbar construction for two endangered bird species.

The plan comes after three years of study by scientists, hydrologists and other specialists. It seeks to use the latest scientific data to help the recovery of the pallid sturgeon, least tern and piping plover over the next 15 years.

Aaron Quinn, a Corps environmental resource specialist, said the plan incorporates new information gleaned since 2003 about species management.

Some stakeholders who are familiar with the plan say the recommendations aren't necessary. Bill Beacom of Sioux City, a member of an advisory group that consults with the Corps, said the tern and plover numbers are recovering.

"This proposal does not lead to recovery, it leads to status quo," said Beacom, a retired river boat captain and member of the Missouri River Recovery Implementation Committee, which represents various interests throughout the river basin. "The most important thing to know about it is it's not necessary. The bird population is growing by itself."

The Corps' plan does not include artificially raising river levels in spring or fall, but does call for the continued study into whether a one-time increase could be used as a spawning cue for the sturgeon and what effect it might have.

The plan does not replace the Master Water Control Manual, which guides the Corps' operation of the system of dams and reservoirs to balance the needs of the Missouri River system's authorized purposes of flood control, hydropower, recreation, irrigation, navigation, water supply, environmental preservation and water quality control.
OMAHA  The demolition of the Civic Auditorium on the north side of downtown Omaha raises a question: What's going to replace it?

Tetrad Property Group already has dropped its original proposal for an office tower. Mayor Jean Stothert said Tetrad is looking at developing more public space for a nonprofit or a government entity.

Stothert chose Tetrad in 2014 to develop the Civic site. The initial proposal included four buildings: a 14-story office tower, two residential buildings with 200 units above retail and office space, and a four-story civic building.

Tetrad's CEO and board chairman declined to comment on the project.

Stothert acknowledged there has been some discussion about moving the YMCA, the Children's Museum or a city library to the four-block site.

"I think it's a perfect place for a downtown library," Stothert said.

Representatives for the library and the Children's Museum said there are no plans to move from their locations.

Chris Tointon, president and CEO of the Greater Omaha YMCA, said YMCA representatives have spoken to Tetrad but haven't made any decisions.

"They've filled us in on what they've done at the Civic site and some ideas that they've had, but nothing concrete," Tointon aid.

The mayor and the City Council would ultimately need to approve any plan that Tetrad devises.
Santa arrived right on schedule at the Savannah Pines retirement community last weekend.

The most obvious piece of evidence? An honest-to-goodness sleigh  an elaborate and beautiful Christmas display greeting residents, staff and visitors at the entrance of the retirement community west of 40th and Pine Lake Road.

The festive carriage complements the attractive Christmas display at Savannah Pines, and has been made possible by recent move-ins, Bob and Natalie Grossman.

The trail of the sleigh

The Grossmans story of their sleigh discovery goes back nearly 20 years to a treasure hunters paradise in Ashland, Neb. Natalie Grossman recalls driving by the treasure trove and having her curiosity piqued by a large wooden curved piece resembling a shepherds crook.

Her curiosity got the best of her. The proprietor said the conversation piece was part of a sleigh whose pieces he had purchased from a friend in Kansas.

Negotiating a purchase price, the Grossmans bought the components, took them home, and the sleigh was on its way.

Once constructed, it was used as a lawn ornament and has spent many years in a storage barn. When the couple moved to Savannah Pines and were dazzled by the retirement communitys elaborate Christmas display, they approached management and proposed sharing the sleigh with their new neighbors.

Memory lane

Having been brought back to life, the sleigh has served as a centerpiece of Savannah Pines festive holiday atmosphere. Its also resurrected older residents memories of childhoods in rural communities and many a winters ride in a horse-drawn sleigh.

The sleigh brings back wonderful memories, says Jessie Nickeson, 98, who has fond memories of riding in her uncles sleigh. She said the carriage conjures up thoughts of a simpler time growing up in Leshara, Neb., a hamlet north of Wahoo, and of horse-drawn buggy rides across the Platte River.

Jessie moved to the retirement community 18 months ago to be near her children. Reflections of her childhood resurrect memories of the generosity of an aunt and uncle who made Christmases merry.

The native Nebraskan, whose husband Paul died in 1998, survived a bout with scarlet fever as a child.

Effects of Depression

Fern Taylor, 93, didnt grow up with a sleigh, but her family did have an old buckboard farm wagon pulled by horses.

Times were tough in those days, complicated by lingering effects of the Great Depression, she said. Christmas meant simple gifts in her stocking such as oranges and peanuts. Her parents belt-tightening usually led to the late arrival of a Christmas tree.

We never got our tree until Christmas Eve because my parents couldnt afford to pay full price, she said.

Raised on a southwest Iowa farm near Red Oak, she said her parents grew much of the food they ate. Her mother had an avid vegetable canning schedule and churned butter. Fern moved to Savannah Pines four months ago following the death last year of her husband of 72 years, Bill Taylor.

The sleigh triggers a lot of memories of the old days, she added.
RACINE COUNTY  Joey LeGath is well known to many people from 26 years in the Racine-area tavern business. He has owned five taverns including, currently: Joeys on Taylor, 1863 Taylor Ave.; Joeys on Lathrop, 2054 Lathrop Ave.; and Joeys West, 9825 Kraut Road in the Franksville area of Caledonia.

Here are some of his thoughts about his quarter-century in that business.

How did you get into the tavern business?

My father owed many businesses in Racine. Mostly restaurants, and one of the last places he had before he died was a bar on Taylor Avenue called Arts Office. I was 18 at the time and started bartending for him. He ended up getting too sick to run the bar, so I purchased it from him. That was my first bar: Joeys on Taylor. I have been there 26 years  altogether, with my dad, 32 years. I often say I owe everything I have to my dad.

What have been some of the highlights during your time in the tavern business?

First and most important, I met my wife, Anna, at Joeys on Taylor. We have been happily married for 20 years. I also have enjoyed having some of my family work at the bars in various positions.

I never imagined expanding as I have. Over the years I have had five bars. The newest location, Joeys West, has food, which brings back great memories from my childhood and growing up in the restaurant business.

What do you like about the tavern business?

I like that I can employ people who are able to make a good income for themselves and families. I also like being a member of the Tavern League of Wisconsin. Bar owners that I have met though this organization are some of the most kind, thoughtful and generous people I know.

The relationships I have developed with my customers are extremely meaningful to me. My favorite example is a guy named Jim. When I started with my dad I saw him almost every day, and we became great friends. Jim died of cancer, and after he passed, his daughter called me; he had left me in his will. It wasnt a lot of money, but he was telling me how much our friendship meant to him. I knew then that many people I would meet at the bar were not just my customers but would become great friends.

Having wonderful employees cannot go unmentioned. I would not be successful without them. Most important is my general manager who started bartending for me 26 years ago before she had children. Now her children even help at the bar. They are like family to me.

What is the most difficult aspect of the tavern businesses?

The thing I like most about being in business also ends up being the most difficult. I have made a lot of friends, and after 32 years many of them have passed away. So definitely all my friends that are no longer with us, thats tough.

What contributions have you made to the community as a businessman?

I try to stay actively involved in fundraising and donating to many great community events and organizations. I consider it an honor over my years in business to have contributed to many worthwhile causes such as Safe Haven, Womens Resource Center, Bethany Apartments, Wounded Warrior Project, Homeless Leadership Assistance Organization and Racine Zoo, to name a few.

What business goals or retirement plans do you have?

I am happy with where I am now in life. I love what I do and I have a passion for the bar business, so I dont see myself ever retiring.
RACINE  Those without shelter received a serious helping hand from Racinians dedicated to their cause in 2016.

The story of those dedicated residents and the resulting help for the homeless is the No. 7 story of the year, as voted by Journal Times staff.

In February 2015, the Hospitality Center, 614 Main St., ceased overnight operations, which forced Racine to house those who couldnt qualify for the Homeless Assistance Leadership Organization with motel vouchers last winter. With the money for those vouchers gone heading into this winter, Racine needed a new solution and one came from upstart group Segue, Inc. in the nick of time.

Segue, a group of local stakeholders led by pastors Warren Williams and Holly Anderle, first announced themselves to the public in April. At that time, plans called for Segue to open and operate a low-barrier shelter at 961 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.

Those plans changed over the summer, as numerous community members expressed concern with the location, especially in regard to its proximity to Julian Thomas Elementary School, 930 Dr Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.

A tense meeting in early July at the Racine County Courthouse, which also marked County Executive Jonathan Delagraves first public involvement in the project, made it clear that Segue would have to find a new location.

This winters solution finally came on Oct. 5, when Delagrave announced the new shelter, the Homeless Overnight Sanctuary (HOST), would occupy the second floor of the Lincoln Lutheran building at 2000 Domanik Drive. Rent money for the shelter through a grant from the county was approved later that month, and the shelter opened on the night of Nov. 1.

Within two weeks, the shelter was regularly serving 15 guests per night and that number continues to grow. HOST got more good news in late November, when SC Johnson announced a $25,000 donation to cover the shelters additional operating expenses.

However, the Domanik Drive home is only a temporary one for the shelter, as it will need to find a new location after its lease expires on March 31. Whether a suitable, long-term location for HOST can be found in 2017 remains to be seen.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. Armenias Defense Minister Vigen Sargsyan on December 26 visited the Russian Embassy in Armenia to extend condolences over the crash of Russian Defense Ministrys Tu-154 plane that claimed dozens of lives, press service of the Ministry told Armenpress.

Vigen Sargsyan conveyed the condolence letter addressed to Russias Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.

It is painful to acknowledge that the terrible tragedy claimed dozens of human lives, the experienced crew of the plane, the members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, distinguished journalists were killed.

On the occasion of irretrievable loss, I extend my deepest condolences to You, the family members and relatives of the victims, the staff of the Russian Armed forces, the entire friendly people of Russia, the letter reads.
RACINE COUNTY  Late on a Thursday night this fall, at the onset of the citys budget process, Burlington officials and aldermen listened to a presentation from Patrick Glynn, a senior consultant at Middleton-based firm Carlson Dettman Consulting.

Glynns detail-laden presentation and subsequent question-and-answer session focused on what would become a central part of Burlingtons 2017 budget: how could the city provide competitive compensation to its employees so it could retain them more consistently?

The old way of doing things in the public sector is someone would come and stay their career, Glynn said. That just doesnt seem to happen as much anymore.

Employee retention is an issue municipalities around the state are grappling with, according to Glynn, who said Carlson Dettman has also done studies in Kenosha, South Milwaukee and West Allis. The firm is also beginning a similar salary study with Racine in 2017, which City Attorney Scott Letteney said is aimed at keeping Racines compensation competitive with similar municipalities in Wisconsin and northern Illinois.

Employees that have left us over the past couple of years have often reported that one of the reasons that theyre leaving is for higher pay, Letteney said.

Jerry Deschane, Executive Director of the Wisconsin League of Municipalities, said he has noticed the struggles statewide, in both the public and private sectors.

Anecdotally, yes, I do hear that municipalities are having a challenge finding and hiring staff in variety of different positions, but Im not sure thats any different than what the private sector is experiencing, Deschane said.

But Glynn said he has seen a specific change in the public sector in the last five to 10 years. He said municipalities ability to offer superior benefits to make up for slightly inferior salaries has diminished.

It used to be, were going to pay you a little bit less in the public sector but youre going to have fantastic benefits,  he said. That whole notion of having substantially better benefits has been eroded.

Not only that, but according to Letteney, Act 10, which went into effect in 2011, has made incremental salary boosts more difficult to come by. A lack of automatic salary incentives effects both represented and non-represented employees in Racine.

Historically, all groups had their own pay structure in their contract, he said. That kind of a program hasnt existed in Racine for non-represented employees for about a dozen years.

Step structure makes pay competitive

Those sorts of salary increase programs are Carlson Dettmans specialty. Glynn provides data to municipalities on competitive wages and suggests a wage increase structure to encourage employee retention.

Our consistent advice to our clients is that you always want to make sure that youre paying competitively, Glynn said.Thats what he told Burlington officials on that fall Thursday night, and the message rang true. As part of its 2017 budget, Burlington authorized roughly $120,000 in salary and benefits increases to get each of its current employees to one of 11 steps in its new incentive system. Theres a base and it moves up through 11 steps and theres multiple pay grades in that system, said Steve DeQuaker, Burlingtons treasurer and budget officer. The council took a look at it, thought it was a good study and were willing to implement it.Part of Burlingtons approach came with a dose of realism. DeQuaker said city officials determined Burlington couldnt afford to keep up with bigger Wisconsin or Illinois cities and instead made salary comparisons to municipalities with roughly 40,000 residents, such as Lake Geneva and Elkhorn.Its hard because even though we might match with them as far as job description, they might be higher paying, DeQuaker said.But the plan, which saw some employees get unexpected raises to get to the next highest step, went over well, according to DeQuaker.From the salary side, they were happy that we were trying to get people to market average, he said.

Increases have downsides

Glynn said that sometimes, municipalities can afford to pay for wage increases to market level without making other cuts. Often times, however, sacrifices must be made.

In Burlingtons case, DeQuaker said that employees will have to pay more in insurance premiums under the new plan to offset some of the increase.

There were some adjustments made, basically having employees contribute more to premiums, he said. If youre asking employees to pay more towards benefits, that has a negative impact.

In Mount Pleasant, Clerk-Treasurer Stephanie Kohlhagen said a similar study conducted by Illinois-based McGrath Consulting Group was finished in 2015, but action on the study has stalled because the Village Board isnt sure Mount Pleasant can afford the suggested increases.

Where it stands now is that (administrators) really want the Board to approve it, but theyre reluctant to approve it, she said. They dont want to pay what it says.

The lack of action on the study has made hiring and retaining employees difficult, according to Kohlhagen, especially because the village doesnt have its own human resources department.

It makes it hard for people to stay or apply, she said. Its kind of difficult to give people what do you guys start at? when nobody really knows, because there isnt a pay structure in place here.

When faced with the financial difficulties of competitive salary increases, Glynn said he advises municipalities to prioritize.

We can talk about what other people have done and share our experiences with you, but its really in their laps as to how theyre going to afford it, he said.

Ultimately, he feels such plans are beneficial even financially, as they often create long-term cost savings.

A pay plan, once it gets some shelf life, tends to pay for itself with people retiring at the higher ranges and people coming in at the lower ranges.
3-year-old girl dies, gran injured in rhino attack

A three-year-old girl died while her grandmother was seriously injured when they were attacked by a rhino at Kawasoti Municiapality-15 in Nawalparasi district on Sunday.
Certain issues in diplomatic practice require sensitive handling

Nepals handling of diplomacy has come under criticism, most recently after the concurrent visits last week of the Chinese and the Mongolian delegates.
Country pushed into a crisis: Kamal Thapa

Chairman of the Rasytiya Prajatantra Party, Kamal Thapa, has said that the country has been pushed into a crisis.
Explanation sought on fuel price hike

Lawmakers have asked the Supplies Ministry why it has been delaying rolling back prices on gasoline.
Arun-III and Upper Karnali hydroelectric projects: IBN told to hand over forest land

Parliamentary Finance Committee on Sunday directed Investment Board Nepal (IBN) to expedite the process of handing over forest land to developers of two mega hydroelectric projects with installed capacity of 900 MW each.
Israeli PM summons US ambassador amid UN vote row

Israel's prime minister has summoned the US ambassador amid a growing row after the US eased the passage of a resolution against Israel at the UN.
Massive revisions sought in Indigenous Nationalities Commission Bill

The indigenous nationalities leaders have said the bill related to the formation of an Indigenous Nationalities Commission would do nothing in terms of protection and promotion the rights of indigenous people if it is passed as it is.
NC brass pressed to put charter revision on hold

Pressure mounts on the ruling Nepali Congress to put the constitution amendment bill on hold and announce the date for the local elections immediately.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. The session of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council has kicked off in St. Petersburg, reports TASS.

Russias President Vladimir Putin opened the session and said one of the top priorities of the Eurasian Economic Union is to create favorable business environment.

One of the key priorities of the EAEU activity is the creation of favorable business environment in order to reveal the full production and technological potential of our states, Putin said.

He stated that during the past two years since the establishment of the Union, a common broad market has been formed which operates according to the agreed rules that are based on the principles of the World Trade Organization. During that period the mutual trade figures were significantly increased, the barriers to free movement of goods, services, labor and capital are being eliminated.

During the Unions existence, the number of non-tariff restrictions has been cut by more than 30%. This year a common market of drugs and medical products has been established which will enable to reduce the prices of socially important pharmaceutical products and strengthen control on the quality and circulation procedure of that products, Putin said.

It is expected the major event of the summit will be the signing of the agreement on the EAEU new Customs Code. A number of multilateral documents are expected to be adopted that mainly aim at moving forward the process of forming common Eurasian market of goods and services. Moreover, the heads of states will approve the major directions of the Unions international activity for 2017 and will discuss the EAEUs various aspects of cooperation with key trade-economic partners.
Nepali student drowns in Australia during Christmas celebrations

A Nepali student had drowned in Wattamolla Beach in Sydney while celebrating Christmas with his friends.
Parliament wont discuss, endorse proposal, says Oli

Chairman of the CPN-UML KP Sharma Oli has reiterated that the amendment proposal can neither be discussed nor endorsed from Parliament because that was anti-national and unconstitutional.
Search panel recommends five names for KU VC

Two members of the Kathmandu University Vice-chancellor Search Committee have forwarded the names of five nominees asking Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal to pick one for appointment as the VC.
Staff crunch dogs NRA since birth

As it struggles to retain staff and attract officials from other government offices, the National Reconstruction Authority is mulling over appointing staffers on contract basis.
Supreme Court asks police again to arrest Dhungel

The Verdict Implementation Directorate of the Supreme Court has reminded the law enforcement agencies to arrest former Maoist lawmaker Balkrishna Dhungel, a murder convict.
Travesty of justice in Nepal

Why has the human rights movement turned its back on relatives of the disappeared in Nepal?
Underground district commander of Tarai Mukti Morcha arrested

Indian police has arrested Bara district commander of Tarai Mukti Morcha (Jwala group) Bijay Patel from Raxaul, India, and handed him over to Nepal Police.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan is taking part in the Supreme Eurasian Economic Councils session in St. Petersburg, press service of the Presidential administration told Armenpress.

Presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia are taking part in the session.

Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) Tigran Sargsyan also attended the session.

Russias President Vladimir Putin welcomed the session participants and briefed on the works carried out on a number of directions within the framework of the Union, the important decisions, as well as development prospects programs.

Putin expressed hope todays meeting results will further boost the mutual economic cooperation between the EAEU member states.

At the beginning of the session the heads of states extended condolences to the Russian President over the crash of the Russian Tu-154 plane in Sochi that claimed dozens of lives.

The session will be chaired by President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbaev.

The Presidents of the member states will discuss the draft agreement on the EAEU Customs Code, the major integration directions within the EAEU, as well as issues related to the Unions common services market.

Issues related to the cooperation development at EAEU format with Iran, India, Egypt, Singapore, as well as the 2017 EAEU international activity will be discussed during the session.

Armenias President Serzh Sargsyan delivered a speech at the Supreme Eurasian Economic Councils session.






By Enid Ninsiima

Over 160 Rwenzururu royal guards have so far surrendered to security agencies in Kasese, three weeks after the arrest of their King Charles Wesley Mumbere.

This is after government extended amnesty to the royal guards suspected to have been involved in clashes with government forces since September in Kabarole and Kasese districts that culminated into the palace attack by the army.

The palace attack on November 27 left about 100 people dead and led to the arrest of Mumbere and over 130 of his guards.

According to Agapitus Ecotu, the Rwenzori East Police Commander, out of 167 who surrendered 165 came from Bukonzo west constituency while 2 came from Kasese municipality.

He says the suspected attackers have been profiled after recording their statements at various police stations.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. The Presidential Palace hosted children on December 26 on the occasion of New Year and Christmas. School children from Tavush, Gegharkunik, Vayots Dzor, bordering villages of Ararat, winners of Olympiads, Syrian-Armenian refugee children and children with limited abilities were hosted in the festive holiday reception, which has become an annual tradition. The children were welcomed by First Lady Rita Sargsyan.

The First Lady told reporters she received positive emotions from the children. This is my lifestyle. I have worked in a kindergarten for 10 years and this is simply my work, which I love very much, she said.

The children were entertained by various fairy tale characters, the Puppet Theater and Santa Claus.

Firdus Zakaryan, chief of staff of the Diaspora ministry told ARMENPRESS 60 Syrian-Armenian children from Yerevan were present at the event. Every year we try to involve newcomers from Syria, he said.

Over 1000 children, aged 6-12, from Yerevan and various provinces of the country are taking part in the tradition New Year festive events in the Presidential Palace.

The holiday events for kids will continue in the Presidential Palace on December 27 as well. On that day, children of soldiers, of fallen or disabled servicemen of the Nagorno Karabakh war and April war, including from Nagorno Karabakh and children of police officers and national security service will be hosted in the Presidential Palace.
Efforts are underway to preserve a part of Chippewa Falls lumber history that was pulled from the Chippewa River eight years ago.

On Sept. 29, 2008, a boom log washed up against the Chippewa Falls Hydro Plant dam where debris is collected and was discovered by an Xcel Energy employee.

The log is presumed to have been submerged in the river for more than a century at the site of the old Chippewa Lumber and Boom Co. Sawmill along the river near Court Street. Also known as the Big Mill, it was at one time the largest mill in the state, operating from 1857-1911.

The boom log was estimated to be at least 170 years old by Arley Engel, vice president of the Chippewa County Historical Society at the time who helped pull the log from the river.

This log would have been used during lumbering days between the 1860s and the early 1900s to either guide logs to the mill or to hold them up until people were ready for them at the mill.

Typically, the logs were long with notches in both ends so they could be chained together with other logs. This one was measured at around 42 feet long.

At one time hundreds of these logs could have been seen coming down the river, said Jim Schuh, current vice president of the Chippewa County Historical Society. He said that Ed Forrester, the representative from Forest History Association of Wisconsin who examined the boom log in June, mentioned it was the only one he has ever seen.

Forrester was able to date the log by the way it was cut. Schuh said the ends of the boom log show it was cut down by an axe, which meant it was cut down before the invention of the raker tooth, a standard tooth on saws today. Before there was raker teeth on the two-man saws lumberers would use, Schuh said the saws would bind up and they would not be able to cut a tree down.

Once they invented this raker blade, then almost everybody started using that right away, Schuh said.

For the past eight years, the boom log had its home in Allen Park in downtown Chippewa Falls, where it was on display. However, Schuh said the area it was in was somewhat shaded and would flood once in awhile, which was contributing to the deterioration of the log.

With the wet weather weve had, the log was starting to get damp and moss was growing on it and we didnt want to deteriorate it because it was so rare, he said. We wanted to find a place where we could put it out of the elements to let it dry out.

Schuh set to work with members of the hydro plants maintenance department to move the log to a drier location. That was done last month. Pat Ahneman, a former tour guide for the historical society, provided a barn eight miles from downtown to store the log.

The historical society is looking into methods to preserve the log and has been discussing the best course of action with representatives of the Forest History Association and the Wisconsin Historical Society.

The long-term goal, Schuh said, is to eventually display the boom log in the Chippewa Area History Center Museum as part of a possible lumbering display. Fundraising is underway for the proposed history museum near the main entrance to Irvine Park.
MILWAUKEE  Violence and arson on the north side of Milwaukee after the fatal shooting of a black man by police. A big development in the Making a Murderer case that so transfixed TV viewers nationwide. A gunman who opened fire on prom-goers in a small northern Wisconsin town.

All big stories, but it was politics that dominated Wisconsins year in news from start to finish, with a chaotic presidential campaign that played out bitterly, lurching finally to a finish with a costly recount paid for by a candidate who finished more than 1.3 million votes behind.

A look back:

All politics, all the time

As a battleground state, Wisconsin was always going to get plenty of attention in the presidential race. But there seemed no end of additional angles. First, the states influential conservative talk radio hosts banded together to oppose Donald Trump, helping hand Texas Sen. Ted Cruz a primary victory in the spring.

But Trumps ascendance later touched off a political dance among Wisconsins top Republicans. U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan of Janesville and Gov. Scott Walker initially held back their endorsement of Trump, but eventually decided to throw their support behind him. Ryan rescinded an invitation to Trump to a Republican rally in his congressional district in October after crude comments that the presidential candidate had made about women over 10 years ago surfaced.

When Wisconsin voters ultimately went for Trump, it was the first time in 32 years the state backed a Republican for the White House. But it wasnt over: Wisconsin was among three states where the outcome was challenged with a recount request by Green Party nominee Jill Stein and the only one in which the recount was completed due to legal challenges in Pennsylvania and Michigan. Little changed as a result.

Ryan was criticized for his initial reluctance to back Trump, but was easily re-elected in Wisconsin and returned as House speaker. Trump tapped another political heavyweight from Wisconsin, Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus, as his White House chief of staff.

Republican Sen. Ron Johnson, seen as highly vulnerable in a rematch with Democrat Russ Feingold, instead was swept up in the Republican wave and won a second term.

Milwaukee violence

In August, a north side Milwaukee neighborhood erupted in two nights of violence after the police shooting of a young black man, Sylville Smith. His death at the hands of a black Milwaukee officer unleashed simmering anger in the Sherman Park neighborhood, with eight businesses burned, other properties looted and several officers and civilians injured. In a rare move, the officer who killed Smith, Dominique Heaggan-Brown, was charged in December with first-degree reckless homicide. Heaggan-Brown had already been fired after he was charged in a separate case with sexual assault.

Making a Murderer twist

The criminal case at the center of the popular Netflix series Making a Murderer took a turn when a federal judge ordered the release of Brendan Dassey, one of two men convicted in the death of Teresa Halbach.

The magistrate ruled in August that investigators coerced Dassey, who was 16 years old at the time and suffered from cognitive problems, into confessing to helping his uncle, Steven Avery, rape and kill Halbach at the Avery family salvage yard in Manitowoc County. Dassey was sentenced to life in prison in 2007.

His release appeared imminent until the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago stepped in at the last minute to keep Dassey behind bars while state attorneys appealed a decision which overturned his conviction.

Other cases

A key court ruling kept two girls accused of trying to kill their classmate in an attempt to please a fictional horror character called Slender Man in adult court. Attorneys for the girls, Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser, who were 12 at the time of the 2014 attack, argued they should be tried in juvenile court. An appeals court disagreed and the girls entered pleas of not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect to attempted homicide in a stabbing that left their classmate with 19 wounds that nearly killed her.

A West Allis man was accused of fatally shooting a woman riding with her family in a car on Interstate 90/94. Zach Hays was also accused of killing his neighbor earlier in the day on May 1.

The state Department of Justice decided against taking Mark Jensens case to the U.S. Supreme Court, setting up a retrial in Kenosha County, where he was convicted and sentenced to life in prison in 2008 in the antifreeze-poisoning death of his wife, Julie Jensen.

In April, a shooting outside the prom at Antigo High School left the small northern Wisconsin city shaken. An Antigo officer who shot and killed the gunman, Jakob Wagner, said he saw him open fire on the prom-goers. Two teens were injured.
Spectators watch as La Crosse firefighters, perched atop a snow-covered passenger platform canopy, battle a blaze at the old Milwaukee Railroad passenger depot and Cameron House hotel on Dec. 24, 1916.

This fire 100 years ago gutted the brick-veneered structure, and it was razed shortly afterward. No lives were lost in the fire, as all the hotel occupants escaped the flames and smoke, some of them dressed only in their nightclothes. Completed in 1880 on the southwest corner of Second and Vine streets, this combination depot-hotel at one time had 13 passenger trains arriving and departing daily.

During its early days the Cameron Houses dining room gave La Crosse the reputation as the town where you get that splendid meal, and its fame was as well known in Montreal or Quebec as in St. Paul or Kansas City, according to Tribune files. The former site of this one-time landmark is now occupied by a parking lot.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. A festive reception was held at the Government of Armenia for mass media representatives on the occasion of the coming New Year and Christmas.

As Armenpress was informed from the press service of the Government of Armenia, the Head of the Executive, Karen Karapetyan, congratulated the mass media representatives on the New Year and Christmas, wishing them warmth, peace and love in their families. I hope you will have an opportunity to gather with your relatives, members of your families and friends during the New Year and exchange with wishes and I wish those wishes to come to reality.

I wish all of you to return to daily activities after the New Year festive days with optimism towards tomorrow to carry out you functions and mission in a vigorous manner. I do not hide, we expect from you criticism, advice and suggestions, but we want them very much to be constructive, applicable, tangible and professional, Karen Karapetyan said, asking the journalists to avoid cases of personal insult.

The Premier bestowed a number of mass media representatives with souvenirs and thank-you letters for regularly covering the activities of the Government of Armenia.
One person was injured in a one-car rollover on Hwy. 26 in Houston Count Thursday evening.

Alexis Hoppenworth, 20, of La Crescent was traveling north on Hwy. 26 just after 5:30 p.m. on Thursday when she lost control of her vehicle and rolled it.

Hoppenworth was transported to Gundersen Health System in La Crosse, Wis. with non-life threatening injuries.

The Brownsville Fire Department, New Albin Ambulance, Minnesota State Patrol, Hokah Police Department and Houston County Sheriff Office assisted on the scene of the accident.
Charlie Ridgway conducts an interview on Main Street USA at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World prior to the beginning of WDWs 15th anniversary celebration in 1986. [The Walt Disney Company]

There will never be another like him.

In the hubbub of the holiday season, the passing of Disney Legend Charlie Ridgway on Dec. 24 may have gone unnoticed to most casual Disney fans  but not to the people who knew him, worked for him, admired him and flat-out loved him.

I wanted to let you know that our dear Charlie, 93, passed away today, former Walt Disney World publicity director Rick Sylvain messaged me on Christmas Eve.

Our dear Charlie.

That pretty much sums up the feelings of so many people whose lives were touched by the kind-hearted gentleman from Missouri, whose humble beginnings as a radio disc jockey and Midwestern newspaperman belied his legendary status in Disneys star-studded firmament.

Charlie, the master of spinning Disneys world as the companys chief press agent at both Disneyland and WDW, followed in his fathers footsteps and earned a degree in journalism from the University of Missouri. Despite his journalism pedigree, he began his career in radio because his father, who covered the agricultural beat for the Chicago Tribune, told him that newspapers are bound to be a dying breed and encouraged me to get into radio. He was pretty wise.

Charlie sets up a publicity photo of Donald Duck in the shadows of Cinderella Castle. [The Walt Disney Company]

Charlie landed a job at a 5,000-watt radio station in Erie, Pa., in the late 1940s after serving honorably during World War II. After about three years, though, he got a job offer from the Erie Dispatch, my first job as a newspaperman. That job lasted about a year before I decided I needed to get into a bigger market. I had fallen in love with Los Angeles during the war, so I decided to go out there in 1952.

Charlie, his wife Gretta and their young family moved west, to a sleepy suburb of Los Angeles called Anaheim. He got a job as a general reporter with the Los Angeles Mirror-News and became aware of a construction site near their house when he and his family passed it on their way to the beach on weekends.

That construction site, rising up from large fields of orange groves, was to become Disneyland. It was Charlie Ridgway who was among the first journalists to do a story on Disneyland in early 1955 prior to opening  and it was Charlie who was among the hundreds of frazzled journalists on hand to cover opening day on July 17, 1955.

Indeed, Charlie covered Disneyland for several years, for both the Los Angeles Mirror-News, then the Long Beach Press-Telegram, before he accepted a job offer from Disneyland in 1963 in the parks publicity department, doing the bulk of the offices writing.

A legendary career with Disney was launched.

From his tiny office above the police station near City Hall, Charlie dreamed up new and creative ways to get the word out on Disneyland, among them the press event he helped set up for the grand opening of the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction in 1967.

Charlie signs a copy of his book, Spinning Disneys World, several years ago.

We sailed all the press people around in the sailing ship Columbia and then came in and fired the cannons and had a big sword fight on the deck. In addition, buccaneers boarded the ship from smaller craft and pirates fell from the ship into the river during their duels. Once the press folks were in a swashbuckling mood, they disembarked the ship and stormed the entrance of the Pirates of the Caribbean to gain access.

I was in on that, Charlie said proudly during an interview with me in early 2014.

In the years that followed, Charlie was the go-to guy when it came to dreaming up fun and creative ways to publicize the park. Then, in 1969, Charlie was asked to move to central Florida to drum up publicity for Walt Disneys latest and greatest dream  Walt Disney World.

The first trip I made when I took the job at the end of 1969 was to go to New York. I went to Time, Life and Look magazines and all the major newspapers and I also went to Washington to National Geographic.

Look Magazine wanted to be the first publication to have a cover story on WDW, but the Magic Kingdom was still six months from completion. It was way too early, Charlie said. There wasnt that much really finished. But we were able to gerrymander things and produce pictures that looked like it was really done.

Charlie also played a key role in the classic photo that appeared on the cover of Life Magazine a few weeks before WDW opened.

The Life Magazine cover prior to the opening of Walt Disney World in 1972 which Charlie Ridgway helped set up. [Life Magazine]

I suggested we do a mob-scene photo and we carried forward from that point, Charlie said. We went to Life with the idea and they liked it. They sent down one of their very best photographers [Yale Joel]. He got up on a stand with an 8 x 10 view camera to shoot the picture. Of course, that was the one we shot in front of the castle. We assembled as many cast members [3,000 of the 5,000 on staff at the time] as we could get there.

Charlie also was the architect of many elaborate press events during his years at WDW, events that saw literally thousands of members of the media invited to experience first-hand the magic and wonder of The Vacation Kingdom of the World.

Perhaps the most significant press event in Charlies eyes was the grand opening of Epcot in October of 1982. It was the first time in broadcast history that television stations from around the country were able to carry an event live, thanks to a still-untested satellite uplink technology. It was a rather feeble attempt, by todays standards, Charlie said, but it worked beyond anyones wildest dreams.

It was Charlie at his finest. We used to sit around marketing meetings dreaming up crazy ideas, he said.

Charlies crazy ideas left a lasting impression on those folks who were privileged to work with him.

The author with Charlie Ridgway during lunch in 1992. [Chuck Schmidt collection]

I dont think he realizes how important he is to all of us and how much influence hes had on our careers, Michelle Baumann, who was hired by Charlie more than 25 years ago, told me a few years ago. To give you an idea of what kind of person Charlie was, I was hired back during the time when photo captions had to be pasted onto the backs of the publicity photos, which was pretty tedious and time-consuming, but Charlie would be right there with us, doing the grunt work, not giving it a second thought.

Every once in a while, well be stumped with something and someone in the office will say, What would Charlie do? He made that much of an impression on us.

Rick Sylvain and a bunch of Charlies old guard were scheduled to take him out to lunch on Dec. 14, but the luncheon had to be scrapped because of Charlies failing health.

So many of us owe so much to that man, Rick said. I know he rescued me from a nasty newspaper strike in Detroit in 1995 and launched me on 20 years that I will never forget.

There will never be another like him.

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FRIENDS and family came from as far away as Canada to celebrate the golden wedding of happy couple Peter and Mary Glenister.

Peter Glenister, 71, and his wife Mary, 69, of Stag Lane ,Great Kingshill, were joined by 57 guests at their anniversary lunch at the Compleat Angler Hotel, Marlow, last Thursday.

Among the guests were family who had witnessed their wedding in 1951 as well as the couple's four children and 11 grandchildren.

"It was a wonderful day especially being able to share it with relatives and friends who came from all over Yorkshire, Devon and our nephew, another Peter Glenister, who travelled from Canada," said Mr Glenister.

"We are proud to say both the youngest and the oldest living Glenisters were in attendance our 18-month-old grandson Thomas and my 92-year-old aunt Olive."

Mr Glenister was born and bred in High Wycombe but met wife Mary, who is originally from Hazlemere, when she moved to Wooburn Green.

"A mutual friend introduced us when I was 19 and Mary was 17. Our first date was at the Old Parish Cinema in Frogmoor," said Mr Glenister. "Two years later we married at Wycombe Parish Church."

Mr Glenister worked in the insurance business and although he officially retired in 1989, continues to work at the family newsagents in Great Kingshill.

Mr Glenister's grandparents, Charles and Ann Glenister, of Flackwell Heath, were featured in the Free Press at their golden wedding in1939 and their diamond wedding in 1949.
Based on the information of the mass media, concerns were spread on December 24 over the imprisonment conditions and health status of Armenian citizen Hrachya Harutyunyan who is serving sentence in Russia.

December 26, 2016, 13:57 Armenian Ombudsman discusses imprisoned Hrachya Harutyunyans health condition with his Russian counterpart
Eleven million people worldwide travel to other countries for low-cost medical treatment. This kind of travel is known as medical tourism.

Experts say people spend hundreds of billions of dollars on medical tourism every year. And, experts predict the industry will grow by up to 25 percent a year over the next 10 years.

VISA and Oxford Economics recently studied medical tourism trends. The study found that such travel is increasing because of the rising cost of medical treatments, the aging of societies and advances in international transportation. About 340 new international airports will be built in the next 10 years, VISA says.

A company called MedRepublic is connecting doctors with people around the world who need medical care. Robert Page founded the company.

Our software allows patients to use our website so they can search for doctors directly and talk to them," he said.

Page says the top country for medical tourism is Thailand. The United States is second. He says the United States is a country with a level of specialized medicine not found elsewhere.

The recent VISA study says the United States was the top destination for medical tourism, not Thailand. It also found an increasing number of people are traveling to Singapore, Germany, Korea, Spain, Britain, Canada and Israel for medical care.

The VISA report predicts China will become the top destination within the next 10 years.

Between 750,000 and 1.8 million Americans leave the country for medical reasons every year because of the high costs of treatments and surgeries. Page says Mexico is a common choice for American medical tourists.

For Americans, the main destination is Mexico due to its geographical proximity and the relation(ship) between both countries. The main reason is treatment for cancer, he said.

Many Americans also travel to other countries for plastic surgery, dental surgery, gastric bypasses and orthopedic surgeries.

Susy Pozo was a medical tourist. Four years ago, she traveled to Mexico for stomach surgery.

I used to weigh 194 pounds," (or 88 kilograms). "I had many health issues. Its very expensive in the U.S. I was worried because of the security in Puerto Vallarta, but four years ago I made the best decision of my life: I traveled to Mexico and had stomach surgery at the Puerto Vallarta hospital.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that there are risks connected to less-costly medical treatments in other countries.

Robert Page of MedRepublic says his company tries to lower those risks by helping patients talk directly with foreign doctors.

We are trying to resolve those issues with the right kind of information to show that a doctor and a hospital in India, for example, offer the same quality as a doctor or a hospital in the United States.

Im Alice Bryant.

VOA Correspondents Arturo Martinez and Alejandro Escalona reported this story from Los Angeles. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted the report for Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page.

______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

trend  n. a general direction of change; a way of behaving, proceeding, etc., that is developing and becoming more common

allow  v. to permit (something); to regard or treat (something) as acceptable

destination  n. a place to which a person is going or something is being sent

proximity  adj. the state of being near
In the United States, the inauguration of a new president is one of the nations biggest ceremonies.

Military officials plan the event using a 12-by-18 meter map of Washington, DC. The map is so big, it is shown in a large building called the DC Armory.

Officials from across the country have gathered at the armory to plan the 58th presidential inauguration.

Lucas Hernandez is part of that group. He works for the United States Marine Corps.

Its a lot of moving parts. Weve got a fairly condensed space where were working on the Capitol grounds in a fairly short amount of time where we have to get all of these events done and completed in basically whats a no-fail mission that day.

Aaron Lovely works for the United States Army. He says he looks forward to working with other parts of the government on the event.

Were actually thrilled as the military to have the cooperative partnerships of the other federal agencies that we get to work with in the city, because were moving a lot of people through a lot of people.

Malik Freeman, who also works for the U.S. Army, says soldiers from all over the country will take part.

We have almost 7-8,000 soldiers coming from 40 states, so we have to ensure that we get them here, move them forward to their mission site, perform their mission on Inauguration Day, and get them back home within that 72-hour window.

The weather also can be a concern. It is almost always very cold in Washington in January. Michelle Watson, who works for the Coast Guard, says that means planners must ensure that troops are not outside for very long.

You dont want to keep the military members out there longer than they have to be.

Inauguration Day is Friday, January 20. Because of the disputed election, officials are planning for a complex inauguration and many protesters. They know their plans may change during the day.

Thousands of members of the National Guard will be given the power to detain any protesters who break the law. One of the largest crowds gathered to attend President Barack Obamas first inauguration in 2009. But, officials say, the troops did not make any arrests that year.

Major General Bradley Becker is the commanding general of the Joint Force Headquarters-National Capital Region. He says the biggest concern for organizers is the number of possible protesters.

More than 12 protest marches are planned during the weekend following the inauguration.

On one groups Facebook page, about 150,000 people have said they will be protesting. About 240,000 have said they are interested in doing so.

Many groups also are expected to come to Washington to support the new president, Donald Trump. One of them is called Bikers for Trump. They have planned gatherings throughout the country in the weeks before the inauguration. They also plan to ride their motorcycles through the city on Inauguration Day.

Stephen Fuller is a professor and faculty chair at the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University. He believes at least 200,000 people will attend inaugural events. And he says as many as one million protesters may come to the city on the day Trump takes office or the day after.

Fuller says local and federal officials will be able to deal with the large number of protesters. He says one of the biggest security difficulties of the day will be guarding the president-elect.

By comparison, guarding the protesters will be much easier, Fuller says.

Im Jill Robbins.

VOA Correspondents Arash Arabasadi and Esha Sarai reported this story from Washington. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted their reports for Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page.

______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

inauguration  n. in the United States, the formal ceremony in which a new president is sworn into office

condensed space  n. a small area

grounds  n. an area of land

site  n. a place that is used for a particular activity

window  n. a period of time during which something can happen
Liberal Democrat Blog of the Year 2014



"Well written, funny and wistful" - Paul Linford; "He is indeed the Lib Dem blogfather" - Stephen Tall

"Jonathan Calder holds his end up well in the competitive world of the blogosphere" - New Statesman

"A prominent Liberal Democrat blogger" - BBC Radio 4 Today; "One of my favourite blogs" - Stumbling

and Mumbling; "Charming and younger than I expected" - Wartime Housewife
It is often asserted that the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 proved that HWA was right and he really did see the future.

This of course is nonsense. Herbert W. Armstrong said that Christ would return within twenty years in his book Mystery of the Ages. (PCG has since deleted those words so someone in there knows HWA spoke nonsense.) How convenient for them to forget this.

Also Herbert W. Armstrong never said the Soviet Union would collapse. He thought it would survive intact until a few years after Christ's return. It shows how biased some many in the COGs are that they never seem to notice this. This inconvenient truth is just tossed into the memory hole.

It is true that HWA said that some Eastern European states would break away from Moscow's orbit and join the European Empire he said would arise at any moment. But he never talked of the Soviet Union collapsing. He did not teach that. Also he portrayed the rise of the European Empire to be far quicker then what has actually happened. In Mystery of the Ages Christ was supposed to return by 2005 at the most.

So assertions that the fall of the Berlin Wall somehow prove that HWA was right is just complete nonsense spread by people who, for whatever reason, are still in denial that HWA was a false prophet who merely talked out of his own "human reasoning".
US defense secretary Ashton Carter said the U.S. Defense Ministry and Japan reached an agreement on the functioning of the US military base in Okinawa, US Department of Defense reported.

December 26, 2016, 14:18 Pentagon chief: Washington and Tokyo reach agreement on US base in Okinawa

STEPANAKERT, DECEMBER 26, ARTSAKHPRESS: I am pleased that the United States and Japanese negotiators have successfully reached an agreement in principle that clarifies the scope of the civilian component of the U.S. Armed Forces in Japan, as then-Defense Minister Nakatani and I committed to do in June of this year. I commend the work of both governments in completing the negotiation of this important agreement, which we expect to be finalized soon. 

These new measures, together with the partial land return of the Northern Training Area and the imminent resumption of construction activities at the Futenma Replacement Facility in Okinawa, demonstrate our close cooperation with the Government of Japan in strengthening the U.S.-Japan Alliance, he said.
The Patiala House Court on Monday granted bail to former Indian Air Force (IAF) chief SP Tyagi, accused of receiving kickbacks in AgustaWestland helicopter deal. Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted the relief to SP Tyagi on a personal bond of Rs two lakh and one surety of like amount.

The court, however, imposed certain conditions on the accused and asked him not to try to influence the witnesses and hamper the probe. The bail applications of other two accused  Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan  are pending before the court which said it will decide both the pleas on 4 January. During the hearing of the bail plea, S P Tyagi's advocate Maneka Guruswamy had said that her client "could not be deprived of freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".

#AgustaWestland Case: SP Tyagi granted bail by Patiala House Court  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

#AgustaWestland Case: Court will pronounce order on Sanjeev Tyagi&Gautam Khaitan's bail plea on 4 Jan,till then judicial custody to continue  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

#AgustaWestland Case: SP Tyagi granted bail on Rs 2 Lakh security.Court directed him not to leave Delhi NCR and to not temper with evidence.  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

In a sudden and first of its kind action, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had arrested SP Tyagi, his cousin Sanjeev, and a lawyer on 9 December in the sensational Rs 450 crore bribery case in the procurement of 12 VVIP helicopters from UK-based AgustaWestland during the UPA-II government.

Seventy-one-year-old SP Tyagi, who retired in 2007, was called for questioning at CBI headquarters along with his cousin and Chandigarh-based lawyer Gautam Khaitan, who were taken into custody after nearly four hours of grilling, PTI had reported.

These were the first arrests in the case by CBI which came three years after it registered an FIR in 2013 to probe the allegations in the aftermath of the details of the scam emerging in Italy where the prosecutors levelled allegations of corruption in the deal against the chief of Finmeccanica, the parent company of AgustaWestland.

On 23 December special CBI judge Arvind Kumar also reserved its order on the bail applications of SP Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan and posted the matter for 26 December for pronouncing the order.

During proceedings, Additional Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries".

"The persons are of high ranking... The investigation is going on and we are getting support from other countries. If they get bail, they may influence witnesses, destroy evidences and hamper the ongoing probe which is at a very crucial stage.

"We have evidences where the meetings unofficially took place for the purpose of crime. At this stage, please do not entertain their bail pleas. Let the probe be completed," he said, seeking dismissal of the bail pleas of all three accused and adding that the matter has "tarnished country's name."

However, the CBI also told the court that "it is not our argument that the accused may flee from justice."

On the court's query whether the CBI had any material regarding S P Tyagi receiving money, the agency said the former IAF chief had purchased several properties for which the sources of income were not disclosed by him and alleged that he had abused his official position.

Opposing CBI's contention, S P Tyagi's advocate Maneka Guruswamy said his client "could not be deprived from freedom if the investigation is taking time to complete".

She claimed before the court that in the last four years since the FIR was registered, the CBI has never been able to confront Tyagi with any incriminating evidence till date.

"The CBI has not demonstrated anything more than a statement that my client recieved some cash. He is already retired and not going to influence the probe and there is no evidence to suggest that he tried to do so in the past," the counsel said.

Advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, appearing for Khaitan, also countered CBI's argument, claiming that the agency was trying to sensitise the matter and there was no allegation that his client had not joined the probe or tried to influence it.

Dubey had told the court that "if they had to hamper probe, they would have done it in the past three years."

Sanjeev Tyagi's counsel Manav Gupta also opposed CBI's contention saying there was no reason to claim that if granted the relief, his client would hamper the probe.

The accused persons have sought bail on the ground that the evidence was documentary in nature and has already been seized by CBI and they have cooperated with the probe agency.

The court had on 17 December sent all the three accused to the judicial custody till 30 December.

The accused have alleged that the "CBI was trying to extract the confession using force". The defence counsel had also claimed that there was no apprehension of them fleeing from justice or tampering with evidence.

The CBI had said it was a "very serious" and "a very high-profile" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as the "interest of the nation was compromised". It had submitted that "one part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land."

Tyagi's counsel had earlier claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office (PMO) was also a part of it.

With inputs from agencies
Chennai: Widening its probe, the Income Tax Department has summoned the son of former Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary P Rama Mohana Rao in connection with its tax evasion investigation against sand mining operators of the state where one of the biggest seizures of cash and gold was made by the taxman in the aftermath of demonetisation.

Officials said while Rao's son Vivek Papisetty was first summoned to join investigations last week, after searches were carried out against him and his family on 21 December, and now fresh reminders have again been sent to him in this regard.

They said Vivek has informed the Investigating Officer of the case that he would join the probe soon and has cited his wife's illness as the reason for not being able to do so till now.

The department, it is understood, wants to confront and question Vivek regarding a number of seizures of documents made by the sleuths from his and his kins' locations and from the premises of Shankar Reddy after searches were first carried out against the latter here earlier this month.

Reddy was arrested by CBI last week.

"Vivek has said he would be joining I-T investigations in a day or two. His questioning is vital in the case," they said, adding that three other associates searched in the case are also being questioned by the department.

I-T officials had earlier claimed that Vivek had "admitted to a total unaccounted income of about Rs 17 crore", a day after I-T raids were carried out at the top bureaucrat's house and other premises linked to his kin.

Last week, the department had launched searches on atleast 15 premises related to Vivek and others and had claimed to have seized Rs 30 lakh in new currency and five kilogrammes gold.

The Tamil Nadu government, on the very next day of raids on 22 December, had replaced Rao from the top bureaucratic post and had appointed senior IAS officer and Additional Chief Secretary Girija Vaidyanathan as the new Chief Secretary.

The I-T case emerges from the to biggest cash haul of new notes post demonetisation after the department raided some sand mining operators of Tamil Nadu.

Over Rs 142 crore unaccounted assets have been recovered so far by the department in this case apart from seizure of Rs 34 crore in new notes.

The total cash seizure in this instance was over Rs 170 crore and this has become the single largest case of disclosure of undisclosed assets post the note ban.
The greatest literary show on Earth, the Jaipur Literature Festival turns 10 this year. From Nobel laureates to Man Booker Prize winners to debut novelists, the festival brings together some of the best minds from around the globe under one roof.

This year, the festival (which takes place at Diggi Palace in Jaipur) will feature, among others, Richard Flanagan, Alex Ross, David Hare, Manu Joseph, Bruce Robinson, Mark Tully, Raghu Karnad, Swapan Dasgupta and Nassim Nicholas Taleb.

The annual Pushkar mela is one of the world's biggest cattle fairs. Held in the small town of Pushkar in Rajasthan, the fair, however, is far more than camel trading ground. Settled around the Pushkar lake, the quiet town, known for its temple, lake, ghats, and bazaar, transforms into a bustling centre of colourful events and a trading hub.

Hot air balloon rides, outdoor sporting events, handicraft, folk music, kite flying, spiritual walks, turban tying and a moustache competition are just a few highlights for anyone looking for a taste of the desert state.

Mumbai Film Festival (MAMI), the film festival at the heart of the film city, is a cinephile's dream come true.

Featuring some of the best films  including features, documentaries and shorts  the festival offers a wide variety of engaging titles from across the globe. The only problem you might encounter is securing yourself a ticket for your favourite film premier.

From 175 films from 54 countries to Primetime Emmy award-winning Cary Fukunaga's maiden visit to India to the world premiere of some gripping films, there was much to devourer at the 2016 Mumbai Film Festival MAMI and the festival only promises to be bigger in the upcoming edition.

With music, theatre, literature, food, street stalls, cinema, workshops, design, architecture and heritage walks in store, the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival returns this January.

The festival, which takes place in and around the vibrant art district of Mumbai, Kala Ghoda, promises something for everyone. Featuring some great art, the festival also boasts some great venues spread across a block, including the National Gallery of Modern Art, Kitab Khana, Asiatic Society Library, among others.

If you are in the mood for some art, music, food and a pleasant walk, don't miss this festival.

With twelve venues, 97 artists from 31 countries, the third edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale is all set to tap into your artistic cravings for 108 days. More than half a million visitors are expected and you should be one of them.

Sudarshan Shetty, the curator, has produced large projects at multiple venues.

"The curatorial difference can be found in the fact that the curator has consciously left open and empty spaces on the property," writes Shana Susan Ninan for Firstpost.

The country's only biennale, it's a gateway which brings diverse international art and local culture together under one umbrella. It's not one to be missed.

An Aditya Birla Group initiative, Aadyam brings together some of the best productions and actors together for some memorable theatre performances.

Held every year in some of the best theatres of Mumbai and Delhi and flaunting elaborate sets and costumes, Aadyam is a must for all the theatre lovers.

In 2016, the show lineup included I Dont Like it, Loretta, Ladies Sangeet, Chakkar Chalaaye Ghanchakkar and 12 Angry Jurors. Come 2017, one can only hope for the shows to be even better.

Started in 2012, Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) brings together a holistic mix of Indian and international features and documentaries from India and countries around the world.

Showcasing a mixture of various cultures and traditions, DIFF brings together independent filmmakers, aspiring filmmakers, foreign attendees and film enthusiasts in the scenic Himalayas. And lest we forget, some delightful cuisines.

In 2016, films stealing the limelight included Highway (India), The Violin Player (India) A Korean in Paris (South Korea), Brothers (Poland), Victoria (Germany), The Last Dalai Lama? (US) and What's in the Darkness (China).

Acclaimed authors, both international and domestic, come together to deliver lively sessions, engaging the audience in the debate. From book launches to book signings to interaction between writers and readers in an informal space, the festival has everything a literati can ask for.

Launched in November 2010, Literature Live! is now one of the biggest literary festivals in the country.

In 2016, the festival's diverse lineup included Amitav Ghosh, Nicholas Shakespeare, Gulzar, Martin Amis, Shashi Tharoor, Ramchandra Guha John Gray, among others.

Some of the finest creative minds in the nation and globally gather at citys magnificent heritage sites at the Kolkata Literary Festival (KLF) in a celebration of books, music, art, film, and more.

With events at the Kolkatas heritage sites and the iconic Oxford Bookstore, some of the delegates this year include Jerry Pinto, Anita Nair, Nabaneeta Dev Sen, Prajwal Parajuly and Amit Chaudhuri.

The 2017 edition of KLF will pay tribute to eminent writer and social activist Mahasweta Devi.

Beginning as a small festival of 10-minute plays in Sydney, Australia, Short+Sweet has now grown into a global organisation.

The 2017 edition will take place at Gyan Manch, Kolkata and feature 10-minute (or less) plays in either English, Hindi or Bengali.

The platform features multiple performance mediums; from theatre to dance, cabaret to Bollywood, musicals to stand-up comedy. A unique experience not to be missed.
Carnivores living in Mumbai or those visiting Mumbai, cannot possibly go through 2017 without sampling the sumptuous Bohrithaal at The Bohri Kitchen or TBK as it is popularly called. Nafisa Kapadia, the lady with magic in her fingers will treat you to a repast, which you may have never experienced before. TBK is an experimental lunch concept where a maximum of 14 people (one needs to send a request) get invited for a mouth-watering six-course Bohri meal at the Kapadias home in Colaba. Smoked keema samosas and the two-day marinated raan, among other dishes, are bound to transport you into a food coma. You truly are Gods chosen one, if you get to eat this meal!

Chennais first cycle cafe in swish Kotturpuram, is strongly reminiscent of our childhood. The decor is replete with cycles and cycle accessories. Bright and colourful, this eatery has an eclectic vibe. Pies, quiche, burgers, crepes, waffles, salads, beverages  in short comfort food, is what one can look forward to here. A place with a relaxed ambience, it is immensely popular among those who want to hang out and unwind. Cycle lovers can buy and rent cycles and other knick-knacks here and even spend time reading about cycles or get ones cycle washed in the cycle spa as they sip their hot cuppa.

If pure organic gourmet food is what you are seeking, simply logging onto this website from the comforts of your home and ordering what you need, is your best bet. With a wide array of food products ranging from bakery, dairy, pastas, global food and super foods, there is nothing you will not get here. Farm fresh cottage cheese, organic eggs, vegetables and fruits  once can actually pick the best here and be certain that it is from certified sources. For a small minimum order amount, one can get ones order home delivered.

This event which takes place twice each year in April and September, across several cities in India  Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune  is every food lovers dream come true, when one can experience the best of restaurants one may have just dreamed of, but never entered. A three course prix fixe menu at an affordable price enables you to try the popular and signature dishes of that restaurant. Organised by Nachiket Shetye and MangalDalal of Cellar Door Hospitality, this is a food event on every gourmets list each year. So book your favourite restaurants and eat your way through the week, if you havent done so already.

An old Portuguese fort converted into a resort, this is one of North Goas best kept secrets. This place offers a panoramic view of the Arabian Sea and the estuary of River Tiracol, which is unparalleled and worth the long travel to get here, either by a ferry or the road. An al fresco restaurant and the Tavern, a bar, offer ample options for gourmets to indulge. Sip a Bloody Mary or a Shiraz and relish global or local food, as you soak in the spectacular view around you. Life doesnt get any better than this on earth. The rooms' unique decor and old-style furniture add to the charm of the place.

In the heart of South Kolkata, ones search for Bengali food can end with a visit to this place. Of course, when in Kolkata, one can sample authentic Bengali cuisine at several places, but this restaurant scores over many others, by way of good quality food, traditional Bengali dishes and the sheer variety. The buffet spread for lunch is exhaustive. Basanti pulao, chingrimalai curry, begun bhaja and ilishpotoler dolma, are delectable and give you a taste of the real Bengali cuisine, complete with its aromas and spices in a friendly ambience.

Fed up of restaurant food? Try rustling up a meal in minutes yourself and feel a sense of accomplishment. Yes, you too can become a chef courtesy the recipe kit delivered by ChefKraft for a ready-to-cook meal. With simple recipes and instructions from expert chefs, pre-portioned ingredients, neatly packed and of course fresh ingredients, in a hygienic box, cooking has never been a greater joy. From Singapore sea food laksa to veg masamman curry, you can look forward to exciting dishes as per your palate preference across cuisines. What's more, the weekly new menus ensure that boredom never sets in. With different delivery slots, you can ensure the most convenient time for you. Select your meal, pay online and wait for your magic box to arrive.

Enjoy the culinary heritage of Old Delhi by enrolling in an 'Old Delhi Bazaar and Haveli tour' with Dhruv Gupta. Expect to see Old Delhi or Shajahanabad as never before. Sit in a cycle rickshaw, walk through the bylanes of Chandni Chowk and sample the local cuisine. An interesting and true anecdote surrounding each dish that you savour is narrated. You can relish cholabhaturas and aloo parathas at the best places. The grand finale to this exciting walk is a home-cooked meal at an old mansion or haveli belonging to an erstwhile school teacher. Masterji kihaveli is steeped in history and the warm hospitality and authentic meal once experiences, is truly memorable.

An entry into this place, transports you into a village in Gujarat. The food of course is outstanding, but the entire village experience is what makes a visit to this place for dinner even more memorable. With puppet shows, handicraft stalls, local musicians and of course the sumptuous Gujarati thali with innumerable food items, served with warmth, so characteristic Indian hospitality, is worth experiencing once in a lifetime.

Last but not the least, experience the luxury of a French-style chateau at The Four Seasons Vineyards nestled in the village of Roti in Baramati, 70 km from Pune. Surrounded by wilderness, this visit gives one the chance to escape from the madding crowd and enjoy a perfect weekend in tranquility. When there, you can learn the basics of wine appreciation through a structured wine tasting by an expert, have a first-hand experience of seeing how wine is made and bottled. Go ahead and experiment with pairing wine with delectable local cuisine and can enjoy a poolside barbecue dinner under the open skies, or trek or ride a bike down the picturesque Sahayadri valley.
I have written five novels and only attempted to approach publishers for the first and last.

It also means the publisher pays for editing, proof reading, typesetting, printing and advertising, all of which are expensive.

YOU HAVE written your novel and now need to get it commercially published: Why? Because it is impossible for an individual to obtain other than limited local distribution.

Andrew Marke is author of the Temlett Conibeer series about the adventures of a colonial PNG malaria control officer. Ill do a review of his latest book when Ive finished reading it. I think a lot of people dont understand his writing and dont realise he is taking the micky. Marke is an avid fan of 19th century Victorian literature with all its terrible repression and conservatism and he plays on that in his main characters. He worked for the Papua New Guinean malaria eradication service for around 15 years until 1975 and was a friend of our late PNG Attitude colleague, David Wall - PF

After the first novel was rejected I more or less gave up. In those days the first three chapters usually had to be submitted in paper form and this was awkward to forward and postage was expensive.

I always felt that the first three chapters did not represent the rest of the novel but were only an obligatory introduction to it.

I tried again with my fifth but got nowhere. It is a demoralising experience to have your novel rejected time and again but perhaps publishers know more about the reading public tastes than I do, for I have placed my novels in bookshops in the ACT and Tasmania and they dont sell very well.

In the ACT there are bookshops which specialise in titles that have been remaindered, that is stock that has not sold. When placed in these shops at $5 my books sold rapidly; so price is a factor but at that price I am making a substantial loss.

My Papua New Guinea themed books set in the sixties dont even sell well to readers of Una Voce or Garamut whom one would think would be avid readers about action and adventures in locations they were familiar with.

Despite large numbers of the population having visited the country in some capacity, Australians generally seem to have as much interest in the former TPNG as I have in Chad or the Central African Republic.

As an alternative to submitting to a publisher, a literary agent may be approached, indeed many publishers insist on only reading submissions from an agent.

The agent is supposed to know precisely the most appropriate venue for your creation based on subject or location or style. But an agents reputation relies on their forwarding quality work which appeals to them: one person and their idea of a gem may not gel with the publisher. If your novel is forwarded you are only slightly ahead.

There is also the fact that most Australians think they have a novel in them and the dwindling number of publishers who will accept unsolicited manuscripts are snowed under.

A submission from an unknown author in the huge heap known as the slush pile is likely to receive little more than a cursory glance.

It is easy to forget that publishing is a business and if a so called celebrity writes a novel it is likely to sell far more than good story in fine literary prose by an unknown.

Indeed, the better your style of writing the less chance you probably have of getting it published.

Submitting your novel today will result in at least three months wait for the verdict and some publishers ask that you dont approach another until they have passed judgement. This means you are in limbo for some time and as you are pretty sure they are going to be negative you are eager to move on.

One of the most irritating factors of rejection is that no reason is given. True, as your novel is unlikely to have been read by them it would be difficult for them to expand on its apparent lack of merit.

Aside from the main publishers whose names are familiar, there exists boutique or local ones that produce titles with limited circulation. Their distribution capabilities are likely to be little better than your own.

Many of these concerns survive by being one stop shops to produce self-published novels. First timers should beware of these as it is much cheaper and more satisfying to do it yourself. If he or she has reasonable knowledge of technology it is likely that a first novel author will take this option after being rejected: not to do so would waste all the time and effort they have invested.

Many who have done this to go on to become famous. Most, however, will fall by the wayside and leave their contribution to the worlds literature at one novel.

It should be remembered that almost every novelist with whose name you are familiar was rejected at first. It may have been an error to reject Beatrix Potter and her animal creations dressed in human clothes (countless millions of copies sold after self-publishing). Any regrets publishers? The Harry Potter creation was rejected 13 times. A little off in your judgements there publishers; anyone sacked?

But now we assume you have self-published and are very satisfied with your creation. How many copies will you print, a hundred? More? How will the public know about your book? Will you advertise?

Perhaps if you forward your book to a newspaper they will review it and local bookshops will stock a few copies and you can sell more at markets and to your local library but what you require is national circulation and getting this is the big stumbling block.

You might try entering your creation in writing competitions where the prize is sometimes a publishing contract. If you win a major competition it would guarantee national recognition and even minor competitions often have substantial monetary prizes.

Getting published commercially today seems to be a combination of who you know, luck and self-promotion, for if you can sell a thousand copies with your limited means, perhaps there is appeal in your creation that will impress a publisher.

I dont mind so much being rejected, it is the absolute rubbish that generally seems to be held in bookshops today that irks me: books stretching almost out of sight but nothing to read.

Good luck!
Held at the picturesque Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur, Jodhpur RIFF turns 10 in 2017.

The festival, hosted by two heritage trusts, brings together Rajasthani and pan-Indian folk musicians with world, jazz and fusion artists from across the globe.

With concerts taking place at the break of dawn and under the full moon light, this is an experience not to be missed.

And music is not the only thing to keep you entertained and enchanted at RIFF. There are tours of the Mehrangarh Fort Museum, film screenings, workshops exploring the history and culture of instruments, writes Anurag Tagat for Firstpost.

One of Asia's largest Blues festivals, Mahindra Blues brings together some of the best Blues musicians in the world under one roof for two days at the iconic Mehboob Studio in Mumbai.

In 2017, the festival returns for its seventh year, with a line-up including Supersonic Blues Machine featuring Billy F Gibbons & Eric Gales, Quinn Sullivan, Janiva Magness, Shemekia Copeland and Grainne Duffy Band, Blackstratblues, among others.

If you got a taste for the Blues, this is the place to be in February.

SulaFest, held in Sula Vineyards, Nashik, offers something unique when it comes to world music festivals.

Presented by Sula, one of Indias leading wineries, the event is a great mix of music, wine, drinks, food, fashion and shopping amidst the scenic Sula Vineyard. The festival brings together Indian and international artists from across genres including rock, folk, blues, electronic and reggae music.

This year, the festival promises to offer a lineup of over 120 artists, including Your Chin, Bit of Both, Donn Bhat, Passenger Revelator, among others.

Supersonic is one of the biggest dance music festivals in the country.

Featuring some of the biggest names in the EDM industry, the festival has shifted to Pune from Goa for its fourth edition. Laid out as one of the centres for non-stop back-to-back EDM music, the festival has much to offer.

This year's lineup includes Axwell, Disclosure, Nervo, W&W, Don Diablo, Adam Beyer, among others.

Set within the 17th century Alsisar Mahal in Rajasthan, Magnetic Fields brings together royal culture, electronic music and the beautiful desert landscapes of the state.

Featuring artists from India and all across the globe, Magnetic Fields is not just a destination for music but also a unique travel experience.

Apart from all the electronic music, the festival also offers a chance to experience kite-flying, local culture, regional food and some magnificent sunrises and sunsets.

Held in Ziro Valley in Arunachal Pradesh, "India's greatest outdoor festival" lives up to its claims.

Founded in 2012, the festival puts on show the independent music in the country. The festival offers an array of indie, rock and folk acts with a chance to explore and learn about the native Apatani culture.

If travel, music and exploring cultures are your thing, then this music festival is for you.

NH7 Weekender brings together some of the biggest names and most diverse genres from across the globe to India every year.

Started in 2010, the music festival has now spread to eight cities across the country.

In the past, the festival has hosted artists like Steven Wilson, Maganiyar Seduction, Meshuggah, Megadeth, Asian Dub Foundation, MUTEMATH, The Raghu Dixit Project, Anoushka Shankar, Jose Gonzalez, DJ Premier, Indian Ocean, among others.

Every year, you can expect some great headlining acts and a blend of music and party. This year shouldn't be an exception.

Nestled in the hills of Lonavala, Enchanted Valley Carnival offers a multi-genre music festival, bringing together international pop, Bollywood, EDM, techno, fusion and Indie along with other experimental music.

Held at the picturesque Aamby Valley, the festival combines music, camping and adventure sports.

The lineup for the 2016 edition of the festival included, among others, Flo Rida, Farhan Live, Arijit Singh and Alan Walker. The lineup for the 2017 edition can be expected to be equally (if not more) big and diverse.

One of the biggest music festivals in Asia, Sunburn brings together, not just the artists, but audience from across the globe.

Over the years, Sunburn has featured electronic music heavyweights like Avicii, Dash Berlin, Armin Van Buuren, Swedish House Mafia, among others.

The go-to party destination in the country, Sunburn only gets bigger every year.

Bangalore Open Air, according to its organisers, is India's only dedicated heavy metal open air music festival. And that wouldn't surprise us in the least. Given the way metal representation at Indian festivals is slowly being decimated, BOA is one of the last flagbearers for metal in the present day.

The festival, organised in collaboration with Germany's Wacken Open Air, has hosted international acts like Kreator, Napalm Death, Destruction and a number of top-notch local bands like Bevar Sea, Demonic Resurrection and Gutslit since its inception in 2012.

Expect the 2017 affair to be one of the most extreme walls of sound to smash into Indian shores.
Continuing his attack against the demonetisation drive, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Monday once again targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for attacking the poor with his note ban policy. Rahul was speaking in Rajasthan's Baran where he also took a jibe at state chief minister Vasundhara Raje.

The Gandhi scion alleged that the BJP government under Raje is running a "suit-boot sarkar", adding that just like her bosses in New Delhi, the Rajasthan government also work only for the rich.

He charged the state and the Centre of selling 650 mines in a single day to industrialists; also privatising roadways, transportation industry along with increasing the electricity fare by 18 percent.

Rahul also claimed that tourism industry is down by 50 percent in Rajasthan, while the world famous artisans along with jewellers have been destroyed due to the note ban.

Taking a jibe at prime minister Modi, the Congress leader said: "You (Modi) have divided India into two parts  on one side is one per cent rich and, on the other, there are middle-class, poor people."

Meanwhile, reiterating his support for the poor, the Ameti MP targeted the Modi government of destroying the poor with his policies while working for the rich. He said that Modi's crusade against black money was for the rich while the poor are being sacrificed. "The note ban is a step taken against the poor, farmers and the middle-class people," he said at the rally.

"All black money isn't in cash and all cash isn't in black money and only six percent of the black money in India is in the form of paper money. The rest 94 percent is in the form of real estate, gold and in foreign banks," he added.

Just like what he has been saying in his previous speeches, the Congress leader had nothing new to add while criticising the prime minister over his various policies, as reported by Firstpost earlier.

Modiji aapke is notebandi ke yagya mei Hindustan aur Rajasthan ke kisaan ki bali chadhi hai; aapne unka cash jala diya: Rahul Gandhi pic.twitter.com/Xnm9b30tFt  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

Aap jitna mera mazak udaana chahate hai kariye lekin mere sawaloon ka jawab de dijiye kyunki yeh main nahi deshwasi pooch rahe hain: RGandhi  ANI (@ANI_news) December 26, 2016

With inputs from agencies
By Humeyra Pamuk

| ISTANBUL

ISTANBUL Turkish authorities have arrested the cafeteria manager of the opposition Cumhuriyet newspaper for insulting the president after he said he would not serve tea to Tayyip Erdogan, one of the manager's lawyers told Reuters on Monday.Senol Buran, who runs the cafeteria at the Istanbul office of Cumhuriyet, was taken into custody after police raided his home late on Saturday, lawyer Ozgur Urfa said. The newspaper is among the few still critical of the government.Insulting the president is a crime punishable by up to four years in prison in Turkey.Lawyers for Erdogan, who has dominated Turkish politics for more than a decade, have filed more than 1,800 cases against people including cartoonists, a former Miss Turkey winner and schoolchildren on accusations of insulting him. Following a failed coup in July, Erdogan said he would drop the outstanding suits, in a one-off gesture of national unity. Buran is jailed pending trial and the court date, if any, has not yet been announced. The Justice Ministry would need to approve the launch of a court case.

Buran was detained after a police officer providing security for the newspaper said he heard him use a derogatory term to describe Erdogan and say he would refuse to serve the president tea if he ever visited the cafeteria, his lawyer said.According to court documents obtained by Reuters, Buran has denied using an insulting term, while confirming that he had said he would refuse to serve the president tea. He also said he had a dispute with the police officer two years ago.The judge at an Istanbul court on Sunday ordered Buran's arrest pending trial, citing "strong suspicion of crime committed" and saying the suspect might otherwise put pressure on witnesses, the documents showed.

The Cumhuriyet has confirmed that Buran was arrested.Ten Cumhuriyet staff including its top editor and senior executives were jailed in November pending trial on suspicion of crimes on behalf of Kurdish militants and U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is accused of instigating the failed July 15 coup.The newspaper's previous editor, Can Dundar, was jailed last year for publishing state secrets involving Turkey's support for Syrian rebels. He was later released and is now overseas.

Since the July coup, more than 110,000 people have been sacked or suspended and 40,000 jailed pending trial.Western allies and rights groups say they fear Erdogan is using the coup attempt to crush dissent.Turkish authorities last week froze assets of 54 journalists who have been under investigation and some already jailed over suspected links to what Ankara calls the "Gulenist Terror Organisation", according to Hurriyet newspaper.Gulen has said the charges against him are false and has condemned the coup. (Editing by David Dolan and Ruth Pitchford)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
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A high-profile North Korean defector told South Korean lawmakers that the massive protests that led to the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye still feel strange to him but he sees the demonstrations as the countrys strength.

Thae Yong Ho, the former North Korean deputy ambassador to London, said in a closed-door briefing to lawmakers that he was impressed with the Souths democracy because its government continued to function despite the protests, according to the office of Lee Cheol Woo, one of the legislators who attended the event.

Thae also saw as remarkable that powerful individuals linked to the scandal that brought down Park were grilled by lawmakers on live TV, Lees office said.

South Koreas opposition-controlled parliament on December 9 voted to impeach Park over the corruption scandal that saw millions of people protest in past weeks. The impeachment suspended Parks powers and pushed the prime minister into the role as government caretaker until the countrys Constitutional Court decides whether she should permanently step down or be reinstated.
DES MOINES, Iowa  A federal judge said this week that a naturalized U.S. citizen from China who pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to steal seed corn must pay the U.S. companies that made the seed $425,000.

Mo Hailong, 47, was living in Florida when he was arrested in December 2013. In his plea agreement with federal prosecutors in January, he admitted to being part of a conspiracy to send stolen DuPont Pioneer and Monsanto seed corn from fields in Iowa and Illinois to China, where scientists planned to reverse engineer it to reproduce its genetic traits.

U.S. seed companies invest millions of dollars into research to develop seed traits that improve plant yields and resists pests and disease.

In a Dec. 19 judgment,a U.S. District Court in Des Moines ordered Mo to pay each company $212,500 in restitution, as well as forfeit farms near Monee, Ill., and Redfield, Iowa, to the U.S. government.

He also must turn himself in within 90 days to begin serving his three-year prison sentence. Judge Stephanie Rose asked the Bureau of Prisons to place him either in North Carolina or Miami. Due to Mos diagnosis of a rare and aggressive cancer she asked the agency to follow all medical treatment for cancer screening prescribed by his doctors.

Mos attorney, Mark Weinhardt, cited the treatment as a primary reason for entering a plea and avoiding a long and complex trial.

Mo is the only one of the employees of Kings Nower Seed, a subsidiary of Beijing-based DBN Group, allegedly involved in the conspiracy thats been prosecuted. Five other Chinese nationals fled the country, and charges were dropped last year against his sister, who is married to DBNs CEO, and she was allowed to return to China.

The investigation began when DuPont Pioneer security staff in Iowa detected suspicious activity, including men crawling around in cornfields. The FBI planted GPS monitors on rental cars and tapped cellphones of some of the men.

Mo, who goes by the name Robert Mo, has lived in the U.S. for nearly 20 years, is a legal permanent resident, and his wife and children are U.S. citizens.

Rose, however, said he must report after his prison sentence to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which may deport him under the Immigration and Nationality Act. That allows for deportation of naturalized immigrants convicted of certain crimes.
TWIN FALLS  The business scene of 2015 was a tough act to follow, but Twin Falls managed to continue its momentum through 2016.

While the city did not see the same influx of new business as it did at Canyon Park West in the latter half of last year, a number of other happenings this year are worth noting. Here are five trends we noticed in Twin Falls business and economic development over 2016:

New restaurants

The arrival of new restaurants in 2016 brought more fanfare from Twin Falls residents.

Perhaps the most notable of these was the February announcement of a Red Robin opening in the former location of River Rock Grill. The opening quickly broke into the list of most popular business stories of the year published on Magicvalley.com. Red Robin opened its doors at the end of August.

And the local cuisine also diversified a little: Twin Falls got a Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen in March and Blue Island Grill opened in August, offering Hawaiian-themed dishes.

But the opening of another restaurant not far from Twin Falls garnered attention for another reason: Moms Tumbleweed Cafe in Castleford. It was a heart-wrenching tale of a familys work to make their late mothers dream come true  and the sit-down restaurant was something Castleford residents who knew Tonya Harkins looked forward to.

Northwest development

Besides restaurants, northwest Twin Falls also welcomed a new elementary school and new homes. As the Times-News reported in April, hundreds of homes have been cropping up in areas previously used for farming as developers capitalize on a new housing boom.

Were enjoying the good times, developer Gary Nelson said at the time.

St. Lukes Magic Valley Regional Hospital, meanwhile, opened a new surgery center late this year, in order to expand its ability to perform outpatient surgeries.

Manufacturing growth

Following a spring start in production, Clif Bar had more than 200 employees in August, with plans to hire nearly 70 more by spring 2017.

But the company wasnt the only one to announce an expansion: Fabri-Kal said in April it would move a research and development facility to Burley, and Chobani announced it would hire another 100 employees by the first half of 2016. The yogurt manufacturer also planned to spend nearly $100 million on expanding its factory to add in new production lines and an office for research and development.

Airport expansions

Joslin Field Magic Valley Regional Airport decided to upgrade its facilities with a terminal expansion this year. The $4.3 million project wont be complete until early 2017 at least.

Friedman Memorial Airport in Hailey also made changes in 2016, expanding air service to and from Seattle and adding a nonstop Portland flight late this year.

Renewed interest on canyon rim

Developers this year have actively begun laying the groundwork for new buildings along the canyon rim  this time, east of the Magic Valley Mall.

Pillar Falls Plaza, just north of the Pole Line Road and Eastland Drive intersection, got its preliminary plat approved at the December Planning and Zoning Commission meeting. The nearby Rio Vista development began designing for residential and commercial use, and Canyon Village  on the south side of Pole Line Road, is moving ahead with residential and commercial development.

If these plans prove fruitful, Twin Falls could soon see a mix of new hotels, condominiums, restaurants, offices and town houses along the canyon rim.
A former 40 year Atheist analyzes Atheism, without resorting to theism, deism, or fantasy.

***

If You Don't Value Truth, Then What DO You Value?

***

If we say that the sane can be coaxed and persuaded to rationality, and we say that rationality presupposes logic, then what can we say of those who actively reject logic?

***

Atheists have an obligation to give reasons in the form of logic and evidence for rejecting Theist theories.
Twin Falls Senior Citizen Center

530 Shoshone St. W., Twin Falls. Lunch at noon. Suggested donation: $5, seniors 60 and older; $6, non-seniors; $3, children 9 and younger. Other items: cinnamon roll, $2; coffee 50 cents; soup to go, $3; lunch to go, $5.50. For lunch take-out, 11 a.m. to noon daily: 208-734-5084.

Today: Closed

Tuesday: Turkey pot pie

Wednesday: Spaghetti with meat sauce

Thursday: Pork ribs

Friday: Chicken alfredo

Tuesday: Tai Chi exercise class, 9 a.m., free

Ticket Tuesday, 11:45 a.m.

Hand and foot canasta, 1 p.m.

Art classes, 3:30 and 6:30 p.m.

Pinochle, 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday: Cinnamon roll sales, 7:30 a.m.

Quilting, 9 a.m.

Fit and Fall Proof, 10:30 a.m., free

Music by Legacy Band, 11:30 a.m.

Bridge, 1 p.m.

Laughter Therapy, 5:30 p.m.

Thursday: Tai Chi, 9 a.m., free

Organ music by Pat Blessin, 11:30 a.m.

Thunder Thursday game, 11:50 a.m.

Visually Impaired Support Group meeting, 12:45 p.m.

Pinochle, 1 p.m.

Art classes, 3:30 and 6:30 p.m.

Ladies AA, 6 p.m.

Friday: Quilting, 9 a.m.

Fit and Fall Proof, 10:30 a.m., free

Bingo, 11:45 a.m.

City of Twin Falls discussion with Senior Citizens Advisory Commission, 12:15 p.m.

Art class, 1:30 p.m.

West End Senior Citizens Inc.

1010 Main St., Buhl. Lunch at noon, suggested donation: $5, seniors, 60 and older; $7, non-seniors; $7 for take-out dinners; and $4, children 10 and younger. Sunday buffet at 1 p.m.: $5, seniors, 60 and older; $7, non-seniors; $4, children 10 and younger. Bus for lunch pickup: 208-543-4577 by 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.

Today: Grilled cheese sandwich, tomato soup

Tuesday: Salisbury steak

Wednesday: Italian-style breakfast toast

Thursday: Lemon chicken over noodles

Sunday: Closed

Today: SilverSneakers exercise program, 10:30 a.m.

Pinochle, 7 p.m.

Wednesday: SilverSneakers, 10:30 a.m.

Bingo, early bird starts at 6:45 p.m., doors open at 5:30 p.m.

Filer Senior Haven

222 Main St., Filer. Lunch at noon Tuesday through Thursday. Suggested donation: $5. 208-326-4608.

Tuesday: Turkey and noodles

Wednesday: Pig-in-a-blanket

Thursday: Fried chicken

Today: Bingo, 6:30 p.m.

Tuesday: Puzzles, 11:30 a.m.

Bingo, 12:45 p.m.

Wednesday: Puzzles, 11:30 a.m.

Bingo, 12:45 p.m., $2

Thursday: Puzzles, 11:30 a.m.

Bingo, 12:45 p.m.

Cards, 1:30 p.m.

Friday: Pinochle, 7 p.m.

Ageless Senior Center

310 Main St. N., Kimberly. Salad bar at 11:30 a.m., lunch served at noon; take-out; home delivery. Seniors 60 and older, suggested donation is $6, under 60, $7.50 (not donations); meals to go, $7.50. 208-423-4338.

Wednesday: Beef stew

Thursday: Baked chicken

Friday: Salisbury steak

Today: Exercise, 10 a.m.

Tuesday: Bible study, 1 p.m.

Snooker, 1 p.m.

Bingo, 7 p.m.

Wednesday: Exercise, 10 a.m.

Thursday: Crafts, 1 p.m.

Snooker, 1 p.m.

Friday: Exercise, 10 a.m.

Saturday: Crazy wild pinochle, 7 p.m.

Gooding Senior Citizen Center

308 Senior Ave., Gooding. Lunch at noon. Suggested donation: $3.50 for seniors. 208-934-5504.

Today: Spaghetti and meatballs

Tuesday: Chicken chow mein

Wednesday: Poor mans steak

Thursday: Turkey dinner

Today: Fit and Fall Proof exercise, 11 a.m.

Pinochle, 12:30 p.m.

Pool, 1 p.m.

Tuesday: Pool, 1 p.m.

Hand and foot, 3:30 p.m.

Wednesday: Fit and Fall Proof, 11 a.m.

Pool, 1 p.m.

Shuffleboard, 3:30 p.m.

Thursday: Pool, 1 p.m.

Pinochle, 1 p.m.

Friday: Duplicate bridge, 1 p.m.

Bingo, 6 p.m.

Wendell Senior Center

380 First Ave. E. Lunch served at noon. Suggested donation: $4 for seniors; $6 for under 60. 208-536-9951.

Today: Closed

Friday: New Years meal, barbecue beef sliders

Hagerman Valley Senior and Community Center

140 E. Lake, Hagerman. The center is open 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Lunch at noon. Suggested donation: $5, seniors 60 and older; $7, non-seniors. All take-outs, $6. 208-837-6120.

Today: Roast pork

Wednesday: Pita pizza

Friday: Beef stew

Today: Blood draws (by doctors order), 8 to 10:30 a.m.

50/50 raffle and Bridge Club, 1 p.m.

Friday: Two bingo games

Tumbleweed Saloon Casino night

Jerome Senior Center

520 N. Lincoln St., Jerome. 208-324-5642. Salad bar at 11:30 a.m.; lunch at noon. Suggested donation: $4, seniors (age 60 and older); $5, non-seniors; $3, children under 12.

Today: Closed

Tuesday: Barbecued riblets

Wednesday: Parmesan chicken

Thursday: Tater tot casserole

Friday: Roast beef

Tuesday: Fitness class, 10:30 a.m.

Pinochle, 1 p.m.

Wednesday: Fitness class, 10:30 a.m.

Country Boys Band, 11:30 a.m.

Womens pool, 1 p.m.

Pinochle, 7 p.m.

Thursday: Yoga, 10:30 a.m.

Pinochle, 1 p.m.

Hand and foot, 1 p.m.

Fitness class, 5:20 p.m.

Womens pool, 7 p.m.

Friday: Fitness class, 10:30 a.m.

Pinochle, 1 p.m.

Bingo, 6 p.m., doors open at 5 p.m.

Silver and Gold Senior Center

210 E. Wilson, Eden. Lunch at noon Tuesday and Thursday. Breakfast at 8 a.m. Wednesday. Suggested donation: $5, seniors (age 60 and older); $6.50, non-seniors. 208-825-5662.

Today through Friday: Closed

Richfield Senior Center

130 S. Main, Richfield. Lunch at noon. Suggested donation: $4, seniors; $5.50, under 60.

Today and Thursday: Closed

Golden Years Senior Citizens Inc.

218 N. Rail St. W., Shoshone. Lunch at noon. Suggested donation: $4, seniors 60 and older; $5.50, non-seniors. 208-886-2369.

Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday: Closed

Camas County Senior Center

129 Willow Ave. W., Fairfield. Breakfast, 7-11 a.m. Monday through Friday. Lunch at noon. Suggested donation: $4, seniors 60 and older; $5, non-seniors; $2.50, children 10 and younger. 208-764-2226.

Tuesday: Chili

Wednesday: Chicken enchiladas

Friday: Meatloaf

Tuesday: Quilting, 10 a.m.

Cards after lunch

Wednesday: Fit and Fall exercise class, 9 a.m.

Cards after lunch

Thursday: Art class, 10 a.m.

Friday: Exercise, 9 a.m.

Quilting, 10 a.m.

Cards after lunch

Saturday: Breakfast, 8 to 10 a.m., cost is $5 (usually 2nd Saturday each month)

Blaine County Senior Center

721 Third Ave. S., Hailey. Lunch at noon. Suggested donation: $5, seniors; $7, non-seniors. 208-788-3468.

Today: Closed

Tuesday: Pork loin with caramelized apples

Wednesday: Soft-shell beef tacos

Thursday: Meatloaf

Friday: Champagne lunch

Tuesday: Fit and Fall exercise, Carey, 10 a.m.

Foot clinic

Connection Club, 11 a.m.

Bingo, 1 p.m.

Wednesday: Fit and Fall exercise, 11 a.m.

Kiwanis lunch, 11:30 a.m.

Thursday: Fit and Fall exercise, Carey, 10 a.m.

Connection Club, 11 a.m.

Card games, 1 p.m.

Friday: Connection Club, 11 a.m.

Fit and Fall exercise, 11 a.m.

Card games, 1 p.m.

Minidoka County Senior Citizens Center

702 11th St., Rupert. Lunch at noon. Suggested donation: $5, seniors; $6, non-seniors; $3, children 10 and younger; $4.50, home delivery. 208-436-9107.

Today through Friday: Closed

The Senior Junction

2421 Overland Ave., Burley. Lunch at noon. Suggested donation: $5, seniors and children 12 and younger; $6, non-seniors.208-878-8646.

Today: Chicken cordon bleu

Tuesday: Stromboli

Wednesday: Lasagna

Thursday: Senior appreciation celebration

Friday: Fajitas

Today: Open billiards, 9 a.m.

Pinochle, 1 p.m.

Tuesday: Woodcarvers, 9 a.m.

Pinochle, 6 p.m.

Wednesday: Open billiards, 9 a.m.

Chair yoga, 9:45 a.m.

Pinochle, 1 p.m.

Thursday: Art with Shirley, 1 p.m.

Friday: Open billiards, 9 a.m.

Pinochle, 1 p.m.

Dance, 7 p.m.

Lorna Reed Senior Center

424 Market St., Albion. Open Wednesdays, 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.; lunch at noon. Suggested donation, $5 seniors, $5 non-seniors. Take-out available ($8.50), call by 11:30 a.m. 208-673-6210.

Wednesday: Closed
Childbirth

St. Lukes Magic Valley Medical Centers prepared childbirth classes, 6:30 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays, Dec. 27 through Jan. 24, in the Oak Room on the lower level of St. Lukes, 801 Pole Line Road W., Twin Falls.

Topics: Wellness during pregnancy; labor and delivery process with relaxation and breathing techniques; caesarean birth; postpartum care for mother and newborn; infant CPR; car seat and home safety; and a tour of the maternal and child units. Bring a labor-support person if possible.

Cost is $25 for a five-week session. Pre-registration is required: 208-814-0402.

Blood drives

The American Red Cross will hold blood drives this week in Twin Falls and Richfield.

Blood donation opportunities will be available in Twin Falls from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 667 Harrison St.; 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at Twin Falls South Stake Center, 541 Orchard Drive; and from 1 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday, and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday at Church of the Ascension Episcopal, 371 Eastland Drive N.

In Richfield, the blood drive will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 440 E. Nez Perce.

Donors of all blood types are needed to help ensure a sufficient supply for hospital patients. To schedule an appointment to donate, use the blood donor app, visit redcrossblood.org or call 800-733-2767.

Alzheimers support

Alzheimers Association, Greater Idaho Chapters Caregiver Support Group meeting, 6:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at DeSano Place Suites, 545 Nevada St., Gooding.

The group meets on the second and fourth Wednesdays every month.

Information: 208-934-4623.

Alzheimers support

Alzheimers Association, Greater Idaho Chapters Caregiver Support Group meeting, 6:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at DeSano Place Village, 1015 E. Ave. K, Jerome.

The group meets on the first and fourth Wednesdays every month.

Information: Becci Bowler, 208-749-1621.

Vision support

Visually Impaired Support Group meeting, 12:45 to 2 p.m. Thursday at the Twin Falls Senior Center, 530 Shoshone St. W., Twin Falls.

Topics: glaucoma, macular degeneration and diabetes-caused vision problems.

Information: Idaho Commission for the Blind, 208-734-2140.

Anxiety support

Anxiety Support Group, 6 p.m. every Thursday at Magic Valley Fellowship Hall, 801 Second Ave. N., Twin Falls.

Support for those who experience anxiety, panic attacks or depression. Learn about the signs, symptoms of anxiety and depression, and coping skills.

Information: Cathy Shaddy, 208-410-2768.

Childbirth

Childbirth refresher course, 6:30 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3, in the Oak Rooms on the lower level of St. Lukes, 801 Pole Line Road W., Twin Falls.

Topic: Review of childbirth preparation and medical center procedures, and a tour of the maternal and child unit. Bring a labor support person, if possible.

Cost is $15; pre-registration is required, 208-814-0402.

To do for you is a listing of health-related activities, events and education. Submit information by noon Thursday for publication in the following Mondays edition to ramona@magicvalley.com.
TWIN FALLS  This is how Carleen Herring helped bring $1 billion into south-central Idaho: early success, a passion for her work, and persistence.

Herring joined Region IV Development in 1986, and over the course of 30 years shes been assisting communities with getting financing for public infrastructure projects. According to records shes meticulously kept updated, Herring has been directly involved with more than $1 billion in public and private investment.

Among these were infrastructure projects leading up to Jaycos expansion, Chobani and Clif Bar opening and Bliss getting a wastewater system.

But Herring is keen on keeping out of the spotlight as much as she can.

Were one of those odd little hidden agencies, said Herring, Region IV Developments chief operating officer and senior vice president for community and economic development. Im still going to be at it for a while.

Region IV Development is a private nonprofit organization that was founded in the 1970s by city and county officials. The group offers small business lending and facilitates funding for community development projects.

To date, weve created in excess of 4,700 jobs in the community, Herring said.

The former accountant moved to the Magic Valley from Chicago after her parents retired in Victor, Idaho.

I had the opportunity to stay in Chicago counting beans or I could move out to the mountains, she said. I worked a lot of odd jobs trying to figure out whether I would survive out here.

These included night auditing at a hotel complex and bookkeeping for a potato processor.

And then she saw an advertisement for a job at Region IV Development. She was hired by President Joe Herring, who she married two years later. The two keep their professional and personal lives completely separate, she said.

The best part of her job?

You can make stuff happen that improves the quality of life for people, Herring said.

Paving the way

Region IV Development can get grant money or low-interest loans for projects that allow new businesses to come in  but there are strict requirements.

It has to be public infrastructure, Herring said at the Dec. 12 City Council meeting. Those dollars cannot be used for cutting a check to the senior center or cutting a check to a private business.

And the project also has to solve a health and safety issue and serve a low to moderate income population. The people who benefit have to make less than 80 percent of countys median household income  about 44,000 for family of four. The employer has to provide above the median wage, too.

It isnt easy proving this, and Region IV has to vet applications. It also provides administrative services for federal paperwork.

I got lucky because I had some early success, and that always energizes you to go on, Herring said.

In 1987, she managed to get a sizable partnership going and gained $2.4 million in public money for infrastructure at the South Lincoln Business Park in Jerome. Following Tupperwares closure, manufacturing unemployment left a huge hole in the citys economy, Herring said.

Also in Jerome, Herring helped run community meetings to negotiate more favorable terms with an unfunded wastewater treatment mandate in the early 1990s. The meetings brought the attention of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality.

It got it down to a conversation, Herring said.

But perhaps one of her proudest moments came in 2010.

It took me 22 years to get Bliss a wastewater system, she said.

With challenges blasting lava rock and putting in a lagoon system, Herring was able to get nearly $7 million in economic stimulus funds President Barack Obama put into place. The city spent only about $800,000, Herring said.

Region IV Development serves 34 towns in eight counties.

More recent projects

When Jayco wanted to expand to its industrial park on Hankins Road, it needed sewer and water services extended.

The role I played was to facilitate the (Idaho Community Development Block Grant) funding that went along with the project, Herring said.

It totaled up to nearly a half-million dollars, plus funds from the city. And now, the industrial park property is able to serve businesses like Clif Bar.

Thats the magic of building public infrastructure, Herring said. When the city invests in putting pipe in the ground, its not just that first business, but it can be used by future businesses.

Utility improvements for Chobani received a grant and Urban Renewal Agency funds of more than $5 million. And Clif Bars funding from grant and city money was about $9.5 million to rebuild a wastewater lift station and make improvements for power.

Herring is also given credit for playing a key role in getting Twin Falls the federal manufacturing community designation last year.

You have done so much for us, Councilwoman Ruth Pierce said at the Dec. 12 meeting.

And theres still more she plans to do. Councilman Chris Talkington asked Herring about getting natural gas lines in near the airport.

That one is still on my shopping list of things that the communities need, Herring said.

Other council members also offered their appreciation.

You make each one of us feel like were the only person you have to deal with and you have a real gift for doing that, Vice Mayor Suzanne Hawkins said.

City Manager Travis Rothweiler acknowledged Region IV Developments work with the city over the years.

They are a part of our team, he said. The amount of time and staff hours that they spend would completely overwhelm our operation capacity at the city.
Rare indeed, and bracing, are the moments that strip us of certainties and force us back to consideration of our most fundamental values.

Such was 2016.

Donald Trump campaigned to an America now largely dependent on televisual and social media-provisioned sources of information and misinformation.

Institutions - such as newspapers, political parties and universities - that have traditionally helped test and vet evidence and argument hit, and now must face, the limits of their influence.

As a society, we find that our disagreements are deep and that many of us, perhaps even most of us, too easily personalize them. We are dangerously near treating one another as aliens.

Where to from here? The single most helpful resource I have hit upon this fall is an old book by the Roman politician and intellectual Cicero. It's called "On Duties." In it, Cicero offers guidance on navigating turbulent political times.

Remember, he says, your distinct roles and their specific responsibilities. It is fine, he says, to take on first one role, and then another, the persona of the father and then of the politician, for instance, or the persona of the philosopher and then the citizen. None of us needs to be just one thing.

But as we move from role to role, we must have clearly in view the responsibilities that pertain to each. One's duty is to perform the responsibilities of the roles one has entered into.

The mission of universities is to educate. The responsibility of professors derives from that mission. The grounding commitment is to truth.

The mission of a news organization is to record accurately the course of events, including patterns of deception and duplicity. Again, the grounding commitment is to truth.

The mission of a citizen, an American citizen, is to defend America, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The grounding commitment is to human moral equality, as in the Declaration of Independence. This, too, entails a dedication to truth. "We hold these truths to be self-evident," reads the Declaration, as it introduces the fact of human moral equality.

America the Indivisible spreads opportunity wide and embraces all colors, all creeds within the sunshine of equal regard.

America the Indivisible looks at the divisions between rural and urban communities and seeks out bridge-building solutions.

America the Indivisible looks at patterns of racial and socioeconomic residential segregation and inequalities in access to housing and transportation and seeks reinvestment in public infrastructure such as transportation and housing that will connect communities now separated.

America the Indivisible defends its borders but welcomes strangers and recognizes that those who have put down roots here and put their backs into the work of building strong communities have earned our regard. And America the Indivisible rejects invidious distinctions among potential immigrants - quota systems must go. Entrance should be by pure lottery from among those eligible on the grounds of security assessments.

America the Indivisible acknowledges the ravages of illegal drugs and seeks out solutions aimed at achieving the health and well-being of as many as possible touched by the world of drugs and at limiting the harm caused by drugs to the rest. America the Indivisible looks to places such as Portugal, where marijuana has been legalized and other drugs decriminalized, and adolescent drug use is down and the percentage of users seeking treatment is up. We do not look to the Philippines where a deepened investment in a "war on drugs" has metastasized into extrajudicial murder.

And America the Indivisible seeks to reduce the footprint of the criminal-justice system so that we have funds to invest in public education, including our state universities. Once upon a time, we led the world in spreading the benefit of education. America the Indivisible will rediscover the truth that education is a public good. It strengthens economies, communities and individuals by spurring human flourishing.

Each and every one of us can defend America the Indivisible - by running for office, at all levels; by seeking inclusiveness in every decision-making process of which we are a part; by supporting organizations and leaders who defend basic political and civil rights, equal protection of the law and due process, and basic human rights, especially for the most vulnerable among us.

We can defend America the Indivisible by reminding the anchor institutions of civil society to return to their core missions and to apply themselves assiduously to their responsibilities.

We can defend America the Indivisible by holding up the values we believe in, often and everywhere, with firm voices, clarity of commitment and charity toward those with whom we disagree.

We can defend America the Indivisible by telling the truth.
Last week, Fox Newss Bill OReilly had good news for his viewersthe war on Christmas had finally ended. We won! OReilly declared.

What were OReillys metrics for measuring this great victory over the secularists who he saw as so hell-bent on ruining Christianitys great feast? Simple: the number of stores using Merry Christmas! instead of Happy Holidays! has increased in the past decade.

But as OReilly noted, there are still some companies out there who still wont oblige with the victors demands that Christmas greetings be done the right way. Dont worry, OReilly assured his viewers, theres a new president in town, and thats bad news for them, because Donald Trump is on the case.

In one sense, OReilly is absolutely right. The president-elect has made renewed Christian strength in the public sphere a key underpinning to his shocking victory. Trump told us time and again that when hes president, Christianity will have power again in the United States. Christians dont use their power, Trump has complained. We have to strengthen. Because we are gettingif you look, its death by a million cutswe are getting less and less and less powerful in terms of a religion, and in terms of a force.

In typical Trump fashion, he thinks this starts in the marketplace: Ill tell you one thing: I get elected president, were going to be saying Merry Christmas [at department stores] again. He continued, Because if Im there, youre going to have plenty of power. You dont need anybody else. Youre going to have somebody representing you very, very well. Remember that.

Unfortunately, for OReilly and Trump, theres still one person they must defeat in this self-perpetuating war on Christmas. Its Pope Francis, the 80-year-old leader of 1.2 billion Catholics across the globe.

Christmas is a charade! Francis said last year.

These arent exactly words you would expect from a Christian during the holiday season, much less the pope. But thats exactly what the troublemaker Pope Francis told a group of us gathered for Mass in 2015. Christmas is approaching: there will be lights, parties, lighted Christmas trees and manger scenes . . . its all a charade.

Why would the pope wage war on Christmas? The world continues to go to war. The world has not chosen a peaceful path. There are wars today everywhere, and hate, Francis said. We should ask for the grace to weep for this world, which does not recognize the path to peace. To weep for those who live for war and have the cynicism to deny it. God weeps; Jesus weeps.

In other words, the meaning of Christmas isnt strength and visibility in the public sphere. The central claim of this holiday has always been that the rejected, crucified and executed Jesus Christ is still somehow Lord of the entire earth. In Trumps world, those like Jesus Christ are the losers. In Gods world, these are the victors.

The power of Christmas is derived from our ability to communicate and practice Gods saving love in the invisible parts of the world. Saying Merry Christmas at Macys might win an empty-shell public-relations battle, but it does nothing to truly advance the Gospel of Jesus. The Christmas that Donald Trump is defending is the Norman Rockwell Christmas: a bourgeois celebration thats accented by turkey, gifts and comfort. From a Christian standpoint, then, Pope Francis is right: This version of Christmas is a charade, and its time to reignite the war against it.

If we shouldnt aim to elevate the domesticated, bourgeois notion of Christmas and signal a return to Christian cultural dominance, then what is Christmas really all about? In short, its about the opposite of what Trump thinks it is: Reaching out to the excluded and downtrodden, and humbling ourselves before others.

In the time of Jesus birth, the expectation of a messiah was strong among the Jewish people. They were looking for a hero who would at last set their people free from every form of moral, political and economic slavery they faced under the tyranny of Rome. The prophet Isaiah told them this liberator would beat spears and swords into plowshares and pruning hooks and end the scandal of war.

Yet God didnt send a military leader or a politician to save his people, but a child born to an unwed mother, who even fled violence as a refugee. This child did indeed bring liberation, but not just for the people of that time and place. He was to be a savior for all of humanity and for every age, destroying death forever and restoring life through the means of a shameful death upon the cross. No one would have expected the messiah to be born in poverty, obscurity, and exclusion, far from the cultural and political centers of the worldbut such is Gods logic.

In this framework, the last are first, the poor are blessed, enemies are loved, and strangers are welcomed. Black lives matter here. LGBT lives matter here. And so too do the lives of women, refugees, the imprisoned, the unborn, and anyone else who suffers exclusion.

But Jesus doesnt just come for the excluded. He comes too for the parts of our own lives that are suffering. In Jesus, Pope Francis says, God assumed our frailty, our suffering, our anxieties, our desires and our limitations. . .He accepts our poverty, God who is in love with our smallness.

If Pope Francis is right, these are the sentiments that should highlight our Christmas celebrations this year. Francis argues that the Christmas story asks us to risk a face-to-face encounter with others, with their physical presence which challenges us, with their pain and their pleas, with their joy which infects us in our close and continuous interaction. True faith in the incarnate Son of God is inseparable from self-giving, from membership in the community, from service, from reconciliation with others.

At Christmas, Jesus came all the way down into the grittiness of human dysfunctionits violence, its disloyalty and its sinfulnessto bring everyone up. The very essence of the holiday calls out of our comfort and into discomfort.

In Jesus birth and in his story, we can begin to understand Christmas for what it really is: Gods invitation to a revolution of tenderness.

Saying Merry Christmas at Macys might win an empty-shell public-relations battle, but it does nothing to truly advance the Gospel of Jesus.
Instead of delivering his annual State of the State message in Albany, Gov. Andrew Cuomo is going to outline his agenda during several stops across New York.

Cuomo's office announced his plans Monday to deliver regional State of the State addresses throughout the state during the week of Jan. 9. His stops will include the Capital Region, central New York, Hudson Valley, Long Island, New York City and western New York.

The dates, times and locations of the speeches weren't announced. The governor's office said the schedule will be rolled out in the coming days.

The state Constitution requires the governor to deliver an annual address updating lawmakers on the state of the state and "recommend such matters to it as he or she shall judge expedient."

The Constitution doesn't require the governor to deliver the State of the State address in Albany.

Melissa DeRosa, Cuomo's chief of staff, said this year's State of the State addresses will highlight regional development strategies throughout New York and provide the governor with an opportunity to outline accomplishments and challenges that remain.

"Next month, the governor will bring his message directly to communities statewide, announcing regional initiatives and groundbreaking proposals he will advance in 2017," DeRosa said. "The governor looks forward to articulating his vision for a stronger, brighter New York in the weeks ahead."

Cuomo hasn't been afraid to break from tradition with the State of the State address.

Since taking office in 2011, he's delivered the annual message at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center in Albany instead of the state Assembly chambers, which traditionally had been the host site of the speech.

Over the past two years, Cuomo opted to present a joint State of the State and executive budget presentation. He first decided to combine the speeches after the death of his father, the late Gov. Mario Cuomo, on New Year's Day 2015. That year, the State of the State was postponed until later in the month.
In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.

He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. ~
At the time the Tunisian nation stands in the way of the return of the countrys terrorists fighting abroad, interior minister Hedi Majdoub has told lawmakers that 800 jihadists have already come back home.

The minister announced that his department has all information on the jihadists.

Last week, Majdoub indicated that his department is ready to cope with future returns and that it already has information on other returnees.

Around 5,000 Tunisians have been reportedly fighting for the Islamic State group (IS) and other terrorist groups in hotbed conflict zones mainly in Syria, Iraq and Libya.

Crowds of Tunisians gathered in front of the parliament on Saturday to denounce the decision of the government and President Caid Essebsi to allow the return of the jihadists.

Tunisians have stood against Essebsis recent comments that Tunisia was land for all its citizens including terrorists.

The Tunisian leader retracted arguing that he would not grant clemency to any terrorists and that they will face justice.

The Tunisian internal security forces union also called on the authorities to beware of the return of the jihadists as they pointed out that it may lead to the Somalisation of the country.

In a different development, press reports announced the deportation from Sudan of Moez Fezzani; an alleged mastermind of the March 2015 attack against the Bardo Museum, in capital Tunis, which killed 21 people mostly foreign tourists.

Two IS commandos had stormed the Bardo Museum firing at a group of foreign tourists.

Tunisia, following the attack, issued an international arrest warrant against terrorists allegedly linked to IS.

Several other suspects have been arrested after the investigations ended. Their trial is expected to kick off in the first part of next year, French ambassador to Tunis Olivier Poivre dArvor recently indicated citing judicial sources.
As some parts of the liberated areas from the Islamic State group celebrated Christmas for the first time in a couple of years, the Iraqi army and the extremist group were engaged in intense clashes that left around 97 militants dead. The joint statement from the Iraqi Joint Operations Command said two positions of their forces were attacked by the Islamic State (IS) with suicide car bombs but were repelled.

Clashes at the newly-liberated neighborhood of al-Intisar, al-Shaima and al-Salam in southeastern Mosul left 51 extremist fighters dead while 21 of them were killed in the attack on the federal police in south of Mosul. Airstrikes were also carried out on their positions in Warda. The statement did not state the number of casualties its forces suffered.

Mosul, some 400 km north of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, has been under the IS control since June 2014, when Iraqi government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to take control of parts of Iraqs northern and western regions. The government has taken over some of the territories since it launched its offensive in mid-October.

The governments efforts will be boosted by the arrival of warplanes from South Korea. The aircrafts expected to be in Iraq early next year. The Ministry of Defense stated that the supply of 24 T50 warplanes is made under a deal sealed in 2013. They are expected to be harbored at the newly built Suwaira airbase in Wasit province but some of the fleet could be deployed to the Dhi Qar and Salahuddin airbases. Iraq has been heavily dependent on the US-led airstrike campaign to target IS positions before ground forces comb the area.

Contrary to the beginning of the campaign to retake Mosul, the progress of the ground troops has been slow and battles have become more fierce.
The Tunisian army had raided and destroyed a terrorist hideout on Thursday, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

The dismantled cell sought to recruit new militias and operated between the towns of Sidi Bouzid in central Tunisia, Beja in the north-east, and the capital Tunis.

According to the ministry, the hideout consisted of three young women aged 17 to 28 years and two men aged 19 and 31. The five suspects who are in custody have confessed being in contact with terrorist elements in Libya and Algeria, using pseudonyms, via social networks.

After Tunisias 2011 revolution and transition to democracy, Islamist militancy has grown in Tunisia.

Officials estimate that several thousand Tunisians left their country to fight with Islamic State and other groups in Iraq and Syria.

The North African nation suffered several major attacks claimed by Islamic State last year and has struggled to contain a jihadist threat from neighboring Libya.

The government faces a major challenge to provide economic opportunities to young people frustrated by the high level of unemployment in the country.

The government recently held an investor conference where billions of dollars were pledged for the countrys development.
The German auto giant Volkswagen (VW) has officially launched its production facility in Kenya.

The plant is expected to produce cars for Kenya as well as the wider East African market. The company announced a return to the East African country after almost four decades out. Its last engagement with Kenya dates back to 1977.

During the inauguration of the assembly plant this week, VW showcased its first locally assembled passenger vehicle, dubbed Polo Vivo.

A few months ago, this was only a dream. Now Volkswagens investment in Kenya has become reality. This is further proof of my governments determination to strengthen the production location of Nairobi and to forge ahead with the industrialization of the nation, President Kenyatta said.

Volkswagen expansion in East Africa is expected to create employment and help communities build capacity for the entire automotive sector.

The German car manufacturer currently has four plants in South Africa producing a variety of passenger and commercial vehicles.

The government of Kenya in 2015 introduced tax incentives for local car manufacturers guaranteeing at least 40 percent of the annual car lease contracts would go to locally assembled cars.

Kenya Vehicle Manufacture was set up in 1976 and has to date produced 60,000 units. The vehicle assembler is jointly owned by the government, CMC and the CFAO Group.
King Mohammed VI of Morocco has been awarded the 2016 Mandela Peace Prize for his efforts to promote peace and justice around the world and for his Africa-oriented policy that seeks to boost the continents development.

The king won the prize for his contribution to building a society of justice and peace between humans and nations, in addition to his efforts to promote the development of Africa through economic, security and cultural diplomacy, said Paul Kananura, Chairman of the Mandela Peace Prize, which is awarded to people or institutions that foster peace within Africa.

For the Mandela Peace Institute, King Mohammed VI reflected this year the philosophy and the spirit of the South African iconic leader, Nelson Mandela.

The Prize has gone to the Moroccan monarch for his efforts to bridge the wide gap between the haves and have-nots through the construction of a fair society as promoted by Mandela during his life.

Since he came to power in 1999, King Mohammed VI made several trips across the continent. The latest that took place just this fall took him to Rwanda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Madagascar, and Nigeria. Each of the monarchs African visits is marked by the signing of multiple bilateral agreements and the launch of groundbreaking economic projects.

The Mandela Peace Institute, which musters high profile former army generals, diplomats, journalists and many experts, also acknowledged King Mohammed VIs soft diplomatic efforts to accelerate the continents development through win-win partnerships.

The institute awards other Prizes in other areas.

This year, the Mandela Prize for Democracy Award went to Mali President Ibrahim Boubcar Keita for his immense efforts and contribution to democracy and security consolidation in northern Mali.

The Mandela Security Award went to Niger President Isoufou Mahmadou following his firm national security policy and his regional leadership in the security field and struggle against terrorists and drug trafficking in the Sahel and the Lake Chad.

Senegalese President Macky Sall was also honored with the Mandela Prize of Emergence for his visionary societal projects to develop the future of his country, while the good governance prize went to Benins President Patrice Talon.
Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz has lambasted Paris as he accused French logistic and transport company group Bollore of attempting to corrupt him so that he gives them the management of traffic at the port of Nouakchott.

The Mauritania President confessed the corrupt attempt during a meeting with senators of his party, Union Pour la Republique (UPR), local media Alakhbar reported.

A source, which attended the meeting, told the media that the President confirmed the attempt by an official of the French company who tabled 10 million to bribe the president so that he lets them control traffic at the port.

The Mauritania leader disclosed the information as he charged the attitude of western countries towards his country, the media says. For the Mauritanian ruler, western countries put pressure on Nouakchott and accuse it of human rights violation and slavery because it opposes their imperialist and economic ambitions.

The Mauritanian regime in November laid into Paris for receiving anti-slavery activist and former presidential candidate Biram Dah Abeid.

The Mauritanian regime fears Pariss support for the activist who has vowed to put an end to President Abdel Azizs power, which the activist claims, has turned the country into a cash cow for the Presidents entourage and friends.
AUBURN  An engineering firm working with the city of Auburn's water treatment plant has proposed a list of nine options to help it rid the water of blue-green algae toxins.

The city is seriously considering three of those, including the extension of the plant's intake pipe, utilizing powder activated carbon and utilizing ozone. Plant operators in both Auburn and the town of Owasco are hoping to upgrade their facilities with one or more of these options in time for next year's blue-green algae season, sometime in the late summer.

Cyanotoxins called microcystin from this summer's blue-green algae blooms made it past Owasco and Auburn's treatment processes and into the drinking water. The toxins can cause liver and kidney failure, but levels found in the drinking water were below the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's health advisory guidelines. The Cayuga County Health Department and city and county officials have said they do not want any detectable levels of toxins in the treated water.

GHD, an environmental engineering firm with a location in Buffalo, proposed the latest ideas to Auburn and is currently working with water samples from the treatment plants to test the various methods.

Seth Jensen, director of the city's Municipal Utilities, said the plant has already begun using powder activated carbon, which had cut down on the amount of microcystin found in the treated water. Now, the plant is considering it more closely, Jensen said, trying to decide at what stage in the treatment process it should be applied to make it most effective.

In a summary chart of the proposed treatments, powder activated carbon is listed as a low relative cost. Jensen said there are no specific numbers tied to the low, medium, high and very high designations at this time.

"We didn't really want to dive into the cost aspect of things during our high level overview, so we'd look at every option and weigh every option as equally as possible," Jensen said. "It's good to understand high level costs, but as far as $2 million versus $500,000, I think we'd want to choose the most effective treatment process."

According to the summary chart from GHD, the carbon has removed more than 95 percent of microcystin toxins, but it does not remove intact cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae. It is also shown to remove other kinds of cyanotoxins and contaminants.

Considered a "medium" cost, ozone is another treatment method Jensen said they are considering. It's a kind of disinfectant that is also said to remove more than 95 percent of microcystin in addition to intact cyanobacteria. One concern about using ozone is that its disinfection byproduct, depending on the chemistry of the water, could form a carcinogen. GHD is using water directly from Auburn's plant to see how ozone, and the other methods, will work.

"They're using our water as their baseline," Jensen said, "which is good because it's got the PH and any other chemical uniqueness."

Eileen O'Connor, director of the county's Environmental Health Division, said no water treatment plants in the county use ozone, and she is not aware of any in central New York that utilize it either. Jensen said there's a lot to be learned still about the process. He's excited, though, because Doug Selby, who is the former Auburn city manager, has worked with ozone in another former position as city manager of Las Vegas. There the water is ozonated, and Jensen said he's hoping to capture some of Selby's knowledge while he is still the interim director of the county's Water and Sewer Authority.

There is also the possibility that the plants will extend their intake pipes. O'Connor said by extending the intake pipe beneath the lake's thermocline, which is where the water becomes cold, the plant may be able to bypass the cyanobacteria altogether. Cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, thrives in warm temperatures.

"The thermocline that is created in the summertime really does create two distinct water bodies," O'Connor said. "The upper level, warmer water, and the lower level, colder water. It will be interesting to see what kind of cost is associated with that."

Listed as a medium cost, the only problem GHD listed would be that additional treatment should be planned for as a backup.

GHD surveyed Owasco's plant on Dec. 21, too. Ed Wagner, town supervisor of Owasco, said they have been working primarily with the environmental engineering firm Barton and Loguidice. Wagner said they have provided Owasco's plant with similar proposals, but GHD will give a second opinion.

So far Wagner said the town is considering extending the intake pipe, using ultra violet light, ozone and powder activated carbon.

"All of those options are on the table, and we're costing it out and looking at if one or a combination of two might be the best approach for us not only for short-term but from a long-term solution," Wagner said. "If we can prevent it from getting into the water plant to begin with, that's the best."
Staggering hikes as high as 5000% in prices of some prescription drugs threaten the health of Americans who can't afford vital medicines as well as the broader economic stability of households across the U.S., a new congressional report warned Wednesday.

The findings by the Senate Special on Aging summarize the panel's 2016 investigation of records from four pharmaceutical companies and public hearings that focused on sudden price spikes in decades-old medications and the pricing decisions imposed by drug industry entrepreneur Martin Shkreli and others healthcare industry executives.

Turing Pharmaceuticals and Retrophin (RTRX), two firms once headed by Shkreli, embattled drugmaker Valeant Pharmaceuticals International (VRX) and Rodelis Therapeutics are among companies that dramatically raised prices on some decades-old, off-patent drugs they acquired and controlled through monopoly business models, the report said.

"The skyrocketing prices of prescription drugs affect every American family, particularly our seniors," said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who chairs the committee. "We must work to stop the bad actors who are driving up the prices of drugs that they did nothing to develop ... just because, as one executive essentially said, 'because I can.'"

Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., the panel's ranking minority member, criticized what she termed the "predatory" hedge fund model of drug pricing. She called it "immoral for the patients and taxpayers who ultimately foot the billespecially for generic drugs that can be made for pennies a dose."

The pharmaceutical companies and Shkreli did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment on the report, which focused on the impact spiraling drug prices can have on ordinary Americans.

One was Isla Weston, a North Carolina infant who was diagnosed with a life-threatening parasitic infection called toxoplamosis in May 2015.

Doctors prescribed Daraprim, a drug that has been available since 1953 and is considered the standard treatment for the infection. But Shannon and Joshua Weston, the baby's parents, discovered that Turing Pharmaceuticals raised the per-tablet price of the medication by more than 5000%from $13.50 to $750shortly after acquiring the drug's rights from another company.

"I was hopeless and depressed at the thought of what would happen to my perfect little girl if I was not able to help her," Shannon Weston said during a March hearing held by the Senate committee. "I looked into any way I could think of to come up with the almost $360,000 necessary to treat my daughter for a year with a drug that she needed."

The baby ultimately received at least a year's supply of the drug for $200 a month from the University of North Carolina Medical Center's pharmacy, Weston testified.

2016 USA Today

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) instituted financial penalties against hospitals with high rates of readmissions for Medicare patients with certain health conditions. A new analysis led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Massachusetts General Hospital has found that the penalties levied under the law's Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program were associated with reduced readmissions rates and that the poorest performing hospitals achieved the greatest reductions. The research appears online in The Annals of Internal Medicine on December 27, 2016.

The Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program was enacted into law in 2010 and implemented in 2012 in response to the high numbers of patients who were readmitted within 30 days of their initial discharge from the hospital after treatment for several common conditionsincluding heart failure, pneumonia and acute myocardial infarction (heart attack). While some readmissions may be unavoidable, there was evidence of wide variation in hospitals' readmission rates before the ACA, suggesting that patients admitted to certain hospitals were more likely to experience readmissions compared to other hospitals.

"Hospital readmissions represent a significant portion of potentially preventable medical expenditures, and they can take a physical and emotional toll on patients and their families," said co-senior author Robert W. Yeh, MD, MBA, Director of the Smith Center for Outcomes Research in Cardiology at BIDMC and Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. "The Affordable Care Act sought to introduce financial incentives to motivate hospitals, especially the poorest performing ones, to reduce their readmission rates, and only the data could tell us if and how well it worked."

"We know that the national hospital readmission rate has been declining since passage of the Affordable Care Act, and our team wanted to assess whether this improvement was driven by the best-performing hospitals alone, or if all groups improved," said first author Jason H. Wasfy, MD, MPhil, who is Director of Quality and Analytics at the Massachusetts General Hospital Heart Center and Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

The researchers examined Medicare fee-for-service hospitalization data from more than 2,800 hospitals across the country between 2000 and 2013. Based on 30-day readmission rates after initial hospitalization for acute myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure or pneumonia, the researchers categorized hospitals into one of four groups based on the penalties they had incurred under the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program: highest performance (0% penalty), average performance (greater than 0% but less than 0.5% penalty), low performance (equal to or greater than 0.5% but less than 0.99% penalty), and lowest performance (equal to or greater than 0.99% penalty).

"We analyzed data from more than 15 million Medicare discharges," said co-senior author Francesca Dominici, PhD, Professor of Biostatistics and Senior Associate Dean for Research at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. "We implemented Bayesian hierarchical models to estimate readmission rates for each hospital, accounting for differences in each hospital's patient population. We then used pre-post analysis methods to assess whether there were accelerated reductions in readmission rates within each group after the passage of the reform. It turned out that all groups of hospitals improved to some degree. Notably, we found that it was the hospitals that were the lowest performers before passage of the Affordable Care Act that went on to improve the most after being penalized financially."

"For every 10,000 patients discharged per year, the worst performing hospitals - which were penalized the most - avoided 95 readmissions they would have had if they'd continued along their current trajectory before the implementation of the law," added Dominici. "It's a testament to the fact that hospitals do respond to financial penalties, in particular when these penalties are also tied to publicly reported performance goals."

"Paying hospitals not just for what they do, but for how well they do - that's still a relatively new way of reimbursing hospitals, and it looks to be effective," Yeh added.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

To the list of cool new things made in Silicon Valley, add this: Life, improved.

Inside "clean rooms" of Stanford University's fledgling Laboratory for Cell and Gene Medicine, lab techs tend machines that churn out gene-engineered cells, which can attack cancer, fix blood disease, patch a heart, alter the immune system, build skin grafts and create a realm of yet-to-be discovered therapies.

The 25,000-square-foot facility, which opened last September, puts Stanford at the forefront of one of medicine's most important and promising trends: regenerative medicine, which aims to refurbish diseased or damaged tissue using the body's own healthy cells.

"We're curing the incurable," said laboratory director David DiGiusto, who holds a doctorate.

Critics complain that no one makes anything in Silicon Valley anymore except mobile apps and plug-in cars, a decades-long gripe that dates back to the shuttering of chip fabrication plants.

But inside this California Avenue building - constructed with the university's trademark sandstone-colored stucco, columns, arches and red-tiled roof - is the future of precise, sterile, multistepped and highly automated biological manufacturing.

One of its most successful products is genetically corrected skin, produced in small sheets and grafted onto patients with the blistering skin disease epidermolysis bullosa. People with this excruciating disease have a defective gene that prevents normal production of a protein called type-7 collagen, so their layers of skin do not adhere properly. To fix this, Stanford researchers use a virus to deliver a correct version of the gene onto batches of skin cells, then coax them to form sheets of healthy skin.

For now, the university won't commercialize these products. Rather, it makes materials that will stay on campus for testing in clinical trials, accelerating the pace of medical research.

In addition to making sheets of healthy skin, the lab's pipeline of potential therapies include:

-regenerating corneal cells in the eye;

-repairing mutations in a single gene of red blood cells to fight diseases such as sickle cell anemia and beta thalassemia;

-genetically engineering immune system T cells to recognize and attack cancer cells;

-disabling immune cells that reject transplanted bone marrow;

-triggering cardiac cells to replace damaged tissue in the heart.

In the future, the lab may spin out a new company or partner with an existing corporation. It is working to be licensed by the state of California as a biological manufacturer so that someday its products can be shipped across state lines.

"Manufacturing facilities like this are vital to moving this sector forward helping to speed the translation of crucial gene and cell therapies to reach patients with currently unmet medical needs," said Morrie Ruffin, managing director for the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that advocates for research and commercialization of therapies to regenerate or replace tissues and organs.

While other research labs - such as City of Hope in Los Angeles, University of Pennsylvania, University of Washington and Houston's MD Anderson Cancer Center - have cell processing facilities, Stanford's is unique in the breadth of ideas, said DiGiusto.

"There is no place I know of that has a pipeline like this," said DiGiusto, who also consults nationwide on the construction of such facilities. "Any biotech or pharma company would kill to have our pipeline."

The lab is in such demand that projects must be wait-listed. Who gets priority? That's a subject debated around a table by the chairs of medical school departments.

Ideas are selected to combat maladies that affect many people, such as sickle cell disease, or ones that are rare and have no treatment, such as epidermolysis bullosa.

The lab is responsible for the whole sequence of steps needed to move a good idea into a marketable therapeutic.

Before manufacturing, the lab figures out how to repair cells - designing viruses, other vectors or electrical shocks that penetrate the cell membrane and allow substitution of a defective gene with a healthy one.

After manufacturing, the lab helps scientists navigate the regulatory process with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, providing proof that the techniques used are safe, pure and potent.

The cells are grown in "clean rooms," like surgical suites. The floors are made of poured epoxy, with no cracks to harbor bacteria. Walls and floors are washed with sterile purified water. A filter catches dust larger than 0.5 microns in size. The filtered air in the rooms is changed 40 to 60 times - "like turning over the whole volume of a room every minute," DiGiusto said.

Some projects create a vast bank of a single cell type that can help thousands of patients. Others customize; one patient may require a billion cells of a single type.

Cells are nurtured in a broth of sugars, carbohydrates, fats, growth factors and hormones, warmed at body temperature: 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit.

Lab techs can monitor the health of the engineered cells by peering into the screen of a microscope camera. "We can tell when they're happy and growing, or they're not," DiGiusto said.

Creating life-saving cells isn't cheap. The cost? About $26,000 to $30,000 per patient. "But the worth is priceless," he said. "How much is it worth saving your loved one's life?"

Stanford University and the hospitals fund the research, which provides an intangible payoff.

"We built this to attract the best scientists in the world to come here and do this work," he said. "There's value in the pre-eminence we create."

2016 The Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.)

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The Washington Post needs a tutorial on writing sympathetic articles about Muslims who are deported from America and Europe. First, they shouldn't focus on stories of killers and drug dealers who are being deported, as this story about a handful of Afghans deported from Germany does.

Hakimi, 57, spent more than 20 years in Germany, where he married and raised two daughters, but his criminal record made him a high priority for the new return policy. He was once convicted of drug dealing there and was imprisoned for two years, then deported to Afghanistan. Yes, they accused me of selling drugs, but I served my time in prison, and I wanted to be with my family again, Hakimi said. He said one man slated for the same flight had killed someone but was allowed to stay at the last minute after a church said he had converted to Christianity and repented.

Sorry, not a sympathetic story.

Second tip: don't report that forced deportations are driving Muslims to join Al Qaeda and the Taliban:

This is a real crisis for us, said Rohullah Hashimi, an official at the Afghan ministry responsible for refugees. Many Afghans sold everything before they left their country, and they have returned penniless. With no prospects, he said, they may try to reach Europe again or even join the insurgents.

The propagandists at the WaPo meant this to say that poverty and forced deportations will pressure them to join Al Qaeda. If only they wouldn't be deported, they would be responsible non-citizens. But the minute you deport them, you turn them into Jihadis.

Sorry, I am not buying this and I think most people reading this article get the real meaning. These people are being deported precisely because they are jihadi risks. Putting aside the additional crimes these particular deportees committed, every Muslim from the Middle East has the theoretical possibility of being swayed towards radical Islam. We have no idea who is and isn't susceptible. That's why they have to be deported. In attempting to make the opposite argument, the WaPo actually is inadvertently arguing in favor of deportations.

Poverty is not an excuse for joining radical Islam. Many Afghanis are poor but not members of the Taliban. If they want money, why don't they join the army and fight for their country? Why don't we ever hear stories about people returning to Afghanistan to fight for their country? Instead, Mr. Hashimi let the cat out of the bag.

To leftists who compare this to Jews fleeing the Holocaust: remember that Jews were not beheading people. They were being killed by Nazis. There was no concern that Jews would come into the country and behead people or engage in mass rapes in a train station or plow through a holiday market with a truck. Jews also didn't have any Jewish majority countries to turn to; Muslims have 50 . If Muslims want to flee violence there's plenty of places they can go to practice Sharia law, if their fellow Muslims will lend them a helping hand. And given their great interest in the plight of the Palestinians, I'm sure the needs of the Afghan, Syrian, and Iraqi refugees are not far from the minds of the people in the Muslim world... or are they?
About 5,500 acres of former timberland above the Blackfoot River have moved into public ownership through a deal between The Nature Conservancy and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

We wanted to take a step back and understand how folks who live and work in that place use it, TNC land protection director Chris Bryant said of the Belmont Creek Tract. Adding to the Blackfoot recreation corridor made the most sense.

The property sits just north of the Belmont Creek Fishing Access Site on the Blackfoot River alongside river frontage land already owned by BLM.

The purchase nearly doubles the BLMs holdings in the isolated stretch of river between Johnsrud Park and Lubrecht Experimental Forest, north of Potomac. It brings to 32,589 acres of former industrial timber land that TNC has transferred to BLM in the Blackfoot watershed since 1997.

TNC got the property from Plum Creek Timber Co. as part of a 117,000-acre sale of lands in the Gold Creek and Belmont Creek drainages northeast of Missoula. Known as the Clearwater-Blackfoot Project, the property links the Rattlesnake Wilderness north of Missoula, the South Fork Jocko Tribal Primative Area of the Flathead Indian Reservation, and the federal and tribal Mission Mountains Wilderness Areas and Montanas Marshall Creek Wildlife Management Area near Seeley Lake.

Ive been a longtime proponent of this transaction, said Potomac-area rancher and logger Denny Iverson. It adds to that great river corridor and preserves grazing leases that are really important to the community. It ensures that grass will be available to those ranchers well into the future.

Plum Creek has sold TNC about a half-million acres of its holdings in western Montana. TNC has transferred 336,894 acres to public ownership, while another 20,102 acres has been sold to private owners with conservation easements that allow for traditional uses, protect wildlife habitat and keep the regions rural character.

Bryant said while most of the 5,500 acres have been extensively logged, the area has recovered enough to justify some careful thinning and logging to reduce wildfire risk and encourage growth of the remaining big trees. The organization has also done extensive weed-control to beat back invasive plants along the road network.

What we learned in two years we owned the ground is that Belmont Creek is rich ecologically, Bryant said. Its got lots of carnivores, and there are lots of beaver in Belmont Creek.
Drive to the edge of Les Cayes on the southern claw of Haiti and you might come upon the old Goodies Multiservices shop.

Its nothing special to look at, but in October the two-story building survived the devastation of Hurricane Matthew that killed as many as 1,600 people.

And its a seed of immense pride for Marc Spear and Brad Ihrig.

Spear, an insurance agent from Florence, is president and founder of a faith-based nonprofit group called Love Has Come. Ihrig, a Missoula family physician, is its vice president.

Theyre turning to other Montanans and the orphaned children of Haiti to help inject some order into the chaos of this land of poverty and resilience, one battered by a seemingly endless cycle of natural disasters and political upheaval.

Construction was going to start in November until Matthew blew in and wrecked four of every five homes in some regions of the 160-mile wide Tiburon Peninsula.

Now theres a target date of March 15 to begin repurposing Goodies into the Nouvelle Aube Marche, or New Dawn Market. Itll be a 1,000-square-foot prototype for something the likes of which Les Cayes has never seen, a supermarket 15-20 times the size.

That Walmart knockoff is a few years away. But the test store should be up and running by late next summer, and itll cost money that Love Has Come doesnt have yet. Spear and Ihrig say theirs is like every other nonprofit in the world in its search for funding.

They say theyre courting those who share their vision of empowering young Haitians in their own homeland.

Were looking for Missoula help, Spear said.

Itll cost $145,000 to get the New Dawn Market up and running. Some of that has been raised but $97,500 remains to be raised. That includes the biggest ticket items  $30,000 for stocking the store and another $10,000 to restock after the first quarter.

The store and its supermarket successor will be built, managed and staffed by Haitians with the aim of introducing a groomed group of vocational school graduates into the world of work.

Were starting small and were working with kids and were hoping to influence the next generation of young leaders in Haiti, Spear said. And were doing it through a grocery store.

***

Spear and his wife Abby, adoptive parents themselves, started Love Has Come in 2011 as an orphan care outreach program. Its focus since 2013 has been the parent-less children of Haiti, where the hurricane in 2016 and earthquake in 2010 were just two of the more recent blows to the most impoverished nation in the western hemisphere.

Love Has Come has a board of eight, one part-time employee and a budget of maybe $50,000, Spear said.

It also has a support staff that includes Todd Schaper and Mark Bradford, the Missoula architect and engineer who designed Nouvelle Aube Marche and a number of other buildings in Haiti. Mark Springer and Dayspring Restoration donated a 20-foot box truck thatll be headed to Haiti in the next few months to serve as the first supply truck for the market.

You might wonder how in the world a supermarket is going to change Haiti, and why in the world is LHC doing this when we actually have no previous expertise in doing supermarkets anywhere in the world, Ihrig said. The long and short of it is this is going to be one of the end products of a very long line of intense involvement of a small number of orphan children in Haiti. And this is kind of a unique model.

The Missoula group has partnered with Loving Shepherd Ministries, an older but like-minded organization out of Bluffton, Indiana.

Loving Shepherd has built 20 Homes of Hope, each as permanent homes for a dozen orphans. But the homes are not typical orphanages. Each Home of Hope is staffed by a Haitian couple who function as permanent parents  forever families, as Spear called them. The children shed the stigma of orphan when they walk in the door.

Our pure mission is to help the worlds most vulnerable children reach their God-given potential, said Ed Schwartz, founder and president of Loving Shepherd Ministries. And we are clearly working with the worlds most vulnerable.

Beyond building Homes for Hope, Loving Shepherd Ministries has opened a technical institute and a 35-acre ranch, or agricultural park, where students of the tech school work for their tuition. Revenues for the sale of the products go back into operating the institute.

A 40-acre business park is in development and a separate community is tending to the needs of HIV children.

With a budget of more than $1.5 million, Loving Shepherd has 160 people on staff, all but five of them Haitian.

Were beginning businesses in a variety of areas concentrating on solar operation, Schwartz said. Were looking at a team of Haitian designing and installing solar systems and were partnering with the University of Illinois in a brand new solar cooker to introduce into Haiti.

***

The Missoula groups New Dawn Store and, by 2020, New Dawn Supermarket will be among several operations designed to provide a revenue stream for the other endeavors.

One of our core values is we dont want to continue coming to the U.S. to gather dollars to take care of problems, Schwartz said. Our goal is to use Haitian people and dollars.

Spear and Ihrig know theyre not going to fix Haiti.

We are not here to save Haiti, nor are we here to introduce our western ways, Spear said. We are here solely to support, empower, and equip Haitians to succeed on their own.

I really feel like this is something thats going to be a success, Ihrig said. The goal is for this to be profitable, not just to do this as a charity thing but in the end to really have such a value-added product that people are going to be drawn from far and wide to come to.

Schwartz is confident the partnership with Love Has Come and Montana will bear fruit.

Aside from being incredibly enthusiastic visionaries, theyre definitely people who follow through with things they say, he said. Marc and I have talked multiple times that it almost seems like our two organizations have the same DNA. Ive been involved in not-for-profit ministries for many years and rarely do I find that kind of relationship. It is a deep relationship that is incredible, in my eyes."

"I can tell you this: We have a lot of momentum, but it is honest and sincere and sustainable momentum," Spear said. "We've had to work through a lot of obstacles already. This is not something that has happened quickly."
A sharp, cold breeze slid through the open windows and hit construction workers as site superintendent Brad O'Neill handed each of them a FireBall candy.

They were installing new windows on the 107-year-old Lowell Elementary School one recent morning, bundled up against the single-digit temperatures.

Lowell and Franklin are the largest projects Missoula County Public Schools is undertaking at the moment, each $11.3 million efforts that will completely overhaul the schools.

Franklin was demolished this summer, except for its gym. A section of Lowell was demolished but the original building is intact, with extensive renovations happening inside, as well as an addition on the north side.

The two projects are part of MCPS' Smart Schools 2020 initiative, updating all 22 schools and facilities thanks to $158 million in bonds that voters passed last fall.

***

In the first year of construction, the district launched 16 projects.

Five will be almost entirely finished by the end of 2016  Chief Charlo, Paxson, Jefferson, Mount Jumbo and Seeley-Swan  with another, Rattlesnake, wrapping up right before school resumes Jan. 3 after winter break.

Some minor work and security upgrades will continue this spring.

Chief Charlo's entrance was redone, making it more secure and more obvious. The school was rewired for internet and open areas were turned into learning labs. Paxson has a new classroom addition and a more secure entrance. Seeley-Swan has a new theater, as well as boiler and structural upgrades.

Rattlesnake's overhaul was in two phases this fall, adding classrooms, renovating others, creating open learning spaces and other structural and technical upgrades.

This summer there were five re-roofing projects at Big Sky, Hellgate, Lewis and Clark, Meadow Hill and Washington, as well as a new track and field at the MCPS Stadium and upgrades at the Agriculture Education Center near Big Sky.

Jefferson and Mount Jumbo needed to be updated to be used as swing spaces for Franklin and Lowell students, respectively.

Franklin and Lowell began right after school was let out this summer.

Today, the bones of a school are taking shape at the Franklin site, with walls nearly enclosing the space. They expected to start pouring the second floor this week. Cold weather won't stop Jackson Contractor Group, as they have a hard deadline in August.

The same goes for Lowell, where concrete has been poured for the new addition on the Phillips Street side, which will house administration and grades K-1 on the first floor and grades 2-3 on the second floor. It will also be the new entrance.

At the same time, crews are overhauling the interior of the original building. Walking through, there are messages scrawled on the walls  from Lowell students before they moved out this summer.

They're messages of love for the school, funny drawings and praise for the teachers, including "Best 5th grade teachers" on a post between two second-floor classrooms.

***

Architects and general contractors are starting to line up for the 2017 projects, which include Cold Springs, Russell, Washington, Hellgate, Sentinel and Willard.

There are more re-roofing projects on deck for this summer, too, at Rattlesnake, Jefferson, C.S. Porter, Sentinel and Hawthorne.

Last month, voters gave the OK for MCPS to buy land in the Lower Miller Creek area for the new Cold Springs school. The district still needs a subdivision exemption in order to carve the 8-acre parcel.

"We can't actually close until the lot lines are drawn," said Superintendent Mark Thane.

He hopes they'll close by March, though there's a 90-day extension in the buy-sell agreement that goes to June if needed. In the interim, Cold Springs staff will work with A&E Architects to develop the new school. Late this spring, they plan to hire a general contractor, and the new school is expected to be finished by fall 2018.

Once Cold Springs kids move out of the current building, Thane said it could be used as a swing space when Meadow Hill goes under construction.

Jackson Contractor Group was chosen as the general contractor/construction manager this month and construction will begin in late spring.

At a school board meeting this summer, architects said Hellgate is expected to wrap up by December 2018.

"It will be an occupied facility, so that creates an additional challenge," Thane said of the construction that will happen during the school year. "The conversion from steam heat will also be extensive. That will touch every part of the school, basically, with new piping."

At the December school board meeting, trustees approved soliciting requests for qualification for architect design services at Sentinel and Willard, as well as initiating work with an architect on the Russell project. Dowling Studio Architects was approved this fall for Washington's design.

The field at MCPS Stadium was wrapped up this fall, but crews couldn't finish the track due to weather.

"We had the rainiest October on record," Thane said. "They needed three successive days of warm, dry weather."

The track is expected to be finished in April, he said. Track practice starts in March, so the district is working with University of Montana's Dornblaser Field for temporary practice while the high school track is wrapped up.

MCPS also hopes to finish the processing kitchen at the Agriculture Education Center this summer; right now they're waiting on permits from the Department of Environmental Quality.

After this school year, Franklin and Lowell students will return to their home schools from the swing spaces at Jefferson and Mount Jumbo. Jefferson houses the early learning program.

"We want to see, long-term, Jefferson becoming an early childhood center," Thane said. "There's not a tremendous amount of hope that the Legislature will expand early childhood education (in the upcoming session), but we'd like to explore it as a district."

Mount Jumbo previously was leased by Walla Walla College. It was closed as an elementary school in 2004.

"There's no definite yet about Jumbo," Thane said. "In the long-term we would love to see population growth in east Missoula, and an area to sustain that school."

For the moment, though, the district will likely look for a tenant to lease the space.

"That's the forecast," said operations and maintenance supervisor Burley McWilliams.
Moving the Mini Countryman SUV up a segment in size while also making its exterior more rugged looking will put the automaker on the list of buyers who might have otherwise ignored it, the brand's chief said.

"Right now Mini is a second or third car, but the Countryman can be your first car or only car. This is the biggest change," BMW Group's board member responsible for Mini, Peter Schwarzenbauer, toldAutomotive News Europe when asked to compare the first- and second-generation versions of the car.

At 4300mm long and 1820mm wide, the new Countryman is 200mm longer and 30mm wider than the current-generation car. The car's wheelbase has grown by 75mm to 2775mm to increase rear legroom, Mini said. The added length moves the car into the premium compact SUV segment to compete against cars such as the Mercedes-Benz GLA and Audi Q2 and Q3.

"This new segment we are entering is four times bigger than the one for smaller SUVs," Schwarzenbauer said on the sidelines of the Los Angeles auto show, where the car was revealedfor the first time last month. He believes that the size of the segment will help boost sales of the new Countryman.

The car's overall share of Mini's global sales is expected to stay the same at about a quarter, but Mini says the compact SUV's overall numbers will grow. That is because Mini expects its total volume to increase on rising demand for its core hatchback model and the Clubman premium compact.

Mini's 2016 global sales are on track to top last year's record of 338,466, Mini Senior Vice President Sebastian Mackensen said. Mini expects 2017 to be another record-breaking year because of the arrival of the new Countryman, which has a much tougher look than the car it replaces.

"We gave it much more SUV-ness," Schwarzenbauer said. "We see around the world a trend that more and more people are moving out of cars and getting into SUVs."

The outgoing model's softer looks were hurting the brand's sales, particularly in the U.S, where volume was down 13 percent through October this year. Mackensen said that in the last two years, the U.S. passenger car segment has been shrinking. "And that is where we compete," Mackensen added.

'Too naked'

The new car will cost substantially more than its predecessor. The Countryman's UK entry price will rise 31 percent to 22,465 pounds (26,285 euros) compared with 17,125 pounds for the car that is being replaced. Mini says the price increase adjusted for the extra equipment is about 14 percent. "We got a lot of feedback from customers that the car was too naked, too empty. Now a lot of options are standard," Schwarzenbauer said.

The Countryman will use BMW Group's UKL front-wheel-drive platform that underpins other Mini models as well as the second-generation BMW X1, which will be a rival in the premium compact SUV segment. The Countryman will be made at contract manufacturer VDL Nedcar's factory in Born, Netherlands, rather than at Mini's factory in Oxford, England.

The Countryman will offer optional all-wheel drive, which Mini expects will be chosen by about 30 percent to 40 percent of customers, up from 25 percent for the previous model, because the feature will be available on a wider range of powertrains.

One of those powertrains is a new plug-in hybrid, a first for Mini. That variant of the Countryman will use the same technology as the BMW 2-series Active Tourer plug-in hybrid, which combines a 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine with a 7.6 kilowatt-hour battery pack. Mini expects the plug-in hybrid to appeal to both environmentally conscious buyers as well as those who pick the brand because of its sporty driving dynamics.

The company, however, declined to estimate what kind of uptake the plug-in hybrid will have. "We are not sure how people will receive it," Schwarzenbauer said. "We have studied all plug-in hybrids on the market and cannot see a clear trend. In some markets it's booming, other markets it's zero." He added that Mini would take a "cautious" approach to its roll-out of the variant.

In 2019 Mini will launch its first all-electric car. Schwarzenbauer wouldn't say which model would get the powertrain, but he said it would be an existing car, leaving the possibility that the Countryman could be the first production Mini to lose its combustion engine.
A group of Missoulians have announced plans to launch a grassroots, nonprofit community FM radio station from the historic Union Hall downtown.

The new low-power station, KFGM-LP 105.5 FM, is scheduled to hit the airwaves at exactly 10:55 a.m. on Jan. 1. With a broadcast radius of a little over 3 miles, the new station will be a place where community members and volunteers without any radio experience can share their message of social justice, civic engagement and local music.

The new station is the product of a two-year effort by Missoula Community Radio, a nonprofit group. Board members have been busy collecting the funding and resources to get started.

Jon Van-Dyke, the volunteer manager of the new station, said the format of the new station remains to be seen because it will depend on what the community brings in to the studio.

We are open to suggestions, he said. We are certainly looking for people who want to share stories about gender equality, Native American issues, civic engagement and local government. We will have local music and unique music programming. We hope people will come in with a message for the community. Itll be a healthy mix of local talk and regional, interesting music.

Programming will be made up from volunteer community members and staff members of area organizations. Training will be provided in mid-January, and DJ applications are available at the office at 208 E. Main St. or online at Missoulacommunityradio.com.

On New Years Eve, you can get a sneak peek of the studio. Although the new station broadcasts from a building that also hosts a bar, Federal Communications Commission regulations require that individuals on air not be intoxicated.

Ann Szalda-Petree, the board president of MCR, said that she is an advocate for what she calls the transformative power of community radio and its ability to connect individuals and create community.

Community radio celebrates differences of opinion, she said. Everyone is welcome. Come see what were about on New Years Eve!

Szalda-Petree helped launch another low-power FM station in Butte last year and is helping launch a third station in Hot Springs.

The station will host an official launch party at the Union Hall Lounge on Jan. 28 to allow all new volunteers, staff and board members, people interested in sharing a community event, listeners, underwriters and all community members to meet, discuss programming ideas and share their stories of the stations first four weeks. A keynote speaker has yet to be determined.

Missoula Community Radio is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

The FCC offered up low-power licenses to nonprofit organizations in 2000. In 2004, Scott Johnston started a blues and jazz station called the Montana Radio Cafe out of his house in Creston in the Flathead Valley. His station pushed just 100 watts, compared to a normal commercial station's 100,000 watts, but Johnston showed the model could be popular in a small town.
In my 35 years spent as an aerospace engineer and computer systems consultant, I dealt with the U.S. Air Force quite a bit. In that environment, if someone in the Air Force made a mistake on a project or program, someones head would roll for it. Mistakes were punished severely.

In my last 15 years I have been retired, living near Glacier National Park and the Great Bear Wilderness Area, and studying wildlife and forest ecology on my own. Most of those years included my citizen attendance at Flathead Basin Commission meetings, as well as many other governmental organizational meetings: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks; National Forest Service; U.S. Border Patrol; et al.

What is particularly painful to me is that as a mere private citizen, I rarely got anyone to listen to my ideas. To them, I was an overly educated, non-native Montanan outsider, an intellectual elitist from the big city who is allowed to attend open-to-the-public government meetings but not contribute anything. I am limited to writing about them.

I made many attempts, including writing one of these opinions before, to warn the FBC members that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure when it comes to fighting against the introduction of zebra mussels into Montana waterways. They would not consider my idea to hire full-time, permanent, year-round staff to inspect boats for them, using that staffing for other work during the off-season for boating, instead of part-time summer-only work-for-cheap young people without anything vested in saving Montana waterways, claiming it was too expensive to do as I suggested. If they did as I suggested, I even offered to be hired as a full-time, year-round employee to do that remote, tedious, boring work, if at a decent livable wage. No deal!

I think it is time for heads to roll. The leader has already stepped down from that position, but there are others equally guilty of inaction on a tremendously important state issue that will cost many millions of dollars, while it is probably too late to ever rectify the problem.

The kumbaya meetings and egotistical padding of personal resumes to be on this prestigious governors commission is over. They never considered going out on boat inspection patrols themselves anyway  just attended all-day indoor meetings and ordered lunch.
The 2017 legislative session will begin on Jan. 2 and the people of Montana have the chance to weigh in on our states priorities. The old saying, Dont tell me your priorities; show me your budget, comes to mind.

The budget proposed by Gov. Steve Bullock invests in our future in a number of ways. Montana can have a solid physical infrastructure while at the same time investing in the next generation and providing early education for all Montanas children. Montana remains one of five states without a statewide pre-K education program. We owe it to our working families to change this.

Some Republican lawmakers do not support pre-K, choosing instead to use the $14 million budgeted for early education as a short-term Band-Aid for Montanas highways. This is a false choice  we can invest in infrastructure while at the same time providing a bright future for Montanas next generation. Thanks to Bullocks leadership, our state budget is in good health, unlike other states that are struggling to keep the lights on. We do not have to choose between educating our kids and repairing crumbling bridges. We can, and should, do both.

While there are so many wonderful things about living in Montana, the cost of quality day care for a 4-year-old is not one of them. In fact, Montana is one of the most expensive states to find good placements for little ones. It averages between $600 and $800 per month in many places around the state - more than the cost of college tuition. This squeezes working families, many of whom are saddled with their own educational debt and pinching pennies to save for their childs college tuition. Too many families find themselves in the bind of making just too much to qualify for Head Start or other help, but not enough to afford decent pre-K. We can do better.

The benefits to individuals and to society of providing pre-K education to our children are proven. Kids in early education see an immediate boost in literacy, spelling and math that puts them months ahead of their counterparts. By the end of the second grade, kids with an early learning foundation see significantly better scores in math, comprehension and vocabulary. Fifth graders with a pre-K foundation do much better in reading, math and science. These students continue to score better on tests and are 30 percent to 50 percent less likely to repeat a grade. They stay in school, graduate from high school, and become productive members of society.

Outdated studies falsely indicating the benefits of a quality pre-K education do not last past third grade have been disproven. A 2014 study by Nobel laureate and economist James Heckman shows that students who received pre-K education were more likely to graduate high school, have higher IQs, experience better overall health, and less likely to be incarcerated than their peers who did not experience high-quality early learning programs. The rate of return on the public investment in pre-K education is 13 percent.

We do not want to take money away from our youngest learners for a short-term solution that fails to make positive long-term changes. Various funding sources, including bonding, exist to provide for Montanas physical infrastructure, while at the same time setting the stage to provide Montanas children with an early edge in life.

We can and should do both  improving Montana is what all legislators, Democrats and Republicans, were elected to do. Working families across Montana depend on it.
I am so surprised by the comments I see regarding blacks, Natives and other minority groups (are they minorities because Europeans took over?). And now white supremacists think blacks invaded the U.S. when in fact, many blacks were brought here as slaves to harvest crops for Southerners. And it was "whites" who invaded this country when the queen emptied the streets, jails and orphanages, and sent them here.

Mexicans, aka chicanos, owned Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. Yet "whites" feel they are trying to steal their land when many just want to go home where they were born.

Natives are being overruled by "oil mongers" as our representatives are moving toward taking over oil-rich reservations. And use "our public servants" to abuse them into submission with mace, dogs, water power. Isn't it enough the tribes were forced on tothe reservations and the land nationwide was opened to "white people?" Yet, they claim Natives get everything for free. I wonder what "everything" is.

Maybe we need to start teaching the truth in our country, which claims to be "Christian," and rule with the Bible, Constitution. It should be a requirement in our schools at all levels to teach the history as the Natives believe: black, brown, white and yellow represent the sacred directions, meaning all nations are sacred.

Jackie Trotchie,

Missoula
As a former long-time chair of the Missoula Water Quality Advisory Council, County Conservation District supervisor and water quality professional, I am extremely concerned that Montana Rail Link is allowed to maintain its fueling facility and leave tank cars in downtown Missoula. This is a completely inappropriate site for many reasons, most especially human and environmental safety.

This site has been the location of numerous spills (reported, unreported and reported late after someone blew the whistle). Rail Link likes this site because its hard to separate their ongoing impacts with historic ones.

Besides the water quality threat, there a continuing threat of explosion. Last year I drove by and saw a group of tanker cars lying on their sides at the refueling site. Rail Link made the ridiculous statement that those cars are designed for lying on their sides when it was essentially a series of derailed bombs in downtown Missoula. Luckily these cars were empty at the time  but only by luck.

Its time to tell Rail Link to construct a safe fueling site at a location that is not a direct threat to the aquifer and human safety. We identified this sole-source aquifer as essential to our city 30 years ago. It is time to stop leaving bombs in downtown Missoula just for the convenience of Rail Link.

We need an ordinance against these cars stopping there. Do we have to have a massive fire, pollution incident or bodies before we protect the public and environment? Please text the City Council and tell them to protect us now!

Barry L. Dutton,

professional soil scientist,

Land & Water Consulting,

Missoula
BILLINGS  Overseeing 12 years of work on such controversial and passionately debated issues as grizzly bears, wolves and bison has worn Jeff Hagener down.

Last month, Hagener told Gov. Steve Bullock that he was retiring as Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks director, having served under three governors. His last day in office was Monday.

Jeff will certainly be missed, Bullock said. Hes been great.

Next to the governor, his is the most difficult job in the state, said Bruce Farling of Missoula, executive director of Montana Trout Unlimited. Montanans are passionate about this stuff.

Bullock praised Hagener's work on sage grouse, expanding hunting and working on delisting of grizzly bears.

Were currently in the process of trying to fill Jeffs extremely large shoes, Bullock said.

Montana-born

Hagener, a 62-year-old Havre native, was first appointed to the FWP directors position by Republican Gov. Judy Martz in 2001. He had been working at what was then the state lands department. When Gov. Brian Schweitzer, a Democrat, took office in 2005, he kept Hagener on for four years before replacing him with Joe Maurier, the governors college roommate.

Maurier reorganized the department and, with Schweitzers guidance, moved to acquire more land as public access to private property declined. The large land purchases  some of which were clouded by accusations of favoritism  led to sour relations with eastern Montana legislators and landowners.

Maurier was a disaster, said Sen. John Brenden, R-Scobey, a frequent critic of FWP. They were running FWP out of the governors office.

Brenden said FWPs relations with some landowners was so bad during the Maurier era that many were considering locking out public hunters in protest.

Greedy, minority sporting groups were screwing it up for general hunters, Brenden said, but Hagener has helped rebuild some trust.

When I would differ with Jeff, it was in a professional way, Brenden said. I have a lot of admiration for Jeff Hagener.

Hagener acknowledged that sportsmen and women are much more divided than when he was a youngster growing up on the Hi-Line.

Now there are so many competing groups, he said.

That division among sporting interests can make it more difficult for the Fish and Wildlife Commission to rule, Hagener said.

Interlude

After his ouster from the Schweitzer administration, Hagener worked for various nonprofit groups including the American Prairie Foundation and the Montana Wildlife Federation.

When Steve Bullock won the governors race in 2012, Hagener was brought back to the directors office to try and rebuild trust with landowners as well as increase morale within the agency.

"Jeff returned to FWP to pretty much patch together a reorganization project that may have had good intentions but in the end didnt work," said Tom Palmer, retired FWP information manager, in an email. "He aimed first to rebuild relationships and he maintained an open-door policy with his employees and the public like no other Ive seen."

Even though hed only been gone for four years, Hagener said the department was fundamentally different.

What was really obvious to me when I came back was that two-thirds of the employees were new, he said.

With so many new folks working for the agency, Hagener and his staff initiated a new effort called 15 & Forward. The resulting document is meant to be the foundation on which the agency establishes priorities, programs and services for the next 10-plus years.

"People dont really care how smart you are in that kind of position," Palmer said. "They want to know that you care  and Jeff Hageners concern for Montana, these unique resources, the folks who managed them and the folks who depended on making a living off the land  was palpable. Hes good man who I was proud to work for."

Lifespan

Those who know Hagener credit his open-door policy, fairness and willingness to hear opposing views as his strengths  all traits that likely helped him survive 12 years as director.

On a national level, 3.2 years is the lifespan of directors, Hagener said. And there are a few people in other states that were 25-year veterans, so they are holding the average up.

Such experience likely helped him get fee increases passed to shore up FWPs budget, as well as push the state toward a sage grouse management plan to avoid the birds listing as an endangered species.

If Montana hadnt come on board it would have shifted the tide, Hagener said of the controversial sage grouse issue.

Although his diplomacy didnt work when trying to align Montana with Idaho and Wyoming on wolf management when the big canines were delisted from the Endangered Species Act, he said the states have been able to stand together on grizzly bears, which are in the process of being delisted.

The future

Looking ahead, Hagener said although changes to management of Yellowstone bison have been made he doesnt know if that controversial issue, which draws national attention, will ever be fully resolved. Tribes may drive that discussion more as they work to build bison herds, the most recent being the Blackfeet Indians along the northern Rocky Mountain Front.

I wouldnt mind seeing the grizzly bear being totally delisted, Hagener said, but he added that, because of litigation, it will be a long time before it occurs.

His successor is likely to be challenged by invasive species and wildlife diseases, Hagener predicted  everything from zebra and quagga mussels to chronic wasting disease. Another area that will test the next director is finding funding for animals that arent game species, a problem that many states face. Locating money to keep state parks adequately financed will also be a challenge, he said.

Where funding will come from, your guess is as good as mine, Hagener said. Montanans like to think residents shouldnt pay that much.

He noted Montana State Parks got no traction at all when it showed that surrounding states pay more for park management.

So there are a lot of trials a new director will face. Hagener, on the other hand, is looking forward to having some time off to visit his son in New Mexico. After 33 years in state employment he has no plans to seek another job anytime soon, although hes been contacted about consulting.

Im mulling those things over, he said. But maybe Ill just want to stay in Montana and hunt and fish.
PHOENIX  Two men who are serving life terms behind bars for crimes they committed as juveniles will get a chance to convince a judge they eventually should be given an opportunity for freedom, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled Friday.

In their ruling, the justices did not say that Gregory Valencia Jr. and Joey Healer should ever be allowed out of prison. Both were previously sentenced by Pima County judges to terms of "natural life,'' meaning no possibility of parole.

But Chief Justice Scott Bales, writing for the unanimous court, said he and his colleagues are bound by a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court which said that such sentences for juveniles should be reserved only for the worst of worst.

More to the point, the nation's high court said that decision has to be applied retroactively. And Bales said that means Valencia and Healer are entitled to have a judge reconsider the sentence and, if appropriate, reduce it to where they would have a chance to get out some day.

But two of the state Supreme Court justices used the opportunity to take a slap at their colleagues on the nation's high court and the logic behind their rulings.

In those rulings, the U.S. Supreme Court concluded that "appropriate occasions for sentencing juveniles to the harshest possible penalty will be uncommon.'' And the court said such sentences can be imposed only on the "rare juvenile offender whose crime reflect irreparable corruption'' versus "transient immaturity.''

That language bothered Justice Clint Bolick.

"'Transient immaturity' is when my adolescent daughter slugs her big brother,'' he wrote for himself and Justice John Pelander.

"It may even describe peer pressures that influence reckless behavior,'' Bolick continued. "But it is not an apt rationalization for cold-blooded murder.''

And Bolick said the facts in these two cases from the 1990s suggest the sentences were appropriate.

"The murders in these cases were brutal,'' he said.

In the case of Healer, Bolick said he borrowed a sawed-off rifle and entered the home of Chester Iserman, an elderly man who had given Healer odd jobs so he could earn money. Healer, 16 at the time, shot Iserman through they eye, killing him, and then stole his truck.

Valencia, 17 in 1995, entered a condominium complex with a younger accomplice, took a bicycle from an enclosed patio and then tried to get into the patio of another unit. When homeowner Fred George came out to investigate, the other teen threw the stolen bicycle at George and Valencia shot him in the head.

Bolick said the sentencing judges in both cases determined they should never be released even after considering all of the evidence, including their youth.

Bales stressed that noting in Friday's rulings means that either Healer or Valencia will ever get out of prison. All it does is give them a day in court.

"At these hearings, they will have an opportunity to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that their crimes did not reflect irreparable corruption but instead transient immaturity,'' he wrote. "Only if they meet this burden will they establish that their natural life sentences are unconstitutional, thus entitling them to resentencing.''
Call it a sure-meal safety net, complete with steaming hot soup served out of the back of a car or van.

During the holidays and even on the coldest of days, the number of local homeless folks who get hearty lunches for free increases to between 80 and 100 in the last week of the month.

"There's no delivery this Monday, so we try to stock 'em up, especially the Friday before," said Clairsa Hogart. A main cog in the "We Deliver" Help for the Homeless Lunch delivery program, she is property and grants manager for Public Housing Authority of Butte.

Run by collaborating agencies, the program ensures that those down on their luck get a full meal three times a week in various pre-determined spots around town.

"The first three weeks, we handed out 60 lunches on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday in December," said 25-year case manager and program lead Steve Fournier of Action Inc.

"At our last stop, if we have any extra lunches, we hand them out. With the cold weather, it's just kind of crazy how it goes."

However, this year program organizers lack anyone to deliver lunches the day after Christmas, on Dec. 26. It's a holiday for the agency partners, so organizers seek volunteers to cover for them that day and other holidays.

"So we're working on trying to get another group who can hopefully step in on the holidays to serve the lunches and soup," said Fournier.

But first the potential church group that's interested must shadow the servers first before a deal is struck. So no meals are scheduled for Dec. 26.

Folks can get a free hot meal at the Butte Rescue Mission, though, at 1204 E. 2nd St., on Dec. 26 and seven days a week, three times a day. Anyone who needs a meal is welcome, said director Rocky Lyons.

Otherwise, the following community partners take turns delivering to about six different stops during regular runs throughout the year: Action Inc., Western Montana Mental Health, Southwest Montana Community Hospital, Butte Rescue Mission, the Butte Pre-Release Center, and Public Housing Authority of Butte.

"They're so great because they come out here in the cold," said Woody Woodbury, 63, at the last stop on the route, Silver House, 106 W. Broadway, recently. The temperatures were bitter, dipping to 6 degrees above zero that afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

Woodbury and friend Colt Diamond O'Donnell toasted their large Styrofoam cups of hot chicken noodle soup that Ashley Kingston ladled from a big pot sitting on a tailgate recently during a lunch run.

Kingston is the PATH outreach coordinator at Western Montana Mental Health Center. Like most servers, she takes turns driving to regular spots, such as:

 City Center  the old, boarded-up motel on the corner of Crystal and Clark.

 Motel 6  previously the old Capris Motel, 220 N. Wyoming St.

 Eddy's Motel, 1205 S. Montana St.

 Walmart, 2901 Harrison Ave.

 Silver House, 106 W. Broadway St., which includes the following services: adult case management and day treatment, medication monitoring with nursing assistance, peer support specialists, groups, and activities.

Sack lunches, valued at $2 apiece, include a sandwich, potato chips, fruit or fruit cup, juice or pop, and a snack like a cookie or cupcake.

Even hungry pets have a safety net as planners repack pet food in baggies to hand out to dog and cat owners.

At a recent drop-off at the City Center, Lawrence Thrasher's yellow lab Joplin bounded out of a car in the bitter cold and zoomed gleefully to Fournier's truck loaded with lunches in the back. Thrasher and his dog are regulars.

The lifesavers in the lunch program? Seven church groups and seven agencies. The latter rotates lunch drop-offs, and the churches take turns making sack lunches. The group effort ensures that the program runs smoothly.

However, Fournier said sometimes the bitter cold keeps regulars from meeting up with the deliveries.

"There's nothing that says a homeless person has to go to the Rescue Mission or be housed," he said. "It's a choice they're making. I know the police doing a welfare check will often give them a ride to the Mission. But some will say 'no, thanks.'"

Undersheriff George Skuletich said if a homeless person is unable to care for themself, his officers take them into protective custody as a matter of course. They get a few hot meals, a shower, and a place to sleep for the night, at least.

"If we feel they are in danger, we'll take them in," said Skuletich. "They usually leave the next day."

Still, some resist, like Colt Diamond O'Donnell, who said he and his wife live under the Continental Street Bridge even when temperatures drop drastically.

"Some like staying outside and like the freedom  I don't know why," Skuletich added. "Last week, we took in three or four people for protective custody."

Since the cold snap hit, Rescue Mission beds are near capacity with 47 of 50 filled during the night, said Lyons.

"There are only a few empty beds for families and women; the men's dorm is full, and (other) men are sleeping in the dining room on overflow," Lyons added. "If we are out of beds, we put people in the dining room in roll-aways, then a blanket on the floor."

Meanwhile, the 80-to-100 homeless who say yes to the lunches late in the month rely on the warm meal to see them through another day, no matter their personal struggles.

Angels really exist in the form of the hard-working agencies and church groups.

"The lunches are for anybody who looks like they can use our assistance and who looks like they can use some hot soup," said Fournier. "We'll pull over and help them, too."
John Noyes is not typically on the list of remarkable men of Butte, but he probably should be. Born in Canada in 1828 to parents from New England, he joined the California gold rush at age 23. In 1860, he was at Virginia City, Nevada, continuing work as a placer miner when he became part of a company of 115 men sent out to fight the Indians. Noyes was among the 17 survivors.

After brief sojourns in Washington, Idaho, and Montana in 1861-65, he journeyed back to Canada. Returning to the US, he abandoned his plan to become a farmer in Missouri and bought a shipment of mercantile goods to supply to the Montana mining camps. His initial purchase was lost in the sinking of the steamer Grant, but undaunted (and with insurance money in hand), he brought a second shipment to Fort Benton in 1866 and soon made his way to Butte.

His main Butte mines, the #1 Original and #2 Original, gave him significant capital. Among his most worthwhile investments were real estate tracts for the growing town. He and partner Upton laid out and sold lots in two early (1888) additions to the Butte townsite: Noyes & Uptons Addition defined streets from Gold to Aluminum between Main and Montana, and the Noyes & Upton Railroad Addition platted the neighborhood from California to Oregon Street between Third and Front.

The late 1880s were Buttes first real boom, with the population surging from 4,000 or so in 1880 to more than 20,000 in 1890. Noyess mining and investments turned him into a millionaire by the time of his death, March 21, 1902, his 74th birthday. You can find an excellent report on Mr. Noyes and his wife Elmira (who he married when she was 15 and he was 42 and who was important in Butte society in her own right) in Zena Beth McGlashans book "Buried in Butte" (p. 113-121).

The prestigious Noyes homes were at 47 E. Granite (northwest corner of Wyoming, near neighbors to Montana Supreme Court Chief Justice William Pemberton) and around the corner at 215 N. Wyoming, across the street from the Butte Brewery. Theres a parking lot there today.
The drug intervention program set to launch next month in Yellowstone County is Montanas best shot at slowing the explosive growth in our prison population.

The brainchild of County Attorney Scott Twito, the Yellowstone County Drug Intervention Program can be a model for other counties. The aim is to address the drug addiction of low-level, first-time offenders. Successfully treating addiction in the community is much more cost effective than having offenders sit in our jail or prisons.

Twito is presenting a better way to deal with the drug offenders. After months of planning and meetings, the intervention program is starting with crucial participation from the Montana Public Defenders Office and the Montana Department of Corrections.

A key component of this diversion program will be the pretrial risk assessment provided through Yellowstone County Justice Court, thanks to an effort led by Justice of the Peace David Carter and funded by the Yellowstone County Commission.

That type of screening is considered a best practice in states that have actually reduced their prison populations in recent years. Its one recommendation of the Montana Commission on Sentencing. The commission met over the legislative interim and hammered out a dozen bills that will be introduced in the 2017 session. Sen. Cynthia Wolken, D-Missoula, who chaired the commission, will sponsor Senate Bill 59 that establishes pretrial risk assessment and deferred prosecution grant programs." Wolken also has introduced Senate Bill 60, which requires the Department of Corrections to train staff to do risk assessments.

Other bills propose revisions in sentencing laws. The aim of all this legislation is to ensure that offenders who are violent or at high risk of re-offending are incarcerated while low-risk, nonviolent drug offenders get addiction treatment and jobs.

500 meth arrests

We call on Sen.-elect Margie MacDonald, who served on the commission, and the entire Yellowstone County delegation to actively support commission legislation to reform the states criminal justice system. No county has more at stake than we do as the largest population center. Last year, Yellowstone County logged more than 500 arrests on methamphetamine charges alone.

If Montana continues its present trend, the number of people in the corrections system will increase 14 percent to 2,981 inmates by 2023, according to a study conducted by the Council of State Governments Justice Center. That increase will require at least $55 million in new operations spending, not counting the cost of constructing more prison space.

The policies recommended by the Commission on Sentencing are projected to reduce the need for new cell space, averting an estimated $82 million in taxpayer costs over the next six years.

Random drug testing

Nearly three-fourths of offenders who get incarcerated in Montana have failed at probation with the majority having committed new drug or property crimes. The drug intervention program proposed in Yellowstone County targets that high rate of recidivism. In the current system, the slow pace of cases often means that a drug offender gets charged with a new offense before sentencing on the first one. The root of the problem is addiction, and that doesnt resolve without treatment and ongoing accountability, including random drug testing  all features of the new intervention program. The alternative is to keep doing what Montana has been doing: sending more and more people to prison, keeping our jails and prisons full and spending more tax dollars on incarceration.

We applaud Twito and the other county and state officials who are supporting this drug intervention program. Not everyone who goes through it will stay in recovery, but the savings for each one who does will be tremendous. Yellowstone County is starting with a small program that can screen up to four people a week. State support will be critical to sustain this effort long term and to expand it to intervene with all low-level drug offenders.

-- The Billings Gazette
BILLINGS  Hugh Glass just won't die.

Resurrected in spirit 183 years after his murder, the mountain man continues to stoke research into the few crumbs available detailing his grisly life, grizzly mauling and eventual violent death at the hands of Indians.

Earlier this year Glass gained worldwide attention with the release of "The Revenant," a lushly filmed movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The film dramatized a portion of Glass's incredible life: when he survived a harrowing grizzly bear attack and vengefully tracked down the men who left him for dead.

Now mountain man researcher and aficionado Clay Landry of Whitehall has shed more light on Glass's real-life demise with publication of an article he wrote for "The Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Journal."

"I confirm who died with Glass," Landry said, as well as narrowing down when he died.

Many accounts

There are few references to Glass in historical records. Although literate, he apparently carried no diary. Yet his harrowing tale has inspired 10 books by nine authors that are still in publication. "Hugh Glass Grizzly Survivor" by James D. McLaird is the most recent addition, coming out in May. Two older publications  "Hugh Glass and the Grizzly Bear" by Rufus B. Sage, published in 1857, and "Glass and the Bear" by George Frederick Augustus Ruxton, published in 1847  date much closer to the Glass era.

Now Landry has added his voice to the historical record with the article "Hugh Glass: The Rest of the Story," which was printed this fall.

"Actually, I correct history with that article," said Landry, who helped prepare members of the cast of "The Revenant" in the ways of the fur trapping age to ensure authenticity.

Killed in 1833

At some time during the winter of 1833, Glass and his two companions set out from a small fur trading post known as Fort Cass built about three miles east of the confluence of the Yellowstone and Bighorn rivers  about 60 miles northeast of present-day Billings.

At the time, Glass was employed as a hunter for the fort. Accompanying him were two men with the last names of Rose and Menard. All three were killed in an Indian attack.

"They scalped them and left part of the Scalps of each tied to poles on the grounds of the murder," according to a letter written by John F.A. Sanford, an Indian agent, in a July 1833 letter to William Clark, superintendent of Indian Affairs. Landry includes the excerpt in his article.

This is the same Clark so well known for his exploration of the West with Meriwether Lewis between 1803 and 1806  the same Clark who essentially paved the way for folks like Glass and the fur companies that employed him.

Now named

According to Landry's research, the men accompanying Glass when he was ambushed by members of the Arikara Tribe were Hilain Menard and Colin Rose.

"In the past, historians guessed who he died with," Landry said. "That's always been the byline for that."

The story is all the more remarkable because Glass's life remains largely obscured by the passage of time because there are only scattered written accounts that mention the legendary trapper. Landry confirmed the full names of Menard and Rose from entries in the American Fur Company's Upper Missouri Outfit accounting ledgers. Microfiche copies of the ledgers are stored in the Montana Historical Society's archives in Helena.

"As luck would have it, at the bottom of the ledger page, they had an entry for Colin and Menard  killed by Ree Indians," Landry said.

"A hand-written notation made on the credit side of Menard's account book page states, 'Killed by the Rees near Fort Cass Spring 1833,'" Landry wrote in his article. "The word 'Rees' was mountaineer slang for the Arikara tribe."

"It was the coolest thing I've ever found," Landry said. "I wanted to kiss the clerk who put the note at the bottom of that ledger page."

Set straight

Previous accounts had speculated that Rose may have been Edward Rose, a mulatto who lived with the Crow. Landry said the ledger entry disproves that account, which was repeated by trappers of the time such as James Beckwourth.

"He was famous for embellishing stories," Landry said.

The three trappers were buried on a nearby knoll overlooking the river valley. No archaeological survey has ever been made to locate Fort Cass or the mountain men's burial site, both of which are likely located on private property.

"If we could find Glass's grave we could memorialize him like we should and prove that Beckwourth told another whopper," Landry said.

Closed account

It seems sad that the last accounting of Glass is a ledger showing he owed $544.50, a large sum, but not unheard of for the time, according to Landry.

"Each fur company wanted to keep the trappers in debt to them, because that was assurance that the trapper  especially the free trappers  would be trading all of his fur to them," Landry said. "The debts were large because the goods the trapper was buying from the company were charged to him at 'mountain prices,' that is usually 1,000 percent more than the cost in the settlements."

Landry said he has seen ledger entries where some free trappers had run up their account to several thousand dollars.

"When this happened, they were usually getting extra trade goods to trade with the Indians as a method to bring in more fur without having to trap it themselves," he said.

In comparison to Glass, Menard owed $16.47 while Rose was indebted to the company for $17.58, Landry's research showed.

"It was not uncommon for veteran trappers to run up sizable debts with the fur companies," Landry said. "With beaver at $4 to $5 a pound, it would take about 90 to 100 good Crow country beaver to cover most of what he owed. So I am sure that he was thinking that a good spring hunt would yield enough beaver to pay off his account with AMFC."

What comes around

Landry has spent a lot of time contemplating Glass's unusual life, especially in the past year.

"You know what the irony of the whole story is?" said the retired banker. "The first time Glass appears in the historical record he's with Ashley," William Henry Ashley, who was leading a group of 70 trappers up the Missouri River. While camped near an Arikara village in June 2, 1823, the trappers were attacked by the Indians. Fourteen trappers died and 10 were wounded, including Glass, who was shot in the leg.

"Ashley's list of men wounded in this conflict is the first historical record of Hugh Glass as a member of the Henry/Ashley Company," Landry wrote. Andrew Henry was Ashley's partner in the venture.

In retaliation for the Indian assault, an Army force accompanied by trappers attacked and burned the Arikara village. Without a village, the rootless tribe spread out across the territory.

Because of the attack on the group of trappers, Ashley and Henry agreed to split the force of 70 men and travel overland rather than up the Missouri where more  possibly hostile  Indian tribes would be encountered.

"And that's why Glass was in a position to be mauled by a grizzly bear," Landry said, a mauling that was so horrific that two of his companions  who had volunteered for extra pay to stay behind and bury him when he died  left him for dead.

The fact that members of the same Arikara Tribe were responsible for Glass's death is "just plumb bad luck," Landry said. Yet Glass's bad luck has also added to the legend that has helped resurrect the trapper and his incredible story of survival for nearly two centuries.

"I've always been fascinated with these guys," Landry said, ever since he first viewed the Charlie Russell painting of bison climbing a bluff above the Missouri River titled "When the Land Belonged to God." Trappers, he said, were some of the first whites to see the country like Russell depicted in that stunning painting.

Landry said he told script writers for "The Revenant" that Glass's story was amazing without adding cinematic changes.

"I told them, 'Just tell the guy's life story.' It's fascinating in its own right."
I love learning. I wanted to write about how I learn, so I can analyze if there is a method to this madness. I will first talk about what my learning process looks like in abstract terms, and then I'll give an analogy to make things more concrete and visual. Learning is a messy process for me I know some very clear thinkers. They are very organized and methodical. I am not like that. These tidy thinkers seem to learn a new subject quickly (and effortlessly) by studying the rules of the subject and then deriving everything about that subject from that set of rules. They speak in precise statements and have clear and hard-set opinions about the subject. They seem to thrive most in theoretical subjects. In my observation those tidy learners are in the minority. Maybe the tidy thinkers are able to pull this feat off because they come from a neighboring domain/subject and map the context there to this subject quickly. But, again from my experience, it doesn't feel like that. It s
Sealed bids will be accepted until 1:00 p.m., January 17th, 2017, for supplying one new 84 passenger transit style lift unit to the Louisa-Muscatine Community School District, 14478 170th Street, Letts, Iowa 52754.

All prices shall be F.O.B., Muscatine, Iowa. Bids shall not include sales or use tax.

Detailed specifications and bid forms are available from the business manager.

Respectfully requested,

Charles Domer

Business Manager
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Les blattes ou cafards (Blatta orientalis) sont des insectes qui appartiennent a la famille des Blattoptera. Ils se caracterisent par leur forme allongee, leurs ailes []
They would ask me what actors I saw in the roles. I would tell them, and theyd say Oh thats interesting. And that would be the end of it. --Elmore Leonard, in 2000, on the extent of his input for Hollywood's adaptation of his novels
HONOLULU - While scuba diving among the Pacific's deep-sea corals in June, marine biologist Richard Pyle spied a tiny fish the size of a toy race car. Googly-eyed and blush pink, the creature wore a prominent splotch of bluish red on the rear of its dorsal fin.

To Pyle's expert eye, it was a peculiar marking, something the researcher at Hawaii's Bishop Museum had never seen. Intrigued, he collected the fish for careful examination at the water's surface, where he also consulted with colleagues aboard a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research vessel.

"It was one of those eureka moments," he said this week. And he and everyone else was convinced: The creature just snatched from the far, rarely explored depths of Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument was indeed a new species.

But what to call it? Pyle decided the distinguished red fleck that had initially attracted his attention looked like the logo of Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign - although, he acknowledged, "it takes a lot of imagination to see that resemblance."

Obama's home state has not named anything in his honor during his presidency. That changes Wednesday when Pyle and two colleagues officially dub the newest member of the basslet family Tosanoides obama.

Pyle, NOAA scientist Randall Kosaki and Association for Marine Exploration founding member Brian Greene found the species during a dive off Kure Atoll, the northernmost Hawaiian island, 1,200 miles northwest of Honolulu. Part of their motivation for its name was to persuade the president to expand the marine monument, which President George W. Bush created a decade ago.

In late August, Obama quadrupled Papahanaumokuakea's size to 582,578 square miles, making it the largest protected area on the planet. Commercial fishing and other extractive activities are banned throughout the monument.

The researchers did not seek the 44th president's permission in advance of submitting the name to the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature for approval, and there are four other species already been named after him. Those include a trapdoor spider, a speckled freshwater darter, a parasitic worm and an extinct lizard.

Obama's immediate predecessor has also been recognized by the scientific community. In 2005, two former Cornell University entomologists named a newly discovered slime-mold beetleAgathidium bushi, after Bush, and two other insects for Vice President Richard B. Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld.

The entomologists emphasized that they meant it as a sign of respect for the GOP leaders, and Pyle said the same sentiment applied to Obama's fish. He and his colleagues timed the announcement to coincide with Obama's last vacation on Oahu as president.

"It's definitely an honor, not an insult, on our side," Pyle said.

Tosanoides obama's connection to Obama's legacy is quite solid: It is the only fish known to live exclusively within the Papahanaumokuakea's confines.

Since June, scientists have located just five of them living along the limestone ledges of ancient shorelines. Scientists say there is reason to believe that the fish's primary population exists below the 300-foot depths safely explorable by divers, which could be part of the reason researchers are only now beginning to encounter them.

Though their petite size makes them a perfect snack for larger fish that roam Papahanaumokuakea's depths, these plankton-eaters swim in silence, which helps protect them from predators.

"It's a tough place to be a small fish," Pyle said. "Big fish will eat these guys like popcorn."

Many scientists had pushed for the monument's expansion because it would offer additional protection for species there that are at risk from climate change, fishing and other threats. Without additional restrictions, they warned, seabed mining could take place and damage the region's vibrant coral reefs.

The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands - which have received federal safeguards from seven presidents since 1909 - are the planet's largest seabird gathering site, with more than 14 million birds from 22 species. They also are home to nearly all Laysan albatrosses and endangered Hawaiian monk seals, along with a wide array of shark species and the world's oldest living animal, a black coral estimated to be 4,500 years old.

Kosaki noted that because the newly discovered fish inhabits the outer edge of an extensive string of atolls and islands, a severe coral-bleaching event would mean "there's no next place or next plan" for repopulating the species.

Hawaii's aquatic diversity has been meticulously studied for well over a century, which makes the discovery of any new species in its waters highly unusual. But that is changing as researchers use advanced scuba gear to dive far deeper.

NOAA has conducted six research expeditions to Papahanaumokuakea. Kosaki said the teams brought back 75 species of algae that are probably new to science. They are just beginning to catalogue them.

"It's kind of like the new frontier," he said. "You're diving on reefs that no human has ever laid eyes on."
Pharmaceutical companies that manufacture or distribute highly addictive pain pills have hired dozens of officials from the top levels of the Drug Enforcement Administration during the past decade, according to a Washington Post investigation.

The hires came after the DEA launched an aggressive campaign to curb a rising opioid epidemic that has resulted in thousands of overdose deaths each year. In 2005, the DEA began to crack down on companies that were distributing inordinate numbers of pills such as oxycodone to pain-management clinics and pharmacies around the country.

Since then, the pharmaceutical companies and law firms that represent them have hired at least 42 officials from the DEA - 31 of them directly from the division responsible for regulating the industry, according to work histories compiled by The Washington Post and interviews with current and former agency officials.

The number of hires has prompted some current and former government officials to question whether the companies raided the division to hire away DEA officials who were architects of the agency's enforcement campaign or were most responsible for enforcing the laws the firms were accused of violating.

"The number of employees recruited from that division points to a deliberate strategy by the pharmaceutical industry to hire people who are the biggest headaches for them," said John Carnevale, former director of planning for the White House's Office of National Drug Control Policy, who now runs a consulting firm. "These people understand how DEA operates, the culture around diversion and DEA's goals, and they can advise their clients how to stay within the guidelines."

The DEA's Diversion Control Division, tasked with preventing prescription drugs from reaching the black market, wields enormous power within the pharmaceutical world. The small division, with about 300 employees at its Arlington, Va., headquarters, can suspend or revoke the licenses of doctors, pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies that fail to comply with federal law.

From 2000 to 2015, nearly 180,000 people have died of overdoses from prescription painkillers in what public health authorities have called an epidemic. States including Massachusetts, and most recently Virginia, have declared public health emergencies as the number of deaths has escalated.

It is not unusual for corporations to hire federal employees directly away from the government. Their expertise and inside knowledge can be invaluable, but there are laws and regulations to slow the "revolving door" in Washington and prevent potential conflicts of interest.

The restrictions include a lifetime ban on participating "personally and substantially" on a "particular matter" that the official had handled while working for the federal government. There also is a two-year ban on switching sides on a wider array of matters that were in the employee's official purview. State bar associations impose additional post-employment restrictions for government lawyers.

An industry spokesman said former DEA diversion officials are hired for their expertise.

"Our industry is highly specialized, and the function of drug diversion experts even more so," said John M. Gray, president and chief executive of the Healthcare Distribution Alliance, which represents drug distributors. "As such, for these individuals who want to continue to grow in their areas of expertise, it is logical for them to pursue government and industry roles that are closely aligned with their professional experience."

While The Post did not find evidence that the officials violated conflict-of-interest regulations, the number of hires from one key division shows how an industry can potentially blunt a government agency's aggressive attempts at enforcement.

The DEA diversion officials who have gone to the industry since 2005 include two executive assistants who managed day-to-day operations; the deputy director of the division; the deputy chief of operations; two chiefs of policy; a deputy chief of policy; the chief of investigations; and two associate chief counsels in charge of legal affairs and enforcement actions against pharmaceutical companies.

"It's obvious that they targeted the office," said Joseph T. Rannazzisi, who ran the diversion division for a decade before he was removed from his position and retired in 2015. "If you want to understand how we were doing our investigations, the best way to do it is to take our people who are doing the investigations and put them in place in your company. It's not difficult to understand why you would take these guys. They know the law."

Most of the DEA officials went to work for the pharmaceutical industry and law firms within weeks of leaving the agency. Among the 31 DEA diversion employees, 22 began their new jobs within weeks of leaving the DEA, according to work histories the officials posted on LinkedIn, as well as news releases and biographies published by the companies and law firms that hired them.

The Post found that several high-ranking DEA supervisors from outside the diversion division also took top jobs with industry: four special agents in charge and three assistant special agents in charge of field operations in some of the nation's largest cities, including New York, Washington and Atlanta.

In responses to questions from The Post, the DEA said in a statement that former employees must follow the law and ethics regulations in taking jobs in the private sector.

"Many who serve in government possess expert knowledge in a wide variety of fields. It is not uncommon for former government officials to use or rely on such expertise when they transfer to the private sector following their public sector service," DEA spokesman Rusty Payne said in the statement. "Employees who leave DEA and other government agencies for private sector work are expected to abide by the applicable laws and ethics rules that govern their private sector activities."

At least five of the 31 DEA employees were hired by McKesson - the nation's largest drug distributor and fifth-largest corporation. McKesson has been the subject of two publicly disclosed DEA enforcement actions, which resulted in $163 million in fines after allegations that the firm failed to report hundreds of suspicious orders for millions of pain pills from Internet pharmacies and others.

"McKesson has put significant resources towards building a best-in-class controlled substance monitoring program to help identify suspicious orders and prevent prescription drug diversion in the supply chain," the company said in a statement. "It is only natural that this team is comprised of a broad range of experts, including individuals who have spent time at DEA, as they bring deep knowledge of effective strategies to prevent diversion. Our team is deeply passionate about curbing the opioid epidemic in our country."

The Post contacted a dozen former DEA officials who went to work for the drug industry, but few agreed to be interviewed. Those who did said they followed federal ethics guidelines designed to prevent potential conflicts of interest for officials who switch from government to the industries they once regulated.

"I don't feel like I took off the white hat and put the black hat on," said Larry P. Cote, who left as the associate chief counsel for the DEA's diversion division in May 2012 to become a partner at the law firm Quarles & Brady. "That's really not what's going on. It's trying to get the best people in place to make sure that companies are staying compliant. And frankly, that benefits the DEA as much as it benefits the companies."

At Quarles & Brady, Cote serves as co-director of the firm's DEA Compliance and Litigation Practice Group and provides legal advice to some of the nation's largest pharmaceutical companies.

Cote said he obtained an ethics opinion from the DEA that advised him on which cases he could and could not handle in the private sector.

Ethics experts said revolving-door issues have been a long-standing concern across the government, with some of the most notable cases coming from the Defense Department. President-elect Donald Trump recently criticized the revolving door at the Pentagon, saying high-ranking officials "should never be allowed to go work" for companies in the defense industry.

The ethics experts said the number of officials switching sides at the DEA raises serious questions about whether the ability of the diversion division to carry out its mission has been compromised by the pharmaceutical industry.

"The findings that so many DEA officials have switched from their roles preventing, detecting and investigating illegal drug use to working for those involved in the supply chain is disturbing," said Scott H. Amey, general counsel for the Project on Government Oversight, a watchdog group in Washington. "It's also another reminder of how well the revolving door is greased and how the revolving door can negatively impact government operations. It's not a surprise that DEA isn't as vigilant as it once was when so many ex-feds are working for the companies that they once investigated."

---

In 2004, DEA officials became alarmed by the increasing number of overdose deaths. The following year, the agency's diversion division launched an initiative designed to hold distributors of narcotics accountable for the hundreds of millions of pills that were being diverted to the black market.

The DEA pursued cases against some of the largest opioid distributors in the country, including McKesson, Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen, as well as CVS and Walgreens, which distribute opioids to their own pharmacies. In general, the companies did not admit wrongdoing and said they were taking steps to address illegal diversion.

In 2008, McKesson settled one of those cases, paying a $13 million fine without admitting liability. That same the year, the DEA filed a case against Cardinal. That company also settled, paying a $34 million fine. Cardinal promised to improve monitoring of its drug shipments.

The DEA's initiative was sharply curtailed in the face of pressure from the pharmaceutical industry beginning in 2013, according to a Post investigation published in October. In fiscal 2011, civil case filings against distributors, manufacturers, pharmacies and doctors had reached 131. By 2014, they had fallen to 40.

The slowdown came after DEA lawyers began to require a higher standard of proof before cases could move forward. Supervisors in the field said they were frustrated that their cases were being stalled at DEA headquarters. Top DEA and Justice Department officials have declined to discuss the reasons behind the slowdown.

Government ethics experts said regulators often join the industries they oversee, lured by substantially higher salaries.

"That high rate of turnover makes you really wonder whether those officials were acting in the interests of the DEA rather than the companies they were regulating," said Craig Holman, an expert on revolving-door issues for Public Citizen, a government watchdog group in Washington. "Just by seeing your colleagues going that way, that tells you that you can shape your future employment prospects if you behave accordingly."

Once senior employees leave for jobs in the industry, they are in positions to help pharmaceutical companies comply with the complex laws and regulations that govern controlled substances. But ethics experts said they also can exploit weaknesses they are aware of within the DEA.

One of the key players in the DEA's diversion initiative went to work for a law firm that represents the companies he used to regulate.

D. Linden Barber, who served as associate chief counsel from 2006 to 2010, guided cases against some of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the country.

In 2008, Barber's office filed its first diversion case against Cardinal, accusing it of failing to properly monitor shipments of painkillers. Barber conducted extensive meetings with DEA attorneys assigned to the case and was deeply involved in crafting a "memorandum of agreement" to settle the allegations against Cardinal, according to a DEA document. The case resulted in the $34 million settlement with Cardinal.

In October 2011, the DEA served warrants seeking records from Cardinal as part of a second case against the company. By then, Barber was serving as the DEA's regional diversion counsel in the Midwest, and his colleague Larry Cote had taken over as the associate chief counsel at headquarters.

The same month that the DEA filed the warrants, Barber left the agency for Quarles & Brady to become the director of the law firm's DEA compliance and litigation practice.

Quarles & Brady's clients include Cardinal.

Seven months later, in May 2012, Cote, who helped to coordinate the second Cardinal case while at the DEA, joined Barber at Quarles & Brady, becoming the co-director of compliance and litigation. Cote had appeared in court on behalf of the DEA in the case against Cardinal three months earlier, records show.

Barber said he sought advice from Roberto D. DiBella, the DEA's ethics lawyer, before and after leaving the agency. Barber declined to say whether he asked DiBella for advice about representing Cardinal, but he said his representation of his clients complied with ethics laws.

"The rules governing my work as an attorney make it inappropriate for me to discuss work I did for DEA and any other clients," he said in a statement to The Post. "However, the records of DEA will show that I followed the rules. I never worked on a matter for DEA and then worked on the same matter for the other party. I am proud of the work I did for DEA and of the work I do in private practice for clients who want to work with DEA to stop the abuse of prescription drugs."

The DEA provided The Post with a copy of DiBella's ethics opinion. It shows that Barber asked for guidance on his representation of Cardinal. DiBella told him that he was banned for life from representing Cardinal on any issues connected to the 2008 memorandum of agreement (MOA).

"Your representation of Cardinal to address an alleged violation of the MOA would on its face appear that you switched sides on a matter that you participated in as a DEA employee," DiBella wrote.

DiBella did not respond to interview requests. The DEA said the ethics opinion was reviewed by DiBella's supervisor to double-check the advice Barber was given.

Cote said he also asked DiBella for an ethics opinion before leaving the agency in 2012.

"I provided him with a fairly comprehensive list of the cases that I worked on," he said in a recent interview.

The DEA provided a copy of the opinion to The Post. It noted that Cote had participated "personally and substantially" in specific matters relating to at least 10 companies while he was at the DEA. It said he was banned for life from communicating with or appearing before the DEA or any other federal agency on behalf of those companies on the specific matters he handled.

The companies include some of the largest drug distributors and retailers in the nation, including McKesson, AmerisourceBergen, CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid and Walmart.

Cote said he has followed the opinion, which also singled out his work for the DEA on the Cardinal case.

"I did not and really have not represented Cardinal since I left DEA," Cote said. "Our firm does do work for Cardinal, but I've been really walled off from it because some of these matters are still pending and I just didn't want to go there."
ST. HELENA  Citizens have until Tuesday, Jan. 3 to submit written comments on the Culinary Institute of Americas plans to expand enrollment at the Greystone campus and build new dorms on Pratt Avenue.

The city of St. Helena released a mitigated negative declaration on Dec. 9 determining that, with the help of mitigation measures, the project wont have any potentially significant environmental effects that would trigger a full environmental impact report.

The project will come before the Planning Commission at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 17, at Vintage Hall.

The school wants to expand enrollment from 200 to 300 students, remodel its interior educational facilities, close the Wine Spectator at Greystone Restaurant and replace it with a smaller part-time student-run restaurant, build a 4,468-square-foot underground storage cave, and install three modular storage units on the campus. The exterior of the 128-year-old Greystone building would not be altered.

The CIA also wants to expand its dorms at 830 Pratt Ave. to accommodate 224 students, a net increase of 123. The net increase is more than the number of new students because some existing students who live in regular rental housing in the area would move into the dorms.

The project came before the City Council in a pre-application review last spring. At the time, neighbors and councilmembers identified water, sewer and traffic as factors that deserved close scrutiny during the environmental review process. Neighbors in the Pratt area also said they were concerned about the massing of the new dorms and their visibility from the street.

At the time, Tom Bensel, managing director for the CIA at Greystone, said the CIA wants to take students out of the housing market and reduce commuting traffic by housing more students at the dorms, where they can use a shuttle to get to and from the campus.

The changes also reflect operational changes at the campus. Many staff members are moving to the old Copia facility in Napa, which the CIA bought in 2015 and plans to use for a lot of the events and conferences it used to hold at Greystone.

The projects mitigated negative declaration states that water and wastewater demand would increase at the dorms and decrease at Greystone, due to improvements in water efficiency, the use of a well for landscaping, the smaller restaurant, and the relocation of staff and programs to Copia.

The overall water use  would be 20.49 acre-feet/year, which is below the current water allotment of 23.1 acre-feet/year, the report states. The CIA wants to rescind the two separate water agreements for the campus and the dorms and readjust the allocations, resulting in the same total allotment of 23.1 acre feet per year. An acre foot is about 326,000 gallons.

The campus sewage is treated at a private facility, but the dorms are hooked up to the citys wastewater system. The new dorms would increase sewage flow to 9,520 gallons per day, a net increase of 1,960 gallons.

The report states that even though St. Helena is under regulatory pressure to improve the standard of treatment at the wastewater treatment plant, the plant has sufficient operating capacity to handle the additional flows. The CIA will still have to pay a sewer mitigation fee.

To mitigate the impact on traffic, the report says tour buses should comply with size limitations and be required to make advanced reservations before visiting the campus. To address the traffic generated by the new dorms, the CIA would be required to microsurface Pratt Avenue in front of the dorms and add a Class II bike lane along Pratt between the dorms and Main Street.

The three new dorms would total more than 40,000 square feet, with a maximum height of 40 feet.

Comments should be mailed to Lilly Bianco, contract planner, 1480 Main St., St. Helena, CA 94574, or emailed to LBianco@cityofsthelena.org.
WASHINGTON - The sign outside said the sandwich shop was closed, but people kept coming in anyway, eager for their lunchtime hoagie.

Inside the tiny restaurant in downtown Washington, D.C., Arlene Wagner nervously wiped tables and laid out trays of food. Bub and Pop's wasn't open for business on Wednesday, but it wouldn't be empty.

"Sorry, guys, we're closed," she told a couple of regulars, turning them away and locking the door behind them. "We're having a remembrance for my son."

It had been exactly a year since Staff Sgt. Peter Taub and five other U.S. airmen were killed by a suicide bomber while on patrol in Afghanistan.

Now the survivors of the attack were coming here to eat, along with Taub's commander and more than a dozen other airmen. As Arlene, a wiry 65-year-old in glasses, wondered how they would all fit, a tub of French onion dip fell off a table and exploded on the floor. Arlene jumped.

"I'm just trying to get through the day," she said.

Arlene had just closed Bub and Pop's on Dec. 21, 2015, when her older son, Jonathan Taub, the restaurant's chef, came tearing through the kitchen.

"Pete was killed," he said.

Wagner checked her phone, saw the missed calls and knew it was true.

Her son, a 30-year-old father with a second baby on the way, was gone. That night, three officers in crisp blue uniforms arrived to officially deliver the news.

Now airmen were again at her door.

Brig. Gen. Keith Givens, head of the Air Force's Office of Special Investigations, stepped into the restaurant and hugged Arlene. Next to arrive was Peter's OSI partner, who had nearly been killed in the blast.

"Hey, honey," Arlene said, embracing the man, who asked not be identified.

She hugged each person who came through the door, all 17 of them.

"I'm going to take a breath now," she said, pausing to compose herself. "Thank you for all being here. Now eat."

They filled their plates with hoagies and salad, chips and dip, and sat in near-silence, unsure how to begin, which stories to tell.

There was Peter's partner, who had spotted his buddy's body through the lingering smoke as he made his way to the medevac helicopter. There were the two other surviving airmen, who had been knocked back 10 feet by the blast and were now, like Peter's partner, dealing with traumatic brain injury. And there was the Marine who had rushed through exposed territory to try to help.

"This is really quiet," Arlene said. "Should I put on some Christmas music?"

One person missing from the table was Peter's older brother. They'd been close growing up in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Jonathan was tall and burly. Peter was so skinny and sweet that his parents worried about him.

After Arlene and Joel Taub split, the siblings struggled.

Jonathan was shot in the back during a fight shortly after graduating from high school. He recovered, went to chef's school and worked in some of Philadelphia's best restaurants before moving to the District, where he opened Bub and Pop's with his Mom and stepdad in 2013.

Peter partied too much and dropped out of community college. His solution was to enlist. His father, who'd grown up during the Vietnam War, was wary. American troops were dying in Iraq and Afghanistan. Joel told his son that the Army and Marine Corps were too dangerous. Instead he suggested the Air Force.

Peter had served for eight years before being deployed to Afghanistan. Hours before Peter shipped out in 2015, Jonathan made him his favorite hoagie to take to the airport.

On Wednesday, the 33-year-old chef was in the back office of Bub and Pop's, sitting at a computer underneath two photos of his brother. He couldn't bring himself to attend the luncheon. Instead, he tried to distract himself with YouTube videos of famous chefs.

"I'm not even sure why they are here," he said, glancing at security cameras showing the airmen eating lunch. "Is that wrong for me to say?"

They were there, Givens said, to honor and remember Peter, one of 2,383 service members who have died in the longest war in U.S. history.

"If Pete could have chosen to switch places with anyone here, he wouldn't have," he told Arlene. "But you know that. You raised him."

Arlene brought up the polka-dot socks Peter used to wear, even as an Air Force investigator, and the mood inside the restaurant began to lift.

Peter hid the fact that he was being sent to Afghanistan, telling his family he was on his way to Qatar, Arlene recounted. She found out only while helping him pack when his wife, Christina, accidentally let the secret slip. Her ex-husband, Joel, thought their son was in Qatar, out of harm's way, until the day Peter died in a war many Americans have all but forgotten.

"He told me he was going to get a mug with 'Afghanistan' on it and, when he was back, give it to his father," she said of her son. "That's how he was going to let him know."

Special Agent Heather Garver, sitting across the table from Arlene, nodded her head.

"I went to the bazaar with him one morning, and we went and picked it out," Garver said. "He wanted a certain marble so he could have it engraved."

Soon, stories about Peter were coming fast and thick. There was the time he broke his partner's glasses during a Silly String fight, the day he mysteriously procured a Christmas tree in Afghanistan just before the holidays, and the tale of how he left rotting food in his desk before heading overseas.

In the middle of the stories, Arlene's phone rang. It was Christina, Peter's widow.

She had learned she was pregnant with their second child a few weeks after Peter left for Afghanistan. Now the baby girl Peter never met was on FaceTime, staring out at the men who were with her father when he died.

"This is Petra," Arlene said.

"She has Pete's smile, his eyes," said Garver.

Arlene spoke to her son for the last time a week before he died. With Christina pregnant and Arlene's sister battling cancer, life and death loomed over the conversation.

"It was great to be with you for so long yesterday," Arlene texted him afterward. She texted again later that week to say she loved him.

"Love U too," he texted back.

The day he died, Peter and a half-dozen other OSI agents climbed into their armored vehicles and headed toward the village of Bajawri, a tiny town six miles from Bagram, to meet with the village elder.

Afterward, as they walked back to their vehicles, an Afghan approached on a motorcycle. When he reached the Americans, a bomb hidden underneath the motorcycle's seat exploded, sending shrapnel that scythed through the airmen. Among those killed were a New York City police detective serving in the U.S. National Air Guard and an openly gay Air Force major who'd pushed to repeal the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

A cold, hard rain fell on Dec. 23 as airmen carried the six flag-draped caskets off the back of a C-17 at New Castle Air Base in Delaware. Peter's casket was last, his family recalled. "I was shivering, but I was also crying so hard," Jonathan said. "It was unreal, seeing my brother pulled off that plane in a f------ box."

The holidays were agony. They'd closed Bub and Pop's, posting a sign announcing Peter's death to their customers.

"We sat around and went through a lot of scotch," Joel said. "We didn't celebrate the holidays, and we probably never will again."

There was a funeral, complete with 21-gun salute, in Christina's home town of Easton, Pennsylvania. And another ceremony at a firehall in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, near where Peter grew up.

Then began the procession of terrible reminders of what they'd lost: The day in April when Peter would have returned home. Memorial Day. The birth of Petra, named after her father. Nov. 2, which would have been Peter's 31st birthday. Veterans Day. And Thanksgiving, which Arlene spent with Christina and the girls.

Arlene, once described by a Washington Post food writer as Bub and Pop's "official anti-depressant," struggled to keep it together.

"I spend a lot of time cutting off my emotions because if I didn't, I wouldn't be able to get out of bed in the morning," she said. "I'd be a basket case."

Jonathan began snapping when food deliveries came up short, when drivers cut him off, when his mother got on his nerves. He began drinking and smoking more, too.

"I don't know how I didn't go off the deep end," he said. "I wake up and I feel like I have 1,000 pounds on my back and there is a hole in my heart."

In the end, it was the restaurant that helped save them. Jonathan began serving fancy dinners on Saturday nights, pouring his energy into elaborate creations such as deconstructed cheesesteak in bone marrow, and Burgundy snails with creme fraiche.

For Arlene, it wasn't the food but the customers. It started with the flowers and stuffed animals they left outside Bub and Pop's after Peter's death. Then a regular who owns a framing shop brought in a large sign honoring Peter. Arlene hung it in the front of the shop, took it down when it became too much, and then hung it back up again.

One man sent a card saying he, too, had lost his son in Afghanistan. A woman wrote to say Peter had given her son half of his hoagie at BWI before shipping out.

And then there were the service members and veterans who stopped by to pay their respects. Some had served with Peter. But many were strangers. Arlene could often spot them as soon as they walked in: Their posture gave them away. She walked around the counter and embraced them.

On Wednesday, when the food was gone and the stories were told, the airmen stood up to leave. Arlene hugged them all again and showed them to the door, turning away a customer who tried to sneak through the open door.

"Sorry, we're closed," she said, locking the door and heading back into the restaurant to clean up.
UTTAR PRADESH, India - The woman cried for an hour.

She wept as she told us how one wintry day, as she worked tilling a field, her boss pushed her down to the ground and raped her. She wept as she described how she'd gone to the police and they didn't believe her. She wept as she told us how the entire village turned against her.

As she spoke, she took the edge of her sequined-trimmed sari, the color of mangoes, and wiped her cheeks. She sat alone on a string cot in her front yard in a village about four hours east of New Delhi, India's capital. A crowd had gathered a short distance away, including the father of her alleged rapist. He was laughing at her.

"The villagers have all been very bad to me," the woman said. "Nobody believes me. They think I'm faking it. They said they will kill me if I don't go back on my words. I'm helpless."

I sat near her in the fitful February sun and watched her closely. After three years reporting in villages in India, I knew enough to try to make sure her tears were real. "Checked for tears. What a cynic," I wrote in my notebook.

That was not the last note I would write to myself that day. Later on, as conflicting stories rose around me from the victim's family, from police, from other villagers, I would scribble helplessly, "Is everybody lying?"

Reporting about rape in Indian villages is not easy. The stigma of sexual assault is so pervasive that the first response to a rape is often silence, or victim-shaming. Ancient caste and family alliances prevail, deals are struck, money changes hands.

But reporting about such crimes has taken on new urgency as the country engages in a debate about women's safety - in streets, schools, the workplace - following a highly publicized fatal gang rape in 2012.

The country's overheated media have been paying far more attention to rape cases in the last four years. Under the glare of the spotlight, witness statements can change or become more exaggerated. A print journalist friend told me he was once sitting talking quietly to a rape victim's family only to have them burst into dramatic sobs when the TV cameras arrived.

Only about one in four rape cases results in a conviction. At the same time, Indian courts are littered with cases of jilted women accusing men of rape to cover up a consensual relationship gone bad, or parents trying to hide - and ruin - a romance between two young lovers from different social castes.

I'd been trying for months to write a story about informal village councils that step in to mitigate sexual assaults and other crimes in lieu of the police - often with brutal punishments. The piece was to be the first of a year-long series called "India's Divide," which examined the tension and violence that result when a rising generation of women clashes with the entrenched patriarchy. But first, I had to find a case where I could pin down details. That was proving more challenging than I expected.

Bina's case seemed promising. When the 35-year-old widow arrived at the police station to file a complaint, she had claimed, the village leader ordered her alleged assailant to touch Bina's feet (a gesture of respect), apologize and settle the matter without involving police. Authorities only took her story seriously when she went to file a complaint at regional police headquarters days later.

When I arrived in her village a few weeks after that, I went directly to the home of the village elder.

His three-story house was painted in hues of blue and orange and rose over the other modest tin-roof dwellings like a circus tent.

The man - a stocky farmer with a streak of red vermilion on his forehead, a mark of his Hindu devotion - ushered us into his courtyard where we were brought cups of sweet, milky chai. He had just been elected village pradhan, a position similar to mayor.

It was there, sitting in the man's courtyard, as family and neighbors looked on, we heard our first lie of the day.

"I'm not interfering in this matter," the pradhan said. "I said let the police handle it."

The pradhan gestured grandly to a crowd of onlookers with a sweep of his hand.

"If her story is true, the whole village would support her anyway," he said. "Ask these people how many of them support her?"

None of them did. A man of about 70 stepped forward to say: "What I have heard from laborers is that there was a dispute between the boss and the woman. She did not follow his instructions. He told her off and she said, 'Well, I'm going to the police station.' She tore her own clothes and pretended she was raped."

Bina was an outsider in the community, having moved from the impoverished state of Bihar to marry as a child bride at age 14. She told us with a sort of pride that her late husband had refrained from touching her until she was grown. She eventually had seven children.

As she cried, no one stepped forward to comfort her. Her young son hovered anxiously nearby, along with a limping baby goat.

She said she was resting alone in a field on her lunch break from her job working for the government's rural employment program when her boss accosted her.

When he grabbed her, she recalled, she asked him sharply what he was doing.

" 'I'm a government servant and I'm more powerful than you, you can't say no to me,' " she recalled him saying. "He said, 'My wife is not at home, she's gone to her mother's house, that's why I'm doing this to you.' "

Something about this little detail of the wife being away rang true to me. But as we spoke to others in the village, I began to have doubts.

The alleged attacker was hiding from the police when we visited, but his family members and others had plenty to say in support of him.

Angry relatives gathered, as well as women who had worked with Bina in the fields. The women said the rape couldn't have happened because the area was too exposed, and they had not gone off to take their midday meal leaving her alone. Bina was not a woman of "good character," they said, and she kept "picking fights with everyone in the village."

Victim blaming is common after sexual assaults in rural India, where traditional notions of honor still hold sway.

And there was another possible motive for these women to lie - money. The alleged attacker was in charge of handing out places in the jobs program, and now that he was on the run, "we haven't had any work for days," one told me.

Things got murkier when we went to the police station, a one-story white concrete building where the officers were outside enjoying the afternoon sun. The pradhan had come to meet the victim at the station with the assailant in tow, they said, but they didn't know what kind of deal was struck.

More damningly, they said that Bina had not told them she was raped when she first went there.

They played me a cellphone video of a later interview they had with her where she said, "When I first came here, I never said I was raped or molested. I could never say it to anyone."

Yet this, too, could have an explanation. Because of the stigma, many women often don't report sexual assault right away, or at all.

And these officers too had reason to lie. A new amendment to the rape law requires authorities to register each case or face jail time of up to two years. If they hadn't taken her seriously, they might have been in trouble.

One of the officers, Pramod Kumar Yadav, gave me a quizzical look.

"What do you think of this?" he asked me. "Most cases are a misuse of rape here. It's highly unlikely they were alone in the field. There was not even a tree to hide them."

The entire village had accused Bina of lying. But I wasn't sure. What possible motive could drive her to fight to have the police take her seriously and ostracize herself from her entire community? It was, as one of my colleagues put it, "a very lonely battle."

"I don't want money. I just want my sanity back," she told me. "I'm scared if this happens to my daughters. There's no protection."

For months afterward, Bina's words haunted me: 'He said, 'My wife is not at home, she's gone to her mother's house, that's why I'm doing this to you.' "

But I decided there were too many questions to write about her, at least in the traditional way. We bid goodbye to the police investigators who would be left to sort through the mess, and hit the road.

I did not envy them.
NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- A major increase in international enrollment in recent years has intensified the competition for entry to America's top private colleges and universities, as ever-growing numbers of applicants angle for the limited supply of seats.

That tension is particularly evident in the eight prestigious Ivy League schools: Federal data shows that their freshman classes grew slightly from 2004 to 2014 - 5 percent - while the number of incoming foreign students rose 46 percent. At the same time, applications to the schools shot up 88 percent.

At Yale University, where just 6 percent of 30,000 applicants are accepted, the foreign share of the freshman class has grown from single digits to 11 percent. As Yale's undergraduate enrollment has edged upward since 2004, foreigners have accounted for almost all of the growth, reflecting a deliberate strategy to deepen Yale's engagement with the world.

"We want to bring together an incredibly diverse student body - diverse in every way," said Jonathan Holloway, dean of Yale College. "If we want to train the next generation of global leaders, we better have the globe here."

Foreign and domestic demand grew so high that Yale has embarked on its biggest expansion since its undergraduate college opened to women in 1969. Next fall Yale will open two new residential complexes, a $500 million project to lift enrollment capacity 15 percent.

International growth has fostered an increasingly cosmopolitan culture on campuses across the country, with academic benefits for domestic and foreign students alike. It gives colleges an additional path toward ethnic and racial diversity, opening doors to students from Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe. But it also injects pressure into the admissions scramble that U.S. high school seniors are starting to experience this month as schools release early-admission decisions.

Charles Deacon, dean of admissions at Georgetown University, said he is concerned that international enrollment could be nearing an unacceptable level at some schools by potentially crowding out qualified U.S. students.

"We're in a global world," Deacon said. "There certainly is an argument for the presence of foreign nationals at U.S. universities. But is there a tipping point where this is too many? That is an issue we have to reckon with."

The international share of freshmen at Georgetown rose from 3 percent in 2004 to 11 percent in 2014, on par with Yale. During that time, Georgetown's admission rate fell 5 points, to 17 percent. Deacon said those numbers are reasonable for a university in the nation's capital with a school of foreign service and a global profile.

"We think it works well for us," he said.

U.S. applicants to elite schools are largely unaware of the growth of international enrollment and what it could mean for their chances, said Bruce Vinik, an admission consultant in Montgomery County, Maryland. He said the subject could draw "pretty strong" reactions from students anxious about whether their top-choice schools will accept or reject them.

"Some kids would probably be upset it has increased competition and made it tougher to get into these colleges," Vinik said. "Others - quite a few, actually - would see the benefits" of diversity.

Except for a brief period after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, international enrollment at U.S. colleges has grown for generations.

"Based on history, we think the United States will continue to be a destination of choice and foreign students will continue to want to come here, for all the reasons they come here today," said Allan Goodman, chief executive and president of the Institute of International Education.

There were about 427,000 international undergraduates at U.S. colleges and universities in the 2015-2016 school year, according to the IIE. That was up 79 percent over a decade ago. The top supplier was China, followed by Saudi Arabia, South Korea, India and Vietnam.

Among these students is Yifu Dong, 21, a Yale senior from Beijing majoring in history. His father writes columns for a Chinese newspaper, and his mother is a civil engineer. They are a middle-class family, Dong said, and he receives financial aid.

"It's eye-opening for me," he said. "Your ideas are constantly being challenged. I really like this kind of education, the liberal arts."

The foreign influx has helped offset stagnation in the annual supply of graduates from U.S. high schools. Public universities often use international recruiting to help balance budgets when states cut funding for higher education. At the University of California at Berkeley, federal data shows the foreign share of freshmen in 2014 - 13 percent - was four times higher than in 2004.

Many tuition-dependent private colleges have similar motives, seeking to fill seats with students who can pay full or nearly full price.

But the calculus is different for top-ranked private schools with an abundance of qualified applicants. For these schools, going global often appears to be more of a strategic choice than a financial necessity. Some give international students significant financial aid.

Federal data on "nonresident aliens" shows the international share of freshmen doubled at Duke University, from 5 percent in 2004 to 10 percent in 2014. The share also doubled at Brown University, to 12 percent, and Columbia University, to 15 percent. It quadrupled at Claremont McKenna College, to 20 percent.

The only Ivy League schools with single-digit international shares in 2014 were Dartmouth College (8 percent) and Cornell University (9 percent). The share at highly ranked Stanford University was 8 percent.

At the 50 schools that U.S. News and World Report ranks as top-25 national universities or liberal arts colleges, the number of freshman seats in those schools grew 14 percent from 2004 to 2014, to about 65,000. The number of freshmen who were foreigners more than doubled, to about 6,900.

Admission rates, meanwhile, plummeted, meaning that it is far more difficult for applicants to gain acceptance. About a dozen schools routinely reject at least 90 percent of applicants, a threshold rarely reached a decade ago. Stanford, the most selective, now turns down 19 of every 20 students seeking admission.

For U.S. applicants, the increase in foreign competition adds another layer of difficulty. They're now up against a growing pool of the world's best students.

The University of Chicago recently set a goal for international enrollment of 15 percent. The foreign share of its freshmen in 2014 was 11 percent, up from 9 percent in 2004. The university's admission rate plunged in that time, federal data shows, from 40 percent to 9 percent.

"To me it would be peculiar - given the evolution of problems in the world, the challenges the world faces, and the flow of ideas and capital and everything else - if we didn't have a much more global perspective embedded within the university," said University of Chicago President Robert Zimmer.

International students are often stereotyped as rich kids from abroad who can pay full freight. Many are wealthy. But enrollment officers at prominent schools deny that foreign recruiting is all about money.

"For us, it was really philosophical," said Katharine Harrington, vice president of admissions and planning for the University of Southern California, where 18 percent of freshmen in 2014 were international, up from 7 percent in 2004. "If this is truly a national and global university, we really do believe the undergraduate population ought to better mirror the world in which our students are going to live and work and make their way."

USC's admission rate fell in that decade from 27 percent to 18 percent.

At Emory University, the international share of freshmen tripled over a decade, to 17 percent in 2014. John Latting, Emory's dean of admission, said the growth reflected a spike in international applications. Fifteen years ago, he said, South Korea was big. Then China emerged.

"Now we see India, big time," he said, with that country supplying 44 freshmen this year in a class of about 1,360. That's equal to the number from Maryland.

Emory also has become more selective, this year admitting 25 percent of applicants. In 2004, it admitted 42 percent.

"Sure, it's tougher," Latting said. "It's tougher for everybody - international and domestic - to get in."The admission rate for international students, he said, is about half the rate for domestic students.

At Claremont McKenna, where international enrollment has soared, the school lets in about 1 in 10 applicants. In 2004, more than 1 in 5 were accepted. But Jefferson Huang, vice president for admission and financial aid, said foreign and domestic applicants are accepted in almost equal proportion.

"If we wiped out the international student population - which would be a horrible, horrible thing to do - our domestic student population would still have a frighteningly low admit rate," Huang said.

Huang said the college draws huge interest from Pacific Rim countries because of its location in Southern California, home to vibrant Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese immigrant communities.

Globalization is central to the college's appeal, he said: "Part of the reason domestic students want to come is because of what we've done here."

At Yale, U.S. students say contact with international peers is invaluable. Zunaira Arshad, 21, a senior from Illinois, said conversations with classmates from Syria and Turkey enriched her perspective on the Syrian crisis.

"I've learned to empathize and care about people and think about other people besides myself," she said. "There needs to be more of that. Please, don't let it be less."

Yale's push to globalize accelerated after the school celebrated its tricentennial in 2001. The university is one of a few to say that it considers all applications, domestic and foreign, without regard to financial need and meets full need for all who enroll.

"A big advantage for us from a marketing perspective," said Dean of Admissions Jeremiah Quinlan.

Several international students said they applied to Yale because of that policy. The full price of tuition, fees, room and board exceeds $65,000 a year. That doesn't include plane tickets and other expenses.

"Their financial aid package was the best," said Camila Franco, 21, a junior from Buenos Aires majoring in biomedical engineering. "I feel incredibly lucky to be here."

She said she chose Yale after applying to 11 U.S. schools, drawn to the university's global atmosphere.

"My roommate is from Burma," she said. "It has definitely opened up my mind."

The university receives about 5,000 international and 26,000 domestic applications a year. Foreigners are admitted at a lower rate, Quinlan said.

Quinlan said he is elated to be able to offer admission to between 300 and 400 more students next year as the university prepares to open the new residential colleges.

"I might be the happiest man on campus," he said. "Now we will be able to open up increased spots for students from all over the world."
On Dec. 26, 1991, the Soviet Union officially ceased to exist. Its flag, with its famous hammer and sickle, was lowered outside the Kremlin at 7:32 p.m. Within a half-hour, the red, white and blue Russian flag had been raised in its place.

For almost 70 years, the totalitarian Soviet Union had curtailed the free speech and human rights of its citizens. By the late 1980s, it was painfully obvious that its economic policies had led to a dramatically lower quality of life than in the West.

But even so, few celebrated its demise.

"It was strange how little reaction there was," Uli Klese, a Berlin photographer vacationing in Moscow as the flag fell, told The Washington Post at the time. "When the Berlin Wall came down, everybody was out on the streets. This was an event of the same kind of magnitude, but no one seemed to care."

A quarter-century later, few in the former Soviet Union seem to remember its collapse fondly. In fact, many seem to bitterly regret it.

The last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, recently gave interviews in which he criticized Western inaction over the collapse of the Soviet Union and lambasted the "treachery" of those who enabled it. Vladimir Putin, Russia's leader in one form or another for more than 16 years, has called the fall of the Soviet Union the "greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century."

Perhaps what's more surprising, however, is that among the general public, who often suffered the most under the Soviet Union, there is perhaps a lingering nostalgia for it.

Data from the independent polling firm Levada shows that the percentage of Russians who regretted the Soviet collapse has dropped below 50 percent only once since 1992: in 2012, when it hit 49 percent. In the most recent polling, about 56 percent of Russians say they regret its fall.

It's reasonable for anyone living in a democracy to wonder why anyone would regret the collapse of a totalitarian regime. Thankfully, Levada also asked those with regrets why they thought that way.

To most, the destruction of the union's shared economic system was the main factor - in Levada's most recent poll, 53 percent listed it. The reasoning is understandable: The planned economy of the vast Soviet Union offered financial stability. In the immediate aftermath of its 1991 crash, it quickly became apparent that Russia's new market economy would offer a rocky ride.

Economic reforms quickly had a harsh effect on general living standards. The ruble became almost worthless. Corruption was rampant. A deeply flawed privatization program helped put much of the country's economy in the hands of an entrenched and often shady oligarchy. Then, just as things began to look up, the 1998 financial crisis hit and wiped out much of the limited gains that had been made.

The economy did finally begin to stabilize when Putin came to power. The new Russian leader went out of his way to confront the oligarchs. Meanwhile, the benefits of Russia's rich natural resources began to filter through into the day-to-day economy, with real disposable income going up 140 percent between 2000 and 2007.

But many Russians still felt humiliated by the experience in the 1990s and blamed Western advisers for the turmoil. And as NATO expanded closer into Russia's traditional sphere of influence, many in the country felt slighted, as if their interests were being ignored by the United States and Europe.

This may explain why Levada's polling finds that the sense of belonging to a great power is one of the major reasons for people missing the Soviet Union: 43 percent in 2016. Other justifications for regret range from the mundanely practical (its harder to travel) to the emotional (a lost sense of home).

Curiously, it seems this nostalgia may not be limited to Russia, the dominant country in the Soviet Union and whose empire formed its base. A recent survey by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the World Bank found that more than half of the respondents from former Soviet states thought a return to an authoritarian regime would be a positive development in some circumstances.

The EBRD study also found that life satisfaction remained low in post-Soviet states, which led to a "happiness gap" with Western Europe.

All this begs another obvious question: Could the Soviet Union come back? Here's the evidence from Levada polling: While as many as 30 percent of Russians said in 2001 that they favored a return to the Soviet Union in its original form, that figure has dropped throughout the Putin years. It now sits at 12 percent.

But the most recent polling did find that a significant chunk of people (46 percent) supported either combining several former Soviet republics in a new union or integrating all the former Soviet republics in a new bloc akin to the European Union.

Speaking recently with Tass, Gorbachev seemed to understand the desire to raise a new flag. "The Soviet Union cannot be restored," he told the Russian news agency. "But a new Union can be established."
On Nov. 29, three weeks after Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election, a chart, showing a precipitous decline in support for democracy around the world, went viral after appearing in The New York Times:

Plenty of public argument ensued about the validity of the underlying data. But there was hardly any comprehension among experts about why moral support for democracy might be eroding - in part, because there's good reason to think that experts are themselves to blame.

This is most obvious in the case of Trump, who devoted a large share of his presidential campaign not just to attacking democratic norms but also to attacking the technocratic experts who have come to symbolize democracy in the United States.

I have no sympathy for Trump's repulsive disregard for facts, truth, and legitimate expertise. Yet he was canny in identifying how both parties' technocratic mindset - their approaching every problem with a five-point plan designed to produce evidence-based deliverables - had left democracy vulnerable. Trump knew that if he waged a war on democratic values, the technocrats who now monopolize the country's political elite would be incapable of fighting back.

Technocrats have always shown little interest in fights over fundamental values. Their work proceeds from the assumption that everyone - or at least all the people who truly matter - already share the same enlightened commitment to democratic values. The only debate they are concerned about is over evidence on "what works" among policy inputs to produce the desired measurable outputs, like higher wages and GDP, less poverty, less crime and terrorism, or less war.

The problem occurs when some people turn out not to share those enlightened values and insist on challenging them. Technocrats, in these situations, don't know what to say because they can't rely on evidence to make their case. So when technocrats are all we have to defend democracy, fights over fundamental values become embarrassingly one-sided.

Hillary Clinton was the perfect case in point, a politician so technocratic that she even embarrassed other technocrats. Her campaign website listed bullet-point plans to solve 41 different measurable problems, each one containing multiple sub-plans to solve multiple sub-problems. There was even a plan to protect the interests of dogs, cats, and horses. She almost reached the level of that reductio ad absurdum of global technocracy, the widely ridiculed United Nations Sustainable Development Goals with their 17 goals and 169 targets.

Maybe Clinton's website shouldn't matter that much, but her speeches often read off the same long list of planned solutions to many different problems. Mario Cuomo's dictum was to campaign in poetry and to govern in prose. Clinton's campaign wonkiness didn't even reach prose.

So Clinton was not the best candidate possible to answer Trump's terrifying frontal assault on the core enlightenment value that all are born free and equal in dignity and rights. Trump called Mexicans rapists and demanded a ban on Muslims entering the country. Clinton countered with plans for a "comprehensive immigration reform with a pathway to full and equal citizenship," including measures to "fix the family visa backlog," to "end the three- and 10-year bars," and have "targeted" immigration enforcement.

Trump bragged about grabbing women by the "pussy." Clinton planned to address "issues that affect women's lives," such as "family issues, economic issues" that affect "our future competitiveness," promoting "pay transparency across the economy," granting "paid leave," and ensuring "quality, affordable child care."

Trump threatened to put more black people in jail with "law and order." Clinton's plan for racial justice was to "[r]eform our broken criminal justice system by reforming sentencing laws and policies" - thereby "strengthening the bonds of trust between communities and police, and more" - and to "develop greener and more resilient infrastructure," as well as to "double America's investment in Early Head Start."

If Americans listening to the yearlong debate between Trump and Clinton felt less moral devotion to democracy, could you blame them? Clinton's answer to Trump's assault on democratic values had about as much moral grandeur as the rhetoric of the ethanol lobby. And Clinton's constant targeted appeals to women, gays, blacks, and Hispanics sounded more like an alliance of interest groups rather than a defense of equality for all and was thus vulnerable to Trump's insinuations to white audiences that Democrats didn't care about them. The Clinton campaign's rhetoric was a long way from "all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing  'Free at Last!'"

Technocrats do not even have a good answer for technocratic-sounding attacks on democracy. Technocrats' defense of democracy on the basis of "what works" was always vulnerable because the anti-democratic side was not going to be maximally scrupulous about the evidence in any case. It also makes liberal values hostages to fortune. Whether because of the incompetence of experts or just a string of bad luck, democracies haven't been performing very well lately. The foreign-policy experts guided wars on terror in Afghanistan and Iraq that seemingly made terrorism worse. Domestic economists gave us the 2008 financial crisis - and a response afterward that bailed out banks too big to fail but treated families losing homes as too small to care about. Dictator-run China is taking over ever larger chunks of the world economy while U.S. wages stagnate.

Experts often cannot agree on "what works" or even what already happened. Some experts could still credibly argue that in the long run democracies worldwide outperform dictatorships on average, but there is disagreement, and few have the patience to wait for long-run world averages to reassert themselves. Which is why the principal defense of democratic values must be that they are desirable in themselves as values - something technocrats are not trained to do.

Which is not to suggest they don't have any resources at their disposal. My own field of economics can be so technical that whenever I give a talk mentioning values, I feel like I have to apologize. Yet economics is better equipped to defend values than usually believed. At the core of models of economic behavior is individual choice. Hidden in plain sight is the assumption that all individuals - whether male, female, white, black, gay, Muslim, or Latino - should indeed have equal rights to make decisions for themselves. The assumptions that guide analysis of what makes people better off embody the same respect for individual choice - we infer A is better than B for an individual if they voluntarily selected A over B. And if an individual chose something for himself or herself that did not make anyone else worse off, we say that overall well-being improved.

Although these principles are more than a century old in economics and are still at the core of our textbooks, they get sporadic attacks and less attention than they should due to our infatuation with evidence-based policy. Yet as Harvard University economist Edward Glaeser argued along the same lines in 2011, economics still has a "moral spine" beneath all the technocracy: "That spine is a fundamental belief in freedom." As the economist John Stuart Mill said almost 150 years ago, the true test of freedom is not whether we care about our own rights but whether we care about "the rights of others."

But can economics provide a conception of democracy that truly protects the "rights of others"? The field does indeed offer a potential defense against one of the core democratic dangers - the possibility that a tyrannical majority might vote to violate the rights of some minority group. Economists teach that it's in a majority party's interest to conduct a simple thought experiment before making political decisions: Since it's impossible to know for sure that they will always be in the majority, and they could always wind up as part of some minority that some future majority decides to tyrannize, they should make political decisions behind a so-called "veil of ignorance" that sets aside their personal status and group affiliations. And anyone running that thought experiment faithfully would join a coalition to protect all future minority and individual rights.

Needless to say, the "veil of ignorance" thought experiment is ultimately a voluntary exercise. This year's U.S. election tore the veil of ignorance to shreds and not for the first time. Many white men apparently did not perceive, or consider, this "ignorance" about the future, feeling confident that they will always have enough power to protect themselves and thus are free not to vote to protect the rights of others.

The long campaign for equal rights, by mixing eloquent moral appeals with "veil of ignorance" warnings, has nevertheless tried to make us all care just enough about other groups to forge a broad coalition in favor of democracy. Our technocratic age often sees such appeals as sentimentalism - more suitable for refrigerator magnets than serious debates. But Trump's attack on core values required a response of such universal moral appeals - to white people as well as to minorities - instead of Clinton's coalition of minorities and the 41-point plan of measurable outcomes on her website.

Democratic values have never been capable of defending themselves - equal rights require eloquent defenses capable of building broad alliances on their behalf. History offers plenty of inspiration. Abraham Lincoln: "Those who deny freedom to others, deserve it not for themselves; and, under a just God, can not long retain it." Martin Luther King Jr.: "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." Elie Wiesel: "Wherever men or women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must - at that moment - become the center of the universe."

Or take this famous quote by an anti-Nazi pastor. It warns explicitly against the consequences of failing to respect the veil of ignorance:

"First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out-

Because I was not a Socialist.

" Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out-

Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

"Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out-

Because I was not a Jew.

"Then they came for me-and there was no one left to speak for me."

Grand sentiments can't sustain politics by themselves; technical expertise has its place. But the long reign of technocracy has deprived us of the moral weapons needed to defend the core values that are the foundation of democracy. We are sadly lacking in any figures remotely resembling King or Wiesel today. But we will not be able to fight back against Trump unless we can find once again a capacity for moral advocacy for democratic values.

William R. Easterly is a professor of economics at New York University and the author of "The Tyranny of Experts: Economists, Dictators, and the Forgotten Rights of the Poor." He wrote this for Foreign Policy magazine.
After traveling in Kenya (Part 1), our African safari continued at the Tanzania border crossing at Namanga.

The multi-step process included dismounting on the Kenya side and walking through a gauntlet of persistent saleswomen, some with babies strapped to them, to get to the customs office for departure paperwork, completed in short order.

Returning to the Kenya side, our group boarded a small bus to drive across the border to the Tanzanian customs office, prepared with passports, visas and yellow fever immunization record documents, which we expected to be closely inspected. All went quickly and smoothly, with officers barely glancing at the distinctive immunization forms.

We continued for a short drive to the city of Arusha, hub of the Tanzanian tourist economy, for a superb outdoor buffet lunch at the Arusha Coffee Lodge.

Our eight-person groups bumpy afternoon ride included a stop at a colorful open air market along the main highway. Throngs of locals were doing their Saturday buying and selling of fresh fruits and vegetables, live chickens and goats, as well as clothing, jewelry and household goods arranged on blankets on the ground. In a shaded rest area, vile banana beer was for sale. The entire venue was well organized with room for pedestrians, animals, vehicles, and one woman carrying a new Love-brand mattress on her shoulders.

We arrived in sunset heat to the Tarangire Simba Lodge near an entrance to Tarangire National Park. Each tented cabin featured private outdoor showers and open front porches to gaze on nearby zebras. The unfenced grounds required brightly lit nighttime escorts from the main building back and forth to the cabins to ward off predators.

Tarangire National Park, dotted by distinctive massive baobab trees, offered plentiful sightings of wildlife, including huge male ostrich with red legs indicating they were in the mood to mate, and graceful herons with spread wings.

During an all-day game drive, we saw eagles, mongoose and guinea hens, impala, baboons, a nursing baby elephant, and warthogs being stalked by a pride of lions. A cheetah was resting in the shade of a bush guarding its freshly killed gazelle, while a lioness lay in wait concealed on a river bank.

We next traveled through a prosperous irrigated section of the Rift Valley where abundant water supports crops of sunflowers, lentils, sugar cane and bananas tended by farming families in numerous villages. The route led us to Lake Manyara National Park and views of astounding numbers of flamingos, herons, storks, horn bills, jacanas and white pelicans, in the water and on the shoreline, shared with zebras, hippos and buffalo.

We arrived that evening at the Karatu Simba Lodge, perched on a hillside above neighboring pastures and fields, edged by wilderness, tended by farmers with crops and herds during the day and nightly taken over by wildlife. Again, escorts were required during darkness, as all manner of wildlife roam the grounds, including elephants dipping their trunks in the pool for a drink.

Monday introduced us to a small group of the Hadzabe tribe, known as bush people, at one of their transient encampments. Never had we imagined we would be able to tag along while several bushmen demonstrated a short morning hunt, slowing their stride so we could keep up while they shot at small birds in trees with handmade bows and arrows. The men hunt while the women gather berries and tubers, and their time is spent apart except while sleeping on the ground in thorny bush enclosures. Their numbers are decreasing as they continue to resist government efforts with housing and education.

Nearby, we met craftsmen of the Datoga tribe who demonstrated their art of using mundane leftover materials such as vehicle leaf springs to fashion beautiful jewelry over wood fires on the ground.

Closer to the town of Karatu, we visited a family-run coffee farm where we tried our hand at roasting beans, a wood-carving business featuring masks and a factory producing handmade sun dried bricks in the pit of a quarry. Our day was highlighted by the uplifting beautiful Swahili harmonies from a Lutheran Church choir, who graciously invited us to join them in song.

Karatu was our gateway to the unique Ngorongoro Crater, a World Heritage Site formed millions of years ago when a volcanic mountain erupted and imploded. The caldera hosts one of the worlds most dense and diverse populations of wildlife. Our early morning start took us up and over the 8,000-foot elevation of the ridge and back down about 2,000 feet. Searching through the preserve felt like being inside a TV wildlife program, as a hyena chased a wildebeest calf about a quarter mile through the middle of a large grazing herd and back again.

As the calf slowed from exhaustion, the hyena brought it down by a rear leg and the rest of the nearby pack joined for the feast. Calmly watching from a couple hundred yards away, two lioness ambled over and stole the meal from the hyenas, who only returned after the lions had their fill. Following the hyenas, a golden jackal waited for scraps.

Next was Serengeti National Park, part of the vast Serengeti Plain of over 5,700 square miles. We entered after a lunch stop at the Naabi Hill gate, where, red white and blue superb starlings tried to pluck sandwiches from our fingers. We took our time to view abundant game such as a mating pair of lions and a leopard draped in a tree with its gazelle dinner hanging from a nearby branch, a zebra herd and an entire lion family with cubs being groomed by their mother while the father marked his territory.

Late afternoon, we passed through the village of Robanda just outside the opposite side of the park and soon arrived at the splendid hilltop Serengeti Simba Lodge; its interior wall is the rock face of the hill.

When Dr. Julius Nyerere was the first leader of Tanganyika, which soon became Tanzania when merged with Zanzibar, he created this park as the first in the new country. There are now 11 Tanzanian national parks, and 25 percent of the countrys land is preserved as parks, game reserves or forest reserves.

The area near here was mined for precious stones around the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries by German immigrants when Tanzania was the colony of German East Africa; the Germans built Fort Ikoma as a center of trade and protection. After the British defeated the Germans in World War I, the fort was torn down. German descendants still visit ancestral graves in the area cemetery but Tanzania has banned further mining in favor of conservation.

Morning saw a predawn start to maximize game viewing during an active period  a successful strategy  with looks at the complete array of wildlife of the plain. At a small stream, a raft of perhaps a hundred hippos crowded together bank to bank while several huge Nile crocodiles lay ominously on the ground. One croc encroached on hippo turf and had to run for its life to escape angry hippos ready to stomp it.

Seasonal short rains began almost a month early; it was possible we could experience the beginning of the semiannual great migration of wildebeest and zebra if we made a long drive to the western part of the park. Return on that investment was great, as we were awed by the sight of thousands upon thousands of the beasts near and far feasting on newly green grass as they traveled their route.

Our farewell sunset dinner on the lodge patio was serenaded by a dance performance of Ikoma tribal dancers from the nearby village. We were reminded once again of our relative position on the African food chain, as we were escorted back to our cabins by rifle and shotgun-toting escorts with bright lights.
14:18

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is addressing a Parivartan rally in Dehradun. Here are the highlights:





-- Uttarakhand won't wait for Vikas now.

-- This is the land of the gods and deities, this is the land of the brave.

-- You have overwhelmed me; I can see so many people and I am happy that women have joined this rally in large numbers.

-- The inauguration of Char Dham project is a tribute to those who lost their lives during Uttarakhand flash floods.

-- People of Uttarakhand do not wish wait any longer for development.

-- Our country has seen government that have failed to give basic facilities to 125 crore people.

-- Politicians from other parties should know by now that the people know everything, they know everything.

-- I assure you that whenever you will come for Kedarnath, Badrinath yatra, you will remember this government.

-- Hasty conception of schemes may be able to give short term political gains but the gains for people will be limited.

-- Tourism is the biggest asset of Uttarakhand. If facilities are provided, then which family in the country would not want to come here?

-- Char Dham project offers employment opportunities for the people of Uttarakhand.

-- Even after years 70 of independence, 18,000 villages have not seen electricity.

-- Wasn't voted to light lamps, cut ribbons.

-- My Government took the initiative and we decided to electrify villages within 1000 days.

-- Over 12,000 villages have already been electrified.

-- In all these years (60 years) not a single electricity pole had reached these villages. Now see what has happened. This is a government which is dedicated to the poor.

-- My Army jawans were demanding OROP for the last 40 years, the party that ruled the country then never thought of their demands.

-- Black money hoarders evading the law being caught every day.

-- I salute my Army jawans. Rs. 6,600 crore have already been disbursed under OROP.

-- In reality, the budget for OROP is over Rs. 10,000 crore. Why did they (Congress) betray the Jawans by allocating 500 crore for this.

-- We were clear that from Day 1 that our Jawans must get their due.

-- We said OROP will be a reality.

-- You have made me a watchman and now people are not comfortable that I am doing my job.

-- Black money has destroyed the country.

-- People have a problem with me freeing the country of corruption.

--We had said the corrupt will be punished, and this is happening. This is a 'Safai Abhiyaan' and people of India have helped me


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National Book Award winner addresses UF doctoral grads

Ibram X. Kendi is an assistant professor of African American History, with a particular emphasis on racist and antiracist ideas and movements. In November, Kendi won the National Book Award for his second book, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, which has been praised nationwide for turning our ideas about racism upside-down. His speech is below.

Are you an intellectual? by Ibram X. Kendi

University of Florida Doctoral Commencement Address | December 16, 2016

What an honor it is to stand before you! I would like to thank President Fuchs for inviting me to speak.

I would like to greet UFs Board of Trustees. I would like to greet UFs administrators and faculty and staff and students. I would like to greet my fellow Floridians and fellow Americans.

President Fuchs mentioned my new book, Stamped from the Beginning. Well, I have been traveling all over this nation speaking on it the last few months. And when I say all over this nation, I mean all over the nation.

I even spoke in Anchorage, Alaska two weeks ago. Yes, I am still defrosting. So if you see water coming out of my pores during this speechits not sweat, its ice melting.

In all seriousness, Anchorage is a beautiful city surrounded by mountains that seem to always be kissing the beautiful blue sky. From the city center, you can see the highest mountain peak in North America, a mountain the natives call Denali. You may know it is as Mount McKinley.

As we gazed up at the mountains one day, my host asked if I ever had a desire to climb a huge mountain. I replied, I have already climbed a huge mountain. I climbed one of the highest mountain peaks in the world: the doctoral process.

So I would like to greet all those courageous climbers who trekked up the mountain that is the doctoral process. I am so happy to be standing here at this mountaintop with you and your families and your friends and your doctoral advisers who pushed you and pulled you along the way.

As you stand at this peak about to receive this prestigious doctoral degree from the University of Florida, I suspect you are not only celebrating, but you are also thinking about what is next.

When I say thinking about what is next, I am not talking about you thinking about what is next in your career. I do not want to talk to you about that today. Enough people have talked to you about that already.

I want to talk to you about what is next for your mind now that you are a doctoral recipient. What is next for your mind now that you will have those three letters by your name. What is next for your mind now that some people will call you doctor. I say some people because dont expect your parents to start calling you doctor. You will still be your mamas baby, even with a doctorate degree.

-The point of my address is to ask you a simple question: are you an intellectual? I know you have earned your doctorate degree, but I am asking: are you an intellectual?

I am asking this question because you need to know that having a doctorate does not make you an intellectual. Becoming a professor does not make you an intellectual. Working in a research lab does not make you an intellectual. Thinking at a think tank does not make you an intellectual.

It is so embarrassing, but there are doctorates who are not intellectuals. Just like there are MDs who are not healers. Just like there are JDs who are not about justice. Just like there are Reverends who are not about God.

Isnt that a tragedy walking: a Reverend who is not about God? Isnt that a tragedy walking: a JD who is not about justice. Isnt that a tragedy walking: a MD who is not a healer? Isnt that a tragedy walking: a doctorate holder who is not an intellectual?

Do not become that person.

Today you are joining the illustrious academy of doctoral recipients. But I want to talk to you today about joining the even more illustrious academy of intellectuals. No doctorate degree is required to join the intellectual academy. This is an inclusive academy with all types of people with all types of backgrounds. There are people with only a GED in this intellectual academy. There are incarcerated people in this intellectual academy. There are homeless people in this intellectual academy. There are poor people in this intellectual academy.

When I say intellectual, I am not referring to someone who knows a wealth of information. All of you, I am sure know a lot. You know a lot about your discipline and your field and your researchotherwise you would not be here waiting for me to finish this speech so you can get your degree already and go to dinner. Ive learned the hard way that standing in the way of students and their degrees is unwise; and standing in the way of American families and their food is really unwise. But please bear with me.

I do not measure a persons intellect based on how much a person knows. I do not consider myself an intellectual because I know a lot about American history. How much you know has no bearing on how much you are in intellectual.

I defineand many others define an intellectual as someone with a tremendous desire to know. Intellectuals are open-minded. Intellectuals have a tremendous capacity to change their mind on matters, to self-reflect, to self-critique. Intellectuals are governed by only one special interest that is rarely self-servingthe special interest of finding and revealing the truth.

All of you will be getting your doctorate degrees. But how many of you have a tremendous desire to know? How many of your minds are wide open to new ideas? How many of you are searching for ideas that challenge how you see the world? How many of you are willing to look at the world differently with the blink of new evidence? How many of you are critiquing your own ideas as intensely as you critique the ideas of others?

Intellectuals are a nomadic people, constantly changing their conceptual location, constantly in search of a better conceptual space.

Intellectuals are constantly working out. We have work out warriors of the body, those who pump iron to break down old muscles to allow newer and bigger and better muscles to grow in their place. Well, intellectuals are work out warriors of mind, regularly breaking down old ideas to allow newer and bigger and better ideas to grow in their place.

Are you an intellectual?

Or will you become the tragedy that is the anti-intellectual with a doctorate degree? You know, those anti-intellectuals who stay close to what was taught to them by their family and friends and favorite teachers and favorite shows. You know, those anti-intellectuals who are constantly seeking to reinforce their beliefs. You know, those anti-intellectuals who have planted themselves so deeply in a position that no hurricane of truth could uproot them. You know, those anti-intellectuals who develop convincing lies that ensure pseudoscience is well funded, convincing lies that ensure corrupt politicians are elected, convincing lies that ensure harmful products are sold, convincing lies that ensure that facts are discredited, convincing lies that ensure that bigots are exonerated for their crimes against humanity.

I chronicle these anti-intellectuals in my book, Stamped from the Beginning. The history of racist ideas in America is the history anti-intellectualism. For nearly 600 years, some of the best trained minds in Western Europe and the American colonies and the United States have been trying to prove that White people have been on the winning and prospering and living end of Western society not because of racial discrimination but because they are superior. For nearly 600 years, some of the best trained minds have been trying to prove that Black people have been on the losing and impoverishing and dying end of Western society not because of racial discrimination but because they are inferior.

You should know that a racist idea as any idea that suggests a racial group is inferior or superior in any way. You should also know that there are only two ways to explain racial inequities and disparities. There were only two ways to explain why Black people were enslaved and White people were free. There are only two ways to explain why young Black men are 21 times more likely to be killed by the police than their white counterparts. Either there is something wrong with Black peopleracist ideasor there is something wrong with society, racial discrimination.

Throughout this nations history, Americans have dove into the false waters of racist ideas because we do not want to face the reality of racial discrimination. We have not bred intellectuals because only intellectuals are willing to always face reality. Only intellectuals pledge to look for and say the truth and nothing but the truth.

I show in Stamped from the Beginning that ignorance and hate did not lead to racist ideas as we have been commonly told, but the production and circulation of racist ideas led to ignorance and hate. We hate because we are ignorant about other groups. Our nation is a racially divided because we attack groups of people instead of the policies that harms us all.

We have been led to believe that Latino immigrants are taking our jobs, even though the hard data shows otherwise. And so, ignorantly, we hate them. We have been led to believe that Muslims and Black criminals are the greatest threat to our security, even though the hard data shows otherwise. And so, ignorantly, we hate them. We have been led to believe that lazy Black people depend on the so-called handouts of welfare and affirmative action, even though the hard data shows otherwise. And so, ignorantly, we hate them.

Racist ideas have suspended reality, drenched us in lies, subjectified standards, misled millions by faulty statistics, and forcibly herded generations of unsuspecting Americans into legal ignorance and lethal hate. We now live in a society where comfort matters more than certainty, where tradition matters more than truth, where labels matter more than logic.

The task of intellectuals is to transcend political labels. The task of intellectuals is to transcend political ideology and economic interests and cultural traditions. The task of intellectuals is to transcend comfort.

The task of intellectuals is to fashion a clear and unadulterated mirror of humanity, so we can see ourselves for what we really are. The task of intellectuals is to investigate the problems of our world. The task of intellectuals is to solve the problems of our world.

Are you up for these tasks doctoral recipients? Are you up for the task of being an intellectual?

We are here at the mountaintop of the doctoral process. So I ask again what is next for your mind? Will you continue the never-ending climb that is being an intellectual? Or will you start making your way down the mountain towards the valley of anti-intellectualism, thinking you know it all, thinking you have the world figured out, thinking you are beyond critique.

It is certainly much easier to be an anti-intellectual, to go with the flow of the academic current, to reinforce what people already think. You can have a nice career as an anti-intellectual, and the energizers of the academic current will certainly reward you.

But know that the academic current will engulf you. Your work will not be remembered. You will not make history.

I want you to make history, not be history. I want your work to be remembered, not be forgotten. I want you to power and steer the academic current, not be engulfed by it.

I want to be celebrating you one day. I want your family and friends to be bragging about more than their child has a doctorate degree. I want your family and friends to be bragging about how your groundbreaking work is changing the world.

But in order to break new grounds, we must break from our old grounds. In order to change the world we must critique the world.

But before we can change or critique something else, we must have the capacity to change and critique ourselves. We must have the capacity to be intellectuals, to be on the perpetual climb towards the always rising peak of truth.

Congratulations on receiving your doctorate degree. But in all honesty, that is not enough for me. I dont want you to leave UF with just a doctorate degree. I want you to leave UF as an intellectual.

Thank you.
Former President and Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari discussed the formation of an anti-government alliance with Pakistan Muslim League-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, the media reported on Monday. During a meeting here on Sunday, both leaders also talked about PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's four demands to the government, said a report in the Nation daily. "We will not let the democracy be hijacked," said Shujaat Hussain, as he stressed the need for a grand alliance of the opposition for the country. Shujaat Hussain made an appeal to all opposition parties to unite on a one-point agenda for national cause. Praising the PPP, he said that it always made sacrifices for the democracy while its policy of reconciliation is appreciated by the whole world. "Our reconciliation is with democracy, and not with PML-N," said Zardari. The former President said that their hold will now be in the Punjab province. Zardari, during a visit to Mazar-e-Quaid (Jinnah mausoleum) on Sunday, told reporters that he will reveal his future course of action and provide good news in his address on December 27. He said that the situation for early elections will develop soon, and added that Lahore will be the hub of politics. Zardari also confirmed his ties with Anwar Majeed, who is being investigated by law enforcement agencies after huge cache of arms was recovered from his house during a raid on Sunday. "Yes, I have relations with Anwar Majeed. As for what happened with him and why it happened, ask the Interior Minister about it," the former President said. Majeed's company Omni Group was also raided on Friday. --IANS soni/vt ( 281 Words) 2016-12-26-15:12:12 (IANS)
An auditors body on Monday sought independent powers of investigation for Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC), and demanded that banks, other financial institutions and PPP projects be brought under the purview of India's official auditor. "The Institute of Public Auditors of India (IPAI) has strongly demanded that the PAC be given enough powers to take up issues for investigation on its own. "It also advocated to bring banks, other financial institutions and projects under the public-private partnership (PPP) within the scope of the Comptroller and Auditor Generals's (CAG) audit," the body of public finance specialists said. "A report should also be placed in Parliament about recommendations of the PAC, which have not been accepted by the government, along with reasons thereof," IPAI said in a statement, adding that a time limit should be set within which departments should submit their Action Taken Reports. "Currently, banks, financial institutions and PPP projects are not under the purview of CAG, and in view of various anomalies witnessed recently in these important segments of economy, the CAG should be empowered to audit these sectors' records to ensure transparency and accountability," the statement added. The IPAI also underlined the need for a new Audit Act, "which apart from prescribing a procedure for selection of the CAG, should also stipulate a time period within which CAG's audit reports should be presented to Parliament and state legislatures". The IPAI said these recommendations emerged in a recently held seminar organised by the institute. --IANS bc/nir/sac ( 262 Words) 2016-12-26-16:46:11 (IANS)
"2016 belongs to Mr Modi. Right from taking India on international platforms to taking the most historical move to fight against Black Money, Mr Modi is super hero of our generation," the designer said in a statement.

"I decided to make customised range as salute to Mr Modi. With my new collection.... We really wish more and more power to him," she added.

With an impeccable eye for detail, Agarwaal with her label Kiwi by Musskan Agarwaal crafts each piece to appeal to the fashion aficionados.

Each of her collections consists of individually handcrafted rings or neckpieces be it in polka, semi precious or precious stones, pearls, emeralds, sapphires, topaz or rubies.

Her new collection inspired by Modi is available at her stores in Sainik Farms and Khan Market at Rs. 2000 onwards

--IANS nv/bg

( 179 Words)

2016-12-26-16:56:13 (IANS)
His visit is said to be a part of the Congress' nationwide campaign against the BJP government's decisions including demonetisation.

This will be Gandhi's second visit to the state this year.

Escalating the attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation, Gandhi had on Saturday accused him of dividing the country between the rich and the poor and dubbed the move as "firebombing" on cash economy and farmers and labourers.

Addressing a public rally in Himachal Pradesh' Dharamsala, the Congress vice-president said the Prime Minister with his demonetisation move has removed the "hat" of Himachal Pradesh as it has hit hard the state's horticulture, agriculture and tourism sectors.

Gandhi said the colour of a banknote is decided by whether it is in the hands of the honest or the dishonest.

Gandhi also accused Prime Minister Modi of snatching away land of tribal people in Himachal Pradesh the same way BJP Governments in Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh had done. (ANI)
Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's radio programme, the Janata Dal (United) on Monday said the former is only interested in his own 'Mann ki Baat' and does not care about what the nation wants. "The Prime Minister just does his 'Mann ki Baat' and does not listen to the people's heart. He also does not listen to what the opposition is saying. He hesitates in coming to parliament and just makes announcements outside parliament," JD (U) leader K.C. Tyagi told ANI. Talking about the cashless economy, Tyagi said his party doesn't agree with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "The underprivileged people of the villages cannot afford a cashless economy. Even in America, not more than 40 percent of the people are involved in cashless economy," he added. In a veiled attack on the opposition, Prime Minister Modi yesterday thanked the nation for bearing the pain post demonetisation and said the people have given a befitting reply to those attempting to mislead them. "I congratulate the people for not only enduring the pain but also for giving appropriate answers to those who were trying to mislead them," Prime Minister Modi said in his 'Mann Ki Baat' programme. Prime Minister Modi said many people had written to him and some had praised the government's move to demonetise Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 currency notes. However, they have also spoken about the problems they faced due to demonetisation, he said. (ANI)
In an effort to help improve the quality of life of the poor and empower them, the Believers Church Diocese of Agartala organized a gift distribution program here for them that included blankets and income-generating items. Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar was the chief guest. The others present included the Chief Executive Member of the Tripura Tribal Area Autonomous District Council, Radha Charan Debbarma and Bishop Anil Kumar Debbarma. Addressing the gathering, Sarkar appreciated the effort of the church in helping the needy sections of the state, but simultaneously, without naming the BJP and other Hindutva preaching entities, expressed his concern over a section trying to destroy the secular image of our country. Sarkar said, "Today a power in our country has started saying that all Indians have to come under one religion that is Hinduism. But in our country there are 17 to 18 crore Muslims, 4 to 4.5 crore Christians, 3 crore Buddhists, 2 to 2.5 crore Sikhs and people of many other religions. So, what will be their fate? The section who are propagating that all Indians have to be Hindu, according to them, around 2000 to 2500 years back, other than Hinduism, there was no other religion in the world. This is not correct. They are twisting history and propagating that people from other faiths in our country were once all Hindus and were converted. Hence, we want to reconvert them - 'Ghar Wapasi' and if they want to stay in India they have to get converted to Hindu. If they deny, then they will not be able to live in India and can go to Pakistan, Afghanistan, Middle East or Jerusalem. What are they saying? They are failing to solve fundamental problems in people's daily life and so trying to break the unity of the poor people by dividing them along lines of religion, caste and creed. This is a crime against our Constitution, it is anti-democratic and against humanity." Sarkar also took part in the distribution of tricycle rickshaw, bicycle, sewing machines and blankets among the people. During the gift distribution ceremony, rickshaw pullers received tricycle rickshaw, housewives got sewing machines, fifty school going girls were given a bicycle each so that they could cover the long distance from their homes to their schools and winter blankets were given to 100 poor families. The recipients, a large section of whom were non-Christians, expressed happiness over the state government's largesse. Ratna Debnath, a Hindu housewife, said, "I got a sewing machine from the church and am very happy. Now, I shall be able earn something with this." Sunil Banik said, "I can now ride this rickshaw to earn for my big family. I am very happy." Rubina Debbarma, a tribal girl student, said, "I have to walk a long distance to go to school, but now I shall be going to school in this cycle and which will reduce my problems." Believers Church, a Christian denomination is Biblical and evangelical in faith, for the first time has organised such a gift distribution programme during Christmas in Agartala and with the aim to help the poor section of people so that they can live a better life. Giving gifts during any festival is a tradition, but during Christmas as mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew started with 'The Magi', also referred to as the three Wise Men or Kings, who visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. (ANI)
The Uttarakhand High Court yesterday set aside the Chief Minister's plea seeking a stay on his appearance before the CBI.

Rawat had made an oral plea before the bench to allow him for the time being, not to make an appearance before the CBI as a petition challenging the justification of the CBI probe into the alleged sting CD is already pending before the court.

Setting aside the plea, the court decided that the next date of hearing would be January 7 as fixed earlier.

The CBI had summoned Rawat earlier on December 23.

It had registered the preliminary inquiry on April 29 to probe the video purportedly showing Rawat offering bribes to rebel Congress MLAs in exchange for their support in the assembly floor test.

Rawat had dismissed the video as being faked after it was released by rebel Congress MLAs but later admitted that he was in the clip.

The CBI had earlier summoned the chief minister on May 9, 2016 but he had sought more time.

After Rawat's victory in the floor test, the state cabinet on May 15 withdrew the notification recommending a CBI probe and decided to set up a special investigation team to go into the case. (ANI)
It was a monumental success yet again on its third consecutive year.

The special attraction of the event was the entrepreneurial endeavor of SIIB students who set up alluring stalls in the campus as the nascent step of their journey, a release said.

The event was graced with eminent personalities including Mr. Rohit Lalwani, Founder Director, TradeXs.in; Mr. Satyam Kumar, Executive Director, LoanTap Financial Technologies; Mr. Krishan Mittal, Unfurl Technologies; Mr. Shailesh Niyogi, Leadership & Business Transformation Expert, Startup Guru; Mr. Vincent Fernandez, Chairman & Founder, Re-Engineering Business Solutions; Mr. Rajeev Kher, Founder & CEO, Saraplast Pvt. Ltd and Mr. Abhijeet Khandagale, Community Manager, ThinQbate.

They shared their priceless experiences and enriching anecdotes with the budding entrepreneurs of SIIB, it added. UNI VKB NV AW1311

-- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169-1081262.Xml
Two people were killed and another was injured when their car collided with a passenger bus head-on near Khedi village on the Indore-Ahmedabad State Highway, police said. The bus was heading from Ahmedabad to Indore when the accident occurred last night. Gujarat-residents Dhruv Patel (16) and Yogesh Patel (22) died in the mishap. Their bodies were sent to the District Hospital for post-mortem. The car driver, who was seriously injured, was sent to Ahmedabad for treatment.UNI XC-PS SW SNU 1614 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0044-1081520.Xml
Former Indian Air Force (IAF) chief Air Chief Marshal (retired) S P Tyagi was granted bail today in connection with the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam case by a special court in New Delhi. Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar granted Tyagi relief on a personal bond of two lakh rupees and one surety of a similar amount. The court also imposed certain conditions on the accused and asked him not to try to influence witnesses and hamper the probe. The bail applications of other two accused - Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan - are pending before the court which said it will decide on both the pleas on January 4. Till then, the two will continue to be in judicial custody. Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBI, had opposed the bail pleas of the accused, saying if they are set free, they might influence witnesses and hamper the "multi-layered probe by various agencies in more than one jurisdictions involving several countries. Tyagi, 71, who retired from the air force in 2007, Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested December 9 by the CBI in connection with the case. The court had on December 17 sent all the three accused to judicial custody till December 30. (ANI)
"The decision of demonetisation was against the poor, farmers and middle-class people. The famers of India and Rajasthan are also being burnt in Prime Minister Modi's yagna of demonetisation," Rahul said at a rally here.

He further added that 99 percent of cash in India is not black money and people having black money don't keep it in cash.

He also accused the Centre for snatching away the lands of farmers.

"The government wants to rob the lands of farmers and the BJP governments ruling in Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh are snatching away framers lands," he said.

Rahul said the prime minister's only motive is to plunder the poor and give it to the rich.

Taking a dig at the Vasundhara Raje government in Rajasthan, he said, "What Modi ji is doing in the country, Vasundhara ji is doing in Rajasthan? The state government is against tribals, Dalits and women. The state government is for the rich."

"Paytm means Pay to Modi. Prime Minister Modi said we'll bring back black money and distribute that money among the poor. Later he changed his narrative," he added.

Rahul also questioned as to why till now the government has not revealed the name of Swiss Bank account holders. He also dragged Home Minister Rajnath Singh saying that he was still not aware of the prime minister's plans. (ANI)
Fire brand opposition leader Nongthombam Biren of the BJP today blasted Ibobi government for alleging that the centre was not doing enough to resolve the blockade crisis. Biren, who is also the spokesperson of the BJP, told media persons at the party office here, it was a wrong allegation that Union government was in league with the UNC in imposing economic blockade in Manipur. He said, the Congress government in Manipur made no serious effort to end the 57 days blockade, which have created a havoc in the state of Manipur and adding the BJP has severed ties with the Naga People's Front (NPF) and will go all alone in the ensuing elections. He further said, the blockade imposed by UNC since Nov 1 after a day of total shut down has affected badly and the central leaders were briefed in detail about the matter. He said, the blockade should not be linked with the BJP government signing a peace frame work with the NSCN(IM). The UNC has been imposing blockade earlier also during Congress rule in the centre and there had been a four month blockade earlier also. He also posed some questions to the state government and asked if the state government has informed about the exact locations of NSCN(IM) camps operating in the state. He further asked if the government has ordered a probe either by NIA or CBI into the attack on Chief Minister O Ibobi during his visit to Ukhrul. The police was not provided adequate protective gear during the recent ambush by suspected NSCN(IM) militants. If they were provided helmet and bullet proof vest they would not have died, he said. The BJP supports formation of new districts but the timing is not right he said. There is no infrastructure for the new districts, he said. MLA Th Bishorjit said the state intelligence has failed miserably as the government was not able to identify those who attacked police personnel. Meanwhile, curfew continued to be imposed during night time in Imphal East and Imphal West. Internet services remained to be cancelled for a week now. UNI NS AKM 1656 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0213-1081652.Xml
While 4 kgs of charas worth about Rs 40 lakh were seized in Gopalganj district, 200 grams of smack worth Rs 20 lakh were seized in West Champaran district.

A Gopalganj report said, rail police seized four kgs of Charas from an abandoned bag inside a bogie of Gorakhpur-Patliputra passenger train at Thawe station on Gorakhpur-Hathwa section of East Central railway. The value of seized consignment was estimated to be nearly Rs 40 lakh in the international market. Police suspected that the smuggler was carrying the consignment from Nepal to Bihar via Gorakhpur. The smuggler made good his escape after abandoning his bag in the bogie when he noticed police patrolling.

A Bettiah report said, police seized 200 grams of smack worth nearly Rs 20 lakh in the international market from a house in Naurangabag mohalla under Town police station area in West Champaran district.

Police said here that the consignment was seized from the house of one Mohammed Saheb in Naurangabad locality. Raids were conducted under the leadership of Police Superintendent (Operations) Rajesh Kumar.

Police are interrogating Mohammed Saheb to get details of his modus operandi and also find out whether he has any international links. UNI DH AKM 1707

-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0213-1081669.Xml
Coastal Security Group (CSG) of Tamil Nadu Marine Police today seized ten kilograms of Ganja, meant for smuggling to Sri Lanka. Police said acting on a tip off, a CSG team combed the Vanangapur seashore at Pudumadam near Rameswaram and unearthed the Ganja packed in polythene bag and buried under sand. However, no one was arrested in connection with the seizure. Police suspect that the narcotic substance was intended to be smuggled to Lanka. Further investigations were on. UNI GSM CS 1642 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0275-1081629.Xml
Responding to an Indian Catholic priest's request, who was abducted in Yemen this year, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) official spokesperson Vikas Swarup on Monday said India is in regular touch with Saudi Arabia and Yemen authorities and is undertaking efforts to secure his release. "You are aware of the circumstances currently prevailing in Yemen where fighting is going on with no central authority in that country. With regard to the safe release of Father Tom, who was abducted some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard," Swarup said. The response from the foreign ministry came after father Tom Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala and works in a Church at Aden, in a video posted through web, appealed to the Government of India to release from his captors. "President and Prime Minister, I am sad nothing done seriously in my regard. If I was a European priest then I might have been taken more seriously by authorities and people would have got me released," he said. "I am from India and therefore I am perhaps not considered of much value, I'm sad. Dear Pope Francis, please take care of my life. I request my fellow human beings of different Governments to come forward and help me," he added. The video was uploaded, earlier today, on Youtube and Facebook. However, the video's veracity was not verified. On March 4, armed militants barged into an old age home in Aden, set up by the Missionaries of Charity. (ANI)
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) today said it was in regular touch with countries of the region to secure the release of Indian priest Tom Uzhunnail abducted by terrorists in March in Yemen. The priest in a video uploaded on the YouTube and Facebook appealed to the Government and Pope Francis to get him freed from captivity, though the veracity of the video could not be immediately established. Reacting to reporters queries on the video, MEA Spokesperson Vikas Swarup pointed out to the volatile situation in Yemen where fighting was going on and there was no central authority. He, however, said,'' , we have been in regular touch with countries in the region, especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities. Efforts continue in this regard.'' Father Uzhunnalil, who hails from Kerala, said he was sad that nothing was being done seriously to secure his release. ''If I were a European, I would have been taken very seriously, but since I am from India, I am not considered of much value. He was abducted by the Islamic State terror group in an attack on an old-age home Run by Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity in southern Yemini city of Aden.UNI NAZ SHK 1934 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0091-1082060.Xml
As per the agreement one advanced laboratory would be set up at Bhubaneswar at the state level and eight laboratories would be set at divisional level in two phases on PPP mode at a cost of Rs 6621.25 lakh fora period of ten years.

In the first phase the state level Laboratory at Bhubaneswar and four divisional laboratories at Berhampur, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Puri would be established and in the second phase laboratories would be set up at Balasore, Baripada,Rourkela and Sambalpur .

The laboratories will analyse all production wells, hand pump tube wells, existing treatment plants and sewerage treatment plants and undertake analysis of all water quality parameters.UNI BD-DP KK

-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0212-1082070.Xml
Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) media committee today castigated both the Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, accusing them of trying to mislead the public over coalition.After Congress state president Raj Babbar and All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad had already ruled out any alliance with the SP, the party is ready to go alone in the coming Assembly elections. ''Samajwadi Party had totally failed to control the law and order in the State as no major development took place except for Lucknow-Agra Expressway, which also came in a record time just to facilitate thousands of crores of profit to Yadav's family members and their close aides in the name of acquiring land around Etawah, and adjoining districts'' alleged Satyadev Tripathi, chairman of UPCC media cell and party's state vice- president. Attacking the SP government, Mr Tripathi said both Mr Mulayam Singh and Mr Akhilesh Yadav were projecting that they were having dispute on several fronts including the issue of giving tickets to mafias but he said that it was a `drama'.``The ongoing fight between the members of Yadav family is just a well planned drama to divert people's attention from failures of Mr Akhilesh Yadav to give a clean and good government to the public", said Mr Tripathi while adding that the SP is going to be number four party after the coming Assembly elections in the state. ``SP knew it very well that Congress is going to form the next government under Sheila Dikshit hence to make a last attempt to help the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to come in fight in the coming elections, Akhilesh Yadav and Mulayam were highlighting that they were going to have alliance with Congress", alleged Tripathi while clarifying that the senior party leaders had already made it clear that there are no such talks of `alliance' with anyone, and the Party will go and contest all the Assembly elections on their own.``Akhilesh Yadav is spreading rumour of alliance just to confuse the Muslim voters", said Tripathi while accusing Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav for always working on the diktat of BJP just to damage Congress and secular votes and the recent elections in Bihar as well as polls in Gujarat are prime example of it. Tripathi further claimed that as the Party had already taken lead in campaign for the coming Assembly elections in comparison to other political parties so Mulayam Singh and Akhilesh Yadav were creating confusion amongst the minds of the voters as well as in the Party cadre.``By talking of coalition with Congress, Mulayam and Akhilesh were just confusing the voters particularly Muslims to stop them from coming to us", asserted the leader adding that they also succeeded up to some extent as now voters were confused whether Congress will go alone or together.UNI MB RSA 2024 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0298-1082093.Xml
Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav has revoked the expulsion of Sitapur MLA Rampal Yadav from the party. Rampal Yadav was expelled from the party early this year by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav as he then also held the post of the state president of the party. The MLA was expelled from the party following the complaints of encroachment on public land and unauthorised construction in Lucknow and Sitapur. The announcement of the reinstate of the expelled MLA was announced by state party president Shivpal Singh Yadav on the direction of Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav here today.However the reinstatement letter said that the expulsion was withdrawn on condition that Rampal Yadav will not indulge in any indiscipline in future. The trouble for Rampal Yadav began during the panchyat elections earlier this year. In defiance of the directives of the party, he had fielded his son Jitendra Yadav as candidate for the post of chairman of the district panchayat against the official candidate of the party. Jitendra Yadav won the election. Soon after the elections, Rampal Yadav was suspended from the party. Following the complaints against the party MLA about illegal possession of public land and unauthorised construction in Lucknow and Sitapur, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had ordered an inquiry. The inquiry established the charges and the state government ordered for the demolition of the illegal structures. Rampal Yadav had clashed with the officials of the Lucknow Development authority in January this year when they had gone to demolish the illegal commercial building constructed by him in Jiamau area of the state capital. The MLA along with his son was arrested and sent to jail. An illegal hotel constructed by the MLA on Lucknow Sitapur National highway was also demolished by the district administration of Sitapur. Taking serious view of the complaints against the party MLA, Mr Akhilesh Yadav had expelled him from the party. Rampal Yadav had vigorously campaigned against the Samajwadi Party and the Chief Minister during the Rajya Sabha elections and the biennial elections to the Legislative council held in June this year. In both the elections, he had voted against the Samajwadi Party.UNI MB RSA 2050 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0298-1082112.Xml
Bharti, in a function here, also presented a cheque worth Rs 3,274 crore (including Polavaram) for other irrigation projects in Gujarat and Maharashtra, an official statement.

The current year's liability of the Polavaram Project is Rs 2,981.54 crore of which Rs 1,981.54 crore has been released.

Polavaram Project, a multi-purpose irrigation project, has an assessed command area of 2.91 lakh hectares and power generation potential of 960 MW. It was declared a national project in 2014.

Speaking on the occasion, Bharti said that government has declared it as a national project and all future expenditure on it would be borne by the central government.

She said all irrigation projects under the central government's irrigation scheme --Prime Minister Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) and Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) including Polavaram would completed by the year 2019.

The minister said that the project will help in clearance of additional 80 lakh hct. agricultural land.

"It also has a provision for supply of 23.44 thousand Million Cubic Feet (TMC) water as drinking water supply to Vishakhapatnam city and other areas, as also industrial water supply to Vishakhapatnam Steel Plant. An inter basin transfer of 80 TMC water annually to Krishna River Basin is also envisaged," she said, according to a statement.

Bharti said 26 irrigation projects, most in drought prone districts of Maharashtra, would be completed by 2018.

The financial assistance was given in presence of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu.

--IANS kd/pgh/vm

( 286 Words)

2016-12-26-21:32:17 (IANS)
Earlier, it was reported that the former Delhi chief minister may withdraw her candidature after her name appeared on Sahara list.

The report said that Dikshit is unhappy with her name being surfaced in the recent Sahara diary leaks, and Twitter fiasco following the same.

With the Congress vice-president targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over ' Sahara diaries' bribery issue, a controversy erupted after the grand old party put out a list linked to it on Twitter in which a reference to Dikshit also allegedly figured.

Dikshit, who is the Congress' chief ministerial candidate in Uttar Pradesh, strongly denied the charges and trashed the documents, saying the Supreme Court has already made its observations on them. (ANI)
Four persons, including a tourist guide, have been arrested here on charges of sexually assaulting a US tourist here in March this year, police said on Monday. Aniruddha Singh, a Nepal-based tourist guide, Omprakash, Maqsood and Vivek -- all in their late 20s were arrested from different cities during raids conducted by Delhi Police on separate occasions. "On the complaint of a Delhi-based NGO, we contacted the victim and filed a case on the basis of her statement. During our inquiry, we conducted several raids in Delhi and other cities and arrested four persons," Joint Commissioner of Police Dependra Pathak told IANS. Pathak said that police registered the case just two hours after the victim gave a statement through email. "We investigated the case professionally and recorded the victim's statement last week when she arrived in Delhi from America. We analyzed the case and re-examined the sequence of crime with the victim," he said. Among the other accused, Omprakash was a driver, Maqsood a helper and Vivek a bellboy at the hotel where the crime occurred. Police initially identified Vivek by the duty register of room service as he was first to enter the victim's room on the day of crime, police said. Initially, police could not get much leads as the CCTV cameras were not installed at the floor where the victim's room was, police said. The 30-year-old American tourist was gang-raped at a luxury hotel in March this year. Delhi Police had registered an FIR early this month on the complaint of the woman as External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj intervened in the matter. Meanwhile the victim's advocate Mritunjay, who had earlier said that both he and his client were unhappy with the status of the probe, told IANS that he was still "not happy" with police's efforts. "There is a delay in arrests even as the accused were identified by police in the initial days (after the complaint). The accused persons should have been arrested earlier. There were five accused as per my client's statement in the case and the fifth one is moving free now." --IANS sp/vd/vm ( 361 Words) 2016-12-26-22:22:11 (IANS)
Mr Kadam, who was in-charge of party's election campaign inthe Chiplun taluka for the recently held local body polls allegedMr Jadhav had 'sabotaged' the process, thus giving an advantageto Shiv Sena and BJP and the loss of NCP.

Upset over the loss of the party in the polls, he has senthis resignation letter to NCP state president Sunil Tatkare onSaturday last.

In his letter to the party chief, Mr Kadam said, ''In Chipluncouncil election, Shiv Sena emerged as a single largest party withten seats, followed by BJP and Congress winning five each, while NCPmanaged to get only four. Mr Jadhav helped Shiv Sena in the polls.Even the Municipal Council president post went to BJP.''

Earlier, during the municipal council election in 2011, MrJadhav had fielded an entire panel, led by his son, against party'sofficial nominees.

''Despite complaints, the party leadership did not take anyaction against Mr Jadhav. Instead, he was promoted to cabinet rankfrom minister of state,'' Mr Kadam alleged.

Therefore, he was feeling 'suffocated' in the party which hehad helped build since its formation in 1999, he claimed.

Mr Jadhav, a former Sena legislator from Chiplun, was deniedticket in 2004 and he had contested as an Independent. Later, hejoined the NCP, while Mr Kadam had also unsuccessfully contested theassembly polls in 2009.UNI ST SS RSA 2225

-- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0171-1082179.Xml
Japan's top government spokesman said today a Chinese aircraft carrier's voyage in the Pacific shows China's expanding military capability and Japan was closely monitoring it.Japan would take all steps for warning and surveillance activity in the area, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a news conference.China says its first aircraft carrier is carrying out routine exercises in the Western Pacific.REUTERS SDR PR0841 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0431-1081014.Xml
China is set to sign an agreement today establishing diplomatic ties with former Taiwan ally Sao Tome and Principe, according to a banner in a state guesthouse in Beijing announcing the ceremony, a Reuters witness said.Sao Tome and Principe Prime Minister Patrice Trovoada said on Thursday that breaking relations with Taiwan was the correct decision given China's importance as a strategic partner and the need to improve the lives of Sao Tomeans.Taiwan, which China considers a breakaway province ineligible for state-to-state relations, had as many as 30 diplomatic allies in the mid-1990s, but now has formal relations with just 21, mostly smaller and poorer nations in Latin America and the Pacific. REUTERS SDR PR1022 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0431-1081038.Xml
Indonesian militants supporting Islamic State planned to attack a police post on New Year's eve with machetes and knives, a police spokesman said today.The plot was broken up after police arrested two of the would-be attackers who led them to their hideout, where police shot dead their two co-conspirators yesterday after police said they tried to attack officers with machetes."The four of them were planning to attack a police post in Purwakarta. They planned to attack on New Year's Eve," Rikwanto, a national police spokesman, told reporters, referring to a district about 100 km (60 miles) east of the capital, Jakarta.Yesterday's raid was the latest in a series over recent weeks that police say have disrupted attacks, raising concern that homegrown militants in the world's largest Muslim-majority nation are getting bolder.Police said last week that at least 14 people were being interrogated over suicide bomb plots targeting the presidential palace in Jakarta and an another undisclosed location.Both involved female suicide bombers - a new tactic for Indonesian militants.Police were still investigating whether the militants involved in the plot disrupted yesterday had been trying to make bombs.The suspects were members of Jamaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD), a militant group supporting Islamic State, but it was not yet clear whether they been in direct communication with Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant who fled to Syria about two years ago, the spokesman said.Police say many of the recent plots uncovered have been inspired, if not directed, by Naim.Police have arrested dozens of suspected militants in recent months, including a group on an island near Singapore who police say were planning to attack the city-state with a rocket.Indonesia's elite police unit, Special Detachment 88, has foiled at least 15 attacks this year and made more than 150 arrests.A gun and bomb assault in the heart of Jakarta in January 2016 killed four people and was the first attack in Southeast Asia claimed by Islamic State.REUTERS SDR PR1115 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0431-1081132.Xml
Hollywood actress Carrie Fisher was in stable condition, her mother Debbie Reynolds said, after the "Star Wars" star suffered a cardiac episode two days earlier on a flight from London to Los Angeles."Carrie is in stable condition. If there is a change, we will share it. For all her fans and friends, I thank you for your prayers and good wishes," Reynolds said on Twitter yesterday.Fans of the actress who famously portrayed Princess Leia in "Star Wars" said they were saddened by the 60-year-old's illness and hospitalization. But they said they were inspired by the appearance of a young Princess Leia in the saga's most recent movie playing in theaters this weekend.Fisher suffered heart problems shortly before her flight landed in Los Angeles on Friday and received emergency treatment on the plane before she was rushed to a hospital.A stable condition would be an upgrade from Friday, when her brother, Todd Fisher, said she was in critical condition.The Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center has declined to comment, citing patient confidentiality laws.The daughter of a Hollywood power couple, movie star Reynolds and entertainer Eddie Fisher, she achieved her own fame portraying Princess Leia in the cinematic space saga launched in 1977.After celebrity friends and co-stars wished her well on Saturday, many fans went to a Christmas Day screening of "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," in which a digital replica of the young Princess Leia appears on screen at the end."It's kind of surreal that this movie is coming out now and to think of Carrie Fisher/Princess Leia having a heart attack, it's pretty terrifying," Mike Rosenberg, 28, who works in finance, said at a Times Square cinema. "It's Christmas Day. I'm sure everyone has her in their heart today."The audience gasped when seeing Princess Leia, said Heather Kemp, a 44-yer-old attorney who had just seen "Rogue One" in a Times Square cinema."It was sad and it was inspiring at the same time," Kemp said. "Whenever you see any of the characters like C3PO and R2D2, there were reactions. But yeah, definitely for her."The Princess Leia character, who was courageous and a capable fighter as well as glamorous, was a role model for Kemp when she first saw the original movie."She's spunky," Kemp said.At least one fan in the Chicago suburb of Skokie expressed optimism for Fisher by attributing Leia-like abilities to the actress."She's a warrior and will pull through," said Alexa Mullally, 38. "I grew up watching Star Wars and adored Princess Leia."At another screening in Evanston, Gary Mendel, 50, summed up the feelings of many fans who saw a long list of beloved celebrities die in 2016."I'm hoping 2016 took enough of our idols and will let her recover," Mendel said. REUTERS AKC 0405 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0432-1080985.Xml
China has lodged "stern representations" with the United States after President Barack Obama signed into law a US defence policy bill that suggests a plan to conduct high-level military exchanges with self-ruled Taiwan.Part of the 618.7 billion dollars National Defense Authorization Act "expresses the sense of Congress that (the US Department of Defense) should conduct a programme of senior military exchanges between the United States and Taiwan".In a statement late yesterday, China's Foreign Ministry said it had lodged a protest with the United States over the Taiwan content of the act and expressed its strong opposition.Taiwan is Chinese territory and purely an internal matter, the ministry said.It noted that the part of the defence policy bill referring to Taiwan was not legally binding, but said it was an interference with China's internal affairs that China could not accept."We urge the US side to abide by its promises made to China on the Taiwan issue, stop US-Taiwan military contacts and arms sales to Taiwan, to avoid damaging Sino-US ties and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait."China was upset earlier this month after US President-elect Donald Trump talked by telephone with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen.Defeated Nationalist forces fled to Taiwan at the end of a civil war with the Communists in 1949. China has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control.REUTERS AKC 0537 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0432-1080990.Xml
As the world battles a spike in assaults and plots by Islamist militants, Indonesia's anti-terrorism unit is drawing praise for stemming a wave of bloody attacks in the sprawling Muslim-majority nation.Indonesia has foiled at least 15 attacks this year alone and made more than 150 arrests, disrupting plots ranging from suicide attacks in Jakarta to a rocket attack from Indonesia's Batam island targeting Singapore.Going back to 2010, a Reuters analysis of data shows the elite unit, Special Detachment 88 (Densus 88), has prevented at last 54 plots or attacks in the nation of 250 million people, the world's fourth largest."Densus 88 has become better than pretty well any other counter-terrorism group in the world," said Greg Barton, a terrorism export and research professor in Global Islamic Politics at Alfred Deakin Institute in Melbourne."They have had an incredible workload and they have become remarkably good at what they do."In the last six years, there has been only one major attack in Indonesia that caused civilian deaths, when assailants hit a Jakarta mall and police post with gunfire and bombs, resulting in the deaths of three Indonesians and a dual Algerian-Canadian national. All four attackers were also killed in the January 2016 attack.Between 2002 to 2009, there were nine major attacks by militants, leaving 295 dead and hundreds of others wounded.Since its formation in 2002, the unit has put a premium on clandestine intelligence gathering. Now much of that intelligence work is done online, by infiltrating and monitoring chat rooms, social media and messaging apps popular with militants.SELF-SUFFICIENTFew details about Densus 88 are publicly available."We built our organization to learn from the enemy," said a senior counter-terrorism officer who provided some insight into the working of the unit but spoke on condition of anonymity.Created in the aftermath of the deadly 2002 Bali bombings that killed more than 200 people, Densus 88 has about 400 to 500 members, state-of-the-art weaponry and training, said another official. It has received more than $200 million of funding from Western allies such as Australia and the United States.The unit is headed by a task force, a core of 30 or so senior members, said the Indonesian law enforcement source."Many of them possess doctorates and have specialties like psychology and social behaviour," the source added. "They are not like regular police."The black clad, heavily armed members of Densus 88 sometimes seen during raids on suspected militant hideouts make up a small proportion of the unit, officials say.Far more personnel are dedicated to gathering intelligence in the field and monitoring communications and online activity. There is also a large team of investigators analysing that intelligence and forensically examining explosives and other evidence.Sidney Jones, the director of Institute for Policy Aanalysis of Conflict (IPAC), said the key to Densus 88's success lies in its intelligence gathering."They know the radical networks and have a good set of informers," she said. "It is unparalleled in terms of its ability to understand the sources of possible threats."STRATEGIC INTERROGATIONDensus 88 has long been accused by human rights groups of abuses, including beatings of alleged separatists and Islamist suspects.Indonesia's National Human Rights Commission has identified 121 terrorism suspects who have died in custody since 2007 but the police routinely deny using torture or inappropriate force in interrogation.Amnesty International said earlier this year there was an "endemic culture of impunity" in Indonesia's police service and a need for an investigation into the "torture" of suspects by Densus 88.However, Barton said the unit has adopted a unique, "strategic" approach to interrogations that aids intelligence gathering.Suspects were kept at police stations rather than in jails and allowed to meet their families."They sit down and listen to their story," Barton said. "They get them talking and that's an effective way of getting intelligence."Despite Densus 88's recent successes, the worry is that the militant threat to Indonesia is mounting as Islamic State fighters return battle-hardened from Syria and Iraq. The ultra-radical group also commands support from some Indonesians who have stayed at home.About 800 Indonesians have travelled to Syria to join Islamic State and 169 have been stopped en route and deported, according to Indonesia's national counter-terrorism agency.In the past two months alone, there have been 40 arrests, and at least six attacks foiled, according to the Reuters study, which collated data with the assistance of IPAC staff. At least two of the attacks were planned for New Year's Eve, police said.Many of these plots have been linked to Islamic State, with police alleging they were inspired, if not directed, by Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant who fled to Syria about two years ago."These new homegrown terrorists and the local jihadists have never gone abroad. But with the advent of the Internet age and technologies like social media, it's easier to make bombs and explosives to do operations," said the law enforcement source.Authorities remain deeply worried about an attack during the holiday season.In the longer term, the worry is the possible return of hardened Islamic State fighters like Naim to the region."They will be a different type of terrorist and the police are going to have a lot more problems," said Indonesian analyst Rakyan Adibrata.REUTERS AKC 0732 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0432-1081006.Xml
While the bureaucratic leadership at the Ministry has been preparing the terms and references for the proposed panel, Foreign Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat is trying to forge a political consensus on making it a common and agreed document for all, reports the Kathmandu Post.

Apart from experts in the field, the panel will also have representations from all major political parties.

With the coalition partners Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) and Nepali Congress apparently agreeing on the names already, Mahat is holding meetings with senior CPN (UML) leaders to get them on board.

However, according to sources, the UML is reluctant to send the names.

Some of the conditions like Terms of Reference (ToR), secretariat, functional modality, budget and logistics are yet be decided.

At a time when Nepal lacks clear and agreed foreign policy documents, a new text is expected to provide a set of guidelines to the successive governments in the future.

Welcoming the move, foreign policy and security expert Geja Sharma Wagle said that an expert panel should be constituted to review and redefine the foreign policy which is appropriate too.

"What we need is a country-specific foreign policy. Besides relations with immediate neighbours, Saarc countries, our new foreign policy goal should also cover relations with multilateral organisations, donors, economic diplomacy, LDCs nations, relations with major powers, labour destination countries," said Wagle.

Nepal's current foreign policy is defined and based on UN Charter, non-aligned, SAARC charter and Panchasheel which many consider as vague. (ANI)
The IS has been threatening civilians in al-Bab and trying to push them to stay in the city where the roads and streets have been blocked by the terror group, Xinhua news agency reported.

Meanwhile, a Turkish soldier who was injured in al-Bab during a clash with the IS, died on Monday.

At least 16 Turkish soldiers were killed in an IS attack on December 21 in al-Bab as Turkish troops and Ankara-backed Syrian rebels battle to take the town from jihadists, Turkish Defence Minister Fikri Isik said.

According to Isik, three Turkish soldiers were also abducted by the IS in northern Syria.

The Turkish Army on August 24 launched the Euphrates Shield Operation against the IS and the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units, the military wing of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party.

Turkish President Recap Tayyip Erdogan said the operation was meant to end the rule of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Turkey lists the YPG and the PYD as terrorist organisations due to their links to the PKK.

--IANS py/bg

( 207 Words)

2016-12-26-15:24:13 (IANS)
A total of 226 Islamic State militants have been "neutralised" in latest operations around the northern Syrian town of al-Bab, the spokesman for Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said today.Turkey-backed Syrian rebels, supported by the Turkish military, have been laying siege to the town for weeks. Ibrahim Kalin made the comment at a news conference in Ankara that was broadcast live on television. REUTERS PY BL1644 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0298-1081622.Xml
Yeni Safak, close to the Turkish government, said that the number of soldiers deployed around al-Bab amounted to about 1,100, Efe news reported.

The Free Syrian Army, Syria's main opposition group that fights alongside the Turkish troops in northern Syria, has also sent 1,400 fighters from Aleppo province, which has recently fallen into the hands of the Syrian regime army, to al-Bab.

The Turkish army entered northern Syria in mid-August to liberate numerous cities that were under the control of the IS group.

According to Yeni Safak, in addition to the 500 soldiers, Turkey has also sent several tanks and armoured vehicles to the Syrian city.

--IANS ksk/vm

( 152 Words)

2016-12-26-21:30:12 (IANS)
Egyptian workers restore the blast-damaged Saint Peter and Saint Paul Church adjacent to Saint Mark's Cathedral in Cairo, capital of Egypt, on Dec. 25, 2016. The recent suicide bomb attack here left at least 27 people dead according to official reports. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)

by Mahmoud Fouly

CAIRO, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- As the countdown is ticking for receiving the new year 2017, Egypt bids farewell to 2016 with remaining economic and security challenges in addition to ups and downs in its foreign relations, particularly with its leading oil-rich Gulf ally Saudi Arabia.

While Egypt is adopting tough measures to implement a three-year economic reform program, assisted by a 12-billion-dollar loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the country is struggling to combat a terrorist wave that has recently hit a Coptic church in Cairo and killed so far 28 of its worshippers.

ECONOMIC STRUGGLE

Egypt has been suffering economic recession due to political turmoil over the past six years that witnessed the ouster of two heads of state: the 2011 uprising that ousted long-time president Hosni Mubarak and the 2013 military-backed uprising that toppled former Islamist president Mohamed Morsi and blacklisted his Muslim Brotherhood group as a terrorist organization.

As a result, Egypt's foreign currency reserves at the central bank declined from 36 billion U.S. dollars in early 2011 to 23 billion as of December 2016 after it was 19 billion in October 2016. In addition, tourism that brought the country 13 billion dollars in 2010 less than halved in 2016. Foreign investments sharply declined as well.

Dollar shortage in the financial market negatively affected a lot of import-based businesses, which led Egypt in early November to devaluate its local currency, a move encouraged by the IMF that delivered later in November 2.75 billion dollars to Egypt as the first batch of the 12-billion-dollar loan.

The one dollar that used to be officially exchanged for 8.8 pounds approached 20 pounds in banks now, which led to price hikes in commodities, besides fuel and energy subsidy cuts and austerity as part of the economic reform plan.

"The foreign currency crisis in Egypt will remain as long as demand for dollar is larger than offer in the market, and instability of the local currency is worse than its floatation," Ahmed al-Sayed al-Naggar, economist and chief of state-run Al-Ahram foundation and newspaper, said in a recent article.

Economists believe that Egypt needs to move its economy from interest-based to export-based. It needs to not rely only on the revenues of tourism and the Suez Canal as main sources of foreign currency but to focus on industrialization and exportation although they have a long way to go.

Egypt's current annual exports amount to about 25 billion dollars while its imports are about 77 billion, so the country needs six times increase of exports to create an actual balance of trade, for about 75 percent of the components of future exports will mostly be imported.

To achieve economic progress, the Egyptian government is currently working hard on a number of mega national projects, including the establishment of a new administrative capital city, the development of the Suez Canal region, the construction of power plants and several others.

SECURITY CHALLENGES

Since Morsi's military removal in July 2013 and the later crackdown on his supporters that left about 1,000 of them killed and thousands arrested, anti-government terrorist attacks killed hundreds of police and military men, hitting the country's tourism and foreign investments.

The security conditions further deteriorated after a Russian plane crash in Sinai that killed over 200 Russians in October 2015 and a tragic fall of an EgyptAir flight in May 2016 that killed all 66 people on board including 15 French.

A Sinai-based militant group loyal to the regional Islamic State (IS) terrorist group claimed responsibility for most of the terror attacks in Egypt, including the Russian plane crash, while the December 11 church blast was claimed by the main IS group itself.

The attacks mostly target military and police personnel in checkpoints or on duty, as in the recent bomb attack that killed six policemen in Giza province near the capital Cairo.

Carried out by a suicide bomber at Saint Peter and Saint Paul Church adjacent to Saint Mark's Cathedral in Cairo, the church bombing marks a qualitative change of terrorist tactics from targeting security personnel to a civilian minority, taking Egypt's anti-terror war to another level.

To limit terrorism, the Egyptian leadership detained most Brotherhood leaders and loyalists who did not flee the country, considering them the source of terror that has been hitting Egypt since Morsi's overthrow.

In October, Egypt's highest court, the Court of Cassation, rejected Morsi's appeal and confirmed his 20-year prison sentence over inciting clashes between his supporters and opponents outside the presidential palace in late 2012 that left 10 people dead.

Later on, and one day before the church bombing, the same court confirmed the death sentence of Islamist extremist Adel Habbara over a 2013 anti-military attack that killed at least 25 soldiers in restive North Sinai province. His execution was carried out later on Dec. 14.

While Egypt is going through an anti-terrorism war declared by President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi after he as then-military chief removed Morsi, sporadic terrorist attacks are growing worldwide including the recent cold-blooded assassination of Russian ambassador in Ankara, Turkey, and the simultaneous deadly truck attack on a Christmas market in Berlin, Germany, that killed 12 people.

FOREIGN RELATIONS

During 2016, Egypt's economic and cultural ties with China grew even stronger as the year was referred to as the Egyptian-Chinese Cultural Year. The two countries already have "comprehensive strategic partnership" and they continue investment and economic cooperation as instructed by their two leaders. Their annual trade volume increased from 6.8 billion dollars in 2011 to 12.9 billion in 2015.

In early December, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) and the People's Bank of China (PBC) signed a deal that is worth 18 billion yuan (about 2.6 billion dollars) to bolster Egyptian economic growth amid dollar hike.

Despite the Russian terrorist plane crash in Egypt's Sinai, strategic relations between Moscow and Cairo have not been affected. Egypt hosted in October its first joint paratroopers' military exercise with Russia dubbed "Friendship Protectors 2016." Russia also plans to build Egypt's first nuclear plant as per an agreement signed in late 2015.

However, Egypt's relations with Arab fellow Qatar and regional power Turkey remained tense in 2016 due to the two countries' host of fleeing Brotherhood loyalists as well as their support of Morsi and criticism of Sisi.

As for Iran, Cairo refrains from normalizing ties with Tehran that have been severed since 1979 despite recent warm statements of Iranian officials. Still, they both share support for the Syrian regime against armed rebels they refer to as terrorists.

Egypt's clear position on Syria and support for President Bashar al-Assad angered its strong oil-rich Gulf ally Saudi Arabia, which led Gulf states excluding Qatar to support Sisi with billions of dollars and tons of oil supplies since Morsi's removal.

Riyadh criticized Cairo's vote in October for two rival Syria-related United Nations Security Council (UNSC) draft resolutions including one proposed by Russia, whose troops are currently assisting Assad's army in Syria. A sign of tension later appeared when a Saudi national oil company suspended its fuel shipments to Egypt.

Having a U.S.-sponsored peace treaty since 1979, ties between Egypt and Israel, the U.S. number one ally in the Middle East, are seen at best under Sisi, with the two states coordinating security measures at the border lines of the restive northern part of Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.

On Friday, the UNSC massively endorsed a resolution demanding immediate and complete halt of Israeli settlement activities on occupied Palestinian territories.

Egypt, which initially proposed the draft resolution, attempted to delay the whole vote, which was seen as response to a bid from the U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, yet the Egyptian foreign ministry later explained that the requested delay was only meant to make sure veto right will not be exercised against the resolution.

As for relations with the United States, the mutual praise between President Sisi and Trump indicates closer ties between Cairo and Washington when the American business tycoon takes over the White House in January.
MEXICO CITY, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Residents of a small town in central Mexico woke up on Christmas Day to find six decapitated heads left out on the street, local media reported.

Near the heads authorities found a message scrawled on a piece of cardboard, but they have not released the contents of the message, the daily Excelsior said.

The six heads, all belonging to "young men," were found in Jiquilpan, a town of no more than 50,000 residents in the state of Michoacan.

"According to preliminary information, the incident is the result of a turf war between criminal gangs," the daily said.

Security around the town was beefed up, and state police set up checkpoints and patrols, as authorities braced for possible retaliation from the rival gang.
LONDON, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Britain's longest serving monarch, Queen Elizabeth, missed her Christmas Day visit to church for the first time in decades because of illness.

The church visit on the day is also a traditional family event.

The tradition started when the royal household started to spend Christmas at the Queen's private estate at Sandringham.

Concerns about the Queen's health were raised earlier this week when she had to delay making the train journey from her home in London to her private estate at Sandringham in Norfolk. Palace officials said both the Queen, 90, and her 95-year-old husband, Prince Philip, were suffering from "heavy colds."

But the Royal couple made the 161-km journey to Sandringham by helicopter a day late.

In a brief statement, an official palace spokesman at Kensington Palace said: "Her Majesty the Queen will not attend church at Sandringham this morning. The Queen continues to recover from a heavy cold and will stay indoors to assist with her recovery. Her Majesty will participate in the Royal Family Christmas celebrations during the day."

The Daily Express national newspaper in London said it appeared it was the first time in Queen Elizabeth's reign of 64 years that she has missed the traditional Christmas Day service.

Millions of people turned in to watch the Queen's traditional message on national television. The speech had been pre-recorded a few days before she became ill.
RIO DE JANEIRO, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Brazilian Serie A club Cruzeiro are reportedly close to signing former Brazil international midfielder Jadson from Tianjin Quanjian.

Cruzeiro president, Gilvan Tavares, said the club had a verbal agreement with a high profile player, believed to be the 33-year-old former Corinthians playmaker, according to widespread media reports.

"We are chasing at least one player and he could arrive at any time, we are just waiting for final confirmation," Tavares told reporters on Sunday.

Jadson joined Tianjin Quanjian in January after helping Corinthians win the Brazilian Serie A title in 2015.

Cruzeiro have already signed Ecuador international defender Luis Caicedo, full-back Diogo Barbosa and midfielder Hudson Rodrigues in the past three weeks.
SKOPJE, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Macedonia's ruling party VMRO-DPMNE led by former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski reconfirmed Sunday its win in a national election after the opposition failed to gain enough votes in a rerun in a single station to change the result, local media reported.

The VMRO-DPMNE won 150 votes, while the opposition, the Social Democratic Union (SDSM), took 245 votes, the State Election Commission (SEC) informed.

The final result of the snap elections has remained unchanged because the SDSM needed to win by 307 votes in order to garner another mandate in this zone.

The VMRO-DPMNE will take 51 seats in the upcoming 120-member Parliament. The SDSM led by Zoran Zaev will keep 49 seats.

Macedonia reopened Sunday morning one polling station in the village of Tearce, northwestern Macedonia, following the administrative court decision on last Tuesday to repeat voting.

The decision was taken after the complaints raised by the SDSM about voting irregularities during the snap elections of Dec. 11.

In the first voting in Tearce, 404 registered voters cast ballots. the VMRO-DPMNE won 91 votes against 87 for SDSM, while the rest were split among four Albanian-minority parties.

The SDSM was hoping to gain another mandate in Tearce, which could alter the elections result at national level and become the party to run negotiations for the creation of a new government.

After the publication of the results by the SEC, representatives of the VMRO-DPMNE thanked the voters of Tearce for their supports reconfirming the Dec. 11 election result.

They also said that VMRO-DPMNE remained committed to forming the new government as soon as possible.
HANOI, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam's agro-forestry-fishery export revenue is expected to set a record high of 32.1 billion U.S. dollars in 2016, some 1.7 billion U.S. dollars higher than that of 2015, despite harsh natural disasters, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on Monday.

The country's farm industry is forecast to see a trade surplus of 7.5 billion U.S. dollars this year.

According to the ministry's chief Nguyen Xuan Cuong, Vietnam has been facing continuous natural disasters so far in 2016. At the beginning of the year, historic cold spell that had never happened in the past 60 years stroke 14 northern localities, causing great damage on local agriculture.

After that, a historic drought and saline intrusion happened in Central Highlands and southern Mekong Delta regions while recently, since the beginning of October, historic heavy rains flooded eight central localities with rainfall ranging from 2,300 to 2,700 mm, said Cuong.

Due to natural disasters and an environmental incident that caused mass fish death in the central region, in the first six months this year, growth of the farm sector went down 0.18 percent year-on-year. However, the sector managed to grow 1.2 percent year-on-year in the whole year.

Tran Dinh Luan, deputy head of the ministry's Fishery Directorate, said on local Tien Phong (Pioneer) online newspaper that in January-June period, the country's shrimp output failed to hit 200,000 tons. However, the output rocketed to 650,000 tons in the second half this year.

Vietnam's shrimp exports are estimated to hit 3.2 billion U.S. dollars while the export revenue of catfish also flourished with over 1.7 billion U.S. dollars. The fishery sector is likely to rake in some 7 billion U.S. dollars.

Meanwhile, the livestock industry saw a "boom" in 2016, with total pig heads rising to 29.1 million and total poultries to 364.5 million, said the ministry.

Hoang Thanh Van, head of the ministry Livestock Production Department, said in the past year, Vietnam exported some 600,000 tons of pigs to China worth over 1 billion U.S. dollars.

With more efforts, the livestock sector can export up to 2 million tons of pigs to the market, Van said.

At the same time, the year 2016 marked the first time that fruit and vegetable exports surpassed rice in terms of export revenue.

In 2016, Vietnam's fruit and vegetable export revenue is expected to hit 2.4 billion U.S. dollars, up 31.2 percent year-on-year.

Other key items that saw growth in export revenue this year included coffee (up 25.5 percent year-on-year), cashew nuts (up 18.3 percent), pepper (up 12.7 percent) and seafood (up 6.3 percent) among others. The country has had as many as 10 items that have export revenue of over 1 billion U.S. dollars.
PHNOM PENH, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Altogether 108 Cambodians, mostly rural dwellers, had been killed by lightning strikes in 2016, up 0.9 percent from 107 deaths in 2015, a spokesman said Monday.

Besides the fatalities, thunderbolts had injured 105 others this year, up 36 percent from 77 injuries last year, Keo Vy, the spokesman for the National Committee for Disaster Management, said.

He said that prolonged drought before the rainy season this year was blamed for the surge in lightning casualties.

"It is common to see lightning strikes during annual rainy season from May to October, but this year, there had been more lightning strikes than usual because of the worst drought in May and June," he told Xinhua.

He said to avoid the dangers of thunderbolts, people should stay indoor when there is rain.

In addition to lightning casualties, storms had claimed 21 lives and injured 193 others in 2016, said the spokesman.
COLOMBO, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Several flights scheduled to depart and arrive at Sri Lanka's Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) have been delayed due to the temporary closure of certain parts of Indian airspace, an airport official said here on Monday.

Sri Lanka's State owned Sri Lankan Airlines confirmed that five of its flights had been delayed including those departing to Singapore, Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur.

The Indian Air Traffic control had informed the Sri Lankan officials that its airspace would be closed from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. due to the "launch of an experimental flight in India."

Several other international airlines arriving and departing at the BIA had also been delayed.

An official from Sri Lankan Airlines told Xinhua that all of its flights which had been delayed would depart after 12:30 in the afternoon.
KABUL, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- A prominent Taliban commander was killed together with five militants after Afghan police launched an ambush attack in eastern province of Ghazni on Monday, Interior Ministry said.
KABUL, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- A Taliban commander was killed together with five militants after Afghan police launched an ambush in eastern province of Ghazni on Monday, the Interior Ministry said.

"A top Taliban commander named Mullah Firoz Jahadi along with five other armed Taliban were killed in Aab Band district of Ghazni province in an Afghan National Police (ANP) ambush Monday morning," the ministry said in a statement.

The statement noted that nine other armed Taliban were wounded and two rocket launchers, two heavy machine guns and one vehicle were seized by the ANP after the attack.

"Mullah Firoz Jahadi was leading the Kunduz battle," the statement said, adding that his death will have a positive impact on security situation in Ghazni, 125 km south of Afghan capital of Kabul, and neighboring provinces.

Taliban militants captured major parts of Kunduz city, capital of northern Kunduz province on Oct. 3 this year but were forced to retreat from the city on Oct. 12.

The Afghan security forces have beefed up security operations recently as militants were attempting to take territory and consolidate their positions ahead of winter in the mountainous country.

The militant group has yet to make comments.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will hold a public meeting at the Fort Peck Interpretive Center on Feb. 7 in conjunction with the release of the draft Missouri River Recovery Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement.

The meeting is scheduled from 5 to 8:45 p.m. The format will consist of an open house from 5 to 5:45, followed by a brief presentation and public hearing from 5:45 to 8. Following this, the open house will continue to 8:45.

The draft MRRMP-EIS includes major federal actions necessary to comply with the Endangered Species Act by avoiding a finding of jeopardy to three federally listed threatened and endangered species: the pallid sturgeon, interior least tern, and the Northern Great Plains piping plover. The draft can be accessed at the USACE digital library or www.MoRiverRecovery.org.

Comments regarding the MRRMP-EIS will be accepted through Feb. 24. Public comments for each section may be made online by linking to the website at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/MRRMP.

Written comments can be mailed to: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District, ATTN: CENWO-PM-AC  Management Plan Comments, 1616 Capitol Ave., Omaha, NE 68102.
Photo taken on Dec. 26, 2016 shows the site of an attack in Helmand province, Afghanistan. Casualties were feared after a car bombing rocked Lashkar Gah city, capital of Afghanistan's southern Helmand province, on Monday, a local official said. (Xinhua/Abdul Aziz Safdari)

LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- At least one Afghan policeman was killed after a car bombing rocked Lashkar Gah city, capital of southern Helmand province, on Monday, a local official said.

"A terrorist rammed a car bomb into a moving police humvee vehicle in Darwaz-e-Kandahar locality of the city. As we knew, one policeman died and two others were wounded by the explosion," a provincial police official told Xinhua.

The official who declined to be named said,"We have no more details, but we will try to get more information and provide details later in the day."

Witnesses said they heard a heavy explosion at around 11:00 a.m. local time in the area which is located in the eastern edge of the city, 555 km south of Afghan capital of Kabul.

Security forces have cordoned off the area for precautionary measures.

Unofficial sources said a senior provincial police official was travelling in the targeted vehicle to visit and monitor an ongoing military operation along Helmand-Kandahar highway.

The road was shut and several vehicles were intercepted by armed militants earlier on Monday.

So far, no one has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Taliban militant group has launched similar attacks in the past.
BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday extended condolences to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, over the crash of a Russian military plane.

Xi said in a message that he was shocked by the news of the crash that unfortunately left the passengers and crew dead.

Xi, on behalf of the Chinese government and people, extended his heartfelt sympathy over the tragedy, mourned the dead and offered condolences to the bereaved families.

A Russian military Tu-154 aircraft crashed into the Black Sea on Sunday, killing all 92 people aboard.

Among the passengers were 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, a renowned choir of the Russian Armed Forces, as well as nine Russian journalists. They were heading to the Hmeimim air base in the Syrian port city of Latakia for New Year celebrations.

The plane disappeared from the radar screens shortly after takeoff from the Black Sea resort of Sochi at 5:40 a.m. Moscow time (0240 GMT).
MANILA, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Typhoon Nock-Ten is battering provinces south of Manila, leaving at least three people dead, police and local officials said on Monday.

Al Francis Bichara, governor of the Albay province in southeastern Luzon, said the dead included a 57-year-old woman who was killed by a fallen concrete wall and a couple, a 73-year-old man and his 70-year-old wife, who drowned in a river.

Transport services, schools and offices in the province were suspended, Bichara said, adding the entire province and neighboring provinces were also without power after being hit by the typhoon.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) has yet to come up with the number of casualties, saying the typhoon is still hitting other provinces as it slowly moves west-northwest of Luzon at 20 kilometers per hour.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said in its 2 p.m. bulletin that the typhoon has slightly weakened, packing maximum winds of up to 130 Kilometres per hour and gusts of up to 215 kph.

NDRRMC also said on Monday that 77,560 families or 383,097 persons were preemptively evacuated from Calabarzon, Bicol Region, Mimaropa and Eastern Visayas in anticipation of the typhoon.

The disaster agency said Typhoon Nock-Ten is expected to exit the country on Wednesday morning.
ANKARA, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- At least 30 civilians, who made an attempt to escape from Syria's al-Bab in Northern Syria on Dec. 25, were killed by Islamic State (IS) terrorist attack with mines and hand-made explosives, Turkish military source told Anadolu Agency on Monday.

IS has been threatening civilians in al-Bab and trying to push them to stay in the city, where the roads and streets have been blocked by the terror group's barricades.

Meanwhile, A Turkish solider injured in Al-Bab during the clash with IS died on Dec.26 while being treated in Gaziantep province, adding the death toll of Turkish soldiers killed in northern Syria in last week to 17, Dogan News Agency reported.

16 Turkish soldiers were killed in an IS attack on Dec. 21 in Al-Bab, as Turkish troops and Ankara-backed Syrian rebels battle to take the town from jihadists,Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik said on Dec. 22.

Isik said on Dec. 23 that he had information that three Turkish soldiers were abducted by IS militants in northern Syria but added that other "comments" beyond this information were not confirmed.

On Aug. 24, the Turkish Armed Forces launched the Euphrates Shield Operation against IS and the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), the military wing of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD).

Turkish President Erdogan said that the operation was also meant to end the rule of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Turkey lists the YPG and the PYD as terrorist organizations due to their links to the PKK.
BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Monday extended condolences to Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev over the crash of a Russian military plane.

In a message, Li mourned the dead and extended condolences to their families.

A Russian military Tu-154 crashed into the Black Sea on Sunday, killing all 92 people aboard.

Among the passengers were 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, a renowned choir of the Russian Armed Forces, as well as nine Russian journalists. They were heading to the Hmeimim air base in the Syrian port city of Latakia for New Year celebrations.

The plane crashed shortly after takeoff from the Black Sea resort of Sochi at 5:40 a.m. Moscow time (0240 GMT).
by Yoo Seungki

SEOUL, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Ban Ki-moon, the outgoing United Nations secretary general whose second five-year term is slated to end by the year-end, has entered a painstaking verification process as one of South Korean presidential hopefuls.

According to a Realmeter survey released on Monday, Ban reclaimed the top spot in presidential polls for the first time in eight weeks at 23.3 percent, slightly higher than 23.1 percent of Moon Jae-in, former head of the largest opposition Minjoo Party.

Ban has never officially declared his run for president in home country, but has long been seen as the last remaining hope for conservative voters as there is no distinguished contender found from the conservative bloc.

Ban's press conference in New York last week with South Korean journalists triggered local media speculation that he indicated a candidacy in the next presidential election that is forecast to be held earlier than scheduled after the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye.

The indication forced Ban to enter an early verification procedure. The career diplomat, who served as top South Korean diplomat from 2004 to 2006 under late President Roh Moo-hyun, has what political analysts claim is lack of experience in the domestic political scene as his weakest point.

Some regards the inexperience as the strong point of Ban not being tarnished by the corrupt political system, but others cite it as his shortage in capability to overcome attacks from both political rivals and media outlets.

Over the weekend, local weekly magazine Sisa Journal reported that Ban took bribes worth 200,000 U.S. dollars in 2005 as the South Korean foreign minister and 30,000 U.S. dollars in 2007 as the UN chief from a South Korean businessman, citing multiple unidentified sources.

Ban's spokesman sent an unusual press release to South Korean journalists, saying the Sisa Journal report was "completely false and groundless" and that the Ban side will demand apology and the deletion of the article, loca media reports showed.

The magazine on Monday raised a suspicion about corruption involving Ban's son, while reminding readers of the suspected secret relationship between Ban and Sung Wan-jong, a South Korean businessman who killed himself in April 2015 after leaving the name list of heavyweight politicians and the amounts next to the names, which were estimated to be bribes given to them, as a suicide note.

Ruling and opposition parties showed different reactions to the report according to respective political interests.

The opposition bloc raised the need for probe by prosecutor, while conservative politicians tried to protect Ban from the attacks.

The biggest opposition Minjoo Party's spokesman told a press briefing that Ban is required to go through a harsh verification process as the country must not allow "the second President Park Geun-hye" to appear in history.

Calling Ban "slippery eel," the spokesman said the UN chief should voluntarily announce persuasive explanations about suspicions, including the bribery allegation reported by Sisa Journal, suspected relationship with Sung Wan-jong and his nephew's fraud case.

Ban is called "slippery eel" especially by the Minjoo Party lawmakers as he visited late President Roh Moo-hyun's grave to pay respects over two and a half years after Roh committed suicide in May 2009.

Under the Roh administration, Ban served as South Korea's foreign minister and the late president is reported to have actively campaigned for Ban to become the first South Korean to be elected as the UN chief.

Even when he belatedly visited the Roh's grave, he reportedly requested his visit unknown to local media outlets under the conservative government of former President Lee Myung-bak.

Ban had been close to President Park Geun-hye and the ruling Saenuri Party as seen in his seven meetings with Park during her four-day trip to New York in September 2015.

However, the close relationship seems to have been broken up since the presidential scandal erupted in late October. He said earlier this month that "trust was betrayed" when talking about the scandal, according to local media reports.

Park Jie-won, floor leader of the minor opposition People's Party, showed a delicate difference in reacting to the suspected bribery scandal involving Ban given that his party has been trying to scout him as one of contenders in the party's presidential primary.

The floor leader told reporters that if Ban's explanations are not persuasive, prosecutors should naturally look into the case, but he noted that groundless revelations are not desirable for the clean presidential race.

The ruling Saenuri Party, from which scores of anti-President Park faction members plan to bolt and create a new conservative party in late January, sought to defend Ban from political attacks amid the rising factional strife. Both the anti- and pro-Park factions anticipated Ban's taking their sides.

The Saenuri Party, which is being controlled by the pro-Park faction, said Ban is the pride of the Republic of Korea (ROK), while the anti-Park conservatives urged the opposition bloc to stop "groundless" political attacks.

Whether the bribery allegations would negatively influence Ban's approval rating remains to be seen as the recent presidential poll is the result before the Sisa Journal report's publication.

South Korean voters had overlooked pointed criticisms on his job as the UN secretary general, including the worst UN chief in history, as simply being elected as the top UN post is regarded here as a great success.

However, people in South Korea might have been much stricter in assessing moral qualifications of their leader as they greatly learned from the scandal of President Park.
DHAKA, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Customs officials in Bangladesh's main airport in capital Dhaka seized 100 gold bars weighing about 11.6 kg on Monday, from a Qatar Airways flight, an official said.

Acting on a tip-off, the customs official who preferred to be unnamed, told Xinhua that they searched the aircraft and found the gold bars worth about 60 million taka (about 7.23 million U.S. dollars) beneath a passenger seat.

Coming from Doha, the flight landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka at around 11:00 a.m. local time.

No one was arrested in connection with the seizure.

Sources said organized gangs of local smugglers having link with their foreign sidekicks have been increasingly using Bangladesh as a transit for the illegal transportation of gold, foreign currencies, contraband drug and medicines.
KATHMANDU, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Nepalese authorities on Monday made it clear that no travel restrictions were issued to Nepal by the Chinese government agencies as reported in local media.

"We have not received any information officially and unofficially from the Chinese side about the travel advisories issued to Nepal by any Chinese government agencies or tour operators. The media reports are baseless," Jayanarayan Acharya, director general at the Nepal's Department of Tourism, told Xinhua.

Following news reports published in Kathmandu-based media, Nepalese Ministry of Foreign Affairs had instructed its Beijing-based embassy to verify the reports and enquire whether such restrictions to Nepal were issued by the Chinese government.

After making enquiry with the Chinese authorities, the Nepalese Embassy communicated to the government that no such travel restrictions were issued by China, officials said.

Meanwhile, a senior official at the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu termed these reports baseless.

China is the second largest source market for tourism for Nepal, after India.
BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- China plans to raise tourism revenue to 7 trillion yuan (about 1 trillion U.S. dollars) by 2020, the Chinese government has said.

"China will strive to develop tourism into a major driver for economic transformation and upgrades," said a State Council five-year tourism plan (2016-2020).

The sector made more than 4 trillion yuan last year.

By 2020, investment in tourism is expected to grow to 2 trillion yuan, and contribute more than 12 percent of GDP, according to the plan.
JERUSALEM, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Israel on Sunday summoned the envoys of countries that supported a UN resolution demanding an end to the settlements, while suspending some international diplomatic ties and coordination with the Palestinians.

Speaking at the cabinet's weekly meeting, Netanyahu told the ministers to "minimize" meetings and travels to the states that backed the resolution in the UN Security Council on Friday, and with which Israel has diplomatic relations.

The foreign ministers of the 12 countries will not be accepted for visits in the Prime Minister's Office and Foreign Ministry, he said.

Earlier on Sunday, Netanyahu, who is also acting foreign minister, instructed the foreign office to summon envoys of these states for a reprimand meeting in Jerusalem.

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman instructed the Israeli Coordinator of the Government's Activities in the Territories to cease all meetings and talks with senior Palestinian officials, as another mean of rebuke.

The moves were part of a "diplomatic and economic price" that Netanyahu vowed to exact from countries which supported the historic motion.

The vote, passed by a 14-0 majority, with the United States abstaining, demands Israel to "immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem."

It states that the settlements, constructed by Israel on lands it occupied in 1967, has "no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law."

The Palestinians hailed the move, with Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization, telling Israel's Walla news site that he hopes the resolution will help reignite the long-stalled peace talks.

Israel reacted furiously, immediately rejecting the motion and slamming it as an "anti-Israeli" move.

In a broadcast address at a Hanukkah candle-lighting ceremony honoring wounded soldiers and the victims of terrorism on Saturday night, Netanyahu denounced Obama for his "shameful ambush," adding that he is looking forward to working with his "friend," president-elect Donald Trump, to undo the move.

Netanyahu said Israel will reassess its ties with the UN. He noted that he already ordered to cut 30 million shekels (about 8 million U.S. dollars) in funding to five "especially hostile" UN bodies.

"I instructed the Foreign Ministry to complete within a month a re-evaluation of all our contacts with the United Nations, including the Israeli funding of UN institutions and the presence of UN representatives in Israel," he said.

Netanyahu also canceled a scheduled visit by Ukraine's Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, a day after it called back its envoys in New Zealand and Senegal, which together with Venezuela and Malaysia proposed the resolution.

The U.S., Israel's closest ally, traditionally protects Israel from such motions. On Friday, it abstained despite massive pressures by Israel and President-elect Donald Trump for Washington to use its veto.

The move came in the wake of the Regulation Bill, which the parliament approved in first out of three readings earlier in December. Netanyahu's right-wing coalition supports the bill.

About 500,000 Jewish settlers live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, lands that Israel seized in the 1967 Mideast War and has been controlling them ever since, despite international condemnations.

The Palestinians wish to build their future state in these lands.

The U.S. officially opposes the settlements and considers them as an obstacle to peace. The settlements are illegal under international law. Enditem
Police arrested one woman and another woman was sent to the hospital after the pair left Alternatives' Passages correctional facility through a third floor window Sunday night.

Cinnamon Maray O'Donnell, 24, was arrested after she left the Passages treatment center through a third floor window. She was taken to the Yellowstone County Detention Facility.

O'Donnell was sentenced on Nov. 22 to five years with the Department of Corrections. O'Donnell has felony convictions for theft, criminal endangerment and possession of dangerous drugs.

The women were being housed on the alcohol and drug treatment level, Alternatives CEO David Armstrong said. The women were attempting to escape the building through the third floor window, Armstrong said.

Women being treated on the third floor stay anywhere from 60 to 90 days at the inpatient treatment center before being put back into the community.

Billings Police Sgt. Matt Lennick said police responded to a call a little before 9 p.m. about a woman who had fallen out of a window at Passages at 1001 S. 27th St. The woman was taken to the hospital with a broken leg.

Passages is a womens community-based correctional facility serving state and federal inmates.

Escape charges have a maximum sentence of 10 years.
Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang (R) shakes hands with his Russian counterpart Yury Trutnev, also presidential envoy to Russia's Far Eastern Federal District, during the second council meeting of regional cooperation between China's northeastern provinces and Russia's Far East in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 20, 2016. (Xinhua/Ding Lin)

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- China-Russia high-level political dialogue has bolstered the two countries' cooperation in Russia's Far East, an expert told Xinhua in a recent interview.

The deepened China-Russia political ties, geographical proximity and mutually complementary markets, among other factors, have also contributed to the active win-win cooperation between the two neighbors in Russia's Far East area, said Sergei Ivanov, an expert from the Far-Eastern branch of the Russian Academy of Science.

"Cooperation between Russia and China has more than one dimension. The most visible edge of it is a political dialogue," said Ivanov, citing that over the last 20 years the political dialogue has been developing successfully, among mechanisms of bilateral cooperation in other fields.

For years, the two countries have effectively implemented a mechanism of regular meetings between their government heads and organizations, such as committees, subcommittees and working groups involving in almost all areas of bilateral cooperation.

"Both countries are actively cooperating on international issues... These have been reflected in the pairs' cooperation whthin the United Nations, in joint development of international organizations including BRICS, Shanghai Cooperation Organization," Ivanov added.

According to the expert, China-Russia high-level political dialogue has contributed to implementation of Russian Far East's major projects, including resource development projects, such as the Eastern Siberia-Pacific Ocean oil pipeline, "Power of Siberia" gas pipeline, cooperation in "Sakhalin-3" project under the oil and gas agreements, and the expansion of electricity supply over the Amur River (the Heilongjiang River) to China.

Chinese business people have also actively participate in the Far East's agriculture. Chinese mid-sized companies, which have been operating in the Far East more than a year, have a permanent land fund for long-term lease. The region's agriculture industry has a great potential for investment cooperation, said Ivanov.

Investment cooperation in spheres, including forestry and fishery, is very perspective from the business development point of view, noted the expert. Several Chinese companies in Russia's Jewish Autonomous Oblast, Primorsky Krai and Zabaykalsky Krai, planned to create woodworking industry clusters or pulp and paper mills.Talking about economic relations between China and Russia in Russia's Far East, the expert said, "First, the two countries should not invest in projects which have no chance to get economic entities' financial support. Second, they need to work consistently on improving political and legal conditions for projects' development implemented by small and mid-sized enterprises."

Ivanov added that a whole set of development institutions have appeared in the region in recent years. For instance, the special economic zones in the form of Advanced Development Territories (ADT) and a free port of Vladivostok have been established.

Moreover, the bureaucratic institution of development in the form of a special ministry, the State Corporation for the Far East's development as well as a set of regional agencies designed for increasing exports and attracting foreign investment have been created.

Finally, financial development institutions have also emerged, such as the Far East Development Fund or the Russian Direct Investment Fund, which is actively cooperating with the China Investment Corporation in financing projects of the Far East.
TEHRAN, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Iran has launched a large-scale air defense exercise in the country's southern regions on Monday.

Code-named "Defenders of Velayat Skies 7," the war game covers the Persian Gulf provinces of Hormozgan and Bushehr along with the southwestern province of Khuzestan.

According to the official IRNA news agency, Iran's Air Defense Commander Brig. Gen. Farzad Esmaili said that "the drill will be held for three days in an area covering 496,000 km and F-4 fighter jets and S300 defense missile systems will be test-fired during the exercise."

Participants in the drill include the air defense forces of both the Iranian army and the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), navy support units, the army and IRGC's ground forces artillery units, Esmaili said.

The military exercise features considerable volumes of artillery and missile practices, he was quoted as saying.

During the first stage, various defensive apparatuses falling under the integrated command and control center operated jointly by the army and the airbase, including radar, missile, artillery, communication and electronic surveillance systems, were scrambled to designated positions, according to Press TV.

The exercises, which include around 17,000 military personnel members, simulate intense and large-scale electronic warfare.

Domestic and foreign planes have been cautioned stay away from the drill zone.
by Xinhua Writer Chen Shilei

BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Japan-U.S. alliance, which Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe aspires to strengthen through his visit to Pearl Harbor, could backfire if it puts regional stability at risk.

Abe's upcoming visit to the port, on which the Japanese army launched a sneak attack 75 years ago that immediately led the United States to World War II, is mostly interpreted as a symbol of reconciliation between the former foes in the war.

Some also associated the visit with U.S. President Barack Obama's May trip to Hiroshima, one of the two Japanese cities that saw U.S. atomic bomb attacks in 1945.

The visits were seen as "milestones" in the Japan-U.S. alliance that has lasted several decades in the postwar era and been boosted under the right-leaning Abe government and the Obama administration advocating U.S. "pivot to Asia."

For Tokyo, enhancing the Japan-U.S. alliance can help it realize its ambitions to become a globally political and military power; for Washington, the alliance serves as a tool to interfere in Asian affairs and counter a rising China.

Therefore, when U.S. President-elect Donald Trump suggested in the presidential campaign that Japan should arm itself instead of counting on the United States for protection, Abe was really concerned that the two countries' alliance could be challenged.

Out of such concerns, Abe has spared no effort to express Tokyo's fidelity to Washington and eagerness to maintain the alliance.

More than one month before his Peal Harbor trip, Abe was in New York meeting Trump, which made him the first foreign leader to do so after Trump won the presidential race.

In fact, both Japan and the United States, with their self-serving strategic goals, have built an alliance that brought destabilizing factors to the region.

On the one hand, military cooperation between the two allies has encouraged the militarization of Japan, which aroused concerns among Japanese neighbors that suffered from Japanese aggression in World War II.

On the other hand, the lack of mutual understanding and trust between Japan and its neighbors due to the strengthening of its alliance with the United States has also greatly hindered regional integration and economic cooperation.

If such alliance continues to threaten regional stability, it could backfire as Japan and the United States, like other countries in the region, need a peaceful and stable environment to realize their legitimate interests as well.
RABAT, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Some 870 Moroccans are fighting alongside jihadist groups in Middle East, local media reported on Monday.

Citing official statistics provided by the Morocco's Central Bureau of Judicial Investigations, the Moroccan daily Akhbar Al Yaoum said that the current number of Moroccan fighters represents 55 percent of the total number of those who left the country to join the ranks of jihadists groups in Syria and Iraq in 2012.

According the the same statistics, over 553 Moroccan fighters have been killed and 206 returned to the country since 2012.

The same source revealed that the number of Moroccans who joined the conflict zones in Syria, Iraq and Libya has significantly been reduced in the past few years.

In 2016, there were a total of three people who tried to join the Islamic State (IS) group in Libya and Syria, but were arrested.
Photo taken on Dec. 24, 2016 shows Christmas decorations inside a shopping mall in Nairobi, Kenya. (Xinhua/Pan Siwei)

NAIROBI, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Several terrorist attacks have occured during the Christmas season in Africa.

MOGADISHU, SOMALIA

Somali security forces are pursuing Al-Shabaab militants who killed a soldier and a civilian in the capital Mogadishu, a local official said Sunday.

Mogadishu municipal government spokesman Abdifatah Omar Halane told reporters that the militants killed the two on Saturday night in the Wadajir district.

The Al-Shabaab Islamist group has claimed responsibility for the attack, claiming its fighters killed two soldiers and recovered two AK47 riffle guns.

The latest attack came as security has been tightened in Mogadishu for presidential election slated for the end of the year.

BOSASO, SOMALIA

A military official of Somalia's Puntland state was on Sunday shot dead by Al-Shabaab militants in Bosaso town, a state official confirmed.

Abdikarim Hassan Firdhiye was killed "as he was walking out of one of the local FM stations where he was giving an interview over court cases," said Abdifitah Haji Aden, chairperson of the Puntland Supreme Military Court.

The Al-Shabaab Islamist group has claimed responsibility for the killing.

Puntland security forces are pursing the militants and a curfew has been imposed in Bosaso town.

Firdhiye is the third senior official of Puntland state to be killed by Al-Shabaab militants in the past two weeks.

KENYA

At least two people were killed and some others injured by suspected Al-Shabaab militants who vandalized a communication mast in the northeastern Kenyan county of Wajir.

North Eastern Regional Coordinator Mohamed Saleh confirmed on Saturday night that militants on Friday night destroyed a mast run by mobile operator Safaricom and set a car on fire in the Tarbaj area near the border with Somalia.

The attackers used improvised explosives in the attack, Saleh said, adding that reinforcement had been deployed to the area to pursue the attackers.

This is the third mast to be destroyed by militants in the Kenyan border region in less than a month. Two other masts were destroyed in Mandera county in similar attacks.

No group has claimed responsibility for the Friday attack but suspicion has fallen on Somalia-based Islamist group Al-Shabaab, which has staged a series of attacks in Kenya in recent years.

CAMEROON

Two suspected suicide bombers were killed after attempting to launch attacks on Sunday morning in Cameroon, one security source told Xinhua.

Two young men suspected to be members of Nigerian Islamic sect Boko Haram killed themselves after detonating bombs attached to them at the entrance of one market in Mora, a small town in Far North Region near the border with Nigeria.

The source said the attacks took place at around 8 a.m. and no other victim is reported at the moment. Enditem
Rwandan inmates wait to head back to cells after Christmas fire.(Xinhua)

KIGALI, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- A fire razed one room at Rwanda's Nyarugenge Prison in Kigali on Sunday, causing minor injuries, authorities said.

Hillary Sengabo, Senior Inspector of Prisons (SIP) at Rwanda Correctional Services said the burnt room accommodated 68 inmates.

He said rescue efforts by army and police were there in time to put out the fire before it spread.

Rwanda's Minister of justice, Johnston Busingye who oversees prisons said the affected area was estimated at 20 square meters occupied by about 15 inmates.

He added that their mattresses and other personal effects were destroyed in the afternoon fire.

There is no report of loss of life as inmates were alerted by gun shots in the air, Minister Busingye said.

The cause of the fire was not readily established.

Authorities said some three inmates were injured and were receiving treatment.

This is the second fire incident in Rwanda's prison in recent years, the earlier one having taken place at Muhanga prison in 2014.

Nyarugenge prison has 3,127 inmates, according to the authorities.
MOSCOW, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The flight recorders of the Russian military Tu-154 aircraft that crashed into the Black Sea on Sunday could remain intact, a senior official was quoted as saying on Monday.

"Flight recorders will definitely be raised when the plane is found on the sea floor, we know where they are; they are in the fin," the Interfax news agency quoted Russian Airspace Forces Commander-in-Chief Viktor Bondarev as saying.

Bondarev believed that the flight recorders, also known as black boxes, could be intact since the fin is normally the least damaged part in an air accident.

Currently, 3,500 people are participating in the search and recovery operation, as well as 39 ships, and seven deep-sea submergence vehicles, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.

So far, 11 bodies and 154 fragments have been recovered, of which 10 bodies and 86 fragments were sent to Moscow by plane for identification, the Defense Ministry said.

Russian Deputy Defense Minister Pavel Popov was quoted as saying at a briefing in Sochi that experts believed the aircraft had fallen into the sea some 6 km away from the shore.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Maksim Sokolov virtually ruled out the possibility of a terror attack behind the tragedy.

"The main versions of the crash may be technical failures or pilot errors," Sokolov told a press briefing broadcast live by the Russia 24 TV channel.

The exact causes have yet to be established by investigators and a special commission of the Russian Defense Ministry.

The ill-fated plane, en route to Russia's Hmeimim air base in the Syrian port city of Latakia, crashed shortly after takeoff from Sochi early Sunday morning.

Ninety-two people -- 84 passengers and eight crew members -- were aboard the plane. Most of them were members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, a renowned choir of the Russian Armed Forces, as well as nine Russian journalists. They were heading to the air base for New Year celebrations.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) holds talks with his counterpart of Sao Tome and Principe Urbino Botelho in Beijing, capital of China, Dec. 26, 2016. (Xinhua/Cui Xinyu)

BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- China resumed diplomatic relations with Sao Tome and Principe in Beijing on Monday, after the African nation cut "diplomatic ties" with the Taiwan region last week.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Sao Tome and Principe counterpart Urbino Botelho held talks at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, and signed a joint communique on resuming diplomatic relations.

Sao Tome and Principe, an island nation in the Gulf of Guinea and a former Portuguese colony, established diplomatic relations with China immediately after gaining independence in 1975 but switched to the Taiwan region in 1997.

"The one-China principle is a consensus of the international community and a basic norm in international relations," Wang said. "China believes Sao Tome and Principe will stick to one-China policy with practical action and support China's peaceful reunification."

China suggested both countries work to enhance political trust and friendship of their people, as well as cooperation in agriculture, fishery and tourism.

Wang said China eyes cooperation with the island country within the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, and the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries.

Botelho said Sao Tome and Principe will make up for its previous mistakes and open a new chapter in bilateral relations.

Sao Tome and Principe recognizes China's international influence and role in protecting the interests of developing countries, and support for its own and other African countries' struggle for independence, as well as welcoming Chinese investors and tourists to help with its national development and industrialization, Botelho said.

The Sao Tome and Principe government promises it will have no official relations with Taiwan. Instead, it acknowledges there is only one China, and the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legitimate government representing China, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory, the communique said.

Both sides agreed to send ambassadors as soon as possible and start the process to establish embassies, according to the communique.

"We are delighted to see that the Sao Tome and Principe government follows historical trends and makes the correct decision to come back to the one-China principle," Wang said at a joint press conference after his meeting with Botelho.

"The one-China principle is the foundation of bilateral relations and both sides should understand and support each other on issues relating to their core interests or major concerns," Wang said.

"The restoration of diplomatic relations gives China a new friend in the international community, while Sao Tome and Principe will get all-round support and assistance from a permanent member of the UN Security Council and the world's largest developing country," Wang added.

This move will bring benefits to both countries, to Sao Tome and Principe in particular, and add new vitality to cooperation between China and Africa, Wang said.

Also on Monday, Chinese Vice President Li Yuanchao met with Botelho, saying the restoration of diplomatic relations is in line with the fundamental interests of both countries.

Li said China highly appreciates the Sao Tome and Principe government's return to the right track of one-China principle.

China will take the restoration of diplomatic ties as a new start to deepen political mutual trust and conduct all-round cooperation, Li said.

Botelho said his country attaches great importance to the relationship with China and will firmly adhere to the one-China principle and comprehensively forge ahead bilateral cooperation.

Related:

Commentary: One China is non-negotiable

by Xinhua writer Wang Zichen

BEIJING, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- As a veteran businessman who prides himself on his ability to make deals, U.S. president-elect Donald Trump should be well familiar with the phrase "deal-breaker."

Let's try to make this issue crystal clear for the coming new administration of theUnited States: any deviation from the one-China policy will be a "deal-breaker." Full story

Foreign ministry: appreciates Sao Tome and Principe breaking "diplomatic ties" with Taiwan

BEIJING, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese foreign ministry on Wednesday expressed appreciation over Sao Tome and Principe's decision to break so-called "diplomatic ties" with Taiwan.
BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- China plans to raise tourism revenue to 7 trillion yuan (about 1 trillion U.S. dollars) by 2020, the Chinese government has said.

A State Council five-year tourism plan (2016-2020) says China will strive to develop tourism into a major driver for economic transformation and upgrades.

The sector made more than 4 trillion yuan last year.

By 2020, investment in tourism is expected to grow to 2 trillion yuan, and the sector will contribute more than 12 percent of GDP.

Travel agencies will be encouraged to sell more diverse products, such as countryside trips and tours of old revolutionary bases.

The quality of tourist destinations must be raised, partly through five tourist city clusters and 10 national tour belts. Public services for tourists will be improved, including transportation. Green tourism will also be promoted.

Inbound tourism will get stronger policy support and cooperation between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan will be strengthened. The government also expects moderate growth in outbound travel.

The services sector made up a majority of economic growth in the first three quarters. Tourism will create jobs and help poverty alleviation in rural areas.
BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- China's new five-year plan on developing its western regions will promote sustainable and healthy development and boost the confidence of overseas investors.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said on Friday during a meeting that the 13th Five-Year (2016-2020) Plan period is a crucial time for western regions to achieve transformation and upgrading.

He said the regions should push forward supply-side structural reform, moderately expand demand, boost innovation, continue to implement the west development strategy, and strengthen coordination between it and other major strategies such as the Belt and Road Initiative and development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt.

The fundamental way to develop the regions is by enhancing their endogenous growth through innovation, reform and opening-up, Li said.

China launched its "go west" strategy in 2000 to boost economic development of 12 western provincial-level regions -- Chongqing, Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, Tibet, Shaanxi, Gansu, Ningxia, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Guangxi and Qinghai -- that are home to more than 400 million people.

Under the strategy, the western regions enjoy support in infrastructure construction, foreign investment, environmental protection, education and talent retention.

From 2000 to 2016, the Chinese government invested 6.35 trillion yuan (914 billion U.S. dollars) in 300 major projects, mostly in infrastructure and energy, in western regions.

In 2016 alone, 743.8 billion yuan was invested in 30 major projects in western regions, according to the National Development and Reform Commission.

China's "go west" strategy has brought western regions to their best period of development in history and promoted coordinated growth of the regional economy, said Gao Xincai, vice president of Lanzhou University in Gansu Province.

The total GDP of the 12 regions included in the "go west" strategy accounted for only 17 percent of the country's total in 2000, but the figure had risen to 21.2 percent by the end of 2015, official data showed.

As the Chinese economy urgently needs to address entrenched structural imbalances and find sustainable growth momentum in the next five years, new content should be added to the "go west" strategy, said Chen Yao, deputy director of the Research Center on Western Region Development of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

He noted that the industrial structure in western regions should be transformed into a high value-added and environment-friendly one advocating innovation and technology.

Indeed, as Premier Li stressed in the meeting, infrastructure construction and ecological protection are two key elements in promoting the sustainable development of western regions. He urged efforts to protect the environment, improve road and water infrastructure, and ensure the quality of drinking water for rural residents.

Li called for efforts to develop an advanced manufacturing sector and emerging sectors, and promote the development of industries with "ethnic characteristics" such as medicine and traditional handicrafts.

The new five-year plan also aims to create a healthy investment environment in western regions to help investors, advance government administrative reform and improve services, said Chen.

More efforts should be made to streamline administrative approvals, reduce taxation and fees, cut transaction costs, improve the business environment, promote entrepreneurship, and encourage private capital to help develop western regions, according to the plan.

In the 16 years since the "go west" strategy was implemented, more overseas investors have come to western China in search of opportunity.

More than 200 German companies have set up operations in Sichuan in manufacturing, environmental services, vocational education and other industries, according to the 16th Western China International Fair held in November in Chengdu, Sichuan Province.

In addition, more cooperation with eastern China and countries along the Belt and Road is encouraged in the new five-year plan to open the west.

Cooperation between eastern and western China has shown itself to be an effective platform for advancing both economic growth and common prosperity, so it needs to be maintained for the long term, said Chen Xiushan, a professor of regional economy at Renmin University of China.

He said that more technological, industrial and information resources in regions along the Yangtze River Economic Belt should be channeled into western regions to boost concerted development of eastern, western and central regions and help with poverty-relief measures in the west.

Meanwhile, cooperation between western regions and countries along the Belt and Road should also be strengthened, which will attract more investment opportunities and promote personnel and cultural exchanges, Chen added.
After struggling to recruit and retain forensic pathologists for the past two years, the Montana Crime Lab is expecting more turnover.

The state lost three Montana pathologists in 2015 and employed no medical examiners for part of that year. Instead, the Department of Justice relied on contract doctors from out of state and sometimes transported bodies hundreds of miles for autopsy.

State records show that the Department of Justice spent about $570,000 over its budget in fiscal 2016 to cover the contracts as well as recruiting expenses, as reported by Jayme Fraser in the Dec. 18 Gazette. Last May, the department asked to use spending authority from the 2017 fiscal year to cover the previous years cost overruns, Fraser reported. The department also held some crime lab positions vacant to recoup the unbudgeted medical examiner expenses.

In January, the state will increase the fee it charges county coroners from $965 to $1,500 per autopsy.

Retention challenges

Dr. Jaime Oeberst, hired in August 2015 as chief medical examiner in Missoula, was demoted to assistant last summer and recently returned to work part time after months on leave.

Dr. Robert Kurtzman, who started work in Billings in November 2015, is now chief medical examiner.

The third pathologist slot was filled later by Dr. Nikki Mourtzinos, who is leaving the Missoula crime lab in February to take a job in Maryland, the area where she previously worked, according to Eric Sell, DOJ spokesman. Dr. Sunil Prashar, of Minnesota, who has done contract work for Montana, has been hired to replace Mourtzinos, Sell said.

The medical examiner shuffle is concerning because Attorney General Tim Fox claimed to have stabilized the staff after an extended period of friction and turmoil that began before he took office. The hiring of Oeberst was said to have resolved issues about supervision of state pathologists, after disputes between the contract doctor in Billings and the state doctors in Missoula.

The unexpected cost for pathologists and autopsies added to DOJs budget challenges. The new satellite crime lab that opened in Billings last year to analyze suspected drug samples was authorized by the 2015 Legislature, which inadvertently failed to actually fund it. However, DOJ spokesman Eric Sell said last week that the department was able to absorb the crime lab and pathologists costs with existing revenue and wont be seeking a supplemental appropriation from the 2017 Legislature.

The crime lab has seen some staff turnover since the Billings satellite opened last spring. That hindered improvement time needed for analysis in law enforcement cases.

Speedier testing

The lab now is reporting a much better turnaround time on drug tests needed for criminal prosecutions. The average time for getting test results was eight months in 2014, according to DOJ. Recently, 95 percent of cases were completed within three months and the average time is two months.

Time is of the essence for the justice system, which is why so many lawmakers, county attorneys and law enforcement leaders in Billings and Eastern Montana pushed for the Billings crime lab. Suspects often remain in jail pending lab test results. Cases must be postponed in court if results arent available. Because most of these defendants are addicted, months of delay in the criminal case usually means months of delay in starting effective addiction treatment.

The recent challenges in the crime lab have called attention to the labs critical role in our justice system.

We call on Attorney General Tim Fox to make the medical examiner and crime lab top priorities. There isnt a big supply of the specialized scientists and physicians needed for this important work. Montana must be competitive with other states to attract and retain the staff needed. We encourage Fox to lobby for the resources needed to ensure timely high-quality forensic work. If that means asking for more money, he needs to ask the Legislature.
TOKYO, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to Pearl Harbor which will culminate with a final summit with outgoing U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday will see the Japanese leader take part in a remembrance ceremony at the USS Arizona monument where thousands of U.S. sailors and marines were killed in a surprise attack by Japan on Dec. 7, 1941.

It was this sneak attack that was a catalyst for the United States to join World War II and emerge victors with the eventual nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan that forced Japan's unconditional surrender, a historical fact that to this day does not sit well with some rightist factions with significant political sway here and wholesale revisionist intentions.

The visit to Pear Harbor by Abe, which was previously hailed by the foreign ministry here as being the first by a Japanese prime minister, is in fact not, according to latest government saying. Some political observers thus question the ministry's own understanding, or at least, publicization of its own history, as Japan is, under Abe's leadership, aggressively trying to have its historical wrongdoings rewritten, or, better yet, forgotten.

"When Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe makes his visit to Pearl Harbor, just after Christmas, it will be a dovish act that masks a hawkish intent," said political watcher Joji Sakurai, in a recent article on the matter.

"Pragmatism appears to be tempering Mr. Abe's rightwing instincts, which include an alarming penchant for historical revisionism regarding wartime Imperial army depredations. Yet it may be argued that this very pragmatism is driven by a conservative agenda," Sakurai continued.

"Mr. Abe's dream is to revise Japan's pacifist constitution, drawn up by the U.S. under postwar occupation, so allowing the country to have a real army. The thumping majority in parliament's upper house that the prime minister won in July has allowed him to test the waters on achieving that goal," added Sakurai.

Sakurai and other experts on the matter have been quick to point out that Abe's Pearl Harbor trip will come with no apology for Japan's savage attack in 1941 and is, shrewdly, a duplicitous move by the hawkish leader to earn bonus points at home from the electorate, particularly following the disappointing outcome for Japan following Abe's recent meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Abe will also be able to appease his ultra-rightwing backers by sticking to a revisionist agenda and not apologizing for Japan's wartime atrocities, not just regarding Pearl Harbor, but all the countries before, during and after WWII, who were brutalized by the Imperial Japanese Army, while simultaneously showing Japan's renewed commitment to its alliance with the U.S. as future ties remain equivocal under the incoming administration led by President-elect Donald Trump.

This multi-faceted strategy, in fact, has not been denied by Abe, who will also be looking to up his support rate ahead of an imminent lower house election, after which the rightist leader will further his plans to remilitarize Japan with a "clean historical slate" by way of a referendum on revising the nation's pacifist constitution.

"Part of the reason for his comments about history directed to the United States and other nations lies in the view held abroad of Abe as a historical revisionist. Although his main support base within Japan consists of conservative elements, those in the prime minister's office feel Abe can gain support among the more liberal side of Japan by visiting Pearl Harbor along with Obama, who has voiced the goal of seeking a nuclear-free world," the Asahi Shimbun newspaper said in a recent editorial on the matter.

"At the same time, Abe made clear that the visit to Pearl Harbor was an effort at strategic diplomacy' rather than one involving apology," the popular daily newspaper said.

And criticism for Abe's inauthenticity has come from all sides, including the United States. The Japan Times in a recent article on the matter quoted U.S. Navy veteran Louis Conter, who survived the Pearl Harbor attack, as saying that Abe should indeed offer an apology for Japan's furtive attack that propelled the U.S. into the war.

"I have no bad feeling toward the Japanese. But Abe should face up to history and apologize, Conter, 95, said in a recent interview at the site of the USS Arizona, which was sunk in the Imperial Japanese Navy's raid.

But as with all of Japan's wartime wrongdoings, Abe's "no apology" stance remains unrelenting. The attack on the Pearl Harbor naval base on the island of Oahu in Hawaii in 1941 killed some 2,400 U.S. military personnel and civilians, and Abe's "theatrics" to honor those who died may well be nauseating for some U.S. military veterans, but it will be doubly so for other countries and victims that Japan brutalized in the past and has since completely ignored as per its revisionist agenda.

Nippon Kaigi, to which Abe himself and the majority of his Cabinet and a number of influential members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party-led bloc are unabashed members of, describes itself as existing to: "Change the postwar national consciousness based on the Tokyo Tribunal's view of history as a fundamental problem" and to "revise the current Constitution," and sees its mission as to "promote patriotic education, the revision of the Constitution of Japan, and support for prime ministers' official visits to Yasukuni Shrine".

Based on this, political pundits here attest that not only are Abe's gestures to "mourn" or "pacify" those it abused and persecuted in the past, as is the case in Pearl Harbor, and was with the "comfort women" issue in South Korea recently, disingenuous. His modus operandi is one that sees "reconciliation" as tantamount to simply "forgetting" and making sure that generations to come in Japan and the world forget as well.

Yujin Yaguchi, a professor of American studies at the University of Tokyo, explicated how the current Abe-led administration adheres to a warped principle of denying and not facing history squarely, while setting about institutionally revising it, so that the true facts may one day be forgotten once and for all.

"By commemorating Pearl Harbor, if the whole society marginalizes the whole process that led to Pearl Harbor, that commemoration becomes an act of forgetting as well," explained Yaguchi.
ISLAMABAD, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) started the penultimate week of the year of 2016 on a bullish note on Monday but the overall trading activities remained on the lackluster side amid lack of interest by the foreign investors amid the Christmas festivities across the world.

The Pakistan Stock Exchange's benchmark KSE 100-Index gained 0.12 percent or 55.74 points to 46,689.73 points on Monday when compared with 46,633.99 points posted on Friday.

The KSE All-Share Index increased by 0.28 percent or 90.14 points to 31,918.97 points, the KSE 30-Index jacked up by 0.14 percent or 35.51 points to 25,187.25 points, the KMI 30-Index augmented by 0.24 percent or 189.38 points to 79,873.58 points, whereas the Islamic All-Share Index closed higher by 0.29 percent or 64.80 points to 22,166 points.

During Monday's trading session, the main index traveled in a remote range of 283.62 points as it touched an intraday high of 46,898.66 points as against an intraday low of 46,615.04 points.

Hub Power Company (HUBC) contributed 29 points to the overall gain in the key index. Similarly, a renewed interest in the auto sector was reported which led Honda Atlas Car and Pak-Suzuki Motor Company to close higher by 5 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively.

Banking stocks slid due to profit-taking as MCB Bank (MCB), Habib Bank Limited (HBL), and United Bank Limited (UBL) declined in the range of 0.2 percent to 0.9 percent.

Market volumes trimmed down by 21.67 percent or 49.708 million shares to 179.672 million shares on Monday when compared with 229.381 million shares posted on Friday.

Market capitalization improved by 0.28 percent or 26.426 billion rupees (251.684 million U.S. dollars) to 9.357 trillion rupees (89.121 billion U.S. dollars) whereas trade value shrank by 14.62 percent or 1.539 billion rupees (14.662 million U.S. dollars) to 8.988 billion rupees (85.603 million U.S. dollars).

Among 385 active scrips on Monday, prices of 190 issues advanced, 177 depleted, whereas values of 18 other companies stayed unchanged at previous week's levels.

TRG Pakistan Limited, Engro Polymer, and Karachi Electric Limited were the top traded companies with turnovers of 18.79 million shares, 13.62 million shares, and 11.14 million shares, respectively.

Wyeth Pakistan Limited was the top price gainer with an increment of 163.66 rupees (1.56 U.S. dollars) to 4,717.20 rupees (44.93 U.S. dollars) while on the other hand, Bata Pakistan led the major price shedders with a decrement of 81.79 rupees (77.90 U.S. cents) to 4,700 rupees (44.76 U.S. dollars).
RAMALLAH, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Palestinians look forward to building on the recent UN Security Council resolution against Israeli settlement activity, while Israel expressed fear of more international steps against it.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki on Monday told the official Voice of Palestine radio that the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) will seek the help of law experts to utilize what was incorporated in the UNSC resolution against settlements.

Malki explained that it has now become possible to act against institutions and companies that deal with settlements.

He added "we can return to the International Criminal Court (ICC) with more courage now, to pressure it and demand speeding up its procedures regarding Israeli settlements since the UNSC resolution is binding."

The foreign minister said that it has now become possible for any Palestinian who was affected by the settlement building to consider seriously pursuing legal action against political leaders in Israel who ordered settlement construction on their land.

He pointed out that the Palestinian leadership is considering a series of steps in the coming period, including going to Switzerland, which is the dignitary of the Geneva conventions to assess Israel's commitment to the implementation of those agreements.

He said that the Palestinian leadership is preparing a comprehensive vision by the new year in order to end the Israeli occupation.

Fatah party's Central Committee member and former negotiator Mohammad Ishtayeh said that a national team will be formed to document land confiscation, settlement construction and seizure of water resources besides other illegal Israeli actions on the ground."

Ishtayeh said in a statement that the team will be formed together with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Palestinian territories (OCHA) as part of the implementation of the recent Security Council resolution against settlements that called for incorporating the international community in monitoring settlement activities and combating them, and submitting a periodic report to the UN secretary general about the matter.

The UNSC adopted Friday night a resolution against Israeli settlement activity with a majority of 14 votes and one abstention by the U.S.

The resolution was submitted to the voting session by Venezuela, Senegal, Malaysia and New Zealand after it was postponed by Egypt, the Arab bloc representative at the Security Council.

Ishtayeh highlighted that this UN resolution would "open new doors for Palestinian diplomatic endeavor, being an international recognition of the illegality of settlements and that its continuation is no longer acceptable."

Although the resolution is under the non-binding article 6, the door is still open to present a new resolution against settlements under article 7 to make it binding, said Ishtayeh.

He added that "the resolution allows us to activate international boycott and encourages us to request from European states to take steps against settlers who hold European citizenships who are living on illegal settlements."

Ishtayeh applauded the U.S. administration that allowed passing the resolution by abstaining and not using the veto against it, and said "it was able to offer something to Palestine, in the last quarter of its tenure."

In the same time, Ishtayeh said that the UNSC against settlements is additionally important because it would become a reference to the French initiative to hold an international peace conference in Paris mid January.

"Israel used to say that Jerusalem is a unified capital and that 1967 borders are not the final borders, claiming rights in the Palestinian territories, but now the world stab something else," said Ishtaye in his statement.

He called on Europe to adopt the French initiative to become a European initiative, underscoring that "the Palestinian leadership wants it to succeed and to show a new model of multi-lateral negotiations as opposed to bilateral negotiations, which failed over the past years, and to put the Palestinian cause as a top priority to the international community."

The senior member of Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party said that "the insanity in the political corridors in Israel after the UNSC resolution comes because it is aware of the importance of this resolution; it is the international comity that established Israel and it could, with Palestinian efforts, establish the Palestinian state."

This comes as Israeli political sources expressed concern that outgoing U.S. President Barack Obama would "slap Israel again" before he leaves the White House in about three weeks.

The Israeli public radio reported that the Israeli cabinet discussed in an urgent meeting Sunday night the possibility that Obama would push another UNSC resolution regarding setting new criteria to resume peace talks between Palestine and Israel.

The radio station added that political arenas in Israel fear another slam by the international peace conference expected in Paris next month.

"There is a real confrontation now between President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as all masks have fallen down," mentioned the radio station.

Netanyahu said Sunday night that he rejects the UNSC resolution against settlement and Israel cannot accept it.

Prior to those statements, Netanyahu met with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro to discuss the U.S. abstention to veto the resolution.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry declared that it summoned the ambassadors of the states that voted in favor of the anti-settlements resolution for reprimanding them.

The issue of settlements is considered one of the most complicates issues of the Palestinian - Israeli conflict and a reason for freezing peace talks between the two sides.
Photo taken on Dec. 25, 2016 shows the rescue operation on the Black Sea coast at the crash site of Russian Defense Ministry's Tu-154 aircraft. Several bodies have been found at the crash site of a missing Russian military Tu-154 aircraft in the Black Sea, Russian media reported Sunday, citing the Defense Ministry press service. (Xinhua/Sputnik)

MOSCOW, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Divers have recovered the wreckage of the Russian Tu-154 aircraft that crashed Sunday into the Black Sea after takeoff from the resort city of Sochi, the Russian Defense Ministry said Monday.

The divers have already raised to the surface two elements of the steering unit, which have been identified by their serial numbers as those belonging to the crashed plane, the ministry's spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.

The fragments were found at a depth of 30 meters and some 1,700 meters off the coastline, he said, adding that debris of the crashed plane was scattered on the territory with a radius of around 500 meters.

Over 3,500 people, as well as 45 ships, 12 airplanes, 10 helicopters, three drones and several deep-submergence vehicles are currently participating in the search and rescue operation.

The ill-fated Tu-154, en route to Russia's Hmeimim air base in the Syrian port city of Latakia, crashed shortly after takeoff from Sochi early Sunday morning.

Ninety-two people -- 84 passengers and eight crew members -- were aboard the plane. Most of them were members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, a renowned choir of the Russian Armed Forces, as well as nine Russian journalists. They were heading to the air base for New Year celebrations.

Russia held a nationwide day of mourning on Monday. Flags were flown at half-mast at the signature buildings and government workplaces in Moscow. People laid flowers in front of the Moscow headquarters of the Alexandrov Ensemble.

The Defense Ministry denied reports that some of the crash victims were seen wearing life jackets.

The authorities have ruled out the possibility of a terror attack, saying the main reasons of the crash may be technical failure or pilot errors.

Earlier in the day, the Russian Air Force Commander-in-Chief Viktor Bondarev said the flight recorders of the aircraft remain intact.
KIEV, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The ceasefire which took effect in eastern Ukraine on Saturday has brought a relative calm to some areas in the conflict-ravaged region over the weekend.

Still, the rival sides accuse each other of ignoring the truce, raising worries of a possible resumption of full-scale hostilities.

In the small town of Mariinka in the Donetsk region, which lies on the frontline between government troops and independence-seeking insurgents, guns fell almost silent despite the sporadic sounds of small arms being fired.

The residents and soldiers living in the town, tired from months of artillery shelling, pay little attention to the shots.

In the meantime, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said the security situation in some areas along the frontline was far from peaceful during the weekend.

Insurgents carried out 33 attacks on positions held by government forces on Sunday, injuring five soldiers, said Andriy Lysenko, a spokesman for the ministry.

Meanwhile, insurgents said government troops carried out 189 attacks on their positions, using tanks, grenade launchers and small arms.

It is noteworthy that no death has been confirmed in the conflict-torn region in the past two days, while in the previous week both sides have reported multiple combat fatalities.

On Dec. 21, the Contact Group on the Ukraine crisis, which held a meeting in the Belarusian capital of Minsk, called on the conflicting parties in eastern Ukraine to begin a comprehensive, steady and definite ceasefire starting from midnight local time on Dec. 24.

The conflict between government troops and rebels in eastern Ukraine has been raging since April 2014, claiming some 10,000 lives.

The previous rounds of truce efforts have repeatedly failed, with the two sides accusing each other of ceasefire violations.
Ambassador Naela Gabr, Secretary-General of Egypt's National Coordinating Committee on Preventing and Combating Illegal Migration (NCCPIM), receives an interview with Xinhua in Cairo, Egypt on Dec. 25, 2016. Naela Gabr said that her country has successfully made a law to curb illegal immigration and human smuggling amid a hike of migrants illegally departing from the North African country to Europe. (Xinhua/Zhao Dingzhe)by Emad Alazrak

CAIRO, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- An Egyptian official said that her country has successfully made a law to curb illegal immigration and human smuggling amid a hike of migrants illegally departing from the North African country to Europe.

"This law is the first of its kind in the Middle East," Secretary-General of the National Coordinating Committee on Preventing and Combating Illegal Migration (NCCPIM) Ambassador Naela Gabr told Xinhua.

Egypt has become a more common launching point for illegal immigration through its Mediterranean Sea shores to Europe after Libya and Turkey lost their importance for smugglers in favor of the most populous Arab country.

Illegal immigration via Egyptian Mediterranean shores rose over the past few years in attempts to reach Europe and flee difficult economic conditions in the financially-struggling Arab country, where unemployment rate hit 12.5 percent, according to official reports.

"The law punishes people involved in smuggling migrants with prison sentences and financial fines. It does not punish illegal immigrants themselves," the official said.

In October, Egypt's parliament voted for a cabinet bill combating illegal immigration and human-smuggling. The 34-article bill stipulates a penalty of between 50,000 and 200,000 Egyptian pounds (1 U.S. dollar=19 Egyptian pounds) or a prison sentence to anyone who smuggles migrants, attempts to smuggle them, mediates in the smuggling process, or provide any services while aware of the crime.

The law includes a definition of the crime of people-smuggling and various related elements such as smugglers, unaccompanied children, fraudulent travel documents, the types of ship involved and the territorial waters where it occurs.

"A copy of the law has been sent to the African Union as a model to be followed by African countries," Gabr added.

She said that the NCCPIM has set a national strategy to combat illegal immigration in Egypt.

"The first step was to develop a statistical map of the Egyptian governorates with the highest rate of people vulnerable to the risk of illegal migration," she said, adding that such information would place the NCCPIM in a better position to carry out its duties in curtailing the flow of illegal migrants, and targeting both communities at risk and smugglers.

To achieve this purpose, she said, the Committee finalized two field studies on the youth and unaccompanied children under the age of 18.

"They identified the different forms of illegal migration, the driving factors and the demographic characteristics of the Egyptian youth and children migrating illegally," she added.

"Our efforts culminated in the development of the first national strategy (2016-2026) that was agreed upon by all national stakeholders and integrates all economic, societal, political and cultural dimensions of the problem, thus providing solid foundation for a multi-dimensional response to the phenomenon," she revealed.

Under the strategy, Gabr said, a two-year action plan (2016-2018) was developed with implementation and review mechanisms based on verifiable key performance indicators.

The official said that Egypt is also an immigrant-receiving country, adding there is almost a balance between outing and incoming immigrants.

Egypt hosts African, Syrian and Iraqi immigrants, she said, adding that migrants in Egypt are not placed in separated camps.

"They are an integral part of our society, sharing every aspect of life and receiving all essential societal amenities the government provides to their fellow Egyptian nationals," She pointed out.

Gabr also said that the NCCPIM places the highest priority on enhancing regional cooperation, in particular with our African neighbors. The committee is working closely with the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on providing capacity building and training programs to African diplomats and officials in the field of administration of justice.

According to Gabr, Italy is the primary destination for most of the illegal immigrants who use Egypt as launching point, while Greece comes in the second place due to its deteriorating economic conditions.

"When receiving countries see that we have achieved a law to combat illegal immigration in less than two years and a half, and that we are already doing our best to stop the flow of migrants, then they should provide funds to enhance this strategy," Gabr stressed.

The official expressed dissatisfaction at the level of regional and international cooperation regarding illegal immigration, saying that the problem of illegal immigration can be countered only by real cooperation and improving the conditions in developing countries as well as solving the political feuds in the Middle East.

"Solving the Libyan and Syrian crises will decrease the illegal immigration. That is why the international community, especially permanent members of the UN Security Council, should reach a settlement to these conflicts," she said.

Gabr said the international support might not be enough to help ease the burden several countries bear to accommodate the growing number of migrants.

"We stand ready to enhance our engagement with international donors and financial institutions to mobilize additional resources for developmental projects with immediate bearing on youth susceptible to illegal migration in Egypt and elsewhere," she said.

The NCCPIM is an inter-ministerial entity bringing together 19 relevant ministries and national human rights agencies, with an institutional structure and a clear mandate to champion and coordinate national efforts to combat and curb illegal migration.
Syrian opposition fighters fire towards positions held by Islamic State (IS) group jihadists in al-Bab on the northeastern outskirts of the northern embattled city of Aleppo on December 13, 2016. (AFP/Xinhua)

ANKARA, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- At least 30 civilians, who made an attempt to escape from Syria's al-Bab in Northern Syria on Dec. 25, were killed by Islamic State (IS) terrorist attack with mines and hand-made explosives, Turkish military source told Anadolu Agency on Monday.

IS has been threatening civilians in al-Bab and trying to push them to stay in the city, where the roads and streets have been blocked by the terror group's barricades.

Meanwhile, A Turkish solider injured in Al-Bab during the clash with IS died on Dec.26 while being treated in Gaziantep province, adding the death toll of Turkish soldiers killed in northern Syria in last week to 17, Dogan News Agency reported.

16 Turkish soldiers were killed in an IS attack on Dec. 21 in Al-Bab, as Turkish troops and Ankara-backed Syrian rebels battle to take the town from jihadists,Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik said on Dec. 22.

Isik said on Dec. 23 that he had information that three Turkish soldiers were abducted by IS militants in northern Syria but added that other "comments" beyond this information were not confirmed.

On Aug. 24, the Turkish Armed Forces launched the Euphrates Shield Operation against IS and the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), the military wing of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD).

Turkish President Erdogan said that the operation was also meant to end the rule of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Turkey lists the YPG and the PYD as terrorist organizations due to their links to the PKK.
This file photo taken on December 09, 2016 shows a Palestinian protestor in front of the Israeli settlement of Qadumim (Kedumim) during clashes with Israeli security forces following a demonstration against the expropriation of Palestinian land by Israel in the village of Kfar Qaddum, near Nablus, in the occupied West Bank. (AFP/Xinhua)

RAMALLAH, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Palestinians look forward to building on the recent UN Security Council resolution against Israeli settlement activity, while Israel expressed fear of more international steps against it.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki on Monday told the official Voice of Palestine radio that the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) will seek the help of law experts to utilize what was incorporated in the UNSC resolution against settlements.

Malki explained that it has now become possible to act against institutions and companies that deal with settlements.

He added "we can return to the International Criminal Court (ICC) with more courage now, to pressure it and demand speeding up its procedures regarding Israeli settlements since the UNSC resolution is binding."

The foreign minister said that it has now become possible for any Palestinian who was affected by the settlement building to consider seriously pursuing legal action against political leaders in Israel who ordered settlement construction on their land.

He pointed out that the Palestinian leadership is considering a series of steps in the coming period, including going to Switzerland, which is the dignitary of the Geneva conventions to assess Israel's commitment to the implementation of those agreements.

He said that the Palestinian leadership is preparing a comprehensive vision by the new year in order to end the Israeli occupation.

Fatah party's Central Committee member and former negotiator Mohammad Ishtayeh said that a national team will be formed to document land confiscation, settlement construction and seizure of water resources besides other illegal Israeli actions on the ground."

Ishtayeh said in a statement that the team will be formed together with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Palestinian territories (OCHA) as part of the implementation of the recent Security Council resolution against settlements that called for incorporating the international community in monitoring settlement activities and combating them, and submitting a periodic report to the UN secretary general about the matter.

The UNSC adopted Friday night a resolution against Israeli settlement activity with a majority of 14 votes and one abstention by the U.S.

The resolution was submitted to the voting session by Venezuela, Senegal, Malaysia and New Zealand after it was postponed by Egypt, the Arab bloc representative at the Security Council.

Ishtayeh highlighted that this UN resolution would "open new doors for Palestinian diplomatic endeavor, being an international recognition of the illegality of settlements and that its continuation is no longer acceptable."

Although the resolution is under the non-binding article 6, the door is still open to present a new resolution against settlements under article 7 to make it binding, said Ishtayeh.

He added that "the resolution allows us to activate international boycott and encourages us to request from European states to take steps against settlers who hold European citizenships who are living on illegal settlements."

Ishtayeh applauded the U.S. administration that allowed passing the resolution by abstaining and not using the veto against it, and said "it was able to offer something to Palestine, in the last quarter of its tenure."

In the same time, Ishtayeh said that the UNSC against settlements is additionally important because it would become a reference to the French initiative to hold an international peace conference in Paris mid January.

"Israel used to say that Jerusalem is a unified capital and that 1967 borders are not the final borders, claiming rights in the Palestinian territories, but now the world stab something else," said Ishtaye in his statement.

He called on Europe to adopt the French initiative to become a European initiative, underscoring that "the Palestinian leadership wants it to succeed and to show a new model of multi-lateral negotiations as opposed to bilateral negotiations, which failed over the past years, and to put the Palestinian cause as a top priority to the international community."

The senior member of Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party said that "the insanity in the political corridors in Israel after the UNSC resolution comes because it is aware of the importance of this resolution; it is the international comity that established Israel and it could, with Palestinian efforts, establish the Palestinian state."

This comes as Israeli political sources expressed concern that outgoing U.S. President Barack Obama would "slap Israel again" before he leaves the White House in about three weeks.

The Israeli public radio reported that the Israeli cabinet discussed in an urgent meeting Sunday night the possibility that Obama would push another UNSC resolution regarding setting new criteria to resume peace talks between Palestine and Israel.

The radio station added that political arenas in Israel fear another slam by the international peace conference expected in Paris next month.

"There is a real confrontation now between President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as all masks have fallen down," mentioned the radio station.

Netanyahu said Sunday night that he rejects the UNSC resolution against settlement and Israel cannot accept it.

Prior to those statements, Netanyahu met with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro to discuss the U.S. abstention to veto the resolution.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry declared that it summoned the ambassadors of the states that voted in favor of the anti-settlements resolution for reprimanding them.

The issue of settlements is considered one of the most complicates issues of the Palestinian - Israeli conflict and a reason for freezing peace talks between the two sides.
by Fuad Rajeh

SANAA, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Yemen is receiving the new year with not much hope about peace or an end to the catastrophic humanitarian situation.

The only good news after a tough year which has seen a fierce civil war, an utterly vicious Saudi-led bombing campaign and deepening crises is that Jordan is considering hosting talks between the Yemeni factions.

But even this news is not calling for optimism as the talks will be dedicated to discussing possible ways for de-escalation.

The talks are backed by the quartet on Yemen which comprises the United States, Britain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Adil Al-Shuja'a, a politics professor at Sanaa University, said the talks supposed to be held in Amman means that one of the roadblocks to the peace process in Yemen -- the Houthi-Saleh alliance's refusal to go to Riyadh for talks -- has been removed.

"But there are two problems with these talks -- the first is that the quartet is saying the Yemeni factions will seek a deal for de-escalation, not an end, to the conflict; And the other is that it seems Saudi Arabia and its international backers are concerned about security on the Saudi border, not the war and its horrible consequences in Yemen," he said.

"Actually, foreign and regional players are working on a solution for Syria. Their main concern seems to be how to fight terror. They seem to be afraid that iif terror spreads in Yemen, it will add to the worsening situation in the region," he said.

Still, the most likely scenario in Yemen during the next year is that problems will continue.

Yaseen Al-Tamimi, a political writer and analyst, argued that all problems are expected to continue and worsen as there are not clear signs or goodwill to end the political stalemate and alleviate the catastrophic humanitarian crisis.

"The international community insists on the UN roadmap which I see can't solve the crisis because it somehow legalizes the Houthi-Saleh coup and weakens the powers of the legitimate government," Al-Tamimi said.

The internationally recognized government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia and the coalition it is leading, and the Houthi-Saleh alliance have rejected the UN roadmap and another roadmap suggested by the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.

Both sides said the roadmaps can't lay the groundwork for permanent peace.

Ahmed Noman, an expert at the Red Sea and East Africa Research Center, expects the first six months of the new year will see a military escalation as all signs and developments indicate Saudi Arabia is determined to achieve a military victory.

"I think there will be talks but not productive or rather not real. Any talks would be like a cover for a military escalation by the Saudi-led military coalition," he said.

Noman also sees that the international community is now seeking to change the situation on the ground in favor of the coalition.

"The final statement of the latest meeting of the quartet on Yemen in Riyadh affirmed that Saudi Arabia's security is the U.S. security and that was a clear message about the main concern of the international community."

The legitimate government's forces with support from the coalition have controlled almost 80 percent of Yemen, including oil and gas regions, and such progress is convincing the international community to continue support for the Saudi-led military intervention, he said.

"Thus, the most likely scenario which I expect in Yemen next year is this: the government forces with support from the coalition will seek to take over the capital Sanaa, surround the Houthi stronghold and birthplace of Saada, and then liberate key cities where battles are continuing such as Taiz," Noman said.

TRAGIC YEAR

The civil war and the Saudi-led military campaign have been continuing throughout 2016, deepening all crises.

The factions have failed to reach a deal at talks backed by the UN several times, as no side has achieved a complete military victory even in the southern regions that are now run by the legitimate government.

Fuad Alsalahi, a professor of political sociology at Sanaa University, said the top reasons for the military, security and political failures in Yemen were the lack of an independent national project as all factions are obvious proxies and the West's manipulation of crises within their policy to incite and prolong chaos in the region.

"In all their fights, Yemeni factions struggle for quotas in power, but not serving the country. This is the ugly truth. The country has been on the brink of a total collapse or rather a completely failed state. Who will take the initiative to end the conflict and prevent further deterioration of the situation?" he said.

In this context, the political writer and analyst Al-Tamimi said there are several reasons for military and political failures during 2016.

"The government does not take initiative and depends on the coalition. That is a big problem because the government is the only one that is aware of what is should be done, when and how, while the coalition is supposed to be a backer," Al-Tamimi said.

"Other reasons included that the U.S. does not see the Houthis as the real problem. The U.S. is focusing on Sunni groups which are allegedly more dangerous than anyone else here," he added.

Noman sees that, however, it is not correct to say there were failures because every war has its well-built plans.

"The idea is that Saudi Arabia realized the Houthi-Saleh alliance has large equipment, resources and fighters, and then it has been busy with a war of attrition to break up the alliance and then achieve a military victory," Noman said.

TOTAL COLLAPSE

Since the civil war erupted, Yemen has almost ended up as a completely failed state.

Most of the country's infrastructure has been destroyed in the conflict, but the humanitarian crisis remains the worst thing here, as the UN data estimates 19 million people, out of around 27 million population, require some kind of humanitarian or protection assistance.

The number of the people in need has dropped from around 22 million, 82 percent of total population, but the number of those in acute need of help has increased by around three million.

Children remain the most vulnerable group in Yemen as the UNICEF and Save the Children estimate that around 1,000 children die every week from preventable diseases such as diarrhoea, malnutrition and respiratory tract infections.

The country's healthcare system is also collapsing, international organizations have warned, adding that only 45 percent of healthcare facilities are operational now, but coping with acute shortages of medical equipment, medicines and staff.

The embargo on Yemen by the Saudi-led coalition has deepened the suffering.

The conflict has affected all sectors in Yemen, resulting in an economic meltdown and the collapse of basic services and institutions.

All investments including foreign oil and gas projects that contribute more than 70 percent of the budget resources and account for around 90 percent of the country's exports have been shut down for two years.

The World Bank says the country's gross domestic product per capita fell by 50 percent between 2012 and 2015, and by 35 percent in 2015 alone. The poverty rate has also increased to more than 60 percent.
CARACAS, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela on Monday warned that a possible accord between Colombia and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) could pose as a risk to peace in Latin America.

"The Venezuelan government firmly opposes the attempt to introduce external factors with nuclear capability in our region," the Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

NATO's "past and recent actions revindicate a policy of war (and) violate bilateral and regional agreements of which Colombia is a part, (and) through which Latin America and the Caribbean have been declared a Zone of Peace," the government said.

As a member of key regional blocs, including the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), Colombia has to follow those agreements.

The warning comes after Colombia's President Juan Manuel Santos announced on Friday that NATO had agreed to preliminary talks with his government over a cooperation accord that would eventually lead to full membership.

The move additionally "undermines the principles of the Non-Aligned Movement, which expressly prohibits member states from forming part of military alliances," Venezuela said.
We write in our capacity as members of the Montana Public Defender Commission. We are an all-volunteer commission, formed pursuant to the 2005 Montana Public Defender Act.

We are charged with administering and managing a statewide agency that consists of 247 full-time-equivalent attorneys and staff, and 252 contract attorneys as of the end of FY 2016 in June. The agency had a budget of more than $35 million (about 2 percent of the states total budget) in FY 2016.

In recent weeks, statewide news outlets have reported on certain struggles and challenges facing the Office of the State Public Defender. Specifically, media sources have noted that, due to unprecedented increased caseloads, the system faces an anticipated budget shortfall. Public defenders, it is claimed, have failed to collect fees from their clients. Further, three members of the governors commission, and the recently hired chief administrator, have resigned.

Staggering caseloads

We wish to assure the public that we are taking fiscally responsive steps to address the challenges the system faces, while recognizing the legal responsibilities associated with effective representation. The staggering caseloads that public defenders take on illuminates the problems inherent in our justice system.

Last year state public defenders were appointed to more than 36,000 cases.

Since 2012, OPDs caseload in homicide and other felony cases has increased by approximately 32 percent.

Similarly, caseload for misdemeanors has increased by approximately 11 percent and the dependent and neglect caseload (civil child abuse/neglect) has increased by approximately 53 percent.

These increases in workload are not addressed through corresponding increases in funding, staff or attorneys. Thus, all of our attorneys are working extraordinarily high caseloads  in many regions, their caseloads exceed the amount they can ethically take on and maintain effective representation.

Controlling expenses

Public defenders cannot legally refuse to take a case when assigned by the courts which creates unique ethical dilemmas for these attorneys. Pursuant to state law, the OPD commission has developed a mitigation plan that addresses many of these challenges.

We have enacted a hiring freeze on certain positions, and discontinued the use of contract investigators in certain regions.

We have begun hiring modified, part-time attorneys to replace contract attorneys as a more cost-effective means of providing required representation.

The plan directs that all eleven regional public defender offices work to reduce expenditures wherever possible. Offices are striving to reduce requests for investigators, psychiatric evaluations, and chemical dependency screenings, all in an effort to save money.

We have noted the significant ethical challenges and associated expenses involved in collecting fees from PD clients, and have recommended that this effort be taken on by the Department of Revenue  a recommendation adopted by the task force that is now the subject of specific legislation.

We are committed to working with the governors office and the Legislature during the upcoming session to assure that the public defender system continues to function efficiently, and admirably to fulfill this legal representation obligation. Despite the staggering caseloads, public defenders work with great dedication and dignity. They believe wholeheartedly in the constitutional and statutory provisions that guarantee all clients deserve effective legal representation. Many public defenders work in excess of a 40-hour week. They work against great odds, without complaint. Montanas public defenders are among the finest attorneys that can be found anywhere. They deserve our appreciation, our respect, and our support.
A cheetah is seen at the world's famous Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya, on Nov. 29, 2016. More than 600 species of both birds and wildlife are found here including elephant, lion, cheetah, giraffe, hyena and vulture. (Xinhua/Pan Siwei)

WASHINGTON, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The world's fastest land animal, the cheetah, is sprinting towards the edge of extinction, a new study warned Monday, calling for urgent conservation actions to save these big cats.

The study, published in the U.S. journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, estimated that the cheetah's population has declined to just 7,100 globally, which are now confined to 9 percent of the animal's historic range.

Asiatic cheetah population has been hit hardest, with fewer than 50 individuals remaining in one isolated pocket of Iran, according to the study by the Zoological Society of London, Panthera and Wildlife Conservation Society.

As a result, the researchers urged that the cheetah should be up-listed from "Vulnerable" to "Endangered" on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species.

Sarah Durant of the Zoological Society of London and lead author of the study said this study represents the most comprehensive analysis of cheetah status to date.

"Given the secretive nature of this elusive cat, it has been difficult to gather hard information on the species, leading to its plight being overlooked," Durant said in a statement.

"Our findings show that the large space requirements for cheetah, coupled with the complex range of threats faced by the species in the wild, mean that it is likely to be much more vulnerable to extinction than was previously thought."

According to the researchers, even within guarded parks and reserves, cheetahs still face threats of human-wildlife conflict, prey loss due to overhunting by people, habitat loss and the illegal trafficking of cheetah parts and trade as exotic pets.

To make matters worse, as one of the world's most wide-ranging carnivores, 77 percent of the cheetah's habitat falls outside of protected areas, which makes the animal especially vulnerable to human pressures.

For instance, Zimbabwe has seen the cheetah's population fall from 1,200 to a maximum of 170 animals in just 16 years, largely due to pressures on wildlife and their habitat outside of protected areas, said the study.

The researchers called for "a holistic conservation approach," including incentivizing local communities and trans-national governments to protect cheetahs and promoting sustainable human-wildlife coexistence.

"The take-away from this pinnacle study is that securing protected areas alone is not enough," said Kim Young-Overton, cheetah program director of the wild cat conservation group Panthera.

"We must think bigger, conserving across the mosaic of protected and unprotected landscapes that these far-ranging cats inhabit, if we are to avert the otherwise certain loss of the cheetah forever."
BUENOS AIRES, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Argentine government said on Monday it dismissed Treasury and Finance Minister Alfonso Prat Gay, and split the agency into two ministries.

"President (Mauricio) Macri has arranged for a change in the government team" overseeing the economy, Chief of Staff Marcos Pena told reporters at a press conference.

"In view of the challenges we will have next year, it has been decided to divide the ministry in two: the Treasury Ministry, which will be headed by Nicolas Dujovne, and the Finance Ministry, headed by Luis Caputo," Pena said.

He indicated that Gay was asked to resign due to differences over the makeup of the economic team and "the decision-making process."

Gay "has achieved great things" in the administration's first year, "like ... normalizing international financial ties, following the exit from default," he added.

Caputo, 51, came to prominence early this year as the government negotiator with so-called "holdouts" in possession of expired Argentinian foreign debt bonds.

Caputo "turned into the key man to renegotiate the debt with the holdouts and quickly close the deal at the end of February," state news agency Telam said.

Dujovne has served as a consultant to the World Bank and is on the board of directors of Argentina's Central Bank.
ST. PETERSBURG, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Customs Code of the Eurasian Economic Union was signed by the leaders of Russia, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan on Monday during the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council in St. Petersburg.

According to Chairman of board of the Eurasian Economic Commission Tigran Sargsyan, the President of Kyrgyzstan Almazbek Atambayev signed the Customs Code, but with exception of the part about regulations of foreign economic activity due to the need to clarify some statements.

The Customs Code is the the first important legal act affecting the sphere of the customs regulation within the Eurasian Economic Union,which functions since January 1, 2015 and includes Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

The President of Belarus didn't participate in the meeting, so the document will be handed over to him to be signed later.
by Guo Yage, Wang Haiqing, Yu Shuaishuai

BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Year 2016 has seen many new faces in the global political arena, with some capturing worldwide attention even before they won a crucial vote to become the helmsman of a major country or a key multilateral organization.

They were propelled to the center stage amid growing anti-globalization sentiment, a populist surge, and concurring crises. How these prominent figures proceed to deliver their election pledges will hugely impact the world, for better or for worse, according to experts.

DONALD TRUMP: AMERICA FIRST

Trump has stunned the whole world when he won the 2016 U.S. presidential election. While his campaign trail has revealed an increasing turmoil in the United States, his moving into the White House next month will no doubt leave more uncertainties to this country, and the world at large.

A political outsider, he won the election by capitalizing on deepening discontent toward the ruling elites and portrayed himself as a champion of the public will.

The surging populism, anti-intellectualism, isolationism, trade protectionism and anti-globalization have all helped pave the way for Trump' s election victory. Yet there are constant doubts that Trump, who chanted "America First" throughout the campaign, will bring a better future for the United States.

According to analysts, Trump could not ease the widening wealth gap and rooted social problems, nor could he revive the U.S. economy though he promised to do so with a policy mix of fiscal measures, infrastructure spending and tax cuts.

The policy mix may add to a "long-term global debt crisis," Bill Gross, a renowned bond manager, wrote in a December newsletter titled "Red is the New Green" .

Trump' s promised tax cuts, including reducing taxes for businesses and the ultra wealthy Americans, will be "damaging" to the working class, Gross said.

Trump has also urged U.S. companies to stop outsourcing jobs overseas, and threatens possible financial penalties if they continue to do so.

Still, such policy will be "very difficult to bring certain jobs back, those low wage, low cost manufacturing jobs" as many U.S. manufacturing companies lack advantages in global competition, said Eswar Prasad, a professor at Cornell University and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

Besides, if there is too much of an emphasis on traditional, blue-collar manufacturing without an eye on high-tech sector of the economy, the country will face more difficulties down the road as the global economy changes, said Dan Mahaffee, vice president of Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress.

For the world, a future with President Trump is still rife with unpredictability. Nevertheless, a growing number of analysts agree that most of his foreign policies will be mercantilist.

"Many of the approaches to foreign policy are more likely to be transactional, and the Trump team will be looking for areas where the United States can exert leverage in negotiations on potentially acrimonious topics," Mahaffee said.

The upcoming U.S. president has also made known of his trade protectionist intentions. He already pronounced the death of TPP, and said he would choose to negotiate with each of his country' s partners for what he called "fair" trade pacts.

Trump threatens hefty tariffs on Chinese products if Beijing does not stop what he called "unfair trade practices."

There will be a risk which "would make the business climate in China and the U.S. much more difficult for companies operating in two countries," Prasad said.

According to Mahaffee, "U.S.-China relationship might become extremely transactional" with Trump's "The Art of the Deal," referring to a book Trump wrote in 1987.

David Dollar, senior fellow at John L. Thornton China Center, the Brookings Institution, said he hoped that the Trump administration sees that it's not in U.S. interests to start a full-scale trade war with China.

THERESA MAY: FORMIDABLE MISSION TO NEGOTIATE BREXIT

She was Britain' s longest serving home secretary in half a century, known for her tenacity on tackling thorny policy issues such as immigration.

She triumphed in the brief but intense contest to the British premiership, trusted with the task to negotiate Britain' s departure from the European Union (EU), despite that she had been supportive of David Cameron' s position to remain in the bloc.

Many political analysts and media commentators have noted the striking resemblance in character between May and Britain' s first female prime minister, Margret Thatcher, saying that May would be the new "iron lady."

Strong and steely she may be, May appeared to have achieved little regarding Brexit, except for her announcement in October that London would trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty by the end of March next year to start a two-year process that will divorce Britain from the EU .

In the past five months since she became Britain' s head of government, she visited Berlin and Paris in clear attempt to win friendship of fellow European leaders and create a less hostile environment for Britain' s exit talks.

Judged by the responses of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande, May failed to convince the other two parties of a dissolving EU Trio to soften their positions on Brexit, only to confirm earlier predictions that Germany and France won't let Britain have the pie and eat it - enjoying all the benefits of being a part of the European Common Market without shouldering its share of burden brought by an unprecedented influx of immigration into the bloc.

Outside Europe, she visited India to cement bilateral ties and lay the ground work for a post-Brexit FTA deal between the two countries.

It appeared that her charm offensive failed, as India' s mainstream media organizations during her visit hurled out headlines focusing on uncertainties surrounding the Brexit negotiations.

Uncertainties have dented Britain's growth prospects and diminished its hope for early arrangements leading to bilateral trade deals with countries outside EU.

"Brexit negotiation -- narrowly defined -- will be over in two years; but the creation of a post-Brexit environment... is going to take, certainly, far longer," British economist and writer Martin Wolf told Xinhua.

However, in an assessment of the complex road ahead for Britain as it seeks to create new economic and trade ties, Wolf warned that exit from the EU was merely the first step on the journey.

"We will be making up a new trade policy which will probably take us 20 years," said Wolf, who is the associate editor of the London-based daily newspaper Financial Times and also its chief economics commentator.

Britain' s decision to leave the EU also marked the start of a possible slide toward EU disintegration, which is sapping the global economy as well.

European integration is a plus factor for global economic growth and a reverse of the process would mean countries in other parts of the world have to talk one-on-one with European countries for cooperation, instead of talking to the whole bloc, said Song Chen, director of the Institute of European Studies affiliated with China' s Academy of Social Sciences.

Facing the difficult task to steer Britain away from the EU, May could at least take comfort in the fact that Trump, unlike his predecessor Barack Obama, openly expressed support to Brexit and has signaled intentions for closer ties with post-Brexit Britain.

ANTONIO GUTERRES: REFUGEE CRISIS AS PRIORITY

Antonio Guterres, former head of the UN refugee agency, topped all the six straw polls under the UN' s new selection process and won the 9th secretary general of the world body.

The consensus of the 193-member states in supporting him show that he is probably the best choice to address daunting challenges facing the world, such as the refugee crisis, a rise in unconventional security threats and trade protectionism.

The former Portuguese prime minister had been the head of the UN refugee agency UNHCR for 10 years up to 2015, and tackled some of the largest displacement crises across the world, particularly in Syria and Iraq.

Michael Williams, a former UN under secretary general, said that Guterres is "extremely well-qualified" for the post, not only because of his political savvy.

"In selecting him many members of the Security Council were not only recognizing that he had acquainted himself well in that post, but also acutely aware that migration and refugee issues are likely to continue to dominate the international agenda in the coming years," Williams wrote in an article published on the website of London-based think tank Chatham House.

Guterres has been in the thick of the Syrian refugee crisis in recent years. According to the UNHCR, over 1 million people fled to Europe in 2015 and half of them were Syrians escaping the war at home.

In an interview with Xinhua after his appointment, the secretary-general designate said he would do his best to address the conflicts worldwide, especially the one in Syria, vowing to place peace as the most pressing issue on his agenda.

"He will now be in a position not just to address the challenges of large-scale movements, but to take concrete actions to address the causes that have forced so many from their homes. It is a mighty task and expectations are high," said Elizabeth Ferris, a nonresident senior fellow in the Foreign Policy program at the U.S. think tank Brookings, in an article published on the institution' s website.

Reform is another aspect the world is looking to Guterres. While vying for the UN top job, he told the TIME magazine in a July interview that "reform is a permanent attitude and coordination a permanent must."

"We look to him to efficiently and effectively manage the Secretariat and advance much needed reforms to enhance the UN's ability to face the challenges of this century," said British Ambassador to the UN Matthew Rycroft after Guterres' appointment.

Guterres has been planning so, as he told Xinhua during a visit to China in November that the UN is excessively bureaucratic and enormous efforts are needed to simplify procedures and decentralize decisions in order to realize quick deployment and to effectively address common challenges.

"I want the UN to be a UN that is more effective, more cost-effective, but more able to deliver to the people we care for all over the world, and a UN that is a platform for dialogue, for understanding and for respect of all cultures and all religions in the world," Guterres said.
Hugh Glass just wont die.

Resurrected in spirit 183 years after his murder, the mountain man continues to stoke research into the few crumbs available detailing his grisly life, grizzly mauling and eventual violent death at the hands of Indians.

Earlier this year Glass gained worldwide attention with the release of The Revenant, a lushly filmed movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The film dramatized a portion of Glass incredible life: when he survived a harrowing grizzly bear attack and vengefully tracked down the men who left him for dead.

Now mountain man researcher and aficionado Clay Landry, of Whitehall, has shed more light on Glass real-life demise with publication of an article he wrote for The Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Journal.

I confirm who died with Glass, Landry said, as well as narrowing down when he died.

Many accounts

There are few references to Glass in historical records. Although literate, he apparently carried no diary. Yet his harrowing tale has inspired 10 books by nine authors that are still in publication. Hugh Glass Grizzly Survivor by James D. McLaird is the most recent addition, coming out in May. Two older publications  Hugh Glass and the Grizzly Bear by Rufus B. Sage published in 1857, and Glass and the Bear by George Frederick Augustus Ruxton, published in 1847  date much closer to the Glass era.

Now Landry has added his voice to the historical record with the article Hugh Glass: The Rest of the Story, which was printed this fall.

Actually, I correct history with that article, said Landry, who helped prepare members of the cast of The Revenant in the ways of the fur trapping age to ensure authenticity.

Killed in 1833

At some time during the winter of 1833, Glass and his two companions set out from a small fur trading post built about three miles east of the confluence of the Yellowstone and Bighorn rivers, known as Fort Cass  about 60 miles northeast of present-day Billings.

At the time, Glass was employed as a hunter for the fort. Accompanying him were two men with the last names of Rose and Menard. All three were killed in an Indian attack.

They scalped them and left part of the Scalps of each tied to poles on the grounds of the murder, according to a letter written by John F.A. Sanford, an Indian agent, in a July 1833 letter to William Clark, superintendent of Indian Affairs. Landry includes the excerpt in his article.

This is the same Clark so well known for his exploration of the West with Meriwether Lewis between 1803 and 1806. The same Clark who essentially paved the way for folks like Glass and the fur companies that employed him.

Now named

According to Landrys research, the men accompanying Glass when he was ambushed by members of the Arikara Tribe were Hilain Menard and Colin Rose.

In the past, historians guessed who he died with, Landry said. Thats always been the byline for that.

The story is all the more remarkable because Glass life remains largely obscured by the passage of time because there are only scattered written accounts that mention the legendary trapper. Landry confirmed the full names of Menard and Rose from entries in the American Fur Companys Upper Missouri Outfit accounting ledgers. Microfiche copies of the ledgers are stored in the Montana Historical Societys archives in Helena.

As luck would have it at the bottom of the ledger page they had an entry for Colin and Menard  killed by Ree Indians, Landry said.

A hand-written notation made on the credit side of Menards account book page states, Killed by the Rees near Fort Cass Spring 1833, Landry wrote in his article. The word Rees was mountaineer slang for the Arikara tribe.

It was the coolest thing Ive ever found, Landry said. I wanted to kiss the clerk who put the note at the bottom of that ledger page.

Set straight

Previous accounts had speculated that Rose may have been Edward Rose, a mulatto who lived with the Crow. Landry said the ledger entry disproves that account, which was repeated by trappers of the time such as James Beckwourth.

He was famous for embellishing stories, Landry said.

The three trappers were buried on a nearby knoll overlooking the river valley. No archaeological survey has ever been made to locate Fort Cass or the mountain mens burial site, both of which are likely located on private property.

If we could find Glass grave we could memorialize him like we should, and prove that Beckwourth told another whopper, Landry said.

Closed account

It seems sad that the last accounting of Glass is a ledger showing he owed $544.50, a large sum but not unheard of for the time, according to Landry.

Each fur company wanted to keep the trappers in debt to them because that was assurance that the trapper  especially the free trappers  would be trading all of his fur to them, Landry said. The debts were large because the goods the trapper was buying from the company were charged to him at mountain prices, that is usually 1,000 percent more than the cost in the settlements.

Landry said he has seen ledger entries where some free trappers had run up their account to several thousand dollars.

When this happened they were usually getting extra trade goods to trade with the Indians as a method to bring in more fur without having to trap it themselves, he said.

In comparison to Glass, Menard owed $16.47 while Rose was indebted to the company for $17.58, Landrys research showed.

It was not uncommon for veteran trappers to run up sizable debts with the fur companies, Landry said. With beaver at $4 to $5 a pound it would take about 90 to 100 good Crow country beaver to cover most of what he owed. So I am sure that he was thinking that a good spring hunt would yield enough beaver to pay off his account with AMFC.

What comes around

Landry has spent a lot of time contemplating Glass unusual life, especially in the past year.

You know what the irony of the whole story is? said the retired banker. The first time Glass appears in the historical record hes with Ashley, William Henry Ashley, who was leading a group of 70 trappers up the Missouri River. While camped near an Arikara village in June 2, 1823, the trappers were attacked by the Indians. Fourteen trappers died and 10 were wounded, including Glass, who was shot in the leg.

Ashleys list of men wounded in this conflict is the first historical record of Hugh Glass as a member of the Henry/Ashley Company, Landry wrote. Andrew Henry was Ashleys partner in the venture.

In retaliation for the Indian assault, an Army force accompanied by trappers attacked and burned the Arikara village. Without a village, the rootless tribe spread out across the territory.

Because of the attack on the group of trappers, Ashley and Henry agreed to split the force of 70 men and travel overland rather than up the Missouri where more, possibly hostile, Indian tribes would be encountered.

And thats why Glass was in a position to be mauled by a grizzly bear, Landry said, a mauling that was so horrific that two of his companions  who had volunteered for extra pay to stay behind and bury him when he died  left him for dead.

The fact that members of the same Arikara Tribe were responsible for Glass death is just plumb bad luck, Landry said. Yet Glass bad luck has also added to the legend that has helped resurrect the trapper and his incredible story of survival for nearly two centuries.

Ive always been fascinated with these guys, Landry said, ever since he first viewed the Charlie Russell painting of bison climbing a bluff above the Missouri River titled When the Land Belonged to God. Trappers, he said, were some of the first whites to see the country like Russell depicted in that stunning painting.

Landry said he told script writers for The Revenant that Glass story was amazing without adding cinematic changes.

I told them, Just tell the guys life story. Its fascinating in its own right.
We are sorely in need of some cheerful news out of Washington, so Im going to tell you Barbara Mikulskis story about the Senate restrooms.

Mikulski, 80, has served in Congress longer than any other woman in history. Shes retiring this month after representing Maryland for 30 years in the Senate. Before that she spent 10 years in the House. She was a social worker who got into Democratic politics during a battle to stop a planned highway that was threatening the ethnic Baltimore neighborhoods she loved. It was an unusual career route at the time, but she was an unusual person.

One of the things they said was that I didnt look the part, Mikulski, who is 4-foot-11, recalled.  you know, chunky and I have a definite blue-collar style, so I wasnt to the manner born, to the trust fund inherited.

The classic way for a woman to win a seat in the Senate was to follow a famous male relative. Many of her predecessors were widows who succeeded their husbands. Nancy Kassebaum, the only other woman in the Senate when Mikulski arrived, was the daughter of the Republican presidential candidate Alf Landon.

When the Senate was in session and Kassebaum needed to use the bathroom, she had to stand in line at the womens room used by the tourists.

Mikulski immediately eyed a lounge that was set aside for the senators wives. It was, she recalled in an interview, a memento of the days when women would come over dressed in hats and gloves and sit adoringly listening to their husbands.

Once she explained her plight, the wives invited Mikulski and Kassebaum to use their lounge, which became their refuge until 1992. That was when four new women were elected to the Senate, making a grand total of six. The media announced the Year of the Women. It was a title that Mikulski took with, um, a grain of salt: Wow, we get our own year  like the Year of the Caribou, the Year of the Mushroom, the Year of the Asparagus.

They also got their own very modest two-stall bathroom. By 2013 there were 20 women in the Senate and waiting lines in the loo. Mikulski recalled that the Rules Committee, which controlled such matters, wanted to create an elegant place with a chandelier and little sinks with slim legs.

We wanted low cost. We didnt want anything fancy or expensive, but we wanted maximum functionality  the way women use a bathroom and not the way men think women use a bathroom, she recounted.

In the end, functionality won. The new bathroom had two more stalls, an extra sink and shelves in which each senator had her own basket to store combs, brushes, makeup, whatever.

And so when I leave theyll retire my basket.  Its kind of like retiring your jersey, Mikulski said.

In Washington, Mikulski has always exhibited a highly unusual combination of feistiness and bipartisanship. Susan Collins, a Republican senator from Maine, recalled that when she first arrived, Mikulski immediately reached out.

She didnt know me from Adam  or perhaps I should say from Eve, Collins said in a recent tribute on the Senate floor. Yet, despite the difference in our seniority, our states and our parties, she took me under her wing.  She taught me the ropes of the appropriations process and instituted regular bipartisan dinners for the women of the Senate.

Those dinners have become famous. In the beginning, they were held in a Senate room named after the late Strom Thurmond, an infamous pincher of ladies bottoms.

Next session, women will compose 19.5 percent of Congress.

We went from 104 to 104  down one in the House, up one in the Senate, reported Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers.

Obviously we could do better, but on the plus side, were just a sliver away from passing Equatorial Guinea when it comes to gender diversity in the nations legislature.

Recently Mikulski and Collins invited their female colleagues for coffee, to welcome the latest generation of newcomers. It was a final gesture of outreach as Mikulski moved on into Senate history.

She deserves some kind of permanent memorial. Maybe they could put a plaque in that bathroom. Or better yet, they could rename the Strom Thurmond Room in her honor.
This is Up and Down, where we give a brief thumbs up and thumbs down on the issues from the past week.

Up

On Wednesday Simle Middle School Principal Russ Riehl received the Patriot Award from the U.S. Department of Defense. The award is given employers who show support for members of the National Guard and Reserves. Riehl was nominated by Kalli Swenson, an eighth-grade physical education teacher at Simle, who will be deployed to Afghanistan next month. It will be her second deployment. Swenson says she appreciates Riehls support and the fact that she will have a job waiting for her. Both Riehl and Swenson deserve our thanks. Swenson expects to be gone for a year. Its difficult for anyone to leave home for that long and Riehls support is appreciated. Its this kind of cooperation that allows Guard and Reserve members to serve.

Down

If only we could control the weather. Its shaping up to be a long winter where we measure the snow by feet, not inches. North Dakotans can deal with harsh conditions 31-below temps, snow and wind  but it doesnt make it any easier. An example of how the weather impacts our daily lives is the urea plant project in Mercer County. Workers have to dress differently, take more breaks from the cold and suspend crane operations on windy days. All we can do is help each other and start counting the days until spring. Unfortunately, winter just officially started on Wednesday. The first day of spring is March 20, thats 85 days.

Up

Open Your Heart created and delivered 377 food packages to families in Burleigh County last week. The Lloyd Spetz Post 1 of the American Legion has been doing this for 87 years. Thats a lot of families that have had a happier holiday because of veterans and volunteers. Young and old come out every year to help. The Legion could still use some help since they are short of their cash goal. Its been a tough year for the Legion, Salvation Army and others trying to meet fundraising targets. Those who would like to help Open Your Heart can send donations to Lloyd Spetz Post 1 American Legion, P.O. Box 573, Bismarck, N.D. 58502-0573. They will appreciate it as they plan for the 88th year of giving.

Down

Once again North Dakota has had to go to court to protect an industry. The U.S. Department of Interior released its final Stream Protection Rule last week. The state filed suit against the rule arguing its unconstitutional and infringes on the states authority to regulate mining and reclamation. Public Service Commission Chairwoman Julie Fedorchak said the rule applies more to the type of coal mining operations undertaken in the eastern part of the country in the Appalachians. She said the rule doesn't take into account the geography of states such as North Dakota. If the rule stands it could prevent mining in certain areas. These last minute rules coming out of the Obama administration should never have been released.

Up

North Dakota continues to grow despite the slowdown in the oil patch. Our population hit a record 757,952 in 2016 despite some workers leaving the Bakken. Theres no reason to believe we cant continue to grow. The state has enjoyed the good times and handled the tough times. In the oil patch the infrastructure is in place for a revival of drilling and across the state steps are being taken to improve the economy. The states population started increasing in 2004, enough years to indicate growth will continue. There are more opportunities for our graduates and that also bodes well for the state.